Last movie you saw? v2.0

[soupytwist]

Top Gun - 3/10. Awful film, was really surprised how bad I found it to be. Almost nothing works and the action scenes sucked as well, I got no real sense of positioning or tactics during any of it. Nor did any of the film have any sense of urgency or suspense. Stuff just happens. And there was zero chemistry between Maverick and that lady.

Top Gun Maverick - 8,5/10. Visually the film is just fantastic and the action is top notch. Plot/characterwise it is that typical action film plot, but just executed flawlessly with great pacing. Probably one of the best of it's kind, it has to be one of the biggest sequel upgrades and one of the best nostalgia "remember the 80's?" films.

That's my take as well.  I hate Top Gun and really had no interest in Maverick at all, but the reviews got me curious - and when I saw it, yeah it's very good (although Bullet Train and Everything Everywhere All At Once both just top it for most fun action movies of the year).

As for sequels upgrades the only one that I can think with that kind of massive jump in quality is Star Trek : Motion Picture (which is dull) to Wrath of Khan (which is awesome).

[Stadler]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that thought Top Gun sucked.   Horrible movie (and by coincidence, I watched it AGAIN three nights ago).  So much of that movie was caricature and cliche (and Tom throws like a... what's the right expression these days?  In any event, when he throws the dog tags, you can tell he was always the last one picked in elementary school). 

[lordxizor]

Nope

Pretty good, though like most monster movies it's better when you only catch small glimpses of the monster. The mystery of what it is is way more scary and interesting than the reality of it.

I liked ‘Nope’ but don’t think it earned the level of revere it garnered. The unique nature of the UFO aspect was creative but outside of that the rest of the elements of thr movie were just average IMO

Yeah, I was surprised to see it on some best of 2022 lists as I recall hearing it was good, but not great when it came out. And I agree with that sentiment. I think there's a lot of love for Jordan Peele (and rightly so) which helped elevate it in some people's minds. I did enjoy the performances by the main few actors.

[Grappler]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that thought Top Gun sucked.   Horrible movie (and by coincidence, I watched it AGAIN three nights ago).  So much of that movie was caricature and cliche (and Tom throws like a... what's the right expression these days?  In any event, when he throws the dog tags, you can tell he was always the last one picked in elementary school).

Tom Cruise was a high-school wrestler (pictured on top).  You may think he's not a big, masculine, athletic guy when he throws, but being a former wrestler myself, I can guarantee that he's just as tough, or even tougher than many guys who play big, manly sports like football or hockey.  Everyone discounts us wrestlers. 

[pg1067]

Yeah...if that's stuff from the source book, then it makes a lot of sense, and it's a little puzzling why they didn't take 20 seconds to highlight it in the movie.  First Blood came out during my sophomore year of HS, and I'm pretty sure my best friend's older brother took us to see it (either or we bought tickets for something else and snuck in).  Such a great movie and, other than LOOKING like it's from 1982, it totally holds up today.

Top Gun?  I honestly can't recall seeing it all the way through.  I'm sure I have, but I don't recall it.  Given when it came out, I probably saw it in a drive-in and spent more time drinking than watching.  Isn't it now basically known as the quintessential '80s cheese-fest movie?  I have a good friend who adores it and saw the new one multiple times when it was released, but I kinda discount her opinion (she's also a massive fan of Grease, so....).

Iron Eagle, on the other hand....  CHAPPY!!!!!

[ZirconBlue]

So, everyone talking about Rambo are actually talking about First Blood, right?  Rambo was the second film.


Fun memory:  when I was a kid we rented First Blood from the local video store.  Unfortunately, inside the case was In Cold Blood, the Truman Capote movie fromt he 60s.  That was a very confusing viewing experience.

[pg1067]

So, everyone talking about Rambo are actually talking about First Blood, right?  Rambo was the second film.

You are correct.  Unfortunately, the movies got progressively worse (although I haven't yet seen Last Blood).

[Adami]

Finally saw The Whale last night.

My wife refused to go because all the social media talk is about how it's fat shaming and stuff. I really liked it actually. Didn't see it as fat shaming at all. Sadly there's little hint of the director there as the visuals are pretty....bland. But the performances and most of the writing is just outstanding. A few issues with it but mostly with the speed of the resolution. Otherwise some really really great stuff.

[ZirconBlue]

See How They Run - a comedic whodunit starring Sam Rockwell, Saoirse Ronan, et al. Now available on HBO Max. A murder is committed in a theater after the 100th performance of Agatha Christie's play The Mousetrap. Hilarity ensues. It's especially fun if you're familiar with The Mousetrap.

[Adami]

Banshees of Inshiren.

Really fantastic flick! The writing is great and original, the directing is beautiful, the cast is superb and it just goes where you never quite expect it to despite it not trying to pull any twists. Loved this film and will probably have to watch it again at some point.

[King Postwhore]

Banshees of Inshiren.

Really fantastic flick! The writing is great and original, the directing is beautiful, the cast is superb and it just goes where you never quite expect it to despite it not trying to pull any twists. Loved this film and will probably have to watch it again at some point.

It was gut wrenchingly beautiful.

[MirrorMask]

Banshees of Inshiren.

Really fantastic flick! The writing is great and original, the directing is beautiful, the cast is superb and it just goes where you never quite expect it to despite it not trying to pull any twists. Loved this film and will probably have to watch it again at some point.

It was gut wrenchingly beautiful.

It made me want to visit Ireland.

[Stadler]

Top Gun?  I honestly can't recall seeing it all the way through.  I'm sure I have, but I don't recall it.  Given when it came out, I probably saw it in a drive-in and spent more time drinking than watching.  Isn't it now basically known as the quintessential '80s cheese-fest movie?  I have a good friend who adores it and saw the new one multiple times when it was released, but I kinda discount her opinion (she's also a massive fan of Grease, so....).

No irony, no sarcasm, pure sincerity:  Grease is to Top Gun as Bobby Flay's Gato is to McDonald's.  Not even in the same league as far as I'm concerned.   

[Stadler]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that thought Top Gun sucked.   Horrible movie (and by coincidence, I watched it AGAIN three nights ago).  So much of that movie was caricature and cliche (and Tom throws like a... what's the right expression these days?  In any event, when he throws the dog tags, you can tell he was always the last one picked in elementary school).

Tom Cruise was a high-school wrestler (pictured on top).  You may think he's not a big, masculine, athletic guy when he throws, but being a former wrestler myself, I can guarantee that he's just as tough, or even tougher than many guys who play big, manly sports like football or hockey.  Everyone discounts us wrestlers. 

No, no, there is no disrespect to wresters; some of the toughest dudes I know are high school wrestlers.  Coincidentally, in college I lived on the same floor as two CT State champs, one (Phil) supposedly a legend; undefeated in high school or some shit like that.  We used to play tackle football, dorm against dorm, for beers.  The single greatest tackle I've ever seen in person was by that guy.  Absolutely demolished a guy about twice his size; the guy had momentum, was about three yards from the end zone and Phil came across the field and hit him right in the hip and sent him out of bounds about two-and-a-half yards from the end zone.  The other, Mike, was probably the best street fighter I've ever seen; he was probably 5'6", 155 when I knew him and I once saw him whallop a dude who was easily half a foot taller and had 50 pounds on him.  Had a temper that one. 

Tom Cruise still throws like a girl, though. 

[pg1067]

Top Gun?  I honestly can't recall seeing it all the way through.  I'm sure I have, but I don't recall it.  Given when it came out, I probably saw it in a drive-in and spent more time drinking than watching.  Isn't it now basically known as the quintessential '80s cheese-fest movie?  I have a good friend who adores it and saw the new one multiple times when it was released, but I kinda discount her opinion (she's also a massive fan of Grease, so....).

No irony, no sarcasm, pure sincerity:  Grease is to Top Gun as Bobby Flay's Gato is to McDonald's.  Not even in the same league as far as I'm concerned.

Bobby Flay has a cat?

I've definitely never seen Grease all the way through, but from what I've seen, Grease is to Top Gun as Look What the Cat Dragged In is to Back in Black.

[King Postwhore]

Banshees of Inshiren.

Really fantastic flick! The writing is great and original, the directing is beautiful, the cast is superb and it just goes where you never quite expect it to despite it not trying to pull any twists. Loved this film and will probably have to watch it again at some point.

It was gut wrenchingly beautiful.

It made me want to visit Ireland.

It's a dream for my wife & I.

[Cool Chris]

My wife and 11 year old had plans to go to Ireland in April 2020. SiL was working there on assignment. Cancelled of course, and finally rescheduled for this April. I do not really want to go, and we decided it doesn't make much sense to take the 5 year old, so she and I are staying home.

[Dream Team]

Sea Beast

Amazing animated flick on Netflix! You won’t be disappointed.

[Phoenix87x]

The Dead Zone with christopher walken. God, I love this movie

[hefdaddy42]

After watching the first 2 seasons of Prime Video's Jack Ryan show, I went back and re-watched Harrison Ford's 2 Ryan films, Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger.

Yep, that's the Ryan I remember.  Of course, the films are different in many ways from the original novels, but Ryan is at least recognizable, which is not the case for me with the show.

[El Barto]

After watching the first 2 seasons of Prime Video's Jack Ryan show, I went back and re-watched Harrison Ford's 2 Ryan films, Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger.

Yep, that's the Ryan I remember.  Of course, the films are different in many ways from the original novels, but Ryan is at least recognizable, which is not the case for me with the show.

I enjoyed the two Harrison Ford movies. I (re)watched them a while back when I had Covid. I still prefer Red October, though. I'm a sucker for submarine movies. I also thought Baldwin was just a better choice for Ryan.

[Cool Chris]

The Dead Zone with christopher walken. God, I love this movie

Good book, somehow missed out on the movie.

Never read a Jack Ryan book. Highly enjoyed Red October and the two Ford films.

[Stadler]

After watching the first 2 seasons of Prime Video's Jack Ryan show, I went back and re-watched Harrison Ford's 2 Ryan films, Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger.

Yep, that's the Ryan I remember.  Of course, the films are different in many ways from the original novels, but Ryan is at least recognizable, which is not the case for me with the show.

I enjoyed the two Harrison Ford movies. I (re)watched them a while back when I had Covid. I still prefer Red October, though. I'm a sucker for submarine movies. I also thought Baldwin was just a better choice for Ryan.

I'm with you on that.  I LOVED that first movie, and honestly, I've stayed away from the rest of the Ryan works.  They just don't seem to appeal to me in the way that the first one.

[El Barto]

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

Damn,  Claudia Cardinale was smoking hot. Always been a fan. Great role for her, too. Bronson was alright in it. Nothing new for him. He was sure rugged as all get out. It might be the first role where I really liked Jason Robards, though. He was great. And Henry Fonda as a [horribly] bad guy is a hoot. Those steely blue eyes of his were magnificent for the badguy closeups. Good cast for what he was going for.

Overall, textbook Sergio Leone. Very slow pacing, timed as much by the music as the actual narrative. Unlike TMwNN trilogy he tells parts of this story as flashbacks, so you have to pay attention, and you don't really piece the whole thing together until late in the film. Much like TGtBatU, you're not always sure who's on which team, or even how many teams there are. They all seem to be badguys, only with different angles. That was a nice touch. Because of the slow pacing I really wasn't digging it until about 30 minutes in. From there it got better and better, culminating in a wonderful showdown at the end. Much like another of his famous showdowns, made all the better by working with the music. I don't think there's any question that Leone/Morricone pretty much perfected combining film and sound, and this was a real clinic. On top of the Morricone bit, the editing of it was absolutely perfect. I watched the final shooting like 5 times marveling at how well it was done.

Overall I'd certainly recommend it, but I get that most people aren't going to invest two-hours-forty in a movie so slowly paced. To those people I'd simply suggest watching the shootout between Harmonica and Hank Fonda, easily findable on YT. The inclination will be to compare it to the final showdown in TGtBatU, but that's probably not a fair comparison, with it being both iconic and original. That was Leone/Morricone at their finest. In some ways this one is just as good, if not better, though. It's certainly better edited.

[Orbert]

I like westerns, and that includes "spaghetti westerns", but for some reason I've never seen Once Upon a Time in the West.

Actually, now that I think about it, I like the Clint Eastwood flicks but I'm kinda lukewarm on westerns in general.  I know it's sacrilege, but John Wayne bugs the hell out of me.  I've never seen him in anything where I wasn't 100% sure that he was acting.  He was always a caricature, not a character.  But I do like Bronson and Robards, and I just Googled Claudia Cardinale (consensually of course) so I will have to check this out some time.

[Phoenix87x]

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

Love that movie. Its my favorite western

[Stadler]

Damn,  Claudia Cardinale was smoking hot.

So I googled, and I'm like "Wha?  That's Tony Iommi in drag!"



Then I scrolled, and I got it.

[El Barto]

Damn,  Claudia Cardinale was smoking hot.

So I googled, and I'm like "Wha?  That's Tony Iommi in drag!"



Then I scrolled, and I got it.

Looks more like Paul Stanley in the first pic.

The Pink Panther wasn't a particularly good movie. Aside from the finale and the wonderful Fran Jefferies samba number there wasn't much good about it. However, there's a scene where David Niven is trying to get Claudia Cardinale drunk so-as to bang the girl, and she's absolutely as hot as it gets. Been a fan ever since. That was her at her finest, I reckon, but she did quite well for herself as a rough and tumble Italian gal in a variety of Westerns, and was always great.

[Cool Chris]

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

And Henry Fonda as a [horribly] bad guy is a hoot. Those steely blue eyes of his were magnificent for the badguy closeups. Good cast for what he was going for.

A quick video of Fonda talking about the casting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHI6Hl7FUqA

Unlike TMwNN trilogy he tells parts of this story as flashbacks, so you have to pay attention, and you don't really piece the whole thing together until late in the film.

Yes I had a similar problem when I first watched this years ago. Had a hard time getting engaged in the plot, whereas the Dollars trilogy films had me hooked from the beginning.

The inclination will be to compare it to the final showdown in TGtBatU, but that's probably not a fair comparison, with it being both iconic and original. That was Leone/Morricone at their finest. In some ways this one is just as good, if not better, though.

I always likened it to the showdown between Mortimer and the other guy. Not some guys fighting over some bags of gold. This is personal. Which one is better? That's not a debate I ever want to get involved in. I was working on starting (and abandoned) a thread entitled "Top 5 favorite film scenes" and the final shootout in TGtBatU was on my list, but that is was a "favorites" list.

[El Barto]

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

And Henry Fonda as a [horribly] bad guy is a hoot. Those steely blue eyes of his were magnificent for the badguy closeups. Good cast for what he was going for.

A quick video of Fonda talking about the casting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHI6Hl7FUqA

That's pretty cool. And the friend that told him he'd have a great time doing it was Eli Wallach. Apparently it really was a good time being an American star shooting spaghetti Westerns in Spain. They lived well. Tarantino kind of hinted at that in OUaTiH (and much more so in the novelization).

As is often the case with Leone, the drama from the big showdown is shown in closeups of the faces. He was the perfect counterpart to Harmonica, and those blue eyes made all the difference. Leone really was a clever bastard.

I always likened it to the showdown between Mortimer and the other guy. Not some guys fighting over some bags of gold. This is personal. Which one is better? That's not a debate I ever want to get involved in. I was working on starting (and abandoned) a thread entitled "Top 5 favorite film scenes" and the final shootout in TGtBatU was on my list, but that is was a "favorites" list.

I absolutely love FFoD, but couldn't get through FaFDM. It was just insufferable. Maybe I'll give it another shot, but it wouldn't be the first time I tried.

The final showdown from TGtBatU should be on everybody's favorite scene list. It's an absolute masterpiece of sight and sound. You should do the thread because I suspect we might have more than that one in common. As for which shootout is better, you make a good point about it being personal (and damn was it personal). And like I said, I think the editing was better in Once. TGtBatU was just so spectacular, though. I'd have a hard time arguing against it.

Yes I had a similar problem when I first watched this years ago. Had a hard time getting engaged in the plot, whereas the Dollars trilogy films had me hooked from the beginning.

The Dollars trilogy began with Clint shooting the 4 guys for making fun of his mule. Hard to get much more engaging than that, and it really set the pace. That sucked you in. I think he tried something similar with Once, you didn't bring enough horses. . . in that case you brought two too many. It just didn't go as far, and was the only real scene in the first 15 minutes.

[Cool Chris]

I absolutely love FFoD, but couldn't get through FaFDM. It was just insufferable. Maybe I'll give it another shot, but it wouldn't be the first time I tried.

All these acronyms! FaFDM was the hardest for me to appreciate. Definitely took a second viewing, unlike the others.

Ever seen OUaTiA (Once Upon a Time in America)? I wanted to like it, and while I liked many individual scenes, I can't say I fully enjoyed the film as a whole.

The final showdown from TGtBatU should be on everybody's favorite scene list. It's an absolute masterpiece of sight and sound. You should do the thread because I suspect we might have more than that one in common.

I started it on a Word doc, will see if I still have it.

[El Barto]

Ever seen OUaTiA (Once Upon a Time in America)? I wanted to like it, and while I liked many individual scenes, I can't say I fully enjoyed the film as a whole.

Many many years ago, and I have no recollection of it. I was actually going to continue the Once trilogy tonight (Duck, You Sucker, AKA Fistful of Dynamite is next), but got sidetracked with two other movies. 

[Harmony]

Saw The Fabelmans on NYE.  Meh...it was about an hour too long.  Wait until it comes out on Netflix or something.  Not worth it to sit through in the theater, IMO.

[Stadler]

Saw The Fabelmans on NYE.  Meh...it was about an hour too long.  Wait until it comes out on Netflix or something.  Not worth it to sit through in the theater, IMO.

I don't know why, but that just seems like a movie that I have zero interest in.  It just seems from the ads and what I've read to be very heavy handed, and I've never really been captivated by Spielberg's "whimsy".

Maybe because my life has been... I don't know if "messy" is the right word, but certainly my life in the last year has not been a story book neatly tied up with a bow, with all my dreams coming true, with all the typical Hollywood tropes of retribution and redemption, I've been really gravitating to works that reflect the randomness, the arbitrariness, of what I've been experiencing lately.

[Adami]

Saw The Menu and I've never been more concerned about RJ. You okay bud?


Also going to try to watch as many of the big Oscar noms as possible. And since I assume Fabelmans will be nominated for everything, I'll go check that out.

The only tough one will be Babylon. I have 0 interest in that and other than people like MP, I have not heard much in the way of positive reviews.