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SMB Film Thread 2025

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lchavez said:
Three Colours: Red

Not sure if I was meant to watch White first or if it matters. Didn't enjoy this one as much as Blue TBH. I fell asleep for the last 30 mins so had to rewatch it this morning.

6/10 (sorry!)
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Look at the flag man 😄

If you watch them out of order the through story doesn't make much sense.
 
Took the bairn to see Elio yesterday. Thoroughly enjoyed it, glad it’s got good reviews. Shame it’s not done well at the box office.

We took advantage of Cineworlds £1 deal today and went to see Flow. Superb stuff.
 
Oli Wagkz said:
Took the bairn to see Elio yesterday. Thoroughly enjoyed it, glad it’s got good reviews. Shame it’s not done well at the box office.

We took advantage of Cineworlds £1 deal today and went to see Flow. Superb stuff.
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Nowts doing fantastically at the box office, streaming, especially Disney+ can firmly take the wrap for that.

Mind, box office is a very old metric anyway. I think it’s time they took streaming subs etc into account.
 
Fetch Fletch said:
Nowts doing fantastically at the box office, streaming, especially Disney+ can firmly take the wrap for that.

Mind, box office is a very old metric anyway. I think it’s time they took streaming subs etc into account.
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Well, there is for example Jurassic Rebirth, which while not my cup of tea has made 780 million dollars. Been a much better year for cinemas, since covid at least.
 
Drexl said:
Well, there is for example Jurassic Rebirth, which while not my cup of tea has made 780 million dollars. Been a much better year for cinemas, since covid at least.
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Worldwide BO is always class for Jurassic as the Asians lap it up.

Think it’s Superman where domestically (US) it’s done really well but worldwide not so much.
 
Drexl said:
Aye I think Fantastic 4 has had a drop off as well after a decent opening week.
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60% iirc. Which isn’t massive but about 10-15% more than is favourable.

I think for me, it’s a Disney thing more than a cinema thing perhaps. Look at movies like Sinners which did very well. It just seems that parents are now wise to the fact that 6 weeks later they’re on Disney+.

Will be very interesting to see how Badlands performs.
 
Fetch Fletch said:
60% iirc. Which isn’t massive but about 10-15% more than is favourable.

I think for me, it’s a Disney thing more than a cinema thing perhaps. Look at movies like Sinners which did very well. It just seems that parents are now wise to the fact that 6 weeks later they’re on Disney+.

Will be very interesting to see how Badlands performs.
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I’ll be at the cinema for Badlands that’s for sure!
 
Monty Pigeon said:
The Day of the Locust (1975) 6/10
The seedy side of Hollywood in the 1930s. Donald Sutherland (as 'Homer Simpson') is miscast - he should have played the male lead. Very long and never particularly engaging, though John Schlesinger rated this one of his favourites of his own films.
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The Cameraman (1928) 8/10
Buster Keaton's first film for MGM, which heralded the end of his creative independence. Some good sequences, but some way short of his best.
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Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) 10/10
The greatest Western ever made.
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Three classics there.
 
Monty Pigeon said:
I'm All Right Jack (1959) 7/10
Peter Sellers is terrific at shop steward Fred Kite. The film itself doesn't really do justice to his performance. The climatic scene in a TV studio, in which vikings from a neighbouring studio get involved in a general brawl, may have helped inspire the climax of Blazing Saddles.
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The Blockhouse (1973) 8/10
WWII drama deemed unreleasable when it was made. The director, Clive Rees, held on to the only copy, and finally got it released on DVD in 2005. Peter Sellers and Charles Aznavour are among a small group of POWs who take shelter from an RAF bombing bombing raid in a Nazi bunker store, only to get sealed in. Filmed on location in a bunker in the Channel Islands. A gruelling watch at times, but very atmospheric, and a serious performance from Sellers up there with Being There. Full movie here:
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Mr Forbush and the Penguins (aka Cry of the Penguins) (1971) 5/10
The first feature film shot in Antarctica. John Hurt as a pampered rich student who, in trying to get Hayley Mills in bed, commits to a solo field trip to Antarctica to impress her. Ludicrous script, and a mess of a film (the original director was sacked on return from Antarctica because his studio rushes were abysmal. Key roles were recast, and much of the location stuff had to be supplemented with studio recreations). Full movie here:
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That Blockhouse movie sounds very interesting, never heard of it previously.
 
Latest Jurassic park. Encounters with the beasts are tense enough but the rest is just in insult to your intelligence, no idea whats real acting, AI or CGI, it all just looks & feels wrong. There are 'nods' to Aliens, Jaws and god knows what else. Script is shit and we correctly guessed who would die and in what order. Predictable crap 3/10
 
The Pickup (2025)

Eddie Murphy as uncharacteristic "straight man" co-lead in this light-hearted heist movie seen from the point of view of the "odd couple" in charge of the security van being robbed.

It's not a classic, but it's not horrible either. If you're looking for something slightly entertaining and not too taxing, you could do worse.

6.7 / 10
 
This forum is full of Peter Bradshaws giving disproportionately low scores to films that don’t really warrant them, compared to the grander scheme of true shit.

Anyway, latest watch is…

The Defiant Ones (1958)

Tony Curtis and Sidney Poitier are chained together, on the run from Theodore Bikel, his deputies, deputised vigilantes and bloodhounds.

Bloody marvellous film. The chained together cons idea is as old as the hills - ten years previously Jack Warner and George Cole starred in My Brother’s Keeper over here - but what sets The Defiant Ones apart is the racial tension between Curtis and Potter. It’s very grim to listen to the language used, and as a document of society, the film’s talk of lynchings and the attitudes on show is powerfully upsetting. It’s so brazen as well, there’s no attempt by some of the characters to be anything other than upfront about how they see one person as subhuman based on skin colour.

There’s plenty of symbolic scenes to do with power dynamics, like when they have to crawl out of the sodden pit, and yet there’s also some very interesting discussions about their past, and how Curtis feels so socio-economically repressed, despite being a white person. There’s a lot to unpack about the themes and content of dialogue.

The way the characters grow and learn to cooperate and respect each other is skilfully done. Bikel puts in a great turn as a sheriff with a sense of justice and proportion, keeping some of the savage bloodlust in check.

The whole thing is beautifully shot with long takes, panning camerawork, lighting and weather effects all adding to the immersion and atmosphere. The downpours exacerbate the hopelessness of the situation and force great cooperation, and the baking heat demands moments to pause and reflect. There’s a marvellous scene where a crowd wanting a lynching has the camera positioned at the back, looking between shoulders, as if part of the mob. It jostles for position by tracking sideways while a town leader remonstrates with them. It’s like he’s addressing the base instincts of the era’s racism. Magnificent.

Potter and Curtis are extremely good. Their growth is totally believable.

Without hesitation, 9/10
 
Doogie Hauser said:
This forum is full of Peter Bradshaws giving disproportionately low scores to films that don’t really warrant them, compared to the grander scheme of true shit.

Anyway, latest watch is…

The Defiant Ones (1958)

Tony Curtis and Sidney Poitier are chained together, on the run from Theodore Bikel, his deputies, deputised vigilantes and bloodhounds.

Bloody marvellous film. The chained together cons idea is as old as the hills - ten years previously Jack Warner and George Cole starred in My Brother’s Keeper over here - but what sets The Defiant Ones apart is the racial tension between Curtis and Potter. It’s very grim to listen to the language used, and as a document of society, the film’s talk of lynchings and the attitudes on show is powerfully upsetting. It’s so brazen as well, there’s no attempt by some of the characters to be anything other than upfront about how they see one person as subhuman based on skin colour.

There’s plenty of symbolic scenes to do with power dynamics, like when they have to crawl out of the sodden pit, and yet there’s also some very interesting discussions about their past, and how Curtis feels so socio-economically repressed, despite being a white person. There’s a lot to unpack about the themes and content of dialogue.

The way the characters grow and learn to cooperate and respect each other is skilfully done. Bikel puts in a great turn as a sheriff with a sense of justice and proportion, keeping some of the savage bloodlust in check.

The whole thing is beautifully shot with long takes, panning camerawork, lighting and weather effects all adding to the immersion and atmosphere. The downpours exacerbate the hopelessness of the situation and force great cooperation, and the baking heat demands moments to pause and reflect. There’s a marvellous scene where a crowd wanting a lynching has the camera positioned at the back, looking between shoulders, as if part of the mob. It jostles for position by tracking sideways while a town leader remonstrates with them. It’s like he’s addressing the base instincts of the era’s racism. Magnificent.

Potter and Curtis are extremely good. Their growth is totally believable.

Without hesitation, 9/10
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Well you could try Together (2025) which perhaps Bradshaw reviewed (he seems to be despised on here which seems odd to me as I loved his Guardian stuff). Anyway Together is a body horror with poor special effects and a slightly annoying real life couple as leads. Cronenberg-lite it is and to be honest very disappointing. 4/10 for some good ideas, badly executed. But as most reviews on here are boring essays so what eh?
 
craigypants said:
Well you could try Together (2025) which perhaps Bradshaw reviewed (he seems to be despised on here which seems odd to me as I loved his Guardian stuff). Anyway Together is a body horror with poor special effects and a slightly annoying real life couple as leads. Cronenberg-lite it is and to be honest very disappointing. 4/10 for some good ideas, badly executed. But as most reviews on here are boring essays so what eh?
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Cheers!
 
Sinners [2025] 8.5/10
VERY good. Bloody, sweaty, sexy, bluesy. Cuts deeper than your usual vampire story.

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Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story [2025] 7.5/10
I wouldn't say this is 'definitive' but it's an enjoyable 85 minute retrospective rather than an in-depth making-of.

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