General Movie Thread

[FLiam]

Can anyone elaborate on why it's uncomfortable/stressful without spoiling anything?

[Arjen Robben]

It’s just everything working together tbh, I think it’d be hard to properly articulate exactly why without spoiling it. Trying to be vague it’s just the performances, the music, the pacing, the mood, the atmosphere and obviously the narrative all at once.

[Hobo]

Kirk Douglas has died at age 103.

 

[GoGo Yubari]

50 minutes ago, Arjen Robben said:

It’s just everything working together tbh, I think it’d be hard to properly articulate exactly why without spoiling it. Trying to be vague it’s just the performances, the music, the pacing, the mood, the atmosphere and obviously the narrative all at once.

It's pretty much this, but to try and give a more specific example; one thing that it felt like this movie does that other movies would avoid is it barely mutes or minimizes background conversations/conversations happening with other, not-especially important characters in the scene while, say, Adam Sandler and Lakeith Stanfield are in the foreground having their own conversation. It makes things feel busier and more chaotic.

Also the score is just fucking weird. Like, it's really loud and feels a bit like it was imported from an entirely different movie, it's not what you would ever think the score for a movie about a jeweler in New York City with a gambling addiction would be in a million years.

[Benjamin]

9 hours ago, Liam Mk2 said:

Can anyone elaborate on why it's uncomfortable/stressful without spoiling anything?

Picture an office where everyone's talking over each other and at the same time, multiple phones are ringing but no one's answering, the entrance alarm is blaring but nobody is buzzing the person in and everyone's dressed in the gaudiest shit imaginable.

That's your opening half hour. 

If you haven't, try out their other film: Good Time. That's another incredible movie. Done just as well, too. 

[Lint]

On 04/02/2020 at 17:52, Arjen Robben said:

I'm still annoyed Sandler got no awards recognition for Uncut Gems and have been for like two months, and after watching it again yesterday I feel just as baffled by it.

Think of it as an "Oscars So Old" situation.  Read an interview with one Oscar voter who was 91.  She said Sandlers joke about "making the worst movie ever" was a thing of arrogance.  She also said Sandler and J'lo, who had apparently gotten huge talk due to Hustlers, hadn't had enough "prestige" material to warrant an Oscar nomination.  She also flat out refused to watch Hustlers, because she personally objected to movies about strippers.  

[MDK]

10 hours ago, GoGo Yubari said:

Also the score is just fucking weird. Like, it's really loud and feels a bit like it was imported from an entirely different movie, it's not what you would ever think the score for a movie about a jeweler in New York City with a gambling addiction would be in a million years.

I paused it once because I was sure I had another tab open playing Blade Runner.

[GoGo Yubari]

I've now seen 1917. It's an incredibly impressive work of filmmaking that didn't grab me emotionally much at all. That's how I felt about Dunkirk too, though I think this one will stick with me a lot longer than that one did.

[Benjamin]

21 hours ago, Lint said:

Think of it as an "Oscars So Old" situation.  Read an interview with one Oscar voter who was 91.  She said Sandlers joke about "making the worst movie ever" was a thing of arrogance.  She also said Sandler and J'lo, who had apparently gotten huge talk due to Hustlers, hadn't had enough "prestige" material to warrant an Oscar nomination.  She also flat out refused to watch Hustlers, because she personally objected to movies about strippers.  

They're just full of a bunch of people who hate when anything new is being tried. An Oscar nom is just turning into a participation trophy for all the established names by this point. Why the Leo has another nomination for one of his least interesting performance is beyond me. The Two Popes was utter shite, and the fact that both lead actors were sleeping through their performances and they both got nominated? It's just whoever is an established name that always towed the line. The fact that Phoenix's performance is considered groundbreaking when there's at least three other performances that just went all out and legitimately did something different, it's just hilarious. 

[GoGo Yubari]

Once Upon a Time is probably in my top ten DiCaprio performances, so different strokes. I'd rank Sandler in Uncut Gems over either performance in the Best Actor field I've seen, though. I'll probably have seen Marriage Story by Sunday night but not the other two.

[tristy]

I can see why Joaquin is nominated, honestly. The movie itself is.... complicated.

I think I'd probably remove Jonathan Pryce and put Adam Sandler in his place. But if I couldn't do that, then I'd at least take away The Irishman and put Uncut Gems in its place. If you've seen one Scorsese gangster flick, you've seen them all, in my opinion. It wasn't a BAD movie, but it didn't leave me thinking, "Wow, this was an amazing movie". And over in the other big category... I've seen everything up for Best Picture, except for Little Women, and honestly the only movie on the list that I can say didn't leave me too impressed was The Irishman and Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. Good movies, yeah, but nothing too exceptional. Uncut Gems blows away all of those nominated except maybe Marriage Story.

Seriously, that movie left me in shambles. Maybe it was the unexpected ending, maybe it was because I hadn't seen a Sandler movie I actually cared about since... what, Spanglish? Maybe it was how ridiculously good Kevin Garnett and Julia Fox were (both in their first movie roles, ever). The score was just amazing - Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never did an incredible job. It somehow doesn't fit the movie but also fits the movie perfectly.

[GhostMachine]

I may be in the minority, but I think Scorsese is overrated. He's a great director,  yes, but he's pretty much nominated for anything he does.

[GoGo Yubari]

You will all be shocked to learn that I, the person who failed to do a EWB's Favorite Movie 2017 and responded by going "fuck it, Lady Bird won," was extremely into Little Women.

I'm definitely gonna get Marriage Story in before the Oscars, not sure if I have time for Jojo Rabbit and I figure Ford vs. Ferrari isn't necessary to have an opinion about.

[Benjamin]

4 hours ago, GoGo Yubari said:

You will all be shocked to learn that I, the person who failed to do a EWB's Favorite Movie 2017 and responded by going "fuck it, Lady Bird won," was extremely into Little Women.

I'm definitely gonna get Marriage Story in before the Oscars, not sure if I have time for Jojo Rabbit and I figure Ford vs. Ferrari isn't necessary to have an opinion about.

I literally agree with everything you just said, as Marriage Story is really good, Little Women was fucking incredible, I'm going to try to make time for Jojo Rabbit (thinking about watching it later today, actually) and couldn't give less of a fuck about Ford vs Ferrari. 

I still have yet to watch a few others, though, most notably the Lighthouse, Pain & Glory and Waves. 

[Colly]

On 07/02/2020 at 06:01, tristy said:

Uncut Gems blows away all of those nominated except maybe Marriage Story.

Seriously, that movie left me in shambles. Maybe it was the unexpected ending, maybe it was because I hadn't seen a Sandler movie I actually cared about since... what, Spanglish? Maybe it was how ridiculously good Kevin Garnett and Julia Fox were (both in their first movie roles, ever). The score was just amazing - Daniel Lopatin aka Oneohtrix Point Never did an incredible job. It somehow doesn't fit the movie but also fits the movie perfectly.

Watched it tonight, I thought it was brilliant. Agreed on everything (especially Garnett), although it took me a long time to get into the score. As you say it sort of doesn't fit the film and especially early on it felt really jarring.

[Arjen Robben]

Independent Spirit awards 

Best Feature: The Farewell
Best Director: The Safdie Brothers
Best Actor: Adam Sandler
Best Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe
Best Supporting Actress: Zhao Shuzhen
Best Screenplay: Marriage Story
Best First Feature: Booksmart
Best International Film: Parasite

Love all of those wins.

[Benjamin]

Sandler had a fucking great speech, too.

 

[GoGo Yubari]

Figured Sandler would get that one but Zhao Shuzhen getting Best Supporting Actress absolutely rules. It's completely ludicrous that The Farewell got shut out the way it did.

[livid]

In a year with some great movies, Knives Out might be my favorite of 2019. Loved it!

Edited February 9, 2020 by livid

[GoGo Yubari]

And now I've seen Jojo Rabbit and Marriage Story so I'm comfortable with my usual "see all of the Best Picture nominees but one" intake. I think for me the power ranking would go Parasite, The Irishman, Marriage Story, Little Women, bit of a dropoff to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, then another dropoff to Jojo which I liked but didn't think was all that special and 1917 which is super-impressive but not the kind of movie I'm ever going to fall for, then Ford vs. Ferrari which I didn't see, and then Joker.

(For acting I'd go Adam Driver, Saorsie Ronan, Al Pacino, Florence Pugh)