TV/Movies Megathread

[Ideologue]

I'm doing a Jean Reno film today, anyway.

I think Leon would be a good addition to the schedule, actually.   I should get to it before the end of August.

[Malthus]

I'm doing a Jean Reno film today, anyway.

I think Leon would be a good addition to the schedule, actually.   I should get to it before the end of August.

That would be awesome - just be sure to review the longer cut. As I'm sure you already know, the version originally released in the US was nearly half an hour shorter - a significantly different movie.

Anyway, which Reno film are you doing?

[Ideologue]

I'm doing a Jean Reno film today, anyway.

I think Leon would be a good addition to the schedule, actually.   I should get to it before the end of August.

That would be awesome - just be sure to review the longer cut. As I'm sure you already know, the version originally released in the US was nearly half an hour shorter - a significantly different movie.

Anyway, which Reno film are you doing?

Mission: Impossible, no less!   Love these fucking movies.  Well, three of them, anyway.

And thanks for the comment.

[celedhring]

Mission: Impossible is so good.  I think I'll rewatch it before going to MI5.

[katmai]

They get better farther from De Palma directing the first.

[celedhring]

Yeah, that's true. After the vertical drop in quality in MI2, they have gotten progressively better.

It's a real pity John Woo never got a good American film going. I guess his unhinged style didn't suit the more controlled environment of Western storytelling. Face/Off is probably his most entertaining Hollywood film just due to how utterly deranged and over the top it is.

[Ideologue]

Yeah, that's true. After the vertical drop in quality in MI2, they have gotten progressively better.

It's a real pity John Woo never got a good American film going. I guess his unhinged style didn't suit the more controlled environment of Western storytelling. Face/Off is probably his most entertaining Hollywood film just due to how utterly deranged and over the top it is.

I recall liking Face/Off less than Broken Arrow, but I like Broken Arrow a real awful lot, to the extent I'm probably literally its biggest fan, given I've never heard anyone else even say something nice about it.

I've never gotten a chance to watch Paycheck.

M:I 2 is no Broken Arrow.  The more I think about M:I 2, the less I like it.

The BDP M:I is definitely the best, though.

[celedhring]

Paycheck isn't *terrible* but it isn't too great either. Its main crime is the fact that it looks nothing like a John Woo film; you could have put some random hack behind the camera and you would've got the same movie, which seems a bit of a waste.

It's mostly the usual Hollywood sci-fier where they take an intriguing premise but waste it by turning the film into an ordinary action vehicle.

[Josquius]

the characters do evolve, in contrast to TNG where they are always basically the same.

There's character evolution then there's show evolution. This is the latter. The evolution isn't natural (though there is some of that too), its a change of direction with them.
Rom becomes less Quark 2 and more a lovable idiot. Bashir becomes less the young go-getter and instead a super genius,

[katmai]

The BDP M:I is definitely the best, though.

Were you ever dropped on your head as a child?

[Ideologue]

Did you have a bad experience with a split diopter?

[celedhring]

I haven't seen MI5, but I agree that so far De Palma's entry is clearly the best of the lot.

[viper37]

the characters do evolve, in contrast to TNG where they are always basically the same.

There's character evolution then there's show evolution. This is the latter. The evolution isn't natural (though there is some of that too), its a change of direction with them.
Rom becomes less Quark 2 and more a lovable idiot. Bashir becomes less the young go-getter and instead a super genius,

but there are events pushing them in these direction.  In TNG, no matter what happens, Picard and Riker always stay the same.  THere's a reboot after every episode.

[Malthus]

Mission: Impossible, no less!   Love these fucking movies.  Well, three of them, anyway.

And thanks for the comment.

Heh no prob. Watership Down is an awesomely bizzare movie in some ways - I was a kid when it came out, and it was (awkwardly) marketed to the kiddie crowd - you can just see some studeo exec scratching his head over this movie and thinking 'well, it's about talking rabbits, so it must be for kids, right?". Lord knows how many youngsters were permanently traumatized by their parents taking 'em to see this. 

I know you get a lot of flack for your movie reviews, but I for one admire them - even when I don't agree with 'em. I like your attention to details and passion for what you do.

In fact, I find 'em inspiring. I'd like to write one of two of my own in the same style, if I find the time. 

[Eddie Teach]

Russian Ark.

This film is best known for being shot in one continuous take. While that is certainly a bit of technical bravura, it's a bit like painting with your hands tied together. The finished product isn't improved by it. If anything, the opposite. Watching this film, I was frequently wishing he would just stop moving the camera for a minute.

The film is shot from the POV of a ghost in the Hermitage in St Petersburg. He is generally a passive observer and frequently appears invisible to the people he encounters. His companion and guide of sorts is the spirit of a snooty 19th century Frenchman. They are able to move around in time and see events happening in the palace over the centuries, from Peter the Great to Nicholas II to modern day museum-goers.

It is a visual spectacle- magnificent artwork, architecture, and period costumes abound. What plot there is tends to revolve around the Frenchman. He denigrates Russian art and the narrator defends it. He harasses passers-by. He gets too close to the objects on display and gets shooed by museum guards. His antics make this better than just spending an hour and a half in the museum yourself.