My Movies: 2015
DougInNC movies watched in 2015
List activity
211 views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
50 titles
- DirectorTate TaylorStarsViola DavisEmma StoneOctavia SpencerAn aspiring author during the civil rights movement of the 1960s decides to write a book detailing the African American maids' point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily basis.A slow, uneven start for about the first quarter of the film, then the characters and the plot line really start to shine. I'm going to rank this high (8 of 10) despite the early stumbles.
- DirectorRichard LevineStarsLiev SchreiberHelen HuntCarla GuginoA comedy about a New York City couple (Schreiber and Hunt) in romantic and family crisis.Tries to deal with more than necessary: gay child, artsy child, aging parent, death of sibling/child, work issues, extramarital affair, gay boss, bossy women, insecurities all over. It was a LOT more than your "every day" issues in life.
- DirectorWes AndersonStarsRalph FiennesF. Murray AbrahamMathieu AmalricA writer encounters the owner of an aging high-class hotel, who tells him of his early years serving as a lobby boy in the hotel's glorious years under an exceptional concierge.Great discussion with spouse after watching this one. She liked it a lot, being that it fit what she "sees" when she reads a book. For me it had unrealistic wacky scenes, and I like reality. Great contrast topic to pursue.
The movie? Fanciful story, definitely artsy, distracting focusing on the construct of the movie more than the story. Seemed like a film school experiment rather than serious movie making. - DirectorNancy D. KatesStarsNoël BurchLucinda ChildsPatricia ClarksonREGARDING SUSAN SONTAG is an intimate and nuanced investigation into the life of one of the most influential and provocative thinkers of the 20th century. Passionate and gracefully outspoken throughout her career, Susan Sontag became one of the most important literary, political and feminist icons of her generation. The documentary explores Sontag's life through archival materials, accounts from friends, family, colleagues, and lovers, as well as her own words, as read by Patricia Clarkson. From her early infatuation with books to her first experience in a gay bar; from her early marriage to her last lover, REGARDING SUSAN SONTAG is a fascinating look at a towering cultural critic and writer whose works on photography, war, illness, and terrorism still resonate today.I guess I'm going to appreciate the subject author's writing and not her life as portrayed in this documentary. Do I really know her now? It was 1:40 with lots of predictable quotes from friends and lovers. The best real views came from clips of Susan herself and finally, at the end of the show, one very revealing comment from her sister.
This documentary could have been so much more, but it did little to draw out the content and reasons for her writing, seeming rather to focus on her lifestyle and a desire to appeal to a perceived audience of admirers. - DirectorNuno RochaStarsRicardo AzevedoJoão MarçalA night watchman spends time on a basketball court throwing a ball into the basket. He has become an expert. He shows his abilities to a simple janitor, who also like him, is there all night.Captures dreams, competition, manliness, and perceived class differences all in a fun way.
- DirectorFedor BondarchukStarsMariya SmolnikovaYanina StudilinaPyotr FyodorovA group of Russian soldiers fight to hold a strategic building in their devastated city against a ruthless German army, and in the process become deeply connected to two Russian women who have been living there.Fairly gripping, personality-centric film that does NOT chronicle the full battle for Stalingrad, but certainly adds to any comprehension of that fight. I'm guessing this could be a study film for personalities, suppressed needs and desires, etc.
- DirectorRichard GlatzerWash WestmorelandStarsJulianne MooreAlec BaldwinKristen StewartA linguistics professor and her family find their bonds tested when she is diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease.Julianne Moore's best role? It's almost a one-person show since she is so strong I feel the others are barely more than props in the film. It almost warranted an '8' rating (out of 10 on IMDB) just due to her performance, but the rest were not strong enough in their roles, so '7' 'tis.
- DirectorMike CahillStarsMichael PittSteven YeunAstrid Bergès-FrisbeyA molecular biologist and his laboratory partner uncover evidence that may fundamentally change society as we know it.You won't see the name Brit Marling in the lead position in the credits, but she is simply fabulous ... because she plays her role as Karen so simply! I'm putting more Brit Marling on my "Interested" list because she struck me like the first time I saw Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone) and was sure she was something special (Academy Award two years later). The film was good, not just the one actress. Many roles are played well, and it's a thinking person's movie as well as a tragic love story. Enjoy it!
- DirectorSimon CurtisStarsHelen MirrenRyan ReynoldsDaniel BrühlMaria Altmann, an octogenarian Jewish refugee, takes on the Austrian government to recover artwork she believes rightfully belongs to her family.Wonderful film made more wonderful by watching it a week after visiting Vienna. Seeing foreign scenes in the places you have just walked is a great experience. Yet the show would hold its own without that connection. Helen Mirren is brilliant in her role, the cinematography was excellent, and the writing impressed me enough to write down the name of Alexi Kay Campbell from the writing credits. Her name sounds beautiful, first of all, and I want to see what else she has written.
- DirectorBryan GoeresStarsTimothy HuttonMiguel Ángel SilvestreFernando Guillén CuervoEuropol Agent Tom Brindle (Timothy Hutton) is called to Barcelona, Spain, to track down the notorious serial killer known as Pygmalion.Some merit for the ending and making one think about how the story could all come together, but not enough substance.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsLeonardo DiCaprioMatt DamonJack NicholsonAn undercover cop and a mole in the police attempt to identify each other while infiltrating an Irish gang in South Boston.A very strong role for Nicholson and also for DiCaprio. Not quite as strong for Damon, but that's just by comparison to the other two featured actors.
Long movie with intertwined stories that the writers of the screenplay manage to hold together and keep moving at a good pace.
The primary women come across well, always with a subtext that they are sharper than they appear on the outside, that they will get what they want, and they will survive despite their surroundings.
The violence and the length of this movie are the things that would make me recommend it to someone with some reservations. - DirectorSpike JonzeStarsNicolas CageMeryl StreepChris CooperA lovelorn screenwriter becomes desperate as he tries and fails to adapt 'The Orchid Thief' by Susan Orlean for the screen.The personalities are just a bit too quirky to be welcomed into your home on the screen. Plus, it is quite a weak role for Meryl Streep, which is very unexpected. It's a story in the present day, about a story in the past, and the manner of intermixing them seemed convoluted.
- DirectorPaul GreengrassStarsTom HanksBarkhad AbdiBarkhad AbdirahmanThe true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the U.S.-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years.Good enough, as Tom Hanks continues to put "Big" behind him as the defining movie of his career for some silly viewers.
- DirectorGeorge MillerStarsTom HardyCharlize TheronNicholas HoultIn a post-apocalyptic wasteland, a woman rebels against a tyrannical ruler in search for her homeland with the aid of a group of female prisoners, a psychotic worshiper and a drifter named Max.Nothing but action with almost no storyline being supported. If you like to see things blowing up, you'll like this. I'll give it '7' for the effort of the cinematography, showing so much action with quite a little CGI. But it's not much of a movie.
- DirectorLuc BessonStarsMilla JovovichJohn MalkovichRab AffleckA young girl receives a vision that drives her to rid France of its oppressors.This movie is beyond awesome. I flirted with giving this a '10' rating, which is owned by Dr. Shivago alone among all movies of all time for me. 'The Messenger' might rate that '10' if I listen again and find the soundtrack to be somehow comparable to Shivago (hard to expect that).
- DirectorBrent ShieldsStarsKeri RussellSkeet UlrichMare WinninghamPregnant out of wedlock, an educated young woman is pressured by her father into an arranged marriage with a lonely farmer in this drama set during WWII.Good storytelling and well acted.
- DirectorFrank CoraciStarsAdam SandlerDrew BarrymoreWendi McLendon-CoveyAfter a bad blind date, a man and woman find themselves stuck together at a resort for families, where their attraction grows as their respective kids benefit from the burgeoning relationship.Is Adam Sandler the best (romantic-?) comedy actor of the 2000s? "Fifty First Dates" is good, and the golfer movie is funny. This wasn't bad, but teenager-simplistic.
- DirectorClark JohnsonStarsMichael DouglasKiefer SutherlandKim BasingerA Secret Service agent is framed as the mole in an assassination attempt on the President. He must clear his name and foil another assassination attempt while on the run from a Secret Service Protective Intelligence Division agent.Very intriguing who-dun-it and a cast with high name recognition.
- DirectorStuart BairdStarsTommy Lee JonesWesley SnipesRobert Downey Jr.U.S. Marshal Samuel Gerard and his team of Marshals are assigned to track down Sheridan, who has been accused of a double-murder.Action! Happy to say the chase scenes were not just cars racing through the streets and crashing. There was some of that, and quite a few elements of the story could never have happened (IMHO), but an entertaining drama.
- DirectorKen LoachStarsFrances McDormandMaurice RoëvesRobert PattersonWhen an American human rights lawyer is assassinated in Belfast, it remains for the man's girlfriend, as well as a tough, no nonsense, police detective to find the truth.Movie tag line: "Every country has one." This film was too much political statement and too little story development. Not horrible, but not memorable despite the great presence of Francis McDormund, who never disappoints.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsBen AffleckRosamund PikeNeil Patrick HarrisWith his wife's disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man sees the spotlight turned on him when it's suspected that he may not be innocent.
- DirectorPhilip MartinStarsJohn TravoltaChristopher PlummerTye SheridanA thief works with his father and son to forge a painting by Monet and steal the original. Together, they plan the heist of their lives.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsErrol FlynnOlivia de HavillandPatric KnowlesA major countermands orders and attacks to avenge a previous massacre of men, women, and children.Have to watch these old classics to appreciate the range and evolution of film making.
- DirectorMichael RitchieStarsRobert RedfordPeter BoyleMelvyn DouglasBill McKay is a candidate for the U.S. Senate from California. He has no hope of winning, so he is willing to tweak the establishment.Good in it's day I guess.
- DirectorSeth GordonStarsJason BatemanMelissa McCarthyJohn ChoMild mannered businessman Sandy Patterson travels from Denver to Florida to confront the deceptively harmless looking woman who has been living it up after stealing Sandy's identity.Stupid is as stupid views.
- DirectorTony GilroyStarsGeorge ClooneyTilda SwintonTom WilkinsonA law firm brings in its "fixer" to remedy the situation after a lawyer has a breakdown while representing a chemical company that he knows is guilty in a multibillion-dollar class action suit.Reasonably watchable drama with diversionary stories that don't distract too much. Just entertainment, nothing enlightening.
- DirectorDebra GranikStarsJennifer LawrenceJohn HawkesGarret DillahuntAn unflinching Ozark Mountain girl hacks through dangerous social terrain as she hunts down her drug-dealing father while trying to keep her family intact.Classy, gripping realism. Saw it first in 2010 and "knew" I had seen an emerging star in Jennifer Lawrence.
- DirectorDavid MalletSteve NolanStarsLewis MacleodRichard BurtonJustin HaywardIn 1978 Jeff Wayne composed and produced one of the most groundbreaking and best-selling musical works of all time. In 2006 after much anticipation Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of The Worlds was brought to the stage for the first time, playing to sold-out arenas across the UK. The War of The Worlds Live is a spectacular mix of live music, theatre, multi-media and visual arts on a grand scale.There should be more performances like this, with the live orchestra accompanying video.
- DirectorScott HicksStarsZac EfronTaylor SchillingBlythe DannerA Marine travels to Louisiana after serving three tours in Iraq and searches for the unknown woman he believes was his good luck charm during the war.Predictable but holds one's interest.
- DirectorRobert LuketicStarsKatherine HeiglAshton KutcherTom SelleckA vacationing woman meets her ideal man, leading to a swift marriage. Back at home, however, their idyllic life is upset when they discover their neighbors could be assassins who have been contracted to kill the couple.Simple fun entertainment, quite well acted.
- DirectorPhilippe FalardeauStarsReese WitherspoonArnold OcengGer DuanyA group of Sudanese refugees, given the chance to resettle in the U.S., arrive in Kansas City, Missouri, where their encounter with an employment agency counselor forever changes all of their lives.Historical and enlightening. Tolerable shortcuts to make the story fit the time slot.
- DirectorJohn CrowleyStarsEric BanaRebecca HallJim BroadbentA high-profile terrorism case unexpectedly binds together two ex-lovers on the defense team - testing the limits of their loyalties and placing their lives in jeopardy.Holds one's attention and doesn't stray far from the primary story line.
- DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsDenzel WashingtonNadine VelazquezDon CheadleTroubling questions arise after airline pilot Whip Whitaker makes a miracle landing after a mid-air catastrophe."It's all about me," Denzel would have to say. This movie didn't explore topics, situations, or other characters - - just the figure portrayed by the star. That was too limiting.
- DirectorJames CameronStarsArnold SchwarzeneggerJamie Lee CurtisTom ArnoldA fearless, globe-trotting, terrorist-battling secret agent has his life turned upside down when he discovers his wife might be having an affair with a used-car salesman while terrorists smuggle nuclear war heads into the United States.Mix of action and silliness, which must be entertaining to some.
- DirectorPhillip NoyceStarsAngelina JolieLiev SchreiberChiwetel EjioforA CIA agent goes on the run after a defector accuses her of being a Russian spy.Over-the-top heroism, but entertaining enough.
- DirectorGillian ArmstrongStarsRalph FiennesCate BlanchettCiarán HindsIn mid-1800s England, Oscar is a young Anglican priest, a misfit and an outcast, but with the soul of an angel. As a boy, even though from a strict Pentecostal family, he felt God told him through a sign to leave his father and his faith and join the Church of England. Lucinda is a teen-aged Australian heiress who has an almost desperate desire to liberate her sex from the confines of the male-dominated culture of the Australia of that time. She buys a glass factory and has a dream of building a church made almost entirely of glass, and then transporting it to Bellingen, a remote settlement on the north coast. Oscar and Lucinda meet on a ship going to Australia; once there, they are for different reasons ostracized from society, and as a result "join forces" together. Oscar and Lucinda are both passionate gamblers, and Lucinda bets Oscar her entire inheritance that he cannot transport the glass church to the Outback safely. Oscar accepts her wager, and this leads to the events that will change both their lives forever.Had its moments. Well acted but confusing at times and slow at other times. Sadly, after hanging with the entire drama, I found there was no time when this flick peaked with a great scene or a particular point. There was a story there, but then there seemed to be so many scenes just thrown in as fodder.
- DirectorMichael RadfordStarsJohn HurtRichard BurtonSuzanna HamiltonIn a totalitarian future society, a man, whose daily work is re-writing history, tries to rebel by falling in love.Not nearly as captivating in the movie as it was on paper.
- DirectorJeremy LevenStarsVincenzo AmatoNora TschirnerLouise MonotJust when Paolo, an Italian in Paris, is ready to propose to his girlfriend Greta, he sees beautiful young Cecile on her bicycle.Cute, fun, entertaining. Only went "ridiculous" in one sequence.
- StarsDavid McCulloughSam WaterstonJulie HarrisA comprehensive survey of the American Civil War.A great, great classic. First to deserve a '10' rating other than Dr. Shivago.
- DirectorNoah BaumbachStarsGreta GerwigMickey SumnerAdam DriverA New York woman apprentices for a dance company and throws herself headlong into her dreams, even as the possibility of realizing them dwindles.Good character portrayal. More emotion expected?
- DirectorRichard GrayStarsJoseph CrossBriana EviganRafi GavronA group of young friends make an incomprehensible discovery in an abandoned mine, but the more they try to change the future, the more they seal their fate.Silly horror story; quit going back into the mine!!! "Break the cycle"
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsTom HanksMark RylanceAlan AldaDuring the Cold War, an American lawyer is recruited to defend an arrested Soviet spy in court, and then help the CIA facilitate an exchange of the spy for the Soviet captured American U2 spy plane pilot, Francis Gary Powers.-Only knew part of the Francis Gary Powers part of the story
-Paced well; only dragged my eyelids down twice
-Coen brothers can provide hits as well as big misses (you never know)
-Tom Hanks is looking a lot like Bill Murray looked a few years ago
-Character named "Doug" should have a MUCH bigger role! :-)
-Later negotiations credited to Donovan (Cuba; more?) seem interesting as well - DirectorPeter BergStarsMark WahlbergTaylor KitschEmile HirschMarcus Luttrell and his team set out on a mission to capture or kill notorious Taliban leader Ahmad Shah, in late June 2005. Marcus and his team are left to fight for their lives in one of the most valiant efforts of modern warfare.Incredible amidst-the-action war footage.
- DirectorRoland EmmerichStarsMatthew BroderickJean RenoMaria PitilloFrench nuclear tests irradiate an iguana into a giant monster that heads off to New York City. The American military must chase the monster across the city to stop it before it reproduces.Cheap, silly, but still a bit entertaining. Watched it to keep the Godzilla legacy alive in my head. Now THAT'S when sci-fi was great (at least when I was under 12).
- DirectorGus Van SantStarsSean ConneryRob BrownF. Murray AbrahamForrester, the author of a famous book, decides to help Jamal, a 16-year-old student, discover his writing prowess by mentoring him and enrolling him into a prestigious private school.Gems of characters, song, and actors. Not over-acted. Miles Davis music throughout. Fun to and tension-breaking to see Matt Damon make a cameo appearance, to notice Fly Williams III played the character Fly, and to see the near-forgotten Joey Buttafuco entry in the credits. As for "big-name" actors, it doesn't get much bigger than Sean Connery and Anna Paquin, neither of whom overplayed their hand at the expense of others. Every writer(-within) should be moved by this film, and one would hope that young people wanting to make their way in the world would find pathway lights in this drama.
- DirectorJohn CrowleyStarsSaoirse RonanEmory CohenDomhnall GleesonAn Irish immigrant lands in 1950s Brooklyn, where she quickly falls into a romance with a local. When her past catches up with her, however, she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within.A pleasant surprise to see an "old time" movie come to the theater in 2015. Story telling was the object of this film, and that goal was met well. I did not care for the cinematography that elected often to have only the primary character(s) in focus while blurring the background objects, persons, and scenes.
- DirectorGary RossStarsJennifer LawrenceJosh HutchersonLiam HemsworthKatniss Everdeen voluntarily takes her younger sister's place in the Hunger Games: a televised competition in which two teenagers from each of the twelve Districts of Panem are chosen at random to fight to the death.Of course I would (and did) watch this just to keep up with Jennifer Lawrence in one of her most-featured roles. She does well, but I have to agree with a friend that the acting is kept at a level such that it would appeal to a teenage audience. No great character development in this film, while I understand the book (I did not read) had much more in that regard. The movie itself is worthwhile viewing, though it focused very narrowly on just one or two characters.
- DirectorGlenn FicarraJohn RequaStarsWill SmithMargot RobbieRodrigo SantoroIn the midst of veteran con man Nicky's latest scheme, a woman from his past - now an accomplished femme fatale - shows up and throws his plans for a loop.Petty thief gets more than petty cash.
- DirectorJonas ElmerStarsRenée ZellwegerHarry Connick Jr.Siobhan Fallon HoganA Miami, Florida businesswoman adjusts to her new life in a small Minnesota town.A good effort by Renee Zellweiger. A bit silly in their portrayal of the people of Minnesota, perhaps in a weak effort to take a "Fargo" approach.
- DirectorFernando MeirellesStarsRalph FiennesRachel WeiszDanny HustonA widower's transcontinental quest to find answers about his wife's death leads him to explosive secrets.Centered around a do-gooder who creates drama without being overly melodramatic.