love

Author Topic: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017  (Read 42405 times)

1SO

  • FAB
  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 36129
  • Marathon Man
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #60 on: September 30, 2017, 11:37:35 PM »
More encouragement oldkid. Looking for Junior's review, I found Corndog's, which reads like what I expect Junior will say.

It's brilliantly paced, action packed, beautifully photographed, features a great cast, is quite funny, and in the end is a ton of fun. What's not to like?

*** - Very Good



Kaiju is always debatable as a Horror genre because it has big monsters but is rarely scary.

Do you know of any exceptions to this? I can't think of any.
The T-Rex in Jurassic Park has that one great scene. The Cloverfield monster comes close, but the underground parasites are much scarier. Skull Island for me raises the bar by having more than a couple of isolated shocks.

oldkid

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 19044
  • Hi there! Feed me worlds!
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #61 on: September 30, 2017, 11:44:35 PM »
More encouragement oldkid. Looking for Junior's review, I found Corndog's, which reads like what I expect Junior will say.

It's brilliantly paced, action packed, beautifully photographed, features a great cast, is quite funny, and in the end is a ton of fun. What's not to like?

*** - Very Good


I saw their reviews and there wasn't anything that made the film compelling to see.  I think the portions that got me interested were:

 
2014's Godzilla had an unusual amount of restraint, but still packed in a lot of rampaging kaiju action. Skull Island has all of that and none of the restraint. The script isn't smart, but I didn't feel insulted by it.

- Scary
"It's not art unless it has the potential to be a disaster." Bansky

1SO

  • FAB
  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 36129
  • Marathon Man
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #62 on: October 01, 2017, 12:12:34 AM »

Nina Forever (2015)

Rob's girlfriend died in a car crash and every time he tries to have sex with his new girlfriend, Holly, the ex returns bloody and broken. This may sound like a comedy premise, but it's actually a thoughtful and touching metaphor for grief, jealousy and the limits of helping somebody you care about cope with horrible situations. The characters are written in a really insightful way, extending to Nina's parents, who Rob still sees occasionally. Despite the blood, the frequent sex is quite sexy and comes with an emotional honesty that helps sell the fantasy. (I don't know anyone that would lend support the way Holly does, but I believe that type of person exists, and newcomer Abigail Hardingham excels in this difficult role.)

I don't know why the film is edited slightly out of sequence. (Some scenes mix up the sequence of events of that day, so it's not flashing back and forth, but delivering information of the moment in a non-linear way.) It's distracting and when the story is this fantastical, a cleaner timeline would've made it easier. There are also too many musical montages, which I know because I started noticing how much time they were taking up, adding almost nothing to the story.
Rating: * * * - Okay

- Not scary, but often bloody



Gojira/Godzilla (1954)

I'd always heard about Godzilla starting out as a metaphor for the nuclear bombs dropped on Japan, but I couldn't imagine how that works with my modern idea of a Godzilla film. Now I see how it makes perfect sense. Remove most of the camp - there's still the one-eyed scientist with the oxygen-removing bomb - add in somber choir music and film in stark black and white and Godzilla becomes a walking holocaust. Mass destruction on such an unimaginable scale, the people wonder if they brought it on themselves. There's also the legendary Takashi Shimura as the most convincing scientist ever to question why we're so bent on destroying the monster and not trying to understand it. (That character type has never been more sympathetic.) As for the one-eyed scientist, even he becomes a philosophical question of fighting all-out destruction with a weapon even more powerful.

This is so far removed from my idea of a Godzilla movie, I admire it more than I recommend it. This recent poll about Star Wars directors veered into a discussion about filmmakers who would make a different type of film within that universe. This suggests the same. What if Paul Greengrass made a Godzilla film where the monster destroys New York City with modern effects, creating an epic 9/11 that people could never hope to recover from? I wish I had more time to follow the series and see when Godzilla transforms into Japan's protector.
Rating: * * * - Okay

- Safe for Sandy
« Last Edit: September 12, 2020, 02:18:44 PM by 1SO »

DarkeningHumour

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 10453
  • When not sure if sarcasm look at username.
    • Pretentiously Yours
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #63 on: October 01, 2017, 02:27:39 PM »
This review might get me to watch Skull Island.

I've been telling people to watch it for months. Do! At the least there are a few quite good scenes.
« Society is dumb. Art is everything. » - Junior

https://pretensiouslyyours.wordpress.com/

1SO

  • FAB
  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 36129
  • Marathon Man
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #64 on: October 01, 2017, 10:57:32 PM »

Godzilla Raids Again (1955)

Rushed sequel and a terrible title that makes it sound like the campy tone has arrived. (The Japanese title translates to Counterattack of Godzilla and it was first released in the US as Gigantis the Fire Monster.) There's still a heavy aftertaste of Godzilla as a creature of horrible destruction. It's in the fight Godzilla has with the spiny, four-legged Anguirus. He fights the creature on his island and when man intervenes, the two take the fight to Osaka.

The monster battle is new to the franchise and you can feel the serious undertones fading away as the two rubber-suited stuntmen bang away. (A Letterboxd review accurately says it looks "like two angry cosplayers.") The fight with Godzilla then moves back to his isolated island, so there's no more mass destruction allegory. The remaining human stories seems tacked on to get the film to 80 minutes as does the cameo by Takashi Shimura who shows some highlights from the first film.
Rating: * *

- Safe for Sandy

Sandy

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 12075
  • "The life we build, we never stop creating.”
    • Sandy's Cinematic Musings
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #65 on: October 01, 2017, 11:20:16 PM »
I'm on time for this marathon, so how come I feel so late? :D

Movies this month (I may add more.),

The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Rosemary's Baby
Shaun of the Dead
« Last Edit: October 03, 2017, 04:50:20 PM by Sandy »

oldkid

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 19044
  • Hi there! Feed me worlds!
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #66 on: October 02, 2017, 03:09:39 AM »
I'm on time for this marathon, so how come I feel so late? :D

Movies this month (I may add more.),

Rosemary's Baby
Shaun of the Dead


Some of us couldn't wait.

Good choices, BTW.  Interested in your take on Rosemary's Baby.
"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: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #67 on: October 02, 2017, 03:45:20 AM »
Are you recommending A Cure for Wellness then? (I'm hoping it's been long enough since I listened to the filmcast episode for me to have forgotten the spoilers.)
In general, yes. The story doesn't work from A - Z but from A - Q it seems to be working just fine. It's a long movie, but that's another thing I think it equals with Shining, justifying the length through a series of interesting sequences. On top of that, it's one of the best looking and technically proficient films of the year.

All that said, I think YOU would enjoy Dead Again more.

Okay, your review was pretty enticing. I will see about maybe watching both movies, but DA in priority.
« Society is dumb. Art is everything. » - Junior

https://pretensiouslyyours.wordpress.com/

DarkeningHumour

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 10453
  • When not sure if sarcasm look at username.
    • Pretentiously Yours
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #68 on: October 02, 2017, 01:27:32 PM »
1SO, could you please add my review of mother! to the index? That is probably the most frightening thing I am going to watch all month.
« Society is dumb. Art is everything. » - Junior

https://pretensiouslyyours.wordpress.com/

DarkeningHumour

  • Objectively Awesome
  • ******
  • Posts: 10453
  • When not sure if sarcasm look at username.
    • Pretentiously Yours
Re: Shocktober Group Marathon 2017
« Reply #69 on: October 02, 2017, 01:30:31 PM »
Kong: Skull Island

I'm coming around on the fact that there's a certain type of dumb fun movie I enjoy more than others, where I find myself brushing the dumb aside to take in the fun. The Fast & Furious franchise is an excellent example. They're not smart movies, but the weak drama doesn't bother me because I like the cast, the characters and the big action. I will continue to defend Jurassic World for what it gets right.

This is where you lose me. There is a line, man.
« Society is dumb. Art is everything. » - Junior

https://pretensiouslyyours.wordpress.com/