What Have You Just Seen... Marks Out of 5

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 09 Dec 2007, 17:56

Ha ha I can imagine Mark saying that

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 09 Dec 2007, 18:56

thelostdragon wrote:Did it even start, yet?

Usually takes much less.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 09 Dec 2007, 20:40

Knetan wrote:
thelostdragon wrote:Did it even start, yet?
Usually takes much less.

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 09 Dec 2007, 21:14

C+ Detective (2007 - Aaron Kwok): 2,75 / 5

Slightly disappointing.

This film starts out as just another boring detective story:
Unknown guy visits a private detective and asks him to find someone. Detective accepts and starts investigating. Turns out he's stumbled upon some kind of big murder case.

The investigation itself is below average. Kwok spends most of the film looking at photos and chasing after ghosts. There's not much action and not much plot to reveal.
As you'd expect, everything is explained at the end of the film. And while I found the explanation itself quite satisfying, I couldn't care less about it. The Detective had bored me to death already.

This film also features the usual Pang brothers flaws (annoying editing techniques and a soundtrack that's very irritating and completely out of place).

It's not all bad, though.
The camerawork is good, Aaron Kwok is convincing, and it's nice to see good ol' Shing Fui-On again.

Seen it. Thought it was "meh".
Can't see myself buying the DVD.

Yi-Long · Post by **Yi-Long** » 10 Dec 2007, 03:24

Once upon a Time in High School: 4/5

Interesting school-drama, or whatever it's called. Nice performances. Fightscenes a bit disappointing, but it's forgiven as it's not a martial arts movie.

To be totally honest, this isnt eart-shattering stuff. It's just a very well-made movie that's kinda hard to find many negatives about. You could say there was a memorable score lacking, or that it's kinda jumpy at times, with questionable behaviour by the characters. But it would be nitpicking.

It isnt an amazing movie. But it's good. And I bet it's even better for people who were around at that place in time, and who can recognize all that shit.

Cute girl in the movie btw.

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 10 Dec 2007, 23:09

Fred Claus 2/5

Why did I watch this?

captainjoe · Post by **captainjoe** » 11 Dec 2007, 00:33

The Lady Vanishes:

4/5

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 11 Dec 2007, 12:43

Dragon Lord (Hong Kong, 1982) – 3/5
A very basic early 80’s Jackie Chan period film. Lots of silly but entertaining humour and good action, although the amount of fights is relatively small. The storyline makes little sense but it’s not really a huge problem. The film will be best remembered for the crazy ”football” sequences.

Millennium Mambo (Taiwan, 2001) – 4/5
It’s incredible what a long way Shu Qi has come in such a short time. In five years from a nude model to elegant director Hou Hsiao-hsien’s favourite leading lady. Her performance in Millennium Mambo terrific and perfectly in line with the director’s mix of hypnotic mood pieces and zero sentimentiality character drama. The cinematography is loaded with great images and long takes, and the scrip is not over-written. The ending is excellent, too.

Straw Dogs (USA, 1971) - 4,5/5
Dustin Hoffman stars in one of the best american movies of the 70’s. Director Sam Peckinpah is known for his violent movies, but here he proves he was also a master of character driven storytelling. The screenplay, which found its thematical follower in the next years Deliverance (1972), is merciless but intelligent. Hoffman and the female lead Susan George (Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry) give terrific performances.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 12 Dec 2007, 19:17

Beowulf - 4/5
Wow! I wish I had seen ith with those new 3D glasses, but the screening for that was at 11 p.m. so I went to see the one at 8. Maybe next time.

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 12 Dec 2007, 19:31

Angelina's artificial boobies in 3D...

Aye it's quite tidy in 3D like - see if you can catch a showing LD. Looking forward to more 3D films.

degeneration · Post by **degeneration** » 12 Dec 2007, 22:22

Ok, seen a little since I last posted here.

The Departed 4/5
Really liked it. Not as good as the original, but definitely one of the better western remakes I've seen.

Red Dwarf Series 1 4/5
Good cheap start to the saga. Dated looking now, but still a good laugh.

Red Dwarf Series 2 4.5/5
Better episodes than before and more laughs. Top stuff.

Red Dwarf Series 3 5/5
Top-er stuff now. Characters are established and jokes are hilarious. Some classic episodes in this season.

Red Dwarf Series 4 5/5
Still hilarious. Granted them making Rimmer more anal (the telegraph pole photo collection for example) was a bit too far, but they stopped the extremity of it after this season.

Red Dwarf Series 5 5/5
The best season yet, and that's saying something since S3 & 4 were also 5/5 seasons for me! Hilarious and fantastic episodes.

Red Dwarf Series 6 5/5
On par with season 5. Granted it had become a little bit "monster of the week", but it worked well and still made me laugh loads.

Red Dwarf Series 7 2.5/5
Ah. It had to go wrong sometime. For me it is the new Kochanski. She's just not Kochanski. The way her character is makes her completely unbelievable as someone Lister has/had a major crush on. A few good episodes here and there, but just not the same level of laughs...

Watching S8 very shortly.

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 12 Dec 2007, 23:47

Invisible Target (2007 - Benny Chan): 2,5 / 5

Once again, Benny Chan delivers a HK action film that brings nothing new to the genre.
Seriously. The "cops who know kung-fu" film has been done to death. Everything that can be done has been done already. After you've seen Tiger Cage, in the line of Duty and SPL, you've seen them all.

What doesn't help is that there's something wrong with the plot. Either there's too much of it, or maybe the storyline isn't linear enough. I just found it hard to follow at times. Although it has to be said that you can see every plot twist coming from a mile away.

The action scenes themselves are quite good. Nicely punctuated with old-fashioned falls and stunts too (lots of wires, amazing stuntmen, no CGI).
Not groundbreaking in any way, but fun.
Was it really necessary to use Jackie Chan's double-cut technique again, though ? Police Story 2 is 20 years old, now. Please move on, guys.

I have to admit that I was most impressed with the actors for a change. Nic Tse is really convincing in the fighting scenes, and Jaycee Fong has grown a lot as an actor. Shawn Yue's character lacks depth, but I'm blaming it on the script.
Wu Jing is a great super-duper bad guy, as always. I can't believe how fast this guy can move. Compared to him, Nic Tse looks like he's fighting in slow-motion.
It takes more than a couple of well-choregraphed fight scenes for a film to work, though. And Invisible Target has nothing else to offer.

Only watch this flick if you've got nothing better to do (or if you want to add another random HK action film to your DVD shelf).
Seen it. Felt like I had already seen it before (a hundred times). Will not buy the DVD.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 13 Dec 2007, 10:35

I agree with you about S7 LD - it's OK ("Blue" is a standout episode and hilarious) but Kochanski is PC and annoying and not the sweet person Lister would have fallen in love with IMO

Agree with the assessment of the other seasons though.

The Muppet Show: S1 - Eps 7 and 8: 3.5/5

Good fun

EvaUnit02 · Post by **EvaUnit02** » 13 Dec 2007, 11:14

Blood & Bones - 4/5
Unlike in the majority of his own violent films (Hana-bi, Sonatine, Brother), Takeshi Kitano plays one totally unsympathetic character. Kim Shunpei rapes his wife on multiple occasions, threw his daughter down a flight of stairs, brawls with his sons, refuses to pay for his wife's treatment when she gets cancer. One of the most unlikeable characters that I've ever seen in a film, thankfully he gets his just desserts in the end.

I'd compare this film to Raging Bull, as it's a total showcase of one actor's performance. Kitano truly dominates whenever he's on the screen.

The film is very well structured, utilising the device of narration (by the main character's son) but abandoning it when it becomes unnecessary, letting the story unfold on its own accord. Yoichi Sai's direction is very reversed, as it is with a lot of Japanese filmmakers, but still nonetheless effective.

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 13 Dec 2007, 23:39

My Tutor Friend (2003 - Korea): 4 / 5

Good film.

+ The plot isn't brilliant but it provides a stable platform that allows the actors to go nuts in both the dialogue scenes and the fighting scenes.
+ Kwon Sang-Woo is his usual cool self while Kim Ha-Neul tries to find the fine line between subtle and over-the-top. She fails, but that's OK.
+ No classic korean melodrama stereotypes. In my book, that's a good thing.

- Where's the director ? Every shot looks flat and lifeless, and the camerawork is forgettable at best. Play with the camera, man ! It's your job, isn't it ?
- Character development is choppy.
- Not ambitious enough. There's a lot of room in this kind of korean comedy for more gags and nonsense. My Tutor Friend feels a bit light in that department.

But I'm nitpicking. The interaction between the main characters is what makes the movie work.
And it works just fine.
Seen it. Liked it. Will buy the DVD.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 14 Dec 2007, 00:14

Do you ever watch films for the first time on DVD? Aren't you giving possibly a great film a disservice by always seeing it first on bootleg?

gasteropod · Post by **gasteropod** » 14 Dec 2007, 00:37

I love My Tutor Friend, I've got the ace limited edition box set

It's always annoyed me, though, how a deleted scene's absence creates a small plothole in the film lol.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 14 Dec 2007, 00:40

EvaUnit02 wrote:Blood & Bones - 4/5

Love the scene in which he slays that pig.

@brad:
Tom makes up his own laws and says it is ok to preview a film in order to consider if it is necessary to buy a film or not to buy it. He is extremely bull-headed when it comes to this topic as he seems to believe what he does is ok, no matter what the official law says.

Hitman - 3.5/5
One of the better films that are based on a video game.

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 14 Dec 2007, 01:06

@LD:

You want to hear what the song sounds like on the radio (for free) before buying the cd, right ?
Then, you should be allowed to watch the film (for free) before buying the dvd, no ?

Anyway, I know that what I'm doing is illegal.
Not losing any sleep over it at night, though.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 14 Dec 2007, 01:14

tom2681 wrote:@LD:

You want to hear what the song sounds like on the radio (for free) before buying the cd, right?
Then, you should be allowed to watch the film (for free) before buying the dvd, no ?

Bad argumentation, because making a movie is way more expensive than recording a song. On top of that, radio stations pay money for the license to play songs.

If you wanna watch the movie beforehand, wait until it shows on TV for free. I doubt though that you are ever gonna see "My Tutor Friend" on French television.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 14 Dec 2007, 01:25

I was more talking from a quality perspective, which you've not answered Tom

. Even the best bootleg doesn't compare against a legit DVD9 with it's DTS sound.

As to the radio, nope. If I like an artist I could very well buy their album on CD without having heard a song from it. If it's a new artist then I'll have seen their music video on TV anyway. I'll continue to support CD until they stop selling it, or something better comes along (High Res. Audio failed due to software support).

You want to hear what the song sounds like on the radio (for free) before buying the cd, right ?

Your argument doesn't hold true when you consider an album is a body of work compromising roughly 12 songs not just the 1 they play on the radio.

Bad argumentation, because making a movie is way more expensive than recording a song.

Not always

. Music videos can cost a fortune nowadays but I take your point. I'm being pedantic.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 14 Dec 2007, 01:31

bradavon wrote:I'm being pedantic.

I know. You might have noticed that I wrote "recording a song", not all the promo stuff that comes along with some of the songs that are being recorded.

tom2681 · Post by **tom2681** » 14 Dec 2007, 10:17

Don't want to pollute this thread, so this'll be my last word on the subject.

@LD:
I give my money to the filmmakers and producers who deserve it.
Take Rush Hour 3, for example. I didn't know whether it was going to be good or crap. If I had paid money to see it, I'd be kicking myself right now.

Encourage good filmmaking, discourage bad filmmaking.

Sure, there's the occasional blind purchase. But I can't exactly go around and buy all my movies having only seen trailers and reviews.

@Brad:
If a movie has a crappy plot, watching it on DVD isn't going to make it more intelligent, is it ?

A DVD-Rip can give you an idea of what the movie's like. An idea is all I'm looking for.

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 14 Dec 2007, 10:48

tom2681 wrote: Encourage good filmmaking, discourage bad filmmaking.

Nice philosophy, but in your case the result may still be the opposite by general standards

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 14 Dec 2007, 11:17

tom2681 wrote:Encourage good filmmaking, discourage bad filmmaking.

@Tom
Oh, like people intentionally make bad movies. Besides, tastes in movies differ.