list/discuss/rate - your recently watched movies

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian: I never saw the first one (Well I had read the book and saw the old BBC series), but the first NEW one looked kind of sh*tty (rented it tonight though haha).  Anyways, this movie was actually good.  The acting might be lacking a bit, but most of the actors were...CGI animals, the others did an ok job.  The story was still good though, and the battle scenes were pretty sweet.  7/10

Pathfinder: DVRed this a few days ago because I didn't want to rent it or see it in theaters as it looked like crap.  A remake (I believe), and it was not surprisingly, BAD.  I was hoping there would at least be some sweet Viking vs. Natives battles, but those were lame too.  AVOID this. 1/10

When We Were Kings: A wonderful documentary on Muhammad Ali and the famous "Rumble in the Jungle" with George Foreman.  It was very well done and Ali was spectacular.  Most of the film focused on the weeks leading to the fight and the man that is Ali.  However, the fight is shown too (highlights mostly, but still great).  I recommend this. 9/10

Knocked Up: Another recent DVR.  I was never too interested in paying heaps for it as it didn't look that great compared to the likes of 40 year old virgin, or Superbad.  It had funny moments, but I get sick of Seth Rogan constantly playing himself, and the whole Judd Apatow train has kind of worn itself out.  Good for a few laughs, but I wouldn't really even pay 5 dollars to rent this.  5/10.

Indiana Jones 4:  http://www.terminally-incoherent.com/img/facepalm.jpeg

stonebeard wrote: Indiana Jones 4:  http://www.terminally-incoherent.com/img/facepalm.jpeg

Yea... that pretty much sums it up....

I'm not sure why this movie got such high ratings... I don't think I'd give it more than 2 or 3 out of 10.


Edited by darkmatter - May 22 2008 at 13:35

Indiana Jones "4" - I'm surprised people are saying this sucked.  It was the same old good adventure movie that was the first three films, only Indy is older.  Sure it wasn't perfect, and there were parts that could have been removed, but overall it was very well done and I'm glad they decided to make another great adventure film.  Something that has been mostly absent in the last two decades. 8/10   (the only downside I see is that there have been many many young people going to see this without having seen the previous three.  Which makes no sense.  Why would you go to the fourth movie before 1 2 or 3? )

New Police Story- Jackie Chan has gone back to Hong Kong to make films again and this is a good thing because most of his big hollywood films (except Rush Hour and Shanghai Noon) sucked. I'm a huge fan of the classic Police Story so was a bit aprahencive as to whether this would match up, but it does. Darker and laking much of the slapstick comedy of the first two, it focuses on a cop that is very much out of faver and now on a self destructive path after a raid went very badly wrong. Probably the best acting I've seen from Chan here and the martial arts scenes ae as good as you would expect from a Hong Kong film, 8/10. 

Indiana Jones 4 should be treated as a mediocre comedy film and nothing more. 

BroSpence wrote: stonebeard wrote: BroSpence wrote: Indiana Jones "4" - I'm surprised people are saying this sucked. Yeah, I'm surprised people are saying it's good. There's a major disconnect, and I don't get it. Why did you think it was so bad though?

It could have been good if the plot and action weren't augmented to the extent where it seemed to be basically just a special effect demonstration for ADHD children with little content whatsoever.  There were a lot of moments where I just had to laugh because it was so lame and over-the-top.  If I were 12 or under, I probably would have loved it.

Land of the Dead - Got it from the library. On a scale of 1-4 I'd give it a 2.5. Not scary and not his best work. It could be Romero is running out of gas on this zombie subject. I thought that the idea of the zombies learning was good but they learned too quickly. Another problem I had was that the main zombies never went after humans. They went against there drive to eat. Lots of gore but nothing more than his last 2 movies. I haven't gotten to see Diary of the Dead yet.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull- I tried to go in without expectations, but deep down my inner child just couldn't help himself. "Indiana F**king Jones!" he yelled, and went on about the fedora and the whips and the ophidophobia. So I went in, and could hardly contain myself as the lights went down on my first and likely only theater experience with Indiana Jones.

It starts out with that awesome "Somewhere in Nevada" print over a desolate desert being ridden by an Army convoy. They pull up on a base, and suddenly hop out, take over and start speaking Russian. YESSSS. How did a platoon of Ruskies make it in the US and get army uniforms, weapons, and transportation? Who cares?! This is pulp fiction at its finest. Then, they bring in their shadowed hostage who puts on a fedora, and you know who it is. Harrison Ford looks more badass know than ever, and his world-weary slant on this aged Indy makes an impression with his first lines. This is brilliant.

Then time goes by. The utter thrill of seeing Indy for my first time on a screen that is finally big enough to contain all the action doesn't waver as we learn what little we will ever learn about the skull. Sure, the ark and the Holy Grail have a history, but this is some random made up thing (technically based on real objects but you'll soon see a noticeable difference), so I can kind of forgive it for the moment.

Then more time goes by. The initial thrill begins to give way to a growing uncertainty as some lame lines come in, the skull's importance and, most importantly, powers go unexplained, and I start noticing some really forced humor. In, say, Raiders, the humor is all delivered in context, which makes it funny and relevant and avoids stopping a film just to get in a pithy one-liner or some visual gag.

Then the monkeys come. This scene brings the movie to a (literally) screeching halt. Without giving anything away, this is the beginning of the end for me. From here on out, the CGI gets truly awful in spots, and yet the film is obviously relying on it because the script just cuts out any semblance of intelligence. Why is it that the two men most responsible for creating CGI have some of the worst effects in years in this film, especially one they both have a lot invested in. The initial joy of Harrison Ford looking just as awesome has now given way to the realization that he has no dialogue; he's speaking in one-liners. The ending is completely unsatisfactory because even at the end I know what the skull is but not what the reward is supposed to be. The other films have something that offers some sort of benefit; there is never a reason for the good guys or the bad guys to be seeking it.

In the end, Harrison Ford is just as good, if not better, than ever before, and Shia continues to put in excellent performances in mediocre blockbusters. Everyone else puts in performances never above decent. It's so over the top that it doesn't ever feel like an Indy movie. My buddy tried to call me on criticizing realism in an Indy film, but look at Raiders: the one thing you really have to stretch to believe is the actual effect of the Ark. When he runs from boulders, you feel the thrills and you fear for Indiana. At no point in this movie are he or his friends in danger, and it makes the whole thing bland. Of course I knew Indy would "win" (for lack of a better term), but to this day Raiders keeps me on the edge of my seat. I mean, for God's sake, he can even speak every language he comes across. It went from good to awful in an hour, and never rebounded. 6/10

BroSpence wrote: stonebeard wrote: BroSpence wrote: Indiana Jones "4" - I'm surprised people are saying this sucked. Yeah, I'm surprised people are saying it's good. There's a major disconnect, and I don't get it. Why did you think it was so bad though?

1. CGI
2. Ridiculous plot (even by Indy standards)
3. Animated monkeys/prairie dogs
4. It's basically Tomb Raider 3, not Indiana Jones 4