Films Recently Watched

  On 9/17/2021 at 10:16 AM, usagi said:

manchildren in a tizzy after another decent filmmaker dares to criticise the mindless shit-factory that is the MCU.

pretty funny coming from Blomkamp who is demonstrating an increasing incapability of making an even passable flick. I had some sympathy for his struggle but it seems undeserved now.

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lol dont get me started on Marvel

Marvel movies are the equivalent of a cinematic big mac.

They want your dollars and thats it.Sure some craft is involved in them but they are as low as you can get on the integrity spectrum of cinema. Cool for kids i guess, cool for some entertainment, but that cant be the only thing studios are making, it has become pathetic.

The fact that guys like Denis Villeneuve and Scorcese almost have to apologize for criticizing the BS Marvel cinematic fastfood factory tells you a lot about the state of the artform in the USA...

When Scorcese tells you something about movies you may want to at least pay some attention. He's masterpiece maker.

They cant even pay their writers decently.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/aug/09/marvel-and-dc-face-backlash-over-pay-they-sent-a-thank-you-note-and-5000-the-movie-made-1bn

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/jan/23/quentin-tarantino-blockbusters-originals-star-wars-franchises-superhero-movie-martin-scorsese-marvel

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/nov/05/martin-scorsese-superhero-marvel-movies-debate-sadness

Arrival is a classic ^^

Only watched 1 of those comic films, because I was literally press hanged into watching it, the one with Chris Pratt a squirrelly raccoon and a sexy green lady in. I thought it was pretty entertaining and funny. But I’ll never bother with anything else. There’s grown men at work who go out of their way to watch that dreck. Lol muppets.

Very nitpicky but I'm watching No Country for Old Men and there's a few scenes where you can see graffiti tags (the film is set in Texas in 1980) and there's one that says 2006 next to it. Found it funny but good film regardless.

  On 9/18/2021 at 3:32 PM, beerwolf said:

Arrival is a classic ^^

Only watched 1 of those comic films, because I was literally press hanged into watching it, the one with Chris Pratt a squirrelly raccoon and a sexy green lady in. I thought it was pretty entertaining and funny. But I’ll never bother with anything else. There’s grown men at work who go out of their way to watch that dreck. Lol muppets.

I've seen all of them, and honestly the first Guardians and Thor Ragnarok are the only ones that stand out.

I'm embarrassed to say I still was fairly entertained through most of them, but I wouldn't go back and rewatch, not really material that warrants further viewing, leaves the mind as soon as the credits roll.

I saw Dune yesterday during a stopover in Paris. Came away with very mixed feelings. The set design and visuals are incredible - you can see where the money was spent. The cast is stellar and it's a quite detailed and comprehensive telling of the book.

But it didn't do it for me the same way the David Lynch movie did.

Lynch's Dune remains, well truly alien. The new version doesn't have that. It's still a must-see movie but it felt a little hollow and pedestrian.

Maybe I've just the 80s version too many times.

Of course, it's only half the story and if it does well, there is the second half.

  On 9/18/2021 at 10:31 PM, Silent Member said:

I've seen all of them, and honestly the first Guardians and Thor Ragnarok are the only ones that stand out.

I'm embarrassed to say I still was fairly entertained through most of them, but I wouldn't go back and rewatch, not really material that warrants further viewing, leaves the mind as soon as the credits roll.

I feel basically the same about new Star Wars stuff in all fairness.

I still watch em and somewhat enjoy them because you know, it defined my childhood, but when it's finished i get this aftertaste in my mouth.

Like Disney kinda fucked me over nostalgia you know? hahaha

just watched Under the Skin finally. it's good to see movies still manage to get made every once in a while.  9.5/10

On the topic of Disney Marvel and Star Wars:

The nostalgia factor is probably what the writers are trying to hit us with. I think that the MCU is definitely not on par with my favorite artsy films. I am a pretty die hard Lynch fan, and like a lot of you I also am into Kubrick, Aronofsky, Nolan, blah blah blah. But- the MCU really has done something unprecedented with the interconnections and how it compares/mirrors the comic book universe formula. Nobody else has ever done something like that leading to the Infinity stuff and whatnot. I read a lot of comics, mainly trippy sci-fi, but some super hero stuff, and I think they do a good job of capturing the essence of what makes them great. 

I don’t really know if some of these big deal directors are super hero, or comic book fans, so I really don’t care about how they feel about those movies. Just like I don’t care about how Stan Lee felt about Aphex Twin.

All that being said- it’s mainly about my son, and family- and going thru a lot of this stuff with them. I mean- the second season of Mandalorian was really awesome after going thru all the Star Wars stuff with him, and I do read some of the SW books and comics and have been a pretty obsessed fan my whole life. Just, basically I’m trying to say that that seeing these things come to fruition thru Disney, like with marvel: Thanos, Drax, Kang, Celestials…..these were things I never thought I’d see on film when I was a kid. My son has played these games and watched all the shit, and knows it, as well as most of his friends. It’s like “their” original Star Wars trilogy. The average elementary school kid knows who Thanos is? That’s pretty fucking cool IMO. 

I enjoyed The Green Knight. Pretty cool look to it.

Lucky (7.9/10) - Great bit of daring indie Expressionism. The only thing I didn't like about it was nothing to do with the film proper: You know when you encounter rich, profound symbolism in art, and then the artist walks up and says "Yeah so this painting represents specifically the Oklahoma rice shortage of 1941" or whatever? Basically that. Otherwise: brilliant.

Tenet (8.7/10) - Bought the DVD, watched it over and over until I understood every second of it. Over-maligned.

Inherent Vice (9.6/10) - Bought the DVD, watched it over and over again until I understood every second of it. I could watch this once a week.

The Endless (8.3/10) - Brilliant indie sci-fi. Possible tagline: come out and live in a religious community in a beautiful place out in the country...again! 

She Dies Tomorrow (6.1/10) - Half the acting is really good; half the acting is really bad. Cool premise, elegant look, but the bizzarely-stilted acting destroyed the effect.

  On 9/21/2021 at 3:14 PM, Himelstein said:

On the topic of Disney Marvel and Star Wars:

The nostalgia factor is probably what the writers are trying to hit us with. I think that the MCU is definitely not on par with my favorite artsy films. I am a pretty die hard Lynch fan, and like a lot of you I also am into Kubrick, Aronofsky, Nolan, blah blah blah. But- the MCU really has done something unprecedented with the interconnections and how it compares/mirrors the comic book universe formula. Nobody else has ever done something like that leading to the Infinity stuff and whatnot. I read a lot of comics, mainly trippy sci-fi, but some super hero stuff, and I think they do a good job of capturing the essence of what makes them great. 

I don’t really know if some of these big deal directors are super hero, or comic book fans, so I really don’t care about how they feel about those movies. Just like I don’t care about how Stan Lee felt about Aphex Twin.

All that being said- it’s mainly about my son, and family- and going thru a lot of this stuff with them. I mean- the second season of Mandalorian was really awesome after going thru all the Star Wars stuff with him, and I do read some of the SW books and comics and have been a pretty obsessed fan my whole life. Just, basically I’m trying to say that that seeing these things come to fruition thru Disney, like with marvel: Thanos, Drax, Kang, Celestials…..these were things I never thought I’d see on film when I was a kid. My son has played these games and watched all the shit, and knows it, as well as most of his friends. It’s like “their” original Star Wars trilogy. The average elementary school kid knows who Thanos is? That’s pretty fucking cool IMO. 

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Yeah, gonna +1 this. The MCU stuff, in particular the most recent Disney+ shows (Wandavision and Loki) really feel like actually excellent sci-fi/fantasy, and show a willingness to start to dig into some deeper themes (Wandavision is a meditation on grief and loss, Loki on growing the fuck up and being an adult). Although some of this stuff is definitely cookie cutter origin story/hero's journey third act bombast, I'm pretty much fine because... it is what it is. It's popcorn movie fare, but over time it's also been infused with heart, interesting direction, and like @Himelsteinnotes, a really excellent handling of interconnectedness across media.

I'd actually argue that one of the reason's why the Star Wars sequels failed is because there wasn't a singular vision at the helm. You compare the three sequels that always seemed to be tripping over themselves with something like the Mandalorian, which was confident, had it's own feel, but still remained ineffably Star Wars and you see how having someone like Dave Filoni involved (who has an encyclopedic knowledge of the subject matter and is involved in many arms) can really help make something both cohesive and still unique. 

Maybe it's age (and having a kid) but .. I guess I'm less critical about this sort of thing than I used to be. Part of that is taking things on the face of what they are - I don't go into Thor expecting Shakespeare (though, ironically, some undertones there with Branaugh directing), I don't go into a Billie Eilish album expecting microtonal scales. 

Don't get me wrong, definitely hear the criticisms and agree with some of it. Black Panther sadly felt so very Marvel origin story roadmap and I fear Shang Chi will have similar issues - but also think Marvel continues to expand its flavor palate with things that are weirder, stranger, and more nuanced, and really should be applauded for continuing to take risks with indie directors that bring a different slant to things. 

I guess, for me, it's like this: If someone were to ask me what my favorite movie is, I'd probably say Twin Peaks Season 3. It's the magnum opus of Lynch, combining everything that came before and adding new bits, a meta-commentary on wanting to be satisfied with resolution, a horror movie, an abstract comedy, a set of musical performances, a tone poem, a work of staggering genius. However, if someone were to ask me what movie I watch every year and enjoy thoroughly all the way through, it's probably Guardian's of the Galaxy. It's by turns heartbreaking, hilarious, weird, sad, and joyful, beautifully shot, directed, and acted, and the soundtrack is killer to drive to. 

Sometimes you wanna 50$ filet mignon with a side of organic greens and homemade garlic aoli, sometimes you just wanna fuckin' big mac with fries and a  McFlurrie. 

this was way too short and feels like it barely makes a case of their friendship and eventual- unfortunate- end of. for the kind of dynamic and complex personas here, i'm hoping ken burns does it justice

i'd skip the netflix doc unless you need an incredibly diluted and rushed summary of events 

  On 9/22/2021 at 7:47 AM, LimpyLoo said:

Lucky (7.9/10) - Great bit of daring indie Expressionism. The only thing I didn't like about it was nothing to do with the film proper: You know when you encounter rich, profound symbolism in art, and then the artist walks up and says "Yeah so this painting represents specifically the Oklahoma rice shortage of 1941" or whatever? Basically that. Otherwise: brilliant.

I loved Lucky. was stuck in my head for a good day after watching. I think I get what you're saying - that this was pegged as a film about a guy at the end of his life struggling to find the point of it - and that's exactly what we saw in the film. that didn't bother me too much, though. there were a few scenes where I thought things could veer off into a much darker place for him but didn't, and I was sorta relieved the film didn't do that.

also +1 on still buying DVD's. I actually bought Lucky on DVD earlier this year.

  On 9/22/2021 at 9:08 PM, zero said:

I loved Lucky. was stuck in my head for a good day after watching. I think I get what you're saying - that this was pegged as a film about a guy at the end of his life struggling to find the point of it - and that's exactly what we saw in the film. that didn't bother me too much, though. there were a few scenes where I thought things could veer off into a much darker place for him but didn't, and I was sorta relieved the film didn't do that.

also +1 on still buying DVD's. I actually bought Lucky on DVD earlier this year.

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Wait I think we're talking about two separate films called "Lucky"...i was talking about https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucky_(2020_film) (sorry should have clarified year)

The premise of the 2020 one is:

Her: "Babe, babe, wake up...there's a guy with a knife in the back yard"

Him "Oh honey it's fine: that's just the guy who breaks into our house every night and tries to kill us"

*still yawning, dude lazily gets up and grabs a golf club*

Him: "alright let's do this so we can go back to bed."

  On 9/22/2021 at 6:24 PM, T3551ER said:

Yeah, gonna +1 this. The MCU stuff, in particular the most recent Disney+ shows (Wandavision and Loki) really feel like actually excellent sci-fi/fantasy, and show a willingness to start to dig into some deeper themes (Wandavision is a meditation on grief and loss, Loki on growing the fuck up and being an adult). Although some of this stuff is definitely cookie cutter origin story/hero's journey third act bombast, I'm pretty much fine because... it is what it is. It's popcorn movie fare, but over time it's also been infused with heart, interesting direction, and like @Himelsteinnotes, a really excellent handling of interconnectedness across media.

I'd actually argue that one of the reason's why the Star Wars sequels failed is because there wasn't a singular vision at the helm. You compare the three sequels that always seemed to be tripping over themselves with something like the Mandalorian, which was confident, had it's own feel, but still remained ineffably Star Wars and you see how having someone like Dave Filoni involved (who has an encyclopedic knowledge of the subject matter and is involved in many arms) can really help make something both cohesive and still unique. 

Maybe it's age (and having a kid) but .. I guess I'm less critical about this sort of thing than I used to be. Part of that is taking things on the face of what they are - I don't go into Thor expecting Shakespeare (though, ironically, some undertones there with Branaugh directing), I don't go into a Billie Eilish album expecting microtonal scales. 

Don't get me wrong, definitely hear the criticisms and agree with some of it. Black Panther sadly felt so very Marvel origin story roadmap and I fear Shang Chi will have similar issues - but also think Marvel continues to expand its flavor palate with things that are weirder, stranger, and more nuanced, and really should be applauded for continuing to take risks with indie directors that bring a different slant to things. 

I guess, for me, it's like this: If someone were to ask me what my favorite movie is, I'd probably say Twin Peaks Season 3. It's the magnum opus of Lynch, combining everything that came before and adding new bits, a meta-commentary on wanting to be satisfied with resolution, a horror movie, an abstract comedy, a set of musical performances, a tone poem, a work of staggering genius. However, if someone were to ask me what movie I watch every year and enjoy thoroughly all the way through, it's probably Guardian's of the Galaxy. It's by turns heartbreaking, hilarious, weird, sad, and joyful, beautifully shot, directed, and acted, and the soundtrack is killer to drive to. 

Sometimes you wanna 50$ filet mignon with a side of organic greens and homemade garlic aoli, sometimes you just wanna fuckin' big mac with fries and a  McFlurrie. 

 

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Well put- the SW sequels definitely needed less fractures or something - like a more singular vision. If Filoni worked on them, they would have been better. Even if he wasn’t at the helm, he would have made them better. He should just be in charge. I have found the same issue with DC movies. Even if they wouldn’t have competed well with Marvel, they should have stayed true to the tone they started with “man of steel”.

  On 9/22/2021 at 10:33 PM, LimpyLoo said:

Wait I think we're talking about two separate films called "Lucky"...i was talking about https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucky_(2020_film) (sorry should have clarified year)

oh shit, hahaha...didn't realize there was another one. but I do still recommend 2017 Lucky if you haven't seen it. if you saw and liked Lynch's The Straight Story, then check it out. 

Mandy (0/10 or 10/10) - I genuinely can't decide how I feel about it. I'm glad it exists. Sorta. I dont know.

Synchronic (8.2/10) - Cool, well-executed independant sci-fi.

watched loving vincent earlier today, i absolutely loved it

  On 9/24/2021 at 12:17 AM, LimpyLoo said:

Synchronic (8.2/10) - Cool, well-executed independant sci-fi.

  On 9/24/2021 at 1:28 AM, _vow_of_silence_ said:

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I saw The Endless--grabbed it from the library--and loved it. Next day: went to grab Resolution...no dice.

I don't have Netflix or anything so I'll prolly have to buy it to see it.

But it's really cool to see such ambitious sci-fi being done at that budget-level.

currently rewatching: 

Frances Ha (9.999/10) - "I'm so embarrased...I'm not a real person yet..."

So good, so good. I think Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig are both geniuses, and this is basically them passing a Word-documentt back and forth via email, pitching punching-up and fine-tuning it until they had a script where every second is obsessively crafted. And yet the film's pacing/tone/energy feels almost improvised. So good.

lol dude come on man