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Post by Nora on Sept 16, 2021 3:46:55 GMT
so thats one bizzaro movie. Mash up of all the genres you can think of, shallow feeling symbolism, derivative setting (Mad Max anyone?) incoherent plot, almost no humor, weird action and only average mania of Nic Cage. I only stayed because the person I was with wanted to stay... “to see if it gets better”. No it does not. Now if you know and like the work of the director, you might enjoy this. If you LOVE Nic Cage and want to see him be great again, this is not the vehicle - go see the Pig for that. This is perfect if you are a: a) hipster b) stoner c) fan of japanese people d) art critic in the making - go try make sense of this . While I do see the movies appeal, and recognize individual artistic moments there, it gets only 3 /10 from me because it didnt make me care about any of it. 2 points go toward Cage’s balls and 1 point for the beautiful opening scene - that gave me false hope this is going to be a fun ride. Anybody here saw it? PS: I like XYZ films like Mandy and enjoy Cage a lot but this simply felt really flat.
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Post by Nora on Sept 15, 2021 20:34:56 GMT
I have a polish friend does that count?
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Post by Nora on Sept 15, 2021 17:45:39 GMT
see thats what i need, coffee/ club with deaf / hard of hearing people to experience more ASL more frequently. But how does one make that happen, especially without seeming exploitative as in “hey u r deaf, can i use u as a tool for my learning?” I genuinly like my ASL tutor to the point of wanting to be friends with her (unsure if the feeling is mutual though) but she lives in SF while I am in NYC) ... Gotta start looking for my local deaf communities and see if it would be ok if I started to attend some of their events I guess... In my case, my Professor/Instructor was very good friends with a woman who ran the local club. They talked it over, years ago, and decided that it would be good experience for the students and for the local club it was something they thought was fun because they got to educate college students. There was a particularly nice couple, Ken and Ruth, who were very patient and helpful. You had to earn it with Ken though, he'd intentionally spell his name backwards and stuff like that to mess with us the first two or three meetings. That can be difficult, when you're so far away. Sometimes it helps if you can find where someone local is teaching a class, or if there is a deaf-school in the area. You can go talk to them, ask if there would be anything you could sit-in on in order to better your skills and understanding. great idea, thank you!
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Post by Nora on Sept 14, 2021 13:16:41 GMT
how long have you been studying asl and how well can you speak it? I have been at it for about a year now and my progress is fairly slow. I can say most basic things I want but my listening is still so poor on account of speed. You know what was perfect speed for me! When she was singing . I took classes in college, and was actually pretty good but over the years, lack of practice/use got me pretty rusty. I'm hard-of-hearing and wear hearing aids/lip-read people, so trying to learn French/Spanish in school was a nightmare, so I thought I'd be terrible at Sign. When I went in, within a few weeks, I was starting to think in Sign and I got pretty good at reading other people as long as they didn't go too fast and they were 'crisp Signers', so people who Sign very loosely/sloppily, I couldn't understand. About two months ago, I got out my old books from college and I've been making myself sit down for an hour a day with the books and spend at least half an hour on an ASL site watching the videos in order to make sure I'm Signing correctly. At this point, I could probably order food, comment on the weather, do introductions with someone new, and give some directions. (I also got a Sign-Name, back in college, when we used to go to these bi-weekly coffees with a local club for deaf people over the age of 50. They were "Voice Off" meetings, so we weren't supposed to speak, only Sign, in order to help us get experience and comfort with the Signing.) see thats what i need, coffee/ club with deaf / hard of hearing people to experience more ASL more frequently. But how does one make that happen, especially without seeming exploitative as in “hey u r deaf, can i use u as a tool for my learning?” I genuinly like my ASL tutor to the point of wanting to be friends with her (unsure if the feeling is mutual though) but she lives in SF while I am in NYC) ... Gotta start looking for my local deaf communities and see if it would be ok if I started to attend some of their events I guess...
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Post by Nora on Sept 13, 2021 23:19:36 GMT
What was enlightened about it? How are you changed? I went to a Buddha garden and participated in meditation with spiritual leaders. We did a ritual with some different things and I see the world differently now. I have a purpose. I saw the Earth, really lived in nature. I didn’t let the distraction of social media, cell phones, etc… ruin my experience. I woke up with the natural circadian rhythm. Woke up when my body told me to. I’ve never had so much energy in my life. I realized I held onto hate, and regret, fear and shame. I forgave everyone for everything and let everything go. I feel 100 pounds lighter. I don’t want to cause harm to any living being. Literally just want to be a part of the natural world. We weren’t meant to sit in a room behind a computer screen. We are meant to live on the land, like every other being. I’m working on transitioning into an off grid life. Leaving my job, selling my home. Just going to live in a yurt style tent home. Solar power and natural living. Doing strictly online counseling to make just enough money to live. Eventually figuring out how to live without money if I can. sounds really interesting. but how can you live in a tent in an off grid life and do online counseling? (I agree we should all spend less time behind the screens). And if I can be a bit personal, how would your family/children fit in? Seems like the journey included a lot of bonding with your son, would that be possible to uphold living off the grid? Also, was it just the ritual that allowed you to let go of hate/grudges/regrets etc, or you think it was the entire process? Give us, mere mortals, some more tips pls
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Post by Nora on Sept 13, 2021 17:07:57 GMT
The Devils Bridge in Sedona AZ. I hiked the whole way. This is me. beautiful!! Yeah that looks like that has a power to change a man...
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Post by Nora on Sept 13, 2021 15:28:18 GMT
I’ve been gone for months. I went out west to Arizona, California, New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada, Utah… just on a spiritual journey. I feel like a changed man. Welcome back! I wanna hear all about your journey. What was best about it? What was most challenging about it? What changed you? Were you mostly alone or mostly with people? Where did you like it the most? Tell us all so we can live vicariously through you, those of us that cant go on long journeys now…
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Coda
Sept 13, 2021 13:55:21 GMT
via mobile
leesilm likes this
Post by Nora on Sept 13, 2021 13:55:21 GMT
I haven't seen it yet, but my former ASL professor (her day job was working as a councilor for families who were deaf and had a hearing child) watched it, and not only did she say it made her cry hysterically, but she sent me a 2 page long review about what a great movie it was. She suggested it to a woman she works with, who is a CODA in her early 50s. how long have you been studying asl and how well can you speak it? I have been at it for about a year now and my progress is fairly slow. I can say most basic things I want but my listening is still so poor on account of speed. You know what was perfect speed for me! When she was singing .
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Coda
Sept 11, 2021 17:43:29 GMT
via mobile
leesilm likes this
Post by Nora on Sept 11, 2021 17:43:29 GMT
yes. Loved it. 9/10 for me. I was espeally curious to see it as an ASL student so it had extra value for me but I thought it was very well made, smart, entertaining, touching... and great performances.
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Post by Nora on Sept 10, 2021 20:59:17 GMT
What a beautiful piece of cinema. Its a slow burn so if you dont like slow/meditative movies (example: A Ghost Story) it might not be for you.
But if you enjoy intense atmosphere and a very controlled yet powerful performance and a movie that will make you feel things, this one is for you.
I loved it. Anyone else saw the Card counter?
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Post by Nora on Sept 10, 2021 3:12:43 GMT
the original was perfect. this looks decent but i think one can only enjoy it if one has not seen the original...
with movies like this yeah this does seem needless. albeit it was cheap to make.
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Post by Nora on Sept 7, 2021 21:10:40 GMT
I did see it. I enjoyed all the bits Michael Keaton was in. That I saw. But it just seemed too convoluted and shot in a way that didnt keep my attention, maybe too derivative? so I have no idea if I even stays till the end. Too bad, I would have liked to have seen the sex scene. Was it any good? I am a big fan of Michael Keaton, but even he couldnt have made me stay till the end or REMEMBER the endening, I dont know which is worse. Are you saying that you don't remember whether you stayed until the end or you left earlier? Just how drunk were you??? Anyway, to answer your specific question, I think the scene consisted of a very brief shot of her on top of him still with her bra and panties on, then a cut to the morning after. I dont drink alcohol so… zero. No I do not remember in this particular case if I walked out early or not. Mind you, I see (at the cinemas) every single release Each Week, and have done so for the past decade or more. And the things I really like I see several times. I literally dont know anybody else who goes to the cinema more often than I do. When I really dislike a movie I occasionally walk out. The walking out happens very rarely (especially in comparison with the number of movies I see in the cinemas) but some (bad) movie experiences simply blend. If you go to the cinema every other day, do you really think you will remember each occasion? Well if you would then you are simply better than me. I dont remember if I walked out on this movie somewhat before the end or suffered through. I dont remember the scene I am asking about, which made me question if I stayed or not, but your explanation may have revealed why I dont remember it.
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Post by Nora on Sept 7, 2021 21:04:59 GMT
I did see it. I enjoyed all the bits Michael Keaton was in. That I saw. But it just seemed too convoluted and shot in a way that didnt keep my attention, maybe too derivative? so I have no idea if I even stays till the end. Too bad, I would have liked to have seen the sex scene. Was it any good? I am a big fan of Michael Keaton, but even he couldnt have made me stay till the end or REMEMBER the endening, I dont know which is worse. It scares me you are a film critic ... It doesnt have to. Like I said before, I myself pick the movies I want to write about and I dont review anything I havent seen in full. (spoiler alert: many critics do, I personally dont). No reason to be scared.
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Post by Nora on Sept 5, 2021 1:07:47 GMT
I did see it. I enjoyed all the bits Michael Keaton was in. That I saw. But it just seemed too convoluted and shot in a way that didnt keep my attention, maybe too derivative? so I have no idea if I even stays till the end. Too bad, I would have liked to have seen the sex scene. Was it any good? I am a big fan of Michael Keaton, but even he couldnt have made me stay till the end or REMEMBER the endening, I dont know which is worse. Wait do you mean they didn’t show it or you just missed it? I must have missed it. It WAS there, no??
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Post by Nora on Sept 3, 2021 17:44:54 GMT
It was ok. Very beautiful visually. Not very scary though. But looked very pretty and the people in it were easy on the eyes and mostly likeable so it was an overall pleasant experience. Cool way to shoot some of the murder scenes too.
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Post by Nora on Sept 3, 2021 17:42:56 GMT
Has anyone seen it? New Badass Female Assassin movie. Michael Keaton is also in it. I saw it today. Decent action but nothing you haven't seen a dozen times before. I did see it. I enjoyed all the bits Michael Keaton was in. That I saw. But it just seemed too convoluted and shot in a way that didnt keep my attention, maybe too derivative? so I have no idea if I even stays till the end. Too bad, I would have liked to have seen the sex scene. Was it any good? I am a big fan of Michael Keaton, but even he couldnt have made me stay till the end or REMEMBER the endening, I dont know which is worse.
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Post by Nora on Sept 3, 2021 17:38:07 GMT
Yay! (btw I love your news bits, keep em coming, it seems its always something of interest to me). Thanks.
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Post by Nora on Aug 25, 2021 1:06:37 GMT
Not exactly remembering what just happened an hour and a half in, I'm gonna go back a bit just in case (in broad points): So, Bannister (Jackman) learns that Mae (Ferguson) had a friend named Elsa (Sarafyan) and he's out to find her then learns she died, being killed but someone actually came in an took her son away.
Looking at other memory cards from his machine, he gets clues and goes to the rich people district, the one that is surrounded by a massive moat.
There the rich widow Sylvan (de Tavira) who has a ton of men taking on the role of her deceased husband, has Bannister re-play her favorite moment but he breaks from the role and begins to ask her questions.
He's taken outside but one henchman notice his tattoo, asks him about his service in the war (something we don't really know much or care about) so he decides to spare him.
Then, looking at more stuff he finds Cyrus Boothe (Curtis), beats him up almost kills him but then decides to save him since he remembers stuff he, Bannister, could use. So after a chase and a fight that feels like they lasted forever, he subdues him then put him in his memory machine at this shop.
There he learns, that Mae had indeed kept things from him, that despite her flaws, she really wanted to be the woman he seemed to believe she could become and that eventually.
He got the confirmation that Mae that was indeed knocking on the door early when he just yelled the shop was closed and she indeed leave an hearing behind (unlike what Watts said that it could have been there for weeks/months/forever). He also learns that Mae was the one who got the Elsa's boy to safety.
He also learns that not seeing any way out she decided to kill herself. Enraged, he decides to have Boother relieve the moment he got burned (doesn't really matter) and leaves him stuck in that memory, basically leaving him with brain damage (as it is said earlier it would cause mental breakdown and tissue damage).
Bannister goes back to see the rich widow's mansion but now he's there for her son.
He has a discussion with him, in which he unfolds the whole story, which is that the old man Sylvan had an affair with Mae's friend which led to her having a son.
Loving that child, the rich man decided to provide for him to make sure he had a decent life but now we learn that his son actually hired Boothe to kill that illegitimate child (and her mom), so he would keep all his father's money.
Then, Bannister says he will reveal the story, the rich kid tries to bribe him to keep his mouth shut, it doesn't work. He grabs a pistol, points it at Bannister but then he turns it against himself but he can't find the strength to do it, since as Bannister said it, he never did things by himself so he wouldn't be able to do it now.
So he leaves, the mansion.
Then we get a scene where Bannister walks the streets as there are riots, and he narrates that after the public heard that story, the population decided to tear down the Barrens (the rich district) and a revolution was coming (not sure how we ever got a clue there was something brewing or some unrest?).
So, since he killed some people but those were some bad people, he got a deal with the police.
He doesn't get to "walk" but he gets to go back to his shop and gets in his machine to relive some moments with Mae.
Then as the narration goes on, about living your life and making memories, there is a transition and we see some hands put flowers in a pot next to the machine and we get to see a white hair Watts, talking with her daughter about Bannister and we get a shot of Bannister in the machine, also aged like Watts and with White hair.
So, it seems he got to relive his memories with Mae forever but never got out of his machine, since Watts brings flowers, like you would do on a tomb for a loved one you lost. Somehow it doesn't explain how he can still live for long simply laying there in a little water... It doesn't make sense.
We get a mostly happy ending. The bad guy are either dead, in prison or insane, the poor people got their revolution to make the world better and Bannister, despite not being able to actually have Mae by his side, gets to live in his memories of her forever. Once again, some elements made me feel like some explanations got cut or it was designed as a bigger work then many things got cut so we get this version of the movie, which leaves quite a bit unexplained. omg that seems so convoluted. thank you for the time you took to write this down.
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Post by Nora on Aug 24, 2021 23:24:52 GMT
I'll begin by admitting I still haven't watched either Strange days or Transcendence.
That being said, Reminiscence felt quite uneven. The cast is great and everybody is good, while not giving Oscar-worthy performances. Visually, some effects aren't top notch but the atmosphere and some scenes are quite interesting and beautiful. The premise is intriguing and the introduction does a good job at setting things in motion, then things begin to "sway". As the movie goes on, it seems to add more and more subplots and genres at times that it's either confusing or you feel something is missing. It start as a noir-ish science-fiction movie, then the element that will set the story in motion is introduced, at which point everything still blends quite well. Then, somewhat early on, you get to a gun scene where a bullet hit a jukebox and you get to hear Tainted Love by Soft Cell while the shooting goes on. The issue there isn't that the song doesn't fit the story but that the silliness of the jukebox playing the song when hit, clashes so much with the tone of the movie (at that point) it feels off. It's like inserting (I'm exaggerating but you'll get the idea) an MCU fight scene in something like Casablanca. And as soon as it's over you're back to serious and you won't get that kind of thing for the rest of the movie... Later, as the romance and mystery take over, we're given slightly more info on the universe but never to the point it really matters or we get to really understand. During the resolution of the story, we get to hear the start of a revolution but we were given so little info about a class conflict that it feels like we missed episodes of a TV show. In the last moments, we get to see a slightly more positive ending than expected but then, the situation we're left witnessing kinda raise questions as to how the reminiscence technology they're using in the movie actually works. Ultimately, considering the casting and the core concept which wasn't bad, it felt like a wasted opportunity. 5/10 so glad to see someone else was not enjoying the jukebox moment. it felt wrong on so many levels. and not artsy wrong. just a bad choice. i walked out of the movie 1.5 hours in so i cant comment on the entire film but what I saw I found unbearably bad. Such a fake sounding dialogue and so full of cliche... so empty... uninteresting world (not enough complexity of it and poor set design... compared to John Wick where in fewer shots you get such a rich world building experience) it was such a let down this movie. 3/10 from me if i was to rate and the 3 go toward jackman only everyone else felt too off. (i domt blame them they had shitty lines) Can you let me know the ending (coveres by spoiler tag pls)? Thanks.
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Post by Nora on Aug 24, 2021 14:53:57 GMT
If you piss off a few writers in an online community, or film community. yes for sure. its a highly competitive environment with a very low number of people who succeed so the emotions sometimes run high and bridges get burned easily. i would recommend to be very respectful at all times, even when facing disrespect there are decent ways to handle it instead of matching their levels. Do you care to share what happened?
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