What Movie Did You Just Watch?: The Just-Us League (Vol. 11)

[DVDBuff1]

Sleepless in Seattle (Nora Ephron)

While it was a cute Rom-Com, I felt the movie would've been a better story if it told how Meg Ryan & Tom Hanks characters' relationship develops, then just telling how they met. Other than that, it was a decent watch on a rainy evening.

[Pokeholic_Prince]

Spike Lee's "Oldboy." Terrible movie with poor dialogue, cringe worthy acting, and just lackluster directing. However, I do like the last 30mins or so, but the rest of the movie left me extremely bored, 2/5. Probably my least favorite movie of the year.

[DVDBuff1]

"Millennium Actress" (Satoshi Kon) - This anime film is pretty surreal like all of Satoshi Kon's other works ("Tokyo Godfathers" being the exception because that film's more grounded in reality). The best way to describe this film is like a dream - It's vivid, emotional, and weird. An interesting piece of art.

"Frankenstein" (Kenneth Branagh) - I'm a fan of the monster, so I naturally loved every scene with Robert De Niro, and I liked John Cleese's appearance, but I didn't care for anything else about this movie. If you're curious to watch this flick, skip the 1st hour, the second half is when the good stuff happens.

[TheSequelOfDisney]

I kept a list of every film I watched this semester:

1. Persona (1966) - August 31
2. Pygmalion (1938) - August 31
3. L’Avventura (1960) - September 1
4. Black Swan (2010) - September 1
5. Mean Girls (2004) - September 2
6. Lee Daniels’ The Butler (2013) - September 6
7. From Up on Poppy Hill (2011) - September 7
8. Bridesmaids (2011) - September 7
9. King Kong (1933) - September 19
10. Easy A (2010) - September 20
11. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) - September 21
12. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) - September 22
13. The Parent Trap (1998) - September 22
14. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) - September 24
15. Victory Through Air Power (1943) - October 3
16. Psycho (1960) - October 13
17. The Place Beyond the Pines (2013) - October 20
18. There Will Be Blood (2007) - October 21
19. Animal Farm (1954) - October 21
20. The Devil’s Backbone (2001) - October 26
21. Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) - October 26
22. The State (2013) - October 26
23. Yellow Submarine (1968) - October 29
24. Side Effects (2013) - November 1
25. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) - November 2
26. Fritz the Cat (1972) - November 5
27. Akira (1988) - November 14
28. Frances Ha (2013) - November 14
29. The Hunger Games (2012) - November 16
30. Frances Ha (2013) - November 16
31. Now You See Me (2013) - November 23
32. 12 Years a Slave (2013) - November 24
33. Jules and Jim (1962) - November 28
34. Sweet Smell of Success (1957) - November 29
35. The Little Mermaid (1989) - November 29
36. Purple Noon (1960) - December 1
37. Frozen (2013) - December 15
38. Little Miss Sunshine (2006) - December 19
39. Pulp Fiction (1994) - December 20
40. Les Misérables (2012) - December 20

[DVDBuff1]

Equilibrium (Kurt Wimmer)

While Christian Bale doing "Gun-Fu" is (in a way) impressive, I disliked this film for its major inconsistency: For a society full of people who are unemotional, they surely show a lot of surprise, fear, pride, and anger in their expressions. Overall, I would've preferred rewatching "V for Vendetta" (for a dystopian future drama) or either "The Boondock Saints" flicks or “Hot Fuzz” (for Gun choreography) than this load of tripe.

[Wonderlicious]

Some films I recently watched:

Frozen
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Monsters University

Plus some more films I caught substantial bits of on TV over Christmas:

Fantasia
Enchanted
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
My Neighbour Totoro
Porco Rosso

[dvdjunkie]

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947) Turner Classic Movies

After bending to several twists of my arm, I went to see the 'remake' and was saddened as to how terrible it truly was. Ben Stiller's direction was very good, but he wandered so far from James thurber's short story that it was almost incomprehensible. The language in the film was not needed, and sexual innuendo was totally out of place, and I was so glad that I had recorded the original '47 film so I could watch it again and regain my composure after witnessing this debacle called a movie.

The original movie is such a sweet, hilarious, and touching comedy, Danny Kaye as Walter Mitty is sublime. Virginia Mayo is delicious-looking and Boris Karloff is great as the evil one. Mitt's dreams span the years, and he always seems to get in trouble when he is shaken to reality. The incidents, some hilarious and some very dramatic, drive this film to it wonderful conclusion.

Again, I would really think that those of you on this forum that like 'family-friendly' films would flock to this version rather than the new 'version'.

[Avaitor]

Wasn't in a great mood last night, so I made a Disney double feature out of Fantasia and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. There isn't much context towards watching either of these together, but like I need an excure to watch either movie.

[Walter]

First, I saw "Mary Poppins" a few days ago, in preparation for the next film I watched.

Then saw "Saving Mr. Banks" in theaters.

[disneyboy20022]

I watched Smurfs 2 and honestly it wasn't half bad. It was a cute movie with a nice moral to it. I quite enjoyed it surprisingly

[thedisneyspirit]

Friday the 13th part III. Not bad. I think the second one is better, but this one's not that forgettable either. At least this one introduced Jason's mask.

[TheSequelOfDisney]

I watched the following films over break:

1. Moonrise Kingdom (2012) - December 21
2. Frances Ha (2013) - December 22
3. Across the Universe (2007) - December 23
4. Sunset Boulevard (1950) - December 23
5. Wings of Desire (1987) - December 25
6. The Great Gatsby (2013) - December 26
7. Masculin Féminin (1966) - December 26
8. Beauty and the Beast (1946) - December 27
9. Spirited Away (2001) - December 27
10. My Neighbor Totoro (1988) - December 28
11. The Red Shoes (1948) - December 28
12. Cloud Atlas (2012) - December 31
13. The Kid (1921) - January 1
14. Tokyo Story (1953) - January 2
15. Mary Poppins (1964) - January 2
16. Stromboli (1950) - January 3
17. Philomena (2013) - January 4
18. Europe ’51 (1952) - January 4
19. My Week with Marilyn (2011) - January 6
20. Y Tu Mamá También (2001) - January 10
21. Ponyo (2008) - January 10
22. Howl’s Moving Castle (2004) - January 11
23. Solaris (1972) - January 11
24. The Suitor (1963) - January 12
25. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011) - January 12

[ajmrowland]

Kicking off my now-annual six-week Oscar Marathon(where I view each and every nominee that I can regardless of category), Saving Mr. Banks(2013-Original Score)
Directed by John Lee Hancock

Being a Disney fan, I had some prior knowledge of the subject matter. Many people said it's "a movie about making a movie" but it's clearly a biopic on PL Travers, the author of Mary Poppins. And Emma Thompson nailed it! A woman who wrote "Children's fantasies" who believed in preparing them for harsh reality and is simultaneously repressing her own inner child while denying multitudes of changes in writing the film version, the only stage of filmmaking we actually see. The rest of the cast is spot-on as well. Tom Hanks did a pretty good Walt, though some of his surviving employees may say otherwise. The notorious cigarette addiction is handled off-screen and his shaky temper is nowhere to be found. Seeing modern comedy actors B.J. Novak and Jason Schwartzman as the Sherman Brothers("The Boys" as it were. Feel free to Netflix their documentary film of the same name)were great as well. Collin Farell was great as Travers' father in the flashbacks. And Thomas Newman's musical score was really good and made nice use of the wonderful Mary Poppins themes.

Writing-wise, the movie was not so great. The flashbacks are neat and while no direct connection is provided in the end, they relevantly and sometimes subtly, gave us the inspirations for the books and characters. Other times, it was obvious enough to feel far-fetched, such as the mannerisms and costume design of the aunt that was the muse for Mary. As for the drama, I completely intellectually understood every beat, and empathized with Travers on many occasions, but the film failed to hold the kind of emotional power over me that it tries very hard to. There were a few highlights, most of which are spoiler moments, but it's merely good. Not great.

The retro opening Logo was a nice touch, and the end credits hold a real special treat!

[ajmrowland]

Frozen(2013-Animated Feature, Original Song "Let it Go")

Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee

Second time I saw this. First off, it seems that many people at Disney feel the creativity is being stifled, or raided, or pillaged. And that's never a good thing. That said, this movie is very good. The vocal cast all did wonderfully, especially Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel as Anna and Elsa respectively. Anna is sort of like a slightly more mature Rapunzel(compare the character designs, but personality too), but is more trusting. Elsa is the far more interesting of the two protagonists. She is conflicted, scared of her own differences, but also has great potential for good with her powers. and feels like a danger to people. I feel like I can relate. Olaf is a lovable Oaf. Talking sidekicks have been hit and miss but they not only hit it with this one, but his story relevance serves as more than comic relief or a plot device. Kristoff is likable, but not so memorable. And Hans is serviceable in his role. I don't think it really needed the old weasel-like man in glasses, and the trolls and their song are largely a distraction too late in the film and could have been cut down a lot. The effects and animation, and art direction were wonderful and honorable mention goes to the orchestral score and it's Russian mountain feels. The songs were mostly great, including Olaf's introductory bit, and especially "Let it Go" which so far would get my vote for the Oscar!

Tomorrow, I'll be digging into either Netflix or my DVD collection to see which Nominees I can come up with! Maybe Iron Man 3 or The Act of Killing.

Also, Captain Phillips, which was good,

[MovieMan995]

Hunger Games: Catching Fire is a fantastic followup and continuation of a series that I am becoming more and more enthralled with as each scene passes. There's a reason why these movies are so insanely popular. They are griping, first and foremost, creating a world that is intricate and fascinating. I can't help but associate with and feel for each character, even the fringe ones. And that makes the action sequences (relentless here, even more so than the first, and more well-done) keep you that much more on the edge of your seat. The ending does leave you hanging, as the final 10 minutes really don't wrap anything up, but knowing there is a third chapter to this story, it serves to keep you wanting more and more. And I certainly can't wait to see how it concludes.

[Walter]

^^^
Yeah, I just recently watched "Hunger Games: Catching Fire" this past weekend, and enjoyed it. Really impressive how closely it followed the book. I waited so long to see it, because I wanted to read the book first.

Now, I am going through a Disney animated movie marathon, from "Snow White" to "Frozen" (assuming it will still be in theaters or come out on DVD when I reach that point). This is the first time that I am going in chronological order. I started this Sunday, and at this point, I just finished watching "Alice In Wonderland". Even watching a lot at a time, it has been very enjoyable so far, and a reminder why I like Disney. My goal is to finish before the start of the Winter Olympics.

I may do this marathon again later in the year, leading up to "Big Hero 6".

[dvdjunkie]

To get my proper "fix" in honor of The Day The Music Died, February 3, 1959, I watched The Buddy Holly Story starring Gary Busey, Charles Martin Smith and Don Stroud. Very good film biography of Holly and the Crickets, although some of the dates and places were wrong.

Next I watched La Bamba, the bio-movie of Richie Valens starring Lou Diamond Phillips. This was a very well made film, and all the actors fit their roles perfectly. Wish that this day in music history wasn't glossed over so much.

Three stars lost their lives just outside Clear Lake, Iowa on that fateful day - Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper (Chantilly Lace), and Richie Valens. All left a definite footprint in our music and it must have been really good for it to last over these past 55 years.

[Linden]

I finally got around to watching Slumdog Millionaire a couple nights ago and was surprised by how much I liked it. I don't know why I waited so long to see it. Danny Boyle's weird way of filming still bugged me, but not as much as it did in Millions.

Also last month: Beasts of the Southern Wild (I didn't enjoy it), PotC: Curse of the Black Pearl(I finally noticed that even though it's impossibly convoluted, it actually makes sense), Frozen for the second time, and Hanasaku Iroha: Home Sweet Home (not as good as the series, but still one of the better OVAs I've seen).

[DVDBuff1]

The Croods (Chris Sanders)

After scoffing at the trailers for a long while, I finally decided to sit down and give it a watch. At first I was watching it with the preconceived notion the film was dumb, but the more I watched it and stayed open to its story, it grew on me. My situation best describes the plot of this gem from director Chris Sanders (Lilo & Stitch; How To Train Your Dragon) who keeps surprising me with his clever family films. Give it a watch with an open mind, and see how it turns out for you.

[thedisneyspirit]

Just watched the Shrek saga.

While they're not as...bad as I thought they were, but they aren't masterpiece films in any way. The first film is very boring with most of its jokes in that regard.