DVDs and Films You Have Watched Recently #2

[Polish Dad]

Loved Expendables 2. Everything the first Expendables should have been. Wonderfully self-aware, took advantage of every actor's rich action history, plenty of cheesy dialogue, a pointlessly evil bad guy and, naturally, some classic action. Thoroughly enjoyable. Felt like an 80's action film with a modern budget.

[Egg Shen]

watched The Descent: Part 2 last night. As far as horror sequels go in which everything's clearly a cash-in on the original's name this one was pretty good. They find an excuse to throw the survivor of the original back down the hole and it ramp up the gore. They brought back the original team so the movie looks and feels like the first movie and there's some good scares along the way. There's lot of complaints that the movie doesn't make a lot of sense and there's a few glaring questions to ask about the plot but for a 90min slice of jumpy fun i'd recommend it.

[FLips]

Just back from The Expendables 2 and fucking wow what a film. Everything a proper action film should be.

 

ScreenOne gave it FIVE STARS, so you know it's nothing but the best. http://www.screen-one.net/2012/08/review-expendables-2.html

 

Subliminal messaging at its finest -

 

Before reading any further you have to ask yourself some questions. Do you like films with big explosions? Yes? Keep Reading. No? Hit the back button and read no further. Do you like the idea of aging action heroes tearing up the screen? Yes? Keep reading on. No? Hit the back button now. Finally do you enjoy cheesy dialogue, lots more loud explosions, plots that aren't exactl taxing on the brain & Chuck Norris? Yes? Read on. No? Please for the last time hit the back button as you are not going to enjoy much of the following review...

Edited August 17, 2012 by TripleA

[DeanoTheGame]

I bet Empire are shitting themselves.

[WU LYF 4 LYF]

So what's the film buff/movie obsessive take on Withnail and I? Has it been damaged in serious circles by its quotability and popularity amongst students?

 

I predictably love it. Despite being given the DVD by a friend two years ago I only viewed it for the first time a month ago. Since then I've watched it three firther times. Grant is just remarkable, shambolic and cool and terribly tragic. Griffiths is also sublime, and Ralph Brown as the drug dealer is fucking hilarious. It's not often you get a film that is ridiculously funny and at the same time dark and heartbreaking. Catapulted into my top ten of all time immediately.

[Dai]

Source Code:

 

<-- click on 'spoiler' to show/hide the spoiler

Much like Lockout, this has the basis of a good film, but never really delivers. It could have been a good, tense, "Who is the bomber?" sort of action film, where he slowly gains more knowledge and evidence, but it sort of just stays flat throughout. It started off good, but the capture of the bomber was super flat, and seemingly came out of nowehere.

 

It looks like they fast tracked the main story to squeeze in all the other stuff at the end, which was awful. I still dont understand the whole email at the end. I could JUST about accept a "Hes dead in real life, but his fake world still lives on" end, but then they threw in an email from a parallel universe. Stupid. Try reading this load of shite from the IMDB FAQ page about the end:

 

[close spoiler]

");document.close();

 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0945513/faq

Edited August 18, 2012 by Dai

[sivy]

Source Code:

 

<-- click on 'spoiler' to show/hide the spoiler

Much like Lockout, this has the basis of a good film, but never really delivers. It could have been a good, tense, "Who is the bomber?" sort of action film, where he slowly gains more knowledge and evidence, but it sort of just stays flat throughout. It started off good, but the capture of the bomber was super flat, and seemingly came out of nowehere.

 

It looks like they fast tracked the main story to squeeze in all the other stuff at the end, which was awful. I still dont understand the whole email at the end. I could JUST about accept a "Hes dead in real life, but his fake world still lives on" end, but then they threw in an email from a parallel universe. Stupid. Try reading this load of shite from the IMDB FAQ page about the end:

 

[close spoiler]

");document.close();

 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0945513/faq

 

 

I enjoyed source code, it was one of the better films i saw last year, saying that i still watch all 3 Mighty Ducks whenever they are on Sky Movies.

[DeanoTheGame]

Source Code is a much better action/sci-fi film than Inception. The last 5 minutes lets it down but everything before that is good fun.

[niff]

The Shape of Things was on the face of it your average US romantic Valentines Day type of film but turns out to be a little more to it. Fantastic acting from Rachel Weisz and an interesting concept about a girl improving her guy.

[Steve Justice]

Cabin In The Woods. I waited 8 months, avoided all spoilers and was really excited to finally watch it. Within 10 minutes I realised this was not the film I was expecting to watch. I persevered, and was intrigued to know what was actually happening. That was the only reason I continued to watch. I found it annoying more than anything else, and just found myself hating it and getting more bored as the film went on. A real let down.

[Rey_Piste]

I saw The Expendables 2 on Friday evening, which was extremely enjoyable if not a bit too cheesy in places. Last night I watched Bad Ass, which got picked up because it features Danny Trejo and Ron Perlman. I thoroughly enjoyed what is essentially a low budget revenge flick in the same vein as Death Wish.

[Steve Justice]

I saw The Expendables 2 on Friday evening, which was extremely enjoyable if not a bit too cheesy in places. Last night I watched Bad Ass, which got picked up because it features Danny Trejo and Ron Perlman. I thoroughly enjoyed what is essentially a low budget revenge flick in the same vein as Death Wish.

 

And partly based on true events, if you didn't already know.. Old man fights black guy on a bus.

[Loki]

I also went to see Expendables 2 on the weekend, and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's really not a good film, indeed in terms of the script, plot and acting it's worse than the original, but does undoubtedly deliver what you wanted going in.

 

Arnie's bits were the weakest, and he looks horrendously stretched, due to all the plastic surgery. Bruce looks as cool as ever, Stallone is beginning to morph excitingly into Charles Bronson, and Norris essentially looks exactly the same as the 90s, though he didn't do anything but walk, and occasionally talk. Van Damme still has plenty in the tank judging by this, he was cheesy but strong.

 

I really see a career for Stallone as a bad old man, ala Bronson, he's got that thick, weatherbeaten look. Bruce is clearly still a big star. But Arnie was simply awful, I can't see his career resurrection going welll.

[KingOfMetal]

An animation Sunday for me with Basil the Great Mouse Detective and Ponyo in between bouts of painting (Magnolia FTW~!)

 

Basil was as good as I'd remembered with Vincent Price as Rattigan. It's Sherlock Holmes as a mouse, you can't go wrong.

 

Ponyo was a revelation. I'm sure that it was meant to have been the English dub as the opening credits listed Matt Damon, Noah Cyrus etc, but the film that Film4 had broadcast was Japanese with English subs. The excellence of the film was transcendent. It was the first subtitled film either of my kids had seen and even the youngest could keep up with everything that was happening, even if she couldn't keep up with every word displayed. I'm now even more determined to visit the Ghibli Museum whenever we get round to going to Tokyo. Comfortably my number 2 Studio Ghibli film, just behind Totoro.

 

No love for Spirited Away or Grave Of The Fireflies?

[KingOfMetal]

Saw Expendables 2 at the weekend also. Just a good popcorn flick in the way that Predator, Commando et al are , and amazed that my Mrs liked it.

 

Regarding Chuck Norris appearence:

 

SPOILER - Highlight the black box to read

Comes out to The Good, The Bad & The Ugly theme. Now I know hes not an action star as such and hes 82, but how cool would Clint Eastwood coming out as the suprise sniper have been?

*walks upto Stallone and crew* "You guys alright?"

Stallone "Yeah, thanks for that."

Clint: "alright then", exit Eastwood

Terry Crews "who was that? the man with no name?"

 

 

I know its horrendous, but its no worse than Schwarzenegger and Willis' "I'll be back/Yippie Kay-ay" exchange. And nice little nod to the Chuck Norris Facts too

Edited August 20, 2012 by KingOfMetal