Some Dude Reviews Movies

There was a time where I thought, naively, that I would be able to finish this month of heist films without watching Steven Soderbergh's legendary Ocean's Trilogy. I was wrong. So, instead of writing three separate reviews, I decided to just lump all three together, given that the strengths, and weaknesses, among the three films largely remains the same. I. What Are They? The Ocean's Trilogy is now iconic in the heist genre. What do you need to know? Danny Ocean (George Clooney), and his eccentric crew of n'er-do-wells are faced with a series of impossible heists. Fun, snappy dialogue, actors having fun, and killer soundtracks ensue. II. Stylish Steven Soderbergh is a master filmmaker. His films are filled with stylistic verve and painterly beauty. He uses light and shadow and color in fascinating, evocative ways. He lends his films a sense of dynamism and action that very few filmmakers can rival. With Ocean's 12 , Soderbergh seems to h...

I don't make it a habit to go see movies with the WWE Productions label. Mostly that is because the dross that WWE Productions produces very rarely makes it to theaters. Mostly the WWE produces direct-to-dvd sequels to movies that were never that popular in the first place: most recently, they released The Marine 6, co-starring Old Man Shawn Michaels. Anyway, I'm skeptical of any movie that bears WWE's signature, OK? Which is why I was immediately interested when I first heard of Fighting With My Family  (2019), the story of Saraya-Jade Bevis, otherwise known as WWE Superstar Paige. The film had locked Stephen Merchant (erstwhile collaborator of Ricky Gervais) into writing and directing duties, which gave the film a marked pedigree that could not be ignored. In the weeks leading up to the film's release, the reviews began to pour in, and the movie's Tomatometer score stood at 91%. It isn't often that you get to go see a wrestling movie in th...

I have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to French cinema. I have not seen the French masters. Any of them. Imagine my excitement, then, when Jean-Pierre Melville's 1970 thriller, La Cercle Rouge  popped up, consistently, in my research into iconic heist films. Not only was I going to check off a legendary heist film, but I was going to dip my toes in the canon of a French cinema legend. So, how was it? I. What is It? Corey gets out of prison, tipped off to a big score. By chance he hooks up with Vogel, a con on the lam. Both men quickly establish camaraderie, and decide to team up on a daring jewel heist. But Vogel is being hunted by Commissaire Mattei, a man who is clever and patient and willing to draw in his prey. II. Dynamic What struck me, immediately, about this film is how dynamic it is. The camera refuses to stay still. It pans and sweeps and practically dances around every scene, lending an energy to the entire film. Simple scenes between tw...

The Sting  (1973) is one of my wife's favorite movies. It was nice to watch one of her favorites with her, especially as I had never seen the film before. Yeah, I'd manage to tumble through 32 years of life without ever having laid eyes on The Sting . I mean, I knew it was a thing; I knew it was a movie. I didn't actively avoid it. It just wasn't ever on my radar. But a few days ago, I fixed that, with an ebullient wife by my side. I. What is It? This is the story of two low-level conmen who knock over a mark. But that mark worked for one of the biggest mobsters in Chicago. And that mobster takes his revenge, by killing one of those cons, and declaring an open contract on the other. But that remaining con aint going down without a fight. He bands together with the confidence man community, enraged at the loss of one of their own, and plans the biggest con in the history of cons. II. Painterly This movie is beautiful to look at. It looks like Norma...

A Fish Called Wanda (1988) is a Dad Movie. You know, movies that find patronage among the nation's population of Dads. I remember my dad really liking this movie, but I was too young at the time to watch it. And then, unlike some of the other movies my dad was a fan of, I never found the time to sit down and watch it. Until I started my Google search for iconic heist movies. And what do you know? A Fish Called Wanda  showed up on multiple Best Of lists everywhere I turned my head. So, I decided to give it a go. I. What is It? This is the story of a diamond heist, featuring a crew of wacky, treacherous thieves. II. I Don't Really Feel One Way or the Other I didn't really LIKE this movie. It was overly long, overly wacky, and so fucking 80s that it hurt. Kevin Kline won a Best Supporting Actor award for his performance as the Nietzsche-spouting American buffoon. And ya know? He's good... but... like... not Oscar good. Fight me. The script is try...

Out of Sight  (1998) dripped cool; The Asphalt Jungle (1950) was all brooding darkness; A Fish Called Wanda  (1988) was a doltish British comedy about buffoonish criminals. I was not prepared, however, for the delightful inanity of The Italian Job  (1969). Perhaps the most British of British films. I. What is It? Charlie Croker is going to steal $4 million dollars from under the Mafia in Turin. The heist itself is comically over-complicated. But the plot isn't. II. Sheer What the Fuckery This movie is something special. There is a man in a hot pink suit. Michael Caine has an orgy with at least ten women, right before meeting the widow of a former friend and sleeping with her, too. A trio of Mini Coopers decked out in Union Jack red, white and blue outwit the Italian government. A patriotic British gangster (played to the nines by Noel Coward) runs a vast criminal underworld from his posh prison cell. Oh, and the Mafia (pronounced Britishly: MAH-Fi-Uh). Th...

Most heist films are fun. They feature cool-as-a-cucumber criminals who always outsmart the (usually) bumbling law enforcement. But it wasn't always this way. The Asphalt Jungle , a 1950 film directed by John Huston, is a heist film with a noir sensibility. It's a brutal film where crime is far from sexy: it's downright deadly.  So buckle up, everyone, we're headed on a tour of the asphalt jungle, and it's going to get dangerous. I. What is It? A daring jewel heist goes off largely as planned. It's only afterwards when human cowardice, greed, and incompetence unravels the whole thing. II. Heist, Meet Noir This is a film with a caper at its center. The jewel heist is fun, interesting, and fairly clever. What makes this film stand out, however, is the noir trappings of the script. The dialogue is boiled harder than an egg. Each crew member has a nickname corresponding to their job (Sterling Hayden's Dix is a "Hooligan" an...

Any heist-themed film marathon must needs have a Steven Soderbergh entry. I already reviewed Logan Lucky (2017) on this blog, and the Ocean's movies are so ubiquitous in pop culture (and the heist genre in general), that I decided to go back to his roots in the heist genre.  I have heard a lot about Out of Sight (1998), but had never managed to sit down and watch the thing from start to finish. So let's do it. I. What is It? Out of Sight  is an adaptation of an Elmore Leonard novel of the same name that tells the story of an escaped con, his last big score, and the US Marshall that falls in love with him. II. It's A 90s Film That Doesn't Suck This movie IS the 90s. We have bright colors, a funky soundtrack (by DJ David Holmes), a hip auteur director, and a breakout cast (featuring J-Lo!). And it doesn't suck. Out of Sight  is the kind of 90s film that every other film in the 90s aspired to be. It's that rare Tarantino-like crime caper that m...

Ocean's 8  is the perfect example of a C-grade movie: I neither hated it, nor loved it. It exists in a strange cinematic purgatory. It is over-long, never really capitalizes on its stellar cast of characters, and lacks the visual verve of the original films. It is clear, however, that everyone is having a lot of fun, and some of that spirit helps save the film from absolute disaster. Widows , then, is everything that Ocean's 8  aspired to be, but fell short of. It is a heist film; it sports a who's-who Hollywood slate of A-list actors; it is stylish and confidently constructed. It is Steve McQueen's first feature since his jaw-dropping 2013 drama,  12 Years a Slave . I wanted to see this movie in theaters, but time got away from me. It recently popped up on Amazon, so I bought it and fired it up. I. What is It? Widows   is a 2018 film written by Gillian Flynn and Steve McQueen, and directed by Steve McQueen. It is the story of a group of wome...