The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Foggy

[I would be watching Alien3 around now, but I just finished the Season three penultimate episode of Breaking Bad Half Measures...Holy Shit!

I've just got to finish it off tonight!

Tell Surfydoodoo to get started on Season 3.

Good review on Aliens.

[Show spoiler]What did you think of the opening 4 minutes of the first episode of season 3where everyone was crawling on the dirt? Crazy eh?

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Foggy

Alien Marathon Continues!

Aliens

[Show spoiler]
The bigger dumber brother is here!

Aliens is usually met with conscience that if you love it or hate it, and I think that the more you love the original, the more you'll dislike the sequel. After all this is the ultimate original fan-fic film. James Cameron takes his love of Alien, and just Cameronises it, and I love it.

It's a heavily flawed film, but its one of those few times when, if you embrace it, it adds to lunacy and charm of the film

After all, Mr. Cameron is the king of subtlety, and Aliens is the crowning masterpiece of it. The uber-macho-ism of the colonial marines is all over confidence and really they're just unprepared gun wielders who cry at the sight of danger, yet Ripley manages to out shine them all. Oh Cameron, you know how to display that over confidence is wrong. What, the corporations are evil and are trying to use the get one of the aliens back, and will screw anyone over for a good pay share, jeez, that's a true gut busting shocker

But all that is in good nature, and although you can roll your eyes at it all you want, you do get some good laughs at the over exaggeration of it all, and I prefer over exaggeration over nothing to exaggerate

Besides that, Aliens is a tense piece of brilliance. The change of setting and storyline is risky, but also really exciting, and it feels like it ups the stakes dramatically over the original, which is great, when most sequels are same old same old. Say what you will about Cameron, the guy knows how to do sequels.

The action is superb, the scares are still fantastic and are still held in there, the effects are miles above the original (although that's expected) but there were parts where I was actually confused how they did certain things, most of all the part with Bishop near the end, when half his body is being dragged along the floor into outer space.

A few genuine flaws are minor, but How does the Alien Queen know how to use a lift and the colonial marine tank is really all that functional at taking corners

Other than that, I love Aliens, it's a well executed riot, and sometimes that's all you really need.

10/10

I would be watching Alien3 around now, but I just finished the Season three penultimate episode of Breaking Bad Half Measures...Holy Shit!

I've just got to finish it off tonight!

VASQUEZ LET'S ROCK - YouTube

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Tell Surfydoodoo to get started on Season 3.

Good review on Aliens.

[Show spoiler]What did you think of the opening 4 minutes of the first episode of season 3where everyone was crawling on the dirt? Crazy eh?

I've only got one friend who's seen the show over here, and he's told me that this seasons pretty weird, when I saw that opening, it became clear that he under hyped the season

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I have NO problem with the fact that people can

[Show spoiler]pee accidentally

due to shock, fear, grief etc. I dont believe however, that this occured in the film.

1. Female homosapiens do not

[Show spoiler]squat when they INvoluntarily pee.

2.

[Show spoiler]There was no evidence that the father was goint to hurt the daughter in the future. He expressed regret and guilt for having sex with a 15 year old and there was NO indication that he leaned toward incestuous behavior. Mia swipes the kid in the heat of the moment, while angry. She treats the kid poorly (because she is angry). When she calms down and realizes the kid is innocent, she returned the child. If she was worried about the kids wellfare, she wouldnt have brought her home.

In regards to everything you said about Fish Tank there, I agree. It is MUCH more likely that she

[Show spoiler]peed on the rug on purpose. It makes perfect sense given the scene. Anything else would seem like a reach.

I do think there is slightly more to her

[Show spoiler]returning the kid though. The kid almost drowning because of her snapped her out of it, and of course helped her realize she had to take the kid back. I think that was a major eye opening point for her period, not just with the kid.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by KilloWertz

If you haven't figured it out yet, I hated this movie, and not just because nothing happens in it.

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

That was my response too!

I do remember quite a few scenes with gratuitous nudity though.

that'z cuz u 2 are just dumb americanz!

yes, there was some gratuitous nudity. it makes everything... er... every film better!

Originally Posted by jvince

I guess this was kinda like last year's Drive then? I do like slow movies and I got this on DVR. I'll try to check it out sometime. Corbijn's first film Control was good, but the guy definitely has potential and a great eye for cinematography.

i'm gonna guess "yes" but i haven't seen Drive yet (will be a blind buy for me) and yes, there are some BEAUTIFUL shots and some scenes really make the film feel like a foreign film in how they are shot and the silence the film has. definitely doesn't feel "Americanized" like most stuff.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by KilloWertz

In regards to everything you said about Fish Tank there, I agree. It is MUCH more likely that she

[Show spoiler]peed on the rug on purpose. It makes perfect sense given the scene. Anything else would seem like a reach.

I do think there is slightly more to her

[Show spoiler]returning the kid though. The kid almost drowning because of her snapped her out of it, and of course helped her realize she had to take the kid back. I think that was a major eye opening point for her period, not just with the kid.

I agree 100% that the childs near

[Show spoiler]drowning

slapped Mia back to reality and gave her a new perspective on her own behavior.

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

that'z cuz u 2 are just dumb americanz!

If hating The American makes me dumb, then I embrace the fact. That's how much I disliked it, especially the ending.

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

1. Female homosapiens do not

[Show spoiler]squat when they INvoluntarily pee.

Wow, can't say I'm that familiar to form an opinion Seriously though, is there a

[Show spoiler]squat reflex? or a nerve in the urethra that triggers a squat? or a signal sent to the brain with a 0.5 second squat warning?

. I'll admit I'm clueless on the subject. More more importantly: why is Squid so knowledgeable? j/k good point. Like I said: I'm not solid one way or the other. I just don't know.

2.

[Show spoiler]There was no evidence that the father was goint to hurt the daughter in the future. He expressed regret and guilt for having sex with a 15 year old and there was NO indication that he leaned toward incestuous behavior. Mia swipes the kid in the heat of the moment, while angry. She treats the kid poorly (because she is angry). When she calms down and realizes the kid is innocent, she returned the child. If she was worried about the kids wellfare, she wouldnt have brought her home.

Hmm, thought about this some more. There are 2 reasons why I think she might have

[Show spoiler]kidnapped her for her own welfare

:

(1)

[Show spoiler]what I argued earlier: (a) she saw girl in video, (b) girl was performing for him, like Mia performed for him, (c) she wants to save girl from harm, like Mia suffered = not necessarily intercourse, but just emotional harm

.
Your point that there is

[Show spoiler]no objective evidence of harm or threat of harm

wouldn't seem to be relevant to Mia, IMO, since, didn't you argue (can't remember the exact argument) that she is not a rational adult who is objectively logical? Also, about her acting in

[Show spoiler]the heat of the moment

, what do you think about

[Show spoiler]her not swiping the kid until the 4th time riding past her on the bike?

seemed like she definitely was doing some thinking/contemplation, no? As far as her

[Show spoiler]her brining the girl back home not being consistent with being worried about her welfare

, that is a GREAT point, but it seems that either theory would be wiped out upon

[Show spoiler]the daughter nearly drowning

, no? I think you're right though, that the

[Show spoiler]welfare theory

would persist in spite of the

[Show spoiler]near drowning (i.e., she'd never take her home under any circumstances, if the kidnapping was purely for welfare reasons). Unless of course Mia realized the welfare theory was a mistake upon the near drowning

(2)

[Show spoiler]In the film, is there a similar "rescuer" role Mia plays that might support her being one here for the girl? YES! The horse! No, the horse has nothing to do with the guy, but look at the similarities: (a) Mia saw something in a closed, dangerous environment (Fish Tank: like she is in), (b) Mia tried to save it, risking her life REPEATEDLY, (c) Mia tries to rescue the horse several times. Did she retaliate on the guys who stole her stuff and practically fondled her? NO! Retaliation wasn't her M.O. - it was rescue of a vulnerable horse. I think Mia may have tried to save the horse and the girl because she saw them both as vulnerable beings in a closed, dangerous environment (Fish Tank), and thus could relate to them, having lived and desperately needing to be rescued from her own Fish Tank. This interpretation also makes sense because of its obvious use of the title.

dude, admit you love it! yeah I might be overthinking it (shocker), but I honestly feel that way about it. Call me nuts (seriously, I won't be hurt).

Like I said, I'm not fixed one way or the other on the

[Show spoiler]peeing

or the

[Show spoiler]kidnapping

. ANd the more I post and write, the more 50/50 I am. I know it sounds like I'm more leaning toward what I'm arguing, but I think your and everyone else's take is equally probable (to me!!! I know they're 100% more probable to you

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Tell Surfydoodoo to get started on Season 3.

haha, this is starting to bring back memories:

[Show spoiler]

Rooooooppppeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

by the way, how would you rank the seasons?

[volcomsocal]

Welcome To The Riley's - 2010

Kristen Stewart and James Gandolfini. Really good actors (no, I've never seen any Twilight movie, nor do I ever plan to) in, what seemed like, a really good movie. I saw the previews and it looked like it would be a very good drama.

Well, this was more of a flatliner. Not that this was a "bad" movie per say, but it just didn't rise to the occasion. It could have been so much better, but it never got to that level. I really wanted to enjoy it more, because I liked the general idea of the story, but it just didn't have enough "stuff" going on.

PQ - 4/5
AQ - 4/5

2.5/5




**sidenote - Kristin Stewart is one sexy girl. I've now seen her in 2 or 3 movies. Those eyes, that face, that body

[Steve46]

The Lion King

I had never seen it before. I like the look of it and the main characters. Pretty decent story too. Rowan Atkinson has a great voice for animated movies.

Overall 4/5

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by volcomsocal

Welcome To The Riley's - 2010

I think the main weakness of the film is lack of realism:

[Show spoiler]seriously, a guy is just going to move in with a stripper and become Daddy overnight? not likely.

. But like I said in my review, I gave it a lot of deference, because I could personally relate to the parents, so wasn't as much of a realism critique as usual.

[Foggy]

Alien Marathon Strikes Again!

Alien 3 (Or as it seems to be called Alien Cubed)

Never seen it, although it's considered the true end of the Alien films, but it's also considered really bad, hence why I've never seen it

And to be honest, it isn't bad, it is just very underwhelming.

The true problem with Alien cubed is the fact that it's truly the most pretentious piece of boredom produced this side of lame town. It thinks it's smart, it thinks it's really smart with all it's moral ambiguity floating around, and it's religious "under"tones (although, I've had more subtle slaps to the face than these undertones). It all comes off a cheesy, and not the good kind.

When I watch Aliens, you expect a bit of over the top cheesy to lace the film, but all that is entertaining as hell. There is nothing, NOTHING entertaining about hanging around with murderers and rapists, especially when they are supposed to be taken seriously.

And characters are used far too blatantly in this film, the seeming love interest for the first hour has a mysterious back story, as soon as all is revealed, the Alien comes, bites a hole in his head and he's never seen again. Ripley isn't even all that bothered, his only placement in the film was to provide exposition and make it seem like not everyone in the prison is a complete prick. Also why are most the prisoners big cockney brits

The film is damn mean spirited as well, I know it's a strange complaint for a horror film, but people are having there heads bitten off, and falling in to huge fans, the first two weren't so needlessly graphic. Oh and the Alien thing in this one sucks!

Nothing works in Alien cubed, which makes it all the more shocking that it's just plain tolerable. The premises doesn't really stands on its own two feet, and leaves you consistantly feeling like you're just not gaining anything from watching it. The whole film is just unpleasant and not it the right way, it's just a film that hates itself really. The film just ends up being an endless drag, Aliens is longer than this film, and there is rarely a dull moment in that entire film, when you get halfway through Alien cubed, the film literally hits repeat halfway through and starts over again after the problem has been resolved, just because it needed a longer running time.

3/10

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Foggy

Alien Marathon Strikes Again!

Alien 3 (Or as it seems to be called Alien Cubed)

[Show spoiler]
Never seen it, although it's considered the true end of the Alien films, but it's also considered really bad, hence why I've never seen it

And to be honest, it isn't bad, it is just very underwhelming.

The true problem with Alien cubed is the fact that it's truly the most pretentious piece of boredom produced this side of lame town. It thinks it's smart, it thinks it's really smart with all it's moral ambiguity floating around, and it's religious "under"tones (although, I've had more subtle slaps to the face than these undertones). It all comes off a cheesy, and not the good kind.

When I watch Aliens, you expect a bit of over the top cheesy to lace the film, but all that is entertaining as hell. There is nothing, NOTHING entertaining about hanging around with murderers and rapists, especially when they are supposed to be taken seriously.

And characters are used far too blatantly in this film, the seeming love interest for the first hour has a mysterious back story, as soon as all is revealed, the Alien comes, bites a hole in his head and he's never seen again. Ripley isn't even all that bothered, his only placement in the film was to provide exposition and make it seem like not everyone in the prison is a complete prick. Also why are most the prisoners big cockney brits

The film is damn mean spirited as well, I know it's a strange complaint for a horror film, but people are having there heads bitten off, and falling in to huge fans, the first two weren't so needlessly graphic. Oh and the Alien thing in this one sucks!

Nothing works in Alien cubed, which makes it all the more shocking that it's just plain tolerable. The premises doesn't really stands on its own two feet, and leaves you consistantly feeling like you're just not gaining anything from watching it. The whole film is just unpleasant and not it the right way, it's just a film that hates itself really. The film just ends up being an endless drag, Aliens is longer than this film, and there is rarely a dull moment in that entire film, when you get halfway through Alien cubed, the film literally hits repeat halfway through and starts over again after the problem has been resolved, just because it needed a longer running time.

3/10

Huh, Alien Cubed, I never realized it...

I agree with a lot of what you said; this is still my least-favorite of the lot.

[P@t_Mtl]

The main problem with Alien cube is that it came after Aliens for many people. Alien back in 1979 gave new meaning to suspense and terror in the way Scott directed the movie and the confine of the sets.

Then in 1986, Cameron turn Aliens into a action movie compared to the slower pace of the original. When cube came along and try to return to the style and atmosphere of the original, not only did it disapointed a lot of people but it also failed badly.

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Huh, Alien Cubed, I never realized it...

I agree with a lot of what you said; this is still my least-favorite of the lot.

It only came to me today

I think P@t put it perfectly, it's trying to bring it back to what it did back in 1979, but it just didn't understand how that film did it

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

Wow, can't say I'm that familiar to form an opinion Seriously though, is there a

[Show spoiler]squat reflex? or a nerve in the urethra that triggers a squat? or a signal sent to the brain with a 0.5 second squat warning?

. I'll admit I'm clueless on the subject. More more importantly: why is Squid so knowledgeable? j/k good point. Like I said: I'm not solid one way or the other. I just don't know.



Hmm, thought about this some more. There are 2 reasons why I think she might have

[Show spoiler]kidnapped her for her own welfare

:

(1)

[Show spoiler]what I argued earlier: (a) she saw girl in video, (b) girl was performing for him, like Mia performed for him, (c) she wants to save girl from harm, like Mia suffered = not necessarily intercourse, but just emotional harm

.
Your point that there is

[Show spoiler]no objective evidence of harm or threat of harm

wouldn't seem to be relevant to Mia, IMO, since, didn't you argue (can't remember the exact argument) that she is not a rational adult who is objectively logical? Also, about her acting in

[Show spoiler]the heat of the moment

, what do you think about

[Show spoiler]her not swiping the kid until the 4th time riding past her on the bike?

seemed like she definitely was doing some thinking/contemplation, no? As far as her

[Show spoiler]her brining the girl back home not being consistent with being worried about her welfare

, that is a GREAT point, but it seems that either theory would be wiped out upon

[Show spoiler]the daughter nearly drowning

, no? I think you're right though, that the

[Show spoiler]welfare theory

would persist in spite of the

[Show spoiler]near drowning (i.e., she'd never take her home under any circumstances, if the kidnapping was purely for welfare reasons). Unless of course Mia realized the welfare theory was a mistake upon the near drowning

(2)

[Show spoiler]In the film, is there a similar "rescuer" role Mia plays that might support her being one here for the girl? YES! The horse! No, the horse has nothing to do with the guy, but look at the similarities: (a) Mia saw something in a closed, dangerous environment (Fish Tank: like she is in), (b) Mia tried to save it, risking her life REPEATEDLY, (c) Mia tries to rescue the horse several times. Did she retaliate on the guys who stole her stuff and practically fondled her? NO! Retaliation wasn't her M.O. - it was rescue of a vulnerable horse. I think Mia may have tried to save the horse and the girl because she saw them both as vulnerable beings in a closed, dangerous environment (Fish Tank), and thus could relate to them, having lived and desperately needing to be rescued from her own Fish Tank. This interpretation also makes sense because of its obvious use of the title.

dude, admit you love it! yeah I might be overthinking it (shocker), but I honestly feel that way about it. Call me nuts (seriously, I won't be hurt).

Like I said, I'm not fixed one way or the other on the

[Show spoiler]peeing

or the

[Show spoiler]kidnapping

. ANd the more I post and write, the more 50/50 I am. I know it sounds like I'm more leaning toward what I'm arguing, but I think your and everyone else's take is equally probable (to me!!! I know they're 100% more probable to you

The horse and the child are separate THEMES.

[Show spoiler]It goes to show that, as simple as Mia is, she is also multi faceted. In one instance (the horse) she is nurturing and caring and willing to put herself in harms way to help the innocent. An ANIMAL. Very important distinction. ANIMALS have never hurt her. Humans, on the other hand, have always hurt her, let her down and neglected her. Humans have been the sole source of her misery in life.

This aingst towards her fellow human is shown right from the start. Remember early in the film when Mia sees the girls dancing? She is immediately confrontational, deliberately antagonistic, AND, has no problem instigating physical conflict and violence. Its a beautiful juxtaposition of her two inner selves.... IF you are willing to see it.

Mia realizes when she sees the daughter (and happy family) in the video, that the daughter is special and IMPORTANT to the Dad. Mia believes that swiping her will bring pain and sadness to the Dad. This what the Dad caused Mia to feel, and this is what she wants to make him feel.

Another reason, and perhaps the strongest, that I cant believe that Mia stole the kid for her wellfare was because Mia immediately treated her like shit. Yelling, cussing, pushing, shoving, pulling, namecalling, pushing her to near exhaustion, etc. Mia NEVER displayed any nurturing or caring instincts or behaviors (like she does with animals ). It wasnt about the child, it was about the Dad. It wasnt until the kid almost drown that Mia had the eye opening WTF am I doing moment where she realized she was hurting an innocent child in order to punish the Dad. It was such a huge WTF eye opener about her own personal behavior that she immeditely realized the harm she was doing and chose to return the child. She turns a corner in that part of the film. It was at that moment Mia realized that Mia, herself, was being just like all the bad people who had hurt her in the past. Mia also realized that not all people (the child) are bad. Remember, after that she begins to show a more sensitive side to her younger sister (a human).

Now, about the pee. I cant remember exactly how the scene was shot, but didnt she drop her sweats and squat?

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

haha, this is starting to bring back memories:

[Show spoiler]

Rooooooppppeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

by the way, how would you rank the seasons?

Yeah, he drug that one out for a year or two.

It's hard to rank them because they each have a different "style". Theres a different "mood" associated with each that dictates pacing etc. because of where Walt is in terms of his journey. Season one would be the "Virgin" or "Freshman" season. You get the idea, I'm sure.

So.... I give each of the first three seasons SOLID 5 stars. Different, but SOLID FIVES across the board.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Steve46

The Lion King

I had never seen it before. I like the look of it and the main characters. Pretty decent story too. Rowan Atkinson has a great voice for animated movies.

Overall 4/5

He he he he. I see you have changed your style.

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

The horse and the child are separate THEMES.

I don't think its as simple as

[Show spoiler]"humans" v. "animals". I 100% agree with you when you said "she is nurturing and caring and willing to put herself in harms way to help the innocent. An Animal." I would just simply not restrict "the innocent" to animals. I think Mia saw the daughter as no less "innocent" than that horse, period.

Otherwise, we're lumping all humans into the same category, in Mia's eyes, and I don't think she did...although maybe she did, you may very well be right. I just can't believe that she views the innocent daughter with the same kind of hostility as those dancing girls, who she had previous fueds with. Yes, she treated her badly after she didn't do what Mia asked (no i'm not defending mia's acts), but that was Mia treating the daughter the way her Mom treated Mia when Mia didn't do what her Mom asked, so it was the only reaction she was taught and hence the only one at her disposal, not some premeditated angry reaction to vent her anger at the dad. she even wrestled and fought with her little sister (curiously same size/age as daughter) in a twisted display of affection. remember when she said goodbye to sis? they were hugging, crying and name calling at the same time!!! that's part of the problem in trying to evaluate mia's motives here: she used hostile acts to show both anger and affection, since her "fish tank" was so twisted. so IMO its not bullet proof evidence to suggest her hostility towards daughter was evidence of anger at daddy.