Mark Carlile
@chapmansfriend.bsky.social
Lapsed history prof.
Likes: Marquette sports, baseball, Reading FC, music, movies, TV
Dislikes: fascism
Likes: Marquette sports, baseball, Reading FC, music, movies, TV
Dislikes: fascism
3: “Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point,” a nostalgic look back at a family holiday gathering from… the early 2000s? Pre-smartphone anyway. I’ve heard this called a new Christmas classic, and it might be if you connect with the film’s vibes. I didn’t, so it probably won’t go into my holiday rotation
December 20, 2025 at 2:26 AM
3: “Christmas Eve in Miller’s Point,” a nostalgic look back at a family holiday gathering from… the early 2000s? Pre-smartphone anyway. I’ve heard this called a new Christmas classic, and it might be if you connect with the film’s vibes. I didn’t, so it probably won’t go into my holiday rotation
2: “The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh.” A 1979 basketball comedy where a lousy team starts winning after an astrologer begins running the team (the roster’s all-Pisces.) It’s not good, but genuine reasons to watch are:
- the title!
- stars Doctor J!
- a pretty great Thom Bell Philly soul soundtrack!
- the title!
- stars Doctor J!
- a pretty great Thom Bell Philly soul soundtrack!
December 20, 2025 at 2:26 AM
2: “The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh.” A 1979 basketball comedy where a lousy team starts winning after an astrologer begins running the team (the roster’s all-Pisces.) It’s not good, but genuine reasons to watch are:
- the title!
- stars Doctor J!
- a pretty great Thom Bell Philly soul soundtrack!
- the title!
- stars Doctor J!
- a pretty great Thom Bell Philly soul soundtrack!
1: “The Drowning Pool,” Paul Newman’s second time playing private eye Lew Harper. The plot’s not much more than OK; but there are atmospheric New Orleans filming locations, the character actor Murray Hamilton is great playing the slimy bad guy, and most of all you have Newman doing Newman things
December 20, 2025 at 2:26 AM
1: “The Drowning Pool,” Paul Newman’s second time playing private eye Lew Harper. The plot’s not much more than OK; but there are atmospheric New Orleans filming locations, the character actor Murray Hamilton is great playing the slimy bad guy, and most of all you have Newman doing Newman things
4: It’s Christmas movie month, so a rewatch of “Joyeux Noël” fits
TRUE(?) STORY OF: The Christmas truce of 1914 along the western front in France.
The story of the truce itself is always cool; this movie also shows a less-repeated angle, which is how much the truce really ticked off the higher-ups
TRUE(?) STORY OF: The Christmas truce of 1914 along the western front in France.
The story of the truce itself is always cool; this movie also shows a less-repeated angle, which is how much the truce really ticked off the higher-ups
December 13, 2025 at 5:07 PM
4: It’s Christmas movie month, so a rewatch of “Joyeux Noël” fits
TRUE(?) STORY OF: The Christmas truce of 1914 along the western front in France.
The story of the truce itself is always cool; this movie also shows a less-repeated angle, which is how much the truce really ticked off the higher-ups
TRUE(?) STORY OF: The Christmas truce of 1914 along the western front in France.
The story of the truce itself is always cool; this movie also shows a less-repeated angle, which is how much the truce really ticked off the higher-ups
3: “Citizen Cohn”
TRUE(?) STORY OF: Roy Cohn’s career, front-loaded to focus on him during the 1950s, the Joe McCarthy years.
It’s hurt a little by being an early (1992) HBO film when their production values were sometimes iffy, but James Woods is VERY INTENSE here, which works when playing Cohn
TRUE(?) STORY OF: Roy Cohn’s career, front-loaded to focus on him during the 1950s, the Joe McCarthy years.
It’s hurt a little by being an early (1992) HBO film when their production values were sometimes iffy, but James Woods is VERY INTENSE here, which works when playing Cohn
December 13, 2025 at 5:07 PM
3: “Citizen Cohn”
TRUE(?) STORY OF: Roy Cohn’s career, front-loaded to focus on him during the 1950s, the Joe McCarthy years.
It’s hurt a little by being an early (1992) HBO film when their production values were sometimes iffy, but James Woods is VERY INTENSE here, which works when playing Cohn
TRUE(?) STORY OF: Roy Cohn’s career, front-loaded to focus on him during the 1950s, the Joe McCarthy years.
It’s hurt a little by being an early (1992) HBO film when their production values were sometimes iffy, but James Woods is VERY INTENSE here, which works when playing Cohn
2: “Operation Mincemeat”
TRUE(?) STORY OF: The elaborate plan to fool the Germans into thinking the 1943 invasion of Sicily was headed to Greece instead.
I liked it but there were some extra subplots that distracted from the deception. It’s a caper film, just show us how they pulled off the con!
TRUE(?) STORY OF: The elaborate plan to fool the Germans into thinking the 1943 invasion of Sicily was headed to Greece instead.
I liked it but there were some extra subplots that distracted from the deception. It’s a caper film, just show us how they pulled off the con!
December 13, 2025 at 5:07 PM
2: “Operation Mincemeat”
TRUE(?) STORY OF: The elaborate plan to fool the Germans into thinking the 1943 invasion of Sicily was headed to Greece instead.
I liked it but there were some extra subplots that distracted from the deception. It’s a caper film, just show us how they pulled off the con!
TRUE(?) STORY OF: The elaborate plan to fool the Germans into thinking the 1943 invasion of Sicily was headed to Greece instead.
I liked it but there were some extra subplots that distracted from the deception. It’s a caper film, just show us how they pulled off the con!
My favorite challenge was Week 31, “True(?) Story”; all my watches were also “Two Word Titles” (Week 36)
1: “Nouvelle Vague”
TRUE(?) STORY OF: Filming “Breathless” in 1959
Richard Linklater directs and has fun with the premise that Godard had no idea what he was doing but it turned out great anyway
1: “Nouvelle Vague”
TRUE(?) STORY OF: Filming “Breathless” in 1959
Richard Linklater directs and has fun with the premise that Godard had no idea what he was doing but it turned out great anyway
December 13, 2025 at 5:07 PM
My favorite challenge was Week 31, “True(?) Story”; all my watches were also “Two Word Titles” (Week 36)
1: “Nouvelle Vague”
TRUE(?) STORY OF: Filming “Breathless” in 1959
Richard Linklater directs and has fun with the premise that Godard had no idea what he was doing but it turned out great anyway
1: “Nouvelle Vague”
TRUE(?) STORY OF: Filming “Breathless” in 1959
Richard Linklater directs and has fun with the premise that Godard had no idea what he was doing but it turned out great anyway
2: “The Man Who Came to Dinner,” an early 40s movie where a very haughty broadcaster falls outside his host’s house, so he recuperates there and dominates the household. Was a stage play first; you can tell that some of the dialogue was crafted to KILL onstage, but it falls a bit more flat on film
December 6, 2025 at 5:09 PM
2: “The Man Who Came to Dinner,” an early 40s movie where a very haughty broadcaster falls outside his host’s house, so he recuperates there and dominates the household. Was a stage play first; you can tell that some of the dialogue was crafted to KILL onstage, but it falls a bit more flat on film
Three Thanksgiving week rewatches:
2: “PLANES, Trains, & Automobiles,” Six bucks and my right nut says we’re not landing in Chicago;
3: “The Ice Storm,” Tobey Maguire’s TRAIN home is stuck on frozen tracks;
4: “Pieces of April,” April’s family travels by AUTOMOBILE from the suburbs to her apartment
2: “PLANES, Trains, & Automobiles,” Six bucks and my right nut says we’re not landing in Chicago;
3: “The Ice Storm,” Tobey Maguire’s TRAIN home is stuck on frozen tracks;
4: “Pieces of April,” April’s family travels by AUTOMOBILE from the suburbs to her apartment
November 30, 2025 at 4:19 AM
Three Thanksgiving week rewatches:
2: “PLANES, Trains, & Automobiles,” Six bucks and my right nut says we’re not landing in Chicago;
3: “The Ice Storm,” Tobey Maguire’s TRAIN home is stuck on frozen tracks;
4: “Pieces of April,” April’s family travels by AUTOMOBILE from the suburbs to her apartment
2: “PLANES, Trains, & Automobiles,” Six bucks and my right nut says we’re not landing in Chicago;
3: “The Ice Storm,” Tobey Maguire’s TRAIN home is stuck on frozen tracks;
4: “Pieces of April,” April’s family travels by AUTOMOBILE from the suburbs to her apartment
“The Open Road,” ballplayer Justin Timberlake and his estranged father (Jeff Bridges) roadtrip it by AUTOMOBILE from Ohio to Texas and Learn About Each Other. Not special, but not terrible; still, why did this kinda meh film attract such a good cast (Bridges, Mary Steenburgen, Harry Dean Stanton)?
November 30, 2025 at 4:19 AM
“The Open Road,” ballplayer Justin Timberlake and his estranged father (Jeff Bridges) roadtrip it by AUTOMOBILE from Ohio to Texas and Learn About Each Other. Not special, but not terrible; still, why did this kinda meh film attract such a good cast (Bridges, Mary Steenburgen, Harry Dean Stanton)?
4: (NOTE TO SELF: DON’T CALL IT SHAKE SHACK) “Snack Shack.” Nostalgia piece about two buddies in the summer of 1991 trying to make $ running the town pool’s snack bar, plus flirting with the new girl in town. I liked the madcap One Crazy Summer vibe, just wish I liked some of the characters better
November 22, 2025 at 6:27 PM
4: (NOTE TO SELF: DON’T CALL IT SHAKE SHACK) “Snack Shack.” Nostalgia piece about two buddies in the summer of 1991 trying to make $ running the town pool’s snack bar, plus flirting with the new girl in town. I liked the madcap One Crazy Summer vibe, just wish I liked some of the characters better
1: “Ghostlight,” an indie movie I’d only heard about fleetingly; after a watch, it’s one of my favorites from the past few years. Keith Kupferer (an Oscar-worthy performance) is an everyday guy who by chance joins a community theater cast, and it helps him in surprising ways through family trauma
November 22, 2025 at 6:27 PM
1: “Ghostlight,” an indie movie I’d only heard about fleetingly; after a watch, it’s one of my favorites from the past few years. Keith Kupferer (an Oscar-worthy performance) is an everyday guy who by chance joins a community theater cast, and it helps him in surprising ways through family trauma
Marquette and UW Milwaukee could be shorter if they ever play again
November 21, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Marquette and UW Milwaukee could be shorter if they ever play again
Side notes: looking for details on the show, I saw that Michael Palin, who was in “A Fish Called Wanda,” (also seen this week) attended the show.
Also check out those ticket prices. £2.20 was roughly $5 in 1975, and the first time I saw Springsteen in 1978 the ticket was like $7. Times change! 2/2
Also check out those ticket prices. £2.20 was roughly $5 in 1975, and the first time I saw Springsteen in 1978 the ticket was like $7. Times change! 2/2
November 15, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Side notes: looking for details on the show, I saw that Michael Palin, who was in “A Fish Called Wanda,” (also seen this week) attended the show.
Also check out those ticket prices. £2.20 was roughly $5 in 1975, and the first time I saw Springsteen in 1978 the ticket was like $7. Times change! 2/2
Also check out those ticket prices. £2.20 was roughly $5 in 1975, and the first time I saw Springsteen in 1978 the ticket was like $7. Times change! 2/2
4: I know, I know, it’s CineChums not MusicMates or something, but I watched “Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band: Hammersmith Odeon, London ‘75.” Springsteen’s first London show, it was a bonus DVD included in the 30th anniversary “Born to Run” box set; I’d never gotten around to seeing it. 1/2
November 15, 2025 at 6:58 PM
4: I know, I know, it’s CineChums not MusicMates or something, but I watched “Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band: Hammersmith Odeon, London ‘75.” Springsteen’s first London show, it was a bonus DVD included in the 30th anniversary “Born to Run” box set; I’d never gotten around to seeing it. 1/2
2: “The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog.” A Hitchcock-directed silent thriller from 1927 about the search for a killer. Silent films take some slight adjustment, but it’s got a possibly unjustly accused man, themes of jealousy, and fascination with pretty blondes— yup, that’s a Hitchcock film
November 15, 2025 at 6:58 PM
2: “The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog.” A Hitchcock-directed silent thriller from 1927 about the search for a killer. Silent films take some slight adjustment, but it’s got a possibly unjustly accused man, themes of jealousy, and fascination with pretty blondes— yup, that’s a Hitchcock film
1: “See How They Run,” a 50s period comic whodunnit that gets meta by being about a murder involving a London theatrical comic whodunnit’s cast. Gets points for victim/narrator Adrien Brody being an unrepentant sleazeball, and there’s good interplay between cops Sam Rockwell and Saoirse Ronan
November 15, 2025 at 6:58 PM
1: “See How They Run,” a 50s period comic whodunnit that gets meta by being about a murder involving a London theatrical comic whodunnit’s cast. Gets points for victim/narrator Adrien Brody being an unrepentant sleazeball, and there’s good interplay between cops Sam Rockwell and Saoirse Ronan
4: Rewatched “Bugsy,” where Warren Beatty plays the gangster who invented the idea of Las Vegas. This didn’t hold up as well as I remembered; the Las Vegas part of the story shares space with mobster stuff that’s better done in other films. Ben Kingsley and Harvey Keitel end up stealing the movie
November 8, 2025 at 7:12 PM
4: Rewatched “Bugsy,” where Warren Beatty plays the gangster who invented the idea of Las Vegas. This didn’t hold up as well as I remembered; the Las Vegas part of the story shares space with mobster stuff that’s better done in other films. Ben Kingsley and Harvey Keitel end up stealing the movie
3: “The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean.” A based-loosely-on-fact film where bandit Paul Newman proclaims himself a judge in frontier Texas. Thought I’d like a tongue-in-cheek Newman western directed by John Huston better than I did; it’s made up of short vignettes that don’t quite add up
November 8, 2025 at 7:12 PM
3: “The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean.” A based-loosely-on-fact film where bandit Paul Newman proclaims himself a judge in frontier Texas. Thought I’d like a tongue-in-cheek Newman western directed by John Huston better than I did; it’s made up of short vignettes that don’t quite add up
2: “The Great McGinty,” a Preston Sturges political satire about a guy who goes from nothing to being governor by being corrupt, then loses it all by getting a conscience at the wrong time. Worked pretty well for the first hour but the finale was rushed (guess that’s a drawback of 82 minute movies)
November 8, 2025 at 7:12 PM
2: “The Great McGinty,” a Preston Sturges political satire about a guy who goes from nothing to being governor by being corrupt, then loses it all by getting a conscience at the wrong time. Worked pretty well for the first hour but the finale was rushed (guess that’s a drawback of 82 minute movies)
1: “Sully,” Clint Eastwood’s film about the pilot (Tom Hanks) who emergency-landed a jet on the Hudson. Hanks is good, the flight scenes are well-shot; still got the impression that they tried to come up with an original “take” on something everyone already knew about and they couldn’t pull it off
November 8, 2025 at 7:12 PM
1: “Sully,” Clint Eastwood’s film about the pilot (Tom Hanks) who emergency-landed a jet on the Hudson. Hanks is good, the flight scenes are well-shot; still got the impression that they tried to come up with an original “take” on something everyone already knew about and they couldn’t pull it off
3: Rewatched “Game 6” for my Baseball October, realized that Robert Downey Jr. (as a ruthless theater critic) wears a disguise on an opening night. Michael Keaton stars as a playwright whose new play opens the same night as his Red Sox are playing in the infamous Game 6 of the ‘86 World Series
November 1, 2025 at 7:53 PM
3: Rewatched “Game 6” for my Baseball October, realized that Robert Downey Jr. (as a ruthless theater critic) wears a disguise on an opening night. Michael Keaton stars as a playwright whose new play opens the same night as his Red Sox are playing in the infamous Game 6 of the ‘86 World Series
2: “MASKED and Anonymous,” a 2002 political/dystopian parable co-written and starring Bob Dylan (really!) along with a stacked supporting cast (I mean, Angela Bassett is seventh-billed.) A massive commercial and critical bomb. Invaluable for a Dylan freak like me, but confusing and messy as a film
November 1, 2025 at 7:53 PM
2: “MASKED and Anonymous,” a 2002 political/dystopian parable co-written and starring Bob Dylan (really!) along with a stacked supporting cast (I mean, Angela Bassett is seventh-billed.) A massive commercial and critical bomb. Invaluable for a Dylan freak like me, but confusing and messy as a film
3: “A Month in the Country.” A Great War soldier with PTSD (Colin Firth) takes a job restoring a mural in a rural English church. Very early roles for Firth and Kenneth Branagh. The placid country atmosphere is exactly what Firth’s character needs; unfortunately that makes the film kinda slow-paced
October 26, 2025 at 6:12 PM
3: “A Month in the Country.” A Great War soldier with PTSD (Colin Firth) takes a job restoring a mural in a rural English church. Very early roles for Firth and Kenneth Branagh. The placid country atmosphere is exactly what Firth’s character needs; unfortunately that makes the film kinda slow-paced
1: “A Day at the Races” (1937), the Marx Brothers team up to help save a hospital from greedy rich guys. Pluses: some great sight gags and Groucho’s one-liners. Minuses: it’s 20-25 minutes longer than it needs to be due to padding from TWO song and dance segments and an unfortunate blackface scene
October 26, 2025 at 6:12 PM
1: “A Day at the Races” (1937), the Marx Brothers team up to help save a hospital from greedy rich guys. Pluses: some great sight gags and Groucho’s one-liners. Minuses: it’s 20-25 minutes longer than it needs to be due to padding from TWO song and dance segments and an unfortunate blackface scene