Film The Redcafe Movie review thread

Maybe all those thousands and thousands of people who hated the film would have loved it, if only they did their research and watched the TV series first? Fools, the lot of them.
Critical acclaim is the be all and end all when it comes to deciding on whether a film is good or bad then?

Also what you said is correct :lol:

If you invested the time in watching a TV show you're more likely like/watch the movie aren't you...
 
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Films don't work like that. Unless you're a Seinfeld or Top Gear you won't even break even at the cinema.
That's not strictly true. Plenty of films do work like that, and this was one of them. It grossed 44m worldwide which was roughly what was expected, the budget would have been about half of that -- it'll make more money from online rental and dvds. It's a very modest success, but why would HBO say no to a few million dollars?
 
That's not strictly true. Plenty of films do work like that, and this was one of them. It grossed 44m worldwide which was roughly what was expected, the budget would have been about half of that -- it'll make more money from online rental and dvds. It's a very modest success, but why would HBO say no to a few million dollars?

Correct yeah. It was made for just under 30 Million and will probably make close to double that. Pretty safe investment by HBO. They know the show had fans so as you said why wouldn't they cash in!
 
Critical acclaim is the be all and end all when it comes to deciding on whether a film is good or bad then?

Also what you said is correct :lol:

If you invested the time in watching a TV show you're more likely like/watch the movie aren't you...

I'm not even sure if you're serious now but yes, anyone who enjoys the TV series enough to endure watching hundreds of episodes is likely to enjoy the movie unless they really feck the movie up.

What you seem to be implying is that people who hate the movie - and would almost certainly hate the TV series too - would enjoy the movie more if they forced themselves to watch the TV series first. Which is, of course, nonsense.
 
Can't believe there is even a debate about this. It had a target audience, the people who actually liked the TV series. Anything else was a bonus. They were just cashing in on a franchise, it's nothing new. People who didn't like the series won't like the film. It's that simple. Oh yeah, I really don't like Kermode.

Regarding Locke, the "Is it shit, or is it great?" debate reminds me of a social experiment carried out by French anthropologist Pierre Bourdieu. It has to do with content versus form and is too long to summarise but well worth a read if anyone is interested.
 
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I'm not even sure if you're serious now but yes, anyone who enjoys the TV series enough to endure watching hundreds of episodes is likely to enjoy the movie unless they really feck the movie up.

What you seem to be implying is that people who hate the movie - and would almost certainly hate the TV series too - would enjoy the movie more if they forced themselves to watch the TV series first. Which is, of course, nonsense.

Not quite what my point was. My point was of course that if you like the show you're more like likely to like the movie, which also applies in the reverse.

Those people who liked the show were exactly the people that the movie was also made for.
 
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Amy - from the same director as Senna and in a similar range quality wise. It does run a bit long but is undeniably affecting, the overwhelming camera flash from paparazzi in the second half of the film is as effective a way of conveying the shitty aspects of fame as your going to get. Mitch Winehouse is a proper git.

8...8?/10
 
If you need to watch an entire TV show to contextualise a film, it's definitely shit.

Why exactly?
It's purely a medium for which to put their product out there, and if their target audience is fans of the TV show then that's their prerogative, no? It's the same as any piece of fan service and there's no need to please anyone else.

Fan service in any other form doesn't receive the same requirement for standing on it's own. What's so different about film?
 
Love and Mercy - Brian Wilson's dark biopic. Splits between his creative peak in the 60s making Pet Sounds and difficult time in the 80s when he went off the rails, played by Paul Dano and John Cusack respectively. The Dano stuff is brilliant and captures his ability in the studio well. Cusack was a bizarre casting decision and didn't really work for me.
 
If you watched (and liked) 8 series of a show how could you not like the movie?
I liked the first several seasons of Entourage as much as the next person, but the last few were complete dogshite. Stupid storylines (Vinny finally develops a coke habit in like Season 7?), same tired jokes, and shitty new characters really took the shine off for me. Was gonna give the movie a shot but haven't yet because frankly, the reviews were so bad. However, this Kermode dude is making me re-think this. Never heard a film review quite as scathing as that (maybe it's a British thing?). Not only did he say the movie was shite, but basically said it was evil. And the people who like it are evil as well. :lol: Totally over the top, although his use of "young hotties" and "Marky Mark" made me laugh.

The whole premise of the television show was about 3 guys gravy-training off their movie star friend/brother and their adventures in partying and getting laid. Understandably, not everyone's cup of tea. A very lowbrow, light-hearted satire/comedy targeted towards young adults (primarily males) without any intellectual heavy-lifting. That's it. There's no deeper meaning behind any of it. Not sure what that reviewer was really expecting tbh. I find it hard to believe that it's any worse than some vampire Twilight shite or Transformers nonsense. At the end of the day, I probably won't be arsed to see it but Kermode is making this tempting. I've got little doubt that the movie sucks, but Kermode comes across as a pretentious twat.
 
Why exactly?
It's purely a medium for which to put their product out there, and if their target audience is fans of the TV show then that's their prerogative, no? It's the same as any piece of fan service and there's no need to please anyone else.

Fan service in any other form doesn't receive the same requirement for standing on it's own. What's so different about film?

They can do whatever the hell they want. That's their perogative. The film will always be judged on its own merits though. It seems as though people who aren't fans of the TV show think the film is shit. Which is their perogative too.
 
Love and Mercy - Brian Wilson's dark biopic. Splits between his creative peak in the 60s making Pet Sounds and difficult time in the 80s when he went off the rails, played by Paul Dano and John Cusack respectively. The Dano stuff is brilliant and captures his ability in the studio well. Cusack was a bizarre casting decision and didn't really work for me.
Going to see this this weekend, looking forward to it.
 
If a film based on a TV show wasn't meant to be based on it's own merits, then it would simply be an extended TV special. As soon as it becomes a movie, it's open to the same criticisims as any other movie.

As an aside, I never got entourage... really tried to get into it, but ultimately - whilst it's a show about terrible people - unlike It's Always Sunny or The League, they're not even remotely funny, have nothing reedming about them, and I don't think the show (even if it's meant to be a sattire) truly thinks, or wants you to think, that they're complete wankers.
 
Also, one of my favourite Kermode rants was his Sucker Punch one (which was mostly a rant against Zack Snyder...)
 
If a film based on a TV show wasn't meant to be based on it's own merits, then it would simply be an extended TV special. As soon as it becomes a movie, it's open to the same criticisims as any other movie.

As an aside, I never got entourage... really tried to get into it, but ultimately - whilst it's a show about terrible people - unlike It's Always Sunny or The League, they're not even remotely funny, have nothing reedming about them, and I don't think the show (even if it's meant to be a sattire) truly thinks, or wants you to think, that they're complete wankers.

That doesn't apply to any other forms of fan service though. A book meant as a sequel to Breaking Bad wouldn't be judged on how it holds up on its own merits. It's recognised as fan service. The fact that it's a film is likey just because that's how they were able to receive the funding and go ahead for it, not that they wanted to expand into film and be judged as such.

The point I was arguing is that I don't think it can be deemed shit simply by way of needing to watch the series to enjoy it. Loads of stuff is good in the context of the overall story, character histories etc.
 
That doesn't apply to any other forms of fan service though. A book meant as a sequel to Breaking Bad wouldn't be judged on how it holds up on its own merits. It's recognised as fan service. The fact that it's a film is likey just because that's how they were able to receive the funding and go ahead for it, not that they wanted to expand into film and be judged as such.

The point I was arguing is that I don't think it can be deemed shit simply by way of needing to watch the series to enjoy it. Loads of stuff is good in the context of the overall story, character histories etc.

That's a bit different - as there's no way to put a book on screen - but regardless, a book that was a BB sequel would still be judged by its qualities as a book... ie. the quality of writing, it's characters, the way it tells it's story, it's length, it's pacing, etc. etc.
 
That doesn't apply to any other forms of fan service though. A book meant as a sequel to Breaking Bad wouldn't be judged on how it holds up on its own merits. It's recognised as fan service. The fact that it's a film is likey just because that's how they were able to receive the funding and go ahead for it, not that they wanted to expand into film and be judged as such.

The point I was arguing is that I don't think it can be deemed shit simply by way of needing to watch the series to enjoy it. Loads of stuff is good in the context of the overall story, character histories etc.
Yes it would.
 
I dunno. Generally fan service is judged first on just that, fan service. I think it'd be a shame that anyone making a fan service piece has to consider pleasing the mainstream audience out there who aren't already fans. How are you meant to achieve both? Falling in between will just disappoint both sets.

As for your comments on Entourage the TV show. These days everything has to be either funny, ultra dramatic or mega violent. Even mystery shows seem to be reliant on whether they have already had a hit series and performed well in Scandinavia.

Entourage wasn't mega funny like IASIP or The League, but it was much more grounded (obviously the movie star setting allowed them to still show/do cool stuff) and with far better character development. E might be a massive wanker but his struggle with managing and being a friend was a very real one. Characters like Ari Gold, Johnny Drama and Billy Walsh were original, funny and realized well. Particularly Ari. After that it's just an easy enjoyable feel good watch, which is fine and is becoming lacking these days.
 
Thankfully the Entourage film pretty much bombed.

Don't be fooled by the it's $30m budget, they money they threw in on advertising upped that massively. People thought this would make Sex and the City movie.
 
I dunno. Generally fan service is judged first on just that, fan service. I think it'd be a shame that anyone making a fan service piece has to consider pleasing the mainstream audience out there who aren't already fans. How are you meant to achieve both? Falling in between will just disappoint both sets.

As for your comments on Entourage the TV show. These days everything has to be either funny, ultra dramatic or mega violent. Even mystery shows seem to be reliant on whether they have already had a hit series and performed well in Scandinavia.

Entourage wasn't mega funny like IASIP or The League, but it was much more grounded (obviously the movie star setting allowed them to still show/do cool stuff) and with far better character development. E might be a massive wanker but his struggle with managing and being a friend was a very real one. Characters like Ari Gold, Johnny Drama and Billy Walsh were original, funny and realized well. Particularly Ari. After that it's just an easy enjoyable feel good watch, which is fine and is becoming lacking these days.

Entourage is unapologetic misogynistic trash filled with offensive characters from every angle. The kind of show you're talking about that doesn't fit into any of the extremes of a genre is something like The Affair or Transparent, both new this year and already have far to them than Entourage throughout its lifetime.
 
Entourage is unapologetic misogynistic trash filled with offensive characters from every angle. The kind of show you're talking about that doesn't fit into any of the extremes of a genre is something like The Affair or Transparent, both new this year and already have far to them than Entourage throughout its lifetime.

I don't understand the relevance of this? But it's a response to the 'I don't get it, it's not even funny' line that you hear so often about Entourage. It doesn't mean you have to like it, or that there aren't better alternatives.
 
I was essentially saying I don't agree with your description of Entourage as something of an all-rounder. I agree, it's not ultra funny or dramatic or violent, but that's because it has none of these qualities rather than because it has a little bit of everything. Transparent is the happy medium between drama and comedy that you're talking about, and Entourage falls down on so many levels in comparison to that.
 
Thankfully the Entourage film pretty much bombed.

Don't be fooled by the it's $30m budget, they money they threw in on advertising upped that massively. People thought this would make Sex and the City movie.

I wouldn't say it did bomb. The advertising figure is always near impossible to guess, but a general rule is 50% of the budget. So roughly $45m in production costs, roughly the same back in box office revenue with dvds and online rentals to follow. Moderate success or break even at worst*.
 
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I liked the first several seasons of Entourage as much as the next person, but the last few were complete dogshite. Stupid storylines (Vinny finally develops a coke habit in like Season 7?), same tired jokes, and shitty new characters really took the shine off for me. Was gonna give the movie a shot but haven't yet because frankly, the reviews were so bad. However, this Kermode dude is making me re-think this. Never heard a film review quite as scathing as that (maybe it's a British thing?). Not only did he say the movie was shite, but basically said it was evil. And the people who like it are evil as well. :lol: Totally over the top, although his use of "young hotties" and "Marky Mark" made me laugh.

The whole premise of the television show was about 3 guys gravy-training off their movie star friend/brother and their adventures in partying and getting laid. Understandably, not everyone's cup of tea. A very lowbrow, light-hearted satire/comedy targeted towards young adults (primarily males) without any intellectual heavy-lifting. That's it. There's no deeper meaning behind any of it. Not sure what that reviewer was really expecting tbh. I find it hard to believe that it's any worse than some vampire Twilight shite or Transformers nonsense. At the end of the day, I probably won't be arsed to see it but Kermode is making this tempting. I've got little doubt that the movie sucks, but Kermode comes across as a pretentious twat.
Spot on really.
 
I'll be honest, I'm struggling to marry the contrasting portraits of a low brow, light hearted, unintellectual show with something so complex and contextual it needs to be binged watched to appreciate in film form.
 
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I'll be honest, I'm struggling to marry the contrasting portraits of a low brow, light hearted, unintellectual show with something so complex and contextual it needs to be binged watched to appreciate in film form.
#1) It doesn't. The people who like it, will like it regardless whether they've seen the show or not. This isn't like the X-Files movie, where some exposure to the tv show is helpful to gain a proper understanding of the movie.
#2) I doubt you're struggling. More likely, you're doubting the veracity of the second part of your statement as it pertains to Entourage.
 
Can't believe we're having an in depth conversation on something as shallow as Entourage.
 
#2) I doubt you're struggling. More likely, you're doubting the veracity of the second part of your statement as it pertains to Entourage.

Yeah, pretty much. I mean, if Mark Kermode hates the film, i doubt he'd love the TV show, and thus, I doubt any knowledge of the TV show would've stopped him hating the film. The film, much like any episode of the show itself, should be able to convey at least a general sense of how good or bad it is. Especially if said film is aimed squarely at people who enjoyed the show. It's almost a paradoxical argument.....Almost.

I still wanna hate watch it though.
 
Yeah, pretty much. I mean, if Mark Kermode hates the film, i doubt he'd love the TV show, and thus, I doubt any knowledge of the TV show would've stopped him hating the film. The film, much like any episode of the show itself, should be able to convey at least a general sense of how good or bad it is. Especially if said film is aimed squarely at people who enjoyed the show. It's almost a paradoxical argument.....Almost.

I still wanna hate watch it though.
Who says they wanted Kermode to like it? I'd prefer he didn't like it the pompous cnut.