21.07.25 – 03.08.25
The Euros are over and England won!! 🎉🎉🎉
Now, I was hoping to catch up but it got really busy at work and I was stressed. So, not much film watching happened in the past two weeks. The Pile of Shame grew a lot more than I anticipated or hoped.
My re-watches continue to be wins and I do intend to make a concerted effort to keep on track for the coming weeks. Please ignore the dates for the foreseeable future!
Civil War (2024)
Welcome to the Frontline.
In the near future, a group of war journalists attempt to survive while reporting the truth as the United States stands on the brink of civil war.
I went into Civil War knowing only two things – Kirsten Dunst is the main character and her husband (Jesse Plemons) has an uncredited cameo – and they have nothing to do with the plot.
We follow three journalists and an amateur as they travel across the United States to make their way to the capital before the President is killed. The civil war itself is in full swing, I don’t understand why the synopsis uses ‘brink’… However, going through the film, the reasons for the civil war and the ‘sides’ are underdeveloped.
Lee (Kirsten Dunst) is an established and well regarded war photographer and I enjoyed her characterisation, up until just before the end. Joel (Wagner Moura) may be somewhat immature at times, but he’s someone the group can lean on. Sammy (Stephen McKinley) is a journalist who has many years under his belt and refuses to retire. This man has my heart – I’m a sucker for an older, wise and gentle parental figure.
And then we have Jessie (Cailee Spaeny), a young woman who admires and aspires to be like Lee. They begin to have a tentative mentor/mentee relationship, but I just did not like Jessie. I found her relentless irresponsible behaviour to be childish and irritating. The hubris was strong and it completely ruined the last 30 mins of the film.
Up until this point, I was enjoying myself for the most part. The cinematography is beautiful and the score, the moments of silence, and photography effects made for such a wonderful watching experience.
The acting performances were great and the tension was there. Unfortunately, the plot didn’t hold up and I was so annoyed with the ending. The emotional impact of the final scenes were vapid. And it’s a shame because there were previous scenes of incredible emotional impact that had me crying.
📸📷📷
Anastasia (1997)
Ten years after she was separated from her family, an eighteen-year-old orphan with vague memories of the past sets out to Paris in hopes of reuniting with her grandmother. She is accompanied by two con men, who intend to pass her off as the Grand Duchess Anastasia to the Dowager Empress for a reward.
Anastasia is one of my favourite films from childhood! It was a lot of fun re-watching!
While incredibly historically inaccurate and with a rather problematic stance on the Russian Revolution, I love following Anya on the adventure to finding her past.
The animation is beautiful and I love the vivid musical numbers. The soundtrack itself is incredibly strong and Liz Callaway as the singing voice of Anastasia was perfection. As was Bernadette Peters as Sophie. Angela Lansbury at the Dowager Empress was honestly the only right option ♥
The way that Anya and Dimitri’s relationship progresses from dislike to love is well developed and believable. Anya remains headstrong, sarcastic and truthful throughout, but it’s Dimitri’s character development that is most prominent.
There’s never a dull moment in this film!
As I’ve gotten older, the more I think that Dimitri looks like Billy Zane. Thoughts?
👑👑👑
Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
What a glorious feeling!
In 1927 Hollywood, a silent film production company and cast make a difficult transition to sound.
Put your hand up if you’ve ever had a crush on a ‘Golden Age’ actor as a child because your parents loved watching old films/musicals. ✋
Gene Kelly as Don Lockwood, silent film star and heartthrob, is incredibly believable. I enjoy that there could have been a lot of pretentiousness in his character due to his success, but Don’s kind of goofy and never forgets to include his best friend Cosmo (Donald O’Conner) who were together from childhood.
This film is both incredibly funny and romantic. The confession scene is second to none!
Debbie Reynolds as aspiring actress Kathy Selden practically lights up every scene she’s in. She’s feisty and confident in her own talent (as she should be!). Her relationship with Don is very sweet and I love the fact that he supports her in her endeavours. I love that he stands up for her, but also respects her decisions.
Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen) may be one of my favourite campy villains, who isn’t a villain at all. Babes just wasn’t able to adjust to the talkie and she was surrounded by a load of men who refused to let her speak.
Singin’ in the Rain is full of catchy songs and fun, vibrant and dynamic musical numbers.
☔☔☔
Pile of Shame
This pile is every-growing and that’s not what I intended 😭
Let me know what your thoughts on these films are and what films on my Pile of Shame should I prioritise?
If you’re interested in joining me next week, the films for week 7 are:
Thanks for reading!
I hope you’re having a lovely day and staying safe ♥
DramaRambles 🌸 
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