The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[jhiggy23]

Originally Posted by Steve46

I admire Nolan's work. He treats the audience as if it has some intelligence.

If we're talking about favorites though:

David Lynch and Quentin Tarantino are way above everyone else.

I have huge respect for Hitchcock and love many of his films. So prolific too.

There are others who have produced a couple of gems, but need a bigger body of work. Darabont springs to mind.

The Coens have produced a ton of stuff I like and a few things I absoltely love (Fargo, No Country).

Fincher's done good work.

Kubrick has some greats (2001, The Shining, Lolita, Dr. Strangelove) and I couple I didn't care for (A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyncon) with the rest falling in the middle.

Jeunet has done a couple that I love.

I love the four Krzysztof Kieslowski films that I have seen.

Clint Eastwood is a decent actor and a much better director. I like how he tackles things.

Scorsese has a few greats.

Hayao Miyazaki's work moves me massively. I would probably cry just reading a review of them (seriously).

I'm forgetting lots of major ones I'm sure.

Gotta comment


Nolan--I agree with you in that he treats the audience with intelligence, in the films of his that I've seen. He's a very good director, yes, but he's certainly not a great director yet.

Lynch--haven't seen anything but the Elephant Man, so can't comment. will be visiting his work soon enough.

Tarantino--absolutely NOT above everyone else. His knowledge of film and passion for the art are admirable but blatantly stealing ideas doesn't make you a great director, it makes you unoriginal and uninspired.

Hitchcock--arguably the greatest director of all-time. enough said.

Darabont--yeah, he did Shawshank Redemption but what other great film has he done? Not even in the conversation of the "very good" directors out there.

Kubrick--one of the only directors that comes close to Hitchcock in the title of best ever. Lolita is my favorite of his, and that's never in the discussion of his best. He created arguably the greatest anti-war film ever in Paths of Glory, generally considered the greatest sci-fi film ever in 2001, one of the great historical films in Barry Lyndon (which I haven't seen), one of the great war films in Full Metal Jacket, one of the greatest comedies in Strangelove, one of the greatest horrors in The Shining, and the underrated Eyes Wide Shut, which is one of the better sensual pictures. Talk about a resume.

Jeunet is good but I have to see more of his work.

Kieslowski is one of the greatest directors of all-time. Period. Still have to see Decalogue and revisit Three Colors.

Scorsese--has a few greats??? He created arguably the best film of the 70s (Taxi Driver), 80s (Raging Bull), and 90s (Goodfellas), with MANY other great films in between, such as Mean Streets and King of Comedy. While I didn't love The Departed, Gangs of New York or The Aviator, both were major successes as well. Undoubtedly one of the greatest directors ever.

Hayao I have to see!



Some other major names that I hold in high regard:

David Lean--king of the epic, but his small screen pictures are lovely too
Terrence Malick--his films are among the most beautiful and poetic out there
Francis Ford Coppolla--Godfather I and II, and Apocalypse Now. Enough said.
Kurosawa--Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Ikiru, etc
Chaplin--influential at its highest
Godard--attitude and influence
Michelangelo Antonioni
Tarkovsky--poetry on screen
Alain Resnais--Last Year at Marienbad, Night and Fog


As for modern directors, I respect Julian Schnabel, Sam Mendes, Joe Wright, Sir Ridley Scott, Alfonso Cuaron, Ed Zwick, Michael Mann, Zhang Yimou, James Cameron, Peter Jackson, among many others

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Sorry to hear that.

You need a jumpstart and I know just the ticket. Get started on your Hitchcock list.

i might just do that have to make sure the story sounds interesting first however

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Diesel

I can definitely understand that, but it just isn't how Santa Diesel rolls

Damn that was funny.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

i might just do that have to make sure the story sounds interesting first however

Vertigo or Rear Window.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by jhiggy23

Gotta comment

I'll reply once I meet my article deadline. Almost done.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

oh, i know you're not. i actually very much like this discussion we are having, i personally think it's great

that is a possibility. however, the story of both Fight Club and Zodiac interested me, so i still would have probably seen them, just maybe not as quickly as if i had not seen the three you mentioned first. but the specific reason i saw The Game, Panic Room and Boring Buttons was BECAUSE of Fincher's name attached to them, not the stories / plots themselves.

that makes sense right?

like, if i'm reading the paper and someone says, "hey, they're making a movie about the infamous California killer the Zodiac, and it's not a horror movie, it's a drama that follows the police as they try and capture and figure out who he is" i would say, "that sounds awesome. i'm gonna see it"

BUT

if i'm reading the paper and someone says, "hey, they're making a movie about some guy who is born looking like an 80 year old and he ages backwards" i' say (which i did) "wtf? that sounds weird. maybe some day i'll see that".

the only reason i saw it faster than expected was because it was a Fincher film. whereas, even if someone (director wise) makes a ton of bad films, if their latest project sounds interesting, then chances are i'll see it ahead of the next Aronofsky film, if that particular film's story doesn't interest me..

That all makes sense.

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

for me, it's all about the story / concept, not the name attached.

I'll admit, for me its both.

[Marcus Wright]

The Sorcerers apprentice

Gave up after first 15 minutes. Kids movie.

2/5

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Marcus Wright

The Sorcerers apprentice

Gave up after first 15 minutes. Kids movie.

2/5

lol can't really give it a rating then. gotta give it an "incomplete"

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Steve46

Vertigo or Rear Window.

Vertigo will stay on the list. Rear Window is off. it was never really "on" because i know that Disturbia is a vague remake of it, and that film was okay for one viewing, and if the set up is the same, i really have no urge to see it again.

if there's one thing that gets me from older films, it's the acting. i find it generally terrible, so Rear Window i will more than likely pass on.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I'll admit, for me its both.

i used to be open to seeing anything and everything, for films and tv shows specifically. but the more i began thinking about it lately (and looking at the list of films i've seen) the more i realized i've sat through a TON of films that simply didn't interest me and were just "okay" (3/5) at the end of it.

and then i beat myself up because if i would have devoted my time to films that actually appealed to me instead of just watching something for the sake of watching it (and trying to see as many films as i can, like when i have 90 minutes so i watch a bad 90 minute movie instead of a film that is 180 minutes and interests me, but could still possibly be bad) then i probably be done watching films because i would be all caught up with what interests me instead of playing "catch up" years later

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by jhiggy23

Gotta comment

[Show spoiler]
Lynch--haven't seen anything but the Elephant Man, so can't comment. will be visiting his work soon enough.

Tarantino--absolutely NOT above everyone else. His knowledge of film and passion for the art are admirable but blatantly stealing ideas doesn't make you a great director, it makes you unoriginal and uninspired.

Hitchcock--arguably the greatest director of all-time. enough said.

Darabont--yeah, he did Shawshank Redemption but what other great film has he done? Not even in the conversation of the "very good" directors out there.

Kubrick--one of the only directors that comes close to Hitchcock in the title of best ever. Lolita is my favorite of his, and that's never in the discussion of his best. He created arguably the greatest anti-war film ever in Paths of Glory, generally considered the greatest sci-fi film ever in 2001, one of the great historical films in Barry Lyndon (which I haven't seen), one of the great war films in Full Metal Jacket, one of the greatest comedies in Strangelove, one of the greatest horrors in The Shining, and the underrated Eyes Wide Shut, which is one of the better sensual pictures. Talk about a resume.

Jeunet is good but I have to see more of his work.

Kieslowski is one of the greatest directors of all-time. Period. Still have to see Decalogue and revisit Three Colors.

Scorsese--has a few greats??? He created arguably the best film of the 70s (Taxi Driver), 80s (Raging Bull), and 90s (Goodfellas), with MANY other great films in between, such as Mean Streets and King of Comedy. While I didn't love The Departed, Gangs of New York or The Aviator, both were major successes as well. Undoubtedly one of the greatest directors ever.

Hayao I have to see!



Some other major names that I hold in high regard:

David Lean--king of the epic, but his small screen pictures are lovely too
Terrence Malick--his films are among the most beautiful and poetic out there
Francis Ford Coppolla--Godfather I and II, and Apocalypse Now. Enough said.
Kurosawa--Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Ikiru, etc
Chaplin--influential at its highest
Godard--attitude and influence
Michelangelo Antonioni
Tarkovsky--poetry on screen
Alain Resnais--Last Year at Marienbad, Night and Fog


As for modern directors, I respect Julian Schnabel, Sam Mendes, Joe Wright, Sir Ridley Scott, Alfonso Cuaron, Ed Zwick, Michael Mann, Zhang Yimou, James Cameron, Peter Jackson, among many others

Lynch - start with Mulholland Dr.

Tarantino - we'll have to disagree as everything comes from somewhere else and I believe his way of presenting these known elements is unique and fun. Maybe not great, but a favorite.

Darabont - also did The Green Mile which I believe is fantastic. I like The Mist without claiming it's great.

Kubrick - I also like The Killing a lot, but then heist movies are fun to me.

My film education is incomplete. I can't comment on your additions. Marienbad has been ordered though.

[Steve46]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

Vertigo will stay on the list. Rear Window is off.

if there's one thing that gets me from older films, it's the acting. i find it generally terrible, so Rear Window i will more than likely pass on.

James Stewart stars in both.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Steve46

James Stewart stars in both.

hmm... well, if i enjoy his performance in Vertigo then i'll give Rear Window a shot.

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Damn that was funny.

I pushed Rise of the Lycans (a rewatch) back to later tonight, right now I'm going to give 12 Angry Men a go; another member recommended it to me in a different thread so I'm going to try it out.

A few of you may have heard of it before

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Diesel

I pushed Rise of the Lycans (a rewatch) back to later tonight, right now I'm going to give 12 Angry Men a go; another member recommended it to me in a different thread so I'm going to try it out.

A few of you may have heard of it before

if you enjoy it, make sure you check out the sequel "12 Happy Men"

[Diesel]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

if you enjoy it, make sure you check out the sequel "12 Happy Men"

I thought this was the sequel





Oh by the way, I just got an e-mail that I believe solves the mystery of just where the hell Surf has been. No text was present, only a single image.

[Show spoiler]

[two40]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

Vertigo will stay on the list. Rear Window is off. it was never really "on" because i know that Disturbia is a vague remake of it, and that film was okay for one viewing, and if the set up is the same, i really have no urge to see it again.

if there's one thing that gets me from older films, it's the acting. i find it generally terrible, so Rear Window i will more than likely pass on.

Disturbia is a poor poor substitute for Rear Window. If you think that Disturbia was OK for 1 viewing, that's a reflection of that film. It should not affect your decision to watch Rear Window which is infinitely better.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Diesel

I thought this was the sequel





Oh by the way, I just got an e-mail that I believe solves the mystery of just where the hell Surf has been. No text was present, only a single image.

[Show spoiler]

lmfao!!!!!!!!!! at both the video and that pic!
love that song at the end of the video

[Riff Magnum]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

yeah, i just don't have that patience anymore

as the weeks have gone on, i find myself less and less enthused about film as a whole. i know i've only seen a very small selection of all overall films that can be seen, but the number that interests me drops ridiculously as the days go on. sure, i'm maybe missing out on some films that would become instant favorites or well beloved in my eyes, but the search of finding those just isn't as fun as it used to be.

Have you tried drugs? Seriously, do the drugs, then watch the movies

Or maybe try some tv shows. I'm off movies right now, but totally into several tv shows.
I'm talking good tv shows, not two and a half men and crap like that.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Riff Magnum

Have you tried drugs? Seriously, do the drugs, then watch the movies

Or maybe try some tv shows. I'm off movies right now, but totally into several tv shows.
I'm talking good tv shows, not two and a half men and crap like that.

drugs seem... what's the word... dangerous. and bad. yeah, bad. so i won't go down that road

i'm actually more in a tv kick around now actually. catching up on Prison Break season 2, 24 season 2, rewatching LOST (for about the millionth time), and starting the first season of Battlestar Galactica.