Jump to content

Movies We've Seen Thread


Recommended Posts

I finally got around to seeing Spider-Man. Everyone was right in saying that we didn't need to do it all again so soon, but Garfield and Stone are roughly three hundred million times more likeable than Maguire and Dunst, so it was fun. I have a feeling the next one will be better.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Was graced with the advanced, screened version of Looper last night. All I'll say is that it's incredibly inventive and one of the best sci-fi movies to come out this century. Right up with Children of Men and District 9. Will definitely go down as one of the best time travel movies ever, and it's without question the best since Primer. Gordon-Leavitt is having one hell of a ****ing year; and between Brick and this now, Rian Johnson should be given free reign to do whatever he wants. The guy's brilliant.

Edited by RutgersJetFan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Inspired by Sight & Sound's Top 50 list (http://www.bfi.org.uk/news/50-greatest-films-all-time), I rewatched Vertigo and Taxi Driver yesterday. Great films.

But I also watched Tokyo Story, which is a movie that I hadn't even heard of before. Movie was simply brilliant. Very deep and moving story of an older Japanese couple visiting their adult children in post WWII Tokyo (the movie was made in 1953), with powerful emotions that continue to ring true in 21st century America.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Was graced with the advanced, screened version of Looper last night. All I'll say is that it's incredibly inventive and one of the best sci-fi movies to come out this century. Right up with Children of Men and District 9. Will definitely go down as one of the best time travel movies ever, and it's without question the best since Primer. Gordon-Leavitt is having one hell of a ****ing year; and between Brick and this now, Rian Johnson should be given free reign to do whatever he wants. The guy's brilliant.

Interesting. I keep seeing the previews for Premium Rush and it looks like something beneath JGL.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Inspired by Sight & Sound's Top 50 list (http://www.bfi.org.uk/news/50-greatest-films-all-time), I rewatched Vertigo and Taxi Driver yesterday. Great films.

But I also watched Tokyo Story, which is a movie that I hadn't even heard of before. Movie was simply brilliant. Very deep and moving story of an older Japanese couple visiting their adult children in post WWII Tokyo (the movie was made in 1953), with powerful emotions that continue to ring true in 21st century America.

I have a problem with film critics who won't deign to include a movie made after 1978 on their lists. I mean, Casablanca is a fine film, but it's become a lazy reflex to proclaim it as some divine gift from filmmaking heaven.

Also, Quentin Tarantino is woefully underappreciated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Interesting. I keep seeing the previews for Premium Rush and it looks like something beneath JGL.

I dunno man, don't forget he was also in GI Joe. But I will say that flick has 3 things going for it IMO. The chase scenes look awesome (Leavitt did his own stunts, which should add to it), Michael Shannon as the villain is can't-miss these days (quite possibly my favorite actor right now due to Boardwalk), and Quicksilver still holds up pretty well. So it's not the worst premise for a movie.

Edited by RutgersJetFan
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a problem with film critics who won't deign to include a movie made after 1978 on their lists. I mean, Casablanca is a fine film, but it's become a lazy reflex to proclaim it as some divine gift from filmmaking heaven.

Also, Quentin Tarantino is woefully underappreciated.

I'm happy sh*t like that keeps Seven Samurai on most lists, but otherwise yeah, pretty much. I don't have a problem with Vertigo being 1, or Citizen Kane being 2 (it's still pretty awesome), but not one Tarantino, Coen Bros, or PTA movie on that list. I mean come on. Show me a person that ranks any Chaplin flick over Pulp Fiction, and I'll show you someone that hasn't had sex with a remotely attractive person ever.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I dunno man, don't forget he was also in GI Joe. But I will say that flick has 3 things going for it IMO. The chase scenes look awesome (Leavitt did his own stunts, which should add to it), Michael Shannon as the villain is can't-miss these days (quite possibly my favorite actor right now due to Boardwalk), and Quicksilver still holds up pretty well. So it's not the worst premise for a movie.

Shannon is so good. Take Shelter is low-key, but his performance in it is so intense and nuanced that it felt like an action flick. Also stole Revolutionary Road in a lot of ways. He's a lot like Fassbender in that way, IMO: in a ton of smaller roles that end up being the most memorable parts of the film.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm happy sh*t like that keeps Seven Samurai on most lists, but otherwise yeah, pretty much. I don't have a problem with Vertigo being 1, or Citizen Kane being 2 (it's still pretty awesome), but not one Tarantino, Coen Bros, or PTA movie on that list. I mean come on. Show me a person that ranks any Chaplin flick over Pulp Fiction, and I'll show you someone that hasn't had sex with a remotely attractive person ever.

Totally agreed. I think Reservoir Dogs deserves mention, even though a lot of it is homage; also, There Will Be Blood, No Country for Old Men, Unforgiven are canonical.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a problem with film critics who won't deign to include a movie made after 1978 on their lists. I mean, Casablanca is a fine film, but it's become a lazy reflex to proclaim it as some divine gift from filmmaking heaven.

Also, Quentin Tarantino is woefully underappreciated.

Mulholland Dr. made the list, and it was made in 2001. Couple more recent foreign films in there, too. I love Quentin Tarrantino, the Coens, Terry Gilliam, etc., and I'm not sure why they're not getting the proper love here. Maybe critics see them as too pop, or as guilty pleasure flicks. Maybe critics are pompous asses. Probably choice b.)

What I like about the list is that it drew my attention to movies I might not even've known about before. I use imdb and Rotten Tomatoes the same way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Was graced with the advanced, screened version of Looper last night. All I'll say is that it's incredibly inventive and one of the best sci-fi movies to come out this century. Right up with Children of Men and District 9. Will definitely go down as one of the best time travel movies ever, and it's without question the best since Primer. Gordon-Leavitt is having one hell of a ****ing year; and between Brick and this now, Rian Johnson should be given free reign to do whatever he wants. The guy's brilliant.

That is quite an endorsement. Primer is probably the most underrated movie of the decade.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That is quite an endorsement. Primer is probably the most underrated movie of the decade.

Every time I watch it, I figure something else out. I think that's half the fun of it. Probably the most intricate and well-thought out movie I've ever seen. At least for sci-fi movies.

I think that the problem in doing a lot of time travel stories is there are always so many holes that the script has to take account for, otherwise it becomes really hard to willingly suspend your disbelief. And that's really, really hard to do within the confines of 2 hours. That's what makes Primer so awesome. Looper kind of does the same thing. I'm not saying it's better than Primer, but it's definitely the best since. Just a great, great approach to the genre. Very fresh.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Shannon is so good. Take Shelter is low-key, but his performance in it is so intense and nuanced that it felt like an action flick. Also stole Revolutionary Road in a lot of ways. He's a lot like Fassbender in that way, IMO: in a ton of smaller roles that end up being the most memorable parts of the film.

He's carried several episodes of Boardwalk too. Really can't stress just how great he's been in his role as the FBI dude that goes off the handle. Just a really sick guy that only a small handful of actors could probably pull off. Anyone who's a fan of patient, developed stories and characters is seriously missing out. It's the best show on TV by a large margin IMO.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Totally agreed. I think Reservoir Dogs deserves mention, even though a lot of it is homage; also, There Will Be Blood, No Country for Old Men, Unforgiven are canonical.

Anyone who doesn't think Big Lebowski should be mentioned up with some of the overall all-time greats is simply being tentative and pretentious. By almost every measure of filmmaking and comedy, that movie is brilliant and as close to perfect as it gets. And probably ditto for Fargo and Miller's Crossing.

Also on a personal note, A Serious Man is flat-out awesome. Maybe the Jew in me appreciates some of the stuff more because of the gratuitous and hilarious intra-stereotyping, but if it wasn't for Goodman in Big Lebowski, it would probably be my favorite Coens flick.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Every time I watch it, I figure something else out. I think that's half the fun of it. Probably the most intricate and well-thought out movie I've ever seen. At least for sci-fi movies.

I think that the problem in doing a lot of time travel stories is there are always so many holes that the script has to take account for, otherwise it becomes really hard to willingly suspend your disbelief. And that's really, really hard to do within the confines of 2 hours. That's what makes Primer so awesome. Looper kind of does the same thing. I'm not saying it's better than Primer, but it's definitely the best since. Just a great, great approach to the genre. Very fresh.

I just watched Primer for the first time tonight. How many more times do I need to watch it to figure out what the hell was going on?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just watched Primer for the first time tonight. How many more times do I need to watch it to figure out what the hell was going on?

A lot dude. I didn't start catching even an outline until the 3rd viewing or so. If you want to cheat, there's a bunch of flowcharts online. I still haven't given them a look, but I guess it depends on how patient of a person you are. They made it that way on purpose.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A lot dude. I didn't start catching even an outline until the 3rd viewing or so. If you want to cheat, there's a bunch of flowcharts online. I still haven't given them a look, but I guess it depends on how patient of a person you are. They made it that way on purpose.

I was reading that it's hard to follow, and I thought I was following it well thru the first half hour or so. Really thinking I had a handle on it. Then it started to get away from me when the one guy's phone started ringing, and by the end I had absolutely no idea what was happening. None.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was reading that it's hard to follow, and I thought I was following it well thru the first half hour or so. Really thinking I had a handle on it. Then it started to get away from me when the one guy's phone started ringing, and by the end I had absolutely no idea what was happening. None.

Yeah. It's such a fresh take on the concept. The whole theme is centered around making time travel as plausible as possible; and to do that, you need to approach it from the R&D angle, and it's something that probably would get discovered by accident like in the story. Not to mention that would never be an easy thing to explain for the physical sciences within the confines of a movie script. But the concept is what makes it work. If traveling through time isn't always linear, then the story shouldn't be either.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Costner is the definition of a movie star. Not a great actor by any stretch, but crazy screen presence. I'll watch Tin Cup every time it's on, and I hate golf.

agree. He did a great job in the Indie 'The Company Men' a few years back.

He's smart like Bruce Willis was in realizing that the leading man days are basically over and putting ego aside and taking great character roles.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Shannon is so good. Take Shelter is low-key, but his performance in it is so intense and nuanced that it felt like an action flick. Also stole Revolutionary Road in a lot of ways. He's a lot like Fassbender in that way, IMO: in a ton of smaller roles that end up being the most memorable parts of the film.

"stole Revolutionary Road in a lot of ways"?

Damn straight. And that is something since I thought it was DiCaprio's best job ever.

Leo's fight scene w/Winslet had me cringing in the 'you cant take that back' mentallity we have all felt.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...