Last Film Watched Thread.

Forrest Gump. (rewatch)



It's good, I grew up with this film. But I hate how it mixes fact with fiction. It's like an attempt to make Americans feel good. It just makes my eyes roll and my respect for the film goes down. It's technically outstanding in special effects, editing and score, plus one of my favourite soundtracks due to it being a southern film and thats where my taste is at. Hanks performance is extremely overrated, all it is, is a stupid voice and a blank look. The rest of the flare is in his appearance; haircut, wardrobe etc. What little emotion is shown through him is poorly transfered across the screen (did make my mother cry though). Sinise was much better and I would've given him the Oscar if I didn't love Ed Wood so much. Otherwise its brilliant and inspirational storytelling one where the reason people do or don't like it are the same. Far from best of year though.

Estefan - Bummer that you didn't love Superbad as much as I do, but at least you still liked it. I don't understand why some people think the film runs too long (my dad said the same thing). I think it's too short, if anything. Of course every scene can't be funny, but I think the more dramatic/dry ones are handled perfectly.

Training Day - 10/10



SPOILERS. A phenomenal film featuring the most-deserved Oscar of the decade. Police corruption is a topic that is used numerous times in films to the point of annoyance, but this one makes it much more gritty and realistic than any example I can think of. I'm always a fan of the 'Good v. Evil' scenario and this one employs it perfectly. The polar opposites that the film creates in Alonzo and Hoyt (the former being completely corrupt, the latter being completely pure) are very interesting and the balance between them kept me engaged the entire film. As we watch Hoyt try and understand this new world that he's been thrown into, while still trying to keep his morality and good nature intact, we realize (just like he does) that there is no right or wrong. You have to create a balance, because the line 'It's not what you know, it's what you can prove.' couldn't be more true, so sometimes that's why you have to bend the rules in order to bring the bad guys done. The ending is one of my all time favorites, as Hoyt leaves Alonzo to be murdered by the numerous men out to get him because he can't arrest him and he can't kill him himself. Brilliant. Both of the lead performances are excellent, and Denzel's win was fully deserved. His charisma and the fact that his character was so against his normal 'good guy' type made for such an interesting and ethereal portrayal of one of my favorite characters. The only thing that I wasn't a fan of was the huge coincidence that the girl Hoyt randomly saved from being raped just happened to be the cousin of the man who was about to kill him. I found that insanely dumb, but it didn't affect my opinion on the film at all.

Excellent, Mitch. Training Day is one of the greatest cop dramas ever. I'm so glad you enjoyed it.

Wings of Desire. Wim Wenders is an excellent director because he has the talent to really make the viewer feel the same way the characters do, whether they are happy or sad or excited or tired, etc. This definitely applies with his film Wings Of Desire. Not very often do I really get emotionally and mentally absorbed into a film like I did with this film, which values the innocence and the values of children while adults are portrayed as troubled, anxious, apprehensive. The stark cinematography and wonderful shots of cold, sterile Berlin provide some reasoning for the angels' feelings of loneliness and the desire to be human, to feel and to be felt. Bruno Ganz gives a very excellent performance and provides so much emotion through just a simple facial expression or gesture. I loved the film and I am considering putting it into my top ten. Definitely worth watching.

An American Werewolf In London (1981) 9/10



Don't worry, Jack. I'll give a full post of thoughts tomorrow.

That ain't a 10 .

Dr_Mulholland wrote:

Wings of Desire. Wim Wenders is an excellent director because he has the talent to really make the viewer feel the same way the characters do, whether they are happy or sad or excited or tired, etc. This definitely applies with his film Wings Of Desire. Not very often do I really get emotionally and mentally absorbed into a film like I did with this film, which values the innocence and the values of children while adults are portrayed as troubled, anxious, apprehensive. The stark cinematography and wonderful shots of cold, sterile Berlin provide some reasoning for the angels' feelings of loneliness and the desire to be human, to feel and to be felt. Bruno Ganz gives a very excellent performance and provides so much emotion through just a simple facial expression or gesture. I loved the film and I am considering putting it into my top ten. Definitely worth watching.

I'm so incredibly hyped for that film.

Re-watch: City Lights - 10/10



A film that stands proudly in my top five, City Light is certainly the most heartwarming comedy I have ever seen. Chaplin is tremendously funny and heartbreaking in the film, proving that he is one of the greatest actors ever. His direction is also superb, as is his script. Everything about the film is perfect, including that incredible ending (the best ever, in my opinion).

Hunter wrote:

That ain't a 10 .

No, not quite, is it. I still loved it quite a bit.

**SPOILERS**

It wasn't laugh-out-loud funny, but it was incredibly witty and had charming performances from all the lead characters. It didn't have to have dozens of death scenes and gore galore in order to be a tense, thrilling horror film. It perfectly built the tension in the first hour, with only that one death scene at the beginning. And then in the last half hour, the shit gets wild as our anti-hero begins prowling around London killing anything it comes across. The transformation scene is one of the most outstanding scenes I've ever witnessed. I was completely convinced that David was really turning into a werewolf. It was absolutely stunning (and kind of horrifying). The special effects and make-up were brilliant, even by today's standards. The abrupt ending caught me off guard, and that's why I loved it. It didn't waste a whole bunch of time at the end after David's killed.

Superbad (2007) 10/10



Five times now. Still badass. Nothing to add to my original comments.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007) 8/10



Having read the book since last I saw the movie, I must say that for a book that was originally over 700 pages, they did a real good job of adapting it for the screen, without resorting to making a 10 hour movie. It obviously lacks the same density of the book, but it's still wildly entertaining, contains a mind blowing performance from Alan Rickman (as always), a very exceptional performance from Emma Watson, and a standout performance from Evanna Lynch as Luna Lovegood. Daniel Radcliffe gives his poorest performance in this one, but he doen't ruin the movie. As I pointed out in my opinions of The Goblet of Fire, Dumbledore is sorely miscast. The entire Department Of Mysteries sequence was in 3D, and was completely mind-blowing.

I personally thought that Order of the Phoenix was not that well adapted. I felt it was almost like the director/screenwriter were trying to condense too much of the book into a two-hour film (e.g. the swirling newspapers, which kind of irritated me).

The entire fight at the end of Order is some of the most extraordinary visual work I've ever seen on film, as was the Azkaban breakout scene. I'm mad that you didn't talk about Helena Bonham Carter though. She delivered my favorite performance of the film/franchise and one of the best performances of the year so far. Evanna Lynch was also absolutely incredible, in one of the best casting decisions I've ever seen.

Hell, I forgot all about Helena Bonham Carter. Yes, I do think her performance is brilliant despite it's shortness. She played the character exactly how I pictured her in the book. The glint in her eyes throughout every one of her scenes was worth the price of admition. Can't believe I forgot to mention her when talking about the performances.

I personally thought Imelda Staunton gave the best performance in the film, but Lynch and Carter were great as well.

Re-watch: Star Wars Episode I - The Phantom Menace - 6/10



While the fight scenes and special effects are certainly well done and there are some entertaining parts in this film, it suffers because it lacks something key that the original trilogy excelled in: story and interesting characters. This film is merely a way of showing a younger Darth Vader with the rest being merely fluff that will hardly impact the rest of the series. The fact that Jake Lloyd gives a bad performance as Anakin doesn't help matters either.

The only actor who isn't bad in this film is Natalie Portman, as even McGregor isn't that good in this film (although I thought he was great in Revenge of the Sith). The worst part of this film, though, is Jar Jar Binks who is quite possibly the worst creation ILM has ever done. The only time Jar Jar Binks wasn't a waste of space was in that Robot Chicken Star Wars sketch.

And can somebody please tell me what fart and feces jokes are doing in a Star Wars film?!?

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001) 7/10



This film did a good job of establishing the setting and tone for the rest of the films. It is the most childish in the series (which is to be expected as the first book is the most childish in the series). But it works, because it feels like the series grows up as the viewer / reader does. The performances from the child actors are mediocre at best, but who cares? It's their first time and they're so young. They do get better. Alan Rickman rules as always. The special effects aren't the greatest in this one, but like I said earilier, this film was mostly meant to establish the setting.

The Triplets of Belleville (Sylvain Chomet, 2003) 10/10



This is a brilliant cartoon, unlike most I've ever seen. The animation is gorgeous, and even though there's just about zero dialogue, the story is well-told. The theme song "Belleville Rendez-Vous" is catchy and awesome.

I agree with you, The Triplets of Belleville is a fantastic animation film, and I used to love it. I really need to rewatch it.

Yeah, that was a very charming movie. I should also rewatch it.

Knocked Up.



Works on all levels (comedy, drama etc). To be honest I was surprised what a quality film this was. I loved how it mixed current pop culture with its fiction. It had excellent and watchable structure which made it superior to The 40 Year Old Virgin in every way. Brilliant performances all round, of which I'd nominate for Oscars (Heigl delivering the best performance and being the hottest). Now my #2 of the year. Can't wait for Superbad.
Rating: 8.5


(Sorry for keeping it massively brief).

The Puppetmaster (Hsiao Hsien-Hou, 1993)

The Lion King (1994) 10/10



Greatest Disney movie of all time, and probably one of the last great Disney films ever. Unlike most kids films nowadays, The Lion King doesn't resort to cheap humor and silly jokes to keep all viewers entertained. It's got very amusing dialogue, and has a deeper plotline than most, with the main theme being pride and respect. The highlight of the movie though, is the villain, Scar, voiced brilliantly by Jeremy Irons. He's cruel, he's witty, he's ruthless. Hell, if he were a live action character, I could picture him as a Die Hard villain. #12 in my top 100.

The second half of Knocked Up sucks so incredibly hard that I don't know what. I felt like I was watching Mad About You towards the end

Where did the half way mark start for you (which scene)?

There came a time when I noticed that there hadn't been a single fun scene for like 10 minutes. I hang on... waiting for some humour.... waiting... waiting... started becoming worried... *twenty minutes pass*... threw up after realizing that they had run out of funnies... started to feel as if I was watching Friends more and more... stops watching with like 15 minutes to go.

Rebel Without A Cause (1955) 10/10



Wow. Just... wow. Perfect depiction of high school life in that era. James Dean gives a charismatic and wholly brilliant performance as the anti-hero Jim Stark. Natalie Wood is equally strong as the girl who's attracted to trouble, but in the end is looking for someone as sincere as Dean. Both characters come from troubled families and are looking for a place society and finding it in each other. Along for the ride is Plato, a disturbed young child looking for family and finding it in our two protagonists. Anyone who's ever had trouble fitting in at school or at home will be able to empathize with the characters in this movie. The stunning performances and situations are what seperate this from any other film of this genre.

Knocked Up review - http://imdb.com/title/tt0478311/usercomments-268

The Piano - 7/10



The story is interesting and the performances are very good (especially Anna Paquin), plus I can't fault the costumes, makeup, score and camera work. It's a good film, but the middle act is kind of dull and boring. The first and third acts had me interested, but not the second act which came off as boring and with nothing interesting to show or say. But, nonetheless, it's a good film, I just won't be re-watching as much as other films in my collection.

Re-watch: Good Will Hunting - 8/10



Ben Affleck and Matt Damon both wrote this great script and along with a very good direction from Gus Van Sant and a good ensemble, they created a great film. The best and most entertaining scenes come oddly enough with the therapy scenes between Damon and Robin Williams, as they both show a great chemistry among one another. I also particularly liked the interactions between Damon and his group of friends (Casey Affleck is especially a hoot). However, while Minnie Driver gives a great performance in the film, the romantic scenes provide some of the film's more cliched moments. Nonetheless, this is a film that I continue to enjoy and I eagerly await the next script Affleck and Damon will co-write together.