Topic: The Movie Thread

@JohnnyShoulder There's a very real chance that said murdering scumbag is still entitled to back-end residuals from physical media sales. If that's not a reason to boycott the 4K's then I don't know what is.

@Tjuz How anybody could regard "Evil Dead 2" (in my view one of the funniest movies ever made) as anything other than an intentional comedy is frankly baffling. The reputation of the first two films is largely based on the amazing performance of Bruce Campbell, their astounding visual effects and Raimi's bravura, kinetic camera work - all achieved on a budget of around $4.00.

@Tjuz I think your second paragraph sums up pretty nicely why these movies are as beloved as they are
Additionally, the makeup effects are nothing short of spectacular, considering that none of these guys had much training or experience (or money) with these things.

@LN78 I completely agree with you on "Evil Dead 2" and I think it's my favourite of the franchise. Campbell's manic performance is pure gold

@LN78 @FuriousMachine Obviously the second one has lots of intentional comedy, much more so than the first. I would say the first was pretty much equally hilarious with the outdated effects that definitely do not hold up, though. Still impressive what they managed to do at the time with a shoestring budget, but looking back at it forty years later it's hard not to laugh. Stuff like Cheryl's entire appearance changing from frame to frame because they clearly replaced her with a terrible doll look-a-like or Shelly falling directly down to the ground with zero weight to her after getting hit in the head is just peak comedy, even if this film's tone is more serious presenting.

I do think the second one ran out of steam the further it went on. Setting it entirely in the same cabin as the first got old eventually, especially since the whole plot of the second one was practically just a rehash of the first but with even less memorable characters. Anything with the hand was probably the best stuff in that film aside from the previously mentioned Linda grave-dance. I think a change of setting would definitely have helped it a lot. I'd say I prefer the first. Not that big of a fan of Bruce Campbell's performance personally, but he was solid. He knows how to ham it up for sure. I've seen him act better in more modern roles, like his guest stint on Lodge 49.

@Tjuz Raimi et al. pretty much agreed with you that the first movie ended up being a little bit too shonky and amateurish, which is why the second film is essentially a powered up remake. Still, as an example of zero budget movie making's Scenario #1 (put a group of people in a single remote location and kill them - see also 'Reservoir Dogs') the first first movie is incredible.
PS It's Campbell's overall physical performance rather than just his acting that's singled out for praise - the sequence that you mentioned with the possessed hand in particular. It's seriously impressive.

on Tubi watching the Game Chasers movie. its not bad of a movie from the youtubers Game Chasers but t he movie is pretty slow for an hour and half movie.

also watching the old Maximum Overdrive movie on plutotv

There a reason as to why the Green Goblin was chosen for the face for the evil semi truck in the movie? Why not the incredible hulk's face or something obscure like dormammu from the doctor strange comic?

Begrudgingly bought the 4K blu-ray of "Enter the Dragon" (the version included in the otherwise excellent Arrow Video Bruce Lee set was the old 1080P Special Edition release from way back) but I'm glad that I did. Not only does the HDR punch the colours up to an astonishing degree but the Dolby Atmos upsample of the soundtrack (from what I assume was a mono source) is nothing short of incredible - the sound effects have a new visceral crunch and the Lalo Schifrin score (one of my favourites) has never sounded better. I'll just chuck this new disc into the boxset and be a happy camper!

@LN78 I have heard good things about that transfer, and is on my wishlist. The film is one of my faves as a youngster in the genre, so is high up on my list.

@JohnnyShoulder Did you buy the Arrow Video set in the end? It's magnificent.

@LN78 I was looking for information regarding that box set and good grief. Multiple versions of the same films from different markets. Not even the Criterion set goes that far! Too bad it's a Region B release but then again, who knows how much that set is. I know those Arrow box sets ain't cheap. I spent over $100 for Shawscope Volume 1.

@cheetahman91 The 4K discs with the movies and bonus features are region free, only "Enter the Dragon" and some of the supplementary materials are on standard (I assume region specific) blu-rays. I loved the Shawscope sets - there are rumours that a third volume might be on the way!

@LN78 Gotcha. I don't have a 4K TV, so I don't have much use for that set. I'm also content with my Criterion set. Thanks for clarifying though. Glad it's mostly region free for anyone who's interested.

And there could be a third Shawscope set? Nice. I still need to get Volume 2. I'm been watching some movies from Volume 1 the past few days. These boutique labels have been knocking it out of the park the last few years with these classic Hong Kong releases.

@cheetahman91 Apart from the visual upgrades and new commentaries, the real highlight of the set is an almost 4 hour "filmumentary" style reconstruction of "Game of Death" featuring all the extant footage (dailies, outtakes etc.) that Bruce shot. Thoroughly excellent.

the Game Chasers movie that's on Tubi, the movie is a boring piece of crap

I wasn't a fan of it myself, but that Pinocchio set does look nice!

Watched 'Knock at the Cabin' last night. Thoroughly enjoyable and Bautista really shows off his acting chops.

My Netflix subscription ended today and I decided it was time to switch to a different service. I browsed through Prime Video to see if anything new has been added since I was last subscribed.

It now has all the James Bond movies! I've been waiting forever for a streaming service to add all of them! It also has the Rocky movies, the Terminator trilogy, the first Halloween and Saw movies, the Uncharted movie and the first John Wick movie. I know what I'll be watching for the next month!

Just finished watching the first James Bond movie: Dr. No. Pretty good movie overall, although I could tell that this isn't considered one of the better James Bond movies. While the set-pieces looked believable, some scenes just felt random and the acting was a bit strange sometimes.

Moreover, it started off promising but then it became harder to follow along with the story. The villain was pretty cool though and having Jamaica as the setting was great. I haven't seen many movies with that country as the setting.