Quiara
Grade School
Posts: 775
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Post by Quiara on Aug 2, 2017 15:48:09 GMT -8
Maybe a bit too late, but perhaps A Scanner Darkly? One of my favorite movies, it's pretty morose as well as being an incredible animation spectacle. Oh yeah, I rewatched this in a theater a couple weeks ago. It's a very good film, and indeed, I think it's one of the few film adaptation of PKD that really captures and improves upon the spirit of the original. The rotoscoping is a perfect fit, but I'm always a sucker for that sort of thing, and even then, the most surprising moment for me was at the very end, where (literally zero plot spoilers) the film just takes the novel's afterword and types it out onscreen. It's not technically impressive or flashy, it's just words, but it gives incredible weight to writing that we as readers are conditioned to completely ignore. It might even be more moving than the film itself. I don't know if it's morose in the same way something like Schindler's List is morose, but it's certainly worth watching. |
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Post by Zarnium on Aug 2, 2017 15:56:27 GMT -8
It also has the best Robert Downey Jr. performance I've seen, IMO. I can't read the book without hearing his voice now, he just portrays the character so well.
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Post by ThirdMan on Aug 2, 2017 18:09:50 GMT -8
Yeah, A Scanner Darkly is certainly a unique film.
Snipe, re: Basterds, in the real-world moral sense, you are of course correct. In the context of a deliberately-exaggerated film where there's degree of emotional distance, I was just speaking to her motivation being relatively understandable. But yeah, the actual act seems intended to evoke a degree of queasiness in the audience, which, if, anything, kind of makes it more interesting. I figured I was misspelling her name, BTW, but it's been a while since I watched the film.
I think Jeremy would know pretty early if he'd find the movie engaging. The first sequence kind of divides viewers: either they're engrossed, or they get impatient waiting for the impending action. But it does prepare them for the extended tavern sequence that comes later..
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Post by Jeremy on Aug 2, 2017 19:09:05 GMT -8
I'm not sure if A Scanner Darkly is my speed either, but the animation style is certainly intriguing. And Philip K. Dick adaptations usually interest me, at least in concept. I'll put it on the list as well.
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Post by Zarnium on Dec 5, 2017 16:14:01 GMT -8
Hey Jeremy, if you're on movie kick, have you ever seen Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind? It's probably my favorite animated movie.
The only downside is every time I hear the title, I think of those gross aliens from Star Trek.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 5, 2017 17:41:39 GMT -8
That's a Miyazaki film, right? Yeah, I keep meaning to do a run-through of his filmography - only seen a couple of his films so far.
I'm thinking of spending my Hannukah gelt on the complete Miyazaki DVD set. (Although if I can't find a Region 1 version, I'll more likely spend it on Porky Pig 101.)
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Post by Zarnium on Dec 5, 2017 18:53:05 GMT -8
Yep, it was one of his earliest ones, technically predates Studio Ghibli itself. Confusingly, it was originally released in Japan in 1984, but the Disney-produced English dub was produced in 2005, so it features a lot of celebrity voice talent from actors who didn't become famous until a decade or more after the movie was first made. Which isn't really a bad thing, it's just that I was initially confused as to how the heck Shia LaBeouf was in a movie from the '80s.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 5, 2017 19:43:49 GMT -8
The English dubs of his films still seem quite popular. My local theater has had revival screenings for a lot of them. (Including The Castle of Cagliostro, which I did not even know was a Miyazaki film.)
I can't seen to find an American version of the DVD set. I'll probably just rent some individual discs from the local library instead.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 2, 2018 19:46:45 GMT -8
Anyone wanna recommend me some Christmas films?
I watched Elf today for the first time, and was surprised by how entertaining it was. And that got me thinking about how there are probably a lot of good, well-written Christmas films that I never got around to watching (even as a kid). Which made me sad, because even if I don't celebrate the holiday, that doesn't mean I can't appreciate the cinema it's inspired.
The networks are showing a lot of the all-time great Christmas films this month, and I'll try working my way through a few of them. (Probably try National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation next.) If anyone has some specific recommendations for films that are worth watching, let me know.
(Also, I'd recommend some Hanukkah films in return, but the only Hanukkah film I know is Eight Crazy Nights, which I would never recommend to anyone.)
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Post by Incandescence 112 on Dec 2, 2018 21:02:24 GMT -8
Anyone wanna recommend me some Christmas films? I watched Elf today for the first time, and was surprised by how entertaining it was. And that got me thinking about how there are probably a lot of good, well-written Christmas films that I never got around to watching (even as a kid). Which made me sad, because even if I don't celebrate the holiday, that doesn't mean I can't appreciate the cinema it's inspired. The networks are showing a lot of the all-time great Christmas films this month, and I'll try working my way through a few of them. (Probably try National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation next.) If anyone has some specific recommendations for films that are worth watching, let me know. (Also, I'd recommend some Hanukkah films in return, but the only Hanukkah film I know is Eight Crazy Nights, which I would never recommend to anyone.) I'm just going to go with the obvious ones: Nightmare Before Christmas, It's a Wonderful Life, Home Alone, A Christmas Story. You've probably seen those of course, but I don't know any obscure Christmas movies. Also, yeah, Will Ferrell's performance in Elf is just the best. Specifically when he shovels syrup-coated spaghetti into his mouth. |
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 3, 2018 6:38:48 GMT -8
I haven't seen A Christmas Story, but maybe it's finally time to remedy that. Gotta see what all the hype is about.
Also haven't seen the original It's a Wonderful Life, but it's been remade and parodied so many times (even the Muppets have their own film version!) that I probably know it inside-out.
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Post by Zarnium on Dec 3, 2018 10:40:17 GMT -8
Wait, when did the Muppets do It's a Wonderful life?
Anyway, Arthur Christmas is pretty good.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 3, 2018 11:02:02 GMT -8
It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie, which aired as a TV movie on NBC in 2002.
The reason you've never heard of it is that it was made at a time when the Muppets were owned by a random German corporation, and features multiple plugs to then-popular NBC shows (like an extended cameo by the Scrubs cast). Shortly after, Disney bought the Muppets, and they understandably refuse to re-air a film which promotes a network owned by a rival studio (Universal).
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Post by Jay on Dec 3, 2018 18:19:44 GMT -8
It's in some respects an 80s period piece (John Glover! Karen Allen! BOBCAT GOLDTHWAITE), but I have a fondness for Scrooged that I hope indicates some value inherent to the enterprise rather than a fanboy gravitation towards Bill Murray. Also you get Carol Kane as the Ghost of Christmas Present, and David Johansen / Buster Poindexter as the Ghost of Christmas Past, and I'd say those are worthy spectacles on their own.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 3, 2018 19:22:44 GMT -8
Scrooged does sound interesting, even beyond my own Bill Murray fanboy gravitation. I think I need a Starz subscription to watch it, though.
The Christmas Carol versions I'm most familiar with are (big shock) the animated Disney versions - both Mickey Mouse and Jim Carrey - and the Muppet adaptation (the more deservedly-recognized of their two Christmas films). Plus, DuckTales did a funny riff on it last week. There seem to be an endless number of ways to tell the Scrooge story.
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