Last Movie you Watched?

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  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    Posts: 13,978
    the-ruins-movie-poster-hand-vines1.jpg

    Horror + Jena Malone = a happy Major. Ok, so The Ruins doesn't quite make my top 10 horror films of the 2000's, but it is in my top 10 Jena Malone films*. And it's a rare treat to see Jena as a lead (or second lead, she might be second billed, but Amy is the only survivor at the end) in a mainstream film. Usually she leads indie films, and supports mainstream films (like The Hunger Games: Catching Fire), but on occasion crosses over.

    I recently created such a list:
    http://www.listal.com/list/my-top-10-films-jena
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,173
    Looks to me like I'm the only person on Earth who takes great pleasure in watching Sucker Punch. ;-)

    I liked the Ruins too, Major. Nice little film, cool effects. I primarily watched it to see how Shawn Ashmore would act outside the X-Men series. :-)
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    Posts: 13,978
    Sucker Punch still made the top 10, even it it came in at no 10. Don't worry aren't the only one whom enjoyed it, Dimi.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,173
    And my reason for liking it is called Emily by the way, Major. ;-)
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    At the end of 'The Ruins,' doesn't:
    she pull away and her eye twitches and shows the infection or something? Always makes me mad!

    Don't worry, I'm with you guys on 'Sucker Punch.' Thrilling action-packed film starring my second wife, Emily Browning. ;-)
  • Posts: 315
    I recently re-watched Fritz Lang's classic film 'M' from the early 1930's. It's in the original German, but with English subtitles. I wish I knew German so I could fully appreciate it. It's one of Lang's first films and has Peter Lorre in the ensemble. Lang is very talented and creative in conveying his points of view in many different means. It's the type of movie you can watch numerous times. Much like 'Babette's Feast' of 20 years ago.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    @FLeiter, I'll have to watch it on your recommendation. Weird, I was checking it out last night, wondering if it's worth it after all that hype and the amazing reviews I've read.
  • Posts: 315
    @Creasy47, I don't think you'll be disappointed. Fritz Lang's 'Man Hunt' with Walter Pidgeon and George Sanders is also very good. I find many directors and films from the 30's and 40's to be risk takers and very satisfying. One of the disappointing cinema problems here in the USA is that good foreign films don't get much exposure and thus their distribution is small. We'd rather make Spiderman 20 or toy movies like 'Transformers'. I've seen all 3 Swedish films of the Stieg Larsson trilogy and they were far superior to the Hollywood Daniel Craig version. But I'll check out #2 when it releases.

    I find a number of Chinese films to be filmed with a lavish background and scenery. And I wonder how these Chinese directors would treat a western theme and budget.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    I've been in love with foreign films for years, and most of the ones I've seen have blown me away. It's just a shame when I tell my friends about them and they have no idea what I'm talking about, or they're uninterested in it because they 'have to read the words on the screen.' It's pathetic.
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    edited July 2014 Posts: 13,978
    Creasy47 wrote:
    At the end of 'The Ruins,' doesn't:
    she pull away and her eye twitches and shows the infection or something? Always makes me mad!

    Don't worry, I'm with you guys on 'Sucker Punch.' Thrilling action-packed film starring my second wife, Emily Browning. ;-)

    That is a deleted scene, and I think, the actual ending on some versions of the film (or so I read some place, but don't remember where). Perhaps, due in no small part to my appreciation for Jena Malone, I prefer the 'standard' ending.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    What happens in the standard ending?
  • MajorDSmytheMajorDSmythe "I tolerate this century, but I don't enjoy it."Moderator
    edited July 2014 Posts: 13,978
    Amy drives away in the jeep. Some time later, we see the two Greeks from earlier in the film, cut through the clearing, and arrive at the base of the Ruins. As they call out for Dimitri, the film ends.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    edited July 2014 Posts: 24,173
    @Creasy47, 'M' is a true classic and well worth your time. Lorre is magnificent in this film and although it's not a silent movie, hardly any dialogue is ever spoken by Lorre. Almost all of his acting is done without words, which isn't easy and all the more impressive. But, and this may be most important, despite the film's age I find its message to be very topical still, perhaps even more topical today than it ever was before. With so many thought-provoking elements, one cannot but contemplate the film for hours after having seen it. You will have to make up your mind as to which side you're on and it won't be easy.

    And then here's a film I watched today - twice!

    Sabrina (1954)

    [img]http://画像まとめ.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/オードリー・ヘップバーン36.jpg[/img]

    I won't lie: I think Audrey Hepburn was once the most beautiful actress in all of Hollywood and one of the most talented too. Her first major role, in Roman Holiday opposite Gregory Peck, earned her an Oscar and quite righteously so. Sabrina is only her second major film and here she gets to star opposite William Holden and my favourite actor of the 1940s and 50s: Humphrey Bogart. The result is the best Cinderella movie Cinderella was never made into.

    sabrina1.jpg

    Director Billy Wilder mixed romance with genuine laughs and found the proper balance while doing so. He was of course fortunate enough to have such tremendous actors in the leading parts. With Bogie so stoic yet so unintentionally funny and Audrey so charming, sweet and innocent, even a poor story could have been made into an entertaining film. But you see, Sabrina actually has a great story, simple - yes - and at times typically the stuff that 50s romantic films were made of, but it works. It happens rarely that a romantic film builds tension in my heart but there you have it: Sabrina put me on the edge of my seat for I really wanted to know how this love story would end.

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    Having been so mesmerised by Audrey Hepburn's grace, so impressed by Bogart's seemingly effortless performance, so touched by the heart-warming story, I simply couldn't resist the temptation to watch the film again. It's been years - I can't remember how long - since I have last done this. And yes, even the second time I watched Sabrina, I couldn't help but being pleasantly surprised by this simple but oh-so lovely film. They don't make 'em like this anymore.
  • 0BradyM0Bondfanatic70BradyM0Bondfanatic7 Quantum Floral Arrangements: "We Have Petals Everywhere"
    Posts: 28,694
    I have enjoyed your journey into some of Bogie's films, @Dimi, and am glad you are as smitten with him and his work as I am. He was my doorway into classic films through movies like Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon, and I am excited to return to his films and watch those I have yet to see when I have the thirst for it. Everything Bogie did looked cool, and his performances were so masterful it feels like the camera isn't capturing a performance, but simply following the life of real men on amazing journeys. Bogie's knack for naturalistic performances that felt authentic to their core are part of the reason why he is so deservedly lauded, even today. Because so much of his greatest work has him playing a world weary man who dares to be noble and do what is right even if it means putting his own interests to the side speaks to me on so many levels, and those roles connect so strongly to human nature. We've all faced hardships one place or another and each have complex layers to who we are, and I think that's why characters like Rick Blaine and Sam Spade are so easily relatable and worth following on a journey. And nobody plays the complex character studies better than Bogie; truly a genuine article that can never be replicated.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    edited July 2014 Posts: 40,968
    @DarthDimi, that gets me even more interested in watching it. When a film leaves me questioning it or dwelling on it hours after it has finished, then I know it's done something good. I'm making my way through Criterions, so this one will be watched soon!

    'Police Story'

    Jackie Chan at his best: kicking ass, pulling off great stunts (and some comedy), and destroying his body in the process. Picked up the first two films on blu-ray a while back and finally decided to rewatch them. The picture quality is poor, and the audio is so-so, but it's dubbed and I'm so used to watching this on DVD that the picture quality doesn't even bother me.

    'Che: Part One'

    Steven Soderbergh has impressed me before, and he's done it once again. Benicio del Toro is fantastic in this as usual, and it does a great job of showing off Che, Fidel, and the rest of the men as they fight in the Cuban revolution. I went to watch part two immediately after, but every version I saw was seriously out-of-sync, so I'm going to just buy it and enjoy it all in blu-ray quality while it's on sale.

    'Rashomon'

    Three men converge under a city gate during a storm and recall a tale with different view points involving a murder. This is my introduction to Akira Kurosawa, and while it's generally loved, I went to the IMDB forums (not really a place for great reviews or opinions or plausibility or logic or...well, you get the point) and was surprised to find the love for it was half and half. Me, I thought the film was mediocre, to be quite honest. I guess it's just one of those films that I talked about with Brady tonight that's so critically loved, yet when I find my way to it and finally watch it, it didn't really do anything for me. I felt like the film was supposed to pick up speed to this great twist or ending to a wonderful mystery...and then it doesn't go anywhere. It just ends. It's sad, too, because my new love for samurai films started with 'Harakiri' (not Kurosawa, who is hailed as one of the best, most influential directors of all time), which I loved, and 'Three Outlaw Samurai' (also not Kurosawa), which I really loved, but I finally made it to him with 'Rashomon' and it did nothing for me. Kind of disappointing, but since I'm watching these to see which are great enough to purchase, I can't complain about saving an extra $15 by not purchasing it. I still have six more Kurosawa films to watch - and I hope the next one is much better - and then 'The Samurai Trilogy.'

    'The Wages Of Fear' (1953)

    Four men are paid $2,000 a piece to drive two trucks carrying jerricans of nitroglycerine across 300 miles of bumpy roads. Sounds boring, right? It's not. There's so much tension and so many nail-biting moments throughout, I can't figure out which was the most nerve-wracking. However, I can confidently say that I've never spent so much time loving such a lengthy film, only to be so incredibly disappointed and saddened with the ending. The running time is roughly two and a half hours long, and the last fifteen or twenty seconds killed it for me. So disappointed.
  • QsAssistantQsAssistant All those moments lost in time... like tears in rain
    Posts: 1,812
    The Machine

    Not a bad lower budget sci-fi film. Worth a rental.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    edited July 2014 Posts: 17,789
    Creasy47 wrote:
    'Rashomon'

    Three men converge under a city gate during a storm and recall a tale with different view points involving a murder.
    I felt like the film was supposed to pick up speed to this great twist or ending to a wonderful mystery...and then it doesn't go anywhere. It just ends.
    It's an art flick. Very similar to one of his last movies, Kagemusha. I loved Rashomon, but I don't own it because while it was fascinating to me, it's not a grand adventure.
    Yojimbo, Seven Samurai & Sanjuro (my favourite) are grand adventures.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    I understand that. I didn't expect constant sword-fights or anything, because 'Harakiri' wasn't like that at all and that film blew me away. I just always thought that 'Rashomon' was supposed to be one of the greatest thrillers of all time, but it failed to thrill me. One of those highly-rated films that didn't really wow me. Again, I expected some big twist or some huge reveal as to what really happened, and then a baby appears, and then it ends.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,789
    Creasy47 wrote:
    I just always thought that 'Rashomon' was supposed to be one of the greatest thrillers of all time
    Not sure how you got that impression...
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    @chrisisall, miscellaneous reviews and people I've talked to. Reading about it enough led me to that impression.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,789
    I guess the same way I got the impression Titanic was going to be a true story... ;)
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    chrisisall wrote:
    I guess the same way I got the impression Titanic was going to be a true story... ;)

    Or how I always wanted to believe 'The Matrix' was a true story when I was a kid! ;)
  • ThunderfingerThunderfinger Das Boot Hill
    Posts: 45,489
    Creasy47 wrote:
    chrisisall wrote:
    I guess the same way I got the impression Titanic was going to be a true story... ;)

    Or how I always wanted to believe 'The Matrix' was a true story when I was a kid! ;)

    Never knew you were a kid.

    Just kidding.
  • Creasy47Creasy47 In Cuba with Natalya.Moderator
    Posts: 40,968
    Creasy47 wrote:
    chrisisall wrote:
    I guess the same way I got the impression Titanic was going to be a true story... ;)

    Or how I always wanted to believe 'The Matrix' was a true story when I was a kid! ;)

    Never knew you were a kid.

    Just kidding.

    I mean...I kind of was? I don't know if you've seen 'The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button,' but that's pretty much me. Oh, and I am Brad Pitt.
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,351
    The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai across the 8th Dimension. (1984)
    A nice little sci-fi romp with great performances all around. It's very quirky but It's fun just to watch all the different characters. With the likes of Peter Weller, John Lithgow, Christopher Lloyd, Jeff Goldblum and Vincent Schiavelli you can't go wrong.
    8/10
  • edited July 2014 Posts: 11,189
    Watching Wild Things for the first time on TCM. Wow...pretty bad.

    Denise Richards (as she's recalling an alleged rape case): "He told me to just let it happen"

    She's obviously been a victim of Timothy Dalton too :p *

    *(as the film is intended as a dark comedy I think that kind of joke is ok)
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 24,173
    Wait Until Dark (1967)

    wait-till-dark.jpg

    Directed by Terence Young, here's another great Audrey Hepburn film! Wait Until Dark is suspenseful in an almost Hitchcockian way. It stars an unforgettable Alan Arkin and a mischievous Richard Crenna in his pre Rambo days. Mancini's score effectively enhances the claustrophobic feel of the film. I had a good time with it.
  • chrisisallchrisisall Brosnan Defender Of The Realm
    Posts: 17,789
    DarthDimi wrote:
    Wait Until Dark (1967)
    Directed by Terence Young
    Wow, I didn't realise that. I've seen it twice through the years, and both times I found it a most effective film.
  • MurdockMurdock The minus world
    Posts: 16,351
    Total Recall (1990)
    total-recall-1990-movie-poster.jpg
    What a thrill ride. I enjoyed every minute. Everything about this movie is beautiful visually. The futuristic technology, the sets, the space station on Mars, the music by Jerry Goldsmith, it's great. You have what you want, give these people air! Paul Verhoeven at his finest.

    9/10
  • QBranchQBranch Always have an escape plan. Mine is watching James Bond films.
    Posts: 14,568
    Murdock wrote:
    Total Recall (1990)
    One of my favourite films, period. We're still waiting for Bruno Louchouarn to release the club song, 'Mutant Dancing' :!!

    http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100802/soundtrack
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