Film The Redcafe Movie review thread

Dope-Very scattershot, with too many ideas and too many characters to come together into something with a cohesive point and a totally unnecessary Forest Whitaker voiceover, but it's bursting with energy and enthusiasm and has a great soundtrack. Worth checking out.
 
Gravity
Finally got round to watching it earlier, but post-6am day, so was and still am a bit zonked. Enjoyed it in the main. Great cinematography, albeit with the easily beautiful earth images, and decent performances from both leads. Pacing suitable and barring the odd scene where she is on the radio to the eskimo, it was all pretty enjoyable fare. Appreciate that I am two years late to this party, but did a bit of googling to see if that was meant to be a dream sequence or whatever. Didn't realise Jonas Cuaron did a mini-film from the eskimo's view of the convo.
Am sceptical about some people's deeper readings into the meaning of the end scene, but all in all was pleasantly surprised. Felt fresh and original, which is a massive plus.
8/10

Short film
http://www.scpr.org/blogs/newmedia/...the-gravity-bonus-scene-that-could-win-an-os/

@Rooney in Paris What did you make of the film?
 
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Chastain was great too IMO
I liked the film, but I thought Chastain was miscast. Not bad, just miscast.
it was boring, quite boring. In a cinema you would fell asleep.

not a bad movie, but boring as feck.
Nah, saw it at the pictures and didn't fall asleep. It's slow, but not boring.
 
Drag Me To Hell

Typically, I found what is apparently a Comedy Horror to be scary as, well, hell.
Still, it's a horribly racist film, IMO. Yuck.

6/10
 
I heard it was boring as hell.
I liked it a lot too. It's a little slow-paced but there's a lot of intensity building. I have issues with the slow pacing of a lot of classics but I didn't find 'A Most Violent Year' the least bit boring. 8.5/10 for me as well.
 
cATS ARE THE MASTER RACE, CHIEF.

*Bloody keyboard...
 
Legend - 7ish. Okay, but a bit disappointing. Elevated by a great Hardy performance as Reggie, and a slightly cartoonish, swivel-eyed actory one as Ronnie, that still manages to be weridly mesmerising. The film itself meanders though, and suffers from focusing too much on Reggie's romance with Frances, whilst somehow managing to make her completely one dimensional. The decision to have her narrate the film is a poor one that the actress can't carry off, and the story lags quite a bit inbetween the set peices. There's also an odd, extended cameo from the half forgotten welsh warbbler Duffy that feels like her agent bunged the production a decent wedge to have her sing in two seperate but equally irrelevant scenes. Worth it for Hardy, and a largely excellent supporting cast including David Thewlis, Paul Bettany and Kingsman's Taron Egerton, but a bit meh in all as a movie. A lot of dodgy wigs.
 
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Got 2 films here:

Inglorious Bastards

I re-watched this last night and I found myself liking it less than the first time for whatever reason. There are 2 main problems with this film: the long dull conversations and the plot, which is just nonsensical. Now I can forgive the fact that this is a fictional movie with Hitler in it but I can't really excuse the decisions many of the characters make. Some of them are just so stupid. For instance, every single important Nazi figure go and watch a film in the cinema only guarded by 2 people. This is a time where they are in the middle of the war and already on their way downhill. Another example is Hans Landa's decision to just give him self up and basically allow the people who carve swastikas on peoples forehead to do the same to him.

It's not all bad though as it's funny in places and it has tense moments such as the first scene which is pretty brilliant. The last third of the movie I also enjoyed much more than the first 2/3s. And the main plus point - of course - is Christoph Waltz, who's brilliant as Hans Landa.

Overall it's an OK film with good moments and bad moments, so I'm going to give it an OK rating.

6/10

Stand Up Guys

It's basically what Al Pacino and Christopher Walken can get up to in 1 night and it's pretty enjoyable. Great performances from all involved and funny at times. Nice way to pass the time.

7/10
 
Legend - 7ish. Okay, but a bit disappointing. Elevated by a great Hardy performance as Reggie, and a slightly cartoonish, swivel-eyed actory one as Ronnie, that still manages to be weridly mesmerising. The film itself meanders though, and suffers from focusing too much on Reggie's romance with Frances, whilst somehow managing to make her completely one dimensional. The decision to have her narrate the film is a poor one that the actress can't carry off, and the story lags quite a bit inbetween the set peices. There's also an odd, extended cameo from the half forgotten welsh warbbler Duffy that feels like her agent bunged the production a decent wedge to have her sing in two seperate but equally irrelevant scenes. Worth it for Hardy, and a largely excellent supporting cast including David Thewlis, Paul Bettany and Kingsman's Taron Edgerton, but a bit meh in all as a movie. A lot of dodgy wigs.
I think that's the best review its received so far.
 
TV interlude: I've been watching the old ITV Adventures of Sherlock Holmes series. It's wonderful, and Jeremy Brett's Sherlock is unbeatable.

Jeremy_Brett.jpg

"Let's see...it says 'SteveJ smells'. Elementary."
 
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I think that's the best review its received so far.

It's not really a gangster movie for a start, so anyone going in expecting The Long Good Friday is going to be very disappointed. It's a muddled, plodding character peice that places a lot of emphasis on it's least interesting character. Or the character it's the least interested in developing at any rate. The narration was a major stumbling block for me, it just doesn't work, especially since it's pretty cornily written. Also the music - when it's not obvious Richie-esque swag tunes - is a bit ITV TV drama fare. Basically without Hardy (and to a lesser extent Egerton, who I was pleasantly surprised by) it's a bit of a wet fish. It's watchable though, but probably not more than once.

In a way, the Spandau Ballet 90s effort is probably better. It's terribly cast, acted and produced, obviously, but as a story it's way more interesting.
 
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Got 2 films here:

Inglorious Bastards

I re-watched this last night and I found myself liking it less than the first time for whatever reason. There are 2 main problems with this film: the long dull conversations and the plot, which is just nonsensical. Now I can forgive the fact that this is a fictional movie with Hitler in it but I can't really excuse the decisions many of the characters make. Some of them are just so stupid. For instance, every single important Nazi figure go and watch a film in the cinema only guarded by 2 people. This is a time where they are in the middle of the war and already on their way downhill. Another example is Hans Landa's decision to just give him self up and basically allow the people who carve swastikas on peoples forehead to do the same to him.

It's not all bad though as it's funny in places and it has tense moments such as the first scene which is pretty brilliant. The last third of the movie I also enjoyed much more than the first 2/3s. And the main plus point - of course - is Christoph Waltz, who's brilliant as Hans Landa.

Overall it's an OK film with good moments and bad moments, so I'm going to give it an OK rating.

6/10

Stand Up Guys

It's basically what Al Pacino and Christopher Walken can get up to in 1 night and it's pretty enjoyable. Great performances from all involved and funny at times. Nice way to pass the time.

7/10


I thought Stand Up Guys was awful, and the 38% rating it has on Rotten Tomatoes is generous!
 
It's not really a gangster movie for a start, so anyone going in expecting The Long Good Friday is going to be very disappointed. It's a muddled, plodding character peice that places a lot of emphasis on it's least interesting character. Or the character it's the least interested in developing at any rate. The narration was a major stumbling block for me, it just doesn't work, especially since it's pretty cornily written. Also the music - when it's not obvious Richie-esque swag tunes - is a bit ITV TV drama fare. Basically without Hardy (and to a lesser extent Egerton, who I was pleasantly surprised by) it's a bit of a wet fish. It's watchable though, but probably not more than once.

In a way, the Spandau Ballet 90s effort is probably better. It's terribly cast, acted and produced, obviously, but as a story it's way more interesting.
The CGI London, bad wigs and Helgeland direction didn't bode well.

He may be the bloke who wrote LA Confidential but he's also the bloke who directed A Knights Tale.
 
It's a film that shouldn't be taken too seriously.

I get that, but it doesn't excuse it from being awful. Still, horses for courses and all that. I enjoy Step Brothers (a film that really shouldn't be taken seriously) and a lot of people think it's crap.
 
The narration was a major stumbling block for me, it just doesn't work, especially since it's pretty cornily written.
That line she had along the lines of "You might have thought I would've survived since I'm the narrator, but you were wrong!", and it's like directly addressed to the audience, had me cringing hard. It wasn't all bad, but that line and the ending narration in particular was awful.
 
It was written by Kurt Sutter, what did you expect?

Yeah, I know I fecked up. Unfortunately I only discovered that once it started. I told the Mrs we should stop watching after the opening scene was so bad, but got denied. It's two fecking hours long too.
 
Also a nice bit of A Knights Tale trivia

Kate is also Lydia from Breaking Bad.

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Burn After reading

Didn't really find it funny. That's all I got to say. Overrated.

5/10
 
The Wicker Tree is on later tonight. Must admit, I never knew that Robin Hardy had directed a sequel/sister film to The Wicker Man. That was a classic, but The Wicker Tree, which was only made 3 or 4 years ago, has pretty horrid reviews on Rotten Tomatoes.

@pauldyson1uk Have you seen or heard of it?
 
Irrational man

Got shit reviews, but I thought it was vintage Woody. Joaquin Phoenix, Parker Posey and Emma Stone are all brilliant. For such a creepy and disturbing man, he does pull off really relatable stuff.

Saw the trailer for 99 homes and that Roger Waters/Pink Floyd flick before, both look fantastic
 
The Wicker Tree is on later tonight. Must admit, I never knew that Robin Hardy had directed a sequel/sister film to The Wicker Man. That was a classic, but The Wicker Tree, which was only made 3 or 4 years ago, has pretty horrid reviews on Rotten Tomatoes.

@pauldyson1uk Have you seen or heard of it?
Never heard of it, but it will be on my HHD soon , will watch it later this week.