manamongkids
Full House
She wonders why I almost always watch movies with my guy friends, at least they wont ask a dumb question. but they also dont make movie nachos or get frisky 10 mins into the movie 
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PCF at the Movies (10 Viewers)
- Thread starter jbutler
- Start date
detroitdad
Royal Flush
She wonders why I almost always watch movies with my guy friends, at least they wont ask a dumb question. but they also dont make movie nachos or get frisky 10 mins into the movie
frisky? what is that?
Bill Paxton
New Member
It's a bit of an acquired taste maybe, but I liked it. And Kevin had a vision for the movie which was way ahead of its time. You know what they say - shoot for the moon and even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.
I have a lot of respect for the guy. We had a great time together working on Hatfields and McCoys, too. That was on TV, but it's really a feature, so I hope it's not out of line to throw the trailer in here.
Just caught the Entourage movie last night.
Was never a big fan of Vinnie Chase, but enjoyed the cast of characters around him, especially Ari Gold and Johnny Drama.
The "movie" plays like an extended episode of the show, filled to the brim with star cameos (most come off as someone name-dropping to look cool). At least the Mark Cuban cameo thankfully spared us from him having dialogue this time around.
The Ronda Rousey/Turtle thing had already been pretty much shown in the trailers so not a ton of new material there. Although her acting as surprisingly passable, with some additional training she's got potential and I could definitely see her playing an action hero in the future in addition to her UFC position (or post-UFC)
Haley Joel Osment's "Texas" character fell pretty flat for me. The inclusion of Lloyd (Ari's former assistant) felt like an afterthought, given how he had a few scenes pushing his gay wedding, but then we never actually see it (perhaps they cut it, but it made all the rest of the scenes he was in feel pointless in the scope of the movie)
Jeremy Piven still shines as perennially angry and narcissistic Ari Gold, Kevin Dillon is fantastic in the lovable loser you've just gotta root for role of Johnny Drama.
Overall it was a fun romp for someone who mostly enjoyed the series and wants to revisit these characters they grew attached to, but I can't imagine that someone who didn't follow the series would get much out of the flick as a stand-alone.
Was never a big fan of Vinnie Chase, but enjoyed the cast of characters around him, especially Ari Gold and Johnny Drama.
The "movie" plays like an extended episode of the show, filled to the brim with star cameos (most come off as someone name-dropping to look cool). At least the Mark Cuban cameo thankfully spared us from him having dialogue this time around.
The Ronda Rousey/Turtle thing had already been pretty much shown in the trailers so not a ton of new material there. Although her acting as surprisingly passable, with some additional training she's got potential and I could definitely see her playing an action hero in the future in addition to her UFC position (or post-UFC)
Haley Joel Osment's "Texas" character fell pretty flat for me. The inclusion of Lloyd (Ari's former assistant) felt like an afterthought, given how he had a few scenes pushing his gay wedding, but then we never actually see it (perhaps they cut it, but it made all the rest of the scenes he was in feel pointless in the scope of the movie)
Jeremy Piven still shines as perennially angry and narcissistic Ari Gold, Kevin Dillon is fantastic in the lovable loser you've just gotta root for role of Johnny Drama.
Overall it was a fun romp for someone who mostly enjoyed the series and wants to revisit these characters they grew attached to, but I can't imagine that someone who didn't follow the series would get much out of the flick as a stand-alone.
No longer with us? Joined Tuesday, one post, out by Friday.... bizarre.
the Cost cannot be contained. his spirit is free and his passion fickle. i feel that it was it was our failure in not lavishing sufficient praise on Waterworld that drove him away. perhaps we will learn from our mistakes and keep the Pax around a little longer.
i'm pretty far behind in updating movies i've watched, but of the last four i saw in the theater, two are among the best movies i've seen all year.
first, the best of the bunch, the Gift:
solidly in the thriller genre, but very well-crafted structurally and with impeccably developed characters. everyone's performance is stellar, but jason bateman in particular is fantastic. i don't want to say anything for fear of spoiling any aspect of the film, but the vast majority of people will come out having identified with both bateman and joel edgerton's characters and maybe even rebecca hall's. recommended without reservation.
next, one that i was looking forward to, but for which my expectations had been a bit lowered due to some lackluster reviews, Ricki and the Flash:
i'm not big on meryl streep, but i absolutely love diablo cody, the writer. i don't even love the majority of the stuff she's written, but she has such a warmth and humanity to her writing that i can't imagine missing anything she does. plus, it was directed by jonathan demme of silence of the lambs fame. of course that film couldn't be further from what he's doing here, but obviously we're dealing with an extremely competent director.
the characters are absolutely perfect. which is to say they're not perfect. meryl streep is a right-wing absentee parent who doesn't really even get it together after she sees the pain she's caused. her kids are bitter and inconsistent in their treatment of her. and the movie doesn't exist to prove a point or to lift you up or teach you a lesson, but just to see these characters in these situations, which is the strength of diablo cody's writing.
yeah, it includes a lot of the tropes of the "family dramedy" genre, but like the gift, it's elevated by the characters, the writing and - maybe to a lesser extent than the gift - the performances. the music is fantastic as well. recommended if you have any interest in well-done family drama movies (think the family stone, but good).
i also saw Dark Places, the second film adapted from a gillian flynn novel (the previous being Gone Girl):
i was really excited when i saw that charlize theron picked up the right to this one and really wanted to like it, but it's just poorly done. the adaptation is cluncky because of the some of the structural decisions made to present the different timelines covered in the book. it relies too much on aesthetic and too little on the writing to establish the brooding, depressive feel of the novel. and the push toward dark grain cinematography to get that aesthetic renders huge portions of many shots completely obscured by the darkness.
not recommended unless, like me, you feel compelled to watch most movies for books you really liked.
next, Jimmy's Hall:
i know pathetically little about irish history, so i don't know how prominently Jimmy Gralton figures into most retellings of it, but the movie depicts his life during his middle adulthood after having run from authorities who shut down a community hall used for political organizing. he returns home to work quietly, but soon enough reforms the hall and once again runs into pushback from local clergy and political figures, eventually being the only irish citizen to ever be deported from ireland.
the lead performances were fantastic and the cinematography and landscapes stunning. and the story, by focusing on a discrete timeframe the subject's life, shows why that is about the only way to do something resembling a biopic without it devolving into meaningless platitudes. but it never quite rose above being a parable rather than a realistic history of the man and the events. it's hard to identify with a character who demonstrates no flaws in himself. certainly better than the majority of the films released this year, but not quite top tier.
last night i watched I Am Chris Farley:
almost put this in the TV thread since it was made for the Spike channel, but it's more of a film than a TV special. has all the contributors you could imagine necessary: spade, sandler, aykroyd, lorne michaels, farley's brothers and friends. and they come together to tell the story we all kind of already know to some degree: farley was hilarious, got hooked on booze and drugs, and flamed out too early. you definitely know the whole story if you read the Chris Farley Show, which is certainly better than this movie. but even knowing it, it's interesting to see the interviews and the footage. seeing bob saget cry over farley is pretty rough.
first, the best of the bunch, the Gift:
solidly in the thriller genre, but very well-crafted structurally and with impeccably developed characters. everyone's performance is stellar, but jason bateman in particular is fantastic. i don't want to say anything for fear of spoiling any aspect of the film, but the vast majority of people will come out having identified with both bateman and joel edgerton's characters and maybe even rebecca hall's. recommended without reservation.
next, one that i was looking forward to, but for which my expectations had been a bit lowered due to some lackluster reviews, Ricki and the Flash:
i'm not big on meryl streep, but i absolutely love diablo cody, the writer. i don't even love the majority of the stuff she's written, but she has such a warmth and humanity to her writing that i can't imagine missing anything she does. plus, it was directed by jonathan demme of silence of the lambs fame. of course that film couldn't be further from what he's doing here, but obviously we're dealing with an extremely competent director.
the characters are absolutely perfect. which is to say they're not perfect. meryl streep is a right-wing absentee parent who doesn't really even get it together after she sees the pain she's caused. her kids are bitter and inconsistent in their treatment of her. and the movie doesn't exist to prove a point or to lift you up or teach you a lesson, but just to see these characters in these situations, which is the strength of diablo cody's writing.
yeah, it includes a lot of the tropes of the "family dramedy" genre, but like the gift, it's elevated by the characters, the writing and - maybe to a lesser extent than the gift - the performances. the music is fantastic as well. recommended if you have any interest in well-done family drama movies (think the family stone, but good).
i also saw Dark Places, the second film adapted from a gillian flynn novel (the previous being Gone Girl):
i was really excited when i saw that charlize theron picked up the right to this one and really wanted to like it, but it's just poorly done. the adaptation is cluncky because of the some of the structural decisions made to present the different timelines covered in the book. it relies too much on aesthetic and too little on the writing to establish the brooding, depressive feel of the novel. and the push toward dark grain cinematography to get that aesthetic renders huge portions of many shots completely obscured by the darkness.
not recommended unless, like me, you feel compelled to watch most movies for books you really liked.
next, Jimmy's Hall:
i know pathetically little about irish history, so i don't know how prominently Jimmy Gralton figures into most retellings of it, but the movie depicts his life during his middle adulthood after having run from authorities who shut down a community hall used for political organizing. he returns home to work quietly, but soon enough reforms the hall and once again runs into pushback from local clergy and political figures, eventually being the only irish citizen to ever be deported from ireland.
the lead performances were fantastic and the cinematography and landscapes stunning. and the story, by focusing on a discrete timeframe the subject's life, shows why that is about the only way to do something resembling a biopic without it devolving into meaningless platitudes. but it never quite rose above being a parable rather than a realistic history of the man and the events. it's hard to identify with a character who demonstrates no flaws in himself. certainly better than the majority of the films released this year, but not quite top tier.
last night i watched I Am Chris Farley:
almost put this in the TV thread since it was made for the Spike channel, but it's more of a film than a TV special. has all the contributors you could imagine necessary: spade, sandler, aykroyd, lorne michaels, farley's brothers and friends. and they come together to tell the story we all kind of already know to some degree: farley was hilarious, got hooked on booze and drugs, and flamed out too early. you definitely know the whole story if you read the Chris Farley Show, which is certainly better than this movie. but even knowing it, it's interesting to see the interviews and the footage. seeing bob saget cry over farley is pretty rough.
saw Best of Enemies and The End of the Tour this weekend.
Best of Enemies was better than i expected. rather than focusing on the Buckley/Vidal debates it took at once a more micro and more macro view. it revealed the impact of the debates on each man individually and how both unraveled in a sense in the years following and also how the public perception of the debates drove broadcast programming through to the present day. i'm sure a media studies scholar could give a more nuanced view of the latter, but it was well-presented in the film and the explanation seemed compelling enough.
Buckley is one of those people i despise, but about whom i am morbidly curious. he was a despicable man, but i have never been able to tell whether he was aware exactly how despicable he was. evidently Sam Tanenhaus - who was interviewed for the film - is in the middle of a long-simmering biography, so i will have to pick that up at some point. the movie is definitely recommended for anyone interesting in media history, political intellectual history, and obviously anyone interested in either Buckley or Vidal.
as above, The End of the Tour was better than expected, though i can't say much more as i'm still digesting the movie even after a day and a half. i am a big David Foster Wallace fan, so was pretty anxious that they might botch this, particularly when i saw that Jason Segel would be DFW.
but as i've said before in this thread and elsewhere, the best path to a competent biopic is to focus on a discrete time period or subject matter within the subject's life and allow it to illuminate our understanding of the rest by implication. and that's done quite masterfully here. by virtue of the time period, Jason Segal's DFW is wrapped in his then-trademark bandana, which detracts from the character imo as it causes Segel's presentation to appear more costume than method, but that's hardly Segel's fault since it would appear patently false to depict DFW sans bandana.
from what i've heard of the tapes of the conversations between Lipsky and DFW and from what i remember of Lipsky's book, the dialog appears to have been lifted directly, which i think is a good thing. the conversations are almost always compelling and the performances allow the audience to focus on the content of the discussions while being simultaneously aware of the subtext. it's the subtext which makes up the bulk of the tension in the film, the difficulty of two egos clashing when one is obviously superior to the other, but neither can quite accept that fact.
i continue to have great difficulty with Jesse Eisenberg, however. i cannot for the life of me understand how this guy gets these roles. he has no range and the one note he is able to strike is so sniveling and grating. fortunately for this film, Lipsky appears to have been at the time in his life depicted to have been similarly sniveling and grating. so it works.
Best of Enemies was better than i expected. rather than focusing on the Buckley/Vidal debates it took at once a more micro and more macro view. it revealed the impact of the debates on each man individually and how both unraveled in a sense in the years following and also how the public perception of the debates drove broadcast programming through to the present day. i'm sure a media studies scholar could give a more nuanced view of the latter, but it was well-presented in the film and the explanation seemed compelling enough.
Buckley is one of those people i despise, but about whom i am morbidly curious. he was a despicable man, but i have never been able to tell whether he was aware exactly how despicable he was. evidently Sam Tanenhaus - who was interviewed for the film - is in the middle of a long-simmering biography, so i will have to pick that up at some point. the movie is definitely recommended for anyone interesting in media history, political intellectual history, and obviously anyone interested in either Buckley or Vidal.
as above, The End of the Tour was better than expected, though i can't say much more as i'm still digesting the movie even after a day and a half. i am a big David Foster Wallace fan, so was pretty anxious that they might botch this, particularly when i saw that Jason Segel would be DFW.
but as i've said before in this thread and elsewhere, the best path to a competent biopic is to focus on a discrete time period or subject matter within the subject's life and allow it to illuminate our understanding of the rest by implication. and that's done quite masterfully here. by virtue of the time period, Jason Segal's DFW is wrapped in his then-trademark bandana, which detracts from the character imo as it causes Segel's presentation to appear more costume than method, but that's hardly Segel's fault since it would appear patently false to depict DFW sans bandana.
from what i've heard of the tapes of the conversations between Lipsky and DFW and from what i remember of Lipsky's book, the dialog appears to have been lifted directly, which i think is a good thing. the conversations are almost always compelling and the performances allow the audience to focus on the content of the discussions while being simultaneously aware of the subtext. it's the subtext which makes up the bulk of the tension in the film, the difficulty of two egos clashing when one is obviously superior to the other, but neither can quite accept that fact.
i continue to have great difficulty with Jesse Eisenberg, however. i cannot for the life of me understand how this guy gets these roles. he has no range and the one note he is able to strike is so sniveling and grating. fortunately for this film, Lipsky appears to have been at the time in his life depicted to have been similarly sniveling and grating. so it works.
seeing Jaws on the big screen tonight for the second time this summer, but this time will be shown on the Asbury Park beach with dinner and drinks.
in tribute to Asbury Park, from Springsteen's second best album:
tommythecat
Flush
Not sure if this was ever posted ITT before, but I watched this over the weekend...
Really enjoyed it, though I was expecting to because it is the Flight of the Concords guys.
Really enjoyed it, though I was expecting to because it is the Flight of the Concords guys.
yeah there was a brief conversation which started with this post i believe.
I watched American Ultra this weekend and despite my very recently noted aversion to Jesse Eisenberg, I really, really liked it. I'm close to saying I loved it. Apart from the very beginning and the very end, the writing and direction were excellent. More stoner-action movie than stoner-comedy, but there were some pretty great laughs and ongoing gags. Overall very fun.
detroitdad
Royal Flush
I introduced my son to the movie Airplane from 1980. It wasn't near as funny as I remembered. There were still some solid laugh out loud scenes. I just remember it being way funnier.
i've been pretty bad about updating this thread. i pretty much only seem to mention things i see in the theater. but i did go see a couple things this weekend i should mention.
Straight Outta Compton was fine. i had heard such great things about it which made me think it would rise above the standard biopic cliches. it did to a degree, but it's somewhere between decent and good. certainly not nearly as great as it is made out to be.
however, i did see one i would call great this weekend: Mistress America, the new Noah Baumbach movie. i was afraid i would feel about it like i've felt about his past several movies: good, but not quite over the hump to greatness. this one really made it over the hump. it's pretty funny throughout, but i was almost crying laughing in the third act. just an absolutely perfect comedy set piece.
and beyond the comedy, the performances are absolutely fantastic. it's a pretty traditional straight man/wild man (er, straight woman/wild woman) scenario with the two leads, but it's also played for real emotional resonance and the relationship between the two women stays burrowed in your mind after you leave the theater much longer than you'd expect from a screwball comedy. plus, on top of it all, the score and soundtrack are fantastic. i would not be surprised to see this one in my top ten at the end of the year.
Straight Outta Compton was fine. i had heard such great things about it which made me think it would rise above the standard biopic cliches. it did to a degree, but it's somewhere between decent and good. certainly not nearly as great as it is made out to be.
however, i did see one i would call great this weekend: Mistress America, the new Noah Baumbach movie. i was afraid i would feel about it like i've felt about his past several movies: good, but not quite over the hump to greatness. this one really made it over the hump. it's pretty funny throughout, but i was almost crying laughing in the third act. just an absolutely perfect comedy set piece.
and beyond the comedy, the performances are absolutely fantastic. it's a pretty traditional straight man/wild man (er, straight woman/wild woman) scenario with the two leads, but it's also played for real emotional resonance and the relationship between the two women stays burrowed in your mind after you leave the theater much longer than you'd expect from a screwball comedy. plus, on top of it all, the score and soundtrack are fantastic. i would not be surprised to see this one in my top ten at the end of the year.
surprisingly, late summer has delivered some of the best movies of the year. saw two more this weekend that will be sure contenders for the top ten of the year and both with lead performances that should be a locks for best actress nominations: Phoenix starring Nina Hoss and Queen of Earth starring Elisabeth Moss.
tonally very different, but both tense watches. Phoenix is about a woman who survived Auschwitz only to learn that her husband may have betrayed her. disfigured by torture in the camp, she is faintly recognizable, but because she resembles her former self, she is approached by her husband - believing the real Nelly to be dead - who tries to convince her to pretend to be herself to collect her inheritance. in this bizarre relationship, she has to determine whether to reveal herself and face the reality of having been betrayed or to play along in a fantasy world where she gets to see her husband without having to force him to recognize what he has done. wrenching.
Queen of Earth is essentially one woman's paranoid fever dream following her father's death. having lived in complete self-absorption, Elisabeth Moss doesn't even understand the language of support enough to ask for help from her lifelong friend. her friend struggles with the memory of having been abandoned by Moss and treated so unkindly when dealing with her own tragedy that she doesn't quite know what to do when she sees Moss slipping over the edge. surreal and intense. and with a perfectly minimalist score.
tonally very different, but both tense watches. Phoenix is about a woman who survived Auschwitz only to learn that her husband may have betrayed her. disfigured by torture in the camp, she is faintly recognizable, but because she resembles her former self, she is approached by her husband - believing the real Nelly to be dead - who tries to convince her to pretend to be herself to collect her inheritance. in this bizarre relationship, she has to determine whether to reveal herself and face the reality of having been betrayed or to play along in a fantasy world where she gets to see her husband without having to force him to recognize what he has done. wrenching.
Queen of Earth is essentially one woman's paranoid fever dream following her father's death. having lived in complete self-absorption, Elisabeth Moss doesn't even understand the language of support enough to ask for help from her lifelong friend. her friend struggles with the memory of having been abandoned by Moss and treated so unkindly when dealing with her own tragedy that she doesn't quite know what to do when she sees Moss slipping over the edge. surreal and intense. and with a perfectly minimalist score.
rewatched Goodfellas recently. they just put out a new remastered 25th anniversary edition and it looks better than ever on blu-ray. obviously one of the all time best films and it holds up literally every single time after over a dozen watches.
remember the montage where they show all the still photos of ray liotta and robert deniro's families having fun together? they're pretty great.
remember the montage where they show all the still photos of ray liotta and robert deniro's families having fun together? they're pretty great.
detroitdad
Royal Flush
Goodfella's is a favorite of mine.
My oldest daughter is 25 (26 next month). My wife isn't a fan of the movie (to much swearing). Every few years when she is visiting family out of state I'll watch either this, Pulp Fiction, Scar Face, ect....
About 4 years ago I had just turned Goodfella's on when my oldest daughter came home to pick something up. She sat down for a second to say hi and started watching the movie. She's cute. She asked if this was a new movie. Was very impressed with it. She ended up cancelling her plans and watching the entire flick with me
My oldest daughter is 25 (26 next month). My wife isn't a fan of the movie (to much swearing). Every few years when she is visiting family out of state I'll watch either this, Pulp Fiction, Scar Face, ect....
About 4 years ago I had just turned Goodfella's on when my oldest daughter came home to pick something up. She sat down for a second to say hi and started watching the movie. She's cute. She asked if this was a new movie. Was very impressed with it. She ended up cancelling her plans and watching the entire flick with me
slisk250
Straight Flush
Don't know if anyone mentioned Vacation. Saw it with the family and it was really funny. Several gut laughs and it stands on its own.
detroitdad
Royal Flush
We streamed "American Ultra" last night. If you say you hate it, or if you loved it. I would understand, lol.
I personally really liked it. I am not a Kristen Stewart fan at all. I thought she did really well in this movie. Kristen Stewart and Jessie Eisenberg have solid chemistry. You buy the "love story" being told.
The violence is glorious and creative. It also has a very good supporting cast.
I recommend it. Not great by any means. I found it to be a fun movie. At 95 minutes long, its perfect for a quick viewing.
B
I personally really liked it. I am not a Kristen Stewart fan at all. I thought she did really well in this movie. Kristen Stewart and Jessie Eisenberg have solid chemistry. You buy the "love story" being told.
The violence is glorious and creative. It also has a very good supporting cast.
I recommend it. Not great by any means. I found it to be a fun movie. At 95 minutes long, its perfect for a quick viewing.
B
not sure if you saw my mention earlier, but i liked it quite a bit, maybe loved it. the little epilogue at the end really pulls it down imo, but still 95% of the movie is fantastic.
detroitdad
Royal Flush
I did read it, but will have to go back. Initially it had a zombieland feel to it with his narration. I got over that pretty quickly. Wifey was bored with it. She doesn't appreciate a good movie
SixSpeedFury
Full House
M Night Shamalamadingdong actually made a good movie for once! Highly recommend you guys see The Visit.
detroitdad
Royal Flush
Cooties
agreed!
it doesn't have a "twist" on the level of the classic shyamalan twists, but the "twist" that it does have i really didn't see coming and the hair on the back of my neck actually stood up.
it's interesting to see the guy try something new - i.e., a low budget, streamlined, straightforward movie - and it really shows that he does have the talent that unbreakable/signs/village seemed to indicate (at least those are his movies that i liked - i know lots of people would insert the sixth sense and remove the village and maybe even signs). great writing, great pacing. the rapping white kid schtick is pretty tired, but i was glad they didn't rely on it too much.
like so many otherwise good horror/suspense movies lately, it could probably be improved just by cutting the last 5 minutes. i would have gone to black as soon as
the mom has the kids in the back of the police car. the on-camera interview with kathryn hahn that got all emotional was pointless and against the tone of the movie and the kid rapping over the credits was just awful.
still glad to see shyamalan turn out something of real quality. jason blum has really done some great work in convincing hollywood that cheapo genre movies can be worth the while even if you have to shift through 4 or 5 to find 1 gem.
manamongkids
Full House
anyone have high expectations of Black Mass?
detroitdad
Royal Flush
Super Troopers
Road Trip
zombie land
Neighbors (not great, but some really funny moments)
21 Jump Street
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