Watch, Watched, Watching: No Dragons Allowed

[Veltigar]

7 minutes ago, Spockydog said:

Who was wearing nothing but chaps in that movie? I don't recall.

And look, if Sam Elliott wants to try and tell me that a bunch of young, working class guys, working outdoors in hot conditions, aren't going to spend much of their summer stripped to the waist and getting sweaty, whilst wearing nothing but hard-hats and cut-down denim shorts, there is a building site around the corner I can quickly go and take some pictures of.

No you can't, remember your restraining order. The judge said you were to be kept on a tight leash this time 

[BigFatCoward]

Season 2 of Russian Doll is exhausting. 

[Larry of the Lawn]

Saw Nope last night at the theater, loved it.  Felt a little long but I feel like it earned it.  Excellent cinematography and did a killer job letting you laugh along with the death and destruction in a way that didn't feel cheap or uncomfortable.  A few cool twists and some unconventional decisions that I think worked really well.

May go watch it again on the big screen.  

[Spockydog]

I was enjoying Nope so much more until it became apparent that....

Spoiler

it's just a beast

Having said that, the reveal regarding the nature of the strange screaming sounds heard floating in the sky is one of the greatest moments in horror cinema. 

[Darryk]

I clearly missed something with Nope, everyone else seems to like it.

It didn't help that I couldn't hear what Daniel Kaluuya was saying half the time.

Spoiler

 I think if I'd realised it was a monster movie rather than an alien invasion movie I would've enjoyed it more. I kept thinking the ship was an alien spaceship but apparently it's just some kind of flying monster that slowly digests people, that is horrifying now that I think about it.

 

[Larry of the Lawn]

re: Nope - One thing thing I was wondering about

Spoiler

What was with the one shoe being conspicuously upright from the girl mauled but the chimpanzee?

 

[Spockydog]

36 minutes ago, Larry of the Lake said:

re: Nope - One thing thing I was wondering about

  Hide contents

What was with the one shoe being conspicuously upright from the girl mauled but the chimpanzee?

 

I'm not sure what it symbolises, but it certainly stood out and made me wonder wtf it meant. 

[WarGalley]

My watchlist has been just all over the place.

I'm in the middle of the last season of Better Call Saul. I need to prioritize this as Youtube keeps fucking recommending me major character death scenes. I keep hitting the "Don't recommend channel" and it keeps finding a way to spoil the series for me.

Also in the middle of Season 2 Ted Lasso.

Also am up to date on Sprung which is a new show on Amazon's Freevee. It's a 30 minute comedy about some convicts released from jail during the pandemic and are now teaming to rob bad people. I started it because Garret Dillahunt is the lead but it's... okay at best (and that's being generous). I'm not sure why I keep watching it actually. The comedy isn't laugh at loud, sometimes slapstick silly (think of a person giving CPR to a squirrel and then subsequently attacked by said squirrel). It kind of reminds me of Weeds.

Also watched the first episode of S1 Harley Quinn since it's free on Youtube. Holy shit it was hilarious. The dialogue is sharp and witty, the characters are true to form, and it's a fun time through all 20 minutes. This must be the best DC property since Nolan's trilogy (though I haven't seen The Suicide Squad or Peacemaker). The creative team should be given the keys to the DC universe if not some kind of authoritative role in it. Even though I've only seen one episode and a bunch of Bane clips on Youtube, I'm wondering if this should contend for an Emmy in some category. Finishing it out will be my next priority.

Edit:

 

[A True Kaniggit]

Dang, for some reason I thought Primal season two was already finished. I just caught up on the 8 episodes out today and got left on that cliffhanger. 
 

Please let next week’s episode be a happy one. 

[Nictarion]

Heads up to those in the US - apparently it’s national cinema day today, and tickets are only $3 across the country. 

I’m seeing Jaws on IMAX. 

[RumHam]

2 minutes ago, Nictarion said:

I’m seeing Jaws on IMAX. 

I want to go to there. 

[Veltigar]

Watched the latest episode of Harley Quinn. The first of a two-parter so I cannot wait for the next episode to drop. They did some rather interesting thing with Batman's worn out childhood trauma and still the humor remains on point. The MVP that gets me every time is Bane, even when he doesn't make a physical appearance he finds a way to steal the show.

19 hours ago, WarGalley said:

Also watched the first episode of S1 Harley Quinn since it's free on Youtube. Holy shit it was hilarious. The dialogue is sharp and witty, the characters are true to form, and it's a fun time through all 20 minutes. This must be the best DC property since Nolan's trilogy (though I haven't seen The Suicide Squad or Peacemaker). The creative team should be given the keys to the DC universe if not some kind of authoritative role in it. Even though I've only seen one episode and a bunch of Bane clips on Youtube, I'm wondering if this should contend for an Emmy in some category. Finishing it out will be my next priority.

Great to have you on board. I still don't understand why this series is being slept on so much. As someone who has seen both properties you have not seen, I can say that this is easily better in my opinion and that comes from someone who really liked The Suicide Squad. 

[Mindwalker]

I finally watched the first episode of Severance. Color me intrigued!

[Wilbur]

Went with another couple to see Bullet Train this evening.  9/10, this movie is everything you could ask for in a fun thriller, including multiple Chekov's Guns that pay off very nicely, two good fake-outs that none of us saw coming, and a series of cascading "endings", each one wrapping up a plot point in a clever way.  The story of the water bottle was outstanding - all of us remarked upon it as we left the cinema.

The actors were all very committed to the roles, and the plotlines were tight and convoluted, just like you want them to be.  Lots of actions, and good intensity throughout, so I will forgive the movie for the portrayal of Japanese train stations as glamorous.  Two cameos, one of which is recurring and increasingly funny.  Strong after-credits scene, good character development, mostly transparent camera work.  Brad Pitt is quite good in a comedic protagonist character, and the chambara was short enough to be watchable.

The theater was absolutely packed, and we saw it at the Harkins Cine Capri, so it must be doing pretty well.  Lots of laughter from the audience, I recommend it to you who are looking for some escapist fun.

[RumHam]

The Black Phone was pretty good but I had a good laugh early on:

Spoiler

"Are those black balloons?!" the kid said, finally realizing that maybe the creepy masked magician driving a black van might be the bad guy.

This kid personally knew at least two of the boys his age who were missing. His sister has seen the abductions in her dreams and talked about details. Yet he's still talking to the creepiest stranger imaginable. 

 

[Argonath Diver]

My brother is in town and we were over at my folks for dinner. Dad, 78, asked us to watch the newest BattleBots with him. I loved that show when it was new and haven't thought of it in, what, 15 years. They seem to have really advanced the arena and damn have the engineers worked up some great robots. As always, anything that isn't the 3 minute fights themselves isn't worth watching, so the 2 hour show took maybe 40 minutes with Dad's itchy fast forward finger. Apparently the big grand championship is next week. Will definitely watch it on his DVR so we can skip the silly interviews and entrances.

[RumHam]

2 minutes ago, Argonath Diver said:

My brother is in town and we were over at my folks for dinner. Dad, 78, asked us to watch the newest BattleBots with him. I loved that show when it was new and haven't thought of it in, what, 15 years. They seem to have really advanced the arena and damn have the engineers worked up some great robots. As always, anything that isn't the 3 minute fights themselves isn't worth watching, so the 2 hour show took maybe 40 minutes with Dad's itchy fast forward finger. Apparently the big grand championship is next week. Will definitely watch it on his DVR so we can skip the silly interviews and entrances.

I can relate to that. I like building robots but those guys are wizards. 

"Twitch programs battlebots" could probably make someone a lot of money. a simple scripting system or even just a version of FFXII's gambit system. but strategy by democracy.  

[Ramsay B.]

Nearing the end of my The Leftovers rewatch. 
 

Spoiler

When John tells Laurie that he just wanted Evie to know she was loved gets me every time. Laurie’s episode was great.

 

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

Just finished listening to season 1 of Blowback; A podcast dedicated to US military and foreign policy interventions. 

Season 1 deals with the Iraq war. It's pretty incredible the depth of knowledge on display. Brilliant. 

[RhaenysBee]

I’m watching Lost. It’s brilliant. I know it goes downhill after a couple seasons, but so far it’s a breath of fresh air. The story and the characters are complex and interesting, there’s tension, mystery, inner and interpersonal conflict, stakes, trial and error, struggle, reward, development. The writing is ballsy. From a 2022 perspective, I suppose in 2003 you would just call it simply good. I can’t say any of the characters stand out to me, I find almost all of them likable and relatable while still deeply flawed. Dominic Monaghan will always have a special place in my heart whatever character he plays.