At 1/26/16 05:27 PM, Sense-Offender wrote: I feel like the picture never looks like what I see on other people's TVs, but I dunno. I tend to have trouble telling, but what I usually notice most is what I guess is the framerate. Movement is odd/different when I see HD movies on someone else's TV. I have my stuff through HDMI and my satellite service does not have SD channels.

Some TVs do this thing where they artificially add in extra frames to make things look smoother, that might be what you're seeing. It's apparently really good for sports but arguably bad for films. It doesn't make a drastic change but it's definitely perceptibly "different", and can make films "feel" worse since cheaper, digital cameras used in reality TV and such capture a higher fps than films filmed with actual film (film). You can usually turn it off but most of the unwashed masses probably don't even notice it.

I assume it's just the TVs I use but I've also had problems with consoles defaulting to standard definition. On both the 360 and xbone I had to manually set the resolution to 1080p for some reason.

I only collect blu rays on the odd occasion I buy a movie but depending on your tv there's really not that much difference in a blu ray and a good quality dvd. I watched Lucky Number Slevin (obscure artisan shit, I know) on dvd not that long ago and was really impressed at how good it looked, though idk if the bonerbox helped out with upscaling or anything like that. Even with full HD televisions commonplace now I think difference between dvd and blu ray is definitely overblown for the vast majority of normal people with normal sized screens.

At 1/26/16 05:27 PM, Sense-Offender wrote: All except one of those are under 10 bucks US. I'd pay that for DVDs.

I'm a cheapskate and I usually won't pay more than $5 for a movie, often I'm not even willing to pay that much. Pretty much my entire DVD collection is from the Wal-Mart $5 bin.

I watched Where the Wild Things Are. I have never read the book, so I can't tell if it's in any way a faithful adaptation.

I agree with some reactions that it seems a bit depressing for a children's film. Not that that's a problem in itself, but I feel like it won't appeal to kids much.

I can see that they did their best to make something good and original out of it though. I like the idea of having the monsters represent certain emotions and the CGI was very well done. It's just that the execution generally could have been better in my opinion. I never got a sense of wonder from it and the story seemed a little bit too shallow to really make the film interesting.

At 1/26/16 03:23 PM, Jolly wrote:

At 1/26/16 12:50 PM, TheMaster wrote: Was in Edinburgh again, so made the pilgrimage to Fopp, a magical land of cheap blu-rays and a great selection of (not cheap) specialist labels like Masters of Cinema and Artificial Eye too.

Moving to a city with TWO Fopps in March. I'll be destitute by Easter.

Those seem expensive by American price standards. Except the girl trilogy, that's a good deal regardless. Some shops have a box full of DVDs and blu-rays that are all $5, you usually have to dig through a ton to get the blu-rays though.

I think €10 is about the standard price here as well. New releases are €15 or so. They do have these big boxes full of DVDs, but what you find there is usually garbage or films that everybody and their mother has on his shelf already anyway like Reservoir Dogs.

I feel like books are also needlessly expensive here. EBooks are sometimes sold for about the same price as the physical copies and it's cheaper to order them from the US or the UK instead of buying them in the stores or webshops here.

At 1/30/16 09:37 PM, Centaurora wrote: Anyone here seen the movie Fight Club? By far one of my favorite movies of all time.

Everybody here has seen Fight Club. Probably not even an exaggeration. It's a great movie but at this point it's not that high up on my favorite movie list.

At 1/30/16 09:48 PM, Jolly wrote:

At 1/30/16 09:37 PM, Centaurora wrote: Anyone here seen the movie Fight Club? By far one of my favorite movies of all time.

Everybody here has seen Fight Club. Probably not even an exaggeration. It's a great movie but at this point it's not that high up on my favorite movie list.

the narrative aged liked milk tbh

it's the ending that fucks everything up

#moviebuffs love to hate on Fight Club but it's still one of my absolute favourites and one of the most influential films I've seen. To ballpark it I'd say it's in my top twenty at least.

At 1/31/16 07:44 PM, Jackho wrote: #moviebuffs love to hate on Fight Club but it's still one of my absolute favourites and one of the most influential films I've seen. To ballpark it I'd say it's in my top twenty at least.

I don't hate it, but it seems like every wannabe movie buff says their favorite movie is Fight Club. To be honest if someone says it's their favorite movie I assume they've probably not seen very many movies at all. It is a great movie though, and I'll be the first to admit I used to consider it my favorite movie, but as time has gone by and I've seen more movies it's become lower and lower on my imaginary favorite movie list. It's probably still one of my top 20 favorite movies but it's definitely not top 20 best movies I've seen.

At 1/31/16 08:12 PM, Jolly wrote: I don't hate it, but it seems like every wannabe movie buff says their favorite movie is Fight Club. To be honest if someone says it's their favorite movie I assume they've probably not seen very many movies at all.

It's a sort of landing pad for movie buffs in larvae form, or "baby's first serious film" if you want, but more experienced movie watch guys can be just as try-hard when they scoff at it. Same as The Shawshank Redemption and Pulp Fiction, though tbh I do have considerably less respect for someone who says Shawshank is their favourite movie. Those three are all very good but if they're in your top five it just gives the impression you haven't actually found your own tastes yet. Sort of like people who think they're way above pop music since they started listening to some massively popular classic rock.

Not that I know what I'm talking about though, I'm so basic I have Back to the Future and Star Wars posters in my room.

At 1/31/16 08:31 PM, Jackho wrote: I do have considerably less respect for someone who says Shawshank is their favourite movie.

Shawshank is the best movie ever because it's #1 on IMDb

At 1/31/16 08:31 PM, Jackho wrote: It's a sort of landing pad for movie buffs in larvae form, or "baby's first serious film" if you want, but more experienced movie watch guys can be just as try-hard when they scoff at it. Same as The Shawshank Redemption and Pulp Fiction, though tbh I do have considerably less respect for someone who says Shawshank is their favourite movie.

Pulp Fiction was legitimately revolutionary when it was released, though. Sure, it's shallow and indulgent and that's why kids love it, but it's also a genuine formal and structural marvel. Can't really say the same of the other two.

Those three are all very good but if they're in your top five it just gives the impression you haven't actually found your own tastes yet. Sort of like people who think they're way above pop music since they started listening to some massively popular classic rock.

Yeah, which in and of itself is fine of course, especially if you're very young as most of the people who claim those movies as their favorites are.

Not that I know what I'm talking about though, I'm so basic I have Back to the Future and Star Wars posters in my room.

Uh, sorry this thread is for serious cineastes only, get lost normie.

The only film posters I own are for 2001 and My Neighbor Totoro so it's not like I've gotten super deep with it either.

At 1/31/16 01:12 AM, Natick wrote: the narrative aged liked milk tbh

I'd say that's true of most movies from that little late '90s microgenre of "thirtysomething white collar white dude feels ennui about turn-of-the-millennium life and rebels against it" stories (see also: American Beauty). 15 years of terrorism, recession and renewed cultural attention to systemic racism and sexism later these guys' struggles with feeling too safe and secure seem awfully quaint. That's why my favorite of these movies is Office Space. It's the only one with an appropriate sense of scale and a mature perspective, genuinely sympathizing with its protagonist's gripes while also acknowledging how petty they are.

Going to see Deadpool on Wednesday.

At 2/5/16 12:15 PM, wolfe wrote: Going to see Deadpool on Wednesday.

I'm hoping to also see it at some point. My friends said they were down to go.

At 2/5/16 02:48 PM, Centaurora wrote:

At 2/5/16 12:37 PM, Sense-Offender wrote:

At 2/5/16 12:15 PM, wolfe wrote: Going to see Deadpool on Wednesday.

I'm hoping to also see it at some point. My friends said they were down to go.

I wasn't planning on seeing it but mu friend asked me to see it with him.

In my case, I brought it up because I want to see R rated action movies sell more theater tickets. What I'd really like to see when it comes out, though, is John Wick 2. I never go to the movies by myself so it's only if anyone else wants to see it. I don't go nearly as much anymore. We used to go even if we didn't really know what we wanted to see.

I went to see The Assassin.

It was both the prettiest and the dullest film I have seen in a long time. Gorgeous imagery, but a bare bones story dragged out to the point of absurdity and populated entirely by boring po-faced characters who exist only to stand around looking grim and serious or to dump exposition about 8th century Chinese politics.

Super disappointed, was excited for it.

Want to get out to see Spotlight some time this week. Maybe tomorrow. Might sneak in a viewing of Creed too if I can find the time.

At 2/8/16 01:43 PM, TheMaster wrote: I went to see The Assassin.

It was both the prettiest and the dullest film I have seen in a long time. Gorgeous imagery, but a bare bones story dragged out to the point of absurdity and populated entirely by boring po-faced characters who exist only to stand around looking grim and serious or to dump exposition about 8th century Chinese politics.

Super disappointed, was excited for it.

yeah, i've been told that it isn't the friendliest introduction to hou hsiao-hsien, who i also wasn't familiar with until seeing this

been watching a lot of slow cinema lately (tsai ming-liang and antonioni in particular) and sometimes i have the same reaction but the assassin left me in a kind of trance both during and long after i had seen it. i wish i could fully explain what i mean by that other than a post-viewing kind of power many of the scenes left on me, despite having no historical context for the story itself. the scene that still sticks with me is the one that takes place entirely with the curtain covering the frame as the military governor explains his relationship to his would-be killer to his wife and after 6-7 minutes, we cut to shu qi eavesdropping on them the whole time. there's a kind of delicate grace to the whole experience that i often don't get from period pieces that still retain that kind of formalism and commitment to a realistic pace

Watched The Martian.

Generally a good sci-fi film I think. Could've used a bit more drama though. It was hard to believe Mark Watney would stay so optimistic and confident the whole time without ever breaking. Also, I felt like the film was a little heavy on clichés in some parts, especially with the characters. On the other hand, I liked how the Chinese were not portrayed as the bad guys for once.

Deadpool lived up to the hype. For me anyway.

Watched a few movies lately. I watched Kung Fu Killer (Donnie Yen's latest), the Interview, Machine Gun Preacher and the Brothers Bloom. The Brothers Bloom was enjoyable and made me laugh a few times. Kung Fu Killer had some pretty good fights. The Interview wasn't nearly as funny as Pineapple Express or really even as funny as This is the End, but still not too bad. Machine Gun Preacher, I smell bullshit.

I've had a few movies sitting for a while that I haven't gotten around to such as Waking Life, Pierrot le Fou, Alphaville, Gone Girl, the Place Beyond the Pines and some others. Dunno when I'll feel like it. Also rewatched Inherent Vice, which I think grew on me more, though I did already like it just fine. And I was showing the Brave Little Toaster to my niece when I babysat this weekend and shit, that's a heavier movie for a child than I recalled. I remembered to skip the clown nightmare and I skipped the part with the flower just in case (she's more likely to be upset by sad stuff than get scared), but forgot the guy murdering the blender. Luckily she was distracted during that part. But that "worthless" song with the cars at the dump, jeez.

Me and some friends were bored and decided to marathon the Sharknado trilogy.

I have no idea at what point the creators stopped taking their idea seriously. Like whether it was at the end of film 3 when they ended with sharks in space or whether they never took it seriously to begin with. The first film at least seemed like an honest attempt at a slasher/horror flick, but it failed horribly due to a $100 budget for the special effects.

The second film was actually the best one to me. It was the most "so bad it's funny"-film of the three. We were joking about Judd Hirsch looking like a budget Robert de Niro, but now I see he's actually an Oscar nominated actor who played in some pretty big films. No idea how he ended up in this.

The third one had some pretty funny cameos. I was surprised to see G.R.R. Martin and David Hasselhoff in it. The cameos are probably the best thing about this film series anyway.

In other news, I signed up for Netflix yesterday. Their library is a bit random here though. For example they have Toy Story 2, but not Toy Story 1 or 3. They have Lord of the Rings and Twilight 1 but not Harry Potter. I suppose if you're specifically looking for something they're unlikely to have it, but if you're bored you can probably find something good to watch. I'll see if it's worth it or not.

Black Phillip told me to tell you guys to go see The Witch.

I went to see Deadpool on Thursday night. Honestly didn't think much of it. There were some good moments but I just didn't find it all that interesting. I'm not familiar with Deadpool as a character at all really, but just based on looks, I was expecting him to be up against a much more interesting enemy than what he got.

Also saw Agent 47 the other day which was nothing amazing either but it did have a few entertaining action scenes. Have to admit, I got a little giddy when I saw the Blood Money reference with the duck floating in the bathtub. I remember that image being on the cover of an Official PlayStation 2 magazine I bought way back then.

Just remember that I also saw Barbarella recently. There's a bit of a trend here, but it wasn't anything special. It was definitely worth watching just for the strangeness of it all and it was entertaining in a weird way. It's one of those so bad it's actually quite good type of films.

At 2/21/16 08:57 AM, Dr-Worm wrote: Black Phillip told me to tell you guys to go see The Witch.

that was a lot better than i was expecting it to be

does anyone know if it was shot in natural light though? we spent the whole time squinting at the projection because it was too dark

Hail, Caesar! is a lot of fun.

I have been so hyped for the The Witch for months. Still a couple of weeks away over here, though.

Saw Spotlight and Bone Tomahawk last weekend. Both good, Spotlight was a solid, by the numbers drama, if a little televisual. Bone Tomahawk was not what I was expecting from a cowboys vs cavemen film. Really strong characters and great atmosphere. Loses it's way a little in the middle when it gets into the standard western gubbins with Mexican bandits and stolen horses, but great other than that.

At 2/22/16 12:50 AM, Natick wrote: does anyone know if it was shot in natural light though? we spent the whole time squinting at the projection because it was too dark

Everything except for night exteriors, apparently.

It's a dark movie in general, but if it really looked too dark that could also be because a lot of multiplexes nowadays are so careless and lazy that they don't bother to remove the special 3-D lenses on digital projectors for 2-D screenings, which can make the image appear significantly darker.

Local cinema has started their Oscar season.

Only one I'm tempted by is Inside Out because I absolutely adored it when I finally got around to watching it at home.

Is Trumbo worth a look? Seemed very flat from the trailer.

Saw The Witch tonight. I completely respect the film for being a faithful telling of traditional puritan folktales, but I think I respect the concept more than the execution. It provides this essential link from the past to modern American horror so it gives you this really neat perspective on horror without being smarmy and full of how clever it is like Cabin in the Woods. That being said it was all build up (which was done well) without a good enough payoff and a conclusion that bordered on silly.

don't tell anyone but I maybe watched some moviefilms shhh

Don't remember if I mentioned The Big Short on here but it was good enough, not spectacular. I might agree with the MOST IMPORTANT FILM EVER MUST WATCH OMG comments in that it explains a fairly opaque subject very clearly and needed to be made, but I definitely wouldn't go piling awards onto it either with how smug and patronizing it is to actually watch.

Room is real good, much better than I was expecting with such a young actor in the lead role but he nails it. It did feel unintentionally exploitative though, which dampens it a good bit. They never actually acknowledge that it's based on a true story.

Steve Jobs was great. The Fass Master fasses and the Sorkin sorks, but I don't know how enjoyable or easy to follow it would be to someone who has no knowledge of Jobs or Apple. There's a lot of "technical" stuff that's just mentioned and not explained, like the main focus is the relationship between Steve and Lisa, but they never actually say what the Apple LISA was or why it's significant. I can see a good bit of the script going over the heads of Johnny Average Moviegoer Man & co even though it's very much made for them moreso than Apple / general computer enthusiasts. As someone who knows a decent amount about Jobs and vintage computers (enough to know each computer as it was mentioned) but hasn't read the biography this was adapted from, I can genuinely say I enjoyed it from start to finish. Can't say yet if it's as good as The Social Network but it definitely could be.

Carol didn't click with me at all, sorry fambos. It's well made in every respect and Rooney Mara is excellent, I just didn't like either character (particularly Carol herself) and didn't care what happened to them. I'll watch it again some time but I don't think this one is for me. Reminded me somewhat of In The Mood For Love which I'm not overly fond of either.

also been looking forward to The Witch for a while now, but this review and its comments have put me off seeing it in the cinema. How was everyone else's experience on that end?

edit: Slow West is rly good and at 87 minutes everyone should watch it literally right now

At 2/12/16 03:19 PM, wolfe wrote: Deadpool lived up to the hype. For me anyway.

I will be seeing it soon. I have heard good things about it.

At 2/28/16 01:03 PM, DoctorStrongbad wrote:

At 2/12/16 03:19 PM, wolfe wrote: Deadpool lived up to the hype. For me anyway.

I will be seeing it soon. I have heard good things about it.

Still not seen it? I'm going for a third time on Tuesday :) You won't be disappointed.