The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Al_The_Strange]

And speaking of Ridley Scott....

”Blade Runner” Theatrical Cut

Some years ago, I discovered PKD’s novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” and finished it in a record three days. I’ve since considered it my favorite, for it was as deep and as cool of a story as it was entertaining.

The film “Blade Runner” is a very different adaptation of this book; a lot of things are different, but it stands well on its own. It gets a little slow, but it is a great story. The characters are decently-developed; maybe not as overtly as other films, but here the performances are subtle and strong at the same time, and helps give the characters a life of their own.

I think the thing that I love best about “BR” is that the production value is through the roof. Every set and every shot is jam-packed with detail, and they all have a distinctive look and style of their own. Combined with freaky lighting effects, the cool music, the awesome SFX, and everything else, “BR” has a very captivating and mesmerizing atmosphere. I almost feel like I could be in Deckard’s shoes, moving through the city…

Of course, the Final Cut is the best rendition. This is the first time I’ve seen the Theatrical Cut; the added narrative helped in a couple of parts, but I like the film better without (I think the talking took away from the atmosphere). The Final Cut had a lot of interesting shots that I think helped a lot. Not to mention

[Show spoiler]it also had the unicorn dream sequence!

And although the Theatrical Cut’s ending is cute, I do like the Final Cut’s sudden ending better.

Regardless of what version I’m watching…

5/5 (entertainment: 4/5, story: 5/5, film: 5/5)

I remember the Final Cut having reference PQ and at least near-reference AQ. Looking at the Theatrical version, the video looks notably more dated, with stronger film noise and poorer sound quality. It’s still a strong presentation; the video is very sharp and detailed, with loads of detail. Some shots look effectively perfect. But, the colors are much duller than the Final Cut. Sound quality is not HD, but it still sounds decent; the dialogue is clear and the music sounds nice. My only big complaint about the sound is that it’s dated, and in one spot it seemed inconsistent.

PQ: 4.5/5, AQ: 4/5 (remember, Theatrical Cut only)

Looking at the extras now briefly....huh....

[Show spoiler]I never guessed that Tyrell was a replicant...

[Batman1980]

Knowing - 5/5
PQ - 5/5
AQ - 5/5
Still not sure why this masterpiece by Proyas is so hated, it's better than Dark City!

[tbizzle]

Originally Posted by Gandalf Stormcrow

I don't know, I think King Arthur was really good and Shooter was probably on the same level as Training Day.

I like King Arthur a lot, but it's an all right film. Training Day is far superior to Shooter in just about every way... direction, style, performances, story. Imo, Shooter is an ok action film that had a mediocre story and lots of cheez, not to mention the numerous laughable, unrealistic shooting scenes (which are even funnier because of his physics speech)

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by Gandalf Stormcrow

Knowing - 5/5
PQ - 5/5
AQ - 5/5
Still not sure why this masterpiece by Proyas is so hated, it's better than Dark City!

woooooo, slow down there cowboy!!!

nice try.

someone put gandalf on a leash!! 20 minutes in the corner!

Knowing is a good film (3.5/5). I loved the end and most of the script, but as many have said, this film goes in the "really really wanted to love it, but couldn't" category. Most people loved the direction it was going, but it lacked something. I can't quite put my hand on it.

Dark City on the other hand...is pure perfection. I can't even put it in words. I'm getting goosebumps as I type this.

[tbizzle]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

woooooo, slow down there cowboy!!!

nice try.

someone put gandalf on a leash!! 20 minutes in the corner!

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by tbizzle

I like King Arthur a lot, but it's an all right film. Training Day is far superior to Shooter in just about every way... direction, style, performances, story. Imo, Shooter is an ok action film that had a mediocre story and lots of cheez, not to mention the numerous laughable, unrealistic shooting scenes (which are even funnier because of his physics speech)

I don't know, I just disagree, then again maybe I was too busy starting at Kate Mara and Rhona Mitra to be objective. Besides, I like those kinds of movies or I wouldn't be so into the Bonds and the Bournes.

[tbizzle]

Originally Posted by Gandalf Stormcrow

I don't know, I just disagree, then again maybe I was too busy starting at Kate Mara and Rhona Mitra to be objective. Besides, I like those kinds of movies or I wouldn't be so into the Bonds and the Bournes.

No worries, everyone's got different tastes

I love the Bourne's and Bonds as well... which are also far superior to Shooter

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

Alien

Film: 5/5
-first viewing!!! ok, first sober viewing (SV). I think I watched either this or Aliens in college, but don't remember anything
-incredible horror film with Hitchcock-like suspense:

[Show spoiler]we only see the Alien for what? 5 times for a total of 6 minutes?? Perfection: the remaining 1 hour and 54 minutes of the 2 hours is ALL SUSPENSE, with ALien sightings every 20 minutes or so...paced perfectly

-I guess the standard interpretation is humans are protagonist, trying to get home and ALien is antagonist, but you could easily see it in reverse:

[Show spoiler] (1) ALien and alien eggs are all happy and content on their planet, harming nobody
(2) CUrious man can't help but open up the eggs and invade the Alien's private space (if you were teh ALien, wouldn't you defend yourself????)
(3) Alien understandably defends themself
(4) Man brings Alien onto ship (even though stuck to dude's face, remember: how did he get on the dudes face? dude was invading alien's space)
(5) Alien is now reasonable to assume they're prisoner on ship and again, should defend themself

. Just interesting to see the film a different way
-Holy wowsa Weaver's butt shot at 1:47 Nice body, what was she? 25?
-Can't wait for this blu, fantastic horror film. I'd consider it more horror than sci-fi.

One of my favorites. The mood that Scott creates is as good as it gets for horror films, which is why this is one of the best horror films of all-time. The feeling of claustrophobia really enhances the film and is very well done.

[Batman1980]

Earlier - Sky High 4/5
PQ - 4/5
AQ - 4/5
Still one of my favourite Disney hero movies of all-time, wonder if I will ever get sick of it.

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by Gandalf Stormcrow

Earlier - Sky High 4/5
PQ - 4/5
AQ - 4/5
Still one of my favourite Disney hero movies of all-time, wonder if I will ever get sick of it.

I've never heard of it? Gonna have to look into it...thanks.

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by Gandalf Stormcrow

Knowing - 5/5
PQ - 5/5
AQ - 5/5
Still not sure why this masterpiece by Proyas is so hated, it's better than Dark City!

Oh No, I think I may get shouted at if I told you I laughed at this movie all the way through

[Moefiz]

Hard Candy..4/5
Great acting by Page and Wilson with a extreme storyline that unravels at a brisks pace..highly recommended.

P/Q...4/5
A/Q...Dialogue driven movie, front heavy so will need to turn up the volume.

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by Moefiz

Hard Candy..4/5
Great acting by Page and Wilson with a extreme storyline that unravels at a brisks pace..highly recommended.

P/Q...4/5
A/Q...Dialogue driven movie, front heavy so will need to turn up the volume.

You be nice to Hard Candy, probably one of the best movies out there that nobody ever really talks about. Will get it myself once they release it with subs.

[Al_The_Strange]

“The Fifth Element.”

A favorite since high school. It’s a fun blast of a sci-fi adventure loaded with awesome SFX, a very imaginative production design, a slick and hip style, and a good (though a bit flaky) story. It’s one of those quirky in-your-face movies; not annoyingly-so, but enough to keep it entertaining all the way through, and still have a heart and soul of its own. Bruce Willis is the man; Milla Jovovich is...the perfect being…

Now that I’ve seen “Brazil,” it seems like the two could go together quite well; both are pretty wild, very thoroughly designed, and have a similar style.

4.5/5 (entertainment: 4.5/5, story: 4/5, film: 4.5/5)

Got the remastered Blu-Ray, so it looks and sounds darn near perfect (maybe not 100% perfect, but very close)!

PQ: 4.5/5, AQ: 4.5/5

[tbizzle]

I thought Knowing was decent and fun, but nothing more. Here's a few things that bugged me:

[Show spoiler]1. The Billy Idol aliens were annoying in that they were made to seem as the bad guys for the whole film, only to be revealed at the end as the saviors of our planet's species. If you're gonna save the people, try not to scare the SH!T out of them throughout the whole film. Cheap scare tactics like that bug me and I found that aspect to be pretty lame.

2. Stupid flaming CGI deer really made me laugh.

3. The whole "end of the world" thing that was tied in with the prophetic little girl was kinda lame. I guess they made it work in this film, but I thought they could've written a much better plot. The aliens make her write a detailed document on every major disaster over the next 5 decades. Nic Cage will find it 50 years later, decipher it, find that it's a code for an upcoming event and then realizes that it's his previously published solar flare doomsday theory. All the while, aliens have been creeping them out and letting Nic try to figure everything out on his own. His boy, and the granddaughter of the prophetic girl go off to continue the human race. I really liked the ending, just not how they got there Just didn't work very well for me.

4. EE = Everyone Else. Seriously, who wrote this script?

5. I can't remember the exact sequence, but Nic Cage saved one person in the plane crash fire, but then looked at another guy and decided to walk past him like "F that guy, I'm goin on to someone else". I might have remembered it wrong, but my friends and I all noticed that part because it was funny.

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by tbizzle

Underworld may be a cool film for a lot of people (personally I think it's nothing special) but this is a much better film. Check it out, it should give your mind a good workout

While I have yet to see Triangle, one can't really compare Underworld to Triangle. They are two very different movies. I would say get both if one really wanted to buy Triangle since this is as cheap as Underworld usually gets.

Originally Posted by Gandalf Stormcrow

You be nice to Hard Candy, probably one of the best movies out there that nobody ever really talks about. Will get it myself once they release it with subs.

Curious as to where you got the idea that Hard Candy doesn't have subtitles. It only has them in a couple of languages, but they are there.

[Lepidopterous]

Uncertainty

It's no secret what this film is about. It demonstrates the weight of and implications within each decision one makes. Two characters and two radically different storylines with the same beginning. Colors are used nicely to help the viewer follow along with ease what could have been a confusing movie. Joseph Gordon-Levitt was marvelous as usual and Lynn Collins was great as well. The pair has very good chemistry throughout the film. The two storylines displayed different facets of their lives and emotions, but seemed no problem for the actors to put on such versatility in their performances. Although entertaining, it didn't offer much more than the strength of its leads. Still, Uncertainty is a fun film with very likeable characters.

3/5

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

woooooo, slow down there cowboy!!!

nice try.

someone put gandalf on a leash!! 20 minutes in the corner!

[BladeRunner2007]

Eclipse 3/5

Imo the best Twilight film so far. Sure, there were still some moments and lines that almost made me puke, but overall it was far more interesting than its two predecessors. Better direction and production value as well. Pattinson has improved, too.

[lDlisturb3d]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

And speaking of Ridley Scott....

”Blade Runner” Theatrical Cut

I really need to check this out asap. What can you compare this flick with??