Random Movie Thoughts Thread

[Totenkindly]

just saying, we see the walt regret over krazy 8, mike, and especially jane. the moments i would list as pure heisenberg are semi rare. There's the confrontation with Tuco ("this is not meth"), the "I am the danger" speech, the poolside beef with Hank, and "i say when we're done" as just a few that jump to mind as better examples of "heisenberg moments" in the show.

do I have to thwap you on the head with a coconut?

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

Apparently there's a Ronnie Dobbs movie. Has anyone seen it? Wondering if it's any good... as awesome a premise as it is, can you drag it out to feature length? (I guess that's never stopped SNL, though.) Cross and Odenkirk are unhappy with it; but then, King didn't like Kubrick's shining.

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

Apparently there's a Ronnie Dobbs movie. Has anyone seen it? Wondering if it's any good... as awesome a premise as it is, can you drag it out to feature length? (I guess that's never stopped SNL, though.) Cross and Odenkirk are unhappy with it; but then, King didn't like Kubrick's shining.

I wish they’d just done a Meaning of Life styled anthology film. Run Ronnie Run had some really funny bits but overall I felt like they dragged it out just like a lot of snl movies.

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

What if The Thing had been a huge hit and then several years later James Cameron decided to do a sequel featuring Kurt Russell heading back to Antarctica with a team of marines to finish off the creature?

 

[Totenkindly]

What if The Thing had been a huge hit and then several years later James Cameron decided to do a sequel featuring Kurt Russell heading back to Antarctica with a team of marines to finish off the creature?

It would have been called "The Things"?

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

It would have been called "The Things"?

as funny as that is, that's probably true.

 

[Totenkindly]

Saw Dr Strange 2 today. Was pretty disappointed from a story and writing perspective (the writer barely has any credits aside from Loki, which was only marginal in quality even if it wasn't as muddled as TFATWS). There were a few sequences I liked / found inventive (and I credit those to Raimi), but kind of a failure of imagination and also a lack of continuity / lack of commitment to character over plot.

• The CGI is kind of lame, most of the time. I did not notice the lighting problems consciously that others have commented on publicly, although maybe that's one reason it felt off to me. But also there's a lot of bad pacing/timing -- you know, moments where instead of fights unfolding in proper timing, monsters will instead mug and threaten and pause, for no discernible reason, despite obviously being out to kill their targets. Most of the action sequences lacked tension overall or had predictable outcomes.
• One of the exceptions was the really cool "musical note" battle in the final third of the film. It mixes sound and visual together and the whole magical fight transcends expectation, it reminds me also of the short Thanos/Strange fight in Infinity War where they're both just cutting loose with what amounts to cosmic magic and cool things happen, like changing a power blast to butterflies, etc. It felt creative. Another cool visual was when Strange takes over his zombie double to save America and basically pulls a bunch of undead spirits together and uses them as part of his powerset -- it looks very awesome (a cape and outfit of seething spirits). And of course the money sequence where America and Strange dimension hop for a minute or two, like he did in the first film -- visually stunnning.
• Fucking up of Wanda. Why did they even do WandaVision? This whole bit was already resolved and she was on a hopeful path -- and they had just given her the Scarlet Witch name and hinted that maybe she and Vision would find each other again. They reset her in the beginning of this film to evil (blaming the Darkhold) and have her basically being "mom who goes crazy because she wants her kids back" trope -- you can never trust a mother, you know -- until at the end she decides she repents and then seemingly kills herself to destroy the Darkhold across all dimensions. Like, what the fuck? This whole film derails the entire emotional arc that was built across 3-4 films and a season of TV, that had just set up a new chapter of her life. In her favor, Elizabeth Olsen acts her ass off and fights hard to give Wanda whatever depth she can find; it's not her fault, it's the shit writing and plotting.
• At the end of WandaVision, it sounds like her kids are in trouble and she's going to save them. The kids she fixates on are not in trouble and don't need saving. If she's going to hunt through the multiverse for her "family," why the fuck isn't she looking for a reality where she is already dead and Vision and the kids need a mother? Then she wouldn't need to do anything to anyone. She's wouldn't have to violate one of her other selves either. I guess they try to force her hand by saying she can only astral project (so she needs America Chavez at least ONCE to send her to the right place) but then try to say she needs to kill Chavez and take her powers to make sure her kid are 100% all the time. Like, what is that? Mothers protect their kid but they're all typically not lunatics. Next time get a woman to write your script about crazy mothers if you want it to make sense. This did not mesh up with what happened in WandaVision -- Kevin Feige, get your head out of your ass before Phase 4 completely fails.
• Not killing anyone important (except maybe Wanda), killing off a whole bunch of fan-service appearances in alternate realities. Like, hey, let's introduce X-Men and Fantastic Four and immediately kill them off because it doesn't matter. Fuck you, Marvel. This isn't edgy, it's just lame and toothless.
• Bruce Campbell's lame brief cameo. You know what would have been a cool cameo? Make him Dr. Strange in one of the alternate realities for a brief appearance. Damn, you guys are lacking so much in the creative department.
• Dr. Strange now joins the ranks of really lame over-the-top superfluous deaths from falling from a great height and impaling himself on a bunch of spikes. So you can join Saruman and someone else who i can't recall at the moment.
• Acting was all fine, this was hugely a script/plotting problem film. America Chavez is likable, but she only exists as a plot/mechanic -- she has a power others need. She gets a pretty thin "I have two moms" bit where her powers result in her losing track of her parents, but that's about all she gets. Whatever.
• Wanda actually does lay waste to a bunch of shit and characters. I did appreciate seeing what she can do if she cuts loose, from a purely destructive POV.

I am just really disappointed in Phase 4, as now it's about two thirds done and just has been a real step down due to the less adequate writing/plotting and continuity. Nothing has really been super, this Phase. I am hoping a bit for Thor 4 and all my hopes are pinned on Guardians 3 (because Gunn hasn't failed me yet), but damn -- is there any vision for what this Phase is about? it all feels like throwing shit at the wall to see what sticks. it's all mostly tropey and rehash, and involves hiring good actors hoping they can make thin writing/directing actually work.

Even Spiderman 3 had a pretty slow start -- it really only becomes a great film at about mid-point.

 

[Totenkindly]

If the conclusion to the Jurassic franchise ends up being the best general audience film I see this year, I'm gonna be annoyed.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

If the conclusion to the Jurassic franchise ends up being the best general audience film I see this year, I'm gonna be annoyed.

I haven't been interested enough in either of the Jurassic World movies. In fact apart from the original I've only seen The Lost World. I loved the original as a kid (Even had a backpack and lunch box) but I never felt the need to see variations on it.

This one sort of intrigues me though because it looks like they have dinosaurs running wild around the North American continent, which seems like it might be cool.

 

[Totenkindly]

I haven't been interested enough in either of the Jurassic World movies. In fact apart from the original I've only seen The Lost World. I loved the original as a kid (Even had a backpack and lunch box) but I never felt the need to see variations on it.

This one sort of intrigues me though because it looks like they have dinosaurs running wild around the North American continent, which seems like it might be cool.

I think it's because there were flaws with Treverrow's work that I didn't want reflected in Star Wars, but then Abrams ruined the film Treverrow was supposed to direct and Treverrow's version might have been far better.

I found Jurassic World enjoyable but flawed and mostly just a summer blockbuster way to pass time. I was hoping JA Bayona's middle film was going to be better (I see him as a thoughtful filmmaker, after The Orphanage, The Impossible, and A Monster Calls) but the film was a bit hackneyed in end result.

The trailer for the final film is actually pretty great regardless of the film's actual merit in the end. I just would be disappointed to have to settle for something that I don't expect to have much character development as best mainstream film this year.

 

[Totenkindly]

So..... to celebrate Mother's Day, I finally watched "Orphan" (2009) through to completion. I remember watching 15 minutes of it a year or two back, then just wasn't in the mood. The film runs 2 hours and really should have been shorter by about 20-30 minutes, although I guess some of that extra time goes into building the variety of incidents plaguing the family.

The acting is surprisingly good -- Sarsgaard and Farmiga actually have chemistry and seem at ease with each other as the parents, and the kids are decent enough -- and the lead (Isabelle Fuhrman) is great too. The director also is really good in shooting the film in interesting ways, he feels pretty adept and knows how to handle the material whether it's interpersonal stuff or action sequences.

I think the biggest flaw (or maybe its strength?) is the sensational writing. The early part of the film is more of a slow burn, whereas the latter half can at times feel kind of nuts. But I think if you are saying "WTF" to yourself out loud on multiple occasions, then the film has achieved the success it was looking for. The makeup is actually interesting in the last 20 minutes or so, which will make sense if you see it. Unfortunately the whole premise rides on a single spoiler which some people might guess out of the gate.

It also has Margo Martindale (for you Bojack fans out there) as a therapist, and CCH Pounder as a nun (out of all things). I did find it entertaining, even if the last twenty minutes is kind of predictable (it ended basically how I thought) and smacks a lot of films like Fatal Attraction. I also don't know if the central issue works in terms of the science involved, from what I can read, but hey whatever -- if you're watching this, it ain't for science.

Of course all of this looks really crappy for adoption especially from certain countries, and I think it's ridiculous/hilarious they thought putting an "Adoption helps kids, please consider adoption" ad on the DVD release was actually helpful. It's like if Cujo sponsored a "please adopt a dog from your local shelter" ad after the film.

 

[Tomb1]

Ambulance was pretty good. I loved the spleen scene.

 

[Totenkindly]

Wow. Nailed it.

Does Doctor Strange 2 Ruin Scarlet Witch's WandaVision Arc?

For Marvel fans, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was one of the most highly anticipated films of the year for a variety of reasons. Not only did it come just a few months after the multiverse seemingly broke open in Spider-Man: No Way Home, but the film was also presented as a follow...

comicbook.com

 

[Totenkindly]

Firestarter is probably gonna be a dog. No reviews / RT score and it's Weds before the Friday release.

At least they cast a Native American in a role that was specified for such. Small wonders.

Edit: damn this film will suck. Review embargo ends on release date and they're releasing to Peacock simultaneously. Why can't people make a damn decent Stephen King film?

---

Watched Starship Troopers the other day. It seems like mindless silliness. I mean, it pretty much is exactly what I expected (and seems to also be a home for cast from Total Recall 1990). Sure, I get the allusions to fascism and the propaganda machine etc, it's just kind of all on the nose. I just don't find it really goes any deeper or adds much to the conversation, and watching wooden actors for two hours gets old. (Did Denise Richards ever do anything but beam prettily at the camera during her film career?) I thought the end was going to highlight how maybe the bugs were something more, but they mostly seem to just be categorized as killers so....

Despite maybe being less than the book, Ender's Game seems to cover similar ground (raising children to serve the war machine) and adds more nuance to the enemies eventually so that you realize there are multiple sides.

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

I believe that the film The 40 Year Old Virgin sends an unhealthy message to men.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

I believe that the film The 40 Year Old Virgin sends an unhealthy message to men.

I haven't seen it. Is the message that social confirmity is desirable?

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

I haven't seen it. Is the message that social confirmity is desirable?

basically. The main character seems pretty content to be focused on his own hobbies and interests at the start--he is almost an asexual, and seems no worse for it, when we first meet him. The movie implies that men need to be getting laid and/or in relationships to become successful and valid humans, otherwise they are just sad losers. It implies that men must be deceptive and hide their true selves in order to find sex and/or relationships.

I think it's exactly this sort of mindset that has contributed to a rise in incel and PUA numbers. Don't get me wrong, funny movie, I guess, but for a raunchy modern comedy, it carries some very traditionalist messages. It's almost clever the way the film starts out tricking the viewer into believeing it's another raunchy sex comedy with getting laid as the ultimate goal, only to hit them on the head with a message about monogamy and always-a-fish-in-the-sea platitudes by the end.

I don't like it when movies try to lecture me instead of making me think. Not that this is the sort of movie I would expect to be thought provoking.

 

[Julius_Van_Der_Beak]

basically. The main character seems pretty content to be focused on his own hobbies and interests at the start--he is almost an asexual, and seems no worse for it, when we first meet him. The movie implies that men need to be getting laid and/or in relationships to become successful and valid humans, otherwise they are just sad losers. It implies that men must be deceptive and hide their true selves in order to find sex and/or relationships.

I think it's exactly this sort of mindset that has contributed to a rise in incel and PUA numbers. Don't get me wrong, funny movie, I guess, but for a raunchy modern comedy, it carries some very traditionalist messages.

I kind of hate Good Will Hunting for similar reasons. If you're smart but troubled stop reading so many books and doing loser math problems and become a Hollywood screenwriter, bro.

 

[Doctor Cringelord]

I kind of hate Good Will Hunting for similar reasons.

That's an interesting one now that you mention it. Nothing against the Minnie Driver character, who was certainly going through her own shit, but the movie seemed to ultimately hand us the most formulaic possible ending where all is well for our hero because he ran to chase after a special girl in the end. Like, Will had a lot of shit to process and deal with, but fuck all of that, your life will end happily ever after if you just go track Minnie Driver down and propose or something.

Movies really do want us to believe that a monogamous relationship is the cure to all possible ills.

 

[Totenkindly]

eh, I didn't really take either that way. I just remember 40 Year Old Virgin being funny but was not reading any overall morals into it. I don't really remember details at this point, I just took it all as a running joke and some guy looking for his own personal happiness.

For Good Will Hunting, I felt like it was just saying that obsessive behaviors that dominate your personality can make you pretty angry and unhappy, and there's something to be said about 'stupid things' like relationships even if they don't make sense to you. I don't necessarily think Minnie Driver was going to cure Will's problems. However, it was a big deal for him to do something "illogical" that involved him placing some trust in another person rather than being so stubbornly self-reliant and walled off relationally from others. This is why his relationship with Sean was so powerful, it was another relationship that he was treating as adversarial rather than as a chance at connection. yeah, Sean did obsess a bit over "intimacy" because he had such a powerful relationship with his wife and maybe that's the lens through which he viewed the world, but it doesn't mean he didn't have something that Will needed to hear.

The big moral for me wasn't that he went after Minnie Driver per se, it was that he took a risk that wasn't all just dependent on himself being the smartest or the most capable; it was way outside his comfort zone; it was something he wasn't naturally the best at. The relationship might not work out regardless, and that would be okay. The thing is that he took a RISK outside of his comfort zone and one that involved another human being.

Ben Affleck's buddy says as much: "“Every day, I come by your house and I pick you up. And we go out. We have a few drinks and a few laughs, and it’s great. But you know what the best part of my day is? For about 10 seconds, from when I pull up to the curb and when I get to your door, ’cause I think maybe I’ll get up there and I’ll knock on the door and you won’t be there. No goodbye. No see you later. No nothing. You just left. I don’t know much, but I know that.” He knows Will is just wasting his life and in a rut because he likes being a big fish in a tiny pond, when he could be so much more, partly because he's just so unhappy and angry all the time -- and his buddy needs to just get out into the world and take some chances to liberate himself from that.