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

[Orang Utan]

these are all on Mubi aren't they? I admire your brio. Thought I'd watch loads of films during lockdown but instead i've been playing videogames and chewing my nails frantically (which i concede is taboo in a pandemic)

 

[Reno]

these are all on Mubi aren't they? I admire your brio. Thought I'd watch loads of films during lockdown but instead i've been playing videogames and chewing my nails frantically (which i concede is taboo in a pandemic)

It's fine as long as you've washed your hands before. Whatever gets you through this.

 

[Orang Utan]

It's fine as long as you've washed your hands before. Whatever gets you through this.

haha, i've not gone mad about it - no point if you're in all day - only bother if I've left the house.

 

[Orang Utan]

Which reminds me, wtf is with people watching all these pandemic movies - I keep gettting Contagion and Outbreak and other lower budget efforts like Flu and Pandemic flagged up on Netflix and Prime. Why would you watch that shit right now?

 

[Reno]

No fucking idea. I haven't been watching pandemic movies but then I'm also not watching christmas movies on christmas.

 

[redsquirrel]

these are all on Mubi aren't they? I admire your brio. Thought I'd watch loads of films during lockdown but instead i've been playing videogames and chewing my nails frantically (which i concede is taboo in a pandemic)

Yeah, really loving MUBI. For me the relatively limited, but top quality, selection and 30 day countdown is actually a positive, making me commit to watching these movies. I also subscribe to the BFI but often end up thinking I'll just watch something "later", and ending up just watching trash or browsing the net instead.

 

[Orang Utan]

Yeah, really loving MUBI. For me the relatively limited, but top quality, selection and 30 day countdown is actually a positive, making me commit to watching these movies. I also subscribe to the BFI but often end up thinking I'll just watch something "later", and ending up just watching trash or browsing the net instead.

I do that with films I’ve rented and paid for. Have done that twice with both First Love and Pain & Glory

 

[The Octagon]

Dolittle (the newish CGI fest with RDJ doing some weird meandering accent between Scottish and Welsh).

Don'tlittle.

 

[Reno]

Dolittle (the newish CGI fest with RDJ doing some weird meandering accent between Scottish and Welsh).

Don'tlittle.

Had it not been for Cats, this would be the most ridiculed CGI animal film in recent memory. Both were hugely troubled productions because they were made by film directors with no understanding of special effects technology and who were unwilling to learn on the job. Both drove their their respective blockbusters off the cliff. I've heard horror stories from friends who worked on this.

 

[The Octagon]

Had it not been for Cats, this would be the most ridiculed CGI animal film in recent memory. Both were hugely troubled productions because they were made by film directors with no understanding of special effects technology and how were unwilling to learn on the job. Both drove their their respective blockbusters off the cliff. I've heard horror stories from friends who worked on this.

None of us are going anywhere, share please

 

[Reno]

None of us are going anywhere, share please

You can't shoot scenes with a massive amount of CG creatures and keep improvising on the day. Everything has to be meticulously planned in advance when it comes to special effects. The director decided to approach this like a live action shoot, which meant him demanding lots of CG animation so he could chose afterwards, instead of planning ahead. This inflated the budget massively und unnecccessarily and meant that the animators had to work excessive overtime. Here is an article from an industry publication: 'Dolittle' Doesn't Use CG Animation Very Well: Here Are The Key Complaints From Critics

When I still worked in digital effects and animation, you'd occasionally get a director who had no idea about the process. Invariably they were too arrogant to back down, listen to people who know their stuff and learn and they'd insist of doing it their way. In that field, they are your worst nightmare.

 

[Orang Utan]

Read a bit about Tom Hooper being a CGI dullard and throwing fits at people cos they couldn't do the impossible

 

[Reno]

Read a bit about Tom Hooper being a CGI dullard and throwing fits at people cos they couldn't do the impossible

Just dug out one of the articles and posted it here:

Cats the movie has some awesomely scathing reviews...

why waste time and money Cats when you have so much better available.

www.urban75.net

 

[redsquirrel]

Daughters of Fire - a sort of road/porn movie. A director intending to make a porn film and her girlfriend go on a road trip in southern Argentina, during the trip they meet, interact and have (explicit) sex with a number of other women. I can see what this was trying to do and bits of it are rather good and it looks great, however, I don't think the porn film within the porn film idea works all that well and the narration is the worst sort of pompous twaddle which only works against the film. And could easily lose 20 minutes from the running time and be a better film.

 

[Reno]

I watched the first two episodes of The Plot Against America, the new HBO drama by David Simon, based of the Philip Roth novel. It takes place in an alternate 1940s where Charles Lindbergh becomes president and then takes the US to the far right and into anti-semitism, all from the POV of a Jewish family. Considering Simon's Twitter activity, its obvious why he was attracted to this. The series looks lavish, a lot of money has been thrown at it, though I'm not yet sold. Dramatically its a little underpowered so far, with characters mostly discussing possible political repercussions but it's supposed to get better. At least it's not as clunky as The Man in the High Castle series and the premise is interesting enough to stick with it.

 

[Buddy Bradley]

I watched the first two episodes of The Plot Against America, the new HBO drama by David Simon, based of the Philip Roth novel. It takes place in an alternate 1940s where Charles Lindbergh becomes president and then takes the US to the far right, all from the POV of a Jewish family. Considering Simon's Twitter activity, its obvious why he was attracted to this. The series looks lavish, a lot of money has been thrown at it, though I'm not yet sold. Dramatically its a little underpowered so far, with characters mostly discussing possible political repercussions but it's supposed to get better. At least it's not as clunky as The Man in the High Castle series and the premise is interesting enough to stick with it.

His last mini-series, Show Me A Hero, also started off a bit shakily, but really came together by the end.

I watched Sense and Sensibility tonight - just felt terribly miscast, with 36-year-old Emma Thompson playing a 19-year-old, while the real 19-year-old Kate Winslet is supposed to have fallen for 49-year-old Alan Rickman.

 

[Reno]

His last mini-series, Show Me A Hero, also started off a bit shakily, but really came together by the end.

There is more urgency and dramatic tension by episode 3, which i just watched.

 

[Part 2]

There's some great films on All4 at the moment. Adverts the obvious downside.

https://www.channel4.com/categories/film

 

[The39thStep]

Sightseers, forgotten all about that , I enjoyed watching that when it came out. Sexy Beast is ace as well.

 

[Orang Utan]

most of those are on other platforms without ads

 

[belboid]

Cromwell

The 1970 one about Oliver, not Thomas. A typical British period piece of the time - they really don''t age very well. Richard Harris is good as the big man (perhaps surprisingly so, considering), and Alec Guinness is always watchable but the script is rather lackadaisical and it relies on the fact the a civil war and <spoiler> chopping a king's head off </spoiler> is always entertaining. You wouldn't want to base a history essay upon it, but it isn't too many miles off and does get some of the spirit of revolutionary fervour across.

Forays into Ireland are conspicuous by there absence.

 

[Sue]

Cromwell

The 1970 one about Oliver, not Thomas. A typical British period piece of the time - they really don''t age very well. Richard Harris is good as the big man (perhaps surprisingly so, considering), and Alec Guinness is always watchable but the script is rather lackadaisical and it relies on the fact the a civil war and <spoiler> chopping a king's head off </spoiler> is always entertaining. You wouldn't want to base a history essay upon it, but it isn't too many miles off and does get some of the spirit of revolutionary fervour across.

Forays into Ireland are conspicuous by there absence.

Fuck's sake, ruined for me now.

 

[Orang Utan]

Tried to watch Fleabag (the play not the series) and just can't get on with stage acting - it looks too demonstrative to be convincing. I guess having to shout in a theatre detracts from the actual acting.

 

[redsquirrel]

The Blood of a Poet and Testament of Orpheus - Jean Cocteau double bill, not really my thing to be honest, certain bits mildly amusing and some nice scenes but just found it all a bit cold.

MUBI is great but not sure if having two Coetau films followed by what looks like a pretty strange documentary is the best curation. (And I like Sterling Hayden)

 

[Part 2]

Sightseers, forgotten all about that , I enjoyed watching that when it came out. Sexy Beast is ace as well.

Border, My Life as a Courgette, Duke of Burgundy and Thelma are all excellent...and The Greasy Strangler is puerile stupidity at its best if you like that sort of thing.

 

[Reno]

I watched the rest of The Plot Against America. Dramatically it just about comes together by the end but as political commentary it feels redundant. Current political reality in the US has overtaken it. Donald Trump is worse than the fictional president Charles Lindbergh in the show. Also, why have a fictional political threat to Jews in the US in the 40s when there have been a gazillion films/tv shows of the same thing happening during the third reich in Germany ? The show changes the ending of the novel to a cliff hanger, so I assume Simon wants this to become a continuous series. If that happens I may stick with it because it has potential, it's just not all there yet. The best thing about the show is Zoe Kazan who plays a character who is the moral center of the story. I wished she'd has more scenes with Winona Rider, who plays her sister. Their increasingly complicated relationship is the most interesting aspect of the show.

 

[redsquirrel]

Pharos of Chaos - Documentary portrait of Sterling Hayden made towards the end of his life, it's not a great, or even particularly good, film to be honest, too much in love with it's protagonist and there's too much rambling of someone who's drunk - eh? eh? eh?. That said Hayden's charisma and story do manage to raise the film above what it should be. Probably not everyones cup of tea but if you are a film and/or Hayden fan then it is of some interest.

Be interested to know what other film buffs made of it.

 

[Orang Utan]

Are you watching EVERYTHING on MUBI, redsquirrel ?

 

[redsquirrel]

Are you watching EVERYTHING on MUBI, redsquirrel ?

Maybe not everything but trying to do most.

Been really bad at watching films since I came back to the UK. In Australia I was a member of the Melbourne Cinematheque which was great and I tried to keep up with their programme when I came back to the UK but just have just lacked the commitment. Likewise I tried to make it to the Tuesday showings at the Hype Park Picture House (when it was open) but often finish work late on Tuesday's so that didn't help. Barely went to the cinema last year.

With the way that MUBI's been set up and working from home (so no commute) I've been able to get back to watching more films.

Next few days on MUBI look ace anyway - Primer (which I've never seen), Un Flic (not quite top draw Melville but some amazing set pieces, plus the ice-cool, if fascist shit, Delon), Losey, Coffee and Cigarettes, Southland Tales (which I know is meant to be crap but I'm interested in seeing) and a Źuławski (I've have a certain fondness for Possession).

 

[Orang Utan]

I admire your zeal - i've only managed to watch one film so far on MUBI