The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Lepidopterous]

Merry Christmas everyone!

[KilloWertz]

Originally Posted by Diesel

[Show spoiler]

You'll get over it.

[Riff Magnum]

True Grit

I think that they took so long establishing the characters (which i loved) and then they took so long to even get on the trail (which i loved), and then they took so long to actually find Cheney (which i loved), that the ending did feel rushed and somewhat cliche'. I was waiting for the signature Coen bros. downer, but it never really came..............not really.....................but sorta.

I gave it a 4/5, but i'm kinda done with this numeric, 4 outta 5, scale that everyone adheres to. I'm going with letter grades from now on. More intuitive and offers a wider range of expression.

B+

[Steve46]

Merry Christmas everyone.

I just watched the saddest film I've ever seen; Grave of the Fireflies.

Second viewing and it moved up to #32 on my all time list. I doubt there's ever been a better relationship depicted between a brother and a sister.

If it doesn't move you, you have no soul.

5/5

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Riff Magnum

True Grit

I think that they took so long establishing the characters (which i loved) and then they took so long to even get on the trail (which i loved), and then they took so long to actually find Cheney (which i loved), that the ending did feel rushed and somewhat cliche'. I was waiting for the signature Coen bros. downer, but it never really came..............not really.....................but sorta.

I gave it a 4/5, but i'm kinda done with this numeric, 4 outta 5, scale that everyone adheres to. I'm going with letter grades from now on. More intuitive and offers a wider range of expression.

B+

What on earth are you trying to do?

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Steve46

Merry Christmas everyone.

I just watched the saddest film I've ever seen; Grave of the Fireflies.

Second viewing and it moved up to #32 on my all time list. I doubt there's ever been a better relationship depicted between a brother and a sister.

If it doesn't move you, you have no soul.

5/5

Great movie.... I cant believe you watched today though.

[Riff Magnum]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

What on earth are you trying to do?

LOL!! I dunno, but i like the letter grade way better. I don't struggle as much to come up with a fitting score.

Trying to leave the kids at the mother in laws so the wife and I can go see Black Swan tonight. Pray for us.

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

Close enough.

i'm confused

[iam1bearcat]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Kung fu HASTLE?! Well, I guess the movie is quite a hassle...

[Marcus Wright]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Kung fu HASTLE?! Well, I guess the movie is quite a hassle...

90% rating on Rotten Tomates, 4.5/5 on this site.
Trust me, this masterpiece is already widely regarded as a cult classic.

[Al_The_Strange]

Haven’t been posting here in a while, so here’s a quick rundown of what I’ve seen lately…

“Scrooged.” The modern-day comedy. A bit zany and wild, but it has plenty of funny parts. Bill Murray is the man! 4/5 (entertainment: 4/5, story: 4/5, film: 4.5/5)

“Scrooge.” The musical. Lots of great songs, decent adaptation of the “Christmas Carol” story. Love the part where Scrooge goes to Hell. 4/5 (entertainment: 4.5/5, story: 4/5, film: 4/5)

“Gremlins,” one of my Christmas gifts. Ah, the nostalgic value is through the roof; I forgot how much silly wild fun this movie is. It’s got a fine cast though, and is decently executed. 4/5 (entertainment: 4/5, story: 4/5, film: 4/5). The Blu-Ray is a little on the soft noisy side, with a fairly bland soundtrack. PQ: 3/5, AQ: 3/5

“Mars Attacks!” Another present, yay! Hard to believe this is a Tim Burton movie; it’s got a really interesting type of deadpan humor, with lots of hilarious dialogue and ridiculous antics. SFX are a hit-and-a-miss by today’s standards. But altogether, I’ve always enjoyed it. 4/5 (entertainment: 4/5, story: 3.5/5, film: 4/5). The Blu-Ray looks sharp, clean, and vibrant, but with occasional dashings of DNR. Sound quality is a little unbalanced, but still smashing. PQ: 4/5, AQ: 4/5

“Ghost in the Shell.” It’s great, everybody here should go watch it right now right this minute! My full review will come along…later. 4.5/5 (entertainment: 4/5, story: 4/5, film: 5/5) The Theatrical Cut on Blu-Ray looks sharp and clean, but with some noise, pixilation, and weak color/contrast. Sound quality seems okay. PQ: 3.5/5, AQ: 3.5/5. Quality for the 2.0 version is a huge step better (PQ: 4.5/5, AQ: 5/5)

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Marcus Wright

90% rating on Rotten Tomates, 4.5/5 on this site.
Trust me, this masterpiece is already widely regarded as a cult classic.

It's a movie I ought to revisit. Bought it when it was about $10, but I was never sure if I really liked it or not. A bit wild for me, but the fight scenes are cool.

A "Kung Fu Hustle 2" is listed on imdb. What the-?!

[Marcus Wright]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

It's a movie I ought to revisit. Bought it when it was about $10, but I was never sure if I really liked it or not. A bit wild for me, but the fight scenes are cool.

A "Kung Fu Hustle 2" is listed on imdb. What the-?!

Cant wait.
I just love this directors style. He is so unique and unique and unique and unique and he is perfect in his style.

[Diesel]

John Rambo

The only one of the 4 films that I have seen before. And now that I've seen two of the other three, I say without a doubt that this one is by far the best of those.


The story of this one worked much more for me than the ones for the first two films, even though it is somewhat similar to that of First Blood Part II when you boil it down to the basics. This one does the best job of making you really hate the antagonists.

Where First Blood Part II was cheesy, 80s action (which is perfectly fine ), Rambo has that more...I feel this next word is really over used, but it applies here...gritty, seriously toned atmosphere and vibe to it. And for the movie it really, really works. It's the perfect atmosphere for this film.


I think I like Old Stallone more than young Stallone. Old Rocky and Old Rambo are infinitely cooler than their already cool young versions. I guess its because of that seen it all, done it all persona that he has for the two new films.

As I've mentioned in the other two films I really did like the Rambo character, in fact, he was the only thing I liked in the first film. But in this movie its a much better version of the character; he really works as an aged character. That speech he gives to Benz's character about war was great.

And not to mention that you don't get more manly manliness than

[Show spoiler]Sylvester Stallone standing on top of a hill next to a fifty cal, covered in mud, sweat and blood kicking a guy down a hill after slicing him with your scimitar/machete and then doing the "stare into the distance"

This is also the first of the three where there are other characters that are actually worth mentioning
Benz's character is an enjoyable one and my second favorite behind Rambo is Schoolboy. I thought he was a pretty cool minor character and liked the guy who played him.

One of my favorite parts in the film is when

[Show spoiler]Rambo pulls the arrow on the bald guy and laws down the law on who is REALLY in charge

I said I remembered liking the movie the first time I saw it, and I remembered correctly apparently. I loved the movie this time.


Rating - 4.5/5

[lDlisturb3d]

Originally Posted by Marcus Wright

90% rating on Rotten Tomates, 4.5/5 on this site.
Trust me, this masterpiece is already widely regarded as a cult classic.

Kung Fu Hustle is a 5/5 from me. Funny as hell, unique and one cool ride.

Have you seen Shoalin Soccer?

[lDlisturb3d]

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[iam1bearcat]

LOST IN TRANSLATION (96 minutes)

Film #12

Year: 2003
Director: Sofia Coppola
Starring: Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi
Genre: Drama, Romance

What Made Me Want to See This? Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, and it seemed like my type of depressing film

Lost in Translation is the type of film I think where either in five minutes you know you’re going to really enjoy it, or be bored to death waiting for it to end. I was entranced from the get go (hard not to since the film contains probably the best opening shot of a film ever ) and loved the film from start to finish.

Slower paced, character driven, very existential, and features two terrific performances along with a great score, great directing, an intriguing ending and a wonderfully, almost haunting atmosphere. I really have no idea what films are filmed… on film… and in HD, or with different types of cameras, but I knew right away that Lost in Translation was filmed… on film, and it’s a great choice for the... film. A slow, drama / romance film that works beautifully with the warm colors and heavy feel of the style of film Coppola has chosen here.

But, the film isn’t all super serious, the humor is terrific - for those who actually get good humor - seeing Bill Murray have to crouch to use the shower because the standard height of the population in Tokyo is much shorter than here in the United States was great. As well as hearing someone talk for about 35 seconds and have the translator say three words and Murray ask, “is that ALL he said?” in confusion and hesitance was hysterically funny. Of course the gf chuckled and then asked, “why is that so funny?”

The story is about an older actor named Bob (Murray) who is in Tokyo to make 2 million bucks filming commercials for alcohol and meets a much younger not really newlywed-newlywed Charlotte (Johansson) who is in Tokyo because of her husband’s job and she had “nothing better to do”. The two click because, well, they are two of the very limited Americans in Tokyo, staying in the same hotel and are both drawn to each other for numerous reasons. Both of their lives appear full, but both are very ’distant’ and in emotionally empty relationships that seem to be sucking the life from them. They find solace in each other and form a quick bond and great emotional attachment.

I loved the ending in how what Bob tells Charlotte only she knows. Unless I want to search the internet, where I’m sure I could find something, I’m probably gonna leave that conversation between the two of them.

The performances are outstanding. Coppola wrote the character of Bob with Murray specifically in mind, so it’s easy to see why and how he does so well because he was tailor made for the role. And he does a phenomenal job. With that said though, Johansson steals the show. I haven’t seen a lot of her films, but her roles that I have seen haven’t really expressed her acting ability. But Lost in Translation does and she does a terrific job here. She captures every scene she’s in and just draws your eyes to her. Of course, she’s incredibly attractive which helps, but she has an aura about her that not a lot of actresses have. I wish she would do more character, dialogue heavy roles.

Out of the 12 films I’ve seen, Lost in Translation is easily #1 on the list for being my favorite. I will definitely pick up the blu-ray (had to watch the DVD, bah!) sooner rather than later. It will definitely be a film that gets numerous viewings and I’m sure I will appreciate more with each subsequent viewing.

Recommendation: Very High But only if you’re into dramas and slow moving character heavy films

PQ: N/A
AQ: N/A

Technical Score: 4.5/5
Enjoyment level Score: 5/5 - “loved it”

Final Verdict: 5/5

[Marcus Wright]

Originally Posted by lDlisturb3d

Kung Fu Hustle is a 5/5 from me. Funny as hell, unique and one cool ride.

Have you seen Shoalin Soccer?

Yes I have.
5/5 for that one as well.

When I first saw it, (Shaolin Soccer) it literally blew me away. It was like seing a movie for the first time in my life. Thats how unique that movie was.

Originally Posted by Diesel

John Rambo

The only one of the 4 films that I have seen before. And now that I've seen two of the other three, I say without a doubt that this one is by far the best of those.

[Show spoiler]The story of this one worked much more for me than the ones for the first two films, even though it is somewhat similar to that of First Blood Part II when you boil it down to the basics. This one does the best job of making you really hate the antagonists.

Where First Blood Part II was cheesy, 80s action (which is perfectly fine ), Rambo has that more...I feel this next word is really over used, but it applies here...gritty, seriously toned atmosphere and vibe to it. And for the movie it really, really works. It's the perfect atmosphere for this film.


I think I like Old Stallone more than young Stallone. Old Rocky and Old Rambo are infinitely cooler than their already cool young versions. I guess its because of that seen it all, done it all persona that he has for the two new films.

As I've mentioned in the other two films I really did like the Rambo character, in fact, he was the only thing I liked in the first film. But in this movie its a much better version of the character; he really works as an aged character. That speech he gives to Benz's character about war was great.

And not to mention that you don't get more manly manliness than

[Show spoiler]Sylvester Stallone standing on top of a hill next to a fifty cal, covered in mud, sweat and blood kicking a guy down a hill after slicing him with your scimitar/machete and then doing the "stare into the distance"

This is also the first of the three where there are other characters that are actually worth mentioning
Benz's character is an enjoyable one and my second favorite behind Rambo is Schoolboy. I thought he was a pretty cool minor character and liked the guy who played him.

One of my favorite parts in the film is when

[Show spoiler]Rambo pulls the arrow on the bald guy and laws down the law on who is REALLY in charge

I said I remembered liking the movie the first time I saw it, and I remembered correctly apparently. I loved the movie this time

.


Rating - 4.5/5

Weid thing though is that I think action was much better in 2nd and 3rd instalments of Rambo.

[volcomsocal]

Breaking Upwards - 2009

This is an indie rom/com about a guy and a girl in their early 20's who decide to plan out their breakup. It takes place in Brooklyn, NY. It has the prototypical indie oddness/uniqueness to it, which I tend to like. What's great about a film like this one, is that you know you're not going to get the "seen that a hundred times" type of format that big hollywood movies tend to churn out. The 2 main actors (who actually are the writers of this screenplay as well) do a great job selling their relationship right from the get go.

PQ and AQ are not factors being as how I watched it streaming online with Netflix. But the picture was just fine.

I really enjoyed this movie for it's storyline, acting, and overall pace. If you're an indie movie fan, or if you like rom/com's that aren't "girly", then you should like this film.

8/10

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by iam1bearcat

i'm confused

Your other review was "accurate" meaning I agreed all around.

This review was pretty accurate and I agree with almoast all of it, so I called it "close enough"