Cool News
Harry's DVD PICKS AND PEEKS for 3rd Week of Feb: Jeff Mahler INSIDE - MICHAEL CLAYTON - LUST, CAUTION - RUN LOLA RUN - more
Hey folks, Harry here… well the big news this week is the end of the format war. While the war may be over – we’ve still, in the here and now got both formats continuing to come out. It’s a pretty good line-up – and as usual – if you click on a box or title, you can go to Amazon where you can learn more and if you decide to purchase it there, this column gets a small kick back – that helps it continue on. Let’s get right to it with a film much larger than the man who made it…
Tuesday - February 19, 2008
INSIDE
This week we start you off with one of the most subtle and disturbing films on voyeurism since the brilliant PEEPING TOM. This film tops this week’s releases for many reasons. One: You’ve likely never heard of it. Two: It is a past Fantastic Fest discovery. Three: The director is one of you… a long time AICNer. You’ve seen hist contributions under many names and he is a strangle little dwarf of a man… and this film is something to be proud of. Mahler shot an intelligent suspense thriller that could be played on stage, but is even more intimate on film. It’s twisted, slightly sadistic – and makes me worry about Jeff’s unsuspecting neighbors and gym partners. This is its global premiere – but Jeff’s next will definitely be coming to a theater near you. This will make you a fan.
MICHAEL CLAYTON
As wonderful as Clooney is in this, for me… it’s Tom Wilkinson’s film. He’s just in top form here. Crazy or wiley? When a corporate lawyer develops a conscience, maybe it is lunacy or merely the creation of Hollywood liberals… Tony Gilroy’s film reminds of those classic paranoia thrillers of the seventies that Beatty and Redford did – the concept of the cold-blooded methodically deadly evil corporations… it’s a favorite enemy, because we all know THEY’RE REAL! This is a fantastic film, and Clooney is outstanding, as usual. When the screw turns, he’s just fantastic. But I tell you – try to take your eyes off of Wilkinson in this film… you can’t!
AMERICAN GANGSTER
I don’t love this film and I think I know why. This is a story of essentially CAT & MOUSE. Denzel is “the bad guy” and Russell is “the good guy”. And then in the building of the characters – I found that I didn’t like Russell Crowe’s character at all…. Whereas – Denzel is a model of a self-made man. Resembling in a kinder, sweeter and more honorable way… Daniel Day-Lewis’ character in THERE WILL BE BLOOD – but I find the film massively unbalanced… so much so, that I wish Scott had just dropped Russell as a main character – and had him, just entirely in the background. A character that you’d just see across the street watching. Because the way the film plays out now – it feels so damn cookie cutter… a,b,c,d… and you just see it unfolding a half hour away. The only real enjoyment that I took from the film was the Denzel character and storyline. But this is definitely a lesser film.
LUST, CAUTION
If BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN threatened your heterosexuality, Ang Lee’s LUST, CAUTION invigorates your libido with the proper dose of Viagra in the guise of Tang Wei! She is so incredibly sensual, erotic and just plain fuckable – that you completely get why how she gets so close to Tony Leung. As is usual in all of Ang Lee’s work – his eye for beauty, composition and emotional storytelling. This is a thrilling throbbing theatrical endeavor. Wish it was in High Def.
IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH
There’s a lot of folks out there that just hate Paul Haggis’ work. I don’t. I just feel he’s rather obvious. However, with IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH – I just can’t deny how good he is at getting damn good performances out his characters. Tommy Lee Jones is great here. His ability to pull a really wonderful performance out of Charlize Theron is to be admired… she isn’t always an automatic quality performance, though I have to say – she’s really becoming a great actress. The story about a missing son back from a tour of duty in Iraq, which surprise… wasn’t sunshine and roses… and the subsequent investigation to find out how he disappeared once he came back – and why he turned out as he did… well it’s not happy, It’s definitely at least a rental for ya. But Theron and Jones make it a buy for me.
RUN LOLA RUN (Blu-Ray)
I love RUN LOLA RUN – one of the most propulsive adrenal films ever made. This is the film that unleashed Tom Tykwer and Franka Potente upon mankind – and I got my first look at it at Rotterdam all those years ago… now we can have that experience with the 1080p perfection of Blu Ray – and if you love the format and the film, this is one of the must purchases – if you’ve never seen it – the music, the editing, the story and the performance of Franka is just stunning. One of the best melding of image and music we’ve seen. It’s truly one of my faves.
PIERROT LE FOU – Criterion Collection
Godard, Jean-Paul Belmondo and Anna Karina. Ok – so now it’s time to go buy it. Each of those names gets me further excited as they were typed. Godard is one of the true masters of cinema – and Jean-Paul Belmondo… he is just one of those actors that amuses, tickles and hurts all at once. Then Anna Karina… she’s one of the great beauties of this period of film. The basic story line about a man fed up with married life and hitting the road with the baby-sitter is something that I can’t ever imagine being the sort of fantasy to keep me awake at night… unless I was reviewing this movie for my DVD column… not that I’d ever contemplate the young pliant flesh of an innocent babysitter. Cuz that’s the furthest thing from my mind. Besides – this film is pure crazy fun… not at all a model for one’s life, just a weekend or two. Criterion has done a great job with tons of extras and a great print.
KURT COBAIN – ABOUT A SON
If you’re one of those folks that worships NIRVANA and KURT COBAIN – and well, a card carrying member of the cult-of-personality… then this documentary biography narrated by Kurt Cobain himself will be a religious experience. I am not a member of that cult, but I have to say this film is a fascinating look at Kurt – and that it is narrated by Kurt – via audio taken from Michael Azerrad for the book, COME AS YOU ARE: THE STORY OF NIRVANA – well – it is a great look at a talent that went too fast.
WALKER – CRITERION COLLECTION
If you are drunk in love with Alex Cox – you may know this film. However, for many – it would take a great company like Criterion to introduce you to the special kind of awesome that is Alex Cox’s WALKER. The film starred Ed Harris as an incredibly complicated and weird man that had so many careers that he could only ever become a dictator of Nicaragua. The movie is an intoxicating experience – only like Cox could deliver. Again, Criterion has brought in a lot of great extras – the best extra is just getting to see this amazing performance from Ed Harris, one of my fave actors.
REDACTED
No doubt this is “Pappa Bear’s” favorite film… De Palma created his most experimental film of his career with this effort. Based on an incident, that we all wish didn’t happen – but that we can’t really bury in a shallow unmarked grave. People need to remember that the atrocities of war happen. That war changes or enables the worst of humanity – and we should fight to remind folks that war is ugly – that occupying another people’s land leads to terrible things. The film doesn’t state this how our troops, in unison, act. This is about a specific incident – it’s incredibly ugly, disturbing and isn’t at all like a typical film. It also happens to be a great work of Brian De Palma’s. Though it is definitely not for everyone.
SPIRAL
Aha! Another FANTASTIC FEST film! This one from Adam Green and Joel David Moore – the Director and star of HATCHET. This is an entirely different film from that one. HATCHET was a mix of hilarity and over the top gore and exploitive fun. This is very much a psychological film, one where Joel David Moore isn’t a goof, but a ticking bomb – You can feel him ticking as he sketches, as he talks, there’s just something wrong with him. I really like this little film, but ultimately I’ll watch HATCHET about 20 more times than this.
GERMAN EXPRESSIONISM COLLECTION ( THE HANDS OF ORLAC / THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI / SECRETS OF A SOUL / WARNING SHADOWS )
The first two in this set – THE HANDS OF ORLAC and CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI are a pair of my all time favorite vintage films… that KINO teamed them up with SECRETS OF A SOUL and WARNING SHADOWS – two films of the German Expressionism period that I haven’t seen… well it’s too good to pass up. Especially when one was directed by Pabst and the other has a reputation of being one of the most dreamlike of the German Expressionist movement. And we get these with the KINO treatment – which really has been nothing short of miraculous in keeping silent and vintage cinema looking great for a very long time!
TERROR’S ADVOCATE
He’s like Matlock, but an evil son of a bitch! That said – you’ll watch this documentary and be aghast at the blatant slimey smug reality of this guy. He’s defended Carlos the Jackal, Slobodan Milosevic and those are just the most charismatic and charming of his clients. Barbet Schroeder did wonders with this documentary and it is one of the most compelling films you’ll see. Even if your jaw is open and you’re offended by it all!
MR BUG GOES TO TOWN aka HOPPITY GOES TO TOWN
But under no circumstances should it be called BUGVILLE. This is one of my all time favorite animated films. I watched it at all my birthday parties as a kid, as we had it in 16mm. It was created by the Fleischer Brothers and tells the story of a Republican Bug that was trying to muscle the sweet Mr Bumble out of his property – and he tries to mess with a Grasshopper named Hoppity and his Bee galfriend. To me, this was always an animated Capra film – that most resembled the IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE – but if everybody was bugs and if mankind and industrialization was trying to destroy their habitat. Fantastic film
SCHOOLGIRL REPORT VOL. 3: WHAT PARENTS FIND UNTHINKABLE
A shocking expose’ on German teenage youth. It’s just horrifyingly revealing. You’ll turn away, disturbed by how girls actually get nude and sexually aroused. The sort of things that no parent anywhere could possibly believe their children were up to. They aren’t just studying and doing homework at school or at the dorm. Sometimes – they actually – get naked – other than in a shower. It’s repellent – but I thought it was time to wake all you people up to the horrendous horror that is youthful promiscuity. So disgusting. Moriarty has just informed me that there's some trouble with this title - CLICK HERE Drew monitors this Schoolgirl porn stuff quite closely - that's why he knows about that link. I was just warning you folks. I was shocked.
DARKON
There is a world of geekery so disturbing and so alien to normality that the only way to describe it is a strange word, “LARP!” – which somehow has come to mean live action role playing, but I can’t imagine how that came to be. Weird. That said – this is a very fun movie. It’s a documentary about some LARPers and their heroic journey. It’s true life geekery at its best and most revealing.
WHO SAW HER DIE?
You know this genre. The story about a father, whose child is killed or missing – the police are no good, so the old man has to investigate the case himself – only to find a disturbing and unhappy world that he could never imagine his child being a part of. So basically – this is IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH, but way the fuck more entertaining and thrilling. For one, it stars George “James Bond” Lazenby – a score by Giallo scoring genius Ennio Morricone. And directed by Aldo Lado who made the fantastic flick NIGHT TRAIN MURDERS that I’ve reviewed on this column about 2 years ago. Honestly – this is a better film than IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH.
That’s it for this week, next week is pretty outstanding with COMANCHE MOON, BEOWULF, JUSTICE LEAGUE – THE NEW FRONTIER, THE DARJEELING LIMITED, 30 DAYS OF NIGHT, THE SMURFS, The FUGITIVE, THE LAST EMPEROR, SILK, GOYA’S GHOSTS, PUNKY BREWSTER Season Four, THE LEGEND OF THE BLACK SCORPION, THE VOYEUR, THEM and much more!!!
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Crowe and Washington have their similarities. And it's great how Crowe can't balance his family life due to his human flaws and bullheadedness when it comes to the job. Washington's character is great at what he does too....but there is a cost. The world isn't black and white. Great, fun, 70's style Lumet/Friedkin with echoes of HEAT. I fucking loved watching it. And BROLIN ownz.
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Feb 19, 2008 12:42:39 AM CST
I hope they eliminate that dopey bar at the top of the Blu-Ray c
by canada's king
It's lame to have a contrasting banner graffitied onto all these hi-def DVD's. Completely shits on the artwork, and that American Gangster HD-DVD is an example of such.
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Feb 19, 2008 12:43:32 AM CST
CLAYTON... MOST UNDERRATED MOVIE AT THE OSCARS
by greigy just wanted to say
Stop creaming yourselves over There will be Blood and Atonement and give some love to this overlooked gem.. yeah I know it's got the oscar nods but we all know it aint gonna win... in 10 years time we'll look back on this as a classic... BY THE WAY... PLUGGING AN HD-DVD.. WHY NOT RUB SALT IN THE WOUND... KICK 'EM IN THE BALLS WHY YOU'RE AT IT.... LET IT GO..
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Feb 19, 2008 12:47:39 AM CST
MICHAEL CLAYTON...all you need is a wallet, watch and a cell pho
by nopix
and BOOM, you're pronounced dead. Still loved the film though.
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Readers from the UK must remember the Sunday night Gem.. classic and cult films introduced by Mr Cox... unmissable.. then they fucked it up my giving it over to the self pleasuring ego frenzy that was Mark Cousins... He used to run the Edinburgh Film Festival... let's just say he could be his own Proctologist.
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gonna try to see almost all of these.
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Yes... VERY attractive redhead... skanky blonde.. her complexion is all wrong. Monroe tribute or desperate need for a headline that doesn't include the following key word... REHAB, PARTY GIRL, DUI.....
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They are pretty famous over here in Germany, although most people seem o think that they are silly sexcomedies, like most softpornos from that time. But many of that series are STILL having trouble with tha law, because of their kinda-glorification of rape.
BTW: Some llater pretty famous German actors had their first roles in the Schoolgirl Report series. -
He's back and better than ever!
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If you liked other psychedelic porno jazz like VAMPYROS LESBOS, you will dig this. Here's the link on Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/2xl6n7
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i've said enough!
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Where have I been? No, seriously, my brain exploded a little bit.
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I discovered it. It shouldn't ever be mainstream. leave it alone
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I discovered it. It shouldn't ever be mainstream. leave it alone
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They must be repressed.
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Great Sid and Nancy tribute/parody on The Simpsons this week. The end scene was hilarious and a great homage to Alex Cox's best film...
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I just saw it the other day. I heard it was good but it was so much better than I thought it would be. It just has such a tense feel that I was into it before I even had any idea what it was gonna be about. It's nice to see they can still make a thriller that assumes you are intelligent, and trusts you to stick with it to find out how everything will tie together. And all the actors are great. I was especially impressed by Tilda Swinton. In any other movie that character would've been a cold-hearted bitch queen. Swinton plays her as a vulnerable, even terrified woman who happens to make some completely immoral decisions.
Also, not quite of the same caliber but I gotta disagree with Harry on AMERICAN GANGSTER. I watched it in its new 3-hour incarnation and had the opposite reaction, I was surprised to find myself more interested in the cop half of the story than the gangster one. But it's two parallel stories that don't intersect until late in the movie, and that's the beauty of it. Yes, you see where it's going, but you see where it's going when they're gonna dump pig's blood on Carrie at the prom, and that's why it's so fucking tense. This is the same basic principle. Two people on separate paths headed for an inevitable collision.
Also, in my opinion Frank Lucas is not a more honorable version of Plainfield. I think Harry might've missed the opening scene where he lights a dude on fire and then unloads a gun into him without even giving him the courtesy of looking at him when he does it. I'm against it. -
Excuse me but are you retarded? Denzel's character walks up to a guy in broad daylight and puts a bullet in his head...how does that qualify as "kinder, sweeter and more honorable"? He's a fucking drug dealer!!!
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Hell Yeah. Bring it back. It was my first introduction to some cult gems- Escape From New York Leaping to mind. And Aex Cox.... what a fucking great, heavyweight presenter. The director of fucking repo man. Replacing him with that cousins tit signalled the end for it. What a fucking shame. PS Run, Lola, Run was one of the best films of the 90's. Fucking great,
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no review on "Black Water"? what a croc! nothing on "Gabriel"? i love seeing dvds a week or two early. this week i will be watching... "slipstream", robert kurtzman's "the rage", "automaton transfusion," "beowulf," & "awake". ah the joys of my second job at blockbuster! "Spiral" was a surprising changeup pitch following "Hatchet." one twisted flick there.
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check out black water. especially if you wasted your money on lake placid 2. it will make you feel better. and by better i mean scared shitless. just kidding. but it was pretty intense. and the crocs were real. i kinda want to see rogue as well... the croc flick done by the wolf creek guy.
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There is none better.
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You mean to tell me that a talkbacker took time out of his day to MAKE a movie, instead of complaining about them. Hats off to you, man. I'll definitely check it out.
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is a must have
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I thought American Gangster was just a rehash of New Jack City. AG is a better movie but it had a lot of the same scenes. I would rather watch The Wire instead.
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Was awesome. Alex Cox is the man. Mark Cousins was in the row in front of me when I went to see The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. He was wearing shorts. In December. Says it all really.
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Ed Harris is the greatest living American screen actor.
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If you hate (as you should) AvP:R then this is important: That useless fucking shitrag Empire has viciously slandered us. Some cunt called Chris Hewitt has written: "Directors The Brothers Strause – Colin and Greg – apparently got the gig, their first, because they’re such huge Alien and Predator fanboys. AVP:R would indicate that they’re fanboys of the Ain't It Cool talkback variety, guileless goons crowbarring in lame references (the hero is called Dallas; someone actually says ‘Get to the chopper!’) while emphasising splatter and swearing over the suspenseful slow burn."For the full review go to http://tinyurl.com/2gg66d but I'd rather you didn't give the cunts the hits. If anyone remembers the recent AvP:R wars and the slaughtering we gave the foilage that turned out for it then please air your displeasure at the useless no-quality-control cockmonkeys via email. In fact, fuck it, anybody who thinks this is wrong- do it, let them know. But be certain to check the AICN history of AvP:R from Mori's initial slaughter of the script to vern's review and our eventual savaging of the plant life. Lying, dirty cocksuckers.
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Consider it done Jarv. There's way better analysis here than i've ever read in Empire. Heck, there's better analysis in TOTAL FUCKING DESTRUCTION's posts than there is in Empire.
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Has Chris Hewitt ever been on an Aintitcool talkback? There's more in-depth analysis and understanding of film there than i've ever read in any of his reviews. Just so you know Chris, AVPR was torn apart by Aintitcool's readers, who derided it as the worthless piece of trash it is. Do some research before you label an entire community as 'guileless goons'.
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you are a bold-faced sneak. Please tell your readers that you were enticed by the powers-that-be in the HD camp and received 4 players by the group and then shamlessly bitched about lack of money on your site multiple times in order to receive a free Blue Ray player. And don't hide behind the "reviews with personal experiences" thing. That;s not what your money-bitching was about and you know it. It's gross how you use this site nowadays to promote your personal wants and needs. And while we're at it... trying paying Quint, Capone, Elston, etc. with the ad money you get. In short, you've become what this site was meant to buck against.
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Either you find Russell Crowe's character entirely fascinating, or you don't, and as a result the movie is either phenomenal, or unbalanced and mediocre. A Jewish cop on an almost entirely Gentile force, who is also the only entirely honest cop on a mostly astonishingly corrupt force, a guy who ruins his credibility with his peers by turning in almost a million dollars of unmarked bills, when ordinary morality tells us the opposite should be true -- well, if you don't find that instantly and completely fascinating, if you're not intensely curious as to what makes a guy like that tick, then I have to wonder about what does or doesn't matter to you. This film may be a litmus test as to whether you were brought up with a very strong sense of uncompromising right and wrong, or whether you were raised with a casual disregard for it. I'm not sure I'd want to hang with someone who was oblivious to the dilemma that Crowe's character faces (which is essentially morality vs. everything else in his life) and unengaged by the incredible ballsiness of his choice.
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pointing out that any magazine that can give Emmerich's back catalogue an average of 3 stars is not in any position to call any other forum's participants "goons"
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...Couldn't disagree more about American Gangster. Not that its a lesser film, but that for me, I would rather have seen a whole film about Crowe, rather than the generic gangster schtick. Either way it wasn't crash hot. About A Son looks like the best pick of the lot. I really want to see it. Great trailer. Even if it is very Van Santish.
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just because it comes out on blue ray? just dig up an old review and add: 'now we can have that experience with the 1080p perfection of Blu Ray – ' fucking stupid
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...Your Australian right? I looked it up. I might check out the Wolf Creek knock off...but your suggestions are spurious. Why would you want any more exposure of Gabriel? That was a hideous, embarassing turd of a flick.
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Has the worst fucking cover I've seen in a long time, a true crime against humanity.
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If you’ve got you’re old Empire issues from about 10-15 years ago go and take a look at them now. They bear no relation to the magazine now. It has degenerated into a bastard hybrid of a womans tabloid (JESUS THEY EVEN HAVE PAPARAZZI PICS NOW) and a lads mag, Maxim FHM etc… Thay still have the odd good article, a particularly liked the one about the unmade Bond pic that eventually mutated into Never say Never Again (that film did have sharks with nukes).. BUT… by and large they are a victims of their own success. The Empire awards are now a media circus, the writing particularly has really gone downhill BADLY, you can just tell a lot of the reviews are written by 20 somethings who know fuck all about fillm (and care even less) who probable got the job through Mummy & Daddy or some such connection because dammit it easier than working for a living.. you know who I mean… open necked sky blue shirt… says Yah a lot and is thoroughly entranced by celebrity… in other words PEOPLE WHO DON’T CARE ABOUT FILM….THEY WORSHIP CELEBRITY…. And god help us the ones who do care about film think the world of meaningful cinema began in either 1977 with you know what or ’82 with Bladerunner. It is now full of infantile articles about “the best sex scene ever”… JESUS what are you 15 years old..!! Wrong magazine..!! If I want to see desperate young 20 year old starlets play peek-a-boo with their nipples (and quite frankly yes I do but that’s another matter) I’ll seek that out elsewhere… save it for wank rags… and leave EMPIRE for people who actually love films and cinema…. Am I alone in this..?
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...As much as we all enjoying laying into Harry and Co about being whores...That fucking mag is simply extended full page ads for whatever shitflicks are being released on any given month. Press Junket faggots. I'd like to rape them up the ass with Magic Johnsons uncovered dick.
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Man, loving the Moviedrome remembrance! (RIP)...It was my introduction to The Terminator and James Cameron...Had heard of the film but was only 12 or so and we didn’t have a video yet so there was no way of seeing it. Was introduced to so many films lying in my bedroom on a Sunday night before School the next morning thanks to Moviedrome. Just really interesting the 5 min prologue before the film as even then you knew Alex Cox knew what he was talking about and really set up for the film. Seriously went downhill with Mark Cousins, who even though was from the same part of the world as me, was still very weak. He also did a series interviewing Hollywood legends and spent the entire program so far up their backsides it was embarrassing........Empire Magazine? Seen that review in the latest issue, I took it as I think it was written. They get so much abuse (rightly so) on these and other Talkbacks that the reviewer thought he would be a smart arse and have a dig at us. It shows the stupidly of him though as all he is doing is alienating readers. I mean, did he not think that some of Empires readers, might, just might, also read Film Websites??....Douchebag.
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Shockingly - the names you mention do get paid, very nearly the same as I do... And until Butt-Numb-A-Thon - I had just 1 HD DVD player - was indebt to the tune of around $16k from my wedding and my father's medical bills from his stroke. However, my annual holiday disbursement from my land holdings in North Texas, combined with the yearly bonus from AICN managed to wipe most of that clean - and allowed me to buy my Blu-Ray player (SHARP, not Sony). It's nice to see the flies in your bullshit.
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was awesome, as is Walker which was shown on it. Mark Cousins is the guy who, interviewing Scorcese for a film show here in Britain, asked him what the relevance of the last shot in 'Goodfellas' was. Scorcese's face was priceless.
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it's been playing for over a week here all over asia. reviews are all over the net already, but where are the reviews in this site? i thought aicn love chow. but a week passed and no news at all???
if it were del toro, you'll have news update every minute as the release date comes closer for his latest film. -
Read Total Film instead, it's a lot better.
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BY one of your writers. So don't lie. Yes, all of those things you've mentioned are horrible to deal with. I have no beef against your personal life. It's the SITE I care about. I used to LOVE coming here to read about the latest spy news. But now, due to your personal relationships with directors, writers, movie studios etc. that you brag about all the time... All of that has to be taken with a grain of salt. What about the story on R.R.'s Barbarella? There was no follow-up the next week about how Universal rejected it after hearing about the prospective budget. The story just vanished. In fact, I noticed you disregarded my accusation on your relationship with HD. Can you not see how odd it looks when you come out full-force on how HD is amazing and how shady that seems? By doing that you damaged the cred you fought for! I loved this site because it was about the average guy who loved movies with a passion. You were "Rocky" in my eyes. Now you're just "Rocky V". In my opinion, let the so-called "paid" writers take over like they've been. The site is better off that way.
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Feb 19, 2008 4:34:30 AM CST
HEADGEEK.... Don't agree with you most of the time BUT FOR GOD'S
by greigy just wanted to say
Don’t justify yourself…!!! THAT’S YOUR PRIVATE BUSINESS and absolutely none of theirs… OR DO ANY OF THE TALKBACKER WANT TO POST UP THEIR FINALLY SALARIES AND ANY PERKS THAT THEY GET FROM THEIR JOB…….. THOUGHT NOT..!!!!
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Elston does not write regularly - we add writers as the site can afford them - and based upon their contribution to the site. As a result - Moriarty, Quint, Scott Green, Capone, Hercules and 3 behind the scenes folks that handle the tech and business end of the site.
I still prefer the HD DVD format - and not because of payola. But because my player doesn't freeze up, because I don't have load time problems and I prefer their menu control system and interactivity. The uncompressed sound of Blu-Ray - I honestly can not tell the difference - as I am not a trained Audiophile - I know that I'm watching IMMORTAL BELOVED in Blu-Ray right now, which I picked up at FRY'S three days ago. I've been getting BLU RAY discs and HD DVD discs for months sent to review - and as soon as I could afford a Player, I bought one - and I'm very happy to have both systems.
The reason I've come out so strong with how amazing HD is - Hi Def - either format - is that I just upgraded my projection system to a 1080p Epson projector that raised my resolution from a maximum of 720i to 1080p.
btw - they are building BARBARELLA sets at Troublemaker right now. At least that is what a fella from IFC told me the other day. As I don't chat with Rodriguez very often. In fact, I haven't hung out with him in over 2 years - and at most there's been 6 phone conversations in that time. So your perspective on my close personal friendship... might be a little overblown. We're friendly. -
and as far as gabriel goes... i havent seen it yet, was hoping maybe harry saw it and had an opinion so i wouldnt have to waste my time.... but i may take a look at it anyways.
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I talked with some people and they can't understand the extended ending. I suppose I wouldn't mind other character stuff througout the film because I dug it, but I fucking loved that last shot in when i saw it in the theater.
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did anybody see his interview with woody allen where woody refused to look at his old films. This is a well known fact that he will not watch a completed movie again, so why on earth would you book him for a series that specifically involved watching the clips with the director and then discussing them? An awful little tit
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I would like to see them actually justify their woeful AOTC review where they gave it 5 stars purely because they gave TPM 4. Wankers.
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Feb 19, 2008 4:51:34 AM CST
MOVIEDROME... LOVING THE HATE FOR MARK COUSINS... BRING BACK COX
by greigy just wanted to say
His psuedo-intellectual pompous take on films was nauseating.. Billy Wilder would have eaten him for breakfast (just listened to The Apartment Commentary). His effete ramblings bore no relation to the films that followed.. I particularly remember his intro to Exotica… Never heard such undiluted shit in my life, did he even watch the fucking film? He entirely missed the whole theme of the film was bereavement..!!!! Cox was witty, interesting and more importantly actually knew what he was talking about. Cousins saw the whole thing as a vehicle for ego masturbation… I had the displeasure of seeing him in Edinburgh introduce films in the festival.. I went to see Stanley Donen’s Two For The Road…. JESUS… I thought he had just introduced The Seventh Seal… Speaking of which…
I used to go to the Edinburgh Film Festival a lot… it was cheap... open to the public and easy to get tickets for. Now you have be able to uber cyber geek and hack their server if you want any chance of getting tickets worthwhile or queue (in the middle of the day, not much use to working people)…. And it’s gone VERY expensive. The choice of films now yo yos between the absolute worst excesses of the most pretentious side of Art House or the worst in knuckle dragging commercial… and they don’t do 3D films anymore…. NO FUN…!! Here endeth the rant.
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but you're still ignoring a simple question I think some of us want to know... did you receive money from HD to pitch it on AICN? And I never said you had "close, personal relationships" with directors so how could that be overblown? As you stated, you've "hung out" with RR... that's a "personal" relationship. Look man, I love the site and your personal reviews, I'm just trying to help you see that things are getting a little out of whack here. And, trust me, I'm not the only one seeing this.
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I never received money from HD DVD to pitch the format on AICN. When I wrote my first piece about HD DVD announcing that I got the player, I had no discussions with either side - it was a purchase that I had researched and talk about with friends that had the formats and it was simply the player I could afford at the time.
After that article, the HD DVD promotional group contacted me about 5 days after to see if I needed help getting screeners to review for the column, but at that time, I had already contacted Warner Brothers, Universal and Paramount about getting screeners - and I was already receiving them from Universal. And they did help quicken that process - but due to the DVD column - it would have happened with or without their help.
hope that answers your question -
Yeah, seen that interview with Woody Allen. It was so squirm intoducing that it was one of those times that you felt embarrassed yourself!... He did one with Jeff Bridges, around the time that The Big Lebowski came out, which I loved so was looking forward to the interview.....Bridges was lying on some beach looking at Cousins while he asked these banal and psuedo-interlectual questions and was just flat out bored....He kept on disagreeing with Cousins and saying things like, "err, I never really thought of it like that"....
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He's a) too cool and un PC for them and b) they will never, ever bring back Moviedrome. Although BBC 4 would be a prime place for it.
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is Jonathon Ross. Watching him cuddle whatever blockbuster to death is truly nauseating. However, the real nadir was when he interviewed Jennifer Connoly and spent the whole interview trying to get her to say that he was better looking than Paul Bettany. It was fucking dismal. If it isn't Woss then the other candidate is that wanker James King who described Final Destination as "Rock and Roll". Wow, deep insightful criticism there. The criticism on the BBC has really gone into the shitter since they retired Kermode and (I can't believe I'm saying this) Barry Norman.
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Feb 19, 2008 5:28:05 AM CST
Does anyone... by any miracle, hate the films of Mike Binder?
by greigy just wanted to say
Just planting seeds.....
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Cox gets plenty of love in the UK for his Moviedrome series, it's sadly missed and hard to believe it ever happened when you see how badly films are presented on tv these days. He'd introduce the movie then chat about it afterwards. He showed double bills of Alligator/Q The Winged Serpent, Wiseblood/The Witchfinder General, Andromeda Strain/Fiend Without A Face as well as movies from Godard, Romero, Wilder, Fuller, Siegel, Roeg, Russell, pretty much everyone good and made a generation more film literate than they would've been otherwise - we only had 3 channels back then and people would come into school discussing Bunuel. Walker is a brilliant movie, whenever you see a movie like Marie Antoinette making a big deal of its deliberate anachronisms check out Walker to see how it should be done.
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I may be going senile but hasn't he already stated more than once, in fact in the actual original infamous ...CHOSEN HD-DVD AND HERE'S WHY.. piece that he bought the player himself..?? I'm sorry am I missing something?
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Why didn't I know this? Man, I must have been living in a hole. Definitely be grabbing that. It's just a damn shame that there seems to be no place for unique visions like Alex Cox in today's cinema.
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Haven't seen any other Mike Binder films tho.
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and I remember Moviedrome from the late 80's eary 90's. It introduced me to so much great stuff that I would never have seen otherwise. It was truly a great series. The only worthwhile one that cousins tit did was the double bill of The Warriors and L'Haine. Other than that he was such a cunt.
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Feb 19, 2008 5:48:15 AM CST
REIGN OVER ME.. oh jesus..oh God.. Kill yourself now!
by greigy just wanted to say
http://www.dvdtimes.co.uk/content.php?contentid=65638
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I really, really don't like most of his films after Band of Outsiders. One man's "playing with the conventions of cinema" is another man's "being a boring, pretentious twat."
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These kind of movies disgust me. People wonder why we have so many paedophiles in this country and then you look at what you can buy - DVDs with girls in school uniforms stripping and acting like sexual objects. Its fucking appalling. This kind of shit needs to be banned and, if you own something like this, you need to pour bleach down your throat before my fourteen year old sister walks past your house. Fucking disgusting.
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Is there a way to always give AICN credit? Instead of looking here first? You should make a everything link or something. I don't mind doing it if I am already shopping there.
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Just wondering what he's up to these days. I'm glad that someone mentioned the Walker soundtrack. Joe Strummer is an absolute genuis.
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It was like a first date where nothing bad happens. American Gangster sat across from me, looked nice, answered my questions politely, laughed at my jokes, and it was only as the evening was winding down that it hit me that I just wasn't attracted to American Gangster.She seems like a sweet kid, there was just nothing between us. And from what I hear Vern took her out and the two really hit it off. I wish them all the best.
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Your review leads us to believe Joel David Moore directed Hatchet. He didn't. Just starred. He did, however direct Spiral.
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Has anyone seen the longer cut of American Gangster and is it on the Blu-Ray?
I always felt like they were leaving far too much out. The Nicky Barnes subplot that just went away, the Josh Brolin subplot also seemed to vanish...
Also, when I initially heard about this film ,part of the pitch was that Lucas wound up working for the cops, but in the actual movie, it's only superimposed at the end. Anyone know if there's more story in that version, or is just more Dee hamming and Crowe's irritating plotline about being a shitty father? -
Who really cares what you think is good this week? For me, you've lost all credibility. Especially since you were sleeping with the Toshiba camp.
Four HD DVD players? What a fucking moron. -
Shit dude--finally a new Lazenby DVD!! Now if we could only get his Kung-Fu flicks out on good DVDs, I'll be set.
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I was actually mentioned in their DVD review of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest where they made up shit about me not having even seen the film? how they knew whether I had or hadn't seen the film is beyond me. But, Yeah, it's been shit since Emma Cochrane left their staff and Dan "I Love Peter Jackson's cock" Jolin joined.
I preferred Russel Crowe's character to Denzel's in American Gangster but I'm looking forward to the extended addition that has an extra scene between 'em in a coffee shop. -
And you lost me after you said 'I’ll watch HATCHET about 20 more times than this'!?
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They might come across as a tad elitist at times, but at least they know what the fuck they're talking about. Empire has become little more than a shameless promotion rag.
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Didn't Rhinoceros Eyes come out this week with Michael Pitt? It's an odd sounding film that I originally heard about on this site several years ago, but it's never been available til now. Is it worth seeing? Harry did you overlook this, or is it not worth my time? Anyone else with thoughts?
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there was something just not quite right with American Gangster. It was Russell Crowe's character that lacked something to make this movie over the top. Everyone check out Spiral its a fine little gem.
http://tinyurl.com/pv8do -
Someone mentioned these above. Black Water is o.k. and considering the killer croc sub-genre has usually only yielded stuff like primeval and lake placid, this is almost citizen kane. But in reality, its a couple of people in a tree crying and scanning the surface of the water. I liked the way the film introduced the characters first, but the supposedly tense section of the film was sort of boring, and offered little impact.
Gabriel was like a film major taking snippets of The Crow and Prophecy(not the meatloaf bear one) and then editing them together with some "cool" filters. Yawn. -
go over to deep discount. They are selling the Brisco County Jr. set for 24.99 with free shipping. I just picked one up, especially considering it runs like 89.99 pretty much everywhere else.
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Feb 19, 2008 9:26:26 AM CST
I'M NOT REALLY COMFORTABLE WITH THE GERMAN SCHOOLGIRL THING
by bringingsexyback
Is that fictional or a documentary? Either way it creeps me out.
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I was digging your list(especially seeing Walker there) but the school girl thing is just...ugh.
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Feb 19, 2008 9:29:56 AM CST
I LIKED MICHAEL CLAYTON BUT THE STORY WAS A LITTLE WEAK
by bringingsexyback
It needed some complexity to it. I kept expecting more intrigue.
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(if you already haven't). That was a real life story about Jeffrey Wigand and some scary shit Brown and Williamson did to intimidate and destroy him. It's also the reason why the idea that OCP would be in league with criminals and thugs is not far-fetched. It's also Crowe's best performance ever.
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Really, Typical of the shoddy work that masquerades as journalism there.
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Suprised Harry didn't mention that Michael Clayton is being released on HD. That and I Am Legend look to be the last Warners titles coming out. Harry, can you clear up how many/available were the free HD players given out at BNAT?? Was that a direct promo push from Toshiba?
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..and a free-of-Hoo-Haa Al Pacino performance....
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Feb 19, 2008 9:49:29 AM CST
BringingSexyBack : The Insider is impressive...
by greigy just wanted to say
.. but the performances are all pyrotechnics... Crowe.. the weight.. the look.. Pacino.. IN SHOUTY MODE. Clooney is a masterful performance in self loathing and indignation, very quiet subtle stuff. I also like the fact that you instantly revisit Tilda Swintons performance when the timeline catches up with itself...
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It featured that Pepsi pitching little moppet, that would take me out of the movie every scene she was in.
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We saw this in the summer of 2006 at the Maryland Film Festival and they had us crammed into an auditorium at the Maryland Institute of Art with a ton of actual larpers and all of the "citizens of the kingdoms" represented in this movie were in attendance. The two main leaders, whose story is chronicled in the movie got up on stage at the end and continued to prove how frighteningly disconnected they have managed to make themselves from the real world. In some ways, the underdog story here has some undertones of King of Kong with two very important differences: The guys in this movie and their obsession seem to push them just a little further away from the rest of us in terms of relatability and the direction is actually pretty pedestrian. King of Kong was done skillfully and the sympathetic characters were likable, and the douches were shown unaplogetically and even sometimes ribbed subtley through the filmmaking itself. Here, the supposed underdog is a bit of a schlub who loves fake fantasy int he woods more than his family, and the "villain" is just a high-minded jackass. It was sort of a disappointing and actually sad experience. Then again Im going off that screening, and take intoo account we were surrounded by the stench of un-washed larpers in costume and that the guy directly to my right was a big hairy braveheart type whose kilt was undeniably too short for public(yes, a kilt complete with giant paper mache battle sword).
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No longer works. I hope you all made it crash. That would be very sweet and make me smile for a change.
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even when he was meeting the Hezbollah guy in Lebanon in the opening scene. It wasn't until CBS fucked him and Wigand over that he got into shouty mode, and that was completely warranted. And Michael Gambon and Gary Sandy were brilliant. Come to think of it the casting was truly great all around.
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on march 25th. after the single and 2-disc are released on the 11th. for some strange and juvie reason, a few hit films are releasing mike clayton, brave one and, i think, across the universe 2 to 3 weeks after the standard release. that doesn't seem to be helping matters especially days after hd is presumed dead and standard versions have been "cancelled" due to all these new versions of old movies "wearing out their welcome". i can't wait to switch to blu-ray in a few weeks. i just hope i don't have pay a lot more.
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is Darkon worth a rent? It looks like it could be quite a laugh
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Will you post them soon? I hope so.
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Im going to say yes. I wasn't really familiar with larping and I was amazed that it is actually done. There are some hilariously beautiful moments in it, that come completely from these sad, deluded characters. I guess my problem came from the fact that LARPing is so imaginary that you don't feel any kind of triumph or hope for the people involved. At best you just hope they get a little joy out of it. It is interesting to note that most of these people seem to play because they are losers who want to be winners in the fantasy world, but those who conquer in Darkon are the same people who are successes (materially anyway) in the real world. Also, the fact all of the stars of the movie were there in attendance it was harder to maintain that air one has watching a documentary. It was harder for me to laugh at thes epeople when I could turn around and see them sitting there with such hope and vindication on their faces. Seperated from that, Im sure it can be quite a good time. I was just personally disappointed with it. But, yes, if just to see the scene involving goblin betrayal, and the young kid who says"I have never been in a real romantic relationship, but I have been considering and attempting one in the Darkon world for a while. After dying for her many times, I am confident she will come around."
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LARPing has always facinated me from the time my one friend told me that his cousins did it. I've since watched some youtube videos of it, and it's hard for me to believe how serious these people are. I try to understand everyone regardless of their hobby or lifestyle, but for some reason the idea of grown people playing pretend in the woods makes me laugh really hard, so i think I will have to check this out
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It doesn't tear them apart or treat them like easy targets, but to see thirty or forty grown men trying to storm a big wooden fort erected in the middle of some guy's farmland sort of does that work for you. Based on where you are coming from,
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It doesn't tear them apart or treat them like easy targets, but to see thirty or forty grown men trying to storm a big wooden fort erected in the middle of some guy's farmland sort of does that work for you. Based on where you are coming from, I think you will enjoy it
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do I buy this or just rent it? I n never saw it but it looks really good...
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but on the same token, as you've said, the distance between reality is not really a good thing. Seems that people stop believing in the fantasy and start thinking it in terms of their real lives. As for the quote about 'love in darkon' that seems to say it all
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was da bomb in Clayton, yo! I got dragged to it, but ended up enjoying it more than those who dragged (drug?) me there.
and why the hell do I find tilda swinton so attractive? She's not that hot, and kind of strange looking, yet there's something alluring about her. anyone else get that? -
Once your budget allows, i would suggest purchasing the 40GB playstation 3...nO freeze ups or 20 to 30 second wait to start reading the disk.
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Can someone please explain to me, rationally and in detail where all the bile for Toshiba and HD-DVD is coming from? They invented a new product, they did their best to market and to sell it but they got out manoeuvred and out sold by Sony. They lost. THEY DIDN’T SELL HEROIN, PEDDLE KIIDIE PORN OR REINTRODUCE SLAVERY…!! They just lost in a very expensive format battle. So where does all the hate come from…?? Please enlighten me.
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EW ran an article of her a couple of months ago. In the same issue was a picture of Gollum for a Hobbit update. I swear to God, you could put the pictures side-by-side and it would look like a near mirror image..
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NO MATE... YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN THERE... AND IN A VERY SCARY KIND OF WAY... GOOD LUCK...EUUUUUCCCHHH.
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I could have sworn I read in the last DVD column that you would have the 2002 Masters of the Universe Vol. 1 in this column. In case anyone else cares, it is available this week. I read that there is a glitch on disc 1 but there is already replacement information posted. Check out TVShowsOnDVD.com for the info.
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There's a library near the base where I work and here the movies are free rentals so Ive started going up there on lunch break on tuesdays and grabbing the new releases. Just got Rendition, Michael Clayton and In the Valley of Elah. Redacted was there, but I decided to skip it.Typically, library rentals for dvds and what not is a crapshoot because half the time the disc is cracked or scratched beyond all plausible ability to play. However grabbing brand new releases sort of sidesteps that whole problem. Now I just hope one of the 3 is any good. My vote goes for Clayton.
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nope, you're well on your own there. pervert
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thanks for the reality check. just wanted to confirm that dillusional perversion has reached critical mass. *slinks back into dark corner to continue untold acts...*Clayton was still good, though...
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Some of the hatred dates back to a May 30th post by Harry - Headgeek chooses HD DVD and here's why - that a lot of people believe Harry became a paid shill for Toshiba. Some claim that Harry shortchanged BluRays abilities VS HD, and you'll see those notions continuing now 9 months later. I think some may have some animosity towards Microsoft/Gates having a finger in the pie of all things media..I don't know.
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because of Sony's involvement. The whole franchise war was nothing more than a money grabbing charade. DVD's are still going to be around for at least 3 years and by then do you want to bet that the next upscale isn't bluray.
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"fuckable" Keep it classy, Harry. Jeez.
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Isn't is quite plausible that Harry truly just prefers HD to Bluray. I don't have either format, and was waiting for this war to pass, but a few friends who do have both(or at least an HD player and a playstation 3) have also voiced their feeling that they preferred HD. In the long run it wont matter. Blu-Ray will have to step into it's own as the primary format, but really, Harry is here good naturedly answering questions he quite frankly doesnt have to, and being civil about it, and the idea that he might have championed HD for the same reason he has always championed things(his love of cinema)isn't considered? I often question the big guy's personal taste(again, lets get rid of the school-girl movie), but not his integrity. That's just me though. Im not much of a conspiracy theorist.
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That must be a first in a talkback that mentions Redacted.
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... to the art of entertaining cinema...
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I'll definitely have to get it but are there any features to speak of? It doesn't look like it. 'Redacted' was kinda disappointing. And if 'Michael Clayton' wins Best Picture, I'll set a horse on fire in protest. Seriously though, I forgot so much of that film like a week after seeing it, that my abiding memory is that a horse was on fire, when it actually wasn't. A BP nominee should at least be memorable. If it weren't for Tom Wilkinson that movie'd be poop.
'Lust, Caution' isn't dubbed is it? If it is I'll have to set a second horse on fire. I hate that. -
EAT IT, BITCHES
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www.abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzabcdefghijk.com/
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however Black Dahlia was utter shit
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I recommend you watch Young Adam. If that doesn't cure you of your Swinton-boner, nothing will.
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There is Orlando. That would no doubt help as well.
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Brian DePalma is a traitor. Now, the requirements of the talkback have been fulfilled.
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DAMN IT!! I whacked off to Mission To Mars..wrong flick. Must've been Gary Sinise's eyeliner!! DAMN!!
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HD-DVD was the first casualty, but that doesn't mean Blu-Ray is winning. Right now, good-old DVD is still obliterating it. Success of Blu-Ray as a format is not guaranteed. Its sales were good in comparison to HD-DVD, but not good in any absolutely sense.
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Starring Richard Kiel as a prehistoric giant back from Iraq... now THAT'S a movie!
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But thank God I don't speak German right now. So STFU Harry and your small minded, liberal ass ways. There's a difference between saying "War Sucks" and "War is Necessary". You can believe in both, as I do. I am more anti-genocide than I am anti-war. If you don't like it, go live in Iran for a few years and come back here to talk about it. And why don't we hear anything about the war anymore? Oh, I know, because there's nothing bad to report about. How about some news and movies about all the great things happening due to this war? Nah, then that wouldn't push the liberal agenda. Bunch of simpletons.
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because its not very good. in fact its a stiff, turgid boring film that does absolutely nothing that we haven't seen in other, superior films. It was the biggest let down of last year as far as I was concerned. It's not that it is badly made or has bad performances but it was just so unoriginal and had way to strong a stench of "been there done that" about. why did they bother when they had nothing at all to say about the story or the subject matter. actually....there was some originality...in that they did make up a bunch of shit that never happened but thats par for the course in these "true stories" the craziest thing is at the very end of the film when the captuion comes up to tell you what happened next that would have made a ten times interesting film as it really would have been something we hadn't seen before. wasted chance for all involved....
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Feb 19, 2008 2:13:46 PM CST
"People need to remember that the atrocities of war happen."
by quin the eskimo
That was true in the sixties and seventies. Any intelligent, literate person KNOWS bad shit happens during war. You can't escape it on TV, magazines, movies. Everyone knows, it's been thrown at people to the point were I can very easily ignore it. Sad but true. There needs to be a new justification for movies like Redacted to be made. That horse is dead.
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the ps3 is still a major money losing disaster for sony. with no exclusive games worth a damn and tiny sale figures ps3 hasn;t won anything so all you ps3 fanboys who are claiming this as some kind of big win for the ps3 are wrong. ps3 is still the worst next gen console launch ever. there is no changing that. awful machine with no value at all. from the ugly interface to the dreadful games its a waste of space in anyones collection.
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The only game I own for it so far is Resistance, and that was a freaking launch game! But Blu Ray stand alones aren't exactly stellar either. My Sony 300 can't even decode TrueHD! POS! The way (and the prices) current Blu Ray players 'deliver' won't sway a ton of J6Ps over to HDM.
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Now I just gotta find a reason as to why I did that.
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The PS3 has its issues but the console is actually pretty solid and the exclusives, while currently few and far between, have been worth the investment. I own all three consoles and to be perfectly honest the XB360 is heads and shoulders above the Wii and the PS3 but both of those consoles still have plenty to offer. I think Sony is pretty much dead in the water in terms of sales when compared to the other two consoles but 2008 should be a pretty good year for the PS3, assuming they retain certain games as exclusives.
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Michael Clayton and The Assassination of Jesse James...Let's read on
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you're in for a good afternoon, but not as good as mine, when i get back with Orlando and Young Adam!
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Michael Clayton is to Clooney as Jerry Maguire is to Cruise, as Josh Baskin was to Hanks, as Jimmy Conway was to DeNiro, as Eddie Felson was to Paul Newman (both times). It's a tailor-made role that not only plays right into the actor's strengths, but gives them a chance to show off their less obvious ones: a perfect marriage of movie star and of actor. Wilkinson is awesome, per usual, in a very showy role. But that movie is all Clooney - charisma filling the screen, forgivable moral lapses, rat-a-tat line readings, and repressed emotion just quivering underneath the surface. If there was any doubt that Clooney is a world-class actor, as opposed to a charismatic face with great taste and feel for the business, MICHAEL CLAYTON puts that doubt to rest. Hopefully, now that it's on video, more people will catch this one - it's an instant classic, and it's the role of a lifetime for one of our era's biggest actors.
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Wasn't that the point of American Gangster? Crowe's character wasn't entirely likable and Denzel's wasn't entirely unlikable, and despite Crowe clearly being on the side of "good" and Denzel on the side of "evil," there were very different sets of values that drove them. Crowe was clean and honorable at the office but morally bankrupt at home. Denzel was morally bankrupt in his business endeavors but was someone who did everything for the benefit of his loved ones at home. I felt the movie was all about duality and the so-called "American dream," that one community's criminal is another one's hero.
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It's funny to read your comments Harry. One minute you're waxing poetic about the beauty and artistry of a film, and the next your talking about how fuckable some actress is.
I generally enjoy your vast knowledge on film, and especially so when you rightly praise things like the German Expressionist collection. There is true art in a lot of what you feature. But then you go off about German schoolgirl porn and stupid shit like that - as if those movies have any artistic or creative worth. They don't, and your leering pandering gives them at least the gloss of significance -
Sex with a teenage girl is not pedophilia. It may be wrong, and it certainly may be statutory rape in morally backward countries, but is not pedophilia.
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i was wxcited as shit to get my ps3 and was totally let down by it so I sold it off. maybe it is better now but since my xbox is now nothinbg more than a COD4 playign device I am happy...until rainbow 6 vegas 2 comes out.....
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Great opening.
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Bet you sit in your car wanking over the thirteen year old girls in their school uniforms right? The girls in those movies are dressed deliberately to look like young school girls!Dont try and defend that shit you disgusting peado.
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...and you will be presently surprised with "Elah". It's a more mature Haggis, less in your face, bringing home the facts REPEATEDLY as was done in "Crash". I was pleasantly surprised with the movie. TLJ delivers an incredible performance (Oscar nod) and our comeback kid (Josh Brolin) though the part is small, along with Theron, deliver great performances.
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and the reason Bill O'Reilly organized a boycott is the timing. A movie that slams America over 1 isolated incident by a few young, drunk Marines is a topic that DePalma lives for. Fine, let's call it "art". Releasing it while we are still in the Middle East fighting a bloody war is irresposible. What a lame week for releases...except Walker. It's kind of a cult classic thanks to The Movie Channel running it in the 80's.
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is a damn fine film.
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De Palma should be ashamed
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My bad. I thought Army but typee Marines. Funny how DePalma has made 2 movies about young Army soldiers raping a teen girl (Casualties Of War/Redacted). Maybe next he can make a World War 2 movie about some US Army guys raping a German teen. Then a Civil War drama about a Union soldier raping a Confederate soldier's teenage daughter. WTF happened to this guy? I used to like early DePalma stuff.
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There's difference between a 4 year old and a 16 year old. BUT! I think the laws should be slightly different. It's unfair to be charged as a pedderass if you screwed a 17 year old and in the eyes of everyone you screwed a 4 year old. thats wrong. there both wrong for sure, but the laws should be different starting from the age 15 to 17. a girl at that age can think for herself. she knows what she's doing.
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http://www.zap2it.com/movies/news/zap-kreukkleinduncanstreetfightercasting,0,2042692.story
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If you are being serious, fuck you for your condescension. MYOB. Harry, you should make sure to keep fitting in at least one of these titles
per week just to tweak whiny scolds like Spoiler_Man. -
Hollywood loves to hate America. Since the Iraq War started I wonder how many of these 60’s flower children now turned executives (seniority you know) creamed their hemp panties itching for a chance to relive the glory days by trying to turn Iraq into another Vietnam. Freedom of speech through propaganda….let them spend as much as they want to make an uneducated shallow 2 hour point if they want. I am sure they would love to silence any form of media covering any good outcomes or influences of the Iraq War because in a narrow mind “nothing good comes from war.”
Really?-nothing good comes from War?
If they were alive you should tell that to George Washington and Americas founding fathers.
Tell that to the Jews.
Tell that to the many Iraqis who cried for liberation of Iraq from Saddam…
Hollywood and ignorance go hand in hand…like Liberalism and Communism.
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...Sony bought the market, plain and simple. Objective evaluations were pretty evenly divided, so the Format War went to the backer with deepest pockets.
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The trailers made it look like another John Grisham paint-by-numbers bullshit thriller movie about how corporations are bad and handsome actors are good, then quickly deteriorating into a "man on the run" film the likes of which we haven't seen since Ben Affleck presents PAYCHECK.But with all this praise, I might give it a rent.I said "might".
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Fucking Sweet!
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John Wayne was a fag
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Brilliant. "Watch out for shysters...!"
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fantastic movie. just great. It's just really well done and executed, as well as phenomenal performances by everybody. Dialogue is great, and it really gives the viewer a sneak peak into how a grey situation begins to play out. Anyways, it's highly recommended, I wanna go to bed though.
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Sounds like the same movie.
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The hell he was.
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He was too, you boys!...I installed two-way mirrors in his pad at Brentwood--and he come to the door in a dress!
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Do you know what the differences are in the extended cut? It's about 20 minutes longer but I didn't notice anything I thought wouldn't have been in the theatrical cut. How did it originally end? The extended cut ends after Frank gets out of prison, Richie meets him and they walk and have a brief conversation. I thought this was great because it shows how after all that Frank is left a pathetic old man with nothing, the same streets he used to control have left him behind, he doesn't even stay in touch with his family anymore but the cop who chased him has become his friend. It must've ended like that in the theatrical cut too, right?
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was a much better movie than I was expecting. Honestly, I loved it after I sat through it. It's interesting character development in my opinion. And people questioning Harry over financial information and his business can fuck right off and die. It's capitalism you pricks. If you don't like it quit reading and patronizing the site. It's really very simple. He doesn't owe anyone an explanation for a damn thing he does or says. PS: HDDVD kicks the shit out of blu-ray. What a disappointment it's gone.
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Everything else is pure theory.
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In the theatrical Denzel steps out of jail and just stands there on the street as the prison gate/garage closes behind him. It's a nice wide shot of him in the center and lower part of the frame looking around at his new surroundings. The thumping and loudness of 90's music is heard and carried into the end credits. I thought it was concise and perfect. The other 20 minutes integrated into the extended cut sound great though.
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It just kills me how people here are so quick to insist that a movie that everyone else loves is, in fact and instead, "boring." As if "boring" were a quality that the film possessed, rather than the reaction of your brain to watching the film.
"The ending strained credulity," "the science makes no sense," "the praised performance by X is just scenery-chewing; compare the subtlety of Y in movie Z in a similar role," "the movie hammers you over the head with its message, unlike X on the same topic which portrays the actual complexity of the issue" -- these are valid critical points that you are welcome to raise here. "The film was boring" is not a valid critical point (unless almost everyone has that reaction, in which case it's still shorthand for more substantive and objective complaints).
And you know what? Nobody cares. Nobody cares whether you were bored or not. It's about as interesting as whether you like broccoli. And as relevant.
(Of course, most film critics routinely make the same mistake, only at a slightly higher level of discourse.)
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I can only add to the praise that's been heaped upon this film. The script is fantastic, the performances are excellent and the visuals... It's a beautiful looking film.
And I'm ashamed to admit that i didn't want to see it because the trailers made it look boring and lame. -
obviously.
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I had no intention of seeing this film BECAUSE of the trailers. Michael Clayton looked like a lame political/courtroom drama or something. Sounds like it's another Assassination Of Jesse James BTCRF (excellent film poorly marketed by the studio). You all have convinced me to rent it ASAP.
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Call of Duty 4 is an amazing game that has addicted quite a few people. That game really does have some of the best multiplayer action ever. As to the PS3, I really loved Heavenly Sword while Uncharted and Ratchet and Clank are also very solid games. The real AAA hit this year will probably be the new Metal Gear, unless it goes multiplatform which is entirely possible.
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I watched it again last night after picking it up from the store and I was amazed at how much I enjoyed it the second time through. There isn’t a wasted moment in this film, all of the performances are outstanding across the board, and that last scene with Clooney and Tildon is the stuff of legends. It’s been a long time since this many of the Oscar nominations have been films I’ve not only seen but loved.
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Right now there is not a Blu-Ray version available. Only a combo HD-DVD/DVD version is which the extended cut is on the DVD and NOT the HD-DVD version (and people wonder why this format sucks). As far as what you've heard or read about Frank Lucas and the cops, American Gangster while it claims to be based on a true story, basicly is a complete piece of fiction. Even the real Frank Lucas says the movie is completely false. Rent the doumentary on Nicky Barnes (Mr. Untouchable) if you want to know the truth. Also, Wikipedia Frank Lucas and American Gangster.
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...there is a gargantuan difference between the American Revolution/WWII and the current war in Iraq.
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your right...I never said they were the same. Your point?
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It's a pretty interesting, quiet little film. Especially if you're involved/interested in prop/makeup FX.
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[SPOILERS]...is that he's declared dead in a car explosion despite there NOT BEING A BODY IN THE CAR!
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there's just no way around it. not in this day and age. not when CSI is on. it was one of those things where you come out of the theater and say "wait a fucking minute!"
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...is that his throwing his (I'm guessing) wallet, keys, watch and etc. in the burning car was his way of leaving just enough stuff behind to suggest that his body had been blown to bits, incinerated, something like that. Maybe I'm way off there, but that part of the story seemed okay to me. What bugged ME was...I kinda woulda liked to see the two hitmen get theirs, though I suppose that would have made this more of a same ol' same ol' movie, eh? At least George got to nail Tilda with the second best line in the pic--"Do I LOOK like I'm negotiating?"--the first best being, of course, "You are so fucked."
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of AG again? Something from Fear of a Black Planet I think but can't remember the actual song. Can anyone help me out?
The_arashikage: RLR on BD. Absofuckinlutely!
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Saw this last night. Saving Michael Clayton for tomorrow and have Rendition left to watch. Elah is much as Harry says-a fantastic perf by Tommy Lee Jones(the look on his face towards the end of the film, during a soldier's statment didn't look feigned) and the movie itself is more from haggis and friends.It appears to be a mystery of sorts, but you can tell which the boat is being steered from the very beginning and yet, even so, I was still frustrated with the heavy-handed way it is wrapped up. If you thought Crash was a brilliant way to collect and crystalize the themes and feelings of racism in the U.S. then you will probably love this. If it just hit you as too much, overly simplistic and in someways purposefully slanted to the point of dishonesty(as it did me) then you will likely feel the same, maybe moreso with Elah. Mostly though, there isnt enough dramatic momentum to hold up the movie. Again, TLJ almost makes it a good movie. He is faultless except for signing on in the first place.
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I was honestly not suggesting that if you loved Crash, you are wrong or stupid and that's why you will love this. I mean that I encounter two feelings toward crash usually-the ones who love it and find it profound, and the ones who don't care much for it. Elah has a similar feel, and therefore, if you liked Crash it probably won't due to pay attention to my negative remarks regarding this one.
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I was waiting for her to show up in the movie, and then realized I had already seen here as one of the first officers Jones goes to inquire about his missing son. She and Jones make all of this more compelling than it would have been otherwise.
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...wouldn't be NEARLY enough to convince an even halfways-competent crime investigator that there was a body in there. There's ALWAYS some charred bits of bone or whatever left behind, unless we're talking a NUCLEAR explosion.
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Grab's me into the movie each and everytime i watch it..
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Feb 21, 2008 11:54:00 AM CST
It's odd to market Blu-Ray or HD-DVD to talkbackers.
by orbots commander
Why? Most peoplethat visit this site tend to be in their teens, twenties, i.e. not individuals that can splurge on a $1500 HDTV, a $400 Blu Ray player, a $500 surround sound system and $30-40 HD movies.
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I think you're wrong on your characterization of who visits AICN. There's a TON of people that have real jobs that visit this site. I for one have a projector, a PS3 and a great surround system and don't consider myself making "crazy money". There's also Hollywood people that post on a normal basis, but you wouldn't know it because of their screen name. Also, people don't need to spend $1500 to get an HDTV, people can get a good 42" for $600-$800. They can get a PS3 and Blu-Ray discs cheap on eBay.
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what's coming out of your mouth?
Your logic is so flawed, I am seriously concerned for your well=being.
And to those guys ripping Harry a new one, what the fuck? You might not agree with the guys opinions, or who he knows or doesn't know, but if you don't like, leave and find a better place or back your comments up with hard facts, 'cause so far, everything's been refuted.
And if AICN isn't what it used to be? Everything changes. Realize this and take a chill pill. Life is too short.
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Tony Gilroy has a masterpiece with Michael Clayton.
Clooney, Wilkinson, and Swinton give magnetic performances in this corporate conspiracy thriller. All three actors portray conflicted individuals and they play it perfectly. Clooney is deservin...(read more)g of the Oscar nod, his portrayal of a legal fixer (aka janitor) is flawless. His role of a troubled, in debt, absentee father, and fixer is brilliant.
This movie poses some difficult moral questions. Intellectually, it isn't a difficult movie to follow - the cards are clearly laid on the table, it's the spellbinding drama, suspense to the very last moment and incredible acting that makes Michael Clayton a winner.
One of my favs for 2007. -
I get them from Amazon. Also Orbots, lots of teens and 20-somethings are buying PS3s. Also, you can get a good HDTV for about $800 these days.
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The thing is he threw the wallet and watch in AFTER the explosion. The car was just up in flames at that point. It certainly wouldn't jive with forensics that if his body blew up, why wouldn't his watch and wallet also. They would likely have just been charred quite nicely - but not blown to pieces, huh?
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It annoyed the fuck out of me for the longest time and still does. But someone finally offered me some type of explanation........his brother was a cop. And it all lead to a setup anyways, so maybe he bought Michael some time with a false report. Thoughts on this?
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Yeah, that works with the brother taking care of business. Definitely a scene left to many different interpretations. Adding a team of cops and forensics discovering his body wasn't there would have just haven taken away from the flow of the movie. It needed to charge on full speed ahead with Clooney and his "Do I Look Like I'm Negotiating" line.
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I think Lust deserves a bit more than a descriptive involving fuckable and viagra. C'mon!!!
This movie is an incredibly beautiful, moving, intensely gripping story. Oh yeah, there are some sex scenes but they are dramatically and skillfully played out with emotion, intelligence and angst.
One of my top movies for 2007. -
It's nice to know that you actually preferred HD DVD...however, sometimes you do sound geared towards blu (specially in the Run Lola Run thing). This is coming from someone who tries to be the most unbiased person who tries to get facts (not the truth, as Indy would say...)...
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I'm still shocked by how many people thought this was worthy of a theater. Really up until the ending it felt like a lawyer TV show to me. Salon.com has a ridiculous article about how the Oscars indicate that Americans have a low self-image because all the actor nods went to foreigners. The author contends that George Clooney is better in his role than Daniel Day Lewis. I love Clooney and all, but...really? REALLY?! Clooney--playing a lawyer, real stretch--was better than Daniel Day Lewis morphing into a whole other creature without special effects? Insane.
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be just another John Grisham hero lawyer flick, but it really was better handled than that. A very interesting set of character studies. Tilda Swinton was brilliant, ally kind of felt sorry for her.
Lust, Caution was also a beautiful work. Ang Lee yet again cuts through war, sex and politics and strikes right at the human heart. Billiant.
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