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Movies You've Seen Recently |OT| May 2017

Baby, Take A Bow: Shirley Temple has a much bigger role in this movie, even if she's not the main character. It's a tale of ex-cons gone straight and one old friend tires to pull them back in. Shirley Temple is the most stand-out element of the movie because of her percocious, cute little girl character who's playing hide-and-seek with a stolen pearl necklace. I think it's a decent movie. I should note I have seen Heidi and The Little Princess before, and I know these are better titles. I'm sure Shirley will start going up in quality as time goes on.
 

lordxar

Member
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yepyepyep

Member
Mother Kusters Goes to Heaven- Loved this one, probably one of favourites from Fassbinder. Great depiction of how political exploitation can arise in any ideology. Brigitte Mira is probably my favourite Fassbinder actress. And dat ending.

Chinese Roulette- Well this one of Fassbinder's crazier films.Definitely entertaining and interesting but I'll admit I don't really know what is actually about. I did love how bizarre and off kilter it was.
 
Flow gets banned and this threads output drops by like 60 percent lol

Rewatched the Cornetto trilogy from edgar wright over the last week, and I know many put world's end at the bottom of that but honestly I still stand by it being the best movie he's made

I'd rate everything he's done like 8-10/10 no doubt but this is my shit. The comedy is funnier, his editing style has been so refined at this point, the fight choreography is better than ever in this case showing off a lot of Jackie Chan/drunken master influence. Plus Simon Pegg gets to show off a pretty good dramatic performance once the veil is pulled and it shows the effect this rut has had on him.

All in all the movie plays like John Carpenter teamed up with Jackie Chan to make a bar hopping buddy movie. Wright is great at this style of pastiche and amalgamation, and worlds end is the best of them imo. Hyped for baby driver
 
Wrong Move (1975)

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I loved this movie, so dreamlike. I definitely need to watch it again, it just moves at such a hypnotic pace that it's impossible to catch all the little nuances and machinations of the characters. Was this shit all in Rudiger Vogler's head? Characters he created in his writing? I NEED TO KNOW

Also I've said it before, but I think Robby Müller is my favorite cinematographer of all time. Something about those colors man, so gorgeous. Nobody does better tracking shots.

Finally, I read afterwards that Nastassja Kinski was 12 in this movie. Wtf, I love you Wim, but that's a little weird bro.
 
If you miss him so much, you can try reddit. I've started seeing comments by him in several subreddits I follow :|

This post is amazing. The smiley adds so much disgust loooooooool


And hell yeah, Disco. I've been right there with you saying The World's End is Wright's best so far. Best action, best performances, and I love the 70/80s sci-fi x drinking buddies combination..
 

TissueBox

Member
Agree that The World's End is his best. Or at least my favorite.

It is thematically and audiovisually as tight as a knot and the characterization, writing, and choreography is restlessly good, it seriously never lets up. It is the character of King and the Whovian cosmic-turning moral story that makes it for me though. While all three are snappy character studies, the emotional weight, sense of finality, and over-the-top endgame of TWE just makes it the natural climax to a refined tee, and solidifed Wright as a master craftsman for me. Funny, thoughtful, stylish, and without a doubt one of Pegg's best performances, though the whole ensemble is magnificent (shoutout to Rosamund Pike).

"A man of your legendary prowess drinking... fucking... rain!"
 

lordxar

Member
I figured Flow was a shamed Samurai and avoiding these parts...guess he committed Seppuku...

World's End the best? Sounds like I need to research this. I can't choose between Hot Fuzz or Shaun on a good day. I watched Worlds End once but it didn't hit like those two did. Time to do some shopping.
 
Krisha is really damn good. Watched this in anticipation for Trey Edward Schults' next film, It Comes At Night. Got Bergman vibes. Short (81min) but to the point chamber drama, about a recovering addict reconnecting with family. The horror overtones are fantastic. Krisha Fairchild is a powerhouse. Chilling audiovisual experience. More people should see this.

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quoting this from last months thread.. this movie was intense

got some dark terrance malick vibes with a splash of punch drunk love
 
World's End has the best action for sure, and some of his strongest character work, but I still feel like the genre stuff didn't get pushed as far as it could go. Too much of it felt like Shaun of the Dead rehash instead of the paranoia angle.

Hot Fuzz is still his film to beat imo. Best (and most) jokes, awesome structure, and really great performances. My only knock on it is that the shootouts at the end are not a good as they should be, he should have gone full John Woo with it.

World's End grew on me a lot more the second time around though.
 
Rosario Tijeras has the weirdest fucking scene I ever seen in a movie.
When her brother dies they put him in a car partying loud across town, take him to bar around other people, sit him in a chair and get a stripper to give him a lapdance buttass naked! And the shit is meant to be serious too. I just couldn't.
 
World's End has the best action for sure, and some of his strongest character work, but I still feel like the genre stuff didn't get pushed as far as it could go. Too much of it felt like Shaun of the Dead rehash instead of the paranoia angle.

Hot Fuzz is still his film to beat imo. Best (and most) jokes, awesome structure, and really great performances. My only knock on it is that the shootouts at the end are not a good as they should be, he should have gone full John Woo with it.

World's End grew on me a lot more the second time around though.

Exactly why I didn't enjoy World's End as much as his other output. It felt like most of the technical aspects were an improvement over his previous movies but it never really came together as a whole for me. It's like two different movies pre- and post-reveal.
 
quoting this from last months thread.. this movie was intense

got some dark terrance malick vibes with a splash of punch drunk love

yeah I saw this recently thanks to the It Comes at Night trailer and man it was pretty damn great.

80 minutes of just foreboding sense of things about to go to shit and paranoia. felt pretty bad for the lead character too. she's a fuck up but she clearly needs a lot of help.
 

UrbanRats

Member
World's End has the best action for sure, and some of his strongest character work, but I still feel like the genre stuff didn't get pushed as far as it could go. Too much of it felt like Shaun of the Dead rehash instead of the paranoia angle.

Hot Fuzz is still his film to beat imo. Best (and most) jokes, awesome structure, and really great performances. My only knock on it is that the shootouts at the end are not a good as they should be, he should have gone full John Woo with it.

World's End grew on me a lot more the second time around though.

I'm the same.
Hot Fuzz is where it's at.
 

Kjellson

Member
I don't know if this is the right thread, but I'm asking anyway. Should I watch The Three Musketeers from 1993 tonight? Kind of feel like it besides not knowing anything about it.
 

Blader

Member
voyage_of_time_ver2.jpg


Yesterday. No words can describe the beauty of this movie.

Where did you see it? I haven't seen this playing at a theater within 100 miles of me since it was released, and far as I know there's still no blu-ray announcement.

Maybe it'll be included as a supplement for Criterion's Tree of Life release this year...

If you miss him so much, you can try reddit. I've started seeing comments by him in several subreddits I follow :|

lmao
 
Bright Eyes: On the good ship Lollipop, it's a sweet trip to a candy shop...

Shirley Temple is now a main character, living with a family with a Veruca Salt-esque daughter while also spending time with a bunch of grown men at an airfield. While Shirley is still the one driving the quality of the movie, I also like Ned Smythe, an old man who has to deal with his disrepectful kids and granddaughter. It's a cute and tragic movie, and one of the Shirley Temple essentials.

Also worth noting that it features the same dog who would play Toto in The Wizard of Oz.
 

Lafiel

と呼ぶがよい
Raw - Fucking awesome in every way - critics have described this as a "feminist david croneberg film".. a comparison that couldn't be more apt. I'm already thinking about watching it again.

Personal Shopper - Honestly I didn't like this at all, the majority of Olivier Assayas films I've seen are always like "this is very well-directed" but then they always leave me cold afterwards, Personal Shopper is no different, which is a shame because everything I read about it indicated it would resonate with my tastes.
 

UrbanRats

Member
I don't know if this is the right thread, but I'm asking anyway. Should I watch The Three Musketeers from 1993 tonight? Kind of feel like it besides not knowing anything about it.

The Paul Anderson version is equally cheesy, but much more fun.

This is only based on my foggy memory of the 93 one, though.
 
The Little Colonel: Taking a trip back in time to Reconstruction Kentucky, this movie has Shirley also be short-tempered and stubborn, much like her grandfather, whom she gets to know because her parents were estranged from him (her father was a Yankee). Also features a nice tap-dancing number, and a forced conflict for the climax of the movie. The final scene is just adorable.
 
Put me down for Hot Fuzz as the best of the Cornetto trilogy.

5 Centimeters Per Second (7.5/10) - Predictably lovely, but also a little hit or miss. The first story has a haphazard start, with rapid fire cuts (so many nice drawings, but so little time to absorb any of it), nonstop voiceover, and an oppressive piano score. It settles into a nice rhythm once the train adventure is underway, but the movie didn't really take off until the second story. I loved Sumida's story, the atmosphere of the island setting, and the use of the rocket launch and outer space as metaphors. The third story works on paper, but is rather abrupt given how little time is devoted to it, which is a little disappointing (I could relate to where Takaki's journey brought him in the third story, so I was hoping we'd spend more time understanding the world from his perspective in that final chapter, as well as learn more about his ex). The song at the end is corny as fuck, too. The final shot is brilliant, though. Like I said, hit or miss. Overall, though, a very nice melodrama that does a good job capturing/exploring some of the ups and downs, joys and pains, of youthful love.

I'll try to catch your name. at some point next week.
 
Pather Panchali (1955)

Wow this was a gut punch. Such beautiful, simple poetry on display. I loved all the characters, the mischievous Auntie, the kind father, curious and playful Apu. But damn, this movie is really all about Durga and the mother. Such strong women.
Durga's death is among the most poignant and heartbreaking I've seen.
That said, it's not necessarily a depressing movie, because there are so many little joys found throughout. The final frame is rough tho, so sad ;_;
 
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

I need this small dose of optimism after being severely depressed by the news stories of recent years.
 

ActWan

Member
Get Out - 9/10

FINALLY it is being screened in my country.
What a great, wonderful movie. Perfect blend of genres with great directing and acting, plus some very good writing.
I didn't expect Jordan Peele to do so good on his directorial debut, glad he proved me wrong!
The crowd were great too, it was awesome how everybody in the theatre clapped and cheered at the whole ending sequence (
which reminded me a bit of Django Unchained lol
)
 
I've heard Voyage of Time: Life's Journey (90-minute version) will finally get a release this fall. But that would be amazing if both are on Criterion's The Tree of Life release. The 45-minute version is fantastic.
 

Sean C

Member
Pather Panchali (1955)

Wow this was a gut punch. Such beautiful, simple poetry on display.
I was very impressed by that film. The followups wore me down a bit, though.

Trouble in Paradise (1932): I saw this for the first time on TCM last year, and was ultimately moved to buy the Criterion DVD, which is the first time I've bought anything in that format in at least five years. One must hope for an upgrade eventually, but if that never comes, good to have it anyway. Of Lubitsch's pure comedies (unleavened by more sober moments, as his wartime films had), this is the best, with great banter. It makes you wonder what the Golden Age of Hollywood would have been like if the Hays Code had never been instituted.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017): Discussed more in the review thread, but in brief, a good film, but not up to the original.

Felicia's Journey (1999): Atom Egoyan follows up The Sweet Hereafter, which I consider the best Canadian film ever made and one of the best films of the 1990s (albeit a tough film to watch, given how emotionally bracing it is), with what one might be tempted, from the first few scenes, to mistake for a quirky indie film about two oddballs meeting. That's not the kind of story this is, to put it mildly. The late Bob Hoskins is riveting, and well-matched by the then debuting Irish actress Elaine Cassidy. The score (by future Oscar winner Mychael Danna) and sound design are impeccable as well, ratcheting up the tension throughout.
 
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 - James Gunn has flickers of good intention here, especially when it comes to the more relaxed vibes and certain compositions, but it's never all that funny, the action is never all that interesting, and the third act is the same, dull chore as most Marvel films.

Risk - works better as a character study then a comprehensive look at recent history. Assange's weaselly nature really comes to full bore here and there's a shot I loved when there's a turning point and Poitras realizes the movie she needs to make about him.
 
Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 2 is a strange movie for me. I really enjoyed it, but it's also a clear step down from the first one. On the comedy side: A lot of it worked, a lot of it didn't. At some point about mid way through, it really does feel like they're just throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks. That means there's a lot of a good stuff there (particularly from Drax and Mantis), but there are also some long winded jokes and wackiness that does not land. On the plus side it's definitely a more emotional movie, but because of the rapidfire style it's flying through a lot of these more personal story beats without giving them much time to breathe while also sacrificing that galactic scale of the first. Likewise, the villain is simultaneously one of the Marvel's best due to sheer screen presence, but also still a pretty flaccid exposition machine as a linchpin for the story. As an action movie it did nothing for me, and I didn't find anything here as natural and fun as the prison escape from the first one. The whole climax goes on forever and is just a big VFX explosion; I'm numb to it. Baby Groot is cute, but it feels like the movie KNOWS he's cute which kind of takes away from his cuteness as Gunn leans into Groot gags too often and for too long. Kurt Russell was fun, as always.

So idk. A lot of positives, and I can see why people love this- some even more than the first- because it doubles down on everything, but less of it landed for me this time. Part of that is a general fatigue of the MCU, part of that is the pacing being worse. Either way, this is not top tier MCU like Vol 1, unfortunately.
 
I went to see Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2 with the gang! Kinda sad that this is the last time I'm going to be with them as a group as I'm graduating... Sad to see the end of the giant group movie visits I attend, but I enjoyed them a lot and will keep them as valuable memories ^^

Hopefully I can find a new social situation back home that I can maintain something similar, if smaller.
 
I've heard Voyage of Time: Life's Journey (90-minute version) will finally get a release this fall. But that would be amazing if both are on Criterion's The Tree of Life release. The 45-minute version is fantastic.

There will be a Criterion version of The Tree of Life? That's awesome.
 

Boogs31

Member
Watched a movie on Netflix called the Discovery.

It's a pretty intriguing premise. It's a world in which they've proven the existence of an afterlife. I thought that was a neat starting point. The movie wasn't bad, but the plot didn't go anywhere interesting after the promising start.

The first illogical jump they made was after people found out that an afterlife existed, millions of people would just start killing themselves. It completely glosses over the fact that MOST people believe some form of an afterlife exists. The other thing that bothered me was the scientist who figured it out (Robert Redford), bought this giant mansion to do his research in and also to house random people that were affected by the discovery. There are scenes that go into how it's very cult like at this place but it never follows through and the movie isn't really about the cult. This just seemed completely unnecessary and had nothing to do with the original premise.

I liked the cast and the filmmaking was decent enough that I didn't mind watching it but it definitely felt like it failed to live up to its potential.
 

Double

Member
Hi, can the amount / the "heavyness" of horror and shock moments in this movie be described without spoilering the excperience?
I'm asking because I'm unsure whether I can recommend watching it with me to my wife, as she would rather prefer not to watch movies with too much of these unsettling elements.

Also a possible problem: gore / graphic violence.

Get Out - 9/10

FINALLY it is being screened in my country.
What a great, wonderful movie. Perfect blend of genres with great directing and acting, plus some very good writing.
I didn't expect Jordan Peele to do so good on his directorial debut, glad he proved me wrong!
The crowd were great too, it was awesome how everybody in the theatre clapped and cheered at the whole ending sequence (
which reminded me a bit of Django Unchained lol
)
 
Raw - Fucking awesome in every way - critics have described this as a "feminist david croneberg film".. a comparison that couldn't be more apt. I'm already thinking about watching it again.

Personal Shopper - Honestly I didn't like this at all, the majority of Olivier Assayas films I've seen are always like "this is very well-directed" but then they always leave me cold afterwards, Personal Shopper is no different, which is a shame because everything I read about it indicated it would resonate with my tastes.

Best Cronenberg film by not-Cronenberg in a long while! One of my favourites of the year. But I find it hard to recommend to normal people lol.
Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 2 is a strange movie for me. I really enjoyed it, but it's also a clear step down from the first one. On the comedy side: A lot of it worked, a lot of it didn't. At some point about mid way through, it really does feel like they're just throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks. That means there's a lot of a good stuff there (particularly from Drax and Mantis), but there are also some long winded jokes and wackiness that does not land. On the plus side it's definitely a more emotional movie, but because of the rapidfire style it's flying through a lot of these more personal story beats without giving them much time to breathe while also sacrificing that galactic scale of the first. Likewise, the villain is simultaneously one of the Marvel's best due to sheer screen presence, but also still a pretty flaccid exposition machine as a linchpin for the story. As an action movie it did nothing for me, and I didn't find anything here as natural and fun as the prison escape from the first one. The whole climax goes on forever and is just a big VFX explosion; I'm numb to it. Baby Groot is cute, but it feels like the movie KNOWS he's cute which kind of takes away from his cuteness as Gunn leans into Groot gags too often and for too long. Kurt Russell was fun, as always.

So idk. A lot of positives, and I can see why people love this- some even more than the first- because it doubles down on everything, but less of it landed for me this time. Part of that is a general fatigue of the MCU, part of that is the pacing being worse. Either way, this is not top tier MCU like Vol 1, unfortunately.

You should watch Double Toasted's review, mirrors your opinions quite closely especially the knowing of Baby Groot being cute and doubling down (or "quadrupling multiplied by 10!") aspect :p
 

Lari

Member
The Nice Guys - 3/5
It was fun and entertaining enough. I just found they play up how dumb the characters are supposed to be a little too much and at a point it becomes annoying.
 
Get Out
Jordan Peele, 2016

On second thought, there isn't much to say about this, to be perfectly honest. It's such a well-made thriller built on an incredibly smart and sharp script featuring an amazing cast. Chris is such a likable and relatable character that you really start rooting for him. All the reveals in the second half were gut-punches, especially the keys. I also loved how it didn't delve into typical shock-value by making the white characters drop n-bombs. The stuff they said was way, way uglier and thus hit harder. And then it also doesn't get self-indulgent in the revenge part. And the symbolism is on point. Probably one of the most culturally and socially relevant movies I've seen in a while. I liked it a lot.


Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
James Gunn, 2017

GotG Vol. 2 abandons a lot of the adventurous planet hopping and galaxy saving in favour of more intimate character work. Sure, the backdrop is similar, powerful entity tries to take over or destroy the galaxy, and it's consequently plagued by the same problem a lot of these blockbusters are: The threat doesn't feel real. The galaxy never feels at risk. The heroes will walk away from this unharmed. Well, almost. The movie is aware of the staples of the genre and constantly plays with them. The Sovereign are shown to be no more than "conceited douchebags" (until the end). Nebula's super-dramatic backstory exposition is undercut by Kraglin etc. and then pulls back during the real emotional moments and lets them play out beautifully. I think what always gets lost in these discussions about steaks stakes is that it isn't about saving the galaxy or beating the galaxy threatening villain. It's about the characters facing their own demons. And Gunn is really good at this. The first GotG was already very good in its use of humour to show the personality of these characters and GotG goes one step further. Sure, it sometimes comes off as almost cartoonish with Drax and has callbacks to the first here and there (Baby Groot stealing someone's eye) but overall it's an improvement. Mantis and Drax on the steps, Peter firing on Ego and Yondu's death and funeral are played straight and in such an earnest way that you can't help but feel for them. And once again, I have to point out how I find the Baby Groot complaints to be completely overblown. He is the guardian with the least screentime and he has only three extended scenes including the intro. Well, anyway, between this and Logan it's been a fantastic year for CBMs already. I liked it.
 

Rktk

Member
The Human Centipede (2009)
The opening had some promise and the Dr certainly was the best thing about it. Overall though it couldn't be saved from behind very standard, while the concept is revolting the film doesn't manage to be as unsettling as it should be, the "Centipede" looks silly rather than sickening, like three people bandaged together for a live art piece. The acting was terrible.
 

UrbanRats

Member
I assume that if i found GotG1 boring and annoying (for the most part, it had some moments) i'm not going to change my mind with the second one, right?
 

Pachimari

Member
I assume that if i found GotG1 boring and annoying (for the most part, it had some moments) i'm not going to change my mind with the second one, right?

You'll find it more annoying. There's more humor, some of it forced, and some of it doesn't land well.
 
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has a leg up on the first film in that the whole crew is all together from the start, since a considerable amount of my enjoyment of it comes from their charm and chemistry. They are also aided immensely by Kurt Russell's presence, who immediately made me wish could have been Star Lord instead (in the 80's. Directed by John Carpenter. Natch). He basically just acts circles around Chris Pratt in their scenes together, and helps move the film along while the crew is stranded on one location for much of the movie.

The pacing takes a hit, but thankfully there a lot of laughs to be had spread out across the movie. It definitely gets too self-aware and cute with itself to feel organic sometimes, but I don't mind since on the whole the movie is pretty vibrant and fun and has more of a confidence and aesthetic sensibility than most of these Marvel movies.

The movie still suffers a lot the further you get into it, because besides the aforementioned pace killing, the action climax is particularly dull, and worst of all none of the character beats rang true to me because literally every single scene one of the characters would say out absolutely everything about how a character is feeling, why they feel that way, and how it relates to the theme/their own character arc. It's infuriating. Like there's a specific character in this movie whose unique power is to be able to read people's feelings through touch, but la dee frickin da because apparantdly even Yodu can do that from across the room. It was kinda painful.

Overall I'd say it's a wash with the first one. Charming and more fun that most of these movies, but it's still lightweight stuff that sacrifices solid character work and narrative tension for an easy quip.
 
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