Arrival is super frustrating. It has one of the most tense, imaginative sci-fi premises in a decade pushing forward to find the answer to why aliens have made contact with humans. Amy Adams is fantastic. And after an hour of marvelous buildup and scientific discovery, the film slowly unravels the mystery in a very schmaltzy message. I even found it to undercut Amy Adam's evolution as a character by reducing her meaning to be about something else. I won't spoil what exactly happens because so much of the film is circularly connected, but I could only come out to respect the film at the end of the day. So close to being Top 10 of the Year great but totally messes up.
The closest I could compare it to would unfortunately be Interstellar. Some people love it, I found it to be a tad too plodding and sappy by the end with terrible sound mixing. Difference here is that everything in Arrival is air tight explaining all the fictional science to come together as a cohesive story and moves at a faster pace. But I was pretty irritated leaving the theater because a better movie is there fixed by script and visual editing.
Ghostbusters (2016) Wasn't as bad as I was expecting based on push back from reviewers and the Internet. Was still a pretty bad movie but acceptable by current Hollywood standards. All the cameos were great fun, it's kind of like Star Wars 7, based on nostalgia.
Finding Dory Really quite a boring first half then it picked up as soon as you hear Sigourney Weaver's voice. Not worth the watch, maybe in the background.
MCU marathon continues! Finished Luke Cage, got through Agents of Shield season 2 up to episode 19...
Avengers: Age of Ultron
I'd seen this before in the cinema, and was underwhelmed. The start seemed a bit weird, like in Winter Soldier it was revealed that Hydra was overturning Shield... and then the start of this movie was the Avengers mopping up the last remnants of Hydra. Well, that was quick! I guess Hydra weren't much of a threat.
Of course, now I've seen all of Agents of Shield up until that point, it makes more sense.
I liked the creation of Ultron, and the brains of Jarvis and Ultron visually. The mind control stuff is whatever, but the action along the way is fun enough.
But then ending really lets it down for me. I liked at the end of Avengers in New York (despite other plot holes) that each Avenger team member has a different job. Flying people fly, smashy people smash, Hawkeye is seeing the whole situation, Cap is leading, etc. But at the end of Ultron, it's just "let's all stand in a circle and punch robots". Isn't there anything better for Natasha and Clint to be doing? Hulk and Thor and Vision and Scarlet Witch can do all the robot breaking! Like Hawkeye says "I'm on a flying city with a bow and arrow, it doesn't make sense!"
It was good to get some framing for the infinity stones.
And the inhuman twins make more sense in the context of Agents of Shield too.
Main bad guy: Is Tony Stark the antagonist in this movie? He might be. I'm not a huge fan of Ultron, but maybe because he seems so trivial. I think he's wasted in this movie. Is he a robot or an AI?
Unlike other bad guys, who have history, and feel like they've been around for a long time, seeing a bad guy from creation to destruction in one movie makes them seem weak.
Comments from Juliane: "Is that Paul Bettany?"
Stan Lee cameo: Army veteran getting drunk at the party.
Overall: Probably on the same level the least good main movies like Thor: The Dark World but still waaaaay better than Hulk. I just felt like it could have been so much better, like the first Avengers movie or like Civil War or Winter Soldier.
Next up: We already got to the end of Agents of Shield season 2, so it's Ant Man.
Luke and Juliane talk about all the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 1, including Captain America, Iron Man 1, Iron Man 2, Thor, The Incredible Hulk and The Avengers.
I watched Arrival yesterday. I found the voiceover of Jeremy Renner yada-yadaing away all of the process of actually communicating with the aliens very annoying. Suddenly we have names for the aliens and can basically talk to them. I think they did away with what should have been most fun parts of the story. Consequently, the relationship between Amy Adam's character and Jeremy Renner's character isn't strong enough for me to feel emotionally attached to at the end when the violins start swelling. They are both scientists of sorts, lets see some chemistry.
Additionally, I found the soldier's rebellion to be pretty silly. Contact (1997) had the same problem of relying on extremists to further the plot when there are plenty of smart reasons why some feel contact should be avoided. I'm eagerly awaiting mainstream scifi movies that are rationalist, no simplistic villains necessary. It's still a step up from Contact's religious zealots somehow blowing up a space shuttle but it could be much better.
And the last bit of dialogue where Renner's character proclaims that meeting her was more amazing than meeting the aliens? Yuck. If they wanted to make that line work, they should have juxtaposed it with future Renner saying he wishes he never met her once he finds out his daughter will die at a young age and there is nothing he can do about it; paralleling it to how her daughter tells her she loves and then hates her at the beginning of the movie. That would reinforce the idea that our experiences are deterministic, and would make Adam's character's decision to embrace the future more poignant because it is bittersweet.
Moana is super excellent. Everyone see it. Great songs, great characters, great visuals. Can't wait to own the film/soundtrack when it comes out. Worthy movie from Disney after Zootopia.
The internet was out across Berlin so we had to entertain ourselves offline like animals. Anyway, because I had it on DVD and Juliane asked about the trailers for the new version:
The last movie in phase 2 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe:
Ant Man!
Wow, what a huge step up from Age of Ultron! It was good that we watched this so soon after to get the bad taste out of our mouths from that totally mediocre movie.
This is the first movie I'd not seen before starting the MCU marathon.
Ant Man is very, very funny. And funny in ways very different from the other MCU movies. They seem like normal action/adventure movies but with a script pass by Josh Whedon and friends to put in some quippy lines and fun banter.
But Ant Man is just funny throughout. The setup is funny, the characters support each other funnily, the action is funny, the locations are funny. It's just all designed from the start to be funny.
Thankfully the action and fight scenes and set pieces are good too. And for once the stakes aren't so big, like the end of the world, despite what Hank Pym says about the suit.
I liked that it was mostly a setup to a heist, and then seeing the heist, plus some bonus fight scenes. Cool.
There are some references to other MCU movies, but it's probably able to stand alone better than others. I liked the line "First thing we should do? Call in the Avengers." I didn't know Falcon was in the movie, so that was a fun surprise.
Main bad guy: Normally the main bad guy is the opposite of the good guy, but in this case there are two good guys (historic Ant Man and new Ant Man) and the main bad guy is the opposite of both of them.
Comments from Juliane: "Ants are creepy!" "That key chain again." "So she's going to be the new Wasp?"
Stan Lee cameo: In montage at the end, voiced over by Luis.
Overall: Funnier than Guardians of the Galaxy, but probably doesn't have the same rewatchability levels.
Next up: More Agents of Shield (season 3) and then Civil War.
Of course, Ant Man is in Civil War, so I'd already seen him in action. However, I really needed a piss during that movie, so went out to the bathroom and missed his introduction, and came back in just as they were cutting away to Peter Parker. Anyway, that whole scene at the airport in Civil War makes a lot more sense now.
Star Trek Beyond I must have incredibly different tastes due to having seen the Original Series and all other Star Trek shows and movies because this movie was just so bad. Everyone told me this was the greatest Star Trek movie or at least of the re-releases. I rate this the worst of the 3 Abrams produced films. The directing tone is probably the most annoying trash and too obviously referential to the first Abrams film as if that's a master piece to make homage scenes for.
It's literally just like a Fast and the Furious film except with actors who are able to give far better performances than those delivered in this film. With Fast and the Furious you prop up the entire film based on seeing the awesome cars while in this film Justin Lin uses his special effects as the "look at this amazing thing but don't pay attention to the bland delivery of everything else in the movie".
Some of the CG was terrible and some of it was good but not pushing any boundaries.
Many people stated it was like a classic episode of Star Trek. No it wasn't. It was basically someone who had fast forwarded through one of the trash episodes, made bullet points - irredeemable villain, crew gets separated, Spock McCoy, reference first film, do the classical music joke, destroy the Enterprise and threaten civilians.
The underlying story, themes and plots could have been presented with far less emphasis on action scenes, more thoughtfulness and may have been a far better film.
However in the current presentation, I thought it was poor.
Highlights - use of "classical" music.
I mean I will re-watch it and see if I can change my opinion or observe another reading of the media but I found it disappointing, maybe expectations were too high or the movie was just too scattered, trying to do everything in an average manner and no one great thing.
I'm testing out a free trial of filmstruck. It's Netflix for good movies. Also, Hulu lost criterion, so all those movies and more are on filmstruck instead. It's not the best software, but you can't beat the content. Well see if I pay money when the free trial is over.
I just watched "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse" to test it out.
My order of terminator movies is as follows: 1. Terminator 2 2. Terminator 3. Terminator Genisys 4. Watching paint dry 5/6. Terminator Salvation 5/6. Terminator 3
The last five minutes of Terminator 3 is really good. Pity you have to watch the previous two hours of Terminator 3 to get to it. I've not seen Terminator Salvation.
The last five minutes of Terminator 3 is really good. Pity you have to watch the previous two hours of Terminator 3 to get to it. I've not seen Terminator Salvation.
Plagued by great ideas and cool concepts, but poor execution and Script-writing that just turn them into disappointments. Cool robots, at least. Sam Worthington was absolutely wasted on that movie, and it's unfortunate that it gave him most of the bad reputation he has(since for most international Audiences, it was their first exposure to him).
I'm testing out a free trial of filmstruck. It's Netflix for good movies. Also, Hulu lost criterion, so all those movies and more are on filmstruck instead. It's not the best software, but you can't beat the content. Well see if I pay money when the free trial is over.
I just watched "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse" to test it out.
A masterpiece.
Why isn't Citizen Kane in the Criterion Collection. I am making my way through "Lone Wolf and Cup", if you haven't it is a must. Next will be Akira Kurasawa's "Seven Samurai".
I'm testing out a free trial of filmstruck. It's Netflix for good movies. Also, Hulu lost criterion, so all those movies and more are on filmstruck instead. It's not the best software, but you can't beat the content. Well see if I pay money when the free trial is over.
I just watched "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse" to test it out.
A masterpiece.
Why isn't Citizen Kane in the Criterion Collection. I am making my way through "Lone Wolf and Cup", if you haven't it is a must. Next will be Akira Kurasawa's "Seven Samurai".
How could you have not seen Seven Samurai? Why are you watching any other movie first?
I'm testing out a free trial of filmstruck. It's Netflix for good movies. Also, Hulu lost criterion, so all those movies and more are on filmstruck instead. It's not the best software, but you can't beat the content. Well see if I pay money when the free trial is over.
I just watched "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse" to test it out.
A masterpiece.
Why isn't Citizen Kane in the Criterion Collection. I am making my way through "Lone Wolf and Cup", if you haven't it is a must. Next will be Akira Kurasawa's "Seven Samurai".
How could you have not seen Seven Samurai? Why are you watching any other movie first?
Comments
The closest I could compare it to would unfortunately be Interstellar. Some people love it, I found it to be a tad too plodding and sappy by the end with terrible sound mixing. Difference here is that everything in Arrival is air tight explaining all the fictional science to come together as a cohesive story and moves at a faster pace. But I was pretty irritated leaving the theater because a better movie is there fixed by script and visual editing.
Wasn't as bad as I was expecting based on push back from reviewers and the Internet.
Was still a pretty bad movie but acceptable by current Hollywood standards.
All the cameos were great fun, it's kind of like Star Wars 7, based on nostalgia.
Finding Dory
Really quite a boring first half then it picked up as soon as you hear Sigourney Weaver's voice.
Not worth the watch, maybe in the background.
Avengers: Age of Ultron
I'd seen this before in the cinema, and was underwhelmed. The start seemed a bit weird, like in Winter Soldier it was revealed that Hydra was overturning Shield... and then the start of this movie was the Avengers mopping up the last remnants of Hydra. Well, that was quick! I guess Hydra weren't much of a threat.
Of course, now I've seen all of Agents of Shield up until that point, it makes more sense.
I liked the creation of Ultron, and the brains of Jarvis and Ultron visually. The mind control stuff is whatever, but the action along the way is fun enough.
But then ending really lets it down for me. I liked at the end of Avengers in New York (despite other plot holes) that each Avenger team member has a different job. Flying people fly, smashy people smash, Hawkeye is seeing the whole situation, Cap is leading, etc. But at the end of Ultron, it's just "let's all stand in a circle and punch robots". Isn't there anything better for Natasha and Clint to be doing? Hulk and Thor and Vision and Scarlet Witch can do all the robot breaking! Like Hawkeye says "I'm on a flying city with a bow and arrow, it doesn't make sense!"
It was good to get some framing for the infinity stones.
And the inhuman twins make more sense in the context of Agents of Shield too.
Main bad guy:
Is Tony Stark the antagonist in this movie? He might be.
I'm not a huge fan of Ultron, but maybe because he seems so trivial. I think he's wasted in this movie. Is he a robot or an AI?
Unlike other bad guys, who have history, and feel like they've been around for a long time, seeing a bad guy from creation to destruction in one movie makes them seem weak.
Comments from Juliane:
"Is that Paul Bettany?"
Stan Lee cameo:
Army veteran getting drunk at the party.
Overall:
Probably on the same level the least good main movies like Thor: The Dark World but still waaaaay better than Hulk. I just felt like it could have been so much better, like the first Avengers movie or like Civil War or Winter Soldier.
Next up: We already got to the end of Agents of Shield season 2, so it's Ant Man.
http://www.sfbrp.com/archives/1190
Luke and Juliane talk about all the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 1, including Captain America, Iron Man 1, Iron Man 2, Thor, The Incredible Hulk and The Avengers.
Here is the MCU viewing order spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Xfe--9Wshbb3ru0JplA2PnEwN7mVawazKmhWJjr_wKs/edit#gid=0
We'll record and release a podcast about Phase 2 next week. Enjoy!
Additionally, I found the soldier's rebellion to be pretty silly. Contact (1997) had the same problem of relying on extremists to further the plot when there are plenty of smart reasons why some feel contact should be avoided. I'm eagerly awaiting mainstream scifi movies that are rationalist, no simplistic villains necessary. It's still a step up from Contact's religious zealots somehow blowing up a space shuttle but it could be much better.
And the last bit of dialogue where Renner's character proclaims that meeting her was more amazing than meeting the aliens? Yuck. If they wanted to make that line work, they should have juxtaposed it with future Renner saying he wishes he never met her once he finds out his daughter will die at a young age and there is nothing he can do about it; paralleling it to how her daughter tells her she loves and then hates her at the beginning of the movie. That would reinforce the idea that our experiences are deterministic, and would make Adam's character's decision to embrace the future more poignant because it is bittersweet.
Ghost BOOBS in BOOBS the BOOBS Shell BOOBS (1995)
Ant Man!
Wow, what a huge step up from Age of Ultron! It was good that we watched this so soon after to get the bad taste out of our mouths from that totally mediocre movie.
This is the first movie I'd not seen before starting the MCU marathon.
Ant Man is very, very funny. And funny in ways very different from the other MCU movies. They seem like normal action/adventure movies but with a script pass by Josh Whedon and friends to put in some quippy lines and fun banter.
But Ant Man is just funny throughout. The setup is funny, the characters support each other funnily, the action is funny, the locations are funny. It's just all designed from the start to be funny.
Thankfully the action and fight scenes and set pieces are good too. And for once the stakes aren't so big, like the end of the world, despite what Hank Pym says about the suit.
I liked that it was mostly a setup to a heist, and then seeing the heist, plus some bonus fight scenes. Cool.
There are some references to other MCU movies, but it's probably able to stand alone better than others. I liked the line "First thing we should do? Call in the Avengers." I didn't know Falcon was in the movie, so that was a fun surprise.
Main bad guy:
Normally the main bad guy is the opposite of the good guy, but in this case there are two good guys (historic Ant Man and new Ant Man) and the main bad guy is the opposite of both of them.
Comments from Juliane:
"Ants are creepy!"
"That key chain again."
"So she's going to be the new Wasp?"
Stan Lee cameo:
In montage at the end, voiced over by Luis.
Overall:
Funnier than Guardians of the Galaxy, but probably doesn't have the same rewatchability levels.
Next up: More Agents of Shield (season 3) and then Civil War.
Of course, Ant Man is in Civil War, so I'd already seen him in action. However, I really needed a piss during that movie, so went out to the bathroom and missed his introduction, and came back in just as they were cutting away to Peter Parker. Anyway, that whole scene at the airport in Civil War makes a lot more sense now.
One of my favorite Easter Eggs/homages was the Kakamura x Mad Max Fury Road sequence:
Even listening to the music, you can tell:
Your boots.
Your motorcycle.
I must have incredibly different tastes due to having seen the Original Series and all other Star Trek shows and movies because this movie was just so bad. Everyone told me this was the greatest Star Trek movie or at least of the re-releases. I rate this the worst of the 3 Abrams produced films. The directing tone is probably the most annoying trash and too obviously referential to the first Abrams film as if that's a master piece to make homage scenes for.
It's literally just like a Fast and the Furious film except with actors who are able to give far better performances than those delivered in this film. With Fast and the Furious you prop up the entire film based on seeing the awesome cars while in this film Justin Lin uses his special effects as the "look at this amazing thing but don't pay attention to the bland delivery of everything else in the movie".
Some of the CG was terrible and some of it was good but not pushing any boundaries.
Many people stated it was like a classic episode of Star Trek. No it wasn't. It was basically someone who had fast forwarded through one of the trash episodes, made bullet points - irredeemable villain, crew gets separated, Spock McCoy, reference first film, do the classical music joke, destroy the Enterprise and threaten civilians.
The underlying story, themes and plots could have been presented with far less emphasis on action scenes, more thoughtfulness and may have been a far better film.
However in the current presentation, I thought it was poor.
Highlights - use of "classical" music.
I mean I will re-watch it and see if I can change my opinion or observe another reading of the media but I found it disappointing, maybe expectations were too high or the movie was just too scattered, trying to do everything in an average manner and no one great thing.
I just watched "The Testament of Dr. Mabuse" to test it out.
A masterpiece.
1. Terminator 2
2. Terminator
3. Terminator Genisys
4. Watching paint dry
5/6. Terminator Salvation
5/6. Terminator 3
My memory on the last two is hazy.