MM's Major Movie Minimalisms MMXVII

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– Major Minimalism
unofficial saying \ ma·jor min·i·mal·ism \ mə-jər ˈmi-nə-mə-ˌli-zəm\

"a saying used to describe something great or significant,
which is presented or put forward in smaller doses
or within tighter workspaces"


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January
1. War Dogs (2016)
1. Everybody Wants Some !! (2016)


MM's Major Movie Minimalisms MMXVII




January 1st
War Dogs
first-time watch

Todd Philips, comedy, 2016

I'm pretty sure Jonah's laugh in this film came from his experiences
of being exhausted after going on a jog...


An amusing and more balanced comedic effort from Todd Philips, which carries more weight and less humor towards the end to make a greater impact, yet fails to bring something new or exciting to the table or properly present a picked side to talk from and comment on... War Dogs simply doesn't bite, despite of barking plenty, but thanks to Jonah Hill it is at least an entertaining ride and a better effort than a lot of comedies trying to do the same...

+
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January 1st
Everybody Wants Some !!
first-time watch

Richard Linklater, comedy, 2016

Linklater managed to bring me back to the 80s with this film...
and I never even lived through the 80s


Bringing Linklater's signature dialogue and laid-back natural but occasionally philosophical dialogue to an 80s inspired trip to nostalgia road, was a perfect alas more down to earth effort than his last outing, Boyhood - well at least in terms of ambition, because the latter was still down to earth for its ambiguous fundament. But honestly, the atmosphere Linklater creates here and the attention to detail is absolutely extraordinary and together with characters who are easy to connect to, this is a joy to watch. This film isn't dark or depressing, it's not emotionally or thematically heavy, but it's spiritually pleasing. Movies are a free medium and Linklater shows us how to build a whole world, inside this little window of time, which always feel timeless in the hands of Linklater. I throughoutly enjoyed this and was hooked from beginning to end...


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MM's Major Movie Minimalisms MMXVII



Not seen War Dogs. Love Everybody Wants Some; top three from last year so far. Out of interest what is your favourite Linklater film? I can't decide between Dazed and Confused and Before Midnight.



Great, colour me as someone that will look in periodically!
But wh'appened to 2016 (there was an admittedly slim chance I might eventually have seen some of those prior to 2018 knocking at the door)???


film diaries are soooooo last year though :imaginarywhistlingemoji:



But you never lived in the 80's!
As stated. But at least it's the closets I ever got to time travel then.

Not seen War Dogs. Love Everybody Wants Some; top three from last year so far. Out of interest what is your favourite Linklater film? I can't decide between Dazed and Confused and Before Midnight.
Before Midnight is in my (not totally official, kind of put together, randomly but thoroughly, even so) top 10 on my profile, so I guess that one for now.



Everybody Want Some!! was great, agreed, I'd give it the same rating. Definitely his most fun movie in a good long time. The top spot for me by Linklater would probably have to go to Before Sunset, maybe Before Midnight, or Boyhood.

Have not watched War Dogs, I just rented it, though. I like Todd Phillips, and the actors, so I can see myself digging it.



Great, colour me as someone that will look in periodically!
But wh'appened to 2016 (there was an admittedly slim chance I might eventually have seen some of those prior to 2018 knocking at the door)???


film diaries are soooooo last year though :imaginarywhistlingemoji:
It's hard to concentrate on an answer with that profile pic of yours!

but thanks and all, Chyp, haha

Boyhood for the win
In-f*cking-deed.

Everybody Want Some!! was great, agreed, I'd give it the same rating. Definitely his most fun movie in a good long time. The top spot for me by Linklater would probably have to go to Before Sunset, maybe Before Midnight, or Boyhood.

Have not watched War Dogs, I just rented it, though. I like Todd Phillips, and the actors, so I can see myself digging it.
Good picks too, glad you also love Before Midnight.

I reckon you will like War Dogs by those comments then. Thanks for checking in!



Sorry if I'm rude but I'm right
This thread is...

Aesthetic
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Look, I'm not judging you - after all, I'm posting here myself, but maybe, just maybe, if you spent less time here and more time watching films, maybe, and I stress, maybe your taste would be of some value. Just a thought, ya know.



Master of My Domain
Should've called it MM's Major Movie Minimalisms MMXVII.
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Letterboxd Profile: https://letterboxd.com/GatsbyG/



Glad you liked Everybody Wants Some. A
from me.
Might go there with a revisit. But despite working perfectly on almost every level, there wasn't much weight or great depth to it, which is probably my only (minor) complaint.

Should've called it MM's Major Movie Minimalisms MMXVII.
Damn, Gats, that's true. You're always right.

Gonna ask Yoda to fix that for real...




January 2nd
Creep
first-time watch

Patrick Brice, thriller, 2014

Creep you say?
More like Sleep I say...


I guess I'm the delusional one here. This film just didn't do anything for me really and I certainly don't understand the hype. It's weird as hell to watch, so that means it's realistic and boundary-pushing? I thought it was pretty bland most of the time and it tried too hard to be edgy. On top of that it was poorly written in terms of logic. I mean why go out of your front door and leave it open and go around back when you know you are being stalked by a possible maniac and at least maybe have a mentally ill person outside your door? I know the movie tried to make a point on this towards the end but nah... didn't buy it, didn't like it, not for me.


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January 5th
Watchmen
multiple rewatch

Zack Snyder, drama, 2009

Watchmen proved that Snyder already had the receipe
for a great gritty superhero movie... so what happened?


Zack Snyder has great attention to detail and wants to make a faithful true to the pages comic book adventure drama, which he pretty much succeeds in. He can't bring it all the way, unfortunately, and the movie loses steam towards the end and gets a little muddled, messy and stretched out. But surprisingly, with a director's cut running over 3 hours, it really keeps my attention well. And that's because it sets up a story, and not a fight, like BvS. This is about the characters and their story and it is all very interesting and well made. Especially the visuals are aesthetically beautiful and wonderfully playful as well. The opening scene is pure art and the opening credits are also some of my favorite of all time. I love this movie, despite its imperfections and it seems to be the last we have seen of a good Snyder film... after this he overdid everything he stood for AND he became lazy. Not a good combo. At least we still have this one, so that's good. I think THIS is what DC comics should have went with. Rated R gritty crime dramas suits the darker universe. They instead went and wanted to copy Marvel in some weird way. A shame.


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MM's Major Movie Minimalisms MMXVII




January 6th
The Accountant
first-time watch

Gavin O'Connor, thriller, 2016

'The Accountant' is too by the numbers
to impress much...


I had heard a few good things about this film, but I wasn't too overly impressed by the result. Ben Affleck is better than usual I guess, but he is still such a dull actor to me 90% of the time. He might work in roles like, say, Gone Girl or other movies where he is type casted to fit the movie, but very rarely do I really enjoy looking at him on screen. He did pretty good capturing this man with mental issues, but his performance still isn't quite powerful or diverse enough. The story took a while to get going and once it did, it didn't really became something new or refreshing. The twist was pretty obvious and overall this movie was just a disappointment, despite feeling a little stronger than the truly bland movies of this genre... But it's nowhere near Gavin O'Connor's best, Warrior with Tom Hardy, Joel Edgarton and Nick Nolte.

+
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January 7th
Pineapple Express
multiple rewatch

David Gordon Green, comedy, 2008

Seth Rogen comedies
in their prime time!


Back when Seth Rogen helped create the comedies he starred in, but without having complete control, which resulted in a competent director like David Gordon Green to keep this blazing "smoker comedy" from ending up in flames... But of course, it is still a silly smoker comedy, so you will have to get by with the get-high jokes and the insistency on imbecile behaviour to move things forward. I guess I do have a soft spot for such sub-genre movies, yet I still feel like Pineapple Express is better than the norm. Because of David Gordon Green directing it and Judd Apatow contributing to the writing - without actually directing himself and making this a 3 hour strenuous comedy - you actually get the right dose of silly and the proper dose of serious when needed to be. Alas, 'serious' as in dramatical weight mostly played for laughs despite of having themes of friendship, bonding, social outcasts and statuses and whatnot. All that is there, but just enough for you feel it, even though the movie mostly wants you numb from laughing or chuckling. I think the comedic timing is great in this, I think the main actors have great screen presence and chemistry and I think this film is fast-paced enough for this slow-burn weed comedy to shift gears into a fun and enjoyable ride when it all comes down to it. And as an action comedy spoof it also works wonderfully well in my opinion.

+
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MM's Major Movie Minimalisms MMXVII



I'm definitely going to watch The Accountant but I'm not expecting much. From the trailer, Affleck looks miscast.
I could definitely see someone do MUCH BETTER than he did. Above average Affleck is still only average all around acting.