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  1. #1301
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    Quote Originally Posted by dookeyXXX View Post
    THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN

    This is easily the quietest film writer/director Martin McDonagh has crafted to date. But it is also a smoldering one, one which understatedly revels in multiple layers of complexity.
    It’s at times a devilishly dark and fractured fairy tale, an anti-war film masquerading as a swervedriving comedic drama, and a scathing indictment of how routine can kill one’s mental—particularly philosophical—growth. It’s also a movie about loneliness, isolation, and the dissolution of friendship. Or perhaps it’s just a quirky yarn about two blokes living on an island off the coast of Ireland who enjoy a pint or four every afternoon around 2. The joy of this film is that you can make of it what you want. At times absurdist and other times achingly poignant, it moves along at a gentle pace, slowly building tension and a sense of gruesome entropy, but never wasting well-timed comedic inserts either. Set against the backdrop of the Irish Civil War circa 1923 there’s a cleverly subdued riff about the futility and folly of conflict, war, and revenge that weaves its thematic thread through an otherwise story about nice men living simple lives. But as with any good melodrama worth its weight in salt, there’s a dark underbelly lurking just beneath the surface of the idyllic landscape and regular visits to the pub for a pint. Oh, and there’s a witch, a village idiot, and a policeman who enjoys a good wank in his living room most evenings.
    Those familiar with McDonagh’s previous works, both in cinema and the stage (The Pillowman, In Bruges, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri ) will relish in his rich dialogue and snaky plot structure. And the thespian turns from both Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson are beyond stellar. Supporting work from Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan (damn, this dude is chameleonic as hell) balance things out. Additionally, the score from Carter Burwell (best known for his longtime collaborations with the brothers Coen) sets a wonderful tone that wavers between the whimsical and calamitous and lends the whole affair an air of the Bros. Grimm.
    Been really looking forward to this!!!

  2. #1302
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    Quote Originally Posted by PB View Post
    Been really looking forward to this!!!
    It's entertaining and thought provoking to boot!
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  3. #1303
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    Quote Originally Posted by dookeyXXX View Post
    BARBARIAN
    As with both X and Bodies Bodies Bodies, this is a horror movie that is fast, furious, and fun, though not terribly original.
    Astute horror fans will quickly discover that writer/director Zach Cregger has judiciously borrowed ideas from a number of other films, most notably People Under The Stairs, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre by way of House of 1000 Corpses, and Don’t Breathe, just to name a few of the obvious influences.
    While Barbarian certainly looks and feels like a compendium of other films, it’s smart enough to keep the story moving at a breakneck pace. On top of that it saturates the visuals with throbbing and disconcerting sonic ambiance and packs in just enough jump scares and WTF moments to keep you enthralled for its hour-and-43-minute duration.
    Sure, the #MeToo and Blue Lives Matter commentary is a bit heavy handed and the reliance on so many familiar tropes without really tweaking them is a bit frustrating, but as a calling card for Cregger’s continued career as a genre director it’s not too shabby (it’s worth noting that prior to this film the bulk of Cregger’s work has been in comedy).

    Really enjoyed it

    Smile too

    Keep the recs coming please

  4. #1304
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    DECISION TO LEAVE
    The latest film from Park Chan-wook (Oldboy) is a slick neon noir with a heavy Hitchcockian slant. Teeming with gullible protagonists, sly femme fatales, slick camera work, and interesting flashbacks, it can at times be confusing ( perhaps due to some lost-in-translation glitches?), but it is always entertaining and engaging.

    Last edited by dookeyXXX; 08-19-2023 at 01:46 AM.
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  5. #1305
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    GUILLERMO DEL TORO’S PINOCCHIO
    Given del Toro’s previous filmography I was expecting a much darker take on the classic tale. Instead, we are given what feels like an update to the seminal 1940’s Disney version*, albeit with stop motion animation and a time shift to Mussolini era Italy (I am still trying to figure out del Toro’s fascination with fascism, given that this is the third film in which he uses it as an underlying theme). The film is definitely geared towards family viewing with musical numbers and slapstick humor integrated between the blunt social/political commentary, however the three never seem to mix cohesively making for an uneven endeavor. Additionally, while the character design of Pinocchio is great, a number of other characters seem terribly familiar in look and style, lending the film a disarming sense of deja vu.

    My advice is to forgo rushing to the cinema to see it and just wait for its Netflix debut on December 9.



    *In recent interviews del Toro has mentioned that the Disney version is one of his favorite films and left a lasting impression on him as a child
    Last edited by dookeyXXX; 12-15-2022 at 08:18 AM.
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  6. #1306
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    Saw the trailer for this last week and thought it looked really cool.
    Sadly, super limited release…(although since it’s a Janus Films production it may very well end up on the Critereon Channel)

    https://eo.official.film/


    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  7. #1307
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    BARDO, FALSE CHRONICLE OF A HANDFUL OF TRUTHS
    A week ago an acquaintance explained the concept of bardo to me after I showed him the trailer to the film. I was hitherto unfamiliar with the term before this. I also stopped listening to his lengthy and winded exposition, one because I got bored, but two because I feared it might ruin my movie going experience.
    Personally, I feel the less you know about the Buddhist theory going into Alejandro González Iñárritu‘s latest effort, the more enjoyable and mindfuckingly good it will be to experience. That said, when the end of the film came I remembered what that acquaintance had been blabbering about and it made the previous 159 minutes make a bit more sense.
    Whether you go into it with ignorance or armed with basic Buddhist bravado, BARDO is a visual feast best viewed on the largest screen possible. It is a whirlwind story about life, death, identity, art, commerce, social media, memory, the past, the present, commerce, history, elitism, genocide, racism, as well as being an arty rumination on mid-life crises. It’s also a wonderfully giant puzzle with myriad pieces floating around and around, that when they finally find their place make for a richly layered story worth repeated viewing.

    Plus this is probably one of the coolest trailers ever:

    Last edited by dookeyXXX; 12-16-2022 at 07:46 PM.
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  8. #1308
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    THE MENU
    Prepare yourself for an ambrosial outing which delivers piquantly skewered satire aimed squarely at those who have elevated eating to an unaffordable luxury. Borrowing elements of Agatha Christie and Richard Connell, plus well-aimed digs at entitled pseudo connoisseurs, the film manages to offer up some nice and twisted moments. Though devoid of any sweet surprises, the plot fits together like a well-oiled jigsaw puzzle that’ll make you smile when it all comes together. The cast is stellar, making good with largely stock characterizations ( douchey tech bros, the washed-up actor, the self-righteous critic and her pandering editor, etc.), but there are some rich turns from Nicholas Hoult, Ralph Fiennes, and Anya Taylor-Joy tucked in between the amuse bouche and dessert.

    This would make a great pairing with Flux Gourmet, Triangle of Sadness, or Don’t Worry Darling.

    Last edited by dookeyXXX; 01-03-2023 at 06:28 PM.
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  9. #1309
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    BONES AND ALL
    Caught a 9:10 am screening in an empty theater this morning.
    This film joins the ranks of such fare as RAW and GINGER SNAPS, in that it is a totally f$&ked-up coming of age story. It’s pretty much an after school special gone off the rails, with a road trip and search for birth parents sub-plot.
    Lottsa disturbing supporting characters and while the finale isn’t much of a surprise, those involved did a decent enough job of quasi-misdirection up until the final moments of the third act.
    The grue is thick and the violence is unnerving, mostly because it comes out of nowhere or after long bouts of rose colored lens affected romance and drama.
    Up to this point I haven’t really understood all the hype about that Chalemet kid, but he is pretty damn bueno in this film. And Michael Stuhlbarg and Mark Rylance are insanely creepy, stealing their scenes like professional criminals.




    Last edited by dookeyXXX; 12-08-2022 at 02:18 PM.
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  10. #1310
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    Quote Originally Posted by dookeyXXX View Post
    DON’T WORRY DARLING
    Wrapped in bright spring/summer colors and brimming with MCM design flourishes, DWD, on the surface, comes off like a cross between The Prisoner and The Stepford Wives.
    Creating a nice sense of unease from the outset, the story unravels at a steady pace using nightmare flashes, slyly menacing dialogue, and creepy music to fuel the mysterious going’s on.
    Granted, when the reveal-slash-twist is delivered in Act III, it’s a mild letdown, but only momentarily, as director Olivia Wilde amps up the finale with a white-knuckle chase and an enigmatically dark conclusion.
    Sure, there are plot holes aplenty which manifest themselves during post-screening reflection, but the film is fun and immensely engaging while the frames are whizzing by your optical receptors in the darkened theater.
    Watched this last night. Initially I was put off by the what I considered a way-too-heavy layering of retro songs, but I stuck it out, and ultimately found it to be pretty interesting and satisfying. Definitely an ambitious undertaking - I think Wilde & Co pulled off a pretty cool little mind excursion.

    Here are a couple articles on the "Volcano House" featured in the film...

    https://www.desertsun.com/story/dese...piece/91225446

    https://www.sceen-it.com/sceen/6199/...-Volcano-House

    Also, back in the late 80's I remember seeing and liking very much a quirky indie film named Bagdad Cafe. I never realized it was/is an actual place down in SoCal off Hwy 40 not far from Barstow. (It's mentioned in that first article linked above.) Passed by there many times over the years driving cross country.

    The haunting theme song made a lasting impression on me - still gives me chills hearing it again after all these years.


  11. #1311
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    Bagdad Cafe is truly a gem. Great holiday film, or just about any other time too! So many good characters, but Jack Palance really stands out.

  12. #1312
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    Quote Originally Posted by dookeyXXX View Post
    TRIANGLE OF SADNESDS

    I was moderately hesitant about this film seeing as how I had not enjoyed the writer/director's 2014 effort Force Majeure, mostly because the characters were despicable and shallow, and highly unrelatable (at least to me). I know that was the point of the film, but it made it really hard to watch.
    This film, however, piqued my interest the moment it popped up on my radar. And when it won the Palm d'Or at this year's Cannes Film Festival, I paid it even more attention. While I don't usually give much credence to festival awards, at least the French have a respectable track record for choosing often times weird, polarizing, and just plain challenging films for the premiere awards at Cannes (think last year's Titane, for example).
    But I digress.
    In a nutshell, ToS is a brilliantly scathing black comedy, expertly and wryly taking the piss out of gender equality (or inequality as is often the case here), entitled wealth, class structure, social standing, the vapidy of advertising and influencing, and the general cluelessness people have about those around them.
    The film is told in three parts that feel like absurdist takes on Zoolander, The Poseidon Adventure, and Lord of the Flies. There's a bit of Monty Python tossed in for good measure, too. But I'm being kind of facetious with those comparisons, mind you. The film is it's own biting, gnawing, satirical entity, taking mundane situations (fighting over who pays the dinner bill) to topical world matters (open sea piracy, distribution of wealth, social and economic hierarchy, and much, much more) and skewering them with smirking aplomb.
    I laughed out loud on more than one occasion, had to choke down some serious gagging reflexes a few times, and found myself perplexed and overjoyed at the insanely ambiguous ending.


    yeah, glad that i didn’t let the force majeur connection scare me off as well. great film!
    j'ai des grands instants de lucididididididididi

  13. #1313
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    GLASS ONION***
    Agatha Christie is either smiling broadly or rolling over in her grave right about now. The latest Knives Out entry is no less than the fourth whodunnit film to be released in theaters since August, all of them owing no small debt to the grand dame of murder mysteries.
    Anywho, I really enjoyed the original Knives Out. This venture took a little more time for me to warm up to it. I chock up my initial lukewarm reaction to the ADHD-styled exposition, wind whipped pacing, and paper thin characters. But by the advent of the third act I realized that all of those perceived shortcomings were merely writer/director Rian Johnson’s sneakily excellent means of misdirection and distraction. I fell for all the sleights and feints and red herrings and never guessed who the villain was, even though they were hiding in plain sight the entire time. The third act and conclusion are delightfully delicious as all the puzzle pieces fit together just so and even the predictable reveals still manage to come off as clever and elicit smiles and a few laughs.
    Definitely not as tightly woven as the first film, but still a richly engaging endeavor all around. That said, I may have liked See How They Run just a smidge better.


    ***Leaving theaters Tuesday 11/29
    Coming to NF 12/23


    Last edited by dookeyXXX; 12-23-2022 at 07:56 AM.
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  14. #1314
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    Was Daniel drinking Belvedere and dancing?
    Last edited by PB; 11-28-2022 at 01:17 PM.

  15. #1315
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    The Unofficial Ongoing Current Movies in Theaters thread

    I enjoyed it more the first. Really well done and impressive follow up. Glad I dragged my ass to an actual theatre to see it as well. Felt let going to the movies back when movies weren’t all Franchised Universe. Impressed w all the cameos as well. Looking fed to watching it again on Netflix to see if I notice and continuity or logic errors but on first viewing it was pretty tight. Highly recommend. Although his accent still bugs me

  16. #1316
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    I am still trying to wrap my head around NF’s business model.

    Glass Onion cost 40M.

    NF paid in excess of 400M for it and one more sequel.

    They released it in approx 600 theaters for only 7 days (for a comparison, Wakanda Forever was released in over 4000 theaters when it opened; Amsterdam was released in over 3000; TAR was released in over 1000 theaters).

    Insiders guesstimate that Glass Onion took in over 15M between W and Sunday last week.
    Wakanda Forever took in 46M for the same time period on 7X the screens (rough math hypothetically means that if Glass Onion had opened on 4000 screens during the same period it "might" have net 90M...)

    Imagine if they had released it on 4000 theaters...and the question is: why didn't they? The secondary question is: why didn't they give it a longer theatrical release window? I could understand if they had marketed it as an "event," but they didn't.

    I find it hard to believe that NF is gonna recoup the 400M they spent purely on new subscriptions.
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  17. #1317
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    Yeah. I would have paid to see it if I was able to, but couldn’t until next weekend, so I guess we are seeing the murder Santa movie instead

  18. #1318
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    Quote Originally Posted by Supermoon View Post
    Yeah. I would have paid to see it if I was able to, but couldn’t until next weekend, so I guess we are seeing the murder Santa movie instead
    That badass Santa flick actually looks kinda fun (it's directed by Tommy Wirkola, who made Dead Snow and The Trip, the latter of which is on NF and a few folks around here dug it; the film is also produced by David Leitch, best known for directing Atomic Blonde, John Wicks 1&2, Hobbs & Shaw, Deadpool 2, and Bullet Train, so, if nothing else, at least the action sequences should be bueno).
    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  19. #1319
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    Quote Originally Posted by dookeyXXX View Post
    That badass Santa flick actually looks kinda fun (it's directed by Tommy Wirkola, who made Dead Snow and The Trip, the latter of which is on NF and a few folks around here dug it; the film is also produced by David Leitch, best known for directing Atomic Blonde, John Wicks 1&2, Hobbs & Shaw, Deadpool 2, and Bullet Train, so, if nothing else, at least the action sequences should be bueno).
    Yeah, first preview I saw for it looked weird, but the later ones make it seem pretty fun.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a53e4HHnx_s

  20. #1320
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    Okay, so I am still leery of going to the movies in a packed theater. Since the advent of Covid I have rigorously schedule my movie going outings around when the least number of people go to the theater. To date I have been lucky to pretty much end up in theaters by myself, which is kinda cool to have a private screening.
    But I also kinda miss the audience involvement, especially in comedies and ridiculous action films.
    I think I want to see this film with the largest, rowdiest audience possible…

    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  21. #1321
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    Quote Originally Posted by dookeyXXX View Post
    Okay, so I am still leery of going to the movies in a packed theater. Since the advent of Covid I have rigorously schedule my movie going outings around when the least number of people go to the theater. To date I have been lucky to pretty much end up in theaters by myself, which is kinda cool to have a private screening.
    But I also kinda miss the audience involvement, especially in comedies and ridiculous action films.
    I think I want to see this film with the largest, rowdiest audience possible…

    It has the hardest movie poster I’ve ever seen.

    Click image for larger version. 

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  22. #1322
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    Directed by Elizabeth Banks, fwiw…
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  23. #1323
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    But where’s Mutt Williams?

    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

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  24. #1324
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    "Man, we killin' elephants in the back yard..."

    https://www.blizzard-tecnica.com/us/en

  25. #1325
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    Quote Originally Posted by dookeyXXX View Post
    Dang, I'd love to go to opening night, but my calendar for late March, 2024 is looking kinda tight.

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