List some movies you've watched recently. Theatre, rental, TV...

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KeithTalent

Elite Member | Administrator | No Lifer
Administrator
Nov 30, 2005
50,231
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116
What's the set? How did it crap out?

It was a Samsung LNT4661F that I bought 2.5 years ago. I actually bought the extended warranty (first time I've ever bought one for myself); the TV started having these lines on the side of the screen, a few inches in from the right side. Started out black a month or so ago, then went green, and a bit red too.

It was relatively minor, but kind of annoying and it went away after the set was on for a while, but I called Futureshop and they sent a repair guy; he gave them a quote and apparently it was cost prohibitive to repair, so they gave me a new Sony 46EX500 as a replacement.

I still have some calibrating to do, so not sure if it's any better than my old set yet. :hmm:

KT
 

Locut0s

Lifer
Nov 28, 2001
22,205
43
91
It was a Samsung LNT4661F that I bought 2.5 years ago. I actually bought the extended warranty (first time I've ever bought one for myself); the TV started having these lines on the side of the screen, a few inches in from the right side. Started out black a month or so ago, then went green, and a bit red too.

It was relatively minor, but kind of annoying and it went away after the set was on for a while, but I called Futureshop and they sent a repair guy; he gave them a quote and apparently it was cost prohibitive to repair, so they gave me a new Sony 46EX500 as a replacement.

I still have some calibrating to do, so not sure if it's any better than my old set yet. :hmm:

KT

Huh well hope my screen lasts a long time. I've got a Samsung PN58A550 and love it. I too purchased the extended warranty for it and have never done so for any other product. TV screens, Cameras and a few other select products are the only things that I would recommend buying a warranty on. It's just not worth it for most other products. I know that at NCIX for example they don't even push us to sell warranties.
 

CoinOperatedBoy

Golden Member
Dec 11, 2008
1,809
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It was a Samsung LNT4661F that I bought 2.5 years ago. I actually bought the extended warranty (first time I've ever bought one for myself); the TV started having these lines on the side of the screen, a few inches in from the right side. Started out black a month or so ago, then went green, and a bit red too.

It was relatively minor, but kind of annoying and it went away after the set was on for a while, but I called Futureshop and they sent a repair guy; he gave them a quote and apparently it was cost prohibitive to repair, so they gave me a new Sony 46EX500 as a replacement.

I still have some calibrating to do, so not sure if it's any better than my old set yet. :hmm:

KT

That seems a little odd. They wouldn't replace it with another Samsung, at least?
 

KeithTalent

Elite Member | Administrator | No Lifer
Administrator
Nov 30, 2005
50,231
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Huh well hope my screen lasts a long time. I've got a Samsung PN58A550 and love it. I too purchased the extended warranty for it and have never done so for any other product. TV screens, Cameras and a few other select products are the only things that I would recommend buying a warranty on. It's just not worth it for most other products. I know that at NCIX for example they don't even push us to sell warranties.

Yeah, saved myself like $1,100 bucks after factoring in the cost of the extended. Well worth it!

That seems a little odd. They wouldn't replace it with another Samsung, at least?

They were going to originally, but the Samsung's were all on order and it would have been a couple of weeks at least for it to come in. They had one of the Bravia's in their warehouse, so they offered me that for the same price (the Bravia was $150 more).

I'm going to pop something in tonight to give the set a full workout; last night I just watched poker for an hour, which did not really give me an idea of PQ. :D

KT
 

cKGunslinger

Lifer
Nov 29, 1999
16,408
57
91
Spartacus: Blood and Sand (8/10)

Watched the full 1st season last week. Started weak, but got pretty epic the last several episodes. It's like a poor-man's 300, but with a plot and character development! ;)


Unlocking the Mysteries of Life (6.5/10)

Pro-Intelligent Design documentary, discussing first Evolution, then how it breaks down at the cellular level. Never too heavy-handed - easily watchable for everyone - and some nice animation on cellular functions. Doesn't make me believe in ID, but does a good job of reminding us that we certainly didn't know everything... yet. A lot more accessible than Privileged Planet.
 

Kev

Lifer
Dec 17, 2001
16,367
4
81
Red Cliff - 7/10

Some truly amazing epic battle scenes. I found it hard to keep track of the huge cast of characters. Also, it drags in certain areas, it feels too long at 2.5hrs.
 

sdifox

No Lifer
Sep 30, 2005
97,031
16,249
126
Red Cliff - 7/10

Some truly amazing epic battle scenes. I found it hard to keep track of the huge cast of characters. Also, it drags in certain areas, it feels too long at 2.5hrs.

err, there is two parts to it...
 

dfuze

Lifer
Feb 15, 2006
11,953
0
71
Just got around to Lord of War last night. It was ok, as long as you don't expect too much from it you won't be disappointed. I give it a 6.5/10
 

Anubis

No Lifer
Aug 31, 2001
78,712
427
126
tbqhwy.com
Whiteout: 5/10

movie wasn't horrid but it wasn't very good either. Now i wasn't expecting it to be great i was mainly watching it to make sure my TV was displaying white correctly as i had been tweaking some setting. as its set in Antarctica there's lots of white, looks good in HD, not reference level but passable. My TV is fine which is good.
Acting was normal i guess, plot was alright however it was choppy, either need more back story or about 30 more mins of footage to embellish WTF was going on a bit more. Also pretty unrealistic in many areas.
 

gsaldivar

Diamond Member
Apr 30, 2001
8,691
1
81
Kin Dza Dza: 8/10

An old Russian sci-fi film never released in the US - I've seen someone call Kin Dza Dza the last "Soviet-era masterpiece". It's gritty, earthy, low-budget, zero special effects... but its a great story. Unless you have a video store nearby that specializes in old imports and you can understand Russian, you will probably have to grab a torrent with subtitles.

Expect a long, leisurely told story in grand epic style. But don't look away, when the story moves it moves fast! If you miss a few minutes, you will be left wondering about the ending...

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091341/

I will call this one a MUST SEE for any sci-fi fans out there.

:D
 
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sandorski

No Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
70,241
5,810
126
Kin Dza Dza: 8/10

An old Russian sci-fi film never released in the US - I've seen someone call Kin Dza Dza the last "Soviet-era masterpiece". It's gritty, earthy, low-budget, zero special effects... but its a great story. Unless you have a video store nearby that specializes in old imports and you can understand Russian, you will probably have to grab a torrent with subtitles.

Expect a long, leisurely told story in grand epic style. But don't look away, when the story moves it moves fast! If you miss a few minutes, you will be left wondering about the ending...

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091341/

I will call this one a MUST SEE for any sci-fi fans out there.

:D


Look what I found

Haven't watched it yet, just first few minutes, but it has English Subtitles.

I give it 7/10--Similar type of movie to Dr Who or Hitchhikers Guide..., what I mean by that is that it's very quirky with Odd characters. Once again I find myself impressed by a Soviet Movie. Just never knew or even thought they had such Talent, having been fed Anti-Soviet Propaganda(not that it was wrong in many ways) throughout my Youth.

I wonder what other Gems are waiting to be discovered from the Soviet Movie archives?
 
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thedarkwolf

Diamond Member
Oct 13, 1999
9,005
111
106
Hot Tube Time Machine 7/10
Yes it is very stupid but I thought it was entertaining. Loved all the 80s crap and got a kick out of the "I want my $2" nod to Better Off Dead lol.
 

pontifex

Lifer
Dec 5, 2000
43,804
46
91
I Sell the Dead - 7/10 - not bad, fairly entertaining with some comedic effect. Dominic Monaghan (Charlie from Lost) is one of the main characters.
 

Aquila76

Diamond Member
Apr 11, 2004
3,549
1
0
www.facebook.com
Stonehenge Apocalypse - 7/10

Interesting premise that links all the lore of Stonehenge, Egyptian Pyramids, Aztec Pyramids, and Earth's magnetic energy lines into one tale of cataclysmic destruction. Misha Collins (aka Castiel from Supernatural) stars in this. It was actually pretty decent for a SyFy original movie. Some parts are absolutely predictable (
Nuke-happy General, fringe scientist convincing mainstream scientists, 'surprise' plot twists, etc.
) but still it was overall enjoyable.

Stonehenge starts sending EMF pulsewaves to various pyramids around the world, resulting in super-volcanoes that threaten to eventually tear the Earth apart. It is up to Jacob (a fallen-from-grace scientist) to figure out how to save the world by way of locating and utilizing a lost artifact before it is used to destroy the world. This movie actually tied up all the loose ends and seemed well constructed and acted - rather surprising for an evening SyFy movie. Not a 'must-see', but definitely worth a watch.
 

nakedfrog

No Lifer
Apr 3, 2001
59,303
13,915
136
The Gamers: Dorkness Rising (via Netflix streaming) was hilarious (mostly for former D&D players).
 

gimmewhitecastles

Golden Member
Mar 2, 2005
1,834
0
0
City Of God - 7/10

A pretty upfront take on slumlife in Brazil. It's shocking to see how coldblooded the kids can be. I can't tell if it's a near accurate portrayal or it's an overglamourized version by the director. It was an enjoyable movie and left an impression, but like other "based on a true story" type movies, I can't lock it in as a personal favorite.
 

dainthomas

Lifer
Dec 7, 2004
14,636
3,510
136
Whiteout: 5/10

movie wasn't horrid but it wasn't very good either. Now i wasn't expecting it to be great i was mainly watching it to make sure my TV was displaying white correctly as i had been tweaking some setting. as its set in Antarctica there's lots of white, looks good in HD, not reference level but passable. My TV is fine which is good.
Acting was normal i guess, plot was alright however it was choppy, either need more back story or about 30 more mins of footage to embellish WTF was going on a bit more. Also pretty unrealistic in many areas.

Shower scene = Win

They should have stopped after that. Or maybe just repeated it for 90 minutes.
 

slayer202

Lifer
Nov 27, 2005
13,679
119
106
I watched about 5 or 10 minutes of valkyrie last night on TV, it was already about 15 minutes into the movie. I watched up until tom cruise has his quick meeting with hitler.

idk what I was missing, but the accents, and lack of accents really threw me off. Though I didn't see the beginning, the plot seemed basic enough, and it seemed like a pretty shitty movie

theres a good rottentomato blurb from some dude

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/12/24/DDLO14U652.DTL&type=movies
Think of Valkyrie as a reasonably entertaining drama about the time Tom Cruise tried to kill Hitler. Do that, and it becomes possible to enjoy the movie.
 

CoinOperatedBoy

Golden Member
Dec 11, 2008
1,809
0
76
like other "based on a true story" type movies, I can't lock it in as a personal favorite.

Curious about this. Is this coincidental, or do you have some reason behind disliking these types of films? I ask because most people seem to find greater impact in films based on true stories (an inclination in viewers that the Cohen brothers have exploited).
 

gimmewhitecastles

Golden Member
Mar 2, 2005
1,834
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0
Curious about this. Is this coincidental, or do you have some reason behind disliking these types of films? I ask because most people seem to find greater impact in films based on true stories (an inclination in viewers that the Cohen brothers have exploited).

I don't dislike these types of movies per se, but they don't have as much of a draw to my inner senses for lack of a better explanation. Personally, I more inclined toward movies that required a lot of creativity and imagination to craft. Inception is a good example. In contrast, Avatar was utter dreck because of horrible scripting. (In retrospect, the story itself was cliche/unimaginative as you can get)

I do like "based on a true story" type movies if they do it well, but in the case of City of God, the acting itself was a little more dry, probably because they tried to have a realistic effect. (Li'l Dice/Ze's character was one of the more colorful characters I've seen actually)

I guess I don't prefer dry acting in general. Michael Clayton was a good movie but because it was so dry, I probably won't see it again unless I'm extremely bored.
 

CoinOperatedBoy

Golden Member
Dec 11, 2008
1,809
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I don't dislike these types of movies per se, but they don't have as much of a draw to my inner senses for lack of a better explanation. Personally, I more inclined toward movies that required a lot of creativity and imagination to craft. Inception is a good example. In contrast, Avatar was utter dreck because of horrible scripting. (In retrospect, the story itself was cliche/unimaginative as you can get)

I do like "based on a true story" type movies if they do it well, but in the case of City of God, the acting itself was a little more dry, probably because they tried to have a realistic effect. (Li'l Dice/Ze's character was one of the more colorful characters I've seen actually)

I guess I don't prefer dry acting in general. Michael Clayton was a good movie but because it was so dry, I probably won't see it again unless I'm extremely bored.

Fair enough. I know what you mean. If a story moves slowly and the acting is bland (even intentionally), it can seem more like watching the news or a documentary.

Then again, I liked Michael Clayton a lot. ;) But I can see a lot of films of this style that don't have a firm, underlying tension.
 
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