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  • Elvis…….

    As an ardent fan (nerd) I can confidently say that some of the attention to detail was incredible, almost a mirror image of some of the original video footage available, plus little lines of speech and moments that only dedicated followers of his career would pick up on.
    Austin Butler was awesome, got him to a tee.

    However, there were some chronological errors, or rather, artistic licence moments where things were simply not true or exaggerated for dramatic purposes, but I won’t go into them now for fear of spoilers.

    Thought some of it was rushed, his relationship with Priscilla for instance, and consequent break up.
    Some great moments, but agree that Hanks was over the top and far too cartoon character villain 
  • DA9 said:
    Elvis…….

    As an ardent fan (nerd) I can confidently say that some of the attention to detail was incredible, almost a mirror image of some of the original video footage available, plus little lines of speech and moments that only dedicated followers of his career would pick up on.
    Austin Butler was awesome, got him to a tee.

    However, there were some chronological errors, or rather, artistic licence moments where things were simply not true or exaggerated for dramatic purposes, but I won’t go into them now for fear of spoilers.

    Thought some of it was rushed, his relationship with Priscilla for instance, and consequent break up.
    Some great moments, but agree that Hanks was over the top and far too cartoon character villain 
    As someone who is currently engaged on writing a screenplay for a biopic, I know only too well how artistic licence is inevitable (and desirable). In a movie about a real person the filmmakers are obliged to find ways to give a taste of, in the case of Elvis, 40+ years of life in 160 minutes. It has to be a case of hoping that 'untruths/inaccuracies' will convey shorthand 'truths/accuracies'. And for extra minutes of film spent on building up, say, Elvis's relationship with Priscilla, other minutes about different aspects of his life have to be sacrificed. Sometimes it feels that a screenwriter of a biopic is engaged in an impossible task and one has to hope that the viewer is prepared to suspend disbelief! Even the greatest dramatists, such as Shakespeare in his history plays, have had to lie in order to compress and create drama and a kind of truth. 
  • DA9 said:
    Elvis…….

    As an ardent fan (nerd) I can confidently say that some of the attention to detail was incredible, almost a mirror image of some of the original video footage available, plus little lines of speech and moments that only dedicated followers of his career would pick up on.
    Austin Butler was awesome, got him to a tee.

    However, there were some chronological errors, or rather, artistic licence moments where things were simply not true or exaggerated for dramatic purposes, but I won’t go into them now for fear of spoilers.

    Thought some of it was rushed, his relationship with Priscilla for instance, and consequent break up.
    Some great moments, but agree that Hanks was over the top and far too cartoon character villain 
    Is it another musical film like Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody?

    Or are the songs restricted to more of the performances, and its more of a typical film story, if that makes sense?
  • DA9 said:
    Elvis…….

    As an ardent fan (nerd) I can confidently say that some of the attention to detail was incredible, almost a mirror image of some of the original video footage available, plus little lines of speech and moments that only dedicated followers of his career would pick up on.
    Austin Butler was awesome, got him to a tee.

    However, there were some chronological errors, or rather, artistic licence moments where things were simply not true or exaggerated for dramatic purposes, but I won’t go into them now for fear of spoilers.

    Thought some of it was rushed, his relationship with Priscilla for instance, and consequent break up.
    Some great moments, but agree that Hanks was over the top and far too cartoon character villain 
    Is it another musical film like Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody?

    Or are the songs restricted to more of the performances, and its more of a typical film story, if that makes sense?
    It’s like neither tbh.
    Rocketman was more a musical imo, whereas Bohemian Rhapsody was more of a linear story.
    This movie interspersed key musical moments in Elvis history, some iconic moments to be fair, but it heavily relied on Tom Hanks as Parker, and his influence on Elvis.
    For me, seeing some of the known recorded moments readily available on DVD/YouTube etc, such as the 68 comeback special (black leather suit) and the white If I can Dream suit/song moment done in such close detail was incredible, even some of the 69/70 Las Vegas Hilton concert scenes were copied very closely.
    It culminates in the end to a very emotional finale  (for me anyway) 
  • DA9 said:
    DA9 said:
    Elvis…….

    As an ardent fan (nerd) I can confidently say that some of the attention to detail was incredible, almost a mirror image of some of the original video footage available, plus little lines of speech and moments that only dedicated followers of his career would pick up on.
    Austin Butler was awesome, got him to a tee.

    However, there were some chronological errors, or rather, artistic licence moments where things were simply not true or exaggerated for dramatic purposes, but I won’t go into them now for fear of spoilers.

    Thought some of it was rushed, his relationship with Priscilla for instance, and consequent break up.
    Some great moments, but agree that Hanks was over the top and far too cartoon character villain 
    Is it another musical film like Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody?

    Or are the songs restricted to more of the performances, and its more of a typical film story, if that makes sense?
    It’s like neither tbh.
    Rocketman was more a musical imo, whereas Bohemian Rhapsody was more of a linear story.
    This movie interspersed key musical moments in Elvis history, some iconic moments to be fair, but it heavily relied on Tom Hanks as Parker, and his influence on Elvis.
    For me, seeing some of the known recorded moments readily available on DVD/YouTube etc, such as the 68 comeback special (black leather suit) and the white If I can Dream suit/song moment done in such close detail was incredible, even some of the 69/70 Las Vegas Hilton concert scenes were copied very closely.
    It culminates in the end to a very emotional finale  (for me anyway) 
    Was better than I expected - the music scenes were the standout.
  • DA9 said:
    DA9 said:
    Elvis…….

    As an ardent fan (nerd) I can confidently say that some of the attention to detail was incredible, almost a mirror image of some of the original video footage available, plus little lines of speech and moments that only dedicated followers of his career would pick up on.
    Austin Butler was awesome, got him to a tee.

    However, there were some chronological errors, or rather, artistic licence moments where things were simply not true or exaggerated for dramatic purposes, but I won’t go into them now for fear of spoilers.

    Thought some of it was rushed, his relationship with Priscilla for instance, and consequent break up.
    Some great moments, but agree that Hanks was over the top and far too cartoon character villain 
    Is it another musical film like Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody?

    Or are the songs restricted to more of the performances, and its more of a typical film story, if that makes sense?
    It’s like neither tbh.
    Rocketman was more a musical imo, whereas Bohemian Rhapsody was more of a linear story.
    This movie interspersed key musical moments in Elvis history, some iconic moments to be fair, but it heavily relied on Tom Hanks as Parker, and his influence on Elvis.
    For me, seeing some of the known recorded moments readily available on DVD/YouTube etc, such as the 68 comeback special (black leather suit) and the white If I can Dream suit/song moment done in such close detail was incredible, even some of the 69/70 Las Vegas Hilton concert scenes were copied very closely.
    It culminates in the end to a very emotional finale  (for me anyway) 
    Was better than I expected - the music scenes were the standout.
    But as DA9 pointed out, you can see footage  of the original and much better performances everywhere. So basically the music scenes were like watching a tribute act. This would be less of a problem if the drama of the rest of the movie was more engaging. I felt that the only character moments that were more than mere history were those between Elvis and his mother. The film's central relationship between Parker and Presley never really explained Parker's hold on Presley that led to such terrible movies, a whole lot of second rate albums, the lack of foreign touring and the extended Vegas seasons. Yes, we saw why Parker pushed these but not really why Elvis went along. There was something more interesting to explore there and it didn't happen. Of course, there was a lot to admire in Luhrmann's cinematic pizazz but much of the glitz and speed of the story telling meant that it was all rather superficial. And the 160 minutes felt long.
  • Nadou said:
    DA9 said:
    DA9 said:
    Elvis…….

    As an ardent fan (nerd) I can confidently say that some of the attention to detail was incredible, almost a mirror image of some of the original video footage available, plus little lines of speech and moments that only dedicated followers of his career would pick up on.
    Austin Butler was awesome, got him to a tee.

    However, there were some chronological errors, or rather, artistic licence moments where things were simply not true or exaggerated for dramatic purposes, but I won’t go into them now for fear of spoilers.

    Thought some of it was rushed, his relationship with Priscilla for instance, and consequent break up.
    Some great moments, but agree that Hanks was over the top and far too cartoon character villain 
    Is it another musical film like Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody?

    Or are the songs restricted to more of the performances, and its more of a typical film story, if that makes sense?
    It’s like neither tbh.
    Rocketman was more a musical imo, whereas Bohemian Rhapsody was more of a linear story.
    This movie interspersed key musical moments in Elvis history, some iconic moments to be fair, but it heavily relied on Tom Hanks as Parker, and his influence on Elvis.
    For me, seeing some of the known recorded moments readily available on DVD/YouTube etc, such as the 68 comeback special (black leather suit) and the white If I can Dream suit/song moment done in such close detail was incredible, even some of the 69/70 Las Vegas Hilton concert scenes were copied very closely.
    It culminates in the end to a very emotional finale  (for me anyway) 
    Was better than I expected - the music scenes were the standout.
    But as DA9 pointed out, you can see footage  of the original and much better performances everywhere. So basically the music scenes were like watching a tribute act. This would be less of a problem if the drama of the rest of the movie was more engaging. I felt that the only character moments that were more than mere history were those between Elvis and his mother. The film's central relationship between Parker and Presley never really explained Parker's hold on Presley that led to such terrible movies, a whole lot of second rate albums, the lack of foreign touring and the extended Vegas seasons. Yes, we saw why Parker pushed these but not really why Elvis went along. There was something more interesting to explore there and it didn't happen. Of course, there was a lot to admire in Luhrmann's cinematic pizazz but much of the glitz and speed of the story telling meant that it was all rather superficial. And the 160 minutes felt long.
    It was a typical Luhrman film and as you say lacked depth.
  • JiMMy 85 said:
    Just in case any of you don't look at the thread for this, here's a feature-length football documentary you can watch for free! 

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T43gBgttSWA



    This is not just the best thing on YouTube but better than anything on telly too. Very highly recommended.
    You can just watch the final, but I'd suggest starting from episode one.


  • IdleHans said:
    JiMMy 85 said:
    Just in case any of you don't look at the thread for this, here's a feature-length football documentary you can watch for free! 

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T43gBgttSWA



    This is not just the best thing on YouTube but better than anything on telly too. Very highly recommended.
    You can just watch the final, but I'd suggest starting from episode one.


    Took your advice & watched it again tonight, laptop plugged into the TV.

    Found it hard to believe that we'd seen it live on the stream that sunny afternoon & it was as if it was live tonight.

    Such drama, such emotion & such a brilliant final to bring back memories of our victories at Wembley. 

    Huge congrats, Rich, on producing such a fantastic series, capped by a well deserved finale.

    We must look up DW's fixtures for the coming season & will try to get to a home game at some point ...if there's room ! 

    Wonder what our lads would make of Marc ! 
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  • Saw the Elvis film today,I am a lifelong fan of the man,and have to say I really enjoyed it.You cant cram his career into 160 minutes but but I think the film portrayed the main events very well,although some things were a bit rushed.His performance of unchained melody at the end was a real tear jerker.
  • edited July 2022
    Saw the Elvis film today,I am a lifelong fan of the man,and have to say I really enjoyed it.You cant cram his career into 160 minutes but but I think the film portrayed the main events very well,although some things were a bit rushed.His performance of unchained melody at the end was a real tear jerker.
    I agree -heart-breaking - but it says a lot about the comparative failure of the drama of much of the rest of the film when the most touching and moving sequence is the real Elvis, swollen and sweaty, singing Unchained Melody. 
  • Nadou said:
    Saw the Elvis film today,I am a lifelong fan of the man,and have to say I really enjoyed it.You cant cram his career into 160 minutes but but I think the film portrayed the main events very well,although some things were a bit rushed.His performance of unchained melody at the end was a real tear jerker.
    I agree -heart-breaking - but it says a lot about the comparative failure of the drama of much of the rest of the film when the most touching and moving sequence is the real Elvis, swollen and sweaty, singing Unchained Melody. 
    They actually used Butler in the opening of that scene, then switched to the original from the CBS tv special that it comes from.
    If you watch it again, at the end Elvis turns and mouths the words “not bad” to someone in the audience, believed to be his then Girlfriend Ginger Alden.

    Luhrmann has stated there is a 4 hour version of this film, whether we get a DVD release remains a mystery 
  • Hustle (netflix) - Adam Sandler
    After watching Happy Gilmore Sunday, i decided to try out his new one, i was not dissapointed. A tad bit predictable in places but well worth the watch. Not sure its for everyone but a good enough storyline and funny in places not OTT. 6.5/10
  • Just finished the latest Jurassic Park offering, everything about it was average at best but for some bizarre reason I enjoyed it quite a bit, about time they retired the franchise though.
  • thenewbie said:
    Watched the new Jurassic World film today.

    Still has nothing on the originals - Film and TV really does appear to be going down the nostalgia route at the moment, was great seeing the original cast back involved... Nice that they've not gone down the fake dinosaur / monster act with this film, compared with the other two sequels.
    Yeah it wasn't bad but it wasn't that good either. The dinosaur scenes were good but way too many boring human characters honestly.
    I'm guessing it's too light on the 'dinosaur eats human' scenes.
  • Anyone else seen Everything Everywhere All at Once? I thought it was a great trip, was confused at the start but once the story gets going it’s a rollercoaster with good humour and some fantastic action sequences. Surprisingly touching for such a silly film as well. Really enjoyed it. 
    Yeah, it's very fun with a lot of stuff you haven't seen before, but a bit long for my taste. I think it would have been my fav of the year so far if it was a tight 90.
    Agreed.

    Warm cinema and slightly too long film is not a great combination.  Queue Ms AA elbowing me to wake me up.
  • JiMMy 85 said:
    Jurassic World Dominion is fucking awful. I nearly walked out several times out of sheer boredom, and honestly I don't know why I didn't. I wish I had. 

    It is the pinnacle of cynical Hollywood filmmaking. It's a nonsense script with bugger all to say. A slapdash plot. No subtext or character development. It has nothing to offer. No sense of tone. There's no dread. No peril. There is barely any reason for the plot to happen. It's fucking awful. The exposition sequences are cringe-inducingly bad. The action sequences are dull (they don't have the balls to kill anyone off, so every single time a character is in danger they manage to outrun a keystone cops dinosaur. Every. Single. Time). Also the effects are ropey as fuck at times. 

    It's just yet another nostalgia trip where plot beats and actors from a movie made 30 years ago are dredged up so you can say "oh hey that's from that other movie!". The Force Awakens has a LOT to answer for in regards to what it has done to Hollywood. 

    It's fucking awful and I hope it flops and they never touch the franchise again. Fuck it made me angry. Fucking awful. Fuck off. 
    Maybe the main reference to the original is that it's one big pile of shit?
    If you mean the original is one big pile of dodo doodoo I have to disagree.  It's not perfect and the kids are annoying AF but it's not excrement.
  • DA9 said:
    DA9 said:
    Elvis…….

    As an ardent fan (nerd) I can confidently say that some of the attention to detail was incredible, almost a mirror image of some of the original video footage available, plus little lines of speech and moments that only dedicated followers of his career would pick up on.
    Austin Butler was awesome, got him to a tee.

    However, there were some chronological errors, or rather, artistic licence moments where things were simply not true or exaggerated for dramatic purposes, but I won’t go into them now for fear of spoilers.

    Thought some of it was rushed, his relationship with Priscilla for instance, and consequent break up.
    Some great moments, but agree that Hanks was over the top and far too cartoon character villain 
    Is it another musical film like Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody?

    Or are the songs restricted to more of the performances, and its more of a typical film story, if that makes sense?
    It’s like neither tbh.
    Rocketman was more a musical imo, whereas Bohemian Rhapsody was more of a linear story.
    This movie interspersed key musical moments in Elvis history, some iconic moments to be fair, but it heavily relied on Tom Hanks as Parker, and his influence on Elvis.
    For me, seeing some of the known recorded moments readily available on DVD/YouTube etc, such as the 68 comeback special (black leather suit) and the white If I can Dream suit/song moment done in such close detail was incredible, even some of the 69/70 Las Vegas Hilton concert scenes were copied very closely.
    It culminates in the end to a very emotional finale  (for me anyway) 
    Hated Rocketman from the Saturday Night... scene onward because I hate musicals and the moment it descended into that structure it lost me.  Not interested in Bohemian Rhapsody as I generally hate Queen's music.  I can appreciate from what you and others have said that the performances are great but if I want to listen to Elvis songs I'll listen to Elvis and I'm not particularly bothered in finding out more about Parker.
  • JiMMy 85 said:
    Jurassic World Dominion is fucking awful. I nearly walked out several times out of sheer boredom, and honestly I don't know why I didn't. I wish I had. 

    It is the pinnacle of cynical Hollywood filmmaking. It's a nonsense script with bugger all to say. A slapdash plot. No subtext or character development. It has nothing to offer. No sense of tone. There's no dread. No peril. There is barely any reason for the plot to happen. It's fucking awful. The exposition sequences are cringe-inducingly bad. The action sequences are dull (they don't have the balls to kill anyone off, so every single time a character is in danger they manage to outrun a keystone cops dinosaur. Every. Single. Time). Also the effects are ropey as fuck at times. 

    It's just yet another nostalgia trip where plot beats and actors from a movie made 30 years ago are dredged up so you can say "oh hey that's from that other movie!". The Force Awakens has a LOT to answer for in regards to what it has done to Hollywood. 

    It's fucking awful and I hope it flops and they never touch the franchise again. Fuck it made me angry. Fucking awful. Fuck off. 
    Maybe the main reference to the original is that it's one big pile of shit?
    If you mean the original is one big pile of dodo doodoo I have to disagree.  It's not perfect and the kids are annoying AF but it's not excrement.
    Oh, not at all. Was just referring to the 'big pile of shit' line from the original. I think it's a classic!
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  • JiMMy 85 said:
    Jurassic World Dominion is fucking awful. I nearly walked out several times out of sheer boredom, and honestly I don't know why I didn't. I wish I had. 

    It is the pinnacle of cynical Hollywood filmmaking. It's a nonsense script with bugger all to say. A slapdash plot. No subtext or character development. It has nothing to offer. No sense of tone. There's no dread. No peril. There is barely any reason for the plot to happen. It's fucking awful. The exposition sequences are cringe-inducingly bad. The action sequences are dull (they don't have the balls to kill anyone off, so every single time a character is in danger they manage to outrun a keystone cops dinosaur. Every. Single. Time). Also the effects are ropey as fuck at times. 

    It's just yet another nostalgia trip where plot beats and actors from a movie made 30 years ago are dredged up so you can say "oh hey that's from that other movie!". The Force Awakens has a LOT to answer for in regards to what it has done to Hollywood. 

    It's fucking awful and I hope it flops and they never touch the franchise again. Fuck it made me angry. Fucking awful. Fuck off. 
    Maybe the main reference to the original is that it's one big pile of shit?
    If you mean the original is one big pile of dodo doodoo I have to disagree.  It's not perfect and the kids are annoying AF but it's not excrement.
    Oh, not at all. Was just referring to the 'big pile of shit' line from the original. I think it's a classic!
    In which case, that's a really good reference.  Mea culpa for not understanding.
  • Watched the new Thor film yesterday. Enjoyable with Taika Waititi keeping it along the same irreverent lines as Ragnorok but not as good as that one IMO. Felt they were reaching on the jokes a few times and the more serious moments were the better bits. My wife doesn't usually like Marvel films but seemed to enjoy staring at Chris Hemsworth for a couple of hours and I got to stare at Natalie Portman which was nice. Christian Bale his usual reliable self in it.
  • edited July 2022
    Watched the new Thor film yesterday. Enjoyable with Taika Waititi keeping it along the same irreverent lines as Ragnorok but not as good as that one IMO. Felt they were reaching on the jokes a few times and the more serious moments were the better bits. My wife doesn't usually like Marvel films but seemed to enjoy staring at Chris Hemsworth for a couple of hours and I got to stare at Natalie Portman which was nice. Christian Bale his usual reliable self in it.
    I’d go along with that.

    I was pleased they didn’t make Portman’s Thor costume ridiculously large in the chest area. 
  • Saw the Thor film with my kids - enjoyable and pretty camp in places.
  • Saw Thor a week ago and agree with everyone. It was good, amusing at times, but sometimes tried to be too funny in my opinion. But the, the previous film was Ragnarok, which was a tough act to follow. Well worth a look, but maybe Marvel need a shake up- they are not at the level they were in the run up to Endgame.
  • As much as I enjoyed watching it I found Thor was just a bit too comedic. I don't like Hemsworth's one-note comedy schtick that he discovered on Ghostbusters, which doesn't help. He's charming but limited when he does that. 

    I do think Waititi's stuff is generally very funny ("I'm perishing!" made me laugh out loud) and while I respect the mix of comedy and drama he went for, I'm not convinced it worked. It doesn't help that this phase is such a mess that I pinned hopes on Thor bringing us back to the feel of the last phases. When the Guardians disappeared inside 10 minutes that was the end of that. Same with Kat Dennings to a lesser extent given that she was in WandaVision yet there was still no connection made. 

    This phase has been awful IMO. Ms Marvel is probably the best thing they've done albeit for different reasons than I would have expected. 
  • The Guardians have a new film on the way which I am worryingly hoping hits the old highs. They didn't have much of a look in on this one, and that was pretty much rduced to rolling eyeballs, looking miffed and then jetting off into hyperspace. As was said above, the best bits of this film were the most serious bits. They left a nice opening for the next film with Zeus vowing to wreak vengeance, (but to be honest, he was one of the characters I found more annoying).
  • The Gray Man (Netflix)

    A proper action movie with a great cast and excellent direction (from the Russo Brothers who made Infinity War/ Endgame etc.). It's so much fun. Where most Netflix actioners lose me pretty early on - I only got a few minutes into 6 Underground before turning it off - this is well made and, despite being a bonkers action flick, kept me engaged the entire time. 

    Something worth noting is the way they treated Ana de Armas - in No Time To Die she was a kick-ass action hero but they joked about her being a bit girly, but here she's just an action hero. No need to pander to any stereotypes or make jokes about it. She's really bloody convincing.  I really respect that the Russos did that. 

    Evans is a bit OTT but he's too likeable for that to be a problem. Gosling underplays it as usual which works just as well. 

    I recommend! 

    42 out of 55


  • Where the Crawdads Sing
    Saw this last night in a very full Picturehouse preview screening. I hadn't read the book so not much in the way of preconceptions.
    Daisy Edgar-Jones carries the thing almost single handedly - she is excellent. There are some plot holes but as a straightforward story it kept me entertained. It doesnt do anything new, and once you have the set-up you could probably guess a lot of what will follow, but I enjoyed it very much (and the aircon in the cinema). A combination of whodunnit (if anyone dunnit) and unslushy romance set in the marshlands of the Carolina coast in the 60s/70s, with a final twist. Fairly standard arrray of characters including violent father, kindly black shopkeepers, hopeless police, good hearted lawyer defending the main character, sniffy smalltown characters and badly intentioned high-school footballer boyfriend.
    I enjoyed it more than I probably should have - you could pick holes in a lot of it but if you take it at face value then it's a decent way of spending a couple of hours.      



  • JiMMy 85 said:
    As much as I enjoyed watching it I found Thor was just a bit too comedic. I don't like Hemsworth's one-note comedy schtick that he discovered on Ghostbusters, which doesn't help. He's charming but limited when he does that. 

    I do think Waititi's stuff is generally very funny ("I'm perishing!" made me laugh out loud) and while I respect the mix of comedy and drama he went for, I'm not convinced it worked. It doesn't help that this phase is such a mess that I pinned hopes on Thor bringing us back to the feel of the last phases. When the Guardians disappeared inside 10 minutes that was the end of that. Same with Kat Dennings to a lesser extent given that she was in WandaVision yet there was still no connection made. 

    This phase has been awful IMO. Ms Marvel is probably the best thing they've done albeit for different reasons than I would have expected. 
    I haven't really followed the news, or the latest Marvel releases, but what do you make to the rumour that Disney was going to deprioritise Marvel over Star Wars, which they would save their biggest budgets for? Are we seeing that happen, do you think?
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