What was the last film you watched?

[Asterix, the former Gaul.]

Local Hero

Giggled all the way through it and when I wasn't giggling tried to work out who all the young people were. Jenny Seagrove had particularly interesting feet.

Among other things.

[Mr Larrington]

A Good Day To Shoot An Extended Mercedes Commercial Die Hard

Bruce Willis and his vest kill lots of bad guys and jump off things while other things explode, with extra helichopters.

Just one thing, Bruce, how did you get a stolen car with a boot full of guns lots of guns across an international frontier?

[Ruthie]

A Good Day To Shoot An Extended Mercedes Commercial Die Hard

Bruce Willis and his vest kill lots of bad guys and jump off things while other things explode, with extra helichopters.

Just one thing, Bruce, how did you get a stolen car with a boot full of guns lots of guns across an international frontier?

In his vest obv.

[Mr Larrington]

Commando

Arnie kills lots of bad guys and jumps off things while other things explode.  Loads of killin's but helichopter activity a bit low-key.  And what was Vernon Wells' jumper made from?

"Possibly the greatest movie ever made" - Cosmo Larringsman

[Kim]

Just one thing, Bruce, how did you get a stolen car with a boot full of guns lots of guns across an international frontier?

In his vest obv.

Quite.  One of the first things they teach you in the guarding module at henchperson college: Don't try to stop Bruce when he's wearing a vest.

[jsabine]

The Ecstasy of Wilko Johnson
This was tucked away on the BBC late one night over the xmas holidays (still available on iPlayer, but only in the sign-language version it seems) so I recorded it knowing Mark Kermode rates it. Wow, it's brilliant, life-affirming stuff. Wilko is very eloquent about his life and experiences and how his recent diagnoses have affected him and his philosophy. I'd always written him off as a bit of a shallow, 1970s speed-head punk, but no, I was wrong, he has quite some depth. I am now tempted to catch Dr Feelgood at a gig this month 
[/quote]

NB,  of course, that Wilko Johnson =/ Dr Feelgood ... and hasn't since  about 1977

[Steph]

A couple of recent TV watches-

Behind the Candleabra- Michale Douglas as Liberace and Matt Damon as his aide. A film I enjoyed. I can't quite work out if Douglas and Damon were overcamping it or whether that was the actual affectation of the subjects though.

Daleks Invavsion earth 2150 A.D.. proper Olde Skool sci fi complete with warbly electronic voices, men in black PVC overalls and aliens on rollers

BTC I enjoyed, and saw at the cinema, where there was a lot of knowing laughter. "Sweetie, you're snoring"

DIE was always my preferred film to The Other Dalek Film. Very, very camp.

[Ruthie]

Seen this weekend with mcshroom.

Paddington.
Still fabulous and brilliant and lovely.

The Imitation Game.
Very good.  For once Keira Knightley had rationing as an explanation for being emaciated so didn't grate too much.

The Hundred Foot Journey
With that Helen Mirren.  Most enjoyable and made me want to go to France and have a tandoori.

Star Wars Force Awakens.
All right,  for a re-make.  Hopefully the next episode will be better.

[mattc]

The Imitation Game.
Very good.  For once Keira Knightley had rationing as an explanation for being emaciated so didn't grate too much.

that's rather harsh, but also rather funny.

[LEE]

A couple of recent TV watches-

Behind the Candleabra- Michale Douglas as Liberace and Matt Damon as his aide. A film I enjoyed. I can't quite work out if Douglas and Damon were overcamping it or whether that was the actual affectation of the subjects though.

Overcamping Liberace?

Did you never see Liberace? You'd do yourself a mischief trying to overcamp him.

[LEE]

Kingsman: The Secret Service

Colin Firth unleashing some truly epic violence in a church is something to behold.

Thoroughly over the top and all the more enjoyable for it.

I'm inclined to think that the Bond franchise has been left with nowhere to go.  Jason Bourne grabbed the gritty realism and Kingsman grabbed the self-parody and gadgets.

[Ruthie]

The Imitation Game.
Very good.  For once Keira Knightley had rationing as an explanation for being emaciated so didn't grate too much.

that's rather harsh, but also rather funny.

I can't watch her without shouting 'eat more pies' repeatedly at the screen. 

[Andrew]

I think everyone should eat more pies. Pies are good for you.

[Ruthie]

I think everyone should eat more pies. Pies are good for you.

Yes.  They are.

[Jaded]

I think everyone should eat more pies. Pies are good for you.

< wanders off to the kitchen to look for pies.

[LEE]

Commando An Arnie Film

Arnie kills lots of bad guys and jumps off things while other things explode. 

FTFY

Although he's perfectly cast in the Terminator films, 1 & 2, and "Last Action Hero" is much, much, better than you'd ever think was possible*

* I never expected Arnie to send himself up.

[Mr Larrington]

I think everyone should eat more pies. Pies are good for you.

You won't find any pies in my kitchen.

Coz I eated them all om nom nom nom burp.

[redshift]

I think everyone should eat more pies. Pies are good for you.

You won't find any pies in my kitchen.

Coz I eated them all om nom nom nom burp.

... And the rest are in my freeeeezer, 'cos Booths by work was filling the shitbin with Topping's delicious PIES on Christmas Eve, and 90p reduced from £4.50 meant it was worth filling my rucksack with cranberry-topped pork-and-or-turkey yumminess.  Uurp.   

[Woofage]

The Book Thief

Miss W's favourite book so based on that recommendation we got the DVD. I had no idea about the story, such as the plot or the period during which it was set. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's a sad story and delicately told with the lead actors playing their parts very well. A reminder of both how kind and also how cruel people can be to one another.

[Andrew]

Room Intense; particularly the first hour where the reality of the situation gradually unfolds (helps if you know nothing of the story in advance, and I mean nothing)  At times it's not an easy watch (the grainy film gives it a realistic edge) but it is an uplifting story with an optimistic message, even if there might be professional opinion that could challenge that.  On rare occasions, it does come across a tad trite and that does diminish the power of an otherwise excellent film.

Most notable for me was the performance of the 5 year old boy, from whose perspective the story is mainly told. That perspective in itself is revealing, and asks many questions, but the young actor handles it with with an assuredness that belies his youth and gives the story on-screen credibility. A recommended film.

[T42]

Battle of the Five Armies.  Piffle, boilerplated out of American soaps and action films of low wit.  Fortunately, one of our dogs livened up the evening by piddling on the Bukhara.

[hillbilly]

Wild

A woman undertakes a personal and actual journey to overcome the sense of loss felt when in response to a personal tragedy. 

Good central performance by Reese Wetherspoon, but I felt it lacked emotional punch because she played it without much warmth.  My limited empathy came more from from her situation rather than how she portrays the person.  Which is probably understandable given the background story to the character she was playing.

Part of me was anticipating a film along the lines of Into the Wild (not just because of the title!) because of the general theme of searching for meaning in the wilderness.  In that (superior) film it was the scenery that felt menacing and alive.  Instead, in Wild, the personal journey didn't feel as epic or as challenging.  The threat in Wild came from the people she met along the trail from time to time which I guess was a metaphor of sorts for life in general.

I felt underwhelmed by the end of the film, around 2 hours after it started.  It never really grabbed me as saying anything particularly profound, or at least not as profound as it gave the impression of wanting to be, and I was left thinking more could have been done with the source material (albeit it is based on a true story).

[Steph]

I watched that a while ago. Excellent attention to the detail of a newbie with too much kit, but never seemed to go anywhere.

[Ruthie]

I love Wild.

The chief danger she faces is herself.  She'd have died if she'd continued her old life. 

And the best thing in it was Laura Dern as her mum - an outstanding performance.

[Chris S]

The Last Samurai.

Sword-tastic