SvdW | Movies I’ve rewatched in 2024
- All the movies I've rewatched in 2024. So every movie I watch for the first time from Monday, January. 1, 2024 till Tuesday, December. 31, 2024 counts.
- I will add some "short thoughts" to every movie I watch. These are mini-reviews that will later be made into more in-depth reviews. Spoilers are tagged with the "spoiler tag." I will also link my larger reviews when I ready with them.
- My ranking system:
- ✮✮✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮
- ✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮
- ✮✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮
- ✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮
- ✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮
- ✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮
- ✮½/✮✮✮✮✮
- ✮/✮✮✮✮✮
- ½/✮✮✮✮✮
- Movies that I have watched, but are unavailable on IMDb:
1. | Zillion: Behind the Beats [Zillion] (*) | Sunday, April. 21, 2024 [second time watch]
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- DirectorLourens BlokStarsManuel BroekmanTim MurckHanna VerboomFreshmen, seniors and alumni clash with each other, themselves, and the police during an Amsterdam fraternity's epic opening party.[Review]
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Date Watched: Monday, January. 1, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [fourth time watch]
✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮
Favourite scene: Motto of Life
Best actor: Marcel Musters
Happy New Year Everyone!
I had planned this to be my first film of 2024, and I rented the blu-ray from my local library.
This is still not a good film by any stretch of the imagination, but it had me laughing throughout large chunks of it as well.
Season three of Feuten was a great way to end the series. Bram Wagtmans' relation with Olivier de Ruyter and Marie-Claire de Ruyter is stronger than ever, but this film destroys that entire ending.
It is such low hanging fruit to call the Police Nazis [and plenty of jokes about World War II], but in context of Olivier de Ruyter saying it, it is perfectly sensible. I also had a good laugh at seeing Noordzij (without a shirt on) kicking a police officer more equipped than he is. Or when Elias de Leeuw slaps Remco like a girl [I just now noticed that Marcel Musters laughs after it happens, I don't know if that was intentional or not]. - DirectorSofia CoppolaStarsKirsten DunstJosh HartnettJames WoodsA group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents in suburban Detroit in the mid 1970s.[Review]
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Date Watched: Tuesday, January. 2, 2024 | How I Watched: Fraterhuis Zwolle [second time watch]
✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮
Favourite scene: A Timelapse
Best actor: Kirsten Dunst
I hadn't seen this since 2016 [when I rented the DVD from my local library].
Apparently with the release of Priscilla, my local arthouse theatre re-released The Virgin Suicides. And because I had forgotten 95% of it already and I wanted to rewatch it, I booked tickets for it and...
I can understand why I had forgotten most of it. This is not the type of film I usually watch, because it is just not my sort of thing.
I have no problems with Sofia Coppola's directing. She directs the actors/actresses well enough, and gets the best of the different locations. I actually want to give her directorial efforts another shot due to this. The screenplay is where my main issue lays.
I just don't care for the teen girls and their struggles. And if that wasn't annoying enough, we get narration about how hard teen girls it have in life, and how the suicides impacted Michigan. Furthermore, I can believe the news channel exploiting the deaths, but the "rich upper-class?" Nah, don't think so. - DirectorUb IwerksWalt DisneyStarsWalt DisneyMickey Mouse is a mischievous deckhand on a riverboat that is under the command of the tyrannical Captain Pete.[Review]
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Date Watched: Saturday, January. 13, 2024 | How I Watched: YouTube on TV [sixth(?) time watch]
Since this short film is now public domain, I really felt the need to rewatch it. The upload of this on the official Disney YouTube channel is a terrible quality version, but many people now uploaded better versions.
I had trouble finding one version which is the right fit to watch. There are several 4K ones, but I found out they are 30FPS, and I wanted to watch one in 24FPS, which is its native FPS. So, I watched it, after watching Stop Making Sense and the first two episodes of Matroesjka's [great series so far, but the image quality is not on par with its blu-ray release] before sleeping.
But enfin, this is still lovely. - DirectorMasashi KawamuraIku OgawaStarsKazuma MoriKen'ichi OgataJingoro Hidari, a legendary craftsman, is on a journey of revenge with his partner, Sleeping Cat, and his mechanical prosthetic arm. Finally, Jingoro faces one of his adversaries, Inumaru, in a fight to the death.Date Watched: Monday, January. 15, 2024 | How I Watched: YouTube on TV [third time watch]
Yeah, they finally added this short film to IMDb!
I felt like rewatching it and I did, after waking up early and working I had a lazy afternoon.
The stop motion animation is holy impressive. It uses wood and sawdust [as an interesting way to convey blood] very well.
Jingoro Hidari and every character seems to be highly overpowered. It is almost too much for my liking, because there are less at stake that way. This is a very minor issue though.
Cannot wait until 2028 when the feature length version is released! - DirectorUb IwerksWalt DisneyStarsWalt DisneyMickey Mouse is a mischievous deckhand on a riverboat that is under the command of the tyrannical Captain Pete.[Review]
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Date Watched: Tuesday, January. 16, 2024 | How I Watched: YouTube on TV [seventh(?) time watch]
After I posted my recent review of Steamboat Willie I was scrolling through my YouTube, and found out one of my claims of all the 4K versions of this short films being 30FPS appeared not to be true. I now watched a version which is 4K and 24FPS.
I cannot help but be charmed by it [I am still not a fan of the flash-y frames though]. - DirectorJonathan DemmeStarsDavid ByrneBernie WorrellAlex WeirConsidered by critics as the greatest concert film of all time, the live performance was shot over the course of three nights at Hollywood's Pantages Theater in December of 1983 and features Talking Heads' most memorable songs.[Review]
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Date Watched: Wednesday, January. 17, 2024 | How I Watched: Pathé Zwolle [second time watch]
I had already planned a second watch in cinema well before my first one. After my first watch I was doubting whether to cancel my tickets [as I was quite a bit underwhelmed by it] and didn't know if a rewatch would help, but yet didn't cancel it.
And who would've thought, I liked this quite a bit more upon rewatch. While most of my opinions of my first-time watch remained the same, I liked it more because I now knew the songs [listened to them while working and such] and began to notice things I hadn't seen before. For example, in one of the songs Tina Weymouth almost trips over Ednah Holt or Lynn Mabry [cannot remember who of the two to be honest, sorry] with her microphone cord. - DirectorPrice JamesStarsMatt BerryDate Watched: Saturday, January. 20, 2024 | How I Watched: YouTube on TV [second time watch]
I gathered with several friends and we played video games, and in the evening, we watched the most random stuff on YouTube [banned commercials, etc]. One of them suggested this one and I was game. I had seen it before [with one of the same friends - and he was also the one suggesting to (re)watch it], back in 2019 and wanted to see if it would hold up on rewatch. It did, but I don't think it fully gets its message across either.
The idea is kinda brilliant. Get the 80s (TV commercial) aesthetic, and show Action Man as a war victim. The problem I have is that I never really got the sense this was made by Veterans For Peace UK, whom challenged with this short the British Army’s policy of recruiting sixteen-year-olds into the most dangerous army jobs. I always saw this more as comedic satire rather than a serious call to action [or lack thereof - oh well, you probably know what I mean]. - DirectorRob McLellanStarsSam HoareClaire HuskissonEmily BaxterABE is a tense, psychological horror about a robot who's looking for love in all the wrong places.Date Watched: Thursday, January. 25, 2024 | How I Watched: YouTube on TV [second time watch]
I was originally rewatching this in late 2023, but I was so dead-set on my weight loss journey and finishing all my "short thoughts" of 2023 IMDb lists, so I finally restarted it, and...
I am still too tired after working days and my weight loss journey [only 2,5kg left!], and I might as well move the ALTER and DUST short films to the weekends, because it is going to kill my mood. And I wanted to see Baantjer: het begin, but I'm just too tired.
This is still one of my favourite short films. While I don't think it is nail-bitingly tense, I find the character of ABE very interesting, which is a story of a robot wanting to find love, but think the way to find it to find it inside of them[?]. His character is easy to understand, even if his reasonings are very questionable in nature.
Still not the biggest of the motion capture on ABE, as it looks a bit unnatural [an good looking animatronic could fix that], but it isn't the worst thing either. - DirectorDanny BoyleStarsJames McAvoyRosario DawsonVincent CasselAn art auctioneer mixed up with a group of criminals partners with a hypnotherapist in order to recover a lost painting.[Review]
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Date Watched: Saturday, January. 27, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a blu-ray player [second time watch]
✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮
Favourite scene: Inside Job
Best actor: Rosario Dawson
I had re-rented the blu-ray to watch it to be my last film of 2023 [as it was my first first-time-watch of 2023 - to begin and end the year with the same film], but my 4K UHD blu-ray player made the blu-ray skip, so I wasn't in the mood to continue it [if I tried it on another blu-ray player - did play it on another blu-ray player and the scene did work], so I didn't bother.
Because I returned Matroesjka's [luckily got my money back!], I had much more time to watch films [and start State of Play - and felt the need to rewatch this one], but I still had some cleaning to do, so I moved cleaning to the evening and rewatched this.
And man, this goes downhill so much! Even on rewatch I don't think its story is the strongest aspect. While Elizabeth is my favourite, her motives are very weak. Apparently getting Simon to steal a painting for you is enough to forgive an obsessive relationship with him? And I don't like the iPad "MacGuffin." Getting Simon to watch his own history is very lazy and how does that "Trance app" really work? And is she so tech savvy to make an app like that?
A big problem of this film is how it overwhelms the viewer with "real things" happening, as well with a lot of "hallucinations." The worst offender in this regard is the EMR sequence. We have three storylines to pay attention to at once, it is absolutely tiring. - DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsRichard DreyfussFrançois TruffautTeri GarrRoy Neary, an Indiana electric lineman, finds his quiet and ordinary daily life turned upside down after a close encounter with a UFO, spurring him to an obsessed cross-country quest for answers as a momentous event approaches.[Review]
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Date Watched: Saturday, February. 3, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [fifth(?) time watch]
[Director's Cut]
✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: The Abduction of Jilian's son
Best actor: Cary Guffey
I failed massively when I planned to watch this back in November/December 2023, and just didn't get around to it.
In 2023 I watched both the Theatrical Cut and Special Edition, and only needed to see the Director's Cut.
But then Carl Weathers recently passed away, and I felt more of a need to finally rewatch it. I decided not to exercise in the morning, and just watch this. In the afternoon I will be watching The Zone of Interest and I need myself to be prepared for all of it. When I exercise, I give it my all, so this day is different.
But enfin, my issues with the film still remain. Roy Neary has a very funny mental breakdown, and his actions are a bit too unsympathetic for my liking [like the entirety of him throwing garbage into the house and steals his neighbour's belongings]. It is no wonder his wife drives off with their kids! Oh well, another woman is there to fill the gap, right?
I am kinda done with this film for the time being, or if I find the 4K UHD blu-ray, I'll definitely rewatch it.
Rest in Peace Carl Weathers! - DirectorClyde GeronimiWilfred JacksonHamilton LuskeStarsBobby DriscollKathryn BeaumontHans ConriedWendy and her brothers are whisked away to the magical world of Neverland with the hero of their stories, Peter Pan.[Review]
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Date Watched: Sunday, February. 4, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [second(?) time watch]
✮✮✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: The Cave
Best actor: Kathryn Beaumont
I rented some Disney blu-rays from my local library because I wanted to [finally] see some of them in their prime.
My plans were to finally rewatch Scarface [because I just got the 4K UHD blu-ray a few days ago], but its massive running time made it quite impossible for me to do so.
At first I was thinking I had never seen the film before, but I recognized large parts of it, so I scrolled through my Letterboxd dairy, and low and behold, I had already seen the film before, all the way back in 2018 [when I saw it via the Ziggo Go Movies & Series XL app].
But it was fun to rewatch it, even if I did lower the rating half an star now. The library blu-ray copy did show a visual glitch on my 4K UHD blu-ray player, but other than that the film played without an issue.
I love hand drawn animation and this showed why Disney was held in such high regard [the company is now run by activists, couldn't care less now what happens to them]. Something I did notice now though, is how many sounds of various objects aren't here. It became a bit distracting, and did annoy me a bit too.
Tinker Bell is a bit too much of an obstructive character here. Her jealousy still makes sense, even if it so much that it almost kills Wendy and Peter Pan. Her actions are a bit too heartless for my liking. I don't hate the Indian scenes. I think the blow back for these scenes have gotten are way exaggerated. I do have some questions. How did Wendy steal Peter Pan's shadow [I am not familair with J.M. Barrie's play]? I know I have several minor complaints, but otherwise I really love this film. - DirectorDean PuckettStarsGrant GillespieMolly CaseyDenise StephensonIn an isolated church community in the English countryside, a powerful hate preacher prepares to deliver a sermon to his flock, but his daughter has a secret that could destroy them all.Date Watched: Saturday, February. 10, 2024 | How I Watched: YouTube on TV [second time watch]
I have decided to move my ALTER and DUST short film watches to the weekends, because I feel more tired after working days, and I don't want it affecting anything I watch.
But enfin, I had seen this short film before, but I'm watching all the ALTER short films by the chronological order they were posted at. This was first a part of "Roses Are Dead" Vol. 1, and it was easily the best out of the bunch.
I wanted to like it more upon rewatch, but the story is severely lacking substance.
The entire production (directing, cinematography, film grain, etc.) feels like a film made in the 1970s, and I love that about it. It has a nice aspect ratio [it is mentioned to be 1.66:1, though I believe it was closer to 1.54:1 on my television, or they screwed with the transfer, I dunno]. There are also no jump scares, which is quite nice to see.
It shows such a narrow view of Christianity. All of them are obsessive arseholes who can be contradicted easily by their behavior. They make the Christians here so unbelievably evil [just watch Brimstone, that does religious horror much better], and even made the lesbian story so funny too. What's up with the black figure? If the character represents evil, this short film has became quite "based" for showing lesbianism as a evil thing. But that's my reading on it. - DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsAl PacinoMichelle PfeifferSteven BauerIn 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug cartel and succumbs to greed.[Review]
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Date Watched: Saturday, February. 10, 2024 | How I Watched: 4K UHD blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [third(?) time watch]
✮✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: Push It to the Limit
Best actor: Al Pacino
Back in 2016 [when I was getting into films], I first saw this when I rented the DVD from the library, and later bought the 2-disc Special Edition DVD [from my internship, around 2016-2018] and rented the blu-ray from the library, but after that I hadn't seen it since 2018.
A few weeks ago I bought the 4K UHD blu-ray, and my priority to rewatch it was very high, but its massive running time made me want to watch in the morning or one afternoon, so I waited until the time arose to rewatch it.
And this is one of my favourite crime films.
It was a lot less violent than I remembered with the chainsaw sequence [I nearly fainted when I first saw the scene], but the gun violence in the final shootout is definitely more graphic than I remembered. I don't know to how much the MPAA mangled with this film [I will be watching the extra features very soon, at least a priority of this month], but it never felt the film was censored in any way.
The screenplay is quite iconic. I am not familiar with Armitage Trail's original novel, or Howard Hawks' 1932 film, but there's so much to admire here. In making the main character an Cuban refugee, it can toy around with the idea of him being a victim of Fidel Castro and his Communist ideals on Cuba. I quite like the subtle ways Tony Montana is very much for Capitalism at the very start, but becomes more and more Marxist as the film progresses [a.k.a. the thing he didn't want to become - as he complains about other Capitalists whilst being one of the wealthiest ones because of it].
Also, the irony of Tony not willing to blow up the activist's car, because he's against killing children and women [whom are in the activist's car], is what becomes his downfall [and death - by the shotgun of the Bolivian Terminator!]. It brings the ultimate morality in a character who's totally not one to like. - DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsTimothée ChalametRebecca FergusonZendayaA noble family becomes embroiled in a war for control over the galaxy's most valuable asset while its heir becomes troubled by visions of a dark future.[Review]
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Date Watched: Wednesday, February. 21, 2024 | How I Watched: 4K UHD blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [second time watch]
✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: Hunter Seeker
Best actor: Stellan Skarsgård
Since I have already booked tickets for Dune: Part Two [my first IMAX viewing, ever] I felt the need to finally rewatch the first one.
They did do a re-release in Dolby Atmos and IMAX [just naming two], but the times they showed it weren't to my liking, so I now watched my 4K UHD blu-ray.
I will still give this the same rating as when I first saw it [in cinema] three years ago, but some things improved, while some things worsened.
Is it just me, or does this still feel like it was played way too safe? I don't mean that it neglects [it doesn't] its hard Science Fiction core, but it feels like there are barely any pay-offs to the many things that are set up. I just know Dune: Part Two is going to solve that, but still. On first viewing I wasn't too big on the ending (the fight with Jamis), but I found it more suspenseful now. Maybe it is because I am actively looking forward/scared of travelling for an hour to see the second part, I dunno. - DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsTimothée ChalametZendayaRebecca FergusonPaul Atreides unites with Chani and the Fremen while seeking revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family.[Review]
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Date Watched: Wednesday, March. 13, 2024 | How I Watched: Pathé Zwolle [second time watch]
✮✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮
Favourite scene: Worm Ride
Best actor: Austin Butler
Decided to give this another watch as my first (IMAX) was a fairly overwhelming one [which is an understatement if I ever made one].
I rewatched it in Dolby Atmos [I don't like travelling and such] and... I feel pretty much the same way about it. And what's funnier is that I have almost nothing else to add to my previous review [my stance has not changed one iota], but I will try to add some more thoughts.
Oh, I forgot to mention this, but making Chani more independent doesn't really work. It is partly due to Zendaya's poor performance and her constant resting bitch face. But her being the only one who's against Paul, just mere seconds after he's brought back from the death?
I fear for Dune: Part Three, because of how this ended. Rather it being focused on the "Holy War," the film ends with Chani ready to ride a worm. What does that inform the audience? Exactly.
I will probably not rewatch this until Dune: Part Three comes out, or if I rewatch it with a good friend [whom hasn't seen it yet]. I wish I liked this one more, but I am in the minority. - DirectorWerner HerzogStarsKlaus KinskiRuy GuerraHelena RojoIn the 16th century, the ruthless and insane Don Lope de Aguirre leads a Spanish expedition in search of El Dorado.[Review]
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Date Watched: Saturday, March. 16, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on Xbox One [second time watch]
✮✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: The Wrath of God
Best actor: Klaus Kinski
Despite how much I loved this film, I wouldn't have rewatched if it wasn't for a friend. He wanted to watch several films of Werner Herzog's filmography, and I was fine with that.
I was scared if we rewatch this film, the magic of the first-time watch would disappear [I felt so overwhelmed by it the first time, and I thought he downloaded the film, thus a dip in quality].
But luckily, he bought the BFI Video [The Werner Herzog Collection] blu-ray box set [this film looks superb - well done BFI], and this film improved on second viewing.
Oh, and by the way, I finally reached my Weight Loss Journey goal! Now I need to maintain my weight. Wish me luck!
There are some questionable animal bits, but it doesn't break the film for me. One thing a friend mentioned is something I wouldn't have known. The squirrel monkeys shown in the finale are known in Germany as "totenkopfäffchen," meaning dead head's monkeys. It is a nice piece of subtle storytelling that Don Lope de Aguirre's death will soon follow [although never shown]. - DirectorBrad BirdJan PinkavaStarsBrad GarrettLou RomanoPatton OswaltA rat who can cook makes an unusual alliance with a young kitchen worker at a famous Paris restaurant.[Review]
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Date Watched: Started Watching Wednesday, April. 17, 2024 | Restarted and Finished Saturday, April. 20, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [second(?) time watch]
✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: Anton Ego Tastes Ratatouille
Best actor: Peter O'Toole
I had seen when I was a kid, but I'm not sure if I saw it on the big screen, or via DVD.
I asked the blu-ray for my 24th Birthday [last November], but didn't get around to watching it, until there were plans for me to cook ratatouille, and started watching this, but like Blade Runner, I just couldn't focus on it because of being more tired and such, due to me still recovering from the flu.
So, I started watching it again [now not planning some kind of exercise and/or chores before it] and I highly enjoyed this film.
The directing by Brad Bird is fantastic. I like most of his filmography and his style of directing here is a joy to look at. He has several shots where it looks more Steadicam-ish, and I love that.
The screenplay is good, but it has some flaws to it. I know by watching all the extra features on the blu-ray disc that Gusteau was supposed to (still) alive at the start of the film, but I'm fine with him being the thing in Remy's mind, my problem is that they do very little with the fact that Linguini is related to Gusteau.
Also, having rats in the kitchen? I wished that the film sold me on it, but alas. Wouldn't the La Ratatouille bistro also be closed? I quite liked Colette, but her quote about "stupid old men" really rubbed me the wrong way. This quote doesn't fit the entire film and makes her seem like a bitter old misandrist, when her character has way more depth than that. - DirectorRobin ProntStarsJonas VermeulenCharlotte TimmersMatteo SimoniIt's 1997. Frank, a computer genius with a nose for business, a fascination for nightlife and an unhealthy urge to prove himself, only wants one thing: his own disco that not only outperforms the competition but simply humiliates it.[Review]
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Date Watched: Saturday, April. 20, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [second time watch]
✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: Opening Night
Best actor: Matteo Simoni
I had plans to rewatch ever since my first watch, but after listening to the soundtrack and the songs on its own, I finally gave this a second watch.
A lot of my opinions on it remained the same, but I don't know what it is with this film - but after finishing it, I was left completely overwhelmed both times.
The first few scenes in the Zillion had me in so much awe. This is a such a visual marvel. In my first review I praised the blu-ray picture quality, but after seeing it again, I began seeing more flaws with it. The black levels are superb [some of the best I've seen out of blu-rays even], but some of the details aren't as defined as I hoped now.
The sound design does falter a bit at times too, where the dialogue is a bit hard to make out [so happy this has (optional) subtitles]. And I cannot forget I would've loved to have seen this on the big screen, but it never got a release in cinema in The Netherlands [they had plans for it, but nothing happened?].
Some of the story seems to be choppier now, as it seems to jump quite frantically. And while I like how Marleen Verstraeten as a character, I have no idea what made her place her hand above the gas stove? To see Frank again, but at her house? - DirectorRidley ScottStarsSigourney WeaverTom SkerrittJohn HurtThe crew of a commercial spacecraft encounters a deadly lifeform after investigating a mysterious transmission of unknown origin.[Review]
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Date Watched: Sunday, April. 28, 2024 | How I Watched: Pathé Zwolle [fifth(?) time watch]
✮✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: Brett's Death
Best actor: Sigourney Weaver (although it is hard to say that when this features so many great actors!)
When I saw I could finally see Alien on the big screen for its 45th Anniversary [I wasn't able to see it on Alien Day because I barely watch films on working days, and it was such a late showing that I didn't bother either way], I didn't hesitate. I love this film, but hadn't seen it in five years.
I don't know how I first saw it, but it must've been around 2015-2016, and I probably had seen Aliens before it.
And while I loved seeing this on the big screen, one thing annoyed me to bits. The way the film was projected cut off a bit of the bottom and top [I tested my sealed blu-ray (now not sealed anymore) to check it]. I don't know why this happens a lot to me during showings in sixth screening room of Pathé Zwolle, but it is really annoying!
If I were to rewatch this on the big screen again, I will make sure to leave the showing if I see it projected wrong again [I would've left the showing now if I knew for certain it was projected wrong].
The directing by Ridley Scott is superb. He directed every actor/actress, location/set and scene to great effect, and it is no surprise he's a visionary in terms of bringing great imagery to the screen.
I have heard some complaints about this film's pacing, but I never really had an issue with it. This has a slow pace, but it is never boring, and I like how this builds up to the killings of the crew. And despite that I had seen the film four[?] times before, I still found the film was very suspenseful. That scene with Kane is still quite shocking when the Chestburster pops up out of his stomach. And I couldn't help but wonder how much Ash's character [who is an android] inspired the Replicants in Blade Runner years later. - DirectorRupert WyattStarsJames FrancoAndy SerkisFreida PintoA substance designed to help the brain repair itself gives advanced intelligence to a chimpanzee who leads an ape uprising.[Review]
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Date Watched: Wednesday, May. 1, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [second time watch]
✮✮✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: Caesar Speaks
Best actor: Andy Serkis
This was on my rewatch list for April 2024, but due to me catching the flu, my plans and my health were all over the place.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is coming out next week and I almost didn't rewatch the modern trilogy, but I wanted to rewatch it. Not only to refresh my memory on them, but also because I had planned to review Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes, but to put out the reviews [from my first time watches and the rewatches] will come in the coming next two weeks [posted my review on Saturday, May. 4, 2024, and made these "short thoughts" on Sunday, May. 5, 2024].
I'm so glad I rewatched this. At first, I was doubting if I was going to up my rating ½ a star, and I wanted to wait until I rewatched Dawn of the Planet of the Apes [I rewatched it this morning] and I finally upped the rating. This is such a fantastic film.
Some might say the CGI is dated, but the ways performance capture is used is great. I might be more a fan of practical make-up and such, but I cannot deny every emotion feels earned here.
Some of the plotting felt a lot more undercooked this time. It has the focus on three stories, those being the stories of Will, Caesar's uprising, and Robert Franklin. I quite liked Will's story because of the Alzheimer's storyline [John Lithgow is utterly fantastic here]. Caesar's story is fantastic due to the amazing acting by Andy Serkis and such, but Robert Franklin's story just horribly undercooked for the plot despite him being the cause for the pandemic in the third act. - DirectorMatt ReevesStarsGary OldmanKeri RussellAndy SerkisThe fragile peace between apes and humans is threatened as mistrust and betrayal threaten to plunge both tribes into a war for dominance over the Earth.[Review]
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Date Watched: Saturday, May. 4, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [second time watch]
✮✮✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: Armoury
Best actor: Andy Serkis
I was both curious and scared to rewatch this. Curious, because Rise of the Planet of the Apes was better on second watch, but scared because this is quite a slow burn [and it might not be interesting upon rewatch?].
But this held up surprisingly well. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was my favourite of the modern trilogy, and by the looks of it, it still is.
Yeah, I have seen issues with some of the CGI [in my review for the first time watch I mentioned that the third act fight overuses green/blue screen effects, but it also uses "The Volume," and that's why it looks so odd], but seeing as large parts of this film were shot on real locations instead of sets is quite impressive. Also, having the performance capture and the horrible weather working against each other about must've made this film a production hell.
One of the things that made me really love this film this time and up it ½ a star [my complaints about the pacing are gone too] is the character of Koba. The screenwriters easily could've made him a sympathetic villain, but luckily, he isn't.
His actions are sound in a sense [like shown in Rise of the Planet of the Apes], but I like that he is like Alec Trevelyan or Judas Iscariot. Despite this being a rewatch [knowing what's about to happen], I still found the depth of his character impressive.
I noticed a lot of foreshadowing this time. Things like the contagion prisons early on, or the whole "ape not kill ape" storybeat. This type of foreshadowing works so well, and I love how Caesar has to break his rule to kill Koba. - DirectorMatt ReevesStarsAndy SerkisWoody HarrelsonSteve ZahnAfter the apes suffer unimaginable losses, Caesar wrestles with his darker instincts and begins his own mythic quest to avenge his kind.[Review]
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Date Watched: Thursday, May. 9, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [second time watch]
✮✮✮✮½/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: Mercy
Best actor: Andy Serkis
Out of the "modern Planet of the Apes trilogy," I was most scared to rewatch this one. It was my least favourite out of the trilogy, because of the obvious parallels to historical events, bad pacing issues, and furthermore, I was scared that the ending wouldn't pack the same emotional punch as it did the first watch.
Yeah, it is still my least favourite of the trilogy, but I will still up the rating ½ a star.
What was the ground of the camps made off? The apes don't have shovels, and the substance of the ground seemed quite stern, so what's up with that? Nova is never spotted, even if there's a static searchlight fixated on her.
And yeah, the ending still made me emotional. I don't know if this franchise will be the same without Caesar, but we'll see soon enough [I will try to watch Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes with a friend]! - DirectorTim BurtonStarsAlec BaldwinGeena DavisMichael KeatonThe spirits of a deceased couple are harassed by an unbearable family that has moved into their home, and hire a malicious spirit to drive them out.Date Watched: Sunday, May. 19, 2024 | How I Watched: 4K UHD blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [third(?) time watch]
✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: t.b.c.
Best actor: t.b.c.
["Short Thoughts" Coming Up !] - DirectorGary TrousdaleKirk WiseStarsPaige O'HaraRobby BensonJesse CortiA prince cursed to spend his days as a hideous monster sets out to regain his humanity by earning a young woman's love.Date Watched: Sunday, May. 19, 2024 | How I Watched: blu-ray on a 4K UHD blu-ray player [second(?) time watch]
[Theatrical Cut]
✮✮✮✮/✮✮✮✮✮ | ♛
Favourite scene: t.b.c.
Best actor: t.b.c.
["Short Thoughts" Coming Up !]