Last Film You Watched

[Kso]

A pool party? Bex is ready

[Ian]

I never get invited to THOSE sorts of parties.

[fish]

Bex and Lex were asking after you too.
I told them I'd invited you but that you just didn't show.

[Ian]

Saw Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince again last night. Um... not a fan of this one, I have to say. I didn't remember it much at all from the cinema, and I can see why! After the excellent DH films, and rewatching the excellent Phoenix a few months back, this one is a bit of a yawner, I thought. I found myself quite bored a lot of the time. It doesn't help that some of the best characters hardly seem to be in it at times. Hermione seems to disappear from the film for long stretches at a time (and doesn't have much to do when she is there, aside from the truly horrible, unbelievable and laughably bad Ron subplot ) and Luna fares even worse. Having made such a big impact in Phoenix, it's pretty disheartening to see her get barely ten lines in the whole thing (especially when it seems to go on FOREVER at two and a half hours). I would gladly have sacrificed some of the rather ponderous Horcrux stuff for the sake of giving Luna somehing to do! On the plus side, Daniel Radcliffe is VERY good in this, and the chemistry between him and Emma (the few times we get to see it in this one) is as appealing as ever (love the bit in the library where he rather likes the idea of girls fancying him because he's "the Chosen One", so she hits him over the head with her book! ) and the scene at the end, where she tells him he's brave but stupid if he thinks he's going off on his own, is very sweet (it's also perhaps telling that she basically volunteers Ron as well, mind. No wonder he's so ticked off in DH1!).

On the whole, though, I found this one rather snoozeworthy. Not one I'll be returning to very often, if at all.

[fish]

Do I detect a subtle correlation between the amount of "Emma" time and your rating for the film?

[Ian]

I deny everything.

[Ian]

Saw Kick-Ass again last night. Just as good second time, outrageous and uproarious entertainment. The final showdown manages to be both incredibly exciting and utterly hilarious all at once.

[fish]

Recorded it from UKTV a couple of days ago, watched it last night.



Storyline from IMDb
English gentleman author Rudyard Kipling, famous for the Jungle Book, uses his considerable influence, being on a War Office propaganda think tank, to get his nearly 18 year-old son John 'Jack', admitted for military service during World war I after he is repeatedly refused on account of his bad eyesight. He is enrolled in the Irish Guards: their patriotic dream but mother and sister's nightmare. After a short officer training course Jack gets command of a platoon and embarks in France. Soon his unit suffers terrible losses and Jack is reported missing. Now mother Caroline 'Carry' Kipling proves unstoppable pushing Rudyard's influence and half of England to help find out the truth. When it finally comes, there is far less glory than gore and guilt.

Brilliant performances by the whole cast. Excellent film on the futility/stupidity of war.

[Ian]

Saw Submarine last night. Entertaining, with some funny and touching moments, but nothing special. Nice to see Yasmin Paige (Ballet Shoes, 1st season of Sarah Jane Adventures) again, though.

[Kso]

Spartacus: Blood and Sand / 2010


The most impressing movie of last years for me. It is a pity what main actor Andy Witfield has soon died after filming
Here's R.I.P. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAPzqCkW ... plpp_video

[Ian]

Saw Black Christmas again last night. Still one of my all time favourite movies, BC is wonderfully creepy and unsettling, with a wonderful cast including Olivia Hussey, Margot Kidder (hilarious as a foul-mouthed sorority sister) and the great John Saxon. I'd forgotten how FUNNY it is, though, as well, I was roaring with laughter at some points. The humour, though, which serves to humanise the characters, just makes the insanity which is descending on them all the more frightening. The cinematography is gorgeous too, with the snowy winter ladnscape, the Christmassy warmth of the sorority house (in such stark contrast to the horror that will unfold there) and that cool early 70s ambience.

Just two years shy of its 40th anniversary, Black Christmas has definitely stood the test of time as a truly scary shocker.

[snaps]

Wet and windy day, got soaked, pissed off. Went to dry off and killed time by going to see 'The Woman In Black' at Loughborough Fleapit. At least this time, the seat was dry when I occupied it, and the central heating hadn't broken down.

I'd even forgotten Daniel Radcliffe was the lead. In fact it was really just a vehicle for him. Pretty much standard fare Edwardian gothic spooky story. Lots of contrived oooooh! aaaaaargh! ''no! don't open the door'' moments, but not overboiled. Very good cinematography, balancing good taste carefully with gothic effect. Certainly not OTT, but chillingly effective. Ciaran Hinds (always looks spooky even when playing Mr Nice Guy ) was good support.

It was a Le Radcliffe showcase really, and consequently the audience was 99.9% 12-15 age group, but they were very well-behaved and he kept them enthralled. I didn't have to patrol the aisle thrashing miscreants and confiscating jumbo-sized bags of popcorn like I usually have to. I was even charged a children's ticket price by the perblind cashier, which was rather flattering. The scarey moments didn't have me wetting my knicks, although the sound of the air vent fans was annoyingly obtrusive. Still, better that, than being suffused in a cloud of ammonia.

Truly a fun watch. How nice to be that age again, when you can be scared shitless but try not to let your freinds see that you are. I resisted the temptation to bellow out loud ''MWUUUUHHUUHHUH!!!!!" at inappropriate moments

On average, the audience were slightly scarier than the film. The girls featured above weren't actually in the film, but were in the audience.

[fish]

... The girls featured above weren't actually in the film, but were in the audience.

Those three are flat out evil looking.
I can still feel their eyes boring into me even though I've now shut down my PC and am in fact outside in the garden.

[Ian]

TWIB looks moderately interesting.


Therefore my local won't get it.

[Ian]

Saw Donnie Darko again last night. Excellent. A terrific mix of comedy, drama, love story, 80s nostalgia and weirdo science fiction mystery. A genuine classic. And Jena Malone is just adorable in this.