The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

From...

[Show spoiler]

To...

...this, thereabouts...





Nice picture of Whitby up there. England is a nice place, but recent weather has not been terribly inviting.

[Lepidopterous]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

I can understand the lack of humanity in The Passion; 90% or so of it is spent on Jesus' suffering more than anything. I do think the occasional flashbacks helped though, since they contrasted so heavily with the rest of the movie, and you can see the occasional glimpse of a more authentic and compelling Christ when he isn't soaked in blood.

Our loss of humanity is precisely the film's message. Passion is about suffering--the suffering that Jesus endured due to sin, and the fact that the suffering was all for us, the same people that inflicted it upon him. After all, Jesus says "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do," showing the ultimate sign of humanity. Christ's passion is a manifestation of the persistent resilience of God. Kind of like the dog in Adam and Dog--we can leave God but he will not abandon us. In fact, he will suffer for us.

In another twenty days or so, I'll be moving to Utah, to a site close to Salt Lake City. Same job as here (logistics, mail, cargo and shipping, asset tracking, and more), but it's a new place, and I'm told that there'll be a ton of work to do.

Nice! I correspond with "The U" for my job. SLC is beautiful. Good luck with the move.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

To...

Ah, didn't see the picture last night for some reason. I do hope to see that while I'm there, and I can say I saw the place where Indiana Jones 3 was filmed!

Originally Posted by DjMethod

Our loss of humanity is precisely the film's message. Passion is about suffering--the suffering that Jesus endured due to sin, and the fact that the suffering was all for us, the same people that inflicted it upon him. After all, Jesus says "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do," showing the ultimate sign of humanity. Christ's passion is a manifestation of the persistent resilience of God. Kind of like the dog in Adam and Dog--we can leave God but he will not abandon us. In fact, he will suffer for us.

That is indeed the same impression I get, but couldn't articulate. It's definitely profound stuff.

Nice! I correspond with "The U" for my job. SLC is beautiful. Good luck with the move.[/QUOTE]

Thank you, looking forward to it.

[jvince]

Star Trek (2009)
dir. J.J. Abrams

The Good: Top-notch visual effects. Perfect casting. Likable protagonists. Nice pacing. Leonard Nimoy. Great replay value.

The Bad: Nothing major.

The Bottom Line: You don't need to be a fan of the original series to enjoy this highly entertaining sci-fi adventure. Abrams managed to pull off an impressive reboot of a beloved franchise, and more recently, has taken the reins of another in Star Wars. Could the upcoming sequel be his Empire Strikes Back?

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by jvince

Star Trek (2009)
dir. J.J. Abrams

The Good: Top-notch visual effects. Perfect casting. Likable protagonists. Nice pacing. Leonard Nimoy. Great replay value.

The Bad: Nothing major.

The Bottom Line: You don't need to be a fan of the original series to enjoy this highly entertaining sci-fi adventure. Abrams managed to pull off an impressive reboot of a beloved franchise, and more recently, has taken the reins of another in Star Wars. Could the upcoming sequel be his Empire Strikes Back?

Wait...you got another test screening tomorrow don't you?

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by jvince

Star Trek (2009)
dir. J.J. Abrams

The Good: Top-notch visual effects. Perfect casting. Likable protagonists. Nice pacing. Leonard Nimoy. Great replay value.

The Bad: Nothing major.

The Bottom Line: You don't need to be a fan of the original series to enjoy this highly entertaining sci-fi adventure. Abrams managed to pull off an impressive reboot of a beloved franchise, and more recently, has taken the reins of another in Star Wars. Could the upcoming sequel be his Empire Strikes Back?

I'm scared I won't like it as much as the first time I saw it, we'll find out in a month.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

I'm scared I won't like it as much as the first time I saw it, we'll find out in a month.

Nah, never had that problem myself. If anything, I like it more each time I watch it. The only big thing is...

[Show spoiler]now that I've seen the behind-the-scenes stuff, I can't help but to notice how much of the Enterprise looks like a beer factory.

jvince, if you do have a test screening for the sequel soon, then may the long life and prosperity be with you.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Nah, never had that problem myself. If anything, I like it more each time I watch it. The only big thing is...

[Show spoiler]now that I've seen the behind-the-scenes stuff, I can't help but to notice how much of the Enterprise looks like a beer factory.

jvince, if you do have a test screening for the sequel soon, then may the long life and prosperity be with you.

now I feel like I've been missing out.

+ I totally dropped the ball on getting the original films box set. Here's to hoping we get a sale soon.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

now I feel like I've been missing out.

+ I totally dropped the ball on getting the original films box set. Here's to hoping we get a sale soon.

It is pretty cool how they made the '09 film with mostly practical effects and locales, as opposed to CGI-ing every little thing.

I've always been a fan of the originals (and I enjoy the TNG crew too), but #2, #4, and #6 has always been the best imo. Even though the movies are DNRed somewhat, the box set(s) is a worthwhile deal.

In fact, I might have to have a big Trek marathon before I depart.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

It is pretty cool how they made the '09 film with mostly practical effects and locales, as opposed to CGI-ing every little thing.

I've always been a fan of the originals (and I enjoy the TNG crew too), but #2, #4, and #6 has always been the best imo. Even though the movies are DNRed somewhat, the box set(s) is a worthwhile deal.

In fact, I might have to have a big Trek marathon before I depart.

Nice! We'll Beth be on MST time. If I were you I'd see Cloud Atlas before I leave. I'm so envious of the other parts of the world that are still playing it as it's going to be a long seven weeks till the blu cones out.

I'm gonna go deal hunting right now. Admission of guilt: I've never seen any of them. How could I possibly buy a ticket for Into Darkness w/out having seen Khan.

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

I'm scared I won't like it as much as the first time I saw it, we'll find out in a month.

I watched it at Christmas and I still felt it held up, although the comedy still falls rather flat.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Ah, didn't see the picture last night for some reason. I do hope to see that while I'm there, and I can say I saw the place where Indiana Jones 3 was filmed!

Be sure to check out both Bryce Canyon AND Zion National Park.

You can spend days just hiking and wandering around with your face doing this

http://www.google.com/search?q=bryce...OeGjigK2mID4Cw

http://www.google.com/search?q=zion+...Ne3AiwLzy4DYCw

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by Foggy

I watched it at Christmas and I still felt it held up, although the comedy still falls rather flat.

At the moment anything looks better than Olympus has Fallen, even the humor of Star Trek.

[Abdrewes]

Olympus Has Fallen (2013)

Antoine Fuqua's latest film plays like a satire stripped of humor. All that remains is a clunky, one dimensional, mindless snore. I can appreciate inane bombast when executed with a level of craft and showmanship, hence the countless disaster flicks that sit on my shelf, but Olympus has Fallen has neither. With dull lighting, a nonexistent visual style, special effects that would not be out of place in one of my brother's X-Box games and shameless jingoism that would make Michael Bay blush; this film pushed every button that makes me hate a film. It's an anonymous mass of a film that manages to not only be offensively politically incorrect but, doesn't even know it.

North Korea invades Washington, a bomber plane destroys the Washington monument and fires upon a helpless Washington D.C. as ground troops blow past White House security and takes control over it. Speaker of the House (a wasted Morgan Freeman) is now acting president. He receives North Korean demands as they have the President and several key members of the Cabinet hostage in the Bunker. But fortunately for the United States of America, one certain special secret service officer, a self serious Gerard Butler, is alive and more than capable to be America's last beacon of freedom.

To call this film unsubtle is an understatement. It's as if a Sly Stallone worshipping middle schooler, dozed off and wrote a screenplay during his Government and Politics Class. Ridiculous moments such as a hostage victim being forcibly moved toward her execution while reciting the national anthem and Gerard Butler cracking foreign skulls with a bust of Abraham Lincoln populate the film. It's possible to wring dark humor out of those moments, but as is frequently the case with Fuqua, loud excess robs any tonal nuance inherent to the screenplay, and in this case it's negligible. I strongly recommend skipping this in theaters.

1/4

[jvince]

Premier Automne - YouTube

Premier Automne (2013)
dir. Carols De Carvalho, Aude Danset

The Good: Stupendously gorgeous animation. Perfect storytelling. The swelling score. So adorable yet so somber.

The Bad: Nothing major.

The Bottom Line: If you have a soft spot for animated films and fairy tales, you have got to see this stunning work of art.

[jvince]

Originally Posted by Foggy

Wait...you got another test screening tomorrow don't you?

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

jvince, if you do have a test screening for the sequel soon, then may the long life and prosperity be with you.

Oh, lol... I wish. I just felt like watching it again. The PQ and AQ of the blu-ray is so awesome. Always blows me away.

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by jvince

Oh, lol... I wish. I just felt like watching it again. The PQ and AQ of the blu-ray is so awesome. Always blows me away.

Gosh darn! To be fair, getting invited to an early screening of Star Trek was one of the few times something like that has ever happened to me.

The only thing that comes similar are the Slackers Club things, and they're usually a bit naff.

[legendarymatt92]

Touted as the main instigator in the "found footage" horror genre, The Blair Witch Project polarized audiences when it was released due to the ambiguity of whether it was real or fictional; being made just as the internet hit mainstream and became affordable, its viral marketing campaign was both genius and a world first. Many average audience members went into the screenings nervous as to what they were going to witness and unsure as to whether it had actually happened, which was an amazing feat.

What followed the creative marketing, then, is still an exceptionally crafted horror film, the likes of which we'll probably never see again. It's a perfect example of building tension through nothing other than dialogue and simple, low-budget visual cues; the way the handheld camera never quite catches anything other than complete darkness at important times, the way simple items -- rocks, twigs, etc. -- are built and constructed to be ominous, the isolation of the characters in the dense forest, are all incredibly powerful ways of making an audience understand the severity of the situation.

For me, the story isn't the strong point of the film -- it's good in that it was clearly believable enough, but it doesn't rest at the heart of what the film is. What is, however, are two things: the performances and the witch.

The performances are the linchpin that holds the narrative together. Largely improvised based on basic instructions from the absent directors, all three leads create great characters that we can empathise with, steeped with an emotional depth not often seen in horror. The most effective scene, for me, is the one where Heather confesses that the whole situation is her fault, an incredible and heartfelt apology that, as Roger Ebert notes, is much like the final journal entry by the explorer Robert Falcon Scott as he froze to death in the Antarctic -- poignant and mesmerising.

As for the witch, it's a genius idea on behalf of the film-makers to never show her and make her the product of our own personal imaginations. Yes, descriptions from "villagers" exist, but they contradict each other, and are never complete. Everything in the film, but especially the witch, works through the ominous atmosphere and the terrorization in the night-time, but it's left superbly ambiguous as to whether the witch -- or anything else supernatural -- is actually behind what happens, which is something I believe Paranormal Activity could have benefited from.

An exceptional and largely original concept, TBWP has influenced many horror films since its release and will continue to as long as the "found footage" genre is around. It's a horror masterpiece.

10/10

[SquidPuppet]

Turtle: The Incredible Journey



This is a very family friendly documentary about a Loggerhead Turtle's journey, from birth (hatching actually) to adulthood, traveling tens of thousands of kilometers, then returning to her birthplace 20 years later to lay her eggs.

There are many dangers along the way. The film makes you aware of the perils, but in a way that is safe even for the youngest viewers.

Turtles are tough little troopers right from birth. Unlike most animals at birth, turtles are 100% on their own, right from day one. No mamma to feed or teach them.

Turtles have some type of sophisticated GPS/Target Guidance System built into their brains. The very moment they hatch from their egg they begin swimming across the globe, to a place they have never been before. When they arrive they mate. Then it's back across the globe again to lay the eggs. Wild.

Film 4.5/5
PQ 4.5/5
AQ 4/5

[Lepidopterous]

^Reminds me of March of the Penguins. I'll check it out sometime.