love

Author Topic: Respond to the last movie you watched  (Read 684747 times)

The Deer Hunter

  • Elite Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 1809
  • My name is Jeff
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2190 on: March 15, 2018, 04:44:23 PM »
I'll jump in and say I'm an unabashed fan of both movies. The first one is one of my top 2 or 3 guilty pleasures.

DarkeningHumour

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 10453
  • When not sure if sarcasm look at username.
    • Pretentiously Yours
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2191 on: March 15, 2018, 05:40:11 PM »
I am worried about the both of you.
« Society is dumb. Art is everything. » - Junior

https://pretensiouslyyours.wordpress.com/

philip918

  • Elite Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 4580
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2192 on: March 15, 2018, 07:05:38 PM »
Contact (1997)

I hadn't seen this since high school, a time I was wearing out my VHS copies of The Rock and Face/Off, so I found this film a bit slow for my tastes. I'm working on a sci-fi idea and decided to revisit Contact, and my estimation has actually fallen from my foggy memories of the first viewing.

The core idea is fantastic. The execution is really lacking. It's a two and a half hour film with two hours of build up and then a movie's worth of twists and turns packed into the last 30 minutes, so these big moments come across as broad and cartoonish. Literally, in the rotoscoping of Foster and David Morse during a pivotal scene, which is an early indication of Zemeckis's obsession with motion-capture. It is actually a cool effect in the context of the scene.

Antares

  • Godfather
  • *****
  • Posts: 5013
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2193 on: March 15, 2018, 08:16:02 PM »
Darkest Hour (2017) 55/100 - Back in my school days, I was enthralled by world history. Most kids, when they become adults, leave their fascinations in youth, behind. But not me, I ventured into military history, and to that end, the leaders of the world in various conflicts. I probably have seen every documentary or film made about Winston Churchill, at some time over the last four decades. After seeing Gary Oldman win the Oscar for Best Performance by an Actor, for his portrayal of the indomitable war leader of Great Britain, during WWII, I had to watch this film. But sadly, I came away extremely disappointed not only in his performance, but in the overall screenplay and direction of this film. Oldman's take on Churchill, has him being doddering, somnambular and ever annoyingly indecisive. This was not Winston Churchill. Every denigrating comment made about him in this film was true. He was bombastic, an adventurer and reckless with lives, in military campaigning. But, he was also a charismatic and brilliant orator. Which is only showcased in his final speech to Parliament in the film. By then though, this film has lost all credibility, in its depiction of the events occurring in the most tragic time of our history. If you want to see a better portrayal of Churchill, I recommend wholeheartedly, Robert Hardy's turn in Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years, a fantastic British mini-series, from the early 80's. It's not about the same time and events, it deals more with Churchill's political exile during the late 20's and 30's. But, you do get to see his increasing fear of the rise of Adolf Hitler, and how prophetic he was in what was coming, in terms of war in Europe. And for a bonus, you also get to watch Siān Phillips & Eric Porter, who are both outstanding in their roles as Clemmie Churchill, and Neville Chamberlain.
Masterpiece (100-91) | Classic (90-80) | Entertaining (79-69) | Mediocre (68-58) | Cinemuck (57-21) | Crap (20-0)

Bondo

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 23082
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2194 on: March 15, 2018, 09:08:47 PM »
The Disaster Artist (2017)

Only Filmspot nominee I missed out on prior to voting. But hey, by comparison, this makes Phantom Thread look like the best film of the year. It's one of those things where you watch The Room and you think "oh my god, how did this even get made" and then they make a movie of how it even got made and you're like, "never mind."

I just think you see this, which actually shows Tommy to be a major jerk, and then you see the way Wiseau was talked about in James Franco's Golden Globes speech and it kind of soft peddles the harm. Just goes to show the tortured genius pass doesn't require any actual genius.

Ari Graynor says it best: "It's still going?"

oldkid

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 19044
  • Hi there! Feed me worlds!
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2195 on: March 15, 2018, 10:24:30 PM »
Mary and the Witch's Flower

As the theatre darkened, I reminded myself, "This is not a Ghibli film. Don't compare it to a Ghibli film."

Because Studio Ponyoc is full of artists and creative geniuses jumping the sinking ship that is Studio Ghibli with the assurance that Miyazaki was retiring and so they were losing their cash cow.  And the studio was so focused on Miyazaki and Takahata for creative drive that it was hard to imagine the studio continuing without them.  So Yoshiaki Nishimura and a number of Ghibli talents decided to begin a new studio, separate from Ghibli.

However, my concern to not treat this like a Ghibli, nay I say, Miyazaki film was without substance.  Because the film and artists couldn't forget.  I was constantly reminded of various Miyazaki films, in a way that I am rarely reminded of when I watch a new Miyazaki film.  Rarely do I think in a Miyazaki film, "This is just like Howl's Moving Castle.  Just like Mononoke.  Similar to Kiki.  Kinda like Spirited Away."  Miyazaki is almost always fresh, giving us a new world to play with.

Less so, Mary and the Witch's Flower.  This very much felt like an early Miyazaki film, such as Castle in the Sky or Kiki's Delivery Service.  But more magic and a more straightforward story, like Ponyo.  It is very much aimed at children.  It is what Miyazaki might do on his day off, playing with old ideas in a different story that still seems familiar.

Of course, I loved it.  I mean, I'm a huge Miyazaki fan, so a good fan fiction is awesome to me.  And this is good.  The animation is top quality, the story is quiet enjoyable, and there are some original touches that are fantastic.  I will purchase this film to watch it again.  All it is missing is the mark of genius, the creative edge.  It's good, just not Miyazaki.  And that wouldn't be a problem at all if they didn't call to mind Miyazaki every other scene.

At the same time, I think the film is insisting that Ponyoc plans to go a new direction.  The climatic line (no spoilers) is, "We don't need magic."  As if to say, Ponyoc isn't depending on the creative geniuses to give the spark to keep them going.  Since Mary did quite well in Japanese theatres, they will have their chance.  I wish them well and will be there to watch their new direction.

4/5
"It's not art unless it has the potential to be a disaster." Bansky

DarkeningHumour

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 10453
  • When not sure if sarcasm look at username.
    • Pretentiously Yours
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2196 on: March 16, 2018, 07:15:51 AM »
I have high hopes for Ponyoc.
« Society is dumb. Art is everything. » - Junior

https://pretensiouslyyours.wordpress.com/

Antares

  • Godfather
  • *****
  • Posts: 5013
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2197 on: March 16, 2018, 08:08:06 PM »
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017) 82/100 - First off, let me say, that I enjoyed this. It's been a long time since I watched a modern film, that kept my attention, wondering what was going to happen next. But now that a bit of time has passed since I finished it (30 minutes), the plot holes, which I noticed while I was watching, now appear glaring. A few times, I said to myself, "OK, she gets arrested now", but it doesn't happen. And she should have been arrested for the main crime she commits. But, if that happens, the plot comes to a halt, so it is discarded for the sake of the story. Another character, commits a crime, while wearing his badge, but nothing ever comes of it. Why? Because it doesn't move the plot along. Am I disappointed in the fact that this should have left me cold, to the story overall? No. Maybe I've set the bar a bit lower now, for modern films, and I'm just happy to have a film engage my mind for a while. It was refreshing not having my eyes bombarded with intricate camera shots and angles, which is prevalent amongst today's directors. There isn't even the slightest bit of CGI anywhere on the periphery. That makes me smile! But these asides kind of detract from making this a classic in my eyes. Heaps of praise have been bestowed on Frances McDormand, and she does a wonderful job, with the one note character that was written for her. But she doesn't have much to do but be angry. The real performance in this, is by Sam Rockwell, who, in every film I've seen him in, is the consummate scene stealer, who should get more starring roles. He's one of the best actors in the business today. As much as I enjoyed this, I wonder what my thoughts will be, say, in a few years when I revisit this. I have a feeling, it won't hold up. But for now, I recommend it.
Masterpiece (100-91) | Classic (90-80) | Entertaining (79-69) | Mediocre (68-58) | Cinemuck (57-21) | Crap (20-0)

DarthNibbles

  • Newbie
  • Posts: 6
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2198 on: March 18, 2018, 03:28:46 PM »


Gringo, 2018

Eh, it was alright. Not as good as the trailer makes it out to be (are they ever?). It had moments that made me laugh, and it had moments that made me cringe (I'm a wuss when it comes to torture scenes). I feel like it could have been edited to be a bit snappier, maybe cutting off 10 minutes; otherwise though, it's a fairly smart movie with decent writing, which we don't see enough of these days.

Probably not worth paying to see in the theater, but hey, I'm getting good use out of my MoviePass subscription. Something like 7/10 for me.

1SO

  • FAB
  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 36129
  • Marathon Man
Re: Respond to the last movie you watched
« Reply #2199 on: March 18, 2018, 04:42:22 PM »
Eh, it was alright. Not as good as the trailer makes it out to be (are they ever?).
Disney has a habit of making underwhelming trailers. Black Panther and Coco are two recent examples.

 

love