Movies you've just watched

[neorichieb1971]

Agreed, one man army movies are always entertaining to some degree. But we need gritty stuff to slip in the mix somewhere to make it more believable.

Just tired of the whole thing really. Marvel doing super hero movies where the heros don't get a scratch, Equalizer and John Wick are in the same vein. It would be nice to see a movie where you don't know the end before it starts. I want to see a movie where you feel the heros pain and Hollywood doesn't seem to do that anymore.

[Skykid]

Better than John Wick, but still utterly disposable.

Don't think I agree with that. I'd put them around the same rank. Neither is great, but they're both watchable. In fact, I'd probably give John Wick a slight edge.

Man, what movie did you watch exactly?

Both films are total drivel. Equalizer is only passable because it actually contains a consistent revenge narrative and a character arc/reveal that you can connect with one time only.

But if watching The Equalizer is akin to taking a shit, John Wick is equivalent to noisy diahorrea. It has basically no redeeming value: stupid, badly edited, irritating, aimless, brainless, substancless, soulless, nonsensical gutter trash dying in its own cliché. Reeves low level acting was actually upstaged in awfulness by that female hit girl, and even Dafoe and Da Russian couldn't save it from absolute mediocrity on every front.

[jonny5]

90 minute gun fight and you're looking for substance?

John Wick was great fun. Just enough character development to get a feel for the characters and their motivations without slowing down the action, and then it proceeds to kill everybody.

[Skykid]

It's absolute crap.

[jonny5]

It's absolute crap.

If you're referring to your opinion I wholeheartedly agree!

[Skykid]

Speaking of absolute crap, I'm off to see Miami Connection in the Prince Charles cinema shortly. Should be a special evening.

[trap15]

Miami Connection is the best worst film.

[BIL]

Miami Connection - so bad, it's God.

[neorichieb1971]

Big trouble in little China -

Surprisingly still good value for its running time. Its so silly that it actually makes for a fun ride. I did watch this a few weeks ago but since got a new subwoofer so gave it another run.

[Obiwanshinobi]

In the Equalizer he had the upper hand in the store when about 8-10 people were against him, yet even when there are one or two they are still fighting. In the real world a common sense person would just leave.

Megalithic.

[Skykid]

Miami Connection - so bad, it's God.

This.

If anyone ever visits London, for God's sake go to the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square. It's the best movie theatre in the world.

Tonight we got an introduction from the guy who planned the evening, which started with Kung Fury, then the Kung Fury music video, then 15 minutes of martial arts movie trailers from the 70s and 80s, and finishing with Miami Connection.

The audience were involved the whole way. All cheers, laughs, clapping and singing along with Dragon Sound's numbers - it was an experience.

Miami Connection is so bad it's amazing. Absolute gold. Y.K. Kim was only upstaged by that black dude's academy award winning speech about his dad.

[Obiwanshinobi]

When I saw Blanche (1971) by Walerian Borowczyk got a Blu-ray release, I went nuts and just bought the thing. Stunning film, despite some wooden acting on display. Come to think of when and where cinema got sorta honest about depicting medieval times, The Tragedy of Macbeth (also 1971) comes to mind and so does this. Well, if not "honest", then maybe "serious", in the sense of making a viewer feel treaten seriously.
I recall Rybczyński frowning upon vast majority of costume films that wouldn't let him (as a person academically taught of the era's art) wilingly suspend his disbelief. Blanche gives the same air of rigthtful angst and it works for me.

[neorichieb1971]

If anyone ever visits London, for God's sake go to the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square. It's the best movie theatre in the world.

Seen it lots of times on my passing by of China town. Unfortunately it doesn't look very glitzy and without a trusted recommendation I wouldn't go into the place. Besides that they never ever show anything in there that I've heard of (on the occasions I've gone by).

Might look into it at some point. If you ever hear of a recommended movie playing in that theatre I might make a trip down there to see it.

[system11]

Quick pro-tip, if you like Robocop you need the 2014 release Blu-Ray, it makes the 2007 release look really bad.

[neorichieb1971]

Not many blu ray pundits about these days. I noticed more Americans swing that way than us UK'ers. I have approximately 500+ and gearing up for the 4k "dead before starts" format. No confirmation if PS4 can play the discs yet so its probably not gonna happen. I speculate a new PS4 SKU will come out with revamped blu ray drive and HDMI 2.0 with HDCP2.2.

[Mischief Maker]

Megalithic.

Worst Fight Ever?!!

Psh! I'll see your gorn fight and raise you THIS:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zVsd5ubpJ4

[Skykid]

If anyone ever visits London, for God's sake go to the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square. It's the best movie theatre in the world.

Seen it lots of times on my passing by of China town. Unfortunately it doesn't look very glitzy and without a trusted recommendation I wouldn't go into the place. Besides that they never ever show anything in there that I've heard of (on the occasions I've gone by).

Might look into it at some point. If you ever hear of a recommended movie playing in that theatre I might make a trip down there to see it.

Glitzy? Wat?

You want to go to a multiplex there are plenty nearby, but I wouldn't ever go to the Prince Charles for glitz - I would go because it's a real independent cinema with a wonderful history, a beautifully preserved inner theatre, and the film choices are frankly immaculate.

Currently coming up is the Schwarzenegger all-nighter (Terminator, Terminator 2, True Lies, Commando, Predator) while in September is a Kubrick festival showing Paths of Glory, Killer's Kiss, Spartacus and 2001 in 70mm!

There's a bar downstairs and you can take beer into the auditorium, the events are absolutely fantastic, and the audience is always incredibly fun. They even have quote-along evenings for Arnie movies and Die Hard etc. When I went to see Mad Max 2 we got free pizza.

And as Tarantino once said, his movies haven't really been released until they're shown in the Prince Charles.

Fuck the multiplex Richie, you're missing out on a roller coaster community of cinema where the movies are actually good (or depending on the theme, purposely atrocious).

Being back in London temporarily, it's the only place I make a beelne for. I need some of that culture.

[neorichieb1971]

For the advice you've given so far on this forum that I've had the privilege to experience first hand (before you gave the advice) I felt you gave a pretty accurate description.

If what your saying is true it sounds like my kind of place. I'd rather watch movies I haven't seen before than ones I have seen before. The only movie I ever watched at the cinema after already seeing it was the remastered Star Wars and it didn't do much for me.

I'll look at their website if they have one and see whats on the agenda.

Thanks for the insight.

[Some-Mist]

the end of the tour

I usually judge how much I like a movie based on whether I would buy it or not when it comes out on blu ray, and I would probably pass on this one. It had its memorable parts, but it was very slow moving and it didn't really focus much on david foster wallace as it did the relationship between the interviewer (jessie eisenberg) and the writer (jason segel). there were a few scenes that had me laughing pretty hard tho

Spoiler

the alanis poster and david reacting to the expense account at the gas station

but it's not really a movie I'd watch more than once or twice. still glad I got to see it on opening weekend in chicago.

[Obiwanshinobi]

Megalithic.

Worst Fight Ever?!!

Psh! I'll see your gorn fight and raise you THIS:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zVsd5ubpJ4

In the Star Trek video, the protagonist eventually calls it quits, which is the kind of sanity neorichieb1971 seems to consider missing in Hollywood's output of today. The Superman IV scene is flat out bullshit due to refracted shadows alone. No atmosphere - no refraction, end of story. Not a secret but something clearly betrayed by any sharp photo taken on the Moon's surface.
Makes one re-appreciate just how convincingly Star Wars depicted outer space, and - games-wise - how accurately Rogue Squadron II depicetd Star Wars. Just enough fog & detail scaling to suggest distance without breaking the illusion.

[neorichieb1971]

Well lets face it, most fights in Hollywood movies these days play out like a shmup boss fight. The boss has more weapons and resources at the beginning but easily loses them, only to get harder and harder as the gameplay plays out. Hollywood seems to do this a lot too. In the 2nd Avengers movie I don't remember the robots getting the upper hand in any scene at all. It would like your still watching a football match when the score is 64-0. You totally switch off because you no longer care of the outcome.

Then you have the most powerful villians who constantly ship out the shit jobs to minions who keep getting overwhelmed. It happens in Marvel flicks like Guardians of the Galaxy (Thanos is it?).. Harry Potter is the worst though. Everyone is so scared of Voldermort but doesn't even do anything in the whole 7.5 movies.

[Squire Grooktook]

Harry Potter is a book. There are no movies.

Much like The Hobbit.

[Satan]

Wow. That was a level of bad I have never experienced before. Thanks for that, I hadn't heard of Miami Connection.

[Skykid]

"My mother was Korean"

[Ixmucane2]

The Raid

An excellent action movie for the simple reason that it focuses on action. A very short prologue to provide a convincing reason for one hour and an half of gunfights and martial arts and a great setting to fight in, a meaningful development of the situation, an appropriate ending. Characters are built of what they do in combat, and even places are described through the point of fighting in them.

I have some reservations about the martial arts style of most fights (too similar between characters and strangely neglectful of holds and powerful strikes) but it doesn't matter: the impressive quality of both the choreography and the performance can carry the weight of the whole plot.

The Raid 2

The higher budget sequel retains only the protagonist, with a worse haircut, and loses the coherent setting and premise (very varied locations and combat types).
It also loses the focus on action: there are a regular topic (the lifecycle of organized crime groups: old godfathers, sinister outsiders, rebel youngsters, alliances and betrayals), complex and talkative characters (mostly villains), side plots, and curiously lyrical moments, with a very traditional overall balance.

However, fights and car chases are even better, and their tone more epic.

[BIL]

"My mother was Korean"

That towel... second only to Adebisi's hat for curiously adherent beautiful black man couture. I just realised it's on the movie's poster - and how could it not be?

[neontropics]

If anyone ever visits London, for God's sake go to the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square. It's the best movie theatre in the world.

Seen it lots of times on my passing by of China town. Unfortunately it doesn't look very glitzy and without a trusted recommendation I wouldn't go into the place. Besides that they never ever show anything in there that I've heard of (on the occasions I've gone by).

Might look into it at some point. If you ever hear of a recommended movie playing in that theatre I might make a trip down there to see it.

Glitzy? Wat?

You want to go to a multiplex there are plenty nearby, but I wouldn't ever go to the Prince Charles for glitz - I would go because it's a real independent cinema with a wonderful history, a beautifully preserved inner theatre, and the film choices are frankly immaculate.

Currently coming up is the Schwarzenegger all-nighter (Terminator, Terminator 2, True Lies, Commando, Predator) while in September is a Kubrick festival showing Paths of Glory, Killer's Kiss, Spartacus and 2001 in 70mm!

There's a bar downstairs and you can take beer into the auditorium, the events are absolutely fantastic, and the audience is always incredibly fun. They even have quote-along evenings for Arnie movies and Die Hard etc. When I went to see Mad Max 2 we got free pizza.

And as Tarantino once said, his movies haven't really been released until they're shown in the Prince Charles.

Fuck the multiplex Richie, you're missing out on a roller coaster community of cinema where the movies are actually good (or depending on the theme, purposely atrocious).

Being back in London temporarily, it's the only place I make a beelne for. I need some of that culture.

Prince Charles cinema is so damn good, Beer and Pizza nights are the best concept as well. The only fault they have IMO is that they're a bit too mainstream with their cult movies - it's like, The Big Lebowski, Blade Runner, T2, Big Trouble in Little China, They Live, some John Woo movies, etc. over and over and over. They could stand to be a bit more adventurous in their selections, there should be more italian horror movies from the 70s, sleazy yakuza movies from the 60ies, unknown 80s B-movies and things like that.

If you want to spend a bit more I REALLY recommend Screen on the Green in Angel, especially their Premier seats for about £16. Super comfy seats and they got a bar inside the cinema where they make pretty good cocktails. Mostly current movies but a fair bit of smaller movies too.

[Skykid]

^ Agree with this. There's definitely scope to broaden the catalogue into more experimental and lesser known cinema - but at the same time the PC is the best it's ever been currently. Some years ago all the movies were too new, nowadays it's classic after classic with a really inventive approach.

[GaijinPunch]

Big trouble in little China -

Surprisingly still good value for its running time. .

Not surprising at all. It's never stopped being awesome. From the first moment it was first screened, until the moment the last person has read this post. It breaks the Schrodinger's Cat paradigm.

[MX7]

About six years back when I first moved to London PCC was godly. But their film selection got a little staid and their prices jumped up a lot so I didn't bother renewing my membership. Still head back every once in a while though. Seeing Gummo on the big screen was amazing.