Movies you've just watched

[spadgy]

I just watched Stephen King's The Mist...

Now, this film was reasonably well received and enjoyed some glowing praise... and I like to be positive about films even if they're a bit wonky...

But I found The Mist pretty bloody awful. Terribly paced, awfully bland lighting and little sense of time and space, bad acting from many of the cast, rubbish use of music score to add tension, mediocre graphics both technically and aesthetically, and it seemed to do very little to try and actually make it scary.

And the whole thing about 'the real horror is how humans behave to each other in high stress situations and terrifying crisis' seemed to be like a naive go and repeating something numerous Twilight Zone episodes have done with much more grace decades before.

After watching and seeing how much others liked it, I wonder if I just had the wrong head on for the film, and got too into disliking it and too into looking at it from the wrong angle (metaphorically), and totally missed something.

What did others think?

[MX7]

I fucking hated The Mist but my friends seemed to quite like it. I guess it's a common problem.

Have watched a ridiculous amount of films over the last month, many awesome (80's teen flicks Adventures in Babysiting and Can't Buy Me Love ticked many of my boxes, fucking love these idea to playful neoliberalism and underclass hatred) some absolute gash (Don't Mess With The Zohan, watched through pure masocism still raised my ire to an obscene degree).

Best of the bunch, Snowpiercer was very close to being flawless, exactly what I wanted, goggle eyed stabs of Gilliam crazy with a square jawed Tarkovsky lite 'moving through a location' narrative. Perhaps it should have ended a few carriages earlier but HO HUM.

Another film, this time one I had no preconceptions about was Beyond The Black Rainbow which was just glorious. Like some heavenly mashup of early Cronenberg, Demon Seed, 1980's Japanese punk cinema and, in particular the criminally underrated Night Of The Hunted it was pretty much the best 'revive a maligned genre' film since the wonderful Amer. fucking amazing soundtrack too.

So many great films on the horizon. New Wong Kar Wai film with Tony Leung, possibly looking sultry, new Nicolas Winding Refn film The Neon Demon (a title almost verging in to self parody there but to see him cast his halogen drenched mise en scene into the horror genre is so very exciting), new Verhoven, the guy who directed Dogtooth (one of my favourite, absolute shiver down spine films of the last decade) has a new one out called The Lobster that has a similarly wonderful sounding scenario, and Love, the new Gaspar Noé, which given how sublime Enter The Void is should be something to definitely catch on its theatrical run. Also James Bond and Mad Max and other smilers.

[EmperorIng]

Cruel Jaws

Directed by il grande maistro Bruno Mattei. Well "directed" is a funny word since so much of this footage is stolen from the superior "L'Ultimo Squalo", the actual Jaws movies, and other stock footage nature stuff.

But man, what is original to this movie is something else. Shapeshifting sharks (is it a dolphin? a tiger shark? a great white? nobody knows!), Hulk Hogan, the mafia, complete and total douchebag surfers, an inexplicable use of the Stars Wars theme, and some truly bad acting. I always give movies extra points when they go the extra yard and start throwing in crazy bullshit, like the revelation that the titular shark was an experimental killer shark trained by the navy. It's wildly stupid, but it sounds cool, and that's what counts.

It's ultra cheap, and surprisingly clean (no nudity, despite some wonderfully-Italian gore shots), but it was a good time.

Here are some important shark facts we learn about sharks from watching this shark movie.

[GaijinPunch]

Another film, this time one I had no preconceptions about was Beyond The Black Rainbow which was just glorious.

Heard mixed opinions. I probably need to pull the trigger on it. I'm sure I'd at least mildly like it. Wish it was on Netflix.

EDIT: It is!

[chempop]

Automata - Dystopian sci-fi. Loved it!

Detachment - Inner city school teacher drama. Loved it!

[KindGrind]

Automata - Dystopian sci-fi. Loved it!

Always in the mood for new dystopian sci-fi films... Will look into this one.

Nightcrawler (2014)

Excellent. Riveting. I like how the city looks here - some of the shots definitely reminded me of the good bits of Heat (don't remember if set in LA, but somehow I was thinking of it watching) and Collateral.

Russo was surprisingly good, but Gyllenhaal takes the cake. Creepy, controlled. If you're in the mood for a good ride and were on the fence about this one, you don't have to be.

[BPzeBanshee]

Tankgirl. Apparently "going on a date in Darwin with an SJW/PowerWater employee, then taking LSD and writing down your drug trippin visions" is a nicer way to put this movie across than it actually deserves to be.

Anyone else getting Metal Slug vibes from the tank?

[Stevens]

The Mrs. and I have agreed to start getting through our Netflix cue as it seems to keep growing.

We started last night with Iron Sky. I had good things from a few different people. For the most part it didn't disappoint, but I thought that

Spoiler

the original trip to earth was kind of pointless. Washington could have just escaped to earth and then the Nazi's could have attacked.

Nice to watch something original for a change too.

[Some-Mist]

inherent vice - I have to rewatch it. I feel like I missed a lot, but I wasn't really too content. also read the book, which I also felt dragged.

american soldier - one and done. I liked my watch through, but in terms of recent war movies... I actually preferred Fury.

Spoiler

the drill part still has me cringing too

rewatched birdman with the roommate, and still loved it as much as when I first saw it. it almost had a synecdoche, new york feel

Spoiler

with certain scenes it was a bit difficult to tell if they were in character or speaking for themselves... which I guess is the point of the film

perfume is next... my ma lent it to me and recommended that I check it out. I have no idea what it is.

[lilmanjs]

Coma
People go in for minor surgery and come out, instead of healthy, they are in comas. A nice late 70s thriller with Michael Douglas in one of the staring roles. Gets a little weird in the middle of the film, but really gathers steam towards the end and makes for an interesting watch.

[Xyga]

The Hobbit part three - Smash Bros Fantasy Rage.

Derp.

[drauch]

The Hobbit part three - Smash Bros Fantasy Rage.

Derp.

Very accurate review.

[DEL]

John Wick - Spectacular
I dunno how Keanu does it? He really knows how to pick movies to star in. Not a great actor of course, but daym can he pick a role!
This film makes Taken look pedestrian.

Some-Mist wrote:

perfume is next... my ma lent it to me and recommended that I check it out. I have no idea what it is.

Very weird film....but worth a watch.

[Stevens]

John Wick - Spectacular
I dunno how Keanu does it? He really knows how to pick movies to star in. Not a great actor of course, but daym can he pick a role!
This film makes Taken look pedestrian.

John Wick was dope as hell. I don't buy many physical movies anymore, but I am picking that up when it comes out.

[Kaiser]

Blue Ruin (2014)

Without spoiling anything, if there's a movie that proves how pointless and consequence inducing taking out a revenge on someone is, it's this one. It's a slow, ambient movie that sparks like a volcano during it's tense moments. It's gonna be stuck in my head for a bit.

[Vexorg]

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb: ***

Went to this looking for mindless entertainment on a weekday afternoon, and ended up at a 2PM showing with all of 4 people in the theater (my GF and I being two of them.) As expected, it was pretty mindless, basically an hour and a half of throwaway gags with some sort of loose plot. In the end, it will probably end up being notable only for being Robin Williams' and Mickey Rooney's last film.

[rapoon]

inherent vice - I have to rewatch it. I feel like I missed a lot, but I wasn't really too content. also read the book, which I also felt dragged.

the age of aquarius narration got really old. if the intent was to provide a bit of context, it failed miserably; it only convoluted the 2 1/2 hours.

the guest - i enjoyed the shit out of this film, no doubt in part because of it's fantastic soundtrack. love & rockets? check. sisters of mercy? check. front 242? check.

[Some-Mist]

inherent vice - I have to rewatch it. I feel like I missed a lot, but I wasn't really too content. also read the book, which I also felt dragged.

the age of aquarius narration got really old. if the intent was to provide a bit of context, it failed miserably; it only convoluted the 2 1/2 hours.

I really struggled to pay attention tbh...

Blue Ruin (2014)

Without spoiling anything, if there's a movie that proves how pointless and consequence inducing taking out a revenge on someone is, it's this one. It's a slow, ambient movie that sparks like a volcano during it's tense moments. It's gonna be stuck in my head for a bit.

did you know that it was kickstarted? and that the director cashed in his family's life's savings in order to produce it? pretty crazy how well it was received and turned out.

[jonny5]

Snowpiercer - Awesome movie. Had heard good things in this thread but never actually looked into it so had no idea what it was about. Ending was a little weak I think, but aside from that, well worth a watch.

[Kaiser]

did you know that it was kickstarted? and that the director cashed in his family's life's savings in order to produce it? pretty crazy how well it was received and turned out.

Wow I didn't know it was kickstarted! I just looked it up and you are right, wow this is crazy, I never thought this was a KICKSTARTED movie because while it was low budget, it didn't give away the BAD KIND of low budget feel. Gotta applaud Jeremy Saulnier for wisely spending the budget. It's a movie that will be stuck in my mind because it portrays it's message very strongly and up front, without being preachy or anything like it.

[chempop]

Watched a couple documentaries recently.

"Dear Zachary - A Letter to a son about his father". Difficult to recommend, tear jerker, well made, all in all absurdly depressing. Originally conceived as a video montage to memorialize a man’s life, things take a turn when the alleged murderer (the crazy ex-girlfriend) turns out to be pregnant with the victims son.

“Samsara". By the creators of Baraka, who were clearly influenced by Godfrey Reggio’s Koyaanisqatsi, another epic ride of imagery and music to some of the planets most intense and beautiful landscapes as well as questionable parts of civilization. A must watch if you enjoy just kicking back and zoning out.

I also re-watched "Mr Nobody" which was as wonderful as I remember

[Satan]

I love Dead Man's Shoes. I've watched it again for maybe the sixth time. It reminds me of the retarded, petty crim assholes who live where I am whose ego tricks them into thinking they're Gotti because they sell a few ten spots, and of how much the darkness which resides within me would like to systematically kill every single one of them.

[SuperGrafx]

The Man with the Red Shoe

A typical mid-1980's Tom Hanks film on Netflix
Not bad, not great.

[JBC]

The new Godzilla is good but it's kind of a snoozer outside of theaters. You need the giant screen & loud speakers blasting in your ears to get the right experience out of it. There's not much of a story to care about or get into & it's certainly not a movie made by it's dialouge. It's a visual experience really. That's really what all Godzilla movies are for me anyway, it's just about seeing the monsters fight & tear stuff up. I've seen every Godzilla movie but I can't even remember most of the human character's names. Sometimes I think I just like Goji for the action figures & neat poster art.

Except Final Wars, Final Wars is so badass.

[drauch]

Oh man, really? You've seen all original 28 and that's your favorite? It's odd how divided Godzilla fans are with that movie. I'd rank it as my least favorite film of anything I've seen next to the fourth Indiana Jones. Some people love it, others hate it. I'm obviously of the latter.

[JBC]

Aw c'mon you've got that kick ass lobster fight & the cheesy Mike Haggar guy. Goji stomps Zilla's head in the ground! It's so great

Edit - I also want to add that I'm like this about most kaiju related stuff. I loooooove the games & figures & comics etc but really don't like watching the films & shows they are based on. I'm really into Ultraman but watching the older stuff is horrible to me sometimes & makes me nauseous. There are a few scattered series I enjoy though, but I prefer to just skip straight to the battles by looking them up on YouTube. I'm probably the worst kind of kaiju fan or something.

Also, I hate Pacific Rim. I actually found it insulting in some sort of way.

[RGB]

I've just watched Pioneer.

It's a thriller set in the early 80's, during Norway's oil boom. It started really nicely and I was expecting it to escalate rather quickly, but nothing like that happened. Kind of a let down, because the story itself is interesting, supposedly inspired by true events.

[Necronopticous]

inherent vice - I have to rewatch it. I feel like I missed a lot, but I wasn't really too content. also read the book, which I also felt dragged.

the age of aquarius narration got really old. if the intent was to provide a bit of context, it failed miserably; it only convoluted the 2 1/2 hours.

I suffered through this last night. What a fucking mess.

[BIL]

Runaway Train (1985) Grizzled convict and his plucky sidekick escape prison for the frozen wilds, haplessly boarding the titular juggernaut with a hardcase warden in pursuit.

An excellent movie at its core. The doomed train is prime testing ground for the escapees' fragile partnership, while the photography's contrast of natural beauty and harrowing mechanical terror is absorbing. This is a gorgeous picture, easily recalling the brutal industrial/wilderness charms of Sorceror and Duel. As there the machine is a dominating presence, blighting the pristine landscape and sporting a ragged beard of past kills.

(animated gif, non-spoiler)

Spoiler

Unfortunately there's a fair bit of encrusted 80s cheese ( <3 Cannon Films), via scenes of flustered railway staff clucking and snarking at each other as crisis unfolds. These sequences could've complemented with proper handling, but the tone jars next to the stark beauty and danger of the main setting. Luckily these bits settle down before real damage is done - the climax is bracing, extreme, cathartic stuff. With Akira Kurosawa's screenwriting credit, it's hard to imagine quite such a tonal clash had he helmed the movie... still, certainly worth a watch if the premise appeals.

[Raytrace]

Runaway Train (1985)

I like that fiml a lot, Eric Roberts is good in it too I think, much as I love Best Of The Best, it's a pity Roberts is more remembered for that than Runaway Train.