What general film/series have you just seen.. marks out of 5

[Markgway]

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993-USA-France) *½
Disastrously unfunny spoof of Robin Hood movies (and Prince of Thieves especially).
Cary Elwes does indeed speak with an English accent, but that's the only virtue of this lame parody from a past-his-prime Mel Brooks.

[HungFist]

Black Rain- I have so many movies to watch, but instead I decided to watch this for the 5th time. Ridley Scott and Michael Douglas decide to make their own Lethal Weapon. Really good action thriller that's always interesting. Michael Douglas and his partner Andy Garcia have to go to Japan to recatch a pyschotic criminal played by Yusaku Matsuda. They team up with Ken Takakura who gives a brilliant performance as a Japanese cop. I've only seen the villain Matsuda in Resurrection of the Golden Wolf and he seems like a really cool actor. In Black Rain he completely steals the show and gives one of the best ever villain performances. Gut wrenching stuff on the extra features learning that he knew he was dying of cancer while filming. 8.5/10

It's a very good film with a fantastic cast.

Matsuda is a huge legend in Japan. There's basically a memorial for his death every single year with his films on TV, and either new or re-issue dvds/bds coming every year. There's tons of books about him, a theatrically released documentary movie, and if I recall correctly more than one video game characters that are based on him... It wouldn't be much of an exaggeration to say he's in Japan what Bruce Lee and James Dean are in many other countries... A very charismatic guy with a certain rebel / bad boy aura around him. A good singer as well.

That being said, his filmography is surprisingly mediocre. There's lots of mediocre action comedies (e.g. No Grave for Us, The Murder Game), uninspired noir films (The Execution Game, Yokohama BJ Blues) etc. But he has some great ones too. Resurrection of the Golden Wolf is my favourite, followed by The Classroom of Terror, and (as a supporting player) The Family Game and Black Rain. I would recommend those four to anyone.

This (terrific) trailer for (the not so terrific) The Execution Game perfectly captures Matsuda's charisma:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaFmxOdV34I

[Shingster]

In the uber-popular pirate manga serial One Piece the Marine force is basically the antagonists of sort and they are kinda led by these ultra-powerful Marine Admirals who are the strongest characters on the marine side of things & each admiral is based on a Japanese acting legend & sometimes their most famous characters, it shouldn't be difficult for you to guess them all Hung:

[Markgway]

Witness for the Prosecution (1957-USA) ***
An irascible defence barrister (recovering from a heart attack) takes on what looks like an open and shut murder case. Good adaptation of Agatha Christie's play by Billy Wilder; Tyrone Power is arguably miscast as the young, Canadian(?) defendant, but Charles Laughton (as the barrister) and Marlene Dietrich (as Power's wife) are excellent. Ironically, Dietrich was 56 when this was released, but looked 15 years younger; Power (in his last completed film) was 42, but looked a bit older.

The Bishop's Wife (1947-USA) ***
Cary Grant is at his most charming as an Angel in this good-natured Xmas movie designed to make you feel all warm and fuzzy. David Niven is the uptight bishop praying for divine intervention, Loretta Young his caring wife. You'd have to be a cold barstool (or militant atheist) not to find something to like about this oft-overlooked item.

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

Witness for the Prosecution (1957-USA) ***
An irascible defence barrister (recovering from a heart attack) takes on what looks like an open and shut murder case. Good adaptation of Agatha Christie's play by Billy Wilder; Tyrone Power is arguably miscast as the young, Canadian(?) defendant, but Charles Laughton (as the barrister) and Marlene Dietrich (as Power's wife) are excellent. Ironically, Dietrich was 56 when this was released, but looked 15 years younger; Power (in his last completed film) was 42, but looked a bit older.

The Bishop's Wife (1947-USA) ***
Cary Grant is at his most charming as an Angel in this good-natured Xmas movie designed to make you feel all warm and fuzzy. David Niven is the uptight bishop praying for divine intervention, Loretta Young his caring wife. You'd have to be a cold barstool (or militant atheist) not to find something to like about this oft-overlooked item.

Reminds me I need to rewatch The Bishop's Wife. I never got around to the remake though. Definitely an enjoyable around the holidays type of movie. Wednesday night I rewatched for the umpteenth time It's a Wonderful Life. I was glad I got to rewatch Holiday Inn this Christmas as well.

Just for Charles Laughton's performance I ranked Witness for the Prosecution half a tick higher. I'm a fan of Billy Wilder, but I think Laughton completely dominates the film (I like Dietrich as well and have a decent collection of her films.) Yeah Power certainly looks older than his age. Now being a lawyer in the early 40s can be considered somewhat young (I know lawyers still practicing in their 70s and doing well), but he certainly does not look it. I was surprised when I looked up his age on that film. He aged fast. The Black Swan is one of my favorite films with him. But I'm a sucker for "pirate" films.

[Shingster]

He had a tendency to turn up with caddish facial hair in swashbucklers to make him look less clean cut! What is it with swashbucklers and dying early of heart attacks as well? You'd think the profession would keep them fit but it seems their lifestyles always negated that!

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

He had a tendency to turn up with caddish facial hair in swashbucklers to make him look less clean cut! What is it with swashbucklers and dying early of heart attacks as well? You'd think the profession would keep them fit but it seems their lifestyles always negated that!

Yeah. The amount of things wrong with Errol Flynn which prevented him from combat in WWII was insane (he had a version of Three Stooges syndrome). Douglas Fairbanks always looked in shape even with his talkies he was quite athletic. Both as you refer to both died early. Well Cary Elwes is still alive.

[Markgway]

Reminds me I need to rewatch The Bishop's Wife. I never got around to the remake though.

I haven't seen The Preacher's Wife either.

Sullivan's Travels (1941-USA) **½
A pretentious director of crowd-pleasing comedies turns "bum" as research for the searing social commentary he really wants to make. Uneven Hollywood satire from Preston Sturges starts out rather well, displaying a good deal of wit, then somewhere along the line turns into the kind of heavy, on-the-nose message movie Sturges seemed intent on mocking. Joel McCrea's character is abrasive and one-note throughout, but blonde bombshell Veronica Lake is appealingly cute as his self-imposed sidekick. I didn't know what to expect... but I didn't expect this.

[Markgway]

Johnny Dangerously (1984-USA) **
Patchy spoof of 30s gangster movies with Michael Keaton; a few good laughs, but not enough of them.

A Soldier's Story (1984-USA) **½
1944, Louisiana - a much-despised black sergeant is shot dead off-base; a black army captain is sent from Washington to investigate the racially motivated murder. Pedestrian film version of an award-winning stage play. Norman Jewison's picture is worthy (in subject), but, as a thriller, dull. Denzel Washington is a standout in an early supporting role.

[HungFist]

Pulp Fiction (USA, 1994) [BD] - 5/5
I hadn't seen this for probably 10 years. Still as amazing as ever. There's been a million copycat flicks since then, but none have used broken chronology as beautifully as this (including Tarantino himself). The same can be said about the perfect balance between cleverness and some sort of movie universe realism enhanced by relatively slow pace, which is also something the followers usually failed at. The only thing that didn't quite live up to my memories was the soundtrack, which has some brilliant moments but pales in comparison to Jackie Brown.

[saltysam]

Lucy 2/5 Far fetched actioner from Luc Beeson,who's fell far from the halycon days of Leon. Scarlet Johansson is injected with a super drug which makes her almost superhuman,she wants revenge on people who've wronged her. Glossy but empty but clips along quickly, though some strange choices made here we are supposed to feel empathy and root for Lucy,who at one point shoots an innocent taxi driver for not speaking english and then later shoots dead a patient on an operating table with the defence "he was gonna die anyway" Morgan Freeman in a paycheck role adds a bit of gravitas to proceedings.

Edge Of Tomorrow 3.5/5 Tom Cruise in very good sci fi flick shocker.! one of the better summer blockbusters i've seen in recent years this is well worth seeing,fast moving,good effects and a good cast.

We Still Kill The Old Way 1.5/5 pretty bad low budget british reservoir dogs type knock-off, Ian Ogilvy is the retired east end gangster who after his brother is killed by low life teenage scum comes home and rounds up his old team to "get it sorted" extra 1/2 star for nostalgia,Ogilvy back in a starring role again and teaming up with Burnside

Pride 2.5/5 Well made if overlong british movie about gays and lesbians rallying support for the miners during the year long 1984 strike.good cast,soundtrack but a little worthy.

[grim_tales]

Edge of Tomorrow sounds good, I've read it was retitled Live Die Repeat for the BD/DVD release for some reason?

[Markgway]

I've always felt that Pulp Fiction was massively overrated.
Reservoir Dogs and Jackie Brown are both better movies.

Blood Song (1984-USA) *
Ignore this dismal slasher pic unless you're desperate to see 60s teen idol Frankie Avalon playing a serial killer.

[Markgway]

Dumb and Dumber To (2014-USA) **
Jeff Daniels and Jim Carrey (now middle aged) reprise their roles as Harry and Lloyd (respectively) after a 20 year screen absence. Belated sequel is still plenty dumb, but the freshness has gone, and the belly laughs have all but evaporated, replaced by embarrassed chuckles... though given Hollywood's current standard it certainly could've been worse. To be fair, I was 15 when I first saw the original, so my sense of humour has probably evolved somewhat.

[saltysam]

Blood Song (1984-USA) *
Ignore this dismal slasher pic unless you're desperate to see 60s teen idol Frankie Avalon playing a serial killer.

i liked him in Haunted House Of Horror

[HungFist]

Guardians of the Galaxy (USA, 2014) [Flight] - 1.5/5
An incredibly boring comic book flick in which green people fight blue people in the middle of 15 000 CGI effects and one normal looking dude. Some amusing humour keeps it from becoming a complete snooze fest. Ok, maybe superhero movies are just not my genre. I only like Batman and Rapeman anyway.

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

Edge of Tomorrow sounds good, I've read it was retitled Live Die Repeat for the BD/DVD release for some reason?

If you watch the movie you will understand why it is called that on the US release (technically it has both Edge of Tomorrow and Live Die Repeat which is a better title for this film.) I enjoyed the film quite a bit. I'm even more angry with myself for skipping it in the theaters (funny I did see Oblivion in the theater.)

Jackie Brown and Pulp Fiction are my favorite Tarantino films followed by Reservoir Dogs. I just have not been able to get into (and I've seen them all) the later Tarantino movies as much. Kill Bill felt like spot the movie reference (well technically of them feel this way). The critics seem to love them (and movie fans I talk to, though as I get older I find more and more people who have seen the later Tarantino films but not ones like Pulp Fiction), but the misanthropic nature, the repeated scenarios from other films often make me wonder why I find them decent entertainment but far from aesthetically pleasing and sublime works of art.

[grim_tales]

It's been a long time since I saw either Kill Bill but around the time I saw the first movie in the cinema, I just really enjoyed it OK I was younger, but I think it was a movie that really appealled to my tastes at the time. I know what you mean about spot the movie reference though, I think he directed the movie like a kid in a toy or candy shop, seeing what looked cool

[Markgway]

Kill Bill is a self-indulgent geekout; a collection of cult themed set pieces (kung fu, chanbara, spaghetti western, etc.,) masquerading as a movie.

[Markgway]

The Mad Miss Manton (1938-USA) **
Mischievous socialite Barbara Stanwyck becomes embroiled in a murder case alongside doubting newspaper editor Henry Fonda, who pretty soon falls for her charms. Breezy screwball farce, worth it mainly for fans of an appealing Stanwyck. The sub-Mr. Moto mystery is very weak, with neither the victims (who don't even get lines) nor the suspects given much in the way of character.

[Masterofoneinchpunch]

... The Wild Bunch- I liked this a lot. A big budget movie about a group of bad guys. During the first half I kept wondering who's the wilder bunch, the bad guys or the ones that are chasing the bad guys?

Is this the first Sam Peckinpah film you have seen? He has a couple of "must-see" westerns in Ride the High Country, the one you saw and depending on which critic you read either Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid or The Ballad of Cable Hogue. I also like Junior Bonner as a modern day western with Steve McQueen.

[Markgway]

Wanderlust (2012-USA) **
Yuppie couple (Paul Rudd, Jennifer Aniston) forced to leave NYC because of financial issues, move into a hippy-type commune where soft drugs and free love are a condition of residence. There's a germ of a decent movie here... but like most contemporary comedies it gets bogged down in vulgarity. At its worst cringeworthy. A producer credit for Judd Apatow tells you all you really need to know.

Men in Black 3 (2012-USA) **
Agent J has to go back to 1969 to save a young-ish Agent K and the world at large from alien invasion. Tommy Lee Jones looks awfully tired here... but the movie picks up a bit when Josh Brolin is drafted in as an uncanny replacement. The rest is standard comic book shenanigans and computer effects. The villain is a terrible disappointment.

Strange Affair (1944-USA) **
Columbia's forgettable B-grade attempt to imitate MGM's Thin Man series. Tolerable, but screwball silliness dominates a murder mystery that fizzles out too soon. Watch for a cameo by Shemp Howard. Not a fake Shemp.

[Markgway]

Money Train (1995-USA) **½
Not bad buddy cop-crime caper actioner reunites Wesley and Woody from White Men Can't Jump as adopted brothers who decide to rob... well, guess? Jennifer Lopez is the babe, Robert Blake the loon in charge of underground security who won't let anyone 'fuck with his train'! Ignore the dubious morality and switch your brain into neutral.

[Markgway]

Teachers (1984-USA) ***
Arthur Hiller's drama/satire revolves around an investigation into how an illiterate senior student managed to graduate and rebel teacher Nick Nolte's desire to change the system. Wry, sometimes dark comedy with something to say is put over by a good cast, including Ralph Macchio as a troubled teen Nolte takes under his wing.

[Markgway]

Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011-USA) **
A young woman (Elizabeth Olsen) escapes from a commune (led by Manson-like weirdo John Hawkes). She moves in with her sister, with whom she has a fractured relationship, but finds herself unable to blackout the bad memories and return to a normal life. Sinister story, told in flashback, is well acted and intriguing for a while... but like so many indies ultimately goes nowhere slowly. Ugly cinematography to boot.