agent817
Fry's dog Seymour
Doesn't Know Whose Ring It Is
Posts: 21,263
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Post by agent817 on Apr 11, 2024 18:47:39 GMT -5
57. Late Night with the Devil - Saw this in theaters. I am always a sucker for indie movies, especially when they are released in theaters in my area. When I heard about this and saw a trailer, I was sold.
I have to say that this is an interesting take on the "found footage" sub-genre that is mostly used for horror. I liked how a lot of the framing for this film is a late night talk show and how those scenes were shot in a 4:3 ratio, and also the filter used to make it look like a 1970s talk show. What also worked was the monochromatic footage used during the behind-the-scenes bits.
I was impressed by some of the effects that were used, too. It told an interesting story. Some bits were rather unsettling. This movie did its job in that department.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Apr 11, 2024 23:26:51 GMT -5
#152 - Gone Baby Gone (Apple)
*1st Viewing
Ben Affleck is a much better director than he is an actor. Love the moral questions this film raises. [****]
#153 - House Party 2 (Tubi)
*4th Viewing
Going from "Ain't Gonna Hurt Nobody" to "Motownphilly" is the great 1-2 punch of needle drops in history. [***½]
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Bobeddy
Bill S. Preston, Esq.
Made a Terrible Mistake
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Post by Bobeddy on Apr 12, 2024 10:55:44 GMT -5
2024 New Releases
#17 Blue Giant
An anime movie all about playing jazz, this is a really enjoyable, easy watch.
The story focuses on Dai who is determined to become the greatest jazz musician of all time. Forming a band with a prodigy pianist and amateur drummer, they grow together to push themselves and make each other better musicians.
As you can imagine, a film like this lives and dies with its soundtrack and the music in this movie is amazing. Even someone like myself who only has a passing appreciation for the genre found themselves fully caught up in the sound. And the visuals on display accompanying when the players lose themselves in the music are wonderfully vivid.
VERDICT: A brilliant jazz soundtrack drives this gentle movie which beautifully depicts the magic of music and how it affects people.
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Post by stevescorpio on Apr 12, 2024 14:35:28 GMT -5
60. Irish Wish (2024) 61. Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) 62. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024) 63. Huesera: The Bone Woman (2022)
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Bobeddy
Bill S. Preston, Esq.
Made a Terrible Mistake
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Post by Bobeddy on Apr 12, 2024 17:01:48 GMT -5
2024 New Releases
#18 Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
I've enjoyed the Western Godzilla movies well enough. Yes they're nowhere near as interesting or layered as the recent Japanese movies, but give me Godzilla lumbering while his theme plays or him charging up to unleash his atomic breath and I'm happy. Unfortunately, despite having top billing, there's not much Godzilla in this Godzilla.
As usual there's a bunch of human characters we follow for most of the movie, but they're pretty unremarkable. We do spend a good chunk of the movie following Kong. I enjoyed the first Kong: Skull Island movie but here we follow him on a personal journey (which sounds ridiculous typing it out) which sorta 'humanises' him and also does a good job in very much removing a lot of his mystique.
And to be honest there's a lot of that in this film. Lots of delving into the origin of the creatures and let's face it, has anything mysterious ever been made better by over-explaining where it came from and how it works?
VERDICT: Too much human characters, too much explaining, not enough Godzilla. For me, this was the least enjoyable of the Monsterverse movies.
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Apr 12, 2024 17:08:08 GMT -5
142. Timecop (1994) - sort of film I thought could have done more with the premise overall. 143. The Meg (2018) - fun shark movie with decent characters so not everybody feels like they are just to be gotten by the shark.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Apr 12, 2024 22:45:41 GMT -5
#154 - The Zone of Interest (Max)
*1st Viewing
There were some great ideas in here and it was beautifully shot, though it dragged at points. [***]
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Apr 14, 2024 21:50:08 GMT -5
#155 - You Don't Know Bo (ESPN+)
*1st Viewing
Bo Jackson was an absolute madman and this documentary rules. [****]
#156 - Mudbound (Netflix)
*1st Viewing
After a very middling first hour or so, this is a powerful movie led by some great performances. [****]
#157 - Drive-Away Dolls (Peacock)
*1st Viewing
We gotta study the phenomenon of watching a film for an hour and then boom, there's a surprise Matt Damon. Not a great movie but one with enough goofy fun since it understands how absurd the premise is. [***]
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Apr 15, 2024 5:16:44 GMT -5
144. I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) - Ryan Phillippe is really annoying in this movie. 145. The Descendants (2011) - thought it treaded the final line of comedy and drama with going to maudalin.
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agent817
Fry's dog Seymour
Doesn't Know Whose Ring It Is
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Post by agent817 on Apr 15, 2024 22:31:43 GMT -5
58. From Dusk Till Dawn - Saw this in theaters. I saw this on the listings recently. I thought, "why not?" I was too young to see this when it came out. I missed out on the opportunity for the 20th anniversary back in 2016. I don't care if I had seen it multiple times. In my opinion, nothing beats the theatrical experience.
Despite having seen it before, it is often said that on repeated viewings that you can see things that you may have missed in previous viewings. It happened to me here. Aside from that, I have often seen how people didn't expect the turn involving vampires, but with me, it was different because I remember seeing the TV spots for this film when I was a kid. As for anything else, I have always appreciated this film. I noticed that there were a lot of elements that Robert Rodriguez is known for with his directorial style. I also believe that Quentin Tarantino had a hand in the direction. I know he co-wrote the script.
Also, a lot of the effects still hold up. With this being a Robert Rodriguez film, I can't expect anything less when it comes to ridiculousness. Apart from that, I have always liked this film. It was also good to see this in theaters. I do recall watching the sequels, but I remember not liking the second one but giving the third one a pass. I may have to re-watch them now.
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Post by I'm Team Bayley and Indi on Apr 16, 2024 3:51:59 GMT -5
146. Happiness (1998) - pitch black comedy, Todd Solondz is one of those directors that as great work in his filmography and the exact opposite, this is one of his best. 147. When The Daltons Rode (1940) - closer to standard western stuff but raised by performances (I loved hearing the characters speak) and the relationships.
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mystermystery
Dennis Stamp
Still in the White Hummer
Posts: 4,387
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Post by mystermystery on Apr 16, 2024 18:24:57 GMT -5
91.YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE LET ME IN (2024) A movie where an influencer AirBNBs a fancy castle-like place for her dream wedding but, whoops, the owner is a vampire who has eyes for a bridesmaid. It's played straight but there are a few fun moments (such as the vampire has to get them to invite him into his own home because they are technically in control of it because of the lease).
A surprisingly fun Tubi Original that plays with vampire tropes and stories in a fun way.
92. FESTIVAL OF THE LIVING DEAD (2024) For the Soska Sisters, it's a "spiritual sequel" to George A Romero's Night of the Living Dead by being placed in modern time where people now hold Fyre Fest level parties in the area of the original movie to "honor" those who died. The movie follows the grandchildren of Ben from the original movie who, for some unknown daggone reason, have his old rifle.
It's not that great but I liked the cast. Another Tubi Original.
93. THE THIRD SATURDAY IN OCTOBER: PART V (2022) A satire of later horror movie sequels is in my absolute wheelhouse with its weird humor and callbacks to things that don't exist.
94. THE TOXIC AVENGER (1984) Watched as part of Joe Bob's Last Drive-In Show. First time viewing of the Troma Masterpiece. It felt like a weird adult live action cartoon.
It was fine. Makes me curious about that remake that should come out...eventually?
95. THE THIRD SATURDAY IN OCTOBER (2022) That's right. It's the first film in the series, released after the fifth film in the series, which shows all the beginnings of the callbacks in the original sequel to this sequel original. Have you gone crosseyed yet? Still my kind of humor. Really liked this one.
96. RED SCORPION (1984) Dolph Lundgren as Ivan Drago, Russian Soldier, is put on an undercover mission to pretend to defect to infiltrate the rebels, gain their trust, and kill their leader, but instead they gain his trust, he really defects, and he helps kill the bad guys. Action movies, y'all.
Not really that good, but it's amazing to watch an 80s Dolph interacting with character actor legend M. Emmet Walsh (who plays the comedic relief American journalist character). Dolph is doing super human nonsense throughout the whole film, so that was fun.
97. DEAN KOONTZ'S SERVANTS OF TWILIGHT What if a cult decided that your child is the antichrist? Spoiler: Life is not that great for you as random people either scream at your child or attempt to murder them.
A desperate mother hires a PI to protect her child and they go on the run for a dull chase movie that has an absolutely absurd ending that (I know this doesn't matter) changes the book's ending.
98. THE TUNNEL: THE OTHER SIDE OF DARKNESS (2021) Ten year anniversary documentary about the Found Footage movie "The Tunnel" and its strange funding methods that led to them realizing their movie directly to bittorrent and how incredibly hard that made it for them to get an actual distributor.
I thought it was interesting.
99. THE 13TH WARRIOR (1999) Antonio Bandaras is the poet that people are always saying they should have sent who is selected to go with a dozen Vikings on their mission to save a village in a film that is a blatant Beowulf story. A major bomb at the time of its release (McTiernan managed to go direct and release The Thomas Crown Affair before this film was finally dropped in theaters), it's nowhere as bad as its reputation and actually has quite a few fun moments. Bandaras gives a good enough performance but Dennis Storhøi steals the film.
Watched to keep pace with the BLANK CHECK podcast's series on the films of John McTiernan.
100. BLOOD PREADTOR (2007) Random Tubi selection of a ;ow budget horror film that's not that great. Has a seven minute cold open. Seven minutes to show a guy's snowmobile not work, him walk into a cabin, and him walk around the cabin till a monster kills him. It was such an absurd thing, that I stuck around for the rest but it never really gained momentum with me. Kind of a bummer.
Did not realize this was my 100th movie of the year. Whoops.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Apr 16, 2024 21:59:55 GMT -5
#158 - Trolls Band Together (Peacock)
*1st Viewing
Rupaul, Anna Kendrick, Kenan Thompson, Kid Cudi, and Daveed Diggs. This movie might be mid but the voice cast is aces. [**½]
#159 - ARQ (Netflix)
*2nd Viewing
I watched this when it came out and liked it. Decided to see if it holds up on a second viewing years later and it really does. A creative, well done take on the tired time loop genre. [***½]
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agent817
Fry's dog Seymour
Doesn't Know Whose Ring It Is
Posts: 21,263
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Post by agent817 on Apr 16, 2024 23:42:36 GMT -5
59. Daredevil (2003; Theatrical Version) - Watched this on DVD. I got this, along with the Director's Cut, from the library. I have made a point to watch this film and "Elektra," as well as the Director's Cut versions of both films. Yes, I have heard negativity surrounding "Elektra," but I am going to see it for myself to see where I stand. As for "Daredevil," I went with the theatrical version first. With that said, here's my take on it.
I had read a lot of mixed reviews about this film. A lot of them criticized the theatrical version as a whole, as well as Ben Affleck's performance as Matt Murdock, and also Jennifer Garner as Elektra. Personally, I didn't think Affleck did badly in the role. I thought Michael Clarke Duncan (RIP) did well as Wilson Fisk, aka The Kingpin. I didn't mind the performances. Hell, I didn't think Colin Farrell was fine as Bullseye, even though I wondered if in the development phase that he was supposed to have his traditional look.
Aside from that, I can see where some of the criticism lies. It does feel like an incomplete film. I wondered what the motivations were for some characters. Some of the action scenes had that early-2000s feel with the slo-mo effects and the quick editing. Also, the CGI doesn't hold up, but hey, it probably looked good at the time of its release, especially the CGI of Jennifer Garner's feature. Also, the soundtrack really screams early-2000s, especially with bands like Fuel, Evanescence, 12 Stones, Seether, etc. With their songs played in some scenes, you can't get any more early-2000s than that. I also thought the lighting worked with the gritty feeling the director went for as it was trying to be more like Frank Miller's run. There were things that worked.
All I can say is that the theatrical version has its moments and redeeming qualities, but I could still see some of the issues.
Now I just need to see the Director's CUt.
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Post by Wolf Hawkfield no1 NZ poster on Apr 17, 2024 15:12:25 GMT -5
7. Armour of God II: Operation Condor (1991) 8. Koyaanisqatsi (1983 - Cinema)
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BlackoutCreature
Grimlock
The Ultimate Popcorntunist!
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Post by BlackoutCreature on Apr 17, 2024 15:55:47 GMT -5
58. Electric Dreams (1984) 59. Tower of Terror (1997)60. The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot (2018) 61. Corvette Summer (1978)Another YouTube find, starring Mark Hamill. This was a weird movie in his career as it came out about a year after Star Wars made him a star, but before Star Wars became such a pop cultural phenomenon that he would be forever typecast as Luke Skywalker. Here he's a recent High School graduate heading to Las Vegas to try to retrieve his stolen (honestly gaudy looking) Corvette Stingray with the help of wannabe prostitute Annie Potts. It's an ok movie I guess. Hamill and Potts have decent chemistry together and it has some fun moments, but something about it just never came together and clicked with me. Maybe it's just how unashamedly 70's it is.
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Post by The Kevstaaa on Apr 17, 2024 22:17:22 GMT -5
#160 - Little Women (2019) (Blu-Ray)
*2nd Viewing
Ronan and Chalamet in that proposal scene and Pugh talking about marriage should've won all the awards. [****½]
#161 - House Party 3 (Tubi)
*1st Viewing
I laughed whenever a random ass actor showed up but otherwise, this was a misfire. [**]
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agent817
Fry's dog Seymour
Doesn't Know Whose Ring It Is
Posts: 21,263
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Post by agent817 on Apr 17, 2024 23:16:52 GMT -5
60. Homefront (2013) - Watched this on Showtime On Demand. When I briefly went through my Statham kick earlier in the year (which I never really finished; must try to go back), I had told myself to watch this. Being that it was on a deadline before it wouldn't be streaming anymore (at least until it came back; not too sure when it would be), I decided to watch it. I also must add that I saw this in theaters back in 2013 and kind of enjoying it. I wrote a review on it for my college newspaper, too (must find the article).
Anyway, now I've revisited after over a decade, does it hold up? Has it gotten better or worse? Well, I must say that I can appreciate the action scenes to a point. Some of the writing worked, as did the performances. I remember being confused that James Franco was cast as the villain, but as miscast as he was, he didn't do so badly, especially if he is supposed to be a redneck meth cook. I also have to give Kate Bosworth credit not only because of her performance, but also for losing some weight to be convincing as a meth-head.
A lot of the action scenes worked. I am not sure if Gary Fleder had done a lot of action movies before, but there were some issues with how they were edited, but I can't say that I didn't enjoy them. They didn't get too over-the-top, either. For instance, at the end, when Statham crashed the car and he was a bit hurt. Sure, he may have come out to beat up Franco, but it wasn't as if he got out the car completely unscathed as seen in other action films.
I learned that this was based on a novel of the same name by Chuck Logan (I think I recall hearing about this when it was released, but aside from comic books, I wasn't that big of a reader at the time). It's also a part of series based on the character of Phil Broker (Statham's character in the film). I don't have to read all of them to understand certain plot elements (though there some book series that do that), I might read it one day.
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agent817
Fry's dog Seymour
Doesn't Know Whose Ring It Is
Posts: 21,263
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Post by agent817 on Apr 18, 2024 15:18:40 GMT -5
61. Monkey Man - Saw this in theaters. When I saw the trailer for this, I was intrigued. It looked like it had some promise. There have been some people who called this the "Indian John Wick." I could see some comparisons, especially with how the action scenes were shot. However, there was a little more story to this.
I could see where Dev Patel was going with the direction and the story. I am not too familiar with his work. I haven't seen "Slumdog Millionaire," though I have a lot of good things about it. I have not seen "The Last Airbender," but I have heard a lot of bad things about that one. But the trailer for this had a lot of action that was enticing. The action scenes worked, especially with how the camera kept moving in certain angles to look like it was done in one take.
However, despite what the trailer depicted, there were only a handful of action scenes, including some fight scenes that were taken in underground fighting arenas. The rest of the film was more about telling a story.
I would say it did fine in the action department. In fact, I had a blast during those scenes.
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Post by stevescorpio on Apr 18, 2024 15:50:41 GMT -5
64. Civil War (2024)
A war film in a dystopian United States. You mostly see it through the perspective of several journalists. I wish it showed how this civil war began, and there's far too little Nick Offerman in this. It's definitely not for everyone especially anyone sensitive to war imagery.
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