The Gift (2000)

IMDb plot summary: A woman with extrasensory perception is asked to help find a young woman who has disappeared.
Directed by Sam Raimi. Starring Cate Blanchett, Giovanni Ribisi, Keanu Reeves, and Greg Kinnear.

This is kind of an unusual movie. Cate Blanchett is much more downplayed than usual, playing a psychic who almost seems to wish nobody knew about her gift and that she could just get along under everyone's radar. There are a bunch of other big-name actors that have varying role sizes, but she's the most interesting, partly because she's the only one written with any even implied depth and partly because Blanchett could take on any role under the sun and make it interesting.

The mystery itself unfolds somewhat predictably, but the addition of the supernatural adds a fun little twist into it. I do get the sense the movie wanted to be more shocking and more beautiful than it actually turned out to be, but it was interesting enough to keep pulling me along. I'm not sure I could confidently say it was a good movie, but Blanchett and the slightly more original twist on the genre made it a fun one to watch.

Wait. I FORGOT THIS WAS DIRECTED BY SAM RAIMI. Well, that makes all the sense.

3 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Gift > Beach Party
The Gift < Kolya
The Gift > Stage Fright (2014)
The Gift < Out of Sight
The Gift > Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium
The Gift < Notorious
The Gift < Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken
The Gift < The Ring
The Gift > Prometheus
The Gift < Descendants

Final spot: #1112 out of 2645.

Jack Strong (2014)

IMDb plot summary: The most spectacular Polish spy of the Cold War era, Colonel Ryszard Kuklinski, informs Americans about the Communist Bloc's top secrets in the face of the upcoming martial law.
Directe by Wladyslaw Pasikowski. Starring Marcin Dorocinski, Maja Ostaszewska, Patrick Wilson, and Dimitri Bilov.

2.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Jack Strong > Beach Party
Jack Strong < Kolya
Jack Strong < Interstellar
Jack Strong < The Matador
Jack Strong < Water for Elephants
Jack Strong < Lord of War
Jack Strong > Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
Jack Strong < The Lion in Winter (2003)
Jack Strong < Ran
Jack Strong < Single White Female
Jack Strong > House of Flying Daggers
Final spot: #1299 out of 2644.

CBGB (2013)

IMDb plot summary: A look at the New York City punk-rock scene and the venerable nightclub, CBGB.
Directed by Randall Miller. Starring Alan Rickman, Ashley Greene, Richard de Klerk, and Freddy Rodriguez.

I knew absolutely nothing about this movie or the club and people that inspired it, so I went in completely blind. Right away my attention was captured by the creative packaging of the story in comic book form, dealing with exposition through text bubbles and captions, a device that I thought worked well and captured the spirit of the story. I was also particularly taken with the pacing of the film, which is unusual for a biopic. It jumps from moment to moment, only showing the most interesting or most important parts, and then skipping the rest or covering it in sketch or montage, but somehow I never felt like we were skipping along too fast.

Alan Rickman is not the first person I would have chosen to play Jewish guy from New Jersey, and his casting was occasionally distracting, but he faded nicely into the role as the movie went on. Overall, I had a good time with this movie and am happy it was assigned to me for this challenge. Nicely done!

4 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
CBGB > The Family Man
CBGB > The Englishman Who Went up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain
CBGB < The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)
CBGB < The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall
CBGB > Little Children
CBGB > Hoodwinked!
CBGB < Jack Goes Boating
CBGB < Mary and Max
CBGB > Match Point
CBGB < Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events

Final spot: #530 out of 2643.

Give My Regards to Broad Street (1984)

IMDb plot summary: Paul McCartney's recording of his new album is complicated by the fact that the master tapes of his recordings are missing.
Directed by Peter Webb. Starring Paul McCartney, Bryan Brown, Ringo Starr, and Barbara Bach.

Back when my movie challenge began, a friend assigned me Michael Jackson's Moonwalker with the caveat, "I hope you're a Michael Jackson fan, because you kind of have to be to like this." That's pretty much how I feel about this movie and Paul McCartney. There's no narrative structure to this film, really, it's just a series of McCartney music videos. Problem is, while I liked Moonwalker all right for what it was, Michael Jackson is a much more dynamic entertainer to watch perform. The performances here are very understated on McCartney's part, even if occasionally accompanied by wacky psychedelic visuals. None of it does much to actually elevate the music, and I found myself, as a result, zoning out through much of it. If I were a bigger McCartney fan, I could see myself enjoying this movie as an odd little conglomeration of concert segments, but if you're only so-so on his work, there's really very little to get out of this.

2 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Give My Regards to Broad Street < Beach Party
Give My Regards to Broad Street > Raging Bull
Give My Regards to Broad Street < The King and I
Give My Regards to Broad Street > The Whole Nine Yards
Give My Regards to Broad Street > Barry
Give My Regards to Broad Street < Eddie the Eagle
Give My Regards to Broad Street > Spaceballs
Give My Regards to Broad Street < The Secret War of Harry Frigg
Give My Regards to Broad Street < Sullivan's Travels
Give My Regards to Broad Street > The TV Set
Give My Regards to Broad Street > Stardust Memories
Final spot: #1708 out of 2642.

Pepito y la lámpara maravillosa (1972)

Plot summary: A young boy finds a lamp that produces a magical genie.
Directed by Alejandro Galindo. Starring Martín Ramos Arévalo, Javier López, Guillermo Orea, and María Duval.

This is so weird but it's kind of charming for the strange, strange 1970s clown story it is. A lot of that is helped by the main kid, who seems to be a pretty realistic kid (in an extremely unrealistic situation) and is not nearly as annoying are children so often are in movies. The ranking ended up a little low because it is weird and awkward, but I boosted its star rating because I didn't dislike it the way 1.5 stars would imply.

2.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa < Beach Party
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa > Raging Bull
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa < Cinderella (1965)
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa < The Whole Nine Yards
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa > Baby Boom
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa > 17 Miracles
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa > Alice in Wonderland (1951)
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa > Mother
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa < A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa > Swingers
Pepito y la lampara maravillosa < Before I Fall
Final spot: #1823 out of 2641.

Bronson (2008)

IMDb plot summary: A young man who was sentenced to seven years in prison for robbing a post office ends up spending three decades in solitary confinement. During this time, his own personality is supplanted by his alter-ego, Charles Bronson.
Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn. Starring Tom Hardy, Kelly Adams, Matt King, and Jonny Phillips.

Artfully directed, but I didn't feel like there was much of a point to telling this story. What was I supposed to come away with?

2.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Bronson > Beach Party
Bronson < Kolya
Bronson < Interstellar
Bronson < The Matador
Bronson > Water for Elephants
Bronson < Sleepers
Bronson < Must Love Dogs
Bronson > Son of Rambow
Bronson > Lost in America
Bronson > Genius
Bronson > Captain Fantastic
Final spot: #1217 out of 2640.

Tab Hunter Confidential (2015)

IMDb plot summary: The story of matinee idol Tab Hunter from teenage stable boy to closeted Hollywood star of the 1950s.
Directed by Jeffrey Schwarz.

The primary problem with this documentary is its choice of subject. Hunter himself does not seem particularly inclined to give information about his past or his life, couching everything he says in pleasantly vague language that gives us very little sense of who he really is as a person. The best documentaries are still narratively compelling in some way, and this really isn't. There's no arc. It just all meanders from subject to subject and none of it is particularly interesting.

1 star.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Tab Hunter Confidential < Beach Party
Tab Hunter Confidential < Raging Bull
Tab Hunter Confidential < Father of the Bride (1950)
Tab Hunter Confidential > They Were Expendable
Tab Hunter Confidential > Five Children and It
Tab Hunter Confidential < Three Guys Named Mike
Tab Hunter Confidential > Bitter Moon
Tab Hunter Confidential > The Odd Life of Timothy Green
Tab Hunter Confidential > Dangerous
Tab Hunter Confidential < Glory Road
Final spot: #2356 out of 2639.