Topic: The Movie Thread

@Th3solution No nothing like that lol. There are elements of The Long Halloween and other runs which had a similar tone and set pieces, which I don't wanna mention incase of spoilers. And I can't remember off the top of my head. 😂

Thanks for the review, I was really looking forward to this movie.

@PSVR_lover I've read a ton of glowing reviews and a few of the guys in the topic seem to have really enjoyed it so don't let my take put you off but I spent £20 and three hours of my life being variously bored, frustrated and depressed. Honestly, I've been a "Batman" fan since around 1988 when all the hype and razzmatazz around the Burton movie started AND I've really appreciated all of Matt Reeves' work (especially his first "Apes" flick) but this movie just left me feeling severely down in the dumps. Put it this way - what "Joker" was to Scorsese, "The Batman" is to Fincher. I hope you get more out of it than I did!

Just watched The Batman. I thought it was good. Maybe a tad long

Saw a review for The Batman which described Alex Ferns AKA Trevor from Eastenders as a ‘veteran character actor’ and couldn’t stop laughing. Still utterly scarred by his dong being in Chernobyl.

Looking forward to watching The Batman on HBO Max next month. Haven't been to the cinema since Feb 2020.

Also, I'm beginning to like the Batsuit more and more now. Didn't like it at first mainly because of the ears, but the cowl does look good from certain angles.

https://www.sideshow.com/collectibles/dc-comics-batman-hot-to...

Interesting collection of thoughts on The Batman, thanks all. Am looking forward to seeing it when it makes the jump to streaming rental and / or Blu-Ray, and will keep this diversity of opinion in mind. I also have to strongly agree with @WanderingBullet regarding the batsuit; wasn't a fan at first, but love it now!

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As for me, it's not technically a "movie" but I made a start on Hamilton. My tolerance for musical theatre is famously low but this, as an exercise in lyrical dexterity if nothing else, creates a whole new level for itself. I'm in awe of the talent on that stage. Here's hoping more of this kinda stuff can find a second home on streaming services going forward, if only to satisfy my selfish curiosity.

@RogerRoger I was also pleasantly surprised by Hamilton. My initial reservations were cast aside when I watched how cleverly woven together the music and story were and the talent on display, as you say.

Lin-Manuel Miranda has really become a darling in the film, theater, music, and TV world. Have you watched Encanto? It’s also pretty good. Not Disney’s finest, but pretty good, all the same, and Miranda’s musical score brings his unmistakable panache to the film.

Also, I didn’t realize Miranda has cameos in The Force Awakens and Rise of Skywalker. So he must be a Star Wars fan, which is another reason he’s okay in my book. 😉

@Th3solution I haven't watched Encanto, no, but it's on the list for when the mood strikes. Which, as I say, is pretty rare with me (to the point of being non-existent) and that makes Hamilton all the more transcendent in its excellence. A talent like Mr. Miranda's would normally pass me by, but full credit to the chap, and I wish him all the well-deserved success in the world.

Thanks for the recommendation! And cool; obviously would never have recognised him before, but I'll keep my eyes open next time I'm watching the Sequel Trilogy! Cheers!

Only realised this as I was watching a bit of Batman v Superman (Ultimate Edition) on TV the other day.

It’s quite similar to that “Aquaman surfing on a Parademon” scene in Justice League.

They’re filming Batgirl in Glasgow just now (Keaton and Brendan Fraser have been spotted) and they seem to be filming a Christmas scene. Which means they’ve covered the cenotaph in big shiny Christmas lights. Lovely 😅

@Fragile Perfect reaction to an imperfect movie. Quite liked the ending with the USS Missouri, when it stopped trying to take itself so seriously and just went full cheese.

Saw Speilberg's "West Side Story" on 4K blu-ray. I don't know much about musicals (I've never seen the original) but my interest in this stemmed from the knowledge that the film was the realisation of one of Spielberg's longest held ambitions - he mentioned his desire to shoot a musical as long ago as 1984 with the release of the second "Indiana Jones" film which featured an elaborate song and dance sequence at the start. I thoroughly enjoyed it - I've just ordered a copy of the the original film to see how they compare.

@LN78 I always found the concept of West Side Story to be odd. Not the Romeo & Juliet homage, rather the dancing, singing gang thugs. 😄 It’s very contradictory.

I haven’t seen this new version, but the old movie is held together by the good love story story and the excellent music. But the dancing and the tone always puzzled me. Granted, it’s been years ago when I saw it.

@Th3solution I'd recommend this new version without hesitation but as I said, I haven't got any point of comparison - it could be a shot-for-shot facsimile and I'd have no way of knowing. I was certainly surprised by the amount of directorial verve and inventiveness on display considering how relatively pedestrian a lot of Spielberg's recent output (like "Bridge of Spies" and "The Post") has been. He apparently still has plenty of creative gas left in his tank.

@LN78 Yeah, I’ll be interested to see it. Musicals have been hit or miss for me. But I’m thinking that with the rise of Lin Manuel Miranda and his influence on theater, movies, and music, that this Spielberg version has got to be juiced up to compete with the pizazz on display in Hamilton, In the Heights, etc. I suspect the dancing and choreography is modernized and much more acrobatic and entertaining than the original, which is where these movies can be really impressive beyond the older classics.

Fast and Furious 9. Very silly. Not even that fun. They’ve kinda jumped past the point where it was daft fun and now is so infuriatingly stupid that it gets in the way. Think the worst offender was a scene in which they drive from London to a country estate in the space of 2 minutes, in which the baddie claims it’s an embassy because he’s a diplomat’s son. Then Interpol show up because that’s what they are, private security for diplomats. In a van with ‘Interpol’ written on the side.

@nessisonett They've fought a tank, a submarine, a cyborg and gone to space. The franchise has definitely gone off the rails.

Also, I don't know how the writers come up with scenes like this.lol Dom is so confident it's as though his done this stunt a million times before.

@WanderingBullet There’s a certain level of enjoyment to be had with stupid popcorn movies. But there’s a line. They’re just slightly creeping towards the Michael Bay side rather than the John Woo side.

@nessisonett I remember hearing somebody (possibly Mark Kermode) say that the only reason the franchise has continued to this point is so that they can make "Fast 10: Your Seatbelts". Jolly good.