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

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

Alex, is there really any need for any sequel?

[Edmilson 7,384]

ET was on the TV channel for old/cult movies on cable tonight.

 

Huh, so this is what a movie with a classic score looks like. All the crap by Lorne Balfe, Brian Tyler, Tom Holkenborg and others on recent years made me forgot how truly powerful a great score could be.

[Tallguy 3,364]

7 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

Alex, is there really any need for any sequel?

 

You might not want to stop with one Lord of the Rings movie.

[Matt C 452]

Pride & Prejudice (2005)

 

Seeing it on the big screen for the first time, you really appreciate the fine lensing by Roman Osin (who makes Keira Knightley look SO radiant), as well as the top-notch production and costume design. Joe Wright takes liberties with Jane Austen's book but he puts his own stamp on it without losing the spirit. The movie's setting feels more palpable, lived-in and the Bennet sisters actually look closer to the age in the book.

 

With the attention given to her other roles, Knightley's Elizabeth Bennet is my favorite role she's done. There's a lot of nuance and subtlety in her gazes with the sisters and Darcy, but her emotional outbursts and moments of joy are infectious. She commands the screen but yields to co-stars when the scenes call for it.

 

Is it perfect? No. Does it complement the 1995 BBC series? Yes.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

1 hour ago, Tallguy said:

 

You might not want to stop with one Lord of the Rings movie.

You're forgetting that LOTR was conceived, written, designed and shot, as one film.

Point taken about LOTR, but so many sequels are a third-rate cash-in on a successful original. There are exceptions, of course, but these are few and far between.

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,429]

There are lot of great sequels: Empire Strikes Back, Temple of Doom, Gremlins: The New Batch, Back to the Future part. II, The Godfather part. II, The Lost World, Aliens, Terminator 2, Spider-Man 2, PoC: Dead Man's Chest, HTTYD2 and so on...

[crocodile 7,983]

Temple of Doom is a prequel.

 

Karol

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

2 hours ago, May the Force be with You said:

There are lot of great sequels: Empire Strikes Back, Temple of Doom, Gremlins: The New Batch, Back to the Future part. II, The Godfather part. II, The Lost World, Aliens, Terminator 2, Spider-Man 2, PoC: Dead Man's Chest, HTTYD2 and so on...

They might be great, but are they necessary? Why can't studios leave a good film alone?

[Disco Stu 15,495]

Dead Man's Chest a great sequel?  I hated that movie so much I never watched a single second of a subsequent Pirates movie.  That movie is like the poster boy of how lightning just can't strike twice most of the time.  POTC is one of the biggest artistic failures at attempting to create a franchise this century (obviously they made a boatload [a treasure chest?] of money anyway).

[Glóin the Dark 1,218]

18 minutes ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

...are they necessary?

 

But one can ask the same question about their predecessors and the answer is pretty much the same. Necessity is overrated!

 

(Though it would have been better if Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom had never been made...)

[Tallguy 3,364]

3 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

They might be great, but are they necessary? Why can't studios leave a good film alone?

 

Are we saying that Gremlins, The Terminator, or How to Train Your Dragon were necessary? (Wonderful and good, but hardly necessary.) (OK, take Gremlins off that list. Without Gremlins you don't get Gremlins 2.)

 

I certainly see your point. For all of the years that people were asking for an Incredibles sequel I always felt that it was totally unnecessary. (And I was right!)

 

3 hours ago, Stu said:

Dead Man's Chest a great sequel?  I hated that movie so much I never watched a single second of a subsequent Pirates movie.  That movie is like the poster boy of how lightning just can't strike twice most of the time.

 

I loved Dead Man's Chest. Just not as much as At World's End.

 

I'm one of the few comic book fans that didn't like Spider-Man 3 2. EDIT: 2! I meant 2!

[Edmilson 7,384]

Here's some sequels that would be better if they didn't happen at all:

 

-Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

-POTC: On Stranger Tides

-Shrek the Turd Third

-Every Transformers movie starting with the second one

-Every Fast and Furious movie, also starting with the second one

-Independence Day Resurgence

[Holko 9,499]

1 hour ago, Glóin the Dark said:

(Though it would have been better if Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom had never been made...)

The best Indy movie???

[Tallguy 3,364]

1 hour ago, Holko said:

The best Indy movie???

 

Temple of Doom has gone through a kind of rehabilitation, much like Star Trek: The Motion Picture. I probably like TOD better than Last Crusade these days (it's not by much though) and really, neither of them hold a candle to Raiders of the Lost Ark. It's apparently a very carefully measured formula that they were never able to find again.

[Tom Guernsey 2,280]

Funnily enough, Jaws 2 just arrived in Blu-ray from our online rental by post (for all that stuff you can’t quite find streaming) and I’m super excited to see it again. Absolutely not essential and it was never going to match the original but we got another great JW score (his first sequel I think?) and I like that the setting and aren’t actually too far from the original. Ok the kids have their annoying moments but are largely fairly well characterised and the dinghy sailing sequences are well done, fun and the sailing theme is one of my favourite secondary JW themes.
 

It helps that the shark holds up surprisingly well given that the element of surprise is absent but Szwarc (mostly) does a good job of ensuring the shark is used to best effect. The deaths are well staged without being too contrived and some are downright terrifying (particularly the one with the kid grabbed from the upturned dinghy and the helicopter).

 

But broadly I guess sequels are more successful when they are meant to be part of a longer story than a response to a successful original.

[Jay 37,281]

12 minutes ago, Tom Guernsey said:

(his first sequel I think?)

 

It was!

[Holko 9,499]

44 minutes ago, Tallguy said:

It's apparently a very carefully measured formula that they were never able to find again.

Only improved on it

[Glóin the Dark 1,218]

2 hours ago, Holko said:

The best Indy movie???

 

The worst!

[Chen G. 3,943]

13 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

You're forgetting that LOTR was conceived, written, designed and shot, as one film.

Point taken about LOTR

 

I think the point is to distinguish between cycles and anthologies. In a cycle, the story is simply told over several parts, whereas in an anthology several standalone stories are told.

 

I generally don't regard anthologies to the standard of a cycle, in much the same way that one wouldn't hold a picaresque story to the standard of a proper novel. The kind of sequels you are talking about are anthological in nature.

[Edmilson 7,384]

2 hours ago, Glóin the Dark said:

 

The worst!

Temple of Doom is not as bad as KOTCS. That abomination made me appreciate ToD and TLC even more.

[Jurassic Shark 12,024]

ToD and TLC are both great.

[Chen G. 3,943]

I don't like Temple of Doom. I like things that are in it. But I really don't care for the movie.

 

I L-O-V-E The Last Crusade!

[Marian Schedenig 8,172]

5 hours ago, Edmilson said:

Here's some sequels that would be better if they didn't happen at all:

-Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

 

I'm not a big fan of the score, but no KOTCS would mean no Irina's Theme, and I like that, so KOTCS is better than no KOTCS.

[Glóin the Dark 1,218]

14 hours ago, Edmilson said:

Temple of Doom is not as bad as KOTCS.

 

Indeed, it's much worse. The latter is alright, the former atrocious!

[A24 4,326]

17 hours ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

I'm not a big fan of the score, but no KOTCS would mean no Irina's Theme, and I like that, so KOTCS is better than no KOTCS.

 

Funny, I never even bothered with the soundtrack. I have all the previous Indiana Jones scores but they are all a bit too gung-ho for my taste. 

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

Then, Alex, I guess that you must hate 1941 

[A24 4,326]

I liked that one at the time (even the gung-ho cannon shots) but I haven't listened to it in decades. 

[crocodile 7,983]

18 hours ago, Marian Schedenig said:

 

I'm not a big fan of the score, but no KOTCS would mean no Irina's Theme, and I like that, so KOTCS is better than no KOTCS.

I actually think Crystal Skull theme is really good. And developed nicely too.

 

Karol

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

Probably true, @crocodile. It's a score that deserves a much better film. I'd dearly love to hear the C&C score.

 

 

(edit) I've just found it, on YouTube. I'll listen to this, asap.

[Tom Guernsey 2,280]

On 25/04/2022 at 6:11 PM, Tom Guernsey said:

Funnily enough, Jaws 2 just arrived in Blu-ray from our online rental by post (for all that stuff you can’t quite find streaming) and I’m super excited to see it again. Absolutely not essential and it was never going to match the original but we got another great JW score (his first sequel I think?) and I like that the setting and aren’t actually too far from the original. Ok the kids have their annoying moments but are largely fairly well characterised and the dinghy sailing sequences are well done, fun and the sailing theme is one of my favourite secondary JW themes.
 

It helps that the shark holds up surprisingly well given that the element of surprise is absent but Szwarc (mostly) does a good job of ensuring the shark is used to best effect. The deaths are well staged without being too contrived and some are downright terrifying (particularly the one with the kid grabbed from the upturned dinghy and the helicopter).

 

But broadly I guess sequels are more successful when they are meant to be part of a longer story than a response to a successful original.

Some spoilers... but, I mean, it's from 1978... Enjoyed watching Jaws 2 again. I hadn't really noticed before how much Szwarc tried to ape some of Spielberg's touches, like the smaller scenes where the locals are all trying to get Brody's attention or the beach montage and some of the ominous, gazing out to sea shots. I also liked the contrast of the earlier shots of the kids carefree sailing to the one a bit later (Boats in Danger from the complete score) where the dinghies are filmed at crazy angles with much more ominous music. While mostly the shark theme only appears when the shark is around, there were a few instances where it's played as a ruse, unlike the original where the shark theme is only present if the shark is nearby.

 

For a film where the deaths could easily be unintentionally funny (especially after years of parodies and copycats), most are surprisingly effective, notably Eddie's death which is particularly harrowing, especially as he clings to the side of his dinghy before being dragged under. I know there's plenty of moments when the teenagers are a bit annoying with much overwrought screaming,  but I think they largely acquit themselves pretty well. In fact the key issue is probably there are too many of them, plus all the adults, so they aren't quite as well developed as they might have been (the original benefitted from focussing on 3 key protagonists) but there are some effective moments, notably Sean's rescue.

[A24 4,326]

Swallow (2019)

 

 

Stylish drama about an unhappy wife that starts to eat sharp objects. 

[bruce marshall 1,314]

DOWNFALL

first time on bluray!

 

Amazing film. Masterful in every way. Maybe, could have been a bit shorter.

 

 

Btw it's cool seeing this again after years of watching " "Hitler Rants parodies! Nice to see the original context of "Fegelein, Fegelein! Fegelein!" and " Stalin!"😄

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

It's a fantastic film. Bruno Ganz is, without question, the best screen Hitler.

[bruce marshall 1,314]

7 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

It's a fantastic film. Bruno Ganz is, without question, the best screen Hitler.

Well, after Dick Shawn he's best!😄

[bruce marshall 1,314]

10 hours ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

It's a fantastic film. Bruno Ganz is, without question, the best screen Hitler.

Have you ever seen the Soviet film FALL OF BERLIN?

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

No, but I will check it out, asap. Thanks for the tip.

[bruce marshall 1,314]

It's a Soviet propaganda film.

Pure fiction.

Makes a nice double bill with UNTERTANG!😅

[filmmusic 1,823]

The music score is a masterpiece. Pity that Jones and Edelman have "vanished".

The movie is quite good too, although I think imdb overestimates it a bit at 7.7.

I saw the theatrical cut. I don't know what has been added/cut in the definitive cut but I can't watch that one because I don't like the color "correction".

 

 

[A24 4,326]

The Report (2019)

 

 

I stuck it to the end but I was glad it was finally over. All The President's Men it is not! 4/10

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

1 hour ago, AC1 said:

All The President's Men it is not!

Not much is, I'm afraid, Alex, that's why it is among the greatest films ever made.

[Holko 9,499]

Watched ESB - 4k80 (Beta 3) - after finishing Rinzler's book. And holy crap it was my first time in maybe a decade that I really really loved it! That tense opening, the pitch perfect magnificent Hoth battle and asteroid chase, the character interactions, Yoda, the saber duel, Vader bursting out and pummeling down on Luke, the escape, Vader's weak moment, the finale with that HSATP - all of JW's score, really... the effects... the sources are really not ideal and the release is far from finished but you get adjusted to it quickly. Just simply amazing. Han's still very rapey though.

[Alex 2,833]

The James Bond films are on Amazon Prime now, so I know what I’ll be watching for the next few weeks.

[Jay 37,281]

Be careful, at least in the USA, Spectre and No Time To Die are NOT on Prime

[Alex 2,833]

They seem to be here in Chile. I wasn’t a fan of either of those two anyway!

[Brundlefly 2,385]

I have the complete James Bond Blu-ray box and I was just starting to watch the Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore and Timothy Dalton films which I have seen none of before. This is gonna be fun, next is Goldfinger.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

1 minute ago, Brundlefly said:

...Timothet Chalamet films...

[Sweeping Strings 2,344]

You may laugh, but the fear that Babs Broccoli could cast some millennial wet-wipe next remains real. Eep.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,493]

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

[bruce marshall 1,314]

Bond is dead.

Wait till he becomes public domain in two decades!

[A24 4,326]

I hear bookies are now saying this guy from the Netflix series Bridgerton will be the next James Bond:

 

 

Alex - bringing JWFan up to speed