hanshotfirst1138

Laggies- Lynn Shelton's indie tale about an out-of-college twenty-something who's aimless wanderings lead her to a teenaged girl and her middle-aged father. Thematically, this is an interesting idea, the local Seattle atmosphere is nice and occasionally ambient, and the performances are uniformly good: a world-weary Sam Rockwell is hilarious, Kiera Knightley is relatable in the central role, and Chloe Moretz is luminous as always. Unfortunately, it falls victim to too many indie cliches and annoying character attitudes, a predictable ending which feels more like a fortune cookie than any actual wisdom, and too much meandering. The obvious model is Linklater, but his naturalism feels less forced, his characters less grating, and he has a wiser melancholia beneath the indie energy less likely to dip into cliche. Not without things to recommend it, but too uneven to be a success.

A Clockwork Orange- Stanley Kubrick's controversial dystopian classic about a vicious thug who undergoes a behavior modification program where unmaking a monster can be as monstrous an act as the crimes. Dealing with themes of social disorder, ineffectual governments, self- expression, youth culture and culture change, and violence, it's a layered and multifaceted film. Incredible central performance from Malcolm McDowell that's vicious but occasionally sympathetic, though the modernist dystopian setting, unlike Kubrick's best films, looks slightly dated today*. It's a bold film, and though time has diminished some of its shock value, it still feels like one, a viscous, smart, relentlessly dark satire, flawlessly shot, uncomfortable, and ever-prescient in an age where politicians continue to patch symptoms while ignoring the root of the disease.

*A poster here made an excellent point regarding this issue, but I can't track down the post.

asianxcore

It Follows (2015)

iNCREDiPiNOY

Katy Perry: The Prismatic World Tour Concert Movie - 4/5

Inhumans99

Into The Storm (HBO)

asianxcore

Aziz Ansari: Live at Madison Square Garden (2014)
V/H/S Viral (2014)

inri222

Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson - 2.5/5

Robert Altman's black comedy about how American history is altered and made larger than life by creating false heroes (and villains) in the name of making a quick buck.
I liked the message of the film even though it comes across as a weak hybrid of two earlier (and better) Altman films : MASH & Nashville.

inri222

Watchtower - 3.5/5

The lives of two lonely people trying to escape the pains of their past cross paths at a bus depot. A simple tale with some good acting and cinematography that had a lot going for it in the first half and then heads into a predictable second half.

inri222

Love Crime - 3.5/5

Two women employed by corporation engage each other in games of power and deception. How far are they willing to go in one-upping each other?
Good psychological thriller, but I prefer the more stylish remake by Brian De Palma.

asianxcore

Nightmares in Red, White and Blue (2009)

Solid documentary. Could have done without the one participant who kept stretching meaning & symbolism to almost every film he was asked about.

printerati

iNCREDiPiNOY showing dan30oly how it should be done!

hanshotfirst1138

Otherwise what's the point ? We have to be pretentious, after all .

Exodus: Gods and Kings- Ridley Scott's fascination with theology continues in this atheist-made Biblical epic. Some have taken it to task for misinterpreting its source material and being blasphemous, but really, that isn't the problem. The problem is that it's incredibly dull. The film flirts with a few interesting ideas-the dualistic central relationship between Moses and Ramses, the political underpinnings of the story-and has some stunning visuals, but mostly, the film feels boring and dry, despite an intense central performance by Bale. The themes aren't developed enough, Edgerton is miscast, and the characters are too thinly sketched. A few decent set pieces, but Scott going through all of the plagues gets a little tiresome, and the majority of the big sequences aren't exciting enough to elicit many thrills. Cecil B. DeMille's kitschy comic book was overlong and cheesy, but it was iconic and it wasn't boring. The film's dourness ultimately doesn't feel like it takes on enough purpose, and the spectacle lacks the necessary awe to make it work as a epic, simply feeling too much like another take on something we've all seen way too many times before. Scott really needs a stronger script if he wants to get his spark back.

Chastity Bites- Ridiculously amateurish wannabe satire about Elizabeth Bathroy starting a virginity group at a high school. It's a vaguely interesting idea about dissecting sexual mores and purity culture, but unfortunately the filmmaking is as amateurish as something that I would make, and seems to have been constructed by first-year film students. The acting and writing are also annoying, thinking they're satirical, but mostly full of shockingly offensive stereotypes without any actual wit. At all. Still, the film has a certain ragged lo-fi charm, and the wisdom not to overstay its welcome, but that doesn't do much for the many flaws and outright poor filmmaking. Probably goes well with beer though.

RichC2

He gave a movie a 3/5 one time, made it sound like the worst movie ever.

EddieMoney

Life Itself - 5/5

asianxcore

There was a point in the documentary where he states that Jason Voorhees was tied to nature in all of the Friday the 13th films. That anytime a storm is coming, in comes Jason. For me, that's less dying Jason & nature together and more of the fear of the night & unpredictable weather (which can cause physical isolation).

He also at another time stated that many of the jump-scares & scenes in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) were references to the Post 9-11 climate. Said that a killer who kills and then disappears was a comment on Osama Bin Laden.

It was absolutely awful. Luckily the documentary also had John Carpenter, Joe Dante, Roger Corman, Larry Cohen and many others to save me from that drivel.

inri222

Ilo Ilo - 3.5/5

With another child on the way, a family in Singapore hires an immigrant Filipino nanny to look over their mischievous young son. After some time she tames the young boy and becomes a mother figure to him. At the same time the country is going through a financial crisis and the parents are worried that they might loose their jobs any day. Good film about the hardships families go through and how it brings them closer together.

Why So Blu?

What are you guys talking about here? I couldn't find the original post.

inri222

Nightmares in Red, White and Blue (post #3314)

Mondo Kane

Safe
Frank
Twentynine Palms
Excessive Force
Funeral Parade of Roses
Burn After Reading
Deliver Us From Evil
Buffalo Bill and the Indians
Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters
Food, Inc.
Talladega Nights
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1
The Disorderly Orderly
The Count of Monte Cristo (1934)
Spartan
I like to play games
The Magdalene Sisters
Fun With Dick and Jane
CitizenFour
The Ghost Goes West
Sin Sisters
Sunset Strip
Pathology
National Treasure: Book of Secrets
About A Boy
The Whales of August (Surprised I liked this)
Sidekicks
Revolver
Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (Mostly for Uma)
Meet The Applegates
Wrong Side of Town
Arrowsmith (1931)
The Family Jewels
Malificent
The Runestone
Who's Minding The Store?

inri222

Those are two fucked up films right there. And yet thet are so good. I wonder in Dumont's Humanite will ever be released on some video format again in the US?

bookercarringto

A Thief In The Night (1972). Painful.

bookercarringto

Last one before bed tonight - The Case Of The Baby Sitter (1947). Another dull one.

asianxcore

Double Dragon (1994)
Ninja III: The Domination (1984)
Hobo With A Shotgun (2011)

JimRochester

Get Hard Not hilarious but found it pretty entertaining. Laughed out loud several times

inri222

Blackfish - 4/5

A heartbreaking documentary about the exploitation of killer whales for entertainment and the damaging consequences on both the whales and the humans who interact with them.

bookercarringto

Viva Las Vegas with Elvis. The best of his narrative films.