HBO Max Recommendations

[AK47bp]

Ralph Fiennes was amazing in that ^.

He should win some kind of actor award or some such.


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[toast2266]

Watched The Menu last night - really enjoyed it. One of the better movies I've seen in a bit. And agreed, Fiennes was fantastic.

[dookeyXXX]

Two from Steven Soderbergh:

I was really disappointed/underwhelmed by No Sudden Move.
On paper it appears to be a winner; a noir with a stellar cast. We’re talking Don Cheadle, Benicio del Toro, Brendan Fraser, Ray Liotta. However nobody in the cast really clicked, the plot was moderately confusing, and then the ending just kind of fizzled out. All in all it was rather lackluster and forgettable.
Honestly, the trailer is way more exciting and cool than the film itself…





On the other hand, while the general gist of Let Them All Talk is rather familiar—three estranged friends get together on a cruise— the stellar cast has chemistry and there’s enough interesting little drama tweaks to keep you involved. This one I highly recommend.

[mcski]

Shocking it’s a thumbs down. Soderbergh is a certified film genius. He rarely if ever misses

[dookeyXXX]

Shocking it’s a thumbs down. Soderbergh is a certified film genius. He rarely if ever misses

He’s one of my favorite directors, but No Sudden Move fell flat.
It reminded me a lot of The Little Things, another recent noir with a great cast that never really clicked and a ho-hum story.
YMMV, though…

Of his three originals for HBOMax, I definitely enjoyed the heck outta both Kimi and Let Them All Talk.

[toast2266]

Watched "This Place Rules" that covers the events leading up to January 6. No new revelations or anything like that, but Andrew Callaghan is really good at getting entertaining interviews with some fairly odd people. The whole thing is kind of hilariously depressing. If you haven't seen his YouTube stuff, he's worth checking out.

[Hott Butt Mud]

Watched "This Place Rules" that covers the events leading up to January 6. No new revelations or anything like that, but Andrew Callaghan is really good at getting entertaining interviews with some fairly odd people. The whole thing is kind of hilariously depressing. If you haven't seen his YouTube stuff, he's worth checking out.

I gotta watch this. I've heard from a few people now that this is awesome!

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

“This Place Rules” was great. Getting the leader of the Proud Boys to admit he was making money off selling Biden apparel was a pretty fascinating moment (among others). That doc and “Pelosi In The House” both offer very compelling POV’s on 1/6.

Andrew Callaghan’s work with Channel 5 and All Gas No Brakes is worth a watch as well.

That said, last week a lot of sexual misconduct allegations came out against Andrew. I would guess they will likely cost him much of his career/following and would be surprised if “This Place Rules” doesn’t also disappear from HBO.

[toast2266]

That said, last week a lot of sexual misconduct allegations came out against Andrew. I would guess they will likely cost him much of his career/following and would be surprised if “This Place Rules” doesn’t also disappear from HBO.

Just saw that. That's a bummer. He seemed like he had a lot of interesting stuff ahead of him, but it sounds like he may well have ruined it.

[Buzzworthy]

This must be new. Chris Sharma’s The Climb. Climbers compete for $100k and a one year prAna spancership. Aquaman co produces. 3 episodes to start it off.

[nickwm21]

Episode 1 of The Last of Us did not disappoint.


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[Supermoon]

This must be new. Chris Sharma’s The Climb. Climbers compete for $100k and a one year prAna spancership. Aquaman co produces. 3 episodes to start it off.

Watched the first episode of this last night. Pretty good for reality TV so far.

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

Just saw that. That's a bummer. He seemed like he had a lot of interesting stuff ahead of him, but it sounds like he may well have ruined it.

For sure. His responses have made it sound like most of the accusations are true, too.

[mcski]

So the all gas no brakes guy had...no brakes? That sucks. His ability to deal w the insufferable was pretty good. Too bad that show /whatever you call these things now ran out of gas as well

[PB]

Episode 1 of The Last of Us did not disappoint.


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Are you familiar with the source material?
I'm not, so it's a slow burn start but pretty sure the show's a winner.

[Buzzworthy]

Watched the first episode of this last night. Pretty good for reality TV so far.

I’m now waiting for more to drop Thursday. I’m definitely enjoying this series. Back in college I did a little climbing in WV. Lots of fun but I’m also not a fan of heights. Watching climbing like this is pretty exhilarating.

[bagtagley]

George Harrison doc series is damn good
better than that Let it be crap last year.

Get Back? Man I loved it, surprisingly. Renewed my appreciation for the Beatles. So cool to watch that album and those songs come to life. It was also interesting to see that they actually got along pretty well, contrary to the old Let It Be doc and everything I’ve read about those sessions.

[dookeyXXX]

The Card Counter
Paul Schrader 's (screenwriter of Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and others) latest effort is a thematic and genre mash-up covering neon noir, hitman-with-a-heart-of-gold, hustler/mentor, and revenge territory.
Delivered in a steadily paced manner with a decidedly detached aura, the film is teeming with nuance and slow-burn tension. A fantastic score and plenty of saturated scenery only add to the overall ambiance.
Oscar Isaac gives a wonderfully understated and tense performance. Tiffany Haddish is a little bit awkward, but delivers some great lines and is really good at seductively drinking drinks and strutting in high heels. Tye Sheridan holds his own. Willem Dafoe makes a cameo.
The score, by Robert Levon Been of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, wavers between ethereal and visceral, really adding to the overall mood and flow of the film.

***[Interesting trivia: Robert Levon Been is the son of Michael Been, former bassist/vocalist of The Call. Michael scored Schrader's 1992 film Light Sleeper, which also featured Willem Dafoe].

RIYL
First Reformed; The Hard Eight; The Color of Money

[Buzzworthy]

^^ Tried to watch it twice. Couldn’t get into it though

[dookeyXXX]

^^ Tried to watch it twice. Couldn’t get into it though

The films that Schrader writes/directs can often be an acquired taste…

[dookeyXXX]

MALIGNANT
Whoa, is this film an unexpected hoot.

I actually shunned it when it was in the theaters because:
1. I have been pretty underwhelmed by most of director James Wan's cinematic output
2. The trailer made the film look like every other horror film on the market (especially those produced by Blumhouse, who makes some pretty generic crap more often than not).

Man, was I misled.

The film is a glorious 1980s inspired romp that mashes up myriad genres from detective procedural to demonic possession to evil doctors in a creepy sanitorium to serial killers and haunted houses. It also has some seriously gonzo action and some nifty practical effects, not to mention some really cool camera shots and photographic trickery.
Wishing I had taken a chance and seen it in theaters...

RIYL
Darkman; I Madman; Aliens

[toast2266]

The Card Counter
Paul Schrader 's (screenwriter of Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and others) latest effort is a thematic and genre mash-up covering neon noir, hitman-with-a-heart-of-gold, hustler/mentor, and revenge territory.
Delivered in a steadily paced manner with a decidedly detached aura, the film is teeming with nuance and slow-burn tension. A fantastic score and plenty of saturated scenery only add to the overall ambiance.
Oscar Isaac gives a wonderfully understated and tense performance. Tiffany Haddish is a little bit awkward, but delivers some great lines and is really good at seductively drinking drinks and strutting in high heels. Tye Sheridan holds his own. Willem Dafoe makes a cameo.
The score, by Robert Levon Been of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, wavers between ethereal and visceral, really adding to the overall mood and flow of the film.

***[Interesting trivia: Robert Levon Been is the son of Michael Been, former bassist/vocalist of The Call. Michael scored Schrader's 1992 film Light Sleeper, which also featured Willem Dafoe].

RIYL
First Reformed; The Hard Eight; The Color of Money

I've caught two movies lately that had Tiffany Haddish in them - the card counter, and the unbearable weight of massive talent. I'm fairly baffled that any director would let her "acting" make it through to the final cut. She is utterly incapable of delivering a line, and she ruins every scene she's in. And she ruins the next scene too, because I'm still distracted by how awful she was in the previous scene.

[mcski]

That’s your best review line ever. Nice one

[PB]

I count 4 lines, so ... which line??

[BobMc]

The Last of Us is worth the subscription price alone.