Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

The fight for our country is always worth it. ~Kamala Harris

After dobbs, women are no longer free.

The real work of an opposition party is to hold the people in power accountable.

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

We know you aren’t a Democrat but since you seem confused let me help you.

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

It’s pointless to bring up problems that can only be solved with a time machine.

Quote tweet friends, screenshot enemies.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

When you’re in more danger from the IDF than from Russian shelling, that’s really bad.

The current Supreme Court is a dangerous, rogue court.

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

Everybody saw this coming.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

Disappointing to see gov. newsom with his finger to the wind.

Their boy Ron is an empty plastic cup that will never know pudding.

We are aware of all internet traditions.

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

I would try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

Oppose, oppose, oppose. do not congratulate. this is not business as usual.

President Musk and Trump are both poorly raised, coddled 8 year old boys.

How any woman could possibly vote for this smug smarmy piece of misogynistic crap is beyond understanding.

In after Baud. Damn.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / I Need a Movie

Reader Interactions

139Comments

  12. 12.

    Jim C

    It’s hard to know what you might have seen, but:

    Drama – Brick (Joseph Gordon Levitt in a High School Noir)

    Musical – Xanadu

    Comedy – Watch Slap Shot again

  14. 14.

    lamh35

    You’ll never watch the movies I’d watch (I’m prone to romantic comedies/dramedies). But I’m still gonna suggest some…

    Umm…

    Strictly Ballroom
    Sliding Doors

    Equilibrium (if it’s streaming that is)

  17. 17.

    different-church-lady

    …luxuriate with two warm dogs on my lap.

    Oh, is that what you’re calling it now.

  18. 18.

    TheMightyTrowel

    Don’t know if it’s on Netflix but I highly recommend the BBC series The Hour – with Dominic West, Ben Whishaw and Romola Garai. The first series is spectacular, the second very excellent (6 eps each) and I’m about ready to murder someone because they’ve decided not to make a 3rd.

  20. 20.

    Rich (In Name Only) in Reno

    “Mr. Vampire” with Lam Ching Ying (not the dubbed version.) It’s is a 1985 Hong Kong comedy horror film, and funnier than hell. This movie started the “hopping Vampire” fad in Hong Kong Cinema.

  23. 23.

    Yutsano

    @TheMightyTrowel: You are apparently not alone in your mourning of the ceasing of the series. I have a friend on Book of Faces who is about ready to fly to Britain just to kick someone at the BBC in the junk for the decision. I wonder why it got canned.

  27. 27.

    TheMightyTrowel

    @Yutsano: They’re saying low ratings, but they’ve sold it around the world and the BBC almost never cancels things it sells. My best guess is that between West and Whishaw (rising movie star) it was becoming too expensive.’

    ETA: it’s a particularly galling decision because they intentionally ended on a cliff hanger concerning Ben Whishaw’s character.

  29. 29.

    lamh35

    @General Stuck: fav Christian Bale movie. Like it way better than the Batman franchise.

    ETA: BTW Cole, I was kiddin’ bout the romantic movies. Equilibrium on the other hand is not a romantic movie. It’s an action movie. If I remember correctly, it predates the Matrix and the Bale is a much better actor than Keanu Reeves. Plus for my own personal eye candy, Taye Diggs is in it too…lol

  34. 34.

    Corner Stone

    while I sip my ginger tea and luxuriate with two warm dogs on my lap.

    So, how is menopause treating you these days?

  36. 36.

    Yutsano

    @TheMightyTrowel: I bet it might just get revived if there is enough fan support for it. I agree that it seems rather odd to cancel something that is already being sold around the globe. I know it’s on BBC America and that usually means it’s getting some kind of decent audience.

  39. 39.

    Alison

    @lamh35: Yay, someone else who likes Sliding Doors :) I’m not a big Gwyneth person but I enjoyed that movie, and I’ve rarely found anyone else who had actually even seen it, let alone liked it.

  40. 40.

    James E. Powell

    Given the recent news from London, I’d say Ian McKellen’s Richard III ought to be on your list.

    And one of my all-time favorite “small” movies is Cold Comfort Farm.

  42. 42.

    ilsaLund

    If you like subversive comedy, I highly recommend Drop Dead Gorgeous. It’s about a beauty pageant in a small town in MN and it stars a bunch of brilliant improv comedic actors. Stars Kirstie Alley as the villan, Ellen Barkin, Kirsten Dunst and, before anyone knew who she was but she’s brilliant in this, a blonde Amy Adams. Fckin’ genius comedy!

  45. 45.

    DSC

    The funnest of Preston Sturges films:

    The Lady Eve–gorgeous Barbara Stanwyck and a gullible, vulnerable Henry Fonda. Pure delight. and Howard Hawks Ball of Fire wherein the fabulous Barbara charms Gary Cooper into submission.

    or

    Big Trouble in Little China paired with They Live a little John Carpenter comic fest.

    Or

    Jim Jarmush’s other worldly world: Down by Law and Dead Man.
    Ice cream, Lee Baby Sims, Roberto Frost, “got any tobacco” and William Blake. Yum.

  46. 46.

    Gunner

    If you want to know what life would be like if today’s meteor was the big one, watch “The Road”. It was the feel-good hit of 2009.

  48. 48.

    Sarah

    I really enjoyed a cop series called Life with Damien Lewis as an LA cop who spends 12 years in jail for a crime he didn’t commit, is exonerated, and goes about trying to find who set him up. While in jail he’s developed a sort of zen approach to life, it was really pretty good.

  49. 49.

    James E. Powell

    @Alison:

    Saw it. Loved it. It may not have been the first time I ever saw Gwyneth Paltrow, but it was the first time I ever noticed her or knew her name. I remember thinking, she is going to be a big star. Never really understood the Gwyneth hate. A lot of really good actors make a lot of lame movies.

  52. 52.

    Redshift

    Hancock — it starts out as a superhero movie set in a world without the usual cartoon physics (which is fun in itself), but it gets even more interesting.

  53. 53.

    mai naem

    @Alison: I am not a Paltrow fan either but I loved Sliding Doors. I thought it was a clever movie with a clever ending. Nobody I have ever mentioned the movie to enjoyed it.

    I am going to go with some older movies – A Family Thing has Robert Duvall in it. Bowfinger with Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy which was hilarious. I saw a clip of The Gods Must Be Crazy on Youtube recently and I remembered how funny that was movie as was the sequel – The Gods Must Still Be Crazy. Also I enjoy Michael Apted’s 7Up series. Kinda sorta reality tv in a movie form way before reality tv was around. For those who don’t know it starts with around 10 Brit kids from different classes and see where they end up. Apted’s hypothesis was that there would not be social mobility. They follow up with them every seven years. I believe they’re working on 56Up currently.

  54. 54.

    Ronnie Pudding

    The Anderson Tapes. Sidney Lumet, Sean Connery, a young Christopher Walken, a wildly out of type Alan King.

  55. 55.

    Corner Stone

    @Redshift: Actually it gets incredibly less interesting. The physics aspect was funny. The rest of the movie was just boring as all get out.
    Really? That’s really the answer in this movie?

  57. 57.

    James E. Powell

    @mai naem:

    Nobody I have ever mentioned [Sliding Doors] to enjoyed it.

    Well, there are three of us right here. And my sister thought it was great.

  58. 58.

    Punchy

    I sip my ginger tea and luxuriate with two warm dogs on my lap. boobs on my face

    At some point John….at some point, right? Match.com, yo.

  61. 61.

    Alison

    @James E. Powell: I think more of the dislike is for her personally, not her work. She’s a bit dippy, really, and a real “clueless rich white lady” stereotype. I don’t find her hateful, just eyeroll-worthy.

  63. 63.

    p.a.

    Lion in Winter. Much chewing of scenery, but when O’Toole, Hepburn, Hopkins etc. are doing the chewing, well…
    Local Hero. “Small” movie. Warmhearted.
    The Tin Drum. Disturbing. “There once was a people who believed in Santa Claus. But Santa Clause turned out to be… the gasman.”

  64. 64.

    lamh35

    @Alison: Not a Paltrow fan at all either. In fact Sliding Doors is the only movie of hers that I like and I actually own it. I tolerate her in the Iron Man franchise, but I enjoy movies the most where she isn’t in them (i.e. Contagion I wanted to see because I heard she died early on in the film…lol)

  65. 65.

    Alison

    @BerkeleyMom: Exactly. I’ve always been fascinated by the idea that it’s not usually the big things but tiny seemingly insignificant choices that can have a huge ripple effect in our lives. I thought they explored that concept very well.

  67. 67.

    andynotadam

    The World’s Fastest Indian with Anthony Hopkins, a charming, based on a true story film about an elderly New Zealander named Burt Monro who lives his life’s ambition to set a land speed record at Bonneville on an ancient, but highly-modified Indian motorcycle. It’s not a gearhead flick, though they enjoy it too. Oh, and I always tear up at the end…

  69. 69.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    Beneath Hill 60 a good WWI movie based on a true story, of an Australian Mining Engineer tasked to take out a strategic hill occupied by the Germans. Anyway I am pissed that many movies that you can stream or being removed, because I guess the studio realize that why should they make Netflix rich. but there are some good choices out there. Going to watch the Chinese Romance of the Three Kingdoms epic RED Cliff next.

  70. 70.

    Mnemosyne

    @mai naem:

    I liked Sliding Doors, though I don’t think I’ve seen it since it was in first run.

    “Well, you know what the Python boys say …”

  75. 75.

    karen marie

    Okay, here you go — Hyperdrive, starring Nick Frost.

    It’s 2151, and Cmdr. Henderson leads the offbeat crew of the HMS Camden Lock as they cruise the universe in pursuit of intergalactic business opportunities for Great Britain. Along the way, they deal with a variety of bizarre aliens.

    It’s very, very funny.

  78. 78.

    NotMax

    Trying to come up with some lesser-known titles which are not too, too old (relatively speaking) and also which you may not yet have seen.

    Let’s see…

    State & Main

    Stepping Out

    The Coca-Cola Kid

    Smoke Signals

    Advertising Rules!

    Movie, Movie

    The Stunt Man

    The Great Santini

  81. 81.

    Shana

    “Art of the Steal” about the Barnes Collection in PA. Fabulous and infuriating at the same time. Highly recommended.

  82. 82.

    Yutsano

    @MikeJ: You sold it for me. I’m finishing the first season of Buck Rogers tonight. I shall indeed enjoy the cheese immensely.

  88. 88.

    Todd

    Easy. Sons of Anarchy. It’s well written, and you’ve got four full seasons to watch.

    Just started The Tudors 20 minutes ago.

  89. 89.

    Mike G

    Stander – based-on-a-true-story South African cop turns bank robber
    Searching for Sugar Man
    LA Confidential
    Ruby Sparks

  91. 91.

    Hal

    I just started watching Sherlock on Netflix streaming and man is it good. I’m disappointed there are only 6 episodes but since they are like mini movies at a 1:20 it’s at least like watching two shows per episode. Also, Benedict Cumberbatch.

  92. 92.

    Older_Wiser

    I’m going with House of Cards, too. Political junkies should all see it. In fact, I’m going right now to re-watch it, since I fell asleep marathon-watching once or twice. : )

  93. 93.

    Nalbar

    @Sarah: Sarah, I started watching ‘Life’ on a whim one night and got hooked. It is really good. It’s also a series that has an actual end.

    Good choice.

  94. 94.

    Corner Stone

    @Yutsano:

    How quickly we forget Ladyfriend…
    Which BTW what happened to her? Did we scare her off?

    She probably went back to her husband.

  96. 96.

    Corner Stone

    I need a hero, I’m holding out for at hero ’till the end of the night
    He’s gotta be strong and he’s gotta be fast
    And he’s gotta be fresh from the fight
    I need a hero, I’m holding out for a hero ’till the morning light
    He’s gotta be sure and it’s gotta be soon
    And he’s gotta be larger than life, larger than life

  97. 97.

    suburbanhermit

    Firefly is streaming on Netflix, and always worth another look, IMHO.

    Guilty romantic fav: Truly Madly Deeply. What if your lost love came back from the dead?

    Quirky French film: The Fairy (La Fee) Charming fun.

    TV comedies:
    American: Better Off Ted.
    British: The IT Crowd.

    Oh, and I second The Good, The Bad and The Weird, and also Cold Comfort Farm!

  98. 98.

    igottachangemynym (formerly Dead Existentialist)

    @gogiggs: Oh thank you so much for the heads-up. I’m watching “The Tin Drum” the film adaptation of Grasse’s crazy-ass novel. What a treat. Aaaeeeiiiii!

    Edit: Yeah it has commercials but what the hell. It brings back such lovely memories. Hee hee.

  99. 99.

    Corner Stone

    “What the hell are you doing?! This whole floor is a restricted area!”
    /Last words by dumbass in Live Free or Die Hard WV power plant

  103. 103.

    Corner Stone

    Went with the Man from Nowhere. It’s pretty good.

    Didn’t I already see this with Natalie Portman as the girl, Gary Oldman as the villain and Jean Reno as the anti-hero?

  106. 106.

    ruemara

    @Sarah:
    love that series. Just rewatched “Dreseden Files” on hulu, boy did I love that one. My mind is going all mushy since I watched “Dredd” earlier and now “A-Team” is on. Kinda prefer the goofy fun of the original series. “Say I Love You” is a good anime series, “Codebreaker” is stupid, but lots of actiony explosions, and nothing beats rewatching “Inuyasha” from the beginning. When I’m bored with that, it’s either “Polar Bear Cafe” or “Van Hellsing”.

    Edited to add that “the Booth at the End” is a fascinating watch and it’s mostly just people talking in a booth at a diner.

  107. 107.

    YellowJournalism

    @Alison: Sliding Doors was the first movie that my husband ever took me to. I own it and have seen it more times than I can count. Love the speech she gives the customer who tries to hit on her:

    Helen: Well, now, then, let me see. I get up at about 7:30AM making and delivering sandwiches in the West End during the day before I come here about 6 o’clock and finish at midnight. After that, if I’ve got any energy left, I give my boyfriend a blow job.
    [pause]
    Helen: Would you like some mayonnaise with that?

  109. 109.

    NotMax

    Went with the Man from Nowhere. It’s pretty good.

    Initially read that as The Man Who Never Was*, and was going to appreciatively mention your discerning taste.

    Oh, well.

    *Decent portrayal of the true story of the semi-ghoulish Operation Mincemeat by the U.K. in WWII.

  113. 113.

    Schlemizel

    “Oh! What A Lovely War”, Directed by Richard Attenborough. With Wendy Allnutt, Colin Farrell, Malcolm McFee, John Rae, John Gielgud, Dirk Bogart, Vanessa Redgrave, Laurence Olivier, John Mills

    Little seen in the US but a really well done movie

  116. 116.

    NotMax

    @Schlemizel

    A valiant (and lovingly filmed) effort but doesn’t quite gel, and misses the keen punch of the musical stage play upon which it is based.

    Film was too expansive a canvas in this case, IMHO.

  117. 117.

    Hsquared

    If you liked “The Man From Nowhere”, check out “I Saw The Devil”. Best movie villain ever; pure evil.

  123. 123.

    the Conster

    @catperson:

    Yup – just started S2. S1 was terrific. Marathon watching is the way to do these great TV series, like Breaking Bad, because you get to live with these people for a few days and really get to know them. I didn’t watch any of FNL when it was running in real time because I never knew when it was on and once you miss a couple of shows it’s hard to follow. The characters are all believable and interesting.

  127. 127.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @NotMax: Hmmm, interesting, seems to missing ginger and normal cabbage would seem to be a bit sweet. I’ll have to show that to the wife. The cook was pretty cute as well.

    @Yutsano: You have a plan for her to take over the universe? I’m fine with that.

  129. 129.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @Yutsano: I’m well practiced in taking orders from Korean women, well one in particular. When the wife and I were dating my mom overheard me talking to the then gf, her comment was: “she has you well trained”.

  131. 131.

    Yutsano

    @BillinGlendaleCA: You shall fit quite well in the New World Order. We’ll just have to tell Kim Jong Un to take a long walk off a short pier. And to stop starving his people, that dickhead.

  133. 133.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @Yutsano: I’ve been a few feet from Kim Jong Un’s worker’s paradise. They do have a very large flag, though the one in ROK may be larger. They replace the flags for larger ones if the other country puts up a new larger flag. And then there’s the supersized speakers with music and other fun stuff on each side of the border.

  134. 134.

    Ninedragonspot

    Speaking of Korean movies, did anybody mention “The President’s Last Bang”? Off-beat dark comedy based on the assassination of President Park Chung-Hee in 1979 – a big deal at the time since he had been in power for early 20 years.

  135. 135.

    BillinGlendaleCA

    @Ninedragonspot: Two things: Park Chun He’s daughter is the new President of South Korea(ROK), and Chun He is a girl’s name(things you learn in a Korean class).

  136. 136.

    catperson

    @the Conster: You may know this already but S2 is terrible. Stick it out and the show becomes okay again, but never as good as the first season. And it’s got a great finale.

  137. 137.

    Ramalama

    I have a thing for WWII stuff – loved Foyle’s War (a British series) and also The Winds of War(American mini-series). The first part of the Winds of War fascinated me because it focused a lot on the US side of the build up to war in both the Pacific theatre and Europe.

    The second part War and Remembrance are what you think a movie about WWII in Europe would be. Harrowing, heartbreaking, horribly sad.

  138. 138.

    suburbanhermit

    @Yutsano: OMG! Love Maangchi, who I call “the Korean Mom I never had” to teach me how to make all that delicious food.

    And “Emergency Kimchi” is one of my all-time favs, which I shared with my entire family. That adorable sense of humor and quick no-nonsense cooking all in one glorious package.

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