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SMB Film Thread 2025

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A Real Pain (2024) 8/10
Clearly owes a debt to Old Joy (2006), another film about two men reconnecting during a journey. Old Joy is subtler and more meditative. Here it's two actors playing to type. Very good, but a couple of notches below the masterpiece Peter Bradshaw claims it to be.
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errant said:
edit: also, the one thing i couldnt get away with - the tour guides accent seemed to be some middle north generic accent except the actor is from camden (was just odd).
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The actor is half-Japanese and was educated at Winchester College. I think the accent is deliberately parochial for light relief. Classism for laughs is still perfectly acceptable, it seems.

Anatahan (1953) 8/10
An oddity: Josef von Sternberg's last film, made in Japan with an all-Japanese cast. Tells the true story of Japanese sailors stranded on a remote Pacific island, where they hold out for six years after the end of WWII. The lone woman on the island becomes the focal point of intrigue and violence. Gorgeously shot in a studio. Von Sternberg's narration is the only jarring note.
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The Social Network (2010) 8/10
The story of the founding of Facebook. In this context, Zuckerberg's recent morph into right-wing enabler isn't surprising at all. Tech bro culture is going to end the world, but at least they'll have a good time doing it.
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The Red House (1947)

Edward G is a mild-mannered farmer who lives with his sister in the sunny farmland glades of rural America. On account of a disability, he hires one of the local college lads as part-time labour. EGR’s adopted daughter takes a shine to him. All very sedate and tranquil. Until one evening, the hired hand declares that he is going to take a short cut home through the local woods. Robinson looks panic-stricken, and warns him off the venture, ranting about screams and being haunted.

So unravels an intriguing entry that held my attention throughout. It’s a curious film. Tonally, it will benefit from a repeat viewing, because there’s plenty of signposting present, it’s just not appreciated much on the first watch. There’s no great revelation - the denouement is slowly revealed and predictable, and never quite justifies the apparent emphasis on holding it back. However, there are several parts of the film that are masterful, especially for the era.

The reasoning behind various events is interesting, and really benefits from EGR’s excellent performance. He knows precisely when to take his foot off the throttle, when to expand some emotion, when to show various traits that explore the reality behind the red house of the story, and when to use expressions to paint a picture. He’s never hysterical in a way that others might be. He’s just a top class actor, as the peak of his craft.

The photography and carefully-constructed atmosphere, with its light and dark contrasts, are good quality, too. It’s not an amazing film. It’s a 7.5/10. Some aspects of it are amazing, though. The themes behind the premise are very simplistic and era-reflective, but as a mid 40s exploration of psychology, it’s a very atmospheric entry.
 
Juggernaut (1974) 9/10
With a better title, this would be a British classic. Brilliant cast (Omar Sharif, Richard Harris, Anthony Hopkins, Ian Holm, David Hemmings, Roy Kinnear) in a story based on an actual bomb scare affecting the QE2. In this case, a call is received from 'Juggernaut' revealing that there are seven bombs aboard an ocean liner sailing from Southampton to New York. The government refuse to pay the ransom, so the race is on for Richard Harris and his team to parachute onto the ship and defuse the bombs. The filmmakers chartered an actual ocean liner for filming, and make the most of it.
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The Killing of Sister George (1968) 6/10
Lesbian drama that was groundbreaking at the time, but now seems a tad exploitative. Beryl Reid, as an alcoholic TV actress, is great. As with most plays turned into films, it feels like a play with a few exterior shots added.
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Ex-Husbands (2025) 6/10
Griffin Dunne as a man getting a divorce after a long marriage who accidently crashes his son's bachelor party in Mexico, only to find that the son is hiding the fact that his fiancee has dumped him. Could have been the set-up for a comedy, but this is an indie film full of all the usual quirkiness and angst.
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I remember the adverts locally in Southampton for extras to do the crowd scenes in Juggernaut. They used a chartered-in passenger ship "Maxim Gorky", I believe, tarted up to look like QE2. We were on leave at the time so we applied. My two mates were hired and off they went up the channel and into the North Sea looking for rough seas and bad weather. What seemed like a jolly turned into nightmare for many of the extras but my mates were Cunarders off the Atlantic Soton to New York run and well seasoned. They had a great time and dined out on it for years with photos taken with their "pals" Omar and Richard Harris. Takes me back seeing that clip, must dig the film out for a watch.
 
Leon Solent said:
I remember the adverts locally in Southampton for extras to do the crowd scenes in Juggernaut. They used a chartered-in passenger ship "Maxim Gorky", I believe, tarted up to look like QE2. We were on leave at the time so we applied. My two mates were hired and off they went up the channel and into the North Sea looking for rough seas and bad weather. What seemed like a jolly turned into nightmare for many of the extras but my mates were Cunarders off the Atlantic Soton to New York run and well seasoned. They had a great time and dined out on it for years with photos taken with their "pals" Omar and Richard Harris. Takes me back seeing that clip, must dig the film out for a watch.
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The ship was the Hamburg. The filmmakers had it for a few weeks before it was sold to the Soviets and became the Maxim Gorky. Hit an iceberg in 1989, passengers evacuated, almost sank. Somehow got to port, was repaired, and stayed in service until 2008.

The Eureka blu-ray is worth splashing out on. Fully restored with extras.

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Bunch of stuff I've watched in the last few months

*In cinema

Bird* - 8/10
MadS - 7/10
Blade Runner* - 10/10
Gladiator 2* - 4.5/10
My Old Ass - 7/10
Paddington 3* - 5/10
The Apartment* - 10/10
We Live in Time - 6/10
Scrooge* (1951) - 6/10
Anora* - 9/10
Cronos - 5/10
Extreme Prejudice - 6/10
It's a Wonderful Life* - 8/10
Some Like it Hot - 7.5/10
Badlands - 8/10
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl - 8/10
Better Man* - 7/10
After Hours - 9/10
Tangerine - 7/10
Nosferatu (1922) - 7/10
Nosferatu* - 7/10
The French Connection - 10/10
Babygirl* - 5/10
A Real Pain* - 9/10
Devil in a Blue Dress - 8/10
The Substance* - 9.5/10


I'll leave you with my full A Real Pain review:

A Real Pain – 9/10

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I thought this was brilliant. Given that it’s a buddy-comedy that takes place during a Holocaust tour of Poland, it could so easily have been a car crash if in the wrong hands, but first time writer/director Jesse Eisenberg’s judgment was bang on. It’s perfectly pitched, with plenty of laughs without ever feeling distasteful.

The chemistry between the leads is great and Kieran Culkin is superb. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a male lead fizz on screen like this. I recognize so much of one of my friends in his character. The type of bloke who can talk the hind legs off a donkey, who strolls into any situation beaming with confidence and doesn’t appear to have any sense of self awareness. To create a character that is often unbearably annoying, but also someone who has many envious traits, and for that level of complexity to register with an audience is quite a feat.

There are several emotional nuggets that build up in the second half of the film, that when combined equate to something more than the sum of their parts. It packs the emotional punch without feeling manipulative or even having so much as a swell of sentimental score. It was just raw, understated, relatable emotion that hit me hard and has left me feeling choked up, even a day later. That’s when I know I’ve seen something special.

The Holocaust elements are handled with a real elegance, the script is sharp and witty, and despite sounding like it might be heavy going, it makes for super easy laid-back viewing. I’m glad Culkin won the Golden Globe, even though I think he’s a bit creepy.
 
DJ Doubt said:
Bunch of stuff I've watched in the last few months

*In cinema

Bird* - 8/10
MadS - 7/10
Blade Runner* - 10/10
Gladiator 2* - 4.5/10
My Old Ass - 7/10
Paddington 3* - 5/10
The Apartment* - 10/10
We Live in Time - 6/10
Scrooge* (1951) - 6/10
Anora* - 9/10
Cronos - 5/10
Extreme Prejudice - 6/10
It's a Wonderful Life* - 8/10
Some Like it Hot - 7.5/10
Badlands - 8/10
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl - 8/10
Better Man* - 7/10
After Hours - 9/10
Tangerine - 7/10
Nosferatu (1922) - 7/10
Nosferatu* - 7/10
The French Connection - 10/10
Babygirl* - 5/10
A Real Pain* - 9/10
Devil in a Blue Dress - 8/10
The Substance* - 9.5/10


I'll leave you with my full A Real Pain review:

A Real Pain – 9/10

Logon or register to see this image


I thought this was brilliant. Given that it’s a buddy-comedy that takes place during a Holocaust tour of Poland, it could so easily have been a car crash if in the wrong hands, but first time writer/director Jesse Eisenberg’s judgment was bang on. It’s perfectly pitched, with plenty of laughs without ever feeling distasteful.

The chemistry between the leads is great and Kieran Culkin is superb. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a male lead fizz on screen like this. I recognize so much of one of my friends in his character. The type of bloke who can talk the hind legs off a donkey, who strolls into any situation beaming with confidence and doesn’t appear to have any sense of self awareness. To create a character that is often unbearably annoying, but also someone who has many envious traits, and for that level of complexity to register with an audience is quite a feat.

There are several emotional nuggets that build up in the second half of the film, that when combined equate to something more than the sum of their parts. It packs the emotional punch without feeling manipulative or even having so much as a swell of sentimental score. It was just raw, understated, relatable emotion that hit me hard and has left me feeling choked up, even a day later. That’s when I know I’ve seen something special.

The Holocaust elements are handled with a real elegance, the script is sharp and witty, and despite sounding like it might be heavy going, it makes for super easy laid-back viewing. I’m glad Culkin won the Golden Globe, even though I think he’s a bit creepy.
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You get a like for this. It’s a well-written review and has my interest piqued.
However, 6/10 for Scrooge requires some kind of punishment.
 
Miso Hungry (2015) (Amazon Prime)
This follows Aussie Craig Anderson, producer, director and actor, quite heavy, mid 30's living off nothing but junk food because his warehouse he lives/works from hasn't got a very good kitchen as he explores whether the Japanese diet and way of life could help him.

It follows his 2 weeks in Japan looking at their diet including how to prepare packed lunches and the different ways of life such as Salaryman (with obligatory Asahi fuelled Karaoke) a rather amusing green tea ceremony and what goes into kids packed lunches. He then goes back home and tries it for 10 weeks to see what impact it has.

He's incredibly charming, there's some great moments in someone's house as he learns how to cook but is relegated to the kids room, and it's refreshing seeing someone go somewhere truly "foreign" and not playing to the camera (Looking at you Paul Hollywood in Japan) or refusing to try something. His trousers steal a few scenes with almost comedic timing.

Before he begins he went through a battery of medical tests, he's dangerously overweight (topping 300lb) has a biological age in the mid 60's, high risk of type 2 if his heart doesn't explode first, What is noticeable is seeing the physical changes to him as he goes through with it and the results both physically and mentally are impressive.

Basically Supersize me but in reverse and with heart.

8.5/10


Subscribed to StudioCanal today so will be going through their back catalogue , also sorely tempted with Caligula Uncut as I've never seen the original version and this is the closest to the original screenplay we'll get.
DJ Doubt said:
I'll leave you with my full A Real Pain review:
Click to expand...

Cracking write-up, I cannot wait to see it.
 
Bloody Hell
And oddly enjoyable low budget comedy err, thriller, horror?

Anyway, the main guy is so likeable and the situation so ridiculous it’s really fun and flew over.

Make sure to watch an official version as mine had none of the Finnish subtitles 🤣
 
I thought A Real Pain was good, a solid 7/10. I like Eisenberg and Culkin. I also feel like I’ve seen that sort of Sundance film 100 times before, which is fine, but not a 5 star film as others have said.
 
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