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Movie opinions thread (what have you seen, what did you think?)
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City Hunter (2024)- Well this is fortuitous timing as I have recently been watching a lot of the anime, had no idea this was coming out. Of the live action adaptations this one is probably about as good as we're ever going to get. The Jackie Chan one is just a total lightweight mess and the French one is almost too accurate but doesn't ever feel quite right since I think CH so inherently Japanese.
They play down the right aspects i.e.; he's not attempting to sexually assault every women he comes across but he's still a complete unrepentant horn dog. The action is adequately cartoonish but doesn't look too out of place in the real world even though the laws of physics don't apply. The marksmanship stuff is handled pretty well and used sparingly so it's more effective. The guy that plays Ryo is pretty good, he does a great job switching between total goof that can only think with his dick and legitimate badass. Kaori isn't quite as good but she does well enough especially in the more comical situations. The hammer gag is done in a fairly clever way that I don't want to spoil.
Overall it's a surprisingly well made and accurate adaptation. I think most fans will get a decent amount of enjoyment out of it. It's also accessible enough for people unfamiliar with Ryo Saeba and his mokkori ways that they won't be put off.
They play down the right aspects i.e.; he's not attempting to sexually assault every women he comes across but he's still a complete unrepentant horn dog. The action is adequately cartoonish but doesn't look too out of place in the real world even though the laws of physics don't apply. The marksmanship stuff is handled pretty well and used sparingly so it's more effective. The guy that plays Ryo is pretty good, he does a great job switching between total goof that can only think with his dick and legitimate badass. Kaori isn't quite as good but she does well enough especially in the more comical situations. The hammer gag is done in a fairly clever way that I don't want to spoil.
Overall it's a surprisingly well made and accurate adaptation. I think most fans will get a decent amount of enjoyment out of it. It's also accessible enough for people unfamiliar with Ryo Saeba and his mokkori ways that they won't be put off.
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Immaculate-I'm not going to write a wall of text about this film.
My interest in the film was largely because of what I'm calling 'the Sydney Sweeney phenomenon'. The woman is a force of nature right now and other than her 'hot girl next door' looks, I really didn't know anything about her. I understand why the internet is going crazy about her right now but I was more interested in who she was as an actress and whether or not she had any talent beyond her physical assets.
The film is about a girl that suffers a personal tragedy and, having faith, decides to join a convent in Italy that is a sort of 'nun hospice'. The kind of place where they send nuns that are sick and about to die so that they can be cared for by those of the same faith. While she is there, 'weird things' start to happen and she comes to discover, supposedly, that the convent's relic is one of the nails used to crucify Jesus Christ. After touching the nail, she suddenly discovers that she is pregnant. Hence, the title of the film.
After that, she finds out what's really going on and of the sinister acts transpiring within the walls of the convent. It's really a psychological horror film with a good amount of gore during the high spots.
I was impressed by Sydney's performance in the movie, although it took some time for the plot's events to affect her and bring her out of her demure shell. Once she begins to emote, her acting chops start to come out. I don't believe she's just a pretty face. She is a Hollywood starlet for sure, and she knows how to take advantage of that, but I believe that with the right project to motivate her, she can be a whole lot more. She's got the potential to be this generation's Scarlett Johansen: an actress that can do popcorn fare, be sexy and sultry but also deliver the occasional performance of substance. It helps that she was a producer on the film-having skin in the game makes it mean more to her.
As for the rest of the movie, it's unevenly paced but not altogether boring. The other characters never quite rise to the level of 'interesting' but as facilitators to Sweeney's arc they function well enough. The villain of the piece becomes cartoonishly animated in the third act. And I though that a lot of the violence pandered to the 'jump scare' crowd that has been criminally deprived of true horror by the evolution of the genre into...whatever it's become. Some graphic things are shown that would have been better off implied. And to me, it's weird that a movie can show a woman's face being beaten with a crucifix, graphically, but refrain from showing the grisly violence suggested in the film's final act.
I'd give it a 3 out of 5, and recommend it solely if you're curious about the evolution of an emerging actress that is sure to be at the forefront of Hollywood's future so long as she doesn't get cancelled for some weird reason. I guess people hate her because she has boobs right now or something.
I don't get it. Boobs are great. Especially hers.
My interest in the film was largely because of what I'm calling 'the Sydney Sweeney phenomenon'. The woman is a force of nature right now and other than her 'hot girl next door' looks, I really didn't know anything about her. I understand why the internet is going crazy about her right now but I was more interested in who she was as an actress and whether or not she had any talent beyond her physical assets.
The film is about a girl that suffers a personal tragedy and, having faith, decides to join a convent in Italy that is a sort of 'nun hospice'. The kind of place where they send nuns that are sick and about to die so that they can be cared for by those of the same faith. While she is there, 'weird things' start to happen and she comes to discover, supposedly, that the convent's relic is one of the nails used to crucify Jesus Christ. After touching the nail, she suddenly discovers that she is pregnant. Hence, the title of the film.
After that, she finds out what's really going on and of the sinister acts transpiring within the walls of the convent. It's really a psychological horror film with a good amount of gore during the high spots.
I was impressed by Sydney's performance in the movie, although it took some time for the plot's events to affect her and bring her out of her demure shell. Once she begins to emote, her acting chops start to come out. I don't believe she's just a pretty face. She is a Hollywood starlet for sure, and she knows how to take advantage of that, but I believe that with the right project to motivate her, she can be a whole lot more. She's got the potential to be this generation's Scarlett Johansen: an actress that can do popcorn fare, be sexy and sultry but also deliver the occasional performance of substance. It helps that she was a producer on the film-having skin in the game makes it mean more to her.
As for the rest of the movie, it's unevenly paced but not altogether boring. The other characters never quite rise to the level of 'interesting' but as facilitators to Sweeney's arc they function well enough. The villain of the piece becomes cartoonishly animated in the third act. And I though that a lot of the violence pandered to the 'jump scare' crowd that has been criminally deprived of true horror by the evolution of the genre into...whatever it's become. Some graphic things are shown that would have been better off implied. And to me, it's weird that a movie can show a woman's face being beaten with a crucifix, graphically, but refrain from showing the grisly violence suggested in the film's final act.
I'd give it a 3 out of 5, and recommend it solely if you're curious about the evolution of an emerging actress that is sure to be at the forefront of Hollywood's future so long as she doesn't get cancelled for some weird reason. I guess people hate her because she has boobs right now or something.
I don't get it. Boobs are great. Especially hers.
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I also think a lot of people don't like or are at least turned off by her because it feels very much like she is being forced on us and kind of came out of nowhere. She's everywhere all of a sudden and it's not just publicity and controversy over her amazing rack. Like she's been in 3 or 4 major movies in just the last few months.
If you look at her resume she's been getting fairly substantial roles for quite a while now but was barely a blip on anyones radar. It hasn't been until the last couple months that she's become this new "it girl".
I hope she's careful with the roles she picks and that her agents don't try to oversaturate the market with her. Like some sort of female Chris Pratt.
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That movie is exactly how one would picture a straight manga to film adaptation. How can I not love it.
"I love being unconscious!" god bless the people who made this movie.
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I like the JC one well enough, it's a very fun movie and that era of HK action comedy stuff has a lot going for it. But a lot of people shit on it. I will say that when the most memorable thing about the movie is the Street Fighter scene rather than anything actually related to City Hunter it's probably not a good sign for your City Hunter movie.
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1917
Watched on the plane. I know this gets a decent amount of praise for the cinematography and it is certainly unique for the simulated-single-shot. I had recently watched Road to Perdition which is also Sam Mendes, feel like both are excellent but maybe not quite masterclass movies.
I liked this for the overall simplicity, although I felt like the event sequences got a little more far fetched as it went along and strayed into unbelievability slightly, the final message delivery sequence through to the end was excellent.
Enjoyed the recognizable faces in small roles (Cumberbatch and Scott together from BBC Sherlock especially) and the relative anonymity (at least to me) of the two mains.
Watched on the plane. I know this gets a decent amount of praise for the cinematography and it is certainly unique for the simulated-single-shot. I had recently watched Road to Perdition which is also Sam Mendes, feel like both are excellent but maybe not quite masterclass movies.
I liked this for the overall simplicity, although I felt like the event sequences got a little more far fetched as it went along and strayed into unbelievability slightly, the final message delivery sequence through to the end was excellent.
Enjoyed the recognizable faces in small roles (Cumberbatch and Scott together from BBC Sherlock especially) and the relative anonymity (at least to me) of the two mains.
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Yeah not really her fault... she's been bubbling up for years thanks to Euphoria and the production/release schedule just happened to deliver multiple movies featuring her in a short time span. She already has her own production company (she actually bought the script for Immaculate and got it made) so she's not some dumb bimbo getting her 15 mins. We're just getting kind of a lot of her at once and the non-conformist types who reflexively shit on anything deemed popular or in are doing what they do best. Good for her... get that bag while you're still hot and Hollywood wants to work with you.
Joe Bob had The Autopsy of Jane Doe last night. I remember it being one of the first few movies I ever talked about in this thread back 7-8 years ago. I also remember liking the premise and the cast but thought the third act was kind of a wet fart. Upon second watch, I appreciated it more this time but don't really understand the breathless praise it gets from some circles of the horror community (other than differing taste). I still really like the premise (the writers were on the show and described wanting to make a "a monster movie where the monster never moves, which I thought was clever), the gradual reveal of the titular (heh) Ms. Doe's back story and Brian Cox and Emile Hirsch elevate what could easily have been a b-movie in less capable hands. That said, kinda nothing happens for most of the last 60 minutes of the movie. The stakes never really feel like they escalate and the big emotional moment they're working up to (the two main characters are a father/son mortician team that are slowly drifting apart) is basically a monologue that just kind of gets brushed past.
Like I wasn't looking for some big dumb Conjuring finale with screaming monsters and bad CG and yada yada but the "horror" in the movie is basically a couple of jump scares, people getting thrown around by an unseen force and a spooky song on the radio. For me, it doesn't do enough as a horror movie or as a "message" movie to justify being a good one of either of them. That said, there's so many trash horror movies out there that an interesting premise and a good cast puts it above 90+% of the pack. I guess I was just hoping for a home run and was disappointed by a solid double.
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Siksa Neraka
Indonesian horror film based off of a comic (so the movie told me) about saying your prayers and not sinning to avoid going to Hell.
So four kids drown in the lamest way ever and three out of the four end up in whatever the Indonesian version of Hell is called (it looks like a generalized version of what most people probably think it looks like), while the fourth is kind of in limbo and simply "visits" Hell for a bit because she said her prayers and didn't masturbate.
There is a lot of terrible CGI lava/mountains, but fuck there is legit disturbing imagery of people getting tortured. People are getting burned, crushed, whipped, stung by giant scorpions (?), and having their limbs/tongues sawed off. Soon as all this horrible shit happens, it even shows them magically healing just so it can be done all over to them again.
Overall, the film is quite terrible due to how basic the plot is and how obviously blunt its themes are, but the Hell and torture stuff is honestly kind of interesting since it doesn't pull any punches. Not worth a watch, but kudos to the people making it for either really trying scare people or just being into torture porn Horror.
Indonesian horror film based off of a comic (so the movie told me) about saying your prayers and not sinning to avoid going to Hell.
So four kids drown in the lamest way ever and three out of the four end up in whatever the Indonesian version of Hell is called (it looks like a generalized version of what most people probably think it looks like), while the fourth is kind of in limbo and simply "visits" Hell for a bit because she said her prayers and didn't masturbate.
There is a lot of terrible CGI lava/mountains, but fuck there is legit disturbing imagery of people getting tortured. People are getting burned, crushed, whipped, stung by giant scorpions (?), and having their limbs/tongues sawed off. Soon as all this horrible shit happens, it even shows them magically healing just so it can be done all over to them again.
Overall, the film is quite terrible due to how basic the plot is and how obviously blunt its themes are, but the Hell and torture stuff is honestly kind of interesting since it doesn't pull any punches. Not worth a watch, but kudos to the people making it for either really trying scare people or just being into torture porn Horror.
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The Beekeeper - above average Jason Statham action flick, that has him as a retired (aren't they always) black-ops agent, who decides to take revenge on an evil corporation conning people out of their savings, after a close friend of his falls victim and takes their own life as a result. Typical solid performance from Statham, gruff, takes no-shit, type we've seen before - kind of almost like his character from Spy, only serious. Pretty good overall, if you want something to switch-off to. Maybe a tad too long? I'm not sure, just as I was starting to wonder where the end was, the finale came, and was thoroughly entertaining. Only partly ruined by the reliance on CGI - a bit shonky, one wonders how much better it would have been if the budget had allowed for practical effects.
Road House - decided to go in on the limited run Vinegar Syndrome 4k release - this is one of those films that actually gets better each time you watch it. Wish it had more Sam Elliot, Keith David is totally, totally, wasted (why is he even in it?), and it's probably 5 - 10 minutes longer than it really needs to be. Other than that, it's a great slice of late 80s action cheese, with some well choreographed fight scenes. Peter Griffin doesn't do it justice.
Road House - decided to go in on the limited run Vinegar Syndrome 4k release - this is one of those films that actually gets better each time you watch it. Wish it had more Sam Elliot, Keith David is totally, totally, wasted (why is he even in it?), and it's probably 5 - 10 minutes longer than it really needs to be. Other than that, it's a great slice of late 80s action cheese, with some well choreographed fight scenes. Peter Griffin doesn't do it justice.
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Get Duked
3 Scottish troublemakers are joined by a nerd as they attempt to gain the Duke of Edinburgh award. Taken to the Highlands the boys must use teamwork, foraging, etc to survive the weekend. Well the boys are attacked and chased by an old guy refered to as the Duke.
It's a horror comedy that's a fun film. It has it's flaws but the positives outweigh the negatives.
3 Scottish troublemakers are joined by a nerd as they attempt to gain the Duke of Edinburgh award. Taken to the Highlands the boys must use teamwork, foraging, etc to survive the weekend. Well the boys are attacked and chased by an old guy refered to as the Duke.
It's a horror comedy that's a fun film. It has it's flaws but the positives outweigh the negatives.
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Red Rock West- Great little neo-noir thriller starring Nic Cage, Dennis Hopper, Lara Flynn Boyle and TJ Walsh. Cage is a drifter looking for work, he stops into a bar where he is mistaken for a hitman. He accepts a job to kill the bar owner's wife planning to just take the cash and run but soon finds himself involved in a very complicated situation. It's got great pacing with some fun performances and just a touch of sleaze. This is definitely a hidden gem, as the movie seems to be all but forgotten.
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What a shame what happened to Lara Flynn Boyle's face and Nicolas Cage's career.
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Jiu Jitsu is the real hidden gem. Everyone can watch stuff like True Romance or Red Rock West. Only the real connoisseurs watched and liked Ghost Rider.
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Napoleon
No bueno. It tries to cover so much ground but all of it in a very cursory manner. Good or bad historicity completely aside, nothing seems to be given any weight in this movie. It is more like 2.5 hours of Napoleon related vignettes. His successes are shown and then we move on, his failures are shown and then we move on. His personal life ups and downs, exactly the same. Nothing that happens seems to influence or inform anything that happens in the following scenes.
A couple of the scenes are visually nice I suppose. I don't know what to think of Phoenix as an actor.
No bueno. It tries to cover so much ground but all of it in a very cursory manner. Good or bad historicity completely aside, nothing seems to be given any weight in this movie. It is more like 2.5 hours of Napoleon related vignettes. His successes are shown and then we move on, his failures are shown and then we move on. His personal life ups and downs, exactly the same. Nothing that happens seems to influence or inform anything that happens in the following scenes.
A couple of the scenes are visually nice I suppose. I don't know what to think of Phoenix as an actor.
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Civil War
Probably the best movie I've seen since The Lighthouse. But also, I feel like I'm going to throw up. The promos make it look like a war movie that's heavy on the action. There are several shootouts and one major set piece, but 90% of the movie is about the photojournalists chasing fame. People have gotten their panties in an uproar over the movie not really validating one side or the other of the political spectrum, but the final shot says it all. I'd recommend trying to see this in the theater while you can.
Probably the best movie I've seen since The Lighthouse. But also, I feel like I'm going to throw up. The promos make it look like a war movie that's heavy on the action. There are several shootouts and one major set piece, but 90% of the movie is about the photojournalists chasing fame. People have gotten their panties in an uproar over the movie not really validating one side or the other of the political spectrum, but the final shot says it all. I'd recommend trying to see this in the theater while you can.
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He played in so many movies I can't remember all. Mixed it up with Ghost Rider Spirit of Vengeance or another non trash movie.
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He means Nicolas Cage wasn't in True Romance. You're either confusing him for Christian Slater or mixing up that film with Wild at Heart. Both great flicks, though.
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It's Wild at Heart but the key message still stays the same.
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Yeah that Nic Cage is awesome no matter how many shitty movies he's in.
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He was pretty good in Pulp Fiction.
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Blue Ruin
Maybe one of my favorite Crime/Thrillers.
I know a lot of people seem to prefer Green Room (which is also great), but there's something about this bungling attempt at revenge that really resonates with me. It's a very miserable movie with no real joy to be found and everyone is just worse off by the end, but it is unapologetic in its tone/themes and executes them so perfectly that it still becomes fun.
I know the Director Jeremy Sauliner didn't follow up these so well with Hold The Dark (which I saw and honestly don't remember), but I'm surprised that outside of some TV episodes he hasn't done much else lately.
Murder Party is really fun too.
Maybe one of my favorite Crime/Thrillers.
I know a lot of people seem to prefer Green Room (which is also great), but there's something about this bungling attempt at revenge that really resonates with me. It's a very miserable movie with no real joy to be found and everyone is just worse off by the end, but it is unapologetic in its tone/themes and executes them so perfectly that it still becomes fun.
I know the Director Jeremy Sauliner didn't follow up these so well with Hold The Dark (which I saw and honestly don't remember), but I'm surprised that outside of some TV episodes he hasn't done much else lately.
Murder Party is really fun too.