Post: #176

(11-30-2015 05:30 AM)Speculation Wrote:  

(11-05-2015 11:33 PM)LeBeau Wrote:  Brotherhood of the Wolf: Discussion and SPOILERS

SPOILERS

I saw this last week.

I really enjoyed it. I also think that it is a bit schitzophrenic in that it combines martial arts, romance, mystery, incest, noble savage themes, but I just think its entertaining at the end of the day.

I saw this when it originally came out in the cinemas (art house run), but I was pleasantly surprised to find I didn't remember most of the plot twists.

The only big issue I have with it is the trope of the main character going full warpaint/savage mode out of nowhere to avenge his friend and miraculously developing all the same martial arts/fieldcraft that his friend had. Why didn't he go and use those skills to back up his friend when he needed help? Maybe he would still be alive.

Anyway, for all of that I wish that the director had made similar fantasy films whether based on a true story or not. It can be depressing to find these little gems of foreign films and know that there will never be more of them while hollywood churns out garbage after garbage.

That's what this thread is all about. Finding, sharing and discussing them as a community will hopefully add to the enjoyment of films we might never had seen or otherwise overlooked (That's happened for me already)

By the way I will be posting December's films tomorrow using a similar format to LeBeau's

Post: #177

December movie selections

The following selection of films represents what I feel is a good cross section of both mainstream films as well as lesser known independent and or foreign films.


The mainstream selections are I believe worthy of viewing again.

Miller's Crossing (1991)



IMDB logline "Tom Regan, an advisor to a Prohibition-era crime boss, tries to keep the peace between warring mobs but gets caught in divided loyalties"

The Coen brothers (Ethan and Joel) are in my opinion some of the best and most versatile filmmakers of our time. Best known films like Fargo, No Country For Old Men, The Big Lebowski, Blood Simple, A Serious Man. Raisin Arizona, Barton Fink, A Bridge Of Spies ....I could go on...Millers Crossing is my favorite of their films and IMO highly underrated.

Viewing tip. One of the best aspects of this film is the period dialogue, For maximum enjoyment I recommend taking a minute to learn some of the hard boiled slang used in the film Millers Crossing Glossary

Mud (2012)



IMDB logline "Two young boys encounter a fugitive and form a pact to help him evade the vigilantes that are on his trail and to reunite him with his true love."

Best movie from 2012 IMO and the title role (along with the Role of Rust Cohle in True Detective) is the role of Mathew McConaughey's career. Small release means not a lot of people saw this but I think there are a number of themes explored in this film that will resonate with the forum.

Intacto (2001)



IMDB logline "An enigmatic tale of four incredibly lucky people whose lives are intertwined by destiny are subject to the laws of fate."

The first of my foreign (Spanish) film entries Intacto I don't want to spoil it so I won't divulge too much but it will change the way you view the concept of "luck". Plus it has an appearance by Max Von Sydow, one of my favorite old school actors. I don't think he's ever been in a bad film.

True Romance (1993)



IMDB logline Clarence marries hooker Alabama, steals cocaine from her pimp, and tries to sell it in Hollywood, while the owners of the coke try to reclaim it.

I am amazed how often I encounter people that have not seen True Romance. Written by Quentin Tarantino (his best writing ever...according to QT himself) directed by Tony Scott (may he RIP) and one of the most incredible casts (watch how many current major stars have have small roles but incredible performances). If you have not seen True Romance then consider this movie recommendation an early Xmas present from me. You'll thank me later...Youre welcome.

Oldboy (2003)



IMDB Logline"After being kidnapped and imprisoned for 15 years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must find his captor in 5 days."

Another foreign film that most people outside of S Korea have never heard of. There are numerous South Korean films that are great. One of the reasons I think they make good films is they deem willing to go places western filmmakers can or won't. This one is dark but powerful and has some surprises.

Casualties Of War (1989)



IMDB Logline "During the Vietnam War, a soldier finds himself the outsider of his own squad when they unnecessarily kidnap a female villager."

Another one I'm often surprised how often people say they've never seen. From another great filmmaker, Brian De Palma (Scarface, Snake Eyes, Mission To Mars, The Untouchables, Body Double, Carlito's Way) Casualties Of War is underrated and IMO one of the best Vietnam War movies made but overlooked. Part of it is hard heart-breakingly hard to watch but it's a great film with themes worthy of discussion.

That's enough of the dark, so I'll end this list with a lighter selection

Amélie (2001)



IMDB Logline "Amelie is an innocent and naive girl in Paris with her own sense of justice. She decides to help those around her and, along the way, discovers love."

I can hear it already "WTF is up with this PT? What are you, half a fag?... listing a "chick flick?" Easy you fucking neanderthals. Some of you can use a little culture and can stand to have your horizons broadened. Hear me out.

"Content does not a film make"-Roger Ebert This film by director Jean-Pierre Jeunet in my opinion is the "The five tool player" of films. Story, cinematography, editing, musical score (incredible soundtrack), and innovation. This film (aka "The Fabulous Destiny of Amelie Poulain") successfully creates a "complete" fantastical world.

And guess what? No movie has gotten me laid more than this one. How? When I meet a chick one of the things I always ask is "Do you believe in fate or destiny?" If they answer "yes" (and they often do because chicks often believe in magical thinking since it relieves them of responsibility)...you see where this is going?

The first time, every time, I "Netflix and chill" with a chick, I put this movie in, open a nice bottle of French wine and "voila"...by the end of the movie it was destiny / fate that brought us together so that I could put my "le-cock" in her "le-pussy hole". Not so gay now huh?

I could go on and on but I'll leave it there for December. Feel free to continue chime in on any of the films from October and November as well

Post: #178

Seen Amilie, Mud, and True Romance.
Own oldboy and it's one of my favorites. Had one of the most unique fight scenes I had seen to date.

Lebeau pointed me to this thread a little while ago, I'll be joining in from this month. Happy to see there are still 3 movies to look forward to seeing for the first time, as well as all the previous ones from before.

I'll check out millers crossing tonight.

Post: #179

I still have to finish reviewing some of the November recommended movies.

Papaya Tapper this looks like a nice list for December, I have seen Mud and Amelie before but will watch them again.

I am calling dibs on January's movie recommendations if some one has not already claimed it and if you guys are cool with few foreign(Bollywood Movies). Do not worry I will not recommend the cheesy dancing kind

Post: #180

Love True Romance. Tarantino sold the script for only 50k. If you're short on time 'The Sicilian Scene' is my favourite part of the movie.

Oldboy is in my top ten movies of all time. After you watch it, do yourself a favour and watch the Hollywood remake. Goes to show how you can turn a masterpiece into an absolute pile of crap.

Post: #181

Finished Millers Crossing last night. I don't want to say too much but I really enjoyed this movie.

If anything I would say this movie highlighted the different types of personalities men can have and puts on full display their strengths and weaknesses.

Plus for how this movie really shows the strength of "less is more" for communication. Awesome choice man.

Post: #182

This seems as good a place as any to drop a warning, and I will spoil the film, so be warned:

Saw a trailer for this Australian film playing at an art cinema last week, thought it could be decent, so saw it last night.



It stars Sullivan Stapleton from the great 'Animal Kingdom', the so-so 'Strike Back' and the dreadful 300 grrl-power sequel.

The trailer:





Looks decent, right?

SPOILERS

Older criminal mentor reconnects with a younger guy who was trying to go 'straight' and wants him to get back into the life. Yeah, it's a common trope that's been done many times before, but the story could still be interesting with good acting and performances.

Stapleton is fantastic. It's a powerhouse, charismatic performance, perfectly-inhabiting every working class con I've ever known, and he far, far outclasses his younger co-stars, who are doing the awkward Millennial style of acting I think of as being 'CW'. (Unsurprisingly, the female lead I kept recognising from somewhere turned out to have played Huntress on 'Arrow').

Unfortunately though, turns out it's just deliberate progressive subversion in action, much like 'Mad Max'. The subversion here is the male-dominated crime genre, which means 40 minutes in, it takes a dull turn into melodrama when the two male characters start making out. The rest of it plays out like an episode of Home and Away: they banged in prison but he's met a girl he wants to marry who doesn't know about his criminal past and his homosexuality. His mentor can't accept the betrayal. Cue much soap opera style turning away from partners with teary eyes, the female character constantly being left alone after being told 'whatever you do, don't do this' then immediately doing it even after clearly understanding the danger and severity of the situations and getting into trouble because of it, and the type of finale 90's Feminists would have criticised as being the Doomed Lesbian trope.

It's fucking dismal and a huge waste of potential. I'm not saying that out of homophobia, (though I wonder if there's any frigging piece of media I can interact with that doesn't have to become all about homosexuality), but the fact that soap opera is soap opera, and if a situation would be dull even if it was heterosexual, it's as equally dull with gay characters.

The bait and switch is annoying too. Movie had potential, but it's simply the crime version of this:



It's set in 1974 for absolutely no reason I could fathom.

I just checked: the writer previously wrote for 'Home and Away' and 'McLeods Daughters'. Aussies will get this.



See it at your own risk.

Post: #183

(12-03-2015 07:45 PM)AnonymousBosch Wrote:  I just checked: the writer previously wrote for 'Home and Away' and 'McLeods Daughters'. Aussies will get this.

Yep, it all makes perfect sense.

Just a petty swipe at masculinity - 'Tough guys are really like *this* deep down'.

Bullet dodged. Cheers.

Post: #184

^^^
Thanks for the movie alert, AB. I'll be sure to avoid that one...!

On the positive side, I'm watching two good ones right now.

"The Raid: Redemption" (2011). Holy shit. This is an incredible action film.

"Side Effects" (2013). Good medical thriller.

Post: #185

(12-04-2015 01:06 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  ^^^
Thanks for the movie alert, AB. I'll be sure to avoid that one...!

On the positive side, I'm watching two good ones right now.

"The Raid: Redemption" (2011). Holy shit. This is an incredible action film.

"Side Effects" (2013). Good medical thriller.

There is a second 'The Raid' movie. Even more action in it. Pretty intense.

Post: #186

So I have a penchant for looking for films that deal in the abstract or complex, I noticed Primer, Coherence and Enter the Void have been mentioned so I'm presuming there's others here which share a similar taste in film.

Stay (2005)



Plot: This movie focuses on the attempts of a psychiatrist to prevent one of his patients from committing suicide while trying to maintain his own grip on reality.

This film for me is perhaps one of the most under-rated masterpieces when it comes to the execution of its subject matter. A visually stunning blend of abstract cinematography with an extremely heavy emphasis on the subtleties throughout the film which join to create an all encompassing perspective.

* The trailer is absolute garbage and in no way represents the film.

Enemy (2013)



Plot: A man seeks out his exact look-alike after spotting him in a movie.

This is the only other movie aside from Primer that I actually had to look up an explanation to fully understand it. There is a massive focus on the details of the characters and scenes and unless your paying attention, the ending will just make you wonder 'wtf?' - To be honest, it probably will regardless.

I can't be sure I liked it.. perhaps I would need to watch it again now that I can look back on certain scenes and put the whole picture together. Once you understand what's happening it's pretty amazing but the pace is slow and the scenes can be bland at times, which makes following the confusing plot difficult.. For me it just never seemed to hit that cathartic release.

Post: #187

^^^

I really liked "Enemy" even though it was opaque at times. From the reviews I've read, it's supposed to be full of symbolism (especially the spider motif) about how fascism is slowly taking over society.

But all in all, I really liked it.

Post: #188

Hi guys nice thread. Actually I watched the enemy a few hours ago, it kept my attention the entire movie, i really liked it, but left me with questions, i guess i have to read the book to find the answers.

Post: #189

(12-05-2015 07:54 AM)Thaitanium Wrote:  

(12-04-2015 01:06 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  ^^^
Thanks for the movie alert, AB. I'll be sure to avoid that one...!

On the positive side, I'm watching two good ones right now.

"The Raid: Redemption" (2011). Holy shit. This is an incredible action film.

"Side Effects" (2013). Good medical thriller.

There is a second 'The Raid' movie. Even more action in it. Pretty intense.

There's one incredible fight scene in the second Raid that lasts forever in a kitchen. It's truly amazing and from what I read took forever to film since they were doing fluid cuts and not choppy quick action takes like Hollywood films.

It's the most complex fight sequence i've ever seen.

Post: #190

An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by an elected government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.

What a film. This is coming from the same director of Prisoners (2013) and Enemy (2015).

There is a certain overlay of intense atmosphere created throughout some of the scenes which really sets this film apart from other's that cover the same subject matter. It gave me strong impressions of Traffic from back in 2000. Some are calling it sexist, despite the lead character been female.. because of it's portrayal of women, but this is nonsense. It's brutally honest and real about what's going on.. nothing is held back. Benicio Del Toro kills it.

Cuts to the bone, would recommend.

Post: #191

I wanted to recommend BEST OFFER (2013): art dealer finds himself attracted to a reclusive woman who wants him to sell the art collection in her parents' villa. She won't meet him and only communicates by phone or from the other side of a door. When his curiosity gets the best of him and he spies on her, the women turns out to be a hot little Italian "9". Of course, he's pushing 60 has never been married and falls in love with her. Good lesson about why physical objects will never bring you happiness. Only by interacting with humans will you ever find fulfilment. And a nod to Captain Capitalism for teaching me this little gem.

Post: #192

I just saw "The Revenant" thanks to a good quality leak, and the entire film was a testament to what a man can do with enough willpower.

The movie somewhat reminds me of Douglas Mawson's story which Quintus tells in Pantheon. The movie itself is brutal and I actually saw it described in a Rotten Tomatoes review as "masculine", which caught my attention.

Suffice to say, it was. What he survives and does to get revenge is quite exhilarating, as well as the shots in this film are breathtaking.

Post: #193

Cross posted from the Trump thread

"Cartel Land"
http://cartellandmovie.com/




I was just blown away by the real talk in this movie, it's highly recommended viewing for everyone here, especially anyone with any doubts about the problem and the depths of corruption in Mexico right now. It makes you realize just how much the government is fully complicit and is backing and funding everything, all the way down to the guys who cook meth in the fields at night. They have their own custom government uniforms on while they are making the drugs! Even a grassroots movement by the people who oppose the cartels was quickly co-opted and turned into a whole new cartel enforcing the narco trafficking. It's amazing to see how true it is that power corrupts, and how quickly and effectively that can happen to even seemingly good men. An amazing documentary, and a very harrowing view of humanity probing our morality, it will make you wonder what kind of a price do you put on morals and values.

Post: #194

Gettysburg, 1993.

Post: #195

Thanks for the recommendations in this thread. Sicario looks great. I'll be sure to watch that in the next couple of days.

Here's an upcoming movie that looks quite badass: The Revenant





It has already leaked to the torrent sites, but it looks like it's worth the trip to the theater.

Oscar time for Leo?

Post: #196

Leo is still a pretty boy who tries to hard even in a tough role.

What is this Eight movie that everyone is talking about?

Post: #197

(12-22-2015 01:49 PM)Brian Shima Wrote:  What is this Eight movie that everyone is talking about?

It's probably "The Hateful Eight" the 8th film by Quentin Tarentino.

I saw it the other night, I enjoyed it but you really have to appreciate Tarentino's style of film otherwise you will probably hate it. The movie like most of his movies is heavy in dialogue which is the main reason I enjoy it.. Kurt Russell is actually surprisingly good.

About 80% of the film takes place inside a cabin during a Blizzard between 8 characters. It's not his best work, but I found it entertaining.

Post: #198

Yes that's it, someone told me it was an action film? I think QT's films are highly overrated, will check out later if I remember..

Post: #199

(12-22-2015 05:09 PM)Brian Shima Wrote:  Yes that's it, someone told me it was an action film? I think QT's films are highly overrated, will check out later if I remember..

I think Quentin Tarantino's type of humor and film callbacks/homages don't go down well with a lot of people. He's a film buff's director if that makes any sense. So his films will always be niche even though he's still an iconic director.

QT's brand of morgue humor is pretty close to my own. I find his stuff to be endlessly rewatchable.

If you were to pluck one person that is probably the most knowledgeable person on earth when it comes to film history it'd be a close race between Scorsese and Tarantino. Listen to these two guys do interviews talking about past films sometimes..it's amazing the shit they know. They can recall specific dialogue and scenes from some really obscure films.

Post: #200

Well if you look at my post history and threads, I would probably fall under the film buff category Some of his movies are cool, ok but nothing really stands out. He comes off to me as edgy for the mainstream if that makes sense.