Come December, keep in mind there is already a Star Wars thread - Movie Reviews

[Reply #120 on:]

Oh yeah, this thread exists. Let's go through the movies I've recently seen:

Shaun of the Dead
Very fun movie. I especially loved the shot of Shaun walking down the road, oblivious to all the carnage around him. And all the really clumsy zombie kills.

The Departed
Didn't really know much about the movie going in, but it was a pretty intense experience. I love stories involving undercover cops, and it kind of makes me want to see Sleeping Dogs adapted to a movie or TV series. I definitely wasn't expecting that scene in the elevator. You know the one.

Fight Club
It's a shame I already knew about the big twist beforehand because I feel like it would've been an amazing experience seeing it come to light first-hand. Regardless, it was a really cool story and the scene where the guy beats himself up in front of his boss was amazing. The dialogue ant acting were also really phenomenal.

Inglorious Basterds
In other Brad Pitt news... I can't remember the last time I was this impressed with a movie. I seriously, fucking loved this one. The ridiculous sadism from the Americans, the strangely intense strudel scene, everything was just jam-pack with brilliance. I'll definitely want to be rewatching this one at some point.

Up
Hmm, this one looks a bit out of place among all these bloodbaths. But yeah, it's been a while since I've seen a Pixar film and this was a fun, heartwarming adventure. Although I will admit that I was slightly underwhelmed by the first 15 minutes, which I've heard were supposed to be super sad. But I guess they did well with what they had, and all the cute talking doggies made up for it.

[Reply #121 on:]

Jaws 40th Anniversary Screening

Got to see this at work. So much fun! I had only seen part of the movie prior to this so it was basically like seeing it in theaters in 1975.

[Reply #122 on:]

Jaws 40th Anniversary Screening

...so it was basically like seeing it in theaters in 1975.

Ahem...

I knew zero about the film before seeing it, other than that people were raving about it.  And of course I was immediately sucked in and taken for the emotional thrillride of my life

"I think you are going to ignore this particular problem until it swims up and bites you on the ass!"
"We're gonna' need a bigger boat."
"Smile, you son-of-a-bitch!"

And the scene with Quint recalling his experience on the Indy???

I have the extended edition: don't bother.  But now I'm so fired up recalling Jaws, I want to put it on right now!

[edit]

Now you have me thinking...  what movies did I see at the theatre when I was younger.  It's difficult to recall, even though I hardly ever went to the movies.

Show spoiler

Off the top of my head and in no particular order:

• Mary Poppins

• The Sound of Music

• Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

• Love Story

• Billy Jack

• Jaws

• The Sting

• The Godfather

• Thunderball

• The French Connection

• Bonny and Clyde

• Tommy, a Rock Opera

• Cool Hand Luke

• Doctor Zhivago

• The Exorcist

• Grand Prix

• M*A*S*H

• Patton

• 2001: A Space Odyssey

• Paint Your Wagon

• Smoky and the Bandit

And of course Star Wars.  That's probably 25% of the ones I saw.

[Reply #123 on:]

Fight Club
It's a shame I already knew about the big twist beforehand because I feel like it would've been an amazing experience seeing it come to light first-hand.

I read the book either last year or the year before after seeing a bit of the middle of the movie and I had still managed to avoid any knowledge of the fact that there even was a big twist before reading the book. It was pretty amazing seeing it come to light first-hand since I wasn't even reading it with the mindset of "oh, I wonder what the big twist is gonna be".

500 Days of Summer

It's kind of an oldish movie to be reviewing, but it helped me with this breakup a bit. Joseph Gordon Levvitt was even more of a whiny crybaby than I am. Makes me feel a little better. But in seriousness, I found it to be a good movie, with good acting. I really like Zooey Deschanel so that may have something to do with it, but I think it's a good look at love and how we don't always look at the bad and the warning signs, but rather the good. It's a good film, to me, I really enjoyed it.

I just (re)watched this last night. It's a good sad-time movie. I always like that it's a movie in which the guy doesn't get the girl in the end, as that's far more relatable for me.

[Reply #124 on:]

Jaws 40th Anniversary Screening

Got to see this at work. So much fun! I had only seen part of the movie prior to this so it was basically like seeing it in theaters in 1975.

Aw fuck, I forgot about that.  So now I have to wait another 40 years.

[Reply #125 on:]

Fight Club
It's a shame I already knew about the big twist beforehand because I feel like it would've been an amazing experience seeing it come to light first-hand.

I read the book either last year or the year before after seeing a bit of the middle of the movie and I had still managed to avoid any knowledge of the fact that there even was a big twist before reading the book. It was pretty amazing seeing it come to light first-hand since I wasn't even reading it with the mindset of "oh, I wonder what the big twist is gonna be".

I actually thought the book phoned in the twist a lot harder than the film did, and that's saying a lot given how many hints there are. Though having said that, I saw the film first.

Show spoiler

I figured out the twist the moment he was beating himself up and claimed that it reminded him of his first fight with Tyler. Not sure how I missed all those flashes of Tyler Durden in the first half hour, though.

[Reply #126 on:]

GOOD NEWS EVERYONE!!! I'm backkkkkkk

   So a few weekends ago I went and saw Jurassic World in 3D 😱😱 exciting. And it was fucking AMAZING!!! No it is not better than the first trilogy of Jurassic park (or the first movie I should say) because they are the originals. So boom, they win. But it is definitely comparable and I highly recommend it. I'll give it an A cause I'm feeling generous today.

[Reply #127 on:]

No it is not better than the first trilogy of Jurassic park (or the first movie I should say) because they are the originals.

Wouldn't the book technically be the original?

Also, welcome back, Shiny!

[Reply #128 on:]

Well yes the book is the originalllll but I mean movie-wise, the first one is the best in a movie series usually kinda like children.......I wish.  And thank youuu I missed you guys!

[Reply #129 on:]

   So a few weekends ago I went and saw Jurassic World in 3D...

I might see it when I travel back East this August.  Otherwise I'll just pick it up on blu-ray some day.

GOOD NEWS EVERYONE!!! I'm backkkkkkk

First Cartoonlover is back, and now her trusty ShinyMetal sidekick, too?  Welcome back, girl!

[Reply #130 on:]

movie-wise, the first one is the best in a movie series

Terminator 2 and Toy Story 2 & 3 would like to have a word with you.

usually

Oh... nevermind.

[Reply #131 on:]

Yeah I was thinking about some of those too AND EXCUSE ME TACHY, SHE JUST SO HAPPENS TO BE MYYYY SIDEKICK  (but it's nice hearing from you again I missed yah )

[Reply #132 on:]

Terminator 2...

Did you have a traumatic experience when watching T1, dude?  T2 is a fine action flick with some nice callbacks and everything, but if T1 is a 10 (and it is) T2 is maybe an 8.

If you tell me that you preferred Aliens over Alien I will be seriously bummed out.  I might even cry

AND EXCUSE ME TACHY, SHE JUST SO HAPPENS TO BE MYYYY SIDEKICK

OK, OK.  You guys really came across as being a team, so I simply guessed which of you was the sidekick

[edit]

I *was* going to drag my non-shiny, non-metal ass outside and put 20-30 miles on my bike to attempt to reduce the size of my non-shiny, non-metal ass, but I'm beat from helping pull over a literal ton of old servers other equipment out of the lab today, stripping out the drives, and loading everything into a heavy-duty dumpster for recycling.

So fuckitall, I think I'll head home instead, fix something to eat, pour a pint of Murphy's Irish stout, and watch Jaws for the first time in ages and crank up the volume.

* [ edit 3 ]
Which is proving a wee bit difficult at the moment.  Because I cannot locate my Jaws disc!  I'm trying to think...  did I send it to my ex when I was splitting up our stuff? <looks at the movie shelf, again>

Independence Day
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (never watched)
Iron Man trilogy
Jurassic Park trilogy
K-19

No Jaws :(

Oh!  Can you play the Jaws theme intro on your cello??  Wouldn't it be fun to watch Jaws with a live orchestra?

[edit 2]

And if for some horrible reason you've never *seen* Jaws before... , for the love of Benji be sure to watch it on a big screen (50-inch+) for your first time!

[Reply #133 on:]

Yesss jaws is honestly so fun to play on any instrument,  and yeah I think I'll just sit back and Netflix in my hermit mode for the next two months

[Reply #134 on:]

Fight Club
It's a shame I already knew about the big twist beforehand because I feel like it would've been an amazing experience seeing it come to light first-hand.

I read the book either last year or the year before after seeing a bit of the middle of the movie and I had still managed to avoid any knowledge of the fact that there even was a big twist before reading the book. It was pretty amazing seeing it come to light first-hand since I wasn't even reading it with the mindset of "oh, I wonder what the big twist is gonna be".

I actually thought the book phoned in the twist a lot harder than the film did, and that's saying a lot given how many hints there are. Though having said that, I saw the film first.

Show spoiler

I figured out the twist the moment he was beating himself up and claimed that it reminded him of his first fight with Tyler. Not sure how I missed all those flashes of Tyler Durden in the first half hour, though.

Really? I actually felt the exact opposite. When I watched the movie properly after reading the book I was like "I feel like I probably would have seen this coming if I watched the whole movie first" but that's probably because I knew what the twist was and was looking for hints.

[Reply #135 on:]

I've never had the slightest desire to watch Fight Club.  What's special about it, other than some apparent major twist?  Is it a totally different film than the one implied by the trailers?

[Reply #136 on:]

I haven't watched a trailer for it in a while, but I imagine so. It's extremely well-directed (David Fincher at his finest) and is actually a very clever commentary on society.

[Reply #137 on:]

Fight Club
It's a shame I already knew about the big twist beforehand because I feel like it would've been an amazing experience seeing it come to light first-hand.

How much about the twist did you know exactly? I ask because when I saw the movie for the first time (about a year and a half ago) I had already known what the twist was and kept it in mind while watching, but because I didn't know the explanation of how the twist worked, the reveal was still pretty exciting.

Show spoiler

That is to say, all I knew was "they're the same person." I didn't even know which characters "they" were other than "the main two guys," although it quickly became apparent who those were. However, I was thinking this meant either that they'd never be onscreen or confirmed "existing" at the same time, or that one would only be onscreen when the other was too and be cleverly written to never directly interact with or be noticed by anyone else (without the audience necessarily catching on at first). The idea of one projecting oneself back and forth between the two characters at different times did not occur to me, and was a gratifying explanation for all the times in the movie for which either of my theories were incompatible.

Oh, and I also had known beforehand that the movie involved soap. Between that and the title, I pictured the majority of the movie's scenes taking place in, like, a crowded locker room with bloody suds and bubbles everywhere. I was pleasantly surprised to see that this was not the case!

Is it a totally different film than the one implied by the trailers?

It's funny that you should ask, because the special edition DVD shows the movie to have had dozens of trailers, each tailored for a different audience, and it could be a fascinating study in marketing. The most telling is the difference between the "male" and "female" trailers--the former implies nothing but testosterone-fueled fighting and gore, while the latter makes the movie look like a quirky romantic comedy. And both are...only kind of true?

I know I was surprised, and pleasantly so, to find how little of the movie's overall run time is spent on the fight club itself, and how hilarious and intriguing the story actually is. I'd agree with Josh and say that it's more of a satire than anything else, and a very well-made and worthwhile one.

[Reply #138 on:]

How much about the twist did you know exactly? I ask because when I saw the movie for the first time (about a year and a half ago) I had already known what the twist was and kept it in mind while watching, but because I didn't know the explanation of how the twist worked, the reveal was still pretty exciting.

Show spoiler

That is to say, all I knew was "they're the same person." I didn't even know which characters "they" were other than "the main two guys," although it quickly became apparent who those were. However, I was thinking this meant either that they'd never be onscreen or confirmed "existing" at the same time, or that one would only be onscreen when the other was too and be cleverly written to never directly interact with or be noticed by anyone else (without the audience necessarily catching on at first). The idea of one projecting oneself back and forth between the two characters at different times did not occur to me, and was a gratifying explanation for all the times in the movie for which either of my theories were incompatible.

Oh, and I also had known beforehand that the movie involved soap. Between that and the title, I pictured the majority of the movie's scenes taking place in, like, a crowded locker room with bloody suds and bubbles everywhere. I was pleasantly surprised to see that this was not the case!

Show spoiler

I was in a similar boat to you. I knew "They're the same person" and as soon as Tyler was introduced I was pretty sure I knew who "they" were. After Tyler slept with whats-her-name and she reacted with confusion when Edward Norton asked why she was at the house I figured out how it was all working. Despite that, the plot developed in a fascinating direction, so it still had me glued to the screen.

[Reply #139 on:]

Yeah I was thinking about some of those too AND EXCUSE ME TACHY, SHE JUST SO HAPPENS TO BE MYYYY SIDEKICK  (but it's nice hearing from you again I missed yah )

You're the sidekick.

[Reply #140 on:]

Excuse me I'll have you know there's no batman without robin, peanut butter without jelly, waffles without Canada at its best. The point is, we both have our sidekick moments, yours are just more frequent.

 Yours truly, the main one

[Reply #141 on:]

I'll have you know there's no batman without robin

Batman was created quite a while before Robin, and the last two Batman movie franchises didn't introduce him until the third film. Also, Batman has had several Robins. They die like hamsters (every few years, easily replaced by one that looks pretty similar). He goes for months without one, sometimes.

Anyhow, neither of you are really sidekick and protagonist in the vast tapestry that is the story of PEEL. You're more like Rosencrantz and Guildenstern; comic relief destined to go to the block together when you've served your purpose in the overall plot. Or possibly Caliban and Stephano (you can argue between yourselves who is the monster and who is the idiot).

The protagonist here is, of course, winna. The rest of us are merely players on his stage. The overall plot is difficult to discern, but in the end it's most likely a tale full of sound and fury, signifying nothing (and therefore nothing to worry about).

Um. I mean, I watched the 1980 Popeye movie recently, and I'd forgotten how damn good it is. I mean, it's a goofy, silly, cartoon-y, bit of fun. It's no masterpiece, but it's still entertaining. If any of you have never seen it or haven't seen it in years, then watch it this weekend and let yourself enjoy it utterly (by suspending your disbelief as high as possible, and allowing yourself to pretend that the world works on the same principles as the logic of cartoons and small children).

With regard to Fight Club, I remember being not too shocked by the twist at the end, but then again I'd sort of been expecting it thanks to references in popular culture (I didn't see it until it was shown on TV, and whilst nothing was spoiled outright I knew enough to be able to connect the dots).

I think I might have to watch that this weekend. It's another one I haven't seen for a while.

[Reply #142 on:]

Tnuk, I think you always word things perfectly. Couldn't agree more. Winna does run the show.

And my favorite batman, Michael Keaton, never had a Robin, so suck it Shiny.

[Reply #143 on:]

Wait CAN WE BE DUMB AND DUMBER, I wanna be dumber! And thanks Tnuk I probably should have known that considering the countless amount of times I drew batman stick figures in the girls bathroom at many public places oh well, I do now

[Reply #144 on:]

I was wondering who drew that stick figure Batman in that girl's bathroom stall I was taking a shit in.

[Reply #145 on:]

Yeah that was me, it's become an unhealthy addiction. When peeing my hand just craves drawings low grade images of batman all over the stalls

[Reply #146 on:]

I'm having a hard time imagining what a Batman stick figure even looks like. All I can see is an anthropomorphic cat.

Speaking of Batman, I should get around to seeing some of the old ones. Besides the Nolan trilogy, I've only seen the shit ones (Batman Forever and Batman and Robin).

And nobody can convince me that Jim Carrey isn't an absolutely horrible Riddler.

[Reply #147 on:]

I LOVE JIM CARREY

 Speaking of Jim, THEY TOOK BRUCE ALMIGHTY OFF OF NETFLIX..... I don't know who they is, but I will find them.....and I will terminate them....

[Reply #148 on:]

I LOVE JIM CARREY

Have you seen Batman Forever? Because that's a great way to make you not love Jim Carrey.

[Reply #149 on:]

And nobody can convince me that Jim Carrey isn't an absolutely horrible Riddler.

Ugh. You sonofabitch.



The full argument I'd make is that Jim Carrey, as Edward Nygma, is much better at doing the weird obsessive and neurotic loner than Jamie Foxx is. He has the look and cadence of a nerdy creep and can do a lot more physically. Also in a fraction of the time, we meet and understand Nygma's character and his relationship to Bruce Wayne/Batman and why it's doomed. Nygma wants to be Bruce Wayne but he's coming at it from a disturbing way and he's greedy for intellectual and cultural power. When he becomes The Riddler his typical rubberface schtick is amped to 11 but you know this:



Still makes a hell of a lot more sense than just about everything in Amazing Spider-Man 2.

[Reply #150 on:]

I LOVE JIM CARREY

Have you seen Batman Forever? Because that's a great way to make you not love Jim Carrey.

True. He sucks in that movie very badly.

[Reply #151 on:]

The full argument I'd make is that Jim Carrey, as Edward Nygma, is much better at doing the weird obsessive and neurotic loner than Jamie Foxx is. He has the look and cadence of a nerdy creep and can do a lot more physically. Also in a fraction of the time, we meet and understand Nygma's character and his relationship to Bruce Wayne/Batman and why it's doomed. Nygma wants to be Bruce Wayne but he's coming at it from a disturbing way and he's greedy for intellectual and cultural power. When he becomes The Riddler his typical rubberface schtick is amped to 11 but you know this:

Well, I've got no opinion Jamie Foxx in the Amazing Spider-man 2 because I haven't seen it. But Riddler? He was pretty much the Joker. Laughing and being crazy in dumb pajamas, and not really delving into his obsessive need to prove how smart he is.

Mind you, Tommy Lee Jones was also a shitty Two-Face. And Uma Thurman was an even worse Poison Ivy. Come to think of it, Joel Schumacher didn't cast a single decent character in those movies.

[Reply #152 on:]

I LOVE JIM CARREY

Have you seen Batman Forever? Because that's a great way to make you not love Jim Carrey.

I need to seeee it I'm more of a Spider-Man fan

[Reply #153 on:]

The full argument I'd make is that Jim Carrey, as Edward Nygma, is much better at doing the weird obsessive and neurotic loner than Jamie Foxx is. He has the look and cadence of a nerdy creep and can do a lot more physically. Also in a fraction of the time, we meet and understand Nygma's character and his relationship to Bruce Wayne/Batman and why it's doomed. Nygma wants to be Bruce Wayne but he's coming at it from a disturbing way and he's greedy for intellectual and cultural power. When he becomes The Riddler his typical rubberface schtick is amped to 11 but you know this:

Well, I've got no opinion Jamie Foxx in the Amazing Spider-man 2 because I haven't seen it. But Riddler? He was pretty much the Joker. Laughing and being crazy in dumb pajamas, and not really delving into his obsessive need to prove how smart he is.

Mind you, Tommy Lee Jones was also a shitty Two-Face. And Uma Thurman was an even worse Poison Ivy. Come to think of it, Joel Schumacher didn't cast a single decent character in those movies.

No and I'm not really defending either Batman Forever or Batman and Robin, although I think they are entertainingly bad. I'm just saying that there are kernels of a really creepy character in Carrey's performance that probably could have been done really well had another director and vision for Batman been in mind. I'm also saying Amazing Spider-Man 2 is a terrible movie.

[Reply #154 on:]

I'm having a hard time imagining what a Batman stick figure even looks like. All I can see is an anthropomorphic cat.

You're welcome.

[Reply #155 on:]

Thank you Tnuk for showing the world my bathroom batman art

[Reply #156 on:]

Minions

Interestingly enough both Inside Out and Minions were released on the same day (25 June) here in New Zealand.

I thought it was pretty good, especially for a side-kick movie. The minions don't feel quite so zany as they did in the previous two movies but that's because this film mainly follows a few individuals who therefore have to carry a conventional story structure by themselves. Still, the writers have done a pretty good job of balancing an ongoing narrative with hilarious set pieces.

I went into Minions really fearful that it would be awful and was very relieved to find that it wasn't. (I still prefer Inside Out, though.)

Grade: B+

[Reply #157 on:]

Cool review hobbitboy! I was hoping someone would review it because to me minions are becoming ridiculously overused and I wasn't sure if it would be any good or not.

[Reply #158 on:]

Sriracha

This is a short documentary that feels like an even shorter documentary.  It follows the cliched "I'm going on a journey..."-narrative structure parodies by Charlie Brooker in an episode of "How TV Ruined Your Life".  The  film features some neat glamor shots of agriculture and industry and tells the story of the Huy Fong founder, who seems like a pretty cool guy.  I learned some things from Sriracha, including that it's not a brand name, and its most famous example is made in California.  I can't say I like the sauce any more than I did before I watched it, and I certainly don't like it as much as some of the vox pops, but the documentary is a quick watch that's kind of interesting.

[Reply #159 on:]

Ted 2

    This movie was greattttt, go see it. Right now,  get off yah lazy bums and see it. I'm not gonna give it an A cause it could've beeeennn betterrr. But it was still really good so I'll give it a B+