Last movies you saw [Archive] - Page 6

Seth

01-22-2012, 04:59 PM

Shutter Island - 2nd time through and I'm only halfway. The film charms with is use of dream colours and the frantics. Scorsese pretty much made double metaphors out of everything in this film.

Charade - Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn. Her flutter eyes and Grant's humour make this an enjoyable romp through 1963; mock feminist fun.

Bobby Fischer Against the World - Pseudo doc on THE chessmaster. I would read up thoroughly on Fischer before taking the slant of this film. Exceptional children and the role of media. Interesting case study.

Monkey Business (1952) - Early Monroe and Grant comedy. Funny/silly
Which reminds me I never got all the way through Monkey Business (marx bros). Sooo funny.

A Night in Casablanca (1946) - This marx bros movie was pretty good. Some pretty good laughs.

Teuthida

01-31-2012, 06:57 AM

Fargo
Fine. Seemed a little weird to introduce the hero so far in. Guess she would have just been going about normal police work before things went down, being a true story and all, rather than tie in some other way.

The Fighter
Quite good. Always love Christian Bale when he's not dressed as a bat. The rest of the cast weren't half bad either.

Horrible Bosses
Not a good movie. It appeared to have potential at first but came off as disjointed. It was probably due to having watched the extended version though. Could see a bunch of things that should have been cut. Either way, a lot of the jokes fell flat for me. But hey, two cameos from The Wire.

Angrist

01-31-2012, 07:41 AM

I saw Johnny English Reborn a few weeks ago. Don't watch it, it's terrible. :( It's trying hard to be funny, but it just doesn't work.

Vampyr

02-06-2012, 10:34 AM

Saw The Chronicle over the weekend. Pretty good movie, and pleasantly short. Not a lot of filler.

KillerGremlin

02-07-2012, 05:49 AM

Fargo
Fine. Seemed a little weird to introduce the hero so far in. Guess she would have just been going about normal police work before things went down, being a true story and all, rather than tie in some other way.

Fargo is one of my favorite movies ever. As with most of the Coen brother films...it is really just a black, black comedy with some hilarious social commentary and interesting people on screen. Also, the cinematography is OUTSTANDING. There are a couple of long shots out on the highway that are just spectacular.

I'm a film and music geek...and I would put Fargo in my top 100 for sure. Easy. The music is outstanding too:

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/In15q5NkN6I" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

William H. Macy is awesome too. I love that guy.

Anywayyyyy....

Moneyball - This was really good. I think it captures the spirit of sports and why people love the game. Brad Pitt is always interesting on screen, and the guy is always eating food in his movies! I swear he talks to the directors about eating food on screen. Check this out:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/3gIaozs095k" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Brad Pitt, ALWAYS EATS FOOD IN HIS FILMS!!!!!

Rise of the Planet of the Apes - This movie did nothing for me. It didn't capture any social or racial justice like the original films, and it didn't have any particularly dark or unique twists. Other than that, it was a standard "good film." Worth seeing, probably on DVD, but I wouldn't seek it out again.

Repo Men - Terrible. This movie sucked. I think what pisses me off the most is that the ending is a carbon copy rip off of Brazil. And I'm pretty sure the "trick ending" is the only reason people are giving this movie good reviews. This is a muddled, messy, disjointed, poorly put together film that meanders, has no direction, and cannot figure out if it is Blade or some dark dystopian social commentary. Avoid this piece of crap and just go watch Brazil which is a much more interesting and funny film.

How can you NOT want to watch a movie which features this soundtrack:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mu1iND6vtcE" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

But yeah. Repo Men has flashes of black comedy...flashes of horror...flashes of dystopian social commentary. But it never really unifies or pulls together one theme. The ending is a ripoff and just feels like a cheap tack-on to boost the movies "intellectual chops." The cinematography is whack. You get some close up and creepy horror shots, and Matrix/Blade style action shots. Really, just avoid this piece of crap and go watch Brazil, Blade, The Matrix, and Minority Report.

So yeah. That's my movie roundup for the night.

The Germanator

02-09-2012, 10:01 AM

Attack the Block

Really fun UK horror/thriller/comedy. I think if I hadn't ever listened to a Dizzee Rascal record I wouldn't have understood what some of these kids were saying. That said, it was charming, funny, and over quickly as it should have been.

KillerGremlin

02-15-2012, 05:21 AM

Ides of March - Ryan Gosling can cum all over my face. Oh, this was a pretty good thriller too.

Paranormal Activity 3 - I guess I'm a fan of the series, I saw the first two. Number two was the most terrifying, really hitting that Poltergeist note to great effect. This movie added humor and some much needed back story involving some creepy exorcism stuff. There were a number of good gags as well, including a set piece with a bed sheet that merits renting this movie if you like horror.

[Rec] - The Spanish original that was remade as "Quarantine." Way better than the American version. There are a couple of "gross out" scenes and a scene with a kid that is compelling. The ending makes more sense as well. Sure, it isn't as dressed up in CGI or million-dollar effects, but some of the shots were actually more effective. And I always feel like a stranger when I watch a foreign film, and to me that adds a layer of unknown which creates some horror depth. I plan to just sit down and watch the series, both Spanish and American. [Rec 3] is coming out 2012!

Catfish - Profoundly interesting if you are remotely interested in human interactions (both in terms of the film's premise and in the likelihood the film itself is exaggerated or fabricated). This movie did throw a completely touching curve ball at the end, and ended on a very humble and non-judgmental note that almost pulled some heartstrings except by that point I was debating if this documentary is legit or a hoax (I have a list of like 100 reasons why this documentary did not actually happen, but I digress...). The movie negates some of the cautionary stuff that a privileged person might not have to deal with, but overall an interesting documentary.

Professor S

02-15-2012, 08:43 AM

Twilight: Breaking Uterus

As always, a hilariously cheesy, poorly written, and poor acted good time. My favorite part was the tacked out, out of nowhere climax based on a "law" that had never existed until that moment.

One good thing: I thought the effects they did for Bella withering away were very effective.

KG - Brazil is one of my favorite movies of all time. It ranks up there with the greats, and is easily the best Gilliam has ever made, followed by Tideland.

KillerGremlin

02-17-2012, 05:56 PM

I have not seen Tideland, I will have to check it out.

My favorite Gilliam films are Brazil and Twelve Monkeys. You can't forget Monty Python either. Brazil is easily one of my favorite films. It is such a memorable, bleak, and dark, dark comedy. There's also a lot going on in that film.

KillerGremlin

02-28-2012, 12:27 AM

Chronicle - I'll have to see this one again, but this may sneak into my top 5 favorite comic book movies. There was so much joy in this film, so many good special effects, and a few moments that really made me wish I could fly.

I mean, this movie captured what X-Men touched on a bit, and Spider-Man failed to capture, which is the realization of your powers, and then the implications.

And I think the movie's budget was a humble 12 to 15 million, and it looks phenomenal.

Comic nerds, go see this movie.

Jason1

02-28-2012, 08:32 PM

I just saw 50/50. GREAT MOVIE. Totally got snubbed for a best Picture Nomination.

BreakABone

02-28-2012, 11:58 PM

I just saw 50/50. GREAT MOVIE. Totally got snubbed for a best Picture Nomination.

It was a fantastic film.
And I agree

At the same time, I haven't seen a single best pic nom yet so..

KillerGremlin

03-01-2012, 04:40 AM

The Human Centipede - LOL. I had to eventually see it....the final scene was disturbing but this movie was pretty mild...minus the fucked up premise. I'm hoping the sequel is better.

BreakABone

03-01-2012, 11:13 AM

The Double- It was on Netflix. And suffers from the same issue Salt did, in which they try to make a compelling, who's bad movie.. by literally making everyone in the movie have double or triple allegiances. One twist is cool.. 2.. is a annoying.. 3 is damning... any further and its a complete mess.

Angrist

03-01-2012, 07:14 PM

Scott Pilgrim vs The World.
:D

BreakABone

03-08-2012, 11:45 PM

21 Jump Street

See this movie
So damn funny.
One of the best action comedies in a long time.

crenk

04-06-2012, 05:41 AM

Last I watch Wrath Of The Titans Movie and I like the action scenes of this movie which seems to me real

Angrist

04-08-2012, 04:33 PM

Pitch Black. I liked it, decent action movie. :) I hear The Chronicles of Riddick is better.

Bond

04-08-2012, 09:20 PM

Shame.

7/10?

Definitely stays with you.

Seth

04-09-2012, 12:30 AM

Hopefully it doesn't stay with, the same way A Dangerous Method does.

I won't be able to see Knightly in any role without her squirm-worthy Russian butchery, jaw-thrusting its intrusion into my cinematic escape. I've never seen over-acting to such a degree, requiring me to believe that her character in fact was acting the entire childhood trauma like a stubborn crackhead playing the motions of a forced rehab session. It's that bad.

The cinematography is great though, and Vigo as Freud makes me chuckle. Any depiction of Freud makes me chuckle. It's as if Cronenberg went with the idea of portraying archetypes for each character and drawing artistic merit from this cigar-every-scene idea. From the opening scene with Jung and his wife, the discontent is pushed too much and becomes an unfortunate source of supplementary melodrama. ugggggh

I love Cronenberg, and I have yet to see his earlier films such as Videodrome and Existenz but I prefer to pretend that they were all on the rye when putting this psychologists' self-pet movie premise to lens, to hard drive, to theatre and finally to my marketing-sensitive unfortunate brain.

It was quite similar to that Coco Chanel movie of recent, where the draw is spousal misadventure with the grand finale of depressing, predictable belief in the sole-inity of human experience.

I want to see Shame.

Moneyball. I really liked it. I love baseball. shit

Let the Bullets Fly - was supposed to be the best Chinese action film of the year. Didn't make it through. Probably lost the 'comedy' point through awful translation.

Teuthida

04-22-2012, 12:27 AM

Hugo
Twas alright.

Burn After Reading
Twas ok. I liked it.

Four Lions
Quite funny, and quite sad. Also has Benedict Cumberbatch looking very Ethan Hawkeish.

Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs
Way way way better than I thought it was going to be. Loved it!

Teuthida

04-28-2012, 05:15 PM

Chronicle
Really enjoyed this. Might be one of my favorite "superhero" movies. Also very Akira-esque, which was nice.

Angrist

04-30-2012, 01:07 PM

Thor.

Uhmm.... what? I don't think I got it. I'll give it a 6.5. And 1.5 of that is for Nathalie Portman.

Vampyr

04-30-2012, 07:16 PM

Thor.

Uhmm.... what? I don't think I got it. I'll give it a 6.5. And 1.5 of that is for Nathalie Portman.

What didn't you get? I thought it was a really great movie. Actually bought that one on blu-ray.

Angrist

05-01-2012, 03:39 AM

It was a weird story about 2 brothers fighting a battle on Earth. Nothing spectecular... not as a SF movie, not as an action hero movie. Just Nathalie Portman who saved the movie with her cute face.

But I'm not a comic fan, to me these heroes seem 80% silly.

Fox 6

05-01-2012, 08:28 PM

Ginkasa

05-01-2012, 11:50 PM

They're inspired by actual mythology. Based on if you want. I wouldn't say they're "taken" from that mythology. Either way, that doesn't affect the inherent silliness.

Swan

05-02-2012, 01:22 AM

Adaptation

Both Chris Cooper and Nic Cage were great in this movie, though the ending was kind of fucked up.

Angrist

05-21-2012, 03:00 PM

The Chronicles of Riddick. 6.5/10
I once heard it was better than Pitch Black. They were wrong. It tried hard to be bigger and better, but it didn't have the same impact as the first movie.

21 8/10
Awesome movie. I know nothing of Blackjack, but I don't think that made this movie any worse. If only I could make lots of money with any of my skills.

Contagion 7/10
I liked Outbreak better. Some of the roles were pretty boring (Matt Damon). It wasn't quite as close to the actual drama as I think would have worked best.
Oh and I can't help but think this movie was based on the web game Pandemic.

In Time 7/10
Nice concept, but the movie was too full of clichés. Also, the ghetto in the French futuristic movie Banlieu 13 Ultimatum is so much better! Go watch that movie by the way, it has everything you like.

(I needed a break from Starcraft 2 so I watched lots of movies last week. :D)

BreakABone

05-31-2012, 07:35 PM

Snow White and the Huntsmen
6/10

The plot was decent. Chris Hemsworth was the star of the film. I don't like Kirsten Stewart as an actress.. she always seems confused and lost. Theron is an awesome villain, though a bit over the top at times.

Really dug the music and some beautiful backdrops

Vampyr

05-31-2012, 07:55 PM

You gotta admit, she looks pretty awesome here:

http://ll-media.extratv.com/archive/images/news/0928/kristen-stewart.jpg

BreakABone

05-31-2012, 08:35 PM

Yeah if picking between the Wicked Witch and Snow White.. Going Wicked Witch!

http://cdn02.cdn.justjared.com/wp-content/uploads/headlines/2012/05/kristen-stewart-charlize-theron-snow-white-stills.jpg

Teuthida

06-05-2012, 10:40 AM

Bridesmaids
Enjoyed it for the most part. Some scenes felt like they went onto long and it's always awkward when characters laugh at their own jokes. Megan was the standout character.

Superman Vs. The Elite
Based on the single issue comic What's So Fun About Truth, Justice and The American Way? Was adapted by the original writer (Joe Kelly, who is never not awesome) so that was nice. Expanded upon the comic a bunch whereas most of these movies based on comics tend to condense 6-12 issues into a movie and usually feel crammed and oddly paced. Made me nostalgic for the Superman animated series. Had a similar feel...from Superman himself at least. The banter between him and Lois was great. The animation style is a bit...cartoonier than the other movies. I like it but saw most folks put off by it from the stills and trailer (http://youtu.be/hXUu91JrpzA). Think they might have done that since this is probably the most violent of the movies. The English slang felt a bit odd, and hearing Superman say "wanker" was really weird. Overall a solid and enjoyable movie. Also, LOVED the intro credits.

Teuthida

06-05-2012, 07:44 PM

Men In Black III
It felt so good to be back in this world. Oh how I missed J and K. There are some possible plotholes and I wish there were more aliens not in human suits but overall a good (and heartwarming) time. Josh Brolin does a great Tommy Lee Jones.

Angrist

06-20-2012, 06:31 PM

Irish film week in my house (in preparation of my holiday there).

Waking Ned Devine 8/10
Great atmosphere, good characters, gorgeous music and nature.

The Wind That Shakes The Barley 8/10
Wow, I never knew the recent history of Ireland was that violent... I mean I heard stories about the IRA, but I never really fully understood what it was about. Very intense movie with Cillian Murphy.

Teuthida

06-20-2012, 07:01 PM

Injured my arms so all I could do these past two weeks was watch movies/tv and read. Painful to type this up, but must keep track of movies watched.

Burke and Hare
S'ok. One of those purposefully comedic movies along the lines of those of Mel Brooks's...except not particularly funny. Reading up on the Burke and Hare murders afterwards was interesting. The movie took a lot of liberties.

Magicians
Watched all of That Mitchell and Webb Look and Peep Show which I loved so decided to check out their movie. Entertaining enough but the worst thing I've seen from them. Think it suffers from having so few scenes of the pair together.

Clue
Good time. Swore Lesley Ann Warren was Susan Sarandon until I saw the credits. Tim Curry and Michael McKean were awesome.

The Informant
Entertaining but thought it would have been better.

Lord of War
Very interesting.

Everything Must Go
Biggie Smalls's kid is a pretty good actor.

Training Day
Other than the huge coincidence with the wallet, I liked it.

Jeff, Who Lives at Home
The shaky cam with the constant zooming in bothered me at first but soon was able to ignore it. Turned out to be a decent movie. M. Night's Signs is a prerequisite.

Starter for 10
Quite the cast. Professor X, Sherlock Holmes, Mycroft Holmes, Tywin Lannister, Young Howard Stark, Young Agent O, Donna Noble, and some other recognizable faces. Fairly good coming of age type movie. Would have been even better with more Benedict Cumberbatch.

Teuthida

07-07-2012, 07:51 PM

Goon
Really enjoyed this.

The Descendants
Decent movie. Don't really get all the critical acclaim for it.

21 Jump Street
Really dumb, but pretty fun.

The Lookout
Great movie.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes
First Deep Blue Sea and now this. Does finding a cure for Alzheimer's disease always result in super intelligent animals running (or swimming) amok? Twas good. Felt like I could watch this world evolve for hours on end in order to end up as the world in Planet of The Apes. I look forward to the next one.

Angrist

07-11-2012, 10:20 AM

The Aviator 7/10
I'm never too impressed by biographies.

Blind 7/10
Dutch movie about a blind guy falling in love with an ugly girl... and then he gets his eye sight back. Interesting concept, but the girl was just way too ugly, it really makes you feel uncomfortable watching her.

Frankenstein (1994) 7/10
I hate the style, but I guess it's how they made movies 20 years ago. Cheesy lines, boring shots... But now I finally know the story of Frankenstein.

Ginkasa

07-11-2012, 11:53 PM

You didn't previously know the story of Frankenstein?

Angrist

07-12-2012, 04:42 AM

I knew it was a guy making a 'monster' out of dead people, that's all.

Seth

07-16-2012, 10:25 PM

I saw Danny Boyle's Frankenstein in Vancouver at the Scotiabank theatre, a couple of weeks ago. It's part of some National Theatre Live dealio from over there in England.

It was really good. The two stars, Benedict Cumberbatch and Johnny Lee Miller were great to see on stage. The former played Frankenstein while Miller was the monster. They reversed roles but I didn't see that one.

Gunsmoke. 20 fricken seasons. 30+ episodes each go. Seen a few now. My dad likes the westerns. James Arness does make a good marshal.

The Raid: Redemption -- It was about the same as Merantau as far as kungfu goodness. Meh, I had high expectations with all the hype.

Three Outlaw Samurai (1964) I recommend this for anyone who likes the ol samurai b&w's. Watch Harakiri 1962, they're both quite good.

London Boulevard -- This movie made up for the awfulness that was A Dangerous Method, in the Kiera Knightly aspect. It was a good tight movie with a shit ending. See it if you like British gangster flicks.

Death Sentence -- Taken was better. Still a decent revenger.

Moonrise Kingdom -0- shiiiiiiiit, this is why I was in Vancouver. Shameful theatre offerings where I'm from. This movie was awsome. I would see it again if it's still playing. This film, it's his best. Maybe not my favourite but it's hard to not like pretty much every frame. He said that he thought out the scenes based on the soundtrack that was prearranged.

Headhunters - This was a badass Norwegian suspense film. Basic plot.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy -- This is the type of movie you could just play in the background and absorb moments of retrofit Oldman being awesomely casual about his spying. The kind of movie that needs to be made more often.

Angrist

07-22-2012, 02:42 PM

Black Book (Zwartboek). 8/10.
A Dutch movie about the resistance in WWII. It stars Carice van Houten, I think she plays the Red Priestess or something in Game of Thrones.
It's not often that I like a war movie... or a Dutch movie.

Teuthida

07-22-2012, 08:06 PM

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
The Girl who Played With Fire
The Girl who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
I watched the extended versions of all of these which were broken down into six "episodes." The first movie was good but a bit long. That might have been due to the extended bit. The 2nd and 3rd movies felt like tv shows rather than movies. Especially the last one. They had a different director than the first which probably played a large role in that. But they also removed the best element of the first one which was Blomkvist and Lisbeth's scenes together. Also rather than Lisbeth being a side character, they made her the focus which kind of was...blah.

Everything is Illuminated
Very good. Heard the book is much better though (isn't it always the way) but tempted to read it.

Megamind
Such a great take on the Superman/Lex Luthor relationship. Worth watching for the intro only. Really fun and quite heartwarming.

Timecrimes
Oh man, this was awesome. Loved it. Like an easy to understand Primer. One of the best time travel movies. Love how self contained it is.

Extraterrestrial
From the same writer/director as above. This is more a romantic dramedy that just so happens to have an alien invasion as a backdrop. I enjoyed it a good deal.

Zero Effect
Had just rewatched (I almost never rewatch movies) Kiss Kiss Bang Bang so was in the mood for another director flick. This has Bill Pullman as the world's greatest detective, and Ben Stiller as his assistant who does all the legwork, since Zero (Pullman) hardly ever leaves his apartment and never interacts with the clients...at least not as himself. Decent movie. Would actually love a sequel. The characters really grew on me by the end.

Professor S

07-22-2012, 10:55 PM

Lockout

Fucking terrible. I mean really, really bad. Every line is a cliche. This is Sylvester Stallone in Cobra bad.

BreakABone

07-23-2012, 12:11 AM

Lockout

Fucking terrible. I mean really, really bad. Every line is a cliche. This is Sylvester Stallone in Cobra bad.

Tell me more...

And has anyone mentioned anything about your Happy Ending sig?

Angrist

07-24-2012, 05:58 PM

10 Things I Hate About You. 9/10.
Man I love this movie, more than I realized the first time. It might be in my top 10... I'm just a sucker for strong girls like that.

Edit: Alatriste. 7/10.
Pretty good Spanish movie with Viggo Mortensen. Takes places around 1630, when the Spanish empire apparently fell apart.

Professor S

07-25-2012, 06:48 PM

Tell me more...

And has anyone mentioned anything about your Happy Ending sig?

No and no. :D

Swan

07-27-2012, 11:50 PM

Lockout

Fucking terrible. I mean really, really bad. Every line is a cliche. This is Sylvester Stallone in Cobra bad.

I disagree completely. CG was shit but was an awesome, cliche action flick. Creative deaths too

Ginkasa

07-30-2012, 01:06 AM

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Extended Edition. I've seen it before, of course, but its been a few years. TTT was always my least favorite of both the books (I always have to force my way through it; I've actually been "in the middle" of reading it for a few months now) and the movies, but it almost seemed like a mess coming in to it for the first time in so long. There didn't really seem to be precise purpose to the film itself, other than get to Return of the King.

The Rohan plot is fine and is the best of the movie and the book. It feels like a "side quest," but the characters and situation is interesting and the Battle of Helm's Deep is, well, a cool battle. The Ents are cool and they serve a necessary purpose to the plot, but, again, it just feels like a side story until they actually take down Saruman (spoiler alert). Frodo and Sam's story is dullsville even though its really "Plot A."

Anyway, the movie is entertaining enough. It just seems like a bit of a mess. Directionless. Its better than the book, though (at least, better than "Book 4" of "The Two Towers" being the second volume of The Lord of the Rings; "Book 3" is fine).-

Angrist

07-31-2012, 03:21 PM

A Time To Kill. 7/10.
Because it was such a long time since I got this movie, I had no idea what it was about. I thought it was some revengy action movie. It turned out to be a pretty good law/racism movie.

Teuthida

10-06-2012, 12:32 AM

Rescue Dawn - Steve Zahn was great.

Limitless - Cool concept.

Bronson - S'ok. Went in with too high expectations I think.

Castaway On The Moon - Loved this movie. A man tries to commit suicide by jumping off a bridge and ends up stranded on a island in the middle of the city where the only one who knows he's there is a shut-in girl who watches him from her apartment window.

Detective Dee And The Mystery Of The Phantom Flame - OK. Another I one I went in with high expectations. The deer fight did not disappoint at least.

Hunger Games This was an interesting one. I read the books so the movie ended up being a nice companion piece. Pretty much a direct adaptation action wise, but a lot is missing without Katniss's inner monologue. I wonder if things were clear if watched without reading the book.

Dark Man - Not good. Felt sort of like a Batman movie without Batman. Danny Elfman's music helped in that regard.

Hot Rod - Enjoyed it more than I thought I would.

Cry-Baby - Great movie. Love Hatchet-Face.

The Dark Knight Returns Part 1 - One of the best of the DC Animated movies, and I didn't really care for the comic it's based on. Usually I won't like at least one voice actor's portrayal in one of these, but this movie was pretty much flawless. And Michael Emerson as the Joker in Part 2. Can't wait.

Bernie - Ehhh. Kind of boring. The townsfolk interviews were the most interesting part.

Snow White & The Huntsman - Very pretty. Creepy fairies.

50/50 - Twas good.

Prometheus - Great looking movie. Everything else... Such a good setup and then blahhhhhhh. Does everything Damon Lindelof write start out great and then ends up as a mess? Michael Fassbender was awesome though.

The Cabin in the Woods - Such a fun movie. A little disappointed the god didn't turn out to be Cthulhu or at least something with tentacles. And so many monsters. Not a horror fan but I love me some monsters.

Angrist

10-06-2012, 05:37 AM

Shawn of the Dead 7/10
Pretty fun.

The Way Back 7/10
Survival movies are almost always fascinating.

Underworld: Awakening 7/10
It's got vampires, werewolves, a good looking woman and a decent story.

Watching The A-Team right now, so far I'll give it 7/10 as well. Just a decent action movie.

Edit: Oh, PROMETHEUS! Haha I saw that as well, what a joke.

So inspired by Prometheus, Disney has announced they are working on a prequel to Mickey Mouse. It takes place in medieval times, Mickey himself is only in the movie for 10 seconds and they hired a bunch of cheap actors for random roles.
Oh and it turns out that Pluto isn't a dog but a guy in a suit! It's going to be the movie of the decennium.

Seth

11-08-2012, 01:57 PM

Prometheus - ugghh

Warrior - Good fight culture movie. Dad and son conflict got a little drab.

Lawless - Wow Tom Hardy! Loved this movie.

Moonrise Kingdom - Seen it three times now. Typically, like every other Anderson film I'm enjoying the minute details and work on the exterior of every scene. The frame edges hold a lot of interesting prop elements that are very difficult to absorb in the first viewing. Everyone needs to see this movie.

Angrist

11-08-2012, 05:11 PM

Never Let Me Go 7.5/10.
Woah the background story was unexpected.

Persepolis 8/10.
Stylish black and white cartoon about the recent history of Iran. Impressive.

Patlabor 6.5/10.
Average anime, comparable to Ghost in the Shell but worse.

Back to the Future 1 & 2 (3 coming soon). 8.5/10.
I'd seen them multiple times already, just not recently. They're still great movies.

Some other movies that I forgot about.

Teuthida

11-16-2012, 02:58 AM

Highlander
I know the sequels are suppose to suck but if this was the best of the bunch, they must really be horrid.

Brave
So pretty, but also so done before. And it's not even the first time with a bear either. Loved the world and characters. Just wish it had a more original story.

The Amazing Spider-man
The scenes themselves were decent overall, especially those with Peter and Gwen. (Marc Webb knows his romantic comedy.) But it felt very disjointed. I saw the doorman scene before seeing the movie...which was not actually in the movie. I wonder how much else was cut that could have bridged a lot of the gaps.

Alien
Great. And again wish the cut scene (with the egg creation) was in the movie. Disturbingly good. The crew was much more believable than that of Prometheus.

Aliens
Fun but not as good as the first.

The Dark Knight Rises
The good news: Batman's voice didn't bother me nearly as much as in the previous film. The bad: Bane's voice. He sounded like Boris Kropotkin from Rugrats. I kept expecting him to say "In the old country..." The movie as a whole: Meh? I'm glad it's over. I look forward to Nolan making better movies (I enjoyed everything he's done outside of this trilogy) and someone else doing a Batman I like...or at least tolerate.

Vampyr

11-17-2012, 08:10 PM

Saw Lincoln tonight. It's...one of the best movies I've ever seen.

Angrist

11-18-2012, 03:43 AM

That's not the vampire movie, is it?

Vampyr

11-18-2012, 09:34 AM

That's not the vampire movie, is it?

Heh, no.

BreakABone

11-20-2012, 06:30 PM

Watched Payback.. some meh film noir type deal with Mel Gibson.

Fairly by the book revenge flick with lackluster characters

Seth

11-22-2012, 01:49 PM

Looper - Good time travel flick.

Seven Psychopaths - This movie took me a bit of time to get into but by the time the metafilm motif really got developed I was loving it. Great movie!

Treasure Island - Super long, direct2dvd goodness. Quite enjoyable over the course of a couple nights. Definitely long...

Teuthida

11-22-2012, 08:16 PM

Safety Not Guaranteed
Fantastic. Pretty cool to build a movie around that ad (http://timetraveler.ytmnd.com/).

Chimpanzee
David Attenborough Tim Allen is not. Really did not like the narration. And swing music. Because they swing in trees, get it?! Sighs. The anthropomorphism was overdone. It's very much a kids movie. Would have much preferred it to be silent. The animal footage was quite nice by itself. I found the short bit with the film makers during the credits to be the most interesting part.

Made me really want to see a nature show sort of like that of the honey badger where the narrator increasingly goes off script.

Combine 017

11-22-2012, 08:59 PM

Go watch some Life, that will make you feel better.

Angrist

11-23-2012, 03:12 PM

The New World. 7/10.
Such a slow movie. I see what they were going for, but it didn't really work. The actress that played Pocahontas really saved this movie. Wow, what a gorgeous and cute girl.

Edit:
Saw The Dark Knight Returns. I'll give it a 6/10 because I didn't fall asleep this time.
What a messy movie. Random plot twists with a huge Deus Ex Machina at the end. I guess they were trying to make the 3rd movie the biggest yet in terms of villainous acts... and they were willing to sacrifice everything for that. I still don't get what people (mostly Americans from what I see) see in TDK/TDKR.
Oh and yes, Bane's voice was laughable. Or utterly annoying, I can't really decide.

BreakABone

11-24-2012, 03:36 PM

Angrist

11-25-2012, 02:52 AM

Teuthida

11-25-2012, 06:37 AM

http://media.comicbookmovie.com/images/users/uploads/8073/geQ_jhxQp9Y.jpg

Really?

BreakABone

11-25-2012, 11:05 AM

Oh come on, that villain behind the curtains at the end? That was totally random. That's just a plot twist for the sake of a plot twist. They might as well have revealed that his butler was actually his father, or that Bane was actually Batman's shizo alterego.

is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem is suddenly and abruptly solved with the contrived and unexpected intervention of some new event, character, ability, or object

Perhaps because I know the character, but Tate being Talia.. didn't seem out of the blue. The film does drop hints at her not being on the up and up at times.

*Shrugs*

Vampyr

11-25-2012, 04:15 PM

Yeah, I enjoyed that plot twist.

Also I don't think that's deus ex machina anyway. Deus ex machina is when some previously unmentioned event or piece of technology saves everyone at the last second.

It would be like if the bat plane hadn't been mentioned the entire movie, then suddenly Bruce had a bat-plane right when he needed it.

Angrist

11-25-2012, 04:27 PM

Vampyr

11-25-2012, 04:58 PM

Well, the google definition is:

Noun:
An unexpected power or event saving a hopeless situation, esp. as a plot device in a play or novel.

Angrist

11-25-2012, 05:21 PM

Oh well, whatever we call it, the movie was full of it.

And why are these villains so retarded?
- Some woman wants to blow up the whole city.... but she gives her enemies enough time to stop her.
- They trap all the city's police men underground for 3 months... but they keep them so well fed, shaved and trained that they're ready to fight when they get out.
- They carry guns, but don't know how to use them. But where's the fun in a gun if you can just get knocked out in hand2hand combat? Again: gotta give those good guys a chance!

I know that's the case in basically every action (hero) movie, but I've never seen it so frustating as in this movie.
Anyway, I better stop now, because I know there are a lot of TDK fans here and I don't want to annoy anyone.

Seth

11-26-2012, 12:42 PM

No Angrist, you are not alone in your sentiments.

It was probably the most squeamish/irritated/embarrassed moment I have ever experienced when the trapped cops got out to fight the baddies. It was so intolerably awful that I could only laugh.

Inexcusable is the right word to use.

The production value and use of scene development was top notch however. Nolan is an amazing director in terms of giving a shit about the blockbuster genre. He actually puts the effort in and I appreciate that much.

I do regret supporting it at the box office though.

The whole social commentary thing that carried over from TDK and the terrorist element has become a hoary excuse to shape the perceptions of kids a whole lot younger than us who don't have the full capacity to segment this type of fiction appropriately.

I'm interested in seeing Killing Them Softly because it sounds like 'extreme violence' being used as a metaphor-device, commenting on the post-bailout America in terms of repercussions. Capitalist 'look out for yourself' resulting in the further shredding of social fabric. Or, it's just a violence gappa that drew Pitt in with a paycheck?

BreakABone

11-26-2012, 03:23 PM

The original term deus ex machina comes from Greek theatre. Whenever the plot was at a dead point or the writers couldn't come up with anything interesting, they'd introduce a God (deus) that suddenly changed something. They lowered him onto the stage with a crane (machina).

So the term deus ex machina can apply to persons, story elements, plot twists, etc.
Think of somebody returning to the screen, even though you watched him die in one episode. Or a bit of extra info that changes the whole story. Random stuff like that.
Or a love interest suddenly turning out to be the daughter of your arch enemy.

The auto pilot of the Bat (hey, I remembered the name!) turning out to have worked all along, even though you saw Batman sitting in the Bat when he flew out to sea is another good example.

Anyway, that's what I was taught what deus ex machina means.

The Bat is another element that they build up throughout the course of the film.
And even give the audience a hint, hint, wink wink at Bruce being able to fix it.

I believe Lucious says something like a smarter mind.. or a less busy mind would be able to fix it
During the closing montage, you learn that Bruce pretty much fixed the autopilot as soon as he got The Bat

The bigger complaint would be WHEN did he exit the Bat exactly.

- Some woman wants to blow up the whole city.... but she gives her enemies enough time to stop her.
I assume you mean the climax?
During the entire film, Bane beats it over the audience's head that he isn't blowing up the bomb right away because he wants to give people "hope" So it's a city-wide torture of sorts.

- They trap all the city's police men underground for 3 months... but they keep them so well fed, shaved and trained that they're ready to fight when they get out.
This I agree with you.. Odd that they were in good fighting shape and spirits after spending 3 months underground..
Would imagine their vision has to be a bit screwy as well.

Vampyr

11-26-2012, 03:44 PM

I assume you mean the climax?
During the entire film, Bane beats it over the audience's head that he isn't blowing up the bomb right away because he wants to give people "hope" So it's a city-wide torture of sorts.

It's not about blowing things up...it's about sending a message. ;)

This I agree with you.. Odd that they were in good fighting shape and spirits after spending 3 months underground..
Would imagine their vision has to be a bit screwy as well.

These are the kinds of things I never think of while watching a movie, or ever seem to care about.

BreakABone

11-26-2012, 06:16 PM

It's not about blowing things up...it's about sending a message. ;)

These are the kinds of things I never think of while watching a movie, or ever seem to care about.

I don't either.
It's only a problem if it actively pulls me out of the experience.
In this case, it pulled Angrist out of the experience, which I guess is fair.

Seth

11-27-2012, 01:05 PM

I don't either.
It's only a problem if it actively pulls me out of the experience.
In this case, it pulled Angrist out of the experience, which I guess is fair.

Quite fair. Watching the cops charge automatic rifles like they're 4th century Spartans should elicit some cringe from even the most audacious-escapiers in the audience.

[Argo semi-spoiler in this following paragraph]
It's like watching a movie such as, say, Argo, and then near the climatic attempt to flee the country, Affleck's character starts to Rambo-dance with all the gunmen and then grabs the two ambassador women, flings them across his shoulders respectively and continues to gun down Iranian gruntmen and then proceeds to 'get this thing off the ground' by kicking out the pilots and fullthrottling the jet without take-off clearance: all to the music of MJ's "Thriller".

Pretty much what Nolan did in TDKR with the culmination-debacle that capped off a 'realistic' conception of HIS Gotham. The pussification of Bane into a love-bound hound who's sole motivation wasn't entwined in Ras-Philosophy but instead a quest to seek revenge on the killer of his love's dadda.
pffffffff what was he smoking with this ending?

Did I miss something? Why the collective scape-goat of a city? Because it would hurt the Bat? Make him feel like a failure as protectorate?

Seems like such a social-bent hollywood-trope statement that destroyed the possibilities that a fairly well done TDK established (at least in terms of hero-adaption genre fair).

bad taste in mouth

Teuthida

11-27-2012, 01:45 PM

BreakABone

11-27-2012, 01:51 PM

The number one thing that took me out of the movie was the fire bat on the bridge. When did he even have the time to do that?

Heh. Didn't realize acting out Marion's death was a thing.

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<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NlT2TvBNSbM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/wunuDqFdmZs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/QiH9mJgGaM4" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Oh I knew about the death and really hard to ignore once you see

As for the fire bat thing. It's one of those scenes when it's value/visual outweighed the nonsensical happenstance for it.

Batman arrives back in Gotham and one of the first thing he does is create a gasoline powered Bat signal on a bridge

Which can only be triggered by police officers who have been exiled to death on the ice
He puts the flare out in such a way that there was no guarantee they wouldn't sink/drown before they made it there.

But it's a cool visual.. and serves a thematic purpose.
So I allow it.

Angrist

11-27-2012, 02:02 PM

BreakABone

11-27-2012, 02:14 PM

Batman is trying too hard to be a serious movie. If you want to make a realistic movie about super heroes, you are bound to run into trouble.

Now The Avengers went the other route and it works so much better. And when there's something unrealistic or unlogical, you just accept it because it's a movie about comic book characters.

I agree with your overall point, but I think there's a difference between grounded and realistic.

This franchise is grounded. Not necessarily realistic. You are still dealing with a clan of trained ninjas, a guy in clown make-up, a hero who dresses up as a bat, a dude who created fear gas and all that other stuff. Just set in a much more conventional world.

Teuthida

11-27-2012, 02:24 PM

I have no problem with all those things you mentioned. They're pretty toned down anyway to make them "realistic." Except it doesn't do the movies any favors by toning down the comic book elements while having unrealistic acting and grand nonsensical villainous plots. It's a weird halfway mess.

Seth

11-28-2012, 01:21 PM

KillerGremlin

11-28-2012, 03:13 PM

I thought TDKR was as much of a Nolan film as it was a Batman film.

The fact is...we've had campy and fun Batman. Batman and Batman Returns are good films...Batman Forever and Batman & Robin are not good films.

So you take the good with the bad....these new films are incredibly well done, in my opinion. And some of it is a bit over-the-top, and some of it is a bit pandering...and it's not all canon. But it works for the most part.

I thought the "fire batman symbol on the bridge" was very comic-book-esque, and that worked for me.

The cops being underground for 3 months didn't bother me. Also very comic-y, imo.

Bane's speech at the stadium was a bit over-the-top, for me. His voice was fucking perfect though. I thought Bane's personality was great.

The ending wasn't as good as the rest of the film...and fell way short of The Dark Knight...but A LOT OF MOVIES fall apart in the end. I think you could argue that Bane was sort of screwed over. I thought it was a Nolan ending, and not a "Batman" ending.

I can overlook the hokey social commentary on terrorism and conservatism and all that stuff, because who gives a shit. I go into these movies with a comic geek boner, and tend to ignore most of the social commentary unless it's relevant to beliefs I already have. These ARE violent movies, and I probably wouldn't take young kids to them.

I think there are clear tradeoffs with the Nolan franchise. On one hand, the movie isn't quite the comic experience as say: The Amazing Spider-Man, The Avengers, Hellboy, Sin City, or even Iron Man.

On the other hand...the Nolan franchise does some stuff that blows those other movies away.

This summer was good for comics. The Amazing Spider-Man had the best of both worlds....The Avengers was all comic book, and Batman was more of a Nolan movie than a comic. Between these 3 films, I think anyone can find something to like. Unless you are a dick.

Angrist

11-28-2012, 03:40 PM

The funny thing is, I never read comics (and tbh I think most of them are more silly than cool), but I loved The Avengers best.

Teuthida

11-29-2012, 09:24 AM

Teuthida

12-01-2012, 08:33 PM

Real Steel
Quite fun.

The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists!
Loved this movie. Non-stop gags. Near impossible to catch them all in one viewing. Apparently the American version (Band of Misfits) changed some of the raunchier jokes and dubbed over a few of the characters with other actors. Weird how this PG movie can offend so many. They even had to change the leper boat to the plague boat (in both versions) because some leper group complained.

Teuthida

12-04-2012, 01:25 PM

BreakABone

12-04-2012, 01:50 PM

I'm watching these, and started with the Dark Knight Rises one.

And one of these nitpicks (And that's what it is) is the most annoying one I saw bought up. No one thought anything of Batman and Bruce Wayne dying on the same day.. The movie shows that dozens of people died on the same day as well during the big climactic fight including that cop.. so it's not like it was Bruce and Batman were the only people who died. So why would anyone suspect that Bruce was Bat.. hell.. Miranda died.. and the other goon died... rich people were keeling over in Gotham.

Amazing Spiderman.. Lindsay Lohan if she had better parents.. got me good haha

Vampyr

12-04-2012, 02:55 PM

I love honest trailers.

I saw Skyfall over the weekend. It was good - one of the prettiest movies I've seen in a long time. The use of lighting, colors, and shadows was incredible and worth the ticket price alone.

There's just something about Bond movies, though, that I never enjoy them as much as I think I will. I'm not sure what it is - the basic premise of Bond is pretty straightforward and awesome sounding: suave secret agent doing action movie things.

But in practice I find I'm never quite able to relate to him. He's ruthless and brutal almost to the point of not being a hero anymore, and I find the way women fall all over him to be unrealistic to the point it's just funny.

For example, in Skyfall, when he approaches the women on the boat in the shower, and she's just like 'oh hai, sexy times nao'. First of all, it seems super risky to just get naked on a boat with enemies about. Second of all, this lady was sold into the sex trade. I doubt in reality she would be that open to having sex with a stranger.

KillerGremlin

12-04-2012, 07:28 PM

I can't think of a franchise I like more than James Bond...and all the spoofs. Austin Powers, Archer, Chuck (soooo many references crammed into Chuck), The Pink Panther, Naked Gun, Hank Scorpio and the Simpsons, No One Lives Forever (video game), Help!....

It's probably my favorite genre, just by default. Skyfall felt more like reboot/homage rather than a straight up Bond movie...and the movie's biggest fault is it sort of felt exactly like The Dark Knight during that one scene in the middle. The ending scene was great, however, and was more of a Western-style standoff than anything (Home Alone didn't do it first, people).

But in practice I find I'm never quite able to relate to him. He's ruthless and brutal almost to the point of not being a hero anymore, and I find the way women fall all over him to be unrealistic to the point it's just funny.

It's parodied well by Austin Powers, I think.

He's certainly an icon of an older time...I thought Skyfall did good in avoiding a lot of the typical Bond cliches.

The boat scene didn't cause me to pause my suspension of disbelief. I don't know...I agree with where you are coming from, but compared to say, Die Another Day, Skyfall is like real and unicorns.

BreakABone

12-04-2012, 07:34 PM

I

For example, in Skyfall, when he approaches the women on the boat in the shower, and she's just like 'oh hai, sexy times nao'. First of all, it seems super risky to just get naked on a boat with enemies about. Second of all, this lady was sold into the sex trade. I doubt in reality she would be that open to having sex with a stranger.

The second point is valid.

The first point I'm a bit confused about. I was under the impression that she was the main's villain lover.. so these weren't her enemies. They were her protection.

Vampyr

12-04-2012, 09:08 PM

The second point is valid.

The first point I'm a bit confused about. I was under the impression that she was the main's villain lover.. so these weren't her enemies. They were her protection.

I mean they were his enemies, and he was in a very compromising position. XD

I've actually not seen very many Bond movies...just Goldeneye, Casino Royale, and Skyfall. I really want to like them more - the premise is awesome.

It's also worth mentioning I didn't have a very good theater experience during Skyfall...there were a couple of women a few seats down who wouldn't shut up. Ugh.

I want to watch it again when it comes out on blu ray.

BreakABone

12-04-2012, 10:28 PM

I mean they were his enemies, and he was in a very compromising position. XD

I've actually not seen very many Bond movies...just Goldeneye, Casino Royale, and Skyfall. I really want to like them more - the premise is awesome.

It's also worth mentioning I didn't have a very good theater experience during Skyfall...there were a couple of women a few seats down who wouldn't shut up. Ugh.

I want to watch it again when it comes out on blu ray.

But they didn't know he was on-board when he made nasty.

Vampyr

12-04-2012, 10:58 PM

But they didn't know he was on-board when he made nasty.

She was in the shower on the boat, right?

edit: I think I initially read your response wrong, but I can't remember what I thought you said, now.

But anyway, I just imagine some guy comes in to ask her something: "What the heck, who is this?"

KillerGremlin

12-05-2012, 06:06 PM

I've actually not seen very many Bond movies...just Goldeneye, Casino Royale, and Skyfall. I really want to like them more - the premise is awesome.

Allow me to vajazzle your Netflix queue with my recommendations of must watch Bond films.

Essential Bond Viewing:

Dr. No

From Russia With Love

Goldfinger

You Only Live Twice

Live and Let Die

The Spy Who Loved Me

The Man with the Golden Gun

The Living Daylights

Goldeneye

Semi-essential:

On Her Majesty's Secret Service

A View To Kill

Licence to Kill

The World Is Not Enough

And of course...all the new films are essential viewing...with Quantum being the sort of so-so film.

BreakABone

12-05-2012, 06:10 PM

Allow me to vajazzle your Netflix queue with my recommendations of must watch Bond films.

Essential Bond Viewing:

Dr. No

From Russia With Love

Goldfinger

You Only Live Twice

Live and Let Die

The Man with the Golden Gun

The Living Daylights

Goldeneye

Semi-essential:

On Her Majesty's Secret Service

A View To A Kill

Licence to Kill

The World Is Not Enough

And of course...all the new films are essential viewing...with Quantum being the sort of so-so film.

Disagree with a lot of this list

I wouldn't call Live and Let Die, You Only Live twice and ESPECIALLY Man with the Golden Gun as essential Bond films. TMWGG is my 4th least favorite Bond film. It's so dull!

I would personally bump License to Kill and On Her Majesty's Secret Service to must watch. And For Your Eyes Only would go into semi-essential.

KillerGremlin

12-05-2012, 06:15 PM

Disagree with a lot of this list

I wouldn't call Live and Let Die, You Only Live twice and ESPECIALLY Man with the Golden Gun as essential Bond films. TMWGG is my 4th least favorite Bond film. It's so dull!

I would personally bump License to Kill and On Her Majesty's Secret Service to must watch. And For Your Eyes Only would go into semi-essential.

I added The Spy Who Loved Me.

Live and Let Die is a personal favorite of mine...from the theme song, to the car and boat chase, to the awkward and cheesy race relations. I think it's a fun film. Plus...Baron Samedi.

You Only Live Twice is -- in my opinion -- underrated. Plus, the end is what gets parodied in the Simpsons, making it semi-essential nerd viewing. Plus I love the theme song again, and the gimmick (Bond dying) is good. I thought Skyfall sort of revisited some of the themes.

Man With The Golden Gun is perhaps a dull film...I just like Christopher Lee. Plus, it establishes the Golden Gun mythos.

I like OHMSS...I don't know how essential it is, just because it was in a lot of ways a one-off. The constant actor changes with Blofeld is annoying, imo.

BreakABone

12-05-2012, 06:19 PM

I added The Spy Who Loved Me.

Live and Let Die is a personal favorite of mine...from the theme song, to the car and boat chase, to the awkward and cheesy race relations. I think it's a fun film. Plus...Baron Samedi.

You Only Live Twice is -- in my opinion -- underrated. Plus, the end is what gets parodied in the Simpsons, making it semi-essential nerd viewing. Plus I love the theme song again, and the gimmick (Bond dying) is good. I thought Skyfall sort of revisited some of the themes.

Man With The Golden Gun is perhaps a dull film...I just like Christopher Lee. Plus, it establishes the Golden Gun mythos.

I like OHMSS...I don't know how essential it is, just because it was in a lot of ways a one-off. The constant actor changes with Blofeld is annoying, imo.

I also like The Spy Who Loved Me, but if I was to recommend a single Moore film, it would be for Your Eyes Only.

I think Live and Let Die is a fun film as well. Great score. And yeah, the whole racial thing is just bizarre to watch now, but makes for a very unique setting/villains for the franchise thus far.

YOLT.. is iffy.. it has a lot of goofy elements that I love.. the jet pack, Little Nellie, the lair in a volcano, the ninjas and the likes.. but we shall say it's more near the top middle for me.

I can't in good faith ever recommend the Man with a Golden Gun to anyone!

And I love OHMSS because it's one off.. it feels so vastly different from the entire franchise, partially because of that and how toned down it is.

KillerGremlin

12-05-2012, 06:25 PM

Yeah, OHMSS is an interesting film...I would say I definitely recommend it, but it gets sort of lost as "canon."

I think everyone can agree that Dr. No -> From Russian -> Goldfinger are essential....after that, things get crazy.

Best Bond villain? Now that's a question for the nerds.

BreakABone

12-05-2012, 06:32 PM

KillerGremlin

12-05-2012, 06:37 PM

Vampyr

12-05-2012, 08:56 PM

Silva was great...but the whole part where Silva gets captured, and pulls out his teeth...and all that stuff.

It really reminded me of the Dark Knight and the scene with the Joker, when he is in the jail, and the guy has the phone inside him....

I thought the scene on the island was fucking perfect, and the stuff at the end with the Scottish house was fucking perfect. That whole mid-section was also really good, but yeah. It reminded me of the Dark Knight.

It's not a bad thing...I'm just not sure how I feel about it.

Silva was indeed amazing - probably the best part of the movie. He owned every scene he was in. There were a ton of great moments though - I'm looking forward to seeing it again at home...I think the loud people at the theater tainted it a bit for me.

The only thing I don't like, when it comes down to it, is how dull Bond actually is in this movie. He probably experiences the least amount of character development. He's depressed almost the whole time, and doesn't really speak much. It's not Daniel Craig's fault - he's a great actor, it's just how the character was written in this movie.

I think in the next one if they combine the bad assery of Craig's Bond with the charm of Pierce Brosnan's, it would be perfect. I just want to like Bond the character a little more than I do, and be able to relate to him.

Seth

12-05-2012, 10:01 PM

I really enjoyed OHMSS as well. I watched it around the time that my buddy and I were playing No One Lives Forever 2.

Spoilers? who hasn't seen it yet though>>

Skyfall was sooo pretty. It culminated so well with the scottish homestead setting. agghh I'll probably go see it again because I enjoyed it that much. I really enjoyed the nostalgia comment that the ride with M signified, as well as the improv fight at his family's estate.

The opening for the movie fell short due to lack of thematic congruence. We were presented with the different set pieces of the film, like a chronological story board and I felt it was inappropriate in terms of Bond openings. The song was nice enough but it just didn't feel right.

I hear you Vampyr on the flat, depressed bond. It kind of makes sence in relation to quantum of solace and the idea that the service hasn't exactly been kind to him.

Something about the opening train-action scene was off. Maybe after watching the Great Train Robbery where Connery literally risked his life, ducking tunnels and all, it made the camera cut back and fight scene style not as grand.. I mean, they biked across the rooftop of the bazaar and it ended with a rather poor cinematography/director choice.
All in all the cinematography was soooo amazing.

KillerGremlin

12-20-2012, 12:59 PM

I've been doing a lot of renters lately...lots of movies that I just didn't feel were worth the admission price in theaters.

Ted - This movie was dumb as hell, but it had a few hilarious moments...namely the darker kidnapping stuff. Seth MacFarlane isn't funny. I'm sorry. The glory days of Family Guy are long past...and the glue holding this crappy B-comedy together is Marky Mark and Mila Kunis. I laughed, it was cute...I have no desire to watch this again.

Also, Mila Kunis has come a long way since That 70's Show.

Savages - I don't get this movie...because it's awful. It's a movie about two "bros" who like to surf, live in Orange County, and smoke lots of weed. One happens to be a veteran who served in Afghanistan, the other is a peace-loving-Buddhist-douche bag. Somehow, they grow a massive marijuana empire, and the Mexican cartel tries to buy them up.

The movie centers around "Ophelia," played by Blake Lively. Apparently she is on the Disney Channel. Blake Lively is getting double-reamed and DPed by the two bros, although the movie only hints at it.

She gets kidnapped or something...and then shit happens. It's all violent but feels as limp as a tween drama. This shit has to be marketed for the 14-18 demographic.

There's ONE scene that's kind of creepy and cool...with Salma Hayek and Blake Lively...otherwise the rest largely drags. Benecio Del Toro is awesome, as always, but meh. Even he can't save this mess.

The biggest slap in the face (aside from the two bros...chica chica) is the ending. This movie has two endings: an okay ending, and a phoned in Hollywood ending.

My only question is: Oliver Stone, is this entire movie some REALLY meta satire? Is this just a giant "fuck you" to everyone? If so, then this movie is a brilliant farce.

The Germanator

12-26-2012, 04:27 PM

The Cabin in the Woods

This was pretty fun. I always like a good horror movie that messes with the boundaries a bit. You can't say too much about this without spoiling the general idea of it, but it does a pretty amazing job balance a meta-ness without being too annoying.

Teuthida

12-29-2012, 10:13 PM

The Other Guys
Pretty fun. Nice educational end credits.

Looper
Quite liked this, but JGL's makeup looked ridiculous a lot of the time. Also did not expect it to go all Akira at the end. But that was a damn good actor for a kid so young.

Sleepwalk with Me
Great movie. Funny and thought provoking.

Dredd
Wow, that ended up being way better than I expected. I can't find any faults with it. Quite pretty as well. And for once slow motion in an action movie actually makes sense and is integral to the story. It did feel like I was watching a video game at times with that gun of his. Not a bad thing though.
Plus the OST is AWESOME.

Fox 6

12-30-2012, 02:31 PM

Django Unchained.

Loved it. Tarantino at his best.

KillerGremlin

01-02-2013, 12:10 PM

The Cabin in the Woods

I enjoyed this one too...and would definitely recommend. There's some stuff in Cabin in the Woods where I was like, "holy shit! that's brilliant!"

Looper was pretty darn good, albeit it kind of heavy-handed and depressing. I think Looper did a good job providing a cohesive story from the two character's vantage points. The movie was well made, minus some nitpicking about time travel paradoxes.

Django Unchained.

Loved it. Tarantino at his best.

I enjoyed Django quite a bit...but I'm not sure if it's my favorite Tarantino movie. It got a bit long at the end, but maybe I was just tired.

DiCaprio plays a total scumbag in that movie. He did a really good job.

Angrist

01-02-2013, 03:51 PM

Watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy with friends. Yesterday 1, Friday 2, Monday 3! I forgot how good the movies were, it's been 4 years since I've seen them. :)

We actually wanted to do a marathon and watch all 3 on 1 day. But nobody was available on the same day... and now we're kind of glad we weren't. Even 1 movie (extended edition) is a long sit!

BreakABone

01-02-2013, 04:32 PM

Vampyr

01-02-2013, 07:41 PM

I just put LotR in all the time and have it on in the background. One of my favorite movies to just have going.

http://art.penny-arcade.com/photos/i-9VJDzWB/0/950x10000/i-9VJDzWB-950x10000.jpg

Teuthida

01-02-2013, 07:51 PM

I've seen LoTR...once. Same with most movies.

John Dies At The End
Sadly this was a bit disappointing. I enjoyed the book a good deal but the movies left out more than half of the story. There really wasn't anyway to include it all I guess...but still, wasn't enough there.

KillerGremlin

01-03-2013, 12:29 AM

I don't think Lord of the Rings has aged as well as I remember the experience for the first time in the theaters.

At some point...I need to sit down and rewatch the trilogy, along with Star Wars. I knocked out Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, and Back to the Future a few months ago. Along with the Alien "Quadrilogy" in anticipation for Prometheus.

I should probably do Die Hard as well, in anticipation for the new Die Hard movie...which looks really dumb. But Live Free or Die Hard was okay, so I can't be too cynical.

I still haven't seen The Hobbit and I'm kind of putting it off. The playoffs are going to keep me out of the theater, methinks. And Django was a 3 hour movie...so yeah.

There's a lot of potential renters our right now. I don't particularly give a fuck about Les Miserables, but I'm sure it's good. RENT. Jack Reacher looks stupid, but I bet it's fun if you just want to get drunk and eat popcorn. RENT. This is 40 just looks depressing, I don't even know if I want to rent that shit. I have absolutely no desire to see Lincoln...I'd rather just history channel the real shit. Jim from The Office and Matttttt Dammmmon are definitely pulling for RENT with Promise Land. Parental Guidance is a reminder that Billy Crystal needs to go get more botox and then retire. What a washed up, unfunny, actor.

I still need to rent Paranormal 4 so I can be like, "why?"

And even though "A Huanted House" and "Texas Chainsaw 3D" both look pretty bad...they look bad in a good way. Like...I get to eat popcorn, turn my brain off, and laugh. So I may catch those flix in the theater.

Gangster Squad has to be decent with the cast it has, right? That movie has been hyped up like crazy...I'm hoping it's more gritty than the previews are leading on, and that there is more gangster grit than Ryan Gosling "come hither" moments and finger banging. We get it, Emma Stone and Gosling are hot.

Oh...and I still need to see Hitchcock. Probably a renter in that one too.

It's not a bad time for movies, which is bad, because it's not a bad time for TV shows either. Tooooo much to watch.

Angrist

01-03-2013, 04:44 PM

Seriously, go watch The Hobbit in HFR while you still can. It takes some minutes to get used to, but it's so pretty!

Angrist

01-05-2013, 03:16 PM

We saw The Two Towers yesterday. I was a bit underwhelmed. It always was the worst of the 3 for me, but I thought that was because it has beginning nor ending. And I figured the books don't have much going on either...

Now I realized it's partly because it's not filmed that well. They tried to add a lot of dramatic stuff, like Aragorn falling off the cliff, Éowyn falling in love with him, the Ents deciding not to go to war, Faramir thinking of taking the Ring... but I feel most of those changes are for the worse.

I'm really really looking forward to finally reading the books again. I read them twice when I was 16/17, but not since. So that's 12 years ago!

Vampyr

01-06-2013, 10:19 AM

I'm currently reading Fellowship right now, they just got to Bree and are with Strider.

Angrist

01-06-2013, 04:02 PM

Teuthida

01-06-2013, 07:18 PM

Tower Heist
Fun movie, though towards the end you have to disregard your knowledge of physics and the density of certain elements to keep up the enjoyment factor. Some other plotholey things as well. Never felt bored though. That's a plus. Hmm, and Ben Stiller's NY accent was a bit overdone at times.

Alien 3 (Assembly Cut)
I never saw the theatrical release so I can't comment on this being the worst of the franchise. I rather enjoyed the assembly cut. Prefer it to Aliens. The one problem is the alien didn't blend with the background as well as it could. Still, the best looking of the xenomorphs in the way it moved. The supporting cast was all great as well.

Vampyr

01-06-2013, 09:55 PM

Awesome. When I was 17, I dreamed of reading LotR when in Ireland. Rain pouring down while you're warm inside with the book.

I might start reading the book really really fast... but I guess I should finish NSMBU and Nintendo Land first.

NSMBU is a trying experience. It's very good, and very difficult. I just can't bring myself to play it for long periods of time. I feel like once I pass a peak of how good I am at the game, I have to take a break for a while or I'll just die over and over.

Also I hate the ghost mansions. Never any idea where I'm going.

Angrist

01-07-2013, 04:11 AM

Yeah same here, I've been playing it from time to time. It's a great game, but it's hard to get through. Which is good I guess.

Teuthida

01-09-2013, 12:58 AM

Alien: Resurrection
And with that I've finished all the Alien movies (not including the AvPs). The xenomorphs looked awesome swimming. In fact other than the stupid cgi bug in the first couple of seconds of the movie, the sfx were very well done. Beyond that, it not a good movie. Felt like a parody of those that came before it.

Angrist

01-09-2013, 11:54 AM

I recommend AvP2, much better than half of the Alien/Prometheus movies.

Teuthida

01-12-2013, 10:02 PM

Ah, I did see the first AvP though my memory of it is hazy. One of the criticisms for the sequel is bad lighting. I watch most movies on my monitor where low light situations make it hard to see. I imagine this movie would be horrible for that. But shall see.

The Town
Quite good, but felt done before. Especially the romance aspect.

Django Unchained
I liked it. Felt awfully long and the music choices did take me out of it at times...but still good.

Slither
Fun body horror. Not much else to say. I did keep thinking about Prometheus while watching it though and how this movie made a simple to understand alien life cycle that made perfect sense.

Angrist

01-13-2013, 04:00 AM

I saw AvP2 on my monitor and apparently it didn't ruin my experience. It's just a way cooler concept than AvP1, Aliens3&R and Prometheus. A human village on Earth gets overrun by Aliens, while Predators come to hunt them.

Teuthida

01-13-2013, 08:30 PM

You've convinced me. Shall watch it sometime soon. With that I'll have watched every Alien and Pre- damn. I still need to watch Predators.

The Dark Knight Returns Part 2
Did not care for it. Babs goes a great job explaining why in his review for it: http://nerdsontherocks.com/dark-knight-returns-part-2-review

Super
I enjoyed it, though of the normal-if-a-bit-unhinged-guy-becomes-a-superhero movies I've seen, it ranks last. I did really like the ending.

If I want to be completist about it I still need to see Griff the Invisible and Defendor. Special remains my favorite.

Teuthida

01-14-2013, 06:25 AM

Grabbers
"When an island off the coast of Ireland is invaded by bloodsucking aliens, the heroes discover that getting drunk is the only way to survive."
That description sold me on it, and it did not disappoint. Fun movie with some great looking critters.

Angrist

01-14-2013, 12:02 PM

The Sword in the Stone. 7.5/10.
I've seen this several times when I was a kid. Now as an adult it's still a very enjoyable movie.

I've almost finished The Legend of Korra (not a movie but a series...). Good stuff, the steampunky setting was a nice surprise!

Vampyr

01-14-2013, 12:29 PM

Angrist

01-14-2013, 01:55 PM

I just finished the final (double) episode and it was AWESOME. :D

So I read season 2 is coming in a few months... I wonder what it will be about. I was expecting Aman to escape, but it didn't look like it.

Vampyr

01-14-2013, 03:26 PM

They've teased some concept art. I think it's going to involve them leaving Republic City and going into a jungle area.

Teuthida

02-08-2013, 07:38 AM

Predators
Fine movie. All the characters were interesting.

Seven Psychopaths
Very good. Not In Bruges good. But few things are.

Die Hard 2
My least favorite of the series. Found it incredibly boring and the whole "Isn't it crazy how the same stuff is a happening again?" got tiresome.

Die Hard: With a Vengeance
Been a while since I saw the first but I think this is my favorite of the bunch. Seeing mid-90s NYC played a large role in that.

Live Free or Die Hard
Don't really get why folks hate this one. Decent movie. No more crazier than anything that came before it.

Terminator Salvation
Probably could tear this apart if I remember the timeline of the series. But I enjoyed. Christian Bale, not so much.

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
Haven't seen the first one. Just watched this one because it was the Crank directors. It was..........well, it was something. Things I did like: 1) How crazy Nic Cage acted, especially while trying to keep back the Rider and when transforemed. 2) How the rider moved. Loved how twitchy he was. 3) Idris Elba. Probably the worst performance I've seen from him...but still one of the better parts of the film. Needs to star in his own superhero movie already.

Angrist

02-08-2013, 08:00 AM

Casablanca 9/10
Great movie, I can see why it's in the top 10 or so.

Walkabout 7/10
These 70 movies could be quite slow, but it was pretty interesting nontheless.

Blood Diamond 8/10
Woah, quite shocking but such a good movie.

KillerGremlin

02-08-2013, 04:53 PM

Die Hard 2
My least favorite of the series. Found it incredibly boring and the whole "Isn't it crazy how the same stuff is a happening again?" got tiresome.

Die Hard: With a Vengeance
Been a while since I saw the first but I think this is my favorite of the bunch. Seeing mid-90s NYC played a large role in that.

Live Free or Die Hard
Don't really get why folks hate this one. Decent movie. No more crazier than anything that came before it.

I feel like Die Hard 3 is the campiest of the bunch...but it's still a fun movie. If I had to rank the sequels (because let's face it, the original is the best), I'd probably change my rankings based on my mood.

As films: 2, 4, 3

If I'm drinking (as I'm wont to do when watching movies like Die Hard): 3, 2, 4

I have pretty low expectations for the new one....but you know, I'll see it, because I'm stupid like that.

Angrist

02-09-2013, 07:17 PM

Warhorse 4/10
UGH! Such a painfully bad movie. From the beginning to end it's full of clichés, overacting, bad story, frustrating decision making...
We actually thought of not finishing the movie, but we decided to just watch it for laughs.
Anyone with a horse can see how unrealistic it all is... and I assume most other people can as well.

Edit: There was actually one scene that I enjoyed: where the horse runs on the battlefield and jumps over the trenches. Pretty epic... until it runs through 3 barbed wire fences (but still doesn't die!).

Teuthida

02-10-2013, 02:18 PM

In Search of Steve Ditko
A nice documentary about the co-creator of Spider-Man. It's up on youtube (http://youtu.be/CJqXPozfnWQ) in full if want to watch.

Valhalla Rising
Took me forever to get around to watching this. I knew it was going to be quiet and slow, so waited until I was in the right mood. And I'm glad it did. It's awfully quiet (the main character is completely mute) and very slow. But I enjoyed it a good deal.

Skyfall
Not much of a Bond fan, but I enjoyed this well enough. That is until we learn James Bond is actually Bruce Wayne and rather than become Batman joined the MI6. And then it goes all Home Alone. http://i.imgur.com/Sf0JC.jpg Nice looking film though.

Angrist

02-10-2013, 02:39 PM

Ah yeah, I also watched Skyfall. Pretty good Bond/Bourne blend, but I don't get what the big deal is.

Vampyr

02-11-2013, 09:24 AM

Ah yeah, I also watched Skyfall. Pretty good Bond/Bourne blend, but I don't get what the big deal is.

I think Skyfall is uniquely good because it's an awesome/fun action movie, but also has some of the best cinematography and use of lighting and color of any movie I've seen. Pretty rare combination, and makes for a good viewing experience.

Teuthida

02-26-2013, 09:51 PM

BreakABone

02-28-2013, 12:05 PM

Ted
Enjoyed it for the most part.

Wreck-It Ralph
Pure joy. Of the three nominated animated features I've seen, this was definitely the best.

Life of Pi
It's been a long while since I read the book but felt pretty spot on. Great film.

I can't believe Wreck-It Ralph lost out to Brave.. I can't believe Paranorman lost out to Brave

I liked Brave, but it wasn't Pixar's best foot forward nor was it the best animated film of last year

Teuthida

03-01-2013, 01:30 AM

I still need to see Paranorman.

Argo
That won best feature film? Really? That? Well...ok. End spoiler. (http://i.imgur.com/kNWNsW0.jpg)

Teuthida

03-02-2013, 06:39 PM

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
It wasn't so much a movie but a series of events that kept on going. At the 30 minute mark I was loving it and wanted it to go on forever. Toward the middle I kept looking at the clock and couldn't believe I had a whole other half to go. Had to take a break from it. By the end I wanted to it to continue on and on. It's been a long while since I read the book, so a bit hazy on the details, but man does it feel like they added a ton of stuff. There was like one line devoted to Azog and now he's this big bad (a cool looking one at least) and the Gollum/Bilbo interaction was different. I wonder what it would have been like had the LoTR movies not already occurred. Still, that was some great acting from Andy Serkis and the animation team. Overall it was just cool to revisit this world.

http://www.cracked.com/article_20315_if-hobbit-was-10-times-shorter-100-times-more-honest.html

Teuthida

05-16-2013, 03:12 AM

Dabangg
Quite fun. Couldn't get over how one of the characters looked like an Indian Joaquin Phoenix though.

The Good, the Bad, the Weird
Pretty good. Not bad. Could have been weirder. Be careful which version you watch. The one on Netflix cuts off the ending.

The Hangover Part II
Yeah... Suffers from Die Hard 2 syndrome where the characters remark how similar things are to the last time it happened.

Superman: Unbound
Lois Lane is awesome in this movie. That's about all the good I can say about it.

A History of Violence
Some questionable acting at parts, but enjoyed it overall.

The Intouchables
The definition of a feel good movie.

Iron Man 3
Would be nice to be able to watch a superhero movie without someone ruining the twist/ending for me. Happened right before I was about to watch too. So close. Was an alright movie. Think I had my hopes up too high because of Shane Black...but it was a Shane Black movie...right down to it being Christmas...it's always Christmas.

Dogtooth
Still trying to process this one. Sort of like The Village in that a man and a woman raise three children completely secluded from the outside world. About where the similarity ends. Heard it described as Plato's Allegory of the Cave + child abuse. Pretty accurate.

Vampyr

05-16-2013, 10:56 AM

I saw Iron Man 3 last weekend. It was good - quite a bit better than the second one, but that's not really saying much.

My one complaint is that Tony Stark sucked as Iron Man in this movie. Not his acting, just his capabilities as a super hero. He spent more time getting knocked out of his suit than fighting in it.

Teuthida

08-03-2013, 12:54 AM

Haven't updated this thread in a while.

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
The Boondock Saints
The Dictator
Yes Man
Full Metal Jacket
Evil Dead II
Army Of Darkness
I Sell The Dead
Warm Bodies
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
Observe and Report
An American Werewolf in London
Man of Steel
Bicentennial Man
Bachelorette
End Of Watch
Rubber
God Bless America
The Mist
Gran Torino
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (American)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End
The Greatest Movie Ever Rolled
Silver Linings Playbook
Wolf Children: Ame & Yuki
Into the Forest of Fireflies' Light

Cloud Atlas
Pretty much the only one I want to talk about. And mostly how it compares to the book. Some minor spoilers.

I just finished reading the book after many many months. Would read a couple pages here and a few more there and then put it down for weeks at a time. Really wouldn't call it an enjoyable read. Pretty much only finished it because there was the movie to watch at the end. And there were some pretty interesting visuals described in the book I wanted to see.

I must say, might be one of those rare cases where the movie is better than the book. The book would be enjoyable if you're a writer or an English major perhaps. The author completely changes the writing styles between the different passages which is pretty impressive, though reading the far future story completely in the manner they speak in the movie was a huge pain.

But there is really nothing connecting the stories in the book other than the fact that one of the characters was actually previously reading the chapter you as the reader also just finished. So they share the same frustration you have about having to wait to read the conclusion. And that birthmark...which is on different people than in the movie. I think that was my biggest problem. It was like a collection of short stories with each split down the middle. Once you finally get going and start to enjoy one it's over for quite some time.

The movie ties everything together so much more neatly and is far more entertaining jumping between each bit. The book in comparison splits each up into two. So it starts with the earliest story on the boat and at the halfway point it cuts to the composer and in the middle of that cuts to Luisa's story and so on. And then after the far far future which is the only one that's a whole, it starts going back in time to finish the second half of each ending on the boat story.

The book is almost devoid of the reincarnation aspect (aside for a couple characters having the birthmark) so it was quite cool to track everyone's progression in the film. I really liked that. A much happier ending as well. And felt more like an ending than the book's. The film just made more sense being one piece of work. Eh, maybe if I read the book in one go I would have picked up on more things connecting with each other. Oh yeah, and thought it strange that Tom Hanks was playing a character who in the book was a kid but again makes much more sense with how the movie is set up.

The only downside was the makeup. More miss than hit. And while most of the changes made from the book made it a tighter story, I'm quite sad about the bits left out from the Soonmi story. There were some really cool fabricants in the book which were made for special tasks so they looked far from human. And there was a whole slew of other cool looking stuff I really wanted to see in the film that they apparently left out in favor of more gun play. :(

Seth

08-09-2013, 07:59 PM

[book diversion cuz of Cloud Atlas]

I've had a couple friends recommend Cloud Atlas. Don't know anything about it except your general abstract. Reincarnation? I read a tetrology by Yukio Mishima back in 2004/5. He committed public seppuka after finishing the fourth book as a protest regarding the Japanese political situation. Probably wanted autonomy but I'm not sure. Anyway, I highly recommend it. It delves into reincarnation but not so heavily that the theme becomes overbearing. An amazing author and I can only imagine how much of his syntax and style was lost in translation. [/diversion]

Going Berserk - John Candy flick from the early 80's. It was bad as can be imagined but not a total failure. Some weird mind control elements gave it a unique, retroactive glimpse of the popular concept of mkultra types of hypnosis. Think zoolander or manchurian only no budget and one true hollywood star in the cast. I'd say skip unless you love Candy ass

Knuckleball - 2012 documentary about Tim Wakefield and R.A. Dickey. I'm a big Jays fan because I came into larger consciousness back in 1992,93. Dickey is fun to watch. I saw all three games in Seattle this week and had a great time. I've been practicing my knuckleball since viewing.

Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai - Recent Takashi Miike film that is a remake of the Seppuka (1962) film by Kobayashi. Great. Cathartic to the nines. Both films are brilliant examples of a simple premise that utilizes flashback perfectly. So sad, but good.

Everything Must Go - a great Will Ferrel movie that doesn't get typically goofy. In the same vein as Stranger Than Fiction.

Angrist

09-09-2013, 02:55 PM

The Number 23 - Nice! I didn't expect much of it, so I was really surprised.

Jiro Dreams of Sushi - documentary about the best sushi maker of Japan (/the world). That guy is 85 and has been making sushi since he was 10. His tiny restaurant has gotten all 3 Michelin stars. It's a fascinating into Japanese culture.

Departures - very impressive and touching movie about a Japanese guy who ends up as some sort of undertaker (he prepares the bodies for the ritual).

Iron Man 3 - entertaining and nice to look at. A bit overhyped, but that might just have been because of IM 2.

Teuthida

09-11-2013, 07:08 PM

Oblivion - Really enjoyed.
Oz the Great and Powerful - Not bad.
Stake Land - Like a better acted Walking Dead but with vampires instead of zombies. Also a bit like The Road...but with vampires.
The Heat - Average buddy cop movie. Enjoyable for what it is.
Monsters - For a movie called Monsters there sure was a lack of them. Still enjoyed.
Zack and Miri Make a Porno - Eh. Ok. Cute.
Star Trek Into Darkness - Really fun movie. Haven't seen Wrath of Khan so maybe I'd be as bitter as everyone else had I.
Dreamcatcher - Starts great and devolves into stupidity. I did really like the aliens though. Worth watching for Morgan Freeman's crazy eyebrows alone.
Pain & Gain - Michael Bay at his finest. Good stuff.
It's a Disaster - If you want to watch a dark comedy, this gets dark. A couples brunch gets interrupted by the end of the world.
Hollywoodland - Good detective flick. Affleck would make a great Bruce Wayne based on this. Still can't see Batman.
Stoker - From the director of Oldboy. His first American movie. Stars another actor who was considered for Bats. Fantastic looking movie. Almost an art film. Just looks great. The story and acting however....ehhhhhhh. Seen almost everything Park Chan-wook has done. This probably in the bottom two for me.
Big Trouble in Little China - God damn this was a fun movie. How did it take me this long to see?
The Expendables - Found it mindnumblingly boring. :(
The Game - Good goodie good good.
Now You See Me - Wanted to like this based on the premise but man did I hate this movie. Just...gah, stupid. And not a single likeable character either.
Zodiac - Once again Fincher is great.

Vampyr

09-16-2013, 09:59 AM

I've also watched a few movies recently (I tend to only watch good movies, so not much negatives)

Trollhunter - Norwegian urban fantasy movie. It's basically shot documentary style, where a group of college students follow around a "troll hunter." Really great movie, with surprisingly great special effects.

Ip Man - Chinese movie about Ip Man, the guy who trained Bruce Lee. I'm pretty sure a TON of liberty was taken with revising historical events, and there's a big anti-Japanese slant (American movies do the same thing with Russians,) but it was still super good. Really great choreographed fight scenes, and they didn't go for the close up camera that prevents you from seeing what's going on during action scenes.

Headhunters - Stars Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, the guy who plays Jaime from Game of Thrones. He was probably the reason we started watching this, but it turned out to be one of the best movies I've seen recently. It's a fast paced thriller, but what I think sets it apart from other movies is the amazing character development.

Angrist

09-16-2013, 04:29 PM

Haha, that's awesome:
- I saw Hodejegerne/Headhunter last weekend. I was also pretty surprised. Me and my friends did have some complaints though... when the dog met his doom, where was the guy? And why did the farmer have to go? And if the guy wanted the job, why did he complicate things by sleeping with the wife?
In the end we came to the conclusion that the bad guy just lost it and went mental... but they movie didn't really show that process.

- I love Trolljegeren/Trollhunter. I think Danny here introduced me to it. But why are you suddenly into Norwegian movies?

- I thought I was watching Ip Man, but it was actually Ip Man 2. Still a good movie.

Vampyr

09-16-2013, 07:33 PM

I've heard Ip Man 2 is good, I was surprised to learn there was a sequel, it doesn't seem like the kind of movie that would have one. I'll probably watch it after I've let the first one rest.

As for Headhunters, the bad guy was definitely a bit mental - also an egomaniac who thought he could get away with anything. Also, in Roger's speech at the end, he does provoke a very violent response out of Clas, indicating that he wants love, but is incapable of it, which would explain the affair. I think he also derived a sadistic pleasure from destroying Roger in every way possible.

Not sure about the farmer, I think he was just in the way, and he killed him because he could. I was wondering about the dog too - not sure what took so long for Clas to catch up to him after the dog started barking.

I've actually just been on a foreign film kick, and two of them happened to be Norwegian . :) I do like your language, though, and the country has some beautiful landscapes. I kind of feel at home among all the pale people, too. ;)

Angrist

09-19-2013, 03:47 AM

My language? :p I'm not Norwegian but Dutch. I just happen to like Norway.

If you want to see some good Dutch movies, go for Zwartboek (WW2) and De Zee Die Denkt (The Sea That Thinks, if you can find it... very weird movie).
Sadly Dutch acting is usually so bad that I can't think of (m)any others.

Teuthida

01-12-2014, 10:34 AM

In addition to writing down every movie I see, I now date them for better recall.

This Is The End

Robocop

World War Z

The Hangover Part III

Pacific Rim

The Matador

Cronos

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead - The robbery in this movie takes place in the shopping center I used to visit often. Usually NYC locations in movies are well known landmarks but actually seeing a little place where I spent a lot a time when I was younger was surreal. The movie says it's somewhere other than where it actually is however.

The Way Way Back - Great coming of age movie.

Monsters University

Ice Age Continental Drift

ParaNorman

Death To Smoochy

A Film with Me in It

Death Becomes Her

Despicable Me 2

The World's End (11/07/13)

Kick-Ass 2 (11/08/13)

The Wolverine (11/09/13)

Drug War (11/10/13)

Headhunters (11/16/13)

Prisoners (11/24/13)

Elysium (11/25/13)

Fight Club (11/27/13) - Rare occasion where I rewatched a movie I already saw. Think I enjoyed it more this time.

The Return of the Living Dead (11/28/13)

Tatsumi (11/29/13)

The Thing (12/03/13)

An Adventure in Space and Time (12/05/13) - A period piece about the creation of Doctor Who. I highly recommend if like DW on any level. Stars David Bradley (Filch from HP, Walder Frey from GoT) as the first Doctor. Kind of Mad Men-ish.

RED 2 (12/06/13)

Gravity (12/11/13)

Source Code (12/12/13)

Leon The Professional (12/13/13)

Arthur Christmas (12/14/13)

The Bank Job (12/15/13)

Don Jon (12/17/13)

Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (12/17/13)

Man of Tai Chi (12/18/13)

Moneyball (12/19/13)

Heat (12/20/13)

The Raid: Redemption (12/21/13)

The Croods (12/21/13)

UnHung Hero (12/23/13)

Troy (12/24/13)

The Secret World of Arrietty (12/25/13)

Sex Drive (12/25/13)

Riddick (12/30/13)

Fruitvale Station (12/31/13)

About Time (1/04/13)

American Hustle (1/08/13)

Take Shelter (1/10/13)

The Dirties (1/09/13)

Mr. Nobody (1/11/13) - I highly recommend this movie. It's like Cloud Atlas meets Sliding Doors meets The Fountain meets Benjamin Button meets About Time meets The Butterfly Effect meets The Fall. Even if you find it confusing, it's still a visual treat. Watch the extended version.

Angrist

01-12-2014, 03:59 PM

Gattaca (great)

The Fast & The Furious (cars... right, I guess they can be nice)

F&F Tokyo Drift (mwoah it's ok)

Monsters University (yay!)

Invictus (2 days before Mandela died...)

World War Z (meh)

The Impossible (really impressive)

El Aura (fun but I don't see where all the theorizing comes from)

And I'm pulling in Mr. Nobody at the moment, thanks. :)

Seth

06-07-2014, 03:22 PM

The Art of the Steal

High Road to China - (Selleck, Bess) cool classic. Lots of memorable lines.

Defiance (2008) - Had a good story to draw from. What's her name from Lawless is cuuuuute.

Bad Lieutenant - Herzog makes it a great romp through post Katrina NO. Great ending. I thought Cage did a good job..

Everything Must Go - I liked it the second time through. Similar subdued Ferrell.

42 - had to watch this again. In grade 6 we read a great book about a Chinese immigrant family and the daughter who gets hooked on baseball, living in Brooklyn. Jackie Robinson's first year. Sammy and Marc went on the homerun race that season as well. Serbia was bombed.

Beyond Outrage - I love Beat Takano. His yakuza films fill a void every now and then.

Princess Mononoke - I forgot how good this is. One of my first full length animations as a younger lad. Wow. Really makes me anxious to see The Wind Rises.

Sabata - The trilogy starring Lee Van Cliff. (Angel Eyes off of Good, Bad, & Ugly) This is spaghetti but good. Has a similar template between films 1 & 2. Haven't seen Adios Sabata yet.

The Legend of 1900 - A rather large metaphor.

The Perfect Host (2010) - Niles off of Frasier plays a great host. I had to watch it twice.

Welcome to the Jungle - different film for JCVD. Goofy, fun.

Zelary - Great German movie about WWII.

Dallas Buyer's Club - Better than I thought it would be.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty - fun fun. Can't wait for Zoolander 2

Kelly's Heroes - Dirty dozen style caper

25th Hour - Carbon, vintage Edward Norton circa early 2000's. Quite enjoyed. Reminded me I have a bunch of Philip Seymour Hoffman movies yet to see.

Owning Mahowny - Philip S Hoffman is addicted to gambling. Based on true story of a gambling man from Toronto set in early 1980's.

The Savages (2007) - Hoffman in this great film about death and family.

The Hunt - Good German movie about group think and dealing with false accusations.

Death and the Maiden 1994 - Richard Dreyfus and Weaver in a "single location" style film. I've seen Sexy Beast a couple times now and love the restriction that the single location offers. Focus on character and relation charging.

Crystal Fairy - Wasn't that good. A redemption premise where protagonist turns a leaf and becomes a better person. The asshole was painted on pretty thick though and it made the whole casts' journey into a letdown. Miscast and aimed at a specific audience...(younger?)

The Hill - Sean Connery all hunked in the 60's. Drill Sergeant movie.

Johnny Dangerously - Goofy fun. Recommend for Michael Keaton fans etc

Gung Ho Working Class Man- Keaton again, in a sub genre defined by period. Late 80's early 90's western lense into Japanese culture. Another film similar to this but later in the 90's is titled "Shower". From 1998 I believe.

Big Bad Wolves - I had muted high hopes for this. Tarantino recommended it best film from 2013 so.... Its saying stuff about Israel and what it is to exist rationally/irrationally and how family behaves. Power relations. ugghhh pretty tough premise to like.

My Cousin Vinny - What's her name from Boyle's The Wrestler.... she's hottt as a car expert. Dyammmn

Funny Farm (1988) - Chevy Chase, one that I'd skip...

The Bridge on the River Kwai - It had been 10 years or so since I last saw it. Fricken superb movie. I get reminded of the Royal Cdn Air Farce skit with the explosive dentures.

From Russia with Love - I never saw it through before now. Great Bond film.

Ginkasa

06-09-2014, 12:58 AM

Despite working in a movie theatre, I never seem to be able to watch any movies. Alas, children.

Teuthida

07-04-2014, 12:48 AM

List update time.

Her (1/15/13)
Behind the Candelabra (1/15/13)
The Wolf of Wall Street (1/16/14)
In a World... (1/17/14)
Dallas Buyers Club (1/17/14)
Mud (1/18/14)
Captain Phillips (1/19/14)
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (1/20/14)
Frozen (1/20/14)
Filth (1/21/14)
12 Years a Slave (1/22/14)
Les Misérables (only an hour (1/23/14)
Very Bad Things (1/24/14)
The Theif & The Cobbler (watched half) (1/25/14)
Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 2 (half watched) (1/26/14)
Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1/27/14)
The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans (1/28/14)
Meet Joe Black (1/29/14)
Easy A (2/01/14)
Thor: The Dark World (2/02/14)
Nebraska (2/08/14)
Choke (2/23/14)
Philomena (2/28/14)
Last Action Hero (3/09/14)
Reign of Fire (3/15/14)
Of Mice and Men (3/15/14)
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (3/21/14)
Bound (3/22/14)
Snowpiercer (3/26/14)
Son of Batman (4/19/14)
Generation Iron (5/01/14)
Mr. and Mrs. Smith (5/09/14)
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (5/17/14)
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (5/19/14)
Jack Reacher (5/24/14)
The Long Goodbye (5/24/14)
Mission: Impossible (5/24/14)
Chinatown (5/26/14)
Mission: Impossible II (5/26/14)
Mission: Impossible III (5/27/14)
Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (5/27/14)
The Lego Movie (5/29/14)
Glengarry Glen Ross (6/05/14)
Cheap Thrills (6/07/14)
John Carter (6/07/14)
No Such Thing (6/14/14)
L.A. Confidential (6/21/14)
The Rock (6/21/14)
The Raid 2 (6/23/14)
Delicatessen (6/25/15)
Tim's Vermeer (6/25/15)
The Breakfast Club (6/27/14)
Bad Words (7/03/14)

Ric

08-04-2014, 12:04 AM

Expendables 3 - Not bad for a modern action movie. Not bad for another sequel. No Chuck though :/

Jonbo298

08-07-2014, 01:00 AM

Lucy. Not a great movie but not a bad movie. It's basically just like others have said in reviews, it is Limitless but with a bigger budget.

Seth

08-18-2014, 01:44 AM

Lethal Weapon 1 2 & 3. Good to revisit the good. Gonna see the 4th soon. Always Sunny in Philly inspired the rewatch.

Expendables 3 - never did see the first Expendables. This was as tolerably bad as the 2nd. meh

Non-Stop - I really disliked this Neeson go-around. Some ugly plot holes/explanations.

The Hobbit:dosmaug - I actually liked it cuz it took forever and after a thousand let-down opinions my expectations couldn't have been much lower. It kept me entertained through and I felt that it was an overall better flick than the first.

Stakeout (1987) and Another Stakeout ('93)- Any Richard dreyfuss fans here? I have only recently seen some of his movies and they've been great fun. The first Stakeout has to be one of hte funniest buddy cop movies ever. The sequal suffers from a lack of imagination and from the rather large addition of Rosie O'donnel.

The Burbs (1989) - I was expecting a funnier film. It had the goof feel down but didn't deliver imo.

Blended (2014) - Generic Sandler. Romedy formula is merciless but at least there was a few laughs from the supporting cast.

**The Grand Budapest Hotel - - This film took me off guard on my first viewing. It's powerful in a very subtle way,... I believe it serves as a comparison between prewar europe and current decades, and it talks about the intangibles in modern life, whether lived in the 30's or now. It's classic Wes Anderson but with a new maturity at felt abrasive at first but after revisiting it felt more refined and 'built' than any of his films. It shows the best of our culture, and its subjective worst, and how war has a way of tearing it all away regardless of what 'we' may want. It's been a few months but I can't wait to see it again with an eager audience.

Angrist

08-21-2014, 05:09 PM

The Hobbit:dosmaug - I actually liked it cuz it took forever and after a thousand let-down opinions my expectations couldn't have been much lower. It kept me entertained through and I felt that it was an overall better flick than the first.My biggest reason to look forward to The Hobbit 3 is so I can write another very critical review for IMDb.
My review for part 2 is still the top-rated user review on IMDb, with a "965 out of 1323 people found the following review useful."
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1170358/reviews?ref_=tt_urv

*slightly proud*

Seth

07-26-2015, 02:07 PM

Well the third Hobbit wasn't anything to write poems about.

Me Earl and the Dying Girl - This was about as sad as the title sounds. It was also a good movie. I think it won Sundance. .

Mad Max Fury Road - George Miller went all out and made a trilogy 'begins' that got the extended chase scene out of the way..

Ginkasa

07-29-2015, 12:19 PM

I saw Ant-Man recently. My wife and I enjoyed it particularly because we don't get to go to movies just us much anymore since the kids, but the movie itself was good, too. My wife thought it would be stupid, but she said she really enjoyed it.

Seth

08-08-2015, 10:12 PM

Trainwreck - It was funny. Lebron was good. I like Bill Hader in a lead role. Amy Schumer was good. I felt the movie didn't resolve itself appropriately, but the tone of the film was consistent.

Spy - The movie falls flat. McCarthy is funny but there was nothing original here.

Hot Tub Time Machine 2 - It got awful reviews. I liked it enough, I mean it's kinda dark but there's a lot of laughs still and if they make a third I'll probably go see it in theatre.

Gone Girl - ay ay ay Overrated.

Playing It Cool - RomCom ugggghh not the worst of the lot.

The Gambler - Dorky take on the troubled gamblin addict. Not outright awful.

Chappie - Good nuff. Dystopic themes are fun.

Run All Night - Bette than that other film about killing a mobster's son....can't remember what it is help!

Ginkasa

12-30-2019, 04:04 PM

I've seen Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker three times (so far). I really really enjoyed The Last Jedi. I think TRoS is okay. I've posted some word vomit around the internet today regarding my deeper thoughts and I don't want to copy/paste or retype, but it you search for Link1130 on TheForce.net boards you can find my stuff.

I also saw Uncut Gems. This film is basically Stress the Movie. Never been a fan of Adam Sandler comedy, but have typically enjoyed his more dramatic efforts. No exception here. He is great, the rest of the cast is great. Good times. Will probably never watch again, though. I had anxiety the whole time.

Ginkasa

05-05-2020, 09:57 AM

This is probably the longest I've gone without stepping inside a movie theatre since, like, 2004 y'all.

Watched Trolls 2 with the kids on the day it came out. I've got a family of 4, so the $20 rent tag was probably less than I was going to spend taking us all to the theatre to see it. I actually really liked the first Trolls movie. I thought the second was alright.

Recently rewatched The Princess Bride. My wife had mentioned that even though everybody gushes on it she only considers it "okay" but then she also admitted she hadn't sat down and really watched it; just seen parts. So we sat down and watched it (me convinced she was going to come out of it thinking it was really good), but of course at the end she said it was still only "okay".

I also got The Skywalker Saga 27 disc box set from Best Buy, so watched each of those over about a week and a half (movie a day). It was nice.

Teuthida

05-23-2020, 10:30 AM

I watch very few movies. Here's everything from this year so far:

Joker (1/21/20)
Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (1/24/20)
Jojo Rabbit (2/8/20)
Knives Out (2/14/20)
Extra Ordinary (3/26/20)
Vivarium (4/18/20)
The Lighthouse (4/19/20)
The Gentlemen (4/25/20)
Uncut Gems (5/8/20)
The Red Shoes (5/22/20)

The only one I didn't care for was Joker.

BreakABone

06-19-2020, 02:32 PM

I wish I could keep track, I watch way too many movies, I think.

Ginkasa

07-29-2020, 04:12 PM

I wish I could keep track, I watch way too many movies, I think.

You may look at Letterboxed. It has a lot of review feature and you can make lists and stuff, but I primarily use it as a way to log what movies I've seen. You can find me under (predictably) Ginkasa.

Recently watched Palm Springs. I thought it was fun. Its on Hulu.

BreakABone

08-03-2020, 10:38 AM

You may look at Letterboxed. It has a lot of review feature and you can make lists and stuff, but I primarily use it as a way to log what movies I've seen. You can find me under (predictably) Ginkasa.

Recently watched Palm Springs. I thought it was fun. Its on Hulu.

I have Letterboxd, but too lazy to update haha

Seth

12-31-2020, 12:35 AM

I've only got 1 bar of 4G cell signal as my internet option. I've used xplornet in the past and it really is the most terrible thing. I'm on the waiting list for Starlink.

Because of my internet woes I've watched a lot of the movies the last two years.

@Ginkasa
The Princess Bride is a classic. It has a lot of depth, and commentary on the world.

Uncut Gems was a hard watch but also one of the best movies of late.
After rewatching Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, I now think it's Tarantino's best film. A more mature piece of work.

Bad Santa with Mel Gibson is a good Christmas flick. There's a subtle reference to Scrooged.

On the Rocks - I had high hopes for this movie since I consider Lost in Translation to be one of my all time favourites. Sophia Coppola has my respect for that. On the Rocks was meh. Decent but forgettable.

The Lighthouse - What a good art house film. Definitely a movie to rewatch at some point.

Knives Out was excellent.

The Trip to Greece - I'm a fan of all four in the series. Trip to Spain being my favourite.

Honest Thief - Good Neelson fun.

Black Bear - Aubrey whats her name from Parks & Rec. Good movie. Didn't know where it was going at first.

The Way Back - A good AA movie about redemption.

Tenet - Thought it was crap. Same wild mechanisms as Inception. Similar vibe to the TV series The Night Manager, which I preferred more.

Lupin III The First (2019) First CGI Lupin movie. I like Lupin III so the formula is there and it works for me.

edit:
For more recent movies, I highly recommend Bad Times at the El Royale (2018).

Looking forward to the next season of Peaky Blinders, Cobra Kai, Always Sunny in Philly

And the new Grand Tour special that recently came out. Classic Clarkson

Ginkasa

12-31-2020, 10:55 AM

Watched Soul with the kids. Really good stuff; probably one of the best Pixar movies.

Need to sit down and watch Wonder Woman 1984. Heard some iffy reviews, but still interested in watching it. Maybe tonight.

I also watched the recently released re-edit of The Godfather Part III: The Godfather Coda The Death of Michael Corleone. I really, really enjoy the first two movies (one of my favorite movie experiences was seeing both of them in theatres in the Coppola Restoration release ~10 years ago). I had not actually ever watched Part III due to all the bad reviews, but the re-edit got me curious after I saw some positive reactions. Definitely the least good Godfather movie. It had its moments for sure, but at times it felt almost like a TV reunion special. I dunno, I probably wouldn't really recommend except to mark it off a completion list.

Ginkasa

12-20-2023, 10:54 AM

You may not know this about me but I worked at a movie theatre for 10.5 years which meant I got to see any movie I wanted to for free and even got paid to watch movies sometimes. This meant I saw just about everything. Even the stuff I didn't sit down and watch it in their entirety I still was heavily exposed to just by working. When I had kids it became harder, but my theatre had a daycare center on site so when they got just old enough we returned to basically seeing movies weekly even after I left the theatre and I *gasp* had to pay.

Anyway, COVID put a stop to that obviously. We saw Onward like the week before things shut down and it was over a year before we got back (the longest I'd been away from a movie theatre for at least 15 years, perhaps ever). By the time we could get out the kids were too old for the daycare, but having been forced out of the habit of visiting the theatre regularly we never really picked up the habit again. Mainly other things had come in and filled that time. Long story short is I don't see half as many movies as I used to.

Anyway, that was me just thinking about old times. We'll still pop a movie on at home, but if we go to the theatre its usually something the kids want to see. They're old enough now that probably I could take them to most things and it'd probably be fine as far as content, but that doesn't mean they'd enjoy it (although they'd behave fine).

We actually have been to the theatre quite a few times in the past month. Had some time off and multiple movies that everyone wanted to see.

Godzilla: Minus One I thought was pretty great. I definitely enjoy Godzilla more as a destructive force of nature and a nigh insurmountable challenge for humanity than, like, a champion for humanity. I think comparing this to Shin Godzilla and the US 2014 Godzilla, this definitely comes out on top. (the kids tolerated it for me, lol; I think they just had fun getting out and it was my birthday so they liked doing that for me I think).

Wish was okay. We actually would have preferred to see the new Trolls movie first, but the timing worked out better for Wish. It was fine. I did really enjoy the animation style (even if the character design felt kind of generic). I get Disney was trying to pay service to their 100 year history, but it ended up just kind of feeling like Generic Disney Movie than anything particularly notable.

We did get around to Trolls a few days later. We enjoyed it more. They aren't high art movies or anything, but they are very FUN. Very colorful and upbeat and silly in the right ways. I liked this third one better than the second one, personally, but I still think the first one is the best.

I was a little nervous about Wonka, but the kids really wanted to see it. Gene Wilder's Wonka was an eccentric fellow, but I think people overstate just how weird he really was. Depp's Wonka went too far in the direction of insane. I was concerned this new version would be like that. The trailers seemed to emphasize the wrong parts of Chalamet's performance. But I thought this new one ended up being a pretty alright film. I don't think it, like, redefine's Wonka moving forward or anything. But it was a decent enough watch.