I Just Watched (Films)

[Wrathbone]

Vantage Point

Decent action thriller about a presidential assassination attempt, mostly presented as 10 minute chunks of the incident from the perspectives of different characters. Gets a bit silly by the end and suffers from characters who seem determined to make the worst possible choices (e.g. a child running across 10 lanes of traffic to get to their mother), but worth a watch.

7/10


The Devil's Double

Based on a true story, this tells the story of Latif Yahia, who was forced into becoming the body double for Saddam Hussein's eldest son, Uday Hussein. Uday was a hedonistic, narcissistic maniac who went round Iraq getting drunk, snorting cocaine, shooting anyone who annoyed him, torturing athletes who failed in their sports and, perhaps even more disturbingly, kidnapping schoolgirls walking home so he could rape them. Dominic Cooper puts in a superb performance as both Uday and Latif, showing both the violent lunatic and the enraged man under his yoke.

It's a really hard film to watch at times, but it is absolutely worth watching. It has a feel of Last King of Scotland - maybe even Joffrey from Game of Thrones - portraying how dangerous and terrifying it is to merely be in the presence of such an erratic tyrant.

9/10

[Snowy]

Rebel Moon - Directors cut parts 1 & 2

I read a review in the Guardian which wasn't particularly glowing, plus I am not really much of a sci-fi buff, so of course I decided that about 7 hours of film would be worth my time

I enjoyed it a lot as it turned out. I know there was a brief exchange of thoughts on what I assume was the original version of the films on here, but not having seen them can only comment on the versions I watched. Apparently the team making the film effectively made two versions at once, a family friendly general release version as well as an adult-themed "the way we wanted to make it" with sex scenes (which overstay their welcome) and lashings of graphic violence.

The cast act out their roles really well, the villains are especially villainous, and by the end of the second film everything is teed up nicely for the next chapters in the story. Yes, apparently 7 hours is not enough and Snyder wants to make more content, but I am happy with that, bring it on. It isn't perfect by any means and I can imagine that it won't be for everyone, but I enjoyed it over the course of several evenings and would recommend giving it a watch.

[Animalmother]

Everyone I know that saw Rebel Moon said it was hot garbage. But after your glowing review I might take a look. Prepare to be shunned if I don't enjoy it.
Was Zach Snyder always a bit shit? Dawn of the Dead, 300 and Watchmen are great, everything else not so much.

Ad Astra
What a very strange film, I watched it a couple of years ago but remember nothing. Beautifully shot with some great music and good acting. The opening sequence looks amazing as does all the action scenes, it's just makes zero sense. The Solar System is being blasted with a massive EMP from Neptune, the same location where a manned mission went missing 30 years earlier. Brad Pitt is sent to investigate. Explaining what he encounters on the way would spoil the surprise of the odd shit he witnesses...

Spoiler

unexplained Moon pirates, a stranded spaceship with psychotic baboons (that was a shock to say the least ) and other odd shit

I believe it started off with a pretty straight forward script but the action sequences got shoehorned in to spice it up. Definitely feels that way. It's not a bad film, just a bit disjointed.

I'm going to see Interstellar in IMAX next weekend. 10 year anniversary of release. Really looking forward to that. The gf has never seen it so I'm not sure how she'll feel about an almost 3 hour, sci fi heavy film that is soul crushing in places...on a 60ft screen. Can't wait.

[Raid]

First Man

I've not seen a film that as adequately captures the sense of wonder and drama of the space race since Apollo 13. This is a masterpiece of visual and sound design, and it absolutely nails the violence of aerospace exploration. There's a shot during the culmination of the film that honestly moved me to tears. I can't help but think of a scene from The West Wing that similarly nails the reverence I feel for this era:

[Wrathbone]

Completely agreed, it’s a masterful film. The opening scene is one of my favourite starts to a film in recent memory, perfectly capturing the sheer danger and terror - and wonder - involved with space flight, that could only be met with professional calm.

[Snowy]

Everyone I know that saw Rebel Moon said it was hot garbage. But after your glowing review I might take a look. Prepare to be shunned if I don't enjoy it.
Was Zach Snyder always a bit shit? Dawn of the Dead, 300 and Watchmen are great, everything else not so much.

It isn't the best film ever made, and there are moments that make you want to reach for the fast forward, indeed I did fast forward what felt like about 10 minutes of sex scene. Yes, I get it, these two are shagging. I don't need to watch the entire act though thanks. Likewise there are scenes of wistful looking into the distance and overly mawkish soliloquising that outstay their welcome considerably. Oh, and it is quite derivative, very Seven Samurai for example.

But. Park any misconceptions that you are about to watch high art, and instead just go for the ride. You will have a fun time of it, at least I did

[Animalmother]

I'm about halfway through the first film.... Christ on a bike, what a fucking bizarre mix of ludicrous shit this is! Budget 40K Guardsmen attack a space Skyrim village. Chappie makes an appearance and gratuitous violence occurs. A griffin, alien hoors and extremely uncomfortable tentacle sex. This is only in the first 90 minutes!!!

Watched the rest of the first film. Uffff, I cannot in good conscience recommend this other than out of morbid curiosity. It's shite. You actually feel sorry for the actors having to say the stuff they do. The "story" is utterly all over the place and feels like it was AI generated. On the upside, some of the effects are great and the action is pretty good (over use of slo mo though). The gore is hilariously over the top at times.

I've little interest in watching part 2 but I might simply for completion. But then again maybe not.

[Snowy]

So did you stick with it to the end, and did you watch part 2?

[Animalmother]

So did you stick with it to the end, and did you watch part 2?

Not yet mate. I'm building up the courage to make an attempt

I'm not knocking your taste in films either btw, it just did nowt for me.

[Snowy]

So did you stick with it to the end, and did you watch part 2?

Not yet mate. I'm building up the courage to make an attempt

I'm not knocking your taste in films either btw, it just did nowt for me.

Oh don't worry, I haven't taken it personally

The films are certainly not the best things ever, and the main plotline is pretty weak - Viking farmers resist a massive galactic empire and don't get nuked from orbit (proving once again that it really is the only way). I just found enough to enjoy that I sat through 7 hours of it.

[Animalmother]

Interstellar
Went to see this in an IMAX cinema last weekend. It's near the 10 year anniversary when it was released so decided to bring the gf who'd never seen it. Was amazing but I must say the volume was at an ear bleeding level and it was hard to hear the dialogue. The visuals are still stunning in places and that soundtrack... I was worried the gf wouldn't like it as it isn't what she would normally watch but she was impressed. Asked me to explain some of the science stuff, I just had to shrug.

[Sly Boots]

Really enjoyed Interstellar when I saw it

[Alan]

Lets see...


The Thin Man 1-6
Delightful films! Absolutely adore William Powell and Myrna Loy, they play off each other wonderfully in all their many movies together.

Longlegs
Nick Cage goes full Nick Cage in a pretty good supernatural serial killer thing that goes a tad too bad cheese for the third half.

Oddity
I really liked this one. Woman is murdered in a remote farm conversion. A year later her husband is living in the same place with his new girlfriend and the murdered woman's blind twin sister who is also a psychic turns up with a man sized wooden man in search of answers. Now that sounds fucking crap but its really good! Creepy and not reliant on jump scares. Sitting at a 98% positive on RT.

Blink Twice
Some lassies go to an Epstein island sort of place for a party and there may be some bad Epstein style happenings going on. Pretty good, good finale with the exception of the last 3mins, that was just silly.

Cuckoo
This has a vibe. Seems like quite a low budget horror but it has a good atmosphere and is fairly original if quite convoluted.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
A complete mess of a film but still quite enjoyable. Monica Bellucci is only in it for Burton to show off how hot Monica Bellucci still is. In our screen there were 3 kids wearing Beetlejuice outfits - oh thats cute I guess, though they seemed a bit young for it. Then when the credits rolled they all lept in front of the screen and all started dancing in unison as their parents whipped out their phones to record it. Clearly staged before hand for some social media bullshit. Moms gotta get that social clout! Fuck em all.

Maxxxine
On par with XXX, its fine. Pearl is just magnitudes better than the other two in the trilogy that it really makes the other two seem quite shit in comparison.

[Rusty]

Just watched Blink Twice. Good recommendation. I actually liked the last 3 minutes

Oddity up next

[Animalmother]

Salem's Lot
New version of the Stephen King vampire story. I read the book years ago and really enjoyed it. I remember seeing the tv show when I was young and it scared the piss out of me, re-watched it a couple of years ago and it hasn't aged well. Cheap tv movie.

The film tries to land somewhere in the middle and is unfortunately a bit on the dull side. It's set in 1970's and at least looks good. There's just huge chunks of the story cut out and it all feels a bit rushed. Turns out it was filmed in 2022 and had problems from the studio. I'm assuming it was cut to pieces to get a release. It's supposed to be about a small town slowly getting eaten from the inside out but it's taken over in what feels like a matter of days. It's doesn't even have the dignity to be a little bit scary, no gore and very serviceable effects.

There was probably a good film in there originally but it's been reduced to very dull, safe and forgettable but of fluff.