As the Underworld series goes, the first one is definitely the best, but this was about on a par with the second, and streets ahead of the needless third.
Slightly bemused at the level of dislike for this. It's not a Great Movie, but then neither was Predator. They're in the same ballpark, which (as others have said) is leagues better than Predator 2 or either AvP film.
PeacefulAnarchy has got a pretty good handle on this one, I think. Anyone who can describe it as depicting "ordinary urban life" isn't leading an ordinary life.
I used to really dislike Thunderball, but watched it tonight trying to be more open-minded and really enjoyed it. I still find it flawed, but it's packed with some really great bits too.
I wonder if the negative reception it suffered stems from it coming across as a psychological/supernatural thriller in how it was sold (that's certainly what I remember from when it wad released), but it actually being more of an art house/character drama. Perhaps also the more conservative critics being wary of praising a movie that had attracted such controversy.
Oh, what a bunch of grumpy sods you all are. Criticising a film based on a British children's novel & stage play as a kids' piece and typically Hollywood seems a bit rich. And boring? God. Go back to your mile-a-minute Transformers crap or whatever.
It's all trotting along fairly nicely, but then what the hell happens in the second half?! It goes batshit insane, with stuff happening for no good reason, characters making unfounded leaps of logic, the sense that whole scenes/sequences are missing, badly mishandled plot points...
It frequently looks stunning, there are some great concepts mixed in there, and some bits that work well as isolated sequences but not as part of the whole. Deciding whether it wanted to be a thoughtful SF movie that stood more-or-less alone or a creature-horror thing that tied closely to Alien might've helped.
It was all going so well, until the Brits turned up. The first film was hardly devoid of jingoism and xenophobia, but here it was turned up to 11, not helped by the awful English-language actors.
Still, damn fine fights throughout, and the abandonment of the first film's clichéd desaturated photography was a boon.
After all the hype, including people getting the DVD/BD and saying how magnificent it was even on the Xth viewing (and respectable types, not just fanboys), I was thoroughly underwhelmed. It's not bad, but it's a little scrappy for nearly 100 minutes and then a pretty awesome climax kicks in and kind of obscures what went before.
Bright side: the action sequences/fights throughout are really well staged, and there are a couple of funny moments. One thing that might help, in my opinion (of course), would be to make it shorter and pacier, especially in the first half hour.
All that said, some of the people slagging it off here ("all glitter and no substance") are going a little too far, I think.
Anyone who thinks that the point of the movie was to "enjoy children killing each other as entertainment" obviously didn't get it. And if you can't get the message of a film based on a young adult novel... oh dear.
People complain about cinema dumbing down, then when they make even a moderately intelligent movie it attracts comments like "Meh: The Movie" and "became quite boring".
Paul Guilfoyle's henchman, constantly commenting on the Saint's actions, is the comic highlight, though I also really enjoyed Louis Hayward’s cocky, witty performance as the titular hero. Seems a shame he only did one more (many years later) -- he’s a watermark I’ll be comparing George Sanders and Hugh Sinclair to in the series' further films.
I thought it was great. Not perfect, as others have noted, but still fantastic. Though I must say I don't get some of the things people are complaining about. Pacing? I thought it was fine. Plot holes? None so glaring they bothered me, though maybe when I think about it harder some will leap out.
It's a very busy film and arguably they bit off more than they could chew -- there's enough story and characters for two films and maybe they should've pulled back on some threads. Equally, that scale gives it an epic feel all its own.
I think a lot of people who dislike it, or don't love it as much as they hoped, will be due to mismanaged expectations. This isn't A Batman Film, it's the conclusion of Christopher Nolan's Bruce Wayne Story. And maybe Gotham City would've been a better title.
I really enjoyed it for about half an hour or so, then after they all set out to chase the aliens it seemed to slow down and just got increasingly dull, for me. Even the Big Climax wasn't exciting, it just seemed to go on and on far more than was needed.
I watched the extended cut and felt it could do with a good 20-30 minutes chopping out. Perhaps the theatrical cut is better, but sadly the UK Blu-ray doesn't include that option.
A tiny bit amazed how much some people seem to hate this. Sure it was melodramatic at times (not necessarily a bad thing) and the ending with him lugging the crucifix was heavy-handed (pretty much a bad thing), but I thought the battle scenes were really well executed and highly evocative. It may not show you hundreds or thousands of bodies, but the dirty nasty fighting, the brutal deaths and so on are arguably more effective at conveying the actual experience than just a shot of unidentifiable corpses.
Tim Burton's first Batman is great, but this is a much better film in so many ways! The direction, writing, acting, action, effects are all slicker. They spent over twice as much and it really shows.
Watching them both today, Batman feels Old now, whereas Returns… it's from '92, of course it doesn't feel New, but it feels more like newer films. In a good way.
I really don't see why everyone hated this so much. Sure, it's not a great movie, it's got problems and it could've been better, but it was still pretty entertaining.
Comments 201 - 225 of 277
Movie comment on Underworld Awakening
badblokebob
As the Underworld series goes, the first one is definitely the best, but this was about on a par with the second, and streets ahead of the needless third.Movie comment on Predators
badblokebob
Slightly bemused at the level of dislike for this. It's not a Great Movie, but then neither was Predator. They're in the same ballpark, which (as others have said) is leagues better than Predator 2 or either AvP film.Movie comment on The Keep
badblokebob
It's awesome for about half an hour, and then it gets increasingly muddled and silly.Movie comment on The Call of Cthulhu
badblokebob
Have to echo everyone else, this was brilliant. Some really impressive special effects work, particularly during the slickly-edited climax.Movie comment on Tiny Furniture
badblokebob
PeacefulAnarchy has got a pretty good handle on this one, I think. Anyone who can describe it as depicting "ordinary urban life" isn't leading an ordinary life.Movie comment on Thunderball
badblokebob
I used to really dislike Thunderball, but watched it tonight trying to be more open-minded and really enjoyed it. I still find it flawed, but it's packed with some really great bits too.Movie comment on Birth
badblokebob
I wonder if the negative reception it suffered stems from it coming across as a psychological/supernatural thriller in how it was sold (that's certainly what I remember from when it wad released), but it actually being more of an art house/character drama. Perhaps also the more conservative critics being wary of praising a movie that had attracted such controversy.Movie comment on War Horse
badblokebob
Oh, what a bunch of grumpy sods you all are. Criticising a film based on a British children's novel & stage play as a kids' piece and typically Hollywood seems a bit rich. And boring? God. Go back to your mile-a-minute Transformers crap or whatever.Movie comment on Prometheus
badblokebob
It's all trotting along fairly nicely, but then what the hell happens in the second half?! It goes batshit insane, with stuff happening for no good reason, characters making unfounded leaps of logic, the sense that whole scenes/sequences are missing, badly mishandled plot points...It frequently looks stunning, there are some great concepts mixed in there, and some bits that work well as isolated sequences but not as part of the whole. Deciding whether it wanted to be a thoughtful SF movie that stood more-or-less alone or a creature-horror thing that tied closely to Alien might've helped.
Movie comment on RoboCop 2
badblokebob
Personally, I thought this was much more entertaining than the first one.Movie comment on Yip Man 2
badblokebob
It was all going so well, until the Brits turned up. The first film was hardly devoid of jingoism and xenophobia, but here it was turned up to 11, not helped by the awful English-language actors.Still, damn fine fights throughout, and the abandonment of the first film's clichéd desaturated photography was a boon.
Movie comment on The Avengers
badblokebob
After all the hype, including people getting the DVD/BD and saying how magnificent it was even on the Xth viewing (and respectable types, not just fanboys), I was thoroughly underwhelmed. It's not bad, but it's a little scrappy for nearly 100 minutes and then a pretty awesome climax kicks in and kind of obscures what went before.Bright side: the action sequences/fights throughout are really well staged, and there are a couple of funny moments. One thing that might help, in my opinion (of course), would be to make it shorter and pacier, especially in the first half hour.
All that said, some of the people slagging it off here ("all glitter and no substance") are going a little too far, I think.
Movie comment on Fantastic Four
badblokebob
Quite often movies that get slagged off by comic book fanboys turn out to not actually be so bad. Not this time. Utterly woeful.Movie comment on The Hunger Games
badblokebob
Anyone who thinks that the point of the movie was to "enjoy children killing each other as entertainment" obviously didn't get it. And if you can't get the message of a film based on a young adult novel... oh dear.Movie comment on Rise of the Planet of the Apes
badblokebob
People complain about cinema dumbing down, then when they make even a moderately intelligent movie it attracts comments like "Meh: The Movie" and "became quite boring".As they say, people get what people deserve
Toplist comment on IMDb's Mini-Series Top 50
badblokebob
44% of this list is made up of British series.Just sayin'.
Movie comment on Highlander
badblokebob
Pfft to you all, I love Highlander.Movie comment on The Saint in New York
badblokebob
Utter hokum really, but entertaining for it.Paul Guilfoyle's henchman, constantly commenting on the Saint's actions, is the comic highlight, though I also really enjoyed Louis Hayward’s cocky, witty performance as the titular hero. Seems a shame he only did one more (many years later) -- he’s a watermark I’ll be comparing George Sanders and Hugh Sinclair to in the series' further films.
Movie comment on The Dark Knight Rises
badblokebob
I thought it was great. Not perfect, as others have noted, but still fantastic. Though I must say I don't get some of the things people are complaining about. Pacing? I thought it was fine. Plot holes? None so glaring they bothered me, though maybe when I think about it harder some will leap out.It's a very busy film and arguably they bit off more than they could chew -- there's enough story and characters for two films and maybe they should've pulled back on some threads. Equally, that scale gives it an epic feel all its own.
I think a lot of people who dislike it, or don't love it as much as they hoped, will be due to mismanaged expectations. This isn't A Batman Film, it's the conclusion of Christopher Nolan's Bruce Wayne Story. And maybe Gotham City would've been a better title.
Movie comment on Batman & Robin
badblokebob
Watching this recently for only the second time ever, I was surprised to discover it's not completely without merit.Sure, the vast majority of it is horrendously appalling, but the Alfred subplot is really well done. That's all, but it's something, eh?
Movie comment on Cowboys & Aliens
badblokebob
I really enjoyed it for about half an hour or so, then after they all set out to chase the aliens it seemed to slow down and just got increasingly dull, for me. Even the Big Climax wasn't exciting, it just seemed to go on and on far more than was needed.I watched the extended cut and felt it could do with a good 20-30 minutes chopping out. Perhaps the theatrical cut is better, but sadly the UK Blu-ray doesn't include that option.
Movie comment on Passchendaele
badblokebob
A tiny bit amazed how much some people seem to hate this. Sure it was melodramatic at times (not necessarily a bad thing) and the ending with him lugging the crucifix was heavy-handed (pretty much a bad thing), but I thought the battle scenes were really well executed and highly evocative. It may not show you hundreds or thousands of bodies, but the dirty nasty fighting, the brutal deaths and so on are arguably more effective at conveying the actual experience than just a shot of unidentifiable corpses.Movie comment on Batman Returns
badblokebob
Tim Burton's first Batman is great, but this is a much better film in so many ways! The direction, writing, acting, action, effects are all slicker. They spent over twice as much and it really shows.Watching them both today, Batman feels Old now, whereas Returns… it's from '92, of course it doesn't feel New, but it feels more like newer films. In a good way.
Movie comment on Green Lantern
badblokebob
I really don't see why everyone hated this so much. Sure, it's not a great movie, it's got problems and it could've been better, but it was still pretty entertaining.Movie comment on Di Renjie zhi Tongtian diguo
badblokebob
I'd heard a lot of good things about this, so sad to say I found it really disappointing. Not bad, just middling.Showing items 201 – 225 of 277