Topic: The Movie Thread

@LN78 Ah well, I didn't have any edition of the movie apart from a dusty old DVD release, so at least there should be some interesting extras on there that I haven't seen before (I think.. I honestly can't remember what was on the DVD I own, which is now lying in a box in the basement somewhere, along with all my other region 1 imports I can no longer play)

@RogerRoger I've never been a Mario fan either, so I probably won't bother with this until it hits streaming

I love this That is exactly what entertainment should do: entertain! Sure, I like deep character studies, social commentary and high drama as much as the next guy, but I sure won't mind a deeply flawed or otherwise lacking piece of entertainment as long as it makes me smile.

It’s looking like Jonathan Glazer’s gone 4 for 4 with his movies. The Zone of Interest as of now is sitting in that rare position of genuine universal acclaim. Considering that it’s a Holocaust movie that focuses on how that level of sheer evil was normalised and justified by creating an idyllic lifestyle for its proponents, making it eerily prescient, I expected a least a few big detractors. He’s had one hell of a career though, didn’t realise he did the Virtual Insanity music video back in the day 😂

watching these today

Wolfman 1941
Movedumpster's review of the classic late 1970s early 1980s Doctor Strange tv movie
original 1980s Running Scared

I watched Little Mermaid live action movie yesterday and it was quite good.
There were some changes compared with cartoon version and it was like hit and miss.
The live action movie still using the plotline from cartoon version with some different approach to make it more natural or make a sense. I quite disappointed for the absence of Body Language from Ursula and Ursula place in live action movie was really creepy.
I gave the score 7/10.
It was quite good but there were some minor things that I felt a little bit disappointed.

@Anti-Matter had a friend who saw it and liked it but said it is a maybe a little too dark (disturbing) for young children in some parts. Curious for your thoughts on that... You seem like just the person to ask honestly.

@zupertramp
Oh, about Little Mermaid live action movie.
Indeed, there were some darker stuffs from what I watched.
I saw skulls, bones and mermaid's skeleton inside Ursula's Grotto and Ursula herself holding some human skulls when she was singing the part about someone couldn't pay the price. Also, Ariel had to pay with piece of her mermaid scale with some blood to Ursula in order to complete the process of making human transformation spell

@Anti-Matter ah, okay thanks. Don't really have small children anymore so not too bothered but I did think it was strange for someone to mention it having potentially dark images because the trailers don't seem like that. But then, if I just imagine the cartoon but it's real life I guess I could see it.

Anyway, thanks. Glad you enjoyed it.

The Little Mermaid was underwhelming. It made me realize just how ridiculous the animated movie was. Haillee Bailey singing was truly amazing. But the movie sucked to me.

Watched a few movies over the weekend ranging in quality.

Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3 - both the missus and I really enjoyed it. Felt like a bit of a return to form for Marvel tbh. With only this and Shang Chi hitting it right for me since Endgame.
Fast and Furious 9 - never really been a fan of these but the missus’ daughter wants to go and watch the new one, so we thought we’d catch up. Was ridiculous as expected.
Old - has an awful IMDb score but I quite liked it. Not sure about how all the logic was supposed to work in regards to the aging/time passing but I was entertained and somewhat intrigued here and there.

@colonelkilgore I'm glad to hear another positive take on GoG 3. I've been slightly concerned due to Marvel's output of late.
I just finished watching Quantumania and felt it was another disappointment. I get that a lot of the Marvel films have always had a quippy, light-hearted tone but this (like Thor4) went massively overboard with it. I find this makes any attempt at actual drama or tension useless. A lot of the earlier films did a far better job at the balance.
About the only positive for me was the main theme played at the credits, awesome tune. I actually purchased it off iTunes after hearing it.

I also saw the James Gunn Suicide Squad the other day. Whilst I still didn't think much of it, (I've never quite understood the appeal of the characters/premise), I did think it was a lot better than the first one and was actually entertaining at times. So the fact Gunn still managed to give me some enjoyment out it gives some hope for GoG 3.

@BearsEatBeets Agree with you on both points there. After really enjoying Thor: Ragnarök, the next film was a massive disappointment. I will most likely skip Wakanda Forever and Ant-Man. Dr Strange and Multiverse of Whatever was a bit better, but thought it was a wasted opportunity with Raimi involved. There were glimpses of what it could have been, which makes it even more disappointing.

@LN78 Yeah the latest Guardians film will probably be the next Marvel film I see, and I don't envision seeing one for awhile after that. I don't even know what is coming tbf.

300 (4K UHD BD)

This is simply just a fun sword & sandal action movie. Lots of exciting & bloody battle scenes, a stylish aesthetic, and even a bit of T&A, it's pretty much everything you'd look for in the genre (if you can get over the fact that it's obviously not trying to be particularly historically accurate).

I wasn't very fond of some of the more fantastically grotesque character designs (the hunchback & those robed sages for example, oh, and there was some sort of executioner with blades for arms, lol), but I understand that the context in film is it's a story being recounted by a survivor to gin up a group of new soldiers, so things are going to be embellished for effect.

Expelled From Paradise (Blu-Ray)

Set in a distant future where most of humanity "lives" a digitized existence inside a computer/satellite called DEVA that orbits the Earth, a security agent (Angela Balzac) is sent to Earth (via a clone body grown with their genetic code) in order to hunt down a hacker from the surface who has been infiltrating into DEVA's systems.

Pretty cool sci-fi film overall. Definitely enjoyed Angela's design & the few mech battles it featured were intense though I'd have liked to see more. Story was pretty standard "what does it really mean to be alive" you see in a lot of sci-fi (especially the juxtaposition between Angela, a human who has lived most of her life as a digital avatar, and a sentient AI who is introduced at some point in the story), and while it's not really groundbreaking in it's approach, it offers some food for thought.

Biggest missed opportunity is the lore as to what happened to Earth/humanity (it has a post apocalyptic vibe), or rather the lack of it. We know some catastrophe struck the planet (and now there are mutated giant worm/centipede things), but what exactly that is was never explained as far as I remember.

@RogerRoger, while a Mario sequel probably wouldn't quite do as well just coasting along on references again, there still is a ton of untouched ground.

Most prominently you have Yoshi, Wario, & Professor E. Gadd (all of which star or are important characters in spinoffs like Yoshi's Island, Wario Land/Ware, Luigi's Mansion. All of which open up more references). Though we're also likely to get Bowser Jr (+ the Koopalings) & Rosalina, maybe even more niche characters like Daisy & Waluigi (heck, the first movie dug up Foreman Spike of all characters, so I really wouldn't count anyone out.

Furthermore, I don't believe there were any references to Mario Party, Tennis, or Golf, all of which could make good gag material (especially the sports). Maybe even some Paper Mario elements?

@JohnnyShoulder I thought Dr Strange MoM was of a similar quality to Antman and Wakanda Forever for me, disappointing without being as terrible as Love and Thunder. I discovered later Quantumania was written someone who wrote for SNL and Rick & Morty which kind of says it all.
@LN78 Shang-Chi and No Way Home were the only highlights of phase 4 for me, which of course isn't saying much but I imagine I will watch them both again sometime in the future.

I'm probably more curious about what might come out of DC now that Gunn is overseeing it than I am about Marvel going forward. I'm certainly interested to see how the Flash turns out, although I find it funny that of the trailers I've seen it could be forgiven for being mistaken for a Batman movie featuring Flash.

watching The Green Knight on Tubi right now. then other movies im watching this weekend

House Party 2
House Party 3
Solarbabies
In and Out which was on tv recently where i DVR recorded it

@XandertheWise watched The Green Knight as part of a movie night get together with some friends just this past weekend. I thought it was awful. 6 of us watching in total and 4 of us fell asleep at one time or another.

I finally watched Quantumania as well, and Wakanda Forever also not to long ago. And I think I’m up to date on the TV shows, having limped through Ms. Marvel, a show I initially liked but it grew worse and worse in the latter episodes.

I’d have to agree with the post-End Game highlights probably being Shang Chi and No Way Home. Wakanda was better than I expected, although still middling, and Quantumania was about what I expected — okay-ish but lacked the mojo of the earlier movies. It appears to be an important cog in the wheel of the new phase though, so it’s probably worth experiencing just to see the genesis of the major conflict incoming (trying to be vague for spoiler reasons).

I think I’ll try to get to the theater though for the new Spiderverse movie. So amped about that. Please Sony Pictures, don’t let us down.

@zupertramp The Green Knight is fantastic IMO, one of my more favourite films of recent years.