Recommend a movie

[Edd Grayson]

What can you tell me about it Edd?

A good fantasy film with a lot of charm and solid performances from the main actors.  I definitely recommend it.

[Catwoman]

With baseball season getting into the swing (pun totally intended) of things and me being the biggest baseball fan here (I'll fight any of you for that title), I wanted to recommend my favorite baseball movie. No, not "A League of Their Own" though that's up there.



Premise from IMDb: A fan who has an affair with one minor-league baseball player each season meets an up-and-coming pitcher and the experienced catcher assigned to him.

It stars Kevin Costner and Susan Sarandon (obviously based off the pic lol) as the "experienced catcher" and "fan who has an affair with one minor league ballplayer each season" but also Tim Robbins (the up and coming pitcher) and a guy we all know and love here, Knox himself, Robert Wuhl as the team's pitching coach. This was released in 1988, he has a couple TV credits in between but it's his last movie released before Batman. I adore him in everything he's in (Batman connection, he was in another baseball movie called Cobb with Tommy Lee Jones as Ty Cobb that's really good too) but he's great here.

The movie is hilarious, minor league baseball and especially Single A where the Durham Bulls played at the time (I think they are AAA now which is one step down from "The Show") and are shown in the movie is a looooong way away from the big leagues which makes it the perfect setting for a movie like this.

Couple hilarious clips, Robert is a supporting character but he's in all three of these. This doesn't BEGIN to scratch the surface of how funny this movie is or the plot itself so check it out yourselves

[Catwoman]

Clip of Robert Wuhl from a few years ago talking about the mound visit scene (the one called "You're a Cocksucker!" lol) above

[The Laughing Fish]

If you're curious about foreign cinema and eager to explore something that's bizarre and artistic, it wouldn't be bad idea to check out Federico Fellini's Amarcord; which is an an exploration of Italian society under Benito Mussolini's regime.

My favourite scene is this eccentric, hot-headed lunch between a mother and father as the rest of the family looks on awkwardly.

[The Laughing Fish]

Normally, I stay far away from romantic comedies, but this 1991's L.A. Story starring Steve Martin is underrated. Funny, charming and bizarre, it's about a weatherman who gets advice to improve his life by an electronic billboard. As I said, it's bizarre. I love how it makes fun of upper class people. 

By the way, if you've noticed John Lithgow, don't expect him to show up in the movie. His role was cut for some reason.

[The Laughing Fish]

The Elephant Man by David Lynch is one of the saddest, yet touching films I've ever seen, and a great exploration into the best and worst of people. The scene where Dr. Treves tells his wife he's unsure about his own moral character, because he couldn't tell if he was truly compassionate to help John Merrick or if he had exploited his deformed condition, is heartbreaking.

You'd be hard pressed to find a film like this made today.

[The Joker]

This Boy's Life

A movie I have liked ever since I first saw it on HBO way back in the day. The movie captures, what I would imagine, living in a small town during the 1950's would have been like thru it's direction, score, and soundtrack. Leonardo Dicaprio certainly has acting chops at a very young age playing Tobias Wolf. Someone who yearns for self improvement, along with a ideal father figure, but realizes that transforming one's basic character is not a simple matter. Robert Deniro is also effective in playing Dwight, Tobey's stepfather. A man who constantly asserts his dominance via insults and psychological/physical abuse.

Very much a coming of age during the 1950's film, and if you don't mind that, I would recommend it.

[The Laughing Fish]

Speaking of Robert De Niro, I watched Taxi Driver again for the first time in over fifteen years.

A chilling character study about a Vietnam War veteran disillusioned by modern day New York City. He sounds like the embodiment of all of those US soldiers who came back home feeling isolated and misunderstood. But in Travis Bickle's case, he doesn't quite recognise his own poor social etiquette isn't doing him any favours. His fate could've taken an opposite turn had been for certain coincidences. But I guess that's reflective of his unsteady frame of mind.

I'm just babbling on of course, but if anybody hasn't seen this classic by Martin Scorsese, please do so.

[thecolorsblend]

I've watched a crapton of Scorsese films lately. Gangs Of New York, The King Of Comedy, The Departed, Cape Fear, The Wolf Of Wall Street, etc. A different one every night for a while now.

Hands down, my favorite was easily Taxi Driver. The city's grit, sweat and grime practically fell off the screen as I watched. It's gorgeously ugly to look at, I couldn't get enough of it. I'd never seen the thing start to finish. Just a few scenes here and there over the years. But watching it uninterrupted from beginning to end was one of the great cinematic experiences of my entire life.

The writing, the performances, the directing, the cinematography, this is a true FILM and you're only hurting yourself if you never watch it.

On a broader note, most directors would spend the rest of their careers coasting off Taxi Driver's awesomeness. And they probably wouldn't get much criticism over that either. But Scorsese has arguably the strongest and most consistent output for my personal enjoyment of any filmmaker from his generation. Taxi Driver is probably my favorite of his work but he's directed a sort of ridiculous number of amazing movies. None of them are bad and quite a few of them are truly GREAT.

If you only ever see one Scorsese film, make sure it's Taxi Driver. And if you haven't seen Taxi Driver yet, FFS what are you waiting for?!

And it would appear that I'm not the only Taxi Driver lover in this thread...

[The Laughing Fish]

On a broader note, most directors would spend the rest of their careers coasting off Taxi Driver's awesomeness. And they probably wouldn't get much criticism over that either. But Scorsese has arguably the strongest and most consistent output for my personal enjoyment of any filmmaker from his generation.

I can agree with that. I can count about five or six movies directed by Scorsese that I really enjoy, unlike most directors. There's some stuff of his I think didn't live up to the hype, but the good films he makes ARE really good. It's no surprise De Niro thrived under Scorsese, Taxi Driver and Cape Fear ranks as his best performances. Which is more that can be said for his film roles nowadays.

But as good as Taxi Driver is, my favourite Scorsese film is GoodFellas. I think it's still the grittiest mob movie to date. Now yes, The Godfather trilogy doesn't shy away from the terrifying and tragic world of organised crime, but at the same time, it does feel too romantic. It makes sense I suppose, because it reflects the highs and lows of Michael Corleone's life.

In GoodFellas though, the seriousness of the story doesn't shy away how crime really doesn't pay. It feels dirty and it stays dirty. As time goes by, that adrenaline rush Henry Hill gets for committing crimes gets lost and spends the rest of his life always looking over his shoulder, and realises the wiseguys he had always looked up to growing up will quickly turn on him. Even among people he had been good friends with for many years. I just think it captures the ruthlessness of organised crime exceptionally well, and it's THE one reason why I never dreamed to be a gangster, unlike Henry Hill.

The performances from De Niro, Joe Pesci, Ray Liotta, Lorraine Bracco, Paul Sorvino really sell the laughter, the terror, the tears, and the tension that goes on. I got to say, the narration style of storytelling is a favourite of mine, which is why I was glad to see it again in Casino.

Quality filmmaking.