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nadroJ said:
I get what you mean there with the Noe thing, especially the head stamping which I guess is reminiscent of the opening scene of Irreversible, except in Drive it is implied and in Irreversible the camera doesn't blink.

Yeah, Owain, I've noticed a lot of people mention how incredibly violent the film is and, maybe I'm desensitised, but I really wasn't that bothered by it, to me it's not more violent than any other action/thriller?

Just to contradict you slightly, stylistic choices were indeed made to make it look different to reality. I was watching an interview on the extras on my Blu Ray and the director and Ryan Gosling both explain how they wanted the film to seem dreamlike, natural but something slightly off and surreal about it.

I really enjoyed Ryan Gosling in Drive, even though he didn't talk a lot his screen presence was immense and he didn't need to say anything to people. Just his body language and facial expressions say it all.
The violence is only shocking because how it is played out, i.e. kissing scene/head stomping, quiet walking scene/gunshot to the neck all playing you into a comfortable position before jolting that.
 
It's not as if the violence was too much, it just randomly in there when you didn't see it coming, or at least I didn't. The corniness of him putting on the gloves when he got mad made me laugh because it just seemed ridiculous, like putting on driving gloves makes you tougher. Unless you are a limo driver, nobody should ever have driving gloves and act tough about it, especially in LA. If it is cold and you wear gloves while driving then, fine, but it was just silly in my opinion. When the girl got shot in the head and you see parts of her brain flying, I didn't see the point in having the spray effect of the blood. And for a movie called Drive, I expect a hell of a lot more driving, not the one scene at the beginning when he is the only Impala on the road in LA (there are way too many of them in real life, they are **** everywhere) and then when he was racing after what's his face got shot. I expected a lot more action, not just awkwardness.

The strip club scene made me just throw my hands up as well. I mean, you see a guy get his fingers smashed with a hammer, and what do all the strippers do? Sit there and watch. They just have the strippers THERE doing nothing for 3 minutes topless. I don't know, it wasn't my type of movie, and it did nothing for me but bother me.
 
Ben said:
What uncut version did you watch that was over two hours long?

Okay, that'll be our cinema's fault. It started at 10:10 and finished at gone 12:30. The actual film is 103 minutes, about 30 minutes too long :p

Ben said:
See, Amy Adams and Jason Segel are literally two of my favourite people ever, but, even taking it as not liking the human stuff, there really wasn't THAT much focus on them...? I was actually sad there wasn't more Amy Adams <//3

No idea who either of them are, other than annoying. "Maniacal Laugh, Maniacal laugh"? Eugh, **** **** **** **** ****. Scenes from other Muppet films rehashed and dumped in, everything so obvious? It was just, eugh. AND Jack Black who is **** too. Seriously missing Jim Henson and Frank Oz.

Maybe it's just because I know the Muppets well, I know the films and I've got a lot of love for the very clever humour that they used to have. This film only occasionally comes anywhere near close and then it's only when the Muppets are allowed to let off a little steam. There are absolutely, definitely highlights, but overall it's just a shadow of what was. Maxi-Minor_Furie agrees with me too, so it's not just a generational things, it's a taste thing :p
 
Amy Adams is FAB, though I'm sure the original trailer showed her decking someone... Oh wells...

I think it depends how much you liked the main two human characters... I dunno why they decided to keep Jack Black out of ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL the celeb cameos they decided to bring in after... If you're going to end up with Neil Patrick Harris, force him to undo the damage he did with the bloody Smurfs and have a decent person instead of Jack Black...

The bad guy being unable to laugh wasn't explained in the film I swear... So it just seemed like he did it for no actual reason, when they'd cut out some of his rap (which was also random as hell for the record) which DID...

It's not perfect, but it's a fun enjoyable family film, and definitely miles better than some other films you see these days... Besides I've had the soundtrack stuck in my mind since Sunday... Gotta count for sommat :p
 
Actually I loved Scarface and there was no way I was ever going to see A Serbian Film, after reading about it, yeah, no thanks. Never heard of Oldboy though...
 
^^Yeah, sounds like they cut loads out of his rap which is odd, especially as it's left on the soundtrack. But it helps fill in so much about his character, seems odd to cut it. And Furie how do you not know of at least Amy Adams? Have you seen Enchanted? (She's the lead) If not, see it, like, NOW!

Saw some films...Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance in 3D.

Ha, it was pretty awesome. The special effects were really cool and the 3D was decent, there were actually some cool shots in there. Nic Cage also has some scenes where he goes mental, they are always his best scenes. There are some really odd moments in there and also some cool graphic novel like animations. Overall it's fun but not amazing.

Rating: 3/5


Then I watched Journey 2 The Mysterious Island in 3D.

It looked like good cheesy fun, it was. It wasn't as fun as I was expecting and considering the cast it just ended up feeling like a 4D movie at a theme park. There were times where it relied too much on the gimmick of 3D. It's just your typical family fare really for a Saturday afternoon, predictable but with some fun moments, oh and it teaches kids about Jules Verne, what's not to like about that?

Rating: 3/5
 
I loved the bit with the Maniacal Laugh, that was just, amazing <3 Why did that need to be explained, it was a joke... The Muppets has always been pretty obvious, I felt like it was a total return to form.

I watched Muppets Treasure Island last night and... yeah... I much prefer the tone/comedy they've gone back to now.

All the reviews etc. of the new film disagree with you Phil, so, I do think it's a matter of taste, and it's a matter of you not having any :p
 
I'll just add then that I went to a screening on Wednesday and counted 4 people who walked out, and the couple in front of me talked throughout about how piss-poor it was. I'm not a Muppets fan, but I was looking forward to seeing it and I found it just wasn't....funny. I think I laughed once. The story was dire, the DoP (if he even existed) just went "Ok, I'm just going to put a million lights on the scene without over exposing it" and it just felt a bit flat.

Amy Adams for once didn't look like a beaten-up housewife for once and actually looked hot, which was nice. The first musical number was brilliant and very catchy, and as I usually don't like musicals, I was shocked.

But yeah, having never been a Muppets fan really, I can't really compare old vs new, but the film was a good enough family flick but perhaps has been a tad overrated.
 
peep said:
Saw some films...Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance in 3D.
Nic Cage also has some scenes where he goes mental, they are always his best scenes.

success-kid-i-hate-sandcastles-ayer.jpg
 
Been a while, but since I'm lazy here's a short review on Chronicle

WE SHOULD TAKE THIS DIMENSIONAL CHARACTERS...

...AND PUT THEM IN OTHER MOVIES.

6/10
 
Ben said:
I loved the bit with the Maniacal Laugh, that was just, amazing <3 Why did that need to be explained, it was a joke...

It was a **** joke. It didn't need explaining, it just needed removing :p

Ben said:
The Muppets has always been pretty obvious, I felt like it was a total return to form.

Nah, the Muppets have either been "groan worthy" and amusing, or exceptionally subtle and clever (and usually the groan worthy stuff is clever).

Ben said:
I watched Muppets Treasure Island last night and... yeah... I much prefer the tone/comedy they've gone back to now.

I like Muppets Treasure Island for Tim Curry obviously, then there's a couple of funny bits in the inn and Cabin Fever is superb. The opening track and Miss Piggy's entrance too are great. Again, it's let down by the human side and Kermit being wet (haha). I don't think there's that much difference in overall quality between the two films to be honest.

Ben said:
All the reviews etc. of the new film disagree with you Phil, so, I do think it's a matter of taste, and it's a matter of you not having any :p

Rotten Tomatoes says it's got an average of 7.8 out of 10 which I'd say is fair enough with taste differences. I'd go lower to 7, but an average of 8 isn't unrealistic.

peep said:
And Furie how do you not know of at least Amy Adams? Have you seen Enchanted? (She's the lead) If not, see it, like, NOW!

Enchanted is good, yes, but I saw it once, a long long time ago and Amy Adams didn't impress me enough to make her memorable as a household name, or memorable at all in the slightest :p
 
I saw The Muppets last night and reallllyyyy enjoyed it. I liked it because it was cheesey and cringeworthy and silly. And the songs are awesome and still stuck in my head <3

Although, the so called 'pant wettingly hilarious' bit with the mirror, I didn't find it THAT funny? Like, I laughed, but, it wasn't side splitting laughter. Wonder if I'm missing something.

Oh well, lived up to my expectations and I'm glad I went to see it, made me smile =]

A Dangerous Method on the other hand makes me want to slap David Cronenberg in the face. Stupid man, go back to the 80s where you belong and make GOOD things. Keira Knightley gurning really is that last thing that needs to be seen on the big screen <//3
 
Whored up the movies this weekend:

Real Steel

A lot better than I thought
7/10

Safe House

Denzel is Denzel.
9/10

Ghostrider 2
Nic Cage being Nic Cage in another **** movie
5/10
 
Ugh, I still HATE the Muppets. I haven't seen them in ages, but I think the hatred spawns from being forced to sit through Muppets Treasure Island EVERY time there was an indoor recess in grade school </3 Probably why I also dislike Aladdin :p .

I watched a few BBC documentaries yesterday.

Terry Pratchett: Choosing to Die - 9/10

Loved it, but I can see why it was controversial. I actually watched this and another assisted suicide documentary, but the name of the other one escapes me. Anyone who can watch either one of these and still be against assisted suicide is an actual knob. Seeing someone in their last few days of life, coming to terms with the situation and eventually actually dying on camera is really powerful stuff, as well as seeing the close family members have to cope with what is going on. It was mostly about Dignitas in Zurich, and the stories of a few people as well as how they select and reject applicants. Anyway yeah, I definitely recommend it especially if you're interested in the whole assisted suicide debate like I am.

Pompeii- The Last Day- 8/10

I think I've seen it before, or one of the countless other documentaries about it, but this one was probably the best. It focused on a few specific stories during the eruption of Pompeii as well as the devastation it caused to the area as a whole. It didn't overly dramatize things and I thought it was pretty informational despite the fact I already know a lot about it because of what I'm taking in school. I like how they showed Pompeii today as well, with all the ruins and the body casts which I'd love to see in person one day. Overall, I definitely recommend it if you like history!

Child of Rage - 7/10

Not a BBC documentary and I felt like it sort of prematurely ended, but it was still good while it lasted. It was about a girl who got abused as an infant and had some sort of attachment disorder where she didn't have feelings towards anything, thus causing her to always try to kill her sibling and adoptive parents, as well as harming and killing animals without remorse. She was also obsessed with masterbating and molesting because of the abuse she went through. It showed a lot of the real psychiatrist visits and documented her progress when she was sent away to live with people who specialized in "fixing" these sort of children. I wish they would have showed more of her progress but she seemed to be a bit better at the end of the show, crying when she discussed her old behaviour, etc. So it was a happy ending.

The Science of Killing- 8/10

Another one watched because of my fascination with death and the death penalty. It was about a guy who was extensively researching execution methods to try and find the perfect and humane way to kill a criminal, as well as seeking new methods that he thought they should implement in prisons across America. He ruled out the lethal injection because it requires medical expertise that is not always available thus resulting in painful death, hanging because it is not always guaranteed even though it is instant when done right, the electric chair because it is essentially a form of torture, and the gas chamber because it requires prisoner cooperation otherwise it can be extremely painful. I like that he often put himself in situations that gave him an idea of what dying in these manners was like, especially the gas chamber. He eventually determined that hypoxia induced by G forces was a good way to die, but impractical, so he was put in a hyperbaric chamber to experience hypoxia in that way, finding it to be extremely euphoric as he was drifting out of consciousness; however, having hyperbaric chambers in prisons was also impractical, so he found a scientist that was able to recreate those conditions using argon and nitrogen, thus the perfect way to die. Then of course there were the debates about how the perfect way to kill a criminal should not be humane, etc.. Overall, very interesting!
 
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