The Official Movie Thread
- Thread starter Manic Ferocity
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Einherjar86
Active Member
Fate of Sceptic's Septic System:
"...Unfortunately, the poor naming of the company as 'Sceptic's Septic System' eventually had the inevitable effect of raising doubt among potential customers. Most eschewed the product due to the name, claiming that is suggested a strong possibility that it would fail. This, many decided, was not something they wanted a septic system to do...
...some critics liken this to GM's decision to try and begin an advertising campaign for the Chevy Nova in Mexico, which failed miserably due to the fact that the Spanish translation of 'nova' is 'don't go.'"
"...Unfortunately, the poor naming of the company as 'Sceptic's Septic System' eventually had the inevitable effect of raising doubt among potential customers. Most eschewed the product due to the name, claiming that is suggested a strong possibility that it would fail. This, many decided, was not something they wanted a septic system to do...
...some critics liken this to GM's decision to try and begin an advertising campaign for the Chevy Nova in Mexico, which failed miserably due to the fact that the Spanish translation of 'nova' is 'don't go.'"
Vegard Pompey
ALLY TO GOOD, NIGHTMARE TO YOU
I passed up on this to watch Moon, which turned out to be a disappointment.
So I just came back from the cinema, after watching three movies in a row. Despite my headache, I had super fun and it was probably one of the best evenings of my life. (I have low standards.)
First was I'm A Cyborg But That's OK. I've seen part of it before, as it is a few years old. I found it an amusing bastardisation of reality, but I also thought it was longer than it needed to be. 3.5/5 stars.
Second was Antichrist. I was looking forward to this one for two quite different reasons; First of all, because I like von Trier, thought this one seemed like my kind of movie, and because I was curious as to how he would use 110 minutes with just two characters in a cabin in the woods and somehow fit a lot of grisly scenes into it, which was pretty much all I knew about the movie. Secondly, because I love grotesque content in movies and this one was rumoured to have quite a bit.
I loved it. It was a success as a movie and a success as gorn; There weren't that many graphic scenes but the ones that were really stood out. I've actively searched for movies as gorny as possible and this one is a rare "mainstream" film to make it to my toplist among heaps of obscure no-budget supercrap. There was also more psychological weight attached to the nasty scenes.
The atmosphere was terrific, so was the soundtrack. It also had something as rare as good use of handheld cameras, although they were still a bit bulky at times.
The "plot" was... I'm still turning it over in my head. I don't think I understand the film and I almost certainly think I will watch it again soon. Maybe it's because I have no experience with women and know nothing about them, or maybe I just need to give it more time. 4/5 stars.
The third and last movie was Drag Me to Hell. There were a lot more people seeing this one and the audience was louder, overall the mood was more upbeat and festive. I don't often watch movies in cinemas, so I need to ask: Is it normal moviegoer behaviour to laugh and cheer and gasp and yelp and make sounds of disgust, etcetera? I thought it was common courtesy to be quiet in the cinema, but I may be mistaken. The audience was very quiet during all the other movies I watched.
I wasn't remarkably bothered by this, though. It seemed to fit the film. If the audience had been like that during Antichrist or Moon, I would have been really annoyed.
The film itself was entertaining yet disappointing. It was slightly amusing, but Raimi's idea of 'scary' seems to be 'sudden, loud noises'. This doesn't compare to the Evil Dead trilogy.
I wasn't affected much by any of it, but I can't say the same for the guy sitting next to me. The sudden, loud noises seemed to startle him every time and he would look away in disgust at the sight of the slightest things. I made a game of drinking from my cola bottle every time something others would interpret as grisly was on screen. 2.5/5 stars.
Thoughts on the ending:
SPOILERS!!
Seriously, who didn't see the 'twist' coming? But what I intend to speak of is the events before said twist.
While not a particularly original idea, the 'ticket to hell' posed an interesting dilemma; Who would you ever give that letter to? Who would ever deserve an eternity in hell? If you choose to be a hero and take on the suffering yourself, you'd still be punished for your goodness eternally.
I thought the protagonist's solution to this dilemma was a bit cheap; give it to the dead person who was 'evil' enough to bring that curse to the world to begin with. Yeah, it's probably the sensible decision but so boringly convenient.
I suppose you could try to keep the letter in circulation forever. Though someone would probably fuck up somewhere along the line...
END OF SPOILERS
rms
Active Member
any movie buffs here? what's a good 'underground' movie forum? what else is worth checking out, in any style, in foreign films? Big fan of Let the Right One in as well...martyrs got me hooked
no country for old wainds
Active Member
- Nov 23, 2002
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recs:
Criticker (also has a pretty good forum)
RYM (added a movie section recently)
reviews:
FFC
Slant
Village Voice
Eye For Film
Commentary Track (well, that's where my reviews are)
AV Club
forum (i'm prob not the best person to ask for this):
MovieForums
lists:
They Shoot Pictures, Don't They (top 1000 films)
TSP,DT Top 250 of the 21st Century
Empire Top 500
NY Times Top 1000
Sight & Sound Top 10s
some of my favourite foreign movies:
Aguirre: The Wrath of God/Stroszek (Herzog)
Woman in the Dunes (Teshigahara)
Stalker (Tarkovsky)
Ran/Seven Samurai (Kurosawa)
Fireworks (Kitano)
Perfect Blue/Millennium Actress (Kon)
The Wind Will Carry Us (Kiarostami)
In the Mood for Love (Kar-Wai)
Grave of the Fireflies (Takahata)
Criticker (also has a pretty good forum)
RYM (added a movie section recently)
reviews:
FFC
Slant
Village Voice
Eye For Film
Commentary Track (well, that's where my reviews are
)AV Club
forum (i'm prob not the best person to ask for this):
MovieForums
lists:
They Shoot Pictures, Don't They (top 1000 films)
TSP,DT Top 250 of the 21st Century
Empire Top 500
NY Times Top 1000
Sight & Sound Top 10s
some of my favourite foreign movies:
Aguirre: The Wrath of God/Stroszek (Herzog)
Woman in the Dunes (Teshigahara)
Stalker (Tarkovsky)
Ran/Seven Samurai (Kurosawa)
Fireworks (Kitano)
Perfect Blue/Millennium Actress (Kon)
The Wind Will Carry Us (Kiarostami)
In the Mood for Love (Kar-Wai)
Grave of the Fireflies (Takahata)
no country for old wainds
Active Member
- Nov 23, 2002
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btw i've heard from reliable sources that martyrs is amazing and i really need to see it. let the right one in is class of course.
you might want to check out 'inside', another recent french horror which i've seen compared to martyrs.
you might want to check out 'inside', another recent french horror which i've seen compared to martyrs.
rms
Active Member
dug around and found Inside, frontier(s) and Eden Lake...all supposed to be good...martyrs is awesome man, torrent it, then buy it off amazon for like 6 bucks ......appreciate the sites
......appreciate the sites
Evil?
omghaxlol!1
Thank you no country. I have been trying to remember the name of the movie "Fireworks" for a really long time. I saw it a long time ago and have wanted to see it again.
Anticitizen One
A Blurred Photograph
- Dec 18, 2008
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Six of your favorite foreign films are Japanese?
Glad to see Stalker in there, though.
I think Satoshi Kon is a bit overrated, personally. Perfect Blue was alright, but preceded by more interesting films about celebrity, fandom and psychosis from even Hollywood. Millennium Actress... just felt like a pandering and melodramatic 'epic' anime. But I must admit that I saw it at a time when I was pretty jaded by the whole anime thing, to say the least. Actually, some time around 2002 I pretty much decided I hated it, and didn't give it another look until Mind Game somehow caught my attention. And on that note, everything Masaaki Yuasa has done destroys Kon's work (Kemonozume has become my favorite anime series, artistically lightyears beyond 99.9999% of the shit that industry pumps out these days). I suppose Paprika had its moments, though.
Is there an anime thread here for pathetic dorks like us?
Blind Guardian
Member
cookiecutter
Proceed to Ultraslamming
Vegard Pompey
ALLY TO GOOD, NIGHTMARE TO YOU
Just got back from Paranormal Activity. I thought it was entertaining, but I did not understand the crowd's reaction. People were screaming at the slightest 'paranormal activities' and after the movie everyone seemed to comment on how they wouldn't be able to sleep that night or how they didn't even dare to look at the screen by the end. I don't understand how anyone can possibly find a movie frightening but somehow they do... and I envy them.
EDIT: Also, at the end, people were applauding. Why the hell would you applaud at a movie?
EDIT: Also, at the end, people were applauding. Why the hell would you applaud at a movie?
AchrisK
Weakling
People do it.
I thought the movie was somewhat effective at building tension and dread. Unfortunately it also caused me a bit of motion sickness, so my overall experience was tainted. At one point, when the motion sickness was just starting to make itself known, I thought the movie itself was causing me to feel slightly ill from fear, which was odd.
When I went, people did not applaud, but there were annoying teen girls commenting about how lame this and that was.
I thought the movie was somewhat effective at building tension and dread. Unfortunately it also caused me a bit of motion sickness, so my overall experience was tainted. At one point, when the motion sickness was just starting to make itself known, I thought the movie itself was causing me to feel slightly ill from fear, which was odd.
When I went, people did not applaud, but there were annoying teen girls commenting about how lame this and that was.
Psychonaut
God Of Emptiness
Zombieland - Pretty fun flick to say the least. I thought the second act was a bit slow but the whole front end of the movie was so cool I forgave it.
AchrisK
Weakling
I've noticed that a lot of fun and funny movies have a hard time ending well. Things like Ace Ventura, Wayne's World... even Napoleon Dynamite. It's like they are very good at making a lot of funny scenes, but then they feel some need to wrap it up meaningfully, and often it is anticlimactic.
Psychonaut
God Of Emptiness
I think this one ended pretty well. Quick and to the point. But yeah, you're right. It's usually hard to keep a good head of steam the entire movie.
SweptbackFlame
twitch.tv/SweptbackFlame
rms
Active Member
zombieland...gay for the most part, I think it's because that nerdy main character annoys the fuck outta me.
eden's lake...foreign 'thriller' recommended in the vein of Martyrs...really lame don't recommend what so ever
eden's lake...foreign 'thriller' recommended in the vein of Martyrs...really lame don't recommend what so ever
MasterOLightning
Optimator
Watched Crank 2 yesterday. That movie fucking rules so hard. It deserves the A- that the A.V. Club gave it. As a straight comedy it's incredibly funny. Laughs in just about every scene. Anal rape with a shotgun, played for laughs. What else needs to be said? Mandatory viewing.
no country for old wainds
Active Member
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i actually think they're the worst writers out of the ones i listed, but they have good taste and you can sort all their recent reviews by grade so they're pretty helpful for recs.
i've seen a lot of jap films relatively speaking so it stands to reason.
considering mulholland drive's widespread critical reputation as arguably the decade's best i don't really understand why 'perfect blue' isn't more loved. it's an extremely similar (not to mention earlier) film, another desperately perverse articulation of the artificial+fragile nature of the structures we build in the face of chaos/entropy/decay/death (and the horror of their subsequent unravelling - i could watch that climax all day and its gorgeous sunset b.-influenced final shot), not to mention how film serves as a blank screen for our inner monster's idyllic projections. the way it plays upon the animated medium's associative innocence, repeatedly conjuring these images of purity/youth/comfort in contexts which can only subtly (and then not so subtly) corrupt and deform them, is totally fucking disturbing and devastating to me. what i've noticed upon many rewatches is the film's aesthetic unity, the way every element coheres towards its purpose, and what i'm always left with is the screaming despair at its core. it's one of very few recent(ish) films to justify comparisons with hitchcock - hell, it even has the obligatory weak epilogue.
to me that film tackles similar themes from the complete opposite side and it's another hit, as gorgeously bright as 'perfect blue' is chillingly cold. it's a breathless head rush, spinning with creativity and love for the movies as well as understanding and shedding light on that love.
i actually liked 'paprika' the least of the three, but i still liked it a lot and i can't wait to see what he does next. haven't seen 'tokyo godfathers' btw.
i don't really like mind game, or most animé for that matter. always willing to try it though.
