list/discuss/rate - your recently watched movies

Gamera 3: Iris kakusei (revenge of iris) - wasn't quite as satisfying as I'd hoped, I love kaiju movies and grew up on Godzilla but these movies will never rank very high on a rating scale, its all about the epic kaiju battles...and this surprisingly had very little, about 30 mins in you get a fantastic fight between Gamera and some phoenix monster, the first person camera angles and effects were incredible, so much more convincing that Cloverfield-which proves the Japanese will always be a step ahead with big monster movies, Hollywood be damned! the second and final fight between Gamera and Iris, left me wanting. The aerial assault was neat but when they got to the ground it all happened sort of quick with very little movement. And before you knew it, it was over. The actual story on the human level was interesting too, above average as far as these type of movies go....so perhaps if I watched it again with more concentration on the story instead of just eagerly waiting the giant monsters I'd appreciate it more, - 5.5/10

The Company of Wolves - hadn't seen this thing in years, good for a mind refresher. Wasn't quite as brutal as I remember it being, but I still think it holds up as being an original for its time--an odd werewolf fairy tale with a touch of that early 80s gore/splatter, the girl is cute I wish she would've appeared in more movies...she's probably be a stunner nowadays, I gotta hand it to whomever trained and choreographed the wolves and all their movements for this film, kudos for that - 6.5/10

Shi gan (Time) - Korean movie about an insanely jealous girlfriend who cant stand her boyfriend interacting with other females, she accused him of constantly wanting a new girl. So what does she do? Goes and gets a complete facelift and disappears for about 6 months only to come back into her old boyfriends life as a completely different girl...although he doesn't know it...yet. It was an interesting watch all the way through with a strange shift towards the end, I'll give it a fairly generous - 7/10

King Kong , 1933, the original. A masterpiece with special effects that still manage to impress and that must have been out-of-this-universe in 1933. Excellent....

From what I've read, it's not worthy. But I've read some great comments about the remake you mention, some even putting it above the original one. I'll take a look soon.

The Third Man - 8.5/10 Long considered a classic in the world of film noir (which is French for "Black Film"), The Third Man has been on my to-see list for a while. Now after witnessing it, I can say that I understand where so much influence in the world of suspense/thrill...(read more) er came from.

The Third Man is a dark mystery film made about 60 years ago and included some really groundbreaking techniques in terms of lighting and cinematography. Silhouette and cameo lighting, the use of shadows, vertical planes, extreme depth of field, and not to mention the use of tilted angles, sometimes even moving within the shot - all of these attributes ad to the progressive feeling of tension within the audience.

Even for those not interested in the innovative aspects of this film, it can still be enjoyable. The Third Man is a classic mystery tale. Protagonist joins a new city only to find his friend dead, questions of murder, betrayal, deceit, unraveling plot points - the whole deal that aided in setting up the grounds for the entire genre.

Another point I must make is how the movie incorporates a really bizarre use of music. Most films of this sort would choose to use more dark and subtle tones to fit the atmosphere of the movie. However, The Third Man makes use of the zither, an eclectic acoustic instrument that I can't say I've heard often used in movies. Not only does it use this odd instrument, but its playing is never very dark or minor-key, but uses odd dissonant sounding chords instead. The fact that it sounds somewhat out of key or out of tune makes the entire atmosphere feel off and uncomfortable. It's a really unique choice in terms of conveying emotion.

Ultimately, The Third Man succeeds mainly because of its contribution to the evolution of film, but not only does it work on its aesthetic value, but it's an engaging story as well. I definitely recommend it.

25th Hour - 8/10 Overall I liked this quite a bit. Reminded me a little of the "color" portion of American History X, but the film was more character based than event based. Will write more details later.

Fight Club wrote: The Dark Knight - 9/10 This film has fulfilled all of its hype and exceeded my expectations. I enjoyed Batman Begins, but would not have considered it a landmark comic-hero adaption. Never, would have I thought Chris Nolan's new take on the Batman saga would evolve into th...(read more) e intense and clever crime drama that is The Dark Knight. As far as summer blockbuster go - this has it all. Car chases, explosions, sinister villains, fist fights, and climax after climax of sheer edge-of-your-seat entertainment. However, it takes the stereotypical mindless summer action movie, and takes it way beyond anything it was ever expected to be. We get all that tense entertainment, but it's so well crafted, and so well thought out, that it becomes no longer a summer hero movie, but the type of crime drama that's remembered and admired for years. Yes, there is action - is it mindlessly thrown throughout without care? No. Yes, there are explosions - are they used merely for visual appeasement? No. Every action sequence is carefully built up to. Every explosions, car chase, or murder is originally thought out. There are twists and turns in every direction, each sequence unfolds in ways one would never see coming, and Nolan does it all one step at a time until the movie reaches its conclusion. Maybe the overall plot (I stress the word overall) is a little predictable and the pacing is a little odd in places (at times I like there were three climaxes and I wasn't sure when the movie was over). However, each move within the overall plot is clever and non cliched. No one should find themselves groaning at rehashed aspects and redundancy in this film. Anyone looking for a breath of fresh air in the often boring and repetitive genre of summer blockbusters will find satisfaction in The Dark Knight. It may not be as genius as Memento or as emotionally engaging as Requiem for a Dream, but it's one hell of a ride and the adrenaline rush accompanying it definitely leaves me willing to give it go after go.

I'm interested to hear your review of Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker...it's one of the main reasons I want to see the movie, actually!

tardis wrote: Fight Club wrote: The Dark Knight - 9/10 This film has fulfilled all of its hype and exceeded my expectations. I enjoyed Batman Begins, but would not have considered it a landmark comic-hero adaption. Never, would have I thought Chris Nolan's new take on the Batman saga would evolve into th...(read more) e intense and clever crime drama that is The Dark Knight. As far as summer blockbuster go - this has it all. Car chases, explosions, sinister villains, fist fights, and climax after climax of sheer edge-of-your-seat entertainment. However, it takes the stereotypical mindless summer action movie, and takes it way beyond anything it was ever expected to be. We get all that tense entertainment, but it's so well crafted, and so well thought out, that it becomes no longer a summer hero movie, but the type of crime drama that's remembered and admired for years. Yes, there is action - is it mindlessly thrown throughout without care? No. Yes, there are explosions - are they used merely for visual appeasement? No. Every action sequence is carefully built up to. Every explosions, car chase, or murder is originally thought out. There are twists and turns in every direction, each sequence unfolds in ways one would never see coming, and Nolan does it all one step at a time until the movie reaches its conclusion. Maybe the overall plot (I stress the word overall) is a little predictable and the pacing is a little odd in places (at times I like there were three climaxes and I wasn't sure when the movie was over). However, each move within the overall plot is clever and non cliched. No one should find themselves groaning at rehashed aspects and redundancy in this film. Anyone looking for a breath of fresh air in the often boring and repetitive genre of summer blockbusters will find satisfaction in The Dark Knight. It may not be as genius as Memento or as emotionally engaging as Requiem for a Dream, but it's one hell of a ride and the adrenaline rush accompanying it definitely leaves me willing to give it go after go. I'm interested to hear your review of Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker...it's one of the main reasons I want to see the movie, actually!

Yeah I guess I didn't really cover the performances much.

Well, Heath Ledger does not disappoint, I can say that much. Is he worthy of receiving an Oscar for his performance? I don't know about that. Joker definitely comes across as a genuine madman causing chaos for no discernible reason at all, but at times I felt like he was more of a trigger-happy clown than a tormented lunatic. I'm not that familiar with the Batman comics though, so I'm not sure if that's how he's supposed to come across. He plays the character very well, my only complaint is that I found some of his remarks humorous when I think they were supposed to cause more of a "what the hell is wrong with this guy?" reaction.

I actually found the character of Harvey Dent (played by Aaron Eckhart) more interesting. In my opinion he was the deepest and most fleshed out character in this movie. You felt everything from his perspective, his performance was impeccable, and by the end of the movie (I won't spoil it for anyone who doesn't know Harvey Dent's story) I really felt his pain. The Joker was portrayed very well, but I didn't really get in the head of the psychopath as much as I connected with Harvey Dent. I'm not saying Aaron Eckhart's performance was better, as Heath Ledger definitely pulled off some tough stuff; it's more of the writing of the movie than the actor's performances. In this case I think the movie (was meant to?) connected the audience more with Harvey than the Joker.

tardis wrote: It wasn't bad actually, worth seeing...don't expect it to be an exact copy of the 78 version though, it has a few adaptations, but it was good.

just saw The Dark Knight
definitely passed expectations which were admittedly not astronomical

The Legend Of The Black Scorpion-
an excellent period piece in feudal japan(?) that features the same choreographers who did The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon....exceptional fight scenes that actually make the spray of blood artistic/beautiful.....a very dramatic and very tragic story overall, but kept me gripped until the very end.  great sleeper of a hit!  I had never heard of it before walking into my video store!   8.5/10

Ghostbusters-
you all know the drill.  great special effects for the time.  excellent performances by most of the actors, and a great occult subject!  overall, it still holds up years and years later.   7/10

(although it would be nice to see a film where the "bad guys" win for once and take over the earth!)

Wall-E-
wow.  extremely potent story with nary a sound, save that of robots and the Artificial Intelligence.  extremely touching and tear-inducing at points.  well worth seeing in theaters!     9/10

A Poor Boy's Game - a movie about revenge, forgiveness, racial tensions, etc, it was an okay movie till the end which might have been one of the goofiest endings I've ever seen, major lose of points with that one, the fighting scene at the club and the boxing match at the end wasn't choreographed very well either...all seemed kind of slow and awkward,  I'll give an extra point cause Danny Glover is always an enjoyable watch, - 4/10

Rocket Science - not sure what it is about these contemporary teen comedy movies - they start out amusing... then about an hour in I've grown weary of it all yet continue to watch out of obligation to finish what I started but not because I really care to see how it ends. Reminded me of a Rushmore/Election type of movie with the obnoxious over use of sh*tty music, sometimes I feel these films are just a vehicle to get you to sit there for 90 mins while they showcase their favorite songs, ...eh - 4.5/10

Creature - this one was undoubtedly made with the Fangoria audience in mind during the mid 80s, one of those I've been wanting to see for over 20 years now! I remember always seeing the box for this browsing the Horror section when I was young...the cover alone always filled my mind with wonder, as you can expect its of the stalk and slash variety with a post-Alien veneer in mind.  Plenty of the 80s/latex/Savini style gore and done pretty well actually, considering. The bonus of this film happened to be Klaus Kinski making a surprising but brief appearance! I had no idea he was in it, he played a sharp and cocky (and slightly crazy) German Astronaut who's life was cut way too short in the film IMO, Its funny cause even when his character comes back as a Zombie/Alien thing they use a stunt double, This was good blood and popcorn movie and hit the spot in that regard, I'll give it at least a good - 5/10