Now Showing - What We Watched - Page 11

With the cold weather setting in it's nice to be able to spend some time reading the posts and catching up on some movies.

Monday was Bad Boys 2. As far a sequels go this was one of the better ones I have seen. It was an obvious attempt to bring never before seen stunts and digital work to the screen equaled only by the Matrix films. Definitely had some eye candy. The plot was riddled with good comedy and one liners. Will Smith and Martin Lawrence will certainly be back for another go.

Tuesday was new release day so I had to take in League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Another eye candy flick. The plot was very thin but the line up of acting talent made it enjoyable to watch. It was a nice break from the blockbuster Marvel comic movies and the mix of fantasy/sci-fi worked well. And make sure your audio is tuned and ready. The first 10 minutes is full of deep bass that is sure to make your house shake.

Wednesday I watched A Man Apart with Vin Diesel. I have never really enjoyed a Vin Diesel movie. But this one I kinda liked. I went into it not expecting to see the stereotypical Vin Diesel movie and was pleasantly surprised. I think he needed a break and this is a step in the right direction.

I enjoy all movies and am not usually to picky so my reviews will usually not be negative unless I found it utterly disappointing. Even if a movie is half way decent I will let my self enjoy it.

Last night we watched Seabiscuit and I am amazed at how much I loved the movie. You root for the underdog and it just makes you feel good.

The movie appears to be a great transfer and the cinematography reminded me of the old Cinemascope movies.

Daniel

It's Thursday and I am a sucker for a good con.

Confidence with Ed Burns as the leading con man. Dustin Hoffman and Andy Garcia with supporting roles. Good flick. This one really shows the detailed anatomy of a good con. Who ya gonna trust, who's got the money, how did they do that....

Lately we've been goin' old school with our movie picks. We watched Jurrasic Park, T2 and finally Titanic.

We've kinda been going with a "Blockbuster" theme.

Anyone got some suggestions on what to watch next?

Pearl Harbor?

You can't go wrong with a Die Hard movie or maybe a Lethal Weapon.
The wife and I have always watched the Die Hard movies around the holidays. It's like a family tradition now.

I have to ditto Mr. Bishop's comments. I hate when I rent a movie I am not sure about that turns out to be a great movie and then just go out and buy it the next day. Sea Biscuit is a definite keeper and a great way to show off your system.

We watched League of Extraordinary Gentlemen last night.

Suspend disbelief at the door, kick back in your home theater seat, get a bowl of "King Brickie" approved popcorn, pop open a coke and enjoy the ride!

I have been a big Sean Connery fan for over thirty years and enjoyed this flick.

Daniel

PS: For a wild action movie "The Replacement Killers" always satisfies! I had never heard of Chow Yun Fat before but he has been a big chinese action hero for many years.

Last night we watched 2 movies. I was pleasantly surprised twice!

1. Shallow Hal - I had been avoinding this, fearing another sophomoric teen romp with all the gratuitous sex, violence and toilet humor ( not that there's anything wrong with sex, just gets a little boring with these teen flicks, besides, can't watch with my son in the room.), but the wife insisted. It turned out Hal was only half as "shallow" as I expected. Don't know if it was the low expectations, but I did enjoy it.

2. Seabiscuit - WOW! It is so refreshing to see a well done movie with no gimmicks to keep your interest. No guns, no explosions, no f-words every 5 seconds. Just a good story told well. Throw in an outstanding transfer and you got a winner! I rented this one, but I'll be picking it up today.

I also picked up all 3 VHS copies of the original Star Wars trilogy to watch with Gabriel (my 7-y-o) today. He has picked up a real interest in Star Wars and has been asking to see the older movies. So today, we are getting rid of mom and little sis and we are having a Star Wars marathon upstairs ( on the 60" TV, as I have no VCR connected at the HT). Should be fun. He should be waking up in the next few minutes, I'm sure he'll want to get right to business!

Gus

Last night the grandkids and grandma insisted we all watch "Finding Nemo". I chuckle every time I think of Dorrie! Each time we watch the movie I see something new to laugh about!

Daniel

My recent viewings include:

1. True Lies in HDTV from HBO. This is a personal favorite. Excellent cast, James Cameron, good fun. The HDTV transfer was nothing short of spectacular. If you have an HBO HDTV feed then don't miss it. It's on one more showing this month.

2. Orange County in HDTV from Showtime. I really wasn't expecting much out of this movie. I was of the mind that this was going to be a lot like Van Wilder, which I didn't find particularly funny. On the contrary, I was laughing my a** off with this one. I don't know what it is about Jack Black, but this guy just cracks me up. I thought he was really good in Shallow Hal as well. Great HDTV PQ and sound from this excellent Showtime HDTV transfer.

3. The Core on DVD. I've walked by this one several times at Circuit City and passed on it. I dunno, the whole premise of the movie struck me as improbable and absurd. But I was fishing for something new to watch and CC had it for $14.95, so I grabbed it and watched it couple of nights ago. I would call it mildly entertaining, though don't expect a riveting plot. The science is pretty weak, though the effects are very well done. Nice PQ and a very, very active Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. My subwoofer was working overtime in this one. The audio gets high marks. Worth a rent.

4. Solylent Green on DVD. Well, it has finally landed on DVD. I haven't seen this movie in at least 15 years and I'm happy to say it was great watching this one last night. The picture looks very good considering the movie's age and low budget. I really enjoyed Edward G. Robinson's performance in this film (it was the last movie he made, and died a few short months after the picture hit theaters).

Next Up:

1. Moulin Rouge (D-Theater)
2. X2 (D-Theater)
3. Daredevil (D-Theater)

I'll watch at least one of the above this weekend. Probably Moulin Rouge.

--Jerome

Gus,

Have you considered purchasing the Star Wars Trilogy on Laserdisc? I noticed Ebay regularly has all three LD's up for auction. PQ has got to better than VHS.

Daniel

Wasn't he in "Anna and the King" with Jodie Foster.

Yes, he co-starred in the King and I with Jodie Foster. I did not see the movie, I guess that's one more I have to add to my list of DVDs to buy.

He recently starred in "The Bulletproof Monk", sadly I was very disappointed.

Daniel

Daniel,

I would. But I don't have an LD player Don't know if it's worth fishing one out on eBay.

Gus

Watched Bruce Almighty tonight--an early Christmas present. I was surprised that I laughed through the whole thing. It was really funny. The sound was good too, with a choice of DD or DTS track. A great gift.

But the news isn't all good...it's a new Universal title, so yes it has the dreaded "forced previews," which is something that drives me absolutely nucking futs.

KP

Last night I had a chance to view "League of Extrodinary Gentlemen". Fun romp with turn of the century heros.. and evil doers... together fighting the good fight to save the world. A definite worth see... and worth buying. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

I was happy to see that Dr. Jeckyl/Mr. Hyde was not produced with CGI... this would have been a mistake that "Hulk" made. Instead, good old fashion latex and foam brought the larger than life Hyde to the screen. Fantasy! Fun!.. and Monsters!

Darren,

I'm looking forward to "League" on D-Theater. I saw the trailer and it was enough to grab my attention.

Can't wait!

--Jerome

a christmas story, last night...just good somewhat clean fun...a little but of cursing...

brickie

Unbelievable, isn't it? I caught a few minutes of the remake of Miracle on 34th Street, and couldn't believe the language. This is one that should have been left un-remade. And I remember when they made 'The Lone Ranger' movie. Who was it aimed at; kids, right? But they had to have cursing in it. And then there was the 'penis breath' line in ET. Now I use as unsavory language as the next guy, but this is the kind of crap that just doen't fit these particular movies, and in the case of ET, spoiled an otherwise wonderfully enjoyable movie, which at the time I was seeing with my mother, my wife, and my kids.

Oh yes, I agree entirely. Thank you Stephen Spielberg, for your revisionist philosophy on all your great movies. Thank you for removing the memorable "penis breath" line from ET. Thank you for inventing police without guns chasing a potentially "dangerous" alien. And finally, thank you George Lucas, for cleaning up the violent and cruel Han Solo. Greedo shoots first, forever!
(/sarcasm)

I just saw League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Didn't expect to have this much fun! definitely exceded my expectations. Action from start to finish. Effects were top notch.

Gus

My wife purchased "Santa Clause 2" for the kids and we watched it last night. The kids and my wife enjoyed it...yes I fell asleep. Spent all day in the shop putting the christmas presents together!

Daniel

Watched "League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen" and "T3" yesterday. LOEG was VERY entertaining and original. As Gus said " it exceeded my expectations". The wife also enjoyed it.

T3 was pretty good also, but most of the plot AND LINES, are rehash from the first 2 movies (not as good as either 1 or 2). The action and special effects in both LOEG AND T2 were incredible.

Based on earlier recommendation in this thread, I got the Superbit Lawrence of Arabia. I had never watched this movie before and was enthralled. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed Peter O'Toole movies. The desert scenes were like viewing a documentary from Discovery HD!

Daniel

Daniel,

I never knew the PQ on LOA was that good. I think I'll pick this up tonight and check it out.

Gus

Saturday-The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen****, Miracle on Thirty fourth Street**
Sunday- A Christmas Story***
Monday-Christmas Vacation***
Tonight- Repeat the Christmas movies while we bake poppy seed cakes and ginger bread cookies, a family tradition.

Happy Holidays to all!

Tuesday - It's a Wonderful Life.

What a great movie. I can't get through the thing with dry eyes. It makes you stop and think how lucky we are. It's probably fair to say that most of us here have been blessed - I know I have been. And for that, I am very thankful.

Merry Christmas to all my friends here at AVSforum!