Films

The Good Dinosaur (2015)
[#130 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Pride (2014)
[#131 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

this week on 100 Films

It's been August for exactly a week today, which means my look back at July on 100 Films in a Year may seem old news but... well, maybe it is, but it's still time to post it here:




In other news, 4 brand-new reviews were published this week...


Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - Ultimate Edition (2016)

As someone who genuinely enjoyed Batman v Superman’s theatrical cut, it’s hard to say how much better the Ultimate Edition is for viewers who were less convinced. However, I do think it’s a question of “how much better” rather than “is it better”, because this is certainly a superior version of the film — the fact it’s now over three hours long notwithstanding. The new cut won’t ‘fix’ the movie for viewers who object to the inherent tone and style of the piece, but if you’re open to that, this cut does improves the storytelling and character arcs for a smoother experience overall.

Read more here.


Big Eyes (2014)

It’s certainly a bizarre tale, and given even more of an otherworldly edge in Burton’s hands. He’s reined in here compared to his more fantastical leaps, but even when he does the real world it’s not quite our world (see also: Ed Wood). Nonetheless, it makes what could have been a slight tale more interesting than it would’ve been as a straight-up clean-cut biopic

Read more here.


The Lobster (2015)

the kind of odd movie that critics adore (90% on Rotten Tomatoes) and then, I always feel, spend some of their time looking down their noses at regular folk who don’t get it. In my experience, you have a 50/50 chance of such movies actually being any good. For me, The Lobster straddles that divide.

Read more here.


Sicario (2015)

Any viewers seeking simple action thrills will not be satisfied with the sequences offered here, but the way the scenes rely on suspense rather than bullet choreography makes for a supremely tense movie; one that can grip you like a vice and only occasionally let up, letting you catch your breath before it doubles down.

Read more here.


Finally, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


The Matrix (1999)

There are some movies where their significance almost outstrips the ability to judge them independently — Citizen Kane, for the most obvious example. I don’t know if The Matrix now appears that way to newcomers, but it could, because it’s hard to understate the impact it had on action/sci-fi movies (and other media) for the next decade or more.

Read more here.


Minority Report (2002)

it mixes exciting, propulsive plot and action sequences with thematic concerns that use science-fiction ideas to explore real-world issues, both tangible (the prevalence of state control and policing) and metaphysical (free will vs determinism). It makes for a rounded, thrilling movie.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Miranda
2x04 A New Low [2nd watch]

Films

Batman: The Killing Joke (2016)
[#129 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.

Three additions this week more than double the number of new titles since the last running time update -- yep, it's that time of the month again.

Number of titles in collection: 1,874 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,202 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 672 [up 3]

Number of discs in collection: 4,822 [up 11]
Number of films in collection: 2,067 [up 7]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,308 [up 2]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [no change]

Total running time of collection (approx.):
353 days, 14 hours, and 29 minutes.
(Up 13 hours and 52 minutes from last month.)

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

The Americans
4x12 A Roy Rogers in Franconia
4x13 Persona Non Grata [season finale]

Miranda
2x03 Let's Do It [2nd watch]

TV

The Americans
4x11 Dinner for Seven

Miranda
2x02 Before I Die [2nd watch]

TV

The Americans
4x10 Munchkins

Miranda
2x01 The New Me [2nd watch]

The Musketeers
2x03 The Good Traitor

TV

The Americans
4x09 The Day After

Miranda
1x06 Dog [season finale; 3rd watch]
DVD title: What a Dog.

The Musketeers
2x02 An Ordinary Man

Films

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - Ultimate Edition (2016)
[#128 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

I watched the theatrical version when it came out, of course, but this merits a new number because it's a whole 20% longer and the storytelling is much smoother.

TV

The Americans
4x08 The Magic of David Copperfield V: The Statue of Liberty Disappears

Friday Night Dinner
4x02 The Carpet Cleaner
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]

Miranda
1x05 Excuse [4th watch]
DVD title: Let It Out.

Preacher
1x06 Sundowner
[Watch it (again) on Amazon Prime Instant Video.]

TV

The Americans
4x07 Travel Agents

Miranda
1x04 Holiday [5th watch]
Remarkable difference in number of views compared to the last one, eh. On the DVD this is called Mum's the Word, which is probably the worst change of the lot.

The Musketeers
2x01 Keep Your Friends Close
Thought it was about time we got on with this (it's only been two years since we last watched it, after all). I'd forgotten how catchy the title music was.

Films

The Sting (1973)
[#127 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...? 2016 #7

this week on 100 Films

4 brand-new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week, and they were...


Barry Lyndon (1975)

This is not a simple, narrow-focused, cause-and-effect kind of story, but a fictional biopic, that ranges across Europe and across time to… what effect? It’s a Kubrick film, so the ultimate goal of the tale, the message(s) it may be trying to impart, are debatable. You could see a story of the pitfalls of hubris. You could see an exploration of how a certain class lived in this time period. You could just see a man who led an adventurous life.

Read more here.


The Imitation Game (2014)

This Turing is surely somewhere on the autistic spectrum, which at best has speculative historical basis, but Cumberbatch embodies well that social awkwardness with hidden inner genius. It would've been easy for him to slip into familiar traits from that other antisocial clever-clogs he plays, Sherlock Holmes, but at worst there are only vague and infrequent nudges to our memory of that performance. Rather, I'd argue he fully subsumes himself into this role.

Read more here.


Noah (2014)

The director of The Fountain tackles the Biblical tale of the flood as if it were also a science-fiction/fantasy adventure — familiarity with the story leads us to assume it’s set in the past, but watch without baggage and the setting looks like a post-apocalyptic future.

Read more here.


Zootropolis (2016), aka Zootopia

There’s a quote on the cover of Zootropolis’ US Blu-ray that calls it the best Disney movie in 20 years. As much as I liked Bolt and Tangled, and Mulan and The Princess and the Frog, and, yes, even Frozen, I think Zootropolis is at the very least a contender for that crown.

Read more here.


Also, my 100 Favourites series continued with 2 more posts...


Mary Poppins (1964)

When I was little, the whole part of the film around the bank, Feed the Birds, etc, was The Boring Bit between the fun and the return of the fun. Now, I still think most of Feed the Birds is a little insipid, but the instrumental reprise as Mr Banks walks slowly back to the bank, his world and everything he knows torn asunder, his humiliation imminent… It’s heartbreaking, and the music is most of the reason why.

Read more here.


The Mask of Zorro (1998)

The key to most good swashbucklers is the sword-fighting, and The Mask of Zorro is up to scratch. Banderas was trained by Bob Anderson, a legendary sword master — he also worked on Highlander, The Princess Bride, Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, and many more. Not least, he coached Errol Flynn of all people — and Anderson reckoned Antonio Banderas was the best swordsman he’d worked with since Flynn.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

The Americans
4x06 The Rat
If I didn't know better, I'd swear The Americans was heading towards its final ending this season. Thank goodness it isn't, because it's awesome.

Miranda
1x03 Job [2nd watch]
I'm certain this can't be just the second time I've seen this episode, but that's what this blog's records tell me. Maybe I stumbled across it halfway through one time and so didn't note it... Its DVD title is Just the Job, by-the-by.

Person of Interest
5x13 return 0 [series finale]
So, that's that. I guess they really didn't think they were coming back... although it was still open to the possibility. Anyway, not a bad ending, all things considered.

Films

Sicario (2015)
[#126 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.

Nowt this week! Plenty of stuff on the way though, so exciting weeks to come.

Number of titles in collection: 1,871 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,202 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 669 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 4,811 [no change]
Number of films in collection: 2,060 [no change]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 7,306 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 473 [no change]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

The Americans
4x05 Clark's Place

Miranda
1x02 Teacher [3rd watch]
For some reason the first series has different episode titles on the DVD. The first episode's changed from Date to It's a Date, while this one's become In the Mood.

Person of Interest
5x12 .exe

Films

The Imitation Game (2014)
[#125 in 100 Films in a Year 2016]

TV

Agatha Raisin
1x08 Murderous Marriage [season finale]
This series was good fun, on the whole. Hope they do more.

The Americans
4x04 Chloramphenicol

Miranda
1x01 Date [3rd watch]
Beginning a full re-watch. Have to say, I thought I'd seen this episode more. Maybe I forgot to log it.

Person of Interest
5x11 Synecdoche