Tag / George Clooney

by admin

You Ought To Be In (23) Pictures

Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  Given those guidelines, it is time once again to look at the now 107 actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of July 1.

We continue today with the single actor that has starred in exactly 23 movies that I have seen, a level uncharted three years ago.

George Clooney

George Clooney was bouncing around Hollywood for a while before becoming a superstar on a little show called ER, whose pilot movie was his first entry on this list.  That launched him to great film success.  Two films is my high-water mark for Clooney, one which I have reached five different times, most recently in 2012.  My most recent Clooney experience came in 2022, thanks to Ticket to Paradise.

by admin

2022: The Year In Movies Part 2

129 different people starred in the movies I saw last year (starring in being the first two named stars, a tradition dating back to the old Chicago Tribune TV guide which populated the early days of my database), and a whopping seven of them were in more than one film.  Those seven thespians are:

Films Per Actor Per Year

Actor Name Films
Gerard Butler 2
Daniel Craig 2
Elsie Fisher 2
Elizabeth Olsen 2
Jenna Ortega 2
Aubrey Plaza 2
Chris Pratt 2

Now let’s take a look at the remaining movies that I saw in 2022, following up on the previous Friday’s post.

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013)
Will Ferrell returns as anchorman Ron Burgandy, who has moved to New York and reunited his news team for 24-hour cable news.

Emily The Criminal (2022)
A young woman turns to a life of crime in order to pay off her student loans.

The Omen (1976)
The legendary horror film about Damien, the devil’s child.

Before I Fall (2017)
A high school girl relives the same day over and over again until she realizes what she needs to do to get it right.

Everybody Wants Some!! (2016)
A comedy about a college baseball team in the early 80s.

Nope (2022)
Honestly, I can’t explain what happened in this.  Something about horses and aliens.

Black Bear (2020)
A movie about making a movie.

Damien: Omen II (1978)
Damien returns to continue his evil ways.

My Best Friend’s Exorcism (2022)
Based on the novel by Grady Hendrix, a teen tries to save her possessed friend.

The Final Conflict (1981)
The third, but not final, part of the Damien Omen trilogy.

Ticket To Paradise (2022)
George Clooney and Julia Roberts work to sabotage their daughter’s wedding.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
Benoit Blanc is back to solve another mystery when a group of people get together on a secluded island.

Thor: Love And Thunder (2022)
Thor reunites with Jane Foster and Valkyrie to battle a god-killer.

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)
An ace pilot returns to Top Gun after a long career to train a new set of fighter pilots for a special mission.

No Time To Die (2021)
Daniel Craig’s final go-around as James Bond.

Bullet Train (2022)
Five assassins aboard a swiftly-moving bullet train find out that their missions have something in common.

The Invitation (2022)
A young woman is invited to a wedding by newly found relatives, but quickly finds out that all is not what it seems.

Horizon Line (2020)
A young woman has to pilot a small plane when the pilot dies of a heart attack.

by admin

You Ought To Be In (21) Pictures

Movie_Reel_22

Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  So, given those guidelines, and thanks to a corona virus inspired uptick to my movie watching this year, it is time to look at the 100 actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of July 1.

Today, we continue with the lone actor that has starred in 21 movies that I have seen, the same number, and actor, as 3 years ago.

George Clooney

George Clooney was bouncing around Hollywood for a while before becoming a superstar on a little show called ER, whose pilot movie was his first entry on this list.  That launched him to great film success.  2 films is my high water mark for Clooney, one which I have reached 5 different times, most recently in 2012.  My most recent Clooney experience remains to be Money Monster, which I saw back in 2017.

by admin

2017: The Year In Movies

Movie_Reel_22

2017 saw a slight downturn in movie watching for me, down 5 from the year before.  I managed to watch 83 movies last year, my sixth consecutive year under 100.  Again, many things contributed to this, chiefly the insane amount of TV I’ve been watching, the greater effort made towards going out for walks, and the awful amount of time I spend either at work or getting to and from work.

Here’s a look back at the first 50 movies I did manage to watch last year and what recollection, if any, I have of them. The films are listed in the order I saw them.

Bang Bang Baby (2015)
A strange musical that I only watched due to an appearance by the lovely and talented Jane Levy.

Mike And Dave Need Wedding Dates (2016)
Two ne’er do wells try to get responsible dates for their sister’s wedding.

A Good Old Fashioned Orgy (2011)
A group of friends decide to bid farewell to their summer hangout by holding an orgy.

Bad Moms (2016)
A trio of moms that don’t have their shit together band together to take on the PTA.

Haunter (2013)
A horror flick starring Abigail Breslin that I have no recollection of.

Pay The Ghost (2015)
The latest direct-to-video smash from Nicolas Cage.

Cabin Fever (2016)
A remake of the 2002 “smash” hit.

Into The Forest (2016)
A power outage forces two sisters to learn how to survive alone in the wilderness.

Self/less (2015)
Ryan Reynolds stars as a man who starts to remember his past despite having a old man’s consciousness implanted into his body.

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising (2016)
A sorority moves in next door to Seth Rogen in this sequel. Continue reading →

by admin

You Ought To Be In (21) Pictures

Movie_Reel_22

Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  So, given those guidelines, it is time to look at all of the actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of July 1.

Today, we look at the 1 actor that has starred in 21 movies that I have seen, though a different one from the 1 actor 3 years ago.

George Clooney

A 2 spot jump for Clooney, thanks to Gravity, which I saw in 2014 after the cutoff, and 2016’s Money Monster, which I saw earlier this year.

by admin

You Ought To Be In (19) Pictures

Movie_Reel_22Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime.  The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since.  So, given those guidelines, it is time to look at all of the actors that have starred in at least 10 films that I have seen, as of May 30th.

Today, we dive into the 3 actors that have starred in 19 movies that I have seen.

Ben Affleck

The first Ben Affleck starring role that I saw was in 1997, when I saw both Going All The Way and Chasing Amy.  In 1999, he kicked off a 6 year run where I saw 11 of his films, including 3 films in both 2000 and 2003.  There were 5 years total where I had seen multiple Affleck outings.  In recent years, he has been focusing more on directing, including the last film in which I saw him, 2012’s Argo which I saw last year.  He’s likely to move up this list in the future thanks to his casting as Batman in the upcoming Man of Steel sequel.

George Clooney

George Clooney was bouncing around Hollywood for a while before becoming a superstar on a little show called ER, whose pilot movie was his first entry on this list.  That launched him to great film success.  2 films is my high water mark for Clooney, one which I have reached 5 different times, most recently in 2012.  Like Affleck in the future, Clooney also had the opportunity to wear the cowl and cape in 1997’s Batman & Robin, which killed off that franchise and set the stage for Christopher Nolan’s Bat franchise.  My most recent Clooney experience, which will actually bump him up to the next tier, was Gravity, which I saw earlier this year after the cutoff for this list.

Eddie Murphy

It’s hard to believe now, but at one time, Eddie Murphy was the biggest star in the land.  My first experience with him was likely Beverly Hills Cop.  7 of his films were seen before I started keeping track, so I’m not sure of when I first saw them.  Of the 7 years since that I have seen an Eddie Murphy film, 5 of them have been multiples.  It’s been over a decade since I’ve seen one of his starring perfromances, as I suffered through both Showtime and Adventures Of Pluto Nash in 2004.

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The Year In Movies – Part 2

109 different people starred in the movies I saw last year (starring in being the first two named stars, a tradition dating back to the old Chicago Tribune TV guide), and only 9 of them were in more than 1.  Those nine are:

Films Per Actor Per Year

Name Films
Jonah Hill 3
Nicolas Cage 2
George Clooney 2
Daniel Craig 2
Harrison Ford 2
Ryan Gosling 2
Chris Hemsworth 2
Sara Paxton 2
Amanda Seyfried 2

Now let’s take a look at the remaining movies that I saw in 2012, following up on Wednesday’s post.

Ghosts of Goldfield (2007)
A horrible, horrible film that I barely paid attention to.

Chronicle (2012)
A found footage film of a kid who has been bullied all of his life and acquires super powers.

Gone (2012)
When a former kidnapping victim wakes up to find her sister missing, she assumes the man from whom she escaped is the one responsible.

The Sitter (2011)
Jonah Hill is a poor-man’s Elizabeth Shue in this basic rip-off of Adventures In Babysitting.

The Darkest Hour (2011)
A quartet of Americans are stranded in Russia when aliens attack the world.

Continue reading →

by admin

The Year In Movies – Part 1

For many reasons, 2012 was an off year in movie watching for me, which may not necessarily be a bad thing.  I managed to watch only 62 movies last year, my first year under 100 since 2005 and after having averaged just over 131 movies over the past 5 years.  Many things contributed to this, chiefly my attempts to do more exercise and read more books and the insane amount of TV I’ve been watching.

Here’s a look back at the first 50 movies I did manage to watch last year and what recollection I have of them, if any.  The films are listed in the order I saw them.

Hatchet II (2010)
I remember thinking this was better than the first Hatchet film, but that isn’t exactly saying anything.

The Hangover Part II (2011)

Nowhere near as funny as the original, but still a worthwhile effort.

Changeling (2008)
Angelina Jolie’s search for her missing child.

Drive Angry (2011)
Nicolas Cage has some bills to pay, and schlock like this is how he plans on paying them.

Moneyball (2011)
One of the most controversial books in the world of baseball hits the silver screen, chronicling the new approach taken by the cash-strapped Oakland A’s to field a successful team.

’92 Skybox Alonzo Mourning Rookie Card (2011)
A short about a screw-up who sells his brother’s Alonzo Mourning rookie card.

Tanner Hall (2009)
A pre-Dragon Tattoo Rooney Mara stars in this school girl drama.

Cowboys & Aliens (2011)
A disappointing sci-fi romp through the old west.

The Rock-afire Explosion (2008)
A documentary looking at the house band of the former Showbiz Pizza.

The Hunger Games (2012)
My first trip to the movie theater this year was for this adaptation of one of the best books I had read the year before.

In Time (2011)
Justin Timberlake continues to impress as an actor.

The Avengers (2012)
Continue reading →

by admin

And The Oscar Went To

A few thoughts on the Oscar telecast before we get into my predictions from yesterday.

  • In the same week an ESPN writer is fired for using a headline that could be considered insensitive to Jeremy Lin, Billy Crystal dons black face for the Oscars.
  • There’s enough time for a special Cirque de Soleil performance, but not for the 2 nominees for Best Song?  Who says Hollywood is out of touch?
  • Emma Stone truly is lovely, isn’t she?
  • The Marty Scorsese drinking game would certainly get one drunk tonight.
  • Wait, Whitney Houston died?  Why wasn’t that in the news or something?

So, how did my predictions fare?  Out of 24 categories, I managed to get 9 correct.  Here are my predicted winners along with the actual winners. Continue reading →

by jim

And The Oscar Goes To

Tonight is the 84th annual Academy Awards.  Here are my predictions:

Best Motion Picture of the Year

The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

Of the nominated films, Moneyball is the only one I’ve seen.  I think The Artist takes home the award.  It is definitely the type of film the Academy likes to reward.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

Demián Bichir for A Better Life
George Clooney for The Descendants
Jean Dujardin for The Artist
Gary Oldman for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt for Moneyball

Again, Brad Pitt’s performance in Moneyball is the only one I’ve seen.  Clooney seems to have some momentum on his side.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role

Continue reading →