What DVD have you just watched?

M, you have this thing about taking crap seriously, haven't you

EJ

Had a bit of a Sc-fi weekend, so these two have been watched and both very good.

Hi EJ,

I suppose so. I love films like 'The Matrix', as it is internally consistent - in a way that 'Looper' isn't, not for me anyway.

MIB3 included time travel, and did not transgress logic, or ask me to make allowances by invoking a multi-verse.

So many films just fail when using time, such as 'The Prisoner of Azkhaban'.

I enjoy many of the Marvel films. At worst they are just stupid! I tried watching Abe Lincoln - Vampire Slayer in this way, but then they bought in the death of his son, and mixed this in with Gettysburg. Now I am a Brit, but even I am aware of the carnage of the American Civil War. I have read Lincoln biographies and know of the pain they suffered as a family. By 'mashing' superhero sensibilities with real life atrocities and the personal pain and loss of real people, well I was just pulled out of any 'fun' element.

M

Fair enough, M. By your yardstick you'll probably find me extremely tolerant of logic gaps - my own measurement scale prioritises the emotional over the rational in a big way. In that way I'd rank Matrix slightly above Looper. Both leave MIB3 far, far behind. I was extremely impressed with Dredd, too early to tell how it will age but I expect I'll rank it close to the top - near Die Hard (to stay in the genre). I also like the Marvel films, they are entertaining and don't treat the audience like morons (as did last year's biggest sucker: The Watch).

Cheers,

EJ

Could have easily named it 'Bondfall', such a disappointment. Night and day between this one and Craig's first, 'Casino Royale'.

I finally got round to watching this last night and really enjoyed it, massively better than QOS and equally as good as CR in my opinion, this film certainly seems to divide opinion that is for sure.

Saw this at the cinema and agree with you. Some bits were comedy bad and Sam Mendes wasted a great actor in Javier Bardem. Look at the quiet menace the Coen Bros got out of him in No Country For Old Men, compared to the camp comedy villain in Skyfall. 

I think Mendes is a great director but should leave the Bond franchise stuff to someone else. 

I agree Paul. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

M

Hotel Transylvania

I love well made children's films .....this isn't one.

M

The Hunter

This is a very good movie.

In the extras is an interview will Willem Dafoe where he describes the process of paring down the script as, 'letting in some air'; and you really feel that in the film. The actors are given room to deliver a lot of information in a oblique fashion. It is good top watch a film that is not just 'paint by numbers' in plot delivery.

The story is passionate, tense and moving.

M

John Carter of Mars

Well, here is a review I didn't think I would write, but, this was pretty good!

The technical aspects and production values are brilliant. The acting ranges from very good to acceptable ......and the script?

OK, you have to just go with the fact that Mars has an atmosphere, water, can support human life, that in being 'copied' to Mars John Carter is gifted super powers (all explained by bone density), that in drinking a magic potion he gains the ability to understand and speak to the Martian natives ....etc.  But to a generation who have been brought up and Science Fantasy, Marvel and DC is this too much to ask?

Perhaps, but I was willing to swing with it, and found the story to be engaging enough. I have seen a LOT worse. The basic story is generic and lacks subtlety, but is competently told within a breathtakingly realised world. Really shows up how much progress has been made since Attack of the Clones.

Will I buy it? No, but I am glad I watched it.

M

..very good, will soon get through and buy the 2nd series..

Hi Bert,

Can I strongly suggest you DON'T watch this. It is HIGHLY addictive, I've just finished the last existent book, and now have to wait until 2014 for the Wings of Winter!

Really good stuff.

I enjoy the way that they are abridging the story for the series, frequently to really good effect.

M

Joe Killer

What a breath-taking film. Great script, direction and acting.

A VERY dark take on Cinderella - give it a go.

One for the collection. Humour at its darkest.

M

P.S.
I just checked - it only made $3.5 million on an est. budget of $10 million - is there no justice!

Got given the DVD for a birthday present. What a cheap and tacky looking cover. 

Fits the lame content.

After being discovered in a Detroit bar in 1967, Sixto Rodriguez signed a recording deal, but his albums bombed, and he disappeared into obscurity.

Unbeknownst to him, a bootleg recording found its way into apartheid-era South Africa and over the next two decades he became a national phenomenon.

The film follows the story of two South African fans who, twenty years later, set out to find out what really happened to Rodriguez...and that's all I will say about the plot in order to avoid being a spoiler!

Surprising, funny, heart-breaking and ultimately, extremely uplifting, I think you all will love this beautifully made, music-oriented documentary! 

Thx Hook,

Now on my Love Film list.

M

Sixto Rodriguez will be performing in Chicago in a couple of weeks.

"Song Without End" with Dirk Bogarde and Capucin.  Syrupy story of the life of Franz Liszt--who taught my piano teacher's teacher's teacher.  They all roll over in their graves whenever I touch the keyboard.

Best regards,

Russ

Amour

A painful film to watch, the decline and death of a beloved partner.

Things are not dealt with in the ultimate intimate detail, this is more a film about the emotional truths, rather than the prosaic mechanical processes of coping with a failing human.

This is undoubtedly a well made and acted intimate piece; but did I feel that it was a rewarding use of my time?

Still thinking about it.

M

Lethal Weapon, from when Mel Gibson was still cool. Amazing bluray transfer!

Cheers,

EJ