TV/Movies Megathread

[Ideologue]

Oh, if she's in that, I withdraw objections.  A GREAT ACTRESS OF OUR GENERATION.

Actually, in fairness, her faux 19th centuryism does require some reasonably good acting in Byzantium.  That kind of quiet theatricality will really suit her well in a Wes Anderson joint.

[celedhring]

Good news:

Shia LaBeouf ‏@thecampaignbook 10 de Gen.
In light of the recent attacks against my artistic integrity, I am retiring from all public life.

Pity it's probably just another boutade.

[Ideologue]

That's a shame.  I like The Beef.

[garbon]

Yep would be great if not just another PR stunt. Justifies my irrational dislike though.

[Neil]

I don't really care for him one way or the other.  I do feel kinda bad for him, since as he's getting older he'll have a harder time playing quirky teens.

[Ideologue]

Oh, I also saw The Hunt (2012 ROTW/2013 USA).  (Jagten, in Dansk.) Mads Mikkelsen, the most phenotypically Scandinavian person I've ever seen, is Lukas, a kindergarten teacher in a small town, now falsely accused of pedophilia.  The initial accuser is a little girl who had a crush on him that he gently rebuffed, and she soon recants (over and over, actually); further, there is obviously no evidence to suggest he did anything.  But, since it's an allegation of pedophilia, his life is basically destroyed and the entire town turns against him.  Eventually, he is rendered such a pariah that his dog is murdered, and he is physically and forcibly exiled from his local grocer.  (Since this is a movie, and it's a small town, I didn't question whether aggravated battery is legal in Denmark, and why he didn't just call the cops.)  There's a moment where the film promises to turn into a revenge thriller--it was set up very early than Lukas is an avid hunter, gun owner, and a fine marksman--and briefly Lukas does fight back; but then that glorious moment is gone, he never turns a gun on anything but a deer, and The Hunt returns to its unfortunate groove, that of a bitter psychosocial drama.  It's still rather good in this vein, but far, far, far less fun to watch even as it probably tells more truths.  For once Lukas is fully exonerated he still remains the subject of random, terrifying violence, and his life will always be damaged by the simple lie of a child believed by people that should have known better.

I didn't like how it made it seem that Denmark is not the utopic wonderland it has been advertised as.  But The Hunt is, when it's not being all handheld, a well-shot film, and Denmark, despite being populated by humans rather than balls of light, is a beautiful country in the autumn. B

[LaCroix]

american hustle = kind of garbage. is it just me, or did the narration really help ruin the movie? seemed forced, lazy, and very mediocre. 20 minutes in and i thought to myself, "i really just don't care about these characters." i've never thought that before while watching a movie

[Eddie Teach]

american hustle = kind of garbage. is it just me, or did the narration really help ruin the movie? seemed forced, lazy, and very mediocre. 20 minutes in and i thought to myself, "i really just don't care about these characters." i've never thought that before while watching a movie

You have lived a charmed life.

[LaCroix]

You have lived a charmed life.

i've disliked plenty of movies, but there's never been -that moment- before, at least not that i can remember

[Liep]

I didn't like how it made it seem that Denmark is not the utopic wonderland it has been advertised as.

Vinterberg's first big hit, The Celebration (Festen), will also challenge that view. The best and at the same time most horrible Danish movie I've seen.

[celedhring]

I didn't like how it made it seem that Denmark is not the utopic wonderland it has been advertised as.

Vinterberg's first big hit, The Celebration (Festen), will also challenge that view. The best and at the same time most horrible Danish movie I've seen.

Pretty sure a lot of Von Trier films can challenge Festen in both accounts.

[Queequeg]

american hustle = kind of garbage. is it just me, or did the narration really help ruin the movie? seemed forced, lazy, and very mediocre. 20 minutes in and i thought to myself, "i really just don't care about these characters." i've never thought that before while watching a movie

I thought it was another part of the wind up/celebration of Goodfellas. 

Also, this.

[Queequeg]

Oh, I also saw The Hunt (2012 ROTW/2013 USA).  (Jagten, in Dansk.) Mads Mikkelsen, the most phenotypically Scandinavian person I've ever seen, is Lukas, a kindergarten teacher in a small town, now falsely accused of pedophilia.  The initial accuser is a little girl who had a crush on him that he gently rebuffed, and she soon recants (over and over, actually); further, there is obviously no evidence to suggest he did anything.  But, since it's an allegation of pedophilia, his life is basically destroyed and the entire town turns against him.  Eventually, he is rendered such a pariah that his dog is murdered, and he is physically and forcibly exiled from his local grocer.  (Since this is a movie, and it's a small town, I didn't question whether aggravated battery is legal in Denmark, and why he didn't just call the cops.)  There's a moment where the film promises to turn into a revenge thriller--it was set up very early than Lukas is an avid hunter, gun owner, and a fine marksman--and briefly Lukas does fight back; but then that glorious moment is gone, he never turns a gun on anything but a deer, and The Hunt returns to its unfortunate groove, that of a bitter psychosocial drama.  It's still rather good in this vein, but far, far, far less fun to watch even as it probably tells more truths.  For once Lukas is fully exonerated he still remains the subject of random, terrifying violence, and his life will always be damaged by the simple lie of a child believed by people that should have known better.

I didn't like how it made it seem that Denmark is not the utopic wonderland it has been advertised as.  But The Hunt is, when it's not being all handheld, a well-shot film, and Denmark, despite being populated by humans rather than balls of light, is a beautiful country in the autumn. B

I'm watching this this weekend.  Got to get my pre-Hannibal Madds fixes. 

IDK about Madds being all that Scandinavian.  He's kind of a freak. He looks like the child of Felix Dzerzhinsky and an Inuit.

[LaCroix]

I thought it was another part of the wind up/celebration of Goodfellas. 

Also, this.

at least in that video cage shows some emotion, even if it's terrible. in american hustle, it reminded me of clips i've seen of harrison ford's narration in the theatrical release of blade runner: boring and uninspired

[Queequeg]

That was a joke on narration being "flaccid, sloppy writing."