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16,081 replies

MOVIES: What are you watching?

winetarelliwinetarelliMember
Enchanted

Very predictable, except for the final battle sequence, which was a little weird.

Also, quite enjoyable. Very feel good.

One gripe, though... There is a portion of the movie which is supposed to take place at 116th and Broadway in Manhattan -- they explicitly use this address. The problem is, it was not filmed at 116th and Broadway, nor does it look anything like that corner. Ordinarily, I'd give them a free pass on getting what that corner actually looks like wrong -- they have to make up something. But *someone* on that set has to be from NYC. And 116 and Broadway is the main gate to Columbia University.

Timothy Spall was excellent.
J jcocktostenMember
quote:
Originally posted by winetarelli:
quote:
Originally posted by Jcocktosten:
Big surprise, Jcocktosten agrees with Winetarelli about something - Agree on Zohan - it was a great rental - of course absurd, but very funny. John Turturro as usual was hilarious. The commentary is also really funny.


Watched the commentary at your reccomendation. What I found so funny about it was their reaction every time Emmanuelle Chriqui (who, imo, is just about the most beautiful young woman in the world) was on the screen. It was as if they had never met her and they all started just vocalizing what I was thinking. Big Grin


Yup - that was funny. Watched Tropic Thunder over the weekend - very funny movie. Robert Downey Jr. is simply an amazing actor and if it took a dumb comedy to drive this point home, so be it. Cruise's bit was amazing and his character looked exactly like one of my partners in the firm. Anyway, if anyone rents this DVD, I also strongly recommend the actors commentary as Downey stays in character (at least vocally) for the entire commentary.

Now watching Steep - a skiing documentary to psych myself up (not that I need to) for the upcoming trip to Utah
G gigabitMember
quote:
Originally posted by winetarelli:
quote:
Originally posted by GlennK:
quote:
Originally posted by gigabit:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Would you recommend it?


I was gonna ask the exact same thing...

My wife and I both enjoyed the movie. We had the exact same comment upon leaving the theater; there were many similarities to Forrest Gump.

1. The protagonist is challenged, in this case physically
2. The protagonist acts as a narrator
3. The protagonist has a life-long love interest
4. The protagonist meets unique people and has incredible experiences that open his eyes to the world

I'll leave the rest for you to examine, should you choose to see the movie.

The supporting performances are very good, there are big laughs, and some great visual moments.

I thought that Cate Blanchett looked as beautiful as ever (I have never thought she was attractive).

I am not a big fan of Brad Pitt as a dramatic actor. I think that he works best playing eccentric characters, or as a supporting actor. He did, however, do a decent job in this movie (although I found his narration much more interesting than his acting).

The movie is about 2 hours and 45 minutes in length, but is entertaining enough to hold your attention.
S seanr7Member
quote:
Originally posted by Jcocktosten:
quote:
Originally posted by winetarelli:
quote:
Originally posted by Jcocktosten:
Big surprise, Jcocktosten agrees with Winetarelli about something - Agree on Zohan - it was a great rental - of course absurd, but very funny. John Turturro as usual was hilarious. The commentary is also really funny.


Watched the commentary at your reccomendation. What I found so funny about it was their reaction every time Emmanuelle Chriqui (who, imo, is just about the most beautiful young woman in the world) was on the screen. It was as if they had never met her and they all started just vocalizing what I was thinking. Big Grin


Yup - that was funny. Watched Tropic Thunder over the weekend - very funny movie. Robert Downey Jr. is simply an amazing actor and if it took a dumb comedy to drive this point home, so be it. Cruise's bit was amazing and his character looked exactly like one of my partners in the firm. Anyway, if anyone rents this DVD, I also strongly recommend the actors commentary as Downey stays in character (at least vocally) for the entire commentary.

Now watching Steep - a skiing documentary to psych myself up (not that I need to) for the upcoming trip to Utah


Watched it as well this weekend and like you thought Robert Downey Jr. was outstanding, worth watching just for him.
winetarelliwinetarelliMember
quote:
Originally posted by Jcocktosten:
quote:
Originally posted by TBird:
it's official. you are insane.

quote:
Originally posted by Jcocktosten:
I hate most of the scenes with Bruce Willis and his girlfriend so always end up flipping channels.


I have officially been insane for some time - but I cannot be the only one who can't stand those scenes -


Jcocktosten,

You know I agree with you 99.99% of the time... I'll give you that the scenes with the two of them are among the worst scenes in the movie, but apart from the gimp scene which I think could have been done slightly better, I think all the scenes in that movie are pretty great. Off the top of my head, I can really only think of two other movies that came out in the '90s that I think are as good (The Usual Suspects and Schindler's List)

BTW: I watched Tropic Thunder with the commentary at your suggestion. Also very funny. Robert Downey Jr is just hilarious.
J jcocktostenMember
quote:
Originally posted by winetarelli:
quote:
Originally posted by Jcocktosten:
quote:
Originally posted by TBird:
it's official. you are insane.

quote:
Originally posted by Jcocktosten:
I hate most of the scenes with Bruce Willis and his girlfriend so always end up flipping channels.


I have officially been insane for some time - but I cannot be the only one who can't stand those scenes -


Jcocktosten,

You know I agree with you 99.99% of the time... I'll give you that the scenes with the two of them are among the worst scenes in the movie, but apart from the gimp scene which I think could have been done slightly better, I think all the scenes in that movie are pretty great. Off the top of my head, I can really only think of two other movies that came out in the '90s that I think are as good (The Usual Suspects and Schindler's List)

BTW: I watched Tropic Thunder with the commentary at your suggestion. Also very funny. Robert Downey Jr is just hilarious.


I loved Pulp Fiction when I first saw it - and generally think it is a great movie - The girlfriend character just did not click or do it for me - While perhaps less of an "entire movie" or whatever, I have more affection for Reservoir Dogs - probably because I saw it first and was in college and it had more of an underground feel to it. That and the opening scene about tipping and Like A Virgin is awesome

Glad you enjoyed the commentary, he really was funny. I did notice how he basically kept his mouth shut when Jack Black was talking about his drug withdrawal scenes etc.
steve8steve8Member
quote:
Originally posted by Neil K.:
Pulp Fiction is definitely one of the Ten Best of the '90s.


Forget limiting it to the 90's, it's one of the 10 best movies of all time.

JC, agree with you about the opening scene of Reservoir Dogs. Hilarious.

Last night I saw Burn After Reading, which I thought was pretty funny. Do the Coen brothers ever make a bad movie?
glennkglennkMember
Somehow last night flipping channels I stumbled upon the movie xXx . Now the title makes you think this could be an “adult” movie but it was quickly proven not to be the case as the acting was even worse and no one was naked. I someone watched about 30 mins of this before falling asleep and I can say this was probably the worst movie I have seen in some time…..
W winedrinkeroftexasMember
Holiday season has taken us to Blockbuster quite a bit.

The Women. Very good, witty movie. Really enjoyable show.
Ironman. Very good. My wife even liked it.
Get Smart. OK. No prize.
Death Race. Way better than I expected.
The Dutchess. Good, not great.
Eagle Eye. What a roller coaster ride. Good flick if rather obvious. Great special effects.
Quicksand. Older movie that I missed somehow. Good flick.
Wall-E. Recommended by a friend. Pretty amazing from a techie standpoint, but bored us to tears. Quit after about 45 minutes.
W winedrinkeroftexasMember
quote:
Originally posted by GlennK:
Somehow last night flipping channels I stumbled upon the movie xXx . Now the title makes you think this could be an “adult” movie but it was quickly proven not to be the case as the acting was even worse and no one was naked. I someone watched about 30 mins of this before falling asleep and I can say this was probably the worst movie I have seen in some time…..


Ha. My old boss' favorite actor was Vin Diesel. That tells you about my ex-boss.
indybobindybobMember
quote:
Originally posted by winetarelli:
quote:
Originally posted by Rothko:
Get Smart

Not great, but Anne Hathaway has definitely blossomed!


Anne and I are pretty much the same age (I'm 2 years older)... I've had a little thing for her ever since The Princess Diaries Smile


winetarelli,

Have you seen her on SNL? She did a great job on all the bits, and looked really, really hot. Check out the "Sound of Music" skit.

BTW, we walked out of Get Smart a few months back. Hoofah!
winetarelliwinetarelliMember
quote:
Originally posted by indybob:
quote:
Originally posted by winetarelli:
quote:
Originally posted by Rothko:
Get Smart

Not great, but Anne Hathaway has definitely blossomed!


Anne and I are pretty much the same age (I'm 2 years older)... I've had a little thing for her ever since The Princess Diaries Smile


winetarelli,

Have you seen her on SNL? She did a great job on all the bits, and looked really, really hot. Check out the "Sound of Music" skit.

BTW, we walked out of Get Smart a few months back. Hoofah!


She was quite good and that was a funny sketch. Given that she knows Julie Andrews, I half expected her to make a cameo... but ALAS!
winetarelliwinetarelliMember
quote:
Originally posted by GlennK:
quote:
Originally posted by indybob:
Dumb and Dumber: ****
I’m not a big Jim Carry fan, but I loved Dumb and Dumber. Get’s funnier every time I see it.


I'm not a big Jim Carry fan either, but I did like Dumb and Dumber and The Mask... and I loved The Truman Show -- thought he should have been nominated for an Oscar. And I loved Man on the Moon -- thought he should have won the Oscar...

So I guess I'm not so averse to him either.
winetarelliwinetarelliMember
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
Jim Carry, surely we are kidding here. Wink

Okay, let me at least think about little Tom Cruise again. Roll Eyes Wink


Razz

I agree that most of his stuff is sub-par. But, he has been excellent twice. And decent twice, imo. If you liked Andy Kaufman at all and have not seen Man on the Moon you ought to rent it. And I really think The Truman Show is one of the better movies of the 90's.
indybobindybobMember
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
Jim Carry Carrey, surely we are kidding here. Wink

Okay, let me at least think about little Tom Cruise again. Roll Eyes Wink


Carrey isn't DeNiro, but this is his personal Raging Bull. I give Dumb and Dumber **** because it does its job, makes me laugh my ass off. It, and Blazing Saddles are on my short list of funniest movies ever made, which to me means Four stars all the way. Razz

I like his serious work okay, but I wish he'd give up his quest to be a serious actor, and go back to making faces and doing physical comedy. Nobody is better at it.
W wine+artMember
quote:
Originally posted by winetarelli:
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
Jim Carry, surely we are kidding here. Wink

Okay, let me at least think about little Tom Cruise again. Roll Eyes Wink


Razz

I agree that most of his stuff is sub-par. But, he has been excellent twice. And decent twice, imo. If you liked Andy Kaufman at all and have not seen Man on the Moon you ought to rent it. And I really think The Truman Show is one of the better movies of the 90's.



I will just take your word for it! Cool

He is a modern day Jerry Lewis to me. I can only take Carry for about 15 minutes, then must move on.
indybobindybobMember
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
quote:
Originally posted by winetarelli:
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
Jim Carry, surely we are kidding here. Wink

Okay, let me at least think about little Tom Cruise again. Roll Eyes Wink


Razz

I agree that most of his stuff is sub-par. But, he has been excellent twice. And decent twice, imo. If you liked Andy Kaufman at all and have not seen Man on the Moon you ought to rent it. And I really think The Truman Show is one of the better movies of the 90's.



I will just take your word for it! Cool

He is a modern day Jerry Lewis to me. I can only take Carry for about 15 minutes, then must move on.


Hey, Lewis is a hero in France! And, from what I understand, Carrey is pretty well liked there as well. Eek Razz
G g-manMember
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
quote:
Originally posted by g-man:
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
quote:
Originally posted by g-man:
fun with dick and jane


You always make me laugh g-man. Big Grin

Circa 2005 or 1977?


2005...

I love my educational flicks =)


At least you did not say, there was a 77 version?


i learn to watch myself around you old timers =)
winetarelliwinetarelliMember
quote:
Originally posted by steve8:
Tropic Thunder (Crap. Why do I continue to watch films with Ben Stiller?)


I liked Tropic Thunder. Robert Downey Jr. and Tom Cruise were both quite good in it, I thought.

Then again, I also like some of Stiller's other movies, most notably Zoolander and Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story... If you're just generally not a fan of his style I can see where this would not have done it for you.
G g-manMember
quote:
Originally posted by indybob:
quote:
Originally posted by KSC02:
Wanted.

Pass.
Worse than Eagle Eye for unbelievable plot and story line. Even AJ is not worth watching this one. Special effects don't save it (many) either.


Agreed, and she's nearly ALWAYS worth watching. This film however. . . Pass. *1/2.


what?!?!? when she walked outta that tub ... man. ... you guys drink too much
B brashleyMember
quote:
Originally posted by Sandy Fitzgerald:
Brashley;

I believe the Coen Bros did "Oh brothers, where art thou" which I really enjoyed.

I just thought the ending to Burn fell apart. Guess it their attempt at humor, but to me it was disjointed.


for a Coen Bros. movie that doesn't fall apart at the end, watch "The Hudsucker Proxy" or "Miller's Crossing" ... both excellent movies.
G gigabitMember
quote:
Originally posted by Sandy Fitzgerald:
My wife and I went last night to see Benjamin Buttons. What a Wonderfull movie! I needed to get up and go pee (it was 3 hours long) but didn't want to miss a second!

My wife was considering sending in the medics when I stayed so long after the movie. Big Grin

Sandy-

For future reference, an empty popcorn bucket or fountain drink cup will work just fine. However, it can be somewhat distracting for other people in your row. Big Grin
mneeley490mneeley490Member
quote:
Originally posted by Sleepyhaus:
Watched Burn After Reading Last Night, really liked it. Funny how the critics split on this one, but I thought it was good. Minor in the Cohen's Canon maybe, but a success nonetheless

Wow. We had totally different experiences. Saw this last night, and I got a chuckle out of George Clooney "discharging" his firearm, but other than that, what a complete waste of time! At least in the other Cohen movies there is a charactor or two you can care about, but not a one in this case. The only one I felt for was the CIA director who was trying to make sense of all of it. I felt his pain.
The Coen Bros. ought to be ashamed of this half-baked mess.
Last edited by mneeley490
S sleepyhausMember
mneeley490, I do totally disagree about Burn After Reading. I wouldn't say I care about the characters, though perhaps a bit for JMalk's character, but I like the feel of it, the smooth ride. I think that would have to explain the critical mixed reviews too. In EW you have Lisa panning it and Gabe putting it on his ten best of '08. I am not sure how far to that end I would go, but my wife and I both enjoyed it.

Last night we watched Tropic Thunder, which I thought was okay. Many critics really liked this too, but I thought it was okay, but just okay, no better.
doubleddoubledMember
quote:
Originally posted by PurpleHaze:
Gran Torino this afternoon.

Fun. Uncomfortable at times, with a TON of racist slurs courtesy of Clint, but an entertaining couple of hours with some good performances by many. Ahney Her, as the daughter next door was very good I thought.

PH
I was LMAO at Eastwood's slurs. Agree qith Ahney Her's performance.
winetarelliwinetarelliMember
Doubt

Very good movie. Probably the best movie I've seen this year. You could tell it was originally a play. Very Mamet-like pacing. A "this ishow to act" workshop with Phillip Seymore Hoffman and Amy Adams giving stellar performances... but oh my! Meryl Streep was just incredible. There simply is no better living actress. To see two masterful actors like Adams and Hoffman and then see how much better she is than them... absolutely remarkable. But perhaps even more remarkable, still, is that there is one three minute scene where a woman who is only in this one scene, actually stands her ground to Streep... I had never seen this woman before, but for this one small scene I would say she should be nominated for the best supporting actress Oscar... and maybe she should win it. Not a 'feel good' movie, but not depressing at all either. Highly reccomended.

[side note] The above review was written a few days ago and I was just too lazy to post it. The woman's name is Viola Davis, she was nominated for the Golden Globe, and they say she is likely to be nominated for an Oscar. So, good for her!
K ksc02Member
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
quote:
Originally posted by GlennK:
Slumdog Millionaire.


A brilliant movie. I have been trying to get KSC02 to go, but he is playing hard to get.

It is in my Top 10 of the year.

Certainly not. I AM going to see this movie.
Tonight.
I'm just a bit slow to get out to the cinema some times. Smile
purplehazepurplehazeMember
An interesting tidbit on Slumdog Millionaire: When the director discovered that the best young actors to play the parts of the kids early in the movie could not speak English, he made the decision to film their dialogue in Hindi. The studio was apparently not too thrilled with this suggestion, but turned out to work perfectly.

In addition, I REALLY liked the technique of putting the subtitles next to the character speaking up higher in the screen. So often in watching a movie with subtitles you're forced to read dialogue instead of watching the film. I hope more subtitled movies use this technique in the future.

PH
glennkglennkMember
quote:
Originally posted by PurpleHaze:
In addition, I REALLY liked the technique of putting the subtitles next to the character speaking up higher in the screen. So often in watching a movie with subtitles you're forced to read dialogue instead of watching the film. I hope more subtitled movies use this technique in the future.

PH
totally agree
K ksc02Member
FINALLY went to Slumdog Millionaire.

The first half moves along at a good pace, being unpredictable.
Second half breaks the pace. Slows down a little and begins to become a bit predictable.

Very good movie, However.
I enjoyed it very much.

Jamal was the underdog you rooted for from the moment he was willing to jump in the sh*t to get what he wanted. Smile

Thanks for the recomendation, w+a. Wink
Well worth seeing.
K ksc02Member
quote:
Originally posted by GlennK:
quote:
Originally posted by PurpleHaze:
In addition, I REALLY liked the technique of putting the subtitles next to the character speaking up higher in the screen. So often in watching a movie with subtitles you're forced to read dialogue instead of watching the film. I hope more subtitled movies use this technique in the future.

PH
totally agree

Ditto that as well.

Excellent use of subtitling without removing you from the movie. WELL DONE.
indybobindybobMember
quote:
Originally posted by KSC02:
quote:
Originally posted by wine+art:
The Wrestler.

I found the movie a little overrated.

Between you and IB's feedback, you just saved me the cost of 2 tickets to this movie.

Thank you. I'll wait for the DVD.


Not a pass in my book, it's not without flaws, but a very good movie, and a brilliant acting performance. MR brings the same kind of energy as Bobby Duvall did a few years ago in "The Apostle." It's my front runner for the lead actor oscar (yes, I've seen Milk).
K ksc02Member
quote:
Originally posted by indybob:
Not a pass in my book, it's not without flaws, but a very good movie, and a brilliant acting performance. MR brings the same kind of energy as Bobby Duvall did a few years ago in "The Apostle." It's my front runner for the lead actor oscar (yes, I've seen Milk).

Duly noted, IB. Wink

However, with the few movies I actually go to see in a year, this was on my 'list', if only to see MR's performance. That can wait. There are others I'd indeed like to see on the screen.
indybobindybobMember
quote:
Originally posted by KSC02:
quote:
Originally posted by indybob:
Not a pass in my book, it's not without flaws, but a very good movie, and a brilliant acting performance. MR brings the same kind of energy as Bobby Duvall did a few years ago in "The Apostle." It's my front runner for the lead actor oscar (yes, I've seen Milk).

Duly noted, IB. Wink

However, with the few movies I actually go to see in a year, this was on my 'list', if only to see MR's performance. That can wait. There are others I'd indeed like to see on the screen.


Cool. While riveting, The Wrestler doesn't scream out "Big Screen Only," IMO. It'll translate just fine on the small screen. I typically see a lot of movies this time of year, Slumdog and Grand Torino are next on my list.
glennkglennkMember
Watched The Curious Case of Benjamin Button this morning. It was a bit slow in parts, but I found it very entertaining. I thought Cate Blanchett gave a great performance as always, but also found her absolutely stunning in some scenes. I think red hair really suits her.

No need to rush out to the theater to see this, but easy thumbs up for me.