Miscellaneous Movie Musings

[flippyshark]

Orphan has a plot twist that I did not guess (which is rare for this kind of movie), but

Spoiler:

this is only because it was so flipping preposterous. Even if "Esther's secret" had occurred to me earlier, I would have dismissed it from my mind as too absurd.

Spoiler:

sub-spoiler - Yes, I know that there are little people who might be able to pass themselves off as children, but really, a serial orphan? On her fourth or fifth house? And no one caught on?

I didn't hate it. I was glad to see a horror movie that wasn't about teenagers, that generated suspense by putting sympathetic characters into a terrible situation, and there are terrific performances all around.

But boy is it silly.

[Alex]

That was the obvious conclusion I came up with early on before going a bit more off with a secondary possibility.

Spoiler:

The covering of the wrists certainly suggested earlier suicide attempt but covering the neck too let me to suspect that maybe it would turn out she was a vampire of some sort and therefore had stopped aging physically and the chokers were hiding the bite marks from when she was turned.

Silly, yes, but the genre is silly. Good performance from the girl, though.

[CoasterMatt]

Watched 'Reservoir Dogs' on bluray today- first time I'd seen that movie in a while. It's still neat to see my old neighborhood, and remember meeting Michael Madsen during a break in filming.

[Gemini Cricket]

Originally Posted by CoasterMatt

Watched 'Reservoir Dogs' on bluray today- first time I'd seen that movie in a while. It's still neat to see my old neighborhood, and remember meeting Michael Madsen during a break in filming.

Ah, yes. Back when Madsen was a hottie. I love RD. In fact, I like it wayyyy better than Pulp.

[Alex]

I was extremely intrigued by the early teasers but the later trailers have made it look more like an average action type movie.

But I'll still be there this weekend hoping for something good.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Early returns on Rotten Tomatoes are good.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Originally Posted by Ghoulish Delight

Early returns on Rotten Tomatoes are good.

Much better than good - 93% overall, with the top critics going 100%! (only 14 reporting but including Peter Travers and Roger Ebert...)

If this really is as intelligent and well-written an action film as they say it is, I absolutely must see it in the theater.

[Morrigoon]

Pete Carroll seemed to like it

[Gemini Cricket]

Duel in the Sun is on TCM.
Barf!
I don't know why but Jennifer Jones bugs me. She bugs me almost as bad as the expressionless Loretta Young.

[Snowflake]

Originally Posted by Gemini Cricket

Duel in the Sun is on TCM.
Barf!
I don't know why but Jennifer Jones bugs me. She bugs me almost as bad as the expressionless Loretta Young.

Well, Duel in the Sun is stunningly overblown cheese whiz of the highest calibre.

Poor Marion Davies got such a bad rap for heart financing her films and then had her career ruined by assumptions made based on Citizen Kane. Jones is another example, Selznick's obsession with her, my goodness there are some amazingly poor performances. I have great sentimental feelings for Portrait of Jennie, but other films ack.

Back to Duel in the Sun, worth it totally for the death scene of Lillian Gish and Lionel Barrymore's reaction. Makes me cry every time. Of course, King Vidor demanded his name be removed from the film, I can't remember if it was. And I do find the final creepy crawl over the rocks to be hilarious. The technicolor is overripe, too, but glorious. Joseph Cotten is the one the really bugs me. Well cast cheese still does smell awful sometimes.