Endgame

Endgame

Target Entertainment

18 January 2009

Historical Drama

DVD
C-

About South Africa, rather than sci-fi superheroes.  This is based on Robert Harvey's book The Fall of Apartheid.  Pete Travis directed.

Honeydripper

Honeydripper

Emerging Pictures etc.

December 28, 2007

Historical Drama, Musical
DVD

B+

This is rooted in its time and place (Alabama 1950) but also feels like a folktale.  I was leaning towards a B, but everything just came together in the last twenty minutes, including the pay-off for the little neighbor boys that the movie opens with and then mostly ignores.  This is the story of rock & roll, and it's the story of these interlocking lives.  There's even a tweak of the Producers plot.  Highly recommended, although you need to give it time to build slowly.

John Sayles wrote, directed, and plays Zeke.

The Mountain Between Us

The Mountain Between Us

20th Century Fox

October 6, 2017

Drama

DVD
C-

Not really my kind of movie, but I did like some of the shots of bright colors against the snow.  This is based on the book by Charles Martin and directed by Hany Abu-Assad

Moulin Rouge (2001)

Moulin Rouge (2001)

20th Century Fox

June 1, 2001

Musical, Historical Drama

DVD
D-

Years ago, a then-boyfriend kept telling me how wonderful this movie is.  Hearing so many songs I like trashed today makes me very glad I never watched this with him.  Baz Luhrmann directed and co-wrote.

The Motorcycle Diaries

The Motorcycle Diaries

Focus Features etc.

15 January 2004

Historical Drama

DVD
C-

Che Guevara, the early years, based on his book.  Walter Salles directed.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day

Open Road etc.

April 13, 2016

Comedy
DVD
C-

Cliched and predictable, but bumped up for Garry Marshall getting his sister Penny to do the opening narration.

Mother! (2017)

Mother!  (2017)

Paramount

September 15, 2017

Drama?

DVD
D-

Vaguely creepy and sometimes poorly lit, and that's before it turns into horror.  Darren Aronofsky wrote and directed.

Mother (2009)

Mother (2009)

CJ Entertainment

28 May 2009

Drama

DVD
D+

I like the opening sequence with the mother dancing, but not much else.  Bong Joon Ho directed and co-wrote.

The Most Dangerous Game

The Most Dangerous Game

RKO

September 16, 1932

Drama (I tuned out before it turned into Horror)

DVD
C-

Yes, I best know this plot from the Gilligan's Island episode.  Although I watched a quarter of the hour-long movie, I still felt like it was just set-up.  Irving Pechel and Ernest B. Schoedsack co-directed.

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation

New Line

November 21, 1997

Action, Fantasy

DVD
D+

Half like watching someone else play a videogame and half trying to figure out the backstory that the dialogue hints at.  John R. Leonetti directed.

Morituri

Morituri

Twentieth-Century Fox

August 25, 1965

War Drama
DVD
D+

Very talky, which isn't necessarily a bad thing but the topics aren't that interesting and at times Brando's accent is unintelligible.  This is based on the Werner Jörg Lüddecke novel and directed by Bernhard Wicki.

Mooz-lum

Mooz-lum

Lionsgate

September 17, 2010

Drama

DVD
D+

This is probably an important story to tell, but it was too downbeat for me.  Qasim Basir wrote and directed.

The Moon-Spinners

The Moon-Spinners

Disney

July 8, 1964

Drama?

DVD
D+

The main characters bugged me with their "Oh, we're so veddy veddy British and must put up with these foreigners while traveling abroad" attitude, although normally I adore Greenwood and have a soft spot for Mills.  This is based on the book by Mary Stewart and directed by James Neilson.

Moonrise Kingdom

Moonrise Kingdom

Focus Features

June 29, 2012

Historical Comedy?

DVD
C

I really liked this in the theater, but my interest in Wes Anderson quirkiness has definitely faded in the past decade.  Still, I do like the setting and the costumes, and scattered lines, in the first quarter hour.

Moonraker

Moonraker

United Artists

26 June 1979

Action

DVD
D

Even the theme song is forgettable this time.  Lewis Gilbert directed.

Moonlighting

Moonlighting

Miracle Films

26 September 1982

Drama

DVD
D+

On the bright side, there was no Bruce Willis.  Jerzy Skolimowski wrote and directed.

Moonlight Serenade

Moonlight Serenade

Studio Unknown

December 8, 2009 (made in 2005 and then released to video)

Musical?

DVD
D+

I can see why this got delayed.  It just feels really off.  Giancarlo Tallarico directed and co-wrote.

Monsters vs. Aliens

Monsters vs. Aliens

DreamWorks

March 27, 2009

Animation, Sci-Fi, Children's?

DVD
D+

This is shelved as a children's movie, but, although there was no "questionable content" in the first quarter hour, starting this off with a mismatched couple's wedding is odd.  And I wasn't crazy about the character design.  Rob Letterman and Conrad Vernon co-directed, as well as co-writing with a bunch of people.

Monsters, Inc.

Monsters, Inc.

Disney/Pixar

November 2, 2001

Animation, Children's, Sci-Fi, Comedy

DVD
C

Watching this for the first time since the original release, I still like the world-building and somewhat the characterization, but I found the child more annoying than cute.  I tuned out somewhere between a third and halfway through.  Pete Docter co-wrote, and co-directed with David Silverman and Lee Unkrich.  

Monster Trucks

Monster Trucks

Paramount etc.

December 21, 2016

Sci-Fi?

DVD
C-

I'm not exactly sure what genre this is, since it's listed as an action comedy, but there seems to be a comedic horror/sci-fi element, so I went with sci-fi because trucks are machines and I only watched the first quarter hour.  Chris Wedge directed, fourteen years after the first Ice Age.

The Amazing Transparent Man

The Amazing Transparent Man

Miller Consolidated Pictures

July 1960

Sci-Fi

DVD
D+

Muddled, and I felt bad for the guinea pig.  Edgar G. Ulmer directed.

The Alien Factor

The Alien Factor

Cinemagic Visual Effects

May 12, 1978

Sci-Fi

DVD
C-

Bumped up a notch for the '70sness.  Don Dohler wrote and directed.

Night of the Blood Beast

Night of the Blood Beast

AIP

August 1958

Sci-Fi

DVD

D+

Despite the lurid title, pretty dull, especially compared to Corman's Little Shop of Horrors.  Corman co-wrote but Bernard L. Kowalski directed.  This is on a monster movie 12-pack, so we'll be going out of order for awhile.

Monster House

Monster House

Sony Pictures etc.

July 21, 2006

Children's, Animation, Comedy, Horror

DVD
C-

I feel like I tried to watch this before, maybe upon first release, but I wouldn't swear to it.  Anyway, it's OK for what it is.  Gil Kenan directed.

A Monster Calls

A Monster Calls

Lionsgate etc.

October 10, 2016

Fantasy?

DVD
D+

A boy is bullied for his imagination and then conjures a monster who bullies him, I think.  This is based on the novel by Patrick Ness and directed by J.A. Bayona.

Monster (2003)

Monster (2003)

Newmarket Films etc.

December 17, 2003

Crime Drama

DVD
C-

Bleakness lightened by humor, although admittedly I tuned out after fifteen minutes.  Patty Jenkins wrote and directed.

Moneyball

Moneyball

Sony etc.

September 23, 2011

Sports Drama

DVD
D+

Baseball.  Aaron Sorkin co-adapted Michael Lewis's nonfiction book.  Bennett Miller directed.

Money Monster

Money Monster

TriStar etc.

May 13, 2016

Crime Drama

DVD
D+

An obnoxious TV host (the title character, played by Clooney) is held hostage live on the air, and I'm not clear if we're supposed to care.  Still, the little gimmicks of the cable show were cute, so this is bumped up from a D.  Jodie Foster directed.

Mona Lisa Smile

Mona Lisa Smile

Columbia etc.

December 19, 2003

Historical Drama

DVD
D+

Marred by very unnatural, forced dialogue and delivery.  This view of 1950s Wellesley was written by two men and directed by Mike Newell, and it shows.

Molly's Game

Molly's Game

STX Films etc.

December 25, 2017

Crime Drama

DVD
D

It's a wonder I don't dislike this more than I do, considering it involves skiing, medical issues, gambling, and an annoying narrator, but the music isn't bad.  This is based on Molly Bloom's memoir, adapted by director Sorkin.

Modern Times

Modern Times

United Artists

February 25, 1936

Comedy, Sci-Fi?

DVD
C

While I like some things about this, such as the surveillance cameras the boss uses, I just don't quite like Chaplin, and that's always been true and seems unlikely to change, though I'll keep trying.

Moana

Moana

Disney

November 23, 2016

Animation, Children's, Fantasy, Historical Drama, Historical Comedy, Musical, Action

DVD
B

This is one of those movies where I wonder why I don't give them a B+ or higher.  It might be a little of the comedown from seeing the dazzling visuals on my TV instead of in the movie theater.  It might be that I think that there are two great songs ("You're Welcome" and "Shiny"), while the others are solid but less memorable.  It might be that, having seen the movie at least twice before today, the plotting feels not quite right, from the introduction of not one but two sidekick animals (with the pig disappearing for about an hour while the chicken affects the plot) to the formulaic departure and then return of Moana's demigod frenemy, Maui.  That said, the visuals remain lovely, the mix of emotional tones works, and the incorporation of Polynesian heritage is both respectful and playful.

The four directors are (in alphabetical order) Ron Clements, Don Hall, John Musker, and Chris Williams.

Mister Roberts

Mister Roberts

Warner Bros.

July 30, 1955

War Comedy, War Drama

DVD
C-

I watched the whole movie about a decade ago and didn't get that into it.  This time I gave it fifteen minutes, so I didn't even see Jack Lemmon.  The movie is based on the play based on the novel by Thomas Heggen.  And there were three directors: John Ford, Mervyn LeRoy, and Joshua Logan!