Movies Seen in 2011

Discussion in 'TV & Media' started by Starbreaker, Dec 31, 2010.

  1. CaptainCanada

    CaptainCanada Admiral Admiral

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    Steinfeld submitted herself as a supporting actress to give herself a better chance of winning.
     
  2. Captain Craig

    Captain Craig Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 7, 2003
    Location:
    Nashville,TN
    I thought it was
    A)Jeff Bridges movie
    B)studios did the submitting anyway

    Didn't realize the actor placed themselves into a particular category. You sure they do that on their on behalf?

    You often see full page ads, paid for by studios, with the "for your consideration" tagline so I guess that plays into why I thought studios did the nominating. Otherwise you'd have Jack Black or someone trying to pull a publicity stunt nominating themselves.
     
  3. CaptainCanada

    CaptainCanada Admiral Admiral

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    Charlottetown, PEI, Canada
    The studio and managers agree on a campaign, but the point is the same: it's blatantly a lead role that they're pretending is supporting (which is pretty common for child/young actors).
     
  4. Starbreaker

    Starbreaker Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 19, 2001
    Location:
    Birmingham, AL
    1. Black Swan (2010) ✭✭✭✭
    2. Winter's Bone (2010) ✭✭✭ 1/2
    3. Buried (2010) ✭✭✭✭
    4. The King's Speech (2010) ✭✭✭✭

    5. Catfish (2010) ✭✭✭
    6. The American (2010) ✭✭
    7. Frozen (2010) ✭✭ 1/2
    8. Dinner for Schmucks (2010) ✭✭✭
     
    Last edited: Feb 10, 2011
  5. Captain Craig

    Captain Craig Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 7, 2003
    Location:
    Nashville,TN
    1. The Fighter: B-
    2. Batman(90's saga): A-,B-,C-,D
    3. Star Wars OT-Special Edition: B+, A, B
    4. The Green Hornet: B
    5. True Grit(1969): C+
    6. Lord of the Rings saga: (A,A,A)
    7. The Machinist: A-
    8. Season of the Witch: B
    9. Frozen: A-
    10. Due Date: B+
    11. Planet of the Apes(2001): B-
    12. Faster: C
    13. Romance: D (French film, subtitled)
    14. YPF: C- (YPF=Young People F*&^ing)
    15. The Beautiful Truth: B-
    16. Strictly Sexual: C+
    17. DOOM: C

    Strictly Sexual - this was a Buffy TVS reason for watching as it stars Amber Benson. It was a decent movie really and has the most amount of clothed sex scenes in a movie that I think I've seen in some time.

    DOOM - this movie felt like a type of cross between Resident Evil and Stargate. At least co-opting themes anyway. The infectious alien chromosome that transforms you like a zombie/vamp bit would. Then there is the ARC, a space jumping device. All in all the movie wasn't bad. Played the typical beats one should expect from this type movie. The only homage to the video game I recognized was a 10min sequence near the end where you see the gun in the foreground going through the shoot/reload sequence.

    Next up hard disk is Men in Black II which I haven't seen in 9 yrs. With MIB:III filming I'm rewatching. Bought MIB on Black Friday for $4 and renting pt.II for now. Not sure what but I may stream something also.
     
  6. rhammond

    rhammond Cadet Newbie

    Joined:
    Feb 10, 2011
    So far the best movie that I have seen this year is Black Swan. Movie rocks.
     
  7. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2005
    27. Sammy Goes South (B-)

    Sammy Goes South: I'm sure that if I saw this film in it's original, unedited form, I would have liked it a lot more. Child actor Fergus McClelland gives a terrific performance for a twelve year old, and the supporting cast is also good, especially an aging Edward G. Robinson. But the film is almost destroyed in the editing, which omits so much of the film that the original score had to be trashed and replaced with a new one (and the new score is less than outstanding). Transitions are awkward, and sequences of Sammy traversing the African continent that should be long and full of grandeur are cut so short that they leave the impression that his journey is little more than a few miles (the bad replacement score doesn't help, and makes me shudder to think of a film like Lawrence of Arabia without Maurice Jarre).

    Still, even in its highly-edited form, a certain amount of charm comes through that even the American distributors couldn't eliminate. It helps that the entire film is filmed from the child's eye level--this is only violated a few times, and it really places us in the young Sammy's shoes.
     
  8. Captain Craig

    Captain Craig Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 7, 2003
    Location:
    Nashville,TN
    1. The Fighter: B-
    2. Batman(90's saga): A-,B-,C-,D
    3. Star Wars OT-Special Edition: B+, A, B
    4. The Green Hornet: B
    5. True Grit(1969): C+
    6. Lord of the Rings saga: (A,A,A)
    7. The Machinist: A-
    8. Season of the Witch: B
    9. Frozen: A-
    10. Due Date: B+
    11. Planet of the Apes(2001): B-
    12. Faster: C
    13. Romance: D (French film, subtitled)
    14. YPF: C- (YPF=Young People F*&^ing)
    15. The Beautiful Truth: B-
    16. Strictly Sexual: C+
    17. DOOM: C
    18. Brothers: B+

    Brothers - Natalie Portman, Jake Gyllenhal and Tobey Maguire star in this film about an Army captain captured by Taliban but presumed dead. His wife and immediate family move on. Some three months later he is found and the scars of what happened to him in captivity are exposed back home. Really liked this movie as it got a bit tense during the last act.
     
  9. tomalak301

    tomalak301 Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 2, 2003
    Location:
    San Jose, CA
    1. Alice in Wonderland (2010) - C-
    2. Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010) - A
    3. Black Swan (2010) - A+
    4. The Social Network (2010) - A
    5. Cannibal! The Musical (1996) - B
    6. Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire (2009) - B
    7. Winter's Bone (2010) - C+
    8. The Kids are All Right (2010) - A
    9. The Lovely Bones (2009) - D

    What the heck was that. The more films I see from Peter Jackson, the more I wonder if he really is a one hit wonder/hack. Ok, that's a little harsh, but I'm in a minority in not liking the LOTR films as much as most around here, and King Kong was a bitter disappointment. This movie was a lot worst, for various reasons. One of which was what the heck happened. I left the film feeling a bit confused on what I just saw because I'm not entirely sure what it was trying to say. Ok, so we have this girl who died and the family grieving over the death. For one, those victims of rape and murder were much too happy for the tone this movie was trying to convey, but also just I wasn't sure what the point of this film was most of the time. Also, the ending was very anticlimactic given everything that came before.

    I think the main reason I didn't like this film though was it should have been more emotional than it was. I sat there and I just didn't care, and I probably should have. It needed to be more powerful than what it was, and in the end it just missed the mark. The only reason I'm not giving this film an F was because the scenery of "heaven" was beautiful, but was it really appropriate?
     
  10. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2005
    Jackson's earlier films are worth trying out. Brain Dead/Dead Alive is a terrific zombie flick, Forgotten Silver is a wonderful mockumentary, and Bad Taste is...well, it's good for the budget it was made on. I haven't seen some of his other, earlier films. The Frighteners is entertaining, if forgettable.
     
  11. PlainSimpleJoel

    PlainSimpleJoel Fleet Admiral Premium Member

    Joined:
    Jan 18, 2002
    Location:
    Melbourne, Australia
    1. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) - C-
    2. Walk Hard : The Dewey Cox Story (2007) - A-
    3. Metropolis (1927) - A+
    4. The Day the earth stood still (1951) - A-
    5. An Education (2009) - A
    6. Animal Kingdom (2010) - A
    7. Black Swan (2011) - A+
    8. Raising Arizona (1987) - B-
    9. The Expendables (2010) - C-
    10. True Grit (2011) - A-
    11. In Burges (2008) - B+
    12. GI Joe - The Rise of the Cobra (2009) - B-
    13. Serenity (2005)* - A-

    * (seen before)

    In Burges - Probably need to watch it again. Weird film.

    GI Joe - The Rise of the Cobra - never knew that much about GI Joe. Impressed by the car chase scene through Paris.

    Serenity - lost count many times I've seen this awesome film (had been watching Firefly over the few days)
     
  12. Starbreaker

    Starbreaker Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 19, 2001
    Location:
    Birmingham, AL
    Cyrus 4/4
    Pirahna 3/4
    Julie & Julia 3.5/4
    From Here to Eternity 4/4
     
  13. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2005
    I think it's great. The dialogue is just spot on, and the director wisely keeps the visuals just as interesting.

    Oh, and it's In Bruges. ;)
     
  14. Lowdarzz

    Lowdarzz Captain Captain

    Joined:
    Feb 11, 2008
    Piranha (2010)
    The Searchers (1956)
    Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)
    Dreamscape (1984)
    Moon (2009)
     
  15. Captain Craig

    Captain Craig Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 7, 2003
    Location:
    Nashville,TN
    1. The Fighter: B-
    2. Batman(90's saga): A-,B-,C-,D
    3. Star Wars OT-Special Edition: B+, A, B
    4. The Green Hornet: B
    5. True Grit(1969): C+
    6. Lord of the Rings saga: (A,A,A)
    7. The Machinist: A-
    8. Season of the Witch: B
    9. Frozen: A-
    10. Due Date: B+
    11. Planet of the Apes(2001): B-
    12. Faster: C
    13. Romance: D (French film, subtitled)
    14. YPF: C- (YPF=Young People F*&^ing)
    15. The Beautiful Truth: B-
    16. Strictly Sexual: C+
    17. DOOM: C
    18. Brothers: B+
    19. Men In Black II: B-

    First time to see this all the way through. Never did get around to seeing it in theaters. Only caught some of it on cable one time. Not a bad sequel even if it does seem to follow most of the beats of the first one. Alien invasion of course. The device being sought is small and contains much power, this time a charm bracelet vs the dog collar ornament. Liked Patrick Warburtons cameo, the beginning was a part I'd missed. Forgot about Michael Jackson's cameo, it felt even weirder now that he's gone.

    Be curious to see what MIB:III cooks up for next summer.
     
  16. CaptainCanada

    CaptainCanada Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 4, 2004
    Location:
    Charlottetown, PEI, Canada
    1. In the Heat of the Night (A)
    2. The Passion of Joan of Arc (B)
    3. The Passion of the Christ (A)
    4. Mamma Mia! (B)
    5. All About Eve (A)
    6. Looking for Anne (B-)
    7. 2001: A Space Odyssey (B+)
    8. The King's Speech (A)
    9. How Green Was My Valley (B-)
    10. Black Swan (B+)
    11. Made in Dagenham (B)
    12. Gentleman's Agreement (A-)
    13. Barney's Version (A-)
    14. Out of Africa (B)

    Best Picture of 1985, it was a bit hard to decide how to rate this. On the one hand, despite being nearly three hours long, I found it quite easy to watch; but all the same, it's pretty inert from a dramatic perspective, and the central romance is understated to the point of lacking any real passion.

    Director Sydney Pollack is clearly understudying for Sir David Lean's epic style, but compared to Doctor Zhivago or, say, James Cameron's Titanic, there's not really anything going on here apart from the romance. The movie covers almost 30 years, but apart from the beginning and end of World War I there are no real reference points, and the events don't matter much. There are a few stabs at evaluating the affects of British rule in Kenya, but not much else. Titanic was about Jack and Rose, but it was also about class, and had a wider story about the ship sinking that served as a climax; it was a straightforward melodrama, but that really worked. It's also remarkable, for a movie almost three hours long, how few characters there really are; it's basically about two people. There's never anything at stake apart from the lead character's happiness, and the romance isn't passionate enough to make us believe she'll never do without him. While on one level it's admirable that the film more or less hinges solely on the emotional ups and downs of its lead characters, this leaves the plot feeling quite arbitrary. There are some other people hanging around the periphery, but none of them really amount to anything, which makes some final scenes that hang on Streep bidding goodbye to her African servants unaffecting, because her relationships with them never amounted to a great deal.

    And having written all that, I will say again that the movie never bored me while watching it, in spite of all that, so I can't rate it too lowly. It features a great lead performance from Meryl Streep, once again affecting a flawless accent. Robert Redford starts out as kind of a cipher, but his character gets a bit better defined as the film goes on. And, of course, there are two technical aspects of the film that probably stick with audiences more than anything else: the cinematography, which is truly incredible; and the score by the recently-deceased John Barry, which deservedly won the Oscar (Barry's death prompted me to finally see this).
     
  17. Starbreaker

    Starbreaker Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 19, 2001
    Location:
    Birmingham, AL
    1. Black Swan (2010) ✭✭✭✭
    2. Winter's Bone (2010) ✭✭✭ 1/2
    3. Buried (2010) ✭✭✭✭
    4. The King's Speech (2010) ✭✭✭✭
    5. Catfish (2010) ✭✭✭
    6. The American (2010) ✭✭
    7. Frozen (2010) ✭✭ 1/2
    8. Dinner for Schmucks (2010) ✭✭✭
    9. Case 39 (2009) ✭✭

    Yeah... I can see why this movie got shelved for 3 years. It devolved into a hot mess.

    10. Cyrus (2010) ✭✭✭✭

    An indie dramedy that's probably not for everyone, but I think John C Reilly, Marisa Tomei and Catherine Keener are some of the finest actors out there. Jonah Hill also gives a great performance.

    11. Pirahna (2010) ✭✭✭

    Hot girls, people getting eaten alive, It doesn't try to pretend to be more than it is.

    12. Julie & Julia (2009) ✭✭✭ 1/2

    It's probably about 30 minutes too long, but it's a good movie with a great performance by Merly Streep.

    13. From Here to Eternity (1953) ✭✭✭✭

    Great film. The ending really stuck with me... all these people with various problems and by the time WWII breaks out in America, none of it really matters.

    14. Over Her Dead Body (2008) ✭ 1/2

    It was on USA... I got caught up in watching it... I don't wanna talk about it.

    15. Paranormal Activity 2 ✭✭ (2010) 1/2

    I loved the original, but this was just more of the same with a bigger budget. It does set up a 3rd film though.

    16. The Kids Are All Right (2010) ✭✭✭ 1/2

    Great performances, but there was just something left to be desired from this film.

    17. The Last Exorcism (2010) ✭✭✭✭

    Well, I thought I would never find an exorcism movie I actually liked (The Exorcism of Emily Rose left me bored to tears), but this is a great film. It's a completely unpredictable and creepy film.
     
  18. LitmusDragon

    LitmusDragon Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 27, 2002
    Location:
    The Barmuda Triangle
    1. Alien 3 (assembly cut) - B
    2. Let the Right One In - A
    3. Inception - B.
    4. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World - B+
    5. Lilo and Stitch - A
    6. Despicable Me - B
    7. Forbidden Planet - B+
    8. Clerks - B
    9. Metropia - C+
    10. Brand Upon the Brain - B

    11. Beltesassar Animation Festival 17 - A. Another excellent installment in this not-strictly-legal internet-only collection of animated shorts from around the world. All of the videos included this time around seem to be available for free online, so I don't mind dropping a plug. Favorites include Logorama, a blistering send-up of our advertisement saturated consumer culture; Get Out, a french film about a door-phobic shut-in; and Broken-Down Film, ostensibly a homage to the early days of animation, but where the scratchy, beaten-up film print itself becomes the antagonist.

    12. Buried - B+. Makes good use of it's Hitchcockian premise.

    13. How to Train Your Dragon - A. Has a lot of fun with viking and dragon tropes without being too cliche. Very well animated.
     
  19. Starbreaker

    Starbreaker Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 19, 2001
    Location:
    Birmingham, AL
    18. The Other Guys ✭✭ 1/2
    19. Saw 3D ✭✭
    20. Nowhere Boy ✭✭✭✭
     
  20. Harvey

    Harvey Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2005
    28. The Parallax View (B-)

    The film was made in the 1970s (my favorite decade for American cinema), is a political thriller (a genre I always enjoy), and has two major set pieces that are set (and were filmed!) in my home state of Washington. I should like it a lot more than I do. To be sure, it's a decent film--even a good one--but it's never great. Despite good cinematography, a nice leading performance by Warren Beatty, it all rings a little empty. What is the Parallax Corporation? For what reasons are the two candidates in the film assassinated? Is anything Beatty learns before the end (what little he does learn) true? Ultimately, there are no answers to these questions. All we know for sure is that Beatty's journalist has fallen for the same trap that afflicts the "lone gunmen" in the film's opening.