Movie Reviews

[Cassia]

Too Late for Tears, '49- Intense example of Film Noir
It's on the YT for free. Screen writers could write and actors could act.

[aitm]

I am not of the opinion that the “older” actors were better. I mean the classic Casa Blanca, imo, is a prime example of how bad the “acting” was then. OR perhaps it was the director, but either way it’s fun to watch but still…lousy acting compared to the last 20 years.

[Cassia]

I am not of the opinion that the “older” actors were better. I mean the classic Casa Blanca, imo, is a prime example of how bad the “acting” was then. OR perhaps it was the director, but either way it’s fun to watch but still…lousy acting compared to the last 20 years.

I think the 70's-mid 90's acting was better than the old 40-60s films and blows-away the acting I have seen from this Millenium so far. Films such as The Godfather, Taxi Driver, Chinatown, Star Wars, Jaws, Blade Runner, Amadeus, The Shawshank Redemption, Titanic, Glory, The Matrix and even Jurassic Park. Maybe these where just better stories, so easier to work with, IDK. I do like the stylized acting from the 40-60s films as the parts were more of a cartoonish stereotype and not meant to be very realistic. More like stage acting, but with close-up shots and fast dialog.

What makes Casa Blanc so great could be easily lost on younger generations. Bogart starts out as a cynical, selfish man only out for himself who slowly transforms into an aware idealist willing to make a sacrifice. This mirrors the transformation of the United States during World War II, with the war as the actual backdrop of the film. It's brilliant. I find the meaning of older movies is often much deeper and more subtle than I first suspect.

[aitm]

The “ meaning” of the film was not the issue.

[Hydra009]

I definitely think older films did dialogue better, since that was their main method of getting ideas across. It's either that or action, with a very limited special effects budget, if it had any at all. They did phenomenally well with what they had.

And lots of 80s and 90s movies really put a lot of effort into their effects and it shows (the ones that didn't aren't remembered). Nice meaty practical effects, with cgi used sparingly, if ever.

Movies today look visually amazing, but everything's too crisp and clean and artificial. I know there's only like two actual actors on screen and everything else is computer-generated. It doesn't feel surreal, it feels fake.

Good movies still come out nowadays, of course. But I feel like the bar has been steadily going down, not up. Now, if I see a trailer for a movie that's an adaptation of a book and not a sequel or prequel or part of a pre-existing cinematic universe, I practically jump out of my chair and give them a standing ovation. Bonus points if it doesn't have a big-name actor.