What have you watched recently?

Basq

Andre80Johnson wrote: »

The Trip - Starring Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan as two friends who go across N.England to do some cuisine tasting because Steve has a job to write about them (the food & restaurant) and along the way the verbally spar with each other and do imitations of different actors. Such a wonderful film. Highly recommend it. I never really liked Coogan all that much except for his cameo in Coffee & Cigarettes but Brydon, really talented with his facial expressions and comedic timing.

You should watch the TV series.. it was originally a 6 x 30 minute BBC series which aired last late year.

They basically chopped out an hour of it to make that movie.

Monkeybonkers

Inception: Not bad. Don't know what all the fuss was about with people saying they couldn't follow what was going on. I found it easy to follow.

Ironclad: The shaky camera work was really annoying. Not too bad but won't win any awards.

Clerks and Clerks 2: Brilliant

Andre80Johnson

Basq wrote: »

You should watch the TV series.. it was originally a 6 x 30 minute BBC series which aired last late year.

They basically chopped out an hour of it to make that movie.

I never knew that, so thanks for the tip.

johnny_ultimate

Kakera: A Piece of our Lives

Engaging if slight bisexual love story from Japan. Before you go and try googling the 'good bits' let me assure you it's handled with maturity as opposed to gratuitousness. Definitely the work of a female director, Momoko Ando making an impressive debut here. It's more a coming of age story, a young woman caught between an unlikable boyfriend and a kind, affectionate but borderline obsessive girl who approaches her in a cafe. Shot on a low budget, it isn't always original but is refreshingly honest and realistic in its approach, leading to an ambiguous yet statisfying conclusion.

Mickeroo

Sweatynutsack wrote: »

The Rite, Anthony Hopkins as per usual gives a great performance as a excorsist in this film. Pretty creepy to say the least and apparently based on true events. Well made and straght forward

Just watched that yesterday, thought it was terrible.

Watched Ironclad lastnight, good gory fun if a bit too long. Really good cast too.

Cookie33

Keeping Mum - stars Maggie Smith (insane housekeeper), Rowan Atkinson (vicar), Kristin Scott Thomas (unfaithful wife) & Patrick Swayze (man up to no good)

Wasn't expecting much as never heard of it before, loved it though. Laughed all the way through it, outrageous storyline.

Marty McFly

Turtyturd wrote: »

Avatar The Last Airbender: I dunno if being a fan of the TV series was helpful or took away from the experience of this. Knowing from the TV show what they were aiming for I was able to fill in the obvious gaps in the storyline, but maybe not knowing may have made the film stronger.

As it is I think it's the worst adaptation since Street Fighter. It's pretty much just a few key points from the series
joined together but not linked very well. The main problem is that the pieces they cut out are what makes the series so enjoyable, aang's sense of fun is completely lost as is most of the shows humour. The fight scenes and movements used by the benders doesn't translate to the movie and the fights just come across a sloppy and slow...and the less said about the finale the better.

Id say being a fan of the tv series took away from it really, id never even heard of the tv series before I saw the film and I found it an very enjoyable film and am lookig forward tothe sequel. All the things you pointed out from the tv series that were missing I wouldnt have noticedso I just enjoyed what was put on the screen in front of me.

+1 though on Up very over rated I thought also +1 on Fanboys I wouldnt be the biggest of Star War fans but really found it a good entertaining watch.

grohlisagod

Inglorious Bastards (1978 original). 6/10
Pretty average. Not a patch on Tarantino's. Pretty stylish and one of the characters has a fantastic accent. The little Italian is funny also. It's really a turn your brain off type of film.

American Beauty 9/10
Superb film. Fascinating story. Some really funny parts. As I've come to expect Kevin Spacey puts in a stellar performance. Love the Thomas Newman soundtrack also.

Interview with the Vampire 7/10
Fairly predictable stuff until a 12 year old Kirsten Dunst appears and all hell breaks loose! Liked the ending too. A welcome departure from the modern vampire ****e!

JohnK

luvbulmers01 wrote: »

Id say being a fan of the tv series took away from it really, id never even heard of the tv series before I saw the film and I found it an very enjoyable film and am lookig forward tothe sequel. All the things you pointed out from the tv series that were missing I wouldnt have noticedso I just enjoyed what was put on the screen in front of me.

I'd agree, I'd also never heard of the series before seeing the film and I thought it was enjoyable enough. Are they actually making a sequel? I thought it got such a slating there'd be no chance of another one.

stiffler123

I watched Megan Is Missing yesterday night. I have to say, this is the scariest, creepiest thing I have ever seen and I don't scare easily. Still kind of spooked now. Based on the real life abductions of 7 teenage girls. I think it's job is to send a message to parents on the dangers of kids and the internet. Very scary stuff though, could not even role a cigarette during the last twenty minutes, some very chilling moments throughout. Very hard to watch at times. I would be interested in hearing other peoples thoughts if they take the plunge and watch it.

SarahBM

Iron Clad - It was good but could have been so much better. wish they had made more of the love story (my girly side coming through) but the fight scenes were cool. They sure werent shy about chopping limbs off anyway.

Saw Transformers too, way better than I was expecting. the 3D actually improves the action sequences. I remember giving out about the 2nd film because the action scenes with special effects were so messy, but they were very good in this film.
and of course it was left wide open for another movie. another franchise they are going to milk for all its worth.

ReacherCreature

I watched Lars and the Real Girl earlier. I didn't enjoy it. I didn't get the hype and the story was ludicrous and implausible. One or two laughs at the start but became tedious to watch midway through.

krudler

The Thing- dear Hollywood, this is how you make a horror movie, tense, bleak and an overwhelming sense of "we're fcuked" throughout, the effects still hold up, Kurt Russell is as a cool as fcuk in it and the music is brilliant. Has one of the best posters ever too

mikemac

Elephant White
It was the cast of Djimon Hounsou and Kevin Bacon to it
It's forgettable, I've almost forgotten what the plot was about and the usually excellent Kevin Bacon doing a strange British accent was distracting

Bobby Fischer Against the World
Enjoyed this, it doesn't realy have any new information but HBO does the business again and produce an excellent film

jefreywithonef

Léon: The Professional. It was alright, it's really silly and borders on comedy some of the time but it was entertaining enough.

johnny_ultimate

Bedevilled

Another day, another gritty South Korean film. This one doesn't belong up in the higher echelons of the new Korean cinematic revolution, but is worth a watch. A clamy, humid atmosphere is conjured up by the director as he sends his protagonist Hye-Won off to a remote island for a holiday. There, there's a sort of Lord of the Flies vibe as a childhood friend is treated poorly by a cruel husband and a gaggle of twisted 'elders'. As misfortune upon misfortune befalls the downtrodden servant, things are obviously going to boil over.

Biggest problem is that it feels bloated a lot of the time - especially in an extended prologue and epilogue that feel a bit basic in many ways. Also, spending a lot of time with such an unlikable group of people - so cruel it borders on the surreal - means there's always sense of detachment. The long expected resolution is grizzly but nothing we haven't seen before. That said, there's some engaging slow burning tension and good ideas about the ways societies interact. There's also a morbid curiosity in seeing how far a victim can be pushed before breaking point. Solidly watchable with plenty of character if lacking the true 'wow' factor that has made the names of many a South Korean director.

Shreddingblood

I saw 3 recently.
A Scanner Darkly, Senna , The Butterfly Effect (director's cut). I will definitely see these again. A Scanner Darkly was a real mind-boggler and I thought it was an excellent story. I'd say it got bad reviews because it was complicated and slow moving but I really enjoyed it.
Senna is the best film I've seen all year, nothing more to say that hasn't already been said.
If you're planning on seeing The Butterfly Effect see the director's cut. I read about the other endings on imdb but the one I saw was definitely the best.

bnt

Just finished watching The Player (1992), Robert Altman's fairly shocking yet funny take on the Hollywood studio system. Tim Robbins and Greta Scacchi star, along with half of Hollywood - this film has the most star cameos in movie history; it starts with a single take of over 7 minutes, as the camera swoops around the studio car park, following people around and picking up conversations through the office windows.

I liked Greta Scacchi's character, June Gudmunsdottir. No relation to Bjork, but still quite arty, and clearly not infected with the Hollywood cynicism virus. It's unusual to have a major character in a major movie who is just normal, with no issues, and naturally happy despite what happens to her. It serves to highlight just how messed up everyone else is.

One thing that tickles my funny bone no end is how Life imitates Art. Near the end of this film we see the end of a film being made by Robbins' (fictional) studio. It's a criminal drama called Habeas Corpus, and has Susan Sarandon witnessing the execution of an unjustly-convicted prisoner. Sarandon would go on to win an Oscar in 1995, for her role in the real film Dead Man Walking, in which she witnesses the execution of an unjustly-convicted prisoner. (I wonder where Tim Robbins, who wrote & directed that film, got the idea?) In Habeas Corpus, however ...

Bruce Willis pops up with a shotgun, blasts his way in to the gas chamber, and rescues the prisoner, who is played by Julia Roberts. :pac:

Shreddingblood

Monkeybonkers wrote: »

Inception: Not bad. Don't know what all the fuss was about with people saying they couldn't follow what was going on. I found it easy to follow.

I don't know anyone who couldn't follow it. I thought people were mainly confused with trying to figure out the ending, because there were a few different ways to interperate it, like a lot of Nolan's films.

jcf

Lord Of the Rings trilogy on BluRay - must say the HD make the effects look bad, it is a lovely transfer but Gollum looks shíte...

mikemac

Johnny Belinda, black and white film from 1948
Love it!

Deaf and dumb girl gets raped and has a child but won't reveal the father. Her own father is furious but mellows and becomes a great grandparent.
He later discovers who the rapist is and there is a confrontation by a cliff.
I'll say no more about the ending

jefreywithonef wrote: »

Léon: The Professional. It was alright, it's really silly and borders on comedy some of the time but it was entertaining enough.

Slightly uncomfortable watching the lover and "take me to bed" talk between the two of them
I believe there is an edited version which removes a lot of this

Judgement Day

Unforgiven (1992) Clint Eastwood's Academy Award winning production. The ultimate Western - it has everything, a great story line, star studded cast (Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris, Gene Hackman and, of course Clint himself), and a terrific finale. A gritty, anti-hero movie which shows the Old West in a less than glamourous light. I have an ancient VHS, off the TV recording, which I never tire of watching when I'm in the right mood. Blu Ray who needs it?

Turtyturd

jcf wrote: »

Lord Of the Rings trilogy on BluRay - must say the HD make the effects look bad, it is a lovely transfer but Gollum looks shíte...

Have only watched the first one so far but that was a big concern of mine, even in the first one which is the least effects laden of the series some of the scenes are hard to watch...but the details that become noticeable in the armour and in a lot of the scenery is amazing.

irishh_bob

watched the last boy scout on itv 1 last nite , believe it or not id never seen it before

plenty of razor sharp dialogue and a typical bruce willis performance

willis = those pants , how much did they cost

damon wyans = 700 dollars

willis , 700 dollars , they dont have a tv in em or something !

sunssocks

Catch 22 - really worth watching, in case you never saw it

Jet Black

Drag me to hell.

I thought this movie was terrible. It seemed to try and be more gross than scarry.

RED

Don't know how I missed this. Its not the best action movie, but it was quite enjoyable. A nice cast in it too.

jaykhunter

I watched Priest the other night. Horrible attempt at a.....what is this exactly? A futuristic barren wasteland; everyone dresses like it's the Wickedy Wild West; extremely bare character development and plot. Priests who are now disbanded get together to kill vampire creatures. Things happen, nobody cares, and the CGI/budget isn't half what this needed to be. I wouldn't recommend seeking this one out. I get the feeling that even if this film had 4 hours we'd get "things happen for 4 hours" as opposed to spending a lick of time telling us why we should care about the characters or the world.

This film isn't bad enough to laugh at, it's just incredibly uncreative.

ReacherCreature

The Town

I'm finding it increasingly difficult to criticise this movie. In my eyes it's excellent. Great direction, a fine cast, terrific set pieces, authentic feel, setting was true to life and the soundtrack is amazing. I'll be watching this numerous times over the coming year. Loved it.

johnny_ultimate

The Thin Red Line

First time watching, and had the pleasure of seeing a print of it on the big screen in the IFI. Simply divine, I now fully understand the Malik hype. I don't know why, but I have never been a big fan of 'war dramas'. But this is something else. The intensity of the filming is unique - sure, there's a lot of wavy grass, but the result are battle sequences that feel as messy, awkward and casually bloody as they should be. The Zimmer soundtrack is gorgeous, and relying on well known faces adds to the film so much. And these are all individual soldiers, all driven by their own credible motivations. You do actually make a connection to them, and even characters who seem like caricatures at first - Nolte's towering performance, notably - reveal much depth as the film progresses.

Dream-like, hypnotic and almost feels too short at just under three hours. Simply a joy.

jcf

Turtyturd wrote: »

Have only watched the first one so far but that was a big concern of mine, even in the first one which is the least effects laden of the series some of the scenes are hard to watch...but the details that become noticeable in the armour and in a lot of the scenery is amazing.

Yes Incredible, so overall still a very good transfer ..

Couldn't they re do the dodgyness of Gollum?