Grexers like to go to movies, and moreso, like to discuss them
afterwards.  So here's the place to do it.  What movies/films/flicks/
videos have you seen lately?  Reccomend to others or no?

241 responses total.

Well, I just got back from seeing "Sixth Sense" and wow, what an 
amazingly cool movie.  Kinda scary, kinda surprising.  Although,
and I won't spoil the ending, but everyone told me how surprising
the ending was... Umm... I wasn't surprised... I had kinda figured 
it out in the first 10 minutes or so of the movie... <shrugs>
Anyhow, it's a cool movie, and I highly reccomend it. :)

U of M will be showing Akira Kurosawa's Dreams tonight at Lorch Hall at 7PM.
It (along with the rest of the film series) is free.

(With English subtitles?)

What is the rest of the series: is this a Kurosawa series?

It's a series abouy Japanese films of the 90's. They have a good mix between
Kurosawa movies, Tokyo Fist and Gamera.

All the movies are subtitled.

Coincidentally, "Akira Kurosawa's Dreams" is showing on TCM (Turner 
Classic Movies) as I type.

(Is "Akira Kurosawa's Dreams" the one where Martin Scorsese plays
Vincent Van Gogh?)

  Yeah, but Ann Arbor doesn't get TCM until Sept 30. I personally cannot wait.

Oh wow.  I'm glad to hear that we're getting TCM - didn't know that.

DVD recommendation-- yesterday I got the new DVD edition of John Boorman's
retelling of the Arthurian legends, "EXCALIBUR"  The movie has been
digitally remastered in letterbox edition with dolby soundtrack, and looks
and sounds wonderful.  Just the scenery and the costumes and the music
make it worth having a digital print.  Its just a beautifully photographed
movie.  "YOU AND THE LAND ARE ONE!"    EXCALIBUR remains one of my
favorites **** (four stars)

oh, I forgot, the DVD of Excalibur has some special features including a
alternate audio track of director John Boorman discussing the making of 
the movie and the meanings of the different scenes.  Quite fascinating.

funny how the same guy who made "Zardoz" made "Excalibur" and "Deliverance".

Re #10 and 11: I'm glad to hear that the Excalibur DVD is so good. My copy
is being shipped to me now.

Double Jeopardy (C-) - This was an enjoyable movie, but the actionlagged a
lot. I spent too much time waiting for the characters to catch up with the
audience's knowledge (like the fact that Ashley Judd didn't kill her husband.
Since it's the point of the entire film, it's not really a spoiler.) Also,
there were WAY too many near misses and coincidences to be believable. I was
alos really confused by Tommy Lee Jones' motivation in the film. An
explanation was offered, but it didn't explain a lot of what happened.

Still, I enjoyed it for what it was. Wait for the cheap theater for this
movie.

  Remers- Look on your cable bill. I've been nagging Media One for TCM for
more than 2 yrs. 4 days to go. 

You have no idea what I'd do just to get a bill.  I wish MediaOne would 
hurry up and wire my house.

Hey, if one of you Excalibur guys gets around to it, could you listen to the
"making of" track and see if they explain the special effect where the sword
is stock thru Lancelot's side?  That one is so realistic I've been wondering
about it for years.

  Let me teach you the art of nagging, my son.

I saw "For Love Of The Game." I like Kevin Costner's part OK; the movie
itself was OK; it could have done without the Kelly Preston/love story
tangent. It added nothing.

Steve, if you're so desperate for a cable bill, I might consider getting
cable.  We should talk. ;)

Stigmata higly recommendable - not too scary just take my word for it when
you are into sophisticated horror.

Richard, you are a walking advertisement for DVD.  I'm thinking of getting a
DVD player just based on all the descriptions you've given of discs.  They
sound great!

The final sentence of Chris Gore's four-sentence review of "Drive Me Crazy":
Melissa Joan Hart doesn't even get naked, so I can't give you one good reason
to waste your time.

#16..Scott, you asked about the scene in Excalibur where Lancelot pulls 
the sword out of his side causing "the wound that never heals".  I 
played that scene back with the director John Boorman's audio commentary 
turned on.  He explains that it was done not with special effects but 
with a careful optical illusion.  Lancelot only appears to be pulling 
the entire sword out of his body. He actually has a small piece of sword 
just barely piercing his body and the actual sword underneath him as he 
lies on his side. As Lancelot is pulling out the sword, he is moving his 
body very carefully from where he is lying on his side to where he is 
lying on his back so you dont see that the he isnt pulling the piece of 
sword out of his body. It is just falling away from his skin and as he 
moves to where he's lying on his back, he obscures the piece of sword 
coming out of his body with the whole sword which he's been lying on top 
of.  

Its a little hard to explain but you can see what he means by playing 
the scene back frame by frame (1/16 or 1/32 super slow motion another 
benefit of DVDs) Boorman claims compared to other shots, it was one of 
the simplest scenes to do.

I bought a videotape of "South Park:Bigger Longer Uncut" in Manhattan this
weekend for $5.  IT's a hoot (I saw the movie in the theatre already) people
still gettin g to their seats and all...someone snuck a camcorder into the
theatre.

Re: 23    Thanks!  Guess I'll have to rent it again to see it with that in
mind.

Agora 11 <-> Cinema 35

Pokemon?  Why are there no 'reviews' of Pokemon videos?

well i ain't a movie guy but i sort of felt like responding by saying hey
wanna watch a horror movie on 13 ,the friday at 12 o clock at a cemetry..
that's what i call really "HOOKED ON TO MOVIES"

  I caught "Rocky" on TCM last nite, and it was like seeing it for the first
time. I have seen Rocky at least 30 times on venues from WGN to TNT, but
seeing uncut made it more soulful. I mean, after a while you start to see how
hopeless his world is, yet here he is happy to be doing collecting work, and
fighting the occasional club fight. 
  I think Rocky was well written, and of course the fight scenes were
terrific. Burgess Merideth was stellar as Mickey, as was Burt Young and Talia
Shire.  

  4 stars. See it uncut and where you can watch it and concentrate on it.
It is a wonderful experience.

Good news for Ann Arbor folks:
The Michigan will be showing both "Stop Making Sense" and the newly restored
"Yellow Submarine" during October.  Consult your Observer for when...

  Cool..  I'll have to make an effort to make it to both..

Wish I knew of somewhere within a few hours of Houghton that was showing
Yellow Submarine...

You are in the lower peninsula, right?  Ann Arbor is at most 5-6 hours away
from anything in the LP.  Plus some local Grexers would probably be happy to
have dinner with you....

(Umm, Scott... Hough-ton the Ice Planet is definitely not in the LP. ;) )

I'm about a 10 hour drive from Ann Arbor.  Unfold the other part of your
map. ;>

  Scott's probably thinking of Houghton Lake, which is nowhere near Houghton
  (except in global or perhaps astronomic terms..)  

I don't suppose it's showing anywhere in Green Bay, Duluth, or Wasau?

(#36 is correct)

Caught Mystery Men at the Fox on Saturday.  It was fun.

- Backtalk version 1.3.30 - Copyright 1996-2006, Jan Wolter and Steve Weiss