Sunday, April 03, 2011

March movies

I saw some pretty good movies in March. Seven of the seventeen films I saw I rated a four or above. I finally got a chance to see the Australian crime film Animal Kingdom and it was great! It probably would have made my top ten list had I seen it in time. Other highlights of the month were a midnight screening of The Shining, getting to see a film print of Jacque Tati's 1967 masterpiece Play Time and watching Win Win, an early candidate to make the tops list for 2011. Low light of the month was definitely Robert Redford's The Conspirator, a tedious, pious snooze fest based around the trial of people connected to Abraham Lincoln's assassination. Avoid that one.

Time Bandits---1981---england   ****
Cedar Rapids---2011---usa   ****
Animal Kingdom---2010---australia   ****
Beautiful Losers---2008---usa   **
The Flying Scotsman---2006---england   ***1/2
The Company Men---2010---usa   ***
The Adjustment Bureau---2011---usa   **1/2
Wise Blood---1979---usa   **1/2
The Puffy Chair---2005---usa   ****
The Spirit of the Marathon---2005---usa   ***1/2
Limitless---2011---usa   ***1/2
The Conspirator---2011---usa   **
The Shining---1980---usa   *****!
Play Time---1967---france    *****!
Waiting for Hockney---2008---usa   ***
Pastry Kings---2009---usa   ***
Win Win---2011---usa   ****

5 comments:

Detrola said...

Puffy Chair is brilliant. Mucho gratitude to the Duplass Brothers for reminding us that making a "mumblecore" movie requires wit, effort and creativity. It is not a justification for making crappy, lazy movies under the guise of being "authentic." Take that, Joe Swanson!

the hidden staircase said...

discovered 'playtime' last fall/winter and fell in love...i would looooooove to see this at cinerama. perfect film for a large screen where there are multiple things going on in all different places. 5 stars definitely!

the hidden staircase said...

i think the only thing that would keep me from giving 'the shining' 5 stars is that the 'ghost' opens the locked door for jack. no! still...scary as all get out!

Joshua Blevins Peck said...

Getting to see PLAY TIME at Cinerama in Seattle in full on 70mm would blow my mind! It was good in 35mm, but to see it in 70? A dream come true and likely an unforgettable filmgoing experience.

the hidden staircase said...

so how do we get that to happen? cinerama needs a tati-fest!