This is the text version of my Patreon exclusive podcast where I talk about the best films I watch each month. If you’d like to get access and help to support the network you can do so at patreon.com/eloquentgushing.
The Wandering Earth
I love a big science fiction film, and for large swathes of this film that’s exactly what you get. However there’s a whole section where it becomes a Day After Tomorrow-style ecological disaster movie which was fine, but I preferred the other bits. Still a well done and interesting film.
O Brother, Where Art Thou?
This is one of my favourite films, and it’s just so watchable. Comedic turns from everyone involved, an incredible soundtrack, and some stylistic movements from the directors that you don’t often get in their films.
Yentl
Having discovered I hadn’t watched anything with Barbra Streisand in it I’ve been rectifying that. There is a lot in Yentl to enjoy, and it left me wondering if the gentle gender-bending comedy was quite as gentle when it came out, or if it’s just a story we’ve seen done a lot, and better in other situations. All in all very good though.
Come And See
This is often listed as one of the greatest films so I finally bought it to find out. Hard to describe it as good, the film will stay with me for a very long time. I think it is using the basis of ‘those who forget history are doomed to repeat it’ as the core for showing the atrocities of the Nazi army in Belarus during WWII, and it does not shirk from showing every angle of the tedium and the horror of war. Recommended if you want to see war cinema taken seriously and at its best.
Clueless
We showed this as part of Godalming Film Festival. The crowd was larger than expected, and a good number of people who hadn’t seen the people. I had them clapping and cheering beforehand and that enthusiasm carried over into the film – it was made better by watching with an excitable crowd.
Constantine
I am very comfortable saying I love this film – I saw it twice at the cinema when it was released. I’ve got the two disc edition with comic book, and it’s one I’m happy to leave on whenever I come across it. This year we’re watching it as part of Keanu Reeves month for Pop Culturally Deprived, so you can hear all about it over there where we get very in depth with the film!
A Simple Favor
As well as being super stylish this was a gripping movie. We were trying to guess where it was going and what was happening throughout and we were very wrong at each occasion.
The Hate U Give
Some really difficult themes and plots in this, but handled very well to give the viewpoint from a number of different characters. In all it was pretty heartbreaking but also feels important that stories like this are told both for people who suffer the racial inequality and people who need to understand it.
The Dish
If you’ve never seen the Dish you should seek it out. It’s a fairly gentle comedy, but it’s still funny and pretty delightful.
Thirst
One of the more unusual vampire films, there’s more about some of the subtler aspects of the myth, plus a really spooky vibe throughout. Required watching for Park Chan-wook enthusiasts.
The Private Lives of Pippa Lee
Robin Wright does some really interesting films, and to have young Robin Wright played by Blake Lively is just *chef’s kiss*. A fun yet dramatic film, this is oddly satisfying, and has Keanu at his ‘I’ll take any interesting part’ phase best.
The Matrix
I’d never recorded a commentary before, and perhaps should have picked a shorter film to start with. But I did a commentary for Patreon about this film, which is one of my favourites. Just saying.
Fright Night 2011
Whilst I can’t really recommend the original, this remake was surprisingly fun. It took the less-good aspects of the original and either ignored them or changed to incorporate characters that had been treated poorly, making it feel more complete. On top of that some great long action shots when the film gets going.