Femmeworth
Banned
What happened to your username? It's like an admin was trying to give you a tag and missed.
Movies You've Seen Recently |OT| Jan 2014
- Thread starter big ander
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Louis C.K.'s real debut feature, unseen since festival screenings in '98, is now available to get drm-free for $5 right here. I dunno if it's going to be any good but he's saying he wants to put the profits towards directing a new film and again just putting it online for $5 or however much, which I'd like to see. probably won't be as interesting as Pootie Tang though
I'm glad I got that LTD Kubrick blu set when it was $130 or whatever. Every film Spartacus on, great packaging.
I'm glad I got that LTD Kubrick blu set when it was $130 or whatever. Every film Spartacus on, great packaging.
Soooo I kinda unfollowed you on there; couldn't tell who it was on GAF and when you added like 1000 films to your watchlist it filled my activity thing for pages and pages. following again now but-- does anyone know of a way on letterboxd to filter out people adding stuff to their watchlist? or is that Pro only?
Horseticuffs
Full werewolf off the buckle
This weekend I'm introducing my oldest daughter to the legendary "Return of the Living Dead". I'm pretty stoked since it's one of the first, most distinct memories I have.
After the kids are in bed I'm gonna check out "All the boys love Mandy Lane" and "American Mary". I've heard a lot about both of them. Anyone have any opinions on them?
After the kids are in bed I'm gonna check out "All the boys love Mandy Lane" and "American Mary". I've heard a lot about both of them. Anyone have any opinions on them?
Count Dookkake
Member
Mandy Lane was pretty enjoyable. Nothing revolutionary, but well done.
Horseticuffs
Full werewolf off the buckle
Edit : Argh! Network issues! Sorry. Glad to hear it was alright, though.
Has anyone here seen 'At Berkeley'? Looks rather interesting but the 4 hour runtime is somewhat off-putting.
Expendable.
Member
Yeah, it's great. I actually watched it over the course of a night and was pretty engaged throughout. Definitely one of my favorite from Wiseman.
It's even better on repeated viewings. It's a masterpiece as far as I'm concerned.
Whoops, sorry. Didn't realise that came up on everyone's shit!
All The Boys Love Mandy lane? That's only just out in America?! I'm sure I saw that about five years ago :lol
Femmeworth
Banned
That's bizarre. Agree with Dookie, enjoyable enough. Amber Heard's got a good screen presence.
lazybones18
Banned
Lone Survivor
I thought it was very good. Some of the action scenes can be a little rough to watch (especially scene of the four guys tumbling down an area trying to escape), but still worth a watch
Shadow Recruit
Pretty good, but then again it probably would have been best if I had actually watched the previous Jack Ryan movies beforehand just for comparison sake
I thought it was very good. Some of the action scenes can be a little rough to watch (especially scene of the four guys tumbling down an area trying to escape), but still worth a watch
I'm pretty sure they never killed the main target when they rescued Marcus but whatever
Shadow Recruit
Pretty good, but then again it probably would have been best if I had actually watched the previous Jack Ryan movies beforehand just for comparison sake
lazybones18
Banned
Pennies from Heaven
Well, the main character is a delusional asshole and as a result found the musical to be dark as shit
. Can't decide who's dancing scene I liked more: Walken's or the accordion guy
Father of the Bride (remake)
Thankfully, Martin was making me laugh in this movie. Can't say the same about Martin Short though. He didn't make me laugh once. The movie was still good though
Well, the main character is a delusional asshole and as a result found the musical to be dark as shit
with one shitty happy ending
Father of the Bride (remake)
Thankfully, Martin was making me laugh in this movie. Can't say the same about Martin Short though. He didn't make me laugh once. The movie was still good though
kurisu_1974
Banned
I loved Computer Chess.
Recently watched:
- Before Midnight - Richard Linklater - ★★★★★ Loved this one.
- One Piece Film: Z - Tatsuya Nagamine - ★★★
- The Searchers - John Ford - ★★★★★ This was great as well.
- Birth of the Living Dead - Rob Kuhns - ★★★½ Fun documentary about Night of the Living Dead.
- Battleship - Peter Berg - ★
- The Wicker Man - Robin Hardy - ★★★★★ Christopher Lee is so awesome.
TheKaeptain
Banned
this reminds me I need to vote for movies of the year.
Count Dookkake
Member
You guys should check out GRAND PIANO, available on VOD today. Elijah Wood must play a difficult piece of music, without missing a note, or else he dies.
I saw it back in September and was pleasantly surprised by a thriller that doesn't have some bullshit third-act deviation from the premise.
I saw it back in September and was pleasantly surprised by a thriller that doesn't have some bullshit third-act deviation from the premise.
Makoto Yuki
Banned
The last movie I saw recently was Frozen.
It's my new favorite Disney movie, it's also the only Disney princess movie, other than Tangled, that I enjoyed.
It's my new favorite Disney movie, it's also the only Disney princess movie, other than Tangled, that I enjoyed.
Still need to do that as well. But I still have to watch a few films first. Such a shame I'm seeing 12 Years a Slave one week after the voting ends. Also Her and Nebraska will both be absent since they release too late over here. I think American Hustle is the last film I can actually see that might make it.
The trailer for it made it looked a fun movie that is fully aware of how silly the concept is. After Maniac, Elijah Wood has earned my trust.
Oooh, I like Elijah Wood in Maniac too. Really, I liked him in a lot of stuff. Thanks for the heads up on Grand Piano. Queued it.
I watched two old movies today and I'm quite disappointed by them.
The Hunger with David Bowie was good at the first half with him in it, but the rest after that was meh. The script was light so I (being deaf myself) imagined that majority of this movie was using music tempos to give a better impression of a scene. So I won't bash it for that, but its a good take on vampires that die of old age.
The Other, this one reminded me the super super painful saturation I've experienced by watching so many horror movies and then going back to watch some of the old classics. This movie was obvious for me 5 minutes in, so the suspense was lost for me. For the record, I watched something like 2k worth of movies in my lifetime and more than quarter of that is the horror/thriller genre. I hate that.
I really hate that I can remember my genres and their plotlines so well.
I watched two old movies today and I'm quite disappointed by them.
The Hunger with David Bowie was good at the first half with him in it, but the rest after that was meh. The script was light so I (being deaf myself) imagined that majority of this movie was using music tempos to give a better impression of a scene. So I won't bash it for that, but its a good take on vampires that die of old age.
The Other, this one reminded me the super super painful saturation I've experienced by watching so many horror movies and then going back to watch some of the old classics. This movie was obvious for me 5 minutes in, so the suspense was lost for me. For the record, I watched something like 2k worth of movies in my lifetime and more than quarter of that is the horror/thriller genre. I hate that.
I really hate that I can remember my genres and their plotlines so well.BaronLundi
Member
Mulligan's The Other ? If so, the twist really doesn't make the movie (and there are tons of hints to tip off the mindful viewer before the big reveal anyway).
Also it's beautiful.
Also it's beautiful.
AlternativeUlster
Absolutely pathetic part deux
Oh man, I didn't realize that adding things to my watchlist causes everyone to know I am doing that. I feel like I add like millions. Sorry dudes.
Thief
My favourite Michael Mann film and one of the best and most underrated films of the 80s. The cinematography is just so amazing and there are some absolutely beautiful shots there. James Caan gives one of my favourite performances here as he is able to show so much pain and emotion in a very subtle way even when he is supposed to be playing a tough character. The soundtrack by Tangerine Dream is sublime and the beach scene almost broke me down.
A matter of life and death / Stairway to heaven
This is a true masterpiece. The film instantly hooked me from the incredibly emotional opening. The acting was sublime with the aforementioned scene and the courtroom exchanges being particularly special. It's amazing to see how ahead of time this film was with its strong inventive direction. It looks absolutely gorgeous and the set design is a marvel. The stairway and depiction of Heaven were very iconic.
Streets of Fire
Although not as good as The Driver and The Warriors its still a great film by Walter Hill. I loved the 80s rock n roll musical vibe being fused with a typically straight forward kidnap and rescue type story. In some ways this feels a bit like Big trouble in little china in the sense that it try's to smash different genres together. As always in Walter Hill films the action is great and the climatic fight was satisfying (although it did kind of give me some flashbacks to Dark Knight Rises for some reason).
Stanley Kubrick boxes
A few years after his death, the widow of Stanley Kubrick asks Jon Ronson to look through the contents of about 1,000 boxes of meticulously sorted materials Kubrick left. You've probably heard and see most of the stuff here but its a interesting documentary nonetheless (Its available on Vimeo: http://vimeo.com/78314194 )
My favourite Michael Mann film and one of the best and most underrated films of the 80s. The cinematography is just so amazing and there are some absolutely beautiful shots there. James Caan gives one of my favourite performances here as he is able to show so much pain and emotion in a very subtle way even when he is supposed to be playing a tough character. The soundtrack by Tangerine Dream is sublime and the beach scene almost broke me down.
A matter of life and death / Stairway to heaven
This is a true masterpiece. The film instantly hooked me from the incredibly emotional opening. The acting was sublime with the aforementioned scene and the courtroom exchanges being particularly special. It's amazing to see how ahead of time this film was with its strong inventive direction. It looks absolutely gorgeous and the set design is a marvel. The stairway and depiction of Heaven were very iconic.
Streets of Fire
Although not as good as The Driver and The Warriors its still a great film by Walter Hill. I loved the 80s rock n roll musical vibe being fused with a typically straight forward kidnap and rescue type story. In some ways this feels a bit like Big trouble in little china in the sense that it try's to smash different genres together. As always in Walter Hill films the action is great and the climatic fight was satisfying (although it did kind of give me some flashbacks to Dark Knight Rises for some reason).
Stanley Kubrick boxes
A few years after his death, the widow of Stanley Kubrick asks Jon Ronson to look through the contents of about 1,000 boxes of meticulously sorted materials Kubrick left. You've probably heard and see most of the stuff here but its a interesting documentary nonetheless (Its available on Vimeo: http://vimeo.com/78314194 )
Beowulf.
No not the 2007 animated turd, were talking 1999 starring Christopher Lambert. Dam is this movie something else, they should have an "How Did This Get Made" on this film it's so good. Terrible acting, terrible butt rock/techno music, AMAZING special effects.
And best of all Christopher Lambert has a stunt double that does about 100 flips throughout the film. For no reason at all, Beowulf will do double and triple somersaults, backflips, and all sorts of twisting nonsense.
10/10.
No not the 2007 animated turd, were talking 1999 starring Christopher Lambert. Dam is this movie something else, they should have an "How Did This Get Made" on this film it's so good. Terrible acting, terrible butt rock/techno music, AMAZING special effects.
And best of all Christopher Lambert has a stunt double that does about 100 flips throughout the film. For no reason at all, Beowulf will do double and triple somersaults, backflips, and all sorts of twisting nonsense.
10/10.
Count Dookkake
Member
Ah, I forgot to mention that this appears to be, after MANIAC, the second in the Elijah Woods "hands trilogy."
For the first time in years, I watched the entire Matrix Trilogy all the way through.
The Matrix - Dated in a lot of ways, and not in terms of the CGI. Mostly because it basically sums up everything terrible about late-90's style and pop culture, but we're starting to get far enough away from that decade where I'm finding a certain charm to that. Oh you crazy 90's people with your leather trenchcoats, sunglasses on indoors, listening to your thumping techno music and Rob Zombie. It's still easy to see how and why the film was so influential though, and I do really like it.
The Matrix Reloaded - I've always argued that the amount of shit that Reloaded has gotten over the years was largely due to how abjectly terrible Revolutions was. Everyone tends to lump the sequels together as though they're one giant turd. Which I disagree with, because taken as its own thing, I think Reloaded is a highly enjoyable sci-fi action movie. Yeah, this is where the the trilogy starts to go a little far up its own ass, but it's not overblown (not yet, anyway). The action is fantastic overall - Neo's initial fight against the three agents at the beginning, Neo's duel with Seraph, the fight in the chateau, the entire free-way chase, etc. Burly brawl holds up for the most part, if you can get passed the CG-ness of it all. Is it as smart or original as the first? Obviously not, but I still don't agree that's a bad film - especially when compared next to...
The Matrix Revolutions - Okay, here is where everything just went to shit. They lay on the melodrama and Jesus-Neo religious iconography pretty thick throughout, and this is where you really get the impression that the Wachowski's were trying to too hard to create something deep. It's got some cool set-pieces to be sure (the defense of Zion and Neo/Smith's final fight) but man, everything else is just blech. I think a lot of people wanted more closure after Reloaded and all of the weird questions it asked about the mythology, but Revolutions offers very little in the end. I can appreciate that the Wachowskis decided to be ambiguous and not spell out everything for the audience to an extent, but they pushed that a bit too far.
Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving were the highlights through all three films, and I still love Gloria Foster as the Orcale in films 1 and 2. In the end I'd say The Matrix >>>>>>>The Matrix Reloaded >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The Matrix Revolutions.
The Matrix - Dated in a lot of ways, and not in terms of the CGI. Mostly because it basically sums up everything terrible about late-90's style and pop culture, but we're starting to get far enough away from that decade where I'm finding a certain charm to that. Oh you crazy 90's people with your leather trenchcoats, sunglasses on indoors, listening to your thumping techno music and Rob Zombie. It's still easy to see how and why the film was so influential though, and I do really like it.
The Matrix Reloaded - I've always argued that the amount of shit that Reloaded has gotten over the years was largely due to how abjectly terrible Revolutions was. Everyone tends to lump the sequels together as though they're one giant turd. Which I disagree with, because taken as its own thing, I think Reloaded is a highly enjoyable sci-fi action movie. Yeah, this is where the the trilogy starts to go a little far up its own ass, but it's not overblown (not yet, anyway). The action is fantastic overall - Neo's initial fight against the three agents at the beginning, Neo's duel with Seraph, the fight in the chateau, the entire free-way chase, etc. Burly brawl holds up for the most part, if you can get passed the CG-ness of it all. Is it as smart or original as the first? Obviously not, but I still don't agree that's a bad film - especially when compared next to...
The Matrix Revolutions - Okay, here is where everything just went to shit. They lay on the melodrama and Jesus-Neo religious iconography pretty thick throughout, and this is where you really get the impression that the Wachowski's were trying to too hard to create something deep. It's got some cool set-pieces to be sure (the defense of Zion and Neo/Smith's final fight) but man, everything else is just blech. I think a lot of people wanted more closure after Reloaded and all of the weird questions it asked about the mythology, but Revolutions offers very little in the end. I can appreciate that the Wachowskis decided to be ambiguous and not spell out everything for the audience to an extent, but they pushed that a bit too far.
Laurence Fishburne and Hugo Weaving were the highlights through all three films, and I still love Gloria Foster as the Orcale in films 1 and 2. In the end I'd say The Matrix >>>>>>>The Matrix Reloaded >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The Matrix Revolutions.
Who's That Knocking At My Door (Scorsese, 1967, 3/5)
Watchable enough, with a lovely naturalistic turn by Harvey Keitel and with some evident flair from Scorsese in his directorial debut, even if he does tend to overdo it a bit; maybe he's trying to prove he can do the things he's doing (jarring aerial zooms, close ups on car doors shutting; it's technically impressive but comes across a bit over eager).
It's more than representative of common themes found in his work as well, JR's Catholic guilt plaguing him throughout, and it's really just a student test run for Mean Streets a few years later.
Worth watching because of Keitel's low-key, charming performance, Scorsese's visual flair and, of course, the music. There's a wonderful scene which is basically Keitel's cronies revelling and enjoying themselves set to El Watusi; it's wholly indicative of the way Scorsese was developing as a visual director and as one with a wonderful ear for music and how it suits a scene.
Watchable enough, with a lovely naturalistic turn by Harvey Keitel and with some evident flair from Scorsese in his directorial debut, even if he does tend to overdo it a bit; maybe he's trying to prove he can do the things he's doing (jarring aerial zooms, close ups on car doors shutting; it's technically impressive but comes across a bit over eager).
It's more than representative of common themes found in his work as well, JR's Catholic guilt plaguing him throughout, and it's really just a student test run for Mean Streets a few years later.
Worth watching because of Keitel's low-key, charming performance, Scorsese's visual flair and, of course, the music. There's a wonderful scene which is basically Keitel's cronies revelling and enjoying themselves set to El Watusi; it's wholly indicative of the way Scorsese was developing as a visual director and as one with a wonderful ear for music and how it suits a scene.
Horseticuffs
Full werewolf off the buckle
On an old "Killer Pov" podcast I was listening to today they were gushing about "Grand Piano". I need to get my head out of my ass and catch "Maniac" before it's too late! I adore Elijah Wood, I need to get right with Jesus or something.
The third one is that film he's doing with Sasha Grey, right?
That one doesn't look so hot.
Count Dookkake
Member
I have faith in Nacho.
Kilgore Trout
Member
I would imagine you could switch your watchlist to private and add away, then switch it back to public. Although maybe it will retroactively put them in people's feeds when you re-open it. I dunno.
cloudsforbrains
Neo Member
Can anybody link me to the Top 250 list?
Edit: Nvm
Edit: Nvm
Completely enchanted by Medvedkin's Happiness tonight. Do any of his other films even exist in accessible forms? Or is it possible to track down the 90 minute cut of Happiness? (I think I see that it's on DVD. Worth checking out after seeing the ~65m TV cut?) If not I guess I should move on to The Last Bolshevik.
kurisu_1974
Banned
Watched About Time. I still like Bill Nighy. I'm trying to say positive things here.
For some reason I watched Doom. Pretty shitty all around. It reminded me of Resident Evil, but instead of people being infected and then becoming evil, it's ... wait, okay yeah it is basically the same.
Ridley Scott's The Counselor was a hot mess. It has all the right ingredients, but it just does not work or come together. The acting wasn't great, the direction too flashy and the writing partly cool, but mostly painful. Also, damn, those
were gnarly.
Ridley Scott's The Counselor was a hot mess. It has all the right ingredients, but it just does not work or come together. The acting wasn't great, the direction too flashy and the writing partly cool, but mostly painful. Also, damn, those
decapitations
there's half a dozen or so films "out" there and they are mostly worth tracking down, especially if you liked happiness. i've never seen the 90 min cut around, seems like they would have included it instead of the 65 min cut on last bolshevik, but i dunno its found status.
last bolshevik is so different and doesn't really require that much knowledge about medvedkin's films you could just watch that and track down everything else later. it's a really amazing film.
Atraveller
Banned
I just came back from Her, it's beautiful.
Ugh, I loved this. Thanks for the recommendation.
DePalma
Behind The Candelabra (Soderbergh, 2013) - 3/5
It's both surprising and not so after having seen this film that most of the praise has gone to Michael Douglas' portrayal of Liberace; yes it's a showy role and a wonderful impersonation, but it reminded me of another very well regarded performance from the last year - Jared Leto's turn in Dallas Buyers Club. Both are excellent physical transformations that, for me, only really hit late in the game.
Here its on his deathbed, where he professes that he doesn't want to just be remembered as a vain old queen. Douglas really hits the emotional notes that are lacking in what is still a very good performance up until then (and both a selfish and unselfish role; Douglas grabs your attention and commands scenes, but shows off the effects of aging on his body, naked throughout).
Matt Damon however is fantastic in a role that demands all the emotional heft; he's asked to play different notes throughout, from naive to commanding, to drug addict to sober and remorseful, and nails them all while undergoing subtle but excellent prosthetic work. The two have an undeniable chemistry which is strengthened by the brave decision to commit physically, and the film works best when the two are allowed to emote fully, instead of when it's just comfortable to show Liberace being Liberace.
Soderbergh is as clean visually as ever, but there's less assured work when it comes to the editing and pacing; everything's a little disjointed and repetitive, hopping from scene to wonderfully designed scene (the set design and production values really are lovely) and coming to a conclusion all too quickly.
Definitely worth watching because of a pair of very strong performances, and it refuses to take sides with either Liberace or Scott, but there's very little emotion through the film save for Damon's best efforts.
It's both surprising and not so after having seen this film that most of the praise has gone to Michael Douglas' portrayal of Liberace; yes it's a showy role and a wonderful impersonation, but it reminded me of another very well regarded performance from the last year - Jared Leto's turn in Dallas Buyers Club. Both are excellent physical transformations that, for me, only really hit late in the game.
Here its on his deathbed, where he professes that he doesn't want to just be remembered as a vain old queen. Douglas really hits the emotional notes that are lacking in what is still a very good performance up until then (and both a selfish and unselfish role; Douglas grabs your attention and commands scenes, but shows off the effects of aging on his body, naked throughout).
Matt Damon however is fantastic in a role that demands all the emotional heft; he's asked to play different notes throughout, from naive to commanding, to drug addict to sober and remorseful, and nails them all while undergoing subtle but excellent prosthetic work. The two have an undeniable chemistry which is strengthened by the brave decision to commit physically, and the film works best when the two are allowed to emote fully, instead of when it's just comfortable to show Liberace being Liberace.
Soderbergh is as clean visually as ever, but there's less assured work when it comes to the editing and pacing; everything's a little disjointed and repetitive, hopping from scene to wonderfully designed scene (the set design and production values really are lovely) and coming to a conclusion all too quickly.
Definitely worth watching because of a pair of very strong performances, and it refuses to take sides with either Liberace or Scott, but there's very little emotion through the film save for Damon's best efforts.
The Driver was pretty damn good. I never realized how much Drive copped from this film's opening car chase, and I'm more surprised that despite the years in advancement of technology and stuntwork, that the older film is miles ahead of it. Leave it to a genre maestro like Walter Hill to set an impossibly high standard with that opener, to say nothing of the breathtaking cat-and-mouse finale set in a factory.
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