Movie News, Reviews, and Discussion Super-Thread

[Howard Alan Treesong]

The ending of Armageddon is better than any of the Nolan BATMEN movies.  Real talk.

     

Contra's right, though. You may not have seen Armageddon in 15 years, but I guarantee you still remember the tearful montage it ends with. Unlike, for example, Two-Face.

[Steve Contra]

Two Face

We're not talking about Batman Forever

[Himu]

I don't rememeber shit from Armageddon except for Aerosmith, but I clearly remember everything in Begins and TDK. I really enjoy Nolan films. Don't get his haters.

[Mandark]

Eh, I've enjoyed most of his movies but I get how Nolan would grate on people, and his Batman movies in particular.  His movies are relatively humorless, he doesn't direct action scenes all that well, his scripts tend not to hold up great under scrutiny, etc.

That said, Contra and Treesong are getting dangerously close to AWESOM-O/LeBron territory.

[Bebpo]

Kings of Summer was nice coming of age movie.  Nothing too amazing, but was definitely enjoyable and well made.


Really bummed to hear everyone down on Sacrament.  Trigger Man, House of the Devil, and Innkeepers are some of my favorite horror films of the last decade.  Still will see Sacrament, just low expectations.

[Raban]

Nolan makes movies that are as shallow as summer blockbusters, but with none of the self-aware fun that makes that kind of movie worth going to.

They sure look pretty tho.

[Eric P]

oh man that first kill in Trigger Man was just so good.  I completely forgot about it until just now

[Great Rumbler]

Odds are Interstellar is less fun than both of McConaughey's last two projects

It better be! I don't watch scifi to have fun.

[Bebpo]

oh man that first kill in Trigger Man was just so good.  I completely forgot about it until just now

The tension in Trigger Man is incredible.  You're on the edge of your seat for the entire film after that part.  That's why I really like Ti West's style, he's a great tension builder. 

Hopefully his next film after The Sacrament will go back to horror and impress again.

[Himu]

Seriously. Like I said. Name one serious sci-fi movie that is "fun." Almost all of them are methodical (2001), and even embrace being boring (Star Trek TV).

[Himu]

Nolan makes movies that are as shallow as summer blockbusters, but with none of the self-aware fun that makes that kind of movie worth going to.

They sure look pretty tho.

Memento, Prestige, Insomnia, Following are not shallow. You can make a case for Inception, but it is full of fun Hollywoodisms you speak of.

[Howard Alan Treesong]

Seriously. Like I said. Name one serious sci-fi movie that is "fun." Almost all of them are methodical (2001), and even embrace being boring (Star Trek TV).

- Terminator
- The Abyss
- Cocoon
- Close Encounters of the Third Kind
- Contact
- Dune
- Planet of the Apes
- Silent Running
- Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
- Starship Troopers
- The Thing
- Forbidden Planet
- Brazil
- RoboCop
- Ghost in the Shell
- The Matrix

My interpretation of "serious" is "not explicitly a comedy, and has a desire to convey a message beyond being "cool"
My interpretation of "fun" is "has jokes/is self-aware/is not just doom and despair."

There are lots of great SF movies that don't fit this (Metropolis, Blade Runner, Children of Men, etc.) but it's silly to say "SF isn't fun" unless you are willfully ignoring like 90% of the great SF films ever made.

[Howard Alan Treesong]

Also, Star Trek TV isn't fun? Kirk takes off his shirt and makes out with a green-skinned alien babe like, every third episode. If that's not "fun," I don't know what is!

[Himu]

I'm clearly talking about a certain type of sci-fi.This is why I said serious sci-fi and not sci-fi.

[TVC15]

Define serious scifi.  I'm not sure how something like Brazil isn't serious.

[cool breeze]

you mean hard sci-fi?   

[Himu]

Also, Star Trek TV isn't fun? Kirk takes off his shirt and makes out with a green-skinned alien babe like, every third episode. If that's not "fun," I don't know what is!

Original Trek is fun and full of camp, you're right. Kirk goes and slaps the shit out of aliens and bangs their wives. But from TNG and up, especially DS9, Star Trek is rarely fun. It has its moments,  but it is mostly boring - and in a good way.

[Himu]

Define serious scifi.  I'm not sure how something like Brazil isn't serious.

Same for Contact.

you mean hard sci-fi?

Yup.

[Howard Alan Treesong]

What I'm hearing is "sci-fi that isn't fun isn't fun." And you'll win that argument. But I won't accept that the movies I listed aren't "serious."

My definition of "hard" SF is high enough that about the only movies I think would qualify would be Blade Runner and Children of Men. I mean, I love 2001 but it has brain-evolving alien monoliths and glowing space babies. Hard SF is about PHYSICS and MATH.

[TVC15]

I think "serious scifi" is "whatever Himu shifts his definition to once he's proven wrong"

[Himu]

Most of them, yeah. I disagree on Contact but that depends on your definition of fun. My problem is you guys are saying Interstellar won't be a good movie because it won't be fun, when my favorite sci-fi films and stories are not what I consider fun. My point is, sci-fi doesn't need to be fun to be good.

[Howard Alan Treesong]

RoboCop is a VERY funny movie, but in its relentless satire, unwillingness to let anybody off the hook, and harsh extrapolation of current trends into a possible future, I think it's better at being science fiction than most films with spaceships.

[Himu]

Robocop.

What I'm hearing is "sci-fi that isn't fun isn't fun." And you'll win that argument. But I won't accept that the movies I listed aren't "serious."

My definition of "hard" SF is high enough that about the only movies I think would qualify would be Blade Runner and Children of Men. I mean, I love 2001 but it has brain-evolving alien monoliths and glowing space babies. Hard SF is about PHYSICS and MATH.

Good point. It also has a talking robot taking over a space ship.

[TVC15]

And how can you say that The Fly and Videodrome aren't fun watches.

[Himu]

TVC, we have totally different ideas on what fun is.

[Howard Alan Treesong]

Most of them, yeah. I disagree on Contact but that depends on your definition of fun. My problem is you guys are saying Interstellar won't be a good movie because it won't be fun, when my favorite sci-fi films and stories are not what I consider fun. My point is, sci-fi doesn't need to be fun to be good.

I don't think anyone was arguing that. I mean, one of my favorite SF films is Children of Men and boy that flick is the biggest downer this side of Requiem for a Dream.

I guess I'll end by saying I hope there's a lot more to Interstellar that we're not seeing in the trailer. Because that movie looks like it has the trappings of "serious" science-fiction without any of the self-reflection or forward-thinking that should come with it.

[TVC15]

I refuse to believe you can think The Fly isn't fun to watch.

[Himu]

Unfortunately, that's the status quo for most recent Hollywood sci-fi outings no matter the type. Unless I'm missing something? Thank God for Moon and Children of Men.

[Himu]

I refuse to believe you can think The Fly isn't fun to watch.

Stop bringing up that vile man Cronenberg. I'm pretty positive I lost a life when I first saw it.

Videodrome is definitely fun.

[cool breeze]

speaking of sci-fi in movies, New Star Trek 3 will be directed by Roberto Orci.  Best known for writing the transformers movies and never directing anything before.

I guess I'll end by saying I hope there's a lot more to Interstellar that we're not seeing in the trailer. Because that movie looks like it has the trappings of "serious" science-fiction without any of the self-reflection or forward-thinking that should come with it.

Interstellar's marketing so far is purposely vague and limited.

[Steve Contra]

Which means there will be some M. Night Shynanigans  :'(

[Himu]

I'm remaining positive for Interstellar. I haven't seen a sci fi movie with meat to it in a while. Looper supplied a taste, but Prometheus and that stupid Tom Cruise movie were

[Steve Contra]

Prometheus

Now there was some grade A garbage

[Himu]

I liked it but it was fucking stupid. I was hoping for a directors cut because Ridley Scott kicks ass at those, and I thought Kingdom of Heaven theatrical cut sucked. But...nope.

[cool breeze]

Which means there will be some M. Night Shynanigans  :'(

no, uh, it's better not to read into it.  but the Interstellar trailer (not really spoilery, more about context, but just in-case)

spoiler (click to show/hide)

is only footage from the first act.  it's "vague and limited" compared to other movies that give away too much in marketing.  it's not about sucker punching the audience.

[close]

[Great Rumbler]

Sunshine was so amazing up until the final third almost totally killed it.

[Madrun Badrun]

[Himu]

Batista in the back. Hahaha.

[Boogie]

 But from TNG and up, especially DS9, Star Trek is rarely fun.

Every Ferengi-centric episode ever says hi.

Also, they dedicated a whole episode around playing a baseball game

[Great Rumbler]

The dude who plays the main cult leader gives a pretty great performance.

This guy:

spoiler (click to show/hide)

Not Javier Bardem, by the way.

[close]

[Phoenix Dark]

 But from TNG and up, especially DS9, Star Trek is rarely fun.

Every Ferengi-centric episode ever says hi.

Also, they dedicated a whole episode around playing a baseball game

since when is baseball fun?

[chronovore]

The ending of Armageddon is better than any of the Nolan BATMEN movies.  Real talk.

(Image removed from quote.)     

Contra's right, though. You may not have seen Armageddon in 15 years, but I guarantee you still remember the tearful montage it ends with. Unlike, for example, Two-Face.

That's unfair. Surely with half-his face burned off, there was a single tear shed?

[chronovore]

And how can you say that The Fly and Videodrome aren't fun watches.

Videodrome isn't SF, it's a religious treatise.

[Great Rumbler]

(Image removed from quote.)

Speaking of depressing, joy-less experiences...

[Mupepe]

I knew I knew him from somewhere! that was driving me insane but I was too lazy to imdb it

[HyperZoneWasAwesome]

man, I really liked Godzilla.

Its probably about the best result that can come from a mega-blockbuster Godzilla film.  Yeah, its a "grounded, dark and gritty" Godzilla film, but its got splashes of humor, its respectful to the source material, and it really delivers when it comes to spectacle.  Yes, its clearly bears the Nolan influence when it comes to its blockbuster formula (there's even a few bwaamps here), but its actual recipe is closer to a cross pollination of a disaster film and monster flick (more like Cloverfield, but way better and with about as many Lovecraftian overtures), a mix that it pulls of really well.  Cities crumble, people fret, but it works because its all done at an intimate, ground level scale.  The puny humans in the story are of varying interest, but none of them detract from the film.

So yeah, as a monster movie, its pretty satisfying.  And most importantly, it nails Godzilla, the creature.  I wasn't really expecting a big huge American film to be a quality kaiju genre entry (I figured Pacific Rim had that honor sewn up for only itself), but I was glad to be wrong.

[Rahxephon91]

Godzilla was pretty fucking boring.

It's almost amazing how boring it was. It spends the entire movie basically not giving you anything you want until the end. I just wanted to see Godzilla fight and destroy stuff. Instead this movie likes to obstruct the fights until the last one. It hardly shows the active destruction. Instead it just likes to show you the effects. It's such a boring movie until the end.

Ken Watanabe is so crappy. He doesn't talk like a human being at all, instead always having this stupid "I'm going to say something really profound really slowly" expression.

Everyone else is forgettable with no personality or stage presence, yet the movie spends so much damn time with them. Bryan Cranston is the sole light only because it's him and then well....yeah. Then we follow Kick Ass as he finds himself in lame contrived nonsense. It was just so damn boring with no thrills.

It didn't feel dark at all. All the trailers almost made it seem like it would be a horror movie and the movie never delivers that at all. Underscored by a real campy score.

Just really shitty.

[Dickie Dee]

[Beezy]

Dunno what some of you were expecting from Godzilla. Me and my friends loved it.

[Freyj]

It's a Godzilla movie. It excels at being a Godzilla movie.

[Bebpo]

So I'm taking it from this Godzilla discussion (seeing it tomorrow maybe) that they got the guy who made "Monsters" to make a Godzilla movie in the same low budget "don't show things because CGI costs money" way?  I mean Monsters was ok and worked better than it should've been for having no money to actually show the monsters.  He did a pretty good job keeping it suspenseful and interesting without showing until the end.  If Godzilla is the same way...I could be ok with that.

And yeah, Cloverfield is probably my favorite Godzilla movie in the last 15 years and it's a good example of not showing the creature. 

Then again, I didn't think Monsters was actually a good movie.  Just good inside the vacuum of "holy shit this is impressive that he made this with $8 and a box of popcorn"; as a movie it was kind of weak because it didn't have the budget to show much of anything at all.

Eh, I'll see.  Creature films are actually my favorite genre and there aren't enough of them so I'll take what I can get. 

[fistfulofmetal]

There's plenty of Kaiju action in Godzilla. They showed exactly how much they needed to. Bunch of ADD ridden losers complaining.

Pretty good movie. Human element wasn't terrible. Godzilla was awesome. Looks great.

Pacific Rim was better. So was Cloverfield.

[TakingBackSunday]

Very bored by Godzilla.  Pacific Rim was at least entertaining, and I didn't even particularly care for that movie either.

One of the most forgettable movies I've seen, honestly.  I just got out and I already don't really recall what the movie was really even about.

[demi]

The Zany Adventures of Liutenant Kick-Ass Brody - Oh, and some monsters are in this movie too

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

[Eric P]

Thor 2.   I know it's basically "space gods," but the proliferation of space ships just seemed odd to me in a Thor film.  Found the film to be pretty "eh" over all.  I don't know what I was expecting, but here's hoping the third one is better.

[TakingBackSunday]

Twas my general opinion on it as well.

[fistfulofmetal]

  your opinions

[fistfulofmetal]

your fault for going in with preconceived notions and not understanding the intent and the motivations behind said characters. your loss.

[fistfulofmetal]

I mean it's fine for a movie to go over your head. That's fine. Even if the movie is pretty straight forward (on purpose mind you) but there's nothing wrong with that. I'm sure the new Transformers movie will be more up your alley later this year.

[Tasty]

Like I said, the acting was shit. The fights were awesome and although it was sort of generic I dug the world they built.