Movies Seen in 2009
- Thread starter Starbreaker
- Start date
Harold and Maude -*** One of my girlfriends favorites. Amusing and quirky, but it seems more like someones idea of trying to make a quirky and amusing movie rather than a real story.
A Clockwork Orange- **** Seen it often. Got my girlfriend into it. Classic dystopian movie.
Blade Runner- **** Never saw it before. One of the few movies I've seen that lived up to what I'd heard about it.
The Reader - *** Good film, but better in the early romance scenes. Kind of looses focus as it goes on.
Revolutionary Road- ** I think this film wanted me to sympathize with the plight of idealistic young people trapped in suburbia, but in reality these people were talentless ego-maniacs living in a fantasy world.
Star Trek- *** I kinda badmouthed the film here, but I think it is a good, well made film with several major flaws.
The Wrestler- **** Best film I've seen in a long time. Not just for people who know wrestling. A haunting story of past glory gone by.
Full Metal Jacket- ***1/2 A classic that I love. My girlfriend often finds Kubrik too cold of a filmmaker and thought this film was a good example of that compared to say Coppola's Apocalypse Now.
The House Bunny- *** Look at my avatar. If that isn't enough throw in Anna Faris, Emma Stone, and a pretty cute script.
Zack and Miri Make A Porno- **1/2 Not one of his better films. Funny in parts, but really just another hot girl and loser guy who don't realize they're in love film.
Tropic Thunder- *** Good, but not hysterical. Downey is genius.
Slumdog Millionaire- ***1/2 Gritty, but modern Indian film with a smart script and engaging characters. The love story was a little too oldschool but that can be forgiven.
Bull Durham- ***1/2 Hadn't seen it in ages. Lot better than I remember.
Red Show Diaries- **1/2 Good for nostalgic laughs, but kinda failed to get my girlfriend or I steamed up.
Pi- *** Interesting indie film from Aronofsky. very intelligent script. Times a little too dependent on non-sequitur visuals.
Raging Bull- **** Hadn't seen it in ages. As good as I remember.
Favorites I re-watched:
Sin City
Will Wonka
Pulp Fiction
Reservoir Dogs
Fargo
ST:TMP
All TNG movies
A Clockwork Orange- **** Seen it often. Got my girlfriend into it. Classic dystopian movie.
Blade Runner- **** Never saw it before. One of the few movies I've seen that lived up to what I'd heard about it.
The Reader - *** Good film, but better in the early romance scenes. Kind of looses focus as it goes on.
Revolutionary Road- ** I think this film wanted me to sympathize with the plight of idealistic young people trapped in suburbia, but in reality these people were talentless ego-maniacs living in a fantasy world.
Star Trek- *** I kinda badmouthed the film here, but I think it is a good, well made film with several major flaws.
The Wrestler- **** Best film I've seen in a long time. Not just for people who know wrestling. A haunting story of past glory gone by.
Full Metal Jacket- ***1/2 A classic that I love. My girlfriend often finds Kubrik too cold of a filmmaker and thought this film was a good example of that compared to say Coppola's Apocalypse Now.
The House Bunny- *** Look at my avatar. If that isn't enough throw in Anna Faris, Emma Stone, and a pretty cute script.
Zack and Miri Make A Porno- **1/2 Not one of his better films. Funny in parts, but really just another hot girl and loser guy who don't realize they're in love film.
Tropic Thunder- *** Good, but not hysterical. Downey is genius.
Slumdog Millionaire- ***1/2 Gritty, but modern Indian film with a smart script and engaging characters. The love story was a little too oldschool but that can be forgiven.
Bull Durham- ***1/2 Hadn't seen it in ages. Lot better than I remember.
Red Show Diaries- **1/2 Good for nostalgic laughs, but kinda failed to get my girlfriend or I steamed up.
Pi- *** Interesting indie film from Aronofsky. very intelligent script. Times a little too dependent on non-sequitur visuals.
Raging Bull- **** Hadn't seen it in ages. As good as I remember.
Favorites I re-watched:
Sin City
Will Wonka
Pulp Fiction
Reservoir Dogs
Fargo
ST:TMP
All TNG movies
Took a chance on Phoebe in Wonderland. Wow...boring! Elle Fanning's performance as a little girl with what appears to be obsessive-compulsive disorder/Tourette's Syndrome was heartbreaking and effective but the stuff with the grownups just seemed like annoying, self-indulgent folderol. The Alice-in-Wonderland fantasy sequences, which I expected to like, struck me as clumsy and pointless. I ended up fast-forwarding most of it.
Gathered with a few friends at the Arbor to see Moon earlier tonight.
Very old school scifi, includin' the use of models instead of CGI! I enjoyed it, and the twenty minute conversation that followed, where the four of us argued plot points and character traits 'til I had to leave for work.
Definately goin' to pick this up on DVD when it comes out.
Later this week, I'll be goin' to free advanced screenings of Paper Heart (courtesy of Ain't It Cool News) and G-Force (thanks to GoFoBo.com). And I may be gettin' a pass to see (500) Days of Summer, as well.
So, add it to my list.
- In Theaters -
Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*
Away We Go*
Terminator: Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Moon
Each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.
And, for those who may be curious, I've only watched two movies for the first time ever on DVD this year - Taken and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button have been my only "blind buys".
- On DVD -
Taken
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Very old school scifi, includin' the use of models instead of CGI! I enjoyed it, and the twenty minute conversation that followed, where the four of us argued plot points and character traits 'til I had to leave for work.
Definately goin' to pick this up on DVD when it comes out.
Later this week, I'll be goin' to free advanced screenings of Paper Heart (courtesy of Ain't It Cool News) and G-Force (thanks to GoFoBo.com). And I may be gettin' a pass to see (500) Days of Summer, as well.
So, add it to my list.
- In Theaters -
Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*
Away We Go*
Terminator: Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Moon
Each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.
And, for those who may be curious, I've only watched two movies for the first time ever on DVD this year - Taken and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button have been my only "blind buys".
- On DVD -
Taken
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
I don't watch an awful ot of films, but in the cinema this year I saw Watchmen (which I enjoyed despite some flaws) and Star Trek (very, very good, but too action-heavy in its second half). Also had the misfortune to be dragged along to Transformers 2, absolutely terrible and it never seemed to end. I desperately wanted to see Coraline but couldn't find anyone to go with, and was too embarrassed to go by myself. Well, I'll catch it on DVD soon.
On TV, I've watched a couple of interesting films for the first time: The Parallax View, a 70s conspiracy thriller with Warren Beatty; The Prophecy, a supernatural film with Christopher Walken. Both were excellent. Also saw The Fountain, which had interesting visuals and ideas, but overall not really a success. The City of Lost Children was over-cooked and filled with irritating characters - didn't like it at all. And I watched Bolt with my niece, which had some pretty good moments.
On TV, I've watched a couple of interesting films for the first time: The Parallax View, a 70s conspiracy thriller with Warren Beatty; The Prophecy, a supernatural film with Christopher Walken. Both were excellent. Also saw The Fountain, which had interesting visuals and ideas, but overall not really a success. The City of Lost Children was over-cooked and filled with irritating characters - didn't like it at all. And I watched Bolt with my niece, which had some pretty good moments.
Thanks for the review, I'll put it on the list!
New for me:
12 - Russian remake/expansion of Twelve Angry Men. I liked the broadening of the story to include scenes from the backstory of the accused, and some of the stories told by the jury members were interesting but the lack of intense, stage-play-style focus sapped the narrative drive of the original, and there seemed to be a lot of overly histrionic acting going on, and overly fussy and self-conscious directorial tics.
Steamboat Bill Jr - A Buster Keaton film from 1928 that I'd never seen before. Almost good as his classic The General. Strongly recommended.
Since I replied a month ago I've seen:
In Theaters:
I Love You, Beth Cooper
Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
On DVD/Download:
Knowing
He's Just Not That Into You
The Haunting of Connecticut
Transformers
Taken
Prayers for Bobby
Rewatches:
Pineapple Express
In Theaters:
I Love You, Beth Cooper
Harry Potter & The Half-Blood Prince
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
On DVD/Download:
Knowing
He's Just Not That Into You
The Haunting of Connecticut
Transformers
Taken
Prayers for Bobby
Rewatches:
Pineapple Express
Don't read any spoilers for it, though. Clicked the thread in SciFi, and if I had read that stuff before seein' the movie, I'd have been pissed.
Don't read any spoilers for it, though. Clicked the thread in SciFi, and if I had read that stuff before seein' the movie, I'd have been pissed.
No problem, I'll be a spoilerphobe for that one...I have no idea what the movie is about beyond the basic premise.
I've only seen:
- Star Trek (twice)
- Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen
And I really hope to find time to see Moon soon here!
Thanks to Ain't It Cool News, I got into a free advanced screenin' of Paper Heart earlier tonight at the Alamo Drafthouse - South Lamar.
The premise of the "documentary" is actress Charlyne Yi (Knocked Up) is on a cross country trip from Los Angeles to New York (with stops in Las Vegas, Lubbock, Amarillo, Oklahoma City, Little Rock and Atlanta) to find out what love is, if it exists, and why she's incapable of feelin' it.
The "mockumentary" part of it is actor Michael Cera (Arrested Development) meets and falls in love with Charlyne.
Overall, the whole thing was pretty lame.
But, still, gotta add it to my list.
- In Theaters -
Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*
Away We Go*
Terminator: Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Moon
Paper Heart*
Each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.
- On DVD -
Taken
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- On Demand -
Eagle Eye
Later tonight is the G-Force screenin', and tomorrow, I'll be goin' to see (500) Days of Summer.
The premise of the "documentary" is actress Charlyne Yi (Knocked Up) is on a cross country trip from Los Angeles to New York (with stops in Las Vegas, Lubbock, Amarillo, Oklahoma City, Little Rock and Atlanta) to find out what love is, if it exists, and why she's incapable of feelin' it.
The "mockumentary" part of it is actor Michael Cera (Arrested Development) meets and falls in love with Charlyne.
Of course, the director (who is played by Jake Johnson in the movie) admitted durin' the Q & A after the screenin' tonight that every scene with or about the relationship with Cera was scripted.
Overall, the whole thing was pretty lame.
But, still, gotta add it to my list.
- In Theaters -
Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*
Away We Go*
Terminator: Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Moon
Paper Heart*
Each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.
- On DVD -
Taken
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- On Demand -
Eagle Eye
Later tonight is the G-Force screenin', and tomorrow, I'll be goin' to see (500) Days of Summer.
Beverly Hills Chihuahua
is the only movie I have seen.
is the only movie I have seen.
In theatre
Star Trek
Transformers 2
Up
On DVD
Monsters Inc.
Spirited Away
Children of Men
MirrorMask
Let the Right One In
Terminator
Terminator 2
That's all I can recall right now. The last four in my DVD list are ones I watched for the first time, the first three I've seen before.
Star Trek
Transformers 2
Up
On DVD
Monsters Inc.
Spirited Away
Children of Men
MirrorMask
Let the Right One In
Terminator
Terminator 2
That's all I can recall right now. The last four in my DVD list are ones I watched for the first time, the first three I've seen before.
Trying to think of all of them--I'm a much bigger TV person than a movie person, so I haven't seen all that many.
2009 flicks:
Wolverine
Star Trek x 3
The Hangover x 2
(yeah, that's it
)
DVD:
Zach and Miri Make a Porno
Stepbrothers
Tropic Thunder
27 Dresses
Borat
...Um... there are probably some I'm forgetting.
2009 flicks:
Wolverine
Star Trek x 3
The Hangover x 2
(yeah, that's it
)DVD:
Zach and Miri Make a Porno
Stepbrothers
Tropic Thunder
27 Dresses
Borat
...Um... there are probably some I'm forgetting.
Got together with a friend of mine & went to see G-Force at a free advanced screenin' tonight. It is exactly what ya think it would be from the trailers - a team of talkin' gerbils work as secret agents to save the world while makin' pop culture references.
So, addin' it to my list.
- In Theaters -
Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*
Away We Go*
Terminator: Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Moon
Paper Heart*
G-Force*
Each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.
- On DVD -
Taken
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- On Demand -
Eagle Eye
Tomorrow night will be my third free advanced screenin' this week, when I go to the Westgate in south Austin for (500) Days of Summer.
So, addin' it to my list.
- In Theaters -
Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*
Away We Go*
Terminator: Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Moon
Paper Heart*
G-Force*
Each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.
- On DVD -
Taken
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- On Demand -
Eagle Eye
Tomorrow night will be my third free advanced screenin' this week, when I go to the Westgate in south Austin for (500) Days of Summer.
I was supposed to get together with a friend & her boy & her girl to see (500) Days of Summer earlier tonight, but they couldn't make. And since I got such a late start, I barely made it in myself.
Very nice non-romantic story about a romance between Tom & Summer. I really liked it, and will most likely pick up the DVD when it comes out.
And it was easily the best of the three movies I got into for free this week.
So, addin' it to my list.
- In Theaters -
Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*
Away We Go*
Terminator: Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Moon
Paper Heart*
G-Force*
(500) Days of Summer*
Each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.
- On DVD -
Taken
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- On Demand -
Eagle Eye
Very nice non-romantic story about a romance between Tom & Summer. I really liked it, and will most likely pick up the DVD when it comes out.
And it was easily the best of the three movies I got into for free this week.
So, addin' it to my list.
- In Theaters -
Gran Torino*
Frost/Nixon
Inkheart*
Fanboys
Friday the 13th (2009)*
The International*
Watchmen*
Monsters vs Aliens*
Fast and Furious*
Star Trek (2009)*
The Soloist*
Battle for Terra*
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Band from TV Concert Video
Drag Me to Hell*
Away We Go*
Terminator: Salvation
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Moon
Paper Heart*
G-Force*
(500) Days of Summer*
Each movie with a * means I saw it at a free advanced screenin'.
- On DVD -
Taken
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- On Demand -
Eagle Eye
Here's an updated, compiled list
Star Trek [A]
Moon [B+]
Tropic Thunder
Pixar Short Films Collection 1 [C+]
The Collected Shorts of Jan Svankmajer [A]
Bitter Films Vol. 1 (Don Hertzfeldt) [A]
The Animation Show Vol. 1 [A]
The Animation Show Vol. 2 [C+]
The Animation Show Vol. 3 [A-]
Blue Velvet
Corndog Man [C]
Beowulf [C-]
The King of Comedy [A-]
Smokin' Aces [C]
Rain Man [A]
Halloween
Bender's Big Score [C+]
Hearts in Atlantis [C+]
Hellboy [A]
Children of Men
LA Confidential [A]
Cinderella Man
Idiocracy
The Hidden [B+]
Edmond [C]
300
The Astronaut Farmer [C]
Seven Samurai [A]
The Number 23 [D]
Watership Down
The Prestige
Bee Movie [C]
Labyrinth of Darkness (Czech stop-motion animator Jiri Barta's short films) [A]
Phantom Museums: The Short Films of the Quay Brothers
Strings (big-budget french fantasy puppet movie) [B+]
I've been on a bit of an animation kick lately. "Whos who of animation" type lists led me to pick up DVDs of Jan Svankmajer, the Quay brothers, and Jiri Barta, who are seen as hugely influential. If the phrase "surrealistic stop motion animation shorts" piques your interest at all, I can heartily recommend picking up their DVD anthologies or at least looking them up on the innertubes. Some truly bizarre and amazing work here. Jan Svankmajer I would describe as stark and political. Jiri Barta has more the soul of an entertainer, his movies are like mini-hollywood epics. The Quay Brothers have an uncanny technical proficiency, and the first three shorts on the disc are absolutely amazing, but some of their mid period films don't seem to have a point.
Star Trek [A]
Moon [B+]
Tropic Thunder
Pixar Short Films Collection 1 [C+]
The Collected Shorts of Jan Svankmajer [A]
Bitter Films Vol. 1 (Don Hertzfeldt) [A]
The Animation Show Vol. 1 [A]
The Animation Show Vol. 2 [C+]
The Animation Show Vol. 3 [A-]
Blue Velvet
Corndog Man [C]
Beowulf [C-]
The King of Comedy [A-]
Smokin' Aces [C]
Rain Man [A]
Halloween
Bender's Big Score [C+]
Hearts in Atlantis [C+]
Hellboy [A]
Children of Men
LA Confidential [A]
Cinderella Man
Idiocracy
The Hidden [B+]
Edmond [C]
300
The Astronaut Farmer [C]
Seven Samurai [A]
The Number 23 [D]
Watership Down
The Prestige
Bee Movie [C]
Labyrinth of Darkness (Czech stop-motion animator Jiri Barta's short films) [A]
Phantom Museums: The Short Films of the Quay Brothers
Strings (big-budget french fantasy puppet movie) [B+]
I've been on a bit of an animation kick lately. "Whos who of animation" type lists led me to pick up DVDs of Jan Svankmajer, the Quay brothers, and Jiri Barta, who are seen as hugely influential. If the phrase "surrealistic stop motion animation shorts" piques your interest at all, I can heartily recommend picking up their DVD anthologies or at least looking them up on the innertubes. Some truly bizarre and amazing work here. Jan Svankmajer I would describe as stark and political. Jiri Barta has more the soul of an entertainer, his movies are like mini-hollywood epics. The Quay Brothers have an uncanny technical proficiency, and the first three shorts on the disc are absolutely amazing, but some of their mid period films don't seem to have a point.
And as far as visits to the cinema are concerned you can add "State of Play" to my list.
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