Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Screen203
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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What Men Want

Overall entertaining, although predictable as all hell. Most of the best jokes are in the previews (barring a hilarious rap "sizzle reel" of one of the main character's clients) and the beginning drags a bit before the "reading". The best performance was easily held by Erykah Badu, which is probably because it reflects her reality. Taraji P. Henson basically plays the same role that she's mastered. Tracy Morgan probably has the best comedic moments (though I may be biased because I've met him). The editing choices are somewhat strange, with liberal sprinklings of shaky-cam and extreme close-ups. The soundtrack nicely complements the vibe of the movie. Overall, I would say it's an breezy two hours that you forget the minute you step outside of the theater.

7 out of 10
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Anyone else see the new Liam Neeson/Heath Ledger movie this weekend? God that was horrible to listen to.
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Screen203
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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W wrote:Anyone else see the new Liam Neeson/Heath Ledger movie this weekend? God that was horrible to listen to.
?
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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I'm pretty sure he's talking about Cold Pursuit.

The Kid Who Would Be King 3/10

Yet another King Arthur story and yet another example of the sophomore slump. Joe Cornish's long-awaited follow-up to Attack the Block is overlong and takes itself way too seriously. It has none of the fun that film did. Instead, we get some story about how this kid, his magic-obsessed friend (who is not the kid from Hunt for the Wilderpeople), and his bullies are going to save the world from King Arthur's half-sister (which makes you realize that a lot of these classic stories from that era are rather misogynistic) and that it's supposed to relate to current events though they never really get there. A lot of it feels like an It Gets Better video expanded to feature length. Also, Cornish attempts to pay homage to the fantasy films of the 80's (such as Legend and Labyrinth) but it feels more like some low budget kids' film from the era (I was reminded of The Dirt Bike Kid, an 80's-ified version of Jack and the Beanstalk, for some reason).

The end result is a dated and forgettable family film that doesn't even seem to try to add anything new to an overdone subject.
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Aquaman - 6/10

Like most DC Universe films ever since the TDK trilogy ended (WW being the only exception), this was very meh. It felt overlong, overblown, and rather shallow (pun intended). Jason Momoa is likeable enough in the lead role, playing him as a buff, bearded dudebro who's in way over his head, but it kind of falls flat when you consider he's already fought alongside Superman and Wonder Woman. Most of the other characters are forgettable and lack depth (again, pun intended).
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Buscemi2 wrote:I'm pretty sure he's talking about Cold Pursuit.
You’ll understand eventually. If you told me a main character was tricked into thinking this was the Joker prequel, I may believe you.
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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W wrote:
Buscemi2 wrote:I'm pretty sure he's talking about Cold Pursuit.
You’ll understand eventually. If you told me a main character was tricked into thinking this was the Joker prequel, I may believe you.
Oh ok. Heard good things about it, so I'll have to turn in my liberal millennial card and see it.
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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You're Generation Z, buddy. Ageist media people just like to lump all of them into one group to create a one size fits all insult.

As for Cold Pursuit, I'm sure you could watch the original and get the same effect without all the real life casual racism.
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Alita: Battle Angel 8/10

A better RoboCop remake than the actual RoboCop remake. James Cameron's long-in-development manga adaptation doesn't bring anything new to the mold (the script feels stuck in the 90's, for example) but it certainly is an exciting movie that is much like a live-action anime. It also shows what exactly Robert Rodriguez can do when he's given a big budget and doesn't need to do seven different jobs at once. And though there are some a few issues with the visual effects, the motion capture is much improved from what we originally saw in the teaser trailer. Alita is not as uncanny valley as she may seem at first (in fact, she looks remarkably like a young Aubrey Plaza). It's not at the benchmark that War for the Planet of the Apes set but it's much better than say, the mocap in the Oscar-nominated Ready Player One.

Could it have been better? Sure. They could have fleshed out some elements (it felt like they jammed ten issues of comic book into a two hour film) and maybe not had some things feel derivative (Motorball is obviously Rollerball with androids) but you don't really need to think with this kind of film. It will be interesting to see if the sequel gets made though.
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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At Eternity's Gate 8/10

It's not hard to see why Willem Dafoe was nominated for an Oscar. Pretty much anyone playing van Gogh is going to get some sort of attention but Julian Schnabel goes for an approach that only a born artist could have pulled off. It looks much like one of the Redheaded Madman's paintings. And Dafoe might be the person who most fits the part (probably because he's of Dutch ancestry) out of the actors who have played Vincent. It's certainly better than the glorified TV movie that was Loving Vincent because you can tell there was as much work put into the script as there were the technical aspects (excellent cinematography, by the way).

However, this film seems to divide people. Some of the people at the showing I was at really didn't like the film. Maybe they were expecting a Dafoe movie like Aquaman?
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Fighting with My Family 8/10

Less like the typical WWE production and more like the working class film the UK offers on a regular basis, Stephen Merchant's first theatrically released directorial effort is an entertainment biopic about the rise of Paige and the reinvention of the Divas division. Florence Pugh already looks like someone who could beat you up and has no problem selling the wrestling elements while Vince Vaughn isn't too bad as her NXT teacher. And Dwayne Johnson does some of his more naturalistic acting as himself. A lot of what makes the film interesting is the behind-the-scenes elements of WWE and how wrestlers are developed. I'm not sure how much of the film is factual (we do get documentary footage of Paige and her family during the credits, which Merchant followed closely) but either way, it's an entertaining ride.
It's like what Lenin said...I am the walrus.

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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Can You Ever Forgive Me - 6/10
A gentle biopic about a biography writer in desperate need of money who turns to forging letters. The story is modest, but the performances from Melissa McCarthy and Richard E Grant are decent.

Bodied: 7/10
Under-rated satire about a white uni student researching the n-word in hip-hop, only to end up becoming a battle-rapper in his own right, eventually using some pretty un-PC to make his mark in that world. It's a funny, fast-paced movie that both pokes fun at the left but also shows how one can betray one's ideals for a moment of fame. It's a little too long, but overall is an excellent film with some great visuals.

If Beale Street Could Talk: 6/10
This is not a great film. The acting is totally over the top as it tells a non-linear story about a young African-American couple who fall in love, only for the guy to get arrested. It feels less than the sum of its parts, but the more technical aspects of the film (particularly score and cinematography) make it worthwhile.

Spiderman: Into the Spider-verse: 7/10
Lord and Miller once again show how to make mainstream cinema that's also (slightly) subversive and completely entertaining. It's fun, unpredictable, with a nice message and a great mox of animation styles. The last act disappoints slightly as the film takes itself too seriously and fails to top previous action scenes, but as superhero movies go this is one of the best in the last few years.

Capernaum: 6/10
Lebanese film about a boy living in poverty who tries to sue his own parents for giving birth to him. It's like a very indie Slumdog Millionaire as it jumps back in time to tell the story of the boy and how he ends up making wrong choices. The film is more gripping than one would expect, and the director brilliantly makes use of non-professional actors. It's a shame the ending wasn't very convincing.

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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World - wait for it .... 10/10 (you were expecting something else?)

Lest you all think this 10 is something I would give this film based solely on the title, I assure you, this is not the case. I had high hopes going into this (ostensibly) final film in the franchise, and it did not disappoint. Closing out a trilogy (which also included five seasons on a TV series on Netflix) is never easy, but they pulled it off. Hiccup has grown so much as a character, and with Astrid by his side, he finally becomes the leader he was destined to be. Most of the other (human) characters shine in brief moments, but the film - as it always has been - is about Hiccup and Toothless and the unique bond they share. If you think about it, this series could only reasonably (and logically) end one way, and I'm glad the filmmakers had the stones to tell that story. The animation is STUNNING, and I both cheered and cried at various points during the climax.
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Cold War 8/10

Simple but stunningly made romance about the tumulous relationship between a composer and a singer, set across fifteen years and several countries. Pawlikowski is a bit overrated as a filmmaker but he's a much better filmmaker than Cuaron. Unlike Roma, the black-and-white cinematography here has much more going on and the end result feels more like an Ingmar Bergman film. This should have won Best Cinematography but the Academy hates Academy ratio much like they do 65mm and IMAX. And Joanna Kulig was robbed of a Best Actress nomination. The Academy doesn't seem to award performances where the character is allowed to grow through the film. I can't really recall any of the five nominees this year having the range Kulig shows here.

Also, I loved how the film ended. Subtle but effective.
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Re: Rate That Movie Part IV: Movies Never Sleep

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Alita: Battle Angel

Okay entertainment that could have been better. Acting is a mixed bag, with only really Jennifer Connelly standing out in what amounts to an extended cameo. There is no chemistry between the leads and the dialogue is, at times, laughably awful. Without having seen the anime or manga (and I'm not a fan of either), I would have said that a lot of plot elements seem taken from other movies (from the Rollerball-esque "game", to the concept of Zalem being similar to Elysium, and Alita's RoboCop - esque resseruction at the start of the movie.) The special effects were mostly very good, but the cartoonish aspect of the effects doesn't gel with the dark world of Iron City.

5 out of 10
It's not destroying. It's making something new.

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