The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Hep]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

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

Hey! Are you calling me an old man?

[Show spoiler]

Despite my youth, I still enjoyed it very much...humanity got our just desserts! I love a good bleak, end-of-the-world tale.

We accumulate our opinions at an age when our understanding is at its weakest - Georg C. Lichtenberg

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

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

Surf and I also awarded 9 a 4/5. Thanks for remembering us

[Show spoiler]

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Hep

Hey! Are you calling me and old man?

[Show spoiler]

Despite my youth, I still enjoyed it very much...humanity got our just desserts! I love a good bleak, end-of-the-world tale.

We accumulate our opinions at an age when our understanding is at its weakest - Georg C. Lichtenberg

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

Surf and I also awarded 9 a 4/5. Thanks for remembering us

[Show spoiler]

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

Surf and I also awarded 9 a 4/5. Thanks for remembering us

[Show spoiler]

Who?

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by diesel

who?

rip 12/12/10

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

rip 12/12/10

Tuesday makes 4 months since he disappeared




On an unrelated note, I watched Bearcat's favorite movie today...

[Show spoiler]Iron Man 2

[Steve46]

I just got back from Source Code.

It was almost exactly what I expected it to be. Two successes for Duncan Jones in my book.

The acting was decent. The story not completely predictable, although there's only so many ways it could have gone.

I would describe it as

[Show spoiler]Quantum Leap

meets

[Show spoiler]Groundhog Day.

It packs quite a lot into 93 minutes.

Overall 4/5 and a future purchase.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

Surf and I also awarded 9 a 4/5. Thanks for remembering us

[Show spoiler]

As did I. Dammit!

Actually, it might have been a 3.5/5 from me, but I still find it respectable.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

Tuesday makes 4 months since he disappeared




On an unrelated note, I watched Bearcat's favorite movie today...

[Show spoiler]Iron Man 2

I thought that was 500 Days of Repeat Summer Viewings

Originally Posted by Steve46

I just got back from Source Code.


I would describe it as

[Show spoiler]Quantum Leap

meets

[Show spoiler]Groundhog Day.

Thats a pretty funny description.

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by Steve46

I just got back from Source Code.

It was almost exactly what I expected it to be. Two successes for Duncan Jones in my book.

The acting was decent. The story not completely predictable, although there's only so many ways it could have gone.

I would describe it as

[Show spoiler]Quantum Leap

meets

[Show spoiler]Groundhog Day.

It packs quite a lot into 93 minutes.

Overall 4/5 and a future purchase.

And it definitely does pack a lot into that short run time.

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I thought that was 500 Days of Repeat Summer Viewings

Thats a pretty funny description.

And a good one

[CZAR]

Dragon Hunters - Another Squid recommedation. I am sorry to say I didnt enjoy this one. I did not care for Forest Whitaker's sidekick character as his voice was so annoying. Forest was ok but his character wasnt that interesting although I liked his figure lol. Big arms and little legs lol. The story was ok but I was just never really drawn into the film and watched it casually. I also didnt care for the characters in general. I actually prefer 9 to this film also. Sorry Squid. Got Em!!

Film Rating - 2 stars (out of 5)

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by CZAR

Dragon Hunters - Another Squid recommedation. I am sorry to say I didnt enjoy this one. I did not care for Forest Whitaker's sidekick character as his voice was so annoying. Forest was ok but his character wasnt that interesting although I liked his figure lol. Big arms and little legs lol. The story was ok but I was just never really drawn into the film and watched it casually. I also didnt care for the characters in general. I actually prefer 9 to this film also. Sorry Squid. Got Em!!

Film Rating - 2 stars (out of 5)

I'm only one for three. Sorry dude.

Well, if I were a baseball player I'd be kicking ass.

[CZAR]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I'm only one for three. Sorry dude.

Well, if I were a baseball player I'd be kicking ass.

Its all good man keep them comin. I would say with 9 u didnt get a hit or get out. U drew a walk lol. Got Em!!

[iam1bearcat]

Southland Tales

136 minutes

year: 2007
director: Richard Kelly
starring: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Sean William Scott, Mandy Moore, Wallace Shawn (the guy who does the voice of "Rex" from the Toy Story franchise)

what did i just watch?

i've heard nothing but bad things about Southland Tales. not one good thing. yet, one day, here i was on amazon, and i remembered the film, saw it was $7.99 and thought, "i'm a big fan of Richard Kelly's work. i love Donnie Darko, and i love The Box - another film i heard nothing but terrible things about. so what are the odds i might actually enjoy this?"

was it a bad decision? no. was it a good one? i'm still not sure...

the following is just SOME of the oddities and wildness that Southland Tales contains in its 136 minute run time!

• the opening ten minutes, and numerous scenes, have dozens of texts and maps on the screen that fly by with millions of stats and images thrown at you. only way to keep up is if you're hopped up on cocaine, six billion gallons of Mountain Dew and A.D.D. stricken because for awhile this isn't even a film, this is literally a visual map of nonsense the film opens with to tell us ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING about what is happening here.
  
• Sarah Michelle Gellar is a porn star who wants to start a tv show
  
• she is dating Dwayne Johnson who is "Boxer Santaros" who has amnesia. the two of them write a film script which details the end of the world.
  
• Sean William Scott is a cop with a key to a vast conspiracy.
  
• futuristic L.A. setting!
  
• Mandy Moore plays Santaros's wife!
  
• political intrigue!
  
• there's literally a line in the film that is said with dead seriousness, "and pimps don't commit suicide"
  
• animated cars having sex!
  
• the guy that voices Rex is in this freaking movie!
  
• a floating ice cream truck (although the truck is floating because of who is inside of it with "powers" )
  
• Justin Timberlake very creepily singing a song by The Killers into the camera in an arcade
  
• Neo-Marxist and revolutionaries!
  
• and a billion more mind boggling things

now, on to my "review" of this thing

Richard Kelly is obsessed with apocalypse and "end of the world" scenarios. Donnie Darko and The Box both contain these, along with conspiracies. so of course, Southland Tales is no different.

and while those previous two films may at times takes themselves too seriously, i hope to god Southland Tales is a black comedy and not made with a serious tone because if it was... well... then i'm left speechless.

how Richard Kelly is allowed and financed for films anymore with baffle me because while i actually liked Southland Tales, it's almost impossible to recommend.

dialogue is cheesy, scenes are randomly thrown together almost like they were drawn from a hat for the order they were placed in, acting is... well, not terrible but something is off about every single performance, and the story itself is a muddled, almost incoherent mess of political intrigue, sci-fi who-knows-what, and neo-Marxist violence and "Big Brother" spying affair.

it's... it's simply baffling

it will stay in my collection, as towards the end of the film things did kind of tie together, but i really feel like Richard Kelly is desperately trying to make his own Mulholland Dr. and is trying to become the next David Cronenberg or David Lynch, but... i don't think that will ever be the case. his films may be as puzzling, but certainly aren't as good (even though i love his other two films as mentioned above).

i like Southland Tales, but not recommended at all because i know 99.9% of the people that regularly spend time in this thread will hate it or simply have absolutely no feeling to the film once it ends (if they even make it that far!) so... yeah... take from that what you will

fyi: i think this is the most anticipated commentary (with Richard Kelly) i have ever been anxious to listen to. i cannot wait to hear what Kelly has to say about this and what it means to him.

3/5

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

Southland Tales

3/5

What prompted you to buy it? A recommendation, or curiosity?

[Diesel]

The Island is finally getting a US blu-ray release.
...with HD audio this time.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by diesel

the island is finally getting a us blu-ray release.
...with hd audio this time.

[Show spoiler]spozhuns!

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

[Show spoiler]spozhuns!

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

What prompted you to buy it? A recommendation, or curiosity?

curiosity and it being a Richard Kelly film.

Originally Posted by Diesel

The Island is finally getting a US blu-ray release.
...with HD audio this time.

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

I'm going to trade my UK import in to Amazon for $10 and put that towards the US release which should release for $13-$15



Edit: In unrelated news, the other day I mentioned in my Source Code review that I've only seen Michelle Monaghan in that and Eagle Eye, which was incorrect.

She's also in Mission Impossible III, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Gone Baby Gone (how could I forget that one ) and The Bourne Supremacy.