Rate The Last Movie You Saw

Selma - 7/10. Was very good. Thought it would be the same old American race movie. But it turned to be quite different.

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My Favorite Films

Guardians of the Galaxy - 9/10

I've elaborated on my opinion of this movie a number of times in the past, including a particularly pointed blog post earlier today. It's not only one of my favorite movies of the year, but one of my favorites overall. In any less of a year, it would have easily been my favorite film from 2014, but has to settle as my #5 with as many fantastic movies that came out over the last 12 months.


The Book of Life - 8.5/10

This is another one that I've spoken a lot about over the past few months, including a particularly pointed blog post earlier today. It was my #12 movie for the recent 100 Best Animated films list. It's my second favorite animated film from 2014, and was on my preliminary list of favorite movies from the year (although it has since fallen off). If not for The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, this would be hands down the most visually arresting animated film of the year.



Fury - 7/10

This is one that I plan on doing a full review on later tonight. Although not quite as good as I had hoped it to be, it is still a singularly unique and incredibly well made war film: unique not only for its subject matter (a tank crew), but for how absolutely non-romanticized the film is: having more aesthetically in common with dark Vietnam-era war movies than with the likes of Saving Private Ryan. It was dark, muddy and largely uncomfortable to watch (especially the so-called "love" scene about halfway through its run time), but is definitely one that should be checked out, if only for the utterly contrary portrayal of events that this war typically receives.


Boyhood - 8.5/10

This is another one that a full review is in the woodworks for. The fact that this intimate epic is only my seventh favorite of the year is a testament to just how strong of a year that this was for film. Having seen all of the Best Picture nominees now, I can safely call this my favorite of the nominees, with a gimmick that more than makes it unique: one that absolutely works on every level of conception and execution. It's actually a real shame that Ellar Coltraine didn't receive a Best Actor nomination for his multitude of performances in this film, because he are easily some of the best I have seen from last year.

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Arcanis' 100 Favorite Films: 2015 Edition

Ewwww. I remember hearing about this movie in the past, but I forgot all about it.

Boyhood was a very good concept. But it did lack a little bit of flavor in some parts of the movie. Going on concept alone, the movie should win the Oscars. But alas its not so.

For me the Imitation game is the strongest contender for best movie and best actor. But i don't think it would win either. Gripping and a sad story of a great life.

I think Boyhood or Birdman will win. Deserves to win... dont think so!

Juliet of the Spirits (1965)

Well made and charming, but I don't like the fantasy aspect and it seemed to go on forever at times.

It does go on forever.

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The Burning (1981)

Pretty good summer camp slasher.

This movie wowed me. Not just wowed me, shocked me. Shocked that art like this existed. This is truly one of the true greats. My new tenth favorite movie of all time! Kirk Douglas was wonderful and Kubrick's shots were awe-inspiring! Some of the best I have ever seen! All of the acting was great and probably includes some of the best dialogue of all time! I am shocked that I ended up loving PoG this much. I expected to love it but not this much!

I LOVE THIS MOVIE!

I get the feeling you liked it

I'll watch sometime and post a review, it sounds good.

Winter's Bone Meh.
I still don't see what's so special about JLaw. She is not bad by any means but there are a lot of good actresses and she doesn't seem to be superior to them.

True!

Persona (1966)

I wasn't quite blown away by it, but it's still superbly shot and acted, fascinating, and haunting. Typical Bergman.

I started off watching this one...

But wasn't in a mood for a silent film.

So I popped into the DVD this one....


I realized I had already seen it and didn't care for it, so I tried this one...




I should have stuck with the silent film

Full review on my review thread.

I grew tired of the movie but thought Lawrence was superb, intense, magnetic.

The Signal is busy. Please hang-up and don't try again.

Birdman, 2014
Dir: Alejandro González Iñárritu



The overdone stories of a fading career, a broken family, theater rivalry, an existentialist crisis, ego and delusion in an all-new shiny, surreal, clever, bold, hilarious package. When virtually every story has been told through virtually every artistic medium, the execution becomes more important than the actual narrative. That's exactly what Birdman did. Similar stories have been featured on film multiple times, but this movie does so loaded with a very distinct black humor, cynical wit and knife-sharp remarks.

Another highlight is, as everyone has been raving, the editing. It gives the illusion that the whole film was shot in a single continuous take; the camera not only records, but it is almost like a living, conscious, silent witness. It goes wherever it wants, follows no one in particular and settles with whomever it wants to snoop at until it gets bored and starts the hunt for a new subject.

Michael Keaton's character is not a sympathetic one but his struggles are so widely understood it's hard not to root for him. The main struggles are the important realization of one's irrelevance, and the even more important realization that despite this, despite one's microscopic role in a 4.54 billion old planet of 7 billion inhabitants, one's own value cannot be defined by this statistic.

8/10

Saw Force Majeure last night, and I am hit very hard...still feeling it. It's quite a while since a movie did that to me...the last scene remained a bit ambiguous...several interpretations are possible...in a way, that was good...at least it didn't try to find a cheap solution or resolution so to speak.

Outstanding (9 out of 10)

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A normal man? For me, a normal man is one who turns his head to see a beautiful woman's bottom. The point is not just to turn your head. There are five or six reasons. And he is glad to find people who are like him, his equals. That's why he likes crowded beaches, football, the bar downtown...

Justice League: Throne of Atlantis - 7.5/10

Although a definite step down from previous animated Justice League Films (namely The Flashpoint Paradox and War), Throne of Atlantis is just as breathtakingly animated and perfectly voice cast as its predecessors. I really wish that the film had more sequences of Aquaman's life on land - like when he gets into a drunken brawl because his conversation with a lobster was interrupted - because those were easily the best pieces of the film. The problem was that the film was so worried about an oddly complicated plot to pit the Atlantians against the surface dwellers that Arthur's personal narrative is oddly sidelined within his own film. In many ways, it seems like an initial rough draft of the film rather than a final product, even if what we ended up with was ultimately satisfactory.



The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel - 6/10

I was actually a bit surprised by this film, since it was not nearly so bad as I had feared it to be. The actors involved are all exceptional in their own right and the setting is ripe with comedic potential. That being said, however, I was invested in neither the characters nor their personal narratives (some of which felt extremely under-developed), leading to an ultimately alright, if unexceptional, viewing experience.

The Night Stalker (1972)

Thoughts posted in Horror HOF

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