The MOVIES thread
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enderzero
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Y Tu Mama Tambien AKA "And Your Mother Too" - very interesting Mexican movie about love, friendship, and mainly sex. Many quite explicit scenes, but all done tastefully. The movie is full of style. I especially liked the narrative method of muting the audio a second before it came in. I really enjoyed the views of the Mexican countryside and the short topical tangents the narration took. Not a ton of new ground with the subject matter, but a well made and beautiful movie.
Will Ferrell
Anybody heard advance word on the new Will Ferrell movie coming out next June? The trailers look pretty funny.
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enderzero
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Haven't seen any info on that one yet, but I am a pretty big Will Ferrell fan so I imagine it will be good.
American Wedding I actually enjoyed this movie. There are a couple scenes that were extremely funny and, dare I say, well done. The main one I have in mind is the bachelor party/dinner scene. The MILF jokes are pretty good as well. I have heard criticism that this movie is all about Stiffler. It certainly has a lot more stiffler, but that's okay, because Jason Biggs really isn't much of an actor and Fred Willard and Eugene Levy can only be in so many scenes (Willard's role btw is far too small and without any great lines). Sean William Scott is actually good and pretty damn funny...in a poo poo pee pee kinda way. Once again, my expectations were low, and they were happily met.
American Wedding I actually enjoyed this movie. There are a couple scenes that were extremely funny and, dare I say, well done. The main one I have in mind is the bachelor party/dinner scene. The MILF jokes are pretty good as well. I have heard criticism that this movie is all about Stiffler. It certainly has a lot more stiffler, but that's okay, because Jason Biggs really isn't much of an actor and Fred Willard and Eugene Levy can only be in so many scenes (Willard's role btw is far too small and without any great lines). Sean William Scott is actually good and pretty damn funny...in a poo poo pee pee kinda way. Once again, my expectations were low, and they were happily met.
well...since now we are talking about high quality american cinema, I will add 2 more excellent 
movies I suffered through recently.
HULK ahhh....so we all know the story...the movie made me very angry....you do not want to make me angry...directed by ang lee...didnt he make crouching tiger hidden dragon??? what the hell was he thinking with this movie?? the scene transitions felt like watching TV instead of a movie...characters weak...nick nolte should pick his roles better...as for special effects...its cool and all, but i dont care how good it looks, a green giant bouncing in the desert is not too exciting for me...I had low expectations, and they were NOT met....booooo
Bulletproof Monk oh my god....here is the story, let me know when you want me to shoot you...WWII...evil Nazi general goes to Tibet to look for a secret scroll that provides its keeper with immortality and ultimate power...monks guard scroll...change guard every 60 years...Chow yun Fat is the guard...beats evil nazi...nazi swears revenge...60 years later, Chow finds STIFFLER (sorry...that dude is gonna be type-casted for the rest of his career...) and he becomes the next scroll guardian....defeats the nazi again...throw in some cheezy love story, and a few terrible fight scenes....I am cringing just thinking about it again...2 thumbs down!
danz
movies I suffered through recently.HULK ahhh....so we all know the story...the movie made me very angry....you do not want to make me angry...directed by ang lee...didnt he make crouching tiger hidden dragon??? what the hell was he thinking with this movie?? the scene transitions felt like watching TV instead of a movie...characters weak...nick nolte should pick his roles better...as for special effects...its cool and all, but i dont care how good it looks, a green giant bouncing in the desert is not too exciting for me...I had low expectations, and they were NOT met....booooo
Bulletproof Monk oh my god....here is the story, let me know when you want me to shoot you...WWII...evil Nazi general goes to Tibet to look for a secret scroll that provides its keeper with immortality and ultimate power...monks guard scroll...change guard every 60 years...Chow yun Fat is the guard...beats evil nazi...nazi swears revenge...60 years later, Chow finds STIFFLER (sorry...that dude is gonna be type-casted for the rest of his career...) and he becomes the next scroll guardian....defeats the nazi again...throw in some cheezy love story, and a few terrible fight scenes....I am cringing just thinking about it again...2 thumbs down!
danz
stay under the 1yen curve!
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Bill Drayton Jr.
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This thread is too long
I don't even want to read it...in fact I'm skipping the most recent pages...
let me tell you what a good movie is:
If you see a movie, and you like it - then it's good...
let me tell you what a good movie is:
If you see a movie, and you like it - then it's good...
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enderzero
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The Last Samurai All I can really think of to write about this movie is negative criticism...but I actually did enjoy it. I did not, however, enjoy Tom Cruise's performance. I have never been a huge fan of his, but I have also never jumped on the Cruise bashing bandwagon. I see now why so many people think he is so overrated. He has basically been playing the Maverick role from Top Gun his whole career. There are a few other minor problems with the movie. What is up with the ninja scene. They get attacked by like 100 ninja. First of all, didn't ninja operate in very small numbers? And second, how many ninja were really around in 1875? So what can I say that is positive? Well it certainly is epic. The sword play is excellent. Overall I recommend the movie, even if you have to turn on the ol' suspension of disbelief.
Master & Commander Russell Crowe gives another great performance, this time as Captain Jack Aubrey. I didn't know at the time, but I guess this character is based on a series of books. That explains why the movie felt like it was just an episode of a larger story. I wouldn't mind checking out the books. The movie was pretty, but I couldn't help wondering if anything bad was really going to happen. Where was the antagonist? I recommend it, but I wouldn't count on it making a reappearance at Oscar time.
Pirates of the Caribbean It took me 6 months to see this and I finally did on an airplane. Why did I wait so long? This movie is great! Depp is spectacular. I now remember why he used to be my favorite actor (back in 21 Jump St. days). The story is extremely entertaining, and didn't feel too "fun for the whole family." The ship shots are great as well. Check this one out if you missed it.
Master & Commander Russell Crowe gives another great performance, this time as Captain Jack Aubrey. I didn't know at the time, but I guess this character is based on a series of books. That explains why the movie felt like it was just an episode of a larger story. I wouldn't mind checking out the books. The movie was pretty, but I couldn't help wondering if anything bad was really going to happen. Where was the antagonist? I recommend it, but I wouldn't count on it making a reappearance at Oscar time.
Pirates of the Caribbean It took me 6 months to see this and I finally did on an airplane. Why did I wait so long? This movie is great! Depp is spectacular. I now remember why he used to be my favorite actor (back in 21 Jump St. days). The story is extremely entertaining, and didn't feel too "fun for the whole family." The ship shots are great as well. Check this one out if you missed it.
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mistasparkle*
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mistasparkle*
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enderzero
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In America A beautiful and touching film by Jim Sheridan of My Left Foot fame. The story follows an Irish family as they illegally immigrate to Manhattan so that the father can try his luck on Broadway. The family takes up a run down apartment in a NYC slum filled with junkies and other interesting characters, most notably the brilliant Djimon Hounsou as Mateo. But the show is truly stolen by the young Christy played by Sarah Bolger. Watch this girl because she has a look in her eye that just screams star. Her real life younger sister plays her screen counterpart, but unfortunately, overplays it a bit. It is hard to call this movie an uplifting story, even though it is far from depressing. It is real, and I imagine it will stay with me for quite some time.
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enderzero
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Girl with a Pearl Earring I read the book over the summer and enjoyed it moderately. The movie is pretty, but I enjoyed it less than the book. Scarlett Johansson is certainly a good actress, but Griet is such a boring character it is hard to feel much for her. At least the book had some narrative that explained what was going on in the girl's head. The movie just comes out quiet and I imagine it would have been confusing or at least boring had I not read the book. All the Griet's family back story is left out and the butcher's son subplot is considerably abbrieviated. Johansson is much better in her sardonic roles in Ghost World and Lost in Translation. Colin Firth is strong in his typical period piece role, but not enough to save this movie that feels rushed and flat.
Matchstick Men Nicolas Cage superbly stars as a twitchy con artist in this entertaining Ridley Scott film. I used to not care for Cage much due to his performances in movies like Face Off and Gone in 60 Seconds, but after Adaptation and this my opinion has changed. Cage handles all of his character's obsessive compulsive habits perfectly believably. I should also note that Alison Lohman does a great job as Angela.
The Station Agent Brilliant! I am sure this movie has received all kinds of acclaim in the US. It deserves it. The story follows a dwarf (Peter Dinklage) with a love for trains that moves to a small town to live in the train depot. He meets a talkative New Yorker (Bobby Canavale) and a quiet woman (Patricia Clarkson) that try their best to make him feel welcome. What they really want is a friend. The three of them have amazing on screen chemistry. Dinklage does so much with the character I was in awe. Every touch is so subtle, yet so believable. The supporting cast are all perfectly played as well. Clarkson has had many small roles, but the actors are all relatively unknown (look for Joe Lo Truglio from MTV's The State as a town local). I imagine many will get noticed after this. Not all that much happens in this, the debut film from writer/director Thomas McCarthy, but it is the subtlties that fill you with emotion and undeniable enjoyment.
Matchstick Men Nicolas Cage superbly stars as a twitchy con artist in this entertaining Ridley Scott film. I used to not care for Cage much due to his performances in movies like Face Off and Gone in 60 Seconds, but after Adaptation and this my opinion has changed. Cage handles all of his character's obsessive compulsive habits perfectly believably. I should also note that Alison Lohman does a great job as Angela.
The Station Agent Brilliant! I am sure this movie has received all kinds of acclaim in the US. It deserves it. The story follows a dwarf (Peter Dinklage) with a love for trains that moves to a small town to live in the train depot. He meets a talkative New Yorker (Bobby Canavale) and a quiet woman (Patricia Clarkson) that try their best to make him feel welcome. What they really want is a friend. The three of them have amazing on screen chemistry. Dinklage does so much with the character I was in awe. Every touch is so subtle, yet so believable. The supporting cast are all perfectly played as well. Clarkson has had many small roles, but the actors are all relatively unknown (look for Joe Lo Truglio from MTV's The State as a town local). I imagine many will get noticed after this. Not all that much happens in this, the debut film from writer/director Thomas McCarthy, but it is the subtlties that fill you with emotion and undeniable enjoyment.
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enderzero
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Thirteen Kinda strange movie about a messed up 13 year old girl going through her rebellion. The girl wants to be popular so she makes friends with another slutty, drug addicted, cleptomaniacal 13 year old girl. Her life spirals out of conrtol from there and we, the audience, just have to cringe and try to bare it. At one point I considered turning the movie off, but like a car accident I had to watch it. The movie is shot with a lot of hand held cam which gives it a cool visual style. Holly Hunter is good as the mother but the really interesting one is the 14 year old girl, Nikki Reed, that plays the friend and actually co-wrote the movie. I wonder if we'll see more of her.
The Dish Funny and interesting true story of the little town of Parkes in Australia that was responsible for receiving the transmission from the lunar landing of Apollo 11. Sam Neill does a nice job as the team leader and Patrick Warburton, best known for his role as Puddy on Seinfeld, is compelling as the NASA tech sent to Parkes. He would have been so much better than Brendan Fraser in The Quiet American.
The Dish Funny and interesting true story of the little town of Parkes in Australia that was responsible for receiving the transmission from the lunar landing of Apollo 11. Sam Neill does a nice job as the team leader and Patrick Warburton, best known for his role as Puddy on Seinfeld, is compelling as the NASA tech sent to Parkes. He would have been so much better than Brendan Fraser in The Quiet American.
Last edited by enderzero on Thu Feb 12, 2004 5:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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mistasparkle*
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Finally saw Lost in Translation. Fantastic! Great script, and perfect chemistry between bill murray and scarlet johanneson (if thats how you spell it). I kinda wished there were more scenes of them out and about in tokyo, but overall I really enjoyed it. The ending was also refreshingly unformulaic...
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SpeedCricket
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They interviewed that girl from Thirteen on the radio about a month ago and she went on and on about how she was the good girl character in real life and really wanted to play the bad girl/friend to see what the "other side was like." She was mildly annoying on air, and it sounds as if her movie was also. She also claimed to have written the script all by her lonesome.
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enderzero
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Full Frontal The latest film by Steven Soderbergh - I guess it came out last year in the states but I totally missed it. Well it just came out here in Japan (although I didn't see it in the theater). The reviewer for the local English city mag called it a stunt to prove that Soderbergh can still direct indie feeling flicks along the lines of Sex, Lies, and Videotape. He also said it wasn't very good. I agree with the first part, but not the second. Soderbergh has always used visual devices to set his films apart, and Full Frontal takes this to the extreme. He apparently tries to overwhelm the viewer with style and I think he succeeds. There is really no need to talk about the plot because it doesn't really matter, but the acting is superb. No Clooney (shocking!) but Soderbergh regulars Julia Roberts, and Catherine Keener both have main roles. The big surprise is the stunning performance by Blair Underwood. I am interested to know what other Soderbergh followers think of this movie.
Midnight Cowboy and Roger Dodger While made more than 30 years apart, I found a lot of similarities between these two movies. Both involve a relatively inexperienced guy traveling to New York city and being taken under the wing of someone with more experience. Midnight Cowboy, which won the Best Picture Academy Award in 1969 stars a very young Jon Voight as the green cowboy Joe Buck and Dustin Hoffman as the sickly Ratso. It is kinda depressing, and not one of my favorite movies from the era, but an interesting film to study none the less. Roger Dodger stars the great Campbell Scott as he guides his 16 year old nephew through a night out on the town, trying to get the poor boy some action. Of course, Scott is really just trying to pick up the pieces of his own shallow life, but that never sways his confidence. Scott is a pleasure to watch, and while the movie is not without its faults, it is entertaining none the less.
Bend it Like Beckham What was all the hype about for this movie? It seemed completely formulaic. Just a little happy movie with some pretty girls and a lot of soccer. The Indian family scenes looked fun and I found myself hungry for curry and nan the whole film.
Midnight Cowboy and Roger Dodger While made more than 30 years apart, I found a lot of similarities between these two movies. Both involve a relatively inexperienced guy traveling to New York city and being taken under the wing of someone with more experience. Midnight Cowboy, which won the Best Picture Academy Award in 1969 stars a very young Jon Voight as the green cowboy Joe Buck and Dustin Hoffman as the sickly Ratso. It is kinda depressing, and not one of my favorite movies from the era, but an interesting film to study none the less. Roger Dodger stars the great Campbell Scott as he guides his 16 year old nephew through a night out on the town, trying to get the poor boy some action. Of course, Scott is really just trying to pick up the pieces of his own shallow life, but that never sways his confidence. Scott is a pleasure to watch, and while the movie is not without its faults, it is entertaining none the less.
Bend it Like Beckham What was all the hype about for this movie? It seemed completely formulaic. Just a little happy movie with some pretty girls and a lot of soccer. The Indian family scenes looked fun and I found myself hungry for curry and nan the whole film.
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spidermonkey
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Destino This short film was started in 1946 as a collaboration between Walt Disney and Salvador Dali. Nothing happened for fifty or so years and then the project was revived and completed in 2003 by Disney's Paris studio. It's basically a bunch of typical Dali paintings moving and interacting with each other. The animation is very well done. This is the best thing that Disney has produced in a long time.
The Triplets of Belleville French, Animated film about a cyclist in the Tour de France who is kidnapped by the mafia and brought to the city of Belleville, (a parody of New York.) It's up to his faithfull dog and Grandmother to try to rescue him. This movie is superbly animated. The characters and backgrounds are all nicely designed. The story is full of French humor and told with an almost complete lack of dialogue. This is an excellent film and certainly different from the animation coming out of America and Japan.
The Triplets of Belleville French, Animated film about a cyclist in the Tour de France who is kidnapped by the mafia and brought to the city of Belleville, (a parody of New York.) It's up to his faithfull dog and Grandmother to try to rescue him. This movie is superbly animated. The characters and backgrounds are all nicely designed. The story is full of French humor and told with an almost complete lack of dialogue. This is an excellent film and certainly different from the animation coming out of America and Japan.
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SpeedCricket
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House of Sand and Fog. Not a movie that I would typically pay theater prices to see, but it was for a friend's b-day so...
Very powerful movie revolving around a house on the California coast that is mistakenly repossessed from Jennifer Connelly by the county and sold to an Iranian immigrant played by Ben Kingsley. Kingsley is amazing in this, but be warned, this movie is a major downer. Great story that puts you in the shoes of every character and forces you to respect all of them and their motives. Definite renter; if you go to the theater be warned: this movie will not leave you with a happy feeling (in a good way though - if that makes sense).
Very powerful movie revolving around a house on the California coast that is mistakenly repossessed from Jennifer Connelly by the county and sold to an Iranian immigrant played by Ben Kingsley. Kingsley is amazing in this, but be warned, this movie is a major downer. Great story that puts you in the shoes of every character and forces you to respect all of them and their motives. Definite renter; if you go to the theater be warned: this movie will not leave you with a happy feeling (in a good way though - if that makes sense).
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enderzero
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There is not a lot to do in backwater Hokkaido other than snowboard and drink. Of course those happen to be two of my favorite things so I was happy. Unfortunately I can't snowboard and/or drink every waking hour...so I too get a bit bored. I made the horrible mistake of not bringing my PC (at least I could have been productive, even without net access) but luckily a cool man named River showed up with a binder full of 100 bootleg dvds from Bali. So we watched a lot of movies. Many multiple times. I think I saw Lost in Translation 4 or 5 times. Here are some I remember:
Once Upon a Time in Mexico It was everything I had hoped for and a bit more. Johnny Depp is quickly becoming one of my favorite big budget actors. The action is great and the story is funny. But how can they put Salma Hayek on the poster? Did she even have one line?
Mystic River Great film starring Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, and Kevin Bacon. All three are superb. The film reminded me of a feature length epsiode of Homicide, which at least used to be a gret TV series. I highly recommend this one.
Repo Man Better known for its punk rock soundtrack than the actual quality of the movie, this weird 80's movie about aliens and car repo men is the film that made Emilio Estevez the super star that he is today. 'nuff said.
Lara Croft: Tombraider While technically I think I have seen this movie before, it was fun to watch Angelina Jolie bounce (as in DOA bounce) around Angkor Wat. Last time I just thought it was a Hollywood set, but no, those otherworldly sites are for real ...well maybe not the ones on her chest.
Mona Lisa Smile Really good movie with an amazing cast of Julia Roberts, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Kirsten Dunst, and Julia Stiles. They latter 3 play brilliant women at a famous woman's university in the 60's. Roberts is their brilliant and radical teacher. The movie examines the gender roles sometimes forced on and sometimes assumed by these East Coast ladies without falling into the typical hollywood traps. This movie is very well made and I also highly recommend it.
Bad Santa Off beat and funny comedy about a drunk thief that plays a Santa in a mall and ends up crashing at some kid's house basically because he can. I had low expectations but did enjoy it, mainly because of Billy Bob Thornton's performance and the hilarious little kid. There are some really good scenes. I haven't laughed as hard as I did when the kid said his name was Thurman Merman in a long time. The movie is the 4th film by Terry (Ghostworld) Zwigoff, although I wasn't aware of that at the time.
Runaway Jury Grisham book turned movie starring John Cusack, Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman. I imagine the book was better. The plot had more holes in it than a bad guy in Once Upon a Time in Mexico. Rachel Weisz sure is a looker though.
Out of Time Above average thriller starring Denzel and the smmmmmokin hot Eva Mendes. It is pretty well made for what it is.
Captain Corelli's Mandolin I guess it was better than I expected, but pretty average. Great scenery but Nicholas Cage's accent gets really annoying. Worth watching if you ever find yourself in a snowed in chalet in Japan with nothing better to do.
Tigerland Colin Farrell (pre-popularity) movie about a smart ass recruit training to go off to Vietnam. Well shot but completely average and stinks of Hollywood to the high heavens.
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Strange but not too bad movie about TV exec Chuck Barris in the 50s and 60s that moonlighted as a CIA operative. This guy is still alive, but no one seems to be able to verify his story so they don't call it a true story. Sam Rockwell is great as Barris and Clooney has an okay role, but I though Drew Barrymore was miscast as the love interest.
Duplex Another Ben Stiller movie where everything just goes wrong for poor Ben. This time he's got the less and less likable Drew Barrymore along for the ride as well. I don't like this genre, and thus didn't like the movie.
Well those are all I remember right now, although I am sure more will come to me in the next few days.
Once Upon a Time in Mexico It was everything I had hoped for and a bit more. Johnny Depp is quickly becoming one of my favorite big budget actors. The action is great and the story is funny. But how can they put Salma Hayek on the poster? Did she even have one line?
Mystic River Great film starring Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, and Kevin Bacon. All three are superb. The film reminded me of a feature length epsiode of Homicide, which at least used to be a gret TV series. I highly recommend this one.
Repo Man Better known for its punk rock soundtrack than the actual quality of the movie, this weird 80's movie about aliens and car repo men is the film that made Emilio Estevez the super star that he is today. 'nuff said.
Lara Croft: Tombraider While technically I think I have seen this movie before, it was fun to watch Angelina Jolie bounce (as in DOA bounce) around Angkor Wat. Last time I just thought it was a Hollywood set, but no, those otherworldly sites are for real ...well maybe not the ones on her chest.
Mona Lisa Smile Really good movie with an amazing cast of Julia Roberts, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Kirsten Dunst, and Julia Stiles. They latter 3 play brilliant women at a famous woman's university in the 60's. Roberts is their brilliant and radical teacher. The movie examines the gender roles sometimes forced on and sometimes assumed by these East Coast ladies without falling into the typical hollywood traps. This movie is very well made and I also highly recommend it.
Bad Santa Off beat and funny comedy about a drunk thief that plays a Santa in a mall and ends up crashing at some kid's house basically because he can. I had low expectations but did enjoy it, mainly because of Billy Bob Thornton's performance and the hilarious little kid. There are some really good scenes. I haven't laughed as hard as I did when the kid said his name was Thurman Merman in a long time. The movie is the 4th film by Terry (Ghostworld) Zwigoff, although I wasn't aware of that at the time.
Runaway Jury Grisham book turned movie starring John Cusack, Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman. I imagine the book was better. The plot had more holes in it than a bad guy in Once Upon a Time in Mexico. Rachel Weisz sure is a looker though.
Out of Time Above average thriller starring Denzel and the smmmmmokin hot Eva Mendes. It is pretty well made for what it is.
Captain Corelli's Mandolin I guess it was better than I expected, but pretty average. Great scenery but Nicholas Cage's accent gets really annoying. Worth watching if you ever find yourself in a snowed in chalet in Japan with nothing better to do.
Tigerland Colin Farrell (pre-popularity) movie about a smart ass recruit training to go off to Vietnam. Well shot but completely average and stinks of Hollywood to the high heavens.
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Strange but not too bad movie about TV exec Chuck Barris in the 50s and 60s that moonlighted as a CIA operative. This guy is still alive, but no one seems to be able to verify his story so they don't call it a true story. Sam Rockwell is great as Barris and Clooney has an okay role, but I though Drew Barrymore was miscast as the love interest.
Duplex Another Ben Stiller movie where everything just goes wrong for poor Ben. This time he's got the less and less likable Drew Barrymore along for the ride as well. I don't like this genre, and thus didn't like the movie.
Well those are all I remember right now, although I am sure more will come to me in the next few days.
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SpeedCricket
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enderzero
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Lord of the Rings: Return of the King The triumphant and mostly flawless end to a fantastic trilogy. I'm sure most people have seen this baby by now so I won't go into too many details. If you haven't seen it you probably don't want too many details either. Go see it! If you thought the battle of Helms Deep was fantastic, just wait until the battle of Minas Tirith. Amazing! I just keep thinking that the CG has gotten so good they can do absolutely anything they can imagine. The story wraps up well and I heard sniffles from all over the theater for the last 20 minutes or so. What a great trilogy this has been! Big budget movie making at its best. I am more than a little bit interested in going to New Zealand now. Damn does it ever look beautiful.
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SpeedCricket
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enderzero
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Confidence A pretty standard Hollywood flick about a conman, played by Edward Burns, trying to pull a big grift. No real new ground covered. Rachel Weisz plays the hard talkin, pick-pocketin love interest. Dustin Hoffman plays a sleazy criminal. Both are uninspired. The only really good performance comes from Paul Giamatti, star of the recent American Splendor. I wouldn't recommend against seeing this movie, but don't hope to be surprised by much.
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SpeedCricket
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enderzero
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plane movies...
Secondhand Lions A cute little movie with a good cast. Haley Joel Osment plays a kid left by his mom with his strange uncles played by Robert Duvall and Michael Caine. Osment is not incredibly impressive but Caine and Duvall are pretty good as to be expected. The best scenes are probably the flashback scenes while Caine tells of their past as swashbucklers in Africa. The movie is worth killing some time with on a plane but I won't go too much further than that.
Intolerable Cruelty I wasn't hoping for much from this Coen brothers film starring Clooney and Zeta Jones after the rotten reviews I heard from friends and family. I was pleasantly surprised with what I found to be a pretty decent movie. It is certainly not the best work by the Coens but Clooney is great and there are some enjoyable small roles played by Billy Bob Thornton and Geoffrey Rush. Zeta Jones is dissappointing, though, and not at all believable. There are some pretty classic Coen scenes that I thought worked and the movie as a whole achieved what it seemed to set out to. I guess it is all about expectations.
Secondhand Lions A cute little movie with a good cast. Haley Joel Osment plays a kid left by his mom with his strange uncles played by Robert Duvall and Michael Caine. Osment is not incredibly impressive but Caine and Duvall are pretty good as to be expected. The best scenes are probably the flashback scenes while Caine tells of their past as swashbucklers in Africa. The movie is worth killing some time with on a plane but I won't go too much further than that.
Intolerable Cruelty I wasn't hoping for much from this Coen brothers film starring Clooney and Zeta Jones after the rotten reviews I heard from friends and family. I was pleasantly surprised with what I found to be a pretty decent movie. It is certainly not the best work by the Coens but Clooney is great and there are some enjoyable small roles played by Billy Bob Thornton and Geoffrey Rush. Zeta Jones is dissappointing, though, and not at all believable. There are some pretty classic Coen scenes that I thought worked and the movie as a whole achieved what it seemed to set out to. I guess it is all about expectations.
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mistasparkle*
- Hitching Post
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I posted this on another forum... thought it would be good for this thread.
Watched a couple of Japanese movies recently...
壬生義士伝 (Mibu Gishiden)[imdb] - A samurai drama about the shinsengumi, which were the special personal guards of the shogun. Well done, good fight scenes, and not too much overacting (which most j-dramas are plagued by). More of a drama than an action movie, but a well done drama.
and
GO [imdb] - A movie about a Japan-born, half-north korean half-japanese high school kid (starring Kubozuka Yosuke), and the problems he faces and choices he has to make growing up in japan. I thought the subject matter was handled pretty well, the editing was good, but had some overacting in a few parts. Besides the "main" story which is about the relationship between the main character and his japanese love interest, there are a few other side plots that worked really well. I enjoyed it, and definitely recommend it.
I downloaded 凶気の桜(kyouki no sakura) [imdb] also starring Kubozuka Yosuke, and watched the 1st half hour, but couldn't understand at all, and wasn't able to find subtitles. A Japanese friend saw it and said he liked it alot...
Watched a couple of Japanese movies recently...
壬生義士伝 (Mibu Gishiden)[imdb] - A samurai drama about the shinsengumi, which were the special personal guards of the shogun. Well done, good fight scenes, and not too much overacting (which most j-dramas are plagued by). More of a drama than an action movie, but a well done drama.
and
GO [imdb] - A movie about a Japan-born, half-north korean half-japanese high school kid (starring Kubozuka Yosuke), and the problems he faces and choices he has to make growing up in japan. I thought the subject matter was handled pretty well, the editing was good, but had some overacting in a few parts. Besides the "main" story which is about the relationship between the main character and his japanese love interest, there are a few other side plots that worked really well. I enjoyed it, and definitely recommend it.
I downloaded 凶気の桜(kyouki no sakura) [imdb] also starring Kubozuka Yosuke, and watched the 1st half hour, but couldn't understand at all, and wasn't able to find subtitles. A Japanese friend saw it and said he liked it alot...
I recently saw "Twighlight Samurai" (imdb is for squares) on free-for-all public TV. This was the Japan candidate for the Best Foreign Film category of this year's Oscars. I thought this was a beautifully paced film with a great performance by Hiroyuki Sanada. People who saw the "Last Samurai" will recognize him as the gnarly, second-in-command samurai who originally challenged Tom "Dances With Japanese" Cruise, but grew to respect him (sniff!).
I saw the film without subtitles and could follow most of the plot (if not all of the details).
I saw the film without subtitles and could follow most of the plot (if not all of the details).
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enderzero
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Along Came Polly Damn Ben Stiller makes a lot of movies. I probably would have wanted to watch this movie had I even heard about it before I actually saw it in a cafe on Koh Phi Phi. Mainly I would have been attracted by Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jennifer Aniston. Hoffman's basketball scenes are hilarious and both Aniston and Stiller play their normal well acted roles, but the movie is really stolen by Hank Azaria as the incredibly funny Claude (I knew it was him damn it!). "Are you for scuba?" Unfortunately his role is much too short, but every line he delivers is gut busting. Other than that the movie is just a pretty standard romantic comedy.
ゲーム (titled "G@ME on the movie) Japanese flick I caught on the plane ride back form KL. Pretty typical hostage kind of movie with some really predictable "plot twists." Not too impressive but it killed a couple hours on the plane. I'm sure better then the other movie options of "Brother Bear," "Thir13en Ghosts," "Chasing Liberty," and "Honey."
ゲーム (titled "G@ME on the movie) Japanese flick I caught on the plane ride back form KL. Pretty typical hostage kind of movie with some really predictable "plot twists." Not too impressive but it killed a couple hours on the plane. I'm sure better then the other movie options of "Brother Bear," "Thir13en Ghosts," "Chasing Liberty," and "Honey."