Topic: The Movie Thread

@nessisonett but all the songs just seemed so void of melody or arrangement of any kind. With the exception of Season of Love, I couldn't whistle any song from that movie afterwards if my life depended on it. Maybe this is just one of those talk-sing musicals I'm not usually real fond of??

I say that but I'd totally like to give a stage production a chance. It couldn't be worse. Maybe someday. Probably better in person because some of that energy surely gets lost if it's not live.

@RogerRoger Oh Lord, High School Musical. The first one came out 15 years ago! I was in early primary school so yeah, it was huge. I could probably recite the songs from memory.

(mild spoilers for Old)

There is a sort of inherent body horror to the process of aging that is masked by its universality and inevitability. When you're young and reach puberty, you start looking and sounding different, you're assailed with confusing thoughts and feelings that you don't have the life experience to deal with, hair sprouts up in weird places, and often find that you're stuck uncomfortably between two very distinct phases of life. Then, as you get older, your body starts breaking down: your vision goes, your joints ache, you're unable to do some of the things you used to do, and often, if they live long enough, people find that they've become a shell of their former selves, both physically and (tragically) mentally as well. These aging-related issues can destabilize families and relationships when people deal with them over the course of a lifetime, so imagine the sheer confusion and terror of having it happen all in one day!

That's, basically, the set-up for Old, the new film from famous (if uneven) filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan. Groups of vacationers who are staying at a fancy resort are selectively invited to spend the day at a private beach. This lovely deserted beach, surrounded by rocks and water in all directions, quickly becomes a place of terror when the vacation-goers find that their bodies are aging unnaturally quickly. They burn through roughly a year of their precious lives every half hour, and some other unexplained phenomenon causes them to blackout when they try to leave the beach.

Why is this happening to them? Who are the strange figures who keep appearing on the rocks above the beach? There is a compelling mystery here, although the film (wisely, IMO) doesn't spend too much time trying to explain the actual mechanics underlying the time-accelerating beach. Instead, the film is laser-focused on the experiences of the people on the beach. What's it like for a small child to grow into a man over the course of mere hours? What might happen if you're afflicted with dementia, tend to become violent in your confusion, and find yourself trapped in a situation like this? What about natural bodily processes that normally take time to happen, like blood poisoning, pregnancy, or healing flesh wounds? While there are small things that the filmmakers overlook, Shyamalan's film does take a perverse joy in asking: "What if...?" to a variety of questions you might never have wanted to know the answers to.

There's a hopelessness to this film that sets in quickly. One thing about the film that will put off some viewers is that there's not a ton of plot movement throughout. Once the characters become aware of what's happening and realize that attempting to escape seems futile, it becomes, for a period of time, a carnival of horrors as characters continually deal with the disturbing situations caused by the freakish situation they're in as best as possible. It's only near the end when things really begin to change, and the famous Shyamalan twist comes into play. And, about the twist, I will say that it wasn't amazing. I think almost anyone who sits and thinks about what's happening in the film will be able to guess 90% of the full truth of the situation. It's actually potentially interesting in its own way, but it doesn't elicit that visceral shock that something like the twist in The Sixth Sense provided (a shock that so dramatically re-contextualized the film that it really needed to be seen twice in order to fully process it). The best film twists both shock you with their unexpectedness and, in retrospect, seem like they should have been obvious, and this film's twist just doesn't have that quality to it.

Don't let that put you off the film, though. Shyamalan will never make anything as excellent as The Sixth Sense again, but this is still an upper-tier work for the director. One that shows that he's still a talent worth paying attention, despite some of the incredible lows his career sunk to at times, Ultimately, it's simple and concept-heavy enough that it could have worked in something like Black Mirror or The Twilight Zone, but the convincing special effects work, solid performances, and emotional realism of the characters, who are forced to deal with an unimaginable situation, make this a solid recommendation for fans of speculative fiction and creative cinema.

My mum saw Batman on his motorbike thing outside Greggs. This filming is wild.

@nessisonett Did he grab a sausage roll on the way past?

@JohnnyShoulder Batman seems like more of a steak bake sorta man.

@Ralizah Thanks for sharing your impressions of Old. I’m a shameless M. Night fan, although I admit some of his products are subpar. Good to hear he has caught a little magic with this latest, even it it doesn’t pack the punch of The Sixth Sense.

Have you tried Servant on Apple TV+?

@nessisonett did he ask for any drink in his cup? Or did he get just ice.

Oooof. I'm instantly sorry.

@BowTiesAreCool Think you deserve a round of applause for that one, oooooof 😂😂

@Ralizah look forward to reading this after I watch it.

@Th3solution I haven't. Actually this is the first time I've ever heard of Apple TV+. I take it this is another subscription service with original content?

Streaming is going to be worse than paying for cable at this point. Someone needs to bundle these services together.

I'm intrigued by the show you mentioned, though, having just looked it up.

@zupertramp When do you plan on watching it?

@Ralizah Yes, Apple TV+… yet another streaming service with original content and a monthly subscription fee. I actually got a year for “free” with my mobile phone contract, so I have it and have only watched a few things, but I still need to try out Servant before my sub expires. I’d I do try it I’ll definitely drop some impressions.

@Ralizah not sure honestly. Wasn't really high up on my list of things to watch. I'm also a M. Night fan but other than Servant, he hasn't really been on his game for awhile now. Recently watched Glass, for example, and it was so bad. And even Servant falls off by the mid to latter half of season 2 imo.

Then again, I guess Old has now moved up on my list simply due to your asking lol. Maybe I'll shoot for the weekend.

Mixed feelings on this Black Widow lawsuit. On the one hand it does sound like a breach of contract but on the other, does Scar Jo really think it would have done better (in theaters) had it not released on Disney+?

Plus like, not the best look when you got a $20 mil base payout but you're disgruntled Disney didn't handle your Covid-era movie correctly.

Then again it's Disney and really she certainly could have been given a movie before all this so eh...

@zupertramp I honestly don’t see how she wouldn’t have a case though. Like Disney have 100% done her out of money that she was owed in her contract. Not that I’m saying it’s a factor but the fact it’s ScarJo who’s been given this movie years and years too late, and now they’ve kinda ripped her off? Pretty rubbish of them even considering the circumstances. The contract should have been revised to give her a share of the Disney+ profits. But yeah, it’s hard to give the tiniest little sh*t when we’re dealing in millions of dollars at a time in which many people have been made redundant and such.

@nessisonett yeah certainly sounds like she does (have a case). Although one of the statements Disney put out hinted at her making profit off those Plus fees too.* I couldn't really be sure though. And even then if a family of 5 goes in for $30 for what's basically a theatrical release, that's still her getting cut out of money.

@RogerRoger yeah Disney even leans on that "window to another world" aspect in their public response to the lawsuit. Like how could you do this when so many have it so much worse. And so, from a public relations standpoint I just don't think this looks great for her. Not that it will make any real world difference.

But anyway, was just surprised to read about it. Must be nice to have those kinds of problems.

*Edit: here's the quote: "...the release of Black Widow on Disney+ with Premier Access has significantly enhanced her ability to earn additional compensation on top of the $20M she has received to date."

@Jimmer-jammer Totally hear you, I'm just not sure what Disney was supposed to do here. Very few people are ready to return to theaters yet. It had like one good weekend in the theater and that was likely the entirety of those willing to sit in a theater for a film. Plus Premier really seems like an acceptable compromise, especially if it's true she's getting a cut of that. Without Plus it would have bombed completely.

They pushed it back and pushed it back again and maybe even a third time, I can't quite recall. Should they really have waited until the dust had completely settled from Covid? That could be years from now.

Love this shot of The Batman. Is that @nessisonett in the background?! 😂

@RogerRoger @JohnnyShoulder I’m the Mafia looking old guy on the right 😂😂

@JohnnyShoulder that's an incredible shot.

@Jimmer-jammer I suppose. I'd just be really surprised if there weren't some behind-the-scenes talks before the release, where somehow they couldn't come to an agreement on how to divvy up all those millions. Hard to take a side is all.

Edit: and one thing I keep forgetting to mention is, overall, this lawsuit just kinda disappoints because I like her as Black Widow and now it's hard to see a scenario where she returns in that capacity. Especially if the legal fight gets kinda ugly.