What movies have you seen recently?

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Really? I liked Sicario too, just surprised at the "not nearly" comparison. Thanks for the input.

Sicario had more moving pieces. Hell or High Water is fairly straight forward as far as narratives go.

[JayBee74]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Sicario had more moving pieces. Hell or High Water is fairly straight forward as far as narratives go.

Just saw Hell Or High Water-I agree about the moving pieces, but I couldn't tell you right now which one I liked better.

[Money99]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Just saw Hell Or High Water-I agree about the moving pieces, but I couldn't tell you right now which one I liked better.

I really enjoyed both those films.
They moved at different paces, and HoHW had less moving pieces but I liked both equally.

Took the family to see A Dog's Purpose last night (13 & 10 YO boys, 3 YO daughter).
Everyone loved loved it.
It was a tear jerker and a really good family film.

Spoiler

The only thing I disliked was seeing the one dog owner, who was extremely lonely, lose their dog. We never see if this character meets someone else, or finds another dog.
I guess not every story has to end happily, but it did bother my kids (and me, if I'm being honest) that this person, who was extremely lonely and depressed from losing a spouse, lose their dog too.

[daflyboys]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Hacksaw Ridge. Just unreal that this is a true story.

Spoiler

Vince Vaughn was just badly casted in this.

[JayBee74]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Hacksaw Ridge. Just unreal that this is a true story.

Spoiler

Vince Vaughn was just badly casted in this.

I don't know how much of that is perception, because VV is a comedy guy. In his big dramatic role in True Detectives 2 the script certainly didn't help him, but he came across well in certain scenes. Kind of strange way of looking at it, but in Hacksaw Ridge I found him to be generic but likable-I didn't find him necessarily miscast, but that's only my opinion. In any event his name was bigger then his role in this movie.

[daflyboys]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

I don't know how much of that is perception, because VV is a comedy guy. In his big dramatic role in True Detectives 2 the script certainly didn't help him, but he came across well in certain scenes. Kind of strange way of looking at it, but in Hacksaw Ridge I found him to be generic but likable-I didn't find him necessarily miscast, but that's only my opinion. In any event his name was bigger then his role in this movie.

Overall, didn't detract from the essence of the movie. I look forward to Garfield in Silence and many more dramatic roles. Getting kicked out of Spidey may be the best thing to happen to him.

[Blzer]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

La La Land

On production value alone, this movie was almost technically perfect. Every shot was crafted wonderfully, every cue was right on point, and the characters nearly jumped straight out of a Broadway musical, ambitiously performing music through song, dance, and instruments. Two of the most likable leads in Hollywood today brought great entertainment value.

As much as this film was meant to entertain, it was also meant to evoke emotion. It certainly did if for no other reason than keeping unpredictability a bit on the upper end. It wasn't the most original love story by any means, but I don't see these character arcs often enough in film that, combined with their chemistry on screen, provided for enough emotional impact even on surface level.

Thankfully for my sanity, this is not filled with musical numbers. In fact, the middle bulk of the film is almost completely void of any spontaneous song breakouts whatsoever. However, these songs were nice toe-tappers, and were at least memorable within the film's context that I could find myself kind of humming some of them as I left.

I only liked the movie, didn't love it. I felt a little bit of drag at times when in fact character building was happening, and musicals wear on me a little bit. But everyone involved in this project really gave it their all, and I kind of applauded the screen for that when the credits came around.

[Speedy]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Titanic

Not going to give a review of this but uh...when I watched the end, I may have cried.

[dickey1331]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Split

It was a good movie and the ending/Easter egg was pretty mind blowing. I recommend seeing it.


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[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

La La Land

On production value alone, this movie was almost technically perfect. Every shot was crafted wonderfully, every cue was right on point, and the characters nearly jumped straight out of a Broadway musical, ambitiously performing music through song, dance, and instruments. Two of the most likable leads in Hollywood today brought great entertainment value.

As much as this film was meant to entertain, it was also meant to evoke emotion. It certainly did if for no other reason than keeping unpredictability a bit on the upper end. It wasn't the most original love story by any means, but I don't see these character arcs often enough in film that, combined with their chemistry on screen, provided for enough emotional impact even on surface level.

Thankfully for my sanity, this is not filled with musical numbers. In fact, the middle bulk of the film is almost completely void of any spontaneous song breakouts whatsoever. However, these songs were nice toe-tappers, and were at least memorable within the film's context that I could find myself kind of humming some of them as I left.

I only liked the movie, didn't love it. I felt a little bit of drag at times when in fact character building was happening, and musicals wear on me a little bit. But everyone involved in this project really gave it their all, and I kind of applauded the screen for that when the credits came around.

I was prepared to write a small wall of text about this, but you've pretty much hit on everything I was going to say already.

I, however, did really love this film. It is such an ode to those relics from the past that it sparks nostalgia in a way that is fanciful, imaginative, and hopelessly passionate. You're drawn into this world and you can feel an abundance of energy from the characters and their desires that you can't help but connect to them on their own terms.

[Lieutenant Dan]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Titanic

Not going to give a review of this but uh...when I watched the end, I may have cried.

Not surprising, shows you have a heart! Even those who did not like the Jack/Rose story can feel for the hundreds of souls lost that night. The montage of the band playing that final tune while watching several people below decks brace for death is very affecting footage The film really brings that home...and in real-time.

I've always liked the film, but struggled with occasional moments and scenes that I've just come to accept are the brown-edged lettuce in an otherwise good sandwich that is Titanic (same with Avatar).

[Lieutenant Dan]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Rogue One



It started just a little slow and uncertain, like a newborn deer getting to it's feet for the first time, but it has one of the most entertaining third acts I have ever seen in film.

Lots of planet hopping, almost felt too slow yet too rushed at the same time in spots (hard to describe), and a bit more development of characters would have been nice, but this one is greater than the sum of it's parts. VERY good entry in the Star Wars universe!

If this is the level of film I can expect with the stand-alone films going forward, then I'm all in.

[Blzer]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

Lee Daniels' The Butler

If there was one film where you would be shocked by saying, "Hey I know that actor!" every five minutes, this was it. Whitaker, Winfrey, Howard, Gooding, Kravitz, Byrne, Williams, Cusack, Rickman, Carey, Schrieber, Fonda, Marsden... and these are just off the top of my head. Crazy ensemble cast. In a way, it turned out to be a bit of a disservice simply by how distracting it was. I honestly was waiting for Morgan Freeman or Samuel L. Jackson to pop up at some point.

The film itself was slightly uneventful, which is ironic to say because of the timeline it jumped through given eight different presidencies and the assassinations of Kennedy and MLK, among many other instances. Certainly an explosive beginning, several scenes sprinkled out exploring racism and discrimination, but in the end it seemed like a story better told as knowing the life of Cecil Gaines (don't know if that's the person's actual name since they said it was only inspired by a true story) rather than actually creating a film around it.

If the lure of enduring most of the film involved the historical documentation his life was surrounded by, I see how it can draw the attention of many, and while it grabbed me it kind of left me all the same. Was I going in expecting it to basically be Olympus Has Fallen? Of course not. I knew what kind of film I was getting into, but at the same time it is my own fault for expressing some sort of disinterest in the material. Maybe I couldn't feel the payoff as well because of the amount of changeover, but I think they saved that a lot by cutting back to family matters, where I think the film served its strongest moments.

Pretty good, and some obvious Oscar bait when it came out. Honestly though, it would appeal a lot more if this serves as an educational tool of US history for me. Too bad I already know it all, heh.

EDIT: Okay, after looking it up it turns out Jackie Kennedy wasn't Rose Byrne, it was Minka Kelly. Amazing how much they look alike (see picture below).

Spoiler

[SPTO]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

So as most know, Direct to Video movies are often crap but there are still some minor gems amongst the garbage. Well yesterday I watched one from 2006 with Cuba Gooding Jr. and Angie Harmon called End Game. It was actually supposed to get a theatrical run but was caught up in the maelstrom of the MGM/Sony deal at the time. The movie actually had a couple well established actors sprinkled throughout it. (James Woods, Burt Reynolds and Anne Archer)

It's a fairly standard plot as Gooding plays a Secret Service man who has regrets and pity on himself for allowing the president to be killed. Angie Harmon is a reporter who was there and starts investigating the case. The two of them end up working together and find out that it was no ordinary assassination. It has plenty of plot holes but at least it was a good time waster until the very end in which I very nearly threw my remote at the TV. It was THAT bad.

Oh well.....

[jeremym480]

Re: What movies have you seen recently?

We've been on an HBO documentary kick over the last week or two. We've watched the following:

Beware the Slenderman
The Cheshire Murders
Thought Crimes: The Case Of The Cannibal Cop
There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane
Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart

All of them were pretty good, but I think the Cheshire Murders and the Aunt Diane one were the two most disturbing. If you haven't watched it The Paradise Lost Trilogy is what I would recommend over any of them though.


Next up (probably the weekend sometime) is Tales Of The Grim Sleeper.