What Is The Last Film You Watched? (Newer Films)

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Guardians 2 was fantastic.  Does that mean I’ll like this one?  Does it have the beating heart at the center that GOTG2 has?

[Fancyarcher 350]

The Meyerowitz Stories - I'm not sure I consider it one of Bambauch's best, but it serves a good companion piece to The Squid and The Whale, and I really liked it. The cast is really all superb, but Sandler shows he does some real talent as an actor, as he's really outstanding, and it's nice to see him in another worthwhile film again. It was overall solid. - 8 / 10

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Elizabeth Marvel was just outstanding.  I decided hers is my favorite performance.

[Quintus 5,399]

I'm taking my kids to see Thor 3 next week. I've heard it's one of the broadestly well executed entertainments of the Marvels so far, and god knows there's been enough of the fuckers birthed into the world lately (derivative superhero movies; not kids) in which to hone the formula.

[Fancyarcher 350]

6 minutes ago, Disco Stu said:

Elizabeth Marvel was just outstanding.  I decided hers is my favorite performance.

 

It was hard to pick who the MVP was. Everyone was on top form. I also thought Grace Van Patten was good, she a young actress with a lot of promise. Hoffman was also fantastic, basically playing an asshole, of course. 

 

I also enjoyed Newman's score. It was a repeating piano only played in selected scenes, but it worked, and fit the film well.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

I agree with everything you say while liking it much more!  I honestly think it might be my favorite Baumbach film, but I need to watch it again.  Been thinking about it a lot since my first watch though.

[Fancyarcher 350]

I'm not sure if it's my favorite. I prefer The Squid and The Whale, and Frances Ha for now. but my opinion of it in that regard might rise upon rewatch. I certainly think it's a movie worth revisiting. There are so many interesting things going on in it.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

I own a lot of Baumbach on blu and Netflix has a bunch of his films on it. Need to plan out a marathon to cover all the bases. 

 

Frances Ha is my favorite of the ones I’ve seen. Greta Gerwig is essential. 

[A24 4,337]

16 hours ago, crocodile said:

Thor: Ragnarok. Just when you thought Marvel couldn't squeeze in any more jokes into one film, wait till you see this one. Thing is, just like with Guardians 2, it doesn't work. For some reason, it felt like 3 hours long as well, it's paced so poorly. Felt like 2 or 3 different movies. Some good ingredients here and there but not much else. It runs mostly on jokes so you don't really care about what's happening.

 

What I actually liked is how it brings the Thor trilogy to a close. Some of the plot lines are nicely resolved. That would be it. 

 

The score makes very little impression, aside from brief quotes from Doyle and Tyler.

 

My cinema companions loved it though because it was "funny". So what do I know...

 

Karol

 

One youtube reviewer said it's more like Guardians Of The Galaxy but  Guardians is lowbrow comedy while the humor in Thor is highbrow. Is she speaking the truth?

[crocodile 8,017]

1 hour ago, Alexcremers said:

 

One youtube reviewer said it's more like Guardians Of The Galaxy but  Guardians is lowbrow comedy while the humor in Thor is highbrow. Is she speaking the truth?

I don't think there was anything highbrow about Thor.

 

Karol

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Nor should it be.  MCU is aiming for the cheap seats.

[KK 3,307]

I'm curious about the Thor movie. But if its more like GotG 2, then you might have to count me out.

[crocodile 8,017]

9 minutes ago, KK said:

I'm curious about the Thor movie. But if its more like GotG 2, then you might have to count me out.

Think it might be even more extreme. I felt really detached from the whole thing as there is no tension or drama in it. It's joke following a joke. And I mean it pretty literally.

 

Karol

[KK 3,307]

Good Lord, sounds insufferable.

 

What would you say about the visuals croc? There were some promising bits in the trailers.

[crocodile 8,017]

I don't the film looked good at all. And a lot of the CGI looked pretty bad as well. Definitely inferior to either GOTG films.

 

The score didn't make much of an impression either. He quotes Doyle's themes in one cue and he also quotes AOU Natasha/Banner theme lullaby theme by Tyler. But the only thing that really stands out is the song from the trailer which appears twice.

 

Karol

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Waititi has stated many times that he made this movie as a straight up comedy.

[crocodile 8,017]

Well, whatever he did didn't work for me all that well.

 

Karol

[JoeinAR 1,949]

19 hours ago, Disco Stu said:

Guardians 2 was fantastic.  Does that mean I’ll like this one?  Does it have the beating heart at the center that GOTG2 has?

Worst film of the summer. I wanted to walk out.

[Disco Stu 15,495]

I walked out of Alien Covenant

[JoeinAR 1,949]

I should have. Ridley Scott is like SS, mediocre and I think Im being kind.

[Romão 2,274]

I really really enjoyed Waititi's previous movies, and Thor also seems to have Goldblum in full Goldblum mode, but your review has put me off a bit from seeing this thing

[Koray Savas 2,251]

It’s Karol. He hates everything. A shell of his former self!

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

5 hours ago, Disco Stu said:

I walked out of Alien Covenant

 

I was tempted to walk out of Independence Day Resurgence, but I paid $25 for that ticket, so I was hoping it'd get better. It didn't.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

$25 for one ticket?!

[publicist 4,643]

 

Adapted from a graphic novel in which Stalin’s sudden death in 1953 serves as a catalyst for action, Armando 'Thick of It/Veep' Iannucci's second cinema outing is more bleak than sarcastically funny, but an ensemble piece all the same. The somewhat curious mixture of (assumed) broad laughs and severe crimes against humanity is made bearable by an ace cast (Jason Isaac's cocky Red Army general surely is spin-off material) but you need a certain knowledge of historical detail and the nature of totalitary regimes to appreciate some of the finer points made.

 

But then, the neurotical handwringing of top party members that are about to cancel each other out in the wake of the dictator's death are not that exotic to figure out, it's more the nagging question what the hell Iannucci really is after. The grisly detail of the ensuing bloodshed just confirms what we know about brutal regimes, communist or otherwise, while the absurd contortions of a committee of powerhungry old fools is easily translatable even into american politics (sans the open killings, mostly anyway). 

 

What should have been an absurd ballet or a waltz (in the hands of Lubitsch or Wilder such material probably would have been handled more feathery) gets indeed very heavy in Iannucci's hands - complete with Shostakovich-ian darkness on the soundtrack and big production values - and at the end, when matter-of-factly the fate of all involved soviet cadres is brought to our attention, you ask yourself if 'The Thick of It', 'Veep' or even 'House of Cards' weren't better vehicles to satirically mourn the loss of faith in traditional leaders and a stable system. Also, the succession of scenes isn't really handled cinematically sound: what works in a 30-minute weekly series just doesn't cut it blown up to feature length. The ever-repeating situation that a varying number of main characters are assembled in a room arguing gets old by the hourmark. You start yearning for a differing subplot to counter those shenanigans. Still, a shining cast of frumpy looking men and women sees you through with Iannucci's biting put downs being entertaining as always. Mildly recommended.

[Jay 37,364]

The guy on the far left looks like Orlando Bloom

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Werent they all on the far left in Stalin's day?

[A24 4,337]

18 hours ago, JoeinAR said:

Ridley Scott is like SS, mediocre and I think Im being kind.

 

[crocodile 8,017]

17 hours ago, Koray Savas said:

It’s Karol. He hates everything. A shell of his former self!

Hey, that's mean.

 

Karol

[JoeinAR 1,949]

but you didnt dispute what Koray said

[Fancyarcher 350]

Battle of The Sexes - Really dug this. Good performances, and the overall vibe, tone, and the way in the "true story" was told, I really liked. Basically it was a good movie. - 8 / 10

[crocodile 8,017]

23 hours ago, JoeinAR said:

but you didnt dispute what Koray said

I am a bit of a miserable bastard sometimes, that's true. But that doesn't change the fact this story in this film is really poorly told. I don't even know why Hulk is even in it. And that goesfor some other characters as well. And that entire second act with gladiators and Jeff Goldblum has no impact of what is the actual story is. You could cut out most of it and it would have had very little impact on anything. It's not unwatchable or horrible. Just really sloppy.

 

Karol

[Disco Stu 15,495]

56 minutes ago, Fancyarcher said:

Battle of The Sexes - Really dug this. Good performances, and the overall vibe, tone, and the way in the "true story" was told, I really liked. Basically it was a good movie. - 8 / 10

 

I really wanna see it!!  The closest theater showing it is 90 minutes away though.  Ah well.  Waiting on a rental.

[Fancyarcher 350]

39 minutes ago, Disco Stu said:

 

I really wanna see it!!  The closest theater showing it is 90 minutes away though.  Ah well.  Waiting on a rental.

 

Probably for the best. It's fine on the big screen, but it's not exactly something that screams "theater experience". I was just lucky enough that I get to see movies at my local cinema for free because I review them. Still, it's worth at least a watch. The look of the movie is really solid, and Britell's score fits the movie well. Plus it's not every day a movie about tennis keeps me engaged almost all the way through.  

[Quintus 5,399]

8 hours ago, crocodile said:

I am a bit of a miserable bastard sometimes, that's true. But that doesn't change the fact this story in this film is really poorly told. I don't even know why Hulk is even in it. And that goesfor some other characters as well. And that entire second act with gladiators and Jeff Goldblum has no impact of what is the actual story is. You could cut out most of it and it would have had very little impact on anything. It's not unwatchable or horrible. Just really sloppy.

 

Karol

 

You've established yourself as the indisputable authority on all things Superheroes here, Croc, so it makes sense that the formulas and mechanisms will stand out to you and that you would be more sensitive to imperfections and outright problems more than most (like a long time Trekkie trying to get along with Discovery), but I still quite fancy Thor 3 myself, as I did enjoy the original and I've heard good things elsewhere. I haven't seen the second film though. Is it necessary? 

[crocodile 8,017]

31 minutes ago, Quintus said:

 

You've established yourself as the indisputable authority on all things Superheroes here, Croc, so it makes sense that the formulas and mechanisms will stand out to you and that you would be more sensitive to imperfections and outright problems more than most (like a long time Trekkie trying to get along with Discovery), but I still quite fancy Thor 3 myself, as I did enjoy the original and I've heard good things elsewhere. I haven't seen the second film though. Is it necessary? 

I would say yeah. The three films form a trilogy of sorts when it comes to Thor, Loki and Odin. It's on Netflix, I believe.

 

I liked the first one too. It's an average story but well told.

 

Karol

[Quintus 5,399]

I just liked the cheesy fantastical grandstanding between Odin and his little swines offspring

[BloodBoal 7,538]

[crocodile 8,017]

What I liked about the film, however, is how it completes Asgard family storyline. This is the only part of the film that feels like Waititi managed find a way to form some sort of coherent whole and actually bring in more mythology into it as well. Not in a literal sense but still.

 

Karol

[Quintus 5,399]

What's wrong with regarding these sorts of movies as comedies anyway? 

[crocodile 8,017]

7 minutes ago, Quintus said:

What's wrong with regarding these sorts of movies as comedies anyway? 

It's not the idea of comedy that bothers me. Thor films are so ridiculous that it would been pointless to make them serious. But there's something that says "you are trying bit too hard here". And in the case of this film it feels like the humour actually sometimes hurts the story. Most of it on its own is funny but there's something about the whole film that doesn't quite work for me. And that has something to do with relentlessness of banter, choppiness of the story and overall poor pacing. I really thought to myself this film is way too long. Probably because its second act, as we mentioned before, doesn't really advance the main plot in any way.

 

Karol

[Quintus 5,399]

Do a lot of the jokes land though? There's nothing worse than a succession of one-liners which fall flat. 

[Hurmm 91]

I enjoyed Thor: Ragnarok. A pretty good time at the movies for me. 

 

Guardians of the Galaxy 2 was more crammed full with jokes though, this one is a little tamer in that aspect. I enjoy it less as 'proper' movie as more as an outright irreverent and inconsequential comedy. Pacing is bad (especially in the first hour) and the plot doesn't make a lick of sense to me (especially the whole part on the Star Wars-ish planet), but I couldn't care less and it didn't hurt my enjoyment. 

 

I only very recently found out the same director made What We Do in the Shadows... That's one of my favourite comedies in the last few years. This reminds me, I need to watch Hunt for the Wilderpeople. 

7 minutes ago, Quintus said:

Do a lot of the jokes land though? There's nothing worse than a succession of one-liners which fall flat. 

 

Not all of them land. Some fall quite flat to be honest. Certainly a stretch away from the quality seen in What We Do in the Shadows. But still I found it a lot more enjoyable than say, Spiderman Homecoming, which felt more like a proper movie (whatever that means) and yet mass-produced and a snoozefest. 

[BloodBoal 7,538]

4 hours ago, Quintus said:

What's wrong with regarding these sorts of movies as comedies anyway? 

 

The problem is not so much them being made as comedies, the problem has more to do with humour getting in the way of the story and the emotional/serious moments time and time again. After a while, all I keep thinking is: "OK, we got it: you're trying to create an emotional bit, but we know it's going to end with a joke, so what's the point?". They keep on using the same trick over and over again and seems to be thinking they're being clever each time they're doing it, as if it was the first time they were doing it (when a serious moment actually doesn't end with a joke, it comes as a relief!).

It's hard to care for anything when nothing matters.

 

4 hours ago, crocodile said:

It's not the idea of comedy that bothers me. Thor films are so ridiculous that it would been pointless to make them serious. But there's something that says "you are trying bit too hard here". And in the case of this film it feels like the humour actually sometimes hurts the story. Most of it on its own is funny but there's something about the whole film that doesn't quite work for me. And that has something to do with relentlessness of banter, choppiness of the story and overall poor pacing. I really thought to myself this film is way too long.

 

Yep.

 

4 hours ago, Quintus said:

Do a lot of the jokes land though? There's nothing worse than a succession of one-liners which fall flat. 

 

Some do, some don't. That's the problem with throwing joke after joke after joke: you're diluting the humourous impact because of the sheer quantity (and of course, because some of them simply are not particularly good).

 

Trust me, I know all about that!

 

4 hours ago, Hurmm said:

I only very recently found out the same director made What We Do in the Shadows... That's one of my favourite comedies in the last few years.

 

[Brónach 1,302]

I haven't seen it, but they should reverse the undercutting drama with jokes, probably. It doesn't feel like you don't trust your own drama that way.

[Nick1Ø66 4,718]

13 hours ago, Disco Stu said:

 

The closest theater showing it is 90 minutes away though.

 

Where do you live mate?

[Marian Schedenig 8,193]

Finally got around to watching Blade Runner 2049 yesterday.

 

Now I've watched the original several times (in various cuts) and respect it a lot, but have never fully been able to appreciate it. I'm floored by the opening atmosphere - the visuals, sounds/music. But somewhere along the way it loses me, and I have to struggle to stay awake and concentrate. It never stops looking great, but the slow plotting is taxing, and the final confrontation also feels somewhat "empty" for its length. Perhaps I've just never watched it at the right time, or in the right frame of mind. Also, I've never been a big fan of the score, musically. It supports the film well with textures, but as pure listening, there are numerous other Vangelis albums I'd rather play.

 

So it might strike some as sacrilegious when I say that I fully enjoyed the sequel. The plotting is still slow, but it never lost my attention. The story more actively gives you stuff to ponder, without becoming less enigmatic in the process. As a result, I found it more interesting, or dare I say, "deeper". The score supports the film in a similar way as Vangelis' original does, and it seems at least as uninteresting for standalone listening.

 

The way the scifi technology is depicted struck me as very convincing. I kept thinking about the praised heaped on Minority Report for its plausible portrayal of future technology, but I found BR2049 much more plausible.

 

And... can this please finally win Deakins his long deserved Oscar? It wouldn't even be a case of "he should have gotten one long ago, this is good enough to finally present it to him" - the film looks absolutely amazing. The best designs and cinematography I've seen in a long time.

[A24 4,337]

15 hours ago, Fancyarcher said:

Battle of The Sexes - Really dug this. Good performances, and the overall vibe, tone, and the way in the "true story" was told, I really liked. Basically it was a good movie. - 8 / 10

 

I saw this one a few months ago:

 

[Fancyarcher 350]

Haven't seen that documentary, I'm sure the fictional film isn't as fascinating or as truthful as it, but I would probably enjoy it a bit more. It's an interesting story to actually read about too. 

[Sweeping Strings 2,363]

Thor : Ragnarok - the usual Marvel spectacle is present and correct, but played more for laughs than is the norm with these movies. Enjoyed this more than The Dark World (and had more fun with it than both Doctor Strange and Guardians 2).  
  

The Death Of Stalin - dark (naturally), at times hilarious satire of the squabbling for power after the titular tyrant's bucket-kicking. Armando Iannucci excels at sweary, politically-charged bickering and scheming amongst the arrogant and incompetent (The Thick Of It, In The Loop, Veep), and it's more of the same here.