Don't let kids being in it deter you. It's not for kids. I think if kids watched it, they would get nightmares. The production quality is really high. I don't think there are superfluous scenes in this series. Every scene has a purpose and adds to the plot or helps character development or just plain tickles your funny bone.
- Status
DigDog
Lifer
- Jun 3, 2011
- 13,498
- 2,122
- 126
ok, i'll give it a go tonight.
unrelated: here's a raving review of Maverick
mikeymikec
Lifer
- May 19, 2011
- 17,721
- 9,611
- 136
Ready or Not (2019)
The plot is completely absurd on just about every level. The movie kept my attention, it was entertaining I suppose, but IMO this film needed either something for an actor to really get their teeth into in order to make the absurdity take a back seat, or it needed some action that achieved the same end. I think the twist needed a bit more basis as well (unless it's purely judged as a flick).
The Death of Stalin (2017)
It was amusing. Overall neither bad or particularly great, though it was competently executed. I liked Jason Isaacs in it particularly. Seeing Michael Palin again after such a long time always makes me wonder if he had the acting chops for more serious work.
12 Angry Men (1957)
I rounded off today's movie watching with this. I've seen it a few times before, it's a great movie in most senses. This time around it occurred to me that especially in this day and age I admired the character of the stockbroker-type guy possibly most, as he stuck to his evidence-based opinion until he was given sufficient reason to change it, rather than say a bunch of bigots or the weak-minded jurors right at the start who only raised their hands because they saw others doing so.
The plot is completely absurd on just about every level. The movie kept my attention, it was entertaining I suppose, but IMO this film needed either something for an actor to really get their teeth into in order to make the absurdity take a back seat, or it needed some action that achieved the same end. I think the twist needed a bit more basis as well (unless it's purely judged as a flick).
The Death of Stalin (2017)
It was amusing. Overall neither bad or particularly great, though it was competently executed. I liked Jason Isaacs in it particularly. Seeing Michael Palin again after such a long time always makes me wonder if he had the acting chops for more serious work.
12 Angry Men (1957)
I rounded off today's movie watching with this. I've seen it a few times before, it's a great movie in most senses. This time around it occurred to me that especially in this day and age I admired the character of the stockbroker-type guy possibly most, as he stuck to his evidence-based opinion until he was given sufficient reason to change it, rather than say a bunch of bigots or the weak-minded jurors right at the start who only raised their hands because they saw others doing so.
DigDog
Lifer
- Jun 3, 2011
- 13,498
- 2,122
- 126
i can answer that: he doesn't.
I also felt the same way about The Death Of Stalin, however History Buffs loved it. Apparently, it takes a lot more meaning, if you already know who the characters are IRL.
DigDog
Lifer
- Jun 3, 2011
- 13,498
- 2,122
- 126
ok so, i watched all of Season 1 of Stranger Things.
Turns out, i had already watched it. It was that forgettable.
Tbh, i didn't hate it, but i found it incredibly mediocre. The child with psychic powers out of a government facility is so uber-cliche, the story is overly simplistic, to a point where it's ridiculous.
Let's see if i get this right.
1. a government lab has opened a portal to another dimension.
2. a monster from said dimension abducts a child. (no reason, it's just a monster thing)
3. a girl with superpowers from the same facility has been trained to see inside this dimension, and she locates the child.
4. brave mother saves the child by literally just walking in and taking it back.
And i would be ok with this, were it not for the fact that it's ten hours. Ten hours for what should have been condensed into ONE 90 min film.
Also, again with the irrelevant side-stories that do not affect the main plot, but are given just as much importance.
I did like both Wynona Ryder as the mother (although the character itself is not great) and the sheriff guy. It's admirable that they have managed with psychic girl to show, without telling, that she grew up without knowing basic stuff, but again, DAYUM is this film bloated.
Flowerhead looks stupid. And it's really terrible as a threat, it has no motivation, no character.
But what really, really pissed me off, is the very first scene. They are playing some kind of D&D game, and in this day and age, the filmmakers couldnt pay fifty bucks for a D&D consultant? The things the kids say in the "demogorgon" scene make no sense, it's worse than technobabble, it's meaningless. No RPG player would say any of that stuff.
superbly mediocre and packed with cliches - would not recommend.
Turns out, i had already watched it. It was that forgettable.
Tbh, i didn't hate it, but i found it incredibly mediocre. The child with psychic powers out of a government facility is so uber-cliche, the story is overly simplistic, to a point where it's ridiculous.
Let's see if i get this right.
1. a government lab has opened a portal to another dimension.
2. a monster from said dimension abducts a child. (no reason, it's just a monster thing)
3. a girl with superpowers from the same facility has been trained to see inside this dimension, and she locates the child.
4. brave mother saves the child by literally just walking in and taking it back.
And i would be ok with this, were it not for the fact that it's ten hours. Ten hours for what should have been condensed into ONE 90 min film.
Also, again with the irrelevant side-stories that do not affect the main plot, but are given just as much importance.
I did like both Wynona Ryder as the mother (although the character itself is not great) and the sheriff guy. It's admirable that they have managed with psychic girl to show, without telling, that she grew up without knowing basic stuff, but again, DAYUM is this film bloated.
Flowerhead looks stupid. And it's really terrible as a threat, it has no motivation, no character.
But what really, really pissed me off, is the very first scene. They are playing some kind of D&D game, and in this day and age, the filmmakers couldnt pay fifty bucks for a D&D consultant? The things the kids say in the "demogorgon" scene make no sense, it's worse than technobabble, it's meaningless. No RPG player would say any of that stuff.
superbly mediocre and packed with cliches - would not recommend.
UsandThem
Elite Member
- May 4, 2000
- 16,068
- 7,380
- 146
Creature (1985) 1 / 10
As a fan of horror movies, I've seen my far share of some really bad movies. Some are so bad, they're funny. And then you have movies like this that are so bad, it's almost torturous to finish them. It had a few minor actors most be will know (Ferris Bueller's dad, the neighbor Bonnie in The 'Burbs).
This movie had to be drafted, pitched to the studio, green-lit, written, shot, and edited in one week......probably on a $10k budget for everything out the door.
As a fan of horror movies, I've seen my far share of some really bad movies. Some are so bad, they're funny. And then you have movies like this that are so bad, it's almost torturous to finish them. It had a few minor actors most be will know (Ferris Bueller's dad, the neighbor Bonnie in The 'Burbs).
This movie had to be drafted, pitched to the studio, green-lit, written, shot, and edited in one week......probably on a $10k budget for everything out the door.
If you ever thought "I want a movie like Alien, maybe with a few dashes of The Thing thrown in", but I want the creature to basically be a slow moving space slug creature (basically a guy in a rubber suit as believable as the original Japanese Godzilla movies), then this movie is for you.
nOOky
Platinum Member
- Aug 17, 2004
- 2,846
- 1,864
- 136
Saw Doctor Strange last week, Top Gun Maverick yesterday. I saw the original Top Gun in an Army theater in 1986 when I was 19. You would have to understand that period of time in the 80's, we were cheering in the movie theater. I always wanted to fly, but I had bad eyesight so it was never an option. It was the ultimate recruiting film for the Navy. I re-watched the original yesterday, and was surprised how corny it seemed lol.
DigDog
Lifer
- Jun 3, 2011
- 13,498
- 2,122
- 126
I gave it a go at The Last Movie - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067327/reference/
Dennis Hopper's directorial catastrophe, 108 minutes of people dressed in western clothes, but then clearly stating that it's not a western.
I suppose if you read the wikipedia page, you probably would understand more than if you watch the film itself.
At the start, there's a western film being shot. The filming ends, with the director saying "ok let's wrap it up and head back to Hollywood" and the title screen comes on - 25 minutes cold open. All this is filmed as an external observer, not focusing on a protagonist or trying to tell a story.
Then one of the actors runs away with a local damsel, "looking for freedom" or something. They frolic, they immerse in nature, but nothing really happens. He goes back to town and sees the peones acting like crazy, pretending to shoot a film with fake cameras. There's also some sort of confrontation between a priest and a bandido.
Much of the dialogue is in spanish.
That's it. I had to make a pastiche of the film + the wiki page to make any sense of it. It doesnt even have the visual appeal of something like The Holy Mountain.
unsurprisingly, Hopper was basically thrown out of Hollywood after this. After 1 year of cocaine and editing (that doesnt show in any way in the finished product) the film was shown in theatres to disastrous results, and he didnt direct anything else for 10 years. Frankly, i agree, the film is atrocious, it has the same quality of content that your dad's holiday film would have, despite there being people filmed, there's no coherent plot, and no attempt to deliver.
I'm all for breaking the rules of cinema, provided that it leads to a BETTER product, not to a worse one.
my vote: 5/10 - with 1 point added for historical importance, so to speak.
Dennis Hopper's directorial catastrophe, 108 minutes of people dressed in western clothes, but then clearly stating that it's not a western.
I suppose if you read the wikipedia page, you probably would understand more than if you watch the film itself.
At the start, there's a western film being shot. The filming ends, with the director saying "ok let's wrap it up and head back to Hollywood" and the title screen comes on - 25 minutes cold open. All this is filmed as an external observer, not focusing on a protagonist or trying to tell a story.
Then one of the actors runs away with a local damsel, "looking for freedom" or something. They frolic, they immerse in nature, but nothing really happens. He goes back to town and sees the peones acting like crazy, pretending to shoot a film with fake cameras. There's also some sort of confrontation between a priest and a bandido.
Much of the dialogue is in spanish.
That's it. I had to make a pastiche of the film + the wiki page to make any sense of it. It doesnt even have the visual appeal of something like The Holy Mountain.
unsurprisingly, Hopper was basically thrown out of Hollywood after this. After 1 year of cocaine and editing (that doesnt show in any way in the finished product) the film was shown in theatres to disastrous results, and he didnt direct anything else for 10 years. Frankly, i agree, the film is atrocious, it has the same quality of content that your dad's holiday film would have, despite there being people filmed, there's no coherent plot, and no attempt to deliver.
I'm all for breaking the rules of cinema, provided that it leads to a BETTER product, not to a worse one.
my vote: 5/10 - with 1 point added for historical importance, so to speak.
DigDog
Lifer
- Jun 3, 2011
- 13,498
- 2,122
- 126
Get Santa - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1935940/reference/
A fairly competent and decently made christmas caper - Santa crashes his sleigh and gets arrested, and a newly -released convict must help him get back to delivering presents.
ermm.. well, it's one of those films. The magic of christmas and all that suff. Very Steven Spielberg.
Directed by the director of Triangle, with Jim Broadbent as Santa, and the girl who butchered the last Doctor Who as the wife of the guy on parole, Warvick Davis as not-an-elf.
Decent. 7/10 but obviously, for a very specific audience.
A fairly competent and decently made christmas caper - Santa crashes his sleigh and gets arrested, and a newly -released convict must help him get back to delivering presents.
ermm.. well, it's one of those films. The magic of christmas and all that suff. Very Steven Spielberg.
Directed by the director of Triangle, with Jim Broadbent as Santa, and the girl who butchered the last Doctor Who as the wife of the guy on parole, Warvick Davis as not-an-elf.
Decent. 7/10 but obviously, for a very specific audience.
NuclearNed
Raconteur
- May 18, 2001
- 7,833
- 296
- 126
Kaido
Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
- Feb 14, 2004
- 48,414
- 5,270
- 136
Top Gun: Maverick 10/10
Absolutely perfect. Top Gun was the cake & Maverick was the icing on the cake. Great job, fantastic visuals, fun story, great popcorn movie. Absolutely recommend watching in the theater
Absolutely perfect. Top Gun was the cake & Maverick was the icing on the cake. Great job, fantastic visuals, fun story, great popcorn movie. Absolutely recommend watching in the theater
JujuFish
Lifer
- Feb 3, 2005
- 11,004
- 735
- 136
sactoking
Diamond Member
- Sep 24, 2007
- 7,525
- 2,728
- 136
Watched Lost City last night. Adventure rom-com with Sandra Bullock, Channing Tatum, Daniel Radcliffe and Brad Pitt. Don't feel like I need to watch it a second time ever, not my usual kind of movie, but was surprisingly entertained. Had several good chuckles interspersed. Would not have expected it to be as good as it was, all things considered. Biggest disappointment was probably seeing the effects of bad plastic surgery on Sandra Bullock's mouth area.
sactoking
Diamond Member
- Sep 24, 2007
- 7,525
- 2,728
- 136
Watched The King's Man a couple of nights ago. It was OK, kind of felt like the middle dragged and then the end was super rushed. Not as good as the first but definitely better than the second. Biggest disappointment was noticing very early on that the costume or the hair or something on the main woman character made her head look microscopic in proportion to her body and then not being able to unsee it the rest of the movie.
On the movie dragging and then being rushed: I get that they were establishing the father-son dynamic and wanted the shock factor to be impactful. But all that lead up was like 3/4 of the movie and then they just quickly pulled everything together and took out the bad guy in the last 10 minutes. Oh, and the bad guy "reveal" was 100% obvious.
On the very end scene: Was anyone else confused by the initial members? Like, I get the dad founded it and had his two assistants join. I also get the soldier his son swapped placed with, even though the connection was super flimsy. But the American ambassador? And the freaking King of England?!
On the movie dragging and then being rushed: I get that they were establishing the father-son dynamic and wanted the shock factor to be impactful. But all that lead up was like 3/4 of the movie and then they just quickly pulled everything together and took out the bad guy in the last 10 minutes. Oh, and the bad guy "reveal" was 100% obvious.
On the very end scene: Was anyone else confused by the initial members? Like, I get the dad founded it and had his two assistants join. I also get the soldier his son swapped placed with, even though the connection was super flimsy. But the American ambassador? And the freaking King of England?!
Muadib
Lifer
- May 30, 2000
- 17,916
- 838
- 126
I agree it's not a 10, but I give it 9.5 out of 10. I thought it was amazing. I haven't seen the first one since the 90's, but plan to catch it this weekend.
Kaido
Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
- Feb 14, 2004
- 48,414
- 5,270
- 136
I mean, it's Top Gun 1 meets Behind Enemy Lines with Owen Wilson. The first one was a lot of silly fun, and they stuck with the same vein for this one, which I appreciated!
Kaido
Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
- Feb 14, 2004
- 48,414
- 5,270
- 136
I watched the first one before I went. They did a really great job with Top Gun 2! I don't ask for much...I just want to be mindlessly entertained for 2 hours lol. It's nice to leave a movie smiling too!
Muadib
Lifer
- May 30, 2000
- 17,916
- 838
- 126
That's what I should have done. I caught a couple of things that gave homage to Top Gun, but I bet I missed a few too.
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MrSquished
Lifer
- Jan 14, 2013
- 21,288
- 19,774
- 136
I watched Dune for the 3rd and 4th times this last month. I think it is an amazing film, IF you've read the book. I would say it's a good film if you have not read the book.
My brother in law saw the movie and really liked it. Then he read the book, which he loved, saw the movie again, and said it was so so much better.
My brother in law saw the movie and really liked it. Then he read the book, which he loved, saw the movie again, and said it was so so much better.
Artorias
Platinum Member
- Feb 8, 2014
- 2,112
- 1,382
- 136
Wait isn't it supposed to be the other way around? If you have read the book then the movie shouldn't be as good?
MrSquished
Lifer
- Jan 14, 2013
- 21,288
- 19,774
- 136
That is how it always goes for me too, however Dune is an exception. Dune should have been a trilogy like LOTR. It's a very dense book. But apparently they could only make two movies, and didn't want to break much over 2.5 hours. So a lot of good and important stuff was left out and/or cut, but the movie itself is so beautiful that with the knowledge of the content that was left out and/or cut, it fills in the story in your mind and just elevates the movie.
JujuFish
Lifer
- Feb 3, 2005
- 11,004
- 735
- 136
If you only see one alternate universe movie this year, make it Everything Everywhere All at Once.
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