Perryapsis's recent activity
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
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Comment on Lifetime Windows user seeking feedback for improvements on my Linux setup in ~tech
Perryapsis Link ParentNoob here; is it possible to duplicate my current Linux partition to a different drive without screwing something up? I had limited space on my system's built-in drive when I decided to switch, so...Noob here; is it possible to duplicate my current Linux partition to a different drive without screwing something up? I had limited space on my system's built-in drive when I decided to switch, so I put Linux on a new partition of a external spinning-disk hard drive. With hindsight, I'd like to move to an SSD for the improved performance, but I'm afraid that I'd brick my computer or lose data trying to switch now.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
Perryapsis LinkDoes anybody want to talk about: Sinners (2025): ★⯪☆ Quick reminder that my scores are based on how much I enjoyed watching it rather than an objective measure of quality. So even though I gave...Does anybody want to talk about:
Sinners (2025): ★⯪☆
Quick reminder that my scores are based on how much I enjoyed watching it rather than an objective measure of quality. So even though I gave this the same score as another movie, I'm not saying that it's necessarily just as bad of a movie. But that said...
I don't get the hype. The movie was fine, but not as amazing as advertised. It apparently didn't leave much of an impression on me, since I can't remember any details besides the basics of the plot after just a few days. It's another movie where the protagonists are unsympathetic (at least at the beginning), and I think I mixed up Smoke and Stack for a while, so it's another movie that made me feel dumb. And as the horror picks up, it has a couple points where the characters do the horror-movie staple of making the worst choices imaginable. So this movie has all common threads of things I tend not to like in movies, and probably just isn't for me.
So along with One Battle After Another, I'm 0 for 2 on enjoying the Best Picture frontrunners this year, and I'm feeling a little discouraged. I feel like I can't really say anything without people assuming I'm a bad-faith internet contrarian and inviting the wrong kinds of rebuttals from the wrong sorts of people, but that means that I can't really join the biggest conversations about the most popular recent movies.
Wings (1927): ★★☆
(Please excuse the rambling; this movie left me with more questions than coherent thoughts...)
Is this really considered a silent film? It seems like something in-between a "silent" film and a talky. There isn't audio dialogue, but there is synchronized sound (in addition to the score) for gunshots, whirring of plane engines, explosions during the war sequences, etc. I knew that silent films had musical scores, but this is more than that.
This movie gave me more appreciation of older film techniques. The title cards often have artistic or stylized backgrounds instead of plain text, and the frames are tinted either yellow or blue to indicate time of day or a change of location. It also has clearly-added-later orange coloring to fire and gunshots. Neither technique is needed in modern color films, so it's interesting to see how they're used here. I'm also surprised by how much objectionable material they got away with by the standards of the day. This movie has brief nudity, a scene set in a burlesque (?) club, and someone being shot in the chest and coughing up blood, among other things. I get that it was pre-code, but it's still something that I subconsciously just don't expect from a movie this old.
I was surprised by how many jump cuts this movie has. One jump cut is jarring and breaks continuity, but this movie does it so much (like seriously, at least a dozen times, sometimes one after the other) that it feels like it might have been an intentional artistic decision somehow.
This movie is less than 2½ hours long, but it has an intermission? I know it used to be more common for long movies to have intermissions, but was it common way back in the day to have an intermission for a more normal-length movie? I see that there are two cuts of the movie, and I saw the longer one. Does anyone know which 33 minutes of material was removed from the shorter cut? And which cut was voted Best Picture in 1929?
Mercy (2026): ★★☆
Like Minority Report, but not as good. My expectations were low and I went on discount Tuesday, but I probably would have dropped a star if I had paid full price. The movie is similar to The Circle (2017) in that it brings up a lot of issues with modern technology, but it fails to follow through on any of them, even the AI it focuses on.
There's a good idea in the premise, but this movie never emphasizes it. In America, you have the right to decline to answer questions in a criminal investigation against you. But what if a computer unilaterally decides that you're guilty based on the evidence available to it. What if the only way to clear your name is to waive your constitutional rights and testify in your own defense? The movie put the thought in my head, even though it never explores this particular concept.
Mild spoilers
The movie defines "reasonable doubt" as 8% (i.e. 1/12, or one juror's worth) probability of innocence. That stood out to me as odd. Courts usually specifically reject the idea of defining reasonable doubt to a percentage, or really any statistical measure.I wish I could remember the exact probability of guilt shown after each sequence. I'd like to use Bayes theorem and work backward to find the implied probability of the evidence and see if those make sense.
The movie is set on August 14, 2029. At first I wondered if they wanted to guarantee some sort of extra promotion on that date if the movie really took off, but the third act put the kibosh on them wanting people to try to emulate the movie IRL in the future.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
Perryapsis Link ParentThe jokes are pretty memorable too, not just throwaways to get a laugh. I'm never going to forget how long it takes to cook grits.The jokes are pretty memorable too, not just throwaways to get a laugh. I'm never going to forget how long it takes to cook grits.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
Perryapsis LinkDoes anybody want to talk about: A Minecraft Movie (2025): ★★☆ I had heard bad things about this movie, but also that it had funny bits. It was on sale at a local store for "please someone just...Does anybody want to talk about:
A Minecraft Movie (2025): ★★☆
I had heard bad things about this movie, but also that it had funny bits. It was on sale at a local store for "please someone just buy this already so we can use the shelf space for something else," so I gave it a shot. I didn't think it was that bad. It's a silly comedy, not some deep and meaningful drama, but it isn't terrible. For all the hubbub about "chicken jockey," I'm surprised that the other jokes like "Steve's lava chicken" and "yearning for the mines" didn't become bigger memes as well.
My Cousin Vinny (1992): ★★☆
Are "legal comedies" a thing? I'd describe this movie's genre as a legal drama, but it's clearly presented as a comedy. Besides the titular character's sudden turn from bumbling buffoon to expert cross examiner, the plot is well-constructed and entertaining to follow. It was also interesting to read afterwards that a lot of the legal procedure in the movie is pretty close to reality, at least as far as movies go.
Iron Man (2008): ★★☆
And so begins my Marvel catch up plan. Thanks to everyone last week who helped recommend which movies to watch and which to skip! This movie was okay. It has the same issue as Marty Supreme where I struggle to sympathize with the main character because they're a jerk, but the premise and twists were entertaining but predictable.
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Comment on Youtube channel recommendations 2026 in ~tech
Perryapsis Link ParentHow is veritasium these days? Several years ago, he made a video explaining that he was going to make clickbaity lower-quality videos to sustain the channel. While I appreciate the challenges of...Veritasium
How is veritasium these days? Several years ago, he made a video explaining that he was going to make clickbaity lower-quality videos to sustain the channel. While I appreciate the challenges of YouTubing as a business, I did notice a significant drop in quality and unsubscribed. Has he turned it around in the time since?
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
Perryapsis Link ParentI'd prefer to actually watch the movies themselves if possible. I'm worried about spoilers if I venture into fan sites and YouTube, etc.I'd prefer to actually watch the movies themselves if possible. I'm worried about spoilers if I venture into fan sites and YouTube, etc.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
Perryapsis LinkI'm interested in the new Avengers movie that comes out late this year, but I'm hopelessly behind on Marvel as a series and would like to "catch up" enough in time to see the next movie. Could...I'm interested in the new Avengers movie that comes out late this year, but I'm hopelessly behind on Marvel as a series and would like to "catch up" enough in time to see the next movie. Could someone please help me understand which movies I should watch?
IIRC, there are four movies in the Avengers: Subtitle sequence, of which I've only seen the one just called Avengers (2012). I'd need to see Age of Ultron (2015), Infinity War (2018), and Endgame (2019) to complete the main sequence. But I also know that there are like 20 other Marvel movies that tie into each other. Are there any others that are basically required viewing to follow the overarching plot besides the main sequence movies? Are there any that aren't required, but are obvious "while you're at it, definitely watch this one too" just because they're particularly good?
Sorry if this is easy to look up, but I'm worried about spoilers and figured I'd ask here first. Thanks!
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Comment on ‘Marty Supreme’ becomes A24’s highest-grossing film at domestic box office with $80 million in ~movies
Perryapsis Link ParentHow can you tell?I could clearly tell it was shot with a 180-degree shutter!
How can you tell?
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Comment on 2026 Oscar nomination predictions in ~movies
Perryapsis LinkI'm surprised not to see Warfare in the sound category. That's one movie that really benefits from fancy theater sound where the loud parts can be loud, the bass shakes the entire room, etc.I'm surprised not to see Warfare in the sound category. That's one movie that really benefits from fancy theater sound where the loud parts can be loud, the bass shakes the entire room, etc.
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Comment on ‘Marty Supreme’ becomes A24’s highest-grossing film at domestic box office with $80 million in ~movies
Perryapsis Link ParentDitto on your first point. I think I just don't tend to like movies where the protagonist is:Ditto on your first point. I think I just don't tend to like movies where the protagonist is:
[A] character who's kinda an asshole and makes a ton of [bad] decisions ... but still ... someone you're rooting for throughout.
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Comment on Movies: Your personal year in review for 2025 in ~movies
Perryapsis (edited )Link ParentI think I tagged Paprika something like "I'm too much of an idiot to understand what's going on." I had heard that it was a super creative animated movie, but I think it was too creative for me to...I think I tagged Paprika something like "I'm too much of an idiot to understand what's going on." I had heard that it was a super creative animated movie, but I think it was too creative for me to the point where I was just confused. I have had a few movies like that. Without looking it up, I can't remember what the premise of the plot even was, and the movie just didn't leave much of an impression on me in general.
For Howl's Moving Castle, I think it was two things. First, it's the highest-rated Ghibli film on Letterboxd, even over Spirited Away (which was great) and Princess Mononoke (which I really need to get around to watching). But it's kinda like Paprika in that it didn't leave much of an impression on me, so maybe part of my low score was just missing on high expectations. I think my other issue with it is that I never understood how the magic worked, so I was playing catch-up trying to understand the plot of a kids' movie. It never feels good to have trouble understanding a kids' movie.
I don't remember a lot about The Godfather. I think it's another one where I had super-high expectations that weren't met. I remember it being too long so I had to run to the bathroom halfway through. I also tend not to like movies that cast "bad guys" in a positive light, so I didn't always like the portrayal of the mobsters. There's a line near the end like "Pay very close attention to which character does X action" that I really needed in order to follow the ending.
I think I first watched The Breakfast Club on a thrift store DVD and gave it another shot after finding it on blu-ray. Of course, had I known that Criterion was going to release a 4K version right in the middle of their fall sale, I probably would have just waited for that.
I didn't like Anora. Since you haven't seen it, I'll be try to be vague. I did like the comedic bits in the middle, but the dramatic bookends didn't work for me. I didn't like the characters, so I wasn't emotionally invested in the outcome. The story was predictable, so there wasn't a particularly interesting twist. And then the ending was "I see what they're trying is trying to do here, but meh." Also, I was put off by the sheer amount of explicit sexual material in the movie. The first 20 minutes or so in particular are very "uhhh, am I in the right theater?"
I don't remember what I wrote about these movies in the weekly threads, but the stuff above is what comes to mind now as I jog my memory.
EDIT: I forgot about your last question. I kinda feel like the Letterboxd scale and mine are basically two separate things. On Letterboxd, I try to give a rating anchored mostly on "how good is the movie?" with some leeway based on my personal experience. My three-star system is entirely on my gut feeling after the movie and basically breaks down as:
★ : Of all the stuff I could have watched, I wish I had picked something else.
★★ : Worth watching
★★★ : This belongs in the priority rewatch list
Sometimes I'll use a half-star when I can't decide which group to put a movie in, but three stars and two tweeners is "Why not just use a five-star scale at that point?" so I'm trying to avoid that moreso now than I have in the past.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
Perryapsis Link ParentI hadn't heard of Mr. Roberts. The blu-ray looks a bit expensive, so I might have to wait for a sale. Thanks for the recommendation! I have the same issue with Marty Supreme, and kinda with...I hadn't heard of Mr. Roberts. The blu-ray looks a bit expensive, so I might have to wait for a sale. Thanks for the recommendation!
I have the same issue with Marty Supreme, and kinda with certain types of movies in general. The protagonist is such a jerk that I wasn't rooting for him at the end, even though that's clearly the writer's intent to make the ending land.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
Perryapsis LinkDoes anybody want to talk about: The Apartment (1960): ★★★ (rewatch) Ben-Hur (1959): ★★☆ The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (2024): ★★☆ (rewatch) You Can't Take It With You (1938): ★★★ Marty Supreme... -
Comment on Golden Globes 2026: ‘One Battle After Another’ wins Comedy, ‘Hamnet’ wins Drama in ~movies
Perryapsis LinkOne Battle After Another won best... comedy? I'm confused about how it's categorized; do the Golden Globes consider all satire to be comedy?One Battle After Another won best... comedy? I'm confused about how it's categorized; do the Golden Globes consider all satire to be comedy?
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Comment on How to practically liquidate lots of little things of moderate value in ~finance
Perryapsis Link ParentThe brick-and-mortar equivalent of this is called a consignment store, so maybe start by searching for ebay consignment [location].The brick-and-mortar equivalent of this is called a consignment store, so maybe start by searching for
ebay consignment [location]. -
Comment on What private companies are you happy doing business with? in ~talk
Perryapsis Link ParentHow does this work when employees quit, retire, or get fired? Are they required to sell their stock beforehand?They are 100% employee owned ... [E]mployees earn/accrue company stock over time.
How does this work when employees quit, retire, or get fired? Are they required to sell their stock beforehand?
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Comment on Toy Story's villain is a lie in ~movies
Perryapsis Link[meta] I have only seen the first two Toy Story movies, but would like to see the third and fourth eventually. Is this video just about the first movie, or does it have spoilers for the others?[meta]
I have only seen the first two Toy Story movies, but would like to see the third and fourth eventually. Is this video just about the first movie, or does it have spoilers for the others?
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Comment on The "why does this movie exist" scene in ~movies
Perryapsis LinkThe Great Dictator (1940) comes to mind. The entire movie is good, but the reason it exists is to give Charlie Chaplin an open mic for five minutes at the end.The Great Dictator (1940) comes to mind. The entire movie is good, but the reason it exists is to give Charlie Chaplin an open mic for five minutes at the end.
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Comment on Movies: Your personal year in review for 2025 in ~movies
Perryapsis Link Parent*facepalm* I agree that you expect to see a selection bias toward higher ratings because each person will have a tendency to pick movies they're likely to enjoy. My concern is that 65% of my...There is an export your data feature
*facepalm*
I agree that you expect to see a selection bias toward higher ratings because each person will have a tendency to pick movies they're likely to enjoy. My concern is that 65% of my ratings fall into only 20% of the range. It may was well be a thumbs up or thumbs down system if I can't tell the difference between 1, 2, and 3, or between 4 and 5.
Does anybody want to talk about:
Office Space (1999): ★☆☆
Clerks, but with cubicles. I've worked in an office and been laid off, so I enjoyed the jokes about that. But the actual plot of the movie didn't keep my interest. It's interesting to compare what the office was like in the mid 90s compared to today.
The Land Before Time (1988): ★★☆ (rewatch)
This is a movie I haven't seen since I was a kid, and my theater was showing it for $3. This is definitely a different movie to watch as an adult, but still enjoyable. I didn't remember it being so short, but the story is simple and doesn't need two hours to make its point.
Thelma and Louise (1991): ★☆☆
Somehow I had gotten the idea that this was a lighthearted road trip romp, so I was not expecting a thriller/drama. That made me more surprised at the inciting act and beginning of the movie, but that also means it wasn't really what I was in the mood to watch. So, entering from stage left...
Happy Gilmore (1996): ★★☆
Expected a dumb Adam Sandler comedy; got a dumb Adam Sandler comedy. For once I was able to set aside the fact that a sports movie took ridiculous artistic license with the rules and was able to let go and enjoy it. It starts kinda slow and the early gags don't land, but it does better in the second act and manages to save par.
Her (2013): ★☆☆
I think this is a movie I needed to see before generative AI entered the zeitgeist. In the same way that you can't remember not knowing how to do something after you learn to do it, I can never watch this movie without preconceived expectations about AI, so I can never really put myself into the character's shoes.
The operating system, holographic video games, wireless earbuds, and other tech would have seemed futuristic and impressive at the time this movie released, but now they're mostly not-quite-right versions of things that actually exist. The depictions of the tech fall into uncanny valleys that wouldn't have existed in 2013. So the main character makes some dumb decisions early on that make him hard to sympathize with, which usually kills my enjoyment of movies. Now people are more wary of chatbots hallucinating and flattering you, so Theodore seems dumb at times. But I only got that impression because I'm watching the movie over a decade late after a serious shift in the culture around AI. This is a movie that I literally can't give a reasonable opinion on because of how much the world has changed since its release.
The credits of Her contain a special thanks for the late Catherine O'Hara. Does anyone know why she got that credit?