The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Loved this film! I hope Oscilloscope releases it on BluRay someday

I have decided to change my score.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I have decided to change my score.

Nice!

Also, I really want to see Ivan's Childhood. The Tarkovsky films I have seen (Solaris, Andrei Rublev, Stalker) have impressed me, so I cant wait to get my hands on the Criterion release.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Nice!

Also, I really want to see Ivan's Childhood. The Tarkovsky films I have seen (Solaris, Andrei Rublev, Stalker) have impressed me, so I cant wait to get my hands on the Criterion release.

It looks like French New Wave. But, it contains an actual story and realistic/meaningful dialogue.

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Nice!

Also, I really want to see Ivan's Childhood. The Tarkovsky films I have seen (Solaris, Andrei Rublev, Stalker) have impressed me, so I cant wait to get my hands on the Criterion release.

Ivan's Childhood is an incredible film with some of the better black and white photography I've seen--reminiscent of Letter Never Sent.

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by jhiggy23

Ivan's Childhood is an incredible film with some of the better black and white photography I've seen--reminiscent of Letter Never Sent.

High Praise.

July can't come soon enough

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

[/SPOILER]

I finally got around to seeing Ivan's Childhood last night. I agree, wow.

I did not love it quite as much as you did, but I appreciated all the things that you mentioned. Cinematography, sound etc. Some of those forests were eerie looking.

Film 4/5

No PQ/AQ rating as I only saw it on DVD.

Really glad you liked it squid. It's Tarkovsky's most accessible and straight forward film, so while it's certainly not as intellectually challenging as, say, Solaris, I find it to be more emotionally involving.

I agree about the forests. My other post referred to Letter Never Sent, another excellent Russian film from the same era (and also available on Criterion). I only saw it so far on my computer and will be getting it during the July sale, so I'm looking forward to seeing it in its highest quality.

[Al_The_Strange]

I decided to pass on the chance to watch Alien in all its 2K glory on the big screen. Probably would have put me to sleep anyway.

Instead, I finally got around to watching my next greatest blind-buy: Django Unchained

With western influences seeping into so many Quentin Tarantino films (such as Kill Bill and Inglourious Basterds), an actual western film by Tarantino is a dream come true. Styles and sensibilities align in a sublime manner, resulting in what must be one of the most unique and refreshingly entertaining films in the genre.

Django Unchained has everything that makes a Tarantino so great: style, sharp dialogue, an attentive production, poignant violence, unpredictable plotting, and vengeful characters we can root for. The film has several major shooutouts and duels, which are quite thrilling, and extremely bloody. The violence here is on the same level as a Paul Verhoeven film, for it is explosively bloody and pulpy, and it never shies away from showing the painful consequences of such violence. There are also a few brutal scenes that can be pretty hard to watch. When the bullets aren't flying, however, the film maintains a lot of interest with its purposeful dialogue and pacing, and with its plot building. I feel the film slowed down and lost some of its vibe quite a bit in the middle, but most everything else is fantastically entertaining.

The plot is what makes the film work, more than the action. It's somewhat divided into several episodes of sorts, but they all build up a central revenge-driven conflict, and it all reaches a satisfying climax. The plot twists and turns in very wild and interesting directions, and always with vigilant attention to the characters. Django himself is a character we can't help but to root for, while Dr. Schultz is a character too interesting to dismiss. Most everybody else are bad guys we love to hate. Beneath nearly every scene is a poignant undercurrent of racism, a theme which drives all of the characters and the story. Do be warned that such themes have not sat well with many audience members, especially with the film's language.

As expected, this film has a ton of style. You can certainly expect quality photography and sharp editing. Acting is very good: Jamie Foxx does his best to make the title character iconic, while Christoph Waltz and Leo DiCaprio both liven things up a lot and try to steal each scene. Samuel L. Jackson is as grumpy as ever, and it was a joy to watch Kerry Washington. Writing is superb; Tarantino continues to show incredible skill as wielding dialogue and language of given eras and cultures for entertaining effect. This production has good-looking sets, props, and costumes, but I did feel that a few things looked a little too modern or out-of-place in a western. As with most of his other films, Tarantino manipulates music in the film impeccably.

The violence and racist issues have caused some controversy, but Django Unchained is a brilliant marriage of Tarantino's beloved style and Tarantino's beloved genre. Westerns aren't even my thing, but DU is exciting enough and has enough style and substance to make me call it a favorite.

4.5/5 (Entertainment: Good | Story: Very Good | Film: Very Good)

Recommendation: Probably not for the extremely politically-correct, but for most everybody else, yeah.
--------------------
Updated QT ratings:

[Show spoiler]

• Kill Bill Volume 1 5/5
• Inglourious Basterds 4.5/5
• Django Unchained 4.5/5
• Kill Bill Volume 2 4/5
• Pulp Fiction 4/5
• Reservoir Dogs 3.5/5
• Death Proof 3.5/5
• Jackie Brown 3.5/5

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

I decided to pass on the chance to watch Alien in all its 2K glory on the big screen. Probably would have put me to sleep anyway.

Instead, I finally got around to watching my next greatest blind-buy: Django Unchained

[Show spoiler]With western influences seeping into so many Quentin Tarantino films (such as Kill Bill and Inglourious Basterds), an actual western film by Tarantino is a dream come true. Styles and sensibilities align in a sublime manner, resulting in what must be one of the most unique and refreshingly entertaining films in the genre.

Django Unchained has everything that makes a Tarantino so great: style, sharp dialogue, an attentive production, poignant violence, unpredictable plotting, and vengeful characters we can root for. The film has several major shooutouts and duels, which are quite thrilling, and extremely bloody. The violence here is on the same level as a Paul Verhoeven film, for it is explosively bloody and pulpy, and it never shies away from showing the painful consequences of such violence. There are also a few brutal scenes that can be pretty hard to watch. When the bullets aren't flying, however, the film maintains a lot of interest with its purposeful dialogue and pacing, and with its plot building. I feel the film slowed down and lost some of its vibe quite a bit in the middle, but most everything else is fantastically entertaining.

The plot is what makes the film work, more than the action. It's somewhat divided into several episodes of sorts, but they all build up a central revenge-driven conflict, and it all reaches a satisfying climax. The plot twists and turns in very wild and interesting directions, and always with vigilant attention to the characters. Django himself is a character we can't help but to root for, while Dr. Schultz is a character too interesting to dismiss. Most everybody else are bad guys we love to hate. Beneath nearly every scene is a poignant undercurrent of racism, a theme which drives all of the characters and the story. Do be warned that such themes have not sat well with many audience members, especially with the film's language.

As expected, this film has a ton of style. You can certainly expect quality photography and sharp editing. Acting is very good: Jamie Foxx does his best to make the title character iconic, while Christoph Waltz and Leo DiCaprio both liven things up a lot and try to steal each scene. Samuel L. Jackson is as grumpy as ever, and it was a joy to watch Kerry Washington. Writing is superb; Tarantino continues to show incredible skill as wielding dialogue and language of given eras and cultures for entertaining effect. This production has good-looking sets, props, and costumes, but I did feel that a few things looked a little too modern or out-of-place in a western. As with most of his other films, Tarantino manipulates music in the film impeccably.

The violence and racist issues have caused some controversy, but Django Unchained is a brilliant marriage of Tarantino's beloved style and Tarantino's beloved genre. Westerns aren't even my thing, but DU is exciting enough and has enough style and substance to make me call it a favorite.

4.5/5 (Entertainment: Good | Story: Very Good | Film: Very Good)

Recommendation: Probably not for the extremely politically-correct, but for most everybody else, yeah.

I still have yet to watch my copy of this. I haven't had a chance to watch much beyond TV lately, so that probably doesn't help. Sometime soon though of course.

[menaceuk]

Originally Posted by KilloWertz

I still have yet to watch my copy of this. I haven't had a chance to watch much beyond TV lately, so that probably doesn't help. Sometime soon though of course.

You should remedy that.

Django is fantastic. Has great performances. Plenty of Style. An engaging story. Well worth a watch, Assuming you aren't over sensitive to the "N" Word

[jvince]

Frances Ha (2013)
dir. Noah Baumbach

The Good: Greta Gerwig is fantastic as the eponymous, twentysomething slacker who aspires to be a dancer; her dialogue and general awkwardness is amusing.

The Bad: While it's a welcome, slice-of-life type of story with a very human protagonist deep down, the biggest knock on this film is that Baumbach and co-writer Gerwig chose to focus on a certain generation in a certain population that's quite difficult to relate to. You want to like these characters, but the way they speak and act is nearly insufferable, you'll roll your eyes more often than smile. One can't expect viewers to sit down for an hour and a half and enjoy being in the company of these pretentious and obnoxious characters that only remind them of the pretentious and obnoxious people they know. The film also wraps up too fast and neatly, I ended up wishing they spent more time showing Frances getting her shit together rather than meandering to the point of tedium.

The Bottom Line: Classic Baumbach; either you'll love it or hate it. If you absolutely despise "hipsters" with a passion, then by all means, avoid this.

[Foggy]

I'm going to do Jvince review for...

Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

The Good: Great Acting from the whole cast, Cumberbatch is on top form. Special effects are stellar (not a single dud shot, which really is a rarity). Humour is less intrusive and sharper. Very interesting stuff done with the villain. Just heavily entertaining.
The Bad: Is it a story really worth telling

[Show spoiler]or better said, re-telling

? Lags in middle a little. Sometimes too much going on at once. Disappointing climax.
The Bottom Line: Star Trek Into Darkness doesn't really boldly go where no sequel has gone before, but it still carries the same sort of joy as the first film, although it lacks the surprises and risk taking that film took.
8/10

[legendarymatt92]

Originally Posted by Foggy

I'm going to do Jvince review for...

Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

The Good: Great Acting from the whole cast, Cumberbatch is on top form. Special effects are stellar (not a single dud shot, which really is a rarity). Humour is less intrusive and sharper. Very interesting stuff done with the villain. Just heavily entertaining.
The Bad: Is it a story really worth telling

[Show spoiler]or better said, re-telling

? Lags in middle a little. Sometimes too much going on at once. Disappointing climax.
The Bottom Line: Star Trek Into Darkness doesn't really boldly go where no sequel has gone before, but it still carries the same sort of joy as the first film, although it lacks the surprises and risk taking that film took.
8/10

Glad to see you liked it! I'm glad the humour is less intrusive as, to me, that was the major sticking point in the first. I'm excited

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

I decided to pass on the chance to watch Alien in all its 2K glory on the big screen. Probably would have put me to sleep anyway.

Instead, I finally got around to watching my next greatest blind-buy: Django Unchained

[Show spoiler]With western influences seeping into so many Quentin Tarantino films (such as Kill Bill and Inglourious Basterds), an actual western film by Tarantino is a dream come true. Styles and sensibilities align in a sublime manner, resulting in what must be one of the most unique and refreshingly entertaining films in the genre.

Django Unchained has everything that makes a Tarantino so great: style, sharp dialogue, an attentive production, poignant violence, unpredictable plotting, and vengeful characters we can root for. The film has several major shooutouts and duels, which are quite thrilling, and extremely bloody. The violence here is on the same level as a Paul Verhoeven film, for it is explosively bloody and pulpy, and it never shies away from showing the painful consequences of such violence. There are also a few brutal scenes that can be pretty hard to watch. When the bullets aren't flying, however, the film maintains a lot of interest with its purposeful dialogue and pacing, and with its plot building. I feel the film slowed down and lost some of its vibe quite a bit in the middle, but most everything else is fantastically entertaining.

The plot is what makes the film work, more than the action. It's somewhat divided into several episodes of sorts, but they all build up a central revenge-driven conflict, and it all reaches a satisfying climax. The plot twists and turns in very wild and interesting directions, and always with vigilant attention to the characters. Django himself is a character we can't help but to root for, while Dr. Schultz is a character too interesting to dismiss. Most everybody else are bad guys we love to hate. Beneath nearly every scene is a poignant undercurrent of racism, a theme which drives all of the characters and the story. Do be warned that such themes have not sat well with many audience members, especially with the film's language.

As expected, this film has a ton of style. You can certainly expect quality photography and sharp editing. Acting is very good: Jamie Foxx does his best to make the title character iconic, while Christoph Waltz and Leo DiCaprio both liven things up a lot and try to steal each scene. Samuel L. Jackson is as grumpy as ever, and it was a joy to watch Kerry Washington. Writing is superb; Tarantino continues to show incredible skill as wielding dialogue and language of given eras and cultures for entertaining effect. This production has good-looking sets, props, and costumes, but I did feel that a few things looked a little too modern or out-of-place in a western. As with most of his other films, Tarantino manipulates music in the film impeccably.

The violence and racist issues have caused some controversy, but Django Unchained is a brilliant marriage of Tarantino's beloved style and Tarantino's beloved genre. Westerns aren't even my thing, but DU is exciting enough and has enough style and substance to make me call it a favorite.

4.5/5 (Entertainment: Good | Story: Very Good | Film: Very Good)

Recommendation: Probably not for the extremely politically-correct, but for most everybody else, yeah.
--------------------
Updated QT ratings:

[Show spoiler]

• Kill Bill Volume 1 5/5
• Inglourious Basterds 4.5/5
• Django Unchained 4.5/5
• Kill Bill Volume 2 4/5
• Pulp Fiction 4/5
• Reservoir Dogs 3.5/5
• Death Proof 3.5/5
• Jackie Brown 3.5/5

Well written Al.

Hey, I noticed a huge gaff in the film. What I had seen didnt dawn on me until much later in the film. It just popped into me head and I giggled. It didnt hurt my enjoyment at all, but its really big. Did you spot it?

[Show spoiler]After they bag acouple of baddies, Dr. Schultz invites Django to be his partner while they hunt that group of bad brothers. Schultz offers Django 30% (if I remember correctly) of the bounty and says (paraphrasing) "Work with me during the winter and when the snow leaves you are free." Django agrees. We then see winter arrive. We see winter become heavier as it settles in. We see them riding through deep snow. We see Django bathing in that pond/hot spring. We see Django practice his quick draw and target practice in deep snow, shooting the snowman. Then... More winter riding.

Then we see them at the top of a big hill looking down at their next target, the man plowing a field with his son at his side. After some discussion, they kill the target right in front of the boy.

The VERY next scene they are traveling through the snow again, carrying on with business. Still deep in the winter months.

The gaff is, WTF was that man doing plowing a field, getting ready to plant crops in the middle of "WINTER"? Schultz and Django were atop a huge GRASSY hill in sniper position, looking down on a green meadow and a DIRT field being plowed...... in WINTER??? Where did the snow go???? LOL.

After they collect the body and ride off they are back in WINTER again??

WTF?

I wonder if it was a scene he added, but added at the wrong place/time? Or, if he just needed the guy to be outside doing something (as a target) and just spaced out on the continuity of it all?

[Abdrewes]

Good catch Squid!

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by jvince

Frances Ha (2013)
dir. Noah Baumbach

The Good: Greta Gerwig is fantastic as the eponymous, twentysomething slacker who aspires to be a dancer; her dialogue and general awkwardness is amusing.

The Bad: While it's a welcome, slice-of-life type of story with a very human protagonist deep down, the biggest knock on this film is that Baumbach and co-writer Gerwig chose to focus on a certain generation in a certain population that's quite difficult to relate to. You want to like these characters, but the way they speak and act is nearly insufferable, you'll roll your eyes more often than smile. One can't expect viewers to sit down for an hour and a half and enjoy being in the company of these pretentious and obnoxious characters that only remind them of the pretentious and obnoxious people they know. The film also wraps up too fast and neatly, I ended up wishing they spent more time showing Frances getting her shit together rather than meandering to the point of tedium.

The Bottom Line: Classic Baumbach; either you'll love it or hate it. If you absolutely despise "hipsters" with a passion, then by all means, avoid this.

I'm curious about this film. Can you do me a favor please? When you say "Hipster" and "Pretentious", can you describe the type of hipster and pretentious? Or maybe make a comparison to some other charaters in films? I'm trying to decide if I should give this a shot. Thanks.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Good catch Squid!

A little bit of me wonders if he did it deliberately, just for kicks.

[thenexus6]

Star Trek Into Darkness

Great fun, i'm not really a fan but i've enjoyed this last two movies alot. The 3D doesn't add too much so might be best to see standard and save money.

8/10

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

A little bit of me wonders if he did it deliberately, just for kicks.

Kind of like that Exorcist wrong hand flub Kermode always talks about.

[SquidPuppet]

Anyone here see The Squid and the Whale?

Opinions please.

[Visco.]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Anyone here see The Squid and the Whale?

Opinions please.

I really want to see that.