Movies

[Topher]

I mean, I was done with them a lot sooner than everyone else was. Just not my thing, especially the Marvel factory formula version. I like plenty of dumb movies. But the constant quippiness is like a screwdriver in my eye. You know, the whole "Well, that just happened" or "He's right behind me, isn't he?" in the middle of a life-or-death scenario. It reads like some 50-year-old screenwriter's idea of Gen Z humor. I also hate how every movie ends with some CGI skybeam fight. There's zero weight or tension to anything.

The crazy thing is how much talent they've wasted over the years on top of the generic writing.

They had Christian Bale committed to playing Gorr, a morally gray villain that kills the gods as vengeance for his daughter's murder. Could have been an all time villain performance in a genuinely interesting story. Instead, they only gave him about 20 minutes of screen time in a 160 minute film so they could ham-fist in a storyline for Natalie Portman.

Gunn's DC universe should be much more interesting because of how script-centric he is.

 

[JohaadDBC]

As someone who didn’t grow up reading comics, I found myself loving the Tobey Maguire Spiderman movies as a kid. I remember going to see 2 and 3 at their midnight releases. But man I burned out quickly on them.

I think the last Marvel movie I saw in theaters was Iron Man 2, and I’ve seen very few of the glut of movies in the current catalog. Rome summed it up best, but the stories are so formulaic with writing seemingly meant for teenagers, who both need a joke every minute and the joke explained after.

Outside of Nolan’s Batman trilogy, I’ve got no interest in ever rewatching/watching any of the comic book movies out there. Kill the genre and give me more Florida Projects and Banshees of Inisherin.

 

[Bullettoothtony]

Outside of Nolan’s Batman trilogy, I’ve got no interest in ever rewatching/watching any of the comic book movies out there. Kill the genre and give me more Florida Projects and Banshees of Inisherin.

This is pretty much where I am, although I have to say I thought 'The Dark Knight' and 'Joker' were truly outstanding films, no hyperbole whatsoever on my part.

 

[ZackM]

I just rewatched the Nolan Batman trilogy last week. I don't know how The Dark Knight became the darling of that trilogy. Batman Begin is clearly much better. I might even go so far as to say The Dark Knight isn't actually good. Aaron Eckhart is terrible, and the Two-Face story beats are corny. Heath Ledger's performance is not impressive. Playing that kind of over-the-top deranged is so much easier than playing nuanced and subtle. His death obviously played a huge role in how people perceived the performance. But the biggest issue with the movie is how unbelievable The Joker's plans are. He must have visions of the future or something.

 

[JohaadDBC]

I just rewatched the Nolan Batman trilogy last week. I don't know how The Dark Knight became the darling of that trilogy. Batman Begin is clearly much better. I might even go so far as to say The Dark Knight isn't actually good. Aaron Eckhart is terrible, and the Two-Face story beats are corny. Heath Ledger's performance is not impressive. Playing that kind of over-the-top deranged is so much easier than playing nuanced and subtle. His death obviously played a huge role in how people perceived the performance. But the biggest issue with the movie is how unbelievable The Joker's plans are. He must have visions of the future or something.

I think I can accept Batman Begins being a better movie than Dark Knight, but I think saying Ledger’s performance isn’t impressive is a bit too extreme. It’s absolutely overinflated because of his death, but I think he did a good job with the character, given the storyline. The Joker not being a rational actor is a problem, but it’s not Ledger’s problem.

Aaron Eckhart is terrible. No arguments there.

I think the reason TDK is looked at as such an impressive film is largely because of the cinematography and score. BB was beautiful, but it had more grit and was a darker overall film. TDK felt massive, dark in theme, but without the almost sepia tones that BB had. I think filming for IMAX helped make it feel even more overwhelming and important too. It all contributed to a more immersive world.

Idk, I still love TDK, but agree with the heart of your sentiment.

 

[Topher]

If Ledger doesn't pass away shortly after, I'm not sure TDK would have the oomph it does today. We'd talk about it as a great performance for sure but I don't think it'd be revered in the same way and movies weaknesses would be talked about more often.

Still the best in the series for me but Begins is right there next to it and there's a steep drop off to Rises.

 

[rome8180]

I just rewatched the Nolan Batman trilogy last week. I don't know how The Dark Knight became the darling of that trilogy. Batman Begin is clearly much better. I might even go so far as to say The Dark Knight isn't actually good. Aaron Eckhart is terrible, and the Two-Face story beats are corny. Heath Ledger's performance is not impressive. Playing that kind of over-the-top deranged is so much easier than playing nuanced and subtle. His death obviously played a huge role in how people perceived the performance. But the biggest issue with the movie is how unbelievable The Joker's plans are. He must have visions of the future or something.

The part I really hate is the incredible cheesiness of the boat scene. You're telling me a boat full of prisoners wouldn't blow up a boat full of civilians to save themselves? I expect overly optimistic views of humanity in blockbusters, but that was the most absurd one I've ever seen. It was especially grating in a movie that was otherwise so dark.

 

[SeanMayTriedToEatMe]

Joaquin’s Joker is unsurprisingly the best to me. I’ll watch as many of those Joker movies as they make, though I don’t consider them superhero movies.

Logan is also pretty far outside the genre despite having a bunch of superheroes using their superpowers in the movie. There haven’t been enough of those attempts, IMO. Watchmen on HBO is the class of that type of dark, real human stuff kind of superhero production.

The Marvels and stuff like that I am done with, though. MCU ended with Endgame for me and I hope they just stop making those movies for a little while. Start fresh with a new generation in 10 years.

 

[Bullettoothtony]

I just rewatched the Nolan Batman trilogy last week. I don't know how The Dark Knight became the darling of that trilogy. Batman Begin is clearly much better. I might even go so far as to say The Dark Knight isn't actually good. Aaron Eckhart is terrible, and the Two-Face story beats are corny. Heath Ledger's performance is not impressive. Playing that kind of over-the-top deranged is so much easier than playing nuanced and subtle. His death obviously played a huge role in how people perceived the performance. But the biggest issue with the movie is how unbelievable The Joker's plans are. He must have visions of the future or something.

The part I really hate is the incredible cheesiness of the boat scene. You're telling me a boat full of prisoners wouldn't blow up a boat full of civilians to save themselves? I expect overly optimistic views of humanity in blockbusters, but that was the most absurd one I've ever seen. It was especially grating in a movie that was otherwise so dark.

The boat sequence and the casting of Eckhart are the two most glaring flaws IMO. I really like the movie overall but the ferry game theory adaptation was just weak.

 

[rome8180]

Joaquin’s Joker is unsurprisingly the best to me. I’ll watch as many of those Joker movies as they make, though I don’t consider them superhero movies.

Logan is also pretty far outside the genre despite having a bunch of superheroes using their superpowers in the movie. There haven’t been enough of those attempts, IMO. Watchmen on HBO is the class of that type of dark, real human stuff kind of superhero production.

The Marvels and stuff like that I am done with, though. MCU ended with Endgame for me and I hope they just stop making those movies for a little while. Start fresh with a new generation in 10 years.

I've heard plenty of people say the Avengers movies are amazing, but I didn't watch any after the first one. My reaction to that movie was so different than critics' or audience's reaction, that I figured the series just wasn't for me.

Even back then, I didn't like all the quippiness. And there were just way too many characters. And then after the brief character introductions, the whole thing was one long cartoonish fight scene I found boring. Maybe it would have been better if I'd watched more of the movies leading up to it, idk.

What I always like best in superhero movies is either an origin story or the "superhero grapples with being a superhero vs. their normal human desires" story. I think that's why I've enjoyed several Spider-Man movies.

 

[rome8180]

I've been roped into watching several other Marvel movies over the years and been annoyed with the experience every time. I think my most angry experience was watching Shang-Qi, which I thought was just an abomination of a movie. Meanwhile, my sister and her husband are loving it. And I have to sit there pretending Awkwafina isn't the worst human alive.

 

[ZackM]

Just got home from seeing Dune: Part Two. It's pretty great. The score, visuals, and sounds design are all off the charts. Acting is strong across the board, though Javier Bardem is the standout for me. I know there was some concern about Zendaya on this board, but I didn't find her performance to be an issue at all. There are a handful of changes from book, which is to be expected. Some of them were somewhat necessary and make the movie work better than a strict adaptation would. However, a few of the changes didn't really make sense to me. One of which actually kind of bummed me out. Shouldn't be an issue for people that haven't read the book though.

That said, A+. Would recommend.

 

[rome8180]

Just got home from seeing Dune: Part Two. It's pretty great. The score, visuals, and sounds design are all off the charts. Acting is strong across the board, though Javier Bardem is the standout for me. I know there was some concern about Zendaya on this board, but I didn't find her performance to be an issue at all. There are a handful of changes from book, which is to be expected. Some of them were somewhat necessary and make the movie work better than a strict adaptation would. However, a few of the changes didn't really make sense to me. One of which actually kind of bummed me out. Shouldn't be an issue for people that haven't read the books though.

That said, A+. Would recommend.

I figured Bardem would be amazing. He's the character I've most been looking forward to seeing more of. He was my second favorite performance in the first movie after Rebecca Ferguson, and that's despite being onscreen for only a couple of minutes. He seemed 100% believable as a Freman, whereas my hesitancy with Zendaya was she just seemed like a Gen Z teenager.

I get frustrated with changes from a book when they feel unnecessary, especially when they simplify or change the thesis of the source material. I actually quit watching Game of Thrones a few episodes into Season 2 for that reason. So I'm worried whatever this is will be a huge deal for me.

 

[rome8180]

@ZackM did you see it in IMAX?

 

[ZackM]

@ZackM did you see it in IMAX?

Yep. It’s beautiful and loud as fuck.

 

[Topher]

I'm really curious to see what changes from the book they've made. That's expected whenever you're adapting a novel that long and complex, but I've seen director's make some heinous decisions when they don't truly understand the source material.

 

[DurhamSon]

I haven't seen Dune 2 but my guess would be something wrt Alia... my guess is a full fledged talking/fighting/killing two year old would look goofy and out of place in modern cinema, lol

 

[Topher]

Yeah and I've seen who plays her in the movie so I would guess she's aged up for practical purposes.

 

[rome8180]

I haven't seen Dune 2 but my guess would be something wrt Alia... my guess is a full fledged talking/fighting/killing two year old would look goofy and out of place in modern cinema, lol

Well, that would be fine. Zach was hinting at something more unnecessary.

 

[ZackM]

I would like to reiterate that the movie is unbelievably good. My quibbles should not be cause for any reservations.