Sports Games
All discussions regarding football (American and the rest of the World) basketball, baseball, or any game with a ball.
25 topics in this forum
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Rocket League
by Protocawl- 1 follower
- 1 reply
- 2.6k views
View Game Rocket League Soccer meets racing once again in our long-awaited, MP-focused sequel to Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars! A futuristic Sports-Action game, Rocket League, equips players with booster-rigged vehicles that can be crashed into b*lls for incredible goals or epic saves across multiple, highly-detailed arenas. Using an advanced physics system to simulate realistic interactions, Rocket League relies on mass and momentum to give players a complete sense of intuitive control in this unbelievable, high-octane re-imagining of association football. Submitter …
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Football Manager 2020 - Lime Green to Legend 1 2
by LimeGreenLegend- 2 followers
- 38 replies
- 3.7k views
Meet Lime Green. Lime knows nothing about football, except for one thing. That he wants to become the most legendary manager the game has ever seen. But, as you can see from these stats, that won't be the quickest or easiest of objectives. He has no coaching qualifications, the lowest attributes you could possibly have, the bare minimum playing experience (one accidental appearance for his local pub's Sunday league team while he was walking his dog), and he's only 20 years old, so it'll be a task to command any kind of respect. This is FM hard mode. However, Lime is determined, and applied for every managerial job...in the world. …
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Football Manager 2019
by DavidCore89- 2 followers
- 23 replies
- 1.8k views
Anyone here play this? I've been playing since the late 90's, since the Championship Manager days. I enjoy putting a few hours in here and there, working on tactics and finding future stars. Used to play in some online leagues, but these days it's just single player. Feel free to discuss, give tips, post tactics or screenshots!
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- 1 follower
- 26 replies
- 3.1k views
Anybody playing this year? I've been playing quite a lot, the gameplay is better this year, I can be patient and not get hit on the counter too easily, and since wing play is more effective, I've been having better results as it suits my style of play. Lots of small improvements has made the game a lot less stressful to play. Focusing on FUT, spent quite a lot of money to get a decent team and have only lost 4 times so far with +18 goal difference, big change to last year when I lost the same amount as I won with negative goal difference . Of course, having a good team and lots of coins helps a lot. 1 of my players is worth more than the whole of last …
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Madden 2018
by truelife98- 1 follower
- 4 replies
- 1.1k views
Game is set to be released this week Tuesday for goat preorders Friday for regular preorder and next Tuesday for everyone. I have my copy reserved and was wondering if anyone else planned to pick it up. Also if interested myself and former xdbx member llcomplexll will be running a franchise season and anyone is welcome to join in
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NBA 2k18
by PapOiteE- 0 replies
- 842 views
The prelude is coming September 8 for both PS4 and Xbox One. The full game will release one week later. Who is gonna get this game?
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NBA 2K17 twitch prime code
by Thompsson- 0 replies
- 1.3k views
Hello! Anyone willing to give his twitch prime code for free? (If not playing the game). I don't have twitch prime here in Slovenia. Thanks a lot in advance!
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- 1 follower
- 59 replies
- 6.1k views
For those who don't know, FIFA 17 will come with a new engine... Dice's FROSTBITE! I can't wait for the trailer, I expect high quality graphics and tons of new animations.... And portuguese stadiums as well! A demo will be available in September as usual.
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Madden 2017
by truelife98- 6 replies
- 1.4k views
Just sitting here at work and I realized Madden is out tomorrow. This actually works out really good as I am off Tuesday and Wednesday night so if anyone is picking it up and wants to get a game in shoot me a message we can try it out.
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- 1 follower
- 345 replies
- 24.8k views
XDBX Madden NFL Connected Franchise I have talked to a few members of the crew about starting a Connected Franchise Online. There seemed to be some interest. So I would like to create a Franchise for us to play. The Guidelines are as follows: The Game Settings will be set up by me, the League Commissioner. We will run on All-Pro with a Realistic Slider setup I found online. To play, you must: Be able to complete 2-3 games per week. They are mainly played against the computer, so it can be done on your own time. Head 2 Head games can be scheduled by the players. I know Tuesday Nights are free from GTA... Agree that all XDBX Rules apply. We play …
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MLB: The Show 16 1 2 3 4
by LN-MLB- 1 follower
- 89 replies
- 7.6k views
Since there seems to be several of us who are interested in playing this and perhaps forming an online league, I thought we could use a specific thread here. Perhaps if it takes off, Hatch will give us a sub-forum. Either way, here is the point of reference for the previously discussed details: I would be down for a shorter season if the option is available. If @G37is managing the Red Sox, that means someone may have to choose the Yankees. Any other ideas or team preferences? List of potential players: LN-MLB -- Detroit Tigers Truelife98 -- Houston Astros kernalhogan -- Toronto Blue Jays Complex Chewy -- New York M…
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FIFA 16
by PapOiteE- 1 follower
- 14 replies
- 1.6k views
I am pretty sure I'm not the only one who plays this so who's down for a match??
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Madden h2h setup
by truelife98- 0 replies
- 930 views
Wanted to create a thread where we can post and setup some games between each other aside from the normal ones we play in our league. I will be online Tuesday night and if anyone is interested in a game just let me know. I'll be online from 8pm eastern until early morning so anytime should work for me. Let me know if interested
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Making Thread for Trades [Madden 2016]
by lIIlCompleXlIIl- 3 replies
- 1k views
Ok, so i'm sure there's not much that needs to be said here, but going to post this up so hopefully Dodge won't have to. If you are looking to post which players or draft picks you have open for trades, Create a new thread inside of this MADDEN SERIES sub thread. For your topic, please add the players name, or draft pick, or both, that you are interested in trading out of your roster. This will make it easier for players to browse through the list, and find something that they are looking for, or maybe even see something that peaks their interest! If you do post a thread for trades, please keep it updated, and if all your players/draft picks a…
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The show fantasy league [MLB: The Show 16] 1 2
by truelife98- 1 follower
- 29 replies
- 2.6k views
OK league is created and invite is sent to you @JALJ it makes me select a team for you but let me know who you want and I can swap it if you can't. For anyone else who wants in this will be a fantasy draft league I am going to activate the league sat night around 1000 pm eastern and the draft will start 2hrs 30min later so around 1230 am eastern so if you want to do another league besides the official xdbx one and can attend the draft let me know and I will send a invite. Season length will be 29 games 10 teams make playoffs. Wildcard round 1 game Next 2 round best of 3 World series best of 5
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Schedule For Intra-League Games [Madden 2016]
by kernalhogan- 6 replies
- 1.1k views
I was bored, so I decided to look ahead at the season and find out all the games that we will be playing against each other and not against the CPU. It turns out there are only a total of five regular season games where the CPU will not have control of a team, and @truelife98 is hosting three of them. Week 1 - Jaguars vs. Panthers Week 7 - Jaguars vs. Bills Week 9 - Chargers vs. Bears Week 10 - Rams vs. Bears Week 12 - Jaguars vs. Chargers I fully expect the playoff picture to have all six of our teams in it, so hopefully there will be lots more PvP action in the playoffs and even the Super Bowl.
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FIFA 16 League (sign up open)
by DavidCore89- 1 follower
- 2 replies
- 993 views
FIFA 16 League This will be a league consisting of upto 20 teams. Schedule and amount of matches against each opponent may vary depending on the number of teams entered, these details will be announced here once entries close on April 30th. RULES: The home team will host each match in Online Friendlies mode using the latest squads. Home and away kits should be used where possible. The host and their opponent will have 1 week to complete their match at a time agreed by both players. The host must screenshot the final result, please include a screenshot of the full match facts screen to enable the league to feature team and player s…
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Calling All Bears Fans! [Madden 2016]
by lIIlCompleXlIIl- 3 replies
- 991 views
Bear Down XDBX! The first ever Cloud Based Connected Franchise Season is underway. Special thanks to @Dodge for setting this up. Are you a Chicago Bears fan? No? Well then bite me! HAH! Just playin'. Anyway, rather or not you are a die hard Chicago Bears fan like myself, or someone who really just enjoys the NFL in general, go check out the Chicago Bears Weekly Report! You can find everything from stats of the stars, to a quick game rundown! As the season progress's on, more information will be provided inside the report, such as things like "Who Is The Best QB In The League," and "NFL MVP CHASE!" This year, the Bears are lead by ex Bu…
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League Approval For Trades [Madden 2016]
by kernalhogan- 1 follower
- 13 replies
- 1.3k views
If any of you have played franchise mode in the past, then you know that the computer controlled teams will agree to some very unbalanced trades. Either players for picks or draft pick exchanges, the ways you can abuse the CPU controlled teams are lengthy. This can become gamebreaking, especially in a franchise with the salary cap turned on. I am suggesting we have a league wide vote on any trades in the league, be they between Users and CPU players or just between User players. The same idea is used in Fantasy Football to prevent one-sided trades from occurring.
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- 1 follower
- 5 replies
- 1.1k views
This thread will be used as a User Trade Block. Placing a Player on the Trade Block ingame, reduces his Confidemce, and makes him less effective, and less valuable. So we can put up players here before they go on the ingame trade block for the AU to have.
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Madden 2016
by truelife98- 1 follower
- 12 replies
- 1.4k views
Wife just picked this up for me today as a thank you for her being home for close to a year now and spending the summer with our daughter. Anyway i always get madden i only played about 2 quarters so far but the graphics and catch scenes are insane. Anyone else have the game or plan on getting it let me know we can play some online
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Pro Evolution Soccer 2016 (Free to play)
by PapOiteE- 1 follower
- 4 replies
- 938 views
Any football (soccer) fans around here? The edition is being described by Konami as 'entry level', and at this stage has only been announced for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4. It will include an Exhibition Mode with the choice of seven teams - including Bayern Munich, Juventus, AS Roma, Brazil and France - a full training section, and unlimited access to PES' MyClub feature. Here's the full article:http://www.ign.com/articles/2015/11/26/free-to-play-entry-level-pes-2016-edition-confirmed-coming-december
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FIFA 15 Tournament
by Skorpion- 1 follower
- 12 replies
- 1.4k views
Zad and I are looking for expressions of interest for a FIFA 15 Tournament on PS4. At this stage were just looking for anyone interested and wont be doing any planning until we know if anyone is interested at all. If youre interested, please reply here and we will keep people posted as we sort out details. Credit for idea and most of planning goes to Zad.
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FIFA 15
by DavidCore89- 1 follower
- 19 replies
- 2.1k views
A thread for FIFA 15 players on both PS3&4 (hence no prefix, but if a mod would like this thread to be platform specific just let me know or go ahead and edit). Here is a place to share game tips, tactics, opinions, find people to game with and much more. I started playing this a few days ago and my impressions so far are... Wow! EA Sports have really stepped it up this year, every aspect of the game has had a complete overhaul. I have yet to play career mode so I cannot comment on that but it was always my least favourite, so far all of my gameplay has been FUT, Highlights of the Week and online friendlies. My results have varied, already in the f…
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- 1 follower
- 40 replies
- 4.4k views
I'm sure we have a few members who play this game.I have been playing FIFA for the past decade almost.It was like what GTA is to me now.I'll start by asking what's your favourite game mode?Manager Mode?Player Career?The addictive FUT?Online Seasons? Mine was definitely FUT,the whole transfer market system and player chemistry thing made it awesome. Had a great time playing this game with friends and online till GTA Online crashed the party.lol Share your experience. PS:I'm always up for a game of FIFA,just let me know when you want to play.
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Recent Activity on RSCnet
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249Rate the Last Film you Watched 2: Electric Boogaloo
Operation Mincemeat (2021) dir John Madden A WWII film focussing the efforts of British intelligence to trick Germany into thinking an upcoming major operation was going to happen somewhere else, so that they diverted defending forces away from the actual location. The basics are a true story. The characters are mainly the real people who were involved. It has a great ensemble cast. The main characters are two officers working for MI5, one from the navy and one from the air force, played by Colin Firth and Matthew McFadden, with Kelly MacDonald and Penelope Wilton playing their civilian assistants. It also features Johnny Flynn as the young Lt. Ian Fleming who narrates some scenes in a style that could well have been passages from his James Bond novels. You could, at a big stretch, almost class this as Bond film since it features characters referred to as M (head of MI5, Jason Issacs) and Q-branch (the gadget inventor, James Fleet). Simon Russel Beale also puts in a great performance as Winston Churchill. I have heard of Operation Mincemeat, knew the basics of it, that Ian Fleming was involved and what the outcome was. I don't think it's a spoiler to say the plan worked, as various characters in the film say that if it doesn't the allies won't win the war. The plan was to take the body of recently deceased man, a Welshman living rough in London called Glyndwr Michael, dress him in an officer's uniform, attach a brief case containing fake, but apparently top-secret documents, and then release it from a submarine such that it would wash up on a Spanish beach. Spain was neutral in WWII but under the regime of the Fascist, pro-n*zi, General Franco. So British intelligence knew that the contents of the brief case should find their way into the hands of German agents, before being returned to Britain, and thus the fake information would find it's way to Berlin. The operation they were planning for was the allied invasion of Italy, then Germany's ally. The fake information was one part of bigger plan to convince the Germans it was occupied Greece that was going to be invaded. The subsequent invasion of Italy is one of the lesser known parts of the war. Much is made, quite rightly, of the D-day landings, but that was not the first invasion of German controlled Europe, it was this invasion of Italy, nearly a year earlier. So it's nice to see a film about this aspect of the war, because there aren't very many of them. The film shows the meticulous level of detail the agents went to, creating a whole fake identity, Major William Martin, along with personal letters, a photo of a fiancé, etc. The plot does come across somewhat unbelievable at times and includes a completely unnecessary romantic sub-plot. Even if some of that is what actually happened, the way the films portrays this comes across as if the producers wanted to “s*x it up” and add these elements in because they thought the story of the planning and execution of the operation was not interesting enough. I was all set to give this a lower score than I did, but the last 30 mins or so redeemed it a little. What I found really interesting was, after the the plan had been put into action, the role British diplomats in Spain then had to play to make sure that the brief case of fake documents did indeed end up in German hands. Because after all the detailed and careful planning, it could have easily been undone by a Spanish official simply handing the brief case straight back to Britain, as was technically the correct thing for a neutral country to do, but not what they were supposed to do according to the pro-German Fascist regime in charge. There's almost none of the action you usually get in war films, until right at the end when we see an American infantry sergeant, a minor character introduced earlier, on board a landing craft, storming a Sicilian beach which was taken and held with relatively light causalities. All due to the success of Operation Mincemeat diverting German forces hundreds of miles away. 6 / 10- 1
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249Rate the Last Film you Watched 2: Electric Boogaloo
What I Watched This Week #179 (June 2-8) Escape from Alcatraz dir. Don Siegel/1979/1h53m Clint Eastwood stars in this prison break drama based on the true story of the only man to escape from the famous prison island off the San Francisco coast, Frank Morris. This film takes its time, much like Eastwood's performance style it's understated, deliberate and measured, with none of the melodrama of something like The Shawshank Redemption. The plot is simple, Eastwood arrives at the prison, spends some time scoping it out, then enacts his plan. It's the little things that give weight to this film, particularly the character of Doc (Roberts Blossom), who quietly represents the unshakeable human yearning for freedom with his portraits and the symbolic use of chrysanthemums. At times the pace of the film does undercut some of the urgency of the escape attempt, but I did like the ambiguous ending that doesn't tell you what happened to Frank after he got past the prison walls. 7.5/10 Rhinestone dir. Bob Clark/1984/1h51m I was scrolling through Sylvester Stallone's filmography and came across this, and knew that I had to watch it just to make sure that it's real. Rhinestone stars Dolly Parton as aspiring singer Jake who needs to get out of her crummy contract at the titular New York country music club. To do this she makes a bet with the manager, Freddie (Ron Leibman), that she can turn anyone into a country singer. The person chosen is tone deaf cab driver Nick, played by Stallone. To do this she takes him back home to Tennessee for some real country experience. Stallone also co-wrote this based on the song Rhinestone Cowboy. Really, it even says so in the opening credits. This whole thing is like a fever dream, especially the scenes where Stallone sings by howling like a demented gibbon. He plays his role like an overactive child with attention issues. Parton is just as sweet and charming as she always is, and the moments when she gets to sing are obviously excellent. I also liked Richard Farnsworth as Parton's father. This is not a good film, but it is a bizarre film, and it has its charms. 6/10 The Hustler dir. Robert Rossen/1961/2h14m Paul Newman stars in his iconic role of pool hustler Fast Eddie Felson who is on the fast track to self destruction as he becomes obsessed with beating the best pool player in the world, Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason). This is a film in three distinct acts. The first and third are Felson's showdowns with Fats which bookend a tragic romance between Felson and Sarah (Piper Laurie), a depressed alcoholic. This is a bleak film about addicts and losers, yet there is beauty in the direction that makes this world of smoky pool halls cool and alluring. It also helps that Newman is incredibly handsome. The two pool games between Eddie and Fats are the showpieces here and are given the attention they deserve, with Eddie losing even when he wins, that's just the kind of man he is. Gleason is great as Eddie's opposite, someone totally calm and in control of their emotions. Laurie is heart breaking as Sarah, with only one inevitable outcome for her. Rounding out the main cast is George C. Scott as Bert, the sleazy and manipulative pool hall owner. As a standalone film this is excellent, but wouldn't it be good if we caught up with Eddie let's say twenty five years later? 9/10 Lime's Co-Film of the Week! The Color of Money dir. Martin Scorsese/1986/1h59m Martin Scorsese's The Color of Money catches up with Fast Eddie Felson (a returning Paul Newman) twenty five years after the events of The Hustler. He's now making a decent living off of whiskey, but when a hotshot young pool player, Vince (Tom Cruise), catches his eye he wants back in the hustling game. Without the context of The Hustler this is still a fantastic film full of Scorsese's trademark moves, but with the added history of the character a whole new tragic dimension is added. Eddie is a man full of regrets, so when he sees a chance to recapture his glory days he'll do anything he can to grab it, his old instincts kicking in almost instantly. He's there to use Vince, and he's open about it. But Vince is no d*mmy, even though he may act like it, and with his more emotionally mature girlfriend Carmen (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) he may end up teaching Eddie a thing or two. This has a much different vibe to the previous film, very fitting for the time it was made, and the pool scenes are edited violently by Scorsese's long time editor Thelma Schoonmaker, almost like they're fight scenes. This is a Scorsese film I've not seen before, and didn't really have any interest in before watching The Hustler, but I think this is one of his best works of the decade, only The King of Comedy is better in my opinion. Combined with The Hustler this is an epic, four hour rise and fall and rise and fall and maybe rise again story that spans decades. And it all ends on a high note with a brilliant one liner and a classic Scorsese freeze frame. 9/10 Lime's Co-Film of the Week! Bottom: Exposed dir. Adrian Edmondson/2024/1h30m This made for TV documentary covers the creation, production, reception and legacy of one of my all time favourite shows, Bottom. Written and performed by the late, great (he said so himself) Rik Mayall (seriously, his autobiography is called Bigger Than Hitler, Better Than Christ) and Adrian Edmondson (director of this documentary), Bottom was a BBC comedy that ran for three series in the 90's and was violently crude, obscene, anarchic, absurd and offensive, and one of the funniest things I've ever seen, with slapstick fight scenes that would make Chaplin blush and a sound effects guy straight out of the Looney Tunes. The documentary itself is fine if very standard, featuring interviews with cast, crew and fans, but the real gold is when Edmondson is talking about Mayall, the two being lifelong friends since university. It gets quite emotional at points, which Mayall would have f*cking hated. One of my favourite memories is going to see the Bottom live show with my dad in 2003, their last of five live tours, and even though it's the worst of the five (my favourite is split between 2 and 3), it was amazing being so close to such raw, unfiltered energy. If you've never seen Bottom before, watch it, because the main thing I took from this documentary and seeing all the clips from the show, is that it's been too long since I've seen it. 7/10 La Cage aux Folles dir. Edouard Molinaro/1978/1h32m This French comedy stars Ugo Tognazzi as Renato Baldi, owner of drag club La Cage aux Folles, with Michel Serrault playing Albin, aka Zaza, his partner and star performer. When Renato's son Laurent (Remi Laurent), who the couple have raised since he was a baby, comes home he has some big news. He's getting married. But unfortunately the parents of his girlfriend are in politics, on the conservative side. The very conservative side. So he asks his father and Albin to tone things down a bit while they are visiting. I think this film has aged pretty well considering it was made in the 70's, and while it does rely heavily on stereotypes it never comes across as mean spirited. Tognazzi is good in the lead role, being pulled between his partner, his son and his own identity, with Serrault stealing every scene he's in as a flighty drag queen. The highlight of the film is the climactic dinner party between the two sets of parents with Albin showing some real depth and character here. A little dated but still with a pure heart, I can't wait to compare it with the American remake (see next review). 8/10 The Birdcage dir. Mike Nichols/1996/1h59m Robin Williams and Nathan Lane star as drag club owner Armand Goldman and his partner and star performer Albert in this American remake of La Cage aux Folles. The plot remains basically unchanged from the French original, just with some extra time to let Williams and Lane shine. Considering he's playing a gay drag club owner Williams gives a fairly understated performance, with really only one instance of that classic over the top exuberance. All of that is left to Lane, who is hilarious here. My only real problem with this film, same as the original though I didn't mention it in my review, is that their son, Val (Dan Futterman), is an unappreciative *sshole. Thankfully that doesn't take too much away from this, and the presence of Gene Hackman as republican senator Kevin Keeley, his future father in law, really alleviates this, with him getting to exercise his comedy muscles (and he looks great in drag). This is a slice of fabulous fun and, thanks to the lead duo of Williams and Lane, is better than the original. 9/10- 2
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249
Rate the Last Film you Watched 2: Electric Boogaloo
What I Watched This Week #178 (May 26-June 1) Welcome to the Dollhouse dir. Todd Solondz/1995/1h28m This darkly comic coming of age story stars Heather Matarazzo as Dawn Wiener, a bullied twelve year old whose parents don't seem to care. One day, the school's meanest bully, Brandon (Brendan Sexton III), threatens to r*pe her when classes are out. Dawn actually turns up voluntarily to this meeting, just glad that someone is paying attention to her, and so starts a weirdly sweet relationship between two outcasts (he doesn't by the way, you know, just if you were worried). This all sounds incredibly bleak, but this is a very funny film in the same awkwardly stilted way as something like Napoleon Dynamite, big Midwest Indie vibes. This also feels very authentic, and that is largely due to Matarazzo's performance which always comes across as natural and real. Sexton also does well with a character that could be totally unlikeable, but he brings some real sympathy and nuance to him. This film does excellently to be edgy without it being there just for shock value. And I love that we end on what seems to be a small note of hope for Dawn, because she deserves it. I hope she had a wonderful life. 9/10 Lime's Film of the Week! Sinners dir. Ryan Coogler/2025/2h18m The latest film from the team of director Coogler and star Michael B. Jordan sees him playing twins Smoke and Stack, returning to their hometown in the deep south during prohibition in order to open up a juke joint, somewhere for their incredibly talented blues musician cousin Sammie (Miles Caton) to play. But trouble comes not from the Klan, but from a group of vampires led by the enigmatic Irishman Remmick (Jack O'Connell). This is a film of two halves. The first is pretty much devoid of any horror elements save for a short prologue. Instead it really focuses in on the characters of Smoke and Stack, and everyone they round up to help them run their club. Among them old bluesman Delta Slim (one of my perennial favourites Delroy Lindo), Smoke's estranged wife Annie (Wunmi Mosaku) and bouncer Cornbread (Omar Benson Miller). But what really gets the film's attention is the music. This is a real celebration of the blues and Black music and culture, with Caton, a musician in his first film role, giving the best performance out of a cast of seasoned professionals. The whole film seems to pivot on a crucial scene halfway through where Sammie is giving a performance in the club and he is joined by spectres of Black music both past and present. Native Africans from thousands of years ago performing alongside DJ's and rappers from the future. It's really beautiful and marks the high point of the film for me. After that is when the horror kicks in, which works less well for me. The interactions between the characters is still really well written and performed, but it's the actual action that is lacking, which is a shame because the fight scenes in Creed, again directed by Coogler and starring Jordan, were near perfect. If that side of the film matched the dramatic side then this would be an instant classic for me, but as it is I still highly recommend this. 8.5/10 Finding Dory dir. Andrew Stanton/2016/1h37m In what feels like a totally unnecessary sequel we return to the world of Pixar's near perfect Finding Nemo, but this time my least favourite part of that film, annoying sidekick Dory (Ellen DeGeneres), takes centre stage. Here the forgetful fish has a sudden moment of clarity and remembers her parents (Diane Keaton, Eugene Levy), and sets out on an epic quest to find them. I'm still not a huge fan of the character, but thankfully she's been toned done slightly from the original, a huge relief given the increase in screen time she has. It also helps that this is a well written film, not one of Pixar's best, but it still had me invested. And the flashbacks to a baby Dory and her parents and just so incredibly sweet that I couldn't help but root for her. I also really liked the new character of Hank (Ed O'Neill), a surly octopus who just wants to be left alone. It's a testament to Pixar that they can make a whole film about one of my least favourite characters of theirs and still have me enjoy and be moved by it, and I don't need to say it but I will, the animation is absolutely stunning. 7/10 The Morricone Duel: The Most Dangerous Concert Ever dir. Karsten Andersen/2018/1h11m (no trailer for this, so here's a performance of The Ecstasy of Gold from The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly) This concert film captures a tribute to legendary composer Ennio Morricone by the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sarah Hicks. Most famous for defining the sound of the western thanks to his scores for Sergio Leone's Dollars trilogy (A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly), which is all represented here, this also features pieces from other films he scored such as The Untouchables, Once Upon a Time in America, and his two Tarantino scores for Inglourious Basterds and The Hateful Eight. There are some works not composed by Morricone here, like the Orchestral Suite from The Godfather by Nino Rota and Sonny Bono's My Baby Shot Me Down (presumably for the Tarantino connection as this was used in Kill Bill), but I would've preferred them to stick with Morricone as he has such a huge and varied body of work, the scope of which I don't think is fully represented here. The musicianship, being a national symphony, is world class, so if you have a half decent sound system crank it up and enjoy. The presentation is simple, but there are a couple of nice touches like some hanging corpses around the venue, and simple graphics projected on to screens symbolising the films being played. 7.5/10 Baldwin's Ni- dir. Horace Ove/1968/46m (no trailer again, so here's a clip) This provocatively titled documentary (the title is explained by the subject himself in the above clip) is the first work from acclaimed director Horace Ove, who would make the first feature length film by a Black British filmmaker with Pressure in 1975. Here he documents a short lecture and Q and A session in London given by American writer and civil rights activist James Baldwin, with some short comments at the end by comedian and fellow activist d*ck Gregory. Speaking with a quiet, polite intensity he expounds on the differences in race relations between the UK and the US, his own personal history, what steps need to be taken next, and what role, if any, white liberals have in the civil rights movement. Baldwin is a thoughtful, intelligent, engaging, witty speaker and the forty five minutes spent with him here just flies by, leaving you wanting more. It's so refreshing to see a civilised, mature, grown up discussion about such subjects considering the state of political discourse these days, which just seems to all devolve into shouting matches on social media. A simple and bare bones film, but when you have a subject like Baldwin you don't need anything else. 9/10 Lost in Starlight dir. Han Ji-won/2025/1h36m This Korean animation is set in the near future and tells the story of literally star-crossed lovers, astronaut Nan-young (Kim Tae-ri) and downbeat musician Je-i (Hong Kyung). Their brief romance is tested when she gets a place on a mission to Mars, following in the footsteps of her late mother. This is rather melodramatic at points, but it's also very sweet and tender and genuine, which helps ground it even in the futuristic setting. The world is well designed with it feeling not too far fetched, like it's attainable for 2050, and the animation is crisp and gorgeous, the use of space imagery being particularly pretty. The cross cutting between Nan-young on her mission and Je-i trying to get his music career back on track on Earth is well done, with the distance between them bringing them closer together, but it is all quite predictable. 7/10 A Single Life dir. Joris Oprins, Job Roggeveen, Marieke Blaauw/2014/2m This Dutch animated short has a simple yet fairly well executed premise. A woman has a mysterious vinyl record that, when skipped back and forth, can transport her to different points in her life. This leads up to a dark punchline that's perhaps the best thing about this. I like the style of the set here but I find the character design quite ugly and off-putting, and feel like this could have been expanded to something more emotionally hefty rather than as a setup for a gag. This feels like a practice run for something substantial with more to say, but as it is it's still an entertaining couple of minutes. 6.5/10- 2
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