Recently watched movies

[Pseudonym]

Nah, it won't be quite that good but the graphics on the new consoles are pretty stunning. A lot of the new releases can transition between game play and cut scenes pretty smoothly which helps it look slick. I've just started playing a game that was released last year, the most recent I have at the moment, and I'm pretty impressed by it so far. Beyond Good and Evil 2 doesn't have a release date yet, which makes me think it'll be further advanced than the current releases, and since the consoles are relatively new I'm hoping they have the processing power to actually pull it off. Or at least something similar. We'll see.

Some of the final releases on the last consoles managed some jaw dropping visuals, your character runs around a corner and suddenly an amazing vista opens up in front of you. Pretty much anyone who played The Last of Us will wax poetic about it, the story is incredibly powerful (and brutal), but it also looks gorgeous. This is concept art, but it's pretty much spot on to how it looks in the game. 

 

[sittything]

Last of Us is a visually stunning game... 

[Pseudonym]

 Isn't it? And it's something that's really stuck with me. Have you seen the concept art book? It's amazing. There's also a 'making of' documentary on YouTube that I've watched I don't know how many times... long but if you're interested in anything from the art, to the acting, to the music and so on I highly recommend it. 

 

[sittything]

Thanks, I'll check it out!   I've never seen much on it other than the little I've played and some online youtube gameplay.

[Caya]

Modern console games can be amazing visually, yep - a friend and I started playing Detroit: Become Human last week and it's absolutely jaw-dropping aesthetically, and packs a wallop emotionally. I'm usually more of a PC gamer, but the consoles sure are gaining.

eta: Trailer:

 

[T.o.b.y]

On 7/6/2018 at 9:10 AM, Pseudonym said:

I don't think we have a gaming thread, since no else seems to be much into it, but how awesome is this trailer? I wish this was a film (though I'll happily play the game too). 

 

Feel free to open up a gaming thread, Pseudonym! I doubt you are the only person who likes video games around here. 

[Pseudonym]

I don't think there would be much point. 

[Caya]

Why not? I for one am always happy for a chance to talk about games (preferably without the usual suspects ruining the mood, and they won't get a chance here *lovingly caresses modstick*). And we might get others interested - games are so much more these days than just shooters and free-to-play cashgrabs, but those get all the press usually.  

[Pseudonym]

I suspect it'll be one of those threads that has life for a few days and then dies a quiet death. Maybe I'll set one up later - for now I'm off to be all 'independent laydee' and build a fence out the garden. 

[Fantasy Lover]

In case you're interested, there is going to be a second part of the last of us. Here is the trailer: https://youtu.be/qPNiIeKMHyg.

 

Anyway, back on the topic of movies!

 

Finally saw incredibles 2 and I'm a bit disappointed, I feel like nothing really changed. Violet goes on a date with her crush like the first movie, Violet and Dash are again reduced to babysitters despite the first movie implying they're going to work together with their parents and they didn't catched The Underminer! Lucius wife is still unseen, it wasn't hard to deduce who the villain was and then there was those bright, flashing lights which hurt my eyes and is bad for kids with epilepsy! I give it a 6/10

 

And since nobody has made a review yet, I'll be the first to review Solo. God, it's so bad. Spoilers/ ranting below

 

Spoiler

 

- Han and his love interest Qi'ra has same bad chemistry as Anakin and Padme

 

- speaking about Qi'ra, she betrays Han for no reason at all and it's just a lame, half-assed attempt at shock value

 

- I don't even care about Qi'ra betrayal because she was introduced 5 minutes into the movie then forcibly removed from Han and then she CONVENIENTLY meets him again only to betray him at the climax! Don't introduce a character who has like 35 minutes of screentime only to betray her boyfriend and then expect me to care!

 

- they ruined Lando by flirting with Han and having feelings for a goddamn droid!

 

- Darth Maul is in this movie for no reason WHATSOEVER except for a second lame, half-assed attempt at shock value

 

- Han got his surname because he tried to leave his hometown illegally and was alone at the time, so an imperial employee came with Solo! I already couldn't take the name seriously because it's a brand of butter here, but this is just lame!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Carol the Dabbler]

So you're saying I might as well get out my DVD and watch the original Incredibles again?

[Fantasy Lover]

Why not? I certainly did, it's weird how much 14 years can do to perspective.

 

For example: I feel like the movie was a commentary on the participation trophy mentality in the US (at least I think it's in the US) because of the whole "when everyone is special, no one is" and pretending that everyone is equally special is wrong, because some people really are better at certain things than others, and trying to bring them down to the level of everyone else will ultimately only make everyone worse off.

 

And Syndrome behaves like every jilted star wars fanboy ever because when something didn't live up to his expectations, he declared war on it.

[Carol the Dabbler]

Interesting analysis.  I don't recall enough to comment.  Now I've really got to watch it again!

[Arcadia]

I loved the first Incredibles, but I agree the second one was pretty 'meh.' (Meaning: not interesting.) Too serious. In fact, I'd actually forgotten I'd seen it until I read Fantasy's review!  

[HerlockSholmes]

Just out of curiosity has anyone seen Denial with Timothy Spall? 

[J.P.]

The one with Mark Gatis and Rachel Weisz?

[SherlockedCAMPer]

Yes, loved it. I own it on DVD. It was well done. It’s worth watching at least once. It can be hard to watch because of the subject matter but was handled in a reasonably respectful manner.

[Detective]

You Were Never Really Here - 6/10

[Detective]

I am Legend - 6/10

[Van Buren Supernova]

Watched a a couple of movies.

 

Ant Man, entertaining enough. 7.5/10

Does Paul Rudd age at all? I was surprised to read that he had played Michelle Peiffer's love interest before and now she is the mother of his love interest. Anyway, he is fun. But I think it's just another superhero movie, although it's worth to be entertained, and has a little bit of reference to Infinity War.

 

Distorted. 5/10

Christina Ricci and John Cussack. Let me say it, this movie sucks big time. It wants to be artsy, it wants to be intriguing, it wants to be clever. Fail. Fail. Fail. But maybe I don't need to waste my time to review it since I don't think anyone watches this. 

 

Skyscraper. 7/10

With the Rock. I think he has become a franchise.

The bad. Well, not much originality in this movie. Basically it's Die Hard, Towering Inferno but it knows that. Well of course, there are a lot of things that are difficult to believe, a lot more unnecessary actions and cheesiness that would make the movie better if they get rid of those. The villains are quite over the top.

The good. At least, it makes a good effort to create a background story for the main character. It has cool building concept which I find interesting. It has decent action minus the cheesy and above. It embraces the setting (Hong Kong) with some local actors and languages.

 

Hotel Transylvaiananana (sp?) 8/10

I give it nice subjective rating because I felt entertained. Had never seen the previous prequel and almost didn't want to catch it but I did. I had fun, I like the characters and the big doggy, had a couple of laughs. And it does what I expect from an animation, to entertain me. I guess not knowing the predecessor helps. 

 

Back story.

I stay away from everyone I care about, I had embraced watching movie alone when I have spare time, since I don't hang out with anyone but my dog. I have a lot of things I want to do in bigger scale but my life evolves around him. After our usual weekend outing and walk, he selfishly wants to sleep so usually I catch some movies to rest my back. I appreciate movie industry and like the experience in cinema when I don't get distracted, especially non popular movie where it's mostly empty. The theatres are more affordable but very decent. So I do watch a lot of movies when I have the chance.

[Pseudonym]

Aw, I love Paul Rudd. And no he doesn't age. He looks a bit older than he did in Clueless but not 23 years older. 

[T.o.b.y]

Ugh, Clueless. I feel about that one much like I do about Emma, the novel it is based on - slightly disturbed and a little outraged on Emma's behalf. I do not like that pompous twit, Mr Knightly, nor his modern day counterpart, although the actor himself is great and often very funny. 

I never liked how Emma / Cher was belittled. I actually saw a lot in her and she deserved better than to be patronized by that self-righteous Mr Perfect. 

[Pseudonym]

Well, no, I can't say it's my favourite either. I watched it as a young teen, so was likely the target audience, and was pretty underwhelmed. Don't know anything about Emma, is it another one of those period dramas? Because I despise those. 

[T.o.b.y]

7 minutes ago, Pseudonym said:

Well, no, I can't say it's my favourite either. I watched it as a young teen, so was likely the target audience, and was pretty underwhelmed. Don't know anything about Emma, is it another one of those period dramas? Because I despise those. 

Emma is a novel by Jane Austen. A very good one imho but it has the same problem with the character of the love interest. But ok, it was written in the 1790s. I would have thought a modern retelling would have been at least a teeny bit more progressive. 

[Pseudonym]

Yup, exactly the thing I hate then. I haven't read any of Austin's books, since I know they are not my thing, but I hate all those period film and TV adaptations; Pride and Prejudice being the prime example. I was strong armed into watching North & South years ago and almost died of boredom... I think it's those stories where the men are moody b*stards but are meant to be (secretly) swoon-worthy, the women are all 'spirited' but it borders on irritatingly uppity... and the language, where the 'dramatic' moments are so wordy and swathed in prim language they lose all impact and interest for me. 

I know plenty of people love period dramas, so clearly I'm an outlier, but god I find them dull. But then I love a good gory action or crime thriller so it's not much of a surprise I don't like period stuff. Daphne de Maurier's work is darker and more sinister, and yet it seems to be adapted in a very similar way when it's filmed. I don't know if there are any modern adaptations of her stories (set in the modern day, not just made recently).

On modern retellings, in school I had to watch a modern version of Macbeth. It was so, SO bad. 

On the topic of films, anyone seen Primal Fear? That's a damn good film, but really it's only the ending, and Edward Norton's fantastic acting that make it so brilliant. 

Also I saw the new Jumanji the other day, I thought it was great fun.