What DVD / Video did you watch last night? (pt3)

[DJ Squelch]

A Horrible Way To Die (2010)
A recovering alcoholic starts dating a new man she has met at her Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. Meanwhile her ex-boyfriend, a serial killer she helped convict, escapes from prison & comes looking for her.
Ignore the slasher film type title and if you get past the overly shakey camera work this is a well acted, smart, horror/thriller which relies more on character development than action or scares.

 

[Reno]

The Spanish 80s horror film Anguish, by Bigas Luna (who became more of an art house director in the 90s). Very odd film which is really two films in one. A gory film about a homicidal eye surgeon turns out to be a horror film watched by an audience in an LA cinema after 20 minutes, who are also stalked by a killer. Has a cult following, but doesn't quite work because it doesn't really develop either story enough and the punch line is not that difficult to guess. Stars Zelda Rubinstein, the medium from Poltergeist.

 

[DotCommunist]

Cockneys vs Zombies
I laughed a lot. Brick Top carried the film really. Zoe from eastenders plays a locksmith and gets some good lines/tight jeans

 

[TruXta]

Saw most of Hannibal on the telly last night. Had forgotten how poor it is in relation to SotL.

 

[DotCommunist]

Just finished Chronicle, about a bunch of teenagers who develop superpowers. Interesting take on the genre, but ultimately a deeply conventional moral allegory about powers and responsibilities.

The found footage angle was interesting but you culd tell from the start who was going to do a Magneto and of course who would die first.

Still, I gave it 6/10 for entertainment. Worth it alone for the scenes where they are just fucking about with new found powers

 

[TruXta]

The found footage angle was interesting but you culd tell from the start who was going to do a Magneto and of course who would die first.

Still, I gave it 6/10 for entertainment. Worth it alone for the scenes where they are just fucking about with new found powers

It reminded me of Heroes in the end. Never a good thing.

 

[rubbershoes]

Moon

Really good . it's nice to see a decent low budget sci fi film

 

[Nanker Phelge]

Red Road. Laugh a minute.

 

[Thimble Queen]

I didn't watch anything last night but on Tuesday night i watched. American Werewolf in London. It was pretty funny, the effects were proper shit but i like that kind of thing. I thought the nurse was a right filthy minx!
Later tonight we're gonna try Iron Sky again. Crispy vetoed it on Friday night! *mad*

 

[Mephitic]

Total Recall 2012 ~ Monumentally shit, painful to watch and overall boring. Not a patch on the original.

 

[Yetman]

The Pact - I thought it was shit. Pretty scary in places but quite thin in the way the plot, which wasn't too bad, was carried out.

 

[Mephitic]

Madagascar 3 ~ I rather enjoyed it the 1st time I watched it, my four year old daughter loves it, so I've seen it five six times now.

RA DA DADADA DADA DA DADA CIRCUS DA DADADA DADA DA AFRO CIRCUS AFRO CIRCUS AFRO POLKA DOT POLKA DOT AFRO etc. (best enjoyed in the company of a sugar rushing hyperactive 4 year old).

 

[magneze]

Juan of the Dead. Pretty funny, would watch again

We watched this last night. It's good, really enjoyable.

 

[Thimble Queen]

Watched two films last night. Black Sheep - Kiwi film about zombie sheep. Pretty funny if you like that sort of thing. But they get saved at the end. I prefer the zombie films where pretty much everyone fucking dies.

Then put Where The Wild Things Are on at bedtime. I fell asleep pretty soon into the film due to massive overconsumption of wine but I've seen it before... Great film quite sad though.

 

[ViolentPanda]

Finished off the complete box set of "Dark Skies".

 

[DotCommunist]

^^^ old school. More resolution than x-files iirc


LAst ting I watched was Iron Skies, which was nazis on the moon. About as good as you'd think, 8/10

 

[TruXta]

^^^ old school. More resolution than x-files iirc


LAst ting I watched was Iron Skies, which was nazis on the moon. About as good as you'd think, 8/10

I might watch that hungover tomorrow.

 

[ViolentPanda]

^^^ old school. More resolution than x-files iirc

I think they addressed the "conspiracy theory" aspects a lot more sensibly than the X-Files did, with even some of the believers being semi-sceptical, and with Bach's cover-ups being much more straightforward and instrumental (to the good of the US) than cancer man's cover-ups were.
That said, I still like the X-Files, I just wish "Dark Skies" had been given a chance.

Plus, Jeri Ryan looked well good in a business suit!

 

[Reno]

I think they addressed the "conspiracy theory" aspects a lot more sensibly than the X-Files did, with even some of the believers being semi-sceptical, and with Bach's cover-ups being much more straightforward and instrumental (to the good of the US) than cancer man's cover-ups were.
That said, I still like the X-Files, I just wish "Dark Skies" had been given a chance.

Plus, Jeri Ryan looked well good in a business suit!

I tried to get into Dark Skies but never could. It just wasn't anywhere near the same quality of The X-Files when that show was good.

The X-Files is always talked about now like it was a show about one conspiracy with one overarching plot. Most people seem to have forgotten that it was primarily an anthology show with a different monster/mystery every week and that's where it's strength was. Nearly all the best episodes were stand alones. The episodes that made up the overall story arch were only small handful every season.

 

[Orang Utan]

My favourite episodes of the x files are the two with eugene tooms, the stretchy serial killer

 

[Reno]

My favourite episodes of the x files are the two with eugene tooms, the stretchy serial killer

The first Tooms episode was where I started to realise that the show is something special. But I think there were better episodes to come, especially the ones written by Darin Morgan. His Jose Chung's 'From Outer Space' and Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose are two of my favourite hours of TV drama ever. Vince Gilligan, who later created Breaking Bad, also wrote several fantastic X-Files episodes.

 

[ViolentPanda]

I tried to get into Dark Skies but never could. It just wasn't anywhere near the same quality of The X-Files when that show was good.

The X-Files is always talked about now like it was a show about one conspiracy with one overarching plot. Most people seem to have forgotten that it was primarily an anthology show with a different monster/mystery every week and that's where it's strength was. Nearly all the best episodes were stand alones. The episodes that made up the overall story arch were only small handful every season.

X-Files had ten seasons from which to pick your favourite episodes. Dark Skies had 19 episodes, including the pilot. Not really a fair comparison.

 

[renegadechicken]

Watched Fire with Fire last night. It was okay just a typical man out for revenge against bad guy thing, left me feeling meh.

 

[Reno]

X-Files had ten seasons from which to pick your favourite episodes. Dark Skies had 19 episodes, including the pilot. Not really a fair comparison.

I stuck with The X-Files and threw in the towel with Dark Skies after a few episodes. For Dark Skies you really have to be a fan of sci-fi shows to stick with it. There is a reason why X-Files became a crossover hit and became a success with people who don't generally search out those type of shows. It was just a lot more sophisticated in terms of characterisation, production values and quality of writing.

 

[ViolentPanda]

I stuck with The X-Files and threw in the towel with Dark Skies after a few episodes. For Dark Skies you really have to be a fan of sci-fi shows to stick with it. There is a reason why X-Files became a crossover hit and became a success with people who don't generally search out those type of shows. It was just a lot more sophisticated in terms of characterisation, production values and quality of writing.

You don't like sci-fi shows?

What sort of vile pervert are you???

Where's my burning brand?

 

[Orang Utan]

there was a really good one about luminous maneating beetles. shit, there were loads of ace ones. the big plot with the aliens and coverups and black goo and mulder's missing sister got a bit tedious after a while

 

[Reno]

You don't like sci-fi shows?

What sort of vile pervert are you???

Where's my burning brand?

I'm more of a horror fan, so when it comes to genre shows I will watch something like The Walking Dead, True Blood or American Horror Story, but I tend to give up on most sci-fi shows. I liked The X-Files because it was as much horror as it was sci-fi. The last sci-fi show I stuck with for a while was the Battlestar Galactica remake, which was a cut above the rest, before it jumped the shark in season 3. Most sci-fi shows I find pretty poor when it comes to characterisation and I need interesting characters to keep me watching a show

The shows I like the best are character driven shows so I tend to like dramas like Mad Men or Breaking Bad the best.

 

[TruXta]

I'm more of a horror fan, so when it comes to genre shows I will watch something like The Walking Dead, True Blood or American Horror Story, but I tend to give up on most sci-fi shows. I liked The X-Files because it was as much horror as it was sci-fi. The last sci-fi show I stuck with (for 3 seasons at least) was the Battlestar Galactica remake. which was a cut above the rest before it jumped the shark in season 3. Most sci-fi shows I do find pretty poor when it comes to writing.

On the whole I prefer character driven shows over plot driven shows and I tend to like dramas like Mad Men or Breaking Bad the best.

No Fringe for Reno?

 

[Reno]

No Fringe for Reno?

I watched that for 1.5 seasons because a friend insisted I should stick with it. I thought it was the opposite from The X-Files. I found the overall story arch episodes intriguing, but thought the "monster of the week" episodes were mostly threading water. With season 2 I lost patience. I was hoping it would properly explore the alternate universe, but it went back to reset, with more filler "wacky thing of the week" episodes. I can see why people like it, it's good for what it is, but it's not my thing.

Still better than Lost where I lasted four episodes.

 

[Orang Utan]

i found fringe a bit over the top. and boring.