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Movie Thread

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I honestly can't recall seeing McConaughey in any other movie besides Dallas Buyers Club. Was he in a bunch of rom-coms (that I wouldn't have watched) running around with his shirt off? That used to be the joke anyway, McConaughey not being able to keep his shirt on. Oh, that and McConaughey and Lance being buddies when Lance was still on top. Hm...

In the meantime, I was in the mood to watch some bad sci-fi flicks last night, and boy, did I ever find them. It's not really hard though - Netflix, Amazon Prime, and even Crackle have nothing but shite sci-fi. Couldn't at least one of them offer 2001 or Blade Runner in a way so I wouldn't have to pay extra?

Somnus (2016) - This flick was amusingly bad. It started out okay, but I had to chuckle when they were traveling in the spaceship where the interior looked more like my '67 Beetle than some modern space age machinery. Given its obviously poor budget and mess of a script I'll just file it in the 'it's so bad it's almost good' category. At least I finished watching it.

And then I tackled Leviathan (1989) and remembered why I didn't like it when it first came out - it's a total Alien rip-off except it takes place under water. I was so offended by the lack of originality I turned it off about halfway through, no need to waste any more time on that steaming pile of garbage.

I did learn that Peter Weller has a PhD though, so that's at least impressive from an actor who was known for starring in sci-fi/action flicks a while back. So yeah, there's that.
Yeah Leviathan wasn't much. The Abyss wasn't much either although a classier effort.

Peter Weller has one of those faces you don't forget even in the crappy B movies he has made. Screamers was one of his better B graders, while I always remembered him in the first Robocop movie and also that crazy movie The Naked Lunch. Both Paul Verhoeven and David Cronenberg made some entertaining movies over the years and Weller worked for some good directors.
 
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I honestly can't recall seeing McConaughey in any other movie besides Dallas Buyers Club. Was he in a bunch of rom-coms (that I wouldn't have watched) running around with his shirt off? That used to be the joke anyway, McConaughey not being able to keep his shirt on. Oh, that and McConaughey and Lance being buddies when Lance was still on top. Hm...

In the meantime, I was in the mood to watch some bad sci-fi flicks last night, and boy, did I ever find them. It's not really hard though - Netflix, Amazon Prime, and even Crackle have nothing but shite sci-fi. Couldn't at least one of them offer 2001 or Blade Runner in a way so I wouldn't have to pay extra?

Somnus (2016) - This flick was amusingly bad. It started out okay, but I had to chuckle when they were traveling in the spaceship where the interior looked more like my '67 Beetle than some modern space age machinery. Given its obviously poor budget and mess of a script I'll just file it in the 'it's so bad it's almost good' category. At least I finished watching it.

And then I tackled Leviathan (1989) and remembered why I didn't like it when it first came out - it's a total Alien rip-off except it takes place under water. I was so offended by the lack of originality I turned it off about halfway through, no need to waste any more time on that steaming pile of garbage.

I did learn that Peter Weller has a PhD though, so that's at least impressive from an actor who was known for starring in sci-fi/action flicks a while back. So yeah, there's that.


The only McConaughey movies I like (or remember) would be Sahara and We Are Marshall. We Are Marshall is a good telling of the story in which their football team (minus one coach) was killed in a plane crash and the rebuilding of their football program. Good story, and as close to accurate as you're going to get from a Hollywood movie that isn't a documentary. (My husband has a friend [and former boss] whom is from where Marshall is and his friend's wife is also from that area. Although they were teens at the time, they vividly remember the crash and aftermath.)

Interesting about Peter Weller, had no idea. I basically remember him most from Robocop.
 
The only McConaughey movies I like (or remember) would be Sahara and We Are Marshall. We Are Marshall is a good telling of the story in which their football team (minus one coach) was killed in a plane crash and the rebuilding of their football program. Good story, and as close to accurate as you're going to get from a Hollywood movie that isn't a documentary. (My husband has a friend [and former boss] whom is from where Marshall is and his friend's wife is also from that area. Although they were teens at the time, they vividly remember the crash and aftermath.)

Interesting about Peter Weller, had no idea. I basically remember him most from Robocop.
Peter Weller, as movingtarget mentioned, definitely is distinct, think I want to watch Robocop again. I remember liking it when it first came out. (Don't want to pay an extra $3 for it though at Amazon, so will have to wait till it's offered for free.)

I've never heard of We Are Marshall, but it sounds promising. I might want to check it out as well if it's offered at no additional cost in the future. I just go through too many movies to be paying additionally for them all...

In the meantime I'm stuck watching more free, crap sci-fi flicks, case in point:

The Colony (2013) - I suppose Laurence Fishburne and Bill Paxton needed the paycheck, but, this movie had such potential. The premise itself had a lot of promise, until they combined post-apocalyptic sci-fi conditions with zombies. That is when things got stupid, and that is probably why a $16 million movie made only $320,000 at the box office. Oof, that is what I call going into the red.

The dialogue was silly and I'm sure Paxton and Fishburne did the best they could, but, the snow and scenery were great. The special effects were also quite good, found out some parts were filmed at a decommissioned NORAD base. Quite spooky.

I can't really recommend The Colony, but I do want to watch The Thing and Quintet again. They did the snowy, sci-fi/horror stuff right.
 
Peter Weller, as movingtarget mentioned, definitely is distinct, think I want to watch Robocop again. I remember liking it when it first came out. (Don't want to pay an extra $3 for it though at Amazon, so will have to wait till it's offered for free.)

I've never heard of We Are Marshall, but it sounds promising. I might want to check it out as well if it's offered at no additional cost in the future. I just go through too many movies to be paying additionally for them all...

In the meantime I'm stuck watching more free, crap sci-fi flicks, case in point:

The Colony (2013) - I suppose Laurence Fishburne and Bill Paxton needed the paycheck, but, this movie had such potential. The premise itself had a lot of promise, until they combined post-apocalyptic sci-fi conditions with zombies. That is when things got stupid, and that is probably why a $16 million movie made only $320,000 at the box office. Oof, that is what I call going into the red.

The dialogue was silly and I'm sure Paxton and Fishburne did the best they could, but, the snow and scenery were great. The special effects were also quite good, found out some parts were filmed at a decommissioned NORAD base. Quite spooky.

I can't really recommend The Colony, but I do want to watch The Thing and Quintet again. They did the snowy, sci-fi/horror stuff right.


Agreed. He is. Always enjoyed Robocop. When I was in high school we had 2 cops who patrolled the halls, and the one (a big black cop) whom all the students really liked, we all called Robocop. No clue what his real name was, but he loved it that we called him that.

Check it out if you get a chance. It's worth watching.

If you haven't yet, invest in a Roku. There are plenty of free "channels" on it and some are movie channels. There are some good movies at different times on those as well. The Roku is only an initial investment plus it allows you to watch at least some of the streaming services directly on your TV.
 
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Peter Weller, as movingtarget mentioned, definitely is distinct, think I want to watch Robocop again. I remember liking it when it first came out. (Don't want to pay an extra $3 for it though at Amazon, so will have to wait till it's offered for free.)

I've never heard of We Are Marshall, but it sounds promising. I might want to check it out as well if it's offered at no additional cost in the future. I just go through too many movies to be paying additionally for them all...

In the meantime I'm stuck watching more free, crap sci-fi flicks, case in point:

The Colony (2013) - I suppose Laurence Fishburne and Bill Paxton needed the paycheck, but, this movie had such potential. The premise itself had a lot of promise, until they combined post-apocalyptic sci-fi conditions with zombies. That is when things got stupid, and that is probably why a $16 million movie made only $320,000 at the box office. Oof, that is what I call going into the red.

The dialogue was silly and I'm sure Paxton and Fishburne did the best they could, but, the snow and scenery were great. The special effects were also quite good, found out some parts were filmed at a decommissioned NORAD base. Quite spooky.

I can't really recommend The Colony, but I do want to watch The Thing and Quintet again. They did the snowy, sci-fi/horror stuff right.
Peter Weller also has a distinct voice and has been in quite a few cult movies.

Don't think I have seen the Colony but Fishburne has made some bad movies over the years. I liked Event Horizon when it first came out but when I last watched it I couldn't stand it. I remember seeing Quintet years ago and thought it was interesting I re-watched the 1950s version of The Thing and enjoyed it but the John Carpenter version was something else. Probably the great sci /horror movie of the 80s, with Alien released in 1979 it was a good period for sci fi and horror movies just as VHS was taking off. I saw the latest version of The Thing, released about seven years ago I think. Quite good, owed a lot to the Carpenter movie but without the big gory, special effects scenes, and probably with budget restrictions as well. It was supposed to be a prequel from the Norwegian side of things as at the start of the Carpenter movie, the Norwegians have already been infected. Nice performances from the two leads as well.

As far as bad movies go, Ghosts From Mars was a terrible John Carpenter movie. He made some classics such as Halloween and The Thing and some other interesting efforts but he made some clunkers in the latter part of his career. The Fog was quite good also. Some people swear by Big Trouble In Little China but I don't remember seeing the entire movie. Escape From New York was okay but I think it's been overrated. Escape from LA was pretty bad.
 
I agree the Thing and the newest "prequel" was good. Escape from New York is still watchable. I still have no clue how anyone can sit through Escape from LA. One of the Sci-Fi/horror type movies from that era I like is "They Live". That's the one with Roddy Pipper. There's a good fight scene. Also it's' the one where if you put on special glasses you can see the different subliminal messages and the aliens.
 
I agree the Thing and the newest "prequel" was good. Escape from New York is still watchable. I still have no clue how anyone can sit through Escape from LA. One of the Sci-Fi/horror type movies from that era I like is "They Live". That's the one with Roddy Pipper. There's a good fight scene. Also it's' the one where if you put on special glasses you can see the different subliminal messages and the aliens.
Yeah They Live wasn't bad at all. Escape From LA was a dog of course.
 
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MLK day. So, if you have not seen it, Just Mercy is a must see true story that took place in the 1980's about one man's wrongful conviction of a murder he did not commit, and the fight to free him from death row and his incarceration. MB Jordan and Jamie Foxx, were outstanding, & Nelson was good in a support role. Sadly, this kind of thing still occurs today, which is mainly why I say this is a must see film. The legal system is only as good as the integrity of the people sitting in positions (low or high) of power who's duty it is to uphold the law, truth, and justice.
 
If you haven't yet, invest in a Roku. There are plenty of free "channels" on it and some are movie channels. There are some good movies at different times on those as well. The Roku is only an initial investment plus it allows you to watch at least some of the streaming services directly on your TV.
Thanks for reminding me of the Roku channels, I have the Roku stick, but totally forgot about the channels. I found some free movies I can put on my viewing list. :)

In the meantime I watched more sci-fi, this one I think is a hidden gem.

Infinity Chamber (2016) - Only 7,000 posters at IMDb gave it a rating, it doesn't even have a wiki entry. But with what appears to be a shoestring budget (only $125,000 is listed in IMDb's trivia section - how is that even possible?), I thought it was an interesting concept. Most of the time you have only one actor talking to a computer... the script was a bit muddled, but it kept me curious as to how things would end. If you can check it out, I disagree with the ratings it got.

Futureworld (1976) - This movie's poor ratings I don't disagree with, it just did not need to be made. Westworld was great, but Futureworld was just barely running on steam.
 
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Thanks for reminding me of the Roku channels, I have the Roku stick, but totally forgot about the channels. I found some free movies I can put on my viewing list. :)

In the meantime I watched more sci-fi, this one I think is a hidden gem.

Infinity Chamber (2016) - Only 7,000 posters at IMDb gave it a rating, it doesn't even have a wiki entry. But with what appears to be a shoestring budget (only $125,000 is listed in IMDb's trivia section - how is that even possible?), I thought it was an interesting concept. Most of the time you have only one actor talking to a computer... the script was a bit muddled, but it kept me curious as to how things would end. If you can check it out, I disagree with the ratings it got.

Futureworld (1976) - This movie's poor ratings I don't disagree with, it just did not need to be made. Westworld was great, but Futureworld was just barely running on steam.


You're welcome.

I've not heard of Infinity Chamber, however sounds like it has some ideas from a movie called Moon. (2009) It's one person and a computer on the Moon. It's an interesting film. If you can find it somewhere, check it out.
 
Thanks for reminding me of the Roku channels, I have the Roku stick, but totally forgot about the channels. I found some free movies I can put on my viewing list. :)

In the meantime I watched more sci-fi, this one I think is a hidden gem.

Infinity Chamber (2016) - Only 7,000 posters at IMDb gave it a rating, it doesn't even have a wiki entry. But with what appears to be a shoestring budget (only $125,000 is listed in IMDb's trivia section - how is that even possible?), I thought it was an interesting concept. Most of the time you have only one actor talking to a computer... the script was a bit muddled, but it kept me curious as to how things would end. If you can check it out, I disagree with the ratings it got.

Futureworld (1976) - This movie's poor ratings I don't disagree with, it just did not need to be made. Westworld was great, but Futureworld was just barely running on steam.
Yes Futureworld was a major disappointment after Westworld.
 
Yes Futureworld was a major disappointment after Westworld.
Futureworld was so superfluous, it was just a rehash where there wasn't really anything new to add to the story. Maybe they were just trying to cash in on the success of Westworld, that's the feeling I get.

------

In the meantime, and about 23 years late, I finally got around to watching Contact (1997) last night.

I would consider Contact a genuine Hollywood blockbuster - with its star power, epic length, special effects, and even decent acting and script it definitely showed its huge budget and reason for popularity.

I think it's a good movie, but maybe a little too much to absorb all at once... if I was younger I'd probably be in the mood for intellectualizing about its various messages about science, religion, politics, the meaning of life, etc., but seeing as I'm too lazy for that nowadays I'll just say I was entertained at the very least.

I did think the last part started to drag -- why was there a congressional grilling of Ellie's space/time voyage? The Detroit automakers hearings some years back made sense (those hearings were pretty amusing, actually), but I don't recall scientists being called in front of congress for questioning regarding scientific discoveries. I would have just cut that whole scene, anyway, I was starting to get restless.
 
Futureworld was so superfluous, it was just a rehash where there wasn't really anything new to add to the story. Maybe they were just trying to cash in on the success of Westworld, that's the feeling I get.

------

In the meantime, and about 23 years late, I finally got around to watching Contact (1997) last night.

I would consider Contact a genuine Hollywood blockbuster - with its star power, epic length, special effects, and even decent acting and script it definitely showed its huge budget and reason for popularity.

I think it's a good movie, but maybe a little too much to absorb all at once... if I was younger I'd probably be in the mood for intellectualizing about its various messages about science, religion, politics, the meaning of life, etc., but seeing as I'm too lazy for that nowadays I'll just say I was entertained at the very least.

I did think the last part started to drag -- why was there a congressional grilling of Ellie's space/time voyage? The Detroit automakers hearings some years back made sense (those hearings were pretty amusing, actually), but I don't recall scientists being called in front of congress for questioning regarding scientific discoveries. I would have just cut that whole scene, anyway, I was starting to get restless.
Have to admit I'm not the biggest Jodie Foster fan but she was fine in Contact. I agree that the movie dragged towards the end. Some great visuals and John Hurt was good. For me the ideas were more interesting than the movie. I think Foster's best movies were The Accused, Silence of The Lambs and Taxi Driver although for me the book of Silence of The Lambs was better than the movie.
 
I did think the last part started to drag -- why was there a congressional grilling of Ellie's space/time voyage?
I thought the same thing. A congressional inquiry into how the taxpayer funded project got sabotaged would make sense, but why have such a show about what happened to the guinea pig who used the non-govt made "transporter"?
Likewise, it never seemed clear as to why Wood's character was so hell bent on discrediting her and forcing her to say she was a liar.
I was surprised that Foster's character seemed to have no idea about the footage length from the camera too - would think that with her involvement, she'd have checked it herself once accused of making the whole thing up, just like any other prudent scientist would
 
You're welcome.

I've not heard of Infinity Chamber, however sounds like it has some ideas from a movie called Moon. (2009) It's one person and a computer on the Moon. It's an interesting film. If you can find it somewhere, check it out.
I had seen Moon recently, thought it was even more convoluted than Infinity Chamber. I found the latter more enjoyable because even just the set was much simpler - at only $125,000 it would have to be. :tearsofjoy:

-----

In the meantime I was able to dig up Robocop (1987) on the webs...

Despite the blood and gore I did find some of the humor genuinely witty. I don't think I could watch it in an actual theater nowadays because I wouldn't be able to turn down the volume when all the shooting and explosions are taking place (I'd have to bring my own earplugs), but for the TV it's still fun viewing.
 
I had seen Moon recently, thought it was even more convoluted than Infinity Chamber. I found the latter more enjoyable because even just the set was much simpler - at only $125,000 it would have to be. :tearsofjoy:

-----

In the meantime I was able to dig up Robocop (1987) on the webs...

Despite the blood and gore I did find some of the humor genuinely witty. I don't think I could watch it in an actual theater nowadays because I wouldn't be able to turn down the volume when all the shooting and explosions are taking place (I'd have to bring my own earplugs), but for the TV it's still fun viewing.
:tearsofjoy: yea it would have to be a simpler set at that budget.
 
The only McConaughey movies I like (or remember) would be Sahara and We Are Marshall. We Are Marshall is a good telling of the story in which their football team (minus one coach) was killed in a plane crash and the rebuilding of their football program. Good story, and as close to accurate as you're going to get from a Hollywood movie that isn't a documentary. (My husband has a friend [and former boss] whom is from where Marshall is and his friend's wife is also from that area. Although they were teens at the time, they vividly remember the crash and aftermath.)

Interesting about Peter Weller, had no idea. I basically remember him most from Robocop.
McConaughey was pretty good in A Time to Kill, not a great movie, but a good performance by him. According to himself he started doing all those rom-coms because the money was really good, but after a while it became really hard for him to get other roles.
Speaking of 80ies movies, I still have a soft spot for the original Highlander movie. Yes, it's cheesy af, but I like it.
 
McConaughey was pretty good in A Time to Kill, not a great movie, but a good performance by him. According to himself he started doing all those rom-coms because the money was really good, but after a while it became really hard for him to get other roles.
Speaking of 80ies movies, I still have a soft spot for the original Highlander movie. Yes, it's cheesy af, but I like it.
Yeah I liked Highlander but the sequel was a letdown as a lot of them are..............Lambert was in some interesting movies for a while there but then disappeared.
 
Speaking of 80ies movies, I still have a soft spot for the original Highlander movie. Yes, it's cheesy af, but I like it.
There can be only ONE!

I love the original Highlander, even have the DVD special edition whatchamacallit. It's such a fun movie.

-----

In the meantime I've watched a whole bunch of movies since my last post, but would only like to address one that I'm wondering if you guys have heard of.

Peeping Tom (1960) - I only found out about this psychological thriller because I read somewhere that it's one of Scorsese's favorites, so naturally I had to check it out.

Back in the 60s it caused quite an uproar because of the subject matter (voyeurism, sadomasochism, serial murders), the movie had been pulled from the theaters in merely a few days and the director, Michael Powell, had pretty much been blacklisted. I think it still holds up though, it's more akin to Psycho than to some gory, cheesy slasher flick.

It also has some funny moments because some scenes show a movie being filmed (I'm sure Scorsese could relate to that), so if you haven't yet check it out.

On a completely different note - somehow I stumbled onto this reddit thread where they talk about how movies in theaters are being shown these days... they don't use projectors and film reels anymore? Hm, you learn something new every day.

reddit.com/r/movies/comments/3tdmhs/this_is_how_movies_are_delivered_to_your_local/
 
There can be only ONE!

I love the original Highlander, even have the DVD special edition whatchamacallit. It's such a fun movie.

-----

In the meantime I've watched a whole bunch of movies since my last post, but would only like to address one that I'm wondering if you guys have heard of.

Peeping Tom (1960) - I only found out about this psychological thriller because I read somewhere that it's one of Scorsese's favorites, so naturally I had to check it out.

Back in the 60s it caused quite an uproar because of the subject matter (voyeurism, sadomasochism, serial murders), the movie had been pulled from the theaters in merely a few days and the director, Michael Powell, had pretty much been blacklisted. I think it still holds up though, it's more akin to Psycho than to some gory, cheesy slasher flick.

It also has some funny moments because some scenes show a movie being filmed (I'm sure Scorsese could relate to that), so if you haven't yet check it out.

On a completely different note - somehow I stumbled onto this reddit thread where they talk about how movies in theaters are being shown these days... they don't use projectors and film reels anymore? Hm, you learn something new every day.

reddit.com/r/movies/comments/3tdmhs/this_is_how_movies_are_delivered_to_your_local/
Adapt or die it seems. Always the way with cinemas.

Peeping Tom was an obscure cult movie until Martin Scorsese started to champion it and it was re-released on the festival circuit and also given a VHS and DVD release. I liked it and it was a daring movie for the time but unfortunately it ruined the career of the director Michael Powell. It received a lot of negative reviews at the time and ened up being banned in some places. Interestingly the Hitchcock movie Psycho was also released around the same time and also suffered badly with many critics but today is considered one of his best movies. Peeping Tom definitely influnced the boom to follow in slasher movies as did Psycho. I thought both movies were very good but Peeping Tom was the more low budget production which kind of helped the look of the film. With the changes in society the film was much better received on re-release.

Hitchcock also made Frenzy about eight years later which was probably even more risky and also a good movie but more melodramatic. Michael Powell after a very well regarded career pre Peeping Tom only made one or two more movies a long time later with little attention paid . His earlier movies are worth checking out and are very diverse in style and daring for the time. The Red Shoes would probably be the most famous one. Stairway To Heaven was also very good but there are others as well.
 
Adapt or die it seems. Always the way with cinemas.

Peeping Tom was an obscure cult movie until Martin Scorsese started to champion it and it was re-released on the festival circuit and also given a VHS and DVD release. I liked it and it was a daring movie for the time but unfortunately it ruined the career of the director Michael Powell. It received a lot of negative reviews at the time and ened up being banned in some places. Interestingly the Hitchcock movie Psycho was also released around the same time and also suffered badly with many critics but today is considered one of his best movies. Peeping Tom definitely influnced the boom to follow in slasher movies as did Psycho. I thought both movies were very good but Peeping Tom was the more low budget production which kind of helped the look of the film. With the changes in society the film was much better received on re-release.

Hitchcock also made Frenzy about eight years later which was probably even more risky and also a good movie but more melodramatic. Michael Powell after a very well regarded career pre Peeping Tom only made one or two more movies a long time later with little attention paid . His earlier movies are worth checking out and are very diverse in style and daring for the time. The Red Shoes would probably be the most famous one. Stairway To Heaven was also very good but there are others as well.
Have you seen The Ipcress File (1965)?

I'm afraid I haven't the pleasure yet.
 

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