list/discuss/rate - your recently watched movies |
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Toaster Mantis
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1930s science-fiction film predicting the next 100 years over three generations from World War Two, about which it gets certain things very right and others very wrong, over a post-war chaos where feuding Chiang Kai-shek-style warlords are defeated by a corps of commandos in stealth aircraft operated by a top secret think tank that survived the war, to the establishment of a 21st century technocratic utopia that feels like Plato's Republic by way of the Soviet Union. As risible as many of the predictions feel to a modern day viewer, to say nothing of how characteristically "1930s" the set design is, I not only find its utopian faith in progress as charming as sometimes disturbing (again it reminds me of Soviet propaganda in many ways) but also think it's clear the people behind the film put a lot of thought into figuring out how future societies would look in terms of political organization. Also, the special effects and scale of the sets as well as the choreography of some of the big action scenes are as genuinely impressive by the standards of the day as Fritz Lang's Metropolis. Edited by Toaster Mantis - December 10 2015 at 13:45 |
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"The past is not some static being, it is not a previous present, nor a present that has passed away; the past has its own dynamic being which is constantly renewed and renewing." - Claire Colebrook
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dr wu23
Forum Senior Member Joined: August 22 2010 Location: Indiana Status: Offline Points: 20630 |
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This isn't the 'TV' thread but for those interested there will be some mini series coming on soon that sound good:
SyFy channel in the US.....ck the online web site for times. 'Childhoods End' - from the Arthur Clarke novel 'The Magicians' -from the Lev Grossman novel 'The Expanse' -an original sci-fi drama
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One does nothing yet nothing is left undone.
Haquin |
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Dayvenkirq
Forum Senior Member Joined: May 25 2011 Location: Los Angeles, CA Status: Offline Points: 10970 |
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^ This is probably the thread you are looking for.
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Atavachron
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American Sniper
Bradley Cooper is very good as superpatriot and crack shot Chris Kyle, "The most lethal sniper in US history", follows his many tours in Iraq and illustrates the toll it took on his life. Though I was expecting a jingoistic crowd-pleaser (it is Clint Eastwood after all), the film is mostly fair and objective in how it portrays the ethics of what a sniper does in combat. Decent evening watching for both guys and gals. |
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"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." -- John F. Kennedy
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martinprog77
Forum Senior Member Joined: December 31 2005 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 2523 |
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shaun the sheep the movie
i saw this one today with my daughter .truly great movie we laugh from beginning to end .
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Nothing can last
there are no second chances. Never give a day away. Always live for today. |
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mithrandir
Forum Senior Member Joined: March 25 2006 Location: New Mexico Status: Offline Points: 933 |
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Cruising (1980) - this is the gayest movie I've
ever seen, literally! I was surprised how much of a gutter movie this
was, made me feel nasty after I watched it, makes me wonder how well
this movie did in the box office since peoples homophobia on a whole was
much higher back then, and it was pretty darn graphic, Joe Spinell has a
couple of cameos too so you know its a going to be a seedy inner city
movie
the soundtrack is pretty great too, both songs, and background music |
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Toaster Mantis
Forum Senior Member Joined: April 12 2008 Location: Denmark Status: Offline Points: 5898 |
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Last week I saw:
I love how even the less cerebral Italian horror films actively forsake traditional narrative structure in favour of running more on surreal "dream logic", which always makes for a very distinctive viewing experience compared to most other entries in the genre from the rest of the world. This strange hybrid between a Dawn of the Dead-style zombie apocalypse movie and a virus outbreak post-apocalypse film is a good example - gets a lot of the mileage from everything going on represents the total breakdown of civilization on a symbolistic level. Then yesterday I watched something very different... and at the same time not yet: A Russian film from the mid-1970s about a middle-aged man looking down through his life story and how it interweaves with his family's civil war through several generations, constantly switching between nesting narratives from the time of the Spanish Civil War (which the main character's father fought in) to the modern day and jumping perspective between his relatives. Like the Italian horror film above, it's told less like a traditional narrative and more like a hazily remembered dream where ideals crumble under the weight of entropy and chaos. Right down to the flashbacks being buried within each other like a Matryoshka doll. Also, in a typical example of director Andrei Tarkovsky being Andrei Tarkovsky it presents a rather pessimistic view of modern civilization's faith in progress though it contrasts that with some very beautiful imagery of the Russian countryside and some rather inspiring portrayals of rural people's ingenuity in folk wisdom. The visual side of this movie also exactly matches the mental image I got of the locales when reading Nikolai Gogol's Dead Souls, just with people's fashions updated by a century. (which in Soviet-era Eastern Europe doesn't amount to that much evolution) It's definitely worth seeing just for the camera work, though I wouldn't recommend this as people's intro to Tarkovsky. |
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"The past is not some static being, it is not a previous present, nor a present that has passed away; the past has its own dynamic being which is constantly renewed and renewing." - Claire Colebrook
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Atavachron
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A Christmas Story: The Musical
Jean Shepherd's beloved fable is brought back with songs and a condensed storyline in this theater version of the WASP period classic from 1983. But as with any musical, it's the music that's important, and here it just ain't good enough to merit a new treatment. A trickle of good melodies and a few heartfelt moments enhance the childhood dreams of a young boy fixated on convincing his haggard parents to get him a BB gun for Christmas, but it doesn't quite save a slightly corny ~ or cornier ~ take on this holiday gem of economic writing, universal memories, and the love of family. |
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"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." -- John F. Kennedy
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Cristi
Special Collaborator Crossover / Prog Metal Teams Joined: July 27 2006 Location: wonderland Status: Online Points: 44158 |
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Inside man (2006)
nice movie, starring Clive Owen, Denzel Washington, Jodie Foster and Willem Dafoe it's heist movie, very smart plan, I won't spoil it, I recommed it, a good way to spend a couple of hours in the evening. Edited by Cristi - December 13 2015 at 03:54 |
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TeleStrat
Forum Senior Member Joined: December 27 2014 Location: Norwalk, CA Status: Offline Points: 9319 |
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^ I thought that was a very good movie.
Monday night... Ant-Man (Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas) Interesting enough but not on the same level as Iron Man, Captain America or Thor. Maybe it was the insect thing that I couldn't get into. All of the main actors did a good job and I did like Michael Pena's character who was kind of a "comic sidekick". Based on the last scene, Ant-Man may be asked to join The Avengers. Tuesday night... Mission Impossible - Rogue Nation (Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Alec Baldwin) Released yesterday on DVD, I thought this was one of the better IMF movies. It has a great cast and I think Jeremy Renner has become a solid member of the team. I've enjoyed Simon Pegg's character since he became a regular and I thought it was a good move to promote him from computer tech to field operative (he's doing very well being a regular in the IMF movies and the Star Trek movies). It looks like Alec Baldwin will return as the "Secretary". I also thought Rebecca Ferguson did very well as the MI6 undercover agent. She developed a relationship with Ethan Hunt and I would like to see her return in the next movie.
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Dayvenkirq
Forum Senior Member Joined: May 25 2011 Location: Los Angeles, CA Status: Offline Points: 10970 |
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Doctor Zhivago. My soon-to-be stepdad said that the thing he likes about this movie is that some things in the film are said through non-verbal language, like the looks the characters give each other. I just don't care. Why? Because, quite frankly, I'm just not a big fan of movies where the characters are either despicable or just weak ... or both. Every primary male figure in the movie made at least one morally wrong decision, and the female figures had to feel the consequences of those decisions. But I have to give it to Boris Pasternak: he wrapped romance, drama, and war into one very well.
I've also rented Avengers: Age of Ultron on iTunes. A flashy actioner where we get really deep into the tech sci-fi realm. This is probably strictly for Marvel comic book fans. Captain America: The Winter Soldier. This one I had to buy. I felt about this one the same way I felt about Age of Ultron, but I have to admit: the part where Nick Fury got cornered and almost caught in his truck was really badass. Note the Pulp Fiction reference on his tombstone. I'm still really looking forward to CA: Civil War. Oh, and by the way, ... I'm on the Cap's side.
Edited by Dayvenkirq - December 16 2015 at 11:41 |
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Atavachron
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Ant-Man was meh. It got some good press but turned out to be a children's movie.
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"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." -- John F. Kennedy
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Atavachron
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Best of Enemies
The ten riveting and at times blasphemous 'debates' conservative journalist William F. Buckley and progressive author Gore Vidal had during the 1968 Dem's Convention are documented, culminating in Buckley calling Vidal a "queer" and blowing open the divides the U.S. was facing by the late 60s for all to see in bleak detail. A reasonably significant moment in American political discourse and confrontation, made more interesting by the intellectual prowess of both men. |
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"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." -- John F. Kennedy
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Dayvenkirq
Forum Senior Member Joined: May 25 2011 Location: Los Angeles, CA Status: Offline Points: 10970 |
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TeleStrat
Forum Senior Member Joined: December 27 2014 Location: Norwalk, CA Status: Offline Points: 9319 |
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Fantastic Four (2015)
Released this week on DVD. I was hesitant but my son said to give it a shot. It turns out I was right. I have to put this one a notch below Ant-Man so that should tell you something. A sequel is planned for 2017 but I doubt that will happen. Some young scientists/technicians develop a transporter that can send people to a parallel dimension. They decide to test it before NASA takes over the project. There is a problem and one guy is lost (he'll return as the bad guy) but the four that return have special powers. It goes down hill from there.
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dr wu23
Forum Senior Member Joined: August 22 2010 Location: Indiana Status: Offline Points: 20630 |
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^ I actually liked the original one a few years ago. I thought it was ok even though it was panned by most. ....but it sounds like this new one has changed the original storyline on how they were mutated and that forbodes a bad direction imo.
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One does nothing yet nothing is left undone.
Haquin |
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TeleStrat
Forum Senior Member Joined: December 27 2014 Location: Norwalk, CA Status: Offline Points: 9319 |
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^ I try not to be too critical (but it's hard) about Ant-Man and Fantastic Four because they may have stood well on their own.
It's hard to compete with Iron Man, Capt. America, Thor and The Avengers. These movies have set the bar very high.
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Dayvenkirq
Forum Senior Member Joined: May 25 2011 Location: Los Angeles, CA Status: Offline Points: 10970 |
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Forgot to write one more.
Serpico. About a cop (Al Pacino) with such a nigh-unparalleled sense of honor and determination in driving the corrupt element out of the police department that it's almost unreal. And he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he acted otherwise, a quality that cost him almost every human relationship during that time. The events that ensued were changing him profoundly. But I must admit: it's a tad harder to root for someone who feels entitled to having love and friendship when acting like a jerk-off. Looking forward to seeing Dog Day Afternoon, where Pacino and Lumet work together again.
Edited by Dayvenkirq - December 18 2015 at 22:21 |
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Atavachron
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The Big Short
Based on Michael Lewis's 2010 book about the credit default market that was growing out of control by 2006 and came tumbling down in '08, The Big Short illuminates the complexities of Wall Street banking and the odd individuals who swirl around it. JC Chandor's Margin Call from 2011 was a superior film and I would not estimate The Big Short to be Picture of the Year (as it's being praised), but a very good cast and screenplay makes for an absorbing story. |
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"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." -- John F. Kennedy
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TeleStrat
Forum Senior Member Joined: December 27 2014 Location: Norwalk, CA Status: Offline Points: 9319 |
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The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Henry Cavill - Napoleon Solo Armie Hammer - Illya Kuryakin Alicia Vikander - Gaby Hugh Grant - Alexander Waverly Directed by Guy Ritchie I was doubtful about this one when it came out on DVD but as it turns out, I enjoyed it. As an old guy I remember the TV show very well but I wasn't sure if the movie could pull off that sixties Cold War thing. I didn't know when I bought it that it was directed by Guy Ritchie but that's a game changer because I like a lot of his movies. This first movie basically lays the groundwork for what will eventually become U.N.C.L.E. Solo (American), Kuryakin (Russian) and Gaby (British) are thrown together to try to stop an evil mastermind from starting a nuclear war. Working together was difficult at first because Solo and Kuryakin (and their handlers) didn't trust each other. At the end of the movie we learn that they did so well that all would become permanent members of a new organization (U.N.C.L.E.) overseen by Waverly (Hugh Grant).
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