What was the last movie you've seen?

[Luke]

Yeah, I like it, but at the same time it feels really tame for some of the comics in it. Eddie Murphy feels toned down, as does Richard Pryor.

Della Reese makes up for it.

[Sload Soap]

Went to see Cinderella (2015) and actually rather liked it much to my own surprise. Unlike some of the other live action demakes/remake drivel Disney has been pushing recently, Cinderella sticks very closely to the 1950 film. The songs have been pushed aside but they are replaced by a slightly more character development for the Step-Mother and Prince. Ken Branagh directs the shit out of stuff as well. The ball scene is sumptuous.

All in all Cinderella (2015) is very charming, warm and not overly reliant on CGI (some very long lived mice aside). Of course, unlike say Maleficent, by sticking so close to the animated classic it's also the most redundant of these films as well. Well artistically redundant, I'm sure Disney's accountants don't see it that way. And seriously, enough with Cinderella now in general. Surely it's the most adapted story in cinema?



I also watched Belle. Not a Beauty and the Beast remake (although that is coming) but rather a period drama about Dido Elizabeth Belle the mixed-race daughter of a 18C British Admiral left in the care of William Murray, Lord Chief Justice of England.

The film essentially plays out along the lines of your average Georgian period drama but with Belle's "circumstance of birth" very much at the forefront. It's Pride and Prejudice with an emphasis on the prejudice (I'm sure I'm the only person to make that quip).

You see, Belle finds herself in the odd position of being just high up enough in society to be a lady but not seen as equal enough to actually be fully integrated into the aristocracy. There is one scene for example where Belle is forced to dine alone during dinner as it might offend the guests but is then invited to play piano afterwards for their entertainment. She suffers a sort of very polite and very British form of segregation in her own house. The film does well to point out that although her guardians are well meaning (and they do love her equally) they are still judging her by the colour of her skin by acquiescing the society's inheritaly prejudice structure.

In time Belle ends up more wealthy than her white relatives and thus a more eligible wife but the only guy willing to actually do the deed is an odious prig who sees her more as a forbidden fruit to be plucked than a person. Thankfully there is a handsome and kind vicars son who also happens to be furiously passionate abolitionist for her to fall in love with.

The film makes more of Belle's role in the Zong Massacre case to which her uncle is presiding over and it also makes more of that case's effect on the eventual abolition of slavery in the UK but that's fine. Not much is known about Dido Elizabeth Belle anyway beside the painting of her on which this film is based. This isn't based on memoirs of the time or anything, just rough guesses and artistic license. I'm fine with that when the story being told is one that is supposed to have more universal themes and isn't sugar coasting or distorting the state sanctioned prejudice of the time.

Also unlike say a Twelve Years a Slave the focus is different as well so the mood is generally lighter as well. Belle is a captive of circumstance but she isn't being tied to a post and horsewhipped when she steps out of line. In the end it's a very uplifting movie with a slightly cliche ending.

The only thing that really bugged me was that some of the editing is really abrupt and choppy which can create some confusion as to where people are placed in a scene. There is one part where the family is taking a turn in the garden (as is required by period drama law) and it's cut like a thriller movie. Otherwise Belle is a very finely directed movie with a great support cast featuring Tom Wilkinson and Miranda Richardson on good form. I give it four heaving Georgian bosoms out of five.



Finally I rewatched X-men: Days of Future Pants on Blu-Ray, one because I hold the unpopular opinion it was probably the best superhero movie of last year and two to prove to my girlfriend how Blu Ray is generally better than DVD.

On the first point I can say I still hold that opinion. DoFP might not be as brash as Guardians or as slick as Winter Solider but it also doesn't succumb to their (and superhero movies generally) propensity to turn into slug-fests in the final act. Yes, it's front-loaded with exposition and it's quite a lot like Terminator 2 in many ways but I still find it a more balanced, interesting and satisfying experience overall.

As for my girlfriend, she has an eye test booked for saturday afternoon.

[Sarge]

Finally I rewatched X-men: Days of Future Pants on Blu-Ray, one because I hold the unpopular opinion it was probably the best superhero movie of last year and two to prove to my girlfriend how Blu Ray is generally better than DVD.

Days of Future Pants would probably be apt, given that Mystique rarely wears them.

Anyway, I agree that it was a great movie. I enjoyed all the ones listed, though, and forcing me to choose would be tough. But then, I'm also a horrible, horrible person that enjoyed X-Men Origins: Wolverine (at least the buildup and story segments), so maybe I can't be trusted on these things.

[REPO Man]

One of my fave films from when I was a kid is on Crunchyroll, and it's still one of the most brilliant films I've ever seen:

[AppleQueso]

As for my girlfriend, she has an eye test booked for saturday afternoon.

You joke, but that was one of the things that actually prompted us to finally get my girlfriend's checked out.

Turns out she needed glasses pretty badly and wouldn't have even been allowed to drive without them.

[Luke]

One of my fave films from when I was a kid is on Crunchyroll, and it's still one of the most brilliant films I've ever seen:

The game s decent as well.

THE GOLDEN CHILD

There are movies you can't stop quoting, and this is one of them. It's not even 6:30am and I already know I'll say "I want the knife" tonight during dinner.

[REPO Man]

One of my fave films from when I was a kid is on Crunchyroll, and it's still one of the most brilliant films I've ever seen:

The game s decent as well.

Arcade or NES?

[Pulsar_t]

Phoenix

Here's a well made film that would have gotten Oscar buzz if it had been Hollywood that made it A Holocaust survivor plays the role of her own doppelganger in this intriguing drama about the complexities of the human condition.

[J T]

I watched Furious 7 today. It pushed the envelope of action to such an extreme as to become laughably absurd. I only go to these Fast & Furious movies because my wife has a crush on Michelle Rodriguez. If you can let go of reality, it's a pretty fun ride.

However, I was surprised at the ending, which was really quite moving. They did a tribute to Paul Walker (the actor who plays Brian in the show) who died while the film was still being shot. They managed to work it into the script in a very kind way that paid homage to his involvement with the series over the years without losing the plot. This is the one episode in the series that could make you cry.

[MrPopo]

If I'm looking to see a movie this weekend and I've only seen the first Fast and the Furious (which I did enjoy) would you recommend this one?