What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[pedromonkey]

recent viewings...

WORLD WAR Z: like most here, i found it very entertaining as an action film and it kept my attention for it's entire 117 minute run time. However, it's a deeply flawed movie with far too much CGI and almost no resemblance to Max Brook's book. The ending feels tacked on and from what i hear, Damon Lindlof and Drew Goddard were hired to re-write the entire third act well into principle photography.

The film does come across as quite messy and the sudden zombie outbreak at the start happens so fast and out of nowhere you wonder if there was a prior 30-40 minutes missing. The ending also doesn't work with the rest of the film, how did they manage to get from Israel to Cardiff in such a short period of time and why is there a World Health Organization facility deep in the welsh valley's that's not covered in graffiti. From reading the link posted about the original ending, the film sounds like it was punching way above it's weight and the tacked on ending was the only way they could safely make it a 2hr film. If anyone is familiar with the book, they should have used the Battle For Yonkers as a main focus for zombie battles as that was one of the most important parts of the book. Marc Forster was the wrong choice for director. It should have been adapted into a mini series with each episode tackling a survivor story from the book. But, the sad thing is, while it is hugely flawed, it's still very entertaining.

HUMMINGBIRD: Jason Statham's latest is light on action but heavy on drama. It follows a damaged war vet, on the run from a court marshal and living rough on the streets. He get's into an altercation with some scummy street thugs and escapes, finding himself in a very posh looking flat. The owner is in NY untill october. Statham decides to take on his identity and try an make things better for himself which involves working with the chinese mafia. It's well worth a look as it's from the writer of Cronenberg's Eastern Promises and it give Statham a chance to act instead of just punching people in the face for 90 minutes. Well worth a look.

EUROPA REPORT: This is a found footage film, now before anyone goes " aw not another one" let me explain, The Europa Report is not a horror film, it's actually a very realistic exploration of long haul space flight and the pressure of scientific research so far from earth. It's a beautifully made film and the production design of the spacecraft is fantastic. It concerns a group of astronauts on the first long haul space flight into our solar system. The crew of the Europa space craft and heading for Jupiter's moon Europa to search for life on the 'EXO-Moon', but things go terribly wrong. It's a gem of a film and one i highly recommend checking out if you are a fan of science fiction or space exploration.

[SCM]

Watched Scream 2 a couple of nights ago, again like the previous film another good piece of slasher horror. With David Arquette being great as Dewey

[Slippery Jack]

The Bay

I remember there being a lot of good reviews for this, but I wasn’t keen. I felt the found footage conceit detracted from what could’ve been a decent little Infection Horror. The constant faux-documentary bollocks annoyed me, especially the crappy narration by the dull reporter protagonist. You get shots of a people, and then over the top she goes “Here are John and Jill Banks. By the end of the night they will have died.” Wow, thanks for the spoiler, narrator lady! Also annoying niggles like unrealistic cameras that are there only to serve the drama (in-car police cameras facing the cop driving? CCTV on seemingly every corner of a quiet bay town suburban area? Hospital doctors communicating via Skype?). Also, when you tease a GIANT CRUSTACIAN PARASITE monster, your third act should clearly contain a giant crustacean parasite monster. Just sayin’ . . .

[Rik]

I wasn't keen either

[troggi]

Originally Posted by Rik

I wasn't keen either

Rik being, as usual, so wordy. I don't know, it's like reading an essay!

[Slippery Jack]

At least he writes in ENGLISH . . .

[Rik]

Originally Posted by troggi

Rik being, as usual, so wordy. I don't know, it's like reading an essay!

Just watched Hobo With a Shotgun again, it was bloody good fun

[troggi]

Originally Posted by Rik

Just watched Hobo With a Shotgun again, it was bloody good fun

Yeah

[bizarre_eye@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Slippery Jack

The Bay

I remember there being a lot of good reviews for this, but I wasn’t keen. I felt the found footage conceit detracted from what could’ve been a decent little Infection Horror. The constant faux-documentary bollocks annoyed me, especially the crappy narration by the dull reporter protagonist. You get shots of a people, and then over the top she goes “Here are John and Jill Banks. By the end of the night they will have died.” Wow, thanks for the spoiler, narrator lady! Also annoying niggles like unrealistic cameras that are there only to serve the drama (in-car police cameras facing the cop driving? CCTV on seemingly every corner of a quiet bay town suburban area? Hospital doctors communicating via Skype?). Also, when you tease a GIANT CRUSTACIAN PARASITE monster, your third act should clearly contain a giant crustacean parasite monster. Just sayin’ . . .

Time for you to eat your words, oh Slippery one...

[Slippery Jack]

Originally Posted by bizarre_eye@Cult Labs

Time for you to eat your words, oh Slippery one...

Indeed, though in the faux-documentary-found-footage camp, Lake Mungo wasn't too bad . . .