Movies you've seen recently (possible spoilers!)

I knew there'd be great acting; Ryan Gosling is a future Oscar winner who's already the best or one of the best actors of his generation, Julianne Moore is a 4-time Oscar nominee, and Steve Carell is underrated. Plus it had a hilarious turn by an Oscar winner, Marisa Tomei. But it surprised me that it was even better than I expected.

Hugo. A pretty good tribute to the magic of film. Chloe Moretz is becoming quite the actress as well. She lit up the screen whenever she was on it.

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

A very fun evening. The story was a bit tighter and more realistic then the first. Bonus points for prominently featuring the Paris Opera House for a good 15 minutes

I went to see Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and The Adventures of Tintin.

Girl: Well, after reading the books and seeing the original Swedish film, I can say that I enjoyed this because of the music, the casting, and the little things they left in from the book (that the Swedish one did not bother to put in--but now it may be in, thanks to the Directors' Cut). I like both Rooney and Noomi. Rooney looked like Lisabeth, she also had had her attitude. Daniel Craig was lovely as Mikael. Overall, it was good, can't really say anything more.

Tintin: I love Tintin. I grew up with Tintin. So, for me this was a fun experience. I saw it in 3D (on accident, lol), but that didn't detract from the enjoyment. Everyone was brilliant and the merging of the stories to tell the story of The Secret of the Unicorn is amazing. Is it word by word the Tintin from the books? No. But it comes off as a well deserved adaptation and one that could be taken as written by Herge.

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was awesome. Loved it. Have seen the Swedish one, too. Also saw Sherlock Holmes. Loved it as well. I've been a little leary of TinTin, but everything I'm hearing says it's actually a good movie. I may wait till video on that one though.

Watched a delightful little movie the other night called Cemetary Junction. Written and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. A coming of age movie set in a little down in England, 1973, and involves three friends and how they're dealing with their lives. A very sweet and touching movie. Not what I was expecting from Gervais and Merchant, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Also watched Cowboys and Aliens. Enjoyed the hell out of it. Very interesting idea to mash up a western and an alien movie. At times seemed like it was two separate movies, but I really loved the concept. Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford were awesome, and they played well off each other. (Indy and Bond together in one film?! *squeethud*)

I went to see War Horse.

Cried at the end.

That is all I need to say.

Certified Copy

You know the feeling of seeing a really great movie, even better than you envisioned, and you can't wait to recommend it to all your friends? But then it just goes totally downhill, and by the time it's reached the credits at the end you hate it? "Certified Copy" is one of those movies. Well, at least to me. It started out as a mature "Before sunrise/Before sunset" type of film, but then took a strange turn and the leads became totally irrational and unlikable and I just lost all interest in the story. Some moments were fine, especially that scene with the woman in the cafe.

Juliette Binoche, Toscana, art and the cute-as-a-button son could not change that. Aaaarg, pretentious dribble.

Saw Beauty and the Beast in 3D. It pretty much confirmed my suspicions that retrofitting old movies with 3D is a really bad idea--instead of adding depth it made everything look like two-dimensional theater flats. The sight-lines of characters also got screwed up; for example, in the opening sequence when Gaston checks his reflection in a frying pan, he eyes appear to be looking at a point several inches to the left of his reflection. Think I'll have to pop in my Blu-Ray of the original to cleanse my palate.

~LCD

LadyCDaae wrote:The sight-lines of characters also got screwed up; for example, in the opening sequence when Gaston checks his reflection in a frying pan, he eyes appear to be looking at a point several inches to the left of his reflection.

Maybe Gaston was just pulling a Michele Bachmann *shrugs*

R.

Raphael wrote:

LadyCDaae wrote:The sight-lines of characters also got screwed up; for example, in the opening sequence when Gaston checks his reflection in a frying pan, he eyes appear to be looking at a point several inches to the left of his reflection.

Maybe Gaston was just pulling a Michele Bachmann *shrugs*

R.

ZING

Raphael wrote:

LadyCDaae wrote:The sight-lines of characters also got screwed up; for example, in the opening sequence when Gaston checks his reflection in a frying pan, he eyes appear to be looking at a point several inches to the left of his reflection.

Maybe Gaston was just pulling a Michele Bachmann *shrugs*

Hahahaha!

I've seen so many movies and TV series lately. I'll keep it short...

My Week with Marilyn
So much cuter than expected. I don't know why, but I expected it to have a more tragic tone. Instead it was heartwarming. And so many nice minor characters. And yes, Michelle Williams just nailed Marilyn. The movements, the voice... great throughout. You could tell they had padded her hips, especially in the opening scene, and especially when seeing her naked without the hips later on... But what can you do. And I'm so in love with Eddie Redmayne as Colin Clark.

A Dangerous Method
I think this movie was ruined by me sitting close to the screen. Cause seeing Keira Knightley in lots of closeups, with screaming and rolling eyes and so much JAW got on my nerves pretty quickly. And I had expected it to be more about the Jung/Freud feude. Instead much of the focus seemed to be on Knightley's character. I dunno... It was OK, but I didn't learn anything about Jung and Freud, what their methods were and how they differed. I felt I saw an intro to a TV series in a way, where everything would be explained later on. Good acting, nice settings, blah-blah-blah. It just wasn't for me. But as mentioned, being in front row might have something to do with it.

V, season 2
Aliens arrives in earth. They come with amazing technology. They come in peace. Always. Or do they? You either like this series, or hate it. It's kinda kitschy. But they've picked so good characters for the leads. Except the guy who plays the son. He soooo sucks. Season 2 continued the cool camp style of season 1. And they added some highlights - a visit to the Vatican, a most dramatic soap opera character added, plus as surprising ending a dimentional cliff hanger. And now I'm reading there won't be a season 3?? Grrrr.... I hope they'll make a movie instead, cause they need to continue this story.

Fringe, season 3
Fringe has some of the most intriguing characters to date, and is like CSI at the very fringe of science (hence the name). The arch is that the world is in danger, and a set of creative scientists understands this by the odd cases they're set to solve. Season 2 of Fringe was the best to date. But season 3 was kinda... more fun. More creative. Now they're playing around with two different settings (if you liked the Walternate and Fauxlivia introduction in season 2, you'll like season 3 a lot). And when they turned cartoons in one episode, I just loved it. Cause they turned cartoon for a reason. Yeah, roll on, season 4!

The Princess of Pontpensier
Well... I just needed to see a costume drama. I could tell from the cover it wasn't a particularly good one. Woman has to marry another than the one she loves, but she meets her love several times as married woman. Will something happen or not? Ooooh, the drama. Not. Bad costumes too. Beige and linen and unbleached shades for nobility? LSHMSFOAIDMT! Peasant materials. And since when did Marie de' Medici look like she was from Morocco? The historical Florentine nobility were proud of their fair colours, so also the Medici queens in France. The dark hair and dark eyes belonged to southern Italy, or even the moors. Nitpicking, you say? Well, I was obsessed with these things because the story of the movie was incredibly boring...

The Artist. Definitely lived up to the hype. Very moving. The two leads light up the screen.

Red. Fun action-comedy with a great ensemble cast.

Our Idiot Brother. Started out slow, and was often disjointed in its pacing and scene transitions, but was a great, touching story with a really talented cast. I love ensemble dramedies, especially with Paul Rudd. Plus you had Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, Steve Coogan, Emilly Mortimer, Hugh Dancy, Adam Scott, et al.

Saw Contagion and 50/50 this weekend. Both excellent.

Midnight in Paris. Cute little movie. Honestly only the second Woody Allen I've seen all the way through after Match Point, which was very good and not a typical Woody. I've never seen Rachel McAdams play such a bitch except maybe in Mean Girls; usually she's so cute and delectable. Don't want to spoil the movie for those who haven't seen it, but I love the ensemble cast and the way Allen wrote the...um, cameos from historical figures.

Perfect Sense. I've literally just finished watching it and I'm finding it hard to put into words what the experience was like. I use the word experience intentionally because it really was an experience to watch it. It was the happiest/saddest/oddest/most touching film I've seen in a long time and I'm confused about how I should actually be feeling right now.

I urge everyone to check it out! Ewan McGregor and Eva Green are just perfect and I may still be crying right now...

ETA: Though if you're a vegetarian like me there will probably be a few scenes where you wince...

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. A little slowly paced for my taste (that rhymes!), but the ensemble cast is fantastic, and it gets more nerve-wracking as it goes on and the plot thickens.

Act of Valor was good. Light on the acting in parts, but that is to be expected.

I just watched a movie called Princess Ka'iluani, which was about the princess of Hawaii and her life during the annexation of Hawaii into the United States. It was a lovely period film. I recommend it, if you're looking for something short and fluffy. Had a nice cast, done all on location.

POTO (2004). Opulent, lush, rich - thankfully, I hate it when modern moviemakers drain colors and that should be atmospheric -, gorgeous to listen, great entertainment, but as the book adaptation, it is not definitive, Phantom was too much Fabio.
Clarimonde (1998). Theophile Gautier adaptation from horror TV series Hunger. Not very horrific episode, but fascinating. It is set in the countryside near Quebec in the 1850s, in winter. Clarimonde (Audrey Benoit, an ex-model who became an author) appears in a dreams of a handsome young priest. She is incredibly attractive and lives in the luxurious place, with gorgeous roses in the bedroom.

Warrior. Was not really looking forward to this movie, but was immensely surprised to have loved it. It was just superb all around. Well written, well shot, well acted. Nolte got the Oscar nom, but I think Tom Hardy deserved it even more, for totally transforming himself in physique, gait, voice, and attitude. Also deserved nods for Best Film, Director, and Cinematography. Pretty good score too. Highly recommended.

Game Change (HBO).

Very little vetting of Sarah Palin as McCain's running mate. There's just a tad of sympathy for Palin as she gets overwhelmed with what she's gotten herself in to. The lack of knowledge she had on the international level was stunning.

Hopefully Presidential campaigns have learned their lesson and there will never be a situation like this again.

PhantomsGhost wrote:Game Change (HBO).

Very little vetting of Sarah Palin as McCain's running mate. There's just a tad of sympathy for Palin as she gets overwhelmed with what she's gotten herself in to. The lack of knowledge she had on the international level was stunning.

Hopefully Presidential campaigns have learned their lesson and there will never be a situation like this again.

Don't bet on it. Witness what's going on right now. Dying to see the movie but don't get cable, let alone HBO. The book it's based on is engrossing. Hope they film the Obama/Hillary fight someday as well.

The Hunger Games. An excellent adaptation that really captures the spirit of the book--the action and visuals are amazing but you're never allowed to forget the suffering and depression that lurks behind the pageantry. Here's hoping they take a crack at the rest of the trilogy!

~LCD

IamErik771 wrote:

ML6 wrote:I just watched a movie called Princess Ka'iluani, which was about the princess of Hawaii and her life during the annexation of Hawaii into the United States. It was a lovely period film. I recommend it, if you're looking for something short and fluffy. Had a nice cast, done all on location.

Hehe, nice! It's cool that this film is becoming at least somewhat known. There was a bit of controversy here in Hawaii about the film -- at first, it was going to be titled "Barbarian Princess" (after an American newspaper article of the time that mocked Ka'iulani), but native Hawaiian groups found it offensive. Also, the director said he was going to cast native Hawaiians for all the major roles, yet went for Q'orianka Kilcher (who is of native South American and Swiss descent, though she did spend much of her childhood in Hawaii) for the title character. There was also some controversy about them filming in 'Iolani Palace, especially since the crew at one point accidentally damaged some historical artifacts there. But once the film was released, most people in Hawaii came around to accepting it. It focused a bit more than necessary on the love story angle and deviated a bit from historical accuracy, but it's certainly far from the most egregious example of that, and I found it quite an enjoyable film. ^_^

Oh, thank you so much for sharing this with me! The DVD did not have much on the film, nor did Wikipedia! So, I really thank you for bringing this up. Yes, I found the story to focus more on the romance but it's not the WORST film ( as you said ) of those in the past that have done that before.

To other means, I was given the film Kingdom of Heaven to watch. This was the Extended Director's Cut (3.5 hours long!), and I just finished it not long ago. It's a good film, strong cast, lovely soundtrack and interesting script. Not a film I'd buy, but I'm glad I finally saw another Ridley Scott film. Been a while since I've seen one that I've liked.

Tower Heist. Somewhat amusing. Pretty good ensemble cast, though they could've been given better lines.

Carnage. Absolutely loved it. Such juicy lines you just want to pause and stew on and annotate for awhile, but they keep coming one after the other, unraveling these wonderfully complex characters. And you couldn't have picked better actors than John C. Reilly, Kate Winslet, Jodie Foster, and Christoph Waltz for these roles. Highly recommended.

I watched Tarsem's The Fall yesterday and cried my eyes out. I really don't know how to describe this film. You have to see it for yourself. Its a very beautiful film and it was done on location in twelve different places around the world. There is a six year old girl, Spanish decent, that just blew me away by how natural and real her character was. There was a point where she was crying and that's when I started sobbing (it's at the end, you'll know what scene if you ever watch it). It's a bit of a sloppy fil in terms of writing, but overall the plot is very beautiful.

Ides of March. What was the point, other than cynicism? For someone who works in politics, it was painfully unrealistic and broke no new ground.