What was the last film you watched?

[fuzzy]

Bridge of Spies. I love a good Cold War film and this was a good Cold War film

[Andrew]

Ghost Busters I seem to remember having thought it fun back in the day. Hmmm... time hasn't been kind to it. Has its moments but I'd not bother again.

[red marley]

The David Brent film. Take one joke (made 15 years ago) and repeat it until your 90 minutes are up. Comedy has moved on in the meantime but left Ricky Gervais behind.

[T42]

Deception. Excellent.

[Wascally Weasel]

The Bedford Incident - Moby Dick given a Cold War nuclear terror makeover. 

I’ve inadvertently done a mini-season of Cold War thrillers over the last few weeks, recently watched Fail Safe and Dr Strangelove too.

Might give Parallax View,  Manchurian Candidate and Three Days of the Condor a watch soon too.

[T42]

The Bedford Incident - Moby Dick given a Cold War nuclear terror makeover. 

I’ve inadvertently done a mini-season of Cold War thrillers over the last few weeks, recently watched Fail Safe and Dr Strangelove too.

Might give Parallax View,  Manchurian Candidate and Three Days of the Condor a watch soon too.

Saw Failsafe, Dr. Strangelove and Manchurian Candidate in the last 6 months, will look the others up. Ta!

Last night, scraping round Netflix's seamy hollows, came up with The Awakening. Rather liked it, apart from

(click to show/hide)

...one screaming plot hole. Woman's been poisoned so you go belting through the house and force a medicine cabinet to find an emetic? She's in the kitchen, FFS, right beside the salt jar and the water tap.

BTW, what poison does give you a pleasant, aesthetic exit?  AFAIK the quick ones mostly send you off in agony.

[Asterix, the former Gaul.]

The Terminator.

Escapism, watching a not too old film where no one has mobile phones (remember 'telephones' connected by wires!) or the internet and intelligent machines from the future appear.  Then realising that back then we were going to be the future, but not quite as far in the future as we will be.  Yeah..  escapism, we wouldn't be that stoopid, will we? 

[citoyen]

The Wee Man

The "real life" story of Glasgow gangster Paul Ferris, based on his own memoirs. Except that in real life Ferris is a thoroughly nasty piece of work, and his whining self-justification, recasting himself as a victim of circumstances, as portrayed in the film is morally repugnant. I don't care if he has "gone straight" now, he's still a scumbag.

It's not even a well made film - clunky, hackneyed dialogue (you can predict exactly what the characters are going to say next a lot of the time), lazy direction and most of the actors don't seem to give a shit.

Dreadful waste of everyone's time.

[LEE]

The Terminator.

Escapism, watching a not too old film ......

I beg to differ.  It's an old film.

Roger Moore was still James Bond.

The gap in years between "The Terminator" and today is the same as the gap between "The Terminator" and "High Noon" and "Singin' in the Rain".

It was released in 1984, very nearly a third of a century ago, back when Arnie still had a thick Austrian accent and his acting was wooden.

It could very well be prophetic though.

[Andrew]

Armageddon - dross. Little of its big budget was spent on script. I lasted maybe 30 minutes.

Ok, I know. It's supposed to be fun. Its Bruce Willis playing Bruce Willis, so we expect the smug smirks and the smart arse lines. Some people like that. Me, I thought it kak.

[LEE]

Armageddon - dross. Little of its big budget was spent on script. I lasted maybe 30 minutes.

Ok, I know. It's supposed to be fun. Its Bruce Willis playing Bruce Willis, so we expect the smug smirks and the smart arse lines. Some people like that. Me, I thought it kak.

It's not the end of the World.

[Wascally Weasel]

Deep Impact (which came out around the same time) was way better.

[mrcharly-YHT]

sicario

Lots of v good acting
v depressing film

[Legs]

Anyway, the book is much, much better, as always - although "Stand by me" came pretty close.

Neither The Body nor Stand By Me have much discernible storyline, but Stand By Me is a great film nonetheless.

In terms of faithfulness to the book, The Shawshank Redemption is pretty much bob-on.  Although Red is white and Irish in the short story ("maybe it's 'cause I'm Irish?" always makes me smile), I couldn't help but have Morgan Freeman's voice in my head as I read much of it.

[Kim]

Deep Impact (which came out around the same time) was way better.

Ostensibly yes, but it was full of hobbits.

Meteor was canonical.

[Wascally Weasel]

Deep Impact (which came out around the same time) was way better.

Ostensibly yes, but it was full of hobbits.

Meteor was canonical.

I remember seeing the build up to Meteor on the covers of Starburst in my local newsagent over several months “Meteor: It’s coming etc, etc”.*

Then it came out and the cover was all “Meteor: why was it so rubbish?”


*I only saw the covers of the magazine as my meagre pocket money went on 2000AD, Dr Who monthly and Caramac bars.

[citoyen]

My son has just watched Full Metal Jacket for the first time. I was half watching through the kitchen door while making dinner. Haven't seen it for years and had forgotten how grim it is. Damn good film though. Seems to have made quite an impact on the boy - he looks shell-shocked. I've suggested he follows it up with Apocalypse Now...

[Asterix, the former Gaul.]

The Terminator.

Escapism, watching a not too old film ......

I beg to differ.  It's an old film.

Roger Moore was still James Bond.

The gap in years between "The Terminator" and today is the same as the gap between "The Terminator" and "High Noon" and "Singin' in the Rain".

It was released in 1984, very nearly a third of a century ago, back when Arnie still had a thick Austrian accent and his acting was wooden.

It could very well be prophetic though.

Agreed it is a long time ago but it doesn't have that look of being a long time ago.  Especially as it came out in time to have a good sound track.  Shops selling surround sound systems used it as a demonstrator movie at the turn of the century.  Mobile phones were available by 1986, earlier if you had a back pack to carry one.

For me a really old film is B&W and the stars are dead but films noirs will never die..

[TimO]

...
Meteor was canonical.

Someone has loaded up a version onto YouTube.  It seems to be around the correct duration, as given in the Wikipedia entry.  At least one other uploaded version is far shorter, for no clear reason (possibly it was edited down for TV broadcast).

It's as cheesy as I thought it was.

[fuzzy]

My son has just watched Full Metal Jacket for the first time. I was half watching through the kitchen door while making dinner. Haven't seen it for years and had forgotten how grim it is. Damn good film though. Seems to have made quite an impact on the boy - he looks shell-shocked. I've suggested he follows it up with Apocalypse Now...

Followed by an application of Platoon and a dose of The Boys In Company C to lighten the mood.

[spesh]

My son has just watched Full Metal Jacket for the first time. I was half watching through the kitchen door while making dinner. Haven't seen it for years and had forgotten how grim it is. Damn good film though. Seems to have made quite an impact on the boy - he looks shell-shocked. I've suggested he follows it up with Apocalypse Now...

Followed by an application of Platoon and a dose of The Boys In Company C to lighten the mood.

Wot no The Odd Angry Shot? 

[fuzzy]

Good point, well made.

[citoyen]

Followed by an application of Platoon and a dose of The Boys In Company C to lighten the mood.

He asked me if I thought he should watch Platoon, but tbh it's so long since I've seen it that I can't remember if it's any good. That's when I suggested that he should watch Apocalypse Now.

I don't think I've seen The Boys In Company C or The Odd Angry Shot. Both sound interesting.

Of course, he should add Rambo to the list as well.

[tiermat]

Don't forget Jacob's Ladder.

[citoyen]

Don't forget Jacob's Ladder.

Oh god. I kind of had forgotten Jacob's Ladder. Made me feel quite ill, that did.