-
Welcome to Talking Time's third iteration! If you would like to register for an account, or have already registered but have not yet been confirmed, please read the following:
- The CAPTCHA key's answer is "Percy"
- Once you've completed the registration process please email us from the email you used for registration at percyreghelper@gmail.com and include the username you used for registration
Once you have completed these steps, Moderation Staff will be able to get your account approved.
Movie Time 2.0: TT mini reviews
- Thread starter Rascally Badger
- Start date
-
- Tags
- movies
Nope! Just a coincidence. There are apparently like half a dozen sequels. Normally I would lavish the chance at watching bad sequels to bad movies like this, but after how Sleepaway Camp ended, I will never watch this movie again or touch anything related to it with a ten foot pole. It is very much a relic of its time (early 80s) and deserves to be forgotten - nobody should watch it. Especially most of our board members.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Yeah, Sleepaway Camp is laughably bad, then extremely offensive in the homestretch. Even in the history of transphobia in film, its high levels of awful.
The Brood... I think the main guy is kind of a non-character, too, or at least not very interesting. Lively people in that film: Oliver Reed, maybe Robert Silverman, a dozen monstrous children, SAMANTHA EGGAR. Thought she gives a really great performance. I don't think her character comes across as acting monstrously for no reason - she's being manipulated by her therapist who was giving really... bad advice. Late 70s to the 80s therapists with questionable ideas about how to process emotions and trauma? Prime time to explore that! Not to say the film isn't misogynistic. Cronenberg definitely gave an eyebrow raising quote about its denouement at one point per wikipedia.
Oh, yeah, daddy guy stands out, too.
Watched Cronenberg's Rabid recently, too. A lot of plot similarities with Shivers. This film asks the question, "what if there was an armpit vampire?" Well, I think that's a great question, and I'm thrilled to have seen it explored. Marilyn Chambers is incredible. Saw someone on twitter say "this is a more relevant film about pandemics than Contagion." IMO... no! It's still good! They're both good.
Saw Herzog's Nosferatu for the first time last week. It's a great film - engaging, beautiful, kinda funny. (wasn't expecting this even though Herzog bc I've known about the film since I was a child and somehow never updated my expectations) Dracula was weirdly attractive. Maybe that's just me! Plan to watch the original later.
Disagree about Halloween. I think Laurie's decisions are totally vindicated (they critically help her and her descendants survive, even if they had a stressful life) and nothing indicates Michael isn't after her. I didn't like either choice. Maybe the sequels will twist these aspects a bit. I think my favorite Halloween sequel with JLC's Laurie is Resurrection because it so flagrantly violates slasher/franchise norms. (Busta Rhymes is an obnoxious villain and gets several people killed, then kicks Michael's ass) I'm not saying it's a good movie! I just appreciate it.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
While my view is that it is its in a weird "mixed" zone. Laurie does explicitly say what she did was wrong but a film doesn't have to agree with what a character in it says. But I feel like the intent is that she did wrong by her family. If the film justifies that revelation is arguably murky. Similar to that is the use of guns in the film. I feel like while they are tools, there's a moment or two where the point is "being ready to use guns can go bad", like when the boy shoots the doctor on accident. But then that gets a little power taken away when it turns out he's the bad guy. Frankly, despite being filled with silly gunplay, Planet Terror did dark antigun humour better.
But I stand by my assessment that Michael may not have an interest in Laurie. I don't think he was actively looking for her, just victims and only came into her crosshairs when the mad doctor drove him straight to her house because HE was convinced that Michael was interested in her. And he was proven to know little about Michael despite spending years with him. And I feel like Laurie's granddaughter getting caught up is a complete coincidence.
Egarwaen
(He/Him)
We watched Ghostbusters (2016) for Halloween and... Holy shit there is a really blatant deleted scene around the 3/4 mark of the film, just after Rowan kills himself. The Ghostbusters get "arrested" as a cover, and then we cut to Abby in her apartment reading Rowan's copy of the book, while Erin's waiting at the office to get take-out. Later, when they meet up again during the final battle, the general reaction to Abby is "You came back!" complete with a triumphant shot of her wearing the overalls again.
I'm pretty sure there was meant to be a scene where Abby and Erin have some kind of fight between the "arrest" and Erin getting possessed. And I really think it would've done a lot for the overall narrative flow of the film!
I'm pretty sure there was meant to be a scene where Abby and Erin have some kind of fight between the "arrest" and Erin getting possessed. And I really think it would've done a lot for the overall narrative flow of the film!
Meek's Cutoff... had this one in the old Hulu My Stuff refrigerator of edifying cinematic salad I'll get to someday and what do you know? An acclaimed piece of art was very worth my time.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Ralph Breaks the Internet Going in, I was worried that there would be too much very unpleasant branding throughout. Was this feeling justified? Like... 50 per cent. It comes in fast n hard in the first scene and I hated every moment when it happened. The eBay shit got pretty old fast but the trip to The Disney Site was even worse and not even a Jason Mantzoukas mini-cameo could save it. So there's a lot to dislike. Frankly, using real brands is a much different animal than using real iconic characters from games and it got a little sickening when it could have been much better if all of them were like the YouTube analogue they use in the film.
There's still stuff to like. Some good character designs for the new characters like Yas and Shank. As much as I hated the entire Disney segment with a passion, it ended up leading to a Disney-style song for a GTA/Twisted Metal-esque game that was pretty fun. There's a good message about not being possessive of your friends. But really most of the film landed in the perfect middle of humour and storytelling quality and the bad stuff dragged it down quite a bit with marketing and toothless hackneyed humour of said marketing. But at least it can look at itself and say "At least I'm not the Emoji Movie".
There's still stuff to like. Some good character designs for the new characters like Yas and Shank. As much as I hated the entire Disney segment with a passion, it ended up leading to a Disney-style song for a GTA/Twisted Metal-esque game that was pretty fun. There's a good message about not being possessive of your friends. But really most of the film landed in the perfect middle of humour and storytelling quality and the bad stuff dragged it down quite a bit with marketing and toothless hackneyed humour of said marketing. But at least it can look at itself and say "At least I'm not the Emoji Movie".
Hey, I'm not the only person who's seen this! Yeah, for anyone even remotely interested in musicals (or the Documentary Now "Co-op" episode), I can't recommend it enough.
I can’t earnestly say that Venom is my favourite non-MCU Marvel movie, not while Spider-Verse exists, but there’s no shame in second place. Certainly can’t find a better movie about a guy made of teethtacles eating the entire LAPD and also Elon Musk
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Blackkklansman - I had originally planned to see this in the theatre but was super-sick the day of. Finally got to see it and it is an impressive movie. I know it was based on a true story but I was actually anticipating an even pulpier movie. Still, the movie I got was very good and a look of people in two different racial movements. And you might be surprised to learn this but one of the sides is absolutely terrible. I was also afraid that it might be a film that suggests that good police can help fight racism but while there are well-intended people in the police, they are hamstrung by a shitty system and its something the lead thinks he can get a handle on and change from the inside and finds it unreasonable. The cast is really good and I look forward to seeing John David Washington in more things.
Well I wasn't interested in Venom before but I am now.
Yes, God, Yes is a pretty accurate depiction of growing up in a strictly religious context in the late 90's/early 00's. I don't know how much it has to say about anything, or how funny it actually is, but it sure brought back memories.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Bolt - I've heard this is a pretty good film following some lesser attempts by the main Disney studio to do CG movies (Meet the Robinsons, Chicken Little). And it is. But I don't think this is one that I have strong feelings about revisiting or anything, its just a perfectly OK movie. I feel like cute animal CG designs age better than the human ones.
That definitely makes it count as amazing.
Halloween 2K18 is... too much Halloween. What I mean by that is that it's fundamentally so reverential of the original material (and only the very sacrosanct original, specifically; it takes time to poke fun at and lightly mock even the immediate sequel) that it's suffocating or nearly impossible to regard as its own thing when structure, tone, aesthetics and entire shot-by-shot callbacks run through the core of the experience. It feels more like fan tribute than anything with its own particular voice. This franchise has gone in weird and "bad" directions over the years but I will take most of those diversions in search of misconceived explorations over veneration of a strict, puristic canon. What I enjoy about this movie are aspects more about the circumstances of its relative existence than anything else; that it is part of the mutually irreconcilable Laurie Strode Saga that has several alternate universe/timeline branches, and which reboots itself every so often, ignoring parts of its history while keeping others... and how that interacts with the real world and Jamie Lee Curtis as an actor called upon and having the opportunity to star as a gritty survival horror protagonist as a sixty-year-old woman, which justifies the entire venture if nothing else. Franchising and genre cachet facilitate that opportunity she's built for herself, but it might as well be totally unique for the way it manifests in this decades-long archfoeship her character's had with basically an anonymous mascot figure, and how compelling the weight of that relationship colliding with itself is despite the particulars.
Last edited:
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
The 7th Voyage of Sinbad
The stop motion effects still look baller but otherwise this is a passable adventure film with a very boring Sinbad.
The stop motion effects still look baller but otherwise this is a passable adventure film with a very boring Sinbad.
Did you know that Into the Spiderverse is still my favourite Spider-Man movie?
Furthermore, did you also know it’s also quite possibly my favourite superhero movie?
Both of these facts are true!
Furthermore, did you also know it’s also quite possibly my favourite superhero movie?
Both of these facts are true!
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
I watched it for the first time over the weekend and was thoroughly impressed. I assumed they might have to barrel through some stuff to get to the alternate Spider-Mans but it is actually very well paced with lots of breathing room for the emotional stuff.
FelixSH
(He/Him)
I feel like this is true for me too. What a great, fun movie.
If I had any complaints, it's that Miles' voice wasn't the one I imagined when I read the comics. This is in no possible way the movies fault.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Reminder, its December so there's no excuse not to listen to all the Spider Christmas tracks.
Been spending covidquar going through Ghibli movies I haven’t seen in on HBO Max...
Only Yesterday is my favorite so far which was unexpected because I didn’t know it existed until like a week or two ago when I started doing this. Just a standout character portrait and like the only time that I was fully invested in a romance subplot in one of these. The ending made me so happy but I would’ve been a little sad, but still satisfied if I stopped watching when HBO was like “watch next thing” as soon as the credits started, even though the story wasn’t over. I could tell there was more but maybe I should shoot customer support an email so they can correct this.
Tales from Earthsea; okay so this takes a wild turn out of nowhere to being weirdly transphobic or just queerphobic. There is this character who looks like a woman and is voiced by a woman in Japanese but is apparently an old man, boo hiss. (even when aging, I wouldn’t say she looks like a man) Not that it’s any better this way, but maybe it was not supposed to be a Shocking Twist. She’s voiced by Willem Defoe in English and I don’t speak Japanese so maybe this was signaled earlier in her speech. Maybe Cob is just a comfortable androgynous man or non-binary. I don’t know. I do know I support this monstrous queer villain’s plan to stay hot forever. RIP.
Pom Poko: I’m not done but I just had to post... I was like, interesting choice that these raccoon dogs had visible testicles, but like, turns out, very intentional choice. These testicles are important. They are straight-up murder weapons. Can’t wait to see where this goes.
e: great movie!
Only Yesterday is my favorite so far which was unexpected because I didn’t know it existed until like a week or two ago when I started doing this. Just a standout character portrait and like the only time that I was fully invested in a romance subplot in one of these. The ending made me so happy but I would’ve been a little sad, but still satisfied if I stopped watching when HBO was like “watch next thing” as soon as the credits started, even though the story wasn’t over. I could tell there was more but maybe I should shoot customer support an email so they can correct this.
Tales from Earthsea; okay so this takes a wild turn out of nowhere to being weirdly transphobic or just queerphobic. There is this character who looks like a woman and is voiced by a woman in Japanese but is apparently an old man, boo hiss. (even when aging, I wouldn’t say she looks like a man) Not that it’s any better this way, but maybe it was not supposed to be a Shocking Twist. She’s voiced by Willem Defoe in English and I don’t speak Japanese so maybe this was signaled earlier in her speech. Maybe Cob is just a comfortable androgynous man or non-binary. I don’t know. I do know I support this monstrous queer villain’s plan to stay hot forever. RIP.
Pom Poko: I’m not done but I just had to post... I was like, interesting choice that these raccoon dogs had visible testicles, but like, turns out, very intentional choice. These testicles are important. They are straight-up murder weapons. Can’t wait to see where this goes.
e: great movie!
Last edited:
I don't recall how this movie got on my list, but I watched The Fate of Lee Khan (1973). A bunch of rebel spies in an inn - the inkeeper, her four ex-criminal waitresses, and some others who are spoilers - hastily conspire to use lying and kung fu to recover stolen intel from a top Yuan dynasty official traveling incognito. A pretty and very suspenseful film, it's got me interested to check out the rest of King Hu's filmography.
Yeah, Earthsea was an early directorial effort from Hayao Miyazaki's son Goro, during a period when the two weren't really speaking to each other, and it's just... kind of unfortunate in a whole lot of ways, the design of the antagonist being a really big one. I think it's pretty uncontroversial to conclude Goro just didn't have the experience to pull the project together, and the plot got pretty lost along the way. Still pretty though.
Pom Poko is just delightful.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
20 Million Miles to Earth
Another Harryhausen classic on Criterion Channel and once again there's a reason its a "Harryhausen classic" and not "guy who directed it" classic. Without those effects, its a pretty forgettable monster movie. Its not without some charms. Outrageous Sicilian accents. And the monster isn't a killer so much as just a space animal that has the misfortune of being CONSTANTLY being harassed and provoked. Its not even a "beauty and the beast" tale, its just an animal doing its thing and people keep attacking it until it flips out. Apart from that, its largely cheesy but those monster effects are pretty great.
Another Harryhausen classic on Criterion Channel and once again there's a reason its a "Harryhausen classic" and not "guy who directed it" classic. Without those effects, its a pretty forgettable monster movie. Its not without some charms. Outrageous Sicilian accents. And the monster isn't a killer so much as just a space animal that has the misfortune of being CONSTANTLY being harassed and provoked. Its not even a "beauty and the beast" tale, its just an animal doing its thing and people keep attacking it until it flips out. Apart from that, its largely cheesy but those monster effects are pretty great.