Explore
 Lists  Reviews  Images  Update feed
Categories
MoviesTV ShowsMusicBooksGamesDVDs/Blu-RayPeopleArt & DesignPlacesWeb TV & PodcastsToys & CollectiblesComic Book SeriesBeautyAnimals   View more categories »
Listal logo
3
vote
322 Views    Share:

BradWesley123's Movie Journal- September 2018

Movie list created by BradWesley123 Avatar

Sort by: Showing 33 items
Decade: Rating: List Type:
Add items to section

September 1st

People who added this item 3009 Average listal rating (2071 ratings) 7.5 IMDB Rating 7.8
Hot Fuzz (2007)


Netflix- 2hrs.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 2nd

People who added this item 266 Average listal rating (151 ratings) 6.9 IMDB Rating 6.9
Dead Again (1991)

Amazon Prime- 1hr. 47min.
First Viewing
Dead Again is a mixed bag of a film; brimming with potential at every turn, but only following through infrequently. It's a great setup; a fantasy story about past lives wrapped up in a detective story. Unfortunately, director Kenneth Branagh seems more taken with the fantasy elements than the gumshoe ones, leading to a lopsided film. In the lead role, he doesn't quite bring the weary gravitas necessary for the character to sing, though the rest of the cast is right at home with this (especially Thompson, who's superb in just about everything she's in). Stars with a lot of potential, but slowly deflates before reaching a flat ending. That said, it's exceptionally well-made, and there are enough strong moments here and there to warrant a recommendation.

Monthly Wesley Award
Best Score- Patrick Doyle
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 89 Average listal rating (50 ratings) 6.7 IMDB Rating 7

DVD- 1hr. 56min.
First Viewing
Though it can get a bit too "important" for its own good, patching in interviews with the real people at the center of the story, American Animals is a smart, taut heist with more on it's mind than cinematic thrills. When you include the real life versions of your characters on screen, you're begging to be called out for self-importance, and Animals does fall into that at times. That said, seeing the ways perception works, differentiating between the storytellers, adds some flavor to the film; that nobody quite knows every detail of their own story adds intrigue to the proceedings, allowing the audience to question some, presumed, motivations. At it's core, though, it's a solid heist film, that works when it marries it's smaller character moments and the specificity of the theft, and it does so often. It helps that the cast is terrific, with a pair of exceptional performance for Barry Keoghan and Evan Peters. Could be more consistent with it's integration of real figures and the characters, but it's a compelling film all the same.

Monthly Wesley Awards
Best Supporting Actor- Evan Peters
Best Editing- Nick Fenton, Chris Gill, Julian Hart
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 3rd

People who added this item 710 Average listal rating (456 ratings) 5.6 IMDB Rating 6
The Rite (2011)

DVD- 1hr. 54min.
First Viewing
Anytime Anthony Hopkins is onscreen, The Rite becomes a, somewhat, entertaining and effective possession-horror film. Unfortunately, he doesn't get anywhere near enough screentime and the film's lead, Colin O'Donoghue, gives one of the most uncharismatic and lifeless performances that I've seen in years. The film itself is, mostly, bland and forgettable, with nothing of genuine note.
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 867 Average listal rating (574 ratings) 6.5 IMDB Rating 6.8

Amazon Prime- 1hr. 56min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 7th

People who added this item 104 Average listal rating (64 ratings) 6.3 IMDB Rating 6.5
Anna (2014)

Amazon Prime- 1hr. 38min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 8th

People who added this item 97 Average listal rating (65 ratings) 5.2 IMDB Rating 5.9

Netflix- 1hr. 45min.
First Viewing
There's potential for a fun and genuine high school dramedy at the core of Sierra Burgess is a Loser, but it get's too muddled to reach it. It wants to be something akin to a modern day John Hughes film; it succeeds in many respects, but, unfortunately, it emulates some Hughes's social blindspots. We're supposed to sympathize with the lead, despite that fact that she does some fairly terrible things to the people around her. While the film's lesson is, ostensibly, about acceptance in one's flaws, it only really extends to the lead character; supporting characters simply have to submit to the pain she inflicts, but forgive her because she just doesn't accept herself. While it could've made for a smart story, about the ways that self-pity and misunderstanding can lead us to make alienating decisions to the people around without knowing it, Sierra Burgess is content to hit the teen movie checkmarks. It does hit them, but it does so in a weird, often off-putting way.
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 706 Average listal rating (481 ratings) 6.5 IMDB Rating 6.9

Amazon Prime- 2hrs. 21min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 9th


FilmStruck- 1hr. 56min.
First Viewing
An incredibly engrossing legal mystery, Billy Wilder's adaptation of Agatha Christie's Witness for the Prosecution perfectly blends his acerbic, terse wit with her mastery of plotting and suspense. Like most of Wilder's films, there's a something surprisingly modern about the film; the sheen of classic filmmaking, but with sensibilities (i.e. characterizations, dialogue) of contemporary cinema. There's not a department in this production that's lacking; it's exceptional film that is surprisingly, for it's age, entertaining.

Monthly Wesley Awards
Best Picture
Best Classic Picture
Best Actress- Marlene Dietrich
Best Supporting Actress- Elsa Lanchester
Best Adapted Screenplay- Billy Wilder and Harry Kurnitz
Best Classic Production Design- Alexandre Trauner and Howard Bristol
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 98 Average listal rating (65 ratings) 6 IMDB Rating 6.6

DVD- 1hr. 36min.
First Viewing
Adrift has a storyline, and a last act twist, that's just too familiar, but it also has a compelling performance from Shailene Woodley and strong filmmaking. It's always going to be tough to make this kind of story into a compelling film, but the screenplay takes an easy out; framing the emotional heft and significance around a late twist that most watching will have caught early on. While it's handled with less of an exploitative "gotcha", it still doesn't mitigate it all that much. Even before that, too, the story is handled too blandly to really make that twist hit all that hard. It's a good thing that the film is so solidly made, with a very strong work from, in particular, the cinematographer (multi-Oscar winner Robert Richardson) and sound team. That said, the movie doesn't work, when it does, without Woodley's work, which picks up a fair amount of the slack from the script; she sells the emotion of the film, holding your attention even as the film falters.

Monthly Wesley Award
Best Sound
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 10th

People who added this item 620 Average listal rating (412 ratings) 5.9 IMDB Rating 6.3

Netflix- 1hr. 41min.
First Viewing
Reborn could've used a rewrite. A snide pun? Sure. An inaccurate pun though? Not one bit. The film traffics in flaccid slapstick; jokes that require energy and timing that this film can rarely muster. There a couple of laughs (Atkinson trying his damnedest to enliven this things assures that), but they're nowhere near enough to make this recommendable.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 12th


Netflix- 1hr. 49min.
First Viewing
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is the film version of that one kid in class who is desperate for both your attention and admiration. It's hard to argue that there isn't wit and ingenuity on display here. Objectively, the material is brimming with creativity that is difficult not to appreciate. Unfortunately, it's also desperate; it'll won't just let something happen, it'll announce that it's happening so you'll know just how smart it is. Great material doesn't draw attention to itself, it simply tells a story. It's just too hit or miss. If it would slow down and let things play out, then it would've been a stronger, smarter, more fun film. It's certainly well made; the production design, costumes, makeup and visual effects call to mind a cult 1970s sci-fi flick, enough so that it's just fun to look at the film (I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me forget about the everything-at-once storytelling approach). The cast does what they can, but they're, essentially, being directed to play the material to a 20, when a solid seven or eight would've sufficed. It's too interesting, clever and, occasionally, entertaining to completely write off, but it's too much to really appreciate completely.

Monthly Wesley Awards
Best Costume Design (Fantasy)- Sammy Sheldon
Best Production Design (Fantasy)- Joel Collins and Kate Beckly
Best Makeup
Best Visual Effects
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 13th

People who added this item 17 Average listal rating (8 ratings) 5.4 IMDB Rating 6.3

Netflix- 1hr. 34min.
First Viewing
It takes the route of narrative convenience too often, especially in the last act, but The Keeping Hours is an effectively emotional and, often, heartbreaking film with strong directorial control and two excellent performances. The script doesn't really dig in the way it should; while it gets enough right, one wishes that it would strip away several of the contrivances and cliches that it uses, and goes further in illustrating the central relationships at the story's core (i.e. I wanted more time with the couple before their troubles begin). That said, director Karen Moncrieff wisely keeps everything lean, and let's Carrie Coon and Lee Pace steer the film. Both give exceptional performances (Coon is great, as always; I'm not sure Pace has ever been better) that sell the story's weight with ease. While the ending is a bit disappointing, it doesn't take away from the emotional work done before that. At it's best, the movie realistically examines the hardships of grief, letting go and moving on; luckily, it's at it's best quite frequently.
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 49 Average listal rating (36 ratings) 6.3 IMDB Rating 6.3

Netflix- 1hr. 29min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 14th

People who added this item 244 Average listal rating (155 ratings) 7.6 IMDB Rating 7.5

FilmStruck- 1hr. 46min.
First Viewing
The story doesn't quite spark here, which is largely because Dark Passage concentrates more on it's filmmaking prospects than storytelling ones. It's cinematography is revolutionary in the way that it uses POV shots, putting the audience in the lead role. While this makes the film engaging in the first act, it works against the film in the second. The film has focused so much on style that it's forgot about the substance. It's solid, sure, but it's feels more like a knock on the window than a breakthrough.

Monthly Wesley Award
Best Classic/Black-and-White Cinematography- Sid Hickox
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 15th

People who added this item 1139 Average listal rating (708 ratings) 8.3 IMDB Rating 8.1
The Third Man (1949)

Netflix- 1hr. 44min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 16th

People who added this item 174 Average listal rating (112 ratings) 6.5 IMDB Rating 6.8
Flawless (2007)

Hulu- 1hr. 48min.
First Viewing
With a title like Flawless, this one was setting itself up for failure from the start. That said, though, the film isn't all that bad, it's just really bland. It's exceptionally made and solidly acted (particularly Caine), and the idea of socially-marginalized people attempting to break free from there roles is, genuinely, interesting; if only the script had been stronger. It's stately and restrained, to a fault; the script by Edward Anderson get's the overall story right, but fails to infuse it with real emotion and personality, and director Michael Radford doesn't do much to go beyond the page. Solid but, unfortunately, not very involving.

Monthly Wesley Awards
Best Costume Design (Period)- Dinah Collin
Best Production Design (Period)- Sophie Becher and Christina Schaffer
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 89 Average listal rating (73 ratings) 5.4 IMDB Rating 5.8
Extinction (2018)

Netflix- 1hr. 35min.
First Viewing
The twist in the last act is rather nifty, and raises a litany of interesting narrative possibilities; if it come earlier in the film, it might've saved this one. Aside from the end, Extinction is a turgid film that squanders it's premise on cliched storytelling and bland filmmaking.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 17th

People who added this item 163 Average listal rating (108 ratings) 5.5 IMDB Rating 6

DVD- 1hr. 25min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 18th

People who added this item 160 Average listal rating (109 ratings) 6 IMDB Rating 6.1

Amazon Prime- 2hrs. 3min.
First Viewing
At first, The Russia House appears to have everything going for it. Great leads, confident direction, and Le Carre source material. It takes about 45 minutes to an hour to realize that all of this is really just for show; despite all of these elements, the film is a frequent bore, with little plot movement or character growth. Things just happen, and then it ends. It's impressively mounted, but hollow.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 19th

People who added this item 542 Average listal rating (362 ratings) 5 IMDB Rating 5.4
Spy Hard (1996)

Netflix- 1hr. 20min.
First Viewing
I had seen bits and pieces before, but never from beginning to end. And boy, I gotta tell ya, I regret the decision to amend that. I knew it would be bad; hell, I was hoping it would be. I was hoping for a quick, stupid comedy that could give me a few guilty laughs. To it's credit, I did get a few laughs out of it; unfortunately, it was usually to just how unfunny the jokes were. "What the fuck is this?" is my go to phrase for a bad movie moment; I asked it several times watching this. Even Leslie Nielsen, who's deadpan timing can usually save these things, seems bored by this. Maybe he knew it just wasn't worth the effort. At least he got paid for it. I certainly wish I was.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 20th

People who added this item 235 Average listal rating (170 ratings) 5.9 IMDB Rating 6.1

HBO Now- 1hr. 47min.
First Viewing
It starts off with a tantalizing prospect; a murder mystery at the White House. That promise is quickly wiped away, as Murder at 1600 instead opts to be a ridiculously convoluted conspiracy thriller. If it was truly awful, it might have been entertaining but, unfortunately, it's just a bland mess that wastes a solid cast and excellent setup.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 21st

People who added this item 1416 Average listal rating (834 ratings) 5.9 IMDB Rating 6.1

Netflix- 1hr. 41min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 22nd

People who added this item 704 Average listal rating (510 ratings) 5.4 IMDB Rating 6.2

DVD- 2hrs.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 23rd

People who added this item 781 Average listal rating (520 ratings) 6.6 IMDB Rating 7.1
Runaway Jury (2003)

HBO Now- 2hrs. 7min.
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 175 Average listal rating (124 ratings) 7.4 IMDB Rating 7.1

DVD- 1hr. 53min.
First Viewing
The slow-burn of the descent a man's faith powers First Reformed, and writer/director Paul Schrader does a hell of a job capturing this crisis in quietly powerful ways. His calm, static direction capturing the isolation of Ernst, beautifully realizing his collapse. While Schrader's written an upper-tier script, and his direction is subtly superb, the film doesn't work without Hawke's performance; a quietly powerful collapse, or possibly an awakening, he performs every scene so genuinely that it feels deeper than acting. The fact that he, and the film, was snubbed at the Oscars was one of the greatest crimes of an already egregious awards season, but awards won't be the final say on this one. Love it or hate it, it'll be studied in film classes for years to come.

Monthly Wesley Awards
Best Director- Paul Schrader
Best Actor- Ethan Hawke
Best Original Screenplay- Paul Schrader
Best Modern Cinematography- Alexander Dyan
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 24th

People who added this item 733 Average listal rating (458 ratings) 5.9 IMDB Rating 6.3

Netflix- 1hr. 44min.
First Viewing
It's cliched, contrived, and infinitely manipulative, but I'd be lying if I said No Reservations was a bust. It's exceptionally well-made, with a pair of well-matched leads that enliven the material at every turn. The script does little to break free of typical genre trappings, but director Scott Hicks is able to take them and, at least, try to give them, something approximating, genuine. Not much, but an okay way to pass the time.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 25th

People who added this item 1640 Average listal rating (996 ratings) 6.3 IMDB Rating 6.5

DVD- 1hr. 44min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 26th

People who added this item 311 Average listal rating (202 ratings) 4.9 IMDB Rating 5.6

DVD- 1hr. 35min.
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 29th

People who added this item 290 Average listal rating (167 ratings) 5.7 IMDB Rating 5.9
Nancy Drew (2007)

Netflix- 1hr. 39min.
First Viewing
Nancy Drew is perfectly fine. It asks nothing of you, the audience member, and it gives a few solid laughs, an okay story, and decent filmmaking. While she leans a bit too hard into teen-actor mugging, Emma Roberts does well in the title role, giving her a bubbly charm that enlivens most of the film around her. The story isn't much, but it has enough juice that it's passable, if you don't ask too much.

Monthly Wesley Award
Best Costume Design (Contemporary)- Jeffrey Kurland
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 5077 Average listal rating (3449 ratings) 6 IMDB Rating 6.6

DVD- 2hrs. 29min.
Monthly Wesley Award
Best Rewatch
BradWesley123's rating:
Add items to section

September 30th

People who added this item 51 Average listal rating (33 ratings) 6.1 IMDB Rating 6.1

FilmStruck- 1hr. 33min.
First Viewing
"SHE'S A LOOKER...!!" wails Sue Saad in the title track for Looker. I don't remember much about this film, but I'll be damned if I ever forget Saad's rallying cry. As for what I recall of the film? There were some interesting ideas, but none of them are really given room to breath, and the filmmaking ranges, inconsistently, from solid to baffling. It'll probably get a downtrodden, moody remake in a few years, one that'll make this look pristine. So, there's that, at least.
BradWesley123's rating:
People who added this item 53 Average listal rating (34 ratings) 4.3 IMDB Rating 4.8

DVD- 1hr. 44min.
First Viewing
"Simply beautiful."

"An absolute stunner."

"The kind of film that restores your faith in the art of cinema."

"So fucking good; I orgasmed several times."

If you see one of these quotes in a review for Gotti, or a quote that even mildly resembles one of them, it's likely that you've clicked on a hazardous link and are having your financial information stolen. Nobody in their right mind could say anything close to positive about this film; even if you like this movie, it'll likely be with the acknowledgment that it's a turd. Stupidly written, functionally directed and hilariously acted, Gotti is a fake bad-movie trailer from another movie come to life. There's not a single moment in this movie that hasn't been done better in other, similarly-themed films, films (that includes, even, pornos). The only thing that really separates this film from other gangster films is it's soundtrack, which I, absolutely, do not mean as a compliment; Pitbull-laden (both new songs, which I only remember for endlessly stating Gotti's name in them, and old "classics"), with some real doozies peppered throughout (the "West End Girls" scene has to be seen to be believed). The worst crime this film commits, however, isn't a cinematic one, it's a storytelling on; it's assersion that John Gotti was just a good guy doing bad to protect the people he loved. He was not. He was a bad person. This is a bad film.


"Shit, but a lot of fun."


Monthly Wesley Awards
Worst Picture
Best Worst Picture
BradWesley123's rating:

Voters of this movie list - View all
Kandikathysdepy83

Numbers


Number of Movies Watched: 33
Newly Watched: 20
DVD: 10
VHS: 0
Blu-Ray: 0
Streaming: 23
: 5
: 3
: 2
: 1
: 12
Time Spent: 58hrs. 50min.

Critcal


Best New View: Witness for the Prosecution
Worst New View: Gotti

Added to

54 votes
All "Watched in 2018" lists on Listal (280 lists)
list by Triggerhappy6
Published 6 years ago 6 comments
4 votes
The Complete Wesley: 2018 Movie Journal (12 lists)
list by BradWesley123
Published 5 years, 8 months ago 1 comment



Related lists

100 Part Great Movie Survey
74 item list by โ™ฅ CHANi
12 votes 2 comments
The 100 Part Great Movie Survey
59 item list by NMartucci
13 votes 2 comments
The Mystery Exchange #2
20 item list by Nosoki
26 votes
Film Journal 2021
66 item list by Nerdy Werewolf
2 votes
Navaronen Tykit suuri vaihtariprojekti vol. 1
45 item list by Ruisperkele
22 votes 1 comment
Film Journal 2020
107 item list by Nerdy Werewolf
4 votes
30 days, 30 movies and 30 lists
30 item list by johanlefourbe
46 votes 19 comments
Film Journal 2019
26 item list by Nerdy Werewolf
2 votes
Watched in 2012
612 item list by Coby
93 votes 12 comments
Watched in 2013
674 item list by Coby
85 votes 7 comments

View more top voted lists

People who voted for this also voted for


More lists from BradWesley123