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

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Having Brave score just one more than Cars 2 is just wrong. Cars 2 should be at 3 or 4... or Brave at least deserves a 7.
 
niky
Having Brave score just one more than Cars 2 is just wrong. Cars 2 should be at 3 or 4... or Brave at least deserves a 7.
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Brave was okay I guess. I genuinely had no idea what the antagonist in Brave was until I Wiki'd it, which is when I found out the bear at the beginning of the film is Mor'du. At first I thought it was the witch for putting Merida in that predicament. It was especially hard to keep up with the twists and turns in the story after the Queen turned into a bear. I still enjoyed Brave though. It was funny and sad, and full of adventure. The end where Merida apologized to her mother was a very emotional moment. I liked the theme of the story as well.

Cars 2 on the other hand seems to be more about eye-candy. The story is definitely its weakest point, and it tries to make up for it with action-packed scenes and explosions. It's totally the opposite to the original Cars. Still, Cars 2 was enough to keep me entertained for an hour or two.
 
Brave is a mother/daughter film. I know women who don't get Up either.

Although, I am unsure how you didn't know the giant demon bear was the antagonist. It was the first thing they established. Literally, it was the prologue.

As for the witch, if you look at her table she has carved the pizza delivery truck from the Toy Story films.
 
Not get Up??? Best American animation I've seen... Squirrel!
 
Two great films I have seen over the weekend

We're The Millers
A small time drug dealer gets his stash and money stolen so in order to re-pay the money he owes to his boss he gets sent to Mexico to Smuggle a huge amount of Mariujana over the border, he hires three random people to pose as his family so he doesn't get stopped at the border, stars Jason Sudekis, Jennifer Aniston, Emma Roberts, Will Poulter and Ed Helms...this is a brilliantly funny film with plenty of laughs right from the opening credits, Aniston is smoking hot as the stripper and Poulter is pretty impressive, he's a british actor but with a good American accent in the film, very funny and the Outtakes are great as well! 8

Captain Phillips
Tells the true story of the first time an American cargo ship is hijacked by Somali pirates in 2009, the Ship is captained by Richard Phillips and he also gets taken hostage by the four pirates...Stars Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi, this is a fantastic drama set entirely on location at sea with very little CGI, Hanks is brilliant as usual but he is up-staged by a sensational Adbi who stars as the ringleader of the band of pirates, he is really impressive considering its his debut, fantastic film and its does get quite emotional, especially towards the end 9
 
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Lately I've been watching John Carpenter's movies such as The Thing (I actually watched the 2011 version first then immediately 1982 after which was a very enjoyable experience), Halloween and Assault on Precinct 13. Not going to say anything about them except for being excellent old thriller movies, watch them if you haven't.

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The Counselor... hmm... Ridley Scott, what were you thinking? Some early great visuals as you'd expect. Guess he was trying for something different, artsy mixed with violent. Cameron Diaz is old...

Sorry, but just not having a happy ending and throwing in some pseudo-philosophy doesn't make something art.
 
Her

A great movie wich let's you think the whole time about the concept of a relationship. Great for after movie discussion as you're finding out a relationship is a very complex thing. Fantastic acting. That guy is really something 9/10
 
1241Penguin
Brave was okay I guess. I genuinely had no idea what the antagonist in Brave was until I Wiki'd it, which is when I found out the bear at the beginning of the film is Mor'du. At first I thought it was the witch for putting Merida in that predicament. It was especially hard to keep up with the twists and turns in the story after the Queen turned into a bear. I still enjoyed Brave though. It was funny and sad, and full of adventure. The end where Merida apologized to her mother was a very emotional moment. I liked the theme of the story as well.

Cars 2 on the other hand seems to be more about eye-candy. The story is definitely its weakest point, and it tries to make up for it with action-packed scenes and explosions. It's totally the opposite to the original Cars. Still, Cars 2 was enough to keep me entertained for an hour or two.
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Is there really suppose to be one, I don't really see the hype behind Frozen it was good and tangled for me rates lower than both but still high.(8 to Frozen's 8.5 and Brave's 8.5) What I like is that Disney/Pixar are doing a wonderful job more so now days making these movies and giving much more culture I'd say than they did in the past. Brave didn't really have an antagonist unless you count Mor'du (which was the antagonist especially for the father) and even that is a life lesson in itself more than anything along with the main situation that Merida goes through with her mother. It's a very mother/daughter relations film along with a sort of coming of age. The witch is really just someone granting the wish asked and teaching a life lesson, not someone of ill intention, and if she was she'd probably have played a bigger role.

For movie I watched recently:
FROZEN (8.5/10)

Anyways I too recently saw Frozen this past weekend and own it now, my daughter has watched it three times already. I loved the humor of the main cast, I like that you could somewhat predict the bad guy but not to a major degree like other Pixar/Disney film. I'd say the Villain in this almost caught me off as much as the Cars 2 one. I liked the building of relationships and the lore behind it even if more could have been done. Though what I didn't like were the trolls didn't get much screen time which was the same issue I had with the witch in Brave. A few more minutes of dialogue wouldn't have hurt they were crafted so well and I feel they nearly went to waste. Elsa was a weak point for me, the movie is about here really but in reality it's not and more so about both and with Anna being more pivotal. What also gets me is how afraid Elsa is even with help and I feel it was unnecessary and just trying to pull more in to keep the story going. I wish a bit of background to where her power came from would have been given as Disney has done in the past with other movies, if I hadn't read some of these fairy tales I'd might be just carried away like many who watched this I suppose. It was good and I do think it was one of the better disney movies and I think they are gaining momentum, but I can't see giving it more than an 8.5/10. It was a good story especially for siblings that are different but remember good times and want to build on them and so on.

Next movie:

Hunger Games: Catching Fire (9/10)

Other movie of the weekend I saw was Catching fire. I have to say this was a great movie, and carried over well (to me) from the book but also outshines the first movie. I loved the first movie because the games scares you for how Katniss is going to survive and you see her struggle and know that some sort or revolution is in motion and so on. I enjoyed the struggle of this and that actual twists that come about as you see President Snow face off with Katniss, it makes you want to see these people fight for a revolution and regain freedom and perhaps one of the better dystopian films of current.
 
@LMSCorvetteGT2 Elsa was afraid of help because her parents locked her away like a freak. The trolls told them she could learn to control it and that fear was the enemy and love would give her strength. But her parents only heard about hiding it from Anna and blew that into a huge thing, locking her in a room and isolating her for life. Not only did they feed her fear, but they stunted her social development so she reacted 100% on emotion, throwing ice everywhere by accident and then running away. Like Batman, a good therapist could have solved all their problems.

As for the trolls, check out Hans Christian Anderson's 'The Snow Queen.' That is what Frozen was very loosely based on. In that a troll was a main character. Disney changed so much that they could only use them as the worst possible storytelling mechanic; deus ex machina. How convenient Anna runs into the only other person in the kingdom to know the trolls.


My biggest issue: how did Olaf gain conciousness? I've seen it in theaters three times and have copies of the film and soundtrack on every device we own. Every time he appears my brain screams.

That said, Olaf is a great character and his Summer song is my favorite in the film.
 
The Boy With the Striped Pajamas... always nice to see David Thewlis, and the two boys were great. The wife was pretty rubbish. Heavy. But didn't go quite deep enough where I hoped it would. Still worth a watch. And for once I agree with IMDB users, 7.8/10 is exactly right.
 
(Are documentary films allowed?)

TT3D : Closer To The Edge - I stumbled across this documentary purely by accident while searching for some Isle of Man TT related stuff. It's an excellent, thrilling and funny documentary about the riders that participated (most notably Guy Martin) in the 2010 Isle of Man TT and the amount of balls it actually takes, as well reminding the audience about the sad reality and risks that the track and the race holds.

It's a really well done documentary and I would strongly recommend anyone to see it, not just racing or bike enthusiasts.

Trailer :
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Hyland
(Are documentary films allowed?)

TT3D : Closer To The Edge - I stumbled across this documentary purely by accident while searching for some Isle of Man TT related stuff. It's an excellent, thrilling and funny documentary about the riders that participated (most notably Guy Martin) in the 2010 Isle of Man TT and the amount of balls it actually takes, as well reminding the audience about the sad reality and risks that the track and the race holds.

It's a really well done documentary and I would strongly recommend anyone to see it, not just racing or bike enthusiasts.

Trailer :
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Yeah, that one was great!
 
Captain America: The Winter Soldier

I got to see this movie yesterday at the theater and it was... like any other Marvel movie actually. They're not bad, but the story is getting kinda repetitive, because now that The Avengers sequel was launched everything goes around it but individualizes each character. One thing I loved though was two big plot twists that I wasn't expecting (one should be kinda obvious), the other was just predictable. So predictable that I spoiled the surprise for the ones around me. Anyway you should expect lots of fighting, stuff exploding, chaos and moments of light comedy. If you're expecting a good movie there is only a good stroke of genius the rest is just meh. As usual expect after-credits and these you shouldn't miss.

My rating, a mild 7/10
 
Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Awesome film. I still haven't watched the first film so I wasn't up to speed on some of the plot line but I picked it up as the film went along. Action sequences were breathtaking as always and the plot was pretty good too, you really couldn't see the twists coming. Plus the main plot twist sets things up nicely for the next film or two.

8/10

Also it's made me wonder, there have been 2 Captain America films, 3 Iron mans, 2 Thors but no recent Hulk films. We've only got to see Mark Ruffalo as the Bruce Banner in Avengers Assemble, where's the next Hulk movie?
 
I am one of the few people who liked the first Hulk movie. I thought the second one was bad. I have to say I really like ruffalo as bruce banner so I can't wait to see a movie with him as the hulk.

It's going to be tricky though, since he now controls the Hulk.....
 
Recently seen the movie "Divergent" which was a really good movie! Definitely recommend it if anyone has yet to see it.

Details: there were some EPIC scenes, and the story line should keep you interested.

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Hyland
(Are documentary films allowed?)

TT3D : Closer To The Edge - I stumbled across this documentary purely by accident while searching for some Isle of Man TT related stuff. It's an excellent, thrilling and funny documentary about the riders that participated (most notably Guy Martin) in the 2010 Isle of Man TT and the amount of balls it actually takes, as well reminding the audience about the sad reality and risks that the track and the race holds.

It's a really well done documentary and I would strongly recommend anyone to see it, not just racing or bike enthusiasts.

Trailer :
Click to expand...

Fourteen grand?
 
hmmm.... Divergent... not very... rather ho hum. Like Hunger Games, kind of wish I hadn't watched it. Very childish. CGI does not a movie make.

I might recommend instead Harrison Bergeron, Kurt Vonnegut, Welcome to the Monkey House. At least that doesn't have a happy ending.

Although even that is also very Ayn Randish, the epitome of the problem with America. Overemphasis on individualization... Feel free to hate.
 
I saw Captain America Winter Soldier last night. It was very good, with an incredible cliffhanger at the end.

I would have like a little more action, I found there was a tad much talking.
 
I don't think it payys to take the plot of Frozen too seriously, it has more holes than Swiss Cheese, though the plot twist near the end was a real kicker. The King and Queen? Worst.parents.ever... Turning their two daughters into basket cases. Then dying off, conveniently, so they don't have to deal with the fallout.

Also, ditto on the deus ex machina.... And what is it with Kristoff, he doesn't recognize Anna, and neither do the Trolls... and living snowmen? What?

That said, wonderfully entertaining. Great characters and acting can cover up many flaws.

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Cap was a very good movie. Better than I expected. Smart, entertaining, and exciting. Relied on quite a bit of magic that wasn't thoroughly explained... For example, how a hologram projector can fool a DNA scanner, and the cheesy tunneling devices... Also, the USAF has had wingsuits for years and nobody has used one in a Marvel Movie before now? And helicarriers. The SHIELD Helicarrier has been destroyed or almost destroyed in nearly every single Marvel Movie or cartoon movie or episode it has appeared in. And now they build three of them? Can't think of a more useless piece of technology anywhere.

Also, nothing surprising with the plot if you're reasonably familiar with the comics and characters. Only thing remotely surprising is revealed in the first half of the movie after Cap and Widow talk to the Doctor. Still, good fun, and much better than many Marvel movies.

Scarlett Johannson is finally growing into her role. Only took her three movies. Everyone else is excellent. Chris Evans reportedly studied mixed martial arts and even gymnastics for this movie. Come to think of it, his puglistic chops were on display in the first movie, too. Here, the training really shows. His fight with GSP was pretty good, and the moment he speaks in the elevator, a moment that the director spent several loving minutes foreshadowing, you know you're in for something special.

Only real complaint is that there should have been more backstory for those who missed the first movie, but for the rest of us, we got our money's worth.
 
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niky
I don't think it payys to take the plot of Frozen too seriously, it has more holes than Swiss Cheese, though the plot twist near the end was a real kicker. The King and Queen? Worst.parents.ever... Turning their two daughters into basket cases. Then dying off, conveniently, so they don't have to deal with the fallout.

Also, ditto on the deus ex machina.... And what is it with Kristoff, he doesn't recognize Anna, and neither do the Trolls... and living snowmen? What?

That said, wonderfully entertaining. Great characters and acting can cover up many flaws.
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I'm glad someone sees it the same way I do. But one glance at my enthralled, singing daughter makes me let it go.

Besides, Olaf is too fun to get stuck on why he even exists.
 
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okay, okay... Frozen... almost stopped in the first minute due to my inner science editor with all the broken physics ice chopping...

but yeah, nice movie! simple, but that's okay. one really nice song that I recognized already, which was odd. guess it made radio airplay. wondered who voiced grandpa troll... Mance Rayder! thought it was familiar. And hahaha over the top Alan Tudyk as the Duke of Weaseltown, ... (Firefly fan...)
 
Frozen. I was meh with the premise. The humour was the best bits for me.
 
helps to remember it's a Hans Christian Anderson adaptation, so yeah, dumb parents are to be expected... I had trouble with that at first, too, like seriously? that's what you're going to do? not accept and cultivate, but shut away and repress? but considering this story was essentially written 150 years ago...

and I guess it's part of his shtick that inanimate objects come to life, so... snowman.

Edit: I'd have to say one critique was the pacing was odd... felt very rushed at times, and then slow (like I could stop and do something else for a minute while the movie went on without missing anything...)
 
As with Enchanted, and to some extent, Beauty and the Beast, a lot of explanation got left on the cutting room floor. I was looking at the deleted scenes from Enchanted a few weeks ago, and honestly, I couldn't believe they left out the one throwaway line (a joke about special effects from spectators when the Queen transformed into a dragon) that would have turned the ending from hokey into somewhat self-referentially intelligent.

Some of the scenes deleted from Frozen would have helped fill in the blanks about Elsa's powers, and later in the movie, would have showed the sisters interacting after Elsa's self-imposed exile, which would have been a nice bridge between total separation and actually speaking to each other (out of character) at the coronation night.

These scenes were deleted for flow and narrative consistency, but as often happens when Disney does this, the rest of the movie zipped together around these holes often forgets they're there, and the edges of the holes aren't quite trimmed right.
 
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (9/10)

Wow. This is a game changer. One major issue I had is that it felt more like a SHIELD movie that had Captain America in it than a Captain America film. But that was OK. We now have new characters in the universe and we paid more attention to character than boom, boom explosions.

I caught a couple plot holes and very convenient coincidences, but so goes the comic book world. Fortunately, there was no sudden hero or force showing up at just the right time. They were soldiers and spies on a mission, not knowing who to trust, and only finding out when someone doesn't shoot at them.

Also those who know me in the Opinions forum and have seen the movie can only imagine how I felt when Cap tells Fury that the way SHIELD is doing things is not what he fought for in WWII. It's not the America he remembers. It's not freedom. Anyone who knows the Civil War storyline knows this sentiment is exactly what divides Cap from SHIELD and the government.

I was glad to see Captain America represented in this light, as a man who does not blindly go, "America! 🤬 YEAH!" He is a man who believes you can love your country, but not your government. It is one of the characteristics that draws me to Captain America. He fights for what America is supposed to stand for, not for what the government says it is.

Anyway, if you like the Marvel Cinematic a universe, go see it. And stay until the very end of the credits.
 
@FoolKiller , I had my doubts going into the movie, even as the trailers had me pumped up, but it happily exceeded my expectations in all regards. A bit slow at the start, but I'm happy they took the time to build it up properly, otherwise it'd just be another of those bang-bang-bang comic book action movies.

Also, we were discussing how this compared to Man Of Steel... as one critic noted that this one stayed truer to its own internal ethos than MOS did. In MOS, Superman found, eventually, that his strict moral code was impossible to follow, and broke his own rules to win.

In CA:TWS, Cap follows a similarly strict code of honor (though he obviously isn't hung up on killing in combat, he accepts that fighting a war means sometimes doing things you don't want to do... ) that he keeps till the very end. No compromises, even if it possibly means his own death (perhaps a foreshadowing of a cinematic "Civil War" storyline?).

Well done, Marvel, well done. A worthy sequel to a great first movie.
 
@niky When Superman killed in MoS I was ready to walk out. It would be like The Dark Knight having Batman just kill Joker the moment he gives him the impossible scenario.

A man like Superman should never kill. If he does then his greatest power is fear. Anyone familiar with comics knows there are alternate universes where Superman stopped holding back, and our Superman had to stop him. They even built a video game around it.
 
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While I am generally pretty accepting of alternate versions of established characters/stories (though when change is made merely to make them "edgy" or "contemporary", that gets a *tsk* from me), I thought that the Superman thing was a cop-out... because it felt like an attempt to make him edgy and contemporary.

Not that there's anything wrong with tackling that issue, really, but from an entertainment perspective, it might be a bridge too far for fans to cope with.
 
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