The Last Movie You Saw On DVD or VHS or TV.

I'm almost done watching The Martian via On Demand through my cable company (Verizon). Very convenient. I really like this movie. Good so far.

A couple days ago I started watching Parts Unknown with Anthony Bourdain and in the 1st episode, he visits ancient temples in Myanmar with a friend. The friend starts saying something like "these really show the human dedication to worship and belief and" as he trails off Bourdain adds "slave labor?"
I'm going to like this show.

Watched it. Really liked it a lot. Well done - had me almost believing we could put a man on Mars.

I was easily sucked in, too. The expression I understand is suspending disbelief.

Here's my problem with his diet. Yes, yes, it's only a movie...but it was nerd science movie so it has to have a higher calling. Wasn't all that he had to eat just potatoes? Wouldn't that have caused him to have major gastric and physical problems? Late in his stay on Mars, he showed his bruises/rashes/skin problems. Where's the fiber in his diet?

What happened to the instant Tang all astronauts drink? Did NASA lose the contract?

The "Battleship Potemkin" is a silent, black and white Russian movie made in 1925 and directed by Sergei Eisenstein. This version is free on youtube. I finally watched it, but have heard of its fame for years. It is the greatest film of its era (not a lot of competition), but some people claim that it's the greatest of all time.

The movie originally had a live orchestra performing in the theatre the music of Meisel. Over the years various scores were used, but this version uses the music drawn from three symphonies of Shostakovich, which not only reinforces and dramatizes the action on screen, but at times even overshadows the action onscreen; it is that powerful.

The film dramatizes a Russian mutiny aboard the Battleship Potemkin in 1905, and was used as a propaganda movie to reinforce the revolution. Propaganda or not, it's highly watchable, and I recommend it, if for no other reason, than as an introduction to the music of Shostakovich.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcUKH9hQKWw

Yes I am familiar with the idea of suspension of disbelief.
And about his diet, I got the impression that he was including other items from the crew's rations for a long time, until they ran out. Then he had basically a potato diet. It was a surprise to see how much weight Damon lost for the movie - they hadn't included any pictures of that in the ads. Terrific movie. Great characters, and a sort if adventuresome spirit reminiscent, to me of Apollo 13.

I was completely obsessed with all four of Bourdain's travel/foodie shows. The best non-fiction material on TV for my taste.

He's incredible. The layover might be the weakest of the four, but I'm almost due for a re-binge.

Bourdain's shows are great TV. He really loves the people and food of the world.
Another show like it but different is "I'll Have What Phil's Having on PBS"
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/what-phils-having/

Thanks! I'll look it up.

I hope he'll film another season of one or two of these shows. He's the coolest guy working on TV, I think. I howled when he popped up on The Big Short.

I'm only suspicious of how thin he remains, eating and drinking like a Hun.

"Ugetsu Monogatari" is a period Japanese movie taking place in the 16th century.
It is black and white and free on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOJGh267dEg&list=PLlLv5T_gN_mfw2GbEc1pc9CFbY4mZPbdS

It's about two brothers, one, a poor farmer who yearns to become a samurai, and does so with tragic consequences for his family. The other brother is a potter who, despite the dangers of war in his area risks traveling to market to sell his ware. He is seduced by a beautiful ghost, again with tragic consequences for his family.

An excellent morality play describing how the quest for fame and money destroys lives.

I've gone through a marathon of official summer Olympic movies, from 1924 to 2004. Some of them (1936,1964, 1968, 1972, 1980, 1992) I had already seen, so it was the second or third view.It is a fascinating exercise for a film and sports buff who is also interested in the sociological aspect of the Games.

Olympia, the Nazi era film by Leni Reifenstahl clearly stands out, while the trilogy of 1960s olympic films is also very good. The decay of the genre came later, as the films began to resemble the American TV coverage of the Games, starting with Los Angeles 1984.

Have you seen Munich? Since it's my hometown I was there when the tragedy unfolded at the 1972 Olympics.

My dad's addicted to Anthony Bourdain. Almost every phone call we have involves a recap of the last episode or two he watched. A childhood friend is also a FB friend who watches the same episodes - I read Richard's recaps so I know what my dad's going to talk about and prepare

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what have I been watching? youtube movies of Hamburg from about 1935 - 1965

I've seen both Munich, the film by Spielberg, and Visions of Eight, the film about the Olympics.

I think Munich is the best of Spielberg's film. It is particularly good in capturing the atmosphere around extremist groups in the early 70s.

As for Visions of Eight it is an irregular film, IMO. Eight different directors had to come with different quality in their segments. The one I'd rescue is "The Losers", by Claude Lelouch. It does bring you into tears, without being obvious -as in the Hollywood tradition.

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Oh, and it's interesting to note that in the Olympic film, the trageedy of the Israeli athletes comes only in one segment, "The Farthest" (by the way, the British marathoner was more worried about the impact of the extra day of rest in his training than about the death of other athletes).

One of my dumb fantasies was meeting Anthony Bourdain on the street, tell him that the best Mexican home cooking came from my mother-in-law, convince him to go to the town of San Juan del Río and have him eat and praise my mother-in-law's delicacies.
My mother-in-law passed away in 2014, so I don't have the fantasy anymore.

Interesting! I haven't seen "The Losers" - it's on my list!

"The Losers" is a segment of "Visions of Eight".

I think it was a marvelous film. Very dark, but when you factor in the retribution being delivered to the planners of the Olympic slaughter it makes sense. Those involved in the payback suffered greatly, so many were lost, and the Israelis tasked with this mission were haunted by their actions. I watch Munich every time it runs. I should order it from Amazon.

I still think Munich is one of Spielberg's best movies.

Tonight, I got around to seeing Brooklyn (2015). Saoirse Ronan clearly gave a career defining diamond of a performance. She definitely deserves her Oscar nomination.

Just watched an interesting version of Godfather I & II. called the Godfather Saga
It was edited to be in chronological order with some edited scenes re-inserted.