What Movie Did You Just Watch

[Peanutbutter]

Just now finally got the chance to watch G.I. Joe: Retaliation with my mom. It wasn't one of the best actions ever, but it was decent. I liked that there was more character development in this one. Some of the action scenes were good, but jumping camera made others a bit bland. I really liked whoever played Firefly, he stole the show in this for me. My mom said she liked it. I didn't hate the first one, but this one was better.

[Avaitor]

It looks like TCM got the rights back to Hitch's Universal films, as they're airing a bunch of his movies basically all of Sunday. No Vertigo, but they are putting on Psycho, The Birds, Shadow of a Doubt, and some other great ones. Even a couple of his silent films later at night.

If you've got nothing to do on Sunday, bam.

[Avaitor]

I'm almost done with Batman Returns.

What a strange little movie. I enjoyed it, but I honestly couldn't tell you how much.

[LumRanmaYasha]

I've watched three movies in the last week, and I might as well talk about 'em.

Last Friday I finally got around to watching Urusei Yatsura: The Final Chapter. It's an adaption of the final 11 chapters of the manga, so it's not like the plot was anything new to me, but dammit, I still got feels from the film. The emotional core centers around Lum and Ataru's relationship, and tests how much they really feel for each other, and also the relationship and friendships of everyone in the cast as well. And really, that was the perfect way to cap off the series. Ataru and Lum's relationship wasn't supposed to go to any concrete conclusion, but the film ended things at an obvious resolution to how  strongly they do care about each other, and even if some call it a "non-ending," I think it's probably one of the best endings that could have been written for the series. And it was really funny in classic Urusei Yatsura style, too, so I thoroughly enjoyed it, and because I'm pretty biased when it comes to stuff I really like, the movie has a pretty inflated place on my favorite movies list. Still, any Urusei Yatsura fan would and is probably pleased with the movie, and even if it isn't as inventive as Beautiful Dreamer it's still one of the best shonen manga-based anime movies I've ever seen, and as a whole  the entire Urusei Yatsura film series is composed of great anime movies that, while to best enjoy them you need to be familiar with and like the series, stand far above your typical shonen anime movie quality and are simply legitimately good films. Now that I'm done with the movies I'll try to go through the entire anime as well, mostly because this really is one of my favorite mangas and the films stand as some of the best anime films I've seen, so I'll can't rest until I've seen all the franchise has to offer. 


Last Thursday I saw Lee Daniels' The Butler. I think the usage of a man's, or rather - a family's, experiences through life living through the civil rights struggle under several presidential administrations was effectively developed and portrayed, and I found it an interesting story overall. I think the core of the movie, a man's developing understanding of what it takes to achieve equality and his relationship with his son through trying times, was quite well done and emotional, so I was satisfied with the journey by the end. I think it's a good film that's worth checking out if you wan't something different from the typical action flick or raunchy comedy.

...And speaking of comedies, today I watched The World's End, which was a riot. I enjoy smart, witty comedies and this was a breath of fresh air after a summer devoid of them. It's twist is completely out of left field, but the movie succeeds in suspending your disbelief of it by tying the twist in with Gary's struggle to move on in his life and past his idealized youth, and because of the connection and chemistry he has with his old friends. The twist also succeeds by being developed interestingly and explained somewhat reasonably, and in the big climax lead to an absolutely hilarious, and subversive, sequence, with a great ending I didn't even think they'd go for. Overall this was one of the highlights of my movie-watching experience this summer, Urusei Yatsura 4: Lum the Forever and Urusei Yatsura 5: The Final Chapter being the other strongest ones, and I'm glad I finally got to watch a nice, over the top but sincere comedy like this after a long, long time. 

[Rynnec]

Ghost Rider.

A movie about a bounty hunter biker-demon with a flaming skull head should not be that boring.

[Daxdiv]

Sounds like Nicolas Cage at work to me.

[Rynnec]

I couldn't feel Cage as Ghost Rider at all, and I'm not even that familiar with the character or his history.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Fun Fact: Ghost Rider is my most hated comic-book film ever. Now, to be clear, there are much worse comic-book movies out there, but the difference here is that I actually paid money to see Ghost Rider in theaters. I actively wasted my time and money on this piece of shit, and absolutely hated every second of it, so I have a personal grudge against this film. I mean, even other bad films like X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Transformers didn't actually bore me to near death since they were at least bad in a way that was kind of amusing to make fun of (and the former had some admittedly cool action scenes), but Ghost Rider just failed on every single level. Believe it or not, I heard that the sequel's even worse, but obviously I never bothered watching it (honestly, I can't even believe the movie even got a sequel to begin with).

[Avaitor]

So, what does everyone think about the second one?

[Rynnec]

With GR's premise, I was expecting a campy, over-the-top, fast-paced action/horror movie. Instead I got a movie with erratic pacing, half-assed fight scenes, boring romantic drama with shallow characters, and a crappy climax and ending(why they didn't have Carter Slide fight alongside Johnny against Blackheart is anyone's guess). Also, fuck them for not using Blackheart's comic design.

If any Marvel movie franchise needed a reboot, it's this stinker.

[Lord Il]

So, what does everyone think about the second one?

One word: Bile. Calling it garbage would be too kind.

The first Ghost Rider was just a so-so watch for me.  It was... interesting that they had both the bike and Peter Fonda along from Easy Rider in this movie. The only scene that still gives me goosebumps to this day (and there is hardly anything that does this!) was the first detailed motorcycle transformation scene. That was actually badass.

The second movie shouldn't have ever been released. It was a boring, unlikable snorefest. Possibly the first movie I've seen in the theater where I wanted my money back.

[Angus]

I almost went to The Birds 50th anniversary festival for Labor Day weekend, but ended up just settling with watching the movie. It starts really slowly but once they attack it gets fun.

[Angus]

Can I watch the second Ghost Rider without having seen the first one?

[Rynnec]

Just watched Ghost Rider Spirit of Vengeance. Overall, while it's not a good movie, I thought it was way more entertaining than the first one. There are quite a few bad scenes, but at least they were hilariously bad as opposed to boring as fuck. Cage wasn't quite as a bore, and I thought Idris Elba was good too. About the only things I think the first movie did better was the motorcycle, and the jacket. The fact that it has GR setting more people on fire also helps heighten my overall opinion.

As for watching it without seeing the original: the only characters from Ghost Rider 1 that appear in the sequel are Johnny Blaze and Mephisto, if that helps any, and there's a recap at the beginning explaining GR's origin.

[The Shadow Gentleman]

I watched Pan's Labyrinth, End of Evangelion, and the Seventh Seal today.

Yup.