Topic: The Movie Thread

@Th3solution haha I can't remember if you do everything you just described in the game 😅. I'm sure the simpler things you've suggested are certainly in there though!

Just got back from seeing Dune at the IMAX. Visuals and sounds blew me away. Really enjoyed his past few films.

@SoulChimera Villeneuve saved science fiction films from stagnation. Blade Runner 2049 might just be the best sequel film in existence.

@BowTiesAreCool I absolutely love Blade Runner 2049. The cinematography was amazing in that too.

@SoulChimera didn't realise it was out already. I'll probably go and see it as I loved the book and huge fan of the director's other works!

Just got back from James Bond too. Decent film, much better than I was expecting. Won’t say anything else on it, for risk of spoilers.

@MightyDemon82 I haven’t read the book so I can’t compare, but I have seen it’s supposed to follow the book a lot more closely. I might actually pick it up and give a read.

Just finished watching Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark. I've never seen the Indiana Jones movies before as I missed out on a lot of movie franchises from the 80s and 90s. So during the past couple of years, I've been trying to catch up on classics such as Star Wars, Back to the Future, Ghostbusters, Jaws, E.T. and now Indiana Jones. Fortunately, HBO Nordic has all four Indiana Jones movies on the service so I'm able to watch through all of them, which is great!

The first movie was actually pretty good! I tend to not like older movies due to how outdated they can feel in terms of effects, stunts, lines etc., but Raiders of the Lost Ark felt pretty good all things considered. The late 1930s setting was compelling to me as I've recently become more interested in this period after having played the first Mafia game. Moreover, the plot of the Nazi Germans looking for a tool of mass destruction definitely made the story more interesting as it made the stakes higher for Indiana. So all in all, I really enjoyed watching this movie.

I've started watching a bit of Temple of Doom and so far that movie is looking promising as well. Can't wait to watch the rest of it as well as the other movies!

I also just realised that by watching these movies, I'll be able to familiarise myself with this franchise before the upcoming Indiana Jones game by Machine Games comes out. That's definitely a huge bonus because I tend to not appreciate licensed games that much if I don't know anything about the franchise, such as my recent playthrough of Shadow of Mordor.

@LtSarge The Indiana Jones movies are fantastic. The much maligned fourth one, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, was actually better than I remembered when I rewatched it last year. You’ll also be all prepared for Indianan Jones 5 which is set to release next year.

And you really should watch the original Lord of the Rings trilogy. They are some of my favorite movies of all time. Your recent enjoyment of Game of Thrones makes me think you’ll really like the high fantasy world of JRR Tolkien. Much less grim and violent than GoT, but still has the fantastic lore and world building.

@Th3solution I was kinda worried the fourth one was going to be bad since that's typically what happens when a movie franchise is "rebooted" decades later. But I'm glad to hear that you liked it, definitely looking forward to watching it now. Also, I didn't know that a fifth movie it coming out. That's pretty exciting!

Yeah, I really want to watch the Lord of the Rings movies but I didn't find them on HBO. However, I just looked it up and apparently they are being added when HBO Max replaces HBO Nordic in Sweden later this month, which is really exciting! Can't wait to watch them.

@LtSarge Honestly, for my money, the original LotR is cinematic perfection. I should try not to oversell it, but I just find them the perfect match of excellent production, world class acting, and a narrative that is simply one of the best thought provoking studies of good vs evil that I’ve ever seen. Of course having a working knowledge of the books adds a little flavor to the experience, but honestly, the film adaptation is so good that you can get most of the nuance through the exceptional movie production. The 3 Hobbit movies can be kept for follow up films to watch as prequels, and I still think they are very good, but it’s more of a divided opinion on those. If you really like LotR when you’re done (and with the extended cuts, if that’s what you watch, that’s about 10 hours worth of films) then try The Hobbit

@Th3solution I don't think you're overselling it at all because I know how popular these movies are. When growing up, most people I knew had watched Lord of the Rings and absolutely loved the movies. I even remember back in upper secondary school (high school) when the first Hobbit movie came out that all the guys in my class went out and watched it together at the cinema. I was invited to come as well but sadly I didn't have an interest in the franchise back then so I declined. But yeah, I'm well aware of how regarded this franchise is and now's the time to finally find out why!

@RogerRoger Hopefully I can avoid those spoilers until Sunday, My dad's a bond nut so taking him to see it for his 65th birthday.

I've never really understood the hate for Crystal Skull, I put it on equal footing with the other movies.

@RogerRoger Cheers, I'll be sure to check in with my thoughts once I've seen it.

Personally I'm far more interested in Dune, The Last Duel and Last night in Soho.

@RogerRoger Well I finished watching Temple of Doom earlier today and just finished watching The Last Crusade and really liked them both! Out of the original trilogy though, I think my favourite is The Last Crusade purely because you get to see Indy go on an adventure with his father. And the actor who plays his dad is Sean Connery of all the people! That's so cool to see.

If I have to rank the three movies, I'd put The Last Crusade at the top, then The Raiders of the Lost Ark and finally Temple of Doom. A lot of people seemed to really like Temple of Doom but I just didn't like it as much because it didn't really feel like the complete package. To elaborate, the whole thing about the franchise is that Indy is constantly traveling around the world but here he's just in the same place for half of the movie. It didn't feel as much of an adventure, you know? No puzzles to solve, no exploration, the gang just randomly stumbles into the bad guys' lair and defeats them. It's kinda underwhelming, but it was still a great movie with lots of memorable moments and I think the trio of that little kid, Indy and that singer was the best group.

Next will be The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull! Really looking forward to watching it tomorrow.

@LtSarge That’s my ranking of them as well. Temple of Doom has its moments but the cast around Indy isn’t as good and the adventure does feel quite self contained. Last Crusade is just so so good.

Watched Muppets Haunted Mansion last night, great special. I’ve never screamed “Oh my god, Geoff Keighley” so loudly in my life.

So I just finished watching Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and I thought it was very good! I was so impressed by how much effort was put into making the movie feel like it came out right after the third one. Like I couldn't believe this movie was made in 2008, it felt like a movie from the early 90s, in a good way that is! For example, the goofy combat, the hilarious sound effects, the cheesy moments like an eyeball looking at you through the wall, it all gave the feeling of a 90s movie, which is awesome! It felt like a direct continuation after the third movie, except of course that everyone was 20 years older now. Speaking of which, I can't believe that Harrison Ford was over 60 years old when he was in that movie. Holy crap, that man is in very good shape! Not to mention that I just read that he will star in the next Indiana Jones movie, which is even more insane! He's 80 years old now, how the hell is he going to pull off all the crazy stunts at that age? Either way, I also read that Mads Mikkelsen will be in the movie, which is a nice surprise. I'm definitely looking forward to watching it next year!

But yeah, I really enjoyed The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and I think I would put it right after The Last Crusade in terms of the best movies in the franchise. So in order:

1) The Last Crusade
2) The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
3) Raiders of the Lost Ark
4) Temple of Doom

I'm really glad that I've finally experienced all the movies and that I'm caught up with the series now so that I can fully enjoy the upcoming game as well as the fifth movie.

Saw No Time to Die at the weekend. Not sure how to spoiler tag bits out so I'll just say it was awesome. Arguably the best Bond cold open scene overall.

Oh boy that trailer for The Batman is brilliant. Very very much looking forward to it. Still no chance that’s Colin Farrell as Penguin though.

@Keith_Zissou I fundamentally dislike trailer editing so I know what you mean. Battinson is dead on though, loving the whole ‘Brian Wilson meets Robert Smith’ vibe they’ve got going on. It’s as close to The Crow as I hoped it would be.