Movie Recomendations

[Tellenbach]

Kick Ass: Chloe Moretz Grace peaked early and has been on a steady decline since
Wreck-It Ralph: big oaf learns to appreciate himself; it's much better than the trailers suggest
Ramona and Beezus: from Beverly Cleary's books; great childrens film
The King's Speech: a Colin Firth film about the king who learns how to overcome a speech impediment

 

[erg]

I just watched "Eastern Promises". A good look at the russian mafia, and very well acted. Great performance by Viggo Mortensen.

 

[EJCC]

Some of my (relatively) recent favorites:

- The Social Network -- fictionalized account of the creation of Facebook. Just... wonderful, in every way. Great music by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Great writing by Aaron Sorkin, great acting by the whole cast (especially Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg), great directing by David Fincher. Stylistically one of my favorite films ever, even if it isn't in my top 10 overall.

- The Big Short -- amazingly well-acted and well-written film about the men who predicted the downfall of the housing market bubble. I swear I don't just love the film because one of my favorite metal songs ("Blood and Thunder" by Mastodon) has a significant cameo. I love it because it's funny, it's smart, you learn a lot by watching it, and you really care about the characters by the end.

- Zootopia -- one of the most progressive and "woke" movies I have ever seen, even though it's about cute animals in a cute animal city. Fucking incredible. I have no idea who convinced Disney to make a movie about racism, ableism, and systemic bias, but thank God for that person. Not to mention, the animation and voice acting are wonderful. And...

THERE IS A BREAKING BAD SCENE WITH BIGHORN SHEEP NAMED "WOOLTER AND JESSE"

- Bernie -- one of my all-time favorites. Based on a true story of a funeral home director turned murderer in a small Texas town. What makes it so wonderful, other than great acting and great writing and a generally Coenesque sensibility, is the fact that 80% of the actors are real citizens of the town, only vaguely scripted and mostly improvising. Charming, dark, and gut-bustingly hilarious.

[MENTION=7]Totenkindly[/MENTION]

I actually prefer Unbreakable to Sixth Sense, but I really like both movies. Something about Bruce Willis' journey in Unbreakable really gets me.

I need to rewatch that movie. It wasn't what I expected, so I didn't like it, but I think I would like it a lot if I came at it with different expectations. It was a creative, interesting, thoughtful, and moving film. But it was much slower paced than I would have preferred at the time.

The King's Speech: a Colin Firth film about the king who learns how to overcome a speech impediment

I love this movie.

 

[SearchingforPeace]

I need to rewatch that movie. It wasn't what I expected, so I didn't like it, but I think I would like it a lot if I came at it with different expectations. It was a creative, interesting, thoughtful, and moving film. But it was much slower paced than I would have preferred at the time.

For me, it was many films that hit me about living up to potential and sacrificing sometimes unnecessarily. I look at them now as nudges I didn't listen to.

I rewatched it a few months ago and I related too much to Bruce Willis's character, with certain aspects hitting me very strongly..... It is an absolutely beautiful film and at a slower pace and with so much left unsaid, unlike most films these days......

 

[Totenkindly]

I felt like Unbreakable was a little underwhelming in spots in terms of the plots, or had a few "blips" in it... but it had some really beautiful sections -- I really liked Robin Wright and Bruce Willis working out their marriage, and Bruce having to overcome the things that had been holding him back and finding his purpose; it was very well-done. I also really love that whole opening sequence -- not just the beautifully understated conversation on the train but then when Willis wakes up in the hospital, and in the foreground is that guy with the slow bleed slowly soaking the bandage like a growing spider... you're listening to one level of dialogue but the images are telling you something as well. I guess I really hate movies that end with placards, though... uggh... i think he expected there to be a sequel and/or there might have been a slightly different ending. I just felt like The Sixth Sense didn't have the slight blemishes (aside from the "Stuttering Stanley" scene which I'd love to clip out of the movie... everything was perfectly spliced together, and it was like one of the "old/young lady" or "bunny/rabbit" pictures where both interpretations work at once.

-----

I just finished Before Sunset (and saw Before Sunrise the other night), so I just have Before Midnight to watch. The first two movies (Ethan Hawk and Julie Delpy, directed like Linklater) have just been wonderful even though they are essentially just dialogue. It's just the fuzzy focus and openness of the dialogue that feels very natural and realistic much of the time, and the depth of what they are sharing... plus both characters really seem to delight in each other even when they're not happy per se.

I would guess that watching the first 20 minutes of the first movie will give you an idea of whether it's something you like; and if you like that, you'd probably like all three movies.

 

[Tellenbach]

Innerspace: Dennis Quaid finds himself inside Meg Ryan. Liked it but not sure how well it holds up.
My Cousin Vinny: Joe Pesci as a lawyer; that's an instant winner of a premise.
A Fish Called Wanda: There's one scene near the end that's hilarious.
500 Days of Summer: one of the better rom-coms but you have to watch The Graduate first

 

[Abendrot]

The Pianist: Inspired by the experience of a Jewish pianist in WW2. A showcase of the holocaust, and the haunting dissonance between the beauty of music and the sordid state of the world.

Saving Private Ryan: Needs no description.

V for Vendetta: Remember, remember, the fifth of November. Vengeance, revolution and freedom.

2001: A space odyssey: A sci-fi reincarnation of Nietzsche's Thus Spake Zarathustra. Also possibly the most laconic movie in existence.

Harakiri (1962): A bitter old samurai who has lost everything gets his revenge. Deconstruction of samurai bushido culture.

Cube: The cube feels almost like something alive. Its existence itself is an explicable horror, and there is something vaguely Lovecraftian about it. The premise is genius, but the acting and budget are subpar.

Gattaca: A dystopian near future in which people's lives are determined by their genetics, and the story of one man who overcomes his destiny.

City of Life and Death: Historical film set during the Rape of Nanking. An unrelenting and harrowing glimpse into the psychology of perpetrators and victims.

The End of Evangelion: Where do I even begin...

Bladerunner: A movie that's so bad, that it's good.

The Last Emperor: Inspired by the life of Puyi, the last emperor of China, and an exposition of his metamorphosis from being the emperor to an ordinary citizen of the PRC.

Das Boot: A film that seeks to present very viscerally the experience of serving in a U-boat in WW2.

 

[Tellenbach]

The Fly: This is a good one.
The Howling: At the time, the special effects of this werewolf film were considered amazing.
The Man With Two Brains: Probably tied with Roxanne for Steve Martin's funniest film.

 

[Hiraeth]

Here's a random assortment of some films that I really enjoyed and find have unique, interesting plotlines.

Blue Velvet: A college student returns to his hometown where he encounters a severed ear that leads him on a sensual, dangerous journey in order to solve a deadly mystery. It's a David Lynch film, so anyone who's familiar with Lynch knows it's not going to be completely sane. XD

The Room: One of the greatest films ever made. I would put it up there with Citizen Kane. Impeccable acting, storyline, all around phenomenal. Just watch.

Heathers: A chickflick, but generally darker than most under this genre. It sort of reminds me of a more sinister Mean Girls. Stars Winona Ryder and Christian Slater as young high school lovers who plot to kill a clique of 3 popular girls all named Heather.

 

[Tellenbach]

The Stepfather (1987): Mild mannered stepdad is pushed to the breaking point by unruly teens. Watch it for Terry O'Quinn's amazing performance.
Cocoon: The only Steve Guttenberg film that's any good outside of the first Police Academy.
War Games: Teen hacker inadvertently starts WWIII.

 

[Tellenbach]

Tombstone: Val Kilmer's best role. One of the few westerns I enjoy.
This is 40: If you can get past the annoying mom character, the movie's pretty funny.
Little Miss Sunshine: A fun road trip film.

 

[SearchingforPeace]

Tombstone: Val Kilmer's best role. One of the few westerns I enjoy.

I love Westerns and Tombstone is excellent. "I'll be your Huckleberry".....

I love the Clint Eastwood Westerns and Unforgiven is great, exploring issues of redemption and vengeance and justice, or lack thereof.

High Noon and The Ox-Bow Incident are westerns exploring very important ideas from the 50s.

 

[Tellenbach]

I love the Clint Eastwood Westerns and Unforgiven is great, exploring issues of redemption and vengeance and justice, or lack thereof.

High Noon and The Ox-Bow Incident are westerns exploring very important ideas from the 50s.

I liked Unforgiven but thought the pace was a bit slow. High Noon hasn't held up very well, imo. The villains in that era just aren't very intimidating by today's standards. The remake of True Grit with Jeff Bridges was excellent and better than the original. The Magnificent Seven remake was fun but not a good film. There's a plot hole near the end that's just not believable.

 

[SearchingforPeace]

I liked Unforgiven but thought the pace was a bit slow. High Noon hasn't held up very well, imo. The villains in that era just aren't very intimidating by today's standards. The remake of True Grit with Jeff Bridges was excellent and better than the original. The Magnificent Seven remake was fun but not a good film. There's a plot hole near the end that's just not believable.

Westerns go at slow paces. It a slower world.

I liked also 3:10 to Yuma remake for a little faster pace....

 

[Norrsken]

Zootopia was such a pleasurable watch for me this year. I just love Disney movies. I love pretending to be a child again and eat cookies and a shit ton of milk.

10/10 would recommend for the inner child.

 

[Edgar]

I just watched Zombeavers on Netflix. The quality of the film exceeded my expectations by a wide margin. I recommend it.

 

[Tater]

eye in the sky: an excellent, theatrical depiction of drone warfare
the room: the best worst movie ever made, in my opinion
collateral: i'm not a big fan of tom cruise, but it was interesting to see him play a villain
if you like scary movies, i can't recommend the conjuring enough
pulp fiction: too many reasons why i think this movie rocks
the martian: one of those movies where you walk out and you don't really have anything to critique about it

 

[Z Buck McFate]

I love Westerns and Tombstone is excellent. "I'll be your Huckleberry".....

I love the Clint Eastwood Westerns and Unforgiven is great, exploring issues of redemption and vengeance and justice, or lack thereof.

High Noon and The Ox-Bow Incident are westerns exploring very important ideas from the 50s.

That scene from For A Few Dollars More- where Manco meets Mortimer and they're shooting at each other's hats- is one of my favorite scenes ever.

And I use Kilmer's huckleberry line every chance I get.

 

[SearchingforPeace]

eye in the sky: an excellent, theatrical depiction of drone warfare
the room: the best worst movie ever made, in my opinion
collateral: i'm not a big fan of tom cruise, but it was interesting to see him play a villain
if you like scary movies, i can't recommend the conjuring enough
pulp fiction: too many reasons why i think this movie rocks
the martian: one of those movies where you walk out and you don't really have anything to critique about it

Collateral was good, but I was going for the opposite ending....

Another movie I love but with the ending annoying me was Heat.

Usual Suspects is absolutely perfect.

 

[Tater]

Collateral was good, but I was going for the opposite ending....

Another movie I love but with the ending annoying me was Heat.

Usual Suspects is absolutely perfect.

i'll check those out. i've never seen them, but they sound like i would like them.