Main Menu

Last movie watched...

Started by SmallBlueThing, 04 February, 2011, 12:40:44 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

repoman

As for Arnie.  I love Arnie films to a degree. 

Terminator is my favourite film with Arnie in it but it's almost not an Arnie film given how little dialogue he has.  It's by far the best Terminator film anyway but it'd make my top 3 all time horror list.

Pumping Iron is my favourite Arnie performance though.  It's his most quotable film.  Super easy to rewatch.  A real fave.

Commando is always fun, Running Man is okay (prefer the book though), Predator is great but I actually prefer the 2nd film and True Lies is great too but not as rewatchable as the others. 

I've never really gelled with Total Recall despite seeing it in the cinema at the time.  It's good but feels like a less good John Carpenter film.  I can appreciate what it does but it just isn't for me.

Bolt-01

I finally got to see TRAIN TO BUSAN last night and thoroughly enjoyed it. The running time fairly rattled past and It was great to see many of the tropes of Zombie movies handled differently. Highly recommended.

The zombies were very similar to those in the excellent Netflix serial Kingdom too.

Link Prime

Quote from: repoman on 10 November, 2020, 11:20:39 AM
I really like portmanteau films and so was quite excited about Ghost Stories what with it getting a cinema release but I was very let down by it.

For my money Crooked House (2008) is the best 'modern' Portmanteau Horror, and when viewed as it originally aired (3 parts over 3 nights) could be considered part of the 'Ghost Story for Christmas' series thread too.
Gatiss' most successful entry at that.

repoman

I still need to watch Peninsula but I probably need to watch Train to Busan again before I do.

Busan had some great moments and handled the zombies well but it had one massive problem which speaks to what Greg said earlier.  The cloying sentimentality but more specifically the ridiculous crying in it.

Do Korean people really cry like that?  Because grown men going 'BWOO HOOO HOOOOOO' with all of the believability of a toddler looking for attention is ridiculous.  It was completely at odds with the rest of the film.

Slightly related:  watch One Cut of the Dead.  You know how if a film is terrible for the first half, you may as well turn it off?  DO NOT DO THAT WITH THIS FILM.  It's well worth sticking with it.

repoman

Quote from: Link Prime on 10 November, 2020, 12:00:58 PM
Quote from: repoman on 10 November, 2020, 11:20:39 AM
I really like portmanteau films and so was quite excited about Ghost Stories what with it getting a cinema release but I was very let down by it.

For my money Crooked House (2008) is the best 'modern' Portmanteau Horror, and when viewed as it originally aired (3 parts over 3 nights) could be considered part of the 'Ghost Story for Christmas' series thread too.
Gatiss' most successful entry at that.

Colour me interested.   Thanks buddy.

pictsy

Quote from: repoman on 10 November, 2020, 11:24:52 AM
Terminator is my favourite film with Arnie in it but it's almost not an Arnie film given how little dialogue he has.  It's by far the best Terminator film...

Not often that I see someone rate T1 over T2.  I would agree, though.  I can't stand T3 and Genesys.

Dark Fate surprised me.  I'd say it's the only sequel worthy enough to follow on from T2.  It was nice to be entertained by a new Terminator film.  (Okay, I was entertained by Salvation, but that film is mess so fails to satisfy me with its story).

Link Prime

Quote from: repoman on 10 November, 2020, 12:01:51 PM
Quote from: Link Prime on 10 November, 2020, 12:00:58 PM
Quote from: repoman on 10 November, 2020, 11:20:39 AM
I really like portmanteau films and so was quite excited about Ghost Stories what with it getting a cinema release but I was very let down by it.

For my money Crooked House (2008) is the best 'modern' Portmanteau Horror, and when viewed as it originally aired (3 parts over 3 nights) could be considered part of the 'Ghost Story for Christmas' series thread too.
Gatiss' most successful entry at that.

Colour me interested.   Thanks buddy.

The DVD may be hard to get hold of now, hope you manage to see it regardless.

repoman

Quote from: pictsy on 10 November, 2020, 12:11:20 PM
Quote from: repoman on 10 November, 2020, 11:24:52 AM
Terminator is my favourite film with Arnie in it but it's almost not an Arnie film given how little dialogue he has.  It's by far the best Terminator film...

Not often that I see someone rate T1 over T2.  I would agree, though.  I can't stand T3 and Genesys.

Dark Fate surprised me.  I'd say it's the only sequel worthy enough to follow on from T2.  It was nice to be entertained by a new Terminator film.  (Okay, I was entertained by Salvation, but that film is mess so fails to satisfy me with its story).

Although I was 17 when I saw T2 in the cinema, Terminator was already firmly established as a favourite film by then and I have to admit I was disappointed that day by T2.  The comedy, the 'I know now why you cry' nonsense and of course the fact that the main twist was spoiled by every news outlet at the time.

I've since grown to like the film, especially because of the extended cut.  It's a really good film but the first has the edge over it for me.

Now oddly I didn't mind T3.  It was the first film where the CGI felt like it had weight.  Especially the toilet fight.  Lots of set pieces.  Doesn't go on too long.  Great ending too.  It is one of those films that looks better with time considering what followed.  Much like an Alien: Resurrection (although I confess I loved that in the cinema and still do).

Salvation's main problems were that it took the iconic future scenes from T2 and turned it into a dull Transformers movie.  Didn't have enough Terminators in it either.  But the real issue was the ending which, if I'm understanding it right was that a vet took a heart that had been punched by CGI arnie and put it into Worst John Connor in a desert location.  Didn't really wrap up anything either. 

The first 15 or so minutes of Genesys had me cooing like a baby.  I was so into it.  Everything after that was incredibly dull though and Joint Worst John Connor's storyline was very stupid.

Dark Fate though.  I hated basically everything about it apart from one thing.  I hated Sarah Connor looking like Katie Hopkins and her whole grumpy grandma schtick.  I hated nappy changing Arnie.  I hated the main character whose name I couldn't remember even when the film had just ended.  I hated the new Terminator.  However, it did win a lot of points back because of Grace who was just superb all the way through it.

What are you doing?

Future shit.


She's the best.

pictsy

Quote from: repoman on 10 November, 2020, 02:19:15 PM
Salvation's main problems were that it took the iconic future scenes from T2 and turned it into a dull Transformers movie.  Didn't have enough Terminators in it either.  But the real issue was the ending which, if I'm understanding it right was that a vet took a heart that had been punched by CGI arnie and put it into Worst John Connor in a desert location.  Didn't really wrap up anything either.
I don't entirely remember Salvation's "plot".  I remember it being stupid nonsense.  Nevertheless, I liked all the post-apocalypse stuff and some of the more imaginative robot ideas.  I think the world it showed was interesting and the difficulties of living in that world worth exploring.  The film didn't really do that, so I won't defend it.  It just didn't bore me like T3 did and it wasn't a rehash of T2 like T3 is.

Quote
The first 15 or so minutes of Genesys had me cooing like a baby.  I was so into it.  Everything after that was incredibly dull though and Joint Worst John Connor's storyline was very stupid.
Pretty much the same with how I felt.  I was really excited that something interesting was going to be done with the time travel concept and then it became clear the film was nothing by cynical fan service.  I was pissed off with it before it ended.

Quote
Dark Fate though.  I hated basically everything about it apart from one thing.  I hated Sarah Connor looking like Katie Hopkins and her whole grumpy grandma schtick.  I hated nappy changing Arnie.  I hated the main character whose name I couldn't remember even when the film had just ended.  I hated the new Terminator.  However, it did win a lot of points back because of Grace who was just superb all the way through it.

I would have said Grace was the main character.  I liked Dani's character and story.  I liked the idea that if John Connor gets taken down, someone else would fill void.  That really helps the franchise start moving forward with its concepts again.  I liked that Arnie wasn't at the forefront.  That was the right move.  The franchise has used him as a crutch and it's still the case in this film to an extent, but at least it's an effort to move on.  I liked Sarah Connor in no small part because it was great to see Linda Hamilton back and in a much more prominent role.  The three women working together but somewhat at odds with one another was a wonderful dynamic and added additional layers of tension.  I also felt the tension, which was admittedly missing from the three previous films for me.  I was unsure about the new Terminator, but I was won over by the end. 

Regardless of all that, the important thing I take away from Dark Fate is that it feels like it is continuing the story and not like it is trying to just cash in on franchise (or try something new and making a trainwreck out of it).  I will gush over this film because I wasn't expecting it to be as enjoyable to watch as it was.  I have only seen it once, but there is a chance I might end up liking it more than T2.

All said, Terminator is my favourite.  The atmosphere, streamline storytelling, great soundtrack, childhood nostalgia and dunking on Kyle Reese for being a weird creep are what win out.

repoman

I watched American Werewolf in London for the first time in a while.  My brother had it recorded off the telly back in the day and so I watched it countless times as a kid.  Bought it on DVD about 20 years ago and oddly it left me a bit cold.  Not sure why.

Anyway, I finally got around to watching it this weekend and it's basically a perfect movie.

David Naughton is fantastic in it.  The horror aspects are good, the comedy works.  The thing that really struck me are the little details.  Like that kid who says 'no!' all the time.  Sort of unnecessary to have him in two scenes but it all just works.

I was worried that the werewolf effects wouldn't hold up but they still do.  It's not really a genre that has ever nailed it but AWIL does a good job.  The only thing I don't like is when he looks at the camera during the transformation.

pictsy

The Prophecy

This was not what I was expecting.  It was pretty cheesy, but well within my wheelhouse of enjoyment.

Nevertheless, the plot is moronic.  [spoiler]It centres on a renegade angel trying to gain possession of the soul of a monstrous army general because he is incapable of waging the war in heaven effectively without it.  So another angel puts that soul in a little girl who gets possessed by the general and they run around and blah blah blah.  Seriously, if you can't have that specific generals soul, get another.  It's not like humanity is short of evil army generals.  There is nothing said that makes that generals soul especially necessary outside the idea that he was the most evil.  Get the next most evil, I'm sure the plan will still work.[/spoiler]  Whatever, it has plenty of Christopher Walken hamming it up, so I'm happy.

TordelBack

Demolition Man. The action has aged a bit, but it's still a surprisingly clever, genuinely funny film. Stallone and Bullock both work their gorgeous arses off at their respective bits to great effect, Hawthorne makes for a decent baddie, and if Snipes is fecking annoying throughout then that's what the script wants him to be. Impossible not to see Brink in the brilliantly sustained swearing-fine gag. The building designs are often extraordinary,  and thinking about what the working vehicles must have cost is terrifying. Ahh, what Dredd '95 - or even Dredd '12 - might have been.

"This fascist crap makes me want to puke". Wise words, John Spartan.

Link Prime

That rare joy experienced when you feel that you haven't wasted 2 hours of your life was mine for the taking after watching indie sci-fi horror The Endless on Netflix last night.

Some mind bending time distortion stuff to process, but I went to bed satisfied that I had teased out all the answers after the credits rolled.
Or at least I think I did...

Will be re-watching it very soon.

pictsy

Quote from: Link Prime on 16 November, 2020, 12:36:54 PM
That rare joy experienced when you feel that you haven't wasted 2 hours of your life was mine for the taking after watching indie sci-fi horror The Endless on Netflix last night.

Some mind bending time distortion stuff to process, but I went to bed satisfied that I had teased out all the answers after the credits rolled.
Or at least I think I did...

Will be re-watching it very soon.

I watched this earlier in the year.  I think it was around the same time I saw Color out of Space.  I ended up preferring Endless.  It was very engaging, very weird, made sense and had a conclusion that left me very satisfied.  If I were to make a top 10 list of the best films I've watched this year, The Endless would definitely make the list.  Also glad other people are finding it and enjoying it.

Tjm86

Quote from: repoman on 16 November, 2020, 11:26:01 AM
The only thing I don't like is when he looks at the camera during the transformation.

I know what you mean, Johnson bugs me senseless every time he does a presser ...