Threat Level Midnight

Night Teeth, on Netflix. Stylish vampires in LA romp centred on a murder, death, kill type spree through the blood sucker underworld. It isn't awful and stars some likeable people.

The Dry, Australian murder mystery sees Federal Cop Eric Bana return to his drought stricken home town in the wake of a murder-suicide, and ultimately gets drawn into the investigation.

If it wasn't Australian, it probably wouldn't get a look in. However, it's an authentic as regional Australia gets, which is great. Usually Australian movies take the piss out of themselves unknowingly by ramping up the ockerism and apparently colloquialisms (that no-one actually uses) like " throw a shrimp on the barbie " type stuff.

Halloween Kills - I loved it - it’s fun and entertaining and they went some really interesting directions. I get all the criticisms but I’ve just came into these Halloween’s completely distancing them from the original.

The thing that makes the original great is the lack of blood and gore , the new versions are the opposite of that and should never even be brought up in the same discussion.

Watched Many Saints over the weekend... 2 hours and 3 funerals. Is that Sopranos as a whole? Actually went in thinking this was gonna be Tony Soprano origin story and I got like 1/2 through it thinking "man he's not even in this"... oh a swerve on me? It's an Uncle Dickie story. I didn't know that going in. So gonna assume he was mentioned throughout the series but obvious never appeared cuz... 3 funerals.

I'm afraid to start the actual series as I know the other stuff I'm following will take a backseat for a while. Haven't deep dived into a show since Hannibal. Might be time episode 0 in the books.

Don't quote me on the # of funerals.

Halloween Kills:

Everything I want out of a Halloween film. Deaths were inventive, the Easter eggs were cool and even if the characters were unlikeable..obviously they got what was coming to them.

Only part I have issue with is

SPOILER: Click to show

The shorter stubby mental patient doesn’t fit the bill for someone that has almost super human strength and walks everywhere. I know it was an angry mob that couldn’t be reasoned with but even then they could have had a better look alike

So my favorite personal head canon for Halloween is Myers was summoned by a babysitter who wanted to eliminate all of the competition, which is why he keeps going after young woman

I loved Kills, most seem to hate it. It worked though, the town was insufferable and most had it coming. Curious why JLC is saying that people will hate the finale of this trilogy. I am thinking they change the canon or Michael speaks.

My daughter wanted to have a Halloween sleepover tonight but with parents still freaked about COVID and short notice it kind of fell apart. No big deal she’ll have another one, but to make it up to her we decided to let her pick a PG13 horror movie to watch tonight. She chose The Ring

I haven’t seen this movie since it came out so I forgot a lot of it. I wish I could remember why it was so hyped up because honestly I was bored and so was my daughter. She kept asking when it was going to get scary.

I guess it’s a decent investigative horror mystery (and Naomi Watts…swoon..) but otherwise..meh? I don’t know why I was scared the first time I watched it.

Daughter said the scariest part was watching the tape because she didn’t know what was coming. After that she was just snacking on popcorn and root beer and trying to enjoy herself. Oh and when Brian Cox electrocuted himself she laughed and said “what an idiot.”

I might be raising a sociopath.

R thought it was funny too. Almost nothing scared R though outside of It. And I ran her through the gauntlet. Keep gore relatively tame and she hated sex in movies so kept films with heavy sex out of it, but damn, like nothing phased that kid.

Was funny years later when her actual dad entered her life and tried to restrict what films she could watch. She did Hellraiser and Nightmare on Elm Street when she was 7, at 12 not being able to watch a Paranormal Activity movie with her mom was just a hilariously weird decision.

Hidden (Michael Haneke, 2005)

On the surface, Hidden is a film about surveillance. The very first shot is a still camera fixed on a house. We soon learn that this footage is from a video tape sent anonymously to the very people living in that house. Naturally, they are concerned to say the least, and the narrative blossoms from that intriguing starting point.

Although it's presented as a mystery thriller the film has a lot to say than what is apparent on the surface, the kind of film that academics write essays about. What I took from it is that it seems be a character study, about how a person reacts when confronted with something shameful from his past. Brilliantly scripted and acted.

The way the film is shot is very engaging. We see what is happening, what is being said, without any judgment from the filmmaker. Most shots are long, and still, and fixed in one place. It's not just the family that are being watched; I get the sense that the audience is somehow snooping on everything that happens. Roger Ebert puts it best; "A stationary camera is objective. A moving camera implies a subjective viewer, whether that viewer is a character, the director, or the audience. Haneke uses the technique of making the camera "move" in time, not space. His locked-down shots are objective." There are several scenes where seemingly nothing of consequence happens, yet I was gripped to the screen throughout because of the style of the filming.

This objectivity is enhanced by the complete lack of music, something I didn't even notice until well over an hour in. Every film has background music, designed to evoke a specific mood. Hidden has no music. The movie in no way offers any opinion as to its content. It is up to the viewer to think and decide.

Although I have suggested that the film has a lot of hidden depth: symbolism, allegories, most of which probably flew over my head, the top-level story of the mystery surveillance is satisfying in itself. The film is worth watching for that alone, but it's a film that not only rewards repeat watchings, but encourages them. I've never seen a film like this, it is a masterpiece.

Oct 31, 2021 12:23:15 GMT Emperor said:

Hidden (Michael Haneke, 2005)

On the surface, Hidden is a film about surveillance. The very first shot is a still camera fixed on a house. We soon learn that this footage is from a video tape sent anonymously to the very people living in that house. Naturally, they are concerned to say the least, and the narrative blossoms from that intriguing starting point.

Although it's presented as a mystery thriller the film has a lot to say than what is apparent on the surface, the kind of film that academics write essays about. What I took from it is that it seems be a character study, about how a person reacts when confronted with something shameful from his past. Brilliantly scripted and acted.

The way the film is shot is very engaging. We see what is happening, what is being said, without any judgment from the filmmaker. Most shots are long, and still, and fixed in one place. It's not just the family that are being watched; I get the sense that the audience is somehow snooping on everything that happens. Roger Ebert puts it best; "A stationary camera is objective. A moving camera implies a subjective viewer, whether that viewer is a character, the director, or the audience. Haneke uses the technique of making the camera "move" in time, not space. His locked-down shots are objective." This is enhanced by the complete lack of music, something I didn't even notice until well over an hour in. There are several scenes where seemingly nothing of consequence happens, yet I was gripped to the screen throughout because of the style of the filming.

Although I have suggested that the film has a lot of hidden depth: symbolism, allegories, most of which probably flew over my head, the top-level story of the mystery surveillance is satisfying in itself. The film is worth watching for that alone, but it's a film that not only rewards repeat watchings, but encourages them. I've never seen a film like this, it is a masterpiece.

I was in the same boat, I had no idea about the Algerian War which is the central focus of the story and the allegory Hanecke is making. Otherwise I enjoyed the subversion of the thriller genre and just how intrusive it felt to watch this surveillence footage of Georges - it maybe the most passive aggressive move known to man. The impression I got is that Georges and the family wanted to paint this as this tantalising thriller when in truth all Mijad wanted was to be acknowledged.

I felt like they tried to extend that guilt sub-plot by intimating the wife was having an affair and the son was trying to make her suffer.

While I thought the ending was intentionally vague and you can either see that there were people behind the survillence cameras, that something really sinister was about to happen and Georges was going to pay a hefty price for what happened to Mijad or how the younger generation is being more open minded and willing to look past cultural barriers in order to get along.

I remember putting Juliette Binoche over when I think Peebs picked Sils Maria which would have been quite random as I've yet to see the Three Colours BUT it was merely based on this movie.

House on Haunted Hill (1959)

Tried to do a thing where I’d live-stream some public domain movies but no one was interested because the movies were older 🤦🏻‍♀️.

Oh well, i really enjoyed this it had a compelling plot and some of the practical effects were cool for the time. Funny my first introduction to his story was “The Simpsons” parodying it.

I always get House on Haunted Hill and The Haunting (1963) mixed up in my head. Both haunted house movies. Both great. System you should check out The Haunting if you haven't already.

Oct 31, 2021 12:59:30 GMT Big Pete said:

I was in the same boat, I had no idea about the Algerian War which is the central focus of the story and the allegory Hanecke is making. Otherwise I enjoyed the subversion of the thriller genre and just how intrusive it felt to watch this surveillence footage of Georges - it maybe the most passive aggressive move known to man. The impression I got is that Georges and the family wanted to paint this as this tantalising thriller when in truth all Mijad wanted was to be acknowledged.

I felt like they tried to extend that guilt sub-plot by intimating the wife was having an affair and the son was trying to make her suffer.

While I thought the ending was intentionally vague and you can either see that there were people behind the survillence cameras, that something really sinister was about to happen and Georges was going to pay a hefty price for what happened to Mijad or how the younger generation is being more open minded and willing to look past cultural barriers in order to get along.

I remember putting Juliette Binoche over when I think Peebs picked Sils Maria which would have been quite random as I've yet to see the Three Colours BUT it was merely based on this movie.

I didn't know about the Algerian war either but they make a point of describing the major event in the film itself, regarding what happened to Mijad's parents.

Did you catch what happened in the very final scene, with the kids coming out of the school? I didn't notice it at first, only after reading a review did I look back and notice it.

Tried Evil Dead. Couldn't really get into it I'm afraid.

Oct 31, 2021 16:59:58 GMT Emperor said:

Oct 31, 2021 12:59:30 GMT Big Pete said:

I was in the same boat, I had no idea about the Algerian War which is the central focus of the story and the allegory Hanecke is making. Otherwise I enjoyed the subversion of the thriller genre and just how intrusive it felt to watch this surveillence footage of Georges - it maybe the most passive aggressive move known to man. The impression I got is that Georges and the family wanted to paint this as this tantalising thriller when in truth all Mijad wanted was to be acknowledged.

I felt like they tried to extend that guilt sub-plot by intimating the wife was having an affair and the son was trying to make her suffer.

While I thought the ending was intentionally vague and you can either see that there were people behind the survillence cameras, that something really sinister was about to happen and Georges was going to pay a hefty price for what happened to Mijad or how the younger generation is being more open minded and willing to look past cultural barriers in order to get along.

I remember putting Juliette Binoche over when I think Peebs picked Sils Maria which would have been quite random as I've yet to see the Three Colours BUT it was merely based on this movie.

I didn't know about the Algerian war either but they make a point of describing the major event in the film itself, regarding what happened to Mijad's parents.

Did you catch what happened in the very final scene, with the kids coming out of the school? I didn't notice it at first, only after reading a review did I look back and notice it.

I just didn't understand the significance of the war so the allegory didn't affect me as much as it would have had I been French. At least that was my perspective going into the movie blind.

I did, but I like that there was the possibility that to the human eye nothing of any real significance was occurring, but in truth this was a big revelation for the movie - we just don't know exactly what that revelation was. Open ended endings are difficult to pull off since at times it feels like the directors throwing their arms up and daring the audience to solve it for them. In this case I thought it worked at putting us in Georges uneasy mind-set.

Oct 31, 2021 17:03:13 GMT @ness said:

Tried Evil Dead. Couldn't really get into it I'm afraid.

Watch Evil Dead 2.  Same plot basically but funner.  

Speaking from experience, if you don't like Evil Dead, you won't like Evil Dead 2 either. Exactly the same style of humour, which isn't funny at all to me.

I know a few people who did not like Evil Dead but like Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness. Evil Dead was not really a comedy. The other two def lean into it.

I will say this, for a real hilarious comedy, watch Evil Dead with the commentary. It is hilarious.  It really was made with a shoe string budget and a ton of moonshine and reefer.

Some of the stuff from it:

filmschoolrejects.com/27-things-we-learned-from-the-evil-dead-commentary-a4ef57e691f/

I could've sworn I saw some scenes from Army of Darkness from a friend in high school. Ash has always been a character I've known about but never really dug into. I got about 30 minutes in and fw'd to random parts and nothing seemed too interesting. Obviously a cabin in the woods style horror is gonna be a slow build, but I wasn't feeling it when I watched up to that point. Also had a minor plumbing issue over the weekend so that coulda spoiled it.

AoD certainly has one of the more recognizable posters though.

Army of Darkness is hilarious. Evil Dead 2 gets rid of the slow build stuff. It starts pretty fast.

Eternals:

Exposition central, moves at a glacial pace with characters I couldn’t care less about combined with the usual preachiness brought to you by one of the world’s most morally bankrupt companies. Er humans shouldn’t be trusted with guns but let us be the 2nd biggest purchaser of explosives.

Also weird plot that’s meant to make you feel sad that a “child” (does the anime thing where they are really 2732973 years old despite looking like a minor) can’t fall in love with an adult. I’m sure they’ll get some points for the kiss that will get edited out on its Chinese release though.

Angelina Jolie seemed like she regretted signing up to be in this the second shooting started and was just pilled up the whole film.

Some funny moments but that’s about it.

So more misses than hits this phase? Widow and Eternals? Heard good things about Chi but also not much fanfare so it feels lesser.

MCU is past it.

Nov 3, 2021 14:23:51 GMT @ness said:

So more misses than hits this phase? Widow and Eternals? Heard good things about Chi but also not much fanfare so it feels lesser.

Shang-Chi is good not great, much better than BW/Eternals though. I just like that they fixed the

SPOILER: Click to show

Mandarin character storyline from Iron Man 3

🤯

Fully agree, they spent more than a decade building up main event characters for a grand finale and now I’ve meant to care about the JOB squad I get introduced to in one film and is supposedly super important?

Nov 3, 2021 14:27:32 GMT 🤯 said:

MCU is past it.

Next good movie we gotta give them a token "you still got it" chant. 🎈🎈🎈

Phase 4 should pick up again with Guardians, Strange, Thor, Ant-Man and Spider-Man. Marvels either will be great or Larson will kill it. Could go eitherway. Blade and FF4 could be awesome as well.

Nov 3, 2021 15:19:40 GMT c said:

Phase 4 should pick up again with Guardians, Strange, Thor, Ant-Man and Spider-Man. Marvels either will be great or Larson will kill it. Could go eitherway. Blade and FF4 could be awesome as well.

Ah this had been the preshow. 🎉🎋🎎

Do Eternals and Shang-Chi fit into the MCU or are they completely separate universes, like...Deadpool?

Nov 3, 2021 15:31:04 GMT Emperor said:

Do Eternals and Shang-Chi fit into the MCU or are they completely separate universes, like...Deadpool?

They fit in.

Mrs RT and I were going to watch Halloween Kills on Sunday night but then we learned that it's a sequel to the 2018 Halloween reboot/sequel/whatever the fuck so we watched that instead.

It sucked. I don't know how or why they keep making these movies. I don't get the appeal at all. I understand why "serial killer goes berserk" was scary as fuck in the 70s and 80s but it just does nothing for me now. And I don't really have to explain why every old horror movie trope is stupid and overdone and has been for decades. I wish a director would come along and make a believable slasher film, one that doesn't have the world's dumbest people being easy victims and using no common sense whatsoever.

Small town America is not the same as it was 30-40 years ago but this movie treated it like it was. If Michael Myers escaped and murdered 4 people at a gas station, that town would have been locked down so fucking fast. There would have been cops on every corner with riot gear and machine guns, and Myers would have been dead before it even got dark out.