Last movie watched...

[PsychoGoatee]

I see people saying that all the time - I thought it was a commonly held opinion that the USA is pretty much producing the best TV drama in the world at the moment.

I see people on here saying it's a great show, but my point was I don't see that it's American being pointed out much, not that it needs to be, but it seems I only see American used negatively around here.

I think it's questionable to use a nationality as a pejorative term for the most part, like teenagers who use "gay" as slang for lame, that's not a good practice.

Really, my simple post saying "As long as you say that about our good movies too  ", I don't think there's much to contest there, and no reason for it to have led where it did.

[Professor Bear]

The most English film I have ever seen is Straightheads: two hours of misery topped by a crying woman raping her rapist with his own shotgun.

The most Irish film I have ever seen is The Quiet Man - see, there are three types of Irishmen: those who love The Quiet Man, those who love The Quiet Man but lie and say they hate it, and those who have not yet seen The Quiet Man.  If you have not seen the Quiet Man, it is a film where a man punches someone and is surprised that this causes the person harm, only the punching man is not good at anything but punching - he tried being a cowboy but was terrible at it, and the attempts at joining the army were a non-starter - so when he decides to stop punching in case he kills anyone he's at a bit of a loose end, so he has a shag, gets drunk, has a fight, then wakes up to discover he hasn't killed anyone the night before.  It's basically an Irish fairytale.

No bullshit, I am going to go watch it now.

[Bubba Zebill]

It's basically an Irish fairytale.

[PsychoGoatee]

Who wouldn't feel pride about that?  That's a positive in some way at least, it's a funny and manly concept. I guess I'll say the quintessential American film is Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. Dennis Hopper, 'nuff said.

[TordelBack]

The most Irish film I have ever seen is The Quiet Man - see, there are three types of Irishmen: those who love The Quiet Man, those who love The Quiet Man but lie and say they hate it, and those who have not yet seen The Quiet Man.

http://www.rte.ie/news/player/2011/0826/3035236-mayo-festival-celebrates-the-quiet-man/

I accidentally rented a cottage just up from 'the Quiet Man bridge' (where John Wayne did some manly contemplatin'), and the house came furnished with DVD player and a lone DVD of the film.  The kids loved it (well, it has punching).

[Theblazeuk]

I understand criticism of blind patriotism and recruitment video propaganda, sure. Though that's not uniquely American.

Other than say, China, does anyone else make such movies about the military?

I get what you're saying though, it's just our lazy stereotyping for comedic effect. Painfully english, navelgazingly french....

[Professor Bear]

Japan make such films, despite not actually having any military to speak of, and any kung-fu movie fan worth their salt can confirm that when Hong Kong was still separate from China, there were an awful lot of movies made where HK cops were venerated as divine supermen.  British war movies really push the idea of Englishness, too, and there's a long history of portraying the SAS as Batman types rather than homoerotic football hooligans.

Not watching Neighbors or Home And Away until I was old enough to do so only ironically and out of habit, I assumed Romper Stomper was the default Australian experience.  The more I see about how the Aussie government behaves, the less I am inclined to think I was wrong to do so.

[JamesC]

British war movies really push the idea of Englishness, too, and there's a long history of portraying the SAS as Batman types rather than homoerotic football hooligans.

I don't really understand the homoerotic bit but the Football Hooligan comment suggests a kind of undisciplined mob mentality.
Isn't the whole point of the SAS the fact they they are deliberate and precise in their application of violence?

[Professor Bear]

My bad - a youth spent exposed to British comedy means that when I think of the SAS my Pavlovian impression is defined by Rob Newman describing their brand of precisely-applied no-holds-barred violence as making them "punctual Millwall fans."  As for homoerotic, the elite soldier thing who constantly has problems with ladies is inherently homoerotic.

[Tiplodocus]

You would think.  But I recall seeing Bravo Two Zero and having to agree with one review that described the SAS teams as "more like football hooligans with automatic weapons". And it must be true because Andy McNab, Chris Ryan etc...

I think you may have inadvertently picked up the wrong end of the stick, Psycho.

I've not seen anybody say that American movies and tv are inherently bad and to be mocked (except some people who bang on about the evil of Disney and Pixar).

As people have said, it's those movies that indulge in the "America is the solution to your problem" whether it alien invasion, nazis or other trouble making foreigners.

I genuinely can't imagine any other country making a film like "White House Down" and treating it seriously*.

Can you imagine  Die Hard set in Westminster where an air strike is stopped at the last minute by a David Cameron loving child grasping a union flag and waving it patriotically at the incoming bombers?

(*Exception: James Bond movies).


Anyway...
IP MAN 2 - rewatched with Tiny Tips inbetween sorting out the laundry yesterday and making soup and cookies. I'm sure it's not in the slightest bit historically accurate but it's full of great turns. My man crush on The Rock is being slowly transferred to Donnie Yen. He's just brilliant in this.
"Can you beat up ten men?"
"It's better not to fight."
"What if they have weapons?"
"Flee.".

[Mabs]

Sword of Truth; which is basically an inferior version of Ninja Scroll. My god, what a load of rubbish. And to think I paid £1.00 for it on ebay, money not spent good in my opinion. The only thing I liked was the (lesbian) sex scene in the middle, even though it had no bearing on the plot whatsoever. A heavily tatooed woman shows up and flings herself at our titular hero, and then disappears. We have a showdown between the hero and a bad guy at the end and then suddenly the film finishes. I mean, what exactly was the purpose of this film? In fact it's an insult to compare it to Ninja Scroll, which is one of my all time favourite Anime's alongside Akira and Ghost in the Shell. Sword of Truth is undecipherable nonsense. It's like an animated film by Jodorowsky, a little surrueal like El Topo perhaps, but not as 'enjoyable'. Not to mention a hero who doesn't suffer even a little scratch from the neverending hordes of ninja baddies. Yeah right. The thing I liked about our hero Jubei Kibagami in Ninja Scroll, is because he gets his arse handed to him a few times in the film. He is not invulnerable, and I like that in my heroes. But not so with our hero in this film. A poor showing indeed.

[Frank]

My bad - a youth spent exposed to British comedy means that when I think of the SAS my Pavlovian impression is defined by Rob Newman describing their brand of precisely-applied no-holds-barred violence as making them "punctual Millwall fans."  As for homoerotic, the elite soldier thing who constantly has problems with ladies is inherently homoerotic.

PRIMARILY A MASTURBATORY AID FOR VARIOUS BACKBENCH MPS

[pictsy]

Monsters University - An alright film.  No where near as good as Monsters Inc and not particularly necessary either.  A tired plot with little surprises but a few chuckles here and there.  It lacks a lot of the heart that's in Monsters Inc.

[Professor Bear]

Strange but true - because of their stage personas, I was surprised when it turned out that Fry was the gay one.

[Frank]

Take Shelter (2011). The trailer for this makes it look like a worthy character drama with Oscar baiting performances from Shannon and Chastaine, but it's actually a cross between a crack-up psycho drama like Repulsion or The Shining, with touches of doomsday thrillers like The Crazies and 28 Days Later, which plays like a smarter version of supernatural guff like Paranormal Activity.

Mental and genuinely terrifying scenes happen regularly enough to keep horror freaks happy, but it also manages to make some really perceptive observations about how men behave in marriage, the exigencies of the US health care system, and the collapse of Western capitalism in 2008 in a really subtle and understated way. It's either the best made and acted horror film you've never seen or the most entertaining social conscience drama ever made; either way it's an extraordinary film.

Director Jeff Nicholls made the brilliant Mud and Shotgun Stories too.