|
Post by Crowfan on Sept 10, 2016 13:40:48 GMT -5
Used Cars. Jack Warden is great playing twins, Roy and Luke Fuchs. Roy is trying to drive Luke out of business. Luke has one ace salesman, Kurt Russell(Rudy) who wants to someday become a Senator. Rudy is charming, and your basic conman but he really does want to keep Roy from taking over Luke's lot. Luke suffers a fatal heart attack(courtesy of a scheming Roy)and then the plot really gets going. Luke had a daughter he hadn't seen for 10 years, who contacted him the night he died, and when she shows up, Rudy romances her. He wants to tell her the truth about her father, but Luke's other salesmen convince him not to. Anyway, she finds out the truth, fires all the salesmen, but then she has to deal with Roy herself, which doesn't go well, until Rudy steps in to help out. This film is a dark comedy and it does have some good moments. The DVD also comes with special features, such as commentary and outtakes, and TV spots. Recommended.
|
|
|
Post by crowschmo on Sept 29, 2016 21:01:24 GMT -5
Went to see The Magnificent Seven a few days ago. I didn't have any expectations one way or another, but I ended up enjoying the film. The chemistry was good between the characters and there were some good action sequences. Unlike the original, it wasn't a Mexican town that was occasionally looted by bandits, but a mining town that was controlled by an industrialist. Their names were different than in the original as well. Still, they were hired guns by the townspeople that came together piecemeal. I still have yet to see the ORIGINAL original, Seven Samurai. But I did watch the original Mag Seven when I got home on On Demand. This may sound sacrilegious, I know it's one of THE western classics, but I didn't like the original all that much. I found it boring, and a lot of the acting from movies of that era are either wooden or over the top, and this one had some of both. The "kid", guy, who played Chico acted like someone in a MSTed movie. Ah, and that iconic score. They should have used it more in the newer version, but they did play it at the end. I've read comments on the trailer, and I'm so sick of people bitching when there is a more diverse cast. I know sometimes people are just thrown in with no real thought for character development, just to say, hey, look! we have a black guy or a brown guy or a woman in there! (Or whatever). See how inclusive we are! But I'm so sick of reading how an all-white male cast is "normal" and anything with women or non-whites or gays is all of a sudden an "agenda" being "shoved down" someone's throats. People who are nonwhite or not male had to put up for decades with seeing characters they couldn't identify with, now just because some of them are thrown in the mix, it's PC BS. (As I wrote, I know some of it actually IS, because it's just being done as window dressing). But some of it is just, well, that's the character it just happens to be. This cast actually works. They're just people. Someone wrote that when a cowboy movie is done just put white guys in there. Yeah, like there were no Mexicans, Natives, black guys or Chinese in the Old West. That just wasn't a thing. *eyeroll*. Well, I guess they'd be accepted if they were PLAYED by white guys. (Eli Wallach? And I think Chico was played by a guy named Horst or something).
|
|
|
Post by LetGoOfItSlappy on Oct 10, 2016 11:17:49 GMT -5
Invasion of the Neptune Men:
For whatever reason, I got up yesterday morning about an hour and a half before football started and TCM was showing this movie! I have seen other movies riffed on MST3K on TCM or other networks before but they were the more "well-known" domestic sci-fi type movies from the '50's or '60's but Invasion of the Neptune Men?!?!
Well....it was definitely a somewhat darker movie than I remember, I'm guessing because of the edits that the Brains did for episode 819. A great editing job by the way as it seems that most of the cuts were at the end of the film during the interminably long "climactic battle" that had obvious stock footage of bombing raids during World War II. Other than that the movie is as bad as I remember but dang it if I didn't sit there and watch the whole thing.
|
|
Torgo
Moderator Emeritus
-segment with Crow?
Posts: 15,420
|
Post by Torgo on Oct 10, 2016 11:26:41 GMT -5
A great editing job by the way as it seems that most of the cuts were at the end of the film during the interminably long "climactic battle" that had obvious stock footage of bombing raids during World War II. Fun fact: The climactic battle scene had no real destruction footage used. This is a myth, most likely as a result of the "Hitler Building." The destruction scenes are actually reused from a Japanese movie called World War III Breaks Out. But I'm sure the makers of that movie are more than happy that people think their footage out of context is real half a century later.
|
|
|
Post by Mod City on Nov 13, 2016 20:51:30 GMT -5
Doctor StrangeThere will be spoilers, just a heads up. I was going to see this in 3D, but I happen to have a few hours to kill while I was out of town this weekend and ended up near a movie theater with a standard showing fitting right in my schedule, so I figured what the hell. First showing of the day at 1 p.m., about a dozen people in the theater. What a great way to spend two hours, especially needing some distraction from election week. The movie is a solid origin story tale that sticks pretty close with the comic book tales. Even without 3D the visuals are fantastic, but I definitely want to see what the 3D buzz is about now. Biggest thing for me, though, was probably the cast. Benedict Cumberbath gets a real heroic role to play with, and he is excellent. And while there was some controversy over her casting (I admit, an Asian actor or actress probably would have been more appropriate), Tilda Swinton is really outstanding. I can see why the director wanted her. She can convey otherworldly with no effort, but her beats of comedy and action are excellent as well. And when it comes to a big lump-in-the-throat moment, she delivers the best performance of the movie. The action can get a little busy, but I wouldn't be surprised if the 3D actually helps clarify that than further muddle it. Still, some great sequences throughout. It's not the rocket-paced film we've generally gotten from Marvel lately, but the time spent with everyone in this story is wonderful. I recommend it. And now, some spoilery points: {Spoilers Here}The death of the Ancient One was very well handled. Even though it should be clear it was coming (the character does die eventually in the comics), the realization of what's happening with her on the operating table and Strange seeing her astral form leave the room was one of those "oh no" surprise moments.
Her talk with Strange watching the snow...damn. Just damn good acting from two excellent actors.
The final showdown between Dormammu and Strange was a pleasant change from mostly standard comic book movie finales. "I've come to bargain!" And Strange willing to die over and over again for eternity to save the Earth shows he finally learned that lesson from the Ancient One: "It isn't about you."
On a similar note, loved the fact that the other big showdown at the end had Strange undoing the damage you see in so many other movies. Nice touch.
|
|
Torgo
Moderator Emeritus
-segment with Crow?
Posts: 15,420
|
Post by Torgo on Nov 18, 2016 1:16:06 GMT -5
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Harry Potter lives! Even before he was born! This prequel/spin-off tells of Hogwarts schoolbook author Newt Scamander as he accidentally unleashes creatures out of his magical suitcase in 1920's New York and accidentally stumbling into tensions of an American anti-witch movement, escalated by the darkest wizard of the period, Gellert Grindelwald.
Doing a spin-off or a continuation of Harry Potter was a risky move. The story was completed and Harry's coming-of-age was over. Doing anything else with the property, specifically if it wasn't based on a novel, just reeks of being a cash grab off of a pre-existing fanbase. Working in Fantastic Beasts' favor is that the world that JK Rowling created is arguably far more interesting than the protagonist of her claim-to-fame series. The promise of seeing more of it does make a journey back intriguing for the fans and the fact that Rowling herself wrote the screenplay (which she had never done for the other films) gives it more clout.
Now that we've ventured back into that world I think it's safe to say that the movie is no Creed, which is probably the best example of a film spin-off that we didn't know we wanted but got anyway and LOVED. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the film is also no Phantom Menace, which seemingly in retrospect took advantage of the love for its universe and delivered pretty much nothing. On the low side I can see reaction being similar to the first Hobbit movie, where certain people will love it for what it is while others will just turn their noses up at it, or on the high side it could be The Force Awakens, which was championed with a lot of praise upon release but after re-evaluation is more of a "Oh it's good, but not great."
Fantastic Beasts spends a lot of time trying to reacquaint the viewer with the Wizarding World with a slow build of discovery, much like Sorcerer's Stone. I'm glad, because I think Fantastic Beasts should stand on its own. At the same time, it also assumes the viewer is alread acquainted with the quirks of this world, which makes the rediscovery redundant as it would leave new viewers in the wind. This makes it's reintroduction a weakness instead of a virtue.
The movie has two storylines: the first is what the trailers promise, with lots of imaginative creatures and quirky wizards chasing them. The second, more political plot sneaks up on the viewer and overwhelms the first out of the picture because it's the franchise set-up storyline. In the end it's hard to really understand why Newt Scamander is the main character of this movie series because he or his creatures seem to have little to do with anything. I myself express confusion about why this movie is called Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them when titular creatures aren't the main concern.
That said, the movie is still perfectly fine. Even when the movie lulls into something less than spectacular it would pop out something wonderful that warms you, reminding you why you fell in love with the Harry Potter series in the first place. And watching the movie is a different experience than watching a Harry Potter film, because with the eight previous films we had books as a guideline telling us what was going to happen, whereas Fantastic Beasts does not. We go in knowing very little about it and it gives us a chance to unfold a story we haven't heard yet. Theoretically this means there will be much less whining in the vein of "Hermione's underwear was NOT that color in the books!" but deep down I know the internet will find a way.
If you like Harry Potter then see the movie and figure out how you feel about it. I didn't particularly want more films in this series though I was interested in tapping back into this story, and came out not really feeling it was something that demanded to be made, but felt it was harmless and enjoyable enough. Where this franchise might take us is up in the air, but I'll see how it turns out.
For the record: 1. Goblet of Fire 2. Prisoner of Azkaban 3. Half-Blood Prince 4. Deathly Hallows Part 2 5. Sorcerer's Stone 6. Deathly Hallows Part 1 7. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 8. Order of the Phoenix 9. Chamber of Secrets
|
|
|
Post by timmy on Nov 18, 2016 19:51:00 GMT -5
Battle of Gettysburg
Leslie Nielsen was the narrator.
|
|
|
Post by Crowfan on Nov 26, 2016 18:34:51 GMT -5
That documentary is totally awesome!!
|
|
|
Post by timmy on Nov 26, 2016 19:44:18 GMT -5
That documentary is totally awesome!! thanks wish they made it like that today (told the story/facts and nothing else).
|
|
Torgo
Moderator Emeritus
-segment with Crow?
Posts: 15,420
|
Post by Torgo on Nov 28, 2016 10:29:36 GMT -5
Been going to TCM's Big Screen Classics this year. Last night was Breakfast at Tiffany's, which I enjoyed immensely (Mickey Rooney aside, who would have been just as unfunny had his character had been Caucasian). Next month is From Here to Eternity. Can't wait!
|
|
|
Post by timmy on Nov 28, 2016 15:17:35 GMT -5
VOTE FOR DUKE.
|
|
|
Post by crowschmo on Dec 26, 2016 18:00:20 GMT -5
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Harry Potter lives! Even before he was born! This prequel/spin-off tells of Hogwarts schoolbook author Newt Scamander as he accidentally unleashes creatures out of his magical suitcase in 1920's New York and accidentally stumbling into tensions of an American anti-witch movement, escalated by the darkest wizard of the period, Gellert Grindelwald. I saw this, too. I didn't really like it. The characters were very bland, and the story was crap.
|
|
|
Post by Mod City on Jan 5, 2017 21:52:28 GMT -5
Fantastic FourOK, I watched this tonight. And after noodling around for way too long writing a thoughtful comment about it, I've given up and break it down like this: * Is it the best comic book movie you've ever seen? No. * Is it the worst comic book movie you've ever seen? Possibly. Probably. Would have to think about it. * Was it as bad as you expected? No. * How was the writing? Disjointed. Inconsistent. * How was the pacing? Bad. That's on the writing and editing. Probably killed the movie. * How was the acting? Decent. * How were the effects? Not bad if you compare to X-Men (2000). And to be fair, the X-Men effects still hold up. * Best thing about the movie? It's only 100 minutes long. * Worst thing about the movie? It needed another 45 minutes to pace and develop the story right. I've read about the turmoil that surrounded the making of this. I honestly would like to see what director Josh Trank would have come up with without the studio getting so involved. Maybe it could have been cool. It looks like there's potential in there. OK, that was way easier. Thank you for your time
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 24, 2017 12:11:10 GMT -5
Weiner-Dog.
So what was all the fuss about again?
|
|
Torgo
Moderator Emeritus
-segment with Crow?
Posts: 15,420
|
Post by Torgo on Jan 28, 2017 18:35:09 GMT -5
Sadako vs. Kayako Japan's Freddy and Jason clash in this horror flick, which sees two girls imprinted by two separate curses banding together to set the beings who haunt them against each other. Probably intended as a tie-in promotion to the (awful looking) reboot/sequel of The Ring franchise, Rings, Shudder.com nabbed exclusive rights to this flick straight from Japan. It's a bit unfortunate that they didn't nab a bit more with it, since the last Ringu film (Sadako 2 3D) still hasn't been released State-side, nor have the last two Ju-on pictures (Ju-on: Beginning of the End and Ju-on: The Final). But if you're at the very least a Ju-on fan, they do offer the original television features (which are well worth a look) and the White Ghost/Black Ghost double feature (which has its moments). On the subject of Sadako vs. Kayako, the film has been making some waves since it's inception as an April Fools gag trailer several years ago. The positive reception encouraged Kadokawa that the film might be worth making, and from what I hear it made quite a bit of yen so it paid off. As for the quality of the film, it was never going to be a masterpiece, but I at the very least hoped for a Freddy vs. Jason level of fun presented. Let's face it, Sadako and Kayako stopped being scary a long time ago (this coming from someone who thinks Kayako in her inception was by far one of the most terrifying things in a horror movie) and it was doubtful that this movie was going to put them back on the map (if other versus movies were any indication). The final film is enjoyable in the moment, but disappointing in how much it seems to divert from itself. It's a bit slow at the start, picks up steam as it starts to get to the point, only the push the final two ghouls together with a disappointingly brief bout followed by a anticlimax "BOO" ending. Think along the lines of a made for TV "versus" movie on SyFy ala Boa vs. Python, where we watch a small shove match before the end credits roll soon after. This movie really could have learned from Freddy vs. Jason here, which had an entire third of the movie devoted to the villains hacking and slashing each other, but this fight is hardly a fight at all. Granted, Sadako and Kayako both have a history of staring at their victims to death, so unless this was the most epic staring contest of all time there wasn't a lot for the filmmakers to do, but there was plenty of room for creativity. But they do get creative in the story at several points. Battle Royale's Masanobu Ando has a supporting role in the film as an Asian John Constantine type character with a blind, psychic little girl as his sidekick. These characters were a blast and I'd watch an entire film series devoted to them. The way they danced around the curses and scoffed at them was delightful, and I took great adoration at the point they throw a rock at little boy ghost Toshio and make him scamper away like a scared cat. Some of the plays on the curse were fun as well, as a cursed girl in a fit of fear uploads Sadako's cursed video onto the internet because she wants everyone to die with her. This was a cool seeming plot point that never went anywhere. WHERE'S THAT MOVIE?!?!?! For those of you who are concerned that the film soils Ringu and Ju-on, maybe you'll rest a bit easier knowing that the film is upfront about being outside of normal canon. Sadako's tape is different, as she seemingly haunts an abandoned hallway instead of a well. The length of time it takes for the tape to kill you has been accelerated from seven days to two, probably for storytelling/pacing reasons. And the previously established showing the tape to someone else to save your life rule has been abandoned entirely as a myth. Things are a bit less black and white on the Ju-on side since the film focuses on Sadako far more than Kayako, but Kayako and Toshio are a bit more physical than they normally are (Toshio likes to jump on people like a frog). One can also tell that the cursed house itself is a different layout than it used to be. It's not the worst film of either series. That would be The Grudge 3 and The Ring Two. I'd be lying if I said it was a worthwhile experience for fans of either franchise, because is plays a bit too loosely with Sadako, Kayako is a bit shortchanged (and Toshio is kind of hilarious), and overall is an uneven experience. Those who watch it won't hate it though. One thing I do tend to notice about the Ju-on franchise is that when it comes it usually comes in twos: There were two short films, two television films, two theatrical films, two theatrical American remakes, a double feature film, and two reboot films (the only enigma in this is the direct to video Grudge 3). Ringu does seem to have that pattern as well, to a lesser extent: Ringu/Rasen, Ringu 2/0, two American Remakes, two Sadako 3D films. Given this pattern, is there a Sadako vs. Kayako 2 far behind? Or have we learned our lesson from Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem? Minor Note: On the subject of my Shudder.com experience, I wasn't particularly impressed. They aren't mainstream enough to be easily hooked into my TV and I was forced to watch on my phone because their computer player was crap. I don't think I will continue past my free trial.
|
|