Ida

Ida IMDb 

I couldn't go to sleep late Friday night/early Saturday morning due to lots of coffee.  Decided to watch this Polish movie.  It won Best Foreign at this year's Oscars.  I'm a sucker for Foreign movies.  So I had to.  I just had to.  Well, this one was okay.  I don't think it deserved the Oscar.  I liked it more than the previous movie I saw today (A Coffee in Berlin).  This is another coming of age drama in a way.  Ida is about to become a nun but before she does so, the church advises her to spend time with her long lost Aunt for a bit.  Ida meets her aunt who is the opposite (an atheist free spirited lady).  Ida learns that she's Jewish and her parents were killed during World War 2.  Ida and her aunt go on a trip to learn more about that and of course during that trip, Ida learns a few more things about the world.  The story was good but nothing special in my book.  Some unexpected stuff happens towards the end. 

This is another one that's at your own risk.  If you're like me, and love Foreign films, see this one but with low expectations.  I set the bar high because it won the Oscar.

A Coffee in Berlin

 A Coffee in Berlin IMDb

I did something crazy this Friday night.  I had two cups of strong coffee around 11:30pm and decided to watch this German movie.  Wired to the max.  The movie was okay.  I like the premise but felt flat in the third act.  I like that our main character has bad luck trying to get coffee throughout the movie.  Either they sold out on coffee, vending machine is broken, or some places just don't serve it.  The story is one of those artsy stories where we just follow this one guy who has no job or anything to his name but slowly he "grows up."  I would have wanted more lively scenes.  I seriously shouldn't have had all that coffee.  My heart was racing over this slow developing movie. 

I wouldn't recommend this.  There are other better "growing up" or coming of age movies out there. 

At your own risk.

Housebound

 Housebound IMDb

That was Fantastic!   Had a great time with this one.  Good balance of dark humor and horror.  This is from New Zealand and it was shown at Fantastic Fest last year (my favorite film festival of all time).  Lots of surprises and some good bloody moments.   Love that they make fun of the horror genre here just like Shaun of the Dead and Tucker and Dale vs. Evil.  Love the idea too.  I wanted to see it at the festival but I didn't have that opportunity.   I'm sure this was a hit among genre fans.  Badass ending!  I fucking clapped and applauded real loud and it was 1:30 am.  I'm sure the neighbors love me.  They're used to it.  

This is on Netflix.  Must see.  I'm adding this to my To Buy List for sure. Now,  I'm going to try to sleep.  Keyword: Try.

The Tale of Princess Kaguya

 The Tale of Princess Kaguya IMDb

An emotional wreck this thing created.  Left me a bit speechless.  It was beautiful but emotional.  No, I don't want to hype this up saying this is the most saddest thing I've seen.  No, there were lots of other films that made shed some tears.  This one almost came close.  What made it emotional was the concept itself.  The concept of life and death told in a very unique way.  Love the sounds on here.  This played at Fantastic Fest last year and won the Audience Award.  This was also nominated for Best Animation at this year's Oscars.  It is by Studio Ghibli.  I've only seen Spirited Away.  I need to check out the rest of the catalog.

A must see original Animation for sure.   Fair warning: it is 2 hours and 17 minutes long.

Annie Hall

 Annie Hall IMDb

It was Oscar weekend this past weekend and I wanted to watch a classic I haven't seen that's won Best Picture.  I went with one of Woody Allen's most famous films.  I'm beginning to respect Woody Allen as a director.  I would try to avoid him before but he's coming along for me.  I like that this isn't your typical romantic comedy.  It has its own style.  It definitely didn't have the usual romantic comedy ending.  Oops! Spoiler Alert.  It was pretty cool to see actually. Good experience.  I like that Allen interrupts in the middle of scenes to explain alternate realities and etc.  I like that we go back in forth between the past and the present.  Now, I don't think this is my favorite Woody Allen film but I thought it was pretty good.  I can see why lots of people love it.

Worth checking out on Netflix if you're one of the few that haven't seen it yet. A good double feature with "When Harry Meet Sally" for you romantics out there.

The Drop

The Drop IMDb 

Tom Hardy plays one subtle hardcore guy in this Gangster-ish movie.  It is set in Brooklyn.  I thought the movie was okay.  Not bad or special.  It entertained.  Lots of twists and some unpredictable moments but overall, it didn't feel too fresh.  I did like the realism in this movie.  Gangsters control certain bars and clubs.  The actual owners don't have a say unless they want to be killed.  This one is about a certain gangster controlled bar that gets robbed.  Tom Hardy plays a bartender and practically an assistant manager of this bar.  He knows the ins and outs.  He's a quiet character with a dark past.  James Gandolfini plays the manager of the bar.  He's got lots of problems of his own.  Anyways, the robbery turns into a conspiracy and a big mess.  There is no big payoff at the end but it's smooth like a shot of old whiskey.  Look at me writing comparisons.  That's enough for today. 

Worth the redbox rental.  I don't think it's worth buying.

Went with Brooklyn Lager with this one (even though Dos Equis is the beer that was referenced throughout the movie).

Hitchcock Thursday: Shadow of a Doubt

Shadow of a Doubt IMDb

Holy! Jesus! Fuck!  My second Hitchcock Thursday was badass.  This 1943 film holds up very good.  Suspense and smooth scenes.  This reminded me of Stoker (directed by Korean director Park Chan-wook).  Hell, I think both movies have "Uncle Charlie."  I love the dialogue here and the little moments.  Uncle Charlie makes a surprise visit to family in California.  His niece, also named Charlie, is happy about her uncle's visit.  After a while, she starts finding out secrets and who Uncle Charlie really is.  Tensions start between the two.  Again, pretty damn awesome for a 1943 film.  Enjoyed it to the fullest.

I would recommend this and if you're a movie collector, I say, this is worth buying.  Thank goodness for Hitchcock Thursday.  Until next time, stay safe and cover your necks.

The Theory of Everything

 The Theory of Everything IMDb

Man, this better than I expected.  I mean, I know it's an Oscar nominated movie but sometimes they're not my cup of tea.  And for sure, I thought this wasn't going to be my cup of tea.  So I made me a hot tea just in case.  Well, I enjoyed it.  Eddie Redmayne plays famous theoretical physicist, Stephen Hawking and he nails his performance.  It's pretty much an Oscar bait part.  What I like is that I didn't know anything about Hawking's life other than that he's a physicist with Lou Gehrig's disease.  This covers a lot of his romantic life with some unexpected stuff towards the end.  This is a movie that celebrates life in general.  Not a movie I would see over and over but a movie that is worth seeing.  Kind of like The King's Speech.

This is the last Best Picture nominated movie I needed to see.  I can see Redmayne getting the Best Actor award.  I'll still be rooting for Michael Keaton but it's going to be tough.  As far as Best Pictures go, all of the 8 nominated movies have been good, well, except for my own personal disappointment of The Grand Budapest Hotel.  That one has to be my least favorite.  It's a bummer because Wes Anderson is my 2nd favorite director.  I really wanted to like it.  Anyways, my winner prediction goes to Birdman but I would love to see Boyhood win though.  We shall see!

The Spanish Apartment

 The Spanish Apartment IMDb

This past Valentine's Day, my Fantastic Fest friend Alyssa and I decided to do a French double feature.  I bought Mood Indigo a few months back.  It was one of my favorite movies in 2013.  It was Alyssa's favorite movie from Fantastic Fest 2013.  So we've been talking about seeing it together someday.  What more cheesy and cliche than on V-Day?!  I forgot how much depressing Mood Indigo was even though it was also romantic.  For the second movie, we went to something more uplifting that also features the two main stars from Indigo.  So we went with The Spanish Apartment.  This movie right here is the first part of a trilogy.   Basically, a feel good movie about learning to live life and getting to know other cultures.  It was like the French version of The Real World.  Our main character is a writer who moves to an apartment in Spain with a group of other people all coming from different cultures.  Before you know it, they all party it up and bond with each other.  It was a bit sweet.  At first, I thought it was going to be the usual romantic comedy, but it turned out different. I would have wanted more scenes with Audrey Tautou but she wasn't one of the main characters.

 

I might have to see the rest of the trilogy to see how these characters evolve.
Kudos on the salsa dancing scenes.

  

We had ourselves a French Feast with this double feature.

For the second movie, we had French Roast coffee and Souffle.  Oh yeah!

The Congress

The Congress IMDb

Saw this movie late last week.  What a trip this was!  First 40 minutes or so was live action and then it all went wild with the animation. It was a downer, though.  Like depressing downer.   Overall, it was okay.  Love the original concept.  This was shown at Fantastic Fest in 2013.  Heard mixed things about it.  It was pretty okay for a post apocalyptic sci-fi.  I was wanting more out of it.  Definitely a movie I wouldn't see again.   

At your own risk.  I needed to get out of the house after this.  I went to my local comic store to cheer me up.

Selma

Selma IMDb

Amen, brothers! Amen!  So I got to see this emotional drama about Dr. King himself.  Takes place during the time where King and most of the colored people were fighting for their right to vote.  Personally, I would have waited to see this movie on home video, but since I made it my goal this year to watch all of the Oscar movies, I went for it.  It was good, of course.  Emotional scenes.  Good performances and good flow.  I would have wanted some Johnny Rebel music played by the Selma locals just for kicks but that's asking a lot.  My favorite emotional moment was the very first march attempt to Montgomery, Alabama.  If you're going to see this movie, you know what to expect already.  A good old preachy movie during segregation times.  Free at last! Free at last!

Another Oscar movie down, one more to go.  I'll be watching The Theory of Everything next week.  My heart and soul still belongs to Boyhood and maybe Birdman and Whiplash.

Penguins of Madagascar

Penguins of Madagascar IMDb

Took my son Nates the Shakes to the discount theatre yesterday to see this movie.  There was about 20 people in the audience.  I was the only one laughing in a few scenes.  Geez! This movie was pretty good.  The last part of it was so and so.  The penguins are my favorite characters from the Madagascar movies.  So, I knew I was going to like this one.  Skipper, Kowalski, Rico, and Private!  Can't live without those little fuckers.  Here, they go on an adventure to rescue all penguins from "Dave" the evil octopus.  One of the secret weapons are actually Cheezy Dibbles (Cheetos).  Predictable story but cool little moments.

Had a good time with this.  It's okay to see once or twice.  Nothing special though.

What made the experience awesome was sneaking a bag of Cheetos into the theatre.

Nates and I were happy campers.  Love that my son now associates certain movies with food.

For example, the day before, he asked if we can see The Book of Life but to go get Churros for it (just like we did the first time).  Fuck yeah!

Fading Gigolo

Fading Gigolo IMDb

 Saw this film directed by John Turturro over the weekend.  I'm a big fan of his musical, Romance and Cigarettes, so I gave this one a shot.  I didn't like it.  The set up was good but it lost me right after.  I didn't care for the characters.  I didn't care where the plot was going.  I wanted to like it.  I didn't mind Woody Allen or John Turturro.  I hated Liev Schreiber's character.  All the scenes with him kind of ruined the movie for me.  

I don't know what I was thinking with this one.  Not recommended, obviously.  I strongly recommend Turturro's dark comedy musical, Romance and Cigarettes.

Made a New York Egg Cream to go with this movie.

My Sassy Girl

 My Sassy Girl IMDb

So this Korean romantic comedy has been on my Korean cinema radar for a long time.  I finally picked it up at Vulcan Video the other day.  It was sweet.  Long but sweet.  It did have a lot of comedic moments but some of them were a bit too cheesy.  Cheesy score too.  The girl was actually annoying throughout most of it but then again, that's the point of the movie.  A hopeless guy falls for a feisty demanding girl.  Love and hate relationship with a sweet factor towards the end.  Love that they included the song, "My Girl." 

Is this something I would see again or that I would recommend?  Probably not.
It's original for a romantic comedy.  If I do see it again, I might have a bottle of soju next time around.

The Zero Theorem

 The Zero Theorem IMDb

Got to see this trippy dystopian sci-fi by Terry Gilliam yesterday morning.  It stars Christoph Waltz.  I enjoy my fair share of trippy films.  This one was okay.  I was wanting a lot more out of it.  I mean, it had a lot of potential.  The overall delivery didn't do it for me.  This reminded me a lot of Gilliam's older stuff: Brazil mixed with 12 Monkeys with a little dash of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.  Just wished this one would have blown me away like those films mentioned.  Maybe I need to experience it more times to appreciate it.  Not love at first sight, that's for sure.

Not recommended.  It's a shame because it was shown at Fantastic Fest in 2013.  I remember waiting in the standby line for it cause it was full.  Luckily, I got in, but I was in the front row.  After a few minutes into the movie, I decided to walk out and experience it some other time.  I hyped it up for myself.  At your own risk.

Time Travel Tuesday: Somewhere in Time

 Somewhere in Time IMDb

Woke up to my second Time Travel Tuesday.  February is the month of love so I went with Somewhere in Time.  So romantic!  But, at the same time, fucking creepy.  We got Christopher Reeves here who is obsessed over a photograph of a beautiful actress.  He tries to track her down but she died many years ago.  He learns a way where he can go back in time to when the actress was young.  Big time stalker.  Anyways, of course he goes back in time during the period where the actress took that photograph.  He stalks her until she falls in love with him.  At least that's what I got out of it.  I'm going to have to give that a try in real life.  Hopefully, I won't get any restraining orders.

It was okay to see.  They use a different way of time travel without the use of any high tech equipment.  Time travel using the power of the mind.

The Interview

 The Interview IMDb

This past Saturday I saw my third James Franco movie in a row.  This time his usual stupid comedy.  With low expectations I saw this controversial flick but with a bang.  The theme: Amercian/Korean fusion.  I went to Chilantro, which is Mexican/Korean fusion, but I ordered typical American choices.  That alone, made the experience a whole lot better.  I must admit, I did laugh a few times with this movie.  Maybe a few more laughs than what I expected.  James Franco's character is as stupid as the Dumb and Dumber people.  So expect that, if you haven't seen this movie.  I was one of the few that was disappointed with "This is the End."  So, I had no hope for this one.  I liked some of the moments here like the Eminem coming out of his closet interview, the "They hate us cause they ain't us" scene, and the scenes where Franco's character hangs out with the North Korean dictator. 

So, not recommended or at your own risk.  That concludes my brilliant idea of knocking out the James Franco movies out of my Netflix list.

Here's my feast for this night:  Kimchi Fries with Bugolgi Beef topping and K-Pops (Korean Chicken Wings)