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Post by ZapRowsdower on Apr 27, 2007 3:30:02 GMT -5
Fracture
Good movie. Well-written, directed, edited and acted. Still, as good of a job Anthony Hopkins did, I was disappointed... mainly because he did this already. The character he played was essentially Hannibal Lector, and I was bothered by how there was absolutely no stretch in his performance. When you got a powerhouse like Anthony Hopkins in the lead, you don't want to see him do something you've seen him do before, and that's what he did, and that's what disappointed me. They really could have made a lesser-appreciated actor a star with that role. Gosling was amazing, Strathairn was very good. The movie was good. It's just that it fails to show Anthony Hopkins' range as an actor. 7/10
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Post by Termination on Apr 27, 2007 5:38:27 GMT -5
Dog Day Afternoon (1975) (Blu-Ray)
HD Video - 8/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 7/10
Not much of an improvement over the recent 2-disc dvd release. I know its old school, but it seems like no re-tooling was done at all. I noticed a short scene which carried over the same color issues. There is minor grain & occasionally the picture looks soft. That said, for a 32 year old flick, I think this is the best picture that we will see from this film unless double-dips become a HD norm. Doubt it. The audio is presented in a nice 1CH 192kbps just like the standard dvd. One thing I like about this track is its consistency throughout & one thing I loath is the incredible low audible output it is mixed at. Overall, exterior shots are the highlight of this HD transfer & noise is almost non-existent. Audio is well.. standard & while it doesn't give your HT speakers a workout, I found dialog crisp & clear throughout. Like some other catalog HD titles, (The Deer Hunter, The Sting) I can't recommend this disc if you already own the latest dvd incarnation.
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Post by Heineken Skywalker on Apr 27, 2007 8:08:12 GMT -5
RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD PART II (1988) "Brains! Brains!!" Apparently, this movie doesn't have any.  While the original, from what I can remember, (It's been about 22 years since I saw it) was a fun homage to the Romero classics, this sequel was just stupid, stupid, stupid. Badly written, badly acted, average effects, humor that isn't funny and horror that isn't scary. Even the gore is uninspired. This isn't even one of those "so bad it's good" kind of movies that I could recommend for it's campiness. This is just so bad, it's really bad. I guess if I want a good zombie spoof I'll have to rewatch SHAUN OF THE DEAD. Just an all around waste of time. I want my 90 minutes back. 1/10
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Post by slayrrr666 on Apr 27, 2007 10:33:05 GMT -5
Wow, I prefer it over the original, which I didn't think that highly off. Campy, cheesy and a light tone with a fast pace, as I stayed interested in it all the way through.
Just saw McBain, a film I've been dying to see in it's uncut form for years and years after taping it off broadcast TV about ten years ago. Still really cool action/war movie, with one of the greatest storming the gates slaughter I've ever seen and tons of action throughout. A couple of cool one-liners and funny moments also make it enjoyable, though it's hard to believe four men in khaki's and sunglasses can topple a regieme of a tyrannical dictator's Army without losing anyone or getting scratched in the process. Still, it's Christopher Walken, so what would you expect?
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Post by Pulpmariachi on Apr 27, 2007 12:50:18 GMT -5
Back to the Future Part II -- before the Wackowskis ever dreamed of the back-to-back sequel, before Jackson filmed all his movies at once, Zemeckis, Spielberg and crew pretty much invented the thing (for big-budget blockbusters) with Back to the Future. The beginning is a little rough, unfocused, and rushed, but from the alternate 1985 to the end it is really a worthy sequel. Watch the play of characters, not to mention magnificant direction, in the 1955 sequences! Great scott! B+.
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Post by Pulpmariachi on Apr 27, 2007 23:26:10 GMT -5
Back to the Future Part III -- lot more focused than Part II, especially towards the beginning and a lot of people apparently don't like it, though I don't see why, because it is quality entertainment. Maybe it was the whole Western aspect, but hey, whatever, it was handled nicely and as always a well directed climax. Unfortunatley, there wasn't a scene like the 1955 sequence in Part II, or at least one to that caliber, which may be my favorite of the entire series. All in all one of the few series where all three movies stand just fine, though I think you should watch them all because Part III wouldn't work as a stand alone movie. B.
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Post by ZapRowsdower on Apr 28, 2007 2:13:23 GMT -5
Next
Another filmmaker fails to do Philip K. Dick justice. The movie isn't terrible (on the contrary, it's entertaining and at least you get to look at the lovely Jessica Biel for a while), just not up to Philip K. Dick caliber. This was certainly no Blade Runner, Minority Report, Total Recall or Scanner Darkly. This was more along the lines of Paycheck (which I liked better). The actors were great, but overall this movie was just okay... and I'd really appreciate it if Hollywood would stop allowing mediocre film directors like Lee Tomahori adapt classic novels. Die Another Day was NOT that great. 5/10
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Post by Heineken Skywalker on Apr 28, 2007 9:17:53 GMT -5
Wow, I prefer it over the original, which I didn't think that highly off. Campy, cheesy and a light tone with a fast pace, as I stayed interested in it all the way through. Have you seen it recently? Then again, maybe the original's not that great either and my memory's playing tricks on me. Like I said, it's been a loooonnng time since I've seen it. But I'll stand by what I said. I hated this one. NextAnother filmmaker fails to do Philip K. Dick justice. This was certainly no Blade Runner, Minority Report, Total Recall or Scanner Darkly. filmmaker fails? You just listed 4 movies where apparently, in your opinion, they did get it right.  Watched yesterday: THE YAKUZA PAPERS: POLICE TACTICS (1974) The saga returns to bloody, violent form with this fourth installment in the series, after the rather talky third chapter. 7/10 A double feature of comedies about dead people: HEAVEN CAN WAIT (1978) Warren Beatty stars as a football player who is accidentally killed before his time and returns to earth in the body of a murdered millionaire. Beatty is very good at playing innocent and Jack Warden, Charles Grodin, James Mason & Buck Henry are all scene stealers in supporting roles. Really sweet, funny film. Hadn't seen this one in a long time and it's better than I remembered or maybe I just appreciate it more now. 7/10 DEFENDING YOUR LIFE (1991) Albert Brooks, wrote, directed and starred in this comedy about a guy, who minutes after he buys a new car, gets into a head-on collision with a bus and is killed. He arrives in Judgement City where they'll decide if he gets to move on to the next life, ie: Heaven, or if he'll be sent back to earth to "try again", ie: reincarnation. Great supporting cast in Rip Torn and Meryl Streep and a hilarious cameo by Shirley Maclaine. (But her cameo is only really funny if you know what her "beliefs" are.) A funny running gag throughout the film is that while in Judgement City you can eat whatever you want and as much as you want and never gain any weight. Streep's character in particular is a huge fan of this. Another really funny and sweet film and a nice companion piece to HEAVEN CAN WAIT. 7/10 |
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Post by slayrrr666 on Apr 28, 2007 10:24:02 GMT -5
It's been a while for me too, but I still remember enough of it. It mostly gets it's reputation for being one of the first horror-comedies around and for one sequence where a zombie is pulled apart and unleashes a torrent of blood across the set. It's a decent film but I never took to it like most did.
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Post by ZapRowsdower on Apr 28, 2007 13:48:12 GMT -5
Oops. Sorry, Heineken. I worded that wrong.
The other filmmaker would be John Woo, NOT Spielberg, Linklater, Scott, etc.
Just wanted to clear that up. I loved those movies.
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Post by Pulpmariachi on Apr 28, 2007 17:25:44 GMT -5
I never saw "A Scanner Darkly" but the first twenty minutes were pretty terrible. Does it pick up then? Hey, did anyone notice that until "Minority Report" the only previous, big release Dick story was "Total Recall"?
The Host -- Korean horror/comedy/action flick about a monster who terrorizes a riverside city. It's pretty funny and does break conventions, worth a look, definitley. B.
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Post by frankenjohn on Apr 28, 2007 23:43:24 GMT -5
Fracture- It's a good thriller. I didn't feel that Hopkins replayed Lector here. Lector was a cannibal. This guys just an average guy trying his best to cheat the law. Gosling really did here give here the first great performance of the year. B+.
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Post by Quorthon on Apr 29, 2007 0:50:14 GMT -5
Recently:
Pathfinder
Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie (don't remember if I mentioned that)
oh, and you guys might like this, as it caused a stir when I mentioned that I'd never seen it before:
I finally watched THE GODFATHER.
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Post by ZapRowsdower on Apr 29, 2007 2:35:42 GMT -5
Recently: Pathfinder Aqua Teen Hunger Force Movie (don't remember if I mentioned that) I finally watched THE GODFATHER. Well that might get you a reduced sentence, but I'd still advise a good lawyer. Fracture- It's a good thriller. I didn't feel that Hopkins replayed Lector here. Lector was a cannibal. This guys just an average guy trying his best to cheat the law. Aside from that obvious difference, it was essentially the same character - an evil genius who gets off on toying with people's minds. I'm not saying he did a bad job or anything - I'd be a really cynical asshole if I did. But it wasn't a stretch, and I know Hopkins can do better. VacancyI saw this on recommendation of a co-worker (who suggested I see this instead of Next last night), and I gotta say it was pretty damn good. I mean, I think Tarantino and Rodriguez have created some sort of monster because the Grindhouse is making a comeback. And that's basically what this movie is, a glorification of violence with genuine suspense. Once it gets going, it gets going and does not let up. Nimrod Antal even threw in a couple of Hitchcockian elements. Throw in an incredible, incredible performance by Kate Beckinsale and you got an almost great movie. The ending left something to be desired (an epilogue would have been nice), but that's really my only complaint. 8/10 |
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Post by frankenjohn on Apr 29, 2007 3:41:25 GMT -5
I know what you mean. I felt Hopkins played a very low-key performance. But hey, this wasn't his movie. This was Gosling's movie, from start to finish. I think Hopkins understood that and respected that, stepping back to give Gosling the movie.
Breach- It can get a bit dull at times, but Chris Cooper's amazing performance keeps interest. B+.
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