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What is the Last Film You Watched? - Part II


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I agree. I had a good time...there isn´t much more to it. And every scene with Davy Jones is worth checking.

He's become one of my absolute favorite villains in recent years. I think it's quite impressive that the last line of the film made the film so much better. That one line made you leave the theater with a smile, as well as look forward to the third film (if you weren't already).

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It reminds me of Revenge of the Sith.

Huh? Does RoTS have a good ending?

Revenge of the Sith is a good film.

Ted

Kind of...it was good because of the story Lucas came up with 20+ years ago, John Williams, and Ian McDiarmid. It was bad, concidering what it could have been.

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The whole plot from the prequel trilogy is a material for a good movie, but neither of them is good really. Lucas should hire a decent writer and keep out of actual directing. He has some really good ideas, but the whole thing just can't benefit from it. The score makes it better than it actually is. The movie isn't dramatic, it's melodramatic.

Karol

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In fact, when it comes to quality, Revenge of the Sith is not far off from Star Wars and neither is the Phantom Menace. As good as the original film was, I think it's worshiped a bit too much. I suppose if one sees it as one of the greatest piece of cinema ever created, I can see why the new films are such huge dropoffs. It's hard to see Star Wars films as just films since not only is there a nostalgia factor for the old ones, but it's cultural impact is monumental to say the least. I try to see all six films as precisely that: films. Trying to level the playing field, I don't think Episodes I or III or very far off from VI and (to some extent) IV. Attack of the Clones was defintely the low point of the series, but still ambitious enough to respect on some level, and The Empire Strikes Back is the crowned jewel. That film is the only one of the six I would consider to be one of the greatest pieces of cinema. Though in terms of influence, Star Wars is near the top and is definitely exemplary in terms of quality also, just not near the pinnacle of Empire.

Ted

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The Empire Strikes Back is the only Star Wars that I really like. As I stated earlier, I don't have problems with the overall plot of the prequels. In fact, I think it is more interesting than the story from the original trilogy. Not more powerful, but more original overall.

The acting and dialogues in the prequels both suck though. You can't possibly argue with that. And this is what ultimately sells the movie.

Karol

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In fact, when it comes to quality, Revenge of the Sith is not far off from Star Wars and neither is the Phantom Menace. As good as the original film was, I think it's worshiped a bit too much. I suppose if one sees it as one of the greatest piece of cinema ever created, I can see why the new films are such huge dropoffs. It's hard to see Star Wars films as just films since not only is there a nostalgia factor for the old ones, but it's cultural impact is monumental to say the least. I try to see all six films as precisely that: films. Trying to level the playing field, I don't think Episodes I or III or very far off from VI and (to some extent) IV. Attack of the Clones was defintely the low point of the series, but still ambitious enough to respect on some level, and The Empire Strikes Back is the crowned jewel. That film is the only one of the six I would consider to be one of the greatest pieces of cinema. Though in terms of influence, Star Wars is near the top and is definitely exemplary in terms of quality also, just not near the pinnacle of Empire.

The movie had a terrible script (you mustn't confuse the good story with the bad scripting), stiff acting, uninspired effects, bad makeup, bad editing, and many, many, many bad directorial choices. It has rather shoddy production value. Star Wars and ESB may not be masterpieces, but they are far, far, far superior movies.

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The acting and dialogue are overstated and perfunctory in all of the films, Empire the least. I hate to side with George on this one, but they really aren't the point. The acting and dialogue in silent films are often exaggerated and simplistic also, but sometimes great visual storytelling arises from the movement of images and the construction of the narrative. In different films, this is built with dialogue and acting. Not the Star Wars films.

Ted

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The acting and dialogue are overstated and perfunctory in all of the films, Empire the least. I hate to side with George on this one, but they really aren't the point. The acting and dialogue in silent films are often exaggerated and simplistic also, but sometimes great visual storytelling arises from the movement of images and the construction of the narrative. In different films, this is built with dialogue and acting. Not the Star Wars films.

RoTS is not a great visual film. It has one sequnece that is great in every way from begining to end, and that is the climactic duel. Otherwise, it is not great storytelling, visually or any other way.

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RoTS is not a great visual film. It has one sequnece that is great in every way from begining to end, and that is the climactic duel. Otherwise, it is not great storytelling, visually or any other way.

I didn't like the climactic duel at all. I just thought it was boring and unexciting. It was just two guys doing a super-speed lightsaber fight, none of them coming close to hitting the other. And it just went on, and on, and on, and on... :)

When the duel started, I had no feelings towards these characters at all - I just didn't care how the duel turned out. And the problem that plagued the prequels was never more obvious - we all knew exactly what was going to happen, because we've seen the original films - and guess what!? Vader, Yoda, Obi-Wan and Anakin are all going to survive!

The CGI was good, but badly applied. The actors didn't look like they knew where they were (I wonder why...), and there were so many big epic shots, that after I while I just didn't care.

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Well, maybe not the duel itself, but the only scene in the entire piece that felt right was the end of that duel. Obi-Wan saying Anakin was the chosen one was the one time in the movie where I felt the emotion was right and convincing, and the only time this "space opera" felt sufficiently operatic.

The Phantom Menace, for all it's faults, felt like one coherent movie, and had a certain feel about it. I guess going digital messed Lucas up for good. He was never a great director, but with the last two films he became a positively bad one.

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The acting and dialogue are overstated and perfunctory in all of the films, Empire the least. I hate to side with George on this one, but they really aren't the point. The acting and dialogue in silent films are often exaggerated and simplistic also, but sometimes great visual storytelling arises from the movement of images and the construction of the narrative. In different films, this is built with dialogue and acting. Not the Star Wars films.

RoTS is not a great visual film. It has one sequnece that is great in every way from begining to end, and that is the climactic duel. Otherwise, it is not great storytelling, visually or any other way.

I never said it was great. I said it was good. I think the positive elements outweigh the flaws, and there are certainly flaws. I'm not going to disagree with that. Some editing is awkward, but most of those problems were flaunted inClones. Regading the visuals, I think Sith is incredibly well-executed, and there were some very good visual sequences outside the duel. It also had a better sense of environment and felt more in the Star Wars universe this time around. There were things that didn't work, such is usually the case when you swing for the fences, but overall I found th film engaging on a visual and narrative level and in spite of its flaws, the film picked up enough momentum in the last act to overcome many of them. I have observed that many viewers who enjoyed the Star Wars films for what they were found Sith very enjoyable, whereas most of the viewers who were offended were on either extreme of Star Wars, too much admiration or too little, based on the previous five films.

Ted

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I agree with those said the overall plot for the Prequels is pretty fantastic and could've been more sucessfully brought to fruition by a more a competent screewriter. But I still admire Lucas's stubborness in keeping is aproach to these movies. And ROTS was a very very enjoyable movie for me, and at times quite emotional.

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It reminds me of Revenge of the Sith.

Huh? Does RoTS have a good ending?

In my opinion it does. Anakin's defeat at the end of the duel really pulled on my heartstrings, and made me think for the briefest of moments that George had finally regained his touch. Then I remembered the rest of the film. :wave:

I liked Sith, but I have to admit that Menace was the better film.

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Saw The Holiday as a date movie. Good rom-com, elevated by terrific performances. Loved Black's film composer character, it was weird and great to hear JW's name mentioned by Kate Winslet. And the scenes with him humming all these themes in the viedo store...wonderful to see such a thing.

Anyway, I totally loved the chracters, and lost all sense of time. The acting was really splendid. It's the most predictable plot in the world- but I still loved the character, was interested in them, and hoped it would work out in the end (which, of course, it does, complete with a girl on her way to the airport jumping out of the cab and running back to her lover).

And I liked the score itself a great deal as well. Melodic, pleasant, with some surprising piano solos.

Taken in the right mind-set, ***/****.

Also decided to start watching my Bond films again.

Dr. No. Connery is fantastic in it, as usual, but I still say it the weakest Connery Bond film. Pacing is funny, some of the humor is too British (and not in a good way), and the film does not build up to the climax very well. But it has terrific sets, and Wiseman is great as Dr. No, even though the chracter is given very little to do. The film is really only worth it for Connery. **1/2 out of ****. Can't wait for From Russia With Love.

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With the exception of Jar Jar and some the juvenile humor, TPM is the only one that actually feels like a Star Wars film. But it's dragged down by poor dialogue.

AOTC is a muddled mess that doesn't add anything to the plot line. Anakin is portrayed as some obesessed stalker and I really never felt Padme loved him. The final battle is boring, Obi Wan is too easily dispatched by Dooku. Poor Dialogue, missed opportunities are everywhere in this film.

ROTS has it's moments, in fact I actually rate ROTS above ROTJ, but that's not saying much. Obi Wan's defeat of Anakin and speech to him is one of the hi-lights but sadly it's obvious they are on a stage surrounded with CGI.

And outside of the directing that is another main problem, Star Wars, TESB and even Return Of The Jedi had actual sets that were built with very little blue screen effects and they also had quite a bit of location shooting so it actually felt like they were on a real planet instead of a stage surrounded by blue screens.

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IF ANYONE ACTUALLY READS THIS WHOLE POST I CONGRATULATE YOU ON YOUR INSANITY.

Being perhaps the biggest Star Wars fan here and a self proclaimed obsessed fanboy (I've got a Yoda and R2-D2 figure adorning my monitor on either side :wave: - I'm also coincidentally listening to A New Hope as I type), I love the saga as a whole more than any other body of cinematic work. But I'm not going to jump in and say how all you guys are idiots and start praising Lucas as a god or anything.

I like Star Wars because it's Star Wars. I grew up watching the original films and playing with all the toys. I never remember NOT knowing the plot. Vader was always Luke's father, and Leia was always Luke's sister. I guess that kills part of the magic of the originals for me. But also adds to it in a way I think. The films you grow up with seem to always have a special place with you, even if it wouldn't be as appealing if you were to see it today for the first time. Not to mention I'm not a serious film critic, so things like bad acting and poor CGI don't really bother me. Or rather I just don't recognize it very well - which is good in my opinion because I can moreover enjoy the film. I take what I can from it and laugh at the rest 'cause there's nothing I can do about it anyway.

Return of the Jedi was probably my favorite film growing up. Of the three originals it was the one I watched the most, and I'm sure the ewoks played no small part in that. I even remember thinking that the Vader/Luke duel scenes were boring - whereas now they're my favorite. I'll never argue that it was the best made, but it is perhaps my favorite SW film.

I was completely stoked for The Phantom Menace. It was my first new SW film and I absolutely loved it. I saw it some 4 or 5 times in the theater. I didn't really understand the plot (other than Jedi good and Trade Federation bad) but that didn't really matter. I was so captivated by everything else. Things like seeing TWO good Jedi attacking the bad guys and how Qui-Gon just stuck his lightsaber right into the bridge door to cut a hole in it. That kind of stuff just geeked me out. I didn't mind Jar Jar at all (although now I have to admit that his antics during the end battle are especially lame - but I keep in mind that this IS a kid's movie). Even at the time, however, I remember being disappointed that the attack on the Droid Control Ship wasn't near as good as any of the Death Star assaults. I saw it again not too long ago and I have to admit also it was a bit boring (but the time I watched it before that wasn't).

Attack of the Clones was a mixed bag. I expected an amazingly fun experience similar to TPM, and it just wasn't the same (I only saw it once in theaters). Maybe it was because I was older. Maybe my expectations were way too high (I read every spoiler I could find before seeing it - I regret that). I know Across the Stars had a lot to do with it. I love that theme now, but at the time it's almost like it (along with the whole love story) was too emotionally 'weird' for me. It's hard to describe. It just didn't seem like Star Wars.

It did/does have a lot of great moments for me though; Obi-Wan diving out the window after the assassin droid was too cool for words; the scene where he overlooks the clone army while the TF march plays; Anakin on the swoop bike with the Duel of the Fates cameo was thrilling as well as the Imperal March debut at the end; and of course all of the action was great - seeing an army of Jedi and all that. The Dooku duels were disappointingly short, but Yoda-Fu (as it's been called) was still awesome. How many people have wanted to see Yoda with a lightsaber since ESB (or at least wondered why he didn't have one)? One of my favorite scenes now is when Yoda shows up with the clones. Specifically when the remaining Jedi help each other onto the gunships by pulling them on board and deflecting blaster bolts so they can get on safely. I think that show of camaraderie is very cool.

And now Revenge of the Sith. Definitely my favorite of the prequels. I really looked forward to this one last year. I generally avoided spoilers, but I did run into some. I hung on every new commercial and video. I listened to the soundtrack several times before seeing it - something I kind of regret. I have to say it was an amazing experience, but not in the same sense as TPM. TPM was just pure fun. ROTS was indeed fun, but a lot more emotionally engaging and of course very tragic. It was an intense roll coaster. Perhaps the most I've ever been engaged by a movie and cared about the characters. I was misty eyed and almost cried when I saw baby Luke being delivered to Beru (here's the awesome hero who's going to redeem his father and set everything right). I was just a bit disappointed because it didn't fulfill ALL my fanboy dreams, being the 'last' SW movie and everything (most of which I realize now were unreasonable).

Some say it detracted from or made it boring knowing what was going to happen. For me, that's yes and no. In some cases it was near torture because I so badly wanted things to turn out differently. Even though I knew Anakin's fate, I still clung to any sign of goodness in him hoping beyond hope against the inevitable. I thought Anakin was much cooler in Sith. I was nearly screaming when he ran out of the Jedi Temple after Mace (Noooooo!!! Don't do it!). I wonder how it would have changed things not knowing the outcome. Seeing the saga chronologically for the first time would certainly be an experience. I should think 1-3 would be most benefited, while the whole father/son/brother/sister revelations would seemingly be ruined for 4-6 (as well as this insane little green creature being the Jedi master Luke is supposed to find).

Well, if you made it this far then thanks for caring enough to read this ridiculous personal therapy session. I'm writing this for myself if no one else. Like I said before, I like Star Wars because it's Star Wars; the myth, adventure, action, the Force, Jedi, lightsabers and the best soundtrack ever. I can't say I've ever liked SW for the acting. No doubt the prequels missed the mark on a lot of things considering what could have been (and I'll even admit to some extant with Return of the Jedi). But I also feel they really got it right on a lot things as well, and I'm more than willing to overlook the saga's shortcomings and enjoy an amazing experience unlike anything else. And for that I have a lot of respect and admiration for George Lucas.

Once again, thanks for reading my insane ramblings. And now I've got to say it...

May the Force be with you.

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The digital medium has unfortunately allowed Lucas' penchant for perfectionism to eat away at him. His obsessiveness in controlling every detail of the movie was really his unravelling in some ways; as the movie itself suffered from way too much tweaking. Had he actually been set on making movies, using movie sets, not throwing away the audio from the actual recordings of dialogue when they were shooting, and not editing shots a million times because, "hey, we can digitally alter it." Those are the flaws of the prequels. They are most evident in Attack of the Clones, in which he tries to accomplish so much in the story, but he simply doesn't execute it with the attention to real movie details as the material deserved. I liked some aspects of the film - the all ocean planet, the chase in courscant, but seeing all of that stuff executed so well only makes one yearn for the rest of it to come together in the same way. Revenge of the Sith was a definite improvement here, but it still displays much of the same inefficiences on Lucas' part. He got more right though and was able to better capture the world that the story is set in, thus really being able to bridge the story to the next film. Some scenes of this film are every bit as good as anything from the original films; you almost see the "old" Lucas popping through in such instances. And it's inspiring. THe visuals, the smaller moments, I mean were downright sublime at times, but, once again, it's hard not to wish he had really focused on the film in a "movie" kind of way and was intent on making a good movie; forget the overally story, just make a good film in itself with compelling characters. The Phantom Menace had less of these flaws and other than Jar Jar, who was very annoying, it really captured the spirit of Star Wars quite well, despite the more bloated screenplay, which echoed Star Wars but shoved in some Return of the Jedi details for some reason. Despite all of the digital gimmickry, I still felt Lucas was able to make a good movie; the dialogue wasn't recorded in such a stale manner, the actors actually react to each other (sometimes) and the movie was editd much more crisply than the next two. That's my thoughts on the prequels.

Ted

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HEY I WATCHED A MOVIE OTHER THAN STAR WARS AND WILL NOW TALK ABOUT IT

Usual Suspects

Still one of the best ensemble pieces but I was wondering how much more awesome it would have been if Pacino had accepted the offer to play the Detective (apparently this is the decision he's regretted most). Also another enjoyable score by Ottman.

Now I'm working my way through LA Confidential again

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I love discussing films other than Star Wars. I just had something new to add to the discussion. Now, if you want to talk about tedious films, The Usual Suspets is a great example. I have always failed to see its greatness. LA Confidential, however, is an outstanding film, one of the best of the 90's.

Ted

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I watched Love Actually. And now my brain bleeds.

Seriously, I don't believe I've ever been had such an urge to yell at the screen, "THIS IS NOT REAL!". It'll take months of good movie-watching to make up for this stereotype-fest. Actually, the stereotypes were the best part of the film - the acting was decent, too. But for the love of God, what is with that script? Who thought they'd get away with Hugh Grant being Prime Minister and politically fighting the President of the Freakin' United States over a freakin' assistant?

The rock star part was nice. As for everything else, this movie actually sucks.

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I watched a hungarian dark comedy - "Kontroll". It tells the story of ticket-inspectors in budapestian underground. It is very funny movie, sort of "Trainspotting" minus 'drugs' + 'little bit of David Lynch'.

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I love discussing films other than Star Wars. I just had something new to add to the discussion. Now, if you want to talk about tedious films, The Usual Suspets is a great example. I have always failed to see its greatness. LA Confidential, however, is an outstanding film, one of the best of the 90's.

Ted

We are in disagreement.

Rabbit--who considers Suspects to be one of the best crafted films ever

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[i have always failed to see its greatness. LA Confidential, however, is an outstanding film, one of the best of the 90's.

It's a flawless, joyous, gripping, brilliant piece of film making art.

I like the film were Kate and Leo are on the boat that breaks in two, but it's not nearly as good as Confidential.....

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watched The Prestige again for a term paper. Still as gripping and excellent as the first time and even moreso now that I know what to look for and can appreciate how much care went into the film. One of the greats of the year, and will probably be overlooked.

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[i have always failed to see its greatness. LA Confidential, however, is an outstanding film, one of the best of the 90's.

It's a flawless, joyous, gripping, brilliant piece of film making art.

Indeed. And to think what Curtis Hanson has been making since.

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Saw. This ending had a poor movie around it. Weak characters with little or cliched motivation. A fairly typical plot with an eerie Sevenesqe parallel's (I.E. rip off's). Infact the whole movie seemed like a prologue and instead of the end credits the main titles should have started. The film presents a serial killer preaching about morals and ethics through his elaborate traps, trying to get people to appreciate life more. Yet, NONE of this comes through in the film. It takes a back seat to the MTV flash editing and gore. The biggest question this left me with was "Will Saw II be yet another pointless trap or will it actually try and do something intelligent with itself?" Still, the ending is quite effective and if the film didn't try so hard to take itself seriously then maybe I'd be more willing to forgive it. But alas it doesn't, so I'm not. However, I'll still give it an extra nod for the ending, anyway. 2 out of 5.

Justin

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Rented Shyamalan's Lady in The Water (it didn't get a theatrical release). While I didn't hate it, I did not particularly like it either. Far too silly. Some sections of it I liked, like the search for the right poeple, but the film left me cold, and it had some things that were too silly to be believed. Bob Balaban's last scene might be good in a nother movie (in fact, it was good in another movie- Scream), but in this film it was one big WTF?

No acting was impressive, no one seemed to really be their character (not that the chracters had any depth). I guess Chris Doyle's cinematography was good, but nothing I amazing. I think Shyamalan is crazy to go looking anywhere else after already working with the great Roger Deakins.

Score was good, but like everything else, didn't seem nearly as great as Howard's other scores for Shyamalan. There were several great ideas in there, but none of them were integrated with any subtelty.....I hated hearing the uplifting theme over the main titles, in it's full glory. I don't know what happened to Howard,who has shown such restraint with thematic development in the past, over here blowing his whole load at the very begining. Still, beautiful theme, I like the minimalistic stuff....but it's no Unbreakable, The Village or Signs, and a few minutes of it go a long way. It's terrific music, but it's not a particularly great score.

**/**** for the whole film.

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I think that Shyamalan finally got what was coming to him. I like his visual style and I think that he's a good storyteller, but his conceited nature screwed him over in Lady. Its strange to think that Disney was really right about it all along....

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Continuing with Bond- From Russia With Love. It's too bad my favorite Bond film comes so soon. Doesn't leave all that much to look forward to.

Marvelous film. In my eyes, it is the perfect Bond movie. Exotic locals- but not too much, and you really get a feel off of Istanbul. Beautiful girls- Daniela Bianchi is quite pretty, and gives a rather good performance, as well. Great villians- a home-run on the macro, as well as the micro. We get the iconic image of Blofeld with his cat, and we get no less than 3 interesting henchmen. Robert Shaw as Red Grant is probably the best henchman in the series (yes, even more than Oddjobb). He is smart, he is articulate, and while he is strong, he is no blunt object. And while his laying out the big picture for Bond instead of killing him is a classic "flaw" (the "" are because it is still a Bond film), he does it so well, and we believe that this generally quiet man relishes the chance to lay out his brilliance to Bond. Rosa Klebb is also great, and you've got the character of Kronstein in there thrown in for good measure.

Connery is at top form here, but, well, he always is. Easily the most likable performance in the film is by Pedro Armendariz, as Karim-Bey. He is just wonderful, his death is the only character in a Bond film I ever felt the least bit saddened to have died.

The score is terrific, introducing us to the classic '007 theme', which supports the brutality of the Gypsy camp-site shoot-out, as well as the pure excitment of the taking of the Lektor scene in the Russian Embassy. Speaking of which, Bond/Grant fight in the train is probably the most convincing fight ever in a Bond film.

Just a pure class act all the way. Best Bond film ever, in my book. It's not a perfect film, so it only gets a ***1/2 out of ****, but it's as close as it gets (besides, often the "flaws" are a Bond staple).

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Minority Report

I hadn´t watched this in a while. Such and entertaining and engrossing movie. There a few plot holes, but they don´t detract from the overall experience. Fantastic performances all around (specially Morton and Sydow), and the score is one of Williams´most underated efforts. It enhances the movie so much using some very original aproaches. Also, there is a bunch of unreleased music in the first "rescue" scene, specially of that 7 note motif, which on the cd you can only hear on track 3, around the 2.31 mark. There are several unreleased renditions of the this motif in the movie (also, when pre crime chases Anderton on the alley).

Anyway, highly entertaining movie, full of visual and directorial flair and with an amazing score.

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I enjoy that film, but I can't watch it too often. The plot holes become too obvious. :)

Yesterday I watched The Untouchables... twice and then an episode of Mission: Impossible. :sigh:

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I enjoy that film, but I can't watch it too often. The plot holes become too obvious. :sigh:

There are not as many as you might think, but I think we've already argued about this. And seriously, don't catch yourself up on plot. It has very little to do with the story.

Ted

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