Topic: The Movie Thread

@LN78 Ah, a Shane Black marathon is a great idea! Might do one myself in the near future. Been a long time since I've watched most of them, but remember "The Last Boyscout", "The Long Kiss Goodnight" and "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" fondly. Unsure if I ever want to go back to "Lethal Weapon" and Mel Gibson, though

@FuriousMachine I dunno, if you think Mel Gibson’s bad then Shane Black continuing to cast a pedophile that groomed a 14 year old because he was his friend is probably just as bad.

I would rate "Iron Man 3" above "The Last Action Hero", which I didn't like all that much when I saw it as part of my Arnold marathon recently (I remember loving it when it came out, though). Same with "The Predator", I think. Was a huge let-down for me. The others are too distant memories for me to say for sure, but I would be surprised if the three I mentioned previously didn't end up as my top three Shane Black films.

I didn't know about the Shane Black criminal friend thing until it was mentioned here recently in a post that's since been deleted (probably because it contained the p-word), though it's not like I need everyone involved with the movie to have a spotless record. I do try to separate the art from the artist, but I struggle with it when the person front and center has done some reprehensible things and not served any time (if it was a criminal offense), has not performed any sort of penance/atonement or even bothered to offer an apology for their behavior (Gibson, Louis CK and Joss Whedon, among others, all seem to think that hiding from the spotlight for a while is sufficient and all will be forgiven). So, yeah, "Lethal Weapon" was a movie I loved (along with many other Gibson movies), but I will struggle to enjoy watching it again.

@LN78 Oh yeah, Charles Dance! When I watched it again there was exactly three things that had stayed in my mind from the first time: Bridgette Wilson, who took residence in a huge part of my 19 year old brain, Tom Noonan as the axe-murderer (for some reason his face and name stuck with me, so whenever I saw him in any bit-part later I would think "axe dude Noonan!") and the brilliant Charles Dance with his dignified menace and interchangeable glass eyes. My first encounter with him and I've loved him ever since. Definitely the best part of the movie.

Great tip regarding the bad (worst?) half of Simpson/Bruckheimer powerhouse of the 80's and 90's; was unaware of that book so that goes high on my reading list. I knew he was a coke-fueled d-bag, but I'm not familiar with any details. I have a sneaking suspicion that I will not be shocked by any revelations in that book, though Thanks for the tip!

@LN78 Warning received I'm a misanthropic cynic at heart, so there is very little in terms of human depravity that will surprise me. As such, I should probably steer clear of books like this and seek out stories highlighting the good bits about humanity, but I guess my misanthropic nature just loves to wallow in these things so I can nod and say to myself "See? My lack of faith in humanity is justified"
(I do manage to counterprogram, though. Matthew McConaughey's "Green Light" is an example of easy bliss in book form for people like me )

@LN78 Both are added to my reading list
Too bad about Majors; I liked him and was hoping the allegations were false and/or frivolous. Still, he was found guilty on two charges and not guilty on two charges. Until I know the details of the various charges, I will reserve judgement.
Marvel and Disney dropped him promptly, though, so it will be interesting to see what will become of Kang. Rumour has it that they are considering replacing him with Dr. Doom, but I feel it will take a deft hand to pull off that switcheroo and deftness is something Disney and Marvel has been sorely lacking for a while.

@LN78 Yeah, I think that would be the smart move, but I'm not sure I have faith in them to make the smart move As you said, the Multiverse and variant angle gives plenty of opportunity to just put anyone in the Kang role with easy justification (Loki having shown that variants can differ wildly... though I'm not sure if that has come across properly outside of Loki, so that might end up more confusing for some than just scrapping the whole Kang thing altogether and maybe doing a Red Skull kind of thing down the line to satisfy those who wondered "whatever happened to that time-travelling guy from that Ant-Man movie?")

@LN78 No judgment here; considering doing the same. I haven't seen it since its original run in theatres, though, but I remember liking it in spite of all the naysayers of the time. No clue if it would hold up for me today. Will probably check out a rental before pulling the trigger on physical

@LN78 Yeah, that tracks with my hazy memory of the experience (though I seem to remember that I was also surprised by the fact that I didn't loathe the love story aspect of it with a passion, but I was a young hopeless romantic at the time)

Just came across a post on Facebook, that said Kirk Lazarus could replace Jonathan Majors as Kang in the MCU 🤣.

hanging out at my sister's place for the weekend for christmas. Her and my nieces they just got one of those Oculus game goggles which is neat. i played some kind of Saber music game that was like Rock Band/Guitar Hero a little bit. then some dinosaur rollercoaster "game"

and pretty much watched the Dune 2020 movie on their netflix and whatever they're watching for christmas

I’m gradually making my way through 2022’s most decorated films. Finally watched Everything, Everywhere, All at Once and also All Quiet on the Western Front.

Both extremely impressive films. EEAaO was quite odd, to be sure, but very interesting nonetheless. Not sure it deserved all the accolades, but I also feel like it’s worthy of some praise for what it does. I do appreciate that the Academy recognized a film like this which is science fiction (technically, although no classic Sci-Fi) and has so much humor and quirkiness to it, whereas the Best Picture winners are usually of a more serious ilk. There was definitely times that I was thinking to myself, “what am I watching?!” 😅 But the plot held together, if even by a thread. I also feel like multiverse fatigue probably blunted my enjoyment of the movie. It would have felt fresher if it came out a few years ago.

AQotWF was such a viscerally moving piece of film art. Gorgeous cinematography augmented what was a moving an emotional tale that resonated heavier because of its disturbing accuracy.

I think AQonWF is the movie I liked better, but I’m glad to have seen EEAaO. Both a hair better than The Banshees of Inisherin which was also excellent though. Also both better than Elvis and Top Gun Maverick.

Waiting for The Whale to show up on one of my streaming services. The only other noteworthy film from ‘22 I’m needing to watch it Avatar 2. Clearing 3.5 hours to watch it is proving challenging.

Didn’t mind Indiana Jones 5. Not a patch on 1 or 3 but definitely better than Crystal Skull. The de-aging was silly on close inspection but in action sequences it worked pretty well. Mads is always good too.

@Th3solution Since you're making your way through acclaimed 2022 fare, have you seen Close already? It's a French-language Belgian film and probably my favourite of the year. I believe it was also nominated at the Oscars for International Film. It's a fantastic story that's beautifully filmed and heart-wrenchingly well acted by the kid leads. I'll warn you that it's rather heavy fare though, so make sure you're in a good, stable mood if you do give it a shot.

And as for a film that wasn't really recognised in the awards space, I'd also highly recommend Bodies Bodies Bodies if you haven't seen it already. It's a darkly comedic take on the typical murder mystery thriller with such sharp, witty writing and perfectly calibrated performances from the entire ensemble. One of the scenes in it is one of my most loved ones of the year, but it's an incredibly fun experience throughout.

@Tjuz Thanks, I’ll keep an eye out for them. Close sounds especially up my alley. Hopefully a major streaming service will pick it up this year

Not been a fan of them for years now, seeing as the thing I saw was the first lot of live actions films, but Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem is excellent.

Similar vibe to the Spider-verse movies, but a bit sillier in tone. The art style is fantastic, it reminded me more of Arcane with it looking like it came straight from the (sewers) scrapbook.

And I actually noticed some of the Easter eggs, usually all that stuff goes straight over my head lol.

@LN78 😂 It’s a little early for April Fools, isn’t it? Metacritic of 32. The most telling thing was I read Snyder pitched this as an actual Star Wars movie to LucasFilm in 2012 and they rejected it. Netflix apparently saw something there that Disney did not? 😅

Whew. That was a perfect satirically painful read. Kudos.

Poor Lee Sun-kyun. He was brilliant in Parasite. South Korea’s drug laws and encouragement of blacklisting are utterly vile, it’s little wonder that the suicide rate amongst entertainers is so high, drugs are obviously going to be rampant in that industry and it’s a sure-fire way to have your career and life ruined, despite the fact his drug tests all came back either false or inconclusive. Horrible news to wake up to.

Just out from seeing The Boy and the Heron. Absolutely phenomenal piece of art and
Robert Pattinson went above and beyond as the voice of the Grey Heron.