Recently watched movies!

[canofhumdingers]

I too watched Independence Day recently in preparation for Resurgence (I posted my thoughts on the sequel in its own thread). I really like this film. It's corny as heck and there are MAJOR plot holes and logical fallacies (seriously, don't overthink anything in this film or it starts to fall apart rapidly) but it totally delivers on the "big exciting silly b-movie on a huge Hollywood summer blockbuster budget". I don't know how Kain thinks it's boring. And it's one of the last great bastions of Hollywood practical effects before cgi completely took over. Yeah some of the compositing is dodgy (but some of it's really good), but the miniature work in this film is flipping wonderful! And Tsuburaya's water tank effects!! And then there's all the zippy on liners from Jeff Goldblum and Will Smith (really, Will Smith's dialogue is almost nothing BUT on liners!)

This movie is just big dumb fun and spectacle. I love it!

[lhb412]

Birdman of Alcatraz

Largely fictionalized (the real life Robert Stroud was a far more demented person, though perhaps less so later in life) life story of the criminal who became a respected ornithologist during his life sentence in prison, most of which was spent in solitary. Burt Lancaster's powerhouse performance is what makes the film, he's terrific, and while the film plays fast and loose with the facts I think in the end it does make good points about the nature of self improvement and the prison system not being conducive to actual rehabilitation. You could say it lies to tell the truth? Maybe?

[lhb412]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows

Inane, but certainly more pleasant and well put together than the previous one.

Did anyone else hear the Zetton sound effect when Donny scans the alien thingy at the museum?

[klen7]

[Dr Kain]

Yeah, that was what I watched on the DVD the other day and the extra scenes were pointless.

[lhb412]

[Dr Kain]

[Dr Kain]

The Shallows - Holy **** this was so damn intense!! This is easily the best shark movie since Jaws as it is filled with everything that will get your blood boiling while also being colorful at the same time. It is so strange to watch a new horror movie that is good be bright and colorful. It does a fantastic job of implying things are happening without showing them and the actress who plays the lead does a fantastic job of holding the movie all on her own. This is a strange year for horror movies as that now makes three excellent ones thus far. If you are looking for a good time and don't mind the person next to you crushing your arm, you should definitely check this one out in the theaters. The pacing is fantastic and the effects are superb. It might not be the best movie ever made, but it is still a damn good one, 8/10.

[jellydonut25]

I don't think there's been a BAD horror movie yet this year. The Boy and 10 Cloverfield Lane both had some flaws, but were both enjoyable.
Add in The Witch (and I have yet to see Conjuring 2 or The Shallows) and there are a lot of upcoming horror releases that are either intriguing or exciting:
Lights Out (the short is stellar. Can it sustain a film? We'll see)
The Purge (I liked 2 more than 1. Maybe this franchise gets better the more outlandish it is?)
Don't Breathe (Fede Alvarez, who directed Evil Dead remake which I like a lot, finally doing a new movie. I'm on board for now)
Before I Wake (Mike Flanagan who directed Oculus and the excellent Netflix horror film Hush, with a cast including Thomas Jane and Jacob Tremblay from Room and a really cool plot idea)
The Woods (Adam Wingard. That's all I need)

And I'm sure there will be some great indie releases here and there. Horror's best movies for years have been little indie movies and I really don't see that changing. You typically don't need a big budget to craft effective horror, and working outside the studio system allows an auteur to do what needs to be done and be bold.



EDIT: Hush. If you guys haven't seen this on Netflix yet, do it. I'm not gonna oversell it like it was oversold to me, but I never would have thought Netflix would be capable of producing their own content with such success. It's solid, effective, and has a nice spin/premise that gives it a different feel.

[Dr Kain]

I think The Boy is the worst movie of the year so far, so yeah. It was great in its first two thirds and then turned to utter crap when it became a

Don't Breath might be interesting, although, the kids got themselves in that situation, so it kind of serves them right. Of course, knowing now it is the guy who did that awful ED remake kind of ruins it.

Lights Out though looks dumb. It's like they took the idea of the Weeping Angels and turned it into Mannequinns.

The new Ridley Scott one does look promising though.

[jellydonut25]

I thought The Boy was fun. Not GOOD, but fun. It's far from the worst movie of the year. I liked the end reveal quite a bit, even if it did remind me of another (better) movie from last year where basically the same reveal happens.

[Dr Kain]

[jellydonut25]

BvS Ultimate Edition.

I'm not sure what's more hilarious/pathetic/infuriating: That it actually says "Ultimate Edition" in the opening titles to the film, or that the "essential" stuff Zack Snyder thinks NEEDED to be re-inserted back into the movie includes a TV broadcast of Metropolis vs. Gotham on ESPNU College Football, a man who's blind in one eye scratching a Batman logo into a scratch off lottery ticket, Ben Affleck taking a shower, and a whole bunch of stuff that goes to show more of the WHATs of Lex's plan, but little to no more of the WHYs and HOWs.

And sweet damn, even though I know it's a dream now, the Knightmare sequence is a ridiculous abomination.

At least, that's the first 90 minutes...I need to take a break before finishing this POS.

[Dr Kain]

[jellydonut25]

I finished it.

This movie is HORRID. I WANT to like it so much, because I think Cavill COULD be a good Superman, if he were allowed to BE SUPERMAN, and Affleck plays a good Batman, even if the script ruins him and turns him into a murderous buffoon who ignores facts and wants to murder for his "legacy"

We ultimately tie up a COUPLE of the movie's loose ends, but we still are left wondering why our heroes ever had to fight in this storyline. Why can't they just say, "Hey, this guy who's a psychotic jerk wants to kill my mom. Let's get him together." ? How did Luthor know any of the things he knows, and what the hell is really the whole POINT of the Holly Hunter storyline if it's just gonna get steamrolled by the whole Doomsday thing? Why did Luthor create Doomsday? Why is the Knightmare sequence horrible? Why is the Kevin Costner cameo even worse? Where does half the dialogue even come from? Seriously, when I first saw the movie, I thought that the dialogue was just there because it was trailer material and "sounded cool" and then I heard about the extended cut and thought, "Well, maybe it will make more sense in context," but it really doesn't. Lines like "Do you bleed? You will." and "Day vs. Knight" or whatever the hell it is Luthor says still come out of nowhere for no good reason. Particularly egregious there is the "Is she with you? I thought she was with you!" exchange. Hey Batman. You JUST e-mailed her. Like, two hours ago (according to the movie-verse time). You already forgot about this person? Also, the big problem of Lois knowing what the Kryptonite spear is, and that Doomsday is Zod and that the spear will work on him still remains (plus Superman forgetting that spears are designed to be THROWN).

If anything, this cut is worse, honestly, because it gives our heroes MORE information (the heroes, not just the viewers) for them to completely ignore all in service of having Batman and Superman fight for the worst possible reason...and become friends for a reason so bad, it's not even possible; I still think it's some kind of a joke. Eisenberg's performance is still an atrocious pile of crap as well.

Batman v Superman is one of the very worst superhero movies of the past 10 years...hell, it's one of the very worst movies of 2016 period. And that makes me sad, because I liked Man of Steel and would like nothing more than a series with a different flavor than the MCU.

Beyond that, I absolutely hate its cynicism. This is an UGLY (in terms of its general viewpoint on humanity) movie, and to come from a genre that's supposed to be about bringing out the BEST in people and ideals people should want to aspire to, it's sickening. I'd say the movie could use another few passes at the script to tighten up all the plot holes and poor dialogue and whatnot, but it's broken at its very core and general viewpoint.

[Dr Kain]

I can't agree with it being one of the worst super hero movies ever. That would put it on the same level as Jonah Hex, Elektra, Catwoman, and Batman & Robin and Ben Affleck and Jeremy Irons do such a great job that they clearly cared about the film unlike the yahoos in those other movies. As for worst movie of 2016, not even close. The Boy, Gods of Egypt, and Independence Day 2 were worse. Maybe even X-Men Apocalypse was worse. Plus, we still have Ghostbusters, Ben Hur, Suicide Squad, Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, and Ice Age 4 coming out this year.

Not to mention I bet Alice in Wonderland 2, Fifty Shades of Black, and Tarzan are way worse.

[jellydonut25]

Apocalypse was so much better than this rampant pile of human excrement it's not even remotely close.

[Dr Kain]

[jellydonut25]

[Hybrid Gojira]

The Lobster - So I really wanted to like this movie...but halfway through, I felt like it was dragging so much I ended up taking a nap instead. I rarely leave movies unfinished, but the first half of the movie literally felt like 3 hours. Zzzzzzzzzzz.

[Dr Kain]

[Hybrid Gojira]

[lhb412]

The Warriors

Really liked this movie. At a meeting of all the major gangs in NYC the leader of the most powerful gang is assassinated. Our heroes, The Warriors, are framed for it and have to fight (and run and catch a bunch of trains) all the way from the Bronx back to their home turf of Coney Island. Stylishly directed, moody electronic score, and an utterly fantastical version of gang life drawn as much from comics and myth as from anything approaching reality.

... but the biggest revelation this movie brought, for me personally, is now I see that it was an enormous influence on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990)! The entire visual aesthetic of this underground world of tunnels and back alleys, some specific shots and scenes are almost replicated, and the film's version of the Foot Clan seems to be heavily based on the gangs in The Warriors.

[jellydonut25]

[jellydonut25]

Gods of Egypt- HORRIBLE but in a really stupid dumb fun entertaining way. I could laugh at it.