OT: Capitals Cinema Club: TV and Movies
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HTFN
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- Feb 8, 2009
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to each their own but that's just wild to me, thought that movie was about as close to perfect as you're allowed to get. I didn't like the ending from a "woohoo, this is fun" perspective but I thought it was earned, fair, tragic, and cruel in a very "animal nature" sort of way. It isn't tidy and everyone doesn't get exactly what they "deserve" but that's kind of how shit goes from time to time and what I ended up liking about it.
sounds like you feel about Ex Machina the way I felt about Mother! minus the everyone else liking it part.
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Neil Racki
Registered User
Ex Machina ... i dont know how to describe it but I enjoy the tight plot circle sci fi what ifs .. yeah they are more like a long black mirror episode but the plot/scenes all involved maybe 3 rooms and the same 4 actors. There is some appreciation for the directing .. its like its a movie but in the parameters of a stage play. Kinda like a modern angry 12 men.
I guess what im trying to say is if you approach it like its a black mirror episode and not a movie theater theatrical release, expectations are met.
It was good, ill never watch it again, give it a C+.
Prey - pretty good, had a bit of the problem with the writing. Would a indigenous person say "im going to take a squat" or "you didnt bring it home" ...
Did indigenous people use the word "home" instead of wigwam? maybe im being picky for a predator movie but i found the costumes, cinematography to be really good .. but then they had the characters talking in modern american tongue.
idk probably just a me thing and im probbaly wrong about the historical accuracy .. def wrong about worrying about dialect in a freaking predator movie made to be fun and not a historical documentary
CapitalsCupReality
It’s Go Time!!
- Feb 27, 2002
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Definitely overthinking Prey.
Enjoy it for what it is. Sometimes you just have to believe lol…
I honestly don’t understand the appeal of the movie. The ending was evident from the moment the robot was introduced. The characters are awful. The writing is awful. The premise is dumb.
Maybe it’s because I work in tech but every part of the movie just made me cringe.
Hivemind
We're Touched
I'd say Ex Machina is several steps above 90% of Black Mirror episodes. Black Mirror episodes often communicate their point within the first 10-15 minutes, and then just drag on for another 30. "Yeah, we get it, [X] has potential for abuse"
Ex Machina had a full narrative arc, and imagined things with a level of nuance and subtlety that evades most Black Mirror writers.
As for Prey, there's a Comanche dub. You can literally watch the whole movie in their native language if you want.
CapitalsCupReality
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twabby
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HTFN
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I thought it was going to be schlock, especially as a Hulu release but wow. Really good.Prey was awesome. 7 thumbs up
really liked how they avoided making it Predator vs Humans right away, it kept people from being too plot armored and then when it was human time there were lots of French guys to play with. Thought the dynamics of getting caught in the “crossfire” made an interesting middle of the movie, also really liked how established the personality of this predator was. He was sort of brutish and sloppy and they told you that in his fights with the wolf and bear, so that by the time he’s making mistakes against humans (or not particularly clever with his equipment use) it comes off more like a character moment than a writer’s convenience
I've been working in tech over 20 years but completely opposite opinion, heh. But hey I respect the opinion.
The one trope in scifi that is constantly being used that drives me crazy is the whole Frankenstein trope "man tampering with science causes havoc". AI themed movies/tv all too often veers into this common territory.
The AI topic on the futurist side I find interesting. I have probably posted this in the past but for a great humorous explainer in understanding AI the two part long form blog post here is pretty amazing and I enjoy the paint level funny illustrations that keep things light: The Artificial Intelligence Revolution: Part 1 - Wait But Why.
CapitalsCupReality
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Arguably the best of the entire series. Remove Arnold and Apollo Creed and it’s a landslide.
loved the bear scene….
twabby
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Hard to overcome the charisma that Arnold and Jesse Ventura bring, but I largely agree with this.
CapitalsCupReality
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How can anyone forget, ‘I ain't got time to bleed…’?
CapitalsCupReality
It’s Go Time!!
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Couple random hard copy reviews:
4k release Close Encounter of the Third Kind: Been a long time since I've watched this film the positivity of potential alien contact seems like a rarity. Being a huge scifi book reader I've read every possible alien first contact scenarios from helpful to indifferent (sorry earth you have to go to make room for an interstellar highway) to the hostile. With older films from the 70s it is tough to tell the normal benefit of the resolution but the HDR does make it worth while in the end. Wish it got the treatment as two other films like the original Bladerunner and 2001 where there were times I almost could not tell how old the film was.
8 Million Ways to Die (Bluray): Always liked this film wasn't much on the bluray side of things so picked it up. There is definitely a price point to the older catalog titles that finally make it to bluray or get released on 4k where I won't tread especially when they first come out.
4k release Close Encounter of the Third Kind: Been a long time since I've watched this film the positivity of potential alien contact seems like a rarity. Being a huge scifi book reader I've read every possible alien first contact scenarios from helpful to indifferent (sorry earth you have to go to make room for an interstellar highway) to the hostile. With older films from the 70s it is tough to tell the normal benefit of the resolution but the HDR does make it worth while in the end. Wish it got the treatment as two other films like the original Bladerunner and 2001 where there were times I almost could not tell how old the film was.
8 Million Ways to Die (Bluray): Always liked this film wasn't much on the bluray side of things so picked it up. There is definitely a price point to the older catalog titles that finally make it to bluray or get released on 4k where I won't tread especially when they first come out.
She Hulk eps 1 was good. Almost felt like rushed in a sense but could just be that it felt that way with how plodding origin movies can be.
CapitalsCupReality
It’s Go Time!!
- Feb 27, 2002
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Ohhh nice. I have very low expectations other than it’s Marvel.
Orville Season 3 is funny. Just started.
Better Call Saul finale: 9 thumbs up
I only got through S1 but it is nice to know that there is some quality content in the bank, so to speak, that has several seasons.
So the 4k/UHD streaming is like LieMAX there is some lossy compression BS that goes on. I often find myself switching from from the fire cube netflix app, to the LG Oled netflix app, to the chromecast ultra netflix app to compare screen quality. Ran across the below link that I found a bit illuminating on the netflix 4k streams.
Why Does Everything On Netflix Look Like That?
Even if you don’t know what to look for, you’ll probably be able to guess if something was created for Netflix just based on a few frames.
www.vice.com
So I liked the Sandman series overall but I think most of the good was the early episodes I found the later episodes to be a little tedious with the core story arc where Morpheus would seem to disappeare from the show for long stretches. The stuff with Lucifer was cool and the story line direction at the end made me hope there is another season.
There were a couple of shows on Netflix where there were hard copy releases but nothing in the last few years it seems like and that sucks and I the wouldn't hurt their streaming numbers as a lot of people are fine not having the hard copy but there is still money to be made, imho. The Lost in Space blurays, as an example, look fantastic and the high def audio crushed.
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g00n
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- Nov 22, 2007
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Better Call Saul finale: 9 thumbs up
I thought it was just OK...kind of anticlimactic.
No hail of bullets, no Silence of the Lambs or Shawshank Redemption type escape, no crazy schemes or twists...just confessing and going to jail.
Maybe I'm missing something. I get the "oh he finally got a fully-developed conscience and he sacrificed maybe the rest of his life out of solidarity with Kim" but it's still sort of a vanilla resolution.
Overall I was hoping for some really weird twists to justify the build up. Like maybe finding out the 2 accomplices were setting him up by working with a fake cancer patient, possibly after being contacted by either the Salamancas or even Howard's wife. I even imagined a scenario where the latter was the REAL pursuer because she'd found something out about Howard's death and hired mercs to track Saul down. And then he has to pull some crazy shit to play the hired muscle against the cartel, all with the Feds bearing down and possibly being handed the other two factions on a platter.
Shit like that.
Not just getting ratted out by an old lady and then confessing and going to jail forever.
*cough*
No hail of bullets, no Silence of the Lambs or Shawshank Redemption type escape, no crazy schemes or twists...just confessing and going to jail.
Maybe I'm missing something. I get the "oh he finally got a fully-developed conscience and he sacrificed maybe the rest of his life out of solidarity with Kim" but it's still sort of a vanilla resolution.
Overall I was hoping for some really weird twists to justify the build up. Like maybe finding out the 2 accomplices were setting him up by working with a fake cancer patient, possibly after being contacted by either the Salamancas or even Howard's wife. I even imagined a scenario where the latter was the REAL pursuer because she'd found something out about Howard's death and hired mercs to track Saul down. And then he has to pull some crazy shit to play the hired muscle against the cartel, all with the Feds bearing down and possibly being handed the other two factions on a platter.
Shit like that.
Not just getting ratted out by an old lady and then confessing and going to jail forever.
*cough*
Otoh I just started watching Peaky Blinders recently and am on S2.
Shhiiiiiiiit yeah
CapitalsCupReality
It’s Go Time!!
- Feb 27, 2002
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I destroyed the first 4 seasons, then realized I didn’t want it to end, so I’ve taken a break….I thought it was just OK...kind of anticlimactic.
No hail of bullets, no Silence of the Lambs or Shawshank Redemption type escape, no crazy schemes or twists...just confessing and going to jail.
Maybe I'm missing something. I get the "oh he finally got a fully-developed conscience and he sacrificed maybe the rest of his life out of solidarity with Kim" but it's still sort of a vanilla resolution.
Overall I was hoping for some really weird twists to justify the build up. Like maybe finding out the 2 accomplices were setting him up by working with a fake cancer patient, possibly after being contacted by either the Salamancas or even Howard's wife. I even imagined a scenario where the latter was the REAL pursuer because she'd found something out about Howard's death and hired mercs to track Saul down. And then he has to pull some crazy shit to play the hired muscle against the cartel, all with the Feds bearing down and possibly being handed the other two factions on a platter.
Shit like that.
Not just getting ratted out by an old lady and then confessing and going to jail forever.
*cough*
Otoh I just started watching Peaky Blinders recently and am on S2.
Shhiiiiiiiit yeah
That’s gotta be one of my favorite shows. Top 3 for me. I’m pretty excited for House of the Dragon this Sunday night..
Peaky is phenomenal. I haven’t watch S6 yet because of life but it’s an incredible show. I may rewatch it just because. Every season they seem to add a villain who is just a perfect fit.I thought it was just OK...kind of anticlimactic.
No hail of bullets, no Silence of the Lambs or Shawshank Redemption type escape, no crazy schemes or twists...just confessing and going to jail.
Maybe I'm missing something. I get the "oh he finally got a fully-developed conscience and he sacrificed maybe the rest of his life out of solidarity with Kim" but it's still sort of a vanilla resolution.
Overall I was hoping for some really weird twists to justify the build up. Like maybe finding out the 2 accomplices were setting him up by working with a fake cancer patient, possibly after being contacted by either the Salamancas or even Howard's wife. I even imagined a scenario where the latter was the REAL pursuer because she'd found something out about Howard's death and hired mercs to track Saul down. And then he has to pull some crazy shit to play the hired muscle against the cartel, all with the Feds bearing down and possibly being handed the other two factions on a platter.
Shit like that.
Not just getting ratted out by an old lady and then confessing and going to jail forever.
*cough*
Otoh I just started watching Peaky Blinders recently and am on S2.
Shhiiiiiiiit yeah
Peaky was my original Covid show. Got insomnia during the first few months and what got me through those long nights was a lot of different Irish whiskey recipes and binging Peaky Blinders
I think season 2 is where Alfie Solomons is introduced. Easily my favorite character, Tom Hardy is perfect. Between Solomons and Bane from The Dark Knight Rises Hardy plays two of my all-time favorite film/TV characters.
