March 10th, 2023 at 12:58 PM ^
My unpopular take: I thought Hopkins’ Lechter was cliche. On the other hand, Brian Cox’s Lechter in Manhunter was incredible. He was for more sinister by being banal.
Jeff Daniels, Gods & Generals. Loved the book, have never been more upset at a movie (and we saw it at midnight on opening night, no less).
While the movie sucked, I'd argue that the book was only mediocre itself. Jeff Shaara lacks his dad's writing chops.
An interesting sidebar is whether Sheen or Duvall was better as Lee.
No disagreement there, but I read it when I was about 12 or 13. It was one of the first things I'd read about the Civil War (I read three Shaara Civil War books as a trilogy in order) and it really kicked off a multi-decade fascination. The movie came out when I was in college and I got together with old friends from high school to watch it.
As to the Lee question, I'd have to go back and watch Duvall's performance again, something I steadfastly refuse to do, although generally I like him better as an actor than I do Sheen.
I with ya, read all the Shaara books about the same age. Of Jeff's work, I liked the "prequel" about the Mexican-American war best.
I'd have to rewatch Gods & General's too to fairly judge the Lee question. My one takeaway on my one viewing was that Duvall was the only good thing I saw; then again, I liked Sheen's portrayal, especially the bit right after he's chewed out Stewart and then softens.
The Athletic had a feature recently about the Sharaas. Had no idea that Michael had written the source material for what became For Love of the Game.
Gods & Generals was a rough hang as a movie, in my opinion.
I saw "Gettysburg" at its opening at the Fox Theatre and loved every second of it, so I naturally looked forward to "Gods & Generals." I remember sitting in the theater thinking, "It's got to get better than this ... eventually, it's just GOT to." But it never did. Over-long and over-written. I'm a fan of both Daniels and Duvall, but nobody could save G&G:
The Grifters with John Cusack.
I love The Grifters (or at least loved it in the 1990s when I was in Grad School). Haven't seen it since.
The Grifters is great film.
This reminds me of one.
”Leap of Faith”
Steve Martin and Liam Neeson in a really boring, generic, formulaic, at best passingly funny film.
There’s one scene in particular, where Neeson leads his love interest to this field of butterflies, I swear the director glued some limp-winged butterflies to the actors to make it look like they were landing on them. Turrible, awkward, campy attempt at a romance scene
Tom Hanks
Bonfire of the Vanities.
Great book. Bad movie.
No way Hanks should have played that part. Didn't fit that character at all. Not his fault. It was the director's fault or whoever it was that chose him.
Perhaps the single worst casting choice of all time.
That would be a great topic for another thread. So many good (bad) choices. Haydn Christenson as Darth Vader is one of my candidates.
March 10th, 2023 at 12:46 PM ^
Tom Cruise as the 6'5" 250 lbs Reacher
March 10th, 2023 at 10:35 AM ^
Though not a movie, Queen Latifah as the Equalizer would like a word.
Bill Murray is one of my all-time favoritists, but I did not enjoy What About Bob?
Bill's character is great in it, but the writing and the rest of the cast I found very uninspiring and quite cliche.
It's been many years since I've seen it so maybe my reaction would be different now, but "What About Bob" had me laughing to the point of tears. I thought Richard Dreyfuss was great as the straight man.
Garfield, Bill Murray.
Julie Hagerty was great in that too.
This is the worst take I’ve seen in a while and makes me doubt your opinion on general. I’d be surprised if you were a Michigan fan, but alas………
March 10th, 2023 at 12:47 PM ^
What About Bob is tremendous, this is a bad take.
Michael Caine, Jaws: The Revenge. He missed out on accepting his first Academy Award to film that laughable sequel.
He's said while the movie sucked, the house it paid for was awesome. (I paraphrase.)
That movie along with “Blame it on Rio” cements his legacy in my mind as a schlock actor. Loved him in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels but on the whole of his career he’s rather “one note”
March 10th, 2023 at 12:50 PM ^
Tell me you've never seen Harry Brown without telling me you've never seen Harry Brown.
March 10th, 2023 at 12:49 PM ^
Michael Caine has never been sheepish about the fact that he loves acting so much he would play anything. He said he hasn't regretted a single film that he has made.
We're really in OT now aren't we. Stupid Rutgers.
Hey, who's someone you'd love to screw with someone else's D*ck?
Woody Harrelson and Tommy Lee Jones: Natural Born Killers
RDJ too!
I think Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, and John Turturro are all great actors, and I can't think of a movie they're in that I haven't liked, especially if it's a Coen brothers movie.
Except for "The Big Lebowski." Just watched it for the second time a few days ago; the first time I watched it 25 years ago I lost interest part way through and didn't finish it. I forced myself this time and my reaction was even more negative.
Goodman's Sobchak and Bridges's Jeff Lebowski are the most obnoxious and irritating pair of main characters I've ever seen in a movie that's universally well-regarded. Halfway through the movie I began wishing that somebody would beat the fuck out of Walter with a baseball bat or tire iron or golf club, and Lebowski was the archetype of every painfully inarticulate, habitually stoned dipshit I've ever known.
The weird thing is that the movie is just stuffed with gif-worthy moments, some of which I've even posted here from time to time. I know that I'm probably one of three people in the entire country who didn't like the movie, so I'll take my negs.
I've never actually watched it all the way through. I tried a number of times because it was so popular but it never held my interests.
I love the Coen brother's movies. I saw Raising Arizona 100 times in highschool on VHS. I watched the Big Lebowski in the theater when it came out. I was super disappointed. Nothing really happened. I told a friend that and he told me I missed the point. You have to think about the Big Lebowski as an experience and not as a movie. Once you change your perspective, all of those great quotes and moments are amplified 1000%; it really ties the whole thing together. The dude abides.
I’ve never been able to finish it.
March 10th, 2023 at 12:04 AM ^
Don thank you for lavishing your post with sufficient details to confirm I don't ever need to read another of your posts again.
I don't even know if we agree or disagree about sports topics, but your Coen brothers take was so spectacularly wrong I'm just going to assume we disagree about everything!
Did you see Miller's Crossing? Fargo? Their remake of True Grit? You're outta your depth Donnie! Donnie?! You're outta your depth!
Sorry, but I'm with Don on this one. Both Lebowski and Fargo fall into that category of movies that made me think "What is the gigantic fascination that people have with this shit?" Now, "True Grit" was pretty damn good, but I think that's because it stuck closer to the feel of the book, rather that the John Wayne "Hollywood-ized" version. Plus Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and Hailee Steinfeld were far better actors than Wayne, Glen Campbell, or Kim Darby.
March 10th, 2023 at 11:36 AM ^
I loved Miller's Crossing, Fargo, Raising Arizona, Blood Simple, Barton Fink, True Grit, and especially O Brother Where Art Thou, which is one of the best movies I've ever seen.
I watched Hail Caesar last weekend and was disappointed—the premise seemed to offer the potential of a great movie, but I think it failed to deliver in the way their best movies have done.
Apologies Don, I completely misread your comment - you said you do like most Coen bros movies *except" Lebowski.
I had read it as you like those actors except in Coen movies!
The movie was fine, but did not equal the sum of its parts. The quality of the cast did greatly exceed the quality of the film.
That's different from a movie like pulp fiction which was so damn good that it relaunched travolta's career and helped define its cast as quality actors.
I've seen the first 30 minutes of Lebowski about 150 times, and the rest about twice. Not that it rubs me the wrong way, its just that our tradition was to watch football from 10am Saturday to 230 am on Sunday, order pizza, and put on the Big Lebowski. A few beers may have been drunk during the course of the day too.
In speaking of Jeff Bridges, he was in Seventh Son and it was totally awful. He spoke/slurred through his teeth so much that what he said was barely discernible. The rest of the movie was pretty terrible too.
De Niro in just about every film that was labeled a comedy.
De Niro is an iconic actor, but a natural comedian he is not.
And the comedy films he has appeared in have been mostly dreadful regardless of who they cast. e.g. How did The Fokkers become a multi film franchise?
I've heard many people say "Midnight Run" with De Niro and Charles Grodin is funny as hell.
Good call. Funny movie.
It's hilarious. But it works because De Niro is playing it straight as a tough guy and is respected as such. The humor comes from playing off Grodin, who is being magnificently insufferable.
"These things go down!"
March 10th, 2023 at 12:07 AM ^
Try Midnight Run, he's pretty funny in a deadpan way. I think he just tried to sorta kinda recreate that role over & over in many "comedy" roles.
Coasting I believe they call it...
DeNiro and Eddie Murphy in Showtime wasn't bad, but again he was the straight edge cop, and Murphy was the comedy.
I loved The Intern!
I've got nipples, Greg. Can you milk me?