Had you read the book beforehand? 

No, maybe it's better? Is it much different?
It's quite strange, it had many things I enjoy, I like brooding dark movies, and post-apoc stuff, and to be fair the acting was pretty good, but I just really did not like it. 

It's a taste thing, obviously. The Road is very bleak and not uplifting at all. It's a love/hate thing I've noticed with most people. 

it did have non millionaire scenes too you know :) 

no other Avatar comments?

If you are going to watch it, it is only a cinema movie as there's not much beyond the visuals. 

http://i35.tinypic.com/sor6sj.jpg 

but im not going to see it because it looks like something i wouldn't like 

and I liked Hillcoat's previous movie The Proposition even more. I'll be keeping track of what he does next.

Haven't seen Avatar, not really interested - the trailer makes it look like Dances with Wolves in space, with really good CGI. Meh. I'm really sick of this whole storyline (ahem, Last Samurai), it's a shitty cliche. 

yeah its pretty much Dances with Wolves with giant smurfs. And atrocious acting and dialogue.

And apart from one scene, I thought the CGI was not that impressive either. 

I don't get all these references to Dances With Wolves in space, Fern Gully in space, Last Samurai in space...

It's clearly Dune, but in space.

(haven't seen it yet) 

exactly, and don't even try to wonder if those visuals make sense.

It's still great in 3d though :)

CG wise, they took a lot of shortcuts with their materials, I think. All the skin is quite.. diffuse ;-) 

when there is only live action no? Some weird perspective/depth perception issue (to me anyway). When its totally cgi though, it doesnt seem to be an issue. 

I saw it a couple of days ago. The 3D effect is very hit n miss. One of the obvious problems is that the camera has it's (maybe unnecessarily narrow) focus which of course doesn't match your own as your gaze move around the screen, staring at blurry objects in the foreground doesn't look very good. Wonder how much better it would work with a broader depth of field or simply composing your scenes with a stronger focal point (although I suppose that in longer scenes on a big screen your eyes will start to wander still).

As for the movie it feels rather crudely divided into two halves: introducing the world of Pandora and setting the conflict loose.

During the introduction there are visually interesting parts but it fails to engage and feels more like watching a succession of concept art.

Can't help but blame James Cameron for a lack of sensibility as a director, failing to make the slow parts interesting and when it comes to the big conflict and action scenes he feels more at home but still lacks finesse, maxing everything out to the the point of silliness in typical hollywood block-buster style.

In the end I still thought it was worth seeing but perhaps it was mostly due to it being the first modern 3D movie I watch. Personally I'd much rather see a movie concentrating on exploring the 3D movie medium.

They did show the Alice trailer in 3D before the movie and it got me excited about seeing that as the more fantastic imagery should be a better match for the technology.

Otherwise one of the most memorable parts of seeing Avatar was that a friend's seat was missing (he did get another one) and instead there was a knife on the floor... 

It was OK, I guess. The plot was super predictable. I thought Sam Worthington's character was quite well done.

Almost the same film with a script written by someone older than 5 could have been really impressive. 

zoe saldana came out the best, Worthington was unconvincing to me.

Iron Man 2 trailer is looking good. 

Stop Loss (2008) � Kimberley Pierce�s Iraq themed film attempts to distinguish itself from other films about the war by limiting its focus on the impact on participating soldiers who have successfully returned back home after serving their time but are forced back due to the Stop-Loss clause in army contracts.

Ultimately though, as reasonably well made as it is, it ends up going through the same stock characters and same stock situations that other war films focusing on soldiers do, offering nothing new in the process.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0489281/

6-6.5/10


Umberto D (1951) � another one of Vittorio De Sica�s neorealist features, this time centring around the life of a lonely and elderly pensioner in 50�s Rome. There are some undeniably great scenes in this but it is also filled with more than its share of rather forced moments. Not quite on the same level as the great The Bicycle Thieves but a worthwhile watch nevertheless.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045274/

7/10


The Watchmaker of St Paul (1974)/b> � amiable but ultimately unsatisfying drama from Bertrand Tavernier focusing on the reaction and impact on the father of an arrested murderer and also his attempts to fathom and understand his otherwise normal son�s actions.

The early scenes are fantastic and economical in their storytelling and impact. Unfortunately, then it starts to drag a little and continues to do so until the ultimately unsatisfying ending.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071622/

6-6.5/10


Bleak House � impeccably acted and solidly written BBC miniseries of the labyrinthine Dickens novel. It would be even better if the directors had more faith in the material and actors and didn�t feel the need to jazz up proceedings, especially scene transitions, with cheap B horror tricks like swish pans, zooms, rapid cutting and overbearing music. I found some of this really distracting and detracting from the rest of the production which is otherwise first rate.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0442632/

7/10


The Old Maid (1939) - Average melodrama with Bette Davis and Miriam Hopkins. The plotting is a little too contrived and convoluted and although Davis tries her best to overcome the material, Hopkins� overdramatic histrionics ensures that their scenes together remain strictly in soap territory.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031750/

5.5/10


Ordet (1955) � I was blown away by Dreyer�s Day of Wrath last year and I was similarly blown away by this, his later film about faith and religion and their inherent hypocrisies.

Dreyer shows two families, one steeped in a fundamentalist faith, the other with a Christian faith that lacks real power or conviction. And without revealing too much of the plot he contrasts both of them with each other, contrasts each of them within themselves, and creates a moody, atmospheric, almost dreamlike rural setting, using light and shadow to contrast life-affirming attitudes with those that deny joy.

And then there�s the ending, one of the most powerful that I have seen and one that is shot with such beauty that it makes you forget you ever saw Transformers 2.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048452/

8.5-9/10 

Transformers 2 (2009) � If you made it to the last half hour of the first one, there was at least some reward in a well staged half hour of carnage. There�s no such reward here, its just 2.5 hrs of pure tedium. Sure, the scale of carnage has been upped, particularly for the final showdown (but one where far too much is going on to really be enthralled), but the scale of stupidity for everything else has also been upped dramatically.

Before we see another one, I think someone needs to really address the following question : why do films about fighting robots need to be 2.5 hrs long with subplots about Shia le Boeuf�s parents?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1055369/

3/10


Terminator Salvation (2009) � Definitely drops the ball, this may as well not be part of the Terminator franchise because apart from a forced cameo near the end, it never feels like part of the same series. Even the unfairly maligned Terminator 3 managed that aspect.

And on its own, without the franchise stamping, its just an average by the numbers post apocalyptic sci-fi flick with bland, interchangeable characters and laughable attempts at establishing emotion.

But there is an action scene for the ages about 1/3 of the way in, the Harvester chase being more thrilling than any other action scene from Hollywood in recent times.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0438488/

5/10


Burn Notice Season 2 � almost on par with Season 1 in terms of quality but longer and more repetitive. Its basically a smarter, more entertaining and character driven version of MacGyver that really needs a change of scene for the new season to keep things interesting (and judging by the ending, we might get it).

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810788/

6.5/10 

... so you could empathize with some of the terrible reviews it got. "I found it at once loud and boring, like watching paint dry while getting hit over the head with a frying pan" sticks in the memory and http://www.pajiba.com/film_reviews/transformers-revenge-of-the-fallen-review.php still makes me laugh.

I was actually more disappointed with Terminator Salvation though, because there was a slim chance it might have been good, and it was just tripe. 

Yeah, I too thought that Zoe Saldana stole the show in Avatar. 

Scrubs. Fuck! 

I liked it.

Transformers 2

OK, well I think Im missing something here. Why does everybody bust on Machael Bay or whoever he is? From watching TF1 and TF2 (TransFormers that is lol) it would strike me that what is wrong with his directing is that he is too good at it. Perfect infact.
I mean everybody be real here - its a franchise which is and always was aimed at kids. Its a kiddies movie. A very spectacular, fantastic, comic-strip-esque, pobably very difficult to make masterpiece. Everyone just gets all up their own ass busting on the guy cause they are jealous that they didnt get to make it. Or be in it opposite that chick - whatever her name was.
I liked the movie.

TS I had to watch it twice, and watching it at the cinema helped (cause the first copy I saw was a bad CAM version which did it absolutely no justice whatsoever. Infact I had to stop watching it). Good film! I mean they had to do something different with the story a bit or else it just wouldnt work. They need to follow it up now with a film showing what happens in like 2027 - the time that you get to see in T2. Terminator Salvation is about Marcus. Thats who it is about - not John Connor. Some of the imagery in the film is brilliant. Like the Terminator and JC lying on either side of the helicopter near the start.

Meh 

The Reckless Moment (1949) - pretty decent noirish drama from Max Ophuls held together by taut direction and good performances from Joan Bennett and James Mason.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0041786/

6.5-7/10


Sabotage (1936) - minor early Hitchcock that lacks a bit of the suspense he was famous for but makes up for it somewhat with the dry british humour that was also his trademark.

Also this is the movie with the 'film is flammable' warning scene that was used in Inglorious Basterds.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028212/

5.5-6/10


Secret Sunshine (2007) - overly long and slow but fantastically acted korean film about a woman who decides to settle in the hometown of her recently deceased husband. There, she starts to be build a new life (and also learns more about the husband she never really got along with while he was alive) when another tragedy strikes. The rest of the film is about her coping with both events with the assistance of some of the townsfolk and it takes some pretty interesting directions, even though it takes far too long to eventually reach the open ended conclusion.

Still, has some very strong scenes, and the performances, particularly from lead actress Jeon De-Yeon, are stunning.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0817225/

6.5/10


Session 9 (2001) - from what I've seen of him (The Machinist, Transsiberian), director Brad Anderson has his Hitchcock down pat and its again on display here, a moody, brooding slow burn psychological horror film about an asbestos crew working on an abandoned mental hospital with a hidden secret that seems to be surfacing more and more each day.

The film makes great use of its location setting which, combined with the excellent sound design, lends the whole thing a very creepy atmosphere. Unfortunately, the script isnt quite as strong or all that original (an issue for each of Anderson's other films too) but given the lean pickings of quality horror films these days, it's a reasonable effort.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0261983/

6-6.5/10


Splendor in the Grass (1961) - Elia Kazan's tragic love story may appear dated but only if you discount the fact that its actually set in the 1920's and overlook the stunning central performances by Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty. The first few scenes dont really ring true, almost playing like a fairy tale rather than a realistic romance, but the rest of it is stunning stuff, especially the understated final scenes.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055471/

7.5/10


Three Monkeys (2008) - slow but extremely well made Turkish film that manages to successfully get you inside the head of each of its characters even when they are doing mundane things. And once it achieves that, it then successfully manipulates you so that the plotting feels unexpected even though most of it actually isnt.

Focusing on a lower class family in Istanbul, it explores the domino like effect of the father's decision to go to jail on his boss's behalf in exchange for money. Special mention must go to the digitally graded cinematography which plays around with the colour and saturation of each shot to reflect the mood and thoughts of the characters.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1233381/

7.5/10


Ashes of Time Redux Version (2009) - I think that Wong Kar Wai has made 2 great films and a whole bunch of others that vary from being moderately successful to stylish rubbish. And the 2 great films have pretty much been his more recent output which comes across as less fractured, more comfortable with its tone and shot with an actual script.

This particular one is an interesting one because it was made early in Wong Kar Wai's career (1993) but was re-edited and touched up earlier last year. I cant really compare since I havent seen the original version but the redux version definitely feels like the new Wong Kar Wai, to an extent. There are still elements here, mainly stylistic ones, that he coudlnt alter without a complete overhaul but on the whole, it displays the qualities I mentioned above.

So what is it? An existential arthouse historical swordfighting film with all of China's then biggest stars in which there is far more emphasis on mood and posturing than actual fight scenes. But its probably also his best film apart from In the Mood for Love and 2046.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109688/

6.5-7/10 

Waking Life (2001) – A man shuffles through a lucid dream meeting various people and discussing the meanings and purpose of the universe, all in Richard Linklater's rotoscope animation technology which allows him (as it did in A Scanner Darkly) to render a dreamy landscape where everything is always moving and blending into each other.

But unlike A Scanner Darkly, this is a rather dull, pseudo-intellectual and self-important film that thinks its discussions are more thought provoking than they actually are. Instead, the ideas hardly rise above what philosophy 101 thinkers might talk about if they are high.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0243017/

4/10


Salvador (1986) – Oliver Stone's not so subtle condemnation of US involvement in the 1980 military dictatorship of El Salvador turns out better than it should thanks to a tremendous performance by the great James Woods as a slimy, self serving reporter for hire who undergoes a predictable but very believable transformation as he covers the horrific events. Woods is terrific, selling ever scene he is in and covering some of the contrivances in the script and the otherwise sledgehammer direction by Stone.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091886/

7/10


In the Loop (2009) – the funniest film from last year, a zippy political satire done UK Office and anti West Wing style with pitch perfect performances and a constant stream of drab one liners that are hilarious and pithy. The only shame is the overused quasi-documentary format that makes it look like an overblown tv show episode rather than an actual film.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1226774/

7.5/10


Becket (1964) – Overlong but engrossing film about the friendship and eventual clash between King Henry II and Thomas Becket. Director Peter Glenville has a very sparse style and spends far too much time fawning over his locations but whenever the focus is on the two main performers, the superb Peter O'Toole and Richard Burton respectively, it is borderline brilliant. Some of O'Toole's rants are classic scenes, you never quite know which syllable he is going to explode on and who on screen his wrath will be directed at next.


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057877/

7-7.5/10


The Thomas Crown Affair (1968) – rewatch, and its still only above average. There's some good scenes and the characterisations are pretty good (as are both Steve Mcqueen and Faye Dunaway) but the tone is all over the place and it never quite knows what it wants to be. Reminded me a little that way of the recent Duplicity (review later) which had the same problems.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063688/

5.5-6/10


Veronika Voss (1982) – Reiner Werner Fassbinder seems to excel at taking famous classic american films and putting them through a german filter to come up with strong, unique films that work as homages but which are capable of also standing on their own. In fact, when he tackled Douglas Sirk's All that Heaven Allows in Ali : Fear Eats the Soul he came up with an arguably superior movie in all aspects.

This, his reworking of Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard, through a post-war german filter, is most definitely not a better film than Wilder's masterpiece but its still an excellent one. Although the story is effectively the same, a journalist meets and is intrigued by a former popular actress who is now a hermit, the characterisations have been changed to allow them to represent the various components of society in post war Germany. It goes into some pretty dark areas and the stark black and white photography also lends it a noirish tone and mood, but most the credit lies with Fassbinder's script and the strong lead performances.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084654/

7.5/10


Wolverine (2009) – not as terrible as I was expecting but it never rises higher than the above average category. Pretty well paced but theres far too many peripheral and inconsequential characters whose screen time would have been better utilised by giving the more relevant characters more meat. Some of the effects work is also a little shoddy but on the whole, its ok for what it is and never for a second pretends to be anything otherwise.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458525/

5.5-6/10 

If you enjoy In the Loop, you might also want to check out a BBC series called The Thick Of It. It's a series produced by the same team behind the film, half-hour episodes with a few hour long specials. The style is very similar, although it only features the UK side of things. Many of the same actors appear in both, although the only one playing the same character is Peter Capaldi as Malcolm Tucker.

In the same way that the film resembled a fictional take on a real political story, some of the events in the show do reflect things that happened in politics recently(although as a regular TV series, it plays at a smaller scale than the film does). So it's possible that it's more fun when you know what they're really driving at, but I'm sure it's enjoyable universally. 

yep, found that on wiki. Mean to check it out eventually.