What movies have you seen lately? Now with reviews!Movies

[Touring Mars]

Taken (2008)

Exciting but ultimately predictable action thriller, where Liam Neeson (a former CIA hardman) tracks down his daughter after she is kidnapped. Although the film looks great and is genuinely exciting and disturbing in equal measure, the plot couldn't really be any more straightforward, and there are simply far too many unlikely turns of events to be even remotely believable - in other words, you need to switch your brain off quite quickly or you might start to find the whole thing a bit ridiculous. Indeed, one of Neeson's friends actually calls him "Rambo" at one point, and that is not an unfair comparison - his "against all the odds" invincibility is nothing short of Ramboesque. The end is predictable, rushed, slightly schmaltzy and quite unsatisfying, but for some reason I still enjoyed it over all - perhaps because the subject matter is interesting and the chain of events is quite gripping. Still, this one went straight back in the envelope and didn't get a second watch. 6/10

 

[TheCracker]

Taken (2008)

Exciting but ultimately predictable action thriller, where Liam Neeson (a former CIA hardman) tracks down his daughter after she is kidnapped. Although the film looks great and is genuinely exciting and disturbing in equal measure, the plot couldn't really be any more straightforward, and there are simply far too many unlikely turns of events to be even remotely believable - in other words, you need to switch your brain off quite quickly or you might start to find the whole thing a bit ridiculous. Indeed, one of Neeson's friends actually calls him "Rambo" at one point, and that is not an unfair comparison - his "against all the odds" invincibility is nothing short of Ramboesque. The end is predictable, rushed, slightly schmaltzy and quite unsatisfying, but for some reason I still enjoyed it over all - perhaps because the subject matter is interesting and the chain of events is quite gripping. Still, this one went straight back in the envelope and didn't get a second watch. 6/10

Watched it a couple of nights ago 👍

I agree mostly with the above, but give it 7.5/10 if for no other reason than for the fact that it's Liam Neeson doing all the ass kicking rather than the usual predictable action hero hard-guy type who would normally play this role. Although i agree that the plot suffered from maybe having too many 'unlikely turns of events' i think you could say the same about any of these action thrillers, including the Bourne films and the recent Bond films too. At least in this film the needle in the haystack hunt for 'X' is concentrated in one city (Paris) rather than the whole of Europe or even the World as is the usual case in these films.

 

[a6m5]

I'm sure I rated higher than a "6" as well, but I did think the movie(or film ) was bit overrated. Very, very good rental though, overall.

Okuribito is awesome!

That's all I have to say.

I just checked netflix, and it is available. I just added it to my queue, moved it up to position #1. 👍

I know this thread isn't for this but it shouldn't hurt to ask: I'm probably going to the movie theatre this weekend, do you think I should watch Avatar (non 3D) or Sherlock Holmes?

I don't think there's anything better showing right now.

Even without the 3D, I'd go for Avatar, if I were you. Sherlock Holmes is just another block buster from what I understand. Avatar isn't the action/sci fi that comes along every year. It's a bit more special than that.

Thanks for the info... clears a lot up... For some reason when I was watching it with my GF those things were just not clear....

No prob. 👍 To be honest, I don't even remember the [REC] ending very clearly. I think it might have involved the Japanese family, but can't remember for sure.

 

[Diego440]

I
No prob. 👍 To be honest, I don't even remember the [REC] ending very clearly. I think it might have involved the Japanese family, but can't remember for sure.

They're Japanese? Weird... they're Chinese in the Spanish version.

 

[Solid Lifters]

Taken (2008)

Exciting but ultimately predictable action thriller, where Liam Neeson (a former CIA hardman) tracks down his daughter after she is kidnapped. Although the film looks great and is genuinely exciting and disturbing in equal measure, the plot couldn't really be any more straightforward, and there are simply far too many unlikely turns of events to be even remotely believable - in other words, you need to switch your brain off quite quickly or you might start to find the whole thing a bit ridiculous. Indeed, one of Neeson's friends actually calls him "Rambo" at one point, and that is not an unfair comparison - his "against all the odds" invincibility is nothing short of Ramboesque. The end is predictable, rushed, slightly schmaltzy and quite unsatisfying, but for some reason I still enjoyed it over all - perhaps because the subject matter is interesting and the chain of events is quite gripping. Still, this one went straight back in the envelope and didn't get a second watch. 6/10

Truth.

I watched this movie a few weeks ago, I have the exact same sentiments. I even give it the same score. The shooting and 'martial arts' were way the fudge beyond unrealistic. Ridiculous, like you well put.

But, it was somewhat entertaining and griping. Yes, it's bad but not bad enough to think it was complete garbage.

 

[a6m5]

I went back to see how I graded "Taken", it was "B", and I think I agree with that. My search also turned up when Chris obtained the Blu-ray copy of the movie, it was over a month ago. Finally got around to it, huh?

They're Japanese? Weird... they're Chinese in the Spanish version.

That reminds me of my Chinese pirated Kurosawa film "Stray Dog"(one of my fav's), which replaced all names subtitled(Japanese names) into Chinese names. Are you sure about [REC] though? This is what I found on its wiki page:

# Akemi Goto - Japonesa
# Chen Min Kao - Japonés

I also found out that the sequel was already released, and the third one is in works? Have you seen the second one yet, Diego?

 

[Diego440]

Haven't seen the second one. And I'm positive they were Chinese in the original [REC]. I also started watching Quarantine last night and I have to say I don't like it at all. Inevitably I'll be comparing it to the original, and there's so much that it detracts from and scenes/situations that don't add to the story and that seem completely unnecessary. Full review after I see it.

 

[Diego440]

Elizabeth: The Golden Age (Shekhar Kapur, 2007) -- The poster says 'Magnificent'... I'd call it anything but. It may have a lot to do with the fact that I don't really like historical adaptations. This one's not very well acted and there's a bunch of factual errors that made me roll my eyes a few times. Also, it tries to explain a love story without love... I'm not going to go into detail on that, since I'd be 'spoiling' the movie. For most of the movie, it seems it was made to get an Oscar for costume design... and that it did. It also suffers from the malady I always point out in movies where Spaniards or other Spanish-speaking people appear, and it's that with the high budghet the movie's got, they can't get actors who speak decent Spanish! The guy who plays King Philip does a good job since he's obviously Spanish (though he's from Catalunya and Philip was from Madrid, I believe, but that's beside the point); the rest of the Spaniards speak horribly. I haven't seen the original movie (this is a sequel), but I was told there was no need. In any case, at least it made a decent effort. 5.5/10

 

[Hun200kmh]

... It also suffers from the malady I always point out in movies where Spaniards or other Spanish-speaking people appear, and it's that with the high budghet the movie's got, they can't get actors who speak decent Spanish! The guy who plays King Philip does a good job since he's obviously Spanish (though he's from Catalunya and Philip was from Madrid, I believe, but that's beside the point); the rest of the Spaniards speak horribly. I haven't seen the original movie (this is a sequel), but I was told there was no need. In any case, at least it made a decent effort. 5.5/10[/QUOTE]

You were told correctly. I saw it and found no need to see this one.

 

[CAMAROBOY69]

We watched Avatar twice. Once in 2d then again in 3d. The first 3d movie we have ever watched. Its also the first time we have EVER paid full price to watch a movie twice. Its that good.
The 3d effect was great but I do feel the visual quality was much better in 2d. Some of the 3d was a bit blurry around the edges.

 

[Masi_23]

Has anyone seen Moon by Duncan Jones?

 

[Delphic Reason]

Has anyone seen Moon by Duncan Jones?

👍

Fantastic, albeit simple, film. Wonderful acting.

 

[NissanSkylineN1]

Youth in Revolt...very funny.

 

[boiltheocean]

Hot Shots!
Part Deux

I lol'd practically the whole way though this film.
10/10​

 

[Joey D]

Book of Eli - It was a lot better then I expected and about the best way I can describe it is it's Blade Runner mixed with Fallout the video game. Denzel Washington is delivers his same awesome performance and fits the character as a Lone Wander badass perfectly. The movie has a lot of religious over tones but it's not preachy which is good, it also doesn't really dwell on the downfall of man. I hate movies that get real preachy. I would recommend seeing it. Oh and one last thing you need to know. Chainsaw Fight. That right there should make you want to see it.

 

[a6m5]

I'm going to go see that tonight. Don't care for chainsaw fight, but I hope it's good anyway.

Hot Shots!
Part Deux



I lol'd practically the whole way though this film.
10/10​

I watched this just couple of weeks ago. I've been into Charlie Sheen lately due to his hit sitcom, "Two & a Half Men". My take was closer to 0/10, it was so low, I didn't bother posting in this thread. Interesting.

 

[Joey D]

I'm going to go see that tonight. Don't care for chainsaw fight, but I hope it's good anyway.

It's very brief but still in there never the less.

 

[opendriver]

If you liked the first one, this is a little bit off in a few ways than that.Still watch it though 7.5/10

 

[Diego440]

Quarantine (John Erick Dowdle, 2008) -- So I finally got around to watching this one. Having watched [REC] prior to his one, I have to say I don't know how Shintaro thinks this one's better. And I'm completely serious about that.

** HERE BE SPOILERS **
(I would've used the spoiler tags, but I figured a lot of people have already seen it and I jump in and out of the spoiling too often)

First off, they created a whole new set of characters that added nothing to the story, including the Wal Street type guy who gets killed in the elevator, the African couple, the dogs and the Hindu-ish couple. Seriously, there's about 5 more characters in this movie that get killed twice as fast as the characters in the original one. There's also a few completely unnecesary scenes only put in for the gore factor, including the killing of one zombie with the camera, the guy who gets killed by a dog in the elevator (after which the witnesses, having seen that horrible act, say "hey, let's go watch TV")the killing of the rat, the 'competition' of both firemen for the journalist's butt, the appearing of one broken-legged zombie during an interview and the 3rd person who gets infected in the room where the policeman and fireman are kept. But the original one also cears up better who/what the creatur in the attic is, while the Hollywood version laves that question unanswered.

Jennifer Carpenter's acting was okay, but a bit over the top at times, the rest of the cast's acting was completely overdone as was the gore in the whole movie, but it lacked a sense of suspense. There weren't any nervous silences, just scream after scare attempt, after zombie sound effects, after more screaming. Also, the camera-shaking factor in this movie is intensely higher than in the original, made me dizzy many times.

Also, the original had a sense of low budget terror coupled with excellent acting and credible characters. This one is obviously backed by a huge budget, but failed in all other aspects; none of the characters seem credible because the plot disposes of them too quickly! In the original there's a few parts where you get to 'know' the characters, here whenever there's an interview of the characters, some zombie comes about and ruins the whole rapport. Incidentaly, the original also seemed to be recorded in video 8 or some cheaper camera type, while this one seems to be completely 35mm camera... I'd like to know which TV crew carries around a 35mm camera that is not only lightweight but also resistant to being thrown around, thrown to the ground and hit by different armed forces.

I guess it's pretty obvious I liked the original better and don't think much of this one except as a lame remake... another movie in a long list of remakes of current European movies that Hollywood tries to make marketable to larger audiences instead of giving said audiences the chance to experience a different-to-the-norm kind of foreign film. 3/10

 

[a6m5]

It's very brief but still in there never the less.

It was brief, and you were right, it was pretty cool. 👍

Until the end credits, I had no idea that it was Hughes Brothers film. Thinking back, I might have read or heard that somewhere, but maybe completely forgotten about it. Since "From Hell", I've respected that name. Only film that pops in my head when I hear "Hughes Brothers", but I was that impressed by that film.

Book of Eli, I wasn't that impressed by. But I was bit confused about what to make of this film as well. It certainly wasn't a classic. But it certainly wasn't just another movie either. I'm not going to "class" this film like I usually do in my reviews, because I'm still really aren't sure what to make of it. I did like it, acting was decent, Denzel was great. Bottom line, don't go see this right after watching the re-run of "That 70's Show" like I did. That will half way kill this movie for you. "B" Maybe slightly better than that.

Quarantine (John Erick Dowdle, 2008) -- So I finally got around to watching this one. Having watched [REC] prior to his one, I have to say I don't know how Shintaro thinks this one's better. And I'm completely serious about that

I'm not completely crazy. Read some of my previous takes on Quarantine & [REC]:

I saw Quarantine. Just in case you don't know, it's kind of a Cloverfield-Blair Witch-28 Days Later(don't get offended, I'm just sayin'....) hybrid. I didn't know this, but I guess it's an Hollywood version of a Spanish horror flick called "[REC]"(like the flashing "REC" on camcorders).

I went to this thing with few of my friends, and I was the only one who thought it was OK. It was to be expected. While the premise of the film is kind of unique, it is filled with same old pattern of characters doing everything they shouldn't do, and not doing any of the things they should be doing.

The entire movie is filmed on the shaky TV reporter camera, so if you had problem with Cloverfield or Blair Witch, this could be headache & nausea inducing for you. Some of the parts were actually quite funny, gores are very brutal. Plot is full of holes, but if you are the type who enjoys turning the brain off to see some zombie flicks, you should like it. Maybe as long as you aren't paying the full price of the admission. "C-"

Quarantine was a let down. I still liked it(horror/zombie sucker), but it just added to my reputation as a horrid movie selector. They still let me pick the movies, so they must be secretly enjoying it.

[REC] - I like horror flicks, and I like zombie-type flicks. This is both. And while I found the acting pretty horrid, it's not that bad of a production for what it is.

My problem was that I've seen "Quarantine", which was pretty faithful to this original, Spanish version. And its Hollywood counterpart, while I thought it was dumber, it had little bit more big budget action, which I liked.

If you haven't seen the Quarantine, I'd actually recommend watching one of the two. But if you tell me that you've liked both, that would be a surprise. I had hard time stomaching this one. "B-", but felt like a "C-"

On [REC], my take could've been different had I seen the original one, first. Like I said, I think I can recommend both, but it would be a choir to see both.

Looking back, I wasn't that crazy about either one. Movies like these are truly love/hate for me, because while I love zombie flicks in general, but majority of them are unbelievably dumb, and I'm being too kind. I think I liked Quarantine & [REC], because of the type of films they were. If they were cop, or gang flick, I probably wouldn't have cared so much about either of them.

I would concur that remake was not needed. My impression of the two were that they were too damn similar. Unlike the zombie classics, Dawn of the Dead, the remake didn't accomplish anything spectacular, or make it their own.

And while I did grade the [REC] a bit higher, if I had to watch one again, I would go with the Quarantine. I think I mentioned this before too, but Hollywood I thought pulled the action better. It felt more aggressive, had more guns. Nicer settings(in the dollar sense), overall. If you prefer [REC], I can completely understand that.

 

[Lucas]

Cube (1997) - Some movies my brother tells me to see are good. Others, not so much. The latter is the case with this film, Cube. Honestly, one of the worst pieces of crap I have ever seen, both of us understood little or nothing by the end of the film, probably the worst ending I will get to see by the end of this year, or better, the decade. Someone who likes mathematics may like this film, but I doubt they will enjoy it.

 

[TB]

Cube (1997)

Worse - they made a second one.

Worse yet - I watched both.

 

[C-ZETA]

Have seen Avatar in 3D. Three words.

Too. 🤬. Awesome.

 

[Diego440]

@Shintaro: I seem to recall you mentioning you liked Quarantine better than [REC]. But I still think [REC] is far superior, and by far I mean rating [REC] above the 8-point mark... but it may also have to do with me having lived in Spain and knowing the usual kind of movies we got there and this one blowing anything else out of the water.

@Lucas & TB: I thought Cube was awesome... the orignal 1997 one... the sequels were pretty lame. Again, same reason as [REC]; it was original and not Hollywood-esque.

 

[Joel]

I recently saw Bruno. I have to say, probably the funniest movie I've seen in a long time. 9/10

 

[LSX]

Alvin and the Chipmunks... The "Squeakuel" (wtf...)

Dear god save yourself. I like kids movies like Ice Age, Madagascar, stuff like that. But wow, this movie was torturous. I was getting paid to take 5 and 7 year old kids who enjoyed it though. If you have to take kids to a movie, seriously, seriously avoid this. Go see Avatar or something else, at least those are 3d and have a story that actually goes somewhere.

 

[TB]

If you have to take kids to a movie, seriously, seriously avoid this.

Or get the grandma to take them.

My kids saw it on Friday and liked it, but they're 5 and 4 so they don't know any better.

 

[a6m5]

You guys must be joking. Cube, I rented out of curiosity, and came away semi-impressed. Decent low budget horror, which is EXTREMELY hard to find. Cube 2, I think it was called Hypercube or something like that, I just bought it last month. It was only like three bucks, and I was pleasantly surprised by it as well.

@Shintaro: I seem to recall you mentioning you liked Quarantine better than [REC]. But I still think [REC] is far superior, and by far I mean rating [REC] above the 8-point mark... but it may also have to do with me having lived in Spain and knowing the usual kind of movies we got there and this one blowing anything else out of the water.

Yeah, I actually do prefer Quarantine. But like I said, it has lot to do with the personal taste(guilty pleasure ), and it doesn't necessarily mean I think Quarantine is a better film than [REC].

Edit:

The Final Destination(3D/2009) - This movie blows. You could say that I'm a fan of this series. First one was very unique, and while it didn't take itself too seriously, it was a fun ride. Second one, less unique, but I thought it was even more fun. By the third one, it had lost all of the magic, but it was still an acceptable rental. At least I thought so. This 2009/3D is the fourth & the latest installment, and it messes up, just about everywhere. From acting, SFX, plot..... more like how worthless scenes are connected together, they are all poorly done. I watched in 2D, but I'm convinced that watching this in 3D would be just as bad, if not worse, and not at all amusing. Can't say I didn't see this one coming. "F+"

 

[Diego440]

Irina Palm (Sam Garbarski, 2007) -- I really didn't know what to expect from this one. IMDb puts the plot as so: Maggie, a 50-year-old widow - still faithful to her dead husband, desperately needs some money to pay for a medical treatment for her ill grandson. With that I expected to be treated to a complete tear-jerker and I only watched it because I got it about 4 months ago and had it lying around and (thanks to the IMDb plot), I kept leaving it for another date.

With all that said, I'd have to say this movie is a 'dramedy'. Sure, the subject is dramatic but Maggie (the centre character) gets a job as a gloryhole operator. And far from being a judgemental type of movie, it has its funny moments, but only enjoyable if you don't have a negative attitutde towards gloryholes and all the similar things that surround them.

Acting is top notch and the only thing that annoyed me a bit was the soundtrack. In general, it's a evry recommendable (leave your prejudices at the door please!) off-beat British flick. Subject and plot make it seem extremely dramatic, but it's actually a 'lighter' kind of movie. Enjoyed it a lot. 7.5/10

 

[prisonermonkeys]

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra

I went looking for a dumb movie because I was in that kind of mood and bit o far moe thn I could chew. This is without a doubt one of the stupidest films I have ever seen.

Z-

The Final Destination(3D/2009) - This movie blows. You could say that I'm a fan of this series. First one was very unique, and while it didn't take itself too seriously, it was a fun ride. Second one, less unique, but I thought it was even more fun.

The first one was very original. The second one less so, but at least it introduced a new concept in drowning yourself and then being revived so that Death would leave you alone. If they had worked that into the first film, it would have been great. But after that, it just degenerated into torture-porn.