Last movie watched...

[Apestrife]

Thin red line. Nicely made, but not quite my thing. A bit too "spiritual", or what to call it, for my taste. But certainly nice to look at.

[Theblazeuk]

High Rise

Well, it's a Ben Wheatley movie. Which is good in my books Really well done, unsettling and manic with brilliant design, direction and acting. I could never rate a movie like this with stars or numbers because I would have little to compare it to. If it has one flaw it is that the slip from slight transgression to utter breakdown occurs in a montage mid-way, feeling a little rushed - however if I remember correctly this is not too dissimilar to the source material.

[I, Cosh]

Shadows ... was the first night of a Cassavetes season so hopefully I'll manage to catch a few more.

Well, watching A Woman Under the Influence was a fairly horrific experience. It was a bit like Requiem for a Dream without the knockabout comedy. Gena Rowlands gives an excellent turn as a woman gradually overwhelmed by life and whose mood swings become uncontrollable.

It's played out over a series of long - often longer than you think you can bear - scenes in which her bellend of a husband (Columbo, playing against type) repeatedly forces her into excruciating social situations while clearly thinking he's doing the right thing by trying to support her in confronting what he sees as her fears and then flipping out at the inevitable consequences.

It's certainly not the kind of thing you enjoy watching but it's also hard to tear yourself away from it. I'm not sure what the point if it all was but, on leaving the cinema, I was practically vibrating with nervous energy and had to go and meet some people to try to calm down and process it. I think the last time I felt like that after seeing a film for the first time was The Idiots.


Gena Rowlands again in the frankly bizarre Gloria. This time she's a middle-aged gangster's moll on the lam with a young kid who's a witness to a nasty mob hit. Naturally she overcomes her initial antipathy towards him and puts herself on the line while taking out a few wiseguys. I'm all in favour of artists trying something different but the only way I can really see a connection between the guy who directed the other two and this is if he lost a drunken bet.

[Colin YNWA]

While I wish I could say it was High Rise, which looks great, the needs of small ones overrules my options, as so often these days and so instead it was Zootropolis.

Mind that said if High Rise is even half as good as Zootropolis I'd be more than happy. While I know that the animated kids film has reached heights of quality few other genres* have ever scaled in the last few years, the top end of which has shown a mastery of their form like many adult films could do well to learn from, even against the many masterpieces this film is an absolute delight. A true all ages wonder. When it's funny it's oh so funny (who knew the sloth could challenge the penguin for the title of most naturally amusing animal ever), when it's scary it's pretty bloomin' scary (this is actually it's one downside, at times my 4 and 6 year olds, both pretty cool about scary stuff, where possibly a little too scared) when it's makes a point, or works a theme it's not preachy, but always to the point and surprising sharp in its satire if you look for it.

The characters, design and animation are top notch. The dialogue sublime, it's trusts it's audience and allows them to explore the world at the level they want. It's a well crafted story, told well and full of surprises and excitment.

Seriously even if you don't have kids go see this, it's brilliant.

*We okay this isn't a genre is it, it's a... what medium, subset... oh I dunno., you decide

[Professor Bear]

I believe the correct collective noun for animated kids' films is "Money Printing Factory".

I have had the good fortune to experience a double-header of movies with plots from Star Trek episodes that have been repackaged for teenagers who'd rather, like, die than watch that old stuff for old people so will be unlikely to be familiar with the source material from which The Fifth Wave derives, but if you've watched Voyager and seen that one where the Mexican pretending to be an Indian - no, not Ricardo Montalban - is tricked into fighting friendlies by cunning alien mind tricks, then you'll find the twist in the tale a bit tiresome, most likely calling it from about five minutes in, but teenagers' minds were probably blown or something.  A post-apocalyptic tale of alien invaders unleashing their masterplan to destroy humanity, this description makes it sound less boring than it actually is, because it is very boring indeed - the aliens invade by showing up in the sky and then doing nothing for a fortnight, and then... they turn off people's cellphones.  No, really.  Then some people catch a cold from some birds, and then the characters are wandering the countryside - the producers at least realised how boring this was and tried to splice in some superfluous tidal wave footage, but it remains pretty dull.
The connective tissue that makes this an actual story in its own right rather than something padding out an elevator pitch that got lucky is sadly absent, with standard teen drama shit filling in most of the running time with zero risk or surprises along the way.  It's hard to be critical of it, though, because all the stuff that makes it so utterly banal also renders it... well, I think the best word is probably "harmless."  There's nowt to get excited about either way, it's just a competently made film with neither emotional highs nor lows.
Similarly, Hunger Games: Part 3: Part 2: Mockingjay Part 2 is mostly boring until it starts getting interesting by abandoning its own internal consistency and plot arcs to pursue ludicrous but admittedly not particularly imaginative or exciting spectacle by having some teens invade a city that is for some reason the Danger Room from the X-Men now.  The spoiler-free overview is basically: some people walk through a city and get where they're going but then some stuff goes boom before they get there and then it's over.  A lot of stuff doesn't really make any sense, like why technology is suddenly ubiquitous rather than a rarity, or why the capital's sewers are unguarded, or why there are cameras everywhere except the places the rebels go out in broad daylight in the middle of the street.  The whole thing feels like water being treaded slowly and pointlessly before a last-ditch attempt at giving the actors something to do.
Well, at least it's finally over.

[Mattofthespurs]

Wife and I watched 10 Cloverfield Lane last night.
It's a pretty decent thriller that changes tack quite dramatically during it's final 15 minutes and nearly ruins all the good work that went before it.
John Goodman is excellent as Harold. The film is, I think, a little on the long side (at 105 minutes) but it's definitely a slow burner that builds with some great suspense.
6.5/10

[ThryllSeekyr]

Been raiding the Foxtel movie rental options on my cable television yesterday while doing a search through their listings for Walt-Disney's Dragon-Slayer.

Possibly the best one of that genre...like of any other movie featuring a Dragon.

Despite finding a few of their titles like Jumbo the Elephant. Walt-Disney does not have it's own category on my the cable network I use. Although I may have that channel.

Yet, I start renting a load of similar films with the odd sci-fi title as well.

Eragon, Which I did watch most of yesterday. Merely to just get another glimpse at the farm where the young hero grew up. Realising he does look a lot like somebody I went o school with. The resembelance almost uncanny. It's like when that Spore game doesn't really allow you to play against other players & will merely allow me to download the creatures (They have uploaded to the game server.) into my game universe. Anyway, despite ticking nearly all the boxes for a film of this kind, it still lacks style, the mature attention photography, lighting & what ever else is supposed to make a movie really worth-while. Instead blindly latching on to most expensive computerised special effects.  As for characterisations, portrayals, acting, all that stuff pales next to all the other stuff I've already mentioned & then there is the plot. The film's delivery of the story along with it's perculier fascmile of a old fantasy world based on ours, but not actually ours. This suffers as well, when they just feed it into their own purchased story machine, churning out same thing each time. I wasn't compelled enough to feel much for the main characters, the hero, the villains, the bystanders that survived & ones that fell. The dragon, a female, (Gender Swapping of Dragon-Heart!) that reminds me of the intelligent dragon mounts dreamed up from the Dragon-Lance novels. Especially the Legend of Huma about first ever Knight of the Rose & his female dragon mount.  These dragon could speak their own tongue, and that of humans, plus take on their own human form. So you know what might have gone on between dragon & rider during those cold nights. The very first book of the original series was made into cartoony movie & despite seeing images painted into my head while reading the novels.....now realised on the small screen. It's still a damn shame. 

Why hasn't Dragon-Riders of Pern never been adapted. That one must be good, it was one of those original dragon-rider stories that probably need that, but I have never read any of these myself.

The She-dragon in this film matures from hatchling to venerable aged maturity in matter of seconds after first taking flight. Something I was told by my father who had been reading the Eragon books after I brought him the very first one. It's kind of kinky when you realise that he's rides her bareback sometimes.

Continued Later...

[The Legendary Shark]

Deadpool. Gorily and bloodily fantastic - from the opening credits (directed by an overpaid tool) to after credits teaser (go home) - I loved every minute of this. One of the best Marvel films yet and refreshingly willing to portray what is basically a horrid character as he is in the comics.

[judda fett]

Mr Turner. Timothy Spall at his phlegmy best as the titular Turner, painting and low growling his way to greatness. Looks lovely and was quite enjoyable but have a spare arse cushion ready as its a long 'un.

[TordelBack]

Why hasn't Dragon-Riders of Pern never been adapted.

The missus and I have spent too many hours discussing this very question: it's one of the most suitable SF books left unadapted.  We have a story treatment worked out, but fear Avatar (and maybe Eragon!) may have scuppered its chances.  Still, Studio Ghibli would do it proud.

The one thing I'll say for Eragon, it's a faithful adaptation. Of an awful book.

[Hawkmumbler]

Why hasn't Dragon-Riders of Pern never been adapted.

The missus and I have spent too many hours discussing this very question: it's one of the most suitable SF books left unadapted.  We have a story treatment worked out, but fear Avatar (and maybe Eragon!) may have scuppered its chances.  Still, Studio Ghibli would do it proud.

A lot of people shit on Tales of Earthsea for being an amalgamation of the four Ursula Le Guinn books. I'm the opposit, for the direction it took it was a beautiful film and actually amongst my favourite Ghibli outings, so in this level i'll second Tordals statement.

[Tiplodocus]

The one thing I'll say for Eragon, it's a faithful adaptation. Of an awful book.

Oh I don't know, I quite liked Alan Dean Fosters Star Wars book.

[TordelBack]

The one thing I'll say for Eragon, it's a faithful adaptation. Of an awful book.

Oh I don't know, I quite liked Alan Dean Fosters Star Wars book.

Touche.

[Eric Plumrose]

High Rise

If it has one flaw it is that the slip from slight transgression to utter breakdown occurs in a montage mid-way, feeling a little rushed - however if I remember correctly this is not too dissimilar to the source material.

The late showing may well have been a factor but, disappointingly, I found HIGH RISE kinda one-note despite there being a lot to recommend. The montage didn't help, either.

I've not read the novel but, hey, I've seen Paradise Towers which I seem to remember buying into more easily than I did Wheatley's world. I get the point of a self-contained tower block (I've read JUDGE DREDD, natch) but did HIGH RISE actually explain why someone couldn't just nip off outside for a pint of milk? Block-credit only?

[Theblazeuk]

There [spoiler]is no real reason why people can't just leave the block, other than it's their home... People who go to work and could afford to leave easily just keep coming back, drawn to the freedom offered within the High Rise.[/spoiler]