What was the last movie you've seen?
-
onemanfilmcrew
- 64-bit
- Posts: 382
- Joined: Fri Aug 15, 2008 9:31 am
- Location: Austin, TX
- Contact:
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
The Crazies, pure horror awesomeness. Outside of the basic concept and a few winks/nods to the original it is completely different from the Romero version. It starts out fast, things get really bad really quickly, and it is a tense film. One of the best films out there at the moment.
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
I finished up watching most of the 2009 Best Picture nominees (part 1 can be found here: http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... start=1972). I skipped Avatar and that Sandra Bullock movie as I still intend to see the former in a theater and have zero interest in the latter.
The Hurt Locker (2009) – This is my pick for picture of the year, and it is easily one of the best war films of the past decade. Though I would never classify it as a horror film, the sense of tension and unease throughout the film is palpable and the reality is more frightening than any horror film I’ve seen in quite a while. In some ways it reminds me of one my other favorite war films, The Thin Red Line, without as many of the philosophical overtones. Unlike the sometimes heavy-handedness of that film, here the moments of introspection are primarily shown with the camera, illustrated in small scenes and snippets of dialogue, and left for the viewer to ponder. Gorgeously filmed, expertly acted, and by far the best Iraq war film we’ve seen.
Grade: 5/5
Up (2009) – I recently watched Monsters Inc. for the first time and determined that it was the most kid-centric of the Pixar films (though I haven’t seen Cars). It was also my least favorite. This one is probably their most adult-oriented, and tackles the issue of aging with grace and poignancy. And though I don’t know if it’s my favorite Pixar film, it is a fantastical story that almost had me in tears from both laughter and sadness, and one that melted the misses. My only gripe is really that it was a bit short and the ending left a little bit to be desired (and seemed designed to set up a sequel), but the film certainly deserves it’s praise.
Grade: 4/5
District 9 (2009) – Maybe I let the web’s collective hard-on for this film set up some false hopes, but I was ultimately disappointed with this one. It seems that any new movie IP that tries to do something new with comics, fantasy, horror, sci-fi, or special effect gets adorned as the next best thing (see the praise for Watchmen or Cloverfield for example) without much attention ever being paid to the most important parts of the film: the plot, acting, and the directing. On the last point this one is ok when it avoids the shaky-cam syndrome, and certainly the sets add some novelty to the genre. But on plot and acting, this film just didn’t cut it for me. You feel zero sympathy for any of the characters, and in fact I found myself highly disinterested in what happened to anybody, alien or human. As for the plot – the film starts off strong enough with an intriguing concept, but quickly devolves into a stereotypical chase film vehicle that was designed for special effects. Ultimately I felt this had more in common with films like Men in Black or Alien vs. Predator than with the great sci-fi landmarks it was often compared too. That’s not to say it wasn’t worth checking out, but perhaps lower your expectations. I don’t know why this is a best picture nominee.
Grade: 2.5/5
A Serious Man (2009) – I should start by confessing that the Coen Brothers have long been my favorite directors, and that it has become difficult for me to view their films objectively. They treat this highly-personal film with the same careful pacing, studied cinematography, and expert casting that mark almost of their films. It is another study in quality, inspired film making. That said, this one didn’t really interest or impress me. It had a few funny parts, it had a thought-provoking ending, and it had lots of nice little touches – but it all failed to come together for me the way that their other films have. Maybe the subject matter just wasn’t my thing, or maybe I didn’t get all the humor since I don’t share the same cultural background. Still, the film is worth seeing for any fans of the brothers’ work.
Grade: 3/5
Up in the Air (2009) – I had mixed feelings about this one, though I think it deserves its place in the Best Picture category. The way that it presents travel in the first half of the film reminds me of how films like Fight Club represent materialism or Requiem for a Dream represent drug addiction: this is a good thing. In fact, the whole first half of the film (before Clooney’s decision upon returning to Omaha) is excellent as it is full of witty dialogue, some memorable performances, and a engaging presentation of life on the road. The second half is a little less interesting – too much predictability, sappiness, and actors going through the motions. Still, it is probably the best picture nominee that made me laugh the most (with the possible exception of Up), and makes for a much better than average date movie.
Grade: 3.5/5
The Road (2009) – It’s not a Best Picture nominee, but I watched this on a forum member’s recommendation that it should be. I haven’t read the book, so my thoughts here are unreflective of that. I felt that this film was an interesting take on what was essentially a zombie movie, and that the interaction between the father and son which drove the film seemed quite genuine. Still, some plot problems irked me. I kept asking why would they leave one place or another, why would they decide to do this thing or that, etc. The sense of dread and suspense/fear that the film tries to get across just doesn’t quite work outside of one scene or two, and the more interesting supporting characters get too little screen time in my opinion. Though Mortensen is adequate here, the actor that plays his son brings nothing to the film. I did appreciate the way that the bleak scenery was presented, and the score was probably the highlight of the film (Nick Cave is quickly becoming one of my favorite film scorers).
Grade: 2.5/5
If I had to whittle down the existing 10 Best Picture nominees to a top 5, it would probably be: The Hurt Locker (winner), Precious (close second), Up, An Education, and Up in the Air. I’d happily substitute one of those last two for Zombieland
.
Which film do you think was the best of 2009?
Next Up: Julie and Julia, The Messenger and - Avatar, perhaps? Maybe Invictus, too. I’d also like to see Moon, which others have argued should be included above. Plus, I have a bunch of recommended sci-fi/horror films lined up to watch in the near future, so maybe I’ll start moving through those.
The Hurt Locker (2009) – This is my pick for picture of the year, and it is easily one of the best war films of the past decade. Though I would never classify it as a horror film, the sense of tension and unease throughout the film is palpable and the reality is more frightening than any horror film I’ve seen in quite a while. In some ways it reminds me of one my other favorite war films, The Thin Red Line, without as many of the philosophical overtones. Unlike the sometimes heavy-handedness of that film, here the moments of introspection are primarily shown with the camera, illustrated in small scenes and snippets of dialogue, and left for the viewer to ponder. Gorgeously filmed, expertly acted, and by far the best Iraq war film we’ve seen.
Grade: 5/5
Up (2009) – I recently watched Monsters Inc. for the first time and determined that it was the most kid-centric of the Pixar films (though I haven’t seen Cars). It was also my least favorite. This one is probably their most adult-oriented, and tackles the issue of aging with grace and poignancy. And though I don’t know if it’s my favorite Pixar film, it is a fantastical story that almost had me in tears from both laughter and sadness, and one that melted the misses. My only gripe is really that it was a bit short and the ending left a little bit to be desired (and seemed designed to set up a sequel), but the film certainly deserves it’s praise.
Grade: 4/5
District 9 (2009) – Maybe I let the web’s collective hard-on for this film set up some false hopes, but I was ultimately disappointed with this one. It seems that any new movie IP that tries to do something new with comics, fantasy, horror, sci-fi, or special effect gets adorned as the next best thing (see the praise for Watchmen or Cloverfield for example) without much attention ever being paid to the most important parts of the film: the plot, acting, and the directing. On the last point this one is ok when it avoids the shaky-cam syndrome, and certainly the sets add some novelty to the genre. But on plot and acting, this film just didn’t cut it for me. You feel zero sympathy for any of the characters, and in fact I found myself highly disinterested in what happened to anybody, alien or human. As for the plot – the film starts off strong enough with an intriguing concept, but quickly devolves into a stereotypical chase film vehicle that was designed for special effects. Ultimately I felt this had more in common with films like Men in Black or Alien vs. Predator than with the great sci-fi landmarks it was often compared too. That’s not to say it wasn’t worth checking out, but perhaps lower your expectations. I don’t know why this is a best picture nominee.
Grade: 2.5/5
A Serious Man (2009) – I should start by confessing that the Coen Brothers have long been my favorite directors, and that it has become difficult for me to view their films objectively. They treat this highly-personal film with the same careful pacing, studied cinematography, and expert casting that mark almost of their films. It is another study in quality, inspired film making. That said, this one didn’t really interest or impress me. It had a few funny parts, it had a thought-provoking ending, and it had lots of nice little touches – but it all failed to come together for me the way that their other films have. Maybe the subject matter just wasn’t my thing, or maybe I didn’t get all the humor since I don’t share the same cultural background. Still, the film is worth seeing for any fans of the brothers’ work.
Grade: 3/5
Up in the Air (2009) – I had mixed feelings about this one, though I think it deserves its place in the Best Picture category. The way that it presents travel in the first half of the film reminds me of how films like Fight Club represent materialism or Requiem for a Dream represent drug addiction: this is a good thing. In fact, the whole first half of the film (before Clooney’s decision upon returning to Omaha) is excellent as it is full of witty dialogue, some memorable performances, and a engaging presentation of life on the road. The second half is a little less interesting – too much predictability, sappiness, and actors going through the motions. Still, it is probably the best picture nominee that made me laugh the most (with the possible exception of Up), and makes for a much better than average date movie.
Grade: 3.5/5
The Road (2009) – It’s not a Best Picture nominee, but I watched this on a forum member’s recommendation that it should be. I haven’t read the book, so my thoughts here are unreflective of that. I felt that this film was an interesting take on what was essentially a zombie movie, and that the interaction between the father and son which drove the film seemed quite genuine. Still, some plot problems irked me. I kept asking why would they leave one place or another, why would they decide to do this thing or that, etc. The sense of dread and suspense/fear that the film tries to get across just doesn’t quite work outside of one scene or two, and the more interesting supporting characters get too little screen time in my opinion. Though Mortensen is adequate here, the actor that plays his son brings nothing to the film. I did appreciate the way that the bleak scenery was presented, and the score was probably the highlight of the film (Nick Cave is quickly becoming one of my favorite film scorers).
Grade: 2.5/5
If I had to whittle down the existing 10 Best Picture nominees to a top 5, it would probably be: The Hurt Locker (winner), Precious (close second), Up, An Education, and Up in the Air. I’d happily substitute one of those last two for Zombieland
. Which film do you think was the best of 2009?
Next Up: Julie and Julia, The Messenger and - Avatar, perhaps? Maybe Invictus, too. I’d also like to see Moon, which others have argued should be included above. Plus, I have a bunch of recommended sci-fi/horror films lined up to watch in the near future, so maybe I’ll start moving through those.
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
You do know that many people regard this as the absolute worst film of all time, right?vash23n wrote:Jesus Christmas, I am watching Battlefield Earth... REALLY?! I can usually get into every movie no matter how bad as long as it has a sci-fi or horror theme. I could be missing key scenes in this masterpiece.
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
I really still don't get the fanfare for Zombieland. A childish zombie movie devoid of any meaningful social commentary and has one awful Bill Murray cameo.
Thy ban hammer shalt strike 
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
Zombie films don't necessarily have to make social commentary to be worth seeing, although I certainly appreciate those who do this well. Frankly, too many zombie movies that try to take the cerebral route fail pretty miserably.Pulsar_t wrote:I really still don't get the fanfare for Zombieland. A childish zombie movie devoid of any meaningful social commentary and has one awful Bill Murray cameo.
I saw Zombieland as more of a cross between a Sean of the Dead kind of film and the over-the-top stylized/funny gore that marks films like from Dusk Til Dawn. Both are 2 parts comedy, 1 part action/horror/gore. I also couldn't disagree more with you on the Bill Murray cameo. Watching him playing stoned Ghostbusters in his mansion post-apocalypse was hilarious.
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
Perhaps I should watch it again.. Joshua Rothkopf in his review for Time out wrote "More egregious is the niggling fact that this simply isn’t as witty as 'Shaun of the Dead,' forever the yuks-meet-yucks standard." and I agree with him giving it 3/5. Opinions were never meant to be consolidated anyway lol.
Currently sitting through Shuhei Morita's Freedom Project. I'd have expected more buzz to surround this anime considering Katsuhiro Otomo's (Akira, Steamboy) involvement. It's kind of depressing watching it considering space travel is so out of reach for us mere mortals. Otherwise it's solid entertainment.
Currently sitting through Shuhei Morita's Freedom Project. I'd have expected more buzz to surround this anime considering Katsuhiro Otomo's (Akira, Steamboy) involvement. It's kind of depressing watching it considering space travel is so out of reach for us mere mortals. Otherwise it's solid entertainment.
Thy ban hammer shalt strike
-
Hobie-wan
- Next-Gen
- Posts: 21705
- Joined: Sat Aug 15, 2009 8:28 pm
- Location: Under a pile of retro stuff in H-town
- Contact:
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
Sometimes I think its good that I don't pay attention to hype surrounding movies and such. Sure I don't watch TV, but I don't really read stuff online ahead of time. I went into D9 without any expectations, so I had a clean slate. I really liked the look of the film. Despite the fact that pretty much everyone in the movie were assholes except for the alien kid and the wife, I liked it. Chris and Wikus merely progressed from 'jerk' to 'not completely terrible', but something about the film clicked with me. Its the only BR disc I have so far.dsheinem wrote: District 9 (2009) – Maybe I let the web’s collective hard-on for this film set up some false hopes, but I was ultimately disappointed with this one. It seems that any new movie IP that tries to do something new with comics, fantasy, horror, sci-fi, or special effect gets adorned as the next best thing (see the praise for Watchmen or Cloverfield for example) without much attention ever being paid to the most important parts of the film: the plot, acting, and the directing. On the last point this one is ok when it avoids the shaky-cam syndrome, and certainly the sets add some novelty to the genre. But on plot and acting, this film just didn’t cut it for me. You feel zero sympathy for any of the characters, and in fact I found myself highly disinterested in what happened to anybody, alien or human. As for the plot – the film starts off strong enough with an intriguing concept, but quickly devolves into a stereotypical chase film vehicle that was designed for special effects. Ultimately I felt this had more in common with films like Men in Black or Alien vs. Predator than with the great sci-fi landmarks it was often compared too. That’s not to say it wasn’t worth checking out, but perhaps lower your expectations. I don’t know why this is a best picture nominee.
Grade: 2.5/5
I've never met a pun I didn't like. - Stark
My trade, sale and services - Rough want list - Shipping weight reference chart - AC Power Adapter reference list
My trade, sale and services - Rough want list - Shipping weight reference chart - AC Power Adapter reference list
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
Oh I agree it's not near as good as Shaun of the Dead. Most zombie films are (intentionally or not) 2 parts horror/action, 1 part comedy. This one was the inverse. Shaun of the Dead is all comedy, so I didn't mean to draw a direct comparison to it. I probably boosted it a half star because of my affection for the genre, so perhaps we could consolidate our opinion anyway and compromise at a 3.5Pulsar_t wrote:Perhaps I should watch it again.. Joshua Rothkopf in his review for Time out wrote "More egregious is the niggling fact that this simply isn’t as witty as 'Shaun of the Dead,' forever the yuks-meet-yucks standard." and I agree with him giving it 3/5. Opinions were never meant to be consolidated anyway lol.
. Hobie-wan wrote:Sometimes I think its good that I don't pay attention to hype surrounding movies and such. Sure I don't watch TV, but I don't really read stuff online ahead of time. I went into D9 without any expectations, so I had a clean slate. I really liked the look of the film. Despite the fact that pretty much everyone in the movie were assholes except for the alien kid and the wife, I liked it. Chris and Wikus merely progressed from 'jerk' to 'not completely terrible', but something about the film clicked with me. Its the only BR disc I have so far.
I too watched this on Blu-Ray, and it looks fantastic. Like I said, the directing is pretty solid, but the acting and plot are sub-par at best. I try to avoid hype as much as possible on a film, but some movies become internet phenoms and are all but impossible to avoid (how many times did I read "Fookin' Prawns!" on a forum somewhere when this came out?). Plus, a number of people here weighed in and they had mostly positive things to say. I don't mean to suggest it's a bad film or not worth seeing, it's just nothing special. Do you really think it deserves a Best Picture nod?
-
Hobie-wan
- Next-Gen
- Posts: 21705
- Joined: Sat Aug 15, 2009 8:28 pm
- Location: Under a pile of retro stuff in H-town
- Contact:
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
Probably not, but considering the only new films from last year I watched were D9, Avatar (seen this year), Star Trek, and (ugh, dragged by friends) Transformers: Revulsion of the Flouted, I am not the best person to ask about best picture.dsheinem wrote: I don't mean to suggest it's a bad film or not worth seeing, it's just nothing special. Do you really think it deserves a Best Picture nod?
I've never met a pun I didn't like. - Stark
My trade, sale and services - Rough want list - Shipping weight reference chart - AC Power Adapter reference list
My trade, sale and services - Rough want list - Shipping weight reference chart - AC Power Adapter reference list
Re: What was the last movie you've seen?
Viewing UP in a theater, 3D or not, was quite a different experience for me than watching it on DVD. UP was was favorite movie of 2009.dsheinem wrote:
Up (2009) – I recently watched Monsters Inc. for the first time and determined that it was the most kid-centric of the Pixar films (though I haven’t seen Cars). It was also my least favorite. This one is probably their most adult-oriented, and tackles the issue of aging with grace and poignancy. And though I don’t know if it’s my favorite Pixar film, it is a fantastical story that almost had me in tears from both laughter and sadness, and one that melted the misses. My only gripe is really that it was a bit short and the ending left a little bit to be desired (and seemed designed to set up a sequel), but the film certainly deserves it’s praise.
Grade: 4/5
Our theater was packed, and was definitely a melting pot of people. From thugs to kids to grandparents on dates, the first ten minutes of the film left an emotional thumbprint on everyone. What Pixar did with this film is amazing. Not even introducing characters, they make you feel like you've known them your entire life. In just seconds, you genuinely love the characters.
No other movie has really put a lump in my throat *SQUIRREL!* like UP has. I think it will remain a timeless treasure.