Movies you've just watched

[Skykid]

Skyfall.

You know, I was hugely skeptical about Casio Royale, but that ended up being one of the only Bond movies I unabashedly like. Never felt like watching Quantum of Solace, but figured I'd give Skyfall a try. And I think it's terrible. Why are these filmmakers aping things from the kind of movies they were so proud to get away from several years ago?

I agree with you. Skyfall is stupidly overrated for the very little it offers.

[CMoon]

Went to the theatre to finally see Django Unchained.

What can I say, Tarantino again making the only movies that matter. What a helluva lot of fun this was: a catharsis of violence that kicked the wind out of me. True cinematic joy.

Honestly thought the film had too many ideas for its own good. Felt like I watched three different movies by the end and then his horse danced. I think I definitely would have liked it more if it stuck to the actual spaghetti western motif instead of becoming mandingo, but I guess Tarantino had a lot of ground to cover. Definitely a good movie, but I thought by reaching too far it fell short of any single goal.

That said, I just saw Raging Phoenix streaming on netflix. There's a lot of modern martial arts film and I'm not looking up the director or suddenly becoming informed on the genre (I really don't watch enough of these films), but from my limited knowledge this film was all kinds of awesome! The plot knew how to serve its purpose then disappear as soon as it was no longer needed. The movie seemed to really enjoy having fun and never seemed to bother with anything that didn't lead to epic fights! Hell, there were really only 3 bad guys and popcorn enemies. Would have made for a great video game...or a musical!

Anyway, I'm realizing I've been neglecting my martial arts films, so pile them on. The more absurd the better.

[trap15]

Somehow I hadn't seen The Boondock Saints until the other day. Wow, I had really been missing out

[boagman]

Somehow I hadn't seen The Boondock Saints until the other day. Wow, I had really been missing out

It took me forever to see that, too. I was happy with it.

Word of warning: the sequel is nowhere *near* what the original was/is. If you can divorce yourself from what the original is, then I suppose the sequel could be a serviceable action movie, but it's not even a shadow of its predecessor.

[Acid_Rain]

I recently watched A place beyond the pines. What a great movie. Good plot and awesome camera work.

[Skykid]

Went to the theatre to finally see Django Unchained.

What can I say, Tarantino again making the only movies that matter. What a helluva lot of fun this was: a catharsis of violence that kicked the wind out of me. True cinematic joy.

Honestly thought the film had too many ideas for its own good. Felt like I watched three different movies by the end and then his horse danced. I think I definitely would have liked it more if it stuck to the actual spaghetti western motif instead of becoming mandingo, but I guess Tarantino had a lot of ground to cover. Definitely a good movie, but I thought by reaching too far it fell short of any single goal.

I wouldn't go that far, but I agree it was incredibly eclectic. I didn't feel that undermined it in any way, I really enjoyed it. I felt it delivered: great characters, dialogue, tension, and revenge fuelled violence. SPOILER AHEAD: If you can accept that it's essentially two films, with the reality switch occurring when Waltz goes to shake Leo's hand, thus becoming a fantasy rather than, up to that point, a semi-realistic escapade, it's probably more satisfying.

Somehow I hadn't seen The Boondock Saints until the other day. Wow, I had really been missing out

I can't get the love for this at all, I hated it. Really amateurish Tarantino wannabee garbage with expletives where the script was meant to be.

[charlie chong]

Anyway, I'm realizing I've been neglecting my martial arts films, so pile them on. The more absurd the better.

the most absurd i have seen is taoism drunkard http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085628/

chinese super ninja aka 5 element ninja by shaw bros is excellent as well http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084921/

the robert tai related films are also mad with lots of cool stunts and wire work(he was an ex shaw bros choreographer who worked on the films featuring the venoms which are widely regarded as some of the best shaw bros films)
killers invincible (like a cross between a 80s action film with ninja)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0188764/
ninja the final duel (more traditional ninja vs shaolin business)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091636/
anything by the directors of the 2 above are awesome

[chum]

Awesome stuff I watched lately

Hunger (dir. Henning Carlsen) 1966
Feelings of Mountains and Waters (dir. Te Wei) 1988
Juvenile Court (dir. Frederick Wiseman) 1973

[Moniker]

Dredd (Netflix)

Wish I could've seen Karl Urban's face during the film, but otherwise an excellent work of ultraviolence. Ma (Cersei in GoT) remains amazing in defying female norms.

Also: It's a Disaster (Netflix)

Woody Allen-esque concept comedy. David Cross & Julia Stiles are ace. America Ferrera is also great. As a satire, it could've gone further than it did, but immensely watchable, in any case.

Finally, Cop Land (Netflix)

Stallone gives his best career performance, and Liotta & Keitel are excellent as well. The ending is a bit of letdown, but worth seeing, for sure.

Awesome stuff I watched lately

Hunger (dir. Henning Carlsen) 1966

Is this based off the novel by Knut Hamsun? One of my favorite books. Need to check it out.

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Heard through the grapevine that a possible Dredd 2 sequel may be in the works. Sounds awesome if Karl Urban repises his role as Judge Dredd again.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[system11]

Dredd (Netflix)

Wish I could've seen Karl Urban's face during the film, but otherwise an excellent work of ultraviolence. Ma (Cersei in GoT) remains amazing in defying female norms.

Trouble is Dredd should never remove his helmet. Urban did a fantastic job essentially acting the character with voice, body language and his mouth. I really hope another one gets made - maybe there's some hope, it's been in the blu-ray charts since release.

[jonny5]

Dredd (Netflix)

Wish I could've seen Karl Urban's face during the film, but otherwise an excellent work of ultraviolence. Ma (Cersei in GoT) remains amazing in defying female norms.

Trouble is Dredd should never remove his helmet. Urban did a fantastic job essentially acting the character with voice, body language and his mouth. I really hope another one gets made - maybe there's some hope, it's been in the blu-ray charts since release.

Agreed! I was fortunate enough to catch this in IMAX 3D and I can honestly say it was the best theater experience I have had in years! Funny thing was I couldn't convince any of my friends to come with me to see it so me and my good buddy Jack Daniels enjoyed it all by ourselves.

Really hope they do a follow up film.

[emphatic]

+1 for a follow up! One of the best movies of last year, and the 3D in cinema was mindblowing.

[xris]

Springbreakers - I loved every uncomfortable second of it. This was such an odd movie, the pacing is off whack, it's needlessly colourful (which I loved), and crazed. Its difficult to explain why this movie is great. I thought it was like Belly mixed with Gummo and hot chicks. Which is kinda funny because there is a clip of Gummo in Belly. Harmony Korine is an amazing director that needs to make more movies.
Evil Dead - The new one, fucking gruesome. Seriously, this made me squirm at parts, that's very rare. It's a departure from the original, but became its own beast anyway. The girls in this have stand out performances when possessed. Loved the nail gun scene.
Jobs - Mediocre at best, made him look like a sack of tools.
Kick Ass 2 - the sequel you expect. I felt like a total pedo when she's dressed as Hit Girl though..
Step Up 2 - like 15 times in the last couple weeks.. It's like a martial arts movie for pacifists! Really though, martial arts movies are just as choreographed, but faked. The dancing feels more legitimate in comparison.
Hellraiser 1-8 - yeah, they get really, really bad as they go on.. The sixth one, Hellseeker was actually rather good though. Ended up making a neat paper fortune teller that was Hellraiser themed while watching them though. There's pics on Pyramid Gallery's Facebook page, which is really cool 'cause they make and sell high end configurations. Check out there site, it's cool.
No One Lives - an okay exploitive movie by Ryukei Kitamura (Versus and ...Midnight Meat Train (meh)). This was better than I expected, and had a neat villain. But damn, the American movies from Asian directors always come up short for some reason.
The Wrestler - hadn't seen this before. Brilliant movie, fucking sad though. I know an amateur wrestler for years, his life is so much like this. But, he'such younger and no where near as famous. It's very sad actually, don't become a wrestler.
Epic - really cut and paste from a lack luster production house, but I really liked it. You know how, what, when, and who, but the bad guys looked fantastic, and it was pretty good.
Flashpoint - the new DC animated film. It was fucking awesome! This movie knocked it out of the park. I'm not a fan of DC, but this was an alternate world setting with familiar characters that seemed to be way more compelling than their typical architypes. Loved the take on Superman in this, and Batman, and Wonder Woman..
Superman - it was pretty poorly written, but neat smashy smashy. There's a reason people have been picking this one apart.
This is the End - funny as hell the first time, saw it again and thought it wasn't so good. Danny McBride was great in it.

Edit - sorry, mad typos! Phone posting sucks like that.

Edit 2 - forgot a couple!

The Heat - this was a great throwback to buddy cop movies. Fun to watch. Melissa McCarthy is hilarious!
World War Z - well, it's not good, the last act was terrible. But, it's breath taking how fast shit hits the fan in this. Zombie tidal waves...
R.I.P.D. - it was better than Men in Black 3, that's something right?
Despicable Me 2 - a very solid sequel that's very cute.
Monsters University - Damn good, no surprise there. Didn't like the voice acting in this though, the age of the actors kind of slid through, didn't seem right being how they were supposed to be young and in college.
Pacific Rim - glorious. Not perfect at all, but so very pretty.
Now You See Me - I really liked this actually. Great cast. The ending didn't feel believable though.
The Purge - meh, kinda bad. Only watched it for Lena Headey.
Oblivion - not bad. Good on Cruise for helping out scifi.
Elysium - not too sure yet actually, need to see it again. The casting was way off in this however.

Damn, I watch alot of movies...

[CIT]

Frances Ha – lighthearted and enjoyable enough hipster comedy, with nice French New Wave references.

The Barbarians – highly entertaining class-A italo-schlock that is oddly self-referential and ironic in parts. Particular points of interest are the moose calls the twins blurt out whenever they see something they like, their kissing scene, and the helmet duel. Soundtrack has some really nice italo-synth tracks as well.

[Raytrace]

Robot Jox

loved the models, script was admittedly cheesy but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

[Raytrace]

Finally, Cop Land (Netflix)

Stallone gives his best career performance, and Liotta & Keitel are excellent as well. The ending is a bit of letdown, but worth seeing, for sure.

great film - I always found it so depressing though because I suppose you could see the cop Stallone plays as a version of himself (i.e. wanting to act with DeNiro etc.).

[drauch]

Frances Ha – lighthearted and enjoyable enough hipster comedy, with nice French New Wave references.

The Barbarians – highly entertaining class-A italo-schlock that is oddly self-referential and ironic in parts. Particular points of interest are the moose calls the twins blurt out whenever they see something they like, their kissing scene, and the helmet duel. Soundtrack has some really nice italo-synth tracks as well.

Ha... I watched The Barbarians recently as well. I've been wanting to see it for years. I'm a big Ruggero Deodato fan, and I love Sword & Sorcery, but I found it a bit too silly for my taste. The beginning chase is excellent; very similar to The Road Warrior, in a sense. Just seems like a waste of all those muscles and that giant dragon that dies within a minute of being on screen. Take that set and make it a serious movie, then you'd have a gem worth discovering!

[brentsg]

I just watched Hansel and Gretel - Witch Hunters.

The 6.1 on IMDB is very generous. Don't watch this with a female, they'll walk out in 10 minutes tops.

[lilmanjs]

Thermae Romae.
Based on a manga I've never read, so I didn't really know what to expect going into this, but I ended up loving it. Abe really knows how to do the facial expressions most comedy actors lack. Great way to show the time traveling, and I liked at times the sudden low budgetness of showing the time traveling. Nice touch with the singer during that portion as well. Great comedy and when it got serious it was played well also. Worth a watch and if the Manga has been translated into english I'd love to read it. Also seems its getting a sequel.

[emphatic]

The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones - 2/5

Laughably stupid, nice FX.

[lilmanjs]

The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones - 2/5

Laughably stupid, nice FX.

The trailer didn't tell you that? Thanks for giving a warning as I was kinda thinking of seeing this.

[Octopod]

The Last Unicorn. My daughter asked to watch it after me forcing her to watch it previously.

[emphatic]

The trailer didn't tell you that? Thanks for giving a warning as I was kinda thinking of seeing this.

Never saw the trailer, went in blind because I had a free ticket that expired tonight.

[charlie chong]

i watched the cat aka lao mao
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105796/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
i didn't realise it was from the same director as riki-oh till i just looked on imdb just now and also features the character wisely who seems to show up in lots of different hong kong films(albeit with different actors playing him) such as the equally awesome seventh curse.
it's totally mad with some cool thing like effects and total weird story which i guess is what happens when the main hero is an alien cat definitely worth a watch if you enjoy ridiculous asian cinema.

[CMoon]

The Last Unicorn. My daughter asked to watch it after me forcing her to watch it previously.

Still great for an animated film that is basically just talking for 90 minutes.

Catching up on my 'kung fu' this week with the highly entertaining Bone and Blood. Played far more straight than Black Dynamite, one might even watch this as a completely serious film (somehow), but the makers of this film know exactly what they're doing when our protagonist has kicked everyone's ass and walks off into the sunset with his Ryu-dufflebag.

Decided last night to treat myself to Crippled Avengers. You know it, you love it. Kick people with iron feet for the win!

[Ixmucane2]

The Conjuring

Remarkably good horror: the worst flaws are a somewhat hasty ending (skipping the really cathartic part between the confrontation in the middle of the night and the hugs and the smiles in the morning) and a number of minor loose ends (the pigeons are surprisingly effective at scaring people, but what do they have to do with the threat? What about the implied other haunted people and houses?).

Based on a more or less true story: in 1971 a family (trucker, housewife and 5 young daughters) moves into a haunted house in Rhode Island.
After realizing that, compared to the average haunted house, they've hit the jackpot, they involve another family (demonologist husband, medium wife, safely left at home daughter and grandmother) to receive professional help.
As might be expected in a film about real people, some of which still living and involved in the production, all characters are almost too good to be true; but it turns out to be useful to the story, because any conflicts between people would be a distraction from the main supernatural one.

Very scary, without significant sex or violence; not even the most "redshirt" characters get hurt, and even physical accidents like falling through broken floors are downplayed. Everybody makes a point of turning on the light whenever appropriate, gross supernatural occurrences are treated with detachment, nothing stupid is attempted at any point, and it's still very scary.

[drauch]

i watched the cat aka lao mao
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105796/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
i didn't realise it was from the same director as riki-oh till i just looked on imdb just now and also features the character wisely who seems to show up in lots of different hong kong films(albeit with different actors playing him) such as the equally awesome seventh curse.
it's totally mad with some cool thing like effects and total weird story which i guess is what happens when the main hero is an alien cat definitely worth a watch if you enjoy ridiculous asian cinema.

I've had a copy of that sitting around for awhile now. Looks insane. Big fan of The Seventh Curse and Riki-Oh, so I can only imagine how my world will be rocked.

[MommysBestGames]

Dredd (Netflix)
Wish I could've seen Karl Urban's face during the film, but otherwise an excellent work of ultraviolence. Ma (Cersei in GoT) remains amazing in defying female norms.

Finally, Cop Land (Netflix)
Stallone gives his best career performance, and Liotta & Keitel are excellent as well. The ending is a bit of letdown, but worth seeing, for sure.

Loved Cop Land, but pretty depressing. I remember seeing in the theaters back then and coming out just feeling dirty. Stallone was amazing.

Also: It's a Disaster (Netflix)
Woody Allen-esque concept comedy. David Cross & Julia Stiles are ace. America Ferrera is also great. As a satire, it could've gone further than it did, but immensely watchable, in any case.

Saw that recently too via Netflix. Liked it pretty well. One of those that kept going in interesting enough way.

Speaking of Woody-Allen-esque, have you see Metropolitan? Found it in Netflix the other night. Ending up really liking it. Sticking with me. The acting's not amazing, but the dialog is pretty fun. It's a little odd, but feels sort of like Woody Allen making a Charlie Brown movie (with the Tom T character as Charlie Brown).

And now it seems like I need to see the new Dredd movie!

[Vexorg]

Continuing with the recent kick of cheap-gag-a-minute parody movies I've been on lately:

Loaded Weapon 1 ***

A cop drama parody that deliberately aims for pretty much every cliche in the book and hits practically all of them, yet somehow they also managed to put together a pretty star-studded cast for one of these things (they had Samuel L. Jackson and Emelio Estevez back when he was still fairly relevant as the leads, with William Shatner as the villain and Kathy Ireland as the love interest, plus plenty of cameos, including Bruce Willis as John McClane) As with most of these, it's reasonably watchable as mindless entertainment.