What have you watched recently: Electric Boogaloo

Judgement Day

triseke wrote: »

"La Cage aux folles"

"Soy Cuba"

Just asking, but why do you keep posting lists of film names with no comments - good, bad or indifferent?

mikemac1

12 years a Slave

Thought it was excellent and I may go back and watch a second time

Wolf of Wall Street

Overly long and didn't come near the almighty hype I've been hearing about for a long while now. Didn't like it much at all

Wishiwasa Littlebitaller

Blended (Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler).

No Wedding Singer, that's for sure but I quite liked it. It's really poor in parts, there is no denying that, but by and large, I think there is more to like, than not to like about it.

The most important thing to remember though, is that it's a family comedy and so not really going to hit the mark if you're looking for an intelligent romantic comedy such as As Good As It Gets etc, as it is quite childish in parts in fact and would imagine if you were to see it with no kids in tow, you would most likely spend half the film cringing.

If you have young kids though, and looking for something decent to see, I'd recommend it.

Looper007

mikemac1 wrote: »

Wolf of Wall Street

Overly long and didn't come near the almighty hype I've been hearing about for a long while now. Didn't like it much at all

I don't think it's anywhere near Scorsese's peak's, it's overlong and could have done with a Harvey Weinstein getting his hands on it to edit it down. But it's a far better movie then the over hyped The Departed, when I see people put that up with Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver and Goodfellas, it makes me want to jump off the tallest skyscraper. It's Leonardo DiCaprio's best film with Scorsese by a good distance imo, I never got the love for the DiCaprio/Scorsese partnership and I want to see Scorsese work with the Fassbender's and Hardy's of this world instead.

Marty McFly

Looper007 wrote: »

I don't think it's anywhere near Scorsese's peak's, it's overlong and could have done with a Harvey Weinstein getting his hands on it to edit it down. But it's a far better movie then the over hyped The Departed, when I see people put that up with Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver and Goodfellas, it makes me want to jump off the tallest skyscraper. It's Leonardo DiCaprio's best film with Scorsese by a good distance imo, I never got the love for the DiCaprio/Scorsese partnership and I want to see Scorsese work with the Fassbender's and Hardy's of this world instead.

See movies and taste are all down to the individual.

I myself much prefer the Departed to Wolf of Wall Street I enjoyed Wolf of Wall Street but wouldn't be rushing back to view it a second time, were as The Departed I have done and would gladly watch multiple times.

I do agree with you on the Scorcese/Di Caprio partnership never really got it and would like to see Scorcese branch out and work with other actors such as Fassbender.

johnny_ultimate

The Punk Singer - Fantastic documentary portrait of Bikini Kill / Le Tigre singer Kathleen Hanna. While it's quite straightforward in the way it is put together, that actually perfectly suits its subject. It's an energetic and insightful exploration of not only Hanna's life so far but also the riot grrrl movement and 'third wave' feminism. Like Hanna's lyrics, it is intimate, frank and no-nonsense. It moves forward at a brilliant pace. The first half is heavily scored to Bikini Kill's frantic songs and fast, in-your-face editing and fanzine-esque collage presentation. It slows down a bit in the second half, but this cleverly ties in to change in Hanna's musical and personal life direction. Hanna herself is a luminous stage presence, and that translates completely to screen. Even if you're not a fan of her 'rebel girl' live performances, it's hard not to be won over by the sheer force of her messages and ideologies. And the film goes well beyond painting her as simply a feminist and musical icon, with the latter half of the docu featuring her providing forthright interviews to camera about the illness that prevented her from performing for almost half a decade.

A step above and beyond most 'portrait' or music documentaries of this sort, this is the kind of film that had me leaving the cinema thinking '**** yeah!'. I was more than happy to forgive the fact it isn't exactly 'objective' in its perspective. Director Sini Anderson might not have anything but respect for Hanna, but she's made a film that is passionate, direct, vibrant and intelligent - basically, it's just like Hanna herself. She might not think she's the queen of the neighbourhood, but I got news for you: she is.

Out in the IFI now, but also on iTunes Ireland and Netflix US.

Amalgam

johnny_ultimate, cheers, I was in the IFC and there wasn't, or didn't seem to be, a promotional poster for this listing.

I would never guess she'd get a film done about her, to be honest. Having said that, to me, Le Tigre have always been strangely.. you'd look twice, if the band was a person in the street. :P

FortuneChip

I watched How To Train Your Dragon for the first time last night. I was exhausted, and was sure I'd fall asleep during it.

Not a chance. I was wide-eyed from the intro. Such a great flick. Lots of exciting action, lots of funny scenes, a brilliant soundtrack, particularly when Toothless and Hiccup are getting acquainted.
Just a gem of a movie. Looking forward to the second one now.

e_e

Looper007 wrote: »

I don't think it's anywhere near Scorsese's peak's, it's overlong and could have done with a Harvey Weinstein getting his hands on it to edit it down. But it's a far better movie then the over hyped The Departed, when I see people put that up with Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Taxi Driver and Goodfellas, it makes me want to jump off the tallest skyscraper. It's Leonardo DiCaprio's best film with Scorsese by a good distance imo, I never got the love for the DiCaprio/Scorsese partnership and I want to see Scorsese work with the Fassbender's and Hardy's of this world instead.

They both suffer from many of the same flaws imo and I'd be hesitant to label either a classic. I honestly prefer Shutter Island and Hugo out of Scorsese's recent work.

krudler

Predator- in Toronto, there's a huge multiplex here that lets people vote from a list for a movie that they screen twice a month, it was awesome

There's a smaller independent place nearby that's doing a Sam Raimi midnight marathon in two weeks time, all three Evil Dead movies and Drag Me To Hell.

Amalgam

North by Northwest (1959) (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053125/). May 26. The last of the Hitchcock season at the IMC, Dún Laoghaire.

A film that moves about a lot, scenic wise, but, after watching two or three Hitchcock features, you realise the premise of his films are very very compact.

An annoying 'bloom' or glimmer to the film's visuals, vaseline on the lens sort of vibe.

There's a lot of footsie in this film! The interplay between Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint must have been quite racy at the time, comes across a tiny bit twee and dated now.

I think I have acquired a thirst for classics on the big screen..

ButtersSuki

High brow and low brow weekend for me.

Low brow was Totally Awesome - made for TV (VH1) 80s spoof movie of a "lost" and forgotten 80s movie that was "found" in 2006. Full of cliches and stereotypes, it sounds awfully bad, but was surprisingly good, esp. if you get the 80s references and in jokes. Starring SNL's Chris Kattan and Tracy Morgan, and joined by one of the Sweet valley high twins, it made me laugh far more than I expected it to. Warning: I'd imagine it's not funny at all though if you're not au fait with 80s teen movies! 6.5/10

High brow was The Dreamers Bernardo Bertolucci directs Michael Pitt, Louis Garrel and Eva Green (occasionally with clothes) in coming of age/student rebellion Frenglish movie. If you like very slow moving, French movies starring Emmanuelle Beart, you'll prob. like this. Interesting side note: Eva Green has enormous boobs - even the missus was saying you'd never notice this normally, i.e. when she is clothed. There's a director's commentary included on the DVD which I'm nerdy enough to actually watch at some stage. Definitely not one for the masses, but I enjoyed it. 8/10.

dark crystal

Devil's Knot (2014)

Atom Egoyan directs Colin Firth and Reece Witherspoon in his take on the case of the infamous West Memphis Three case.

Three young boys are found brutally murdered in Robin Hood Hills, Memphis in 1993. In the shoddy investigation that followed, three teenagers are tried and convicted of the crime without any DNA evidence and on the basis that they were suspected of being part of a satanic cult.

It's a servicable (and in places, very upsetting) depiction of the case that spawned a book and two acclaimed documentaries. However, Egoyan's film feels more like a movie of the week, or an extended episode of CSI, rather than a cinematic feature film, despite a talented cast. There are some promising moments, only to introduce characters and points of view which are never fully explored.

Firth just seems totally out of place here too - he doesn't seem suited to the role of the Memphis private investigator at all and underplays the character terribly.

I think I'll seek out and watch the documentaries instead, as it is a fascinating case.

5 out of 10.

Looper007

dark crystal wrote: »

The Double (2013)

Hmm, this was a strange one alright.

Directed by Richard Ayoade (Submarine), it tells the story of an office drone (played by Jesse Eisenberg) who lives a lonely life, ignored by colleagues, held in disdain by his ailing mother and generally invisible to the world around him.
His world is shaken up by the arrival at work of his doppelganger, who looks identical and shares his name, albeit in reverse. The new guy is dynamic, popular and ultimately much darker in nature than his introverted namesake.

Ayoade creates a weird and compelling tonal atmopsphere here. The sets are grey, Orwellian versions of Eastern Bloc-like apartments, cafes and offices. It's all a bit arty and self aware, but I really enjoyed the story and in particular, Eisenberg's central performance/s. He's not an actor I've ever really warmed to or rated much, but here, he's great.

By the end, I hadn't much of a clue what was going on, but I enjoyed the ride for the most part. Definitely a curiosity worth checking out, if only for Eisenberg's performance alone.

This is one of my favourite's of the year so far, Eisenberg gives his best performance to date, I loved the set design, yes it's borrowed somewhat from Brazil. The thing that shocked me more when I first watched it was how downbeat and cruel it was, especially the third act. It seems to have split opinion on here when it was released, some disliked it and some loved it. I think the trailer didn't sell the film right, many went in expecting a comedy with a bit of romance. It's still hanging about in my top ten so far this year.

Looper007

ButtersSuki wrote: »

High brow was The Dreamers Bernardo Bertolucci directs Michael Pitt, Louis Garrel and Eva Green (occasionally with clothes) in coming of age/student rebellion Frenglish movie. If you like very slow moving, French movies starring Emmanuelle Beart, you'll prob. like this. Interesting side note: Eva Green has enormous boobs - even the missus was saying you'd never notice this normally, i.e. when she is clothed. There's a director's commentary included on the DVD which I'm nerdy enough to actually watch at some stage. Definitely not one for the masses, but I enjoyed it. 8/10.

God Eva Green for this film alone was worth watching it and yes you're missus is right . She's always getting her kit off theses day's but she was never as sexy as in this, seems like she likes to slap on the make up these days. I think her whole career boils down to this film really. As a Film, it's Bertolucci's best in a while, I found it far more interesting when it was confined to the flat. The nods to French new wave and Keaton/Chaplin were great. Not his best movie it's a bit self indulgent but I give a 7/10.

LuckyLloyd

kryogen wrote: »

Re watching Clockers right, haven't seen this film in so long. Cracking piece, really good.

Arguably his best work imo. So much to admire throughout.

ButtersSuki

Looper007 wrote: »

God Eva Green for this film alone was worth watching it and yes you're missus is right . She's always getting her kit off theses day's but she was never as sexy as in this, seems like she likes to slap on the make up these days. I think her whole career boils down to this film really. As a Film, it's Bertolucci's best in a while, I found it far more interesting when it was confined to the flat. The nods to French new wave and Keaton/Chaplin were great. Not his best movie it's a bit self indulgent but I give a 7/10.

Oh it's self-indulgent alright, but given the context (director, theme etc.), that's to be expected here. I'd only really seen Eva Green in Casino Royale up to this (that said, I have Dark Shadows at home on Blu Ray that I have to watch someday). My sister recently told me the bauld Eva spent a summer in Galway as a teenager on an exchange programme. I missed my She missed her chance.......

vidor

I'll add that to the list, haven't come across it before. I must be alone in rarely thinking that a director being self-indulgent is a bad thing. If anything I wish more were.

Gamayun

The Double (2013)

Shades of Brazil here
well made and acted also
I liked this a lot

Take Shelter (2011)

Slow drama, quite long,
the pacing wont be for all
interesting, though

Short Term 12 (2013)

Brie Larson excels,
avoids the mawkishness trap
good indie drama

John Carter (2012)

A box office flop
perfectly enjoyable
good fun, I liked it

e_e

You should write a book: "Haiku Reviews!"

kryogen

Just finished watching The Cove again, still saddens and angers me a lot.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

kryogen wrote: »

Just finished watching The Cove again, still saddens and angers me a lot.

Why would you watch it again? :eek:

Arghus

Eden Lake (2008)- Great reviews and the presence of Michael Fassbender drew me to this one. It sounded like a solid and sordid 90 minutes.

Well it was sordid, that's for sure. That's the only wholly positive selling point I can think of in the films favor; it's nihilistic negativity.

As our feckless middle class yuppie protagonists are chased down, battered and butchered by a gang of hoodie antichrists, the film to it's credit does maintain an atmosphere of dread and continuously ups the ante in terms of violence and darkness. There are a few did I just see that moments of outright nastiness, provoking a sense of amazement and sick gratitude from me, that the filmmakers were willing to go that far has to be commended. It took some guts.

So the film has guts. I'm not so certain about its brains. Despite the bravery and a desire to try to make a deeper point about the flaws in British society, the film is a failure overall because of the sheer absurdness of the actions of characters at most stages. And the bad 'uns are just so hepped up for blood at all times that it's all ultimately very, very hard to take seriously.

charlie_says

I watched Terminator Salvation last night. Was in the mood for some crappy action.

So completely utterly awful. Bale was a disaster especially his shouting into the radio scenes with his StupidBatVoice (TM). The terminators managed to fail miserably at terminating even though they had some cool gear, throwing people around seems to be preferable to indiscriminate large caliber weapon usage.

What a load of utter crap. I feel like someone did a sh1t in my head.

kryogen

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

Why would you watch it again? :eek:

To remind myself

johnny_ultimate

The Werckmeister Harmonies - I'm loath to describe a Bela Tarr film as 'accessible', because even his most approachable films exist resolutely in the realm of hardcore 'art' cinema. But there's something about Werckmeister... that means I'd be inclined to recommend this to anyone who hasn't seen a Tarr film above the others I've watched (Satantango and The Turin Horse), and not only because it isn't seven hours long.

So yes, there's still insanely long takes (a mere 30-something edits over 140 minutes). There are still five minute plus takes of people walking down roads without a word said. The story is still told in an elusive, mysterious way that consistently resists delivering obvious answers, meanings and resolutions. It is very much a Bela Tarr film - long, slow, experimental, abstract.

And yet compared to the other films mentioned above there's more forward momentum, and direct action. There are fewer tangents. It also helps that it has a clear protagonist - played by Lars Rudolph - who acts as a way for the audience to become more directly immersed in the narrative that develops (often, it should be said, in the background). Even the soundtrack - which, as is Tarr tradition, is mostly one or two songs carefully repeated at key intervals - feels more willing to express some sort of emotion.

The story, at a basic level, follows a sort of violent 'revolution' and unrest that breaks out in a small East European town after the arrival of a traveling show featuring a giant whale and a mysterious orator known as The Prince. There are many themes explored - there are several discussions about human's cosmic significance (or lack thereof) and the whole thing could be read as a pretty abstract allegory for various 20th century political and social movements.

But it's probably incorrect to get too bothered with digging for meaning. As ever with Tarr films, it's the distinctive, elegiac presentation that's worth giving yourself over to. With a pace completely its own, the whole thing feels like a bizarre fever dream, yet one that is grounded in a generally recognisable reality. Tarr stays with scenes long enough that we're invited to examine and engage with them in a completely unique way - to embrace the 'feel' of scenes and wonder about the multiple readings and mysteries present in people's faces and actions. Then there's a number of astonishing setpieces - including the drunken and fumbling cosmic dance that opens the film, or a hospital riot with a devastating pair of fragile psychological climaxes.

An intoxicating and unique experience. If you've never devoted the energy to a Bela Tarr film before, this is most certainly an ideal place to start.

ButtersSuki

kryogen wrote: »

Just finished watching The Cove again, still saddens and angers me a lot.

I've cried twice since my teens (not saying that as bravado or anything like that, just stating the facts). Once was after watching The Cove. It angers and upsets me in equal measure. That said, I think everyone should be made to watch it.

PandyAndy

Rage (also known as Tokarev)

This film will make you rage due to the sheer stupidity of it all. Don't watch it. I feel bad posting this because some of you will end up being curious about it now, sorry.

There's one scene where Cage's character is let go by the police when they stop him during a car chase, a car chase where a police car blows up presumably killing the officers inside. And they just let him go.

tunguska

Tango & Cash

Mother of God this was awful. Havent seen it in years and was on 3e last night so decided to give it a whirl for old times sake. To be fair, thinking about it, I thought it was naff back in the day too but it seems to be even worse now. Stallone + comedy(intentional anyway) = disaster. He just cant do funny, hes one of those actors that tries but it'll never happen, he was born without a lick of comic ability. I felt sorry for Kurt Russell though, he was way too good for crap like that. I think the only enjoyment to be had from the whole thing was watching Sly try to deliver the one liners.........reminds me of Radioactive man in the simpsons and his dialogue coach losing the will the live trying to get him to deliver the "Up and atom" line

MagicMarker

Tango & Cash is a stone cold classic!