Giles

personally I liked Emma's performance more than Hanks. But on the whole it was a very good movie - I quite enjoyed it.

Giles

taped off of Turner Classic Movies:

inri222

Last Exit to Brooklyn - 4/5

Dark tale of several characters trying to survive in a 1950's poor working class Brooklyn neighborhood. From the author of Requiem for a Dream.

Giles

Peter Greenaway's latest film:

DJariya

Battle of the Year: Sounded really bad on paper with Josh Holloway from Lost playing a Hip Hop dance coach. But, it had some charm and the dancing was awesome. It was nice to see Caity Lotz who has recently been on Arrow in this movie.







Dead in Tombstone: Fun little supernatural/horror/action Western. Trejo was staying true to form playing an angry badass Mexican outlaw.

hanshotfirst1138

The A-Team Every now and then, you see a film that reaffirms your faith in the power of cinema as an art form, challenging you in exciting ways. The A-Team is not that film. It's dumb, trashy, and flashy, and totally superficial. It is also, however, a lot of fun. Disposable, forgettable, and unpretentious, with some quotable funny lines, the film is basically like watching an action film on caffeine. It's braindead, yes, but it has the sense to know it, and the actors, particularly a scene-stealing Sharlto Copley, are all in on the joke. As far as junk food action cinema goes, you could do far worse.

Battleship- Generally terrible, but better than the Transformers movies, though that's the definition of faint praise. A bunch of aliens invade the water, the Navy has to stop them, and I do not care. Some neat design elements (apparently noted comic book artist Jock worked on the designs) and a little less misogynistic leering up women's' skirts than the Bay films, but even if it's unpretentious, it still eventually collapses under the weight of its own stupidity.

Drive- This is what digital cinematography is all about, it's been a long time since I've seen a movie this visually stunning. It's not surprising, director Nicholas Winding Refn's father worked as an editor for digital pioneer Lars Von Trier back during the early years of digital during the Dogme movement. Refn describes the film as a fairytale, but it hews most closely to a Michael Mann film's neon existential romanticism. The film is kind of slight and not exactly intellectually substantial, to be honest, but it's so gorgeous that for once, style-over substance works. Refn calls it a "fetish film," and it's designed to within an inch of it's life. Explosively violent and occasionally poetic, the film is pure mythmaming. If you're looking for a crime that actually examines anything with moral value and sociological causes, go watch The Wire. Ryan Gosling is terrific as the monosyllabic driver with no name. A weird but surprisingly effective blend of existential archetypal exploitation movie storytelling and arthouse aesthetics.

Looper- Fun, twisty time-travel thriller from Rian Johnson, combining the director's penchant for noir with a sci-fi twist. Plot summary would take pages, but all of the pieces fit together pretty well. The plot doesn't much sense on close scrutiny perhaps, but it rattles along so quickly that you don't notice. Much stronger with the beats of the screenplay than any particular visuals, though the performances are uniformly excellent, Bruce Willis finally get a meaty role again, and makes the most of it.

Dredd- Sadly missing the scathing social satire that made Robocop, one of the imitators of the original comic so memorable, but as a balls-to-the walls action flick, that's a throwback to the ultraviolence of the 80s and 90s, it's a ruthlessly efficient machine. Proudly R-rated, violent as hell, and visually gritty, and Karl Urban is flint-hard as the monosyllabic title character, a raw force of nature. Disappointingly predictable screenplay, but for a movie that gives the fans what they want, it's hard to beat. Shot digitally by the great Anthony Dod Mantle, it's like six degrees of Lars Von Trier.

The World's End- Maniacal mash-up from writer director Edgar Wright, the film is so busy and madcap that it'd be easy to dismiss as overwrought, but it's a much smarter than its post-modern pastiche surface would suggest. A film about the dangers of nostalgia and the fragmentation of our technological world, shot on 35mm and Super 16 with that lovely texture that film has, it has a little bit of everything, but it works better than it has any right to work. Wright may be throwing everything but the kitchen sink in, but he has a remarkably deft hand, and under it's frantic surface is a smart and heartfelt film.

The Conjuring- The Warren Files would've been a much better title. A very stylish ghost movie from director James Wan. Wan's a rock star, but he dials that back a bit here, going for a more classical approach, though his freewheeling camera and penchant for loud noises that go "BANG!" mean it's not exactly Val Lewton. Shot digitally, John R. Leonetti's cinematography is stunning and makes good use of shadows and light. Wan idolizes Argento, but Argeno's pop expressionism at least had bad dubbing to fall back on, some of the dialogue here is really horrible, and the storyline is a bit ham-fisted, regardless of your religious beliefs. "Witches believe sacrificing their child is the ultimate gift to Satan!" Ooga-booga! Stylish as hell though, with Wan's clean gliding camera and compositions. Vera Farminga is luminous as always, but everyone else is just a prop for Wan to throw around. I jumped a lot, it did it's job well, but lets see how memorable time decides it is.

I can't imagine not liking an Emma Thompson performance. She's superb in everything I've ever seen her in.

Giles

have you seen her TV work notably the 1988 6-part series 'Thompson''?

it's rare to see her to 'do' comedy - which she does quite effortlessly.

hanshotfirst1138

I'll have to check that out, the closest thing to comedy I've seen her do is her delightful verbal sparring with Kenneth Branagh in Much Ado About Nothing.

asianxcore

Drug War (2012)

It's a little slow to start but once it does it's classic Johnnie To. The finale is nuts!

asianxcore

Dara (2007)
Berberian Sound Studio (2012)

inri222

Maniac - 2.5/5

The owner of a mannequin store by day is a serial killer at night. Loose remake of William Lustig's 1980 grindhouse cult classic isn't bad but it is not as good as the original. Best thing is Elijah Wood's performance.

asianxcore

Dark Touch (2013)
Elysium (2013)

asianxcore

Shutter Island (2010)
The Punk Singer (2013)

inri222

Les Bonnes Femmes - 2.5/5

Early French New Wave film by Claude Chabrol about four young women and the things they put up with while looking for love in a male dominated society.

Giles

'The Great Beauty' - toggling in giving the film either three or four stars out of five - it was a bit out there.

hanshotfirst1138

Fermat's Room- Mark Kermode amusingly quipped that instead of Saw, this is more like Slide Rule. A bunch of mathematicians are trapped in a room which contracts as they answer puzzles. Needless to say, as an English major who's terrified of math, it was horror movie to me . Made by a pair of writer-directors bred from the world of TV and made for what looks like my credit card limit, it's hardly the most cinematic movie, and while it's wise enough not to overstay its welcome, it's still a hard premise to stretch to feature length. But it's a neat little high-concept B-movie while it's there. Recommended for a rainy afternoon.

asianxcore

The Kings of Summer (2013)
Toad Road (2012)

iNCREDiPiNOY

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty - 2/5

The Wolf of Wall Street - 4/5

Why So Blu?

47 Ronin

Giles

I had recently read the Time Out magazine review of Walter Mitty - they weren't impressed either.

EddieMoney

The Family - 3.25/5

RichC2

Pi - 3.1415926 / 5

hanshotfirst1138

Despicable Me- Cute as hell animated comedy about a supervillain who's heart is warmed by three little orphaned girls. A smash box office hit that's spawned a huge marketing empire. Not quite in the same league as the Pixar stuff it's obviously aiming to compete with, but sentimental and flaky as I am, I teared up and laughed a fair bit. Adorable character designs, the Minions are so frigging cute it's ridiculous. Lots of fun, sweet and surprisingly heartfelt. Pretty good stuff, I was thoroughly charmed.

asianxcore

Byzantium (2013)

JimRochester

Sleepless In Seattle Although not a traditional Christmas movie, since it takes place at Christmas, we watch it every year. Can't wait for a full release of the BR.

The World's End I preferred Shaun Of The Dead for the humor, but I love the unique good looks of Rosamund Pike over the female lead in SotD