Rushmore, my apologies if I overstepped a boundary. I can dial back the pseudo-punches next time, if you want. I just like pretending to argue with you by saying absurd things I'd never say and would laugh at if anyone else said without tongue in cheek.

It's only tautological if you assume I am talking about gross murder rates which of course nobody with a brain would cite. I am talking about per capita murder rates and by that stat more guns appears to equal more murders.

Anyway, I am happy to debate this but not ITT. If there is somewhere else or via PM that is cool.

For the record I own a gun and enjoy shooting hand guns.

Nah, just cranky.

Ramp it up. We good.

Don't blame me for your writing.

Or make it sound like I'm the one getting political here, when you were the one to launch it. All I did was call you on a tautological observation.

I'm a leftie and I've owned guns all my life too.

Rush, thank goodness. I was afraid married life had already softened you up.

Hard Eight

John C Reiley gives his usual mediocre performance. Sam Jackson plays the same guy he plays in every movie he's ever been in. Philip Baker Hall and Gwenyth Paltrow were quite good. I was hoping for more Philip Seymour Hoffman.

6/10

Utterly mystifying commentary.

John C. Reilly

Yeah, John C. Reilly is awesome. As is Hard eight.

P.S.

Midget Man

I'm currently watching Beetlejuice. I know comedies are pretty much ignored come Academy Award time, but Michael Keaton's performance could have justified a best supporting nomination.

The sort of performance that immediately makes you picture him as the perfect Batman, eh?

Lord, remember the hooplah when that casting decision was announced?

I was ready to storm the castle with the other villagers.

Was there a consensus choice? I was a little too young to form an opinion when he was named.

I don't recall who was proposed as an alternative. But Keaton was an easy contender for least appropriate choice in pretty much everybody's mind. It was like picking Phil Silvers for James Bond.

The nearest contemporary anecdote I can think of is when Nic Cage was temporarily cast as Superman.

LOL never heard that one.

I do know that Barry Manilow was the first choice for the lead in Airplane!

From wikipedia:

LMAO HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I love reading about roles actors have passed on, and thinking about how different the movies would have been. Example - Sylvester Stallone passed on Harrison Ford's role in Witness, and was also considered for the role of Hans Solo.

Yeah, this was the version coincidentally also being directed by Tim Burton, written by Kevin Smith, and produced by Jon Peters, the latter who said he didn't want to see Supes in his costume because it was too ghey.

If you haven't seen it, Kevin Smith gives the full lowdown, and it is hilarious.

Pic of Cage in a screen test:

Jeezus Cripes, Stallone shouldn't have come anywhere near Peter Weir back when he was still great.

I could see him in Star Wars: The Mook Edition.

Jeez, all of those are terrible. it just goes from bad to worse.

Although, I could dig a Batman with Bill Murray. That would be awesome.

I always wanted them to cast Rodney Dangerfield as an old, fat, Robin, picking his green tights out of his ass as he's trying to maneuver his belly and swing a leg over to jump in the TV-style batmobile after he sees Batman jump in. "Holy Hemorrhoids, Batman, how do you get into this thing?" He would have been so awesome in those green booties and staring out of that black mask.

Paris, Texas

This was very close to being a great movie, but fell short for me. Harry Dean Stanton was flawless, and the story kept me intrigued for all 2.5 hours. However, where some people saw the last 40ish minutes as ZOMG BRILLIANT, I saw as an over the top sapfest.

7/10

I remember loving Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and I still think it's the movie, watching it the first time, that has made me laugh the most. That was something like 10 years ago though and the last time I watched it 4 or 5 years ago reaction was much more mild. I guess it's time for another view? Now I'm also curious about that sound issue.

Recent movies:

Little Soldier (2008)



Strong movie about a Danish female soldier returning home from war (don't think film specifies if it's Iraq or Afghanistan) and now finding herself struggling with everyday life.

Her father reluctantly offers her a job as a driver for the escort firm, consisting of imported girls from Nigeria, including his girlfriend, that he runs on the side.

The story goes from there with the relationships of the main characters on the one hand and on the other, raising very much up in the time political and moral questions.

Maybe too many for some who'd rather see the psychological side, character development, even further investigated or closed, but I think the movie manages both things well and I appreciate the ambition.

Acting is very strong and Trine Dyrholm playing the soldier/daughter is probably the best current Danish actress.

8/10

Observe and Report (2009)

Seth Rogen plays the mentally challenged head security officer of a mall haunted by a streaker...

For a good while this was building a case for one of the worst movies I had ever seen and I was really close to turning it off. It seemed absolutely terrible and not even in that good way where things can get unintentionally funny.

Suddenly though almost out of nowhere the laughs started coming. I don't know if content actually improved or it just took a while to warm to the film's quite distinct, I think it's safe to say, attempt at humor, but for me personally it definitely got funny and that's all that matters really with a movie like this.

Not for everyone I'm certain, but all in all a decent comedy.

5/10

Belle Époque (1992)

Highly enjoyable comedy I think .

Set on the verge of the Spanish civil war a young deserter finds the most wonderful exile staying at the house of an old man, and not least his four attractive daughters including 18 year old Penelope Cruz in one of her first movie roles.

All of them to whatever extent falls in love with him and lots of hot blooded comedy (drama and sex) ensues.

Great stuff.

8/10

Ok,here goes my second try to convince you people to go watch ''Una pura formalità''ASAP.I have edited few IMDb user reviews to make them spoiler free for you:

1. ''Anyone who hasn't seen this brilliant thought provoking peice is missing one of the finest films ever recorded (in my opinion it the third greatest movie ever, clocking in just behind Casablanca and M) Wonderfully directed by Roman Polanski and gut wrenchingly acted by Gerard Depardieu, this film is gripping from begginning till end. It follows the story of a man arrested for a crime he cannot quite remember, and as we follow the story the mystery unfolds slowly. It may take more than one viewing to unravel the complexities and symbolism of this movie, but when it becomes clear it hits you with stunning force. Anyone who thinks of Gerard Depardieu as the bufoon of english language movies need only see 5 minutes of his hulking, wounded performance here to understand he is an actor of enormous stature. This film is magic.

2.Film making does not get much better than this. This combines clever writing with great cinematography and fantastic acting. Without giving away too much of the story, Gerard Depardieu plays Onoff, a burnt out writer who finds himself at a country police station in the middle of the night in a big storm. He is being interrogated by Roman Polanski. However, this plot is just a framework of something bigger which I'm not going to give away here. The whole film takes place in one night and virtually the entire movie is shot within the police station.

There are a lot of things that aren't initially clear in the movie and this is definitely one that rewards repeated viewings. This all makes it sound like a complex movie to watch, which is true to some point. However what makes this so rewarding is that even if you don't realise everything that is going on here, it still is fascinating to watch.

The cinematography is excellent and gives the movie a really claustrophobic feel. The attention to detail is quite breathtaking too, there is nothing that goes on that hasn't got some relevance to the story and much of it is not really obvious on the first viewing.

All this is good by itself, but the two things that really lift the movie above any number of other great movies is the acting and the use of language. Depardieu has made some stinkers in his time, which isn't surprising considering his workload. But that doesn't change that he can be one of the finest actors around. He's certainly not afraid to come across as a very ugly man here, physically and emotionally. But while great acting can be expected of him, the real revelation is Roman Polanski. He doesn't act in a lot of movies these days, in fact the only other movie I've ever seen him in was "The Fearless Vampire Killers". He plays the Inspector who admires Onoff but nevertheless has to interrogate him. The exchanges between him and Depardieu are an absolute pleasure to watch.

The acting, and indeed the entire film, has a bit of a theatrical feel about it. One the one hand you could almost say that it's bad acting since it never feels like you're watching anyone else than Polanski and Depardieu on screen. But they deliver their lines so well and work of each other so well that this is totally inconsequential. The other thing I have mentioned before is the use of language, this film is full of memorable lines and not a word is wasted. This is probably the closest I have seen films come to pure poetry on screen.''

3. I wasn't a big fan of Gérard Depardieu and didn't know a lot about Polanski. But as a pure coincidence I just saw this brilliant movie on German television (synchronized in German) and was just stunned. I really love movies that let you sit not quite satisfied at the end, where you have to think again, maybe even watch the movie twice.

This is exactly one of these movies. I was sitting there, thinking "give me more!"... But after thinking for a few minutes, I was glad it didn't give away more. It's really quite simple, but not at the first look.

However, this movie I just saw ranks definitely in my top five of all movies I've ever seen. And I didn't even hear a word of it two hours ago... crazy, eh?

If you can find it, rent it. You won't be disappointed, I guarantee it!''

And here is a wonderfull piece of music written by Enio Morricone for this movie.Singing by Gérard Depardieu.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JT4Fc...eature=related Ok,go watch it now,thank me later.
Oh and I watched It sinchronized in Italian with english subtitles.I think that version is easiest to find.But movie is so good that I would watch it in Swahili...