The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[CZAR]

Originally Posted by Darth Anakin

0 stars - never happen
1 star - movie no one should ever see
2 stars - sucks but someone else might like it
3 stars - Okay
4 stars - pretty good
5 stars - excellent

That is about equivalent to mine. Got Em!!

Originally Posted by Marcus Wright

0 - Disturbingly bad, better to get shot in the leg.
0.5 - extremely horrible, but better see it than get a bullet in the leg
1 - extremely horrible
1.5 - Plain horrible, but not bad enough to have nightmares about
2 - bad movie and not recommended for any casual viewer.
2.5 - avearge, recommended for only genre/actor/director die hard fans
3 - decent, but not great by any means
3.5 - almost good, recommended
4 - good movie, recommended for most people
4.5 - excellent movie, highly recommended
4.75 - aalmost perfect movie
5 - a masterpiece, an all time favorite of mine. Highest recommendations.

Wow, thats lot of ratings.

Wow man u have an imagination on ranking films lol. Got Em!!

Originally Posted by AKORIS

your rating system is closest to mine now Czar-- but I cheat and add just 1 half star rating, a 2 and 1/2 rating for "decent"
then 3 stars for good
4 stars- very good to excellent
5 stars-- outstanding

I was raised on LEONARD MALTINS movie guide which gave 1 to 4 star ratings and 3 stars will always mean "good" to me....

Hey its ok to tweak your system haha. Got Em!!

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by Darth Anakin

3 was good enough that I wanted to see 4 until I heard Tom may not be in it.

The movie is already finished filming and Cruise is very much in it.

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

I gave in to the pressure, added Mission Impossible 3 on my ZIP list

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

I gave in to the pressure, added Mission Impossible 3 on my ZIP list

If for no other reason than Michelle Monaghan is an absolute fox, I doubt you will regret that at all.

[volcomsocal]

Whip It - 2009

Entertaining and funny. Ehh, I have a soft spot for Ellen Page, so I wanted to watch this one. It was a little girly and corny at times, but I enjoyed it. Ok story, ok script, pretty funny at times, and the acting was fine. I guess this was just something entertaining to watch, nothing more, nothing less. And Ellen is cute as a button. That's all.

PQ - 4/5
AQ - 4/5

3/5

[jvince]

Originally Posted by CZAR

0 Stars = Atrocious

1 Star = Bad

2 Stars = Mediocre

3 Stars = Decent

4 Stars = Good

5 Stars = Great

No more half star rating system for me. This is the formula I use now. Got Em!!

0 - Complete Failure
1/2 star - Failure
* star - Shitty
*1/2 stars - Amateur
** stars - Below Average
**1/2 stars - Average
*** stars - Good
***1/2 stars - Very Good
**** stars - Excellent
****1/2 stars - Near-Classic
***** stars - Classic

Before I watch a movie, my rating is always set at 4 stars (not 5), and it goes down (or rarely) up from there. I also rate movies based on their genres and how well they achieve what they were trying to do. If it's meant to be a fun horror flick and it successfully accomplishes that, then I'll give it a high rating, even if it isn't exactly Oscar-worthy.

[Al_The_Strange]

My rating scheme hasn't changed. I'd just add that 0/5 does not exist on my scale, because that would mean the film itself doesn't exist...

I have a few 1/5 or 0.5/5 movies in my collection, but I generally stick with buying 3/5 movies or higher.

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

I can't speak for anybody else, but for my rating scheme (based on the Amazon/Netflix/LoveFilm/Blu-Ray.com scales) would be...

5/5: Super-duper spectacular mind-blowing awesomeness!!!
4.5/5: Neeeaaarrrrlllyyyy perfect....
4/5: Good stuff, love it
3.5/5: Above-average, enjoyable, like-it-but-don't-love-it
3/5: Average, medicre, whatever...
2.5/5: Something's wrong here...
2/5: Pretty bad stuff. Yep...
1.5/5: Urge to kill rising...
1/5: Feelings of hatred, loathing, and disdain overwhelm the common senses...
0.5/5: The absolute bottom of a cinematic singularity, where no light can escape...

[P@t_Mtl]

Fantomas

France 1964
Directed by André Hunebelle
With Jean Marais, Louis de Funès, Mylène Demongeot
Format: HDTV

A bit of history first if you don't mind. The character of Fantomas was created by French writers Marcel Allain (1885–1969) and Pierre Souvestre (1874–1914). There had been previous movies about the characters, the most famous being the silent movies made in 1914-15. This version of course put together the campy humor of Louis de Funes and the more classical acting of Jean Marais. The story is also a little different. In previous movies the police inspector and the report work more closely in trying to stop Fantomas while in this version they are at odds. Now I know that my next comment willbring down upon me the wrath of many Francophones but I never really liked Louis de Funes. I can however tolerate him in certain movies when he is group with certain actors and Fantomas is one of them. He keep's he usual little quip down to a minimum and he can even make me smile a few times. As much as this movie is fun I would still suggest you see the silent version if you can find them.

Can't comment on the quality. While it was on a HD channel it was not a restored version. If they were to make a restoration it would look stunning. Fantomas for a French movie as quite a powerful cinematography and should look very good in HD.

I would recommend for anyone who is a fan of French comedy.

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by DjMethod

So true. Nice review Al. Not sure if I've ever compared it to Fight Club, but I completely agree. Can't wait to watch my copy.

Watched The Double Life of Veronique last night. Truly in awe of that film. Review will come later since I have multiple papers due tonight.

I picked up Double Life and Au Revoir Les Enfants for $17 a piece at barnes and noble this wknd with the coupon.

Double Life is a mind-blowing film; without a doubt, it's a very unique film in terms of direction, cinematography, and construction. Irene Jacob (who was chosen by Kieslowski due to her small role in Au Revoir Les Enfants--he wanted someone the audience had never seen before and wouldn't associate with any other film/role) was excellent. It's by far my favorite of the four Kieslowski's films I've seen, but I suspect I'll like Decalogue even more.

Another random fact--Kieslowski once said that his films aren't meant to be deep and obsessed over thematically. I forget which object he used as an example, but he essentially said that when you see a cup of coffee, it's meant to be a cup of coffee, not something of grand significance thematically. But, however, he started to change his mind as he made Double Life and then carried it over into Three Colors. His quote is even more surprising because of the supposed depth of Decalogue.

Another random fact--Kieslowki shot MANY versions of Double Life. At one point, he considered releasing a different version for each theater it played in. The booklet that comes with the blu gets into this a bit more and tells about how two specific versions of the film are drastically different.

Side note: the booklet has excellent essays. It's an absolute shame that Criterion did not decide to use the dvd packaging for the blu release, as it's among the best I've seen.

[Marcus Wright]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

Fantomas

France 1964
Directed by André Hunebelle
With Jean Marais, Louis de Funès, Mylène Demongeot
Format: HDTV

A bit of history first if you don't mind. The character of Fantomas was created by French writers Marcel Allain (1885–1969) and Pierre Souvestre (1874–1914). There had been previous movies about the characters, the most famous being the silent movies made in 1914-15. This version of course put together the campy humor of Louis de Funes and the more classical acting of Jean Marais. The story is also a little different. In previous movies the police inspector and the report work more closely in trying to stop Fantomas while in this version they are at odds. Now I know that my next comment willbring down upon me the wrath of many Francophones but I never really liked Louis de Funes. I can however tolerate him in certain movies when he is group with certain actors and Fantomas is one of them. He keep's he usual little quip down to a minimum and he can even make me smile a few times. As much as this movie is fun I would still suggest you see the silent version if you can find them.

Can't comment on the quality. While it was on a HD channel it was not a restored version. If they were to make a restoration it would look stunning. Fantomas for a French movie as quite a powerful cinematography and should look very good in HD.

I would recommend for anyone who is a fan of French comedy.

I was very happy to read your comment up until this part.
Lui De Funes is easily the greatest and best known French comedian, and that can't be for no reason. I love him.

To appreciate his talent, I advice you to see his movie called Oscar.
Also, if you are french comedies fan, I would advice you to see Lui De Funeses movies where he works in police academy. (its called Jandarms) There are 5 or 6 of them.
Recent movie collaborations by Pierr Rishar and Jerard Departie are among best ever in french cinema as well.

[Foggy]

My rating system

0/10 - This film baffles the mind, it literally ****ed up everything, worse than being sodomised and then burnt alive, I will go on a personal vendetta to remove this abomination from the face of the earth.
1/10 - Seriously god awful, children cry at the sight of this movie
2/10 - Really Really Bad, just avoid
3/10 - Quite bad, but looks pretty probably
4/10 - Bad, but seen worse, still need to smack whoever made it
5/10 - Average, right in the middle of the spectrum, nor good nor bad, just that generic load of slop that is similar to instant mash.
6/10 - Above Average, It's not the worst thing you will ever see, you can catch when ever and at least get some entertainment out of it, either out of it's ideas or just quirks
7/10 - Good, well done, your film is impressive, here is a sticky star, now go blow me away
8/10 - Pretty good, a well done and a pat on the back, your film is vastly impressive, now go blow me away
9/10 - Great, only a few flaws that annoyed me but you're are on my "to high five list" congratulations
10/10 - The pinnacle of enlightenment, no film is perfect, but I don't care that your film can't break the laws of physics and create black holes and send us through to the end of the universe where we will meet our maker and give us all very good thorough hand shakes, but I love your goddamn film.
11/10 - 10,000BC - Nuff Said

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by Marcus Wright

I was very happy to read your comment up until this part.
Lui De Funes is easily the greatest and best known French comedian, and that can't be for no reason. I love him.

To appreciate his talent, I advice you to see his movie called Oscar.
Also, if you are french comedies fan, I would advice you to see Lui De Funeses movies where he works in police academy. (its called Jandarms) There are 5 or 6 of them.
Recent movie collaborations by Pierr Rishar and Jerard Departie are among best ever in french cinema as well.

I am French Canadian, I know all or most of Louis de Funes movies I actually like him much better when he tone's it down a little. I am not sure if you saw some of his earlier movies but he was much more dramatic actor in those. I recommend you see La Traverse De Paris with Jean Gabin & Bourville, He as a small role in that but was very good. I did not like any of the Gendarmes movies, again he does too much, I prefer when he tone's it down a little.

As for Pierre Richard & Gerard Depardieux I still have not forgive Hollywood for destroying so many of their great movies together

[iam1bearcat]

Working on a new rating system myself. But don't think I could attach labels to the numbers because that feels to restricting, but we'll see.

[Batman1980]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

Working on a new rating system myself. But don't think I could attach labels to the numbers because that feels to restricting, but we'll see.

1 - Bearcat wishes he had never seen it
2 - Bearcat wanted to like it but it wasn't quite good enough
3 - Bearcat thought it was okay
4 - Bearcat thought it was good
5 - Bearcat thought it was excellent

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by CZAR

Tangled - What a fun and enjoyable experience. Great story, very funny, and looked and sounded beautiful. This will soon be added to the collection. I dont like musicals but there are always exceptions and this is one of them. As people had already told me, the songs fit perfect and they were far and in between so it worked great. This is a must see unless u just dont like animated films. Another well made animated film to add to the great year of 2010 for animated films.

Film Rating - 5 stars (out of 5)

9 - Recommended by the Squidster. I am a fan of post-apocalyptic films in general and while the setting surely fit that theme there was still sumthin I didnt care for about the film in general. I wished the characters were different meaning I wasnt a big fan of rag dolls I guess u would say saving the world. I thought it was an alright film but nuthin blew me away and it is most likely a one and done film for me.

Film Rating - 3 stars (out of 5)

Got Em!!

I guess I am a the odd man out. Diesel didnt like it either. The audio was good though, wasnt it?

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I guess I am a the odd man out. Diesel didnt like it either. The audio was good though, wasnt it?

No you are not! I also enjoyed the movie 9. I can see why a lot of people would not enjoy it so much, it's rather dark and glumy but I liked it a lot.

[CZAR]

Originally Posted by jvince

0 - Complete Failure
1/2 star - Failure
* star - Shitty
*1/2 stars - Amateur
** stars - Below Average
**1/2 stars - Average
*** stars - Good
***1/2 stars - Very Good
**** stars - Excellent
****1/2 stars - Near-Classic
***** stars - Classic

Before I watch a movie, my rating is always set at 4 stars (not 5), and it goes down (or rarely) up from there. I also rate movies based on their genres and how well they achieve what they were trying to do. If it's meant to be a fun horror flick and it successfully accomplishes that, then I'll give it a high rating, even if it isn't exactly Oscar-worthy.

I got u. Got Em!!

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I guess I am a the odd man out. Diesel didnt like it either. The audio was good though, wasnt it?

Well like I said it was alright but nuthin special so I wont say I didnt like it. U do seem to like it much more than us for sure. Got Em!!

[Steve46]

I enjoyed 9 too. A 4/5 for me in its genre.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

No you are not! I also enjoyed the movie 9. I can see why a lot of people would not enjoy it so much, it's rather dark and glumy but I liked it a lot.

Originally Posted by Steve46

I enjoyed 9 too. A 4/5 for me in its genre.

If I remember correctly, Hep liked it too. I see an age pattern here.

[Marcus Wright]

Originally Posted by P@t_Mtl

I am French Canadian, I know all or most of Louis de Funes movies I actually like him much better when he tone's it down a little. I am not sure if you saw some of his earlier movies but he was much more dramatic actor in those. I recommend you see La Traverse De Paris with Jean Gabin & Bourville, He as a small role in that but was very good. I did not like any of the Gendarmes movies, again he does too much, I prefer when he tone's it down a little.

As for Pierre Richard & Gerard Depardieux I still have not forgive Hollywood for destroying so many of their great movies together

I definitely will see your recommended movie La Traverse De Paris as I love Jean Gabin (who doesnt love him, he is a genious) Have you seen Gabins movie where he is a farm owner and his son gets into troubles and he now has to protect him? (love that movie to death).

Also, there is one movie where Jean Gabin and Lui De Funes starr together, I want to see it, how is that one if you have seen it?

P.S. Yeah, I agree 100% and I am mad at Hollywood too for taking Gerard Deparadueux and wasting his talent. Gerard and Pierre where an incredible duo, best duo ever created as far as I am concerned.

[P@t_Mtl]

Originally Posted by Marcus Wright

I definitely will see your recommended movie La Traverse De Paris as I love Jean Gabin (who doesnt love him, he is a genious) Have you seen Gabins movie where he is a farm owner and his son gets into troubles and he now has to protect him? (love that movie to death).

Also, there is one movie where Jean Gabin and Lui De Funes starr together, I want to see it, how is that one if you have seen it?

P.S. Yeah, I agree 100% and I am mad at Hollywood too for taking Gerard Deparadueux and wasting his talent. Gerard and Pierre where an incredible duo, best duo ever created as far as I am concerned.

You maybe be talking about Le Jardinier d'Argenteuil, it's the first one that is coming to mind from your description. I grew up on Jean Gabin movies, he's one of my mom's favorite actor.

As for both of them together, you probably talking about Le Gentleman d'Epsom??? I haven't seen it in years.