TV/Movies Megathread

[FunkMonk]

I just watched Antichrist.

I don't consider myself very squeamish, but what the fuck did I just watch? 

My mouth is still agape. 

[Tonitrus]

Even from what little I have seen, I think Scandinavians should be banned from filmmaking. 

[CountDeMoney]

I just watched Antichrist.

I don't consider myself very squeamish, but what the fuck did I just watch? 

My mouth is still agape. 

Yeah...I remember watching that with a girl I was dating at the time.  She had to talk me down.
I've never felt compelled to pace back and forth, bitching up a total froth over a movie in my life, but man, that unholy sack of two hour shit did it. 

Without a doubt, one of the most atrociously inhumane pieces of shit ever placed upon film.  All the sadder that it was intentional.  I've seen homicide crime scene video with better fucking plots.

Oh dear God, if I could only reach in and scrub my brain with a toilet brush after watching that.  I would've rather have watched a two hour late-term abortion procedure with Gumbel and Dierdorf calling the play-by-play.

[Razgovory]

I've seen homicide crime scene video with better fucking plots.

Should be the blurb on the on DVD box.

[Liep]

HBO Go finally arrived, but I'm disappointed by the quality. Not streaming in full HD? Also, are you allowed to call it a free month if you only get it by paying for 6 other months?

The amount of quality series available is huge though.

[Darth Wagtaros]

Watched some Dr. Seuss on ABC family. The 70's cartoons, not Jim carrey.

Good man. 

[FunkMonk]

I just watched Antichrist.

I don't consider myself very squeamish, but what the fuck did I just watch? 

My mouth is still agape. 

Yeah...I remember watching that with a girl I was dating at the time.  She had to talk me down.
I've never felt compelled to pace back and forth, bitching up a total froth over a movie in my life, but man, that unholy sack of two hour shit did it. 

Without a doubt, one of the most atrociously inhumane pieces of shit ever placed upon film.  All the sadder that it was intentional.  I've seen homicide crime scene video with better fucking plots.

Oh dear God, if I could only reach in and scrub my brain with a toilet brush after watching that.  I would've rather have watched a two hour late-term abortion procedure with Gumbel and Dierdorf calling the play-by-play.

I think it's the only movie I know of that I need to see again, but I never ever want to see again. Not even think about it. It's got the beauty of a train wreck but without the mass cal.

The only decent part of the movie is the talking fox. 

[11B4V]

The Karate Kid 2010. Meh. Hollywood cannot get full contact MA right.

Jackie Chan was good however.

[Sheilbh]

Just watched Tinker Tailor.  Creditable, but I gotta ask what the point was of making so many cosmetic changes to the book.  Why Istanbul instead of Hong Kong?  Why Hungary instead of Czechoslovakia?  And why the hell did they make Peter Guillaume gay?

I assume cost on Istanbul/Hong Kong.  The BBC series in the seventies set that section in Lisbon

The Guillam thing to me has two points. The first is that it emphasises how much Smiley knows and demands without hinting at the extent of his knowledge. It's like his marriage. Secondly I think it's to emphasise that there is a cost to everyone and to make, in many ways, Smiley the negative of Karla. Smiley's suffering is at home (as, in a way, is Karla's) and he seems rather cauterised to it all.  Guillam needs to tidy up any loose ends in his life, Esterhase is threatened, Prideaux's a ruined man and the rest Haydon, Blunt, Tarr are all in some way or other humiliated or damaged. 

I think the film emphasises the human wreckage of it all (poor Connie) a great deal and at the middle of it, sits Smiley, unscathed. In part its because Le Carre and Greene and other great spy writers are often interested in the 'human factor' of espionage. But I also think it's that final shot of the film of Smiley stepping into his office, alone, indifferent to who is hurt as he achieves his goals - very much like you imagine Karla in Moscow Centre.

It gave Guillam a bit of depth and perhaps explained why he's a spy, like Tarr's dad beating the sin into him. It also gave him something to lose which frankly isn't often the case with the Le Carre Guillam who, from what I remember, is sleeping with a French art student, drives a fast car and major preoccupation (aside from work) is how meaningless his acrobatic, casual sex is.

We'll probably see if that reading's at all accurate when they adapt Smiley's People which is apparently going to go ahead. As with the BBC they're skipping The Honourable Schoolboy.

I think the only Wong Kar-wai film I've seen is In the Mood for Love; I enjoyed it quite a bit. I remember the title of the film now, it was Snowfall in Taipei; it had a bit of the same wistfulness of In the Mood for Love, but it was less deliberately artistic in the sets, lighting and costumes.

2046 is a companion piece.  I'd recommend it.

I just watched Antichrist.

I don't consider myself very squeamish, but what the fuck did I just watch?   

My mouth is still agape. 

I liked it a lot

As a total aside I accidentally saw Charlotte Gainsbourg in concert over the summer.  She's superb. If you ever get the chance.

[Admiral Yi]

It gave Guillam a bit of depth and perhaps explained why he's a spy, like Tarr's dad beating the sin into him. It also gave him something to lose which frankly isn't often the case with the Le Carre Guillam who, from what I remember, is sleeping with a French art student, drives a fast car and major preoccupation (aside from work) is how meaningless his acrobatic, casual sex is.

Except that in the Le Carre world homosexuality or bisexuality is not seen as much of a complication.  Prideaux and Haydon being possible lovers at school is a throw away line, as is Haydon's boy toy that needs cleaning up.

[Sheilbh]

Except that in the Le Carre world homosexuality or bisexuality is not seen as much of a complication.  Prideaux and Haydon being possible lovers at school is a throw away line, as is Haydon's boy toy that needs cleaning up.

Of course not, why would they be? Public school flings and a slight English perversion are hardly meaningful - look at the Cambridge ring, that's just the British establishment. Having an implied long-term live-in lover in seventies England is a complication in anyone's world, but especially in the intelligence services.

[Sophie Scholl]

Has anyone seen the new Anna Karenina yet?  I'm intrigued by how they've done the concept as being all upon a stage.  Plus Kiera Knightley.   I'm thinking of maybe seeing it tomorrow while I wait to make the longer distance journey to a high quality IMAX theater for The Hobbit.

[Scipio]

Has anyone seen the new Anna Karenina yet?  I'm intrigued by how they've done the concept as being all upon a stage.  Plus Kiera Knightley.   I'm thinking of maybe seeing it tomorrow while I wait to make the longer distance journey to a high quality IMAX theater for The Hobbit.

As much as I love AK, it's frankly unfilmable.  You can't make good drama out of Tolstoy's moralism.

[Kleves]

Also, Kleves; thanks for the Pacific Rim trailer.  Looks like Evangelion, but made for an American audience, so that it won't be creepy and gross.  I'm looking forward to it.  Should be a nice taste of what they can do with giant monsters till Godzilla arrives in 2014.

Did you like Cloverfield, Ide? I think that's supposed to be getting a sequel at some point too.

[Josquius]

Ted-  Pretty good. Though....it did at times feel very obviously like a movie version of a family guy episode. I guessed who the writer/director was before the credits. Wonder if I would have done witout him voicing Ted too. Ted....sounded a bit obviously Peter Griffiny with hints of Bryan. Which was weird. And I fell asleep towards the end. But overall it was rather good.
Surprised to read it was so succesful though. On my radar it was barely a whimper.

Thermae Romae- Even sillier than its initial concept of a Roman in a bath house finding a portal to modern Japan. So much importance placed on baths, with baths they save the Roman empire. Would have been nice to see more fish out of water time travelness and less of the guy having to faff around in Japanese-filled Rome. Which was weird but cool.

The Campaign- So-so comedy which takes very obvious broad swings at the american system. Zack whatshisface was good in it, he actually plays another character, doesn't seem like his usual self as he does in his other films.