Gone Girl - Awesome
Nightcrawler - Awesome
New Hobbit - Best of the bunch but still not a patch on LOTR unless you watch them with the mindset of being forced to watch a kids a film. In which case, excellent.
Cold In july - Started off slow ended up awesome
Interstellar - Undeniably great in some parts, inexcusably **** in other parts
Superbad/Dazed and Confused - Still amazing
John Wick - Awesome
Fury - Good entertainment, will watch again when I've forgotten what happens
The Proposition - Great, especially when drinking
The Salvation - See above
Law abiding Citizen - Still great
Big Hero 6 - Not bad
Wild Card - Not terrible, but bad but also watchable.

Mostly recs ive picked up from this thread

Just saw a Million Ways to Die in the West. It was alright, some funny scenes. I actually really enjoyed the cinematography, which might have been the best aspect of the movie. Did Seth MacFarlane write/produce/direct/star in this movie so that he could spend a few months shooting scenes with Charlize Theron over and over again? I mean, that's pretty brilliant if so.

Just watched Magnolia for the first time. Honestly the first 90 minutes were some of the best I can remember seeing in a long time for me. I thought it was exhilarating. I guess it was inevitable that the pace couldn't sustain itself even though I appreciated some of the stuff happening in the second half and of course it was beautiful in some moments but ultimately maybe too ambitious. Def gonna be one where I am going to have to watch again in a while. Dat ending

9/10

Need to watch Punch Drunk Love next as I have never seen it

Also watched half of Two Faces of January and while it was beautifully shot and well acted I got busy that day and then had to return it and don't even really feel the need to finish it up. Probably will some day if I see it on TV but I got the sense it was pretty standard slow burner thriller type movie. Maybe i'm wrong and need to finish.

edit- also melora walters looks exactly like anna kendricks but i guess you all probably knew that already since i am way behind on watching this

The diner scene where he asks her out for pizza? In NYC? And then scoffs at her because she hasn't decided on her major yet?

I'll keep (relatively) quiet because this film has obviously hit home with a respectable audience that I have no intent to attack, but someone else posted that they particularly loved the ending? Is that the final shot when this sadist ******* music teacher whom we've never seen teach any bit of music finally gives a nod of approval to this kid whom he has physically and emotionally abused and sabotaged over and over, and we're supposed to feel some sort of triumph like Rocky Balboa just beat Apollo Creed? I mean I honestly want to know what this ending inspires in you.

and arguably the greatest trailer ever

no the dinner with his family and cousins? who were jocks.

the stuff with his gf was pretty unremarkable.

I do disagree with what you took away from the film wrt to its message of what it takes to be great.

I don't feel they were attributing his success to fletcher, and if anything I felt miles became great in spite of him not because of him.

and whatever you take away from the film I can't see how anyone could've enjoyed boyhood more.

Do you remember his speech to Miles?

'So, imagine if Jones had just said, "Well, that's okay, Charlie. That was all right. Good job." So Charlie thinks to himself, "Well, ****, I did do a pretty good job." End of story. No Bird. That to me is an absolute tragedy. But that's just what the world wants now. And they wonder why jazz is dying.'

He does what it takes to get the best from his students. Reminds me of this teacher I once had. Tough SOB. Seemed like the worlds biggest hardass, impossible to please. Well, I got to know him years later and guess what? It was all an act. That's the impression I got from Fletcher. His teaching style was that way in order to get the absolute most out of his students. Guess what else? It worked.

Really loved this film.

Rich,

I feel like there's some sort of disconnect for me with your claim that Fletcher's just acting to get the most out of his students. Maybe I'm reading something into your post that you didn't intend.

I could see the movie turning Fletcher into a surprisingly sympathetic character if we'd seen that he was aware of the pain he caused, and he endured his own kind of suffering because he hated to hurt his students but didn't see any better way to make them better.

Instead, we get that scene where Andrew meets up with Fletcher again and the two get a drink. Fletcher gives that great speech. And then comes the defining moment. Andrew says something like, "But maybe sometimes you take it too far..." If Fletcher had given us a moment of humanity, something like, "I hate to see people get hurt, but I don't know how else to make them great." Okay, maybe. But when Andrew asks him if he sometimes goes too far, Fletcher flat out says NOPE.

Okay, I could still go along for the ride, because then Fletcher offers Andrew a chance to return to the stage. Fletcher doesn't have to be incredibly self-aware for the audience to see that he's actually a human being. Now that Fletcher and Andrew are out of the classroom and no longer in the roles of teacher and student, we see Fletcher can actually be decent.

Except we find out this is all a ruse by Fletcher to have his revenge. He has no intention of elevating Andrew to greatness. He has no intention of abusing him for the sake of bringing out his talent. Fletcher will abuse Andrew simply because Fletcher is an abuser. He intends to destroy any chance Andrew has of ever having a music career again.

The man is a caricature of an abuser. This caricature is one reason the character is so entertaining to watch. For those who have never experienced that kind of person, it's jaw dropping to see how bad he can be. Surely no person would ever cross this line? Oh no. Just wait. He'll find a way to be even more horrible. And for those who have experienced this kind of person, he fits the caricature of the abusive teacher so many audience members recall from their own younger years.

Great movie btw.

Dont expect the same experience... the two movies are very different.

I saw the movie as rich did. We met the real fletcher playing piano having a drink and relaxing. When he got back on the stage he put on his act again to drive Andrew to greatness. The ending is Andrew being driven to greatness due to the embarrassment and fletcher lets his guard down realizing this is the time to stop acting and help Andrew play and achieve his greatness. Simmons gives in to his kind self, smiles and nods to Andrew as they bust out that piece. The feeling I got from it was how I imagine I would have felt if private pile went on to be a war hero and sent his drill sergeant a gift basket at the end of full Metal jacket

Hated the ending. Hated the dinner scene, still found the movie entertaining.

Agree to disagree. Fletcher's intentions seemed pretty plain to me in the finale. He didn't bring Andrew on stage "to put on his act again to drive Andrew to greatness." He deliberately sabotaged Andrew to ruin his career. In the end, Andrew succeeded despite Fletcher, not because of him.

When Andrew tells fletcher that he is going to keep playing and says "follow my lead" or whatever fletcher readily agrees and (I know nothing about music but I'm like 99% sure) fletcher helps Andrew to keep going and conduct or whatever that piece of music. Simmons even acts out where drops the hard ass act and goes to the caring teacher who is finally getting that breakthrough student he has been searching for. They finish the film working together.

Edit: think the line was "I'll cue you in"

I've been thinking about this all morning since I read Rich's post and now yours, and I think your reading of the film holds up. But it's a bit of a stretch imo to say Fletcher's sabotage plan was second level thinking and that he intended to push Andrew to greatness all along. You might be leveling yourself

In my reading of the film, Fletcher can't pass up the opportunity for Andrew to achieve greatness, so he switches tactics. But he still started out hoping to ruin Andrew's career.

Haha I guess it wouldn't be the first time. We can see if others thought it was the same as you did. Seems like fletcher really spells it out in the beer scene though.

I loved Whiplash ending because of how Andrew stood out for himself. I loved when he came back and just played on his own. Making his own destitny.

I think Fletcher is honest about his intentions about pushing his students. He definitely goes way too far. Inviting Andrew on stage was clearly sabotage in my opinion. It pushed Andrew once again, but I don't think that was on purpose. Once Andrew showed his resilience and strength (and skills), Fletcher was finally broken and he let the music flow.

Disagree. He tried to **** him, yes, to see how he'd react. I think Fletcher was happy to see Miles return to the stage and bark 'Just wait for my cue.'

Re: the bolded- In the end, it was both imo.

Hmmmm I'll have to think about how that changes my opinion of the movie and ending. Guess it did go over my head... I'll watch the last half hour sometime soon.

This. He pretty much says what he's doing, and why.

JK Simmons is always so good.

Edit - I just don't care

I mentioned before that story is a gross exaggeration. Joe Jones threw a cymbal at Parker's *feet*. It was meant to partially embarrass him (though it's also possible Jones couldn't keep up with *him*) but the idea that if he *didn't* do that and just said "good job", there would be "No Bird" is ridiculously unfounded.

And when Teller plays obvious audience surrogate and asks whether the downside might be discouraging the next Charlie Parker from achieving greatness? Simmons seems to answer it for us that a Charlie Parker would never be discouraged. Fine, probably true. But how about the obvious flipside that Charlie Parker doesn't *need* the cymbal to the head either?

Please cite the coach/teacher/parental figure in, say....hmmm almost anyone who is the Charlie Parker of his field or generation, that wouldn't have possibly achieved what they did unless said person sadistically drove them past extreme levels of commitment?

Let's start with like Michael Jordan? Who made him do wind sprints at 6am, and then practice 1000 jump shots a day and then lift weights for four hours, and called him a worthless ******* if he missed a free throw by an inch? Himself, and that's it.

Cool. I had a teacher who also brought out the best in his students. He was really nice and imparted positive values, taught good subject and life lessons, really made us appreciate one another and the value of having a strong mentor. And he never even threw a chair at my head!

His motives were absolutely pure in his mind and he was definitely won over by the performance at the end. He even asks him "wtf are you doing, man?" before realizing the kid has transcended and then has to go with it. But that's not anything deep or meaningful, either. It's a genre cliche.

legend,

you seen pretty convinced the film was both endorsing fletcher's approach as well as asserting that miles's greatness was a direct result of the abuse.

I'm curious why you are so convinced of that?

Sundays

An interesting kick starter movie proposal has been green lighted by Warner Bros... great visual fabric and it could be a pip.



I wouldn't infer to much about the story, but it's intriguing none the less.

IT Follows.

Horror movie in theaters now. So ****ing great. Go see it now, I doubt it will be in theaters long.

Do it now!

Oh **** I didn't know this was wide released. Going to see it instantly.

Edit: nvm, no way to see it and not miss the basketball games. Gonna check it out tomorrow at the first showing