42 Up (1998)

IMDb plot summary: Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Directed by Michael Apted.

(Spoilers.)

Just when I think, "OK, the *next* episode is going to just be more of the same," I watch it and get so involved again. Loss is a heavy theme in this one, as most of the people being filmed are starting to lose their parents at this point in their lives, but also loss of jobs and relationships. But in the midst of all this, new and exciting things are happening too. In particular I found myself delighted by Neil and Bruce's stories -- not only because they finally reached some goals they'd set for themselves earlier on, but also because I learned they'd become very good friends thanks to their participation in this documentary. That warmed my heart so much I had to pause the movie and relay this information to my husband, despite the fact that he hasn't been watching along with me and really doesn't know who any of these people are. Overall, such a great entry in the series.

How it entered my Flickchart:
42 Up > An Affair to Remember
42 Up > Zero Effect
42 Up < Jean de Florette
42 Up < The Grand Budapest Hotel
42 Up < Deadpool
42 Up < The Woodsman
42 Up > Auntie Mame
42 Up > Song of the Sea
42 Up > Gone Baby Gone
42 Up < Spotlight

Final spot: #707 out of 2994.

Green Book (2018)

IMDb plot summary: A working-class Italian-American bouncer becomes the driver of an African-American classical pianist on a tour of venues through the 1960s American South.
Directed by Peter Farrelly. Starring Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali, Linda Cardellini, and Sebastian Maniscalco.

When taken as just a sweet little buddy road trip movie, this is enjoyable enough. But I'm very confused about what people who gave it the Oscar nom think it's *saying*. It raises questions of privilege (both race and wealth, though the former more heavily and obviously) and then like... never resolves them? Or possibly only resolves them by saying, "Don't be individually prejudiced toward people," which... is not a new thought and is not handled interestingly here. Neither character feels changed at the end of the movie from who they were at the beginning. It's just a jumbled mess of a message.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Green Book < O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Green Book > Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Green Book < The Three Musketeers
Green Book < The Lost Boys
Green Book > Burn After Reading
Green Book > Show Boat (1951)
Green Book > Destry Rides Again
Green Book > Zero Dark Thirty
Green Book > An Officer and a Gentleman
Green Book > Happy-Go-Lucky
Green Book > The Love Witch
Final spot: #2059 out of 2993. This is a tad bit low because The Lost Boys is too low.

Ivan the Terrible, Part One (1944)

IMDb plot summary: During the early part of his reign, Ivan the Terrible faces betrayal from the aristocracy and even his closest friends as he seeks to unite the Russian people.
Directed by Sergei M. Eisenstein. Starring Nikolay Cherkasov, Lyudmila Tselikovskaya, Serafima Birman, and Mikhail Nazvanov.

There's a definite stylized artfulness to this which I could see being *very* into. Everything is slow and deliberate. I commented partway that it felt like the whole movie was one long ritual, and I still think that -- not only do we get very detailed recreations of various coronation and death rituals, but all of the rest of the movie seems to be doing that as well. As such, I didn't find it particularly engaging on a narrative level but I did find it an interesting aesthetic experience.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Ivan the Terrible, Part One < An Affair to Remember
Ivan the Terrible, Part One > Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl
Ivan the Terrible, Part One < Tin Man
Ivan the Terrible, Part One > The Love Witch
Ivan the Terrible, Part One > Saturday Night Fever
Ivan the Terrible, Part One > To Have and Have Not
Ivan the Terrible, Part One < Melinda and Melinda
Ivan the Terrible, Part One > Joe Versus the Volcano
Ivan the Terrible, Part One < The Pajama Game
Ivan the Terrible, Part One < The Year Without a Santa Claus
Ivan the Terrible, Part One > Vice
Final spot: #1902 out of 2992.

35 Up (1991)

IMDb plot summary: Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Directed by Michael Apted.

I've been rewatching through the Up series from the beginning, as I'd only ever gotten to 28. I remember stopping at 28 on my last watch, with the feeling that surely now most of these people would be "settled" into their lives and wouldn't deviate too much going forward. To my surprise, that wasn't entirely true. There were quite a few who had made some big changes, and one subject who had opted out of a previous entry came back to update us on where they were now. It's interesting (and a little sad) to watch people maybe now realizing that some of the goals they set for themselves are unlikely to be achieved, but also encouraging to see so many of them making the best of whatever hand they'd been dealt. I find myself strangely attached to these people now, and will hopefully be able to get caught up on the series in the near future.

How it entered my Flickchart:
35 Up > Fantastic Mr. Fox
35 Up < The Lady Vanishes
35 Up > The Theory of Everything
35 Up < Safety Last!
35 Up < The Hateful Eight
35 Up > Children of Paradise
35 Up > The Hidden Fortress
35 Up > Before Sunset
35 Up < The Killing of a Sacred Deer
35 Up > Ant-Man
35 Up > Myn Bala: Warriors of the Steppe
Final spot: #1035 out of 2991.

Fail Safe (2000)

IMDb plot summary: Cold War tensions climb to a fever pitch when a U.S. bomber is accidentally ordered to drop a nuclear warhead on Moscow.
Directed by Stephen Frears. Starring Richard Dreyfuss, Noah Wyle, Brian Dennehy, and Sam Elliott.

(Spoilers.)

The original Fail-Safe lands at 91% on my chart, but as I watch this remade version (which to my memory lines up pretty carefully with the original), I have to wonder whether it would drop on a rewatch. I suspect the power of the original rested heavily on me being surprised by its ending. It is a bold, powerful way to end the story, and wasn't at all what I had suspected when I watched the original. Knowing it's coming is a different story.

The film itself is done well. There is a serious sense of claustrophobia about every set, which works very well for the story. I liked how the dramatic character actions don't seem at all contrived -- the responses make sense for each character, and that yields a level of realism that I very much appreciate.

It's a well-made film, it just didn't pack the emotional punch I was expecting, though, as I said, that may have been the fault of already knowing how the story was going to end. But different pieces of the story stand out to me here. While with the 1964, I strongly remember that whistle at the end -- the sound that turned the tide of the story -- here I hold onto the contrast between discipline and terror that runs through every character.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Fail Safe > Wallace & Gromit in A Close Shave
Fail Safe < The Lady Vanishes
Fail Safe > The Theory of Everything
Fail Safe > Safety Last!
Fail Safe > Chain Reaction
Fail Safe > The Thief of Bagdad (1924)
Fail Safe > Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
Fail Safe > Friday the 13th
Fail Safe < Red Eye
Fail Safe > A Nightmare on Elm Street
Fail Safe > Smiles of a Summer Night
Final spot: #754 out of 2990, or 75%.

Broadcast News (1987)

IMDb plot summary: Take two rival television reporters: one handsome, one talented, both male. Add one Producer, female. Mix well, and watch the sparks fly.
Directed by James L. Brooks. Starring William Hurt, Albert Brooks, Holly Hunter, and Robert Prosky.

(Spoilers.)

My non-mystery movie for June was Broadcast News (1987), Greg's #3. I really knew nothing about this movie going into it, but I really enjoyed it. It makes zero sense to me to have Holly Hunter billed third of the main cast, as she is obviously the central character. And she's a great one. She's very relatable and likable -- much more so than either of her co-stars. The dialogue to this movie is so sharp and funny, and it's the key to making a lot of this pop. I also found myself pleasantly surprised by the ending -- I had a feeling she was going to end up with William Hurt, who I pretty strongly disliked, and to see the three of them end up with their own separate lives was a much more satisfying ending than her landing with either of her male leads. I'm a little uncertain of whether it resonated with me enough to stick with me, but it was definitely a fun one-time viewing if nothing else.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Broadcast News > To Sir, With Love
Broadcast News > Zero Effect
Broadcast News < Jean de Florette
Broadcast News > Easy A
Broadcast News < Transamerica
Broadcast News > A Single Man
Broadcast News < Knights of Badassdom
Broadcast News > Captain Blood
Broadcast News < School of Rock
Broadcast News < Clue
Broadcast News < Evil
Broadcast News < True Lies
Final spot: #501 out of 2989, or 83%.

The Return of the Pink Panther (1975)

IMDb plot summary: Inspector Clouseau is put on the case when the Pink Panther diamond is stolen, with the Phantom's trademark glove the only clue.
Directed by Blake Edwards. Starring Peter Sellers, Christopher Plummer, Catherine Schell, and Herbert Lom.

Peter Sellers' brand of humor is very, very seldom mine, and that's the case for the majority of this movie. It's not necessarily objectionable or unpleasant the way bad comedy can be, it just falls very flat for me much of the time and leaves me feeling bored, and if there's anything a zany slapstick comedy shouldn't be, it's boring. The plot is pretty thin apart from the jokes, so if they don't work, the movie doesn't either.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Return of the Pink Panther < To Sir, With Love
The Return of the Pink Panther > Barry
The Return of the Pink Panther < O Brother, Where Art Thou?
The Return of the Pink Panther < How to Marry a Millionaire
The Return of the Pink Panther < The Rescuers
The Return of the Pink Panther > MASH
The Return of the Pink Panther < It Could Happen to You
The Return of the Pink Panther < Alice in Wonderland (1999)
The Return of the Pink Panther < Live-In Maid
The Return of the Pink Panther < Eddie the Eagle
The Return of the Pink Panther < Pride and Prejudice (1940)
The Return of the Pink Panther < Les Miserables (1935)
Final spot: #2194 out of 2988.