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

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 20 Nov 2006, 17:46

brooce-leroy wrote:Goldeneye 4/5

Watched it again.

I want to watch it again too actually

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 20 Nov 2006, 17:50

Prestige 4/5
A little predictable but excellent nevertheless. As with Fight Club, I have a feeling my opinion of this film will be even better upon a second viewing. Great character study into obsession and interesting 'science vs magic' underlying theme. A DVD purchase is inevitable.

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 20 Nov 2006, 18:01

Looks awful, actually. But I'll get the Thai dvd some day...

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 20 Nov 2006, 18:03

Of Prestige or Goldeneye?

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 20 Nov 2006, 18:15

I think he means Prestige, but I've heard its really good

HungFist · Post by **HungFist** » 20 Nov 2006, 18:27

Sorry, I meant Always... I had this page open for so long that 2 new posts got made before I posted mine

Didn't notice it until now.

bradavon · Post by **bradavon** » 20 Nov 2006, 18:52

Oh and regarding OHMSS we're expected to honestly believe Bond loves this woman yet is happy to bed at least 2 women before getting married!!!

Shingster · Post by **Shingster** » 20 Nov 2006, 19:12

tom2681 wrote:Always Sanchone no Yuhi (Always Sunset on Third Street): 4/5

Nice little dramatic film with some funny bits here and there.
+Awesome use of CGI to recreate Tokyo from the 50's.

Some of the melodrama is quite over the top and unnecessary, but the actors are convincing enough.

Will buy the Thai DVD.
or
Will sell a kidney so I can buy the japanese DVD.

Thanks Bisc.

Reminds me that I was gonna do a comparison thread for the R2j/R3thai. Will knock one up within the next day or two.

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 20 Nov 2006, 19:37

HungFist wrote:Looks awful, actually. But I'll get the Thai dvd some day...

It's completely missable. Almost like Korean drivel.

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 20 Nov 2006, 19:56

hey,

let's change the tone a little...

The Legend Of An Erotic Movie Star 3/5

A cheap film about cheap films, this Category III rated portrayal of the slight rise and hard fall of Mainland girl turned adult movie star Chan Hung (Liu Chi-Tak) is what you expect but also possesses some unusually sharp wit for the genre. Dishing out mild jabs about the cheapness of HK filmmaking of this kind, Liu Chi-Tak does well with wonderfully ditsy and hella stupid lead character that soon turns into the diva this story requires. I laughed out loud for the right reasons at many points and there are many points...

Stuart Ong has literally has a fucking-cameo.

The poster read The Ledgen Of A Erotic Movie Star

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 20 Nov 2006, 22:38

HungFist wrote:Sorry, I meant Always... I had this page open for so long that 2 new posts got made before I posted mine Didn't notice it until now.

Noooooo. Depends if you're into Japanese style melodrama. And by that, I mean good melodrama, and not fake idol melodrama (gackt, hyde etc).

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 21 Nov 2006, 01:06

Elfen Lied - 2/5
Toshwaddle.
Another tip for quickly identifying crap anime, look at the rain, snow and falling cherry blossoms. If it's ugly CG that doesn't fit at all stop watching.

GTO - 4/5
Eokichi Onizuka, 22. Teacher. The stereotypical man in every way, both good and bad.
I love the GTO stuff. I saw the live action drama (first one I'd seen), I read the manga (first one I'd read) and now I've watched the anime (better late then never). It's such great entertainment, brilliant characters, plenty of humour, a little emotion and many real life references to keep it barely within the remits of reality. It's predictable overall and a bit repetitive but the means used to reach the end are normally quite surprising. Good times.

A Story of Floating Weeds - NA/5
I can't really rate this. It's the first real silent film I've ever seen, it's so old that a lot of the qualities it posesses have a diminished impact as a result of imitation, and it's not really my thing. I think I'm going to leave silent films to the cinephiles when it comes to entertainment. It's interesting to scrutinuise a genius like Ozu at work but I'd much prefer to simply be appreciative of it whilst being entertained by a good speaking cast. I'll be watching it again tomorrow to listen to the commentary because it seemed quite interesting the few times I flicked it on. But I'm looking forward to watching Floating Weeds to see the complete package of great directing and acting a whole lot more.

BiscLimpkit · Post by **BiscLimpkit** » 21 Nov 2006, 19:09

Agreed about Elfen Lied. People who think that there is something deep and meaningful in this series are seriously kidding themselves. It's just like pokemon but with boobs and blood. Even the mindless action/gore made me fall asleep.

Jimmyboy from thedvdf loved this, which I was surprised about. He's well into his obscure arthouse.

Shingster · Post by **Shingster** » 21 Nov 2006, 19:50

hehe, Jim's tastes when it comes to Anime is more mainstream

He's not really a total cinephile though, I've known him to like many a mindless movie, just don't mention The Matrix when he's around.

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 21 Nov 2006, 21:35

BiscLimpkit wrote:Agreed about Elfen Lied. People who think that there is something deep and meaningful in this series are seriously kidding themselves. It's just like pokemon but with boobs and blood. Even the mindless action/gore made me fall asleep.

Jimmyboy from thedvdf loved this, which I was surprised about. He's well into his obscure arthouse.

I wouldn't have bothered had I not come across some fansubbed R2J's. Cheap and horrible little production. If your selling point is going to be gore then you could at least spend a little money making it look a little more interesting.

Shingster · Post by **Shingster** » 21 Nov 2006, 22:44

You seen Berserk Lourdes? The anime is unfinshed but the manga is top notch. I always describe it as Lord of the Rings meets Hellraiser meets Conan the Barbarian.

Seriously though, it has a very intelligent story and is one of the few action based series that doesn't rely on "spectator commentaries" (well it does have some, but it's usually just shit like wtf! one man can defeat a monster that big!")

Lourdes · Post by **Lourdes** » 21 Nov 2006, 23:03

Shingster wrote:You seen Berserk Lourdes? The anime is unfinshed but the manga is top notch. I always describe it as Lord of the Rings meets Hellraiser meets Conan the Barbarian.

Seriously though, it has a very intelligent story and is one of the few action based series that doesn't rely on "spectator commentaries" (well it does have some, but it's usually just shit like wtf! one man can defeat a monster that big!"

I borrowed it once but never got round to watching it properly. Didn't seem to grab my attention but I should know better than to be so dismissive. I hear the manga is pretty 'messed up' but that could mean a whole lot when the Japanese are involved.
I need to play catch up on my film backlog before I watch more anime.

Shingster · Post by **Shingster** » 21 Nov 2006, 23:16

The manga can be pretty gruesome. One example would be a village that has had all the women abducted by trolls (think dumb ugly animals, kinda like bears), which we later discover is because they basically rape the women until they either die or give birth to this horrible demon afterbirth stuff that the trolls then eat.

Oh and by give birth I mean their stomach just explodes from the inside out.

None of the more extreme stuff is in the anime though, as it deals with the backstory of the main characters, which is in a time before demons roamed freely amongst humans.

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 22 Nov 2006, 08:52

Torchwood Episode 4 - 3/5

Thought this was an OK episode but rather silly (a bit too Robocop maybe?) The ending/twist is quite sad though, and Harkness (John Barrowman) does seem like a bit of an asshole in this episode and isn't very likeable.

Knetan · Post by **Knetan** » 22 Nov 2006, 18:18

hey,

Pale Passion 2/5

Shot in 1984 at Shaw Brothers, this is literally a pale domestic drama but some raw, haunting energy exists. Particular like that it's not glossy or jazzed up for the movies. Even has no score for the violent ending.

thelostdragon · Post by **thelostdragon** » 23 Nov 2006, 00:25

Casino Royale - 4.5/5 - Maybe even 5/5
Best Bond movie in a very long time.

dragonhero005 · Post by **dragonhero005** » 23 Nov 2006, 17:11

The Mission

Again, an absolute classic I hadn't seen.
What can I say? It's awesome. There are so many great actors in it, the music is great, the atmosphere and tension as well - the only thing that can be criticised is the very short lengh of only 84 minutes.
To makes the bodyguards look so cool. Besides the always-great Francis Ng, I especially liked Simon Yam, in his small and very unlike role. I think he did a very good job (of course all the others did as well).

4.5/5

grim_tales · Post by **grim_tales** » 23 Nov 2006, 23:34

Casino Royale 4.5/5 (maybe 5/5)

Absolutely brilliant. Loved this film.

Daniel Craig is fantastic, he is not just a good Bond, he IS Bond, closer in tone to Dalton or Connery (ie a cold badass) than Pierce or Roger Moore, and has little in the way of quips. Some great action, an early fight on top of a crane reminded me of the climatic fight of 1995's excellent Goldeneye - perhaps the best Pierce outing, no coincidence that film was also directed by Martin Campbell.

I think the film is a wee bit long (145 minutes is quite long for an action film), and couldn't believe it was a 12a as some stuff was definitely not for kids.
I also noticed some comments by M that place the film in 2006 ("I miss the Cold War" etc) - still overall a cracking film. I loved the part when Bond said "Do I look like a give a damn!" when asked if he was shaken or stirred.

An unexpected moment in the scene where Bond is tortured by Le Chiffre had me and most of the cinema laughing out loud, that was great.
I liked how Bond could be vulnerable though (something hinted at in Die Another Day).

The ending with Bond's famous intro line, and close-up of his face when he hunts down the villain Mr White is brilliant as well, keeping you on tenderhooks. Unusual for a Bond film to end like that It shows he is learning, becoming a better 007

brooce-leroy · Post by **brooce-leroy** » 24 Nov 2006, 01:50

grim_tales wrote:
The ending with Bond's famous intro line, and close of his face when he hunts down the villain Mr White is brilliant as well, keeping you on tenderhooks. Unusual for a Bond film to end like that

The story will continue in the next one.

Markgway · Post by **Markgway** » 24 Nov 2006, 03:17

Why do my colds always seem to take forever to disappear?

It's not even a particularly strong one... Bah!

By the time I'm fit "Casino Royale 2: Don't Fuck With Bond" will be hitting the multiplexes.