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[Rock And Roll]

Watched La La Land last night. I've always been a fan of the golden age of hollywood/the jazz era. Never been much of a musical guy however.

That being said, I enjoyed the film even though the story was pretty tame and predictable. What truly set this movie apart was the cinematography and the soundtrack. It looked fantastic and the visual creativity during Seb's last solo was captivating. Gosling and Stone were both pretty good in it as well.

I give it a solid 7/10. Not quite as good as it was made out to be but still enjoyable nonetheless.

 

[mekes]

Gemini Man
Trailer

It has been a little while since I’ve enjoyed a Will Smith movie. I wanted to watch this movie more because it is directed by Ang Lee who usually has an eye for really good shots in his films. He can sometimes make a movie if the actors themselves end up disappointing. Thankfully it’s a pretty fun and interesting film, with great direction and a perfect length. It won’t win any big awards but it should entertain most who watch it. Will Smith was enjoyable and added to the film which is something I don’t take for granted anymore. Only down point would be the CGI on younger Will Smith. It is not consistent and some shots look remarkably better than others. It pulls you a little out of the enjoyment, but not so much that you lose enthusiasm for the story. Im happy I saw it and recommend it for those looking for a lighter hearted action movie.

 

[Kadayi]

Joker

I wasn't entirely sure about seeing this, but I figured with all the recent talk of its box office success I should give it a shot. Have to say standout performance from Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck/Joker. This isn't the first time he's played a disturbed individual (and it's fair to say he's had a bit of a career at it) but this definitely felt very distinct from his turns in The Master or the more recent You were never really here where he played similarly dysfunctional loners. Certainly not an easy watch though in many ways because there's a slow car crash nature to Arthur Flecks unravelling, and the how Director Phillips allows the film to linger upon moments of uncomfortableness. Cinemaphotography was top notch and the scene of Phoenix just transforming into his joker persona on the steps was absolute diamond.



My only real criticism would perhaps be the casting of De Niro as Murray Franklin, not because De Niro was bad in the role (far from it), just because its clear the film owes Taxi Driver a great deal of inspiration and seeing the star of that kind of took me out of it. Small quibble though. Top film 10/10

 

[Tenaciousmo]

Gemini Man
Trailer
...

I just finished Watching it too!

Gemini Man (2019)

Entertaining movie about a trained hitman who's going to retire BUT...

He's told by some old contact of his that his last hit was not what it seems, soon after he's hunted by ninja wannabes, kills his way out. Big boss Will is now faced by solid Will.
good action movie that I will vaguely remember watching as the movie that will smith fight CGI will smith. There is some uncanny valley going on when they fight and some other animation as said before. I was thoroughly entertained by this above average action movie.

 

[SirKicksalot]

All of you should have watched it in HFR, it was amazing.

I rewatched Braveheart and The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc for the first time in like 20 years. It's hard to choose a favourite.
Joan of Arc is more interesting, by far: it has a weird story, a batshit insane main character, weird secondary characters and fantastic visuals and sound. I believe this movie was poorly reviewed just because it subverted expectations. It's extremely uncomfortable.
Braveheart is, well, Braveheart. Can't say anything bad about it. Manly as fuck.
...but it's not as interesting.

 

[TheSadRanger]

All of you should have watched it in HFR, it was amazing.

I rewatched Braveheart and The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc for the first time in like 20 years. It's hard to choose a favourite.
Joan of Arc is more interesting, by far: it has a weird story, a batshit insane main character, weird secondary characters and fantastic visuals and sound. I believe this movie was poorly reviewed just because it subverted expectations. It's extremely uncomfortable.
Braveheart is, well, Braveheart. Can't say anything bad about it. Manly as fuck.
...but it's not as interesting.

I give The Messenger props for how brutal it is, it has some of realest depictions of medieval combat ever in a movie.

Nothing is romanticized, I love how honest the movie is with it's portrayal of medieval combat being clumsy often times. The siege warfare stuff is pretty great to, trebuchets, burning pitch, siege ladders. It's all mostly practical effects as well so the movie still looks great.

The movie does have general French weirdness to it though. Plus I think Jovovich was kind of miscast and the only reason she got the role was because she was married to Besson at the time.

 

[Kadayi]

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Credit where credit is due both Pitt and Decaprio were pretty engaging in this film in terms of performances, but I think unfortunately beyond that the film falls down the Tarantino rabbit hole of referential indulgence coupled with Hollywood yesteryear reverence (which will undoubtedly go down well when it comes to awards season) I can't fault the production (it looks spectacular) but it feels to me that a precursor to going in is already having some foreknowledge as to who Sharron Tate is as well as what occurred with the Manson family and its many members. Certainly not his worst film (I think Deathproof has that all sewn up) but a languid meander that feels like it more about old Hollywood name dropping than anything else. 6/10

 

[mekes]

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

I agree. I felt the film had some great moments but I do wish it was much more expansive in its storytelling. It wasn’t until the end credits rolled that I realised what story the film was trying to tell. It could have been an amazing film but ended up being too limited in its scope for me. Which was a real shame as I really enjoyed the characters as soon as they had an interesting scene to work in.

 

[SirKicksalot]

Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves

The extended edition has even more of Alan Rickman's transcendental acting. One of the best and funniest villains of all time. Michael Wincott as Guy de Gisborne is a masterful medieval douchebag and Morgan Freeman is at his wisest. As for Robin and the rest, who cares lol

There's some really inspired moviemaking on display. The extended edition restores one particularly impressive stunt. It's all very nice and clever - creative shots like the arrowcam are rarely seen in action movies today. The Sheriff is basically the star of his own mad little movie, full of visual gags and oddities.
This is probably the only time modern comedy worked in a historical movie. My sides were often catapulted straight to orbit. Also has a top tier F-bomb.
No wonder this was the second biggest movie of 1991, after Terminator 2.
It seems it was a big inspiration for that Crusade script Verhoeven and Arnold almost filmed.

 

[mekes]

Ad Astra

Space Sci-fi is my thing. I wish I’d have seen this in the cinema but for some reason I just let it pass. I went in pretty blind beyond understanding it’s a space movie with Brad Pitt. I love the way the story was told, almost like a picture book style of letting the scenes tell the story with a little narration to help out. It’s a very visually interesting film without ever going too far with the effects, probably my favourite space based movie in that regard. I would put it up with Prometheus in terms of attention to detail.

The story is interesting all the way through. A few liberties taken along the way but those are kept on the minor side given the genre. I won’t say anything else on the story. If you like space movies, it’s a good one! I really enjoyed it.

 

[Rock And Roll]

Atomic Blonde

Been meaning to watch this one for awhile now but finally got around to it on the weekend.

I thought overall it was a really solid flick. My only real gripe was the ending, too many movies now try to cram an uber-twist in the last 10 minutes to outsmart the audience when really its getting clichéd and lazy.

So let's move on to the good stuff. The action sequences were great and it felt like it was logically progressing as the movie went along. It didn't peak too early or have parts that weren't as good as the previous sequence, it was very logically put together and climaxed with the great "one shot" bit near the end. Visually the movie looked phenomenal and its easy to pick out great locations/sets etc... when complimenting a movie's cinematography but what really made the movie look so fantastic was how stylish Charlize looked. Her outfits really fit in nicely with wherever she was or created a nice contrast (shout out to the jacket hoodie combo in the theatre, looked dope as hell). The soundtrack was top tier, I'm a big 80s guy so it pretty much checked all the boxes for me.

Also, Charlize was so goddamn hot. Probably worth watching just for that if you haven't checked it out.

I really enjoyed it and would recommend checking it out if you haven't seen it and you like Bond style films. Hollywood should probably take notes too, because this movie turned a great profit and featured a female lead in an original role. All these shitty woke reboots are failing because they are lazy and uninspired, give people something unique and with effort put into it and I'm sure they don't give a rats ass about the gender/race of the lead.

 

[SirKicksalot]

LOTR Extended for the first time since 2012

At this point I don't even remember the theatrical versions. Jackson's director cuts are the theatrical, mostly because the pacing was perfected, but I don't care. There's so much greatness in the extended!

... though I still don't understand what's the deal with that skull avalanche.

 

[Tenaciousmo]

Love Actually (2003)

Newly dating a girl who loves this movie and she wanted to watch it with me. Kind of went in backwards, but I was wrong, the movie is actually very good.

You're following a bunch of different people having difficulties with their love life, and Bill Nighy Around Christmas time. Laughed a bunch and made me feel fuzzy. There are some really cringe moments in there surrounding the keira knightley story but hey. can't win them all.

Fellas, this holiday season, accept to watch this movie with your S/O, she's going to be grateful and you're gonna watch a decent movie.

 

[SirKicksalot]

The Hobbit Extended Editions. First time watching BOTFA extended.

AUJ is easily the worst. It's oddly paced, it has weird colour grading and it just doesn't work. The EE adds some truly wretched scenes, like the fountain and the additional Goblin King bits. It's a minor rewrite away from greatness, but unfortunately every bit of it needs to be tightened up.
Given the gigantic amount of content its original version was meant to have, what we have here is probably an extended extended edition.
The CGI is still astonishing. It looked even better in HFR, as the CGI characters had more weight and subtler movement.

The Desolation of Smaug: always the best, massively improved by the EE. This is just as good as any LOTR, with two minor exceptions: the shitty love subplot and the EE bollocks scene. Everything else added by the EE is gold. Some scenes are massively altered, adding back whole characters and subplots. Laketown is such a wonderful setting! In the book, Bard was pulled straight out of Tolkien's ass two paragraphs before killing Smaug, but here he's a great character.

Battle of the Five Armies: literally unfinished when it launched and now very extended. Peter Jackson and the other writers consider this to be the most interesting and even call it a psychological thriller Thorin's transformation into Denethor is undeniably interesting and the character interactions are the best in the trilogy. Thorin's madness is resolved in a turd of a scene, though.
The battle was a major headache for PJ & friends, ate most of the 2013 additional shooting schedule and was unfinished for release. Now, without being bothered by an MPAA rating for the EE, they went FULL RETARD. I mean that in the best way. It's like PJ reverted back to his splatter days and also played a lot of Warhammer fantasy. This is gory, gorgeous videogame bullshit and it's really fun! The chariot chase is the best action scene in the whole trilogy. I love all the stupid cartoony action and Legolas acrobatics. It's very different from the theatrical battle.
I don't think there's a single bad addition to this movie.

After watching all 6 movies I figured out the problem with Alfrid. He's an extension of Extended Grima. Grima rejects Aragorn's kindness in TTT and then there's the whole Saruman business in ROTK, a short but well constructed scene which leads him towards redemption. Too bad Saruman pushes him over the edge.
Alfrid is literally the same character but a cunt instead of a creep. He even shows empathy and understanding. The problem: he's a constant tease! There must be ten fucking scenes in BOTFA alone where it feels like he's going to join the good guys any second now, only to carry on with lazy villainy. It's extremely annoying. His theatrical end (getting away with the coins) is more satisfying - who knows, maybe he'll turn out alright somewhere! His EE ending is absolutely hilarious though: the gold literally catapults him to his death.

For all their problems, these movies are the best fantasy movies and some of the best blockbusters since LOTR.

 

[Kadayi]

Vice

Caught this on Amazon Prime mainly because I'm a sucker for Christian Bale and his crazy commitment to method and just piling on the pounds for roles like this. Can't say I knew a lot about Dick Cheney aside from him being a skeezy SOB with the Iraq War and all of the BS that followed that, but I must admit it was an entertaining ride. What I wasn't aware of was that he essentially started out washewd up college drop out who got a job as Rumsfeld's (Steve Carell's) Washington Whitehouse Gopher/Intern and gradually inveigled himself into the political machine during the Nixon administration. Also hadn't realised that Amy Adams starred in it, putting in yet again another solid performance as Cheney's ball-busting wife Lynne (Adams really is owed an Oscar at this point 6 noms, no wins...criminal). What was very noteworthy was that for all his faults as a member of the human race the one arena in which Cheney seemed to shine was his absolute love for his daughters and how he readily accepted and stood by one of them publicly coming out as a Lesbian, even though it largely put paid to any political ambitions he had of running for the big seat himself as a Republican. As with any Adam Mckay gig (The Big Short) Vice isn't a straightforward retelling of the life of a man who is still a largely enigmatic and mysterious figure in many ways, but it's engaging one. 8/10

 

[Kadayi]

The Big Short

Wasn't intentionally planning a second Adam Mckay feature, but for some unknown reason it came up in my Netflix feed and I thought why not (more Method Bale...I wonder how long he spent learning to Drum ). This was a rewatch, but truth be told I wasn't paying the greatest degree of attention the first time around so it was worth the revisit, especially as this time I was better able to get a handle on what exactly was happening, though I'm still a little fuzzy on the specifics of how exactly shorting itself works. I get that essentially they were betting on an outcome (that the housing Bond market would decline) I just don't entirely understand why anyone would take the bet per se, aside from the fact that they thought a market collapse could never happen.

Still overall an enjoyable film, and compelling in terms of realising just how utterly fucked the entire system was with even the rating agencies being complicit in propping up the lie regarding the sanctity and stability of the bonds and how the banks were essentially just repackaging the more suspect ones full of BS Ninja Mortgages (No Income, No Job, No Assets) with slighter better ones to hide the taste. The fact that bar one Credit Suisse Banker getting sent to white Collar Jail no other Bankers ever faced any criminal prosecution is an absolute travesty especially after the bailout and the detrimental global impact of the whole affair. 9/10

 

[Kadayi]

Dunkirk



https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/dunkirk_2017 Critics 93% Audience 81%

I find Chris Nolan's films a little hit and miss at times. Loved Inception, but not a big fan of the Batman Films and Interstellar gets a little too hokey for my tastes towards the end, so I wasn't sure how this would fare. However, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised with Dunkirk (I'd somehow managed to avoid trailers and plot points beyond the obvious). It was a lot less showy than I expected despite the big set pieces and did a great job of just conveying the apparent hopelessness of the situation given the scale of the task and the unrelenting challenge faced by the predatory Luffwaffe. Decent performances all round with some real nail-biting tension in places, though having almost drowned as a child some scenes were a bit harrowing. 9/10

Props to Zimmer for the understated but every second count's score: -



That music could make even brushing your teeth into a life or death situation

I like to think that having been caught Tom Hardy successfully escaped from Colditz, naturally shagged the Commandants Wife silly in the process, before slipping his way into neutral Switzerland and making his way back to Blighty for some Kippers and Eggs

 

[Kadayi]

1917



https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1917_2019 Critics 89% Audience 89%

Word on the street was good for this so I figured it was worth seeing on the big screen and I have to say I wasn't disappointed. I opted for the local Arts Cinema versus the Multiplex which may have been a mistake as the sound wasn't great in places in terms of hearing what people were saying at points, but the actual story itself is straight forward enough. Two Soldiers are assigned a mission to traverse no man's land to send word to an isolated battalion who are in danger of being lured into a trap following the sudden retreat by the German forces to a new defensive line.

A lot of the conversation about the film has centred around the way the film doesn't really cut from the action and keeps you immersed in the emotional environment, but albeit, for the most part, this is true, there are definitely instances you can tell where a cut has taken place, however, the film does a fantastic job of never really letting up and you're always on edge in every situation. When the leads first enter the muddy hellscape that constitutes No Mans Land the slow steady progress of the camera as if follows them really reminded me a lot of Tarkovsky's Stalker though this being a lot more intimate, with the same sense of abject dread hanging over things.

Certainly, I can see why it's winning plaudits, I guess my only criticism would be with the casting a few big names for what are essentially cameo appearances. I think in many ways the film would have been better served using less well-known actors for those parts.

Still 9/10 would avoid trench foot again

 

[kiiltz]

1917



https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1917_2019 Critics 89% Audience 89%

Word on the street was good for this so I figured it was worth seeing on the big screen and I have to say I wasn't disappointed. I opted for the local Arts Cinema versus the Multiplex which may have been a mistake as the sound wasn't great in places in terms of hearing what people were saying at points, but the actual story itself is straight forward enough. Two Soldiers are assigned a mission to traverse no man's land to send word to an isolated battalion who are in danger of being lured into a trap following the sudden retreat by the German forces to a new defensive line.

A lot of the conversation about the film has centred around the way the film doesn't really cut from the action and keeps you immersed in the emotional environment, but albeit, for the most part, this is true, there are definitely instances you can tell where a cut has taken place, however, the film does a fantastic job of never really letting up and you're always on edge in every situation. When the leads first enter the muddy hellscape that constitutes No Mans Land the slow steady progress of the camera as if follows them really reminded me a lot of Tarkovsky's Stalker though this being a lot more intimate, with the same sense of abject dread hanging over things.

Certainly, I can see why it's winning plaudits, I guess my only criticism would be with the casting a few big names for what are essentially cameo appearances. I think in many ways the film would have been better served using less well-known actors for those parts.

Still 9/10 would avoid trench foot again

Just saw it myself.

I was one of those who didn't really care for the continuous shot in Birdman and regarded it as a gimmick. I guess my problem is that I put the oner on a pedestal. Also didn't help that the last time I saw it was in Black Summer. I can see it's uses in the trench scenes but other than them and the climax I thought it was overkill and/or unnecessary. On the other hand I feel that the climax wouldn't have paid off without the film being done in a continuous shot so I guess I have some ambivalent feelings there. Mostly I'm tired of the word "immersion" being thrown around (not @ you, but genpop instead)

The sound design is actually really good though and was a standout for me.

 

[mekes]

Terminator - Dark Fate

I heard the movie had middling reviews and I know it has a dedicated thread in the OT section. I hardly knew anything about it going in, other than Linda Hamilton was back and Arnie has a role.

I think it might be my favourite Terminator film post T2. Terminator has had some extremely average films, more so than good films by this point. I really appreciated the technical effort of the special effects and set pieces, undoubtedly my favourite parts of the film. That being said I don’t think it’s a movie I would want to watch again in the future.

I was hoping the film would be able to break away from the comedic vibe that the series has adopted and go somewhat back to its roots, but nah, and that’s a shame. I still like the overall vibe from the original Terminator movie the best. Terminator now is some kind of Matrix/Marvel type movie where it is more about the ride than the story. Saying that actually reminds me of the Martin Scorsese quotes from a few months back. I completely get what he means when I think in terms of this movie (and the Marvel movies, but this movie is perhaps even more fitting).

The film just is what it is. Chances are you already know what it is before you even see it. You’d probably be right to question if you should see it at all. I say watch it if it’s a lazy Sunday like it was for me today. I spent the entire day in my dressing gown and just wanted something stupid to watch this afternoon that I wouldnt have to pay all that much attention to. It served its purpose. Better movies like some of the movies mentioned above, I will watch those soon, but today I was ok with watching something mediocre just to check it off the list.

5/10

Give this movie a decent, worthwhile story and it would have been great. The fault lays firmly with the script writers on this one imo. And not because of the woke nods, which were extremely apparent. It’s just the same old Terminator movie you’ve already seen several times.

Hollywood - Give me a Terminator movie with build up, suspense, a good script, some lore building. Not another rehash.

​

 

[kiiltz]

Joker

I don't really have anything to add to what's already been praised about it. It definitely deserves the plaudits it's received and Jaoquin is captivating if not ghastly skeletal. I do have one minor thing to say though, but it mainly pertains to the state Hollywood. I'm really getting exasperated with the "cinematic" blue/orange color grading that's been so predominant over the last few decades. Weird thing with Joker is there were times were it didn't seem to be there at all, then all of sudden it was just in your face like someone shot you with a paintball gun. It was great though, and I both love the return to nitty gritty DC as well as the Scorcese influence.

Unrelated, but I have been watching other films btw, I just haven't really had time or care to post about them. Whoops.

 

[Kadayi]

I don't really have anything to add to what's already been praised about it. It definitely deserves the plaudits it's received and Jaoquin is captivating if not ghastly skeletal. I do have one minor thing to say though, but it mainly pertains to the state Hollywood. I'm really getting exasperated with the "cinematic" blue/orange color grading that's been so predominant over the last few decades. Weird thing with Joker is there were times were it didn't seem to be there at all, then all of sudden it was just in your face like someone shot you with a paintball gun.

I think that might have been intentional to do with his mood states, though I'd have to watch it again to confirm.

 

[kiiltz]

I think that might have been intentional to do with his mood states, though I'd have to watch it again to confirm.

I had a quick look through because I was thinking that maybe you were onto something regarding his delusions. It's really sporadic and from what I can tell it largely seems to be dependent on the lighting. It's virtually non-existent when there's natural light but the absence of it is when it's really noticeable. Here's a quick example of two shots that are directly one after the other.

 

[Kadayi]

Doctor Sleep



I wouldn't say this is a bad sequel on paper, but unfortunately in terms of delivery, it fails to live up to its predecessor in every regard. Worth a watch, but in truth I think in the hands of another more emphatic director willing to take ownership I think it could have been a lot better and existed more within the moment of itself as an experience versus operating with such a heavy reliance on some unnecessary 'I got that reference' callbacks*. It's a little too obvious in itself constantly and the telegraphing is exceptionally heavy-handed in a made for idiots Daytime soap TV way. 6/10 would avoid Room 237 again

*The chalkboard breaking with the whole Murder backwards R thing was a 'Really?' moment

 

[SirKicksalot]

Marketa Lazarova - an experimental Czechoslovak historical epic
It's a simple story (two clans clash in early Christian Bohemia) but it's told in the most spectacularly baffling way imaginable. It's constructed such that half the time you have no fucking idea as to what's going on, and then it throws you into another dreamlike chapter that somehow explains the previous one while being barely comprehensible itself. It's a goddamn three hours long music video, except the sound design is so avant-garde Bresson is spinning in his grave.
Anyway it's a really cool and unusual movie. It even has first person scenes! I don't think most people have the stomach for it (being slow, weird and disorienting) but it's living proof of what makes this cinematic medium great. Required viewing for anyone interested in visual storytelling and unique soundscapes.

The Lion in Winter - classic court drama with Anthony Hopkins as a badass young dude. It's basically a Game of Thrones episode. It's just people talking in a palace lol. It has some really impressive and clever plotting. I'm convinced GRRM is inspired by it.

 

[kurisu_1974]

Doctor Sleep (2019)

I wonder who they made this movie for... people that loved the original film or Kubrick moviesin general, are not going to find much to enjoy here except for some Kubrick hommage style decors that felt out of place in the end result... and people that the movie was seemingly aiming for - the millenial Marvel crowd - probably don't give a fuck about The Shining (but maybe they like Stephen King?)... so we got this YA take on the story, including some gang of annoying gypsy vampires that are said to be "rich and connected" yet in every scene they are nothing but hillbillies in the woods trying to get their BBQ going., and a kid with super powers going against them. I have not read the source material, and it is possible that King's book is as ridiculous as the movie, that makes me respect Kubricks's original vision even more. And like said here before, the throwbacks were a little on the nose, even with a small scene from the old movies for the people that didn't get it (?) I watched the Director's Cut so maybe it was worse there, I don't know.

The Comedy (2012)

This turned out to be some of the bleakest mumblecore style movies I've seen, centering around a group of jaded assholes that have trouble making any genuine connections with the world, each other, and themselves, with what I thought was a brilliant performance by Tim Heidecker (and Eric is there too, his rapping scene in the cab is amazing). Some of the dialogue is rather memorable in how absolutely misogynist it is, but still you feel for the lead actor because of how broken he appears to be. Also the whitest movie I've seen in a long time.

(and yes that is James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem)

 

[Kadayi]

Uncut Gems



https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/uncut_gems Critics 93%/Audience 52%

Caught this on Netflix as I'd heard good things about Adam Sandler's performance in it.

This film is pretty draining in terms of dizzying intensity with little in the way of respite. Sandler basically played Howard a New York Jeweler in 2012 who is swimming in (gambling?) debt and is constantly borrowing from Peter to pay Paul in order to keep a school of increasingly aggressive loan sharks off his back, whilst he tries to get his ducks in order so he can pay them all off once and for all. I would say it's worth a watch, but at the same time, I found it hard to root for Howard because for all intents and purposes he's a monumental fuck up whose just fucking over everyone in his life chasing the dream. Solid performance by Sandler though and I appreciated Julia Fox as his beleaguered Assistant/Girl Friend. A tense 8.5/10 would bet on the Celtics again.

 

[Kadayi]

Parasite



https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/parasite_2019 99% Critics/93% Audience

Korean Black Comedy by Bong Joon Ho (who most people here would probably know from the Chris Evans Sci-Fi film Snowpiercer). The story ostensively revolves around a family of poor but canny opportunists who leverage their son's relationship with a school friend to gradually enveigle themselves into the household of an extremely well to do family and supplant their existing staff in their luxurious modern townhouse. There's a lot going on here and I can see why it's been such as hit with both the critics and viewers, but for my part, I just enjoyed it for the house (which is a character in itself) and the direction. I would also say that Kang-Ho Song as the beleaguered family patriarch really shines as the film progresses. Highly recommended. 9.5/10 would falsify documents in Photoshop again.

 

[kiiltz]

Parasites next on my watch list. I've kind of been avoiding it bcus I'm just not really into Korean cinema tbh but it really sounds like something I'd like.

OT: Once Upon A Time In Hollywood

Eh. Feels a lot like a lesser version of Inglorious Basterds, especially with the rewriting history bit. I feel like this really would have resonated with me more if I was more familiar with the Charles Manson family, which I wasn't, although I did get that sense that something was there.

I really only like Tarantino for his dialogue and his ability to create and set up tense atmospheres and scenes but I honestly think his writing ability, specifically his ability to smoothly transition into one part of a story into the next, is garbage. My attention wavered at parts and I often found myself actively searching for what made the film good rather than just sitting back and watching it. There's also this thing that Tarantino does where he has a narrator but it's so irritatingly inconsistent that it feels like it's just there because he's too lazy to "show not tell".

The only thing I really enjoyed was Leo's performance. Don't really get the buzz about Pitt. Margot was unfortunately mostly window dressing but I hope her being in this sets her up for some future Tarantino dialogue.

Unrelated: I'm quitting my job soon to return to studying so I should have some time to post more frequently.

 

[kurisu_1974]

Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment (1985)

Currently, I'm watching all blockbusters movies I somehow missed or can't remember, and this is one I never saw before (did see the first and fourth one years ago). It's just not funny. The only thing I was thinking about was how Steve Gutterberg is an unfunny, prototype Paul Rudd, and thank god we now have Paul Rudd. Then I started thinking about a reboot of the franchise by Jody Hill and Danny McBride, with Paul Rudd as Carey Mahone . Then I went to bed.

 

[mekes]

Under The Silver Lake





Newest movie from the mind behind It Follows. I really enjoyed that movie so I was excited for this. I really don’t want to shit on the movie, I’ve avoided that for the most part with films I’ve mentioned in this thread. So I’ll focus on the good before anything else. Good performances throughout, beautiful cinematography. I didn’t know what to expect going in and I think my anticipation itself was probably the worst thing about my experience watching the movie.

Something happened at the start of making this post that will help me to explain what was wrong with this movie, for me. I’ve linked to the trailer at the top of my post, standard YouTube link. Searching for the movie on YouTube, the top suggestion was “Under the Silver Lake explained”. Explained... So if I say that I don’t get the point of this movie, or if it was an idea even worth pursuing, that’s where I’m at with the film. I think I actually do have a fair grasp on the overarching theme of the movie and some of the smaller details, but it just didn’t interest me all that much.

The trailer is very honest and shows the film as you can expect It. Watch the trailer and understand that the movie is almost 2 + 1/2 hours long. I honestly think it may have been better as a 2 or 3 part tv show.

Has anybody here seen it? Did you like it?

 

[SirKicksalot]

Uncut Gems - it's basically Herzog's Bad Lieutenant but with Jews and not as good. I really liked the basketball player.
I think it trying to set up a twist, making you think cancer is the reason for the main dude's recklessness but by the time it circled back to that I didn't even remember.

The Two Popes - well, it makes Benedict look much better than Francis and I don't think that was the intention. Hugely enjoyable movie until the obligatory Serious Scenes that literally nobody asked for. The other 100 minutes are really good though. A masterclass of how to make dialogue feel like an action movie.

 

[Kadayi]

Train to Busan



Korean Zombie outbreak Drama that was recommended to me by a friend. For what it is, not a bad film for the most part, though as with any of these things there's always these bizarre moments of people getting insta-turned whilst others are seemingly able to hold on for ages before succumbing. What I will give it credit for is some inventive sequences wherein the passengers on the ill-fated train have to navigate the carriages of infected. On the flip side, super annoying kid (just die already). Overall I'd give it a 7/10 would opt for first-class carriage again.

 

[Kadayi]

Knives Out



For what it is (a reworked Agatha Christine spoof told largely from the prime suspects perspective) I didn't think it was a bad film overall given the quirky tone, though in that regard it felt a little like an inferior Wes Anderson stint with less interesting characters. I can't quite reconcile myself to some of the hysterical conclusions levelled at it as a piece given who the writer/director was in terms of intent, but at the same time, I don't think he did a particularly good job of vilifying the family to make the conclusion feel overly warranted. They try their best to make Ana de Armas look like a plain jane, but it's a fool's errand. Craig puts on a thick Louisiana Accent as Private detective Benoit Blanc but there's no mistaking his appearance for anything more than an Englishman abroad. 6/10 would flip to the end page again.

 

[kiiltz]

Rewatched The Godfather part 1 and 2 the other day.

My god these are masterpieces. Brando is so captivating and it's hard to believe it's one of Pacino's earliest roles. Dude came into it so early in his career. De Niro also does such a good job of stepping into the footprints Brando left behind. I also recently learned of an interesting bit of trivia where Brando used cue cards to read his lines so the set would be filled with hidden cards for him to read off when they were shooting (hence why he rarely looks at an actor when he's speaking). It's phenomenal how he managed to hide/fit that into his acting. There was another thing too, where Coppola deliberately didn't put subtitles in the restaurant scene to focus on Michael. I found it jarring at first, and didn't remember it before but Pacino is just that good that I can both understand and appreciate the point behind it. I feel like the Godfather films are just some kind of different entity compared to say, Scorcese's films or the Sopranos. There's this other worldly, Shakespearean feel to it that isn't there. I don't think it inherently makes them better than the others (I still very much like Goodfellas) but they're not something that I could personally compare between.

Dunno if I'm going to watch Part 3. I don't even think I've fully seen it tbh lol.

Addendum: Sonny wasn't a bad Don.

 

[kurisu_1974]

The Most Dangerous Game (1932)

This movie was shot at more or less the same time as the 1933 King Kong movie and uses the same jungle island sets, but tells the often retold tale of a rich dude on an island (Count Zaroff played by Leslie Banks) hunting... PEOPLE! The whole thing was a bit silly even for the period, but once the action got underway, it was enjoyable enough for its short running time. Weird detail: one of the Cossacks in serivce of the mad Count is played by a black dude, marking this the first time a black actor portrays a white character.

The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992)

Another entry in my blockbuster backlog, a very typical 90s thriller which I actually enjoyed more than I probably should. Love the tension and the portrayel of the psycho mom by Rebecca De Mornay, and the movie's attention to detail and just the fact that the plot made sense was very refreshing compared with a lot of Hollywood output of recent years. Visually a bit dull tho, something a lot of movies from the era suffer from. Geek highlight: the pervy obstetrician was Q from Star Trek!

Uncut Gems (2019)

The previous Safdie movie Good Time had been a nice surprise back in 2017, and Sandler does give it his all in this second feature from the brothers, and while I was on board for most of the time, this movie is LOUD and somewhat tiring, which results in the highlight moments being somewhat drowned out by the relentless assault on our senses by shouting people and annoying background score. Interesting, but I feel it could have been much more with some restraint.

 

[Kadayi]

Little Women

Little Women

In the years after the Civil War, Jo March lives in New York and makes her living as a writer, while her sister Amy studies painting in Paris. Amy has a chance encounter with Theodore, a childhood crush who proposed to Jo but was ultimately rejected. Their oldest sibling, Meg, is married to a...

www.rottentomatoes.com

Based on the classic novel of the same by Louisa May Alcott Greta Gerwig directed this take of the lives of the four March sisters as their lives transition from adolescence into adulthood set in Massachusetts around the period of the American Civil war. For what is a period drama this is a very breezy adaption, happily jumping backwards and forward in time with abandon often confusingly so at first until you settle into it. Beautifully shot and realised when it comes to the sets, dressing and locations, it's an engaging carousel ride of the highs and lows of the girl's lives, with some stand out performances by Saoirse Ronan and Florence Pugh as the more headstrong sisters Jo & Amy respectively.

Maybe not everyone's cup of tea ( I'll admit there were an abject lack or murders or Drug Deals gone bad that I had to reconcile myself to), but for the most part I enjoyed it, and it was a pleasant distraction for a few hours from the ongoing horror story of life under COVID. Worth a watch. 9/10 would get excited over the debutants ball again.

 

[SLoWMoTIoN]

Molly's Game. Great performance by the lead red head. Most likely exaggerated real life trash. 6/10.

 

[Prison Mike]

Child's play (2019)
Wtf did I just watch the doll looks like it was designed by Ray Charles, the story must have been written by picking random situations out of a hat, saving grace was Aubrey.

Overall.....
rather spoon my eyes out with a rusty spoon than watch that ever again/10

 

[Tenaciousmo]

The Ninth Gate (1999) - On Netflix Canada

mystery/thriller movie about a morally ambiguous guy who trades books who meets morally ambiguous-er guy who asks him to verify the authenticity of his devil book. satanic cult ensue.

thoroughly enjoyed the movie. it gets ridiculous sometimes but never too much for it's own good. developed a crush on Lena Olin too. would recommend a watch if you like movies about satanic shit. people who like books might want to skip this one, they are straight up disrespecting books the whole movie.

 

[Kadayi]

The Ninth Gate (1999) - On Netflix Canada

mystery/thriller movie about a morally ambiguous guy who trades books who meets morally ambiguous-er guy who asks him to verify the authenticity of his devil book. satanic cult ensue.

thoroughly enjoyed the movie. it gets ridiculous sometimes but never too much for it's own good. developed a crush on Lena Olin too. would recommend a watch if you like movies about satanic shit. people who like books might want to skip this one, they are straight up disrespecting books the whole movie.

I really like the Ninth Gate as well. It's one I return to every few years. Awesome soundtrack to boot: -

 

[Kadayi]

Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai

Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai

A samurai (Ebizô Ichikawa) asks permission to commit ritual suicide in the courtyard of a prominent feudal lord and hears the gruesome tale of what happened to a comrade who made a similar request several months earlier.

www.rottentomatoes.com

Takashi Miike Period Drama released in 2011 around a year after the much-acclaimed 13 Assassins. The story centres around an impoverished Ronin (masterless samurai from a fallen house) who turns up at the estate of a powerful Samurai Clan and requests the opportunity to commit suicide to end their condition, and therefore die an honourable death. However, things are not all as they seem.

The film is a modern version of an older title Harakiri (Originally: Seppuku) made in 1962 and might in fact be a shot for shot remake (it's been a few years since I last watched the original tbh) however albeit it was engaging enough I think it lacked for the screen presence of the original films lead (played by the formidable Tatsuya Nakadai) and didn't necessarily bring anything new to the retelling save the production values. With that said, a lot of the environments seemed to be shot using purely natural lighting and albeit that maybe perhaps of seemed like a move towards realism, it does, unfortunately, means some of the interior scenes are real murky, which is a little frustrating.

Still, if you've never seen the original I'd give this a tentative thumbs up. I caught it on Amazon Prime in my recommendations and it whiled away a few hours. If you're expecting 13 assassins levels swordplay though, you will probably be disappointed. Albeit, there are some Kenjitsu moments, they aren't really the focus of the story, versus the travails of the masterless Samurai and subsistence nature of period japan where everyone was living in a perpetual state of hand to mouth. 7/10 would share my rice cakes again.

 

[Tenaciousmo]

Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai

This reminded me that I watched this during the week-end.

Blade of the Immortal (2017) - On netflix Canada

Movie about a samurai who when ambushed gets his sister killed and to get revenge on the dude, has to take a pact of immortality with a weird old worm lady to kill face tattoo guy. (first few minutes...) and meets with a girl, that reminds him of his sister, who is set on her own vengeance path.

While Long at 2h20m, it never felt boring. fight scenes are great, protagonist never feels like hes just easily killing the experienced other fighters (except the jobbers). very cool and various weapons are displayed and used. only nitpick would be the screaming little girl that is present throughout the movie. recommended to samurai movie enthousiasts and cool weapons and stuff. 7/10

 

[Chankoras]

I picked this movie randomly in Netflix, about the infamous figure skater Tonya Harding, found some of the photography stylistic choices somewhat similar to Wes Anderson, good cinematography and editing, was pleasantly surprised.

 

[Rock And Roll]

High Noon (1952)

Watched this on a whim because I was feeling something older and I wanted to watch something a bit shorter. Went in knowing very little about this movie and ended up being very impressed.

I don't want to spoil too much so I'll give a brief little synopsis. The movie starts off with some outlaws coming into town contrasted with a wedding. The sheriff is (Gary Cooper) is marrying his fiancee (Grace Kelly). Eventually the sheriff gets word that a noted outlaw is coming into town on the train arriving at noon. He gets word around 10:40AM as the camera shows a clock. After a few sequences and cuts to clocks you realize the movie is taking place in real time (for the most part up until the climax). It was a really nice touch and I wasn't expecting it at all. It really helps build the tension/suspense throughout the movie, as the mystery and different details are slowly revealed. It kept me engaged throughout the film as the plot points are drip fed between shots of the time, it makes you wonder what is going to happen next as time is slowly winding down.

I'd also like to say Grace Kelly was fantastic in this film. Really good performance and easy on the eyes, as always.

Would highly recommend if you haven't seen it. The whole thing is about 90 minutes long and there's not an ounce of fat on the story/pacing. Might even watch it again someday. 8/10

 

[mekes]

I’ve seen a few movies lately and been meaning to post in here.

Vivarium, Crawl, Underwater, 1917. Can’t be bothered to say anything about the first 3, decent 6/10 movies. 1917 was great but I feel everybody already knows that given it has so many reviews in here already

So. The Invitation...





I have been meaning to watch this movie for years after hearing good things about it around the time of its release. I would imagine anybody else with half an interest has probably seen this already? The first thing I really liked about the movie was that I didn’t personally recognise any of the cast. I have a suspicion I may have seen the lead actor but I can’t recall from what. That is always a nice surprise for me in a movie that is shot and directed as nicely as this movie is. I don’t want to post in depth about the story, but the movie dabbles quite heavily in themes like friendship, grief and dread. Dread in particular is a mainstay throughout the movie and the absolute best thing this movie does is build up the feeling of supposed dread from the first 10 seconds of the film right to the ending credits. I was glued to this movie, best I’ve seen this year and I’m not sure anything will beat it. A really nice surprise and an A+ from me.

 

[J-Roderton]

Watched Hail Caesar this week. What was the point of that film?

 

[Rock And Roll]

The Bad Batch (2016)

Decided to take a chance on a movie I knew nothing about. I was mindlessly looking for something to watch on Netflix and this film caught my attention because it had Jim Carrey, Keanu Reeves and Jason Momoa in it. I figured that was a pretty stacked cast so I just turned it on,

Right away one of the production cards comes up and it says "Vice". I think to myself I didn't know Vice was in the movie business and this movie will probably suck and I should just turn it off now. Always listen to your instincts.

Movie starts off right away with the lead character being kidnapped then mutilated then covered in feces. My Vice edgelord senses were right not even 10 minutes into the movie. I wonder how much more fucked up shit is going to happen since this movie has a two hour run time and we just started. Turns out that was it, they blew their edgy load at the start and then nothing happened for the next 2 hours. Seriously, I don't know if this movie had a plot or not, or any idea what it wanted to be. Jim Carrey shows up for maybe 5 minutes and Keanu maybe for 10? Carrey's character is a mute and he doesn't do anything and Keanu just reads some really bad dialogue. In between there's some people getting killed for revenge but with a flimsy plot and nonexistent dialogue it really doesn't have any weight to it. Oh yeah, there's an acid trip as the title would suggest. The movie takes place in the desert (Mad Max vibes) so there's some decent enough visuals but 2 hours with everything else being terrible is far too long. This is easily one of the worst movies I have ever watched considering the actors involved and serves as a reminder never to try new things or take chances and to just watch Space Jam instead.

2/10

 

[mekes]

Thanks for the warning R Rock And Roll as I could imagine myself being suckered into trying that movie!

 

[plushyp]

So. The Invitation...

If you want a similar experience then may I suggest Coherence (2013)? Another film that centers around a dinner but the sense of dread hangs throughout. The only difference is the addition of Sci-Fi although the film is still character-centric.