@RogerRoger No need to apologise for the long post, it's nice to find another big Bond fan and see what you think about the films! I always find it interesting to read the different reasons people like things and how certain films (or games or music) can have a big impact on us.
Zorin is an interesting villain to me, not least because he is a complete sociopath. I do think they could have gone a bit further exploring his background, but suppose it was surplus to the needs of the story. Definitely agree with Roger Moore doing well in the film despite his age - especially during the nailbiting bridge finale. Special shout-out to Moneypenny's hideous outfit at the races! It was a shame that this was Lois Maxwell's last film in the role as I don't like her replacement in the Dalton films.
@RogerRoger The Living Daylights is a very strong entry - you pretty much nailed my thoughts on it! I really like the darker tone at the beginning, although there are of course still moments of camp well balanced throughout. I like Necros, he's one of my favourite evil henchman. The relationship between Bond and Kara is a highlight of the film as it's very natural. Timothy Dalton is likeable and the producers seemed to have taken advantage of having a younger, more athletic actor in the role. Afghanistan must have been very topical as a setting at the time. Bond's relationship with the mujahideen isn't remotely strange given the time period. Many people nowadays don't seem to realise that which is odd.
License to Kill is definitely an atypical Bond film. It would have worked perfectly fine as a straight revenge movie, but certain elements confuse that a little, which is a shame. A weaker entry for me.
I'm going to drop spoilers about a 35+ year old horror film that everyone knows the plot to already, but, err, don't read if you're one of the few people who doesn't already know what The Shining is about
So, I finally watched The Shining all the way through! Despite leaving it with extremely mixed feelings, I think it was still worth watching. The sound design is absolutely amazing, especially as the film descends deeper and deeper into madness, and the "music" (if that's what it can be called) becomes a reflection of the indescribable chaos of Jack's mind. The acting, as far as that goes, seems pretty effective: Jack Nicholson has never been scarier (although, as I've said before, Jack Nicholson only ever plays Jack Nicholson... in this film, he's just doubling down the creepy aspects of his performances), and Shelley Duvall's Wendy spends most of the film seeming pretty genuinely terrified. The cinematography is really awesome during the opening scenes, with its vast, panoramic scene setting. And, even if the film eventually devolves into Steadicam: The Movie once the characters reach the hotel, there's a wonderful sense of irrationality to the set. The way it's designed is physically impossible, in certain respects, giving it an unnatural air from the beginning. I guess I should also mention that the film makes effective use of shocking imagery.
So, why did I say I left it with mixed feelings? Well... the film is close to three hours long, and the pacing kind of dies when the characters actually settle in to the hotel. It turns into a series of random creepy scenes that just kind of happen. One of Stephen King's criticisms of the film is that Jack Torrance is pretty clearly nuts from the get-go, and while he may get worse over the course of the film, there's no feeling of a 'descent into madness.'
The film also dispensed with a ton of the narrative from King's novel, which makes his inclusion of Danny's "shining" powers, and the discussion surrounding that, stand out all the more. There just doesn't seem to be a narrative function for his abilities. They exist to service a plot and character development that was filtered out of the adaptation.
The characters... kind of suck. Jack is insane and unpleasant to begin with, and that just becomes more the case over the course of the film. Wendy is a shrinking violet who exists so that the men in her life can terrify her (not necessarily uncommon in horror films, but I'd like to think something heralded as art would go beyond this; Stephen King was certainly unhappy with her portrayal in this film, which he called "misogynistic"). Hallorann is the most blatant example of the Magical Negro trope I've ever seen in a film; he's only there to dump exposition about his and Danny's psychic powers and then to be killed as a sacrifice when the film demands blood. These aren't people: they're one-dimensional abstractions brought to life. Although, I will admit, I like how subtle but unmistakably potent the theme of child abuse is in this film. They don't run it into the ground like almost any other film would, but it's clearly there, in the subtext of several scenes, of Wendy's terror when she sees marks on Danny's neck, and, most notably, in Danny's own behavior.
While I pointed out the film's effective use of imagery, and it's true, I think it does a good job showing it, without the context of a meaningful narrative to ground it, a lot of the creepy stuff happening in the film just seems more 'lol random' than anything, such as the woman in Room 237, the creepy twins, and especially the random gay furries having sex near the end of the film. I'm sure these have clear narrative functions in the original novel, but they almost feel like they're included at times so that Kubrick can market this as a horror film. I'll give the famous blood elevator imagery a pass as foreshadowing, but that's as generous as I'm being.
Oh, and the climax sucks. Wendy and Danny leave in Hallorann's car (because who wants to see the nice white woman and child get chopped up when you can summon the magical negro from hundreds of miles away to come sacrifice his property and life in their stead, as the film seems eager to do?), you get a brief flash of Jack Torrance wearing a goofy expression after freezing to death, and then the film ends with a tacky, Twilight Zone-esque twist that's not really meaningful in the context of the film it caps off.
Overall, though, I think the good overwhelms the bad... I just don't think it's the masterpiece people think it is.
Currently Playing: Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (NS2); Corpse Factory (PC)
@RogerRoger Great! I definitely think it's a movie everyone should see. It has become a part of the DNA of Western cinematic history, so to speak.
Anyway, while there is a lot of tension, some disturbing imagery, and really effectively creepy sound design, it doesn't have much in the way of jump-scares or gore. It was probably shocking in 1980 when it came out, but, you know, modern viewers are much less sensitive in general to stuff.
Currently Playing: Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (NS2); Corpse Factory (PC)
@RogerRoger Goldeneye is such a memorable film to me and an incredibly strong first film for Brosnan, with many iconic moments. The entire opening act in particular is excellent. From the dam sequence (that bungee jump and toilet entrance!) to the Monaco car race and Severnaya. Whilst the films is generally well paced I have to agree that parts of the middle in St. Petersburg do drag on just a touch, but boy is that tank set-piece great. I also love the train sequence. The Cuban finale is also exciting and the bits outside make a beautiful setting. I love those tropical Bond settings!
Xenia Onatopp (nice pun, given her favoured method of killing) is surely one of the best Bond henchman ever. Famke Janssen is brilliant and absolutely steals every scene she's in. Alec is less memorable to me, but it is interesting that he is a very personal villain for Bond. I love Natalya. As you say she has her own story for much of the film, which is unusual for the series. She's very strong willed and intelligent. I guess she falls for Bond a little too quickly, but that is part and parcel for the series. And then we have Judi Dench, the best M ever! I love Judi Dench anyway (bit random, but have you seen Notes on a Scandal?), and she seems to really relish this role. The way in which she delivers her lines is brilliant.
After the end of the Cold War and demise of Bond's traditional enemy the producers must have surely wondered where to take the series next. I feel it succeeds in bringing Bond into the modern age, with a blend of old and new. The women in particular are much stronger than ever before. Brosnan is an excellent choice of casting as he is so suave. He's not the greatest actor, but he pulls off the role of James Bond with aplomb.
Tina Turner's song is excellent, too. The title sequence is one of the more memorable for me.
Special shout out to Minnie Driver and her lovely rendition of "Stand by Your Man"!
I watched Hacksaw Ridge a coupe days ago. It’s a great movie. What he did was absolutely amazing. He was so humble about it too; I have no doubt the hand of God with him. It was easily one of the best war movies I’ve seen.
Thought Infinity War was great and Thanos clearly didn't disappoint. He's definitely my most favourite MCU villain now. The others that I like are Loki, Hela, the Vulture and Killmonger. Can't wait for next year's movie!
Looking forward to watching Deadpool 2 this week and I have to say that the marketing for both Deadpool films have been pretty hilarious and great so far.
@RogerRoger Tomorrow Never Dies and The World is Not Enough are both strong outings, especially the former. That does sound like an odd first viewing experience for TND. It reminds me of when one of my Beauty and the Beast VHS got taped over for about 10 seconds with some random crap off the television.
Fully agree with your thoughts on Tomorrow Never Dies. Mitchell's Yeoh is pretty amazing. She's an exceptional martial artist, and it really adds to the action scenes. The motorcycle chase is a particularly great scene. Watching the film for the first time in many years, it really struck me just how relevant the "evil media overlord" plot really is - perhaps even more so than in 1997. I have to say those elements largely went over my head when I watched it as a 12 year old. Overall, the film is nicely edited, well structured and well made. A great follow up to Goldeneye. The only negative I can really think of is the Sheryl Crow song, because she sounds like a cat in a tumble dryer.
The World is Not Enough has always been memorable for me because the first time I watched it was for part of my GCSEs in 2001. The first half is good "classic Bond" and I especially love the boat chase on the Thames. In general it's very action heavy, with lots of explosions. I approve. Judi Dench's increased role is also very much appreciated. Sophie Marceau makes an excellent and complex villain. She's beautiful and gives Bond a run for his money, but I agree that he susses Elektra a little too easily, and from then the film falls into the not uncommon trap of dropping all pretence. The audience thinks she's possibly a bad'un, and so she acts like one at every opportunity.
Denise Richards is a bad actress, but I find her comedic. I don't hate her and I disagree with those who say that she "ruins the film", because she absolutely doesn't. Thumbs up to Robbie Coltrane's return and the Garbage song. Sad to say goodbye to Desmond Llewelyn.
Speaking of Deadpool, the sequel was great! I loved the first one and I thought the sequel was even better. Some really funny and unexpected brief cameos as well.
@WanderingBullet Oh, is Deadpool 2 out already. I liked the first one for what it was. Although, you know, most of that movie's appeal was in Reynold's snarking. The actual movie around him... eh.
Currently Playing: Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (NS2); Corpse Factory (PC)
@RogerRoger No need to apologise for the long posts, I have enjoyed reading them.
Die Another Day. I said last week that this was one of my least favourite Bond films, though as with Moonraker there are still a few elements I liked. What has been interesting to me is that we have agreed on almost everything apart from Moonraker and Die Another Day. That's not bad, eh.
I only watched Die Another Day for the very first time last month - it was the only pre-Craig film I had never seen before - so I don't have any nostalgia attached to it. Even though our opinions differ, it's really interesting to read the big impact the film had on you. It's funny you mention the art exam, because we weren't allowed to have a Walkman when I did mine, although the radio was on in the background. Our class got moderated and everyone ended up with a C.
In many ways Die Another Day is very stylistically a film of its time. Also during that period CG was starting to be very heavily used. I do feel the green screen is overused and has aged it, but being a film from 2002 when most action films were doing exactly the same thing, it it hard to condemn Die Another Day for having contemporary production standards. I'm not a massive fan of the direction or editing compared to its direct predecessors, however.
As you say there is always a certain level of suspension of disbelief required when viewing any Bond film. For me, the plot of Die Another Day is past that level and I think that is the primary reason it just doesn't gel with me.
Bits I like are Jinx (my initial thought was is she working to destroy the Cuban Healthcare system?) and the section in the Ice hotel. Miranda Frost is hilarious!
Saw Black Panther last week. Thought it was alright, but definitely overrated. Paled in comparison to Thor Ragnarok.
I've also been watching Bond films for the past couple of months (not in order) so here's all the ones I've seen from favorite to least favorite (along with some brief thoughts on the films).
1. Goldfinger- This was one of my favorite movies before I re watched it for the umpteenth time and after watching it again, it still is.
2. From Russia With Love- Another outstanding film. Admittedly can't think of any specific reasons why this one's ranked so high other than the fact that it just does everything so darn well.
3. The Spy Who Loved Me- After watching this one, I can see why many people regard this one as Moore's best film. I like how Bond works with a Russian agent, Jaws is my second favorite henchmen (Oddjob has to come first), Stromberg is a great villain and the Lotus Espirit submarine car just rules.
4. Dr. No- It may be the worst and it may have a sorry budget, but it's still one of the best. Dr. No is a terrific villain and of course I don't think I need to say anything about the theme song.
5. You Only Live Twice- You would think that Bond and Japan would be a match made in heaven, and you would be right. The part where Bond is disguised as a Japanese looks pretty ridiculous, but the rest of the film is great (especially the part with the volcano base).
6. On Her Majesty's Secret Service- This one would be higher, but this one takes too long to get started. Once Bond finally reaches Switzerland, the film really shows it's stuff. The main theme is quite good as well.
7. Tomorrow Never Dies- Really like the idea of Bond going up against the mass media. Carver is an great villain as well.
8. Goldeneye- Bond going up against a former MI6 agent was also a great idea.
9. For Your Eyes Only- I liked this one, although it felt more like a best-of James Bond than a new film.
10. Thunderball- This used to be one of my favorite Bond films. After rewatching it though, I honestly don't know what I was thinking. The pacing isn't the greatest, and the underwater scenes aren't all that interesting. I still think it's a decent film though.
11. Live and Let Die- This one is ok, but it has several notable flaws. The plot isn't as interesting as the
rest of the films on this list (you would think that Bond would have more important things to worry about instead of drug smugglers). Kananga/Mr. Big is also a bit of a boring villain, and the boat chase scene drags on for too long. The best part of this film is the main theme.
I really need to get back to watching more of these (I've been taking a bit of a break from movie watching). I also know that I need to watch Casino Royale, but I wanted to focus on watching the older films first.
@Ralizah You're not the only one who feels that way about The Shining (I watched it a couple of months ago along with several other horror films). I did appreciate the freakier aspects though as it made the film stand out for me (I'll also admit that I'm not of a massive horror fan, so that doesn't really help with my opinion of the film). The only real reason I saw this one was that Stanley Kubrick was supposed to be a great director that made great movies but after seeing a couple of his, the other one being 2001: A Space Odyssey which is supposedly the best science fiction film ever made (hmmmm...), I'm starting to think that people might overrate his films a wee bit too much.
Jesus is the only way.
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@RogerRoger Sorry to hear that, I hope you feel better soon. The Craig films don't have the "fun" of the classic ones and can be heavy viewing, especially in succession, so I can see why you'd put rewatching them on hold for now. I hope that with Craig's successor they find a place for some of the silliness and gadgets of the older ones.
What other film series do you like? I know you're a Star Wars and Star Trek fan.
@RogerRoger Hey, I did like Rogue One quite a lot!
I don't think I can pinpoint a specific reason why I didn't like it. I'm also not sure if I liked it more or less than The Last Jedi, because I think both aren't great, but for different reasons.
It's quite cheesy (in the bad way) and predictable, although there's a bit of flip-flopping near the end that makes you question it all, but that part doesn't last more than a few minutes. If they were trying to implement a plot twist, it didn't work for me unfortunately. There's a lot of new locations and new characters in this one, and it feels like they're in a new location every ten minutes. It's too much, it all feels a bit rushed. Characters come and go, there's hardly any sentimental value watching a character die that was only introduced a few minutes before. And, although I'm not too surprised since it's Disney, I felt they were pushing a political agenda a little too much. I bought a ticket to watch a film, not a lesson on cultural and political sociology. The rest is standard fare of what you would expect from a ''Han Solo film'', basically all the things we know about his past, but now on the big screen.
And there's the ending? Cliffhanger, I guess. Not sure what they were going with that, since I don't think a direct sequel has been confirmed, nor do I think it ties very well into the other films...
After seeing Rogue One, I expected more from the spin-offs, this one felt just unnecessary.
I don't look up reviews for films (and games) I'm going to see regardless, but it doesn't surprise me to see that Solo did pretty bad, even for prequel (and TJL) standards.
@Octane Uh oh, you didn't like Solo? I'm not sure what to expect from this one...of all the new Star Wars movies, this is the only one NOT to make me boil over in anticipation (trailers weren't that great).
How would you rank it compared to the other new Star Wars movies? So far I'd go like this:
Rogue One
Episode 8 (great movie, but very disappointing at the same time, LOL)
Episode 7 (wouldn't be so bad had the sequel delivered better on the plot setups started here)
EDIT : oops, you just kinda ranked the new movies in your last response, haha...
@smelly_jr I guess I could add that I think that The Force Awakens was fine, not my favourite, but I like it more than the prequels I think, and definitely more than TLJ and Solo.
I actually liked the first trailer more than the second one. I hoped they were stepping out of their comfort zone, and were doing a cyberpunk-ish Star Wars film, maybe even something neo-noir. I would have loved that I think. The second trailer was definitely more standard Hollywood fare than the first one, so I went in with low expectations.
Rogue One is definitely the best Disney Star Wars film so far. Great balance of nostalgia with a new 'feel' and execution (unlike certain others films COUGHTHEFORCEAWAKENSCOUGH), an uncompromising and satisfying ending, and a more interesting and likable cast of characters than in the new mainline films.
And, although I'm not too surprised since it's Disney, I felt they were pushing a political agenda a little too much. I bought a ticket to watch a film, not a lesson on cultural and political sociology.
Oh goody. That means that we'll get a whole 'nother slew of articles explaining how SW fans are "toxic" once the fan backlash inevitably happens. Again.
I'm not going to see this when it releases, and, judging from the fact that even critics are lukewarm on it, I think I made the right choice.
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