Film The Redcafe Movie review thread

Cina said:
I only read the book recently. How close to the source material do they keep it?

The book actually felt like he intentionally wrote it in the perfect format for a blockbuster movie, too :lol:
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Yeah as Revan said, a few minor changes but overall very similar to the book. Like you, when I read it I felt it begging for a big screen adaptation so no surprise it's very close to what I imagined. The book was at times very science oriented, I felt they did well to take a bit of that stuff out cos it would've slowed down the picture.
Revan said:
Well, that is a first.
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I know, right! :lol:
 
Bill.s.preston said:
Jaws 19:

After 19 attempts, you'd think they'd have managed to create a realistic looking shark by now! Like the original, the fake shark doesn't ruin the film but Still!
Max Spielberg does a pretty decent job of cranking up the tension and pulls off the odd jump scare quite successfully. Overall, it mirrors all the sequels in that it still doesn't match up to the original, however it's probably the best one that doesn't star Roy Scheider.
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19? Is this a joke?
 
On the subject of recent horror films, I'm watching The Gift at the moment, and it's absolutely terrifying.
 
ThierryHenry said:
On the subject of recent horror films, I'm watching The Gift at the moment, and it's absolutely terrifying.
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Yeah, this was good. Very well made (directed by Joel Edgerton, especially impressive for a debut) and acted, which just the right level of tension going through the first hour. I thought the ending was slightly silly, but the way the plot moved before then was ever-interesting and suspenseful. Jason Bateman was particularly excellent, you completely believed every facet of his character. Would recommend this as an alternative Halloween thriller.
 
ThierryHenry said:
Yeah, this was good. Very well made (directed by Joel Edgerton, especially impressive for a debut) and acted, which just the right level of tension going through the first hour. I thought the ending was slightly silly, but the way the plot moved before then was ever-interesting and suspenseful. Jason Bateman was particularly excellent, you completely believed every facet of his character. Would recommend this as an alternative Halloween thriller.
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Agreed, seems like the director never heard of a DNA-test.
 
Crimson Peak
Right off the bat, you can tell that this film is very well made from a production stand point, which you would expect from Del Toro. The sets, costumes, lighting and camera work are superb. However, this is a film that completely is style over substance. It doesn't really work as a mystery film as everything is predictable, doesnt work as a romance drama, because the story is quite flat and doesnt work as a horror because the scares arent great. There weer some good moments in the film but it's quite slow paced and boring and the climax is just daft. Side note: Mia Wasikowska is :drool: and Charlie Hunnam playing a doctor is :lol:. Worth a watch for the visual treat 5.5/10

Paranormal Activity: Ghost Dimension
It's like this 6th or 7th in the series and it's more of the same. However, I did like the fact that it didn't spend 1 hour showing feck all and then squeezing everything into the final 20 minutes, this one has the 'paranormal' elements come straight into it within 10 minutes. The budget has been amped and there were some scary jump moments, with one moment that nearly made me crap my pants. However, its another forgettable entry into the franchise 5/10

We Are Still Here
Decent indie horror film about a grieving couple who move into a strange house within a strange town. The build up in this film is great, a slow burn patient build up as you find in Ti West films. However, the final third of the film doesn't compliment this awesome build up and gets a little too silly for my liking to be honest. The acting was spot on though and a decent horror film among a genre that is crowded with shit 6/10

The Gallows
Another found footage film. A group of drama students try to pay tribute to a school play where the lead character was hanged and killed by accident. Suddenly, they are haunted by his ghost. If you like found footage film, there's moments to enjoy here but if you don't then this won't change your mind. The main character was an obnoxious idiot and I found him quite funny so that helped it but it's the same old shit. It's not terrible but it did nothing new either. If you wan't to watch a found footage film, watch As Above So Below instead. It's much better 5/10
 
Grizzly Man - Werner Herzog's documentary about the bear obsessed Timothy Treadwell who was eventually killed by the animal he eventually came to identify with more than his fellow humans. It's a great film as it's not only a poignant and empathetic study of a man who was clearly quite troubled but also a study of nature that includes some footage of real beauty shot by Treadwell during his time in the wilderness.
 
ThierryHenry said:
Yeah, this was good. Very well made (directed by Joel Edgerton, especially impressive for a debut) and acted, which just the right level of tension going through the first hour. I thought the ending was slightly silly, but the way the plot moved before then was ever-interesting and suspenseful. Jason Bateman was particularly excellent, you completely believed every facet of his character. Would recommend this as an alternative Halloween thriller.
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Agreed. Bateman plays a fantastic arsehole.
 
The Grey - Its stupid and full of plot holes. The ending was hilarious. But it does have some mean CGI wolves which makes it better than Pixels.

Pixels - Feck this film.
 
Bill.s.preston said:
Jaws 19:

After 19 attempts, you'd think they'd have managed to create a realistic looking shark by now! Like the original, the fake shark doesn't ruin the film but Still!
Max Spielberg does a pretty decent job of cranking up the tension and pulls off the odd jump scare quite successfully. Overall, it mirrors all the sequels in that it still doesn't match up to the original, however it's probably the best one that doesn't star Roy Scheider.
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His return was a big selling point, but Dreyfuss was too old to play the shark.
 
Mistaken for Strangers - A documentary which is supposedly about the band The National. It is, however, really about the relationship of two brothers - the famous lead singer and his younger brother who still lives at home with his parents (he also directed this film). As a younger brother myself I could relate to it in a lot ways and found it surprisingly touching.
 
Cartel Land - Matthew Heineman (2015)

A documentary that comes off very much like an action movie as the director and his crew follow along with "vigilante" groups on both side of the Mexican/American border. These "vigilante" groups have formed under the same premise in that the government is failing them. The story of these groups in Michoacán, Mexico, los "autodefensas" and their leaders is very intense and you get a very strong dose of how fecked up and dangerous this impossible situation is in Mexico, and hopefully gives a good idea to the US leaders of what this "drug war" is doing to this nation. Should be essential viewing to anyone involved in the drug war.

This is very close to home as what we´re seeing is the Colombianization of Mexico, as this is very similar to the bloody circumstances of Colombia in the 90s. On the other hand, on the US side, although it portrays a more sympathetic view of a certain border patrol leader, these guys come off as sort of a well meaning joke of macho types still kind of stuck in this childish army-playing mentality. They have their legitimate gripes, but when you compare them to the reality of the Mexicans, it does come off as a bit laughable.

One thing for certain, if the US were going through this "drug war" in a similar fashion as the Mexicans are, this insane war would've been over a long time ago. For the Mexicans, this is a tragedy on a scale that is beyond a Gringo´s comprehension, but this film does very well in touching on the futility and absolute impossibility of this undertaking.

Very, very well done. Great cinematography as well and many elements that give this documentary a film-ish feel to it. It really is hard to believe this situation, almost as if it were a work of fiction.

9 cocks up.
 
The Gift is an atmospheric 80's throwback thriller. Nice idea, good set up and characters, though it's also predictable with a fumbled ending that just opens up a lot of weak plot strands. I didn't think that Bateman's character reveal worked - given that he is presented as a slimy louse without a moment of redemption in the entire film. And the two main threats; sexual and canine are cheap and hacky. It descends into saw cliche late on. Worth it for the first hour though. The Gift/10
 
I watched Stalker in the cinema last night and it was the worst cinema experience I've ever had. Of the four of us that went to it, only one of us stayed awake for the entire thing - and she mostly hated it. Much prefer watching a film like in the comfort of my own home, I've decided.
 
Brwned said:
I watched Stalker in the cinema last night and it was the worst cinema experience I've ever had. Of the four of us that went to it, only one of us stayed awake for the entire thing - and she mostly hated it. Much prefer watching a film like in the comfort of my own home, I've decided.
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Don't say that, I'm seeing it tomorrow. :lol:
 
ThierryHenry said:
Don't say that, I'm seeing it tomorrow. :lol:
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It's fantastic, you'll love it. Why did you hate it so much @Brwned? Was it the film itself?

I watched The Gift last night, enjoyed it. Not a hugely memorable film, and not as scary as I thought it would be given what you'd said ThierryBigHead, but it was a good film.
 
Rooney in Paris said:
I watched The Gift last night, enjoyed it. Not a hugely memorable film, and not as scary as I thought it would be given what you'd said ThierryBigHead, but it was a good film.
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I'm just a wuss when it comes to watching anything scary on my own (had to turn the sound down to survive watching The Babadook!). The middle third of the film, where they framed every scene like someone was hiding round a corner completely got to me. The ending wasn't really scary.
 
Rooney in Paris said:
Babadook was terrifying. I remember watching it with my wife, my parents, and two of my brothers, and every single one of us was shitting it! :lol:
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Am I the only one that didn't find Babadook scary at all? I'm no macho man, I do get scared at horror films, whether it be jump scares (like Paranormal Activity: Ghost Dimension) or slow build tension (like The Innkeepers) but I didn't find Babadook to be scary in the slightest... having said that, I did enjoy it. Just wasn't scary...
 
Dirty Schwein said:
Am I the only one that didn't find Babadook scary at all? I'm no macho man, I do get scared at horror films, whether it be jump scares (like Paranormal Activity: Ghost Dimension) or slow build tension (like The Innkeepers) but I didn't find Babadook to be scary in the slightest... having said that, I did enjoy it. Just wasn't scary...
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I was the same , thought it was a good film , just not scary as you say.
 
Rooney in Paris said:
It's fantastic, you'll love it. Why did you hate it so much @Brwned? Was it the film itself?

I watched The Gift last night, enjoyed it. Not a hugely memorable film, and not as scary as I thought it would be given what you'd said ThierryBigHead, but it was a good film.
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Not at all, I went on a Tarkovsky binge about four years ago and found all his films hypnotic. It's just this time, in that environment, it was hypnotic for the wrong reasons. Probably not best to watch a film like that after a busy day of work in a relatively small, stuffy cinema. Engrossing if you buy into it, tedious and painful if you don't. It really is all or nothing.

Brwned said:
Originally planned just to watch Andrei Rublev, but after watching it I couldn't resist getting a hold of Zerkalo and Stalker and I think I loved them both even more. They all looked fantastic, with Stalker probably being my favourite in that sense. Each one of them at one point or another I was just in awe of, other times completely lost...but for the most part I was just completely engrossed. Would love to see them on bluray.

Andrei Rublev, after a great opening scene, I thought started to drift away around the hour mark and I wasn't really getting it, but then not long after that there was a 45 minute plus part (it's broken into 7 parts, this being the 5th called The Raid) was up there with the best pieces of cinema I've seen. Closing scene was great too. Stalker I pretty much loved from start to finish for its atmosphere and its visuals. Zerkalo was the most confusing at times, but the one that stays with you the most and has the most unique feel.

Still think Solaris is my favourite though. Seems ridiculous to have Andrei Rublev at the bottom of any list but there you go. Think I'll save Ivan's Childhood for a while.
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Plane films:

Slow West - Loved it. A very simple small western thats well directed, has a great soundtrack, and has Fassbender. If you need to watch an 80 minute film, you can't go wrong here.

Man Up - In the worlds of romantic comedies its pretty decent - thanks largely to Lake Bell and Simon Pegg, who do their best to elevate it.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl - Good coming of age tale that pisses all over something like "The Perks of being a Wallflower" - due to it being a) well written b) well drirected c) well acted and c) actually quite funny/charming. Some of the fake movies they create are great.
 
The Mothman Prophecies

An intriguing mystery. Having read up on the subject, I was left unable to decide what exactly was going on in West Virginia in the 50s and 60s. Apparently sightings occur even to this day.

7/10
 
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