Last movie watched...

[Definitely Not Mister Pops]

Where Eagles Dare is on Channel 5.

I never get bored of watching Clint Eastwood and Richard Burton massacre a sizeable chunk of the German army.

[Buttonman]

Predestination - Ethan Hawke time travel mindbender. A lot like 'Looper'. Few cracking twists ad enough to keep you thinking. Good stuff!

[Ancient Otter]

The Homesman, directed by Toomy Lee Jones. Went in low expectations for it but I enjoyed it, now I want to read the novel it is based on.

[Bat King]

Star Wars: Rebels.

An introduction to a time between Clone Wars and A New Hope. The story was fun but I didn't really take to all the characters. It does seem more child oriented than family.

I haven't seen all the Clone Wars series. Doubt I will see all of this but I would like to see all of both before Episode VII.

[pictsy]

Matrix Reloaded

When leaving the cinema after viewing this film my major complaint was that the action sequences were too drawn out.  This is still my major problem with this film.  The first film had a good balance between action and drama.  The action served to drive the story forward and was there for a reason.  Even though I honestly feel that the premiss of the original would have been served as a sci-fi psychological thriller - which would negate the heavy handed pilfering of Structuralism, Semiotic theories, Metaphysics and the rather silly brain-in-a-jar thought experiment - I can not fault the original for it's good use of action to drive the narrative forward.  Matrix Reloaded, [spoiler]despite the Architect waxing lyrical near the end,[/spoiler] is not so intellectually daring as it's predecessor and actually has a pretty good story that is driven mostly by dialogue and drama.  The over-extended action scenes really jarred heavily and struck me as no more than cinematic masturbation.

Nevertheless, on this viewing I appreciated the film more.  People don't use it as an example of their cod philosophy anymore so that aspect no longer irritates me, so I can enjoy The Matrix films for what they are, pretentious action films.  They are still pretty cool looking with all the leather and PVC and the differences between the look of the real world and the Matrix.  The acting is pretty hammy throughout, as well.

[von Boom]

Real Genius. I still prefer this one over Weird Science.

[Tiplodocus]

Nothing to see here

[Hawkmumbler]

Nothing to see here

Not seen that one. Any good?

[Goaty]

Just watch Wanted as not see it for years, still great crazy film, and one moment I just realise that Professor X hit Star Lord with a keyboard!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iK0-76FChfk

[HdE]

Just watch Wanted as not see it for years, still great crazy film, and one moment I just realise that Professor X hit Star Lord with a keyboard!

META ALERT! META ALERT! AWOOOOOGA! AWOOOOOGA!

[ThryllSeekyr]

FURY.....

A movie, I saw before I was banned not long after I saw that awful Dracula - Untold film.

A few thing about this film are that it's very brutal retelling of one of our world wars fought in northern Europe between American's and Germans on French soil. Not sure if the brutality I'm referring to is as it actually was. but when you see a tank run right over the top of enemy soldier with that satisfactory crunching noise as their heads fold back against their torso's.

I could be wrong though, in that last detail of a film I saw over a month ago.

Tanks with lasers!!!!

Was that even possible in those days. I didn't think so, but my knowledge of past war technology is only guessed on my part.

That's about it for stuff that I thought was too brutal or colourful bars of light.

Then this guy, with a terrible bowl shaped buzz haircut (Who seemed so reminiscent of somebody so familiar in the film so far!) walks up behind the film's main protagonist (Retelling the story as he remembered) and pats him on the back congradulating his very first kiss with a French woman.....

It's Shane from The Walking Dead! I might have known earlier from his trademark posturing which only reminds me of how close we are to our arboreal cousins. Forget the actors name right now.

The very last scene is reminscent of ending of the very first episode of the The Walking Dead....   

(Couldn't find it on You-Tube....)

[Mattofthespurs]

Where Eagles Dare is on Channel 5.

I never get bored of watching Clint Eastwood and Richard Burton massacre a sizeable chunk of the German army.

You and me (and my missus) both.
Although I have it on blu ray I can't change the channel when it's on and have to watch it all the way through.

Now, remind me again. On what side of the square is the cathedral?

Strange... I seem to remember... that the cathedral was on the *other* side of the square.

[radiator]

Went to a double bill at the local cinema last night.

First up, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Holds up surprisingly well despite a rather aimless first act that consists of little more than various unrelated slapstick skits involving Chevy Chase. The film only really kicks into gear (or starts to have any semblance of a plot) when Randy Quaid turns up as the hillbilly brother. Always forget that this was written and produced by John Hughes. It's no Planes, Trains...., but remains a minor classic.

And then sadly I had to sit through Love Actually (contractual obligation for making my girlfriend watch Lord of the Rings with me). I don't mind Richard Curtis' films in general - I actually think Four Weddings... and to a (much) lesser extent Notting Hill are fairly enjoyable movies, but this is really pushing it. There's bits of it I like (mainly the bits involving Alan Rickman, Emma Thompsom and Rowan Atkinson) but a lot of it is just excruciating. The writing is often so broad that it feels like it was written for toddlers, and Kris Marshall's cartoonish 'arc' is jaw-droppingly bad and definitely should have been cut. It also struck me watching it this time just how much the film relies on us liking characters purely based on their casting rather than any actual character development - when you break it down most of them are completely blank slates with no personality at all.

[Buttonman]

FURY.....

Tanks with lasers!!!!

Definitely not lasers - it was tracer rounds although they did look a bit 'Star Wars' to be authentic. Still I haven't been in a tank battle (yet) so who knows!

[Theblazeuk]

Home Alone 2  - first time as a grown up not playing a drinking game (Which it lends itself to rather well actually). Enjoyable for the nostalgia, very much of its time in the 90s and stuff that slipped by as a kid made me cringe today, namely the obscene wealth displayed by the supposedly normal American suburban family and the criminal negligence shown by the McAlisters. The weird nature of the hotel staff and their credulity over a bloke with a tommy gun threatening them also raised an eyebrow, as did the horrific injuries inflicted on the (murderous) criminals. Still! Good fun and heavy nostalgia for what was my favourite rental from Blockbusters of yore, before I could get Die Hard out at least. Little **** he is though, at least Kevin actually has a heart for Christmas, unlike his horrific family.


Miracle on 34th Street - schmaltz defined. Again, suffering from the obscene wealth displayed by... oh, nearly everyone. I know the wealth thing is also an issue for many other Christmas movies but at least the aforementioned National Lampoon shows a family struggling and the hillbilly brother defines poverty. Also the lack of any ethnicity whatsoever doesn't feel so strange in National Lampoon as its largely set on a single street in suburbia. The miracle of 34th street is set in New York. At a big parade open to the public. And there's not one black kid there. Probably wouldn't have been so noticeable to me if it wasn't for the supposedly city-encompassing effect of old Kris Kringle, ultimately restricted to the yuppies of New York. I guess I just didn't really like.... anyone... except Richard Attenborough as Santa, but not when he's outside of the grotto, as when about in the real world he comes across as an absolute mentalist.



Is Ghostbusters a Christmas movie? I'm putting Die Hard on tonight.