Coco: up to the Pixar standard. I would say it is very good but not great, the visuals are stunning however.
We saw “Wonder” over Thanksgiving and really liked. It’s not perfect but is nice story, well told.
We also saw “The Man Who Invented Christmas,” which is a nice meditation on how Dickens wrote “A Christmas Carol.” Its history is basically accurate, with some fun bits imagined about how his creative process might have worked. Tidbit: I visited the Dickens Museum in Dougherty Street, London, last summer, which is where he wrote “Carol,” and sure enough, the movie reproduced it accurately. A nice touch of thoroughness that most people won’t notice or care about.
Christopher Plummer plays the Ebenezer Scrooge of Dickens’ imagination, and I’ve never seen a better Scrooge.
Anyway, if you like Dickens and “Carol” you’ll really enjoy the movie.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
I've been using Movie Pass for the last few weeks and love it.
Watched Coco and LadyBird last week. Loved Coco - incredible visually stunning movie. LadyBird - Meh, was ok, but not as good as the reviews are giving it.
“The Post” was almost unbearable because of its obvious agenda. Peggy Noonan is spot-on:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-lie...ost-1514505833Nixon did not start the Vietnam War, he ended it. His administration was not even mentioned in the Pentagon Papers, which were finished before he took office.
When that dark, sad man tried to halt publication of the document, he was protecting not his own reputation but in effect those of others. Those others were his political adversaries—Lyndon Johnson and Ben Bradlee’s friend JFK—who the papers revealed had misled the public. If Nixon had been merely self-interested, he would have faked umbrage and done nothing to stop their publication. Even cleverer, he could have decried the leaking of government secrets while declaring and bowing to the public’s right to know.
Instead, he did what he thought was the right thing—went to court to prevent the publication of secrets that might harm America’s diplomatic standing while it attempted to extricate itself from a war.
Being Nixon, of course, he had to crow, in a way that became public, that he was sticking it to those liberals in the press. His attempt to stop publication was wrong—the public did have a right to know. But he did what he thought was the responsible thing, and of course pays for it to this day.
Were the makers of “The Post” ignorant of all this? You might think so if it weren’t for the little coda they tag on to the end. Suddenly a movie about the Pentagon Papers is depicting the Watergate break-in, which would take place a year later. As if to say: OK, Nixon isn’t really the villain of our story, but he became a villain soon enough. It struck me not as a failed attempt at resolving a drama but an admission of a perpetrated injustice.
Why does all this matter? Because we are losing history. It is not the fault of Hollywood, as they used to call it, but Hollywood is a contributor to it.
When people care enough about history to study and read it, it’s a small sin to lie and mislead in dramas. But when people get their history through entertainment, when they absorb the story of their times only through screens, then the tendency to fabricate is more damaging.
Those who make movies and television dramas should start caring about this.
It is wrong in an age of lies to add to their sum total. It’s not right. It will do harm.
Last edited by LA Ute; 12-29-2017 at 05:02 PM.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
We saw “Darkest Hour” tonight. It’s excellent. Don’t go expecting any car chases - 😉 - but you’ll see Gary Oldman in an Oscar-worthy performance, as well as a ton of history about the political story behind the Dunkirk boatlift. I loved it.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
The other big problem with the post is that pentagon papers was a New York Times story. They took all the big risks and the Washington Post rode their coattails. Nyt prepared in advance the legal briefs and took the case to the supreme court; they gave the wapo all their legal work.
https://www.poynter.org/news/post-fi...e-accurate-one
Haven't seen the movie but I suspect the reason to tell it from the wapo perspective is the angle of Katherine Graham new woman in charge taking over for her husband who committed suicide and earning the respect of all the men in the newsroom. And a role for Meryl Streep.
We saw 3 billboards outside ebbing Missouri last night. It is a little dark, but terrific. Frances McDormand was wonderful, so was Woody Harrelson. Peter Dinklage copping a blue collar rural SW Missouri accent was a little out a character, though.
Last edited by concerned; 12-30-2017 at 10:23 AM.
Also, Noonan's explanation of Nixon's motives is not accurate. He was not selflessly acting to uphold a principle that protected the reputation of his enemies. His administration was terrified that publication would intensify public opposition and undermine his strategy to overwhelmingly bomb Cambodia and Laos (among other things, including drawing down American troops and attempting to have the S. Vietnamese take over the ground war) and force to North into more favorable peace talks, because the PP showed the entire rationale for the war was not believed by those in charge. Nixon didn't end the Viet Nam war, as Noonan says, he expanded it and lengthened it amid rising public opposition. And to say he ended it is not quite right either, since we got out (i.e., accepted defeat) after Ford became president.
Last edited by concerned; 12-30-2017 at 09:57 AM.
Review roundup for "Darkest Hour." There's a lot of history in the movie that I didn't know -- such as how hard Lord Halifax and Chamberlain were pushing for negotiations with Germany. It's a very interesting study of how one man, in the right place at the right time, can make a huge difference (in this case a difference for Western civilization).
https://www.google.com/search?kgmid=...ypoint=sh/x/kp
Last edited by LA Ute; 12-30-2017 at 10:04 AM.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
I’ve made it to several movies recently.
Wonder: awesome movie, everyone should go
Pitch Perfect 3: The weakest of the three but still funny
Jumanji: A fun flick, it was a good way to spend a couple hours
Star Wars: I quite liked it, yes it’s got some cheesiness but I enjoyed it and want to go again.
Murder On The Orient Express: A good movie, but a slow moving one. Definitely not one to take in while tired.
The Greatest Showman: I was thoroughly entertained. Worth the money.
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Darkest Hour is Fantastic! Everyone should see this movie.
"It'd be nice to please everyone but I thought it would be more interesting to have a point of view." -- Oscar Levant
Watched “catch me if you can” last night.
Never seen it. Excellent all the way around.
Even a couple of really funny moments.
Amazing that it’s based on a true story.
My dad heard Frank Abegnale speak about his story at a conferene 25 years ago, and recounted it to me. I immediately went out and found his auto-biography and read it. I was facinated by his story, almost too much to believe. The movie was a bit disappointing of course, with the liberties Hollywood takes to make it even more dramatic. But still very entertaining.
“To me there is no dishonor in being wrong and learning. There is dishonor in willful ignorance and there is dishonor in disrespect.” James Hatch, former Navy Seal and current Yale student.
Dunkirk. Fell asleep about seven times. Enjoyed a lot of it when I was awake. Probably shouldn't have watched it the night after my daughter was up all night barfing.
Watched the Greatest Showman on Monday. By the time I had seen it the hype train was chugging along pretty well, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I really enjoyed the music, and the story made me want to look into P.T. Barnum a little more. It's the kind of movie, at least for me that the longer I think about it, the more I like it, and I'll look forward to when it comes out on dvd/digital.
“It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress.”
Well, because he thought it was good sport. Because some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.
We saw “All the Money in the World“ Monday night. I liked it. It’s interesting and exciting, and I vaguely remember that episode from my youth. Christopher Plummer is great in the role of J. Paul Getty. We will always wonder, I guess, how Kevin Spacey would have done in the role. It’s impressive to think that Plummer did all of his scenes in about two weeks, after the movie had already been shot.
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
I watched the Phantom Thread over the weekend. Daniel Day Lewis is an underrated actor, he was superb. Its a movie about a women's fashion designer, which surprisingly, I enjoyed. Very well done, except the ending is a little strange. It's rated R for 4 or 5 F words
I have been doing a DDL resrospective on the treadmill the past couple of weeks. First Lincoln, and now My Left Foot. He is unbelievably good. I really want to go back and watch Unbearable Lightness of Being and In the Name of the Father, but they are not available (for free anyway) on Netflix or Amazon. Neither is There Will be Blood. Dont know if Gangs of NY is worth it.
There will be blood must have just recently dropped off netflix or amazon prime (can't remember which I watched it on, but I think it was netflix about 2 weeks ago). Amazing performance by him. Gangs of New York is a great, but rough movie too.
"I take your milkshake and drink it up!"
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."
--Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold."
--Yeats
“True, we [lawyers] build no bridges. We raise no towers. We construct no engines. We paint no pictures - unless as amateurs for our own principal amusement. There is little of all that we do which the eye of man can see. But we smooth out difficulties; we relieve stress; we correct mistakes; we take up other men's burdens and by our efforts we make possible the peaceful life of men in a peaceful state.”
--John W. Davis, founder of Davis Polk & Wardwell
There will be blood was dropped from netflix.
Last edited by concerned; 01-22-2018 at 04:14 PM.
Obviously nobody knows what Lincoln sounded like. In the movies, you get the Henry Fonda, Raymond Massey or even Sam Waterston baritone. But all his contemporaries said Lincoln had a high-pitched, shrill, tinny voice, which was incongruous with his 6'4" frame. I read somewhere that the high-pitch and shrillness was the reason his voice carried at Gettysburg.
Anyway, that was what DDL captured, which really was amazing, as you both say.
Weird coincidence, this is the Audible deal of the day today. Only $2.95.
https://mobile.audible.com/pd/Bios-M...7140_269557460
“To me there is no dishonor in being wrong and learning. There is dishonor in willful ignorance and there is dishonor in disrespect.” James Hatch, former Navy Seal and current Yale student.