Recently watched movies!

[XvGojira]

Went to the drive with my gal last night. Caught a double feature of Trainwreck and Jurassic World. JW, still so much fun.

Trainwreck was alright. It had some good laughs but it seemed like there was a lot of emptiness to it. Partly to try and add to the awkwardness of things but it almost seemed like they filmed it with a laugh track at times but took it out at the last minute. Great cameos by John Cena (I never realized he has such a wide mouth as he does, and for you wrestling fans you get some good shots of his ass and him with nothing but a towel on his dongle), Lebron James, and Matthew Broderick as himself out of nowhere for like 2 lines. Also it makes me feel old that Collin Quinn is playing a elderly grandfather in an old folks home.

[lhb412]

^Well, isn't Colin supposed to be the age he is now (mid 50s) in the opening flashback and playing much older in the film's present day?

[klen7]

Finally saw World War Z and was shocked that this didn't get slaughtered by the critics. I am hard pressed to think of another film with so many plot conveniences.

[XvGojira]

[Benjamin Haines]

[Dr Kain]

Ant-Man - I walked into this movie with very low expectations considering it is Ant-Man and came out immensely impressed. It feels like watching the first Iron Man movie all over again. It was fun, had some really great character moments, and the action was well done. It didn't try to do too much, but it does have some flaws (specifically a relationship moment between Hank and his daughter). There are some down right hilarious pieces as the comedy was perfect. It is definitely worth its 8/10 stars. Finally, there are scenes during and after the credits, so don't go anywhere.

[Dr Kain]

We went to see Double Indemnity in theaters today, it was amazing to see on the big screen. Nothing more I can say about the movie that I hadn't said in the past. A 9/10.

The Blob - This was my first time seeing this thing and it was quite enjoyable. The audio seemed pretty awful in the beginning of the movie, which was quite distracting, but after about 10 minutes it was fine. The effects were pretty good for something from the videos, especially when dealing with the Blob itself. The characters weren't exactly the greatest though, but they were good enough because they weren't there just to die. Overall, I give it a 7/10 as it is a pretty solid film. Now I'm curious to see the remake, but Netflix and my library don't have it, which sucks.

[jellydonut25]

The remake is awesomesauce.


I watched Creep last night, new movie that's on Netflix right now. It's a pretty decent little horror flick that actually has a REASON for the found-footage aspect (the premise is that the main character hires a videographer to catalog some last moments and final thoughts as he's about to die from cancer, so the videographer is filming all this stuff because he's been paid), and a couple solidly spooky moments. The end is...well, not BAD, but the movie doesn't know when to do itself a favor and just end, and the end goes on too long.

[Dr Kain]

Shadow of a Doubt - This movie was even better the second time around and is just so damn good. Hitchcock does a phenomenal job of keeping you at the edge of your seat as to whether or not Charlie is going to kill his niece, Other Charlie (who names a girl Charlie in the real world???). There is so much build up to everything going on that the movie moves by a such a fast pace and I can definitely see what it was Hitchcock's favorite. I think I gave the movie a 7/10 the first time I saw it, but I am now upgrading that to an 8.

[lhb412]

3:10 to Yuma (1957)

This is a really engrossing western. Not a lot of action, but the film doesn't want for it. I like how, despite moments of real cruelty, there's a warm, human core to the story. I'm also a sucker for a film having a theme song and then using variations of that song as the music for the entire film.

[Dr Kain]

The Blob remake - We decided to just spend the $4 to watch it off Amazon (I hate spending money for streaming rentals since you don't get any bonus features and only have it for 24 hours) and it was... very 80s. For a remake, it wasn't bad. I liked that they did their own thing with it, but man, did they really need to up the body count four times and make it four times as gruesome? Come to think of it, it felt more like a slasher movie than a monster movie like the original was. Unfortunately, unlike the original, the characters were here just to die, which kind of sucked because the character development was quite lackluster. The effects were pretty good though but the twist about the blob's origins lowered the movie into the realms of being generic. Nevertheless, it was an entertaining movie, albeit pointless. However, there are far worse remakes out there. I give it a 7/10 stars.

[MekaGojira3k]

Ted 2 - Eh, unnecessary and while I don't loathe it, I feel like Ted may be the only McFarlane movie I truly love.

Inside Out - The best original Pixar movie since Wall-E. Really surprised with this one. I had a ton of fun.

Ant-Man - Surprisingly okay. I had fun, and while there were a bit too many shades of the original Iron Man in this, I enjoyed myself.

[jellydonut25]

It Follows - intense, scary, amazingly directed, and when you peel off the top layer of just what is happening directly on the screen, there's a LOT going on underneath. You can draw parallels with some of the obvious sexual stuff that all horror movies to some level or another use like STDs and unexpected pregnancy, but there's also a layer of 'what it means to grow up and become an adult' running underneath. This movie is relentless and chock-full of tension. The director doesn't let you get a chance to feel comfortable, and Maika Monroe is just :swoon:. Like Mad Max: Fury Road, this is another 5/5 movie for me.


What We Do in the Shadows - Holy Hannah. This movie is hilarious. It's like The Office meets Interview with the Vampire. Four vampires live together (Viago, the 18th century 'dandy'; Vladislav, a Vlad the Impaler type character; Petyr, an 8000-year old monstrosity who's like Count Orlock or Barlow; and Deacon, a 19th century bad boy) and shed light on what it's like to be a vampire, and struggle with the addition of a new member to their midst, Nick, who teaches them about technology but is also not a sophisticated as they are.
It's hysterical. They have no reflections so they draw sketches of each other when they are getting ready to go out, they get into Westside Story showdowns with werewolves, they argue about chores...I laughed a TON.

[Dr Kain]

I'll check out It Follows eventually, but I'm not going to hype myself up for it like I did with Babadook since I was disappointed with that movie.

Anyway,

Kiss Me Deadly - What a fantastic movie this was. It had a lot of great characterization even if the main character as an Ahole. There was a lot of creativity going on with it, the cinematography was superb, the locations Mike visited were beautiful to see, it was all an incredible movie. Not to mention it is THE movie that started the box with the shiny mystery to it that has been done in several movies since, which was an unexpected pleasure. The only negatives I can really give the movie is that the pacing does come off a little slow at times. Other than that, another solid Noir film that gets an 8/10.

[lhb412]

^The box is such a brilliantly simple effect. It's been ripped off so many times, but has it ever been so effective as when Hammer cracks it open for just a second and burns his hand? And that hissing sound effect is so awesome!

Grave of the Fireflies

Probably the most beautifully made unbearably sad movie ever.

[Dr Kain]

The Killers - Another fantastic Film Noir that had a lot of characterization going for it even though the secondary main character was dead. It was interesting and the twists and turns it took were unexpected at times, even though they have been copied several times since then. I give this thing either an 8 or a 9/10, not sure yet, but it was excellent from start to finish. I also look forward to checking out the 64 remake since Criterion was gracious enough to put both versions of the movie on the same disc.

[jellydonut25]

[Dr Kain]

[klen7]

i watched the first Sharknado... i really have a hard time with Asylum films, there are so many continuity problems and so much nonsensical logic that it seems like they just dont care, or nobody is actually talking to each other when they are making the movie. I really want to like them because its a campy movie about monsters or sharks, but i just end up wishing the concept and money had been given to a scrappy indie film team who would have put some care into making the movie... thats how james cameron got his start.

[sentaison]

Watched Love, Honor, and Obey a British crime dramedy. Very quirky, with a great cast that ends up where you expect it to, but the path it follows is just plain crazy.

[Dr Kain]

The Killers Remake - Man, this was just terrible. The story was utterly boring beyond redemption and the characters were quite subpar. Everything that made the original movie excellent was wiped away here as if it was a plague upon mankind. The story focuses on the two killers, who, while they had fun moments, were pretty boring characters. In fact, outside of Marvin and Reagan, none of the actors even seemed to be trying, especially the girl, whose romance scenes felt forced and it appeared as if she was uncomfortable with her role. Not to mention her character was flat and was the type who needed to be saved rather than hold her own like Kitty did in the original. Overall, it was a pointless remake that did not need to exist and I'm glad Criterion put it on the same disc as the original because it would have been a waste of money to pay to see it. I give this inferior insult a 4/10 stars.

[Dr Kain]

License to Kill - Not only is Dalton at the top of his game here, but this is by far one of the best Bond movies ever. It has some great action scenes, an excellent score, but it has such a platoon of actors in here than most of the other movies in the franchise. Sanchez is hands down one of the best villains as well because he is a no games sort of guy that is ruthless the way a villain should be. He isn't after world domination, either. The only downside is how happy Felix seems to be at the end considering what happened to him at the beginning of the movie. In the end, this movie gets an 8/10 and it is a shame that Dalton never got to do another Bond movie because he could have truly been something special.

[Tom R VanSlambrouck]

The Rocky Horror Picture Show- Watched this with my friends one of which hadn't seen it before. This is one of those movies you have to watch every once in awhile it's still pretty good. Thankfully the music didn't get stuck in my head this time around like the last time I watched it.

[Benjamin Haines]

[lhb412]

Star Wars

Watching this iconic childhood favorite with adult eyes I've come to an interesting epiphany: the moment where the film really begins to work isn't with the revolutionary special effects, the incredible John Williams score, or the awesome looking spaceships and costumes - it's in the middle section when Luke, Han, and Leia meet on the Death Star and start bickering with each other as they fight for their lives. If that element wasn't there I don't think the film would've attained it's legendary status or become the phenomenon it has.