Movies

[jetsniper]

I wrote this over at another site, my impressions of Watchmen

Just got back from Watchmen, cruising the internet before I go to bed, a few things

1. I can't believe a 10 pm showing sold out. I was there at 9 and had to sit in the first row with my head so far back, I was staring at the sky. Hate that, had to suffer through that when I saw HGTtG a few years ago too.

2. This is elitist but I'd say half that theater didn't belong there.

3. The movie itself was very very good. I went in not wanting to like it but I couldn't help it, it managed to keep most of the original intent and integrity of the series. Snyder carried over a few annoying habits from 300 (like his overuse of slow-mo) but nothing that really took me out of the experience. For anyone that has read Watchmen, he changed the ending but the original purpose is kept in tact so no real complaints there either. I'm going through my copy now though and Snyder seems to have nailed everything frame for frame. Some of the acting was weak, mainly from the female side but my two favorites Rorshach and Dr.Manhattan were done very well.

4. For people that want to see the movie but have no idea what Watchmen is about....it's not your typical comic book movie. If you're expecting some kind of Iron Man/Spider-Man roller coaster adventure, this probably won't be up your alley. I'd have trouble even calling it an action movie. Quite a bit of questionable content so if you offend easily or want to take your young child/cousin/nephew/whatever then I'd stay away as well. Theres a scene where

a pregnant woman is shot

that caused a few people to walk out of the theater among other things

Uh, I think thats about it for my initial impressions of Watchmen. Maybe not the best comic movie ever made but it's certainly no Batman And Robin/Fantastic Four/Elektra either. Overall, I'm giving props to Zack Snyder for the job he did. I'm not ashamed of the movie nor do I feel betrayed. Alan Moore can continue being a whiny, crabby old man but Snyder did his job.

And finally.....NEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRD

[BTH]

I haven't read it but as far as I'm concerned, it being more like 300 than Spiderman and Iron Man is a very positive thing. I was actually maybe going to go tonight when all my friends who've read the graphic novel planned on going.

[jetsniper]

I haven't read it but as far as I'm concerned, it being more like 300 than Spiderman and Iron Man is a very positive thing. I was actually maybe going to go tonight when all my friends who've read the graphic novel planned on going.

Yeah, it's not your typical summer blockbuster fare, I was very impressed. It's total fan service though, I can see most mainstream audiences not enjoying it. The majority of people walking out liking it are fans of the series which is a bit of a reversal.

Also you can see Dr.Manhattan's weiner. It's never gratuitous or anything but apparently it's a big deal so people aren't going. It didn't bother me so I never gave it a second thought but just a warning. *shrug*

The precise moment where I gave up on trying to dislike it was

when Rorschach and Nite Owl are walking towards Ozymandias's place in the arctic at the end while Hendrix's "All Along The Watchtower" was playing.

That scene was just too cool.

Edited March 8, 2009 by jetsniper

[BTH]

People aren't watching the movie because you can see an actor's dick? How insecure are these people?

There are glimpses of dicks in American History X, Eastern Promises, Eurotrip, American Pie, Forrest Gump (sort of), A Clockwork Orange (sort of), Forgetting Sarah Marshall (....I'm not sure about this one...) and plenty of other movies, some good, some bad.

Imagine if women didn't go see movies with female nudity... there'd be no movies left for them to see except Paul Blart: Mall Cop.

[JoeLassister]

People aren't watching the movie because you can see an actor's dick? How insecure are these people?

There are glimpses of dicks in American History X, Eastern Promises, Eurotrip, American Pie, Forrest Gump (sort of), A Clockwork Orange (sort of), Forgetting Sarah Marshall (....I'm not sure about this one...) and plenty of other movies, some good, some bad.

Imagine if women didn't go see movies with female nudity... there'd be no movies left for them to see except Paul Blart: Mall Cop.

In Asia, they kind of censure men dicks in PORN movies !!!!

[jetsniper]

People aren't watching the movie because you can see an actor's dick? How insecure are these people?

There are glimpses of dicks in American History X, Eastern Promises, Eurotrip, American Pie, Forrest Gump (sort of), A Clockwork Orange (sort of), Forgetting Sarah Marshall (....I'm not sure about this one...) and plenty of other movies, some good, some bad.

Imagine if women didn't go see movies with female nudity... there'd be no movies left for them to see except Paul Blart: Mall Cop.

It's not even real, it's a CG dick that glows blue.

Absurd, I know but then again the average male has always been insecure about seeing male nudity. It's like if they get a slight glimpse, they'll be turned gay all of a sudden.

[BTH]

It's not even real, it's a CG dick that glows blue.

Absurd, I know but then again the average male has always been insecure about seeing male nudity. It's like if they get a slight glimpse, they'll be turned gay all of a sudden.

Ah, well if it's fake then I get to throw in the 5-10 second shot of Mark Wahlberg's prosthetic penis in Boogie Nights.

[jetsniper]

Ah, well if it's fake then I get to throw in the 5-10 second shot of Mark Wahlberg's prosthetic penis in Boogie Nights.

I love Boogie Nights. Actually I think I really liked just about every movie you mentioned. Must be the penis.

Watched Twilight (yes THE Twilight). Felt like I was watching a movie someone made on their Mac. It'll be easier if I list what I liked, take less time. The music was kind of cool.

[Doktor Kosmos]

Absurd, I know but then again the average male has always been insecure about seeing male nudity. It's like if they get a slight glimpse, they'll be turned gay all of a sudden.

Uhm... Are you saying you don't turn gay if you see another guy's wang in a movie?

[BTH]

I love Boogie Nights. Actually I think I really liked just about every movie you mentioned. Must be the penis.

Watched Twilight (yes THE Twilight). Felt like I was watching a movie someone made on their Mac. It'll be easier if I list what I liked, take less time. The music was kind of cool.

It was such a coincidence that I watched The Reader last night and there was a cock shot in it. Pretty good movie but I didn't even think Kate Winslet was good in it. But she had that Oscar coming for so long (watch Little Children - not just because of her, it's just a solid movie lol) that I'm happy. Forget Ellen Page, if anyone's going to be the next Meryl Streep, this is her, at least if we're talking about her record.

Boogie Nights is amazing. But maybe you didn't realize... it's by the guy who made There Will Be Blood. I don't know if you know but each of his movies is basically an homage to one of his influences. TWBB is Kubrick (my favourite director, could be why I love the movie) and Boogie Nights is Scorsese. You'll catch Scorsese references all over the movie, from the way it's shot, to the use of music, to little things like Wahlberg posing in his underwear in the mirror at the start of the movie (Taxi Driver). The opening shot at the club is mimicking the club shot in Goodfellas and the final shot is copying the final shot of Raging Bull. If you love Goodfellas/Scorsese, maybe that's why you loved Boogie Nights. Or maybe just because they're both awesome.

[jetsniper]

Why the winking face, did I say I didn't like TWBB?

I knew that anyway and you're right, that is one of the reasons I loved Boogie Nights.

I have Little Children on DVD, Kate gets it on with Nite Owl, haha. Jennifer Connelly and Kate Winslet though, I couldn't help but love that movie. I also thought The Reader was really boring. Kate was still good in it but like I said, she's had better performances, it was a pity Oscar.

Why the hell are we agreeing so much on movies lately, Bitton? It feels weird and confusing.

[BTH]

Why the winking face, did I say I didn't like TWBB?

I knew that anyway and you're right, that is one of the reasons I loved Boogie Nights.

I have Little Children on DVD, Kate gets it on with Nite Owl, haha. Jennifer Connelly and Kate Winslet though, I couldn't help but love that movie. I also thought The Reader was really boring. Kate was still good in it but like I said, she's had better performances, it was a pity Oscar.

Why the hell are we agreeing so much on movies lately, Bitton? It feels weird and confusing.

When I said I loved TWBB everyone said I was crazy, I assumed you were one of them. Have you seen Magnolia? It's definitely in my top 5 favourites movies, and also by PTA of course.

I assume Nite Owl's Patrick Wilson, but Jackie Earl Haley is also in both movies - you probably know this too.

From what I can tell, the things we disagree on are that you like a whole genre of comedies that I find stupid (this doesn't include Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Zoolander, Knocked Up, Wedding Crashers) as well as action/superhero movies that I find equally stupid (anything with Will Smith, etc) and I like a whole bunch of foreign or old movies that... I have no idea if you'd like. I have a theory that a good chunk of the people that glorify Spielberg (not that he isn't good) and call foreign/B&W movies pretentious would actually like them if they bothered to watch them.

OK - now a random question to everyone looking in the thread:

Name a movie or however many movies that you like but that other people here may not have seen or heard of. (I guess you could look at it as: name really underrated movies.) I'm running out of movies to watch, there are very few HUGE classics or anything that I still haven't seen so I need some hidden gems. Any genre. Any era. Go!

[jetsniper]

I'm pretty sure I didn't say anything bad about TWBB, I hope I didn't. I was lying if I did, I thought it was great. Magnolia has been on my "To watch" list forever but I haven't gotten around to it. Everything took a backseat when I was trying to watch every Oscar nominated movie and then after I did that, haven't really felt like watching anything. It's got Julianne Moore in it though so that means I'll definitely get around to it.

Yeah, I meant Patrick Wilson. Jackie Earl Haley plays Rorschach (did a magnificent job too)

I don't really have a set taste in movies, I'm pretty open to liking anything. I run a line between mainstream movie doofus and pretentious movie snob to where I can alter my expectations based on what I'm watching and enjoy anything. If a comic book movie can do a faithful job of bringing the source material to life, then I'll love. I won't expect it to be thought-provoking like I would Oscar bait just as long as it's fun, hence why Iron Man is high up in my favorites because Favereau did an excellent job of doing just that.

Indie, classic, foreign, blockbusters...whatever. Entertain me the way I expect to be entertained and I'll enjoy the movie. I hope that explanation made sense, I feel like I muddled things a bit.

[BTH]

To me Oscar bait is just a step above crappy action movies and comedies. Nothing makes me dislike a movie more than bullshit. You see bullshit in plenty of different forms but one example is when a character's sitting alone in a room and talks out loud in a really fake way just for the camera. That sort of bullshit that never happens in real life but always in movies. 90% of dialogue in modern movies is total crap - Gran Torino is the perfect example. I don't remember the exact quote but when the three black guys surround the Asian chick. "Oh, three more losers with a fetish for Asan girls, how stereo-typical!" Totally unrealistic reaction from a girl who seems like she's about to be raped.

Magnolia's called pretentious even more than There Will Be Blood is. I can't decide which I like more but they're both two of my absolute favourites. If the reason you want to see it is Julianne Moore than you're in luck because she's maybe the best part of the movie. She has a couple of awesome scenes that could be played by no one else but her. ("You REALLY need to shut the ###### up!") Tom Cruise, John C. Reilly and Aimee Mann's singing are also amazing. Oh - and Melora Walters who plays Don Cheadle's white girlfriend in Boogie Nights is great, I believe her character's named Claudia, I can't recall it in BN.

So I'm still waiting for some under-the-radar movie recommendations... After I watch Letters From Iwo Jima (probably happening in a few minutes) and then finish Anatomy of a Murder, I'll have nothing specific to watch.

[Quebecois]

Am I the only one who found Fight Club to be vastly overrated?

On another note, Memento was one of the most enjoyable movies i've seen in a long time. Nolan is great.

[jetsniper]

Billy Crudup has said he's already signed a contract to do a Watchmen sequel

:puke: :puke: :puke:

(Thankfully Zack Snyder turned it down and basically said it was insulting if it goes through)

[Doktor Kosmos]

OK - now a random question to everyone looking in the thread:

Name a movie or however many movies that you like but that other people here may not have seen or heard of. (I guess you could look at it as: name really underrated movies.) I'm running out of movies to watch, there are very few HUGE classics or anything that I still haven't seen so I need some hidden gems. Any genre. Any era. Go!

For Christian Bale fans: The Machinist

For Zhang Ziyi fans: The Road Home

For communists: Sacco e Vanzetti

For anyone who wants to see a brilliant non-Bergman Swedish movie: Den enfaldiga mördaren

For John Woo fans: The Killer

For Mads Mikkelsen fans: Efter brylluppet

For anyone who likes nature films: L'ours

For those who love old classics: M

For those who like historic films: The Last Emperor

[JoeLassister]

So I'm still waiting for some under-the-radar movie recommendations... After I watch Letters From Iwo Jima (probably happening in a few minutes) and then finish Anatomy of a Murder, I'll have nothing specific to watch.

Try to find John Woo - Hard Boiled ( a ballet of violence)

or

David Ceasar - Dirty Deeds (takes place in Australia, my all time favourite "B-Movie")

[Trizzak]

Also you can see Dr.Manhattan's weiner. It's never gratuitous or anything but apparently it's a big deal so people aren't going. It didn't bother me so I never gave it a second thought but just a warning. *shrug*

The precise moment where I gave up on trying to dislike it was

when Rorschach and Nite Owl are walking towards Ozymandias's place in the arctic at the end while Hendrix's "All Along The Watchtower" was playing.

That scene was just too cool.

The male nudity didn't bother me, the lack of female nudity bothered me. We get one good shot of #### and that's it. Other than that it was a few side profiles and a near rape scene. Not a good ratio.

And I hated the music. After the opening credits sequence, I felt every piece of music was awkward. An original score would have made the movie so much better to me.

[jetsniper]

Same ratio the book had.

Ride of the Valkyries had to be in there, it even gets a mention in the book. Pruit Igoe & Prophecies worked well for telling Manhattan's origin too. 99 Luft Balloons fit the story really well even if the actual song felt out of place, it actually took Watchmen for me to find out the song is about the Cold War.

Listening to Leonard Cohen during a sex scene felt really, really weird though. Anything else I didn't really care about.

The mega-praised intro with the Bob Dylan song is floating around on the internet although WB is doing a good job of hunting them down and removing them.

[KoZed]

Ride of the Valkyries had to be in there, it even gets a mention in the book.

I was disappointed I was apparently the only guy in the whole room that noticed that Apocalypse Now reference.

[BTH]

My IE shut down in middle of a long post. Anyway, here are my underrated recommendations:

Days of Heaven, by Terrence Malick

Possibly the most visually beautiful ever made. The movie isn't that exciting or great but it's a must-see just for the cinematography.

This is England, by Shane Meadows

My #2 movie of 2007. A movie about young skinheads in Britain with a very documentary feel. It's like American History X except less dramatic and Hollywood, and more real.

Death Note

This isn't a movie, it's an anime TV series of only one season, comprising of 37 20-minute episodes, all available on Youtube. My older sister tried to get me to watch this for like a year before I finally did. As far as crime stories go, this is THE best I've ever seen. Better than The Usual Suspects, The Maltese Falcon, The Thin Man, better than anything. A cat-and-mouse story with the smartest cat ever and the smartest mouse ever. You will never regret watching this, even if you don't usually like anime. Note: Watch it in Japanese, with subtitles. The English voice actors are annoying and can't compare with the Japanese.

This Man Must Die, by Claude Chabrol

I really like Chabrol and I don't think he gets enough credit. He's surely one of the best to come out of the French New Wave period, even if he only peaked in the late 60s, early 70s. This movie is my favourite of his. It's about a very smart man whose son gets run over. He goes on a hunt for the driver with the intention of murdering him. ("This man must die!") The style reminded me of Death Note, this is also a very fun crime movie.

Le Samourai, by Jean-Pierre Melville

Well we're on the topic of crime movies, this is one of the best ever. Alain Delon plays one of the coolest characters I've ever seen and - for Sameer - he's the best-looking guy I could name. Alain Delon is the reason gays exist. Anyway, awesome movie by Melville, the master of crime. It's well-known but maybe not as glorified as some other French films.

One, Two, Three, by Billy Wilder

Wilder's obviously a huge name in cinema but this movie's usually overlooked in his filmography. It's as quick-paced as comedies get. Just fun the whole way through. James Cagney's final movie.

And a whole bunch of dark/screwball comedies ranging in popularity:

Arsenic and Old Lace

Bringing Up Baby

The Shop Around the Corner

Ball of Fire

Twentieth Century

[jetsniper]

Iron Man 2 keeps looking more awesome every time news comes out (Mickey Rourke/Scarlett Johnasson are rumored to have signed on for sure today).

Sam Jackson with an actual role as Nick Fury?

Sam Rockwell and Mickey Rourke officially in as the villains?

awesome Don Cheadle replacing crappy Terrence Howard as Rhodey/War Machine?

Scarlett Johnasson in as Black Widow?

Yes please!

You add all those people to Robert Downey Jr. and Gywneth Paltrow....thats a really good cast. Although I'll admit I prefer the Emily Blunt casting to Scarlett, shame she had to drop out. Scarlett Johansson fills in another piece for The Avengers as well.

[Fanpuck33]

Scarlett Johansson's agent apparently screwed her over in the Marvel deal, which was one of the reasons they gave her the gig, haha. Fine with me, the more chances to see Scarlett the better!

[jetsniper]

Scarlett Johansson's agent apparently screwed her over in the Marvel deal, which was one of the reasons they gave her the gig, haha. Fine with me, the more chances to see Scarlett the better!

Yeah, the first offer to Rourke was peanuts, $250k for the movie so it looked like that wasn't going to happen. But because of all his Oscar buzz, they got desperate and upped it (by a lot I guess) but their first offer to Scarlett was apparently the same kind o f lowball offer to Rourke, just this time it included some of Marvel's other movies and they actually accepted it instead of rejecting, haha.