Movies you've just watched

[xxx1993]

Rampage was pretty good! Though I still think Pacific Rim: Uprising is the better "giant monster" flick.

[lilmanjs]

Skiptrace


Absolutely awful. The laziest, most slipshod, slapdash, cheap and crude excuse for a Jackie Chan caper I've ever seen. Cut to shreds, it doesn't take a minute to breathe between events and almost trips over itself trying to get to the next scene.

There's zero character development, I didn't even know who the leads were actually supposed to be by the end of the movie thanks to the most superficial and cursory of information.

Basically it's total dogshit. I can't believe this is a Jackie Chan movie by the guy who made Cliffhanger, but it's very much a sign of the times and the horrible death of movie creativity right down at the bottom of the barrel.

Avoid.

You've never seen Kung Fu Yoga then. That is time you'll never get back and you'll actually be angry you even saw any portion of it. Skiptrace looks like an instant classic compared to it!

[Zen]

Phantom Thread (2017) - Paul Thomas Anderson

Second viewing. In two days.
Still can not review it.

There is nothing for it but to watch it once again.

[soprano1]

Gone With the Wind (1939)
This was probably the longest movie I ever seen, almost 4 hours. I don't have anything new to say when it comes with these epic Technicolour movies besides praising the lush sets and wardrobes.
The story was very interesting, but the length of the movie really made it drag quite a bit. It was interesting seeing the social behaviours of this time period in the USA, what people of certain social standing were supposed to act like and such.
The characters were ok. Clark Gable played the magnificent bastard like a boss, and Vivian Leigh did a fine annoying as fuck spoiled crybaby with a terrible luck. Hattie McDaniel was my favourite character, and she deserved the praise and the Oscar. It's unfortunate for the flak she got from the black community, but I really don't think I'm the right person to speak of the facts of the time.

[Stevens]

Ready Player One

Bought the book when it was first released. Found it highly enjoyable, enough so that for a time it would usually find its way into my summer reading (do most of my reading then).

I'm not even sure where to begin here. Taking the book out of the equation the movie is O.K. until the third act. Then its shit.

Comparing it to the book? The title is the same. Most of the characters are the same. Wait what? That guy had a totally different role in the book. She wasn't even in the book.

And more than half the contest is missing.

Stick with the book.

[GaijinPunch]

Fences

Been a while since I've seen Denzel... as one would expect, his performance delivers (as did the whole cast, basically). Within the first 20 minutes I thought, "this feels like a play". And low and behold, in the credits, I see it was adapted from one. Pretty heavy material, and somewhat long winded at 2 hours and 18 minutes. But, was a nice rainy Sunday watch. A couple of hokey parts but I guess that is to be expected.

[soprano1]

Mothra (1961)
Don't know why I never saw this one, it was good. Needed some trimming to remove some boring scenes that went too long, but it was nice to watch. Interesting characters, some more so than most Godzilla movies, too, and a very nice introduction to one of Godzilla's foes/allies.

[Steamflogger Boss]

Freaky Friday

The one with Lohan...

Um yeah...

[Zen]

We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) - Lynne Ramsay

Not a popular film with parents, I'd bet

My second Lynne Ramsay film. Again the use of obnoxious technique to portray a characters subjective state.
Beyond that though, Ramsay is not afraid to experiment, which pays off and it was a decent film.

Tilda Swinton is ,of course, very good and I guess the theme is fairly topical.

Certainly worth a watch.

[Obiwanshinobi]

Inherent Vice - kind of Burn After Reading done right, despite its length & persistent exposition taken supposedly straight from the book. Not much idea yet what it does for me that Burn After Reading didn't... unless we're talking about the music. Some of them tracks (namely Can* & that Sam Cooke song) are stuff I'd likely choose myself if asked to choose any for the movie.
My mom also praised its soundtrack by the way, which can be said about Straight Outta Compton soundtrack as well. Mind you, she's been watching plenty of TV lately, which SOUNDS mostly gash to me. That is, listening to the TV others watch typically drives me mad. So, maybe after TV sound diet, she was ripe for a change of tune?

Back to Inherent Vice, Joanna Newsom's name on staff list came as a HUGE surprise to me, for I didn't recognise her whatsoever (used to listen one of her albums aplenty at some point, but saw only a few photos). I reckon either she's being friends with someone on the production team, or the director just wanted quite the characteristic appaerance of hers in his movie. Some fanservice right there.

*) In TV's defense, I recommend watching live recordings of Can performing in BBC studios. BBC must have employed some of the best folks around for this kind of job.

Another topic I don't feel like elaborating on right now is a peculiar "phony seventies' film" movement within contemporary cinema. Where some of those filmmakers get all their film stock from? To see by no means high-profile films shot with it in this day and age...

[GaijinPunch]

I guess I'm the black cat that likes Burn After Reading. Felt it has gotten a bad rap. But, that's not to take away from Inherent Vice. Watched it on a long ass plane ride recently, and it really helped the time go by. I suppose it would have done better if it was truncated a bit, but I quite enjoyed it... including the huge cast - even Josh Brolin's shitty Japanese pronunciation.

[Weak Boson]

finally watched the new star war film

Thought it was alright. Plenty of things to complain about but I was pretty much along for the ride the whole time. I didn't like how much it felt like an action movie. The old "we only have X hours to save the world" trick didn't seem like the right device to drive a fantasy film about space wizards whose main power is how chilled out they can be. It also made the whole exploration of casino night zone plane feel weird. Still I'm not one to turn down a romp, and it seemed like it was actually going to develop the story of the trilogy in places (with the dynamic between Kylo and Rey and what that entails) so I enjoyed that, even if it was a bit of a let down when things just sort of reverted back to normal towards the end. On reflection, the ending was probably the biggest missed opportunity/disappointment of the film, and if my screen had just burst into flames about the 2 hour mark I would probably be well hyped for episode IX. Oh well.

[Obiwanshinobi]

Inherent Vice sure comes in handy when you need a 2 hrs+ movie. Perhaps not much of its dialogue could be axed out without ruining the lot? Classic detective novel is short, so I doubt Pynchon really tried to make it such a story.

Of this genre films, I recently watched Tell No One (2006, France) based on a Harlan Coben novel, then re-watched it with my mom (again) 'cause it looked like her sort of thing to me.
It's neither Chinatown nor Frantic (more deus ex machina than each), but I'm no avid reader of those inflated books staring at me from paper shops, so who knows, maybe it executes a programme that modern crime fiction consumer demands to be fulfilled? Makes for a piece of "adult family entertainment", at least. Word is, Michael Caine liked it a lot.

[soprano1]

Cleaner (2007)
Very meh. Was expecting something better with Samuel Motherfucking Jackson and Ed Harris. This thriller didn't thrill me at all.

Beverly Hills Cop 2 (1987)
You want more Eddie Murphy smartass-ness like the first movie? There you go! No really, it's more of the same. Thankfully, it's well done enough to entertain a guy.

Tremors (1990)
Entertaining enough, I guess. The whole movie gave me the feeling this was a remake of some 1950's Sci-Fi movie: Cheesy and campy, but worth watching. Is the little blonde girl the hacker girl from Jurassic Park?

[dan76]

Creep

I'm ill with man flu so watched this on Netflix. Pretty good, low budget handheld doc type film. I saw a cool image of a werewolf mask online and found out it was from this low budget little movie.

Not too original but the main guy in it is good, and it's somewhat effective. I guess it's supposed to be scary but I thought it was funny. Very short which is a bonus.

[charlie chong]

deep blue sea 2

not as good as jaws 3. there is a scene where the main shark spys on 2 humans through a porthole though

[Zen]

Tremors (1990)
Entertaining enough, I guess. The whole movie gave me the feeling this was a remake of some 1950's Sci-Fi movie: Cheesy and campy, but worth watching.

28 years since I saw it but yeah, it definitely had that old time sci-fi vibe. Plus, its got Fred Ward

.

Creep

I'm ill with man flu so watched this on Netflix. Pretty good, low budget handheld doc type film. I saw a cool image of a werewolf mask online and found out it was from this low budget little movie.

Not too original but the main guy in it is good, and it's somewhat effective. I guess it's supposed to be scary but I thought it was funny. Very short which is a bonus.

Mark Duplass.
It was entertaining enough. (I'd give Creep 2 (2017) a miss, though. Jesus! )
His Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) wasn't too bad.

[boagman]

"Wonder Woman"

Not a bad movie, but if *this* is the best (and by every accolade it received, it is by far...) that the DC Universe has to offer, I'm not sorry that I've not bothered pretty much across the board, and haven't yet once paid to see any of them in the theater. This movie did not change my mind about that. When your unfettered Top DC Universe Movie only rates as good as an also-ran in the Marvel Universe (this movie *may* be somewhere around the "goodness" level of "Ant-Man"), you've missed something quite concrete along the way.

Oh, and Gal Gadot is pretty, but I'm still on the fence about her being able to act convincingly. It's not written in stone yet, but I'm having a hard time buying in. To this day, I'll say the same thing about Tom Cruise.

[Steamflogger Boss]

Yeah, Tremors is the good kind of stupid. Heh.

[GaijinPunch]

His Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) wasn't too bad.

I quite liked it... I mean, it's the only time I've heard the Konami code properly referenced in anything well.

[BIL]

there is a scene where the main shark spys on 2 humans through a porthole though

[Zen]

Will Penny (1967) - Tom Gries

Charlton Heston favoured Will Penny above all his other films and roles, supposedly.
Always liked Heston. The guy was made for the "screen test". Profile head shot, while squaring the jaw. Unbeatable.
As far as acting goes, well, that's another story altogether.

Its hard to watch him force out emotion here. It belittles his onscreen presence.
Actors like Clint Eastwood knew better. Then again Clint, in the main, got to call the shots.
This film is a misuse of Heston, as far as I am concerned.

It is a very watchable film overall though, with some stunning outdoor shots. The ending, I did not expect.

Also, Donald Pleasence "Preacher "Pa" Quint" and his sons, made me wonder if the 2000AD boys had lifted their "Angel Gang" idea from this film.

[dan76]

Will Penny (1967) - Tom Gries

Charlton Heston favoured Will Penny above all his other films and roles, supposedly.
Always liked Heston. The guy was made for the "screen test". Profile head shot, while squaring the jaw. Unbeatable.
As far as acting goes, well, that's another story altogether.

Its hard to watch him force out emotion here. It belittles his onscreen presence.
Actors like Clint Eastwood knew better. Then again Clint, in the main, got to call the shots.
This film is a misuse of Heston, as far as I am concerned.

It is a very watchable film overall though, with some stunning outdoor shots. The ending, I did not expect.

Also, Donald Pleasence "Preacher "Pa" Quint" and his sons, made me wonder if the 2000AD boys had lifted their "Angel Gang" idea from this film.

Never heard of it, I'll have to check it out.

I also like Heston. He's great in Planet of the Apes, where he has said he's basically playing himself. It may have been the same interview but he also said that though he was a fan of science fiction he had never accepted a role in sci -fi because there was never a good part. I think he was right. The "sci-fi" would always overwhelm the character up until Apes, then he made his trio along with Soylent Green and The Omega Man.

Sorry, got into the Heston, haven't watched anything except the Columbo with Johnny Cash. It's on now, brilliant.

[soprano1]

Earth vs. the Flying Saucers (1956)
It was OK, I guess, nothing that caught my eye in particular. Harryhausen's effects were fine.
I saw the coloured version, by the way.

Austin Powers International Man of Mystery (1997)
I don't think Mike Myers is very funny, but this was a very well written comedy, had quite a few laughs.

[soprano1]

I'm re-watching Shrek this week, last time I saw it was like 2003. Are the sequels worth watching? There are like four more movies and two holiday specials. I kinda saw segments of the sequels during Christmas the last few years, but didn't pay much attention to them. I would appreciate the input, thanks.

[Zen]

Les Diaboliques (1955) - Henri-Georges Clouzot

Not a bad little film. I felt a little underwhelmed, which was more down to my expectations than anything wrong with the film itself.
I wouldn't put it on the same level as The Innocents (1961) - Jack Clayton, for example.
Nor would it be as spooky as The Haunting (1963) - Robert Wise.
I also found the twist a bit of a double blessing. On the plus side, as the twist began, I found myself fascinated. To the extent, unfortunately, that I had it figured out pretty quickly.

Overall, definitely worth a watch.

[blackoak]

Fences

Been a while since I've seen Denzel... as one would expect, his performance delivers (as did the whole cast, basically). Within the first 20 minutes I thought, "this feels like a play". And low and behold, in the credits, I see it was adapted from one. Pretty heavy material, and somewhat long winded at 2 hours and 18 minutes. But, was a nice rainy Sunday watch. A couple of hokey parts but I guess that is to be expected.

I just saw this too, wife's choice. I've always liked characters that rant and grandstand, and there's something forthright and transparent about the contrivance of stageplays that allows me to enjoy that without feeling the pretension I would otherwise get from more naturalistic/realistic films. Overall an interesting portrait of a person mired in the past: segregation and racism are the circumstantial culprits but I can't help but feel there's a more general point about digestion per se.

Really liked the ending too, but I'm a sucker for that cheese (recently teared up at The Family Man, lol).

[emphatic]

I'm re-watching Shrek this week, last time I saw it was like 2003. Are the sequels worth watching?

Yes, at least the feature films.

[soprano1]

I'm re-watching Shrek this week, last time I saw it was like 2003. Are the sequels worth watching?

Yes, at least the feature films.

I'll watch 2, then. If I like it, I'll try 3 and so forth. Thanks.

[soprano1]

The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958)
This was airing on tv, lucky! A wonderful adventure movie with fantastic stop motion Harryhausen effects, and beautiful Technicolour usage enhanced by a colourful and beautiful wardrobe. Unfortunately, the acting is very dry, and that would be, to me, the biggest fault with this movie. Nevertheless, highly recommended watching.