The General Movie Thread

[Ubik]

If you haven't seen it I highly recomment JOJO RABBIT (2019)

It is a DARK comedy, but we are all adults here. At least I think we are.

Saw this over Xmas, and it's superb. Perfect balance of satire and serious. I love Taika Watiiti's films, do see 'Boy' and 'What we do in the Shadows' if you haven't. Given how gloriously fun Thor Ragnarok is, I hope Marvel give him more films.

[Looney]

SHOCKED JOJO RABBIT (2019) didn't take home many Golden Globe Awards. No chance ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD (2019) was more deserving. I enjoyed it, but JOJO RABBIT (2019) did everything, Hollywood was lacking and too over the top at times.

[Ubik]

SHOCKED JOJO RABBIT (2019) didn't take home many Golden Globe Awards. No chance ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD (2019) was more deserving. I enjoyed it, but JOJO RABBIT (2019) did everything, Hollywood was lacking and too over the top at times.

Strangely, I have zero desire to see any recent Tarantino efforts. Kinda gone off him as a director.

[Looney]

Strangely, I have zero desire to see any recent Tarantino efforts. Kinda gone off him as a director.

I can see that. Ever since the GRINDHOUSE films he seems way to obsessed with, "Look what I can do!" when it comes to violence.

Okay so I haven't posted any new ones here for awhile, but I have watched so many movies in recent months. I will start with the two I saw this weekend since they will likely be the last two I see in on the big screen for quite some time.

THE HUNT (2020) - WOW what a waste! Great cast gets wasted on some very poor film making. Such a poor effort. Very surprised anyone thought this was a good script, but like so many things it was probably good and then got butchered down. I would honestly watch an extended version of this film to see if they could add some scenes that made it come together better.

BLOODSHOT (2020) - Quite pleasantly surprised. Not a great film, but I was entertained. Not Vin Diesel's best and not really what I expected. I can't say I really recommend it, but if you are at all curious about it then it might be worth a look.

[Ubik]

Here's some of my recently watched films, some at home, some at the Cinema:

Parasite (the Korean film that got all the accolades) - Fully deserves all the praise heaped on it. Funny, thought provoking, clever, and lays a lot of societal issues bare in a really artful way. Would stand up to multiple viewings I think. Loved it. Go see this film. In an era of reboots and sequels, at least South Korea is putting out some truly wonderful independent films.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - Well, I contradicted my above comments and checked out a new Tarantino film (albeit on a streaming site). This was, hmmmmm, okay. Some fun moments, but it felt like the era could have been explored more deeply and I would have liked a bit more on the Manson Family stuff. The revisionist history ending was just, well, odd.... Unsure how to feel about this, but it didn't do that much for me.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - Well, a proper DVD rip finally turned up online, so why not... I figured. What a total mess of a film this is. It feels like a bunch of unrelated action sequences stitched together. Such is the breakneck pace of convenient plot points, that it barely forms any kind of cohesive narrative. I had to do any number of double takes whilst watching this... and the return of Palpatine was just uninspired and dull. It was kinda fun, in a dumb action movie kind of way, but this is surely the final nail in the coffin of the new trilogy. Complete waste of time, money and energy.

[Looney]

With more time to digest things I have to admit that the Sequel Trilogy might actually be worse than the Prequel Trilogy. I think the acting in the Sequel Trilogy is top notch and a far cut above what we got in the Prequel Trilogy, but in the end I feel the Sequel Trilogy was an uninspired mess. This might go down as the biggest tragedy in film history. SO much they could have done and they chose poorly at almost every turn. I actually got SUPER excited when Rey stopped that ship, but that movie fell apart from that point on. So disappointed. I guess the whole thing was just too much to handle. I don't know. I just feel like someone had to have had better ideas that what we were stuck with.

I totally agree with your assessment of HOLLYWOOD. Still don't quite know what I feel about it. Everyone in my family acts like it is the greatest thing ever, but I think that has more to do with the fact that they saw it together as opposed to the quality of the film. I will say that I rank it higher than most of Tarantino's films of the past decade, but that isn't really saying much.

Still need to see PARASITE.

[Ubik]

With more time to digest things I have to admit that the Sequel Trilogy might actually be worse than the Prequel Trilogy. I think the acting in the Sequel Trilogy is top notch and a far cut above what we got in the Prequel Trilogy, but in the end I feel the Sequel Trilogy was an uninspired mess. This might go down as the biggest tragedy in film history. SO much they could have done and they chose poorly at almost every turn. I actually got SUPER excited when Rey stopped that ship, but that movie fell apart from that point on. So disappointed. I guess the whole thing was just too much to handle. I don't know. I just feel like someone had to have had better ideas that what we were stuck with.

Never thought I'd say this, but yes... I agree. The Prequel Trilogy at least has a logical trajectory. Sure, it's pretty devoid of drama because we already know what the big reveal is, but at least they make some kind of sense. Sure, it's Lucas in full schoolboy mode, with no one to reign in his worst instincts and terrible ideas, but at least I can laugh at that!

It's such a wasted opportunity to do something with the universe that took it new places. Shame they weren't brave enough to just cut ties with the past and make it something really new, or at least give the old cast some kind of meaningful roles. Or you know, an arc that ACTUALLY MAKES SOME GOD DAMN SENSE!

Deep breaths... we have The Mandalorian... it'll be okay.

[Looney]

Deep breaths... we have The Mandalorian... it'll be okay.

Yes we have The Mandalorian, but we now know where that is headed - nowhere. Obviously it is a far, far away galaxy and they could have the future of The Mandalorian plot thread pickup after the events of the Sequel Trilogy if it goes long enough, but it will still be there in all of its pointless glory. I mean I found the movies entertaining, but UNLIKE the Prequel Trilogy I feel their progression got worse as they went, though there are still aspects of THE LAST JEDI (2017) that I think are the worst of the Trilogy - but I also think there are parts of THE LAST JEDI (2017) that are the best of the Trilogy. And there are just soooo many pointless aspects to them. I mean really, what was the point? The Destruction of The First Order? I guess, but is that really what happened? The KNOWN leadership yes, but there are so many open ends. I hear chatter that in fact the Palpatine we saw in the movie was a clone, so doesn't that mean there could be others? Anyway, I don't want to think about it. It makes me sad - despite the fact my 4KUHD copy arrives Tuesday. (I had to get it to finish the set.)

MOVING ON:

Being home all week I watched quite a few films - oddly enough my friend and I both watch DIAL M FOR MURDER (1954) last night without knowing the other was watching it. It was such a strange coincidence. He texted me and told me he was watching it just after I finished it. We may actually be living in the Twilight Zone right now.

But the main thing I watched this week was the entire MEN IN BLACK trilogy. (I saw MEN IN BLACK INTERNATIONAL (2019) and I would definitely say it ranks with the other 3 and might be better in certain regards.) All of these movies are entertaining, but they are also very flawed - in particular their endings. I don't want to spoil them. I will just say that I found all three entertaining, but at the end of all three I was left shaking my head about certain things.

[Looney]

ONWARD (2020) - I really enjoyed this WAY more than I thought I would. If you like fantasy and you are looking for family rated fun then you will probably enjoy it.

FROZEN 2 (2019) - Upfront I admit I skipped through most of the songs. I did enjoy this one more than FROZEN (2013). The plot was interesting for what it was. I was pretty entertained, but I enjoyed ONWARD (2020) more.

[Jan]

ONWARD (2020) - I really enjoyed this WAY more than I thought I would. If you like fantasy and you are looking for family rated fun then you will probably enjoy it.

I did want to see this one when it was out. Glad you liked it.

[Looney]

It is on Disney Plus if you have it.

[Looney]

MISS FISHER & THE CRYPT OF TEARS (2020)

Anyone familiar with MISS FISHER'S MURDER MYSTERIES (2012-15) knows this movie didn't quite get there. It was entertaining enough and I definitely hope it leads to more adventures, but I think I would compare it to THE LOST TALES and say that I feel it falls somewhere between OVER HERE and OVER THERE. LOL Knowing me you would know that I find the OVER HERE segment to be a quite weak introduction to THE LOST TALES, but I think the OVER THERE SEGMENT is pretty good. So this Miss Fisher tale falls somewhere in between. It does have many of the Miss Fisher Mysteries elements, but thrown into the overall mix it amounts to what I would say is a weak episode. It relies too heavily on the idea that viewers will be satisfied with Miss Fisher having an adventure. Other than her closest male lead, her usual band of compatriots are for the most part missing. It is entertaining and Essie Davis and Nathan Page are just as good as usual, but on the whole I feel fits in the lower levels of Miss Fisher plots. Maybe my expectations were too high. I don't feel they were, but I have been looking forward to seeing this for at least a year and a half so maybe that played into it. I just hope it garners future installments. And I hope they recognize the failings.

And sorry if you are in the U.S. the only way to see this I am aware of is through an Acorn TV streaming subscription, but they are offering a 30 Day Free Trial instead of their usual 7 day trial with the code FREE30. I am going to watch SOOOOOO many MIDSOMER MURDERS and whatever grabs me. I have to finish PRIME SUSPECT SERIES SEVEN tonight. (I have that one on Blu-Ray because I am in love with Helen Mirren.)

[Ubik]

In relation to the Valiant universe thread, I watched BLOODSHOT last night. Objectively speaking, its pretty bad, but a fun enough throwaway action film. If you like 80s action flicks, this will do fine, but don't expect it come anywhere near the standard of the better Marvel films.

It needed to strike out from the standard action film template to do something eye catching and original. Sadly, this is not good enough to be the tentpole film for a new cinematic universe. A shame, as I know plenty of people who really rate the Valiant comics. Who knows, maybe they'll get a shot at another film and build something. DC has made enough failures lately, and still continues to churn out films.

[Looney]

In relation to the Valiant universe thread, I watched BLOODSHOT last night. Objectively speaking, its pretty bad, but a fun enough throwaway action film. If you like 80s action flicks, this will do fine, but don't expect it come anywhere near the standard of the better Marvel films.

It needed to strike out from the standard action film template to do something eye catching and original. Sadly, this is not good enough to be the tentpole film for a new cinematic universe. A shame, as I know plenty of people who really rate the Valiant comics. Who knows, maybe they'll get a shot at another film and build something. DC has made enough failures lately, and still continues to churn out films.

AH so glad someone else brought this up. This was the last movie I saw in the theater before lockdown. I agree with your assessment. What did you think about that ending? That was the strangest part. My friend's and I were all scratching our heads not knowing if that was supposed to be real or what. It was strange, but the whole movie was strange. I was hoping it was better, but I am not surprised it was not. Vin Diesel is a very curious person to me. I like that he seems to put so much effort into projects like Riddick, but so many projects he works on are SOOOOOO horrible. Just because people find The Fast and The Furious Franchise entertaining does not mean those are good quality movies. As I hear it, some people find them entertaining because they are action packed and make no sense. They just like it because they are so outrageous. All I can say to that is in the case of HOBBS AND SHAW (2019) I agree. I mean HOBBS AND SHAW (2019) had a plot I enjoyed and was action packed, but it wasn't CITIZEN KANE (1941)