Rate the Last Film you Watched

[Squirrel 5,180]

1 minute ago, LimeGreenLegend said:

I got a pretty big TV

If I could afford to buy out the whole cinema I would go.

You don’t have to watch every film naked. Put some clothes on and get out there ?

[Fido_le_muet 5,197]

40 minutes ago, Squirrel said:

This is one of those films that deserves a big screen viewing. I saw it on imax and it blew me away. I’m planning on going again soon. 

+1 It absolutey needs to be seen on the big screen ! 

 

Edited April 29, 2018 by Fido_le_muet

[Squirrel 5,180]

@Fido_le_muet @The_Lady_A Has it been long enough since the opening of Infinity War? Can we talk about it yet? Spoilers are all over the internet now so I don’t think we’d be ruining anything at this point. 

[The_Lady_A 1,280]

I think it should be in a new topic labled SPOILERS in the title in bold... it has only been out a week after all!

Edited May 2, 2018 by The_Lady_A

[Fido_le_muet 5,197]

Agreed with Aella. I'm all for it but on a dedicated thread with a big spoiler in the title

[Squirrel 5,180]

4 hours ago, The_Lady_A said:

I think it should be in a new topic labled SPOILERS in the title in bold... it has only been out a week after all!

 

31 minutes ago, Fido_le_muet said:

Agreed with Aella. I'm all for it but on a dedicated thread with a big spoiler in the title

 

Discuss away:

http://www.domesticbatterygaming.com/topic/16704-marvel-cinematic-universe-spoilers/

 

Edited May 2, 2018 by Squirrel

[Con 5,703]

Hereditary (2018)

The Awesome: Intensely creepy but not a gorefest. It is more haunting than it is scary. There was a scene where I had to look away at what was looking at me because it was very similar to stuff I have seen in past dreams that have left me fully disturbed upon waking up.

The acting is really, really, really tremendous. These actors all brought their top skills. Toni Collette is fantastic in everything and here she really should get a nomination somewhere for this, she does amazing. The hype about Toni still trying to shake off the role were confirmed after watching her. 

The film begins creepy and it's not just the setting, it's that you instantly sense different things bubbling under each family member and that makes the film great because I cannot remember the last time a  film made it more unnerving when the main characters are on the screen doing mundane things, because you can't help but anticipate what is coming, I thought the story-telling was masterful in that sense. 

That stroke in cinematography elevates this from other films in the genre. One scene in particular is revealed through audio only and holy fucking shit. I knew it was coming but leaving the actual visual to my imagination was masterful by the Director. I've watched countless films like this but never had my brain been as engaged as this had me. 

Filled with a handful of moments that left me a bit speechless. The film made me feel like I was watching something truly evil and sinister. 

The Good: Sound design was great as nothing was overdone which usually plagues films like this. Doesn't rely on jump scares at all. Yes, there are a few creepy ones as expected, but the lack of cheap scares actually kept me more on edge throughout the entire film. I think limiting the gore and the timing of the gore was done masterfully. Using the miniatures to frame scenes was very cool and also creepy by default. The end was an unexpected surprise and it made me wish the film had cut some early stuff to show more of what happens next, but it did give me something to chew on while i got home.

The Bad: The 2nd Act enters into some cliche-land and thankfully Toni Collette's performance and the way those scenes are executed don't ultimately hurt the film.  There is an ominous tone that plays constantly at times and it got kind of annoying but it tapers off as the film moves forward. The exposition in the 3rd Act is a bit rushed and felt a bit like cut & paste job. 

The Ugly: People will dislike it's pace early on because it's a slow burn being a family drama at its central core. Calling it this generation's "The Exorcist" is not fair, although this film is superb, The Exorcist is in a class of it's own. The themes in this film that do not deal with the supernatural are brutally real and may not be for everyone. If you miss this at the cinema, you probably won't replicate the same experience at home so go to the movies if you like how movies like The Exorcist and The Omen leave you feeling afterwards for days. 

Final Verdict.....5/5.....Incredible story-telling through visuals, acting, editing and sound. The slowburn worked for me and I became immersed fully. More haunting than scary but filled with creepy imagery and I enjoyed using my imagination in some of the more intense moments. If you enjoyed The Witch, you have to go watch this. This is top notch filmmaking even if you don't appreciate the genre. I was entertained the entire 2 hours and want to learn more about the film and it's creative process and is why it gets 5 stars. 

Found this on YT that instantly made me think of Hereditary and wonder if this is where the director got the idea in his film. In the film she was making the miniatures because she was commissioned by an art gallery and also made personal ones as therapy. 

This post has been promoted to an article
Edited July 4, 2018 by Con

[Con 5,703]

Train to Busan (2016)

The Awesome: Zombie breakout on a bullet-train where you have no where to escape!!! Really great cinematography. Great atmosphere from start to finish. You see things happening in the background hinting at trouble on the horizon. You are put right there with the characters. The close quarters of the train make for tension in every scene. It has direction like Shaun of the Dead but with serious undertones. Movie really made me immerse to the story as the characters are rich and the little girl really sold her story the most. Realistic story telling and diverse characters really made it feel like their decisions all made sense. Trying to guess who is going to die next and how, really kept me glued to the screen.

The Good: One of the advantages audiences like me enjoy when watching foreign films is that we usually don't know the actors the way they are known in their countries. So it helps the realism when we look at the screen and not see Brad Pitt fighting zombies. The zombies are fantastic in look and dynamism and how we learn their strengths and weaknesses through actual story telling and not exposition-dialogue. I Love the character arcs and how they make you despise some of the characters and then feel for them which conflicted me internally. Even minor characters have substance even if we meet them for a few seconds. Really great zombies in every facet, make-up, to acting, and stunts by the zombies were superb. Really can't predict what is going to happen from station to station or who would turn on whom. The underlying theme of looking out for others and not just yourself really enhances the film. 

The Bad: Subtitles will prevent some folks from watching this and that is too bad. In the third act, one scene gets kind of Hollywood and I didn't think it needed that particular element as the situation was already tense. Certain times I felt the pile of zombies would be too greater a force to restrain than is shown but it's only exaggerated a few times. The cause of the outbreak is never explained and made worse when we learn who was involved, and it lets you down when you never hear more about it. Some of the drama scenes (crying scenes) come across to sappy for me but I hear that is an element of Korean cinema. The third act has a scene that I felt didn't need but never hurts the payoff, it just gets a bit predictable and unrealistic, but it's brief.

The Ugly: Nothing. Even things like some minor dodgy CGI and some extended sappy moments were never enough to ruin the experience. 

Final Verdict....5/5.... I enjoyed this because I take a train probably once a month and I always play terrorism scenarios or what would I do if something went wrong, but now I will think about a zombie outbreak and what would I do, whose life would I feel is worthy of me putting my own life at risk for, would it be a child, an elderly person, the guy that gave me a dirty look? This film was well paced, visually entertaining and very well acted; as the final minutes really conflicted me and my investment in the characters really pays off. A film that in someone else's hands would have probably gone straight to video. But the storytelling and visuals are excellent and elevate this from just a movie about zombies on a train. The film gets better with every additional viewing and you catch things you totally miss during the first viewing.

This post has been promoted to an article
Edited July 12, 2018 by Con

[Con 5,703]

A Quiet Place (2018)

The Awesome: Great little thrilling and gripping story that puts us with a family that unlike in the movie Signs, has had a few weeks to adapt to the new way of life. That aspect of the film exceeded my expectation. The start of the film really lets you know that the stakes are high and the monsters are not playing around. The atmosphere and visuals are excellent which become very important since there is very, very little dialogue. The scenes that lead up to a certain bathtub scene had me cringing IRL. The film is well directed and the setting becomes a character in itself. The monsters are not something we have never seen before but they just seem far deadlier than other similar versions. I loved that I didn't have to wait to see how deadly this world was going to be. 

The Good: Tension is never lost throughout the entire thing. Really liked how we get to piece out things like, why are they serving food on a piece of lettuce? Are they still practicing being hipsters? The acting was very good and the mother does an amazing job, especially with all the situations that are thrown at her. There is this thing that happens to her that made me say, "i think i rather let the monster eat me." The details in the father's work station that hint at what has happened around the world gives us just enough info to keep our brains buzzing. I loved the red light bulbs and when they increase their intensity, you know sh*t is about to go down. How the family member's disability proves to be the thing that truly helps the family survive the initial invasion (we don't get to see) and possibly survive the aftermath.

The Bad: You may have to listen to Director interviews to fill in some of the plot holes, like "why don't they just move away?". Also found it a bit odd that stepping on leaves was a no-no but starting a medium-sized fire is okay. I didn't realize one of the character's had a disability until half way through the film as I became confused as I thought she was wearing a special device the father was creating to help her capture the creature locations. With little explained at times, certain things don't seem to make sense and a second-viewing might be required to catch all the subtle things you could miss. Like when I missed the audio cue that one family member had an impairment and is why the sign language is more than just an adaptation they were forced to make in the first 90 days of the incident.

The Ugly: I know it's a movie and without certain elements we wouldn't have emotional investments but I just couldn't get over the carelessness knowing the situation. I mean, in regular life you wouldn't or should never chance something happening to someone you love. Twice I had moments where i heavily sighed and one of them I almost tuned out instantly as I thought to myself, that is the LAST thing they needed, wtf is wrong with these fools!!! Sure it adds an underlying tension that you know will have an effect on the film when it is presented, and while you can easily come up with legit reasons for it, still not what smart people in this situation would do. I’m talking about the physical state the mother finds herself in.

Final Verdict....4/5....Great little story set in an amazing perilous world that reminded me of the movie Signs but with a lot more thrilling scenes and masterclass body language acting. The acting without speaking was f*cking amazing!! The sound design's silence kept me checking my TV volume as I didn't want to miss a sound and then I found myself being silent while sitting in my own house watching this as it gets into your psyche from the opening act. Enjoyable from start to finish. Again, the less you know about the film the more you will be surprised at every turn. If you liked the movie Signs, you have to watch this one as it is a better film and I really liked Signs but this took that concept to another level. 

 

This post has been promoted to an article

Edited April 3, 2020 by Con

[Con 5,703]

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017)

The Awesome: Had no idea what this was about going into it and during the 1st Act, I felt I was about to watch something special. The exposition of the opening scenes are fantastic! While I love everything-astronomy,  I'm still not a diehard comic book sci-fi nerd but I was all in for this one when they introduce the start of the Alpha community, I could not contain my excitement. The visuals are incredible and many details can go unnoticed, because this future is so cool and everywhere you look there is some cool gadget or being on screen. Clara Delevingne's performance stood out as the only one that I could really believe, I think she fills her role out exceptionally well. The original comic the film is based on is what inspired Star Wars!!! Star Wars came out in 1970 and the Valerian comics came out in the 1960's! So while you will watch it and think, "Hey this borrows from so many other films." it's just the opposite since this was created before anything else. I loved all the alien beings and creatures. The visuals are stunning and just eye-candy galore. Everything except the story, script and casting was just magnificent. I love the lived-in galaxy concept and this does it superbly. With so much too look at, it may need triple-viewing to catch all the cool stuff you miss in the first viewing. 

The Good: Introduced me to the material that inspired George Lucas to make Star Wars and now I have trivia ammo. The visuals are worth the price of admission alone. The supporting characters are really impressionable (more on that below sadly) and just fun to see and hear on screen. Being introduced to this world with all it's dynamism and secrets. Just the entire concept of all species coming together in one space station and sharing knowledge and cultures really resonated with me as I love immersing myself outside of my own culture. The themes in the movie about caring for others and what to do in times of huge moral decisions. You can tell this was a labor of love for the filmmakers and the visuals reflect that. 

The Bad: The role of Valerian was so miscast that it distracted the hell out of me because every time he came on screen I was bored. I was like, just hurry and deliver your throwaway dialogue and move on to the next scene. Too many side missions and quests, now I usually enjoy these but this film relied on them exclusively and being brought from one location to the next in a blink of the eye kind of harms the 3rd Act, at times I was so lost within the multiple dimensions and this ability to travel fast hurts in keeping track of where the characters are, one sequence in particular had me saying Where the F are we? I thought that was all the way on the other side of the City, was i supposed to be watching this with a comic book mentality?, but where was this in the 1-2 Acts, when I wasn't asked to do that?". The Rihanna scenes (yes, that Rihanna) while the cameo is not terrible (her acting is pretty good in some takes and not so much in other takes), her storyline just certainly feels so out of place, especially when they force us to care when they don't even handle the entire thing properly. When I should have been feeling one thing, all i was feeling was confused instead. In the 3rd Act, I was legit lost in a few scenes because of how convoluted everything becomes. 

The Ugly: Valerian character is so miscast and I don't think it's the actor and more that the role wasn't right for the actor as he doesn't have the charisma the guy from Guardians of the Galaxy possesses and while you don't want them to be the same cookie-cutter character, to make the already thin dialogue work, the actor needs that extra something when delivering the lines and it's not that Dane DeHann doesn't try, it's just it didn't work for me. The script is bad and I don't know if its just i'm missing something perhaps from the original comic but there are no memorable lines or quotes to remember. The romantic comedy falls flat because the two main leads come across more like brother and sister, this makes their romance really awkward and then throw in that Valerian is this space-pimp with all his love conquests or "playlist" as it is referred to (groan). Even casting a drunk Leo DiCaprio would have been a better choice here. The film is two hours long...it's way too long to wrap up what still remains an unconvincing relationship at the end. 

 

the psychic jelly-fish sequence, not the chase but when she shoves her head up it's *ss to learn about the information she needs from it had me all kinds of lost. I didn't understand if it was her memories or his or the jellyfishes. But above all that is the fact that there are thousands of alien species with all manner of abilities and the only species that could help her is a jellyfish which just comes across as another unnecessary side mission just to put Lauerline in danger against the Bromosaur.

Final Verdict...3/5....I recommend it to the sci-fi fans for the stunning visuals and original material (yes it predates everything else sci-fi we love). This film without it's amazing visuals and imaginative world would have barely got a star since the film relies on the two main character's relationship---- but the chemistry and the script really ruin that aspect of the storytelling which is heavily emphasized to no avail. It's a huge mistake because honestly, a better casted Valerian would have elevated this film to a very high score. I wanted to care about Valerian and Laureline but found myself only caring about Laureline and going forward, I only want to see her adventures in this amazing galaxy. It's not that Dane DeHann doesn't try or care, it's just that he doesn't seem to fit the role. To sum it up, this film focuses on the characters we really don't care about and all the cool stuff and more interesting characters just pass by leaving us wanting more of them. But thanks to the visuals, the film is worth watching, especially if you are a sci-fi fan.  

 

This post has been promoted to an article

Edited April 3, 2020 by Con

[Sinister 2,578]

Damn, @Con you should start a movie review blog.

On topic......

Saw the new Jurassic World last weekend. Partly entertaining but mostly boring. Highly predictable and a plot that has been used hundreds of times.

[Con 5,703]

19 minutes ago, Sinister said:

Damn, @Con you should start a movie review blog.

On topic......

Saw the new Jurassic World last weekend. Partly entertaining but mostly boring. Highly predictable and a plot that has been used hundreds of times.

Thanks for the vote of confidence! I will always Hide the spoilers, so no worries in having my reviews spoil anything. I know I could do better than some YT’ers because take the Valerian film I just reviewed. Some guy on YT said that it takes from Bladerunner. But it didn’t take a lot of research to learn the source material came out way before the original Bladerunner. 

What I really have been wanting to do in here is have “XDBX Pick the Movie” thread. A thread where I post three movie titles and a quick poll along with it and you guys choose the movie for me and I then have to review it. I’d pick two films I really want to watch and one I rather not. lol. Make it interesting. 

Edited July 5, 2018 by Con

[Con 5,703]

Andre the Giant (2018)

The Awesome: Solid documentary that really makes you think about Andre as more than just the Giant you know him as. Cool seeing teenage Andre footage. The insight into his childhood was entertaining. I remember as a kid always wondering why Andre wasn't the Champion since no one could beat him and that was explained. "No Crying in Wrestling." The doc is filled with great interviews and photos we probably would have to visit a wrestling museum to see. The nostalgia of all that old wrestling footage is awesome. Watching Andre beat up Big John Stud was a highlight of my viewing. I remember being a kid and watching wrestling at the time so it was very cool to learn how the WWE was created and how it became this huge company and how Andre was an integral part of that growth and popularity. 

The Good: Watching old timers from the WWE like Mean Gene talk about their experiences in and out the ring with Andre. Really helps you realize Andre was a Giant but he was all human too. Great insight into the early days of pro wrestling in America and how independent it was at one time. Some funny parts and some sad parts--- round-up a good documentary. Learning that he has a daughter was cool. The Princess Bride casting story was funny because there was no one else the part had been written for. Watching his siblings back in France speak about him reminded me that to them he was just their brother, Andre. 

The Bad: Left me wanting more behind the scenes footage of Andre backstage before matches as most of those stories are told to us and never shown. It felt like the sugar-coated the darker sides of his behavior. While the doc is solid it still felt like there was more to show and tell. For being a ladies man, the producers could not find one woman from his past to talk about her time with him? I found that odd. 

The Ugly: The fact that we wait for people like this to die before we make documentaries in tribute. Would have been nice to have heard some 1st person accounts from Andre himself. 

Final Verdict....4/5....Solid documentary about Andre's life. Had never seen pictures of him as a teen or child and we get to see some of the photos and videos of his younger years. Sad when they speak about how it hurt him when out in public people would point and laugh at him and the things he would hear being said would hurt his feelings just like you and I. I can't help but feel like there was more to show and learn. I don't know, I guess I wanted to see more footage of older matches. 

This post has been promoted to an article
Edited July 14, 2018 by Con

[Spinnaker1981 974]

How it Ends. (2018)

 

Ok, first of all let me tell you that this movie starts very well, and it goes down from there till it ends very poorly.

The premise is good: "A desperate father tries to return home to his pregnant wife after a mysterious apocalyptic event turns everything to chaos."

And that is exactly what you get. Forest Whitaker and Theo James go on a 2000mile road trip to get to their pregnant Daughter/Future Wife. Though, what you don´t get is everything else. You are driven ny the mystery for an entire movie where you find yourself wondering:  What the hell happened? What is going on? Is it a natural disaster? Is it the start of a war? Is it an alien invasion?

And someone in IMDB did a good review of it, and I am going to use that so you can understand what it feels like after you watched it:

- "For a film named how it ends, it unfortunately is missing an ending"

Honestly, it is a good movie, but it is missing the final act.

Good: the acting. This movie lives on good acting.

Bad: The storytelling. The amounts of time I almost yelled at the screen saying: "really? you are going to do that? That is dumb!" was too big to let go. And it is missing an end...

5/10

[JustHatched 12,103]

On 7/12/2018 at 10:52 AM, Con said:

Andre the Giant (2018)

The Awesome: Solid documentary that really makes you think about Andre as more than just the Giant you know him as. Cool seeing teenage Andre footage. The insight into his childhood was entertaining. I remember as a kid always wondering why Andre wasn't the Champion since no one could beat him and that was explained. "No Crying in Wrestling." The doc is filled with great interviews and photos we probably would have to visit a wrestling museum to see. The nostalgia of all that old wrestling footage is awesome. Watching Andre beat up Big John Stud was a highlight of my viewing. I remember being a kid and watching wrestling at the time and it was cool to see how the WWE was created and how it became this huge company and how Andre was an integral part of that growth and popularity. 

The Good: Watching old timers from the WWE like Mean Gene talk about their experiences in and out the ring with Andre. Really helps you realize Andre was a Giant but he was all human too. Great insight into the early days of pro wrestling in America and how independent it was at one time. Some funny parts and some sad parts--- round-up a good documentary. Learning that he has a daughter was cool. The Princess Bride casting story was funny because there was no one else the part had been written for. Watching his siblings back in France speak about him reminded me that to them he was just their brother, Andre. 

The Bad: Left me wanting more behind the scenes footage of Andre backstage before matches as most of those stories are told to us and never shown. It felt like the sugar-coated the darker sides of his behavior. While the doc is solid it still felt like there was more to show and tell. For being a ladies man, the producers could not find one woman from his past to talk about her time with him? I found that odd. 

The Ugly: The fact that we wait for people like this to die before we make documentaries in tribute. Would have been nice to have heard some 1st person accounts from Andre himself. 

Final Verdict....4/5....Solid documentary about Andre's life. Had never seen pictures of him as a teen or child and we get to see some of the photos and videos of his younger years. Sad when they speak about how it hurt him when out in public people would point and laugh at him and the things he would hear being said would hurt his feelings just like you and I. I can't help but feel like there was more to show and learn. I don't know, I guess I wanted to see more footage of older matches. 

I watched this as well, you sum it up really well. Even if your not a fan of wrestling in general it is a really good story. I never was a huge Andre fan when I was a kid but am much more so now. 

[Sinister 2,578]

Everyone should know Andre because of The Princess Bride. If they don't.....well, I feel sorry for them. 

[Con 5,703]

On 7/14/2018 at 10:39 AM, Spinnaker1981 said:

How it Ends. (2018)

 "For a film named how it ends, it unfortunately is missing an ending"

This was too funny. Great review by the way, please keep them coming.

[Con 5,703]

The Thirteenth Floor (1999)

The Awesome: The sci-fi element is strong and presented well, especially when we enter the alternate 1937 world. The attention to detail in set design and costumes when we go back in time is done very well and is a visual strength of the film. Some of the story reveal twists are mind bending good. The movie score is solid as it compliments with its subtly and hits the right tones in scenes, especially in scenes where I wouldn't have been excited otherwise. The film is a hidden sci-fi gem at the end of the day. The dimensional transcending scenes are handled masterfully. I think this is also a strength of the film as the acting is at it's highest peaks in those scenes where you can see the actors transition between "units". One of the best moments of the film for me occurs in one of these transcending scenes towards the 3rd Act when our main character transcends and arrives in the middle of a competition he had no idea he was in and I just found it super hilarious! The concept of overlapping presented in the film was great and thankfully one of the things the filmmakers excelled at revealing. 

The Good: The acting by Armin Mueller-Stahl as Grierson (1937) and Hannon Fuller (1990's and 2024) was a highlight and sadly he isn't on screen enough as I felt his acting was the most compelling and wanted more of his story and less of the mystery. Vincent D'Onofrio as Jerry Ashton (1937) and Jason Whitney (1990's) also does a stellar job as usual and really was the character that felt as if he believed what he was saying. For a low, low budget B-Movie, the sci-fi effects were simple and practical but don't come across as cheesy when they probably should have as the machine is never explained but it all worked for me.  The CGI was not bad at all for a low-budget film. The story the film tries to tell is intriguing and begins really promising. The sci-fi possibilities the film implies really are cool and while it lacks the sort of ripple effect that makes films like Back to the Future excellent, this film does contain similar elements they just aren't deciphered or explored once I understood the mystery twist

The Bad: The production just seems off. I mean, the film lacked focus in telling a great story as I became confused from the lack of touch needed in "showing" a mystery. Acting lacked focus as most characters don't convince you that they care about the clues they are finding, no urgency or feeling of the police or the killer closing in on our protagonist, just a paste job of scenes that ultimately reveal the complex and profound life themes and sci-fi elements like virtual worlds and multiple dimensions the film is about.   I cringed at some of the amateurish camera angles. I mean, you can't set the mood of a scene just because you put the camera at an awkward angle. Speaking of awkward, that first non-kiss (I'm not even sure what it was) between the male and female leads was one of the worst scenes in this movie but the worst scenes are acted by D'Onofrio and Craig Bierko as John Ferguson (1937) in the last act when they fight, I am telling you, what comes next is some of the worst things I have seen acted. You better pay attention or you will be lost as the editing really hurts the storytelling. Some truly abrupt cuts into the scenes that wouldn't be so disorienting if the script wasn't also disjointed. It felt like the two writers took turns writing every other sentence. The entire romantic element comes across as forced and the way they transition their conversations is jarring, as one moment they are talking about loss and the very next line is...."So you wanna dance?". The climax comes out of nowhere and is confusing at first and then the end arrives out of nowhere with no explanation of what I really wanted to know about, which was, what had just happened in the previous scene. This story could have been superb if put in the right hands and sadly it wasn't. The scope was too large for this production team. 

The Ugly: The script is full of jarring dialogue and is just terrible in most places. The tone even changes from one line of dialogue to the next and sadly reminded me of 'The Room' in many instances when it happened. Like I mentioned above, the romantic dance scene starts off as a sentimental recount of loss and suddenly changes to a stale romantic tone. The romance is so confusing and really made me say, "Huh?" at the end. I had to do post-viewing research to explain the romantic element as the end really added to my confusion. The film's editing just seems off. Many times I found myself saying, "that scene should have come before that other scene as it compliments the narrative better and would have made things clearer for me."  Take one of the films biggest reveals—-it went right over my head as I had no real indication or motivation that led us there and that was probably to the lack of build up to such a big moment for the protagonist but his acting in these scenes doesn't help any as he is so lukewarm that he could have been looking at a burrito for all I know. Now had that scene been placed some place in the 3rd Act, it would have fit better. Now I have to go back to the worst sequences in the movie a fight scene which should have been deleted never to be seen again, instead it made the final cut. The fight choreography is atrocious and just when you think the sequence can't get worse it does and my poor brain is left to justify what I was seeing, was it part of the sci-fi, error by the script supervisor, actor forgot the moment?, I hope some of you have watched this and we can speak about that sequence just to make sure i'm not out of line.

Final Verdict...3/5...This film on paper is an A+, so you would ask how could this movie not be one of sci-fi's best with it's great little story and imaginative plot and it is a little hidden sci-fi gem in that sense but the execution ruins it. It's underfunded and underskilled in two of the major aspects of film making, the directing and acting. Perhaps it's my research into screenwriting that has me scrutinizing dialogue but I could not help but notice how bad it was, immediately I was hoping the visuals would be the film's strength and the hell with dialogue. But in a story this complex, strong dialogue would compel an actor to dig in and say lines with conviction not just style. Thankfully there is a cool sci-fi story that I really liked sewn into a mishandled mystery that is worth checking out. It has some intriguing ideas and concepts that I feel in hands of a better director could have been told more coherently and clearer by just bringing in stronger dialogue, better camera work, and expert editing to tell what is a cool story. My original score was a 2/5 but improved after rewatching it when I viewed it less as a sleuth and screenwriter and more of  a science junkie. I advise to rewatch it as it is clearer the second time when you aren't trying to solve the fumbled telling of the mystery. It is possible that I just misunderstood the film during the first viewing but it did leave me trying to sort out too much. But once I sorted everything out, the film becomes a pretty damn good piece of sci-fi. 

This post has been promoted to an article
Edited January 1, 2019 by Con

[Spinnaker1981 974]

8 hours ago, Con said:

The Thirteenth Floor (1999)

The Awesome: The sci-fi element is strong and presented well, especially when we enter the alternate 1937 world. The attention to detail in set design and costumes when we go back in time is done very well and is a visual strength of the film. Some of the story reveal twists are mind bending good. The movie score is solid as it compliments with its subtly and hits the right tones in scenes, especially in scenes where I wouldn't have been excited otherwise. The film is a hidden sci-fi gem at the end of the day. The dimensional transcending scenes are handled masterfully. I think this is also a strength of the film as the acting is at it's highest peaks in those scenes where you can see the actors transition between "units". One of the best moments of the film for me occurs in one of these transcending scenes towards the 3rd Act when our main character transcends and arrives in the middle of a competition he had no idea he was in and I just found it super hilarious!

The Good: The acting by Armin Mueller-Stahl as Grierson (1937) and Hannon Fuller (1990's and 2024) was a highlight and sadly he isn't on screen enough as I felt his acting was the most compelling and wanted more of his story and less of the mystery. Vincent D'Onofrio as Jerry Ashton (1937) and Jason Whitney (1990's) also does a stellar job as usual and really was the character that felt as if he believed what he was saying but he also has one of the worst acting moments in the film. For a low, low budget B-Movie, the sci-fi effects were simple and practical but don't come across as cheesy when they probably should have as the machine is never explained but it all worked for me.  The CGI was not bad at all for a low-budget film. The story the film tries to tell is intriguing and begins really promising. The sci-fi possibilities the film implies really are cool and while it lacks the sort of ripple effect that makes films like Back to the Future excellent, this film does contain similar elements they just aren't deciphered or explored. 

The Bad: The production just seems off. I mean, the film lacked focus in telling a great story as I became confused from the lack of touch needed in "showing" a mystery. Acting lacked focus as most characters don't convince you that they care about the clues they are finding, no urgency or feeling of the police or the killer closing in on our protagonist, just a paste job of scenes that ultimately reveal the complex and profound life themes and sci-fi elements like virtual worlds and multiple dimensions the film is about.   I cringed at some of the amateurish camera angles. I mean, you can't set the mood of a scene just because you put the camera at an awkward angle. Speaking of awkward, that first non-kiss (I'm not even sure what it was) between the male and female leads was one of the worst scenes in this movie but the worst scenes are acted by D'Onofrio and Craig Bierko as John Ferguson (1937) in the last act when they fight, I am telling you, what comes next is some of the worst things I have seen acted. You better pay attention or you will be lost as the editing really hurts the storytelling. Some truly abrupt cuts into the scenes that wouldn't be so disorienting if the script wasn't also disjointed. It felt like the two writers took turns writing every other sentence. The entire romantic element comes across as forced and the way they transition their conversations is jarring, as one moment they are talking about loss and the very next line is...."So you wanna dance?". The climax comes out of nowhere and is confusing at first and then the end arrives out of nowhere with no explanation of what I really wanted to know about, which was, what had just happened in the previous scene. This story could have been superb if put in the right hands and sadly it wasn't. The scope was too large for this production team. 

The Ugly: The script is full of jarring dialogue and is just terrible in most places. The tone even changes from one line of dialogue to the next and sadly reminded me of 'The Room' in many instances when it happened. Like I mentioned above, the romantic dance scene starts off as a sentimental recount of loss and suddenly changes to a stale romantic tone. The romance is so confusing and really made me say, "Huh?" at the end. I had to do post-viewing research to explain the romantic element as the end really added to my confusion. The film's editing just seems off. Many times I found myself saying, "that scene should have come before that other scene as it compliments the narrative better and would have made things clearer for me."  Take one of the films biggest reveals—-it went right over my head as I had no real indication or motivation that led us there and that was probably to the lack of build up to such a big moment for the protagonist but his acting in these scenes doesn't help any as he is so lukewarm that he could have been looking at a burrito for all I know. I have to go back to the worst sequences in the movie which should have been deleted scenes never to be seen ever again, instead they made the final cut. The physical acting is atrocious and just when you think the sequence can't get worse it does and my poor brain is left to justify what I was seeing. I hope some of you have watched this and we can speak about that sequence just to make sure i'm not out of line.

Final Verdict...3/5...This film on paper is an A+, so you would ask how could this movie not be one of sci-fi's best with it's great little story and imaginative plot and it is a little hidden sci-fi gem in that sense but the execution ruins it. It's underfunded and underskilled in two of the major aspects of film making, the directing and acting. Perhaps it's my research into screenwriting that has me scrutinizing dialogue but I could not help but notice how bad it was, immediately I was hoping the visuals would be the film's strength and the hell with dialogue. But in a story this complex, strong dialogue would compel an actor to dig in and say lines with conviction not just style. But the script fails the actors too. Thankfully there is a cool sci-fi story that I really liked sewn into a mishandled mystery that is worth checking out for some intriguing ideas and concepts that I feel in hands of a better director could have been told superbly by just bringing in stronger dialogue, better camera work, and expert editing. My original score was a 2/5 but improved after rewatching it when I viewed it less as a sleuth and screenwriter and more of  a science junkie. I advise to rewatch it as it is clearer the second time when you aren't trying to solve the fumbled telling of the mystery.

Thanks you, @Con.  

It has the makings of a masterpiece that falls short. That was always my idea of the movie. Nevertheless , as I rewatched it yesterday,  I still mantain that it is worth watching. 

 

Amazing review. Can’t wait for more!!! ?

Edited July 17, 2018 by Spinnaker1981

[Con 5,703]

15 hours ago, Spinnaker1981 said:

Thanks you, @Con.  

It has the makings of a masterpiece that falls short. That was always my idea of the movie. Nevertheless , as I rewatched it yesterday,  I still mantain that it is worth watching. 

 

Amazing review. Can’t wait for more!!! ?

I think it’s worth a watch too, if you love sci-fi or the themes presented in the film. I really think if the script had some substance behind it and had made some adjustments in telling the story I would have everyone watch it. After I watched it the first time I went to the wiki page and read the plot paragraph and the movie made more sense. I give the filmmakers credit for taking on the project as they are making movies and im sitting here judging them. Once I got who the units were and weren't and their limitations, the movie simply gets better as I then followed the small hints that explained so much for me. 

Edited July 18, 2018 by Con

[Fido_le_muet 5,197]

It's summer and I have a lot of preparations to do for the baby but I'll still have time to watch some movies so here it goes : 

Tomb Raider

An OK movie but nowhere close to the 2013 game. It basically follows the same plot but falls short of the game in every aspect. 

Alicia Vikander is a good Lara Croft but the supporting cast is meh and I could predict everything that happens in the movie. 

The bad guy is just that : bad Not fleshed out at all. He's evil cause he wants to get off the island. Period. OK.

The mercenaries with him are just canon fodder. 

Plot is simplified compared to the game and much weaker. Also there is too much Rochard Croft (Lara's father) in it. The game is better with him already dead. 

The end leaves things open for an inevitable sequel. 

All in all, a decent movie, I don't regret watching it but I'm glad I watched it at home and haven't paid 8€ to see it in the theater. Will do the same for the sequel. 

6.5/10

 

[Con 5,703]

Demon House (2018)

The Awesome: The entire thing is actually based on true events. A popular ghost hunter heard of a very demonically haunted house and purchased it to freely investigate it. Actual incidents that occurred to families living here before the ghost hunter bought the house all have been chronicled through real news reports from small and major networks, you can you tube Fox News coverage of the demon house as the haunting really had people conflicted about the truth. I thought this was going to be just an extended version of one of the Ghost Adventures episodes but it was more than just that at it's core. You can knock Zak all you want but his enthusiasm is infectious and has always drawn me in as he really gets into the investigations and also tries to debunk things using logic and doesn't just want to sell you a haunting. Call me crazy but I always thought that crime rates were probably higher in places were past and current dark practices have been common. I will always believe negative energy will manifest dark activity in humans and animals. The interviews with the people that have lived or experienced the house were very compelling as families, upper law-enforcement, multiple child-services personnel, and many others, really help in assisting the build up to the physical investigating. The interviews are creepy as they give you an idea to what could possibly be in that house. If you allow yourself to be fully immersed and keep your skeptical side in check, you will enjoy this a lot. I really enjoyed the implication that dark spirits gravitate to areas of poverty and human suffering even if some of the most historic violent places never report paranormal activity. Diving into the paranormal and demonic unknown is just thrilling shit. Sadly, an associate and regular special investigator guest of the original TV show is murdered while the Demon House documentary is being made and that adds fuel to the story and really makes you think about just how stable these investigators are mentally. 

The Good: Learning about the demon house for the first time was cool as I stopped watching the Ghost Adventures show and don't follow the show or Zak on Twitter so this entire story was new to me which added to the intrigue. The in-depth interviews really work well and serve to convince me that some of these people on camera have nothing to gain in sharing their accounts and in fact fall in danger of being mocked IRL by their peers. I mean if your co-worker walked in on a Monday and began telling you how his little cousin climbed a wall backwards while speaking in a different language, you would probably question their sanity. The documentary doesn't come across as manipulative or tries to force you into believing. I liked that in the end Zak locked himself up in the house and is where you finally feel a real sense of dread and fear. Credibility to the Ammon's Family story and demon possessed house tale is aided by the many witnesses involved, from police chief to the priest that performed three exorcisms on the family, it was very compelling.The Child Services Workers accounts really adds credibility to the general haunting since they were called in once the mother was being suspected of child abuse after the kids began going to school with bruises. I did appreciate that they didn't try and fake stuff and they could have done that in a lot but I think is why I appreciate Zak, he may rub people the wrong way but I have to thank him for not forcing paranormal stuff into his documentary. Yes, below I state that I wanted to see more of the investigation and less of the interviews but what if that meant they had to fabricate activity to make the documentary more "real".

The Bad: If you are not familiar with the TV show and it's host, you might dislike Zak and his special "Yo bro-style" of paranormal investigating and might actually be turned off by him. The payoff let me down since the documentary is 90% interviews and 10% actual investigating, basically the opposite of what we see in the Ghost Adventures series. When you build up a haunted location so much because of decades of activity and with various people claiming the house negatively affected them after leaving it, you would expect so much more evidence and not just small moments of ..."what is that?" "why is he behaving that way?". The house is said to have more than 200 demons living in it and in the three years it took the documentary to be made, we only see a handful of moments that rewarded me for sitting through it. Yes, I didn't want this to come across as just a longer version of the TV show, and if you followed the TV show like I did at one point, the documentary is different enough; but the one thing that makes the TV show worth watching are all the tools and equipment they have at their disposal to debunk or confirm an actual haunting. So as i sat there processing all the information about the nastiness of the house and all it's possible threats, threats and history so crazy that a ghost hunter actually buys the house , I couldn't help but expect to see a tremendous investigation but there isn't. And while the show isn't always filled with paranormal activity, I thought the way this evil demon house was built up to be this incredible place of evil and poltergeist, just falls flat and made me think that the reason why the documentary is 90% interviews and 10% investigation was because of lack of anything being seen. I mean, three years of owning the house in an effort to capture something and while they do capture something creepy, I couldn't help but feel underwhelmed by the entire investigation. I mean, where were the tools they usually use? Surely a house filled with 200 demons would demand you bring out all your equipment and perhaps they did just that and sadly nothing was found for them to put into the documentary so they opted instead for the film to rely on the recounting of the various experiences by people that have lived in that house to count for the chills and suspense. The reenactments that plague the TV show also appear here and are less effective and actually become a distraction as what my imagination was drawing up when the social workers are talking was way more frightening than any visual shown to me.

The Ugly: The condition Zak claims he acquired by being in the house and doing the documentary is so ridiculous to me and it almost ruined the whole thing for me. I mean, this is a house where damn exorcisms have taken place, priests have probably thrown a lot of holy water around that house but it's Zak that it decides to "attack" and affect him for the rest of his life? I know that we are told of the many ailments people that have come across that house came to experience but what Zak received was special and I can't say I had ever heard of that before. I mean, I love the paranormal and I have watched 1,000's of hours of such material and I have seen the trinity scratches be a recurring theme which seems realistic but I have a hard time accepting that no other paranormal investigator has experienced the same thing? Had they revealed at the very end that a person from the house's past actually suffered the same ailment as Zak suffers, then I would have been all in with that reveal. Instead I found myself chuckling and saying..."you unlucky bastard, you." The part where we learn that a huge movie studio is involved with the Ammons family and has offered to buy the rights to their story. While this does expose how popular the Ammons story is, it also then goes on to re-interview someone that lived with the family and claim that "for the right price, anyone will say anything." That whole sequence comes to early in the documentary and I began questioning the people that had been interviewed. Two thoughts popped into my head, 1) "Are people making stuff up because they have been paid to sensationalize the hauntings?" , 2) "Oh man, I think we are going to see some shit in that house, I can't wait!!." 

Final Verdict...3/5...Are you a huge paranormal fan with a great and active imagination? If yes, then watch this because there is a lot of things it brings to the table and your imagination will keep you interested until they finally investigate the house. If you never watched an episode of Ghost Adventures, prepare for the reenactments and scary images as they are a staple of the TV show which I always thought was a waste since a dude in a costume isn't scarier than what my mind was conjuring. I am what you would call a "Want-to-believe" person and is why I enjoy those shows. I enjoy the notion of the paranormal and really did like watching this, mainly because despite never really, really, really being blown away by anything on any paranormal show I always convince myself that I will finally see something that will change the way even skeptics think of ghost hunting. I began watching Ghost Adventures, like most people, after I saw the brick footage on their original show. While I think Zak presents everything like a "bro", to me at least he comes across as serious about his investigating. He tries to debunk things first and not always out to prove real paranormal activity and I while I was underwhelmed by this documentary in the end, I appreciate that what we do see seems to be genuine and not manufactured even if it's not a whole lot. So the search to convince me 1,000% that someday someone will capture something more concrete that will change the course of humanity, will have to continue. 

This post has been promoted to an article
Edited July 20, 2018 by Con

[Guest]

I recently saw "The First Purge." 

I was a bit disappointed. The plot twist wasn't well written. I had this expectation of it to be more intense and thrilling, but I should have known better since it is the pre-quel to the Purge series. You have your typical countdown, alarm sound, people scared and gathering together, and then those who wanted to Purge made their way out to the streets. These were all new actors for me, so it was a nice refresher to start a movie not being familiar with the actors/actresses, so you don't have this bias perception of their acting skills. They did manage to add in some humor throughout the movie, so that was something new.

But Dmitri.. that dark chocolate.. was sexy as fudge, so it made the movie worth while to watch. 

If out of 10 points .. I'd give it a 6.

 

[Con 5,703]

The Babadook (2014)

The Awesome: The movie's atmosphere is tremendous. The actress playing the mother, Essie Davis, wow what a performance! I think only Toni Collette in Hereditary has this performance beat. Half way through the film I really began feeling for the mom because her acting is just stellar. I bought into her suffering and stress spiral fully!!!! The book scenes, wow, never will look at a pop-up book the same ever again. Those scenes are terrifying because of the skill in which they were shot. The art design of the book is brilliant and the fact you can own a copy of the book IRL is tremendous. The sound design is super creepy and adds character to the movie. The mental gymnastics I ended up putting my brain through at the end has been great. The line by the mother, "Why don't you go and..." was fantastic and shocking. The post-viewing research and discovery of the meaning behind Mister Babadook really transforms the film and it's ending and really gave my brain things to chew on. Did a great job of making me sympathize with the boy after finding him obnoxious the first half of the movie. The way we see the mother miss out on sleep was done brilliantly as I felt her insomnia or better the feeling that time speeds up for her when she goes to bed. That is a nightmare IRL for me as I love to sleep and being in a situation where as soon as I begin to fall into that awesome sleep state, the alarm goes off and I have to wake up, is just terrifying. The anagram: A Bad Book.

The Good: Real good moments of dread and spooky moments that do not rely on jump scares for effectiveness. The tension of waiting for the Babadook to arrive is thick as syrup. Really liked the cinematography and set design. The house really conveys what the mother is feeling internally if that makes sense. How real the film felt thanks to the mother's performance, at times it really comes across like a documentary and not a movie. The little boy was annoying but the formula here was to get him to crawl under your skin the way he was getting under his mom's overtired and stressed out skin so you can understand her emotions. I watched this while my wife was getting ready to go out and wife kept asking questions like..."why doesn't she go see a doctor?" She does. And then she asked, "why doesn't she go to a psychiatrist?" She gets that advice too. Then she asked, "why doesn't she go to the police?", and she does, so I appreciated a character that behaved like a real life person would and took realistic steps in looking for help.  I also liked how this movie didn't follow the cliches or the usual horror stuff that makes material like this predictable, we kind of take the path to those cliches but they never materialize.

The Bad: The little boy had moments where he smiles after he delivers serious lines and it breaks the immersion of the scenes and some moments he overacts. It's not that he is horrible, just some scenes came across as comical because of him. The ending at first really disappointed me because I couldn't figure out why things had been resolved so abruptly and if you don't get invested enough in wanting to learn more because you end up caring for the characters then you probably won't come across the theories on the movie and it's material. If you watch it because you want to see the Babadook and sleep with your lights on, just keep in mind that the scares come mostly from what you form in your head more than what you will see on screen, but you do see the monster, so don't worry.

The Ugly: Immediately after the movie ended, I really hated the end because although I appreciate not having everything explained to me, I felt like it just ends with some sort of unexplained resolution. Had I not bothered to dig deeper and look for explanations, I would have missed out on what I feel is the meaning of the movie, which elevates the entire thing to another level of good. The CGI in some of the scenes looks cheap and the effect didn't seem to match the tone of the Babadook. The guy that wrote the Exorcist called this the "scariest movie he has ever seen.". 

Final Verdict...3/5...or...4/5...As you can see i'm giving the film two grades, I've included the spoiler for the higher score below, so if you have never watched it and plan on it, don't spoil it for yourself so you can have the same reaction I had in case you miss it too. The movie is great in many places with its chilling atmosphere and spiral into madness. The performance by Essie Davis is worth the viewing as she really is superb and takes us on this ride. I thought I'd watch this and move on to the next but here I am digging deeper about a film four years old because I feel the writer/director showed us something normal in such a dark, dark way. I recommend it for the burn and  if you have not seen it, don't research it. I knew very little about it and I think it's best that way. 

Spoiler:

 

The reason I am giving this movie two scores is because after learning of a theory regarding the movie, it elevates it’s genius for me. That theory is that the mother is the actual Babadook, holy shit, I never considered that after watching it. If this is the case, then what the writer/director crafted was pure genius. A scene of the mother putting the book together in a flash back would have given us too much information and would have caused me to ignore the Babadook monster threat. And I was fully focused on Mister Babadook the entire time!!

This post has been promoted to an article
Edited July 24, 2018 by Con

[Con 5,703]

GLOW: The Story of The Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (2012)

The Awesome: Reconnecting with these fine ladies of wrestling from my early testosterone fueled teen years really brought back a lot of memories of not just them but what was to come in my life entering those teenage years. Just the great revived dormant memories of me coming home late at night after partying with friends and watching GLOW. Learning why the show suddenly just ended without explanation, especially since it was so popular by 1990. Learning about the lives of some of the wrestlers, what they did before the auditions, during their time at GLOW and were they ended up after the abrupt end to their popular show. Reliving my crushes on Colonel Ninotchka and finding out she wasn't even really Russian and my crush on Hollywood. I was so young when they were cancelled that I never heard that Hollywood went on to do Playboy, I do now. The interviews with the ladies were done very well and the reveals of the effects of wrestling on their bodies were sobering. A great human interest story of a group of people that put on a unique and pioneering show. The surprise in the 3rd Act was the thing I was hoping would happen as I watched the 1st and 2nd Acts, but thankfully, I did not have to wait and it was very touching and the build up was great. I love these Where Are They Now-type of documentaries. Really funny how daring and risky some of the skits and story lines were that they got away with. Seeing what the ladies look like after all these years was amazing.

The Good: Many of the wrestlers are featured and you get such great insight to what a lot of them went through and how some tried to use the show to get acting careers started and some just wanted to be on TV, but ultimately, the ones that stayed were the ones that actually enjoyed the physicality. Finding out that the first casting calls were not for women wrestlers but for good-looking women that had no idea what they were auditioning for. Watching the show being built from the ground up and how it transformed wrestling and gave women's wrestling credibility despite the cartoonish feel to the entire show. I started watching it for the pretty girls when it premiered but ended up really enjoying the wrestling as you could tell they were being trained seriously and the wrestling wasn't great but always fun to see women pile driving each other. Without a doubt, GLOW went on to influence the women of the WWE, perfect example and serious surprise learning that Ivory of WWE fame (1999-2005) was Tina Ferrari from GLOW! My jaw dropped! Reminded me of how the ladies took what they did seriously and defended themselves when audiences implied that they should be doing more "lady-like" occupations when on as guests on mega-talk shows like Donohue and Sally Jesse Raphael. They really empowered women athletes all over the world and while the wrestling is scripted, the bumps, bruises, scratches, and injuries are real. You don't have to like pro-wrestling to enjoy this documentary as it is just a human interest story that involves 40+ people loving to entertain the crowds. Learning about how the ladies adopted their names and alter-egos and how much creative control they had over their characters and costumes. The vintage footage was great and really took me back to those years of my life. 

The Bad: Some might find the injury to Susie Spirit a bit graphic. But her smile as she walks out of the ring sums up how amazing these women and the show was....all heart. If you hated the show GLOW, then skip this. The beat and song the ladies had to do their flows to in the GLOW rap. I know it was '86 when the show began but I was listening to music with much better beats than the one they used. Some of the girls could flow to the beat but some were cringe-worthy, but that was part of the charm. 

The Ugly: How corporations just discard our heroes and stars no matter how much joy or inspiration they bring to us. Had it not been for social media, the GLOW ladies wouldn't have enjoyed the revival and the resulting "After-Glow Fan Cruise" and the current NETFLIX series inspired by the original GLOW concept. But try as they may, I doubt highly I can experience the same feelings I had when I watched the original.

Final Verdict...4/5... I couldn't help but get the same feelings I got at the end credits where we see photos of the real "All American Girls Professional Ball League" players in the movie "A League of Their Own",  except I had that feeling the entire time while watching this. This documentary was just one big reunion for me with these women, I used to watch them religiously. I had forgot all about GLOW and how much I really enjoyed watching them. I was just hitting that age where girls were starting to get my attention, my hormones were starting to fire on all cylinders and here was a women wrestling show full of crotch-grabbing and suggestiveness. I was in love with Colonel Ninotchka and she still looks amazing to me. I'm glad this documentary was made as I never realized how special the show was and how these women possessed amazing drive, fight, and spirit, all things that teenage me never appreciated back then.

This post has been promoted to an article
Edited August 7, 2018 by Con