movies What's the last film you watched? And rate it!
- Thread starter GerryLovesU
- Start date
After camping for three days I've been in the mood for watching many films, mostly shorts.
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari directed by Robert Wiene - 9/10
This is a great silent horror film. The expressionistic sets and lighting really sets this film apart from other horror films. The twist at the end was incredible as well. Anyone into classic horrror films should watch this film. I want to re-watch this film on a better transfer (I watched a version from archive.org).
Diary Of A Pregnant Woman directed by Agnes Varda - 10/10
This short film is now one of my favorites. It has a unique avant-garde technique documenting the life of a pregnant woman. It's hard to describe the film but I love the compositions, the music, and just the unique way of telling the story. I'll have to re-watch this film.
Les fiancés du pont Mac Donald ou (Méfiez-vous des lunettes noires) directed by Agnes Varda - 10/10
A simpler but equally perfect short film by Agnes Varda. The film pays tribute to Harold Lloyd and Buster Keaton with a quirky comedic love story. I loved seeing the energy of Jean-Luc Godard and Anna Karina in this film. This was a very fun watch and I know I'll come back to it. This is probably the cutest short film I've ever seen.
L'arrivée directed by Peter Tscherkassky - 5.5/10
Eh, I didn't really like this film. All it did was take some found footage from another film and distorted it a bit to pay tribute to the Lumiere Brothers' train film. The film almost completely turned me off from Tscherkassky's work, fortunately I gave the next two films in his trilogy a chance.
Outer Space directed by Peter Tscherkassky - 9.5/10
Now this is a great short film that makes great use of overlapping images and distortion to enhance a scene. The soundtrack adds a lot of energy to the film. What's cool about this film is that it seems like the protagonist is being attacked by the editing process of film and not by some monster or evil being. There's a lot of distortion in this film so that may annoy some viewers and even give them a headache but it hypnotized me.
Dream Work directed by Peter Tscherkassky - 9/10
In the vein of Outer Space, Tscherkassky pays tribute to Man Ray's films here. I like this film a lot too but I like it a little less than Outer Space because its directly about dreams. The overlapping images and distortion are great as usual and Tscherkassky uses some clever tricks in the film to point out that it is just a film and not a real dream/nightmare.
Dracula directed by Tod Browning - 9.5/10
This was a re-watch of one of my favorite classic horror films. Watching the film this time I noticed some clever editing tricks that were cool to look out for. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the film, and I liked just how silent it was. I feel some of the scenes were not as strong as the early scenes but I still loved most of the film, especially when Van Helsing begins to find out that Dracula is a vampire. Again, any horror film fan should watch this film.
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari directed by Robert Wiene - 9/10
This is a great silent horror film. The expressionistic sets and lighting really sets this film apart from other horror films. The twist at the end was incredible as well. Anyone into classic horrror films should watch this film. I want to re-watch this film on a better transfer (I watched a version from archive.org).
Diary Of A Pregnant Woman directed by Agnes Varda - 10/10
This short film is now one of my favorites. It has a unique avant-garde technique documenting the life of a pregnant woman. It's hard to describe the film but I love the compositions, the music, and just the unique way of telling the story. I'll have to re-watch this film.
Les fiancés du pont Mac Donald ou (Méfiez-vous des lunettes noires) directed by Agnes Varda - 10/10
A simpler but equally perfect short film by Agnes Varda. The film pays tribute to Harold Lloyd and Buster Keaton with a quirky comedic love story. I loved seeing the energy of Jean-Luc Godard and Anna Karina in this film. This was a very fun watch and I know I'll come back to it. This is probably the cutest short film I've ever seen.
L'arrivée directed by Peter Tscherkassky - 5.5/10
Eh, I didn't really like this film. All it did was take some found footage from another film and distorted it a bit to pay tribute to the Lumiere Brothers' train film. The film almost completely turned me off from Tscherkassky's work, fortunately I gave the next two films in his trilogy a chance.
Outer Space directed by Peter Tscherkassky - 9.5/10
Now this is a great short film that makes great use of overlapping images and distortion to enhance a scene. The soundtrack adds a lot of energy to the film. What's cool about this film is that it seems like the protagonist is being attacked by the editing process of film and not by some monster or evil being. There's a lot of distortion in this film so that may annoy some viewers and even give them a headache but it hypnotized me.
Dream Work directed by Peter Tscherkassky - 9/10
In the vein of Outer Space, Tscherkassky pays tribute to Man Ray's films here. I like this film a lot too but I like it a little less than Outer Space because its directly about dreams. The overlapping images and distortion are great as usual and Tscherkassky uses some clever tricks in the film to point out that it is just a film and not a real dream/nightmare.
Dracula directed by Tod Browning - 9.5/10
This was a re-watch of one of my favorite classic horror films. Watching the film this time I noticed some clever editing tricks that were cool to look out for. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the film, and I liked just how silent it was. I feel some of the scenes were not as strong as the early scenes but I still loved most of the film, especially when Van Helsing begins to find out that Dracula is a vampire. Again, any horror film fan should watch this film.
Last edited:
Gravity 10/10
Wow. Just... wow.
Wow. Just... wow.
Shooter. 8.5/10.
Really actually enjoyed this one, visually very nice
Really actually enjoyed this one, visually very nice
I tried watching The Tower but it wasn't what i was expecting. Stopped after the first hour, maybe if it wasn't dubbed I would have enjoyed it more but the voice acting was terrible. Apparently I didn't read the description either, I went in expecting an kung fu action movie lol. idk why.
The Hustler with paul newman. 3/5
Very solid movie. quite enjoyable but I didn't quite understand the leading lady or her motives. I think that might have lessened the impact of the ending for me
The Hustler with paul newman. 3/5
Very solid movie. quite enjoyable but I didn't quite understand the leading lady or her motives. I think that might have lessened the impact of the ending for me
Captain Philips. Pretty good. I don't think it quite lived up to the hype for me. But I think I still have to give it a thumbs up. Can't go wrong with Tom Hanks, after all.
The Kids Are All Right. B+. Quite good. Someone asked us to name one actor you'd like to work with. You could choose so many, many, of course. I said someone else. But at this time I'd probably say Mark Ruffalo. Not like he didn't cross my mind then. He's a great one. He's great in this. But everyone's great in this. Doesn't have a tidy ending. But life is often untidy. Which doesn't necessarily mean that our stories should be untidy. Anyway.
Eyes Wide Open. Fairly good. B. It offered me a look into Orthodox Jewish life in Israel that I don't think I've ever had, if nothing else. Modesty Patrol. Yikes. But no, it's a well made, thoughtful film.
Revolution TV Series. I was liking it. A number of times I thought to myself, this is fairly good, but not great...I can stop watching at any time, I guess. But I didn't stop. And I got fairly into it. I was enjoying it. But then they dropped the ball. I'm not sure which episode. They tried to give a character some backstory, but I thought that an action they had him take was pretty lame, unbelievable. But, I thought, I'll hang in there and give them a chance to fix it, perhaps. I enjoyed the show up until Episode 20 when they dropped an even bigger ball. So I stopped. Shame. Now I have to find another show to get into.
The Kids Are All Right. B+. Quite good. Someone asked us to name one actor you'd like to work with. You could choose so many, many, of course. I said someone else. But at this time I'd probably say Mark Ruffalo. Not like he didn't cross my mind then. He's a great one. He's great in this. But everyone's great in this. Doesn't have a tidy ending. But life is often untidy. Which doesn't necessarily mean that our stories should be untidy. Anyway.
Eyes Wide Open. Fairly good. B. It offered me a look into Orthodox Jewish life in Israel that I don't think I've ever had, if nothing else. Modesty Patrol. Yikes. But no, it's a well made, thoughtful film.
Revolution TV Series. I was liking it. A number of times I thought to myself, this is fairly good, but not great...I can stop watching at any time, I guess. But I didn't stop. And I got fairly into it. I was enjoying it. But then they dropped the ball. I'm not sure which episode. They tried to give a character some backstory, but I thought that an action they had him take was pretty lame, unbelievable. But, I thought, I'll hang in there and give them a chance to fix it, perhaps. I enjoyed the show up until Episode 20 when they dropped an even bigger ball. So I stopped. Shame. Now I have to find another show to get into.
Last edited:
I re-watched Star Wars this weekend because I hadn't seen them in a long time.
Episode I 5.5/10 - Holy moly. I forgot how rough that movie is to get through.
Episode II 6/10 - Not quite as rough as the "first" one, but not very good either.
Episode III 7.5/10 - Definitely the best of this trilogy. I wasn't as bored with it as the other two. The ending gets a bit too stretched out though.
Episodes IV-VI coming soon. I'll probably watch them this weekend.
Episode I 5.5/10 - Holy moly. I forgot how rough that movie is to get through.
Episode II 6/10 - Not quite as rough as the "first" one, but not very good either.
Episode III 7.5/10 - Definitely the best of this trilogy. I wasn't as bored with it as the other two. The ending gets a bit too stretched out though.
Episodes IV-VI coming soon. I'll probably watch them this weekend.
I agree. Episode III is by far the best of the prequels, you could even say it even holds its own against the originals.
I saw Episode One at the cinema when I was 12, so for me it was actually quite momentus. I think it cops far too much flak, the Pod Race scene and light saber fights were cool, and Darth Maul and Qui Gon Jin were cool characters. I much prefer it to Episode II, by a long way.
But annyyyyway....
I just saw RUSH. I'm not into car racing really but I thought it was very, very good. Solid acting, solid screenplay, just a solid film all round really. I wonder if it will feature at all come awards season?
Ju Dou directed by Zhang Yimou - 10/10
Zhang Yimou is probably my favorite director from the 90's and this film doesn't disappoint. As usual, Zhang Yimou uses color to great effect in this film. Like his 1994 film To Live which is one of my favorites, this film is just emotionally draining, and very sad. If I had one minor complaint about the film it would be how the son acts when he grows old, I have no idea why he's such a jerk, but that's okay since the overall acting, plot, cinematography, and music is superb. Oh yeah, and Criterion HAS to release Yimou's films soon since all of his DVD's look awful, it's such a shame that a master of Chinese cinema isn't treated well on home video.
Lupin III: The Castle Of Cagliostro directed by Hayao Miyazaki - 9/10
I went into the film expecting a decent adventure film and got one of the most exciting adventure films I've ever seen. I don't enjoy this movie as much as Miyazaki's classics such as Nausicaa, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Spirited Away however, the film just kept my interest all the way through with wonderful visuals and characters. My parents almost never watch films with me but as soon as they took a look at the TV they were drawn in and sat down and watched the whole thing, I consider that to be pretty impressive
I've got to say, Hayao Miyazaki is probably the most consistently great director and I hope to watch more of his works (I bought nearly all of his movies after watching Spirited Away when I lived in the States).
Zhang Yimou is probably my favorite director from the 90's and this film doesn't disappoint. As usual, Zhang Yimou uses color to great effect in this film. Like his 1994 film To Live which is one of my favorites, this film is just emotionally draining, and very sad. If I had one minor complaint about the film it would be how the son acts when he grows old, I have no idea why he's such a jerk, but that's okay since the overall acting, plot, cinematography, and music is superb. Oh yeah, and Criterion HAS to release Yimou's films soon since all of his DVD's look awful, it's such a shame that a master of Chinese cinema isn't treated well on home video.
Lupin III: The Castle Of Cagliostro directed by Hayao Miyazaki - 9/10
I went into the film expecting a decent adventure film and got one of the most exciting adventure films I've ever seen. I don't enjoy this movie as much as Miyazaki's classics such as Nausicaa, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Spirited Away however, the film just kept my interest all the way through with wonderful visuals and characters. My parents almost never watch films with me but as soon as they took a look at the TV they were drawn in and sat down and watched the whole thing, I consider that to be pretty impressive
I've got to say, Hayao Miyazaki is probably the most consistently great director and I hope to watch more of his works (I bought nearly all of his movies after watching Spirited Away when I lived in the States).
Prisoners
8/10.
As someone else said in the Gravity thread, Prisoners was nothing great visually but the story and acting was brilliant. Quite a decent thriller!
8/10.
As someone else said in the Gravity thread, Prisoners was nothing great visually but the story and acting was brilliant. Quite a decent thriller!
Oblivion - 6/10
If you love scifi see it if you must.
It's a one and done kinda film that maybe you'd watch ten years later just to see if you were being too harsh the first go-round. Probably weren't.
Lotta common sense gaps in the story, much like 'The Host.'
Like 'Prometheus', it looks good.
IDKWTH the title has to do with the story.
If you love scifi see it if you must.
It's a one and done kinda film that maybe you'd watch ten years later just to see if you were being too harsh the first go-round. Probably weren't.
Lotta common sense gaps in the story, much like 'The Host.'
Like 'Prometheus', it looks good.
IDKWTH the title has to do with the story.
A long overdue chance to see some classic anime for the first time!
Grave of Fireflies 6/10 - Moving at times, but held back by some awkward pacing, development, and resolution.
Paprika 7/10 - Bonkers! Gotta rewatch this one as I feel I may have missed some of the layers, though it might just have been muddled a bit in translation and isn't really as clever as it makes out. It certainly keeps your interest though!
FFVII Last Order (short film) 6/10 - Being a massive FFVII fan I was hoping this would reveal something a bit more behind the Nibelheim incident, but instead it really just showed us a few different angles of stuff we already knew. A missed opportunity.
Grave of Fireflies 6/10 - Moving at times, but held back by some awkward pacing, development, and resolution.
Paprika 7/10 - Bonkers! Gotta rewatch this one as I feel I may have missed some of the layers, though it might just have been muddled a bit in translation and isn't really as clever as it makes out. It certainly keeps your interest though!
FFVII Last Order (short film) 6/10 - Being a massive FFVII fan I was hoping this would reveal something a bit more behind the Nibelheim incident, but instead it really just showed us a few different angles of stuff we already knew. A missed opportunity.
Bad Grandpa - 8/10
First time to the cinema in quite some time, and I just had to see this. Lots of filler, but the funny bits are very funny. Shame there wasn't anything from the rest of the crew. If they could've fit some of the other Jackass regulars in there, it would've been great.
The Disco Exorcist - 7/10
Been waiting to see this ever since one of our IT regulars (and the star of the movie) came an informed us about it. And it didn't disappoint. It's typical no-budget horror/comedy, so some people will hate it. But for fans of the genre (like me), it's a real treat. Good stuff.
VHS2 - 6/10
Not a lot to say here. It's better than the first. I appreciate what these guys are trying to do with the found footage formula, but I can't help but feel that it's all a little tired now. Still, it's an alright movie for horror fans.
The Seasoning House - 7/10
I found this quite odd. The first 45 mins has very little sound or dialogue, as it's presented from the perspective of a deaf girl. When the action kicks in though, it's pretty relentless. Probably not much of a movie for the squeamish either!
First time to the cinema in quite some time, and I just had to see this. Lots of filler, but the funny bits are very funny. Shame there wasn't anything from the rest of the crew. If they could've fit some of the other Jackass regulars in there, it would've been great.
The Disco Exorcist - 7/10
Been waiting to see this ever since one of our IT regulars (and the star of the movie) came an informed us about it. And it didn't disappoint. It's typical no-budget horror/comedy, so some people will hate it. But for fans of the genre (like me), it's a real treat. Good stuff.
VHS2 - 6/10
Not a lot to say here. It's better than the first. I appreciate what these guys are trying to do with the found footage formula, but I can't help but feel that it's all a little tired now. Still, it's an alright movie for horror fans.
The Seasoning House - 7/10
I found this quite odd. The first 45 mins has very little sound or dialogue, as it's presented from the perspective of a deaf girl. When the action kicks in though, it's pretty relentless. Probably not much of a movie for the squeamish either!
The lady friend wanted to see it, so I went to see Gravity again over the weekend. I stand by my statement that it was overhyped and overrated, so I figured I'd give more detail as to why I thought that way.
Gravity:
Visuals - 10/10
The visuals were absolutely beautiful. No gripes or arguments there. It was better than eye candy, it was like an eye cheeseburger...? Yeah. That's what I'm going with.
Acting - 9/10
Very believable. Sandra Bullock was very good. She made me feel the stress that she was going through. I feel like she over did it very slightly at times, but overall, great. George Clooney was excellent, 'nuff said.
Audio - 10/10
I'm certainly no audio expert, but it was brilliant. The way they muffled the noise when something hit or moved against the outside of the ship like it was coming through the suit was just brilliant, I don't even know a different word to use for it.
Story - 6.5/10
I know Chimp is going to come back and argue this score, but hear me out. I understand that there was an underlying story and that the backstory of Bullock's character was there and drove her.
Overall - 8.5/10
Still a very good film. Visually stunning, great acting, I just can't help but feel that there was something lacking.
I also went to see Prisoners, and I think I enjoyed it more than Gravity. I was stressed out the entire two and a half hours of that film. I was so emotionally invested and attached to the story, and the cinematography was tremendously good in my opinion. I also really enjoy Jake Gyllenhaal, so that may have added to my liking it so much.
Prisoners - 9/10
We also watched Garden State and Star Wars Episode IV.
Garden State - 7/10
I though it was just OK. Zach Braff and Natalie Portman had great performances, but I wasn't quite attached to their characters. It was very slow moving and didn't accomplish a ton with all the time it wasted to tell the main story. I did like how it ended a lot, but that doesn't make up for the wasted time throughout.
Star Wars Episode IV - 8/10
Might be a nostalgia factor (even though I'm only 22, hah), but this movie is one that I've always loved. I used to think it would be the coolest thing in the world to fly an X-Wing. After watching episodes I-III, this movie, and trilogy, is far superior. Now I just need to find the time to watch V and VI and compare the George Lucas directed to the not-completely-Lucas-directed Star Wars.
Gravity:
Visuals - 10/10
The visuals were absolutely beautiful. No gripes or arguments there. It was better than eye candy, it was like an eye cheeseburger...? Yeah. That's what I'm going with.
Acting - 9/10
Very believable. Sandra Bullock was very good. She made me feel the stress that she was going through. I feel like she over did it very slightly at times, but overall, great. George Clooney was excellent, 'nuff said.
Audio - 10/10
I'm certainly no audio expert, but it was brilliant. The way they muffled the noise when something hit or moved against the outside of the ship like it was coming through the suit was just brilliant, I don't even know a different word to use for it.
Story - 6.5/10
I know Chimp is going to come back and argue this score, but hear me out. I understand that there was an underlying story and that the backstory of Bullock's character was there and drove her.
My issue is that the story of her was very disconnected. I felt like it should have either not been there at all or it should have been far more prominent as a story. I didn't feel much of a connection to her and the fact that she lost her daughter. I was almost more emotional when Clooney's character was lost into space. I did love the part where she asked him to say hi to her daughter in heaven, but that still wasn't enough for me. Sure, there was symbolism with her curling up into a fetal position (which I thought was overdone and a bit cheesy), and there were the statues and images of different gods in each of the ships which was cool, I get that, but I don't get what the real story was. If it was about her getting back to earth, great, they nailed it, but it's a pretty boring story. If it was about her realizing that she can't give up because her daughter wouldn't want that, it wasn't very prominent. I just don't think the story was great, and story is the most important thing about a film.
Another small issue I had with the film was the believability. I know I said it before, but I just feel like it was too outrageous to believe that she would experience every single thing that could possibly go wrong. Every single thing. And the absolute worst thing every single time. I can put a hold on my understanding of reality for a little bit, but not when it's thing after thing after thing going wrong. Or that she isn't hit by a single tiny piece of debris through every one of, what, three "attacks" of the debris? Come on. It completely decimates everything else in it's path, but not her or the ship that she needs to be on. Not buyin' it. Oh well. That's not a huge issue, just one thing I didn't necessarily like.
Another small issue I had with the film was the believability. I know I said it before, but I just feel like it was too outrageous to believe that she would experience every single thing that could possibly go wrong. Every single thing. And the absolute worst thing every single time. I can put a hold on my understanding of reality for a little bit, but not when it's thing after thing after thing going wrong. Or that she isn't hit by a single tiny piece of debris through every one of, what, three "attacks" of the debris? Come on. It completely decimates everything else in it's path, but not her or the ship that she needs to be on. Not buyin' it. Oh well. That's not a huge issue, just one thing I didn't necessarily like.
Overall - 8.5/10
Still a very good film. Visually stunning, great acting, I just can't help but feel that there was something lacking.
I also went to see Prisoners, and I think I enjoyed it more than Gravity. I was stressed out the entire two and a half hours of that film. I was so emotionally invested and attached to the story, and the cinematography was tremendously good in my opinion. I also really enjoy Jake Gyllenhaal, so that may have added to my liking it so much.
Prisoners - 9/10
We also watched Garden State and Star Wars Episode IV.
Garden State - 7/10
I though it was just OK. Zach Braff and Natalie Portman had great performances, but I wasn't quite attached to their characters. It was very slow moving and didn't accomplish a ton with all the time it wasted to tell the main story. I did like how it ended a lot, but that doesn't make up for the wasted time throughout.
Star Wars Episode IV - 8/10
Might be a nostalgia factor (even though I'm only 22, hah), but this movie is one that I've always loved. I used to think it would be the coolest thing in the world to fly an X-Wing. After watching episodes I-III, this movie, and trilogy, is far superior. Now I just need to find the time to watch V and VI and compare the George Lucas directed to the not-completely-Lucas-directed Star Wars.
Ernest Goes to Jail - 10/10
Know what I mean?
Prisoners - 8/10
Very gripping film. The two leads were very good, Hugh Jackman seems to be really maturing as a performer I think. Reminded me a lot of 'Mystic River' for obvious reasons, (though that film I'd give a 10)
Gravity - 8.5/10
Has anyone mentioned this film is visually beautiful yet??? (I saw the 2D version, but I might have to go back and shell out some more money for the 3D glasses). I think this film could have been amazing with a couple of unknown actors in the leads to really heighten the realism, though Sandra Bullock is definitely very suited to this type of role. The way she had to keep a cool head in the face of constant danger reminded me of that movie about the bus that couldn't slow down.
The Graduate - 10/10
A high point in American cinema (in what was a very good year for American cinema). I just saw it for the second time, and noticed all sorts of things I missed on the first viewing, one of those films that keeps on giving perhaps? Haven't seen much of Mike Nicholls work actually, but a lot of very clever techniques employed here to learn from. Probably don't need to mention that Dustin Hoffman is brilliant in the lead role...but he is.
Know what I mean?
Prisoners - 8/10
Very gripping film. The two leads were very good, Hugh Jackman seems to be really maturing as a performer I think. Reminded me a lot of 'Mystic River' for obvious reasons, (though that film I'd give a 10)
Gravity - 8.5/10
Has anyone mentioned this film is visually beautiful yet??? (I saw the 2D version, but I might have to go back and shell out some more money for the 3D glasses). I think this film could have been amazing with a couple of unknown actors in the leads to really heighten the realism, though Sandra Bullock is definitely very suited to this type of role. The way she had to keep a cool head in the face of constant danger reminded me of that movie about the bus that couldn't slow down.
The Graduate - 10/10
A high point in American cinema (in what was a very good year for American cinema). I just saw it for the second time, and noticed all sorts of things I missed on the first viewing, one of those films that keeps on giving perhaps? Haven't seen much of Mike Nicholls work actually, but a lot of very clever techniques employed here to learn from. Probably don't need to mention that Dustin Hoffman is brilliant in the lead role...but he is.
