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Movies You've Seen Recently |OT| June 2017

M

Messofanego

Banned
A heads up, Without Name is on VOD now if you're in the UK (Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, Sky Store, Microsoft, Sony, etc), and coming to VOD soon in the USA. Don't miss out on this woods-based Irish psychological horror, especially if you found the new Blair Witch lacklustre.
8149669fhTL._SY606_.jpg
 
K

kevin1025

Banned
Wonder Woman

There's a load of exposition, there are some fairly dull points, the dialogue can be a little too heavy-handed, it takes a good while to get going, and the final battle was the same as every other final battle.

But I still ended up liking it. Gal Gadot is incredibly charming and gives it her all, the visuals and cinematography are gorgeous, and that whole No Man's Land/Veld recapture sequence was perfect.

I'm glad that Jenkins is coming back for the sequel, I'm definitely interested in seeing where this leads.

I also watched Deepwater Horizon and Goon recently. Goon is okay and has its moments, Deepwater Horizon builds and builds and then becomes a good disaster flick. But it also has that trademark "I'm going to talk about a random topic calmly during an intense moment to distract you" in it, which is a no-no for me.

I'm seeing The Mummy in an advanced screening tomorrow. I'll be sure to entice you all to see the biggest hit of the summer!
 
J

Johnlenham

Member
Wonder woman felt pretty long and was hammy as fuck in places...im also pretty tired of CGI jumping around punching behind flames last battles but it was alright.

She is also absolutely stunning which helps.
 
O

old manatee

Banned
Fist Fight: It's basically a crappy remake of Three O'Clock High. The original has an amazing tone that is half John Hughes movie and half thriller, but Fist Fight is just a bunch of dick jokes and zaniness. It reminds me of Due Date's take on Planes, Trains and Automobiles.
 
L

lordxar

Member
The Bucket List I've been wanting to watch this for a while now and it was very much worth it. Nicholson has grumpy old man down pat. Now the premise is a bit over the top with him being a rich guy in need of an adjustment to his life but you get the idea. I mean if your loaded who wouldn't embark on epic trips? This did not end how I thought it would not that it really matters. Pretty tearfully happy ending though.
 
R

Ridley327

Member
Byeond the Gates: A horror movie version of Jumanji could have been and really should have been fun, but this movie has the unfortunate problem of being made by complete morons. There's a sense that the filmmakers wanted to play the 80s horror nostalgia card, which amounts to having Barbara Crampton in a key role, some gooey practical gore effects, a lot of magenta lighting and fog in the final stretch of the film and having a Vincenzo Salvia song play over the opening and closing credits, in order to draw a more diverse crowd to the estranged family member drama that they wanted to craft all along, but it runs into some fatal issues in making those elements compelling. The horror never works as a result of the complete lack of thrills and atmosphere; the drama falls flat due to unconvincing rapport the writing tries to have for its central brotherly duo, who come off as less estranged with a yearning to set things straight and more like bitter adults who couldn't possibly be related; the entire board game conceit is a complete disaster that never once make sense, with frequently unclear rules and objectives that flat-out ignore the players involved and can't ever seem to make up its mind on which outsider gets to acknowledge its existence; and the nostalgia never satisfies as the drama is pushed so far into the front that any fun that it tries to have comes off as being mandated rather than earned. All this culminates with one of the most boneheaded moral of the story endings that I can think of, with writing so on the nose that I have to applaud Barbara Crampton's professionalism for not laughing the crew off of the sound stage she shot her scenes on for delivering such a clunker. It is honestly impressive how little of the film works at all, as the concept is practically gift-wrapped for success. I can't believe it's come to this, but this is bad even for IFC Midnight.

Save me, Fathom Events and TCM's screening of The Godfather.
 
TissueBox

TissueBox

Member
Messofanego said:
A heads up, Without Name is on VOD now if you're in the UK (Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, Sky Store, Microsoft, Sony, etc), and coming to VOD soon in the USA. Don't miss out on this woods-based Irish psychological horror, especially if you found the new Blair Witch lacklustre.
8149669fhTL._SY606_.jpg
Click to expand...

Looks interesting, will keep this on my radar..!
 
S

Sean C

Member
Adaptation (2002): I saw this in theatres when it came out (I guess this would have been in early 2003), and over the years have thought about revisiting it, particularly since I've become more familiar with Spike Jonze and Charlie Kaufman's work subsequently. The two parted ways after their second collaboration. In retrospect, this is from the tail end of the period where Nicolas Cage was still being given roles in films with prestige and garnering Oscar nominations. Meryl Streep, on the other hand, is always in style. Chris Cooper is good, but I wouldn't, at a glance, have pegged this for the sort of role that won an Oscar (my favourite of the nominees was the other Chris nominated that year). This film definitely benefits from another viewing, in terms of appreciating the degree of meta humour. I'd almost wonder if they mightn't have gone a bit more over the top toward the end, though.
 
I

Icolin

Banned
Sean C said:
Adaptation (2002): I saw this in theatres when it came out (I guess this would have been in early 2003), and over the years have thought about revisiting it, particularly since I've become more familiar with Spike Jonze and Charlie Kaufman's work subsequently. The two parted ways after their second collaboration. In retrospect, this is from the tail end of the period where Nicolas Cage was still being given roles in films with prestige and garnering Oscar nominations. Meryl Streep, on the other hand, is always in style. Chris Cooper is good, but I wouldn't, at a glance, have pegged this for the sort of role that won an Oscar (my favourite of the nominees was the other Chris nominated that year). This film definitely benefits from another viewing, in terms of appreciating the degree of meta humour. I'd almost wonder if they mightn't have gone a bit more over the top toward the end, though.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I rewatched Adaptation pretty recently as well, and picked up on some of the things I missed on previous viewings. Such a great film, although I definitely do prefer the other films Jonze has done, and certainly the other films Kaufman's done.
 
W

Warm Machine

Member
Finally watching Ghostbusters (2016). Flat, lifeless, inconsistent, and without any tone whatsoever. Everyone acts like a cartoon character and basically knows they are in a comedy. Waste of 140million and a waste of the franchise. I see why Dan Ackroyd
Is pissed off.
 
TissueBox

TissueBox

Member
So visually well-equipped. So much potential squandered over a flat boring story. However, I now know what Ebert means when he'd said -- I paraphrase -- that the promise of more in this vein is titillating a thought. It's the same feeling I had for Kingsglaive. CGI promo shorts are cool and all, but to have a genuine film with a fleshed out story from start to finish in the expensive, but limitless, realm of photorealistic computer generation could redefine the imagination, if done right.

Final Fantasy: Spirits Within
 
F

Frankenstrat

Member
Finally watched Life. Humans are stupid. Bleak ass movie and all because none of the characters did shit that made sense until near the end. Let's poke the alien life form with gloves! Fuck it!
 
Rhomega Beta

Rhomega Beta

Member
Commando: Good God, this movie is so ridiculous. For example, Arnold (whose character's name is John Matrix) can't get his truck started to chase down the bad guys, so he rolls it down the hill, dodging trees along the way, until he eventually runs the cars off the road and flips the truck over, which explodes, and he walks away without a scratch. You got Arnold's classic one-liners, plenty of gunfire, and explosions. What more could you want from an over-the-top '80s action movie? It's great!
 
M

More_Badass

Member
Rewatched Elysium last night. I love the look and tone of the world, but damn, seeing it again made me realize it has a grand total of two good sections and the rest is completely skippable. The assault on the car, and the finale from the grenade exploding Kruger's face to their final battle, have a lot of great moments, but everything else is forgettable. I remember liking the movie a lot more before
 
C

Count Dookkake

Member
Rhomega Beta said:
Commando: Good God, this movie is so ridiculous. For example, Arnold (whose character's name is John Matrix) can't get his truck started to chase down the bad guys, so he rolls it down the hill, dodging trees along the way, until he eventually runs the cars off the road and flips the truck over, which explodes, and he walks away without a scratch. You got Arnold's classic one-liners, plenty of gunfire, and explosions. What more could you want from an over-the-top '80s action movie? It's great!
Click to expand...

Dat opening credit sequence.
 
T

TheOnlyOneHeEverFeared

Member
Messofanego said:
The last action setpiece, when it goes orange, oh lord is it gorgeous.

Like I've said in other places, I'm more excited for Wonder Woman 2 than Justice League.

Wonder Woman I felt was the best of both what DCEU (action, style) and MCU (humour, characters) are good at, which was a pleasant surprise.
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Yeah, its pretty great.
 
K

kevin1025

Banned
The Mummy

It's nothing special. It tries too hard to be funny at all the wrong moments; it isn't terribly exciting, and it is exposition heavy. Russell Crowe also gets to do a Gary Oldman-Dark Knight speech at the end of the movie. The special effects on the Mummy itself are interesting, but the rest isn't so hot. The movie mostly (80%+) takes place at night, so it isn't visually interesting whatsoever; and seeing it in 3D just makes that worse. I wouldn't recommend it, unless you're terribly bored.
 
I

Icolin

Banned
kevin1025 said:
The Mummy

It's nothing special. It tries too hard to be funny at all the wrong moments; it isn't terribly exciting, and it is exposition heavy. Russell Crowe also gets to do a Gary Oldman-Dark Knight speech at the end of the movie. The special effects on the Mummy itself are interesting, but the rest isn't so hot. The movie mostly (80%+) takes place at night, so it isn't visually interesting whatsoever; and seeing it in 3D just makes that worse. I wouldn't recommend it, unless you're terribly bored.
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Oof. I guess it really is as bad as most of the reviews indicate it is.
 
R

Ridley327

Member
If anyone ever gets the chance to catch The Godfather on the big screen, take it immediately. It's actually astonishing how much more I love the film now that I've had the chance to experience it in its proper format.
 
I

Icolin

Banned
Ridley327 said:
If anyone ever gets the chance to catch The Godfather on the big screen, take it immediately. It's actually astonishing how much more I love the film now that I've had the chance to experience it in its proper format.
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A couple years ago, a theatre near me did back to back screenings of Apocalypse Now, The Godfather and The Godfather 2. While The Godfather and The Godfather 2 benefit a lot from the theatre setting, I'd argue Apocalypse Now benefits the most from viewing it in a theatre, especially the Ride of the Valkyries scene.
 
L

lordxar

Member
Doctor Strange Now this is how you cgi! A bit trippy in places but Inception bred with the Matrix and produced the best kind of offspring. I was laughing quite a bit too. Like the cape wiping his tears. Overall, loved it!
 
B

brianjones

Member
Ridley327 said:
If anyone ever gets the chance to catch The Godfather on the big screen, take it immediately. It's actually astonishing how much more I love the film now that I've had the chance to experience it in its proper format.
Click to expand...
Today was the day.. I missed it 😭
 
S

Sean C

Member
The Mummy (1999): With the impending release of the 2017 The Mummy, I thought it might be fun to revisit the 1999 film. It's quite fun, powered by the chemistry between Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz, and a willingness to get surprisingly gruesome at points (I recall as a kid finding the flesh-devouring bugs especially nightmarish). The climax is a bit clumsy, though --
Imhotep barely does anything while the heroes run around, and repeatedly focuses on trying to kill Fraser even when he should know that Weisz is the real threat.
The CGI has mostly held up reasonably well, considering it's now close to 20 years old; the worst shots are probably the daytime depiction of the plagues hitting Egypt.
 
T

TheFlow

Banned
lordxar said:
Doctor Strange Now this is how you cgi! A bit trippy in places but Inception bred with the Matrix and produced the best kind of offspring. I was laughing quite a bit too. Like the cape wiping his tears. Overall, loved it!
Click to expand...

amen. That cgi is amazing.
 
U

UrbanRats

Member
Messofanego said:
A heads up, Without Name is on VOD now if you're in the UK (Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, Sky Store, Microsoft, Sony, etc), and coming to VOD soon in the USA. Don't miss out on this woods-based Irish psychological horror, especially if you found the new Blair Witch lacklustre.
8149669fhTL._SY606_.jpg
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Finally!

Get Out (Jordan Peele, 2016) - Pretty good black comedy (no pun intended?) with horror overtones.
I honestly was expecting a second twist coming, but the depth gave to the main character kept my interested well, beyond the gimmick of the premise.
The TSA guy also pulled off the comedic relief (in a comedy... wait) without becoming annoying.
But yeah, Daniel Kaluuya really carried this movie exceptionally well, when it could've become repetitive.
 
Man with Knife

Man with Knife

Member
UrbanRats said:
Finally!

Get Out (Jordan Peele, 2016)
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Same here!

The hype is deserved this time, this might even be my favorite horror/psycho thriller of the last 20 years. I will have to see it again and give it more time though.

The asian guy is a nice reference to Rosemary's Baby by the way (and not the only one in the film). Not quite on the same "WTF is an asian guy doing there?" level as in Polanski's masterpiece, but still.
 
B

Blader

Member
Wonder Woman
An actually good DCEU movie, what a world! Gadot is great; I liked her in BvS, but given her small role there I wasn't totally sure what to expect of her as a lead, but she definitely carries this movie quite well. Pine is good too and he and Gadot share a nice rapport, though sometimes Pine's part is a little too stammery. Themiscyra looked fantastic; they did a great job on that location scout, and with the general design of the Amazons, a shame they're not in the movie for too long. I didn't really have any problem with the third act, and not sure what issue most other people have with it other than that it boils down to a hero vs. villain fight, which, duh?
Thewlis' villain turn is good for as limited as it is
. Danny Huston, on the other hand, is a total ham. The supporting cast is fine but underwritten. Some of the action looks good, particularly the No Man's Land sequence, but a lot of the editing around the fights bothered me. All too often, and especially in the Amazon battle on the beach, the movie cuts away just before we actually see contact made. I don't necessarily mind slow-mo on its own, but the point of the slow-mo, as I see it, should be to emphasize how one person inflicts blows or damage on another; cutting away just before the blow is made makes the slow-mo pretty pointless.

All that said, it's a fun, enjoyable movie, with a strong performance by Gadot and a positive look forward for the DCEU as a whole. So while there are a handful of weaker elements throughout the movie, the sum is (more or less) greater than the sum of its parts and is hopefully a sign of better things to come from the DC films.
7 or 8/10
 
C

Cripplegate

Member
Quai des Orfèvres (8/10) - Probably my least favorite H. G. Clouzot joint so far, but it's still pretty damn good. I enjoyed the early misdirection (no spoilers), but if I'm being honest, I can't say the plot really goes anywhere interesting. I wasn't sure what to make of the ending at first, but there is certainly an appreciable irony to Inspector Antoine's disappointment, even if that means the procedural plot is kinda thin by design. Alas, I didn't find the central characters (Maurice and Jenny Lamour) and their relationship interesting enough to sustain said thin procedural plot. It's good, mind you, and it's certainly fun watching these characters squirm under the pressure of the investigation, but it's just not great.

What is great is all the stuff swimming around in the margins of the plot. For example, Jenny's friend, Dora, a photographer who becomes involved in the case, and the ultimate revelation about her character. Or the detective, Inspector Antoine, and his history in the colonies. Indeed, Antoine is probably the star of the show, a gruff and no-nonsense scene-stealer with some amazing one-liners, and a tender heart. Seemingly throwaway scenes, like a phone call informing Antoine of his son's exam results, are the real heart of the film. And a scene near the end with Antoine and Dora is where the real plot twists are hiding.

All in all, an effortlessly entertaining and even surprisingly lighthearted film from Clouzot. A strong recommendation.
 
L

lordxar

Member
The Beaver I go into most films blindly these days and I'd never heard of this before which a Mel Gibson flick passing me by isn't normal. So I thought this would be like Payback or something in the dark comedy realm but its actually pretty far off that mark. The cast is pretty good and does a solid job in delivering a pretty emotional story. Gibson doing his best Fight Club impression was particularly notable. Good film and a complete surprise.
 
C

cwmartin

Member
Had the opportunity to watch the godfather during the latest tmc/fathom run. What a great damn movie. Likely my favorite movie even.
 
M

Messofanego

Banned
We come here but we pretend like we're back there.
BigSick.jpg

Good lord is The Big Sick good [dir. Michael Showalter]. Haven't seen an Apatow-produced romcom drama this good since...Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)? Equal parts heart-wrenching and uproarious laughter, even during the heaviest of moments. I was expecting to laugh a lot from a Kumail Nanjiani co-written screenplay along with his wife Emily Gordon who's played wonderfully by Zoe Kazan, but I wasn't expecting to cry quite a bit, too. The film explores the generational, cultural, and religious divides of such a relationship between a pakistani muslim guy and a white girl. Surprisingly, Kumail's family is hilarious, and it was nice to see Adeel Akhtar again since the stunning Utopia, playing the more favoured brother ("You have to end it now or mom will fucking ghost you"). The film is full of memorably hilarious moments and specific nuances ("There's a strict hierarchy: there's doctor, engineer, lawyer, hundreds of jobs, ISIS...and comedian") that I could see it as being a modern romcom classic for a good while. The cast is great, especially Holly Hunter and Ray Romano as Emily's slightly distant parents. Kumail's comedy troupe deserve praise too, with Bo Burnham, Aidy Bryant, and the at-least-he's-trying comic Kurt Braunohler. The more impressive part of these ups and downs the two have to go through is that it's partly autobiographical. I had only known about Kumail and Emily through their Indoor Kids podcast but I wasn't aware of the hardships and on-and-off dynamics their relationship went through. Great romcoms don't come that often, so if you haven't seen this yet, keep it on your radar.
 
K

kevin1025

Banned
Messofanego said:
We come here but we pretend like we're back there.
BigSick.jpg

Good lord is The Big Sick good [dir. Michael Showalter]. Haven't seen an Apatow-produced romcom drama this good since...Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)? Equal parts heart-wrenching and uproarious laughter, even during the heaviest of moments. I was expecting to laugh a lot from a Kumail Nanjiani co-written screenplay along with his wife Emily Gordon who's played wonderfully by Zoe Kazan, but I wasn't expecting to cry quite a bit, too. The film explores the generational, cultural, and religious divides of such a relationship between a pakistani muslim guy and a white girl. Surprisingly, Kumail's family is hilarious, and it was nice to see Adeel Akhtar again since the stunning Utopia, playing the more favoured brother ("You have to end it now or mom will fucking ghost you"). The film is full of memorably hilarious moments and specific nuances ("There's a strict hierarchy: there's doctor, engineer, lawyer, hundreds of jobs, ISIS...and comedian") that I could see it as being a modern romcom classic for a good while. The cast is great, especially Holly Hunter and Ray Romano as Emily's slightly distant parents. Kumail's comedy troupe deserve praise too, with Bo Burnham, Aidy Bryant, and the at-least-he's-trying comic Kurt Braunohler. The more impressive part of these ups and downs the two have to go through is that it's partly autobiographical. I had only known about Kumail and Emily through their Indoor Kids podcast but I wasn't aware of the hardships and on-and-off dynamics their relationship went through. Great romcoms don't come that often, so if you haven't seen this yet, keep it on your radar.
Click to expand...

Awesome write-up, and glad to hear you liked it a lot! It's hitting Canada early July, but I'm definitely seeing it when it comes here.
 
D

Discotheque

Banned
kevin1025 said:
Awesome write-up, and glad to hear you liked it a lot! It's hitting Canada early July, but I'm definitely seeing it when it comes here.
Click to expand...

Same. I'm pretty happy about all these brown ppl popping in media right now.

Riz Ahmed and Kumail Nanjiani killing it right now.
 
O

overcast

Member
Excited about The Big Sick because of the talent involved and the impressions I've read. Trailer was beyond generic though, turned my gf off I think. I'll just have to vow for it.

Also, gonna be interesting seeing people review It Comes At Night. Sounds like a not so horror movie. Similar marketing to the witch.
 
D

Discotheque

Banned
Icolin said:
Don't forget about Nav. The first brown boy to get it popping.
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That's actually his father, DJ Khaled who opened the floodgates bro. But young nav is doing good things as well now.

lately I've only been rewatching movies (recently saw Green Room, I Heart Huckabees and Snatch again over the past week or so, oh and Wonder Woman). kind of feeling uninspired to watch new stuff right now, in a bit of a rut with finding something good to watch :/, would be nice to see some thriller or drama recommendations from y'all, any language as long as its decent. might venture into some of Ozu's filmography soon.

Green Room was better on a rewatch imo, I enjoyed it quite a bit when I saw it in theaters but got kinda lost in the details of the situation earlier in the film. The writer/director wastes no time with this one and just goes in. The particulars are mostly implied and explained in quick mumbly remarks. God damn is this a dope siege thriller tho. The violence when it finally happens is brutal and matter of fact, and its refreshing seeing this film center around a young punk band as opposed to the usuals (pretty teens, capable badasses, cops etc.). Jeremy Saulnier is a boss, day one on his next one.

I Heart Huckabees remains the best movie David O Russell ever made (okay, maybe Three Kings is better but this is certainly his most interesting). I'm surprised how he went on to make such trite dramas since then. Great cast, including the snubbed actress of last year Isabelle Hupert. Mark Wahlberg btw is pretty underrated imo. He shines in comedic roles like this, a bit dumb and loud. I wish directors cast him in the showy side roles more often. Loved him in Departed too. Naomi Watts btw..whew, seems like David O Russell wanted her to channel her naive Mulholland Drive performance (before things take a dark turn of course). Entertaining comedy, it makes these characters commit so much to their philosophical ideals to the point of absurdity. Makes for some pretty humorous scenes.

Wonder Woman was decent. I think I liked BvS a bit more, this one goes for the wise decision and aims for a more straightforward approach to its character. This universe really needed a movie like this to win back some of the people it scared away haha. The amazonian battle in the beginning was dope, very 300-esque. Gal who I thought has been pretty unremarkable in other roles surprisingly shines in this quite a bit. The supporting cast of heroes is fun too, Chris Pine in particular was so well cast as the other lead. I think the movie melded the real life war with the fantasy heroics better than I expected, the No Man's Land sequence specifically really worked in selling her impact to those around her. I think this is one of the better post-TDK comic book movies (certainly the best origin movie since Iron Man) due to being so earnest with its main character. I can draw a line back to Raimi Spiderman and Donner Superman with this one moreso than any other superhero since those. And that's what really carries this for me. Her personality. Oh yeah third act was a bunch of usual generic crap, you know the drill. Certainly not as good a movie as Logan (which remains the king since dark knight), but I appreciated how romanticized and ideal this superhero was.
 
M

Messofanego

Banned
Discotheque said:
Same. I'm pretty happy about all these brown ppl popping in media right now.

Riz Ahmed and Kumail Nanjiani killing it right now.
Click to expand...
event-poster-5261539.jpg

Hasan Minhaj's Homecoming Special too, that dude could be an actor. Such an amazing theatrical performance.

There's Master Of None too.
masterofnonemain.0.jpg


Good time for our kind of people 😃
 
N

Net_Wrecker

Member
Caught Wonder Woman last night.

Yeah, I'm just about done with the third act of these movies. It was good up until it wasn't. The first 2 acts were fun, Gal Gadot is great in the role, I'm glad it's a runaway success, the DCEU desperately needed this, and the industry needs this character to be huge......

....But these superhero movie third acts, brehs. My god. This movie peaks like an hour before the story's natural conclusion, and doesn't do anything creative beyond that point in order to get there. You can almost literally hear the gears of superhero blockbuster storytelling creak as they're powered on to help another one of these movies reach its flat DBZ fight CG explosion finale, with a bunch of conveniently tied off and weak character arcs. Ughhhhhhhhhh

And yet, it's still the best thing DC has done on the big screen in almost a decade so...... good job to everyone involved for saving this trash heap of an endeavor known as the DC Extended Universe. Now get creative with the sequel.
 
R

Ridley327

Member
Discotheque said:
That's actually his father, DJ Khaled who opened the floodgates bro. But young nav is doing good things as well now.

lately I've only been rewatching movies (recently saw Green Room, I Heart Huckabees and Snatch again over the past week or so, oh and Wonder Woman). kind of feeling uninspired to watch new stuff right now, in a bit of a rut with finding something good to watch :/, would be nice to see some thriller or drama recommendations from y'all, any language as long as its decent. might venture into some of Ozu's filmography soon.

Green Room was better on a rewatch imo, I enjoyed it quite a bit when I saw it in theaters but got kinda lost in the details of the situation earlier in the film. The writer/director wastes no time with this one and just goes in. The particulars are mostly implied and explained in quick mumbly remarks. God damn is this a dope siege thriller tho. The violence when it finally happens is brutal and matter of fact, and its refreshing seeing this film center around a young punk band as opposed to the usuals (pretty teens, capable badasses, cops etc.). Jeremy Saulnier is a boss, day one on his next one.

I Heart Huckabees remains the best movie David O Russell ever made (okay, maybe Three Kings is better but this is certainly his most interesting). I'm surprised how he went on to make such trite dramas since then. Great cast, including the snubbed actress of last year Isabelle Hupert. Mark Wahlberg btw is pretty underrated imo. He shines in comedic roles like this, a bit dumb and loud. I wish directors cast him in the showy side roles more often. Loved him in Departed too. Naomi Watts btw..whew, seems like David O Russell wanted her to channel her naive Mulholland Drive performance (before things take a dark turn of course). Entertaining comedy, it makes these characters commit so much to their philosophical ideals to the point of absurdity. Makes for some pretty humorous scenes.

Wonder Woman was decent. I think I liked BvS a bit more, this one goes for the wise decision and aims for a more straightforward approach to its character. This universe really needed a movie like this to win back some of the people it scared away haha. The amazonian battle in the beginning was dope, very 300-esque. Gal who I thought has been pretty unremarkable in other roles surprisingly shines in this quite a bit. The supporting cast of heroes is fun too, Chris Pine in particular was so well cast as the other lead. I think the movie melded the real life war with the fantasy heroics better than I expected, the No Man's Land sequence specifically really worked in selling her impact to those around her. I think this is one of the better post-TDK comic book movies (certainly the best origin movie since Iron Man) due to being so earnest with its main character. I can draw a line back to Raimi Spiderman and Donner Superman with this one moreso than any other superhero since those. And that's what really carries this for me. Her personality. Oh yeah third act was a bunch of usual generic crap, you know the drill. Certainly not as good a movie as Logan (which remains the king since dark knight), but I appreciated how romanticized and ideal this superhero was.
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IIRC, Russell took the failure of that film really, really, really hard, and he was apparently rather embarrassed when the video of him lashing out on Lily Tomlin leaked out after the fact. I guess it just completely readjusted his approach from that point forward, which he seems to have doubled down on crowd pleasers that really don't rock the boat too much.

Anyway, The Godfather: Part II is still the best sequel ever. It certainly does not work without seeing the first film, given that almost all of its dramatic payoff is the result of threads that the first film established, but everything resolves so cleanly and, despite the apocalyptic leanings, so satisfyingly at that. I'll always be just a little mad at Richard Castellano for not reprising Clemenza, but it gets more and more difficult to argue against getting Michael Gazzo for Pentangeli to fulfill that arc as he's just such a blast to watch, especially for a film that can be as morose as this one.

Well, onto part 3, though I'm not expecting a sea change.
 
A

AngmarsKing701

Member
Divius said:
NY Times: The 25 Best Films of the 21st Century So Far.
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I've only seen a couple of those so can't comment on the quality of the films or the list. I will say I suspect I'd fall asleep watching many of the more artsy ones.

I'll also make a comment repeating what I said in the thread for this:
- The Incredibles should be the Pixar film here. 1, it's their best film; 2, it would satisfy the superhero genre.
- Where in the name of all the gods is Lord of the Rings? Insane to not have at least one of the films on the list or the trilogy as a single entrant.
 
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