Amph What was the last movie you saw? (Ver. 2)

Is Falcon in it?

 

That was a bit of a typo on my part as only 2 of them have sequels arguably up their with the original, Predators sequels have been nowhere near.

 

For me it wasn't about the genre. It was just the pureness of the movie. You can easily connect with the characters. I'm a sap in certain movies, and that scene were Andy's fellow inmate walks over to offer him a beer after bargaining with Hadley just gets me every time.

 

That's why I avoid watching anymore footage of a film I know I'll be watching during its theatrical release after the initial full trailer drops. Every time a TV spot for Black Panther comes on during the commercials I change the channel or fast forward right through with my eyes closed. LOL I'll be doing the same thing for Infinity War, Deadpool, Solo, etc.

Glad to hear you enjoyed. I'll be seeing the movie on Saturday.

 

No, but there’s someone even better that shows up.

 

Scurrilous lies! No one is better than Falcon.

 

Black Panther

It was pretty good but I expected it be with it being an MCU film. The highlights for me were the car chase scene and Klaw who is one of my favourite MCU villains now. I actually liked him more than Killmonger.

 

I liked Klaw more than Killmonger too. I wish they’d used him more.

 

I actually like Terminator 2 more than the original. But yeah, Predator 2 was disappointing for sure.

I will be finally watching Die Hard today.

 

It's an absolute blast. They pack more fun into that 30 minutes than most Hollywood films do into 2 hrs.. What they were able to accomplish on such a small budget is impressive.

I'd always heard they were making a sequel, but imagine my surprise when I woke up and saw this headline...

Arnold Schwarzenegger Joins 'Kung Fury' Feature Film

In what sounds like a match made in '80s heaven, Arnold Schwarzenegger has joined the cast of Kung Fury, the feature-length follow-up to the cult 2015 short.

THR understands that the Terminator, Predator and Total Recall icon (and former California governor) will play the American president in David Sandberg's action-comedy, set to shoot in Europe and in the U.S. this summer. He joins fellow '80s hero David Hasselhoff and Oscar-nominated actor Michael Fassbender, who were announced earlier this week.

No, I checked, it's not April 1st.


The Phantom (1996) - Plot; The Phantom, a mantle handed down from father to son, squares off against an egomaniacal villain who is attempting to find three ancient skulls which, once united, will give him incredible power.

We live now in the golden age of the comic book/superhero movie. Marvel/Disney alone will release no fewer than three entries in their MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) this year. There was a time when the genre was relegated to TV--and when TV was viewed as a far less prestigious format than it is today. In the 70s, the Avengers assembled... in the family living room. Characters like The Incredible Hulk, Wonder Woman and Spider-Man had their own prime time live-action TV series and Captain America and Doctor Strange starred in their own (then) dreaded "Made for TV movie"; plural in Cap's case. And of course the 60s Batman series starring Adam West was popular in syndication. Beit because of nostalgia or kitsch, these shows have their charms, but they're not A-list efforts. Enter Richard Donner's Superman: The Movie.

Produced on a budget of $55 million (an absolutely astounding number for the time) and attracting Academy Award winning stars like Marlon Brandon and Gene Hackman, it's widely considered the first A-list Hollywood comic book movie of the blockbuster era. It was a smash hit, and naturally kicked off a new era of big budget comic book movies. Only it didn't. The 80s would go by with nary a big name comic book adaptation outside of the increasingly campy Superman series. It wasn't until Tim Burton's Batman in 1989 that we saw an explosion of live action comic book movie adaptations. The interesting fact is few of the titles were what you'd consider upper-tier or A-list. Dick Tracy and Captain America would get movies the following year, but in Cap's case it was a low budget effort that ultimately went straight to video. Interestingly enough, a large percentage of the titles adapted were period pieces. The Rocketeer, The Shadow and the movie I watched today, The Phantom.

Based on Lee Falk's long running title, it had been adapted as a 40s serial an two animated series (Defenders of the Earth and Phantom: 2040), but this was his first (and to date last) big budget gig. That is a crying shame because this movie is criminally underrated and a heckuva lot of fun.

Set in the 30s and never stopping long enough to catch its breath, it has that same Saturday serial feel as Raiders of the Lost Ark or the aforementioned The Rocketeer. With an origin prologue lasting just a tad over a minute, it eschews the sort of lengthy setup that often plagues 21st century comic book movies and gets down to the business of two fisted, swashbuckling adventure, which is well staged and beautifully shot. Billy Zane plays Kit Walker/The Phantom with a charming dash just this side of straight with nary a wink and brings an impressive physicality to the role. The supporting cast is very solid, with Kristy Swanson making for a believably plucky heroine, Treat Williams as the dashing villain and a young and flat out stunning (and I don't use that word lightly) Catherine Zeta-Jones making for a deliciously devilish air pirate captain. Toss in a rousing score by David Newman and The Phantom is exactly what it sets out to be; a fun bit of escapist action adventure and a good way to spend a rainy afternoon. - 7.5/10

- The Phantom was written by Jeffrey Boam, who had previously written Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, so he knew the era and the genre.

- Was originally going to be directed by Joe Dante, with whom Boam (who had written Dante's Innerspace) worked on developing the script. Their original take was more intentionally campy in in tone. Ultimately Siomon Wincer (Lonesome Dove, Free Willy) took the gig.

- Zane beat out, among others, Bruce Campbell for the title role.

 

Die Hard

Whoa, lots of 80's action pizzazz and flamboyant hair and costumes lol.
Just kidding. Never saw this before. Ever.
It was totally new and radical to me dude.

So the opening with John carrying a loaded gun, smoking cigarettes, and lugging a huge stuffed bear in an airport was hilarious for obvious reasons.
Cut to a scene of a bunch of 80's yuppies listening to a Bach Brandenburg Concerto at a party. Ok. Fair enough. I think Trump was there too lol. Thoughts and prayers.

So then the film transfers into the Beethoven theme from the 9th Symphony, played very poorly and weakly and little did I know that composer Michael Kamen would continue to twist and contort and degrade this theme throughout this lengthy picture.

The exposition is very suspenseful, although I didn't know who the players were initially. This first hour or so of the film is highly effective in creating drama, tension, suspense and fear. The editing is top notch and the score and sound FX effective in building intensity.

Casting is lead by Alan Rickman who is perfect as the villain and Bruce Willis as John. As a fan of 80's movies it was awesome and hilarious to see Paul Gleason and William Atherton in the film, as I am a huge Breakfast Club and Ghostbusters fanatic. Pleasant surprise there. Lol.

So, I'll cut this review short, as of only one viewing. Suffice to say the last third dragged on and on and there were many unfunny and unbelievable moments that nearly broke the fourth wall. Don't like how some characters were treated but that is a story for another time. Lol.

Overall, I would say Die Hard is a pretty ridiculous movie with some cool performances and enough suspense in the first act to make it worth watching.
Can't say I feel I missed out on anything having not seen it all these years.
Rambo, Predator, Terminator 2, Aliens, and many other 80's films are better than this Die Hard picture. Still, worth watching once.
Imho. No offense, friends.

 

Lobster
Colin Farrell

I was looking forward to this , I'd heard so many god things about it , plus it has a great cast .
*sigh* what a bore . It's an allegory about people who need to find a partner and if they don't they'll turn into an animal .
Everyone talks in a stiff semi-depressed manner , it's sort of a black comedy but the comedy is so subdued you lose the will to live .

.

 

Iron Man 3

There are times Iron Man 3 shines, but it's ultimately let down by poor writing and one of the most boring villains in the MCU. In fact, if I could call this film one thing, it's "boring".

2/5

MCU Ranking:

Spoiler

Iron Man - 5/5
The Incredible Hulk - 4/5
Iron Man 2 - 3/5
Thor - 4/5
Captain America: The First Avenger - 5/5
The Avengers - 3/5
Iron Man 3 - 2/5

 

Justice League

Third viewing. Still awesome. Love the cast. Great action. Great humour. And the Greatest after credits scene ever. Go Deathstroke!

Yeah, there’s a bit I’d probably change to make it even better, but it is what it is.

9/10.

 

Lady Bird

Yawn! I didn’t know something so short could feel so long. I’m sorry, but this film was pointless. When it finished my mind was blank. I didn’t get anything out of it at all. It just wasn’t a big enough topic to make a feature length film out of.

The one positive thing is that the acting was really good, especially from Saoirse Ronan. All the characters felt believable. It was a little bit enjoyable at times, but this was always because of Saoirse’s character. But yeah, there’s nothing much to say here.

5/10.

 

How have you seen the movie recently? It's not available on home video release yet and it's not playing in any theaters.

 

There are... other methods. Lol.

 

I suspect a group of Rebel spies downloaded a copy from Scarif at the same time they were getting the Death Star plans.

 

Many Bothan’s died to get me this copy.

 

Black Panther - I liked Jordan's performance, but besides the all black cast and focus on Wakanda, it's just another Marvel movie. What that means is up to you, but you know exactly what you're getting.

 

Darkest Hour

This deserves all the awards it got. It's an amazing film and Churchill is such an inspiration. Definitely want to watch this again some time.

 

I have always thought The Phantom was underrated. I mean, it's not a serious movie at all, nor is it a perfect action romp, but it's entertaining and the breakneck pace hardly lets you notice all the stupid things. It's super-entertaining, sometimes unintentionally perhaps, but who's counting? I like the movie a lot.