The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

You mean, "Ich habe keine freuden."

Also, did you really mean freuden (which means "joy") or freunden (which means "friend"). Right now it says "I have no joys."

In any case, du hast Freunde mit uns.

haha. I meant "I have no friends", as a joke. But the "I have no joys" is ironically quite profound The only time I have no joys is like last night when I got home and realized that my amazon package wasn't delivered I desperately wanted my 3-disc Apocalypse Now so I could watch the "Hearts of Darkness" documentary.

Thanks for the "du has Freunde mit uns"!

[surfdude12]

The Snow Walker

Film: 4.75/5
-thanks Squid for the recommendation
-Netflix synoposis: Barry Pepper stars in this survivalist adventure as cocky, hotheaded bush pilot Charlie Halliday, who agrees to transport a critically ill Inuit woman (Annabella Piugattuk) to a Yellowknife hospital during a routine stop on a supply run. The pair face dire consequences when their plane goes down in the Arctic tundra, leaving them marooned -- and facing the brutality of the looming northern winter.
-incredible film! here you have a cocky pilot and an Intuit woman ALL ALONE in the middle of nowhere. Their personalities couldn't be further apart. The cocky pilot is all about getting rescued and is all angry. The Intuit woman is still at home - in her country - and so isn't bothered at all! You will see how people can really change when they are faced with extreme circumstances (the only way people ever do change). Watch this and you will heavily rewarded!
-The only reason I deducted 0.25 is that the story back at the pilot's home town where they are looking for him was a tad weak.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

The Snow Walker

Film: 4.75/5
-thanks Squid for the recommendation
-Netflix synoposis: Barry Pepper stars in this survivalist adventure as cocky, hotheaded bush pilot Charlie Halliday, who agrees to transport a critically ill Inuit woman (Annabella Piugattuk) to a Yellowknife hospital during a routine stop on a supply run. The pair face dire consequences when their plane goes down in the Arctic tundra, leaving them marooned -- and facing the brutality of the looming northern winter.
-incredible film! here you have a cocky pilot and an Intuit woman ALL ALONE in the middle of nowhere. Their personalities couldn't be further apart. The cocky pilot is all about getting rescued and is all angry. The Intuit woman is still at home - in her country - and so isn't bothered at all! You will see how people can really change when they are faced with extreme circumstances (the only way people ever do change). Watch this and you will heavily rewarded!
-The only reason I deducted 0.25 is that the story back at the pilot's home town where they are looking for him was a tad weak.

That sounds interesting.

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by Steve46

That sounds interesting.

I think you'd like it. It has the "Cast Away" feel, with the added dimension of having two completely opposite personality types with a communication barrier. I liked it just as much as Cast Away!

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

I think you'd like it. It has the "Cast Away" feel, with the added dimension of having two completely opposite personality types with a communication barrier. I liked it just as much as Cast Away!

High praise

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Steve46

High praise

It made me cry BOTH kinds of tears.

[Al_The_Strange]

One of you guys recommended "Snow Walker" to me too. I will certainly check it out.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

haha. I meant "I have no friends", as a joke. But the "I have no joys" is ironically quite profound The only time I have no joys is like last night when I got home and realized that my amazon package wasn't delivered I desperately wanted my 3-disc Apocalypse Now so I could watch the "Hearts of Darkness" documentary.

Thanks for the "du has Freunde mit uns"!

I had no joy with Amazon delivery recently too. Royal Mail couldn't shove this package through my mail slot, so I had to drive into town early this morning to pick up my UK DVDs for "A Bittersweet Life" and "Trail of the Screaming Forehead" from the post office.

This epic combination was worth the drive though.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

One of you guys recommended "Snow Walker" to me too. I will certainly check it out.

Probably me. Duffy12 recommended it to me in the "saddest movie of all time thread" back in 2009 and I have been screaming about it ever since then.

It's really great.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

I had no joy with Amazon delivery recently too. Royal Mail couldn't shove this package through my mail slot, so I had to drive into town early this morning to pick up my UK DVDs for "A Bittersweet Life" and "Trail of the Screaming Forehead" from the post office.

This epic combination was worth the drive though.

[tbizzle]

Wut up!?! Haven't had the chance to see many films recently, but I'm trying to stay current. Glad to see all the praise for The Artist on here, can't wait to see it!

Crazy Heart - 4.5/5

Bridges was fantastic, oozing with authenticity. Writing and direction were simple yet very effective. Definitely one of the best character study films I've seen in a while. Gyllenhall was great as always. Loved this!

Adjustment Bureau - 4.25/5

I really enjoyed the film, very cool story. Damon and Blunt's chemistry on screen was wonderful... Blunt I loved the light hearted, fun feel of the film, made it very enjoyable and not heavily dramatic like a lot of thrillers tend to be. The ending was a bit cheezy but still very effective. I really don't like Mackie when he doesn't have any dialogue, the guy can't act for shit with his eyes... heh, minor complaint but I had to throw that out there. Definitely recommended.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol - 4/5

Not as good as the third, but a pretty good continuation of the series. Plot was pretty cool, villain was lame, the humor was pretty good overall, though seemed a bit forced here and there. Didn't quite wrap up to be anything fantastic but it's definitely a fun action ride.

The Grey - 3.25/5

Not bad, was hoping for a Liam Neeson wolf version of The Edge (an old favorite) but it didn't work too well for me. Liam was pretty good when he needed to be but the script sucked, lots of unrealistic dialogue and seemingly forced dramatic moments, like there was a quota. The wolves were ridiculously written for and very Hollywood-esque, which ultimately started pulling me out of the film around the half way mark, just got too silly for me. I think the director was trying to be too artistic and bring a lot of different elements together yet employed uneven pacing, bridging the narrative with repetitive shots of the group on the move with an eerie score and nice cinematography, while working in Liam's flashbacks and love interest, all interspersed with the grisly men's scripted bickering and ridiculous wolf situations... just didn't come together nicely for my tastes.

[tbizzle]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

I know I know! I have Departures, Snow Walker and Kite Runner at home!!

Hop to it son!!

[tbizzle]

Warrior - 4.5/5

Great film! Being a huge fan of Mixed Martial Arts, I was a bit skeptical on a newer film tackling MMA but when I heard the cast, I was very intrigued. Well it was almost exactly what I was hoping for. The film sheds a great light on the sport, which is (understandably so) one of the most misunderstood and unnecessarily hated sports out there.

Being a big fan of the sport and used to watching every second of action in real fights, it was a bit hard to watch at times towards the end because of the editing, cutting back and forth between the audience and the action toward, etc. but that's too be expected. It was nice to see some fighters and ref's getting cameo's in this. Nick Nolte was fantastic, as expected. Tom Hardy is amazing, he plays such a torn man, absolutely dripping with rage... dude's a beast. Watching him perform was a true pleasure, very reminiscient of Brando for me. During the slots scene, I started to worry that his character

[Show spoiler]was a complete monster, that there wasn't any human empathy left in him, but that all changes with a phenominal and emotional scene with him and Nick in the hotel room.... just wow. And then the final fight, his brother breaking his ego hard and then tapping him while saying "I love you"... deep stuff.

Pretty damn good ending. Highly recommended.

The Descendants - 4.25/5

Great look at a torn man's decisions in times of chaos in paradise. It's a drama with a lighthearted, slightly dark comedy feel to it but doesn't feel too serious. George's performance was great, it's one of the more enjoyable roles I've see him in, and Shailene Woodley (the daughter) is very cute and extremely talented, I think she's got a big future. Great story, great ending. I really enjoyed it but I don't think it was in the realm of "Best Picture" quality.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon - 3.75/5

Big and fun but not as well put together as I was I would have liked... seemed rushed in a sense. The fight sequences were pretty epic towards the end but the slo-mo thing got a little out of hand this time around, I think they should have toned that back a bit. Still very enjoyable but I still prefer the others. The fantasy fan was very excited to see more of the Transformers homeworld, that was badass. I don't think Bay should return to the series, but if he does, I'll definitely see the next one.

[jvince]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

I know I know! I have Departures, Snow Walker and Kite Runner at home!!

Originally Posted by tbizzle

Hop to it son!!

I love Departures. An excellent drama and tearjerker. I highly recommend it if you haven't seen it yet.

[tbizzle]

Originally Posted by jvince

I love Departures. An excellent drama and tearjerker. I highly recommend it if you haven't seen it yet.

Fantastic film, definitely one of the highlight films I've seen in my time here in this thread. I've only seen it once but I check the news every once in a while to see if a US release is planned. I don't know if Jhiggy or anyone of the other regulars have seen it but as soon as I read DJ's strong rec, I saw it and Squid saw it off of my rec, hope it gets more attention with a hopefully stellar review from Surf.

[jvince]

Originally Posted by tbizzle

Fantastic film, definitely one of the highlight films I've seen in my time here in this thread. I've only seen it once but I check the news every once in a while to see if a US release is planned. I don't know if Jhiggy or anyone of the other regulars have seen it but as soon as I read DJ's strong rec, I saw it and Squid saw it off of my rec, hope it gets more attention with a hopefully stellar review from Surf.

Yeah, I can't believe it's not too popular, even after winning the Oscar. I hope we get a Criterion release for this great film.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by tbizzle

Fantastic film, definitely one of the highlight films I've seen in my time here in this thread. I've only seen it once but I check the news every once in a while to see if a US release is planned. I don't know if Jhiggy or anyone of the other regulars have seen it but as soon as I read DJ's strong rec, I saw it and Squid saw it off of my rec, hope it gets more attention with a hopefully stellar review from Surf.

Well, Themeworshiper that he is, he'll find much to chew on.

[tbizzle]

Originally Posted by jvince

Yeah, I can't believe it's not too popular, even after winning the Oscar. I hope we get a Criterion release for this great film.

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Well, Themeworshiper that he is, he'll find much to chew on.

Haha for sure, that one's a mouthful.

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by volcomsocal

Schindler's List - 1993

I never saw this movie before, but I always planned on watching it. I just didn't know when that was going to be. I didn't feel the need to see it in the theaters when it came out. I had gone to Hebrew school for many years and had my Bar Mitzvah right around the time the movie came out. I was very aware of what happened, and had learned about it year after year. So, I put it off for a long time.

Fast forward 18 years later. I finally decided to watch it. It wasn't as good as I was expecting it to be. It felt too long and the story seemed a little loose. I would have liked a more linear plot than what I saw. This movie was good I guess, but I just don't agree with it winning best picture. I would have nominated The Fugitive, but that's just me. The ending was a very nice touch, so props to Spielberg on that front.

DVD rental

PQ - n/a
AQ - n/a

3/5

3/5,eeek! I'll say no more.

_____________________________________________

I haven't seen Departures but I've wanted to for awhile.

______________________________________________

As Good as it Gets:

Film: 3 (out of 4); gf rating: 3.5 (out of 4)

Nicholson and Hunt were both excellent and deserved to win their Oscars (the dog should've won an award too!). I thought the writing was pretty good. However, Nicholson's character is one of the most unlikeable characters I've seen in a very long time and there was zero chemistry and believability in the love story. It's a testament to the acting that the film was as entertaining as it was.

[tbizzle]

Originally Posted by jhiggy23

I haven't seen Departures but I've wanted to for awhile.

I want to give you a hard time about this but I still haven't seen Room in Rome