giovedì 27 settembre 2018

Film 1513 - A Bad Moms Christmas

Intro: I was looking forward of seeing this movie! And I had to wait a lot of time before I was able to download it, so no surprise when I say that I was really excited when we decided to watch it, finally!
Film 1513: "A Bad Moms Christmas" (2017), Jon Lucas, Scott Moore
Watched: my laptop
Language: English
Watched with: Fre
Briefly: it's not easy to write and direct a sequel for a surprisingly profitable movie in less than a year. Jon Lucas and Scott Moore managed to do that, even though "A Bad Moms Christmas" isn't as funny or deliciously entertaining as the first "Bad Moms". And that's a shame. Maybe with a little more time spent on the script, it could have been a great outrageously guilty pleasure as the first movie is;
I appreciate the choice of Christmas time as the center of the story, still I can't really relate to all the struggling the moms have to go through here. Decorations and gifts apparently are a bigger deal than spending time together staying with your family, so it's kinda difficult for me to understand that kind of craziness and anxiety that comes from 'make everything perfect' for the Holidays;
Kunis, Bell and Hahn are again perfect for their roles, with Hahn being the scandalously weird sex addicted mom of the group. I really loved her here. Hines, Baranski and Sarandon are basically clones of their on-screen daughters, which is probably predictable, but no funny enough in my opinion;
"A Bad Moms Christmas" isn't good enough to justify its presence on the market. "Bad Moms" isn't perfect, but at least points out some true facts: moms are overstressed, they have to look after their families and probably go to work as well, they don't have a lot of time for themselves; also, aside from the mom point of view, the first movie shows that women can be delightfully outrageously funny as much as men can be, something the audience needs to be reminded of occasionally. "Bad Moms 2", instead, even though it tries to recreate the same shockingly dirty atmosphere of its predecessor, fails to deliver a message of female empowerment and unity that grows through friendship and self-awareness. What we get here is a comedy movie that delivers a few dirty laughs, but nothing more than that.
Film 1243 - Bad Moms: Mamme molto cattive
Film 1448 - Bad Moms
Film 1513 - A Bad Moms Christmas
Cast: Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Kathryn Hahn, Cheryl Hines, Christine Baranski, Susan Sarandon, Jay Hernandez, Justin Hartley, Peter Gallagher, Oona Laurence, Emjay Anthony, Wanda Sykes, Christina Applegate.
Box Office: $130.6 milion
Worth watching?: Fans of the first film will probably like this one too, but still I think this is worst. Let's say it's a good choice if you want to spend your night watching a movie that doesn't requires any brain-related effort.
Awards: One Razzie Award nomination for Worst Supporting Actress (Sarandon).
Key word: Mother-daugher relationship.

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Trailer
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Bengi

mercoledì 26 settembre 2018

Film 1512 - Inception

Intro: this is one of my favourite movies, so there shouldn't be no surprise if I decide to watch it for the umpteenth time. Also, I think this is the first time I'm watching it in English...
Film 1512: "Inception" (2010), Christopher Nolan
Watched: my laptop
Language: English
Watched with: Fre
Briefly: Nolan at his best. The movie has rhythm, a very well thought (and written) plot, and a wonderful idea behind it all: is it possible to instil ideas in people's mind and make them believe that is actually a self-produced thought? "Inception" then appears to be more than just a motion picture, it's kinda like an experiment;
the cast is great and I really believe that everyone has got the right part. DiCaprio and Cotillard are the sweetest and saddest couple;
visual effects are amazing and watching this film is really entertaining. It makes you wonder how did they manage to create a world made out of dreams. Unbelievably stunning to watch. Also, the soundtrack - by Hans Zimmer - is just amazing. listen to it to believe me.
Film 156 - Inception
Film 339 - Inception
Film 1062 - Inception
Film 1512 - Inception
Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Tom Berenger, Michael Caine.
Box Office: $828.3 milion
Worth watching?: the perfect choice if you need a really entertaining night. "Inceptions" requires attention and faith, it is not that kind of movie that you can just put on and pretend to listen. Follow the story and its characters carefully and you'll not be disappointed.
Awards: 4 Oscars (Cinematography, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing and Visual Effects), 3 BAFTAs (Production Design, Sound, Visual Effects) and 4 Golden Globes nominations.
Key word: Maze.

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Trailer
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Bengi

martedì 25 settembre 2018

Film 1511 - The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride

Intro: And here's the second movie of our lunch break. Never in my life I would ever expected to watch this sequel, but hey, I'm trying to be as open as possible to new possibilities.
Film 1511: "The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride" (1998), Darrell Rooney, Rob LaDuca
Watched: Fre's laptop
Language: English
Watched with: Fre
Briefly: usually I don't watch direct-to-video movies, not only because they're kind of the minor league of the industry, but also because I always have the feeling that these projects don't take the best out of people involved in them. And as I expected, "The Lion King 2" isn't that great: as a family feature length it's fine, even entertaining at some stage, but if you consider it as a whole this isn't the sequel "The Lion King" deserved;
the songs aren't as good as the one you find in the first picture and sometimes you wish you could get "Circle of Life" or "Hakuna Matata" back. Also, the drawings are clearly less well-finished than the first film;
the plot is similar to Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet". "The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride" brings nothing new with it then.
Film 126 - Il re leone
Film 1298 - Il re leone
Film 1510 - The Lion King
Film 1511 - The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride
Cast: Matthew Broderick, Neve Campbell, Jason Marsden, Moira Kelly, James Earl Jones, Suzanne Pleshette, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Robert Guillaume, Edward Hibbert, Andy Dick, Jim Cummings.
Box Office: /
Worth watching?: a good choice if your kids loved "The Lion King", but don't expect the same greatness and quality. This sequel is clearly targeting people who loved the first movie and/or people with kids. Be aware of that and you won't be (too) disappointed.
Awards: /
Key word: Love.

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Trailer
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Bengi

martedì 18 settembre 2018

Emmy 2018: nomination e vincitori


70th Primetime Emmy Awards

Outstanding Drama Series
The Americans
The Crown
Game of Thrones
The Handmaid’s Tale
Stranger Things
This Is Us
Westworld

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series
Jason Bateman, Ozark
Sterling K. Brown, This Is Us
Ed Harris, Westworld
Matthew Rhys, The Americans
Milo Ventimiglia, This Is Us
Jeffrey Wright, Westworld

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series
Claire Foy, The Crown
Elisabeth Moss, The Handmaid’s Tale
Sandra Oh, Killing Eve
Keri Russell, The Americans
Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld
Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Game of Thrones
Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Mandy Patinkin, Homeland
David Harbour, Stranger Things
Matt Smith, The Crown
Joseph Fiennes, The Handmaid’s Tale

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones
Millie Bobby Brown, Stranger Things
Vanessa Kirby, The Crown
Yvonne Strahovsi, The Handmaid’s Tale
Alexis Bledel, The Handmaid’s Tale
Ann Dowd, The Handmaid’s Tale
Thandie Newton, Westworld

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series
F. Murray Abraham, Homeland
Cameron Britton, Mindhunter
Matthew Goode, The Crown
Ron Cephas Jones, This Is Us
Gerald McRaney, This Is Us
Jimmi Simpson, Westworld

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series
Diana Rigg, Game of Thrones
Cicely Tyson, How to Get Away With Murder
Viola Davis, Scandal
Kelly Jenrette, The Handmaid’s Tale
Cherry Jones, The Handmaid’s Tale
Samira Wiley, The Handmaid’s Tale

Outstanding Comedy Series
Atlanta
Barry
Black-ish
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Glow
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Silicon Valley

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series
Donald Glover, Atlanta
Bill Hader, Barry
Anthony Anderson, Black-ish
William H. Macy, Shameless
Ted Danson, The Good Place
Larry David, Curb Your Enthusiasm

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Pamelon Adlon, Better Things
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Allison Janney, Mom
Issa Rae, Insecure
Tracee Ellis Ross, Black-ish
Lily Tomlin, Grace and Frankie

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Brian Tyree Henry, Atlanta
Henry Winkler, Barry
Louie Anderson, Baskets
Alec Baldwin, Saturday Night Live
Kenan Thompson, Saturday Night Live
Tony Shalhoub, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Tituss Burgess, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Zazie Beetz, Atlanta
Betty Gilpin, Glow
Laurie Metcalf, Roseanne
Aidy Bryant, Saturday Night Live
Leslie Jones, Saturday Night Live
Kate McKinnon, Saturday Night Live
Alex Borstein, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Megan Mullaly, Will & Grace

Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
Katt Williams, Atlanta
Sterling K. Brown, Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Bryan Cranston, Curb Your Enthusiasm
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Curb Your Enthusiasm
Donald Glover, Saturday Night Live
Bill Hader, Saturday Night Live

Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series
Wanda Sykes, Black-ish
Tina Fey, Saturday Night Live
Tiffany Haddish, Saturday Night Live
Maya Rudolph, The Good Place
Jane Lynch, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Molly Shannon, Will & Grace

Outstanding Television Movie
Fahrenheit 451
Flint
Paterno
The Tale
Black Mirror: USS Callister

Outstanding Limited Series
The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
The Alienist
Genius: Picasso
Patrick Melrose
Godless

Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or a Movie
Antonio Banderas, Genius: Picasso
Darren Criss, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Benedict Cumberbatch, Patrick Melrose
Jeff Daniels, The Looming Tower
John Legend, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert
Jesse Plemons, USS Callister (Black Mirror)

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or a Movie
Jessica Biel, The Sinner
Laura Dern, The Tale
Michelle Dockery, Godless
Edie Falco, Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders
Regina King, Seven Seconds
Sarah Paulson, American Horror Story: Cult

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or a Movie
Jeff Daniels, Godless
Brandon Victor Dixon, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert
John Leguizamo, Waco
Ricky Martin, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Edgar Ramírez, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Michael Stuhlbarg, The Looming Tower
Finn Wittrock, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Movie
Adina Porter, American Horror Story: Cult
Letitia Wright, Nish
Merritt Wever, Godless
Sara Bareilles, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert
Penélope Cruz, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Judith Light, The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story

Outstanding Reality Competition
The Amazing Race
American Ninja Warrior
Project Runway
RuPaul’s Drag Race
Top Chef
The Voice

Outstanding Variety/Sketch Series
At Home With Amy Sedaris
Drunk History
I Love You, America With Sarah Silverman
Portlandia
Saturday Night Live
Tracey Ullman’s Show

Outstanding Variety/Talk Series
The Daily Show With Trevor Noah
Full Frontal With Samantha Bee
Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Last Week Tonight With John Oliver
The Late Late Show With James Corden
The Late Show With Stephen Colbert

#HollywoodCiak
Bengi

lunedì 17 settembre 2018

Film 1510 - The Lion King

Intro: For once we had a long lunch break, so we decided to spend our time watching not just one, but two movies one after the other!
Film 1510: "The Lion King" (1994), Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff
Watched: from my laptop
Language: English
Watched with: Fre
Briefly: one of the best movies Disney ever produced, "The Lion King" is still rockin' it! After a sequel ("The Lion King II: Simba's Pride") and a prequel ("The Lion King 1½") and two television series ("Timon and Pumbaa" and "The Lion Guard"), next year will be the time for the CGI remake directed by Jon Favreau. The lion is roaring loud and clear!;
it's impossible not to cry when Mufasa dies. It's such an emotional scene, so perfectly achieved. And the fact that this is a family movie targeting kids and teenagers, it's even more impressive how they managed to deal with death and loss. Chapeau.;
the songs are amazing, one of the best stuff you can find here. They're catchy, funny, and impossible to forget. "Hakuna Matata" is brilliant, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" powerful, "I Just Can't Wait to Be King" delightfully entertaining. My personal favourite though is "Circle of Life".;
surely one of the best animated movies ever made. Entertaining, smart, dark enough and morally satisfying, "The Lion King" is the perfect choice either for kids and adults who want to enjoy a great story and a very well drawn movie art piece.
Film 126 - Il re leone
Film 1298 - Il re leone
Film 1510 - The Lion King
Film 1511 - The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride
Cast: Matthew Broderick, James Earl Jones, Jeremy Irons, Rowan Atkinson, Moira Kelly, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Robert Guillaume, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Niketa Calame, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Jim Cummings, Madge Sinclair.
Box Office: $968.5 million
Worth watching?: it's undoubtedly one of the best known animated movies ever. It still is a huge success and since it hit the theatres has been one of the greatest box-office earners of all time and it reached the cult status a long time ago. What should we ask more from a single movie? Nothing. So just enjoy the pleasure of watching it.
Awards: 2 Oscars win out of 4 nominations (Best Score and Best Original Song for "Can You Feel the Love Tonight"); 3 Golden Globes won (Best Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical, Best Original Song, Best Original Score).
Key word: Jackpot.

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Trailer
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Bengi

Film 1509 - What Happens in Vegas

Intro: The perfect silly comedy for a light evening at home.
Film 1509: "What Happens in Vegas" (2008), Tom Vaughan
Watched: from my laptop
Language: English
Watched with: Fre
Briefly: enough funny and entertaining to overlook the fact that it's a stupid and impossible story, "What Happens in Vegas" lives of the good chemistry between the two leads Diaz and Kutcher, a couple perfect for the role. They're beautiful and - here - at the top of their careers, something that is long gone right now;
of course the funniest parts involve the newly wed couple trying to ruin their lives respectively. If you ever dreamed to be nasty to an ex of yours, you should really get inspired by all the crazy things they do here. Watch an see for yourself;
it's a stupid movie you watch just to have fun. As soon as you watched it, you can forget about it since it's just a terrible one. Even though it can be funny.
Cast: Cameron Diaz, Ashton Kutcher, Rob Corddry, Treat Williams, Dennis Miller, Lake Bell, Jason Sudeikis, Zach Galifianakis, Queen Latifah, Krysten Ritter.
Box Office: $219.3 million
Worth watching?: The perfect example of a movies you watch when you want your brain to relax. There's no need to think or really concentrate during the 99 minutes running time. Easy, fast, and entertaining. If you need more, look somewhere else.
Awards: /
Key word: Jackpot.

Did you like it? Buy it HERE!

Trailer
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Bengi

giovedì 6 settembre 2018

Film 1508 - Darkest Hour

Intro: E finalmente si entra nel vivo della stagione dei premi, con il primo titolo da recuperare in vista della stagione degli Oscar! E non mancavano le giuste ragioni...
Film 1508: "Darkest Hour" (2017) di Joe Wright
Visto: dal computer portatile
Lingua: inglese
Compagnia: Fre
In sintesi: risultato finale buono, soprattutto grazie alle ottime performance di Oldman (impressionante) e Scott Thomas. Forse da questa pellicola mi aspettavo qualcosa di più, in ogni caso la storia è molto interessante e costruita attorno ad un personaggio magnetico, a tratti ambiguo, difficile spesso da inquadrare. E la sceneggiatura è capace di sottolineare l'imperfetta umanità del proprio soggetto protagonista dandone un ritratto sfaccettato e credibile quanto basta;
il vero neo di prodotti come questo è l'enorme dislivello tra la performance dominante, ovvero quella che andrà a vincere l'Oscar - cito solo altri tre casi identici: Forest Whitaker in "The Last King of Scotland", Julia Roberts in "Erin Brockovich", Philip Seymour Hoffman in "Capote" -, e il resto del prodotto, che perde di visibilità nei confronti di tutta l'attenzione guadagnata dall'attore in odore da premio. "Darkest Hour" non si sottrae all'equazione e, a fronte delle 6 candidature solo due vanno a segno, anche perché nessuno si sarebbe mai aspettato di vederlo trionfare nella categoria Miglior film, suppongo;
curiosamente si ricollega in parte alla trama del "Dunkirk" di Nolan, uscito lo stesso anno e competitor diretto del film di Wright agli ultimi Academy Awards. Entrambi, infatti, parlano di Churchill e del famoso discorso che il primo ministro pronunciò per spronare le forze armate del Regno Unito a scacciare l'esercito tedesco di Hitler ("We shall fight on the beaches");
tutto sommato un biopic che centra l'obiettivo di approfondire la figura pubblica e privata del famoso politico britannico, mettendone in luce le molteplici facce e sfaccettature; del resto a Wright non manca un buon occhio e una perspicace scelta dei soggetti dei propri film. Non è un capolavoro, ma funziona.
Cast: Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas, Lily James, Stephen Dillane, Ronald Pickup, Ben Mendelsohn.
Box Office: $150.2 milioni
Vale o non vale: Recitato molto bene, capace di incuriosire lo spettatore avvicinandolo non solo al personaggio, ma anche alle vicende storiche narrate, questo film funziona bene e sicuramente merita i riconoscimenti ricevuti durante la recente stagione di premiazioni. Da recuperare.
Premi: 2 Oscar vinti su 6 candidature (Miglior attore protagonista e trucco, stessi premi vinti anche ai BAFTA), un Golden Globe a Oldman
Parola chiave: Pace.

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Bengi

Film 1507 - Peter Pan

Intro: Ogni tanto un cartone animato, ogni tanto ripercorriamo la tradizione con i classici Disney.
Film 1507: "Peter Pan" (1953) di Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske
Visto: dal computer portatile
Lingua: inglese
Compagnia: Fre
In sintesi: non ricordavo proprio niente di questo film. "Peter Pan" non è mai stato fra i miei preferiti e, devo dire, non lo sarà nemmeno ora che l'ho rivisto con più cognizione di causa. Trovo l'animazione stupefacente, capace come al solito di rubare la scena ad ogni altro aspetto riguardante la pellicola; nel complesso però rimango dell'idea che non sia tra i migliori prodotti dalla Disney;
la storia di Peter, Wendy, Trilli, i Bimbi Sperduti e Capitan Uncino la sappiamo tutti, perciò non è sulla trama che ci si concentra. Sicuramente il valore aggiunto di questo titolo rimane legato alle esperienze personali d'infanzia che ognuno di noi vi associa. In ogni caso un classico.
Cast: Bobby Driscoll, Kathryn Beaumont, Hans Conried, Paul Collins, Tommy Luske.
Box Office: $87.4 milioni
Vale o non vale: Impossibile non averlo visto almeno una volta nella vita, non si può non conoscere la storia inventata da J.M. Barrie. La Disney riesce, come quasi sempre, a confezionare un prodotto per la propria epoca magicamente delizioso, pur non risultato tra quelli che personalmente considero i loro capolavori.
Premi: /
Parola chiave: Isola che non c'è.

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Trailer
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Bengi