Movies

[Stuart Galbraith]

A good example of that is Georges Simenon's 'Maigret' Novels. One of the most recent ive read was set in a Parisian hotel, with one scene featuring Maigret pacing around the back corridors frequented by the staff, puffing on his pipe as he figured out the problem. Simenon's probes into French politics were no less incisive.

Novelists seemingly discovered this way into the seedy underbelly of the world fairly early on.

https://crimereads.com/charles-dickens-was-obsessed-with-detectives-too/

 

 

[lucklucky]

George Simenon Maigret  is great.  He gets you fixed to the most banal stories. When i finish it i still think it was time well spent.

[Skywalkre]

The Batman came out yesterday on HBO Max.  Was meaning to get to the theaters but never got around to it (in part because around here many have closed).

It was good... not great... but easily the best Batman movie we've gotten (I'd argue the only other good ones were the original Keaton Batman from '89 and Nolan's first film in the Dark Knight Trilogy).  It was darker and grittier than any other adaptation which I appreciated... but ultimately not that dark or gritty. 

One thing that stopped it from being great (I'll do my best to be as vague as possible to avoid spoilers) were several moments that just didn't fit as far as the ability of Batman to just walk away and continue fighting crime.  The entire movie takes place over... 7 days?... and on several occasions Batman takes a fall/hit/shot that should have left him bedridden for weeks to recover.  The other thing that was odd about these moments was how they weren't necessary... he could have simply stuck the landing in one such example and it would have been believable and just frickin' cool... but instead they make Batman get tossed around like a ragdoll because... reasons?  Batman isn't a superhero because he has supersoldier serum or was just born a demigod... he's a hero because he's rich and highly trained.  He's not supposed to nor able to take a pounding like Superman, Wonder Woman, etc. and walk away.

Still... some stuff I loved.  The movie is long (almost 3h) and the first 1h45m I was on the edge of the couch lapping it all up.  There's one part in the film where he kind of... snaps... and actually kills several bad guys.  Not intentionally... but moreso because he's just not trying not to.  I love moments like this with Batman as a character... his 'no kill at all expense' thing really turned me off the character years ago after having been a huge fanboy for most of my youth and early adulthood.

Highly recommend it if anyone has HBO Max and hasn't seen it yet.  Not on the level of Dune... but still one of the best movies I've seen recently (would only put Dune and the recent Suicide Squad above it).

[Yama]

The Batman began great, but started to sag through halfway. Ending was almost Dark Knight Rises-level overcomplicated, contrived torture.

Still I'd say whole experience is positive. Pattinson is actually a great Batman. However, Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman was quite a letdown: too exposed storyline, not enough chemistry with Pattinson.

Meanwhile, as some are surely aware, Disney closed down Blue Sky Studios, which they acquired as part of their takeover of Fox. It was one of the major American animation studies, best known from Ice Age movies. But their fortunes had been waning and Disney owns enough animation studios already.

Apparently, at the studios last days, animators made one last short video about the studios mascot, Scrat, called "The End". Snif!

 

Edited April 23, 2022 by Yama

[Stargrunt6]

On 4/19/2022 at 7:44 PM, Skywalkre said:

d spoilers) were several moments that just didn't fit as far as the ability of Batman to just walk away and continue fighting crime.  The entire movie takes place over... 7 days?... and on several occasions Batman takes a fall/hit/shot that should have left him bedridden for weeks to recover.  The other thing that was odd about these moments was how they weren't necessary... he could have simply stuck the landing in one such example and it would have been believable and just frickin' cool... but instead they make Batman get tossed around like a ragdoll because... reasons?  Batman isn't a superhero because he has supersoldier serum or was just born a demigod... he's a hero because he's rich and highly trained.  He's not supposed to nor able to take a pounding like Superman, Wonder Woman, etc. and walk away.

When he took that bomb the face, I was like "there goes his jaw . . ."

On 4/19/2022 at 7:44 PM, Skywalkre said:

Still... some stuff I loved.  The movie is long (almost 3h) and the first 1h45m I was on the edge of the couch lapping it all up.  There's one part in the film where he kind of... snaps... and actually kills several bad guys.  Not intentionally... but moreso because he's just not trying not to.  I love moments like this with Batman as a character... his 'no kill at all expense' thing really turned me off the character years ago after having been a huge fanboy for most of my youth and early adulthood.

In one of the iterations, maybe the comic or cartoon, The Question calls out Batman for this.  He tells him that his no-kill practice are useless because the criminals end up escaping Arkham and go on killing again. 

On 4/19/2022 at 7:44 PM, Skywalkre said:

Highly recommend it if anyone has HBO Max and hasn't seen it yet.  Not on the level of Dune... but still one of the best movies I've seen recently (would only put Dune and the recent Suicide Squad above it).

I liked it as well. It was literally darker than the others, hardly any daylight. And it felt physically cramped. I loved the emphasis on the detective work.  Not much chemistry bn him and Zoe, why did they fall in love?

 

[Skywalkre]

On 4/23/2022 at 8:26 PM, Stargrunt6 said:

When he took that bomb the face, I was like "there goes his jaw . . ."

I'd completely forgotten about that example when I made my post.  I was thinking specifically of the base jump scene that just had me going "there's no way he's not needing a few weeks off after that".

On 4/23/2022 at 8:26 PM, Stargrunt6 said:

I liked it as well. It was literally darker than the others, hardly any daylight. And it felt physically cramped. I loved the emphasis on the detective work.  Not much chemistry bn him and Zoe, why did they fall in love?

I liked how dark and gritty it was and appreciated the detective angle (though I think they could have gone even further in that direction and played up this as a strength... let Batman get ahead of the curve a few times rather than play catch-up the entire time) as well.  Ultimately I'm glad I watched it.  For me that's the deciding factor of whether I recommend a movie or not.  With that being said I have no desire to watch it again.  Contrast this with Dune where I've probably watched it... almost a dozen times now?  I've lost track, honestly.  When I have free time to sit down and watch something even with everything on HBO Max and Netflix (the two streaming services I'm subscribed to right now) I often default back to watching Dune yet again.  That says something about how damn good that movie is.

[Stargrunt6]

I feel the same way about The Batman like I do Blade Runner 2049.  I legit don't feel like watching either again. In spite of liking them.

 

But yeah I thought I loved the Dune movie. Damn, you got me beat by 8 viewings.  I saw all four times at the theater though.  The only thing more damaged than my wallet is my ears.  (The soundtrack.... ethnic screaming)

[Skywalkre]

That must have been amazing to see in the theaters!  I invested in a decent LG OLED back when the 2nd season of Witcher came out... but only using the TV's default speakers for sound.  I can tell I'm missing out... (Though, yeah, I can see how some of those moments must've been painful in the theater.)

[DB]

I don't think I've watched a movie twice that was made in the last twenty years. There is always the risk, to me, that my memory of a good modern film will be ruined by something that hasn't aged well, but old, old stuff was already old when I first watched it.

[Ivanhoe]

This is kinda interesting;

 

[Stargrunt6]

1 hour ago, Ivanhoe said:

This is kinda interesting;

 

If I were ever an actor, I'd want to be a "hey it's that guy" type like John Cazale.  

[Stargrunt6]

Christopher Walken has been casted as the Emperor for Dune pt 2.

"Walk without rhythm..."

 

[Rick]

29 minutes ago, Stargrunt6 said:

Christopher Walken has been casted as the Emperor for Dune pt 2.

"Walk without rhythm..."

 

I can dance without rhythm 

[NickM]

2 hours ago, Rick said:

I can dance without rhythm 

But can you play a Gigantopithicus as a Mob Boss in the live action Jungle Book?

I swear Walken as King Louie was a hoot and a half.

[Stargrunt6]

3 hours ago, NickM said:

But can you play a Gigantopithicus as a Mob Boss in the live action Jungle Book?

I swear Walken as King Louie was a hoot and a half.

He nailed it. 

 

Btw if you want a more faithful adaptation, check out the Soviet-made "Mowgli."

 

[Yama]

So the second Dr Weirdo was a mild disappointment. Trailer looked very interesting, and the basic plot was not bad, however the story part was rushed, and then there was lots of magical fights which did not seem to go anywhere. That's the problem of Marvel 'mystical battles', it is really hard to tell which side is winning and why and after a while it gets boring.

"Multiverse madness" did not feel fresh anymore after it was already done better by Endgame, Spider-Verse and No Way Home. And Darkhold and Book of Vishanti were not foreshadowed at all so they did not feel like significant plot points. I dunno, maybe if I had watched Wandavision I may have been more on the map?? Any way, it was not actively horrible, but not really an improvement over the first.

[Stargrunt6]

1 hour ago, Yama said:

So the second Dr Weirdo was a mild disappointment. Trailer looked very interesting, and the basic plot was not bad, however the story part was rushed, and then there was lots of magical fights which did not seem to go anywhere. That's the problem of Marvel 'mystical battles', it is really hard to tell which side is winning and why and after a while it gets boring.

"Multiverse madness" did not feel fresh anymore after it was already done better by Endgame, Spider-Verse and No Way Home. And Darkhold and Book of Vishanti were not foreshadowed at all so they did not feel like significant plot points. I dunno, maybe if I had watched Wandavision I may have been more on the map?? Any way, it was not actively horrible, but not really an improvement over the first.

I'm not one of those who's above liking superhero movies. I'm stupid for all things Batman and XMen.  But some of these movies are starting to become a blur.  We're reaching the end of its wave of popularity. 

[Stefan Fredriksson]

Porco Rosso. Long I stayed away from it, thinking it would be silly. It is anything but. It does just about everything perfectly.

[Stuart Galbraith]

Never heard of that before, looks like my cup of tea. I love the flying boats, all very Schneider Trophy.

[Yama]

Yeah it's a classic, takes you back to golden age of seaplanes, and doesn't overstay its welcome by dragging things out like so many todays movies.

[Stefan Fredriksson]

I think the story is good. It is very well paced. Excellent characters. They reload their weapons, which also can jam.

[Stuart Galbraith]

Great balls of fire!

 

[Ivanhoe]

This could be interesting;

 

[Harold Jones]

We saw Lost City this weekend.  It was kind of meh, there were some good setups one or two of which actually delivered, otherwise it was a put your brain in neutral and enjoy your popcorn while looking at the scenery kind of movie.

[Stefan Fredriksson]

Chip'n'Dale Rescue Rangers.

30 years after the TV-series ended,  someone had a brilliant idea - this movie. If you enjoyed the TV-series you will like this. Huge amount of references/cameos, basically all well done.