What is the last film you watched?

[Elmo Lewis 6]

Try "bored me to tears, that one did".

I've been devoted to my movie-watching lately, with titles such as:

Misery. Hadn't seen this one in years. For some reason, I thought that the fan-pressure-on-the-author theme wasn't really developed in this film, but it was all there. It was so much there, that my roommates actually couldn't help but joke about what we'd do to J.J. Abrams were he to show up in our house and left to our care. Bates was every bit as good as I remembered her, and I noticed how much James Caan did with the very, very little dialogue we are given. And I always love Marc Shaiman's score.

Death of Superman. Apparently, there's an animated feature based on the comic book - and apparently, it stars Anne Heche as Lois Lane and Adam Baldwin as Superman. This is actually not as bad as I thought it'd be - I bought it solely based on the fact that Superman was in it. There's a pretty funny cameo by Kevin Smith (right after Superman defeats a giant spider, Kevin Smith can be seen saying "laaame"), and the whole thing is much darker, as well as certainly gorier, than one would expect from a Superman tale. I think that, with a little good will, its virtues outnumbered its flaws.

Donnie Darko. Ouch, my little fragile head. It still hasn't sunk in completely, but so far, I think it's a very good movie, with a very interesting score (and song selection) and powerhouse peformances. Can't say that much about it until somebody explains to me what he hell was going on, but even not knowing it, it was a good experience. And yes, I do wish I'd been a little less stoned watching it. That movie requires a brain.

[JoeinAR 1,949]

I'm an absolute fan of Mr. Brooks. In the beginning I feared the worst (oh no, a thriller! There we go again!) but I suddenly loved it from the moment Kostner closes the curtains till the very end. I thought it was humorous in a darkish way. Ah well, it's probably a love it/hate it affair, depending on your personality.

Alex

every now and then the stars align, and you and I are in agreement, this is one of those times.

I wish it had performed well enough that the two sequels would be made.

[Morlock 11]

Try "bored me to tears, that one did".

No, I was actually mildly interested. But I also felt like throwing up.

[JoeinAR 1,949]

Try "bored me to tears, that one did".

No, I was actually mildly interested. But I also felt like throwing up.

I had my jacket off ready to run to the bathroom to puke, had my head buried in Dave's shoulder while everything was whirling. I just wanted it to be over, and for all the stupid characters to die. Thank goodness they all did.

If I should ever view it again I will take some dramamein

[Morlock 11]

Caught parts of Catch Me If You Can while someone else was watching it in the room...It's strange, what impressions one can get from a film by spordically tuning in. I've seen the film several times, but this time. I specifically noticed how superbly individual scenes from the film are structured, performed and shot. It all of a sudden seemed far classier than I thought it was before, and I'm a big fan of the film. There is fantastic craftsmanship at work. I also gained new appreciation for just how great the score is. I think I took the score for granted....it is marvelous. I even noticed an unreleased cue I never did before- a brief, very good cue for the scene that Tom Hanks breifs the police in the Miami airport.

[Hitch 57]

Iron Man - I didn't believe this man of steel could fly. What a lame-ass movie! Makes me totally disillusioned with the whole cinema possess now. Can we time warp back to 1989 please?

[John Crichton 4]

Cloverfield

A lot of the impact is lost after the first viewing, but it doesn't detract from the excellent visual effects and sound design for the budget they had. There are small nitpicks I have but they're gone just as fast as they come because of the great pacing. Director's commentary is a good listen and he says some nice things about Giacchino at the end.

I just bought this on DVD as well and am pleased to say it's holding up very well to multiple viewings. I think the performances are solid, the script is good and moves at a cracking pace, and the visual effects are amazing, combined with the 1st person perspective and it actually looks real. I still don't particularly like any of the characters, but I'll chalk that up as intentional. I'm looking forward to anything that the Abrams/Reeves/Goddard team has up their sleeve.

[Delorean90 42]

The Conversation

WARNING: INTENSE SPOILERS

This is the only Coppola film I've seen. Having bought the score, I saw this at the library on Saturday, picked it up and watched it yesterday. It's very interesting.

There is no doubt that technically this is a superb film. The cinematography, directing, and acting are all extremely well-done. However, I find it a bit unsatisfying. It did raise interesting questions about the matter of privacy (and I found the convention to be eye-widening stuff). There are interesting little things about it, and it seems that the overall arc of the film is (or would be) a man whose work has resulted in death, and who is now tortured by that, but has hidden it, and is given occasion to make things turn out differently. But there are some things I don't quite follow--in the hotel scene, my understanding is that Harry has checked into the room to try to prevent something bad from happening again, so why doesn't he pick the lock when he hears the confrontation happening? He's obviously disturbed, but he goes to the wall when he leaves the bathroom. The only reason I can come up with is in the dream sequence, when he says "I'm not afraid of death...but I am afraid of murder." Nonetheless, it seems that it would be easier to leave it alone than to just have your curiosity satisfied in the most horrible ways.

The ending is one that makes some sense at that point, but one that I don't find fully satisfying. It's a shame that the original ending wasn't fully finished. Does anyone know what it really was supposed to be? I know in the commentary Coppola said that the dream sequence when Harry talks to Ann was originally supposed to be really happening. How did they get from the shot that ends the movie to that point? For me, the second park scene is much more satisfying. He comes to terms with the fact that he doesn't like what he does, and he's tired of hiding from everyone. To be happy, you're going to have to open yourself up to people to some degree--that's the balance that is to be maintained. His finally opening up to someone--this person who is involved in a case that awakens his previous guilt--is much more edifying to me. With the ending that is in the finished film, it almost seems as though he came to his downfall because he got involved, but to put it in a better light, I would say that more likely he came to that place because he didn't get involved enough. He couldn't bring himself to act when it was necessary to prevent tragedy, and perhaps this, even more than anything else, was what pushed him off.

Aside from thematic reasons, there was so much left open, that it wasn't open in an appropriate way, for me. Moran was pretty apparently involved--remember it was Meredith who stole the tapes from Harry. On top of that, where does Harry go from that final shot? Sooner or later he's going to have to do something--move on, try to fix things, kill himself, or something. But as it is, nothing is really finished. There is too much left out for it to be a "satisfyingly unsatisfying" ending, if there is such a thing. I would love to know how it was originally intended to turn out.

I may be rambling here, but hopefully these made sense. I'd love to hear others thoughts.

[Morlock 11]

I don't remember the specifics of the ending, but I remember liking the film a lot. It's also got one of my favorite scores ever.

And you should really get youself some more Coppola, His 4 70's films are all great, IMO.

[A24 4,331]

Trois Couleurs: Blue: Not my cup of tea. Two more colors to go!

[Morlock 11]

I rented El Cid last week, but I never could make time for the three hours necessary to watch it, so I watched the first half this morning, I'll catch up on the second half and the special features tonight. So far- so good. At least the first half is one of the better epics I've seen. The score is, of course, marvelous. More thoughts later.

[Red 75]

The Assassination of Richard Nixon.

I liked it, but anything it did Taxi Driver did better.

[QMM 4]

Indiana Jones 4

Ok. A lot of minor things built up over the movie left me with a weird impression after watching it. Some of the dialogue was Indy, some wasn't. The villain didn't really seem to be a villain, some of the set pieces didn't really seem to matter as well as some of the characters. Music was a little disappointing as well. Maybe I'll think better of it with another viewing, but right now it feels separate from the original trilogy.

[indy4 155]

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull:

I'm too tired to give it an extensive review right now, but I loved it!!!

[A24 4,331]

Wow, Indy4 loves Indy 4! What a surprise!

[Neimoidian 14]

Trois Couleurs: Blue: Not my cup of tea. Two more colors to go!

I find it my favourite of the series and the movie made big impact on me, despite... or beacuse of its heavy subject. The music also plays an important role there. It clearly haunts the main character and force her finish the piece, which her husband started (or was it she?). Watching as the composition unfolds is really terrific.

Wow, Indy4 loves Indy 4! What a surprise!

Imagine what would have happened if he didn't like it!

[JoeinAR 1,949]

Indiana Jones 4

Ok. A lot of minor things built up over the movie left me with a weird impression after watching it. Some of the dialogue was Indy, some wasn't. The villain didn't really seem to be a villain, some of the set pieces didn't really seem to matter as well as some of the characters. Music was a little disappointing as well. Maybe I'll think better of it with another viewing, but right now it feels separate from the original trilogy.

thats because there was no original trilogy, just 3 separate films.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Try "bored me to tears, that one did".

No, I was actually mildly interested. But I also felt like throwing up.

I had my jacket off ready to run to the bathroom to puke, had my head buried in Dave's shoulder while everything was whirling. I just wanted it to be over, and for all the stupid characters to die. Thank goodness they all did.

If I should ever view it again I will take some dramamein

I don't understand this motion sickness ordeal with Cloverfield. It didn't even make me dizzy. Weaklings!!

[Red 75]

Wow, Indy4 loves Indy 4! What a surprise!

Imagine what would have happened if he didn't like it!

I really don't think that would be possible.

[QMM 4]

Indiana Jones 4

Ok. A lot of minor things built up over the movie left me with a weird impression after watching it. Some of the dialogue was Indy, some wasn't. The villain didn't really seem to be a villain, some of the set pieces didn't really seem to matter as well as some of the characters. Music was a little disappointing as well. Maybe I'll think better of it with another viewing, but right now it feels separate from the original trilogy.

thats because there was no original trilogy, just 3 separate films.

Excuse me then. It feels separate from the first 3 films.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of the Crystal Skull (***)

Good film, fun to watch and exciting, but nothing special. I thought it was better than Temple Of Doom, but definitely not Raiders Of The Lost Ark or Last Crusade, although I didn't expect it to be. It had a few amazing action sequences, my favorite being the jungle chase. The warehouse chase and the motorcycle chase were also great. The score was decent, way too quiet in the film for me. I also wish he used the Raiders March at least once instead of just at the end. Mutt was a good character, better than Short Round.

The end was

a little much and too farfetched for my taste. Although Spielberg does love aliens, so whatcha gonna do?

[indy4 155]

Indy's Theme was used many times throughout the film.

Unless you mean the actual concert version, but that's never been used in any of the films, with the exception of the end credits and the scene directly prior to the credits.

[Morlock 11]

Saw Indy IV. Both dissapointed and reassured. Need to think.

Also saw the rest of El Cid. This is one film where I'll side with the anti-narrative people. Narrative-wise, dialogue-wise, acting-wise...I didn't feel like it was any better than most Hollywood Epics I've seen. But visually, and composition-wise....a thrilling film. Absolutely thrilling visually. The sets are truely awe inspiring, and Mann shoots them without feeling the need to underline the cost of the sets. They are splendidly shot, and feel all the more real for not having too much attention on them as mere sets, but as setting. The classic "epic" shots, of hundreds of people, are framed beautifully, some of the best epic photography I've seen. Also, I love how much of the movie is overcast. Feels all the more real for not being in a the blaring sun, to underline the epic-ness of it all.

Beyond the visual aspects, the score is marvelous. This is an extremely uneducated assessment, seeing how few golden age films I've seen...but Rozsa strikes me as the absolute best. I've yet to see a Rozsa-scored film that I felt was over the top. Beautifully detailed, with great themes, and never felt like too much (which is not something I can say for some of the Steiner or Korngold scored films I've seen).

An epic remarkable for it's eye and ear, even if, narrative-wise (I'm using it in a broad sense of the word), it is no better than most Hollywood epics. The film manages to be the biggest of them all by not gratuitously underlining how big it is (I mean traditional Hollywood epics, not Lawrence of Arabia, which is in a class of it's own).

Also saw Before The Devil Knows Your Dead. Dissapointing. I never cared about the characters. They felt awfully thin to me. Some individual moments of acting I loved (In particular, Marissa Tomei's transcendant silent reaction to Hoffman's breakdown in the car), but overall, I never got to like any of them. I did not like the dark pallette of the film, although it would seem appropriate to the subject matter. I did like the score. But, in general, this one left me cold. Lumet has rarely dissapointed me...but this one seemed awfully obvious, and, I'm sorry to say, a bit self-congradulatory in it's bleakness.

Best things about the film: How amazingly stunning Marissa Tomei is, with or without clothes, and the score. Very moody Burwell effort, but I love moody Burwell.

[Marian Schedenig 8,193]

Indiana Jones 4

Ok. A lot of minor things built up over the movie left me with a weird impression after watching it. Some of the dialogue was Indy, some wasn't. The villain didn't really seem to be a villain, some of the set pieces didn't really seem to matter as well as some of the characters. Music was a little disappointing as well. Maybe I'll think better of it with another viewing, but right now it feels separate from the original trilogy.

Spot-on. I'd qualify it as "mostly entertaining", but inferior to the other three. Not as much (functioning) humour as the third one, not as much (focused) action as the second or third one, hardly a plot, and no characters. Plenty of moments, some excellent Ford moments, one or two good Blanchett moments, a letdown of an ending.

After three tracks, the score on CD is already 10 times better than anything that could be noticed of it in the film.

Addendum: Very fun Wilhelm and the best Michael Curtiz-like shadow scene I've ever seen.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Yes, I laughed pretty hard when that Wilhelm kicked in.

[Morlock 11]

After being pretty bord with the plot, I was actually surprised by how impressed I was by the huge climactic shot. Only rarely do I find special effects to actually be special.

[Marian Schedenig 8,193]

I found it overdone and unnecessary. I loved the streams of light in the jungle chase by the way.

[Delorean90 42]

Addendum: Very fun Wilhelm and the best Michael Curtiz-like shadow scene I've ever seen.

I missed the Wilhelm!!

Which shadow scene are you speaking of? I can think of a couple very neatly lit shots in the grave and in the tent, particularly.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Addendum: Very fun Wilhelm and the best Michael Curtiz-like shadow scene I've ever seen.

I missed the Wilhelm!!

It was in the warehouse scene.

[John Crichton 4]

No, it's actually in the library scene. Unless I missed it in the warehouse.

[artyjeffrey 20]

It's so reassuring to visiting a place where people actually know what a "Wilhelm" is.

[Marian Schedenig 8,193]

The only Wilhelm I noticed was in the library.

Which shadow scene are you speaking of? I can think of a couple very neatly lit shots in the grave and in the tent, particularly.

I'm not sure now where it was (I think it was the scene before Indy was "connected" to the skull), but Ford was in the back of the scene behind some sort of cobweb (?), lighted from behind. So you could see his shadow in front of his face. Very cool I thought.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

My bad, it was the library scene. The guy was holding the book and then dived out of the way.

[Ollie 1,059]

Indiana Jones and KOTCS.

I need to go watch Raiders Of The Lost Ark to wipe the bad taste out of my mouth.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

Come on, it wasn't that bad. Yes, different from the classics, but still a good effort by Spielberg and team. It was fun and good entertainment.

[Ollie 1,059]

Yeah sure, whatever you say.

[indy4 155]

Mark, did you not even enjoy the

ant scene?

I must say, I'm very pleased by the overall enjoyment rate of the MB. I wasn't sure what most people here would think of the film, but most have had very postive reviews.

[Ollie 1,059]

Unfortunately it was surrounded by such a boring action sequence it lost it's intended effect.

[indy4 155]

*sigh* Okay, I've given up trying to show you the light. Enjoy Raiders...

[Ray Barnsbury 8]

I'm not surprised by most people's reactions so far, both extremely positive and extremely negative (seems to reflect the expectations they went in with). My feelings are more balanced at this point, but I'll probably be seeing it again soon, and I can see myself going either way.

[Bryant Burnette 654]

After being pretty bord with the plot, I was actually surprised by how impressed I was by the huge climactic shot. Only rarely do I find special effects to actually be special.

That shot and the mushroom cloud shot are just gorgeous; some of the loveliest CGI that's ever been done, in my opinion.

[A24 4,331]

Yes, different from the classics

Eh, it is possible that Raiders Of The Lost Ark is a classic but the others sure ain't!

[Elmo Lewis 6]

The original Indy films were definetly a nod to those adventure serials from the '30s - this one was more like a nod to the original Indy trilogy.

[Delorean90 42]

The only Wilhelm I noticed was in the library.

Which shadow scene are you speaking of? I can think of a couple very neatly lit shots in the grave and in the tent, particularly.

I'm not sure now where it was (I think it was the scene before Indy was "connected" to the skull), but Ford was in the back of the scene behind some sort of cobweb (?), lighted from behind. So you could see his shadow in front of his face. Very cool I thought.

That's exactly the shot I was thinking of. Yeah, that was excellent.

[QMM 4]

I've warmed up to it a little bit more now that I've had time to think about it. Almost everything in America was good, best being the motorcycle chase and the worst being the refrigerator. I've definitely warmed up to the score now that I have the soundtrack.

Not necessarily a bad movie but...

[Morlock 11]

I'm very conflicted about it at the moment. It's not an okay movie. It's bad in some aspects, and very good in some aspects. Script is not good. Too much CGI. As someone else has said, I rarely felt there was risk of bodily harm to any of our guys. Secondary characters were weak. But, on the other hand, it was very good. Captured a genuine Indy feel. It was fun, funny, and, when Marion appears, touching (even though Marion is also a weak character here). I loved the visual conception of the boring and misguided ending. The opening of the movie was terrific (though it too could have had mroe of a punch). The action was generally pretty boring. The Jungle Chase was good, but would have been so much better without the feel of CGI surrounding it, and without the annoying habit of people dissapearing and reappearing. Sub-plots gone undeveloped. Shia LeBouf never seemed comfortable in his character's shoes, yet did have a good vibe with Ford.

Like I said- conflicted. I think that it might improve with a second viewing, although it will also probably make the supporting characters even more dull than they were the first time.

[A24 4,331]

Too much CGI

The trailer already told us this months ago.

[BurgaFlippinMan 7]

As much as I dont like quoting them, according to wikipedia Indy 4 has about 450 effects shots...

[Morlock 11]

I've warmed up to it a little bit more now that I've had time to think about it. Almost everything in America was good, best being the motorcycle chase and the worst being the refrigerator.

The scene in fake suburbia was great, and I liked the refrigerator. Did it strike anyone else as something of a BTTF reference?

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

No, i think Lucas and Spielberg were desperatly trying to set this film in the 50's.

The first part has everything we now associate with that era. But it is done to the point of distraction.

And it's pointless because once they get to South America, the decade becomes unimportant.