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Moonrise Kingdom was great. My favorite WA film now...maybe tied with Rushmore and Fox.
Very sweet film...I wasn't expecting that. The only thing I had a problem with was that the girl was way too pretty. I think she should've been awkward and weird - like the boy.
Watched J. Edgar last night. I think this movie would have been better served as a straight timeline narrative and not used the flashback/flash forward technique.
Watched Piranha 3DD and American Reunion, woo. Both had Katrina Bowden, so it wasn't all bad, plus Ali Cobrin was also really hot and looked like Marisa Tomei and got naked. So American Reunion was ok, Piranha 3DD was pretty bad.
Also recently watched Wanderlust and The Raid. The Raid was good. Wanderlust was disappointing but still a decent time, and it had this scene:
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is outrageous fun. Sweet action sequences, cool kill shots and a likeable lead. I don't appreciate how little faith Bekmambetov puts in his audience. Narration+visual/verbal reminders are lazy methods in film. Slams to a crashing halt in the final act. Finishes quite nicely though. If you're interested, catch it on a cheap tuesday/matinee if possible. And by all means skip 3D, it was dreadful.
Watched J. Edgar last night. I think this movie would have been better served as a straight timeline narrative and not used the flashback/flash forward technique.
This was atrocious. The acting was fine, I'd even say exceptional, but I wouldn't be surprised if someone slowed down the film and discovered there was a subtitle running across the scene for one millisecond every 5 minutes that said "Please, please, please, turn me off. You don't understand. I seem boring now, but I will only get worse."
I need some movie recommendations. I really liked the setting and atmosphere of Eastern Promises and Tinker Tailor. Anyone have any suggestions of similar movies?
Entr'acte - 20 minute long surrealist movie that was pretty wacky. There was sort of a plot. A guy dies and then people chase his coffin around. Then he boops them out of existence. It was weird, but fun.
The Woman in the Window - I greatly enjoyed this noir from Fritz Lang, starring Edward G. Robinson. He plays a teacher who accidentally kills a man and tries to cover it up. I thought it was pretty great right up until the ending,
Spoiler:
where it was going for a pretty groan inducing result of Robinson killing himself at the same time someone else took the fall for the murder. Instead, they went with an even worse happy ending where everything was all a dream and all the characters were people in his life ala The Wizard of Oz. WTF
Gimme Shelter - great documentary of the Rolling Stones' free concert at the Altamont Speedway where a person got murdered. Very interesting and, of course, great music.
Going into Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter you HAVE to know what you’re getting yourself into. If you’ve seen the trailer you have probably thought one of two things: “That looks terrible,” or “That looks freaking cool!” If you have decided you will not like it you probably won’t enjoy it. If you go into this film with high hopes there’s a good chance you will have a good time.
There are several things I enjoyed about this film: Benjamin Walker, action, cool kills, dark look/feel, supporting cast and Bekmambetov’s fearless approach to going all-out on a risky premise.
Abraham Lincoln is wonderfully played by Benjamin Walker. Walker channels Liam Neeson in his look and the way he carries himself. He’s calm, cool, charismatic, handsome and pulls of action like a veteran. As soon as Walker hits the screen it becomes easier to suspend disbelief, he fits the role nicely.
There is a lot of action along with some very nice kills. The kill shots satisfied the genre fan within and the action moves the pace along nicely. There is one chase sequence in particular which is so outrageous, so optimistic and waltzes the fine line between awesome and ridiculous. These elements blended together make for an enjoyable experience.
The look and feel of the film is dark and contains many cool shots. We see Abe Lincoln fighting vampires in the shadows. Shots of Abe Lincoln burying vampires in the woods are gorgeous. Unfortunately there is only 3D available in my city. Why is the 3D so bad? Abraham Lincoln was converted to 3D post-production.
The supporting cast includes familiar faces. I’ve enjoyed Anthony Mackie’s work since I first caught in him 8 Mile. His work as a supporting player is fantastic, I hope to see him take the lead sometime soon. Dominic Cooper plays Henry, the man who trains Lincoln to hunt vampires. The relationship between Abraham and Henry is interesting and the two play off each other well. Mary Elizabeth Winstead brings balance to the testosterone heavy film.
Bekmambetov directs the film without fear with the will to go for the gusto. The action, suspense and story mesh well together. The premise alone is obnoxious and scares many away before giving the film a second thought. I read on twitter, “It’s exactly the film you think it is.” I thought the same after I watched Bekmambetov’s previous effort, Wanted.
Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter is not without it’s flaws. The action comes to a crashing halt, this is when I stopped caring about what was happening on-screen. Luckily the lack of action doesn’t stay for long. The other concern I had with the film is Bekmambetov’s lack of respect for the audience. The audience is spoon-fed with frequent narration and visual/verbal reminders of previous events in the film. Narration and reminders presented are sloppy and scream, “Hey audience!! Remember THIS key moment that happened 20 minutes ago! Here is your reminder!!”
Overall Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter is outrageous, over the top fun that made me glad I watched it. I hesitate to recommend it because it’s not for everyone. If you are curious about this film give it a try, and in 2D when possible.
Cafe de flore - This has received some mixed reviews but I really enjoyed it. It's got a good soundtrack and the acting from some of the main characters is very strong. Visually it's captivating and the editing makes it hard to take your eyes off the screen. It's one of those movies you find yourself thinking about days after seeing.
Saw this yesterday, super stylish, very pretty movie, and the soundtrack is amazing. I really enjoyed it, although it obviously has some major flaws (very hard to feel empathy for the lead character as he struggles to decide between two beautiful "soulmates".) I saw the ending has been criticised in places, but I think it's down to your own interpretation, taking the ending literally is pretty LOL alright, but I don't think the director intended it to be that way.
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