Last OK Movie You Saw

[TheMightyEthan]

I liked the McGuire ones better (too bad they never made a third one), but can't really put my finger on why.  I liked ASM okay, but not enough to do anything more than Redbox the sequel.  Also, that part at the end with the cranes and the flags was just awful.

[Strangelove]

I just always enjoyed the simplicity of the Spider-man trilogy basically over every other superhero movie. Well, the first 2 movies anyways. Same reason I like the Burton Batman films over all the other ones. They don't take themselves so seriously. Even when they may deal with serious issues.

Ive always been kind of the anti-nerd though. Ive never been bugged by things not being completely explained. Im ok if things get left out. Im more about how films make me feel than what they make me think. On the other hand, there are tons of people, really analytical people who will lose their shit if something gets retconned, goes unexplained, or never gets addressed at all. A lot of people will say they just need some consistency in whatever universe the character lives in, but even that is just too much. I dont understand that type of obsession with tearing these films/comics apart. But I think that may be my own personal thing. Im obsessive about a lot of other things.

 

I guess in short - Peter Parker got bitten by a radioactive spider and got spider powers. That is absolutely fine to me. Yeah, theres lots of question you can ask, almost infinite questions, but why would you? The idea at it's root makes no sense. Leave it alone. Have fun with it.

[TheMightyEthan]

I want things to be internally consistent, but I don't mind retcons and stuff as long as it makes sense within the universe.  It just has to feel truthy.  And I certainly don't care if it makes sense in a real-world way, as long as it's not trying to present itself as realistic.

 

*Edit* - I will say that the alarm clock thing is the greatest thing that's ever happened in any Spider Man movie.

Edited March 26, 2014 by TheMightyEthan

[Strangelove]

I only take a film as seriously as it takes itself. I assume a lot of people are that way. Thats why Nolan's Batman films get ripped to pieces. And honestly? Im there too. I agree with most of the hate they sometimes get. I like those movies as much as anyone else, but they take themselves so seriously and tries to explain every single aspect of it's universe that when it fucks up, it really stands out. Thats why I prefer Begins over the other 2 movies as well. There's a weird  SUPER UNREALISTIC hallucinogenic plant in Begins. Thats good enough for me. Unlike the other 2 that have a shitload of complicated twists, technologies, and just extreme suspensions of disbelief....in a supposed real world.

 

 

Let's just go back to strapping little penguins with rockets please.

[TCP]

Amazing Spider-Man > Spider-Man 2 > Spider-Man >>>>>>>>>>>>>> the second worst movie ever made >>>>>>>> Spider-Man 3

[TheMightyEthan]

Is there a dislike button?

[TCP]

Can't handle the truth?

[Hot Heart]

I have to agree with Ethan...Spider-Man 3 was far more entertaining than the other two Raimi ones.

[Waldorf and Statler]

Cowboy I have never felt so turned on in my life

[Faiblesse Des Sens]

Amazing Spider-Man > Spider-Man 2 > Spider-Man >>>>>>>>>>>>>> the second worst movie ever made >>>>>>>> Spider-Man 3

 

People who only get their opinions from the internet think things like this

[madbassman39]

I would put Amazing Spider-Man in the OK era too. I loved the Rami films, and was just kind of Ok with the Amazing Spider-man films. I argue that if the Rami films didn't exist, ASM would have been better received by myself and fans. Its actually a really fun movie, and does the comics (especially the Ultimate Spider-Man) justice. We just had already seen most of that story, and there were a lot of parallels between Connors in ASM as there were with Osborn in the first Rami film.

 

It felt like a re-hash that we didn't need. I also didn't like the darker tone in the costume which they plan to change for the new film. The costume and posters made it seem like they were going to Dark Knight the series, but the movie wasn't super serious with dark undertones. ASM2 is now chasing the Marvel franchise with brighter colors and opening up a world with villains. ASM has always felt like it was chasing what was successful.

 

Its still a good movie, we've just seen it all before, which made it less fun to actually watch. I hope that ASM2 can get me interested in seeing Spider-Man in theaters again. I'm a massive fan of the comic character and saw Spider-man 2 and Spider-man 3 all on opening night and barely cared to rent ASM when it was at redbox.

[Faiblesse Des Sens]

American Hustle. Actually saw it last week but forgot to write anything about it.

 

Well acted but ultimately comes off as tryhard and a movie that goes fast to make sure you don't think about any of the events or characters too in-depth. An enjoyable watch with an attractive and well-dressed cast but not worth a re-watch at all.

[CorgiShinobi]

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

 

My old folks have had the movie for a while, but we finally got together for a "movie night." I thought the second book was still good, but I've never been interested in the movie because I know where it all goes in the end. I'm sure if I didn't, it would have been more interesting, but I was bored. It looked good, yet it felt more of the same, but not as exciting because Katniss is going through her PTSD stuff. It's made even more obvious that there's a revolution being built around her that she doesn't care in being a part of, even though she does all the exact things to insight one.

[Mal]

Why Don't You Play In Hell?

 

I don't get Japanese movies that much so that is why it is posted here. Overall its a fun movie. A lot of times I find myself laughing and going "WTF!?" on just how ridiculous it is. Its all in a good way.

They totally dropped the ball on one part though... no gamey first person view during a part towards the end. So close.

[danielpholt]

The Last Days on Mars - Fairly mediocre science fiction that see's an expedition to Mars take a turn for the worse when they make a super important discovery. You've probably seen this film 4 times before in one way or another.

 

Dirty Girl - Because Juno Temple is lovely.

[Mister Jack]

Godzilla.

 

This one is kind of weird for me because I have mixed feelings about it.  On the positive side, this doesn't feel like a lazy cash-in.  You definitely get the sense that after the disaster that was the 1998 Godzilla, they really wanted to treat him with respect and get him right, and in that sense they definitely succeeded.  Godzilla himself is great, and he's pretty much everything you'd hope for from a modern take on the king of monsters.  He looks good, he sounds good, and he's got all those iconic traits you remember.  I have complaints about this movie, but Godzilla's design isn't one of them.  This interpretation is a perfectly respectable addition to the franchise, but if you put that aside and judge it just as a movie for its own merits, that's where things start to unravel a bit.

 

First complaint: There is way too much focus on the human characters.  Let's be honest here, nobody goes to a Godzilla movie for the military's story, but that's pretty much what we get here.  Godzilla himself doesn't make a physical appearance outside of photos and camera footage until an hour has passed, give or take a few minutes, then when he shows up he promptly disappears again for another 20 to 30 minutes.  I wasn't exactly timing it with a stopwatch, but if I had to guess I'd say the big G has about 30 combined minutes of screentime throughout this 2 hour movie, and that doesn't seem like nearly long enough.

 

Second problem, and this is a real pet peeve of mine, is that the actual city stomping scenes are hard to see.  The movie doesn't employ a lot of shaky cam, which I give it credit for, but it almost becomes a moot point because most of the destruction scenes take place at night.  Not only do they take place at night, but there's also a ton of fog/smoke/dust clouds to obscure your view even further.  I get that they wanted it to be scary, but is it so much to ask that these giant monster attacks take place during the day so I can actually see what's going on?  To make matters worse, I was seeing it in 3D and we all know that those glasses only make the whole movie look even darker.  I took off the glasses a few times just to see if the lighting would have been sufficient without them, but I still wasn't convinced.

 

My third issue, and this might be hard to explain, is that Godzilla feels more like a plot device than a character.  In other Godzilla movies, the focus occasionally switches away from the humans so you can see things from Godzilla's point of view, which does a lot to make him feel like the movie's true protagonist.  In this movie, almost everything Godzilla does is seen from the perspective of the humans.  It's hard to connect with Godzilla because the movie never really allows him to take over and do his thing without concerning itself with the petty problems of the puny humans.  It always seems to feel the need to film the action from a worm's eye view or from the inside of a jet or from a helicopter camera or something, which makes Godzilla feel really distant and alien.  I get that this is probably what they intended but I feel that it was a mistake.  I don't give a damn about the military and scientist characters, and every time the movie cut to their reaction it felt like I was being held back from the character I was REALLY invested in.  Godzilla isn't the Cloverfield monster.  He's an icon, a legend.  People love Godzilla, but it's almost like the movie is trying to actively discourage you from caring about him too much.

 

Oh yeah, there was one thing that really bugged the crap out of me.  A lot of cities get destroyed in this movie, but you don't actually get to see much of that action until the climax.  What the story had an annoying tendency to do was show a big, dramatic monster reveal like you'd expect, have him stomp into the city as monsters are wont to do, and then cut to a tv news report or military briefing in another location where they're talking about how the city is being destroyed.  Boy, a city is being destroyed, you say?  That sure sounds exciting.  Wish I could see it.

 

I got one more gripe but I'm venturing into spoiler territory now.

 

Bryan Cranston's character, Joe, was the ONLY interesting human character in this entire movie, and he gets killed off in the first 40 minutes so his bland, boring, dull as dirt military son can take over as lead human character. This was a HUGE mistake. Thanks to the previews I thought the human side of the movie would be the military son and the scientist father working together to stop the destruction, and I actually might have been interested in that because Cranston's acting can turn mediocre scenes into good ones. Unfortunately, after Joe dies it's nothing but his son working with the military so he can protect his wife, Scared Blonde Girl, and his son, Quiet Solemn Boy. I don't remember what the fuck any of their actual names were. Seriously, you get a huge A-lister like Bryan Cranston just to kill him off before Godzilla even shows up? What a fucking waste of talent.

 

 

With all those nitpicks I know it probably sounds like I hated this movie, but I really didn't.  I mean, it clearly has its problems, but it could have been a LOT worse for a reboot.  It's not bad, it just gets held back by too many little things.  This series has potential, though, and if they can fix some of the issues in the inevitable sequel then we'll finally have the modern Godzilla we always wanted.

[Faiblesse Des Sens]

Following up this with the fact that I clicked into this thread to post this movie.

[CorgiShinobi]

I also have watched Godzilla and would put it in this category thread. A higher position in OK, but all my points are Mister Jack's points as well. Godzilla is definitely more of a plot device than his own character until the final moments of the final fight. I can pinpoint exactly where the human story got old because in my viewing so many people had a sigh of disappoint at this moment.

 

 

Japanese scientist man says the great "Let Them Fight" line, and we're treated to Godzilla and M.U.T.O. Male squaring off. However, we're dragged away with the protagonist's wife into a shelter when the two monsters make contact. It is the most unintentional ironic moment in the movie that gave people blue balls.

 

[deanb]

My housemate & her bf went and watched it on Friday (despite plans to watch it last night) and reaction would suggest they'd put the film in this thread too. Impression I got is the human element is nice to have, but overstays it's welcome given you came to watch a film about giant monsters duking it out.

 

Anywho

 

The Heat

T'was my mums suggested birthday present and we watched it when I was over. It's sort of like Hot Fuzz if it was made in America, and not as good, and with a really in your face "females in the work environment" element. I have a feeling if the "females in the workplace" bit was just toned down a bit (basically they had all the men as incompetent jocks and Bullock as an uptight frigid ice queen), and Bullocks character completely redone, and then a bit of tightening on the script it'd be pretty good. Towards the end is does pick up, both with the character chemistry, jokes and sort of action (but not quite Hot Fuzz level) but it'd already lost me early on in really trying to bang home this whole "Bullock lives alone, 'borrows' next doors cat, is unsexed, good at her job but disliked, only female on the team, and can fit all belongings in 4 small boxes". Which is a shame as they wasted nearly half the film on the set up when the first scene does it all perfectly well, and it meant that loads of other elements (including the three antagonists) don't get about the right amount of screen time to seem like a huge threat at all.

 

I'm maybe being a bit too harsh on it, it's not a bad movie. But it's a shame as I think given a bit of a polish and maybe swapping out Bullock with someone else, they could potentially have had a Good Movie. (There is a second in filming, so maybe it will get sorted out)

[danielpholt]

Godzilla.

 

I'll keep this short, as i think we've got the same opinion on this one. It was alright, i just wish the human stuff was a little less...predictable and boring.

[Strangelove]

They Came Together.

I'm not really a fan of spoofs when they run this long. I don't think Ive ever liked that genre of comedy, so this one was no exception. I just think it gets old and becomes unfunny.

The funniest parts are the ones that arent spoofy.

 

Anyways, overall the cast makes it worth watching, sorta.

[Baconrath]

Transformers 4: It has robits and explosions and super obvious product placements and Kelsey Grammer Fraiser.

 

 

But seriously there was a scene where a Bud Light van crosses an intersection only to get crashed into by something and then there were those blue Bud Light bottles scattered everywhere. It wasn't very suble at all. Hasbro! I thought your prime directive was to sell toys, not advertise dirt water!

[Hot Heart]

Transformers 4: It has robits and explosions and super obvious product placements and Kelsey Grammer Fraiser.

 

 

But seriously there was a scene where a Bud Light van crosses an intersection only to get crashed into by something and then there were those blue Bud Light bottles scattered everywhere. It wasn't very suble at all. Hasbro! I thought your prime directive was to sell toys, not advertise dirt water!

 

Brewskis!

[TheRevanchist]

Maleficent.

 

It is a good movie, but, at the end, I didn't really have any major wow factor or great emotional moment. Good special effects and an interesting story line. It really is on the border of being in the good category, but could have been more powerful.

[deanb]

I've heard the killer issue for that film is that they don't show a good fairies decent into becoming the evil Maleficent, they just don't show her being evil at all. Which is some pretty sever retconning on the tale.