Last Film You Watched? (use spoiler tags in this topic)

[Hubbs]

The Thing (1982)

Total remake of an old horror/sci-fi film using an age old idea/fear of an alien creature infiltrating a human base and then humans themselves, suppose to make your skin crawl.

A bit of a failure at the box office upon release but this was mainly down to the tough competition of 'Blade Runner' and the friendly alien 'E.T.', despite that the film came into its own once hitting the video market and became something of a cult.

Personally I think its a good solid film but its never appealed greatly due to its shape shifting alien that is simply surreal to the extreme. Of course the effects are the main showcase of the film and back in 82 they were pretty special, by today's standards on a recent viewing they have aged badly and do look (of course) rather plastic and fake BUT they do still hold up as, unlike cgi, they are actually real.

The imagination of Bottin is clearly let loose big time for the alien as he goes way off the wall coming up with all manner of combinations aimed at making you feel uneasy, and it does work. Utilizing spider forms, snake/eel forms, things growing or under the skin, being violated and having something germinate within you etc...all good stuff to make you squirm. The suspense and bleakness is handled well by a young Carpenter (much like 'The Fog') and examines how quickly people break down and turn on each other. All the set work is cruel n cold looking, good location work and with nice elements of 'Alien' used throughout including the isolated oddball crew at the base which does remind you of the Nostromo crew.

Its definitely a thriller of a ride with some stand out moments which leave you wanting to know more about the creature and its background. The film just loses its wallop near the end as the creature doesn't look quite as cool as previous incarnations, edging down the B-movie route a touch but the one thing I do like about the film is the way Carpenter bookended it. Its pretty much open at both the start and finish leaving you to think about what came before and what happens after, the final sequence with Russell and David is quite original and unique as the heroes/main leads pretty much fail.

Best moment in the film for me has to be the Norris chest bursting sequence revealing a large razor toothed maw where his torso once was, highly original and, at the time, quite surprising.

[Escape]

Originally Posted by jonnyhiboy!

Splice, again like Cube i felt that it was a good idea could have been better.

Splice was a huge disappointment for me. Could it grow on me. It's possible I suppose.

Originally Posted by Hubbs

Best moment in the film for me has to be the Norris chest bursting sequence revealing a large razor toothed maw where his torso once was, highly original and, at the time, quite surprising.

That one and the petri dish scene were by far my two favourites.

Dragon Tiger Gate (2006) - IMDb - My Donnie Yen/Wilson Yip kick continues with this highly stylish adaptation of a Manga. Excellent characters and story combine with top drawer fight scenes to give one of the best Chinese action movies. 8/10

[jonnyhiboy!]

I managed to get through 45 minutes of Gattaca, then it wouldn't load properly. Which is maybe just as well because does anything actually happen after that point?

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (2009) - IMDb - A good finish to the trilogy, but again, like "Played With Fire", doesn't reach the heights of the first movie. 7/10

Question: Is Lisbeth a bit autistic maybe?

[Pelicula]

Aspergers is mentioned but not medically diagnosed from what I can remember. To me, it didn't come across as she had any form of autism in the books.

Basement - Absolutely rubbish predictable low budget horror from Britain with a bloody awful script. Most of the film was people running through corridoors, zzzzzzzzzz. And contact lenses are the best effects they could get for the villains in this film, yikes really scary...

[Hubbs]

Ride with the Devil (1999)

Very interesting film which focuses on the American civil war but the Southern Confederate side as opposed to the more regular viewed Northern Union side. Its all based on fact (a book also) and the real leadership of Quantrill's fighters in 1861, loosely depicting events of that time. Its also quite unusual as its directed by Ang Lee who's films have been admittedly diverse in range but you wouldn't expect this kind of theme from him.

The cast in this film is what impressed me the most really, Maguire, Ulrich, Wright and Rhys-Meyers stand out from the crowd but all perform well plus they all look great in their costumes, think of a cross between 'Interview with the Vampire' and Colonel Sanders with their long flowing hair and thin sharp facial hair. I liked how the guerrilla's were dressed with their dandy outfits and feathered hats also, unsure if that's how they really looked but its different and visually striking.

Location work looks great, filmed in Missouri with plenty of beautiful woodlands and some authentic sets as you would expect in a major western. Not allot of action in the film, only the real event of the Lawrence Massacre is all you get which is decent but not a classic historic movie moment. For a war film (of sorts) its more about the relationship between friends amidst the battles really, not overly epic and emotional as you might expect which isn't a bad thing but with a long run time some may get turned off.

[sgcduffman]

My Christmas Kids movie theme contiued last night with a Muppet Christmas Carol... This bay far is my fav kids movie of the season, does a good bit of trying to keep it to the book, but light enough so kids can enjoy. Also throughs in many of the try book quotes. Over all 9/10 rating!

[Fincher]

The Help was decent. It's a fairly standard, inoffensive, inspirational Oscar-bait sort of movie, which kept my interest well enough despite the length.

6.x/10

Originally Posted by jonnyhiboy!

I managed to get through 45 minutes of Gattaca, then it wouldn't load properly. Which is maybe just as well because does anything actually happen after that point?

Hell yeah, the plot will just be starting to hot up about then. Remember it's NOT an action movie. It's more cerebral sci-fi.

EDIT - as an aside, does anyone know why this isn't out on Blu-ray in the UK?