The Films You Watched Thread V: Dead Men Watch No Movies

[JazzFunk]

I remember going to see that at the flicks in 1989 with my bro. We were waiting for the bus to Leeds, outside the Punch Clock pub, it was a really hot day...and we could smell a rancid stench.

For some reason, in the gutter just in front of the bus stop, lay a dead sheep, crawling with maggots.

Always remember that, how bizarre it was and that peculiarly horrid stench! Loved the movie back then but I was only 14, bet it's dated badly, nowadays.

But, yeah, will always remember Karate Kid 3 and the dead sheep at the bus stop!!!

[Neon Ignition]

There's so much badness to the Karate Kid quadrilogy but Cobra Kai makes it all worthwhile

[Dogg Thang]

Yeah, I still think the first movie is a classic and I would rate the sequel (more so than I would have back in the day). But I probably won’t bother with the Next Karate Kid, which I’ve never seen.

[Neon Ignition]

Even as a curio The Next Karate Kid is hard work. Even if Cobra Kai signed up Hillary Swank to appear I don't think the film would add anything of relevance needed to her being in the show, it was that by the numbers.

[fuse]

I've Been Thinking of Ending Things. Went into this knowing very little, and what little I was told wasn't particularly accurate ("it's a horror") and threw my expectations right off. Liked plenty of it, but didn't love it. It did lead to a fairly lengthy conversation afterwards, and it's stuck with me at least into the day after, so that's definitely something in its favour. What was very clear though was that the bits I took issue with - scenes that dragged, references that were too self-indulgent - were very clearly there by intention. It is clearly the movie that Charlie Kaufman had wanted to make, and with Netflix supplying the budget I doubt they did little more than signing cheques.

[QualityChimp]

Smokey and the Bandit.
I'd never really seen this, despite watching the third movie dozens of times growing up.
It was one of those films I'd have on in the background. If I watched it again, I'd probably be able to quote a load of lines without realising.

Anyway, I recorded the original when Burt Reynolds died.
I must've got it from ITV4 in a daytime show because it's clearly cut in several places!
Well, it's definitely a product of its time (1977), with loads of dated jokes, but ultimately, it's a fun movie and you just want to tag along with the Bandit.
It must be said that although Reynolds is the star, it's a great cast that makes this work, especially Sally Field as Carrie, Jerry Reed as Cledus Snow ("Snowman"), Jackie Gleason as Sheriff Buford T. Justice, Mike Henry as Junior Justice, Pat McCormick as Big Enos and Paul Williams as Little Enos.

Plus, of course, the Trans-Am. Director Hal Needham saw an advertisement for the soon-to-be-released 1977 Pontiac Trans Am and knew right away that would be the Bandit's car, or, as Needham referred to it, a character in the movie. He contacted Pontiac and an agreement was made that four 1977 Trans Ams and two Pontiac LeMans 4-door sedans would be provided for the movie.

All four of the cars were badly damaged during production, one of which was all but destroyed during the jump over the dismantled Mulberry bridge. The Trans Am used for said jump was equipped with a booster rocket, the same type that was used by Evel Knievel during his failed Snake River Canyon jump. Needham served as the driver for the stunt (standing in for Reynolds) while Lada St. Edmund was in the same car (standing in for Field during the jump). By the movie's ending, the final surviving Trans Am and LeMans were both barely running and the other cars had become parts donors to keep them running. Source.

43 years later and that stunt is still ingrained in cinematic history.

[Dogg Thang]

I've Been Thinking of Ending Things. Went into this knowing very little, and what little I was told wasn't particularly accurate ("it's a horror") and threw my expectations right off. Liked plenty of it, but didn't love it. It did lead to a fairly lengthy conversation afterwards, and it's stuck with me at least into the day after, so that's definitely something in its favour. What was very clear though was that the bits I took issue with - scenes that dragged, references that were too self-indulgent - were very clearly there by intention. It is clearly the movie that Charlie Kaufman had wanted to make, and with Netflix supplying the budget I doubt they did little more than signing cheques.

Oh I didn't realise it was out. I adored the book but always thought it would be incredibly difficult to make work as a film so I'm really curious to see this. I did love the trailer.

[wakka]

Three from over the weekend...

Happy Gilmore

I had fond memories of enjoying this film when I was a kid. Sadly these were misguided - this film is pretty bad. The characters are under-developed cutouts and it feels lazily made, which are both things I could overlook, but criminally it's just lacking in any real humour. There is one main joke which is that Happy gets really angry all the time, which is simply repeated over and over.

One of the funniest things in the film is, unintentionally, the unbelievable blatant and prominent Subway advertising that appears throughout.

I honestly think Jack and Jill has more gags in it (Jack and Jill is underrated - there, I said it).

Ghostbusters 2

I'm a huge fan of the original, but I've never seen this because I've always been told it was really bad. I was a little scared to watch it, I think, fearing it might somehow tarnish my enjoyment of the original.

For whatever reason I finally threw it on yesterday on Prime (where it's in 4K UHD, which is nice).

And, well, it's not that bad! OK, it's basically a complete repetition of the first film, but with worse pacing, and less energy. The ending with the Statue of Liberty makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. And for some reason Dana's character is cut off at the knees, becoming a worrying mom mooning after Venkman rather than the sharp foil to the boys that she is in the first.

But there's a bunch of stuff that works - most prominently Venkman. He has so many good lines in this, I was laughing out loud plenty of times. The scenes of the 'Busters interacting together feel loose, natural, and are just a blast to watch - scenes like the one where they discuss how Stantz and Egon have been experimenting on the slime. And I thought Janosz did a great job of blending creepy with funny in his interactions with the painting and with Dana, in a way that was very Ghostbusters but also felt fresh (unlike almost everything else in the movie, Janosz doesn't have a direct equivalent in the first film).

So, I like it. It's a very fun watch. It doesn't hold a candle to the first one - it's more like an expansion pack - but it's very enjoyable

A Few Good Men

This is a very old school courtroom thriller, with Tom Cruise and Demi Moore as Navy legal eagles. It's an Aaron Sorkin script, so you've got a lot of snappy fast lawyer-talk (everyone kind of sounds like they're taking turns monologuing rather than actually having a conversation), and you've got some super slick direction from Rob Reiner.

That's the main word I'd use to describe the film actually - slick. It's very, very competently put together. Smooth, believable acting from an all-star cast (Nicholson is the standout) in a thickly textured, soft-lit world of wood-panelled courtrooms and artfully untidy offices and apartments.

But it lacks something. It's a talky legal drama, but it's not nearly as cerebral as it thinks it is. It tends to spoon feed you the plot points, and isn't so much predictable by the end, as outright telling you what is going to happen. There are very few if any surprises in the film, and I think that the plot needed some additional kinks and twists to make things more interesting.

Enjoyable but not outstanding. But competent. Almost too competent for its own good.

EDIT: One thing that is worth mentioning is it looks pretty unbelievably good on UHD Blu-ray. One of the best discs I have seen from the 80s/90s. Super clean, sharp and colourful.

[Atticus]

Zodiac - I remember being genuinely shocked by this first time around (don't think I've ever seen violence and threat depicted in such a realistic way before) and ever so slightly deflated too. But knowing what you know in a second viewing you start to focus more on

->Open Spoiler<-

the journey as opposed the the destination

and it proves so be a more satisfying second watch, though less shocking. Technically it's almost unrivalled: there's cgi I had no idea was there until watching the special features ... and late 60s/early 70s SF looks super authentic. Amazing looking film too ... no one can shoot night like Fincher. So this goes slightly against my 'true stories having less impact and surprise' comment earlier in the thread but when the truth is as twisty-turny as this, some even stranger than fiction, then it only makes it more powerful.

Only Panic Room to go now but I've loved watching these over the last couple of weeks. Prior to watching them I'd have picked Zodiac as my fave but now it's probably between Seven and The Game. Seven was actually a lot better than I remembered ... I never gave it the credit it deserved when it fist came out. The Game was the biggest surprise due to its integrity in committing to the concept 100% in spite of believability ... it goes full throttle for 2 hours and I love that ... very Hitchcocky too.

Need some light relief next though.

[gordon]

I've Been Thinking of Ending Things. Went into this knowing very little, and what little I was told wasn't particularly accurate ("it's a horror") and threw my expectations right off. Liked plenty of it, but didn't love it. It did lead to a fairly lengthy conversation afterwards, and it's stuck with me at least into the day after, so that's definitely something in its favour. What was very clear though was that the bits I took issue with - scenes that dragged, references that were too self-indulgent - were very clearly there by intention. It is clearly the movie that Charlie Kaufman had wanted to make, and with Netflix supplying the budget I doubt they did little more than signing cheques.

I came on here to post my opinion on I’M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS, but you’ve pretty much summed up my feelings on it. Liked it but didn’t love it.

[Neon Ignition]

C-O-N-T-R-O-V-E-R-S-Y

Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
Never actually seen it till last night. I know this is a red rag to a bull but it was rubbish There's a likeability to the characters despite the heavy dude-bro style of them but nothing in the film was amusing and it's a pretty straightforward film with nothing that noteworthy about it. The best scene was the one where they infiltrate the police station by remembering what to do in the future to aid themselves, thereby sailing through the situation in the present. I'm really curious about the idea of a 2020 version so going to continue into Bogus.

[Dogg Thang]

BAN REQUEST.

[QualityChimp]

BAN REQUEST.

Just filling in the form now.

[randombs]

If this was still an importing forum, you’d need a Japanese hanko.

[Neon Ignition]

It's exactly the kind of film I really want to like, the elements are there but stuff just kept on not landing. I imagine had I seen it back when it came out I'd have liked it more.