The online racing simulator
Quote from Kalev EST :Maybe someone or even me suggested "The Others" already. It´s not new (2001) but I thought I´d mention it anyway. In my opinion it´s Nicole Kidman´s best movie. And it´s a movie I found really creepy, not any of that slasher nonsense that has been sold as "horror". It develops quite slow in the beginning but stick with it. The end is good.

You might check out a movie of hers called Birth. It's supremely creepy without really having any horror elements at all.
Quote :I've found too that reading the book before watching the movie is usually disappointing, unless we're talking about something like Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings.

I could never get into the Harry books, although I did make it through the last book as I exceedingly bored at the time, and I felt like I was participating in the 'phenomenon of Harry'. The movies on the other hand are pretty entertaining.

Same with the LOTR. I loved the Hobbit and read that about 3 or 4 times, but I always struggled with LOTR, don't think I ever finished it.

BTW, whatever happened to the 'books I'm reading now' thread?
Quote from Electrik Kar :BTW, whatever happened to the 'books I'm reading now' thread?

It's being adapted to a movie. A trilogy I think.
Quote from DeadWolfBones :Fight Club.

Must have been a goddamn awfull book, the film was rubbish.

Quote from Vain :Today I watched Pitch Black and enjoyed it.
It's 2 hours well spent if:
1. You didn't have anything to do anyway.
2. You get enjoyment out of trashy action movies with overly cool main characters and mediocre acting.

Vain

If you're in to that kind of film, (and I admit I am), The Chronicals of Riddick (the sequel) is pretty good too.

Just went to see "The Reader" last night. Pretty good. I can see why Winslet got a Golden Globe for the part, (no not because she gets her kit off!).
The Warriors (1979)
IMDb

old but very good
Quote from gezmoor :Must have been a goddamn awfull book, the film was rubbish.

Quote from geezmoor :The Chronicals of Riddick ... is pretty good too.

Opinion invalidated!
Quote from DeadWolfBones :Opinion invalidated!

Not really, one is a perfectly good film of it's genre, (ie Sci-Fi), the other is a pointless film, excepting if you like watching people fight, with no depth to it in any way and pretty crappy acting.

Just because I like to watch films based on pure fantasy on occasion doesn't mean I have no intelligence. IMO films like Fight Club are the worst kind of film ie A film attempting to be deep and meaningful and failing miserably at it. Even films like XXX are better because they're not pretending to be something that they're not ie anything more than a pure mindless action film.
What did you guys think of "the wrestler" ? Well, it was rather interesting to watch, in the theater... But maybe because I was with my friend, who kept, well, laughing and trying to make jokes quite a few times.. I think it was meant like that, but just abit too abruptly ended for me, I mean, I was like just starting to get into the movie, and bam, the end...
Oh I don't recommend "The day the earth stood still" ... unless you wan't your brain to stand still ..
Quote from gezmoor :Not really, one is a perfectly good film of it's genre, (ie Sci-Fi), the other is a pointless film, excepting if you like watching people fight, with no depth to it in any way and pretty crappy acting.

Just because I like to watch films based on pure fantasy on occasion doesn't mean I have no intelligence. IMO films like Fight Club are the worst kind of film ie A film attempting to be deep and meaningful and failing miserably at it. Even films like XXX are better because they're not pretending to be something that they're not ie anything more than a pure mindless action film.

In my opinion (of course):

Riddick is a completely godawful science fiction film with a nonsensical premise, terrible acting, and bad special effects. And I liked Pitch Black. A lot.

Fight Club, on the other hand, has some of the best direction, acting, cinematography, editing, sound design, and subtle gfx work I've seen in a film. The themes are mostly pretty juvenile but the screenplay is really quite tight and well-written.

Have to agree with dwb. Saying that Chronicles of Riddick is a better movie than Fight Club would about the same as saying 2f2f is a better racing movie than Le Mans...

And to contribute: as I didn't go to the cinemas for some time now, I can only recommend a film I've seen on TV lately: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. I had a few good laughs which were intended by the makers. Especially the russian roulette menace scene is awesome.
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is so great.

"Don't quit your gay job!"
i´ve seen transporter 3 last week.
its a really cool film if you like an arse full of action and huge unrealistics stunts
Quote from DeadWolfBones :In my opinion (of course):

Riddick is a completely godawful science fiction film with a nonsensical premise, terrible acting, and bad special effects. And I liked Pitch Black. A lot.

I'm guessing you're not a Sci-Fi fan?? I mean is it your favorite genre?
You see, it is mine. I love Sci-Fi in all formats, Books, Film etc and I went through school doing the sciences and my career is in an engineering field. My point being, that I am very tolerant of bad Sci-Fi where as I often hear non Sci-Fi lovers making statements like you just made. To which I always retort: Suspend your disbelief, that's the whole point of Sci-Fi. It doesn't matter if it isn't possible or how nonsensical it might all seem, it's fiction all that matters is that you can imagine it happening. There will be those that tell you that Sci-Fi should be grounded in real scientific principles as we understand them today. I disagree, that's why it's Science-Fiction not Science-documentry. Anyway, I agree that the acting wasn't good and I agree that Pitch Black was a better film. I just said it was "pretty good", by which I mean it wasn't great or brilliant but it wasn't completely crap either.

Quote :
Fight Club, on the other hand, has some of the best direction, acting, cinematography, editing, sound design, and subtle gfx work I've seen in a film. The themes are mostly pretty juvenile but the screenplay is really quite tight and well-written.


See the bit in bold. That's where it ends for me unfortunately. And sorry but I can't agree with the acting being anywhere near the best I've seen in a film. Maybe the supporting cast were ok, but Pitt just ruinied it for me. IMO he just can't act. Or at least can't act any way but one way and that is hamming it up good and propper. I have only seen one film with him in that I thought he was even remotely competant as an actor and that was Babel, and the only reason I enjoyed that film was that it was so well acted by everyone else even Brad Pitt couldn't spoil it.

As for the rest, well I'm no film officionado in that sense. I never take any note of who the director or producer of a film is etc, I don't pick films apart in that way. I just watch with an open mind and hope to be pulled in to the reality of the film, which is what I believe the objective of said directors, producers and actors is. Only if things in the film interject to ruin my immersion in to the plot and story will I notice. Predominantly, for me this boils down to can I believe the characters?, which is very reliant on the acting ability of the actors, (and how well they've been cast). If I can't, the film just bombs no matter how good the cinematography or screen play etc.

So I guess we approach films in a different way maybe.
Quote from gezmoor :I'm guessing you're not a Sci-Fi fan?? I mean is it your favorite genre?
You see, it is mine. I love Sci-Fi in all formats, Books, Film etc and I went through school doing the sciences and my career is in an engineering field. My point being, that I am very tolerant of bad Sci-Fi where as I often hear non Sci-Fi lovers making statements like you just made. To which I always retort: Suspend your disbelief, that's the whole point of Sci-Fi. It doesn't matter if it isn't possible or how nonsensical it might all seem, it's fiction all that matters is that you can imagine it happening. There will be those that tell you that Sci-Fi should be grounded in real scientific principles as we understand them today. I disagree, that's why it's Science-Fiction not Science-documentry. Anyway, I agree that the acting wasn't good and I agree that Pitch Black was a better film. I just said it was "pretty good", by which I mean it wasn't great or brilliant but it wasn't completely crap either.

You guess drastically incorrectly. Blade Runner is my favorite film of all time, and Alien/Aliens, The Blob, The Thing, Primer, Pi, etc, are all way up there. I'm a voracious reader and I was weaned on mostly science fiction and fantasy. See my goodreads account here. I have no problem with suspending my disbelief, but I do have a problem with my sense of belief being shredded to bits and/or completely taken for granted, which Riddick does in spades.

Quote :See the bit in bold. That's where it ends for me unfortunately. And sorry but I can't agree with the acting being anywhere near the best I've seen in a film. Maybe the supporting cast were ok, but Pitt just ruinied it for me. IMO he just can't act. Or at least can't act any way but one way and that is hamming it up good and propper. I have only seen one film with him in that I thought he was even remotely competant as an actor and that was Babel, and the only reason I enjoyed that film was that it was so well acted by everyone else even Brad Pitt couldn't spoil it.

As for the rest, well I'm no film officionado in that sense. I never take any note of who the director or producer of a film is etc, I don't pick films apart in that way. I just watch with an open mind and hope to be pulled in to the reality of the film, which is what I believe the objective of said directors, producers and actors is. Only if things in the film interject to ruin my immersion in to the plot and story will I notice. Predominantly, for me this boils down to can I believe the characters?, which is very reliant on the acting ability of the actors, (and how well they've been cast). If I can't, the film just bombs no matter how good the cinematography or screen play etc.

So I guess we approach films in a different way maybe.

I'm not sure how you could believe the characters in Riddick and not in Fight Club.

And let's be fair: I didn't say I appreciated WHO the director/cinematographer/editor/sound designer were on Fight Club (though I do--David Fincher is one of my favorites)... I said I appreciated those elements of the film. i.e., it looked awesome, it sounded awesome, it flowed in a convincing way, shots were framed well, etc. To be honest, I think Fight Club does have some important things to say about modern masculinity and our existence in consumerist society, and I think most of them are buried below the surface level interpretation that most 17 year olds unfortunately take away from the film. In other words, it's not about how we should all deface corporate art, burn our IKEA furniture, and start beating each other up. Rather, it's about how stupid and knee-jerk these ideas are. I don't think Durden or even the narrator (though he eventually overcomes Durden's magnetic personality) are portrayed in a very positive light, though it is semi-glamorous at times (in a grimy kind of way).

As for Pitt, I think he's grown to have quite a bit of range as an actor. He certainly wasn't impressive when he started, but he's good at playing wackos (12 Monkeys, Fight Club, Kalifornia) and recently he's taken on some more contemplative roles (The Assassination of Jesse James, Benjamin Button, Babel) with great success IMO.

Ed Norton's peformance alone is worth the price of admission, though.

Anyway, yes, I guess we approach movies in different ways.
Yesterday's movie - Europa

Just.. weird. 7+/10
Death Proof: Sexy & shockingly brutal, if you like blood, muscle cars, car wrecks, sexy women & revenge this is one for you. Bit of a Tarantino gore fest.

Ronin : Good plot set in Nice, excellent car chases & stunt work, bit slow in places. Worth watching.

Revolver : Another Guy Ritchie gangster style flick not as good as lock stock but not a bad film.

Super Bad : Refreshingly Funny
Quote from anttt69 :Death Proof: Sexy & shockingly brutal, if you like blood, muscle cars, car wrecks, sexy women & revenge this is one for you. Bit of a Tarantino gore fest.

Ronin : Good plot set in Nice, excellent car chases & stunt work, bit slow in places. Worth watching.

Ronin is a bit slow in places? Did you notice that 95% of Death Proof is terrible dialog with no plot at all, or were you too busy staring at the white trash talentless hookers that were bending over every 5 seconds. You could almost hear Tarantino jerking off in the background. The only appealing parts of the film were when they mentioned Vanishing Point, at least then people would know what film Tarantino wished he had the talent to make and how bad Death Proof is in comparison.

Do yourself a favour, don't buy it on DVD, search on youtube for the 10 minutes of decent muscle car action, then buy some tins of paint for your wall to simulate the rest of the film.
About Riddick... I indeed liked Pitch Black, but the chronicles, was just, (especially after i saw the trailer..) just mehh... averegness, and actually, abit boring, and well tbh, it didn't have any realllly good moment, I just liked the shell of the character..

Heh Blade Runner, have to finish watching that someday.. (my dvd only works to ~middle :/) what a bummer it was, never gotten into the mood to complete it..

Mad Max ! I recommend, old but oh well brilliant, especially part 2.

Transporter 3 - godawful, just crap in its purest form, and is it just me, or did the chase scenes look like 15fps in lfs..

The Incredible Hulk - not bad at all, Ed Norton is good ...

Dexter - It's not a movie but a tv-show .. but boy is it entertaining Could be compared to Death Note anime, but it's very different, just somehow, I think it would go in the same drawer as death note
Quote from DeadWolfBones :........ Blade Runner is my favorite film of all time, ......

+ several million

As a matter of fact, I watched it again this week...just for a change! Emmy got p***ed off with me saying all the lines just before they were spoken on screen......(what upset her most was...I was right every time! )
Hmm I always wanted to watch Blade Runner but never did for whatever reason. A couple of months ago I did it, and I have to say that it is... ok.
I mean it's beautifully done, considering it's from 1982. But even though I enjoyed it, I found it overrated and Harrison Ford was the worst part by far.

To keep close to the subject, I watched Dark City these days. It was going pretty good but I thought the ending was crap. Worth a check though.
Quote from DeadWolfBones :You guess drastically incorrectly. Blade Runner is my favorite film of all time, and Alien/Aliens, The Blob, The Thing, Primer, Pi, etc, are all way up there.

I admit to being surprised in that case, (and appologetic too :shy.

Quote :
....... I have no problem with suspending my disbelief, but I do have a problem with my sense of belief being shredded to bits and/or completely taken for granted, which Riddick does in spades.

Well maybe in that case it's because, as I said, I have a high tolerance of "bad" Sci-Fi films. I love the old 50's "B-Movies" for example. Or maybe I'm just more of a dreamer?

With regards to bad SFX, I can't say I ever notice really. I'm not quite sure what constitutes such a thing. I certainly don't think SFX are bad just because they are noticable as SFX for example.

Quote :
I'm not sure how you could believe the characters in Riddick and not in Fight Club.

I think if I'm being honest my biggest problem with the film boils down to Pitt, I just don't like him as an actor and therefore haven't enjoyed any of the films he's in. Maybe I didn't give Fight Club a fair chance because of it, but I also just don't have any interest in the premis of the film. I know it was trying to make a point about masculinity etc etc but I just saw it as a shoddy platform for a bunch of actors pretending to beat the crap out of each other, and so it didn't achieve it's aim, (if that is what it was truely meant to be about, I have my doubts).

Quote : And let's be fair: I didn't say I appreciated WHO the director/cinematographer/editor/sound designer were on Fight Club (though I do--David Fincher is one of my favorites)... I said I appreciated those elements of the film. i.e., it looked awesome, it sounded awesome, it flowed in a convincing way, shots were framed well, etc.

You see, I don't conciously think about those things, even when analysing how much I enjoyed the film, post experience. Except of course if such things are a major part of the films presentation. The cinematography in Lord of the rings being a prime example for instance. I tend to aproach the film as an overall experience.

Edited to add - I too grew up on reading Sci-Fi. Specifically, Asimov & Heinlein. From there I moved on to William Gibson, Ben Bova, Greg Bear, Stephen Baxter and Ian M Banks. Also read a bit of Fantasy ie Raymond E Feist, Janny Wurts and Ursula Le Guin.
Quote from de Souza :Hmm I always wanted to watch Blade Runner but never did for whatever reason. A couple of months ago I did it, and I have to say that it is... ok.
I mean it's beautifully done, considering it's from 1982. But even though I enjoyed it, I found it overrated and Harrison Ford was the worst part by far.

Which version did you watch? The "Directors Cut" version is far far better than the original cinema release.

Quote :
To keep close to the subject, I watched Dark City these days. It was going pretty good but I thought the ending was crap. Worth a check though.

Now that is a good Sci-Fi film !
Quote from gezmoor :I know it was trying to make a point about masculinity etc etc but I just saw it as a shoddy platform for a bunch of actors pretending to beat the crap out of each other, and so it didn't achieve it's aim, (if that is what it was truely meant to be about, I have my doubts).

Somehow I took it as more of an anti-consumerism statement and what people do to fill up their empty lives. I can't even remember any of the actual fight scenes in it - mostly I remember all the anarchistic messages in it and the rants characters would go through, mostly Tyler that is, with his non-stop propaganda to get people to stop identifying themselves with what they did, what they looked like, etc. And the all famous idea of stealing human fat from liposuction clinic dumpsters to make soap and sell it back to the people who had the liposuction.

I think you probably watched a different movie.
geezmor.. what do you say about the Stargate franchise ?
Oh, I too read alot about the Blade Runner versions, so which one is the definitive one to see first ?

Recommend a film you've seen lately.
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