Seen any good films lately? [3]

As regards Ben Hur I agree with Petty on this one at least for this film. No amount of cgi is going to fool your brain into thinking the forum racing scene is real. whereas in the real Heston version its blood and guts and you can see that sweat is the sweat of fear. and you really worry for those poor horses smashing into the walls. I don't think they protected animals from getting hurt in the 50s. cgi can work spectacularly for space and fantasy films though, it depends on which film it is.

Chariot races and similar events in Roman times were held in the circus, not the forum, correct? The forum would be a public place like a plaza like the Roman Forum in Rome.

it would be a lot more fun if chariot races were held in the forum.

I think we both agree on that point. Obvious CGI is bad.- Forest

{{{On that we can agree. For me cgi should never be used as a focus of anything- its just another artists tool, for me its best used in modern film like a modern version of an animated matte painting- its for adding stuff, altering subtle things, removing things that shouldn't be there and simulating natural effects difficult or too dangerous to otherwise achieve- and because the eye is easier fooled by animating natural stuff like water, fire or even trees, land ect than people, which we are adept at observing and seeing the flaws in- hence the 'uncanny valley' effect it works best when its an addition to live action, not a replacement for. If any part of your brain whilst watching is going' that's cgi' then it has failed as cgi. A good effect you should not notice is an effect. }}}}

halfwise wrote:it would be a lot more fun if chariot races were held in the forum.

Just getting caught up.

This seems spookily prescient

except for the fun part.

yeah except for that.

I prefer Boudicca's chariot race myself.

I saw Hunt for the Wilderpeople last week. It is hilarious and fun and sad and exciting in all the best ways. You'd have to be a masochistic turtle to not thoroughly love and adore this movie. Taika Waititi (director) simply cannot let you down*. That's all I'm saying.

Also, Deliverance is not a camping movie! For anyone who might be tricked into watching it by ambiguous relatives.   


*Which is why I'm awfully annoyed that stupid Hollywood wankers have hooked him into directing a Thor movie. I mean.. c'mon!


P.S.
I really can't stress the whole "Wilderpeople is great" enough. Here we have crap-films like Sausage Party opening to 133 Million dollars in over 3,000 theatres, but something awesome like Wilderpeople only makes it briefly onto 200 screens in the U.S.

Argh! What injustice!

At least it did really well in New Zealand. Apparently it had the most financially successful opening weekend in New Zealand of any New Zealand film ever, so that's something.

P.P.S.
Not that I care about the economics of film releases. I was just thinking about how terrible Sausage Party is and how great Hunt for the Wilderpeople is.

This, is exactly the kind of review I like from the soul Young, carefree & excited in equal measure

Just saw suicide squad and didn't think it was half bad. They had a typical over-the-top-throw-all-the-CGI-at-it-instead-of-write-a-real-story climax, but I wouldn't call it a complete mess. More of a failed promise - but I think a little bit of tweaking the script and re-editing could have fixed it. I also felt the Joker had a strong presence; if anything he was edited down to keep from swallowing up the rest of the cast. He dominates the scenes he was in, so I never felt he was MIA.

Watched the new Dads Army film. Very disappointed.

{{{I suspected as much- somethings should be left alone. Been largely the same with the BBC classic sitcom revival series. Porridge was the best of the bunch as it was not a straight remake but a proper sequel by the original writer with Fletchers grandson in the lead role. Not as good, hard to get another Ronnie Barker- but still I reckon the best of the series. (They did Open All Hours which didnt work, Hancock's Half Hour, Steptoe and Son (still to see that one), To Death do us Part among others}}

Mmmmm, I saw "Are you being served" by the Beeb & I thought it was good Sherrie wotshername was great as Mrs Slocomb I saw the Tony Hancock one & was bored & disappointed by it. Those are the only 2 Ive seen.

cant understand the appeal of the re-make myself. it never works.

I saw the Tony Hancock one & was bored & disappointed by it. - Azriel

{{Me too. As with the Alf Garnett one- wasn't performances were bad- the guy playing Kenneth Williams in Hancock was uncanny.



But the weird way it was staged like a play, with transparent sets and audience in shots and stuff was just off-putting and changed the tone and feel of it. }}

Agreed !

Wow.

I haven't seen Pulp Fiction in 15, 20 years? This is only the second time I think I've seen it. I've completely forgotten how beautiful it is, in little scenes that are usually forgotten. There's at least two versions, for I don't at all recall half the epilogue, where the first half was originally in chronological order. How could Harvey Keitel have been cut out? And the iconic poster scene of Uma Thurman smoking in bed didn't even exist in this version.

Maybe my feelings are colored by the entire bottle of wine I consumed while watching it, but I felt it justified. It's Tarentino's pinnacle. I'm in awe.

I also had to edit every line of this three times. A bottle of wine will do that to you.

Never seen Pulp Fiction

What! Fix that.

I also had to edit every line of this three times. A bottle of wine will do that to you.- Halfy

{{Amateur! }}

If you ever get a chance to watch this film. its very beautiful and haunting, documentary-film  its about the little island of Lampedusa and the migrant crisis, half the docu-film is focused on the quiet and simple lives of the local fishermen and their families, and the other half tells the heartbreaking tale of the migrants as if you were one of them. its spellbinding and you don't need words, although very few are spoken. The doctor of the island should get a Nobel prize for his immense humanity, but he probably would refuse it. its a testament to humanity in all its complexity, its slow and impressionistic, but I couldn't stop watching it, its profoundly amazing. and its real.

Neat-o. I appreciate slow and impressionistic.

Just watched Star Trek into Darkness for the first time. It was in the specials bin for $6 3D blu-ray version. Liked the 3D but probably
wouldn,t watch the film again.