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Movies You've Seen Recently: Return of the Revenge of the Curse of the...

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icarus-daedelus said:
Goblin is wicked sweet, huh. I especially like Suspiria's soundtrack even though it's pretty much just the theme over and over with a bunch of weird vocal and percussive noises in between. Come to think of it that's pretty much the main theme too.

You should check out their album Roller, one of their few non-soundtrack works.
 
Fvx4K.jpg


Over acting, cheesy, ridiculous and fucking AWESOME!
 

AlternativeUlster

Absolutely pathetic part deux
CaptYamato said:
Don't have netflix. Had to cut spending so I can afford books for summer classes.
Man, the times must be bad if you can`t afford 8 dollars a month. I suppose right now I shouldn`t be spending that either.
 
AlternativeUlster said:
Man, the times must be bad if you can`t afford 8 dollars a month. I suppose right now I shouldn`t be spending that either.
You have to factor in me having majority custody of my kid. Children cost a lot of money.
 

Tenck

Member
Just watched Transformers 3. Trashy movie.

I also like how the Decepticons can kill basically any human, you know those small feeble things, but they can't hit a god damn Autobot. Don't even get me started on the main characters.
 
Transformers 3

It was better than two, but a lot of things are better than that piece of cinematic rubbish. The 3d was nice and the action scenes were pretty, but it was way too long.
 

EliCash

Member
I watched this again, somewhat reluctantly (I have a love-hate relationship with it)

inland-empire-the-cinema-in-trouble.png


Apologies for long post.

There is such a thing as too Lynchian and it isn't always a great thing, sometimes it's a beautiful thing but other times it just doesn't completely come together. I like certain aspects of Inland Empire; it's both aesthetically beautiful and disorientating (like most of Lynch's work) and I actually liked Lynch's use of the cheap digital medium and the shaky handy-cam feeling he went for. Also, the sound design throughout the film is masterfully done and makes for a completely unsettling experience, plus Laura Dern gives a really outstanding performance.

Now I'm a huge fan of Lynch and halfway through the film I felt the need to stop it for a while (both on first and second viewings), so I can only imagine the frustration and anger of someone who already dislikes his work sitting through Inland Empire, waiting to be spoonfed something that makes sense. I think any enjoyment I got out of this film comes from the fact that I don't particularly mind if movies aren't a completely coherent experience (even although it is actually possible to make some sense of Inland Empire, just not on a Mulholland Drive level) because sometimes cinema doesn't have to be anything more than a series of abstractions; sometimes images don't have to be explained or put into words. I think that has to be said because too many people sometimes forget that cinema as a medium is something more than just storytelling. Therefore, any dislike I have for Inland Empire mostly comes from other things.

And there is a lot I really don't like about Inland Empire, the most notable example fresh in my mind is the dreadful ending/credit sequence
it's only redeeming factor is the appearance of Laura Harring
, actually I hate any scene involving the hookers coming to think of it. In fact, I think it might be David Lynch and David Lynch only who likes those scenes. Which is probably another one of the film's problems, it is more self-indulgent than any of his previous work. I don't necessarily mind that too much, but I know that a lot of people do.

I'm not going to discuss what I think the film is about, because I truly think it's beside the point (and I'm still not entirely certain and it isn't possible to be). I'm also not going to give it a rating because the only rating I could give it even after a second viewing is a what the fuck out of 10. My thoughts are still divided, but what I do know is that Inland Empire is an overwhelming and unsettling experience unlike anything else.

tl;dr: I liked the rabbits.
 

JGS

Banned
_dementia said:
True Grit.

Best supporting actress? Really?
Well she did have a better shot there but there's no mistaking she was the lead. She would have still been nominated too.
 

jarosh

Member
Man+from+Earth+(2007).jpg


the man from earth

the man from earth is as low-budget as it gets. it has:

- generally awful image quality and poor/no color correction
- some pretty dodgy dialogue
- occasionally spotty performances
- cheesy and frequently inappropriate music
- poor camera work and editing

most movies are not good against these odds. this one is. it survives on the strength of its brilliant idea and bixby's willingness to explore it within such a down-to-earth and positively low-key setting, defying all the bombastic style-over-substance epic sci-fi action nonsense we've been getting used to from hollywood over the past two decades. yes, he could have dug deeper, the dialogue could have been sharper, the acting stronger - this premise, this script deserved better. but think of everything that could have gone wrong! what might have happened if the script got into the hands of a big studio with current hollywood sci-fi-action darlings orci/kurtzmann getting their hands on the script and re-working it into a 14'000 years spanning epic cg saga... shudder! instead we get a bunch of people in a cabin talking to each other for 80 minutes. i much prefer this.

if you've never heard about this movie, here's the premise:

imdb said:
An impromptu goodbye party for Professor John Oldman becomes a mysterious interrogation after the retiring scholar reveals to his colleagues he is an immortal who has walked the earth for 14,000 years.

does this sound intriguing to you? then watch it. i highly recommend it, despite everything. i'm glad i watched it.
 

harSon

Banned
Just watched The Yellow Sea. The plot was a bit disjointed and confusing at times, but it was a pretty enjoyable experience overall. Definitely a lesser effort that the director's last film, The Chaser, but it was enjoyable none the less.

But I would like to bring something to attention that I've observed while watching Korean films all these years. Is it me or can Koreans endure the most severe of beatings, shootings, stabbings, etc? I mean, people will get beat the fuck up (head trauma especially), stabbed and shot, and still roll around like it ain't no thing.
 
OPERA is also cool for subtextual reasons, too.

1) Relationship between director, actor and audience.

2) Hypocrisy of societal acceptance of violence in high art in comparison to low art.

3) Commentary on remakes in a remake of Phantom of the Opera.
 

Ridley327

Member
icarus-daedelus said:
Yes! I got 1, not much of 2 (interesting, tho) and a little of 3. I would like to watch it soberer sometime soon so as to pick up on more of these things, but I thought it was pretty awesome anyway. I had no expectations so that possibly helped, but why did the murder scenes have to be so corny with that music? :( Totally took me out of it.

I'll admit, the ending in the alps was so strange and tacked-on that I kind of liked it. Was it an intentional reference to The Sound of Music? Haha. Go free, young lizard!

Oh, and that peephole shot - am I correct in thinking that was the first (and best, incidentally) use of it?
Peephole shot as in the "getting shot in the face" variety? I sure hope that's what you mean!

I've always been amused at Daria Nicolodi appearing in Argento's films after their falling out over Suspiria's writing credits, since Argento always tries to find new and wonderful ways of making life miserable for whatever character she happens to be portraying. I don't think he ever topped throwing cats at her in Inferno, but hey, being pissed at your ex did yield positive results!

I wasn't a huge fan of Opera (I found it to be incredibly disjointed, even for an Argento film), but I can appreciate the ambition on display, as well as the hilarity of how they discover who the killer is.
 

Amagon

Member
r1tpm.jpg

This movie is just pure badass. I never seen a proper western movie til now. As soon as the theme of the movie kicks in right in the beginning, I knew I was in for a treat. Now I'm gonna go ahead and order The Man With No Name Trilogy to see what I'm missing out. Anybody that doesn't like Westerns or think they're lame, watch Django! ^_^

Fake Edit: Tarantino has no excuse not to use Django theme music for Django Unchained. Heads will roll if he didn't.
 

Imm0rt4l

Member
jarosh said:
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__lLsnHCxV_A/S9Z5p6m-B3I/AAAAAAAACTU/jNgBcO825Oc/s640/Man+from+Earth+(2007).jpg[IMG]

[B]the man from earth[/B]

the man from earth is as low-budget as it gets. it has:

- generally awful image quality and poor/no color correction
- some pretty dodgy dialogue
- occasionally spotty performances
- cheesy and frequently inappropriate music
- poor camera work and editing

most movies are not good against these odds. this one is. it survives on the strength of its brilliant idea and bixby's willingness to explore it within such a down-to-earth and positively low-key setting, defying all the bombastic style-over-substance epic sci-fi action nonsense we've been getting used to from hollywood over the past two decades. yes, he could have dug deeper, the dialogue could have been sharper, the acting stronger - this premise, this script deserved better. but think of everything that could have gone wrong! what might have happened if the script got into the hands of a big studio with current hollywood sci-fi-action darlings orci/kurtzmann getting their hands on the script and re-working it into a 14'000 years spanning epic cg saga... shudder! instead we get a bunch of people in a cabin talking to each other for 80 minutes. i much prefer this.

if you've never heard about this movie, here's the premise:



does this sound intriguing to you? then watch it. i highly recommend it, despite everything. i'm glad i watched it.[/QUOTE]
couldn't have said it better myself, saw this movie recently and I really liked it.
 
harSon said:
Just watched The Yellow Sea. The plot was a bit disjointed and confusing at times, but it was a pretty enjoyable experience overall. Definitely a lesser effort that the director's last film, The Chaser, but it was enjoyable none the less.
Do you know which version you watched? Because I found the Korean version to be very confusing.

Korean version spoilers:
In the film they never explain where he was at the beginning. The only thing we know is he is not in South Korea. Then there is the subplot about the mob boss cheating on his wife; which is just there and serves no purpose. Why does he have to kill her? Her relationship held no weight other than showing he was an asshole.

I posted a link in the other movie thread about the difference in the Theatrical Cut and the Director's Cut. The directors cut was shown at Cannes and had good responses. So I hope it is released here soon. I would have already imported the DC's of the blu if it had English subs on it.

But I would like to bring something to attention that I've observed while watching Korean films all these years. Is it me or can Koreans endure the most severe of beatings, shootings, stabbings, etc? I mean, people will get beat the fuck up (head trauma especially), stabbed and shot, and still roll around like it ain't no thing.

I kind of like it. Well...I like it more than one guys vs 50 dudes and he comes out untouched.
 
THE NO LIFE KING said:
http://i.imgur.com/r1tpm.jpg[/IMG]
This movie is just pure badass. I never seen a proper western movie til now. As soon as the theme of the movie kicks in right in the beginning, I knew I was in for a treat. Now I'm gonna go ahead and order The Man With No Name Trilogy to see what I'm missing out. Anybody that doesn't like Westerns or think they're lame, watch Django! ^_^

Fake Edit: Tarantino has no excuse not to use Django theme music for Django Unchained. Heads will roll if he didn't.

Interesting choice to start the genre with. The quality will be on another level with Sergio Leone's Westerns though.
 

Angry Fork

Member
Watched Spirited Away again today, one of my favorite films ever. The ending always gets me. Hisaishi's best score and Miyazaki's best film imo. Gonna watch 'Akira' for the first time later today.

EliCash said:
I watched this again, somewhat reluctantly (I have a love-hate relationship with it)

inland-empire-the-cinema-in-trouble.png


Apologies for long post.

There is such a thing as too Lynchian and it isn't always a great thing, sometimes it's a beautiful thing but other times it just doesn't completely come together. I like certain aspects of Inland Empire; it's both aesthetically beautiful and disorientating (like most of Lynch's work) and I actually liked Lynch's use of the cheap digital medium and the shaky handy-cam feeling he went for. Also, the sound design throughout the film is masterfully done and makes for a completely unsettling experience, plus Laura Dern gives a really outstanding performance.

Now I'm a huge fan of Lynch and halfway through the film I felt the need to stop it for a while (both on first and second viewings), so I can only imagine the frustration and anger of someone who already dislikes his work sitting through Inland Empire, waiting to be spoonfed something that makes sense. I think any enjoyment I got out of this film comes from the fact that I don't particularly mind if movies aren't a completely coherent experience (even although it is actually possible to make some sense of Inland Empire, just not on a Mulholland Drive level) because sometimes cinema doesn't have to be anything more than a series of abstractions; sometimes images don't have to be explained or put into words. I think that has to be said because too many people sometimes forget that cinema as a medium is something more than just storytelling. Therefore, any dislike I have for Inland Empire mostly comes from other things.

And there is a lot I really don't like about Inland Empire, the most notable example fresh in my mind is the dreadful ending/credit sequence
it's only redeeming factor is the appearance of Laura Harring
, actually I hate any scene involving the hookers coming to think of it. In fact, I think it might be David Lynch and David Lynch only who likes those scenes. Which is probably another one of the film's problems, it is more self-indulgent than any of his previous work. I don't necessarily mind that too much, but I know that a lot of people do.

I'm not going to discuss what I think the film is about, because I truly think it's beside the point (and I'm still not entirely certain and it isn't possible to be). I'm also not going to give it a rating because the only rating I could give it even after a second viewing is a what the fuck out of 10. My thoughts are still divided, but what I do know is that Inland Empire is an overwhelming and unsettling experience unlike anything else.

tl;dr: I liked the rabbits.
There's a scene on Youtube (I don't know if it's from Inland Empire, but I've heard it is) where there's some humanoid rabbits in a home, one ironing, one sitting on a couch, and they occasionally talk to each other. The scene is like 10 minutes long. I had no clue what was going on but I loved it. It was so creepy and atmospheric. Does Inland Empire feature a lot of stuff like this?

I'm a big Lynch fan but the love/hate response Inland has gotten has made me uncertain if I can sit through it. There's definitely times in Lynch movies where even though I love the atmosphere so much, I do get frustrated by the lack of answers or explanation of certain things. For example in Mulholland Drive the whole blue cube thing and people's lives changing in the 2nd half of the movie etc. all of that I had no clue what was going on while watching and it took me out of the movie. I had to read up on theories afterwards for it to click.
 

Desmond

Member
Akira: Fantastic. Looked Phenomenol on BluRay, animation was fluid and Gorgeous.

My Neighbours the Yamadas: once again, gorgeous in HD. Love the artstyle. Funny and Lighthearted. Felt it was a bit too long.
 
Recently bought the Blu-Ray collection of the LOTR trilogy: Extended Edition. Watched Fellowship last night and holy crap, the audio is some of the best I've ever heard. It felt like I was back at the cinema again.

Visuals hold up very nicely too, though I detected some grain here and there in the darker scenes (e.g. the dialogue between Aragorn and Boromir by the Shards of Narsil) but some of the wide shots are just jaw-dropping. Going to pop in Two Towers when I can find another 4 hours to spare.
 

pestul

Member
The Adjustment Bureau

Thought this one was pretty terrible. Generally like Matt Damon's acting, and enjoyed it in this. The pacing was awful and it just felt a little overdone given how Fringe did it better.
 

Wes

venison crêpe
793.jpg


Just a tidbit from me on this:

Enjoyable little coming of age romantic drama. Solid lead performances and some decent direction keeps you engaged. Whilst the storyline is predictable in places there's enough to it to keep viewers interested. Overall it's a pleasant film.
 

Dali

Member
CaptYamato said:
Fvx4K.jpg


Over acting, cheesy, ridiculous and fucking AWESOME!
Is this that movie with the cheesy trailer that is trying really hard to channel Armageddon complete with original Aerosmith song?
 

Cosmic Bus

pristine morning snow
Angry Fork said:
There's a scene .. where there's some humanoid rabbits in a home, one ironing, one sitting on a couch, and they occasionally talk to each other. It was so creepy and atmospheric. Does Inland Empire feature a lot of stuff like this?

There's definitely times in Lynch movies where even though I love the atmosphere so much, I do get frustrated by the lack of answers or explanation of certain things. .. I had no clue what was going on while watching and it took me out of the movie.

Regarding the rabbits, yes, there are several of those sequences in the movie, along with other imprecise, detached scenes that can seem as if they're only present to add atmosphere (or confusion).

The thing about Inland Empire is that while I believe, taken as a whole, it's the strongest, most compelling and fascinating piece of work in Lynch's entire career and the performance he brings out of Dern is unrivaled, for better or for worse it also features the least amount of structure and narrative, and certainly fewer answers than ever before. This can mostly be attributed to Lynch working for the first time without any constraints: IE is his movie, on his terms. Period. It isn't necessarily bad that he's more digestible when being watched over by a studio, but I loved seeing the results of Lynch distilled into a purely unadulterated form.

The common thread each time that I've seen the movie (theatrically and multiple DVD viewings alone and with people) is that I never sat down and watched it with my full attention (or consciousness, as was the case the first time around). It's my feeling that Inland Empire is best when you stop trying to approach it like a traditional film and simply allow yourself to be swept up in the experience as much or as little as your mind wants.
 

Replicant

Member
2up4euh.jpg


Why is Jason Statham so fucking cool? I mean, the film is just a standard action flick but Statham is dripping with coolness, I'm just blown away by his awesomeness.
 

EliCash

Member
Angry Fork said:
There's a scene on Youtube (I don't know if it's from Inland Empire, but I've heard it is) where there's some humanoid rabbits in a home, one ironing, one sitting on a couch, and they occasionally talk to each other. The scene is like 10 minutes long. I had no clue what was going on but I loved it. It was so creepy and atmospheric. Does Inland Empire feature a lot of stuff like this?

I'm a big Lynch fan but the love/hate response Inland has gotten has made me uncertain if I can sit through it. There's definitely times in Lynch movies where even though I love the atmosphere so much, I do get frustrated by the lack of answers or explanation of certain things. For example in Mulholland Drive the whole blue cube thing and people's lives changing in the 2nd half of the movie etc. all of that I had no clue what was going on while watching and it took me out of the movie. I had to read up on theories afterwards for it to click.

Rabbits was originally just a short series of short films Lynch made years before Inland Empire (featuring the voices of Naomi Watts and Laura Harring from Mulholland Drive) but he reused some of it and shot some new stuff involving the rabbits for Inland Empire. They're used throughout the film as Cosmic said.

If you were frustrated at all by Mulholland Drive then maybe you should steer clear, although having said that, you said you loved the rabbits even although you had no idea what was going on. So, certain aspects of Inland Empire might click with you - but be warned, it's unsettling, illogical and 3 hours long. It's certainly an experience, put it that way. It's like David Lynch grabs your mind and slowly massages it with one hand while using your subconscious as a canvas to paint on with his other, using solidified nightmares as paint - all the while attempting to talk you through this story about "a woman in trouble". That's the best description I've got, there isn't much point in giving a vague plot outline because it would misrepresent the film in my opinion.

Cosmic Bus said:
The common thread each time that I've seen the movie (theatrically and multiple DVD viewings alone and with people) is that I never sat down and watched it with my full attention (or consciousness, as was the case the first time around). It's my feeling that Inland Empire is best when you stop trying to approach it like a traditional film and simply allow yourself to be swept up in the experience as much or as little as your mind wants.

This is spot on, don't approach it like you would a normal film and let your mind delve in and out - it will anyway, the film hasn't had my full attention from start to finish both times I've watched it. And Laura Dern really does give herself completely to the role, unrivalled performance indeed.
 

KidDork

Member
hard.jpg


44 minutes of gore, wire-fu, swords and awesome. If that's not enough, Miki Mizuno is beautiful to behold.

Another Netflix unearthed treasure.
 
KidDork said:
hard.jpg


44 minutes of gore, wire-fu, swords and awesome. If that's not enough, Miki Mizuno is beautiful to behold.

Another Netflix unearthed treasure.

FX by genius Yoshihiro Nishimura make for one of the most satisyfing final kills of all time. Seriously deranged and well-executed.

Did you know that there is a second installment?
 

GhaleonEB

Member
MikeMyers said:
My favorite film of all time.
Maybe you can explain this for me. Why was Michael just wandering around outside in the rain when they drove up in the beginning? Seems he could have just run away any time he wanted. I didn't quite get the logistics of the security system or the escape sequence.
 

lucius

Member
Transformers 3, was much better than the 2nd not better than the 1st story wise, the effects in 3D are pretty amazing. I had a problem with the 2nd Tranformers telling who were good Transformers and bad Transformers in action scenes, not that much of a problem in this one. Worth seeing in a theatre especially in 3D, the mostly full crowd(saw it Sunday afternoon) applauded at the end so people seem to like the action I am guessing.
 

Apdiddy

Member
The Tourist - Nice scenery, half-way decent story, although the tone of the movie seems contrary to the ending. It comes across as serious, but ends as a comedy (well, Paul Bettany's character is almost Inspector Clouseau-esque in his bumblings).
 

Ridley327

Member
icarus-daedelus said:
I was trying for the double entendre, yes. How well did I do?

I dunno, I remember Suspiria and Inferno as being the crazy nonsensical ones, especially Inferno. I like them all to varying degrees (deliberately avoiding his 90s/00s output), probably because I was warned beforehand and went in expecting little cohesion. On first impressions Opera might even be my favorite if not for that soundtrack. Which is weird, all of the others have such good music.

I hate the Weinsteins so much for buying up all of the rights to Suspiria with their remake nonsense; I want a Suspiria Blu-ray that doesn't cost a small fortune.
 

jakncoke

Banned
Just watched a short documentary called Blue Highway. Initially it was going to be this group of people following this epic kayak trip but a storm came in and they had to chill at a cabin and wait for the waves to chill. They see this epic waterfall. They go up and it's marked up with trees that would be cut down if the road was to be built. Some people want 90 mile or so road connecting Juneau and some other towns that'd cost like 500 million, fuck up wildlife where no roads ever were and be used by less than 1k a day. rofl. Good shorty though.

Here is a link to it.

http://www.bluehighway.org/
 
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