OT: Movies You Have Seen Lately

[Ruatha]

Originally posted by Kamog:
I saw Hero.

A good sword-fighting action movie set in ancient China, in a similar style to movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Iron Monkey. Jet Li is an expert swordsman, with superhuman speed and accuracy. Some great gravity-defying fight scenes. Donnie Yen and Zhang Ziyi are in it too.

This movie is not out in theaters here in Canada yet. I watched the Chinese DVD with English subtitles. <font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana">It must have run already in the theatres there.
It was ages ago that I saw it here on the cinema (in Sweden).
It's a really good movie in my opinion aswell.

[gregebowman]

Went and saw AVP and Collateral recently. I already posted my comments on AVP on another thread, so I'll just post my thoughts on Collateral. Damn good movie. I highly recommend it, especially for those who like psychological thrillers and cat &amp; mouse movies. Unfortunately, since it's released in the summer, I don't think Tom Cruise will get the Oscar nomination he deserves for his role as a hitman. He was damn good, but I don't think he'll get a mention. Now, if the movie had been released in November or December, that might be a different story. Go check it out.

[Will]

I just saw Garden State. Maybe it's just the fact I can identify with moving from the East Coast USA to Los Angeles, then coming back to the town I grew up in later... but I loved the movie. It manages to be funny and serious at the same time, great dialogue, excellent soundtrack. It was a limited release to begin with, and it's been out for a while, so it's probably not playing in most places for a while, but I would recommend seeing it when it comes out on DVD, video, whatever.

Oh, and BUMP.

[Kyro_Hawk]

I have seen Poparazi (sp)

Its not a great movie, but it is worth a DVD rental. I like how it subtly implies the turth that it was the Poparazi who caused the death of the Princes, but other wise it was just a political statement against the Poparazi and the tactics they use.

I agree, there should be limits and laws.

[Captain Kwok]

I watched Cold Mountain, Hell Boy, The Last Samurai, and Get Shorty this weekend. All good movies that I'd rate 3 stars out of 4.

[PvK]

I enjoyed Payback, too, Renegade 13.

As for Pearl Harbor, I agree with gregebowman that it had way too many pointless ahistorical screw-ups. I'd only disagree with the remark that it had good special effects. I thought those sucked too, for the most part, because they too were horribly, stupidly wrong.

PvK


gregebowman said:
&lt;/font&gt;&lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;font size="1" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana"&gt;quote:&lt;/font&gt;&lt;hr /&gt;&lt;font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana"&gt;Originally posted by Renegade 13:
&lt;strong&gt; A couple good movies I've seen recently: Pearl Harbor, and Payback. Payback is a little older (1999), and has quite a bit of violence and language, but the plot and humor was really good I thought. Everybody knows already what Pearl Harbor is about. &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/font&gt;&lt;hr /&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;&lt;font size="2" face="sans-serif, arial, verdana"&gt;As an amateur historian, and from some comments made by the director, I had a big problem with Pearl Harbor. Sure, the special effects were great, but some basic facts they overlooked or just plain ignored just to make what they thought would be a great movie. IMO, it wasn't. First of all, the director (can't remember his name right now) said in an interview that if people wanted to see the facts in the movie, they should go see Tora! Tora! Tora! That movie is my all time favorite movie for sentimenal reasons, and I found that remark disparaging. Second of all, why make a Pearl Harbor movie if aren't going to include the facts? Basically, Pearl Harbor was a movie about a love triangle. The war scenes were just the background for the drama between the 3 actors. So why would they care about the facts? I think the most galling thing in the movie was when Roosevelt asked something about survivors in the Arizona. He was told they could hear tapping from trapped sailors. The only problem with that was that no one survived below decks when the Arizona blew. The scene was meant to be about the Oklahoma, but obviously no one knew or cared to correct it. But being from Oklahoma, I cringe everytime I see that scene. There are other misrepresentation of the facts, like no pilots in Pearl Harbor at the time flew in the Doolittle Raid, but it was obvious no one cared too much for the facts in this movie. I finally saw the director's cut, and it wasn't much better. I'll take the director's words to heart. If I want to see a movie about Pearl Harbor, I'll stick to Tora! Tora! Tora!

[gregebowman]

Well, thanks to Hurricane Frances, my Labor Day weekend plans got screwed up. Haven't seen anything since AVP. If I survive Ivan, I plan on seeing Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. Looks pretty good.

[Raging Deadstar]

I haven't seen any recent films for ages.

The Only films I've seen in recent months are "Carlitos Way" which is pretty old but fantastic, "K-Pax" which is just intriguing and well done and then "From Hell" which was very intresting.

I really want to see "The Bourne Supremacy" as well, Hopefully i'll see it tomorrow

[Greybeard]

When my wife worked in a bank, she attended a seminar where Frank Abignale (sp) taught them how to spot bad checks and embezzlements. She and I both enjoyed the movie (Catch me if you can) on HBO

[Randallw]

I saw Hellboy the other day. I thought it was pretty good. As a Catholic I found it entertaining that they had relics and rosaries to fight evil. possible spoiler:<font color="#CCC5B7"> Why the vatican allowed that statue in the museum I don't know</font> . A few months ago I saw a teaser for "Sky Captain" that didn't interest me, it was black and white and the CG background looked like a game from 10 years ago. Yesterday I saw some promotional material and it had British helicarriers so it might be interesting after all.

Edit: I'm trying to cover up the spoiler. Anyone know the code for this tan colour, I can't find it in the source.

[Kamog]

I might go see Resident Evil II: Apocalypse in the next while. I saw the first movie a couple of years ago and it was OK but nothing special. But a few days ago, I saw the preview for the second movie and there was a very beautiful girl in it - no I don't mean Milla Jovovich, I mean the other dark-haired girl whose name I don't know. So I'm thinking of seeing the movie just because she's in it... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

[gregebowman]

Finally watched Equilibrium the other day. I think someone compared it to the Matrix. As far as the fighting scenes go, they might be right. Unfortunately, either because I watched it late at night or due to the plot, I fell asleep and missed about a third of the movie. So I had to go back and watch the part I missed. It's pretty good, but I think I'll stick to The Matrix.

[Yef]

Kamog said:
But a few days ago, I saw the preview for the second movie and there was a very beautiful girl in it - no I don't mean Milla Jovovich, I mean the other dark-haired girl whose name I don't know. So I'm thinking of seeing the movie just because she's in it... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif



Her name is Sienna Guillory.
You probably remember her from Last year TV flick Helen of Troy. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif
Oh, and she was in Time Machine, if I recall correctly.
Does she look better with blonde or dark hair? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smirk.gif

http://www.tccandler.com/images/actresses/Sienna_Guillory_RE2_Promo_1.jpg

http://www.tccandler.com/images/actresses/Sienna_Guillory_RE2_Promo_4.jpg

http://www.tccandler.com/images/actresses/Sienna_Guillory_WALL.jpg

[Atrocities]

Please for give the male pig of me..... YUMMMIE!!!!!!!!!!

[Yef]

Atrocities said:
Please for give the male pig of me..... YUMMMIE!!!!!!!!!!



Don't feel bad about your pigginess.

Embrace it!!! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif



(I hope my other significant one never see what I'm posting here) http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[Ragnarok]

Yef said:

Does she look better with blonde or dark hair? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smirk.gif



Dark, definately dark. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[Atrocities]

I would accept her as either or. Just so long as she loved me for who I am.... right.

[Yef]

Ragnarok said:

Yef said:

Does she look better with blonde or dark hair? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smirk.gif



Dark, definately dark. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif



Have you seen Helen of Troy?
It might change your opinion. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[Kamog]

Thanks for posting the pictures, Yef. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

Yeah! That's her!! Absolutely gorgeous! I like her better with dark hair, but she's incredibly beautiful with either color hair. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/heart.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/heart.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/heart.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Raging Deadstar]

Dark Hair, much better http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif I never liked Resident Evil to be honest, it was a bad film, although I can see an incetive about going to see it http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smirk.gif


Yef said:
(I hope my other significant one never see what I'm posting here) http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif



And thats what I love about being single http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[gregebowman]

As long as she has hair, I don't care about the color. I just can't stand girls with either butch hair cuts or bald-shaven. I think I found an incentive to go see this movie before it comes out on dvd. I actually liked Resident Evil the movie. Never have played the games, though.

[Kamog]

After seeing those pictures of beautiful Sienna Guillory, I could resist no longer. So today I went and saw Resident Evil: Apocalypse. I just got home from watching it. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

**** WARNING: SPOILERS! ***
Well, there really couldn't be much spoilers, as this is a completely mindless movie /threads/images/Graemlins/Cold.gif. The story goes like this: The guys in Umbrella Corporation /threads/images/Graemlins/icon49.gif decide to open the doors to the Hive to see if it's safe to go in there now. When they open the doors the T-virus gets out and infects the entire city of Raccoon /threads/images/Graemlins/Racoon.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/Sick.gif. Everybody starts turning into zombies. The corporation quarantines the city and lets nobody out. Alice, Jill Valentine (Sierra Guillory http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/heart.gif), along with a couple of other guys fight their way out. Then Umbrella nukes the whole city. /threads/images/Graemlins/Poison.gif /threads/images/Graemlins/icon49.gif ...that's it.

The only reason to see this movie is to see Sienna. She is so beautiful... /threads/images/Graemlins/Rose.gif I thought she is exceptionally attractive in the black uniform at the end of the movie http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/heart.gif. She can fight, too! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif
[b]*** END OF SPOILERS ***[b]

[Captain Kwok]

They also blow up my City Hall (Toronto City Hall) in the movie Resident Evil: Apocalypse, which represents the bad corporate guys headquarters just like in real life! /threads/images/Graemlins/Cold.gif

[Caduceus]

Try "Big Fish" if you haven't seen it. Quirky father-son pic from Tim Burton. It's like a different movie... every ten minutes! Good for the short attention span in all of us.

[Slynky]

wildcard06 said:
Try "Big Fish" if you haven't seen it. Quirky father-son pic from Tim Burton. It's like a different movie... every ten minutes! Good for the short attention span in all of us.



I have to agree though I suspect it's not everyone's "cup of tea". I thought it had a good ending (that I'll not give away).

[gregebowman]

Just picked up THX-1138. Hope to see it in the next couple of days. I saw it once years ago, but this is the Version that George Lucas originally came out with before the studios cut it. Can't wait until next week until the original Star Wars trilogy comes out.

[AMF]

Napoleon Dynamite.

Laughed my a** off...

[Geckomlis]

Just saw the Shogun TV miniseries on DVD. A little grainy for a few seconds here and there, but overall a decent transfer if nothing spectacular. One of the few cases that a story is one of my favorite books and one of my favorite miniseries.

[gregebowman]

Went and saw Sky Captain And The World of Tomorrow and Resident Evil: Apocalypse this weekend. You HAVE to see Sky Captain. It is a great movie, and most reviews I read compared it to Raiders of the Lost Ark. It does have that kind of feel to it. And what's really amazing is that all of the backgrounds and most of the environments you see on teh screen are all computer generated. The only distracting thing for me is that the actors's faces looked kind of faded sometimes, like something you'd see in a black &amp; white film that's been colorized. Just something I noticed and kind of bugged me, but didn't really distract from enjoying this film. The only really annoying thing in the film is Gwyneth Paltrow's acting. Most of it was wooden and forced, as if she's saying I'm just doing this for a paycheck. It wouldn't be so sad, but you know she's an Oscar winner, and expect better from her.

Resident Evil was ok, and kind of expounded on the events in the first movie. Won't give out any spoilers, but you find out why she was awoken from her "coma" at the end of the film, and why the city looked like a war zone. It's an ok film, but not up to the quality of Sky Captain.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

That kinda black&amp;white look is intentional, according to something I read in the newspaper.

[dogscoff]

Last night I finally got a chance to watch "Shaun of the Dead" on DVD. I tell you, it's one of the funniest films I have ever seen- it's good as a horror flick as well, but mainly it's a comedy . It's described as a rom-zom-com on the box, and I can't think of a better description myself. Some of the DVD extras are excellent as well.

It might not be widely available outside the UK, but if you have access to a multi-rigion DVD player and internet shopping anything is possible...

[Randallw]

I just received a DVD player, and it has a button to choose between NTSC and PAL. I know these are different TV types. Does my DVD player have a Multi-Region function?.

[David E. Gervais]

gregebowman said:
..The only really annoying thing in the film is Gwyneth Paltrow's acting. Most of it was wooden and forced, as if she's saying I'm just doing this for a paycheck. It wouldn't be so sad, but you know she's an Oscar winner, and expect better from her.



You just witnessed the difference between an 'Actor' and a 'Reactor' Gwyneth is a 'people person' she works well with people to interact with. Acting in front of a blue or green screen for the whole movie takes an actor with great imagination. One of these days 'Hollywood' is going to realise that it takes a whole lot of acting talent to act and react to nothing but a blue screen. No matter how good the director is, it's still a reflection of the actors imagination. I think that the actors in big SPFX movies are always underrated. I also think that 'Big Movie Sets' are fast becomming a thing of the past. So the actors better get good at acting in a blue room becase they won't have the splendor of a grand set design to lean on and draw inspiration. Yes indeed, you can see the difference when you place an 'unimaginative' actor into a FX movie.

Anyway, nuf said, Cheers! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[gregebowman]

Randallw said:
I just received a DVD player, and it has a button to choose between NTSC and PAL. I know these are different TV types. Does my DVD player have a Multi-Region function?.



If I'm not mistaken, PAL is how the Europeans view their television signals. Not really sure of the difference between the two, but I don't think it has anything to do with a multi-region viewer. I know back about 7 years ago when I first got my Playstation, you could either buy an adapter or buy a multi-region machine to play the Japanese games. I haven't really checked since I got a PS2. There may be something similar out there for those who have one that will let you play dvd's from the different regions.

[capnq]

I just received a DVD player, and it has a button to choose between NTSC and PAL.

Maybe they just designed one unit for sale in both the US and Europe.

[dogscoff]

NTSC and PAL are just two different display outputs. It doesn't necessarily mean your machine is multi-region, but it doens't mean it isn't either.

A lot of DVD players are multi-region these days, and a lot of those that aren't can be made multi-region very easily. Sometimes it requires a little hardware work (opening it up and doing some light modding, or maybe flicking a switch or something) and sometimes it is as easy as getting a "secret" key-sequence off the internet to access a hidden menu or type in a special code.

Do some research on the internet for your own particular model of DVD player. Just go to google and type in the exact model of your DVD player and the words "region hack", for example http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;ie=UTF-8&amp;q=Philips+14PT6107+region+hack

[Randallw]

I know back about 7 years ago when I first got my Playstation, you could either buy an adapter or buy a multi-region machine to play the Japanese games.



While I was in Europe a few years ago our housesitter stuck something in my playstation (without asking) that he said would let me use games from anywhere. I've never used it though. I played Wipeout2097 twice when i got back, finished it and gave my games to someone for christmas.

[gregebowman]

dogscoff said:
NTSC and PAL are just two different display outputs. It doesn't necessarily mean your machine is multi-region, but it doens't mean it isn't either.

A lot of DVD players are multi-region these days, and a lot of those that aren't can be made multi-region very easily. Sometimes it requires a little hardware work (opening it up and doing some light modding, or maybe flicking a switch or something) and sometimes it is as easy as getting a "secret" key-sequence off the internet to access a hidden menu or type in a special code.

Do some research on the internet for your own particular model of DVD player. Just go to google and type in the exact model of your DVD player and the words "region hack", for example http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&amp;ie=UTF-8&amp;q=Philips+14PT6107+region+hack



Just for the sake of argument, let's say I could modify my dvd player. Where the heck do you get the other region dvd's? I know you're going to say E-bay or some other internet service. Since I don't have a credit card to use or want to participate in Pay-Pal, how would I get my hands on these discs?

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I saw hero and spider-man 2 today.

[Fyron]

gregebowman said:
Just for the sake of argument, let's say I could modify my dvd player. Where the heck do you get the other region dvd's? I know you're going to say E-bay or some other internet service. Since I don't have a credit card to use or want to participate in Pay-Pal, how would I get my hands on these discs?

I think it is illegal to sell DVDs in the "wrong" reason... or if not illegal, then very highly discouraged.

No need to modify your DVD player at all. Just get a DVD-ROM drive for your computer and get good software that can decrypt any format DVD. I posted some links in the DragonCon thread if you are interested... A video card with TV Out options can help, as you can then ouptut the movie to a TV (maybe use an RGB converter if necessary) and not have to watch it on the computer monitor.

[dogscoff]

I think it is illegal to sell DVDs in the "wrong" reason... or if not illegal, then very highly discouraged.




Maybe in the states, but not over here. That is a serious case of corporations writing the laws if that's true- I mean why should that be a crime?

I've yet to use a out-region DVD myself, but my brother has a friend in Australia who frequently sends him wierd stuff. Has anyone here ever seen "Strangers with Candy"? Wierd wierd wierd funny wierd wierd.

[gregebowman]

Well, I got a dvd-rom on my pc. I'll have to check out that thread you mentioned, Fyron. But I still have no idea where to get the discs. Probably do a Google search one of these days.

[Kamog]

I saw Vampire Effect.

A silly and kind of stupid movie, but funny. It's like a Chinese Version of Blade, but the vampire hunters are a couple of pretty but rather immature Chinese girls who fight using their kung fu. Jackie Chan makes a small appearance and there is a silly fight scene between him and a vampire.

[gregebowman]

gregebowman said:
Well, I got a dvd-rom on my pc. I'll have to check out that thread you mentioned, Fyron. But I still have no idea where to get the discs. Probably do a Google search one of these days.



Hey, give a warning next time. I went to that thread, and those pictures would definitely have gotten me into some sort of trouble if someone had seen me looking at them (either at work or at home. I can image the wife's reaction to the "man-eater" picture).

Just picked up The Alamo today. I didn't get the chance to see it when it came out. I know it bombed at the box-office, but I hope it's still pretty good.

Speaking of Jackie Chan, I read or saw on tv something about how he wants to be taken as a serious actor now, and is giving up on the types of roles that have made him famous. We'll see how long that Lasts. I know he's 50+, and his body may not be able to take all of the punishment it has in the past, but I don't think the world is ready for a serious, dramatic Jackie Chan.

[Kamog]

I saw Fist of the Red Dragon

The story is set in China during the Opium War. The bad guys are smuggling opium into China and there's a big problem with people getting addicted. The hero, Donnie Yen, beats up the bad guys with his kung fu. Some very good fight scenes, choreographed by Yuen Woo Ping who did the Matrix , Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Kill Bill, etc. There some boring parts which are supposed to be funny but aren't. The fight scenes are great though, just ignore the rest of the story. This movie is similar to Iron Monkey, with the same guy and the same sort of fighting, but not quite at the same level.

[PvK]

Movies I've seen in theatres recently (we have a few interesting theatres in Seattle, and of course a bunch of crappy chain ones, like just about everywhere else):

The French Connection I was already having a hard time finding anything to like about most films. This film was so well done, it has made that even worse. So many films just stink in comparison, especially from a believability standpoint. So much fake unbelievable uninteresting nonsense for stupid people in most films.

The Warriors Heh. This was shown right after The French Connection, and well, I was tempted partly due to it having been mentioned here on the forums. Pretty funny! Pretty weird. Really 70's. Rather unbelievable, but gee... I think despite it being utterly laughable in many many ways, in some limited but worthwhile ways it was actually better than some recent high-budget drivel like Terminator 3 or the recent Star Wars fiascos. Ah well. Yet more reinforcement for my disdain of ... well some might say modern Hollywood style, but I think it's more like modern Hollywood dreck.

Hero A very good film, especially visually.

Alien versus Predator OMG what crap! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/Sick.gif

PvK

[gregebowman]

Went and saw Ladder 49 Friday night. It is a darn good movie. I liked it better than Backdraft, which was basically a murder mystery with firemen. Ladder 49 uses flashbacks to tell the story of Joaquin Pheonix's character over the past 10 years (ok, I know his real name is Leaf, but couldn't he have found a better first name to use besides Joaquin?). John Travolta has a much better role to act in, compared to what he did in Punisher. A great movie. I highly recommend it. I think Phoenix should be an Oscar nomination, but we'll see. There's still 2 more months of movies to go.

[Iansidious]

This week I had a great time seeing two documentaries. The first was "Spellbound". This film follows several kids in their quest to win the nation spelling bee. Having a great interest in words and documentaries, this film was right up my ally. It is a very enjoyable movie. Just to see some parents say that knowing 4,000 words is not enough is funny. I would give it four of of five stars.


The next movie was "Super Size Me".
This guy must have something against fast food is all I have to say. Another interesting film. It really does make you think again about eating fast food. Three of five stars. Simply an okay movie. Nothing more.

[Kamog]

I saw Bourne Supremacy

It was pretty good. Matt Damon does a great job playing Jason Bourne... His secret agent character is very impressive: he is very highly skilled and his every action is so perfect and efficient, and he knows exactly what to do at every moment - he's like a machine. He's obviously good at hand-to-hand combat but it was hard to see what's going on in the fight scenes, it was too fast and close-up. Anyway, not a bad movie. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Atrocities]

Any one seen Sky Captain? From what I have seen, great looking movie, bad story.

[gregebowman]

Atrocities said:
Any one seen Sky Captain? From what I have seen, great looking movie, bad story.



Saw it when it first came out. It's not the best story ever made, but I wouldn't call it a bad one. May have to watch it a couple of times to get all of teh nuances of the story. As far as special effects, looks pretty darn good. Almost everything, including the "sets", are computer generated. This may be the way of the future, because it might be cheaper that way than to build huge expensive sets you'll only see a few minutes of in a film. The only thing I didn't like was Gwyneth Paltrow's acting. But I would highly recommend go see this movie before it comes out on dvd.

[gregebowman]

Has anyone seen Walking Tall yet? You know, the one with The Rock. I didn't really notice it the first time I saw it, but since buying the dvd Last week, I've seen it a couple of times (my 3 year old son chose this movie over Home on the Range). Anyway, for those who saw it, I have a question. How can the Rock go into the sheriff's office one in one scene and see a fully staffed office with both sheriff's personnel and civilian employees, and later on in the movie go in that same office after he fires the deputies, and there's no one around? He was the right to fire the deputies, but I can't believe in a job-strapped community, that all of the civilians would walk out. Even the Rock's character wouldn't have fired them. Just a curiosity I noticed and there's no explanation for it in the film.

[gregebowman]

I've seen Shark Tale twice now, once with my son and once with my nephew. It's a great movie. Even though it's made by Dreamworks, it's not quite on the par with Shrek, but it's still pretty good. I highly recommend you see it, especially if there's a young one in your family. And speaking of that, I know where I'll be next Friday night. that's when The Incredibles comes out. Looks like it will another great movie from Pixar.

[Raging Deadstar]

Not a recent movie but i saw The Recruit the other day and I must say it was a very good film, I would say that considering it had Al Pacino in but i'd advise you to check it out http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smirk.gif

[Aiken]

"Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" by Michael Gondry.
Very good film, but not for the masses, they'll probably find it boring. Very realistic characters and good story. Story of love and parting. And return.

[Captain Kwok]

Yeah, that movie was quite excellent. I like all those films written by Charlie Kauffman, i.e. Being John Malkovich and Adaptation.

[Kamog]

I just came home from watching ELEKTRA.

*** WARNING SPOILERS ***
Pretty good action movie - a lot better than Dare Devil was. Jennifer Garner is very pretty and fights well, too! Some interesting villains with supernatural powers, though they turn out to be not so tough as they first initially seem. Elektra died at the end of the movie Dare Devil, but it turns out that her blind martial arts master, Stick, used his magic powers to bring her back to life. Besides teaching her fighting skills, he also taught her a meditation technique to see the future, which she uses a lot to locate enemies and anticipate attacks. Some short but good fight scenes. The best thing about this movie the beautiful main character.

[Atrocities]

Cool, Thanks.

Blade 3 was pretty good too.

[Kamog]

The Aviator

My friend tricked me into going to see this movie with him. I usually don't go see movies with Leonardo diCaprio in them, but this time I knew nothing about this movie until it was too late and I so I didn't know he was in it.

Some parts of the movie were boring, but some parts were pretty good, like the flying scenes. Leonardo wasn't as bad as I expected and he was OK for the most part. He's very good at doing those scenes with the obsessive and strange behaviors. The movie ended kind of unexpectedly and suddenly at a point where it seemed like there was going to be more.

[Kamog]

Ong-bak: The Thai Warrior

I saw this movie today. Wow! If you like martial arts movies, DEFINITELY go see this movie. I would say this movie is one of the top ten martial arts movies I have ever seen. Tony Jaa is Ting, the hero of the movie, the Muay Thai fighter, and he is GOOD. Excellent fight scenes. He is incredibly skilled: fast, acrobatic, powerful. Very very impressive. I'm sure Jaa will go on to make many more successful martial arts movies.

[Kamog]

Unleashed

Jet Li's latest movie is very violent. Lots of fighting - and it's brutal fighting, not the efficient, controlled and elegant fighting style we saw in some of his kung fu movies. He was trained from the time he was a kid to be a dog - when he wears his collar, he is quiet and passive. When the collar comes off, he goes berserk and kills everyone. Some excellent hand-to-hand combat scenes. Very simple story line. Not for little kids.

[Atrocities]

1. The Avator

It is not as good as they say it is, in fact it is quite bad.

2. Star Wars: Revenge Of The Sith

Simply awsome.

[Kamog]

Mr. and Mrs. Smith

I saw this movie last night. Not bad, it was quite an entertaining movie with many funny bits. This is not a serious action movie, it's more like a comedy, and there's quite a bit of silliness. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are in it. They are married, but unknown to each other, they are professional assasins working for different secret agencies. Problems arise when they are both given the same assignment and they find out each other's secret. Anyway, an OK movie. I am not a fan of either Pitt or Jolie but this movie was not bad.

By the way, I never understood why many guys like Angelina Jolie so much. I don't find her attractive at all... One of the girls we went with said, "Brad Pitt is so handsome!". Too bad I don't look anything like him and never will.

[Renegade 13]

Kingdom of Heaven

A fairly good movie, in my opinion. Though I am sure someone more knowledgeable about the crusades could point out several historical inaccuracies. It takes a while for the action to get started...in fact the first hour or so was quite slow. But after that (the other hour and a half) was pretty good.

For those of you who don't know, it's a movie set in the 12th century, I think the specific date was 1184 at the start of the movie. Basically a movie about the crusades, and they manage to weave in a lot about the hypocracy of Christians and Muslims, and the blind reverence towards a city (Jerusalem) that both faiths hold as sacred. Anyways, it was fairly entertaining.

[TurinTurambar]

The Big Lebowski

Just saw it on TV yesterday. They cut the crap out of it to edit for language and nudity... and it was still a scream!! I'm going to go out and rent it next weekend to see the "unadulterated" version.

Revenge of the Sith

I was truly blown away by this movie. After the bad taste left in my mouth by the previous two, I did not expect to see a film with this much serious business going on. Kudos to Lucas for finally putting substance before gimick. I was "very moved" at several points in the movie. Go see it.

/threads/images/Graemlins/icon42.gif~T~/threads/images/Graemlins/Dagger.gif

[Lord_Shleepy]

I'm behind the times as usual (too much sleeping I guess)

The Village

I watched The Village for the first time last weekend. Thought it was very entertaining - much better than mixed reviews it's recieved. Worth renting at least.

[Captain Kwok]

I just came back from seeing 'War of the Worlds'. It was quite well done and is worth seeing...

[Atrocities]

Captain Kwok said:
I just came back from seeing 'War of the Worlds'. It was quite well done and is worth seeing...



COol, thanks, I will go see it tonight... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif I have to say that I have my reservations though your comment has helped to improve my curiosity.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I rate Batman Begins WOOT!!! out of !!!!

[Captain Kwok]

I also saw Batman Begins last weekend. It was good enough to reset the batman series and launch a new and improved one. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[EaX]

I saw war of the worlds, and it was very nice http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif go and see it if you can.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I liked that this Batman actually had a sense of humour and some people skills, which I wasn't sure I would.

[Kamog]

I haven't seen War of the Worlds yet but I will go see it for sure. I really liked the original book by H.G. Wells and the old 1950's movie as well. (The TV series wasn't that good.) I understand that this new movie is totally different and unrelated to the other shows. In general I like Spielberg's movies and this one should be a good one as well. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Emperor's Child]

I was actually not all that impressed with War of the Worlds. Great visual effects, acting and characters are lackluster IMHO. Not sure if I'd spring for a CD once they come out.

[gregebowman]

Took my son the other day to see Herbie Fully Loaded. For those who may have grown up watching Herbie movies, it was pretty good. I just wish they had Dean Jones and Suzanne Plushette (?) make an appearance. And I think Buddy Hackett died a couple of years ago. Overall, a good family movie that is actually worth taking the family to see.

I'm going to try seeing Batman and WOTW hopefully this weekend.

[Suicide Junkie]

Did the original Herbie blatantly defy the laws of physics and engineering (with a vengeance!) like can be seen in TV preview ads?

[narf poit chez BOOM]

The original Herbie swam accross about half an ocean, if I remember correctly, so yeah.

[Will]

I went to see Crash last week. I thought it was really, really good, but that might just be because I happen to live in Los Angeles, so I kinda "get" a lot of what happens in the movie. It basically follows several different characters of varying ethnic, social, and economic backgrounds, as their stories intertwine over a two day period in Los Angeles. There is a trailer and a clip of the movie over at http://www.apple.com/trailers (http://www.apple.com/trailers/).

I'm pretty sure it's a limited-release kind of movie, only showing in the bigger markets, plus it's been out for about a month and a half now I think, so it may be hard to find. But if you see it playing somewhere, I highly recommend you go see it. Caveat is, it's not a "go with the family" kind of movie, and I would say that you'd have to at least be in your late teens to get much of anything out of it; besides, there's brief nudity, violence, and racial overtones throughout.

--edit: Oops, it seems apple doesn't have the trailer any longer. It is still on the movie's site, http://www.crashfilm.com/, but I don't think the clip is anywhere now.

[Renegade 13]

Star Wars Episode III

Well I finally got to see Star Wars Ep. III...and damn was it ever good.

Have you ever gone to a theater, watched a movie, then when the movie ends you feel as though you are still in the world the movie created? Star Wars created this feeling for me this evening, and it is very rare for me to experience it.

The effects were nothing less than awe-inspiring, and the story was deep...and dark. Much darker than any of the other movies. Yet its very darkness makes it appealing in an age of sugar-coated movies where everything turns out well in the end. It's refreshing to say the least when a movie shows that the good guys don't always win, that people never "live happily ever after".

It was almost gut-wrenching to experience the betrayal by Skywalker, the slaughter of all those Jedi...the story was so immersive I found myself feeling as though I was there, watching the entire thing first hand, experiencing all the emotions to go along with it...a rare thing indeed.

As you can tell, I liked it. A lot.

[gregebowman]

Well, I didn't want to go to it, but I took my son to see Shark-Boy. I hate 3d movies, mostly because I have a depth perception problem and it's hard to get those 3d glasses to fit over my regular glasses. After seeing Spy-Kids 3d, I wasn't too surprised at anything in this movie. If you're at that age range the movie was meant for, then it's probably pretty good. I caught myself falling asleep a couple of times. Not for me, but my son loved it, which is what really counts.

[Atrocities]

My nephews are begging me to take them to see this movie, Shark-boy. I would much rather take them to go see "Watching The Grass Grow" - than suffor through yet another abysmal child geared 3d movie. OMGNFWINH - Oh My God, No F'ing Way In Hell!

To bad about EP III (Star Wars) It was a really good movie that simply was not epic enough. When all is boiled down, there isn't enough to keep people coming back for more. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif The movie has grossed over $360,000,000 million US and close to a billion world wide, with only about $975,000 in sales last week so its on the fast track to the DVD market.

Star Wars was a revalation in the movie industry. Since then most movies, say for Titanic, have not been as "must see" as Star Wars and I honestly don't think there ever will be again. Sure ET and a few others were great movies, but nothing on the scale of Star Wars as far as uniqueness and glass roof shattering presense.

ROTS - albeit a great moive, simply is the end of an era that could have been a lot more exciting in its journey than in its execution. To many people were turned off by EP I and II to trust the revies of EP III.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Well, no, we're probably not going to have that same feeling again. We're used to stunning visuals, great plot twists and good story. Even if what we get is normally not that good, there's still movie's like Spiderman 1&amp;2, which are two of the highest-grossing movie's of all time. Plus LoTR, Batman Begins was good, plenty of good movie's that are worth seeing and can amaze you.

But none of them have the same impact, because we know these movie's can be made. Star Wars was a new thing when it was made.

You know what I say? So what. I. Don't. Care. If a book is good, I'll re-read it. If a movie is good, I'll see it again. And in the end, I'm happy I saw or read something that was good, even if it's not that new.

[Renegade 13]

I don't know about you AT, but I think the great movies are timeless. I can watch a movie series like Star Wars endlessly without getting bored of it (except maybe for Ep I...).

Basically, all the new, revolutionary ideas have already been thought of, done, and beaten to death a dozen times. Perhaps one day there will be another truely revolutionary movie or movie series created. We can only wait for that day, and hope it does indeed come.

[Atrocities]

Well I went and seen War of The Worlds. Man what a distrubing movie that was. Very well done, Tom Cruise was really good in the movie despite all of the hidden political and advertising nonsense.

Is it me, or did those aliens look a lot like the ones from Independance day? Also I think I have seen those tri-Pods before....HALF LIFE 2.

Still its a good movie, not good for young kids though.

And yes, Renegade 13, some movies are timeless, and Star Wars is one of them.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Half-Life 2 got those tripods from WoTW. As did the Justice League cartoon and probably dozens of others I either forgot about or never knew about. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Atrocities]

The thing about this WoTW's movie is that is does an effective job of pulling you into the point of view of an ordinary person faced with extordinary circomstances. Tom Cruise pulled it off very nicely. There are scenes in the movie that just make your skin crawl. It was a good movie, one that I would love to see expanded upon. You know, from the leaders point of view perhaps.

[gregebowman]

Still haven't seen WOTW yet, but hopefully I will before it gets on dvd. I was bummed when I found out the movie was a present day affair. I'd really love to see a version made in 1898, when you have horse-drawn artillery taking pot-shots at the martian machines. If there is one book that can be said that changed my life, it was H.G. Well's book. After I read it when I was around 10, I became hooked on sci-fi forever. Too bad I didn't know about The Hobbit, or the Harry Potter books weren't out then. It took me a few more years to discover fantasy.

Anyway, took my son and nephew to see Fantastic Four. Great movie. I didn't read the comic when I was a kid. I was more partial to Batman and Superman back then, but I more into reading &amp; collecting the war comics. But I enjoyed this movie. I was just disappointed when Doom finally spoke through his mask. I always imagined a deep, resonating voice coming through. Instead, it was just the actor's normal voice. Bummer. Also, the guy who wrote it lives in the Tampa area, and he's been getting some press in the local papers. Seems like he wanted to have Galacticus as the main villain, but the studio heads and the bean counters thought it would cost too much. But he said that if he's given the chance to write the sequel, he'll make Galacticus the villain again. That would be great, since they've been talking about doing a Silver Surfer movie for years. That would be a great introduction for the character if it's ever done.

[Kamog]

I saw Fantastic Four last night. It's a fun and entertaining movie and I liked it. I never heard of the comic before, so I have no idea if the movie is based on the story from the comic or not, but it was good. I don't care if the whole premise of the movie is unrealistic (five people go up to a space station and they're exposed to radiation from a cosmic storm. Their DNA is altered and they all develop different super powers. One guy turns evil and becomes the super villain and the other four team up to stop the bad guy.) Hey, comics don't have to be realistic, it's a fun movie, OK? Also, Susan Storm (Jessica Alba) is cute!

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I think there is a period WoTW movie being made. There was something about it on the forum, anyway.

[gregebowman]

narf poit chez BOOM said:
I think there is a period WoTW movie being made. There was something about it on the forum, anyway.



I don't know the details, but there was going to be a WOTW movie made during the time of 9/11. For whatever reasons, the movie was pulled out of production. I don't know if this was the movie that Spielberg made, or if someone else was doing this. If anyone knows anymore, please enlighten us.

[Renegade 13]

King Arthur

I saw this movie in theatre's last summer, but just rented it again tonight to watch at home. I liked it a lot, in fact it was very well done in my opinion.

[Makinus]

About WotW, cool movie but nothing really new... in fact, i found the original movie better... even without special effects it gave a more cool atmosphere...

[Atrocities]

WotW ??

[Renegade 13]

War of the Worlds

[EaX]

I've just saw The Cube 2, it was ok, a bit odd movie.

[El_Phil]

What?! Cube rated a remake? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/eek.gif

Please tell me it was a straight to video special, or hidden away in a bizzare 'art house' cinema.

[Kamog]

Have you seen Transporter 2? I haven't seen it yet. Is it good? I saw the first movie and it wasn't bad...

Last week I saw Revenge of the Sith yet again. That will probably be the last time I see in the theater.

[Atrocities]

Has any one seen the Dukes of Hazard? -

Is any one going to go see Serenity?

[EaX]

El_Phil said:
What?! Cube rated a remake? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/eek.gif

Please tell me it was a straight to video special, or hidden away in a bizzare 'art house' cinema.



Eh, i don't know i have not seen the first one, anyways its about 8 people who suddenly appear on a room with doors on each side which leads to other rooms exactly the same, where the laws of physic &amp; time, don't appear to apply some of the rooms are bobby trapped so you can imagine, is this the movie you're talking about? if yes then yes they made a remake. hiddden? nooooo, it was on blockbuster

[El_Phil]

I'll be honest there were at least two movies about groups of people being trapped in a serires of rooms were no real laws applied. One was cube, one was something else.

When I posted I thought it was Cube that was the awful one, as a remake appeared it must have been the other one that was awful. Whoops. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Atrocities]

xXx State of the Union... OMG this movie was so bad that they had to redefine the term bad just to fit how bad this movie was. Thank God Vinnie waved off on this "D" movie with an A budge. WTF was Sam Jackson thinking?????

Rent this movie only if your out for a laugh and an "I told ya so."

EDIT: I have a whole list of things that I want to say about this movie but I don't want to get billed as a racist so I will just keep my mouth shut...... But what a bad bad bad, uber horrible movie this was. It was just down right cheaply produced, low budge, poorly written trash of a movie!

[Raging Deadstar]

Atrocities said:
Is any one going to go see Serenity?



No Power in the Verse could stop me http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif The best thing about it, I've got a date for that and she also loves Firefly. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Atrocities]

Then your set to for a good evening. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif Just get her interested in Space Empires. If she goes for it, MARRY her. Your not going to find any one better!

[El_Phil]

Atrocities said:
xXx State of the Union... OMG this movie was so bad that they had to redefine the term bad just to fit how bad this movie was. Thank God Vinnie waved off on this "D" movie with an A budge. WTF was Sam Jackson thinking?????

Rent this movie only if your out for a laugh and an "I told ya so."




Samuel L 'Mother F*ckin'' Jackson was thinking what he normally does. "Hmmm what a huge paycheck." That and his long standed ambition to appear in every film ever made, as Family Guy pointed out.

[Atrocities]

ROFLMAO - That was funnier than crap Phil..... You have to know Pulp Fiction and Mr. Jackson characters to get the joke. Very funny. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Raging Deadstar]

The best thing about Samuel L "Mother F*ckin" Jackson is that I've seen 3 films where he has his own personal Hair-Stylist in the credits http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[EaX]

Atrocities said:
xXx State of the Union... OMG this movie was so bad that they had to redefine the term bad just to fit how bad this movie was. Thank God Vinnie waved off on this "D" movie with an A budge. WTF was Sam Jackson thinking?????

Rent this movie only if your out for a laugh and an "I told ya so."

EDIT: I have a whole list of things that I want to say about this movie but I don't want to get billed as a racist so I will just keep my mouth shut...... But what a bad bad bad, uber horrible movie this was. It was just down right cheaply produced, low budge, poorly written trash of a movie!



it wasnt that movie but thanks you telling me i'm not going to rent that one! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

the one i saw its named Cube 2: Hypercube (if my memory dont fails) anyway what is a hypercube??????

[narf poit chez BOOM]

That's what happens if you give a cube too much suger.

[Renegade 13]

Lol Narf.

A hypercube is essentially a 4-dimensional cube. You know that if you're given 6 flat squares of paper, all connected in the correct fasion, that you can create a cube? Well, a hypercube is constructed in the same fashion, only differently http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

Ok, lets try some drawing skills here: Image 1 is a normal, unfolded cube. Image 2 is an unfolded hypercube, with additional faces coming off where FE1 and FE2 are located and pointing to, respectively (FE2 is pointing to the back of the cube second from the top in the main vertical column, not the corner). Oh yeah, all sides on the hypercube component cubes should be equal, its just that in my drawing they aren't...but should be! A hypercube is composed of 8 cubes that are folded, instead of 6 faces for a regular cube. To be honest, hypercubes sound like a whole lot of nothing to me http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

Normal Cube Unfolded (http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/threads/uploads/379416-cube%20unfolded.bmp)
Hypercube (unfolded) (http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/threads/uploads/379416-hypercube%20unfolded.bmp)

[Slynky]

Atrocities said:
Is any one going to go see Serenity?

Actually, taking off work to see it the day it comes out. Loved that series and it's been a long time to have a "Firefly fix". Got Adam Baldwin and Morena Baccarin's autograph last weekend at Dragon*Con. Wifey took a photo of me with Morena (she's really small !). Wifey recorded the whole hour with Adam, Morena, Jewel, and Ron on video. We were about 8 rows back in a room holding a couple thousand people.

So, we're Serenity freaks, I guess http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif.

[Shmonk]

Yes, Serenity should be a great movie. I bought the DVD set, seen it several times, and loaned it out to friends and have hooked them. I think I'll be leaving work early the day it comes out to catch it. I also hear that it was a 3 movie contract, so there are going to be 2 other movies after this. I would love it to come back as a TV series.

[Slynky]

Shmonk said:
Yes, Serenity should be a great movie. I bought the DVD set, seen it several times, and loaned it out to friends and have hooked them. I think I'll be leaving work early the day it comes out to catch it. I also hear that it was a 3 movie contract, so there are going to be 2 other movies after this. I would love it to come back as a TV series.

Word from Adam and Nathan is that the 2 follow-up movies depend on Serenity making $80 million domestic. As to back on TV, when Universal bought the rights from Fox, there was a stipulation that Universal wouldn't be allowed to put it on TV for 7 years (I think...). Funny they would cancel it as being a loser and then prohibit anyone else from putting it on TV. Anyway, this info is pretty much dependable (if you can believe what the actors are saying).

Oh, and Adam donated all the money he made from Dragon*Con to help Katrina victims.

[Atrocities]

Well even if the movie is bad, I will still go see it twice just to help put a dent in that 80 million dollars.

Fox is just evil.... they really are when it comes to shows and selling the rights. If we don't like it and don't want to run it, then NO ONE should. Selfish jerks!

[Shmonk]

7 years? Well, it's on the Sci Fi channel now, they've been replaying the original episodes for several weeks. Maybe it's the movie that can't go on TV for 7 years?

Still, I will have to watch it several times too, to ensure it makes 80+ mil. I think it will, there are lots of closet Firefly fans. Yes, Fox was crazy to cancel the series.

I wouldn't mind going to any *Con event, if I knew the cast would be there. Hmmm, to see the cast in person, that would be cool.

[Slynky]

Yeah, I've really had it with Fox. I mean, they almost canceled (the series) 24 about halfway through the first year...and now look.

It's such a rare event that fans can make so much noise that a company decides to buy the rights and make a movie that another (small) video company is making a documentary of how the fans help bring the movie back to life (and a lot of other stuff that happened between canceling of the show and the making of the movie). The site is here. (http://www.donetheimpossible.com/)

Wifey and I were interviewed as Firefly/Serenity fans, signed a release, and were told we may or may not be on the DVD they are releasing. The DVD will contain all the footage from several "cons" where the cast showed up. We've already ordered ours. The guy who owns the company (a really nice guy named Jeremy) was also in the movie (a bald-headed monk...LOL). He's done a lot to promote the movie gaining life as well.

And speaking of being in movies, the cast was so amazed by the fans that they approached Universal about letting the Firefly fans be extras in the Serenity movie. As a result, Universal said, "if you can get to the studio, we'll use you as extras in scenes". So, we met several people at the con who were in the movie, had photos to share, and stories to tell about the cast that were interesting...LOL...like the time some of them got caught peeping through the bushes onto the set at the Universal lot.

[Atrocities]

I rented Hitchhikers Guide to the the Universe and I have to honestly say this: I am very relieved that I never read the book. After seeing the movie, nearly two hours of my life that I will never get back, I am estatic that I never wasted my time to read such a tripely written, contrived, poorly humored, peace of [censored] lititure. If I am alone in my opinion, then so be it. I can live the knowledge that I have been spared the honor of having read such a widely loved book.

I found the movie to be utterly STUPID and demanded my money back from Block Buster and was granted instore credit. I have never before been so utterly put off by a movie that I returned it the same day, within hours of renting it, demanding my money back. I would sit through a 100 xXx State of the Unions rather than watch another second of that movie. I say burn the negatives, the DVD's and the VHS. Hell BURN THE BOOK!

[Will]

Atrocities said:
I rented Hitchhikers Guide to the the Universe and I have to honestly say this: I am very relieved that I never read the book. After seeing the movie, nearly two hours of my life that I will never get back, I am estatic that I never wasted my time to read such a tripely written, contrived, poorly humored, peace of [censored] lititure. If I am alone in my opinion, then so be it. I can live the knowledge that I have been spared the honor of having read such a widely loved book.

I found the movie to be utterly STUPID and demanded my money back from Block Buster and was granted instore credit. I have never before been so utterly put off by a movie that I returned it the same day, within hours of renting it, demanding my money back. I would sit through a 100 xXx State of the Unions rather than watch another second of that movie. I say burn the negatives, the DVD's and the VHS. Hell BURN THE BOOK!



Yeah, the movie wasn't very good. I didn't think it was as bad as you said it was, but maybe that's just because I got more of the 'in' jokes from reading the books.

If you don't like British humour (eg Monty Python), you won't like the books. I think part of the reason the movie wasn't good was because it tried to move British-style jokes into a more American context of slapstick. British humour is not slapstick. So, there wasn't much wit, and the rest of it was subpar anyway, so... bad movie.

[El_Phil]

I would defend the Hitchhikers books, but I don't think AT would like them. They are massively better than the film and an excellent read, but if you hated the film that much it's going to colour your viewpoint so much there's no point.

After the LoTR films I decided I probably should read the books. My god I thought they were terrible, and that was from a film I really liked. But that could just be me.

[Atrocities]

I will conceed that books are ALWAYS better than the movies they spawn, well except for Star Trek V, that was just bad both ways.

[El_Phil]

Dear god alive they did a book of that?

They only good thing about V was Scotty's
"I know this ship like the back of my hand." and then walking into a girder.

[Captain Kwok]

I kind of liked the Hitcherhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[Atrocities]

Captain Kwok said:
I kind of liked the Hitcherhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif



Thats ok, we all know your strange. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

Seriously though, I suspect there are those who would have like the movie. Some loved Naked Gun, others hated it. I hated Airplane yet people consider that movie a classic. Go figure.

[El_Phil]

Atrocities said:
I hated Airplane yet people consider that movie a classic. Go figure.



"Surely you can't hate that movie?"
"Yes I can. And don't call me Shirley."

OK more of an audio gag I accept. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Kamog]

I haven't seen the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy movie yet. I've read all the books and liked them a lot, though. Back in July when I visited London, I saw the HHGTTG exhibit at the Science Museum, it was OK, it had some aliens and Deep Thought and Marvin and stuff in it.

Some guys I know have no interest in Star Wars movies! There's some weird people!

[Randallw]

Something like that happened to me once. I was doing some volunteer work and a co-worker told me he had never seen a Star Wars movie. I couldn't believe it. I guess intelectually I knew tribes in deep africa hadn't seen them, but someone I actually worked alongside http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/redface.gif

[Wolfman77]

Worst movie EVER..... Galaxyquest. I'll say no more.

[Emperor's Child]

I think that the worst Sci-fi movie ever is a toss-up (or throw-up) between Battlefield Earth and Hichhikers guide to the galaxy.

[El_Phil]

Noting is as bad as Battlefield Earth. You need to even new words to describe how bad that film is on every level.

[Atrocities]

Serenity - 8 out of 10

Pro - Very good Sci-Fi flick ... worth the full price of admission. Loads of fun to watch, had to see it twice to catch everything.

Con- Story is a bit lacking and we loose a couple of good characters. The series theme song is not used in the movie.

[Atrocities]

DOOM 6 out of 10.

Pro - Basically there are none - well there is the Lead Women, she is hot. The movie has a couple of ok laughs but thats it.

Cons - Doesn't follow the game portal from hell concept. Lots of dark shots with predictiable scares. Weak acting with a sub par story line.


The action is pretty non-stop with a lot of predictable parts. If your looking for a semi-fun horror flick with a lot of "shooting", sub par acting, then look no more, go see DOOM. But at least see it during the cheap showings, save four bucks.

[Atrocities]

Batman Begins - 8 out of 10

Pro's - Really good Batman moive with top end supporting actors and a semi-solid story. Great action and finally we get a batmobile that is worthy of the name.

Con's - The Scare Crow is bioutched the back seat and is more of a pawn than a major player. The story line leaves decimates the story established in Batman (The Tim Burton movie) regarding the death of Bruce Waynes parents.

Over all it is a good movie to rent and watch. The DVD sucks as far as features go.

As to buying the DVD, wait, they are obviously going to come out with a special edition. (There are no features on the current DVD. The CDROM stuff is just junk spam.)

Do not put it into your PC DVD player. You have been warned. (Spam)

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Pretty much every version of the DOBWP is different. The Joker angle was used in the original Batman #1 movie and I believe in the Batman cartoon (The older, better one, not the new The Batman. Mr. Cobblepot, aka, The Penguin, Is Not A Ninja!).

[Kamog]

House of Flying Daggers

It was pretty good. Nice elaborate kung fu-type fight scenes, and a rather tragic story, in a similar style as movies like Hero and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Some of the moves the people use in the fights are seem kind of unrealistic in that they would require such an incredible level of skill to do them. Not a bad movie, though.

[Atrocities]

Michael Moore Hates America - 8 out of 10

Pro's - This movie does a far better job of telling the truth than any of Mr. Moores movies. It is very informative, fun to watch, and invokes a sense of faith in America that none of Mr. Moores films do.

Con's, - Pro NRA message. (Albeit the message is truthful and not watered down by politics) Pro-American (Almost to the point that it makes you feel good about being an American again.)

All in all the DVD is a really good bargin that does a very fair job of telling the truth about the subject material its based upon. A very good movie for any one.

Buy It Link (http://www.michaelmoorehatesamerica.com/html/trailers.shtml)

[Renegade 13]

The Island

Quite an interesting premise; clones for the purpose of organ transplantation. I thought the movie was quite well done, and did a good job of illustrating the hazards of human cloning. The scary thing is, I can see exactly what happened in the movie happening in the future... Some people will do anything to live.

9/10

[Kamog]

I saw "Munich". This is the kind of movie that I would normally not go see. A friend talked me into it, saying that it got super reviews and it's based on history and it's really well done and so on.

Well, it's by Steven Spielberg so I thought it can't be bad. Well, I went with my friend and saw the movie and I didn't like it at all. Not because the story or acting was bad, but because it was so dark and depressing.

I like happy or exciting movies that make me feel good, not these gloomy tales about misery and revenge. Next time, I'm going to pick the movie.

[Atrocities]

The Transport 2

Man I don't know about this movie at all. It had a really bad story line, very cheezy stunts, and some really bad acting. But some of the elements of the film were enjoyable to watch.

I would have to say that this one is one that you might consider renting or buying after it goes into the $0.99 cent bin.

[Black_Knyght]

I just bought "Serenity", and LOVE that flick.

Bought "Batman Begins,too. Nicely done.

[Atrocities]

I have to agree with both of your comments about Serenity and Batman Begins.

The Constant Gardener - Very very boring. Rent at own risk.

The Four Brothers - Better than it looks and sounds. Has a few cool shoot outs and the plot is weak but ok. Nice movie to spend an evening with when you have nothing better to do but clip your toe nails and eat pop corn.

[Black_Knyght]

Just rented "Spanglish", and was actually VERY surprised that I liked it http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/shock.gif ( it was a "Date" movie, what can I say http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif? )!?!?!? Good performances by Adam Sandler and Cloris Leachman.

And I hate http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/evil.gifTea Leoni http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/evil.gif even more than I did before.....

[Kamog]

I just saw Firewall. I liked it. This is a pretty good, exciting movie, with excellent acting by Harrison Ford.

[Kamog]

I saw 16 Blocks. Not bad, it's OK entertainment. Good old Bruce Willis action movie, simple story about one good guy against lots of bad guys.

[Atrocities]

Bruce likes to play those parts, the depressed cop who everyone hates. It has gotten very old. He is the Clint Eastwood of depressed loner cops.

[Suicide Junkie]

Atrocities said:
I have to agree with both of your comments about Serenity and Batman Begins.

The Constant Gardener - Very very boring. Rent at own risk.
...

Oh, man. You totally missed a great chance to say "like watching grass grow"

[Atrocities]

LOL - ya, your right. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Kamog]

Just got home from watching Mission Impossible III. Today was opening night. Waited in line for and hour and a half. In my opinion, this one is better than MI and MI:II. Good action and nice surprise twists in the story.

[Kamog]

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
This was a good movie. The story is slightly different from the book, but it was OK. The appearance of Marvin bothered me a bit because I didn't like the big round head, but I quickly got used to that. I hope they make the sequels, because the story in the books go on much much longer than what happened in the movie.


Kung Fu Hustle
Kind of a stupid movie but very funny. It's a parody of some of the more serious kung fu movies and a lot of crazy silly stuff happens. Many ordinary-looking guys in the movie turn out to be super masters of some sort of weird fighting style with all kinds of silly powers.


Transporter 2
Pretty good action movie, if you ignore the totally unrealistic stunts the guy does with his car. I think the first move was a bit better.

[Black_Knyght]

Rented Doom,The Lord of War, and A History of Violence this past weekend.

Sadly enough I found all three to be a disappointment. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

[Fyron]

Kamog said:
Just got home from watching Mission Impossible III. Today was opening night. Waited in line for and hour and a half. In my opinion, this one is better than MI and MI:II. Good action and nice surprise twists in the story.

Unfortunately, I've seen all of them a dozen times over in previous spy movies. When will Hollywood get back to innovation? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

[Renegade 13]

When was Hollywood ever truly innovative Fyron?? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[Fyron]

The 1920s!

They could at least stop being so horrendously blatant about it...

[Renegade 13]

Indeed.

Lets bring back the days of silent movies! No more cheesy dialogue! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[Black_Knyght]

Things are really getting sad in Hollywood<font color="red"> - </font> I read just recently that there's going to be a Knight Rider and a Simpsons movie made, and that someone is considering making a Gilligan's Island movie and a remake of Death Wish.

[AMF]

Interesting. I found the Constant Gardener to be a very good movie, with depth and fascinating characters, and great acting.

MI:3 was as awful as the other MIs. I mean, who needs another flick that is essentially one explosion after another with one-dimensional characters, and no real plot except "superhuman guy getting revenge and saving hot chicks etc..."

And Hitchhikers was a true dissapointment. Really quite awful as well. Gags not funny. Acting generally poor. Of all the books that would be hard to suck the humor out of, somehow they managed to make it boring.

I can only presume the Da Vinci Code will be as bad as the book.

Narnia was just a sad attempt to recreate the book and try to come up with something similiar to the Lord of the Rings.

Recent good ones: Match point, Brokeback mtn, and Capote were all very good, actually getting into real human emotional and other conflict and making one feel that these were real people with real problems (although I found Capote to be thoroughly unlikeable as a person, I felt the portrayal was quite excellent).

I highly reccomend the following series as entertainment at its absolute finest: Six feet under, The Sopranos, Weeds (very funny show), and Deadwood. The Wire is also inspired, but a bit typical (but not predictable).

For the best movie in the past few years, I nominate Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. If you haven't seen it, do yourself a favor and go rent it immediately.

And the classics cannot be ignored. Gone with the Wind, Casablanca, and Breakfast at Tiffany's are the ones I would put at the top of that list.

Just my two cents. Needed to get a break from work. Back to the grind.

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Black_Knyght]

A lady I'm rather fond of at the moment convinced me to watch Wimbledon and About a Boy with her tonight. Both were very interesting for different reasons. Wimbledon starred Paul Bettany and was surprisingly funny, down-to-earth, and actually had an interesting storyline. About a Boy starred Hugh Grant, who as a rule I loathe, but this time he was oddly funny, as was the movie. Go figure.

I think the movie choices of the evening were a test, of course. Now she's making noises about seeing Brokeback Mountain.








<font color="red">Ain't</font> gonna happen.....




.

[AMF]

yeah, About a Boy is definitely one the better movies out there. Hilarious.

BB mountain is a good flick. There is some substance to the critique that it's popular becuase it's controversial in subject matter, and I am in agreement with the Academy that it wasn't an Oscar level movie, but the acting is very good. Really, it is just a classic unrequited love story, and you could replace either of the characters with a woman, or both, and it would be the same movie. So, yeah, not worth an Oscar, but a good movie nonetheless.

I, of course, don't know why you are adamant about not seeing it, but I'm always surprised at the level of vehemence against the movie. I mean, heck, why does anyone really care that much what people do behind closed doors. Or, in this case, out in the wide open woods...

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

Here's a totally hilarious article by the comic writer Gene Weingarten:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&amp;contentId=A64467-2004Mar16&amp;notFound=true

Actually, heck, I'll reprint it below, because it is really funny and relevant (really!)

Aisle Be Damned
By Gene Weingarten

Sunday, March 21, 2004; Page W11


I think we can all agree with our president that gay marriage is a grave threat to America, because if it weren't, our president would not have this issue to flog and might lose the election, and then who would protect us from

being murdered by poorly shaven individuals from Middle Eastern nations?

No, wait. That can't be right. The reason gay marriage is a grave threat to America must be that if we let gay people marry, the entire hallowed institution of marriage will be disgraced. No one will take marriage seriously anymore. Pretty soon the American divorce rate will start approaching 50 percent, and the sanctity of the whole process will be compromised, with pop stars getting drunk, married and annulled all on the same weekend. And then, before you know it, people will take marriage so casually that romance and passion themselves will erode, couples will no longer care about how they look to each other, and America will become a nation of people waddling around with keisters the size, texture and pliability of weather balloons.

Oh, wait.

Well, that's not why, anyway. The argument against legalizing gay marriage must be the same as the argument against legalizing drugs: If you legalize gay marriage, everyone will want to do it. Clearly, we all have these massive, pent-up, homosexual urges waiting to erupt, once we get the giddyap go-ahead from the government. George Bush and Dick Cheney might take up residence together in a simply darling Crystal City duplex. If gays are allowed to get married, guys like me will start looking at our wives and thinking, wait a minute, I have to settle for this weak little, squeaky-voiced, thong-wearing thing when Sylvester Stallone is available?

Oh, wait.

Actually, I guess the real reason to oppose gay marriage is that God is opposed to it, as certified by Leviticus (Lev. 20:13). Because this is an actual book of the Bible, we must obey everything it says literally, which is why Bill Cosby, Newt Gingrich, Albert Einstein and Bill Clinton have all been duly put to death for adultery, the prescribed punishment (Lev. 20:10). Or why anyone who shaves his head (Lev. 21:5) or wears clothing made from both wool and linen together (Lev. 19:19) or marries a divorced woman (Lev. 21:7) has been publicly condemned as a sinner. Or why any married couple that has sex when the woman is menstruating has been banished from civilized society and left to wander the earth (Lev. 20:18).

Well, maybe not.

But perhaps the best argument for why gay marriage is a grave threat to America is historical. Historically, when a society begins to condone decadence and licentiousness, it collapses like a souffle in an earthquake. The nations that survive and prosper and become world powers are the ones that adhere to strict moral codes, like Yemen, Djibouti, Myanmar, and that one with all the goats.

Okay, I confess that I don't really understand why anyone gives a fig about this issue, but I am sure our president knows best, by virtue of his superior brain and his Doctor of Thinkology degree. If he says that it requires a constitutional amendment to rectify this grievous error, then, by gum, I am all for it. I have been looking at the Constitution, actually, and I have to admit that an anti-gay-marriage amendment would fit right in.

You'd hardly know it was there. You could even add it to an existing amendment.

For example, Amendment VIII: "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. Also, ix-nay on the omos-hay, okay?"

But if we do follow this path, we really ought to consider another constitutional amendment, drawing not only from this same intense desire to improve our society, but from our increasing willingness to invoke the deity to do so:

Proposed Amendment XXVIII:

"It shall be unlawful to use the U.S. Constitution as a plaything for the politically self-righteous. Violators should all go to Hell

[Black_Knyght]

Actually, my reasons for NOT wanting to see Brokeback Mountain are pretty straight-forward.

As a native-born son of Texas who grew up on a ranch and lived the life of a ranch hand until Uncle Sam conned,....er...., convinced me to enlist, I have caught a ton of flack over this flick. Add to that I just don't have any interest in seeing two guys making out, whatever the story.

I'm not at all against gays, and I'm not homophobic. I don't care what people do in their private lives, I'm just not interested in seeing or hearing about it.



'nuff said. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/cool.gif

[AMF]

I didn't mean to imply homophobia...sorry! (I should have been more clear in my writing, doh!)

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Hunpecked]

Black_Knyght: Actually, my reasons for NOT wanting to see Brokeback Mountain are pretty

&gt;&gt;&gt; straight-forward. &lt;&lt;&lt;

Pun intended? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Black_Knyght]

alarikf said:
I didn't mean to imply homophobia...sorry! (I should have been more clear in my writing, doh!)

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif



Never even crossed my mind. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/cool.gif



hunpecked said:
Pun intended?



Ya think ? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Kamog]

DOOM - A mindless and violent movie, not very interesting, shallow story. There's a first-person-shooter sequence in the movie where the guy goes around with a big gun and shooting, with the same point of view as in the game. It was just like watching over somebody's shoulder who's playing the game, and it was kind of boring. In general, it seems that movies which are based on video games tend not to be great movies. This movie is similar to Resident Evil in many ways but even Resident Evil, which wasn't that good, was still better than Doom.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

That's becuase DOOM had very little story. A movie needs a story; a game, not so much.

[TurinTurambar]

The Tomb Raider movies were based on a game... I found them entertaining, but then that franchise had already been expanded with comic books and the like too. You are right though, Doom sucked butt big time.

[Atrocities]

Aeo Flux

An interesting movie but not something to write home about. Its ok to watch if your bored and want to spend two hours watching a hot chick in black beat the [censored] out of stupid black clad bad guys.

Munich
Why was this move made? Its not a bad movie just really no point to it. I found it to be an uninteresting and a bit preachy. Generally after watching it, I just had to ask myself why I wasted two hours of my life watching a movie that was extremely uninteresting.

The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobep
Man what a horrible boring and uninspiring chop job on the book. - Nuff said.

MI III
Put the breaks on! Please no more MI movies! Twas a interesting thrill ride with a lack luster story and a dumb plot. I want my $12.50 back!

A History Of Violence
Boring!

Million Dollar Baby
A very good movie. I can see why everyone loved it. Twas a good movie to watch.

[Suicide Junkie]

narf poit chez BOOM said:
That's becuase DOOM had very little story. A movie needs a story; a game, not so much.

And they removed all of the game's actual story, too.

Are hell-spawned demons not PC, or something?

[Atrocities]

Hell DOOM 3 removed the orginal DOOM story in order to seem simular to the movie. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

[Hunpecked]

Atrocities said:

Million Dollar Baby
A very good movie. I can see why everyone loved it. Twas a good movie to watch.



I liked it, too, although I thought the premise was implausible: 30-year-old waitress works a few months with aging veteran trainer, then immediately dominates younger, more experienced opponents with an unbroken string of KOs right up throught the championship. If they HAD to use Eastwood, Freeman, and Swank, I suppose it was the best they could do. However, I think I'd prefer younger actors and a longer, less meteoric career so the main character would really EARN her title, not have it handed to her on a screenwriter's plate.

[Atrocities]

I am just waiting for Rocky VI where he trains his 45 year old, ex-drugie son to fight Mr. T's illegitimate half black, half Latino bisexual cross dressing nephew for the ***** Slapping World Title and they end up falling in love while riding robotic steers in the local gay biker bar after a couple of long islands. With all the "PC" in movies these days, you never know.

[Renegade 13]

PC?? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/confused.gif

[Kamog]

I think PC = political correctness.

[Renegade 13]

Ah, of course. Should have figured that out! Thanks Kamog! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/cool.gif

I'm with you AT. There's way too much political correctness in movie (and in the larger picture, the world). It's almost as if people aren't willing to say what they mean anymore, for fear of someone accussing them of being racist, bigotted, chauvinistic, homophobic, intolerant, etc. etc.

[Morkilus]

I just saw Brick with two friends; one hated it, one was "meh" and I really enjoyed it. I can best describe it as the mix of a 70's noir movie with Napoleon Dynamite.

[Hunpecked]

Atrocities said:...and they end up falling in love while riding robotic steers in the local gay biker bar after a couple of long islands.


"Brokeback Italian Stallion"? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[Caduceus]

We're in the middle of "The Producers" which if you haven't seen the Oscar-winning original (1969, with Gene Wilder and Zero Mostel), you need to.

The "new" version is the movie based on the Broadway musical based on the original movie by Mel Brooks.

We're enjoying it, but know the soundtrack by heart as we saw it at a "preview show" before it opened with Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick and won every Tony it was nominated for (fourteen?).

Worth a look if you like Mel Brooks or musicals. Or you like Mel Brooks and musicals. Or you like musicals with Mel Brooks. Or if... Well, you get the idea.

[Atrocities]

Over The Hedge

Took the nephews to see this one today. Not bad, loved the squirel, hated the turtle and rackoon. Good movie for the adults, kinda lame for the kids.

[Atrocities]

X-Men 3

All in all this movie was kind of a let down really. Sure it had great special effects and it is always nice to see the actors who play the characters, but even their talent could not save this movie. The quality of writing, direction, acting, and sense of polish just wasn't in this movie as it has been in the previous two.

The story seemed contrived, rushed, and filled with gaps, pot holes, and even a black hole plot fubar called the phoenix.

Sure the phoenix was pure evil incarnate, but given the dilution that this movie has been filled too, no one character got more than about five minutes of combined screen time to explain fill them out. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

The bad mutants were devolved into a bunch of leather, tattooed, punk rockers who did little for the movie but add to the overall dilution of the plot.

In the previous two movies you felt for the characters, most of them, because there was a lot of effort put into developing them. In this movie we have none of that. Hell the only characters that seemed worth caring about were only in the movie for about a total of five minutes each.

This movie is certainly darker than the previous two, but no where in league with them. On a scale of 5 stars, this one would only capture about 2. It was a sincere let down given the quality of its predecessors.

[psimancer]

agreed (10 line post deleted by spell check grrrr)

[Kamog]

X-Men 3

Well, I agree X-Men 3 was not as good as X-Men 2, but it was still pretty good in my opinion. By the way, if you stay and watch the end of the credits, there is an interesting little extra scene.


The bad mutants were devolved into a bunch of leather, tattooed, punk rockers who did little for the movie but add to the overall dilution of the plot.



Warning: Spoiler
I agree! Those new mutants were kind of uninteresting and unimportant. No wonder Magneto sends them in to battle first and sacrifices them. "In chess, the pawns go first." Yeah, the audience doesn't care about those guys either. Actually, the only two characters that I really care about are Magneto and Mystique. In my opinion, these two are more interesting than the good guys. It was very sad what happened to Mystique, but I'm hopeful that she'll regain her powers later if a sequel is ever made, just like Magneto didn't permanently lose his power. And some of dead guys will likely come back somehow in future movies. By the way, Kitty Pryde (Shadowcat), the girl who can walk through walls, is the cutest girl in the world. Some more screen time of her would have been nice. Anyway, if they make the Magneto prequel movie, I'd definitely go see that; he's my favorite character.

[jeffel]

I just saw X3 last night and I liked it.

It wasn't quite as good as the other two, but those were both exceptionally good.

The FX was top notch.
The basic story arcs were nicely played out. (but not as well integrated as they could have been)
I really liked seeing all the younger mutants growing into their powers.

One piece of advice to those going to see it. Stay through the credits for a last little scene.

[gregebowman]

As far as the overall effect, I thought X3 was pretty good. At least special effects wise. I think this is one of the best films when it came to superhero vs supervillian fights. The only other movie I can compare this one to would be Superman 2, where Kal-El fought 3 Kryptonians. Most other superhero films in the past didn't have this many opponents fighting in one film. In that respect, I thought it was great. Now, as far as the Phoenix saga, I never read those comic books, so I was completely lost when it came to what Jean Grey was supposed to be. A better explanation of who the Phoenix was would have been nice.

Also saw Poseidon. I love the original movie, and so I had to see this one. I was disappointed in the lack of character development, but once the ship turned turtle, I thought it was a great movie. Better special effects, and I thought the ending when the ship sank was great (in truth, the ship sank in the original novel). Can't wait to watch it on dvd when it comes out.

Went and saw Cars this past Sunday. As with all of Pixar films, this was a great display of computerized animation. I liked the fact that not only was the show a tribute to NASCAR, it was a tribute to Route 66 also. I highly recommend this movie to kids of all ages. Unfortunately, my son wanted to leave at the end of the movie, so I didn't get a chance to watch most of the outtake scenes as the credits were rolling.

[Renegade 13]

Ultraviolet


In general, I'm a huge fan of Sci-Fi movies, I love them no matter how horrible they are, usually.

This one...well I didn't mind it, but even I can see beyond my Sci-Fi bias and see that this movie is not exactly what I'd call good. Someone who isn't like me and doesn't love Sci-Fi would probably not like this movie at all.

That isn't to say it didn't have it's good points; after all, I'd have watched this movie for Milla Jovovich if nothing else http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif Though I must say, she was about the only thing worth seeing in this movie; it was fairly forgettable.

3/10...and that's only because of Jovovich!! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[Atrocities]

Firewall

Really not a good movie. Lots of plot holes and I just felt sorry for poor old STIFF Harrison Ford. I would only watch this movie if it were for free, which it was.

[gregebowman]

Went and saw Superman Returns the other day. Word of advice: don't take a 5 year old with you when you do. The movie is 2 1/2 hours long, and that's too long for a young child like mine. As far as the movie went, I thought it was great. Thank goodness Singer decided to base this movie only on I &amp; II, instead of just adding to the franchise. I won't give a major surprise away, because I heard it on both the radio and tv before I went &amp; saw it and I don't want to spoil anyone else's entertainment. I thought Kevin Spacey made a great Lex Luthor; I think he even outdid Gene Hackman. Of course the special effects were much better than they were 20+ years ago, and they are impressive. Now we know what it looks like when Superman has to save a falling airplane, as has had to do too many times in the comics. Brandon Routh does look at times like Chris Reeve, but don't let that distract you. He has every bit of a right to be on-screen as his predecessor did. Can't wait for the inevitable sequel. I wonder who'll the bad guy will for that one? I'm hoping it's brainiac, as I don't think we've ever seen him on film (other than the cartoon series).

[Atrocities]

Did they have a giant spider? That is all I want to know.

[mac5732]

My youngest son just bought the Firefly lst (and only)season cds and the movie Serenity. ah... watched it all in 2 days, even tho I saw some of them before, I was able to watch the entire show from the lst episode to the last and the movie which was the ending. D.... Fox for taking off a darn good series. I do hear that the Sci fi channel and fox are talking about brining it back with the original actors, don't know if thats true or not.. but it would be great IMHO

[Atrocities]

We interupt this thread for a specail rant by yours truly:

Rumor had it that Josh Weaton (sp) was black listed and his TV shows pulled because he supported the wrong political side of things. Far too many good people have as of recent years, been cast down from the lime light and success of hollywood because they do not subscribe to "certain" ideals of those who run hollywood. Let us just say that the left side of the road has far more power and is willing to use said power to ruin any one who does not support or accept their points of view.

That being said, hollywood is indeed in a state of depression that shows in just about every television show and film produced over the last five years. Dwindling box office revenew and lack luster ratings on just about everything on TV. Instead of giving us the shows and films we want, they feed us political points of view and try and tell us what and how to think. Most people tune that out as it has shown.

Films like Serenity which come along once in a blue moon are indeed jewels that we can never get enough of.

As to reviving Firefly, no can do for seven, now six more years according to the contract that was made in order to produce the film. The film did very poorly at the box office because it was not widely advertised, again black listing at work, and if you have not been able to read between the lines, allow me to elabrate by simply saying one name... Lucas.

Remember what happened to BSG in the lates 70's? Lucas sued them and they opted to end the series because the cost of keeping it going was too great. I can still remember the the ABC summer line up previews and the "Still the one, ABC is still the one" commericals that showed off BSG. Man that show was the most exciting thing I had ever seen on TV and when it debuted on Sunday Sept 17th I was hooked and forever amazed. Lucas had a part in taking that, and most recently Firefly off the air and that is why I am not a big GL fan.

End of rant. We now return you to the previously scheduled thread.

[Caduceus]

Atrocities said:
As to reviving Firefly, no can do for seven, now six more years according to the contract that was made in order to produce the film. The film did very poorly at the box office because it was not widely advertised, again black listing at work, and if you have not been able to read between the lines, allow me to elabrate by simply saying one name... Lucas.




The film was OVER advertised. The two plus weeks before it was launched, you couldn't turn the TV on without seeing an advertisement for it. The "browncoat" brigade was out if force trying to get folks to see it.

You'll need a bit more proof to show me that Lucas killed this. Considering it was on the Fox network, which is a subsidiary of 20th Century Fox, distributor of Star Wars.

Here's the gross amounts from IMDB:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0379786/business
$40M investment, $25M return domestic (-37.5%)

Compare with episode three.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0121766/business
$113M investment, $380M return domestic (+236%)

You're a stockholder and/or investor in movies. Which one are you going to make?

[Slynky]

Atrocities said:
We interupt this thread for a specail rant by yours truly:

Rumor had it that Josh Weaton (sp) was black listed and his TV shows pulled because he supported the wrong political side of things. Far too many good people have as of recent years, been cast down from the lime light and success of hollywood because they do not subscribe to "certain" ideals of those who run hollywood. Let us just say that the left side of the road has far more power and is willing to use said power to ruin any one who does not support or accept their points of view.

That being said, hollywood is indeed in a state of depression that shows in just about every television show and film produced over the last five years. Dwindling box office revenew and lack luster ratings on just about everything on TV. Instead of giving us the shows and films we want, they feed us political points of view and try and tell us what and how to think. Most people tune that out as it has shown.

Films like Serenity which come along once in a blue moon are indeed jewels that we can never get enough of.

As to reviving Firefly, no can do for seven, now six more years according to the contract that was made in order to produce the film. The film did very poorly at the box office because it was not widely advertised, again black listing at work, and if you have not been able to read between the lines, allow me to elabrate by simply saying one name... Lucas.

Remember what happened to BSG in the lates 70's? Lucas sued them and they opted to end the series because the cost of keeping it going was too great. I can still remember the the ABC summer line up previews and the "Still the one, ABC is still the one" commericals that showed off BSG. Man that show was the most exciting thing I had ever seen on TV and when it debuted on Sunday Sept 17th I was hooked and forever amazed. Lucas had a part in taking that, and most recently Firefly off the air and that is why I am not a big GL fan.

End of rant. We now return you to the previously scheduled thread.

Couldn't have said it better. ---- GL ! And the horse he rode in on!

[gregebowman]

Well, since Lucas gave us Star Wars, I can't be too critical of him, other to say that he reached his pinnacle at SW IV, and maybe there was a reason he didn't direct the other two films in the original trilogy. Whatever he had, he sure lost when he tried directing the other 3 SW films. He should have stayed executive producer and worry about the big things and let someone else direct. Someone who had talent and the SW vision.

I don't know if Lucas actually killed BSG in the 70's, but I do remember him threatening a lawsuit. Too bad the original BSG lasted only 1 season. I would have loved to see what they could have done if they had more episodes to play with. I don't count Galactica 80 as an actual BSG experience, and have tried for 26 years to forget it even existed.

[Hunpecked]

I really wanted to like the Firefly series, with its appealing cast, frequent humor, and underdog characters. But come on, we're hundreds of years in the future, we have FTL travel &amp; artificial gravity, and our heroes earn their living transporting a couple dozen CATTLE from world to world? The government has terraformed numerous "moons" (no doubt at tremendous expense) into excellent replicas of a barren desert with (apparently) Earth gravity and then plants 'em with refugees from a John Wayne western? The ship is propelled at interstellar speeds by a rotating kettle tended by a high school dropout?

The movie, at least, had a bigger budget and more action, but was no more believable than the series, e.g. the interstellar superweapon played by a wisp of a girl that even Truman Capote could *****-slap into next week. I can see how such a quirky show could gather a small, dedicated fan base, but there's no need for conspiracy theories to explain its lack of general appeal.

BTW, rather than trying to pound his round peg into a square sci-fi hole, I've always thought that Wheadon should have set his story in the past, e.g. the late 1700s to early 1800s American coast, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean. Reynolds could be an American Tory (i.e. on the losing side of the American war for independence) forced off his land by the victorious Patriots, now earning a semi-legitimate living as a merchant captain, smuggler, and privateer. He could be master of a beat-up sloop named Serenity (after his lost plantation?), he could have the same scruffy crew (including women), and he could get into all the sword fights he wanted (did I mention that the Firefly series included a freakin' sword fight?).

[Atrocities]

Hunpecked, you missed the whole point of the series, there is no point to trying to make you understand. Either you got the series, or you didn't. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif I do hope that Joss's next television effort will work out.. sounds interesting if not anything else.

[Slynky]

I've never stood here and suggested for a single moment that Firefly/Serenity was a technical masterpiece, hunpecked. I mean, correct in all aspects of what we could expect in technology and future developments.

You know, lots of people enjoy James Bond movies and they enjoy a huge box office take. Talk about stupid things that could never happen! And then, there's the blockbuster movies like Die Hard, Mission Impossible (which is mostly anything impossible!), and even more stupid [censored] like, "Armeggedon" and its hit cast doing impossible [censored] on an asteroid. Give me a break! HIT movies often fail to meet technical political correctness and succeed in the box office.

NOW, to the story liine: IF YOU WATCHED! The premise is that the Alliance needed a place to settle as Earth was getting full. Here comes the terraforming. NOT that each terraforming exercise was to convert a rock into a paradise...it was to convert a planet into something livable. THEN, after terraforming and sending colonist out, the Alliance tended to forget the poor wretches on the outskirts. THAT'S supposed to signify the difference in tech from the central core to the forgotten colonists on the outskirts. Hence the rebellion. Hence the need for basic human needs like food (cattle) and medicine.

Was/is it technically perfect? No. But does it do it as well as all the other [censored] I mentioned? Hell yes!

The mechanic you seem to dwell on? Not much different than the apparent inate abilities of several other heroes in movies...like Star Wars. I took it as an ability to understand mechanics and space travel/engines as Tiger Woods has to a golf club.

Want to really get truthful? Then try the successful series of Star Trek where people spent a few minutes splicing a few wires together and increased warp speed twice over. Or how Wesley (a kid) save the crew many times over. Was it a hit (though really ridiculous)? Hell yes!

So, get off your high horse. Go look at a lot of successful pieces of "space pablum" and give Joss the same amount of fair assessment as you have the others.

Finally, character development in Serenity/Firefly exceeds the range of that achieved by Star Wars (really, if you go do your homework, sci-fi pulp made to a movie). The characters in Firefly/Serenity tug a bit more at your heart and emotions than Star Wars ever did. I don't remember ever getting a swelled throat at any character in SW. Or Star Trek.

Joss has made, NOT a masterpiece, but a damned good series/movie that makes you visit every gamut of what a viewer should want: Excitement, plot, secrets, emotions, and sadness. Mal is the BEST representation of a ship's captain as I can remember. Name me one better!

[Black_Knyght]

Atrocities said:
Hunpecked, you missed the whole point of the series, there is no point to trying to make you understand. Either you got the series, or you didn't. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif I do hope that Joss's next television effort will work out.. sounds interesting if not anything else.



I gotta go with <font color="red">AT</font> on this one, <font color="blue">Hunpecked</font>. Reread everything you wrote, and give it a moment's thought. The point of the ENTIRE show is in there.

[Slynky]

And then, there's the quoted passages where Lucas surpasses any notion of professional courtesy and calls Joss the equivalent of an wannabe hack. From what I know about human nature, if someone REALLY is a waste of a writer, other writers don't give a [censored]. BUT, when someone is a real threat to your "kingodm" and ego, you do what all the childish kids do, you say negative things about them.

Hun, you need to take a dose of real life and come up for air. Develop a bit of cynicism...you'll find it more truthful than a pair of Star Wars "rose colored glasses".

[Renegade 13]

Realism in TV is overrated. Now, that's not to say that things that are horribly impossible, as related to our everyday life are good to have; I think they can ruin a series. But bending the physical laws, having prodigies that wouldn't normally occur, that's what TV's about: escapism.

Suspension of reality is what you need. Sure, things aren't always realistic and you could watch a show pointing out all the things that are impossible or highly improbable and not enjoy the show at all. Or you could suspend your disbelief and watch it for the entertainment it's supposed to be.

NOTE: This is not related to the whole Firefly/Serenity thingy, but it is applicable since that's how I view TV/Movies in general http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[mac5732]

TV shows and Movies should be made for the enjoyment of those watching them. Realism can't always be interred into either a movie or a TV series. If realism was introduced, probably 99% of the shows and movies would be dull and everyone would be outside playing in their backyards. In addition, years and years ago, flying was thought impossible, no one ever thought we'd put a man on the moon, breaking the sound barrier.. what's that. etc. SO in essance, who knows what may or may not take place or happen in the future, who knows what type of weapons, ships etc may be used. Possibly what happens in Firefly could take place as to ships, weapons, etc. The same could be said for all the gadgets and gizmos in Star Trek.. In truth, one never really knows what may happen.. Its nice to dream, and if you can relate to a show and the characters, all the more enjoyment. A TV series or movie should be enjoyable not for the sake of what is or what is not proper, but for the fun, excitment and for a short time, emersing yourself for a short time into something else other then the real world, of wars, terrorist, disease, politics and all the crap that is going on in this world. Something to give one relaxation from the hum drum life as we know it. So what is the proper weaponry, gadgets etc that should be in a space series? Who really knows? It could be any, all or none of what we see on those TV series or Movies, so to say that those weapons shouldn't be there,, well, how do we really know what will be proper and what won't.. In conclusion, If one doesn't like a particular series, thats ok, thats your right and your taste, those who do enjoy it, they have that right as well. To view a series or movies, one must have an open mind to just plain enjoy the show for what it is and hopefully, it'll be one that you look foreward to seeing again and again. If not, then you go on to something else until you find something that you relate to or really enjoy.
The problem as I see it, is politics in Hollywood, the same as everywhere else, along with jealousy. Its a shame as good shows are removed or purposfully trashed just because someone doesn't like it or its a threat to something they are doing and the heck with the viewers and what they want or are enjoying. IF the big shots knew their a.. from a whole in the ground, they would know a good popular show when they see one, but alas, they are to busy bending over for someone else and not for the viewers.

This ascertation is not meant to belittle anyone or to trash their beliefs, it is only my opinion. The moguls in Hollywood need to think for themselves and not be dictated as to what should be shown and what shouldn't, because this person or that person doesn't want it on the air or in the movies because they feel its a threat to something they are doing or because they are afraid it'll take viewers away from their shows.

So enjoy or don't enjoy, that is the question you must ask yourself.... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Atrocities]

What is so sad about Lucas and his appearant view of Joss is that at least Joss can write intelligently. Case in point, Serenity compared to any of the last three Star Wars Movies.

I like the dialog used in Serenity and the series. It gave the show and the movie a unique familarity and appeal that is not often seen in such things. BSG has tried it, in fact BSG has stolen a lot of its ideas from Firefly from the style of the camera motions to the appearant use of recognizable dialog, albeit not as western dated as Firefly, but persado modern to say the least.

Firefly had the ratings to stay on the air, however George Lucas was personally offended by the show because he felt that it stoled from his work, specifically from his concept for a Han Solo series of stories, and just like with BSG and wing commander, Lucas presured Fox into killing the show. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

Lucas has publically denounced Joss W. as reportedly a hack and a no talent theif, and that is just inapproprate behavior at the least. Lucas is like the spoiled rotten kid who has all the new toys and likes the attention he gets from the poor kids. Make him mad and he will take his toys and go home and whine to his mommy who then makes a big stink about things and gets people into trouble. Just spoiled rotten behavior being affirmed by a politically correct anti-original hollywood society.

That being said, any one here going to go see the new Pirates of the Carribean movie?

[Hunpecked]

Black_Knyght said:

I gotta go with <font color="red">AT</font> on this one, <font color="blue">Hunpecked</font>. Reread everything you wrote, and give it a moment's thought. The point of the ENTIRE show is in there.



Funny, I thought the point of the show was to make money. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[Hunpecked]

Several posters have leaped to the defense of the Firefly series, claiming I've "missed the point" of the show. Unfortunately these people seem to have missed my point: yes, I didn't "get" the show, but guess what? Neither did a lot of others. THAT is why the series was cancelled after half a season and that's why the movie tanked. There's no need to invoke conspiracy theories to explain the demise of an unpopular show.

As for the "realism" issue, yes, Firefly is probably no more "unrealistic" than Star Wars, Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica (don't get me started), or Armageddon, the movie that set out to prove Hollywood could make a film even worse than Deep Impact, and succeeeded. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif But a story that stretches the audience's credulity has to have something else for people to "get", and unfortunately Firefly doesn't seem to have that, at least for most people.

[Slynky]

It's easy for a person who doesn't care about a particular show to not care much about why it was canceled. For those who do care, we looked for the reasons. Having talked with the cast and participating in many other places on the Internet furnishing info, I can say I honestly believe there were "those" who wanted to see the show fail/removed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefly_(television_series)

Scroll down to "Cancelation".

Be sure to click on footnote #5 for information that contradicts your insinuation that the show didn't have much of an audience.

Speaking of cancelation, I might point out that Fox almost canceled 24, which, for this year, is the most nominated for Emmy awards. So, whether or not Fox cancels something is no indication, apparently, of its quality. It's all about making money fast. If it isn't made fast enough, then don't "get behind" the series and push it, NO, by all means, just cancel it! One other factor (my own opinion that I've not seen written anwyhere else) that may have added to the decision to cancel the series is the onslaught of visual pablum known to all the TV masses as "reality programming" which people hungered for in droves and which the networks could produce for "pennies" compared to a series employing actual known actors. Why spend a million an episode when you could spend 100K per episode and make more money? Dumbass people would watch ANYTHING in the "reality" genre.

And, the Lucas factor in the whole thing? I tend to believe where there is smoke, there's quite a liklihood of fire. After reading an excerpt of Lucas' VERY unprofessional comments about Joss' ability, I would catagorize Lucas as very likely to have had a hand in seeing the series fail. After all, IF a person is talentless and you have no worries BECAUSE he is talentless, you don't even bother your busy schedule to spend time discussing it. But, you have to wonder why someone goes out of his way to practice a bit of character assassination for a person who "competes" directly in your "arena". I think it's because he knows Joss has something that people like and he worried about his "hold" on the space genre being challenged.

[Baron Munchausen]

You do have to wonder if the decision to take the 'Star Wars' universe into television had something to do with the recent boom in television SciFi. If so, then surely he would use his leverage to squash a competing show right under the same corporate umbrella.

[Caduceus]

Fox also had Space:Above and Beyond cancelled after one season. A show that I really enjoyed, so I feel your pain with Firefly.

I don't care if Lucas likes or doesn't like Wheadon. For the studio, it is all about dollars. If it doesn't sell advertising space, forget it. This was several years before Lucas considered bringing Star Wars to television, so I don't buy that arguement unless he has a ten-year plan (which they may... "We'll release the ORIGINAL version of SW with the SPECIAL EDITION in 2008 on HD-DVD!!").

You can bet if Wheadon had made a movie that grossed $150M after costing $40M to make, there'd be a sequel in the works.

The show may have been shut down due to influence, I can't see the links on the wikipedia so they could be to Martha Stewart reruns (TV Guide). But nobody has shown that the movie wasn't promoted. It was HEAVILY promoted to the markets that would theoretically find it appealing - SciFi channel, sporting events and wrestling on TV, I saw an ad in Entertainment Weekly, there was a feature on TV Guide. It simply didn't make money because it didn't have a wide appeal for whatever reason.

I watched one show, the first one that was on, and decided that I liked it, but never saw the second episode because I thought it wasn't going to make it.

[Hunpecked]

Slynky: "It's easy for a person who doesn't care about a particular show to not care much about why it was canceled."

Certainly not enough to look beyond the obvious reason--low ratings--and come up with a VLWC ("Vast Lucas Wing Conspiracy") to explain it. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

"Be sure to click on footnote #5 for information that contradicts your insinuation that the show didn't have much of an audience."

Um, the show was popular with TiVo users? Sure sign of a blockbuster, that! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

How about this: "Back in 2002, Firefly was one of the beleaguered Fox network's many casualties, ranking 66th in the Nielsen ratings for its first episode and quickly descending to around 100th place for the rest of its run." -- http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=1910&amp;p=.htm

Maybe Fox should have handed out more free TiVo units? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

"It's all about making money fast. If it isn't made fast enough, then don't "get behind" the series and push it, NO, by all means, just cancel it!"

This suggests to me that Slynky is well aware of the show's precarious ratings, and is merely criticizing Fox's reluctance to take a bigger risk on it. Series DVD sales suggest Fox may have make a mistake, but the film's lukewarm reception indicates the TV series may never have appealed to more than a niche audience. In any case, Fox's bottom line is enough to explain the cancellation, so I'd need more than just Lucas' alleged trash talk to hang a conspiracy theory on.

BTW, now that Battlestar Galactica is poised for a third season, isn't it about time Lucas turned his Jedi mind control on the Sci Fi network? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[Baron Munchausen]

So far as I know, the SciFi channel is not in his reach. He is making his deal with Fox, right? The SciFi Channel is currently owned by NBC/Universal. He'd have to sue outright in open court like he did with the original, and that is now widely recognized as a very stupid move. Even George Lucas must know better than to walk right into a buzzsaw?

[Atrocities]

The thing is, Lucas waved the Star Wars TV series in their faces like then after he got what he wanted, the fat prick, he changes his mind and decides to "hold off" on the idea for a few more years.

About Fox, Family Guy, nuff said.

As to BSG, if we get a full 3rd season I will be impressed after how horribly they diluted the story line in the last half of the second season. An opinion shared by many, is that there will not be a fourth season. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

[Black_Knyght]

Hunpecked said:
Several posters have leaped to the defense of the Firefly series, claiming I've "missed the point" of the show. Unfortunately these people seem to have missed my point: yes, I didn't "get" the show, but guess what? Neither did a lot of others. THAT is why the series was cancelled after half a season and that's why the movie tanked. There's no need to invoke conspiracy theories to explain the demise of an unpopular show.

As for the "realism" issue, yes, Firefly is probably no more "unrealistic" than Star Wars, Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica (don't get me started), or Armageddon, the movie that set out to prove Hollywood could make a film even worse than Deep Impact, and succeeeded. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif But a story that stretches the audience's credulity has to have something else for people to "get", and unfortunately Firefly doesn't seem to have that, at least for most people.




Uhhhh...., Hunpecked - That's not entirely accurate. One major point concerning Firefly/Serenity was the matter of who eventually owned the rights to it. Joss Whedon and FOX had a serious falling-out, and as a result his shows were cancelled on that network. When he was "released" from his contracts with FOX he lobbyed hard to get the rights and control of the Firefly property. FOX executives agreed, but later, after it's surprising revival on the big screen, tried to claim a part of the proceeds from the movie and series DVD sales. They dropped the matter VERY quickly when it was made clear in court WHO owned the rights and who DIDN'T. The executive who signed off on those rights was himself later "released" as well.

[Hunpecked]

I see. The series' ratings were actually stellar, so Fox and Whedon argued over the piles and piles of cash the show was earning, so Fox killed their golden goose to spite Whedon and suck up to Lucas? Interesting take. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif Too bad Fox pissed off Whedon, because that left the door open for Universal to make a fortune on the movie. Oh, wait... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

Actually, Fox may have (accidentally?) made a very good business decision with Firefly: save money by killing the series, then make money on the DVDs. I'd be curious to see Fox's bottom line on the whole Firefly affair.

So who owns Whedon's other properties (Buffy and Angel)? Whedon, or the networks?

[Black_Knyght]

Never said the ratings were stellar, but neither were they as bad as some other shows that were kept in the line-up by FOX. It simply came down to a dispute between FOX and Whedon, and FOX threw their weight around and canned Whedon's projects.

No one knew then that he'd manage to revive the property well enough to get Universal to back it being made into a movie. When it did make it's cinematic comeback FOX tried to claim they still held a portion of the rights, and lost that bid when it was determined in court that they did not, having signed off on it at Whedon's released from contract.

I can't say what the legal status of the other properties is, as I never really heard much about them. I was somewhat involved, indirectly, in some of the interplay with FOX and Whedon, though. I was working at the FOX studios when some of the conflict between them overflowed into the stage areas. Later, we were read an "OFFICIAL" statement by FOX management concerning the issues.

[Atrocities]

Well, what was the "official statement?"

[Black_Knyght]

The statement we were read was that "due to unreconcilable differences of opinion between Mr. Joss Whedon and FOX studios, the stage area was going to be closed and all production would be ended". The stage areas were cleared and the doors locked, and it was time to find a new job elsewhere.

[Black_Knyght]

Went and saw "Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Mans Chest" this weekend, and I can't decide if it was a good movie or if I got screwed.

Seems to me that about halfway through the movie it lost focus and meandered. And the end definitely bites. It was way too obviously geared toward a sequel, instead of closing out a storyline that already got lost occasionally.

[Captain Kwok]

To be fair, the ending is open because it's the second part of a trilogy. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[Slynky]

To beat the "Joss Whedon" horse to death--an award from Equality Now organization:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=3&amp;entry_id=6741

This makes him quite a bit human to me.

[Atrocities]

To bad he is now black listed. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

[Atrocities]

Superman

Surprizeingly not a bad movie.

"Wheren't there two of them?" - Lex's Girl Friend.
R O T F L M A O

The movie seem really out of place in today time, but overall it was not a bad movie, actually quite enjoyable.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Superhero comics are getting too grim and gritty. We need more optimism.

[Atrocities]

equilibrium LINK (http://www.freewebs.com/equilibrium-movie/)

damn fine movie. One of best i have i seen in a good long time. a true must see now out on dvd. 8 out of 10

[Black_Knyght]

I COMPLETELY AGREE !!!

Saw it awhile ago, and was surpised and pleased how good it was for a movie so few have ever heard of.

[Black_Knyght]

Atrocities said:
Superman

Surprizeingly not a bad movie.

"Wheren't there two of them?" - Lex's Girl Friend.
R O T F L M A O

The movie seem really out of place in today time, but overall it was not a bad movie, actually quite enjoyable.





It was a good movie, and I'm not even a Superman fan. Lex Luthor was played well by Kevin Spacey, with a real vicious streak. And the Pom had some very distinct survival traits... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Atrocities]

Pirates of the Carribbean - Dead Mans Chest

I want my f***ing money back! They lied. This movie is no where near as good as the first, hell its barely worthy of a matenee viewing. If you haven't seen this deception yet, save your money and rent, NOT BUY, but rent it on DVD. AFTER is goes to the $2.99 discount weekly price.

They lied, they lied, they out right f**king lied! Don't believe a word the critics are saying if they say they loved this movie. Who the hell are these critics anyways? Paid kronies of the Disney to be sure.. The movie stank, it was horrible, it was contrived, it was scripted worse than a bad video game, it just was abismal to say the least. Most of the movie should have ended up on the cutting room floor. Whole sloths of the film were just pointless waste. The script stank horribly, the editing was wrank, and for the first 20 minutes the whole movie made no damn sense at all. Abosolutely a complete con job on the "best movie ever" bull crap. 30 million people have seen this moive and I will bet most want their money back.

5 out of 10. (Special effects were great, acting was ok, humor was fair, nice scenery, hope for the sequal.

[Captain Kwok]

I disagree. I thought it was on par with the first movie, perhaps a little bit less original because we've become accustomed to the characters and some of the themes.

[Atrocities]

I am just saying that they really over hyped it and made it out to be the very best movie of all time when in fact it wasn't even close. Sequals aside, this one could have done a better job in the first 20 minutes. Secondly, they could have cut a lot of pointless crap out. I look forward to the return of the first pirate captain in the third movie.

[Black_Knyght]

Black_Knyght said:
Went and saw "Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Mans Chest" this weekend, and I can't decide if it was a good movie or if I got screwed.

Seems to me that about halfway through the movie it lost focus and meandered. And the end definitely bites. It was way too obviously geared toward a sequel, instead of closing out a storyline that already got lost occasionally.



I tried to tell ya..... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[Atrocities]

You did indeed warn us... This is what I get for not paying attention. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/frown.gif

[Black_Knyght]

I hear all the rants and raves about that movie, and keep thinking WTF because I left it seriously disappointed.

[Ragnarok]

I disagree. I really enjoyed Pirates. In fact, I have seen it twice now. After seeing it the first time, I was a bit disappointed. After seeing it the second time, I was entertained and understood every more clearly. It also helps if you see the original shortly before seeing the second. You will understand a lot more small details and catch things that the normal person may not.
No, it wasn't as good as the original, but sequels are hardly ever as good as the first. Kwok stated it correctly; we are just used to the charactors now so it doesn't seem as good as when we first saw the original.

[Randallw]

I saw the first movie last week since I never go out to movies, so I wait till they're on TV. I thought it was quite good. Great effects with the cursed pirates, although my favourite scene was when Jack arrives at the dock at the start.

[Makinus]

Just watched last night the "Night Watch" movie and, except for a few small gripes, it´s a superb movie...

It have well designed special effects, that don´t detract form the stories (contrary to a lot of movies lately that are more espceial effects showcases than movies), and a very compelling story. If you like fantastical tales with witches, vampires, shapeshifters and the like, you will have a full plate with this movie.

My only two gripes:
1. Too many characters for too small screen time, so a lot of interesting characters remain undeveloped.
2. No conclusion, this is only the first part of the story, the story apparently continues in the second movie of the series (Day Watch), and while some story arcs are resolved the main conflicts of the movie are left pending.

But, gripes aside, i found it an incredible movie, and can hardly wait for the second movie of the series...

[Kamog]

I saw Superman Returns today... in 3-D Imax. Well, only some bits of it were done in 3-D, like scenes of Superman flying around.

Not a bad movie. Definitely one of the better Superman movies. Way better than the last movie, Superman IV The Quest for Peace, which was just awful. Kevin Spacey is very good as Lex Luther.

The Kryptonians were a Crystalline race!

[gregebowman]

Reading some of the earlier posts about Joss Wheaton, no matter what else he has done, he helped contribute to the atrocity that became Alien 3. That's when I first saw his name, and I don't think I can ever really like him just because of that. Now, I don't know if he did Buffy the movie, but the series was ok. Not that I've watched too many episodes, but enough to know what was going on. Still don't know too much about Angel. As far as Firefly, either it came on a night I was working, or the wife had control of the remote control on whatever night it came on. I've seen some reruns, but not all 13 or so. I finally saw Serenity last month, and thought it was a good follow-up to the series. Since you all know I don't read the trade magazines, the earlier posts in this thread was the first time I heard anything about Lucas having bad feelings about Wheaton. Too bad. Like I've stated earlier, I think Lucas was at his peak in 1977. He's probably just jealous.

Finally saw Monster House last weekend. My 5 year old son got scared toward the end. I don't know if the producers wanted that effect on young children or not, but it did have on one my son. Other than that, I thought it was an OK movie. Not along the lines of The Incredibles or any other Pixar movie, but worth the view.

[gregebowman]

Having a 5 year old, I seem to get to see mostly CGI or just regular animated movies lately. The latest one I just saw was Barnyard. If you can get over the fact that all of the male cows have udders, it's a funny movie. I liked it, and recommend it to all of you who have small children to go see it. A word of warning, however. There are a couple of scenes in the movie that involve coyotes, and the animaters make them look scary. I think my kid was less traumatized from those scenes than he was when he saw Monster House, however.

[Kamog]

The Protector
This is a great martial arts movie starring Tony Jaa. I was very impressed with Tony Jaa's fighting skills; if you like martial arts movies you'll like this movie. The story is very simple, though: some bad guys steal two elephants from Tony's village and he goes to rescue them, beating up all the bad guys who try to stop him.

[Atrocities]

Ultra Violet

This wasn't a very good movie. They relied very heavily on fast, very obvious, digital who's quality was exceptionaly poor.

The plot, what plot.. the movie didn't really know what it wanted to do. One moments its a resistance anti establishment movie the next its a hunt the vampire save the children movie. Then it turned into mother son bad dad movie. This thing was all over the place.

It has been a long while since I have had to just stop watching a movie and remove it from my DVD player. This movie was that bad. It is the kind of movie someone spun out on crack would make.

Ever try to watch some crack heads concept of blade runner? Its like watching the channel on your tv flip stations every few seconds; round and round again.

The movie had these complete unbelieveable fight scenes, by unbelieve able, I mean as in complete fake. THe main character could run on ceils and kill dozens of soldier made of glass. Oh wow, glass soldiers... what a great idea that is. She can perform these fantastic feats of physic breaking acrobatics, including running a motor cycle sideways along buses, jumping from the side of a bus to the side of another bus then to the side of building while being chased by a very fake looking CGI helicopter. It was a Mytrix rip off that just makes you shudder.

She fights these huge groups of soldiers yet baucks and gets all freaked out when she has four or five soldiers blocking her path in a mall.. WTF?

The fight and chase scenes were 99% digital and they all looked increadibly fake.

There is no decernable plot to this movie, the story is a jumbalation of confused concepts and bad ideas. Its a vampire movie, its dark anti-establishment movie, hell its even a matrix rip off and a Kill Bill peace. This is simply one very bad, meaning not so good, movie.

Rent or watch at your own risk.

[Renegade 13]

I totally agree with your assessment, Atrocities. It was a terrible movie.

[Artaud]

We recently went to see "Ant Bully." Very entertaining, very "cute," very funny. Enjoyable for adults and great for children.

[Will]

Oh. I just got a rental for Ultraviolet in the mail... so, this brings the question: if I watch it, will my eyes start to bleed? If so, I'll just send it back now.

[Atrocities]

Watch it and then let us know what you think. I couldn't watch the full thing. I suspect the ending might be something half baked and slightly predictable but I never got that far. Just couldn't finish the movie.

[Kamog]

Fearless
This is Jet Li's latest movie, in which he is Hua Yuanjia, a great Chinese martial artist who fought with many fighters from other countries. He uses a variety of styles: sword, spear, 3-sectional staff, unarmed. The story goes back to how he started training in Wushu as a young boy, and how he grew up to become a powerful martial artist.

[Renegade 13]

Will said:
Oh. I just got a rental for Ultraviolet in the mail... so, this brings the question: if I watch it, will my eyes start to bleed? If so, I'll just send it back now.

Your eyes will first bleed, then explode with a shower of green venom.

[gregebowman]

I think the last movie I took my kid to was How To Eat Fried Worms. It was a cute little film, and we saw this after we ate at a restaurant. It's not too bad, and I didn't feel like barfing (more importantly, it didn't make my son feel like barfing). If you or your children aren't too queasy, check this one out.

[Santiago]

I'm watching the strangest movie atm. Apparently a french movie- French girl (speaks japanese but her voiceover is in french) trying to fit in and work in a Japanese corporation in Japan subtitled in spanish- I need more beer http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[narf poit chez BOOM]

If you're watching that, perhaps you need less beer? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/stupid.gif

[Will]

Will said:
Oh. I just got a rental for Ultraviolet in the mail... so, this brings the question: if I watch it, will my eyes start to bleed? If so, I'll just send it back now.


Ok, so I actually watched it. The plot holes are too numerous to list. The special effects were often mediocre. And really, the only redeeming quality of the movie was the very frequent shots dedicated only to showing off the assets of Ms. Jovovich.

Also, if you turned it off after only a few minutes, you missed the part at the end where Violet and the vice cardinal dude are in a swordfight. And then their swords sponaneously catch fire. And then the vice cardinal guy catches fire, and Violet escapes. And then THE WHOLE FRACKING BUILDING BURSTS INTO FLAMES. Yup, you missed THAT.

[Atrocities]

"Yup you missed that."
Thank God!

[Renegade 13]

We warned you!

[Makinus]

Found an old sci-fi movie called "Supernova" and saw that i didn´t heard about it and never watched it (2001)... now i have.... and i want those hours of my life back! What an horrible movie!

The movie simply does not make any sense! More plot holes than swiss cheese!

If you didn´t see it, don´t make the mistake... keep away from it...

[Atrocities]

Supernova was one of the SERIES of movies from Europe that for some reason was the ONLY movie in the series that was made. Kinda like Screamers - one chapter in a much greater story line.

In Supernova the one thing you need to keep in mind is that the bad guy is no longer human, he is becoming DEATH, and with him he is bringing the end of the all. An alien supernova bomb that now activated will destroy the entire galaxy.

[bearclaw]

Last night, my wife and I watched "United 93". Very well done, very strong.

I highly recommend it. In fact, this is something that everyone should see so that something like this is never forgotten. As a movie, it was very good. The fact that it's a true story of what happened on flight United 93 is even more moving.

To me, I got a very strong message of what it means to be an American. Even though I'm a Canadian, I've always had a very strong sense of respect for my southern neigbors. The actions of these few people on this plane, for me, demonstrate why it is that the USA is the most powerful country in the world: you have a sense of the patriotic that NO one comes close to.

Very good. I highly recommend it. And if anyone says that they don't want to see it because they don't want to 'relive' 9/11, then they need to see it.

[Atrocities]

Feast

This Project Green Light movie was never released in theaters but is now out on DVD and is a real cult horror movie for those who enjoy dark comedy horrors.

Its bloody, has no real pot, full of action, has humor, and keeps you guessing.

Good rental movie.

[Captain Kwok]

I saw "The Departed" last night and enjoyed very much. An excellent movie all around.