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AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

This is a kitchen sink comedy drama and a movie I'd never heard of before watching. James Booth plays a sailor who returns home to find his home demolished (the clearing of the London slums plays an important backdrop role here) and his wife Barbara Windsor gone. He proceeds to hunt for her, but this narrative takes a backseat to the various interactions between larger-than-life supporting characters. Much of it is played for laughs, with Windsor only slightly more serious than in her Carry On roles and Roy Kinnear providing plenty of chuckles. The supporting cast is quite extraordinary and packed to the brim with familiar faces. Surprisingly enough this was co-written by Stephen Lewis from On The Buses, who has a small role playing a familiar type of character for him. It's well worth seeing to get just a glimpse of the old East End and just an inkling of what it really was once like when everybody seemed to know almost everyone else. A snapshot of an era now long gone.

6 years ago

AKB48Fan rated Ore Monogatari!!

 Ore Monogatari!! 7/10

6 years ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Anime Watched In 2019 list

6 years ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

A minor but very smoothly made example of a British kitchen sink drama directed by Michael Winner when he was starting out. Joe Beckett is a young man who drifts around the seedier side of London with no job and living from place to place until he's given an offer by an ex-Army man. He stands to get a fortune if Joe can kill his aunt. Although at first he resists, in the end he takes up the offer. Alfred Lynch makes a downbeat but sympathetic protagonist, more thoughtful than the usual type of hero who makes a mistake of taking slimy swindler Eric Portman's offer. Diana Dors performs well as his mistress. There's a blink or you'll miss it cameo from Last of the Summer Wine's Brian Wilde as a man campaigning in front of a group of people that too many black people are coming to Britain. The story is interesting, the pace never flags and with great performances from all the cast it's worth seeking out if you have a chance.

6 years ago

AKB48Fan added 3 items to their collection

6 years ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

Shin-chan and his friends join a kung-fu school in the Chinatown district of Kasukabe City after following one of their classmates there. Shin-chan masters the art of Puri-Puri quickly and this martial arts comes in handy when the adults of the city turn aggressive and violent after eating a brand of ramen called Black Panda. The 26th Crayon Shinchan movie in the franchise continues the immature but funny adventures of Shin-Chan and his friends as they take on a dark martial arts school who want to take over the ramen business of Kusakabe City by closing down other shops with it's addictive Black Panda ramen. The storyline is humourous and you get the usual antics that Shin-chan does such as showing his bare ass. Shin-chan may be the bane of parents in Japan but you can't help but laugh at his movies. They are always funny and guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.

6 years ago

AKB48Fan rated Narratage

 Narratage 4/10

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

During spring, 2nd year university student Izumi Kudo receives a phone call from Takashi Hayama. Takashi Hayama was her adviser/teacher at her high school drama club. He asks her on the phone to take part in a graduation performance. Back in high school, Takashi Hayama helped her cope with difficulties with her school life. She eventually fell in love with Takeshi, but tried to forget about him. Now, for the first time in a year they meet again. Izumi still has feelings for him and Takashi also has mixed feelings for Izumi. Led by a trio of selfish and manipulative characters, and featuring behaviour that ranges from pathetic to inappropriate to downright despicable, Narratage will strike viewers in the right frame of mind as a gloomy, well-acted and perhaps even powerful drama of unrequited love and obsession, but all I saw was a movie with a cringeworthy premise and dialogue. There is no getting around the fact that this movie is centred on the predatory behaviour of one very creepy teacher. It goes on for way too long and there seems to be a calculated pause for effect being inserted by the actors after every single line of spoken dialogue which is tiresome. This drama of unrequited love and obsession was too boring in the end.

6 years, 1 month ago

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6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

The near-bankrupt Earl of Locharne must contend with a government agent trying to requisition his ancestral Scottish castle, as well as a beautiful American woman who wants to buy the place - to say nothing of the resident ghost. The cast are definitely the reason to see this long forgotten British comedy and they are the best thing about it. Margaret Rutherford's dotty performance steals the show and Patricia Dainton makes the most of her role as the castle ghost. David Tomlinson may be unconvincing as a Scot but he has the authority and also the lightness for his role and is always in keeping with the movie's tone. The movie looks attractive and atmospheric but also has a cosy charm and gentle wit about it. That said, it does drag a little bit in the middle but still it's nice enough and worth taking a look.

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 2 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

This is a movie based on a play by none other than Arnold Ridley (better known as Private Godfrey from Dad's Army). The story follows a group of people as their lives are transformed once they get a television set (which many people didn't have in 1953) and not for the better. It is not the programmes on the box that come under attack, but the medium itself. Its power as a force for good is barely mentioned, making this a bit one-sided. It has a good cast in Stanley Holloway as The Devil who claims that television is his idea and it's invention is to make people's lives miserable and a young Gordon Jackson as a pharmacist. There are also fun cameos from Ian Carmichael and Joan Sims, plus celebrities of the time such as Gilbert Harding. An interesting curio from Ealing Studios.

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 5 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 2 items to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 5 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 3 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 6 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

These are three short stories made by former staff of Studio Ghibli who have gone on to create Studio Ponoc and each story in my opinion deserves a longer running time as they are all great. The first "Kanino & Kanina" is about two small humanoid water creatures going on a dangerous journey to save their father. The second "Life Ain't Gonna Lose" revolves around a young boy whose deadly food allergy makes him very ill if he consumes anything with egg and the final story "Invisible" is about a lonely man, who is possibly invisible and weightless that must find a way to get out of that lonely state. The visuals, cinematography, and animation for all three stories were fantastic. My favourite out of all three was probably the last one as it had the most interesting story of the lot. If you're a fan of Studio Ghibli movies you're bound to love these short stories.

6 years, 1 month ago

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6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 7 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan rated Mandy

 Mandy 8/10

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

Six-year-old Mandy Garland is born deaf and has been mute all her life. Postwar English society sees her as disabled, but her mother, Christine, believes she can learn to talk if enrolled in a school for the deaf. To do so, she has to battle her husband, his meddling mother and his stern father, and eventually she has to leave with Mandy in order for her to attend a special school. This is a tearjerker from Ealing Studios about the trials and tribulations of a family who have differing views on what's best for their deaf 6 year old daughter. The ground breaking methods the school for deaf kids uses seems to produce miracles but Mandy finds it hard to cope. At 6 she is thought a bit old as a beginner and she has been too sheltered, while her once loving parents are beginning to bicker. An incident at a local park reduces Mandy to "wild animal behaviour" that determines Mandy's mother to move nearer the school and enrol her as a day pupil. This movie is so full of heart inspiring moments such as when Mandy finally finds her voice, in another fit of screams, but the teacher can harness the sounds and Mandy can now begin to learn. The ending is guaranteed to make a strong person weep as the people that have been interfering with the little girl's progress finally realise that the school has made a huge difference to her life. Mandy Miller is a marvellous little actress in the title role. She's absolutely terrific in evoking the emotions of a child in a silent world. If you have the opportunity to watch this movie, do so.

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 3 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

Laurel and Hardy - the world's greatest comedy team face an uncertain future as their golden era of Hollywood movies remain long behind them. Diminished by age, the duo set out to reconnect with their adoring fans by touring variety halls in Britain in 1953. The shows become an instant hit, but Stan and Ollie can't quite shake the past as long-buried tension and Hardy's failing health start to threaten their precious partnership. This is a brilliant movie, a melancholy look at the relationship between one of film's great comedic duos, and a respectful tribute that stands on its own because of the extraordinary performances of Steve Coogan as Stan and John C. Reilly as Ollie. It has plenty to say about the things that bring us together, and the things that keep us together. Jon S. Baird's warm-hearted movie looks at them not as legends, but as men, who have their friendship tested by fame - when it's there, and when it's gone. Like the comedy of Laurel and Hardy, this movie is sweet, clever and entirely of another time. Perhaps only viewers with an interest in classic cinema will fully be able to appreciate this but it truly worth your time.

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 7 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 2 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 2 items to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

6 years, 1 month ago

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6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 1 item to Hit Or Miss? Good Or Bad? 2019 Movies Watched list

Crooner Max Bygraves stars as a young singer who rises to the top of his profession on the stage. All seems well for the young man but he finds the entourage that leeches off him and the audience who change their support for a performer when they don't do well a bit of an annoyance. This is a half-hearted rags to riches musical of a young man who finds that getting famous isn't all what it's cracked up to be. It's not the fault of Max Bygraves who performs adequately as the lead character but the script itself. The tunes that are performed are OK. It makes for a decent 90 or so mins but there's nothing memorable about this movie at all.

6 years, 1 month ago

AKB48Fan added 3 items to their collection

6 years, 1 month ago