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Post by ZapRowsdower on Oct 5, 2007 13:02:43 GMT -5
A Girl, a Guy, and a Gob (1945, Richard Wallace) - A cute, funny romantic comedy starring a pre-I Love Lucy Lucille Ball. 8/10
Pather Panchali (1955, Satyajit Ray) - An influential Indian drama that must be viewed and appreciated with patience. It moves at a slow pace, but it's a beautifully shot work of art. 8/10
The Jungle Book (1967, Wolfgang Reitherman) - A childhood favorite, still holds up today... not quite as well as other Disney classics, but still strong. 8/10
Into the Wild (2007, Sean Penn) - As of now, the strongest film of 2007 - and this will be one to beat. Emile Hirsch, Catherine Keener and Hal Holbrook all give Oscar-worthy performances. Sean Penn makes a great film director. The cinematography was breathtaking, and the story is simply poetic. 10/10
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Post by LivingDeadGirl on Oct 5, 2007 17:34:29 GMT -5
The Woods- 1/4 The only thing I really enjoyed was Bruce Campbell's small role. Directed by Lucky McKee...
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Post by Termination on Oct 5, 2007 22:10:58 GMT -5
Halloween (1978) (Blu-Ray)
HD Video - 8/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 7/10
HD Audio LPCM - 8/10
Um, yeah.
This catalog title didn't stand out at all when compared to other films of that age. The bad: Aside from some great exterior shots (even though I spotted some blurriness to the PQ) the film is mostly dark (Not a bad thing) & thats where the transfer takes a leap off the deep end. From the sunset on, colors rapidly become bleek & washed out with some color bleeding present as well. Grain is most notable during dark interior shots, & there are frequent scenes which are a bit soft. The Good: From the get-go exterior color reproduction is excellent even though it is tweaked from the director's intent. Skintones (Even in the rough patches) are always spot on & detail is strong throughout. Unfortunately, the overall look doesn't scream HD, more like upconversion with a twist. The LPCM track offered is good but throughout I couldn't help but notice the original mono track present. Huh? Each channel seems to have been remixed ala DSP receiver modes. While the dialog is a tad more crisp than the dolby track it definitely sounds dated & there are a few scenes where dialog suddenly cuts off to make for surround usage. In other words poor channel placement. Thankfully there are only a couple scenes I noticed. The score from the LPCM track definitely adds more presence & mood compared to the dolby track. A solid 3 star transfer in my books.
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Post by Termination on Oct 6, 2007 3:06:15 GMT -5
Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007) (Blu-Ray)
HD Video - Reference
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 8/10
HD Audio dts - Reference
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Post by Pulpmariachi on Oct 6, 2007 18:51:55 GMT -5
Across the Universe (Julie Taymore) -- I was severley disappointed. Taymore seemed to want to sum up the entire 60s into her movie and it felt like a summary instead of life, I guess. The middle dropped a lot, and Bono and Eddie Izzard coulda been cut, since they broke the pacing of the film (okay, I could see the Merry Pranksters with Bono thing), but a lot of the time there seemed to be a more "Let's put our favorite song here" instead of a "Wow, this song could fit perfectly." The visuals are spectacular, however, and of course, as The Beatles wrote all the songs (and Heineken is MAYBE the only bigger Beatle fan than me on these boards, not trying to blow up my ego too much on this one...or something), the music is great and the renditions are true and the interpretations are free but steady, it's just that the story isn't all in there. There was a great movie here, but I think it got lost somewhere along the way. B.
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Post by Termination on Oct 7, 2007 4:10:19 GMT -5
Firewall (2006) (Blu-Ray)
HD Video - 10/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 8/10
Knocked Up (2007) (HD DVD)
HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 9/10
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Post by ZapRowsdower on Oct 7, 2007 11:37:47 GMT -5
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968, Stanley Kubrick)
Is it not frustrating when you watch a movie and don't know what's going on? Of course it is. But this one, despite its surreal qualities and ambiguity goes down easily... and in fact, warrants multiple viewings. One of Kubrick's best films, and that says a lot. 10/10
Rashomon (1950, Akira Kurosawa)
While it is an excellent film that explores the human psyche very well, this is also my least favorite Kurosawa film. I loved it, but I found it a little difficult to get into. Seven Samurai, Yojimbo, and Hidden Fortress didn't have that problem. But still, a masterful piece of cinema in its own right - even moreso because it made Kurosawa the international phenomenon he is today. 8/10
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Post by Heineken Skywalker on Oct 7, 2007 18:25:50 GMT -5
3:10 TO YUMA (2007)
Don't you love it when two great actors are paired up in a film together, like De Niro and Pacino in HEAT? Russell Crowe and Christian Bale are both first-rate in this fantastic western. To be fair, I've seen a ton of westerns, but somehow, haven't seen the original version of YUMA yet, so I can't compare them, but I'm looking forward to seeing it now.
Great acting, great suspense and great action.
Great supporting cast too, including an almost unrecognizable Peter Fonda. Seriously, I didn't know he was even in this movie and after he'd been on screen for about a half hour, it finally hit me that he looked familiar. Man, I hope that was mostly make-up, otherwise he's aged a ton since his recent appearance in GHOST RIDER.
One of the year's best.
9.5/10
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Post by ZapRowsdower on Oct 8, 2007 8:43:10 GMT -5
Chinatown (1974, Roman Polanski)
Hailed as one of the greatest screenplays of all time (along with Casablanca), and for good reason. This film had a mystery that just kept throwin' stuff at you. And the way they end it is not what you'd expect, either. And who better to direct such a fantastic screenplay than Roman Polanski? Kinda sad that Robert Towne had to peak this early, but... oh well. 10/10
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Post by Heineken Skywalker on Oct 8, 2007 8:52:11 GMT -5
GOSFORD PARK (2001)
So dissapointed!
I usually find Robert Altman movies pretty entertaining, but I was thoroughly bored by this one. I don't mind movies that are dialogue heavy as long as what they're saying is interesting. For instance, GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS is all talk, yet tons of fun and never boring.
I just found this one a snoozefest. There's a ton of talk, a murder, and then a ton more talk. It does get a little better after the murder, but unfortunately, there's about an hour and a half of set-up before we get there. I think I had been avoiding this one for so long on purpose. British drama doesn't usually get me running to the theater, even when made by a great American director like Altman.
Gets points for the cast, direction and a couple of good lines here and there.
The plot and pacing? No thanks.
4/10
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Post by slayrrr666 on Oct 8, 2007 10:14:28 GMT -5
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Post by frankenjohn on Oct 8, 2007 10:58:19 GMT -5
GOSFORD PARK (2001) So dissapointed! I usually find Robert Altman movies pretty entertaining, but I was thoroughly bored by this one. I don't mind movies that are dialogue heavy as long as what they're saying is interesting. For instance, GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS is all talk, yet tons of fun and never boring. I just found this one a snoozefest. There's a ton of talk, a murder, and then a ton more talk. It does get a little better after the murder, but unfortunately, there's about an hour and a half of set-up before we get there. I think I had been avoiding this one for so long on purpose. British drama doesn't usually get me running to the theater, even when made by a great American director like Altman. Gets points for the cast, direction and a couple of good lines here and there. The plot and pacing? No thanks. 4/10 YES! I love Altman but this film was just so damn boring. And i have a lot of patience for slow-moving films. Finally someone who agrees. |
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Post by Pulpmariachi on Oct 8, 2007 12:20:22 GMT -5
GOSFORD PARK (2001) So dissapointed! I usually find Robert Altman movies pretty entertaining, but I was thoroughly bored by this one. I don't mind movies that are dialogue heavy as long as what they're saying is interesting. For instance, GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS is all talk, yet tons of fun and never boring. I just found this one a snoozefest. There's a ton of talk, a murder, and then a ton more talk. It does get a little better after the murder, but unfortunately, there's about an hour and a half of set-up before we get there. I think I had been avoiding this one for so long on purpose. British drama doesn't usually get me running to the theater, even when made by a great American director like Altman. Gets points for the cast, direction and a couple of good lines here and there. The plot and pacing? No thanks. 4/10 YES! I love Altman but this film was just so damn boring. And i have a lot of patience for slow-moving films. Finally someone who agrees. I agree too. Except for Clive Owen. That man has the capability to be captivating no matter what. Underused, but alas. |
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Post by Heineken Skywalker on Oct 8, 2007 12:41:16 GMT -5
Wow, so I'm not alone on this one, huh? I completely expected to be flamed for that opinion. Even I was thinking, "What's wrong with me, that I'm not digging this acclaimed film by a great director?". Good to hear I haven't completely lost my mind. Or maybe we all have? Maybe Zap or Bart will chime in and tell us why we're all wrong. I agree too. Except for Clive Owen. That man has the capability to be captivating no matter what. Underused, but alas. I did give points to the cast. Not a weak performance in the bunch. |
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Post by Heineken Skywalker on Oct 8, 2007 18:19:55 GMT -5
KARATE BULLFIGHTER (1975)
Martial arts film star and all around badass, Sonny Chiba, portrays his own mentor Mas Oyama in this film, which is the first of a trilogy. Some good action sequences, a few graphic scenes, and yes, even a bull gets its ass kicked by Oyama (Chiba). Not for the squeamish, but recommended for fans of chop sockey cinema.
About as far away from GOSFORD PARK as you can get, eh?
6/10
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