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Post by jcush on Mar 8, 2020 19:39:20 GMT
MINE
Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020 Cathy Yan) - 3/10Fight Club (1999 David Fincher) - 8.5/10A Stolen Life (1946 Curtis Bernhardt) - 5.5/10Mâdadayo (1993 Akira Kurosawa) - 7.5/10 Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989 Masami Hata & William T. Hurtz) - 5/10 The Ballad of Lefty Brown (2017 Jared Moshe) - 7/10
5 Flights Up (2014 Richard Loncraine) - 4.5/10Prospero's Books (1991 Peter Greenaway) - 6.5/10TV MovieDeath of a Salesman (1985 Volker Schlöndorff) - 7/10TelevisionArcher: Season 10 (2019) - 7/10Film AwardsBEST PICTURE - Fight Club BEST ACTOR - Dustin Hoffman (Death of a Salesman) BEST ACTRESS - Bette Davis (A Stolen Life) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Brad Pitt (Fight Club) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Kate Reid (Death of a Salesman) BEST DIRECTOR - David Fincher (Fight Club) BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY - Prospero's Books BEST SCORE - Prospero's Books Fight Club - 10/10 Madadayo - 7.5/10 Death of a Salesman - 7/10 Hoffman and Malkovich were really good, but I don't remember any of else in Death of a Salesman. Helena Bonham Carter would be my choice for supporting actress from yours.
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Post by moviemouth on Mar 8, 2020 19:51:37 GMT
MINE
Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020 Cathy Yan) - 3/10Fight Club (1999 David Fincher) - 8.5/10A Stolen Life (1946 Curtis Bernhardt) - 5.5/10Mâdadayo (1993 Akira Kurosawa) - 7.5/10 Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989 Masami Hata & William T. Hurtz) - 5/10 The Ballad of Lefty Brown (2017 Jared Moshe) - 7/10
5 Flights Up (2014 Richard Loncraine) - 4.5/10Prospero's Books (1991 Peter Greenaway) - 6.5/10TV MovieDeath of a Salesman (1985 Volker Schlöndorff) - 7/10TelevisionArcher: Season 10 (2019) - 7/10Film AwardsBEST PICTURE - Fight Club BEST ACTOR - Dustin Hoffman (Death of a Salesman) BEST ACTRESS - Bette Davis (A Stolen Life) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Brad Pitt (Fight Club) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Kate Reid (Death of a Salesman) BEST DIRECTOR - David Fincher (Fight Club) BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY - Prospero's Books BEST SCORE - Prospero's Books Fight Club - 10/10 Madadayo - 7.5/10 Death of a Salesman - 7/10 Hoffman and Malkovich were really good, but I don't remember any of else in Death of a Salesman. Helena Bonham Carter would be my choice for supporting actress from yours. It was close between Kate Reid and Helena Bonham Carter. Dustin Hoffman is brilliant in Death of a Salesman and is one of the best performances I have ever seen. It might even be my favorite performance from him. Fight Club dropped for me sadly. I hadn't seen it in 15 years.
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Post by moviemouth on Mar 8, 2020 19:54:48 GMT
I more or less agree with all your wins. Breaking Bad: Season 5 is actually my least favorite season.I remember you saying that before. I thought the last few episodes were amazing, which made it my favorite season. The last episode would have been a great regular season finale, but it is a bit disappointing as a series finale imo.
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Post by jcush on Mar 8, 2020 19:55:43 GMT
Fight Club - 10/10 Madadayo - 7.5/10 Death of a Salesman - 7/10 Hoffman and Malkovich were really good, but I don't remember any of else in Death of a Salesman. Helena Bonham Carter would be my choice for supporting actress from yours. It was close between Kate Reid and Helena Bonham Carter. Dustin Hoffman is brilliant in Death of a Salesman and is one of the best performances I have ever seen. It might even be my favorite performance from him.Fight Club dropped for me sadly. I hadn't seen it in 15 years. It's been a few years since I watched it, but I remember him being pretty damn good.
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Post by jcush on Mar 8, 2020 19:57:13 GMT
I remember you saying that before. I thought the last few episodes were amazing, which made it my favorite season. The last episode would have been a great regular season finale, but it is a bit disappointing as a series finale. Season 3 is my favorite season. Season 4 was my least favorite. It was on its way to 8.5/10, but the last few episodes pushed it up to a 9.
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Post by moviemouth on Mar 8, 2020 20:01:22 GMT
The last episode would have been a great regular season finale, but it is a bit disappointing as a series finale. Season 3 is my favorite season. Season 4 was my least favorite. It was on its way to 8.5/10, but the last few episodes pushed it up to a 9. I might agree now that you mention it, but I don't keep track of TV series ratings. These are all just from memory. I usually only remember for sure what I rate the series as a whole, which is 8.5/10. Season 2 or Season 3 (one of the Gus Fring seasons) is my favorite.
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Post by darksidebeadle on Mar 8, 2020 21:13:04 GMT
First Viewings...-Birds of Prey (2020) (Mar 7th 2020) - 3/10 (pretty damn dull/bad. this was worse than I expected as I figured it would at least not waste my time but I was wrong on this one) Re-watches...-eXistenZ (1999) (Mar 2nd 2020) - 6/10 (my 3rd viewing. Jan 2016 was my previous viewing.) -A History of Violence (2005) (Mar 3rd 2020) - 6-6.5/10 (was a 6/10. have not seen since Jan 2016. I think while it does have some weaker bits and pieces I think it finishes well etc) -Eastern Promises (2007) (Mar 3rd 2020) - 7/10 (was a 6/10 (although in the past it peaked at a solid 8/10). have not seen since Feb 2016.) -One Eight Seven (1997) (Mar 4th 2020) - 6/10 (apparently not many have seen this given it's only got 21,323 votes on IMDb. it generally gets better as the movie moves forward and finishes well enough. I have not seen this since June 2014.) -Bloodsport (1988) (Mar 5th 2020) - 6/10 (this along with Lionheart (1990) are Van Damme's top movies if you ask me. I have not seen this since Jan 2015. time flies.) -Crocodile Dundee (1986) (Mar 8th 2020) - 6/10 (I have not seen since May 2014) -Crocodile Dundee II (1988) (Mar 8th 2020) - 6/10 (I have not seen since May 2014. this is a bit underrated at it's 5.6/10 average on IMDb.) p.s. 5/10 or less = Thumbs Down. 6/10 or higher = Thumbs Up. --------------------------------------------- OP's... -Any Given Sunday (1999) - 6/10 (my #1 football movie as I generally don't care for football/basketball etc types of movies as they are almost always forgettable but I mildly like this one. I re-watched it in Jan 2020) -U Turn (1997) - 5/10 eXistenZ (1999) (Mar 2nd 2020) - 6.5/10 -A History of Violence (2005) (Mar 3rd 2020) 5/10 -Bloodsport (1988) (Mar 5th 2020) - 7.5 a classic and his best -Crocodile Dundee (1986) 7/10 -Crocodile Dundee II (1988) 6.5
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Post by darksidebeadle on Mar 8, 2020 21:52:46 GMT
First Time Viewings: 02/03The Spider Woman Strikes Back (1946) 5/10Woman in the Dark (1934) 6/1003/03Because of Winn-Dixie (2005) 7/10Girl Vs. Monster (2012) 3/1004/03Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas! (2011) 6/10Greyfriars Bobby: The True Story of a Dog (1961) 7/1005/03The Invisible Man (2020) 8/10Stuck in the Suburbs (2004) 2/1006/03The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949) 7/10Broken Star (2018) 6/1007/03Daniel Isn't Real (2019) 4/10Hatsukoi (2019) 8/1008/03Mr. Mom (1983) 7/10Olympic Dreams (2019) 6/10BEST FILM: The Invisible Man BEST ACTOR: Nick Kroll - Olympic Dreams BEST ACTRESS: Elisabeth Moss - The Invisible Man BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Aldis Hodge - The Invisible Man BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Harriet Dyer - The Invisible Man BEST EDITING: Andy Canny - The Invisible Man BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Nobuyasu Kita - Hatsukoi BEST SCRIPT: Masa Nakamura - Hatsukoi BEST SCORE: Annie Hart & Jay Wadley - Olympic Dreams BEST DIRECTOR: Takashi Miike - Hatsukoi The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949) 7/10 Daniel Isn't Real (2019) 4.5/10 Mr. Mom (1983) 6/10
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Post by darksidebeadle on Mar 8, 2020 21:54:50 GMT
MINE
Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020 Cathy Yan) - 3/10Fight Club (1999 David Fincher) - 8.5/10A Stolen Life (1946 Curtis Bernhardt) - 5.5/10Mâdadayo (1993 Akira Kurosawa) - 7.5/10 Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989 Masami Hata & William T. Hurtz) - 5/10 The Ballad of Lefty Brown (2017 Jared Moshe) - 7/10
5 Flights Up (2014 Richard Loncraine) - 4.5/10Prospero's Books (1991 Peter Greenaway) - 6.5/10TV MovieDeath of a Salesman (1985 Volker Schlöndorff) - 7/10TelevisionArcher: Season 10 (2019) - 7/10Film AwardsBEST PICTURE - Fight Club BEST ACTOR - Dustin Hoffman (Death of a Salesman) BEST ACTRESS - Bette Davis (A Stolen Life) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Brad Pitt (Fight Club) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Kate Reid (Death of a Salesman) BEST DIRECTOR - David Fincher (Fight Club) BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY - Prospero's Books BEST SCORE - Prospero's Books Fight Club (1999 David Fincher) - 8.5/10 agreed
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Post by theravenking on Mar 8, 2020 22:29:22 GMT
Welcome back to another week of the BEST & WORST edition of 'what movies did you see last week?' thread. For those who haven't been part of it before, basically your host (me) posts my weekly movies and you can comment on those and list your movie for the same time frame. I will get back to you on yours and you can talk to other users here about their films. It's a great place to talk about film. FIRST TIME MOVIE VIEWING
Pray for the Wildcats (1974, Robert Michael Lewis)
This made for tv movie is considered by its fan to be a minor classic and whilst I would not go that far, it's pretty damn good. It follows three ad agency executives who are pressured into taking a motorbike trip to Baja by a big-ticket client who is a bit crazy. All three of the executives have different dilemmas at home that influence their actions on the road... interesting stuff. It is a little puffed up by long montages of bike riding through the Mexican desert but has a great score that gets shown off in this sequences so it balances out. Another thing of note is that the executives all wear shirts that look like they are from Star Trek the original series, made funnier by one of them being played by William Shatner. 7/10 Patterns (1956, Fielder Cook)
Written by Rod Serling (The Twilight Zone) we take a look at the ruthless corporate culture of the 50's. Interesting and well acted with a dark tone. 6/10 The Intruder (1962, Roger Corman)
A man in a gleaming white(William Shatner) suit comes to a small Southern town on the eve of integration. He calls himself a social reformer. But what he does is stir up trouble... trouble he soon finds he can’t control. 6/10 Bleed for This (2016, Ben Younger) Netflix
The inspirational true story of World Champion Boxer Vinny Pazienza (Miles Teller), who after a near fatal car crash, which left him not knowing if he’d ever walk again, made one of sports most incredible comebacks. It is a great story but the film does not quite work, it has its moments though. 6/10 REPEAT MOVIE VIEWING Any Given Sunday (1999, Oliver Stone) blu ray
I do not like American Football but this film makes it exciting with its interplay of on field and behind the scenes action with an anchoring performance by Al Pacino as the head coach. Stone directed the fuck out of this one too, great stuff. 7.5/10 Arbitrage (2012, Nicholas Jerecki) blu ray
This little independent thriller stars Richard Gere as a troubled hedge fund magnate, who is desperate to complete the sale of his trading empire. He makes an error that forces him to turn to an unlikely person for help. A smart debut for this writer director. 7.5/10 U Turn (1997, Oliver Stone) blu ray
This film borrows a lot of similar plot elements from Red Rock West which was made 4 years earlier but is very different in tone and execution. There is no mistaking this as an Oliver Stone film as it has all his unique visual stylings and an all star cast that only a director of his position can wrangle. The film is a little bloated and could’ve lost the John Voight stuff and be tightened up here and there but it’s still a fun sweaty crime adventure. 7/10 Gotcha! (1985, Jeff Kanew)
I have not seen this since it came out and I had fond memories of that viewing. Unfortunately time has not been kind to this film that follows a student (Anthony Edwards) on a trip to France who is tricked into smuggling secrets across the Iron Curtain by a sexy spy (Linda Fiorentino). The films mix of tones does not really work but it still has some fun scenes. 5/10 FIRST TIME TV VIEWING
Atypical (2019, Season Three) Netflix
Another great season, look forward to the final fourth season. Good tv I.m Not okay with this (2020, Season One) Netflix
This show set around a teen who discovers she has powers could actually still work without any of the super powers part as the characters and world were set up well enough to be a straight drama. Good tv
WEEKLY FILM AWARDS
BEST FILM: Any Given Sunday BEST ACTOR: Al Pacino - Any Given Sunday BEST ACTRESS: Cameron Diaz - Any Given Sunday BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: James Woods - Any Given Sunday BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Brit Marling - Arbitrage BEST EDITING: Thomas J. Nordberg - Any Given Sunday BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Salvatore Totino - Any Given Sunday BEST SCRIPT: Nicholas Jerecki - Arbitrage BEST SCORE: Ennio Morricone - U Turn BEST DIRECTOR: Oliver Stone - Any Given Sunday 10/10 - Perfection (or as close to it as possible) 09/10 - An Excellent film 08/10 - A VERY Good film 07/10 - A Good film 06/10 - A Solid film 05/10 - An Average film 04/10 - Below Average film 03/10 - A mostly bad film 02/10 - A mostly terrible film 01/10 - Awful through and through 00/10 - Not only awful but offensive too Arbitrage (2012, Nicholas Jarecki) - Didn't care much for this one. It wants to be Heat for the financial world, but it lacks tension and despite committed performances from Gere and Roth it's pretty dull. 4/10
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Post by theravenking on Mar 8, 2020 22:49:37 GMT
Patterns - 8/10 Any Given Sunday - Too long and Stone's crazy editing didn't really work for me in this one. The cast is good though and it's decent overall. 6.5/10 U Turn - Definitely has similarities to Red Rock West. I actually like this one a bit more. 7.5/10 First Time Viewings:
Elmer Gantry (1960, Richard Brooks) I feel like they could have done more with the story, but it was still very good. Burt Lancaster is pretty damn good here and Jean Simmons and Shirley Jones chip in nicely as well. 7/10
My Week with Marilyn (2011, Simon Curtis) The movie is nothing spectacular, but it's fairly enjoyable. Michelle Williams is wonderful here and Kenneth Branagh is fun as Laurence Olivier. 7/10
Shame (1968, Ingmar Bergman) Pretty good one from Bergman. Liv Ullmann puts in some strong work here. 7/10
Coherence (2013, James Ward Byrkit) Clearly pretty low budget, but the cast is solid and the story is an interesting mindbender. 7/10
The Devil's Eye (1960, Ingmar Bergman) Lesser know Bergman, but I quite enjoyed it. Fun story and good performances. 7.5/10
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009, Mark Waters) Not a particularly good movie, but the cast makes it mildly amusing. Michael Douglas steals every scene he's in. 6/10
A Lesson in Love (1954, Ingmar Bergman) Well written and well acted, with a nice balance between comedy and drama. 7.5/10
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019, Vince Gilligan) Nowhere near as good as the show, but it has some really good moments and serves as a pretty good epilogue. 7/10
The One I Love (2014, Charlie McDowell) I feel like they had the reveal too early, but it remained interesting and engaging throughout. 7/10
Repeat Viewings:
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001, Peter Jackson) 9.5/10
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002, Peter Jackson) 9.5/10
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003, Peter Jackson) 9.5/10
Swimming with Sharks (1994, George Huang) Very funny and enjoyable film that I think should be watched by more people. 8/10
TV Viewings:
Breaking Bad: Season 4 (2011) 9/10
Breaking Bad: Season 5 (2012-2013) 9.5/10
Movie Awards:
BEST FILM: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring BEST ACTOR: Burt Lancaster (Elmer Gantry) BEST ACTRESS: Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Andy Serkis (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Harriet Andersson (A Lesson in Love) BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Andrew Lesnie (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring) BEST SCORE: Howard Shore (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring) BEST SCRIPT: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, & Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring) BEST DIRECTOR: Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King) My Week with Marilyn (2011, Simon Curtis) - A sweet little movie, difficult to dislike but not very memorable either. 6/10
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009, Mark Waters) - This was back before McConaughey began his career reinvention. Pretty cringe-worthy comedy wasting the talent of its cast. 4/10
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001, Peter Jackson) - Still my favourite of the trilogy. 9.5/10
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002, Peter Jackson) - Greater scale, more action, yet not quite as emotionally involving as the first one. 9/10
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003, Peter Jackson) - Too long and too sentimental. Jackson fell in love a bit too much with his own creation delivering an overlong and sometimes tedious movie. 6/10
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Post by theravenking on Mar 8, 2020 22:56:15 GMT
Beach Party (1963) 5/10 The Letter (1940) 7/10 Colette (2018) 8/10 Page Eight (2011) 6/10 The Swarm (1978) 2/10 Pitch Black (2000) 7/10 A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) 6/10 Ad Astra (2019) 5/10 Pitch Black (2000) 8/10 A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) 8/10
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Post by theravenking on Mar 8, 2020 23:00:31 GMT
First Viewings...-Birds of Prey (2020) (Mar 7th 2020) - 3/10 (pretty damn dull/bad. this was worse than I expected as I figured it would at least not waste my time but I was wrong on this one) Re-watches...-eXistenZ (1999) (Mar 2nd 2020) - 6/10 (my 3rd viewing. Jan 2016 was my previous viewing.) -A History of Violence (2005) (Mar 3rd 2020) - 6-6.5/10 (was a 6/10. have not seen since Jan 2016. I think while it does have some weaker bits and pieces I think it finishes well etc) -Eastern Promises (2007) (Mar 3rd 2020) - 7/10 (was a 6/10 (although in the past it peaked at a solid 8/10). have not seen since Feb 2016.) -One Eight Seven (1997) (Mar 4th 2020) - 6/10 (apparently not many have seen this given it's only got 21,323 votes on IMDb. it generally gets better as the movie moves forward and finishes well enough. I have not seen this since June 2014.) -Bloodsport (1988) (Mar 5th 2020) - 6/10 (this along with Lionheart (1990) are Van Damme's top movies if you ask me. I have not seen this since Jan 2015. time flies.) -Crocodile Dundee (1986) (Mar 8th 2020) - 6/10 (I have not seen since May 2014) -Crocodile Dundee II (1988) (Mar 8th 2020) - 6/10 (I have not seen since May 2014. this is a bit underrated at it's 5.6/10 average on IMDb.) p.s. 5/10 or less = Thumbs Down. 6/10 or higher = Thumbs Up. --------------------------------------------- OP's... -Any Given Sunday (1999) - 6/10 (my #1 football movie as I generally don't care for football/basketball etc types of movies as they are almost always forgettable but I mildly like this one. I re-watched it in Jan 2020) -U Turn (1997) - 5/10 eXistenZ (1999) - A fascinating premise, but I just couldn't get into this at all. Far too weird for my taste. - 2/10
A History of Violence (2005) - 8/10
Eastern Promises (2007) - 6/10
Crocodile Dundee (1986)
Crocodile Dundee II (1988) - It's been a long time since I've seen these, don't recall too many details about either film.
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Post by theravenking on Mar 8, 2020 23:07:26 GMT
First Time Viewing:
Carlito’s Way (Brian De Palma; 1993) – As a De Palma movie this is great showcasing some of his finest visuals. As a gangster drama it’s clichéd, predictable, some scenes are weird, goofy and overcomplicated. As so often De Palma cares more about staging a spectacular scene than about plausibility. Pacino is arguably miscast as a Puerto Rican (why couldn’t his character simply be Italian American?) and while Penn is great, it’s obvious from the beginning that his character is up to no good. 6/10
February (Oz Perkins; 2015) – Very atmospheric indie horror about demonic possession. It’s very restrained and the plot, told in different timelines, can be confusing at first. A commendable effort but not very scary. 5/10
Aces High (Jack Gold; 1976) – Terrific British war drama about WWI fighter pilots. According to director Jack Gold they only had 5 planes to film the aerial fight scenes and had to use archive material from other films. Despite this the battle scenes are still spectacular. Malcolm McDowell is on top form as a squadron leader who tries to keep his emotions at bay to be able to deal with the loss of his men. 8/10
Passengers (Morten Tyldum, 2016) – An empty spectacle with gorgeous visuals. There is very little chemistry between the leads, and the movie works neither as a romance nor as a survival thriller. 4/10
TV
Dawson’s Creek – Season 1- For my generation this was a cult series, but I originally only saw a few episodes. Now I decided to find out what all the fuzz was about. Well, not very much it turns out. This is your typical cheesy teen romance. The smart dialogue is initially interesting, but all this trivial relationship stuff quickly started getting on my nerves. Good thing this first season is so short. 4/10
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Post by theravenking on Mar 8, 2020 23:09:06 GMT
MINE
Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (2020 Cathy Yan) - 3/10Fight Club (1999 David Fincher) - 8.5/10A Stolen Life (1946 Curtis Bernhardt) - 5.5/10Mâdadayo (1993 Akira Kurosawa) - 7.5/10 Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland (1989 Masami Hata & William T. Hurtz) - 5/10 The Ballad of Lefty Brown (2017 Jared Moshe) - 7/10
5 Flights Up (2014 Richard Loncraine) - 4.5/10Prospero's Books (1991 Peter Greenaway) - 6.5/10TV MovieDeath of a Salesman (1985 Volker Schlöndorff) - 7/10TelevisionArcher: Season 10 (2019) - 7/10Film AwardsBEST PICTURE - Fight Club BEST ACTOR - Dustin Hoffman (Death of a Salesman) BEST ACTRESS - Bette Davis (A Stolen Life) BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Brad Pitt (Fight Club) BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Kate Reid (Death of a Salesman) BEST DIRECTOR - David Fincher (Fight Club) BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY - Prospero's Books BEST SCORE - Prospero's Books
Fight Club (1999 David Fincher) - 9/10
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Post by darksidebeadle on Mar 8, 2020 23:34:06 GMT
First Time Viewing: Carlito’s Way (Brian De Palma; 1993) – As a De Palma movie this is great showcasing some of his finest visuals. As a gangster drama it’s clichéd, predictable, some scenes are weird, goofy and overcomplicated. As so often De Palma cares more about staging a spectacular scene than about plausibility. Pacino is arguably miscast as a Puerto Rican (why couldn’t his character simply be Italian American?) and while Penn is great, it’s obvious from the beginning that his character is up to no good. 6/10 February (Oz Perkins; 2015) – Very atmospheric indie horror about demonic possession. It’s very restrained and the plot, told in different timelines, can be confusing at first. A commendable effort but not very scary. 5/10 Aces High (Jack Gold; 1976) – Terrific British war drama about WWI fighter pilots. According to director Jack Gold they only had 5 planes to film the aerial fight scenes and had to use archive material from other films. Despite this the battle scenes are still spectacular. Malcolm McDowell is on top form as a squadron leader who tries to keep his emotions at bay to be able to deal with the loss of his men. 8/10 Passengers (Morten Tyldum, 2016) – An empty spectacle with gorgeous visuals. There is very little chemistry between the leads, and the movie works neither as a romance nor as a survival thriller. 4/10 TV Dawson’s Creek – Season 1- For my generation this was a cult series, but I originally only saw a few episodes. Now I decided to find out what all the fuzz was about. Well, not very much it turns out. This is your typical cheesy teen romance. The smart dialogue is initially interesting, but all this trivial relationship stuff quickly started getting on my nerves. Good thing this first season is so short. 4/10 Carlitos way - I liked it more on second viewing 6.5-7 passengers 4.5
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Post by moviemouth on Mar 8, 2020 23:34:24 GMT
First Time Viewing: Carlito’s Way (Brian De Palma; 1993) – As a De Palma movie this is great showcasing some of his finest visuals. As a gangster drama it’s clichéd, predictable, some scenes are weird, goofy and overcomplicated. As so often De Palma cares more about staging a spectacular scene than about plausibility. Pacino is arguably miscast as a Puerto Rican (why couldn’t his character simply be Italian American?) and while Penn is great, it’s obvious from the beginning that his character is up to no good. 6/10 Passengers (Morten Tyldum, 2016) – An empty spectacle with gorgeous visuals. There is very little chemistry between the leads, and the movie works neither as a romance nor as a survival thriller. 4/10 I think Passenger works well enough as a survival movie, but not so much as a romance. With that being said, I think the leads do have chemistry and I enjoyed them just doing their thing on the spaceship and I found myself caring about these characters. I'm not sure how well the movie would have worked without the stunning visuals, but as it is I think it is a good movie. 7/10While I don't necessarily disagree with you about anything you said about Carlito's Way, I just like the types of movies, Pacino is awesome as usual and I love DePalm's style. The train station sequence is great. I like the weird, goofy and complicated stuff you are referring to when it comes to DePalma. He does this a couple times in The Untouchables and that is part of the reason I like the movie and DePalma as much as I do. 7/10
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Post by theravenking on Mar 8, 2020 23:51:33 GMT
First Time Viewing: Carlito’s Way (Brian De Palma; 1993) – As a De Palma movie this is great showcasing some of his finest visuals. As a gangster drama it’s clichéd, predictable, some scenes are weird, goofy and overcomplicated. As so often De Palma cares more about staging a spectacular scene than about plausibility. Pacino is arguably miscast as a Puerto Rican (why couldn’t his character simply be Italian American?) and while Penn is great, it’s obvious from the beginning that his character is up to no good. 6/10 Passengers (Morten Tyldum, 2016) – An empty spectacle with gorgeous visuals. There is very little chemistry between the leads, and the movie works neither as a romance nor as a survival thriller. 4/10 I think Passenger works well enough as a survival movie, but not so much as a romance. With that being said, I think the leads do have chemistry and I enjoyed them just doing their thing on the spaceship and I found myself caring about these characters. I'm not sure how well the movie would have worked without the stunning visuals, but as it is I think it is a good movie. 7/10While I don't necessarily disagree with you about anything you said about Carlito's Way, I just like the types of movies, Pacino is awesome as usual and I love DePalm's style. The train station sequence is great. I like the weird, goofy and complicated stuff you are referring to when it comes to DePalma. He does this a couple times in The Untouchables and that is part of the reason I like the movie and DePalma as much as I do. 7/10 Personally I thought De Palma's directing style worked better in The Untouchables, because that was a more romantic larger-than-life type of story whereas Carlito's Way is a realistic gangster drama.
I thought the scene at the beginning where John Ortiz' character is killed was a bit ridiculous. While really well-staged and gripping it makes very little sense. That character was a nobody, a teenager running errands for the mob. They could've killed him any time, instead they planned this really elaborate set-up. I would understand if it had been someone higher up in the hierarchy, but clearly that scene is only there so De Palma can show off his directing skills.
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Post by moviemouth on Mar 9, 2020 0:04:11 GMT
I think Passenger works well enough as a survival movie, but not so much as a romance. With that being said, I think the leads do have chemistry and I enjoyed them just doing their thing on the spaceship and I found myself caring about these characters. I'm not sure how well the movie would have worked without the stunning visuals, but as it is I think it is a good movie. 7/10While I don't necessarily disagree with you about anything you said about Carlito's Way, I just like the types of movies, Pacino is awesome as usual and I love DePalm's style. The train station sequence is great. I like the weird, goofy and complicated stuff you are referring to when it comes to DePalma. He does this a couple times in The Untouchables and that is part of the reason I like the movie and DePalma as much as I do. 7/10Personally I thought De Palma's directing style worked better in The Untouchables, because that was a more romantic larger-than-life type of story whereas Carlito's Way is a realistic gangster drama.
I thought the scene at the beginning where John Ortiz' character is killed was a bit ridiculous. While really well-staged and gripping it makes very little sense. That character was a nobody, a teenager running errands for the mob. They could've killed him any time, instead they planned this really elaborate set-up. I would understand if it had been someone higher up in the hierarchy, but clearly that scene is only there so De Palma can show off his directing skills.
I really don't mind stuff not making a whole lot of sense if the scene is well staged and gripping, just as long as the director keeps a balance.
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Post by jcush on Mar 9, 2020 3:52:07 GMT
First Time Viewing: Carlito’s Way (Brian De Palma; 1993) – As a De Palma movie this is great showcasing some of his finest visuals. As a gangster drama it’s clichéd, predictable, some scenes are weird, goofy and overcomplicated. As so often De Palma cares more about staging a spectacular scene than about plausibility. Pacino is arguably miscast as a Puerto Rican (why couldn’t his character simply be Italian American?) and while Penn is great, it’s obvious from the beginning that his character is up to no good. 6/10 February (Oz Perkins; 2015) – Very atmospheric indie horror about demonic possession. It’s very restrained and the plot, told in different timelines, can be confusing at first. A commendable effort but not very scary. 5/10 Aces High (Jack Gold; 1976) – Terrific British war drama about WWI fighter pilots. According to director Jack Gold they only had 5 planes to film the aerial fight scenes and had to use archive material from other films. Despite this the battle scenes are still spectacular. Malcolm McDowell is on top form as a squadron leader who tries to keep his emotions at bay to be able to deal with the loss of his men. 8/10 Passengers (Morten Tyldum, 2016) – An empty spectacle with gorgeous visuals. There is very little chemistry between the leads, and the movie works neither as a romance nor as a survival thriller. 4/10 TV Dawson’s Creek – Season 1- For my generation this was a cult series, but I originally only saw a few episodes. Now I decided to find out what all the fuzz was about. Well, not very much it turns out. This is your typical cheesy teen romance. The smart dialogue is initially interesting, but all this trivial relationship stuff quickly started getting on my nerves. Good thing this first season is so short. 4/10 Carlito's Way - My second favorite De Palma after Scarface. 8.5/10 Passengers - Initially I gave this a 7, but as time has gone one, I've liked it less in retrospect. I think it almost works, but not quite. 6.5/10
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