The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by Romulus

12 Angry Men is without a doubt one of my top 10 films of all time. I'm very interested to see what you think about the Three Colors Trilogy. They are in my Netflix queue right now but probably won't get around to seeing them until March or April. How great are those three films?

Originally posted December 8th

Three Colors Trilogy
Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski

I decided to borrow all three parts of the trilogy from my local library after seeing The Double Life of Veronique recently. I sat down to watch part one yesterday, not really expecting much.

I was wrong.

The stories pulled me in and I ended up watching the entire trilogy.

Blue 4.5/5
Starring Juliette Binoche

What is it about French women and huge dark eyes? This opening story starts like a Hitchcock movie with a shot of a leaky brake cable underneath a car. Sure enough, it crashes

[Show spoiler]killing Julie's composer husband and her little girl.

Julie deals with life in the only way she knows how, desperate to feel something. Her journey is very interesting and I was drawn in almost immediately. I cared what happened to her.

White 4/5
Starring Zbigniew Zamachowski

This also starts off in Paris and we see a Polish man appearing in court. His wife wants a divorce. There's a lot of humor in this tale as he travels back to Poland and plots how to get even with his wife. Some of the events are bizarre, others funny, a few sad. The time races by.

Red 5/5
Starring Irène Jacob

This is the best of a very strong trilogy and is set in Geneva. It plays as a mystery and stars the incredibly beautiful and talented Irène Jacob (The Double Life of Veronique). She runs over a dog and it fully recovers. She meets the owner and a series of strange events occur. There's a lot of emotion as she is initially disgusted before developing an understanding with the owner. There are many deep themes running through this one and the closing scenes tie the whole trilogy together brilliantly.

It's available in France as part of a set which also includes The Double Life of Veronique (Region B). I was tempted until reading a recent review which says the transfer is weak and only 1080i.

If Criterion gets hold of this trilogy to complement February's release of Veronique, I'll snap it up in an instant.

This is a great trilogy for Criterion fans, as well as those who liked The Double Life of Veronique and Irène Jacob's performance in that. I've been thinking about it all day.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

i didn't even catch that. but maybe he means they are just next to each other? F for Fantasy, H for Historical?
if not, i wanna know every title on that shelf!

Well he says merged. I see that as blended, no? Anyway, funny.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Well he says merged. I see that as blended, no? Anyway, funny.

true. i guess i was just trying to make Al not seem like a total fool

[SquidPuppet]

Punch Drunk Love

DVD

Odd? Quirky? Totally.

It has some messages that certainly rang true, and I enjoyed how it depicted Barry's anxiety disorder. Sandler did a great job conveying all his discomfort, all those troubles, and that rage as tightly bottled up.

I wanted to slap Barry's sisters, but I guess thats the point really.

Nothing special as far as photography or production values. Lens flare and poor lighting reared their ugly heads too often for my tastes.

The score was often effective and unnerving.

I enjoyed it for the most part, but it didnt blow me away.

3.75/5

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Punch Drunk Love

DVD

Odd? Quirky? Totally.

It has some messages that certainly rang true, and I enjoyed how it depicted Barry's anxiety disorder. Sandler did a great job conveying all his discomfort, all those troubles, and that rage as tightly bottled up.

I wanted to slap Barry's sisters, but I guess thats the point really.

Nothing special as far as photography or production values. Lens flare and poor lighting reared their ugly heads too often for my tastes.

The score was often effective and unnerving.

I enjoyed it for the most part, but it didnt blow me away.

3.75/5

glad you saw it Squid but sorry it didn't blow you away. i think it's one of those films that kind of just lingers in the back of your head for awhile and then you suddenly wanna watch it again and then you're like "wow. this is much darker AND funnier than i ever thought last time!"

some questions for ya though!

1. where would you put this on Sandler's serious roles? best? middle? last? i think he's only been serious in this, Reign Over Me and Spanglish but not sure. i haven't seen Spanglish yet, but this role in PDL really won me over. he was terrific from start to finish.

2. aside from, let's say, a david lynch film, weren't the first five minutes the oddest five minutes to start a film off with?

3. did you at least LOL when

[Show spoiler]Barry breaks all the glass sliding doors at his sister's house when he's upset?

made even funnier because

[Show spoiler]they're constantly talking about how he did the same thing with a hammer when he was younger

4. did you find the

[Show spoiler]scene with the phone sex operator

totally unnerving, unflinchingly real and awkward? it's a great scene that really shows off sandler's acting with body language and every time i watch that scene i wince because it's so awkward and real.

maybe it's because for me, everything PTA touches is pure brilliance (imo) but i think PDL is one of the most underrated films of all time. cannot wait to see it on blu, and i thought the lighting was perfect for the atmosphere / mood of the film. but we all have our own tastes of course

[Riff Magnum]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Cheerios are good.

I'm like Omar from the wire; I prefer Honey Nut.

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Punch Drunk Love

DVD

Odd? Quirky? Totally.

It has some messages that certainly rang true, and I enjoyed how it depicted Barry's anxiety disorder. Sandler did a great job conveying all his discomfort, all those troubles, and that rage as tightly bottled up.

I wanted to slap Barry's sisters, but I guess thats the point really.

Nothing special as far as photography or production values. Lens flare and poor lighting reared their ugly heads too often for my tastes.

The score was often effective and unnerving.

I enjoyed it for the most part, but it didnt blow me away.

3.75/5

I dunno why, but i used to hate lens flare. Now i think it's the greatest thing ever. I can't get enough. I'm gonna go watch the new "Star Trek" now, just to get my lens flare fix.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Riff Magnum

I'm like Omar from the wire; I prefer Honey Nut.




I dunno why, but i used to hate lens flare. Now i think it's the greatest thing ever. I can't get enough. I'm gonna go watch the new "Star Trek" now, just to get my lens flare fix.

words and emoticons cannot express how funny this is.

[Riff Magnum]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

words and emoticons cannot express how funny this is.

Which part? You'll have to narrow it down because pretty much everything i say is great. I'm channeling the ghost of Elvis here!!

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

glad you saw it Squid but sorry it didn't blow you away. i think it's one of those films that kind of just lingers in the back of your head for awhile and then you suddenly wanna watch it again and then you're like "wow. this is much darker AND funnier than i ever thought last time!"

some questions for ya though!

1. where would you put this on Sandler's serious roles? best? middle? last? i think he's only been serious in this, Reign Over Me and Spanglish but not sure. i haven't seen Spanglish yet, but this role in PDL really won me over. he was terrific from start to finish.

Thats tough. I'd say his performance in PDL was probably the most difficult, and he pulled it off well. Being able to convey an emotional disorder using only physical expressions is pretty tough.

2. aside from, let's say, a david lynch film, weren't the first five minutes the oddest five minutes to start a film off with?

I loved the beginning. The crash and the piano, both right out of left field. Random as hell. And the picture had a cold odd look too.

3. did you at least LOL when

[Show spoiler]Barry breaks all the glass sliding doors at his sister's house when he's upset?

made even funnier because

[Show spoiler]they're constantly talking about how he did the same thing with a hammer when he was younger

Actually I didnt laugh. I had the opposite reaction. Barry's disorder is a very real and HUGE problem for him. He has lived an internally tortured life. He spends all day every day tormented by his own mind, and he has a high enough IQ to understand that it is his OWN MIND that causes the suffering. He is constantly at an emotional precipice that he must either back away from (insecurity/safety) or jump with both feet (rage). The middle ground where you and I feel comfortable is a danger zone for him. I felt empathy when he smashed the doors because he had been pushed too far and snapped, all the while he was trying NOT to smash the doors. It was an uncontrollable and almost involuntary release for him, yet he knew it was wrong and bad.

4. did you find the

[Show spoiler]scene with the phone sex operator

totally unnerving, unflinchingly real and awkward? it's a great scene that really shows off sandler's acting with body language and every time i watch that scene i wince because it's so awkward and real.

That scene certainly succeeded at making me uncomfortable. It was very well done. I was cringing when the gal asked for his SS#. I also thought all the phone calls to

[Show spoiler] blackmail him

were done well.

maybe it's because for me, everything PTA touches is pure brilliance (imo) but i think PDL is one of the most underrated films of all time. cannot wait to see it on blu, and i thought the lighting was perfect for the atmosphere / mood of the film. but we all have our own tastes of course

That was my second viewing. The first was years ago. I am interested in seeing it again someday to see what else I may find in it.

[Batman1980]

So. Shawshank Redemption, first time I've ever seen it. ()
Thought it was excellent, Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman were flawless and your heart just breaks as the movie goes on and you see all the horrible things that happen to Andy Dufresne. One of the most well-crafted movies I've ever seen and will easily stand the test of time.
5/5 all around.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by Gandalf Stormcrow

So. Shawshank Redemption, first time I've ever seen it. ()
Thought it was excellent, Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman were flawless and your heart just breaks as the movie goes on and you see all the horrible things that happen to Andy Dufresne. One of the most well-crafted movies I've ever seen and will easily stand the test of time.
5/5 all around.

I love it too. Well-structured and good acting from everyone.

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

i'm not a big mike meyers fan or eddie murphy fan so finding out these two were the voices for the main characters didn't help me enjoy it at all an i was dragged to the theater for Shrek 3. on opening day surrounded by 7 year olds one of the worst theater atmospheres ever.

Yikes

you got it
i was gonna maybe rent them a few months ago, but there's rumors bubbling about them coming out in 2011, and since i'm in no rush to see them, i can wait for if in fact they do.

Yea its best to wait for the blu-ray or if they happen to play on a movie channel like HBO or something in HD. The master they used for the HDTV broadcast looks pretty good; the DVDs...yea, don't watch the DVDs

I was so happy that when USA played them they were in the original aspect ratio

I can deal with the commercials since I get them in HD/OAR....until the blu-rays come out

i wanna see this bad boy if it ever comes to creation!
just don't get burned out or aggravated over it. then it's not fun anymore

Thought you'd like that
One of these days I'll be able to nail it down

i got it

[Show spoiler]

last night after creating the wall the gf asked, "do you have a list for everything?" and i said, "well, probably not EVERYTHING, but in due time my dear". she then asked, "do you have a favorite friends / favorite girlfriends list?" and i said, "of course". she then asked to see it, to which i jokingly responded, "you can't. i don't feel like sleeping in the car or my parents house tonight". then she stomped her foot, scoffed and marched away mumbling under her breath

That's hilarious!

[Show spoiler]So, how was it sleeping in the car after making that joke?

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Yikes





Yea its best to wait for the blu-ray or if they happen to play on a movie channel like HBO or something in HD. The master they used for the HDTV broadcast looks pretty good; the DVDs...yea, don't watch the DVDs

I was so happy that when USA played them they were in the original aspect ratio

I can deal with the commercials since I get them in HD/OAR....until the blu-rays come out





Thought you'd like that
One of these days I'll be able to nail it down












That's hilarious!

[Show spoiler]So, how was it sleeping in the car after making that joke?

LOL always wondered why girlfriends ask for a list like that, most of the time they don't want to see it.
Bad Santa 5/5
PQ/AQ 4/5
Really should watch it more often, only watching it now due to proximity to Christmas.

[CZAR]

Hmmm.....I might watch Wayne's World.............wait I dont know maybe Ill watch Soul Plane................but I was just thinkin of watching The Flinstones The Movie..................I dont know man let me ponder this over a bowl of Cheerios.......Got Em!!

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Diesel

That's hilarious!

[Show spoiler]So, how was it sleeping in the car after making that joke?

i was able to at least get to stay on the couch, so it wasn't too bad
i just put out the foot rest and it becomes a small bed

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by CZAR

Hmmm.....I might watch Wayne's World.............wait I dont know maybe Ill watch Soul Plane................but I was just thinkin of watching The Flinstones The Movie..................I dont know man let me ponder this over a bowl of Cheerios.......Got Em!!

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

so on your shelf you have them separated huh? that's pretty cool. if i ever get around 200 blus, i might do that. right now sitting at 43 i have them as tv shows / pixar / blu-rays. a year ago when i was at like, 155 i had everything together just as alphabetical order, which was fine, but seeing how nice and bright the pixar spines / covers are, they look better together so i keep them together now.

and if i would do this, i would have to decide for sure where each film goes as it's main genre.

They're not partitioned or anything, but I do keep like movies, like genres, like spines, etc together more or less.

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I am sensing some oxymoronic irony there.

Huh...what...OH!

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Well he says merged. I see that as blended, no? Anyway, funny.

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

true. i guess i was just trying to make Al not seem like a total fool

I took another look at it. Huh, I guess "Braveheart" doesn't quite match with "Sleeping Beauty." Their spines match though.

I guess back in the day it seemed to make sense merging hacking slashing sword and sandal epics with hacking slashing fantasies. At this point though, it's getting a little too mixed up, and should probably be separated.

But hey, at least all those ninja/samurai movies are no longer mixed in there too.

Got some time off...maybe I'll spend it re-arranging the shelves...

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by CZAR

Hmmm.....I might watch Wayne's World.............wait I dont know maybe Ill watch Soul Plane................but I was just thinkin of watching The Flinstones The Movie..................I dont know man let me ponder this over a bowl of Cheerios.......Got Em!!

Take your time, and choose wisely...

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Got some time off...maybe I'll spend it re-arranging the shelves...

oh holy F! just the 796 blus alone (not even counting any DVD's you may have!) would be quite the challenge and time consuming task! although i personally find things like that fun although the most time consuming part, i find, is moving the blus so the cases and slips don't get "injured"

[Riff Magnum]

Originally Posted by CZAR

Hmmm.....I might watch Wayne's World.............wait I dont know maybe Ill watch Soul Plane................but I was just thinkin of watching The Flinstones The Movie..................I dont know man let me ponder this over a bowl of Cheerios.......Got Em!!

Dat sh$t better be honey nut, or else Omar come a knocking.

Don't know why, but the episode where he insists on Honey Nut made me love Omar. You know, like he became a REAL person at that moment and not just some homosexual robin hood gangsta. Because, as we all know, gun toting, homosexual, robin hood, gangstas are a dime a dozen and so played out.