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Midweek Movie Free Talk
Have you watched any movies recently you want to discuss? Any films you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.
Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.
Alright updated Oscar predictions (post-Cannes) (also assuming Project Hail Mary releases this year as it’s rumored to)
Picture
Director
Original Screenplay
Adapted Screenplay
Lead Actor
Lead Actress
Supporting Actor
Supporting Actress
Casting
What makes Knives Out an adapted screenplay versus an original screenplay?
Edit: Never mind, sequels being "adapted" is a dumb Academy rule
The adapted rules are really weird sometimes. It makes sense if it is based on a novel, short story, play or something, but Barbie being adapted screenplay because Barbie already existed as a "character", all the sequels or even Damien Chazelle for Whiplash because it is more or less just an expansion of his own earlier short film. In my opinion it goes against what "adapted" means and what that award should really be for.
Actually the Whiplash short film was made after he wrote the screenplay, he made the short as a way to get the feature funded. It was a weird move on the Academy’s part, every other organization nominated it in Original. It would have kicked out Foxcatcher in Original Screenplay and Gone Girl would have likely gotten into the Adapted category had it been fixed.
I always assumed Barbie would go Adapted because of the whole character thing (I think technically you’re adapting the characters in a different story). But for a while seemed like it would be going Original.
Yeah I don't follow movies super closely so I had just never come across it before. Sequels in particular feel weird
I don't think that's terribly similar other than the "murder mystery" style. What? Everyone has a reason to kill them? Who could have guessed!
"I think it's derivative" is not the same as "Adapted from..."
Plus Knives Out was nominated for Original Screenplay in several awards. Including the Academy's.
I watched The Hateful Eight a few days ago. I also watched it years ago.
I remembered why I hated it years ago (excessive use of the n-word by white characters - typical Quentin Tarantino nonsense) as well as the characters being generally unlikable. However, I didn't hate it this time around. I thought it was OK.
Generally speaking I would say QT's films seem quite formulaic - lots of talking, then violence. More talking or plot explanation and then even more violence.
I also saw The Whale about a week ago. Christ, that was depressing.
I tried to watch Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning, but it seemed to keep going on and on, so my brain gave up.
You might be the opposite of me. The Hateful Eight might be one of my favorite films for how it can be so beautiful, artistic, and at the same time utterly unhinged.
Darren Aronofsky is a person I hate because I hate all of his movies and I am upset at how good they are. Every one of them somehow insults me in a way no other movie maker manages to do. And The Whale is a movie that I think really explained what’s happening. I hate them because all of his movies call out all of the bullshit that’s happening in my brain. Requiem for a Dream, for instance, is a movie where I can think to myself, “I don’t do drugs, I’ll never be like this,” but the movie is less about the drugs and more about the why behind the characters’ drug use. And with The Whale… well, I’ll let you draw your own conclusions there.
I’m pretty sure having your brain give up is the primary goal of the Mission Impossible movies. :P
Would you have liked an episode of The Virginian or Bonanza that was a combination of The Thing and Reservoir Dogs?
I watched Mountainhead a few days ago. I don't think it deserves all the hate.
I think people might've gone in expecting Succession but ended up with something that had a lot more Peep Show in it. In other words, it's an over-the-top satire that leans heavily into the comedy, rather than a subtle dramatic critique with comedic elements. The trailer did a great job keeping a lid on the plot, but it messed with people's expectations. I can imagine the disappointment if you go into a meeting expecting Logan Roy but find he's been replaced with a Jeremy Usborne/Michael Scott combo.
Like other Armstrong works, it is stuffed with quoteable, witty, one-liners which makes it rewatchable. I don't want to spoil anything, but the underlying criticism still feels poignant, even if it's presented in a more slapstick manner.
All in all, I really liked it.
I got surprised with a pre-release screening of The Life of Chuck.
I really loved it. It has some dance scenes in it that could be called gratuitous, but I was all in for them. The out-of-order storytelling helped really cement the movie's themes. It's a bit confusing and sad at the beginning, but really the movie is perhaps one of the most uplifting and life-affirming things I've ever seen. I strongly strongly recommend going to see it. It will make you cry some very beautiful tears.
Not a movie, but right now in the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles they are doing Hamlet. I wanted to talk about it because my husband hated it, but it was the best version I've ever seen. It's of the "reinterpreted" style and it ends up changing the third act in a surprising way. Meaningfully, too, since they actually rewrote it. I don't want to give away too much, though, just in case anyone else is going to say it. Pretty much any show performed at that venue is going to be impactful just because it's a small stage and the acting can really grip you, but I found this show to be notably better than the last I saw there (Fake it Until you Make it).
Now I've got a hankering to watch the sequel.
Sinners is decent. I don’t watch a lot of scary movies, but this isn’t that sort of horror. Whoever was tasked with compositing in Wallace should do something else for work… or learn from whoever Fincher had for The Social Network.
Props to all of the actors in this that started as stand-out teen actors. good presence.
I completely forgot that I watched Bring Her Back last week.
I liked Talk To Me quite a bit, I would say it was the second best horror movie of 2023.
I initially liked Bring Her Back more than Talk To Me, but the more I’ve thought about it the less I like it. I think Talk to Me is visually more interesting and at the very least it’s more of an entertainment than this is. It’s the epitome of elevated horror where it’s about trauma and whatnot. I think Talk to Me was different in that it was about drug addiction.
There’s also not a lot of horror in this, and I don’t just mean jump scares. It’s really more of a drama.
I think it’s overall pretty disappointing. All power to RackaRacka though, they turned down Street Fighter for this. I would have personally taken the Street Fighter gig but that’s just cause I know it’d mean more money.
Ballerina (2025): ★★☆
If you like the other John Wick movies, then you'll probably like this one, too. The plot is meh, but the plot isn't why you watch a John Wick movie. The action is entertaining, but certain sequences broke my suspension of disbelief a bit and reminded me that some characters have plot armor. Reddit seemed to expect this movie to be terrible, but I found it worth the watch.
This movie has a shot where one character shows their wristwatch to someone else, and then a subtitle appears with the time. This caught me so off-guard that I can't remember whether this was necessary because the watch was out of focus, or if the filmmakers were that worried about people being able to read it. Can the average person really not read a clock?