What movies have you been watching?

[slackmax]

Repulsion. 

This stylish Hitchcockian psychological thriller is justly famous. I was particularly impressed with some of the decision to shoot hand-held, so that the viewer feels like they are stalking Catherine Deneuve. Props also to the actor who played her sister's married lover with just the right calibration of smarm x nice guy.

I checked this one out, and see that Polanski was the director. My library has it, and I want to check it out. Thanks for the tip!

[slackmax]

Just watched 'Nina' about a woman who falls in love with another woman who was supposed to carry her surrogate child.

The movie was pretty interesting.

But the most notable thing was that everyone in the movie is smoking away like chimneys, puff, puff, puff.

It was in a Scandinavian language, maybe Danish?  Maybe they smoke a lot over there, lol. 

[wenchsenior]

Repulsion. 

This stylish Hitchcockian psychological thriller is justly famous. I was particularly impressed with some of the decision to shoot hand-held, so that the viewer feels like they are stalking Catherine Deneuve. Props also to the actor who played her sister's married lover with just the right calibration of smarm x nice guy.

I checked this one out, and see that Polanski was the director. My library has it, and I want to check it out. Thanks for the tip!

Yes, I haven't watched all that many Polanski films, but I also recently watched Chinatown for the first time, and I can see why he made such a stir as an up and coming director back in the day.

[Metalcat]

Just watched 'Nina' about a woman who falls in love with another woman who was supposed to carry her surrogate child.

The movie was pretty interesting.

But the most notable thing was that everyone in the movie is smoking away like chimneys, puff, puff, puff.

It was in a Scandinavian language, maybe Danish?  Maybe they smoke a lot over there, lol.

They do in Denmark. Some very popular royals were (are?) heavy smokers and that made it extremely cool to smoke. It's a major issue. They drink a lot too, but so do a lot of Scandinavians.

[Log]

I just caught Men yesterday and I’m a fan (4/5 stars). Very effective with mood and tension, and while I’ve seen a lot of criticism about the meaning being “obvious” and it only being a surface-level examination of the suffering of women, I think those critiques are missing or ignoring some more thought-provoking symbolism as to the generational perpetuation of patriarchy. It’s not only concerned with how women suffer, it’s concerned with how civilization keeps pumping out the kinds of men who inflict this suffering.

I could have appreciated a version of this movie that examined its ideas in more detail, but I think this strikes an admirable balance between being about its ideas and being about its mood. Excellent sound design and usage of a particular musical motif.

[slackmax]

Repulsion. 

This stylish Hitchcockian psychological thriller is justly famous. I was particularly impressed with some of the decision to shoot hand-held, so that the viewer feels like they are stalking Catherine Deneuve. Props also to the actor who played her sister's married lover with just the right calibration of smarm x nice guy.

Just watched it. No subtitles! My hearing is not great, so I appreciate subtitles.

What a film!  A black and white gem. Catherine Deneuve is the star here, I think.

I never did notice a hand held camera. I thought the scene of Catherine walking in downtown
London was really well done.
 
It was shot in 60's London, I think. It's interesting to see how different people were back then.

[evme]

I just caught Men yesterday and I’m a fan (4/5 stars). Very effective with mood and tension, and while I’ve seen a lot of criticism about the meaning being “obvious” and it only being a surface-level examination of the suffering of women, I think those critiques are missing or ignoring some more thought-provoking symbolism as to the generational perpetuation of patriarchy. It’s not only concerned with how women suffer, it’s concerned with how civilization keeps pumping out the kinds of men who inflict this suffering.

I could have appreciated a version of this movie that examined its ideas in more detail, but I think this strikes an admirable balance between being about its ideas and being about its mood. Excellent sound design and usage of a particular musical motif.

I'm a BIG fan of Alex Garland, I think he's probably the best/most innovative director currently working. "Ex Machina" was absolutely awesome and his limited TV series "Devs" was also excellent. That said, I'm having a little trouble getting motivated to see "Men" as the trailer didn't appeal to me much. It looks very disturbing, so I guess I need to be in the right mood to watch.

[slackmax]

'Lost in Paris' from 2016. A absurd comedy about eccentric people in Paris. Slapstick. Very funny. Relatively unknown comedy duo 'Abel and Gordon'.  I liked it a lot.

[slackmax]

'Pig' starring Nicholas Cage.  Cage is a back woods guy who owns a pig he has trained to find truffles (underground mushrooms that are expensive) that he sells.

A bad guy steals his pig, and Cage, who loves the pig, and also relied on it for income, tries to get her back. It is a girl pig.

I liked the movie. Lots of 'human drama' and not much violence. 

Oh, the other thing is  Nick Cage is an accomplished chef, who has had bad luck, and decided to isolate himself in the back woods and sell truffles.

Takes place in Portland, Oregon.

Edit to add:  I'm adding the fact that there is no vomiting in this movie, which is a big plus.

[wenchsenior]

'Pig' starring Nicholas Cage.  Cage is a back woods guy who owns a pig he has trained to find truffles (underground mushrooms that are expensive) that he sells.

A bad guy steals his pig, and Cage, who loves the pig, and also relied on it for income, tries to get her back. It is a girl pig.

I liked the movie. Lots of 'human drama' and not much violence. 

Oh, the other thing is  Nick Cage is an accomplished chef, who has had bad luck, and decided to isolate himself in the back woods and sell truffles.

Takes place in Portland, Oregon.

Edit to add:  I'm adding the fact that there is no vomiting in this movie, which is a big plus.

We really enjoyed this film, as well.

[alcon835]

'Pig' starring Nicholas Cage.  Cage is a back woods guy who owns a pig he has trained to find truffles (underground mushrooms that are expensive) that he sells.

A bad guy steals his pig, and Cage, who loves the pig, and also relied on it for income, tries to get her back. It is a girl pig.

I liked the movie. Lots of 'human drama' and not much violence. 

Oh, the other thing is  Nick Cage is an accomplished chef, who has had bad luck, and decided to isolate himself in the back woods and sell truffles.

Takes place in Portland, Oregon.

Edit to add:  I'm adding the fact that there is no vomiting in this movie, which is a big plus.

We really enjoyed this film, as well.

I enjoyed this one a lot too! Good flick.

[davisgang90]

We've re-watched some old ones and some new ones.

Bull Durham (I love baseball movies but don't care for the sport)
The Count of Monte Cristo (2002 starring James Caviezel and Guy Pearce with a very young Henry Cavill)

And a recentish - Dog (Channing Tatum) - Enjoyed this, but a fairly predictable plot and ending.

[MasterStache]

Just watched The Northman. Really enjoyed it. Then again I always enjoy Viking era movies.   

[Sandi_k]

The Count of Monte Cristo (2002 starring James Caviezel and Guy Pearce with a very young Henry Cavill)

I'm a big fan of swashbucklers. CofMC is a great one, IMO.

I also count The Mask of Zorro with Antonio Banderas, Anthony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta-Jones as another.

[slackmax]

Rampart. Woody Harrelson is a 'bad' cop in LA, using excessive force to subdue bad guys.   He has beautiful women in his life. Daughters and ex-wives, girlfriends are all beautiful. OK, that's a plus for the viewers.  Cynthia Nixon is one of them. 

Sigourny Weaver is one of his co-workers. Hot.


Harrelson is in trouble with the authorities for being too aggressive with the bad guys.

Movie ends on an uncertain note.

I enjoyed the soundtrack and the cinematography in this movie. Blurred images sometimes. Griity LA scenes. Made interesting and pretty by camera work.     

[wenchsenior]

Finally got around to watching "The Lobster".  Very odd black comedy, but strangely enjoyable. I really love Colin Farrell's recent career choices.

I found myself wishing there was more info explaining the backstory to this universe...why must everyone be paired off? Why does everyone's affect make it appear that they are all on the spectrum?  Etc.

Also, I really want to vacation at that 'hotel' in the real world. Beautiful location.

[GuitarStv]

Finally got around to watching "The Lobster".  Very odd black comedy, but strangely enjoyable. I really love Colin Farrell's recent career choices.

I found myself wishing there was more info explaining the backstory to this universe...why must everyone be paired off? Why does everyone's affect make it appear that they are all on the spectrum?  Etc.

Also, I really want to vacation at that 'hotel' in the real world. Beautiful location.

I liked The Lobster quite a bit, which surprised me because Colin Farrell doesn't top my list of actors I usually enjoy watching.

[Kris]

Finally got around to watching "The Lobster".  Very odd black comedy, but strangely enjoyable. I really love Colin Farrell's recent career choices.

I found myself wishing there was more info explaining the backstory to this universe...why must everyone be paired off? Why does everyone's affect make it appear that they are all on the spectrum?  Etc.

Also, I really want to vacation at that 'hotel' in the real world. Beautiful location.

I liked The Lobster quite a bit, which surprised me because Colin Farrell doesn't top my list of actors I usually enjoy watching.

He and his movie choices have gotten so much more interesting as he's gotten older and isn't just thrust into the "hot main character"-type roles. I like him an awful lot now.

[wenchsenior]

Finally got around to watching "The Lobster".  Very odd black comedy, but strangely enjoyable. I really love Colin Farrell's recent career choices.

I found myself wishing there was more info explaining the backstory to this universe...why must everyone be paired off? Why does everyone's affect make it appear that they are all on the spectrum?  Etc.

Also, I really want to vacation at that 'hotel' in the real world. Beautiful location.

Oh, look, I could:   https://parknasillaresort.com/

[Tyson]

Finally got around to watching "The Lobster".  Very odd black comedy, but strangely enjoyable. I really love Colin Farrell's recent career choices.

I found myself wishing there was more info explaining the backstory to this universe...why must everyone be paired off? Why does everyone's affect make it appear that they are all on the spectrum?  Etc.

Also, I really want to vacation at that 'hotel' in the real world. Beautiful location.

I liked The Lobster quite a bit, which surprised me because Colin Farrell doesn't top my list of actors I usually enjoy watching.

He and his movie choices have gotten so much more interesting as he's gotten older and isn't just thrust into the "hot main character"-type roles. I like him an awful lot now.

His eyebrows are way less distracting now, too.

[Wolfpack Mustachian]

Finally got around to watching "The Lobster".  Very odd black comedy, but strangely enjoyable. I really love Colin Farrell's recent career choices.

I found myself wishing there was more info explaining the backstory to this universe...why must everyone be paired off? Why does everyone's affect make it appear that they are all on the spectrum?  Etc.

Also, I really want to vacation at that 'hotel' in the real world. Beautiful location.

The Lobster is probably the oddest movie that I've ever seen that I enjoyed.

[mspym]

We just saw Everything Everywhere All At Once which left me feeling replete with Good Movie energy. Worth seeing in a theatre with a well-balanced audio system because the sound design is immaculate.

We also put on the original Top Gun recently because one of our teens mentioned he had never seen it. What an odd movie - the tonal shifts between BIG JETS!! and Creeper Behaviour But It's Romantic are abrupt and not well handled. Big Male Gaze energy. At least it was targeted at both straight and queer Male Gaze?

[sui generis]

I watched "Amelia" on a plane.  Didn't even realize this movie had been made with Hillary Swank, Richard Gere and Ewan Macgregor, back in 2009.  I was surprised at how bad I thought it was, especially since I like or have nothing against these actors.  I thought EM and HS actually did a pretty bad job and a lot of the actual cinematography choices seemed poor as well.  Too bad, because it was interesting to learn a little bit about Amelia Earhart, who I had never bothered to learn more about than that she got lost in a plane over the Pacific.

[LaineyAZ]

Happened to catch the movie "Heavy" on Netflix.  It came out in 1996 and actors included Shelly Winters and a surprisingly good Debbie Harry.
A main character is Shelly's son who is very overweight and socially awkward.  In one scene he steps on a scale and it shows 250 lbs. which motivates him to start losing weight.
It stood out to me because in 1996 that was considered grossly obese and in today's world a weight of 250 lbs. for an adult man is considered big but just above average.

[iris lily]

Finally got around to watching "The Lobster".  Very odd black comedy, but strangely enjoyable. I really love Colin Farrell's recent career choices.

I found myself wishing there was more info explaining the backstory to this universe...why must everyone be paired off? Why does everyone's affect make it appear that they are all on the spectrum?  Etc.

Also, I really want to vacation at that 'hotel' in the real world. Beautiful location.

I liked The Lobster quite a bit, which surprised me because Colin Farrell doesn't top my list of actors I usually enjoy watching.

He and his movie choices have gotten so much more interesting as he's gotten older and isn't just thrust into the "hot main character"-type roles. I like him an awful lot now.

I’m sure you’ve seen In Bruges. One of his best films!

I guess he does battle with alcohol and that probably affects what roles he can take on. I think that’s having quite an effect on his looks. When he played the country western singer in whatever film that was, that was a nice stretch, And he looked to be at the top of his games in movie star hunkiness
 then.

[iris lily]

I watched "Amelia" on a plane.  Didn't even realize this movie had been made with Hillary Swank, Richard Gere and Ewan Macgregor, back in 2009.  I was surprised at how bad I thought it was, especially since I like or have nothing against these actors.  I thought EM and HS actually did a pretty bad job and a lot of the actual cinematography choices seemed poor as well.  Too bad, because it was interesting to learn a little bit about Amelia Earhart, who I had never bothered to learn more about than that she got lost in a plane over the Pacific.

My Amelia Earhart story is that in one of her visits to the St. Louis area where she was raising funds for her trips, she stayed with my friend’s grandparents. They claim she stole a towel from them.

So that’s my story.

[Kris]

Finally got around to watching "The Lobster".  Very odd black comedy, but strangely enjoyable. I really love Colin Farrell's recent career choices.

I found myself wishing there was more info explaining the backstory to this universe...why must everyone be paired off? Why does everyone's affect make it appear that they are all on the spectrum?  Etc.

Also, I really want to vacation at that 'hotel' in the real world. Beautiful location.

I liked The Lobster quite a bit, which surprised me because Colin Farrell doesn't top my list of actors I usually enjoy watching.

He and his movie choices have gotten so much more interesting as he's gotten older and isn't just thrust into the "hot main character"-type roles. I like him an awful lot now.

I’m sure you’ve seen In Bruges. One of his best films!

I guess he does battle with alcohol and that probably affects what roles he can take on. I think that’s having quite an effect on his looks. When he played the country western singer in whatever film that was, that was a nice stretch, And he looked to be at the top of his games in movie star hunkiness
 then.

Yes, I love both him and Brendan Gleeson in that film.

[sui generis]

I watched "Amelia" on a plane.  Didn't even realize this movie had been made with Hillary Swank, Richard Gere and Ewan Macgregor, back in 2009.  I was surprised at how bad I thought it was, especially since I like or have nothing against these actors.  I thought EM and HS actually did a pretty bad job and a lot of the actual cinematography choices seemed poor as well.  Too bad, because it was interesting to learn a little bit about Amelia Earhart, who I had never bothered to learn more about than that she got lost in a plane over the Pacific.

My Amelia Earhart story is that in one of her visits to the St. Louis area where she was raising funds for her trips, she stayed with my friend’s grandparents. They claim she stole a towel from them.

So that’s my story.

That's hilarious.  After watching the movie, I totally believe she would steal a towel.  Seems like she was a little spicier than I thought.

[mspym]

Continuing the theme of Movies From Our Youth, last night we watched Footloose which held up better than Top Gun. It was funny because my brain had inserted Old John Lithgow into it, probably because when I saw it the first time Mildly Middle-Aged John Lithgow seemed super old to me. It was surprising to discover he was just a fuddy-duddy dad.

[uniwelder]

Good Luck To You, Leo Grande on Hulu. After hearing about it from a review and then watching the trailer, we signed up for a free month to watch it. I highly recommend it. A middle aged widowed woman hires a prostitute to explore her sexuality. Her deceased husband is the only other person she had been with and was very conservative.

Edited to add— here’s a brief summary off the NPR review I read.

“In Good Luck to You, Leo Grande Emma Thompson plays a woman who decides to embark on a journey of sexual self-discovery and acceptance.

This period of introspection unfolds almost entirely inside one room with two people: Nancy Stokes (Thompson), a recently widowed woman who is reckoning with her marriage that lasted three decades without her experiencing a single orgasm, and Leo Grande (Daryl McCormack), the young sex worker who she has hired to teach her what she's been missing.“

[Kris]

Good Luck To You, Leo Grande on Hulu. After hearing about it from a review and then watching the trailer, we signed up for a free month to watch it. I highly recommend it. A middle aged widowed woman hires a prostitute to explore her sexuality. Her deceased husband is the only other person she had been with and was very conservative.

Edited to add— here’s a brief summary off the NPR review I read.

“In Good Luck to You, Leo Grande Emma Thompson plays a woman who decides to embark on a journey of sexual self-discovery and acceptance.

This period of introspection unfolds almost entirely inside one room with two people: Nancy Stokes (Thompson), a recently widowed woman who is reckoning with her marriage that lasted three decades without her experiencing a single orgasm, and Leo Grande (Daryl McCormack), the young sex worker who she has hired to teach her what she's been missing.“

That’s what that is! I’ve seen a couple of trailers in passing (volume down) and couldn’t figure out exactly what the premise was.

[techwiz]

Saw two movies this weekend.

"Mitchells vs the machines" (animated) about a family on a road during robot apocalypse that become humanity's last hope.  "Uncharted" treasure hunting action movie based on a video game.   Both were enjoyable, but nothing special.

[By the River]

'Uncut Gems' with Adam Sandler. It was OK, not great.  Sandler is miscast, maybe. Why would he want this role? He plays a sleazy gem merchant in NYC. Involved with gangsters. Violence, rappers, cheating on his wife. Some interesting scenes of his Jewish family life.  Not much else was interesting to me. I fast forwarded through 15 minutes in the middle of the DVD. 

Sandler fans might enjoy this movie.   

I am a big Sandler fan and we loved that movie.

And I am not a Sandler fan but enjoyed that movie (definately Sandler's best that I've seen; I wish he did more serious roles). It's loud and unsubtle in many ways on the surface, while actually being a rather subtle character study depicting Sandler as a victim of his own personality. Sort of a modern Greek tragedy where exuberance combines with a sort of disordered striving within Sandler. These flaws result in his constant crises, and serve as a sort of general apology for the flaws in all people, since we are all captives of our own nature in our own ways.

Have you seen Punch Drunk Love and Reign Over Me?  Two other serious type movies he's done. I love all his stuff.. his silly comedies to the drama.  Excellent actor.

I learned about the PS2 video game "Shadow of the Colossus" from Reign Over me.. such a great video game. I have it on my PS3 (hd remastered).

I just watched Sandler's latest Netflix film; Hustle.  Its worth a watch especially for Sandler fans. A drama where he plays an international basketball scout who finds a diamond in the rough.  My son follows pro basketball and recognized the players (who mostly play themselves).  I recognized Dr. J, Shaq and Barkley. 

[By the River]

Saw Top Gun Maverick at the theater last weekend.  Impressive camera work and score, good plot, Tom Cruise acting like actor Tom Cruise.  Probably better to see it on a big screen than at home.

This was my first trip to a movie theater in six years.  Didn't know I had to select seat numbers when buying at the ticket booth.  I feel old.

[slackmax]

Saw Top Gun Maverick at the theater last weekend.  Impressive camera work and score, good plot, Tom Cruise acting like actor Tom Cruise.  Probably better to see it on a big screen than at home.

This was my first trip to a movie theater in six years.  Didn't know I had to select seat numbers when buying at the ticket booth.  I feel old.

I haven't had a seat number assigned on a ticket ever, for a movie theater, when buying at the booth. And I just sit anywhere that's open.     

[Roadrunner53]

Jerry and Marge Go Large

Cute, feel good movie on Paramount +

[Metalcat]

Dr Strange and the Multiverse of Ridiculous, or whatever it's called.

Marvel is just so unbelievably committed to its SMASH-BANG action that it makes an entire movie about masterful magic wielders and they basically just use their exceptional abilities to warp time and space and reality to, what, hurl things at each other?

This is kind of a spoiler:
At one point Wanda makes a dude's mouth disappear. Afterwards she engages in strength-based smashing with people with strength powers and I looked at DH and said "did she just forget that she has the power to make their airways disappear??"

Does she just feel like being way more powerful than everyone else is an unfair advantage, so the only way to feel like it's a fair fight is if she lets someone strong beat her savagely for awhile before she defeats them??"

This is why I'm enjoying the show The Boys so much, not just because it takes the piss out of these movies, but because the characters are allowed to be complex, have complicated motivations, and have dynamic interplay of powers.

What I also respect about the show is that there's a clear order of strength. Whereas the Marvel movies have gotten so sloppy that it doesn't even matter what a characters' powers are, various characters gain or lose capacity to win in any context as it's convenient to the plot.

It's all just a mosh-pit of SMASH-BANG!

I don't know why I expected a superhero about magic and inter-dimensional travel to have, oh, IDK, interesting details about magic and inter-dimensional travel? But nope, that was basically all just a vehicle for a lot of smashing and banging.

[GuitarStv]

I watched Everything Everywhere All At Once last night, and was really impressed.  Awesome movie, can't recommend it enough!  Pacing was a slightly uneven in some parts, but overall it was outstanding.

[slackmax]

Dr Strange and the Multiverse of Ridiculous, or whatever it's called.

Marvel is just so unbelievably committed to its SMASH-BANG action that it makes an entire movie about masterful magic wielders and they basically just use their exceptional abilities to warp time and space and reality to, what, hurl things at each other?

This is kind of a spoiler:
At one point Wanda makes a dude's mouth disappear. Afterwards she engages in strength-based smashing with people with strength powers and I looked at DH and said "did she just forget that she has the power to make their airways disappear??"

Does she just feel like being way more powerful than everyone else is an unfair advantage, so the only way to feel like it's a fair fight is if she lets someone strong beat her savagely for awhile before she defeats them??"

This is why I'm enjoying the show The Boys so much, not just because it takes the piss out of these movies, but because the characters are allowed to be complex, have complicated motivations, and have dynamic interplay of powers.

What I also respect about the show is that there's a clear order of strength. Whereas the Marvel movies have gotten so sloppy that it doesn't even matter what a characters' powers are, various characters gain or lose capacity to win in any context as it's convenient to the plot.

It's all just a mosh-pit of SMASH-BANG!

I don't know why I expected a superhero about magic and inter-dimensional travel to have, oh, IDK, interesting details about magic and inter-dimensional travel? But nope, that was basically all just a vehicle for a lot of smashing and banging.

It's a free country and people can spend their (hard earned?) money on anything, I guess. Sigh.

I was flipping through the channels yesterday and came across some B movie featuring an attractive loin cloth clad woman who was busy tossing burly men over her shoulder. Some of the men were humans and some were cyborgs. She stabbed the cyborgs in the skull, which then erupted in an electrical fire. I was waiting for the action to stop and the acting to begin, but it was just one big video game made into a movie, I guess. Never did find out the title.   

I never go to any of the Marvel type movies. No acting, no drama, no nothing, IMHO. Just smash-bang, as you say, lol.  But, it's a free country, lol.

[sui generis]

Watched Palm Springs this weekend.  The description was so vague, I thought it was just a mumblecore-descendant rom-com.  I was pretty shocked when suddenly the main character was being shot by a guy with a crossbow and then it took a sci fi turn.  It was still a silly rom-com, too, but it was pretty fun and different.

[Metalcat]

Dr Strange and the Multiverse of Ridiculous, or whatever it's called.

Marvel is just so unbelievably committed to its SMASH-BANG action that it makes an entire movie about masterful magic wielders and they basically just use their exceptional abilities to warp time and space and reality to, what, hurl things at each other?

This is kind of a spoiler:
At one point Wanda makes a dude's mouth disappear. Afterwards she engages in strength-based smashing with people with strength powers and I looked at DH and said "did she just forget that she has the power to make their airways disappear??"

Does she just feel like being way more powerful than everyone else is an unfair advantage, so the only way to feel like it's a fair fight is if she lets someone strong beat her savagely for awhile before she defeats them??"

This is why I'm enjoying the show The Boys so much, not just because it takes the piss out of these movies, but because the characters are allowed to be complex, have complicated motivations, and have dynamic interplay of powers.

What I also respect about the show is that there's a clear order of strength. Whereas the Marvel movies have gotten so sloppy that it doesn't even matter what a characters' powers are, various characters gain or lose capacity to win in any context as it's convenient to the plot.

It's all just a mosh-pit of SMASH-BANG!

I don't know why I expected a superhero about magic and inter-dimensional travel to have, oh, IDK, interesting details about magic and inter-dimensional travel? But nope, that was basically all just a vehicle for a lot of smashing and banging.

It's a free country and people can spend their (hard earned?) money on anything, I guess. Sigh.

I was flipping through the channels yesterday and came across some B movie featuring an attractive loin cloth clad woman who was busy tossing burly men over her shoulder. Some of the men were humans and some were cyborgs. She stabbed the cyborgs in the skull, which then erupted in an electrical fire. I was waiting for the action to stop and the acting to begin, but it was just one big video game made into a movie, I guess. Never did find out the title.   

I never go to any of the Marvel type movies. No acting, no drama, no nothing, IMHO. Just smash-bang, as you say, lol.  But, it's a free country, lol.

Oh yeah, a lot of people love SMASH-BANG, especially in the Chinese market, which is where most of these movies make their money. I get *why* they make them this way, I just stupidly thought this might be one of those marvel movies that's a little more creative and plot driven, like some of the individual character movies are, like some of the Spiderman, Iron Man, Ant Man, and Black Widow movies.

Dr Strange and Scarlet Witch are two EXTREMELY dynamic characters who have been rather under utilized, so I thought that maybe this movie might be a departure from the SMASH-BANG since it doesn't feature the usual SMASH-BANG crew of physical strength-based characters.

I think my hopes were especially high after the massive success of Wanda-Vision, an almost entirely character driven, dynamic, stylized show with minimal SMASH-BANG and A LOT of creative use of powers and interpersonal dynamics.

But no...

[slackmax]

Malcat, I will have to check out Wanda-vision.

I did see Iron Man, and the first Batman, and found them OK, but not great.

The only super hero type of movie I have really, really liked, that I can remember, is The Joker, because it had great cinematography and great acting.

Edit-to-add:  I liked Birdman a lot, since I enjoy Michael Keaton and Emma Stone.
So there's one more!

Maybe I have to like the main actor to like the movie.

 

 

[Metalcat]

Malcat, I will have to check out Wanda-vision.

I did see Iron Man, and the first Batman, and found them OK, but not great.

The only super hero type of movie I have really, really liked, that I can remember, is The Joker, because it had great cinematography and great acting.

Those movies have infinitely more character focus than many of the more recent superhero movies, which has marathon, massive fight scenes that are often so long and repetitive that I typically fall asleep.

[Psychstache]

Malcat, I will have to check out Wanda-vision.

I did see Iron Man, and the first Batman, and found them OK, but not great.

The only super hero type of movie I have really, really liked, that I can remember, is The Joker, because it had great cinematography and great acting.

Edit-to-add:  I liked Birdman a lot, since I enjoy Michael Keaton and Emma Stone.
So there's one more!

Maybe I have to like the main actor to like the movie.

Wandavision is fantastic in both form and character development.

Personally, I greatly enjoy the MCU precisely because I can turn my brain off and enjoy the ride. As a white collar knowledge worker, I don't want to use my brain when I go to the movie theater. If there is a great character driven movie (Good recent example would be One Night in Miami on Amazon Prime) it will be just as enjoyable at home compared to the big screen. The only movies I'm looking to pay to watch on a large screen are Smash Bangs where the starring role is played by large explosions.

[getsorted]

Oh yeah, a lot of people love SMASH-BANG, especially in the Chinese market, which is where most of these movies make their money. I get *why* they make them this way, I just stupidly thought this might be one of those marvel movies that's a little more creative and plot driven, like some of the individual character movies are, like some of the Spiderman, Iron Man, Ant Man, and Black Widow movies.

Dr Strange and Scarlet Witch are two EXTREMELY dynamic characters who have been rather under utilized, so I thought that maybe this movie might be a departure from the SMASH-BANG since it doesn't feature the usual SMASH-BANG crew of physical strength-based characters.

I think my hopes were especially high after the massive success of Wanda-Vision, an almost entirely character driven, dynamic, stylized show with minimal SMASH-BANG and A LOT of creative use of powers and interpersonal dynamics.

But no...

A lot of people were disappointed that Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness basically repeated the entire character arc of Wanda in WandaVision all over again, with very little explanation as to why she

Spoiler: show

gave up her kids to stop hurting people at the end of WandaVision, but then was abruptly willing to murder people to get them back at the beginning of the movie?

I watched it on opening weekend in the theater with my son, who is deep into Marvel and was a huge fan of WandaVision and Dr. Strange. When the lights came up, his hair was pointing in every direction from him constantly clutching it, and he looked at me with a disappointed frown that belonged on a far older face. He went home and watched about three straight movie recaps on YouTube, all complaining about the same thing, and felt slightly better afterwards. Now he won't go to the theater with me to see anything unless I get spoilers first and make sure nobody he likes dies.

I get that every blockbuster is going to be a mixture of spectacle and story, and the spectacle of

Spoiler: show

zombie Dr. Strange sailing across a mountain range with a cape made of the souls of the damned

is maybe one of the coolest spectacles in the MCU, but overall, the jarring heel-turn and dull story kind of ruined this one.

About 15 years ago, I went to Comic-Con and watched a panel with the He-Man creators. People kept coming up to the mic and asking questions like, "What was your motivation to introduce Shark-Man?" and they would look at each other and shrug and say, "Well, Hasbro had these Shark-Man toys they wanted to sell...." Sometimes you have to just remember, this is commercial art, whatever it achieves artistically is kind of a side effect.

[Metalcat]

Oh yeah, a lot of people love SMASH-BANG, especially in the Chinese market, which is where most of these movies make their money. I get *why* they make them this way, I just stupidly thought this might be one of those marvel movies that's a little more creative and plot driven, like some of the individual character movies are, like some of the Spiderman, Iron Man, Ant Man, and Black Widow movies.

Dr Strange and Scarlet Witch are two EXTREMELY dynamic characters who have been rather under utilized, so I thought that maybe this movie might be a departure from the SMASH-BANG since it doesn't feature the usual SMASH-BANG crew of physical strength-based characters.

I think my hopes were especially high after the massive success of Wanda-Vision, an almost entirely character driven, dynamic, stylized show with minimal SMASH-BANG and A LOT of creative use of powers and interpersonal dynamics.

But no...

A lot of people were disappointed that Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness basically repeated the entire character arc of Wanda in WandaVision all over again, with very little explanation as to why she

Spoiler: show

gave up her kids to stop hurting people at the end of WandaVision, but then was abruptly willing to murder people to get them back at the beginning of the movie?

I watched it on opening weekend in the theater with my son, who is deep into Marvel and was a huge fan of WandaVision and Dr. Strange. When the lights came up, his hair was pointing in every direction from him constantly clutching it, and he looked at me with a disappointed frown that belonged on a far older face. He went home and watched about three straight movie recaps on YouTube, all complaining about the same thing, and felt slightly better afterwards. Now he won't go to the theater with me to see anything unless I get spoilers first and make sure nobody he likes dies.

I get that every blockbuster is going to be a mixture of spectacle and story, and the spectacle of

Spoiler: show

zombie Dr. Strange sailing across a mountain range with a cape made of the souls of the damned

is maybe one of the coolest spectacles in the MCU, but overall, the jarring heel-turn and dull story kind of ruined this one.

About 15 years ago, I went to Comic-Con and watched a panel with the He-Man creators. People kept coming up to the mic and asking questions like, "What was your motivation to introduce Shark-Man?" and they would look at each other and shrug and say, "Well, Hasbro had these Shark-Man toys they wanted to sell...." Sometimes you have to just remember, this is commercial art, whatever it achieves artistically is kind of a side effect.

Which is why I don't have very high expectations of these movies, but once in awhile they lure me into thinking that they might do something a little more interesting. As a former comic book nerd, I keep hoping for these movies to perform the same kind of function as the source material, but increasingly, they don't.

I would never expect a comic book movie to be a brilliant character film, but comic books do generally have more character and plot than a lot of these movies.

I long ago accepted that they weren't made for me, I just thought that *this one* might be a little more Wanda-Vision-esque than the sloppy, violent mess it turned out to be.

[getsorted]

Which is why I don't have very high expectations of these movies, but once in awhile they lure me into thinking that they might do something a little more interesting. As a former comic book nerd, I keep hoping for these movies to perform the same kind of function as the source material, but increasingly, they don't.

I would never expect a comic book movie to be a brilliant character film, but comic books do generally have more character and plot than a lot of these movies.

I long ago accepted that they weren't made for me, I just thought that *this one* might be a little more Wanda-Vision-esque than the sloppy, violent mess it turned out to be.

I just can't stop watching them, even though I know they're going to disappoint me. Even though the constant introduction of the latest Shark-Man (and then the inevitable team-up of all the latest Shark-Mans) drives me bonkers.

I hadn't seen any of them until three years ago, when I had norovirus and binge-watched most of the MCU over a weekend. They are perfect sick-day movies. You don't have to pay that much attention, the humor is very accessible, and they generally end on a high note.

[mspym]

Watched Palm Springs this weekend.  The description was so vague, I thought it was just a mumblecore-descendant rom-com.  I was pretty shocked when suddenly the main character was being shot by a guy with a crossbow and then it took a sci fi turn.  It was still a silly rom-com, too, but it was pretty fun and different.

I really liked it. I didn’t know anything going in and was delighted by the turn it took.

[GuitarStv]

Watched Palm Springs this weekend.  The description was so vague, I thought it was just a mumblecore-descendant rom-com.  I was pretty shocked when suddenly the main character was being shot by a guy with a crossbow and then it took a sci fi turn.  It was still a silly rom-com, too, but it was pretty fun and different.

I really liked it. I didn’t know anything going in and was delighted by the turn it took.

I loved Palm Springs.  Great writing and acting.  Also didn't know anything about it going in, and was really happily surprised - it's about as good as rom-com gets.

[getsorted]

Watched Palm Springs this weekend.  The description was so vague, I thought it was just a mumblecore-descendant rom-com.  I was pretty shocked when suddenly the main character was being shot by a guy with a crossbow and then it took a sci fi turn.  It was still a silly rom-com, too, but it was pretty fun and different.

I really liked it. I didn’t know anything going in and was delighted by the turn it took.

I loved Palm Springs.  Great writing and acting.  Also didn't know anything about it going in, and was really happily surprised - it's about as good as rom-com gets.

Just chiming in because I was also completely charmed by Palm Springs.