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

[Naïve Old Fart 9,508]

On 06 April 2016 at 8:17 AM, Incanus said:

Yeah. The Lion in Winter, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf etc.

 

Apparently, there is a full 4K restoration of "TLIW" on its way from the BFI. If it's as good as "The Third man", then I can't wait!

On 08 April 2016 at 6:15 PM, Stefancos said:

Cocoon is good, and Parenthood has the best use of a vibrator in the history of the motion pictures.

 

 

Not as good as "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo".

[nightscape94 965]

Indeed!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

The Silence Of The Lambs

 

My local arthouse cinema was screening this so I took my mum to see it.

 

It remains one of the best films I've ever seen. Dark, melancholic with brilliant mis-en-scene that is incredibly effective yet hardly draws any attention to itself, and with a fantastic cast. Imitated and followed up many times, yet never equalled or bettered.

 

 

[Romão 2,274]

Good score as well

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Not the most welcoming listen on CD, but incredibly effective in the film.

[nightscape94 965]

Nightcrawler (2014)

 

One of those movies that you sit down with and can genuinely say at the end, "I've never quite seen anything like that".  Truly unique and fascinating.  Gyllenhaal has a tough balancing act with this complex character and pulls it off.  That sinister little laugh he gives out from time to time, and crooked manipulative smile, weeds its way through the film and mutates as the character goes through a rebirth of his darkest traits.

[Jay 37,323]

Totally agreed!

[Matt C 452]

Starz! actually showed these two movies today (not concurrently but on different channels), so I figured I could watch and compare these pics again.

 

Spider-Man 3 - Even with the massive producer interference, there's still heart throughout. Certain terrific scenes hint at a much coherent and tighter film had Raimi been given more creative leeway (which he earned with the first two Spidey pics). It still suffers from "too many villains", a miscast Topher Grace, and Raimi indulging in some silly filler like the dark-Peter montage. Still bewildered by the lashing it got from audiences, who screamed for a reboot... and they got it...

 

Amazing Spider-Man 2 - Unlike Sam Raimi, Marc Webb's Spidey films have been studio product since day one. For every one thing Webb gets right in this film (the Peter/Gwen chemistry), the writers take it two steps back (shitty villains, crappy plot). The plot contrivances here are even more contrived than the ones leveled at Spider-Man 3, i.e. Harry's butler knowing about the glider. Gwen can magically reset the power grid with just one button? Secret railway tokens stored inside Peter's calculator? Peter's late father has the foresight to know that his son will find the hidden passage? The contrivances are the usual Orci & Kurtzman traits, i.e. Star Trek Into Darkness. The action scenes are okay, nothing special, but they're competently done. There's this subplot that takes up 5-8 minutes regarding a potential plane collision and Aunt May at the hospital that could've been cut. The iconic

Death of Gwen Stacy

scene is a terrific scene, shame everything else surrounding it can't live up to that. It feels unearned, frankly.

 

But the terrible villains bring the whole thing down. Who the hell thought Jamie Foxx was a good Electro should've been booted from the casting agency. Paul Giamatti's cameo is simply awful. Dane DeHann was good in Chronicle, but he's no James Franco. It's a shame this was the end of the Webb saga. Had Sony exercised more financial restraint and booted Avi Arad from the franchise, Webb could've kept the franchise going with another film.

[Quintus 5,399]

11 hours ago, Stefancos said:

The Silence Of The Lambs

 

My local arthouse cinema was screening this so I took my mum to see it.

 

It remains one of the best films I've ever seen. Dark, melancholic with brilliant mis-en-scene that is incredibly effective yet hardly draws any attention to itself, and with a fantastic cast. Imitated and followed up many times, yet never equalled or bettered.

 

 

 

Did you stay behind and watch Sir Anthony take his really long stroll into the distance again? Highlight of the movie! 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

My mum needed to smoke and I needed to poo! We had schwarma before the show.

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

The Amazing Spider-Man

 

It doesn't get good until the lizard monster shows up.

[Wojo 2,453]

5 hours ago, Drax said:

The Amazing Spider-Man

 

It doesn't get good. 

 

Fixed. 

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

Fuck off! The lizard monster was awesome!

[nightscape94 965]

It's a perfectly good superhero movie, probably the best after Spider-man 2.  Shame they squandered it with a shitty sequel.

[Not Mr. Big 4,639]

It has a good score at least... 

[Jay 37,323]

Sony's Spider-man movies from best to worst

 

Spider-man 2

Spider-man

The Amazing Spider-man 2

The Amazing Spider-man

Spider-man 3

 

Scores from best to worst

Spider-man 3

The Amazing Spider-man

Spider-man 2

Spider-man

The Amazing Spider-man 2

[Wojo 2,453]

I have never seen nor will ever see the one with Jamie Fox as a blue bad guy. Or its score. 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

You cant see a score, you can hear it though!

 

[Wojo 2,453]

#squintingdisapprovinglyatthedumbass

[Bespin 8,480]

Currently discovering...

 

Wow!!!

[Matt C 452]

Alien

 

This and Blade Runner are the best films Ridley Scott has ever done. Last 30 minutes are still suspenseful and unnerving, and apart from the infamous chestburster dinner scene, there's not much in the way of gore. The comparisons to Halloween are apt, except Jerry Goldsmith's score (when not replaced with temp score) is superior. Even though Goldsmith's score is cut to pieces, Scott utilizes it to spooky effect.

[Wojo 2,453]

I can't watch Alien when the strobe light starts up on the escape pod. I literally get up and take the tape out and start watching something else. It just bothers me. It makes me very queasy. 

[A24 4,327]

The strobe light part is the weakest because then I can't see how beautiful this movie is shot (by young Scott). It takes me out of my trip of aesthetic ecstasy or hypnotized state. Alien, Blade Runner AND The Duellists are the best movies Ridley Scott has ever done. After that he changed.

[bollemanneke 3,338]

Next. Meh. Didn't know there were French terrorists who had a grudge against the US for no particular reason whatsoever. I really did like the twist at the ending. The score was at times functional, at times very effective.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

2 minutes ago, bollemanneke said:

Didn't know there were French terrorists who had a grudge against the US 

 

ISIS?

[Wojo 2,453]

Copper is worth quite a lot on the black market. The French, ze want zeir Liberte back. 

[Sweeping Strings 2,346]

Sherlock Holmes : A Game Of Shadows - some of Ritchie's slightly annoying directorial flourishes aside, a rollicking action-adventure shot through with the spirit of Indy and Bond but probably camper than both. Certainly more fun than The Abominable Bride.

 

Wayne's World - special 'Wayne's World Night' screening (first film preceded by the Saturday Night Live sketches) as part of the Belfast Film Festival. Still a rather funny film ... SCHWING!

[Loert 2,510]

2001: A Space Odyssey

 

Thought it was about time I plunged into this film, after hearing about so many people calling it a masterpiece.

 

First thing first, I had no idea that aliens would be in this. I just thought it was about humans and A.I. So it was a pleasant surprise to discover that the scope of the film was wider than that.

 

All in all, it felt very surreal. The placement of every cut seemed to have some sort of significance, because of the slow pace. So it was a bit like, you're staring at the screen, and...WOAH, the picture just changed!! What was that about?! But then, every new scene had something interesting about it, so the film managed to keep me hooked. And it seemed like the cinematography was designed for this sort of slow pace, because there's something very "constructed" about it, be it a symmetry in a scene, or just interesting framing. I guess this is part of the Kubrick-ian style, because I recognise it from The Shining, the only other Kubrick film I've seen.

 

I noticed that this slow pace made the fast zoom-cut sequence of Hal quite striking, because there was nothing like it (or even close to like it), beforehand.

 

I had a listen to North's rejected score after viewing the film, and I got mixed feelings. It's a very well written score, IMO, and I think actually would work well with the film ("Space Station Docking" is a track I particularly adored). But something I liked about the final music in the film is how Ligeti's Requiem was recurringly used for the scenes with the monolith. It gave a kind of auditory signature to the element of extra-terrestrial intelligence (like a leitmotif), and the Ligeti piece itself was a very fitting choice. 

 

I found the transition from the bone to the satellite quite chilling - very sudden, as if the time scale between those two events was the equivalent of a blink of an eye to the Universe. But the Star Gate sequence was simply unforgettable. It really did suck me in, and in a sort of "where-did-this-even-come-from" kind of way!

 

I'll be rewatching the film tonight - might pick up on a few things which will help my "internal interpretation" of it!

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

In my estimation it's the greatest film ever made.  Nowhere else have I seen the cinematic form utilized to the absolute maximum to create a "feeling" so successfully. It's the paradigm of what film can do that no other art form can.  Many other films come close, and many are great in other ways, more than this one is, even, but as a pure cinematic statement I just can't see any rival. 

 

And of course the use of music is a Kubrick trademark, with entire pieces functioning as "themes" for dramatic elements.  The music is a sonic frame, with different frames assigned depending on the scene within.  This, in contrast to music functioning almost as a narrator or Greek-chorus type thing, constantly commenting and accompanying and changing.  It's this sensibility that's key to understanding some elements of modern scoring - particularly the stuff from the guys in my avatar. 

[KK 3,307]

Aside from certain design choices, it's amazing how timeless that film is. How after 50+ years, the look and production values of 2001 continues to be the pinnacle of all film-making.

[Matt C 452]

22 hours ago, Woj said:

I can't watch Alien when the strobe light starts up on the escape pod. I literally get up and take the tape out and start watching something else. It just bothers me. It makes me very queasy. 

 

I think it adds to the suspense and chaotic state of mind Ripley is feeling. 

[Koray Savas 2,251]

3 hours ago, TheGreyPilgrim said:

In my estimation it's the greatest film ever made.  Nowhere else have I seen the cinematic form utilized to the absolute maximum to create a "feeling" so successfully. It's the paradigm of what film can do that no other art form can.  Many other films come close, and many are great in other ways, more than this one is, even, but as a pure cinematic statement I just can't see any rival. 

 

And of course the use of music is a Kubrick trademark, with entire pieces functioning as "themes" for dramatic elements.  The music is a sonic frame, with different frames assigned depending on the scene within.  This, in contrast to music functioning almost as a narrator or Greek-chorus type thing, constantly commenting and accompanying and changing.  It's this sensibility that's key to understanding some elements of modern scoring - particularly the stuff from the guys in my avatar. 

I personally vibe more with Leone and Malick, but Kubrick's sensibilities and style are totally unrivaled. I saw 2001 very young and didn't understand a thing about it, but having done my Kubrick filmography marathon a couple years back really made me appreciate how brilliant the film is. But even so, A Clockwork Orange still beats it out as my favorite of his. Not to mention Eyes Wide Shut gets regular rotation in my brain as films I need to rewatch sooner than later. 

[Wojo 2,453]

2 hours ago, Matt C said:

 

I think it adds to the suspense and chaotic state of mind Ripley is feeling. 

 

That's great!  I don't need to watch it. 

[A24 4,327]

3 hours ago, Matt C said:

 

I think it adds to the suspense and chaotic state of mind Ripley is feeling. 

 

It does ... the first time.

 

3 hours ago, Koray Savas said:

Not to mention Eyes Wide Shut gets regular rotation in my brain as films I need to rewatch sooner than later. 

 

Probably the movie Kubrick himself is the most proud of.

[Quintus 5,399]

For me the extended Stargate sequence is the only part that let's the film down in terms of its age. It's now pretty crude special effects work, and just boring. Back then though and on the big screen it was probably dazzling for people. 

[Unlucky Bastard 7,782]

And it looks like a moving helicopter shot over a rocky coastline with coloured filters.

[A24 4,327]

Beats CGI, IMO.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

It's far more artistic!

[Quintus 5,399]

3 hours ago, Drax said:

And it looks like a moving helicopter shot over a rocky coastline with coloured filters.

 

Exactly. It was intended as something visually profound and even transcendental, but nowadays it's just quaint and rather crude, like an old David Bowie video on Top of the Pops. The shots of Dave though are still brilliant and timeless nonetheless. 

 

21 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

It's far more artistic!

 

Bollocks. 

[Brónach 1,301]

That sequence scared the crap out of me as a kid.

 

I think the whole opening with the impossible alignment and the "colours" is one of my favourite cinematic moments ever.

 

What has aged the worst for me is the first chapter.

[KK 3,307]

The music works wonders for it.

 

I think the first half of it still holds up quite well, but agree that a whole extra 5 minutes of Earthly landscapes, glossed over with processed filters, don't seem as otherworldy now as they might have then. Could be more passable if it was shorter. With that said, I think its dated nature is less "harmful" within the context of the whole film.

[Brónach 1,301]

Sometimes I think it'da have looked less like Earth with filters if they didn't use filter and did something else with carefully chosen landscapes.

 

The shot of the green ocean is quite cool. You can have green oceans if you have enough iron.

[Quintus 5,399]

1 hour ago, KK said:

The music works wonders for it.

 

I think the first half of it still holds up quite well, but agree that a whole extra 5 minutes of Earthly landscapes, glossed over with processed filters, don't seem as otherworldy now as they might have then. Could be more passable if it was shorter. With that said, I think its dated nature is less "harmful" within the context of the whole film.

 

Yeah, ultimately the film is still greatness regardless. 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Obviously you need to have taken acid for the Stargate sequence to have it's full, intended effect.

[Quintus 5,399]

My favorite shot in the film is actually of the Obelisk in the bedroom, as the camera closes in on it till it fills the screen to the music. 

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

You mean monolith.

[Quintus 5,399]

That's the one, sorry. 

[Marian Schedenig 8,179]

Monolix.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Brilliant!

[A24 4,327]

3 hours ago, Stefancos said:

Obviously you need to have taken acid for the Stargate sequence to have it's full, intended effect.

 

That's only a myth distributed by the Planet Of The Apes crowd (the Quintusses of the '60s) because they didn't understand the movie but it's actually not true. The acid is the sound and images that Kubrick & Co have created.

 

 

Cheers!

 

 

Alex