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Post by Hurdy Gurdy Man on Jun 27, 2022 5:49:43 GMT
Hello, good folks of FG. The weekly film discussion thread is back. The topic under discussion is made clear in the title. Made-for-TV, direct-to-video, streaming, TV series/episodes, documentaries, short films can also be listed. The minimum requirement is that a numerical rating out of 5 or 10 be provided - whichever the poster wishes to choose - and it'll be even more helpful if he/she also writes a few thoughts regarding his/her experience with the feature/documentary/short/TV series' season. This will help in starting discussions, which is one of the main intentions of this thread. I also request all those who reply here to go through the whole thread once and see if you can see some common topic to discuss with other posters. All first viewings in my last week:
A visually vibrant but thematically shallow film. Comes across too strongly as a smug propaganda piece about western superiority over Japanese culture. Worth a watch simply for Scott's mastery over painting with light and fog.
6/10
Essentially an exploitative w.i.p film only with a larger budget and all men instead of women. I had a little fun over how ridiculous and overblown it was.
4/10
Sylvester Stallone got his personal version of The Champ made. I liked the first half with the father-son bonding a lot more than the second focussed on arm wrestling.
5/10
Rounders (1998, John Dahl) : A film centred on poker with a lot of technical gobbledegook that meant little to me. 4/10
Snow Day (2000, Chris Koch) : This Nickelodeon production is rarely mentioned nowadays despite being a hit (it made $60M on a $13M budget). I found it funny and charming. 7/10
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Post by FridayOnElmStreet on Jun 27, 2022 7:54:34 GMT
Black Rain - 5/10
Lock Up - 5/10
Over the Top - 5/10
Rounders - 6/10
Snow Day - 4/10
Mine:
Escape the Field (2022) - 3/10
6 strangers are lost and trapped in a corn field. Starts OK but gets confusing and tedious.
Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992) - 9/10
I noticed very mixed reactions from this film. I find it ti be a very entertaining and freaky Hellraiser entry.
Cult of Chucky (2017) - 8/10
Fun and freaky Chucky film.
Terror at Blood Fart Lake (2009) - 6/10
Weird but funny horror parody.
Everything Is Terrible! Presents: The Great Satan (2018) - 4/10
Bizarre but kinda amusing film made up from other films. Like a scrapbook movie.
Puppet Killer (2019) - 4/10
A young mans child toy comes back to kill his new friends. Watchable but nothing special.
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Post by James on Jun 27, 2022 11:28:00 GMT
Been meaning to watch Lock Up and Over the Top but not seen any of them.
First Time Viewings:
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022, Sam Raimi) – 8/10
Lightyear (2022, Angus MacLane) – 7/10
Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003, Charles Herman-Wurmfeld) – 6/10
Repeat Viewings:
Legally Blonde (2001, Robert Luketic) – 8/10
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Post by theravenking on Jun 27, 2022 12:43:19 GMT
Hello, good folks of FG. The weekly film discussion thread is back. The topic under discussion is made clear in the title. Made-for-TV, direct-to-video, streaming, TV series/episodes, documentaries, short films can also be listed. The minimum requirement is that a numerical rating out of 5 or 10 be provided - whichever the poster wishes to choose - and it'll be even more helpful if he/she also writes a few thoughts regarding his/her experience with the feature/documentary/short/TV series' season. This will help in starting discussions, which is one of the main intentions of this thread. I also request all those who reply here to go through the whole thread once and see if you can see some common topic to discuss with other posters. All first viewings in my last week:
A visually vibrant but thematically shallow film. Comes across too strongly as a smug propaganda piece about western superiority over Japanese culture. Worth a watch simply for Scott's mastery over painting with light and fog.
6/10
Essentially an exploitative w.i.p film only with a larger budget and all men instead of women. I had a little fun over how ridiculous and overblown it was.
4/10
Sylvester Stallone got his personal version of *The Champ* made. I liked the first half with the father-son bonding a lot more than the second focussed on arm wrestling.
5/10
Rounders (1998, John Dahl) : A film centred on poker with a lot of technical gobbledegook that meant little to me. 4/10
Snow Day (2000, Chris Koch) : This Nickelodeon production is rarely mentioned nowadays despite being a hit (it made $60M on a $13M budget). I found it funny and charming. 7/10
Black Rain (1989, Ridley Scott) : Good visuals, but dull story and unlikeable characters. 5/10 Rounders (1998, John Dahl) : For some reason this movie didn't work for me at all. Even though Norton was on fire in the late 90s and Malkovich hadn't yet entered the "I'll do anything for the right paycheck" phase of his career, their characters just fell flat for me.
3/10
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Post by theravenking on Jun 27, 2022 12:47:53 GMT
The Red Queen Kills Seven Times (1972; Emilio P. Miraglia) - Middling gothic giallo, with a great concept, but somewhat lacklustre execution. According to legend the titular red queen returns every 100 years to wreak havoc on her family and kill her sister, the black queen, played by Barbara Bouchet. Not bloody or creative enough for a slasher and too confusing for a mystery, this feels more like a by-the-numbers Hammer movie.
6/10
Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985; Guy Hamilton) - Very goofy action flick, originally envisioned to be the first in a franchise, with the late Fred Ward as a sort of blue collar, American James Bond. Having a Caucasian (Joel Grey) playing his Korean mentor, although barely recognisable under excellent make-up, would seem controversial today, but the movie's problems lie more in the generic plot and too few memorabe action set-pieces, although one involving a henchman's teeth really made me laugh.
6/10
Your Vice Is A Locked Room And Only I Have The Key (1972; Sergio Martino) - Although considered by many to be a classic of the giallo genre, I was underwhelmed by this very lose and rather confusing take on E.A. Poe's classic short story "The Black Cat". The plot is all over the place, there is more nudity than gore and visually it's not that interesting either. Incredible score from Bruno Nicolai though.
6/10
Repeat Viewing:
Nothing this week.
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Post by Hurdy Gurdy Man on Jun 28, 2022 9:18:05 GMT
Black Rain - 5/10 Lock Up - 5/10 Over the Top - 5/10 Rounders - 6/10 Snow Day - 4/10 Mine: Escape the Field (2022) - 3/10
6 strangers are lost and trapped in a corn field. Starts OK but gets confusing and tedious. Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth (1992) - 9/10
I noticed very mixed reactions from this film. I find it ti be a very entertaining and freaky Hellraiser entry. Cult of Chucky (2017) - 8/10
Fun and freaky Chucky film. Terror at Blood Fart Lake (2009) - 6/10
Weird but funny horror parody. Everything Is Terrible! Presents: The Great Satan (2018) - 4/10
Bizarre but kinda amusing film made up from other films. Like a scrapbook movie. Puppet Killer (2019) - 4/10A young mans child toy comes back to kill his new friends. Watchable but nothing special. Haven't seen those yet. I have the whole Child's Play series written on DVD, which means I will get around to watching it some day.
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Post by Hurdy Gurdy Man on Jun 28, 2022 9:24:14 GMT
Been meaning to watch Lock Up and Over the Top but not seen any of them. First Time Viewings:Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022, Sam Raimi) – 8/10Lightyear (2022, Angus MacLane) – 7/10Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003, Charles Herman-Wurmfeld) – 6/10Repeat Viewings:Legally Blonde (2001, Robert Luketic) – 8/10If you ask me, I would suggest skipping both the Stallone flicks and watch Black Rain instead. In many ways it is just as one-dimensional and ridiculous as those two films but at least it is beautiful to look at.
I have seen Legally Blonde 1 & 2 and I don't mean to offend you, I just wish to state my personal opinion: I found them both to be borderline unwatchable. Among Reese Witherspoon vehicles, I much prefer Overnight Delivery and Just Like Heaven.
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Post by Hurdy Gurdy Man on Jun 28, 2022 9:34:25 GMT
The Red Queen Kills Seven Times (1972; Emilio P. Miraglia) - Middling gothic giallo, with a great concept, but somewhat lacklustre execution. According to legend the titular red queen returns every 100 years to wreak havoc on her family and kill her sister, the black queen, played by Barbara Bouchet. Not bloody or creative enough for a slasher and too confusing for a mystery, this feels more like a by-the-numbers Hammer movie. 6/10 Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985; Guy Hamilton) - Very goofy action flick, originally envisioned to be the first in a franchise, with the late Fred Ward as a sort of blue collar, American James Bond. Having a Caucasian (Joel Grey) playing his Korean mentor, although barely recognisable under excellent make-up, would seem controversial today, but the movie's problems lie more in the generic plot and too few memorabe action set-pieces, although one involving a henchman's teeth really made me laugh. 6/10
Your Vice Is A Locked Room And Only I Have The Key (1972; Sergio Martino) - Although considered by many to be a classic of the giallo genre, I was underwhelmed by this very lose and rather confusing take on E.A. Poe's classic short story "The Black Cat". The plot is all over the place, there is more nudity than gore and visually it's not that interesting either. Incredible score from Bruno Nicolai though. 6/10 Repeat Viewing: Nothing this week. is the only giallo by Sergio Martino that I like; his other gialli are more focussed on sleaze than thrills. I love how misanthropic it is and all characters have their own axe to grind. Edwige Fenech nails it as a femme fatale for a change; instead of the usual damsel in distress like in Martino's other films.
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Post by James on Jun 28, 2022 10:43:23 GMT
Been meaning to watch Lock Up and Over the Top but not seen any of them. First Time Viewings:Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022, Sam Raimi) – 8/10Lightyear (2022, Angus MacLane) – 7/10Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003, Charles Herman-Wurmfeld) – 6/10Repeat Viewings:Legally Blonde (2001, Robert Luketic) – 8/10If you ask me, I would suggest skipping both the Stallone flicks and watch Black Rain instead. In many ways it is just as one-dimensional and ridiculous as those two films but at least it is beautiful to look at.
I have seen Legally Blonde 1 & 2 and I don't mean to offend you, I just wish to state my personal opinion: I found them both to be borderline unwatchable. Among Reese Witherspoon vehicles, I much prefer Overnight Delivery and Just Like Heaven.
Not offended and I respect your opinion. I'll be on the lookout for those other two with her, as well as Black Rain.
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Post by mikef6 on Jun 28, 2022 18:41:03 GMT
Yours
“Black Rain” Nick Conklin (Michael Douglas) is a NYC detective in trouble with Internal Affairs. He and his partner Charlie Vincent (Andy Garcia) are given the job of escorting are prisoner back to Japan where they lose him to fake Osaka police officers. Douglas was giving a one-note performance until the final half-hour. Stick with it to the end. 7/10
“Rounders” I liked it much, much more than you did. Mike McDermott (Matt Damon) is a law student who dreams of being a big time Las Vegas poker player getting into and winning the World Series of Poker. But going against the Russian gangster Teddy KGB (John Malkovich) he loses it all – his tuition, rent, everything. His incorrigible friend Les (nicknamed Worm) (Edward Norton) temps him to gamble more. They end up having to raise $25,000 in a week. The movie is a little overlong, but we get a lot of poker lore and insights (“They wear their Tells like signs around their necks: facial tics, nervous fingers, the hand over the mouth, the way a cigarette is smoked, little unconscious gestures that reveal the cards in their hands…If a fish acts strong he's bluffing, if he acts weak, he’s got a hand. It's that simple.”) With Gretchen Mol, John Turturro, Famke Janssen, and Martin Landau, wonderful as McDermott's law school mentor. 7/10
Mine
THX 1138 / George Lucas (1971). This first effort of Lucas at writing and directing a feature film was received with less than stellar reviews and revenues (I tried to help the movie out by going to see it in 1971). After “Star Wars” (1977), however, “THX” was revisited and revised upward, becoming a cult favorite.
Silent Movie / Mel Brooks (1976). Knockabout comedy with no dialog and silent movie era intertitles. But the rest of the movie is never silent. There is wacky music for an underscore and a loud soundtrack of punching all the action with crashes, bangs, pows, and booms. Slight plot. Essentially a series of blackout sketches. Very funny.
Ladyhawke / Richard Donner (1985). Medieval knight Etienne of Navarre (Rutger Hauer) and his One True Love Isabeau of Anjou (Michelle Pfeiffer) have been placed under a curse; the coolest, cleverest, and cruelest hex ever. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you what it is because it is not revealed in full until the movie is half over.
Los Cronocrímenes (Timecrimes) / Nacho Vigalondo (2007). “Timecrimes” doesn’t start out seeming like a twisted mind bender but sure turns into one.
The Conductor (2022). PBS documentary from the series Great Performances (Season 49, Episode 11). The title conductor is Marin Alsop who from the age of 9 had wanted to be an orchestral conductor and who eventually became the first female to be the lead conductor of a major U.S. city orchestra, Baltimore being the city.
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Post by Feologild Oakes on Jun 28, 2022 19:24:20 GMT
Olsenbanden Operasjon Egon (1969) 7/10 Part of the Olsen Gang film series |
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Post by Hurdy Gurdy Man on Jun 30, 2022 16:50:16 GMT
Yours “Black Rain” Nick Conklin (Michael Douglas) is a NYC detective in trouble with Internal Affairs. He and his partner Charlie Vincent (Andy Garcia) are given the job of escorting are prisoner back to Japan where they lose him to fake Osaka police officers. Douglas was giving a one-note performance until the final half-hour. Stick with it to the end. 7/10 “Rounders” I liked it much, much more than you did. Mike McDermott (Matt Damon) is a law student who dreams of being a big time Las Vegas poker player getting into and winning the World Series of Poker. But going against the Russian gangster Teddy KGB (John Malkovich) he loses it all – his tuition, rent, everything. His incorrigible friend Les (nicknamed Worm) (Edward Norton) temps him to gamble more. They end up having to raise $25,000 in a week. The movie is a little overlong, but we get a lot of poker lore and insights (“They wear their Tells like signs around their necks: facial tics, nervous fingers, the hand over the mouth, the way a cigarette is smoked, little unconscious gestures that reveal the cards in their hands…If a fish acts strong he's bluffing, if he acts weak, he’s got a hand. It's that simple.”) With Gretchen Mol, John Turturro, Famke Janssen, and Martin Landau, wonderful as McDermott's law school mentor. 7/10 Mine THX 1138 / George Lucas (1971). This first effort of Lucas at writing and directing a feature film was received with less than stellar reviews and revenues (I tried to help the movie out by going to see it in 1971). After “Star Wars” (1977), however, “THX” was revisited and revised upward, becoming a cult favorite. Silent Movie / Mel Brooks (1976). Knockabout comedy with no dialog and silent movie era intertitles. But the rest of the movie is never silent. There is wacky music for an underscore and a loud soundtrack of punching all the action with crashes, bangs, pows, and booms. Slight plot. Essentially a series of blackout sketches. Very funny. Ladyhawke / Richard Donner (1985). Medieval knight Etienne of Navarre (Rutger Hauer) and his One True Love Isabeau of Anjou (Michelle Pfeiffer) have been placed under a curse; the coolest, cleverest, and cruelest hex ever. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you what it is because it is not revealed in full until the movie is half over. Los Cronocrímenes (Timecrimes) / Nacho Vigalondo (2007). “Timecrimes” doesn’t start out seeming like a twisted mind bender but sure turns into one. The Conductor (2022). PBS documentary from the series Great Performances (Season 49, Episode 11). The title conductor is Marin Alsop who from the age of 9 had wanted to be an orchestral conductor and who eventually became the first female to be the lead conductor of a major U.S. city orchestra, Baltimore being the city. I haven't seen any of those but the first four titles are in my watchlist. In fact I am planning on watching Legend this week or next; maybe I will follow it up with Ladyhawke.
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Post by Hurdy Gurdy Man on Jun 30, 2022 16:51:28 GMT
Olsenbanden Operasjon Egon (1969) 7/10 Part of the Olsen Gang film series Thanks for the link! I was not aware of this series before.
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Post by Feologild Oakes on Jun 30, 2022 16:55:00 GMT
Olsenbanden Operasjon Egon (1969) 7/10 Part of the Olsen Gang film series Thanks for the link! I was not aware of this series before. I would be very surprised if anybody outside of Scandinavia is familiar with it.
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