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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2006 6:58 pm
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Location: Where the dead rule the night
PostPosted: Sun Sep 05, 2021 9:12 am 
 

Superhost - This was a really enjoyable horror flick. One of these types of 'unsuspecting people run into a crazy person they're trapped with' stories, like Creep - but unlike Creep this was actually good. It references Youtube streaming and Airbnb, so it's definitely a very modern type of flick. Some of the ways the story goes might end up kinda predictable if you care about that, but honestly I found it to be a well-done story, with better and more interesting characters and acting than usual. Some of the directing was first rate, too, and made for some excellent suspense and dread out of a story that easily could've become silly or overly cliche. The movie knows when to cut out all sound and just ride on the silence, and the characters' decisions feel realistically messy and inconsistent. At the end of the day this just does everything a little better than usual. Killer shit.
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Khan Vozdig
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Joined: Fri Mar 13, 2020 1:39 pm
Posts: 108
Location: Hungary
PostPosted: Fri Sep 10, 2021 12:43 am 
 

I went on an old school horror binge last weekend and watched the following movies :


The Shuttered Room (1967) :


A rather so so film in my opinion , though with a rather good performance with Oliver Reed and a great atmospheric backdrop , especially with respect to the tower Aunt Agatha lives and the old mill building which features prominently throughout . A pretty good example of a movie that could be much better if it was made a different way IMHO .

Curse of the Crimson Altar (1968) :


One of my favorite old school horror movies with excellent performances by Christopher Lee and Boris Karloff , as well as rather solid ones by the two main leads of Mark Eden and Virginia Wetherell . Barbara Steele unfortunately doesn't have all that much screen time , yet gives a good performance as well , not to mention that the atmosphere of the film is impeccable given the eerily excellent setting of the Grim's Dyke estate .

FWIW I do believe the film is based on Lovecraft's " The Dreams in the Witch House " short story , though I really can't recall how accurately it follows the original story line .


Burnt Offerings (1976) :


A rather obscure and overlooked horror film (IMHO ) that showcases one of Karen Black's strongest performances next to another rather decent one by Oliver Reed . Burgess Meredith and Eileen Heckart are also great as the Allardyce siblings , with Bette Davis playing a strong role as well .

The ending is indeed a bit inconclusive , yet I've always thought it to veer more on the " leaves you with a somewhat satisfying sense of mystery " side as opposed to the side of " oh what a downer , now we'll never know what exactly happened and why " .

I also wonder if the title for Testament's " Burnt Offerings " song wasn't inspired by this film , what with it having been filmed in Oakland and having a similarly mysterious/slightly occult tone .

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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 1:27 pm 
 

Horse Girl - A really mesmeric, psychedelic tale of mental illness, this thing follows Alison Brie as a somewhat awkward retail cashier with some trauma in her past who begins to suspect a grand alien conspiracy going on, involving cloning and all kinds of stuff. I really like Brie in this - a believably eccentric, erratic performance. The writing and directing work together brilliantly as the movie dives off a cliff of sanity, a seamless transition away from normalcy, and it's pretty fun watching how far this goes. If it has a flaw, I'm not really sure it has much to say beyond the surface, but the journey to get to the end is spectacular anyway. It's effective.

Jakob's Wife - A weird horror-comedy vampire movie about this priest's wife who gets turned into a vampire and he has to help save her. This throws a lot at you but it's incoherent and never seems to really do much with any of the parts. The characters are mostly either annoying or forgettable and none of it is really that funny or scary. It's trying but just not amounting to much.

Also re-watched Linklater's "Before" trilogy - I really enjoy stuff like this, where they can just captivate you through nothing but dialogue. Powerful constantly flowing thoughts and conversations. Really illustrative of the human connection and how lives intersect and all the baggage that comes with it. These are just seminal pieces of work.
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darkeningday
xXdArKenIngDayXx

Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2004 1:20 pm
Posts: 6032
Location: United States
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 2:52 pm 
 

Surprised no one is talking about the Matrix trailer. I think it looks abominable but I'd love to be wrong. It looks like a remake of the first but with half the cast replaced with sexy young actors, while Neo and Trin are looking as old and desiccated as ever. The Jefferson Airplane remix caused my eyes to roll back into my skull, especially when it focused on the white rabbit tattoo when that lyric came up.

The fact David Mitchell, a very solid author (note: although British he has no relation to the comedian) is the main writer does give me hope though. You're free to hate the Cloud Atlas movie all you like, but the book is good.
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Metallic Shock
Metalhead

Joined: Tue Sep 06, 2011 8:01 pm
Posts: 756
Location: United States
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 3:14 pm 
 

Empyreal wrote:
Horse Girl - A really mesmeric, psychedelic tale of mental illness, this thing follows Alison Brie as a somewhat awkward retail cashier with some trauma in her past who begins to suspect a grand alien conspiracy going on, involving cloning and all kinds of stuff. I really like Brie in this - a believably eccentric, erratic performance. The writing and directing work together brilliantly as the movie dives off a cliff of sanity, a seamless transition away from normalcy, and it's pretty fun watching how far this goes. If it has a flaw, I'm not really sure it has much to say beyond the surface, but the journey to get to the end is spectacular anyway. It's effective.

Ah, good to see someone else enjoyed this one! It got pretty bad reviews (at least from the imdb crowd) but I thought it was a great vibe-y film with as you say some damn good acting. Apparently the dialogue was all improvised to match the events that were planned out, which is impressive considering how naturalistic it all seems.
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ChineseDownhill
Metalhead

Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2013 11:19 am
Posts: 1113
Location: United States
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 3:40 pm 
 

darkeningday wrote:
Surprised no one is talking about the Matrix trailer.

Oddly enough I'm in another tab watching metal vids on Youtube and I just got a Matrix 4 ad I decided not to skip. I don't know if I can really get behind this trend of making belated sequels to atone for endings which, although hated by many fans, seemed like definitive conclusions to the story. I have no desire for HBO to re-do the final season of Game of Thrones, and I'm not excited about Dexter: Please Forget Season 8. But at least another Matrix movie won't require the time investment of another season of TV.

Kate - Despite being poisoned with less than a day to live, an assassin runs around Japan killing a bunch of gangsters. Better than I expected. 7 / 10

I Am Lisa - Werewolf movies have never been my preferred horror genre, and this seemed held back by an obviously low budget. Watch Ginger Snaps instead. 4 / 10
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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 4:05 pm 
 

Metallic Shock wrote:
Empyreal wrote:
Horse Girl - A really mesmeric, psychedelic tale of mental illness, this thing follows Alison Brie as a somewhat awkward retail cashier with some trauma in her past who begins to suspect a grand alien conspiracy going on, involving cloning and all kinds of stuff. I really like Brie in this - a believably eccentric, erratic performance. The writing and directing work together brilliantly as the movie dives off a cliff of sanity, a seamless transition away from normalcy, and it's pretty fun watching how far this goes. If it has a flaw, I'm not really sure it has much to say beyond the surface, but the journey to get to the end is spectacular anyway. It's effective.

Ah, good to see someone else enjoyed this one! It got pretty bad reviews (at least from the imdb crowd) but I thought it was a great vibe-y film with as you say some damn good acting. Apparently the dialogue was all improvised to match the events that were planned out, which is impressive considering how naturalistic it all seems.


I really get into these movies that are more like experiences than anything, so it worked for me. I didn't know the dialogue was improvised, but thinking back to some of it, it does make sense actually.

This and Aubrey Plaza's "Black Bear" film are really good examples of these comedy actors doing great meatier roles. Great acting. Black Bear was even better than this, I thought.
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Ill-Starred Son
Metalhead

Joined: Fri Apr 15, 2011 8:10 pm
Posts: 1420
Location: United States
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 7:40 pm 
 

Empyreal wrote:
Horse Girl - A really mesmeric, psychedelic tale of mental illness, this thing follows Alison Brie as a somewhat awkward retail cashier with some trauma in her past who begins to suspect a grand alien conspiracy going on, involving cloning and all kinds of stuff. I really like Brie in this - a believably eccentric, erratic performance. The writing and directing work together brilliantly as the movie dives off a cliff of sanity, a seamless transition away from normalcy, and it's pretty fun watching how far this goes. If it has a flaw, I'm not really sure it has much to say beyond the surface, but the journey to get to the end is spectacular anyway. It's effective.

Jakob's Wife - A weird horror-comedy vampire movie about this priest's wife who gets turned into a vampire and he has to help save her. This throws a lot at you but it's incoherent and never seems to really do much with any of the parts. The characters are mostly either annoying or forgettable and none of it is really that funny or scary. It's trying but just not amounting to much.

Also re-watched Linklater's "Before" trilogy - I really enjoy stuff like this, where they can just captivate you through nothing but dialogue. Powerful constantly flowing thoughts and conversations. Really illustrative of the human connection and how lives intersect and all the baggage that comes with it. These are just seminal pieces of work.


I'm pretty sure I remember seeing Horse Girl and also liking it but being confused as to what it all meant. I'm the worst movie detective EVER lol.

I also love all these weird movies that really get you thinking, i mean I've seen so many of them lately that I'm really drawing a blank right now. I just watch so many on Amazon Prime that I forget them all, but I've seen so many interesting ones.

It seems that many i like end with me being confused by the ending which annoys me, but I still like them anyway.

One cool one I saw the other day was called "Let's Dream" (the main character's name is "Let") and it's all about how he can't sleep but somehow is the only one on earth perceiving reality while everyone else has been put in a zombie like state by an alien entity that only he has the power to fight back against.

Actually, as far as my drawing a blank on movies, i just remembered I made a word document I entitled "Movies with Weird Endings to Figure Out" haha. These were all really good as i remember. Here's the list:

Sunchoke
Lavender
Buster’s Mal Heart
Starfish
No Name
Blind Sun


I just love these kinds of movies.

Another kickass movie I recently saw was called "Anti-Birth" about a chick who gets impregnated by force through some kind of weird drug which alters her consciousness and has her tripping throughout the whole movie. It's crazy as hell and very metal, and there was another really good one I saw called "Hyde."


Last edited by Ill-Starred Son on Tue Sep 14, 2021 7:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Face_your_fear_79
Metalhead

Joined: Sun Sep 21, 2014 8:18 am
Posts: 492
Location: United States
PostPosted: Mon Sep 13, 2021 10:08 am 
 

Top Dog 1995

Chuck Norris is known for his moves, winning martial arts skills, and Texas Ranger. However, this is not something he will be remembered by and for good reason. This movie has to be the worst I have ever seen him in.

Norris is a lone detective. However, he is chagrined to find out he has been assigned a dog for a partner. And somehow, that dog helps him fight off the Neo Nazis from blowing up three local religious leaders on Hitler's birthday.

The Neo Nazis come off as just being idiots with guns and somehow Chuck Norris defeats them with his fist and not a gun. The story never explains itself as to why this group exists, why its operating along the US/Mexico border, and how does it not fight Norris with guns when they need to.

This wasn't done very well. "D-"

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Subrick
Metal Strongman

Joined: Sun Sep 12, 2010 7:27 pm
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 13, 2021 3:38 pm 
 

So I just watched Malignant, the new James Wan horror film on HBO Max, and it was HILARIOUS. That was one of the funniest, most spectacularly stupid movies I’ve seen in a long time, and it was worth every minute. That movie was so fucking dumb, and nothing made sense, and the acting was ridiculously hammy at all times, and the climax is the most bonkers garbage ever. Only James Wan could have made this and have it be as entertainingly dumb as it is without the audience getting the joke.

As a movie, it gets, I dunno, a 4 or 5/10. As an entertaining piece of overwrought pulp insanity, it gets, like, a billion stars. Go watch it and savor it.
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Metal_On_The_Ascendant
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Joined: Fri May 22, 2015 6:38 am
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 13, 2021 5:58 pm 
 

Subrick wrote:
So I just watched Malignant, the new James Wan horror film on HBO Max, and it was HILARIOUS. That was one of the funniest, most spectacularly stupid movies I’ve seen in a long time, and it was worth every minute. That movie was so fucking dumb, and nothing made sense, and the acting was ridiculously hammy at all times, and the climax is the most bonkers garbage ever. Only James Wan could have made this and have it be as entertainingly dumb as it is without the audience getting the joke.

As a movie, it gets, I dunno, a 4 or 5/10. As an entertaining piece of overwrought pulp insanity, it gets, like, a billion stars. Go watch it and savor it.


I'm excited!
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CoconutBackwards
Bullet Centrist

Joined: Thu Dec 01, 2016 2:02 pm
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 14, 2021 9:40 am 
 

Metal_On_The_Ascendant wrote:
Subrick wrote:
So I just watched Malignant, the new James Wan horror film on HBO Max, and it was HILARIOUS. That was one of the funniest, most spectacularly stupid movies I’ve seen in a long time, and it was worth every minute. That movie was so fucking dumb, and nothing made sense, and the acting was ridiculously hammy at all times, and the climax is the most bonkers garbage ever. Only James Wan could have made this and have it be as entertainingly dumb as it is without the audience getting the joke.

As a movie, it gets, I dunno, a 4 or 5/10. As an entertaining piece of overwrought pulp insanity, it gets, like, a billion stars. Go watch it and savor it.


I'm excited!


Yea, that's the kind of review that will make me watch this.

Now, I just need to find some friends to delta variant this movie with me.
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Jonpo
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 16, 2021 4:18 pm 
 

Subrick hit pretty much every nail. It's like James Wan said "I'm going to make a bad movie. A real bad movie. And they will LOVE it."

A pre-destined cult classic. Must watch with at least one other person. The first few minutes reminded me of Garth Merenghi so I had a suspicion, but it went way more bonkers and hilarious than I would have ever guessed.

5/10 movie with an 8/10 entertainment factor.
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ChineseDownhill
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PostPosted: Sat Sep 18, 2021 1:50 pm 
 

HBO Max is currently half price and I decided to take the bait mainly for Malignant. Feels like I already got my money's worth.

I never thought a James Wan R-rated horror movie with a domestic violence subplot would qualify as "wacky fun," but somehow this does. And yeah this isn't easy to rate on the old 1 - 10 scale, but I went with 7. Enjoyable enough to recommend, and I'd probably watch it again eventually.
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InnesI
The Goat Fucker

Joined: Sat Jun 01, 2013 3:19 pm
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 19, 2021 6:31 am 
 

Spoilers for Candyman follows (both versions):

I just saw the sequel to Candyman and my predictions were that it was either going to surprise me or disappoint. Most money was of course on disappoint since remakes or modern sequels usually do. This time was no different unfortunately.

While the premise to the story was fine with the child from the first film being the main character the actual way it develops and is presented was really quite bad. First off the dialogue is very on-the-nose as are the characters. The political content is so obvious it is painful (and I like to believe it is even if you agree with the world-view presented). It is never fun when you can see how the writers do their best to include all the current watch words. It is also reflected in the characters they choose to portray (I think the lead man is fine though). But that really isn't the biggest gripe - the film also explains everything in the dialogue. There is no room for reflection or interpretations. Everything that happens is explained in dialogue either before, during or after the events. Detailed explanations of the first film - check! Detailed explanations of the people that gave life to the Candyman myth - check! Detailed explanation as to how the artist in this film came to be drawn to Candyman - check! This film never shuts up!

And while I praised the original for leaving out the graphic horror to a large extent and focus more on the psychological side this new version does the opposite. The original had two on-screen kills. This one killed off five people during 2 minutes (people not really involved in the plot) and then a bunch of police officers as well as the people with larger roles on the film. The suspense is gone.

And the most obvious point is that much of the originals feel came from the excellent soundtrack. This new version suffers from the music not being close to the quality of the original.

This is about a 3/10 for me.
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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2006 6:58 pm
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 19, 2021 9:09 am 
 

The Nowhere Inn - St. Vincent and Carrie Brownstein created this movie, and it's quite a lot all at once - a "mockumentary" about St. Vincent's tour and also something far odder and Lynchian, with genuine surrealism and dreamlike madness going on. It's funny at times and also disconcerting. The whole thing is arresting for its weirdness and even manages a pretty decent point about fame and making a character on stage - nothing that deep or anything, but it works. And the presentation, with lurid and sharp directing and great acting, makes it all a wild and engrossing trip. It just keeps going down the rabbit hole of absurdity and it's just exquisite if you're into that stuff. I love this shit.

Prisoners of the Ghostland - Not even three months yet since 'Pig,' and Cage is already back with something else utterly original and unique. This is a dystopian action movie of sorts, but it thankfully does its own thing, even eschewing the Mad Max comparisons I'd made when I saw the trailer. The blend of Wild West settings and tropes with samurai action stuff is badass as fuck. The directing from Sion Sono is really eye-catching, and I've never really seen much like it - you get slow, dirge-like sequences, a lot of truly weird imagery, and just ways of telling this story you won't expect. It makes you pay attention. Cage is at his best here and this really seems like the most Nicolas Cage-y movie he's ever done, all his theatricality and gonzo, badass weirdness dialed up to 11. I was expecting this to be more violent then it is, but the build-up and strange atmosphere makes it all worth it at the climax. Very cool.
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SuperVeji4
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Joined: Sun Sep 17, 2006 10:33 pm
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 19, 2021 11:31 am 
 

Empyreal wrote:
Prisoners of the Ghostland - Cage is at his best here and this really seems like the most Nicolas Cage-y movie he's ever done, all his theatricality and gonzo, badass weirdness dialed up to 11.

Woa, weirder, more Cage-y than Mandy?! Now I gotta see it!

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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

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PostPosted: Sun Sep 19, 2021 12:55 pm 
 

Mandy was more violent and over the top but this one, with the Western/Samurai stuff and just some of the way the story goes, feels like just perfectly tailor made for who he is.
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YesIam
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Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2010 10:44 am
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 19, 2021 1:49 pm 
 

I've been waiting for Prisoners of the Ghostland since I heard about it ages ago, and I have been talking about wanting a Sion Sono and Nicolas Cage collab for years now because they're weird as fuck and just seemed like a perfect match made in heaven. And I was not disappointed. Prisoners of the Ghostland ain't about story and it ain't about the characters, as both elements are paper thin, but it's about atmosphere, eye-catching visuals, gorgeous soundscapes and bonkers shit and overall weirdness. I loved every single little thing about the movie.

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Jonpo
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Joined: Tue Jul 31, 2007 10:05 am
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PostPosted: Wed Sep 22, 2021 10:19 pm 
 

I just recently saw Blade Runner (The Final Cut) for the first time and I almost cried it was so beautiful. I'm a total sucker for Neo Tokyo, popped-collar-on-a-trenchoat, nonsensical futuristic pistol vibes. No clue it all started here. I heard the original theatrical release was plagued with some really hammy voice over exposition but there was none here. It was almost a perfect film for me.

Looking forward to checking out BR2049. Also been drawing dudes in trenchoats holding laser pistols from behind for daaaaays.
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Smalley
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Joined: Thu Jan 22, 2009 9:06 am
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2021 3:38 am 
 

Jonpo wrote:
I just recently saw Blade Runner (The Final Cut) for the first time and I almost cried it was so beautiful. I'm a total sucker for Neo Tokyo, popped-collar-on-a-trenchoat, nonsensical futuristic pistol vibes. No clue it all started here. I heard the original theatrical release was plagued with some really hammy voice over exposition but there was none here. It was almost a perfect film for me.

Looking forward to checking out BR2049. Also been drawing dudes in trenchoats holding laser pistols from behind for daaaaays.
I was never a huge fan of any cut of the original Runner, since I found the main couple almost impossible to care about as characters, but 2049 rectified that issue, and ended up being a noticably better movie for me as a result.
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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

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PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2021 8:25 am 
 

2049 was a huge letdown after the other Villenueve movies for me. Just such a boring, simple story compared to what I was looking for. The original BR was initially sort of hard to crack for me when I was younger, but I can dig it now; a cool, dense piece of sci fi. The new one felt very shallow to me. All style no substance.
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Zelkiiro
Pounding the world with a fish of steel

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PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2021 7:41 pm 
 

I'm not sure how I feel about Malignant. I knew going in that it was gonna be pulpy and wacky, but maybe it's my disinterest in schlock talking, but I didn't find it that amusing. It was an entertaining film, but I never really laughed. I liked the use of the vocalizations from the Pixies cover, but kinda wish it was used once or twice more. I liked the big action set pieces. The tone seemed inconsistent. I liked Gabriel in general. I feel like the sister didn't get enough to do. The police duo kinda got screwed by the ending. The final scenes themselves are a little too vague.

I dunno. I feel caught in the middle somewhere.
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ChineseDownhill
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PostPosted: Thu Sep 23, 2021 11:37 pm 
 

Mortal Kombat (2021) - Not quite as good as Tomb Raider 2018 among video game movies (that one really surprised me), but clearly better than Mortal Kombat 1995.

Godzilla Vs. Kong - There have been, what, two Godzilla movies and one Kong movie setting this up? I only watched Godzilla 2014 and didn't like it. Godzilla Vs. Kong was more fun than that. Did the subplot with Eleven from Stranger Things really need to be there though?

Scanners (re-watch) - Unless you consider the stiff acting and clunky dialogue part of the appeal, this is a little frustrating. It's definitely worth watching but it's one of those movies just dated enough that I suspect a remake could be better. There's an IMDB entry for one with only a writer listed. I honestly hope it happens.

Zelkiiro wrote:
The police duo kinda got screwed by the ending.

But Detective Moss had the best line in the movie (paraphrased):

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We're looking for Sloth from The Goonies?
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aaronmb666
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 24, 2021 2:26 am 
 

kate- very similar to John Wick/ Gunpowder Milkshake(plot is almost identical). "Worth a rental"

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Curious_dead
Metalhead

Joined: Wed Sep 20, 2006 12:13 pm
Posts: 1474
PostPosted: Fri Sep 24, 2021 6:53 am 
 

ChineseDownhill wrote:
Mortal Kombat (2021) - Not quite as good as Tomb Raider 2018 among video game movies (that one really surprised me), but clearly better than Mortal Kombat 1995.

[


Haaa, someone who agrees! The whole mortal kombat subreddit hates the movie because they're all MK superfans and all their characters got done wrong (i.e. not 100% like they'd have done it), but I liked it. It was what I expected, over the top action movie with ridiculous plot and weird characters. The action and effects are much better than the original, story line is about the same. However, the original has a camp aspect to it that might make it age better.

But it's not a great movie either. It was a fun rental after watching so many "serious" movies for Oscar season.

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CoconutBackwards
Bullet Centrist

Joined: Thu Dec 01, 2016 2:02 pm
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PostPosted: Fri Sep 24, 2021 8:19 am 
 

aaronmb666 wrote:
kate- very similar to John Wick/ Gunpowder Milkshake(plot is almost identical). "Worth a rental"


Good enough. I'll watch it.
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Curious_dead
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 8:57 am 
 

Watched both Suspiria - the original and the remake.

The original: IMO the far, far superior version. It's a haunting, mysterious movie with a great score. It's also very distinctive, visually. The use of colors is splendid and helps the movie distinguish itself from usually glauque horror movies. The story is simple, doesn't over-explain itself, and has a satisfying conclusion.

The remake... where to start? From the first scene, I was frustrated: the camera angles were changing suddenly without rime or reason and the camera sometimes decided to focus on something unimportant. There are too many unnecessary subplots, and we are told from the first moments what we're dealing with: witches. The movie doesn't look particularly good, the camera remains terrible throughout, the movie spends time on things that ultimately don't matter, it overexplains everything. Most of the movie is totally different, basically the things they have in common apart from a few character names are "witches in a dance academy", the rest is very different.

I'll have to say, it does have three great scenes that seem pulled from a different movie altogether: the dance scene where a character is telekinetically tortured and maimed, that was great horror, very well done and original. It's a great horror movie moment. The other is the ending. Apart from the fact that I've seen plenty of "nude witches doing ritual" already, the editing, the costumes, the pacing of the scene and the bloody massacre that follows are just amazing. The last one is the Volk dance scene which is cool.

So it's a few awesome scenes lost in a terrible, boring movie. A horror movie can afford to be bad, it cannot afford to be boring. The whole old man subplot is just superfluous (I didn't care for him, nor for his romance, nor even for his investigation), Susie's background is useless (well, not totally, but it does feel like it for most of the movie). The movie is a whole hour longer than the original. It lacks artistic flair, it lacks pacing and it's plot is all over the place. The characters are more wooden, and despite being amazing, Tilda Swinton is now typecast. You see her in a horror movie, you know she's not a vanilla character. There is less suspense, less mystery. How subtle is the movie you ask? Well, one of the metro station at the beginning is called "Suspiria", how subtle and clever. *rolls eyes*

So I'd give the original a 8.5/10, the remake a 3/10 if I'm being generous.

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Gravetemplar
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 6:33 pm 
 

I liked the Suspiria remake far more than the original one. A much more mature and interesting movie in every possible way if you ask me. The original one wasn't that good to begin so it really was easy to make a good movie out of it.

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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

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PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 7:09 pm 
 

I haven't seen the old one in several years, but the remake was audacious just for how much it changed and the huge scope and big ideas. I don't think it totally worked, it didn't truly captivate with the meandering pace, but I do think that is the kind of remake I'd like to see more of. At least try to go big, ya know.
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Last edited by Empyreal on Mon Sep 27, 2021 7:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Curious_dead
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 7:18 pm 
 

Gravetemplar wrote:
I liked the Suspiria remake far more than the original one. A much more mature and interesting movie in every possible way if you ask me. The original one wasn't that good to begin so it really was easy to make a good movie out of it.


Interesting? I mean, if you think adding pointless subplots that lead nowhere and overexposing everything else...

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ChineseDownhill
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Joined: Tue Apr 30, 2013 11:19 am
Posts: 1113
Location: United States
PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 7:20 pm 
 

As long as we're talking old versions and new versions...

Dune (1984) - Never read the books, and saw this once a few years ago. I wasn't expecting to enjoy it more than last time, this re-watch was mainly about establishing what the 2021 adaptation needs to do to qualify as an improvement.

Yeah. It's hard to imagine Dennis Villanova's movie not being substantially better. David Lynch's version is slow and dull, with a main character we're told from the beginning is going to be the messiah, yet his powers never seemed earned. That romance with Sean Young wasn't earned either. And the sparring session with Captain Picard had some of the most dated effects (those force fields) I've seen in a decent budget 80s movie.

And a two year time skip the narrator just casually mentions? I hope the novel handled that more smoothly. 4 / 10

Quote:
I liked the Suspiria remake far more than the original one.

Same. IIRC it was the greater focus on dancing and way more memorable climax in the remake that made me overlook the arguably unnecessary subplots.
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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

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PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 7:21 pm 
 

That David Lynch Dune actually made me take even the book less seriously. Roommate and I did have fun drinking along watching it though.
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ChineseDownhill
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 8:19 pm 
 

Sometimes I wish I could just watch movies as they are, without knowing anything about how they got made. But with Dune I knew going in:
It was based on a popular novel
Film industry types could tell the novel would be difficult to adapt, at least as a single movie
David Lynch isn't happy with the final product

So I watch the early scenes thinking "I bet this dialogue is just characters quickly recapping events that are actually shown in the novel." Makes everything feel rushed and messy. Then other characters or factions show up and I'm picturing screenwriters saying "Hardcore fans will be pissed if we omit this character entirely, so we'll include 'em, even if casual viewers won't understand who they are."

Basically the new version will be an improvement if it has cool visuals, some fun action, and plot / characters I can sort of relate to.
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Luvers
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 27, 2021 8:26 pm 
 

Jonpo wrote:
I just recently saw Blade Runner (The Final Cut) for the first time and I almost cried it was so beautiful.
One of the very first time theater experiences I ever had was seeing the Theatrical release of Blade Runner and being too numb to it to say it was good. I initially chose it over other possibilities because of Harrison Ford ( I loved Star Wars & first Indiana Jones at the time ) but...
Jonpo wrote:
I heard the original theatrical release was plagued with some really hammy voice over exposition but there was none here. It was almost a perfect film for me.
It was one of the reasons I did not care much for the film the first time. I thought and still think it is absolutely gorgeous to look at but maybe I was too young to grasp everything that took place. The voice over, especially at the very end, betrays the film because it comes across as cheap. I did not need the narration to ponder why ... "the pivotal climax on the rooftop" ... went down exactly as it did, that was better left for the viewer to think about. I certainly did not hate the film, even enjoyed a bit of it but was underwhelmed. Sometimes about a decade later or so I watched it again and I suddenly "got it" and unlike your near crying, the film really dealt a big blow for me personally.

It is not common for someone to upstage Harrison Ford in a movie but Roy Batty is one of the finest characters ever put to film and Rutger Hauer is simply brilliant in the role. I consider it more his film than Ford's. The way he goes from supposed* assassin and terrifying villain to frightened child who is desperately looking for a way to extend his life is truly heartbreaking. When he first discovers, and then mourns for, Pris in the Bradbury building is when you realize that he is actually not the antagonist but Deckard is. Anyone who is familiar with the film, how many people does Batty kill compared to Deckard?

I own the Collectors Edition with all five major versions of the film ( so not including Workprint prototype & San Diego versions ) and I think the Final Cut is the best of them all. That is the only version you actually need, especially since it has the best visual of one of the films greatest scenes: "Zhora's 'Retirement'". Rewatching that scene post 2019 re-contextualizes it. Consider... It is about a police officer in 2019 being able to cowardly gun down a minority from behind, in full view of the public, and get away with it due to formality "Deckard, B26354."

The scene itself is great on its own but like every second of the film, its single greatest achievement is Vangelis' masterwork.
Jonpo wrote:
Looking forward to checking out BR2049. Also been drawing dudes in trenchoats holding laser pistols from behind for daaaaays.
Since you enjoyed the original then you will probably be unhappy with the sequel. 2049 came out almost 25 years after I loved the original, so I went into it with very low expectations. I would recommend it but it pales in comparison to the original. That is nothing to scoff at since I consider the original Blade Runner (especially the Final Cut version) to be a top five movie of all time.
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waiguoren
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 28, 2021 1:00 am 
 

I'll go see Dune tonight. Was meant to go last week but work was just too hectic, was exhausted. Will watch it with my board gaming group, and after all the confusion and madness working out who is booking the tickets/if someone has already booked the tickets, it's become much clearer to me why we keep failing at Mansions of Madness.

Not even sure I'm looking forward to it. I like the first book well enough (which I've already read multiple times), but who knows. Deffo not looking forward to the length of the film, going to have to smuggle in some food to keep me awake. It's been a lifelong dream to eat a large jar of pickles in a movie theater. Today that dream might just become a reality.
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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

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PostPosted: Tue Sep 28, 2021 1:30 am 
 

Freaky - Vince Vaughn playing a high school girl is probably the main draw of this one. It's another in the school of movies like Happy Death Day where they're not being so meta that the whole movie is a joke, but instead just sort of lovingly ribbing at old slasher movies - which continue to be a fascination in society long after their prime. This distinguishes itself by having a plot like Freaky Friday (to Happy Death Day's Groundhog Day) but adapted to be a slasher, with a girl switching bodies with a deranged killer. And also some of the slasher moments are fairly brutal for the standards of this stuff. Sadly it lapses into sort of a parade of cliches by the end, but there are fun parts before that anyway.

Mosquito State - This Shudder movie was pretty much a complete dud. Some nice visuals and maybe some moments where you could glean a point attempting to break out of the constant fog. But the plot was incoherent nonsense and the whole thing was just way too long and seemed to have no direction. It felt like there was really no script and they were just filming whatever. A haphazard botched attempt at a Cronenberg type of thing, which is, I guess, really fucking hard to do. Just awful.
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Last edited by Empyreal on Tue Sep 28, 2021 11:11 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Curious_dead
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 28, 2021 8:27 am 
 

Re: Blade Runner, I love the movie. The aesthetic, the characters, the "antagonist"'s redemption, I'd say the only thing that has aged badly is the "romance" between the two main characters, but it may even be intentional to further humanize the replicants, so I don't totally hate it.

The new one is good too. It's one of the most visually pleasing movie of the last few years, and I think it just works. I was a bit dismissive of a sequel at first, but seeing the end result, I'm really pleased with it. Here too, the romance between the replicant and the hologram is somehow better than that od Deckard and what's-her-name in the first movie.

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CoconutBackwards
Bullet Centrist

Joined: Thu Dec 01, 2016 2:02 pm
Posts: 1777
PostPosted: Tue Sep 28, 2021 10:45 am 
 

waiguoren wrote:
I'll go see Dune tonight. Was meant to go last week but work was just too hectic, was exhausted. Will watch it with my board gaming group, and after all the confusion and madness working out who is booking the tickets/if someone has already booked the tickets, it's become much clearer to me why we keep failing at Mansions of Madness.

Not even sure I'm looking forward to it. I like the first book well enough (which I've already read multiple times), but who knows. Deffo not looking forward to the length of the film, going to have to smuggle in some food to keep me awake. It's been a lifelong dream to eat a large jar of pickles in a movie theater. Today that dream might just become a reality.


Dune comes out on 10/22 from what I've seen.
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~Guest 220079
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Joined: Tue Feb 09, 2010 10:39 am
Posts: 185
PostPosted: Tue Sep 28, 2021 12:51 pm 
 

Curious_dead wrote:
Gravetemplar wrote:
I liked the Suspiria remake far more than the original one. A much more mature and interesting movie in every possible way if you ask me. The original one wasn't that good to begin so it really was easy to make a good movie out of it.


Interesting? I mean, if you think adding pointless subplots that lead nowhere and overexposing everything else...

I *get* both of the viewpoints when comparing the original to the remake. What I liked about the remake was that it kept the basic premise of the movie - and let's be honest, plot is secondary in many Argento films - and then did its own completely original thing. Someone used the word audacious and that's what I would describe it as. Tilda Swinton, like in most roles, was mesmerizing. My only contention with it is I, still to this day, don't understand how the student protests happening in the film tied in with it. Aside from that I certainly appreciated it more than most of the remakes.

Phenomena: on that note this was a re-watch from a couple weekends ago as we started our roll up to Halloween. A very young Jennifer Connelly enters an academy in Switzerland as a series of murders take place around that area, and with the help of an entomologist and a chimp, she uncovers the perpetrator. And what an unlikely perpetrator it is. The last 20-30 minutes is bat shit crazy, even surpassing most Argento finales.

Pledge Night: This is on Shudder and it was a blind spot in my 1980s slasher movie watchlist. And it is dreadful. I had to rewind the opening credits a bit to make sure I was seeing the name Joey Belladonna as 'young Sid', and indeed it was. A blink and you'll miss it scene as the former pledge bent on revenge.

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