Out of those movies Manchester By The Sea is the best by a mile. I did like John Wick 2. Would give it a B. Split a B-. Manchester an A and is one of the best of the year.Originally Posted by mozo-pg
Out of those movies Manchester By The Sea is the best by a mile. I did like John Wick 2. Would give it a B. Split a B-. Manchester an A and is one of the best of the year.
Yeah, I did pick Manchester by the Sea last weekend and wasn't disappointment. I was hoping Split would be better than a B-.
"Manchester By The Sea" was extremely well done, but I found it relentlessly grim. The litany of tragedies that unfold are not for the faint-of-heart.
"A Dog's Purpose" on the other hand was so relentlessly cute, so Hallmark After-School Special, that I felt guilty enjoying it as much as I did.
I have no clue if this is a common occurrence, but I find that as I get older & older, my taste in movies seem to be moving more and more to movies that inspire and/or focus on redemption as their main attraction rather than shoot-em-up epics with killer visuals.
I seem to be gravitating toward small, rather than big movies these days.
"My choice early in life was either to be a piano player in a whorehouse or a politician, and to tell the truth, there's hardly any difference"
President Harry S. Truman
I've moved along similar lines. The comic book movies and zombie bloodfests are of little interest. I like crime movies , but with a plotline that isn't cgi silly. So Hell Or High Water trumps John Wick, and The Town tops Now You See Me. Romantic comedies, if not totally stupid are fun. Overly selfconscious message movies, I can live without.Raunchy comedy , still goodI don't know if its age or boredom driving the change in taste.
Let me speculate. "Big movies" -- these days -- usually carry a third word, "big DUMB movies" because they are designed by committee to appeal to the biggest demographic and play to popcorn-eaters across the globe. As we get older and time gets more precious, we seek entertainment that does more than entertain by stultifying our senses. We seek engagements that open our minds rather than closing them, that present novel solutions rather than making everything into a war. Experiences that do not feel like a total waste of time upon exiting the theater.
I'm with you Geez.
I see it as superficial gimmickry/shock schlock with no depth whatsoever... speaking of the shoot-em-ups and horror crap that abounds in todays theatersI've moved along similar lines. The comic book movies and zombie bloodfests are of little interest. I like crime movies , but with a plotline that isn't cgi silly. So Hell Or High Water trumps John Wick, and The Town tops Now You See Me. Romantic comedies, if not totally stupid are fun. Overly selfconscious message movies, I can live without.Raunchy comedy , still good
gimme a movie with no special effects and great dialog any day over some of that teenage-minded fluff
Why is it whenever someone mentions an artist that was clearly progressive (yet not the Symph weenie definition of Prog) do certain people feel compelled to snort "thats not Prog" like a whiny 5th grader?
The Conjuring 2. I saw the first one and decided to pass on the second. The first one was pretty decent but left me wanting. And then recently I saw a reference to the sequel that said it was better. I thought it actually was. Supernatural horror is one of my favorite genres; ghosts, haunted houses, demonology, exorcisms, etc. What I particularly liked about The Conjuring 2 was that it mixed a haunted house story with demonology. And, yes, the demon was effectively creepy.
And yeah, like most movies these days, some stupid shit happens, but I'm learning to let it go. So, not a bad movie at all. I give it a B+.
“From thirty feet away she looked like a lot of class. From ten feet away she looked like something made up to be seen from thirty feet away.” – Philip Marlowe
Picked up the three Shaft movies in a DVD package recently…
Shaft – though I must have seen this back in the day it’s been so long that my memory of it is non-existent. And it’s very much an ‘of its time’ thing. I found it quite a pedestrian affair. What may have seemed different, original and edgy back then comes across as very clichéd now. Of course you have to bear in mind the impact it made back then and put it in context. But despite this, it’s a very talky affair, and the dialogue didn’t really stand out for me. Thankfully the usual clichéd Blaxploitation insults and swearing are kept to a minimum.
Shafts Big Score – I actually enjoyed this a little better than the original. A slightly better plot, and at least some decent action sequences this time round. The climactic car/boat/helicopter chase must surely have been an influence on Bond movies, especially Live and Let Die and For Your Eyes Only’s opening helicopter sequence. Then again, I am sure Live and Let Die was equally influenced by Shaft and similar movies. Acting and characters are more fleshed out, especially Joseph Mascolo as a flute playing, quietly malevolent Mafioso.
Shaft In Africa – an odd one this, directed by John Guillermin rather than Gordon Parks, and though its an attempt to do something different, it does not really work. Great locations (Paris and Ethiopia this time), and a bit more of an epic fee to it. Somewhat topical too, with the transporting of slaves from Africa to Europe. Some very good fight/stick sequences, but Roundtree seemed ill at ease with the character this time round. It’s also the most violent of the trilogy, and more emphasis on sex scenes too.
I only clicked on it because I thought it was going to be something more interesting...
I recently saw "War Games" and "American Pastoral." Both good stories. "War Games" is based on a true story of two young men who get involved in selling arms to the US military in Iraq and Afghanistan. There is some black humor in what is really a serious tale. "American Pastoral" has no humor. I have read some bad reviews of it, but I suspect they were from the short-attention-span crowd. The movie is paced well enough for the drama it is. It is about a couple whose daughter grows up to be a violent protestor of the Vietnam War, despite a decent upbringing, and her father's desperate desire to find her and bring her back home. The title of the movie is, of course, ironic. Heavy.
We're trying to build a monument to show that we were here
It won't be visible through the air
And there won't be any shade to cool the monument to prove that we were here. - Gene Parsons, 1973
watched manchester last night. Great film..., on so many levels.
no tunes, no dynamics, no nosebone
The Quiet Man was on TCM last night. My wife hadn't seen it before. It didn't filter well through her feminist sensibilities. She loved the scenery though.
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart
Is that War Games the Matthew Broderick movie?
No, it's a new movie. I might have got the name wrong. I already returned the dvd. Miles Teller is one of the stars. Unless I got his name wrong.
We're trying to build a monument to show that we were here
It won't be visible through the air
And there won't be any shade to cool the monument to prove that we were here. - Gene Parsons, 1973
I got it: War Dogs
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2005151/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_6
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart
To bad she was turned off , it is a great movie. You have to consider the time and place. Even so the women characters certainly weren't at the mercy of the men, they were calling their own shots.
The 2000 Shaft movie with Samuel L. Jackson is also surprisingly good. Not a remake or a reboot, it's a new story with a new detective named Shaft. Richard Roundtree has a cameo.
I also enjoyed Jackie Brown, Cotton Comes to Harlem, Foxy Brown, Friday Foster, Coffy, Super Fly, Putney Swope and Cleopatra Jones. Very much Of Their Time!
Have you ever seen Cleopatra Schwartz?
“From thirty feet away she looked like a lot of class. From ten feet away she looked like something made up to be seen from thirty feet away.” – Philip Marlowe
Sorry to say, no I haven't. Looks like I'm missing out on something epic though.
Just so you know, it's a faux commercial from the movie Kentucky Fried Movie.
“From thirty feet away she looked like a lot of class. From ten feet away she looked like something made up to be seen from thirty feet away.” – Philip Marlowe
Had to be something like that. I almost guessed Mel Brooks.
Recent views:
Looking For Richard (1996)
A-
I'd never seen this Pacino documentary about Shakespeare, but had wanted to. It's on Netflix. Really good - should be required viewing for high school English students.
Swiss Army Man (2016)
B+
Not for everyone, but thoroughly recommended for anyone who claims to be bored by blockbusters / rom-coms / formulaic stuff. Two excellent performances by Paul Dano and Daniel Radcliffe + weird story + perfectly complementary original score (should have gotten an Oscar nomination). More of a satisfying curiosity than a great film but, again, it's nice to see familiar faces and such a professional look on something so unconventional.
Searching for General Tso (2014)
B
Even at 73 minutes, there's not enough material to make the project purely about the dish (its origins aren't actually all that mysterious; just not known by most people). So it's padded out with some history of Chinese restaurants in America, though that in particular is a subject worthy of an entire two-hour feature on its own, and it necessarily gets abbreviated here. Still, a recommended view for anybody interested in either of these subjects.
I did see the remake when it came out, cannot remember much about it though.
Most of the other movies you mentioned I have seen, and I would rate most of these higher than the original Shaft.
I only clicked on it because I thought it was going to be something more interesting...
I saw Kentucky Fried Movie in the theater when I was a sophomore or junior in college. That's probably the ideal age to see that movie. Later that year I started dating the young woman I would later marry and might have quoted a few lines. She said "what is it with guys and that movie, my old boyfriend wouldn't shut up about it."
I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart
Monty Python, Blazing Saddles and Airplane are probably my biggest go to movie quote films.
Ian
Host of the Post-Avant Jazzcore Happy Hour on progrock.com
https://podcasts.progrock.com/post-a...re-happy-hour/
Gordon Haskell - "You've got to keep the groove in your head and play a load of bollocks instead"
I blame Wynton, what was the question?
There are only 10 types of people in the World, those who understand binary and those that don't.
Posting Permissions
Bookmarks