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Film Thread.
I thought a trio of themed threads about other entertainment media might be good. If you're not interested, please just ignore the thread and pick some threads that interest you from here: http://celephais.net/board/view_all_threads.php

Anyway, discuss films...
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Simpsons Movie 
was ok. Nothing more or less. There were some good laughs but mainly I felt rather like "hey, this feels like a generic Simpsons episode stretched to movie length". It is more fun watching 3 Simpsons episode in a bunch.

I watched Not Another Teen Movie recently as American Pie 1-3 were shown in TV once again and I once again highly enjoyed them. Well, that NATM tried to follow American Pie with the setting and humor but in a Scary Movie way. Like trying to being a parody to itself. It miserably failed and was 3% fun, 97% very stupid. As since I didn't enjoy it I also found it pretty racist (stupid clichee stupid black guy)... :D 
Headthump 
are you telling me that steve carell's friends/work colleagues in 40 yr old virgin were not stereotypical nor cheesy/forced?

I agree the main relationship itself between keener and careel was sort of interesting but not the above. Plus it was too long (130 min or something). I really didnt like it. 
Transformers 
I found the action scenes bad. The camera was too zoomed in all the time, practically only at a few places could I have some sense of awe, for example when megatron breaks through the roof.

Some wider angle shots from afar that actually frame the situation and make some sense, ie so that you can picture who is where and what is happening! If it's just extremely zoomed shots from various angles you become disoriented and the whole action scene doesn't build up any sense of place or mechanics. 
Bambuz 
but that's the michael bay "style" :)

havent seen transfromers yet although my brother tells me the action scenes are actually not too badly shot for a Bay movie. 
It's 
such a waste. They used so much effort to make the CGI frames.

I remember Ridley Scott using shakycam in G.I. Jane, the camera would bump with scripted shot sounds.
It was not working entirely right to me.

Maybe some people thought it was awesome. 
Cheesy/forced 
not at all. They felt like the very kind of people you would find yourself working and joking around with day to day at least over here. I would go so far as to say Seth Rogan's character is a cleaned up, 100 percent more Jewish version of myself. 
Transformers 
I actually enjoyed it a lot. The only part that was forced for me was the typical hide-someone-will-see-you "hilarity" bit. Other than that, I had a great time.

Although I did go in to the movie thinking "this is probably going to suck balls" (our whole company went) and was pleasantly surprised, so maybe the relief is coloring my judgment. 
Spirit 
I'm not saying NATM is a work of art by any means, but the black guy who just says the same phrases over and over is mocking the stereotype that most black characters have in such movies, hence his introduction where he explains his persona "I'm just the token black guy, who only says things like 'Damn!' 'Shit!' and 'That is whack!'" and then subsequently demonstrates this with the sister coming into the scene. Later in the movie the main jock/coolkid guy stops to tell him that he thinks rather highly of him, and the Token Black Guy is relieved and quite happy, and begins to start what sounds like a potentially deep discussion - and the white guy runs off on him.

Not a great movie, but a pretty solid parody of the countless movies honestly. Especially when they went into how unattractive Janie is (being as how she is played by a very attractive girl).

I can't believe I just discussed this on func though... 
Well No 
It's not a solid parody, it's a very bad parody. It takes itself too seriously. At least that was my impression. 
O_O 
I must say, I really don't see how you can think it takes itself seriously, from any of the scenes at all... But okay. Weird. 
Knocked Up / 40 Year Old Virgin 
I just want to say, if you didn't like 40 year old virgin, that doesn't mean you won't like Knocked Up, they are a different style somewhat, with 40 year old virgin having more of a standard hollywood comedy format. I agree with Headthump that many of the characters were very uncliched and realistic, not all but many, and Knocked Up doesn't really have many 'joke' characters. I don't want to build it up too much, but go and see it with an open mind... nitin, pretend you're going to see Licence to Wed or Chuck & Larry and then hopefully be pleasantly surprised.

Oh I forgot to mention that there are some great cameos from people i have full on man-love for such as Harold Ramis, Loudon Wainwright III (who does all the music too) and B.J. Novak. 
Inland Empire 
went to see it ex tempore.

Would like to talk about it with someone else who did, as it's clearly some work that needs a lot of untying of all the knots, or however one would say it.
I'm tempted of creating a thread about it (with [spoilers] in topic), but if everybody just watches transformers stuff it's kinda useless...

So, say something if you wanna discuss it on func. 
Harsh Times 
Ok, this in itself is quite similar to Training Day (same folks who made that), maybe Training Day meets Taxi Driver. However, it actually made me appreciate that I'd fairly underrated Training Day when I saw it. This is, however, a better movie. It's all due to Christian Bale, as without him the movie would be nothing. I have to admit that I've become convinced over the past couple years that he is the best youngish actor in mainstream films right now, and this movie cemented that belief for me. While he tends to play crazy characters (which I find awesome), this is an entirely different kind of crazy. It isn't the paranoia and introspection of The Machinist, nor the anger and focus of Batman, or the arrogance and intensity of The Prestige. Rather, he plays a completely nonintellectual character, an ex-Army guy on the streets, who is almost like a ticking time bomb. I didn't know what to expect and was sure this would be the role he fell flat on, but I was really surprised and it's some of his best work.

Btw I lost a rock-paper-scissors a few weeks ago and had to go to Transformers. I have now joined the group of fine folks known as "Michael Bay Haters." 
Eraserhead 
going to keep it short since i am not happy about it. i love "strange" films. actually, its the only type of film i watch, and foreign films. though i don't like saying foreign film since a movie its a movie, no matter where it comes from. always felt weird saying foreign films.

anyway, this is a piece of shit! how can people like this? i know everyone has different tastes and all, but man, this is like a ed wood film on acid, acid that doesn't get you high so you have to force yourself and pretend to see weird and strange things.

and whats worse, i wasted $20 on it! see, everyone i know raves about it, saying its the coolest thing there is. that its a piece of art. damn their lies. and whats with people saying the plot is hard to get? isn't the whole thing about the dude being scared to be a parent? it really looks like, and i don't think it can be about anything else. if it is, then its lies! :-)

anyway. i miss my $20. i want them back. :-)

but like i said before, everyone has different tastes. some find fish to be good, i think fish is disgusting as hell. others like grapes, i dont like grapes, but i really like grape juice. and grape soda... blah blah blah i didnt like this movie.

whoa, wrote more than i wanted to :-) 
P.s 
im very sleepy, so sorry if i wrote gibberish above. 
Starbuck: Transformers 
I agree with your statements, and the cutting manner of their delivery. Don't forget XBox360Bot: a guy walking down the street with a brand new 360, who holds it up to the camera with a shocked look on his face when it comes to life, sprouts arms, and plays the 360 startup sound.

The selling out, the "hot girl falls for the nerd because she has a heart of gold" angle, and the completely awful and inconsistent characterization had me so angry when I left the theater that I almost felt like I just didn't want to go to the movies ever again. I think I'd rather just turn into nitin and only visit the foreign section of my local independent second-hand video store. 
So 
The selling out, the "hot girl falls for the nerd because she has a heart of gold" angle, and the completely awful and inconsistent characterization had me so angry when I left the theater that I almost felt like I just didn't want to go to the movies ever again.

You went to see a movie based on a cartoon series that was created to sell toys and you expected something
better than a product placement advertisement with something better than conventional and not terribly cohesive plotting and this has killed cinema for you? 
Simpsons Movie 
Maybe it could be edited down to one good 20 minute episode...

The good comedy parts were far too few and there wasn't really anything interesting to fill the gap between them. 
I Can Only Stand 
Marge for roughly 23 minutes at a time. Maybe in a few years it will be broken down into four episodes sort of like the Family Guy straight to DVD movie in reverse. 
Yeah 
I felt like I didn't want to go to theatre movies or blockbusters anymore after seeing the crap that was Transformers.

"I'm never giving you this allspark!"

it seemed to encompass EVERYTHING that is wrong with hollywood blockbusters, all at once. Even the music in the background consistantly pissed me off. Fuck you Michael Bay. 
Wow 
that movie must really be the ass end of Satan.

But if you give up on Cinema,

Michael Bay wins. 
Headthump 
so I deserve to be upset if my expectations are any higher than "crap"? 
Lunaran: 
If your expectations of any Michael Bay movie are higher than "crap?"

Probably, yes. 
Caveat Emptor 
 
Hardware 
:\

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099740/
http://www.everythingisundercontrol.org/

Started off very promising, wonderful soundtrack and very well created post-apocalyptic/nuclear atmosphere.
Well, it's a b-movie so I should have expected less.
The style is very very nice but the story becomes bad.
Watch it if you like such movies. At least the intro and the shown content (as machinery, gimmicks, stuff) is worth it. 
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