Rate The Last Movie(s) You Watched

[Secret Fawful]

Final Fantasy: Advent Children - 8% - Has NOT aged well AT ALL.

[RetroVortex]

Originally Posted by Secret Fawful

Final Fantasy: Advent Children - 8% - Has NOT aged well AT ALL.

OOH! OOH! Do Spirits Within next! Do Spirits Within next!

[der_ketzer]

Is that the one where one character pisses itself and it ends on "it feels warm"?

[St_Eddie]

Originally Posted by Vainamoinen

Alien - Director's Cut 9/10

It must be over a decade since I've last seen Alien. To be honest, I'm not even sure I ever saw the 1979 version in its entirety. It was a rather spontaneous decision to get the Blu Ray.

If it's on the disc, then I strongly recommend watching the original theatrical cut next time. Calling the 2003 version the 'Director's Cut' is something of a fallacy, as Ridley Scott considers the theatrical cut to be his true vision for the film. He only worked on the 2003 cut because he learned that Fox were gearing up to recut his 1979 masterpiece for the MTV generation and decided that if the studio insisted upon doing so, then he may as well do it himself.

The 2003 release is actually considerably shorter than the theatrical cut and whilst there are some nice additions (the alien blending in with the environment - prior to Brett's death and the alien swatting Jonsey in his cat-box), they come at a considerable price. How anyone could prefer a version without the "what are my chances?" scene is beyond me. Of course the biggest additional scene (and the most intriguing) within the 2003 version is the egg-morphing scene but in actuality it only serves to mess up the film's pacing... which is why it was cut in the first place.

'Alien: The Director's Cut' - A fascinating curiosity but most certainly not the real deal. 'Aliens: Special Edition' and 'Alien 3: The Assembly Cut' on the other hand...

Originally Posted by Secret Fawful

Final Fantasy: Advent Children - 8% - Has NOT aged well AT ALL.

I would have to agree (though perhaps not as strongly). I'm not entirely sure as to why I thought it was such a great film when it was first released. I guess that I was just thrilled to be revising a world and a group of characters that I'm very fond of.

[Vainamoinen]

Originally Posted by St_Eddie

If it's on the disc, then I strongly recommend watching the original theatrical cut next time.

It is on the disc - and I intended to do exactly that anyway. A bit of time will pass though.

The scene where Ripley finds her half-dead comrades DOES mess up the pacing, but I don't feel like it SHOULD HAVE. They could at least have made mother's warnings about impending doom more intense here, but they instead toned it down so much that this dire threat was hardly noticeable any more. After the scene, when the countdown continues, I really went: "Oh right, that was the original problem. Well, you'd better hurry up".

I understand that the Ripley gets slapped scene wasn't in the original release, and that really was a shame. It was so understandable after what she necessarily tried to do.

[Juicius Maximus]

Have to agree with St. Eddie's comments regarding Alien. I vastly prefer the theatrical cut as well. Can't comment on the bluray, I've got the old SD two disc. The extra scenes can all be watched separately as well, which is nice because they're mostly curiosities. The theatrical cut is about as close to perfect as a film can get. Tight, concise and scary as hell. Sadly, none of those descriptors can be applied to Prometheus.

The most recent film I watched in its entirety was Zeitgeist on Netflix. Pedantic, highly aesthetically unappealing, amateurish, and extremely exploitative of 9/11. Yet still strangely compelling. Maybe because like most conspiracy theories, there are grains of truth in there before it flies off the rails. A far superior indictment of the Iraq war was No End in Sight. It's a sobering account based solely on the facts, laying out the follies and consequences piece by piece. Came out 2007, I believe. How sad is it that shit is still dragging on?

[corruptbiggins]

You know, I suppose I should get around to watching the Alien films at some point.

[St_Eddie]

Originally Posted by Vainamoinen

I understand that the Ripley gets slapped scene wasn't in the original release, and that really was a shame. It was so understandable after what she necessarily tried to do.

It's certainly a worthwhile addition. Interesting fact: Ridley Scott purposefully didn't inform Sigourney Weaver that he'd instructed Veronica Cartwright to slap her. Sigourney's hostile reaction to being slapped and Veronica's tearful suprise to said reaction are genuine.

Originally Posted by Juicius Maximus

Have to agree with St. Eddie's comments regarding Alien... The theatrical cut is about as close to perfect as a film can get. Tight, concise and scary as hell. Sadly, none of those descriptors can be applied to Prometheus.

Whilst I personally really like 'Prometheus', it's undeniable that those particular abjectives can not be used when describing the film. I pray to God the Engineers for an extended, 18 certificate version on Blu-Ray. The material is certainly out there...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Dc_zsM2p34

[Noname215]

Pulp Fiction 2/10

Fuck that shit.

[Juicius Maximus]

Supposedly he was playing off some preexisting tension between the two as well. Cartwright originally auditioned for the role of Ripley, if I recall correctly. She was apparently also left largely uninformed about the chest-bursting scene. Either Ridley didn't think much of her as an actress, or she just brought out something sadistic in him. I've always been a little dubious about the idea of directors tricking actors into "genuine" performances, especially when said director brags about it later.

[St_Eddie]

Originally Posted by Noname215

Pulp Fiction 2/10

Fuck that shit.

My, my; what a well written review. You certainly make a compelling argument. There I was, thinking that 'Pulp Fiction' was a well written, directed and acted film but your wordsmith genius has convinced me otherwise. Fuck that shit indeed!

Originally Posted by Juicius Maximus

...She was apparently also left largely uninformed about the chest-bursting scene.

That's a common misconception. Naturally the actors were aware of what was about to occur, they had read the script after-all and they were inevitably privy to the rigging that had been setup to achieve the bursting effect. However, Veronica Cartwright had not anticipated being splattered in the face by a burst of blood (neither had Ridley Scott, nor the crew). She freaked out, slipped on the blood on the floor and fell over!

[Juicius Maximus]

Originally Posted by Noname215

Pulp Fiction 2/10

Fuck that shit.

I never believed in God until now, because I've never heard such blasphemy. I never believed in Hell until now, because I so desperately want you to go there. [/hyperbole]

[Johro]

Originally Posted by St_Eddie

That's a common misconception. Naturally the actors were aware of what was about to occur, they had read the script after-all and they were inevitably privy to the rigging that had been setup to achieve the bursting effect. However, Veronica Cartwright had not anticipated being splattered in the face by a burst of blood (neither had Ridley Scott, nor the crew). She freaked out, slipped on the blood on the floor and fell over!

Of course. That was the money scene that kept Dan from being kicked to the curb.

[Juicius Maximus]

Originally Posted by St_Eddie

That's a common misconception. Naturally the actors were aware of what was about to occur, they had read the script after-all and they were inevitably privy to the rigging that had been setup to achieve the bursting effect. However, Veronica Cartwright had not anticipated being splattered in the face by a burst of blood (neither had Ridley Scott, nor the crew). She freaked out, slipped on the blood on the floor and fell over!

Another common misconception. Here's the totally true and not made up by me story: just before filming, Scott pulled Cartwright aside and informed her that the last of the gaffer tape had been used on the Nostromo's cockpit seats. "The good news," said Ridley, "is that we finally nailed that 'beat up' look. The bad news is this banana peel is your mark now. Action!"

[St_Eddie]

Originally Posted by Johro

Of course. That was the money scene that kept Dan from being kicked to the curb.

May he rest in peace. I watched a triple bill of 'Dark Star', 'Alien' and 'Return of the Living Dead' when I heard the sad news of his passing back in 2009. It's a shame that he never got to see Ridley Scott return to the series with 'Prometheus', after watching his baby being raped with 'Resurrection' and the two 'AVP' movies.

*waits for some stupid, obnoxious comment about Dan O'Bannon spinning in his grave, regarding 'Prometheus'*

Originally Posted by Juicius Maximus

Another common misconception. Here's the totally true and not made up by me story: just before filming, Scott pulled Cartwright aside and informed her that the last of the gaffer tape had been used on the Nostromo's cockpit seats. "The good news," said Ridley, "is that we finally nailed that 'beat up' look. The bad news is this banana peel is your mark now. Action!"

[Zeruis]

The Dark Knight Rises: It was...okay. Definitely my least favorite of the trilogy. I'm happy to see Bane's backstory since I haven't read the comics. I felt like the movie equally focused on Selina and Gordon's team as well as Bruce. Kept hearing the "rise" chant throughout the movie. Thought that was a bit annoying. Despite it's flaws, it at least has a strong ending and memorable fight sequences through a variety of characters.8/10

[Shadowknight1]

Getting on the same train with The Dark Knight Rises. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Without spoiling it, definitely a far more optimistic ending than I originally figured. Bane, while being done badly as far as visuals went, was done decently. A lot better than "Bomb. Bomb." Catwoman was done right, I was pleasantly surprised. Not that they could do worse than Halle Berry's version.

Now for the spoilery bits: God Alfred, you just had to kick Bruce in the gonads when he was starting to feel good about himself. Why did Alfred suddenly decide that Bruce needed to have every illusion that he was doing some good in the world shattered? That part seemed unnecessarily cruel in my perspective. Alfred has never been the type to call Bruce out like that. Fox, on the other hand, was the enabler. He wanted Bruce back in the game, big time. And "Miranda Tate" almost, ALMOST had me fooled. I had a feeling going in that she was Talia, but the whole thing with Bane almost pulled the wool over my eyes. Definitely a better bit of misdirection that "Henri Ducard" in Batman Begins. Anne Hathaway really captured the best nuances of Catwoman, down to the "I have to survive" attitude that lead her to take Batman straight into a trap to save her own skin, but finding out that she pretty much condemned the one man in Gotham that, despite her thieving, treated her like a decent human being to an unknown fate really got to her, especially as she watched Bane break the Batman's back. And speaking of which, THAT DAMN SCENE. Geez, I never expected to see that so well done. And brutally done as well. I actually read that someone didn't much care for how Batman returned after 8 years away. I personally thought it was very well done. He came back in the shadows, that's what the Batman does. Oh and Catwoman pulling his own disappearing act on him really gave a bit of levity that the film really needed more of. And Blake was actually a neat character. I liked that he didn't look over diagrams or any of that to figure out who Batman was. He knew because he recognized the facade that Bruce Wayne was constantly wearing. Though the name drop at the end was kinda lame. It was unnecessary. And the ending itself was fantastic. When the bomb went off, I couldn't believe that Nolan would have the balls to kill Batman. And showing the tombstone just kind of sealed it. And the reading of the will and how the mansion would become an orphanage was really neat. But then the little hints started coming in, the pearls being missing, the autopilot in the Bat actually working, the rebuilt batsignal, and Blake getting the directions to the Batcave. And then they showed Alfred seeing Bruce and Selina. Which someone actually thinks is just in Alfred's mind. If not for the thing about the Bat's autopilot, then I'd buy that, but honestly. In the end, I just had a big grin and kept saying, "Bruce, you clever, clever bastard."

Was the movie perfect? Far from it. In fact, it relied too heavily on the previous movies, in my opinion. It can't stand as well on its own. And like the other Nolan Batman films, it was too dark. Yes, this one had some levity, but not enough. A balance is required. And also like the other Nolan Batman films, there is not enough emphasis on Batman as a DETECTIVE. Yes he's well trained, but he also is brilliant and can figure stuff out. Nolan's Batman just seems to punch his way through his problems, which is a real problem I've had with all of the Nolan movies. But, on the other hand, we could get astonishing leaps of logic like "Apples into applesauce...the United Nations peace summit!" Honestly, the best interpretation of Batman is the animated series, but I digress. All in all, TDKR was an awesome movie, but not my favorite of the year thus far. That still falls to The Avengers. But I give The Dark Knight Rises a solid 9/10.

[Vainamoinen]

Originally Posted by St_Eddie

There I was, thinking that 'Pulp Fiction' was a well written, directed and acted film but your wordsmith genius has convinced me otherwise. Fuck that shit indeed!

"Acted" probably. But well written and directed? You must be thinking of another director. It still is an enjoyable movie, and I indeed wouldn't give it two stars.

That said, I have a thoroughly soft spot for "Jackie Brown". But that wasn't Tarantino's source material to begin with. And if I could have a version without the endless "character walks/drives/runs for two minutes while the camera looks at her/his face" scenes, I'd take it. That movie is at least half an hour two long.

(Oh GAWD now that stupid Peter Jackson hints at three Hobbit movies instead of two. Concise storytelling my butt, Hollywood idiot!!)

I bought "Inglourious basterds" recently, but haven't yet opened even the cellophane. I'm waiting for a friend to visit first... the lady and I have a history of sharing the weirdest of movies and somehow enjoying thorough disappointments, should they occur.

/edit: 1000th post in this thread, hell yeah.

[Rather Dashing]

The Dark Knight Rises

This movie left me pissed off and bitter.

[Johro]

What? You didn't enjoy Bane Rises?