Paranormal Activity anyone?

I'm usually put off movies where the publicity/trailer focuses on people watching the film in the cinema, who then produce over the top screams, reactions and jump 7 feet out of their chair. no thanks!


Will (finally) be going to see 'The Imaginarium Of Doctor Parnasus' on Sunday. As a Gilliam fan, I'm expecting to be let down by the fact it probably wont be anywhere near his greatest works (Brazil, Twelve Monkeys, Time bandits etc), but am still hoping to see the moments of genius I know he can still produce. Pessimistically optimistic....

Yes, I've seen it too - in February 2007 to be precise, because I posted about it on this thread! Like most people who've seen it, I felt a bit short-changed by the way it stopped mid-flow, just as I was wondering how it would end. I did enjoy it, but isn't it the film-maker's responsibility to provide an ending? Discuss...

(On second thoughts, don't discuss, we can't go hijacking this thread again )

It's definitely got potential but agree with MLD that the audience reactions shots are a little bit off putting & unnecessary. It supposedly only cost $15,000 to make & it's being touted as the next 'Blair Witch Project' (it's also got a certain Mr Spielberg raving about it which certainly won't hurt it's chances of doing well at the 'box office' )...

Okay Billy, we won't make it a great debate on Cache, but I think the film does its job and leaves us to do the rest. By the way did you watch the final sequence VERY closely as a little bomb is dropped there. I admit that not tying things up in the end is a no-no for some kind of films, but not a European art film. The White Ribbon also leaves the viewer a great deal to think about. When I'm finished my courses I want to see some more Haneke films. He may be the best filmmaker going at the moment. Right now I'm working on an essay about The French Connection, and how the Popeye Doyle character and is the latest in a series of "gangster cops" beginng with Jimmy Cagney's G-Man. Lotsa fun.

The Times has just produced its Top 100 films of the decade. You'll be pleased to know Pouzar that Caché/Hidden is Number 1! Mind you, the list doesn't include, for example, The Departed, In Bruges, Amelie, The Pianist or Pan's Labyrinth, so it makes you wonder how many films whoever compiled it has actually seen

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/ ... =96&page=9

These lists are very personal so I'm reluctant to criticize. I've seen a lot on this list and some of them are very, very good. Some of the choices also strike me as daft, but as I suggested allowances have to be made for personal taste. Cache/Hidden may well be the best film on the list, although The White Ribbon, which probably hasn't opened in England yet (I saw it at a film fest), is on a similar level. Michael Haneke can be depressing, but he is brilliant. Probably the world's top director at present. What amazes me is the Bourne films at Number 2. I can see them making the top 100, although not my top 100, but second? I see Lives of Others came in at 12th. I'll show this to my son who may want to download some of the ones we haven't seen. I didn't see Fadi Akin's The Edge of Heaven on the list, which surprises me. Great film by the German born director of Turkish origin. Thanks for posting a link to the list.

What is it that 'makes' a best film though? Enjoyment? Cinematography? An accurate portrayal of its intentions? Something different? Excitement? Comedy? Surely it is (as has been pointed out) so very personal. For instance, many of you raved about 'The Lives of Others', I have no doubt it you enjoyed it (obviously) and I'm guessing it was an accurate portrayal of the Stazi, well made and accurate historically etc - but for me it was dull as dishwater. On the flipside, I'm sure a lot of my favourite films might be too 'Hollywood', 'unoriginal' or inaccurate for example. It often strikes me that the creators of lists like these, the Barry Norman's of this world for example see so many films that typical 'Hollywood nonsense' just can't cut it for them anymore. One film I have seen recently that stood way above the rest was 'The Proposal' with Ryan Reynolds & Sandra Bullock. I doubt it will appear on many folks greatrest list, and it may just have been where I was at the time, but it made me laugh, it made me cry (man the eff up BFM) Sandra was gorgeous and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Which puts it WAY above "The lives of others" (for example - not slagging it specifically) for me anyway.

At the end of the day the top 100 movies list produced by The Times is based solely on the viewing spectrum of three individuals so it was always doomed to containing a few questionable selections as well as making a number of glaring omissions.

I've seen just over 40 of the movies contained on that list, those that I've haven't seen either didn't appeal to me (based on the trailer, storyline, reviews etc) or simply didn't register.

However I purchased a copy of 'Hidden' earlier today (it's only £5 @ HMV) and when I'm in that mood for that sort of movie I will give it a go & very much hope that it lives up to it's number one status ...

Here's a 'revenge' movie that could very well end up deserving a place in the definitive top 100 movies of the decade list ;

Harry Brown



Here's a trailer for what looks like (IMO ) a pretty decent monster movie;

The Wolfman



Do you like to digest your Greek mythology wth a '300' flavoured coating? Then you're probably going to find the following trailer rather tasty;

Clash Of The Titans

Nice choices RB. I left the Harry Brown to last as I thought it would be the one I'd like least but it looks awesome.

I was disappointed by 300 but Clash of the Titans looks good as does Wolfman. I might have to get the cinema for a change to watch one or both of those.

Based on the trailer & pre-release word of mouth I can't see 'Harry Brown' being anything other than a top notch movie, definitely one that I'm looking forward to catching at some point in the future.

As for the other two, both trailers work very well indeed but there's really no way of telling whether or not either movie will live up to them (hopefully they will)...

Just finished watching the following movie on Sky Premiere;

Redbelt



Found this to be a very decent martial arts flavoured dramatic thriller and it's well worth catching IMO if you have access to this channel (I do find it quite strange that it's only been given the 5:30pm slot considering it's the strongest flick making an appearance on Sky Premiere this week)...

Here's a few more future releases that are (possibly ) worth looking forward to;

Edge Of Darkness



Season Of The Witch



Kick-Ass



Brothers



Solomon Kane

Saw it tonight - ace
I actually believe the audience reaction shots!


If you're a bit nervous maybe don't watch it on a school night

Went to see the following movie earlier today;

Avatar



I really, really enjoyed this, so much so that I'll definitely be making an amendment my 2009 top three movie list later today .

This is unquestionably one of the most visually stunning movies I've ever seen and I strongly recommend that you make the effort to catch it (in 3D) on the big screen ...

I happily second the recommendation that you see Avatar and add that if you can possibly manage it you must see it on a 6-storey high IMAX screen. It is visually spellbinding. My girlfriend and I were literally in awe from the beginning although we were laughing at the tiresomely predictable end. In IMAX with the 3D glasses on it's like being inside a giant, beautiful world, where fascinating, unique and very dangerous things are constantly happening right in your face. It really is amazing. You literally get vertigo when people lean over cliffs or dangle on the edge of tree branches. I don't know how you compare the visuals in this film to Lawrence of Arabia or The Searchers, but it is unlike anything I have ever seen before. Cameron is certainly not a compositional genius but it is incredibly imaginative and the "you are there" feeling comfortably tops anything that has come before it. I would like to add that the story and script are as complex as the images but I'm afraid it's 99% spectacle and 1% ideas. The ideas - greed, capitalism and unjustifiable use of military power are bad, nature and aboriginal peoples of all kinds are good, are congenial but not very deep, not rising much above the cartoon level. Consider yourself free to apply all this to contemporary politics. Much of the dialogue and all of the last 30 minutes are flat out dumb, predictable an hour in advance and as simple as the technology is complex, but really, the spectacle is so compelling that you won't mind much. Personally, I'll take The White Ribbon, but I strongly recommend finding Avatar in an IMAX cinema, don't know how common they are in the UK, and splashing the cash for this. As long as you don't expect profundity you will not be disappointed. I'm not a huge fan of contemporary Hollywood cinema because spectacle without thought-provoking content generally bores me, but this spectacle demands to be seen. My 17-year-old, who generally refuses to watch anything but European art films, has now agreed to go, so I will be seeing it again.

The footage Razor posted is tempting but in IMAX with 3d glasses on it will knock your socks right off your feet. Really there is no comparison. I flipped out over the 20th Century Fox logo in IMAX 3D, let alone the film that followed.

It Happened on 5th Avenue (1947)

Well that was just about the best Christmas - Scrooge comes good - movie I've seen. Good old TCM.
This little gem has kept itself well hidden from me for an awful long time - The cast - never heard on any of them but they were all terrific. Recommended

Just a quick reminder that District 9 is now available to purchase on both DVD & Blu-Ray ...

Is it an Oscar worthy film?

It is certainly Oscar worthy but unfortunately not Oscar friendly IMO ...

Ignore the Oscars. They are a shallow spectacle, just like contemporary Hollywood cinema. Hitchcock never got a directing Oscar, Scorcese lost for Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Mean Streets, Raging Bull etc. and won for The Departed. Pacino lost for his Godfather performances and won for Scent of a Woman, perhaps the worst example of grotesque overacting in screen history. I could fill pages with similar observations. It's all about politics and money and the people voting are full of it. For years the five best nominated films are usually in the foreign film category, although they often get those wrong as well. I stopped watching years ago.

Not forgetting that Citizen Kane missed out b/c of the similarities between the eponymous lead and William Randolph Hearst, a media magnate who used his "paper power" to get the film ignored.

A couple of movies that may be worth catching later this year;

Inception



Iron Man 2

Finally managed to catch this on Sky Movies Premiere this weekend, it's an enjoyably twisted little thriller & is well worth your time IMO...

For Billy Whiz, or really anyone interested in thought-provoking cinema, here is an excellent interview with Michael Haneke, probably the most important director working today. The story/interview is mainly about The White Ribbon, Haneke's new film set in Germany just before the outbreak of WWI, which I (and many others) consider the best of the year. Like The Class in 2008, it won the highest award at Cannes. Haneke also talks a bit about Cache (aka Hidden), another strong candidate for film of the decade. Reading Haneke's answers to the questions is a lesson in how intellectually challenging films are made. I loved The White Ribbon at the Edmonton International Film Festival and can't wait to see it again.

http://www.salon.com/entertainment/movi ... /02/haneke

Blades of Glory! BBC ONE NOW!

The Hangover - As expected, pretty good 4/5

Let the right one in - Subtitled Swedish vampire film - ok 3/5, but too slow. Critically acclaimed I believe, but why does anything 'arty' have to be so slow? Make it pretty/clever, but that does not mean I want to look at a leaf for 2 minutes

Has anyone seen 'The Road' yet?

I'm pretty convinced from the reviews that I will love it. But is it a film you can take the girlfriend to?

Any comments appreciated!

It only got 2/5 from the Telegraph's chief film reviewer:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film ... eview.html

The John Hillcoat/Nick Cave partnership worked well with The Proposition, but if most of the reviews are along these lines, I'd be more inclined to read the book (one of Cormac McCarthy's that I haven't yet read) than watch the film.