TST Film Review Thread

[Thameslink Rail]

Thing is I like going to the cinema but I find a lot of the films released at this time of the year are quite heavy going and my local cinema often doesn't allow unaccompanied adults to watch kids films so I don't really know what to watch.

 

[Slackjawedyokel]

I watched Life of Chuck on Netflix last week and really enjoyed it. No spoilers, but as an adaptation of a Stephen King short story, I thought it had some of the heart of the much loved earlier adaptations of short stories by him; Shawshank Redemption and Stand By Me. It was also directed by Mike Flanagan of Midnight Mass and Doctor Sleep fame. It is a horror film, but not one of THOSE horror films!

For anyone wondering what to watch, I really enjoy Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo’s film podcast “Kermode and Mayo’s Take”. Although it only started up a few years ago, they’ve previously done pretty much the same show on BBC radio for decades and between them have a great depth of knowledge and warmth.

Simon Mayo also writes fiction books, sometimes for kids. A few years back, I read his “Itch” books to my eldest child. A while later they were (somewhat improbably) adapted into an opera, which I took my eldest down to London to see, and we ended up having a chat with Mr Mayo, who was in the audience. Last summer, the opera was restaged and by this point I’d read the books to my younger child so I took him to see it too. We were sat in the row directly behind Simon Mayo and his family, and we again had a chat with Simon after the performance. I’m happy to say that he’s the same warm and engaging character in real life as he sounds on podcasts and radio, and both times he took the time to chat to my children directly rather than just to me.

 

[John_P]

Yeah I love Kermode and Mayos Take, and the previous BBC iteration. Would also recommend Kermode On Film which is mostly interviews taken from his Kermode 3D interview show, but usually get one a month with him and film maker Jack Howard talking film.

Also listen to The Empire Film Podcast which is also good.

Thing is I like going to the cinema but I find a lot of the films released at this time of the year are quite heavy going and my local cinema often doesn't allow unaccompanied adults to watch kids films so I don't really know what to watch.

Never heard of that before, I went to see Little Amelie the other week and was the only person in the cinema which was bliss.

Speaking of serious heavy going films I'd forgotten to mention I went to see The Secret Agent set in 1970s Brazil starring Wagner Moura. Which I thought was great and inventive, especially with such a serious topic about that period of Brazilian history.

 

[Thameslink Rail]

Never heard of that before, I went to see Little Amelie the other week and was the only person in the cinema which was bliss.

Cineworld have this thing called Movies 4 Juniors where they won't allow unaccompanied adults. Through half term they've been showing Madagascar and Sing (childhood favourites of mine) and I asked staff if I could see them, one told me to kidnap a child. I'd like to see Little Amelie but they're not showing it (there are no other cinemas near me).

 

[GooseOnTheLoose]

I asked staff if I could see them, one told me to kidnap a child. I'd like to see Little Amelie but they're not showing it (there are no other cinemas near me).

It's somewhat amusing that your objection to the suggestion of kidnapping a child wasn't based on the moral or legal implications of abduction, but rather on the logistical issue that the film wasn't actually screening.

One could logically (and teasingly) deduce that if Little Amelie were on the schedule, you would currently be prowling the streets with a net.

 

[Thameslink Rail]

It's somewhat amusing that your objection to the suggestion of kidnapping a child wasn't based on the moral or legal implications of abduction, but rather on the logistical issue that the film wasn't actually screening.

One could logically (and teasingly) deduce that if Little Amelie were on the schedule, you would currently be prowling the streets with a net.

The Cineworlds that are showing Little Amelie are not doing it as an M4J.

 

[GooseOnTheLoose]

The Cineworlds that are showing Little Amelie are not doing it as an M4J.

But if they were, net at the ready?

 

[John_P]

Forgot about the movies for juniors screenings, I was just thinking of regular screenings.

 

[Zeock]

I Swear is a truly brilliant film.
The great thing about it is that so many people (like myself, who has symptoms of palilalia, but doesn't have Tourette's) will be able to empathise with the main character and their struggles with coprolalia, as it is very easy to imagine for the vast majority who have either intrusive or impulsive thoughts, no matter if they are minor (such as having a slight desire to jump off a cliff when at the top) or major (such as POCD).
It was also very good at showing how kind people can massively impact people's lives by giving them support in the darkest moments.
Another thing that I really liked was how it emphasised non-religious haecceity (the parts of an individual that make them unique).
One thing that would have made it perfect is if the film had more visual identity, as it felt a touch sterile. Haneke's style would have improved this film in my opinion. Nevertheless, it only just falls outside of my top 20 films.
9.3/10.

 

[D4n]

I watched Life of Chuck on Netflix last week and really enjoyed it. No spoilers, but as an adaptation of a Stephen King short story, I thought it had some of the heart of the much loved earlier adaptations of short stories by him; Shawshank Redemption and Stand By Me. It was also directed by Mike Flanagan of Midnight Mass and Doctor Sleep fame. It is a horror film, but not one of THOSE horror films!

For anyone wondering what to watch, I really enjoy Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo’s film podcast “Kermode and Mayo’s Take”. Although it only started up a few years ago, they’ve previously done pretty much the same show on BBC radio for decades and between them have a great depth of knowledge and warmth.

Simon Mayo also writes fiction books, sometimes for kids. A few years back, I read his “Itch” books to my eldest child. A while later they were (somewhat improbably) adapted into an opera, which I took my eldest down to London to see, and we ended up having a chat with Mr Mayo, who was in the audience. Last summer, the opera was restaged and by this point I’d read the books to my younger child so I took him to see it too. We were sat in the row directly behind Simon Mayo and his family, and we again had a chat with Simon after the performance. I’m happy to say that he’s the same warm and engaging character in real life as he sounds on podcasts and radio, and both times he took the time to chat to my children directly rather than just to me.

Life of Chuck is truly a beautiful film, one of the rare occasions when a Stephen King text has been done justice on screen. A really life-affirming and well-told story, as you say, by no means “horror” in the expected sense.

Mike Flanagan is extremely good in fairness and his name is as good a promise of quality as any

 

[Slackjawedyokel]

Life of Chuck is truly a beautiful film, one of the rare occasions when a Stephen King text has been done justice on screen. A really life-affirming and well-told story, as you say, by no means “horror” in the expected sense.

Mike Flanagan is extremely good in fairness and his name is as good a promise of quality as any

I started reading SK books during Covid (starting with The Stand ) and still haven’t got to the end of them.
I haven’t got to the story Life of Chuck yet either.

It is odd how his short stories often make much better adaptations than his normal novels.