Cinema and Movie Thread: flickering images

[Amentep]

Love House - been a few years since I watched it. I had one of the leads as my avatar back when Criterion released it.

[Bartimaeus]

1 hour ago, Amentep said:

Love House - been a few years since I watched it. I had one of the leads as my avatar back when Criterion released it.

It's...it's an experience, that's for sure, certainly one I won't forget anytime soon. I hope your avatar was of Kung Fu, because she was great. I also had a strange pre-connection to this film: I've played the Steam indie game House...and which actually straight up stole the theme song from House the film. It was driving me crazy for a little bit as I was watching the film, I just knew that I'd heard that little melody that they start, stop, and restart like a hundred times throughout the film before, and when I finally figured it out, I was like "haha, what a weird coincidence...and that they're called the same thing...and that they look like they share similar-ish premises?". Yeah, uh, little too much to be a coincidence, methinks.

I tried to look up what "Love House" was, but there weren't many films that had that name...and then I remembered that I wrote about House the previous post. Whoops.

Edited October 28, 2023 by Bartimaeus

[Amentep]

It was of Fantasy - one of the publicity shots of her and the floating head (had to crop out the floating head to make it work as an avatar).

Sorry for the confusion. Should have added italics to House to be clear!

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

Halloween Ends (2022) - out with a whimper. The film tries some new angles with moving on and some dumb **** about getting infected by evil, but that can't save it from being boring. Many of the kills are too telegraphed and almost feel justified, with few exceptions the murders committed by the Shape very much have the stamp of just deserts on them. It just can't capture the feelings of terror that Halloweens (both the original and the 2018 sequel) and Halloween 2 did, and ends up being a confused mess in a bad way.

Fargo (1996) - Ah gees. It's great, I adore small scale crime films without hypercompetent ant/protagonists and this delivers that beautifully. Even when getting into grim territory like triple homicides it's able to bounce back into a comedic tone that feels almost wholesome, which I can partially attribute to the midwestern accents that saturate the film.

[Raithe]

Sometimes, you do have to revisit the classics...

 

[Bartimaeus]

I haven't seen that film yet and nor was I aware of its existence until just now, but I'd like to make note here that this is an extremely rare example of a trailer that I liked and actually convinced me to watch the film it was showing.

On 10/29/2023 at 9:06 AM, PK htiw klaw eriF said:

Fargo (1996) - Ah gees. It's great, I adore small scale crime films without hypercompetent ant/protagonists and this delivers that beautifully. Even when getting into grim territory like triple homicides it's able to bounce back into a comedic tone that feels almost wholesome, which I can partially attribute to the midwestern accents that saturate the film.

I'm pretty sure I described Fargo as being a "cute, feel-good film" when I watched it for the first time like a year ago, and that really wasn't a joke. Let's see...

Well...close enough, .

[Raithe]

17 minutes ago, Bartimaeus said:

I haven't seen that film yet and nor was I aware of its existence until just now, but I'd like to make note here that this is an extremely rare example of a trailer that I liked and actually convinced me to watch the film it was showing.

Also for the trivia,  was Anthony Hopkins and Timothy Dalton's first "proper" film. I think they'd both done one "made for tv film" but apart from that had just been theatre guys with a couple of tv appearances.

[Keyrock]

Lycan Colony (2006) - The son and daughter of a missing ex-special forces operative and a disgraced alcoholic surgeon cross paths in a town populated entirely by werewolves. 

You know, as someone who watches a lot of crappy movies, I'm quite accustomed to seeing day for night. Seeing both actual shot at night and multiple instances of day for night, different but both awful, in the same sequence is new though. To say that this movie is incompetent would be quite the understatement. Everything is wrong. Everything. The acting is atrocious, the audio blows out the microphone numerous times, there are scenes filmed in front of a green screen of a forest when other scenes were actually shot in a forest, rather than draw a tattoo with a sharpie on one of the actors, the filmmaker decided it was a better idea to superimpose an image on a moving body part with predictable results, also there's fart magic.

This film was clearly made by someone who had no clue whatsoever how to make a movie.

Edited October 31, 2023 by Keyrock

[Gromnir]

1 hour ago, Raithe said:

Sometimes, you do have to revisit the classics...

have mentioned previous that the lion in winter is our favorite christmas movie. the film's intimate depiction o' sometimes strangers and loved ones  exploring those ineffable familial bonds during the holidays is so similar to our childhood christmas memories that we cannot help but feel a shiver o' pure nostalgia when we rewatch. 

good times. good times.

the soundtrack is also one o' john barry's best efforts,

so festive, yes?

have also mentioned previous am surprised that as we age, we increasing like barry's on her majesty's secret service. keeps going up our list o' favorite bond themes.

HA! Good Fun!

[Bartimaeus]

Halloween (1978).

Every time I watch another John Carpenter film, it seems more and more of a miracle that I like The Thing so much.

[Bartimaeus]

The Exorcist III (1990).

I thought it was a very enjoyable religious horror drama. The quick, razor sharp dialogue between our two old men, Kinderman and Father Dyer, for the first half of the film made for a pretty great character drama that properly sets up the second half and allows the viewer to truly invest in the film, which is a problem I very often seem to have with so-called 'fun' horror films who clearly just don't care and would prefer to film very clumsy/repetitive/cheap stabbing and strangulation scenes completely devoid of any impact. Ahem, Mr. Carpenter. Anyways, George C. Scott gave a seriously great performance in this.

Edited November 2, 2023 by Bartimaeus

[Sarex]

 

[Amentep]

4 hours ago, Bartimaeus said:

The Exorcist III (1990).

I thought it was a very enjoyable religious horror drama. The quick, razor sharp dialogue between our two old men, Kinderman and Father Dyer, for the first half of the film made for a pretty great character drama that properly sets up the second half and allows the viewer to truly invest in the film, which is a problem I very often seem to have with so-called 'fun' horror films who clearly just don't care and would prefer to film very clumsy/repetitive/cheap stabbing and strangulation scenes completely devoid of any impact. Ahem, Mr. Carpenter. Anyways, George C. Scott gave a seriously great performance in this.

Theatrical cut or Director's cut?  Like a lot of Morgan Creek films, there was a good deal of editing to the theatrical released version.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

Malnazidos (2022) - a zombie film set in the Spanish Civil War. It's good for what it is, a tight action flick that dips toes into horror but doesn't really go all the way with it. It works better here than in the many other zombie movies or 100000 Walking Dead spin-offs.

I also watched an anthology horror movie that was Christmas themed. It was forgettable enough that I can't remember the name.

On 11/1/2023 at 4:10 PM, Bartimaeus said:

Halloween (1978).

Every time I watch another John Carpenter film, it seems more and more of a miracle that I like The Thing so much.

Tell your brain to stop being naughty.

[Bartimaeus]

24 minutes ago, Amentep said:

Theatrical cut or Director's cut?  Like a lot of Morgan Creek films, there was a good deal of editing to the theatrical released version.

Both, actually. I watched the Director's Cut version first, but liked the theatrical better. Besides the obvious issue of the Director's Cut having VHS/workprint-quality footage that makes for a rough consistent cinematic experience, probably my single biggest issue with The Exorcist III is that I...just couldn't quite believe Brad Dourif, and the Director's Cut seemed to mainly restore scenes for and focus on him more. Brad Dourif is great, but there's something about him in this role that oozes comedic silliness for me, so his scenes were probably the toughest part of the film, and the Director's Cut adds even more and the quality is just not great. Watching the Director's Cut first may have actually helped the theatrical indirectly in a way, because whatever scenes might have been missing, I could kind of mentally fill in myself if I needed to, and instead it focused on more of what I liked, which was Kinderman and his turmoils.

25 minutes ago, PK htiw klaw eriF said:

Tell your brain to stop being naughty.

Halloween sucks monkey butt (and I didn't like Little Trouble in Big China, or They Live), but I was being perhaps a little unkind: I did like Assault on Precinct 13. I should watch Starman or Christine next, I'll probably like those.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

13 minutes ago, Bartimaeus said:

Halloween sucks monkey butt

20 minutes ago, Bartimaeus said:

I should watch Starman or Christine next, I'll probably like those.

Probably. Hopefully.

[Amentep]

 

 

[Raithe]

Highlander Remake Will Use Queen Songs from Original Film (thewrap.com)

[Bartimaeus]

Batman (1989).

Like a minute into the film, a prostitute grabs the arm of a small boy with the apparent intent of doing business with him, and I burst out laughing, so that was a good way to start the film. More materially, this film is an absolute hot mess, but as far as hot messes go, at least it's a fun one. It's not often you see superhero films, especially first entries, where the psychotic villain gets all the character setup and the hero is relegated to receiving almost no explanation except for a total joke of a romance plot that's mercifully abridged and mostly skipped over because it sucks...but that's Batman for you, sitting around the entire film with that dumb look on his face as the Joker, meanwhile, has the time of his life. I was cheering on the Joker the whole time, and from the way Burton scripted and directed it, I can only assume that was what was intended. Hell, even his attempt to 'woo' the screaming lady was way more compelling than whatever Batman had going on.

It's certainly not going to replace Begins as my favored Batman film, though it was fun. The Joker had a parade where he just danced around while tossing money into the crowd for several minutes of run time: the film could've just been an hour of that and it would've been great. Jack Nicholson's Joker...is not really what I would in any way call the definitive Joker, but it sure was a hilarious portrayal.

Edited November 4, 2023 by Bartimaeus

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

Sympathy for the Devil (2023) Nic Cage with a Boston accent kidnaps a guy.

So if you like Cage going all out then you'll probably like this film. Joel Kinnaman is a good counterpoint to Cage for most of the film, the straight man who is trapped with this absolute maniac. It's violent and pretty, there's mystery, and as said Nic Cage chews scenery for almost the whole film.

Edited November 5, 2023 by PK htiw klaw eriF

[majestic]

Unnecessary Sequel #3 (2021)

Woops, I mean, Matrix: Resurrections, now that it is available on Amazon Prime. Big spoiler right from the start: I did not hate it. With that out of the way, is that really enough these days? It almost feels like it is. I would not say I enjoyed this, so it is different from Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, but as far as the sequels go, it might be the best of the bunch, although that is such a low bar to clear that it is practically worthless as measurement. Half of the film is a parody anyway, and it seems like the Wachowskis are almost aware of how much their pseudo-philosophical ramblings in Reloaded and Revolutions failed to be interesting, and how uninteresting and rote their other films are. A part almost feels like a meta commentary, especially the development meetings where everyone is desparately looking for a way to make a Matrix sequel (it makes sense in the film) that has a game-changing, impactful component.

Half of the film makes no sense in the context of the other films, and the other half is a mix of parody and remake of the first one. The one thing that is immediately noticable as it is often directly in juxtaposition with the original 1999 film is that shaky cam adds nothing to the feel of an action scene, and the first film is so much better for its lack of screen shaking. There's a time and place for it, but a Matrix film sure is not it. Still, it did not make me want to kill myself or fall asleep like Reloaded and Revolutions.

Eh, I probably am going soft. Always fun to see Neil Patrick Harris though.

[Keyrock]

The most important movie news of the year:

Soon.

[Gromnir]

since burton got a few recent mentions, am sharing one o' our favorites

also, am not expecting @Bartimaeus opinion about frankenweenie to change, but ff to 5:56 to see the original short film which resulted in burton being fired by disney.

  HA! Good Fun!

[Bartimaeus]

4 hours ago, Gromnir said:

also, am not expecting @Bartimaeus opinion about frankenweenie to change, but ff to 5:56 to see the original short film which resulted in burton being fired by disney.

Actually, I'd already seen the 1984 short. I think I watched it shortly after The Shining when I saw Shelley Duvall was in it. Didn't know it got him fired from Disney!

[bugarup]

It also has the kid from Neverening Story 

Went to look for the reason of firing, and this is so f--ing Disney:

"[...] That did not stop Disney from releasing it on VHS after Burton became famous, although only in a censored version."