[AFGNCAAP]

Originally Posted by MoriartyL

I just watched No Country For Old Men. I loved the craft behind it, and the chase scenes were fantastic. But I don't really understand what the movie was trying to say, so I didn't like it so much.

"Life sucks, and then you die." But seriously, I don't think there was a one simple message the film was trying to put across. Rather, it tried to evoke a feeling of radical pessimism/nihilism (I know they are different things, despite the common misuse of the latter word, but either of them, or both, could be argued to apply to NCfOM) about the state of the world.

That said, it was a film which I thought worked exactly as well when you are trying to decipher its "message" as when you're disregarding it and just go with the flow. The craft, as you say, the stylish look, the sound design, the precise script that doesn't underestimate audience's intelligence, and actors that are universally at the top of their form, make it a touchstone of (bleak) thrillers.

Originally Posted by Squinky

Again, I still haven't seen the movie, but must those two concepts be mutually exclusive?

Saying that something is rather X than Y doesn't imply that X and Y are mutually exclusive.

A much more fitting question to Giligan would be why having a moral message is an "odd thing".

[Squinky]

Originally Posted by AFGNCAAP

Saying that something is rather X than Y doesn't imply that X and Y are mutually exclusive.

True, but does Giligan know that?

[kuze]

Currently watching The Black Donnellys, and just found out it has been cancelled. WHAT.

This is getting just ridiculous. Donnellys is an excellent show, I am enjoying it so much and now I know there are only a few episodes to go for me. After Carnivale, Deadwood, Dead like Me, Jericho, Wonderfalls, Firefly now this? You gotta be kidding me. I bet there is another CSI show in the making, though, together with other fifty cop-shows with the same mediocre cast, same old cases, same boring drama. God I hate this.

[MystGirl]

I'm still a big fan of SNL (Saturday Night Live alumni) going from SNL to movies. So I still enjoy Adam Sandler movies, Will Ferrell, etc. I just saw The Love Guru with Mike Myers. He hasn't done a movie in like six years. It was ok, but not as funny as I thought it was going to be. And I saw the new Zohan movie with Adam Sandler, but again, not quite as funny as I was hoping it would be. I notice when some comedians start getting older, to a certain degree, they start to lose their edge. They get kind of stuck on the same type of jokes that made them funny ten years ago. So while I still love Adam Sandler and Mike Myers, they are "showing their age" compared to newer comedies like The 40 Year Old Virgin, which was hilarious.

I did like Andy Samberg's Hot Rod. (he's a current SNL member) That guy is hilarious.


What is it with Jessica Alba though? She's like the hot "go to" girl for every comedy now as the love interest. (I guess I answered my own question) heh.

[RLacey]

American Gangster
A tad on the long side (though I was watching the extended edition), but a pretty enjoyable film. And Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington are always watchable.

[RLacey]

Beetlejuice
I really didn't get the plot at all at the end

Spoiler:

(at least, I have no idea why the worm thing suddenly appeared in the 'real' world)

, but otherwise this was a very enjoyable film.

[Lucien21]

DAAAY-OOOOOH
Daylight come and me wan' go home

[Lucien21]

Kung Fu Panda

Dreamworks best animated movie since Shrek sees Jack Black in wonderful slacker form as the fat panda who dreams of Kung Fu greateness.

Accidently picked as the next "Dragon Warrior" he pratfalls his way through Kung Fu training, annoys the other students (The Furious Five) and has to defend the valley against the evil snow leapord.

Not the most original storyline, but the laughs came often and the fight scenes and background are beautifully put together.

Great fun for kids of all ages.

8/10

[Lucien21]

Chronicles of Narnia - Prince Caspian

Sequel to the less than stellar Lion,witch and the Wardrobe sees the 2 sons of adam and 2 daughters of eve called back to Narnia by Prince Caspian.

1300 years have passed and the Narnians are all but extinct. Prince Caspian is on the run from his Uncle who is trying to take over the throne and Aslan is nowhere to be found.

It was a reasonably enjoyable film, better than the original, but still felt a tad bland.

The SFX was good, the action so-so (The best bit was the witch scene which isn't from the book), the acting variable (Peter never really comes across as a leader figure, the younger actors stole the show) and the pacing is a tad slow.

Best thing about the movie was Eddie Izzards mouse warrior who was hilarious throughout.

6/10


Wanted

The movie plays like my fantasy life (well some of it anyway)

James McAvoy is wasting his life in a dead end office job, with a nightmare boss and a girlfriend who is boffing his best friend all day. He is a pathetic noboby who suffers panic attacks at the slighted stress.

Then one day Angelina Jolie appears, tells him his long lost dad was a world class assassin and drags him away from his mundane life. Now he works for the Fratenity a group of assassins who kill people at fates request. Develops super enhanced senses, after some intense training, that make him into a near unstoppable assassin who is a dead shot, can bend bullets and perform death defying stunts with minimal injury.

Yes it's based on a comic book, but no it's not really that close to the comic book in question who's assassins were really super villians who killed all the heroes and now ran the world.

Some fantastic fight scenes, hectic gunplay and car chases and Angelina Jolie naked-ish covered in tattoos .

Fantastic fun.

(now i'll go back to waiting for Angelina Jolie to appear at my local Tesco and whisk me away to another life)
8/10

[Trader]

Dan in real life, watching Steve Carell dancing to nasty girl was the best laugh I have had in ages, my sisters and I where crying it was so funny.
HE GOT DA MOVES.

[stepurhan]

The Chronicles of Riddick

Liked Pitch Black and I saw this cheap so I thought I'd pick it up (since it's supposed to be a sequel of sorts.) Not a worthy successor at all. A reasonable enough gonzo sci-fi action movie with some big set piece scenes that must have cost a fortune but completely forgettable. This isn't helped by the plot being incoherent nonsense.

Bizarre Aside. Judi Dench famously doesn't read scripts before taking on a role. This film may have caused her to regret that approach. The summary for her character in ths described it as a woman clad all in white with powers beyond those of ordinary beings. This description and a misreading of the title led her to believe she was being offered Tilda Swinton's role in this film. By the time she realised her mistake contracts had already been signed. Still, she does put in a game performance in the circumstances.

[DustyShinigami]

Originally Posted by stepurhan

The Chronicles of Riddick

Liked Pitch Black and I saw this cheap so I thought I'd pick it up (since it's supposed to be a sequel of sorts.) Not a worthy successor at all. A reasonable enough gonzo sci-fi action movie with some big set piece scenes that must have cost a fortune but completely forgettable. This isn't helped by the plot being incoherent nonsense.

Nah, i didn't like this one either. Enjoy Pitch Black though. I remember seeing Chronicles of Riddick at the cinemas and being completely bored out my skull. I didn't have a clue what the story was about (at the time) or what was going on. Just shows how good the story is.

[Lucien21]

Gone Baby Gone

Delayed in the UK due to the similarities with a real life abduction (Madeline McCann) this is a well directed movie by Ben Affleck (WTF??).

A 4 year old girl is abducted and the movie follows a private detective hired by the family to help find her. Lots of twists and turns and a real moral decision at the end that will fuel discussions.

Proving once again he got the acting talent in the family Casey Affleck is very effective as the detective in question who holds his own against big actors like Morgan Freeman in the movie.

Superb

8/10


Hancock

Seen the trailer, well there isn't much else to it. Superhero who is more of a drunk asshole, causes more damage than good, gets a PR makeover and learns to be a real hero.

Blah Blah Blah.

Naff.

5/10


The Mist

Another film that has taken forever to get released in the UK (and oly a limited release at that) is Frank Darabont 3rd Stephen King adaption.

As a huge SK fan and The Mist being one of my favourite short stories I was nervous, but I shouldn't have been.

It is a very faithful adaption in most ways and probably one of the most effective horror films in years (No Torture porn just real horror). A bunch of normal people get trapped in a supermarket as an unusal Mist covers the town. There is something in the Mist (Cuthulu style monsters) and they have to fight for survival. The biggest danger comes not from the monsters but the humans themselves as they fracture into groups one lead by the very creep Marcia Gay Harden as the religious nutjob who preaches the end of days and the coming rapture.

Some really good set pieces (the flies and in particular the drug store scenes are pants wetting scary) which leads up to the all important ending. The Novella is famous for it's dark and ambigious ending, would they holywoodise it and make a happy ending. I'm happy to sat that although the ending is radically different from the novella it is a bleak ending, but one that comes sooo close to ruining it with a hilarious final surprise (They should have left it with the car and the bleak ending)

8/10

[SoccerDude28]

WALL-E

I went to the movie theater expecting a typical Pixar movie about cute robots, but I wasn't expecting the storyline and the political messages that ensued. This is probably the most adult of the Pixar movies, and it might fly right over the heads of younger children, but to me, that makes that much more interesting. The fact that it can portray so much emotion with so little speech is a tribute to Pixar's amazing story telling. Like the judges from Britain's got talent would say: "Bloody Brilliant".
5/5

[guyver1]

saw it last night great movie better then the first lots of action and some comedy and surprises hope they make another one.

[Lucien21]

The Forbidden Kingdom

Young american boy is obsessed with Kung Fu movies, finds an ancient staff while on the run from some bullies and is somehow transported to ancient China where he meets Jackie Chan and Jet Li. It's kinda like Karate Kid meets Bulletproof Monk.

So lots of Kung Fu sequences between a silly plot that could have come from the old Monkey Tv show. Throw in an all so predictable ending about how you can learn Kung Fu in a few days and be a better person and shake.

Ok the fight scenes are a lot of fun, especially the fight between Chan and Jet Li, but that is about it.

5/10

[Hammerite]

I watched Stardust recently - much better than I thought it would be and I now have a massive crush on Claire Danes.

[Lucien21]

Originally Posted by Hammerite

I watched Stardust recently - much better than I thought it would be and I now have a massive crush on Claire Danes.

I've had that crush since I saw "My so called life"

[stepurhan]

I take it still having a crush on Michelle Pfeiffer (the restored version, not the crone) makes me old.

[Trader]

Explorers starring both very young Ethan Hawke, River Phoenix, never saw it when it came out. It was very cute and fun.