Good films I watched this weekend
Discussion
Skyfall
Tricky one. On the one hand I appreciated the fresh take, the re-aligning of the franchise to the books, the notion that Bond is not infallible and not everything is glamorous in the world of 007.
On the other, I was left wanting. For me, it needed a bit of sparkle amongst the darkness which, DB5 scenes apart, it never delivered. There was no extravagance, very little exotic location and Bond seemed to have lost his ruthless streak.
The opening car / bike chase was flat, as if frankly directed by someone who could not handle action scenes - it was no coincidence the best scenes were the long, luscious land-scape shots, similar to Road to Perdition.
The plot was thin - with Bond this is usually masked by everything else that is going on but here it left a sour taste that no number of quips about vintage-Bond could save.
I lost interest between MI6 and Shanghai - it was disjointed and ploddy.
Overall, I enjoyed it but won't been rushing to see it again.
By comparison I have watched Casino Royale about eight times - I find it gets the mix of fun Bond and real Bond just about right.
7/10
Tricky one. On the one hand I appreciated the fresh take, the re-aligning of the franchise to the books, the notion that Bond is not infallible and not everything is glamorous in the world of 007.
On the other, I was left wanting. For me, it needed a bit of sparkle amongst the darkness which, DB5 scenes apart, it never delivered. There was no extravagance, very little exotic location and Bond seemed to have lost his ruthless streak.
The opening car / bike chase was flat, as if frankly directed by someone who could not handle action scenes - it was no coincidence the best scenes were the long, luscious land-scape shots, similar to Road to Perdition.
The plot was thin - with Bond this is usually masked by everything else that is going on but here it left a sour taste that no number of quips about vintage-Bond could save.
I lost interest between MI6 and Shanghai - it was disjointed and ploddy.
Overall, I enjoyed it but won't been rushing to see it again.
By comparison I have watched Casino Royale about eight times - I find it gets the mix of fun Bond and real Bond just about right.
7/10
porridge said:
Salmon fishing in the Yemen. 
Having read the book, I was baffled when I heard that they were making a film of it. The story just didn't lend itself to the silver screen. Watched it last weekend...and I was right.This weekend I watched The Campaign, with Will Ferrell.
With just a couple of laugh out loud exceptions: utter crap.
Watched Iron Man 2 last night. Very enjoyable, and Robert Downy Jr is brilliant in it, but could have been much better I think.
There seemed to be a large build up, for a fairly short fight scene and not much to happen. Still enjoyable though and I am looking forward to the third one. a 7/10 from me.
There seemed to be a large build up, for a fairly short fight scene and not much to happen. Still enjoyable though and I am looking forward to the third one. a 7/10 from me.
The Last Three Days
Russell Crowe does a half decent job in an extremely improbable plot which wasn't helped by Lovefilm's increasingly freeze-frame and jumpy discs meaning you missed bits of the plot.
The plot is full of improbable holes where belief can't be stretched but overall I quite enjoyed it. The moody child wasn't ever really decently explained and the Plioce Officer flashback at the end was a bit crap.
Russell Crowe does a half decent job in an extremely improbable plot which wasn't helped by Lovefilm's increasingly freeze-frame and jumpy discs meaning you missed bits of the plot.
The plot is full of improbable holes where belief can't be stretched but overall I quite enjoyed it. The moody child wasn't ever really decently explained and the Plioce Officer flashback at the end was a bit crap.
LuS1fer said:
The Last Three Days
Russell Crowe does a half decent job in an extremely improbable plot which wasn't helped by Lovefilm's increasingly freeze-frame and jumpy discs meaning you missed bits of the plot.
The plot is full of improbable holes where belief can't be stretched but overall I quite enjoyed it. The moody child wasn't ever really decently explained and the Plioce Officer flashback at the end was a bit crap.
You even missed the title!Russell Crowe does a half decent job in an extremely improbable plot which wasn't helped by Lovefilm's increasingly freeze-frame and jumpy discs meaning you missed bits of the plot.
The plot is full of improbable holes where belief can't be stretched but overall I quite enjoyed it. The moody child wasn't ever really decently explained and the Plioce Officer flashback at the end was a bit crap.
Gretchen said:
chris watton said:
DuncanM said:
Adam B said:
Haywire - another one I had seen before, a standard agent/assassin character betrayed plot but with a very different feel courtesy of director Steven Soderbergh, imagine a female Bourne with a lower budget and some sex, lies and videotape quirkiness. Refreshing 8/10
Really?Comically bad, the worst acting I have seen for many a year in my opinion.
2/10 from me
In 2001, 'Heist' and 'The Score' were released. I remember a little fact at the time, that both had the majority of their production in Montreal, with the latter, visibly set there. With both films announcing powerhouse casts, it did seem like a studio competition (think 1998 - 'Saving Private Ryan/The Thin Red Line'; 1993/4 - Wyatt Earp/Tombstone) geared to block out audiences with a well-worn cinematic staple.
For some reason I recalled preferring 'Heist'. Mamet affectations aside ("You're the brass ring, babe..." - not sure Hackman really buys into that line when he says it), Delroy Lindo, Ricky Jay and Sam Rockwell are highly watchable. But on revisiting both back-to-back I have to say that 'The Score' stacks up as the better film. Whilst there are slight demerits from a bit of a phoned-in performance by De Niro, and Brando is a just an unnecessarily massive silouhette where an actor used to be, overall as a heist film it's spot on. In much the same vein as Mann's 'Thief', where the protagonist and his actions are all focussed on craft, ability, professional-ism, even down to awesome use of a thermal lance (times have moved on: James Cann needed help with his oxy cutter, where De Niro carries his in a back-pack...), it sticks to the conceit and the plot. No deep inroads into sideline sadsack stories, or less than airtight motivations. Mamet's film, in contrast, ties you up in double-cross and sliding loyalties. It should be called 'The Confidence Game' instead, and the sequence with the ingots, well, it needs explaining.
Mixing things up further, I also watched Kubrick's 'The Killing', again. Many say that it's the first visible genesis of his obvious talent, but I'm not so sure. A familiarly empty quality pervades all his films, and it's certainly present here as well as being a tightly bound delivery, but not as gripping as I remember.
Also, a Sidney Lumet double-bill: 'Prince of the City' and 'The Verdict'. Treat Williams and Paul Newman both give fabulous central performances respectively, where the driving theme is one of a man, uncomfortable with himself and where he is in his profession, wanting to do the right thing. His conscience allows no less. Alongside 'Serpico', Lumet made a trio of films exploring true stories and the labyrinthine procedural matters that are almost as compelling as the simple plot and healthy characterizations.
'The Invisible Man'. Absolute classic. Even though Claude Rains performance strays from H.G. Wells original, it is so well made and must have been the cutting edge back in 1933.
For some reason I recalled preferring 'Heist'. Mamet affectations aside ("You're the brass ring, babe..." - not sure Hackman really buys into that line when he says it), Delroy Lindo, Ricky Jay and Sam Rockwell are highly watchable. But on revisiting both back-to-back I have to say that 'The Score' stacks up as the better film. Whilst there are slight demerits from a bit of a phoned-in performance by De Niro, and Brando is a just an unnecessarily massive silouhette where an actor used to be, overall as a heist film it's spot on. In much the same vein as Mann's 'Thief', where the protagonist and his actions are all focussed on craft, ability, professional-ism, even down to awesome use of a thermal lance (times have moved on: James Cann needed help with his oxy cutter, where De Niro carries his in a back-pack...), it sticks to the conceit and the plot. No deep inroads into sideline sadsack stories, or less than airtight motivations. Mamet's film, in contrast, ties you up in double-cross and sliding loyalties. It should be called 'The Confidence Game' instead, and the sequence with the ingots, well, it needs explaining.
Mixing things up further, I also watched Kubrick's 'The Killing', again. Many say that it's the first visible genesis of his obvious talent, but I'm not so sure. A familiarly empty quality pervades all his films, and it's certainly present here as well as being a tightly bound delivery, but not as gripping as I remember.
Also, a Sidney Lumet double-bill: 'Prince of the City' and 'The Verdict'. Treat Williams and Paul Newman both give fabulous central performances respectively, where the driving theme is one of a man, uncomfortable with himself and where he is in his profession, wanting to do the right thing. His conscience allows no less. Alongside 'Serpico', Lumet made a trio of films exploring true stories and the labyrinthine procedural matters that are almost as compelling as the simple plot and healthy characterizations.
'The Invisible Man'. Absolute classic. Even though Claude Rains performance strays from H.G. Wells original, it is so well made and must have been the cutting edge back in 1933.
The Lincoln Lawyer
A sleazy defense attorney has a crisis of conscience when he represents a wealthy client who has a foolproof plan to beat the system.
I enjoyed this film. The cinematography was slick, the acting was decent (McConaughey is good at this sort of thing), the soundtrack was great (Cliff Martinez).
I like a good legal thriller and the courtroom scenes were excellent. The film takes a fast turn in the final third and really beomes quite gripping.
Sadly the ending, although wrapped up, was a bit rushed and lacklustre.
7.5/10
A sleazy defense attorney has a crisis of conscience when he represents a wealthy client who has a foolproof plan to beat the system.
I enjoyed this film. The cinematography was slick, the acting was decent (McConaughey is good at this sort of thing), the soundtrack was great (Cliff Martinez).
I like a good legal thriller and the courtroom scenes were excellent. The film takes a fast turn in the final third and really beomes quite gripping.
Sadly the ending, although wrapped up, was a bit rushed and lacklustre.
7.5/10
tigerkoi said:
In 2001, 'Heist' and 'The Score' were released. I remember a little fact at the time, that both had the majority of their production in Montreal, with the latter, visibly set there. With both films announcing powerhouse casts, it did seem like a studio competition (think 1998 - 'Saving Private Ryan/The Thin Red Line'; 1993/4 - Wyatt Earp/Tombstone) geared to block out audiences with a well-worn cinematic staple.
For some reason I recalled preferring 'Heist'. Mamet affectations aside ("You're the brass ring, babe..." - not sure Hackman really buys into that line when he says it), Delroy Lindo, Ricky Jay and Sam Rockwell are highly watchable. But on revisiting both back-to-back I have to say that 'The Score' stacks up as the better film. Whilst there are slight demerits from a bit of a phoned-in performance by De Niro, and Brando is a just an unnecessarily massive silouhette where an actor used to be, overall as a heist film it's spot on. In much the same vein as Mann's 'Thief', where the protagonist and his actions are all focussed on craft, ability, professional-ism, even down to awesome use of a thermal lance (times have moved on: James Cann needed help with his oxy cutter, where De Niro carries his in a back-pack...), it sticks to the conceit and the plot. No deep inroads into sideline sadsack stories, or less than airtight motivations. Mamet's film, in contrast, ties you up in double-cross and sliding loyalties. It should be called 'The Confidence Game' instead, and the sequence with the ingots, well, it needs explaining.
Mixing things up further, I also watched Kubrick's 'The Killing', again. Many say that it's the first visible genesis of his obvious talent, but I'm not so sure. A familiarly empty quality pervades all his films, and it's certainly present here as well as being a tightly bound delivery, but not as gripping as I remember.
.
Interesting.For some reason I recalled preferring 'Heist'. Mamet affectations aside ("You're the brass ring, babe..." - not sure Hackman really buys into that line when he says it), Delroy Lindo, Ricky Jay and Sam Rockwell are highly watchable. But on revisiting both back-to-back I have to say that 'The Score' stacks up as the better film. Whilst there are slight demerits from a bit of a phoned-in performance by De Niro, and Brando is a just an unnecessarily massive silouhette where an actor used to be, overall as a heist film it's spot on. In much the same vein as Mann's 'Thief', where the protagonist and his actions are all focussed on craft, ability, professional-ism, even down to awesome use of a thermal lance (times have moved on: James Cann needed help with his oxy cutter, where De Niro carries his in a back-pack...), it sticks to the conceit and the plot. No deep inroads into sideline sadsack stories, or less than airtight motivations. Mamet's film, in contrast, ties you up in double-cross and sliding loyalties. It should be called 'The Confidence Game' instead, and the sequence with the ingots, well, it needs explaining.
Mixing things up further, I also watched Kubrick's 'The Killing', again. Many say that it's the first visible genesis of his obvious talent, but I'm not so sure. A familiarly empty quality pervades all his films, and it's certainly present here as well as being a tightly bound delivery, but not as gripping as I remember.
.
Have you ever had sex with a woman?
blindswelledrat said:
tigerkoi said:
In 2001, 'Heist' and 'The Score' were released. I remember a little fact at the time, that both had the majority of their production in Montreal, with the latter, visibly set there. With both films announcing powerhouse casts, it did seem like a studio competition (think 1998 - 'Saving Private Ryan/The Thin Red Line'; 1993/4 - Wyatt Earp/Tombstone) geared to block out audiences with a well-worn cinematic staple.
For some reason I recalled preferring 'Heist'. Mamet affectations aside ("You're the brass ring, babe..." - not sure Hackman really buys into that line when he says it), Delroy Lindo, Ricky Jay and Sam Rockwell are highly watchable. But on revisiting both back-to-back I have to say that 'The Score' stacks up as the better film. Whilst there are slight demerits from a bit of a phoned-in performance by De Niro, and Brando is a just an unnecessarily massive silouhette where an actor used to be, overall as a heist film it's spot on. In much the same vein as Mann's 'Thief', where the protagonist and his actions are all focussed on craft, ability, professional-ism, even down to awesome use of a thermal lance (times have moved on: James Cann needed help with his oxy cutter, where De Niro carries his in a back-pack...), it sticks to the conceit and the plot. No deep inroads into sideline sadsack stories, or less than airtight motivations. Mamet's film, in contrast, ties you up in double-cross and sliding loyalties. It should be called 'The Confidence Game' instead, and the sequence with the ingots, well, it needs explaining.
Mixing things up further, I also watched Kubrick's 'The Killing', again. Many say that it's the first visible genesis of his obvious talent, but I'm not so sure. A familiarly empty quality pervades all his films, and it's certainly present here as well as being a tightly bound delivery, but not as gripping as I remember.
.
Interesting.For some reason I recalled preferring 'Heist'. Mamet affectations aside ("You're the brass ring, babe..." - not sure Hackman really buys into that line when he says it), Delroy Lindo, Ricky Jay and Sam Rockwell are highly watchable. But on revisiting both back-to-back I have to say that 'The Score' stacks up as the better film. Whilst there are slight demerits from a bit of a phoned-in performance by De Niro, and Brando is a just an unnecessarily massive silouhette where an actor used to be, overall as a heist film it's spot on. In much the same vein as Mann's 'Thief', where the protagonist and his actions are all focussed on craft, ability, professional-ism, even down to awesome use of a thermal lance (times have moved on: James Cann needed help with his oxy cutter, where De Niro carries his in a back-pack...), it sticks to the conceit and the plot. No deep inroads into sideline sadsack stories, or less than airtight motivations. Mamet's film, in contrast, ties you up in double-cross and sliding loyalties. It should be called 'The Confidence Game' instead, and the sequence with the ingots, well, it needs explaining.
Mixing things up further, I also watched Kubrick's 'The Killing', again. Many say that it's the first visible genesis of his obvious talent, but I'm not so sure. A familiarly empty quality pervades all his films, and it's certainly present here as well as being a tightly bound delivery, but not as gripping as I remember.
.
Have you ever had sex with a woman?
Every single post you make, is a little dig in some way or the other.
Skylinecrazy said:
I think you, BSW, are possibly the only person on Pistonheads, who's never contributed anything of note.
Every single post you make, is a little dig in some way or the other.
They are just the ones you notice. If you dont see any humour in them, then so be it.Every single post you make, is a little dig in some way or the other.
Out of interest, if you abbrieviate my username, how would you conclude that the three words in it are Blinds Welled Rat? It is not a casual dig as many people abbreviate it similarly, Im just curious
The Avengers - Loved it. Didn't take itself seriously (flying aircraft carrier ftw), good action, witty script, good character interaction. It's not a masterpiece of cinema by any stretch but it did what was expected of it. Hulk was great, Iron Man always good value and the Cap and Thor also had their places. Hawkeye and the Black widow were just making up the numbers. I thought the slightly camp villain Loki was pretty good as well.
An enjoyable superhero movie. 8/10
An enjoyable superhero movie. 8/10
blindswelledrat said:
Skylinecrazy said:
I think you, BSW, are possibly the only person on Pistonheads, who's never contributed anything of note.
Every single post you make, is a little dig in some way or the other.
They are just the ones you notice. If you dont see any humour in them, then so be it.Every single post you make, is a little dig in some way or the other.
Out of interest, if you abbrieviate my username, how would you conclude that the three words in it are Blinds Welled Rat? It is not a casual dig as many people abbreviate it similarly, Im just curious
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