Movies you've just watched

[BrianC]

I skipped "Dr. Strange" and "Thor: Ragnarok"

The two MCU movies that stick out the most from the rest. Very funny too.

It's not that I don't want to see them, but I thought that I'd be able to watch them for free on the cable movie channels by now, at least in the case of Strange. STARZ usually has all of these things, I thought.

Dr. Strange is currently on Netflix.

I watched Touch of Evil (the newest extended cut based on Orson Well's memo). Despite Charlton Heston as a Mexican, I enjoyed it quite a bit. Poor Janet Leigh keeps getting stuck in creepy hotels by herself. Dennis Weaver's role in the movie reminded me a slight bit of Norman Bates, though not quite as creepy. Orson Wells made a nice villain too.

[drauch]

You can watch Uganda's #1 Super Action Movie Who Killed Captain Alex for free right now.

Pretty fun stuff. I was so moved I ordered the DVD from them a couple years back. Quite a sick package. Got some Wakaliwood stickers, a signed DVD-R of the movie, and a nice picture of EBOLA HUNTER with the words "do your home work" sharpied on it. My friend's package said "respect your parents." ^_~

[boagman]

Dr. Strange is currently on Netflix.

Which I don't have.

[BIL]

You can watch Uganda's #1 Super Action Movie Who Killed Captain Alex for free right now.

Pretty fun stuff. I was so moved I ordered the DVD from them a couple years back. Quite a sick package. Got some Wakaliwood stickers, a signed DVD-R of the movie, and a nice picture of EBOLA HUNTER with the words "do your home work" sharpied on it. My friend's package said "respect your parents." ^_~

Much respect for supporting The Best Of The Best Movies directly. ;-;7

Although most of my affection is owed to the unflappable VIDEO JOKER - Tiger Mafia! Super Fighter! COMMANDO! - it's a drunken couch classic either way. Some surprisingly satisfying fight choreography too, those chaps are pretty spry! Hell, just watching the feared RICHARD bitch-slap his way around a room of cowering underlings is pretty rockin'.

[soprano1]

You can watch Uganda's #1 Super Action Movie Who Killed Captain Alex for free right now.

The movie is on!

Spoiler

Super Mafia!

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Welcome to Dangerous Zone!

I suggest following it up with Irish kickboxing revenge spectacular Fatal Deviation, and then for a change of pace, Burgerland tinseltown horror sendup Hollywood Mortuary! BOOM! An evening of great world cinema, best enjoyed with alcohol and/or friends! And you won't pay a dime to some thieving Disney cunts who'd just wipe their asses with your money anyway (edit: after changing it for the paper equivalent!)

Oh shit, that sounds awesome in a way!

[BIL]

Objectively speaking it's understandably a bit tatty - pacing is loose and the big finale kinda struggles under its own weight. Same as more mainstream equivalents like Deadly Prey, really. Dear god does it have heart, though, and when its bloody, ridiculous action is firing on all cylinders it's a riot. And traditional Ugandan VIDEO JOKER VJ Emmie is a tireless force! Best watched with company, guaranteed you'll be shouting his lines! Super Mafia! Mama Mia! Expect The Unexpectable!

[soprano1]

Objectively speaking it's understandably a bit tatty - pacing is loose and the big finale kinda struggles under its own weight. Same as more mainstream equivalents like Deadly Prey, really. Dear god does it have heart, though, and when its bloody, ridiculous action is firing on all cylinders it's a riot. And VIDEO JOKER is a tireless force! Best watched with company, guaranteed you'll be shouting his lines! Super Mafia! Mama Mia! Expect The Unexpectable!

OH GOD THAT COMMENTARY TRACK IS THE BEST!
No irony, it's amazingly funny shit. The movie, as you say, is more about the effort to make this under the conditions they had, and that deserves a positive remark indeed.

[BIL]

Besides the classic lines, I love how he'll suddenly burst into tears when a character is meant to be emotive, or yelp in pain when someone gets clipped, or chuckle sneakily as someone creeps about... I wonder if he's thought about starting up some kind of Rifftrax-esque service.

Saving Private Ryan feat VJ Emmie

John Wick feat VJ Emmie

BBC news clip on VJ Emmie

I wanna ROMhack him into Jikkyoushaberi Parodius. Mortar fire!

[soprano1]

Besides the classic lines, I love how he'll suddenly burst into tears when a character is meant to be emotive, or yelp in pain when someone gets clipped, or chuckle sneakily as someone creeps about... I wonder if he's thought about starting up some kind of Rifftrax-esque service.

Saving Private Ryan feat VJ Emmie

John Wick feat VJ Emmie

Heat feat VJ Emmie

BBC news clip on VJ Emmie

I wanna ROMhack him into Jikkyoushaberi Parodius. Mortar fire!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qi_3mmH--ns

[BIL]

Yeah I should've just gone with that one. Dey he is!

[dan76]

The Martian. Not bad. Compared to Ridley Scott's films from the past... er, 30 years it was good. Having sat thought Alien Covenant, Prometheus, the Counselor I'd lost any hope of enjoying a film by this hack again. But I guess if you throw enough shit against the wall some of it will stick.

I can only think his real weakness is script. There's no excuse for Covenant, how could he have made that? Anyhow, it was solid. Though throughout the whole thing I was just thinking

Spoiler

why don't they just turn the ship around and go back and get him. Then they did.

[GaijinPunch]

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why don't they just turn the ship around and go back and get him. Then they did.

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It's been a while since I read the book but I recall the ship not knowing he was alive until quite a ways into it...

[Skykid]

The Martian. Not bad. Compared to Ridley Scott's films from the past... er, 30 years it was good. Having sat thought Alien Covenant, Prometheus, the Counselor I'd lost any hope of enjoying a film by this hack again. But I guess if you throw enough shit against the wall some of it will stick.

I can only think his real weakness is script. There's no excuse for Covenant, how could he have made that? Anyhow, it was solid. Though throughout the whole thing I was just thinking

Spoiler

why don't they just turn the ship around and go back and get him. Then they did.

Really? I thought The Martian was quite terrible, shlocky, formulaic crap that I'm completely sure lost 90% of the novel's nuance without having ever read it.

I actually think Prometheus, Covenant and The Counsellor are superior in several areas.

[dan76]

@GaijinPunch, yes, you are right but it was clear to see where the story was going very early on.

@ Skykid, I couldn't stand any of those films I mentioned, so the fact that with is was more formulaic didn't matter. It was solid and wasn't reaching for anything profound, it just got on with telling it's story. That said I won't watch it again.

Scott does have this name that is supposed to mean something, but it doesn't. He's just a director for hire.

[GaijinPunch]

Really? I thought The Martian was quite terrible, shlocky, formulaic crap that I'm completely sure lost 90% of the novel's nuance without having ever read it.

I only read a few books a year... but when I read that I thought, "okay, that was kinda cool... but absolutely zero need for it to be a film." Never saw the film, so can't comment on it, but I think I made the right choice in not bothering.

[Mischief Maker]

Scott does have this name that is supposed to mean something, but it doesn't. He's just a director for hire.

Scott is a visuals director who created some of the most iconic commercials of the 80s.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zfqw8nhUwA

Pair him with a good script and he'll make it sparkle. Let him get in on the writing and it'll disappear up its own ass. Don't forget, Scott made "Legend" in his prime.

[Sinful]

Couldn't finish watching The Martian. Gave up on it pretty early.

[Xyga]

At least Alien films are assumed sci-fi, what bothers me with recent movies like The Martian, Gravity or Interstellar is that the script is wannabe hard-sci-fi but fails at it by showing too much ridiculous stuff. I mean you don't have to be super science-savvy to think 'oh come on' in lots of scenes.

[GaijinPunch]

At least Alien films are assumed sci-fi, what bothers me with recent movies like The Martian, Gravity or Interstellar is that the script is wannabe hard-sci-fi but fails at it by showing too much ridiculous stuff. I mean you don't have to be super science-savvy to think 'oh come on' in lots of scenes.

You'll put Interstellar in the same category as Gravity?

[neorichieb1971]

I love sci fi where America hates anything outside of the Earth's gravitational pull and rescues us from said American enemies.

all we need to get back to great sci fi is reach back to the 80's. So much content was blessed with some spiritual essence that ran out somewhere in the early 90's.

[GaijinPunch]

I love sci fi where America hates anything outside of the Earth's gravitational pull and rescues us from said American enemies.

Well, we do have NASA...

[Xyga]

You'll put Interstellar in the same category as Gravity?

Definitely hard sci-fi (wannabe) even if not on the same topic.

Rather than showing a circus stunt show in orbit with present tech, it plays the card of a not-too-distant yet plausible future, but also that of the stuff of pure theory, showing batshit ultra-far-fetched practical use of several existing research topics.

When you try to give your story a hard sci-fi spine it's important not to break it. I mean for instance Asimov makes things happen in a considerable time frame, and even so in most he's written he doesn't try to push granny in the stairs too hard.

But Nolan? you're here in the bleak next century or so looking a the environment and humanity dying drama, then BOOM! WHEEZ! he makes a 21~22nd century space-station-ship surf ride the event horizon of a portable insta-black hole left here by future humanity evolved into dimensional gods. The mad dude even fucking dives in it! whew.

[Sinful]

I love sci fi where America hates anything outside of the Earth's gravitational pull and rescues us from said American enemies.

all we need to get back to great sci fi is reach back to the 80's. So much content was blessed with some spiritual essence that ran out somewhere in the early 90's.

Not just sci fi, but in my opinion the movie scene changed too much for the worse after the early 90s. Movies like Independence Day (96) were terrible and a sign of things to come, Arnold never made a good movie after True Lies (94), Stallone's last great movie might have been Judge Dredd (95), James Cameron made Titanic (97) instead of something cool, etc.

Oh well, some great memories watching movies on TV, TV Guide planning ahead a whole week and visiting video rentals the first half of the 90s. Afterwards, like you said, the magic was gone.

I love sci fi where America hates anything outside of the Earth's gravitational pull and rescues us from said American enemies.

Well, we do have NASA...

If only they had better CGI...

[BIL]

then BOOM! WHEEZ!

I don't know if you intentionally substituted "wheeze" (to breathe painfully) for "whiz" (to move or spin in spectacular fashion), but that's a thing of beauty and I'm borrowing it for later. Perfectly captures the mental image of an old man attempting MAD TRICKZ and promptly detonating his back.

In Scott's defense, as far as Covenant goes, I don't think it was even that. He just enjoyed shooting his mildly compelling alien vista load, while someone came up with a script so brutally retarded in the immediate term, and so abjectly reductive in the long, Dan O'Bannon's coffin must've been doing several trillion RPM. (edit: a couple of those scenes were ROCKIN though - BIOWEAPON APOCALYPSE BUKAKKE was almost worth the ticket! BOMBAAA)

[Xyga]

accidental for sure but lol

[dan76]

I just finished watching Alien on Film4 tonight. Didn't mean to, could stop watching the whole thing. So damn good.

Covenent seems like an amateurish fan film. I can't fathom it. Still, he's made two masterpieces, which is two more than I ever will. Mustn't be too harsh on the guy I suppose.

[neorichieb1971]

I just finished watching Alien on Film4 tonight. Didn't mean to, could stop watching the whole thing. So damn good.

Covenent seems like an amateurish fan film. I can't fathom it. Still, he's made two masterpieces, which is two more than I ever will. Mustn't be too harsh on the guy.

Covenant wasn't that amateurish. The problem with it is that its a retold story with 2017 special effects. It takes away the idea that the Aliens had a home planet, which is where I thought the franchise should have went. Where its going from here is anyones guess.

[BryanM]

It takes away the idea that the Aliens had a home planet, which is where I thought the franchise should have went. Where its going from here is anyones guess.

All these routes of exploring the world building are dead ends, because the mystery is the entire point in and of itself. Once you explain the zombies, the magic goes poof. Stories aren't even about things, they're about people experiencing things with other people.

It really should have just had one last adventure of Newt, Ripley, and her two husbands before going right into a dumpster and everyone moving on to a New Quest.

There's a certain lifespan to everything. At best you can only become a parody of yourself like the Friday the 13th series became.

Still, he's made two masterpieces, which is two more than I ever will. Mustn't be too harsh on the guy I suppose.

The writers wrote the stories. The FX team made the FX. The actors did the emoting. The camera monkey pointed the camera.

The guy telling them where to all stand is probably the least important link in this chain. I can understand why actors get to be celebrities. That directors and producers get to be celebrities too while writers have to live in a dungeon and eat slime mold off the floor, that's just capitalism.txt I guess.

[Jonny2x4]

The Martian. Not bad. Compared to Ridley Scott's films from the past... er, 30 years it was good.

I thought Gladiator with Russel Crowe was decent, but I haven't seen movie since it was released in theaters all those years ago.

It really should have just had one last adventure of Newt, Ripley, and her two husbands before going right into a dumpster and everyone moving on to a New Quest.

That was Neill Blomkamp's pitch for Alien 5. Basically a Superman Returns-style sequel that ignored Alien 3 and Resurrection.

[BryanM]

Yeah, I really think that's all that's left worth doing with the IP. Any concept that's about "things" and not "people" is gonna be lousy. Anything not with Weaver and the characters we're invested in, you're better off starting clean from scratch. One last hurrah before it's too late to do, that we'll never have with Ghostbusters. (While you can say the Crystal Skull was a bad send off, no one can argue Ash vs Evil Dead wasn't an absolute love letter to the fans.)

Still recommend everyone with time to kill watch Bumcamp's Zygote. It's a little exposition heavy due to the time limit of having a budget constraint, but it's gonna be better than watching a guy in his underwear solve all his problems by punching someone else in the head for 180 minutes.

(Though I would also still recommend watching the Invincible adoption when it gets made, for the slowpokes who weren't interested in a, at the time, bleeding edge comic franchise 15 years ago. Punching people in the head in Invincible actually does damage, is pretty brutal, and always creates more problems than it solves.)

(If movies and tv shows are always 20 years behind popular culture, doesn't that technically mean they're for old people?)