What Movie Are You Watching?

bcdcdude said:
I'm going to see Dune next week and I can't wait. I watched the Lynch film again which was much better 2nd time around. Poor bugger was on a hiding to nothing - it's impossible to do in under 2 1/2 hours, so I do appreciate the new one is (hopefully) expanded. I am a fan of Villenville (sp?) and thought his last couple of films were brilliant, so have high hopes.

As for the new Bond? I really liked it. Without spoilers, the ending was quite moving. I forgive it if I think of the Craig films as its own thing. I did get into a huge argument on whether it changes the series and I do believe that the Marvel-isation of modern cinema is slowly becoming a plague as prior to this I never thought of a series of films being this massive universe. Not really a fan of Billie Eilish, but I did like the theme tune! I managed to get the official programme at the royal premiere too!

As for films i've seen? I'll do an updated list tomorrow!
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Villenueve*

The most-prominent Canadian racing family has that as their last name, so I'm super-familiar with it. ;)

The ending is a good ending, but again, in the context of the series, just... no lol.

The whole film has the Last Jedi vibes, in that someone who had nothing to do with the project, comes on and completely annihilates what was established in prior film(s).
 
Sorry, I get jumbled with words sometimes. I'm getting slowly dyslexic as I get older U______U

So! Here's a new list of what i've watched. Ones in bold are highly recommended :)

New films
1) Terra Formars / Takashi Miike / 2016 / 3/5
2) Retaliation / Yasuharuu Hasebe / 1969 / 2/5
3) Lions Love (...And Lies) / Agnes Varda / 2/5
4) Song To Song / Terrence Malick / 2/5
5) Graveyard of Honor / Takashi Miike / 2002 / 4/5
6) Outlaw: Black Dagger / Keiichi Ozawa / 1968 / 3/5
7) Bride of Frankenstein / James Whale / 1935 / 3/5
8) Inferno of Torture / Teruo Ishii / 1969 / 3/5
9) Zombie 5: Killing Birds / Claudio Lattanzi & Joe D'Amato / 1987 / 1/5
10) Wife of A Spy / Kiyoshi Kurosawa / 2020 / 4/5
11) Return of Daimajin / Kenji Misumi / 1966 / 3/5
12) The The: The Comeback Special - Live At The Royal Albert Hall, 2018 / Tim Pope / 2021 / 4/5
13) No Time To Die / Cary Joji Fukunaga / 2021 / 4/5
14) Pieces / Juan Piquer Simón / 1982 / 4/5
15) Nekromantik / Jorg Buttgereit / 1987 / 1/5
16) There's Always Vanilla / George A. Romero / 1971 / 1/5
17) Outlaw: Kill! / Keiichi Ozawa / 1969 / 3/5
18) One Missed Call / Takashi Miike / 2003 / 3/5
19) The Wolf Man / George Waggner / 1941 / 3/5
20) Street Mobster / Kinji Fukusaku / 1972 / 4/5
21) Wrath of Daimajin / Kazuo Mori / 1966 / 2/5
22) Phantasm / Don Coscarelli / 1979 / 3/5
23) Yokai Monsters: 100 Monsters / Kimiyoshi Yasuda / 1968 / 3/5
24) Demonia / Lucio Fulci / 1990 / 2/5
25) Robotrix / Jamie Luk / 1991 / 4/5
26) The Phantom of the Opera / Arthur Lubin / 1943 / 4/5
27) Demons 2 / Lamberto Bava / 1986 / 3/5
28) The Last Duel / Ridley Scott / 2021 / 4/5
29) Creature From The Black Lagoon / Jack Arnold / 1954 / 2/5
30) Haloween Kills / David Gordon Green / 2021 / 3/5
31) Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare / Yoshiyuki Kuroda / 1968 / 4/5
32) Getting Any? / Takeshi Kitano / 1994 / 4/5
33) Robotropolis / Christopher Hatton / 2011 / 1/5
34) Murder Weapon / David Decoteau / 1989 / 2/5
35) Dhishoom / Rohit Dhawan / 2016 / 4/5

Re-watched films
1) Knight Of Cups / Terrence Malick / 2015 / 2.5/5
2) The Outlaw Josey Wales / Clint Eastwood / 1976 / 4/5
3) Dune / David Lynch / 1984 / 3/5
4) Friday The 13th Part VII: The New Blood / John Carl Buechler / 1988 / 1/5

Shorts
1) Swedes In America / Irving Lerner / 1943 / 3/5
2) Violent Is The Word For Curly / Charley Chase / 1938 / 3/5
3) Scenes With Beans / Ottó Foky / 1976 / 4/5
4) Surfer / Jonathan Glazer / 1999 / 5/5
5) Hey, You! / Péter Szoboszlay / 1976 / 3/5
6) I Like Life A Lot / Kati Macskássy / 1977 / 4/5
7) What Did Jack Do? / David Lynch / 2017 / 3/5

TV shows
1) Gundam 00 / 2007 - 2009 / 4/5

So as it's spooky season, i've been watching lots of horror films and my goodness some are shite. Some real diamonds in the rough include 'Pieces' and 'Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare'. The former is a grimy little slasher, but with interesting set pieces and a few jumps! The latter is an incredible monster movie that is full of imagination. Now I want a little umbrella monster! Sadly, some terrible ones include 'Nekromantik' (only watched to say i've watched it. I felt kinda sick towards the end. The effects are clearly fake, but let's put it this way...blood and semen shouldn't mix) and 'Zombie 5: Killing Birds' (although it's endaringly shite!)

It was also nice to watch some proper acting films like 'Wife of A Spy', hilarious comedies like 'Getting Any?' and beautiful romance/horror cinema like 'The Phantom of the Opera'. I'm a sucker for 1940's colour films full of faded saturation. It feels luxurious. I also had the pleasure of watching a The The concert in a beautiful venue (I saw them live the very next day after this was filmed...seeing them is very rare!! Only 4 tours in 40 years). I even got to ask a question and get my vinyl signed (again very rare as the singer is quite private and elusive!) Finally, beautiful shorts include 'Scenes with Beans' - a film using beans as stop motion animation and the Guinness advert 'Surfer'. I remember it being a big deal at the time (it's a very arty advert), but seeing it at the Guinness factory in almost 360 degrees, then having a pint at the top of the building is a hell of a memory.

As for 'Robotrix'? Wow...it's completely bonkers. To have extended rape scenes then scenes of goofy humour straight afterwards is tonally very strange. When the bad guy (robot) does the most over the top evil laugh after raping someone, it's hard to be offended. As a mix of Robocop and Power Rangers, it's a hell of a ride. It was my first Category III movie. Finally 'Dhishoom' was another first as it was my first Bollywood movie! It was essentially a rip-off of buddy cop movies and I couldn't follow all the double crossings, but it was really good fun with a catchy soundtrack (although only 3 musical numbers?! Good grief!)

As for films i've already seen, 'The Outlaw Josey Wales' is a classic and every bit as good as I remember. Malick's 'Knight of Cups' is a tough watch and - I hate to say it - pretty boring. However, watching 'Song to Song' afterwards, makes this feel like a Michael Bay movie, so in comparison it's better. As a huge Malick fan though, these two films were deeply disappointing and felt like he was up his own arse (he's pretentious at the best of times, but often beautifully so). Thankfully with 'A Hidden Life', he's back to his best.

So yesterday I finally got Netflix...so my 250 film backlog has gone up to almost 400. And I bought 16 more films. Help me!!!!
 
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Revan said:
Dune (Part Two) is motherfucking confirmed! In theatres October 10th 2023!



Seen Dune (Part One) two times so far, I'm kinda obsessed.
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Good news that it was officially greenlit and even better that the next one is coming pretty fast being only 2 years from now. I feel like they need to start production really soon to meet that aggressive deadline.
 
Well...I started a new blog today. I missed writing about films and games and such...I used to do it pretty regularly on my old blog until I got discouraged for certain reasons.

But I wanted to start fresh so I whipped together a new Blog on Blogger and decided to post this piece about Harmony Korine's Gummo.

thelongtake861.blogspot.com

[Feature] - Why Gummo Lingers On As A Masterpiece of Killing Time

Killing time is something we all do. Be it looking at our social media profiles aimlessly or watching countless hours of TV after a long har...
thelongtake861.blogspot.com thelongtake861.blogspot.com

Let us know if it is any good...I'm gonna try to keep this blog updated a little more...I've been in a real creative drive lately :)
 
I've wanted to get my site back up again (have it all backed up), but not sure if it's worth it, as that's $400.00+ a year that I could instead spend on regular vehicle maintenance lol.

I am still writing reviews and doing the odd recording here and there, but I haven't written any top 10s or other side projects, so again, not sure if it's worth it...

Anyways, back OT...

Scream (1996):

Surely everyone has seen it (or knows about it), so I won't bother with a synopsis, but this was the first time in over a decade or two that I watched it from beginning to end (had only done so once prior and I was 12 or 13 or something) and the first time I watched it with a mind for cinema.

It really is a great and fun film, with the tension never letting up and really good performances from the leading 5 (er, 7, actually). Nothing Oscar-worthy, but for a horror film, light years ahead of the cheese and cringe of the late 70s/80s Golden Age of the genre. Rose McGowan is always awesome and Neve Campbell does a good job like always (I find she never is perfect or anything, but always a step above competent, at least; low ceiling, high floor), while this film further cements my opinion that Matthew Lillard is typecast as goofy/clown-like characters lol.

But yes, a good slasher plot and great dialogue, there's no doubt this was a great horror film and revitalised the genre.

9/10
 
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Watched both Mulholland Drive and Lost Highway. The former was entertaining but kinda felt a bit too “obvious”, to the point where I’m surprised Lynch apparently sat down and explained it. The latter felt a bit more abstract like I’m used to with his stuff, though I can’t be sure because I was dead tired and missed pieces here and there so I think I may just have to rewatch it when I get a chance. As it is, it’s got some interesting imagery and it’s certainly unconventional but I’m still not sure I like it…I guess the tailgating scene was pretty relatable lol
 
Truck_1_0_1_ said:
I've wanted to get my site back up again (have it all backed up), but not sure if it's worth it, as that's $400.00+ a year that I could instead spend on regular vehicle maintenance lol.

I am still writing reviews and doing the odd recording here and there, but I haven't written any top 10s or other side projects, so again, not sure if it's worth it...

Anyways, back OT...

Scream (1996):

Surely everyone has seen it (or knows about it), so I won't bother with a synopsis, but this was the first time in over a decade or two that I watched it from beginning to end (had only done so once prior and I was 12 or 13 or something) and the first time I watched it with a mind for cinema.

It really is a great and fun film, with the tension never letting up and really good performances from the leading 5 (er, 7, actually). Nothing Oscar-worthy, but for a horror film, light years ahead of the cheese and cringe of the late 70s/80s Golden Age of the genre. Rose McGowan is always awesome and Neve Campbell does a good job like always (I find she never is perfect or anything, but always a step above competent, at least; low ceiling, high floor), while this film further cements my opinion that Matthew Lillard is typecast as goofy/clown-like characters lol.

But yes, a good slasher plot and great dialogue, there's no doubt this was a great horror film and revitalised the genre.

9/10
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I'm still quite curious about that upcoming Scream 5. I'm curious to see what it looks like without Wes Craven at the helm (RIP)

I was one of the few people I know who quite liked Scream 4 and thought it was slightly ahead of its time. With the whole parody of social media and peoples desperate drive for likes and fame. I thought the ending to that sequel was a fascinating comment that holds up now better than ever given how narcissistic society has become with social media.

I'll be quite interested to see what they do with 5 in general.

But the original really is a fucking classic that holds up so damn well. That final reveal of the killers is still an incredible scene to this day. And the opening sequence is Horror movie gold in the way its constructed. That opening sequence alone is well worth it.
 
Couldn't agree more; I know a lot of people aren't fans of Emma Roberts, but she did a great job in 4 and the commentary/satire (if you want to call it that) was on point for 1, 2 and 4; great writing.

And in total agreement about what you said about the first; that opening scene is one of the biggest cultural..., "events," I guess you can call it, of the 90s and made the original a horror classic.

Just great stuff all-around, save for 3 lol
 

Art School Confidential -- I rewatched this again the other night

thelongtake861.blogspot.com

[Feature] - Art School Confidential - "In order to be a great artist, you simply have to BE a Great Artist"

“In order to be a great artist, you simply have to BE a Great Artist. There’s nothing to learn.” Words of wisdom spoken by an overconfident...
thelongtake861.blogspot.com thelongtake861.blogspot.com

Another bit of shameless self promotion. I always wanted to write something about it and finally did (spoilers aboard...it is an analysis)...absolutely brilliant piece of scathing satire and still remains one of my favorite overlooked films.
 
Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal - I remember hearing about this when it first came out, but never got the chance to watch it. I then bought the season 1 set when it came out on Blu-ray a few months ago, but haven’t even opened it. I saw it on HBO Max and FINALLY started watching. WOW. I’m not really big into cartoons anymore (and I can’t stand anime), but this is now one of my favorite pieces of animation ever. Almost zero dialogue and just hardcore visual storytelling. The Rage of the Ape Men episode is fucking mind-blowing. And the very last moment of the last episode was jaw-dropping. Beautiful stuff.
 
thelongtake861.blogspot.com

[Feature] - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (or that lonely Spy film)

If you’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing Tomas Alfredson’s prior film Let the Right One In then it should become quickly apparent that Alf...
thelongtake861.blogspot.com thelongtake861.blogspot.com

I guess I'm posting this stuff here because I want to promote this blog and I have no idea how to do it. Full Spoiler Alerts; if you haven't seen Tinker Tailor then maybe you shouldn't read this as it is me breaking down the film. But it's an incredible film and one that I always wanted to write about.
 
Watched the new version of Rocky IV in the theaters on Thursday. It's a touch better than the original, but they excised a bit too much. Apollo has some much-needed scenes and motivation, and both Drago and Adrian have a bit more going on than they did originally. That said, Paulie and Ludmilla are virtually non-characters--in Paulie's case, heavily due to the removal of
the infamous robot scenes.

I'm really hoping for a fan-made "Ultimate Edition", because I think a longer version would be a better version. They could even trim down one or two of the montages. The flashbacks during "No Easy Way Out" belabor the point, for example... but personally, I think simply putting the missing scenes from the theatrical version back in would make for the best version we could possibly get.
 
Does Paulie still fall in the snow in a comical manner? If so, then the film is saved.


Absolutely adore the montage scenes; cheesy as hell, but perfect in the context of the film.
 
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bcdcdude said:
Does Paulie still fall in the snow in a comical manner? If so, then the film is saved.


Absolutely adore the montage scenes; cheesy as hell, but perfect in the context of the film.
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Hahah, fear not, the film is saved!

I love the back-to-back training montage scenes, going from DiCola's Training Montage into Hearts on Fire.

I get the complaints that Rocky IV feels shallow compared to 1-3, and it's definitely a bit of a genre-shift from sports drama to more straightforward action flick, but IV is a ton of fun with a great soundtrack. With the DC, it's a little baffling that Paulie and Ludmilla would be made more shallow while Apollo, Adrian, and Drago are made much better characters, which is why I'm hopeful for the inevitable fan-cut.

Any way you slice it, it's certainly preferable to the V, which, while I appreciate the intent, took things way too far in the other direction.
 

Home Sweet Home Alone -- It was fucking terrible! I mean, I had low expectations considering this was the 6th entry in a one-note joke that has outlived its premise. But hey, I will always have a love for the original two movies. They are Childhood Christmas classics to me and I wanted this to break the trend and be half-way good...but it isn't. It has one interesting idea as it flips the premise on its head by making the would-be Burgulars the good guys. But because it is Disney, it doesn't have the balls to do anything of interest with that premise. In this movie, I see a much better Dark Horror Comedy in this film waiting to get out. Oh wait, that movie already exists. It's called Better Watch Out! Yeah, this was bad and completely misjudged.

The pratfalls in this movie are just so mean spirited because they ultimately humanize the two would-be burglars forgetting the first rule of Looney Tunes violence. In order for it to be funny, we're not supposed to actually empathize with the people getting hurt! Yeah, I just thought this was absolutely pointless all around. A waste of everyone's time including mine. Thankfully Culkin had the good sense to stay away from it.


Bowfinger -- I haven't seen this since it first came out. But man, this is funnier than I remember it being. Maybe it's because I was too young to appreciate the satire and it kind of flew over my head back in 1999...but yeah, it's far funnier than I remember it being.
 
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Just watched the first five minutes of the Cowboy Bebop Netflix series. Fuck this show. I got absolutely nothing against the cast, but they made this look like that fucking Scott Pilgrim bullshit. Cheap-ass YouTube fan film-looking garbage that misses the whole point of the series.

I mentioned this before, but I can’t stand anime in general. Cowboy Bebop was an exception though, and I’m not even passionate about it. This is just so fucking superficial it makes me sick.
 
Your Boy Leroy said:
Just watched the first five minutes of the Cowboy Bebop Netflix series. Fuck this show. I got absolutely nothing against the cast, but they made this look like that fucking Scott Pilgrim bullshit. Cheap-ass YouTube fan film-looking garbage that misses the whole point of the series.

I mentioned this before, but I can’t stand anime in general. Cowboy Bebop was an exception though, and I’m not even passionate about it. This is just so fucking superficial it makes me sick.
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that was my fear the moment I saw people comparing it to Scott Pilgrim in that second trailer they released. Fuck that! Cowboy Bebop is not Scott Pilgrim or 70s exploitation cinema. It’s fucking Film Noir!

I will watch it at some point out of morbid curiosity, but I’m not rushing into it either.
 
thelongtake861.blogspot.com

[Review] - Last Night In Soho

A young, pretty and naive country girl heads to the big city with aspirations of becoming the overnight success story she always dreamed of....
thelongtake861.blogspot.com thelongtake861.blogspot.com

I watched Edgar Wright's Last Night In Soho and wrote a quick review for it. TLDR version? I quite liked it. One of my favourite films of this year.
 
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Saw Ghostbusters: Afterlife last night and absolutely loved it.

Easily second to the original for me. Yes, it's nostalgia ridden, but we Shenmue fans know that's a net positive.

It serves as a fitting conclusion to the original series, but also opens the door for it to continue forward in a better-than-Force Awakens way.

Also, the ending:

The manifestation of Egon's ghost is so well done(VERY good CGI) and is a truly sad scene, particularly because you can feel the sadness of the surviving Ghostbusters not just in the film context, but the actors themselves missed the opportunity to do this with Ramis. But it was well executed, made sense and serves as poignant conclusion and farewell
 
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