Wa Wa Watching Nothing

[williamjm]

I watched Mission Impossible : Dead Reckoning Part 1, which I enjoyed. Mission Impossible films do all follow a similar formula and this wasn't much different despite the different nature of the 'villain' this time. I thought Hayley Atwell was a good addition to the cast and I think the highlight of the film was the car chase through Rome. I think having a driver for part of it who isn't a superhumanly good driver made it more entertaining. The finale also had some good set-pieces including the absurd motorcycle jump off the mountain.

I also saw Babylon 5 : The Way Home because my friend had bought it on blu-ray. It was okay but fell a bit flat at times, some of the attempts at comedy were a bit painful. I think we also don't need yet another multiverse story at the moment.

[Zorral]

I enjoy that many of One Piece's characters have odd powers, and nobody bothers trying to explain any of that, or why some do and some don't. All the pirates (so far) have some strange power (is this what makes them pirates?), including Luffy, who acquired his

Spoiler

via eating this strange fruit.  So is that how it happens with all them?  They eat something magical in itself that grants this?

Sometimes this show and how it looks reminds me of the 1980 Popeye film, among other series and films. Not saying One Piece looks like Popeye, but that it's manner of skewing oddly from any actual historical track in wardrobe and style reminds me of that.

I will finish One Piece tonight and tomorrow.

[Mexal]

6 minutes ago, Zorral said:

I enjoy that many of One Piece's characters have odd powers, and nobody bothers trying to explain any of that, or why some do and some don't. All the pirates (so far) have some strange power (is this what makes them pirates?), including Luffy, who acquired his

  Reveal hidden contents

via eating this strange fruit.  So is that how it happens with all them?  They eat something magical in itself that grants this?

Sometimes this show and how it looks reminds me of the 1980 Popeye film, among other series and films. Not saying One Piece looks like Popeye, but that it's manner of skewing oddly from any actual historical track in wardrobe and style reminds me of that.

I will finish One Piece tonight and tomorrow.

Spoiler

Think that’s how it happens to all. The clown ate chop chop fruit.

 

Edited September 3, 2023 by Mexal

[TheLastWolf]

Thought of starting with the pilot of Twin Peaks, ended up binging the whole season

[Zorral]

21 hours ago, Mexal said:

  Hide contents

Think that’s how it happens to all. The clown ate chop chop fruit.

 

That's right.  One more episode to go!

 

[A True Kaniggit]

4 hours ago, Zorral said:

That's right.  One more episode to go!

 

Correct. The magic powers in One Piece come from eating the Devil Fruit.

I believe they have done an amazing job of condensing things for this show. In 8 episodes they made things happen that took over 250 episodes in the anime. 
 

And that is exactly what they needed to do if this is going to continue as a live action series. 
 

Anime spoilers 

Spoiler

I of course thought they would end the season with the crew entering the Grand Line. I suppose they wanted to start next season with the arrival at Logue Town and the fight with Smoker. (Until the final scene I thought they might actually try to combine Smoker with Garp)

 

Edited September 5, 2023 by A True Kaniggit

[Zorral]

Finished watching, after having champagne at our local to celebrate the anniversary of first date between Partner and me!  WooHoo! To quote Luffy.  Ah Hem.

This was a good conclusion for a first season, particularly if there won't be more seasons.  Who knows? But I'd love another season.  This was fun, but with meaning, if that makes any sense.

I loved the lack of ponderosity, which most screehasadaptations of infinitely endless franchise stuff has. 

Buoyancy rules -- or at least elastic rubber!

 

Edited September 5, 2023 by Zorral

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. 

Actually pretty good. The first half drags but I really like the second. The third act is pretty bonkers. Harrison Fords Greek sounds pretty good. Great action scenes; especially the tuck tuk chase. 

This should have gotten more love at the box office IMO.

[dbunting]

Went to see The Equalizer 3, expected to shut my brain off eat some popcorn and relax while Denzel entertains.  This movie sucked, maybe because it didn't feel right to the character? I know going into it that it's supposed to be a certain type of movie having watched the original Equalizer tv show and the two other movies, but the lead doesn't feel like himself in this one. Feels like this was a cash grab and even Denzel seemed like he was just going through the paces. The villains sucked, there was no real build up, they poorly tied in the CIA, terrorists, drug dealing, cyber hacking and the mafia. The best thing about the movie was the location, beautiful place.

Watched Hypnotic on Peacock. Ben Affleck movie about the power of hypnosis and projecting it. This sucked ass way more than The Equalizer 3. It felt like someone binged Momento and Inception and thought hmm.. what if I blended these two together. Maybe if there was a different lead and a few changes to the way they "project" the hypnosis and it could have been an ok movie.

Another negative was Eternals.  I didn't make it through 15 min of this and I was bored silly and turned it off. Which led me to Hypnotic so thanks a lot.

 

[Ramsay B.]

I watched Infinity Pool and really liked it. The 2nd half does go off the rails a bit but I enjoyed most of the insanity. Mia Goth continues to impress too. Probably not as good as Possessor but the younger Cronenberg is 2-2 with me. Need to see Antiviral now.

Edited September 5, 2023 by Ramsay B.

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

Inside Job

Saw that it was free on YouTube and I hadn’t seen it in a while so I rolled it.

One of my holy tetralogy of GFC films (including Margin Call, The Big Short, and Too Big To Fail); although this is the only documentary. 

Still great. Highly recommend. Interesting to see legislators who behave like adults (sometimes).

[Zorral]

I was surprised today, seeing that Vulture was totally enthusiastic about the One Piece live action -- and the recaps were done by someone who gave the impression of being a fan of the manga.  The recapper mentions all the elements that intrigued and delighted me, including how good the actors were at bringing characters that the audience likes and can root for.  

Edited September 5, 2023 by Zorral

[Heartofice]

Yeah I tried to watch One Piece, and even though I really like the visual style there is just this disconnect when you turn Anime into live action that just doesn’t vibe with me.

Suddenly all the bizarre anime tropes, the stilted, odd use of language and the over the top silliness doesn’t seem to work when you see real people involved.

I tend to struggle with Anime as it is, it’s culturally just it’s own bubble that you need to adjust to and accept it’s way of doing things.. but it’s so much easier to get past the quirks in cartoon form. 

[A Horse Named Stranger]

Just curious whether they will make it to the Thriller Bark arc, or if they get cancelled way before that.

[ljkeane]

I watched Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse on a flight. I enjoyed what there was but it’s basically half a film. Was that clearly advertised at the time? I’d have been pretty annoyed if I’d paid to go see it.

[Padraig]

I slowed down but I did run through a few more movies from the second half of the 1970s over the last few weeks.  Movies from the 1930s to the 1950s were all enjoyable (and some truly great).  Movies in the 1970s are much more variable for me.  More risks were taken, which is a good thing.

I had seen Apocalypse Now years ago but I thought it deserved another go.  I regret that idea.  A true mess of a movie.  There are a few great monologues and some great scenery but that doesn't make a good movie.  I was bored for most of it.  Similarly Monty Python and the Holy Grail.  Some funny moments but while I hadn't seen the movie before, I was familiar with the funniest scenes, so seeing the movie added nothing for me.  I think I prefer Monty Python in small dozes.  This movie also  bored me.

On the positive side, I was very pleasantly surprised by Days of Heaven.  I have never seen a Terrence Malick movie that I liked until this one.  It still has a lot of what normally bores me (beautiful scenery) but there is some sort of plot in this film to hold it together.  I liked it a lot.

Less surprisingly, Taxi Driver is a very good movie (I had seen this one before).  Almost two movies stitched together but its story of male isolation is as topical today as in the 1970s.  And finally, I was quite unsure about this movie given all that Woody Allen is associated with but I did watch Annie Hall.  It really was a delightful movie until it gets to one of the most shocking lines from a movie that I've ever heard.  I would say it didn't age well but I can't believe it was ok in the first place.

[dog-days]

22 hours ago, Padraig said:

Similarly Monty Python and the Holy Grail.  Some funny moments but while I hadn't seen the movie before, I was familiar with the funniest scenes, so seeing the movie added nothing for me.  I think I prefer Monty Python in small dozes.  This movie also  bored me.

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I hope you're the same age or older than me. If you're younger then this will ultimately mark the dawn of a new, degenerate age when the good things are swept aside and everyone just watches TickTock. 

But apart from that, I also prefer thirties/forties/fifties films to the seventies. 

Edited September 7, 2023 by dog-days

[HexMachina]

I binged the first 6 episodes of new Futurama. I enjoyed it, not the highest of highs that Futurama has had but still very enjoyable. I'm also appreciating more just how many jokes are crammed into the script, they're pretty much every other line. Glad they decided to spend one episode getting the majority of "This is another reboot" jokes out of the way

[Zorral]

Marc Anthony Receives His Hollywood Walk of Fame Honors After Globalizing, and Then Revolutionizing, Salsa Music
After 30 years as a superstar singer and actor, Latin music legend Marc Anthony gets his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Um, also movie star!

https://variety.com/2023/music/news/marc-anthony-hollywood-walk-fame-star-ceremony-latin-salsa-music-1235715335/

Quote

 

.... His songs tend to be movie-like dramatic monologues, so it’s not surprising that he’s an accomplished actor. “Marc’s a photographer, a painter, an actor. He’s an artist beyond music,” says Carlos Pérez, director of many Anthony music videos. “On set, he’s always a pleasure because he looks at things from a completely different point of view than most artists. He understands camera position, lighting and how it all impacts the character’s emotions.”

Anthony, who also made music with Jennifer Lopez when they were married, brings the same intense focus to the craft of acting that he does to singing, as per his emotive starring role in Paul Simon’s “The Capeman” (1998) on Broadway, with Rubén Blades and Ednita Nazario as co-stars. His film work includes “El Cantante” (2006), in which he played the tragic title role of salsa legend Héctor Lavoe, who died the year Anthony’s first album was released. Most recently, he appeared in “In the Heights” (2021), as well as earlier roles in “Man on Fire” (2004, appearing opposite Denzel Washington), “In the Time of Butterflies” (2001), “Bringing Out the Dead” (1999) and a small but moving part in critical favorite “Big Night” (1996). ....

 

 

[Kalbear]

21 hours ago, ljkeane said:

I watched Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse on a flight. I enjoyed what there was but it’s basically half a film. Was that clearly advertised at the time? I’d have been pretty annoyed if I’d paid to go see it.

Kinda? I mean, it was relatively widely known that the next two movies were both approved and it was done as a trilogy. 

I don't think it was sold on having THIS much of cliffhangers, but I also think that saying it's half a movie really overstates the problem. It ends on a number of cliffhangers that are not particularly different from many other 2nd to 3rd movies, and unlike, say, Star Wars we aren't going to have to wait 3 years for the culmination. It's much closer to Back to the Future or Matrix.