spencer-39789 Reviews

Chloe (2009)

Moore Yes, Chloe No

[4/10 · 2 May 2022]

Take an all star cast plus sex and infidelity -- this time you come up with a poor contrived movie. The emotional parts of the movie revolve around Julianne Moore and she is, as usual, terrific so you can watch the movie just for her. But the plot is contrived and the ending is ridiculous. The sex is OK but if thats your only reason to see it you can do better most anywhere.

The scenes of the Allan Garden in Toronto were very nice.

Don't Look Up (2021)

Waste of star power

[1/10 · 31 December 2021]

One imagines Barry Levinson "Wag the Dog" or Steven Spielberg "Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind" -- with a great director what a movie this could've been. Sadly, this is a true disaster movie.

The worst part -- this is a comedy that is never ever funny. One racist character is totally unfunny and totally offensive. Also, its a total mishmosh with far too many plot lines. The analogies to COVID are obvious and annoying. None of the characters ring true. Again, had this been funny -- Mel Brooks "Young Frankenstein" -- all would be excused but it is never funny.

Streep, Lawrence, Hill, deCaprio, Blanchette -- boy, I hope you got.a good paycheck out of this bomb.

The Power of the Dog (2021)

Hollywood will love it but ...

[6/10 · 9 December 2021]

Very slow moving drama. Takes place Montana 1920s, an interesting time not often covered. Lots of cattle, ranching. Psychodrama with Cumberbatch being a real badass. I liked Kursten Durst as the brother's wife who has imperfections. But it was soooo slow and you were supposed to put great meaning into everything. Maybe the problem is that Campion can never outdo "The Piano." There was a surprise finish which was good but by that time I had kinda lost interest.

Passing (I) (2021)

Could've done better but I don't mind

[7/10 · 15 November 2021]

Wonderful cinematography. The pace is too slow for my taste but clearly the director's choice. The jazz piano riffs are a nice touch. I also liked a view of upper class black society that seemed more realistic than most. The ambiguous ending left me cold. In general too much was left unsaid.

The difficulties in the marriage of Renie and Brian needed more spelling our.

Again, director's choice but it lowers my personal rating. Worth watching: definitely!

Together (2000)

still a fine movie

[8/10 · 7 May 2021]

I saw this when it first came out twenty years ago. Seeing it again it still is very entertaining satirical view of communal life and socialist rhetoric. But this time I saw more of the dark side, especially in the view -- and neglect -- of the children. Think of it as "Squid and the Whale" plus humor.

Marty (1955)

never gets old

[10/10 · 11 March 2021]

I just saw marty again for the umpteenth time and it is as fresh and powerful as when i first saw it. borgnine gives one of the greatest performances in all of film history. this is a deceptively simple film but a great great film.

The Way We Were (1973)

A great movie

[10/10 · 7 June 2020]

I just saw The Way We Were again and it reinforces what a great great move it is. Sidney Pollack is at the height of his directoral powers and Robert Redford and Barbara Streisand have a great chemistry as two strong, albeit flawed, characters. It has the politics of the period -- from 1937 to around 1960 -- but viewed through real people. Very very touching -- I really felt for the characters. Simply a superb movie -- one of the very very best romances I have ever seen.

Bad Teacher (2011)

Cameron!

[8/10 · 20 April 2019]

Yes, basically this is a trashy story but Cameron Diaz is so great that I always enjoy watching it.

Our Souls at Night (2017)

Total Disappointment

[2/10 · 23 February 2019]

Once in a while you get a movie with great stars (Fonda/Redford) and a great author (Haruf) that turns out incredibly boring. The acting is so totally wooden. It must be the directors fault -- one thinks of the great performances over the decades that these stars have made. Or maybe its just too hard to put Haruf -- whom I love as an author -- on the screen. Whatever ... fuggedaboutit!

Roma (2018)

Will win awards, but ...

[5/10 · 3 January 2019]

Yes, the cinematography was excellent. And sometimes (most notably "Boyhood") slice of life movies can grab your interest. But this wasn't one of them. Cleo, the main character, was so plodding. Maybe true to life but meant for boring cinema. Fortunately we watched it on Netflix so we could take a break every so often. Had it been on the big screen I don't know that I could have made it to the end. Hollywood will love this movie. People like myself that really enjoy movies, not so much.

Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

Love it!

[10/10 · 2 October 2018]

I've seen this movie so many times and just today I caught it again on the tube. I never get tired of it. The cinematography. The music. The incredible acting. The compelling story. Everything!

On Chesil Beach (2017)

Love Saoirse, but ...

[5/10 · 1 June 2018]

This movie was a particular disappointment as Saoirse put in another wonderful performance and the co-star Billy Howle was also good. It is a coming-of-age movie with the awkwardness of the two parties being central. But unfortunately the scenes of their awkwardness go on forever and the quite nice music in the background, rather than making it more important, just seems to be pushing it. This movie needed a lot more substance or a lot sharper editing ... or maybe a different director. Maybe the moral is that the author (here Ian McEwan, whose work I like a lot) shouldn't be allowed to write the screenplay. Not an unpleasant way to spend a couple of hours, but I really hope that Saoirse takes on meatier roles.

Tully (2018)

Love Theron, but

[8/10 · 4 May 2018]

I'm a big fan of Charlize Theron. Young Adult -- where she plays a somewhat similar role -- is one of my favorites. Here she is a harried mom, two kids already -- one with special needs -- and then the birth of the third. She plays it absolutely beautifully. She is totally overwhelmed and then the night nanny, played nicely by McKanzie Davis, comes and their relationship is great.

But there is a beef and that is the ending. The movie swerves into mermaids and fantasy. Hey, I have nothing against mermaids but this is totally jarring as the rest of the movie has such gritty realism to it.

Change the last ten minutes and you'd have a ten star movie, another triumph for Charzine

The Big Sick (2017)

I loved it!

[10/10 · 7 July 2017]

I just loved this movie. Its billed as a comedy and I did laugh out loud frequently but it is also a touching drama of relationship and illness and the quintessential American story of the immigrant family's son and the white bread girlfriend. It had a very sweet touch, mixing the comedy and drama. Ray Romano was fantastic as the father of the girlfriend and I also really liked the girl, Zoe Kazan. Sorry, this isn't much of a review except to say that it was really very good!

The Circle (I) (2017)

Awful Awful Awful -- and so disappointing!

[1/10 · 30 April 2017]

I love Dave Eggers and I liked (not loved) the book and I was really looking forward to this movie which is absolutely terrible. What a waste of Emma Watson's talents. Tom Hanks is excellent but what a fraud, he only appears occasionally. The script is so incredibly ponderous, pontificating endlessly on the dire consequences of a world where everything is known. I could go on and on -- SKIP THIS MOVIE!!