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Funnily enough, Hammer is my favorite thing about that film. I wish he had returned for more at a later date, in fact.
@cooperman2, that's a fine way to put it. I agree.
I never go into a Marvel film expecting to see the comics faithfully adapted, so I didn't really feel disappointment towards Hammer. He made me laugh, that was all I asked of him.
I really enjoy Iron Man 2 and disagree that it isn't memorable. I remember when War Machine came on the screen. I was so excited to see that damn suit.
Iron Man 3 was a major let down and so far is the only MCU movie that I haven't seen in theaters and is the only one that I've seen once. They ruined Mandarin and it just felt so disconnected from the first two.
I need to rewatch that again. Not many films can portray paranoia that perfectly, and it's so prophetic for where we are now. It's also one of the many reasons why I think Coppola owned the 70s. What an output for just a decade!
1. The Godfather
2. The Godfather Part II
3. The Conversation
4. Apocalypse Now
5. The Rainmaker
Not crazy about the rest I have seen. But love those ones.
Godfather- incredible
Godfather 2- better
The plot is excellent but the characters are very poor
Really fancied seeing this and realised I had got rid of my DVD copy when I moved! I found it was on Netflix luckily.
Great film and one of my favourite British crime films.
Daniel Craig is just ace in this and you can see what the Bond producers saw in what would make Craig a great 007.
Great cast all round though.
This latest outing, the 5th in the franchise, is finally the 1st of the 4 sequels to finally make me as entertained since the original Jack Sparrow adventure in 2003. Now, while I thought the 2nd and 3rd film were still pretty good, I though that each sequel felt longer and longer than the previous film, and that action scenes felt to take longer and longer to kick into gear. This being the shortest in the franchise, it is literally jam packed with thrilling, OTT action scenes. However, I must warn that the entire film is played for laughs, especially since Johnny Depp seemed to be visibly enjoying itself was let loose on the set to be as crazy as possible. And he did not disappoint, Depp was a total riot. The action scenes, while very impressive, literally had no sense of danger, as there were gags, one liners and whatnot every 30 seconds, not that I mind of course. Javier Bardem as the main villain gave us another totally unhinged performance (and they even give him an intro scene similar to the one he had in SF). I would rank this latest Jack Sparrow adventure as my 2nd favorite in the franchise (behind 'Curse of the Black Pearl'). If you want 2 hours of pure, total, mindless entertainment that makes absolutely zero sense, but will give you a laugh a minute, than this film is all that you need.
Final note: I loved the cameo of
Expectation is a resentment waiting to happen. That's why I deliberately kept my expectations low for ALIEN COVENANT and went to watch the film twice in two days' time. Here are my thoughts.
When PROMETHEUS was announced, I was thrilled beyond belief. Surely Ridley Scott, director of the original ALIEN, wasn't going to let me down. Sadly, Scott, now in his seventies, wanted to tell a "2001"like story about life and death, about creation and evolution, about the end and the beginning and therefore not about a frightening xenomorph driving us to the edge of our seats. My hypothesis then was (and still is) that Fox said no to an expensive philosophical film unless it be tied in with an established film series. An 'Alien' prequel was the next logical step. Except that PROMETHEUS wasn't a prequel to ALIEN but at best a spin-off series revolving around the anonymous "space jockey" in the "derelict ship" and his race. Any connections with ALIEN were incidental at best and in fact seemed compromised. The result, a beautiful yet hardly original existentialist essay, took the ALIEN series away from the titular Alien. However, Dark Horse Comics managed to convincingly unite the 'Engineers', the 'Aliens' and the well-known 'Predators' under two very successful titles, FIRE AND STONE and LIFE AND DEATH. Through these, I managed to spot potential for a PROMETHEUS sequel, taking the Engineers to a more legitimate Alien prequel.
Naturally, when ALIEN COVENANT was announced, this is where my mind immediately went, especially given the promises made at the end of PROMETHEUS. But when Neill Blomkamp started toying around with the idea of doing a direct sequel to ALIENS, I switched sides in less than a heartbeat. I wanted this film, more than another Scott film. Then Fox, against all odds, allowed Scott's sequel to PROMETHEUS to take precedence over Blomkamp's project. I was back at square one.
Or was I? Because ALIEN COVENANT is a sequel to PROMETHEUS as much as PROMETHEUS was a prequel to ALIEN, i.e. barely. ALIEN³ may have upset many people but ALIEN COVENANT cares even less about continuity. Specific elements are retained from PROMETHEUS but the wider plot has been thrown in the bin with a single expensive and very good looking scene. Suddenly, so much of what was established previously seems unimportant now, without consequence, begging the question why we even bothered at the end of PROMETHEUS.
But, one thing is true for sure; we get our xenomorph back, in some shape or form. So the posters and trailers didn't lie this time. Though in fairly small doses, scary and visceral scenes are shown and the eerie score enhances the effect. The acting is overall very strong, with Fassbender doing a remarkable job. And the photography treats us to fascinating visuals.
All is well then? I'm not sure. That second viewing certainly paid off, as my reset expectations permitted more room for praise for what I was getting and less for the tremendous disappointment over what I wasn't getting. But while that may be so, I'm not entirely comfortable with, for example, the climax of the film.
Again I have this feeling that Scott had to do a lot of compromising. He got to make a sequel to PROMETHEUS but without it being too much of a sequel to PROMETHEUS, caring more about it being a direct prequel to ALIEN, which I'm not sure it actually is. Furthermore, I really don't need all the philosophical musings about creation in an Alien movie. Since ALIEN, the xenomorph seemed to possess a fairly stable biology, with small alterations allowed depending on the host (e.g. the 'bull' or 'dog' alien from ALIEN³.) I never wondered nor cared about the origin of this species; it is as Ash described it to us and that's scary enough for me. It's the perfect living organism, it'll patiently wait for us to come too close and then it will strike. PROMETHEUS and ALIEN COVENANT make it look as if our beloved xenomorph is only a by-product of evolutionary biology taken to a sped-up, experimental phase. Thus, the lovecraftian element of cosmicism, which had always been firmly present in the Alien series until PROMETHEUS, is now completely taken from us.
I'm not entirely dissatisfied with ALIEN COVENANT, but neither do my hopes feel even modestly fulfilled by it. It's not a resentment from my part, but even after two viewings I'm left slightly unsure about where I stand. I'm positive, but not to the extreme. This series is going into Star Wars prequel territory with its own prequels. It tries to suddenly add so many new layers and dimensions to a simple but perfectly sterile concept. The black ooze is what the midichlorians are to the Star Wars universe, the Engineers are like the Gungans almost--perhaps less annoying but hardly more relevant. The 'creation' element is an unwanted elaboration on something that works best when kept simple, concise, pristine and straight-forward. All we truly want is a scary, visceral stalker experience with, if so desired, a strong sexual subtext. Less is more. I'm even happier now that Villeneuve was hired to direct BLADE RUNNER 2049. Scott, like other directors of a certain age, wants to lift his own creations to higher intellectual and philosophical levels while most of us just seek the base thrills of those first two films in the Alien series.
Overall, my impressions of ALIEN COVENANT aren't quite as negative as I've perhaps made it look. The Covenant crew is perfectly likeable and what little action or horror we get certainly is worth the time it takes to sit through all the dialogue and exploring in between. It's in many ways a solid sci-fi B-movie, albeit a very expensive one, and it looks great. There's some enthusiasm inside me for a third film, though with the caveat that if that one doesn't
I'm really going to go 'Star Wars Prequel' rage all over these latest additions in a film series I hold very dear. So far, my ranking goes:
1 - ALIEN & ALIENS
2 - a ton of comics
3 - ALIEN³ and some of the video games
4 - ALIEN COVENANT & PROMETHEUS
5 - AVP and AVP: REQUIEM (yes, I rather like those in some weird, guilty pleasure kind of way)
6 - ALIEN RESURRECTION
ALIEN COVENANT has its moments. In the more technical departments, it's a nearly flawless film. Your viewing experience will only be tainted, if at all, by how much you care about continuity, consistency, staying close to the original, honouring the legacy of ALIEN and so on. Most of all, don't expect Scott to be in the same place he was in in '79; he isn't. He's an auteur now. He used to be an artist, a visionary, an impressionist who cared about the ALIEN and BLADE RUNNER experience more than about the ALIEN and BLADE RUNNER story. But now he has things to say, not just show. And that he uses the Alien series as canvas for that, is coming close to being an inexcusable, irredeemable crime.
I had a good time with ALIEN COVENANT, especially the second time, but if another film is made, I hope it's Blomkamp's.
Was it any good?
KILLER ELITE
Good way to spend a couple of hours. Nothing special.
Very disappointing film ................
Which version ?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Killer_Elite
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_Elite_(film)
The 2011 film. Statham takes on the SAS.
Such a great film. At some point this week I need to watch the Noir version. I have a feeling it'll be the better of the two.