Recently watched movies!

[Dr Kain]

Yep, Man-Ape was awesome!!!! Shuri was also awesome. Hell, the entire cast was awesome. There was not one bad character in the movie at all.

[jellydonut25]

[canofhumdingers]

That's a very solid judgement. I don't regret seeing it in the theater (especially since it was a $5 matinee in really nice lounging recliners), but it's one that I definitely would not have been disappointed if I'd waited to watch it at home. (Unlike, say, Doctor Strange where I did wait for home video and then really wished I had seen it on the biggest screen possible because of the wild visuals.... still regret that one...)

[Dr Kain]

[lhb412]

[jellydonut25]

[Dr Kain]

Not even close. Nothing beats seeing the movie with a crowd of people who are enjoying or hating the movie as much as you.

[canofhumdingers]

Gotta (kinda) side with Kain, JD. Sounds like you’re just going to the wrong theaters. I love the cinemark near me. The XD screen in particular is really nice (enormous screen, 4K, luxury recliners, amazing sound) but even the regular audtoriums there beat the pants of any home theater I’ve ever seen. I’ve never had a problem hearing movies from adjacent screens in my auditorium. And the crowds there have never been an issue (always courteous and well behaved during the show) when I’m there on a busy night, but I DO usually go to the early bird matinees during the week whenever possible.

Now,I agree that not every movie needs to be seen in the theater (and while I might be in the minority here at MZ, I think you’re safe skipping the theatrical show of Black Panther) but I still think it’s totally worthwhile for movies you really care about.

And don’t even get me started on premium theater experiences like the IMAX Laser in Austin, or the amazingly restored 1920’s Heights Theater outside Minneapolis, MN*...





*oh how much I miss the Heights Theater!! I saw King Kong, Forbidden Planet, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, and SO many more classic films there, all on 35mm!! In a flipping 1926 movie theater with curtains, chandeliers, and a Wurlitzer organ played before the films! Ugh! It was such a dream!

[lhb412]

Get Out

I like to think that one day the thought came to Jordan Peele that the creepiest thing would be young black people acting like old white people and he should build a movie around that.

[klen7]

Mute - really wanted to like this, I don't expect to watch it again. If it weren't for the director I may not have finished it. Normally I can put my finger on one or two things to tweak in order to improve a movie in my estimation, but here I don't think there's much I would want to see more of. In a lot of ways Southland Tales is to Donnie Darko as Mute is to Moon. It's really hard to picture this coming from the same creative voice, there's a lot there, but the story doesn't justify the world

[lhb412]

The Dark Crystal

So cool seeing this in the theater after seeing so many of the puppets and props at the Henson exhibit last summer.

[jellydonut25]

[klen7]

^ I haven't seen any of the reviews, but go rewatch Strange Days or Blade Runner if you want a sci-fi mystery noir.

[klen7]

Stake Land II: Stakelander - it feels like its been 10 years since i saw the first Stake Land film, but i recall it being a bit of a gem of a horror flick. The sequel is fine, does some more world building, certainly more enjoyable than most of the post-apocalyptic stuff i've seen lately. If you liked the first one check it out.

[jellydonut25]

[klen7]

^ i admittedly haven't seen Stake Land in a while, not sure what I would have added to expand the world vs just exploring it a bit more or what i would recommend for a third film.

Revisited a few flicks that I have been wanting to rewatch lately
The Great Yokai War - tonally this film is all over the place - by most accounts it's a children's film, but it earns it's PG-13 rating with scary imagery and violence. This is the first time i've seen the film since I had started reading a lot of Shigeru Mizuki's yokai mangas, so while the darkness feels at home with the 60s films, i would love to see something lighter done (a la Spirited Away) in a live action tokusatsu style. Oddly enough David Marti, a spanish SFX artist that works with Guillermo Del Toro and has designed some of the iconic creatures (Crimson Peak, Pan's Labyrinth, Hellboy II, Devil's Backbone, etc) posted a picture last week of a Shigeru Mizuki yokai book with the hashtag #projects - which got me daydreaming about a GDT yokai film.

Gods of Egypt - I love this film. This feels like the spiritual sequel to the Harryhausen style movies I grew up (rather than the new Titans movies) - The art direction is fantastic and they whole heartedly embrace all forms of things that most film makers would have avoided for budget and realism concerns. Some of the dialogue is a bit cheap, but the amount of effort they put into all the effects, backgrounds, and mythology make it all ok.

[Dr Kain]

Funny how a movie about racism was refused to be watched by the white people running the academy.

http://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3486 ... scar-film/

[lhb412]

[klen7]

Saw Black Panther today, it was a refreshing change from the standard Marvel formula (aside from one forced comedic moment that kind of broke the tone of the film at critical point) - But add me to the last that is glad i saw this one in the theater. Definitely liked this better than Spider-man and Civil War. This movie feels tonally more like Winter Soldier, which is a good thing - I did find it distracting that they seemed to use the same set/location of the Macau casino in Skyfall for the casino in Korea - not sure why would use something so visually unique that was already in worldwide blockbuster

[canofhumdingers]

[Dr Kain]

Civil War is not an Avengers film. It may feature other characters, but the core of the story is finishing what Winter Soldier started.

Black Panther was definitely a break from the norm though. It was just like Winter Soldier in that it was a political thriller first, with elements of a spy movie, and a super hero movie third.

[jellydonut25]

Civil War is a hot mess.

[Dr Kain]

[jellydonut25]

[klen7]

^ As far as climactic battles goes GOTG2 was right up there with Ultron - kind of knocked the movie down a notch for me.