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The Autopsy of Jane Doe. As horror flicks go this one was well above average. 80% of the way through it was actually very good. Then they made two of the mistakes that all horror movies seem to make. 1. Some kind of Deus Ex thing happens for pure shock value and 2. They try to explain through character exposition what's going on. The explanations are usually absurd and just kill the whole thing. You know what made Blair Witch Project great? You never actually "see" what is causing everything and there is no way to know WHY it's happening. The unknown is far creepier than a great premise ruined by a ridiculous explanation. They can usually establish a story, and set a great atmosphere, but horror movie directors and scrip writers don't seem to know what do do with them. It's like they can get a plane in the air but just can't bring it in for a landing.

 

But this one came close.

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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Came around to seeing <<Blue is the Warmest Colour.>> Had to turn the volume down so as not to give the neighbours the impression I was watching hardcore lesbian porn.

 

Incidentally, this scene showed up in my Youtube suggested videos (probably as a result of looking up Taxi Driver clips), and I was close to shouting "Are you two going to do it or what?!"

 

Edited by Agiel
Quote
“Political philosophers have often pointed out that in wartime, the citizen, the male citizen at least, loses one of his most basic rights, his right to life; and this has been true ever since the French Revolution and the invention of conscription, now an almost universally accepted principle. But these same philosophers have rarely noted that the citizen in question simultaneously loses another right, one just as basic and perhaps even more vital for his conception of himself as a civilized human being: the right not to kill.”
 
-Jonathan Littell <<Les Bienveillantes>>
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"The chancellor, the late chancellor, was only partly correct. He was obsolete. But so is the State, the entity he worshipped. Any state, entity, or ideology becomes obsolete when it stockpiles the wrong weapons: when it captures territories, but not minds; when it enslaves millions, but convinces nobody. When it is naked, yet puts on armor and calls it faith, while in the Eyes of God it has no faith at all. Any state, any entity, any ideology that fails to recognize the worth, the dignity, the rights of Man...that state is obsolete."

-Rod Serling

 

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You're kidding me, I just watched Contact not ten minutes ago. Jodie Foster, so good, pensive and passionate in the same instant, eyes more blue than what's his name Frodo.

 

Speaking of the Shire, Peter Jackson and Weta Digital are also credited. I thought The Frighteners and Fellowship were their first forays.

All Stop. On Screen.

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I thought Jane Doe was amazing for the first half then turned to complete crap for the second. Was extremely disappointing because the first half was really scary and had great mystery.

Yep, as soon as they tried to "explain" what was happening the whole thing fell apart. And the mysterious re-appearance of the girlfriend was just laughable. Like I said they got the plane in the air but just couldn't bring it in for a landing.

Edited by Guard Dog

"While it is true you learn with age, the down side is what you often learn is what a damn fool you were before"

Thomas Sowell

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Finally saw John Wick 2. Failed in counting his shots with the 1911 though. Was a fun film, didn't try to tell too much as was my worry

Why has elegance found so little following? Elegance has the disadvantage that hard work is needed to achieve it and a good education to appreciate it. - Edsger Wybe Dijkstra

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Caught Crimson Peak on TV. Recalled complaints about horrible CGI. Saw poorly composited practical costumes instead. Looked up behind the scenes stuff to confirm 90% was Doug Jones in a costume. Looked through Rotten Tomatoes to see 'top reviewers' complain about overuse of CG. Scratched head.

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Yeah the CGI complaint about Crimson Peak was hilarious.

 

Not that the film isn't without its problems, but CGI...not it.

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I cannot - yet I must. How do you calculate that? At what point on the graph do "must" and "cannot" meet? Yet I must - but I cannot! ~ Ro-Man

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After Bobby Null outed himself as a virulent and genuine though misinformed Star Wars nerd during the Deadfire stream, I was morally obligated to watch Episode VII and confirm his assertion Rogue One is better. Broadly now I agree, but specifically all I could see were Carrie's scenes and I just lost it.  ;(

All Stop. On Screen.

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The eyes of my mother [2016] - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5225338/

Greedy Guts [2000] - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0228687/

The Shootist [1976] - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075213/

 

Currently watching Shoah [1985] - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090015/

Shoah is superb. Have not seen the other three (although I do like Svankmajer a lot). Also very interesting is Lanzmann's newest documentary The Last of the Unjust, centered largely around interviews with the last president of the Theresienstadt Jewish Council. And if the subject and style is interesting to you, I would also recommend looking for Marcel Ophüls' The Memory of Justice (though to my awareness tracking down a good copy of this can be pretty hard), which made in the context of the Vietnam War and based largely on interviews with those involved (either as judges, prosecutors, defendants or accused) in the Nuremberg trials, works on the dangers that could lead to history repeating itself, and how the US as well as any other group in power is capable of committing similar war atrocities. Very interesting stuff!

Edited by algroth
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My Twitch channel: https://www.twitch.tv/alephg

Currently playing: Roadwarden

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The eyes of my mother [2016] - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5225338/

Greedy Guts [2000] - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0228687/

The Shootist [1976] - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075213/

 

Currently watching Shoah [1985] - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0090015/

Shoah is superb. Have not seen the other three (although I do like Svankmajer a lot). Also very interesting is Lanzmann's newest documentary The Last of the Unjust, centered largely around interviews with the last president of the Theresienstadt Jewish Council. And if the subject and style is interesting to you, I would also recommend looking for Marcel Ophüls' The Memory of Justice (though to my awareness tracking down a good copy of this can be pretty hard), which made in the context of the Vietnam War and based largely on interviews with those involved (either as judges, prosecutors, defendants or accused) in the Nuremberg trials, works on the dangers that could lead to history repeating itself, and how the US as well as any other group in power is capable of committing similar war atrocities. Very interesting stuff!

 

 

Thank you for the tips. Both look very interesting!:)

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TO CATCH A THIEF (1955) - Its been awhile since I last watched this film; Grant, Kelly are great as leads, Landis, Auber and Williams all do well as support.  But while it works as a fun breezy film, there's some sloppy elements that seem to be fairly unusual for one of Hitch's films. The bit where Grant is attacked towards the end is a mess.  Still you watch this kind of film for the fun and breezy dialogue and that is totally nailed. 

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I cannot - yet I must. How do you calculate that? At what point on the graph do "must" and "cannot" meet? Yet I must - but I cannot! ~ Ro-Man

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There is a reason I've kept my Cary Grant collection of DVD's all these years.  Some of it might be silly, but they nearly all get carried off with smart dialogue and sheer elan.

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"Cuius testiculos habeas, habeas cardia et cerebellum."

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Logan

 

So, this was great, though not consistently so. About two thirds of the way into the film I would have said it was pretty much the best superhero movie to date, not least by not really feeling like a superhero movie for about 90% of the time: the exchanges between characters are all scripted and performed with a naturalness that feels completely at odds with the more pompous approach of the genre in general, and in fact makes a large part of the conflict and so on. People have spoken endlessly about Huge Action's peformance and it's certainly very good, but not enough has been said about Boyd Holbrook, Stephen Merchant or Dafne Keen, all of whom are really superb in this and have some wonderful exchanges with the titular character. Generally the genre tropes and aesthetic are so underplayed that, much like The Wolverine, by the time you get to the more mutanty/sci-schlock bits, these really jar with the overall tone of the film, and that's unfortunately what muddies up the last third, if not screwing it up completely. The plot device chosen also can't help raise a few eyebrows. These reservations aside, much like the Dark Knight trilogy I feel this aims to play outside the genre it belongs to and mostly succeeds at that too, it's certainly the first film since Nolan's work that feels like a real film and not like a factory product, and it's definitely worth seeing for any fan of the genre as well as those who enjoy a good slice of action/sci-fi/drama.

My Twitch channel: https://www.twitch.tv/alephg

Currently playing: Roadwarden

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The Salesman. So... No surprises that Asghar Farhadi remains one of the best and most interesting filmmakers of the 21st century. This is kinda more of the same but the fact that it blends a theatre play along with the harder realism he's usually known for means it's also the most plastic film I've seen of him yet (plastic as in, aesthetic and the likes, not as in fake). An extremely tense, nuanced film, featuring some great performances and showcases of cinematic tension throughout. Recommended!

My Twitch channel: https://www.twitch.tv/alephg

Currently playing: Roadwarden

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