Best movie you've seen recently?

Knocked Up was very good. some think it's better than 40 Year Old Virgin, others not. I don't think it's as good either, but it's still damn good and funny. Some great one liners....the "brokeback mountain" scene they cut out was really funny (it's on youtube somewhere).

Saw "The Host" (korean) on dvd...it was good, not as great as reviews claimed. It'd been touted as "the best monster movie ever made". eh, dunno about that. And I'd also read about its social commentary, which I didnt pick up in any way...and also read that you HAVE to see it on a theatre bigscreen....eh, it looked fine on a 55" flatscreen. maybe I just missed all the good subtleties that have given it rave reviews.

Originally Posted by Get Smart

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Saw "The Host" (korean) on dvd...it was good, not as great as reviews claimed. It'd been touted as "the best monster movie ever made". eh, dunno about that. And I'd also read about its social commentary, which I didnt pick up in any way...and also read that you HAVE to see it on a theatre bigscreen....eh, it looked fine on a 55" flatscreen. maybe I just missed all the good subtleties that have given it rave reviews.

I thought The Host sucked hard. Its social commentary was insipid and maybe only makes sense to Koreans. I'm of the opinion that movies of this genre from Asia are typically quite simpleminded though (as are most from the US) but this one was just bad. I don't understand the hype, but perhaps it's a cultural thing.

Zodiac was one of the best theater experiences I've had in a long time. Fincher really knows how to **** with an audience.

Pan's Labyrinth was fantastic as well.

Originally Posted by life_interrupts

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"Brick" with the kid from 3rd Rock from the Sun was very good -- noir detective story set in high school.

I just saw this a couple of weeks ago and really liked it. Although I think film noir applied to modern high school is something that people are either going to love or hate. The same actor was also in The Lookout which was shockingly good. From the trailers I expected that movie to be horrible but a friend convinced me to go see it and I'm glad we did. Much better and much different than what I expected. Whoever did the trailers did a horrible job of conveying the type of movie that it was.

Joseph Gordon Levitt really is one of the most underrated actors of the under 30 set. I have always been significantly impressed with his range.

Hmm... recently:

Breathless on DVD
Chungking Express on DVD
and Knocked Up

All great movies.

I watched Children of Men on DVD recently it is was absolutely phenomenal. One of the most intense and cathartic movies I've ever seen.

I saw Knocked Up last night. It was hilarious. Katherine Heigl was adorable. I'd go straight for her. But not really.

Just saw Paul Verhoeven's ("Basic Instinct," "Starship Troopers," "Soldier of Orange," "Show Girls," etc.) "Black Book," my first experience with a Appreciation Holocaust film, starring the beautiful Leslie van Houten and her two ****.
Sort of "Show Girls" meets "Schindler's List." A real hoot.

Originally Posted by Brian278

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Recently caught the last 3/4 of the HBO movie, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. Thought it was particularly well done, though very depressing. I would imagine the number of native Americans that died over the years from European colonization and the subsequent wars, diseases, etc. would rival or exceed the Holocaust or Stalin's purges.

This was by no means a one-sided affair. I have seen estimates that in the settlement of the Ohio Valley, for example, the Indians killed two white people for every Indian killed by whites. There was also a great deal of miscegenation in North America, much more in Latin America, of course. A very large percentage of old-stock Americans, which I am on my mother's side, anyway, have some Indian blood, myself included.

I think white and red Americans could have come to a much more peaceful modus vivendi during the period between the Revolution and the War of 1812 had not the British frequently stirred up trouble between them. Anyway, this has the makings of a thread hijack, so I won't belabor the point any further.

Finally saw some big movies I missed out on last year recently.

Casino Royale was very enjoyable. Some great wit from Bond. Loved the European scenery. As much as this is an improvement on the recent Brosnan movies, I'd still love to see Bond kicking ass with no laptops, no fancy cellphones etc... just brain, brawns, and good looks. I know technology has improved greatly since the 50s and 60s, but everytime I see a "computer program" that can pinpoint the exact location a cell phone call took place I gag. That's why CSI sucks so bad... every problem can be solved with a nifty computer program instead of human skills and knowledge. *YAWN*

The Departed was good as well. I can't say if it's better or not than Infernal Affairs. Two different movies. I only wish that some key scenes in The Departed were different from IA... the movie theatre, the envelope, the climax. I also thought it was missing the tension of IA, especially during the processor transaction scene. The morse code bit in IA was really cool I thought. Great acting, and great humour as well.

Picked up a ton of other movies to watch... Blood Diamond, Volver, Borat, Babel, and Last King of Scotland

Originally Posted by Bandwagonesque

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Picked up a ton of other movies to watch... Blood Diamond, Volver, Borat, Babel, and Last King of Scotland

Lets see... I really liked Blood Diamond, was meh on Borat, bored almost to tears by Babel (not enough mutants or giant robots for my liking) and haven't seen Volver or Last King Of Scotland yet.

Oh, Bruce Willis has been dead the entire movie, and the kid is able to talk to him because "he can see dead people", and Darth Vader is Anakin Skywalker, who it turns out, is Luke Skywalker's father.

Originally Posted by Tokyo Slim

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Joseph Gordon Levitt really is one of the most underrated actors of the under 30 set. I have always been significantly impressed with his range.

i totally agree, anyone else read that article in last season's nylon guys too? i didn't get to catch his latest one, but hopefully will on dvd.

How come everybody liked Knocked Up?

Was it hilarious? Yes. Very hilarious. But the ending was cheesy, the characters were shallow and stereotypical, and it only had some very shallow commentary to human nature. The bottom line is that it is a very shallow movie: funny, but crappy. I'm amused but not impressed. This is not a movie you'll want to watch carefully.

--trajan

I don't think the movies intention was for people to watch it carefully. It was really good for what it was.