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I just saw 1917 (The Sam Mendez film)

SpartanN92

Banned
Absolutely incredible and intense movie. The film is shot in a way that makes it look like one big long camera take (no cutaways) and it sucks you right in.
It is a really intense and scary film, not for the faint of heart (Era members you may get PTSD from the movie)

Walking out of the movie my biggest takeaway was how grateful and blessed I am to live in today’s world instead of back then. Those men in WW1 went through hell.
Anybody else see it yet?
 

EviLore

Expansive Ellipses
Staff Member
Going to go this weekend, glad to hear it turned out well.

Have you seen They Shall Not Grow Old? Recent Peter Jackson documentary with heavily restored WW1 footage. If that doesn't make you grateful for the peace, prosperity, and amazing quality of life we experience today, nothing will, phew.
 

GreyHorace

Member
Going to go this weekend, glad to hear it turned out well.

Have you seen They Shall Not Grow Old? Recent Peter Jackson documentary with heavily restored WW1 footage. If that doesn't make you grateful for the peace, prosperity, and amazing quality of life we experience today, nothing will, phew.
I want to see this. But I don't think it has a chance to be shown where I live. Hope it comes to Netflix or Amazon.
 
I have this theory that a lot of our social issues stem from people having no perspective on how good life is and how really really bad it could so easily be. They havnt had to EARN the freedom they have. They don’t even realize what it means to be free in this context.
You would be correct. I tried to tell a guy that he's living in the most peaceful era in human history and he wouldn't believe it. No one learns history or has any perspective any more.
 

Cleared_Hot

Member
I liked it. Very good movie. Also overrated. "Best since Saving Private Ryan"?!

Just gonna ignore war movies like Black Hawk Down, or Hacksaw Ridge? Both better than this. Again, is a great movie but it had been way over hyped by critics.
 

Kadayi

Banned
I have this theory that a lot of our social issues stem from people having no perspective on how good life is and how really really bad it could so easily be. They havnt had to EARN the freedom they have. They don’t even realize what it means to be free in this context.

I think more pertinently they have little appreciation for just how thin the veneer of civilisation is, or how demonstrably terrifying it can be when it gets stripped away. The world we inhabit is a lie agreed upon, under which broils a sea of primal savagery ready to burst forth at any given opportunity and drown us all without hesitation if we let it and yet they forever seek grounds for provocation.

As regards 1917. I'm thinking to try and catch this at the Cinema for sure. Having listened to Dan Carlin fantastic Hardcore History series on World War I, I'm kind of fascinated to see how the film translates the insanity of that to the screen.
 

Ulysses 31

Member
I have this theory that a lot of our social issues stem from people having no perspective on how good life is and how really really bad it could so easily be. They havnt had to EARN the freedom they have. They don’t even realize what it means to be free in this context.
Bad times creates strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, weak men create bad times. >.>
 

SpartanN92

Banned
Going to go this weekend, glad to hear it turned out well.

Have you seen They Shall Not Grow Old? Recent Peter Jackson documentary with heavily restored WW1 footage. If that doesn't make you grateful for the peace, prosperity, and amazing quality of life we experience today, nothing will, phew.

I bought a copy of it for my dad with the intention of watching when he was done, I just haven’t gotten to it but I will absolutely make it a priority now!
 

Baby Yoda

Neo Member
This was a great film. It felt like only a few minutes had gone by. I loved how the one shot aspect really pulled you into the day and the life of one of these soldiers. Simply an incredibly crafted film.
 

TriSuit666

Banned
Saw it in IMAX today, absolutely superb. Starts out slow, mind, Roger Deakins deserves the Oscar especially for one particular sequence, near the end which justifies paying the IMAX entry uplift on its own.

Amazing production values, and great acting. Felt to me like it was everything Dunkirk wasn't, in that the time and one shot aspect aren't there as gimmicks.
 
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Hari Seldon

Member
Just got back from seeing it. It was very good, but much more of a drama and not an action flick like saving private ryan. Definitely Oscar worthy. I was hoping for a big battle scene or some massive shelling but there wasn’t really any of that. But really good nonetheless.
 

gatti-man

Member
I thought it was pretty underwhelming and bland honestly. But I was expecting more action and it was more a drama. The main character didn’t really seem real to me. In fact the plot seemed nonsensical.
 

Hari Seldon

Member
I thought it was pretty underwhelming and bland honestly. But I was expecting more action and it was more a drama. The main character didn’t really seem real to me. In fact the plot seemed nonsensical.

Yeah I initially had that same thought. But as I thought about it that is not what this movie is about. Like if you compare Saving Private Ryan to this, Ryan had that super epic beach landing scene which shows tremendous heroism of (at the time that the movie came out) a generation at the end of their line. Instead of the beach scene, this movie had that slow brutal crawl through no man's land with no shots or anything. Just letting the visuals do all of the talking about what a tremendous fucking waste this war was. It is a powerful film, substituting suspense for action and achieving great heights. The cinematography and set design were Masterpiece level.
 

oagboghi2

Member
Going to go this weekend, glad to hear it turned out well.

Have you seen They Shall Not Grow Old? Recent Peter Jackson documentary with heavily restored WW1 footage. If that doesn't make you grateful for the peace, prosperity, and amazing quality of life we experience today, nothing will, phew.
How have I not heard about this?
 

PanzerAzel

Member
Wonderful film.

The one take approach was technically flawless and incredibly immersive not only due to not breaking the flow, but it always retained proximity to the actors and reveals to the audience what they see when they see it. I’ve never been on the edge of my seat so much for a film I’d not classify as action. The one scene that used music was beautifully done. Didn’t break the reality we experienced alongside the characters while maintaining its emotional gravitas.

Going to see it again tomorrow.
 
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gatti-man

Member
Yeah I initially had that same thought. But as I thought about it that is not what this movie is about. Like if you compare Saving Private Ryan to this, Ryan had that super epic beach landing scene which shows tremendous heroism of (at the time that the movie came out) a generation at the end of their line. Instead of the beach scene, this movie had that slow brutal crawl through no man's land with no shots or anything. Just letting the visuals do all of the talking about what a tremendous fucking waste this war was. It is a powerful film, substituting suspense for action and achieving great heights. The cinematography and set design were Masterpiece level.
I was in until the plane crash scene. What followed was so unbelievable I couldn’t take the movie seriously after that.
 

ammodotcom

Neo Member
Absolutely incredible and intense movie. The film is shot in a way that makes it look like one big long camera take (no cutaways) and it sucks you right in.
It is a really intense and scary film, not for the faint of heart (Era members you may get PTSD from the movie)

Walking out of the movie my biggest takeaway was how grateful and blessed I am to live in today’s world instead of back then. Those men in WW1 went through hell.
Anybody else see it yet?

I saw it Friday. Absolutely loved it.

How many of you caught this?

Before the boys set off General Erinmore quotes Rudyard Kipling:

"Down to Gehenna or up to the Throne,
He travels the fastest who travels alone."

...presaging that one of them wouldn't make it.
 

Stouffers

Banned
The world felt very small.. Like everything was within a few hundred yards of the next objective. Also, you had friendlies occupying the same space/location as hostiles while only seemingly being an issue for our protagonist.
 

G-Bus

Banned
Enjoyed it quite a bit. The whole one take thing was pretty neat.

Figured there was going to be a bit more action. Just not that kind of movie.

If you like WW1 stuff I highly recommend They Shall Not Grow Old. All remastered footage of WW1.
 

Saruhashi

Banned
Not to compare it to Dunkirk but how close in quality is it to that movie?

Getting dragged to watch it on Wed.

It's a very different story but if you like these kind of historical movies then for sure you would like this.

There are a few scenes that compare to some scenes in Dunkirk with the level of intensity and anxiety that they bring.

Personally, this would edge out Dunkirk if I were absolutely forced to pick one.
It's an absolutely stunning movie that cranks up the stakes and has you completely rooting for the main characters.
 

holygeesus

Banned
Saw it last night and loved it. The pacing is spot-on for me. Quiet moments to give respite from the action, and a good half dozen superb set-pieces in there. As mentioned, the one-take approach doesn't feel gimmicky at all.
 
Everyone I saw this with liked it.

I thought it was gimmicky and annoying. Certainly not a great war film. I wasn't the biggest fan of Dunkirk, but I thought that was better.

ONE TAKE GOOD needs to die. Besides, they didn't even try to make it appear as one take--it's two at best, even subjectively (to say nothing of the many other stealth-cuts, but that's par for the course with this type of approach). And the cinematography isn't particularly good, despite Deakins' involvement.

Felt like a Wikipedia-researched war film.
 
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EviLore

Expansive Ellipses
Staff Member
EviLore EviLore I took your advice and watched They Shall Not Grow Old.

I was blown away by it. It chills me to the bone thinking about what these men went through.

Seriously. The most harrowing part may be when they show those mud pits formed by artillery shelling and talk about how men would slowly sink into them like quicksand and they’d be left behind to eventually die, no one able to do a thing.
 

Raven117

Member
I have this theory that a lot of our social issues stem from people having no perspective on how good life is and how really really bad it could so easily be. They havnt had to EARN the freedom they have. They don’t even realize what it means to be free in this context.
Hmmm yes, perspective. Such a unique theory. But yeah. Absolutely.

its not that we shouldn’t keep moving the ball forward on stuff, but a little perspective for some of these yahoos would go along way.
 

SpartanN92

Banned
Seriously. The most harrowing part may be when they show those mud pits formed by artillery shelling and talk about how men would slowly sink into them like quicksand and they’d be left behind to eventually die, no one able to do a thing.

I KNOW!!! I’d never heard anything like that before. That was horrible!
 

LordPezix

Member
Very good film. Sam Mendez really delivered here.

You know when veterans and active duty members jump during the gunshot scenes you have yourself a quality war movie.
 
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