The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by Foggy

I dug it!

[Show spoiler]

[Show spoiler]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Hurry up. I want to hear about it.

The mail isn't here yet

Edit: Scratch that, I just saw the mail-lady drive down the street

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

[Show spoiler]

The mail isn't here yet

Edit: Scratch that, I just saw the mail-lady drive down the street

Did you RENT a disc? Ohhhhhh Myyyyyyy Gaaaaaawd! Are you going to put that filthy, previously watched thing in your PS3?

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by Hep

Oh ya...no, I wouldn't suggest it's anywhere near my favourite either, but it probably bridged the greatest delta between expectations and enjoyment.

I never suggested that you did. I pretty much agree though. The only movie from last year that I enjoyed more compared to my expectations was Kick-Ass.

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Easy A

[Show spoiler]
I find most High School angst films a little hard to watch.

Not this one.

I dont know exactly why, but Easy A really worked for me. Maybe its because Emma Stone is so cool. I really liked her characters sarcastic personality.

Everything was pretty good here. The script had realistic dialogue. The acting was fine across the board. Most of the humor hit the mark for me. I really liked the cast too. Church as the "cool" teacher, Kudrow as the wacky guidance counselor, McDowell as the Pricipal, Tucci and Clarkson as the laid back parents.

Not too serious, but not without a message.

This was a fun watch.

Film 4/5
PQ 4.25/5 pretty darn good
AQ 4.25/5 Clear, clean, well prioritized dialogue and nice usage of the rears for tunes and ambient sounds.

I really enjoyed Easy A. It is my favorite comedy of last year (unless you count Kick-Ass as a comedy).

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Did you RENT a disc? Ohhhhhh Myyyyyyy Gaaaaaawd! Are you going to put that filthy, previously watched thing in your PS3?

Yes I rented a disc...but no I didn't watch it in my PS3

Don't worry, my psychotic mental hang up is still in full effect

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Easy A

[Show spoiler]I find most High School angst films a little hard to watch.

Not this one.

I dont know exactly why, but Easy A really worked for me. Maybe its because Emma Stone is so cool. I really liked her characters sarcastic personality.

Everything was pretty good here. The script had realistic dialogue. The acting was fine across the board. Most of the humor hit the mark for me. I really liked the cast too. Church as the "cool" teacher, Kudrow as the wacky guidance counselor, McDowell as the Pricipal, Tucci and Clarkson as the laid back parents.

Not too serious, but not without a message.

This was a fun watch.

Film 4/5
PQ 4.25/5 pretty darn good
AQ 4.25/5 Clear, clean, well prioritized dialogue and nice usage of the rears for tunes and ambient sounds.

[iam1bearcat]

can't wait to get home tomorrow and watch my copy of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
can't wait to see how it looks on blu-ray

[Diesel]

Buried

• 2010 | R | 95 Minutes
  
  
• Director: Rodrigo Cortés
  
  
• Starring: Ryan Reynolds
  
  
• Drama | Mystery | Thriller
  
  
• First Time Viewing

I was really mad that this movie never came to my theater because I wanted to see it quite a bit. So I was to finally get to check it out today....it was worth the !


Paul Conroy is taken hostage and buried alive in a coffin. He has to get someone to give his captors $5M before 9 or...

[Show spoiler]they're going to take him to Seaworld

.

The movie is set entirely in the coffin with Paul

[Show spoiler]besides a couple videos he sees of his co-worker who is also a hostage.

It's a very claustrophobic film, probably as claustrophobic as your going to get...unless there is a movie about a person in a smaller box that I am not thinking of

Anyway, the idea is executed perfectly. At first it's, "Okay, well this dude is stuck in a coffin...that sucks" then shortly the tension builds and builds and builds for the remainder of the runtime.

Every time

[Show spoiler]someone puts him on hold

I was

For the majority of the 95 minutes you will be sitting there going
At least I was; I was completely wrapped up in Reynold's character. Every emotion he was feeling in that box I was feeling.

Then there's the part where

[Show spoiler]he cuts his finger off

And of course

[Show spoiler]the ending, "I'm sorry Paul...I'm so sorry..."

Like I said, excellently executed and fantastically acted by Reynolds.

I'm not speaking from actual knowledge but I'm going to assume some people thought he was too panicky or made stupid decisions (

[Show spoiler]lighting a bloody bonfire to kill a snake while in a wooden box!

or

[Show spoiler]using that lighter SO much....though that snake came in and out through a hole, so I suppose there was at least a little oxygen getting into the box letting him not die sooner

) but he was

[Show spoiler]a truck driver from Michigan who is buried alive after being ambushed in a war zone (and seeing people he knows die) who also suffers from panic attacks...yea, I don't think he's the type of person who would be calm, cool and collected in this situation.

So no problem there for me. I thought Reynolds was great.


There were things that bugged me, like the part where the

[Show spoiler]phone is CLEARLY upside when he is using it.

The specific

[Show spoiler]Youtube

name drop made me go Just say

[Show spoiler]the video was leaked to the Internet. For some reason referring specifically to Youtube took me out of the movie for a moment.

And the fact that

[Show spoiler]no one knows the number to his phone because it is being blocked or something and can't be traced...yet his guy from work calls him on it

...

I think that was it that bugged me about the movie, of course I may be forgetting something. But even so, they were just small things that annoyed me in an otherwise highly "enjoyable" film.

Don't clip your fingernails before this one, you'll need something to bite off.


Rating - 4.5/5

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Yes I rented a disc...but no I didn't watch it in my PS3

Don't worry, my psychotic mental hang up is still in full effect

So, your PS3 is too good for those comtaminated, vile, germ infested discs, but your parents BD player is OK with them? Or are you taking it to a friends house to ruin his player?

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

So, your PS3 is too good for those comtaminated, vile, germ infested discs, but your parents BD player is OK with them? Or are you taking it to a friends house to ruin his player?

It's a DVD, not a blu-ray

I use my old DVD player or my computer

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Buried

[Show spoiler]

• 2010 | R | 95 Minutes
  
  
• Director: Rodrigo Cortés
  
  
• Starring: Ryan Reynolds
  
  
• Drama | Mystery | Thriller
  
  
• First Time Viewing

I was really mad that this movie never came to my theater because I wanted to see it quite a bit. So I was to finally get to check it out today....it was worth the !


Paul Conroy is taken hostage and buried alive in a coffin. He has to get someone to give his captors $5M before 9 or...

[Show spoiler]they're going to take him to Seaworld

.

The movie is set entirely in the coffin with Paul

[Show spoiler]besides a couple videos he sees of his co-worker who is also a hostage.

It's a very claustrophobic film, probably as claustrophobic as your going to get...unless there is a movie about a person in a smaller box that I am not thinking of

Anyway, the idea is executed perfectly. At first it's, "Okay, well this dude is stuck in a coffin...that sucks" then shortly the tension builds and builds and builds for the remainder of the runtime.

Every time

[Show spoiler]someone puts him on hold

I was

For the majority of the 95 minutes you will be sitting there going
At least I was; I was completely wrapped up in Reynold's character. Every emotion he was feeling in that box I was feeling.

Then there's the part where

[Show spoiler]he cuts his finger off

And of course

[Show spoiler]the ending, "I'm sorry Paul...I'm so sorry..."

Like I said, excellently executed and fantastically acted by Reynolds.

I'm not speaking from actual knowledge but I'm going to assume some people thought he was too panicky or made stupid decisions (

[Show spoiler]lighting a bloody bonfire to kill a snake while in a wooden box!

or

[Show spoiler]using that lighter SO much....though that snake came in and out through a hole, so I suppose there was at least a little oxygen getting into the box letting him not die sooner

) but he was

[Show spoiler]a truck driver from Michigan who is buried alive after being ambushed in a war zone (and seeing people he knows die) who also suffers from panic attacks...yea, I don't think he's the type of person who would be calm, cool and collected in this situation.

So no problem there for me. I thought Reynolds was great.


There were things that bugged me, like the part where the

[Show spoiler]phone is CLEARLY upside when he is using it.

The specific

[Show spoiler]Youtube

name drop made me go Just say

[Show spoiler]the video was leaked to the Internet. For some reason referring specifically to Youtube took me out of the movie for a moment.

And the fact that

[Show spoiler]no one knows the number to his phone because it is being blocked or something and can't be traced...yet his guy from work calls him on it

...

I think that was it that bugged me about the movie, of course I may be forgetting something. But even so, they were just small things that annoyed me in an otherwise highly "enjoyable" film.

Don't clip your fingernails before this one, you'll need something to bite off.

Rating - 4.5/5

Thats a whole lotta spoilas there. If netflix woulda shipped this on Monday, I could be chatting with you about it. First time ever that they didnt send a new release on the Monday before. Now its a "long wait".

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

It's a DVD, not a blu-ray

I use my old DVD player or my computer

Wont that cause them to blow up, or the world to end, or something?

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Thats a whole lotta spoilas there. If netflix woulda shipped this on Monday, I could be chatting with you about it. First time ever that they didnt send a new release on the Monday before. Now its a "long wait".

Really? When I added it to my queue (I signed up for a one month membership to stream some stuff and figured I'd get some DVDs while I was at it) it said Short Wait and then changed to blank/immediately available and shipped out to me yesterday.

Maybe when they get my disc back tomorrow they'll send it to you

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Wont that cause them to blow up, or the world to end, or something?

That's a risk I'm willing to take to keep my PS3 from being contaminated

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Really? When I added it to my queue (I signed up for a one month membership to stream some stuff and figured I'd get some DVDs while I was at it) it said Short Wait and then changed to blank/immediately available and shipped out to me yesterday.

Maybe when they get my disc back tomorrow they'll send it to you




That's a risk I'm willing to take to keep my PS3 from being contaminated

Netflix status' can change in a heartbeat. 24 has jumped from available to very long wait and back and forth over and over. But it never lands on short wait Hmmmmmmm

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Netflix status' can change in a heartbeat. 24 has jumped from available to very long wait and back and forth over and over. But it never lands on short wait Hmmmmmmm

So you STILL haven't gotten to see Season 8?



Saturday I have The A-Team coming in. We'll see how that goes.

I have The Social Network at my #1 position but it won't be available until 2/8. Hopefully I get a copy as my subscription expires on the 15th

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

So you STILL haven't gotten to see Season 8?



Saturday I have The A-Team coming in. We'll see how that goes.

I have The Social Network at my #1 position but it won't be available until 2/8. Hopefully I get a copy as my subscription expires on the 15th

Make sure they receive a disc on Monday the 7th. For over four years that has worked perfectly fo me on new releases, except for Buried.

If you miss the opening day window on a popular title, it'll be weeeeeeks before you'll get it.

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Make sure they receive a disc on Monday the 7th. For over four years that has worked perfectly fo me on new releases, except for Buried.

If you miss the opening day window on a popular title, it'll be weeeeeeks before you'll get it.

My current window for when things show up is Wednesday, in the mail on Thursday, new movie on Saturday, in the mail on Monday, repeat.

After I get the movie on the Wednesday before Social Network comes out I'll leave it as my only movie in my queue so that nothing gets shipped to me on Saturday and hopefully that will score me a release copy

[Hep]

Originally Posted by killowertz

I never suggested that you did. I pretty much agree though. The only movie from last year that I enjoyed more compared to my expectations was Kick-Ass.

Good, we are in complete agreement then.

[lDlisturb3d]

Citizen Kane

Director: Orson Welles
Writers: Herman J. Mankiewicz, andOrson Welles
Stars: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten and Dorothy Comingore

"How can one word describe a man's whole life?"

Plot(IMDb): Following the death of a publishing tycoon, news reporters scramble to discover the meaning of his final utterance.

My Take: Citizen Kane has be awarded from many sources as the "Greatest Film of all time". Watching this film and taking every aspect into consideration I can't agree. While Citizen Kane has aged quite well it still isn't what I was expecting and the world of cinema. The story itself could be interesting for some, and for me it caught my attention just a bit. The story of Charles Foster Kane's life was pretty interesting but the not very entertaining. A film with this grand label should have every aspect covered, great story, great cinematography and last but not least entertaining. I cant deny the fact that Kane's road for love ultimately became his down fall but at the same time the way it was delivered was a bit boring. Kane starts off as a young ambitious business man that want nothing but the best for the working class american but in his struggle for perfection he forgets about all the rules and personal morals he set to to make the dream a reality. He ultimately becomes what he wanted to rid the world of news of. The Art, Direction and Acting of this film was flawless nothing less than an "A" but the story was not great enough to be named "Greatest Movie of All Time" There was no emotional connection between me and Kane because I could relate to his situation. Should I blame the Director or the Story? The Story because the character development was present but the story wasn't that in-depth to make me care.

Conclusion: Citizen Kane has aged well and it still a good slow burning film but its absurd title "Greatest Movie of All Time" is a joke. If im missing something in the film then thats my fault but there's really nothing to miss. Now for the meaning of "Rosebud". I simply think its just an ideal the Kane wanted more than anything. Love, to be loved and the only place he received this unconditional love was through his mother. I could be wrong though. Decent movie at best but there is a great demonstration of cinematography and dialogue.

OVERRATED BUT STILL OK

3/5

[lDlisturb3d]

Hotel Rwanda

Director: Terry George
Writers: Keir Pearson, and Terry George
Stars: Don Cheadle, Sophie Okonedo and Joaquin Phoenix

"Good connections can go a long way..."

Plot(IMDb): The true-life story of Paul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager who housed over a thousand Tutsi refugees during their struggle against the Hutu militia in Rwanda.

My Take: First off you never realize that the movie is 2hrs long. The characters are strong and the story is gritty and unbelievable. Genocide is always a rough topic but even more rough to watch it happen. This movie was very touching and very informative, the emotional connection was very strong and the ending was more than warming but still leaving behind a dry sore throat. I thought the movie was 5 stars all the way, direction was great, the story was great and the acting was great. This is by far the best i've seen Don Cheadle. His acting was really amazing and i love the meaning behind his character. I especially loved the fact that this movie and others like (Schindler's List) show the value of money during situations like this. This movie is really deep with an strong emotional connection to anyone who is normal when it comes to compassion and caring for others. There are so many different type of characters in this movie that you can't tell who's good or bad (moral wise). Another great thing this film highlights like others is the power of media. We all know that media can help a situation or making it incredibly worse.

Conclusion: This film is right behind Schindler's List, im not saying its as great but to be short I will never forget this film. There are many movies that show genocide but they lack and the character development and overall story. You cant just write a script talking about killings and expect it to be golden, it has to bring something much more, Hotel Rwanda fills that black hole with great compassion.

MUST SEE

5/5

[Al_The_Strange]

Next greatest blind-buy: “Batman: The Movie.”

So it has come to pass that multiple filmmakers and artists have left their distinctive interpretations throughout the Batman mythos. Tim Burton brought a dark film-noir gothic appeal; Christopher Nolan introduced a complex moral connection to law and crime, diving into deep psychological implications; even Joel Schumacher brought a snazzy theatrical flair to his work. So what does the original 1960s film contribute? A universe where sharks are repelled with shark bat repellant, riddles are answered with the most ridiculous answers (a sparrow with a machine gun…seriously?!), people can appear and disappear through hydration…WTF?!!

I knew what I was getting myself into though. Having caught some of the TV episodes in the past, I took a bit of a liking to the upbeat adventurous spirit, the megalomaniac bad guys and their outlandish plots, and the snazzy fights. Only these days can I look at it and call it cheesy, campy, and absurd. But more than anything, that just makes the movie incredibly hilarious, effectively ramping up the entertainment value. The dialogue is often hilarious. The situations are wacky and stupid enough to put every other campy 60s adventures to shame (whether that be James Bond, the Prisoner, or whatever).

As such, the story sucks and the movie is cheap. If there is any redeeming cinematic value, it’d be the groovy music; still catchy after all these years. Acting is pretty bad all around, and all characters are weak (especially compared to newer films). The story kinda goes all over the place, hopping from one silly fight to another. Production value (sets, props, costumes) has always looked cheap for this old franchise. Photography is…pretty good actually. And I gotta admire some of the artsy effects; the appearance of words during a fight scene is still amusing (so “urkk!” is a real onomatopoeia?), and the opening title screens seemed quite psychedelic.

But for the most part, it’s a movie so bad that it’s hilarious. This epic piece of cinematic art shall stand tall and proud next to others bearing the same value, such as the original “Inglorious Bastards,” “The Spirit,” and countless Uwe Boll films!

3/5 (entertainment: 5/5, story: 1/5, film: 2/5)

Recommendation: No. Unless you're the type of person who doesn't take a film too seriously and is looking for something silly to laugh at.

The Blu-Ray was worth the entire $10! The film is quite clean and adequately sharp. I think it could have been sharper and more vibrant yet, but it’s pretty solid as it is. Sound quality seemed clean and clear.

PQ: 4/5, AQ: 4/5

Now my Batman marathon is complete.