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Movie Report
Dec. 29th, 2023 12:27 amThings I've watched recently!
Rewatches that are sadly copaganda:
Hot Fuzz. Still have nostalgic fondness for this movie because of associations with friends and with fandom, but, no longer a favorite since the cops are the good guys and are cool. Olivia Colman is in it, before she got very famous. I don't think there is a single person of color in this whole film?! I've really moved on from Hot Fuzz and probably will not re-watch.
Die Hard. A Christmas tradition for those of us who love action movies, and honestly, it's brilliantly written, acted, and directed. Does contain plenty of copaganda. Part of Bruce Willis' appeal is that he flirts with nearly everyone he meets and has the air of a self-assured bisexual babe. The set pieces are amazing. The pacing is good. Holly Gennaro (sometimes McClane) is bad ass in way that is like, this woman tells the truth and does what is right.
After John McClane uses too much explosive and blows out a whole floor of windows, one of the cops outside complains to him that his people are now covered in glass. "Glass? Who cares about glass?" McClane says in frustration.
Later, John has to crawl into a bathroom and pull a shard of glass from his foot. This is his lowest point, where he conveys a message to his wife, because he does not think he is going to survive. Who cares about glass indeed.
Will probably re-watch, as I still have a fannish interest in these characters.
The Fugitive, the 90s one with Harrison Ford. Streaming on Paramount Plus.
A fairly simple cat-and-mouse chase story, with good performances and some great cinematography. Dr. Richard Kimble rather accidentally escapes from prison and sets out to prove his innocence. The best scenes are where he decides to help patients while putting himself at risk of discovery.
Does contain copaganda, as the US Marshals are largely portrayed as competent and likeable characters. The most upsetting part concerns a house raid where they have tracked one of the other fugitives.
----
Moving on to non-copaganda, I watched The Station Agent 20 years after seeing it before, remembering little of it. I'm much more positioned to appreciate this movie this time around. What a gem.
A slow, quiet, fairly low-dialog film about 3 misfits who become friends in a small New Jersey town. Stars Peter Dinklage, Patricia Clarkson, Bobby Cannavale, Michelle Williams.
Absolutely lovely and not too long! Just 1 hour 29 minutes. Just 4 works on the Ao3, but good OT3 potential in this film.
Runaway Train, streaming free on Tubi, starring John Voigt.
I think I expected this film to be more fun-- a prison escape, a ridiculous runaway train scenario with 4 engines, the buddy potential of two escapees. But instead it goes for a serious drama about masculinity or freedom or something. There is homoeroticism but not in a fun way. There's yelling and plenty of violence and a lot of misogyny. It doesn't even end in a train crash, the crash is implied and off-screen. Not for me. I did enjoy the detail that because he knows he going to have to escape by river, in the winter, the main guy fashions a sort of wet suit by greasing his skin and putting saran wrap all over himself.
Rewatches that are sadly copaganda:
Hot Fuzz. Still have nostalgic fondness for this movie because of associations with friends and with fandom, but, no longer a favorite since the cops are the good guys and are cool. Olivia Colman is in it, before she got very famous. I don't think there is a single person of color in this whole film?! I've really moved on from Hot Fuzz and probably will not re-watch.
Die Hard. A Christmas tradition for those of us who love action movies, and honestly, it's brilliantly written, acted, and directed. Does contain plenty of copaganda. Part of Bruce Willis' appeal is that he flirts with nearly everyone he meets and has the air of a self-assured bisexual babe. The set pieces are amazing. The pacing is good. Holly Gennaro (sometimes McClane) is bad ass in way that is like, this woman tells the truth and does what is right.
After John McClane uses too much explosive and blows out a whole floor of windows, one of the cops outside complains to him that his people are now covered in glass. "Glass? Who cares about glass?" McClane says in frustration.
Later, John has to crawl into a bathroom and pull a shard of glass from his foot. This is his lowest point, where he conveys a message to his wife, because he does not think he is going to survive. Who cares about glass indeed.
Will probably re-watch, as I still have a fannish interest in these characters.
The Fugitive, the 90s one with Harrison Ford. Streaming on Paramount Plus.
A fairly simple cat-and-mouse chase story, with good performances and some great cinematography. Dr. Richard Kimble rather accidentally escapes from prison and sets out to prove his innocence. The best scenes are where he decides to help patients while putting himself at risk of discovery.
Does contain copaganda, as the US Marshals are largely portrayed as competent and likeable characters. The most upsetting part concerns a house raid where they have tracked one of the other fugitives.
----
Moving on to non-copaganda, I watched The Station Agent 20 years after seeing it before, remembering little of it. I'm much more positioned to appreciate this movie this time around. What a gem.
A slow, quiet, fairly low-dialog film about 3 misfits who become friends in a small New Jersey town. Stars Peter Dinklage, Patricia Clarkson, Bobby Cannavale, Michelle Williams.
Absolutely lovely and not too long! Just 1 hour 29 minutes. Just 4 works on the Ao3, but good OT3 potential in this film.
Runaway Train, streaming free on Tubi, starring John Voigt.
I think I expected this film to be more fun-- a prison escape, a ridiculous runaway train scenario with 4 engines, the buddy potential of two escapees. But instead it goes for a serious drama about masculinity or freedom or something. There is homoeroticism but not in a fun way. There's yelling and plenty of violence and a lot of misogyny. It doesn't even end in a train crash, the crash is implied and off-screen. Not for me. I did enjoy the detail that because he knows he going to have to escape by river, in the winter, the main guy fashions a sort of wet suit by greasing his skin and putting saran wrap all over himself.
