Top series 2025

Saw a horrible amonut of series/tv series, some new, some renewed, some cancelled, some I quit...

Mayor of Kingstown s04 -4 -toughest yet, Lennie James, Richard Brake, Eddie Falco, Laura Benanti.

The Iris Affair -miniseries- 8 eps  big fsss. Tom Hollander good. 

The Last Frontier -should've quit  

got back to Slow Horses s2 1/2 -5 -Gary Oldman getting more and more Legend !

Down Cemetery Gates -loses steam after ep. 4

The White Lotus s03 - -best yet-Walton Goggins, Scott Glenn, Parker Posey. 

It: Welcome to Derry -quit 

Task  sez. 1 not much

Duster 1 sez. cancelled , was kinda fun

Subteran 1 sez. oy vey

Landman s. 1 ep.7-10 / sez 2 ep. 1-5 (in Top Series 2024, contd. in 2026)

The Lowdown 8 eps - Tulsa noir on the songs of J.J.Cale, Ethan Hawke as jouranlist Lee Raybon gets beaten up all the time. Created by Sterlin Harjo (Reservation Dogs). 

Pluribus s01 -Vince Gilligan is moving way to slow...

Peacemaker s02 -even better than season One. 

The Studio  1 season-10 eps., Seth Rodgen's satire is hit and miss but the episodes are short and Bryan Carnston as Griffin Mill is a blast !

Dept. Q  sez 1, 9 eps. (renewed) -the Sweedish series of thriller books  by Jussi Adler-Olsen get new (Scott Frank for Netflix)  and way too slow treatment with Matthew Goode as Carl Morck.  

The Last of Us -season 3. All gets weak after Pedro Pascal is no more. 

Monster The Ed Gein Story (sez 3 -8 eps) -see below

Walking Dead-New York -quit 

Alien: Earth s 1  -they did some good, and then they did some real bad. Continuing to mix the Weyland Yutanis with the Blad Runners, Prometheus, Timothy Olyphant's android Kirsch is a hoot !

Paradise season 1 (renewed) -cool idea of post apocalyptic city under a dome. 

Dope Thief  sez. 1  -Ridley Scott produced and directed the first episode. Based on a true story. 

Black Rabbit -miniseries 8 eps.  See review here. 

Your friends and Neighbours sez. 1. Jon Hamm steals. 

oh, and Moldova's Gangster and fiend, Plaha, 10 episode political thriller with Iulian Postelnicu as Plaha, written and directed by Igor Cobilianski

*****************

Revelation of the Year:

Monster The Ed Gein Story (Netflix). Ian Brennan writer, Max Wrinler director. 8 eps. miniseries.

Movies mix with the legacy of serial killers -from Psycho to Texas Chainsaw Massacre to Silence of the Lambs. Clever post-modern choices. Plus Ilsa Koch and the Nazis ! But a truly great performance form Charlie Hunnam. And Tom Hollander is Alfred Hitchcock. Even Mindhunter returns in ep. 8. Too much grand guignol as always but way way upper than the other 2 seasons (the 2nd I quit watching...)

Why is though Ed Gein made so sympathetic and a victim, "mother's boy" ? 

Top 5

Peacemaker s.2 -hbo max

Mayor of Kingstown s.4 -skyshowtime/paramount +

The Studio  -apple+

White Lotus s.3 -hbo max 

The Lowdown -fx / hulu 

RIP Drew Struzan

Drew Struzan, the man who designed some of the most iconic posters in the history of Movieland, for over 150 films. From the Star Wars and Indiana Jones series to Blade Runner, The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China and Back to the Future in the 80's, then over a new generation of filmmakers-Tim Burton-Planet of the Apes, Mars Attacks, Frank Darabont-The Shawnshank Redemption, The Mist (David's paintings), The Green Mile, Guillermo Del Toro-Hellboy, Pan's Labyrinth- has passed away on Oct. 13th. He was 78...

Note (grazie, LD): Legendary Italian poster art maestro Renato Casaro died on Sept. 30 at 89...He did the posters for the Leone spaghetti westerns, up to Flash Gordon and Conan the Barbarian (as they were Dino de Laurentiis productions). He retired in 1998 but came back in 2019, called by Quentin Tarantino to realize some "old school illustrated Western posters" ("Uccidimi Subito Ringo, disse il Gringo" aka "Kill Me Now Ringo, Said The Gringo", and "Nebraska Jim") for Italian films starring Rick Dalton, the character Leonardo DiCaprio plays in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. 

Struzan and Casaro have even a poster in common, for The Name of the Rose in 1986, for whom they did both posters. 

     
Struzan                                                   Casaro

Struzan also designed LP covers before film posters, including the legendary Alice Cooper's 1975 `Welcome to My Nightmare`.

In 2013, he was the subject of Erik Sharkey’s feature documentary “Drew: The Man Behind The Poster,” with interviews with collaborators like George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Harrison Ford, Frank Darabont, Tim Burton and Guillermo del Toro. 

exhaustive obit in Variety here 

 “Drew made event art. His posters made many of our movies into destinations…and the memory of those movies and the age we were when we saw them always comes flashing back just by glancing at his iconic photorealistic imagery. In his own invented style, nobody drew like Drew.”

Steven Spielberg 

RIP Robert Redford

Robert Redford gone where a River / rivers run through...

The Man was 89. Once ”The Golden Boy” of Hollywood...No liftings, just traces of life...

One of my top childhood heroes, he was an absolute star in that times "commie" Romania, together with Paul Newman, John Wayne and Burt Reynolds, the stars of those early 70's. RR, as a Rolls Royce of acting and old Hollywood grace and elegance. 

From early prats in Barefoot in the Park and The Chase, to stardom: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Sting, All the President's Men, Three Days of the Condor, to his activist years and Sundance, to the last parts in All is Lost (one of my favourite RR performances), The Old Man and the Gun and last in that Marvel film (2019)...

Never won an Oscar as an actor, but as a director, in 1980 for Ordinary People. That film is now quite forgotten, but at the time it helped build an Indie genre later on. A raw model for Brad Pitt and tons of others he helped more in the capacity of director, producer and festival founder (Sundance). Even though he directed 9 feature films he will be remembered more as a Classic Movie Star. 

Downhill Racer, The Candidate, The Hot Rock, The Great Waldo Pepper, The Great Gatsby, The Electric Horseman, Jeremiah Johnson, Brubaker, The Natural.

Liked him in lesser films like Sneakers, Legal Eagles, Havana, The Last Castle, The Clearing. 

One of my favorite later parts parts of RR is Nathan Muir in Tony Scott's Spy Game (2001). His pairing with Brad Pitt as his mentor in CIA was a very touching one. 

He made serious topics like grief and political corruption resonate with the masses, in no small part because of his own star power. (The NY Times)

RIP Terence Stamp

Mouring one of the greatest British Icons, made big by Italian cinema and American popcorn (und more).  Terence Stamp was 87. He was Toby Dammitt in Fellini's sketch of Poe's omnibus Histoires Extrraordinaires/ Spirits of the Dead. He was in Pasolini's Teorema, as he was general Zod ;). 

He won best actor in Cannes in 1965 for The Collector.

From his film debut in Billy Budd (1962, where he received his onbly Oscar nomination) to his last bit in Last Night in Soho (2021) he was a cool, silent, sometimes very menacing presence. 

For me it was at most fun as the perverted host of the short-lived series The Hunger (1997-98).

Other highlights: Modesty Blaise, The Hit, The Limey (featuring Poor Cow).

1st ime I saw him as a kid as the badguy Wazir in the Clive Donner's Thief of Baghdad (1978,  actually a made for TV film).

Stand-out, Australian The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994), which can be seen streaming now on HBO Max.

Far from the Madding Crowd indeed...

RIP Val Kilmer

First time I saw him in Top Secret back in the early 80's video days (& nights).

My favorite Val Kilmer part is in Mann's masterpeice of American Noir- Heat

with a soft spot for Mamet's Spartan.

He was blamed for the catastrophe that was Island of Dr. Moreau, with a mad Marlon Brando and a Mini me. Richard Stanley is over that one, John Frankenheimer is gone, like Marlon and Val now.

Val was cool in Ron Howard's Willow (sword & sorcery way before LOTR & epigons la GOT).

He was Iceman, "the wingman" in Tony Scott's seminal Top Gun. Also his last part on screen was in Top Gun 2, a cameo where he became Admiral Tom 'Iceman' Kazansky.

He was a beautiful crazed Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone's The Doors

Val did a Batman (Forever)

A Simon Templar-The Saint (in Moscow)

Doc Holiday (in Tombstone).

-also Kill Me Again & Thunderheart (thx, Andrei ;)

A great comeback film, with Robert Downey jr. was Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, that me and Andrei saw in the world premiere in Cannes in 2005. And we loved it !!!

and a great parodic part in McGruber (2010) as the evil baddie ;) Cunth. 

Long suffering from throat cancer he made a comeback in the headlights with the intense documentary VAL (2021) , in the official Selection in Cannes Film Festival. He died, age 65, on April 1st 2025.

RIP Gene Hackman

Gene Hackman, one of the greatest Actors there ever was, (it's said he could play Anyone and Antything), died on Tuesday Feb. 26th. He was 95. He died suddenly along his wife and their dog ! His wife (the 2nd, married in 1991), the pianist Betsy Arakawa, was 64 ! The Police of Santa Fe discovered all three of them....

During the last 3-4 years I re-saw /saw again some of his films with the fear he'll die any moment. So, there was him at his most funniest in Get Shorty, the neo-noir Heist, action mentoring channeling The Conversation part -Tony Scott's Enemy of the State (2 bad it had Will Smith as a lead, if could've been Denzel or Jamie Foxx it'll rock more today), more good action thriller-The Package and the comedy I caught up Heartbreakers. Forgot he had a cameo in The Mexican when I gave that film another shot (totally hated it when it came out), tried to see again The Royal Tenenbaums but remembered how he quarreled with Wes Anderson (which I find completely overrated) and paused it. It's a great part but not a lengthy on.  Also discovered some gems like The Hunting Party (1971), The Split (bit cop part) when Jim Brown died and recently, when Kris Kristofferson passed I saw Cisco Pike (1971). Brilliant wicked part for Gene Hackman, probably last seen by me. 

He was retired since 2004 after the lesser comedy Welcome to Moosesport. He was painting and writing thriller noir/ history fiction novels. 

Hackman received two Academy Awards (for William Friedkin's The French Connection & Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven), two British Academy Films Awards (BAFTA), and four Golden Globes.

My faves after the obvious characters of Popeye Doyle, Harry Caul, Little Bill Daggett and Lex Luthor are Crimson Tide, Prime Cut, The Scarecrow, French Connection II (he's better in Frankenheimer's sequel than in Friedkin's hit, it's harder bit too imo) , Bite the Bullet, Night Moves, Eureka, Under Fire, so on...

Most amusingly he played the blindman in Mel Brooks' parody Young Frankenstein, in 1974, uncredited. It's kind of a cameo but now every obit mentions it as an important part. Come on, you AI generation morons...

As a kid I saw him first in cinemas in Superman, The Poseidon Adventure, The Domino Principle, Marooned, Zandy's Bride, The Gypsy Moths (that on TV). Then later his breakthrough part in Bonnie & Clyde. 

He was a superb villain always, suave and smiling. Also he could play men in uniform, military authority at best. And grand in westerns. But his secret gift was comedy. He Is, was and will be one of my favorite Actors. And as far as I checked everyone says he  was the Best Actor that ever IS !

 "If you look at yourself as a star, you've already lost something in the portrayal of any human being."

                                                             Gene Hackman (1930-2025)

Top films 2024

(wherever is a link I wrote about 'em), 

still have to see The Brutalist and some more to come. 

The top in Romanian about films in cinemas in 2024 here 

 the series of 2024 here. 

and my Top films of 2023 here. 

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

# 1 across the aldmovieland: Furiosa (A Mad Max Saga)

then:

Anora- also the comedy of the year

From 2023 as seen in 2024: 

poor things
the zone of interest
bastarden
perfect days

io capitano 

The Master & Margarita

Vincent doit mourir !

Les Chambres Rouges

La Chimera

Only the River Flows

Die Theorie von Allem 

animation:
Flow

muzical:
joker folie a deux

moments of Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice

horror:
MadS
Cuckoo
Maxxine

Oddity

Sting

Never Let Go

& Late Night with the Devil (but from 2023) 

Thriller:

love lies bleeding
the order

Blink Twice 

American Star 

Strange Darling (production year 2023)

LaRoy, Texas (2023 also)

& more:

Civil War  

The Apprentice -best performance of 2024, Sebastian Stan (not the one from a Different Man, kind of Elephant man 2024)

The Bikeriders -flawed but still...

action but with a soul and a message (maybe too much even) but cool: Monkey Man (on that budget chapeau bas Dev Patel !!!)

Guilty pleasure film of the year: John Woo's own remake of THE KILLER

Nicolas Cage Award of the Year: Longlegs (not seen The Surfer yet)

Bonus: a grand barf for the grand guignol of The Substance (will see it again in theaters soon and conclude)-Later Edit, yep, much better, I swallowed the last 1/2 hr. ok)

Romanian film of the year:

Anul nou care nu a fost / The New Year that never Was

Documentary: 

Nasty

Mrs. Buica (from 2023, but saw in 2024)

Alice On & Off / Isabela Tent

Disappointment of the year: Megalopolis :(

Worst film of the year/cash-in: Gladiator II (again, Ridley Scott :( after Napoleon in 2023, and so on...)

 

A Good Year (2006)

 A Good Year - O comedie romantică

Alin Ludu Dumbravă 

Re:publik / noiembrie 2006  (scos acum de la naftalina re: Ridley and his old good ones).

Pitch: Sir Ridley plus Russell Crowe. / Adică Gladiator 2?/ Nu. O comedie romantică. / Ce? E o glumă? / Nu. Aşa am crezut şi eu, dar trebuia să am încredere. 

Nu îmi place Ridley Scott necondiţionat, G.I. Jane e o vomă, iar White Squall e şi plictisitor şi inegal şi întotdeauna am urît finalul la Someone to Watch Over Me. Dar acesta e cel mai light / upbeat film pe care l-a făcut şi pe care se vede şi simte că i-a făcut reală plăcere. Care-i şpilul? Ridley are o vie în Franţa, în Provence şi vecinul său este scriitorul Peter Mayle, specialist în istorii provensale, udate cu vin roşu şi delicii gurmande. 

Împreună au brodit un plot şi un vehicul pentru durul Russell Crowe, pe care Ridley îl consideră un sensibil. Şi iată filmul, o comedie romantică care se petrece în Provence, despre o casă, o podgorie, vin şi amintiri, mai concis, povestea unui om care se redescoperă pe sine. Max Skinner (Crowe) se ocupă cu producerea banilor la bursa londoneză, e un tip cinic, dur şi nemilos. El primeşte moştenire vila şi podgoria unchiului său Henry, cu care n-a mai comunicat de când era copil. Henry este un minunat Albert Finney în flash-back-uri în culori glorioase (amintind de rolul din Big Fish, la prima colaborare cu Ridley Scott de la debutul acestuia, Dueliştii, 1977). 

A Good Year nu arată ca un film din ziua de azi, ci mai mult din anii '60-'70, e un tribut Franţei şi filmului francez, dar mi-a adus aminte mai ales de Avanti de Billy Wilder şi de atmosfera toscană din Stealing Beauty al lui Bertolucci). Pe lîngă citatele Jacques Tati, prezenţa lui Didier Bourdon (unul din Les Trois Freres), cote-ul romantic e asigurat de ingenua Marilon Cotillard (decorativă în seria Taxi). Un film cu un buchet special, despre vin, cum să-l bei, să-l faci, să-l trăieşti, la joie du vivre, dragoste, prietenie, căldură. Problema e că şi tu vrei să-şi laşi slujba şi să mergi în Provence, dar cine oare îţi lasă moştenire un conac şi o vie? "Some Guys Have All the Luck", cînta Rod Stewart. Ridley Scott şi Russell Crowe sigur au. Dacă spectatorii se vor simţi măcar pe jumătate la fel de bine ca ei, pariul e cîştigat. Oricum vinul s-a băut. 

*** 3 din 5, 6 din 10 !

A Good Year, SUA 2006 Regia: Ridley Scott Scenariul: Mark Klein după cartea lui Peter Mayle, Imaginea: Philippe Le Sourd, Cu: Russell Crowe, Marilon Cotillard, Albert Finney, Abbie Cornish, Didier Bourdon, Tom Hollander, Freddie Highmore. 

# primul score al lui Marc Streitenfeld, anterior music editor (la RS via Tony Scott de la Gladiator, Hannibal, Black Hawk Down, Kingdom of Heaven, Matchstick Men), care a recidivat cu Sir RS la inca 4 filme, American Gangster, Body of Lies, Robin Hood, Prometheus si serialul Raised by Wolves.

Ridley's Favourite Flicks & LMA @87 !!!

Today Sir Rid is 87 !

Seems that not even Gladiator II is not the much expected BO hit he wanted to have. After the vain and bloated Napoleon and 3 flicks that didn't make much waves (The Last Duel, House of Gucci, All the Money in the World), plus the self-destruction (implosion) of the Alien franchise (Prometheus & Alien: Covenant), and a series that went nowhere in season 2 and was cancelled -Raised with Wolves, it seemed he recently fared better as a producer (Alien: Romulus).

This here is an unexpected list of Ridley Scott's favourite films, or the films who influenced him. Of course there are on top 2001-A Space Odyssey and Lawrence of Arabia, but there are also unexpected choices.

LMA/ Happy Birthday, and pls. give us one more movie we should care about ! Not You should Be Dancing, the Bee Gees biopic, you should be better dancing 4 real instead...

I already revisited recently Body of Lies and now I will watch again American Gangster, and might see again The Counselor, which I loved when it came out...Gladiator I revisit too much whenever I am on a binge of sorts..

Gladiator (2000)

 INTO THE ARENA*

Alin Ludu Dumbrava / Art & Roll, 2000.  Pus acum aici pentru comparatie cu Gladiator II. 

Filme de acest gen nu se mai fac de 35 de ani incoace. Costul unor asemenea superproductii (numite de italieni Peplum si de americani Toga and Sandals movies) era imens -figuranti, costume, decoruri, staruri, cai, pirotehnie. Lovitura de gratie a dat-o Cleopatra (1963), un urias esec de public, cel mai scump film al vremii sale, cel care si-a falimentat producatorii in asa hal incit Hollyood-ul a pus definitiv sub cheie genul. Cele mai bune mostre ale acestui gen de spectacol cinematografic sunt Ben-Hur (William Wyler, 1959), Caderea imperiului roman (Anthony Mann, 1964)si Spartacus (Stanley Kubrick, 1960). Asta pina la Gladiator. Pentru ca filmul lui Ridley Scott este mai mult decit un simplu peplum si se ridica net peste ele.

"Are you not entertained? "

Scott este un regizor baroc, acuzat mereu de detractorii sai pentru simtul sau acut vizual in detrimentul actorilor si al naratiunii. Dupa o cariera furtunoasa, plina de esecuri de public si certuri cu producatori lipsiti de viziune, Scott revine in forta cu un film care incheie mileniul in ideea ca de doua mii de ani incoace nu s-a schimbat mai nimic pe pamint. Colosseum-ul lui Scott este arena eterna, cea in care publicul spectator vrea senzatii tari, adrenalina, piine si circ. Este si ceea ce a ajuns cinematograful azi, o disfunctie intre arta si industrie, menita sa recupereze cu orice pret banii investiti si sa scoata din amorteala si rutina zilnica rontaitorii de popcorn. Lectia lui Scott din 2000 A.D. este ca se poate face un film pe care sa-l aclame publicul mic si mijlociu dar si criticii si cinefilii impatimiti. Pentru ca Gladiator este spectacolul pur, epic, maiestuos, cinema 100 %. Si mai mult, o sarja mascata a artistului impotriva unui sistem de mercenariat, in care intri in arena, te umpli de glorie si apoi multimea te uita imediat. La fel ca in Hollywood, unde esti vedeta pina la urmatorul film. Daca acesta e un esec, esti deja o glorie trecuta. Intreaga cariera a lui Scott a stat sub acest semn, fara premii, fara elogii, fara libertatea de a crea liber. Ridley Scott este Russell Crowe, gladiatorul care sta in arena si urla multimii insetate de singe, “acum sunteti multumiti?”. In arena realizezi ca poftele umane sunt mereu aceleasi de la prima caverna la primul pas in cosmos, sex si violenta, cit mai mult sex si cit mai multa violenta. Lumea in care traim a uitat definitiv maximele lui Marcus Aurelius (un Richard Harris in amurg), visele, nobletea. “Ce e Roma? -Un vis…” Replicile din film l-ar face invidios si pe Shakespeare. “Ceea ce facem in aceasta viata dainuie in eternitate”. Asta e si menirea artistului, a creatorului de cinema adevarat, ce va rezista mai mult decit o vara in box-office-uri. Oliver Reed primeste un ultim rol extraordinar, simbolic- Proximo, simbolul actorului care stie care e pretul gloriei. El stie cum poti sa-ti cumperi libertatea-trebuie sa cistigi multimea. In arena. Orice fel de arena, fie ea o scena de concert rock, un miting electoral, un ecran de cinema. Gladiator este o meditatie asupra a ceea ce se numeste showbusiness, punind accent pe mirajul pe care il exercita orice scena luminata asupra multimii.

Daca in martie 2001 Gladiator va lua sau nu cel putin cinci Oscaruri, (NA: si a luat exact 5, dar Scott nu, si asta eramarea lui sansa, da, as always, some movies direct themselves..) aceasta se va datora nu mesajului filmului si nici calitatilor sale cinematografice, ci faptului ca a fost un succes extraordinar, de public si apreciere generala. That’s showbiz, and there’s no business like showbusiness. Odata in viata Ridley Scott a iesit cistigator. In arena. Pe acordurile cele mai simfonice pe care le-a compus vreodata Hans Zimmer. Lights, camera, action: Give’em Hell! Pina la urmatoarea lupta: Cut!

ALD

*titlul vine de la o piesa de Michael Shenker, which I love(d).

5 stele din 5 !  (azi, NA, 2024 m-as duce la 9, pentru tot mambojambo-ul cu acel complot debil)

DVD director's cut, nu merita pentru ce in plus. More like deleted scenes. 171 mins vs. originalul la 155. L-am dat la Cinemateca Patria in 2014. 

American Gangster (2007)

 O poveste adevărată - American Gangster

Alin Ludu Dumbravă / Şapte Seri / decembrie 2007

O poveste adevărată despre America, American Gangster este biografia lui Frank Lucas, regele heroinei din Harlem, temut şi apreciat de mafia italiană din New York, subtextul fiind despre capitalismul american la fel de mult cât era The Godfather despre familie. Organizaţia lui Lucas era familia sa, în întregime neagră, iar Lucas avea un creier admirabil, de mare afacerist, care s-a manifestat în acest domeniu infam, al distribuţiei de droguri. Dar este şi povestea poliţistului incoruptibil şi instopabil, Richie Roberts, care l-a prins pe Lucas şi a creat istorie. Denzel Washington este impecabil şi irezistibil în rolul lui Lucas, aşa cum ştie să o facă chiar şi cînd joacă bad guys. Este primul film pe care-l face Denzel cu Ridley Scott, după cele 4 care le-a făcut cu fratele său Tony. De cealaltă parte a legii, Russell Crowe este Richie Roberts, din nou un rol de tip Method, pentru care s-a îngrăşat, şi a căpătat accent, à la Serpico. Crowe este al treilea film cu sir Ridley (după Gladiator şi A Good Year, vor urma Body of Lies si Robn Hood ca sa faca un cvintet-NA 2024) şi mai au două pe ţeavă. Amuzant, Denzel şi Russell Crowe au mai jucat împreună în thrillerul s.f. debil Virtuosity (1995) şi tot de părţi opuse. Partiturile secunde sunt asigurate de actori excelenţi; Ted Levine, Armand Assante, John Hawkes, Ruby Dee, RZA, Cuba Gooding jr., dar revelaţia filmului este Josh Brolin, sosia brunetă a lui Nick Nolte (cu al doilea rol major de anul acesta, după No Country for Old Men). 

Este cel mai american film pe care l-a făcut Ridley Scott până acum. Respiră aerul locaţiilor sale, filmat în New York, New Jersey şi Tailanda, de Harris Savides (colaboratorul lui Gus van Sant şi al lui David Fincher). Este o reconstituire minuţioasă şi scrupuloasă a epocii (de către scenograful ataşat al lui Scott, Arthur Max), din 1968 pînă în 1976, perioadă în care New York-ul era cel mai murdar şi corupt oraş din lume. Ambiţiosul proiect, numit anterior True Blue, a trecut pe la Brian De Palma, Terry George şi Antoine Fuqua, dar Ridley Scott a reuşit să-l aducă pe ecran într-o formă perfectă. La o durată epică de 2 ore şi jumătate, nu plictiseşte şi nu are scene în plus de virtuozitate stilistică, nici urmăriri, nici shoot-out-uri tipice genului. Plusuri sunt muzica excelentă a lui Marc Streitenfeld, şi piesele din epocă, care adaugă atmosferă. Ridley Scott se află aici pe teritoriul lui Michel Mann, regizat în maniera lui Martin Scorsese şi Sidney Lumet. Nu se pot anula comparaţiile cu Scarface al lui Brian de Palma, dar sunt mai aproape Carlito's Way al aceluiaşi regizor, Prince of the City sau Serpico ale lui Lumet, The French Connection al lui Friedkin, The Godfather al lui Coppola, Goodfellas şi The Departed de Scorsese, Heat de Mann şi Year of the Dragon al lui Michael Cimino. O companie selectă, ceea ce încearcă filmul lui James Gray, We Own the Night, dar nu reuşeşte. American Gangster e un clasic, unul din cel mai bune filme ale anului şi intră direct în categoria celor mai bune filme cu gangsteri făcute pînă acum. Sper să-i aducă lui Ridley Scott mult aşteptatul şi binemeritatul Oscar de regie.

NA 2024: și nu i-a adus nimica. A fost nominalizat la 2 Oscaruri, Ruby Dee pentru rol secundar si scenografie....la Globurile de aur au fost nominlizati Ridley, Denzel si best film. 

****patru stele din cinci / 8 din 10

# Revazut in varianta EXTENDED (de ziua lui Ridley, 30 noiembrie 2024!), si se tine exceptional filmul, acum dupa 3 sezoane de Godfather of Harlem (in care Forrest Whitaker e mentorul lui Frnak Lucas, Bumpy Johnson, acum se face sezonul patru in care va aparea Lucas ca personaj). Scenele extinse sunt bine montate in intreg, la 175 de minute e la fel de alert si poate chiar mai intens!)

Gladiator II (2024)

Out Today.

Gladiator Keto, a film that shouldn't have existed, IMO.

First things first, I loved the original Gladiator (2000), saw it 5 times in a cinema, Ridley Scott used to be my favorite director (well, one of them, these days I go with Tony), and it's one of favorite youtube binges. So I was appalled ever since this project originated back in 2001 (if only they would've done the crazy Nick Cave script...;). In 2006 they sold the property to Paramount and then Rid came on board back in 2018. No worries or why , worry, me ? there's plan for a Third one. Yes, it shall be the Gladiator trilogy, eyeing The Godfather, well, we all know how well the third Film fared.

Gladiator II rips off &  pillages the original big time, and its sucks completely. It's just a repetition and a shameless knock-off, with e a double budget & in excess (210 mill. $ repoterd, word of mouth of 350 mill. pff), super bad CGI (those monkeys man, oh, and how about'em sharks?) and uncharismatic leads. Mescal and Pascal look more Dacians than Romans. The two punk emperors and a small monkey (did u say Minky? ;) can't make for a Caligula knock-off.   I wouldn't even bother writing about the historical anomalies and the weak script (which I bet was re-written as the movie was shot). 

Don't get me wrong, its shot effectively (again by John Mathieson, see on the comments his opinions about this production, he said it was not so brilliant...), and how can you get it wrong when you have eleven (!!, yes it goes to Eleven !) cameras shooting at the same time ? The set design is even better (Arthur Max again), costumes, yes production values galore.

well, Denzel rulez, but he chews the screen like there's no tomorrow, they would've better made the film about him. And for my money, he was better in Equalizer 3. he worked with Rid in American Gangster (2007). Denzel will be 70 in December this year. 

Also the music by Harry Gregson-Williams (2nd time around for Ridley, after Kingdom of Heaven) is lame and the only good cues are from the original (by Zimmer, Lisa Gerard, etc), that at the time were absolutely on point ! 

Strength & Honor it ain't....

No more movies Sir Rid,...you will be 87 soon (30 November), so pls. let others some space...just heard he's doping a Bee Gees biopic, WTF ? Did he get replaced by a Replicant ???

5 out of 10, 2 1/2 out of 5

Alien: Romulus (2024)

"ANDY: Did you hear about the claustrophobic astronaut?... He needed a little space."

In Space no one hears you laugh. Or sneeze. Or does it?

Now finally out in theaters (it was first to premiere on streaming on Hulu). Saw it last night on the avan-premiere. The lighting, sound, sound fx, music, design, all it's super well done, on an A budget (shot on the Origo studios in Budapest). But too many references and beaten paths, a lot of plants but no payoffs, and a shorter running time (15 minutes easily less instead of 119) would've helped the pacing. I would've dropped the last act-or the final bit of the third act- in setting that for another film, also the premise on the Jackson colony planet, gritty and grim, with rain, poverty and darkness reminded me of the colony in Outland (1981) or the Mars environment in Total Recall (1990).  That could've been used more imo.

Alien: Romulus is a reboot, a sequel, set on the timeline between Alien (1979) and Aliens (1986), and functioning on the mythology of the Prometheus (my thoughts here) and Alien: Covenant (my thoughts here), these two movies existing now in the Alien universe before the original Alien.

Weyland-Yutani are everywhere, as is the Romulus/Remus theme (children Raised by Wolves), another theme Ridley introduced in his 2020 series that were mixing the Blade Runner android themes with the Alien Synthetic beings-that being and remaining Ridley's obsession-"More Human Than Human" (Tyrell being in the same universe as Peter Weyland's "Building better Worlds").

Uruguayan Fede Alvarez (Evil Dead 2013 remake, Don't Breathe), a good choice for directing, was chosen by Ridley who supervised the film and gave him notes. Alvarez and his buddy, Rodo Sayages (also director of Don't Breathe 2) wrote the script but took their notes and nods to all the franchise tropes.

The characters though are like pawns, younger actors, some annoying, ready to be sacrificed for the more important Directive, the WY priority. Just think of the original Alien cast and weep...Obvious cue, Rain (Cailee Spaeny from Civil War) is all and all from Ripley. 

The Andy Android (David Jonsson) is a step (& color) forward, instead of good/bad you get two chips, different sides of the same coin.

Another link to THE Alien (the 1979 film that is) is the Rook character, based on Ash, due to the Ian Holm regeneration on CGI & AI symbiosis. 

The music score, (key word: Pounding!) by Benjamin Wallfisch (partner of Hans Zimmer on Dunkirk & Blade Runner 2049, solo on It and The Flash) has the most references to the iconic score of Jerry Goldsmith for Alien, then James Horner for Aliens and Hans Gregson-Williams for Prometheus, plus a rendition of The Rheingold/Valkyrie Richard Wagner's anthem used in Alien: Covenant. 

“Dear Fede, Good luck. Good health. Good hunting. Don’t f–k up. Very best wishes, Ridley Scott.”

A great conversation between Ridley and Fede Alvarez here. Very cool.

But this is no longer (sir) Ridley's toy, neither is Fox's, its boss being now Disney (where the Alien films can now be streamed, on +!!!)  and that's Weyland-Yutani Industries in the Real world making Science Fiction just science 1.0.1. And horror tru. But No One hears whoever Scream. 

So, Romulus it's not innovative cinema but it's well done, some good practical FX, as opposed to only CGI, nice camerawork, claustrophobic widescreen (2.39: 1), Galo Olivares' 1st major credit, he did Gretel & Hansel for Osgood Perkins in 2000), and as I said lights & strobes, shadows, colors, flashes, fast movements- effective filmmaking. I reckon it will be a box office tie, at 80 million $ budget plus marketing and publicity costs this should make at least $300 mill to get a sequel.

But hey, we got one coming up ! The Alien Hulu F/X series led by Noah Hawley (the creator of Fargo series, so there's some hope ;). Streaming in 2025. 

3 out of 5, 6 out of 10 (for the qualities mentioned above). 

At least it's Rated R ;) Also, it's been Seven long years (und a Pandemic) since the last Alien film on the big screen. 

-also to be seen on the big screen. Full sound and scope. 

RIP Robert Towne

Considered the greatest American script, Chinatown (1974) was Robert Towne's masterpiece. He won an Oscar for it but Roman Polanski, the director, helped shaped the script and especially the downbeat ending.

Too bad they didn't do the third movie (Cloverleaf), but with the failure and fights over the sequel, The Two Jakes (2000), Towne and Jack Nicholson's friendship (who offered to direct!) had a huge fallout. They got over it eventually.

His great script of the early 70's were The Last Detail and Shampoo for Hal Ashby. He wrote uncredited scenes for Bonnie and Clyde and The Godfather, The Missouri Breaks, Warren Beatty's films (he was also great friends with Beatty and later on with Tom Cruise, who hold him in high esteem). 

When they messed up his script for Greystoke, the Legend of Tarzan (directed by  Hugh Hudson), so he signed the screen credit with the name of his dog (P.T. Vazak), and that name got nominated for an Oscar !!!!

He was considered the best script doctor in town and did great rewriting work on A list films for Big Bucks, and got to (co)write humdrum big budget High concept bonanzas like Mission: Impossible and Mission: Impossible 2 (The Chimera gimmick)  or troubled productions like Days of Thunder. for Simpson/Bruckheimer and Tony Scott. Also on Crimson Tide for Scott and the same producers  (dictated famously over the phone !!!). 

Towne also directed four films, with mixed results, from the sports-themed Personal Best (1982) to Tequila Sunrise (1988, what that menage a trois was about?), Without Limits (1998, another sports-themed flick) and Ask the Dust (2006, based on the John Fante novel, which he wanted to do since the early Seventies !), that was also his last work.

He started in Hollywood working for  Roger Corman. He wrote the Tomb of Ligia for Corman, on his series of Poe adaptations.

Bob Towne was 89. He was more like a Rock star in Hollywood than the reclusive screenwriter type. There won't be guys like him anymore, that's for sure...

RIP Donald Sutherland

Last Wednsday I was in TIFF at the Dolce far niente dinner ;) when a message shattered me.

I shared Keifer's post on FB, about the death of his father, Donald Sutherland, 

saying ONE OF THE LAST OF THE ONLY ONES (quoting the Danny & Dusty song)

The greatest Canadian actor of all times for sure, Sutherland was 88 now, would've been 89 in less than a month (born July 17, 1935).  Still active as an actor, almost 200 films to his name, and unbelievably he didn't win an Oscar ever. Shameful, but they gave him a Honorary Award in 2018, just like with Peter Fonda and other Greats. I met him briefly at a Dec. 1st Buftea studios Media Pro Party when he shot there An American Haunting in 2005,  he was also in Romania in Cold Mountain, the nightmare of waiters in Poiana Brasov because of his contractual clause of non-smoking around him ;)

one of The Dirty Dozen 

one of the M.A.S.H. (Hawkeye)

John Klute in Klute

1900  (absolutely brilliant part !!!)

Fellini's Casanova -masterpiece and a career best

Don't Look Now 

Homer in The Day of the Locust

Liam Devlin in The Eagle Has Landed

The Eye of the Needle

Ordinary People

my soft spot for Kelly's Heroes

The Invasion of the Body Snatchers 1979 

X in JFK

a Soviet colonel in Citizen X 

The  Puppets Masters (1994, saw and did promo when on HBO, a sort of Body Snatchers by Robert A. Heinlein)

His last great part was in Mr. Harrigan's Phone (2022), based on a Stephen King's story, on Netflix. Before that I loved him  in 2019's The Burnt Orange Heresy as the reclusive painter Jerome Debney.

Before that Ad Astra as the Kurtz in space figure. He was John Paul Getty in Danny Boyle's Trust miniseries, a much superior fare on the kidnapping of the Man's nephew than Ridley Scott's film.  But more popularity came as President Snow in the Hunger Games series.

Top Soundtracks 2023

-might be a first year without a Hans Z. score...oh no, he wasn't here last year too, last time for 007  No Time to Die... Last year I didn't even do a soundtracks top.

*****

Killers of the Flower Moon-Robbie Robertson & VA -oh, this would be great to win an Oscar, it's Robbie Robertson's first nomination and it's so posthumous :(

and the greatest and most touching song of the year on a soundtrack, "Still Standing" (this should've been nominated for Best Song but heck...barbisms :()

Indiana Jones 5  aka Indiana Jones and the Dial of the Destiny -ol' ol' John Williams with all of 'em referential Indy Themes 

Oppenheimer- Ludwig Goransson -Oscar's favorite.

The Holdovers-Mark Orton & VO 

The Boy and the Heron -Joe Hisaishi-Japan's John Williams returns with a beautiful elegiac score for Hiyao Miyazaki's comeback.

Next Goal Wins -Michael Giacchino

Wonka-the guys from Crowded House -Neil Hanon & Joby Talbot

Napoleon- Martin Phipps

Ferrari -Daniel Pemberton

VA (compliation) feel-good score of the year: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 

Mention:

The Killer - Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross-  minus The Smiths songs, unfortunately the score can't be listened outside of the film