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Author Topic: Respond to the last movie you watched  (Read 681628 times)

Bondo

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Respond to the last movie you watched
« on: January 01, 2017, 01:25:19 PM »
Train to Busan (2016)

My filmic resolution this year is to watch more international cinema. I used to watch a fair few things but in the past couple years have fallen out of the habit to a larger extent. To make it even easier to get started, I found out that Amazon has a deal right now where if you enter the code "MOVIE99" you can get most digital rentals for 99 cents (though looking at my receipt, I think I got it for free). Apparently this also works for Google Play, which I might try out later today.

Train to Busan is a very solid entry into the zombie horror category, playing up the claustrophobic nature of the train setting much the way Snakes on a Plane did, but actually as a good movie. In the process of providing thrills, it is an emotionally effective piece seemingly critiquing Korean modernization to the extent it has led to a more individualistic/greedy approach, which has torn the fabric of both the community and the family.

I did feel like there was a natural end point about 85 minutes in and was surprised when it I clicked and found it had 30 minutes remaining. That final 30 minutes felt distinctly weaker and pulled the film down an increment in the process. One other aspect that wasn't entirely clear and thus effective was the source of the zombie outbreak, which seems to be identified by the end but the discussion was confusing in terms of culpability of some characters. Still, quite a strong film that supports the reasoning behind my resolution.

B
« Last Edit: January 19, 2017, 06:18:24 PM by pixote »

1SO

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Re: Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #1 on: January 01, 2017, 01:53:29 PM »
How did the effects strike you? When they showed the deer at the beginning I relaxed immediately because it couldn't possibly be a real deer but the movements were very natural and it blended into the real world seamlessly.

Also, do you agree that the escalator was a clever idea with the people being pulled downward towards the zombie mob?

pixote

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Re: Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2 on: January 01, 2017, 02:12:29 PM »
I found out that Amazon has a deal right now where if you enter the code "MOVIE99" you can get most digital rentals for 99 cents (though looking at my receipt, I think I got it for free).

Let me know if it works on a second movie from Amazon. The article I read just now implied that it was a one-time-per-customer deal at Amazon, and also at Google (separately). I sort of hope that's true. Otherwise, I threw away about $10 last week.

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Bondo

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Re: Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #3 on: January 01, 2017, 02:42:09 PM »
Correct, it is a single-use credit (per account). I'm assuming you can use it once at each place because I don't know why Amazon and Google would be working in conjunction (or since they are different accounts, how they'd know).

ETA: I can't sort out how to make the Google one work...either through Google Play Store or through youtube.

How did the effects strike you? When they showed the deer at the beginning I relaxed immediately because it couldn't possibly be a real deer but the movements were very natural and it blended into the real world seamlessly.

Also, do you agree that the escalator was a clever idea with the people being pulled downward towards the zombie mob?

The effects were mostly good. Sometimes the zombie face make-up...one of the latter ones in particular, was a touch lacking. And yes, the escalator was cool, though I'm pondering if it could have been more effective. I suppose it makes sense with a mass of people that it played out how it did, but it also means you lose someone actively running up the down escalator, not knowing if they'll make it.
« Last Edit: January 01, 2017, 03:35:26 PM by Bondo »

Bondo

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Re: Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #4 on: January 01, 2017, 08:21:19 PM »
Okay, figured out the Google Play discount, thus I present:

Evolution (2015)

As this film progressed, I went back and forth from feeling like the placement of Lucile Hadzihalilovic's prior film, Innocence, in my top 10 all time was going to be a millstone around its neck or that it will make me more lenient in recognition of my trust in her filmmaking. Indeed, it was the latter that seems more likely as I could easily see myself blasting this film as not amounting to much...staying too vague in its weirdness. It is an oddity that lives in the world of Cronenberg or Eraserhead.

Between this world and that of Innocence, Hadzihalilovic could be called a builder of uncanny worlds, much like Yorgos Lanthimos. These are worlds that seem a lot like ours but are queered in one way or another, in theory to draw out a metaphor. This one sets us in a coastal village where adult women tend to boys nearing the onset of puberty. Innocence was pretty clear as metaphor of how girls are groomed rather cruelly to make it in the world. Maybe it is a mistake to try to view this as a mirror image, a film about the ills of boys becoming men in society. If anything, it feels like the community enacts a form of revenge for historic subjugation of women. But the point is, as effectively creepy as the images and mood of the film evokes, it leaves too much unsaid. This doesn't doom it as a reasonable piece of craft, but it certainly keeps it far away from the transcendent place of Innocence.

B-

MartinTeller

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Re: Respond to the last movie you watched (restarted 1/2017)
« Reply #5 on: January 01, 2017, 10:50:02 PM »
I have that one on deck, hoping to get to it soon. I still have high hopes for it, though seeing a fellow Innocence fan have a lukewarm reaction gives me pause.

1SO

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Re: Respond to the last movie you watched (restarted 1/2017)
« Reply #6 on: January 02, 2017, 12:13:57 AM »
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back
* *

There's a bit of dialogue in Ratatouille about how the great Chef Gusteau would always do something unexpected. That was his job, but it was the job of the other chefs to follow the recipe. Tom Cruise has made a number of action movies, including some of the best of the last 30 years. With the right director, Cruise can be counted on for something unexpected. Unfortunately, Edward Zwick only knows how to follow the recipe.

Bondo

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Re: Respond to the last movie you watched (restarted 1/2017)
« Reply #7 on: January 02, 2017, 07:05:25 AM »
I have that one on deck, hoping to get to it soon. I still have high hopes for it, though seeing a fellow Innocence fan have a lukewarm reaction gives me pause.

You are more of a Lynch fan though, and thus might be less put off by the mystery of it. I mostly need you to watch it so we can open a spoiler thread.

Corndog

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Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #8 on: January 02, 2017, 08:04:51 AM »
My wife and I have had a Harry Potter Weekend, and even though it has only been a few years since the last time we marathoner the films, my opinions continue to shift and solidify a bit more each time I see the films. Still have 7b on deck for today, but I can now say with confidence that the adult casts save the first two films, which are rather average and buoyed by those performances I mentioned and also the great sense of adventure which comes from the books. Azkaban is still marvelous, and Order of the Phoenix has maybe become my favorite of the bunch now (joining the club here). It is great in so many ways. Half-Blood Prince (my previous favorite) has some script issues, and lacks focus at times, but is still a darn beautiful film to look at (the main reason it was my number one before. 7a is great too. I really appreciate seeing the story progression over the films, as it gets progressively darker and more dangerous. It is telling to see the child performances evolve over the series as well. Radcliffe has the promise throughout, with some very nice moments even early on. Grint is always there with good comedic timing, but even has a few nice moments later on. Watson is the best evolution, because she is fairly wooden and delivered in her performance early on, but eventually is able to rival Radcliffe in natural performance. So it's no surprise she has continued that evolution past the series to be the most successful, with Grint nowhere to be found.

Here is how I would probably rank them today:

  • Order of the Phoenix
  • Prisoner of Azkaban
  • Deathly Hallows: Part 1
  • Half-Blood Prince
  • Goblet of Fire
  • Sorcerer's Stone
  • Chamber of Secrets
"Time is the speed at which the past decays."

1SO

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Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #9 on: January 02, 2017, 08:18:14 AM »
Couldn't find a word of disagreement to respond back with, but wanted to respond since I've watched all these films many times over. Thrilled to see you join the club on Order > Azkaban.