xianjiro's comments - page 14

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xianjiro

so bad it's just plain bad bad - a movie to remind us just how bad movies can truly be - bad acting, weak script, technical problems, costumes and sets were okay, camera work totally uninspired
7 years 3 months ago
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xianjiro

This is my 10,728th check. I'm fairly confident there is more screen time devoted to the male leads crying, or at least welled up with tears, in this film than the prior 10,727 checks combined! This film bathes in emotion the way teenagers douse themselves with cologne - yes, it's so cloying, maudlin, melodramatic that a viewer struggles to breathe.

And yet, crying male leads aside, there is much to like and even admire about the film. Technically it's tightly made, the design is exquisite, the production numbers are (mostly) exuberant, and the use of color is delightful, but the music cues are way over the top for the emotional plot points (too much cologne) that are stretched, stretched, and well, salt water taffy isn't pulled this damn much, so yes, the writing suffers. And then there are the two evils: patriarchy and patriotism that, besides emotion, the film wears like armor. Imagine a movie wherein Indian children are singing America is the greatest country on the planet - yeah, I see protests outside embassies and Starbucks - but we basically get that with English kids singing about India. Bizarre and given the history, more so. But it appears to be popular with the home audiences. Let's just hope that's for the stunning stars and catchy tunes.
7 years 4 months ago
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xianjiro

I would have preferred 20 minutes of Planet X setup and 75 minutes of kaiju mayhem instead of the other way around, but other than that, it worked well enough for a sequel. Although Nick Adams might have been better served with a pair of suspenders (braces) so he didn't have to hike his pants up so much. Poor guy.
7 years 4 months ago
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xianjiro

Bond girl sighting!
7 years 4 months ago
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xianjiro

seen here on 20161101

quality acceptable but no subs (there is a brief introduction and very little dialogue)

With help from Translate.Google the introductory text would be this in English:
quote:
This is the Sopramonte of Orgosolo, Sardinia, once a refuge for fugitives and bandits.
In this desolate stony ground, today, few shepherds contend with the cold and hunger for the existence of their flocks.
7 years 4 months ago
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xianjiro

http://www.crossframed.com/butterfly (an except - though now I've no idea why I posted this). I saw it on the disk Portrait of Jason. I will also try to get the runtime fixed on IMDb - I can't find any documentation that supports a 33 minute runtime. MUBI shows it at 4min. And more importantly, The Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research states it is preserving "4 minutes and 20 seconds"
7 years 5 months ago
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xianjiro

Come for John Woo

Stay for:

1) Wilford Brimley, action hero
2) snake in need of serious anger management
3) JCvD's mullet, saturated with styling product
7 years 5 months ago
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xianjiro

At times funny, but predictable and otherwise pretty lame. Have to wonder what they were thinking when this got voted onto The 21st Century's Most Acclaimed Films - not saying it was a mistake, just wondering what the justification is. I don't get it.
7 years 5 months ago
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xianjiro

Beautiful imagery, but rather cliche tale of a married man coming to terms with another life he'd previously decided to suppress. Set against the backdrop of ancestral culture in New Zealand, it's a skillfully made film even if the story doesn't feel very original.
7 years 6 months ago
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xianjiro

Beautiful to look at. Had some difficulty understanding the world during the first hour - mostly because the story is nonlinear and the characters were a bit confusing. But the visuals are quite stunning and everything clarified at the start of the second hour.

Can't promise that it will work for fans of martial arts films who are huge on the fighting. It worked for me, but that isn't my interest area.
7 years 6 months ago
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xianjiro

watch this if you're having difficulty sleeping - the narrator's drone is a sure-fire cure for insomnia!

other than that, pretty much what you'd expect from a 'don't drink and drive' film - heavy on the guilt and statistics
7 years 8 months ago
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xianjiro

An interesting look at the colonial experience from a different point of view than Europeans, American, and other Westerners are used to. Also, a different take from the more usual 'revolutionary' tales. Not as polished as we might hope, but still tells the story quite well. Definitely a 'thumbs up'!
7 years 8 months ago
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xianjiro

If you've got a set of 3D glasses, just use those. I saw this as part of the "William Castle Film Collection" in the US. Not sure how (if?) the film has been changed for DVD, but the effect still worked for me. In Castle's words - the left/red lens is for those who believe - the right/blue lens is for those who don't.
7 years 8 months ago
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xianjiro

pretty pictures but didn't feel there was anything really new other than the 3D thing - pretty much just more of the same from BBC Earth, not that that's an entirely bad thing - finding the making of featurettes pretty interesting, clearly technologically this was an ambitious project but that's probably not apparent to the casual view (like me)
7 years 9 months ago
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xianjiro

60s camp classic. Mildred Pierce meets Psycho.

George Kennedy gives the stand out performance - until spoiler. Music cues are, much like many similar movies of the period, quite overwrought, but overall this flick is still quite a hoot.
7 years 9 months ago
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xianjiro

Look for Brett to return in the sequel: Eden Stadium - a weekend of footie, a match to die for - and see how a chav grows up to be spoiler.
7 years 9 months ago
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xianjiro

Always kind of creeps me out when this happens. Didn't think about the date - 6 June 2016 - until well into this film. 72 years ago to the day. It was just near the top of my stack and got put in the player, today.
7 years 9 months ago
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xianjiro

The opening credits were great: list of superhero archetypes!
7 years 10 months ago
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xianjiro

Now I want one!
7 years 10 months ago
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xianjiro

Two thoughts (not the only two, just the most prominent two not expressed here or on IMDb): 1) This film made me very glad cinema doesn't come with a scent-track. 2) I really need a shower.
7 years 11 months ago
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xianjiro

File this one under small town homophobia and you've got most of the plot points except one guy's gay and the other is probably bi-curious. Oh, and something of an ex drops in. The ending is either predictable or it comes as a bit of a surprise. This is more a gay movie with a touch of erotica for the art house set rather than the usual gay stuff we find that's largely gone right to video. However, not sure I'd swim the Danube to see it. Still, wasn't the worst 1:45 I spent today.
7 years 11 months ago
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xianjiro

quote:
wmvankoppen
It smurfed ass.


That's not smurfing all it smurfing smurfed.
7 years 11 months ago
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xianjiro

Was well on track to be (what I thought) the best of the series until Retsudo showed up with his army spoiler. But like most films in the series - if they kept my interest, they lost it at the climactic battle sequence. Maybe I just take movies too seriously, but really thought the creepy vibe worked so well in this installment, until...

Will also admit to being disappointed that spoiler Maybe the TV series provided ultimate closure. Or maybe they hoped to make another movie.

Can't say I'm happy or sad to complete this movie series. It's kind of like a sexy date that keeps teasing you all night and just as you're about to seal the deal, suddenly starts using baby talk or something. Ugh!
7 years 11 months ago
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xianjiro

All I can think is, "Faster pussycat! KILL! KILL!"

The first one was slightly cute. This one is earning my eternal ire. I sure hope the subsequent entries in this series didn't make it onto All-Time Worldwide Box office.

Edit: Please say it isn't so! Two more squeakquels on ATWWBO!!! You mean people actually pay good money for this kind of torture?!?
8 years ago
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xianjiro

Agreed with @jlfitz though I found the story fairly predictable spoiler But it was quiet, understated, with moments of humor, kindness, plenty of truth, and the scenery was quite lovely to look at. A pleasure!
8 years ago

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