Recently watched movies!

[sentaison]

Just watched Warm Bodies. My best friends wife wanted to see it and since our normal RPG group were MIA tonight we made it a movie night. I really wasn't looking forward to this. I'm not a big zombie movie fan and a "zombie chick flick" did not fit the bill with me for a pleasant nights viewing.

I WAS WRONG!!!!!!

This was a funny, well written, well acted movie. I actually felt pretty good at the end of it, the story fit together well, I liked both of the lead actors, and the supporting cast (including John Malkovich) were all great. It was heartwarming without being saccharin sweet. It was just an all around good movie. One I would enjoy seeing again before too long.

[jellydonut25]

Really liked Warm Bodies. I thought it was pretty funny.

[sentaison]

I was sold on this movie right at the opening scenes. R's internal monologue on being a zombie, as well as his comments to himself throughout the film, were the right level of funny. I laughed out loud more than once.

One of my favorite lines, as he is trying to become friends with Julie, "Don't be creepy. Don't be creepy". Hard enough to do as a normal teenage boy, but add in the zombie factor!

[lhb412]

Abbot and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff

Some pretty okay gags, and not enough Karloff (as promised in the title), not the great mash-up Meet Frankenstein is.

[jellydonut25]

For a Few Dollars More - probably the weakest of the "dollars trilogy" it lacks the punch and power of Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and is a little too long unlike Fistful to really have a ton of fun with it.

It's still a good, classic Western, I just think it pales next to its brethren.

[klen7]

^ That sums up my feelings on that movie pretty well. The last time i tried to watch it, i stopped it and put in Fistful instead.

[eabaker]

For a Few Dollars More was my least-favorite when I first saw those movies, but it steadily grew on me with repeat viewing, to the point that I have long considered it superior to Fistful. I love the relationships among all the lead characters, Van Cleef's charisma is breathtaking at times, the score may be my favorite of any Leone movie, the plot is cleverly constructed, I feel like Leone's directorial hand is much more sure than it was on the prior film, and the duels are the most tense and emotionally charged of any Leone ever directed - in fact, overall I consider this the most emotionally motivated of any of his Westerns. It doesn't have the absolute majesty of the two films that followed it, but it has a wonderful intermingling of the stylized and the raw and brutal.

[Dr Kain]

I actually like For a Few Dollars More the best of the trilogy thanks to Lee Van Cleef. He was down right awesome in this movie and then it just felt off with him playing a different guy in TGTBTU even though he also knew Eastwood's character.

[lhb412]

^I like that Cleef got to play two wildly different characters in the trilogy. They were both great, but I prefer 'The Man in Black' over 'The Bad.'

[eabaker]

[lhb412]

^See also: Zatoichi movies, Marx Bros. movies, Three Stooges shorts...

Always cool.

[jellydonut25]

Jack the Giant Slayer - BOOOOOOO.

Ugh. Pretty bad. I'd have a litany of complaints if I cared enough about this movie to really get into it, but instead, I'll just merely ask: why was one of the heads on the giant with two heads retarded?
as bad a decision as (if not worse than) Peter Jackson smearing bird sh*t on the face of the one wizard in The Hobbit.

[lhb412]

Gorgo

I haven't seen this in forever. Not the best giant monster movie, but a fun one with a brilliant central idea. There are also some fantastic visuals. The one thing I didn't like: the movie is pretty short and compact (which I like), but there are still a few sequences (mainly involving the un-artful insertion of stock footage or the repetition of the same special effect over and over) that feel like they go one forever when you're watching it.

[lhb412]

B-Movie Day!

The Neanderthal Man

Utterly standard cheap-o mad scientist monster movie from the drive-in days. Particularly bad monster costume, and only a tiny part for Beverly Garland (boo! hiss!). That guy who played Rocky Jones, Space Ranger comes off as slightly less of a jerk here.

The Amazing Transparent Man

More mad science, this with a movie that's half cheap sci-fi/half cheap escaped prisoner yarn. Neither aspect is particularly memorable.

Konga

Konga himself and the storyline may be crap, but some wonderful, often hammy acting from Michael Gough and vivid technicolor make it watchable. Hardly any effort at all was spent on the kaiju aspect (the last fifteen minutes of the film), I'm sure disappointing many moviegoers back in the day lured in by the wonderful poster of a massive Konga towering over buildings.

[eabaker]

Watched the 2009 BBC version of Wuthering Heights over the weekend. The "first generation" story was pretty well told, and Tom Hardy was quite good as Heathcliff (even if he's far too Anglo-Saxon - there's really no discernable Romani in that guy), but they absolutely bungled the "second generation" portions, whichr esulted in the whole thing feeling kinda pointless.

[lhb412]

Yongary

On it's own it's a rather bland, standard, off-brand kaiju - only essential to weirdos who get all misty-eyed whenever we see a costumed performer lumbering through a miniature city (of which I'm one), but as a cultural artifact it's fascinating!

[lhb412]

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein

Couldn't resist dipping into the Universal Monsters a little before October. What is there to say? Had the comic elements been removed it still would be way better than all the 'monster team-up' movies made in the previous few years, and as for the comic bits - well, it's the best and funniest stuff I've seen from Abbott and Costello (I've seen far too few of there films, though).

[Dr Kain]

The Fog - This movie was quite enjoyable. It was suspenseful. It had music that really built up the tension (as other Carpenter movies do). And it was simplistic, yet, held some layers to its plot. The only thing I did not like about it was how pointless Jamie Lee Curtis' character was, but outside of that, this movie rocked. I also loved how they executed the ghosts without over doing it. Very enjoyable and I am glad to have bought it. Easily an 8/10.

[XvGojira]

[eabaker]

[Dr Kain]

[lhb412]

[O.Supreme]

couple of Red box rentals-

GI:Joe Retaliation- as an action flick, not bad. As a GI:Joe flick--terrible!, basically captures little to zero of the feel of the 80's show I grew up with. Also I still hate that they scrapped most of the cast from the first film without explanation

Oblivion- an odd little sci-fi film, but it wasn't terrible, I don't regret spending 1.00 at the red box for it

[jellydonut25]

[XvGojira]

Finally saw The World's End, and I loved it. While it wasn't the funniest of the Cornetto Trilogy, it feels like it was the deepest of the three. I'm not saying it wasn't funny, it was hilarious, but the laughs per minute weren't as high. It was also the darkest of the three as well, I feel, especially with how it ended. Although I'd love a sequel with the further adventures of Gary King.