The Movie Review and Discussion Thread

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by CZAR

For it to be a truly spectacular film , u sure do want a lot of the film cut! Haha! Got Em!!

Nothing happens in that first hour, basicly we get a lot of character development from characters we disgard in the jungle. I'm not all that bothered about that though, it's the special effects that shine, it just takes a bit too long getting there.

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

I thought Jack Black was a great casting choice and he did a great job.

absolutely agree!! i wish he was in more dramas...but i'll admit i'm just not a fan of the comedy genre he typically stars in.

[QuasidodoJr]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

I didn't think it was Beckham; I figured he died or was written off or something (in fact,

[Show spoiler]wasn't he the one with the human bomb implanted in his chest or something?

). I honestly didn't feel my heart being tugged by this whole scene; I just thought it was more palpable suspense and a lesson the main character learns (don't get too close and personal with the locals).

You and Squid both have this part confused. James had thought the boy with the chest bomb was Beckham. It wasn't. It was, however, Beckham that showed up later, with the soccer ball and the DVDs. By that point, James is so upset with himself for becoming so emotionally involved in the situation that he purposefully ignores Beckham.

[surfdude12]

Originally Posted by Diesel

You know, I actually saw your user review for the movie and thought of it when I was writing the part that I could see why others like the movie so much

I presume you mean "Watts and Black"? Because I definitely liked Kong, Black's character is the other I mentioned specifically not liking.

well, i think you supported your conclusion pretty well. it is a long film. yeah, i didn't realize you liked Kong. yeah, maybe that's a given for most people
i didn't care too much for Black, although I did sympathize with his over-ambitious character (never a good character trait and will always lead to misery. for proof, see TWBB )

[KilloWertz]

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

PQ - 3.5
AQ - 3.5
Film - 4.5

Let me start off by giving a lot of credit to Jason Segal in writing a comedy that is able to balance being both a raunchy and romantic comedy rather nicely. Forgetting Sarah Marshall could have easily been dirty just for the sake of being dirty, but it thankfully isn't and that is a major plus for the movie in my opinion. Most of the dirty parts are genuinely funny, and there's enough of sentimental moments to appeal to some people that may not like most that has Judd Apatow's name on it. This was the first time I saw Forgetting Sarah Marshall and I enjoyed it as much as I hoped I would.

The cast is also pretty solid. The already mentioned Jason Segal is good of course and Russell Brand is great as Sarah's new boyfriend. Any movie with both Kristen Bell and Mila Kunis in it is a major bonus, and both are good here as well. I could watch almost anything with them in it, but that's beside the point. I usually always enjoy Bill Hader, as he was great in Superbad and Adventureland, and his scenes with Jason Segal in the first part of the movie are once again funny. The rest of the cast fills out nicely.

The disc is nothing special in terms of PQ and AQ, but it is respectable in both areas for a comedy. This isn't one of the better looking comedies, but it still earns a respectable 3.5 for PQ. I didn't notice any issues with the encode itself. The movie's look picks up once it gets to Hawaii, with nice colors and better overall PQ imo. The AQ is about the same since it is a comedy, but it does its job. While I don't usually comment on special features, this is where the disc really excels. There are hours of content, including some extra content on BD-Live that is worth a look (the cast roundtable at the very least). There's a bit of throwaway material, and that amount may vary from person to person, but I enjoyed watching most of it. You can tell the cast and crew got along great and had plenty of fun making the movie.

[Chaotic]

The Lovely Bones 9/10

I thought it was terrific. Great acting especially from Ronan and beautiful visuals/cinematography. The PQ for the Blu is 12/10

[Suntory_Times]

Avatar, saw it on dvd so won't comment on PQ/AQ, but the film is a 10/10.

[surfdude12]

The Hurt Locker

Film: 3/5

-loved the cinematography/direction. reminded me of Babel (middle eastern scenes), particularly with the landscape and cultural clash of foreigners with modernized equipment/clothing in a timelessly ancient culture

-acting was also great. loved that the actors were not familiar.

-the story was decent, but not great. as Squid said, I think the film centers on James' character. why does he not only not mind risking his life, but get his jollies off it? a few theories are:

[Show spoiler] (1) when/if he fails to disarm, and someone gets hurt (DVD kid, Eldridge), he can give himself a good guilt-trip (the guy has incredibly low self-esteem, behind his ego wall), which reinforces a low self-image (and sick as it sounds, will make him feel good, in a twisted way) (2) i've read in books (e.g. "Power of Now") that "adrenaline junkies" partake in such dangerous activities (skydiving, etc) because it forces them to only focus on NOW, and forget the past/future (i.e., enter "zen mode"), but they could just go to a yoga class, instead of disarming IED's

-i see Squid's point about how James would have been disciplined, but i'm not quite sure of that. this is the IED-disarming dept we're talking about here, not the mash potato-making crew . slim pickens perhaps when it comes to replacements? i did ask myself that same question (i.e. "why aren't they disciplining him?"), especially sandborn, who seemed like he wasn't the kind of guy to put up with that. btw..i thought the scene where

[Show spoiler] sandborn contemplated killing james was fake. sandborn just didn't seem like the guy who could do that, even if james was a dick, in his mind

-as far as James being melancholy/dramatic, i'd agree with squid there too, although James did have a soft mushy side (in self-guilt mode) involving those he felt a bond/friendship, after they were hurt (DVD guy, eldridge)
-overall, decent film, but it definitely had its drawbacks

PQ 4/5 and AQ 5/5

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by QuasidodoJr

You and Squid both have this part confused. James had thought the boy with the chest bomb was Beckham. It wasn't. It was, however, Beckham that showed up later, with the soccer ball and the DVDs. By that point, James is so upset with himself for becoming so emotionally involved in the situation that he purposefully ignores Beckham.

Whoops, I had it backwards. Thanks for clarifying.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Suspenseful though it was, this whole episode was a little iffy for me too. The guy was kinda acting like an idiot really; he shouldn't have gotten so involved with the locals. He let his emotions (and possibly his adrenaline rush) get the better of him, as always.

I didn't think it was Beckham; I figured he died or was written off or something (in fact,

[Show spoiler]wasn't he the one with the human bomb implanted in his chest or something?

). I honestly didn't feel my heart being tugged by this whole scene; I just thought it was more palpable suspense and a lesson the main character learns (don't get too close and personal with the locals).

See, thats a weird thing. When they find the

[Show spoiler]dead kid with the bomb inside, Sanborn and Eldridge have a conversation about whether it is Beckham or not. Thay cant tell. Jones says it is, but that "new" Beckham was intentionally the spittin' image just to toy with us....plus its left unresolved.

Also, why didnt Jones give

[Show spoiler]Beckhams body to the DVD salesman? Wouldnt you assume its his dad? Instead, Jones just hand his body over to a group of unknowns.

What the heck?

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by QuasidodoJr

You and Squid both have this part confused. James had thought the boy with the chest bomb was Beckham. It wasn't. It was, however, Beckham that showed up later, with the soccer ball and the DVDs. By that point, James is so upset with himself for becoming so emotionally involved in the situation that he purposefully ignores Beckham.

That kid may be Beckham, as I said before. But Jones doesnt show any signs of emotional shutdown before that. He should/would have been thrilled to see the kid. Sloppy storytelling IMO.

[Realist01]

King Kong (2005) blew!

[CZAR]

Originally Posted by Realist01

King Kong (2005) blew!

Nice review! Got Em!!

[QuasidodoJr]

Originally Posted by SquidPuppet

That kid may be Beckham, as I said before. But Jones doesnt show any signs of emotional shutdown before that. He should/would have been thrilled to see the kid. Sloppy storytelling IMO.

He had already thought Beckham was dead. He let himself become too involved, and he realized that after he had already made plenty of other mistakes. I didn't see anything wrong with that scenario. It had nothing to do with shutdown, it had to do with emotional detachment.

As for other instances, I'll give my take on them as well.

James was indeed a trained bomb specialist. Sanborn and Eldridge were not trained to handle bombs. They were just his gunnery support. Guy Pearce's character was the specialist before James replaced him. We can conclude from this situation that there aren't a lot of these trained bomb specialists in heavy supply. Hence, why he could get away with a little more than your average soldier. Doing things his own way to get the job done.

I would say part of his attitude was an adrenaline addiction, but I think more of it came from his line of duty and the environment around him. Including his own self-importance, as a specialist, which he sometimes let get the better of him. In an alpha male kind of way. Which is why I believe he tended to be reckless.

He clearly showed compassion for others, however, such as for Beckham and staying calm and collected to play the role of Sanborn's spotter in the desert. This could stem from him being a father and a husband back home.

I feel the end of the film reflects his inability to understand and cope with a normal life after coming home, though. Over there, all he had to do was his job. Back home, just deciding which box of cereal to buy was a harrowing decision.

Of course, this is all just my opinion, as you have your's. I really enjoyed the film. You didn't.

[JLant19]

Just watched Star Wars for the first time since I was a kid...and i must say it has held up very well. I am going to watch the ESB & ROTJ next and i cant wait to watch them. ROTJ was my fav when i was a kid.

Star Wars- 4.5/5

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by QuasidodoJr

I feel the end of the film reflects his inability to understand and cope with a normal life after coming home, though. Over there, all he had to do was his job. Back home, just deciding which box of cereal to buy was a harrowing decision.

.

This was the only part of the film I found realistic, and, very well done. If the film was more about the struggle inside Jones' mind, it would have worked for me.

The rest we'll just agree to disagree.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by QuasidodoJr

James was indeed a trained bomb specialist. Sanborn and Eldridge were not trained to handle bombs. They were just his gunnery support. Guy Pearce's character was the specialist before James replaced him. We can conclude from this situation that there aren't a lot of these trained bomb specialists in heavy supply. Hence, why he could get away with a little more than your average soldier. Doing things his own way to get the job done.

I was thinking about that earlier; Jones could act reckless at a bomb scene because he was happiest there, and he was in his element. During the sniper battle, he reverts to being a professional soldier because he's in combat and not in his own territory anymore. That's my take on it.

[Al_The_Strange]

Putting my new region-free player to use, watching the 2009 remake of "Dorian Gray," a region-B title.

Entertainment: 3.5/5. A little slow to start (then again, so was the old movie). After a while, it got really interesting...and really kinky! This movie has so much naughty stuff in it...

[Show spoiler]I just had to say "WTF" when Dorian Gray kissed a dude and did all that S&M stuff.

Story: 4/5. I've always liked this story for showing strong characters, and this film adaptation is pretty decent at portraying the character's descent into decadent evil. The plot never had much going on, but the strength and progression of the characters is what drives the story. It's a classic.

Movie: 4/5. Seems like a decent production value; acting looks good to me, writing is alright, photography is good, sets props and costumes are good, and the music is not bad. Pretty stylish overall.
Intellectual/emotional: 3/5. The main character's curse is inherently interesting and worth studying, and it has a strong paralell to rich and decadent lifestyles in general. This movie is maybe not quite as deep as the original novel or the original film, but it still retains the same basic themes.

Total: 4/5 (rounded up from 3.83). Maybe not the most difinitive adaptation of this story, as it is mostly style over substance, but I believe there is enough substance to make up for it.

Ought to go good with "Bram Stoker's Dracula," "Mary Shelly's Frankenstein," or the new "Sherlock Holmes."

Blu-Ray looked darn near perfect.

[Steve46]

The Damned United

An extremely good account of Brian Clough's story in the 1970s. I am English and I was there when it happened, and maybe it means more to me because of that.

Michael Sheen played Clough and once again showed that he is excellent at portraying a real person. He was David Frost in Frost/Nixon and Tony Blair in The Queen. I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of English soccer and of good dramas in general.

Movie 4/5
PQ 4/5
AQ 4/5

[SquidPuppet]

HBO's ROME

Finished it last night. Man what a great show this was. Every character is complex and interesting. Cool camera work. I love the sets and costumes. I love the effort put into the lighting...really moody stuff. Killer writing. Everything about the show is teriffic.

Show 4.5/5
PQ 4.5/5
AQ 4.5/5