The Weekly Movie Watch Volume 56

This week I watched The Gunman, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Aguirre: The Wrath of God.

I watch movies every week and then write down my thoughts. Read my previous reviews!
My rating is simple, Watch It, It Depends, Skip it.

The Gunman- Above average Bourne clone.

The Gunman (2015)
Watch The Gunman 
Written by: Jean-Patrick Manchette (novel), Don MacPherson & Pete Travis & Sean Penn (screenplay)
Directed by: Pierre Morel
Starring: Sean Penn, Idris Elba
Rated: R

Plot:
A retired contract killer's former employer wants to kill him for what he knows.

Review:

Idris Elba got second billing and is hardly in the movie. I was disappointed. This movie is a poor, old man's Bourne movie. It misses many things Bourne got right. The beginning of this movie starts out fragmented, introducing many characters and plot points. There's a love triangle that is completely forced and Sean Penn has a medical issue that causes him to get headaches at the worst possible moments. It easily could have been cut, much like Bardem's character who came off as a cartoon. Penn looked like a cartoon with his moustache and soul patch. A soul patch is hard to pull off. Penn is still wondering how, but he loses the hair soon and the movie at least the acknowledges how ridiculous it looked. What this movie attempted to be was The Bourne Identity. It did not succeed.
Skip it.

Four Weddings and a Funeral - Lighthearted, quirky rom-com.

Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)
Watch Four Weddings and a Funeral
Written by: Richard Curtis
Directed by: Mike Newell
Starring: Hugh Grant, Andie MacDowell
Rated: R

Plot:
Hugh Grant's character falls for and chases Andie Macdowell's character over the course of, you guessed it, four weddings and a funeral.

Review:
If you like Love Actually, and I do, you will enjoy what feels like a first draft. The two movies are very similar because they're written by the same person, Richard Curtis. It's well written, and while the premise is not unique, the structure is.  We only see the main and side characters at five social gatherings, yet the characters are distinguished and developed. In this too, the supporting cast makes the movie. Too a lesser extent, it's a showcase of awkwardness and understated humor. I have a hard time liking Hugh Grant, but he doesn't ruin this movie, and the last act does a great job of creating suspense. See this movie for humorous, if not exaggerated, interactions between a group devoted to staying single. It definitely falls into rom-com territory, but feels much smarter and is better written.
It depends.

Aguirre: The Wrath of God - Minimal, low budget, yet engaging.

Aguirre: The Wrath of God (1972)
Watch Aguirre
Written by: Werner Herzog
Directed by: Werner Herzog
Starring: Klaus Kinski
Rated: --

Plot:
Aguirre leads Spanish soldiers in the search for the city of El Dorado.

Review:
It feels almost like a documentary, and it is very loosely based on a few historical facts. It's minimalist story style creates a disconnect as I feel like I'm one step removed from this movie. The imagery is amazing as we see the party navigate the jungle. The story is intriguing. Aguirre succumbs to madness as he travels further into the jungle. The movie avoids exposition, so you need to pay attention and read between the lines. The movie is not going to tell you what is going on or what to think. See this movie for an involving story, an intriguing main character, and amazing imagery in the jungle. It's a movie that is better appreciated as a class in film making then just for low level entertainment.
It depends.