Instead of actually retorting, you pretty much just repeated the same things...no character development, no dialogue, no subplots. Why were you so disappointed that it left out all the war cliches? Did you really want an extra 30 minutes of the soldiers talking about their wives and montages of them in bootcamp? Did you really want the two main characters to be hero 101 and coward 101? Again, you completely missed the point, it executed exactly what it was trying to execute. Notice how there were no emphasis on the hero and the coward and how where were no stars of the show? That's because you were supposed to see all the cast members as one, just regular dudes called into war and just trying to survive. Now you can make a point that Tom Hardy's character and the old man on the rescue boat were heroes, but there were was superhuman about their abilities, they didn't storm the beach and take out 100 Nazis without getting hit.
No, Nolan decided to cast Hardy for a reason, and that's because you can feel his emotions so well with his face hidden, ala Bane. Actually, the acting from everyone was great, what made the French kid so great was because you made sure to pay extra attention to him since he wouldn't speak, you knew he was always thinking one step ahead to survive and he was smart, and you were very intrigued on what his next move would be. If you can't see good acting without dialogue, then maybe you aren't the film student you try to make yourself out to be.
The editing was fine to me and I wasn't confused, so I don't know what to tell you. They lay out the 3 timelines for you at the very beginning of the movie, maybe you weren't paying attention. I will say the sea timeline with the old man that brought his son was probably the weakest part of the film, but it was still necessary, it really brought out a conflict of interest (with Cillian Murphy's character), and it was to show you, even though war brings out the animalistic nature in us (like the scene where Harry Styles started freaking out in the boat and wanted to sacrifice someone), it can also humanize us more, like when the old man's son lied to Cillian Murphy at the end about his friend dying because he was able to still feel compassion towards him.
How was the target practice scene ridiculous? Some bored Germans see what looks like an abandoned ship and think there might be hidden soldiers inside, then they hear commotion after they started firing and start firing some more. As for you complaining on how the Germans were attacking, think about it, they know these soldiers are hiding out on the beach and completely surrounded with a few plans and boats....why send out all their tanks and destroyers when they can just pick them off from the air.
There was no sense of danger? Uhh, the opening scene, the scene where the pilot is in the water and can't break the glass, the scene when they are trapped in the submarine, the target practice scene, it was so well shot and really made you feel claustrophobic. The whole movie made you feel like a race against time.
Funny thing is the soundtrack is one of the strong elements of the film and really helped carry it, it's no Intersteller where you'll be jamming to it on your ipod after the movie, but it did its part, which was make every peril scene more intense, it almost gave it a horror movie vibe like someone being chased by a masked killer with a big knife. But I know why you hated it, you wanted some sad epic song playing in the background while the president is giving a speech and everyone is looking up into the sunset, and you didn't get that. Boohoo.
How exactly was the last plane sequence stupid?
As far as Oscars, if the Oscars get it right, it should be in the running for:
Best Picture, Best Director, Sound Editing, and Cinematography.
Funny how you say people that like this movie already had a pre-conceived notion, when you already have a pre-conceived notion yourself. If you didn't watch this movie and would have read my review, you would have already forced yourself to hate it because you hate "artsy fartsy."
So... when you can note ALL the reasons why a movie isn't very good, I've learned the only response is:
"Did you want it to be a cliche war movie?"... jesus f'n christ...
I mean. A cliche' war movie would have been a vast improvement, honestly.
Watching clothes dry is more interesting than this film.
"Did you want it to be a cliche war movie?"... jesus f'n christ...
I mean. A cliche' war movie would have been a vast improvement, honestly.
Watching clothes dry is more interesting than this film.
And you say I don't like "artsy fartsy". I love artsy fartsy IF there's substance.
If I'm merely watching for pretty pictures- there are FAR better options out there for that.
I also love that I'm being said to be "repeating"... well, then give me an Oscar because this film repeated itself over and over and over again and you loved it.
How the last plane sequence was stupid? It was cartoony as hell. He just floated randomly for... an eternity. Sorry, planes don't work like that. Beyond that, he miraculously somehow ends up behind the attacking plane?? It was terribly executed. Especially when earlier in the film, the guy is locked on to a plane.... and doesn't even fire until he loses sight again (another dumb moment)
This is essentially Transformers for the people that think they're too good for Transformers. "MANNN YOU JUST WANT EXPLOSIONS AND NO PLOT OR EMOTIONAL CORE!".... to which I say "MANNN YOU JUST WANT A PRETTY CANVAS WITH NO PLOT OR EMOTIONAL CORE!"
If I'm merely watching for pretty pictures- there are FAR better options out there for that.
I also love that I'm being said to be "repeating"... well, then give me an Oscar because this film repeated itself over and over and over again and you loved it.
How the last plane sequence was stupid? It was cartoony as hell. He just floated randomly for... an eternity. Sorry, planes don't work like that. Beyond that, he miraculously somehow ends up behind the attacking plane?? It was terribly executed. Especially when earlier in the film, the guy is locked on to a plane.... and doesn't even fire until he loses sight again (another dumb moment)
This is essentially Transformers for the people that think they're too good for Transformers. "MANNN YOU JUST WANT EXPLOSIONS AND NO PLOT OR EMOTIONAL CORE!".... to which I say "MANNN YOU JUST WANT A PRETTY CANVAS WITH NO PLOT OR EMOTIONAL CORE!"
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I'm glad I did some searching to see that a ton of other people agree with me. Far more than I expected.
This in short, though:
"Two fighters planes came by to attack 400K soldiers...........need I say more? I will, those planes attacked, the soldiers scattered, they then got back in line like nothing happened. overrated."
This in short, though:
"Two fighters planes came by to attack 400K soldiers...........need I say more? I will, those planes attacked, the soldiers scattered, they then got back in line like nothing happened. overrated."
Contagion
pretty real good movie. I was excited when Paltrow died so early and I am always happy to see Fishburn in anything, plus a Cranston appearance. But Paltrow just kept showing up... Oh well overall a pretty real good movie, but I doubt society would last a week much less 4 or 5 months
Amazon original, "Elvis and Nixon" (or vice versa, dunno)
Based on true story, Elvis goes to the White House in an Alex Jones-esque fit of self-important delusional paranoia. Michael Shannon's Elvis is lazy and uninspiring at first and graduates to full on cartoonish by the end. In stark contrast to this is Kevin Spacey's amazingly spot-on and seemingly effortless Nixon.
Fun stuff.
Based on true story, Elvis goes to the White House in an Alex Jones-esque fit of self-important delusional paranoia. Michael Shannon's Elvis is lazy and uninspiring at first and graduates to full on cartoonish by the end. In stark contrast to this is Kevin Spacey's amazingly spot-on and seemingly effortless Nixon.
Fun stuff.
saw that recently too, I wasn't expecting how graphic it was considering the actors in the film and it was advertised as focusing on heroics
Didn't like it. I think the story is great but I didn't like Garfield or at least the entirety of his story in the movie and I actually thought there was a bit of "cheesy-ness" to it. Like the part where he hides in the Japanese hole. I'm sure that detail isn't far off from reality, but it almost felt comical there.
I will say that Saving Private Ryan was done so well, the bar may just be tough to reach.
Oh and Vince Vaughn as a "tough guy". I don't buy it, not even in the slightest. He's forever Average Joe now.
Agreed. Pearl Harbor could have been one of the best WW2 movies but it was way to long with the extra character stories that I think they actually left out too much of what happened during the attack and even the aftermath.
I don't think that's entirely fair. Not every movie that is adapted from a book, real story, or comic should explain every detail for everyone.
I haven't seen it yet but would like to and I will research a little ahead of time because I'm not familiar with it but I am interested in WW2 in general so this doesn't feel like some task.
I only chime in to say that some of the comic adaptations need some sort of understanding of what happened in the comic to piece together all the interactions in the movies. I'll say the Nick Fury character in general has almost zero explanation in The Avengers but if you have even minimal comic knowledge, you can figure out what he's about.
For comparison sake, Pearl Harbor is one of the most documented battles in the history of WW2 so it's hard to not know at least a little about it before the movies. Dunkirk, not so much. A little research may be required.
I read every word of your response and actually want to see the movie a little more now. Looked good in the previews already.
Eh. Fair enough.
What I DO know about Dunkirk was:
Atonement did it better in 5 minutes than Dudkirk did in 2 hours.
But after we watch the film... shouldn't we kind of have an idea of what happened without reading it?
Essentially, this movie could have been entirely silent and just drone footage.
I guess- overall, it comes down to personal taste. I need substance in a film. I'm a visual artist- but a film should be more. I want a story. I want a beginning. I want an end- and I want it to seem like there's a conflict before we reach that end. This was basically like watching people wait in line at a grocery store- and at the end, you're like "Oh. Cool. They checked out and went home. Wee."
Some people can just watch pretty pictures and that's enough for them. Not me. I think that aspect is important- but if you don't have more than that- make it a short film. This one could have been done in 20 minutes with the same ending effect.
I had a similar take on the movie. It was fun and entertaining but it could have been a lot better.
Hoping the rest of these MonsterVerse movies will at least stay this entertaining.
And that gas mask scene...
Watched "Founder" today. Michael Keaton delivers as usual. Good story; ambiguous narrative about whether Ray Kroc was good or bad.
Finally saw "The Girl With All The Gifts". As usual, the British take an American concept and turn it up to 11. Not flawless though; plot had to resort to having a few people who should know better making really bad decisions. Interesting resolution though; takes the sting out ofnthe dumb parts.
Saw Dunkirk yesterday and it was awesome. Not for the faint of heart, the entire movie has you feeling tense. I actually checked my fitbit a couple times throughout the movie just to check if my heart rate had actually risen. Music throughout the movie gives it almost a Jaws feeling.
While you're watching 3 different time lines, the ending ties them together very well.
While you're watching 3 different time lines, the ending ties them together very well.
You were checking your fitbit. I was checking my watch.
The exact opposite of intense.
Difference with scoring in Jaws, was there was an actual threat and sense of danger to accompany the music.
Shark, dive bombing fighters, I think those both qualify as threats.
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