First Time Viewings: September 2016
by Kraemorr | created - 02 Oct 2016 | updated - 02 Oct 2016 | PublicI had a couple of weeks off work and managed to finally find some time to watch movies... 23 of them, in one month compared to 32 in the previous 8 months, so my tally is a tiny bit more respectable now but I'll still be struggling to get to 100 I reckon with a really busy October ahead.
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015)
PG-13 | 138 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
As a new threat to the galaxy rises, Rey, a desert scavenger, and Finn, an ex-stormtrooper, must join Han Solo and Chewbacca to search for the one hope of restoring peace.
Director: J.J. Abrams | Stars: Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson
Votes: 973,496 | Gross: $936.66M
Viewed: 5-9-16
My Score: 7/10
As enjoyable as any of them pretty much. I'm not a Star Wars fan but I do like the movies. Whether the old trilogy or the new trilogy and the really new trilogy that has only begun, they are all around 7's and 8's.
2. Kill Me Three Times (2014)
R | 90 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
Professional hit-man Charlie Wolfe finds himself in three tales of murder, blackmail and revenge after a botched contract assignment.
Director: Kriv Stenders | Stars: Simon Pegg, Teresa Palmer, Alice Braga, Luke Hemsworth
Votes: 24,203 | Gross: $0.02M
Viewed: 5-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Thoroughly entertaining and fun Aussie movie with an excellent performance from Simon Pegg.
3. Anomalisa (2015)
R | 90 min | Animation, Comedy, Drama
A man crippled by the mundanity of his life experiences something out of the ordinary.
Directors: Duke Johnson, Charlie Kaufman | Stars: David Thewlis, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tom Noonan
Votes: 75,293 | Gross: $3.76M
Viewed: 6-9-16
My Score: 8/10
Unique adult animation works extremely well.
4. Sicario (2015)
R | 121 min | Action, Crime, Drama
An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by a government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.
Director: Denis Villeneuve | Stars: Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, Benicio Del Toro, Jon Bernthal
Votes: 476,398 | Gross: $46.89M
Viewed: 19-9-16
My Score: 9/10
I was afraid my expectations for this would be too high but no it was about as great as I hoped. Benicio Del Toro is amazing in it.
5. Chappie (2015)
R | 120 min | Action, Crime, Drama
In the near future, crime is patrolled by a mechanized police force. When one police droid, Chappie, is stolen and given new programming, he becomes the first robot with the ability to think and feel for himself.
Director: Neill Blomkamp | Stars: Sharlto Copley, Dev Patel, Hugh Jackman, Sigourney Weaver
Votes: 269,545 | Gross: $31.57M
Viewed: 19-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Very good throwback to 80's post-punk sci-fi films. Better than Blomkamp's disappointing sophomore effort Elysium.
6. Trumbo (2015)
R | 124 min | Biography, Drama
In 1947, Dalton Trumbo was Hollywood's top screenwriter, until he and other artists were jailed and blacklisted for their political beliefs.
Director: Jay Roach | Stars: Bryan Cranston, Diane Lane, Helen Mirren, Louis C.K.
Votes: 84,766 | Gross: $7.86M
Viewed: 19-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Terrific performance by Bryan Cranston and some really interesting details about this era of film-making which I was unsure about, though it feels a little like a missed opportunity at times due to its telemovie feel.
7. Blackhat (2015)
R | 133 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A furloughed convict and his American and Chinese partners hunt a high-level cybercrime network from Chicago to Los Angeles to Hong Kong to Jakarta.
Director: Michael Mann | Stars: Chris Hemsworth, Viola Davis, Tang Wei, Leehom Wang
Votes: 64,288 | Gross: $7.10M
Viewed: 19-9-16
My Score: 5/10
Very disappointing film from a once-great filmmaker in Michael Mann.
8. The Danish Girl (2015)
R | 119 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
A fictitious love story loosely inspired by the lives of Danish artists Lili Elbe and Gerda Wegener. Lili and Gerda's marriage and work evolve as they navigate Lili's groundbreaking journey as a transgender pioneer.
Director: Tom Hooper | Stars: Eddie Redmayne, Alicia Vikander, Amber Heard, Ben Whishaw
Votes: 199,200 | Gross: $11.11M
Viewed: 20-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Good stylish film from the reliable Tom Hooper though a lot of liberties are taken with the true story it's based on, but that's about usual.
9. My Bloody Valentine (1981)
R | 90 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A decades-old folk tale surrounding a deranged murderer killing those who celebrate Valentine's Day turns out to be true to legend when a group defies the killer's order and people start turning up dead.
Director: George Mihalka | Stars: Paul Kelman, Lori Hallier, Neil Affleck, Keith Knight
Votes: 25,090 | Gross: $5.67M
Viewed: 20-9-16
My Score: 5/10
My first slasher film in quite some time, and even though it's my favourite director's favourite slasher film it really didn't do much for me. Same old same old except with a different setting and a nifty final scene.
10. Avenged (2013)
R | 95 min | Action, Fantasy, Horror
A deaf girl is brutalized by a murderous gang who are then hunted by her when the bloodthirsty spirit of an Apache warrior inhabits her lifeless body.
Director: Michael S. Ojeda | Stars: Amanda Adrienne Smith, Marc Anthony Samuel, Rodney Rowland, Tom Ardavany
Votes: 4,398
Viewed: 20-9-16
My Score: 6/10
Brutal revenge tale which has some interesting supernatural aspects to a rather typical film of this type.
11. 52 Pick-Up (1986)
R | 110 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A secret fling between a man and his mistress leads to blackmail and murder.
Director: John Frankenheimer | Stars: Roy Scheider, Ann-Margret, Vanity, John Glover
Votes: 7,011 | Gross: $5.19M
Viewed: 20-9-16
My Score: 8/10
Gritty Elmore Leonard adaptation by master filmmaker John Frankenheimer. Includes an exceptionally brilliant performance by Clarence Williams III.
12. 'R Xmas (2001)
R | 85 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A New York drug dealer is kidnapped, and his wife must try to come up with the money and drugs to free him from his abductors before Christmas.
Director: Abel Ferrara | Stars: Drea de Matteo, Lillo Brancato, Lisa Valens, Ice-T
Votes: 1,630 | Gross: $0.00M
Viewed: 21-9-16
My Score: 8/10
A rather simple uncluttered film seems a little light on story but packs quite a punch regardless. An excellent film from Abel ferrara.
13. Son of Saul (2015)
R | 107 min | Drama, War
A Jewish-Hungarian concentration camp prisoner sets out to give a child he mistook for his son a proper burial.
Director: László Nemes | Stars: Géza Röhrig, Levente Molnár, Urs Rechn, Todd Charmont
Votes: 51,932 | Gross: $1.78M
Viewed: 21-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Good unique take on Nazi concentration camps has some really good qualities but the generally weak basic story lets it down somewhat. I was expecting a lot more from this Oscar winner.
14. The Holy Mountain (1973)
16+ | 114 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
In a corrupt, greed-fueled world, a powerful alchemist leads a messianic character and seven materialistic figures to the Holy Mountain, where they hope to achieve enlightenment.
Director: Alejandro Jodorowsky | Stars: Alejandro Jodorowsky, Horacio Salinas, Zamira Saunders, Juan Ferrara
Votes: 48,006 | Gross: $0.06M
Viewed: 21-9-16
My Score: 8/10
After being disappointed by El Topo I was worried about this one too. Not the masterpiece some claim but this one has many interesting elements to it.
15. The Jerk (1979)
R | 94 min | Comedy
A simpleminded, sheltered country boy suddenly decides to leave his family home to experience life in the big city, where his naivete is both his best friend and his worst enemy.
Director: Carl Reiner | Stars: Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, Catlin Adams, Mabel King
Votes: 64,188 | Gross: $73.69M
Viewed: 22-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Finally got to see this, and it's quite funny in parts, though not often enough. But maybe with a couple of more viewings it might work better but it seems like its one for the nostalgic value, which unfortunately has no nostalgic value at all for me. Still, Steve Martin simply wonderful.
16. The Conjuring (2013)
R | 112 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren work to help a family terrorized by a dark presence in their farmhouse.
Director: James Wan | Stars: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor
Votes: 554,582 | Gross: $137.40M
Viewed: 22-9-16
My Score: 6/10
An Amityville re-hash which is a bit better than the aforementioned film but doesn't break any new ground and is only mildly scary.
17. Goosebumps (2015)
PG | 103 min | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy
A teenager teams up with the daughter of young-adult horror author R.L. Stine after the writer's imaginary demons are set free on the town of Madison, Delaware.
Director: Rob Letterman | Stars: Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush, Ryan Lee
Votes: 95,348 | Gross: $80.08M
Viewed: 23-9-16
My Score: 7/10
A very fun film with Jack Black in fine form, though that is probably a slight problem as there is really no true scares because it's just so much fun.
18. Black Mass (2015)
R | 123 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The true story of Whitey Bulger, the brother of a state senator and the most infamous violent criminal in the history of South Boston, who became an FBI informant to take down a Mafia family invading his turf.
Director: Scott Cooper | Stars: Johnny Depp, Benedict Cumberbatch, Dakota Johnson, Joel Edgerton
Votes: 192,321 | Gross: $62.58M
Viewed: 24-9-16
My Score: 8/10
An excellent lead performance by the ever reliable Johnny Depp elevates this crime film into a must-see for crime lovers.
19. Tales from the Crypt (1972)
PG | 92 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Five strangers get lost in a crypt and, after meeting the mysterious Crypt Keeper, receive visions of how they will die.
Director: Freddie Francis | Stars: Joan Collins, Peter Cushing, Ralph Richardson, Geoffrey Bayldon
Votes: 13,014 | Gross: $1.70M
Viewed: 24-9-16
My Score: 7/10
A fun anthology horror film.
20. Crimson Peak (2015)
R | 119 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
In the aftermath of a family tragedy, an aspiring author is torn between love for her childhood friend and the temptation of a mysterious outsider. Trying to escape the ghosts of her past, she is swept away to a house that breathes, bleeds - and remembers.
Director: Guillermo del Toro | Stars: Mia Wasikowska, Jessica Chastain, Tom Hiddleston, Charlie Hunnam
Votes: 158,248 | Gross: $31.09M
Viewed: 25-9-16
My Score: 7/10
An amazing looking film is let down somewhat by a generic ghost story.
21. Creed (II) (2015)
PG-13 | 133 min | Action, Drama, Sport
The former World Heavyweight Champion Rocky Balboa serves as a trainer and mentor to Adonis Johnson, the son of his late friend and former rival Apollo Creed.
Director: Ryan Coogler | Stars: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Phylicia Rashad
Votes: 310,773 | Gross: $109.77M
Viewed: 25-9-16
My Score: 8/10
Just when I think the Rocky storyline can not pump out another good movie in this era I was proven wrong. The sensational camera work and direction from Ryan Coogler elevates this film into something special.
22. Everest (2015)
PG-13 | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
On May 10, 1996, mountain guides Rob Hall and Scott Fischer combine their expedition teams for a final ascent to the summit of Mount Everest. With little warning, a storm strikes the mountain and the climbers must now battle to survive.
Director: Baltasar Kormákur | Stars: Jason Clarke, Ang Phula Sherpa, Thomas M. Wright, Martin Henderson
Votes: 232,349 | Gross: $43.48M
Viewed: 27-9-16
My Score: 8/10
Another film I was expecting disappointment from but was happily proven wrong again. An exceptional matter-of-fact retelling of the disaster of 1996, has minimal embellishments from Hollywood and has some amazing scenery. It also probably helps that I'm in awe of this mountain as it is. Great job by Baltasar Kormákur.
23. Crooks Anonymous (1962)
88 min | Comedy, Crime
Forsdyke, a pathological petty thief subjects himself to a strict correction course run by a wealthy ex-con Widdowes and his Crooks Anonymous organization. Forsdyke's young and innocent ... See full summary »
Director: Ken Annakin | Stars: Leslie Phillips, Stanley Baxter, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Julie Christie
Votes: 697
Viewed: 28-9-16
My Score: 7/10
A charming little british comedy from the 60's to end a solid month of film watching. More smirk inducing than laugh out loud but you gotta love that British charm.
Tell Your Friends