Review the movie you just viewed (all the way to) 11

[lazarus]

It just started recently, from what I've been able to learn.

And people are not pleased. Someone wrote to the channel and was told that they needed ad revenue to fund their original programming, or some bullshit.

 

[corianderstem]

Ok, so I'm not crazy. No bugs crawling on me. Yeah, that's pretty lame.

 

[Saracene]

The King's Speech

I loved the performances from Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush, and the story of the unlikely and moving friendship between the two men from such different social and cultural backgrounds. Helena Bonham Carter was fantastic in her role as well.

Yet with the movie as a whole... I somehow wasn't feeling it. I think a lot of it had to do with the bizarre and distracting camera angles, maybe they tried to distance the film from yeh olde Merchant Ivory period fare, but all those extreme close-ups, characters talking to the camera, asymmetrical compositions etc. didn't add anything to the movie and were rather irritating. And though it may sound silly, I was also constantly distracted by the horrible walls in Lionel Logue's home, especially when they filled the entire screen with the character stuck somewhere in the corner.

I remember I was distracted in a very similar way by the awful wallpaper in an apartment where many scenes took place, when watching Lucky Number Slevin. I don't even remember the movie that well but I remember just how much I hated that bloody wallpaper.

 

[U2girl]

What doesn't make sense about them visually?

No, it doesn't. For me, it suggested a stronger friendship between two friends in the face of a lot of bleak shit. It's one of the few character moments in the series that actually rings true because it's not bound by the "sanctity" of the text.

The Burrows was one of the few sequences in HBP with any vitality or strong sense of purpose. It increased the stakes and provided probably one of the more explicit visual cues of the loss of innocence and safety. Should it have been addressed in the next film? Yes, though I feel that's more of a fault on the construction of the 7th film than HBP.

It's a moot point for me to argue this anyway. Whatever.

The part where Harry slowly "seductively" takes off the locket and leans in for the kiss ? The dance by itself, given the circumstances ?
The many ways in which this goes against what we know from movies ? Books don't even have to be an issue.

The Burrow is a pointless "let's add drama and make sure the audience knows we're in dark times" scene as admitted by the movie makers. It was always a save haven, and never attacked (unless we count whatever may have happened there after the wedding). Loss of innocence and safety was already achieved by the end of GOF, or OOTP at the latest.

 

[LMP]

Obviously you're right.

 

[deep]

It just started recently, from what I've been able to learn.

And people are not pleased. Someone wrote to the channel and was told that they needed ad revenue to fund their original programming, or some bullshit.

It is very disappointing.

I just noticed it recently too.

I have been scanning, checking ahead for the listings on Sundance, IFC and TCM. Then I DVR the stuff I would have missed. They are a great resource for some great movies. F is for Fake, was on recently, and The 400 Blows is coming up soon.
I got DeMilles, Intolerance on my DVR recently, have not watched it, yet.




I enjoyed Bug, quite a bit.

As for Black Swan, if one has to think about it a couple of days. Then I conclude it was not that good for them.

I know it was good for Lance.

 

[powerhour24]

The part where Harry slowly "seductively" takes off the locket and leans in for the kiss ? The dance by itself, given the circumstances ?
The many ways in which this goes against what we know from movies ? Books don't even have to be an issue.

There was nothing seductive about that scene, it was one friend comforting another, distracting them from a horrible situation. You know friends can be emotionally close and do things like (OMG!!!) dance with one another without sex being involved right?

 

[lazarus]

PH, have some sympathy. Maybe some of us don't have the restraint to avoid sleeping with people near us, and/or don't have strong enough friendships where people are platonically that close to us.

 

[U2girl]

And nothing says that better than the male actor leaning in for the kiss ? Right.

edit: Given Hermione's state of mind with the two being on the run and especially Ron being gone, I reallly don't buy she'd be dancing. Nor the supposed "what if" moment with Harry. Neither party has no history of romantic interest, even if you look at the movies alone.

 

[deep]

the thing you are over-looking is that Harry Potter exudes a raw, masculine sexuality, no female could resist that.

I have not seen that much sexual tension on the screen since Monster's Ball.

 

[Jive Turkey]

I'm not going to review just yet, but I really enjoyed true grit. The opening scene is god damn gorgeous

 

[corianderstem]

As for Black Swan, if one has to think about it a couple of days. Then I conclude it was not that good for them.

There was a lot to like in the movie, and I did enjoy it quite a bit. I'm waiting to form a better opinion after a few days because I think the over-the-top stuff needs to settle in my brain so I can see it as more a part of the movie and not "I totally clapped my hand over my mouth and started laughing."

And maybe it won't, and it'll still have that reaction, but I still did like it.

 

[deep]

I enjoyed True Grit quite a bit too. I guess about a 7.5/10 for me. I may sit through it again.

That opening scene, the train pulling into town kind of annoyed me, the CGI was too apparent to me, the rail road yard, just looked too phony. I will say the rest of the movie appeared to all be great sets, and location shots.
I didn't really notice any blue screen, except maybe at the end. Also, the protracted ending detracted a bit for me, they tried to tie up loose ends that were not important to the story.

 

[Lancemc]

Yeah, when movies stick with you long after seeing them and make you think about them... sure sign they suck. Better to have experiences you just enjoy immediately and then can move on from, clearly.

 

[corianderstem]

Auntie Mame

Man, I love that movie. I hadn't seen it in years.

 

[deep]

There was a lot to like in the movie, and I did enjoy it quite a bit. I'm waiting to form a better opinion after a few days because I think the over-the-top stuff needs to settle in my brain so I can see it as more a part of the movie and not "I totally clapped my hand over my mouth and started laughing."

And maybe it won't, and it'll still have that reaction, but I still did like it.

I do agree, there are some very good aspects of this film.
As a whole I can't call it a great film, an 8. 9 or 10 that some seem to be doing.

I have no problem with abstract? stories. But the writing should be done in a way to make one care enough about the main character.
They give us very little information to make us care about Portman,
unless you are a male that is just lusting for her little trim body. no thanks.

In his last film, The Wrestler, there is enough back story with Mickey Rourke's character, with his daughter and even that dancer to get one invested, if they cared to.

 

[Lancemc]

They give us very little information to make us care about Portman,
unless you are a male that is just lusting for her little trim body.

That must be it.

 

[powerhour24]

And nothing says that better than the male actor leaning in for the kiss ? Right.

edit: Given Hermione's state of mind with the two being on the run and especially Ron being gone, I reallly don't buy she'd be dancing. Nor the supposed "what if" moment with Harry. Neither party has no history of romantic interest, even if you look at the movies alone.

You want to see it that way go ahead, I see why they wrote the scene, and to me it was heartbreaking and endearing, my favorite scene in the film franchise.

 

[Imperor]

So True Grit was just kinda okay, don't you agree gang?

 

[Jive Turkey]

That opening scene, the train pulling into town kind of annoyed me, the CGI was too apparent to me, the rail road yard, just looked too phony.

twas not the opening scene

 

[Jive Turkey]

So True Grit was just kinda okay, don't you agree gang?

It got a little cliche toward the end, which I was hoping it wouldn't, but I still enjoyed it. I loved the characters. I'm not usually a fan of Jeff Bridges, but he did an awesome job. I thought Barry Pepper was fantastic too

 

[deep]

I will watch it again, as I said I did like it.

I do think the casting is very good.
Enjoyed the dialogue. I don't know how much of that came from the book.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

So True Grit was just kinda okay, don't you agree gang?

Nah, I loved it.

 

[Imperor]

Guess I'm the odd man out. I definitely enjoyed the performances, but the entire thing didn't quite stack up against previous CoBros fare. Something about the movie as a whole just seemed less than satisfying to me.

 

[lazarus]

Guess I'm the odd man out.

After a truly great two-pronged climax, I was a little disappointed by the coda of True Grit. Way too rushed, even if what was there was very nicely done.

Other than that, can't really complain, but like LMP said it wasn't anything phenomenal, and would probably rank on the lower end of their filmography for me. I love almost all their films so that's not exactly a smackdown. But I'd probably put everything above it save The Ladykillers, Intolerable Cruelty, and Burn After Reading.

Fuck's sake man you're amateur.

 

[LemonMelon]

Dirty Harry

Don't have a whole hell of a lot to say here, par for the course for "gritty" cop flicks, even the great ones. This is one of the best though, and I like that it presented something of a moral quandary, however simplistic and irresponsible. Mostly, I just love Clint Eastwood, and his performance was magnetic; ditto Andrew Robinson, who legitimately unnerved me. It's a solid 4-star film without any addition or subtraction, but a better look inside Callahan's head (a la House, the Dirty Harry of medicine) would have given depth to his motivations. Yeah, yeah, he's supposed to be a symbol, but I find that to be one-dimensional writing. The core argument definitely felt one-sided and a little obtuse, and I don't expect that from one of the classics (Taxi Driver handles the concept of vigilante justice a little better, I feel), but as sharp, funny, well-directed cop drama, it's pretty much unsurpassed.

8/10

 

[purpleoscar]

Dirty Harry

Don't have a whole hell of a lot to say here, par for the course for "gritty" cop flicks, even the great ones. This is one of the best though, and I like that it presented something of a moral quandary, however simplistic and irresponsible. Mostly, I just love Clint Eastwood, and his performance was magnetic; ditto Andrew Robinson, who legitimately unnerved me. It's a solid 4-star film without any addition or subtraction, but a better look inside Callahan's head (a la House, the Dirty Harry of medicine) would have given depth to his motivations. Yeah, yeah, he's supposed to be a symbol, but I find that to be one-dimensional writing. The core argument definitely felt one-sided and a little obtuse, and I don't expect that from one of the classics (Taxi Driver handles the concept of vigilante justice a little better, I feel), but as sharp, funny, well-directed cop drama, it's pretty much unsurpassed.

8/10

I good double feature would be Dirty Harry and Zodiac.

 

[powerhour24]

Agreed.

 

[gump]

My holidays viewings were very rewarding.

Somewhere was very pleasing, if thematically not too indistinguishable from Lost in Translation. I am not sure how this would look on a TV, but Coppola’s aesthetics seem to be tailored for the big screen, which gives her films room to breathe, so to speak. I admire her ability to put together some very good mood pieces and to paint landscapes of loneliness. Phoenix did a good job with the minimalist soundtrack (Julian Casablancas’ acoustic version of “I’ll try anything once” was particularly well placed in the swimming pool scene). I agree with Lance that the ending felt awkward and not subtle at all, but the film was still very rewarding.

On the lady’s insistence, we re-watched Fanny and Alexander, which I guess was fitting for the holiday season. While the film is ok, it is not close to Bergman’s masterpieces. The first two thirds of the film are a tad dull and uninteresting. The third act is much better as the film ventures into more fantastical territory, and the scenes of Alexander in the NSW family home are very solid, both aesthetically and thematically. The “conversation” with God is ok, but Bergman has explored his religious insecurities better in The Seventh Seal.

I watched A Prophet for the first time since the theater and was not as impressed as before. I still like it, but I realized Audiard is much more deliberate here than in, say, Sur mes Lèvres, which somehow does not fit well with his supposedly impressionistic style. Thematically, I can’t help feeling that the film transposes to a prison what The Class had already explored in the confines of the classroom (modern France, the impact of immigration, etc). The lead performances make it worth the watch, particularly Tahar Ramim. It held up as a good prison film (not as good as Le Trou, but still fine), but not as awe-inspiring as it was at first.

Finally, I enjoyed the snow day in NYC by re-watching 8 ½ (which filled in for The Night of the Hunter – the chaos in the city prevented be from going to the screening). Now we are talking. This has been my favourite Fellini since I saw it for the first time and it only gets better with age. There is not much I can say about this one that has not been written yet, so I’ll just mention Di Venanzo’s fantastic cinematography, Mastroianni’s tour de force performance and Fellini’s ease at navigating between reality and fantasy while addressing the nature of art, psychology and religion. A true masterpiece and one of my favourite films ever.

 

[Daddysgonnapay]

Just saw Black Swan with 3 other women...we discussed it over and over....trying to figure out what was real and what was in her head...we all liked it...we all thought Natalie's peformance was great