movies

557 – Gangs of New York (2002)

spacetime coordinates: 1846 – 1862  New York City

Gangs of New York is a 2002 American epic period drama film directed by Martin Scorsese, set in the mid-19th century in the Five Points district of New York City. It was inspired by Herbert Asbury‘s 1928 non-fiction book, The Gangs of New York.

The film is set in 1863 and follows gang leader William “Bill the Butcher” Cutting (Daniel Day-Lewis) in his roles as crime boss and political kingmaker under the helm of “Boss” Tweed (Jim Broadbent). The film culminates in a violent confrontation between Cutting and his mob with the protagonist Amsterdam Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his allies, which prefaces the real-life New York Draft Riots of 1863.

historical accuracy   imdb 

10th Anniversary Trailer

 

movies

556 – Warrior (2011)

spacetime coordinates: 2000’s pittsburgh / philadelphia atlantic city

Warrior is a 2011 American sports drama film directed by Gavin O’Connor and starring Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton as two estranged brothers whose entrance into a mixed martial arts tournament makes them come to terms with their lives and each other. Nick Nolte was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as the father of the two brothers.

imdb   themes – wiki

movies

551 – John Carter (2012)

spacetime coordinates: 1868 > 1881  Arizona Territory / dying planet of Barsoom – Red Martian city of Helium, predator Walking City of Zodanga

johncarter1 posterJohn Carter is a 2012 American science fiction action film directed by Andrew Stanton from a screenplay written by Stanton, Mark Andrews, and Michael Chabon.

The film is largely based on A Princess of Mars (1917), the first in a series of 11 novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs to feature the interplanetary hero John Carter (and in later volumes the adventures of his children with Dejah Thoris). The story was originally serialized in six monthly installments (from February through to July 1912) in the pulp magazine The All-Story; those chapters, originally titled “Under the Moons of Mars,” were then collected in hardcover five years later from publisher A. C. McClurg.

John Carter stars Taylor Kitsch in the title role, Lynn CollinsSamantha MortonMark StrongCiarán HindsDominic WestJames Purefoy, and Willem Dafoe. The film chronicles the first interplanetary adventure of John Carter and his attempts to mediate civil unrest amongst the warring kingdoms of Barsoom.

Several developments on a theatrical film adaptation of the Barsoom series emerged throughout the 20th century from various major studios and producers, with the earliest attempt dating back to the 1930s. Most of these efforts, however, ultimately stalled in development hell. In the late-2000s, Walt Disney Pictures began a concerted effort to develop a film adaptation of Burroughs’ works, after a previously-abandoned venture by the studio in the 1980s. The project was driven by Stanton, who had pressed Disney to renew the screen rights from the Burroughs estate. Stanton became director in 2009; this was his live-action debut, as his previous directorial work for Disney included the Pixar animated films, Finding Nemo (2003) and WALL-E (2008).

Due to the film’s poor box office performance, Disney cancelled any plans for a sequel (titled John Carter: The Gods of Mars) and trilogy Stanton had planned.

Cancelled sequel   

concept art   imdb

movies

549 – 12 Strong (2018)

spacetime coordinates: 2001 Afghanistan12 strong poster12 Strong (also known as 12 Strong: The Declassified True Story of the Horse Soldiers) is a 2018 American war drama film directed by Nicolai Fuglsig and written by Ted Tally and Peter Craig. The film is based on Doug Stanton‘s non-fiction book Horse Soldiers, which tells the story of CIA paramilitary officers and U.S. Special Forces, in addition to USAF Combat Controllers, sent to Afghanistan (to fight alongside the Northern Alliance leader, Abdul Rashid Dostum) immediately after the September 11 attacks. The film stars Chris HemsworthMichael ShannonMichael PeñaNavid NegahbanTrevante RhodesGeoff StultsThad LuckinbillWilliam Fichtner, and Rob Riggle.12 stromg poster 2

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1413492/

movies

0543 – Lucky (2017)

spacetime coordinates: 2010’s Arizona, USA

The spiritual journey of a ninety-year-old atheist.

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Lucky is a 2017 American drama / comedy film directed by John Carroll Lynch from a screenplay by Logan Sparks and Drago Sumonja. It stars Harry Dean Stanton in one of his final on-screen roles before his death on September 15, 2017 (aged 91).

imdb 

movies

0533 – 1944 (2015)

spacetime coordinates:  Estonia 1944

1944poster

In “1944” Director Elmo Nyuganena portrays the real events on the Eastern Front in Estonia in 1944, from the Battle Of Tannenburg Line, the July fighting on the Sinimäed Hills, until November, when the Sõrve peninsula was already conquered by the Soviet Army. The war is shown through the eyes of participants in the events on both warring sides – the Estonians who fought on the side of the German Army in the 20th Estonian division Waffen-SS, and as part of the 8th Estonian Rifle Corps of the Soviet Army.

The film has been banned in the Russian Federation.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3213684/

movies, quotes

0531 – The Awakening (2011)

spacetime coordinates: boys’ boarding school in Cumbria 1921

Maud Hill: There’s no place on earth people understand loneliness better than here.”

awakening_ver4

The Awakening is a 2011 British  supernatural thriller/ horror film directed and co-written by Nick Murphy, starring Rebecca HallDominic WestIsaac Hempstead-Wright and Imelda Staunton.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1687901/


Down a Dark Hall (2018)

spacetime coordinates: 2010’s  exclusive Blackwood Boarding School

imdb   /   rottentomatoes