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I rewatched this movie recently and started a review thread on it in the Movie Review section.

We clearly differ in our assessment of the movie - although you don't attempt to say what it is you don't like about the film.

From what you do say, I don't agree with your reading of the film: that the protagonist is trying 'to redeem himself.' That brings in some kind of moral formula which I don't think exists in the movie.

I never care much about editing,cinematography or whether the scene is lighted enough etc. I don't have a lot of knowledge to tell whether it is good visually or not.Usually I either like how it looks or I don't,so I loved how Alien visually,all those dark scenes were maybe annoying since I wanted to see everything but it also gave a more realistic and suspenseful atmosphere.

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"Anything less than immortality is a complete waste of time."

Maybe a few hundred years ?

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Susana (Luis Bunuel, 1951)

Saw (James Wan, 2004)

Bright Eyes (David Butler, 1934)

Five of a Kind (Herbert I. Leeds, 1938)

The Blue Bird (George Cukor, 1976)

The Ninth Gate (Roman Polanski, 1999)

+

Bartok the Magnificent (Don Bluth & Gary Goldman, 1999)

Ted (Seth MacFarlane, 2012)

-
The Last Dragon (Michael Schultz, 1985)

The Foxes of Harrow (John M. Stahl, 1947)

Inspector Clouseau (Bud Yorkin, 1968)

The Public Eye (Carol Reed, 1972)

Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky (Ngai Choi Lam. 1991)

Camp Rating:

See No Evil, Hear No Evil (Arthur Hiller, 1989)

Education For Death (Clyde Geronimi, 1943)

Magical Mystery Tour (The Beatles & Bernard Knowles, 1967)

-
Life of Pi (Ang Lee, 2012)

Kurotokage (Black Lizard) (Umetsugu Inoue, 1962)

The Accursed (Michael McCarthy, 1958)

+
House of Women (Walter Doniger, 1962)

+

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It's what you learn after you know it all that counts. - John Wooden
My IMDb page

That's a high rating for you, Mark. You liked it that much? I frankly thought it dragged on for a bit and the special effects make the film more special than it really is. I wasn't very engaged by the story, although that's down to personal preference. The ending was a nice touch.

I think I rated it +, mostly for the cinematography.

I didn't like the characters. I couldn't connect with them. DJay, while not the most despicable guy ever depicted on screen, is lacking in redeemable qualities. He uses people. He lies. Yeah I know he's a pimp, but I didn't see anything else behind that persona and so I was left disconnected and bored. Also I didn't care at all for the music. I'm not generally a fan of rap music anyway, but his "flows" just left me cold.

I didn't mean it in moralistic way. I meant that he was trying (read: using and manipulating people) to make something of himself in terms of fame and financial prosperity. But I really couldn't bring myself to root for the guy. Actually I was kind of hoping he'd get himself killed in the club at the end but no such luck.

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I was debating between 3 and 3.5, so I rewatched about 45 minutes of it, and I decided it was worth the higher rating. It was a little clunky in the storytelling, but the visuals were spectacular and its heart was in the right place.

Life of Pi is one of my favourites from 2012, I know I'm very generous with my ratings but I'd give it a (relative to the rest of what I saw last year), being more strict would be like a 4 rating. I'm kind of a sucker for films like this though and find myself getting emotionally involved a lot easier than some people I think, not only did I find it spectacular in terms of visuals, but I really enjoyed the story and was definitely one of the most enjoyable films for me last year.

I'd give Saw - and See No Evil, Hear No Evil a

so I kind of agree with you on both of them Mark, I'd give Ted a higher rating again based on relative enjoyability of what I saw last year although it's nothing great and that memorable

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I'd consider See no evil, Hear no evil underrated, I had some great laugh during that, and I think it was a smart concept. It only has like a 20% on Rottentomatoes though. I'd rate it a +

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Skyfall - Best Bond movie? I'm not a Bond fan, but not for me. It kept my attention, though I wouldn't go so far as to say I cared. The end felt really dragged out and there was at least one point where I thought to myself, "God, is this still going?". However, if you like OTT stunts and glamorous locations and, let's face it, they're the staple of Bond, then I'd imagine you're in for a treat and the whole thing is beautifully shot. Having now seen this, I'm going to go back and read reviews and listen to podcasts and things, because I seem to remember people praising Javier Bardem's performance. Maybe it was the blonde comedy hair? Maybe it was when he took half his face out? Maybe it was because he flirts with Bond? But I just didn't get it. At all.

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5-time MoFo Award winner.

^ you're not the only one. I actually expected it to be something like Nolan's Batman Trilogy to the Batman franchise but I'd say that it was just a better shot Bond film.

Porco Rosso (1992) by Hayao Miyazaki +


Once Upon a Time in America (1984) by Sergio Leone +


Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) by Mike Nichols +


This is Not a Film (2011) by Jafar Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb


War Witch (2012) by Kim Nguyen +

Django Unchained - You know, with the exception of maybe Death Proof, Tarantino pretty much always makes satisfying films. Django Unchained is probably the most conventionally crowd pleasing film he's ever made, and it's exhilarating. Jamie Foxx and Christoph Waltz make a bad ass bounty hunter duo, and Leonardo DiCaprio and Samuel L Jackson make dastardly bad guys in a smart, funny, bloody western set during the slavery era. Forget the controversy, enjoy the film.

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"You, me, everyone...we are all made of star stuff." - Neil Degrasse Tyson

https://shawnsmovienight.blogspot.com/

Just finished Django Unchained here as well.



MUCH better than Inglorious Basterds. And I actually liked Christoph Waltz this time around -- he didn't get on my nerves at all, although I was scared he would in the first scene where we meet him. I thought that damn tooth wagon and him would really irritate me.

It's a beautiful movie and very entertaining. Loved Samuel L. Jackson. Loved Leonardo DiCaprio - but thought he was kinda underused.



LOVED SEEING JAMIE FOXX NAKED!!

One thing that bugged me, though, was the inclusion of the rap music that appeared at times. Also thought Quentin Tarantino's cameo took me out of the movie. An outstanding movie, but a few things did bother me.

I quite liked the '100 Black Coffins' rap song the second time round, it's a good piece although it is quite a strange inclusion in the soudtrack. And yeh Tarantino's cameo is one of the worse things about the film, his Australian accent is just... bad.

But glad you liked it Sexy, and great to see you weren't irritated by Christoph Waltz! Seems so long ago that me and you were arguing about him in Inglourious Basterds

A Fistful of Dollars (Sergio Leone, 1964)

For a Few Dollars More (Sergio Leone, 1965)

+
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Sergio Leone, 1966) – extended three hour version

Hang ‘Em High (Ted Post, 1968)

Pale Flower (Masahiro Shinoda, 1964)

Tillie’s Punctured Romance (Mack Sennett, 1914)

Colorado Territory (Raoul Walsh, 1949)

-
Me and Orson Welles (Richard Linklater, 2008)

+

We Own the Night (James Gray, 2007)

The Water Horse (Jay Russell, 2007)

Yoyo (Pierre Etaix, 1965)

+

Happy Anniversary (Pierre Etaix & Jean-Claude Carriere, 1962)

Le grand amour (Pierre Etaix, 1969)

Rupture (Pierre Etaix & Jean-Claude Carriere, 1961)

+
As Long As You’ve Got Your Health (Pierre Etaix, 1966)

Seven Chances (Buster Keaton, 1925)

Conversations with Other Women (Hans Canosa, 2005)

Late Bloomers (Julie Gavras, 2011)

The Seven-Per-Cent Solution (Herbert Ross, 1976)

+
Politics of Love (William Dear, 2011)

I thought, okay, rap music -- in a Quentin Tarantino movie about slavery with a black hero, I get why it's there. But I didn't like it. Like the Quentin Tarantino cameo, it took me out of the movie. Made me feel like I wasn't in a pre-Civil War period anymore. And it felt corny. Maybe even offensive. Oh, wow, Django is a gangster thug. Not all black people are rappers.

I didn't particularly like the scene itself and he didn't help.

I actually found Jamie Foxx more irritating than Christoph Waltz this time. Django was definitely my least favorite character. I think it's Jamie Foxx's performance. While there are things about him I like, someone else probably could have played him better.

I thought Leonardo DiCaprio seemed wrong for Calvin Candie at first, but liked him once it was over. Nobody really seems to "steal the show" except maybe him and Samuel L. Jackson. Christoph Waltz did okay in the beginning, but fizzled out in the end. I do think he was probably the strongest character, but I still hate this "I'm gentle and smiling and I talk funny, but I'll still kill you" act he does.

Which film did you like best: Yojimbo or A Fistful of Dollars? Why?

Also, you give the same rating to both A Fistful of Dollars and The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. Which one do you prefer?

I need to see Yojimbo again, but I give it now, and I probably think it's better. I think TGBU is better too but it's an epic while FoD is more of a straight action film.

Monstertorsdag (2004 Arild Østin Ommundsen)



Monstertorsdag (Monster Thursday) is a Norwegian character driven film about love (unrequited and otherwise) and embracing life. Yes, it's been done countless times, but if it's done well, it can be done countless more times.

The main character is Even. He's a bit of a screw up, but not overly so. Even is a guy that everyone knows and actually reminded me a lot of a close friend of mine, Evan. (Not having anything to do with the similarity in names.) Even is in love with his ex-wife who is now married to his best friend Tord. Even takes up surfing to impress her. Initially, anyways. It becomes much more than that.

Monstertorsdag is humorous in the way that is typical of the Norwegian films I've seen. It's a style of humor I much appreciate. Also present is the relaxed natural acting that seems also somewhat typical of Norwegian film. That is something I value highly and allows the characters to become very real for me. There is a moment when the two people pictured above meet. The woman, Sara, is talking and the man is just looking at her and reacting to what she says with not much more than a slight smile and a look in his eyes. You can tell he is totally taken with her and it's such a good example of less is more. It doesn't force you to feel, it let's you in to become part of the moment.

This is a movie right up my alley. What ever flaws it had, and it had some big ones, I was to busy being invested in the film to care. I'll be watching the rest of Ommunden's movies. B