TV/Movies Megathread

[Berkut]

I think Designated Survivor is a lot more interesting.

I haven't given up on that one yet, but I feel it does make me go a bit too often.

Ugh, I just watched the first two episodes and was like really? How ham-fisted could the writing be? It's like they want to tackle many important issues of the day but want to handle them in the tritest/cliche possible fashion. I'm not sure if I can give it any further.

[spoiler]Like brown speech writer dealing with issues from cops, jerky governor who is going to do his own thing till stopped by a silly bluff that president reveals to his team is a bluff before governor has had chance to do anything, annoying teen kid doing illegal things, rambunctious general who wants things done his way and the oh so plucky female FBI agent who can intuit things no one else can.[/spoiler]

Yep. I held out for like four episodes, mainly because it was something to watch with the wife before I gave up.

A really interesting premise that they executed on with zero imagination. Every single character is a completely predictable stereotype.

[garbon]

I think Designated Survivor is a lot more interesting.

I haven't given up on that one yet, but I feel it does make me go a bit too often.

Ugh, I just watched the first two episodes and was like really? How ham-fisted could the writing be? It's like they want to tackle many important issues of the day but want to handle them in the tritest/cliche possible fashion. I'm not sure if I can give it any further.

[spoiler]Like brown speech writer dealing with issues from cops, jerky governor who is going to do his own thing till stopped by a silly bluff that president reveals to his team is a bluff before governor has had chance to do anything, annoying teen kid doing illegal things, rambunctious general who wants things done his way and the oh so plucky female FBI agent who can intuit things no one else can.[/spoiler]

Yep. I held out for like four episodes, mainly because it was something to watch with the wife before I gave up.

A really interesting premise that they executed on with zero imagination. Every single character is a completely predictable stereotype.

Okay, then I won't give it any further.  Shame, as like you say, could have been quite interesting.

[viper37]

I keep hoping it's going to get better, but I'm always disapointed.

[Savonarola]

I'm trying to see the Marvel Movies:

Iron Man (2008)

I so want Tony Stark's lab.   

I had seen this several years ago at the Detroit Institute of Arts.  One of the special effects people was from Detroit and after the film he gave a lecture on his work.  One thing I remember is that the director (Jon Favreau) wanted to use as many real shots of Iron Man as he could; but the lecturer said you could only do that for a couple seconds before it started to look like Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.

The Incredible Hulk (2008)

Why is there no credible Hulk?   

A great deal of fun (as was Iron Man) and a real treat for anyone old enough to remember the television show.   

[CountDeMoney]

Jackie Chan gets all uppity.

Jackie Chan: 'The days when no one listened to Chinese people have gone'
(People's Dairy Onrine)
Updated:December 2, 2016

On Nov 12, Jackie Chan received an honorary Oscar from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles, becoming the first Chinese actor to win the award. The 62-year-old movie star shared his story in an interview with People's Daily.


When he was 22, Jackie Chan went to Hollywood with the hope of becoming an international star. However, he ended up finding it impossible to succeed there using the same style he had developed in Hong Kong.

"In America, I could not even offer a little advice. They would not listen to you. I fought with dedication, but they didn't like it... I designed many movements - for example, jumping over a table. But they didn't like it. They thought I was like a monkey," Chan recalled of his early days in Hollywood. With his confidence low, he returned to Asia to pursue his dream.

"When I began shooting movies in America, Americans didn't care about my ideas, and no one listened to my opinion. When I rejected some of their requirements, because I knew no one in Hong Kong would watch films shot in accordance with them, they replied, 'Hong Kong is not our market, just forget Hong Kong.' After Hong Kong returned to China, they said 'China is not our market, forget China.' At that time I thought, you cannot look down on the Chinese even if China is not your targeted market," he recalled.

"Today, they ask me what Chinese people like to see. They need to consider every aspect of China because China has gotten strong, and China's film [industry] has gotten strong. The Chinese market has become a big contributor to the global box office. I am really proud of this. The days when no one listened to Chinese people have gone."

In Chan's eyes, there are major differences between the interests of Chinese and American audiences when it comes to film.

"They [Americans] like tough guys like Clint Eastwood, who can knock someone out with just one hit. They think it's manly. But in my films, after hitting someone I will draw back my fist and take a deep breath because of the pain. The audience does not accept this because they don't think you are a hero. Their comedies are hilarious; there is no such thing as action comedy. It's like two different worlds," he explained.

With a deep understanding of movies in both the US and China, Chan shared his thoughts on the globalization of Chinese film.

"We need some internationally recognized films, songs, stars... It takes time for good work and stars to grow. There is no shortcut. We need to create works that will withstand the test of time, which is what I am doing. A hundred years later, I hope people will say China has Bruce Lee, as well as Jackie Chan. That is enough," he said.

[The Minsky Moment]

He makes some good points.

[celedhring]

His Hollywood movies are all shit. They never knew what to do with him, imho.

But he's right. China has plenty of money, and it has shown that it is very willing to spend it on movies. And boy, does Hollywood love money.

[garbon]

His Hollywood movies are all shit. They never knew what to do with him, imho.

But he's right. China has plenty of money, and it has shown that it is very willing to spend it on movies. And boy, does Hollywood love money.

Are there worthwhile people who don't love money?

[celedhring]

His Hollywood movies are all shit. They never knew what to do with him, imho.

But he's right. China has plenty of money, and it has shown that it is very willing to spend it on movies. And boy, does Hollywood love money.

Are there worthwhile people who don't love money?

Yeah, there are.

And I'm not being judgmental, Hollywood has decided that in order to compete with other entertainment it will go the BIGGER AND LOUDER route, which implies making really expensive products that thus need bigger, and predictable, sales numbers in order to turn a profit, while the "middleware" has been pushed to TV.

[Ideologue]

His Hollywood movies are all shit. They never knew what to do with him, imho.

I like Rumble in the Bronx.

[Syt]

A playlist of 80s (and some earlier) TV themes in case you want to be hit with a serious case of the nostalgiasms.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6z6OgcOWW85HpkeoNwQQtw-qpGvPXM7i

[celedhring]

Elysium. God that was so bad.

[Syt]

Elysium. God that was so bad.

But pretty. Oh so pretty. 

[The Brain]

It's pretty bad.

[celedhring]

Elysium. God that was so bad.

But pretty. Oh so pretty. 

I don't know, he just doubled down on the same design idea of District 9, sci-fi in the slums of a developing nation. Which is the same thing he would go and do again in Chappie.

Mind, I think it is a decent idea. But it seems more and more that it is Blomkamp's only idea. I hope to god he doesn't set the new Alien movie in a favela.