What was the last film you watched?

[Pickled Onion]

Two Years At Sea

It felt like it took two years to watch this. I'm not sure if it was supposed to be a film that you watch, it was more like an installation you walk in and out of, watching a few minutes at a time.

As for "enigmatic cinematography in low-key black and white" — bollocks, it looked crap, badly exposed, covered in video artefacts, with added fake scratches and watermarks.

[sg37409]

The Program

I enjoyed this, but I kept finding myself picking up on things I didn't think entirely accurate. I liked seeing hints of Lance and Floyds inner demons there beneath the surface. I didn't know if the portrayal of him doing his cancer fund-raisers was accurate, him embellishing the truth for dramatic effect.  The paul and phil commentary still grates as they bang on about how there has never been a hint of suspicision, etc.

[Jaded]

John Wick

Marvellous, preposterous, over the top bang bang bang stab fun.

[Jaded]

Saving Private Ryan

Preposterous bang bang bang stab stuff.

The beach sequence was extraordinary, but not as emotional as it should have been, too graphic and too much disconnect between the numbers cut down - most of the soldiers in the boats shot, then loads over the sides. Most of the soldiers in the shallows and first bit of beach killed, then loads to storm the barbed wire. Similar disconnect in the final tank battle, there seemed to be ever more US troops as the battle went on.

Plus no soldiers apart from US ones. Plus a bit of an absurd premise. Plus the gratuitous death of TH at the end.

Glad I have finally seen it though.

[Pickled Onion]

Spy

I didn't have high hopes for this (my goodness, the American audiences really can't cope with British-style swearing, can they?) but it was very enjoyable and nowhere near as puerile as suggested. OK, it's no Kingsman but Melissa McCarthy was excellent, Jason Statham was perfectly cast as and over-the-top himself and pulled it off brilliantly, even Miranda Hart didn't irritate too much.

[T42]

Saving Private Ryan

Preposterous bang bang bang stab stuff.

The beach sequence was extraordinary, but not as emotional as it should have been, too graphic and too much disconnect between the numbers cut down - most of the soldiers in the boats shot, then loads over the sides. Most of the soldiers in the shallows and first bit of beach killed, then loads to storm the barbed wire. Similar disconnect in the final tank battle, there seemed to be ever more US troops as the battle went on.

Plus no soldiers apart from US ones. Plus a bit of an absurd premise. Plus the gratuitous death of TH at the end.

Glad I have finally seen it though.

Wot no Krauts?

Lack of other Allies feasible so soon after D-Day, everything took place within a day's walk & Allies were further up the coast.

What I didn't like was the lousy physics during the landing.

[Jaded]

Oh yes, there were Krauts, but they were bit parts. Apart from the nasty one that proved that Krauts have no souls.

OK, so there was a likelihood that there would be no Allied troops, but there was no mention of any joint effort to get rid of Mr Hilter.

[T42]

Par for the course.

[Jaded]

Yes, I did wonder if there might have been an Enimga machine found in a tank.

[fuzzy]

Weren't the Allies just folk to change the beds, do the washing up and serve the beer for the Americans?

[trekker12]

Saving Private Ryan

Plus a bit of an absurd premise.

It's supposed to be based on a 'true' story although I can't find any actual evidence of this - the Sullivan brothers going down in the same ship is the closest I can find in a quick Wikipedia search.

The absurd bit is taking a platoon out of the line for a search and rescue mission when troops (and Germans) were still scattered all over the peninsula with no clear indication if we were actually winning. The story goes a company padre was sent to get him.

[caerau]

I remember pointing out to someone when we left the cinema - I watched this back when it came out - once also since - that the Omaha beach scene underplayed the seriousness of the problem the US soldiers had there (yes it was a specifically US beach landing - Gold Juno and Sword were separated from Omaha by Utah beach - the other american one - and 3/4 of the ground troops from D-day onwards *were* american to be fair)). 
On the real D-day it was by far the toughest of the beaches for various reasons (armour sunk offshore landing the wrong place - fresh panzer division arrived on the scene the day before or summat - landing craft going to wrong place etc.) - the soldiers were mostly pinned to the surf-line for about 16 hours iirc.  So I have no problem personally with the americans taking credit where it is actually due - they got the brunt of the casualties that day for mostly that beach - kudos for taking it at all.  It was pointed out to me that they had to make some allowances for dramatic effect however - a full gruelling 16 hour marathon was probably not required 


However, having seen it twice - it's a overall a reasonably pointless film for me - mostly just about the - yes extraordinary - opening sequence really and general war-is-bad-mmmkay type stuff.


Actually thinking about it now, maybe I'm now benumbed to the war-is-bad message in such war films.  I used to like stuff like Platoon, Apocalypse Now and such but more recent war films like 3 Kings, Thin Red Line, American Sniper  - what's the one with Matt Damon as a bomb disposal guy? - haven't really done anything for me.  I guess the special effects of blowing people up get better but I got the war-is-bad soldiers go mad/do evil things under hellfire conditions message some time ago... ho hum.

[T42]

I liked Band of Brothers much more, even though Stephen Ambrose was later shown to have grafted in incidents involving other units than Easy Company.

A quirky WW1 film I really like is The Wipers Times.

[caerau]

Wipers = Ypres presumably - I shall have a look  - WW1 isn't done enough for me.

[Pickled Onion]

American Ultra

A bit of a mess actually. Avoid.

[Andrij]

Wipers = Ypres presumably - I shall have a look  - WW1 isn't done enough for me.

Apologies for sullying this thread with television, but have you seen Our World War?

[caerau]

Yes, it was very good - excellent in fact.  Could have been much much longer though - leaped through rather a lot.  I wanted more.  A really good point was portraying both factions as humans I thought.  WW1 was not black and white good v evil in the way WW2 was, despite continuing propoganda that way.  I was recently in Kiel where the german fleets were built and stationed - they have a very sensitive museum there which made my heart break for their people.


[edit - sorry *points at self* I geek out at these historical breakwaters]

[Jaded]

Terminator Genisys


Total utter unmitigated crap.

[Jaded]

Sorry, I was a bit premature, I wrote that 20 mins too early.

Pure, complete, 100% rubbish.

I've watched it so that you don't have to.

[T42]

Spectre.  What a barrel of retrodden crap.  I want my evening back.

Why watch it?  Well... a new Bond comes out, missus says "Dad'll like that" and gets it.  When we run out of other stuff we put it on. She endures it, I endure it, and at the end the Inlaw Paw says "I'm glad that's over."

Good-bye for ever, Mr. Bond.

[L CC]

Hail, Ceasar
I go see some utter crap. This really wasn't. Surprising, funny, great characters, great actors. Great.

[citoyen]

Hail, Ceasar
I go see some utter crap. This really wasn't. Surprising, funny, great characters, great actors. Great.

I've got tickets to go and see that on Saturday. Very much looking forward to it. 

[Jaded]

Edge of Tomorrow 3D

I quite enjoyed this, although I watched it after only getting 10 minutes into Mad Max Furry Road. It was Source Code meets Saving Private Ryan. With post processed 3D (which I found out afterwards - that explained Tom Cruise's odd neck) that added to some of the scenes. Bits of the film dragged a bit, but it was good escapist fun, wouldn't rush to see it again.

[tiermat]

Edge of Tomorrow 3D

I quite enjoyed this, although I watched it after only getting 10 minutes into Mad Max Furry Road. It was Source Code meets Saving Private Ryan. With post processed 3D (which I found out afterwards - that explained Tom Cruise's odd neck) that added to some of the scenes. Bits of the film dragged a bit, but it was good escapist fun, wouldn't rush to see it again.

We watched the 2D version at the weekend.

It's Groundhog Day with aliens and without the music...

[caerau]

after only getting 10 minutes into Mad Max Furry Road.

Think, rerun  that 10 minutes 12 times and you've seen it all - job done.


Edge of Tomorrow as not bad at all I thought - definitely Groundhog day with aliens