Movies you've just watched

Daigohji · Post by **Daigohji** » Thu Jul 21, 2011 11:34 am

CMoon wrote:Just saw Prince of Darkness. Probably should have seen this in middle school, but this is what netflix was made for. The film itself is a perfect illustration of why budget really does matter. This has all the hallmarks of Carpenter's best, save the budget to both design and create good special effects. Ultimately those special effect (or at least one's ability to disguise the lack thereof) are what suspect disbelieve that this isn't just a bunch of guys (and some girls in the case of Prince of Darkness) running around a dark building. Fortunately, this film has a good soundtrack and some great lines, but there are no surprises, no amazing visuals, and it probably isn't the best of concepts as far as Carpenter films go.

Enjoyed it, just wanted more.

Prince of Darkness is easily one of my favourite Carpenter movies. It's true that the effects aren't in the same league as The Thing, but in terms of creating a thick atmosphere and sense of dread, it's right up there with his best. Just thinking about it has made me want to watch it again. Actually, it's made me want to watch In The Mouth of Madness, too. I haven't seen that one in years!

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Thu Jul 21, 2011 3:28 pm

Daigohji wrote: Prince of Darkness is easily one of my favourite Carpenter movies. It's true that the effects aren't in the same league as The Thing, but in terms of creating a thick atmosphere and sense of dread, it's right up there with his best. Just thinking about it has made me want to watch it again. Actually, it's made me want to watch In The Mouth of Madness, too. I haven't seen that one in years!

Yeah, I saw Mouth of Madness recently. I think Prince of Darkness might be better, but neither are among his best. Its time for me to hit Dark Star and Precinct. Should also go back and watch the original Halloween.

The bizarre part with Prince of Darkness is that I wanted to see They Live again, and I only saw that a couple months ago.

Edit: Do I have to rethink 'The Fog'? I recall that being the one Carpenter film I didn't like.

EinhanderZwei · Post by **EinhanderZwei** » Thu Jul 21, 2011 3:37 pm

CMoon wrote:
Daigohji wrote: Prince of Darkness is easily one of my favourite Carpenter movies. It's true that the effects aren't in the same league as The Thing, but in terms of creating a thick atmosphere and sense of dread, it's right up there with his best. Just thinking about it has made me want to watch it again. Actually, it's made me want to watch In The Mouth of Madness, too. I haven't seen that one in years!
Yeah, I saw Mouth of Madness recently. I think Prince of Darkness might be better, but neither are among his best. Its time for me to hit Dark Star and Precinct. Should also go back and watch the original Halloween.

The bizarre part with Prince of Darkness is that I wanted to see They Live again, and I only saw that a couple months ago.

Edit: Do I have to rethink 'The Fog'? I recall that being the one Carpenter film I didn't like.

I'm a huge John Carpenter fan, and that's what I think of the movies you're questioning:
Dark Star - the sets are creative, and the story is pretty original. It doesn't even look as cheap-ass as it really was
Assault On Precinct 13 - fantastic action flick, one of the best I've seen. Points for shooting a little girl point blank, that's hardcore
The Fog - pretty good (especially the sets), but overall it's of same caliber as Prince Of Darkness/Mouth Of Madness - good, but not awesome. Adrienne Barbeau's annoying voice is the only real bad part

Skykid · Post by **Skykid** » Thu Jul 21, 2011 3:54 pm

Same, I'm also a big Carpenter fan. Apart from Donald Pleasance, I do think Prince of Darkness is pretty weak compared to the rest of his canon.

Escape from New York, fantastic post-apocalyptic fun with one badass lead character.
Dark Star is the ultimate student ghetto sci-fi flick, a real sharp wit and a great atmosphere.
Assault on Precinct 13 is fab. This paved the way for many action movies of the next decade imo.
The Thing is just sublime, iconic movie sci-fi, probably my favourite of all his movies.
The Fog scared the shit out of me when I was a kid, but it's a little ropey in places now.

I've never seen In the Mouth of Madness, but I was under the impression that Carpenter's quality of movie's fell post 80's?

I thought Vampires with James Woods was amusing in places, but Ghosts of Mars I've endeavoured to watch twice and turned it off after around 30 minutes twice. It's just so atrociously bad it's upsetting.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Thu Jul 21, 2011 3:56 pm

Yeah, I heard you guys praising Assault on Precinct 13 earlier, definitely watching it soon.

Anyone on here with a Y chromosome actually like Starman?

Jon · Post by **Jon** » Thu Jul 21, 2011 4:28 pm

CMoon wrote:
Anyone on here with a Y chromosome actually like Starman?

I do, although I guess its primarily due to nostalgic reasons seeing as how it is one of my earliest theater memories with my parents. I always loved Jack Nitzsche's score for the movie. Jeff Bridges was solid in it as well even though his performance was hardly worthy of a oscar nomination.

EinhanderZwei · Post by **EinhanderZwei** » Thu Jul 21, 2011 6:23 pm

Jon wrote:
CMoon wrote:
Anyone on here with a Y chromosome actually like Starman?
I do, although I guess its primarily due to nostalgic reasons seeing as how it is one of my earliest theater memories with my parents. I always loved Jack Nitzsche's score for the movie. Jeff Bridges was solid in it as well even though his performance was hardly worthy of a oscar nomination.

I loved it too. Seriously, one of the best melodramas ever. The ending is especially memorable

Daigohji · Post by **Daigohji** » Thu Jul 21, 2011 10:08 pm

Skykid wrote:I've never seen In the Mouth of Madness, but I was under the impression that Carpenter's quality of movie's fell post 80's?

If you like Carpenter, you have to see In the Mouth of Madness at least once. It was the last film he made that was of any worth before he went into terminal decline. Its quality is patchy, but it's brimming with the atmosphere of HP Lovecraft and the sense that the protagonist (and eventually the world) is being thrown around by forces that no one can hope to stand against.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 1:11 am

Yeah, I think stopping with Mouth of Madness is a good call. I mean, with Carpenter, there's a yes and a no pile. As far as I can tell, that yes pile should include:

Dark Star
Halloween
Assault on Precinct 13
The Fog
Escape from New York
The Thing
Big Trouble in Little China
Prince of Darkness
They Live
In the Mouth of Madness

Of these (and I've omitted Christine 'coz I haven't seen it), most of them rank as really enjoyable B films with some great lines, music and atmosphere. The Thing I think stands out for most people as being something special (and probably Carpenter's most important film), while others may really dig New York (I do) and Little China (I don't.) But there's a surprising amount of sameness to these films. Enough so you can easily slip from one film to the next (and in that sense Carpenter is very much like Argento.)

I left off Starman as I feel like this is almost a different director (but I haven't seen it in a long time.) Starman and Little China may have been an attempt to reach a bigger audience; regardless though, after Little China he broke his ties with big studios and Prince of Darkness sees him returning to his previous style, though with significantly less funding.

PC Engine Fan X! · Post by **PC Engine Fan X!** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 2:53 am

Considering that there are two different versions of the 1982 flick of "The Thing," the alternative version adds background narratives to all the characters introduced in the film (in the original theatrical version, this is omitted). The second major difference is the additional scene of the siberian husky dog character that makes a return appearance at the end of the film as the final closing scene (again, this scene wasn't in the original theatrical release either).

Listening to the "The Thing" OST is cool for Carpenter's piece of the music that is heard during the scene of the dynamite firebombing inside the base to try to get rid of the alien creature or flush it out. Back in the early 1990s, when Blockbuster branched out into a seperate business venture known as Blockbuster Music, they sold the The Thing OST and I managed to snag one one on the fly...easily one of my favorite OSTs taking out for a spin from time to time.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

BIL · Post by **BIL** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 2:57 am

If there's one thing I like about Prince of Darkness, it's the soundtrack. Eeeevil 80s synths.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 4:47 am

Yeah, I had to find The Thing OST covertly on the internet. Too bad so much of Morricone's score wasn't actually used. Yeah, I've heard about the alternate version, but I've only ever seen the theatrical version. I guess maybe it was on the deluxe DVD edition (it isn't on my blu-ray). I'm pretty thrilled with the theatrical version though; I don't need to see the dog running away at the end.

rapoon · Post by **rapoon** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 7:34 am

Saw three films w/ a friend tonight. We each chose a movie the other had not seen. His selection was "Get Carter" (original),
mine was "If....". Great performances by Michael Caine and Malcolm McDowell. "If...." is a phenomenal movie; was nice
to see it again. Afterwards, we watched "Romeo Is Bleeding."

Skykid · Post by **Skykid** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 9:03 am

Daigohji wrote:
Skykid wrote:I've never seen In the Mouth of Madness, but I was under the impression that Carpenter's quality of movie's fell post 80's?
If you like Carpenter, you have to see In the Mouth of Madness at least once. It was the last film he made that was of any worth before he went into terminal decline. Its quality is patchy, but it's brimming with the atmosphere of HP Lovecraft and the sense that the protagonist (and eventually the world) is being thrown around by forces that no one can hope to stand against.

Cool, sounds good! I'll try to watch it tonight.

Just watched Analyze This and Analyze That.

One's very funny, the other not so.

rancor · Post by **rancor** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 10:27 am

While I'm away from Japan there are a few good movies in my sig.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 8:14 pm

Hey man, those of you diggin' the Carpenter scores (and perhaps some Goblin) should listen to some Umberto

Skykid · Post by **Skykid** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 8:24 pm

Why the fuck is Jaws so damn good?!

I just got In The Mouth of Madness and Jaws has been on TV in the background for 15 minutes and now I can't stop watching it.

I only just sat through it again a few months back.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 9:17 pm

Best film by Spielberg IMO. Yeah, it's a damn good movie.

Skykid · Post by **Skykid** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 9:19 pm

CMoon wrote:Best film by Spielberg IMO. Yeah, it's a damn good movie.

Agreed, his best. Duel a close second.

I'm turning it off now, the ads are on. Gonna watch this Carpenter flick.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 9:32 pm

The idea of watching Jaws (an absolute A+ film) next to Mouth of Madness (enjoyable, but highly questionable) side by side has me worried, especially with you!

To answer your Jaws question more directly, I think Jaws is a good film because all of the following aspects of the film are notable, ranging from good to truly exceptional:

Acting
Dialogue
Soundtrack
Cinematography (including the restraint toward special effects)
Pacing (including the way suspenseful scenes are handled)
Story
Setting

I try not to get in arguments with you Skykid because I value my keyboard more than that, but if one is going to make arguments for objectivity in cinema, it has to be about these sorts of thing, and it also means getting to the point where maybe you don't like a film, but you acknowledge on some kind of objective level it is still great. Jaws could be argued, I think, to be an objectively great film, mostly because of the caliber of each of its component parts and the way they come together to create a rich cinematic tapestry. But yeah, one way or the other, Jaws is more than a big rubber shark movie.

Skykid · Post by **Skykid** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 11:09 pm

Ha ha, You don't need to tell me why Jaws is great man, I'm already well aware! it was really a rhetorical question.

And the fact that it's great has nothing to do with objectivity. It is great, it's just purely a case of whether or not someone has the aptitude to recognise it.

What does have to do with objectivity (sorta) is noting that someone can appreciate completely different types of movie on their intended level. i.e. a great action movie alongside a other types of genres.

So, I quite enjoyed In The Mouth of Madness. It's by no means a great film - in-fact it's only borderline good - but it's better than Prince of Darkness if memory serves. Some of the dialogue was real clunky and I didn't think it would improve beyond the rather poor opening 20 minutes, but I must say there's something really endearing in the way Carpenter continues to make really old school 80's movies well into the 1990's.

It definitely had some good imagery. I've only read a little Lovecraft, so even thought I could associate the monsters, I couldn't really place them to a story. Some of the ideas fell flat and felt clunky, but there were occasional moments of momentum that managed to carry everything through.

It was an intriguing concept, one that would have probably been done better justice by someone with more of a knack for nightmare movies (couldn't stop thinking Cronenberg), but credit where it's due, Sam Neill was good as ever and even though it was about 50% dumb (including the ending), it was saved by that head bobbing cheesy metal opening and closing theme, lol! You know you're watching a Carpenter movie when it kicks off with tracks like that.

So yeah, was interesting. Wouldn't watch it twice, but I'd recommend it for those wanting a Carpenter (or even Stephen King) fix.

rapoon · Post by **rapoon** » Fri Jul 22, 2011 11:47 pm

saw "Thirst" in the theaters and picked up the directors cut over a year ago.
region free player arrived today.

Asian Film Festival of Dallas just ended. Went 3 nights. Saw Karate-Robo Zaborgar

, Zebraman 2 and Outrage

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Sat Jul 23, 2011 1:09 am

Skykid wrote:I've only read a little Lovecraft

You should probably fix that.

Skykid · Post by **Skykid** » Sat Jul 23, 2011 1:41 am

CMoon wrote:
Skykid wrote:I've only read a little Lovecraft
You should probably fix that.

Definitely!

The problem was I had read a load of Edgar Allen Poe and then skipped to Lovecraft and found that it was a difficult transition for some reason, so I only got through a few short stories. I should probably go back to it fresh and try to read some more.

RNGmaster · Post by **RNGmaster** » Sat Jul 23, 2011 1:52 am

Skykid wrote: I've only read a little Lovecraft, so even thought I could associate the monsters, I couldn't really place them to a story. Some of the ideas fell flat and felt clunky, but there were occasional moments of momentum that managed to carry everything through.

Lovecraft ain't about the monsters, my friend. He was a master of atmosphere - "The Colour Out Of Space" manages perfectly well without any creepy crawlies.
I'd recommend "Music of Erich Zann" to start out with. Then go through the classics like "Shadow Out of Time" and "Whisperer in Darkness". If you can stomach all his purple prose - some can't - go for "At the Mountains of Madness" or "Case of Charles Dexter Ward". I'd avoid his Dream Cycle stories, like "Silver Key" and "Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath". Not his best work.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Sat Jul 23, 2011 2:08 am

I liked Silver Key, but haven't read it in ages. I feel Mountains of Madness is by far his best, but won't disagree with the sequence RNGmaster suggests. I've started out friends with Madness and they found themselves devouring all of HP's stories.

Skykid · Post by **Skykid** » Sat Jul 23, 2011 9:46 am

RNGmaster wrote:
Skykid wrote: I've only read a little Lovecraft, so even thought I could associate the monsters, I couldn't really place them to a story. Some of the ideas fell flat and felt clunky, but there were occasional moments of momentum that managed to carry everything through.
Lovecraft ain't about the monsters, my friend. He was a master of atmosphere - "The Colour Out Of Space" manages perfectly well without any creepy crawlies.
I'd recommend "Music of Erich Zann" to start out with. Then go through the classics like "Shadow Out of Time" and "Whisperer in Darkness". If you can stomach all his purple prose - some can't - go for "At the Mountains of Madness" or "Case of Charles Dexter Ward". I'd avoid his Dream Cycle stories, like "Silver Key" and "Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath". Not his best work.

Cool, thanks for the tips.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Sun Jul 24, 2011 2:22 am

Here's an image from the new Avatar. Was hoping we'd get another series...

Teaser trailer

Skykid · Post by **Skykid** » Sun Jul 24, 2011 11:17 pm

For some reason I had an urge to watch Rocky IV, which kind of came out of nowhere as I haven't seen it since I was about 10 years old.

Needless to say it was brilliantly 80's, I laughed the whole way through!

Seriously, some of the shit we used to get away with back then, unbelievable.

rapoon · Post by **rapoon** » Mon Jul 25, 2011 1:20 am

watched "Monsters" today. A solid recommendation for Monster Movie fans.

Made on a pathetic budget of $500k, the acting isn't the best but it's a decent flick.
The "creatures" have taken up refuge between Mexico and the US, which is now referred to
as the "quarantined zone." A journalist has been given the responsibility of escorting an
American citizen (his bosses daughter) back home.

The creatures are seen several times throughout the film but the plot focuses more on
the effect the occupation has had on an impoverished country and it's residents: pay
$5k (which may as well be 5 million) for a ferry ride to the states (gas mask for free!) or
take your chances and go through the quarantined zone.

Caught the trailer for the "Fright Night" remake staring Collin Farrell.

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