Just Watched Movies: 2007

[Termination]

Sahara (2005) (Blu-Ray)

HD Video - 10/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 9/10
HD Audio dts - 9/10

[Heineken Skywalker]

300 (2007)

Like I originally said, the story does tend to get a little repetitive, as it's basically one fight after another and not much else. It is however such a good looking and original looking movie, that I can bypass things that would normally hold back most movies. Just some great looking eye candy in this one.
Check your brain and feast your eyes.

7.5/10

[ZapRowsdower]

I Know Who Killed Me

Didn't see the whole thing, but I saw the last... hour or so. And that's enough to know this is one of the stupidest films I had ever seen. Horrible story, screenplay, and direction. Scenes that are supposed to be intense or serious will only make you laugh because they're incredibly ridiculous. And seriously, Lohan needs to learn how to cuss. I find it hard to believe this coked-up drunk driving chick would give off an awkward vibe when she says "fuck", but she does. This was like Lindsay Lohan trying to tell the world she's no longer that innocent little girl from the Parent Trap. Oh Lindsay, we've noticed. We've noticed. 1/10

I'm actually one of the few people who hopes she comes back from all this. I consider this a faux pas in her career. All she needs is to take her rehab seriously, and start taking better movie roles, and I think she'll be okay. This is wishful thinking on my part, but I hate to see such potential go to waste.

[LivingDeadGirl]

frankenjohn said:

Double Impact- This film reminded me of how great Van Damme is. This movie is just a blast. So funny (unintentionally, of course) and offers what we came for: absurd, mindless action. Great popcorn flick. B+.

The only Van Damme movie I really like is Hard Target..and mainly b/c Lance Henriksen and Arnold Vosloo are in it and not so much for Van Damme.

Hollywoodland 2/4- Meh... Adrian Brody was pretty good though.

[ZapRowsdower]

The Ten (2007)

Interesting little comedy consisting of ten stories inspired by the ten commandments. Paul Rudd (of Anchorman, Knocked Up and 40 Year Old Virgin fame) serves as a "host" for the collection. If anyone is familiar with Neil Simon's "The Good Doctor", this is very similar. The stories for the most part are funny (hit and miss, but more hit than miss), and for an indie flick that doesn't get publicized, it does have its share of starpower - including Liev Schreiber, Jessica Alba, Oliver Platt, Famke Janssen, Winona Ryder, and more. It's not the best comedy of the year, but it's pretty damn fun. 7/10

[Termination]

Corpse Bride (2005) (Blu-Ray)

HD Video - Reference
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 9/10

Swordfish (2001) (Blu-Ray)

HD Video - 10/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 8/10

Uncommon Bach - Music Experience in 3-Dimensional Sound Reality TM (2007) (HD DVD)

HD Video - 8/10
HD Audio dts - Reference

Without a doubt this 50 minute piece is the best sound I've ever heard in my HT.
Too bad, not a fan of Bach.

[slayrrr666]

livingdeadgirl said:

frankenjohn said:

Double Impact- This film reminded me of how great Van Damme is. This movie is just a blast. So funny (unintentionally, of course) and offers what we came for: absurd, mindless action. Great popcorn flick. B+.

I love that one a lot myself, one of my favorite Van Damme ones. When he isn't doing Kickboxer rip-offs, he's quite good.

iamthesmitty said:

I'm actually one of the few people who hopes she comes back from all this. I consider this a faux pas in her career. All she needs is to take her rehab seriously, and start taking better movie roles, and I think she'll be okay. This is wishful thinking on my part, but I hate to see such potential go to waste.

The only way I'll regain respect for her now is if she does the Drew-Barrymore route and go nude in a slew of sleazy horror films. Either that or a full-on lesbian scene. Either way.

Just saw-
Rush Hour-Not as fall-down hilarious as it was when it first came out, but still holds up nicer than expected. Action down a tad and many of the jokes are spotted quite easier, but still delivers enough to be worthwhile. Looking forward to Part 3.

[Termination]

Shaun of the Dead (2004) (HD DVD)

HD Video - 7/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 9/10

From the beginning of "Shaun" it looked like it was gonna be a decent transfer. Not perfect, a few areas with noise & some areas which looked flat. No biggie for a film of its budget but when they get to the pub everything good about "Shaun" falls apart in a bad way. Colors are washed out, heavy noise & grain throughout, very poor contrast. It looked like a bootleg SD DVD for gods sake. Thankfully the rest of the HD transfer is passable. The audio is mixed real well. Never had to grab the remote when lots of action presented itself. Dilaog is sharp, ambient effects are more distinguished than the standard dvd release.

Hot Fuzz (2007) (HD DVD)

HD Video - Reference
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 8/10

A perfect 10 for Hot Fuzz (PQ), literally night & day difference from "Shaun" in the PQ area. There are few background scenes which sometimes look flat, but there isn't much there to knock this transfer down. Its probably intentional too. Detail is insane with vibrant colors, strong blacks, no noise or grain. Lots of eye poppin' 3D moments as well. Daylight, Nightlight, Exterior, Interior shots look flawless. The DD+ track is good, dialog is strong, lots more beef to the surrounds than I expected. Problem is not even the Toshiba can keep the dynamic range consistent on this track when on. The audio sporadically changes in db level. Once I got a good level for volume output, any ambient effects (quick action) increased the overall db output around 8 to 12db! I probably would have gave this one a 9/10, but this a problem in the audio, not a shining moment of HT goodness.

[Termination]

Darkman (1990) (HD DVD)

HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby TrueHD - 9/10

[Termination]

Babel (2006) (Blu-Ray)

HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 9/10

[frankenjohn]

Rush Hour 3- I must say I was immensely dissapointed with this one. I didn't laugh once. I'm serious. Tucker can't come up with fuuny things to say and some of the things he says are just downright demeaning. The action is not interesting either, and it is pretty brief. I mean watching the car chase scene in this film and thinking back to the caliber of "Bourne Ultimatum," this film doesn't even come remotely close. It's not exciting, and it's not even entertaining. Yeah I laughed at the trailers, but not in the film. I think the last lines of the movie sum it up: What is it good for? Absolutely nothing. Watch 1 and 2 instead. C-.

[ZapRowsdower]

Rush Hour 3 (2007. Brett Ratner)

I spent the last year hating Ratner for what he did to X-Men. You know how angry I was with this man. He even won asshat of the year for it. Now, remember about ten years ago, a director by the name of Joel Schumacher came by and ruined another successful comic book franchise? A little film called Batman and Robin, starring George Clooney as Batman, and Arnold as Freeze? Yeah, that one. We were all pretty pissed off at him then. But the man has also brought us some great films. Falling Down, A Time to Kill, Phone Booth, and most recently, Phantom of the Opera. What has Brett Ratner brought us? Rush Hour and a remake of Manhunter (titled Red Dragon). That's it. This man has never brought anything new to the table, and yet has the audacity to destroy a well-loved and respected franchise. So you can see why I was so pissed off about that.

Flash forward to today. I'm not gonna lie. I liked Rush Hour 1 & 2. Even after Ratner had his way with X-Men, Rush Hour 1 & 2 were still cool in my book. So watching Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker team up again was another cool experience. But why the fuck is Chris Tucker being paid more than anyone else in Hollywood for THIS? Don't get me wrong, it's an entertaining movie. I laughed. I laughed quite a bit. But it didn't quite satisfy me like the others did, especially when there were scenes where you can clearly see a green screen was used. Also, CGI. Uh, Ratner, JACKIE CHAN DOES HIS OWN STUNTS. You can use that to your advantage. Hell, Disney used him more when they did Around the World in 80 Days. You don't need to fake anything. If the screenplay calls for it, then the screenplay needs a fucking rewrite (and it did - it got a little TOO convenient at times). And the way it ended, the movie felt too short. When the credits started rolling, the only thing I can think of was... that's it? And it really wasn't the running time, it was the pacing. Oh, look at Lee and Carter in another wacky adventure. Look out! Didn't quite work out as well as the first two. Chris Tucker, start asking for less money. Brett Ratner, go back to film school and take a class on story structure. Learn a little something about pacing. That is the same shit that ruined X-Men. Overall, not a bad movie. It's fun, but it really should have been a lot better. And he'll have to do better than this if he wants forgiveness for X-Men.

6/10

[Termination]

Purple Rain (1984) (Blu-Ray)

HD Video - 7/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 7/10
HD Audio Dolby TrueHD - 8/10

[Phoenix]

I just started up a new job (yay me) so I haven't been able to get on the board this past week b/c training is sooooo long.

Still, I managed to see some movies!

I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry - I was out-voted to see this one by my brothers. I had such low expectations that it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Still, I'd feel guilty recommending it to anyone. 6/10

Simpsons Movie - On a second viewing, I liked it more than the first time I watched it!

The Monster Squad - 1987 film that obviously takes from The Goonies, but it's short enough where I was entertained. Plus, you learn that "The wolfman has nards!" 7/10

300 - I didn't really want to watch it again but I got suckered into it. The fights scenes totally drew me in though, and I have to admit I loved it. I'm looking forward to seeing the rifftrax for this!!

EDIT: Thanks for the feedback above about Rush Hour 3. Sounds like I can definitely wait for DVD!

[ZapRowsdower]

How Green Was My Valley (1941, John Ford)

Excellent film about harsh working conditions and the thin line between what is ethical and what is socialism. It also explores the hypocrisy of religion very well. A beautiful film in every respect, that was way ahead of its time. However, that Oscar should have gone to Citizen Kane - another film way ahead of its time. 10/10