The Unofficial Ongoing Current Movies in Theaters thread

[bobz]

Yup. I still have my copy of Robot Monster 3D. It’s barely watchable (VHS-NTSC and red-cyan anaglyph being two poor technologies that make each other worse) but I treasure it.

[dookeyXXX]

EVIL DEAD RISE
More like Evil Dead (Should Be) Retired
So, after marathoning all of the various Evil Dead properties save the original short film and the musical, I went and saw the latest reboot/te-imagining.
Meh.
I had high hopes, but they were dashed by a boring story and too much gore for the mindless sake of gore; the sole point of the film seemed to be to out gore all the previous efforts. That said, the practical effects were gonzo good and there is one scene involving a cheese grater that was genuinely unnerving.
The only other interesting moment is a sequence filmed through a front door peephole, which was cool and creative.
Other than those two moments, it’s a pretty generic horror outing that feels more like the direct sequel to the 2013 reboot than actually being part of the Raimi/Campbell outings.
In the end, it just felt like a pointless exercise riding the coattails of the Evil Dead name.

[dookeyXXX]

POLITE SOCIETY
There is a point in this enjoyable little Brit comedy where one character points out that another character is succumbing to a well-worn trope to which said character counterpoints with something along the lines of “there’s a reason tropes are tropes—it’s because they work.”
It’s a snarky self-referential nod to the fact that very little about this film is original and it relies on and embraces too many well-worn tropes to list (it also follows Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey” blueprint to a T).
While it may seem like a mash-up of at least a dozen other films you’ve seen—-to me it was a mixture of Mean Girls, Napoleon Dynamite, Austin Powers, Undercover Brother , and vintage 1980s Jackie Chan. Plus I’d call it a “lass film” (the female equivalent of a Guy Ritchie-esque “lad film”—where it succeeds is in the rapid pacing, fantastic acting, and some pretty decent stunts and action sequences.
In the end it isn’t anything earth shattering, mind you, but it is highly entertaining.

[dookeyXXX]

I have admittedly succumbed to Marvel (and superhero movies in general) malaise, but damn if I ain’t kinda excited for this…

[mcski]

I was resistant to the whole marvel thing but this is the flavor that broke my embargo. Def looking fwd to this one too

[Supermoon]

This is going to be so good.

https://youtu.be/Way9Dexny3w

[dookeyXXX]

BEAU IS AFRAID
I’m not really sure what I just watched.
It might be meant as a fever dream incurred by the titular protagonist. Or perhaps it’s intended to mimic a death dream. It might very well be a cinematic rendition of a really bad drug induced trip. It’s also kind of like a riff on The Odyssey. Take your pick.
If the character portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix is meant to be a mirror of writer/director Ari Aster, well then dude has serious mommy issues and while the film may act as a form of catharsis, he still need several more sessions with his therapist.
As for the genre mash-ups, we go from post-apocalyptic to Misery-esque home bound captivity to grief stricken funeral insanity culminating in a gladiator styled courtroom melee. Oh, and there’s some pseudo Midsummer’s Night Dream action tucked in for good measure.

RIYL
Donnie Darko; Mother!; Jacob’s Ladder

[dookeyXXX]

SISU
Several internet “critics”—I use that term lightly given that at least 90% of folks who review movies professionally these days are nothing more than glorified fanboys/girls with only a passing grasp of cinema history—have compared this Finnish action film to the John Wick series. What they have failed to grasp is that this film is not aping those Keanu Reeves starring vehicles, but rather both are cut from the same cloth, that cloth being the Western. And not any old Western, mind you, but specifically the output of Clint Eastwood. The specters of The Dollars trilogy, as well as Eastwood’s WB output (most notably Hang ‘Em High, Unforgiven, and Pale Rider) hang heavy over writer/director Jalmari Helander’s WWII set endeavor. It also gives a quick nod to Peckinpah’s seminal The Wild Bunch.
So, yeah, this is essentially a Western, albeit taking place in 1944 in the wastelands of Finland and with Nazi’s, tanks, land mines, aeroplanes, and bombs.
While the story is a familiar one, the pacing is whip quick, the violence energetic, sudden, and visceral, and the acting is taut, riding the line between camp and dramatic bravura with deftness and aplomb.
While delivered with a sense of seriousness by all involved, there is also a cartoonish fantasy element burbling underneath, which helps keep things entertaining.
At any rate, here’s what I will say about this film and the latest John Wick exploit: go see this instead.

RIYL
Dead Snow; Shoot ‘Em Up; Crank; Conan the Destroyer

[Grange]

I saw Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 last night and enjoyed it. Walking out of the theater I thought this is how you balance serious or heartfelt moments with comedy in an action film. The balance was much better than Thor Love and Thunder.

[PB]

SISU
Several internet “critics”—I use that term lightly given that at least 90% of folks who review movies professionally these days are nothing more glorified than fanboys/girls with only a passing grasp of cinema history—have compared this Finnish action film to the John Wick series. What they have failed to grasp is that this film is not aping those Keanu Reeves starring vehicles, but rather both are cut from the same cloth, that cloth being the Western. And not any old Western, mind you, but specifically the output of Clint Eastwood. The specters of The Dollars trilogy, as well as Eastwood’s WB output (most notably Hang ‘Em High, The Unforgiven, and Pale Rider) hang heavy over writer/director Jalmari Helander’s WWII set endeavor. It also gives a quick nod to Peckinpah’s seminal The Wild Bunch.
So, yeah, this is essentially a Western, albeit taking place in 1944 in the wastelands of Finland and with Nazi’s, tanks, land mines, aeroplanes, and bombs.
While the story is a familiar one, the pacing is whip quick, the violence energetic, sudden, and visceral, and the acting is taut, riding the line between camp and dramatic bravura with deftness and aplomb.
While delivered with a sense of seriousness by all involved, there is also a cartoonish fantasy element burbling underneath, which helps keep things entertaining.
At any rate, here’s what I will say about this film and the latest John Wick exploit: go see this instead.

RIYL
Dead Snow; Shoot ‘Em Up; Crank; Conan the Destroyer

great review - really looking forward to seeing SISU.
And appreciate the geezer snark re influencers/reviewers!

[dookeyXXX]

Who you callin’ “geezer”?!?!?

Sheeeeet, I’m just a glorified fanboy myself, albeit slightly more educated than some of the nubs passing themselves off as critics these days…

[dookeyXXX]

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3
(or The Life and Times of One Rocket Raccoon)

Holy Fuggin’ Hell Yeah!!!

Gratuitous H.G. Wells homage? Check
Teletubbies visual reference? Check
Nod to the Cthulhu mythos? Check
Nod to Star Wars via Obi Wan Kenobi Force Ghost homage? Check
Howard the Duck appearance? Check
Mal Reynolds cameo? Check
Nods to the original Star Trek by way of Galaxy Quest? Check
More pop culture references and Easter Eggs than you can shake a stick at of which I probably missed 93% of them? Check
Adrian Belew name drop, both in regards to his solo work and King Crimson? Check

And if you don’t cry at least once during this film then you’re an unempathetic douchebag (keep in mind that pretty much every major character in the film cries at some point…)

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, James Gunn should write and direct ALL superhero/comic book movies. The heads at Marvel made a grievous error allowing him to get hired by DC.

[dookeyXXX]

RE: GotGv3:
Totally what Grange said, too!

Walking out of the theater I thought this is how you balance serious or heartfelt moments with comedy in an action film.

[Supermoon]

I was on the fence about this one, but I will definitely make a point to see this now.

The opening of number 2 is one of my favorite Marvel scenes ever

https://youtu.be/Rch0z1tIdlA

[dookeyXXX]

RE: D&D:HAT:

Dungeons and Dragons was good. Don’t know anything about that world but the movie was funny and entertaining, better than expected.

I concur.
I think I played D&D once waaaay back in 8th grade.
And then I played a ton of the videogame Gauntlet at the arcade freshman and sophomore years of college.
Wasn’t much of a fantasy reader, either, but found the film fun in a light and breezy manner.

I saw Dungeons and Dragons the other day. It was dumb, predictable, but entirely entertaining. I laughed the whole time, and the 2.5 hour run time went by very quickly. Go in without any grand expectations and I’m sure you’ll have a good time.

My only complaint is that Vin Diesel didn’t get a cameo since he’s a well known D&D nerd.

Agreed.
I thought the one high profile cameo they did have was lame. Vin woulda been better and more meta given Michelle Rodriguez’s character and the Fast & Furious connection between the two. Such wasted opportunities!

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: HONOR AMONG THIEVES
As mentioned above, the film is silly, but fun.
Many an interwebz pundit has talked about how the filmmakers jacked the Marvel blueprint and if one must succumb to such lazy comparisons, it’s basically Guardians of the Galaxy with swords, sorcerers, and owlbears.
But really, the so-called Marvel cinematic blueprint is nothing more than rigid adherence to Joseph Campbell’s “The Hero’s Journey” and the whole rag-tag team thing has been around in literature and film for decades; Marvel merely refined it for Millennials and GenZ.
But I digress.
This film is the grand epitome of a popcorn blockbuster: simple story, quick pacing, jovial and likeable characters portrayed by decent actors, and solid action.
Hugh Grant, Justice Smith, and Rege-Jean Page steal the show.
My only real complaint is that it needed more owlbear…

[Supermoon]

Hugh Grant is really settling into his villain phase and is totally thriving.

[Grange]

I saw the D&D movie a few weeks ago and enjoyed the movie. I have never played D&D, but did read several of the Forgotten Realms and a few Dragonlance books so I was at least aware of the setting.

The next day I was watching a review of the film on YouTube and my TV auto plays another video while I was in the kitchen making dinner The next video was just a bunch of people playing D&D. After a few minutes I went to move on to a different video and I noticed that the channel has almost 2 million subscribers and the video had a couple hundred thousand views and was over 4hrs long. I got curious and actually watched part of the video trying to figure out why it got so many views. I get that playing D&D with friends could be fun, but watching others play the game for 4+ hours seems boring to me.

[dookeyXXX]

[Mike Pow]

SISU
Several internet “critics”—I use that term lightly given that at least 90% of folks who review movies professionally these days are nothing more than glorified fanboys/girls with only a passing grasp of cinema history—have compared this Finnish action film to the John Wick series. What they have failed to grasp is that this film is not aping those Keanu Reeves starring vehicles, but rather both are cut from the same cloth, that cloth being the Western. And not any old Western, mind you, but specifically the output of Clint Eastwood. The specters of The Dollars trilogy, as well as Eastwood’s WB output (most notably Hang ‘Em High, Unforgiven, and Pale Rider) hang heavy over writer/director Jalmari Helander’s WWII set endeavor. It also gives a quick nod to Peckinpah’s seminal The Wild Bunch.
So, yeah, this is essentially a Western, albeit taking place in 1944 in the wastelands of Finland and with Nazi’s, tanks, land mines, aeroplanes, and bombs.
While the story is a familiar one, the pacing is whip quick, the violence energetic, sudden, and visceral, and the acting is taut, riding the line between camp and dramatic bravura with deftness and aplomb.
While delivered with a sense of seriousness by all involved, there is also a cartoonish fantasy element burbling underneath, which helps keep things entertaining.
At any rate, here’s what I will say about this film and the latest John Wick exploit: go see this instead.

RIYL
Dead Snow; Shoot ‘Em Up; Crank; Conan the Destroyer

Nailed it

Very enjoyable watch

Thanks

[ex-powderbroker]

BEAU IS AFRAID
I’m not really sure what I just watched.
It might be meant as a fever dream incurred by the titular protagonist. Or perhaps it’s intended to mimic a death dream. It might very well be a cinematic rendition of a really bad drug induced trip. It’s also kind of like a riff on The Odyssey. Take your pick.
If the character portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix is meant to be a mirror of writer/director Ari Aster, well then dude has serious mommy issues and while the film may act as a form of catharsis, he still need several more sessions with his therapist.
As for the genre mash-ups, we go from post-apocalyptic to Misery-esque home bound captivity to grief stricken funeral insanity culminating in a gladiator styled courtroom melee. Oh, and there’s some pseudo Midsummer’s Night Dream action tucked in for good measure.

RIYL
Donnie Darko; Mother!; Jacob’s Ladder

Not sure if the trailer got posted but i am a huge Ari Aster fan and I'm hoping to get to this soon.

[dookeyXXX]

Not sure if the trailer got posted but i am a huge Ari Aster fan and I'm hoping to get to this soon.

It’s an interesting film.
While I enjoyed it, it is a bit disjointed and probably my least favorite of his three films to date.

[dookeyXXX]

Man, I am on the fence about this flick.
The last entry was so stupid that I literally could feel my brain cells dying as I watched it.
Yet I am invested in the series, having seen all previous 9 films in the series, plus the spin-off in the theaters.
Heck, I even interviewed Paul Walker for the first film when I was a journalist and he was cool as f%*k.
That said, imho, only 4 of the films have been good and memorable: the original, Tokyo Drift, Fast Five, and the Hobbs & Shaw spin-off. The rest of the films I can’t remember the plots or anything…

While I have had no problem blowing off lackluster looking Marvel and DC films, this series has been like a modern James Bond-type run in that there are some solid films and then a lot of stinkers, but one is familiar with the characters.
The one thing I find slightly irritating about this new film is that it feels like they hired Jason Mamoa to replace Dwayne Johnson and while he is charismatic, he ain’t no Rock.
I will probably cave in and see it and who knows, maybe it will be better than the last few entries…

[Supermoon]

I found all of the F&F movies more compelling when the stakes were lower. Once it was world-ending super villains all the time I feel like they became generic comic book movies.

But yeah, I’ve seen them all so I’m invested and I imagine I’ll see the final threee

[dookeyXXX]

I found all of the F&F movies more compelling when the stakes were lower. Once it was world-ending super villains all the time I feel like they became generic comic book movies.

But yeah, I’ve seen them all so I’m invested and I imagine I’ll see the final threee

Damn, you just summed up what I attempted to convey in my post, but way more succinctly!

Of the ones I have really liked, the first was basically a heist film , the third was a coming-of-age/underdog hero story, and #5 returned to the heist motif. The only “super villain” storyline I enjoyed was Hobbs & Shaw, and its ludicrousness skates by due to Dwayne Johnson, Jason Stratham, and Idris Elba.

[Supermoon]

Yeah. I’m a sucker for heist films and I love Point Break, so the first one is basically a perfect movie for me.

Did I hear somewhere that The Rock and Statham hate each other so much they were never together for any part of the filming of Hobbs and Shaw?