Movie opinions thread (what have you seen, what did you think?)

[LoneSage]

I still don't get why Clerks 2 was made. Really. Why did he make it? Was Clerks 1 not enough?

Clerks 2 was a look at men nearing middle-age who still work a dead end job, with some gold moments thrown in like porchmonkeys and Rosario Dawson. I thought it was hilarious 14 years ago but can only remember porchmonkeys and Rosario Dawson, so I don't know if I'd like it now.

 

[wyo]

Yeah, Clerks 2 is the other bright spot for Smith post 2000. Apparently, there will be a Clerks 3 as well now that Jeff Anderson (Randal) is on board.

 

[Taiso]

I feel like Smith is more in his element these days telling stories about the process of aging out. Everything he did in Clerks 2 that addressed these aspects of the life cycle are incredibly prescient for someone so low on the actual talent scale.

Randal and Dante buying the Quick Stop at the end of the movie is the natural end of the Campbellian monomyth. They return 'home' with the wisdom they've learned to share it with their community i.e. they will be better proprietors of Quick Stop than anyone before because they've been on the journey and thia is the inevitable conclusion. It was a satisfying finale, one better than you could ever expect from the sum of the 'series'' parts. A kind of aging nerd gestalt.

Jay and Silent Bob getting their own epilogue was pointless, although I think Mewes is pretty good in Reboot when he's emoting. He has a clarity of the gravity that can only come from having lived, and learned, from a life of reckless excess. Too bad it's embedded in a crappy, unnecessary framing.

 

[famicommander]

Reboot wasn't very good but I did enjoy the scene where Jay has to sit in the fan listening to his daughter and her friend talk about guys the way he talks/talked about women.

 

[SouthtownKid]

Watched 6 Underground last night, it probably fell somewhere between mildly bad and okay. It's been ages since I saw a Michael Bay film and will probably be ages before I attempt it again, haha. Flash, style, 101 spinning cameras, you know the drill...

I'll probably watch that at some point out of boredom. I'm kind of okay with Bay, I think because he knows what he is. As opposed to someone like Zack Snyder, who has laughable delusions of depth and substance. Bay is more honest with audiences, and more importantly, is more honest with himself.

 

[fake]

I watched The Lodge and completely disagree with people who said it was good.

Nothing happens in the first HALF of the movie save for Alicia Silverstone's fantastic scene.

After that...

Spoiler:

There's nothing that makes you guess back and forth whether the kids are gaslighting Grace. Also, what was their endgame? The creepy religious horror wasn't nearly played up enough. She starts losing it, what, 12 hours after she's had her meds and she's gone psychotic? And given how she was taking the pills, those were more likely meds for anxiety attacks, and lacking those wouldn't cause you to freak out like she did.

Also, the movie was trying to be symbolic and whatnot with the dollhouse, yet thematically, it didn't link to anything. It wanted to be Hereditary, but didn't put effort in.

Shite movie. There are so many better ways this could've gone.


****************

I've also been watching Cronenberg movies. They all feel like really good made for TV movies, except maybe The Fly.

Scanners: Loved it.
The Brood: Loved it even more.
The Fly: Pretty good, but the creature design and effects were great.

 

[jro]

Vivarium - two good lead performances, intriguing premise, then a really bizarre/creepy character that makes things that much moreso, then it just kind of ends. I guess the ending fit the story, but it was still unsatisfying and invalidated much of the rest of the movie, at least in my opinion.

 

[NeoSneth]

I really liked the characters in the Lodge. I wasn't extremely engaged either, but I thought it was all well done. It was semi-predictable, but enjoyable to watch it unfold.

 

[evil wasabi]

I've also been watching Cronenberg movies. They all feel like really good made for TV movies, except maybe The Fly.

Scanners: Loved it.
The Brood: Loved it even more.
The Fly: Pretty good, but the creature design and effects were great.

Now you are ready to discus metaphysics with PixelJunkie.

 

[oliverclaude]

I watched Sketch Artist the other day, a made for TV neo-noir from 1992. Personally I think the film was perfect in every way: it has great production values, a simple but effective plot and a very atmospheric LA setting around Culver City. You'll see a lot of that crazy Eric Owen Moss architecture, in one scene, you can even spot a model of Moss' Samitaur building in South Central, which was in construction from 1989-1996, so it was work in progress at the time this film was shot. In fact, I could imagine that Moss was raising some money here in order to finish it. Anyway, this is right up my alley.

 

[LoneSage]

Movie theaters opened up nationwide in China last Friday. Can only have 30% occupancy and no concessions. Are theaters open in America yet?

 

[F4U57]

Scanners: Loved it.
The Brood: Loved it even more.
The Fly: Pretty good, but the creature design and effects were great.

eXistenz is really great, too.

I assume you’ve seen Videodrome but if you haven’t, rectify that now, it is essential.

 

[terry.330]

I'd throw in Crash as well as Dead Ringers.

 

[fake]

I haven't seen those other Cronenberg movies yet because they aren't on streaming apps, but I'm tempted to rent them.

Movie theaters opened up nationwide in China last Friday. Can only have 30% occupancy and no concessions. Are theaters open in America yet?

I thought theaters make almost all of their money on concessions. So wouldn't this do more harm than good?

 

[MetalSlugVet]

Reboot wasn't very good but I did enjoy the scene where Jay has to sit in the fan listening to his daughter and her friend talk about guys the way he talks/talked about women.

I agree it could of been better but overall a decent movie. I enjoyed it more then most of Kevin smiths recent movies. Hopefully clerks 3 will be fantastic, if it’s half as good as clerks 2 we will be in for a treat.

 

[Syn]

Movie theaters opened up nationwide in China last Friday. Can only have 30% occupancy and no concessions. Are theaters open in America yet?

I read some theaters are thinking about turning their parking lots into temporary Drive Ins.

 

[jro]

Red State was proof Kevin Smith can make a decent film but he's obsessed with revisiting his past glories.

I also find Red State to be oddly enjoyable. I think that was the one where he made a big showing of "selling" the rights to himself at SXSW (or Sundance or whichever festival) for $5...?

Kevin Smith's affinity for wearing what I assume is his old coat (from before his weight loss) makes him look like a kid wearing his dad's clothes. He looks completely ridiculous.

I've probably mentioned this before, but Tusk is his true masterpiece of weird. That's the one where the old guy from Red State kidnaps Justin Long so he can turn him into a walrus. It's not good in any normal sense of the word, but it's just so utterly strange that I'd say it's worth checking out.

 

[fake]

I've probably mentioned this before, but Tusk is his true masterpiece of weird. That's the one where the old guy from Red State kidnaps Justin Long so he can turn him into a walrus. It's not good in any normal sense of the word, but it's just so utterly strange that I'd say it's worth checking out.

As a Babble-On fan more than a Smith movie fan, I still can't tell if Tusk was supposed to be legitimately scary or not. But it is the funniest movie I've seen since Team America, and is the most I've laughed at a movie since Team America.

 

[wyo]

I also find Red State to be oddly enjoyable. I think that was the one where he made a big showing of "selling" the rights to himself at SXSW (or Sundance or whichever festival) for $5...?

Kevin Smith's affinity for wearing what I assume is his old coat (from before his weight loss) makes him look like a kid wearing his dad's clothes. He looks completely ridiculous.

I've probably mentioned this before, but Tusk is his true masterpiece of weird. That's the one where the old guy from Red State kidnaps Justin Long so he can turn him into a walrus. It's not good in any normal sense of the word, but it's just so utterly strange that I'd say it's worth checking out.

Agreed. I haven't seen Yoga Hosers but Tusk is an interesting curiosity.

 

[Naika]

Finally watched "The Guest" last night and I thought the first half was amazing. By the time of the 'reveal' however, I just felt like wasn't as good as I would have expected. I felt like they really rushed to end this movie.

 

[terry.330]

Jojo Rabbit- Was not sure what to expect and had written it off until I saw it was directed by the guy from What we do in the Shadows. Bizarre but extremely well made.

Basically it's about a boy growing up in Germany during WWII who wants to be a Nazi and his best friend is an imaginary Hitler. His family is anti fascist and he ends up saving his sisters friend who is Jewish. It's a comedy/drama, very surreal.

 

[LoneSage]

directed by the guy from What we do in the Shadows.

I don't like Taiki Waititi. Guy's a tryhard, tests well with teenagers I reckon. Wonder whose dick he sucked to have blown up in the past three years.

 

[evil wasabi]

Jojo Rabbit- Was not sure what to expect and had written it off until I saw it was directed by the guy from What we do in the Shadows. Bizarre but extremely well made.

Basically it's about a boy growing up in Germany during WWII who wants to be a Nazi and his best friend is an imaginary Hitler. His family is anti fascist and he ends up saving his sisters friend who is Jewish. It's a comedy/drama, very surreal.

It’s a fun movie, and I don’t care if people dislike it for whatever reasons. Sam Rockwell needs to do more roles. He’s fantastic here, and in most everything he’s in.

 

[evil wasabi]

I don't like Taiki Waititi. Guy's a tryhard, tests well with teenagers I reckon. Wonder whose dick he sucked to have blown up in the past three years.

What we do in the Shadows.

 

[fake]

My only complaint about JoJo is that it felt like Waitititi was trying to be Wes Anderson.