What I've Been Watching: The Catch-All Film Thread

Well I am not a huge Star Wars fan, but my father wanted to go see it and hasn't gone to the movies in 20 years.

Me and him went today and it is a good movie and it was an enjoyable afternoon out with just me and my father.

7.5/10

Another good thing about Christmas is it's the time of year when tv is absolutely saturated with old movies. I was watching an old black and white war movie from 1944 today and while it was nothing special (to modern eyes) it was likely top-drawer for it's era, motivating all those guys to go and sign-up for warfare. Mostly meaningless propaganda, what I really liked about it was the stellar cast and how with old movies like this you could easily hear every line every actor spoke.

Not one single mumble the entire movie. Even when they're whispering it sounds like they're shouting. Oh how glorious it is to be able to set a volume and never have to change it once in the entire movie. Oh why do modern movies insist on mumbling every single line in a movie, all directors should be forced to watch old movies like this so they can relearn how to make a proper production once again!

lackblogger said:

Not one single mumble the entire movie. Even when they're whispering it sounds like they're shouting. Oh how glorious it is to be able to set a volume and never have to change it once in the entire movie. Oh why do modern movies insist on mumbling every single line in a movie, all directors should be forced to watch old movies like this so they can relearn how to make a proper production once again!

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This is easily explained:
- Many of these people came from stage backgrounds, where over-enunciation and projection were the standard.
- Earlier recording and projection systems lacked the dynamic range and noise reduction capabilities, therefore you needed a certain volume to overcome the noise floor.
- It is worth noting that REAL people don't talk the way they do in those older films ... And in an attempt to be more real-life, dealing with mumbling, whispering, asides, and so on is just how it is done.

Not saying that the 'what did they SAY' factor isn't annoying at times ... Just explaining WHY.

I'll have to disagree with txa.

The major difference back then and today is that back then the talent was the most important thing. If they had looks, that was only a plus. Remember Bette Davies? She was never an "unbeatable beauty", but what do you think why she got major roles in movies although some others looked better?
Today's movie industry is sadly plastic tits, butts and biceps, who cares for talent pour millions on marketing and that's it.
With, of course, rare different examples.

Pic those rares or it didn't happen?
Grab some of recent work with Melissa Leo. She's not in mid 20ies for a long time, she's not a sexbomb, you don't have to tune the volume while she's on screen, you hear precisely what's said in every her mumble, shout or whisper - REAL people talk exactly like her!
Now grab some recent work with Jessica Alba and compare them two. Peh.

joxer said:

I'll have to disagree with txa.

The major difference back then and today is that back then the talent was the most important thing. If they had looks, that was only a plus. Remember Bette Davies? She was never an "unbeatable beauty", but what do you think why she got major roles in movies although some others looked better?
Today's movie industry is sadly plastic tits, butts and biceps, who cares for talent pour millions on marketing and that's it.
With, of course, rare different examples.

Pic those rares or it didn't happen?
Grab some of recent work with Melissa Leo. She's not in mid 20ies for a long time, she's not a sexbomb, you don't have to tune the volume while she's on screen, you hear precisely what's said in every her mumble, shout or whisper - REAL people talk exactly like her!
Now grab some recent work with Jessica Alba and compare them two. Peh.

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This is just weird.

Are we trying to draw some sort of 'absolutes'? Like EVERY movie from the 40s is magically better than stuff now? Because aside from being completely and objectively laughably wrong, it is stupid, and anyone who would even suggest it is an absolute fucking moron.

Like comparing great actresses of the past with T&A 'eye candy' non-actresses from today.

Whatever.

txa1265 said:

Like EVERY movie from the 40s is magically better than stuff now?

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Noone ever said that.
It's you who said that "It is worth noting that REAL people don't talk the way they do in those older films".
You sure? In all of them?

txa... Mentioning "absolute fucking moron" in sentences... Somehow does not fit you.
It's dartagnan style when you spit on the holy game of all games Bioshock 3.

joxer said:

Noone ever said that.
It's you who said that "It is worth noting that REAL people don't talk the way they do in those older films".
You sure? In all of them?

txa… Mentioning "absolute fucking moron" in sentences… Somehow does not fit you.
It's dartagnan style when you spit on the holy game of all games Bioshock 3.

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Actually lackblogger made the statement about all current directors having to watch the old 40s films to "make a proper production again".

Sounds pretty absolutist to me.

And agree my statement about people talking with respect to 40s films was imprecise. Apologies. I had been watching a documentary on older filmmaking and the advent of 'talkies' and the transitions from stage to screen and how hard it was for some, and all of the technical challenges they encountered and how they needed to deal with them.

More precise was that the technology available at the time made it more difficult to represent the natural range of vocal expression as it required more volume to overcome the noise threshold of recording equipment.

And yeah, I get annoyed with so much of the 'good ole days were totally better' nonsense ... Sorry for the outburst

Anyway, this weekend we watched ...

Zapped (1982).

Starring Willie Ames (Eight is Enough) and Scott Baio (Happy Days) and a bunch of recognizable character actors.

The poster from the movie shows the two boys looking in a school window at a girl in a miniskirt and one of the guys using telekinesis to lift the skirt.

That pretty much sums up the movie. Guy gets telekinetic powers, mostly uses them for high-school type pranks and to tear clothes off of girls.

It was playing on cable so we watched it for fun (we're all just relaxing with coffee) but it was one of the worst movies I have ever seen. Everything from the filming and production to casting and acting was just abysmal. Even how it ripped stuff from Carrie, Exorcist, Taxi Driver and so on was poorly done.

But the movie totally nailed the fashions worn back then in a very real way (probably just to lower costs), which made it fun in a way.

I skipped it in theaters (didn't see Porky's or those other ones in theaters either) ... And it made for an interesting explanation to the kids about how cable TV was still just spreading, most people didn't have a VHS player yet, movie rentals were just starting, and no internet meant that if you wanted to see boobs on screen you needed to go to the theater.

I saw a wonderful movie today. Flight of the Navigator (1986).

I adored this movie so much I have no idea where to begin praising it. It's like the closest I've ever come to watching a perfect live action children's movie where the child is actually the star. Easily on par with all those other 80s children's classics like Goonies and Stand By Me.

This one is science fiction and actually has a very complicated hard sci-fi premise/plot that put's a lot of serious adult sci-fi to shame. The emotional range that gets displayed throughout is astounding, made more-so by the child star's huge range and almost natural delivery. In a film about love and loss it's like magic how the viewer grows to love the lead so that by the end of the movie you're feeling every emotion the child is encountering.

There are no villains and yet the movie is full of dramatic tension as to the future of the boy and whether there will be any kind of happy ending. While the main plot is verging on the tragedy levels of the emotional spectrum, the movie is also jam packed with smart, well delivered and punchy humour that even professional comedians would be proud of.

Normally with these kind of movies it's possible to predict the narrative as it plays out, often in a very cheesy and dragged out format, but here there's nothing that makes you facepalm, nothing that makes you scream "get on with it" and nothing horrendously cliched. It's like a Steven Spielberg movie but without the desperate over-sentimentalisation.

The only genuine negative I could think of would be when Pee-Wee Herman pops up in the form of a Hal-like voice for an alien craft, full of the usual Pee-Wee'isms. For me it wasn't so bad as I've never been over saturated with Pee-Wee to become tired of it, but I could see how that might "ruin it" for some.

Also, if you can't watch movies that star incredibly, unbelievably cute 12 year olds (yes, that's even one of a young Sarah Jessica Parker's lines, telling the young lad how incredibly cute he is), then don't torture yourself, this is entirely the young lad's movie and everyone else revolves around him and his story.

In fact, the kid is so cute and lovable that people still try and hunt him down even to this day. He was as per Elton John's classic song, a candle that burned out long before the legend ever did. He stopped doing movies, rumours of drugs and stupid living, rejects fame and recently had a run-in with the law. But, damn, if you could take a picture of love and frame it for eternity, then the 12 year old Flight of the Navigator is the closest I've seen (which also fits the plot of the movie for those who understand the irony).





9/10 movie for me, only losing a point for the over-the-top Pee-Wee'ing in the latter stages, some actual swear words like shit and bastard (kids' movie!), and some lost-in-time 80s references. I was stunned to see this only has 6.9 on IMDB, but then I remembered how allergic some people are to 12 year old boys in movies. Of the written reviews there's only 2 people who rated it less than a 6, and they mostly bleat on about Disney being assholes blah blah blah.

Edit: almost forgot, interesting trivia, his mum is played by the 'other' female from Alien

I watched it 2 or 3 years ago. Wonderful movie.

The Hateful Eight.

What do you want me to say I am a total fanboy of Quentin Tarantino. It is Quentin at his best. If you don't like his movies you won't like this if you do like his movies you will love it.

Still doesn't beat Jackie Brown, though not many movies do.

No rating as I like all his movies...

CelticFrost said:

The Hateful Eight.

What do you want me to say I am a total fanboy of Quentin Tarantino. It is Quentin at his best. If you don't like his movies you won't like this if you do like his movies you will love it.

Still doesn't beat Jackie Brown, though not many movies do.

No rating as I like all his movies…

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Looking forward to seeing this ... But for me Jackie Brown is at the bottom of my list for his films. Of course, it is still excellent ... Just my least fave

Same procedure as every year.


Intro in German, rest in English (starts at ~2:24).

txa1265 said:

Looking forward to seeing this … But for me Jackie Brown is at the bottom of my list for his films. Of course, it is still excellent … Just my least fave

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Are you including Death Proof in that list? I think that's his worst movie by far, not that any of them are actually "bad".

JDR13 said:

Are you including Death Proof in that list? I think that's his worst movie by far, not that any of them are actually "bad".

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Not really - I look at that as a sort of specialized 'featurette '. But yeah, that would be lowest . And agreed that none of them are bad

Watched The Wages of Fear (1953) the other day, french thriller, Henri Clouzot

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046268/




Outstanding movie , time flew and what felt like 30 minutes was actually two and a half hours… Loved the beautiful shots and scenery , certain shots seemed as if painted on a canvas , not recorded… It's also the 101 of thrillers and clearly demonstrates we have forgotten what this genre is about…. it doesn't require shooting guns, crime, conspiracies or cheap action to be suspenseful and believable. Also Yv Montan looks like Humphrey Boggart

It also features the best ending I ever saw in a movie.

txa1265 said:

Not really - I look at that as a sort of specialized 'featurette '. But yeah, that would be lowest . And agreed that none of them are bad

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Well if we include that, we have to include four rooms, segment "The Man From Hollywood"?

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3v2cj_four-rooms-the-man-from-hollywood-t_fun

The Big Short 9.9/10

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1596363/

First yes it is 9.9/10 not because it is best movie ever made. Because everyone in the US should watch this movie.

It is a topic I have been talking about with anyone that would listen to me for 20 plus years and something the average person doesn't understand nor seems wants to understand.

You should to see this because, you need to stand up for changes in the system of banking and how your broken back is making a few very rich still.

It explains what happened in 2007 very well, but this started way before 2007 and is still going on to this day. For the simple reason nothing was done about it and the people in the general public trust them to look after their money nothing was done.

In fact they were given more money and let lose to keep doing it…

GO SEE IT…..

The Hunt. A very important film about a controversial subject, that is to say false accusations of child abuse and the witch hunts that ensue which devastate innocent people's lives.

A reminder of the danger of mob mentality and its dehumanizing effect.

Humanity has risen! said:

The Hunt. A very important film about a controversial subject, that is to say false accusations of child abuse and the witch hunts that ensue which devastate innocent people's lives.

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It is a very good film that is a good reminder of the mod mentality dangers. Of course, the 'false accusations of child abuse' is an incredibly rare thing (~1%), which makes it easier for people to jump to conclusions. There are many times more people on death row in the US who were put there due to false evidence or the mod mentality related to skin color ...

... but the dangers of false persecution remain.

And this is a really good movie that people should check out.