Discuss and Rate the Last Film You Watched
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Sounds like a rocky experience. I trust your review will leave no stone unturned. I'd write more, if only I was boulder.
Normally, I'm upset when someone beats me to the punch in the pun game, but granite, those were some rock-solid choices.
Mr. Harrigan's Phone
Based on a Stephen King story, it's one of those old man/young narrator coming-of-age Hallmark stories but with a minor horror component. Basically the kid remains in touch with the old man after he's gone (see title), turning the phone into a Death Note of sorts. But! The Death Note aspect only takes up like the last 30 minutes of the story and it's severely underdeveloped, even though the whole premise rides on it. For the remaining 70-80 minutes of the movie this is a pretty bog-standard kid through highschool plot, largely uncomplicated save for the very passive presence of a bully.
The movie only gets interesting towards the end and it takes forever to get there. It's a pretty empty ending too - there's nothing to solve or reveal by the end. So the ending scene feels like a shrug more than anything.
Based on a Stephen King story, it's one of those old man/young narrator coming-of-age Hallmark stories but with a minor horror component. Basically the kid remains in touch with the old man after he's gone (see title), turning the phone into a Death Note of sorts. But! The Death Note aspect only takes up like the last 30 minutes of the story and it's severely underdeveloped, even though the whole premise rides on it. For the remaining 70-80 minutes of the movie this is a pretty bog-standard kid through highschool plot, largely uncomplicated save for the very passive presence of a bully.
The movie only gets interesting towards the end and it takes forever to get there. It's a pretty empty ending too - there's nothing to solve or reveal by the end. So the ending scene feels like a shrug more than anything.
I may end up seeing this.
I hear and agree from the trailers that we're not seeing anything new here. You have an entire Captain Marvel Family already. With a 2nd movie on the way. This one has a Marvel type in a black suit. Wheee. Dr. Fate looks terrific. Hope Marvel Studios do not sue in that he appears to be doing what Dr. Strange does.
But, in the 1st 3rd of the movie, I hear it is like watching Superman act like the Punisher. That would be new.
Y'all need to spend a night in pun jail. Anyway, my actual thoughts on Black Adam.
My girlfriend and I ended up watching this in theaters while waiting for dinner. I would give this a 5, she gave it a 7. Probably because she enjoyed seeing me writhe in pain during the movie. I might as well just write the laundry list of problems I have with this movie in bullet points.
What's good about the film?
@gorfias Doctor Fate is fun, but more accurately Brosnan's Kent Nelson is fun. Very charming, perfect for the role. Doctor Fate however is basically a bargain bin Doctor Strange. In terms of magic, better than the first Doctor Strange movie, but worse than every other version of Strange.
So TLDR; If you want to turn your brain off, and I mean really off, then you can have fun with this. Especially if you find the Rock charming. But if you're sick of superhero things and aren't a fan of the Rock, then stay the hell away.
My girlfriend and I ended up watching this in theaters while waiting for dinner. I would give this a 5, she gave it a 7. Probably because she enjoyed seeing me writhe in pain during the movie. I might as well just write the laundry list of problems I have with this movie in bullet points.
- The Rock as Black Adam is a nothing character. Is he stoic? Is he a quippy kinda guy? Is he a fish out of water? Is he an anti-hero? Or just a straight up hero? The movie is confused about what kind of person he's supposed to be and what his motivation is. There's a big twist to his character that was not only incredibly obvious but spoiled in every single trailer they put out for the movie. If this guy is supposed to be the new face of the DCEU, then this universe is in even deeper shit.
- The human characters, a Kahndaqi woman and her son, are awful. Purely because of the horrible lines they are forced to say (and in some cases, these horrible lines had to be poorly ADR'd in). These were the absolute lowest points of the film. To the point I couldn't bear to watch. Kahndaq as a whole was just so cringeworthy. A story of Middle Eastern country being liberated from foreign interests deserves so much more than the garbage that was this film's climax.
- The JSA is fun, but Hawkman is relentlessly stupid and the spectacle of their fights is ruined by the fact that he and Adam are basically two man-children having a testosterone fueled tantrum.
- Villains are dogshit. Won't bother saying more.
- As I said, this movie is masturbatory. There's a whole extended sequence where Adam fucks up a child's room full of posters of Justice League members. I think he even punches through the Kryptonian symbol for hope like twice? The adulation that the Kahndaqi people have for him was genuinely unsettling to me. Remember all the Jesus symbolism from Man of Steel and BvS? Lotta that here too, except we have the knowledge that the Rock himself had a significant role in making this movie.
- Remember that Justice League merch destruction scene? All of it was in gratuitous slow-mo. Almost all the plentiful slow-mo in this movie feels like it was included because Zack Snyder did slow-mo in his DCEU movies. One of the JSA, the wind girl, only ever uses her power in slow-mo. Which is confusing, because her CGI effects are easily the weakest in the movie.
- The movie brings up the question of extrajudicial killings, but treats it as a joke. I'm not against having Adam killing people, but maybe don't make the moral dilemma of having vigilantes taking human life such a focal point of your story if you're not going to even try addressing it.
- We haven't seen a soundtrack more reused since Wonder Woman's guitar riff in the Snyder Cut. There are also a couple of extremely out of place sequences set to pop songs, which I guess they did because that's what Suicide Squad did.
What's good about the film?
This basically. The action and the CGI are nothing groundbreaking, but can be competent. The scene from the trailers where Adam takes out the mercs in the cave was suitably brutal and almost gory. If you compare this to Shazam, considering their powers are exactly the same, Black Adam is definitely a notable improvement.
@gorfias Doctor Fate is fun, but more accurately Brosnan's Kent Nelson is fun. Very charming, perfect for the role. Doctor Fate however is basically a bargain bin Doctor Strange. In terms of magic, better than the first Doctor Strange movie, but worse than every other version of Strange.
So TLDR; If you want to turn your brain off, and I mean really off, then you can have fun with this. Especially if you find the Rock charming. But if you're sick of superhero things and aren't a fan of the Rock, then stay the hell away.
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Nice job. For all the talk about rocks, you did a good job of putting things to paper.
Forget a night's stay in holding, you deserve solitary confinement.
So youre telling me Im gonna need to get extra drunk for this.
All I need are nachos and a Faygo. I do not need to get drunk for this. I'll probably see the show next Saturday.
I haven’t seen the movie yet, I’ll likely wait until it’s on streaming as I don’t really go to theaters anymore, so I can’t judge it. But I will say that in semi-defense of DC fans, it seems that the MCU fans shit on every DC movie from the very first announcement and treated tge majority of the Infinity era movies as high cinema.
After that many years of every single DC movie being ridiculed, trashed and deemed a failure before opening day I can see why tge rans might be driven to staunchly support even suboptimal movies. Add in the fact that cracks have begun to appear in the MCU and the problems with Phase Four have always existed in the MCU, they have merely grown more towards obvious, Phase Four is an understandable target.
No faygo in my area sadly, we dont even have noncorporate sod
Where is this DC & Marvel fandom war happening? Is it all twitter battles? I have a ton of comicbook nerd friends and theyre just happy to have comicbook movies. We might disagree on individual movies, but Ive never witnessed this fan war google clickbait articles keep telling me about.
Sorry my man. You can still order them through Amazon, if you wish. If you ever decide, I can recommend you some flavors.
Twitter and certain YouTube channels and comments in those videos.
I can second that. Even people I like (or used to like in Honest Trailer's case) are guilty of this to some extent. Max and the YoVideoGames crew seem dislike and be somewhat dismissive of almost anything DC, or will act apathetic to movies that were more than successful. They called Aquaman average. The Double Toasted crew consider Aquaman "another superhero movie", and did not understand why the entire fucking world loves it! DT did at least show proper respect to people who love the movie, and they're usually more than fair when it comes between Marvel and DC.
What doesn't help this mindset from bad fans on the MCU side is that certain YouTubers like Honest Trailer, Cinema Sins, and RLM encourage and enable them. They crap on or predict whatever DCU movie coming out to be crap and assume the worst. Or they will exaggerate the flaws yet will say almost nothing when it comes to anything Marvel. HT has lightened up on this for a while, but I don't appreciate their Honest Man of Steel Trailer. Calling anyone who likes the movie a "sociopath", is on my fuck off list. Those weren't terms of endearment, and they weren't "just joking". Cinema Sins is even worse, but the mother-fucker does not seem to care about anything anymore, regardless of fandom, and is just preaching to the choir or whatever gives him the big bucks. RLM might as well not even exist for me.
I saw them on Reddit before I left that cesspit.
They were the ones dogging on BvS for having a convoluted plot and underused villain while heaping praise on Civil War despite the MCU entry having an equally convoluted plot and underused villain.
They were the ones saying BvS and Wonder Woman were utter failures before the first trailers dropped.
They were the ones insulting and downvoting anyone that said anything remotely positive about DC movies or anything remotely negative/critical of the MCU.
Dragged across concrete 2018
I finally got around to watching this. Looking back on it, I think I had a little PTSD from his last films Bone Tomahawk and Brawl in Cellblock 99, both being gruesome and the later being intensely bleak. If theres one specific compliment you can give Craig Zahler its that he doesn't present himself as some style driven auteur nor is he camera shy. He shows you what is happening now with no effects or angle or pounding soundtrack. Hes not Nolan trying have some ecliptic cinema experience with you. Hes got a story in mind and with the right acting he means to keep you in your seat. Watching his films are less like a ride to the hospital and more like youre in the waiting room with a friend in the ER, praying these characters hes developed over the course of the film survive. Craig Zahler is also a sadist who tortures the audience, often gleefully killing those same characters.
All that prittle prattle complete, Dragged Across Concrete is much more subdued than his previous works. Gore here is comparatively reserved. Its mostly just people getting shot. This one is also a tiny bit less bleak which is nice, I didnt need a drink afterwards this time.
For those not familiar, DAC stars Mel Gibson and Vince Vaughn as two cops recently suspended for getting taped roughing up a drug dealer during a raid. Gibson is nearing 60 and barely scraping by with a sick wife and kid, this suspension may be his last strike.
Gibson convinces Vaughn to help him rip off a drug supplier for a big score he can exit on.
Theres no character or theater here, neither are the protagonists of the story. This is more of a hardboiled crime drama with characters in it than anything character focused.
I quite enjoyed it, its filmed very tightly. It always feels like its driving just 5mph above the speed limit and you "need" to see where it goes. However its strongest point, being a sterile crime story lacking melodrama ends up also being a weakness as theres no hero here, no triumph for the viewer beyond some mild catharsis at the ending. Still if you need some "heat" in your life, this will get you your fix. 8/10 easy recommendation even for folks who found his previous two films difficult to watch without getting queasy.
Its free on hbo max atm
I finally got around to watching this. Looking back on it, I think I had a little PTSD from his last films Bone Tomahawk and Brawl in Cellblock 99, both being gruesome and the later being intensely bleak. If theres one specific compliment you can give Craig Zahler its that he doesn't present himself as some style driven auteur nor is he camera shy. He shows you what is happening now with no effects or angle or pounding soundtrack. Hes not Nolan trying have some ecliptic cinema experience with you. Hes got a story in mind and with the right acting he means to keep you in your seat. Watching his films are less like a ride to the hospital and more like youre in the waiting room with a friend in the ER, praying these characters hes developed over the course of the film survive. Craig Zahler is also a sadist who tortures the audience, often gleefully killing those same characters.
All that prittle prattle complete, Dragged Across Concrete is much more subdued than his previous works. Gore here is comparatively reserved. Its mostly just people getting shot. This one is also a tiny bit less bleak which is nice, I didnt need a drink afterwards this time.
For those not familiar, DAC stars Mel Gibson and Vince Vaughn as two cops recently suspended for getting taped roughing up a drug dealer during a raid. Gibson is nearing 60 and barely scraping by with a sick wife and kid, this suspension may be his last strike.
Gibson convinces Vaughn to help him rip off a drug supplier for a big score he can exit on.
Theres no character or theater here, neither are the protagonists of the story. This is more of a hardboiled crime drama with characters in it than anything character focused.
I quite enjoyed it, its filmed very tightly. It always feels like its driving just 5mph above the speed limit and you "need" to see where it goes. However its strongest point, being a sterile crime story lacking melodrama ends up also being a weakness as theres no hero here, no triumph for the viewer beyond some mild catharsis at the ending. Still if you need some "heat" in your life, this will get you your fix. 8/10 easy recommendation even for folks who found his previous two films difficult to watch without getting queasy.
Its free on hbo max atm
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Macbeth 1971
Maybe the most grim adaptation of the play ever. Polanski made it after the murders in Cielo Drive and boy it feels like he's revelling in the misery moreso than exorcising it. There's an obvious parallel to real life when Macduff's home is invaded and his family slaughtered, followed by Macduff's guilt for not being there. But the movie undoes any sense of justice or catharsis by feeding the idea that the cycle of violence begins anew by inventing a scene with Donalbain (who has an eeeevil limp in this) seeking the counsel of the witches. Another big change is Ross, essentially a non-character in the play, reinvented here as a schemer (as well as giving him the role of the infamous Third Murderer) who survives the play as an element of rot and corruption that is never exposed (and crucially is the one to crown Malcolm). Adding to a pervading sense of doom and gloom the movie really dig into the more gruesome elements of the play, like the witches (seen here as s Rosemary-esque cabal of crones) and all those executions and decapitations. Macbeth's decapitation is maybe my favorite in any movie and you'd swear they killed a dude for the shot.
I like all these bleak 1970s Medieval movies focusing on how filthy and miserable and violent and decidedly unglamorous everything was, and how clunky and heavy combat must have been. It really seemed like it was more about tiring each other than besting any one skill. Lancelot du Lac and Aguirre the Wrath of God are up there as well.
Maybe the most grim adaptation of the play ever. Polanski made it after the murders in Cielo Drive and boy it feels like he's revelling in the misery moreso than exorcising it. There's an obvious parallel to real life when Macduff's home is invaded and his family slaughtered, followed by Macduff's guilt for not being there. But the movie undoes any sense of justice or catharsis by feeding the idea that the cycle of violence begins anew by inventing a scene with Donalbain (who has an eeeevil limp in this) seeking the counsel of the witches. Another big change is Ross, essentially a non-character in the play, reinvented here as a schemer (as well as giving him the role of the infamous Third Murderer) who survives the play as an element of rot and corruption that is never exposed (and crucially is the one to crown Malcolm). Adding to a pervading sense of doom and gloom the movie really dig into the more gruesome elements of the play, like the witches (seen here as s Rosemary-esque cabal of crones) and all those executions and decapitations. Macbeth's decapitation is maybe my favorite in any movie and you'd swear they killed a dude for the shot.
I like all these bleak 1970s Medieval movies focusing on how filthy and miserable and violent and decidedly unglamorous everything was, and how clunky and heavy combat must have been. It really seemed like it was more about tiring each other than besting any one skill. Lancelot du Lac and Aguirre the Wrath of God are up there as well.
Street Fighter (1994), 3/10
I had a bad movie night with a theme of video game movie adaptations, and this was one we watched. I was kind of disappointed to be honest. I'd heard this movie talked up so much about its so-bad-it's-good-ness that the end result was pretty underwhelming. It's not really that much worse than your typical below average dumb 90s action flick. In fact, it feels like they just took the script for one, and then they just slapped the name Street Fighter and some character designs on top of it. While there are definitely great parts in it (Raul Julia is an absolute riot), most of it isn't really that interesting and it's a bit boring. And there's also a distinct lack of fights in it, which for a fighting game movie is just ridiculous. I do wonder if this movie had hit differently if I was in any way invested in the game franchise though. Ultimately a letdown, but there were some fun parts.
Dead or Alive (2005), 5/10
This was the other video game movie we watched, and honestly I don't know how to rate this one, because I actually enjoyed it both ironically and unironically. I might be stepping on some toes here, but this is what the Street Fighter movie should have been. It's way more competent, consistent and honest about what it is, and it's not trying to be anything else. The DOA games are known for hot chicks and fighting, and this movie gives you hot chicks and fighting. There's the slimmest pretense of plot (fighting tournament on a tropical island), and then the movie sets on its merry way with fight scenes, ridiculous dialogue and plenty of corny cheesecake. The weird thing about it is is that it's actually pretty competent with its fight scenes (for a video game movie anyway), and there's some legit creativity put into them as well. The movie's also genuinely funny in parts, not just ironically funny, and somehow it makes both of these types of humor work. It's one of the most aggressively mid-00's movies ever, which is actually starting to feel kind of nostalgic for me. So yeah, if you can stand the embarrassment factor of watching some scenes of PG-13 fap material, there's legit entertainment to be found here.
The Sixth Sense, 8/10
Shyamalan's classic still holds up and then some. There's not really that much to say about other than yeah, it's really fucking good. It's perfectly written, all the acting is phenomenal, it tackles really heavy subject matter tastefully and maturely, there's some subtle expert filmmaking you can keep an eye out for, and then there's of course the ending. Which having never seen this movie without knowing the twist can make it kind of distracting, because I found myself trying to pay attention to the mechanics rather than the story. I legit wish I could erase any knowledge of this film from my memory, just for the experience of seeing it with completely fresh eyes.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch, 6/10
Perhaps the most black sheep franchise film in history, this movie tried and failed to take the series into a new direction. Instead of a slasher horror it's more of a mystery paranoia thriller, and I think it works more as a thriller than a horror. I didn't find it very scary, but definitely intriguing and engaging. What I most appreciated about the film was its willingness to commit to some really high concept ideas, and also show some really gruesome stuff you don't often see in films, even these days. The story kind of teeters on the edge of becoming too ridiculous to be able to take seriously, but leaves just enough unexplained that it retains a sense of eldritch, unseen, implied horror. The ending in particular raises some really disturbing implications, which makes this film almost feel like a proto-Black Mirror episode.
It's not all good though. The script and characterization are rather bare bones and basic (which hey, it's Halloween, what'd you expect?), and feel more created to serve the story rather than the characters driving it. Despite being only about 1 h 40 minutes, some parts are definitely a bit slow. There was also one line that I was sure was foreshadowing a twist but then didn't, and I was left scratching my head. But all in all it was an interesting exploration into an alternate universe where Carpenter actually got to make movies with his original vision.
I had a bad movie night with a theme of video game movie adaptations, and this was one we watched. I was kind of disappointed to be honest. I'd heard this movie talked up so much about its so-bad-it's-good-ness that the end result was pretty underwhelming. It's not really that much worse than your typical below average dumb 90s action flick. In fact, it feels like they just took the script for one, and then they just slapped the name Street Fighter and some character designs on top of it. While there are definitely great parts in it (Raul Julia is an absolute riot), most of it isn't really that interesting and it's a bit boring. And there's also a distinct lack of fights in it, which for a fighting game movie is just ridiculous. I do wonder if this movie had hit differently if I was in any way invested in the game franchise though. Ultimately a letdown, but there were some fun parts.
Dead or Alive (2005), 5/10
This was the other video game movie we watched, and honestly I don't know how to rate this one, because I actually enjoyed it both ironically and unironically. I might be stepping on some toes here, but this is what the Street Fighter movie should have been. It's way more competent, consistent and honest about what it is, and it's not trying to be anything else. The DOA games are known for hot chicks and fighting, and this movie gives you hot chicks and fighting. There's the slimmest pretense of plot (fighting tournament on a tropical island), and then the movie sets on its merry way with fight scenes, ridiculous dialogue and plenty of corny cheesecake. The weird thing about it is is that it's actually pretty competent with its fight scenes (for a video game movie anyway), and there's some legit creativity put into them as well. The movie's also genuinely funny in parts, not just ironically funny, and somehow it makes both of these types of humor work. It's one of the most aggressively mid-00's movies ever, which is actually starting to feel kind of nostalgic for me. So yeah, if you can stand the embarrassment factor of watching some scenes of PG-13 fap material, there's legit entertainment to be found here.
The Sixth Sense, 8/10
Shyamalan's classic still holds up and then some. There's not really that much to say about other than yeah, it's really fucking good. It's perfectly written, all the acting is phenomenal, it tackles really heavy subject matter tastefully and maturely, there's some subtle expert filmmaking you can keep an eye out for, and then there's of course the ending. Which having never seen this movie without knowing the twist can make it kind of distracting, because I found myself trying to pay attention to the mechanics rather than the story. I legit wish I could erase any knowledge of this film from my memory, just for the experience of seeing it with completely fresh eyes.
Halloween III: Season of the Witch, 6/10
Perhaps the most black sheep franchise film in history, this movie tried and failed to take the series into a new direction. Instead of a slasher horror it's more of a mystery paranoia thriller, and I think it works more as a thriller than a horror. I didn't find it very scary, but definitely intriguing and engaging. What I most appreciated about the film was its willingness to commit to some really high concept ideas, and also show some really gruesome stuff you don't often see in films, even these days. The story kind of teeters on the edge of becoming too ridiculous to be able to take seriously, but leaves just enough unexplained that it retains a sense of eldritch, unseen, implied horror. The ending in particular raises some really disturbing implications, which makes this film almost feel like a proto-Black Mirror episode.
It's not all good though. The script and characterization are rather bare bones and basic (which hey, it's Halloween, what'd you expect?), and feel more created to serve the story rather than the characters driving it. Despite being only about 1 h 40 minutes, some parts are definitely a bit slow. There was also one line that I was sure was foreshadowing a twist but then didn't, and I was left scratching my head. But all in all it was an interesting exploration into an alternate universe where Carpenter actually got to make movies with his original vision.
The so bad it's, good factor is super over hyped. Other than Raul Julia, the guy plays Zangief, and a few others, the movie is boring as all hell. Double Dragon is more entertaining by comparison. I fell asleep in theaters my first time watching it (I was 5 at the time). I like Van Damme, but this was not his best outing. A little trivia, this was supposed to be a GI Joe movie, but they couldn't agree to the script, or couldn't get through, so they attached Street Fighter to the script. In fact, it was also done so Mattel could sell more toys and action figures based off the movie.
At least this movie has good fight scenes compared to Street Fighter (1994), and some stuff that made me legit laugh. Kevin Nash as Bass is a fucking riot! I give DOA a 6/10.
It's not really a thing among normal people. It's like the stupid console wars that are really only a thing among kids and immature people. The fact that people care so much about what other people think about movies they like is pretty character telling IMO.
Reddit has always been a cesspit, the fact that comments are shown in order of some rating system doomed it to fail. Also, BvS is one of the worst movies I've ever seen, I went to see it the Thursday night before the technical Friday release and I walked out of that theater so confused because I didn't understand how a movie that big could be made where literally every decision that went into making the movie was the wrong decision. It was rather entertaining in how unfathomably bad it was. I used to think Zack Snyder was a pretty good director but he hasn't made anything good in awhile now, Watchmen is still my favorite comic book movie.