Last movie watched...

[Barrington Boots]

DEEP RISING

Great film. It's rubbish but a complete laugh and has both Wes Studi AND Trevor Goddard in it. Treat Williams is a duff lead imo but it doesn't ruin things
Now watch Deep Star Six and Leviathan for a trilogy of second rate underwater horror action!

[milstar]

Now watch Deep Star Six and Leviathan for a trilogy of second rate underwater horror action!

Don't know why, but I go with Deep Star Six. Less pretentious than Leviathan. But seems that 1989 was the year of underwater films, just as 1981 was the year of werewolf films.

[milstar]

Westworld

I call this Terminator film before Terminator. Actors are decent. Yul Brinner channels his character from TMS into Gunslinger. Richard Benjamin and James Brolin standardly good. Off topic, it amazes me how James Brolin looked as Christian Bale back then. The similarities are astonishing! Back to the movie, it drags a bit in the first half; obviously, the best part is when Yul is chasing Richard. And I like the mix of SF and Western, which is not often done in movies. And it doesn't offer explanation why robots in amusement part went berserk, and I liked that ambiguity. I also liked how they stated slow-mo scenes, as if it's taken directly from a Peckinpah movie. Overall, an entertaining picture.

[milstar]

Lisztomania

I always had a tremendous respect for Ken Russell. Regardless that I think his Lisztomania pure trash, I find his audacity as filmmaker the rare, if not only auteur who made his movies exactly how he wanted. And when. I don't say that other filmmakers weren't like that, but his movies were in class of its own. Wherever he made his movies (UK or US), his movies always were Ken Russell movies.
Lisztomania is...the 2nd weirdest wtf movie I ever seen, after Zardoz. Ostensibly a Franz Liszt biopic, the movie is actually a ludicrous, often tasteless tale on "Lisztomania", the mania that surrounded composer, much like what Beatles meant for the masses. And much more. Abundance of naked women, giant phalus, bawdy humor, Nazi Frankenstein monster, accompanied by Wagner soundtrack, references to Hitler and Superman and other outlandish Nazi iconography - all make this, to some masterpiece, to some pure sleazy trash - a quite unique, nothing like you ever seen movie. Objectively, Roger Daltry (as Franz Liszt) performing is the weakest part of the film. His acting is bland (as if he watched Monthy Python sketches before the shoot), but then again, this is the kind of movie that easily sweeps away such "trite" issues.

Think I am gonna take a break from watching movies.

[zombemybabynow]

Days of the bagnold summer [AGAIN !!]

[Dandontdare]

Westworld

I call this Terminator film before Terminator. Actors are decent. Yul Brinner channels his character from TMS into Gunslinger. Richard Benjamin and James Brolin standardly good. Off topic, it amazes me how James Brolin looked as Christian Bale back then. The similarities are astonishing! Back to the movie, it drags a bit in the first half; obviously, the best part is when Yul is chasing Richard. And I like the mix of SF and Western, which is not often done in movies. And it doesn't offer explanation why robots in amusement part went berserk, and I liked that ambiguity. I also liked how they stated slow-mo scenes, as if it's taken directly from a Peckinpah movie. Overall, an entertaining picture.

Saw that at the cinema as a double-feature with sequel Futureworld back in the late 70s and it blew me away. It's one of those that I'm hesitant to rewatch in case it ruins my memories, because the implacable, silent Brynner was such a great sinister villain.

[pictsy]

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Because the films are so long (I watched the extended editions) I had to watch each film in two sittings, so this took a while to get through.

The more I watch this series, the more cracks and flaws I can see.  It's also saddening to know that one of it's legacies is screwing over the workers of the New Zealand film industry (although this is probably more closely linked to The Hobbit).  The shine has gone.  Nevertheless, the film still reminds me of when I saw them in the cinema and that was definitely an experience.

There is still a lot that works for me with these films, regardless.  I really adore the build in Fellowship.  Sean Austin has a surprisingly amount of really good moments - more than any other actor, perhaps.  The climax on Mount Doom (what a dumb name, it's so out of place) is really satisfying.  It still looks great and the creative effort is astonishing.  The part where everyone bows to the Hobbits brings a few tears to my eyes every time without fail.  I like how Viggo Mortensen takes his role so seriously it does get a little comical at times. 

One thing that really sells the whole experience is the fantastic score.  Since the last time I watch these films I got myself a copy and have listened to it a number of times.  Whilst I did so I realised just how much it added to the film... and it's a considerable amount.  I recommend the soundtrack because it holds up by itself as much (if not more) as any of the films do.

There's the casual racism which has never sat well with me right from my first watch through.  There's the aristocratic mindset of the story that just doesn't get counterbalanced enough by other elements.  Some stuff is obviously inherited from the writings of Tolkien but some isn't.  The coding of the "Evil Men" as middle-eastern is unnecessary and having Faramir lampshade it doesn't make it any better.  I could go on.

Anyway, problems aside, I enjoyed it.  They're probably the best fantasy genre films we have to date.  I also can't deny that I get a little nostalgia from watching them.  So yeah, thumbs up I guess.

[Funt Solo]

Nerdwriter has a great piece about the music in LOTR: Lord Of The Rings: How Music Elevates Story

[Funt Solo]

Concrete Cowboy is a compelling coming of age story that uses as a backdrop the Fletcher Street Urban Riding Club of north Philadelphia* (that you may have seen featured in Rudimental's Feel the Love music video a few years back).


*The city, not the popular cheese spread.

[Funt Solo]

Thunder Force

++BEFORE WATCHING++

Two overweight women in superhero costumes suggests that this will be one of those scream-a-lot US comedies that's probably not very funny. Like an 80s sitcom, there'll be a moral message strapped in somewhere, accompanied by some hugging. There will be a scene, played for laughs, focused on how difficult it is to get into the tight costumes. Because Melissa McCarthy's in it, there'll also be some gross-out humour.

++AFTER WATCHING++

They didn't do a scene about the difficulty of getting into the costumes - instead it was about how difficult it was for two people that size to get into a Lamborghini.

A comedy of no laughs.

[von Boom]

Thunder Force

Because Melissa McCarthy's in it, A comedy of no laughs.

Just a bit of editing.

[pictsy]

The Shining

I haven't seen this film in a very long time.  It's one of those films that was overhyped for me and it didn't live up to the expectations created.  Obviously I recognised it was very well made.  Watching it again I have more of an appreciation for it.  It is a pretty good horror film with very well done tension and a balanced sinister tone.  I like what it did.  I also don't think it's as nuanced and ambiguous as many commentators suggest.  It seemed pretty straight forward to me as to what was going on.  I enjoyed it.

I watched The Shining in preparation for watching

Doctor Sleep - The Directors Cut

Ugh.  It could be said this 3 hour movie is 3 hours too long.  I didn't like it.  It is too long.  By at least an hour.  It drags its feet and has very unnecessary scenes that add absolutely nothing.  It codes the child murdering villains as Roma and Travellers which is problematic to say the least.  There is a heartbeat playing throughout the film that is so ever present I was tempted to turn the film off because it was so annoying.  It's a motif lifted from The Shining and done badly and that's the films mantra for the final act.  It spends the entire final act just lifting straight from it's predecessor and it's not good.

There are some good elements to the film, but they are so outweighed by the bad.  Maybe the theatrical cut is more tolerable, but I can't see how it can be better without being a completely different film.  I relies to heavily on a legacy and is never it's own thing.  A really disappointing waste of time.

I'm hoping I can watch that Ape vs. Atomic Dinosaur thing tonight.

[repoman]

LX2048

Interesting sci-fi film where everyone lives in VR because the sun has become too dangerous for you to be outside.  Good performance from the fake Sam Rockwell/Dennis Quaid looking lead actor.

Not one to watch twice but it's a good one time watch.

[milstar]

The Shining

I haven't seen this film in a very long time.  It's one of those films that was overhyped for me and it didn't live up to the expectations created.  Obviously I recognised it was very well made.  Watching it again I have more of an appreciation for it.  It is a pretty good horror film with very well done tension and a balanced sinister tone.  I like what it did.  I also don't think it's as nuanced and ambiguous as many commentators suggest.  It seemed pretty straight forward to me as to what was going on.  I enjoyed it.

I watched The Shining in preparation for watching

Are you talking about Kubrick's or Mick Garris' film?

Regardless the answer, seems that Kubrick's The Shining was a fertile ground for conspiracy theories.

[pictsy]

Kubrick.

The Mick Garris directed adaptation was a mini-series.