Attack-Free Unpopular Opinion Thread

[Wryan]

Hitler was a terrible artist.

There, I said it.

[Skitch]

Same here. I only dislike eggplant because of childhood trauma.

And I'm not the biggest fan of champagne and cheddar cheese. Other than that, I enjoy everything.

For me its not about liking everything. Its about trying everything. You tried it, don't like it, fine. I hate finicky eaters who refuse to try stuff. "I have super taste buds, I can't!" Fuck off.

Hell some stuff I dislike I retry every few years (not all, fuck off forever lima beans). Its probably about time for me to give crayfish another go.

[Dukefrukem]

Well yeh, I have my preferences too. It's not like I would eat roasted grasshopper everyday. I just mean... put me on level 1 of The Platform, and I'm going left to right eating everything in sight.

https://www.gadgetgram.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/3.-The-Platform-4.png

[Skitch]

Would you try insects and arachnids though? If so, kudos, you beat me lol

[Ezee E]

Don't see my palette warming up to arachnids and insects either.

[Grouchy]

In Mexico they eat fried grasshoppers. It's not bad, kind of like very salty peanuts.

[Lazlo]

I must be the only person on the planet that would eat every single thing put in front of me, regardless of texture, color or known/unknown elements.

Yeah, I'm always a little amazed at adults that have weird food aversions that aren't based on nutrition or allergy.

I mean people who are like, I don't like lettuce or tomatoes or whatever, not people who don't want to eat bugs.

[Irish]

Don't like cooked broccoli or spinach.

Won't go anywhere near dishes made with mayo or cilantro.

I live in a great food city and will try anything once, but my taste is still horribly basic when I'm on my own.

Never eaten a bug.

[Wryan]

Broccoli cooked how? Had oven roasted? Pretty good.

[Dukefrukem]

Would you try insects and arachnids though? If so, kudos, you beat me lol

If there was a culture somewhere where it was a delicacy... of course. But I'm not just eating a ghost pepper to say I've ate a ghost pepper.

[Dukefrukem]

Don't like cooked broccoli or spinach.

Won't go anywhere near dishes made with mayo or cilantro.

I live in a great food city and will try anything once, but my taste is still horribly basic when I'm on my own.

Never eaten a bug.

I eat broccoli and spinach daily.

[Skitch]

Cooking broccoli is fucking delicate.

[Scar]

Roasted garlic is pretty damn good, and spinach cooks down so much it can get worked into a lot of stuff without people knowing.

[Grouchy]

Spinach is awesome.

[transmogrifier]

These foods suck: peas, broad beans, pickles, liver, kidneys, some types of shellfish, chicken feet, bondagee (silkworm larvae)

I would still eat them to be polite if I was served them (well, not the last two, because they suuuuck) , but they are not something I would pick out to eat myself. I also hate crab because it is such a pain in the arse to eat without much in the way of reward - shrimp and lobster are both better in that respect.

[Skitch]

Peas and pickles can fuck off and die. I cant believe theres a whole soup of peas. Who are these lunatics...that's just a bowl of baby vom

The secret to crab is it's not filling. So eat everything else until you're full. Then as dinner is winding down that's when you attack the crab legs. Slowly pulling apart while making conversation....its the icing on a meal. You can eat it forever and not get full.

[Ezee E]

I'd eat crab legs until I end up like the Gluttony guy on Seven.

[Dukefrukem]

Crab and Lobster are the ultimate. I feel sorry for everyone who doesn't have regular access to Maine Lobster.

[Morris Schæffer]

Love em too. Delicious.

[Irish]

I also hate crab because it is such a pain in the arse to eat without much in the way of reward - shrimp and lobster are both better in that respect.

Yep. Did this exactly once --- whole crabs, big table, lotsa newspaper everywhere --- and never again.

It's a lotta work to eat small amounts of food over an extended period of time.

ETA: Ditto for peeling individual shrimp.

[Scar]

Love me some crab and lobster.

However, for true gluttony, it’s shrimp boil time.

[MadMan]

I like crab. Lobster, eh. I love shrimp.

[MadMan]

Popcorn shrimp is the best shrimp. Butterfly is the worst.

[Scar]

Popcorn shrimp is the best shrimp. Butterfly is the worst.

Butter poached shrimp begs to differ.

[Ezee E]

Butter poached shrimp begs to differ.

Yep. Shrimp/Crawfish boils, all day long.

[Ezee E]

Crab and Lobster are the ultimate. I feel sorry for everyone who doesn't have regular access to Maine Lobster.

Denver has a place called the Maine Shack that flies in lobster each day for various rolls (CT style, Maine style, some other options)... It's crazy overpriced, but they've done a great job with the place and have been very successful. Great social marketing too.

[Scar]

I’ve found that doing shrimp boils with EZ peel shrimp yields much better flavor than peeled shrimp.

[Mal]

I've had lobster every few weeks during quarantine since I live by the NH coast and my brother has connections to local fishers. I do love shrimp, cooked any way except stuffed (a waste), but boiled lobster with butter is the best.

[Dukefrukem]

but boiled lobster with butter is the best.

Hope you mean steamed. You should know better if you're a New Englander...

[Scar]

And here I’ve been just eating hotdish.....

Kidding. Grilled a skirt steak and have been having tacos all day.

[Scar]

And i STRONGLY recommend you learn how to do butter poached lobster.

[Wryan]

I mean you can eat crab without doing all that smacking work yourself. Living in Charleston, crab's on tons of menus. Omelettes with shrimp and crab meat are delicious. I'd agree that the hammering is not my thing.

[Skitch]

Yep. Shrimp/Crawfish boils, all day long.

Shrimp crab boils are the best things on earth. I request it from family every birthday.

Duke I almost never get lobster. I love it, just not readily available. I have a buddy (from RT days actually) who lives in maine. That FUCKER routinely sends me picks of "dinner"....crab and fish and lobster and shit he just moseys over to the bay and picks up his traps or whatever and boom dinner. Hes a cruel cruel man. [Says one jealous bastard]

[Mal]

Hope you mean steamed. You should know better if you're a New Englander...

HAHA I actually meant broiled. The tail with butter sizzling, a little chopped garlic, parsley and salt... is mmm. the best. Steamed is of course fine. The standard.

I also love love love fried lobster but goddamn it is too expensive via restaurants and time consuming at home for me to even bother.

[Ezee E]

I figured I'd see cheaper lobster in Connecticut when I visited last year, but it's not TOO far off from what I get here in Denver. Lame.

[Skitch]

Runaway Train is fantastic.

Speaking of which...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzoVQksebGM

[Morris Schæffer]

Yeah he's in that.

[Yxklyx]

I liked the final season of Game of Thrones. Yeah, I know it was a bit anti-climactic and the weakest season but I genuinely liked it - I liked how it all ended. Maybe that's because I didn't start watching the series in full until the final year so didn't have as much invested in it?

[transmogrifier]

Inspired by recent threads:

- The original Mad Max is terrible. Mad Max: Fury Road is the most overrated movie of the decade. George Miller's best movie by far is Babe: Pig in the City.

[Irish]

The original Mad Max is terrible.

No, just no.


Mad Max: Fury Road is the most overrated movie of the decade.

Yes, oh yes. It's a little ... weird, too, I think, the way people talk about it? But then I remember that we've nothing else to hang our collective hats on, at least in terms of action movies this decade.


George Miller's best movie by far is Babe: Pig in the City.

My belief: George Miller is nothing without Byron Kennedy.

[Dukefrukem]

My counter:

Mad Max is indeed terrible. Road Warrior is fun. Blooddome or whatever the third one is called is also terrible. Fury Road is a masterpiece.

[Scar]

My counter:

Mad Max is indeed terrible. Road Warrior is fun. Blooddome or whatever the third one is called is also terrible. Fury Road is a masterpiece.

Thunderdome, dude. Thunderdome.

[Dukefrukem]

Thunderdome, dude. Thunderdome.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wqwd2T4PnIw

[Irish]

iirc, posting Rick & Morty clips removes the thread's natural protection and allows people to attack you

[[ETM]]

Fury Road is indeed a masterpiece.

[MadMan]

I love the entire Mad Max series. Thunderdome is the weakest one.

Rick and Morty is hilarious but the fanbase is mostly toxic.

[Mal]

Mad Max is a lot of fun!

[megladon8]

The first Mad Max is the best of the series, followed by Fury Road.

Road Warrior is one of the most overrated movies in existence.

[Skitch]

I love Pistol Opera. I would like to hear what trans thinks of it.

The Road Warrior was my introduction to Max Rocktansky, so I didnt appreciate Mad Max for a bit. I now love both movies for different reasons, as different examples of filmmaking for their decades. Thunderdome I enjoy but its....an odd film.

[Morris Schæffer]

The lawlessness that pervades Mad Max 1979 is pretty terrifying. Plus, without the budgets of Road Warrior and especially Fury Road, the 1979 movie has both feet planted firmly into an-all too believable dystopia that resembles the here and now. It's one of the best examples of low-budget filmmaking.

I agree with Madman about Thunderdome. It isn't a different beast, it's an inferior Max flick, but still engaging enough.

Meg, I gotta ask, care to elaborate on why you feel MM2 is stupefyingly overrated?

[megladon8]

The lawlessness that pervades Mad Max 1979 is pretty terrifying. Plus, without the budgets of Road Warrior and especially Fury Road, the 1979 movie has both feet planted firmly into an-all too believable dystopia that resembles the here and now. It's one of the best examples of low-budget filmmaking.

I agree with Madman about Thunderdome. It isn't a different beast, it's an inferior Max flick, but still engaging enough.

Meg, I gotta ask, care to elaborate on why you feel MM2 is stupefyingly overrated?


Mostly due to it not having aged well, and being outdone in just about every way since its time.

I've never been much for vehicular action to begin with. Without the insanely cool presence of Furiosa in Fury Road, or the shocking violence and sadism of Toecutter in the original 79 flick, it's just a bunch of car chases that are...decent, I guess?

I also found the group of good guys holed up in the camp to be pretty terrible. They felt like they were from a different movie all together, like Logan's Run or something.

[StanleyK]

Inspired by recent threads:

- The original Mad Max is terrible. Mad Max: Fury Road is the most overrated movie of the decade. George Miller's best movie by far is Babe: Pig in the City.

Agree on Fury Road, disagree on Pig in the City. In fact Miller in general is insanely overrated to me.



Twin Peaks has a brilliant pilot, and then the series gets progressively less and less interesting, culminating in the terrible Fire Walk with Me (Lynch's worst movie, even weaker than Dune). I have basically zero interest in ever watching the revival.

[Yxklyx]

No, just no.

Hey! That sounds like an attack ;) Whatever negative anyone has to say about Mad Max - it's what gave Willem Dafoe a career. No Mad Max no Dafoe - everything is connected (due to London The Loveless/Mad Max double feature).

[Morris Schæffer]

Mostly due to it not having aged well, and being outdone in just about every way since its time.

I've never been much for vehicular action to begin with. Without the insanely cool presence of Furiosa in Fury Road, or the shocking violence and sadism of Toecutter in the original 79 flick, it's just a bunch of car chases that are...decent, I guess?

I also found the group of good guys holed up in the camp to be pretty terrible. They felt like they were from a different movie all together, like Logan's Run or something.

I guess we're gonna have to disagree on this one. My feeling is that action-heavy movies typically age much better when they've been conceived with a practical mindset such is the case with the 1981 movie. It's still immediate, visceral, plausible and dangerous, certainly no less than the 1979 movie.

As for the other guys, that never occurred to me. Maybe dystopia brings out the weird ones (Blade Runner's got a few, Brad Pitt looks crazy in 12 Monkeys etc..), that whole movie is about survival, clinging to hope. I guess I felt it was fitting that the group holed up in the refinery felt like a ramshackle bunch of folks although there's a few that are pretty normal I suppose including Pappagallo and the crossbow-wielding amazon. The feral kid totally belongs in that world. :)

[Philip J. Fry]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZvzvLiGUtw
Getting some serious Public Enemy vibes from this Thai band.

[Peng]

Never thought I would see that posted in an English forum (meant that as a great thing!). For additional info, the background of the MV is referring this infamous photo (https://www.khaosodenglish.com/politics/2016/10/05/oct-6-massacre-photographer/) from the 1977 Thammasat University massacre.

[Philip J. Fry]

Yeah, I discovered it while watching Patriot Act and it completely blew me away.

[MadMan]

The Departed is better than Infernal Affairs. However the remake is bloated and the original fails to really flesh out further it's more interesting aspects. I do like both a lot.

[Grouchy]

It's a really interesting remake. The original is just a generic (although brilliantly pulled off) action thriller while the Scorsese movie has this whole cultural and social baggage. Plus it goes out on an ironic neo-noir note while the original is a bit humorless.

[megladon8]

I recently watched a video that compiled evidence in The Departed that Sullivan (Matt Damon's character) is gay and in the closet.

While they have a lot to back it up, some of it is really reaching and feels like twisting scenes and dialog to fit that narrative, rather than the scenes and dialog naturally supporting it.

I don't know if it's a general accepted thing that Sullivan is gay, but I wasn't sold despite enjoying the video.

[megladon8]

Jack Reacher is kinda great.

[MadMan]

It's a really interesting remake. The original is just a generic (although brilliantly pulled off) action thriller while the Scorsese movie has this whole cultural and social baggage. Plus it goes out on an ironic neo-noir note while the original is a bit humorless.Hmm those are good takes I think I can agree with.

[MadMan]

I recently watched a video that compiled evidence in The Departed that Sullivan (Matt Damon's character) is gay and in the closet.

While they have a lot to back it up, some of it is really reaching and feels like twisting scenes and dialog to fit that narrative, rather than the scenes and dialog naturally supporting it.

I don't know if it's a general accepted thing that Sullivan is gay, but I wasn't sold despite enjoying the video.

I thought he just couldn't have kids. That theory he was gay could work if there was more evidence for it. But there is not.

[MadMan]

Jack Reacher is kinda great.

I think I liked the sequel better. Both are good flicks. I hope they make another one.

[Scar]

I think I liked the sequel better. Both are good flicks. I hope they make another one.

I believe this statement is more accurate for the thread.

[Skitch]

I think I liked the sequel better. Both are good flicks. I hope they make another one.

Wow. Now you're gonna make revisit the sequel? I feel like attacking you :D I kid I kid

[Philip J. Fry]

I thought he just couldn't have kids. That theory he was gay could work if there was more evidence for it. But there is not.
I thought he was impotent.

[TGM]

Jack Reacher is kinda great.

Not sure this is an unpopular opinion. :p

[Scar]

Wow. Now you're gonna make revisit the sequel? I feel like attacking you :D I kid I kid

Dont’t. Stick with the first one.

[MadMan]

I believe this statement is more accurate for the thread.

Probably.

[MadMan]

Wow. Now you're gonna make revisit the sequel? I feel like attacking you :D I kid I kid

Skitch attacks! MadMan runs away!

[MadMan]

I thought he was impotent.

Yeah that's the right word. Vera Farmiga and Damon had that scene where it's heavily implied that she is discussing him not being able to get it up.

[transmogrifier]

Okay, topical unpopular opinion: Nicholson is borderline terrible in The Departed, and De Niro is terrible in Cape Fear.

[baby doll]

Okay, topical unpopular opinion: Nicholson is borderline terrible in The Departed, and De Niro is terrible in Cape Fear.I assume the unpopular part is the qualifier "borderline."

[Skitch]

I assume the unpopular part is the qualifier "borderline."

Yeah I adore The Departed but his performance is....ehhh....weird. Never been a big fan of Cape Fear.

[Idioteque Stalker]

Cape Fear sucks. Least favorite Scorsese.

[Morris Schæffer]

Cape Fear is a good thriller. It can still be anyone's least favorite Scorsese.

I guess sometimes it feels like such statements go hand in hand. It's the least favorite Scorsese, ergo it sucks. Like we're operating strictly in a comparative mode.

Maybe I'm wrong.

[Idioteque Stalker]

I did not like it at all, and it has nothing to do with how it compares to Goodfellas or anything. Love Scorsese, but he doesn’t get an automatic free pass to make bad movies.

[Irish]

I thought the original "Cape Fear" was a much better (and much sleazier) film, which is weird because the guy who directed it spent his career making D-grade thrillers. But in this instance, I think he outdid Scorsese --- at least he recognized the material for what it was. Scorsese overthought his version.

[Dukefrukem]

Cape Fear sucks. Least favorite Scorsese.

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaa?

[Grouchy]

Obviously love Cape Fear. I think both Scorsese remakes built and expanded on the originals wonderfully.

I don't know what's my least favorite Scorsese to be honest. I want to say Gangs of New York because the plot sucks but there's so much awesome thrown in the mix that it's difficult to say - also have beautiful theater memories of the first time I watched it. There's always Boxcar Bertha, but it's such an obvious hack job that it seems like a cop out.

[Morris Schæffer]

I did not like it at all, and it has nothing to do with how it compares to Goodfellas or anything. Love Scorsese, but he doesn’t get an automatic free pass to make bad movies.

Apologies then. :)

[Irish]

where is duke's power ranking of the top 5 worst scorsese movies

[Dukefrukem]

where is duke's power ranking of the top 5 worst scorsese movies

Where's Irish in every DukeTV night for the past three weeks. <3 (streaming Last of Us 2 in a few min btw)

But this is an easy list


5. Gangs of New York
4. Casino
3. The Irishman
2. Boxcar Bertha

1.Hugo

[Skitch]

(streaming Last of Us 2 in a few min btw)


*taps foot*

Wife is taking a bath right now, tick tock tick tock! :D

[Peng]

Least favorite Scorsese (use that instead of "worst" because more than a few are still quite ok, or even good):

1. Boxcar Bertha
2. Kundun
3. Who's That Knocking at My Door
4. Mean Streets
5. Gangs of New York

[transmogrifier]

Go big or go home, fellas!

Scorsese ranked:



Mean Streets
Casino
Taxi Driver
Wolf of Wall Street
GoodFellas
The Last Waltz
The King of Comedy
Shutter Island
The Departed
The Last Temptation of Christ
The Color of Money
Hugo
The Aviator
Bringing Out the Dead
The Age of Innocence
After Hours
Raging Bull
Kundun
The Irishman
Boxcar Bertha
Cape Fear
Silence
Gangs of New York
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Who's That Knocking on My Door

[Dukefrukem]

I'll admit. I tried watching Silence twice and had to shut it off after an hour both times. I didn't count it in my bottom 5 because I haven't finished it. But oof.

[Skitch]

Go big or go home, fellas!

Scorsese ranked:



Mean Streets
Casino
Taxi Driver
Wolf of Wall Street
GoodFellas
The Last Waltz
The King of Comedy
Shutter Island
The Departed
The Last Temptation of Christ
The Color of Money
Hugo
The Aviator
Bringing Out the Dead
The Age of Innocence
After Hours
Raging Bull
Kundun
The Irishman
Boxcar Bertha
Cape Fear
Silence
Gangs of New York
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
Who's That Knocking on My Door


Seeing Raging Bull below Bringing out the Dead gets a virtual hi-5 from me buddy!

[Ezee E]

Silence is very good. But it's certainly not that frantic pace of Scorsese that we look for and love.

My least 5 Scorsese's:
-Age of Innocence
-Kundun
-Boxcar Bertha
-Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
-New York New York

[transmogrifier]

Silence is very good. But it's certainly not that frantic pace of Scorsese that we look for and love.

My least 5 Scorsese's:
-Age of Innocence
-Kundun
-Boxcar Bertha
-Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore
-New York New York

Shit, I forgot NY, NY. That would be in my Top 10 easily. His most underappreciated.

[transmogrifier]

Seeing Raging Bull below Bringing out the Dead gets a virtual hi-5 from me buddy!

I've only seen BOTD once. Need to rectify that.

[Skitch]

I've only seen BOTD once. Need to rectify that.

Same here, but I remember thinking it was much better than I anticipated. Raging Bull is...fine...way overrated though.

[megladon8]

I really liked Gangs of New York.

[megladon8]

Immortals > 300

[Yxklyx]

I'd put Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore near the top.

[Skitch]

Immortals > 300

I've been thinking about this. I think I like both about the same. Neither "masterpiece/fantastic" level but I enjoy both.

[megladon8]

I've been thinking about this. I think I like both about the same. Neither "masterpiece/fantastic" level but I enjoy both.

300 is big dumb fun.

Immortals is a touch more cerebral (not much). But I found its aesthetic pretty neat. It didn't always work and sometimes felt more like a model shoot than a movie, but when it did work it was pretty incredible.

The Minotaur was particularly inspired.

[Skitch]

300 is big dumb fun.

Immortals is a touch more cerebral (not much). But I found its aesthetic pretty neat. It didn't always work and sometimes felt more like a model shoot than a movie, but when it did work it was pretty incredible.

The Minotaur was particularly inspired.

Totally agree. My biggest issue with Immortals is it has the feel of studio meddling. I could be wrong, its just my gut feeling. It feels rushed and "frame fucked". Like there was a really killer 2.5 hour cut that fleshed out everything.

[transmogrifier]

300 is one of the worst movies I've ever seen.

[Skitch]

300 is one of the worst movies I've ever seen.

Hate it all you want, but is it though? In the multitude of Mystery Science Theater 3000 movies, 300 ranks as one of the worst movies you've ever seen?

[Dukefrukem]

300 is one of the worst movies I've ever seen.

Sucker Punch is worse.

[Skitch]

Sucker Punch is worse.

Agreed.

[transmogrifier]

Hate it all you want, but is it though? In the multitude of Mystery Science Theater 3000 movies, 300 ranks as one of the worst movies you've ever seen?


You'd be surprised at how well I avoid crap. I've tried to go down that "so-bad-it's-good" route because it seems fun in theory, but almost always, those type of movies just bore me to tears. Incompetence is not really that interesting to me. So "one of the worst movies I have ever seen" is a really, really small subset of "movies that are bad".

[transmogrifier]

Sucker Punch is worse.

They both suck, but 300 sucks much more.

[Skitch]

You'd be surprised at how well I avoid crap. I've tried to go down that "so-bad-it's-good" route because it seems fun in theory, but almost always, those type of movies just bore me to tears. Incompetence is not really that interesting to me. So "one of the worst movies I have ever seen" is a really, really small subset of "movies that are bad".

Fair enough, thanks for clarification.

[Irish]

Silly question, but why don't you guys just bail on stuff you don't like?

I no longer have the patience for bad movies. If I'm not engaged after 20 minutes or 40, I turn the damned thing off.

[Dukefrukem]

Silly question, but why don't you guys just bail on stuff you don't like?

I no longer have the patience for bad movies. If I'm not engaged after 20 minutes or 40, I turn the damned thing off.

For completionism. (probably not a word)

Also sometimes an ending can make a movie for me.

[Skitch]

Silly question, but why don't you guys just bail on stuff you don't like?

I no longer have the patience for bad movies. If I'm not engaged after 20 minutes or 40, I turn the damned thing off.

I absolutely do bail. Sometimes based solely on the font of the title credits.

But I have been witness to the worst films in history via MST3K, which is hilarious. I couldn't make it through any of those films without those guys.

[transmogrifier]

Silly question, but why don't you guys just bail on stuff you don't like?

I no longer have the patience for bad movies. If I'm not engaged after 20 minutes or 40, I turn the damned thing off.

Oh, I’ll definitely turn something off if I don’t like it.

[Irish]

Oh, I’ll definitely turn something off if I don’t like it.

So you liked "300" and "Sucker Punch then? :D

[[ETM]]

Yeah, the crap that Redlettermedia watch on a regular basis is absolutely unwatchable without their comments.

Sent from my Mi 9 Lite using Tapatalk

[Skitch]

After Midnight is one of the worst films I've ever seen in my entire life.

[baby doll]

Hate it all you want, but is it though? In the multitude of Mystery Science Theater 3000 movies, 300 ranks as one of the worst movies you've ever seen?I've never understood this argument. It seems to imply a cinematic hierarchy of needs where basic technical competence in itself gets a film bumped up to the second order regardless of the purposes to which that technique is put to. But at the end of the day, boring is boring.

(For the record, I haven't seen 300.)

[Skitch]

I've never understood this argument. It seems to imply a cinematic hierarchy of needs where basic technical competence in itself gets a film bumped up to the second order regardless of the purposes to which that technique is put to. But at the end of the day, boring is boring.

(For the record, I haven't seen 300.)

Bear in mind this isn't coming from a place of defending 300. I have zero emotion towards anyone hating that movie.

Its odd to me that you don't understand my argument, but (even vaguely) rank movies. If you have an opinion that some movies are better than others, why is it unusual to see that some are the most blatant epic shit of all time? Everyone sets their own barometer. Trans told me his barometer. I now understand where hes coming from.

[Ivan Drago]

I unironically enjoy the Joel Schumacher Batman movies. After revisiting them in memoriam of Schumacher, while yes, their scripts are terrible, their execution is cartoonish and the movies are all over the place tonally, both Batman Forever and Batman and Robin move with a madcap, infectious energy, the casts do well with what they're given, Gotham looks awesome in its neon colors and grand set design, and the scores are bombastic, making every scene feel big, awe-inspiring and non-stop Fun. To say they feel made by an eight-year-old can be taken as a compliment in my opinion.

Also after Batman and Robin came out, I started writing my own comic books for fun in 1997-1998. I had no clue how to tell a good story, I just wanted to do what I thought was fun. Batman Forever and Batman and Robin were made with that same mentality. I've grown in spades as a storyteller well since then, but I wouldn't have had a starting line to begin from without those guilty pleasures. In that, Schumacher had a bigger impact on my life than I thought, and his death is hitting me harder upon that realization.

[Irish]

I unironically enjoy the Joel Schumacher Batman movies. After revisiting them in memoriam of Schumacher, while yes, their scripts are terrible, their execution is cartoonish and the movies are all over the place tonally, both Batman Forever and Batman and Robin move with a madcap, infectious energy, the casts do well with what they're given, Gotham looks awesome in its neon colors and grand set design, and the scores are bombastic, making every scene feel big, awe-inspiring and non-stop Fun. To say they feel made by an eight-year-old can be taken as a compliment in my opinion.

Also after Batman and Robin came out, I started writing my own comic books for fun in 1997-1998. I had no clue how to tell a good story, I just wanted to do what I thought was fun. Batman Forever and Batman and Robin were made with that same mentality. I've grown in spades as a storyteller well since then, but I wouldn't have had a starting line to begin from without those guilty pleasures. In that, Schumacher had a bigger impact on my life than I thought, and his death is hitting me harder upon that realization.

People usually say "cool story bro" with disdain and sarcasm, but this is actually a cool story.

I dig that you got so much out of those 2 films.

[Skitch]

I think Batman Forever might be the most comic-true version of Batman of those first four films. I'll never forget the year that came out, rolling around with my new license, blaring the soundtrack on cassette...

[baby doll]

Bear in mind this isn't coming from a place of defending 300. I have zero emotion towards anyone hating that movie.

Its odd to me that you don't understand my argument, but (even vaguely) rank movies. If you have an opinion that some movies are better than others, why is it unusual to see that some are the most blatant epic shit of all time? Everyone sets their own barometer. Trans told me his barometer. I now understand where hes coming from.I agree that some movies are better (or at least more successful) than others, although I don't think all films are directly comparable. It might make sense to compare 300 with the schlocky sword-and-sandal films produced at CinecittÃ* in the 1960s, but (assuming that 300 is as bad as everyone says it is--and I have no reason to doubt that it is) isn't it worse to spend 200 million dollars making the best, most technically proficient Steve Reeves Hercules movie money can buy than to churn one out quickly for the exploitation market? Or to put it another way, would the Italian films have been more fun to watch if they had had top-grade special effects, production values, and synchronized sound but the same dopey scripts? I tend to doubt it. At least in my experience, expensive trash isn't necessarily more fun to watch than cheap trash.

[megladon8]

300 only cost 65 million.

But I agree with your point, to an extent.

I tend to find a lot of schlock a lot of fun.

[Ezee E]

I've probably walked out of less than ten movies in my life. Usually I'm in it to finish it. And that's where I've seen my worst movies lol.

[megladon8]

I don't think I'd walk out of a theatrical movie unless the length of the film was another deterrent.

And a movie has to be pretty damn terrible for me to turn it off at home.

[Philip J. Fry]

I watched the entirety of Men, Women and Children, football fucking included. I think that makes me a true completist.

[Ezee E]

I don't think I'd walk out of a theatrical movie unless the length of the film was another deterrent.

And a movie has to be pretty damn terrible for me to turn it off at home.

The length is a major part of it too. If I see that I have a whole hour plus to go... There's just other things that I'd rather do. Although I don't think I've ever walked out of an Alamo theater.

[Ivan Drago]

People usually say "cool story bro" with disdain and sarcasm, but this is actually a cool story.

I dig that you got so much out of those 2 films.

Thanks, man. :)

Also to this day, I still want Kiss From A Rose to be the song I dance to at my wedding.

[transmogrifier]

So you liked "300" and "Sucker Punch then? :D

It's not a blanket rule, obviously. I've seen your numerous pans in the review section of this site to know that it is not a blanket rule for you either :)

I watched 300 at the theater. I've never walked out of a film for non-technical reasons. I will also tend to watch all of the way through films from well-known directors for completionist purposes (1941 is a good example of that). And I'll keep watching and not be a dick about it if it appears that my wife is liking it.

[Skitch]

And I'll keep watching and not be a dick about it if it appears that my wife is liking it.

Only married people understand the volumes of information contained in this sentence.

[Scar]

Only married people understand the volumes of information contained in this sentence.

One caveat: If my wife is going to watch a cookie cutter Hallmark movie, I’ll generally make myself scarce.

[transmogrifier]

One caveat: If my wife is going to watch a cookie cutter Hallmark movie, I’ll generally make myself scarce.

I'm lucky in that my wife does not like horror movies, so I have to watch those alone. This means that when she wants to watch something cloyingly romantic, I can use the "I don't like those" excuse and she has no comeback! She'll watch it by herself and I'll do something else.

In reality, we tend to watch mainstream Hollywood stuff and Korean movies together, and this means I will get stuck watching some dreck within this subgroup of films but nothing is more deflating than having someone else say "this sucks!" halfway through a movie I'm enjoying, so I keep quiet if the movie is not doing it for me and suffer through it, and then we discuss our reactions after. I'm diplomatic as fuck.

[Skitch]

One caveat: If my wife is going to watch a cookie cutter Hallmark movie, I’ll generally make myself scarce.

Oh if it's something I absolutely dont want to watch, I'm out. Same with her, nothing is forced on either.

[Ivan Drago]

In reality, we tend to watch mainstream Hollywood stuff and Korean movies together, and this means I will get stuck watching some dreck within this subgroup of films but nothing is more deflating than having someone else say "this sucks!" halfway through a movie I'm enjoying, so I keep quiet if the movie is not doing it for me and suffer through it, and then we discuss our reactions after. I'm diplomatic as fuck.

I can vouch for that. My aunt and sister wanted to watch a scary movie one night so they came to me for a recommendation. I admittedly wasn't as into horror then as I am now, so the closest thing to a horror movie I had was Cloverfield. They were whining about being bored fifteen minutes in and haven't trusted me ever since. That wasn't fun.

[Scar]

Oh, she doesn’t like horror one bit, and I usually can find time to watch one of those when she works a later shift.

EDIT: It was an easy sell to get her to watch John Wick. All I had to say was, “it’s all over a puppy.”

[[ETM]]

My wife can't contain her disdain if she's watching something really bad. I had to calm her down during Alien: Covenant during the dumbest sequences because she'd get visibly frustrated and gesture at the screen. :D Same during SW9.

Sent from my Mi 9 Lite using Tapatalk

[megladon8]

Watched it again last night (first time in probably 15 years), and not only do I maintain that The Ninth Gate is criminally underappreciated, it is also one of Polanski's best.

[Grouchy]

Watched it again last night (first time in probably 15 years), and not only do I maintain that The Ninth Gate is criminally underappreciated, it is also one of Polanski's best.
Woooooow I agree 100%.

[Skitch]

Watched it again last night (first time in probably 15 years), and not only do I maintain that The Ninth Gate is criminally underappreciated, it is also one of Polanski's best.

It is my favorite from him, easy.

[Scar]

Never did see that. Pretty sure I had it spoiled for me. I'll check it out.

[megladon8]

Never did see that. Pretty sure I had it spoiled for me. I'll check it out.

Do you recall what was spoiled for you?

Just seems like a weird movie to have spoiled, since the ending is...well...

Let me know what you were told. Lol.

[Skitch]

Do you recall what was spoiled for you?

Just seems like a weird movie to have spoiled, since the ending is...well...

Let me know what you were told. Lol.

Yeah I thought same, is there anything to really spoil? Like spoil spoil?

[Dukefrukem]

Looks like I'm watching it on Tues-Movie Night with the wife.

https://i.ibb.co/NtL4QvL/ninthgate.png

[megladon8]

Please report back with what you think!

[Skitch]

Please report back with what you think!

Yes indeed! I have the blu-ray. Haven't watched in a while. Caught a couple bits on plutoTV and turned it off, nope, I am not starting that in the middle. Its too good. I also have fond memories of showing to my horror fiend friend and him loving it.

[baby doll]

It is my favorite from him, easy.Two Men and a Wardrobe, Le Gros et le maigre, Repulsion, Rosemary's Baby, What?, Chinatown, Le Locataire, Bitter Moon, "Cinéma erotique" from Chacun son cinéma, The Ghost Writer, and Vénus Ã* la foururre are all better films than The Ninth Gate (which seems to me a pretty clear-cut case of excellent craftsmanship in the service of third-rate material).

[Skitch]

Two Men and a Wardrobe, Le Gros et le maigre, Repulsion, Rosemary's Baby, What?, Chinatown, Le Locataire, Bitter Moon, "Cinéma erotique" from Chacun son cinéma, The Ghost Writer, and Vénus Ã* la foururre are all better films than The Ninth Gate (which seems to me a pretty clear-cut case of excellent craftsmanship in the service of third-rate material).

I've seen about half those films and they're all great. But Polanski's skill...with this kind of genre...edges out the win for me.

[Morris Schæffer]

Love The Ghost Writer.

[megladon8]

Chinatown is one of the most overrated films of all time.

[Mal]

Polanski is a great filmmaker- Death and the Maiden knocked me over when I was probably 14/15. It's on tubi!

[DFA1979]

Chinatown is one of the most overrated films of all time.

Booooooo.

I liked The Ninth Gate. Polanski has done better. The Ghost Writer is also pretty good.

[Dukefrukem]

Looks like I'm watching it on Tues-Movie Night with the wife.

https://i.ibb.co/NtL4QvL/ninthgate.png

Thoughts tomorrow

[Skitch]

Thoughts tomorrow

Fuckin tease

[Skitch]

Chinatown is one of the most overrated films of all time.

My favorite thing about Chinatown is how awkward Nickelson feels throughout. Wouldnt argue you about overrated.

[Wryan]

The Ninth Gate? When The Girl floats down the stairs and starts martial-arting motherfuckers I was spiritually out.

It's quite watchable tho. Barbara Jefford, who plays the Baroness Kessler, gives a superb supporting performance.

[Ezee E]

He has a new movie that's out and apparently pretty good. J'accuse. I don't know if we'll ever get to see it though, because Polanski.

[Dukefrukem]

The Ninth Gate? When The Girl floats down the stairs and starts martial-arting motherfuckers I was spiritually out.

It's quite watchable tho. Barbara Jefford, who plays the Baroness Kessler, gives a superb supporting performance.

There's two scenes like that. I'm trying to figure out what she is supposed to represent int the story; aside from the figure on the inscriptions. Was she helping Depp because she knew that he would piece together the three books and ultimately open the gate?

It definitely is quite watchable and it's a fine mystery surrounding the devil and devil-like stories. I don't know why there aren't more attempts at movies like this. Even Constantine which I just re-watched a few days ago, does a great job at world building. It's inspired me to create a Lucifer film list...

The biggest problem I had with this movie is the damn score. Oof does it feel like it doesn't belong in this movie. I kept getting flashes of like Monty Python or Curb your Enthusiasm when I should be feeling tension.

[megladon8]

She is a witch, which is why she has supernatural powers.

And yeah, I figured she saw that Depp was on the right path and chose to help him.

[Grouchy]

I read The Club Dumas, the original novel The Ninth Gate is drawn from, and it's curious in that there's this whole parallel plot about Alexandre Dumas which the writers decided to ditch completely to focus on the Devil stuff. Probably a wise choice, but there are some awkward leftovers from that plot.

I've been trying to watch J'Accuse for months now and found it nowhere on the internet.

[transmogrifier]

The Ninth Gate is terrible.

[megladon8]

The Ninth Gate is terrible.

Wrong thread.

[Ezee E]

Wrong thread.

ATTACK HIM!

[DFA1979]

I like the attack thread better than this one.

[Scar]

ATTACK HIM!

He’s a witch!

[Skitch]

I like the attack thread better than this one.

That is a valid opinion.

*runs off crying*

[megladon8]

He’s a witch!

Why, because I float like very small rocks?

[Ezee E]

Why, because I float like very small rocks?

Because you go to work on a goddamn broom.

[DFA1979]

That is a valid opinion.

*runs off crying*

Oh great I made Skitch cry. See what you made me do thread? SEE WHAT YOU MADE ME DOOOOOOO!

[DFA1979]

He’s a witch!

BURN HIM!

[transmogrifier]

Wrong thread.

Based on the (totally off-the-charts bonkers) raft of positive praise for that piece of crap movie, I would say my opinion somehow counts as unpopular in Bizarroworld.

[Wryan]

The Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie was great fun.

[Wryan]

My Neighbor Totoro is just okay.

[Skitch]

My Neighbor Totoro is just okay.

*checks thread title*

I politely disagree.

[Skitch]

Based on the (totally off-the-charts bonkers) raft of positive praise for that piece of crap movie, I would say my opinion somehow counts as unpopular in Bizarroworld.

You're totally allowed to hate any movie in this thread. Just not attack the person for liking it. You have not done that so you're good.

[Philip J. Fry]

Black Panther is merely okay.

[transmogrifier]

Black Panther is merely okay.

It's not even that good. It's the worst MCU film that I've seen (I haven't seen Thor 2, Captain Marvel, or Spider-man 3)

[megladon8]

Pretty sure that means you're both racist.

[Philip J. Fry]

It's not even that good. It's the worst MCU film that I've seen (I haven't seen Thor 2, Captain Marvel, or Spider-man 3)
Nah. Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and Age of Ultron are worse from the ones I remember.

[Mal]

Guardians 2 is such trash.
I hated Infinity War so much, I didn’t bother with Endgame.

[megladon8]

Age of Ultron was mega disappointing, but I never understood the hate that GotG 2 gets.

[Dukefrukem]

I never understood the hate Ultron gets.

I understand the hate of Black Panther. It's merely OK at best. Andy Serkis and Michael B Jordan are excellent villains though.

People "hate" GotG2 because it doesn't do anything different or new from GotG1. I think people were expecting much more out of Gunn.

[Ezee E]

Skipped Ultron. Hated GotG 2. lol

[DFA1979]

My Neighbor Totoro is just okay.

Awwww hell nah!

Wait wrong thread. I'll allow it.

[DFA1979]

I liked GOTG 2 as much as the first one, but I slightly prefer the first flick.

[megladon8]

Here's one...

Nightmare on Elm Street 2 is really good.

[Scar]

Here's one...

Nightmare on Elm Street 2 is really good.

There’s a great documentary on Shudder called Scream Queen!, and I’d say it’s far better than Nightmare 2.

[DFA1979]

Here's one...

Nightmare on Elm Street 2 is really good.

Decent, imo. I'm due for a rewatch.

[transmogrifier]

You know, sometimes, in the dark of the night, when nothing but my demons and I are awake, I ask myself this: Is it possible that you have been lying to yourself all these years, maintaining a facade to fit in with larger society, to avoid being ostracized into oblivion, in order to avoid the truth: you like Die Hard 2 more than Die Hard.

My rational cinematic intelligence still maintains that the first is more tightly constructed (except for the awful body double work) and relentless, and that the second dives deep into preposterousness, turning McClane into a superhero impervious to physics. But....but...but... why do I feel closer to Die Hard 2? Why do I get more exciting about the prospect of watching that?

Also, Terminator 3 is very, very good. Sure, it maybe cuts out too much flab, but the chase scene with the crane is awesome, and the ending is almost perfect.

[Dukefrukem]

You know, sometimes, in the dark of the night, when nothing but my demons and I are awake, I ask myself this: Is it possible that you have been lying to yourself all these years, maintaining a facade to fit in with larger society, to avoid being ostracized into oblivion, in order to avoid the truth: you like Die Hard 2 more than Die Hard.

My rational cinematic intelligence still maintains that the first is more tightly constructed (except for the awful body double work) and relentless, and that the second dives deep into preposterousness, turning McClane into a superhero impervious to physics. But....but...but... why do I feel closer to Die Hard 2? Why do I get more exciting about the prospect of watching that?


Because it's more Christmasy?

For years I was convinced the second was better than the first. I even came up with a theorem that said the second movie in every trilogy ever was the best, as long as it was a continuing story. I.e. Indiana Jones was disqualified from the theorem since the second movie is a prequel.

[transmogrifier]

I like the expanded scope and seeing more people trying to figure out what is going on (I love to watch organizations react to disasters - it is something I have always found interesting, the mobilization of resources in the face of disaster) and it is a little more brutal.

[megladon8]

I've had the "You Got Me Burnin'" song from the Tech Noir club scene in Terminator stuck in my head for like 3 days

That scene is monumental.

[Skitch]

Not attacking...but has trans been hacked? He says T3 is very very good? Am I in the upsidedown?

[Dukefrukem]

I like the expanded scope and seeing more people trying to figure out what is going on (I love to watch organizations react to disasters - it is something I have always found interesting, the mobilization of resources in the face of disaster) and it is a little more brutal.

This is why I love Volcano over Dante's Peak.

[Dukefrukem]

Not attacking...but has trans been hacked? He says T3 is very very good? Am I in the upsidedown?

Yeh that's weird. The crane chase is great but everything else fucking blows.. including the ending.

[Wryan]

This is a super-cool poster for a bitchin' movie.

http://wrongsideoftheart.com/wp-content/gallery/posters-r/relic_poster_01.jpg

[Dukefrukem]

One of my favorite books.

[Scar]

I love Relic. When I saw it in the theater, I was worried how the creature would look until I saw Stan Winston’s name pop up in the opening credits.

[Morris Schæffer]

One of my favorite books.

I just bought Crooked River from Preston and Child, their latest novel.

[Morris Schæffer]

Die Hard 2 is up there with Godfather 2, Aliens and Empire Strikes Back as one of the best sequels ever. As preposterous as it gets, Die Hard 2 has a huge ace up its sleeve, and it's everything we love about good action movies, namely a tangibility and realness to its actions scenes done with stunt work and miniatures. In fact, I don't even find it preposterous, it really works on a dramatic level also, although I will admit those grenades had a godawfully long fuse. Even that doesn't matter when the ensuing shot is fucking awesome.

I still think T3 is the best Terminator sequel. There's a huge gap between T2 and T3 nonetheless, but the attempts of later films to either replicate what came before or push the franchise into convoluted narratives have become exasperating and desperate. Both Salvation, Genisys and Dark Fate have their merits. The former goes all out in change of setting, the middle one takes some chances, the latter goes for nostalgia and takes some chances but that doesn't mean it works. Beating a dead horse is the right word, T3 didn't yet have that pungent stench for me even if I'll never find a Terminator film entirely worthless.

And T3's ending really is very good. How else could it have ended? It makes perfect sense.

[Skitch]

I love T3s ending, the rest of it is so full of garbage comedy and stupid stuff I think it's the least of all the Terminator films.

[Dukefrukem]

I just bought Crooked River from Preston and Child, their latest novel.

I'm so far behind at this point. When I retire, I should never have nothing to do.

[Dukefrukem]

I love T3s ending, the rest of it is so full of garbage comedy and stupid stuff I think it's the least of all the Terminator films.

https://i.gifer.com/53ju.gif

[Skitch]

I just watched a Caravan of Garbage ep on youtube a week or two about it that made some good points. Why the hell does John think this terminator would remember anything he taught him? Is John a total moron? I didnt mind Nick Stall in the role at all.

[Skitch]

https://i.gifer.com/53ju.gif

And the elton john glasses. And his leather clothes are all tear-away, right?

[Wryan]

It's too bad we never got the Scott-Stewart-Paul-Bettany Cinematic Universe. Legion and Priest are cut from the same "this is really not very good at all...and yet" cloth. I think he had a pretty good command over the stories he was trying to tell.

[Philip J. Fry]

Half-Blood Prince was one of the weaker movies of the Harry Potter series, including Fantastic Beasts.

[Wryan]

I actually really enjoy HBP, mostly for Bruno Delbonnel's luscious cinematography. It's like a dark storybook diorama. The adolescent stuff is....poor. But there's a lot of good shit in there too. It also has some seriously great humor for all the darker moments. And I think the Dumbledore scene at the climax is done super well. They had to get that part just right, and I think they did great. But considering I like 3, 5, and even kinda-sorta 7/8 all more than 6, I'm not breaking a sweat over someone's dislike of it.

[Skitch]

Brazil (the movie) is meh.

[Wryan]

Brazil Time Bandits (the movie) is meh.

Fixed it for ya.

[Skitch]

Fixed it for ya.

No way. Time Bandits > Brazil.

We all know this will deteriorate into a rate Terry Gilliam, so someone start it in some thread more relevant lol

[Mal]

Brazil (the movie) is meh.

Yessss

[Philip J. Fry]

I actually really enjoy HBP, mostly for Bruno Delbonnel's luscious cinematography. It's like a dark storybook diorama. The adolescent stuff is....poor. But there's a lot of good shit in there too. It also has some seriously great humor for all the darker moments. And I think the Dumbledore scene at the climax is done super well. They had to get that part just right, and I think they did great. But considering I like 3, 5, and even kinda-sorta 7/8 all more than 6, I'm not breaking a sweat over someone's dislike of it.That's my main gripe with it. For the most part, Yates' direction is good and all, but the script really messes the movie up, specially for the highlighted part. Not only is for the most part stupid and kinda pointless (Jesus, Harry and Ginny have absolutely zero chemistry and whoever played Lavender Brown gave one of the worst performances I've ever seen), but it leaves the movie as a tonal mess, and what makes it more infuriating is that to keep that, the screenwriter cut Voldemort's past, which not only are among the best parts of the book, but help contextualize the search for the horcruxes and would've worked perfectly to set up the Deathly Hallows' movies.

Also, the Burrow attack is stupid and so pointless that it makes it seem as if the Death Eaters got shitfaced and decided to attack Ron's house for pure shit and giggles.

[baby doll]

I haven't seen Jabberwocky or Time Bandits. The Crimson Permanent Assurance is wonderful. I was bored by Brazil both times I saw it (it looks great but has no engine). The Adventures of Baron Munchausen looks great and is fun up to a point but it's also kind of monotonous. I haven't seen The Fisher King. I saw 12 Monkeys when it came out (long before I saw La Jetée) and liked it at the time but have no desire to see it again. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is monotonous and boring. I remember liking The Brothers Grimm when it came out but also have no desire to see it again. Tideland is almost unspeakably awful: It's the kind of film where you stare at the screen with mouth agape, wondering "What were they thinking?" The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is charming and I would watch it again. And I haven't seen The Zero Theorem or The Man Who Killed Don Quixote and don't feel particularly deprived.

[Skitch]

I was bored by Brazil both times I saw it (it looks great but has no engine).

This is a good way to put it. Everything looks like I should love it, but everyone is irritating and boring.

You may want to check out The Fisher King. From your other reviews I'd wager you may like that one. I haven't seen in some time though.

[DFA1979]

Gilliam viewed:

Radical:

Brazil
12 Monkeys
Monty Python and The Holy Grail

Awesome:

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
The Fisher King

Pretty Cool:

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen
Time Bandits

Alright:

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

I haven't seen a bad film from him so far. I'm aware he directed the Python flick with Terry Jones.

[DFA1979]

I've seen and loved La Jetée and I still think 12 Monkeys is more of a longer elaboration upon that film than a remake. Both compliment each other very well.

On the semi subject of Mr. Gilliam I think I prefer the Python films to the show. I love the show but John Cleese bailing on the last season plus the BBC limiting what they could do makes the movies more satisfying to me.

[Skitch]

VHS is relevant.

[Idioteque Stalker]

VHS is relevant.

I have an urge to attack you for this opinion, but I won't out of respect for the thread.

[Skitch]

Laserdisc is relevant.

[Irish]

Words have meaning.

[DFA1979]

I don't miss VHS at all. Thank God for DVD and Blu-ray. I don't have the money for 4k.

[Skitch]

I don't miss VHS at all. Thank God for DVD and Blu-ray. I don't have the money for 4k.

I barely have money for blu-ray.

[megladon8]

While DVD is undoubtedly superior in pretty much every way, I do have seriously heavy nostalgia for VHS.

My first job was at the local mom and pop video store. It was right when the VHS->DVD transition was occurring.

God, I miss that time and place.

[Skitch]

Oh yeah, in no way did I mean VHS quality is on par with discs. Just that does still have relevance, as some movies never went to DVD.

[StanleyK]

Michael Haneke's so-called "Glaciation Trilogy" is too dull. Interesting to think about and discuss, maybe, but about as entertaining to watch as paint drying.

[Skitch]

Michael Haneke's so-called "Glaciation Trilogy" is too dull. Interesting to think about and discuss, maybe, but about as entertaining to watch as paint drying.

Which are those? Sincerely, I don't know.

[transmogrifier]

Which are those? Sincerely, I don't know.

The Seventh Continent, Benny’s Video and 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance​, apparently

[StanleyK]

Which are those? Sincerely, I don't know.

The Seventh Continent, Benny's Video and 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance. Films exploring the effect of mediatic exposure of violence and negative imagery on people, among other things. Lots and lots of repetition and long shots of characters going about their mundane chores. I'm sure the tedium is intentional but a bit too well-executed in that regard.

[Skitch]

The Seventh Continent, Benny's Video and 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance. Films exploring the effect of mediatic exposure of violence and negative imagery on people, among other things. Lots and lots of repetition and long shots of characters going about their mundane chores. I'm sure the tedium is intentional but a bit too well-executed in that regard.

Sounds like Haneke. I haven't seen those from him though.

[baby doll]

The Seventh Continent, Benny's Video and 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance. Films exploring the effect of mediatic exposure of violence and negative imagery on people, among other things. Lots and lots of repetition and long shots of characters going about their mundane chores. I'm sure the tedium is intentional but a bit too well-executed in that regard.Personally, I don't find any of those films even remotely tedious (to say nothing of Chantal Akerman's even longer and more repetitive Jeanne Dielman, 23, Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles, which is one of Haneke's sources). In fact, Der siebente Kontinent--the most repetitive of the bunch and the one most clearly indebted to Akerman's film--strikes me as in many respects the best of the three films: as in Jeanne Dielman, the family's gradual descent into suicidal despair is revealed through small changes in execution of their daily routines. I suppose one could fault Haneke's conception for not being very original, but in terms of execution, all three films are remarkably tight, economical, and purposefully directed.

[StanleyK]

Sounds like Haneke. I haven't seen those from him though.

Honestly, if you have a high tolerance for that sort of thing I can recommend them. They're genuinely intellectually stimulating.


Personally, I don't find any of those films even remotely tedious (to say nothing of Chantal Akerman's even longer and more repetitive Jeanne Dielman, 23, Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles, which is one of Haneke's sources). In fact, Der siebente Kontinent--the most repetitive of the bunch and the one most clearly indebted to Akerman's film--strikes me as in many respects the best of the three films: as in Jeanne Dielman, the family's gradual descent into suicidal despair is revealed through small changes in execution of their daily routines. I suppose one could fault Haneke's conception for not being very original, but in terms of execution, all three films are remarkably tight, economical, and purposefully directed.

Well I don't know about economical. In 71 Fragments there's a 3-minute long shot of a guy playing ping pong. Why not 30 seconds, or 1 minute? Nothing different happens throughout the entire duration of the shot.
On the other hand, I don't remember being bored while watching The Turin Horse, for example, which is just as slow and repetitive. Who knows what the difference is. I am curious about Jeanne Dielman but its lengthy running time means I've been putting off watching it.

[baby doll]

Well I don't know about economical. In 71 Fragments there's a 3-minute long shot of a guy playing ping pong. Why not 30 seconds, or 1 minute? Nothing different happens throughout the entire duration of the shot.
On the other hand, I don't remember being bored while watching The Turin Horse, for example, which is just as slow and repetitive. Who knows what the difference is. I am curious about Jeanne Dielman but its lengthy running time means I've been putting off watching it.The shot of the guy playing ping-pong with a machine is my favourite scene in the whole movie (which I don't think is one of Haneke's best; in retrospect, it feels like a dress rehearsal for the more ambitious and successful Code inconnu). In keeping with the title, it is a fragment rather than a dramatic scene with a beginning, middle, and end, and thus contributes to an overall sense that life is chaotic and meaningless. That the length of the shot is, in a sense, arbitrary is sort of the point: It could have been shorter, but by the same token, it could just as easily have been two or three times as long (especially since the ping-pong player is, at least in my opinion, endlessly fascinating to watch). And this arbitrariness creates a kind of formal suspense: while watching the film, the spectator doesn't know when the shot is going to end. In other words, just as the ping-pong player's behaviour is being dictated by a machine, the arbitrary length of the shot makes the spectator acutely aware of how the mechanism of the film is structuring their experience of time. So when I say the film is "economical," I'm not talking so much about narrative economy as the very premise of the film makes the concept irrelevant, but rather a certain conceptual and stylistic rigour: the plot is completely dispersed and arbitrary, yet every stylistic move Haneke makes feels deliberate and purposeful.

I think one difference between the repetition of daily chores in Die siebente Kontinent and The Turin Horse is that, in Tarr's film, the emphasis is on the futility of the character's actions in the face of an impending apocalypse, whereas Haneke's film is more psychoanalytic--more stereotypically Austrian--in presenting the breakdown of the characters' routines as a symptom of a broader societal malaise that manifests itself in the breakdown of order and coherence. And by focusing single-mindedly on these symptoms, the film keeps the causes for the characters' despair mysterious.

[DFA1979]

I barely have money for blu-ray.

I have bought used ones a lot. Half-Priced Books is great for that.

[DFA1979]

A Serious Man is the Coen Brothers best film. Also I like Blood Simple and No Country For Old Men equally. I didn't care for Barton Fink as much as everyone else does. Miller's Crossing might be one of my favorites out of all their works.

[Dukefrukem]

I think that's a popular opinion. The unpopular opinion is it's their worst film, which it is.

[Skitch]

I think that's a popular opinion. The unpopular opinion is it's their worst film, which it is.

I haven't seen A Serious Man, but my gut tilts this way. At least as far as what I've heard, in questioning its popularity.

[Mal]

I think that's a popular opinion. The unpopular opinion is it's their worst film, which it is.

... yikes! For me their worst is Burn After Reading. The culmination of things isn't satisfying at all and didn't care for any of the characters. I'll give The Ladykillers credit, it at least has a perspective even when its not so great.

[Skitch]

I seem to be the odd man out when it comes to the Coens. I can appreciate the talent on all their films, but I dislike their most critically popular films, and find their comedy works damn near masterpieces. I'll take an O Brother or Lebowski or Ladykillers ten times over a Fargo or No Country for Old Men.

[Mal]

I enjoy their movies. I enjoy their ideas. But I'd never say anything they've made would enter my top 200 favorites of all time. There's a reliable quality to their films, yet something about their films - even the ones I enjoy a lot - don't have that thing that make me put them to the top of anything.

[Mr. McGibblets]

My unpopular Coen opinion is that Intolerable Cruelty is a really good movie.

[StanleyK]

I seem to be the odd man out when it comes to the Coens. I can appreciate the talent on all their films, but I dislike their most critically popular films, and find their comedy works damn near masterpieces. I'll take an O Brother or Lebowski or Ladykillers ten times over a Fargo or No Country for Old Men.

You're like my mother, she thinks The Ladykillers is their best and Fargo is their worst. I'll tell her she's not the only one in the world anymore.

[transmogrifier]

I seem to be the odd man out when it comes to the Coens. I can appreciate the talent on all their films, but I dislike their most critically popular films, and find their comedy works damn near masterpieces. I'll take an O Brother or Lebowski or Ladykillers ten times over a Fargo or No Country for Old Men.

I am the complete opposite - I think they are very poor when they attempt full-on comedies. Their bottom five (from worst to least worst) are The Ladykillers, Hail Caesar!, Raising Arizona, Intolerable Cruelty, and True Grit (exception that proves the rule). Their two best are Miller's Crossing, Blood Simple, and Fargo. My unpopular opinion is probably that The Hudsucker Proxy is their only truly successful comedy.

[baby doll]

Blood Simple is great. Raising Arizona is more interesting for its cinematography than its story. Miller's Crossing has its moments but mostly it's kind of boring. Barton Fink starts out great but goes off the rails by the end, sacrificing narrative coherence for a battery of expressionistic effects. I watched The Hudsucker Proxy again a few years ago and it's still terrible. I loved Fargo the first time I saw it but repeated viewings add nothing. (Then again, does any Coen brothers film improve on multiple viewings?) The Big Lebowski is great. O Brother, Where Art Thou? bored me the one time I saw it. I remember liking The Man Who Wasn't There when it came out but I'd need to see it again to confirm. Intolerable Cruelty is bad. I've never seen The Ladykillers and don't intend to. No Country for Old Men is pretty gripping when it's not insufferably pretentious. Burning After Reading is wonderful. A Serious Man is great, probably my favourite film of theirs. True Grit is boring (I much prefer the Henry Hathaway original). The first half of Inside Llewin Davis is pretty great, the second half not so much. I suspect they were going for something similar to Full Metal Jacket (relatively tight opening section followed by a longer, more sprawling second part) but weren't able to completely pull it off. Haven't yet gotten around to Hail Caesar! and The Ballad of Buster Scruggs.

[StuSmallz]

I am the complete opposite - I think they are very poor when they attempt full-on comedies. Their bottom five (from worst to least worst) are The Ladykillers, Hail Caesar!, Raising Arizona, Intolerable Cruelty, and True Grit (exception that proves the rule). Their two best are Miller's Crossing, Blood Simple, and Fargo. My unpopular opinion is probably that The Hudsucker Proxy is their only truly successful comedy.From what I've seen from them, I tend to prefer the Coens when they're in a more serious mode (although part of that's probably due to me not being a huge Comedy fan in the first place); I mean, I did think Fargo was very good, but I still think No Country For Old Men (https://letterboxd.com/stusmallz/film/no-country-for-old-men/) is their best effort, since, even in a film as tense and thematically weighty as that one, they obviously found plenty of moments to slip in some comic relief anyway (which is actually part of the reason why that movie's so well-balanced as a whole, come to think of it):


https://youtu.be/4--JU134BxU

[Skitch]

I am the complete opposite - I think they are very poor when they attempt full-on comedies. Their bottom five (from worst to least worst) are The Ladykillers, Hail Caesar!, Raising Arizona, Intolerable Cruelty, and True Grit (exception that proves the rule). Their two best are Miller's Crossing, Blood Simple, and Fargo. My unpopular opinion is probably that The Hudsucker Proxy is their only truly successful comedy.

Dislike most of those...Hudsucker Proxy i remember liking. Millers Crossing i have on laser and needs a rewatch. My wife and I love O Brother. Its so damn funny and quotable.

[Dukefrukem]

In one thread everyone hates Qt and in another it's the Coens. Where am I?

[megladon8]

I didn't understand the opening of A Serious Man.

When I looked into it online, I found lots of people saying how obvious it's meaning is and that you're basically a dolt if you don't get it. But couldn't find anyone actually explaining it.

[baby doll]

I didn't understand the opening of A Serious Man.

When I looked into it online, I found lots of people saying how obvious it's meaning is and that you're basically a dolt if you don't get it. But couldn't find anyone actually explaining it.I always thought its relevance to the main story line was deliberately obscure (similar in this regard to the opening of "Andrei Rublev").

[Spun Lepton]

My ranking for Coens:

A Serious Man
O, Brother Where Art Thou?
The Big Lebowski
No Country for Old Men
Blood Simple
Raising Arizona
Fargo
Miller's Crossing
True Grit
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Intolerable Cruelty
Burn After Reading
The Man Who Wasn't There (due for a rewatch)
Barton Fink
The Hudsucker Proxy
The Ladykillers (terrible movie)

Have yet to see:
Hail, Ceasar
Inside Llewyn Davis

[Idioteque Stalker]

I love A Serious Man but for the life of me I can't remember the beginning.

[Peng]

4.5/5

1. A Serious Man
2. Raising Arizona
3. No Country for Old Man
4. Barton Fink
5. Inside Llewyn Davis
6. True Grit

4/5

7. Fargo
8. The Big Lebowski
9. Miller's Crossing

3.5/5

10. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
11. O Brother, Where Art Thou?
12. Blood Simple
13. Intolerable Cruelty
14. Burn After Reading
15. The Man Who Wasn't There

3/5

16. The Hudsucker Proxy
17. Paris, Je T’Aime, "Tuileries"
18. Hail, Caesar!
19. The Ladykillers


Many need rewatches though, especially some in the 3.5/5 range.

[megladon8]

"You got any balloons in funny shapes?"

"Not unless you think round is funny."

[StuSmallz]

Regarding Tarantino, I'd say my unpopular opinions on him would be that Jackie Brown (https://letterboxd.com/stusmallz/film/jackie-brown/) is his best movie, since it has the most development for its characters (the element that gives his films the most substance, and that, more than anything else, has always been what made his good films, well, good, IMO), and the lack of that development is also what made Dogs, Basterds (https://letterboxd.com/stusmallz/film/inglourious-basterds/), & Django all disappointments for me as well.