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Author Topic: I don't get it/They don't get it  (Read 4723 times)

1SO

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I don't get it/They don't get it
« on: December 21, 2017, 12:16:51 AM »
Not a Top 5, but I love this idea from Filmspotting SVU and would love to hear everyone chime in.

First, name a film that was critically acclaimed or commercially successful where you don't get it. Explain your reasoning.

Then, name a film you liked a lot that audiences and critics really didn't like. Again, make your case.


1SO

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #1 on: December 21, 2017, 12:32:09 AM »
I Don't Get It
Wonder Woman - I'm all for empowering women to be modern action heroes, doing it in their own manner where it's not about how you look but your actions and the way you represent. However, I can name a number of films that have put this across better than Wonder Woman: Valkyrie in Thor: Ragnarok, Rey in The Last Jedi, Moana in Moana, Furiosa in Mad Max: Fury Road. I see the big difference is none of those were directed by a woman, but Patty Jenkins' final product is as much a half-Snyder as Justice League, especially with that terrible final 10 minutes.

I've watched the No Man's Land scene and the action after many times over because a lot of it is cool, but the shot right after the first bullet is deflected - the moment for applause - Gal Gadot is strutting like a runway model. It's as bad as the first shot of young Diana mimicking the adults training. As for Gadot, she's fine here and it would be hard to replace her at this point, but I don't buy that she's the best choice to bring this iconic character to life. As an actress and/or a movie star she's got a long way to go.


They Don't Get It
I worried this was going to be spent on a new defense for Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, but I've said plenty, and the moment I go on about people missing the boat with mother! it will lead to my own questions and doubts about that film. I'm kind of torn about giving this slot to The Fate of the Furious which is more than "lesser F&F" and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, which isn't necessarily good but captures the fun spirit of the franchise in a highly re-watchable way.

oldkid

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #2 on: December 21, 2017, 02:01:04 AM »
I don't get it

I'm tempted to say Ghost Story, but since I'm an advocate of my own favorite slow cinema that I guess I can't complain just because this one didn't do much for me.
No, I'll go for Okja, the wonderchild of SVU.  I'm not a huge advocate of The Host, either, but I think everyone thinks that Bong Joon-Ho is hit and miss.  I just think that Okja is a miss.  The CGI seemed obvious, the child acting seemed awful, the premise isn't really entertaining and even Tilda Swinton disappointed me.  It wasn't a horrible movie, but it wasn't hands-down the best streamed movie of the year and I wouldn't consider it great, except for the complex way that animal advocacy is presented.

they don't get it
I think Baby Driver has a great beginning and if it had continued on that level it would be one of my top three movies of the year.  But it was still fun, still great and I enjoyed myself all the way through.  Sometimes I think that people were just expecting more than it gave.  But it was a blast, I'm glad I saw it in the theatre and it'll be on my list of great movies of the year.

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

smirnoff

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #3 on: December 21, 2017, 02:09:44 AM »
I don't get it
Hacksaw Ridge
I don't get how this was recognized for doing anything particularly well. Award nominated? I couldn't believe it. It may not be a beloved film, but it seemed to have done well somehow and it was not getting panned from what I could tell. I didn't understand what was special about it.

They Don't Get It
Rounders - In this case the "They" is really specific. They recently covered Rounders on an episode of Filmsack and basically they all dismissed it as boring or dumb or a bad examples of poker in film. The most galling part of the show though was when they cited Casino Royale as a good example poker in film, specifically for how it doesn't explain every little thing for the audience (WHICH IT ABSOLUTELY DOES! IT DOES IT IN THE WORST MOST INSULTING WAYS!). Oh my god, the whole example of Casino Royale as "poker done well in film" was so horrible I almost threw up. Casino Royale is my go to example of poker done horribly in film. It is UTTER GARBAGE! Players throw their hands away face up when they are beat and frustrated giving away information to the other players unnecessarily. The hands which are highlighted in the game are pretty much unfoldable in tournament poker, making all the time wasted on "tells" redundant. Bond loses a hand and Lechiffre says "you must of thought I was bluffing", but it's stupid because no reasonable poker player would have mucked his cards in that situation, so it had nothing to do with bluffing. And then you have the stupid side characters in the background quietly explaining what was already completely obvious to anyone who has played poker. The poker scenes are basically unwatchable imo.

PS, they shouldn't be playing poker in a Bond movie. Teach an audience how the fart Bacarat works. Nobody knows. Then the background "for dummies" commentary wouldn't be so insulting. No no, we're going to cram in trendy stuff. Parkour and poker. I look forward to the next bond film, where he drives a Tesla and plays with fidget spinners.
« Last Edit: December 21, 2017, 02:12:17 AM by smirnoff »

Dave the Necrobumper

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #4 on: December 21, 2017, 05:27:07 AM »
I look forward to the next bond film, where he drives a Tesla and plays with fidget spinners.

 ;D

Sam the Cinema Snob

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #5 on: December 21, 2017, 06:55:42 AM »
I second Okja. It all felt way too on the nose and is a real tonal mess.

Bondo

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #6 on: December 21, 2017, 06:58:19 AM »
All the 2017 movies I liked I feel like were pretty well received so I don't have a they don't get it entry. A Ghost Story is probably the one I didn't get.

Corndog

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #7 on: December 21, 2017, 07:25:25 AM »
Agree, smirnoff, Casino Royale is a pretty horrible example of poker.
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Teproc

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #8 on: December 21, 2017, 08:08:11 AM »
They don't get it: Atomic Blonde. Realistically I get why people aren't all in love with this, it is really just a spy flick that thinks it's smarter than it really is... but it's
a) super fun action all-around
b) Charlize Theron is incredibly magnetic in it
c) it looks great (I mean there's a fight with Stalker in the background, how great it that ?)
d) has a fun soundtrack... that occasionally goes a bit far with the needle-drops, but I don't mind it too much

Right, and there's Valerian too, which I like less than Atomic Blonde but has been very poorly received.

I don't get it: I guess Wind River (see Worst thread). Also Wonder-Woman, which I though was pretty mediocre.
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1SO

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Re: I don't get it/They don't get it
« Reply #9 on: December 21, 2017, 09:35:00 AM »
This thread is already worth it for smirnoff's rant, which I agree with. The worst thing about Rounders is that Teddy KGB has a very obvious tell that actually makes him a stupid and reckless poker player and Matt Damon's reaction upon discovering this is the exact opposite of what you should do.

Alison Willmore had Baby Driver as her "I Don't Get It" because of how the film never lives up to those first two scenes.

Okja is a great pick. I imagine that film and its hype left a lot of people scratching their heads.