Thorgi Duke of Frisbee Posted July 8, 2011 Report Share Posted July 8, 2011 Yeah, it might appear that way if you're not familiar with Mike Judge's work. The concept sounds vaguely Strangers On A Train-like. Not that that hasn't been done before. The movie mentions "Strangers on a Train". One of the characters goes "Hey, this is just like Strangers on a Train!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Heart Posted July 8, 2011 Report Share Posted July 8, 2011 (edited) Ah, figures. I couldn't remember much from the trailer I saw a while back, like whether they'd be swapping murders or just planning them together. I think my favourite Strangers On A Train 'homage' has to be in Peep Show, but involving pepper spray and phone stalking. Edited July 8, 2011 by Hot Heart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorgiShinobi Posted July 8, 2011 Report Share Posted July 8, 2011 I think the better comparison is Nine to Five, where while the three want to murder their bosses, they're being idiots about it. I listened to Spill's audio review and they loved it. Oddly enough, there was mention of how it reminded one of them of Office Space. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockyRan Posted July 9, 2011 Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 Cars 2 had a problem with Mater, but I think he wasn't that bad in the first. He was that kind of simpleton that helped McQueen have fun in the little things. Because he's a goof, it made him more popular with children, and since Cars is most popular with children... Mater became the main protagonist in Cars 2. Sure I'm barely a fan of Larry the Cable Guy, especially those horrendous films of his, but I never really associated Mater with him in the first. Cars 2, it might as well be "Larry the Cable Guy: Ready for Two Hours?" Yeah, I didn't mind Mater in the first movie either, but I definitely do see an issue with making him the protagonist of another movie. It's like when Michael Richards got a new show about him playing a detective and the idiot producers were like "MAKE IT MOAR LIKE KRAMER FROM SEINFELD. EVERYBODY LIKES KRAMER FROM SEINFELD". Then he did, people realized the character of Kramer was incredibly shitty and shallow when put right at the forefront as the protagonist, and the show bombed shortly thereafter. There are some background characters that really should be just that. Background characters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorgi Duke of Frisbee Posted July 9, 2011 Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 I think the better comparison is Nine to Five, where while the three want to murder their bosses, they're being idiots about it. I listened to Spill's audio review and they loved it. Oddly enough, there was mention of how it reminded one of them of Office Space. There's only one scene that made me flash back to Office Space. It featured a fantasy scene with angry rap music in the background, which was 90% of the best scenes in Office Space. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Heart Posted July 9, 2011 Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 It's like when Michael Richards got a new show about him playing a detective and the idiot producers were like "MAKE IT MOAR LIKE KRAMER FROM SEINFELD. EVERYBODY LIKES KRAMER FROM SEINFELD". I had never heard of this show but I'd like to imagine that rather than knocking on doors when questioning people, the door would just burst open and he would slide in. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted July 9, 2011 Report Share Posted July 9, 2011 Green Lantern. It suffered "too many bad guys" syndrome and "we've had a decade of origin stories already, jeesh". Other than that it was okay. It wasn't bad, it just was a bit muddled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxicitizen Posted July 10, 2011 Report Share Posted July 10, 2011 Los Cronocrimenes, or in english, TimeCrimes. It's a spanish scifi movie about time travel (duh). It's very decent. The first half is fairly predictable but it really starts to shine in the second half. There is kind of a glaring paradox that the movie doesn't address, but if you don't let plot holes ruin movies for you then you'll be able to overlook it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFlyingGerbil Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 I watched TimeCrimes quite a while ago so I don't remember exactly how it went but I'm sure I remember thinking it just got a bit ridiculous. Enjoyable nonetheless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorgi Duke of Frisbee Posted July 15, 2011 Report Share Posted July 15, 2011 I watched TimeCrimes quite a while ago so I don't remember exactly how it went but I'm sure I remember thinking it just got a bit ridiculous. Enjoyable nonetheless. Well, with a name like TimeCrimes... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted July 16, 2011 Report Share Posted July 16, 2011 Never base anything off a name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorgi Duke of Frisbee Posted July 17, 2011 Report Share Posted July 17, 2011 Saw "Due Date". Pretty average comedy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted July 17, 2011 Report Share Posted July 17, 2011 Sucker Punch. Visually it was an awesome feast, and they'd quite possibly push it up above into the regions of "good movie" buutt the story was a bit of a mess,and it started to fall apart near the end. I think the main issue was there was no anchor for what was the reality. There was hints of the metaphors such as when she arrives with the guy with the lighter with a dragon pattern on it. But there was like three "layers" to the film, the mental institution, the brothel, and then the fantasies within that and you kinda lose where everything is and it gets annoying. If it was just the mental institution and the fantasies, or the brothel and the fantasies, it might work. But it all gets a bit incpetiony with having the fantasy in a fantasy. Still if you want it for the looks it's not an absolutely terrible storyline, just really messy and you feel a bit lost. It did have the feel of another film I'm a fan of though. Brazil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorgi Duke of Frisbee Posted July 20, 2011 Report Share Posted July 20, 2011 Four Rooms. I feel like it's the cousin to Hudson Hawk; both are fascinating failures you can't turn away from. Rodriguez's "room" in the film is the only one I would qualify as good. Tarantino's was just okay. Every other room is rather painful, but Tim Roth keeps you watching. His bellboy character is so insane that you're just transfixed by him the entire time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chewblaha Posted July 22, 2011 Report Share Posted July 22, 2011 (edited) It's like when Michael Richards got a new show about him playing a detective and the idiot producers were like "MAKE IT MOAR LIKE KRAMER FROM SEINFELD. EVERYBODY LIKES KRAMER FROM SEINFELD". I had never heard of this show but I'd like to imagine that rather than knocking on doors when questioning people, the door would just burst open and he would slide in. It was a show that came out about four months after Seinfeld had ended. Richards would walk in, not be as eccentric as Kramer, but obviously had some bit of him in the character. Just enough to remind people "this guy was Kramer." He also didn't have a steering wheel on his car and drove it with a plumbing wrench attached to where the wheel would be. I don't think he enjoyed it, as a lot of the stuff he portrayed as Kramer he had admitted he didn't think was funny and was pretty weary about how people would feel about it. Edited July 22, 2011 by Chewblaha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Heart Posted July 22, 2011 Report Share Posted July 22, 2011 Hmm, from the little I'd seen before, he seemed to favour the physical and goofy side of comedy. Although I guess you can get weary of it after nine years of Seinfeld, and to then play a similar character again outside of 'the group' would be weird. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister Jack Posted August 3, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2011 Cowboys and Aliens. Too many talking scenes for a movie with that name. The characters weren't all that interesting either and there was a really retarded plot twist in the middle that almost ruined the movie completely for me. I know that I might sound like I'm expecting too much from a movie called Cowboys and Aliens, but the aliens actually don't get that much screen time until the climax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorgi Duke of Frisbee Posted August 6, 2011 Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 Cowboys and Aliens. Too many talking scenes for a movie with that name. The characters weren't all that interesting either and there was a really retarded plot twist in the middle that almost ruined the movie completely for me. I know that I might sound like I'm expecting too much from a movie called Cowboys and Aliens, but the aliens actually don't get that much screen time until the climax. Would you really call that a plot twist? I mean, I guess the movie treats it like a surprise, but I thought they made it pretty obvious, right from the first appearance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister Jack Posted August 6, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 6, 2011 It was a surprise to me because I really didn't think they'd go for something that stupid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorgi Duke of Frisbee Posted August 14, 2011 Report Share Posted August 14, 2011 Paul. It has some genuinely great jokes, and some cute references to nerd culture, but it doesn't really get you to care for the characters. Also, just like The Invention of Lying, it became way too preachy about atheism. It's also one thing to have valid arguments against Christianity and quite another to base your entire point on "Hurr hurr, Christians sure are dumb!" You want to have a thoughtful discussion about a serious topic in your dumb comedy? Fine, but make sure the material is handled properly, so your points don't become as goofy as the rest of the movie. (Disclaimer: Certain Christian movies are just as guilty when it comes to shoving the faith down your throat in unsubtle, heavy-handed strokes.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luftwaffles Posted August 15, 2011 Report Share Posted August 15, 2011 Also, just like The Invention of Lying, it became way too preachy about atheism. I thought The Invention of Lying was just plain bad, which is too bad because I usually really like Ricky Gervais. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Posted August 15, 2011 Report Share Posted August 15, 2011 Duke: it's not supposed to be an intelligent discussion, it's supposed to be "hurr durr christians are dumb." Not having seen the movie, but that's what I got from interviews with the people who made the film. Then, of course, if you're a christian you probably won't like that. I wouldn't expect any christians to. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thursday Next Posted August 15, 2011 Report Share Posted August 15, 2011 Invention of Lying wasn't too bad IMHO, I watched it on a flight to SanFran so my standards were set lower. It was a pretty good idea, but it was running out of steam towards the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorgiShinobi Posted August 16, 2011 Report Share Posted August 16, 2011 (edited) I viewed Paul yesterday as well. To summarize, it had as many ups as it did downs. There would be something hilarious, but then something bland or uninteresting. It was almost as if they had Seth Rogen dressed up as an alien than actually having an interesting alien creature. Case in point, what else did Paul do besides inspire Steven Spielberg to create E.T.? Really, if you're going to have a line like "You won't believe how much he had a hand in our modern culture the last 60 years," then show something else besides the most lackluster secret government alien hunt EVER! As far as the "Dumb Christians" bit goes, it's ham-handed. I'm comfortable in my beliefs to watch a movie with another viewpoint, but with Paul it almost came out of nowhere. I knew about it before watching, but even still, it explodes within a minute and it's rather unbearable to watch. If I could remember other characters names I would go into further detail, but like Duke said, the movie doesn't give you much reason to care for them. Honestly, seeing someone have a nervous breakdown and then going into an explosion of "freedom" all in five minutes was like watching a dog with roller skates on: WTF? It should have gone with the female character fainting in the RV from seeing Paul that morning, then the government agent finding them in the RV park, so then they must escape with her onboard, and thus her involvement in the story being solidified (and her father if you must, but he didn't do anything besides "I'm a stupid Christian, herp derp!"). Inject hilarious hijinks, one male lead and female growing attracted whilst she explores the world, and etc. EDIT: Also, if three human beings were given all the knowledge of the universe, why waste your time making an awarding winning comic book in two years instead of, I don't know, become scientists and cure cancer or something?! Edited August 16, 2011 by Atomsk88 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorgi Duke of Frisbee Posted August 17, 2011 Report Share Posted August 17, 2011 Duke: it's not supposed to be an intelligent discussion, it's supposed to be "hurr durr christians are dumb." Not having seen the movie, but that's what I got from interviews with the people who made the film. Then, of course, if you're a christian you probably won't like that. I wouldn't expect any christians to. I guess I just expected something more intelligent from Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead are practically air-tight comedies; the timing, execution, and humor are all top-notch. I guess removing Edgar Wright from the equation may have caused a less-than-ideal result. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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