28 Film Discussion Threads Later

[Wryan]

Been using our On Demand package to watch things either I sorta wanted to see but didn't get to, or things I didn't want to pay for at the time.

Tangled is fantastic. Great music and songs. Beautiful animation. I liked that Gothel wasn't just an evil spell-slinging witch. Good voicework, funny, again just plain beautiful animation. I thought this was a Dreamworks gig at first and was going to say they did well, but no it's Disney.

Speaking of Dreamworks, though, saw How to Train Your Dragon and enjoyed it just as much. But then I like anything related to Vikings and dragons, so how could it fail? Not a great biological design on the big bad dragon (doesn't make much sense--though actually none of them really do, so I guess it's just atypical design). Great animation and voicework again. Found it really funny.

Battle LA was wretched. Throw every hoorah military cliche in the blender, toss in a lot of hectic camera work and a could-not-care-less story, and you've got a real gem. Not sure why we needed this movie to exist.

RS's Robin Hood was pretty thoroughly okay. Just really amazingly, professionally okay. Good acting and of course pretty to look at most of the time. Didn't need this running time. Would rather have watched a whole movie about William Hurt's character.

Red Riding Hood...Oh Julie Christie. Whatcha doin here? At least Gary Oldman is having some fun, I think. I don't see how anyone could take this the slightest bit seriously, especially once the wolf starts communicating thru telepathy. My god...awful but it could have been just thunderingly terrible. Had at least some very minor things going for it.

Fast-forwarded thru Green Lantern to just watch the action/effects stuff. Sorry, but couldn't be bothered to watch the rest. But even they were terrible.

[EyesWideOpen]

Bong Joon-Ho's Mother rocked my socks off and then back on again. Should've figured, given how much I loved Memories of Murder and The Host, but still amazed by how he blends comedy and suspense and tragedy. Can't wait to scope out Barking Dogs Never Bite.

Just a warning Barking Dogs while not bad is a huge step down from those other three.

[Derek]

Oh, Hitch. :lol:

[youtube]zl6SMOSXa7A[/youtube]

[Ezee E]

Watching Passion of the Christ and it almost seems like a Zack Snyder film. So much slo-mo. The only thing missing is Mary Magdalane with a nothing-there outfit. It's so close too, with the casting of Monica Bellucci in the role.

[Spinal]

Watching Passion of the Christ and it almost seems like a Zack Snyder film. So much slo-mo. The only thing missing is Mary Magdalane with a nothing-there outfit. It's so close too, with the casting of Monica Bellucci in the role.

First time watching it? It really is comically bad.

[Morris Schæffer]

I gave Inglourious Basterds four stars back in 2009. The 1978 original is different, a more typical men-on-a-mission flick, but still pretty forgettable with bland camerawork, a cheesy score and some pretty obvious miniature work for the big action scenes. Still, it has those (very minor) elusive charms that seem to be present in a lot of cult movies. And that really starts with the cast which includes Bo Svenson, Fred Williamson, but also, surprisingly, the great Ian Bannen (who's not so great here).

[B-side]

The Woman in the Rumor is definitely underrated Mizoguchi.

[Boner M]

The Woman in the Rumor is definitely underrated Mizoguchi.

I got the Artifical Eye set (Osaka Elegy, Sisters of the Gion, Story of the Late Chrysanthemums, Utamaro & His Five Women) a few days ago and can't wait to watch 'em.

Saw Woman in the Rumor a few years ago but can't remember a damn thing about it, sadly.

[B-side]

I got the Artifical Eye set (Osaka Elegy, Sisters of the Gion, Story of the Late Chrysanthemums, Utamaro & His Five Women) a few days ago and can't wait to watch 'em.

Blu, I hope?

[Boner M]

Blu, I hope?

I pre-ordered the DVD before the blu was announced, but according the review in Sight & Sound the DVD looks better.

[Ezee E]

First time watching it? It really is comically bad.

I watched it when it first came out, originally had good praise for it.

It's comparable to a Saw movie. The scene at the pillar is ridiculously long. South Park's reenactment doesn't exaggerate. I stopped watching after because it was time for bed.

Some creepy imagery that Gibson gets whenever demons are involved, but he keeps himself confined, and ultimately has nothing to say about the story.

[B-side]

I pre-ordered the DVD before the blu was announced, but according the review in Sight & Sound the DVD looks better.

Really? Huh.

[Qrazy]

I watched it when it first came out, originally had good praise for it.

It's comparable to a Saw movie. The scene at the pillar is ridiculously long. South Park's reenactment doesn't exaggerate. I stopped watching after because it was time for bed.

Some creepy imagery that Gibson gets whenever demons are involved, but he keeps himself confined, and ultimately has nothing to say about the story.

I liked the flashbacks with the mom and there are some legitimately quality shots in the film (one of the opening shots in the garden and as Jesus dies and the camera pans back from the cross). But ultimately yeah... also I just found this scary place on youtube.

[youtube]sZbTvuyj5Os[/youtube]

[MadMan]

I gave Inglourious Basterds four stars back in 2009. The 1978 original is different, a more typical men-on-a-mission flick, but still pretty forgettable with bland camerawork, a cheesy score and some pretty obvious miniature work for the big action scenes. Still, it has those (very minor) elusive charms that seem to be present in a lot of cult movies. And that really starts with the cast which includes Bo Svenson, Fred Williamson, but also, surprisingly, the great Ian Bannen (who's not so great here).

I think its great fun, and a really good movie as well. Considering the glut of WW II movies that came out in the 60s and 70s, its one of the more interesting ones.

Last night, I watched Natural Born Killers. I wrote a review for it in my head on the drive home, and then I forgot it of course. For now I'll just say "Wow. That movie really lived up to the hype." 1994 was truly a great year for movies.

[Rowland]

Wasn't 13 Tzameti something of a minor cult hit several years back? I never saw it, but I understand that the American remake, written and directed by the same dude behind the original, is very much the same film, only with added flashbacks for the sake of further character development and social commentary, color cinematography, and a cast comprised of the likes of Mickey Rourke, Jason Statham, Ray Winstone, and Michael Shannon. Whatever the case, I watched it because of the original's reputation and positive marks from critics Keith Uhlich and Simon Abrams, and it was fucking terrible. It's pretty much direct-to-video quality across-the-board, with its ugly, artless cinematography, dopey score, pedestrian cutting, and a script that almost entirely fails to capitalize on what should be a compelling scenario. If you ever happen across it on cable, it may be worth keeping on in the background for the Russian roulette scenes, which aren't all that well-executed but remain inherently suspenseful, and Michael Shannon, whose awesome performance is the only one to really transcend all the substandard shit surrounding it.

[B-side]

Bob Fosse is among my needlessly neglected crowd of popular directors I just never quite managed to prioritize, despite being interested in their work. And as I often suspect will be the case, I'm now frustrated that it took me this long. All That Jazz is a sensationally-edited confluence of autobiographical elements galvanizing into a hallucinatory work of breathless momentum and mortality. Working as a de-romanticization of the world of musicals, Fosse implies, and explicitly wallows in, sexuality at every turn. From minute one, the pace is set; rhythmic editing that would've made Eisenstein proud and slick juxtapositions of purgatorial confessions and a life lived through a drug-induced haze of womanizing show biz wildness. Though the latter half holds the majority of the aforementioned hallucinatory aesthetics, it's the first half that holds the subversive wit and unchained biopic reworking that most impressed me. Above all, All That Jazz is a uniquely mounted work in the musical drama genre that had me rarely less than entranced.

[MadMan]

I want to see more Fosse. The guy had style. Welcome to the All That Jazz club, Brightside. Membership is rather large.

[Wryan]

I also forgot to mention that I watched the latest POTC movie. Ian McShane was about as good as I expected him to be, but he seemed to be the only one having a jolly good time. This was at least a decent attempt to streamline the movies and pare them back down to something a little simpler rather than the giant bizarre spectacles the first trilogy became. Really, it feels a lot more akin to the first Pirates movie. But...it doesn't work anywhere near as well as that movie. Cruz is pretty useless, and Depp's Sparrow is just its own archetype now and thus not very memorable or watchable (nothing's new with him anymore); hell, Rush has a more complex story arch, which is saying little. Meh. I don't think they can go anywhere else here and make it fun again. Probably time to pull down the sails.

[Ezee E]

Pretty sure All That Jazz would be Match Cut's favorite musical.

Masterpiece to me as well.

[Derek]

Pretty sure All That Jazz would be Match Cut's favorite musical.

Masterpiece to me as well.

Yeah, I imagine only Singin' in the Rain or Wizard of Oz would come close.

[Raiders]

If only more people had seen Love Me Tonight, I imagine it too would stand a chance.

[MadMan]

My favorite musical used to be The Wizard of Oz. Now its The Blues Brothers. And yes I think you can consider that movie to be a musical.

[Qrazy]

All that Jazz is not that good nor is Fosse. I can think of about 25 musicals that are better.

[Winston*]

All that Jazz is not that good nor is Fosse. I can think of about 25 musicals that are better.

Name them all.

[Derek]

If only more people had seen Love Me Tonight, I imagine it too would stand a chance.

True dat.

All that Jazz is not that good nor is Fosse. I can think of about 25 musicals that are better.

You're not that good. I can think of 25 posters that are better than you!

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Show Spoiler

Actually I can't...luv ya, you grumpy bastard.

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