The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

i enjoyed the film as well even though i only gave it a 3/5 ("liked it")
and to your part i made bold and red: Shia is the second coming of Paul Walker for me, and it seems you, because that's how i feel Walker is

Imagine if they made a movie together, your head would explode

[two40]

Originally Posted by lDlisturb3d

Seven Samurai (Criterion)

[Show spoiler]Director: Akira Kurosawa
Writers: Akira Kurosawa, and Shinobu Hashimoto
Mains: Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura and Keiko Tsushima

"This isn't our victory"

Plot (Criterion): One of the most thrilling movies epics of all time, Seven Samurai (Scichinin no samurai) tells the story of a sixteenth-century village whose desperate inhabitants hire the eponymous warriors to protect them from invading bandits. This three hour ride from Akira Kusrosawa- featuring leagendary actors Toshiro Mifune and Takashi Shimura- seamlessly weaves philosophy and entertainment, delicate human emotions and relentless action, into a rich, evocative and unforgettable tale of courage and hope.

My Take: Seven Samurai has been name of the greatest entertaining movies of all time. Ranked near the top on all websites about films. Well my review wont be short of that at all. Watching the film i was always curious in why people loved it so. While viewing it i came across that this isnt different from other films that arent loved as much. Then i started to throw in 2 factors. When the movie was made, ( the future impact it would have on movies) and the depth of the characters (displayed flawlessly). So after thinking about it for a while Seven Samurai is a PERFECT film. It has action, drama (lost and love) and suspense. Why do i love this film? Well its all about the story and characters. I simply cared for each Samurai. They all had their own personalities. Even though they all were Samurai they still were very different. My favorite character was the Samurai wanna be. He was the comic relief, hated Samurai's but wanted to become one down deep imo. I wont get into deep about the characters but just be warned you might fall inlove with each Samurai.

Conclusion: After viewing Yojimbo and Sanjuro i wanted to see Kurosawa's acclaimed "Masterpiece". On the initial viewing i told my self this is good but not great. Then i let it soak in and the movie speaks for itself. 3 hrs long without you even knowing it. Written perfectly and performed even better. Seven Samurai has influenced many movies and is still GREAT. I 56 year old film that is still entertaining without special effects and computer technology (not that i don't like this stuff) but it just shows you that the story is amazing. If you like westerns (because this is where westerns are from) then you will love this amazing movie. I wouldn't say this is a must own but it is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. Straight forward easy to comprehend entertainment. Check it out.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

5/5

This has been on my to watch list far too long. I need to get around to it very soon.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Imagine if they made a movie together, your head would explode

it totally would!

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

it totally would!

We would then salvage your brain and put it into a mechanical T-Rex






I DVR'd Pearl Harbor tonight. Going to watch it tomorrow if I have time.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Diesel

We would then salvage your brain and put it into a mechanical T-Rex

and maybe then i can race cars for money as an undercover cop!

[two40]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

and maybe then i can race cars for money as an undercover cop!

that's the story of my life. *sigh*

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

and maybe then i can race cars for money as an undercover cop!

To some people, respect is more important.

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Eagle Eye

[Show spoiler]
I hadn't seen this before, but have wanted to since it came to theaters. I heard nothing but in regards to it, so I wasn't sure what I would think of it going in.

But I really enjoyed it.

I believe this is the first movie that Shia didn't say "NO NO NO!!!" in it (if he did, I don't remember it). I actually like this guy. He's not a superb actor at all, but he does good for what is needed of him in the movies I've seen him in with a main role (Transformers, Eagle Eye, Distrubia).

There's nothing remarkable about the acting across the board, but everyone turns in performances that get the job done and there was nothing that was cringe worthy for me.


I liked the Super Big Brother....er...Sister premise of the film quite a bit and thought it was a pretty fun ride of a movie.

There's not really any tension as to whether or not

[Show spoiler]Shia is going to stop the computer from killing the entire order of succession (besides the Secretary of Defense) of the government

as this is just not the sort of story where you think that could actually happen...basically, this isn't 24

Shia

[Show spoiler]stopping the explosion by shooting off a gun instead of getting to the Sergeant at Arms in time

did surprise me though. But after that happened I was hoping that

[Show spoiler]he had died stopping the attack

instead of

[Show spoiler]him just getting hurt and living to the happy ending.

It wasn't a deal breaker but I was sort of disappointed that's how it went.

The chase scenes in the film were pretty cool...I think. I could barely see anything the way they were zoomed in and shaky cammed. I could tell what was going on (Michael Bay's School of Quick Editing graduate ) but it would have been nice for them to pull the camera back and keep it a little more steady to give a better look at what seemed to be, like I said, some cool looking and set up chases.


There's also some pretty obvious errors, the three main ones I noticed being:

[Show spoiler]

• The explosion not going off because the kid didn't get to the key at the end of the song that would have set it off...too bad the trigger was placed before the keys
  Oh and how come the trumpet worked like normal even though that thing was lodged in the airway??
  
  
• As cool as that guy getting shocked to death by the wire was, there's no way that computer could have made that happen. That wasn't some rinky dink power pole, that was one of the heavy duty big boys. "She" couldn't have caused an energy spike high enough to make that thing do that, a bolt of lightning wouldn't make it do that.
  
  
• Remote ejection of a pilot?? I'm not entirely sure on this one, but I doubt that can be done. That made me go
  (Unless someone informs me that that can really be done)

Overall, nothing amazing about anything in the movie but it was still a pretty solid and enjoyable film to spend about two hours on; but with the poorly shot/edited chase sequences and my disappointment with

[Show spoiler]him not dieing

, I can't score it higher than a...

Rating - 4/5


Note: It would have gotten a 4.25/5

I actually liked this too when I rented it. It was definitely a Diesel One and Done LLC for me, but I was entertained for the run time.

I'll let somebody else comment on the spoilers because I am feeling lazy right now.


Note: **** the .25.

[Lepidopterous]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

NO! Its Two40s being spanked. The irony that he was THE big push that got it all started, and has yet to participate is not lost on me.

Ok got it. You're absolutely right

[Lepidopterous]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Everlasting Moments (Maria Larssons Eviga Ogonblick)
2008 NR 131 minutes

Netflix synopsis;

[Show spoiler]After marrying charming but coarse Sigfrid (Mikael Persbrandt), Maria (Maria Heiskanen) finds that her life isn't the fairy tale she expected, as her husband gradually becomes more brutal. But when she becomes involved in photography, Maria gains a new lease on life. Filmmaker Jan Troell based this Golden Globe-nominated drama on a manuscript written by his wife, Agneta Ulfsäter-Troell, chronicling the events of her ancestors in the early 20th century

Not a fast moving movie, but really enjoyable. I liked the characters and the simple story. I cared about everyone on screen and maintained hope as the years passed. Even though Sigfrid was a "mean" dude, I was rooting for his recovery and escape from the chains holding him down. Maria was an easy to empathize with character, and I felt her joy every time she felt it. Heiskenen did a superb and subtle job conveying weakness, frustration, determination, strength, resolve, disappointment, even rage and spite.

I did however think that Mikael Persbrandt was a poor casting choice for Sigfrid as he was meant to be a real "catch" in the ladies eyes, and to me, looked like a somewhat regular Joe, at best. But that didnt affect my ability to thoroughly enjoy his performance, which was solid, and the film.

I also really, really enjoyed the "tension" in the friendship between Maria and Sebastian Pedersen, the photography shop/studio owner. Both actors nailed the unspoken connection between the two characters perfectly.

I thought the directing and editing were darn good.

My only beef with the film is the camera work, lighting and shifting pallette. The techinques employed were too varied and too contemporary for my tastes. There were some scenes that were a tiny bit dark, a bit dingy and sepia toned, and I thought those were perfect for a film that begins in 1907. But there were other scenes that were too bright (overlit) for the atmosphere and the capture was hyper focused and razor sharp/crystal clear a la Transformers. These were times of candles and wood stoves illuminating most homes, and it just didnt look right. The pallette as well was a problem, shifting from perfect, worn sepia to 2010 in your face 100% accurate color timing, which I found a little bit jarring. It also seemed random. The camera work was a little bit too busy for me considering this was a period piece. Too much movement during intimate scenes and too fast when flowing from one character to another. It occasionally felt a little like a detective/action TV show.

Those problems affected my scoring, but only a little. I was being hyper critical because the film is strong enough, and good enough to warrant and survive the analysis.

Film 4.25/5

PQ 4/5

AQ 4/5

Drama lovers shouldnt miss this.

Wow! One of its biggest strengths is the cinematography imo. I didn't get any of those impressions... if anything I got the exact opposite

[Show spoiler]I even tried to dislike it and pick at it because I was over my budget during the Criterion sale

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Hot Tub Time Machine

[Show spoiler]I thought I'd take a brake from the heavy stuff and watch a brainless comedy.

Hot Tub Time Machine was a huge selection error on Squids behalf. I failed miserably (no effort really) to adequately research this film before putting it into my Netflix Queue.

I get a big and the film gets five HUGE

Really? Thats what is funny? Projectile vomitting 30 feet? Often?

Whatever happened to sharp, witty dialogue? Or clever and funny situations.

I never laughed.

I'm done typing. Wasted enough time on this one already.

Not worth the brain cells to determine a score.

Avoid.

Yikes.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Diesel

To some people, respect is more important.

i can only hear him saying this for the rest of my life

[Lepidopterous]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

Leaving Las Vegas

1995

[Show spoiler]a recommendation from the Squidster himself, and it was a damn good one

dark, bleak, depressing, surreal, honest, brutal, funny and yet charming at times while wrapped in a big 'ol basket of alcohol and melancholy. my kind of film!

my only real issue is that the film feels VERY 1995 - for better and worse. the score at times is a bit clumsy and i didn't like it, and most of the time i thought it fit the film well, but sometimes felt way too wacky and too upbeat for the tone of the film. if you're gonna be a 'dark' film, then stick with it, don't change your mind about it!

Nicolas Cage was good / great at times. although a few areas he was very "Nicolas Cage" with his obnoxious, goofy overbearing laughter, but it fits his character - a constant drunk who's trying to drink himself to death in Las Vegas - well, so i can't really complain here, just nit picking i presume

the real stand out though was Elisabeth Shue (Sera) the hooker he meets and spends time with in Las Vegas. they form a very odd, never seen before friendship / relationship that feels more real than a lot of romantic films that try to have a couple we should believe in from the get go do. so that was a major plus. both characters are tragic, lost, wrecked, scarred, ruined and going nowhere. depressing? the film has lot so of it. and again, i love that in a film

it comes highly recommended for fans of darker, serious dramas. extremely original and glad i finally got around to seeing it

4/5

I liked this one as well. Love his performance in Matchstick Men. I have yet to see Adaptation but hear he's excellent in it too.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by DjMethod

Wow! One of its biggest strengths is the cinematography imo. I didn't get any of those impressions... if anything I got the exact opposite

[Show spoiler]I even tried to dislike it and pick at it because I was over my budget during the Criterion sale

i remember thinking the same thing when i read his review but was too tired to think about it or question him on it. needless to say, he's totally NSE when it comes to the cinematography of Everlasting Moments

[Lepidopterous]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

i remember thinking the same thing when i read his review but was too tired to think about it or question him on it. needless to say, he's totally NSE when it comes to the cinematography of Everlasting Moments

I believe that's your hiney Squid.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by DjMethod

I believe that's your hiney Squid.

yep. it definitely, definitely is!

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by killowertz

I actually liked this too when I rented it. It was definitely a Diesel One and Done LLC for me, but I was entertained for the run time.

I'll let somebody else comment on the spoilers because I am feeling lazy right now.


Note: **** the .25.

I would watch it again, but I definitely wouldn't buy it.

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

i can only hear him saying this for the rest of my life

[Show spoiler]Attachment 27077

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by dag

Antichrist - I have to say this film failed on every level for me. I couldn't take it at all seriously. For example,

[Show spoiler]I was reduced almost to contemptible laughter when He is struggling along the ground with the weight screwed into his leg

. I know there are some posters here who greatly admire this work; while there certainly are moments of beauty in the film, I cannot consider this an artistic success.

Valhalla Rising - Again, the plot really didn't work for me.

[Show spoiler]The crossing of the Atlantic was, for me, patently absurd.

One-Eye's origins and hidden meanings didn't grab me.

At least you gave them a shot. The

[Show spoiler]stone wheel scenes

in "Antichrist" made me go "OMG WTF LOL?!!!" more than it made me laugh. Ridiculous perhaps, but as far as weird violent scens go it doesn't quite outdo the crazy scenes in "Pinocchio 964," "Dead Alive," "The Re-Animator," or "Tokyo Gore Police" in my book!

I couldn't get into "Valhalla Rising" either. A bit too long and slow for me. But that was before I learned that it was all meant to be figurative. I might "get it" on the next viewing, who knows?

Originally Posted by Diesel

Eagle Eye

[Show spoiler]

I hadn't seen this before, but have wanted to since it came to theaters. I heard nothing but in regards to it, so I wasn't sure what I would think of it going in.

But I really enjoyed it.

I believe this is the first movie that Shia didn't say "NO NO NO!!!" in it (if he did, I don't remember it). I actually like this guy. He's not a superb actor at all, but he does good for what is needed of him in the movies I've seen him in with a main role (Transformers, Eagle Eye, Distrubia).

There's nothing remarkable about the acting across the board, but everyone turns in performances that get the job done and there was nothing that was cringe worthy for me.


I liked the Super Big Brother....er...Sister premise of the film quite a bit and thought it was a pretty fun ride of a movie.

There's not really any tension as to whether or not

[Show spoiler]Shia is going to stop the computer from killing the entire order of succession (besides the Secretary of Defense) of the government

as this is just not the sort of story where you think that could actually happen...basically, this isn't 24

Shia

[Show spoiler]stopping the explosion by shooting off a gun instead of getting to the Sergeant at Arms in time

did surprise me though. But after that happened I was hoping that

[Show spoiler]he had died stopping the attack

instead of

[Show spoiler]him just getting hurt and living to the happy ending.

It wasn't a deal breaker but I was sort of disappointed that's how it went.

The chase scenes in the film were pretty cool...I think. I could barely see anything the way they were zoomed in and shaky cammed. I could tell what was going on (Michael Bay's School of Quick Editing graduate ) but it would have been nice for them to pull the camera back and keep it a little more steady to give a better look at what seemed to be, like I said, some cool looking and set up chases.


There's also some pretty obvious errors, the three main ones I noticed being:

[Show spoiler]

• The explosion not going off because the kid didn't get to the key at the end of the song that would have set it off...too bad the trigger was placed before the keys
  Oh and how come the trumpet worked like normal even though that thing was lodged in the airway??
  
  
• As cool as that guy getting shocked to death by the wire was, there's no way that computer could have made that happen. That wasn't some rinky dink power pole, that was one of the heavy duty big boys. "She" couldn't have caused an energy spike high enough to make that thing do that, a bolt of lightning wouldn't make it do that.
  
  
• Remote ejection of a pilot?? I'm not entirely sure on this one, but I doubt that can be done. That made me go
  (Unless someone informs me that that can really be done)

Overall, nothing amazing about anything in the movie but it was still a pretty solid and enjoyable film to spend about two hours on; but with the poorly shot/edited chase sequences and my disappointment with

[Show spoiler]him not dieing

, I can't score it higher than a...


Rating - 4/5




Note: It would have gotten a 4.25/5

Yep, a lot of moments, but still enjoyable. I love seeing the tunnel chase scene (doubt one of those UAV things would ever do that though ). I agree about the

[Show spoiler]death-by-power-line scene

, it's a little too much disbelief to suspend.

You must not like Shia much

[Show spoiler]if you wanted him to die

!

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Riff Magnum

Huh, i guess i got to see the "limited release." Had no idea. I guess living next to five million people sometimes has it's advantages.

Anyone on here watching the finale of "Boardwalk Empire" tonight?

No! Waiting for the Blu to watch it ALL-in-a-row-without commercials-with-HD audio-and-HDPQ.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Eagle Eye

[Show spoiler]I hadn't seen this before, but have wanted to since it came to theaters. I heard nothing but in regards to it, so I wasn't sure what I would think of it going in.

But I really enjoyed it.

I believe this is the first movie that Shia didn't say "NO NO NO!!!" in it (if he did, I don't remember it). I actually like this guy. He's not a superb actor at all, but he does good for what is needed of him in the movies I've seen him in with a main role (Transformers, Eagle Eye, Distrubia).

There's nothing remarkable about the acting across the board, but everyone turns in performances that get the job done and there was nothing that was cringe worthy for me.


I liked the Super Big Brother....er...Sister premise of the film quite a bit and thought it was a pretty fun ride of a movie.

There's not really any tension as to whether or not

[Show spoiler]Shia is going to stop the computer from killing the entire order of succession (besides the Secretary of Defense) of the government

as this is just not the sort of story where you think that could actually happen...basically, this isn't 24

Shia

[Show spoiler]stopping the explosion by shooting off a gun instead of getting to the Sergeant at Arms in time

did surprise me though. But after that happened I was hoping that

[Show spoiler]he had died stopping the attack

instead of

[Show spoiler]him just getting hurt and living to the happy ending.

It wasn't a deal breaker but I was sort of disappointed that's how it went.

The chase scenes in the film were pretty cool...I think. I could barely see anything the way they were zoomed in and shaky cammed. I could tell what was going on (Michael Bay's School of Quick Editing graduate ) but it would have been nice for them to pull the camera back and keep it a little more steady to give a better look at what seemed to be, like I said, some cool looking and set up chases.


There's also some pretty obvious errors, the three main ones I noticed being:

[Show spoiler]

• The explosion not going off because the kid didn't get to the key at the end of the song that would have set it off...too bad the trigger was placed before the keys
  Oh and how come the trumpet worked like normal even though that thing was lodged in the airway??
  
  
• As cool as that guy getting shocked to death by the wire was, there's no way that computer could have made that happen. That wasn't some rinky dink power pole, that was one of the heavy duty big boys. "She" couldn't have caused an energy spike high enough to make that thing do that, a bolt of lightning wouldn't make it do that.
  
  
• Remote ejection of a pilot?? I'm not entirely sure on this one, but I doubt that can be done. That made me go
  (Unless someone informs me that that can really be done)

Overall, nothing amazing about anything in the movie but it was still a pretty solid and enjoyable film to spend about two hours on; but with the poorly shot/edited chase sequences and my disappointment with

[Show spoiler]him not dieing

, I can't score it higher than a...


Rating - 4/5




[SIZE="1"]Note: It would have gotten a 4.25/5[/SIZE

]

I survived it because of Michelle Monaghan.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

i enjoyed the film as well even though i only gave it a 3/5 ("liked it")
and to your part i made bold and red: Shia is the second coming of Paul Walker for me, and it seems you, because that's how i feel Walker is

Originally Posted by Diesel

Imagine if they made a movie together, your head would explode

Am I the only one who thought Shia actually did a good job in Indy 4?