What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[bdc]

Originally Posted by Daemonia

The Silencers (1966) - Dean Martin is Matt Helm, superagent. He's called in to tackle a madman (the portly Victor Buono) who is threatening to start WW3. This should have been a great film, but sadly it comes off as a bit of a pale imitation of the Flint movies, which did the spy spoof thing so much better. Dean Martin is no James Coburn, that's for sure. Coburn does sauve so much better. Still, there was the sight of the lovely Daliah Lavi to behold, so it ain't all bad. I'll certainly check out the rest of the Helm series, they may get better....or worse!

I remember when I first started watching those Matt Helm films,I also had a little trouble getting used to Dean Martin as Helm (and his singing) but I ended up enjoying all the sequels.
My favourite is Murderer's Row btw.

[Daemonia]

Originally Posted by bdc

I remember when I first started watching those Matt Helm films,I also had a little trouble getting used to Dean Martin as Helm (and his singing) but I ended up enjoying all the sequels.
My favourite is Murderer's Row btw.

I've got all the films here so I'll have to give them all a go at some point soon.

[Phurious]

Originally Posted by Daemonia

Tron Legacy (2010) - I'm a fan of the original, so I was unsure how they'd pull this sequel off. But they do, brilliantly. Sam Flynn finds his way into the grid and is surprised to find his father in there. But things have gone awry and one of Kevin Flynn's creations has taken over the virtual world and now father and son must fight back. It's entertaining and done with such brilliance and creativity that I just sat with a big grin all the way through it. The retro-feel 80's soundtrack is exceptional. Perfect. 10 out of 10 from me.

This for me has been the biggest cinematic disappointment of recent years. I know people don't think too much of the first one, plot-wise, but there's enough heart and soul in those characters and Bridge's performance to keep the viewer involved. Whereas T:L seemed to be happy with listless central performances of computer generated (actual and fictional if you see what I mean?) characters who I didn't care about one jot. Even Sheen's Bowie rip off was so at odds with the feel of the film that he simply annoyed me.

I was also crushingly underwhelmed by the Daft Punk soundtrack, which was so by the numbers that I felt I'd pretty much heard it all before at the hands of Hans Zimmer's score for Inception - what little 'originality' they brought was more in keeping with their lesser post Homework output which is that rather grating filtered disco nonsense that goes down a treat in a Yate's wine bar.

And here is where everyone will probably think I'm mental, but I hand on my heart think that the special effects from the first Tron movie are a million times better than the 'I've seen it all before' in T:L. There's a unique look to the original that has stood the test of time and makes it stand out too. The physical aspect of it really lends it an air of 'what if we could be inside computers' feel that is seriously lacking in the latest instalment, which looks and feels like a digital Faberge Egg - kind of stunning and eye catching for a glimpse, but ultimately thin and hollow.
Gimme those solid light cycle trails any day and the Moebius designs.

I'm undoubtedly in the minority on this film, but hey what a bloody dull world it'd be if we all liked the same stuff

Originally Posted by Daemonia

A Prophet (2009) - Interesting French prison drama chronicling the life of inmate Malik. Malik is an Arab, but finds himself under the protection of the Corsicans - this puts him in a hard situation, the Corsicans look down on him and treat him as a slave, whilst the Arabs hate him because they feel bertrayed. But Malik mamipulates every available opportunity and soon begins to build a criminal empire. Brilliant and riveting, I recommend this highly.

And this is my favourite film of recent years by a long long way. I saw it six times at the cinema and still watch it fairly regularly now. Powerhouse central performance, amazingly well photographed and realised and that Jimmie Dale Gilmour cover of Mack the Knife at the end still brings a tear to my eye.

[Gojirosan]

Originally Posted by Daemonia

Monsters (2010) - This film made me want to smash the house up. It made me furious. Basically, in a near-future America, a space probe crashes and brings with it alien lifeforms. This area is designated a no-go zone. But a news photographer is charged with getting his boss's daughter safely from Mexico to the USA, which means travelling through the alien zone. Sounds good, yeah? It's not. It's like some ****ing holiday show, all they do is travel. Nothing happens. Nothing. It''s just talking, travelling, more travelling, more drab conversation. To say this film is slightly boring is like saying Hitler was a tiny bit racist. It's boring on a momentous scale. It's monotous, slow, boring, tedious, sleep-inducing wank. Hated this. I got to the end and I was angry - is that it? Okay, so we get a bit at the end with aliens, which basically just float in the sky for a bit, then float away. ****ing great, and that's all we're gonna get? I mean, I get that the film is built on subtlety and understatement, but this is taking that style to ridiculous lengths. The plot just falls apart at every turn - like, the guy has PAID for an armed escort then gets all shirty when they turn up with guns. ****ing hell, that's what you ****ing asked for! I hated this film so much I'm going to cremate the DVD and hunt down the filmmakers and torture them.

I've finally found a film that I hate more than The Blair Witch Project.

Couldn't agree more. A bloody awful film in every department and the lack of chemistry between the two people supposed to carry the film was insulting.

Utter shite.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Gojirosan

Couldn't agree more. A bloody awful film in every department and the lack of chemistry between the two people supposed to carry the film was insulting.

Utter shite.

There was supposed to be no chemistry between them as they don't know each other but, during the journey, they gradually fall in love. I found this to be utterly plausible, particularly as Scoot McNairy and Whitney Able were dating at the time and, by the time they recorded the commentary, were married with a baby daughter.

You can put me in the 'pro Monsters' category as I thought it was a beautifully realised road trip in which the monsters were just in the background (as they had been there for so long) and Gareth Edwards' writing and direction really impressed.

[Gojirosan]

I meant towards the end. I didn't buy them as a couple at all. That were really were in real life made it all the more tragically bad in my eyes. I thought the performances were terrible. Completely unengaging.

[Nemesis]

Doctor Who Cybermen boxest -

Revenge of the Cybermen - a good, solid dependable little caper. Not seen all their stories, but I'm getting to like Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry even more; still cannot beat the combo of Doctor, Zoe and Jamie though. Interesting to see some of the story reworked into the next story though:

Silver Nemesis - On the basis of this and other stories, I'm begining to realize how much Sylvester McCoy's Doctor is probably the darkest doctor there is. If the Valyard had to derive from one specific incarnation so far, this would be the one. Beneath that charming eccentric doctor facade, he's a brutal killer. Whereas most of the other doctors react to events involving enemies, he instigates them or sets them up. That's not to say that the other doctors cannot be effective killers too - Tom Baker employed nifty dispatches in Revenge and Morbius, while Colin was pretty brutal in the Two Doctors and Twin Dilemma - but they dispatch immediate threats and think short-term; Sylvester's incarnation is the man with the plan and thinks strategic! It's a shame that when the show needed to be benched at the end of the McCoy era that these issues got lost; the show had come a long way since the benevolent eras of Troughton and Pertwee and started to explore darker places.

As the story itself - very cheesy in places; Cyberman controller is clearly doing his best Darth Vader impression. Very good villain in Lady Peinfort and props for getting Anton Diffring as De Flores. Some very fun dialogue. But again a very good story which showcases why McCoy is a very important doctor and bumps him further up my favourites list.

[bdc]

Mr. Vampire (1985)
Very enjoyable action comedy with vampires and a female ghost.
The remastered Fortune Star dvd looks great and even has an interview with director Ricky Lau (subbed in English).

[nekromantik]

Just seen Puncture
A new lawyer drama about a small time accident & injury lawyer taking on a massive US needle manufacturer. Its based on a true story and is a very good movie!

[antmumford]

Today I rented and watched Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole and to be honest I came into it expecting little, as it had mixed reviews..... what can I say? I loved it.
It is the most stunningly beautiful piece of animation I've ever seen and nothing (that I know of) has come close. Some of the scenes were utterly mesmerising, just stunning.
The action, drama and comedy aspects all had equal time to keep the story flowing and captivating. Oh and if I ever take the plunge and get a 3D TV (will only happen if I win one or win money) then this will be my first purchase for sure.

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