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

Guardians of Galaxy :D lol
9/10
1 point off because the antagonist is so poorly developed as a character. And 9 points because of the Racoon, Grut and the muscled guy. The Green Lady was kinda cliche, but nevertheless good. Oh, and I loved the bandit with the whistling arrow and the duck at the end. :)
 
Maleficent - 5/10 for me, and 7/10 from the gf.

I liked the different take on the Sleeping Beauty story, but it's still a stupid kids film so it didn't really do it for me. My gf found it entertaining though, and especially liked Angelina's costume and makeup.
 
Vicky directed by Royston Tan - 5/10
I just didn't really get it, I mean there are some nice shots and the film isn't really boring but I didn't really grasp anything. I may have to re-watch it to understand who or what is being dug up, but I'm not really compelled to. Tan has done better work.

Venice 70: Future Reloaded: Peter Ho-sun Chan directed by Peter Chan - 4/10
Still images of dead directors that inspired Peter Chan, obviously anyone that's not a fan of the notion of 'dead white guys' (well and some Japanese) won't like this short film. There's just nothing to it, and although I can see how Peter Chan thinks that the future of cinema is in looking to the past, Abbas Kiarostami and Jia Zhangke did the same exact message but found more creative ways to present this message.

03:37:13 directed by Royston Tan - 6/10
One shot of a man's face, somehow the voice over is just very expressive and does a good job at making this short film feel more personal. Perhaps its themes of heartbreak speak to me right now, but I think this is a pretty good short film even though it's nothing special.
 
Gargantuan directed by John Smith - 6/10
A charming short film that experiments with sound, but there isn't much to it.

The Girl Chewing Gum directed by John Smith - 8/10
Wow, this is a great short film that really makes me think about the nature of documentaries and the role that sound plays in cinema. Not to mention, this film is just extremely funny. It goes on for a bit too long in my opinion, but this is a very fascinating film!

Libera Me directed by Alain Cavalier - 8/10
This is a 'narrative' film that reaches the highest level of abstraction I have ever witnessed in that mode of cinema. I heard a story that Mikio Naruse wanted to do a film with just white curtains as the background but he never had the chance to make it, this is a film that pretty much accomplishes that and takes it a few steps further. The film has very little distinguishable character traits among the characters, a cyclical structure, very vague backgrounds, no dialogue, and every little background noise. This creates an emphasis on the pure actions of what is happening in the film, and it serves an important theme of oppression. The film is pretty much the perfect length, not too long to get tiring and not too short to be insufficient in its purpose. But for whatever reason, I think the film does get less engaging at points, perhaps it is because these parts don't have as recognizable motifs that make up the most interesting parts of the film (in my opinion). Still, this is a very interesting experiment in cinema and I'd like to give it a shot some other time.

Three... Extremes directed by Fruit Chan, Park Chan-wook, and Takashi Miike - 7/10
This is definitely one of the better anthology films I have seen with three good short horror films and a lot of variety. The first film is definitely the most extreme, to the point that Fruit Chan might have gone too far with his subject matter but there is something about it that makes it feel the most grounded in my opinion. The cinematography by Christopher Doyle is great of course but, it isn't quite as memorable as other films he has worked for. I look forward to watching the feature film version of this short. The second film is by Park Chan-wook, and it is definitely the most entertaining. It's a very absurd horror film with lots of twists and dark humor, it also has a sharp criticism on class differences. I enjoyed this one the most even though I think it may be the least 'interesting,' I just found it the most entertaining and the most well-made one. The last one is a very strange film that mixes dreams and reality in a way that makes it difficult to make out what's going on. I was disoriented by this film, but I think that was kinda the point, in any case, I want to watch it again to have a greater understanding of it.

Full Contact directed by Ringo Lam - 9/10
This is definitely one of the better 'heroic bloodshed' films, even though it isn't quite on the level of John Woo's best work or Lam's own City On Fire. The film has such a simple story, yet its execution is unlike any I have seen in any HK action film or any action film from anywhere. There is just a strange feeling I get from this film mostly using American rock music, Chow Yun-fat as a biker, Anthony Wong playing a very strange role, and having a stripper character have the hugest heart of them all. This is also one of the few of the great heroic bloodshed films to have a 'happy' ending, though it leaves two major disappointments for the characters. This film is also just weird in the way that it actually tries to comment on the 'homoerotic' aspect of the 'heroic bloodshed' genre by actually including an openly gay villain and showing fairly obvious homoerotic moments that one can tell aren't unintentional as they are in Woo's films. I also like how the film actually tries to elaborate on the romantic relationships, though it still isn't as great as I would have hoped for, it's leaps and bounds better than Woo and Lam's other attempts (the only film that really achieved the potential of the romantic element within the genre is Patrick Tam's My Heart Is That Eternal Rose)
 
DeadChannel said:
The original is worth giving a watch, imo it's a better film in quite a few ways.
Click to expand...

The remake surpassed it in virtually every way.
What a waste of time that was watching the original :(

Only small thing they did better was faking the prom vote, and showing a character with ptsd in the final scene.

Remake had better acting, better special effects, better development of characters, better relationships of those characters, better growth of her powers, better camerawork, better music, better everything.

what pray tell do you think was better in the original ?
 
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Hercules with Dwayne Johnson
3/5

Much better than the last hercules movie that came out with Kellan Lutz. God that one blew.

This was a decent popcorn flick, don't think too much and enjoy the action scenes.
 
Band of Outsiders 2/5

What's up with these crappy, boring french films listed as time magazine top 100 of all time.. Ugh. I really had to work to get through this snoozefest. And there was no payoff at the end.
 
I've seen a bunch of movies in the past week or so but my laptop broke so I couldn't write about any of them.

The Tale of the Princess Kaguya directed by Isao Takahata - 8/10
This is one of the few movies that post-viewing discussion really helped me appreciate more. When I first saw the film, I liked it for its style and its structure but I was pretty disappointed in it overall. After analyzing it with a friend, I realized that it is a work of genius that is flawed in the fact that it should have and could have been a much tighter film. What can I say though, the obviously great aspects are obviously great such as the film's distinctive animation style, the music, the entertaining scenes, but more importantly what's interesting here is a unique structure that gets stranger the more you think about it. The intricate working out of all of there relationships in this film is what made me realize its genius, but again the film is overly long and it doesn't grab me at every moment like Takahata's Only Yesterday did. So it's still a disappointment for me, but it's a great film that I'm going to watch again as well. And on a sidenote, this film made me realize that I hate the IFC Center! Such a tiny screen with a tiny space so the films always sell out. I got there ten minutes early but I was forced to sit at the very front row left corner with my friend, and there was a bunch of little kids talking during the movie (though it was pretty cool to hear them as they were Japanese kids watching a film that's clearly not intended for children). Oh and then this reminds me, I heard that the reason why Disney doesn't release Only Yesterday is because of a short bathhouse scene that shows a little girl's bare chest, but this film has so much more nudity that hopefully Disney has loosened up and will finally release that masterpiece in the near future.

La Jetée directed by Chris Marker - 10/10
I don't know what the hell I just watched, but I know that I loved it and that I wouldn't want this story told in any other way. This is my kind of sci-fi!

Cléo from 5 to 7 directed by Agnes Varda - 10/10
This was one of my favorites the first time I saw it, and I'm glad I got to see it again for a class. This is just a perfect film from beginning to end. I also realized that it's just the perfect film to introduce people to European 'Art' Cinema.

My Name Is Yu Ming directed by Daniel O'Hara - 6/10
I saw this film for a particular purpose, which was to include it in a non-film related essay I am currently writing and for that purpose it is absolutely perfect. However, the film itself is just way too obvious, improbable, and just too plain for me. It's pretty well-made and has an interesting concept, but it's well-made unimaginative filmmaking.

I Was Born, But... directed by Yasujiro Ozu - 10/10
I am so happy to say that I had the opportunity to watch two Ozu films on 35mm and this is one of them. This is considered to be Ozu's finest silent film and while I can't agree since I have to watch the rest first, I find this to be just as good as A Story Of Floating Weeds. This is probably the best coming of age film I have seen with incredible humor, the best acting from children I've ever seen, a brisk pace for Ozu's standards, beautiful tracking shots that are uncommon for Ozu, and biting social realism that adds poignancy to this little comedy. I saw this at a very purist movie theater so they didn't play it with the newly composed score that Criterion commissioned for it, but that's okay, I've kinda gotten used to watching Japanese silent films in complete silence and the best ones such as this one make me forget that there's no music!

There Was A Father directed by Yasujiro Ozu - 10/10
This is the other Ozu I got to watch on 35mm and it is equally brilliant yet completely different. This film is far more elliptical, far sadder, and far more formally rigorous. I'm like 99% sure that Ozu didn't even include one mobile shot in the film. This film also has Chishu Ryu at his finest. In Late Spring and Tokyo Story, he is impressive but he is pretty much part of a perfect ensemble in this film. As one of the two main characters of this film, his performance stands out even more here. I really related to the father-son relationship in this film, and I found it to be one of the saddest films I've ever seen. This was such a heavy film that I couldn't get off my mind for the rest of the day, and it still haunts me. As always with the best Ozu films, the ending feels so expressive yet it is composed of the least expressive material, just as the acting, the pacing, and the story.
 
Let The Bullets Fly directed by Jiang Wen - 7/10
So this was a good action comedy film, but apparently a lot of it is lost in translation. Its plot hinges on countless deceptions which makes it hard but enjoyable to follow and then most of the jokes are clever wordplay that I can't appreciate as I don't know Mandarin. But the film is still a lot of fun, it has great style (in fact the long dialogue sequence between Jiang Wen and Chow Yun-fat's character about halfway through the film is like a fast-paced version of Flowers of Shanghai with cuts). The film was also a bit too long, I think it could have been an amazing 90 minute film but it drags a bit with a length of over two hours. Still this has a great wacky plot, great style, and some hilarious moments. I look forward to watching the sequel which also stars the lovely Shu Qi.
 
Birdman -9/10 What a great movie!


The seem less look of birdman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxXWs74dKnE

Nightcrawler - 9/10 If the third act wast a little better it would of been a 10/10. Jake probably gave the best performance of the year.

Whiplash 9/10. Wow... I did not except this to be so amazing! Everyone should go see this

interstellar 8/10 Please go see it in imax before it leaves theaters.

Gone girl 7/ 10 I hated ben affleck's performance so much..

A MOST WANTED MAN 8/10
 
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belle_de_jour_1967.jpg


Belle de Jour 1967 -- 10/10 I seriously loved this movie so much that i am going to buy this poster
 
I've seen a lot of stuff, I think I'm mostly just gonna rate and that's it.

Bamako directed by Abderrahmane Sissako - 7/10
Good but ultimately a disappointing film for me, it could have been so much better.

Crossroads directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa - 10/10
Saw this on a 35mm print with shamisen and percussion accompaniment, it was one of the best cinematic experiences I've had in my life (it doesn't hurt that the film is also a masterpiece in itself).

Doodlebug directed by Christopher Nolan - 3/10
Not really much to say, there isn't much here to appreciate for me, at least it's short enough but then it's not memorable so I can't even give it an average rating.

Don't Go Breaking My Heart 2 directed by Johnnie To - 9/10
One of the biggest surprises for me. This is an unnecessary sequel to a film that I thought wasn't really great to begin with, but somehow Johnnie To made it possibly the best contemporary romantic comedy I've seen. I'm so glad I saw it on the big screen too!

Stories We Tell directed by Sarah Polley - 9/10
What a great documentary! It's both emotional and thought-provoking. My only complaint is that it had like 10 false endings, it could have been a bit shorter and less irritating without them.

Men of Crisis: The Harvey Wallinger Story directed by Woody Allen - 7/10
Rare Woody Allen short film that can be appreciated by fans of his early work. Some jokes are really funny, but the film isn't really great. I'm glad he let this one be a short because the concept wouldn't work for a feature.
 
I've been watching lots of documentaries, but I don't have much to write just cause I'm tired.

...No Lies directed by Mitchell Block
Good pseudo-'cinema verite' film that does a great job at criticizing the very notion of 'truth' in documentary filmmaking.

Island of Flowers directed by Jorge Furtado - 10/10
Probably the funniest documentary I have seen, this is just such a perfect charming quirky little film that everyone must watch!

Metal And Melancholy directed by Heddy Honigmann - 8/10
Great documentary about Peruvian cab drivers, but it shows realities that can be seen in any third world country. Very great unintrusive filmmaking, this is the filmmaker as listener which is interesting since I have never watched a film so committed to this approach from beginning to end.

Titicut Follies directed by Frederick Wiseman - 10/10
Simply the best documentary film, and one of the best films I have ever seen. It's funny, it's entertaining, it's depressing, it's socially conscious, it's 'realistic' yet so constructed, and it's simply gorgeous to look at and feel the rhythm of the episodes Wiseman shows us. I'm so glad that at my university this was a free screening where Wiseman came in for a Q&A, which was by far the best Q&A session I have been a part of. I can't wait to watch more Wiseman films!

Kidnapped For Christ directed by Kate Logan - 5/10
This film originally got my interest since it is about a school in the small town of Jarabacoa, Dominican Republic where I lived in for the past five years. Unfortunately, Logan's documentary doesn't show enough and isn't very strong as a narrative or as a presentation of 'truth.' The filmmaker shouldn't be excused because she was restricted from capturing some of the images, she could have illustrated them somehow and yet she chose to just proceed without really showing us anything. Yes the message of the film is good, and in a way I feel like this film is more instrumental than a good entertaining and enlightening film, but I think Logan will find that the most effective instrumental films are those that also have great artistic merit. This was such a great underdiscussed topic to make a film about, and it was done in such a unique location, she could have done a lot with the film but ultimately I think she could have done a much better job with the film.
 
Pan's Labyrinth 4/5

Strangely no english dub option, couldn't get my GF to watch it. She missed out! I really liked this one. Editing is great, camera is almost constantly moving but it's always very subtly.
 
HHH: A Portrait of Hou Hsiao-Hsien directed by Olivier Assayas - 8/10
Good documentary about a master filmmaker. It's really cool to see Hou just sing karaoke and be an ordinary guy, he's one of the most down to earth 'arthouse' directors I've seen.

La Cortina Del Palacio directed by Carlos Manuel Plasencia - 5/10
One of the few watchable Dominican films, but that isn't saying much. It's mostly just a standard romance film but it happens to have good culturally specific dialogue style. I wish the filmmaker would have made this more of a romantic comedy than a pure romance films.

Project A directed by Jackie Chan - 9/10
One of the funnest movies ever! Jackie does some incredible stuntwork here (the bike scene is one of my favorite scenes ever!) and the film is just really funny and the action is great. My only problem with the film is that it's a bit too plotty for HK cinema, I wish it was a bit more episodic but I don't even really care, this movie is just awesome!

Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads directed by Spike Lee - 5/10
I really really wanted to see this movie since it's Spike Lee's thesis film and it's super hard to find but it just wasn't that good. The overall filmmaking is good especially for a film student, the story is alright, and I mean I wasn't straight up bored while watching the film but it just felt drawn out even at its short 60 minute length. Diehard Spike Lee fans will want to see this, but I doubt anyone will be impressed with this film as anything other than a job well done from a then-student filmmaker.
 
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