Watching - December 2020

12 Dates of Christmas (2011)

Another Christmas TV movie (on Disney+ this time), and really just a rip-off of Groundhog Day - but watchable enough. Like its inspiration, it's implausible even if you accept the central idea of time repeating itself (as far as everyone else is concerned, they've only known the central character for a few hours, why are they such best friends all of a sudden?) but Amy Smart's journey into understanding herself is sweet and I enjoyed it.

Wimbledon (2004)

Perhaps not a classic, but it's still one of my favourite films. While obviously very much in the style of Richard Curtis, it manages not to be a pastiche and Paul Bettany in particular creates his own character rather than just impersonating Hugh Grant (unlike, say, Domhnall Gleeson in About Time). The dialogue and interplay between him and Kirsten Dunst is convincing, and overall it's just a lovely story.

Memento (2000)

Despite owning this DVD for years, I think this is possibly the first time I've watched the film since I originally saw it. It's not quite a complicated as I remember, although it's pretty complex - and, of course, the reverse chronology deliberately exacerbates this. It's a brilliant way of making us experience the uncertainty that Leonard (the Guy Pearce character) is feeling all the time. Very memorable and superbly made - a modern classic. (And currently, inexplicably, being remade, apparently.)

Godmothered (2020)

Predictable but well-made and amusing Disney silliness. The story feels like it's trying to be a bit like Enchanted but isn't quite as funny or sophisticated. Filled a couple of hours as a nice family watch though.

Lost In Austen (2008)

An unexpected find on Britbox, this is basically Life On Mars meets Jane Austen. However, unlike LoM, this is hard to take too seriously, as it gets increasingly preposterous across its four episodes. I don't think enough was made of the culture clash between old and new, but that didn't stop there being some nice moments and reinterpretations of the story - and it didn't stop me enjoying it. And on a side note, the casting of the Bennet sisters was much better than in the 1996 P&P - at least they looked their ages.

Soul (2020)

Our family film on Christmas Day, and very good it was too. It captured the attention of all us (no mean feat), was funny, thoughtful, meaningful and maybe a bit schmaltzy - all classic Pixar. Odd stunt casting with Graham Norton, but Richard Ayoade was much better.

Home Alone (1990)

None of us had ever seen this, amazingly, so it seemed like a good opportunity at Christmas. Obviously knowing the basic story means that it loses much of its ability to surprise but even so I wasn't particularly impressed. The famous clips of the burglars being variously whacked in the face and set on fire are funny and unexpectedly wince-inducing for a family film, but don't come until the last twenty minutes or so, leaving much of the rest of the film as a fairly dull recounting of Kevin's days. One thing that I did notice was that at the end, all of Kevin's brothers and sisters were still pretty apathetic about him, whereas if this film were remade today, I think there would have to be a big scene where everyone admitted they were wrong about him - which would be even more unrealistic than this film already is.

Hamilton (2020)

Very disappointed - it turned out that this wasn't a musical about Lewis Hamilton at all.
Just kidding! I'm probably cheating a bit by including this as I only watched about half an hour before getting bored, but I felt like I should give it a go. Unfortunately, stage musicals like this leave me completely cold. I find them so artificial, and every aspect of them just obstructs the story-telling, leaving me constantly having to think about the narrative rather than just being swept along with it. The performances were all stage-school thigh-slapping, foot-up-on-chair phoniness and the music was forced and unmemorable - and why oh why must everything be sung? It's just another obstacle to actually understanding the story. I know that plenty of people love this kind of thing but it's not for me.

Mulan (2020)

A feast for the eyes but not so much for the brain. The cinematography is amazing but the story is a simple one, although in fairness, so is the original legend, and I didn't feel the characters were particularly well fleshed-out. But what bothered me most was a nagging sense that most of the Chinese cultural elements - the tea ceremony, the matchmaker, the epigrammatic statements from Mulan's parents and generals, and so on - were fairly flat stereotypes. It seems unlikely that Disney, a savvy company with an eye on the huge Chinese market, would fail to do the necessary consultation, but it seems like they didn't. We still haven't watched the original Disney Mulan, but I'm quite keen to now.

Watching - November 2020

Summer Holiday (1963)

Watched in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep and needed something undemanding and familiar, yet not so familiar I'd not be interested. I hadn't seen it for decades but I could remember most of it. Very dated of course (as soon as the girls are on board, they are put in charge of cooking), but sweet enough.

Grease (1978)

Z wanted to watch this for some reason (I think we'd heard Greased Lightning on Strictly Come Dancing) and I was quite happy to revisit it - always good fun. My favourite song, you ask? Well, much as I like "Beauty School Dropout", with the boys as angels at the end, the bit that always cracks me up is the hot dog jumping into the bun at the end of "Sandy" - so silly!

A Puppy For Christmas (2016)

We discovered what can only be called a, er, "treasure trove" of schmaltzy, Mills & Boon style, seasonal romance films on My5. Just the thing for a wet November weekend afternoon, then. This is a wafer-thin plot about a woman who discovers the true meaning of Christmas via a puppy. It passed the time but wasn't actually very good.

Love Always, Santa (2016)

On the other hand, this was much better. Absolutely the equivalent of a good Silhouette romance: simple, predictable, but heartfelt and heart-warming. I know I'm an old softie but this is a sweet story, set in a world where no-one is mean and everything ends well, with characters who seem real and who you want to end up happy.

Holiday Date (2019)

I think I might need to go cold turkey (geddit???) on the crappy Christmas movies. But they're on Channel 5 in the afternoon when the best thing to do is just veg on the sofa. And I'm such a sucker for a romance. This was very silly in places but it made me laugh and it was sweet.

Watching - October 2020

The World's End (2013)

Well this didn't turn out like I expected. Maybe having watched Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz would have helped but I haven't. Anyway, the sudden twist in the middle of what seemed like an amusing, but fairly standard, middle-age reunion was funny and then well done. Not my usual kind of thing but very enjoyable.

Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)

C & I saw this in the cinema and I was blown away by the musical set pieces, not just the incredible re-creation of Live Aid, but by the studio scenes too. The dramatic stuff is a little bit compressed and fudged, but it's a film, not a documentary. Watching it again just reminds me (not that it was necessary) how much I love Queen's music; A Night At The Opera is one of my favourite albums and has been since I was about six. The actors here are amazingly close to their real-life counterparts, although if I were quibbling, it would be that they don't age enough.

Watching - September 2020

True Lies (1994)

C & I watched this to death back in the days of VHS, and despite not having seen it for easily a decade (possibly two), we remember it all. Some great scenes, funny moments and plenty of action. It's a bit dated in places; you probably wouldn't have Jamie Lee Curtis doing a (fairly gratuitous) strip-n-dance scene these days, and Art Malik's generic cigarette smoking middle-Eastern baddie would maybe be a bit more nuanced. But overall it's great fun. Introduced the boys to it too.

Total Recall (1990)

I hadn't intended to have an Arnie-fest, but this came up on Now TV and grabbed my fancy, since I hadn't seen it for ages. It's a lot more violent than I remembered, albeit just as cheesey, but once you take out all the shooting and action scenes, it's fairly insubstantial, really. It's been a long time since I read the original short story (Philip K. Dick's We Can Remember It For You Wholesale) but I'm fairly certain it was more interesting than this. I'm kind-of, half-tempted to watch the 2012 remake to see if it's any better.

Total Recall (2012)

... and so I did. Better? Well, it doesn't look as hopelessly dated, but I daresay it will in twenty years. There's too many plot holes, Kate Beckinsale is fairly unbelievable as a badass villain who keeps improbably turning up again and again (but she's still gorgeous), but actually I enjoyed it slightly more - maybe because I hadn't seen it before. There's a hint of Philip K. Dick's trademark "what is real?" at the end, as a Rekall advert plays in the background (apparently in the director's cut, this is expanded to cast further doubt over whether it's all fantasy or not), which I like. Anyway, watchable action.

Watching - August 2020

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

Saturday dinner time family viewing, mainly for K who hadn't seen it before. A classic, obviously: silly but fun, lots of great lines ("strange things are afoot at the Circle K") and nice and short.

The American President (1995)

In my mind, this goes with Dave, which we watched a couple of days ago. It's a superbly made film, touching, funny and realistic - at least, in the trivial respects. Aaron Sorkin wrote it, and it seems fairly obvious where his sympathies lie - with common sense, to anyone who's not a right-wing, gun-fetishising nutjob. Sadly, watching this only points up the sorry state of affairs in US politics right now, which makes this film something of a fantasy - but I think it always was, really. Sorkin went on to create The West Wing, which also starred Martin Sheen, and Michael J. Fox's next project was Spin City, so this film was pretty influential, I think.

Moneyball (2011)

I haven't read the source book, although I mean to, as Michael Lewis's other books are really interesting. Since this is a dramatisation of a true story - the Oakland Athletics baseball team's 2002 season - I'm guessing it's pretty true-to-life. I didn't understand the baseball scenes at all, but as with Remember The Titans, it doesn't really matter, I still enjoyed it. Maybe I should watch some films about more English sport to balance things out though!

Groundhog Day (1993)

K was the only one of the kids who hadn't seen this, for some reason, so that needed to be rectified. Pleasingly, it managed to foil even her usually unerring ability to predict what would happen. I can remember C and I going to see this, in Harrow, when it came out, and it's still great. The fact that I can recite most of the lines doesn't spoil it at all (well, not for me, possibly this isn't true for anyone watching it with me).

The Holiday (2006)

High-grade, star-studded schmaltz. Pulls all the right heart strings, but as predictable as getting wet in rain. Maybe I am prejudiced but the British actors are superb (special mention for Rufus Sewell as a smarmy, two-timing cheat), while the US actors play things a little by numbers, particularly Jack Black who is mis-cast (or at least should have been told to act and stop playing Jack Black), although Eli Wallach is very good. Overall, a nice piece of fluff which I had seen before but didn't mind watching again.

The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004)

Family choice while eating pizza. Not the most amazing film ever, but undeserving of "near-universal critical disdain" (according to Wikipedia) - it's perfectly nice, and the presence of Julie Andrews and Anne Hathaway make it very watchable.

Jumanji: The Next Level  (2019)

We started watching the first (second? I mean the remake of) Jumanji but I didn't finish it, for various reasons, until after we'd watched this. As a sequel, it has enough different to make it worth watching, while keeping the same enjoyable formula. Yes, it's a bit too similar to the first one in places, but if I'm honest, the main difference (that the avatars are inhabited by different people) felt a bit odd in some way, and I wished that they were all the same people as before - something the makers clearly realised, as they had them all swap back half way through. All good fun though and a great family film (although B & K bailed half way through for some reason).

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (2017)

Any film with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in it isn't usually on our radar, but we took a chance on this anyway, and just as well - we really enjoyed it. I haven't seen the original Jumanji, so I don't know how it compares, but the ideas here are good and handled well, and the actors look like they're having fun being avatars with other people's personalities inside them. There's plenty of action, lessons are learned and there are some very sweet moments too (I'm a sucker for a little sentimentality). And in fairness to Mr The Rock, he's very good.

10 Things I Hate About You (1999)

Superb, quick-witted and fun teen romcom. Played for K, since I knew she would like it.

Le Mans '66 (2019)

Really enjoyable drama about the Ford GT40 win in '66, and the people who made. I knew some of the story (enough to know this film is something of a simplification), but hadn't appreciated the amount Ken Miles contributed to the design and engineering. Christian Bale is superb as Miles, and the driving scenes, while a bit fake, are wonderfully staged and a great opportunity to spot old classics.

Watching - July 2020

I've been keeping track of what I've read for over ten years now, but for some reason it hadn't occurred to me to do the same for what I watch. Maybe it's because a film doesn't require the same time commitment, or maybe it's because I don't see myself as a particularly discerning watcher. But we've been watching a lot recently so I thought it worth noting down. Maybe I'll carry on, maybe there'll be months with nothing to say. 

The Notebook (2004)

I didn't know anything about this when I discovered it on the book exchange shelves at work, but apparently it's a bit of a cult hit (K tells me anyway). Then I enjoyed Ryan Gosling in Crazy Stupid Love recently, so thought I'd give this a go - and I always enjoy a good romance. I might be tempted to class it as superior TV movie fare; it's a bit syrupy and goes for the emotions a bit too obviously, and the "twist" was fairly apparent. But it brought tears to my eyes anyway and I enjoyed it.

My Cousin Vinny (1992)

At the half term we got a free week of Sky Cinema (via Now TV), which I then forgot to cancel, and then when I did go to cancel it, we got a discounted offer for three months. So I'm watching things I probably wouldn't have otherwise. Although I'd heard of this, I didn't know what it was about and if I am honest, it caught my attention at least in part because it's got Marisa Tomei in it (who is coincidentally also in Crazy Stupid Love), who does a fantastic job as a sassy Noo Yoik gal. Enjoyable and funny, if slightly predictable.

Lady And The Tramp (1955)

We're working our way through some lesser Disney films for some reason. I think we've had this for a while but never watched it. Slight, sweet and dated, although as ever, you can't fault the animation. My favourite bit is Peggy Lee singing (as the Pekingese Peg) "He's A Tramp". The less said about the Siamese cats (also voiced by Lee) the better.

Field Of Dreams (1989)

I watched this a long time ago and didn't really follow it (at least, as far as I remember). Watching it again, despite knowing nothing and caring less about baseball, I enjoyed it. The mystical elements make no sense and there is no attempt to explain them, which I quite like. It's not a film about baseball, it seems to me, but about the power of sport to give meaning to people's lives. In atmosphere, it reminds me very strongly of Chariots Of Fire, which is no bad thing.

The Aristocats (1970)

A kind of cat-based Lady And The Tramp, which I was surprised to find was made as late as 1970. Amusing, and the child cats are very cute. I guess it would be carping to point out that the jazz being played by Scat Cat and his friends is at least twenty years too early for the film's 1910 setting?

Remember The Titans (2000)

C heard about this during the "Fake Doctors, Real Friends" podcast that Zach Braff and Donald Faison are doing (rewatching all of Scrubs and chatting about it). It was a running joke that Zach had never watched this film, despite his best friend being in it. A drama about race in Virginia and the bonding power of sports is not something we would ever have chosen for ourselves otherwise and the (American) football scenes are mostly a mystery to us, but we still enjoyed it. The expected shift from outright hostility between the different communities, to complete acceptance is unrealistically quick - but it's a Disney film, so a happy ending was assured. Very enjoyable.

Scrubs: Season 8 (2009)

For some reason, our collection of Scrubs only goes up to season 7, so it was good to find that All4 currently includes all Scrubs seasons. I actually watched this with B & K last month, but rewatched it with C this month. Before that it had been a while since I last seen Scrubs, so it was good to see everyone again. JD is a bit too goofy and the bromance between him and Turk is over-played, but  I was pleased (spoiler alert) that JD and Elliott finally got together, and the finale is genuinely touching. Shame they went and spoiled it with season 9 (don't bother).

Frost/Nixon (2008)

On the face of it, a story about a set of interviews - even ones as historic as these - isn't promising material for a film, but I found this fascinating. Michael Sheen is decent enough as Frost (even though I think he impersonates Tony Blair much better; the smile/not-smile he does all the time suits the former PM better), but Frank Langella is superb as Nixon. I'd never seen the real interviews themselves (I have now), but it's interesting to compare the film with Clive James's reviews of them at the time: he was unimpressed by the programme focusing on Watergate (which was recorded last but broadcast first), whereas in the film it's presented as a triumph for Frost after the "failures" of previous interviews. On the other hand, James found the earlier interviews worthwhile. So clearly some dramatic license has been taken. Still, a very enjoyable film.

Emma (2009)

I'm not sure who identified the glorious anachronism at the heart of Titanic, which was to take a film on which huge amounts of effort and money had been spent in order to achieve period-correctness - and then drop two late-90s teenagers into it as Jack and Rose. But it feels like the same was attempted with this BBC version of Emma. Everyone around Emma walks and talks like you'd expect from a Jane Austen drama, while Romala Garai has what looks like great fun basically pretending she's Cher in Clueless (still the best adaptation of the novel, by the way). Perhaps the intention was to make 18th century people seem more real, rather than robots - and perhaps my expectations have been skewed by previous dramatisations - but Garai comes across as vacuous rather than intelligent and there was too much that was jarring for this to be properly enjoyable. The story holds up, of course, but only just.

Some Kind Of Wonderful (1987)

This is perhaps a lesser-known John Hughes film, certainly not on the same level of reknown as, say, The Breakfast Club or Pretty In Pink. However, I think it's better. Certainly the ending is more satisfying that the latter film, although overall it's a very similar plot. Mary Stuart Masterson is fantastic in it and, believe it or not, the first time I watched this, I didn't realise (spoiler alert) that she was in love with Eric Stoltz's character until right at the end. K, with whom I was very pleased to be able to share this, couldn't have been more disbelieving of my stupidity, but she enjoyed the film and that was good.

The Parent Trap (1998)

Searching on NowTV for something to watch with Z, we came across this. Not the obvious choice for a boy his age, but he enjoyed it, and why not - it's a well-made family film, with laughs, drama and some sentimentality, and it ends happily. I've seen it twice this year now (possibly I watched it with K, not sure) but I still like it. 

Inception (2010)

For some reason this has taken us ages to get round to watching, particularly given that I've had the DVD for almost two years and B has been nagging me about it for months (although he's been very patient really and waited so we could watch it together!). Anyway, we finally got round to it, split over three evenings, and very good it was too. As Mark Kermode pointed out, it's basically a heist movie, but a very well executed one. B and I were on tenterhooks towards the end (although K seemed very relaxed!) even though it was clear they would make it.

Dave (1993)

I've always really liked this film; it's very sweet and good-natured, while making a few good points about politics. And despite being twenty-seven years old, it hasn't dated. That helped when we watched this with B & K, who both enjoyed it a lot. K guessed the ending in about five seconds flat again - she's obviously watched way too many films!