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

[QualityChimp]

I've never really got Anna Faris. There's no doubt that she is a very attractive woman but she only ever seems to play stupid / clueless characters. Even in something like Lost in Translation she plays an annoying, ditzy character.

I think it's the angle of "she's pretty but can laugh at herself".
She's pretty good in FAQs About Time Travel, which is well worth seeing.

I really like the look of Game Night ... just clocked its appearance on Prime Vid last week but my wife was turned off by the word 'game' thinking it was video game related

On the contrary, it's a great movie for couples. Unless you're struggling to conceive, then it's all a bit like Up.

I watched The Elephant Man last night. For David Lynch's first major film it's got a surprising amount of his trademark dark surrealism in it, and used to beautiful effect too. There's nowhere near the levels of the films he made after, not counting Straight Story, but still, he must have been given a surprising of freedom. But if any aesthetic dominates the film it's dark industrial London and the seedy carnivals and alleyways ... it's a striking looking film from start to finish, always keeping you rooted in the Victorian atmosphere and setting. If the film has been accused of sentimentality then I'm fine with that ... the cruelty would be unbearable otherwise ... it needs light to balance the shade ... and the ending is so beautifully done I defy anyone not to hold a tear back.

Such a sad film. I don't think I could cope watching it again.

[prinnysquad]

I watched Basic Instinct last night. That movie really holds up. Douglas and Stone are great and you really feel her unravelling him. It’s a hot movie too, obviously, in ways that many movies attempt but don’t quite capture. It looks really good too. At the risk of sounding old, there is definitely something special in those pre-digital movies.

Pausing the VHS was a nightmare. DVD made it much easier.

[Dogg Thang]

Pausing the VHS was a nightmare. DVD made it much easier.

Got it on Blu Ray. It’s great to get the extra details on classic films with great cinematography.

[Neon Ignition]

If you stare too closely for too long and too close to the screen you'll see something truly awful....


Basic Instinct 2

[Dogg Thang]

I’ve never seen it but I have to admit I’m tempted.

[randombs]

Pausing the VHS was a nightmare. DVD made it much easier.

The more heads your VCR had, the less jerky her muff was.

[Neon Ignition]

We've got just one more 1974 movie left to watch after these...

Death Wish
It's a bit daunting to know there's four more of these to come as to be honest this was pretty much utter guff throughout. Though it gets credit for being decades earlier it's like watching John Wick if John was a bad shot, never chases the people who wronged him and spends half the film desert home property planning. A real aimless slog.

Blazing Saddles
Man, though the content in the film is self aware and that's the point it doesn't make the film any less jarring to watch through a modern lens. A bit like Young Frankenstein, it's also hard to escape the feeling how dated a lot of it is. Also, had they been able to keep the original plan of having Richard Pryor in the lead role it would have totally lifted the film.

The Sugarland Express
Another one of those films where I think decades of imitators diminished the film when I saw those films first, that and the 70's style doesn't help with things like characters talking over one another etc. The backend of the film picks things up a bit but it's just a bit of a holdback that it's too obvious in its plotting throughout.

The Taking of Pelham 123
To be honest this was alright, it opens straight into the main plot set up and is overall a pretty tight movie. Low on action considering the set up but it's brisk and the classic look on Walter Mattheau through the door at the end

[Atticus]

Me and one of the boys watched Jaws last night. I'm so glad this never fell foul to the trend of adding digital effects to older films. My youngest, who I watched it with, walked in on a classic Doctor Who a while back and quickly pointed out the cardboard/tinfoil missile ... yet he never once mentioned old Bruce in Jaws. The film is so well made you're too busy caring about the characters and situation. Also, who needs a shark when you have barrels ... genius touch. His fave character was Quint too. Both really enjoyed it. The 4K UHD is a treat for the eyes (and ears) too. I'm fairly sure that by the time Jaws hit VHS a load of the colour had faded from the original negative so it must have been recoloured along the way to look as great as it does.

[Atticus]

I watched Modern Times last night. It's very good but I thought the factory bits were slightly too surreal, almost like I was watching Metropolis ... I prefer Chaplin films rooted more in the real world. Saying that it does have that brilliant department store roller-skate scene ... and the cafe sequence near the end is great too. I did enjoy it but it's not his finest imo.

[wakka]

Knew you had taste @wakka!

Question - do Netflix/Amazon’s own films ever come out on a media format?

Hehe

Yes, they do release them on physical media as well. You probably know that now since I've just seen you bought Annihilation!

[Atticus]

Watched The Blues Brothers for the first time tonight. Absolutely loved it ... just a really uplifting film that never stops rolling along with smiles all the way. It's almost like someone gave a kid an open cheque book and asked them to turn a sketch into a 2-hour film ... there are no traditional rules, everything is cranked up to the max and it's all the better for it (how were they allowed to smash up that much stuff? ). It reminded me of being back at school and some of the other films from that era. I'm ready to watch it again already

[randombs]

Watched The Blues Brothers for the first time tonight. Absolutely loved it ... just a really uplifting film that never stops rolling along with smiles all the way. It's almost like someone gave a kid an open cheque book and asked them to turn a sketch into a 2-hour film ... there are no traditional rules, everything is cranked up to the max and it's all the better for it (how were they allowed to smash up that much stuff? ). It reminded me of being back at school and some of the other films from that era. I'm ready to watch it again already

It's Friday afternoon and I have the day off because I'll be working tomorrow. I was about to do some cleaning/DIY but your post has persuaded me to watch The Blues Brothers for the first time right now.

I've had a pretty bad couple of days. First I finished Zelda and it made me sad that it's finished(I get the dame feeling from books/films that create really immersive universes that I want to live in). Then I found out last night before going to bed that an old school friend just passed away, leaving her husband and young daughter. I know those two aren't comparable, but still. I haven't watched a film in weeks because I've been devoting each spare moment to Zelda.

The film is already cheering up and it hasn't even started yet

[Atticus]

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did [MENTION=2625]randombs[/MENTION]

[randombs]

I swear I’m not making this up, but ten minutes into the film a mate messaged me to say he’s going through a divorce. It’s been paused at 10:13 for the past two hours. They’re still outside the orphanage waiting to go in while our conversation has moved to space travel and something called a Dyson Sphere. Which is not a cute rolling vacuum cleaner.

[Dogg Thang]

a mate messaged me to say he’s going through a divorce. It’s been paused at 10:13 for the past two hours. They’re still outside the orphanage

I stared at this post for far too long wondering if your mate and his wife were putting their kid in an orphanage because they're getting a divorce.