Need for speed after everything else was sold out, if you base the quality of the movie on entertainment value only, it was not a bad movie, some nice shout-outs to car movie fans. The only thing that I can say was really good about it, was the sound of the cars.
I saw Wes Anderson's newest film today: The Grand Budapest Hotel. A full review of it that details my exact thoughts about it will be published on Population GO (one of the two blogs I write for) by tomorrow which I will post the link to here.
The short version of my thoughts, without giving too much away, is that it is a good movie and is much grittier and violent than a lot of Anderson's other movies. Yet, it is a film that has deep flaws which weigh the film down and keep it from being great. Despite that, it is totally hilarious and has amazing performances from the cast. Definitely worth seeing however, no question about that.
Went to go see this for my mums birthday. Would pretty much agree with you. There was a couple of bits that were a little bit drawn but still some amazing characters. Also Jude Law is always a fav for me.
Got a chance to see Grand Budapest on Sunday. I enjoyed it heavily.
I would say that it's at least as good as anything else I've seen from him, but, I havn't seen his whole collection including some great omissions (Havn't seen Rushmore yet for example) so it's hard to make any concrete claims.
After the Bond movie nights and the Kung Fu movie nights, we've now moved on to the Rom Com movie nights.
First up: French Kiss. I've seen it a few times before. It's dated in terms of style and technology, but the comedy still holds up. I hope the Rom Coms stay at this level of quality, but I predict other movies won't hold up.
French Kiss is one my favorite Rom Coms. I remember my high school French teacher gave us extra credit for watching it when it came out in theaters.
I was thinking about watching it again. It's quite possibly one of my favorite Meg Ryan Rom Coms. I still giggle at the scene where she says she will triumph and it pans out to show she's at a phone booth near Arc de Triomphe.
Watched Kung Fu Panda 2 again. Love that movie to death. It's better than the first one, not only because I think Lord Shen is a better villain than Tai Lung, but there are so many fantastic set-pieces and it has a stronger emotional connection. And it's great to see The Furious Five AND Po work as such an effective, badass unit.
I also watched Looper again, trying to figure out where I fall in on the movie because I originally was infuriated when I came out of seeing it because of what happens at the end. Watching it, my point stays the same where I absolutely love the first half, but the second half (and last 10 minutes) drops the ball. I still really appreciate all of the artistic direction and acting.
I understand the message they are going for with parenting/nurturing to make sure you go down the right path. However, I always got the vibe that Cid was too far gone from the way he talks to Joe, to what sets off his reactions isn't from being threatened but more so through happenstance. It's not like Akira or Chronice where you understand the motivation and you see the circumstances. Looper leaves it up to you and I think Rian Johnson almost did too much in that department to make me feel comfortable with that ending. It fully loops itself with the same amount of concern and I do not feel that satisfied.
Watched two movies today. First was The Lego Movie which only started its run here in Austria yesterday. Why they didn't release it sooner I have no clue. Great movie though. Some absolutely amazing animation sequences and the moral was also somewhat touching, though kind of predictable. It was also very funny and just plain fun to watch.
Also saw Captain America: The Winter Soldier today. For some goddamn reason they retitled it "The Return of the First Avenger" here. Yes, in english, not in german. I have no clue why they think that that's a better title, or a title more easily understood by german speaking audiences.
Anyway, the movie was fun and incorporated some nice touches. I particularly liked the fact that Nick Fury finally got a good action scene to himself, and that they introduced The Falcon and finally gave a bit more diversity to the Marvel Cinematic Universe roster of heroes (particularly after the disappointment that was the first episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.). It also flips a lot of things we have known about the MCU so far quite on its head and is quite a change of tone compared to the other Marvel movies so far. The movie did have some contrived plot points though, like for example the rather convenient location to sabotage those heli-carriers.
And now for the traditional mid-credits spoilers:
Holy Crap, Baron Strucker, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. Not sure how Marvel has the film rights to the last two characters considering that they are Mutants and should be part of the package deal that gives FOX the rights to the X-Men and all related characters. Probably some background deal or perhaps they are simply not allowed to refer to the origin of their powers or completely rewrite that.
Holy Crap, Baron Strucker, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. Not sure how Marvel has the film rights to the last two characters considering that they are Mutants and should be part of the package deal that gives FOX the rights to the X-Men and all related characters. Probably some background deal or perhaps they are simply not allowed to refer to the origin of their powers or completely rewrite that.
From what I've read and understood FOX doesn't have the rights to those specific characters, so Marvel can use them, but can't call them Mutants.
The Raid 2. Too much story compared to the first, The Raid: Redemption, but just as much, if not more hardcore fast paced action. The movie is 2 and a half hours long, and could have easily been trimmed down to 2 hours by shortening some of the non action scenes.
Movie theater screen may be too large of a format for this type of movie as well with so much fast paced action going on. The action is just as good as the first movie though. Guys, you will cringe on many of the injuries that occur throughout the movie, and everyone will cringe at some of the brutality overall. I really like the combination of martial arts action along with gun play, which doesn't often happen in action movies. Lastly, the movie is subtitled, but there is little to no speaking during the action sequences, so no worry about missing it.
Overall, good movie, great action, but not a must see at the theater. If you liked the first movie, then this one is a must see... If you haven't seen the first movie, and you aren't worried about brutal violence, see it, then see The Raid 2 when it hits DVD/BluRay.
Holy Crap, Baron Strucker, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch. Not sure how Marvel has the film rights to the last two characters considering that they are Mutants and should be part of the package deal that gives FOX the rights to the X-Men and all related characters. Probably some background deal or perhaps they are simply not allowed to refer to the origin of their powers or completely rewrite that.
From what I've read and understood FOX doesn't have the rights to those specific characters, so Marvel can use them, but can't call them Mutants.
Interesting Wrinkle to this: Quicksilver also appears in the upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past, and according to this trailer he doesn't have a small role in the plot either.
Appaloosia was not what I expected. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Sort of a buddy comedy/romance set in the old west, but where everyone is realistically socially awkward.
Mr. Nobody is far greater than I anticipated going in. I'd heard from a few people it was vastly underrated and they were correct. It's on Netflix in the US and I recommend it highly if you like films such as Cloud Atlas.
The Romantic Comedy movie night isn't what I expected. French Kiss was good, but then when I was away they showed The Wedding Crashers, a movie I thought was a bloke/bro comedy and not a romantic comedy.
Then on Monday we watched Mr. and Mrs. Smith, which is not a romantic comedy at all. It's an action comedy which also has some overly-long sexy scenes with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. And it's not very good, either. There are two or three really good scenes, a lot of quite boring filler, and, the real killer, a very shoddy plot. It's like two thirds of the movie in they just give up, have a waaaaay too long shootout, and then end it.
It does have some nostalgia for me though, as back in 2006 and 2007 my girlfriend (at the time) and I worked on a juggling and theater show that had elements of this movie and Mission Impossible and Entrapment in it. We only ever performed the show once though, as our other show became super successful shortly after, and we never got back to it.
I'm beginning to go through a lot of Shakespeare's plays (the pattern is that I read x play and then I watch y film adaptation) and I just got through Roman Polanski's Macbeth. I have seen many film adaptations of Shakespeare, but this one is now my go-to for being the closest and most accurate adaptation of a Shakespeare play I have ever seen, so much so that I will come out and say that the staggeringly beautiful imagery and locations in the film might very well have been what Shakespeare saw when writing it. The scenes that are the most breathtaking are when the trees march toward Macbeth, the "dagger of the mind" scene, the second prophecy by the witches, and the final battle between Macbeth and Macduff.
Jon Finch has mastered Macbeth beyond every other portrayal in that he does not make the sin that most other portrayals have done: he plays Macbeth as the callow, pathetic, cowardly, and way too big for his britches person he truly is... whereas most others play him as a thundering, booming, noble figure of epicness...which is not what Macbeth is at all. Aside from being stunningly beautiful, Francesca Annis as Lady Macbeth is so great...she is now the person I now associate with Lady Macbeth in every way because you feel sympathy and pity for how deluded she is in her role in her gigantic role in Macbeth's downfall (mostly apparent in both the "A little water clears us of this deed" and the sleepwalking scenes).
The music itself is really avant-garde and strange, giving you a very off feeling throughout the whole film...I cannot even describe it in words. One of the only problems in the film is that it has undeniable, very clear, extremely disturbing allusions to the Charles Manson murders, which his wife Sharon Tate and unborn child were victims of (mainly in the "ripped from the womb" scene in the prophecy and the slaughter of Macduff's children). It has this really creepy, vengeful, hate-filled vibe towards it...but it is forgivable considering how good the rest of the film is.
If you are someone who is either a Shakespeare enthusiast or simply wants to see a good movie in general, I cannot recommend this enough.
Must be the third or fourth time I've recommended it here, but you should watch the 2006 version of Macbeth, directed by Geoffery Wright. Probably one of the best film adaptions of Shakespeare I've seen to date - and yes, I rate it above Polanski's Macbeth.
Must be the third or fourth time I've recommended it here, but you should watch the 2006 version of Macbeth, directed by Geoffery Wright. Probably one of the best film adaptions of Shakespeare I've seen to date - and yes, I rate it above Polanski's Macbeth.
Can you be more specific about how it rates above Polanski's Macbeth, Churba?
Better Cinematography, better soundtrack. I prefer the way it's constructed over Polanski's Macbeth, too, but that's just personal preference. I think it also does a better job of mise-en-scene storytelling, despite the setting being wildly different to the original, though it may be aided by the fact that Clubs and Guns is a lot more familiar and certainly better understood to the modern audience than castles and swords.
Excellent cast - Don't be turned off by the fact that Sam Worthington is the headliner, he does a great job(better than Jon Finch, despite Worthington's flaws), as does the rest of the cast, though I will admit Victoria Hill is a bit shakey as Lady Macbeth. Again, personal opinion, but I think they play it slightly better than Polanski's cast - Not nessissarily because they do a better Shakespeare, but because they're all pretty raw, while pulling a good balance between the traditional characters, and Modern-day gangsters, throwing themselves at the roles with absolute conviction, rather than throwing themselves at the job of doing Shakespeare.
Also, fun fact - Malcom is played by Matt Doran, and to save you the trouble of going "Where have I seen that guy before?", he also played Mouse in The Matrix.
Under the Skin was well worth the price of admission. It has its flaws - mainly that the mystery it offers does not fully support its suspense first and second acts. However, the powerfully minimal performances (some from non-actors who were just passersby) and grounded settings juxtaposed with deliberate, studied, painterly visuals and a soundtrack that ranged from silence to (almost gratingly) tense/disharmonious instrumentation created a truly alien experience. The viewer, like the main character, seems to be dumped in the middle of a world with rules that must be discovered over time. There is little explanation, and much ( too much, according to some critics) is left undefined. Personally, I enjoyed it. The alien was alien. I didn't and sill don't fully understand its motives or mission. Despite this, as a viewer, I was let into a sliver of its experience and it was disturbingly beautiful.
I am excited to see NOW: In the Wings on a World Stage tomorrow night. Per the website:
Produced by and starring Kevin Spacey, “NOW…” takes us along with twenty British and American actors on a whirlwind ten month international tour of “Richard III,” starring Kevin Spacey in the title role, and directed by Oscar-winner Sam Mendes (American Beauty). The film follows Mendes’ Bridge Project—the first transatlantic theatre company—as the play takes shape and unfolds for us in a seamless tapestry between the backstage world to the on stage production, as it travels through nine cities. As we discover Spacey’s revelatory performance as the power-mad Richard destroying his family and everyone in his path, we also see how Sam and Kevin demonstrate the leadership required to unify and bring the best out of a group of different actors, with different techniques and experiences.
Hunger Games Catching fire is a good movie. Probably better than the first. However, due to it being a sequel, it relies on the first to be better, kinda like Empire Strikes Back is better than Star Wars but relies on it for the betterness.
Hunger Games: Catching Fire Ok book still makes this look trash. I still can't relate with the main character but I think that carries from the books. I still prefer the backup and supporting cast.
Speed Racer Was as close as translating a movie to a kids anime could get, as such was quite interesting from observing the structure point but less so the plot.
Thor: The Dark World One watch wonder, Natalie Portman's support cast are pretty annoying and she gives quite a flat performance.
I spotted Scott Pilgrim vs the World in the video rental store and told my girlfriend we might as well watch it, as it's really good. At first she was utterly confused when the fighting started, but was soon engrossed. On the second viewing it's actually better. And on BluRay I could see more details and with surround sound it was overall more fun.
Amazing Spiderman 2 - I actually kind of enjoyed this one. Primarily the good things is that Andrew Garfield finally plays a really good Spiderman AND Peter Parker who you can support. Really good action scenes and I really liked Dane Dehaan as Harry Osbourne. But there's a lot that's wrong with very bad plotting, pacing, tonal shifts, and some really bad dialogue or music cues. The way Jamie Foxx/Electro was written is really bad because he comes off more as an obsessive stalker, not a villain.
It's odd, it seems like people who hated the first one like the sequel, or the people who liked/loved the first one hate this. I've heard responses all across the board from "I love this" to "This is worse than Spiderman 3."
Comments
I would say that it's at least as good as anything else I've seen from him, but, I havn't seen his whole collection including some great omissions (Havn't seen Rushmore yet for example) so it's hard to make any concrete claims.
First up: French Kiss. I've seen it a few times before. It's dated in terms of style and technology, but the comedy still holds up. I hope the Rom Coms stay at this level of quality, but I predict other movies won't hold up.
I was thinking about watching it again. It's quite possibly one of my favorite Meg Ryan Rom Coms. I still giggle at the scene where she says she will triumph and it pans out to show she's at a phone booth near Arc de Triomphe.
I also watched Looper again, trying to figure out where I fall in on the movie because I originally was infuriated when I came out of seeing it because of what happens at the end. Watching it, my point stays the same where I absolutely love the first half, but the second half (and last 10 minutes) drops the ball. I still really appreciate all of the artistic direction and acting.
I understand the message they are going for with parenting/nurturing to make sure you go down the right path. However, I always got the vibe that Cid was too far gone from the way he talks to Joe, to what sets off his reactions isn't from being threatened but more so through happenstance. It's not like Akira or Chronice where you understand the motivation and you see the circumstances. Looper leaves it up to you and I think Rian Johnson almost did too much in that department to make me feel comfortable with that ending. It fully loops itself with the same amount of concern and I do not feel that satisfied.
Also saw Captain America: The Winter Soldier today. For some goddamn reason they retitled it "The Return of the First Avenger" here. Yes, in english, not in german. I have no clue why they think that that's a better title, or a title more easily understood by german speaking audiences.
Anyway, the movie was fun and incorporated some nice touches. I particularly liked the fact that Nick Fury finally got a good action scene to himself, and that they introduced The Falcon and finally gave a bit more diversity to the Marvel Cinematic Universe roster of heroes (particularly after the disappointment that was the first episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.). It also flips a lot of things we have known about the MCU so far quite on its head and is quite a change of tone compared to the other Marvel movies so far. The movie did have some contrived plot points though, like for example the rather convenient location to sabotage those heli-carriers.
And now for the traditional mid-credits spoilers:
Movie theater screen may be too large of a format for this type of movie as well with so much fast paced action going on. The action is just as good as the first movie though. Guys, you will cringe on many of the injuries that occur throughout the movie, and everyone will cringe at some of the brutality overall. I really like the combination of martial arts action along with gun play, which doesn't often happen in action movies. Lastly, the movie is subtitled, but there is little to no speaking during the action sequences, so no worry about missing it.
Overall, good movie, great action, but not a must see at the theater. If you liked the first movie, then this one is a must see... If you haven't seen the first movie, and you aren't worried about brutal violence, see it, then see The Raid 2 when it hits DVD/BluRay.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0800308/
If you like westerns, it's worth seeing.
Then on Monday we watched Mr. and Mrs. Smith, which is not a romantic comedy at all. It's an action comedy which also has some overly-long sexy scenes with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. And it's not very good, either. There are two or three really good scenes, a lot of quite boring filler, and, the real killer, a very shoddy plot. It's like two thirds of the movie in they just give up, have a waaaaay too long shootout, and then end it.
It does have some nostalgia for me though, as back in 2006 and 2007 my girlfriend (at the time) and I worked on a juggling and theater show that had elements of this movie and Mission Impossible and Entrapment in it. We only ever performed the show once though, as our other show became super successful shortly after, and we never got back to it.
Jon Finch has mastered Macbeth beyond every other portrayal in that he does not make the sin that most other portrayals have done: he plays Macbeth as the callow, pathetic, cowardly, and way too big for his britches person he truly is... whereas most others play him as a thundering, booming, noble figure of epicness...which is not what Macbeth is at all. Aside from being stunningly beautiful, Francesca Annis as Lady Macbeth is so great...she is now the person I now associate with Lady Macbeth in every way because you feel sympathy and pity for how deluded she is in her role in her gigantic role in Macbeth's downfall (mostly apparent in both the "A little water clears us of this deed" and the sleepwalking scenes).
The music itself is really avant-garde and strange, giving you a very off feeling throughout the whole film...I cannot even describe it in words. One of the only problems in the film is that it has undeniable, very clear, extremely disturbing allusions to the Charles Manson murders, which his wife Sharon Tate and unborn child were victims of (mainly in the "ripped from the womb" scene in the prophecy and the slaughter of Macduff's children). It has this really creepy, vengeful, hate-filled vibe towards it...but it is forgivable considering how good the rest of the film is.
If you are someone who is either a Shakespeare enthusiast or simply wants to see a good movie in general, I cannot recommend this enough.
Excellent cast - Don't be turned off by the fact that Sam Worthington is the headliner, he does a great job(better than Jon Finch, despite Worthington's flaws), as does the rest of the cast, though I will admit Victoria Hill is a bit shakey as Lady Macbeth. Again, personal opinion, but I think they play it slightly better than Polanski's cast - Not nessissarily because they do a better Shakespeare, but because they're all pretty raw, while pulling a good balance between the traditional characters, and Modern-day gangsters, throwing themselves at the roles with absolute conviction, rather than throwing themselves at the job of doing Shakespeare.
Also, fun fact - Malcom is played by Matt Doran, and to save you the trouble of going "Where have I seen that guy before?", he also played Mouse in The Matrix.
I am excited to see NOW: In the Wings on a World Stage tomorrow night. Per the website:
When Harry Met Sally. This is, for me, a perfect movie of its type, and one of my favourite movies ever.
Ok book still makes this look trash. I still can't relate with the main character but I think that carries from the books. I still prefer the backup and supporting cast.
Speed Racer
Was as close as translating a movie to a kids anime could get, as such was quite interesting from observing the structure point but less so the plot.
Thor: The Dark World
One watch wonder, Natalie Portman's support cast are pretty annoying and she gives quite a flat performance.
It's odd, it seems like people who hated the first one like the sequel, or the people who liked/loved the first one hate this. I've heard responses all across the board from "I love this" to "This is worse than Spiderman 3."