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Great review Deputy! I will absolutely be watching it on DVD when I get the chance and will ignore the movie in theaters because as you said, 3D is not very good. It's funny how you say it's different than most teen slashers because my friend told me he didn't want to see it because it doesn't look very original.
Well, I could see others not finding it as original as I did, it could have been my mood or who knows, but the whole movie-going experience, watching the presentation of the story and such, just felt very unique to me. It just had a very odd pace and tone, whether intentional or not, but for me it worked very well.
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Posted: |
Oct 9, 2010 - 2:21 PM
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By: |
mastadge
(Member)
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Henry Fool (1997) by Hal Hartley -- A delectable offbeat comedy. Henry Fool (Thomas Jay Ryan) appears to be a nobody who's convinced himself so well that he's a somebody that he manages to convince everyone around him of that, too. Or maybe he actually is all that he tries to appear to be. A mysterious man with a mysterious past, he's clearly erudite, articulate, attractive and passionate -- but he's also living in a basement apartment and bumming drinks off his landlord, garbageman Simon (James Urbaniak), a reserved, ashamedly silent man in whom Henry sees greatness, whom Henry drives to express himself in writing. But is Simon a prophet unheralded in his own time, or a simple purveyor of garbage and filth? Or both? This is a very funny, yet oddly powerful, poke at literary pretentiousness. I enjoyed it a great deal. (****)
Fay Grim (2006) by Hal Hartley -- This film probably would not be very satisfying on its own, but as a sequel/follow-up to Henry Fool it's a blast. Fay Grim (Parker Posey), Simon's sister and Henry's wife, finds out that Henry, who's been missing for years, may actually have been the person of significance and intrigue he always tried to appear to be, when she's approached by a CIA agent (Jeff Goldblum) who informs her that Henry's missing Confessions, widely acknowledged as garbage, may contain state secrets. What follows is a bizarre tale of espionage with agents from multiple countries maneuvering for possession of Henry's notebooks, which may or may not contain (possibly encrypted) secrets, or may all be a hoax, or both! This is a film that takes some of the elements of the first film and runs with them at a whole different angle, which fits these characters perfectly. If the end result is pretty incredible (in the sense of not credible) and not wholly satisfying, the journey to it is full of enough intrigue to keep things interesting. Recommended only after watching Henry Fool. (***½)
The Social Network (2010) by David Fincher -- Well, now we know what happens when you cross Aaron Sorkin's dialogue-porn with David Fincher's craftsmanship: we get a fine movie, an expertly crafted, almost great dramatization of college drama amplified out of all proportion by the fact that in this case it ended up tied to a multi-billion dollar property. This film manages to strip the explosion of a pop culture phenomenon down to a lucid story about a few key characters, to get us involved in the characters even as it manages the unlikely task of getting us excited over how many schools it's spread to and how many users have registered. Really my only reservation is that the "it was all over a girl" theme seems (even if it turns out to have been true -- I have no idea) handled a little too heavily. Otherwise, I don't know that this will be one for the ages, but it certainly is one of the best movies of the year, and a welcome return to form for Fincher after the sumptuous but curiously empty Benjamin Button. (****½)
The Mothman Prophecies (2002) by Mark Pellington -- I seem to recall the critics hating this movie, but I though that it was, for the most part, very creepy and well worth watching. There are a few clunky scenes where the script unnecessarily tries to cover its [butt] with some sophomoric dialogue about how mere humans couldn't comprehend the mothman's motives, but for the most part, aside from those scenes and an ending that is somewhat predictable, the movie is creepy and chilling and deserves better than it got.
MacGruber (unrated) (2010) by Jorma Taccone -- This movie is simply awful and almost entirely unfunny. A bunch of homophobic jokes and an unfunnily oblivious and obnoxious character. I chuckled a couple times, but more often just gazed in bored disbelief at how badly misjudged most of the "humor" was. (*)
The Secret of Kells (2009) by Tomm Moore with Nora Twomey -- An absolutely enchanting animation. Medieval Ireland, and the locals are being threatened by the northlanders. In one small town, the Abbott becomes obsessed with building high walls to protect the people from the threat, to the extent that he forgets the finer things in life. The plot is pretty thin, but the animation, with clean lines and geometric shapes and celtic whirls and bright colors and contrasts, is simply beautiful and, together with Bruno Coulais' nice score, make this movie a delight from start to finish. The story is not deep, but it is well told with likable and interesting characters. Highly recommended. (****½)
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Posted: |
Oct 9, 2010 - 11:58 PM
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By: |
Michael24
(Member)
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The Omen (1976) - 5/5
Just watched The Omen for the first time ever. Man, what a movie! The eerieness and build-up of suspense was unreal. Between Mrs. Baylock, the Rottweiler, and Jerry Goldsmith's haunting music, I was genuinely creeped out by this movie. Solid performances by Gregory Peck (I think this is actually the first movie with him I've seen) and Lee Remick, and a truly killer performance by Billie Whitelaw as Mrs. Baylock, instantly making her one of the most unnerving horror film characters I've seen. Always good to see David Warner, too, one of my most favorite character actors.
Unfortunately, some of the film's biggest shocks, such as the death of Warner's character, had already been spoiled for me given the film's age, so it would have been great to see this many years ago. But others had remained unspoiled and were still incredibly affective, such as the scene with Father Brennan in the churchyard. And when Remick turned around in the hospital room and Mrs. Baylock was standing there, I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up! The dog attack in the graveyard was some scary stuff, and at the end when all hell breaks loose as Baylock attacks Thorn, it was just wild.
Yeah, I thought this was a great movie that will definitely find a place in my collection. Loved it!
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Posted: |
Oct 11, 2010 - 9:10 AM
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Cryogenix
(Member)
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Deja Vu - In a word: intriguing. Don't read any detailed reviews about this or it'll be ruined for you. Denzel was great, as was the entire cast. If you're a tech nerd who loves the idea of time travel, you should dig this. A very cool sci-fi/semi-action/crime drama - 9.5
16 Blocks - This was a very different-feeling film from Bruce Willis, as his character looked and acted very old, depressed and hopeless. The overall vibe of the film is somber, and at times I felt I wanted to slit my wrists because Bruce didn't do much at the opening of the film except project despair. Also, Mos Def has the most annoying voice of anyone I've ever heard, and it never grew on me or became cute in anyway. Just annoying and ignorant. Had he been replaced with an actor with a more normal voice, the movie would've been far better. All that aside, it was a fairly good action-drama that's good for one viewing - 7.5.
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