Movies you've recently watched

[Griffith]

I talked to Oburi via PM about Five Armies and the The Hobbit trilogy in general:

I agreed that the first one was pretty decent, and I defended it because as you said, it actually felt like a real movie. When I saw Desolation in theaters though ... wow. I could barely stand to sit through the whole thing, cringing every 5 minutes. Not even because of the damage being done to the source material, but just on a basic film making level, I still can't believe that was viewed as acceptable. The pacing was just horrendous. The over-use of cgi, while not quite Star Wars prequel bad, was still out of control. I had so many issues with it on a technical level that I rejected it and couldn't even begin to waste my time complaining about the infinite amount of story related issues (forced elf/dwarf romance, yuck). You mention the original Lord of the Rings effects seeming dated. I honestly think that river barrel chase is worse than anything in the originals. Focus on the cgi water during that scene, particularly when Bombur (the fat one) has his big moment. It's literally so bad i can't believe that it got the greenlight for release. Was that scene even finished in the effects department?

And I haven't even mentioned 5 Armies yet! I will say that the extended cut of Desolation fixed a lot of the issues, mostly the pacing problems. It seems like that is the version that should have been released, and the extended cut wouldn't be needed. So as for 5 Armies, most of the issues I had with Desolation carried right over into the next movie. It just doesn't feel like a finely crafted movie that is edited properly and has a natural pace. It's very jarring. So I already went in expecting that the theatrical version would be a jumbled up disaster of movie, and I was right. It's basically unwatchable. It's hardly even a movie.  Like you mentioned, Thorin is driven mad with his obsession and greed for the whole movie... and then he's not! lol. It's such a mess but because I believe in second (and third) chances I'm going to retain some hope that the extended version for 5 Armies will turn out to be at the very least an actual movie with a natural pace and characterization and resolution to the many plot points brought up in the previous films that was seemingly forgotten about.  I don't feel too bad about watching the extended cut since I only viewed the theatrical version once and a lot of the movie is already like one giant blur in my mind (kinda like the whole cgi battle). So, here's hoping!   

But even if the extended cut fixes a lot of the issues, it will just simply put the movie into the "watchable" category. Some things can't be fixed. The theatrical versions are unwatchable, terrible things that barley resemble movies as we know them. The extended cuts can fix that. You can actually watch them! and feel like it's a normal paced movie! But yea, it seems like they got worse and worse and I think 5 Armies will still end up being really disappointing.   

On the idea of the fan edit:

I haven't seen the fan edits yet, and i would be behind it but like i said without the final extended cut i feel there's still some scenes we know are going to be included that should be in even a condensed version.  For example, Thorins funeral.

I know people wince at the idea of them being longer but a fan edit that cuts out all the bullshit can still include scenes from the extended cut that are way more appropriate for a Hobbit movie. A great example in Desolations extended version is Beorns scenes, including a whole new introduction which is far more accurate to what's in the book. It expands his character slightly and makes him seem much less contrived seemingly out of nowhere and just as quickly forgotten about. I expect 5 armies extended cut to also include more Beorn and give him his deserving spot that's again closer to the book.

So yea that's my feeling about it.

As I told Oburi, for how indulgent Jackson is, it's sort of incredible how he cut all the humanity out of the last two movies save for that literally tacked on love story. I mean, yeah, why have that crazy dinner scene with dancing and singing and then not even include Thorin's funeral? Maybe the criticism the first movie received for being so long and ponderous caused him to exacerbate the problem trying to streamline them with an emphasis on action.

[TheAlmightyLoli]

I watched The Departed and Snowpiercer yesterday. Both blew my ass away, and are two of my favorite movies now.

[NightCrawler]

Great posts discussing the validity of Interstellar as a great sci-fi movie when its science boils down to 1+1=love

[JMP]

(forced elf/dwarf romance, yuck)

Holy......the more I hear the happier I am I skipped the last two! 

[m]

I saw Spectre the other day and I can't say I liked it. It felt like a checklist of beats that had to be crossed off and, worse than that, it also felt like they rehashed elements of previous movies in a way that I found off-putting. There were also moments in the movie that were supposed of import but they fell flat and were basically unearned. Too bad, I like Craig's Bond, but this movie was a wasted opportunity.

[Walter]

I saw Spectre the other day and I can't say I liked it. It felt like a checklist of beats that had to be crossed off and, worse than that, it also felt like they rehashed elements of previous movies in a way that I found off-putting. There were also moments in the movie that were supposed of import but they fell flat and were basically unearned. Too bad, I like Craig's Bond, but this movie was a wasted opportunity.

Argh, that's too bad. Better or worse than Quantum of Solace, though? 

[Griffith]

I haven't seen Spectre yet, but that's because I think I've already diagnosed its problem, which is it's trying to do old Bond in the new style and it's creating this weird dissonance. Like, the nods to the classic Bond tropes in Skyfall worked because it was the modern Bond fondly commenting on them (and meta as fuck, "We're going back in time" in the literal equivalent of the Bond DeLorean), but it was still fully modern and fit the style pioneered by Casino Royale. That made it fun and kind of gave us the best of both worlds (even it's clumsy hacking/spy/sexual politics); what the old Bond took seriously could be what was campy about this Bond, adding a nice dash of nostalgia to the more down to Earth approach. On the other hand, it sounds like Spectere is trying to modernize the camp and make it serious, which just sounds like a recipe for failing on both levels simultaneously. Nobody really wants to see them take Dr. Evil, or any of that other fun Austin Powers-inspiring Bond stuff, and try to make it DEEP and personal and gritty, not least of which because that's hard to really take seriously. Furthermore, it makes it seem like the modern Bond was just a necessary diversion, as if Casino Royale, unarguably one of the best Bond movies if not THEE best, was just something they had to do, but always bent towards this inevitable return to form (they just had to trick us into it after Jason Bourne =). So, I'm sure I'll enjoy it because it seems like fans familiar with the old Bond are the ones most appreciating it, but I'm not excited about it.

Argh, that's too bad. Better or worse than Quantum of Solace, though? 

They sort of tried a half-assed Spectre organization there too, so I figured they might fuck this up; plus, with that the Craig series was already shaping up to have that "every-other-movie" will be good/bad thing that the old Star Trek movies had (except there it was the evens that were good =).


Update: Apparently Pierce Brosnan agrees with me.

The Irish actor also acknowledged recent Bond films’ tendency to take some cues from the gritty Jason Bourne franchise — movies that have resided much more in the real world than the invisible car or exploding pens of Brosnan-era 007.

“[‘Spectre’] is neither fish nor fowl. It’s neither Bond nor Bourne. Am I in a Bond movie? Not in a Bond movie?” Brosnan said.

He also brought up the excessive length, which is another reason I'm not as excited to sit down and watch it as I might be.

[IncantatioN]

I heard mixed views on Spectre and a co-worker told me the story's reminiscent of a film I'd watched this year, didn't tell me which one, so I'm a lot more curious about watching it. Perhaps this weekend if there's a late night show or something.

Since there's a chunk of The Hobbit that was discussed on this page - Griffith, Oburi - this's an interesting video of the making of Five Armies throwing light on why it was a jumbled mess - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQkygZdZ_Vk

[Griffith]

Since there's a chunk of The Hobbit that was discussed on this page - Griffith, Oburi - this's an interesting video of the making of Five Armies throwing light on why it was a jumbled mess - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQkygZdZ_Vk

I haven't watched it but heard they're basically admitting that everything was done/decided like the day of shooting, even props and shit (no wonder they ended up using so much CGI)! It's actually sort of impressive given that they really were pulling this out of their ass, and understandable since Jackson really wasn't supposed to do it but was drafted at the last second. Still, given that, how about reining it in then instead of spiraling completely out of control? I guess it was a perfect storm where nobody was going to say no, and rightfully since they made back that money and then some. Again, like the Star Wars prequels, this is what happens without restraints.

[Tama]

I just finished the Puppet Master collection 1-9 (almost all of them made). I love horror films and the stop motion with the puppets in the first film are great. It reminds me of the work from Ray Harryhausen who did many films including the famous Sinbad voyages. As with a lot of series that run too long, the rest aren't very good but I would recommend Puppet Master 1 if anyone is looking for a fun horror movie that's different from the normal slasher flick.

[Salem]

Tama,
I have never seen any of the puppet master movies.  Might just be the one horror franchise I haven't checked out.   

[Tama]

Tama,
I have never seen any of the puppet master movies.  Might just be the one horror franchise I haven't checked out.   

Hey! Yea like I said, most of the sequels are pretty bad, they don't even use stop motion effects in the later ones, but the first few are decent. I've never personally thought the Child's Play series was that creepy but the idea of puppets or marionettes intrigue me. Also if you are looking for something really unsettling or that will creep you out, I would suggest David Lynch's work. I really love Twin Peaks, and some of his films. The Lost Highway is very interesting, with my favorite scary scene from any movie: "The party scene". 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YntsTt0FO2M

[Salem]

Hey! Yea like I said, most of the sequels are pretty bad, they don't even use stop motion effects in the later ones, but the first few are decent. I've never personally thought the Child's Play series was that creepy but the idea of puppets or marionettes intrigue me. Also if you are looking for something really unsettling or that will creep you out, I would suggest David Lynch's work. I really love Twin Peaks, and some of his films. The Lost Highway is very interesting, with my favorite scary scene from any movie: "The party scene". 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YntsTt0FO2M

Love Lynch and his buddy Trent.   Been meaning to get a copy of lost highway.  That scene in MD with that creepy homeless guy gives me the creeps.

[m]

Better or worse than Quantum of Solace, though? 

Truth to be told I don't remember much of that movie, so I can't really say. 

I haven't seen Spectre yet, but that's because I think I've already diagnosed its problem, which is it's trying to do old Bond in the new style and it's creating this weird dissonance. Like, the nods to the classic Bond tropes in Skyfall worked because it was the modern Bond fondly commenting on them (and meta as fuck, "We're going back in time" in the literal equivalent of the Bond DeLorean), but it was still fully modern and fit the style pioneered by Casino Royale. That made it fun and kind of gave us the best of both worlds (even it's clumsy hacking/spy/sexual politics); what the old Bond took seriously could be what was campy about this Bond, adding a nice dash of nostalgia to the more down to Earth approach. On the other hand, it sounds like Spectere is trying to modernize the camp and make it serious, which just sounds like a recipe for failing on both levels simultaneously. Nobody really wants to see them take Dr. Evil, or any of that other fun Austin Powers-inspiring Bond stuff, and try to make it DEEP and personal and gritty, not least of which because that's hard to really take seriously. Furthermore, it makes it seem like the modern Bond was just a necessary diversion, as if Casino Royale, unarguably one of the best Bond movies if not THEE best, was just something they had to do, but always bent towards this inevitable return to form (they just had to us into it after Jason Bourne =). So, I'm sure I'll enjoy it because it seems like fans familiar with the old Bond are the ones most appreciating it, but I'm not excited about it.

I think you assessment is spot on, and I'd be really interested in what you think about the movie once you see it, particularly since this year I made it a project to watch all the Bond movies in order, most of them for the first time (before this  project I had only seen from GoldenEye and up to Skyfall), and I can't say I'm a fan of the series as a whole. My next movie is Moonraker and so far, out of the movies I've seen, I've only really liked On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Spy Who Loved Me, GoldenEye and Casino Royale.

EDIT: By the way, I remember you posting your top 10 Bond movies so I looked it up, and it looks like I'm only missing The Living Daylights and For Your Eyes Only (but you stroke the latter off the list, so I'm not sure it counts). When I first read the list it was like reading a foreign language but now I know what it's all about, I think.

He also brought up the excessive length, which is another reason I'm not as excited to sit down and watch it as I might be.

I agree that Spectre is too long.

[Griffith]

I think you assessment is spot on, and I'd be really interested in what you think about the movie once you see it, particularly since this year I made it a project to watch all the Bond movies in order, most of them for the first time (before this  project I had only seen from GoldenEye and up to Skyfall)

My wife and I were going to do that with the Bond blu-rays leading up to Spectre, but that idea waned with my enthusiasm for this one.

I can't say I'm a fan of the series as a whole. My next movie is Moonraker and so far, out of the movies I've seen, I've only really liked On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Spy Who Loved Me, GoldenEye and Casino Royale.

Those are all good ones (one way or another), but I notice a conspicuous absence of Connery entries? Was his charisma not enough for you to elevate them above how boring they actually are? =)

EDIT: By the way, I remember you posting your top 10 Bond movies so I looked it up, and it looks like I'm only missing The Living Daylights and For Your Eyes Only (but you stroke the latter off the list, so I'm not sure it counts). When I first read the list it was like reading a foreign language but now I know what it's all about, I think.

Yeah, that's a good way to put. Coincidentally, I was thinking about this yesterday and reconsidering my best Bonds by Bond, and sort of how to best get a sense of the arc of the series without actually watching too many (because, just as you discovered, it's really not great on the whole =). On Her Majesty's Secret Service probably has the best Blofeld though, or at least closest to the books, because he's really just an evil, power-hungry opportunist for the sake of it without all the Dracula-like Dr. Evil trappings. I think the only one I didn't mention either in relation to the top 10 and honorable mentions as well the the Bond to Bond arc is License to Kill. Lots of people like that one and think it's the perfect vehicle for Dalton, but I just thought it was ok and though The Living Daylights is kind of mediocre, it still better represents Bond. Let me know what you think when you've watched them both.

[m]

Those are all good ones (one way or another), but I notice a conspicuous absence of Connery entries? Was his charisma not enough for you to elevate them above how boring they actually are? =)

You know, I'm not sure I like Connery's Bond. It may not have been all his fault that his Bond turned the way he did, but I found it kind of hard to get past moments like this:

https://youtu.be/0t1_usmB30s?t=309

this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pUXH1Bye88

or even small things like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcNGYRKBfHA

And it's not only his attitude towards women, I'm not sure I liked him all that much in general. I guess in the movies I've liked I've found Bond to have some redeeming qualities that somewhat make up for the other stuff (which seems to be there in basically all the movies I've seen)

Yeah, that's a good way to put. Coincidentally, I was thinking about this yesterday and reconsidering my best Bonds by Bond, and sort of how to best get a sense of the arc of the series without actually watching too many (because, just as you discovered, it's really not great on the whole =).

No easy task at all. If someone were to ask me for a recommendation of which movies to watch I'd suggest, from the movies I've seen, Dr. No (it's the first one, so it's a must if only for that), From Russia with Love, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Spy Who Loved Me, GoldenEye and Casino Royale. I'm still yet to find out if there's a Dalton movie I'd recommend, but I'll get there soon enough. This list is already six movies, so if it came to that I'd probably skip one of the Connery movies, but it's hard to decide which one.

I think the only one I didn't mention either in relation to the top 10 and honorable mentions as well the the Bond to Bond arc is License to Kill. Lots of people like that one and think it's the perfect vehicle for Dalton, but I just thought it was ok and though The Living Daylights is kind of mediocre, it still better represents Bond. Let me know what you think when you've watched them both.

Will do! 

On a side note, for me the best thing to come out of a Bond movie that I didn't like was the theme song for Live and Let Die, which by far my favorite Bond song. My second favorite Bond song would probably be Nobody Does It Better. How about you? Any favorite songs?

[Vampire_Hunter_Bob]

I just got back from seeing The Big Short for the second time. It's really good.

[Tabris]

A Walk In The Woods

Not something I'd really ever watch. Had no idea it even existed honestly until my step mom decided to throw it on one night while I was staying at their acreage.

It was alright I guess. Some cool scenery, some amusing humor. But nothing especially stood out as 'amazing'. Wouldn't especially recommend it unless old dudes walking the Appalachian Trail seems appealing somehow.

[Oburi]

It was alright I guess. Some cool scenery, some amusing humor. But nothing especially stood out as 'amazing'. Wouldn't especially recommend it unless old dudes walking the Appalachian Trail seems appealing somehow.

I've been saying for years that Hollywood needs to tap into the goldmine that is elderly people camping.

[IncantatioN]

I just got back from seeing The Big Short for the second time. It's really good.

Yeah, very well put together. I liked the way they explained financial terms in the first half.



Deadpool - saw this last week. It's hella funny right from those clever opening credits till the end. Lots of violence. Fun action. The wit in Deadpool's dialog is astonishing in the fact that everything he says is funny. I wasn't familiar with the character prior to the movie, seen cosplayers at conventions but didn't know what he was all about. The director uses just about the right amount of plot to move things forward while telling you more about the character. Overall you get the impression that film-makers got to do what they wanted to within their budget and it pays off big time. Deserves all the success coming its way. 

Other movies I missed talking about in here -

The Gift - mid movie you're wondering if it's going to be the same revenge story that's predictable but the end throws you off and it's rewarding getting to it. Great cast too, enjoyed this on a 12 hour flight. 6.5/10

Creed - highs and lows, mostly highs ... it doesn't disappoint. 7/10

I think I'll just put scores to movies to compensate for the lack of expanding on them : p as a sort of way to catch up ...

99 Homes - Michael Shannon is amazing in this, which shouldn't be much of a surprise cos he's amazing in pretty much anything he does ... 7.5/10

Calvary - pretty good. Gleeson (big fan of his work) plays a priest. The movie starts with a person coming in to make a confession, he talks about how he was sexually abused by a priest when he was a kid and as an adult now, he wants justice for it. He asks Gleeson to meet him at a beach nearby at the end of the week where he'll serve this justice of his. 8.5/10

Spectre - disappointing and not very memorable. Spoilers - Waltz I felt wasn't as menacing of a character or even set up Bardem and his demise was rather silly ... here you have this new serious Mendes-Bond, direct continuation to Skyfall but there're moments where shades of old silly stuff pops up like how Waltz's character lets him keep his tech during the final showdown, I don't know ... it just didn't sit well with me or maybe I'm asking for more (?). I felt like Bautista stole the show every time he was on screen and their fist-fight was the highlight of the film. 5/10

The Last Witch Hunter - 1/10 ... only went cos I had a free ticket. 1 because of the cool company I was with.

The Stanton Experiment - to think most of what they show in the movie actually happened was cool but no so cool for the people on the receiving end of it, that was harsh.  An actor from The Knick I recognize and he's way better here than on the show. 7/10

Clouds of Sils Maria - Not a fan of Kristen Stewart but I could stand her in this one ... good movie right till the last act which I liked especially because it doesn't over explain things. I admit I had to go back to some points in the movie to pick on signs that resulted in the end. Juliette Binoche's pretty (consistently) good. 7.5/10

San Andreas - fake perfectly choreographed scenes of rescue as expected. It sucked. 2/10

Pixels - Sandler's last funny movie for me was Zohan. The CG in this isn't bad at all ... outside of that everything else like the writing, acting, whatevers, Sandler ... was garbage. 1/10

Sicario - brooding atmosphere, bit of a slow burn, better aerial shots than those on True Detective, I felt like Villeneuve could've done a little more but there are some hard/ brutal scenes that're perfect. 8.5/10.

Black Mass - just A-OK. Everyone around the time of the release were praising Depp for the role but I thought there were other guys who did better. His character wasn't menacing or captivating enough to pull the movie through. That soft ending didn't help ... 4/10

The Lobster - 7/10 ... best thing Colin's been part of since Seven Psychopaths or In Bruges.

Wild Tales - funny, sad and really good. 8/10

Look of Silence - 9/10 documentary, follow up to Act Of Killing (Netflix) but so much more brutal. There're moments you're wondering 'wait, he's actually saying that?' and you get to witness some deep-rooted hate for certain clans.

What If - decent rom-drama starring Kylo Ren and Mr. Potter. Potter connects with Kylo's cousin a party, end of the night she tells him she has a boyfriend, gives him her phone number anyway to be friends and such. He throws it out. Fast forward a couple months they bump into one another at a movie and re-connect. Light on real moments, it's not that dramatic or funny, you can see the end coming. 6/10

Batman Bad Blood - 5/10, decent at best. I liked some fight scenes in the 3rd act.

By The Sea - the plot isn't bad but there's no spark in the film or anything interesting apart from seeing those set of actors on screen. 5/10

Insurgent - 3/10.

The Outlaw Josey Wales - Eastwood plays a badass. COOL. Felt a little long. 7/10

High Plains Drifter - Eastwood's a bigger badass in this one. COOLER. 8/10

Slow West - western coming of age flick about a young aristocrat who falls for a girl who lives in the middle of nowhere and has a bounty on her head. He's on a journey to get to her so he can confess his love, meeting Fassbender and Mendelsohn (both really good in this one, as always) en route. 7.5/10

Meru - good documentary whether you're into mountain climbing or not and a whole lot better than Hollywood's Everest. It's about 3 guys who attempt to climb mount Meru and it takes you through the history of each person before the attempt and the challenges of the climb. 8/10

The Assassin - pretty looking film, hats off to the cinematographer. 8.5/10

The Demolisher - looking stylish or having a good soundtrack wasn't enough to save this, it's decent at best. 5/10

Straight Outta Compton - 8/10.

Cop Car - 8/10. Watch this!

Madame Bovary - if this was fleshed out in a TV series it might've worked better but for a movie, it was not very engaging and even the lovely Mia couldn't save it. 3 for Mia/10

Legend - 7 punches/10.

Bridge of Spies - 5 spies/10. No real spark, disappointing.

[Tabris]

Watched I Spit On Your Grave with my roommates. Obviously an incredibly brutal lead up. Incredibly satisfying end. But holy fucking shit I feel for the lead character. Shows how shitty people can be on so many different spectrums.

Pretty damn good movie, but not especially jumping at the chance to see it ever again.

[IncantatioN]

Watched I Spit On Your Grave with my roommates. Obviously an incredibly brutal lead up. Incredibly satisfying end. But holy fucking shit I feel for the lead character. Shows how shitty people can be on so many different spectrums.

Pretty damn good movie, but not especially jumping at the chance to see it ever again.

Haven't heard anyone mention that movie in a while. Phew. Hit up A Serbian Film, Salo, Martyrs (original), Flower of Flesh and Blood, Nekromantik ... they're all really messed up and there's more where that came from. I kinda prefer psychological ones like Irreversible over all of em.

[Johnstantine]

I sat through the entirety of A Serbian Film, and at the end I think I was more shocked at how other people are shocked by it.

Or maybe I'm just desensitized to that type of stuff.

[IncantatioN]

I sat through the entirety of A Serbian Film, and at the end I think I was more shocked at how other people are shocked by it.

Or maybe I'm just desensitized to that type of stuff.

I felt the same way and I've actually watched it about 3 times with different set of friends, whoever wanted to see it.

Maybe it has to do with the amount of exposure one has to ideas or different cinema (Euro/ Asian where they can be a lot more adventurous or graphic generally speaking) or simply shutting off with the mind set that it's only a film and isn't real (... we can discuss controversial Cannibal Holocaust ). Something as powerful as say ... Look of Silence for instance or that cringeworthy scene in Irreversible is a lot more messed up versus A Serbian Film.

[Tabris]

Haven't heard anyone mention that movie in a while. Phew. Hit up A Serbian Film, Salo, Martyrs (original), Flower of Flesh and Blood, Nekromantik ... they're all really messed up and there's more where that came from. I kinda prefer psychological ones like Irreversible over all of em.

I'm actually a huge fan of psychological movies, especially horror. I've heard of quite a few of those movies, but I've never actually seen any of those ones. I'll have to check some of those out. I've definitely heard plenty about A Serbian Film and Salo.

I'll watch nearly anything that's bizarre and/or strange. I'm not the biggest fan of shocking to literally just be shocking though. Sometimes it can be interesting but oftentimes it's a bit too try hard.

My roommate is big into it too, so I've seen some pretty weird shit lately.