Re: Recent movie playlist

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TC wrote:The Queen’s Gambit - finally started watching this. two episodes in, it’s great. really loving it. didn’t know i needed a show about a drugged-out chess savant, but apparently i did. anna taylor joy is going to be a force for a long time.
this show was fucking great. loved it. apparently based on a novel. i saw kasparov was a technical consultant too. really fantastic show, and she’s a force.

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This Is A Robbery: The World’s Biggest Art Heist - well, the world’s biggest gallery heist, anyway. i assume they aren’t talking about nazis here. anyway, this show was another pretty fascinating yet ultimately frustrating netflix documentary about the 1990 art theft from boston’s gardner museum. what is essentially a four-part unsolved mysteries episode takes you down every rabbit hole the various agencies and detectives have gone down in the last 30 years but still ends where it started - 13 pieces of art are still missing. we’re talking rembrandt, vermeer, manet, degas, etc. $200 million valuation. the doc explores theories from an inside job by the acid-taking deadhead guard to the IRA and italian mob. really baffling that after all this time, with such recognizable pieces, not one has been found.

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Sons Of Sam - some pretty crazy info here. apparently nothing new, as it was all in a widely-publicized book i didn't read, but i was aware of most of this. still, if you aren't aware, a great slice of info most media outlets wouldn't talk about and you probably wouldn't have heard unless you went looking. but ultimately, it's yet another netflix doc with absolutely no resolution. kind of frustrating in that way.

Mythic Quest - Apple TV+ show from Rob McElhenney & Charlie Day, starting Rob. setting is a video game (online MMORPG) company. it's no Always Sunny or Silicon Valley, but it's pretty amusing. Danny Pudi and F. Murray Abraham are also in it and great supporting characters. finished S1 yesterday, looks like S2 started a few weeks ago. will start that soon.

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Those Who Wish Me Dead - holy fucking shit does this movie blow. It’s the most ridiculous film i’ve seen in a while. Even some great actors can’t save this from itself. Also, Jolie just looks sickly and frail. She’s way too fucking skinny. We’re supposed to believe this person is allowed to be a smoke jumper? She’s a superhero I guess - early on, she falls, I don’t know, 100+ feet directly onto her back and gets up & walks away essentially uninjured. Why were her kids meandering around a massive fire? Also, the main kid in this - his entire life is awful. Everyone around him dies or dumps on him about people dying. Best thing to happen to him in this movie is that he got to take two bites of cereal before shit hit the fan. All the “secrets” his dad wrote him - he literally slept in a creek. There will be nothing legible on that paper. And given the behavior displayed by Jolie, is the news media going to believe her? Oh, and so the kid gives an interview to the local news - ok. But that doesn’t mean the bad guys go to prison immediately. That kid will be hunted and murdered by, i would assume, several groups of people. I say “assume” here because WE NEVER FIND OUT WHY THE FUCK EVERYONE IS BEING MURDERED. Goddamn is this movie a piece of shit. Also the most ham-fisted “diversity” - the two black people in this film either save the day or are orchestrating everything. Oh, there is one other black guy that’s a co-worker of Jolie’s, and when he shows up to meet them the day after the massive fire (you know, because fires only last a day), he basically says to her “Hey, here’s a kid you didn’t kill. Good job.” The movie is so fucking bad. I have no idea who this movie is for.

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Mortal Kombat - no, not the 1995 version with the awesome soundtrack. No, not the fake trailer turned web series in 2011. I’m talking about the 2021 version here. I have seen mixed feelings on this online, and i went in pretty skeptical given that i thought the 1995 version was pretty great. Well i dug it. I mean obviously there is some ridiculous shit happening in it - it’s a video game film - but if that first fight scene doesn’t get you, i don’t know what to tell you. 1600’s japan, man defends against dozens of attackers. It’s really fucking good. And holy shit they did not hold back on the fatalities - some super gory shit here. I figured i’d miss the soundtrack from the 1995 version, but i really didn’t. In fact, they didn’t even really play “the” MK music until the very end, and then only a sort-of version of it. There were two things that bothered me - first, when we initially meet sonya the first thing she does is ask about jax, saying she’s been trying to get in touch with him and he isn’t answering. One fight scene later, she’s totally fine jetting off to wherever (Asia?) to go look for the temple. That was odd, but maybe an editing oversight or compromise. The other thing - when scorpion, a character who has only spoken japanese the entire film, suddenly does his “get over here” line, then resumes speaking only japanese the rest of the film. That was really irritating. Yes i like the line, but it was so forced in in the context of his character. Shrug. They did set up a sequel real hard at the end too, not sure if that’s happening or not, but i wouldn’t be opposed to it.

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I feel extremely conflicted about the MK movie. The first part, with Scorpion and Sub-Zero is so far and beyond the best in the entire film. I mean, nothing even gets close to that, it's like they made the first part with a different director almost.

Also, the mma guy was completely unnecessary. If they needed someone for the audience to connect to and to be a "what the fuck is going on?", then they should have chosen Johnny Cage. This dude was just as bland as they come.

And I don't get why they decided to skip the tournament aspect of the film either. I mean, that's a central part to the "lore" of the whole thing. At least the origin story (they go absolutely bonkers with the story in MK 10and 11...).

Best part about the film was the fight scenes, extreme violence and Kano. But this could have been so much better.

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_Marcus_ wrote:I feel extremely conflicted about the MK movie. The first part, with Scorpion and Sub-Zero is so far and beyond the best in the entire film. I mean, nothing even gets close to that, it's like they made the first part with a different director almost.

Also, the mma guy was completely unnecessary. If they needed someone for the audience to connect to and to be a "what the fuck is going on?", then they should have chosen Johnny Cage. This dude was just as bland as they come.

And I don't get why they decided to skip the tournament aspect of the film either. I mean, that's a central part to the "lore" of the whole thing. At least the origin story (they go absolutely bonkers with the story in MK 10and 11...).

Best part about the film was the fight scenes, extreme violence and Kano. But this could have been so much better.
yeah i hear that. i was just never that invested in the lore of the game to really care that much, i was only sort of aware of it. so it worked for me ok. yes that guy was beyond bland, but guess we'll see Cage in a follow-up? Kano was indeed great. and goro was so underutilized, which was really weird considering there was a giant statue of him in the outer realm or whatever. shrug. i get it. the first scene and the hyper violence of the fatalities worked, though.

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TC wrote:yeah i hear that. i was just never that invested in the lore of the game to really care that much, i was only sort of aware of it. so it worked for me ok. yes that guy was beyond bland, but guess we'll see Cage in a follow-up? Kano was indeed great. and goro was so underutilized, which was really weird considering there was a giant statue of him in the outer realm or whatever. shrug. i get it. the first scene and the hyper violence of the fatalities worked, though.
I'm not that invested either to be honest, but there are some specific things in the lore that you sort of need to hit if you want to make an MK film and I just didn't get why, the director being an MK fan and all, they decided not to. The whole outworld part of the film was just confusing when it really didn't have to be.

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Army of the Dead - Someone needs to cancel Zack Snyders Premiere/Final Cut license right fucking NOW. 2,5 hours for the absolute dumbest zombie flick ever? Ffs. Also, the ridiculously shallow depth of field he shot some of the scenes in looked awful. Like it was filmed on an iphone or something.

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_Marcus_ wrote:Fuck Zack Snyder forever.
^This. And I wouldn't be surprised if it was shot on an iphone. I know there was a pic floating around out there somewhere of him shooting some green screen stuff in his backyard.
Just cut them up like regular chickens

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I plan on watching it, possibly today. Can’t get on the “fuck Zack Snyder” bandwagon. I loved Watchmen, and as I wrote in that thread, seemed like his Justice League wasn’t nearly as bad as people were making it out to be. Hopefully this isn’t quite as bad as you guys are making it sound, but i’m skeptical. I at least expect to enjoy the Junkie XL soundtrack.

The Friends Reunion Special - watched this yesterday. I enjoyed it, but some parts were rough. Like, anything with james cordon. Also, making Gunther a “guest appearance” for literally 8 seconds was silly. And for the first little bit, i was honestly wondering if Matthew Perry had had a stroke or three. But if you liked the show at all, you’ll enjoy this. Just kind of bums me out seeing them. Well, really just Courtney and Perry. She was so cute before she fucked herself up royally with all that surgery. Her mouth looks so fucking weird. It has for years, i understand. I seem to remember accidentally watching an episode or two of Cougartown and seeing her Joker face. And Perry, like i said, he just seemed fucked up, and not in a good way. I realize he had quite the drug problem for a while, but that was ages ago. He just seemed not in a good way. Le Blanc, Kudrow and Jen all seem to be just aging well and still looking good, although i’m sure Le Blanc wouldn’t mind losing a few pounds. Schwimmer’s face kind of filled in weird but he still seems good too. I didn’t realize they wrote that part for him and chased him across the country to convince him to do it. Crazy they built the show around Ross, initially. Anyway, that’s entirely too much about a show about a show that was over 17 years ago.

Mosquito Coast - four episodes into this and it’s pretty fucking great. i haven’t read the book but am familiar with the story thanks to the Harrison Ford film in the ‘80s. Crazy that Thoroux is starring in it, given that his uncle wrote the book. Seems like he did a lot of work digging into this, and brings some family history to the part. Given what just happened at the end of episode 4, i can’t imagine this goes anywhere good. Waiting until the season finale Friday to watch the last three.

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TC wrote:Mare Of Easttown - kate winslet plays a small-town pennsylvania detective investigating murder of a teen mother. watched the first two episodes so far, liking it. i like kate, and man does she nail the idiosyncrasies of the philly accent. i mean nails. it's pretty impressive. based on e2 ending, this is going to get very ugly in a good way. will keep you posted.
This show wrapped up last night. I loved it. Well, that’s a strong word - I loved parts of it, but really liked it overall. kate is a tour de force and other cliches in this. Yes, the SNL “Murder Durdur” skit was funny, but this show was also good. In the end it was about mothers dealing with grief (surprise, surprise). Only seven eps so i suggest giving it a shot if you at all dig kate. Evan Peters is in several episodes too, who i quite like. Jean smart is kate’s mom, also fantastic.

[youtube][/youtube]

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Home Before Dark - apple tv show inspired by the real life of Hilde Lysiak, a 9-year old "reporter" who helped solve a murder case. "inspired by" is key - this isn't telling the story of the actual crime, it's wildly fictionalized but still centered around a 9-year old reporter that helps solve not only a murder but a 30-year old missing child case. i saw s2 is coming out so figured i'd check out one episode. well, i think we ended up binging this in two days. it really sucks you in. somehow, given that the story really centers around child abduction and murder, it's not really dark. moments of it feel like a lifetime movie. it's really about their family, and i'd call it family friendly. but man is it pretty damn good. very well written, and only one of the child actors is supremely annoying (not the lead, she's great). a couple of the female leads are Justified alumni (ava crowder being one). very much recommend checking it out. and the true story is pretty crazy, if you feel like checking that out.

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TC wrote:Mosquito Coast - four episodes into this and it’s pretty fucking great. i haven’t read the book but am familiar with the story thanks to the Harrison Ford film in the ‘80s. Crazy that Thoroux is starring in it, given that his uncle wrote the book. Seems like he did a lot of work digging into this, and brings some family history to the part. Given what just happened at the end of episode 4, i can’t imagine this goes anywhere good. Waiting until the season finale Friday to watch the last three.
wrapped up s1 on this. holy shit this show is pretty intense. granted, so many of the issues they all face are their own fault here, but even so - tense. well-acted, great action and stakes are high. i'd recommend it.

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Possession (1981) - i didn't remember most of this from when i must have seen it back in the day. while the new transfer looks great, the audio is what it is. most of it seemed captured live in the moment from room mics, so in large hallways or rooms with tall ceilings (most of the scenes), it gets difficult to even make out what's being said. rather, yelled. at least the first half of the film is mainly about a couple yelling at each other all the time. it gets really irritating. but then it takes a hard - HARD - left turn into something else. it ended up being really cool, i quite appreciate it. if you haven't seen it, or haven't seen it in a while, do check it out. it's a trip, and sam neill rules as always.

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The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It - forgot to mention we watched this last weekend. it's entertaining. glosses veeeeery quickly over the reality of the premise (and the real case details) in favor of the "untold real story". it's pretty ludicrous but like i said, entertaining. couple good effects scenes. the real case pretty much went like this: Defendant - "I was possessed." Judge - "Nope." Defendant - "OK, let's call it self-defense." this makes it seem like the idea was actually entertained in a legal sense. shrug. don't know what anyone expects from a conjuring film.

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The first film I see in a theater since Rise of Skywalker and its... F9, aka Fast & Furious 9. Back before Kevin Smith became a complete repetitive stoned out hack (yes, I know some will say he always has been), he had the good sense to say he was retiring the Jay and Silent Bob characters (after the original Strikes Back) because there was no place left to go with them. He said, "What's left, Jay and Silent Bob in Space?" The implication being when your Earthbound franchise reaches the point they go into space, you know it's officially creatively bankrupt. F9 went to space. I don't think I need to offer any more review of the film than that.
Just cut them up like regular chickens