@RogerRoger you don't really see anything and it's what puts Wick on the path to Revenge. Loved all 4 movies.
@nessisonett@JohnnyShoulder yes very sad, I was never a huge friends fan but I've warmed to it over the years. My wife always has it on if she isn't watching anything new!
@RogerRoger Yeah, as others have said, there’s some editing done to save the viewer from seeing overt dog violence. For me it was a shocking moment narratively, but otherwise ok and I didn’t feel it was in poor taste. For an action movie it plays with the emotions quite a bit.
I’ve always felt Keanu was a tad overrated, but this was one of the better roles I’ve seen him in. His deadpan mono-tonal line delivery fits for a cold, brooding assassin .
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
The international film festival in the city next to me is currently ongoing, so I'll be seeing a movie pretty much daily for a while. However, I came here to post my thoughts on a specific one. I saw Poor Things yesterday. The newest film from the team behind The Favourite and the creator of The Great. Of course Lanthimos is also well known for films such as The Lobster or The Killing of a Sacred Deer. Anyway, withour further ado, I have nothing but nice things to say about Poor Things:
Some films just demand your attention from the very first frame and refuse to let go throughout. Poor Things is a perfect example of such a project. McNamara's script once again proves that he's a genius at both the way he writes his dialogue and structures his narrative. After both showing his prowess over and over again with The Favourite and over the course of three seasons of The Great, there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that he's the true visionary behind this end result. However, much like when comparing the aforementioned The Favourite vs. The Great, Lanthimos shows here that he knows how to elevate his scripts like no other. They're an absolute dream pairing of creatives. The combination of McNamara's oddball humor with heart and Lanthimos' extraordinary eye is the only duo I can think of to do justice to this all in all strange premise. And they make it look easy.
What surprised me compared to the previous work of both is quite how much of a "feel-good" movie this is really. Not the saccharine type that might instantly jump to mind. It by no means can be described by that word, but it is filled to the brim with themes of positivity, empowerment and self-discovery. Even the film's darker moments do not take away from an overwhelming sense of goodness just radiating off of the screen by both its protagonist and visual energy at all points. Important here also is that Bella, as played by the ever-amazing Emma Stone, is never played for the fool. She may be naive, confused or highly unknowledgeable at first, but she's not the village idiot. Her empathy is one of her finest traits and shines throughout the narrative, which makes it easy to fall in love with her and lend her that same courtesy. Her journey is portrayed with such deftness due to a mix of the script and Stone's impressively convincing performance when so much asked asked of her can be quite out there. She carries her assignment with style and always manages to add her own signature touch to it.
All of this is only emphasised by the visual spectacle Lanthimos and his team have managed to put together on-screen. From the production design, the sets, the costumes, the lighting to the way they frame the shots... it all comes together beautifully to bring to life one of the most gorgeous films I have ever had the pleasure of watching. If there is one film you could hang in a museum for practically every single frame, it might just be this one. The surreal elements integrated into this world only add to the feast for any film lover's eye. It's an oddly bright and lively aesthetic which often reminds of a steampunk-type of setting. Every detail of what's on-screen seems meticulously crafted to bring out the very best of every moment with brilliant results. They took big swings here and reaped nothing but rewards. The narrative may not quite match those big swings as it remains rather straight-forward throughout, but it was in no way to the detriment of the final product. Basically knowing what's to come around every turn didn't spoil the experience because the journey itself is an undeniable delight.
With a fantastic ensemble to support all of this, you would think it'd be hard to point at one individual as standing out. They all bring the most to each of their roles, whether it be major or minor ones. Shockingly, however, Mark Ruffalo managed to do just that in one of his finest turns to date. He's blessed with a treasure trove of top-tier lines, yet the way he elevates each and every one of them is nothing short of impressive. His character's arc leads him to deliver an ultimately overwhelmingly comedic performance and Ruffalo hits each and every note with the most masterful precision. Any time he and Stone interact feels like a masterclass of the performing arts unfolding in front of your eyes. At that point, having an almost equally talented ensemble backing it all up just feels like an abundance of quality.
Poor Things is the type of film you just don't want to end. Clocking in at a respectable two hours and twenty minutes, it's one where you can feel the length. Rather than scoffing at it and wondering when it's going to wrap up however, you simply feel excited every time you realise there's still more to come. There's nothing I could cut from this film to make it shorter because I do not want to experience less of this world and these characters. Do yourself a favour and take the journey as well. It might just be the best film of the year.
@RogerRoger I can’t be sure whether it will fit as a Rog movie, but I think so. Thinking about some of the movies you’ve mentioned being a fan of in the past, it’s not that far flung from Taken, with a similar vibe, albeit slightly more ruthless and violent. Although Wick isn’t as lovable as your favorite assassin James Bond, he’s probably more relatable. Like Neeson’s character Bryan Mills, he’s easy to root for whilst he’s leaving a trail of blood and broken bones. See also: Jason Borne, John Rambo, and heck, even Dirty Harry.
Small disclaimer — I watched John Wick randomly as it aired on a cable television channel, so it was lightly (or not so lightly) edited for TV. The F-words were blatantly scrubbed out and I suspect some of the more visceral violence may have been sanitized for mass consumption. I probably should have mentioned that at the outset.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
@PixelDragon "Event Horizon" and "In the Mouth of Madness", two Lovecraftian Sam Neill classics! Love them both!
Been wanting to see the Hammer classics for a while, but I've yet to find a way to watch them here in Norway. Hopefully they will show up on a streaming platform soon. Read somewhere that Hammer is due for a revival soon; hopefully a push to make the old films readily available will be a part of that
Finally cracked open my Collector's Edition of The Mist for Halloween. Still love that movie to pieces! Oh, Darabont, where are you? Planning to try to check out the special features later in the week.
@LN78 😅 Honestly, theres a certain amount of creativity that goes into a TV edit. Reminiscent of a foreign language localization where the team has to translate wording but try to keep with the spirit of the original script.
A chicken ready to be plucked, indeed. 😂
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
Watched 'Black Gunn' recently, great movie but my enjoyment of it was somewhat spoiled by discovering that Jim Brown didn't appear to be such a decent guy in real life, but I do recognise that he was probably just a product of his times. Still, I love all those 1970s African American themed movies, it was a great genre that existed for a brief time in American cinematic history. I also thought the Pam Grier movie 'Coffy' was great.
"Preoccupied with a single leaf, you won’t see the tree. Preoccupied with a single tree, you’ll miss the entire forest. Don't be preoccupied with a single spot. See everything in its entirety...effortlessly. That is what it means...to truly "see." "
@MightyDemon82 This one kinda snuck up on me. Been aware that they were making it for quite some time now, but for some reason, in my mind, it's still a long way off. Then there's a teaser trailer all of a sudden! Excited for it, but a little bit wary as I loved the previous trilogy a lot, so this one has some big shoes to fill!
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