• Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!

Movies You've Seen Recently III: The Third Chapter

Status
Not open for further replies.
I'm totally with you, man - my favourite film of last year. Can't wait for the blu-ray, which apparently has
an even darker alternate ending
.

It's on blu-ray man, that's how I watched it. Didn't know about an alternate ending tho. Not gonna lie, at the end
I thought they had both died and was surprised to see Brian still alive.

Truly a great movie, so much better than your average thriller. Think I'm gonna watch Dredd right now, one of the last few I need to see from last year to finalize my top 10. (Waiting on Life of Pi and Lincoln blu-rays)

Edit: Also, have the 2012 Movie of the Year votes been tallied and posted yet?
 
Finally got around to watching The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford for the first time last night......goddamn! Casey Affleck was fantastic, just so, so good in this. Brad Pitt, who I usually has been good at best in things I've seen him in, was almost as good as Casey. A slow, slow burner, but the best kind. And of course, Roger Deakins brings the eye candy.

On first watch I can say that was one of the best movies I've seen in quite awhile. Reminds me I've wanted to check out Chopper, and now I want to see Killing Them Softly even more.

I wasn't big on Jesse James, and I liked Killing Them Softly much more. I don't think either of them are really great, but whatever. Have yet to see Chopper.
 
Jesse James was fucking great. Killing Them Softly was pretty good, but didn't come close to that. That being said, I enjoyed it much more than Seven Psychopaths, which I saw around the same time.

Edit: Thanks. That's a very good top 15 in my eyes. Only one in the top 20 I didn't have on my watch list is Holy Motors. What is that? Worth seeing?
 
Wreck-It Ralph

Disappointing, to say the least. Undercooked narrative and visuals that play it too safe. Also internal logic that is less consistent than Toy Story.
 
Picked this one out from the samurai movie thread:

The Sword of Doom

Beautiful cinematography and amazing fight scenes, but the story is kind of confusing and--given the total lack of resolution--ultimately pretty disappointing.

The ending is SO good.
But yeah, too bad about the uncle/geisha plotline...
 
156) The Rainmaker 1997

Matt Damon just passes the bar and takes on Jon Voight in a big time case where the insurance company fucks over this family so they dont have to pay out. Decent movie

157) Sansho the Bailiff 1954

Governor sent into exile and his family tries to get with him, didnt really care for this movie.

158) Saint John of Las Vegas 2009

Steve Buschemi and Conrad of Weeds investigate a fraud claim of this stripper who claims to have been rear ended and lost potential wages. It was decent.

159) Boyz n the Hood 1991

rewatch, my last few rewatches only thing i can think of when seeing Laurence Fishburne is seeing his daughter getting smanged loll

159 total watches
105 new watches
54 rewatches
 
Finally got around to watching The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford for the first time last night......goddamn! Casey Affleck was fantastic, just so, so good in this. Brad Pitt, who I usually has been good at best in things I've seen him in, was almost as good as Casey. A slow, slow burner, but the best kind. And of course, Roger Deakins brings the eye candy.

On first watch I can say that was one of the best movies I've seen in quite awhile. Reminds me I've wanted to check out Chopper, and now I want to see Killing Them Softly even more.
This makes me happy. The more people who appreciate this movie the better.
 
7lYdEVbm.jpg


Bully

Heartbreaking movie.


tym0l3Bm.jpg


Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

It had it's moments but lingered too long and wasn't nearly as good as the original.

The Sheen/Bud Fox cameo was really stupid. It was Charlie Sheen playing Charlie Sheen not Bud Fox.
I suppose it's possible he ends up an alcoholic womanizer but unlikely given his "go straight" revelation at the end of WS.

I miss the 80s and people making films not shooting scripts.
 
Saw Bad Boys II. Plain awful. After the 500th explosion or bullet shot I couldn't give a fuck for whatever was going on. That was only made worse by the fact that this piece of shit was so fucking long. I was more offended and bored than I was entertained so I can't even say it was good bad, just shit. By the hour mark I wanted it to end and there was still a fucking hour and half left. It's funny how Bay sees entertainment as being loud as fuck. 2/10
 
Saw Bad Boys II. Plain awful. After the 500th explosion or bullet shot I couldn't give a fuck for whatever was going on. That was only made worse by the fact that this piece of shit was so fucking long. I was more offended and bored than I was entertained so I can't even say it was good bad, just shit. By the hour mark I wanted it to end and there was still a fucking hour and half left. It's funny how Bay sees entertainment as being loud as fuck. 2/10

So...did you like it?

No, but really, you have to at least appreciate Bad Boys II for how absurd it is. They went the extra mile giving you pretty much every action scene imaginable all in one movie. Just when you think it's over, NOPE, BAD BOYS II DLC UNLOCKED: WE GOIN TO CUBA. The entire movie is on 11 with 2 douchebag main characters just making a mess of everything. I can see how it's not for everyone.......but I love BBII

Bay needs to take a break from Transformers and Will Smith from mediocre sci-fi, and Martin from....whatever, to make BBIII before everyone's too old. I hope it's 3 hours long and culminates with a nuke being launched.
 
Just watched Le Mis. Russy was miscast and clearly a terrible singer but on the whole it's an OK movie. Amanda Seyfried is probably the hottest girl ever.
 
Saw Drive yesterday, and I'm torn.

It's beautifully shot, OST is brilliant and I love the slow pace BUT imho Ryan Gossling is pretty awful (at least) the first hour and there are some truly cringeworthy scenes. And even though she doesn't play a big part (pun intended) Christina Hendricks is godawful.

And that neighbor of his is amazingly cute.
 
I saw, Seeking a Friend for the end of the World. I actually really liked the film, it was a small fun film. Keira Knightley really shines in those small roles, I'm starting to become a real big fan of her.

I also though the music was wonderful and well placed.
 
The Matrix Revolutions: Well, this was better than Reloaded. Mostly because they shoved the terrible philosophy stuff in Reloaded and put stupid amounts of action into this. What's weird is that I think it actually did the people vs machines war better than Terminator Salvation.

These sequels really are shitty. I thought people were exaggerating for years, but I hadn't seen them in a long time. Reloaded is just awful the whole way through. Revolutions at least has some cool action and a few good scenes.
 
So...did you like it?

No, but really, you have to at least appreciate Bad Boys II for how absurd it is. They went the extra mile giving you pretty much every action scene imaginable all in one movie. Just when you think it's over, NOPE, BAD BOYS II DLC UNLOCKED: WE GOIN TO CUBA. The entire movie is on 11 with 2 douchebag main characters just making a mess of everything. I can see how it's not for everyone.......but I love BBII

Bay needs to take a break from Transformers and Will Smith from mediocre sci-fi, and Martin from....whatever, to make BBIII before everyone's too old. I hope it's 3 hours long and culminates with a nuke being launched.

You're so worn out by every single goddamn action set-piece, and two hours of this goddamn thing, SHIT JUST GOT REAL.

Like, the parade of huge glossy stupid incoherent nonsense we sat through for the last couple of hours was just for play, ya know. The appetizer!

And it's such an ugly, mean-spirited movie. It's mean to black people, white people, gay people, dead people, Cubans, nice-looking guys who just wanted to date your daughter, there's even a joke about rats fucking because why not.
 
You're so worn out by every single goddamn action set-piece, and two hours of this goddamn thing, SHIT JUST GOT REAL.

Like, the parade of huge glossy stupid incoherent nonsense we sat through for the last couple of hours was just for play, ya know. The appetizer!

And it's such an ugly, mean-spirited movie. It's mean to black people, white people, gay people, dead people, Cubans, nice-looking guys who just wanted to date your daughter, there's even a joke about rats fucking because why not.

Absolutely. And it really is a mean-spirited and offensive movie.
 
You're so worn out by every single goddamn action set-piece, and two hours of this goddamn thing, SHIT JUST GOT REAL.

Like, the parade of huge glossy stupid incoherent nonsense we sat through for the last couple of hours was just for play, ya know. The appetizer!

And it's such an ugly, mean-spirited movie. It's mean to black people, white people, gay people, dead people, Cubans, nice-looking guys who just wanted to date your daughter, there's even a joke about rats fucking because why not.

It's pretty much a shit movie. Not even bad movie good, just shit.
 
Question for Kurosawa-GAF:

Drunken Angel or The Bad Sleep Well? My Hulu Plus is expiring soon and these are two Kurosawas I haven't seen but will probably only have time for one. Which should I pick?
 
Another week, another 'Here comes Divius with his Coursera Hollywood course shit again'. Fear not; it's the last time, because this was the final week of the course. We took another look at color and how it is used in storytelling.

All That Heaven Allows (1955) - Melodrama aimed at and featuring housewives, not really my cup of tea, but the movie still has its undeniable qualities. The lecture afterwards on how color helps to tell the story in specific instances made me appreciate it a bit more, but I still don't think I'll be watching any more Douglas Sirk movies any time soon since they all seem to be cut from the same cloth ***
Punch-Drunk Love (2002) - The only movie from the entire course that I had seen before, but I didn't mind watching it again. I already read up on PTA's brilliant use of color in this movie once but it was nice to get a fresh perspective on it again as well as having certain details pointed out that I did not notice before ****
 
so... did you get a certificate? can you now apply for the job of malick's second unit director?
I did pass the test and will get a certificate for doing so, but mostly it was just for fun and because I find it interesting. Malick will have to work for another while without me.
 
And it's such an ugly, mean-spirited movie. It's mean to black people, white people, gay people, dead people, Cubans, nice-looking guys who just wanted to date your daughter, there's even a joke about rats fucking because why not.

Bahahaha, I know, it's so great.

Absolutely. And it really is a mean-spirited and offensive movie.

As a lover of big stupid action movies, even I can't defend Bad Boys II. It's just like every bad trend and idea of summer blockbusters rolled into one.

I KNOW RIGHT? IT'S SO GREAT.

I can't even explain my love for the movie. It's such an exercise in excess. The camera work is excessively flashy, the action scenes are excessively loud, frequent, and destructive, the protagonists are excessively assholish, the visuals are excessively Michael Bay, the language is excessive, the jokes, the length, everything. If the movie was 45 minutes shorter I'd probably hate it, but it's so insanely brash and overdone that it's brilliant. People will look back on Bad Boys II and realize how genius it is...

...or maybe only I will, but whatever. Everyone's entitled to a few guilty pleasure movies.
 
The Imposter

Holy shit. So scary that he was able to steal someone's identity as easily as that.

Compelling, thrilling and interesting.

Watch it.

4/5
 
To the Wonder - I left the theatre disappointed, but several hours have now past and the movie has really seemed to resonate with me. I need to see it again.

Wrong - Disappointing followup to Rubber, but still fun nonetheless.
 
Punch-Drunk Love (2002)

This was a rewatch. I remember not regarding it very highly, certainly not on the Magnolia or Boogie Nights level. But this rewatch really cemented the fact that it is indeed a Great PTA Movie. I enjoyed it a good deal more than Hard Eight.
 
The Ghost Writer

As far as thrillers go, they don't get much better than this. Formulaic, sure, but formula played to perfection. The film just looks gorgeous, the production design is fantastic (I love that cramped island locale). It's always raining, but the dark tone of the picture is so often laced with humor in a great way.

Only complaint is that the ending is a bit contrived and it's the only time any character really openly acts stupidly, but the last shot is so fantastic (as is the shot of passing the note before it) that I can, if not forgive, overlook it.

Need to watch Carnage some time.
 
The Ghost Writer

As far as thrillers go, they don't get much better than this. Formulaic, sure, but formula played to perfection. The film just looks gorgeous, the production design is fantastic (I love that cramped island locale). It's always raining, but the dark tone of the picture is so often laced with humor in a great way.

Only complaint is that the ending is a bit contrived and it's the only time any character really openly acts stupidly, but the last shot is so fantastic (as is the shot of passing the note before it) that I can, if not forgive, overlook it.

Need to watch Carnage some time.

Have you seen other films by Polanski? Needless to say, his perfection of portraying the "cramped locale" is seen much earlier in Rosemary's Baby.
 
Stoker is extraordinary, a big Gothic mystery with heavy Freudian themes from Chan-wook Park, director of Oldboy. It's more arthouse than that movie but no less Shakespearian (it could be perceived as playing Hamlet in reverse) and emotionally incendiary. IMO it's the best film of his I've seen and I adored Oldboy. Even a freakish looking Nicole Kidman and her usual over-practiced performance makes an unsettling fit for the character she's playing, and Mia Wasikowska is astonishing. Definitely worth catching, even if it probably won't be to everyone's taste.
 
Beautiful cinematography and amazing fight scenes, but the story is kind of confusing and--given the total lack of resolution--ultimately pretty disappointing.

Honestly man that is what I love about it. You begin to hate the main character and want him dead and then shit just goes crazy. The story is building and building and then, fuck it, lets just kill a lot of people. The end.
 
were you in contact with other students or was it anonymous?
You could do it totally anonymous, but there's also an official forum on the site for this specific course, a (non official) facebook-group, a subreddit, etc. People tend to find a way to communicate with each other and discuss the films/course.

What are your thoughts on the course as whole?
Very interesting. The movies we watched might not have been movies that I might have watched on my own, so it was nice discovering new stuff. The lectures (ranging from 20-45 minutes) were very informative and eye-opening, pointing out several details and the (possible) meaning behind them that I did not see myself.
 
Don't know if anyone outside of AlternativeUlster is doing anything SXSW film related starting tomorrow, but if so, say something here and we can maybe meet up or something.

I think I'll be wearing a bright, yellow shirt.
 
Don't forget Repulsion and The Tenant, which make up his "apartment trilogy".

repulsion is great but it trips me out since i saw it after knowing what polanski was convicted for.

ghost writer is an amazing thriller. was one of my favorite films that year. you should check out carnage immediately jtb. the plot sounds simple (and it is) but waltz gives a very entertaining performance (far removed from his usual tarantino schtick) and the dialogue is hilarious.
 
Seen a bunch of movies lately on a Redbox kick:

The Master - 2.5/5 - Intriguing at times. I didn't expect much in the way of a great story or anything, but was at least hoping to be wow'd by some great cinematography and acting. Acting was good, I'll admit. I think Hoffman felt more natural than Phoenix, honestly. But it still felt a little forced. The cinematography was above average, certainly, but there wasn't much that wow'd me apart from a couple scenes. Probably wouldn't watch this again.

End of Watch - 1/5 - Oh my god this was so bad. From the previews, it looked like it was going to be gritty and realistic and I was kinda excited about it. But whoever made this movie just dropped the ball on the potential it had. The two protagonists were like super-heroes where everything went perfectly the entire movie, so the ending was as predictable as me getting hungry sometime during the day. The story was a garbage, cliche, bromance, but worst of all, and I mean WORST of all - were the 'villains' of the movie. Its like they came out of a 1950's comic book or something. So cheesy, so ridiculous, so cringe-worthy bad. This movie is like a choice piece of ribeye that somebody cooked til well-done and then poured ketchup on it. You couldn't pay me to watch this again, except maybe to laugh at it.

The Awakening - 3/5 - Decent 'ghost story' movie. Better than average. Decent acting, interesting story and twists. Wasn't necessarily scary, but the movie relied more on its tension, which is fine with me. I didn't feel like it was a waste of my time, like most scary movies. Atmosphere of everything was superb. Would watch again.

House at the End of the Street - 3/5 - Another respectable scary movie. J.Law was pretty damn good in it, I thought. Some surprising twists and some very tense scenes made this pretty enjoyable. Would watch again.

Judge Dredd - 4/5 - Most surprising movie I've seen in a while. I'm not normally an 'action movie guy', but this was some good entertainment. Story and premise was a bit silly, but some decent actors/acting and some great special effects and cool scenes made this fun the whole way through. Would definitely watch again.

Silent Hill Revelations - 1/5 - Pretty bad. First movie was decent, but this just dropped the ball on everything. Story was stupid, acting was bad, and the thing I was excited for most - Silent Hill's eeryiness - wasn't there. There was little build-up and only in a few brief scenes did it really capture that Silent Hill atmosphere properly. Definitely not gonna watch again.

Taken 2 - 2/5 - Really disappointing. A few cool scenes but the magic of seeing this seemingly normal guy turn into a super badass was gone. Definitely felt like a total cash-in. Probably wouldn't watch again.

Here Comes the Boom - 2.5/5 - It was corny, but it really wasn't that bad. I laughed a fair amount, which is what it was supposed to do, so I cant complain. Would probably watch again sometime way down the line.

The Possession - 1/5 - Entirely forgettable. I almost forgot to list it. Just a bad, generic exorcism movie. Definitely not ever gonna watch again.

The Bourne Legacy - 3.5/5 - I thought it was pretty decent. Good action scenes, smart story, tense. Didn't feel like a cash-in to me, which is what I was expecting. Definitely rewatchable.

Safety Not Guaranteed - 3/5 - Charming little movie. Cool premise(based on real-life newspaper ad) that was pulled off pretty well. Nothing entirely fantastic about it, but its enjoyable enough. Would watch again.

Seeking Justice - 2.5/5 - Not terrible. Nothing particularly noteworthy either. Pretty standard thriller material. Sadly, one of Nic Cage's better movies he's done in a while, too. Might watch again if nothing else was on.
 
Watched Repulsion at the cinema yesterday, and it was so good. I really loved that there were so many things going on in the background, which really added to the repressive atmosphere of the movie. The scenes where the perspective in the rooms changed looked really nice and went a long way in rooting the incrementally increasing craziness in the movie. I can see some seeds of the atmosphere in Rosemary's Baby in here, which added to my enjoyment of this movie.

Probably gonna see The Tenant tonight.
 
The Imposter

Holy shit. So scary that he was able to steal someone's identity as easily as that.

Compelling, thrilling and interesting.

Watch it.

4/5

Fantastic documentary but...
The family seemed a little too trusting, I don't necessarily agree with the premise that they killed him but there was at least some serious mass delusion going on. It was immediately apparent on the archival footage that he wasn't their kid, while at the same time he was telling outlandish stories to the FBI investigators about secret eye drops and military conspiracies.
 
The intouchables

I was expecting a overrated, unfunny, forgettable movie. Bloody hell, I was 100% wrong. One of the best comedies I've seen in years. Superb acting, rock solid story and script, never boring, never pathetic. It's just a brilliant movie. WATCH IT!
 
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - I went into this resentful that Emma Watson was in it because all I thought I'd see was Hermione. How wrong I was. Beautiful film with wonderful acting from an excellent cast. Highly recommended.

Usagi Drop - I'm a fan of the anime, and was interested in seeing how a live adaptation would go. I'm surprised at how much they kept in, but was disappointed that they didn't reveal Rin's parentage. I mean, I knew already, but thinking about people watching this film and having no idea of the story beforehand, they've gotta be getting weird vibes from it. The woman playing Kouki's mother was nowhere near the warm character I'd come to expect, she was somewhat cold which was disappointing. Daikichi was played well, though with a few anime-inspired reactions that really took me out of it. Thankfully, they were few and far apart.

Anna Karenina - I was looking forward to this one after hearing all the great reviews. Very, very disappointed in it, there was some solid acting (notably from Jude Law and Matthew MacFadyen)but it was just ridiculously silly at times, with the camera trying to be artistic and ending up merely annoying. I found Kiera Knightley's character pretty stupid.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom