NOW CLOSED ; List some movies you've watched recently. Theatre, rental, TV... and give a */10

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DesiPower

Lifer
Nov 22, 2008
15,366
740
126
Fast Five - 7.0/10 - Disappointed, only because I had be lead to believe it would be better. Havent seen any since the original. Basically a heist movie, which is hard to screw up for me. Paul Walker is near the top of my terrible-actor-that-still-gets-jobs lists, and this movie didn't change that opinion. Really didn't mind any of the other characters and the Brazilian policewoman actually shined. Unfortunately the writers gave none of the characters any decent dialog. I don't mind over the top action, but I do get irked when the basic laws of physics are ignored. Eg., I'll accept it when the good guy gets 10000 rounds fired at him from professional bad guys without getting hit, but I don't like seeing people
jump hundreds of feet and land in water without ill-effect - thats what peopel do to commit suicide..
.

I watched the movie with no reservations or expectations and loved it, after watching several chik-flix and other moves that were mediocre, it was a welcome break. After I finished it I did realize that I just watched a heist movie and realized that many might not like it as they probably would be expecting a car race/chase movie...
 
Nov 29, 2006
15,598
4,049
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50/50 - 9/10

Incredible movie. Funny and very moving. I think I'm in love with Anna Kendrick. She looks exactly like my first fiancee, but far less annoying.

Id probably rate it the same. Made something get in my eye which then made it water. :p Great movie.
 

randomrogue

Diamond Member
Jan 15, 2011
5,462
0
0
The American: ?/10

I hesitate to rate this since I didn't watch it in one sitting. Also, if they didn't have that woman half naked in most of her scenes I'm not sure what I would have thought of this flick. Either way I think it was really good and enjoyed it. Clooney has like 40 words in the entire film and I'm always impressed when a movie can do more with less. It's a simple movie, with good acting, and believable characters. Try to watch it in one sitting though.
 

sandorski

No Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
70,085
5,618
126
Earth 2 - 6/10 (Netflix): A good series, but too many moments of Corniness to make it great. There are some truly touching moments throughout, but this was a series that even though I enjoyed watching, I really don't feel let down by it being canceled after a mere 19 Episodes.

Speaking of 19 episodes, Netflix has 21 listed. That's because 2 unaired episodes were included in the DVD release. Unfortunately Netflix just tacked them on at the end as Episode 20 and 21, even though Episode "20" should have been inserted between Episodes 10 and 11. Episode 21(this is probably the worst Episode IMO, truly has an epic "Really?" moment) should have been inserted between Episodes 18 and 19.

Worth watching if you need some Science Fiction, but don't expect anything new or thought provoking. It will pass some time, but you'll likely forget about it in a week or 2.
 

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,806
46
91
Attack the Block - 7/10 - was pretty good but I thought it was supposed to be more of a comedy.
 

slayer202

Lifer
Nov 27, 2005
13,682
119
106
Prisoner - 2/10:
Stars Julian McMahon and Elias Koteas. This feels like a TV movie, not sure if it was. Turned it on near the beginning, I don't think I missed anything of importance. It's about an asshole filmmaker who is at an old prison to scout the location, when someone attacks him and is holding him prisoner.

Any tiny piece of intrigue this movie creates is all killed by the ending, which isn't worth sticking around for. This movie is bad, don't watch it


Pusher - 6.5/10:
So disappointed in this. Nicolas Winding Refn's first feature film, which has led him to fame. It's about a drug dealer, Frank, who sets up a deal on credit, and has to scramble to get cash after the deal goes wrong.

This movie is apparently quite popular, especially overseas. It created a lot of opportunity for Refn. It's gotten favorable reviews. Netflix's rating system was very very high on it for me(sure, it's no science, but I find it pretty accurate). I was extremely underwhelmed. It was an ok movie, nothing more. For a movie about a drug dealer, it's not terrible as you might expect, but it's far from good. It's absolutely nothing like Refn's current stuff, Bronson or Drive. It's actually pretty amazing how far he's come.

That's about all I have to say about it. It avoids any major problems, but it doesn't do anything particularly well either. I didn't really enjoy it
 

RedCOMET

Platinum Member
Jul 8, 2002
2,837
0
0
herlock (season 1) - 9/10: The BBC re-imagining of Sherlock in modern day and it's awesome. Benedict Cumberbatch is perfect as Sherlock and Martin Freeman is great as his voice of reason, Watson. At 90 minutes per episode (there are only 3 episodes in season 1), they are essentially mini-movies and I think that format works really well for these stories. By the third episode, which to me was the strongest episode, I was really involved with the characters and I can't wait for season 2 particularly because it left things on a cliffhanger.

Just to elaborate further, I also liked how they brought in technology to the stories; enough so that it was believable and the way it shows the text on the screen was very effective. Freeman is the perfect counter to Sherlock, I feel Holmes on his own would become a bit grating, so having Freeman/Watson there to offset is just perfect.

KT

I agree.
 

KeithTalent

Elite Member | Administrator | No Lifer
Administrator
Nov 30, 2005
50,235
117
116
Tabloid - 9/10: Errol Morris' most recent documentary about Joyce McKinney, a former Miss Wyoming, who is accused of abducting a mormon missionary. I love pretty much everything Morris does and this is no exception; McKinney is a fascinating character and the tales she spins are very interesting and in stark contrast to the testimonials of the others interviewed surrounding the incident. Many great interviews and very stylish as Morris' film usually and there are some revelations that come out through the doc which keep you interested throughout and before I knew it, the movie was over. Just an overall great, fun, interesting watch.

The Grey - 8.5: Wow, I know there have been many decent reviews out there but I was still a little trepidatious going in, but man, I really liked this movie. The setting and the bleakness/despair of the guys trapped out in the wild really comes through in the film, it's almost to the point of being depressing, but in an awesome way. Neeson is great as the gruff survivalist and the entire crew of lost guys work so well together; they bring some humanity to everything, without getting sickening or sappy. There were parts where I was worried it would just fall into the normal tropes of these types of films, but it does not get into those too often, which impressed me. The ending was awesome too. Not sure whether the theatre had the AC on or something, but I actually felt very cold watching this. Oh and it has one of the most effective plane crash sequences I've seen. Surprisingly impressed with this movie. There was a girl sitting near us who was bawling by the end of the movie; she was a disaster! :D

The Adjustment Bureau - 4/10: Bah, what a ridiculous movie. I liked Matt Damon and Emily Blunt together quite a bit, but in order for this movie to work you need to buy into the premise and I did not one bit. I found it completely ridiculous, full of holes, and so implausible it was laughable. I would have preferred if they had just taken the entire Adjustment Bureau stuff out of the film and had it as a straight up love story between Damon and Blunt, but as it is, the film is an abject failure. 4 points for the leads and that's it.

Unstoppable - 7/10: A lot of people seemed to like this, but I was very skeptical considering the premise, but hell, this was a lot of fun. Sure, it's contrived and pretty obvious, plus I hated all of the stupid news story interruptions along the way, but overall it was a lot of fun. I always like Denzel and Rosario Dawson is a goddess as far as I'm concerned, so while a lot of the other characters blended into the background, these two kept me rolling through the film and before I knew it, it was over. Fun watch.

KT
 
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KeithTalent

Elite Member | Administrator | No Lifer
Administrator
Nov 30, 2005
50,235
117
116
Attack the Block - 7/10 - was pretty good but I thought it was supposed to be more of a comedy.

Agreed. The movie was fine, but I was expecting so much more.

Pusher - 6.5/10:
So disappointed in this. Nicolas Winding Refn's first feature film, which has led him to fame. It's about a drug dealer, Frank, who sets up a deal on credit, and has to scramble to get cash after the deal goes wrong.

This movie is apparently quite popular, especially overseas. It created a lot of opportunity for Refn. It's gotten favorable reviews. Netflix's rating system was very very high on it for me(sure, it's no science, but I find it pretty accurate). I was extremely underwhelmed. It was an ok movie, nothing more. For a movie about a drug dealer, it's not terrible as you might expect, but it's far from good. It's absolutely nothing like Refn's current stuff, Bronson or Drive. It's actually pretty amazing how far he's come.

That's about all I have to say about it. It avoids any major problems, but it doesn't do anything particularly well either. I didn't really enjoy it

A shame. I bought the trilogy a little while back and have been waiting for an empty day to sit down and watch them all. I still will, but my expectations will be tempered.

KT
 

slayer202

Lifer
Nov 27, 2005
13,682
119
106
The Grey - 8.5: Wow, I know there have been many decent reviews out there but I was still a little trepidatious going in, but man, I really liked this movie. The setting and the bleakness/despair of the guys trapped out in the wild really comes through in the film, it's almost to the point of being depressing, but in an awesome way. Neeson is great as the gruff survivalist and the entire crew of lost guys work so well together; they bring some humanity to everything, without getting sickening or sappy. There were parts where I was worried it would just fall into the normal tropes of these types of films, but it does not get into those too often, which impressed me. The ending was awesome too. Not sure whether the theatre had the AC on or something, but I actually felt very cold watching this. Oh and it has one of the most effective plane crash sequences I've seen. Surprisingly impressed with this movie. There was a girl sitting near us who was bawling by the end of the movie; she was a disaster! :D
KT


I'm actually getting excited for this...Will probably wait for the DVD though

A shame. I bought the trilogy a little while back and have been waiting for an empty day to sit down and watch them all. I still will, but my expectations will be tempered.

KT

Maybe you'll like it, it seems like I might be in the minority. And the two sequels are not really connected, I don't think
 

slayer202

Lifer
Nov 27, 2005
13,682
119
106
Another Earth - 8/10:
On the night of the discovery of a duplicate planet in the solar system, an ambitious young student and an accomplished composer cross paths in a tragic accident.

Another pretty good movie from 2011. This stars a somewhat new talent, Brit Marling. After watching it, I noticed she also co-wrote the film. I was impressed. There were a lot of the typical indie vibes and style going on, but she still did a solid job with her kinda quiet character. William Mapother co-stars and is great. The story is interesting as well


The Servant - 7.5/10:
A class-conscious playboy hires a seemingly dedicated manservant to manage his affairs, and soon a psychological power struggle engulfs them

I thought this film was a bit odd. I don't think it was anything special, apart from Dirk Bogarde as the servant, who is awesome.


Hour of the Wolf - 6/10:
Ouch this was a tough one. I'll start with saying I don't think I understood one sliver of this. My second Bergman movie, after The Seventh Seal. Midway through I started to wonder if he's just too much for me to handle. But after watching I went back and read Burnitdown's ratings and saw that this one was the lowest ranked, so I'll withhold hope.

This one also stars Max von Sydow as a man who seemingly is losing his mind, or can't separate reality from fantasy. The beginning of the story is introduced by his wife who explains this story is based on Johan's(Sydow) diary and her memories.

I found it very confusing, and I didn't understand what message Bergman was trying to convey. I'll also mention that it is certainly not a horror-film in any typical sense. It's more surreal/mystery.
 

Zeze

Lifer
Mar 4, 2011
11,074
995
126
Moneyball 8.5/10: "It's hard not to get romantic about baseball." is the mantra of the film. I'm not a big sports guy and I thoroughly appreciated the underbelly of big sports franchise. It's got more soul and grit than Jerry Mcguire. Well, JM is a straight up cute flick with a lame romance, Moneyball is a hardcore real story. The mood is similar to The Blindside but bit darker. I also loved the 'artistic' ending which wasn't so cliche. Very well done, I'm starting to reevaluate Jonah Hill. He's not bad at all and now I'll think of him more than just a Seth Rogan pack.

Midnight in Paris 8/10: Very charming. That's all I have to say. Holy christ Rachel McAdams gained weight. Now she's just a flat chested fat ass.
 
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Stuxnet

Diamond Member
Jun 16, 2005
8,403
1
0
Moneyball 8.5/10: "It's hard not to get romantic about baseball." is the mantra of the film. I'm not a big sports guy and I thoroughly appreciated the underbelly of big sports franchise. It's got more soul and grit than Jerry Mcguire. Well, JM is a straight up cute flick with a lame romance, Moneyball is a hardcore real story. The mood is similar to The Blindside but bit darker. I also loved the 'artistic' ending which wasn't so cliche. Very well done, I'm starting to reevaluate Jonah Hill. He's not bad at all and now I'll think of him more than just a Seth Rogan pack.

I really enjoyed Moneyball, too. I'd probably give it a 8/10 or 8.5/10, with deductions only because it's probably doesn't have much replay value (it does get a little drawn out at times, but Pitt and Hill make it work).

I took my 7 year old daughter and 8 year old son and they sat through and watched the entire thing. That says something.
 

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,806
46
91
The King's Speech - 8/10 - THis movie surprised me. I thought it was going to be dull, even had the blu-ray from netflix for 4 months because I kind of dreaded watching it, but I liked it.
 

slayer202

Lifer
Nov 27, 2005
13,682
119
106
http://gowatchit.com/queue/slayer202

I sucked it up and copied my netflix queue over here. There were a few things that I couldn't find on Watchit, a few more that didn't accurately show the available sources to watch certain things, and it doesn't support TV shows.

I don't see it being very convenient having to go back and add new things I find on netflix. I basically did it so that I have my instant queue saved. Netflix changes as of a few months ago got rid of the saved section where titles no longer available to stream would go. But damn, I added 485 movies but I've got 635 on netflix. That's not very nice
 
Oct 4, 2004
10,521
6
81
The Thing (2011)

Watched the confusingly titled prequel. I guess you could call it a remake since it does use very similar set design, structure (right down to devising a test to check who's infected), flamethrowers, elements of paranoia etc.

I thought it was a very well-produced, well-paced movie with a couple of decent BOO moments. My main criticism would be the original did an excellent job of turning up the fear/paranoia dial up to 11 and you were constantly wondering who's a thing-in-disguise, whom to trust, whom to torch. While that features here as well, it's not quite as prominent as in the original.

It also helps that Mary Elizabeth Winstead (from Scott Pilgrim vs the World) is mega-cute and an apathetic badass in the movie.
 

slayer202

Lifer
Nov 27, 2005
13,682
119
106
My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done - 6/10:
Herzog was too much for me here. That man lives in another planet, and his flamboyant quirkiness is on full display in this movie. It's based on the true story of Mark Yavorsky.
On June 10, 1979, Mark Yavorsky, an award-winning actor from the University of San Diego, killed his mother using an antique saber. He reenacted, literally, a scene from the Greek tragedy Orestes, a play in which he had been cast as the lead.
Michael Shannon stars, with a great supporting cast of Willem Dafoe, Chloe Sevigny, Michael Pena, Udo Kier, and Brad Dourif(the bookie from Herzog's Bad Lieutenant).

The film starts with the discovery that Brad(Shannon) has killed his mother, and uses flashbacks to show him slipping into some sort of psychotic state. The first five minutes had me thinking it would be a good movie, but it just didn't work for me. Herzog is too strange and it felt like a waste of such a good cast. There was so much unused potential. The flashback format didn't work too well for me either.


Here's an interesting interview about getting the film made. Over a decade in the making http://www.bu.edu/today/2010/a-murder-that-mimicked-greek-tragedy/

Here's a quick funny excerpt from the guy whose idea the project was(he had previously met with Yavorsky many times)
Did you get in touch with Yavorsky about the project?
My last contact with him was in 2001. He wrote me an incoherent letter. It sounded like he was becoming psychotic again. I didn’t respond, because I had no news. I felt I had let him down.
When the project started to happen, I tried to find him. I called the last phone number and wrote to the last address I had for him, but received no answer. I no longer had to hire a detective. I went online, and I was able to determine that he had died in 2003.
During filming, I never told the crew he was dead, because I wanted to keep them on edge. I would say, “If you see a very large guy who looks a little bit like Michael Shannon, but much scarier, let me know immediately.”
 

Zeze

Lifer
Mar 4, 2011
11,074
995
126
50 / 50 7/10: Based on the cast (Seth Rogan & 3rd Rock kid) and trailer, it seemed predictable- a cancer sap story with humor thrown in and probably some sad parts in the end.

And I was dead right. I was annoyed at Seth basically playing the exact same fucking part in EVERY movie. It's not similar, but shamelessly a carbon copy (a stoner obsessed with getting laid).

The movie had it's moments, but overall it was all predictable, tried-and-true, and brought nothing new or make an impact.
 

Locut0s

Lifer
Nov 28, 2001
22,281
43
91
Strange question. Did anyone feel a bit Pedo Bearish watching Hugo? The girl who is the love interest of the kid in the film is 14 years old and quite cute. But she's just on the edge of being sexually attractive too, not quite but there's something there. Makes you go D: a bit.
 
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