The "I'm watching/just watched *movie title* thread....

[SredniVashtar]

I never read the novel. The second half of the movie got a bit more exciting, but I was still confused. I wasn't sure if some of the scenes were flashbacks, and they started introducing new characters. I was right with my initial hunch though. But after watching the entire movie, I really don't know how I came to that conclusion. I'd give it a 5/10. It was just sooo dull. A little thrill ws all I asked for. I'm sure the novel is much, much better and it is on my future reading list. The plot itself was great, but the movie adaptation could have been so much more.

There aren't any thrills in the book, TV version or film, really. It's not that sort of story. I agree with you that the film was disappointing, but for different reasons. I think they tried so hard to cut it all down to fit a film format that too much was lost. If anything, they tried too hard to make it more exciting than it actually was, and it felt forced. If you don't enjoy drawn-out scenes of dialogue then you won't enjoy the TV version, but it's very good for people who are more comfortable with that kind of approach. Maybe the book won't try your patience in the same way, but it's meticulous, slightly plodding, but ultimately rewarding. I found Smiley's People less interesting, but you find out more about the mysterious 'Karla'.

[coaster]

There aren't any thrills in the book, TV version or film, really. It's not that sort of story. I agree with you that the film was disappointing, but for different reasons. I think they tried so hard to cut it all down to fit a film format that too much was lost. If anything, they tried too hard to make it more exciting than it actually was, and it felt forced. If you don't enjoy drawn-out scenes of dialogue then you won't enjoy the TV version, but it's very good for people who are more comfortable with that kind of approach. Maybe the book won't try your patience in the same way, but it's meticulous, slightly plodding, but ultimately rewarding. I found Smiley's People less interesting, but you find out more about the mysterious 'Karla'.

I love spy movies. Bridges of Spies was incredible, and that was in no way thrilling. I am all for movies that make you think. There is, however, something to be said about spy movies that are thrilling. Take the Bond franchise for example. I absolutely love all of them, and I didn't have to think while watching any of them. (Connery was the best Bond btw, just had to mention that.)
Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy deserves a re-watch, and I will be happy to do so.

[zeebo]

... I found Smiley's People less interesting, but you find out more about the mysterious 'Karla'.

My fave one was I think a later sequel, "The Honourable Schoolboy".  It would make a good film on it's own I think.

[albrecht]

My fave one was I think a later sequel, "The Honourable Schoolboy".  It would make a good film on it's own I think.

I think like other stuff it would be much better in longer-format, like well-produced mini-series (like the old ones on BBC) because they can get into more depth and not have to condense the material so much to fit in a 2 hour movie.

[zeebo]

I think like other stuff it would be much better in longer-format, like well-produced mini-series (like the old ones on BBC) because they can get into more depth and not have to condense the material so much to fit in a 2 hour movie.

I so agree!  Some great material out there that demands either multiple movies or, better, a mini-series like you say.  Think of if they'd smushed Game of Thrones into a single movie how idiotic that would've been.  I've read that someone out there wants to take the epic sci-fi book Hyperion and condense it into a single film - ridiculous.

For example, the Ender's Game movie dumped like half of the really great stuff including the awesome ending due to time contraints and it resulted in a rushed, shallow, muddled film.  With the dearth of great source material out there it sucks to see it wasted. 

Two mini-series, both BBC I think, which were far superior to their movies were Pride & Prejiduce and Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  Much better as long format shows, with less production costs but more time to tell the stories.

[Hautex]

Took a chance on the Syfy channels latest zombie movie, "Dead 7". Proud of myself that I made it all the way to 51 minutes before hitting delete. Got to thinking about how many zombie movies have ever been made and found this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_zombie_films Counted down 100 and saw I was only in the "D's", figured that there had to at least 100 "Z's" and said "fuck-it". Don't get me wrong, some of them were good, but how much better could the money that made "Chopper Chicks in Zombie town", or "The Dead Hate the Living" have been spent? Guess that if it got the dude with all the cash laid, it was worth it to him.... I said dude, because it seems a woman with or without cash never seems to have problems getting some.... I now feel the need to wait until I see 2 dead-thumbs-up from those deceased critics before I waste any more time......

[albrecht]

"PATH TO 9/11". Pretty good, lots of good actors and interesting. The Madeline Albright character is on-spot. No wonder it is not reshown or as some claim banned.

[akwilly]

On my way to see Gods of Egypt. I hear it sucks.

[3OctaveFart]

King of Kong with wife, about fierce Donkey Kong-playing rivals and the hermetic culture of video games.

Very funny stuff.

[akwilly]

On my way to see Gods of Egypt. I hear it sucks.

it did

[zeebo]

King of Kong with wife, about fierce Donkey Kong-playing rivals and the hermetic culture of video games...

Really enjoyed that one too.

[Mind Flayer Monk]

On my way to see Gods of Egypt. I hear it sucks.

$2 theater?

[21st Century Man]

The Hateful Eight by Quentin Tarantino.  To start off, I've never been a huge Tarantino fan.  I think he has been way over-rated.  I do enjoy some of his work like Pulp Fiction and Inglorious Bastards but Django was a bit much.  To be frank, I think he is a glorified B-Movie director and if B movies were his trade, I'd probably praise his movies more.

  Anyway enough of that. The Hateful Eight has a pretty good plot that reminds me of the old Hollywood days in the early 30's when many stage plays were filmed.  Those movies were usually well-paced and wrapped up in 90 minutes or less.  The same can't be said for the Hateful Eight.  It is way too long and should have been cut by at least 45 minutes.  It really became quite tedious to sit through and I was hoping for more of a spaghetti western type score from the great Ennio Morricone.  There is a nice example of that kind of music during the credits at the end of the film after the Roy Orbison tune.  I wish the film had used more music like that during the actual movie.  The cinematography is excellent. No problem there.

  The acting was generally good except for Jennifer Jason Leigh and Michael Madsen.  He was like half-asleep during the whole film and I almost joined him.  I like Leigh's work in general but here she was just overbearing and screechy.   Oh and then there was Channing Tatum.  What the fuck was he doing in this movie?  Thank God his screen time was rather limited. It was nice to see Bruce Dern in a mainstream film again.  Sam Jackson did his thing and  Tim Roth played an English hangman named Mobray which reminded me of Alan Mowbray, an English character actor who had significant character roles in several John Ford westerns.  Speaking of that, Kurt Russell acts like a cruder John Wayne character even to the point of quoting Wayne's line from the Searchers, "That'll Be The Day!"  I really enjoyed his role in the film. It is odd that there are these Ford references in this film as Tarantino has said he really didn't care for Ford.  Maybe he's changed.  Another classic film reference is the name of Sam Jackson's  character, Marquis Warren.  He is named after Western screenwriter and director, Charles Marquis Warren, whose most notable contribution was during the first two years of Gunsmoke.  Walter Goggins as Sheriff Chris Mannix also deserves credit for his excellent acting.  The only really likable character in the film.

  For a man who has a severe case of white guilt, Tarantino can't help using the word nigger when he get's the chance.  That and the overuse of other four-letter words.  Sure, in the real West of the 1800's, there were a few people who used salty language but that was the exception and not the norm.  Back then, most people were brought up with good manners unlike today.   This aspect of the film makes it as unrealistic as the singing cowboy westerns.  I'm not saying there isn't a place for crude language in a Western film but it should be used sparingly and limited to one or two characters.  Another huge problem I had with the film was when Tarantino inserted himself as narrator in the middle of the film.  This destroyed the atmosphere and mood of the film.  He should know this as a student of film.  That's like me telling the plot of the film at this point in my review.  Which I will do right now.

Bounty hunter, Russell is bringing killer played by Leigh back to Red Rock so she can be tried and hanged.  He comes across fellow bounty hunter, Jackson, and then a blizzard starts and they must seek shelter to ride out the storm.  Along the way and at the cabin, they encounter other odd fellows. Tensions between Northerners and Southerners mount and death ensues.  I'll leave the rest to you. 

See, wasn't that an odd place to tell the plot? I hear that the plot was taken from an episode of an old TV show called the Rebel and they were able to resolve the story in 25 minutes.  Too bad the same can't be said here.  It is sssooooooooo ffuuuuuuuuucccccckkkkkkkiiiiiiiinnnng slllllllllooooooowwww.  And really did we need that bit about Jackson and the blowjob? Jackson's schtick is also getting rather old. If this was a shorter B grade film, I would feel kinder to it and give it 3 stars maybe  3.5, but is this really what passes for Oscar material in the 21st century?  2.25 stars out of 5 and that is due to the professionalism by the cinematographer, Morricone,  and some of the actors.  To be honest, the Roy Orbison tune at the end, "There Won't Be Many Coming Home", was the best thing about it.  Tarantino needs to spend less time on Black Lives Matter and more time back at film school.  Focus on editing, Quent.

[Billy Joe Mulgreavey]

The Hateful Eight by Quentin Tarantino.  To start off, I've never been a huge Tarantino fan.  I think he has been way over-rated.  I do enjoy some of his work like Pulp Fiction and Inglorious Bastards but Django was a bit much.  To be frank, I think he is a glorified B-Movie director and if B movies were his trade, I'd probably praise his movies more. 

Tarantino's strength is in the dialog he writes.  Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown were his trifecta of good, dialog driven movies.  IMO, everything after that was lackluster..he's kinda a one- trick pony in my opinion. I've seen some scenes from Hateful Eight...don't know if I'll watch the movie though..just didn't look that impressive.

[akwilly]

Tarantino's strength is in the dialog he writes.  Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown were his trifecta of good, dialog driven movies.  IMO, everything after that was lackluster..he's kinda a one- trick pony in my opinion. I've seen some scenes from Hateful Eight...don't know if I'll watch the movie though..just didn't look that impressive.

it is basically Reserve Dogs set in the old west only longer

[Billy Joe Mulgreavey]

it is basically Reserve Dogs set in the old west only longer

Oh yeah?  I might well check it out.  I do like Kurt Russell/Snake Plissken.  If Mr. White and Mr. Pink were in it...I would have seen it on the big screen.  Oh!  And Pam Grier!  That lady is just too cool for school!

[akwilly]

Oh yeah?  I might well check it out.  I do like Kurt Russell/Snake Plissken.  If Mr. White and Mr. Pink were in it...I would have seen it on the big screen.

Kurt Russell is a fave of mine. Check out The Battered Bastards of Baseball. Its a doc about his time in the minor leagues playing on the team his dad owned

[Billy Joe Mulgreavey]

Kurt Russell is a fave of mine. Check out The Battered Bastards of Baseball. Its a doc about his time in the minor leagues playing on the team his dad owned

Yeah, I need to check that out.  I've heard about it.  I understand Kurt was a pretty good ball player.

[Billy Joe Mulgreavey]

Tuco remains my favorite movie character of all time. He was far more complex than people realize. His love/hate relationship with Blondie, and the animosity he felt towards his brother and parents. I think Blondie felt the same way about Tuco. There was a mutual respect between the two, even after the drama they put each other through.
The one scene where he gets into a fight with his brother and then heads off with Blondie, sharing a smoke. Tuco smiling at the end. It is one of the most honest scenes I've seen. They were not afraid to show Tuco as more than a "bandit". He was a deep, flawed human and obviously very introspective. Far more than a just a mean ole' bandit.
Anyone who loves film should watch The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.The 2011 movie. I guess I should go finish it.

Yeah man, the best scene in the whole movie.  Followed by that funny scene where he and Blondie get captured by the Union.  My all-time favorite movie.  One of my very earliest memories is my dad playing the soundtrack over and over on the turntable.  He had both Morricone's and another 'cover' by Hugo Montenegro and his orchestra.   

[21st Century Man]

Kurt Russell is a fave of mine. Check out The Battered Bastards of Baseball. Its a doc about his time in the minor leagues playing on the team his dad owned

Kurt Russell was great in the pic but unfortunately he exited stage left during the middle of the film.

[coaster]

Just caught the last episode of 11.22.63. Incredible.

[albrecht]

Speaking of Le Carre' I see that AMC is going to show a mini-series out of his "The Night Manager" novel. We will see if good, his stuff is definitely better in a series format (even if one ends up binge-watching) than in a 2hr movie. It will be also interesting to see how AMC compares to the BBC handling of his material (although they haven't done "The Night Manager" to my knowledge.)
It was a BBC-One production that AMC simply picked up for the American market. So likely it can be found "out there on the inter-webs" without all the commercials on AMC.

[Hautex]

"Lucy" finally came out on HBO and since I rarely see a movie worth watching twice, I don't buy them...this movie is an exception. It feels half as long as it should be and Scarlett Johannsson is great, as is Morgan Freeman. The potential increased use of our brain power has always interested me and the movie presents the theory in an exciting way without turning Lucy into a hopeless, heartless psychopath. The science end of things feels like Morgan Freeman is doing a fascinating  episode of "Beyond The Wormhole". My stepson is a PhD in human genetics and is a pure scientist, so after hanging with him and his friends, the scientist actors portrayals feel spot on and believable. So what if what they are seeing is unbelievable, it needs to verified and studied even though carnage is happening all around them... Sorry, I am definitely not a Siskel or Ebert, but damn, I like this flick....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsR2-v554Hs

[coaster]

The Finest Hours. Nice movie. I would type more, but my hand is in a bandage. Just watch it,it's worth the time.

[albrecht]

The Finest Hours. Nice movie. I would type more, but my hand is in a bandage. Just watch it,it's worth the time.

I concur, I liked "The Finest Hours" (2016,) at first I didn't like a few of the castings but then at the end where they showed the real people I reverse my opinion. A good movie and nothing offensive, too much CGI, or sociopolitical brainwashing like with most of what Hollywood puts out. And based on incredible true story it reminded of movies how they used to be made. And I like maritime stuff.

[21st Century Man]

I concur, I liked "The Finest Hours" (2016,) at first I didn't like a few of the castings but then at the end where they showed the real people I reverse my opinion. A good movie and nothing offensive, too much CGI, or sociopolitical brainwashing like with most of what Hollywood puts out. And based on incredible true story it reminded of movies how they used to be made. And I like maritime stuff.

Yes, it was a decent film.  I saw it but haven't reviewed it  formally though off the cuff, I'd give it 3 and a half stars.  Fine cast did an excellent job.

[akwilly]

"Lucy" finally came out on HBO and since I rarely see a movie worth watching twice, I don't buy them...this movie is an exception. It feels half as long as it should be and Scarlett Johannsson is great, as is Morgan Freeman. The potential increased use of our brain power has always interested me and the movie presents the theory in an exciting way without turning Lucy into a hopeless, heartless psychopath. The science end of things feels like Morgan Freeman is doing a fascinating  episode of "Beyond The Wormhole". My stepson is a PhD in human genetics and is a pure scientist, so after hanging with him and his friends, the scientist actors portrayals feel spot on and believable. So what if what they are seeing is unbelievable, it needs to verified and studied even though carnage is happening all around them... Sorry, I am definitely not a Siskel or Ebert, but damn, I like this flick....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsR2-v554Hs

I agree, great movie. I'm glad I watched it on DVD because the special features were pretty good. It had scientists talking about the brains potential.

[21st Century Man]

I agree, great movie. I'm glad I watched it on DVD because the special features were pretty good. It had scientists talking about the brains potential.

The less I say about Lucy, the better.

[zeebo]

The less I say about Lucy, the better.

Haha, like me with Interstellar.   

[akwilly]

The less I say about Lucy, the better.

did you ever see Ed Wood? If so I would like to read you're review.