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Review the last movie you saw; *there will probably be spoilers*
Topic Started: Tue Jul 31, 2007 11:07 am (28,805 Views)
jespah
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Published Sentient Marsupial Canid

Hobbit, Battle of the 5 Armies.

Okay. Not spectacular.

Definitely too many films were made from pretty scant source materials. Thorin was majestic and nuts but there had been little foreshadowing. I would have preferred more. Otherwise, we're left with him being basically okay at the end of The Desolation of Smaug but then he's suddenly nutso.

The problem of too many interchangeable dwarves continues. Tolkein was so hellbent on there being 13 in the original party that he failed to give personalities to nearly all of the dwarves. Jackson, Walsh, et al did a decent job of creating some memorableness for some of the characters, but there were still several left wanting. Aside from looks, can anyone tell the difference between Oin and Ori? Seriously.

Thorin's brother also appears, deus ex machina-like, out of nowhere. What the f...? It would have made some sense with foreshadowing to have Thorin referring to, say, Ori, Dori, and Nori as being "my brother's sons". That would have solved a big part of the foreshadowing problem and given a small bit of identity to those three blank slate dwarves.

While the quickie mention of Strider was nice, it could have also worked if Alfrid yelled something like, "I'm going to Rohan, where they know how to treat a man of my stature!" And you'd realize he's the father of Grima Wormtongue. He isn't in canon, but Grima has no canon parent, so what the hell. It would have tied that loose end up pretty neatly and smartly, IMHO.

Galadriel was great but weakened, allegedly. Yet she does nearly nothing in LOTR, except be nurturing. I recognize that it would have to be a retcon, but why not make it clear that she's permanently injured by her battle with the (I think) necromancer? Good foreshadowing with Saruman saying, "I'll take care of things," but no one is skeptical and so he goes off on his merry way and we end up with LOTR later on. Gandalf, Galadriel, et al look kind of stupid for having let it go for so long.

I wanted to see Tauriel die. Not that I have anything against Evangeline Lilly, or even the character. Adding a badassesque female character was helpful, and brought the storyline into more modern sensibilities. But with Tauriel, a strong and skilled archer, not fighting in LOTR, what happened to her? Again, a retcon would be needed, and the best and easiest retcon is to just kill her off. If that's considered to be too depressing, then she has to be explained away some other way. How 'bout sending her into the West, where Elrond eventually tries to send Arwen?

The split of the book is in a weird place. I know they wanted Cumberbatch, however briefly, but here is this fearsome dragon and it takes a big four or so shots to bring him down. Destruction everywhere, yeah, I get that, but otherwise, the dragon could've been killed at the end of the second film, although I suspect he was kept alive because Jackson didn't trust the audience to want to hang in there for one last film if there would be no dragon.

Costumes, lighting, sound, makeup. scene dressing, fight choreography, and special effects are all more or less flawless. At least one, possibly several, of these areas will get an Oscar nomination, and might even win. Armitrage and Freeman are excellent as always, as are McKellan and Blanchett (although we didn't see enough of her).

But the storyline, ultimately, gave up its flaws and weaknesses in this film. Tolkein's world is neat, but this film stretched the suspension of disbelief so far that it finally broke.

3 out of 5 stars.
Once Ixalla was ready, Tathrelle cornered her. “Before we leave for work, I just want to tell you, I’m sorry. I guess I sort of shut down last night. I know you were in pain and I wasn’t too terribly supportive.” There was a wall covering in the main part of their chamber, something that Tathrelle hadn’t noticed before. She stared at it for a second and then shook her head.

Outside, a disembodied voice announced from a hidden speaker, “It is time to travel to all daytime places of employment. Transportation sleighs are available and ready. Citizens are encouraged to thank the sleigh drivers at the end of a successful transport. The government recommends haste, and requests that all pregnant persons be given preference for seating in their designated areas.”

A little distracted, Ixalla just asked, “Pain?”

Untrustworthy - by me, actually. It's for sale on Amazon
- Yeah, I'm a published author
jespah
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Posted Image Posted Image I blog about Startrek fanfiction..

Honk if you love silence.
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Mojochi
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...........................

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We DON'T use only 10% of our brain or brain capacity. Shut your stupid movie face


Oh... & if we did, an overdose of narcotics wouldn't unlock the rest
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ThankYouGeneR
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I 'will' remember.

AWOLangel
Wed Jul 2, 2014 8:26 pm
birdcage

a kind of silly, fun, distraction of a movie.
I enjoyed that movie a lot. :clap: Was even thinking about it today. Have re-watched it a number of times.

And it is a pretty faithful remake of a French-Italian movie company movie from maybe the mid 70s. I saw it a decade or more before our 'The Birdcage' was made and liked it a lot too.

Don't know if it would appeal to you but the name of it is La Cage aux Folles. (The crazy cage, or cage of crazies, or something like that) It will be subtitled I imagine, though there might be a dubbed version. You know, if you sometimes enjoy foreign films... or speak French. :lol:
I will remember.
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spocklet
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Live long and prosper.....!!

Alien Quadrilogy

Oh man this is big, I mean REALLY big. Give you some idea, The Appendices from the Lord of the Rings movies is around 9 hours long in total, but this is about 20 hours long and that's not counting the movies!!

4 dvd discs with all of the movies, theatrical versions plus the directors' cut, and another 5 - yes 5 - discs of features and extras and interviews, 9 discs in total. In fact the package is about 2 inches thick, so not something you'd select for a 'quiet night in', you definitely need to be in 'marathon-running-mode' !!

But it's all there, everything from Ridley Scott's iconic first movie which had everyone hiding under the seat in front (and which I think is the best of the bunch), and Sigourney Weaver's performance as Second Officer Ripley which is the main feature of each movie !!

I'd forgotten just how good this is, so definitely time to reconnect with an old friend !!

*****
R.I.P. Gummy, we'll miss you bro
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wissaboo
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Admin
Gone girl.. quite true to the book. Ending is not very satisfying though
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AWOLangel
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johnny carson: king of late night

the title says it all. a biography documentary about carson. it's pieced together from interviews he did & iterviews with people who knew him, including his second ex-wife.

very interesting, IMHO, especially if you're old enough to remember watching him on tv.
All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.--Abraham Lincoln
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Mojochi
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^I saw that. Took me back. Dude could charm the habit off a nun
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AWOLangel
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mona lisa is missing

a documentary about the man who took the panting in 1911 & why he did it.

very interesting, if kind of quirky, story
All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.--Abraham Lincoln
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Mojochi
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RDJ & Robert Duvall are pretty good in The Judge. It's not a groundbreaking movie, & all the actors are playing characters they've long since played in the past, but nevertheless, the acting from everybody is top notch
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wissaboo
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Foxcatcher. Slow slow slow. Carrel is amazing though. Biggest comlaint is that you don't understand why anyone is doing anything
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williamslakesm
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Redneck

Caveman with Ringo Starr. I never knew the ex-Beatle acted, however after seeing that movie I now know he acts badly!!!!!
What?!?!?!?!
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wissaboo
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Admin
lol
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spocklet
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Live long and prosper.....!!

Actually all 4 Beatles have been in several movies, dating from the 60's onwards !!
R.I.P. Gummy, we'll miss you bro
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AWOLangel
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charlie victor romeo

a filmed stage play of six actual aircraft crashes with all dialog taken from the cockpit voice recorders.

it was interesting.
All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.--Abraham Lincoln
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AWOLangel
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the november man

pierce brosnan is an ex-cia agent who is pulled back into "the game" to find a witness to the war crimes an ex-russian general who's looking to become the next russian president.

not a very good movie. you're never sure who's the bad guy & there's enough red herrings to fill a small pond. not worth watching unless you wan't something on in the background while you're doing something else.
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spocklet
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Live long and prosper.....!!

Posted Image

With Karl Urban in the lead role, who has to assess a rookie for potential to be a Judge (though the fact she has psychic powers helps), we see a slightly more caring sharing side of him, than we did in the Stallone versions. We also see more of Mega City 1 (in wide shot) than previous versions, but there is still the sense of overcrowding prevalent. Overall an excellent addition to the Judge Dredd movies, and I personally think that Urban makes a better Judge !!

*****
R.I.P. Gummy, we'll miss you bro
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williamslakesm
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Redneck

First Blood, again, one of my favorite movies, however after seeing Frozen with my daughters a hundred times, the part where John Rambo says "Let it go! Let it go! just isn't so serious.
What?!?!?!?!
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Mojochi
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Charlie Bartlett (2007) - Anton Yelchin, Kat Dennings, RDJ

A morose Ferris Bueller's Day Off...like we needed that, but as teen movies go, it isn't that bad and it had some Indy chic going on
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ThankYouGeneR
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I 'will' remember.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Fantastic
I will remember.
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AWOLangel
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the blues brothers

still an enjoyable movie with a great soundtrack. i recommend reading the novelization, if you can find it.
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