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Post by Pulpmariachi on Jan 29, 2007 14:56:39 GMT -5
I disagree, I think its nice to see a blatant audience-pleasing satire in the nominations. And far too many comedies are ignored. Yeah, I think "United 93" shoulda probably been there, instead of, oh God, probably "The Queen", and the same goes for "Children of Men", but no one understands the Academy, including the Academy. I think I'm going to address this in the 2006 Oscar thread elsewhere in "Off the Chest" as I don't want to totally derail this thread. Just watched: PAN'S LABYRINTH (2006) My new favorite film of 2006. Stand back, I'm gonna use all the cliches: Visually stunning, great performances, a charming young actress (Ivana Baquero), a villain you love to hate, moments of children's book fantasy countered with acts of realistic & shocking violence. Guillermo del Toro has given us the adult fairy tale that M. Night Shayamalan tried to give us with "Lady in the Water". A dark & twisted Alice in Wonderland coupled with the horrors of war. "The Devil's Backbone" was just the tip of the iceberg to what this director had stewing in his brain. From the director of "Hellboy"?? Huh? What? Mr. Del Toro? Fantastico! Muy bueno! 9.5/10 Check out "The Devil's Backbone" if you haven't already, its much closer to what del Toro is capable of doing than "Blade II". |
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Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 29, 2007 21:24:25 GMT -5
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within
I remember seeing this a good 4 1/2 years ago in theaters, biased because I was such a big fan of the video game, and unaware that there were bigger and better movies out there. So what's a biased 16-year-old to do but proclaim this the best movie ever? Having gotten a little older and wiser, I know that this is not the case. Final Fantasy DOES succeed in being the best adaptation of a video game to date (or rather, best movie to be named after a video game). And without bias, I still managed to enjoy it. There's something to appreciate here. The animation and the dialogue come to mind. Good movie. B+
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Post by Termination on Jan 30, 2007 5:46:15 GMT -5
Clerks II (2006) (HD DVD)
HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby TrueHD - N/A
The Descent (2005) (Blu-Ray)
HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 8/10
HD Audio LPCM - Reference
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Post by ZapRowsdower on Jan 30, 2007 19:06:58 GMT -5
Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut
I prefer this version. While much of it was the same (with the deletion of many things I disliked about the Lester cut... the cellophane "S" comes to mind), the scenes shot by Donner, especially the Marlon Brando scenes. The villains worked out a whole lot better, and I like Lois' way of learning Superman's true identity much more. This was a much more formidable sequel to the original.
And of course, the best parts of the Lester cut remain intact. "Come to me, son of Jor-El! KNEEL before ZOD!" Classic. A
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Post by Termination on Jan 30, 2007 22:52:43 GMT -5
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005) (Blu-Ray)
HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital - 8/10
HD Audio LPCM - 9/10
Derailed (2005) (HD DVD)
HD Video - 8/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 9/10
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Post by Termination on Jan 31, 2007 2:57:16 GMT -5
Lucky # Slevin (2006) (HD DVD)
HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 7/10
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Post by Phoenix on Jan 31, 2007 10:57:17 GMT -5
Final Fantasy: The Spirits WithinI remember seeing this a good 4 1/2 years ago in theaters, biased because I was such a big fan of the video game, and unaware that there were bigger and better movies out there. So what's a biased 16-year-old to do but proclaim this the best movie ever? Having gotten a little older and wiser, I know that this is not the case. Final Fantasy DOES succeed in being the best adaptation of a video game to date (or rather, best movie to be named after a video game). And without bias, I still managed to enjoy it. There's something to appreciate here. The animation and the dialogue come to mind. Good movie. B+ I liked this movie too. I thought the animation was oh-so-cool. I have it on DVD, I will have to watch it again. |
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Post by Termination on Jan 31, 2007 19:52:09 GMT -5
The Matador (2005)HD Video - Reference HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 8/10 The Matador is the 4th Weinstein title I’ve seen now & the video transfer is flawless on this one. If Weinstein decides to continue to use AVC as their codec for future titles that’s fine by me. No compression artifacts, no noise, macro, grain, edge enhancement etc. Colors never bleed, skin tones are accurate & blacks are rock solid throughout. I have to say I didn’t expect this good a video presentation. Like the Paramount release, Sahara, The Matador PQ leaps off the screen & gives an impressive three dimensional look throughout the entire runtime. The dolby digital plus track is mainly front heavy with crisp & clear dialog throughout that never gets washed away from the subtle surround effects. This track is however not a groundbreaking lossless soundtrack & the sonic appeal leans more towards a typical well encoded standard dolby digital mix. Overall, I agree with most reviewers & others who have seen this disc that it ranks among the best Warner, Universal & Paramount transfers out now to date & I look forward to seeing more high-def transfers from the Weinstein Company in the future for HD DVD! 
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Post by Termination on Feb 1, 2007 4:25:37 GMT -5
Pulse (2006) (HD DVD)
HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 8/10
HD Audio Dolby TrueHD - N/A
Scary Movie 4 (2006) (HD DVD)
HD Video - 9/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 9/10
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Post by Termination on Feb 1, 2007 18:10:24 GMT -5
Wolf Creek (2005) (HD DVD)
HD Video - 10/10
HD Audio Dolby Digital Plus - 9/10
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Post by frankenjohn on Feb 1, 2007 22:11:03 GMT -5
Catch a Fire- Interesting. This film bombed commercially, and it shouldn't have, as it is intelligent and tense and a wonderful return to form for Phillip Noyce. B+.
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Post by Heineken Skywalker on Feb 2, 2007 9:35:57 GMT -5
Just watched: PAN'S LABYRINTH (2006) My new favorite film of 2006. Stand back, I'm gonna use all the cliches: Visually stunning, great performances, a charming young actress (Ivana Baquero), a villain you love to hate, moments of children's book fantasy countered with acts of realistic & shocking violence. Guillermo del Toro has given us the adult fairy tale that M. Night Shayamalan tried to give us with "Lady in the Water". A dark & twisted Alice in Wonderland coupled with the horrors of war. "The Devil's Backbone" was just the tip of the iceberg to what this director had stewing in his brain. From the director of "Hellboy"?? Huh? What? Mr. Del Toro? Fantastico! Muy bueno! 9.5/10 Check out "The Devil's Backbone" if you haven't already, its much closer to what del Toro is capable of doing than "Blade II". Yup, I've seen it, which is why I mentioned it in my comments concerning PAN'S LABYRINTH. Good film as well. Recently watched a pair of sequels to AT MIDNIGHT I'LL TAKE YOUR SOUL, the first appearance of cult horror character, Coffin Joe: THIS NIGHT I WILL POSSESS YOUR CORPSE (1967) Way too much speechmaking and grandstanding, but a few nice homages to classic Universal-type horror films: angry torch-wielding villagers, swamps, cemetaries, and shot in black & white for even more atmosphere, but gorier and more sexual. Like it's predecessor, it goes on a bit too long, but the 10 minute sequence in hell is in glorious color and pretty entertaining in a nightmarish kind of way. 5/10 AWAKENING OF THE BEAST (1970) Pretty terrrible. A failed attempt, imho, at a more experimental type of filmmaking and bringing the Coffin Joe character, who is barely in the film, into the modern world. Jumps into the late 60's/early 70's drug culture with both feet as almost every character is seen smoking, snorting or shooting up and the whole "trip" is not worth taking. Boring. 1/10 AMELIE (2001) Audrey Tautou is completely charming as Amélie Poulain, a waitress who decides to go around Paris doing good deeds and enriching people's lives. Cute film. 7/10 |
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Post by ZapRowsdower on Feb 2, 2007 11:22:37 GMT -5
Bubba Ho-tep
Elvis is alive, living in a rest home. He teams up with a black man who thinks he's John F. Kennedy, to fight a mummy who is eating the souls of the residents in that rest home. It's such a ridiculous concept, and yet it works so well. Bruce Campbell and Ossie Davis kicked ass, even if they could barely walk. B+
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Post by Pulpmariachi on Feb 2, 2007 19:35:48 GMT -5
Check out "The Devil's Backbone" if you haven't already, its much closer to what del Toro is capable of doing than "Blade II". Yup, I've seen it, which is why I mentioned it in my comments concerning PAN'S LABYRINTH. Good film as well. Oh, yeah. Missed that. My mistake. |
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Post by frankenjohn on Feb 2, 2007 22:19:04 GMT -5
Dracula (31)- A classic film (and technical masterpiece) which separates itself from the other Dracula films. Then again, they're all so different and each a pleasure to watch. I still think that Noseferatu was better though. But still, A+.
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