Topic: The Movie Thread

@crippyd: I still haven't seen either! I can't wait till I get the opportunity to see Mad Max, and I'll probably get Civil War on Blu-Ray soon enough. If you like Mad Max you should check out Turbo Kid, it would be well worth your time.

@Speedy67 I watched it at the cinema and really enjoyed it. The chases are immense and the soundtrack is something else altogether! It dips a bit in the middle when they are not tearing the place up in the cars but they soon put that right and get right back to it.

@Dryst: Cheers, I've seen both Van Helsing and Ginger Snaps (all 3 of them), the former is more of an action/adventure monster flick to me though. Ginger Snaps was decent, but very little in the way of werewolf action which is why I probably forgot about it. Will have a root for the others though (I've seen The Howling too, but so long ago I really am struggling to remember anything about it). Seems a bit odd that such an iconic monster is so under-represented in the movie department.

@dichotomy
It is sad - and it doesn't help that many of the ones that have been made are pretty dismal affairs.

I did catch a few bits on the satellite of an indie film from your neck of the woods that looked like it might be good - "Howl" (2015). "Bad Moon" (1996) might also be up
your alley.

If you haven't seen it I also highly recommend "Near Dark" (1987) - a vampire film that was even richer in black humor than "American Werewolf in London" was.

I watched Chronicle yesterday, that thriller/odd superhero film from 2012 with the found footage N dat. Good film. Intense at least.

the Finest Hours (Netflix) - Dramatization of the true story of the greatest small boat rescue mission in U.S. Coast Guard history. Set in 1952, a major winter storm rips a massive oil tanker in half (and cuts away it communications with the mainland). Once it's discovered, most of the Coast Guard's forces are busy helping another tanker, so the hopes of the crew of 30-something men fall upon the shoulders of one four man boat crew on a small vessel, which was considered a suicide mission on their part due to the massive storm. Truely a story of great heroics & ingenuity, with some powerful use of special effects that had me on the edge of my seat (I felt just as cold as the cast by the time the film came to a close). It released earlier this year, so I hope it gets some Oscar nods.

Officer and a Gentleman (Starz Encore) - 80's film I watched earlier today. Followed a Naval airforce officer candidate as he tried to complete his training while getting himself involved romantically with one of the locals. Pretty decent.

@Dichotomy

There is memorable (albeit brief) werewolf scene in "Trick r Treat" - that movie is awesome by any measure - by far my favorite anthology style film.

Watched Four Lions yesterday, Chris Morris' 2010 comedy about terrorists. Never laughed so much at such a dodgy subject. Great comedy.

Vacation (HBO) - Had a free HBO weekend, so I caught this (the sequel-reboot of the classic Vacation films). It sees the character of Rusty (the son from the old films) all grown up, taking his own family on a trip to Wally World. While the idea behind it is actually pretty great, the execution stumbles, making this a film that has it's moments, but isn't in the same class as it's predecessors. Firstly, it has the same issue that EVERY modern era adult comedy I've seen has, lazy comedy. Putting a character in a zany situation, and having said character follow it up by uttering the F-Bomb for the umpteenth time doesn't constitute as a joke (and generic penis jokes aren't really unique, either). It's like they got a bunch of nearby 14 year olds to write these things. I'm not nostalgic for older adult comedies by any stretch of the imagination (I wasn't even old enough to watch these sorts of films until the late 00's), but I just find the adult comedies I've watched from the 80's to be better made films. They can be dirty & raunchy, but they're mostly clever about it & don't need to hide behind 50 utterances of the F-Bomb to make it funny. Back to this film in particular, and it's second issue, it often fails in it's call backs to the original. The premier example is the no-name car they get to take this trip. In the original film, the car is crappy quality, and has many issues (resulting in some relatable gags, for anyone who has had car trouble), but is otherwise normal. Here, they felt the need to up the ante, so the car is not only crappy, but extra cartoony for the sake of being zany (it has two gas tanks, an electric plug not actually compatible with any socket, the dashboard literally looks like something out of a cartoon, the back looks like another front, complete with reverse side-view mirrors, and a variety of zany remote controlled operations, including a self destruct function). It has it's moments (the scene at the "hot spring", Rusty's talk with his son about the birds & the bees, and the appearance of a couple old familiar faces), but is otherwise a pretty average modern era R-rated comedy.

Final Destination 3 (Netflix) - It's October, so I figured it's time to watch more Halloween related films. This is a pretty decent teen horror flick, and while it won't win any awards, it succeeds in what it sets out to to (which is to create a series of outlandish scenarios in which a group of helpless high school seniors meet their demise).

Watched Captain America Civil War on bluray. This is one I did not watch in the cinema because the trailers did not grab me. It also has Antman in which is a character I did not enoy in the standalone movie. I was also put off by the inclusion of the new spiderman. First of all I normally really enjoy spiderman movies and think they made good casting choices as spiderman. But the new actor who plays spiderman killed the character and will not be watching another spiderman movie while they keep him. Antman again did not impress in Civil War. Did I enjoy the movie? Not really thought it was the 2nd weakest marvel of recent years. I also realised how much I am starting to dislike the arrogance if Ironman. Who ws a character I have previously enjoyed.

Corpse Bride (Netflix) - Halloween-ish animated flick about a nervous groom who unwittingly marries an unead bride while rehearsing his vowes in the forest. While I can't deny that the craft behind the stop motion animation, which looks cool at times, Tim Burton's style just never quite appealed to me, and this film is no different. It's well made, but just never clicked for me.

Goosebumps (Netflix) - Decent family Halloween film based on the popular kid's books, where the monsters escape from the books and terrorize a small town. If you're a big fan of the books I could see this being a hit, but otherwise I thought it was pretty average. Not bad, but not very standout, either.

@RR529 Is that the most recent Goosebumps with Jack Black in?

Watched Dr. Strange. Thought it was good, and story wise I thought it was better than Civil War. But like many other super heroes movies the villain in this was a bit underwhelming as well. The special effects in this movie was pretty amazing, it's like the effects you see in Inception but on acid. For those planning to watch it in the cinemas, make sure to stay till after the end credits as there is another end scene. I give it an 8/10.

I also watched The Wailing (Korean horror thriller movie). It's about a small town policeman who teams up with a shaman to investigate the mysterious killings and illnesses thats happening to the locals. It's a good movie and highly I recommend it. An 8.5/10.

@crippyd, yes, it's the one with Jack Black. (sorry for the late reply)

@WanderingBullet aye, just watched Doc Strange at the BFI. Thought it was great, a solid 8. I agree the villain is a bit meh but the main villain is merely a puppet really.

Mustang- 9/10 Turkish film about a group of sisters living in an oppressive household. Poetically shot, charming and haunting. Excellent film.
Embrace of the Serpent- 9/10 A film about an Amazonian guide who takes two foreign researchers (in two different time periods) in search of a rare plant through the Amazon during the Rubber Wars. Acting is stellar, shot in black-and-white with a purpose and you really do feel as though you get some insight into the plight of the indigenous people of the Amazon and the atrocities committed by others for greed.
Both these films stay with you a while after watching.

Hotel Transylvania 2 (Netflix) - Not exactly high art, but I needed something to watch on Halloween & I don't do horror so here we go. I mean, it's pretty decent for what it's trying to do (much like the first), and it can at be times amusing to see the classic movie monsters (like Dracula & Frankenstien's Monster) dealing with the issues of middle age & the modern world.

Children Who Chase Lost Voices (Toonami) - What an absolutely beautiful anime film. The environments have an insanely detailed, vivid, nature-esque richness to them, and the characters looked ripped straight out of a Ghibli production. The beautiful aesthetic envelopes a grand adventure in a strange yet wondrous land (with some equally strange creatures), with some swashbuckling action, light romance, and an overaching theme that no matter what you do, you can't bring back those who've passed on. It's a shame that beautiful films like this with an actual deep message, are looked over when it comes to Oscar nominations, in favor of all the homogenized CGI films with watered down themes that Disney, Dreamworks, Sony Animation & the like churn out (not that their films are bad, it's just that the art seemes to have been drained out of them).

Went to see a film in the Bath Film Festival today, Long Way North. Amazing animated film, poignant story and incredible art, better than all that Disney's outputted since Emperor's New Groove. It's got the same art director as Song of the Sea, which was also amazing.

Fantastic Four [2005] (Netflix) - It's been a long time since I've watched this, so I figured it was time for a refresher. Super hero flicks sure have come a long way since this came out, but I still enjoyed it enough. 'Dat aged CGI used for Mr. Fantastic though...

Kung Fu Panda 3 (Netflix) - These are the only animated Dreamworks films I actually enjoy (I like the theme), but I really say they hit this one out of the park. The art style used in the spirit realm really stunned me with it's beauty, not something I'd expected from a CGI film like this. It actually managed to make me laugh a few times, tied up the whole series rather nicely, and again I generally like the setting of these films. Maybe beats out Zootopia as the best CGI animated film I've seen this year.

@RR529: Still haven't seen Kung Fu Panda 3 yet, glad to know it's still getting the love from fans from you. It's a great series, hopefully it can carry on longer too.