What are you watching?

Last night (revisited) ::

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* A John Woo's classic which was the international point of his unique style (slow-mo action in the air and white birds; doves).
This flick is violent, extremely bloody (over exaggerated of course), and needs to be viewed in its original Cantonese tongue.

This Blu-ray version is a disgrace (picture wise). ...And the Criterion DVD is not much better.
This flick is in extreme need of a better transfer. But I don't know if they have a source to do so.
My guess is this: It would be too costly just for a cult following.

Not for everyone, obviously. ...Still, a classic for many.
 
War of the Worlds (2005)

We know now that in the early years of the 20[SUP]th[/SUP] century, Morgan Freeman will make a fortune narrating the beginning of movies.

I originally saw this movie on DVD and the first thing I noticed was that the colors were off. It looked like old “indoor” film being shot “outdoors.” I thought it was a bad DVD. I know that this was intentional; the colors were deliberately exaggerated for effect.

Both the sound and the video get five out of five ratings. This movie had more coming out of my sub-woofers and surrounds than any movie before it. The visuals were impressive too.

Too bad the movie was only a 2.5 out of four star rating.

First, since Hollywood has run out of ideas when they make a classic that had a great and surprising ending, I wish they come up with ANOTHER great ending before they start filming. The recent Planet of the Apes and Manchurian Candidate fail are examples of that sort of failure.
Big Macs. Once they attacked McDonalds it was all over. So we just sit and wait as a billion people are killed.

In some ways we can say this was a squeal to the George Pal production, not a remake. Here the Martians did not come to Earth and attack, they were already here, buried under the ground for some time. Where they here since 1955? And of course, Gene Barry, cameos at the end. We are never told in the picture if this has or hasn’t happened before, so this could be a continuation.

I am not a fan of Tom Cruise and I simply did not like his character here. However, his daughter, played by Dakota Fanning, was so loud and obnoxious I wanted to tell the Martians where she was. So it’s hard to watch them being chased by Marvin Martian and you are rooting for the Martians.

There was no intrigue or intelligence in this movie as there was in the original. There was no puzzle to figure out, nothing on an intellectual level at all. It was kind of a two hour chase movie that seemed to be put together rather quickly. That why the Martians were already here and there was not great set pieces, just great special effects.
 
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.

In many ways this movie is a visual treat. It starts Gwyneth Paltrow as a troubleshooting reporter during the Art Deco times on the late 1930s. Jude Law is the Sky Captain and Angelina Jolie is Nick Fury, er, Frankie. Sadly there is no lossless sound here; you have choice between Dolby 5.1 or DTS 5.1, which I used. So picture quality gets five stars, audio four.images.jpgSuperman-Mechanical-Monsters.jpg

This adventure movie was shot mostly in front of a blue screen where computer animation added virtually everything later. There is not much of a plot to discuss, this more of an adventure taking you from cliffhanger to corny cliffhanger, with impossible feats of daring.

This is a comic book movie too. The plots and the characters are truly lifted out of the comics. The opening sequence is lifted from the Max Fleischer Superman cartoon entitled, “The Metal Monsters.” These monsters attack the big City and the Sky Captain is called in for the rescue. Later, Polly and the Sky Captain try to discover why famous scientists are missing. They are being used to create, “The World of Tomorrow.”

Angelina Jolie’s eye patch and Helicarrier are lifted from Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD (and a star of the Avengers movie).

The movie held my interest for the first half because the visuals were so much fun. But as the plot got into space travel and the destruction of the Earth, it kind of lost us.
Sky-Captain_1616846c.jpgNick Fury Clock.jpg
The bonus features show the six minute short that was used to sell the picture and a lot of the behind the scenes making which was really very interesting.
 
Lefisc said:
It needs pot be on a double feature with "My Dinner with Andre"
Click to expand...

That along with 'The Cook, the Thief, his Wife, and her Lover'.

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Bob,

I wanted to take some time a respond to a post you made. Doctors don’t like to use the word “normal” much anymore for things that are psychological and even physical. 98.7 degrees is “normal” but 98.6 is Ok too for many people. “Normal” originally used to mean “common” or “most common” but, especially for emotional conditions it began to be interpreted as “healthy.” And not normal as “unhealthy” rather than not “common.”

Oh course, people attracted to this site would consider spending hundred grand on Audio/Video common or healthy. Other people might consider this excessive. Of course we may consider spending that much money on a car, comic book, a painting or redoing a kitchen going over the top.

But here is the thing. First we live in a very affluent country and many people have the money for these things. My neighbor would never buy a HT like I have, but spent $65,000 on an outdoor swimming pool, something I would not do. So if you have the money and you live well, then that’s okay.

The problem is with the people who don’t have the money. Or people obsessed with their “stuff.” I have actually met a few people who live in virtual poverty, surrounded by the items they want to collect. They don’t have food, decent furniture and have given up having healthy relationships with other people, but they have their “stuff.” That’s not normal.

I do have a limit to how much money I put into my system. I do find it occasionally difficult to come to these sites and keep reading about “better” stuff because I am occasionally tempted.

PS I have never downloaded or “stolen” movies. My “outside” sources originally have been Beta and then VHS, Laser Disc, DVD and now Blu Ray. I also have the complete movie package from Verizon on cable. I have never used Video on Demand, I can wait for HBO. And I still go to the movie theatre.

A major surprise for me is that Amazon allows me to get a great many movies “used.” And they are as good as new for half price. So recently I got the blu rays of Driving Miss Daisy and 42 that way.
 
Lefisc said:
Bob,

I wanted to take some time a respond to a post you made. Doctors don’t like to use the word “normal” much anymore for things that are psychological and even physical. 98.7 degrees is “normal” but 98.6 is Ok too for many people. “Normal” originally used to mean “common” or “most common” but, especially for emotional conditions it began to be interpreted as “healthy.” And not normal as “unhealthy” rather than not “common.”

Oh course, people attracted to this site would consider spending hundred grand on Audio/Video common or healthy. Other people might consider this excessive. Of course we may consider spending that much money on a car, comic book, a painting or redoing a kitchen going over the top.

But here is the thing. First we live in a very affluent country and many people have the money for these things. My neighbor would never buy a HT like I have, but spent $65,000 on an outdoor swimming pool, something I would not do. So if you have the money and you live well, then that’s okay.

The problem is with the people who don’t have the money. Or people obsessed with their “stuff.” I have actually met a few people who live in virtual poverty, surrounded by the items they want to collect. They don’t have food, decent furniture and have given up having healthy relationships with other people, but they have their “stuff.” That’s not normal.

I do have a limit to how much money I put into my system. I do find it occasionally difficult to come to these sites and keep reading about “better” stuff because I am occasionally tempted.

PS I have never downloaded or “stolen” movies. My “outside” sources originally have been Beta and then VHS, Laser Disc, DVD and now Blu Ray. I also have the complete movie package from Verizon on cable. I have never used Video on Demand, I can wait for HBO. And I still go to the movie theatre.

A major surprise for me is that Amazon allows me to get a great many movies “used.” And they are as good as new for half price. So recently I got the blu rays of Driving Miss Daisy and 42 that way.
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That is a great post Barry. And I agree entirely with you.

"Normal"; for me is actually "meaningful". ...A meaningful lifestyle. ...Fruitful, beneficial socially, with our entire environment.

It don't matter to me if we're very rich or very poor; if our life is meaningful, whatever we possess, and not, has no more value than what it provides meaningfully.

We're all here among ourselves, good friends, because we enjoy the Music, and the Movies.
If we didn't (or would be less inclined to), we'll probably be at some other forums in Photography, Cars, Motorcycles, Sailing Boats, Mixing Pro Recordists, Musicians, Paintings, Hollywood lifestyle of the rich and famous, Mademoiselle Forum, Victoria, Vogue, Fortune, Facebook, Twitter, and the entire world warp drive that animates the universal population, including subjects involving religion, sex, politics, economics, wars, history, and all that jazz.

That's right; normal means 'meaningful'. ...To me. ...And I ain't a doctor. :)
 
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* I watched the 3D version.

-> Star Trek is 47-years old! ...That's right, and I feel like a six-year old child in a 66-year old armor suit (skin).
Some cult culture (Hollywood & all) are super big into Star Trek; they even dress exactly like the Star Trek cast for close to 47 years! ...Well 30 years for sure. That's cool, and I'm cool with that too. :cool:

But you'll still have my honest opinion regarding my own personal 3D viewing experience (entertainment) on 'Star Trek - Into Darkness' from the Blu-ray disc.

For me it simply didn't do it!
- Movie: 2.5 (out of 5). ...Story? Which story? ...And the acting sucks! ...The best actor is the bad guy!
...But the young blond girl is cute (in her black bikini; very brief, two seconds). :)

- Picture (3D): Too fast, too shaky (& those horizontal 'flashing' lights from the cameras!), too much CGI = 2.5
(Colors aren't natural, they are too "spatial".)

- Sound: Too loud at times, too fake, too recreated = 2.5 (In space there is no sound!) ...Do you have a sub or two?
...Then you might want to check the dynamics (sound pressure in decibels), plus the low extensions (in Hertz); perhaps it'll make a better movie? ;)

- Special Features: I don't know, I extremely rarely watch them (Just no time in this very short life.) ...No score (N/A)

- Overall: 2.0 ...Why? Because that's me, that's why. ...No true entertaining effort without any positive life (plot) development deserves minus 0.5 overall in my book.

Yesterday was, today is, tomorrow will be.
 
Bob,

Your post about Star Trek is one of the reasons I like this site. Honest to Gosh, I am a member of a Home Theater site and when someone disagreed with my opinion of Star Trek, he called me names and other things! I enjoyed the movie, but it was nothing special or original. Not even the dialogue which they often borrowed from Star Trek II and III

I agree with you. I didn’t like the photography that seemed to show the spacecraft’s inches from each other and not miles. And shaking!

And I didn’t like it when they showed dozens of people thrown from the crafts into the vacuum of space. And then nobody mentions it. No one cared, not even their captain.

Jerry Goldsmith did the score of the first ST movie and his soundtrack was beautiful. We have now lost that in movies. I want to write a piece on that. John Williams did wonderful music for Superman, Danny Elfman did a haunting score to Batman (1989). Do you even remember the themes to the remakes this year?

I may watch the special features tonight.

The big deal is that I did buy the Hobbit (in 3D) and I just don’t ever seem to be in the mood to turn on the three hour movie.

Oh, I am a Yankee fan and now that they are back in it I do watch some of the game!
 
lllll No more comment on 'Star Trek: Into Darkness'? ...By other members?

Barry, 'The Hobbit', 2D and 3D sucks! ...Just not my cup-a-tea! ...But I love LOTREE trilogy. :heart:

* The last three Batman (Christopher Nolan) movies: The musical scores by Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard; those are just fine in my book. :) ...Beats Star Trek by a very large football space field (roughly three thousand light years long).
 
Bob,

I realize all the time what an “embarrassment of riches” I now have. That I (really) grew up without any money is not the point.

Just over twenty years ago, I had injured by back and had to stay home for about eight or nine months. Queens NY did not yet have cable although the rest of the world had it since the 1970s, I could watch only terrible shows during the day and maybe a baseball game at night (The local stations only showed have the games.). I never liked the image on video tape, but I could not get out to a rental place if I wanted to. There was no internet, no Amazon, no nothing, but I was able to purchase, not rent, by phone and mail, some laser discs, which were expensive at the time. The hard part was finding out what movies were out there, there was no internet. I couldn’t make it to the book store or library. And the NY Times did not deliver to my neighborhood; I had to get Newsday, a good but local paper.

I remember that period because a lot of the times things were boring.

Everything today has changed:

I think, on cable, I have 50 movie channels. I get EVERY Yankee and Met game and a thousand others. I can order a movie from Amazon at 20% or less than the Laser price in today’s money and sometimes get them used even cheaper. But I can get onto the internet and see everything that’s out there. And that includes books and music. I get both Newsday and the Times on my Ipad without ever leaving the house or even opening my front door.

There is just more of everything, it’s more assessable and, really it’s cheaper.

So last night, a rainy night here I decided to stay home. I saw the dull and worthless bonus features on the Star Trek disc, read a newspaper, saw the Yankee/Baltimore game and peeked into The Boston/Tampa game and read Carl Reiner’s autobiography which came yesterday.

PS Shopping was hard at that earlier time, but now, major supermarkets here have home delivery. You go “down aisles” on their internet site, click what you want, and they deliver to your door for a $5-$10 fee. I have used the service in the winter when I am basically snowed in. Wow, what a difference.
 
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