Movies you've just watched

[xxx1993]

Just saw Jurassic World: Dominion. Another great sendoff for not just Owen Grady and Claire Dearing, but for the OG cast Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler, and Ian Malcolm also!

[SuperDeadite]

Wheel of Time TV (Amazon Prime)...
Living in my little Japanese bubble, I had no idea this even existed. I started reading the books in elementary school, and have since reread them all multiple times over the years.

I was expecting stuff to be condensed and abridged, but even in the first episode their were bizzare additions to the plot that do not exist in the books.

Needless to say, I found it so bizzare that I kept watching to see where the fuck they were going with this adaptation. I wasn't enjoying or hating, just couldn't look away from all the wtf moments.

Now I finished season 1. And all I can say is that the last 3 episodes totally broke me. They were so awful I can't even comprehend that they exist.

This is not another case of "The books are better." This show is simply one of the worst, most terrible pieces of gutter trash ever created. Having a computer AI generate a script based on the books would have been better than this pile of shit.

I seriously am in shock, just fucking terrible in every single way. FUCK FUCK FUCK

[vol.2]

Saw the new Jurassic World. It was good fun. The main bad guy is funny as a Jeff Bezos wannabe, but he isn't really handled very well and falls kinda flat. There isn't really much successful dramatic tension in the movie from the story because there isn't really strong bad guys and things just seem to fall into place a little too easily the whole way through. The dinosaurs offer the only real challenge, and by now the all star cast of lizard wranglers knows how to handle themselves pretty well.

Wishing it was a more substantial win, but happy enough that it wasn't a flop. 6.7 out of 10.

[vol.2]

Wheel of Time TV (Amazon Prime)...

There's a TV thread: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=42042&start=1860

[xxx1993]

Saw the new Jurassic World. It was good fun. The main bad guy is funny as a Jeff Bezos wannabe, but he isn't really handled very well and falls kinda flat. There isn't really much successful dramatic tension in the movie from the story because there isn't really strong bad guys and things just seem to fall into place a little too easily the whole way through. The dinosaurs offer the only real challenge, and by now the all star cast of lizard wranglers knows how to handle themselves pretty well.

Wishing it was a more substantial win, but happy enough that it wasn't a flop. 6.7 out of 10.

My only complaint is that the final battle with the Giganotosaurus, while still pretty awesome, felt like it could have been a bit longer. Then again, Rexy's fight with the Indominus at the end of Jurassic World didn't last that long either, so...

[vol.2]

My only complaint is that the final battle with the Giganotosaurus, while still pretty awesome, felt like it could have been a bit longer. Then again, Rexy's fight with the Indominus at the end of Jurassic World didn't last that long either, so...

It wasn't violent enough. The main bad guy of the movie (who only gets about seven minutes of screen time) dies off screen in a really lame way. The mini boss gets more screen time, but she's also not that impressive. Ooooo, you can shine a laser pointer at people, you're so bad-ass.

The whole movie focuses on the cast from the old movies, and while it's fun and satisfying for the most part, they are not ultimately given an obstacle to overcome worthy of their collective strength. That and the last quarter of the movie felt phoned-in.

[xxx1993]

At least it felt like a good sendoff for both the OG and NG cast.

[GaijinPunch]

Top Gun: Maverick

Not a lot to say that hasn't been said before. A friend on FB summed it up quite well with, "It's a lot better than it needed to be." I would have been in with a lot less substance. Tom Cruise may be a bit wacky in all the wrong ways but I tip my hat to him for his dedication to the theater experience and putting the dog fighting front and center. Not sure how hard he had to fight to keep it off of streaming during the pandemic but it was most definitely the right move. It had about the amount of cheese I expected, which was acceptable.

[Mischief Maker]

I saw the Uzumaki live action adaptation.

It... was not good.

[neorichieb1971]

Jurassic world : Dominion.

Regurgitated for the most part. Some scenes are laughable if your an adult. People swimming in ice cold waters with just clothes on, getting out and running from dinosaurs as if they just left the dry cleaners. Trucks falling off cliffs, and believe it or not, landing right next to some allies. Had they not drove off the hill they would have went right past them.

Too many James Bond chases, 1 after the other. The amount of near misses gives 2012 a run for its money.

Its predictable and popcorn movie stuff. If thats your thing go for it.

4/10 (as an adult). I'm sure newcomers to JP around the ages of 10-12 might like it a lot.

[xxx1993]

Spiderhead, a pretty decent prison thriller on Netflix.

[GaijinPunch]

The Thing

For the umpteeth time. 40th Anniversary Fathom Event thing. I took a friend who was born way after this and she dug it so - mission accomplished. You know how everyone says you can always pick up stuff on rewatches? I've seen this 20 times at least and I just realized that Copper wears a nose ring. Like... okay.

[BIL]

Best "rewatch with newbies" horror movie ever.

[Mischief Maker]

Maybe it was an idea lost in production that the Thing can't replicate metal piercings.

[GaijinPunch]

Maybe it was an idea lost in production that the Thing can't replicate metal piercings.

Well he was never assimilated. It's really hard to catch though... and it's not like they were en vogue or anyhthing....especially among middle aged doctors.

[xxx1993]

The Man from Toronto on Netflix. It’s no Hitman’s Bodyguard, but it was fine. I just wish it was rated R, it starred Jason Statham instead of Woody Harrelson, and that the Venezuelan colonel guy was the main antagonist instead of the Handler woman. Guess Patrick Hughes really can’t do PG-13 rated movies well. Only R-rated ones.

[Vexorg]

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness: **1/2

Another of the Marvel movies that comes with some "required reading"(in this case WandaVision) if you want to have some idea what's going on here. Lots of multiverse hopping nonsense resolved by some stuff that should all be perfectly safe and which surely won't have any dire future consequences at all. A couple of fanservice cameos thrown in too, just for good measure.

[vol.2]

Clearcut 1991 7.8/10 stars

Starring Graham Greene as the pissed-off, uber violent native tribesman who kidnaps and terrorizes the owner of local saw mill when his tribe loses a legal battle which allows the mill to clearcut much of the tribal land.

Along with the saw mill owner, Greene also brings along the partially radicalized lawyer who loses the court case, opening up the doors for the saw mill to destroy his home.

Greene drags the two men all over the Canadian wilderness, torturing and mutilating the saw mill owner until the lawyer finally becomes angry enough to fight back against him, renouncing his "woke" status and revealing himself to be of the outside world.

I loved this movie. The one thing that was somewhat questionable was the portrayal of the saw mill owner as a a caricature industrialist. I understand the idea behind it, and that it was somewhat normal to do back in the 70s, 80s, 90s, but it didn't work well and just gave his part of the movie and his dialogue a comedic tone that frankly takes away from the overall serious nature of film as a whole.

Graham Greene is excellent in the film, and you might remember the actor from the show Northern Exposure and the second Die Hard movie, although he's been in a *lot* of TV shows and movies in various roles.

[drauch]

I'd say if anything you'd notice him from Dances with Wolves. It's a shame he didn't/doesn't have more prominent roles, because he rules. I think the film gets wrapped up a bit too much towards the end and kinda loses track, but overall I like this one a lot.

[vol.2]

I think the film gets wrapped up a bit too much towards the end and kinda loses track

The ending has a feeling of a TV show that got cancelled early and has to be wrapped up quickly. One might suspect that they had planned to flesh it out more, but I haven't read the book it was based on, so I can't comment as to how much is actually glazed over or removed in the final script.

[drauch]

Thanks for the reminder about the book. Looked it up after watching the movie and meant to pick it up but forgot about it. Getting it now

[xxx1993]

I... have no idea on what to think of Blasted on Netflix.

[xxx1993]

Also on Netflix. Centauro was pretty decent.

[xxx1993]

Not too big on Memory, starring Liam Neeson either.

[vol.2]

The Northman 8/10

Loved it. Everybody turned in a stellar performance. They pretty much nailed the villain; I both hated and respected the uncle up until the very end. They setup the fantasy elements with great finesse, leaving just enough room to see things objectively.

The one and only misstep I felt in the whole film was the double-take on Amleth's acquisition of Draugr. The fantasy take was so incredible that it felt like a letdown to be subjected to objectivity on the balance. It was jarring and not worth it. They should have cut that or just leaned into it.

[DMC]

Kurosawa's Ran (1985)

My local cinema showed it yesterday, and it was a great beauty to behold on the big screen. The colorful opening meeting on the hill, the burning of the castle, the whole final third of the movie--awe-inspiring elegance.

Maybe the lead Nakadai took it one step too far for my taste in portraying the mad, aging king, but I still felt strongly for him and his encounters with his sons. All the supporting casts were amazing. In particular, Hisashi Igawa as the "consiglieri" for one of the brothers showed an interesting moral ambiguity. Mieko Harada was pretty compelling as Lady Kaede as well. Maybe the editors could have cut away 15 min of the first half to increase the pace a bit, but it all contributes to the build up, I guess.

I also watched Ozu's Late Autumn (1960) recently. An unobtrusive, quite accessible comedy drama. I smiled a lot at the three older gentleman who got together to try to find a husband for the beautiful Ayako Miwa. The fact that this activity united them and made them hang out more had something. I don't know how common it is in Japan to arrange marriages like this against the will of the younger ones, but judging by Ozu's films, it seems extremely common. I doubt it ever happens in Sweden.

[BIL]

Such a grand delight, is Ran. One of those evergreen favourites I try to see every few years or so with friends and family, particularly those who've not seen it before. Coming from a large family circle of teachers, it's always interesting seeing their impressions of a Japanese Lear, particularly one this gorgeously-produced.

The line I always come away remembering is stoical man-at-arms Tango's bitter admonition, at the climax.

"Do not blame the Gods! The Gods are weeping at our foolishness!" ;-;7

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

X - 8/10
Great slasher with modern themes (relationship between sexes, how does media/ pornography influence it, the role that desire plays for self-image etc.). Not sure if Mia Goth was convincing as the old hag, in some scenes her movements seemed off.

The Sacrament - 7.5/10
Another Ti West film. The dude is great at creating an unsettling, tense atmosphere. Was nervous the whole first half before everything goes to shit. Looking forward to watching the other films Ti West has done.

[xxx1993]

The Princess on Hulu. Pretty fun.

[vol.2]

Elvis 6/10

For the first 2/3rds, I thought that this was going to be the best bio film I had ever seen. Baz Luhrmann's grandiose style fits perfectly with the narrative of Elvis finding his way into the world of black spiritual music as a child, and remains punchy and entertaining right up until the moment that Elvis hits the International casino and things get dicey and serious. Baz then spends a half hour on Elvis' downfall and there isn't enough of a story there to keep things interesting. It's obviously very sad what happened to him, but this whole portion of his story is not done well at all. At the very end, there is a decent montage of amazing real live footage that captured my attention, but it wasn't enough to take the bad taste out of my mouth.

It's a bit frustrating to walk away from a movie that comes so close to hitting on all fours, especially when most of it is really, really good.

Still worth watching, but whatever wait until it's streaming and you can skip the incredibly boring part at the end.