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Movies you have seen recently?
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ChoklitReign
Member
Saw Scarface (the de Palma version) for the first time (uncut, of course). It was great, even if it had more talking than I expected. Loved the acting and the score and the finale was amazing (though I knew how it ended).
Stylistically bombastic at times but certainly kept my attention throughout. I had heard some surprisingly good things about this film and it didn't totally disappoint.
First time I've seen this and boy is the cinematography fantastic. Like most of Malick films the narrative and dialogue take a back seat to creating a mood and atmosphere.
Snowman Prophet of Doom
Member
Kick-Ass (Matthew Vaughn, 2010)
After being thoroughly impressed by Moretz in Let Me In, I decided to check out Kick-Ass (with my mom, oddly enough). As a piece of entertainment, it does the job. The fights are cool-looking (if a bit Power Ranger-y when Hit Girl is fighting), the acting is okay (Moretz and Cage were very entertaining, everything else was really generic), it was funny, etc. As a piece of art: no. Just, no. This movie is decently-made for an action comedy, but in an absolute sense, the pieces simply are not there. The actual main character has no real personality and is a pretty morally reprehensible person in terms of the way that he treats the people around him (not that the latter is inherently a bad thing, but it certainly breaks your whole foundation when you're clearly supposed to identify with your protagonist). Worse yet, his 'arc' as a superhero is completely rushed; we get no real sense for his growing popularity or his going out on the job requests so that, when he gets lured into the various traps, there is no real punch. Plus, his relationship with Katie was completely muddled; the idea of her forgiving him instantly out of some kind of lust/caring combination is simply shitty, given that he has just admitted to two very major lies on his part. Her kicking his sorry ass to the curb would have been a much more realistic and poignant way of pulling the rug out from the main character's comic book fantasies (and made the descent into comic bookery at the end all the more satisfying). Movie logic leads me to buy that an 11-year-old girl could be some badass killer after a lot of training (I guess...), but her character was extremely undercooked. The villain himself is a generic 'New York crime boss' with very little to make him distinct; Mintz-Plasse was actually kind of interesting, though, and could be an interesting antagonist in a sequel. Overall, I was kind of disappointed; instead of being a knowing send-up of comic book cliches, it fell into too many itself and was unsatisfying as a result.
After being thoroughly impressed by Moretz in Let Me In, I decided to check out Kick-Ass (with my mom, oddly enough). As a piece of entertainment, it does the job. The fights are cool-looking (if a bit Power Ranger-y when Hit Girl is fighting), the acting is okay (Moretz and Cage were very entertaining, everything else was really generic), it was funny, etc. As a piece of art: no. Just, no. This movie is decently-made for an action comedy, but in an absolute sense, the pieces simply are not there. The actual main character has no real personality and is a pretty morally reprehensible person in terms of the way that he treats the people around him (not that the latter is inherently a bad thing, but it certainly breaks your whole foundation when you're clearly supposed to identify with your protagonist). Worse yet, his 'arc' as a superhero is completely rushed; we get no real sense for his growing popularity or his going out on the job requests so that, when he gets lured into the various traps, there is no real punch. Plus, his relationship with Katie was completely muddled; the idea of her forgiving him instantly out of some kind of lust/caring combination is simply shitty, given that he has just admitted to two very major lies on his part. Her kicking his sorry ass to the curb would have been a much more realistic and poignant way of pulling the rug out from the main character's comic book fantasies (and made the descent into comic bookery at the end all the more satisfying). Movie logic leads me to buy that an 11-year-old girl could be some badass killer after a lot of training (I guess...), but her character was extremely undercooked. The villain himself is a generic 'New York crime boss' with very little to make him distinct; Mintz-Plasse was actually kind of interesting, though, and could be an interesting antagonist in a sequel. Overall, I was kind of disappointed; instead of being a knowing send-up of comic book cliches, it fell into too many itself and was unsatisfying as a result.
Cosmic Bus
pristine morning snow
I went to a screening of Vertigo tonight. The film itself was preceded by an almost offensively bad animated version of Hitchcock's Birds "lecture", and the print itself was surprisingly dirty and flat-looking (it claimed to be the old the mid-'90s Harris restoration in the closing credits). An old man snored behind me through the entire thing and I was annoyed at how hilarious everyone in the audience found the bell tower scenes to be. :\
Snowman Prophet of Doom
Member
Cosmic Bus said:
That really sucks. I've expressed some thoughts on Vertigo in this thread, but the print not even being good is really shitty; if there's one thing a Hitchcock movie should be, Vertigo especially, it's jaw-droppingly, unbelievably pretty.
Jibber Hack
Member
Watched Youth in Revolt tonight. There was some damn funny dialogue in this film.
Snowman Prophet of Doom said:
I don't know if I wasn't in the right mood but I watched Vertigo the first time a few weeks ago and unlike a lot of other Hitchcock's films I came away not understanding quite what the fuss was about. Sure the cinematography is beautiful and there is this slow but deliberate pace to everything, but even as a Jimmy Stewart fan, I kind of cared less and less leading up to the final bell tower scene.
Cosmic Bus
pristine morning snow
master15 said:
This was the third time I've seen Vertigo, and in all honesty, it's never struck a chord with me either. I was hoping this would be The One but alas. There are some beautiful frames throughout and Stewart is a pleasure to watch (like always), but it fails to elicit any substantial emotion - or even a sense of involvement - from me.
39 Steps, Rebecca and Shadow of a Doubt, now those are pure magic.
Snowman Prophet of Doom
Member
Cosmic Bus said:
Psycho all the way, baby.
JaseMath
Member
Just watched...
Eh...entertaining at parts and, except for Diaz's shitty accent, fairly solid performances from the leads. So, while I wouldn't call it bad, it's certainly pretentious and falls all over itself while trying to be too many things at once. Is it a thriller? Yes! Is it a sci-fi movie? Sure, why not! Is it a murder/mystery? Okay!
Someone needs to tell R.Kelly to try to stop recreating the "...WTF?" of Donnie Darko with every movie. I think he's a very capable director, but he gets too caught up in the idea of a story and not the execution or how the audience will respond. Maybe he should try his hand at something he didn't write next time.
Eh...entertaining at parts and, except for Diaz's shitty accent, fairly solid performances from the leads. So, while I wouldn't call it bad, it's certainly pretentious and falls all over itself while trying to be too many things at once. Is it a thriller? Yes! Is it a sci-fi movie? Sure, why not! Is it a murder/mystery? Okay!
Someone needs to tell R.Kelly to try to stop recreating the "...WTF?" of Donnie Darko with every movie. I think he's a very capable director, but he gets too caught up in the idea of a story and not the execution or how the audience will respond. Maybe he should try his hand at something he didn't write next time.
Watched Burned after Reading and The Informant yesterday.
BAR had some funny scenes and was enyoable but the story was kinda lacking. Gets a bonus point for dude from Sledge Hammer 6.5/10
The Informant was awesome. As someone who used to tell people all crazy made up stuff just because I could and they'd beliveve me I loved how Matt Damon lied and then lied some more (I of course just did it for fun not profit). Plus he looked awesome with the stache.
8.5/10
BAR had some funny scenes and was enyoable but the story was kinda lacking. Gets a bonus point for dude from Sledge Hammer 6.5/10
The Informant was awesome. As someone who used to tell people all crazy made up stuff just because I could and they'd beliveve me I loved how Matt Damon lied and then lied some more (I of course just did it for fun not profit). Plus he looked awesome with the stache.
8.5/10
Buried
Fine performance from Ryan Reynolds but the film itself feels forced and confusing. I actually had to use wiki to figure out the ending since the last few minutes was so noisy sound-wise.
Jumper
Fun action and location do not make a good movie. The main character (Hayden Christensen) and his GF (Rachel Bilson) are so inept and annoying that I ended up being annoyed by them. I wish the film had focused on Jamie Bell's character instead.
Fine performance from Ryan Reynolds but the film itself feels forced and confusing. I actually had to use wiki to figure out the ending since the last few minutes was so noisy sound-wise.
Jumper
Fun action and location do not make a good movie. The main character (Hayden Christensen) and his GF (Rachel Bilson) are so inept and annoying that I ended up being annoyed by them. I wish the film had focused on Jamie Bell's character instead.
seemed like Red Hill couldn't decide whether to be campy or serious, so sad, thought it had potential.AlternativeUlster said:
i'd do theaters on enter the void. whether you end up liking the movie or not, that shit was an experience... something just seemed right about seeing it on the big screen. monsters, either way
AlternativeUlster
Absolutely pathetic part deux
sefskillz said:
I could have seen all the films that night too but had inventory at work. Sound of Noise sounded like something that would have been up my alley too. Fuck.
Enter the Void isn't coming to Austin soon so I don't know what I should do. Fuck (again).
AlternativeUlster
Absolutely pathetic part deux
sefskillz said:That was closing night wasn't it? I ended up doing the party instead of Sound of Noise. Heard Sound of Noise was really good, but the party was pretty great tooAlready got my badge for next year
Yeah, it was the final film of the night. VIP or Film badge? I will get a film badge probably here in a couple of months and get time off next year. I went to quite a few parties this year for Fantastic Fest at least. I sang karaoke with Nacho. That was rad I suppose.
Watched the original Night of the Living Dead - it was good, and cool to realize just how much zombie films and stuff like Left 4 Dead were influenced by it. I'm sure it was scary at the time but it's almost comical by today's standards.
I'm gonna check out Dawn, Day and Land of the Dead now. Any other must-see zombie flicks? I've seen 28 days/weeks later and didn't really care for them.
I'm gonna check out Dawn, Day and Land of the Dead now. Any other must-see zombie flicks? I've seen 28 days/weeks later and didn't really care for them.
Count Dookkake
Member
AlternativeUlster said:
Cut the 'sir' crap, kid.
It was good to see you again, was not sure you would be in attendance. Did Harson make it?
Have not seen Monsters, but I did see Enter the Void...
Probably my pick for best film of the fest. A marked improvement over Noe's previous work. I wept like a baby for almost 30-40 minutes.
Wait for theater. So much crazy visual shit going on, from the first frame of credits, that you would do yourself a disservice by watching it on a tv.
sefskillz said:That was closing night wasn't it? I ended up doing the party instead of Sound of Noise. Heard Sound of Noise was really good, but the party was pretty great too
Sounds of Noise was supposed to be spectacular, but I could not fit it in the schedule either time it played. No way in hell I was gonna miss the closing night party.
Do you think a certain musical performance would be threadworthy? (if it has not already been posted?)
Got my badge, too!
Flying_Phoenix
Banned
My God what a fucking disaster. This film was just bad.
Okay I'll admit that the film went into the level of quality during it's climax...but than again what movie doesn't?
Okay I'll start with my indepth views:
First let me note that I haven't seen the original Nightmare on Elm Street for quite some time, so long that I have very faint memories of it. Also this has tons of spoilers in it so read at your own risk.
To begin, I'm going to be honest I don't even know how to even start, so I'll just start with the beginning. The movie start off pretty cliché. A 20 something guy is sitting in a very eerie restaurant asks the waitress for a refill, and she doesn't reply. The movie hasn't been playing for thirty seconds yet and it's already fucked up. What's suppose to make the concept scary to watch is that you aren't sure what is a dream and what isn't it, yet the beginning has already made it obvious that it's a dream in the first place. The kid wakes up right when he's about to be attacked he wakes up in a restaurant. Terrible dialogue and mediocre acting follows as
When the movie continues and we find out that all of these twenty something characters we see are actually high schoolers...is it 1996 again? Anyway a handful of these highschoolers start having these dreams about being attacked or killed by Kruger. What makes it horrible is that most of the time it transitions from kid to kid, scene by scene. Even if you have never seen the kid before or even know them, they start being attacked or killed by the nightmare boogeyman. Seriously it's just dream after dream with at times a completely random kid. But what's equally ridiculous is how casually these kids fall asleep. Sitting up in a chair, doing practice laps for the swim team (what?), it's seriously ridiculous. I don't care if you haven't fallen asleep in 24 hours, you aren't going to fall asleep when you're swimming underwater.
Eventually every kid but two dies. They think that the reason why Freddy is killing everybody is because he was falsely accused of molesting the kids while they were in preschool and that the parents burned him alive for revenge. So Freddy wants to prove his innocence, which makes sense why he's killing them, to push them to the right direction to find clues....:|
Eventually they get to the preschool to look for evidence. This is where the movie starts getting interesting. Did Freddy do it? Was he innocent? Are his killings really justified? And it turns out he really did molest the kids... The female protagonist falls asleep and finds Freddy who explains that this whole ordeal was one big plot to make her super tired and remember the memories so that he has near infinite time to rape her....what?
Anyway the male protagonist wakes her up and they both tag team to kill Kruger. They then decide to burn the body and all the evidence of their sexual abuse... The end then comes and like the original it turns out its a dream and Freddy appears. Now there are movies that work with a catastrophic twist. This however isn't. Freddy was a child molester, and madman, and a murder, he deserved to die. It also really doesn't fit the pacing of the film.
Overall the film is just bad. Again the climax is somewhat entertaining just for them to screw it up with a "twist" that made no sense. The best part of the film is the stylized beginning credits...yeah it's that bad.
A Letter to Elia
Another great film documentary by Scorsese. Though it's kind of odd that that A Streetcar Named Desire was completely glossed over.
Another great film documentary by Scorsese. Though it's kind of odd that that A Streetcar Named Desire was completely glossed over.
Count Dookkake
Member
Flying_Phoenix, I thought they almost had an amazing film, but that there was some tinkering late in the game.
Haley does fine work, though. Would probably watch a sequel.
Part of me thinks each installment of the classic horror series should be remakes from now on, though.
HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN INNOCENT! The secret room shit with th Polaroids felt so cheap and tacked on. Thematically, a victim-villain is a great symbol for American horror and they fucked it up.
Haley does fine work, though. Would probably watch a sequel.
Part of me thinks each installment of the classic horror series should be remakes from now on, though.
Juliet of the Spirits (1965)
i have some moral objections to this. Fellini cheated on his wife a lot so he cast her in a movie that's basically about his own infidelity, making his imagination and fantasies a way for his wife to escape/cope. while that might work for him, it might not not work for everyone. seems selfish. i dunno, i guess i don't know enough about their private life to judge, but it felt a bit cheap. 8 1/2 deals with his philandering in a much more responsible way. i wish i could separate this movie from real life, but with Fellini they're always so intertwined. BUT apart from that this was all the wonted joy and circus and merriment and turned me into a rapt little kid for two hours. symbolism could have been more covert but i can live with that. minor major Fellini.
Lola Montes (1955)
yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesssssssooooohmygooood. the most awesome sets, lighting, cinematography, colours, the most awesomely bloated and subtle and involving and detached biopic ever. the most awesome spectacle of spectatorship. perfect. loved this almost as much as Letter from an Unknown Woman. hail Ophuls.
Gertrud (1964)
adapted from a play, boasts a very small number of shots, camera is often static for long periods of time, yet somehow the effect it brings about and the way i experienced it is very similar to how i saw Passion of Joan of Arc. perhaps it's because the heroine emotes mostly through facial expressions. and i read something that noted how both movies follow someone who unflinchingly stands by her beliefs & convictions, even if that results in tragedy, which is perfectly pespicacious. loved the contrast between the stately decors and dialogue and the emotional turmoil beneath the surface. perhaps the most profound cinematic statement about love i've ever seen.
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
this, on the other hand, is theater. it's anticinematic. and it takes place in a world where all our problems can be solved with some sanctimonious speechifying. poor Spencer Tracy.
Interview with the Vampire (1994)
as a kid i loved this movie because of the period it takes place in and because of its sordid splendour. now i saw it as a descent into a woman's bizarre sexual fantasies which include, but are not limited to, hunky dudes with luscious long hair, hunky dudes with luscious long hair walking on the ceiling, and hunky dudes with luscious long hair being immolated. contains the line "goodnight sweet prince, may flights of devils wing you to your rest." GOAT.
The Caine Mutiny (1954)
Bogart's performance is something to behold, but other than that this is a dead dog. no momentum, drama or excitement, and a scene near the end with a lecturing lawyer that is wholly and headscratchingly discrepant and makes it seem like it was written by two people who each had something very different in mind.
Moana (1926)
there's a loose narrative woven loosely throughout, but mostly it documents a culture that is as foreign to most people now as it was in 1926. and as these cultures and most of all their traditions become archaic or extinct due to westernisation, Flaherty's movies become all the more invaluable.
Charulata (1964)
there are probably many subtleties that went over my head since i am ignorant of Bengali history and culture, but as a character drama this gripped me completely. or at least for 99%, as the ending was initially not at all what i was hoping for, but after a while i grew to appreciate it.
Tillsammans (2002)
for a movie about a leftist commune, i was pleasantly surprised at how relatively apolitical this was, and when it does get political it takes an inclusive and mediatory stance. very sweet and affectionate in a very unpretentious way.
Rififi (1955)
i've already seen Asphalt Jungle and Bob le Flambeur and Cercle Rouge so i mostly knew what to expect. this was solid throughout and the heist scene is probably the best of the bunch. and now i know where Ocean's Eleven got its Clooney/Roberts/Garcia romantic subplot from.
i have some moral objections to this. Fellini cheated on his wife a lot so he cast her in a movie that's basically about his own infidelity, making his imagination and fantasies a way for his wife to escape/cope. while that might work for him, it might not not work for everyone. seems selfish. i dunno, i guess i don't know enough about their private life to judge, but it felt a bit cheap. 8 1/2 deals with his philandering in a much more responsible way. i wish i could separate this movie from real life, but with Fellini they're always so intertwined. BUT apart from that this was all the wonted joy and circus and merriment and turned me into a rapt little kid for two hours. symbolism could have been more covert but i can live with that. minor major Fellini.
Lola Montes (1955)
yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesssssssooooohmygooood. the most awesome sets, lighting, cinematography, colours, the most awesomely bloated and subtle and involving and detached biopic ever. the most awesome spectacle of spectatorship. perfect. loved this almost as much as Letter from an Unknown Woman. hail Ophuls.
Gertrud (1964)
adapted from a play, boasts a very small number of shots, camera is often static for long periods of time, yet somehow the effect it brings about and the way i experienced it is very similar to how i saw Passion of Joan of Arc. perhaps it's because the heroine emotes mostly through facial expressions. and i read something that noted how both movies follow someone who unflinchingly stands by her beliefs & convictions, even if that results in tragedy, which is perfectly pespicacious. loved the contrast between the stately decors and dialogue and the emotional turmoil beneath the surface. perhaps the most profound cinematic statement about love i've ever seen.
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)
this, on the other hand, is theater. it's anticinematic. and it takes place in a world where all our problems can be solved with some sanctimonious speechifying. poor Spencer Tracy.
Interview with the Vampire (1994)
as a kid i loved this movie because of the period it takes place in and because of its sordid splendour. now i saw it as a descent into a woman's bizarre sexual fantasies which include, but are not limited to, hunky dudes with luscious long hair, hunky dudes with luscious long hair walking on the ceiling, and hunky dudes with luscious long hair being immolated. contains the line "goodnight sweet prince, may flights of devils wing you to your rest." GOAT.
The Caine Mutiny (1954)
Bogart's performance is something to behold, but other than that this is a dead dog. no momentum, drama or excitement, and a scene near the end with a lecturing lawyer that is wholly and headscratchingly discrepant and makes it seem like it was written by two people who each had something very different in mind.
Moana (1926)
there's a loose narrative woven loosely throughout, but mostly it documents a culture that is as foreign to most people now as it was in 1926. and as these cultures and most of all their traditions become archaic or extinct due to westernisation, Flaherty's movies become all the more invaluable.
Charulata (1964)
there are probably many subtleties that went over my head since i am ignorant of Bengali history and culture, but as a character drama this gripped me completely. or at least for 99%, as the ending was initially not at all what i was hoping for, but after a while i grew to appreciate it.
Tillsammans (2002)
for a movie about a leftist commune, i was pleasantly surprised at how relatively apolitical this was, and when it does get political it takes an inclusive and mediatory stance. very sweet and affectionate in a very unpretentious way.
Rififi (1955)
i've already seen Asphalt Jungle and Bob le Flambeur and Cercle Rouge so i mostly knew what to expect. this was solid throughout and the heist scene is probably the best of the bunch. and now i know where Ocean's Eleven got its Clooney/Roberts/Garcia romantic subplot from.
Flying_Phoenix
Banned
Count Dookkake said:
I thought the movie was just bad. Bad writing, acting, directing, pretty much everything. But I do agree the fact that Freddy
should have been innocent
Freddy also seemed way too invincible in the dreams. I think this was also due to the fact that the film never explains how the dream-killing actually works. Everything just feels so tacked on the last minute.
Also with the end
was she still sleeping the whole time? I mean did she never get that adrenaline needle and kill Freddy? Or did he some how become immortal even in the dream world?
blame space
Banned
:lol this movie is fuckin nutsmaster15 said:
Stylistically bombastic at times but certainly kept my attention throughout. I had heard some surprisingly good things about this film and it didn't totally disappoint.
Last night I did my annual viewing of Halloween III: Season of the Witch.
I still can't believe some people think that movie was good. It's so amazingly bad that I adore it.
I still can't believe some people think that movie was good. It's so amazingly bad that I adore it.
It was awful. I only went to see it because the pool scene was filmed at my then-high school and the preschool scene was filmed at a warehouse my dad owns.Flying_Phoenix said:
Flying_Phoenix
Banned
big ander said:
Was it common for kids to fall asleep while swimming laps?
I really liked it. It kept me thinking about my own life as a college student and the types of big life decisions I will start having to make soon throughout the entire film. Now I've seen this and I've seen Juno a few times, so I think I'm going to watch Thank You for Smoking tomorrow night.
Zombie James
Banned
I think it's a pretty good horror movie that's deserving of it's name, but holy shit, it has the most illogical plot twist i've ever seen in my life. It literally makes no sense, no matter how you try to piece it together.
NEOPARADIGM
Banned
Paranormal Activity. Oh for fuck's sake awful. 2/10
Escape Goat
Member
Zombie James said:
I think it's a pretty good horror movie that's deserving of it's name, but holy shit, it has the most illogical plot twist i've ever seen in my life. It literally makes no sense, no matter how you try to piece it together.
But thats kind of the point.
The women is crazy so logic really doesn't fit. She imagines shit left and right.
I just watched Date Movie this weekend. For a movie with two comedic pros the movie sucked.
Zombie James said:
I think it's a pretty good horror movie that's deserving of it's name, but holy shit, it has the most illogical plot twist i've ever seen in my life. It literally makes no sense, no matter how you try to piece it together.
Now I have to watch that film..Is it a normal horror movie or like this disgusting and sick Hostel shit?
Escape Goat
Member
Jay Sosa said:
hmm, it has a few gross out moments. but i'd say its just a good horror movie.
serial killer cuts off victims heads, drags it into his truck, then you see the truck shaking back and forth to let us know hes skull fucking them. then he throws it out before he drives off
:lol
Watched Downey's Sherlock Holmes, Iron man 2 and Date Night
Sherlock Holmes was an ok movie but i really wanted that 'Holy shit!' moment which never came. It just wasn't mysterious enough for me since i pretty much figured everything out before the ending. If it wasn't for Downey's brilliant acting, i don't think i would have enjoyed the movie at all to be honest.
Iron Man 2 was just a good action flick
Date Night had its funny moments but it was pretty mediocre. Nevertheless i enjoyed it.
Sherlock Holmes was an ok movie but i really wanted that 'Holy shit!' moment which never came. It just wasn't mysterious enough for me since i pretty much figured everything out before the ending. If it wasn't for Downey's brilliant acting, i don't think i would have enjoyed the movie at all to be honest.
Iron Man 2 was just a good action flick
Date Night had its funny moments but it was pretty mediocre. Nevertheless i enjoyed it.
Escape Goat
Member
Jay Sosa said:
my original spoiler is pretty vital to the story. but the second is a throw away scene that its pretty gross/funny depending on your point of view. Great movie that is French made so it has subtitles. The DVD I saw had option for dubbing.
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