Just watched this, requiem for a dream 8/10..good movie about the effects of excessive drug use..everything in moderation is what my doctor would say!

No Country For Old Men (2007) - 9
 
This is the Coen brothers at the top of their game, accumulated years of experience from past works culminate in this superb film.
Something akin to a thriller with the contours of a western and everything it inherently brings as thematic substance and plot machinery, all wrapped in a cinematic style marked by sophisticated laconism of expression.
Money, opportunism and maniac whim propel men in this theater of events, the old-timers can nothing but critically contemplate the past, present and future state of a land that is still inhabited and has the stamp of the outlaws, gunfighters and bounty hunters particular ways of living and business affairs.
We contemplate as well how the amoral and nihilistic mindset of these men relates to their actions and has consequences in the world around them and in their fates.
Some of the themes essayed in No Contry For Old Men with great aesthetical artistry and sensibility, soberness with delicious moments of dark humor typical of the Coen duo, technically excellent.
Based on a novel from Cormac McCarthy, NCFOM doesn't reach the lenghts of Haneke's Caché in expressive austherity, but nonetheless this is one of the most accomplished and interesting works of contemporary cinema I've seen from the last years... just like Caché despite both being quite different outputs.
A beautiful movie.
I may revise the rating...

kkl10 said:

  No Country For Old Men (2007) - 9
 
This is the Coen brothers at the top of their game, accumulated years of experience from past works culminate in this superb film.
Something akin to a thriller with the contours of a western and everything it inherently brings as thematic substance and plot machinery, all wrapped in a cinematic style marked by sophisticated laconism of expression.
Money, opportunism and maniac whim propel men in this theater of events, the old-timers can nothing but critically contemplate the past, present and future state of a land that is still inhabited and has the stamp of the outlaws, gunfighters and bounty hunters particular ways of living and business affairs.
We contemplate, as well, how the amoral and nihilistic mindset of these men relates to their actions and has consequences in the world around them and in their fates.
Some of the themes essayed in No Contry For Old Men with great aesthetical artistry and sensibility, soberness with delicious moments of dark humor typical of the Coen duo, technically excellent.
Based on a novel from Cormac McCarthy, NCFOM doesn't reach the lenghts of Haneke's Caché in expressive austherity, but nonetheless this is one of the most accomplished and interesting works of contemporary cinema I've seen from the last years... just like Caché despite both being quite different outputs.
A beautiful movie.
I may revise the rating...

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Been absolutely dying to re-watch this. I shall have to make time soon...

I'm also going to rewatch it as well, it's a rather dense film, every scene of it was shoot with clear intent and it stimulates for a huge amount of analysis and meaningful extrapolation.
I like it a lot and I think it's one of those movies that gets better with more views.
Some of the finest filmmaking of the last years, IMO.

metalsonata said:

   
I don't know that I'm a fan of post-modernism as a complete package, but I certainly appreciate aspects of it (literature and music especially, including direct influences that predate the 'official' emergence of the movement), and I enjoy the works of several of its most prominent philosophers (Foucault), though I enjoy them more for enjoyment's sake than out of agreement with them. 

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZVdR19E5mU

focker said:

   
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZVdR19E5mU

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Indeed.

metalsonata said:

   
Indeed.

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I'm going to have to give the book the benefit of the doubt since I haven't read it...but the movie was an absolute steamer, in my opinion. Whoever wrote the screen play just seemed to bring various elements into the film whether they made sense or not, add in a few overly dramatic scenes for effect, call it a day. Disjointed, inexplicable nonsense. 
 
"Ender's Game" - 5.8/10
 

focker said:

  I'm going to have to give the book the benefit of the doubt since I haven't read it...but the movie was an absolute steamer, in my opinion. Whoever wrote the screen play just seemed to bring various elements into the film whether they made sense or not, add in a few overly dramatic scenes for effect, call it a day. Disjointed, inexplicable nonsense. 
 
"Ender's Game" - 5.8/10
 

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Loved the book as a kid, though these days it annoys me. Still, would have liked to have seen the movie, but with it getting such mixed reviews I decided against it. Plus I didn't want to put any money into Card's hands, lol. Sounds more and more like I made the right decision! Though maybe in a moment of weakness I'll wind up checking it out from the library at some point.

metalsonata said:

   
Loved the book as a kid, though these days it annoys me. Still, would have liked to have seen the movie, but with it getting such mixed reviews I decided against it. Plus I didn't want to put any money into Card's hands, lol. Sounds more and more like I made the right decision! Though maybe in a moment of weakness I'll wind up checking it out from the library at some point.

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It does have mixed reviews - more positive than negative according to RottenTomatoes. If you add to that that many critics jumped on the "let's boycott Card's movie" band-wagon then there should be even more positive reviews.
 
I found the movie to be entertaining even despite it is being addressed at teenagers like Hunger Games and After Earth. Because I'm pretty indifferent to sci-fi genre in general ( I don't take it seriously) I find it difficult to follow why such movies or books make people excited. Therefore my judgement is based on the level of emotional engagement and I have to admit there is very little connection. But I feel that I need to stay in the global trend and watch what is fashionable with audiences. 

metalsonata said:

   
Loved the book as a kid, though these days it annoys me. Still, would have liked to have seen the movie, but with it getting such mixed reviews I decided against it. Plus I didn't want to put any money into Card's hands, lol. Sounds more and more like I made the right decision! Though maybe in a moment of weakness I'll wind up checking it out from the library at some point.

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I love sci-fi, but I was very frustrated by the film...it was almost like I had the same level of engagement as I would if someone had recently seen it and was just taking five or ten mins to explain to me what it was about and what happened. I know there are only two hours to tell the story, but other films have very successfully been able to engage the viewer AND also give enough of the back story and basis for why a character "is" or "isn't" this or that. It gave no real basis for why Ender was in fact this special, gifted prospect and why he was any different than anyone else at the space academy place. It would be like watching something like Stand and Deliver and just showing the students getting better and better grades on their exams, but skipping the scenes that indicate WHY this was taking place and HOW it came about.I also felt completely left out in the cold with regard to the "bad guys". Later in the film they ask you to take part in Ender's internal conflict over something that goes down, but given that there is absolutely no emotional (or other) investment on the part of the viewer, the construct just completely flops and fails. All it did was make me even more frustrated that I was being pulled along for the ride. 
 
I'm sure the book probably offered the information that I found absent in the film, but that's not enough of a justification for me giving the film the benefit of the doubt. 

focker said:

   
 
I love sci-fi, but I was very frustrated by the film...it was almost like I had the same level of engagement as I would if someone had recently seen it and was just taking five or ten mins to explain to me what it was about and what happened. I know there are only two hours to tell the story, but other films have very successfully been able to engage the viewer AND also give enough of the back story and basis for why a character "is" or "isn't" this or that. It gave no real basis for why Ender was in fact this special, gifted prospect and why he was any different than anyone else at the space academy place. It would be like watching something like Stand and Deliver and just showing the students getting better and better grades on their exams, but skipping the scenes that indicate WHY this was taking place and HOW it came about.I also felt completely left out in the cold with regard to the "bad guys". Later in the film they ask you to take part in Ender's internal conflict over something that goes down, but given that there is absolutely no emotional (or other) investment on the part of the viewer, the construct just completely flops and fails. All it did was make me even more frustrated that I was being pulled along for the ride. 
 
I'm sure the book probably offered the information that I found absent in the film, but that's not enough of a justification for me giving the film the benefit of the doubt. 

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To be honest, I think most of the problems you had with the film are inherent to the source material. Ender is easy to identify with when you're young (as are most young protagonists when you are young), but reading it now is awkward, uncomfortable, and very unsatisfying. I think it's a real shame that the best children's/teen fantasy (yeah, I lump sci-fi and fantasy into the same boat for the most part, deal with it!) I've encountered only managed to produce one film, and man, talk about unsatisfying. (The Golden Compass.)

Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the USS Indianapolis - 8.5/10
 
Do you remember the story about this in Jaws? Well, it's true. I think this is a TV movie of it but it's really good!
The ship got hit by a torpedo and sank within 20 minutes. 900 went into the sea and only 317 made it back after 4 days lost at sea.
Apparently the navy never knew it was missing because you were not supposed to record when a ship arrived back to port during WWII (a security thing).
The ship should have had an escort. It was actually the ship responsible for transferring the atom bombs and this was the return trip.
 
The Fighting Seabees - 1944 - 5.5/10
 
Racist WWII era propaganda. I might as well have just watched an old cowboys and Indians movie because it was just as bad.
They portrayed the Japanese as buck-toothed sadists that laughed every time they were about to shoot anyone.
I would say in terms of racism of WWII movies this might be the worst i've seen yet (#2 was "Destination Tokyo").
BTW this is an early John Wayne movie.

tdockweiler said:

   
They portrayed the Japanese as buck-toothed sadists that laughed every time they were about to shoot anyone.
 

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?? What lol

focker said:

   
 
I love sci-fi, but I was very frustrated by the film...it was almost like I had the same level of engagement as I would if someone had recently seen it and was just taking five or ten mins to explain to me what it was about and what happened. I know there are only two hours to tell the story, but other films have very successfully been able to engage the viewer AND also give enough of the back story and basis for why a character "is" or "isn't" this or that. It gave no real basis for why Ender was in fact this special, gifted prospect and why he was any different than anyone else at the space academy place. It would be like watching something like Stand and Deliver and just showing the students getting better and better grades on their exams, but skipping the scenes that indicate WHY this was taking place and HOW it came about.I also felt completely left out in the cold with regard to the "bad guys". Later in the film they ask you to take part in Ender's internal conflict over something that goes down, but given that there is absolutely no emotional (or other) investment on the part of the viewer, the construct just completely flops and fails. All it did was make me even more frustrated that I was being pulled along for the ride. 

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In my opinion ideas were expressed very clear in the film. Ender was special because behind his power to resist there was also talent to organize and overcome ego. His rivals like his destructive brother and "bad" guys in the program didn't see beyond their egoistic motives. So the film examines psychology of leadership. It is the first layer.
 
The first layer deals how to organize the will of numerous egos into one cooperative unity. Then their is the second layer which perspective is even more complex and bigger in scale. It examines the survival and strategy of organized units ( struggle of different civilizations). Military department of every government in our world is aimed to destroy the enemy. Ideological machine makes its citizens to believe that foreign civilization is there to destroy them. If on individual level we have made progress and came to understanding that we can coexist but on the level of big units or species ( countries or civilizations) there is still severe struggle for survival ( it's either you or another will survive, no alternatives). And the film deals with the complex problem: as individuals we believe in coexistence but on the scale of species we are ready to destroy each other and can't do anything about that. We can overcome ego in individual ( making huge efforts) but we didn't learn  and don't know how to overcome ego of large groups. 
 
I can closely relate to these two layers of the film. I can relate to the first layer as a guy who has served in the Army ( though for short period of time) with "dog eats dog" order. "Ender's Game' book should be given in our military forces as a must read to restore civilized relationship among soldiers. I know that in the USA this book is a part of marines training helping to understand leadership skills.
 
I can relate to the second layer as a guy who was brought up in a country which was confrontational to the world. I'm not living in Russia but I see that Putin is returning the country on confrontational path and is restoring Soviet order with extremely hostile attitude toward the West.
 
Ender's Game is hands down the most thought provoking sci-fi movie of last year. In comparison very popular movie Hunger Games is completely fake and artificial. Oh, and what about preoccupation in the US with dystopias? If raise of dystopia popularity was connected to Cold War and was means how to attack socialist utopia then you have to realize that dystopia as propaganda is no longer relevant.