Topic: Rate the last movie you've seen

[Adrock]

Never Goin’ Back

Largely based on writer/director, Augustine Frizzell’s own teenage years, “Never Goin’ Back” is about two high school dropouts and best friends, Jessie and Angela, who use rent money to pay for a beach vacation and have to come up with the deficit. The plot isn’t especially deep, and really, it doesn’t have to be. The movie spends most of its runtime building up to one excellent joke during the climax. For a comedy, there is only one other really funny scene which the trailer partially spoils (don’t watch the trailer if you’ve never heard of this movie). There are some funny lines sprinkled here and there. Overall, “Never Goin’ Back” isn’t that funny. I’ve never done drugs so I often see it in movies as plot points rather than anything I can relate to. I know some people can’t get into drug related humor. I typically don’t mind, just seemed worth mentioning. I’ve seen the movie referred to as “Superbad” or “Pineapple Express” but with girls which I personally consider reductive.

For an 85 minute movie, I would still recommend this if only for the aforementioned funny scenes and the chemistry between Camila Morrone and Maia Mitchell. The soundtrack is pretty good too. “Lights” by Zhora and “Explode” by Sarah Jaffe being my favorites, the latter of which, I believe, was written for the movie. “Never Goin’ Back” is available on Amazon Prime video for anyone interested.

[nickmitch]

Venom

Whoever said it was as bad as Catwoman was overly exaggerating.  I actually thought it was pretty good.  I was hoping for a "so bad, it's good!" movie, but it wasn't too offensive at any one point.  I like how they made sure to steer the character as far away from Spider-Man as possible (by literally moving the story across the country).

I don't have more to add than what everyone else has said.

6/10

[Adrock]

Steve Jobs

No one should watch this movie because they want an accurate biography of Jobs or a history of Apple. For example, Steve Wozniak is still working at Apple in 1998 in the film despite actually leaving Apple in 1985 before Steve Jobs. The film does not adhere to history, but it doesn’t have to. First and foremost, it has to work as a narrative, and if some facts have to be fudged, so be it. If anyone wants to read about Jobs, there are several unauthorized biographies as well as Walter Isaacson’s official biography.

The reason to watch “Steve Jobs” is Aaron Sorkin’s excellent dialog which is effective, no line feels wasted. Sorkin also eschews a traditional biopic with a three-act structure that follows Jobs through three product launches: Macintosh, NeXT, and iMac. It works better than I thought it would when I first read about it.

The pacing is really solid here with a great arc for Jobs the character by sacrificing adherence to Jobs the person. The movie never addresses a lot of Job’s life: Pixar, his marriage, pancreatic cancer etc. The result works really well for a two-hour movie. Sorkin sets up conflict early and addresses each one which ultimately builds up to real growth by the end. Jobs the character and John Sculley the character make amends and get catharsis that they never got in real life. In the film, this is a precursor to Jobs and his daughter, Lisa, making amends. Sorkin uses these relationships to explain what even Isaacson’s biography didn’t really do: something changed for Jobs the person after his resignation from Apple in 1985 and return in 1997. Maybe it was humble pie or the mere passage of time. Whatever happened personally between his failed coup and becoming arguably the greatest CEO in history is never really explored in depth in Isaacson’s biography. “Steve Jobs” the film ties that personal growth to specific people, and it works really well from a narrative perspective.

The acting here is also especially strong. There isn’t a weak link in the cast. Seth Rogen is surprisingly good at drama. I feel like Kate Winslet is underrated though maybe I just don’t pay enough attention that stuff. Credit again to Sorkin for writing Joanna Hoffman’s most important scene in broken English while still making sense, and Winslet for pulling it off. Michael Fassbender may look nothing like Steve Jobs but does excellent work here. Jeff Daniels is just good in everything.

The seven minute scene between Jobs and Sculley before the NeXT launch features some really great editing. It’s probably the best scene in the film followed closely by the exchanges between Jobs and Wozniak during the NeXT and iMac launches. Rogen has some of the best lines which says a lot for a film full of great lines. My favorite is, “It’s not binary. You can be decent and gifted at the same time,” which sums up the theme fairly well. It’s a shame this movie bombed when it was released. I only just got around to watching it so I’m part of the problem.

[ThePerm]

It's pretty interesting to watch all the Steve Jobs movies. My favorite is still Pirates of Silicon Valley.

[BranDonk Kong]

Halloween (1978) - 3/10
No idea why this movie is held in the regard that it is...maybe it was good for its time or something, but this was just flat-out bad.

[BranDonk Kong]

Halloween (2018) - 6.0/10
This one actually (at least attempts to) make the first one a better movie. They sort of get into what drives Michael Myers, and I think to a little ret-conning of the previous sequels. The script is pretty bad though, which hurts the movie a few times. There are several throwbacks to the original, which are neat at first, but then it gets to be like "ok, we get it." There are a few funny scenes too, but one of which is at an awful time and basically ruins the scene. The ending is pretty bad...but overall, a much better movie than the original.

[nickmitch]

Bohemian Rhapsody

This is the Feddie Mercury/Queen biopic that was originally going to star Sacha Baron Cohen.  The film turned out really well!  It showcases Freddie Mercury's struggles with shunning his background/ethnicity, discovering his sexuality, and substance abuse.  I had completely forgotten that he was a person of color (he's Parsi) and felt like I was learning a lot about the band throughout.  I thought Freddie's arc was really well done.  The final scene of the movie is basically their entire Live Aid set at the Wimbly.  I was shocked about how long it went on for, but it was super good.  Freddie's death is discussed in the credits, so the film itself ends on the high note of the concert performance and the band reuniting.

The soundtrack is all Queen songs and is fantastic, but not many deep cuts are in there.  The cast were all dead ringers for the band members, which was great.  Also, Mike Myers makes a fun cameo.

One thing I would've liked to see more of is the making of some of their videos.  You get a behind the scenes of one video, but that's really it.  Most of my issues with the movie are mostly around me wanting more of it.  There are maybe one or two areas that I feel are skipped over whether it's band stuff or Freddie's substance abuse habits.  Speaking of the latter, I just can't recall seeing him do drugs, which may have been out of respect, but I don't recall seeing him "get clean" either.  Maybe he never really did.  The scenes are just him surrounded by drugs or "Freddie are you drunk/high?" "Yes, darling! What of it?" or "Freddie, there's drugs on that table!" "Oh you know, sometimes drugs are good!" and then he's a good person again.

Anyway, this is a movie you should see even if you don't like Queen that much.  Rami Malek does a great job.

9/10

[BranDonk Kong]

Krampus - 8/10
Surprising solid comedy horror (mostly horror, I'd say). Lots of awesome practical effects, and the CGI is done well too. Definitely recommend checking it out.

[ThePerm]

Krampus is like one of those 80s Charles Band movies like Puppet Master except done well. Not counting Trancers..that is a legit good movie.

[ShyGuy]

Krampus is underrated awesomeness. Watch it this Christmas, people!

[ThePerm]

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs 9/10 I'd say that is an instant classic.

I wish there was more. I didn't realize it was an anthology movie either. Which is interesting because I also watched

Tales From the Hood 2 6/10 Not at all as good as the first movie. Keith David was great in it though.

[Adrock]

Manchester by the Sea

Curl-up-into-ball-and-die/10. This is the most depressing movie I’ve seen in a while.

The acting and writing are both excellent. Casey Affleck’s performance was justifiably lauded (though I wouldn’t have clapped for him as the Oscars either). Manchester by the Sea handles the subtleties of pain and loss really well, better than any movie I’ve seen before. Movies often use long strings of carefully written dialog to show these things even though no one speaks like that in real life. Depending on the writing, it absolutely can work on film as a drama piece. Manchester by the Sea leans heavily on the actors’ abilities. Their grief is expressed through body language and what isn’t said or the inability to find the right words.

[Plugabugz]

Fantastic Beasts - Now i'm not even a Harry Potter fan, having watched the final movie in that series, but this movie struggles with the weight of the universe its set in on top of having to setup three more movies ahead of it. I forgot the entire plot of the first movie, didnt understand the significance to many places they went (except the obvious musical cues that tell you) and didnt realise why the movie wasn't wrapping up Grindlewald gets away and............ stop until it clicked it was a five-film series.

[ThePerm]

Crazy Rich Asians - I've Feel Like I've seen this movie before. I feel like I've watched a movie with the exact same plotline before. Or maybe it just reminds me of Disney plotlines like Aladdin and Cinderella. It was mildly funny.

Valley of the Dolls - Interesting movie. It wasn't what I thought it was going to be. The pace was fast. Some of the actresses look too much alike.

[BranDonk Kong]

Bohemian Rhapsody - 6.5/10
I'd have to say this is actually not the movie that Sacha Baron Cohen was going to make. It was pretty good, but it was largely a feel good movie when it shouldn't really have been one, at least not the whole time. The performances are well done, and the ending scene makes you actually feel like you're at Live Aid - but there was a LOT that was glossed over about Freddie Mercury and it ends abruptly as they walk off stage from the show, which was 6 years before Freddie died. The movie was fun, and I'd definitely watch it again - but this is the movie that Sacha Baron Cohen dropped out of, and not the biopic that was originally planned. I do recommend it, and I actually enjoyed it a lot, but it should have been a lot more. Rami Malek did a great job (although he looks like...Rami Malek, I think SBC would have pulled off the look better, although he's 5 inches taller than Freddie was), and so did everyone else in the band...good movie...but...not what it should have been.

[ShyGuy]

Teen Titans Go! to the Movies if you enjoy the show, this movie has a lot of laughs and I think they balance the wackiness, the satire, and the appreciation of Superheroes really well. If you're a fan of the original Titans show there's a little cameo at the end The moves dips a little bit into some black humor here and there, but it works really well.

[ThePerm]

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle  8/10 I like adventure movies.

[BranDonk Kong]

That was a surprisingly good movie.

[Plugabugz]

Sorry To Bother You - This only reached here last week, but what an amazingly odd movie. Teaching a black guy how to use their white voice, only to rapidly ascend at work and get into all kind of corporate shenanigans. Then it goes *really* left and absurd super quickly. It's easily my favourite movie of 2018.

Mortal Engines - I have a big disconnect with movies when they portray London and how whats on screen almost never matches up with reality. Fast 6 (or 5?) did this in a big car chase that runs through Embankment (near the geographic centre of London), turns east and then winds up 5 miles away in Canary Wharf. This movie decides to put giant cities on wheels, ignoring the logistics of how that would work, says they cross the "land bridge" to into Europe. Yet the movie says that several nuclear-style bombs were dropped over the world, destroying cities and infrastructure. So how would a supposedly city-size moving city cross over a 30 mile-long bridge across the English Channel to France (which doesn't exist, by the way, only the tunnel which runs under it) and have not crumbled seeing as everyone has regressed hundreds of years?

Also, where's all the other major cities that would exist? Paris? Berlin? Amsterdam? Why has the visual aesthetic set around 1900s London, and not anything current?

The more you think about "how does this work?" the whole movie falls apart.

Spiderman: Into The Spider-Verse. I went into this blind deliberately, but was quite sour on Sony movies generally. But i was so surprised by this movie. Zippy, well-paced, good humour, extremely unique and fun animation style and the best post-credits scene (the second one, right at the very end) i've seen in a while. I'm definitely seeing this again.

[BlackNMild2k1]

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse..... O.M.G.

I think this may be the BEST Spider-Man movie I've seen yet.
(hot take!? I don't know... I may just be caught up in the moment. It was damn good)
Sony really did it. They should let Marvel keep Live Action Spider-man and expand into this animated spider-verse.

The animation style.... while a little funky at first sight, at times it's out-right cartoonish yet strangely photo-realistic at different times or even at the same time. You'll understand once you watch. It's quite a unique a beautiful thing to look at (Spider Ham and Peni Parker were kinda off-putting at first)

The humor... there were parts of the movie that almost had me out of my seat. They really went all in on some parts, but I don't want to say in what parts so that you have the same reaction as me.

The emotions... Miles was great. the family dynamic was excellent. the relationship to Peter was also amazing. But some of this also leads right back into the humor.

The action, on.fucking.point. lots of it was gripping. into every single moment of everything happening in this movie. it was really good.

I think I have to go back and watch it in 3D.
and anyone of you here have to stay for the final credit scene. it's worth it. for multiple reasons. LOL

[broodwars]

Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse is fucking amazing, way better than that trash Disney's been selling as Marvel films the last few years.

Seriously, I haven't enjoyed a Spider-Man work like this since Spectacular Spider-Man, and a Marvel movie like this since the original Guardians of the Galaxy. So much obvious love for the source material, and so much focus on the heart of Spider-Man.

I have some minor gripes with it, mainly stemming from how little screen time the last 3 Spider-people get and how they basically just exist for jokes (and Spider-Man Noir is just flat-out a completely different character than his comics counterpart). But the movie's amazing, way better than Sony deserves after that 20 minutes of **** I had to sit through in the Previews. And holy ****, I wasn't prepared for this movie to be this funny.

[BlackNMild2k1]

on that 1st sentence....

first part 100% correct, that second part, so much unneccessary and undeserved salt.

lmftfy

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is fucking AMAZING, way better than that trash Sony's been selling as "Marvel" films the last few years.

[broodwars]

on that 1st sentence....

first part 100% correct, that second part, so much unneccessary and undeserved salt.

Sorry, but one of the reasons I've so completely tuned out of Marvel the last few years is that their films are so formulaic, safe, & dull (caveat: I haven't seen Thor 3, and I heard that was really different). There's no heart, no pathos. It's just Disney smashing the action figures together for a few hours with some jackass writing snarky dialog every few seconds. And Homecoming is just the poster child for that. It's so empty, shallow, and pointless. And it also completely cuts out the heart of Spider-Man in favor of gadgets and Tony Stark Hero-worshipping. I'll never understand why people loved that movie. It was the embodiment of everything cheap & lazy about the Marvel cinematic universe.

That's why this film really clicked with me: the focus is on the characters, not the fighting or the quipping. These writers "get" Marvel characters in a way I don't think the dumbed-down, LCD Disney Marvel films do. I CARED about the characters in Into the Spiderverse.

[BlackNMild2k1]

You've clearly missed something I didn't... or are looking for something that won't be found.

MCU had to fit Spidey into the continuity and it made sense in the context in which he was brought in. In a world where the Avengers have existed for 8 years.... you know the rest.

I'm not trying to take anything from Spider-Verse because I still think it may have been the best Spider-man movie I've seen yet, but even Aunt May was creating web shooters and possibly even the outfits in this one for Spider-man.
Homecoming was dope for what it was, and it had lots of good feel moments.
but if you choose to strip each movie down to it's wire framing and examine the nuts and bolts that hold it together, instead of appreciate the pieces as they stand assembled and completed... do what you do I guess. I'll just continue to enjoy my MCU for what it is, and also appreciate Spider-verse for how much of a better overall singular movie experience that it is so far and the future it teased a promise to deliver.

[BranDonk Kong]

Into the Spider-Verse - 9.5/10
Absolutely incredible. The visuals, the sound, the story, the humor, the action, the emotion - they nail every bit of it. There's no way this would have worked as anything other than an animated movie - and they do a lot of story telling in a very minimalist way, which really works and allows them to tell way more story than should be possible within 100 minutes. BnM is right - its somehow completely lifelike and totally cartoony at different times and at the same time in certain places. Another interesting thing is that the suit collection is strikingly similar to Insomniac's Marvel's Spider-Man, even including the "Advanced" suit that the game features so heavily - making me think at times that maybe the Peter Parker in this movie is the same one from that...but obviously it can't be if you watch the movie and are familiar with what's in the spoiler text. First post-credits "scene" is very touching, as is the Stan Lee cameo, and the second one is pretty hilarious. Cannot recommend this movie enough.