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[Ramsay B.]

I randomly saw that Aaron Morehead and Justin Benson directed 4 episodes of Moon Knight, (and an episode of Loki). I’m a fan of these guys. Resolution and The Endless were pretty interesting and original indie sci-fi/horrors. I also liked Synchronic which was a more straightforward time traveling one. Nice to see they’re getting some mainstream love.

I can’t see The Northman until Thursday but excited nonetheless. Hearing good things.

[Zorral]

Excellent title.  Congratulations!

~~~~~~~~~~

If I have this right, here in the USA both Gentleman Jack, and We Own This City, begin tomorrow.

An queer juxtaposition, when one thinks about it, I guess. 

 

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

I haven't seen the last 3 episodes of Picard. I have to say, I'm not really missing it. 

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

City of God is one of the best crime/gangster films I've ever seen. 

[BigFatCoward]

13 minutes ago, Tywin et al. said:

City of God is one of the best crime/gangster films I've ever seen. 

Told you. Lil ze is one of the all time great crime bosses. 

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

28 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said:

Told you. Lil ze is one of the all time great crime bosses. 

 

21 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said:

We used to just chip in for one ticket then someone would open the fire exit. Until they got wise and alarmed it. But until then we'd often see 3 films in a row. 

Genuinely curious, as someone who watched this through the eyes of a former drug dealer and general hoodlum, why do you enjoy it so much as a career cop? 

[Zorral]

Alexander Skarsgård on facing the Mountain from Game of Thrones in The Northman: 'I was intimidated'
Skarsgård's new film sees the actor in a physical tussle with Thrones strongman Hafþór Björnsson.

https://ew.com/movies/alexander-skarsgard-facing-mountain-game-of-thrones-the-northman/

 

[WarGalley]

2 hours ago, Tywin et al. said:

City of God is one of the best crime/gangster films I've ever seen. 

I would definitely follow that up with Elite Squad.

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

I finished Minx season 1. Pretty good all in all. A little less cock heavy in the later episodes but they did mix things up a bit in that department. More nuanced, if you will. I'm worried about Shelly's marriage. 

[Corvinus85]

I just came from The Northman. A really good movie, with an interesting twist near the final act. Definitely a different experience than most other Viking tales we got in movies and TV. This is the first of Eggers's movies I've seen so I wasn't familiar with his style. A lot of great shots and camera movement. I was especially intrigued by those uni-directional shots (I don't know if there is a name for it) when the camera just pans from left to right. I wonder if they're meant as an homage to the art styles of the period, the 2D tapestries and the like. The acting was solid, but it was the soundtrack ultimately that was one of the highlights. It made a few scenes work far better than what the visuals were conveying.

I also like the realistic take on the Norse culture without glorifying any of it. The theme of people being either slaves or kings was used quite well. 

I wasn't able to catch all the dialogue, but that's not a surprise, and I will watch it again with subtitles when available on TV.

3 hours ago, Zorral said:

Alexander Skarsgård on facing the Mountain from Game of Thrones in The Northman: 'I was intimidated'
Skarsgård's new film sees the actor in a physical tussle with Thrones strongman Hafþór Björnsson.

https://ew.com/movies/alexander-skarsgard-facing-mountain-game-of-thrones-the-northman/

 

Initially I thought he did 2 roles, but it turns out that one of the others Mountains from GoT, Ian Whyte, was in it, too.

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

I'm up to episode 6 of Russian Doll season 2. I'd agree that the first season is a little better but this is still pretty amazing. And the soundtrack is absolutely fucking inspired. 

Spoiler

"Runnin' with the Devil" was perfection. While she gives birth to herself no less. So was "The Thin Ice". In episode one I was like, "Is... That... 'Mother?'"

 

[SpaceChampion]

Wasn't Natasha Lyonne known before American Pie, for the Oscar buzz (if I remember correctly) around The Slums of Beverly Hills?  She won some awards for that but it didn't manage to get enough support to be Oscar nominated.  No idea if that movie is any good, i haven't watched it.  I'm just objecting to people saying she "came out" of that bit part in American Pie. 

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

She received the following nominations for Slums of Beverly Hills

Chicago Film Critics Association Awards: Most Promising Actress

Teen Choice Awards: Funniest Scene (shared with Marisa Tomei) and Breakout Performance

All I know is her Wiki page is huge. Often supporting roles or cameos but she's been in a lot. 

[DireWolfSpirit]

Doesn't she do some of the directing in Russian Doll as well?

Eta: Yep just checked again. She has not only creator but writer, director, producer and exec producer credits for Russian Doll. Pretty impressive.

[Isis]

Finished watching all the Sherlock series yesterday. Overall, I enjoyed it but it does feel a bit like it had covered all the ground it was going to cover and that any further series would merely be variation on the same themes. As Holmes and Watson are like an old married couple anyway, what we see is them having the same old married couple arguments enacted in slightly different settings. Cute, but I feel like that's enough now.

Then we watched the first episode of Raised by Wolves, which I liked. Felt a bit like that first episode could have been a standalone film. Anyway, I'm fully expecting this to become stupid and annoying in the near future - but I did find it to be quite satisfying so far.

Ew. I just remembered that when you see the babies 'born' in this episode there is some absolutely terrifying uncanny valley thing going on. It just made me feel REALLY weird and uncomfortable. Seriously, it was like a nameless but intense emotion. I almost laughed involuntarily. It was weird and unpleasant. I hated it.

[Veltigar]

I'm currently rewatching the Starz show Spartacus. Between Black Sails and this, I think we can safely say that lightning can strike the same place twice. I began with the prequel Gods of the Arena, which is just an excellent piece of fiction.

I'm now in the first actual season of Spartacus and the gulf in quality between (particularly the first half of) that first season and the prequel could give you whiplash. Still, I'm looking forward to continuing until at least the end of season one. I miss how bold this show was.

[Mindwalker]

Picard has declined after a strong start. Of course it doesn't help when the showrunner hands over cliff notes mid-season to another person because he's more interested in season 3, and you're really not that interested in your original characters, or telling a good story, in the first place. For all the faults of season 1, including a disappointing ending, at least it was interested in the world it built, and its characters. I think I prefer it to the generic retread, easter egg collection, and bad dialogue of season 2. In the most recent episode, even Sir Patrick just phoned it in.

[DMC]

12 hours ago, SpaceChampion said:

Wasn't Natasha Lyonne known before American Pie, for the Oscar buzz (if I remember correctly) around The Slums of Beverly Hills?  She won some awards for that but it didn't manage to get enough support to be Oscar nominated.  No idea if that movie is any good, i haven't watched it.  I'm just objecting to people saying she "came out" of that bit part in American Pie. 

I don't know.  I was 14 when American Pie came out and never saw Slums of Beverly Hills (still haven't).  All I was saying was that's when I first became familiar with her.

[Iskaral Pust]

The Batman was pretty good.  If the Nolan/Bale trilogy spotlighted head-to-head conflict between key characters as avatars of their respective philosophies, then this version sees the characters recede slightly for a more diffused emphasis on the atmosphere and the setting (similar to Dune).  Rather than a superhero action flick, it feels more like a gothic noir detective pursuing a serial killer.  It’s very long, but that running time allows for the story to unfold in a slow tempo rather than rush from scene to scene.  I enjoyed it.  Pattinson was pretty good as Batman, although terrible as the emo goth Bruce Wayne (thankfully little used), and all of the other main performances were pretty good, including an unrecognizable Colin Farrell.  Much, much better than Batfleck, although I don’t see how this version could integrate into the Justice League or DCEU.

[Relic]

15 minutes ago, Iskaral Pust said:

although I don’t see how this version could integrate into the Justice League or DCEU.

That's for the best.