What movies have you seen lately? Now with reviews!Movies 

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FoolKiller
Whiplash (9/10)
Of all the nominated films that I have seen so far this is my favorite. JK Simmons deserves every award he has received and is nominated for. This is a wonderful story that takes the simplest of premises: A student who wants to be the best there is and his teacher. If you like Jazz, you will love this film. If you just like drums as an instrument, you will love this film. If you just enjoy good music, no matter the genre, you will love this film. This movie doesn't paint the story of someone becoming the best at something and white wash it. There is no happy relationships of people patting him on the back along the way. There is a trail of people left behind in his wake as he dedicates 100% to his craft. All of that said, my wife found it to be a boring drama, but she just likes romantic comedies and Lifetime movies.
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I loved it. For me it was almost a suspense thriller though, and I was tense the whole way through. I'm thankful that I've experienced it in real life, but I wouldn't want to spend any great amount of time subject to the whims of a rightfully intimidating, and wrongfully abusive conductor. The former is scary enough.

Just the same as I found The Wrestler was not about wrestling, Whiplash was not about music.
 
Kingsman - The Secret Service (9.5/10)

This is the best film that I have watched in a few years. It stars Colin Firth in a very Roger Moore-esque type role who plays the main hero, Harry Hart, alongside Taron Egerton, a relatively new actor, who plays Eggsy, a teenager from South London who has lost his Dad at a young age. Samuel L Jackson plays Valentine, a brilliantly written over the top villain with a lisp (who also hates blood and violence). Don't expect anything innovative from the story, if you have watched any bond film, you kind of know what to expect. And like Bond, there are lots of clever and cool gadgets that may just top what the Bond films do. If you want a comedy-action movie, this is a must watch. No spoilers but once you get to the scene where Land of Hope and Glory is playing, you''l probably be laughing like an idiot.
 
Picked these up for £2 each

Rush Hour (9/10)

This was hilarious. Great fun throughout, great film

Cop Out (8/10)

Brilliantly hillarious film.


I must add that I am 🤬 at reviews
 
Wild Tales (8/10)
Just six different stories where the sudden violence is the principal theme. A simple idea very well produced. Also, I like when a good movie is in my language. :sly:

Trailer (obvious language and violence warnings):

 
Fury...it wasn't actually so bad that I expected. The film managed to show the brutality and insanity of war quite dramatically in some scenes. But the story itself was very thin and badly written. Actors did what they could - except Brad Pitt, who desperately tried to be a modern version of Marlon Brando without any notable success. It also had this very predictable innocent rookie soldier vs. old cynical veteran thing going on. What comes to the end of movie...I don't want the spoil it for those of you, who haven't yet seen the film, but this one thing must be said: one demobilized American tank (5 men) fights vs. a batallion of Waffen-SS troops with Panzerfausts, grenades and machine guns in their arsenal (two- or three hundred men). I would say that in real situation the odds would clearly had been favor of German side, but see it for yourself! Without this absolute furious (or should I say furyious) Hollywood-labeled heroic nonsense this film could have been much better. (4.5/10)
 
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I watched Whiplash tonight and really enjoyed the movie. It is very well done and JK Simmons knocks it out of the part with his role.
 
Watched silent Hill and silent Hill revelations with my daughter (12) today.

First one was pretty good, revelations...not bad.
 
Took my daughter to see Cinderella tonight. (8/10)

I could write out a long review, but I'll sum it all up with: Disney didn't retcon this one. It is the story you know with the latest live action Disney special effects. The acting is decent and it is a great kids film.

If you like the story of Cinderella you'll enjoy it. If nothing else your kids will.
 
It was a Branagh film. Branagh films drag.

Cinderella had a good cast. Some good acting. Great set design. And some decent scripting and dialogue.

But it draaaagged. It had few hooks, it was predictable, boring and predictable. It had plot holes and throwaway characters. We get some emotional drama that's well acted out, but we're never given much reason to care about the wheres, whys and whos of these set-piece childhood/adulthood trauma moments. (Which is a shame... they're well acted and well-staged)

Its saving grace is the actors. Strong performances everywhere. Especially the lovely lead. A very authentic girl. Every expectant heave of her (lovely) bosom sends hearts a-flutter. Every flutter of here lashes... every parting of her lips... every smile. She's simply radiant.

And yet, I spent an entire third of the film, from "Bippity Boppity Boo" until the ball staring at her waist, trying to figure out if she'd been CGI'd or if she was wearing an incredibly tight corset, (apparently, she has a naturally small waist and a very, very, very tight corset) thinking about the flack Disney was going to get from nutritionists, feminists, parents and whatnot for the extremely negative body image issues this would raise with little girls.

Still... not bad. Not great. But not bad. I'd say 6.5/10, maybe 7/10 without the corset. :lol:
 
niky
But it draaaagged. It had few hooks, it was predictable, boring and predictable. It had plot holes and throwaway characters. We get some emotional drama that's well acted out, but we're never given much reason to care about the wheres, whys and whos of these set-piece childhood/adulthood trauma moments. (Which is a shame... they're well acted and well-staged)
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Have you seen the cartoon it was based off of?


And yet, I spent an entire third of the film, from "Bippity Boppity Boo" until the ball staring at her waist, trying to figure out if she'd been CGI'd or if she was wearing an incredibly tight corset, (apparently, she has a naturally small waist and a very, very, very tight corset) thinking about the flack Disney was going to get from nutritionists, feminists, parents and whatnot for the extremely negative body image issues this would raise with little girls.
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A tiny waist? You mean, like this?

cinderella1.gif


With the exception of the Duke/stepmother subplot and the more detailed background (which did drag a bit) it was just a live-action version of the cartoon, including her relationship with the animals. I wasn't looking for anything more.

If you went in with a five-year-old girl next to you, hoping for just a live-action version of a very familiar story, you will be happy. Actually, see it on opening night at the first showing after dinner time and after a theater of pre-teen girls bursts out in applause at the end you will feel satisfied.

Personally, I was quite happy to see Disney not trying to do another retcon.
 
I've seen the cartoon. A lot was actually different (they expanded on the back-story of her mother's death. They transformed the king from a comedic buffoon into a Serious Father Figure Who Dies off, the Grand Duke goes from being the King's sidekick to being a scheming conniver, etcetera...), even though they did keep the meat of the story intact.

I actually liked (many) parts of it. And there are parts I didn't. One of the rugrats got bored halfyway through due to the lack of talking mice (she adores the cartoon). The other was entertained.

Not saying it was a bad movie, but I certainly expected more from Disney. That's two Disney "hits" in a row that have left me lukewarn (the other was "Into the Woods")... wanting to like them a lot because of their strengths, but unable to ignore the weaknesses.

Also, Helena Bonham Carter's "old woman" makeup was woefully substandard for such a lavish production.

FoolKiller
cinderella1.gif
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Disney already gets flack for its cartoon depiction of women. Mostly your predictable "Barbie Doll" psychoanalytical and developmental arguments.

Which I've always thought were far-fetched, and unmindful of the history of caricature and cartooning. Cartoon princesses are obviously cartoons. And while there are outliers everywhere who would like to appear like cartoon characters, most children know instinctively that real humans do not look like they do in the toons.

-

The corset was distracting because to fit corsets that small, most women have to "train" for months. It's bad for your back and posture, and quite unhealthy. Not surprised that the girl couldn't eat while wearing it (she could only drink soup on shooting days) and that she couldn't breathe properly.

It was a lovely dress. And there's no doubt going to be thousands of women rushing out to train in corsets to do their "cosplays" (and thousands more who will simply want a waist like that) after this movie's run is finished.
 
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niky
It was a lovely dress. And there's no doubt going to be thousands of women rushing out to train in corsets to do their "cosplays" (and thousands more who will simply want a waist like that) after this movie's run is finished.
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Considering she is pretty much stick thin in real life I think most attempts by average women will be quickly stopped.


That said, it is very rare to see women take their cosplay to that degree, and I have not known an emotionally stable woman to become that obsessed with a look.


Many of the changes from the cartoon were more fitting to the original story. I personally wish they'd have show the stepsisters cutting chunks off their feet to fit into the slipper, but alas, Disney took all the creepy bits out of their version of old fairy tales.
 
FoolKiller
Many of the changes from the cartoon were more fitting to the original story. I personally wish they'd have show the stepsisters cutting chunks off their feet to fit into the slipper, but alas, Disney took all the creepy bits out of their version of old fairy tales.
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You'll be wanting "Into The Woods" then... :lol:
 
The Iceman (2012)
the-iceman-locandina.jpg
Based on the story of the Contract killer, Richard "The Iceman" Kuklinski.
I enjoyed the movie, The plot was good, The actors were excellent, And the camera work was superb.
It seemed like a mix of "Pulp Fiction" and "Breaking Bad" somehow, Which wasn't a bad thing in my opinion.
If you had a chance to watch it, I'd highly recommend you to do so !
(8.5/10)

 
......Tried to watch Big Hero 6 with the family but... didn't really grab me. Maybe I wasn't in the mood or something.
I left when Hiro was showing off (Spoilers!!) his mind-controlled nanobots in a fair.....hmmm maybe I should finish it some other time....
 
JKgo
......Tried to watch Big Hero 6 with the family but... didn't really grab me. Maybe I wasn't in the mood or something.
I left when Hiro was showing off (Spoilers!!) his mind-controlled nanobots in a fair.....hmmm maybe I should finish it some other time....
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You made a judgment on a movie based on the first ten minutes?

And we have spoiler tags.
 
JKgo
..........As I said, I just wasn't really in the mood for it. :indiff:
And yeah, first impression do count, ya know...:cool:
*cough Up! cough*
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Best part is that you walked out just before the explosions and death began.
 
....Dang it, might be seen as double posting. But well, here it goes anyway.

Just finished watching Interstellar on...DVD. Yeah, crazy, right? People still use that stuff!!

Anyway, always thought Chris Nolan had an eye for a....uhm, eye-candy, and this film was no exception. Not gonna dabble in the pseudo-science aspect of it, as pretty much almost the entire second act onwards are all....hmm, conjecture? Is that appropriate here?
But!! I actually liked the pacing, the way it picks up throughout the film. The oft-maligned third act, was bit...off, and the finale could've been better, but hey, it's Hollywood, so a happy ending was a foregone conclusion.

And acting? Matt McConaughey again proves he is better than a Lincoln. And was slightly caught off guard with a certain Mr. Damon.

Will I watch it again? Maybe. I originally wanted to see this at the cinema, but things happened and it went by. This film would've been pretty amazing to see on an Imax screen.
An upside, to waiting for a movie to hit home video though, is that, I can watch the film over and over again WHENEVER I feel like it. :cool:

And as for Big Hero 6....:indiff: Still not feeling it.
 
.....Love it. Actually bought the DVD of the movie....what, ten years ago? Yup, still have it. NO scratches whatsoever.
 
So, watched Fast 7.

Okay, on the one hand, it's not exactly high cinema.

But on the other hand, it's very well-made for a cheap popcorn flick. Touching nod to Walker at the end, managed to pull it off without being too cheesy.

It's a shame. It could have been a much better film. There were points during some of the dialogue scenes where you'd expect witty wordplay between Tyrese and Paul, but they had to seemingly rewrite the script to minimize his dialogue in scenes which had not been finished before his death. I expect once it hits home video, people will tear into the CGI done for Paul's stand-ins, but after the first few times you look at it, you stop looking and simply sit back and enjoy the show.

You know what to expect. Some bromantic drama. Some romantic drama. Over-the-top action and stunts. Great cars. The works. Also, some relatively low-frequency cheese in all the subtextual messages of "family" and friendship, but given the cast has some genuine chemistry, it doesn't feel as forced as it might otherwise.

One wonders how much better the movie could be if Paul hadn't died. It's getting mostly positive reviews on RottenTomatoes, but you don't really know how many of those are because people are afraid of panning his last movie, and how many genuinely liked it. I liked it, but as a critic, I could poke holes in the film eight ways to Sunday... the plot holes are big enough to sink a battleship, all by themselves.

But, come on, it gives you a whole lot more than you expect, while giving you a whole lot of what you expect, so it's definitely deserving of at least a 7.5 to an 8.

Fitting end to the franchise.

-

Also watched "Home"... forced drama, cheesy story, simplistic plot, over-the-top grrrl soundtrack. Still liked it. Great movie to watch with the kids. Jim Parsons carried the movie well. The critics seem to have roundly slammed it, but it's a good movie to pass the time with small kids.
 
niky
Fitting end to the franchise.
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Except there's at least one more coming. :-|

I saw it last Friday and liked it. I had just finished rushing through the last one to get all caught up on the story, and I appreciate the difference Wan's directing has on the new one. The chases are very good: a lot more gritty than Lin's stuff. That tribute was note-perfect too.

But holy crap did the movie drag on. We'd get to different set-pieces, and each time I'd assume it was the location of the final showdown, only to find out that nope, there's more globe-trotting to happen. I like the direction they've moved since starting the franchise, with Fast Five being a personal high point, but it's feeling a little too outrageous, for a franchise built on being outrageous. I also felt bad that Gibson has been given the one-dimensional court jester role.

Still, I'd agre with @niky's rating.
 

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