year: 1994
director: james cameron
starring: arnold schwarzenegger (henry tasker), jamie lee curtis (helen tasker), tom arnold )albert gibson), bill paxton (simon)
[Show spoiler]why do i watch action movies?
they really just don't seem to be my cup of tea all that much. die hard, avaturd, predator, star trek, star wars, true lies, the terminator's... all enjoyable to varying degrees, but nothing i really, completely enjoy or like all that much.
true lies has moments - quite a few - there are very fun, action packed and hilarious ("hurry, my horse is getting tired" ) but the film is way to fudging long at 2 hours and 20 minutes. and about half of that has nothing to do with the actual plot.
i don't mind arnold here. honestly, i don't think they could have anyone else do this role, much like his role in predator. if they would have someone else playing this character, it would be awful.
it's just... not all that entertaining at times and left me very and after dinner with friends and numerous (numerous, numerous, numerous) drinks i was in the mood for something fun, fast and action packed. true lies pretty much let down in every regard. and now that makes me a bit so i have to maybe watch something else to get this disappointing taste out of my mouth. worth watching on netflix instant, but once was more than enough for me.
2.5/5
It's Harry Tasker damnit, get it right!
That's a shame you didn't enjoy it more. I'm really not sure what's wrong with your head.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jhiggy23
One of my favorite action films. Would love to have the blu.
[Show spoiler]
Film: 5/5
-second viewing, first on blu
-great premise: village repeatedly attacked by bandits realizes they need help against another attack, so recruit Samurai to help them defend the village against any more attacks.
-the film seems to be divided into 3 parts, 1 hour each: (1) recruiting samurai, (2) establish a defense strategy of the village, and (3) try to defend the village.
-in part (1), we learn what defines a samurai (so you don't accidentally recruit some fake samurai dude), and what personality defines a samurai who would be willing to volunteer (without pay) to risk his life for a village he doesn't even know
-in part (2), we learn a ton about 101 war/defense strategy, unlike any other action-war film I've seen. We also see themes of fear, and leadership challenges anyone in charge of a large group will have. THe lead Samurai's speech at 1:46 that "You must protect others if you hope to save yourself. If you only try to save yourself, you will die" was gut-wrenching.
-one of the best "don't judge a book by its cover" characters ever in any film:
[Show spoiler]the guy who asks to be recruited by the samurai, but isn't a samurai, but turns out to be a HUGE asset: sets of false alarm to get everyone out of their house and breaks the ice, flys the flag at a crucial low moment, etc
-the lead samurai actor has an incredible screen presence: his face was able to convey HUGE emotion to me without any dialogue. his smile was incredibly genuine (the film has great humor), while his sad/concerned looks were also just as genuine. towards the end
[Show spoiler]his expression when he said "we also lost. only the villagers won this battle" and then looks up at the 4 fallen samurai who freely gave their lives was a huge emotional moment!!
-while this is an action-war film, its just as much about honor/ethics and sacrifice (more about how the fights are fought, than the fight itself)
-can't recommend this enough. I ranked it top 50 on my first viewing, but now I'd say top 30.
PQ: 4.5/5 (great! however, there was some obvious flashing for about 30 mins of the film. during the scene when
[Show spoiler]one of the samurai went out at night, stole one of the guns, and then came back the next morning with teh gun,
the flashing was SEVERE. however, it seems to be a source issue, not a transfer issue. Criterion did their best it seems)
AQ: 5/5
Excellent review! I saw this yesterday too, and it rocked!
Quote:
Originally Posted by iam1bearcat
True Lies (netflix instant)
[Show spoiler]
year: 1994
director: james cameron
starring: arnold schwarzenegger (henry tasker), jamie lee curtis (helen tasker), tom arnold )albert gibson), bill paxton (simon)
why do i watch action movies?
they really just don't seem to be my cup of tea all that much. die hard, avaturd, predator, star trek, star wars, true lies, the terminator's... all enjoyable to varying degrees, but nothing i really, completely enjoy or like all that much.
true lies has moments - quite a few - there are very fun, action packed and hilarious ("hurry, my horse is getting tired" ) but the film is way to fudging long at 2 hours and 20 minutes. and about half of that has nothing to do with the actual plot.
i don't mind arnold here. honestly, i don't think they could have anyone else do this role, much like his role in predator. if they would have someone else playing this character, it would be awful.
it's just... not all that entertaining at times and left me very and after dinner with friends and numerous (numerous, numerous, numerous) drinks i was in the mood for something fun, fast and action packed. true lies pretty much let down in every regard. and now that makes me a bit so i have to maybe watch something else to get this disappointing taste out of my mouth. worth watching on netflix instant, but once was more than enough for me.
2.5/5
W.......T.......F......?!!!!
Just kidding. Can't expect everybody to enjoy it, but it is one of my favorite among action movies. My folks got me into it initially. We even showed it to grandma, and she wound up loving it too.
[Show spoiler]
The film that delvors deep into the truth of cavemen, that it were in fact slave cavemen and wolly manmoths that made the pyramids and not the Egyptions, with the help of of Cavemen witches and a saber-tooth tiger. But not only does this deliver the facts, but they are brought to life on screen by the amazingly well developed characters, so devolped in fact I consider them to be 4th Dimentonal as we know by our main character...errrm....well....I think he's called Mr. Caveman, anyway, he has so many moral complexities going on at once. His dad goes, who I think is called Senior Mr. Caveman and then he kills a wooly manmoth by accident and takes credit for it, but then he's village is ruined, and Mrs Caveman is taken. And all this is handled by the great diolauge and fine acting, as we see when Mr. Caveman lets the tiger free, but asks only one thing of the tiger, not to get eaten. You feel a geniuine tremble in his voice as you can really tell, that he doesn't really want to get eaten by the tiger. Finest film making, at it's finest
0/10
Best review ever. For the best movie ever!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Foggy
Oh, the character was called D'Leh, how could I forget that
Just kidding. Can't expect everybody to enjoy it, but it is one of my favorite among action movies. My folks got me into it initially. We even showed it to grandma, and she wound up loving it too.
After finally finishing reading a 13-book series, I have the time to start watching movies again. My pending pile is looking pretty daunting. So this is Movie Day and I'll be hoping to get through five or six at least before Monday night football.
Man on Wire
93 minutes
Directed by James Marsh
This is a documentary covering the exploits of French wire walker Philippe Petit, detailing how he walked between the twin towers on Aug. 7, 1974.
The vast majority of the story is in English, although a few of his friends speak in French. It's a mixture of SD footage of the event and preparation along with HD interviews looking back at everything. The aspect ratios vary according to the footage. But PQ is not important here, it's the story that matters.
We see Petit walking between parts of Notre Dame cathedral and Sydney Harbor Bridge. One day he sees a story in newspaper covering the proposal to build the twin towers. He's immediately hooked on the idea of walking between them and plans his strategy for years.
He had to wait for the towers to be built, so he spent time practicing in a field and rigging up a wire of the correct length to simulate the walk. His friends bounced the wire around to simulate the wind he might face.
When the time comes to really try it, his team of friends have to lie their way into the building posing as a TV crew. They visit several times with forged documentation, posing as workers. They hide under tarpaulin to escape guards. They figure out how to rig the wire and the two supporting wires which will add stability.
Then, finally, August 7 dawns. He takes his first steps on the wire and wonders if his life will end. He evades police for 45 minutes (understandably) and makes eight crossings, kneeling and laying down at times. When they threaten to remove him by helicopter, he finally comes down.
After a psychiatric evaluation, they decide to drop the charges of trespassing and disorderly conduct if he'll agree to do a small interview and juggling show.
It's a fascinating story. He's being interviewed for the documentary so you know he's going to live, but it's still full of suspense.
It's cheap at the moment from Amazon UK and is region free. Whether you have any interest in wire walking or not (and I certainly didn't), this is a compelling tale.
i actually haven't seen Underworld yet. i've been meaning to get to it for quite awhile now so we'll see how that goes once i get to it. it seems interesting, but i'm worried that might be the breaking point for some of you guys
It's definitely worth checking out. I rented it last year when my local rental store was getting ready to shut down and I still had like 30 or so free rentals to use (I rented a different movie just about every day ). It was much better than I anticipated. Then I snagged it at Best Buy a little while back when it was $9.99
She did enjoy the characters the best, and I think she liked the way they all changed through the entire experience. Especially the kid; she started off so whiny and annoying, and was rather humbled by the end. I think the other adult characters came out better in the end too. In this regard, I thought the story for "True Lies" was fairly decent.
Last time she visited, I got her to watch "The Dark Knight" with me. All the Joker scenes made her flich a lot. But by the end, she said it was "quite a production."
Iron Man 2 5/5 all the way around but one thing I don't get.
[Show spoiler]Stark needed about 10 seconds to put on the suit at that race, why didn't Vanko just attack him while he was suiting up?
Somebody (I think Diesel in some other post/thread) pointed out that
[Show spoiler]Vanko was attacking the car to lure Stark out, not Stark himself. He likely didn't realize Stark was the race car driver until he suited up
. If that's the case, I think it makes much better sense; I kept wondering how
[Show spoiler]Vanko even knew Stark would be there
Somebody (I think Diesel in some other post/thread) pointed out that
[Show spoiler]Vanko was attacking the car to lure Stark out, not Stark himself. He likely didn't realize Stark was the race car driver until he suited up
. If that's the case, I think it makes much better sense; I kept wondering how
[Show spoiler]Vanko even knew Stark would be there
. Turned out to be a coincidence.
Correct, he didn't actually know
[Show spoiler]it was Stark in the car, just that it was Stark's car.
And the reason he
[Show spoiler]didn't attack Stark while the suit was being put on after he did realize it was him (and why he was just toying with him before the suit was on) is because what would that accomplish? He'd beat him when he couldn't defend himself. He wanted to humiliate/ruin the reputation of Stark, so he allowed him to put his suit on and fight him, which worked since he wrecked the suit pretty bad and the government was all over his case after that.
Remember his quote later, "If you can make God bleed, people will cease to believe in him."
Somebody (I think Diesel in some other post/thread) pointed out that
[Show spoiler]Vanko was attacking the car to lure Stark out, not Stark himself. He likely didn't realize Stark was the race car driver until he suited up
. If that's the case, I think it makes much better sense; I kept wondering how
[Show spoiler]Vanko even knew Stark would be there
. Turned out to be a coincidence.
[Show spoiler]Doesn't explain why he stopped attacking Stark and the car while the guy was suiting up, would've been only too easy to whip the car, its inhabitants and Stark into pulp. Just a small qualm really, excellent movie and still one of my top 5 of the year.
I've always liked Batman more than Iron Man, however if the 3rd Iron Man movie is better than Batman 3, that will change. Oh okay that makes sense then.
[Show spoiler]it was Stark in the car, just that it was Stark's car.
And the reason he
[Show spoiler]didn't attack Stark while the suit was being put on after he did realize it was him (and why he was just toying with him before the suit was on) is because what would that accomplish? He'd beat him when he couldn't defend himself. He wanted to humiliate/ruin the reputation of Stark, so he allowed him to put his suit on and fight him, which worked since he wrecked the suit pretty bad and the government was all over his case after that.
Remember his quote later, "If you can make God bleed, people will cease to believe in him."
It's Complicated
Directed by Nancy Meyers
Starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin
121 minutes
It's Complicated is a romantic comedy/drama aimed at older people. Streep and Baldwin play a divorced couple who have an affair after he's remarried. Martin plays an architect who has interest in Streep's character.
The comedy factor is fairly low. You'll smile at a few things, but rarely laugh out loud.
It's fun watching Streep act. The contrast between this character and her performance in Doubt the year before is staggering.
There's nothing remarkable about the movie. The characters seem real enough. Everybody is rich in this neighborhood too.
Some of the scenes look impressive, but overall the PQ is a 4/5.
This is the sort of thing that you might find amusing once, but I'm not sure it will bear repeat viewings. Watch Vicky Cristina Barcelona instead.
year: 1994
director: james cameron
starring: arnold schwarzenegger (henry tasker), jamie lee curtis (helen tasker), tom arnold )albert gibson), bill paxton (simon)
why do i watch action movies?
they really just don't seem to be my cup of tea all that much. die hard, avaturd, predator, star trek, star wars, true lies, the terminator's... all enjoyable to varying degrees, but nothing i really, completely enjoy or like all that much.
true lies has moments - quite a few - there are very fun, action packed and hilarious ("hurry, my horse is getting tired" ) but the film is way to fudging long at 2 hours and 20 minutes. and about half of that has nothing to do with the actual plot.
i don't mind arnold here. honestly, i don't think they could have anyone else do this role, much like his role in predator. if they would have someone else playing this character, it would be awful.
it's just... not all that entertaining at times and left me very and after dinner with friends and numerous (numerous, numerous, numerous) drinks i was in the mood for something fun, fast and action packed. true lies pretty much let down in every regard. and now that makes me a bit so i have to maybe watch something else to get this disappointing taste out of my mouth. worth watching on netflix instant, but once was more than enough for me.
2.5/5
Got Em!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by jhiggy23
One of my favorite action films. Would love to have the blu.
+100! I think it is my actual favorite action film of all time! Got Em!!
Finally got enough free time to revisit a timeless classic epic masterpiece…
“Shichinin no Samurai,” aka (“The Seven Samurai”).
Great review AL!!
I like your comparison to any anti-tyranny movememnt. I loved some of those acting performances also. I think my favorite was probably the samurai who
[Show spoiler]ran off and got the musket in the middle of the night, came back and then just took a nap.
that guy was pure bada$$. there is one sequence when
[Show spoiler]the bandits are charging in
and AK shows a side shot of him hiding behind a tree, coming out and doing a full swipe with his sword on a dude on a horse...made my jaw DROP!! these actors were either highly trained or grew up in some kind of martial art training school!!
That's a shame you didn't enjoy it more. I'm really not sure what's wrong with your head.
shows how much i liked the movie, couldn't even get names right
Quote:
Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange
W.......T.......F......?!!!!
Just kidding. Can't expect everybody to enjoy it, but it is one of my favorite among action movies. My folks got me into it initially. We even showed it to grandma, and she wound up loving it too.
haha that's great that your grandma loved it i couldn't even imagine my grandma watching any other movie besides Sound of Music () but she must just be a "standard grandma"
Quote:
Originally Posted by Diesel
It's definitely worth checking out. I rented it last year when my local rental store was getting ready to shut down and I still had like 30 or so free rentals to use (I rented a different movie just about every day ). It was much better than I anticipated. Then I snagged it at Best Buy a little while back when it was $9.99
...so basically, you better like it
and what if i don't diesel, and what if i don't...?
Quote:
Originally Posted by CZAR
Got Em!!
+100! I think it is my actual favorite action film of all time! Got Em!!
funny how different we all are with our movie tastes. i couldn't imagine watching this again.
Last edited by iam1bearcat; 11-15-2010 at 04:13 PM.
After finally finishing reading a 13-book series, I have the time to start watching movies again. My pending pile is looking pretty daunting. So this is Movie Day and I'll be hoping to get through five or six at least before Monday night football.
Man on Wire
[Show spoiler]93 minutes
Directed by James Marsh
This is a documentary covering the exploits of French wire walker Philippe Petit, detailing how he walked between the twin towers on Aug. 7, 1974.
The vast majority of the story is in English, although a few of his friends speak in French. It's a mixture of SD footage of the event and preparation along with HD interviews looking back at everything. The aspect ratios vary according to the footage. But PQ is not important here, it's the story that matters.
We see Petit walking between parts of Notre Dame cathedral and Sydney Harbor Bridge. One day he sees a story in newspaper covering the proposal to build the twin towers. He's immediately hooked on the idea of walking between them and plans his strategy for years.
He had to wait for the towers to be built, so he spent time practicing in a field and rigging up a wire of the correct length to simulate the walk. His friends bounced the wire around to simulate the wind he might face.
When the time comes to really try it, his team of friends have to lie their way into the building posing as a TV crew. They visit several times with forged documentation, posing as workers. They hide under tarpaulin to escape guards. They figure out how to rig the wire and the two supporting wires which will add stability.
Then, finally, August 7 dawns. He takes his first steps on the wire and wonders if his life will end. He evades police for 45 minutes (understandably) and makes eight crossings, kneeling and laying down at times. When they threaten to remove him by helicopter, he finally comes down.
After a psychiatric evaluation, they decide to drop the charges of trespassing and disorderly conduct if he'll agree to do a small interview and juggling show.
It's a fascinating story. He's being interviewed for the documentary so you know he's going to live, but it's still full of suspense.
It's cheap at the moment from Amazon UK and is region free. Whether you have any interest in wire walking or not (and I certainly didn't), this is a compelling tale.
4.5/5
I saw the first hour on Comcast On-Demand. Turned it off because the person I was watching it with had to leave. It was pretty good (what I saw of it).
Quote:
Originally Posted by Diesel
Post of the month.
+1. He woke up at 5 am just to say it! That's quality.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CZAR
Man I dont think I ever met a person who didnt like True Lies. Nice to have met u! Got Em!!
I like your comparison to any anti-tyranny movememnt. I loved some of those acting performances also. I think my favorite was probably the samurai who
[Show spoiler]ran off and got the musket in the middle of the night, came back and then just took a nap.
that guy was pure bada$$. there is one sequence when
[Show spoiler]the bandits are charging in
and AK shows a side shot of him hiding behind a tree, coming out and doing a full swipe with his sword on a dude on a horse...made my jaw DROP!! these actors were either highly trained or grew up in some kind of martial art training school!!
Yes, Kyuzo is the man!
The thing about him in "The Seven Samurai" is that he's so reserved and quiet, but seems to be the most experienced. He's kinda like the hardened veteran of the lot.
Wasn't quite what I expected when I saw it the first time around; in the "Samurai 7" series, Kyuzo has some mad moves, an attitude, and seems to fight everybody. Between the two renditions, I think the classic version above is more realistic, but the anime version is a little more badass.
Ah heck, I should rewatch the anime version.
But I agree too that the original movie has more realistic fights and battles. Definitely not as fantastic or showy as modern martial arts (or anime ).
dude. Haven't read you recommend a film with language this strong since The Fountain. Will be watching this SOON!! Thanks!!
When you told me that you were sure I'd like Frozen because of the tension, tension, tension and more tension, you were right.
Departures is all about subtle little things that carry enormous emotional weight. At the end, there is something that SOME people may consider cliche/predictable, but I was already so deeply invested by that point that it only served to push me over the edge, for the umpteenth time.
The mood, themes and messages are enough, but add Cello (perhaps the most SOULFUL instrument IMO) music to the mix and you have a recipe for emotional eruption brewing.
I feel pretty comfortable saying I am sure you will like it....and I try to be careful about making those claims.
All countries
Argentina
Austria
Belgium
Brazil
Bulgaria
Chile
China
Colombia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Estonia
Denmark
Finland
Greece
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
Indonesia
Ireland
Israel
India
Latvia
Lithuania
Malaysia
New Zealand
Norway
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Russia
Singapore
South Africa
South Korea
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Thailand
Turkey
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
) but the film is way to fudging long at 2 hours and 20 minutes. and about half of that has nothing to do with the actual plot.
and after dinner with friends and numerous (numerous, numerous, numerous) drinks i was in the mood for something fun, fast and action packed. true lies pretty much let down in every regard. and now that makes me a bit 
so i have to maybe watch something else to get this disappointing taste out of my mouth. worth watching on netflix instant, but once was more than enough for me.
so we'll see how that goes once i get to it. it seems interesting, but i'm worried that might be the breaking point for some of you guys 
). It was much better than I anticipated. Then I snagged it at Best Buy a little while back when it was $9.99 
But by the end, she said it was "quite a production." 
Oh okay that makes sense then.
Linear Mode
