Which movie did you watch today and how would you rate it?

[Underseer]

Are you kidding?

The scene in which she finds out about her daughter sets up the whole movie.

With the context, we see that Newt is a substitute daughter for Ripley, who feels guilty for missing out on her child's entire life after promising to be home for her birthday. With the motherhood context, the story is about two mothers protecting their young, each convinced that the other's offspring has to die for their own to live. You can't get more visceral than that.

Without that one scene, the whole motherhood theme is stripped from the movie, and it's just another action movie in which the protagonist happens to be female.

I agree that I could have done without the extra scenes with Newt's family, but the scene in which Ripley finds out about her daughter is absolutely critical in my opinion.

I don't buy it's necessity. All it needs is a mothering type to be mothering. Some people are suckers for big round eyes and small noses. There's no need to complicate a story.

I don't think the motherhood theme/subtext is very clear without that scene.

 

[Jayjay]

Gravity
8/10

The plot is pretty much this:

but the execution is smooth and I found it a rather enjoyable specimen of the space survival genre.

 

[MarkW]

Heat

9.5/10

In a decade of great crime films, this powerful one from Michael Mann is one of the very best. The action, capped by a bank heist and subsequent shootout, is superb. But so is the character development--even more than the set-pieces, this one is famous for the "cup of coffee" scene between Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. De Niro is outstanding, Pacino is almost as good aside from a few hammy moments, and Mann gets one of his trademark to-die-for supporting casts: Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, Ashley Judd, Wes Studi, Mykelti Williamson, even a young Natalie Portman. Only a rather limp performance from Amy Brenneman disappoints. A must-see for any fans of good crime films.

 

[Bacillus anthracis]

The Theory of Everything

Solid movie. Good, but not great. It's about Stephen Hawking, from the time he first began to feel the effects of his disease up until roughly the present. The focus is much more on his personal struggles than his scientific work. And maybe that's why I didn't like the movie as much as I'd hoped. The personal struggles are inseparable from his work, but the balance was way off. They could have kept all the personal stuff but also added another 20 minutes or so about his work in order to give a better picture of it.

Oh, the religion thing. If you're a red-blooded atheist then... I don't want to spoil it. Let's just say that there are now probably a lot of Christians who saw this movie who believe Hawking is in their corner.

Still though, between this and the latest Transformers flick, this is the much better choice.

6.5/10

 

[DrZoidberg]

Straight Outta Compton 5/10

It's about NWA. This is part of my history. I grew up on gangster rap, and I was heavily into hip hop when they came onto the scene. So it's weird seeing a movie on a subject where I know every little detail in advance without having seen the movie before. It did kill a lot of the suspense. This is the story straight and.. well... actually... boring. They didn't take any artistic chances or tried to go anywhere. They made nobody look bad. This is a world where everybody really is cool and hard all the time but at heart a nice guy. Easy-E was a dick who screwed over his best friends. Yes, this was in the movie, but played out in the most careful way possible in order not to offend anyone of make anybody look bad... except Jerry. Their Jewish manager Jerry is Shylock. Such a stereotype it's not even funny.

When I saw that this is written and produced by Ice Cube then it all make sense. This film is about his friends and he wants to stay friends with them. Sure, Suge Knight is portrayed as a psycho. But he really is a psycho, and famously so. He won't be bothered. That's the only interesting character. Easy-E was most likely an out-of-control sex addict. That would have been an interesting story. This isn't so much a film as a promo-piece. Candy for a NWA fans.

But well made and well acted. Somebody, not connected to NWA, should remake this.

 

[angelo]

Something's Gotta Give with my favorite actor Jack Nicholson. Yes I'm aware I watched this film not that long ago.
I can never get enough of a well executed story and the top notch acting.
8.5/10

 

[MarkW]

Married to the Mob

8.5/10

A good crime comedy, especially worth seeing for Michelle Pfeiffer's Golden Globe nominated, breakthrough performance as a mob wife who wants a "divorce" from the Mafia lifestyle.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Some Like It Hot. This is a comedy classic in B/W. The late Jack Lemon and Tony Curtis best work on my humble opinion. I've watched this film at least a dozen times, and it gets better the older it gets.

I understand film critics voted SLIH as the greatest comedy movie of them all.

It definitely deserves consideration. The one problem with "best comedy" is that there are other types of comedies and it isn't workable to compare comedies like Some Like It Hot or Adam's Rib which are thoughtful comedies, with other classic slapstick comedies like Spaceballs or Bringing Up Baby (yes, I consider Spaceballs a classic).

 

[Shadowy Man]

3 Days to Kill

7/10

This is another one from that mini-film industry otherwise known as Luc Besson (who produced and co-wrote). There are a lot of elements here similar to other Besson films. The action elements are competently done, but what gives this one some distinction is the human element. Besson has frequently featured a father-daughter dynamic in his films (e.g., Taken and its sequels, Wasabi), but in this one Kevin Costner and Hailee Steinfeld bring some real life to their scenes together.

Sorry.. I am unable to parse a sentence that includes "Kevin Costner" and "bring some real life [to a scene]".

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

3 Days to Kill

7/10

This is another one from that mini-film industry otherwise known as Luc Besson (who produced and co-wrote). There are a lot of elements here similar to other Besson films. The action elements are competently done, but what gives this one some distinction is the human element. Besson has frequently featured a father-daughter dynamic in his films (e.g., Taken and its sequels, Wasabi), but in this one Kevin Costner and Hailee Steinfeld bring some real life to their scenes together.

How'd you rate it verses Taken?

 

[laughing dog]

3 Days to Kill

7/10

This is another one from that mini-film industry otherwise known as Luc Besson (who produced and co-wrote). There are a lot of elements here similar to other Besson films. The action elements are competently done, but what gives this one some distinction is the human element. Besson has frequently featured a father-daughter dynamic in his films (e.g., Taken and its sequels, Wasabi), but in this one Kevin Costner and Hailee Steinfeld bring some real life to their scenes together.

How'd you rate it verses Taken?

Having seen both, Taken seemed more realistic but the characters in 3 days to a kill seemed fuller. I liked Taken better only because there was more action, but 3 Days to a Kill had more comic relief and richer characters.

 

[MarkW]

3 Days to Kill

7/10

This is another one from that mini-film industry otherwise known as Luc Besson (who produced and co-wrote). There are a lot of elements here similar to other Besson films. The action elements are competently done, but what gives this one some distinction is the human element. Besson has frequently featured a father-daughter dynamic in his films (e.g., Taken and its sequels, Wasabi), but in this one Kevin Costner and Hailee Steinfeld bring some real life to their scenes together.

How'd you rate it verses Taken?

I'd give them both the same score overall, but for different reasons. As laughing dog said, the action side of Taken is superior, and Neeson is the better of the two leads on that front. However, I found the human element to 3 Days more genuine--for one reason, I can buy Hailee Steinfeld (who is, of course, an actual teenager as well as a good actress) as someone's teenage daughter a lot more easily than I can accept a 25-year-old Maggie Grace, and her scenes with Costner have a genuineness to them that I enjoyed.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

How'd you rate it verses Taken?

I'd give them both the same score overall, but for different reasons. As laughing dog said, the action side of Taken is superior, and Neeson is the better of the two leads on that front. However, I found the human element to 3 Days more genuine--for one reason, I can buy Hailee Steinfeld (who is, of course, an actual teenager as well as a good actress) as someone's teenage daughter a lot more easily than I can accept a 25-year-old Maggie Grace, and her scenes with Costner have a genuineness to them that I enjoyed.

Sounds like I'll need to give it a go. I'm a sucker for films Besson is involved with. While most of them don't come close to Leon, they do have an edge and a little bit of thinking to them. I actually liked how Taken 2 built off of the first film (Holy fuck... an action sequel with a quasi-plausible plot fndn?!). While it turned into a silly affair it at least had a little bit of thought behind it.

 

[prideandfall]

for anyone who hasn't seen it, i highly recommend another costner-starring action/thriller Mr. Brooks - it's quite a fantastic film, though far more on the psychological thriller side than the action side.

 

[MarkW]

I'd give them both the same score overall, but for different reasons. As laughing dog said, the action side of Taken is superior, and Neeson is the better of the two leads on that front. However, I found the human element to 3 Days more genuine--for one reason, I can buy Hailee Steinfeld (who is, of course, an actual teenager as well as a good actress) as someone's teenage daughter a lot more easily than I can accept a 25-year-old Maggie Grace, and her scenes with Costner have a genuineness to them that I enjoyed.

Sounds like I'll need to give it a go. I'm a sucker for films Besson is involved with. While most of them don't come close to Leon, they do have an edge and a little bit of thinking to them. I actually liked how Taken 2 built off of the first film (Holy fuck... an action sequel with a quasi-plausible plot fndn?!). While it turned into a silly affair it at least had a little bit of thought behind it.

Along with Leon, my favorite films from Besson (if you leave out the movies in his filmography where he probably didn't have much creative influence, like The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada) are The Fifth Element, which is so amazing visually, and The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec, which Besson directed with an unbelievably light touch.

Now for tonight's movie:

The Gumball Rally

7/10

This one tells a fictionalized version of the Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash, often known simply as the Cannonball. It's hard to write about this one without comparing it to The Cannonball Run, which came out a few years later and also recounts a fictionalized Cannonball race. While Cannonball Run boasts lots of star power (Burt Reynolds at the peak of his stardom, Roger Moore at his peak, along with Dom DeLuise, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., and more) and also can claim none other than Brock Yates (the sportswriter who created the Cannonball) as screenwriter, I liked Gumball Rally better. It tells a more coherent story, and its humor has more bite. And as someone who was growing up during the somewhat crazy 1970s, I like the way it captures a little slice of what America was like in that decade.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Sounds like I'll need to give it a go. I'm a sucker for films Besson is involved with. While most of them don't come close to Leon, they do have an edge and a little bit of thinking to them. I actually liked how Taken 2 built off of the first film (Holy fuck... an action sequel with a quasi-plausible plot fndn?!). While it turned into a silly affair it at least had a little bit of thought behind it.

Along with Leon, my favorite films from Besson (if you leave out the movies in his filmography where he probably didn't have much creative influence, like The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada) are The Fifth Element, which is so amazing visually, and The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec, which Besson directed with an unbelievably light touch.

The one part of Besson's earlier work I like is Eric Serra who did the music. The Fifth Element was generally a good visual film, but the soundtrack went alongside it without skipping a beat and it was relatively unique as well. The Fifth Element seems to be hit or miss with people. I though it was over the top, but in a controlled way. La Femme Nikita is obviously another really good film. Very edgy, very European.

 

[Playball40]

A Walk in the Woods 8/10 - I am a Bill Bryson fan but didn't really know how well it would translate into film. That said, I loved this movie. I was inspired but also laughed out loud through much of the movie. I know the reviews were "meh" but then I've never been one that seem to go with the crowd anyway. Redford and Nolte complimented themselves well in this film.

 

[James Brown]

A Walk in the Woods 8/10 - I am a Bill Bryson fan but didn't really know how well it would translate into film. That said, I loved this movie. I was inspired but also laughed out loud through much of the movie. I know the reviews were "meh" but then I've never been one that seem to go with the crowd anyway. Redford and Nolte complimented themselves well in this film.

I enjoyed it as well. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, and was also hesitant about how it would be filmed--so much of Bryson's humor is wry and literary, very difficult to visualize on screen. But my wife and I both were pleased with the film as a whole.

 

[credoconsolans]

Sounds like I'll need to give it a go. I'm a sucker for films Besson is involved with. While most of them don't come close to Leon, they do have an edge and a little bit of thinking to them. I actually liked how Taken 2 built off of the first film (Holy fuck... an action sequel with a quasi-plausible plot fndn?!). While it turned into a silly affair it at least had a little bit of thought behind it.

Along with Leon, my favorite films from Besson (if you leave out the movies in his filmography where he probably didn't have much creative influence, like The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada) are The Fifth Element, which is so amazing visually, and The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec[/I], which Besson directed with an unbelievably light touch.

I thought this would be good, steampunky and Indiana Jones-ish. Instead it's soo camp and cheesy that it was painfully stupid to watch.

Now for tonight's movie:

The Gumball Rally

7/10

This one tells a fictionalized version of the Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash, often known simply as the Cannonball. It's hard to write about this one without comparing it to The Cannonball Run, which came out a few years later and also recounts a fictionalized Cannonball race. While Cannonball Run boasts lots of star power (Burt Reynolds at the peak of his stardom, Roger Moore at his peak, along with Dom DeLuise, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., and more) and also can claim none other than Brock Yates (the sportswriter who created the Cannonball) as screenwriter, I liked Gumball Rally better. It tells a more coherent story, and its humor has more bite. And as someone who was growing up during the somewhat crazy 1970s, I like the way it captures a little slice of what America was like in that decade.

Is that the one with Michael Sarrazin? Oh, damn. I didn't know he died!!

If so, yeah, this was funny. Watched it on reruns late one night.

My brother adopted that line from the Italian driver - Raul Julia? - He rips off the rear view mirror and declares "What is behind me, is not important!"

 

[MarkW]

Now for tonight's movie:

The Gumball Rally

7/10

This one tells a fictionalized version of the Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash, often known simply as the Cannonball. It's hard to write about this one without comparing it to The Cannonball Run, which came out a few years later and also recounts a fictionalized Cannonball race. While Cannonball Run boasts lots of star power (Burt Reynolds at the peak of his stardom, Roger Moore at his peak, along with Dom DeLuise, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., and more) and also can claim none other than Brock Yates (the sportswriter who created the Cannonball) as screenwriter, I liked Gumball Rally better. It tells a more coherent story, and its humor has more bite. And as someone who was growing up during the somewhat crazy 1970s, I like the way it captures a little slice of what America was like in that decade.

Is that the one with Michael Sarrazin? Oh, damn. I didn't know he died!!

If so, yeah, this was funny. Watched it on reruns late one night.

My brother adopted that line from the Italian driver - Raul Julia? - He rips off the rear view mirror and declares "What is behind me, is not important!"

Yes, Michael Sarrazin was the lead in this one and Raul Julia was the Italian driver.