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      CommentAuthorRalph Kruhm
    • CommentTimeMar 8th 2018 edited
    I think A Song of Ice and Fire is the perfect example of a well-developed world where several great stories happen at the very same time and you still can't stop thinking about what else might be happening down this or that road. A rare mix of excellent world-building and coherent storyline.
  1. I began reading the first novel three times and then abandoned it. It's not for me it seems. I can't really say why.

    Volker
    Bach's music is vibrant and inspired.
    • CommentAuthorjb1234
    • CommentTimeMar 9th 2018
    Watched Happy Death Day. The movie gets increasingly contrived in its second half but remains pretty entertaining. Bear McCreary's score is a major asset.
  2. Event Horizon (1997)

    This is my third favourite horror science fiction film, bested only by ALIEN and ALIENS. It's a direct descendant of ALIEN, in fact it's a hybrid of ALIEN, ODYSSEY 2010 and THE BLACK HOLE.
    I love the cast, Sam Neill and Lawrence Fishburn being two of my favourite actors. I also love the production design. The clandestine interior of the Lewis and Clark, that harkens back directly to the Nostromo as opposed to the Byzantine design of the Event Horizon.
    All this comes with strong Lovecraft-ish overtones.
    The film was butchered in post production and trimmed from 135 to 95 minutes. However the comparatively short running time makes for a compact and dense story. I think that is one of the film's assets.
    The score by Kamen (!) / Orbital is a somewhat trying affair away from the film, but in context it's very effective.

    smile Volker
    Bach's music is vibrant and inspired.
  3. "The score by Camen"

    Kamen.
    The views and opinions of Ford A. Thaxton are his own and do not necessarily reflect the ones of ANYONE else.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeMar 11th 2018
    Captain Future wrote
    Event Horizon (1997)

    This is my third favourite horror science fiction film, bested only by ALIEN and ALIENS. It's a direct descendant of ALIEN, in fact it's a hybrid of ALIEN, ODYSSEY 2010 and THE BLACK HOLE.
    I love the cast, Sam Neill and Lawrence Fishburn being two of my favourite actors. I also love the production design. The clandestine interior of the Lewis and Clark, that harkens back directly to the Nostromo as opposed to the Byzantine design of the Event Horizon.
    All this comes with strong Lovecraft-ish overtones.
    The film was butchered in post production and trimmed from 135 to 95 minutes. However the comparatively short running time makes for a compact and dense story. I think that is one of the film's assets.
    The score by Camen / Orbital is a somewhat trying affair away from the film, but in context it's very effective.

    smile Volker


    Absolutely fantastic film. And score.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorLSH
    • CommentTimeMar 11th 2018
    THE DEATH OF STALIN dir. Armando Iannucci

    Imagine The Thick Of It set during Stalin's Russia. That's enough of a selling point but it's all you need to know! Absolutely brilliant.
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      CommentAuthorsdtom
    • CommentTimeMar 11th 2018
    THE LODGER (1944)

    It's a Hugo Friedhofer score, one of my favorite composers. A well told tale of Jack the Ripper. Very enjoyable for me.
    listen to more classical music!
  4. Thor: Ragnarok

    Well, it had to happen eventually. But after all this time I've discovered what's the worst Marvel film to date. And who knew it would be for Thor. Then again, Thor 3 is not a Thor movie, this feels more like Guardians of the Galaxy without the Groots and all. Man, it wasn't even interesting. And Cate Blanchett's character didn't do a goddamn thing either. And Loki (usually the saving grace of the Thor franchise) was painstakingly uninspiring. Though I appreciated the Avengers joke between Hulk, Loki and Thor (a brief moment of some humor)

    Bah

    5 out of 10
    waaaaaahhhhhhhh!!! Where's my nut? arrrghhhhhhh
  5. It didn't have Groot, but it did have Korg, and also the Jeff Goldblumiest Jeff Goldblum performance I've ever seen. cheesy
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeMar 12th 2018
    Thor Ragnarok was excellent. Marvel did the right thing to make it an all-out comedy, since the previous Thor films were bland as hell.
    • CommentAuthorTimmer
    • CommentTimeMar 12th 2018
    I would have liked a bit more balance between the comedic elements and serious, it is Ragnarok afterall. Still, I thought the film was brilliant fun, loved the Thor/Hulk interaction and Goldblum was indeed at his Goldblumiest and loved the Korg character voiced by the director Waititi. In the top 5 Marvel films for me.
    On Friday I ate a lot of dust and appeared orange near the end of the day ~ Bregt
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeMar 12th 2018
    Thomas Glorieux wrote
    Thor: Ragnarok

    Well, it had to happen eventually. But after all this time I've discovered what's the worst Marvel film to date. And who knew it would be for Thor. Then again, Thor 3 is not a Thor movie, this feels more like Guardians of the Galaxy without the Groots and all. Man, it wasn't even interesting. And Cate Blanchett's character didn't do a goddamn thing either. And Loki (usually the saving grace of the Thor franchise) was painstakingly uninspiring. Though I appreciated the Avengers joke between Hulk, Loki and Thor (a brief moment of some humor)

    Bah

    5 out of 10


    Glad to find someone else who thought this was the worst marvel movie so far. I was honestly shocked at the positive critical reception for this. It seems critics are going pretty easy on the blockbusters these days.
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
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      CommentAuthorSouthall
    • CommentTimeMar 12th 2018
    I haven't seen it yet. Thought the first two Thor films were terrible and so was the recent Spider-Man one. If it's more like Guardians of the Galaxy then I will probably like it (thought both of those were great!)
    • CommentAuthorjb1234
    • CommentTimeMar 12th 2018
    I thought it was the most entertaining Marvel film I've seen in quite some time. You just can't take it seriously.
    • CommentAuthorjb1234
    • CommentTimeMar 14th 2018
    Watched Gernika because I was curious to see how Velazquez's 25 minute cue for the finale was through-composed or just a bunch of edited together cues. Well, it's definitely through-composed, admirably so.

    (It's also very undermixed but I guess that's par for the course these days.)

    The film itself is one of the most depressing things I've seen in ages. Appropriately given the subject but definitely not something I want to see again.
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      CommentAuthorSouthall
    • CommentTimeMar 15th 2018
    Get Out

    A decent enough film for its genre but I wouldn't want to watch it again. I can understand it winning Best Screenplay at the Oscars, but only in the circumstance that the voters didn't watch any other films that year.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeMar 15th 2018
    Southall wrote
    Get Out

    A decent enough film for its genre but I wouldn't want to watch it again. I can understand it winning Best Screenplay at the Oscars, but only in the circumstance that the voters didn't watch any other films that year.


    He, he....I agree with you. Never understood what the big deal was about this film.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeMar 15th 2018
    Just watched Alex Garland's ANNIHILATION on Netflix. Twice. Once yesterday, and one today -- as I'm preparing my review of the film. So yes, I really liked it. It's nowhere near the masterpiece level of EX MACHINA, but still bloody good. And I love how Garland continues to explore his visual and thematic ideas from EX.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorSouthall
    • CommentTimeMar 15th 2018
    Can't wait to see that (but I will have to, since I don't have Netflix). Loved Ex Machina.
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeMar 15th 2018 edited
    Thor wrote
    Just watched Alex Garland's ANNIHILATION on Netflix. Twice. Once yesterday, and one today -- as I'm preparing my review of the film. So yes, I really liked it. It's nowhere near the masterpiece level of EX MACHINA, but still bloody good. And I love how Garland continues to explore his visual and thematic ideas from EX.


    I think EX MACHINA is a really good example of a masterpiece.

    "Masterpieces" were traditionally pieces of art produced to gain entrance into a guild; a perfect exercise by a master, not just "a really good piece of art". EX MACHINA is a perfect film, each variable meticulously controlled. It is like a technically accomplished virtuoso violinist, even if it isn't subjectively enjoyable or emotional to everyone, it's construction and execution are essentially flawless.
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.
  6. Thor wrote
    Southall wrote
    Get Out

    A decent enough film for its genre but I wouldn't want to watch it again. I can understand it winning Best Screenplay at the Oscars, but only in the circumstance that the voters didn't watch any other films that year.


    He, he....I agree with you. Never understood what the big deal was about this film.


    thank you, I don't think it's that brilliant at all. It's a good movie on itself, but somehow it just feels like a normal film when you come to the end credits.
    waaaaaahhhhhhhh!!! Where's my nut? arrrghhhhhhh
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeMar 16th 2018
    My issue is rather that what it wants to say in terms of social commentary is forced and contrived.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeMar 18th 2018
    Star Wars: The Last Jedi

    I guess the worst thing about this is how bland and forgettable it is. I was expecting it to be bad, but I was hoping it would at least be entertainingly bad.

    The whole problem with these Disney Star Wars films is how they're marketing them as Star Wars for a new, younger generation (particularly females). But you can't recreate that same magic, only ape it. That's why these will not be remembered in the same light as the originals because they rely on the originals so much.

    They just suck. Even the score is fluff.
  7. My students are lukewarm about the new episode films. Because the rely so much on the original trilogy they will fail to create a new generation of Star Wars fans. I contrast to the prequels. Like them or not, they did create their own fan base among the younger audience. Point in case is the toy merchandise that went over the top when The Force Awakens was released but failed to sell. Sure that has to do with kids playing with virtual toys nowadays but it is an indicator anyway. Those new characters don't inspire kids to invent their own stories.

    Volker
    Bach's music is vibrant and inspired.
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      CommentAuthorSteven
    • CommentTimeMar 18th 2018
    I mean, you can't go wrong with space ships, lightsabers and Stormtroopers when it comes to kids, so of course a fan base will emerge. But yeah, even I'm looking back on the prequels favorably in light of these Disney Star Wars films...
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeMar 18th 2018 edited
    I really like the films (TFA came in on my 3rd place of the year, TLJ on 14th), but I don't care for the scores very much. TLJ less so than TFA, which at least had "Rey's Theme" and "March of the Resistance". TLJ has basically nothing.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorSouthall
    • CommentTimeMar 18th 2018
    Loved both of them. Made me feel like a kid again.
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      CommentAuthorThor
    • CommentTimeMar 18th 2018
    Not sure about 'making me feel like a kid again', but I think they (and especially TFA) have the perfect balance between nostalgia and new, visionary features.
    I am extremely serious.
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      CommentAuthorAidabaida
    • CommentTimeMar 19th 2018 edited
    Steven wrote
    Star Wars: The Last Jedi

    The whole problem with these Disney Star Wars films is how they're marketing them as Star Wars for a new, younger generation (particularly females).


    ...and doing an excellent job of it. I'm the younger generation, wasn't much interested in Star Wars, these new films have roped me in. I really think they've done a good job. The Last Jedi had plenty of flaws, but I think that's part of what I liked about it. The film didn't seem run by a committee ensuring every element was perfectly balanced. This was Rian Johnson's film, full of Rian Johnson's ideas. Some were bad, some were really, really good.

    For all the complaints about Disney's Star Wars relying on nostalgia, it's the old fans that are rejecting it, and the younger ones that are enjoying it.
    Bach's music is heartless and robotic.