Lost In Translation

1917

Sam Mendes' WWI single-take story, 1917 (2019), has won the Golden Globes award as best picture. So I expect many more people will go out of their way like me to see the film. It calls to mind Saving Private Ryan in plot and the concept of a one-take sequence is audacious, but overall the film seems to lack teeth somehow. The story feels small and somewhat maudlin in execution. It had its moments but overall I had the feeling that something was missing.

Red Pier

Red Pier (1958) is a Nikkatsu crime film from Toshio Masuda starring Diamond Guy Yujiro Ishihara. It's set in Kobe and finds himself on the run and in a love triangle with a bad girl and good girl.

Uncut Gems

The Safdie brothers came out with another New York film in 2019 with Uncut Gems starring Adam Sandler. Sandler plays a wise cracking NY city jeweler with a gambling problem.  He is in the process of a divorce, dealing with a younger mistress, trying to make  score on some black obsidian smuggled in from Ethiopia while holding off some loan sharks trying to get their money back. Kevin Garnett plays himself trying to the buy the black obsidian. Overall, much better than expected-surely Sandler's best role to date.

Knives Out

Rian Johnson's latest whodunnit, Knives Out (2019), is an entertaining throwback to the big budget who dunnit. Daniel Craig stars as the sleuth who figures out the mystery of who killed the famed mystery novelist, Christopher Plummer. There's something of an all star cast with the likes of Michael Shannon, Toni Collet, Don Johnson, Jamie Lee Curtis among others in supporting roles.

Terror Of Mechagodzilla

Terror Of Mechagodzilla (1975) sees Ishiro Honda back in the director's chair for the last Gozilla film of the Showa era. Gozilla faces off another attack from aliens sing Mechagozilla and Titanasouras as foils for Godzilla. Godzilla gets some helps form his friends and is able to hold of the attack and the planet is saved once again.

Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison

Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957) is a Robert Mitchum vehicle about a marine stranded on a Pacific island with a young nun, Deborah Kerr. It is an adaptation forma novel. It is something of an action adventure romance that works despite having the 40 year old play the role of a 22 year old.

Godzilla Vs. Mechagodzilla

In Jun Fukada's Godzilla Vs. Mechagodzilla (1974) once again the earth is in danger of destruction from aliens-this time Planet of the Apes like monkey men who have created Mechagodzilla to destroy earth. The back story starts in Okinawa and that leads to the addition of a helper for Godzilla in the Shisha (guard dog) like creature named Ceasar (?) There are some more minor improvements and a few steps back in terms of special effects as well.

63 Up

I believe I have been watching Michael Apted's 7 Up series since 35 Up, so it's something of a rite of passage to see the documentary, this time 63 Up (2019), that follows a group of children throughout their lives from the age of 7. I suppose it proves the Jesuit saying "Show me a child of 7 and I will show you the man" is essentially true. It is impossible to watch the series without asking yourself the same questions that the interviewer asks the subjects and analyze one's life.

Dolemite Is My Name

Craig Brewer's Dolemite Is My Name (2019) is an entertaining look at the life of entertainer Rudy Ray Moore. Eddie Murphy plays the wily legend and is likely to be mentioned in award races. The never say die story is one of inspiration. I'm glad that I decided to check it out.

Gozilla Vs. Megalon

Jun Fukuda's Gozilla Vs. Megalon (1973) goes back to the origin story with an underground nuclear test that upsets a long lost empire that wants to stop the world from more outrages such as this. So they send Megalon to wreck havoc in Tokyo. An inventor uses his robot Jet Jaguar to help Godzilla defeat this monster and Gigan making a reappearance. This film has lots of reused footage and is more action than story.