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Post by kds on Jan 23, 2019 13:14:40 GMT -5
I agree with quite a bit of this, kds. Since you've preceded me out of the closet, it's now safe for me to say that having grown up in the 80s, I love Bon Jovi. Sure it's mostly cheese but what's wrong with that. We part ways over The Who though: I saw them in Hyde park in the mid-90s with Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and Alanis Morrisette (yeah well, you can't have everything) but I've always thought they were kinda over-rated. I would've loved a Peanuts movie in the old Peanuts style as well (didn't see the 2015 movie because it looked so depressingly computer-y). Have you seen Nick Park's earlier animations? He didn't make a good transition into film in my view, but the original short films, A Grand Day Out, The Wrong Trousers etc were a pure delight. I'm not sure how far they made it out of Britain. I'm a big Bon Jovi fan, and I'll take so called "cheese" over the pretentious and overly serious rock music that followed in the 1990s. On The Who, I know they got some mixed reviews about their live performances in 1989 and their 1996-97 tours, but when they stripped down to a five piece unit in 1999, they put on some great shows again, which were actually compared to their glory days. That's basically a long way to say I hope you're not judging them on a late era live appearance.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2019 21:05:58 GMT -5
I have a soft spot for Jackie Brown. Never get tired of that movie. Is it Tarantino's dark horse?
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2019 21:38:36 GMT -5
My favorite is Pulp Fiction. Its such a tightly written script and has great pacing. I like QTs new films too but they have a lot of issues with editing in my opinion.
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Post by kds on Jan 23, 2019 21:44:30 GMT -5
My favorite is Pulp Fiction. Its such a tightly written script and has great pacing. I like QTs new films too but they have a lot of issues with editing in my opinion. I actually meant to post about Pulp Fiction. I think its a good movie, but I think its way overrated, and I think that about QT in general. I feel like he tries too hard to make his movies cool and quotable, if that makes sense.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2019 22:29:23 GMT -5
I actually meant to post about Pulp Fiction. I think its a good movie, but I think its way overrated, and I think that about QT in general. I feel like he tries too hard to make his movies cool and quotable, if that makes sense. It absolutely makes sense. One of my misgivings with QT's post Jackie Brown output is that he tries too hard to recapture the snappy quotable dialogue of Pulp Fiction. In Pulp, it felt very natural. Almost every single line felt like a real thing someone would say in that situation as opposed to a forced dramatic line or lame catch phrase. It ended up being quotable because it was so real, and the only other film I can say that for off the top of my head is Casablanca. I feel like Pulp was lightning in a bottle, the screenplay did a lot of interesting things with the medium which hadn't been done before, or at least not often. Since Kill Bill. I feel like he's been trying to recapture that excitement and "cool" factor but with diminishing returns.
KB tries to mix up narrative structure in the way PF did but it feels less inspired. In PF the subplots are sequenced in a way to show Vincent Vega's tragic continuation of a bad lifestyle and ends with the realization that he had a perfect moment to leave but didn't heed the call. In KB, what's the point of the extended Oren flashback in anime, especially when the main antagonists--Bill and Elle (Eye Patch girl) don't get anywhere near the same attention. The two volumes are completely out of balance, with all the talking and emotion in Vol 2 while Vol 1 has all the action. It's a good two-part saga as is, but if it had been edited down into a 2-3 hour epic with an intermission it could have been so much better. Another pet peeve of mine is the dialogue tries waaay too hard to recapture that snazzy PF quality but it feels forced. "Silly rabbit, tricks are for kids" doesn't even make sense in context and sounds like someone trying to do a QT moment. "For us to be even, like even steven..." is not something people are going to quote like "I'm gonna get medieval on your ass" or "royale with cheese." Inglorious Basterds and Django have the same problems. There's scenes which slow everything down and should have been cut (especially the last 20 minutes of Django) and dialogue that feels like someone trying to write like QT as opposed to the effortless charm of PF (especially the Mexican standoff conversation in Basterds.) They're still really good, but they're exhausting to watch while PF and Reservoir Dogs fly by. The Basterds are irrelevant in their own movie since Shoshanna would have killed all the nazis in the theater anyway, and just getting a swastika carved on his head doesn't feel like a satisfying end for Hans Landa. Hateful Eight is a mess. It desperately needed a rewrite and a slimming down of at least a half hour or so. The "twist" felt like a rookie's idea of a great reveal, not a supposed genius like QT. Having a man waiting below in the cellar means the whole movie doesn't make sense, since the bad guys outnumbered the two bounty hunters coming in and had the element of surprise. So why didn't they just kill Sam Jackson and the Hangman immediately? Why allow themselves to be disarmed by the Hangman, ruining their advantage? Why are there like 3 different scenes of the Hangman telling everyone he's taking Daisy in to be hung/warning them not to interfere? Who the hell edited this thing? It's a shame about Eight, especially because I was really intrigued by the idea of a 12 Angry Men setup, with a room full of people who hate each other, only with guns. Since the characters all had different backgrounds, there could have been some cool interplay between them and their different outlooks...but if everyone except the bounty hunters is just an outlaw in the same gang, that fascinating, original dynamic is lost. Also, QT pitched a big fit about getting this movie made in 70mm film, but there's no need if it's just going to take place in one claustrophobic room. Was that a misdirect? Ironic? QT trying to feel like a bigshot artiste with no knowledge of what 70mm is meant for (sweeping widescreen shots to emphasize vast locations)? I suspect it's the last one, as I no longer believe QT has the self-awareness capable of the former. I truly don't mind violence in movies, but the final image of them stringing up Daisy was disgusting. Sometimes less is more, and that final image felt like way too much. There's been some disturbing revelations about QT the last few years. Apparently he strangled Diane (von Hammmersmark) in Basterds himself. He forced Uma to do a dangerous car stunt she didn't want to do in KB, just to get a quick ten second shot of her from the back. She's been permanently in pain ever since that crash. With these bits of info in mind, that final Daisy scene (and all the over the top beating and abuse she suffers up to that point) felt really gross, like he has some kind of sick fetish for this kind of thing. Making a movie about the Sharon Tate murder felt really disrespectful to me already, but with all this in mind it's even more inappropriate.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 24, 2019 5:08:52 GMT -5
jk Im actually not sure what, if any, movies satisfy that criterion.
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Post by kds on Jan 24, 2019 9:12:44 GMT -5
This summer will mark the 30th Anniversary of Ghostbusters II, which is a sequel that I think deserves a second look. I feel like it sometimes gets maligned by fans, and even some of the actors. Sure, they tailored the movie a little more for kids (well, except for that genuinely creepy subway scene), and it kinda followed the formula of the original, but it's definitely a good movie, and IMO, worthy sequel.
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Post by E on Jan 29, 2019 2:04:24 GMT -5
I have a soft spot for Jackie Brown. Never get tired of that movie. Is it Tarantino's dark horse? No. I think it's one of his better films.
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Post by kds on Mar 8, 2019 8:06:56 GMT -5
Somebody began thread about John Candy, many praised him. I'm puzzled, to be frank. Films I'd seen featuring him didn't impress, his comedic skills didn't seem anything out of the ordinary. kds at SS kindly explained to me why Steve Martin is praised as comedian but can he or any John Candy fan explain what's really special about him as far as comedic skills go? Thanks in advance. He's got great comedic timing. He is perfect at playing the loveable loser role (ie. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles). He can do slapstick. But, in all honesty, if you can watch movies like Uncle Buck, Planes Trains & Automobiles, Summer Rental, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, etc etc, and you're not impressed with Candy, then nothing I say is really going to change your mind.
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Post by The Cap'n on Mar 8, 2019 9:17:31 GMT -5
I think trying to explain why something is funny is a lost cause: comedy is something you feel or don't. Explaining a joke might help it make sense, but it won't make it funny. I'd guess it's the same with comedians themselves. Anyway, it's often said that comedy often doesn't translate across cultures well because of how much the cultural context matters (above and beyond any actual words).
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Post by kds on Mar 8, 2019 9:26:30 GMT -5
I think trying to explain why something is funny is a lost cause: comedy is something you feel or don't. Explaining a joke might help it make sense, but it won't make it funny. I'd guess it's the same with comedians themselves. Anyway, it's often said that comedy often doesn't translate across cultures well because of how much the cultural context matters (above and beyond any actual words). I'd agree with that.
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Post by E on Mar 25, 2019 9:10:01 GMT -5
Stupidity is cool.
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Post by Mikie on Mar 26, 2019 14:19:44 GMT -5
1. "How do you do?" is better greeting than "Hi". 2. Greta Garbo is overrated, acting & looks wise. Ditto Hedy Lamarr. 3. French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, various Asian, Ukrainian = ugly-sounding languages. 4. Upbeat songs > downbeat songs 5. Being lefty isn't big deal 6. Ice cream = blah. 7. Suchi = what's the craze about it? Dull taste. 8. Disapprove zoos. Refuse to see poor creatures in cage as entertainment. 9. Cats better than dogs (duh). 10. Despise rabbits, disagree about their "cuteness". Look like chickens, fear to face anything. Don't respect it. 11. Frog legs when they jump slow-motion in the air/ in pics look charming, cutely-shaped, to the point I'd like to pinch too cute legs with strength. 12. Kids dull to deal with till they start to speak decipherably. Maybe people with kids can get what they even talk about in weird "baby talk". Also, kids not cute thru & thru, as in each kid, but selectively. There's many ugly. 13. Being cheapskate is cool. I'd say it's good trait. 14. Being funny isn't best trait in human beings. 15. Best luxurious yacht than typical today's celebs' = "Standart", Nikolai Romanov fam's yacht they used to get to Finland shores. 16. I. Turgenev > F. Dostoevsky. 17. L. Tolstoy = overrated. 18. Flower rose = overrated (well, except orange colored). 19. NY city is dull. 20. Like cold weather, when it keeps snowing few days. Cool. Ditto in summertime. Hate rains. 21. Synthesiser may be musically low grade than real deal but can't deny it's useful invention. As I read through this list, I was thinking many times, "Nah", "Nope", "No, I disagree with that". Then I remembered the premise of the thread.
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Post by kds on Apr 4, 2019 14:24:03 GMT -5
Van Halen's OU812 album from 1988 is an overlooked gem.
Like much of the "Van Hagar" years, it gets unfairly slammed by fans, and this one in particular, because it's probably the least heavy album in the band's catalog, but it's also a really solid album.
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Post by dauber on May 9, 2019 10:00:38 GMT -5
Syd-era Pink Floyd is best Pink Floyd HELL, YES. Roger Waters ruined the sound. Yes, Syd had to go -- he was just a big liability -- but FFS, man...why did Waters have to make them so dreary and depressing? I'll take one "Astronomy Domine" over a thousand Dark Side of the Moons any day.
For my thoughts about Forever Changes, listen to chapter 7 of Autobiography of a Schnook. But I will say this: the album sounds like someone just got a 12-string for his birthday and wants to shove it in everybody's face. I don't know if I fully agree with this - there are some pretty killer performances, like The Who, Jimi, and "I'm Going Home." I know The Grateful Dead weren't thrilled with their performance, though, and most Dead fans agree that it sucked. (I've never heard it, myself.) But in terms of putting on a music festival, to the people who ran it, it really *was* a huge disaster. Can't say I disagree with this. It wasn't until 1965 when music started truly happening that didn't sound dated.
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Post by Deleted on May 9, 2019 10:25:15 GMT -5
Peter Gabriel Genesis and Phil Collins Genesis are basically equal in quality.
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Post by kds on May 9, 2019 10:28:12 GMT -5
Peter Gabriel Genesis and Phil Collins Genesis are basically equal in quality. I agree with this, and I like both for different reasons.
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Post by Deleted on May 10, 2019 17:38:39 GMT -5
Ok, I've got one, and I guarantee it's unpopular! I can't stand the current TV network programming. I find the drama shows boring and the sit-coms very un-funny. In fact, the last comedy show I watched regularly was The Middle and I thought it was pretty entertaining, but that's been gone for a few years. I watched The Goldbergs for awhile but got burnt out on it. I'm not interested in watching a show about a barely functional family with spoiled whiney kids. And I enjoy my own memories of the 80s much more than this show. I've given other newer shows a try--including Brooklyn 99, which people tell me is hilarious--but none of it amuses me. Maybe I'm just getting old and crotchety! As I said, drama shows just strike me as boring. Some of them get really soap-opera-y. No thanks, I've got enough drama in my own life! Crime shows do nothing for me, although I was starting to get interested in Lethal Weapon after Seann William Scott joined up....but then it disappeared. Ok, so what do I watch on TV? Mostly PBS shows...traveling shows, cooking shows, science, documentaries, etc. Yep...I'm old!
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Post by filledeplage on Jul 19, 2019 8:21:18 GMT -5
Fave 5 Internet wisdoms: 1) "Be nice to people. If people will not be nice back to you - don't be nice to people"2) "Many attitudes live and let live" 3) "Fruitful decision isn't the best decision. The best decision is the best decision" 4) "Funny faces look like clown faces" 5) "Holidays can be big events. Don't start new holidays. Festivities shape everybody into chief goofs" Nah - be nice anyway. No one has to lower themselves and behave badly and change their character to not be nice. The alternative is just to ignore them without actively being not nice (mean.)
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