What Did You Watch Today?

[Monkey D. Lars]

Just saw The Little Shop of Horrors the 1960's version, found it kinda awesome. And it was awesome to see a young Jack Nicholson. Will watch the remake in a couple of days. Frank Oz directed it so it should be awesome.

[livid]

I hate horror movies in general, but was able to enjoy Cabin in the Woods if only for the scenes which Bradley Whitford was in.

Pretty much this. Whitford and Richard Jenkins are tremendous in their roles. But yeah, I normally hate horror movies but I loved Cabin in the Woods but that was probably because it tried make fun of horror movies rather than try to be one.

[HC]

Man of Steel did not disappoint, at least for me. I really enjoyed it, and Henry Cavill makes an excellent Superman. After watching guys like Reeve and Routh look a bit thin, it was great to see one that looked like he was straight from the comics. Without going into spoiler detail, I also enjoyed the fact that Superman was made vulnerable emotionally, adding some human quality. I do realize that's not for everyone, though. Neither is the nonstop action pace in the third act, but I liked it. It doesn't touch Nolan's Batman, but it doesn't try to. It works on its own level.

I'm baffled at the negative response from the critics. I don't know if they were expecting the squeaky clean Donner Superman that saves kittens and were disappointed or something else. I actually saw one review complain on the basis that he didn't have red tights, which is a pretty stupid reason to dislike it. I guess the non-stop action could be a complaint, but The Avengers got a pass on that so I'm not sure. I'd totally recommend it for anyone who's a fan of the character.

Edited June 15, 2013 by HeadCheese

[Benjamin]

As far as I've seen, I've actually only seen solid fans of Superman like the movie.

I love the design of the costume, and even the origins of it were okay. Not bothered by the action, either, except some stuff that just didn't have to be there, and a lot of disentangled moments.

Spoilers on my biggest turnoff for the movie.

Killing Zod. Completely uneccesary and totally goes against the
character of Superman, who doesn't use killing force. It was completely
baffling.

Also, the sudden mini-plot of Perry White and those two members of the Daily
Planet were a real waste of time, and offered no emotional drama whatsoever. One
of a few totally unrequired scenes.

Oh, but Henry Cavill was perfect casting. He looks exactly like Superman. And of course Amy Adams is the best.

Edited June 15, 2013 by Extremely Huge Bag of Shit

[HC]

As far as I've seen, I've actually only seen solid fans of Superman like the movie.

I love the design of the costume, and even the origins of it were okay. Not bothered by the action, either, except some stuff that just didn't have to be there, and a lot of disentangled moments.

Spoilers on my biggest turnoff for the movie.

Killing Zod. Completely uneccesary and totally goes against the

character of Superman, who doesn't use killing force. It was completely

baffling.

Also, the sudden mini-plot of Perry White and those two members of the Daily

Planet were a real waste of time, and offered no emotional drama whatsoever. One

of a few totally unrequired scenes.

Oh, but Henry Cavill was perfect casting. He looks exactly like Superman. And of course Amy Adams is the best.

Yeah, I understand the point about Perry White and the rest at the Daily Planet. It seemed a little random, but I suppose that was to at least familiarize the viewers with them as they'll most likely have an expanded role in the sequel. I also was not digging the absence of Jimmy Olsen, but it's possible he could pop up later on as well.

As for the ending, I didn't have a problem with it. It really put a period on this flawed image of Superman. It wasn't as if he took delight in the action. He did what he had to do to save innocent lives, and the ends justifies the means. With that being said, I totally understand how it could turn a lot of people off. It goes way against the traditional values of the character, but the movie's agenda was to paint the character in an imperfect light by breaking that traditional mold and showing that Supes is just as human as he is alien. When tasked with a great challenge in life, we don't always have the perfect solution. Most of the time, the best thing we can do is just follow our instincts and do what's best at the moment. I Maybe it's that very moment that makes him vow to never kill again in this series. In a way, having him spare Zod and finding some way to place him back in the Phantom Zone would've been too easy of a way out.

I feel like the casting of this movie was near perfect. Adams and Cavill were great. Michael Shannon, while overshadowed, played a very nice General Zod. Costner and Crowe were top notch as well. My one complaint was the lack of Brainiac on Krypton, but oh well.

Although this was very good, I expect the sequel to be even better. The pressure should be off of Snyder and Goyer now, and they can learn from the criticism that's been given thus far. A lot of people seem unhappy with the lack of focus on the Superman/Lois romance, which will almost certainly be heavily featured in the sequel. The Daily Planet angle will also add comic relief, for those who thing this one was too serious. This one was more about the man himself and his inner struggle to find himself, along with his relationship with his fathers. The focus will almost certainly shift in the sequel, with a little more room for humor here or there. There's only so much you can cram in one flick.

Edited June 15, 2013 by HeadCheese

[LL!]

Man... I uhhh... I really hated The Purge.

[HC]

Man... I uhhh... I really hated The Purge.

I tried to warn you man!

[ROC]

I rewatched a lot of things when they came on TV, so I'll speed up to the first time viewing I had:

Killer Joe

Unpleasant, but in a kind of intriguing way. The last third is genuinely insane (to the point that it actually kind of clouds what is a damn good Southern noir with a hint of comedy), but goddamn, Matthew McConaughey was great. Nice to see him express his range again, especially in a movie where he's a giant batshit bastard.

[Kaney]

What about the purge, LL? I was interested to hear your thoughts on fb but it degraded into your boyfriend crying about being lonely or some other gay shit.

[ZJ Penn]

My problem with The Purge is it assumes 80% of the population are insane and closet would-be murderers.

Killer Joe was good. The screening my sister went to in London had staff handing out free fried chicken on the way in...

[LL!]

What about the purge, LL? I was interested to hear your thoughts on fb but it degraded into your boyfriend crying about being lonely or some other gay shit.

It all started for me with the concept. It's asking for a hell of a lot of suspension of disbelief because that, honestly, would be the worst fucking idea. But whatever. I challenged the movie to prove me wrong and a good movie would've.

The biggest issue is the idiocy behind every action in that movie. Every single person is a god damn moron. Which leads me to hating all the protagonists, which is not a good sign. By the end of it, I wanted every member of that family dead. Not a good sign for your movie.

It also had this cheesy as fuck semi-twist towards the end that made me cringe.

The whole movie was an exercise in idiocy and predictability.

[Summers]

See, I like the concept. Put it in the right setting (politics wise in a dystopian world) and it could be a really good thing to explore.

Sounds like they did very little right though.

[LL!]

See, but that's the thing, the setting is as if it went into effect tomorrow.

[Summers]

Ugh. That's dumb. Really dumb. It makes no sense as a narrative that way. It's a shame, in a way.

[Kaney]

Sounds as bad as I'd expected then.

[LL!]

Yeah, the film is meant to take place in 2022, but it's exactly like how we're living now except for the fact that the kid in the movie has access to those sunglasses from Heavy Rain, except they're just a camera.

[Monkey D. Lars]

Just watched The Toxic Avenger, and boy o boy. It's so bad but at the same time so awesome.

[Ant]

Arnie is starring in the remake for that.

[Monkey D. Lars]

Yeah I heard, I think that they will not include the scene were that little boy gets runover.

[GA!]

Yeah I heard, I think that they will not include the scene were that little boy gets runover.

But that's the best part.