The Off Topic Topic

[Valmy]

See isn't this nice to argue about films we have actually seen? A rare event in current Oscars.

[Valmy]

Thin Red Line (or what little of it I had the strength to watch) was horrible. Sure war is hell, but much like the Mario platform stuff in Doom Eternal this was the wrong kind of hell.

It was fab. I enjoyed a more internal struggle in a war movie.

[Tamas]

I wanted Saving Private Ryan to win and I thought Shakespeare in Love was fine but nothing special.

And the second sentence kind of goes along with that. I can't very well be enraged Moonlight won, what kind of an asshole would I be?

The worst nominee that year

IMHO Ryan pretty much revolutionised war movies. Shakespeare in Love was the year's chick flick and nothing more.

[Sheilbh]

See isn't this nice to argue about films we have actually seen? A rare event in current Oscars.

How much of this is because you went to the cinema more 20 or so years ago though?

IMHO Ryan pretty much revolutionised war movies. Shakespeare in Love was the year's chick flick and nothing more.

Meh. And Shakespeare in Love is great.

The biggest issue in film opinions is the dichotomy of chick films v not

[Valmy]

How much of this is because you went to the cinema more 20 or so years ago though?

I went to the movies recently and they had no new films so they were showing 1980s films. That was weird, but hey I hadn't seen The Goonies on the big screen in a while. I don't recall that particular situation happening 20 years ago.

But maybe Nomadland has a big following, I don't know, maybe there are excited fans discussing it someplace on the internet. I certainly had never heard of it before last night.

[celedhring]

I'm the audience for those movies and I absolutely agree.  Michael Clayton, a Bridge of Spies, maybe Eastern Promises.  What else has there been in the last 20 years?

any film about journalism

Can I say that Spotlight bored me to tears? Everybody I know absolutely loves it 

[Sheilbh]

I went to the movies recently and they had no new films so they were showing 1980s films. That was weird, but hey I hadn't seen The Goonies on the big screen in a while. I don't recall that particular situation happening 20 years ago.

But maybe Nomadland has a big following, I don't know, maybe there are excited fans discussing it someplace on the internet. I certainly had never heard of it before last night.

I'd suggest that a year when almost every major release (God bless Christopher Nolan) has been delayed due to a global pandemic is not the best comparison of whether there's any good popular movies showing - there are they're just in our living rooms where we've been living for the last 12 months :bloat:

In a normal year Nomadland gets watched at indy cinemas were it belongs and generates festival buzz.

I just think I went to the cinema a lot more 5-10 years ago and probably had an opinion on almost every release. Now I'm a lot more lazy (even excluding this year) and have unjustified opinions on almost every release.

[Sheilbh]

I'm the audience for those movies and I absolutely agree.  Michael Clayton, a Bridge of Spies, maybe Eastern Promises.  What else has there been in the last 20 years?

any film about journalism

Can I say that Spotlight bored me to tears? Everybody I know absolutely loves it 

It's the only industry Hollywood holds in higher regard than itself

[Josquius]

I thought Green Book was OK.

Top oscar winners tend to be pretty Meh though. It's the failed nominees which are often best.
This year more than ever I've not heard of most of the films mentioned.

[grumbler]

I would have been fine with The Thin Red Line as well

Thin Red Line was not a well made anti-war war movie, it was an attempt to upend all the Hollywood tropes of war movies.  It was self referential and unwatchable.  Like all those 1970s New Cinema (not sure if that's the right term) movies that were crap.

It also wasn't well-edited.  The director and producers just kept the story meandering on after the climax.  The last 40 minutes should have been cut out of the movie and it would have been a lot better.

It also was too "documentary" for me.  But some people like films without relatable characters.

[Sheilbh]

The Dominion cinema was art deco and built in the thirties and then, as tastes changed, covered in some fairly unremarkable cladding:


The cladding's been removed as part of works this morning:


Hopefully someone's going to renovate that because it is kind of great Metroland art deco.

I always find "covering things up" the weirdest thing in architecture. It happened in country houses/Victorian buildings in the 20s when they would regularly build "box" rooms (to host art deco objects), and then externallly cladding of decorative features you don't like. I suppose it's the cheaper option of building something new.

[The Brain]

How did anyone not like art deco? Monstrous.

[garbon]

You might mean: Harrowing.

[Josquius]

Covering up is really common with cowboy builders.
My bathroom and kitchen are basically boxes inside the real room. When we were putting a new bath and some tiles in we discovered they hadn't even removed the old tiles. It's a lot quicker and easier.
It's stupid and horrible in a way.
But it does often lead to wonderful discoveries of hidden original features that would otherwise have been destroyed.

[Sheilbh]

Yeah - I have a friend who's bought a house which he'll be renting out (he works for the UN so basically doesn't "live" anywhere but wants somewhere he could eventually live if and when he moves to the UK). He keeps on sending photos of really attractive original features that are being discovered by the buildings but were previously just covered up for some reason - so lovely wood floors, a very attractive 30s fireplace etc. It's weird.