movies What's the last film you watched? And rate it!

A Story Of Floating Weeds directed by Yasujiro Ozu - 10/10
Wow, this film reveals Ozu as a master of cinema even before the introduction of sound! I love how this film already has his mature style and tells a wonderful story as well. There is just such a large cast of great characters, I think there's like five great major characters and the rest of the cast is great as well. I was surprised by how emotionally involved I got in this movie since the version I saw had no soundtrack at all! This was just pure cinema, moving images with intertitles and it moved me. This is such a sad film though, it may suggest some hope in the end but even that hope is not certain and it's not a happy ending. I think this film is a masterpiece! I look forward to watching more silent films especially those from Japan.
 
Could somebody please tell me how/why KILLING THEM SOFTLY got made????

I cannot grasp how this screenplay ended up getting the green light and stamp of approval. Kept waiting for the third act to redeem the time invested in watching... then the credits rolled... FADE OUT to utter flabbergastdom.

Yes, I am aware that Pitt and his Plan B were involved, so there's that, but come on. WEAK STORY with NO twists, turns, or reversals to make the glacially slow pace interesting.

Think they needed a Plan C, D and E... and maybe an X, Y, Z.

Pitt! Gandolfini! Liotta! Let the magic begin! Zzzzzzz.... pppfftttt...

On a happier note, I'm LOVING "Bates Motel" :yes:
 
On Your Mark directed by Hayao Miyazaki - 9/10
This is the first time I rate/review a music video in the same way I'd review a short film. I love music videos, and I think that many times they are better at experimenting than formal experimental films but I refuse to review them as cinema because the medium has different aims. In this case though, Miyazaki intentionally misinterpreted the song's lyrics and created his own short film with the song basically as background music.

I love how this film tells a simple non-linear story, it reminded me of starting over in video games or the structure used in the film Run Lola Run. I love how the film's story unfolds, it's very much like the filmmaker knows a secret and he slowly reveals it to us. The animation is very awesome, and I quite like the song. The way the film is constructed actually reminds me of some of D.W. Griffith's early films, where the visuals and editing have to fit the overall formal structure just as strictly as the narrative has to fit a structure. Any fan of Studio Ghibli should check this music video out. In some ways I wish that this were a longer short film, maybe one from 45 to 60 minutes to tell a whole story, but as it is it's a pretty awesome music video/short film.
 
Flicker Pictures said:
Could somebody please tell me how/why KILLING THEM SOFTLY got made????
Click to expand...
I found only mild merit in this movie but found it so beautiful to look at I checked to see what else the director had shot.

'The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford' is only a little more interesting but looks even more gorgeous.
Definitely one to use as reference material for shot composition. :yes:
 
The Killer directed by John Woo - 10/10
Another action melodrama masterpiece by John Woo! There are so many things I love about John Woo's Hong Kong films, to me they are like modern day parables using the criminal world to express themes of loyalty, trust, honor, and even a bit of spirituality. The Killer is my favorite of his films so far! Like Woo's other masterpieces, I love how it gives me characters I care about and not just random brutal killing machines. There's a love story here, there's a friendship between a cop and an assassin, and a friendship between two assassins. I love how the film shows the similarity between justice in the world of cops and justice in the world of criminals, I really feel as though there are values within every kind of world or culture, and this film expresses this perfectly. At first, I wished that Chow Yun Fat had more humorous scenes in this film like he did in A Better Tomorrow but I changed my mind by the end, this film has a much different tone from that film and I'm glad Woo made both of them. This film is awesome for many more reasons than the ones that I've mentioned, and it reminded me once again why I believe that no one looks cooler with a gun than Chow Yun Fat. Anyone into the action genre should check out John Woo's Hong Kong films, they have great action and emotional depth. I've seen all of his classic heroic bloodshed Hong Kong films except Hard Boiled and Just Heroes (not sure if that one counts though), but I will watch them as soon as possible!

After seeing both A Story Of Floating Weeds and The Killer in one day, I just feel like crying so much lol, both of them are very heartbreaking!
 
Blue is the Warmest Color. Pretty interesting, even a little moving at times. I don't know. Maybe a B+, the + for being French, daring to have real sex (though I understand that's not daring for European filmmakers ;) ), adding to the genre, and not being just another cookie-cutter Hollywood film. Though I'll admit that at times it does seem like it does follow the usual trope, only sloppily so. But we'll call that "sloppiness" art house, or indie. =)

Hunger. Nicely shot, as I'm getting to learn you can expect from Steve McQueen films. Good. B, I guess.

Inequality for All. Very good. A-, I suppose. The "-" being for his failure to mention the credit card economy that arose in the '70s as one of his three (four) thingies. I think it ought to be mentioned apart from those who owned homes and cashed in the equity they had built in them. Well, I guess he did mention that people did that to pay off credit cards. But I highly recommend the documentary Maxed Out as a compliment to this, too.
 
ChimpPhobiaFilms said:
The Killer is Woo's best film, IMO.
Click to expand...

Yup, so far it's my favorite. I just have two more of his heroic bloodshed films, then I'm going to watch his classic martial arts ones and then I'll watch Red Cliff. I'm interested in what he'll come up with now that he's back in Hong Kong.

Have you seen Bullet In The Head? That's his most personal film and it's very underrated, I'd say that with his best films you just have to choose which one you personally prefer because I think they're all masterpieces.
 
MiniJamesW said:
Have you seen Bullet In The Head? That's his most personal film and it's very underrated, I'd say that with his best films you just have to choose which one you personally prefer because I think they're all masterpieces.
Click to expand...

Yup. Although at first I thought you were talking about that Sylvester Stallone movie.

Thank God :lol:
 
Je T'Aime, Je T'Aime - The Inspiration for eternal sunshine of the spotless mind. Really crazy editing and a pretty damn good film overall. I recommend it if your a big fan for eternal sunshine
 
2001, A Space Odyssey (10/10) fan here.

Had high hopes for Gravity to be in the same ballpark. Watched it last night. Nope, not even on the same planet (04/10).

Few comments:

Enjoying the film required a HUGE suspension of disbelief and ignorance of the laws of physics -- something not required of 2001.

Your space station destroyed so you just mosey on over to the next one with a jetpack. Can't happen. BS. BS. BS.

Other station's destroyed, too, so let's take a pod for a quick spin over to the next one? Can't Happen. BS. BS. BS.

Most communication satellites travelling in the same orbit as space stations? Not even close! BS. BS. BS.

George Clooney at the end of taunt line with "gravity" pulling him toward Earth? BS! With a taunt line, Bullock could have easily reeled Clooney back, even a quick tug would do it. BULL SHIT!

Open the pod bay door Hal, there's no Gravity worth seeing out here.
 
Last edited:
Run Ronnie Run 3/5
"hang on thayre baby, don't flip ur bitch switch" best line of the film :lol:

Tell No One 2/5
Great chase sequence.. this was a well made movie and not terribly boring. but I don't think I enjoyed the 'type' of film. wasn't my kind of thriller and not terribly thrilling imo

Killer Joe 3/5
This was a great movie.. nearly 4/5 for me. Although very bizarre, it made me laugh. Tons of nudity, opens with a close up shot of a woman's bush. chicken leg fellatio scene was incredibly uncomfortable. And then Matthew McConaughey has sex with a girl who says she is twelve. One of the worst endings I've ever seen in a film. Terribly unsatisfying. Screw you friedken
 
Last edited:
Monster's, Inc. directed by Pete Docter, Lee Unkrich, and David Silverman - 9/10
This is one of the few times where I love a film a lot more now than when I was a child. When I was young, this movie didn't really 'click' with me, I liked it but I found it to be much inferior to the Toy Story series, Finding Nemo, and pretty much any Pixar film and many Dreamworks films. Now, I don't think it's quite on the the level of genius of Toy Story but I find it to be a very great children's animated film. It has wonderful pacing, a good story based on a unique concept, great characters, and awesome animation. My only complaint about the film is that I wish it had less traditional antagonistic characters, I would prefer a more abstract antagonist or at least an antagonist character that had more complexities. I do realize it's a children's film though and not some kind of art film, so I should give it a pass. But I don't know, I feel like the antagonists could be more memorable like in some of Pixar's other films. Still this is an awesome movie that I overlooked as a child. I look forward to continuing my journey through Pixar's films! I really love the world in this film so I look forward to watching the sequel, hopefully they did a good job with that!
 
300: Rise of an Empire. Lots of spectacle. Some nice eye candy. But overall, meh. Decidedly not as good as the first. But still, fairly decent for its target audience --like me. I can see why some have suggested Eva Green be cast as Contessa Lacquer-Sforza. Way back when, I wasn't exactly feeling that. Back then, I thought Angelina Jolie was the obvious choice. But since then, I've pretty much become Bradgelinaed out. Nothing personal, Bradgelina. (Though, by now, I'm probably ready for more of them.) But, especially having seen her (Green) in this role, yes, I think that she'd be a good choice for the Contessa. Then, I only wish they'd get it together and get it made before she's too old for the role (to be a little indelicate. Though I certainly don't wish to be. Just sayin').

Saw/heard it in ATMOS. It was cool. I probably wasn't in the best spot (not the sweet spot) for really benefitting from it. And not sure this film really utilized it to its fullest...probably due to it subject matter. But it certainly was a very "big" sound. Goodness. And I really liked the score. Very rousing.

C+, maybe. I'm thinking a hell of a lot of work went into the VFX for this thing. That's why I'm reluctant to give it anything lower. And there were some other things that I appreciated.

Tangled. Second time I've seen it. I saw it in the theater first (2D). The Blu-ray is gorgeous. Maybe Disney's best film ever. Certainly right up there with the best. A+.
 
Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero directed by Boyd Kirkland - 8/10
A fine little film with great (if conventional) storytelling. I was just glued to the screen from beginning to end. I love how this film has a complex antagonist that isn't just some evil-doer. I love the animation style of the film as well. My only complain is that the story of the film becomes a little too ideal, I mean literally I felt like they solved all of the conflicts in the best way possible but it's not too plausible. Still, this was an entertaining light film to watch. I didn't know it was part of a loose trilogy, so I guess I'll pick up the film's prequel and then it's sequel!
 
Omelette directed by Madeline Sharafian - 7/10
A nice little animated short film that put a smile on my face. I love the film even more for the awesome song used, it introduced me to a musical artist I never heard of! I like the animation style and the simple story of the film. I need to make something as cute as this lol. Link to the film below:

http://vimeo.com/65107797
 
A Separation 3/5
Academy's best foreign film from a few years ago. Really well made, my ex would have appreciated the subject matter deeply. This was also the first iranian film I've ever seen, it was an interesting look inside of their culture!

Rules of Engagement 3/5
Thank god friedkin didn't end this one like Killer Joe. :lol:
Mostly a courtroom drama, I was expecting samuel jackson to yell 'yes they deserved to die and I hope they burn in hell!' and he did explode on the stand in a similar way hahah. Nice work, and a decent fist fight scene between him and tommy lee jones.
 
sfoster said:
A Separation 3/5
Academy's best foreign film from a few years ago. Really well made, my ex would have appreciated the subject matter deeply. This was also the first iranian film I've ever seen, it was an interesting look inside of their culture!
Click to expand...

Check out the works of Abbas Kiarostami and Jafar Panahi if you want to see more Iranian films, those two guys are masters IMO! I want to explore some more Middle Eastern films in general actually.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top