My recently viewed list

[Beta Man]

(ALL SIMPLY MY PERSONAL OPINIONS)


Just some thoughts on some of the "Big releases" that I FINALLY got around to seeing within the last week and a half or so.....

The Dark Knight

O.K. the most anticipated movie around here..... well it wasn't bad... I don't think Heath Ledger's performance was the be-all-end-all everyone said it was, but all in all it was a good movie. I'm not a huge fan of the genre, but found this movie quite enjoyable.... In terms of the genre, I still give the original superman, and the original, and first re-make of "Batman" the nod over this, but it's certainly better than Iron Man, or any of the Spiderman movies. I found the audio captivating, and the picture quality was great, but certainly not 5/5 as I was expecting. All in all it was a very good follow-up to Batman Begins.

Hellboy II

Good cinematography, some decent dialogue, and the story wasn't terrible either.... The audio on this one blew me away..... unfortunately I don't see too much replayability in this one. This movie certainly delivers the audio goods though.

WALL-E

Pixar does it again.... they're great at making family oriented films, and this one was no exception. Easily replaces "Ratatoulli" on my list of most enjoyable animated blu-rays. I'd say this was easily my most enjoyable "Recently watched Blu"


Not a widely anticipated film, but I watched "Smart People" with the wife, and found it entertaining, and enjoyed the sarcastic humor. PQ/AQ weren't the driving force, but were certainly good despite the dialogue driven film.

[kpkelley]

I see you've got some more free time now that you've almost finished your Home Theater. How long till we get to see it completely decked out?

Here are some that I saw recently:

Ghost Town:
Fairly entertaining romantic comedy, pretty straight forward. 3/5

The Express:
Another straight forward sports movie. The film was extremely desaturated to point that it was mildly distracting. 3/5

City of Ember:
Good book, terrible adaptation. I was hoping this would be good, but it's not. There doesn't appear to be a blu-ray release of this either. 2/5

Beta, if you liked Smart People you should check out King of California, it's another indie comedy about a dysfunctional family.

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by kpkelley

Beta, if you liked Smart People you should check out King of California, it's another indie comedy about a dysfunctional family.

Saw it..... and yeah... it was an enjoyable film. Makes me wonder what it is about me that draws me towards dysfunctional families!


EDIT:

And no.... I don't have more free time, but I'm making more time to enjoy the theater

[assydingo]

Appaloosa - I don't like being negative but this may be the worst movie I've ever seen.

The Nines - A very unique indie movie. I loved the concept. It would probably have been better as a mini-series though as it feels rushed.

The Door In The Floor - Some dramas shouldn't feel like a comedy. This one does. It pretty much ruins the story but the acting is so good, especially Jeff Bridges (Iron Man), that you don't regret watching it.

[kpkelley]

Originally Posted by assydingo

Appaloosa - I don't like being negative but this may be the worst movie I've ever seen.

I wouldn't say it's the "worst movie i've ever seen," but i was dissappointed. When it comes to western's I feel that music plays a huge role in the film. Take a look at The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, that film is defined by it's music. I just didn't like the music from Appaloosa and so I never got into the film or the characters, besides if you're a fan of the western genre you've already seen everything in this movie anyway, they didn't break new ground. 2.5/5

[xander]

Originally Posted by kpkelley

City of Ember:
Good book, terrible adaptation. I was hoping this would be good, but it's not. There doesn't appear to be a blu-ray release of this either. 2/5

That's too bad, I had heard some great things about this one early on, people saying it had a vibe like Goonies even. I'm waiting for a Blu release to rent.

The only thing I saw this week was Babylon A.D., which I surprisingly enjoyed quite a bit, given the coal raking everyone and their mother gave it. It wasn't great by any means, but I enjoyed it for what it was and my basement expectations obviously helped.

[kpkelley]

Originally Posted by xander

That's too bad, I had heard some great things about this one early on, people saying it had a vibe like Goonies even. I'm waiting for a Blu release to rent.

Yeah, Cominsoon.net had some great set reports on this movie. It has the largest set ever constructed, they built the whole city in an old ship manufacturing warehouse where they built part of the titanic.

The movie is just all together too short(98 min.), without much of an introduction to the story or the characters.

[FindYourWay]

Henry Pool Is Here
Very good looking film. I found myself drawn right in and actually really liked this film. The soundtrack is super great too (opening with an Eels song hooked me). Recommended.

Igor
I have to admit, I love the mean spirited, darker humor. Too funny and really had some out loud laughs. John Cusack, Steve Buscemi and Jennifer Coolidge provided some great voice work.

Incredible Hulk
Suprised me as I was not expecting much. A decent flick, with some heart. I liked the nods to Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno. But that chase scene in Brazil was super great. Not a big fan of Liv Tyler though...can't stand her actually.

Mamma Mia!
Garbage. I would have turned it off had my friend not enjoyed it so much. Nice to see her dancing around. ;-)

[perfectdark]

Batman the movie 1989 UK Import
I hadn't seen this movie since 1989 when i saw it as a 11 year old in the theatre. And on bluray its even better, this being a very dark movie the blacks are deep and i didnt notice any signs of noise. I would saw (IMO) this is the best or at least one of the best catalog movies for PQ. The extras are great, with the Robin screen play and the "batdance" music video by prince and more.... A great bluray discs.... 4.5/5

Serenity
I had never seen this before and i didnt watch the firefly series so i was expecting to be disapointed for sure. To my suprise this movie is great and to be honest it had that trilogy feel. This movie felt like the beginning of a trilogy, i do hope a serenity 2 and 3 are made (not likely i guess) but this movie has action and a great storyline. PQ is top notch as i've read and SQ was also awesome..... loud bass and clear vocals coming from all directions.. 5 out of 5 for AQ.. Overal it's a 4/5

[VDogger]

Casino Royale
Everyone knows this is an awesome movie. Enough said.

The Forbiden Kingdom
Not really a fan of Jackie Chan, but it was cool to see him playing the drunken martial artist again. Jet Li was really good. The plot was for the dogs but the two girls in there are BEAUTIFUL.

Pineapple Express
Funnier than I expected. Good acting from James Franco. Seth Rogen was just too loud and my favorite character was Red. Watch the Raw Footage, that's probably funnier than the whole movie.

Appaloosa
I lost my mind during this movie. I couldn't believe the character played by Renee Zellweger. I had to look in the credits for Lance Henriksen cause I didn't recognize him at all.

Alien vs. Predator
I'm a fan of the Predator. Lance Henriksen again, very underrated actor.

There Will Be Blood
I see now why DDL won another Oscar. Phenomenal!

Master and Commander
Master Audio indeed! I finally heard the great things 99.9 percent of those in this forum praise so much.

[assydingo]

Originally Posted by kpkelley

I wouldn't say it's the "worst movie i've ever seen," but i was dissappointed. When it comes to western's I feel that music plays a huge role in the film. Take a look at The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, that film is defined by it's music. I just didn't like the music from Appaloosa and so I never got into the film or the characters, besides if you're a fan of the western genre you've already seen everything in this movie anyway, they didn't break new ground. 2.5/5

I say that because I can't say one good thing about it. Some of the acting is good but the characters are so dull it nulls that. And the botox thing was worse then Golden Compass.

VDogger. My mom was like "That's the Millenium guy!" I was never totally sure because his features look off.

[FindYourWay]

Originally Posted by assydingo

The Door In The Floor - Some dramas shouldn't feel like a comedy. This one does. It pretty much ruins the story but the acting is so good, especially Jeff Bridges (Iron Man), that you don't regret watching it.

I had no idea this was available on blu-ray. I thought this was a blu-ray forum?

Anyway, I really liked this film and I think the humor was appropriate and needed in this story.

[assydingo]

Originally Posted by FindYourWay

I had no idea this was available on blu-ray. I thought this was a blu-ray forum?

Anyway, I really liked this film and I think the humor was appropriate and needed in this story.

Yeah I wasn't doing Blu-Ray. Didn't think about it as others said Non-Blu (City of Ember).

It may have been but it made the movie hard to take seriously. The movie never feels tragic and I'm sure a movie about parents losing two sons should.

[surfdude12]

Dark City
-incredible story, IMO tops The Matrix in the story (made before matrix).
-PQ was 4/5, Audio 4/5

Chronicles Narnia: Prince Caspian
-better than first one: more depth, great themes of time-travel, and a realistic enemy (white witch in 1st one didn't vibe with me for some reason)
-PQ and AQ both 5/5, phenomenal!!

Godfather I
-no need to comment on story: Brando is the best actor ever!!
-PQ was 4/5, AQ 3/5 (i think it looked way better than DVD, plus presumably how coppola wanted it to, thus i can't compare it side-by-side with Chronicles)

[goodluckchuck]

Is Appaloosa as bad a western as The Missing? I didnt understand The Missing at all, maybe im mentally challenged (?) but I do know that like Alexander, it got multiple editions trying to fix it, directors cut, extended cut, the "camera man cut".. etc

I think im going to download it to see how bad it is, although it seems like a whole lot of time to download it, I could be doing better things.

[Beta Man]

really looked forward to Appaloosa.... now I'm apprehensive.

[VDogger]

Originally Posted by assydingo

I say that because I can't say one good thing about it. Some of the acting is good but the characters are so dull it nulls that. And the botox thing was worse then Golden Compass.

VDogger. My mom was like "That's the Millenium guy!" I was never totally sure because his features look off.

He looks weird with that dark hair. Not the Lance I'm used to seeing. Plus, he's much fatter.

V

[FindYourWay]

Originally Posted by assydingo

It may have been but it made the movie hard to take seriously. The movie never feels tragic and I'm sure a movie about parents losing two sons should.

I understand your point, although I disagree. I think the film offers more than just parents losing their children. I think John Updike stories tend to have humor in more serious subject matter. You shouldn't be laughing, but yet you can't help it. Basinger's character was the most interesting. Not only with her rejection of her thirds child, but in her affair with the student.

I think the principal characters themselves (Bridges & Bassinger) were eccentrics to begin with, adding to the humorous side of things. Although the film never felt like a comedy to me.

Interesting film and book (based on the first third of the novel).

[Pinto]

Appaloosa - Loved it. Ed Harris and Viggo were great. I also thought Warner Brothers did a good job on this transfer.

[assydingo]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

really looked forward to Appaloosa.... now I'm apprehensive.

It's Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and several non-critics like it. I honestly don't see how.

FindYourWay. Maybe it takes repeat viewings to fully get it. I'd still recommend the movie as the acting is phenomenal. I think if you had never seen any of the actors before you'd be fans of all of them after the movie.