main
side
curve
  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

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

Discussion in 'Community' started by Violent Violet Menace, Nov 17, 2017.

  1. I Are The Internets

    I Are The Internets Shelf of Shame Host star 9 VIP - Game Host

    Registered:
    Nov 20, 2012
    I'm excited for the Octopussy review.
     
    Sarge likes this.
  2. Chancellor_Ewok

    Chancellor_Ewok Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Nov 8, 2004
    It must have been a cheat codes only weapon. I used to play that game a lot in PvP mode. I remember the golden gun, but I don’t remember a Moonraker gun at all.
     
  3. Todd the Jedi

    Todd the Jedi Mod and Loving Tyrant of SWTV, Lit, & Collecting star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 16, 2008
    Ah yes, it was a cheat, but just for single-player-
     
  4. CT-867-5309

    CT-867-5309 Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Jan 5, 2011
    Octopussy - The first of two competing Bond films released in 1983.

    The idea of Bond sneaking on to a military base for a bit of sabotage isn't a bad one, and would get re-used in the future. Still, during his escape, we see soft Moore Bond. He's pointing an AR-15 on two enemy soldiers in the front of a truck, and has the drop on them, but instead of just spraying them with bullets and killing them, he shoots out the tires.

    The scene is pretty silly, but there are some really sharp maneuvers pulled by the mini-jet. It's just crazy that this terrible sequence is given a few seconds of stunt maneuvers that are on like Top Gun level.

    Wow, that horn to start the theme is really bad...and it immediately goes to a close up of a nude woman's ass that is just blatantly vulgar. Oh wow, a laser/smoke show. Man, this is hilariously dated. Again, with a pretty clear close up on a woman's breasts. Jesus, they're just not even trying to be subtle here. LOL, "All Time High" honestly sounds like straight up porn music, and there's the most blatant nudity in a title sequence so far. God, I kinda love it, it's just so Octopussy.

    You know, the idea of having 009 chased and killed by deadly knife throwing twins is kinda cool...but it's kinda sabotaged by the fact that 009 is in full clown costume and is dragging a balloon that is tied to him. I have a feeling that's going to be a theme for this movie. Octopussy giveth joy, and Octopussy taketh joy away.

    Investigating a fake Faberge egg isn't really much a hook, though.

    Steven Berkoff is hilarious as always. Immediately he's just hamming and yelling.

    The gambling scene is legitimately great. Bond catches Louis Jourdan cheating and takes him, revealing the real Faberge egg at the same time. This is the only scene where Jourdan gets to do anything. He was so wasted in this movie.

    Because this is India, of course there's plenty of snake charmers, a man sleeping on a bed of nails, a sword swallower, a man juggling torches and hot coals to walk on. Exotic!

    Moore zooms a camera in on a woman's breasts, because he's 12, apparently.

    "That's my little Octopussy". lol, god, I can't believe they put that line in the film. I can't believe it's the title of the damn movie. It's a porn title. This is porn with a plot, but without the graphic sex. I can't believe this movie actually happened.

    And then there's Maud. Maud Adams as Octopussy is given a shadowy intro where we don't see her face. How many women have been given that honor in the series? Maud has a much more powerful role here, compared to the one she had in TMWTGG.

    Of course we have to have the gross out dinner scene, with Jourdan enjoying a sheep's eyeball. Temple of Doom would later take this to eleven.

    I'm a fan of The Most Dangerous Game, but the hunting sequence has Moore telling a tiger to sit and swinging through the trees with a Tarzan yell. It's terrible.

    Bond with the croc disguise. This was included in Metal Gear Solid 3 decades later.

    Jeez, Octopussy was her father's pet name for her? What a weirdo.

    Q actually gets in on a bit surveillance, and of course Vijay (who I kinda liked) is unceremoniously killed off, as the brown sidekicks usually are.

    Come on, the moment you saw that octopus tank, you knew someone was going to get it to the face.

    You know, this isn't as stupid as I thought. It's not stupid every second of every scene like Moonraker. I mean, if you can accept the idea of a Bond movie revolving around a circus run by a woman named Octopussy, of course.

    I noticed that Bond is carrying a Walther P5 instead of the usual PPK.

    There's five minutes left on the timer, but Bond has enough time to put on full clown costume and make up.

    The circus raid on Jourdan is alright, it's kinda fun seeing the women beat up on the men in ridiculous fashion.

    Jourdan's death is pretty weak, as is the ending.

    A pornographic film that cuts the sex and keeps the plot, yet still manages to entertain a bit with the sheer absurdity of it all. I really didn't mind it, it's just not particularly good. Still not as stupid as Moonraker.

    This movie actually happened.


    Rankings

    On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    FRWL
    Goldfinger
    Dr. No
    TMWTGG
    The Spy Who Loved Me
    Live and Let Die
    Octopussy
    For Your Eyes Only
    Moonraker
    Thunderball
    You Only Live Twice
    Diamonds Are Forever
     
    Rogue1-and-a-half and Sarge like this.
  5. Rogue1-and-a-half

    Rogue1-and-a-half Manager Emeritus who is writing his masterpiece star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 2, 2000
    I forgot FYEO was the one with young iceskater. That whole sequence is so gross.

    I will get more into detail later when I have mo(o)re time, but allow me to just say that I basically agree with some of what you've said about Octopussy in terms of it just being so crazy and yet also have some things that actually do work. It's easily my second favorite Moore film; as you say, it's so crazy, it's just really entertaining. I'll note a couple of specific bits and put it in my ranking list later.
     
    The Krynoid Man and CT-867-5309 like this.
  6. Sarge

    Sarge Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Oct 4, 1998
    I read an interview with Corky Fornoff (legendary Hollywood movie stunt pilot) who did most of the flying for Octopussy. He told the director he could fly the BD-5J microjet through a hangar and they could film him doing it and it would look great. They decided to rig up something with a crane holding a mockup and push that through the hangar instead, and he was very disappointed with the way it looked in the finished movie. He was convinced it would have looked much better if they had taken his advice and let him do it for real.

    The sequence where Bond runs out of fuel, lands on the road and coasts into the gas station was Corky's idea. That happened to him for real in that same little jet before they filmed Octopussy. He made sure they filmed him rolling across the hose that rang the little bell in the gas station because that's exactly what he did for real.

    All Time High by Rita Coolidge could be my favorite song from a Bond film. It's not a perfect fit for a Bond movie IMO, but just as a song, I always liked that one a lot.
     
  7. The2ndQuest

    The2ndQuest Tri-Mod With a Mouth star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2000
    The soundtrack to the GE game was pretty amazing. It leveraged the main Bond theme a lot but it was ridiculously atmospheric. Much like the game as a whole did, it made me enjoy the movie more than I had than when I initially saw it in theaters.

    It was only available in single player mode in the Aztec level you unlock after beating every level on Secret Agent (something I never accomplished because of that ****ing "protect Natalia" control center level).

    But it was also available in multiplayer- there's a weapon set called "lasers" (as opposed to "rockets", "pistols", "slappers only", etc) which includes the Moonraker laser.
     
  8. Sarge

    Sarge Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Oct 4, 1998
    Keeping Up With the Joneses (2016) I watched it for Gal Gadot and she was great doing what she does so well, and the rest of the movie was surprisingly funny too. I had no idea who was cast as The Scorpion until he appeared. [face_laugh]
     
  9. Grievousdude

    Grievousdude Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Jan 27, 2013
    Daddy's Home 2

    Like the first one this was surprisingly funny. I'd say it was better than the first one too which is rare for comedies. I'd say it's worth a watch.
     
    Jar-Jar Binks likes this.
  10. Jordan1Kenobi

    Jordan1Kenobi SWC Jedi Draft Champion star 6 VIP - Game Winner

    Registered:
    Sep 30, 2012
    Johnny English Reborn. This is one of those comedy films that I’ll always watch when it comes on TV. I love it and always have. Rowan Atkinson is one of my favourite comedy actors and never fails to make me laugh. The film is full of laughs and a lot of fun. Surprisingly the soundtrack stood out to me as well. 8.5/10.

    I just found out they’re making a third Johnny English film that’ll be released next year, which is awesome!
     
  11. AndyLGR

    AndyLGR Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 1, 2014
    CT-867-5309 looking forward to reading your Bond reviews. Really interesting to hear your thoughts and how they compare to mine.
     
  12. Juke Skywalker

    Juke Skywalker Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Mar 27, 2004
    Just the title Octopussy gives me a full body cringe. By this point Moore was like that gallon of milk 3 days past its expiration date that you hope can get you through one more bowl of corn flakes. Very little stands out in my mind. I remember liking the micro-jet and that whole sequence, and I think Maude Adams makes for an intelligent, confident and sexy foil for Bond.

    But I don't think anything epitomizes the franchise at this stage better than this.

    [​IMG]
     
    Master_Lok and Sarge like this.
  13. gezvader28

    gezvader28 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Mar 22, 2003
    well the stunts on top of the train are pretty spectacular (Moore did them all himself you know )
     
    Juke Skywalker likes this.
  14. Juke Skywalker

    Juke Skywalker Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Mar 27, 2004
    Yeah, that's definitely Moore in front of the blue screen :p.

     
  15. I Are The Internets

    I Are The Internets Shelf of Shame Host star 9 VIP - Game Host

    Registered:
    Nov 20, 2012
    Octopussy is so gloriously stupid that it works. It's a terrible Bond film, yes, but it's a ridiculously awesome 80's action flick.
     
  16. CT-867-5309

    CT-867-5309 Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Jan 5, 2011
    Never Say Never Again - The second of the competing Bond movies released in 1983. Connery is back in the role for the first time in twelve years, and for the very last time. The long absence seems like less of a factor in light of the fact that he was actually several years younger than Moore.

    I've always found the idea that this is an "unofficial" Bond to be completely punchless. The only works that have any claim to being official are Fleming's novels. Everything else is just an adaptation. They're all adaptations.

    This is another adaptation of Thunderball, obviously with a great deal of similarities, because the guy who wrote the Thunderball movie retained the rights to the novel, which made this movie possible. Unfortunately the gun barrel sequence, James Bond theme and signature credits sequence are missing due to legal issues.

    Right away they focus on vigor and physicality, with Bond running through the jungle and climbing a telephone pole, the action moving much faster, with Bond taking out one guard after another in quick succession. This is more of a stealthy special forces Bond. Connery has some sweaty vitality I don't think Moore ever showed.

    They've gone with a much shorter "hair" cut for Connery. Smart choice, makes him look younger and more modern.

    It was very inspired to acknowledge that Bond was getting older, putting him through training and sending him to a health spa to get back into shape. Why deny that the actor and the series itself has gotten older? Why deny the wear and tear, the scars? Why not use it? By using continuity, the movie acts as if it had no idea it was supposed to be unofficial. We'd see an homage to this with Craig in Skyfall...an official acknowledgement. Connery plays Bond as very much weary and tired out, yet still willing to answer the call of duty, and it makes for something very compelling.

    Max Von Sydow is the least ridiculous Blofeld.

    Trivia: The guy who attacks Bond at the health clinic is the same big mook from the Indiana Jones movies, the guy who fistfights Indy and is killed by the propeller. Well, the fight at the clinic is goofy and ends with a jar of piss. Beat BvS by 23 years.

    Fatima is hilariously psychotic and garbed in the most ridiculous outfits. She is vastly superior to Fiona of Thunderball.

    Largo is every bit the psychopath, a jealous perv who for some neurotic reason likes to peep on his own mistress. Klaus Maria Brandauer is great in the role. Not as serious as Celi, but more entertaining.

    The late Bernie Casey as Felix Leiter. I've always liked him in the role, he was very personable.

    I've always loved the video game, too. I just love dangerous games. Would have loved to play the game with my brother growing up and put each other through some pain.

    That horse jump. Jesus.

    The sets for the ending sequence added something unique and interesting to the Bond series, a bit of pseudo-historical tomb raiding. It allowed us to spend a great deal of the end out of the water, and thank god for that. It even made the underwater ending itself more interesting by the simple virtues of shortening it and compressing it into a smaller space, for a much more claustrophobic and personal battle in underwater tunnels, instead of the open sea.


    A superior version of Thunderball with a better main villain, a better henchwoman, a helluva lot more fun, and significantly less drowned by boring underwater sequences. Connery is still a better Bond than Moore, bringing physicality and at least something worth taking seriously. It was a close call, but this is the better Bond released in 1983, even without the classic hallmarks of Bond. Take that, EON.

    Not a great Bond movie, but passable.

    Rankings

    On Her Majesty's Secret Service
    FRWL
    Goldfinger
    Dr. No
    TMWTGG
    The Spy Who Loved Me
    Live and Let Die
    Never Say Never Again
    Octopussy
    For Your Eyes Only
    Moonraker
    Thunderball
    You Only Live Twice
    Diamonds Are Forever
     
    Rogue1-and-a-half likes this.
  17. LAJ_FETT

    LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together star 10 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    May 25, 2002
    For those in the UK who are discussing the Bond films (or are fans), BBC4 is doing a show on them this coming Wed night from 11:00-11:55 PM. Premium Bond with Mark Gatiss and Matthew Sweet will be looking at the Bonds on screen since 1962.
     
  18. gezvader28

    gezvader28 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Mar 22, 2003
    yeah Pat Roach is the mook .

    the horse jump caused a lot of trouble , didn't they get into trouble with the animal protection group ? plus I think it might be cut out of the British print
     
  19. DarthTunick

    DarthTunick SFTC VII + Deadpool BOFF star 10 VIP - Game Host

    Registered:
    Nov 26, 2000
    Sicario... not breaking news that the drug wars of the Aught's in Mexico is depraved, so in that sense, this movie has nothing grand to say. However, there's great tension still (in particular a drive in & out of Juarez), especially as Emily Blunt & Daniel Kaluuya navigate throw the power & politics involved when multiple agencies, etc, are involved in a hunt for a drug lord. The standout character, though, is Benicio del Toro's 'Alejandro', who has his particular reasons for hunting a particular cartel Jefe... which comes to head in a particularly disturbing, but effective for the film, scene at the dinner table. *** 1/2 out of ****.





    Kong: Skull Island... better than it-deserved-to-be, given the cliche nature of it all (mysterious island with mostly unknown things!... among other things). Why? Never too much a dull moment, really. Lots of good action set pieces, a rather good cast, Samuel L. Jackson's umbrage with Kong working well, good chemistry among the rest, in particular Shea Whigham-Jason Mitchell & Brie Larson-Tom Hiddleston-John C. Reilly (for my purposes, having Reilly's character being a fan of the Cubs/of baseball, made his marooned-since-1944-on-the-island story that much more interesting; loved the discussion on the merits of a tiger vs. a baby cub). Much better than 2014's Godzilla, because you get more of the main creature of the story, and also much, much more interesting human characters. Sets up the other creatures/films to come with them in a great way... favorite end-of-credits scene of mine in quite some time. ***-*** 1/2 out of ****.
     
    Rogue1-and-a-half and BigAl6ft6 like this.
  20. Guidman

    Guidman Skywalker Saga Mod and Trivia Host star 6 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Dec 29, 2016
    Coco
    Another phenomenal entry from Pixar. Great, heartfelt story focusing on the importance of family, certainly the last 10 minutes. It's a mix of charm, warmth, comedy, emotion that pays off throughout it. The animation looks gorgeous and super-detailed, especially when they go to the Land of the Dead. The colors throughout that whole area look great and vibrant. Both the composed score from Giacchino (I think the best work he's done has always been his stuff for Pixar) and the original songs work well throughout the film.
     
    BigAl6ft6 likes this.
  21. BigAl6ft6

    BigAl6ft6 Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Nov 12, 2012
    Lady Bird is a really funny and heartfelt coming of age comedy drama. It doesn’t really have a straight plot line because the only real plot is that the main character is going to graduate high school. At most it’s a collection of random scenes set mostly in and around high school with some great, wry quips. Writer/director Greta Gerwig’s movie is very truthful, emotionally low key yet resonant and with a fantastic lead performance and it only slightly falters when trying too hard to manipulate the audience’s emotions. But overall it is so charmingly quirky that is totally okay.
    In 2002, Lady Bird (Saoirse Ronan), real name Catherine but she gave herself the moniker Lady Bird, is in her senior year at a Catholic High School and years to escape to college on the East Coast. Not supporting a move is her mother, Marion (Laurie Metcalf), who believes it’ll be too expensive and angrily snarks that her daughter wouldn’t have the grades for it anyway. While Lady Bird is dragging herself through her final year she hangs out with her best friend, romances a few boys, and can’t wait to get out of there but not before going through a few important milestones.
    Ronan is great as Lady Bird who may fall into the standard mold of being an extraordinary girl in an ordinary town but Ronan makes her lovable as there are a lot of big moments that doesn’t include bombastic acting but her subtle reactions. She’s also hilarious as she has a one-liner ready for any situation. Lady Bird herself may go through the standard high school movie coming of age checklist, first love, broken heart, first intimate experience, getting drunk, badgering with friends and family, but Ronan sells it.
    Lady Bird’s relationship with her mother is problematic which is odd because it’s a huge component of the flick. Metcalf puts in a excellent performance of a character that is somewhat unevenly written as she goes from pleasant to hateful in a second. That may be the point about the complicated relationship between daughters and mothers but Marion often crosses the line to downright nasty. And stays there.
    Anyway, since the movie is called Lady Bird, and she’s the focal point of every single scene, automatically the audience’s sympathies lie with the title character. So by the end the movie is trying to make the audience feel sorry for the mother but she’s been incredibly mean to her daughter it feels like comeuppance. She is such an incredibly hard person to like one wonders why Lady Bird even tries. The movie definitely portrays the mother as the antagonist so when Lady Bird comes to an emotional catharsis, she seems more like a victim of an abusive relationship than someone who has grown.
    The mother daughter relationship may be the emotional core but the movie is really more about random, vaguely connected funny or emotional vignettes. There are a couple of details the movie gets perfectly, like the montage of Lady Bird going through the drudgery of the final year and the robotic motions of her Catholic daily routine. Very true to life is the kids couldn’t care less about class because the college applications have already been sent and, as Lady Bird correctly says, “I think we’re done with the learning portion of high school.” The opening scene involves Lady Bird and her mother wiping away tears while listening to an audiobook classic, suddenly degenerating into a bitter fight, and then Lady Bird ends the argument by throwing herself out of the car, which is stunning but funny because then it cuts to Lady Bird wearing a pink cast on her arm. Even at barely 90 minutes, the movie has a wee bit too many endings, featuring a last minute run at the airport and, be it mainstream romantic comedy or indie darling Lady Bird, someone rushing to the airport to say something is getting cliché. It’s almost was well worn as the Big Glowy CGI Thing in the climax of superhero movies.
    The movie is consistently, darkly funny in the caustic barbs and awkward quips Lady Bird throws out, like when she tries to flirt and ends up making a badly delivered joke about killing his family. When Lady Bird loses her virginity there’s a cynically funny moment where she says she did it while being on top and “Who the %&*$ is on top their first time?” Lady Bird is set in 2002 but there isn’t any reason since coming of age stories are timeless. The only millage the movie gets out of the year is musical selection, a few winking references to oncoming proliferation of cell phones, and the odd reference to 9/11 and Republicans.
    While Lady Bird may not be the most original movie ever made, a lot of its component pieces are cobbled together from coming of age films and mumblecore hang out dramedies, it is very engaging and entertaining. Especially Ronan as Lady Bird who may be a bit of a brat who doesn’t know as much as she thinks she does but is still someone to care about.
     
    Evening Star likes this.
  22. Havac

    Havac Former Moderator star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 29, 2005
    Obviously you weren't paying too much attention to the film, because Bambi and Thumper are in the same movie. And they make a pair of campy gay assassins look positively mundane.
     
    Sarge likes this.
  23. Adam of Nuchtern

    Adam of Nuchtern Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Sep 2, 2012
    Diamonds are Forever is mostly garbage, but the elevator fight is pretty solid.
     
  24. The Krynoid Man

    The Krynoid Man Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Dec 24, 2015


    It is cut out of British versions. Legally, the BBFC have to remove animal cruelty like that, and as a result it's the only Bond film that has never gotten an uncut release at any point in this country.


    Lovelace, a biopic of the porn star Linda Lovelace. The cinematography and acting is decent (even if none of them look like the people they are playing), but structurally it's a bit all over the place. It doesn't know whether it wants to be a fun romp looking at the 70's porn industry or a soap opera looking at an abusive marriage, so it tries to do both at the same time, and it just doesn't work. The story is also pretty rushed, so as a result the characters lack depth.
     
  25. AndyLGR

    AndyLGR Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 1, 2014
    Interesting, even on the DVD and BD release its cut? I'm sure I've seen a version of it somewhere.