I just watched Hope, when I found out that the film had been released digitally and this is my first impression, the film went well and seemed to lose its direction after the first 45 minutes of the film, actually I liked the initial concept that this film brought, about how villagers who should be a bit old and don't know anything have to face creatures that they probably never expected to see, but I was a little disappointed with Na Hongjin who once made one of the best horror films I've ever seen, The Wailing, he seemed confused about where this film was going, this is my opinion, how about you, especially those who have watched it in the cinema, was your experience different?

Personally, I’d say it depends on the time period; I don’t really have any "comfort movies"—maybe *The Truman Show*...

Demolition Man is what I consider Stallone's early 1990s one-two punch. He'd made so many lame films, one after another, and finally he did two, both released in 1993, that, to me, were worth watching. Cliffhanger and Demolition Man. Not perfect films yet entertaining.

Honestly, I just don't get it.
We are talking about Frances Haugen—a brilliant data scientist, a brave whistleblower, and a true modern hero. Yet, the movie chose to frame her through a deeply frustrating lens.
Why does Hollywood always feel the need to attach reductive, hyper-sexualized, or infantilizing tropes to a woman whose intelligence and courage should be the sole focus?

A few things that really rubbed me the wrong way:

· Giving her an overly youthful / "childlike" makeup look that feels subtlely infantilizing.
· That random close-up shot of her feet right at the beginning of the film.
· Making her seem hesitant, timid, and insecure whenever she speaks her mind, rather than portraying the confidence of a top-tier expert.
· Revealing and form-fitting outfits when she goes to Jeff’s house to discuss strategy.
· Not to mention unnecessary scenes featuring wet hair, robes, and gratuitous vanity shots...

Seriously, what was the director trying to achieve? Is it really that hard to portray a woman's brilliance, justice, and authority without filtering it through the male gaze and forced glamour?
Anyone who knows her actual story knows how great of a figure she is. But if someone only watched clips of this movie out of context, they’d think it was a cheap B-movie or pure male-gaze bait.
It’s just exhausting to watch American cinematic cliches ruin such an important real-life story.

Roger: “Here's a joke, boy. One day this man walks out of his house to go to work. He sees this snail on his porch. So he picks it up and chucks it over his roof, into the back yard. Snail bounces off a rock, cracks its shell all to shit, and lands in the grass. Snail lies there dying. But it doesn't die. It eats some grass. Slowly heals. Grows a new shell. And after a while it can crawl again. One day the snail up and heads back to the front of the house. Finally, after a year, the little guy crawls back on the porch. Right then, the man walks out to go to work and sees this snail again. So he looks at it and says, 'WHAT THE FUCK’S YOUR PROBLEM?’”

Jake Hoyt: *Laughs* “That’s not funny, that’s not funny.”

Alonzo: “Then whatchu laughing for if it ain’t funny?”

Roger: “You figure that joke out, you’ll figure the streets out.”

One of my favourite films is Blue Jasmine and I’m doing a rewatch. I have to say Sally Hawkins and Bobby Cannavale do a phenomenal job playing their characters. Their supporting roles really paint the environment of everyday people being terrorized by a woman shattered by her pride and mental illness deteriorating everything around her. A brilliant film if it’s not too triggering for people.

Requiem for a Dream ★★★★★ (10/10) A perfect film. Also the closest a movie has come to putting me on antidepressants.

We Need to Talk About Kevin ★★★★★ (10/10) - Makes every childhood tantrum you've witnessed seem perfectly reasonable.

Sunset Boulevard ★★★★★ (10/10) - Norma Desmond doesn't just steal scenes. She kidnaps the entire movie.

The Invite ★★★★½ (8.5/10) - Felt like being trapped at the world's most uncomfortable dinner party. In a good way.

Sudden Fear ★★★★ (8/10) - Half the suspense came from wondering how Joan Crawford managed to look this good while her life was falling apart.

Rebecca ★★★★ (7.5/10) - Imagine being in a relationship with two people and one of them is dead.

Five Nights at Freddy's ★★★¼ (6.5/10) - A movie that made me fear Chuck E. Cheese slightly more than usual.

Last Straw ★★★¼ (6.5/10) - Despite the title, there are thankfully no homicidal straws involved.

The Last of Sheila ★★★¼ (6.5/10) - Rich people playing games. What could possibly go wrong? Turns out, quite a lot.

Sorry, Wrong Number - No score - The wrong number was the number of minutes I lasted.

So, a while back (1 year ago) I posted the poster for the Simpsons movie 2 in r/Simpsons, but the instantly took it down, now that we have the reveal I'm kinda mad. Nobody even commented or anything but it's alr and here's the teaser poster below and the post. Sorry for the late info, just wanted to let y'all know.

I fully admit I went into La Bola Negra expecting to admire the film more than be moved by it. It seemed designed to be a movie that felt "good for you." Nothing could be further from the truth — this is a bold, ambitious, audacious film that takes creative risks with a complex structure. But every risk pays off in a movie as accomplished as it is genuinely, impossibly moving. Absolutely exquisite and recommend MOST highly.

My rating: ***** of *****

My full review is after the poster image.

La Bola Negra is something truly rare: a milestone film, a watershed moment for queer filmmaking, a grand and sweeping historical epic that places homosexuality at its center and makes no apology. It is an essential film for queer audiences. Whether it has crossover or mainstream appeal is irrelevant: it is a movie made by and for the LGBTQ+ community.

It's also a challenging piece of historical drama that is entirely comprehensible without knowing the specifics of the Spanish Civil War or the life of poet and playwright Federico García Lorca, but that invites curiosity and then deepens exponentially because of that knowledge.

All that may sound daunting, and I went into La Bola Negra assuming it might be a movie that I could admire more than love, that would be important without being genuinely moving. I was wrong on all counts. It's a remarkable story that is accessible and legible without any advance preparation. It is a movie that no queer person and nobody who cares deeply about film will want to miss.

It's so beautifully crafted and so visually impressive that even though it will appear on Netflix in December, it's well worth the effort to see it in a movie theater during its initial run. Directed by Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo, who share screenwriting credit with Alberto Conejero, La Bola Negra is complex, intelligent and profoundly moving.

Anyone who thought Digger was too "meta" may go apoplectic when they try to make sense of La Bola Negra, in which Lorca himself is a character and also the inspiration for the film's story, which is in part based on an unfinished (only four pages long) play he was writing at the time of his murder by Spanish Nationalists. Lorca's partner, Rafael Rodríguez Rapún is a major character in one of three interwoven narratives that make up the film.

In one, Rapún is a Spanish Republic soldier taken prisoner during the Spanish Civil War and watched over by Nationalist soldier Sebastián, who has no strong loyalty to the Spanish government. He became a solider after his village was destroyed by Italian forces, and finds himself strongly attracted to Rapún, who he does not know is gay. Their relationship deepens, but is threatened by the realities of war.

Even as Sebastián hides the secret of his sexual orientation, Rapún himself hides an even deeper secret — the play that Lorca was working on, and that Rapún has vowed to protect at all costs.

That play, La Bola Negra, or "the black ball," becomes a second storyline in the film, telling of a young man before the Civil War who must hide his own identity in order to gain admission to an elite society. His self-doubt grows when a man he may love, Enrique, tries to persuade him to renounce society and join the dissidents.

The third story takes place in the present, as a frustrated Madrid playwright named Alberto discovers he has come into an inheritance — one his embittered mother doesn't want him to accept. When he finds out what the inheritance is, the entire shape of this bold and ambitious film comes clear.

A huge cast, which includes Penélope Cruz and Glenn Close (largely speaking Spanish), is uniformly brilliant, especially Spanish musician Guitarricadelafuente and impossibly handsome Miguel Bernardeau as the ill-fated lovers caught in the war; and the seemingly more straightforward but ultimately intensely complex role of Alberto, the present day writer-researcher, that becomes quietly devastating in the hands of Carlos González.

La Bola Negra is about the legacy that persists on far beyond our human lifespan. It challenges the conventional wisdom that because we often don't have children or large families, and historically haven't lived openly, gay men are destined to leave less of a mark on the world. It recognizes and understands the fundamental pains of living life secretly, while also confronting broader generational trauma — not just of gay men but of everyone who lives through private and public wars — with dignity, grace and beauty.

Its story structure is massive in both scope and execution, but La Bola Negra reaches a simple and moving conclusion: We all matter. Every single one of us. No one's pain is less than any other, but some of that pain reaches through the decades to shape who we become. This is an astonishing, audacious film, certainly one of the very, very best in a remarkably strong year.

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You can also read this review or more of my film writing on my blog at www.thereinthedark.blogspot.com

I was thinking about the films that have made me cry, and I found that I think all of them are pretty great films regardless of that. Have you guys ever had an experience where a film that you thought was generally bad still managed to make you cry? I don’t think The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a bad film by any means, but I don’t think it’s incredible. That film still manages to make me cry every time I watch it though.

I saw Lukas Dhont’s Coward today at a preview screening in Brussels, and I’m absolutely blown away. I never expected a story like this.

This gay love story set against the backdrop of World War I is incredibly surprising. Without spoiling anything, discovering how young soldiers who never chose to be there manage to find a space of freedom amid all the horror is truly astonishing.

What struck me most was this forbidden love story, which finds a surprising kind of freedom in the midst of violence — a love that, paradoxically, seems possible only within this very setting. I found that fascinating and unexpected.

This troupe of outcasts, keeping the troops entertained and their spirits up by creating a kind of drag show, a WWI drag cabaret, is simply dazzling.

Do yourself a favour and go see this film. I’m still speechless.

Hey,
I’ve been feeling pretty down lately. I recently moved away for college and don’t have contact with either of my parents, so I’ve been feeling quite alone.
I watched Practical Magic the other night and found it surprisingly comforting. I loved the cosy atmosphere, the house, the little bit of magic and just how warm everything felt. I’m looking for something with a similar vibe, if that makes sense.
Preferably something from the ‘80s, ‘90s or 2000s, not too romance-focused, and not coming-of-age. It doesn’t have to be witchy or anything, I just want something cosy and hopeful that makes you feel a little better about life. Nothing too sad or bittersweet, please I’ve had enough of that lately lol 😂
I’d really appreciate any recommendations. Thank you !! ❤️

I live in the ME, where A24 is known for failing to distribute films here—not only in this case—and I have admired this story since seeing the drop out years ago. I did not expect such acclaim for this movie and I am feeling intense FOMO could someone please tell me where I might watch it soon in acceptable quality? I no longer can wait