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[Violence Jack]

Rewatched Mad Max Fury Road last night. I underestimated just how good this movie is. The only part that has a lull (albeit a short one) is when

Spoiler

Furiosa finds out that the green place shriveled up and died long ago. A needed scene, but I felt it dragged the movie down.

I now find it much better than The Road Warrior, and the set pieces are incredible. Should at least nab an Oscar for cinematography.

 

[Rhomega Beta]

Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy: Two points I want to make first:

1. This is 4 hours long. Make time for it...or just watch it over two days like I did.
2. I've never actually seen a ANoES movie, though that's changing for the 31 Days of Horror.

This is a great and insightful look into every ANoES movie, except for the 2010 remake. They also take time to talk about the TV series Freddy's Nightmares, as well as the series influence on pop culture, like articles titled "A Nightmare on [X]". They got as many people as they could, notably except Johnny Depp, and they couldn't explain why Patricia Arquette couldn't come back for The Dream Master. It's a must-see for any fan of the franchise, or even those interested in it in general like me.

 

[Akahige]

Dead Snow (2009) - I saw mentioned more than a few times in the best zombie movie thread, so last night I decided to watch it, fairly enjoyable as far as cheesy horror movies go. It is very inspired by other horror films but there is enough originally and creativity in the gory madness for it to be it's own thing.

 

[Infernostew]

Always around this time of the year I keep seeing Martyrs getting recommended and that always makes me remember how awful that French horror movement in the early and mid 2000s turned out. Ugh.. like every one of them are so bad.

 

[BotoxAgent]

Dead Snow (2009) - I saw mentioned more than a few times in the best zombie movie thread, so last night I decided to watch it, fairly enjoyable as far as cheesy horror movies go. It is very inspired by other horror films but there is enough originally and creativity in the gory madness for it to be it's own thing.

see the sequel it's even more crazy and hilarious lol

 

[Akahige]

I'll get around to it in the next few days.

Always around this time of the year I keep seeing Martyrs getting recommended and that always makes me remember how awful that French horror movement in the early and mid 2000s turned out. Ugh.. like every one of them are so bad.

I haven't see many but Them was pretty solid I thought, mild compared to the other films within the sub genre. High Tension is a movie where I just say fuck that ending. Sheitan is entertaining if you don't take it seriously.

 

[Moppeh]

Past few days have been pretty good for cinema.

Rewatched Skyfall the other day. I don't see why there are so many people on GAF who hate this film (then again, it's GAF, I shouldn't be surprised). Sure, some of the writing is cheesy, and the final act is a little underwhelming, but it is still pretty great. I really love Bardem in it, though I do wish we had more time with him (he's seen like halfway into the film). The in media res opening is good as well, and Deakin's cinematography is fucking beautiful in the Shanghai scenes.

Saw The French Connection for the first time. I see why this won Best Picture. It was a dope thriller and Hackman is great in it.

Also saw In The Mood For Love and holy shit, what a fucking beautiful motion picture. I've been curious about it since I noticed it was the highest ranking 00s film in the Sight and Sound 2012 poll. My goodness, I just adore how the camera slowly floats during the scenes. That, with the reserved performances from the cast added a stellar oneiric quality to the film. The mise en scene was top notch too. The sets and wardrobes were so vibrant and colorful. I really can't wait to watch it again. It was one of those films that I just sorta became lost in and had to recover from once the credits hit.

I gave Hoosiers a watch today. I expected the usual 80s Hollywood sentimental schlock and actually ended up rather teary eyed throughout it. I admit I have a bit of a Hopper bias, but every scene with him really blew me away.

 

[LevelNth]

I recently watched Aloha, which was pretty bad. It just didn't really make much sense and seemed all over the place, bouncing around from scene to scene with various weirdness in each. Disappointing.

Also attempted watching Get Hard, but pulled the plug about an hour in. Love Ferrell, but it was just horrendous.

 

[Infernostew]

I'll get around to it in the next few days.

I haven't see many but Them was pretty solid I thought, mild compared to the other films within the sub genre. High Tension is a movie where I just say fuck that ending. Sheitan is entertaining if you don't take it seriously.

High Tension was my favorite out of the bunch but the ending pretty much ruins the film. I still like to overlook it a bit in my personal opinion of the film but I have friends who dismiss it entirely (and rightly so) because of how awful it was. Fronteir(s) was one of the biggest disappointments I've seen. Martyrs has an interesting first half then it all goes to shit and becomes boring and I just wanted it to end. BS philosophical jargon at the end that some people will salivate at but did nothing for me. Inside is pretty interesting and gory but the supporting characters (and especially the police) are so dumb that it's eye rolling. I think I kind of gave up on modern french horror after that.

 

[Currygan]

rewatching Carnage, standing in awe at the greatness of it all. what a collective effort, damn

edit: just noticed I got a tag! Oh boy, lol...I wonder who decided for it 😆

 

[ViewtifulJC]

not a movie, but damn this photo of Chiwetal Ejifor is striking tho

From a great interview with Cary Fukunaga, so its double the handsomeness for the price of onef

 

[Infernostew]

rewatching Carnage, standing in awe at the greatness of it all. what a collective effort, damn

edit: just noticed I got a tag! Oh boy, lol...I wonder who decided for it 😆

Carnage is so good. Congrats on the tag.

 

[Rhomega Beta]

Masters of the Universe. I've seen a few episodes of He-Man, both the Filmation and the 2002 reboot. Here, with all the sci-fi aesthetic, use of blasters, and Skeletor's henchmen having Death Star Commando helmets, it feels like He-Man Meets Star Wars. In fact, He-Man doesn't use his sword all that much. Cringer/Battlecat and Orko don't appear for obvious reasons (despite the movie looking like it has a decent budget), neither do Prince Adam (technically) or his parents, and it opens with Skeletor capturing Castle Greyskull with no explanation whatsoever.

This is a so-bad-it's-good stupid kind of movie. The Cosmic Key's use of synthesizer sounds is stupid, but it's so '80s! You have James Tolkan in this (Principal Strickland from Back to the Future), and the other Earthling characters aren't completely terrible. I'll give them credit for doing a good job for making a live-action He-Man movie despite the limitations. It's also surprisingly a little graphic with blood used in spots, and the use of "killing" and "dying" instead of "destroying" like you would see in other kids' stuff.

And the title sequence is certainly nothing like Superman.

 

[Currygan]

Carnage is so good. Congrats on the tag.

I always felt that movie is underappreciated around here. Glad to see someone else liked it!

 

[User 479360]

Little Big League - It was a decently fun watch, albeit nothing great.

Got Predestination, Snowpiercer and the third Hobbit movie PVRed/needing to be watched. I'm not sure if I will watch Snowpiercer, though, because I heard it's really weird and it may bore me.

 

[Infernostew]

I'm not sure if I will watch Snowpiercer, though, because I heard it's really weird and it may bore me.

Uhh.. What?!?!

 

[User 479360]

Uhh.. What?!?!

A review I watched said it was strange like a Gilliam film, and I haven't loved what I've seen of his.

I've also heard mixed things.

 

[Rhomega Beta]

Up in the Air: Saw this on Netflix and remembered how much my brother loved it. You think it's about a frequent flier taking on an apprentice of sorts while fearing his job will make his frequent flying obsolete, but it's more than that. It's how he starts to change his lifelong philosophy, and how it all falls apart. This movie speaks to me because I do identify with Ryan Bingham. Granted, I'm not a frequent flier. I haven't flown in an airplane in nearly 20 years. However, I don't want to get married, and I don't want to become materialistic. I prefer living that isolated life. Granted, I'm also not having casual sex on the side either. Still, it's a great movie about introspection, travel, love, and how hard it can be to fire someone.

 

[pauljeremiah]

Saw Legend tonight. Fantastic film with a stand out performance by Tom Hardy.

 

[Liquidsnake]

Panic Room- Not as good as I remembered it. Excellnet camera work, but the acting was off. I guess it just has't aged well.

Anna and the King- Not bad. Chow Yun is in top form.

Badlands Excellent. I wonder what movie goers thought of this movie back when it was released.

 

[Arkos]

Blades of Glory is so good

 

[Akahige]

Sightseers (2012) - I usually like dark comedies but I didn't get many laughs out of this one, the plot really goes nowhere which can work fine with some movies but in this there wasn't enough good material to sustain a full length movie, would have made a fine short movie.

Trollhunter (2010) - A little too self serious for my liking, apparently this can be classified as a comedy but I didn't get that out of it, humor lost in translation possibly. Cool concept and a few cool moments.

Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1974 (2009) - Solid film, I liked the look of the film a lot, the cast even underutilized ones gave good performances. Ending was a little wonky,

Spoiler

it kinda turned into Taxi Driver with the shootout

and didn't come together too well.

Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1980 (2009) - So the gritty and bleak look of the last film has gone out the window on this one, not a big problem but the look of the last one made it much more authentic to the era. Not as good as the first one but overall not bad, same solid effort from the cast like the last one, the always excellent Sean Harris gets a bigger role this time around and we get a in depth look at the corrupt police side that was missing from the first film. Ending comes to together well enough,

Spoiler

the flashbacks to the shootout of the last film were extremely confusing until it got explained at the end.

Red Riding: In the Year of Our Lord 1983 (2009) - Worst looking of the three, this one was shot digitally compared to the other two being shot on 16mm (74) & 35mm (80), weird as hell lens flare invaded the scene every once in awhile that ruined the shot. The movie is pretty damn incoherent, there is a flashback scene that starts the movie which is fine since your told "1974" on screen, but about an hour into the movie there's a 5 to 15 minute (I couldn't tell you how long it lasted) flashback scene where you have to deduct yourself that it's a flashback,

Spoiler

only when Sean Bean who died at the end of the first movie showed up at the end of it did I realize

nope it's not 1983 it's 1974. Up to this point the movie has not been good but it just got worse from there to end, none of the questions from the previous films were answered in a fulfilling way or really at all and the ending was just straight up bad.

 

[Fancy Clown]

Raging Bull: Amazing movie, obviously. De Niro was fantastic, but Pesci might have been even better. I loved the complexity of his character and his relationship with De Niro. Editing and those stark compositions were on point as well. It's a pretty exhausting movie though, because it's like 2 hours of De Niro being horrible to people. It bumped Goodfellas out of my Scorsese top 3 and has joined the ranks of The King of Comedy and Taxi Driver.

The Devil's Rejects: Well, this is the first Rob Zombie flick I've made it through without turning it off. Can't say it was good, but there were things I liked about it. The aesthetic was great (although Zombie's always been a pretty good visual stylist), with those blue skies contrasting with the shimmering white heat of the western setting, and there were some nice edits to go with them. But good lord, I get that it's an exploitation homage, but the characters are all so god damn obnoxious and repugnant. And the stuff they do, I don't really have a stomach for the rapey stuff. Occassionally there's some good dark humor in the morbidity, and some entertaining sequences, but whenever any of the "rejects" opened there's mouths I wanted to stop watching. I guess Zombie's movies aren't for me.

Dope was fun, but I feel like it played things a little safe. The structure was typical, the resolution way too clean and "satisfying", and the themes were too direct. Still, I liked the premise, and it had a really solid group of characters--and actors backing them, along with a solid soundtrack and style to back it.

 

[Currygan]

Saw Legend tonight. Fantastic film with a stand out performance by Tom Hardy.

damn jealous right now

 

[big ander]

New releases:
The Mend ***1/2 absolutely distinct and exhilarating with its bifurcated sound and narrative ellipses—though I've since seen some say the Magary guy basically cops Arnaud Desplechin's technique, haven't seen any Desplechin myself. a woozy portrait of repression and pain, will want to keep an eye out for Magary.
Queen of Earth **** a representation of depression I don't see often enough, acknowledging how selfish it is. difficult to talk about generally or translate why it's impressive in its discomfort and expertly written/acted characters, but is fascinating to discuss with others

trying to make the most of a mubi free trial:
Cure: The Life of Another (Staka, 2014) ** kinda nice score, all white noise and ambient guitars. so slight otherwise.
The Queen of Hearts (Donzelli, 2009) **1/2 little bit clever (primarily in having an actor pull a Sellers in Strangelove), intermittently funny, padded out.
Dirty Like an Angel (Breillat, 1991) **** my first Breillat. bold and confrontational, shooting conversations mostly from one angle without reverse shots is striking. A young wife meets a dirty cop and Breillat rubs her and our noses in his racism, sexism and emotional manipulation—only for the woman to kind of like it.
Wanted to watch Breillat's Nocturnal Uproar tonight, not gonna happen and definitely confirming mubi's not for me. Over half the movies available I could get on either netflix IW or DVD, it doesn't get along well with my shitty internet and the way it buffers works even worse than other streaming services, the only workaround would be using their feature that allows downloading to a phone to watch offline but 1) then I'd be watching a movie on a phone, ew 2) my phone isn't even compatible with their app 3) right now the app is apparently majorly broken and crashes instantly for the majority of users. Plus the "only there for 30 days" structure just makes movies feel like an obligation. when I'm getting DVDs in the mail I often still watch and return fairly quickly, or am seeing plenty in general.

Others:
Goodbye Solo (Bahrani, 2008) ***1/2 great final shot. not Chop Shop level but another filling downtempo drama with social dimension from Bahrani.
Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones (Landon, 2014) **1/2 scares could be better, the loss of the usual "Night #XX" rhythm is felt. otherwise the deviations from the rest of the series are welcome, for instance: the characters in The Marked Ones are actually endearing. Smacks a little of cleaning up loose ends before 5 proper caps off the franchise (for now).
Take Aim at the Police Van (Suzuki, 1960) ***1/2 Kinetic breakneck pop-noir thriller with moments of impressionism and New Wave abstraction dotted throughout. Misako Watanabe's femme fatale, inheritor of a prostitution ring, is spectacular.
Malice (Becker, 1993) *** winding thriller with a gamble of a plot misdirection and some pleasingly vanilla direction. intriguing script from Sorkin and Frank, killer cast from the leads (Alec Baldwin, Nicole Kidman, Bill Pullman) to the stacked supporting players (George C. Scott, Anne Bancroft, Tobin Bell, Peter Gallagher, Gwyneth Paltrow even makes an impression with two lines).

 

[peakish]

The Illusionist, 2006. I have this problem with Edward Norton that I always see him and not the character he's playing. Then half-way through the movie I realised that I'd seen it once before and completely forgotten it, so meh. The tricks look good, but they're mostly a bit too fantastic to feel real and never seem like they fit in the movie universe. It cheapens the actual illusion taking place in the movie.

It was fun to see Rufus Sewell again, at least. Haven't seen him in much since Dark City.

The Third Man is great, rightfully hailed as a classic, but don't sleep on Carol Reed's Odd Man Out. It's really fucking good.

Duly noted, thanks!

 

[Discotheque]

it's the only carol reed film i've seen but yeah it's a masterpiece for sure. i think i want to delve more into orson welles' movies though. i've only seen citizen kane, f for fake and the trial which were all so good. the man was killing it.

i should get around to ambersons and shanghai soon.

 

[UberTag]

Finally settled on my TIFF haul for this year...
- 45 Years (Andrew Haigh)
- Beasts of No Nation (Cary Joji Fukunaga)
- The Boy and the Beast (Mamoru Hosoda)
- Brooklyn (John Crowley)
- The Danish Girl (Tom Hooper)
- Demolition (Jean-Marc Vallée)
- The Devil's Candy (Sean Byrne)
- The Final Girls (Todd Strauss-Schulson)
- Freeheld (Peter Sollett)
- Green Room (Jeremy Saulnier)
- High-Rise (Ben Wheatley)
- The Iron Giant: Signature Edition (Brad Bird)
- The Lady in the Van (Nicholas Hytner)
- The Martian (Ridley Scott)
- Our Brand Is Crisis (David Gordon Green)
- The Program (Stephen Frears)
- Room (Lenny Abrahamson) *not expecting to be able to rush this one in time; maybe I'll get lucky*
- Son of Saul (László Nemes)
- Spotlight (Tom McCarthy)
- Trumbo (Jay Roach)
- Where To Invade Next (Michael Moore)
- Youth (Paolo Sorrentino)

And, even though I'm not catching it at the festival proper, I will also try to squeeze in a screening of Sicario on Saturday during its limited run before going wide the next week. Black Mass I will catch once I return home.

There's a few in here I'll need to rush unless tickets materialize at the last minute but I had a pretty solid track record with rushing two years ago so I'm not expecting too much trouble unless I've specifically noted it above.

Will chime in to this thread with impressions during my assorted line-up stints.

 

[User 479360]

.

You're not going to see The Witch?

 

[Blues1990]

I've just finished watching the film 'Ruby Sparks'. I still don't know if I like it or not. :/

 

[Akahige]

I completely forgot but I watched The Weather Man (2005), didn't even remember till I saw it on my Netflix Continue Watching list. Not entirely bad but oh so similar in themes to most indie dramedys out there,it's missing the visual pastiche that even non blockbuster Gore Verbinski films have like The Ring and Mousehunt. Michael Caine speaks with an American accent which I don't recall ever hearing before, it's decent but odd to hear.

 

[Fancy Clown]

it's the only carol reed film i've seen but yeah it's a masterpiece for sure. i think i want to delve more into orson welles' movies though. i've only seen citizen kane, f for fake and the trial which were all so good. the man was killing it.

i should get around to ambersons and shanghai soon.

Touch of Evil, yo

 

[HoJu]

I forgot when the TIFF tickets went on sale, so I was only able to get High Rise, Office, Right Now Wrong Then, and Anomalisa.

Wanted The Witch and The Forbidden Room but they sold out.

 

[Infernostew]

Touch of Evil, yo

2nd this! Touch of Evil is fantastic.

 

[BotoxAgent]

I completely forgot but I watched The Weather Man (2005), didn't even remember till I saw it on my Netflix Continue Watching list. Not entirely bad but oh so similar in themes to most indie dramedys out there,it's missing the visual pastiche that even non blockbuster Gore Verbinski films have like The Ring and Mousehunt. Michael Caine speaks with an American accent which I don't recall ever hearing before, it's decent but odd to hear.

I really enjoyed this movie strangely enough.

 

[SuperInuit]

it's the only carol reed film i've seen but yeah it's a masterpiece for sure. i think i want to delve more into orson welles' movies though. i've only seen citizen kane, f for fake and the trial which were all so good. the man was killing it.

i should get around to ambersons and shanghai soon.

Should check out The Trial, too. My personal favourite.

Watched Gangs of New York, has some seriously crap choreography in the fight scenes. Day Lewis was pretty great as Bill The Butcher, and some scenes he was clearly just showing off how fucking good he is, especially compared to everyone else in the cast. Thought DiCaprio was terrible, didn't believe a single emotion he tried to convey. Less said about Diaz' performance the better, too. Well edited as par the course for Scorcese, but it felt wayy too long and got quite repetitive towards the end for me.

 

[peakish]

Touch of Evil, yo

2nd this! Touch of Evil is fantastic.

Yeah, it's pretty great. Speaking of Welles, I've had this sort-of memory of a director who claimed he learned how to direct by watching Citizen Kane on repeat. I can't for the life of me remember who it might have been, so is this something I have dreamed up or does anyone else know what I'm speaking of? It's been nagging me a bit, so I'm curious, lol.

 

[User 479360]

I was able to see Goodnight Mommy early, and I'm left a bit disappointed. It's not that it's a bad movie, because it definitely isn't -- it's creepy, has good atmosphere and always has you thinking -- but its third act left me wanting. I'd also called the

Spoiler

twist

part-way into the movie.

 

[Blader]

Yeah, it's pretty great. Speaking of Welles, I've had this sort-of memory of a director who claimed he learned how to direct by watching Citizen Kane on repeat. I can't for the life of me remember who it might have been, so is this something I have dreamed up or does anyone else know what I'm speaking of? It's been nagging me a bit, so I'm curious, lol.

Are you sure you're not thinking of Welles himself, who said he watched Stagecoach like 30 times to learn about directing?

 

[Patison]

I was able to see Goodnight Mommy early, and I'm left a bit disappointed. It's not that it's a bad movie, because it definitely isn't -- it's creepy, has good atmosphere and always has you thinking -- but its third act left me wanting. I'd also called the

Spoiler

twist

part-way into the movie.

Just watched it too, nice cinematography and wasn't too bad overall but

Spoiler

you know what the twist is like 5 minutes in.

Dear Zachary, you just have to watch it. Wonderful but absolutely devastating movie.

 

[User 479360]

Just watched it too, nice cinematography and wasn't too bad overall but

Spoiler

you know what the twist is like 5 minutes in.

Yeah, if you've watched a lot of horror movies then the twist is obvious very early on. It lessens the impact, unfortunately.

I will admit that I went in with high expectations.

 

[UberTag]

You're not going to see The Witch?

I knew I was missing something. Yeah, I definitely need to see this film.
Will need to rush the line on Friday at the Ryerson, though.

Wasn't planning on heading back into Toronto until Saturday... but I should probably make an exception here. And it'll afford me a more realistic window to catch Sicario that same night as well.

Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Ridley327]

I have to say I really dug the color version of A Trip to the Moon quite a bit. It lends the film a very different but ultimately pleasing texture, and it certainly adds another layer to the craftsmanship that Georges Méliès was able to figure out back when nobody really knew how a film should be made. For as short as it is, it's so packed with incident and fantastic stage working that you really never notice the length. It's as magical now as it was back in 1902.

I also have to say that despite my best efforts, I honestly can't bring myself to talk too harshly about Hackers. Yes, it is an endlessly stupid film, and yes, it never really offers much of a narrative or seems particularly concerned about getting back on that path when it needs to, but it's got a nice hangout quality to it that is helped out by how well the younger members of the cast play off of each other that takes the edge off of the more unfortunate elements like whatever the fuck Fisher Stevens or Wendell Pierce is doing at any given moment or the few but excruciatingly painful scenes featuring Lorraine Bracco giving one of the worst performances I've ever seen an actress deliver. Everybody is having fun in an amusingly horny way (loved Angelina Jolie's crazy wet dream), it's got a nice sense of style and taste in music, and it doesn't ask much of you. A guilty pleasure I don't feel guilty of enjoying.

 

[Toothless]

Finally settled on my TIFF haul for this year...

So fucking jealous; I've always wanted to go to TIFF. But have fun!!

 

[Currygan]

Should check out The Trial, too. My personal favourite.

Watched Gangs of New York, has some seriously crap choreography in the fight scenes. Day Lewis was pretty great as Bill The Butcher, and some scenes he was clearly just showing off how fucking good he is, especially compared to everyone else in the cast. Thought DiCaprio was terrible, didn't believe a single emotion he tried to convey. Less said about Diaz' performance the better, too. Well edited as par the course for Scorcese, but it felt wayy too long and got quite repetitive towards the end for me.

agreed, don't think I ever liked a Scorsese less than Gangs. Not even TWOWS

 

[ViewtifulJC]

Gangs of New York bottom 5 Marty, alongside Boxcar Bertha, New York New York, Cape Fear, and The Aviator. His best films are close and personal, he out of his element in sweeping epics.

Also, people don't like "Hackers"? Fuck people

 

[Discotheque]

Id put Cape fear over Wall Street tbh. The latter was great in theaters but it's painfully long considering the lack of substance and amount of excess involved

 

[CaptainofIndustry]

Mad Max Fury Road. Damn what a great action movie. Rented it, loved it, bought it.

 

[Secret Fawful]

How does the Scorsese Cape Fear stack up to the original? I honestly can't bring myself to believe it could be better.

 

[SOME-MIST]

Last weekend saw queen of earth at the music box theater and 7 chinese brothers at facets cinematheque. Been waiting for both for quite a bit since I'm a huge Bob Byington and Alex Ross Perry fan. Kinda hard to compare since they're drastically different, but I enjoyed 7 chinese brothers much more. It even had surprise appearances by both Byington and Perry. Found out after I saw 'em that both are available on itunes... go figure lol.

Really hoping to find a way to see microbe & gasoline... and hoping my anomalisa Blu Ray ships soon since I can really use some stop motion Charlie kaufman.

Edit: as for top 5 of august...
The end of the tour
Welcome to the dollhouse (reached to prep for solondz weiner-dog next year)
What we do in the shadows
Enter the void
I know that voice