rachel on 14/12/2022 at 22:26
Quote Posted by rachel
a clash of fantasy, part I: House of DragonsKind of a dud really. I didn't find that it gave a proper introduction to its own universe. It glossed over a half a dozen different protagonists very quickly, which reduced them to basic archetypes without much depth and what's left then is just stereotypes holding together a story that seems like a rehash of other, better things. For a show that has the added handicap of being a prequel, with a set future already in place, they would have benefited from making the premiere half an hour longer to give everyone proper screen time. I also wasn't impressed by the various performances; most, without going as far as saying wooden, felt pretty stiff and forced, and Smith's scenery chewing makes him look excessively hammy in contrast. So overall, I felt the first two episodes were fairly superficial, with the second becoming predictable to the point of cliché, and while I will check out the rest I can't say I'm confident that it's going to get better...
The quality of the CGI seemed way down compared to GoT, which is surprising. It's not quite season-finale-of-
Wheel-of-Time bad, but I expected way better from a top-tier 2022 HBO show. CGI aside, I give it points for the photography, set designs and costumes.
My main beef is that it feels like a show built exclusively for GoT fans/aficionados, and that's cool when you're creating fanfics, but less cool when it's a show that will be an introduction to Westeros for some... Nobody will go through 8 seasons of GoT just to watch this, but you'd kinda have to to follow this premiere, and that's before getting into all of the above.
Verdict: Dragonfire is petering out in universe... and out.
a clash of fantasy, part II: The Rings of PowerRight away, the
Rings of Power premiere already feels much much better than HoD. Roughly the same length but more balanced narration, with characters that feel more fleshed out and layered... Note: in terms of lore, I'm not familiar with the LOTR expanded universe except in small very generic areas (i.e. if pushed I could namedrop a couple of big players I guess) There is a variety of POVs throughout both episodes, and each really sets its piece of the puzzle to establish both the various parties in play and the primary threat. I'm pretty sure
the guy who dropped from the sky is Gandalf?? Loved loved loved everything about Khazad Dum.
RoP feels much less dark and oppressive than HoD, no small feat when you got an underground mining city, but again, grittiness is after all a hallmark of GoT. It's cool too that while we know Elrond and Galadriel we actually don't, these two here are thousands of years before LOTR and practically junior among elves. This is going to be interesting. The weaker part is probably the Arondir and Bronwyn arc, I don't feel much chemistry in their performance when together, but separately both are pretty good. Bronwyn and Galadriel are pretty badass.
All in all I really liked it, it recaptures the beauties and mysteries of Middle Earth like LOTR did, and it's absolutely gorgeous to watch.
Verdict: Forth Eorlingas!
For the record, I ended up DNF'ing both shows after a few episodes. Not worth it.
Yakoob on 15/12/2022 at 07:16
Just finished Severance. Really great series. Bitch of a cliffhanger.
Tocky on 23/12/2022 at 04:26
I watched that. I can't wait for it to pick up again.
I was casting about for something to watch when I saw the trailer for The Devils Hour. What caught me was when a character said they remembered the future. They didn't say they were clairvoyant. They said they remembered the future. Ah Jesus, that is exactly the way I feel. I've lived this life before. Not everything is exactly the same and more is different as time goes on and different choices are made but this is my best life. This is the one where things work out for those I love. Mostly I can't see what is to come so mostly this is bullshit. But every now and then something strikes true. It makes me think I'm on the right path. I gave my daughter a security camera setup for Christmas. I hope this is the deterrent needed. But am I certain? I don't remember. That worries me.
One of the main characters in this short series does. He remembers. A couple of the others remember fragments as I do. He remembers all. And it isn't exactly a blessing. Maybe that's why not remembering all is a blessing.
In any event it's a clever play on the feeling of deja vu.
Also what is it about waking at 3:33? I've done that many times as has my wife.
demagogue on 22/1/2023 at 05:29
So the movie Hereditary is a mind fuck. If you've seen Ari Aster's other movie Midsommor, then you'll know what you're in for. I don't think I liked it because in the end it was pretty dark spirited. But it was definitely a powerhouse of a movie and a good model of alt-horror. It dredged up a lot of emotion, and not cheaply; but squirm-in-your-seat authentically. It also had some legit pretty funny moments.
I'm still glad I watched it. It breaks away from the norm, and I can honestly say I couldn't imagine where it was going, but it's still able to drag a person down with it to the utter depths.
Cipheron on 30/1/2023 at 06:38
I've had some time to kill recently, so have been going through my movie backlog. These were all very good:
Monster, 2003. Went into this one completely blind, after having seen it recommended somewhere. That made for some interesting viewing, and afterwards, reading up on the backstory to this film. Not knowing anything about this definitely added something that would have been lost if I knew about the source material to start with.
Sophie's Choice. I only knew it had Meryl Streep in it and that it vaguely had something to do with Holocaust survivors. Definitely an experience that left me in a mood for a while after that film ended.
Network. I'd seen clips from this, but didn't know the plot outline. Damn good movie.
Apollo 13. Good suspenseful movie, follows the real life events pretty well.
The Abyss, James Cameron. I caught a little of this on TV back in the day but didn't really invest attention into it for whatever reason. I wasn't sure I was gonna like it but it was definitely a good movie, overall. The one thing I *really* didn't like was the ending. There's a lot of heavy-handed author's exposition and a deus ex machina ending. Nobody needs a long-winded author's tract about environmental ills or the threat of nuclear war. James Cameron really dropped the ball on the "show, don't tell" thing here. Perhaps because most of this was added in post-production for the Director's Cut.
henke on 30/1/2023 at 11:14
Haven't watched a lot of drama shows lately, but I devoured
Wu Tang: An American Saga S1 & S2 over the last weeks, watching 2 eps per night. If you like stories about artists creating music and trying to break into the music industry, this is a good one! A lot of it is fictionalized, tho based on real events. S1 mainly deals with Bobby Diggs journey to becoming the RZA as he tries to break free from the drug game and pursue his passion for making music. Only towards the end of the season does the Wu Tang start coming together, and S2 deals with the actual creation of Enter the Wu Tang: 36 Chambers. The strongest episode is perhaps S1E8, which follows Bobby in his initial trials and tribulations in the music industry as Prince Rakeem. The final season starts airing next month, and I'm looking forward to it!
Quote Posted by demagogue
So the movie
Hereditary is a mind fuck. If you've seen Ari Aster's other movie Midsommor, then you'll know what you're in for. I don't think I liked it because in the end it was pretty dark spirited.
Yeah same, I didn't like it either. It's a well made movie, but I don't feel like I really got anything out of it besides an extremely unpleasant feeling. Haven't watched Midsommar as a result.
rachel on 30/1/2023 at 12:55
Quote Posted by Cipheron
The Abyss, James Cameron. I caught a little of this on TV back in the day but didn't really invest attention into it for whatever reason. I wasn't sure I was gonna like it but it was definitely a good movie, overall. The one thing I *really* didn't like was the ending. There's a lot of
heavy-handed author's exposition and a
deus ex machina ending. Nobody needs a
long-winded author's tract about environmental ills or the threat of nuclear war. James Cameron really dropped the ball on the "
show, don't tell" thing here. Perhaps because most of this was added in post-production for the Director's Cut.
I feel that way about all the Director's Cuts of Cameron movies that I've seen (
T2,
Aliens and
The Abyss). The theatrical cut is better.
Harvester on 30/1/2023 at 16:08
Quote Posted by henke
Yeah same, I didn't like it either. It's a well made movie, but I don't feel like I really got anything out of it besides an extremely unpleasant feeling. Haven't watched Midsommar as a result.
I liked Hereditary and Midsommar. A dark spirited movie that made me feel a little unpleasant was The VVitch. Now what's all the rage are the Terrifier movies, a different kind of dark spirited I guess but I'm giving those movies a wide berth.
heywood on 30/1/2023 at 16:54
I like James Cameron, but the theatrical cut of The Abyss is a textbook bad example of using a deus ex machina to end a film. I saw it in the theater as a teenager and felt ripped off, because he used up all the screen time without finishing the story. It played out like a typical disaster movie right up until the end. I couldn't understand why he didn't end it like one. Years later, my wife rented the special edition. After watching that, I understood that Cameron wasn't trying to make a disaster movie, he was trying to make an anti-nuke parable inspired by The Day the Earth Stood Still. But it's too long, too full of tropes, and too preachy. I would never have bought a ticket for it, so I understand why it wasn't released that way.
I don't know if anybody remembers SeaQuest DSV from the 90s. It's basically Star Trek underwater, starring Roy Scheider. When I'm occasionally in the mood for underwater sci-fi with a healthy dose of idealism, I watch an episode of that.