Movies (recently seen)

[ChubbyTeletubby]

Sean of the Dead was great, if for no other reason than the antics of that one guy who was constantly texting on his cell phone. Sean would basically be fighting off hordes of zombies while his friend would be standing right next to him, texting away and helping in no way whatsoever.

And the end was pretty funny. They pretty much just turn all the zombies into slaves, pretty much eliminating all of the minimum-wage jobs.

[Dragavan]

I think I'm probably the only person that liked The Postman.

Nope, I liked it too... not great, but good enough for me to like.

[apotheosis]

Finally got around to seeing True Romance. Loved it, I would say Quentin Tarantino 3rd best, behind Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction.

Also The Mist was pretty entertaining. Great ending.

Avatar was also pretty awesome in Imax 3D

That's all, continue with your discussions.

[Ryan_DuBois]

I've never even heard of True Romance... I'll have to check it out (along with Wally when I get around to it). I've read The Mist (which was an excellent short story... Stephen King at his best) and I've heard good things about it, so hopefully I'll get a chance to rent that one, too.

As for Avatar... I just got back from seeing it. My feelings are so mixed I can't even rate it. On one hand, the graphics and special effects were beautiful. It would have been cool to see in IMAX. On the other hand, I didn't much care for the story, and I couldn't bring myself to totally "accept" the ending (i.e. it didn't feel believable).

Oh, and one dude ends up screwing (not figuratively) one of those blue cat-creature things. That doesn't necessarily make the movie better or worse -- I'm just throwing it out there.

[Ryan_DuBois]

Aaaand I saw Halloween 2 (2009). It was fucking WEIRD. But oddly... I didn't mind it that much. It almost would have worked better if it had been a movie all by itself, without any prior films or anything. In other words, I think Rob Zombie should have created another story entirely... there wasn't really any reason to make this into a "Halloween" movie.

Anyway, it wasn't as good as Rob Zombie's first Halloween film, but I think a couple people on this site might get a kick out of it.

[End Master]

The beginning was pretty promising, but overall I didn't really care for his Halloween 2 movie, as it seemed like a muddled mess. I heard initially he wasn't really interested in doing a sequel in the first place though. I think he ended up just doing it mainly because the Weinstien Company was offering him a bunch of money since they figured a sequel would be as successful as the first one.

He's going a little overboard with putting his wife in EVERY movie he makes at this point too. I almost got the impression he did the whole "ghostly Mother Myers" thing mainly so Sheri could have a major part in the movie. Then again it's his movie so if he wants his wife in it, I suppose he can do what the hell he wants.

Still looking forward to whatever new movie he puts out next though.

Saw Paranormal Activity recently. I normally don't go for those Blair Witch Project type movies (Especially since I hated the first BWP) but this one was okay.

Still, the couple in the movie do some really dumb stuff in it. I can usually accept dumb stuff if its a "regular movie" but when its done in the "documentary/real" style, anything that the characters do that's obviously idiotic ends up coming off as even worse. (For fuck's sake don't use a goddamn Ouija Board to contact an already pissed off demon!)

I liked the alternative ending better than the theatrical one.

[ChubbyTeletubby]

AVATAR.

What a jaw dropper. The 3D gave it that extra KICK - but it didn't go overboard.

I tend to be skeptical when I hear buzz about a CGI-driven film. I've lost all interest in "special effects".

I thought.

This movie stayed true to the hype and went even beyond that. This is one you HAVE to go see in the theater.

For Christ's sake, see this movie. It's just amazing. CGI was used to create an entire world that's vivid and believable. The real life action and CGI-driven action are seamlessly interwoven.

[Usoki]

Avatar was visually impressive, and I liked that the 3D was used throughout, but never went overboard. There were no random gimmicky 'woo protrude into the audience for no reason' effects. My friend, who'd already seen it, tells me that the CGI looks better, less cartoon-y in 2D, but I'm not sure what he's talking about. I didn't find it cartoony.

The setting is very interesting, immersive, and fantastical. It's awesome, and the movie does a good job of exploring various aspects of it, while still keeping it a movie, and not a documentary.

However... the actual plotline sucks. A lot. So don't see it for the plot. See it for the setting- it's still totally worth it.

[Dragavan]

Do you really see ANY Cameron movie for deep plot? He is the master of making a linear obvious plot fun and exciting and worth watching even though you know exactly what's gonna happen all the way through.

Terminator (and T2 for that matter)... you know, for a time travel movie this thing is exceptionally linear in plot and obvious from the first kill what's gonna happen through the movie... but we love it.

Aliens... again, the plot is pretty much a straight line as soon as we learn of the kid being a survivor... but who cares, it rocks.

Titanic... yeah... simple love story about class-crossed lovers and then hours of a boat sinking... But became the top grossing movie of all time because people loved it.

Why should we expect anything more from the plot of Avatar? We don't see Cameron movies for plot. We see them for great characterization and amazing action/special effects that carry us through what would otherwise be a boring linear plot... and add amazing 3D to the mix and we have a sure-fire winner.

[Usoki]

Have I seen any James Cameron movie, other than Avatar? Probably not. I haven't seen any of the movies you mentioned, so...

I rarely watch movies, as I seldom have the desire or attention span to sit down and watch one. As such, I really couldn't tell you which directors go to what movies. Except Lucas, obviously. And there's a 50/50 on Spielberg. That's about it. And let's not even get started on my inability to name most actors...

[apotheosis]

And let's not even get started on my inability to name most actors...

Just no matter who it is or what the question is, the answer is always Philip Seymour Hoffman. That is how you win discussing actors, because even if he wasn't in the role, the role probably would have been more entertaining with him playing it.


Annnnyywwwayyy. Avatar had amazing effects, and the plot was pretty standard for that type of film but going in with the expectations I did I was impressed all around. Already the second highest grossing film of all times, Cameron knows what he is doing.

[Ryan_DuBois]

The fact of the matter is that "Avatar" contains a man hooking up with a blue cat.

[End Master]

I've been seeing a couple of articles popping up that a lot of people were feeling depressed and suicidal after watching Avatar.

I haven't seen the movie, but I'm assuming that these suicidal people are just being overly dramatic idiots. The movie can't possibly be that bad or morbid.

[Locke]

Avatar was fun. Saw it in 3d Imax; would've been even better if the theater wasn't completely packed (and the smaller-than-average seats were squeezed VERY close together for some reason). I finally found an open one next to a truly immense guy who overlapped both his own armrests; I figured it wouldn't be too uncomfortable, but the air conditioning didn't work very well either, and the man just kept radiating this unbelievable body heat throughout. I'd worn three coats to deal with the weather (I hate being cold), and had nowhere to really put them; it was like a sauna.

As well, the 3d glasses the place used were tinted (I have no idea why), so the cool visuals lost some effect as the otherworldly colors were a bit muted. If, as I expect, the movie's success inspires future releases in a similar vein, I'll probably end up buying some decent shutter glasses somewhere to avoid that sort of thing.

"Ink" was also aesthetically beautiful with novel effects (though, particularly because of its lower budget, there's no comparing the two movies). Very chill with an excellent soundtrack; definitely something to relax to.

[Ryan_DuBois]

The Invention of Lying... was okay. It has an interesting premise and it even started off well, but it was short and started to become too predictable. And I have no clue why it had to have corny religious humor in it (hence reminding me of the "Almighty" movies a little).

So the basic idea was very original, but the movie itself wasn't so much. That being said, it was kinda funny in certain parts and it had a good soundtrack.

7.5