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A Quiet Place - 2.5 out 5. It could have easily been 4 out of 5 but there were wayyyyy too many plot holes and unexplained situations; especially for how short and simple the movie was. The fact that the wife was pregnant blew the whole thing for me. How in the world could they ever survive with an infant? And for some reason the creatures kept showing up even when everyone was quiet. The movie annoyed me as much as it scared me.
Isle of Dogs. Outstanding.
Yes. May deserve it's own thread. A very unique movie experience. Brilliant.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bobby Stainless
I agree.Quote:
Originally Posted by Benny Profane
I'm not gonna start the thread, but agreeing with BF might go in the Week In Review thread.
I mean, seriously, what kind of idiot drives a nail into a stairtread facing up? Boooo.
Sent from my XP7700 using TGR Forums mobile app
...... or puts a wad of chewing gum on the airplane treadmill belt?!?!?!?! The horror!
wait .....
What?
Rampage: mildly pleasant afternoon's entertainment
Sooper Fuckin Troopers, brah!
Hilarious!
Infinity War, see it soon and don't left anyone around you talk about it before you see it
YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE
3.5/5
Interesting film in that the story (based on a short novel by Jonathan Ames of Bored To Death fame) is pretty cliche: down-on-his-luck/sad sack/mentally debateable hit man hired for a job only to have said job go sideways forcing him to get hellbet for revenge (for some reason it reminded me a lot of several of Burt Reynolds’ late ‘80s flix).
A lot of critics have been tossing around comparisons to Taxi Driver, which I don't really get other than for the slow pacing and somewhat delirious/hallucinatory/frenetic nature of the film, but other than that I think the critics who keep comparing the two are off-the-mark.
I have to admit that I was alternately frustrated and enthralled by the film; the cliched story was annoying, but then something cool would happen out of the blue or something visually stunning would grace the screen and make you forget that it is more or less an artsy B-movie. Also, it never really struck the right balance between seriousness and satire; it kind of drifted along with this detached sense of deadpan sarcasm buried underneath a sense of overwhelming pretense (to this end, I read a great review that characterizes the film as “artsploitation” and I would agree).
I will say that Joaquin Phoenix is a powerhouse and the violence is artfully filmed. Some great cinematography, lots of uncomfortable close-ups, and some interesting sound-design (lots of background talking, whispers, etc). Great score from Jonny Greenwood (Radiohead), too.
I really dug the ending, though. It was both absurd and poignant
Again, I was kind of on the fence as the film unraveled, but then I ruminated on it for the entire 1.5 hour drive home from the theater, so it definitely resonates post-viewing.
I would say that it owes more to Leon: The Professional and Drive than anything else, honestly. And of course a spate of low-budget ‘80s flicks. Also reminded me a lot of the French neo-noir films of Melville.
In many ways it might be worth a second viewing, too.
I was puttering around YouTube just now and this popped up as an ad attached to the video I had been searching.
WHOA.
Hotel Artemis
REVENGE
3.75 / 5
A typically cliched rape-and-revenge film is taken to over-the-top “high brow” heights culminating in what could be the most gonzo artsploitation flick of the year. Glossy, chromatically enhanced neon cinematography, religious visual motifs, and a wickedly subdued sense of humor help elevate this from your typical “I’ve seen this before” fare. The fact that about 70% of the film is in French (with English subtitles) further lends the affair an “exotic” feel, but the addition of solid acting is what really helps it rise above the standard exploitation parameters. The pulsing electro score adds immensely in terms of creating tension and, often, an unnerving sense of anticipation; the slick pacing, which often emmulates the kinetic music, doesn’t hurt either. But ultimately it’s the little things that resonate: there’s a wonderful scene where one of the antagonists is stuffing his mouth with chewy, gooey Euro candy; it’s pure gluttony. There’s a peyote infused cauterizing beercan segment that culminates with some incredibly wry satire. There’s a super cheesy motorcycle action sequence that brings low-budget to artistic levels. And, finally, there’s the cat & mouse ending that is as brilliant and claustrophobically intense as it is absurd. So, yeah, you probably have seen the skeletal remains of this story numerous times before in films like I Spit On Your Grave or Last House on the Left (and countless other exploitive nasties), but if you push those remembrances aside and embrace Revenge’s sly humor (I mean, c’mon, the title of the film alone says it all) and mesmerizing visual slickness and, most importantly of all, wink along with writer/director Coralie Fargea as she lovingly blurs the lines between art and exploitation, then this is a wickedly fun romp with resonating philosophical and sociologial undertones.
RIYL
The Guest; You're Next; Irreversible; Switchblade Romance (aka Haute Tension)
black panther, rented. stoked to watch it later
HOLY F.
This looks like a GWAR concert sodomizing The Muppet Show...
I just hope they didn't blow their wad (literally) in the trailer.
Really, really not a fan of Melissa McCarthy. *shudder
But the rest of that looks funny as fuck.
Deadpool 2 was every bit as good as the first.
That looks fucking hilarious....Quote:
Originally Posted by dookey67
SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY
3.5 / 5
Takeaways:
1. Chewbacca makes the movie
2.Thandie Newton's afro kicks ass
3. I would pay to see a Lando flick with Donald Glover
Watched this, what a fucking train wreck. Shit movie with shit acting and shit story line. How people like it is beyond me.Quote:
Originally Posted by willywhit
OMFG! Can’t wait to watch this. Laughed my ass off!Quote:
Originally Posted by dookey67
Really? I don’t get that. I thought it was great. Though I saw it without knowing much about it and before the hype train really started rolling.Quote:
Originally Posted by 2FUNKY
https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/enterta...-arts-44263925Quote:
Originally Posted by dookey67
Sesame Street sues over violent, puppet-based Happytime Murders film
Jesus.
Tom Cruise in Jack Reacharound 2: Never Go Back just hit Netflix.
Who keeps making these turds.
Tom may be clear, but he sure looks old and puffy, and he still hasn't learned how to act.
UPGRADE
3.5 . / 5
Imagine a William Gibson cyber-thriller jacked up on crystal meth.
Or, if you prefer, Ex Machina dumbed down and augmented with brutal bone-crushing action.
Whatever your take, Upgrade is a surprisingly good, fuel-injected spin on ‘80s action films touched with a slight, malevolently humorous nod to Kubrick/Clarke's 2001 for good measure.
Brought to you by Leigh Whannell, who is best known for writing Saw, Saw II, Saw III, and the Insidious franchise (he directed Chapter 3, fwiw), this flick is sufficiently stuffed with adreneline-soaked pacing and a plethora of red herrings to keep your mind just enough off-kilter for the twist ending.
The story, while following a pretty basic revenge motif, is coated in enough glossy sheen as to feel almost new. And there are a few welcome surprises, too. At one point when it seems as if a serious plothole has been exposed, BOOM!, it’s immediately dealt with in a creative and logical way (something that cannot be said of the numerous plotholes in the over-hyped A Quiet Place). As I mentioned, the numerous red herrings and whip-quick pacing help the film immensely, so much so that the ending was a minor surprise, just enough to be gratifying and not leave the viewer feeling cheated. Hell, I’m usually pretty good at figuring out these kind of films and I have to admit that I found myself misdirected on a few occasions. Again, I chock this up to the pacing and insanely kinetic action sequences..
If the film has any shortcomings they arise in the form of pretty typical, one-dimensional characters: the luddite living in the modern world; the obligatory ex-military baddies; the clueless police detective who can’t solve her case, but stumbles blindly into another, more deadly one; the anti-social computer genius... Additionally, some of the dialogue is stilted and, well, cheesy. And then there’s our leading man, Logan Marshall-Green, who, unfortuneately by no fault of his own, is a dead-ringer for Tom Hardy, if he were anorexic (fwiw, the awkward computer genius Ehron, portrayed by Harrison Gilbertson, comes off like a poor-man’s Jared Leto). I honestly found it off-putting how much Morgan-Green resembles Hardy and have to think that it might not be the greatest thing for his career (remember what happend to Johnny Depp “look-alike” Skeet Ulrich? Yeah, me neither).
Bad dialogue and dopplegangers aside, Upgrade is a solid B-movie with bristling action sequences and cool production design swathed in a slick blitz of industrial cyber-glaze.
RIYL:
Johnny Mnemonic; The Guest; Terminator; John Wick
'I'm a fucking ninja'Quote:
Originally Posted by dookey67
Class
Saw both Hotel Artemis and Upgrade in the last 5 days: mildly disappointed in HA, but was pleasantly surprised by Upgrade. If you have to choose between the two, definitely go Upgrade.