Film Reviews - what have you seen lately, what did you think?

[gingerlover]

So this is going to sound weird... but is Tom Cruise one of the best actors that has never won an Oscar?
He may be a whack job in real life but on screen he has done, mostly, a fantastic job in just about every movie he's been in.
There have been a few duds and head scratchers but overall - I can name quite a few Cruise movies that were damn good.
Or...
Maybe he just a lucky toolbag... dunno...?

I think he hasn’t won an Oscar because most of his indy/dramatic roles have been the dud for the most part or he was overshadowed by another performance ala Jack Nicholson in a few good men. He is fantastic in his action roles and feel like he has gotten better through the years, but for the most part if your movie makes money your not getting an Oscar, especially for action.

As much of a whack job he is I usually watch most of his stuff and aside from Tom Hanks probably own more of his than others. He has perfected that action role and seems to actually enjoy them.

 

[ThreatMatrix]

Is there a tv show review thread?

Just put it here. F 'em.
Altered Carbon Netflix. In the future your consciousness can be downloaded into another body. Essentially you would never die unless somebody shoots you in your "stack". We start the series as our hero, some kind of special forces operative, wakes in a new "sleeve". He is commissioned by wealthy patron to find out who killed him (the patron). Pretty standard fare in the 1st season but then it gets really weird in season two. Any way all the sci-fi stuff isn' the best thing about this series it's the full frontal nudity! In the season finale (idk, maybe, wasn't paying that much attention) a girl, Dichen Lachman*, who is in some way connected to the plot goes all rambo, except she's a clone and every time she dies she just reloads, and she's totally neekid the whole time. Joe-Bob says check it out.

Dichen Lachman for science purposes

 

[gingerlover]

Ozark - Season 2 (Netflix) - Picks up right where last year left off. They are still trying to make everything work and get out alive. This season introduces some new faces and as always with shows like this you lose a few along the way as well. Most you see coming. My problem with this season is it seems they tried to cram to much into it. It had so many moving parts at one point other story lines got lost in the shuffle. They also pushed the envelope a little and had a few WTF moments that weren't really needed aside from one. It was still a good season, but hopefully in season 3 they clean it up some more. Interested to see where this goes as the Birds insert themselves more in the community and other business ventures.

If you liked the first season then you need to keep watching. You won't think this season is as good, but still worth checking out.

For those asking they did do more in the strip club this season so there are boobs.

 

[GatorJ]

Ozark - Season 2 (Netflix) - Picks up right where last year left off. They are still trying to make everything work and get out alive. This season introduces some new faces and as always with shows like this you lose a few along the way as well. Most you see coming. My problem with this season is it seems they tried to cram to much into it. It had so many moving parts at one point other story lines got lost in the shuffle. They also pushed the envelope a little and had a few WTF moments that weren't really needed aside from one. It was still a good season, but hopefully in season 3 they clean it up some more. Interested to see where this goes as the Birds insert themselves more in the community and other business ventures.

If you liked the first season then you need to keep watching. You won't think this season is as good, but still worth checking out.

For those asking they did do more in the strip club this season so there are boobs.

I just couldn’t get into that show. I watched like the first three shows of season one and I probably fell asleep half a dozen times.

 

[ThreatMatrix]

Deadpool 2 - This was fun. I wasn't happy that they killed off my favorite eye candy in the first 10 minutes but I'll have to let that go. They introduce Cable (Jame Brolin) who is a cool character and Domino who's also pretty cool. Negasonic (becoming one of my favorites) is back with a GF Yukio. Yukio is so cute I want to eat her up with a spoon. I'd watch a Negasonic and Yukio stand alone movie. Anyway, It's a fun romp with a plot about something or other. Interesting back story to Deadpool. Death's girlfriend fell in love with Deadpool and swore they would be together when he died so Death put a curse on Deadpool so he can't die. Pretty cool huh? No boobs. Joe Bob says check it out.

Black Panther - This came through free so I figured what the hell. I could have a lot of fun reviewing this but I'm gonna play it straight. T'Challa/Black Panther returns to Wakanda to claim the thrown after his father's death. Wakanda mines Vibranium which is some kind of super material that allows Wakanda to develop all kinds of awesome tech under the stewardship of T'challa's adorable little sister Shuri. A challenger to the throne arrives Erick Kilmonger and we have a plot. Amongst the action/adventure is the Black Panther backstory that Wakanda has always kept the Vibranium to itself but our hero decides to shake things up and help the outside world. Pretty cool, huh? No boobs. Joe Bob says check it out.

Infinity Wars - Has nobody reviewed this? How do I describe it? Disappointing? Unfulfilling? I understand that the next movie may put things back together. Had I known that I would have waited until that comes out before seeing this one. I'm trying to like this movie but I'm having a hard time. They have to pull a lot of characters together which is not any easy task. There's some funny moments in it but it just feels disjointed. I found Starlord in particular to be annoying. So Thanos is collecting all the Infinity stones which causes the Avengers to cross paths with the Guardians. Iron man has new suit technology. The always annoying Pepper Potts makes an appearance. James Brolin shines as Thanos. Captain America needs a shave - he's kindof gone bizarro Captain America. I find it bothersome that the Black Widow who has no super powers is fighting Supers but whatever. Not digging the Scarlet Witch at all. For a super hero movie it lacks a super hero moment. No boobs. Joe Bob is having a hard time saying Check it out.

 

[TLB]

The Last House on the Left (2009 - remake of 1972)

Plot involves mom&dad&teenage daughter going to a lakehouse for a weekend. Parallel story line shows a bad guy (Krug) on his way to prison and being broken out by his brother and girlfriend. Quick version of plot = bad guys rape the daughter and kill her friend, think they killed the daughter; stumble to a house in the woods amid a storm (mom&dad but nobody knows); daughter isn't dead and makes it home; mom&dad get revenge on baddies. Plenty o'titties, one rape scene (relatively mild, certainly not 'spit on your grave' level), good amount of violence. 3/10 with boobs being the only saving grace. Maybe the original was better. Skip this one.



Pi (1998)

Hadn't watched this in years, figured I'd give it another go. Entirely in B&W, but that's ok. Plot involves a guy who is a math genius (plagued by headaches, takes a LOT of self-meds to cope), bulids a computer in his basement apartment to help him determine the mathematical patterns in nature, specifically the stock market. Computer eventually spits out a 200+ digit number and dies. Our lead struggles to understand why this happened, meanwhile he is pursued by some wall street company that will do anything to have him provide a forumula for picking winners as the market is heading to a crash AND some Jews are trying to get him to provide the numeric name for God (Hebrew alphabet is all numeric, God's name is 216 characters long, they lost it back in the Roman era). Eventually, he uses the Wall St crew to help rebuild the computer, then won't give them anything; tells the Jews they can't have the number because it was given to HIM not them; and generally loses his mind unable to tell reality from delusion. Not to spoil the ending, but it is somewhat blah in how it leaves us. No boobs, ALL B&W, a little crazy (to reflect his (in)sanity and those who are after him), and generally not great. The cult following can love it; the rest of us can avoid it. 4/10.

 

[gingerlover]

Life of the Party - The one with Melissa Mccartney. I thought she was funny in some of her breakout stuff, but her stick got old quick with me. This movie is about a middle aged woman with a daughter who is a senior in College. Her husband tells her he is leaving her and she decides to go back to finish her degree. From there she becomes one of the girls with her daughters group and figures out where to go in life next. This is actually a descent little date night movie. Nothing groundbreaking, but has some laughs and a nice little message for older people. 6.5/10

 

[gingerlover]

All the money in the world - semi true story about a rich tycoon who’s grandson is kidnapped. Goes through the situation and the grandfather refusing to pay the ransom and trying to get it negotiated down. It’s ok. This is the one where they redid all of Kevin spaces scenes a month before release and Christopher Plummer did a great job given the time frame. That said it runs a little long and is boring at times. Also does not show any aftermath and how screwed up the kid was for the remainder of his short life. 5/10

 

[gingerlover]

Won't You Be My Neighbor - The Mr. Rogers documentary. Documentaries can be hard to do. Some fall flat and some are really good. I rank this slightly below really good. There are a few minutes I felt it dragged and focused on things we have probably scene a million times. I think the biggest problem is that they had to condense the story of this man into 90 minutes and I'm not sure that is enough to properly tell everything there is to tell. I believe this is one of those where they could have had unlimited hours of stuff and then had to cram it into an small portion of time.

I did find it very interesting though. Most you have heard before, but the weight he felt on his shoulders as he tried to do good in this world took its toll on him. He looked at other tv shows for children and didn't feel like they were caring enough and took it upon himself to change that. It's quite remarkable if you ask me what he was trying to do to make this world a better place. Some of the best moments in the film are when they focus more on the hard hitting moments that he wasn't afraid to confront. When both the Kennedy's were assassinated he took it head on and did shows about what it meant rather than running from it and hoping the kids didn't hear about it. Same with 911. They look at the weight he had on his shoulders trying to bring some type of calm to people when he did a few promos. There are other things touched on in this as well such as the attacks against him and such that at times are interesting as well.

All in all this is a good documentary about someone they probably could have released a 10 hour film on. 7/10

 

[Detroitgator]

Finding Forrester- what a great ****ing movie. Like Road House used to be for me, I always watch this one if I’m channel surfing and watch the rest no matter what point it is in the movie,

 

[ThreatMatrix]

So this is going to sound weird... but is Tom Cruise one of the best actors that has never won an Oscar?
He may be a whack job in real life but on screen he has done, mostly, a fantastic job in just about every movie he's been in.
There have been a few duds and head scratchers but overall - I can name quite a few Cruise movies that were damn good.
Or...
Maybe he just a lucky toolbag... dunno...?

Go look at his filmography and there's a good chance you've seen them all which is rare for someone that's been around for almost 30 years. And he's actually played a lot of different types. But my absolute favorite was in Tropic Thunder.

 

[Detroitgator]

Eastern Promises - an independent movie with a really great cast (Naomi Watts, Vigo Mortensen, and an old guy that was born in East Prussia and is great in these roles... he was also in The International that also had Watts in it). Takes place in London and starts with a 14 year old Russian girl walking into a pharmacy looking for help. She collapses on the floor obviously hemorrhaging from her womb. Watts is a midwife at the hospital and the girl dies, but the baby survives. In her purse is her diary, but it's written in Russian. Watts "steals" the diary in order to try and find out the girl's NOK so she can try to get the baby to them instead of the baby going into the foster system. Yes, this stealing of the diary and lack of police investigation is a big plot hole, but it happens right at the beginning so you can overlook it. Watt's character is half-Russian, so she takes the diary to her uncle who can translate it. Inside the diary was a business card for a Russian restaurant and she also goes there to try to find out information. After reading a bit of the diary, the uncle warns Watts to drop the subject. But it's too late, she's already in with the Russian restaurant owner (played by the real life East Prussian guy). What you start to realize is that the movie isn't really about Watts' character, it's about Vigo's character, "the driver" (or at least his character would be the main one in a book). I won't say anything else because there are several very well done, plot twists, one huge one. I've mentioned several times that I am sucker for movies about flawed characters seeking redemption, and this one surprised me on that front. It's really well done, and really well acted by all the actors. I give it a 8 out of 10. Oh, there is a boob scene, and while the girl is very pretty, you'd be a sick f*ck to be aroused by the scene.

 

[G8RFAN16]

Disenchantment (NETFLIX) - Same dude that made The Simpson's made this one. Show is about a medieval kingdom of Dreamland. It follows a hard-drinking young princess Bean, her feisty elf companion Elfo and personal demon Luci and their encounters of the likes of ogres, sprites, imps, trolls and human fools along the way.

Paradise PD (NETFLIX) - A police department that doesn't do a great job of protecting a small town where it is located. The officers on the force are bad -- not in the sense of being no-nonsense or cool, but bad in the sense of doing a poor job of policing the town. Definitely adult content. Funny as hell.

 

[Gatordiddy]

Disenchantment (NETFLIX) - Same dude that made The Simpson's made this one. Show is about a medieval kingdom of Dreamland. It follows a hard-drinking young princess Bean, her feisty elf companion Elfo and personal demon Luci and their encounters of the likes of ogres, sprites, imps, trolls and human fools along the way.

Paradise PD (NETFLIX) - A police department that doesn't do a great job of protecting a small town where it is located. The officers on the force are bad -- not in the sense of being no-nonsense or cool, but bad in the sense of doing a poor job of policing the town. Definitely adult content. Funny as hell.

Is Disenchantment a decent show?

 

[G8RFAN16]

Is Disenchantment a decent show?

I like it. The story is decent but the dialogue between the characters is hilarious. The writers definitely did a great job and they picked the right people in my opinion to do the voices.

 

[gingerlover]

Borg vs McEnroe - Follows the rivalry of the two leading up to their first Wimbledon meeting. The movie focuses probably 75% on Borg. It is a pretty descent movie and focuses a lot on the life of Borg at the time, what was going on in his head, and his childhood. They did a really good job of creating the finals match as well making sure to hit the highlights as well as they could. It's crazy that he retired at only 26 after being so dominant.

For the McEnroe part it focuses a little on his childhood, but mostly how at the time he wasn't liked by many because he was a dick. The big takeaway from him is that this match is what helped to turn the crowd towards him more favorably. The casting here with Shia LaBeouf is ok, but not sure who could have played him better. Can't put my finger on it, but his casting just seems a little off.

If your a tennis person you will like this movie. If you just a casual tennis fan you will find it interesting. 6.5/10 for me. Will one day be a movie you meant to see, but finally get around to it at some point.

 

[G8RFAN16]

Ripper Street (Netflix) - Based in 1880's London. The first episode is set, six months after the infamous Jack the Ripper murders. It is loosely based on events and police/people who were trying to track down the killer. Really good series. Was kind of cool how they incorporated the discovery of using certain techniques to identify someone involved in a crime, like the discovery of how to get a fingerprint off something someone touched. Hated to see the series end even after 5 seasons. Loved every episode. If you like crime shows like Law & Order or historical shows, give it a try.

 

[G8RFAN16]

Watching Westworld, 7 episodes into season 1. I saw the original movie in the theater then many more times on HBO when that started. This is radically different and I’m enjoying its exploration of sentience & the responsibilities of creature and creator.

Nice nod to Yul Brynner in 1:5.

Other takes?

Sorry I'm "late to the party". Have absolutely loved both seasons of Westworld so far, for many of the same reasons you mentioned. Can't wait for Season 3 in May of 2019 (sounds so damn far away).

 

[Theologator]

Ripper Street (Netflix) - Based in 1880's London. The first episode is set, six months after the infamous Jack the Ripper murders. It is loosely based on events and police/people who were trying to track down the killer. Really good series. Was kind of cool how they incorporated the discovery of using certain techniques to identify someone involved in a crime, like the discovery of how to get a fingerprint off something someone touched. Hated to see the series end even after 5 seasons. Loved every episode. If you like crime shows like Law & Order or historical shows, give it a try.

Love Ripper Street. I thought there might be another season coming eventually? The attention to the history and culture of that era in London is superb.

Try Luther,also on Netflix. Stars Idris Elba. Excellent. He’s a detective in London tasked with tracking serial killers but has his own issues.

 

[G8RFAN16]

Love Ripper Street. I thought there might be another season coming eventually? The attention to the history and culture of that era in London is superb.

Try Luther,also on Netflix. Stars Idris Elba. Excellent. He’s a detective in London tasked with tracking serial killers but has his own issues.

I will give Luther a look this weekend. In regards to Ripper Street, I also loved the attention to the era. Haven't heard anything about a Season 6, unfortunately.