198 replies to this topic

[Noel Luperon]

Yeah, Falling Down was a phenomenal movie (I should watch that with the missus someday), and the closest I can think of to God Bless America, without the black comedy tone.

Watching the trailer again, GBA is getting the shit watched out of it. I'm waiting for the inevitable GTA V cross promotion.

[Christian U]

I think that's one of the reasons I liked A Serious Man so much. It's pretty much the most pessimistic film imaginable.

I've got to keep an eye out for Take Shelter, I'd nearly forgotten about it...

[Robert B]

That God Bless America movie basically just looks like an angry stand-up comedy routine, with each punchline being followed by a gun shot.

[steveuk]

That God Bless America movie basically just looks like an angry stand-up comedy routine, with each punchline being followed by a gun shot.

...for 90 minutes.

As I said, make a skit and move on. It's not like their aren't a multitude of targets for people's anger in today's pop culture but a 90 minute rant against them I do not need.

But as Christian says, maybe it's not that? Maybe it has more going on?

[Robert B]

As I said, make a skit and move on. It's not like their aren't a multitude of targets for people's anger in today's pop culture but a 90 minute rant against them I do not need.

And those look like the easiest of targets, too.

[steveuk]

And those look like the easiest of targets, too.

Yup.

[Paul F]

There's a review of God Bless America from a few months ago here: http://www.hitfix.co...d-bless-america

[Steve Sensible]

Cheers Paul. That makes me want to see it all the more.

[Johnny Henning]

And those look like the easiest of targets, too.

Yeah, because honestly, there is a very fine or possible entirely virtual line between that and bombing an abortion clinic. Nevertheless, I doubt this is going to be the comedic version of Uwe Boll. Talk about a movie that was 90 minutes of stomping one idea into the ground - RAMPAGE!

Still, wasn't there a Batman story where he had to track down a killer who shot you in the head if you were impolite? I seem to recall when he caught the guy, the perpetrator said something along the lines of "yes, I know my actions were rather extreme, but haven't you noticed how much nicer people are to each other?"

[steveuk]

Yeah, because honestly, there is a very fine or possible entirely virtual line between that and bombing an abortion clinic. Nevertheless, I doubt this is going to be the comedic version of Uwe Boll. Talk about a movie that was 90 minutes of stomping one idea into the ground - RAMPAGE!

<SNIP>

I'm not entirely clear where you're going with the "bombing an abortion clinic" reference(???), but I will agree with the hope that film isn't as bad as anything Boll has made.

In other news, Liam Neeson kicks ass whenever he kicks ass!

With a clear premise and a popular actor operating within his wheelhouse, The Grey delivered upstart distributor Open Road Films their first number one debut this weekend.

<SNIP>

The Grey devoured an estimated $20 million this weekend. Among star Liam Neeson's recent action movies, The Grey opened lower than Taken's $24.7 million and also a tad below Unknown ($21.9 million). Those were both PG-13, featured robust marketing from their big-time distributors, and were essentially cousins of the Bourne series. For The Grey to even come close to those movies speaks both to Mr. Neeson's drawing power and the importance of having an interesting, easily conveyable story (in this case, it was "Liam Neeson fights wolves!"). According to distributor Open Road, the audience was 54 percent male, and there is no CinemaScore data available.

http://boxofficemojo...?id=3357&p=.htm

[Steve Sensible]

Re: the Ferris Bueller clip - it's even sadder than I thought.

[Johnny Henning]

I'm not entirely clear where you're going with the "bombing an abortion clinic" reference(???), but I will agree with the hope that film isn't as bad as anything Boll has made.

It's the same argument I've made for the parity between superheroes and vigilantes.

Q. - What was the first superhero blockbuster?

A.


A group of men put on masks and costumes to fight corruption and tyranny. Sounds like a superhero to me - and I believe this was the first film ever screened at the White House (for Woodrow Wilson).

Superman, Batman, all the superheroes basically express (in hopefully healthy ways) the frustration people have with the basic meanness and corruption of the world around them, but you have recognize that those were also the same emotional impulses that when acted upon lead to some really extreme behavior and movements.

In entertainment, hopefully, it provides a little relief on that emotional pressure valve, but at the same time, the "real superhero" movement actually started after BATMAN BEGINS, not KICK-ASS, and certainly, the powerful expansion of the KKK in the South prior to desegregation came after it was glorified in Griffith's film - which also became a recruiting tool for the Klan. Certainly, German cinema was a powerful and intentional propaganda tool for the National Socialist party in WW2.

But my central point is that, sure, it's funny when Joel Murray shoots an unrepentant jerk who takes up two spaces when he parks because that is offensive to everyone -but, as pointed out above, that guy's an "easy target." But looking at the moral underpinnings, it's the same mentality as a guy who uses violence for whatever personal moral justification - like bombing abortion clinics.

So, here's the thing I think about. The trailer is funny to me because I have to admit sometimes I would like to just blow away these people who annoy me. It's fantasy. At the same time, I know there are people who would occasionally just like to blow away gays, abortion doctors, illegal immigrants, etc. - and that brief impulse to do so is just as fantastic as my own - but if someone made a movie about it, I doubt many people would laugh at that trailer.

By the way, does anyone know if Sean Murray of NCIS and Joel Murray are related, because Sean reminds me a lot of a young Joel (on the other hand, so does Colin Hanks):



I believe Joel Murray is Bill Murray's brother, right?

[Johnny Henning]

Back on the RIDLEY SCOTT PROMETHEUS thread, we discussed how the original script that eventually became ALIEN started out set on a B-17 bomber in World War 2. I mentioned you could probably tell the same story on a modern day airliner flying ten hours across an ocean. Well, looks like someone had the same idea:


Another interesting thing, on the same thread, we mentioned you could see GHOSTBUSTERS as inspired by Lovecraft. Now, Dan Akyroyd who co-wrote and co-starred, has a PhD in literature so it is likely he's very familiar with Lovecraft, but at the same time, it turns out his family has been involved with ghosthunting for a long time. Here is a link to his dad's book based on the experiences of his grandfather, a spiritualist who held seances and sought to invent devices to communicate with the spirits:http://www.ghosttheo...nd-ghostbusters

The book itself was a pleasant and easy read. Taking me about a week and a half (I’m a busy guy) to finish. Most interesting is the fact that the Aykroyd family has had a long history with the paranormal. Most of you are aware that actor Dan Aykroyd wrote and starred in the Movie Ghostbusters; but many might not know that his fascination came from his father’s tales of how his great-grandfather was directly involved in the Spiritual renaissance of the late 19th century. I myself knew that Dan Aykroyd was interested in the paranormal and UFOs, but I was not aware of his families deep history. With the ease of reading, the book is perfect to use as a reference tool.

[Rory Abel]

I believe Joel Murray is Bill Murray's brother, right?

Yes he is.

[Barry Matthew Ween]

So we know Battleship is coming soon, I've seen the trailers. Looks possibly okay, but I'm going to keep my expectations low.

I remember reading about a Monopoly movie going forward.

And now after years of development hell, I just read that Adam Sandler and Columbia Pictures are going ahead with another Hasbro product...wait for it...Candyland...yipeeeeeeee

I'm guessing this gives hope to a Chutes and Ladders movie sometime in the future...

[Steve Sensible]

Battleship looks f***ing dire if you ask me.

Ridley Scott was apparently developing the Monopoly movie at some point. Thank God he chose Prometheus instead.

[garjones]

UK cinema box office takings passed the £1bn mark for the first time last year, according to the British Film Institute (BFI).
Figures show earnings increased by 5% to £1.04bn, helped by the success of films including The King's Speech and The Inbetweeners.
The highest grossing movie of the year was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 taking £73m.
Total admissions were also up 1.4% from 2010 with 171.6m tickets sold.
The figures also show that independent British film recorded its best year in terms of market share with 13.5%.
Market share for all British films at the UK box office, including independents and those shot in the UK but financed from abroad, reached 36.2%, up from 24.0% in 2010.

So 2011 seemed to do pretty well in the UK.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-16810021

[Barry Matthew Ween]

Battleship looks f***ing dire if you ask me.

Ridley Scott was apparently developing the Monopoly movie at some point. Thank God he chose Prometheus instead.

I know, it's just that the sarcasm in my post doesn't really come across very well....

[Otso]

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - Blu-ray Review

It’s funny but the Blu-ray became available for purchase on Play.com faster than its hitting theaters in my home country hah. So instead of seeing this in a cinema experience it came down to watching this on my room and watching all the special features & commentary.


The movie is based off the 1974 novel of the same name by John Le Carré. Set in London 1973-1974 the story flows of the British Intelligence known as the Circus (MI6), as a Soviet Union mole is suspected among their amidst.


The movie is a very slow and silent espionage spy thriller. It’s pretty much a battle of wits and human emotion between 7 people and it’s filled with paranoia. Is there a mole? Who is the mole? How long has he or she been working? Who can you truly trust?


The protagonist of the movie is George Smiley played by Gary Oldman. He’s old, experienced, calm, thoughtful and the ultimately planner here, but quite frankly also the ultimate paranoid more or less in the story. The whole movie is played by a variety of talent with Benedict Cumberbatch playing Peter Guillman. Colin Firth as Bill Haydon, Tom Hardy as Ricki Tarr, David Dencik as Toby Esterhase, Toby Jones as Percy Alleline. You also have Mark Strong & John Hurt playing minor supporting characters. Incredibly well casted assembly with Tomas Alfredson as the director.
I won’t speak more of the plot as that would go more into detail, but the basic premise is that this is 1974 British intelligence trying to figure out who truly could be the Soviet Union mole and what is the big game picture here. It’s a silent, slow burned movie that deals with Agents having to go to against each other despite having been loyal partners for around 2 decades and more. It’s very subtle and emotional. I’d like to add that the setting is incredible well done, from clothing, atmosphere, to the hardware people used back then to their mannerism. The production value was incredibly detailed to say the very least. Cinematography was a bit overdone however, like I mentioned the movie is slow, I do feel it had some rather pointless scenes that truly didn’t add anything to the movie.


Blu-ray Extras:


The Blu-ray is filled with extras. However a lot of it is simple interviews of the writer, director and actors giving their insight on the movie, the book it’s adapting, how familiar we’re they with the Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy and so forth. There are some good thoughts shared there, but at the end of the day this isn’t anything new and comes off as a rather norm feature in dvd/blu-ray.


Deleted scenes are also included and I’m thankful they’re deleted, because they add nothing to the overall story and movie already has scenes that show the exact same portrayal of these characters, so yeah good thing these didn’t drag the movie along, even though it’s just 5 minutes of deleted scenes.


There are also audio book samples, which I think is rather nice as each chapter is like one hour long, but at the end of the day who wants to leave their television open and listen to someone talk for an hour? The point of a television is to see moving picture. I guess they couldn’t get any episodes of the old television series for copyright reasons or other reasoning, but I would have found that more suitable then this.


I think the coolest special feature was a 30 minute interview with John Le Carré who wrote the novel, getting his insight and how his real life inspired the novel and he gets really deep into how his life effected this book, really getting down to the mannerism of the MI6 agents of the 70s. He even talks about how he felt Smiley was a character he felt was the father he never had and his own social awkwardness. Really its incredible how much he talks about his own life and even how World War 2 effected and molded him as a person. It’s too much to simply summarize.
Now for the biggest treat (for me at least) is re-watching this movie with the commentary of Gary Oldman & Tomas Alfredson! I’m a big fan of commentaries so there is obvious bias here, but re-watching the movie, knowing how the story unfolds but with the added emotional drama between the agents at each other’s throats with Tomas and Gary giving insight, debating, pondering and joking about the context just makes it much more fun to watch. They talk about how they adapted the scenes, what we’re cut, point out important little details that my eye didn’t notice the 1st time I viewed and so forth. Very pleasant to watch and listen.


Conclusion:


Pretty decent movie, I’d say what makes it unique amongst other spy thrillers is the slow, silent, paranoid filled run it had, with decent extras and a digital copy + DvD included, I felt the it was a well worth purchase. Recommending this movie for fans of: spy genres, cold wars. and the actor Gary Oldman.

[Steve Sensible]

GI Joe: Retaliation Superbowl spot