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DVD News
Harry's DVD Picks & Peeks: 3rd wk of April 2010: Cameron, Spielberg, Jackson, Godard, Eisenstein & The White Buffalo!!!
Hey folks, Harry here a tad late. The four days leading up to the column had me traveling, and I didn't get back home till about 1am last night. I stayed up writing til about 5:30am, but just couldn't quite get through the list. So here it is. Some pretty great titles this week, as usual the pics and titles link over to AMAZON where you could learn more about the title or purchase them, which would go to help support this column, for which y'all have my thanks. Here ya go…
Tuesday, April 20th, 2010
Ya know. The film is still playing, I hear it will be returning to IMAX screens, there's always persistent rumors of a longer cut being issued into theaters – and there's definitely strong rumors of a robust badass edition coming out later this holiday season. SO. The question is put to you. Do you wish to have a 1080p print of AVATAR for home use? That is essentially what you'll get. It is gorgeous, and I think the film actually works better in 2D. So, do you need it now?
I just kinda hate that of all the brilliant Jeff Bridges performances – this is the one that got him the paper weight. There's nothing intrinsically wrong with the film or the role – it is just… ya know. THE DUDE, STARMAN, JAGGED EDGE, TRON, what's your fave? The whole film feels like an Oscar push – but as cynical as that sounds… Maggie Gyllenhaal rules every frame she is in. Her eyes are some of the most purely soulful, whimsical and good eyes I've seen in film. Her face sells this movie in a less showy way than Jeff, but without her, he wouldn't have that Award. I'm completely serious.
I'm not sure what it was about this film that just didn't work quite right for me with this film, but it feels hollow and too brief. Everyone and everything was done as well as could be expected, but the film just didn't hold my interest in the least. This is not ELIZABETH. Nor should it have been, but there's just something not quite about it. But I do know plenty of folks that do like it, so there seems to be something that clicks for those folks that isn't for me. So it could work for you. Me, I won't bother again.
And yet on this film, I'm on the otherside. The side that loves it. Although I am a bit befuddled as to the genre that I would place it in. I mean, it is definitely FICTION. There is a horrific supernatural mystery adventure biopic from the beyondish quality to it. The quote on the cover says "A Thrilling Adventure" – but there's a side of me that would prefer the quote, "The Film Shirley Temple Was Made For!" This was the teenage role that Shirley Temple never had. She played immensely sad and tragic tales in her career, but for Saoirise Ronan – this is a role that pretty much guarantees an adult actress career later on. I don't believe Saoirise is going anywhere, we're going to continue to see her grow up on camera – playing roles that continually surprise us. She reminds me of a young Jodie Foster. Stanley Tucci is amazingly creepy in this film. And I love his makeup and hair. He disappears in the role and that's amazing to watch. I love films like these. WHAT DREAMS MAY COME, HEAVEN CAN WAIT, TIME BANDITS, WINGS OF DESIRE… you know… that kind of stuff. I just find filmmakers' struggle to cinematically define the afterlife, be it Romero or Ingmar Bergman – there is quite a bit of the soul of the filmmaker at play in the films. From LOVELY BONES, you can see the romantic in Peter Jackson. There's a belief in Karma, quite a bit of whimsy, an attention to detail and ultimately a tender view of the harshness of reality. Not every filmmaker is so forgiving. But I feel all of these films are hopeful films, hopeful in their dedication to the conception of an afterlife. An ever endangered belief it would seem, but one I'm still quite fond of. The BLU RAY is beautiful.
MINORITY REPORT (Blu Ray)
As a vision of the future, it is a jaw-dropping science fiction spectacle. As a film, it doesn't work for me. I tend to despise films that put a companion with the main character that has been specifically created with the express purpose of being exactly the convenient device that is Absolutely necessary for the main character to do incredible things devoid of all tension and threat, thus making those actions seem pedestrian, no matter their complexity.
Film complaints aside, this is a tremendous Blu Ray. The disc is loaded with extras:
The Future According to Steven Spielberg HD
Inside The World of Precrime HD
Phillip K. Dick, Steven Speilberg and Minority Report HD
Minority Report: Future Realized HD
Minority Report: Props of the Future HD
Highlights from Minority Report: From the Set
Minority Report: Commercials of the Future HD
Previz Sequences
From Story to Screen
Deconstructing Minority Report
The Stunts of Minority Report
ILM and Minority Report
Final Report
Production Concepts
Storyboard Sequences
Which is a damn fine selection. I love a peek in Spielberg's process and never resist a moment to have a peek. How about you?
FIST OF LEGEND (Blu Ray)
Jet Li and Yuen Woo Ping combine to take on one of the great BRUCE LEE films and succeed wildly. This is one of those films that I just live to watch. When I met Jet Li on The Expendables it was with a degree of awe. This and the ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA series are why. This is Jet Li at the absolute height of his fighting prowess. It is something to behold. One of those gifts that cinema gives us from time to time, that is then left for us to show everyone we know till there is nobody anywhere that hasn't. This is an excellent Blu Ray!
VIVRE SA VIE (Criterion Blu)
A brilliant Godard film and one of the greatest performances ever put out by Anna Karina, who is a whole lot of dreaming in every frame. This is an amazing film about a girl that dreamt of being an actress, but instead found herself on the street and between the sheets for profit. There is a rollerskating scene involving a pool table and some men drinking that comes off as one of the most simply erotic and hot scenes in the history of cinema. It is magic and she is an intoxicant. The extras on this Blu Ray are truly amazing:
New, restored high-definition digital transfer, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack •
Audio commentary featuring film scholar Adrian Martin •
Video interview with film scholar Jean Narboni, conducted by historian Noël Simsolo •
Television interview from 1962 with actress Anna Karina •
Excerpts from a 1961 French television exposé on prostitution •
Illustrated essay on La prostitution, the book that served as inspiration for the film •
Stills gallery •
Director Jean-Luc Godard's original theatrical trailer •
New and improved English subtitle translation •
PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Michael Atkinson, interviews with Godard, a reprint by critic Jean Collet on the film's soundtrack, and Godard's original scenario
A must see!
BATTLESHIP POTEMKIN (Blu Ray)
It is hard to imagine that a film basically once helped to create the very language of cinema itself, but that is exactly what Sergei Eisenstein's brilliant BATTLESHIP POTEMKIN did. This is a film that I would legitimately love to see a remake of. Sure, I know it is as Communist as it ever gets – but I'd love to see a modern Russian remake from a less outright propagandistic way, but a tad more personal take. Because no matter what, nobody will top what this movie did. It influenced the entirety of modern cinema. The style of editing, of many of your very favorite filmmakers – it came out of this amazing film, which essentially provided a Rosetta Stone to how to make visceral and exciting cinema. KINO has done another fantastic job on Blu Ray – with a stunning transfer, score, documentary and more. History that still thrills. I love it!
I haven't seen this. Yet. But I want you to click that Amazon link and I want you to watch the Trailer on the other end. Dino De Laurentis made a film about a giant white buffalo that wiped people out in the mountainmen days. Charles Bronson plays Wild Bill Hickox, who is apparently all Ahab about this thing. It just. It truly looks like the sort of genius that must be had. Look at the Buffalo sculpt – the shit will make you shit giggling. "THE WHITE BUFFALO!" be afraid! Lol. Behold and order! You may regret it, but you'll love doing so!
I haven't seen this film in years, but it is one of those films that anyone that loves the trifecta of terror, namely Vincent Price, Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee. It is hokey, hammy and haybales of fun. I love the movie like a thing of favorites. I like it because it felt like reading Famous Monsters of Filmland and seeing it come to life in an odd, eccentric, hilarious manner all its own.
I've always thought of this film as THE GRASSHOPPERS THAT ATE CHICAGO – but that's just been my Dad's nickname for this film – my entire life. They literally placed Grasshoppers upon photographs of the Chicago Skyline – and that's how they did the effects. It is wonderfully old school. Peter Graves really sells the horror of the film and the heroism. Big fan of this fifties giant bug classic!
THE BASKETBALL DIARIES (Blu Ray)
The film that launched Leo really high on to everybody's radar. And deservedly so. I find the story less captivating than Leo's performance which is pretty damn electric. If you're a DiCaprio fan and have somehow missed this – you definitely need to check it out.
A man flick of the highest caliber. I would love more movies centered in and around this generation of actors – Essentially a story about a man that finds out his wife no longer loves him and is leaving him for another man – and he – and his friends all go a bit nuts. Essentially, these are the types of men, whose wives you do not fuck with. Winstone is amazing, but then – so is every other actor in this. Could be a stage play, very few locations, overall a tight awesome little flick. Really love this film.
If you want to be a screenwriter, if you want to know about the life, the frustration, the horror, the elation, the marginalization, the anger and the happiness of getting it perfect… TALES FROM THE SCRIPT is absolutely for you. This is a doc about Screenwriters… folks like Paul Schrader and William Goldman, John Carpenter & Shane Black with a dash of Frank Darabont. This is for everyone that ever wanted to pursue the life, understand the life or just plain avoid the life… Best doc on screenwriting ever made.
Now here's a mostly forgotten jewel from the career of Joseph L Mankiewicz starring the ham of hams, Rex Harrison as the ludicrously wealthy and ungodly eccentric Cecil Fox. He has a desire for his ex's, which include Edie Adams, Susan Hayward and the lovely Cappucine. Hell, this movie even has a hot Professor McGonagall aka Hard Castle McCormick. Giggle. There's murder and high theatricality at play in THE HONEY POT – but it is filled with talent, all of whom were doing their best. Definitely one to see.
Ok, that's it for this week – next we look at TOMBSTONE (Blu), THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS (Blu), ARMAGEDDON (Blu), OUT OF AFRICA (Blu), IT'S COMPLICATED (Blu), DUNE (Blu), FIVE MINUTES OF HEAVEN, THE GALLANT HOURS, THE DESCENT Part 2, ELIZABETH: THE GOLDEN AGE (Blu), ELIZABETH (Blu), THE BARARA STANWYCK Collection, RIDE WITH THE DEVIL (Criterion Blu), THE JACKAL (Blu), DISTRICT 13: ULTIMATUM, TRAFFIC (Blu), COLD TURKEY, TALES FROM THE DARKSIDE 3rd Season, FUGITIVE KIND (Criterion), TOYS IN THE ATTIC, THUNDER IN CAROLINA, HONG KONG GODFATHER, THE TENTH MAN, VANISHING FIANCEE, ORSON WELLES: THE PARIS INTERVIEW and tons more!
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April 20, 2010, 10:40 p.m. CST
Fuck Avatar!
by Lashlarue
Because it's Awesome! <p> I'm a dork who doesn't like awesome things.
April 20, 2010, 10:43 p.m. CST
ATTN: Hollywood
by The Guy Who Slept Through Everything.
Stop casting Mark Wahlberg in starring roles. Know what? Just stop casting him in anything all together.
April 20, 2010, 10:44 p.m. CST
Wow, almost on time.
by m_reporter
Nice work big guy.
April 20, 2010, 10:46 p.m. CST
That Minority Report cover...
by Norm Cascade
...Looks like shit. That's all I have to say.
April 20, 2010, 10:48 p.m. CST
^Theres a region free UK Steelie
by magnetoelectric
With a much better cover. Waiting to read more PQ AQ reviews before I bite on MR.(love that movie)
April 20, 2010, 10:49 p.m. CST
by Mr. Nice Gaius
I used to love that movie when I was a kid. It always seemed to play late at night which added to the surreal quality of the final showdown with the great beast.<P>The best part is that there are moments when you can clearly see the rail-tracks that they used for running the buffalo towards the camera. You would think that somebody might have brought that up during editing!
April 20, 2010, 10:50 p.m. CST
Seriously Harry...
by CellarDweller
If you ever want to be taken seriously as a critic/writer, go back to elementary school and take some basic English grammar and spelling courses you obviously slept through the first time.
April 20, 2010, 10:52 p.m. CST
Love Fist of Legend
by m_reporter
Definitely getting that and Minority Report, which is in my opinion the best Spielberg film since Schindler's List. <p> I kinda don't agree with you big guy on your description of Agatha (aka the MacGuffin) since she never outstays her welcome, and is actually quite an intriguing character in her own right. Only scene with her that I kinda cringe on is when they're at Tom Cruises house and she gives that speech "there was a lot of love in this house"... Thankfully all shit brakes loose after that to wash out the over sentimentality.
April 20, 2010, 10:58 p.m. CST
I need it now.
by googamooga
And yes, I'll probably (scratch that, DEFINITELY) buy the extended edition later on. Am I a bluray whore? Not usually, but Avatar is an exception, and my kids loved it too, which is a bonus.
April 20, 2010, 11:15 p.m. CST
Am I the only one...
by Kavalier
Who really dislikes What Dreams May Come?? I mean *!spoiler alert!* I'm pretty sure they even kill the dog in the movie!! And Minority Report should look great on Blu-ray!
April 20, 2010, 11:22 p.m. CST
by Kavalier
I think everyone who hates Avatar is in the Sequel News Talkback. Don't worry though, they will arrive soon...
April 20, 2010, 11:22 p.m. CST
Oh, and Minority Report has a SHITTY ending!
by Lashlarue
Because it makes sense. <p> It would be better if it was a "dark" and depressing ending. The one where he actually kills the guy, even though THAT makes no sense whatsoever.<p> Loser Fanboys.
April 20, 2010, 11:23 p.m. CST
Lovely Bones was UTTER SHIT.
by MetalMickey
April 20, 2010, 11:25 p.m. CST
I'm going to wait
by kafka07
I didn't even get to see it in IMAX yet. In general I'm not crazy about 3D. I kind of agree with the Dark Knight filmmakers that 3D is a fad. BUT my preferred way to watch Avatar is in 3D. It's a lot of fucking fun.
April 20, 2010, 11:28 p.m. CST
I'm sorry, John, but you have to run, now
by Nasty In The Pasty
April 20, 2010, 11:28 p.m. CST
by Kavalier
"I tend to despise films that put a companion with the main character that has been specifically created with the express purpose of being exactly the convenient device that is Absolutely necessary for the main character to do incredible things devoid of all tension and threat, thus making those actions seem pedestrian, no matter their complexity." Come again, Harry? You're cute but I don't understand what you're saying!!
April 20, 2010, 11:29 p.m. CST
Re: Lashlarue - Minority Report
by ltgalloway
When viewing that film consider that everything that happens after Tom Cruise gets haloed could all be happening in a coma induced fantasy. That's how I like to view it and I think this perspective could add a darker tone to the movies "ending" for you.
April 20, 2010, 11:32 p.m. CST
And Maggie Gyllenhaal was at LEAST a decade too young in Crazy H
by Nasty In The Pasty
Why this attractive (suck it, haters) young woman in her early thirties jumps in the sack with Bridges' boozy, fiftysomething burnout pretty much the same night she meets him is one of the many problems I had with Crazy Heart (which also trivalized the recovery process...apparently all you have to do to kick a lifelong alcohol problem is go to ONE A.A. meeting and stare at a bubbling brook for 20 seconds). I can understand why desperate fortysomething housewives would want to jump Bad Blake's bones, but why would a successful career girl like Gyllenhaal's character want this wreck around her four-year-old son? Bridges was more than fine, but the movie is bland made-for-TV uplift.
April 20, 2010, 11:33 p.m. CST
by Nasty In The Pasty
April 20, 2010, 11:46 p.m. CST
Didn't care for Minority Report at all.
by JuanSanchez
April 20, 2010, 11:48 p.m. CST
Kavalier - everyone hated What Dreams May Come.
by JuanSanchez
April 20, 2010, 11:50 p.m. CST
THE LOVELY BONES "It's definitely fiction!" - Harry Knowles, AIC
by Gwai Lo
Abominable film. Truly awful.
April 21, 2010, 12:03 a.m. CST
traveling? You couldn't write this column on your iPad?
by Gungan Slayer
April 21, 2010, 12:04 a.m. CST
Avatar on TV everywhere!
by TronBurgundy
No need to buy the 'short' version..I'll see it in every shop window and TV store on rolling demo for months! Look forward to the longer edit, including "Exposed Na'vi Boobs" (Cameron - Empire Interview)..Thanks for posting the reviews Harry, I'm stranded in Athens for a few days thanks to the Icelandic volcano. Nice to have something new to read!
April 21, 2010, 12:07 a.m. CST
As Arnie would say - AVADAR!
by Orionsangels
April 21, 2010, 12:11 a.m. CST
by Gungan Slayer
Damn, that was an awesome trailer. lol
April 21, 2010, 12:16 a.m. CST
by Kavalier
I just wasn't sure. It seems like every so often I hear someone say they like that movie (when it unfortunately comes up in conversation), and then Harry mentioning it. Even after my post, I realized that I actually despise that movie.
April 21, 2010, 12:18 a.m. CST
The Lovely Bones...
by Kavalier
Didn't Ebert rag on that movie too? If he did, he was dead... on! It sucked.
April 21, 2010, 12:22 a.m. CST
Three words -
by Tacoloft
Fist of Legend
April 21, 2010, 12:28 a.m. CST
The Lovely Bones is a good movie
by The Ringwraith
It is not a great, flawless classic. But by absolutely no means is it UTTER SHIT! There is much to admire about the film in every respect, and I never found it at all dull. In fact I was very nearly riveted for its runtime. Ultimately it will be seen as a minor and flawed effort but its certainly not the trainwreck people make it out to be. Peter Jackson has still got it and I can't wait to see what he does next.
April 21, 2010, 12:35 a.m. CST
Starman should have been his first of many
by gmanca
Oscar wins; his performance in that movie is great, the mannerisms, speech, and his facial expressions. I think Jagged Edge was a good procedural but there really wasn't much to work with as it was more of a Glenn Close vehicle. 8 Million Ways to Die is a classic performance and needs to be out on DVD or Blu-Ray.
April 21, 2010, 12:41 a.m. CST
MGM Archive Titles
by Dasinfogod
Been steadily buying the Warner Archive titles over the last year or so, and am pleased that MGM back catalog titles are similarly offered on Amazon (already picked up DREAMCHILD and BEST MAN) but I've yet to find a definitive list of titles offered in the series! As lame as it is, at least the Warner website has them all gathered in one place to browse. It's hit and miss with MGM/Amazon. Any help out there? Harry, pull some clout and get them to form a list or somethin'! If they are listed, I'll buy 'em, but they gotta make it a little easier to spot...
April 21, 2010, 12:45 a.m. CST
The White Buffalo!
by Cinemanimetal
You right about that trailer, Harry! So hilariously awesome! Now if only I could convince my Western film teacher to show this in class today...
April 21, 2010, 1:01 a.m. CST
Avatar DVD available until...
by Darth Dean
July 1st. Then all Dvds and blurays of the movie get shipped back to Fox and put in the vault, and a newer director's cut comes out in Holiday 2010. I'm a merchandiser for Source Interlink and Fox sent us these instructions for the Avatar Promotion.
April 21, 2010, 1:07 a.m. CST
7 days
by frank cotton
'til PARNASSUS!
April 21, 2010, 1:10 a.m. CST
Crazy Heart
by nothingordouble_jack
Man, I was so excited to see Bridges' performance in Crazy Heart and it just left me feeling meh...enjoyed the music though.
April 21, 2010, 1:21 a.m. CST
Once again Harry skips over the release of the week
by Incandenza
Summer Hours on Criterion blu. Jesus christ, how do you skip over this. Absolutely gorgeous film, the best of '09. Chalk up another fail.
April 21, 2010, 1:24 a.m. CST
Avatar is sooo overrated
by raidahguy
District 9 is the Film of the Year.
April 21, 2010, 1:27 a.m. CST
Dont be a lazy ass next time Harry
by raidahguy
April 21, 2010, 1:37 a.m. CST
The White Buffalo is awesome!
by Flexfill
It's Moby Dick in the mountains.
April 21, 2010, 1:43 a.m. CST
The words "Remake" and "Potemkin" in the same sentence?
by blakindigo
Go sleep on the couch.
April 21, 2010, 1:44 a.m. CST
and Slim Pickens is in it
by Flexfill
come on, it's Slim.
April 21, 2010, 1:50 a.m. CST
The best part of Potemkin WAS re-made...
by Kirbymanly
...in The Untouchables.
April 21, 2010, 1:52 a.m. CST
Lovely Bones sucked
by yodalovesyou
Just another awful film that shows Peter Jackson believes in his own hype & 'genius' way too much. Except geniuses in the field of film making have a tendency to come up with their own stories and not just, you know, adapt other people's and act like it is their own work.
April 21, 2010, 2:08 a.m. CST
Harry doesn't like Minority Report? what the flying fuck
by The_Crimson_King
it's arguably Spielberg's best movie of the "naughties", it's probably my favorite
April 21, 2010, 2:32 a.m. CST
cover of lovely bones..
by celebritydave
"a thrilling adventure".... thats how they describe the rape and murder of an underage girl? who the fuck wrote that? gary glitter?
April 21, 2010, 2:33 a.m. CST
by Bungion Boy
No love for the Fantastic Fest fave? One of the most fucked up movies I've ever seen.
April 21, 2010, 3:12 a.m. CST
Mr. Nice Gaius
by The True Priapic
Sir, my memories exactly. I loved that movie when i was a kid. the tracks strangely didn't ruin it. That buffalo robot ran so violently and the noise it made....great fun. Horribly, I wonder if i revisit it now ...well, sometimes revisiting childhood loves is a bad idea.
April 21, 2010, 3:26 a.m. CST
A Remastered Die Hard on Blu Would Be Nice
by MANNZILLA
The 2007 version sucked ass...
April 21, 2010, 3:27 a.m. CST
Also the new
by MANNZILLA
April 21, 2010, 3:28 a.m. CST
Also The New Star Wars Blu Better The Originals
by MANNZILLA
But They Wont Be... Because George lost his mind a long time ago...
April 21, 2010, 3:35 a.m. CST
by TheUmpireStrokesBach
you said "geniuses in the field of film making have a tendency to come up with their own stories and not just, you know, adapt other people's and act like it is their own work." Ever heard the name Stanley Kubrick?
April 21, 2010, 3:44 a.m. CST
The Lovely Bones was borrrrrring!
by Bodacious_Crumb
Of all of the new release movies Netflix releases on it's proper release date these days, I got this one and it was a snorefest.
April 21, 2010, 4:10 a.m. CST
love to nitpick, but...
by Dolph
DiCaprio was on everyone's radar after What's Eating Gilbert Grape two years earlier.
April 21, 2010, 4:39 a.m. CST
Anna Karina is so ridiculously gorgeous
by seppukudkurosawa
She's like the queen of the elfin chicks. And her performance is pretty wonderful in Vivre Sa Vie- I just love that moment when she looks towards the camera and stares at the audience for about ten seconds. It's those little out of time moments that a lot of movies seem to be missing of late.
April 21, 2010, 4:41 a.m. CST
Harry loves Lovely Bones
by kwisatzhaderach
and then goes on to hate Minority Report?! What is happening to the world...
April 21, 2010, 4:42 a.m. CST
Nasty in the Pasty
by kwisatzhaderach
Haha, thats a great moment. Made me sit up straight in the cinema.
April 21, 2010, 4:50 a.m. CST
the lovely bones hate is unwarranted
by slappy jones
no way near as bad as folks made out. I quite liked it myself and the hate felt like a pile on.
April 21, 2010, 4:50 a.m. CST
the lovely bones hate is unwarranted
by slappy jones
no way near as bad as folks made out. I quite liked it myself and the hate felt like a pile on.
April 21, 2010, 5:29 a.m. CST
Harry Doesn't like Minority Report
by barnaby jones
because its cold and real, there aren't enough geeks elements except from the fact that it's set in the future, oh and Spielberg doesn't pander to him.
April 21, 2010, 5:37 a.m. CST
Fist of motherfucking Leg-end!
by Shpadoinkle
I can't wait to get my hands on that again. Li still can't hold a candle to old school Jackie Chan though...but I guess by the time 90's martial arts flicks were coming out I became a bit jaded. How the hell do you top The Young Master et al?
April 21, 2010, 6 a.m. CST
by yodalovesyou
I'm pretty sure Stanley Kubrick didn't believe in his own genius. In fact, he kept and archived the negative reviews towards his movies in his own home whereas Peter Jackson had four solid years of being told how amazing he was by the likes of Harry Knowles and EMPIRE magazine, to the point he managed to turn a simple, thrilling story like King Kong into an overblown, bloated, dull as fuck film that somehow managed to be more racist than the 1933 original.
April 21, 2010, 6:17 a.m. CST
I fell asleep during Potemkin. In class. Front row. Feet from te
by JuanSanchez
April 21, 2010, 6:18 a.m. CST
by JuanSanchez
April 21, 2010, 6:22 a.m. CST
And Minority Report flat out sucked.
by JuanSanchez
Long, dull stretches... unlikable lead character... ridiculous third act. Spielberg let it get away from him.
April 21, 2010, 6:26 a.m. CST
Best Actor for TRON?
by JMH1973
April 21, 2010, 6:41 a.m. CST
The WHITE BUFFALO WILL OWN YOUR ASS!
by Uncle Stan
April 21, 2010, 6:43 a.m. CST
Yeah, his role in Cutter's Way
by seppukudkurosawa
That deserved an Oscar (though John Heard is just genius in that movie), but Crazy Heart is just another hacky biopic with a couple of performances too good for the material.
April 21, 2010, 7:06 a.m. CST
by kwisatzhaderach
You have to remember that Harry is a film geek, not a serious film critic.
April 21, 2010, 7:12 a.m. CST
FINAL TRANSFORMERS DVD SET too..
by Six Demon Bag
and GI JOE SEASON 2 is next week...WHOOHOO my inner child is happy
April 21, 2010, 7:26 a.m. CST
by JMH1973
I know. It's the 1998 Godzilla review all over again.
April 21, 2010, 7:31 a.m. CST
by AdzonVonMelk
TIMEBANDITS and LOVELY BONES are "one kind of movie"??? sorry? what do these movies make equal in one category? and btw.: lovely bones was good, but not a masterpiece... but good enough to be called good... uh... i´d rather stop it right now...
April 21, 2010, 7:40 a.m. CST
strong rumor of badass edition of avatar?
by Bouncy X
ummm its not a rumor its fact. they are working on the extras as we speak and type. there was even a huge article in my local paper last weekend talking about it. so its confirmed to be a 4 disc set with an extended cut though no details to the length. i'm sure 1 disc will be a stupid digital copy and considerign the combo craze lately, i wouldnt be surprised if they shove the dvd edition in there too. so it'll basically be a 2 disc set with 2 extra disc nobody will use. yay hollywood. :P
April 21, 2010, 7:58 a.m. CST
I don't understand why everyone looks forward to these columns
by Hawaiian Organ Donor
Why would you want to read the ramblings of someone who thinks The Lovely Bones was a great movie, but thinks Minority Report was a disappointment? I understand movies are subjective but when you have such extremes (Bones being complete and total garbage, Report being one of the Berg's best films), that type of critical thinking doesn't compute in this or any other universe.
April 21, 2010, 7:58 a.m. CST
Fist of Legends on blu-ray
by Nerd Rage
This is the first time I honestly considered getting a blu-ray player. I'm serious.
April 21, 2010, 8:01 a.m. CST
I like What Dreams May Come
by Nerd Rage
It can be a little corny at times but at the very least it's an interesting interpretation of the afterlife. It has both haunting and beautiful imagery.
April 21, 2010, 8:09 a.m. CST
Lovely bones is an appalling mess
by robat
Thats all.
April 21, 2010, 8:28 a.m. CST
by THE TRUE PINBACK
We don't want to hear your lame excuses for why you can't keep up with wirting this column on a regular basis. They are pathetic and annoying. And although I enjoy reading this column, I can't help but wonder whether you have ever had a regular job in you're entire life. If you had, and you were late like this all the damn time, you wouldn't be employed. Oh, DUH!!!! Must be why you made this site in the first place...couldn't keep a job. You are getting better about keeping this on a timely track, but just when you seem to have done it...POOF!...another late one. If you can't do it, then find someone who can.
April 21, 2010, 8:29 a.m. CST
"Trifecta" in HOUSE OF LONG SHADOWS!??!
by CarmillaVonDoom
How dare you leave out the great JOHN CARRADINE?!? After a mention of FM? For shame Harry! ☺
April 21, 2010, 8:30 a.m. CST
When will young actresses stop being saddled with
by CarmillaVonDoom
"the next Jodie Foster" tag?
April 21, 2010, 8:32 a.m. CST
I have pre-ordered Avatar steelbook combi pack
by ominus
one month ago,but now with this volcano shit i dont know when it will eventually arrive.fucking volcanoes.
April 21, 2010, 8:37 a.m. CST
Nasty in the Pasty
by ominus
from what movie is the quote you wrote?
April 21, 2010, 8:50 a.m. CST
"definitely FICTION."
by FleshMachine
lol...no shit. as opposed to a documentary?
April 21, 2010, 8:58 a.m. CST
The True Priapic!
by Mr. Nice Gaius
Good to see you, sir!
April 21, 2010, 9:14 a.m. CST
by TheJet
If you;re a Bronson fan, this movie is fucking awesome. A cross between Jaws and Moby Dick. great cast and action. Gotta love Carlo Rambaldi's buffalo design.
April 21, 2010, 9:27 a.m. CST
Maggie Gyllenhall worst thing in Crazy Heart
by quantize
this column only reinforces that Harry would not know genuine effective drama if it backed over him.
April 21, 2010, 9:35 a.m. CST
Minority Report is fucking solid. And has good plot turns.
by ricarleite2
Probably the most solid Spielberg film of the 2000s, really 4 out of 5.
April 21, 2010, 9:39 a.m. CST
Beaks is still pissed the rape scene in Bones
by Stuntcock Mike
wasn't shown.
April 21, 2010, 9:44 a.m. CST
Peter Jackson needs a hit
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
King Kong was an hour and a half too long and turned one of my favorite stories into a boring slog of a mess. Lovely Bones again was boring as fuck (and I love Stanley Tucci). Sorry, but it was. Mr. Jackson needs to go back to the drawing board and come up with something good again or the goodwill he got from LOTR will fade. I mean, the only good thing he's done since ROTK was to produce District 9.
April 21, 2010, 9:44 a.m. CST
Avatar treats the viewer like a dog on a leash
by jimbojones123
More than any movie I have ever seen. "You will feel this about this character later in the movie". "See, I told you that you would, praise this movie's greatness for touching you so deeply". Well not as deeply as George Lucas during that raping of my childhood.
April 21, 2010, 9:48 a.m. CST
James Cameron the next George Lucas?
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
I've had a DVD rip of Avatar for a month and a half now, and see no reason to go to blu ray to get the movie with ABSOLUTELY NO EXTRAS! WTF. I'd rather not be a sucker, thank you, and wait for the badass Christmas version. What, did Cameron decide to go the Lucas route and milk the wallets of his audience with as many re-edited rereleases as he can possibly get away with?
April 21, 2010, 9:50 a.m. CST
Spielberg's best film of the noughties
by The Ringwraith
was War of the Worlds, in my opinion. One of the best-directed films of all time. Seriously, can you name me a moment of that film where it seemed Spielberg didn't know what he was doing? (okay, aside from the kid turning up at the end, which is its one major flaw). But overall that is one confidant, almost strident fucking film. The way the banal, everyfamily is contrasted against extraordinary and terrifying events is brilliant. And I actually mostly agree with Harry on Minority Report. Its a film that is half brilliant and half idiotic, and I hate that Spielberg couldn't go that extra mile to tighten up the loose qualities. War of the Worlds is a far more even-handed film.
April 21, 2010, 9:51 a.m. CST
can't wait for Tombstone on blu
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
Absolutely love that movie, the only role I ever truly liked Val Kilmer in (never liked the Doors because Meg Ryan annoyed the shit out of me in that flick). Plus, it's got Michael Beihn (sp?), a guy I was shocked Cameron didn't wedge into Avatar somewhere.
April 21, 2010, 9:54 a.m. CST
I'm sorry, but
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
War of the Worlds sucked donkey balls. It had an unwatchable ham of a performance from Tom Cruise, an odd, inexplicable appearance from Tim Robbins, and a still young enough to be vomit-inducing cutesy Dakota Fanning. If not for A.I., it would have been Speilberg's worst of the 90's.
April 21, 2010, 10:01 a.m. CST
Does anyone else find it (ironic) funny...
by Rocco Curioso
that Jeff Bridges is reprising John Wayne's role as Rooster Cogburn in a "True Grit" remake?--- the role that finally wore down the Academy and led them to toss him a Best Actor Bone Award (which they just did for Bridges in "Crazy Heart").<P>The Dude he may have been; The Duke (Redux) he decidedly is not.
April 21, 2010, 10:05 a.m. CST
not one film that interests me but....
by billyhitchcock1
....thank you for doing it harry.
April 21, 2010, 10:11 a.m. CST
A.I. and Minority Report - Boy did Spielberg fuck up
by knowthyself
two potential science fiction masterpieces. Ugh. Those endings...
April 21, 2010, 10:15 a.m. CST
The mall scene in MINORITY REPORT was great Harry
by Tacom
Sorry if you didn't like Agatha in Minority Report but that scene where Cruise and her are eluding the Pre-Crime cops in the mall through her predictions was my favorite bit. It's an awesome set piece from the Spielberg, the KING OF SET PIECES!
April 21, 2010, 10:23 a.m. CST
by judge dredds fresh undies
and I love Minority Report even if the end is a bit too neat and tidy.
April 21, 2010, 10:27 a.m. CST
Wild Bill Hickox?
by Waylaid-by-jackassery
Any relation to Wild Bill Hickok?
April 21, 2010, 10:28 a.m. CST
War of the Worlds sucked balls
by jimmy rabbitte
Minority Report was by far the better film. 2002 was the last good directing year Spielberg had. Minority Report and Catch Me If You Can were both very entertaining.<p> It was an off decade for Spielberg films overall. He followed up SPR from 1998 with that flaming turd A.I. in '01. He released the previously mentioned two films in '02, a good rebound year. Then he rounded out a terrible decade with: The Terminal (2004) a pointless bore of a film<p> War of the Worlds (2005) absolute suck fest, great effects, pointless script, a very stupid ending was the final insult.<p> Munich (2005) Not quite the rebound I was hoping for. It felt overly long and not very well paced. Not a total failure; but it was a let down.<p> IJ and the KOTCS (2008) What the hell were he and George thinking?
April 21, 2010, 10:33 a.m. CST
"the film actually works better in 2D"
by HoboCode
Imagine that. Thank you, Harry. Fuck 3D.
April 21, 2010, 10:35 a.m. CST
Fist of legend
by logicalnoise01
is my favorite non-jackie chan martial arts movie. And while the final fight is a brutal balls out brawl. The fight in the country side with the karate master vs Li is one of the most well done fight scenes ever done.
April 21, 2010, 10:41 a.m. CST
Maggie Gyyeleeelllenahhaaal
by darthvedder81
She looks a lot like a Cabbage Patch Doll I had when I was 6. Not appealing. She doesn't help matters with her "I'm a so very important actress/indie drama queen" vibe either.
April 21, 2010, 10:46 a.m. CST
Vivre Sa Vie
by homer40
I've always known this a "My Life to Live". It is my favorite Goddard movie. The film is absolutely devastating, with amazing black and white photography. If you haven't seen this film, you owe it to yourself to do so. This is one of the great films.
April 21, 2010, 11:02 a.m. CST
LOVELY BONES is garbage.
by Stifler's Mom
A mess. Saorsie Ronan is a BAD actress, the tone is wildly unbalanced, and the ending is positively infuriating. Every other AICN review (besides Harry's) was on target.
April 21, 2010, 11:05 a.m. CST
I've seen the White Buffalo...
by j_difool
...and it was , believe it or not, one of my favorite westerns. There will undoubtedly be idiots on this fucking board who will never be able to get over Carlo Rambaldi's fucking animatronic buffalo, but this movie has Bronson as a disturbed, death-obsessed Hickock and Will Sampson for god's sake as Crazy Horse, on fate-crossed paths to destroy the same mythic quarry. Definitely one of the most existential, surreal westerns ever made.
April 21, 2010, 11:05 a.m. CST
ominus, the "RUUUUNNNNNN" quote is from Minority Report
by Nasty In The Pasty
Best fucking moment in a movie cramed with great fucking moments. Like Temple Of Doom, it's one of Spielbergo's most gleefully fucked-up movies. One had hearts being ripped from the chests of sacrificial victims, and the other had a saggy-faced Tom Cruise dropping his own eyeballs on the floor and chasing them down a tilted corridor. Along with Munich, it's the best movie he's made in the last decade.
April 21, 2010, 11:07 a.m. CST
Maggie Gyllenhaal
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
I've only ever found her attractive in Secretary and Stranger Than Fiction. But I've never thought she was ugly like so many on here. Juliette Lewis. That's ugly. Kathy Bates, THAT'S ugly (fuck you, About Schmidt!). Sarah Jessica Parker. Brotha, you'd better believe that's UGLY. Whoopi Goldberg. Fucking GROSS! Maggie just doesn't fit into this group. Her beauty is definitely an odd one, but it's there. It just doesn't show up in all her films.
April 21, 2010, 11:09 a.m. CST
And The Lovely Bones was pretty awful
by Nasty In The Pasty
This is a film that required a much lighter touch, not Jackson's hyperbolic visual gymnastics and storytelling excesses. Not to mention the LUDICROUS makeup and costuming on Stanley Tucci. Why does every movie about a pedophile have to cast the skeeviest-looking actor imaginable? That's what I liked about The Woodsman...they cast the very normal-looking Kevin Bacon. It's actually creepier to imagine a child molestor looking like any ordinary guy you might see, not some coke-bottle glasses-wearing, stammering creep with a bad combover haircut.
April 21, 2010, 11:10 a.m. CST
oh yeah
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
Rhea Perlman. THAT'S FUCKIN UGLY! Then again, Devito ain't no peach, either...
April 21, 2010, 11:13 a.m. CST
Hillary Swank.
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
WAY fugly! Looks like a horse had sex with a man and made a horsemaphrodite with the face of a man, the hair of a girl, and the mosquito bitten chest of a boy.
April 21, 2010, 11:13 a.m. CST
Best part in THE LOVELY BONES
by Series7
was the director's cameo or the giant LOTR poster for the books.
April 21, 2010, 11:17 a.m. CST
the Ugly Up-and-Comers awards go to...
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
Miley Cyrus and Kristen Stewart for their tireless efforts in looking like total ass when you remove the buttloads of makeup on their faces.
April 21, 2010, 11:18 a.m. CST
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
went off on an ugly actress tangent...what were we talking about?
April 21, 2010, 11:21 a.m. CST
Robert Downey Jr. to play Wizard Of OZ!!!
by onezeroone
News broke 17 hours ago, so I think will take another 7 hours before it shows up on AICN.
April 21, 2010, 11:31 a.m. CST
Hilary Swank is pretty
by Nasty In The Pasty
Like Gyllenhaal, she's unconventionally attractive, to be sure, but in certain movies, she looks awesome. Check her out wearing "girl clothes" in The Black Dahlia.
April 21, 2010, 11:32 a.m. CST
Both Minority Report and War Of The Worlds
by skimn
are textbook examples of integration of digital effects seamlessly incorporated to create totally believable environments and set pieces. Tacom mentioned the mall scene in MR, but also the jet pack chase, assembly line chase, and the beginning arrest of the "murder suspect". Spielberg also inserts his little asides (like the Jeep side mirror gag in Jurassic), like the jet pack flames cooking the burgers, and Cruise landing head over heels in the extreme yoga class. And according to Speilberg the examination room with the grab and pull visuals contained more effects than most features contain in their entirety.<p>BTW, Harrys list of features are, I believe, identical to the second disc of features on the standarrd DVD that can be found for 5 bucks or cheaper...
April 21, 2010, 11:33 a.m. CST
RD Jr. as the Scarecrow is a more natural fit
by Rocco Curioso
Don't waste his immense talent as the Wizard. It's a miniscule role as is.
April 21, 2010, 11:43 a.m. CST
IMAX 3d
by homer40
I have to say, I don't like IMAX3d nearly as much as RealD or the other ones in normal theaters. Those glasses, which never appear to be cleaned, suck. More ghosting, less pop. The screen size doesn't make up for the crappy glasses and crappy pic quality. And yes, I am talking about a "real" IMAX theater.
April 21, 2010, 11:43 a.m. CST
I loved MINORITY REPORT...
by blackwood
But A.I. is the 'berg's best sci-fi... probably ever.
April 21, 2010, 11:44 a.m. CST
Fist of Legend
by Bruce Leroy
On Blu-ray?! YES! Great news. As for the lovely bones. That film was pure crap. That film went nowhere.
April 21, 2010, 11:46 a.m. CST
Would ET be classified as sci-fi, fantasy,
by skimn
or simply the best live action Disney film ever made?
April 21, 2010, 11:47 a.m. CST
by homer40
Isn't just Spielberg's best sci-fi ever, it is one of THE best sci-fi films ever. I can't count the number of times I've watched it. Steven really did pay tribute to Kubrick, and I think that, by and large, it is the closest thing to a "lost" Kubrick film we'll get. I think Kubrick might have handled the flesh fair differently, but other than that, AI really is a Kubrick movie.
April 21, 2010, 11:49 a.m. CST
My Life To Live
by homer40
Actually, it is probably my second favorite Goddard movie. "Weekend" might be better. It is certainly very ambitious. They are probably equally good, for different reasons.
April 21, 2010, 11:54 a.m. CST
Rocco Curioso
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
RDJ is playing the Wizard of Oz, but not IN the Wizard of Oz, but, rather, a prequel called The Great and Powerful Oz. My guess is the role is greatly expanded in that film.
April 21, 2010, noon CST
The difference b/t Minority Report and Avatar is?
by Dr_Vomit
"As a vision of the future, it is a jaw-dropping science fiction spectacle. As a film, it doesn't work for me. I tend to despise films that put a companion with the main character that has been specifically created with the express purpose of being exactly the convenient device that is Absolutely necessary for the main character to do incredible things devoid of all tension and threat, thus making those actions seem pedestrian, no matter their complexity." How the hell can you write this about Minority Report and not say the same exact thing for Avatar??? It is comical that these two movies ended up in the same column.
April 21, 2010, 12:04 p.m. CST
Maybe Jackson should go low budget again
by Adelai Niska
Not super low, but let him make a movie for like $15 mil and i bet it would be ten times better than Kong.
April 21, 2010, 12:08 p.m. CST
Harry HAS TO like Lovely Bones
by greedosolo
He wouldn't want to upset his "friend" Peter Jackson. This site is not what it used to be...
April 21, 2010, 12:12 p.m. CST
Dr_Vomit what the hell are you talking about?
by ominus
Jake got his ass kicked out throughout the whole movie.If it wasnt for Neytiri or Enwya,he would have been a snack for Thanator.
April 21, 2010, 12:15 p.m. CST
Minority Report fucking rocks
by D.Vader
I don't care who says otherwise.
April 21, 2010, 12:18 p.m. CST
Fist of Legend
by souperdv2
This film started me on martial arts films, and after 12 years, it's still my favorite. I get chills when he goes into that dojo...
April 21, 2010, 12:20 p.m. CST
I'm just saying
by Dr_Vomit
both movies are equally contrived. At least MR is not nearly as linear as Avamatar. Don't get me wrong, I saw and liked Avatar, and I do believe there is an awesome 1 1/2 hour movie in there, but it was oppressively contrived and linear. Nobody has ever ridden THIS dragon before [wink wink nudge nudge]... and then I have to wait two hours to see him ride the dragon. This is our secret tree house it would be VERY bad if it was destroyed, but not as bad as our secret glow tree of magic life that is so secret no outside presence have EVER seen it... and then I have to wait two hours for special magic tree attacks.
April 21, 2010, 12:41 p.m. CST
The White Buffalo
by NippleEffect
*She took a blue whistler to her brown eye*<p> Been forever since I saw TWB<br> Time to see it again
April 21, 2010, 1:03 p.m. CST
Please remove tongue from Peter Jackson's asshole
by Liberty Valance
King Kong took a classic adventure story and turned it into a bloated abomination, and there is absolutely no defense for The Lovely Bones which is a mess on every conceivable level. Unless somebody reins in PJ's colossal ego, he'll go down as cinema's all-time one-trick pony.
April 21, 2010, 1:09 p.m. CST
I'm with Dr Vomit, I liked Avatar and the world
by skimn
that Cameron created, along with the action/battle sequences that put the ADD boys like Bay and the such to shame. But a directors cut?! An even longer version? I don't care if he cut the most awesome action sequences ever spit out by a CGI'ing computer. Cameron never knew the meaning of less is more. The extended T2? Sucked. The extra scenes in Aliens...added nil (yes, even Ripleys daughter), also for The Abyss. I'll plunk down my 20 bucks for the BluRay at Target (hate to shill, but thats a damn good price), and thats all the cash I'll spend for Avatar.
April 21, 2010, 1:19 p.m. CST
Minority Report ending interpretation
by Rage_Against_Martin_Sheen
I like the movie, but the idea that it's actually a darker film bc the ending is merely a fantasy of Tom Cruise's halo'd character ignores a lot of logic. Tom's character would have to fantasize correctly, and then draw conclusions, about plot points which were only revealed to the audience before he was halo'd. (I.E. his friend's involvment in the entire scheme and the shooting death of Colin Farrell.)
April 21, 2010, 1:19 p.m. CST
PJ is a bit more than a "one-trick pony"
by CarmillaVonDoom
Heavenly Creatures is easily a 8/10 from even the hardest of detractors (I've never heard of one). Meet the Feebles and Braindead are both massive fun and the latter one-upped Sam Raimi significantly. The LOTR trilogy was masterfully done given the MANY problems with the entire concept. Frighteners was a mediocre 5/10. That basically leaves King Kong, which admittedly was shit. Haven't seen Lovely Bones yet, but considering the source material he shouldn't have bothered. And TINTIN sounds like another massive waste of time.
April 21, 2010, 1:21 p.m. CST
by ominus
you are wrong
April 21, 2010, 1:29 p.m. CST
by ominus
The dragon had been ridden before.Dont forget that this was Enwya's plan from the start,she was the one who chose Jake to help the Navi,she was the one who let Jake to ride the red dragon,she was the one who won the battle. <p>the tree of souls was not a secret place,it was a forbidden place for the outsiders.And yes it was a lot badder for the Navi to be destroyed because it was the place where they talked directly to their goddess. <p>anyway i agree that the story was a bit straightforward and needed a bit of more development,but we should take into account that the movie's main purpose was the cinematic experience of an alien world.and Cameron did a perfect job in this case.
April 21, 2010, 1:30 p.m. CST
Armageddon in BluRay? What for?
by AsimovLives
Shitty movies like that Michael Bay's pile of shit actaully benefit from watching in very low quality copies. The terrible image distracts fromk the stupid awfulness on display. It was the only way i could ever watch SHITFORMERS 2. Good image quality on a bad movie is a waste. Armageeddon is a case in point.
April 21, 2010, 1:57 p.m. CST
A.I. is terribly underrated
by AsimovLives
Watching that movie is uncanny, it's like watching a Kubrick movie from the grave. There's moments in it which are pure Kubrick, like the scene where David finds the "Davids" assembly line. As for the ending, that is as Kubrick wanted the movie to end. If anything, Spielberg's major contribution was the middle of the movie, specially the Flesh Fair. The only way to make A.I. even more Kubrickian would be if spielberg had not used a John Williams's score and instead do what Kubrick did in most his movie,s used already existing music from classic and contemporanean composers like Ligeti, Penderecki and Bartok. To do something like what Scorsese did with SHUTTER ISLAND.
April 21, 2010, 1:59 p.m. CST
AsimovLives, "Armageddon" had a CRITERION release…
by blakindigo
I shit you not.
April 21, 2010, 2:03 p.m. CST
Minority Report Is Complete Shit
by AD_Skinner
Speilberg hasn't made a good movie since Jurassic Park.
April 21, 2010, 2:07 p.m. CST
Minority Report: Underrated Masterpiece of Subversive Sci-Fi
by Mephisto the Great
Minority Report is awesome, and the ending IS Tom Cruise's halo-induced fantasy. He NEVER wins in the end, but is jailed for his soon-to-be crime and the ending is everything he WISHED it would be. Plus, the editing in the action scenes are some of the best ever. The rhythm of the car plant / stunner gun scene is downright cool. Watch it again with that subversive bit of knowledge of the ending, and see what you think of the film after that!
April 21, 2010, 2:07 p.m. CST
Waitaminute — skimn thinks the extended cut of 'T2' sucked?
by blakindigo
So, it seems your problem with the film is the additional story and narrative flow that actually fleshed out the ideas? Same thing with "The Abyss" which actually had pay-offs for every set-up in the story?<br><br>Colour me confused.
April 21, 2010, 2:08 p.m. CST
Armageddon, I like it as a kind of guilty pleasure
by skimn
it's total hokum, and I know its bad, but maybe its the cast that pulls me through. Asimov, BluRay is one thing, but it blows me away that this was given a Criterion DVD release years ago.<p>And ominus, I'm wrong? I like Avatar as it is, maybe better with some editing, but, do we really need extended scenes or an even long movie? And believe me, I'm a fan of Cameron. Still waiting for anamorphic Abyss and True Lies let alone BluRays...
April 21, 2010, 2:20 p.m. CST
Where is it mentioned about the ending to Minority Report
by Hawaiian Organ Donor
Being Cruise's halo-induced fantasy? That's an interesting take but unless I missed it on the DVD special features, I can't recall that being said anywhere before today.
April 21, 2010, 2:23 p.m. CST
Blak, the extra scenes in T2, trying to humanize
by skimn
the terminator, just didn't work for me, and I could see why they were originally cut. The scenes with Newt's family took away the surprise of her discovery in Alians, and again, I could see why they were cut. Maybe I was a little harsh on Abyss. My point is that these dragged out release schedules are ridiculous, and I'll be satisfied with the theatrical cut, thank you very much.
April 21, 2010, 2:24 p.m. CST
Best "White Buffalo" scenes ever...!!!!
by darthliquidator
Bronson, sleeping in a lower berth train compartment, wakes from a White Buffalo nightmare with both sixguns blazing into the upper compartment! (Hope to hell it wasn't occupied...) Bronson...cruelly teased by a bunch of wise-ass young calvarymen..whips out the guns and decimates them..(even though he can barely make them out through his failing eyesight!) What a film...one of the 70's greatest guilty pleasures.
April 21, 2010, 2:28 p.m. CST
What's the quality on the House of the Long Shadows?
by SoylentMean
Since it's a DV-R I'm kinda apprehensive about buying it. Is it at least DVD quality or does it look like somebody's old VHS tape?
April 21, 2010, 2:30 p.m. CST
I think some people are trying to do a Total Recall
by skimn
on Minority Report just because it was based on a Phillip Dick story.
April 21, 2010, 3:03 p.m. CST
blakindigo, criterion gotta eat
by AsimovLives
that unholy Armageddon release payed for all the other proper movies DVD releases they did afterwards. It was the only occasion where Armageddon actually did something useful. THE ONLY USEFUL THING.
April 21, 2010, 3:04 p.m. CST
One good reason to be curious about YOUNG VICTORIA:
by AsimovLives
Emily Blunt. Say no more.
April 21, 2010, 3:06 p.m. CST
Total Recall directed by a man
by Samuel Fulmer
Minority Report directed by a boy. I like both films, but there's no contest which is the subversive masterpiece, and which is the one with cool chase scenes that brings up some interesting social points, but then totally ignores them for a sentimental/schlock ending. People saying Minority Report "ends" when Cruise gets haloed want to give it the testicular fortitude that Verhoevens work has (Because there are no clues in Minority Report that the last part is a dream, whereas the are tons sprikled throughout Total Recall).
April 21, 2010, 3:06 p.m. CST
I'd like to smoke
by skimn
Emily's Blunt...hheeeyyyoooooo..
April 21, 2010, 3:09 p.m. CST
White Buffalo ran for years on The Movie Channel
by Quake II
and now the free digital broadcast channel "THIS" is running the movie as well. It's a western Jaws. That sums it up. But it's actually pretty cool for the most part. And Avatar works better in 2-D Harry? What? Why would anyone bother seeing Avatar in 2-D? The story is not even half as cool as The Emerald Forest (which Avatar seems to rip off along with a dozen other films).
April 21, 2010, 3:09 p.m. CST
And years later A.I. is still not good
by Samuel Fulmer
I know it has become popular to call it some kind of misunderstood masterpiece, but other than some intriguing moments and the best John Williams score of the last decade, it's sunk by a meandering story and maybe one of the worst child performances of all time. Blame Kubrick, Blame Spielberg, or like me, blame Osment's god-awful grating performance.
April 21, 2010, 3:09 p.m. CST
The ending to Minority Report ...
by AsimovLives
... being Cruise's halo-induced fantasy would had beern the perfect ending for that movie. But that is not the ending of that movie. There's nothing in the movie that even remotly sugests that. Unlike TOTAL RECALL, which the movie is filled to the tip of the hair with sly references that the whole movie set after Quaid's visit to Recall is a allucination, in MINORITY REPORT, what you see is what you get. There is one one single clue that what you ar watching in the final part of the movie is not reality. The movie as it is would need to pull a reveal like in BRAZIL's final scene to actually sell the idea it's an allucination of a guy put on ice and fantasizing about a resolution to his predictement. I'm sorr,y but you guys who support the notion that the ending of MI is an allucination is more of a cool idea that is not supported by anything that's in the movie. It's a great idea, though, and how the movie should had ended.
April 21, 2010, 3:10 p.m. CST
Rocco Curioso
by Rebeck2
Bridges doesn't have to be The Duke, he only has to be Rooster Cogburn. I thought you were going to say it was ironic since Bridges was a young hippie actor at the time True Grit came out and Wayne was slightly to the right of Atilla The Hun, and now Bridges is playing the old one-eyed fat man himself. But no, you were just being an idiot. The Cowboys is the movie Wayne SHOULD have won for and is ten times the film that True Grit is. I look forward to the Coen Brothers version because it will almost certainly be better than the original. (Okay...except for the "Fill your hands, you son of a bitches!" - that remains classic)
April 21, 2010, 3:10 p.m. CST
I love "The White Buffalo" like a thing of favorites!
by The Reluctant Austinite
I've thought "The White Buffalo" kicked all kinds of ass for a long time. I've had a pristine widescreen bootleg of it for years. It opened in theaters in 1977 the same day as a little movie called "Star Wars", so that's why most of us missed it in theaters as kids. Charles "Mandom" Bronson kicks ass as Wild Bill Hickcock, and the dialogue is packed with strange period colloquialisms that Jack Warden chews on like good jerky. The snowbound, mystic landscape where the climax takes place is awesome. It's "Moby Dick" as a Western, but it's so much more; a really creative genre twister and honest-to-god cult film with half a dozen great Western genre cameos.
April 21, 2010, 3:11 p.m. CST
Samuel Fulmer
by AsimovLives
Youa re wrong in your acessment, what's popular here is to call A.I. a bad movie because of a knee reaction about it'sending, and compeltly missing the whole point of both the mvoie and it's ending. And the movie will be vindicated in the future. Time will be kind to it, and people will be amazed at how the fuck people today missed the obvious fucking point of the ending.
April 21, 2010, 3:15 p.m. CST
Peter "You'll never hear from me again" Jackson
by RPLocke
Lord of the Rings was phenomenal, but he's made some dogs in his career. And the Hobbit will never be made.
April 21, 2010, 3:16 p.m. CST
I saw WHITE BUFFALO a long time ago
by AsimovLives
It is indeed JAWS in the mountains. I still remember the artificiality of the whole thing, the obvious sets, and the obvious mechanical buffalo, and the tracks where it was standing. and the fact they sold the idea of the buffalo running by rocking it like one of those horse-shaped rocking playground things. What makes the movie interesting, though, is it's darkly mood, the slightly nihilistic feel to it, a sort of downer ending, and a suprisingly eco message in the story, specially come the end. While the white buffalo is the monster to be kille,d the mvoei laments the near-mass extinction of the free roaming wild buffalos of the american past.
April 21, 2010, 3:18 p.m. CST
AsimovLives-I think we've had this discussion
by Samuel Fulmer
before. I get the ending (which like most Spielberg films since Hook go on forever and ever and don't know when to end), I just think overall the film has good ideas behind it, but the exectution is awful. There are some breathtaking images and moments, and I think Williams score is up there with the best he has written, but the meandering plot, off base celebrity cameos, and Osments grating performance sink the film in my eyes. And yes it is popular to champion this film as some kind masterpiece now. I believe it's one of the few Spielberg films of the last decade to actually make it on the top films of the '00s. Obviously that shows that people (critic wise) are coming around, just for me, I can't, because of the reasons I have stated above.
April 21, 2010, 3:20 p.m. CST
And no I'm not saying A.I. is Date Movie
by Samuel Fulmer
I just think it could've been a lot better had more thought had been put into fixing the script and picking casting choices not dictated by the success of the Sixth Sense.
April 21, 2010, 3:22 p.m. CST
Kubrick could pull great performances out of
by Samuel Fulmer
terrible actors (Ryan O'Neal in Barry Lyndon). I don't think Spielberg has the same ability.
April 21, 2010, 3:26 p.m. CST
Sure, I know it is as Communist as it ever gets
by PTSDPete
Harry's a teabagger !
April 21, 2010, 3:31 p.m. CST
darthliquidator...White Buffalo
by Quake II
agree that that bar scene is great. Bronson shuts up that whole cackling Amry platoon in seconds. The movie plays more like a drug-induced nightmare than a western. And like many 70's films, the movie gets away with a LOT of blood and violence on a PG rating. Bronson has never looked cooler either. Those goggles he wears and the black Victorian gothic coat....Wicked.
April 21, 2010, 3:32 p.m. CST
Potemkin remake
by Samuel Fulmer
Well considering the only thing of note about the film is it's historic use of montage (the actual story in the film is about as well developed as a Michael Bay film), why remake it? It's a masterpiece of editing, nothing about the content of the film itself really lends itself to a remake.
April 21, 2010, 3:41 p.m. CST
Samuel Fulmer
by AsimovLives
"Kubrick could pull great performances out of terrible actors (Ryan O'Neal in Barry Lyndon). I don't think Spielberg has the same ability."<br><br>You got me there.
April 21, 2010, 3:44 p.m. CST
Samuel Fulmer, what might saboutage the ending of A.I.
by AsimovLives
and what makes people misunderstand what is actually happening onscreen is, i'm certain of this, the sacharine music by John Williams. If you could play that whole sequence without Williams' music, you would notice how darkly and cynical the ending is.
April 21, 2010, 3:50 p.m. CST
I think we all agree that "The White Buffalo" kicks ass.
by The Reluctant Austinite
It's shame it isn't more well known, but that's what makes us different from the mainstream cinema goers. We can spot a cult classic from miles away.
April 21, 2010, 3:52 p.m. CST
The ending is fine
by Samuel Fulmer
It's just it took way too long to reach it (which I blame more on the script). The last few minutes are what I count as "interesting moments" from my comments above. It's a good scene, I just don't think the film goes together as a whole. It's kind of like The Hagis Crash, it has some nice individual scenes, but as a whole, it's a mess.
April 21, 2010, 3:53 p.m. CST
but enough with my A.I. commentary
by Samuel Fulmer
April 21, 2010, 4:03 p.m. CST
never hear from jackson again??
by slappy jones
like fuck.
April 21, 2010, 4:05 p.m. CST
Minority Report Ending
by Mephisto the Great
Here's a great summary of the possible subversive ending: (http://www.flakmag.com/film/spielberg/minority.html) When asked about it a few years ago, one of the screenwriters didn't deny it...didn't confirm, either, but I firmly believe it was intended.
April 21, 2010, 4:07 p.m. CST
let it be known that I like A.I.
by The_Crimson_King
A.I. is a good movie, but I personally prefer Minority Report
April 21, 2010, 4:12 p.m. CST
actually let me go ahead and post my thoughts...
by The_Crimson_King
on all of Spielberg's films of the 00's, the only one I haven't seen is Munich, Catch Me If You Can was a lot of fun, The Terminal was ok, but certainly pretty low tier for Spielberg, War of The Worlds had some great set pieces and ideas (like following just one family instead of going the Roland Emmerich route), but is not among Spielberg's best and Kingdom of The Crystal Skulls....well to quote Butters "I liked it"
April 21, 2010, 4:16 p.m. CST
The Frighteners II
by RPLocke
Make happen Jackson.
April 21, 2010, 4:31 p.m. CST
hey - nothing wrong with THE FRIGHTENERS
by frank cotton
one of JEFFREY COMBS's finest performances. and color me different, but i like A.I. (mostly), MINORITY REPORT (mostly), and WAR OF THE WORLDS. it's a goddamn tradgedy!
April 21, 2010, 4:34 p.m. CST
Outside of LOTR
by RPLocke
Frighteners is cool.
April 21, 2010, 5:06 p.m. CST
Mark me in the like AI & Minority Report camp
by CathleenTurnerOverdrive
Most of my buddies hate AI, but I always stand up for it. Really dig the ending. Might watch it tonight. Haven't revisited it quite a while.
April 21, 2010, 5:28 p.m. CST
R.I.P. Michael Pataki
by lynchmob17
Where the hell is the thread about the passing of Mr. Pataki?!? Another fun character actor gone, dammit.
April 21, 2010, 5:36 p.m. CST
AI & Monrity Report are damn great movies
by raidahguy
April 21, 2010, 5:37 p.m. CST
I bet if Harry was friends...
by raidahguy
with Spielberg, than he would be stroking him like he's doing with Peter Jackson. Harry you're a damn sell out and you know it.
April 21, 2010, 5:57 p.m. CST
Maggies Gyllenhaal's eyes
by Anything But Tangerines
...if they are full of soul, it is one deeply dark and twisted foul demon rapist antichrist Kucinich voter's putrid wisp of a soul
April 21, 2010, 6:09 p.m. CST
Hilary Swank has a rockin' body for sure
by Flexfill
She does not show it off, though. Jamie Lee Curtis was the same way in her prime; great body but not such a great face unfortunately. Hilary has tits and ass for days but always downplays them with her wardrobe. Her cans are HUGE for a girl with her frame. She has a great ass as well. Just look at those pix when she won her second Oscar. Skin tight blue dress left no mystery as to her assets.
April 21, 2010, 6:17 p.m. CST
by Flexfill
http://mosaiceye.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/hilary-swank.jpg Tell me you wouldn't fuck this bitch stupid.
April 21, 2010, 6:19 p.m. CST
by AKA_Gern_Blanston
but she looks like a horse
April 21, 2010, 6:20 p.m. CST
she looked good in THE REAPING
by frank cotton
April 21, 2010, 6:21 p.m. CST
Do her
by skimn
April 21, 2010, 6:30 p.m. CST
Crazy Heart is as dull as a silent fart.
by ZodNotGod
Craxy Heart is a fucking waste of time. I've never sat through 90 minutes of more dreary inanity. Pointless, Blake has no arc or purpose...a drunk who sobers up? Big fucking deal! Awful. Tender Mercies is vastly superior.
April 21, 2010, 6:32 p.m. CST
The fantasy sequences in Lovely Bones were ridiculous.
by BigTuna
It ruined the movie. Jacksson was obviously the wrong choice to direct. The fantasy sequences worked brilliantly in "Heavenly Creatures"...Here not so much.
April 21, 2010, 6:33 p.m. CST
Nope, I hate A.I. almost as much as Minority Report
by Chuck_Chuckwalla
But that's just because A.I. had Teddy. I love Teddy.
April 21, 2010, 6:36 p.m. CST
Well said Ominus
by Dr_Vomit
I was exaggerating to make a point, but you are certainly right, the Avatar world was fantastic in more ways then one
April 21, 2010, 6:37 p.m. CST
Moronity Report main problem (SPOILER)
by Charles Calthrop
The villain character of Lamar Burgess (Max Von Sydow) is very underdeveloped. He goes to all the trouble of co-creating Precrime with the hope of eradicating violent crime forever, and then decides to murder a few people. Why? He says to preserve Precrime. It makes no sense. He must commit murder in order to preserve his program to eliminate violent crime?
April 21, 2010, 6:39 p.m. CST
Were you reading the case for Basketball Diaries...
by OutlawsDelejos
when you wrote that write up? Because the cover calls it electrifying and you call it electric.
April 21, 2010, 6:53 p.m. CST
Charles, the problem I have with Minority Report
by skimn
beside the riddle you posed there, and the everyone is happy ever after ending, is when Cruise's wife catches Lamar with the oldest ploy in the murder mystery book. "Why I never said DROWNED, did I?"...that was old fashioned back in the Charlie Chan days.
April 21, 2010, 7:08 p.m. CST
I know others have called Harry out on this, but WILD BILL's
by YackBacker
last name was Hickok, not Hickox. Come on, Harry. Really?
April 21, 2010, 7:27 p.m. CST
Baggie Gyllenhaal
by TiNSeLToWN TeRRoR
Scumdog of the universe....and doe-eyed fugly! She was the worst part of Batman
April 21, 2010, 7:28 p.m. CST
I loved the white buffalo.
by disfigurehead
Do yourself a favor and check it out.
April 21, 2010, 7:45 p.m. CST
I love The Frighteners
by The_Crimson_King
I rented that a while back from Netflix and it was even better than I remembered seeing it on video in the 90's
April 21, 2010, 7:46 p.m. CST
and Crazy Heart just does interest me
by The_Crimson_King
look I love Bridges as much as the next guy, Crazy Heart looks kind of boring
April 21, 2010, 7:46 p.m. CST
by The_Crimson_King
April 21, 2010, 8:17 p.m. CST
I like A.I., Minority Report, and War of the Worlds
by BumLove
And I dislike Catch Me if You Can and The Terminal. What? What you gonna do? What?
April 21, 2010, 8:23 p.m. CST
Mephisto the Great...that's fucking brilliant!!!!
by BumLove
*pops Minority Report into his DVD player*
April 21, 2010, 8:49 p.m. CST
Avatar is an ok film at best. Don´t waste money on the blu-ray.
by theDannerDaliel
1. A special edition likely including 20-40 minutes of additional footage is already being leaked to media for release later THIS YEAR! 2. No special features. If you are a fan, of all the discs in your collection this is the one you really want the extra stuff. It really should be amazing! 3. No 3D presentation. New technology in TVs is out this year and should enhance the home 3D experience. I don't usually care about 3D at home but things are changing. Be ready! 4. There is also news that the movie itself will be re-released shortly with the 20-40 minutes of additional content I mentioned above. Why buy the Blu if you can see it with additional content and in the best possible 3D at theaters--- then buy the special edition just a few months later? ...(tharr be more) Peer into the depths I have to echo the comments of a previous reviewer. The studios are becoming so brazen. They released this edition and tried to explain the poor accoutrements by saying "they wanted to save all the space on the disc for the best possible presentation". Are you kidding me? Bust out the extra discs already! Offering this bare bones BR right before re-releasing the movie with additional footage was also a classless act that spits in consumer's faces. Just rent the movie or see the enhanced version in theaters. It will tide you over until the Special Edition comes out. Lastly, there are plenty of people adding comments that you shouldn't wait for 3D because the home experience with 3D is lack luster or most people don't have the new 3D TVs. That's partly true, however... IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT 3D! The lack of additional storyline, missing special features and blatent disregard for consumers (in an economic downturn) are what make this a bad deal. There is new home theater technology out this year that should enhance the home 3D experience. Your home theater will catch up. People who are excited about this movie should be standing together against a poor release offering, especially when there are terrific alternatives to hold us over. Wait a few months and get a much superior release for similar money.
April 21, 2010, 10:09 p.m. CST
Robert Downey Jr. to play Wizard Of OZ in a PREQUEL!!!
by onezeroone
Now this is ridiculous, been more than 24 hours since news broke and not a hint from the site that would break news of Robert Downey Jr. taking crap if they could.
April 21, 2010, 10:10 p.m. CST
Maggie Gyllenhall is the worst
by iwontwin
over-actor i've seen elevated to A list status. I liked AVATAR better in 3D btw
April 21, 2010, 10:12 p.m. CST
AVATAR in 2D
by iwontwin
the scene where he is running through the forest at night is terrible as is the final battle
April 21, 2010, 10:25 p.m. CST
Avatar in 2D
by Rupee88
is like the Wizard of Oz in all B&W (not even sepia). And yeah, how could Jeff Bridges get an Oscar for Crazy Heart and not Tron...makes a lot of sense. (?)
April 21, 2010, 10:39 p.m. CST
I can see why people dislike crazy heart
by iwontwin
its about singing and songwriting....anyone who has tried to write a song and plays guitar or piano can relate big time to that film...you can see jeff bridges finding inspiration in his life in the film
April 21, 2010, 10:39 p.m. CST
A.I. is an awesome fucking movie too
by D.Vader
I prefer it to Minority Report, actually. And count me too as one of the ones who has always seen the ending as being in Tom Cruise's head. <p> But like Moriarty, I wish the original final line from the script was included, the one that mentions the 93 (or some odd number) of murders in D.C. that occurred after PreCrime was shut down. Spooky.
April 21, 2010, 10:45 p.m. CST
Avatar goes the Watchmen DVD route
by RPLocke
release a shitty edition now, and then a four box set that contains all the shit you previously bought. Gee, thanks, Watchmen.
April 21, 2010, 10:48 p.m. CST
Crazy Heart felt like an Oscar push but Avatar didnt?? Jesus man
by EddieMurphysLaugh
Yeah Harry..you're right..all Cameron did with Avatar was rip off at least Best Picture Winners.
April 21, 2010, 10:54 p.m. CST
Harry.. your a walking contradiction
by ndally
You enjoy shit like GI:Joe but minority report doesn't work for you as a film? When your writing that what's going thru your head? Are yu trying to sound intelligent in some way? Are you hating on a flick just to do something controversial? Fuck man i'm all for honest opinons but yours just don't make sense given other films you rave about. Minority Report is fucking great(as is the entire running man trilogy). How can you say it's awesome sci-fi and in the next sentence say it doesn't work as a film? Fuck, your a douche bag. And grow some balls and respond to talkbacks instead of just ignoring them you pussy
April 21, 2010, 11:26 p.m. CST
Minority Report has some of the most subversive product placemen
by Nasty In The Pasty
EVER. It's darkly hilarious when Cruise is on the run, and the eye-scanner thingies cause all of the omnipresent electronic billboards to heckle him BY NAME. I wonder if any of the companies that paid big bucks to be featured in the movie realized just how much Spielberg was satirizing the shit out of the future of agressively personalized, niche-oriented marketing (which, eight years later, is even more plausible than ever).
April 21, 2010, 11:26 p.m. CST
by Nasty In The Pasty
April 21, 2010, 11:51 p.m. CST
Avatar an Oscar push?
by MandrakeRoot
Please give me a fucking break. That is highly absurd...not one person in the world believed Avatar would be a contender for Best Picture, especially given it's a sci-fi film about blue cat aliens...correction CGI blue cat aliens. Cameron said himself when making Avatar he said fuck the critics and it was purely meant to be cinematic spectacle for the masses. <p> And I can't believe someone ripped on the Abyss directors cut. It really fleshes the movie out fantastically, turning a decent film into a great one. It's only problem was the villain climax was so incredibly badass you almost wish it happened at the end, although given the actual ending that probably would never have worked.
April 22, 2010, 12:09 a.m. CST
no rollerskating scene in vivre sa vie
by saint seiya
karina dances , not rollerskates.
April 22, 2010, 12:49 a.m. CST
People were calling Avatar a disaster
by RPLocke
Well before the first trailer came out. And they're STILL going at it. Go enjoy your Hurt Locker DVD.
April 22, 2010, 1:37 a.m. CST
@ skimn re: Minority Report script
by Charles Calthrop
What's so disappointing is that the numerous script problems could have been fixed without affecting the interesting setpieces and vision of the future. Spielberg assembled a think tank to brainstorm futuristic concepts for the movie. Too bad he couldn't the same effort into the script.
April 22, 2010, 2:38 a.m. CST
"put the same effort into the script."
by Charles Calthrop
I'm as bad as Spielberg when it comes to making sure the writing makes sense.
April 22, 2010, 3:52 a.m. CST
"I tend to despise films..
by Windowlicker74
..that put a companion with the main character that has been specifically created with the express purpose of being exactly the convenient device that is Absolutely necessary for the main character to do incredible things devoid of all tension and threat, thus making those actions seem pedestrian, no matter their complexity. ...WAHAHAHAAHAA that was a good laugh. incomprehensible jabber.
April 22, 2010, 5:31 a.m. CST
the reason lovely bones sucked
by peschi
is Phillipa Boyens lets not kid ourselfs, please somebody sack her. So PJ can make great movies again.
April 22, 2010, 6:16 a.m. CST
Anyone know what Harry is talking about regarding the convenient
by VicenzoV
...character in Minority Report? It's been a while. Thanks..
April 22, 2010, 6:52 a.m. CST
by BumLove
Does anyone ever know what Harry is talking about? It's like making sense of the wind....it has no meaning.
April 22, 2010, 7:20 a.m. CST
i hope she doesnt fuck up the hobbit
by WINONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE
i dont know what harry is talking about either. now i want to watch it again. because Spielberg has never made a bad movie. except the terminal. and ind 5 but that was Lucas's fault LOL
April 22, 2010, 7:29 a.m. CST
So now we can't even SAY "Muhammad"...
by JayLenoTookMyJob
...anymore. Or even have a Talkback about the South Park episode where "Prphet X's" name wasn't said????
April 22, 2010, 7:50 a.m. CST
JayLenoTMJ....what are you talking about?
by BumLove
Click on coaxial....the South Park article is still there...it just got pushed off the front page by today's coaxial articles.
April 22, 2010, 8:28 a.m. CST
I Don't Understand the Lovely Bones Hate
by Comic_Madness
Seriously, it was a good movie. Flawless? Hardly, but that does not make it a bad movie. Being a parent of two made me really cringe in some parts, but I still thought it was good. I don't know why non-Fanboy movies are really discussed on this site anyways. Most kids that read this site wouldn't have the mental or emotional maturity to handle or understand a movie like The Lovely Bones.
April 22, 2010, 8:49 a.m. CST
by The Ringwraith
It amazes me that geeks so often bitch about Hollywood films that are all special effects and no character development, and yet when someone like Spielberg makes the effort to craft a film that deftly balances character and effects you start whinging that he dared cut away from the carnage. Every scene in War of the Shows shows a family unprepared and unable to cope with the horror of invasion, and I find it very powerful in its depiction of a culture that normally feels so invincible. When Cruise's Ray Ferrier sits beside his daughter to comfort her after a horrifying experience, his character completes a transformation from a selfish dick into a protective father. Cruise's performance as he sings that "lullaby" is heart-wrenching and perfect within that context and. I'm not prone to making harsh judgements of people who disagree with me, but anyone who thinks that performance is "ridiculous" or "hammy" (as someone else said above) is a fucking idiot. I'm not some easily-pleased 12 year-old...I've been very critical of Spielberg's noughties work. So don't act like I'm some kind of cretin for daring to suggest War of the Worlds may be better than you say. No matter how almighty your opinion may be.
April 22, 2010, 9 a.m. CST
by The Ringwraith
Its not like Spielberg and co didn't use the tripods to full effect either! Those things are brutal and frightening, and if they were on screen too much they would become less ominous and more like Bayformers.
April 22, 2010, 11:11 a.m. CST
Harry's "convenient character" in MR
by skimn
is when Cruise's character is on the run with the pre-cog Agatha. But she doesn't stop him from "killing" Crow. The police still find him at his wife's house. The only time she becomes an asset is the already mentioned mall scene, which is brilliantly staged and edited, ending with the overhead view of umbrellas worthy of Hitchcock.
April 22, 2010, 11:22 a.m. CST
Minority Report was wonderful
by Fa_Tass_DinoMolester
and Spielberg's last good film. Not sure how a sci-fi can could reject it outright...Who cares if the ending is different from the story? What about "adaptation" doesn't register?...
April 22, 2010, 11:24 a.m. CST
I had the craziest viewing of "Minority Report"
by ufoclub1977
I saw Minority Report under the strangest circumstances. I was watching a Prince concert in the large concert hall of his studios Paisley Park (one of hundreds of fans forming an international crowd attending a week long Prince managed music festival (with performers like Nora Jones or Victor Wooten and bros). In the middle of one of his songs, Prince stopped and asked the crowd if they wanted to go see a movie with him. He told everyone to go out to their cars in an orderly fashion and to follow him in his car. Hundreds of people did just that, and we were led to a multiplex he had rented out and staffed at 3am. He had Minority Report screening on three screens to accommodate the crowd and even sat with Sheila E and watched the film too. He was not in the auditorium I was in. By the time the movie was over, the sun was coming up. Fun time. I had joked earlier in the week that Prince had better put on a good show because I was missing the opening day of a Spielberg movie. http://lnk.nu/associatedcontent.com/19k1.html
April 22, 2010, 11:40 a.m. CST
by master_of_realty
Not this "The end of Minority Report is all in his head" bullshit again.
April 22, 2010, 11:50 a.m. CST
by iwontwin
thats a cool story
April 22, 2010, 12:28 p.m. CST
The end of Jurassic Park is a dying boys dream
by Samuel Fulmer
Becauase Tim really died on the electric fence! The last 30 minutes are just his dying dream, afterall the helicoptor flight is him "going into the light."
April 22, 2010, 12:29 p.m. CST
The end of the Terminal was just a dream
by Samuel Fulmer
Tom Hanks really died in the airport eating packets of Ketchup.
April 22, 2010, 12:30 p.m. CST
Indy died when the fridge was nuked
by Samuel Fulmer
And the next hour and a half represented him and the audience going to Hell.
April 22, 2010, 1:57 p.m. CST
The end of JAWS is just a dream
by AsimovLives
It's the final moments of Quint is him imagining a revenge fantasy where his thus far inept police captain buddy will be able to kill the unstopable eating machine shark monster that's killing him.
April 22, 2010, 1:59 p.m. CST
The ending of Raiders is just a dream
by AsimovLives
In reality, God also killed Indy. The last scenes is Indy's dying fantasy that he was able to fulfill his mission and get the girl. Which was also killed by God in real life.
April 22, 2010, 2:08 p.m. CST
AVATAR 2D looks so muddy
by iwontwin
everything in the background looks muddy. I want a 3D tv
April 22, 2010, 2:15 p.m. CST
Best way to watch Avatar at home
by Samuel Fulmer
Pop in Dances with Wolves and put up blue plastic rap in front of the screen.
April 22, 2010, 2:20 p.m. CST
Samuel Fulmer
by AsimovLives
April 22, 2010, 2:35 p.m. CST
by rogueleader66
Truly underrated film, i finally got to see it and damn it was good. When it has been mentioned in TB's, I have read many times that the ending was too happy, that Spielberg ruined it....WTF??? That's a happy ending? Humanity is extinct? The mother can only be brought back for a day and she dies AGAIN? In what universe is THAT a "happy" ending? Now don't get me wrong, I liked the ending, I just cannot believe that some people think Spielberg gave it one of his "typical" happy endings. Great movie, I think in time it will be better appreciated.
April 22, 2010, 2:36 p.m. CST
"AVATAR" blu-ray is stunning!!! (On my new, HUGE, plasma HDTV)
by JDanielP
I figure my disappearance from these talkbacks have went mostly unnoticed...but that's what happens when you buy yourself a huge HDTV that you absolutely love. <P>"AVATAR" is the most amazing blu-ray I've seen on a high-quality HDTV. (Some store displays are a joke!) And not only that, AVATAR fills the ENTIRE SCREEN. And we need MORE visual stunners that fill the entire screen, as it does make a difference at home. <P>The AVATAR transfer sets a new standard for the blu-ray format, I feel.
April 22, 2010, 2:37 p.m. CST
Minority Report
by rogueleader66
I liked that movie just fine. Yea a nice clean neat wrap up at the end, but what else do you expect from Spielberg? Tom Cruise being TC, works fine for me. Was definitely better than War Of The Worlds, which i didn't hate but didnt love either.
April 22, 2010, 2:40 p.m. CST
I feel a little guilty...
by JDanielP
...in that I mentioned my new big screen on my above subject line. Nobody wanted a BIG SCREEN HDTV more than me, especially for the family. But understand,...I had to save long and hard for it.
April 22, 2010, 2:41 p.m. CST
Avatar on Blu Ray
by rogueleader66
Don't got a player, and Avatar aint no reason for me to go get one...didnt hate Avatar, liked it quite a bit actually, just not enough that I NEED to spend the money on a BR player cause i got it on DVD anyways if I want to watch it....now if the Original un-tainted SW Trilogy is released on BR, THAT'S my motivation to get a BR player....but then again, i don't got no HD TV set either so im fucked however you look at it.
April 22, 2010, 3:54 p.m. CST
by skimn
Yes, I remember your impassioned touting of the good 'ol HD-DVD format. Glad you've got a big glorious plasma to enjoy your Blus on. I purchased Avatar very early this morning, so I haven't had a chance to view yet. I just hope the transfer is a good as The Dark Knight or Terminator Salvation (crap movie, beautiful transfer).
April 22, 2010, 3:57 p.m. CST
by skimn
I resisted as long as I could but the cathode ray days are long gone. You should be able to pick up a decent 32 incher for not too much nowadays. Once you go flat, you'll never go back.
April 22, 2010, 4:19 p.m. CST
by PantherMatt
Harry, man, I love ya. And I love your site. But you couldn't be MORE. FUCKING. WRONG. about Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart. Don't get me wrong, now. Jeff Bridges did, in fact, turn in great performances in Starman, Lebowski, and Tron. But why does the fact that he acted like a chicken in a sci-fi romance movie impact his performance in Crazy Heart at all? He brought the same dedication and talent to both roles, although I would argue that he's more nuanced in Crazy Heart than in Starman (and most certainly Tron). And I'll also say this: After watching Crazy Heart I believed that Bad Blake was a real, live country music artist. I have never, even for a second, believed that Starman was actually a real being from outer space. Don't hate on a fella just because you maybe didn't get a particular movie. The man absolutely deserved his Oscar for Crazy Heart, because a) he was great in it, and b) he was better than any other nominated actor.
April 22, 2010, 5:30 p.m. CST
How a sci-fi fan can reject MR (spoilers)
by Charles Calthrop
MR is supposed to be a hard sci-fi detective story, not a fun fantasy adventure such as Star Wars. Both hard sci-fi and detective stories demand viewer scrutiny. Are the sci-fi concepts relatively plausible? Do the clues add up in the end? Unfortunately, MR doesn't follow its own rules in regards to its sci-fi concepts. For example, how would a national Precrime program work? There are apparently only three precogs who were created by freak accident. It takes all three of them to monitor just the Washington DC area, and they can't be separated or moved, so how could they monitor the rest of the country? Another example of poorly written sci-fi is how the precog Agatha is handled. She's floating in a pool for six years, not speaking to people (just saying what the victims and perpetrators say in the visions), not eating solid food and moving very little. Anderton yanks her out and by the time they get to his wife's house she is walking and talking almost normally. There are many other problems with the sci-fi in MR. The detective story aspect also fails due to shoddy police work and the lack of motive for the villain.
April 22, 2010, 8:29 p.m. CST
A.I.'s happy ending
by frank cotton
is the kid getting what he wanted (his 'mother's' love), which was the reason he wanted to be a 'real' boy
April 22, 2010, 8:49 p.m. CST
ONe thing i miss about home
by mattforce7
The 60 inch Pioneer Elite..Blu Ray player...Surround Sound...I wants it...I needs it... AVATAR on BLU
April 22, 2010, 9:24 p.m. CST
by Yourbigpalal83
I think the bare bones launch of Avatar on blu ray just goes to show that while 3D when done right is a very cool and more immersive experence when watching a film its not really nessary to enjoy a good film. While yes, i love 3d movies and the like, the hallmark of what makes a great movie or not should never be if its in 3d or not! It should be always good acting and storytelling by creative and tallented people. Avatar, while yes i cant argue that its story is basicly dances with wolves in space, its still a well told version of that and holds up just fine without the 3d. 3d is here to stay, and i support its technology but i view it, and most of hollywood should view it in the same level as surround sound While its great to have surround sound and adds to the experence its not needed to fully enjoy the movie. If a movie is really good, you'll enjoy its story as much in full 3d hd as you would watching it on a VHS tape on a mono speaker tv set!
April 22, 2010, 9:40 p.m. CST
Harry is the biggest dumbass to write about film MR rules
by Proman1984
April 22, 2010, 9:48 p.m. CST
Lovely Bones was ridiculous...
by bluebottle
There wasn't a single choice in that film that worked. It was a spectacular failure. The impression I got from watching it was that the message is, "Hey, being raped and murdered is OK, because look how much fun the afterlife is!".<p></p> I love Peter Jackson, and I'll give him credit, he had a vision, and he stuck to it. It just turned out to be a horrible vision. <p></p>Whatever, he's fallible.<p></p>Onwards and upwards, Peter. But Harry, your review reveals how transparent you are. Regain my trust, here.
April 22, 2010, 9:54 p.m. CST
Who the fuk is on the cover of Avatar?
by knowthyself
That's what I want to know. It's not any Na'Vi that's in the film that's for sure.
April 22, 2010, 11:24 p.m. CST
To the cunts that keep asking Harry to take grammar courses...
by Keanu Gives
Don't waste your time, stop it already. Harry is not going to change. If it bothers you stop visiting the site and fuck off...
"A.I.'s happy ending is the kid getting what he wanted(his 'mother's' love), which was the reason he wanted to be a 'real' boy" No, A.I.'s ending is a fake synthetic mother created for David, just as David was a fake synthetic child created for Monica (who he thought was his mother). The future robots allow David to fulfill his fantasy, but it is all bullshit. Notice David closes his eyes at the end. John Williams said on the DVD that David "self-terminates" at the end. Yeah, that's a real happy fucking ending. Love is an illusion, love doesn't exist, it is only a construct created by organisms for selfish reason, and people are happy to die wrapped in it's fake, synthetic arms. Happy ending my ass. Most people are just too damned stupid to recognize irony these days.
April 23, 2010, 1:05 a.m. CST
The real irony about all the AI and MR hate
by TheLastCleric
is that many of these same people think Avatar respresents quality Sci Fi. Good luck with that.
April 23, 2010, 2:58 a.m. CST
TheLastCleric, thank you
by MattmanReturns
Fuck Avatar. It was OK but compared to real thought provoking sci-fi, it ain't shit. I don't expect many of these high-school fucks to appreciate AI. Most of them still think those robots are 'aliens' at the end of the movie.
April 23, 2010, 3:42 a.m. CST
skimn... AVATAR... and blu-ray
by JDanielP
I think maybe that the menu systems on the blu-ray disks are improving, over time. I can't tell you how many times I've seen my wife get frustrated when bouncing back an forth between a movie and the menu, missing the simplicity of dvd and hd-dvd menus. <P>Aside from that, it is nice to have HD at home, period. AVATAR really does set a new benchmark for all HD formats. Personally, I feel it looks MORE REAL than I ever witnessed it at the theater.
April 23, 2010, 6:02 a.m. CST
ya sometimes its lonely at the top
by WINONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE
of the IQ curve. Since most people like stupid shit and I like intelligent movies like Minority Report and AI I gotta put up will billions of assholes with stupid opinions because their brainpower is very inferior.
April 23, 2010, 6:03 a.m. CST
and guys like Lazerpants
by WINONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE
who proclaim that Avatar is better than Aliens. omg
April 23, 2010, 6:38 a.m. CST
Charles Calthorp Re; Your complaints about MR
by BumLove
Here are my retorts: <p> 1) "How could they monitor the rest of the country?" They are just testing the pre-crime system in the D.C. area before going national. My guess would be that if the nation proved too difficult for just 3 precogs, they would use corrupt methods to purposely induce birth defects in kids (I believe they were caused by drug addiction) to create more precogs. Their main goal was just to go national, they would figure out the next phase later. <p> 2) "She is walking and talking almost normally." I wouldn't call Samantha normal. She seems at constant unease with all the stimuli outside of the pool, and I don't think a person would forget English just by not speaking it for six years, especially if all their visions are in English. Her muscles may atrophy, but perhaps the electrical pool of goo caused muscle contractions sufficient enough from time to time to keep the muscles (and their bodies) functional. <p> 3) "Lack of motive for the villain." The villain's motive is to save the pre-crime system and prove it works.
April 23, 2010, 6:52 a.m. CST
AVATAR blu-ray bit rate is MAXED OUT on the disk!!!
by JDanielP
I would give up the extras EVERY TIME for maximum picture quality!!! This disk is jaw dropping, folks. <P>Sure, they could have added extras on a separate disk (maybe on a dvd) but really, why care? <P>THIS IS A NEW STANDARD IN HD PICTURE AND SOUND QUALITY!!!
April 23, 2010, 8:04 a.m. CST
I watch all my movies as compressed DIVX
by WINONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE
April 23, 2010, 8:05 a.m. CST
that fit on a CD
by WINONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE
April 23, 2010, 8:06 a.m. CST
cuz I'm a gangsta
by WINONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE
April 23, 2010, 8:44 a.m. CST
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April 23, 2010, 11:56 a.m. CST
Young Victoria
by ninefingeredfrodo
is not a bad movie. I admit that it's not Elizabeth but then how could it be. Victoria's life was very different and the one thing the movie excelled at was showing the people surrounding Victoria, like her mother, her uncle, etc. in all their finery and flaws. I'll be getting this DVD. Crazy Heart was an OK flick. The one thing that ruined it for me was the romance. No way would an attractive, intelligent woman get involved with a broken down, alcoholic chain smoker. His teeth alone would have scared her off. Not to mention the smell. Pass on this one. Minority Report was just fine. Already have it on DVD but am undecided about blu-ray. BTW, this is my first talkback.
April 23, 2010, 12:19 p.m. CST
Can't wait to watch Avatar again in glorious HD Blu-Ray
by Marksman91
And WYNONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE, FUCK you! I liked AI, and I love Minority Report, and guess what? I love Avatar as well. You don't need to be an idiot to enjoy Avatar. Hell, you don't even need to be an idiot to enjoy Bayformers 2 (Not saying THAT film is good though). Not every film has to be deeply thought-provoking. What happened to just watching films just to be entertained? Granted, it's better when they tell good stories, which I thought Avatar had, even though I know it was very derivative. But its execution was still brilliant. As for Bayformers 2, fine, I can understand people who hate it, and I admit that its writing was a massive turd, but it still had fun and cool moments to make it worth going to the cinema and watch it with my older brother and his friends.
April 23, 2010, 12:27 p.m. CST
And as for the Hilary Swank being ugly thing...
by Marksman91
It's been a while since I had seen an image of her, so I quickly did a google image search of her... Man, the haters have really poor taste in women, I'd fuck that ass silly.
April 23, 2010, 1:22 p.m. CST
My DVD watching pleasure this weekend will be...
by Bodacious_Crumb
SEX WORLD from 1977. The first dirty movie I ever saw and is still my favorite. Nothing "fake" about it. Classic music. Great theme song. Best BJ given on camera. My God.
April 23, 2010, 1:22 p.m. CST
War of the Worlds and Jurrassic Park
by ufoclub1977
I think both movies are brilliant up until their first big incidents are over. JP = tyrannosaur attack, WotW = First appearance/attack of the tripods.
April 23, 2010, 1:24 p.m. CST
White Buffalo!! God, I miss Charlie Bronson.
by BanditDarville
Great flick. Great Ted Nugent song too!
April 23, 2010, 4:43 p.m. CST
JPDaniel and HD-DVD
by SK229
Hey, were you the other guy touting HD-DVD? If so, do you still have your player and your movies? I bought the Toshiba A3 during one of those insane amazon, Thanksgiving deals and wound up with like 15 free HD-DVD's, most of which were amazing titles. I was really said when the format died, but then I wound up with a collection of 50 awesome classics in high def for hardly any money. I still think it's menu formatting is better than BD. <p>After HD-DVD flopped, I bought a combo blu-ray player for not that much money and put the A3 away as a back-up (although I still use it to upscale DVD's, it is AWESOME for that). I hate blu-ray's java bullshit, but whatever, I just wanted affordable high-def and am happy with the way things turned out, especially with the HD-DVD fire sales. Also, if you bought an A3 at a certain time, when things went south, Amazon gave you a $50 credit which I used to buy my first few blu-rays! Hell, I even lucked out with my LG B200 combo player... got it for like $300, then because they touted eventual bd 2.0 support and weren't gonna deliver, we got $75 back, then they came out with 2.0 anyway! Overall, that format war turned out to be an HD disc boon for those of us who played our cards right.
April 23, 2010, 5:18 p.m. CST
I didn't care for MR
by lotharius3rd1118
I loved AI completely and that built me up to expect something really spectacular out of Kubrickian influenced Spielberg dystopia. It had a teriffic concept and the trailers looked visually stimulating. <p> But then I watched it. Cruise is dull throughout the entire movie. The effects are indeed teriffic, but then Janusz Kaminsky's usually amazing lensing is so over-bleached that it makes everything hard to look at and ugly as hell. The only action scene of any real worth in the entire production was the jet pack chase, and the movie could have done without it. Also, I found the oppressive nastiness of the future to be utterly rediculous. Sure, its great to present the future in a way to shows it being more grimy and disgusting than our current society, but there's no place in any of it for an extended gag of Cruise eating a green, moldy sandwich and drinking sour milk. Hat everything about the Peter Stormare scenes. <p> About the ending, it's nice that so many of you saw it in a way that improved the final product, i.e. that it was all a dream. But personally, I think it should have ended with him just arresting Leo Crow and not killing him and that's the thing that destroys pre-crime. Everything that follows is completely unnecessary, overlong, and contrived. It was an unfortunate disappointment for me, though it does have some good moments.
April 23, 2010, 6:30 p.m. CST
@ BumLove: Good points re: MR, but...
by Charles Calthrop
I agree with your "filling in the blanks" on points 1 and 2. I had the same thoughts. But they aren't in the film. They easily could have been, and it would have improved the film. As for the 3rd point, I need more motivation as to WHY the man who devoted his life to ending violent crime suddenly decided to start murdering people.
April 23, 2010, 8:26 p.m. CST
by gotilk
I see where you went there. But just as an experiment, replace "3d" in your post with "sound" or "color" and it's still true. In other words, the whole discussion is kind of pointless. Of course film can be great without 3d. They can also be great without sound, or color, or cinemascope. But ALL of those things are still GREAT! I have yet to run into this mythical, mysterious but often mentioned beast who claims that a film can't be good unless it's 3d now. Perhaps he runs a studio, but I've never run into him here, where he's constantly referenced but never seen.
April 23, 2010, 9:50 p.m. CST
yup WotW started out very strong
by WINONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE
then started to spiral into a tailspin.
April 23, 2010, 9:55 p.m. CST
It's ok to enjoy Avatar.
by WINONA_RYDERS_PUSSY_JUICE
But if you think its better than Aliens then you're stupid. Just my opinion, which coincidentally is granite hard fact.
April 23, 2010, 11:50 p.m. CST
Charles Calthorp
by BumLove
"I need more motivation as to WHY the man who devoted his life to ending violent crime suddenly decided to start murdering people." <p> You need to look no further than the real cops and police chiefs to answer your own question. That villain did it for the same reason they do it. Corruption...but it is also utilitarianism. The concept of a greater good. The notion of "would you kill a few people to save many?" For certain people in this world, the answer is "yes".
April 24, 2010, 1:55 a.m. CST
Minority Report ending
by pr0g2west
I think it is the halo-fantasy. The main clue is the fact that Lamar didn't kill Jon Anderton like the pre-vision said it would. Anderton killed Crowe, even though he had the power to change his mind at the last second. It proved that the system is perfect, and the minority report didn't exist. So why all of a sudden was Lamar able to change his mind and commit suicide?
April 24, 2010, 9:35 a.m. CST
Avatar: 1.5m bluray sales all time record
by ominus
who the fuck said that the people only went to see it for the 3D? who the fuck?
April 24, 2010, 1:36 p.m. CST
by MattmanReturns
Anderton killed Crowe slightly after the time had expired... so the system was already in question at that point. Also, he didn't REALLY end up killing Crowe. Crowe basically killed himself.
April 24, 2010, 7:42 p.m. CST
Avatar haters went into comas today
by RPLocke
when the DVD sales were announced.
April 24, 2010, 9:19 p.m. CST
I didn't find the MR future to be "oppressively nasty"
by Nasty In The Pasty
Yeah, there was some urban decay on display, but nothing more extreme than what you'd see in the seedier sections of major cities like Chicago today. What I appreciate about what Spielberg did with MR was how he made the movie "futuristic" enough to sell that it was set 50 years from now, but didn't go overboard with CGI eye candy filling each and every frame. Washington DC circa 2054 looks pretty much like Washington DC circa 2010, just with a few extra widgets here and there (mostly the "mag-lev" transportation system, the only point in the film where Spielberg wanders into Lucas fantasy territory). Personally, I found the whole Peter Storemare sequence in the film to be kind of hilarious, and totally NOT what you'd expect from a Spielberg movie.
April 25, 2010, 1 a.m. CST
The Basketball Diaries
by MakNeil
never worked for me, and I tend to enjoy films of that genre. It just felt so fake. Nothing felt genuine, unlike in the case of a film like Drugstore Cowboy.
April 25, 2010, 1:10 a.m. CST
MR and AI
by nukeboy1970
Liked MR. Hated AI. Waaay too long. Made Return of the King seem like it had a concise ending.
April 25, 2010, 1:12 a.m. CST
by nukeboy1970
Take away the pretty CGI, and you have nothing. It will go the way of Titanic amd slowly be forgotten about.
April 25, 2010, 6:52 a.m. CST
I read now that Avatar has set a new Blu-ray/DVD sales record
by Marksman91
And people thought the 3D was the reason for its success...
April 25, 2010, 10:51 a.m. CST
AVATAR blu-ray would've crushed HD-DVD in format war.
by JDanielP
Yes, to talkbacker SK229,...I was for HD-DVD during the format war. And yes, the menus are STILL better on the dead format, but blu-ray seems to be improving. And speaking of improving, I admit that AVATAR is proof that blu-ray is the superior format. Amazing video and audio. I am still in awe. <P>Sure, me and the wife scored a few deals with HD-DVD, as we gained a quick little collection of titles. THE DARK KNIGHT is what pushed us to blu-ray, and AVATAR will cement the deal for everyone.
April 25, 2010, 11:09 a.m. CST
by pr0g2west
Aha, right you are. I Forgot about the timer.
April 25, 2010, 1:25 p.m. CST
My last 2 cents on Minority Report
by skimn
How forward thinking was Minority Report, whose plot is that murder can be eliminated by arresting the perpetrators before the actual crime occurs, came out the summer of 2002, less than a year after the World Trade Center attack and the formation of Homeland Security? How many Arab-Americans were detained and questioned because they fit a certain profile, or simply because of a last name? And Minority Report questioned that system of justice precisely as it was coming into being. Maybe it was reality just catching up to Phillip K Dick.<p>As to the whole "halo-fantasy" ending, as much as it would richen the film as a whole (the happy ending: pre-cogs living a natural lifestyle, Anderton getting back with his wife and having another child, it is the films biggest flaw), remember, Anderton did not himself shoot Crowe. The pre-cogs can only see the crime from a certain vantage point, like a dream. The pre-cog vision only saw Anderton shoot Crowe, not that Crowe pulled the trigger himself. Burgess set Anderton up emotionally to kill Crowe, but at the last second changed his mind, used his free will and option to choose. Crowe was such a desperate man, and I give Mike Binder credit for creating such a vivid character in such a short amount of screen time, he completed the act and proved the vision to be accurate. Not entirely true, but visually accurate. Burgess knew if the minority reports, the glitches in the system, would be found out, pre-crime would be abolished. Thats why he had to eliminate those with knowledge (the government investigator, Anderton) of the reports. And he could kill the Colin Farrell character because Agatha was missing, and there was no pre-cog vision (Agatha being the strongest, the binding force of the three)to foresee it. When the murder of Ann Lively was telecast (nice to see Jessica Harper on screen again, however short), Burgess knew he was trapped and there was no way out. Yes, the pre-cogs visioned him shooting Anderton, but he turned the gun on himself, much like Crowe's "murder". I think the pre-cogs messed up the vision because it was so fresh, too near in the future. Wasn't it stated that the more spontaneous the murder, the pre-cogs had problems seeing them?
April 25, 2010, 6:18 p.m. CST
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April 25, 2010, 7:30 p.m. CST
I love AVATAR, but why buy the DVD or BD?
by Zardoz
Especially when the extended edition will be back in IMAX in a few months and the 3D version will be out on BD after that?
April 26, 2010, 3:01 a.m. CST
@BumLove, another good point
by Charles Calthrop
But I wanted to see that point made in the film. Give Burgess a longer speech. MR is a thought-provoking film, but unsatisfying since they didn't further explore the issues that are raised. A few more well-written lines could have added depth without boring the audience.
April 26, 2010, 4:02 a.m. CST
@skimn, I respect your two cents
by Charles Calthrop
Before seeing MR, I thought Precrime sounded like a brilliant idea for a film. Not just the Homeland Security angle, but everyday police practices regarding "intent" to commit crimes could be examined in an intriguing way. But watching the film I just saw one plot hole after another, and it felt like a huge missed opportunity.
April 26, 2010, 10:56 a.m. CST
Thanks Charles
by skimn
I actually think we are closer to agreeing than not. I recognize the flaws in the screenplay, but I think Spielberg's execution sells me on the film as a whole.<p>BTW, the BluRay transfer is excellent. Yes, it does retain the bleached out exterior look like the previous work in Private Ryan, but a lot of the film takes place indoors among shadow and darkness, it it looks great. In fact, for "sci-fi-noir" this can stand alongside Dark City.
April 26, 2010, 12:18 p.m. CST
Fuck you you fucking wife fucker!
by Jaka
Picked up 44 Inch Chest last night and it instantly became a new favorite. Great movie. Going to watch it again to see if I get the same thing from it. I won't talk too much about what that is, though, because it's very spoilerish. I definitely recommend this one to anybody who likes some good hard British cursing (like a Guy Ritchie movie, but with even more "cunts"), the look of a stylish British gangster film, psychological dramas, GREAT acting or any of the actors involved. Totally agree about how it could be a play, too, Harry. I tried counting locations, and I think it was six interior and four exterior. But a vast majority of the film takes place in three interiors and one exterior. With the other locations being used for only a very short scene or two. Without spoiling, the film is about a guy whose wife tells him she's leaving their marriage of 21 years for another man. He finds out the name of the guy and kidnaps him so he and a group of his friends can decide whether or not they're going to kill him (and the wife) or let them go. That's all I can say without spoiling too much. But trust that the above information spoiled nothing and that you'll more than likely be thoroughly surprised by what takes place.
April 26, 2010, 9:32 p.m. CST
The Last Decade of Spielberg Films
by ChaunceyGardiner
and how could it barely contain any mention (whether it be negative or postitive) of "Catch Me If You Can"? In my mind, the most noticiable successor to Spielberg's "E.T.," and really the completion of a cycle of Spielberg. While he may have stated that "War of the Worlds" was his anti-E.T., it is truly "Catch Me If You Can" that plays off the major themes of that seminal and most wonderful early film. "Catch Me If You Can" has probably the most heartbreaking divorce sequence in film history ("Okay buddy, just choose: Which parent do you want to live with the most? It's easy, just pick one.") and that moment becomes the catalyst for his break from reality, his need for fantasy. While Spielberg deals often with the effects of divorce, only rarely does he so passionately relate to his characters: to their vunerability, their boyhood, their dreams. Instead of drawing them in tones of condenscension (a pattern that seems to sometimes crops up in Spielberg's flawed characters), Elliot and Frank are his purest characters (and maybe next in line is David, the reality of David's jealousy and anger being revelations in Spielberg's work) and while one finds himself perfect in a perfect moment, the other (the more real of the two characters, the one whose dreams are revealed as merely that, and often in conflict with a harsh and nagging reality) is shown in a light of compassion, even forgiveness, despite his brokeness - and maybe even because of it, because of his stubbornness, something Spielberg seems to appreciate, his defiance, his pride and sense of self-worth and knowledge of his own giftedness. One is the ideal, and the other is the reality. Two dreamers. What great filmmaking. And while most of Spielberg's films of the last decade found him treading murky waters of uncertainty, pushing his own boundaries (the harshness of his futuristic films, the new overlying cynicism of his world vision in the new millenium and post-September 11th, his desire for newer and better truths, his adherence and sometimes over-reliance on the theme and topic of the family unit as the measure of all that is good and worthy, his unabated sentementalism when it comes to the comedy genre - a revival in the efforts that brouth about such an odd, and sometimes wholly wonderful film, as "1941" - and his entirely wonderful gift that creating memorable scenes becoming somewhat scattered, making films that feel more like great moments than great films, or a collection of moments composed in the form of a film) and almost always making interesting films, if not entirely successful films, "Catch Me If You Can" arrives as an completely whole and beautiful and perfect film. Wonderful. Wonderful. Spielberg for a new era, a great and brilliant artist, finding in a difficult decade a film that truly unites all his interests, his greatest themes, and his greatest strengths. And even if all his films this past decade sometimes left one with a sense of dissatisfaction, are we not still able to see in him a truly viable and important artist: both an escapist and a humanist, almost the type of filmmaker that Sturges spoke about at the end of "Sullivan's Travels." I am as thankful for this current generation of Spielberg's films as I am for those of the nineties and eighties. With each film it is as though we know him better, and, it seems, like he is understanding himself better. Filmmaking as catharsis.
April 26, 2010, 9:43 p.m. CST
Oh, and I forgot...
by ChaunceyGardiner
Spielberg's vision. In the past decade, his singularity of his own personal vision of a film has had a strength almost hallucinatory. It almost has a Kubrickian power to it. Spielberg's films are still just as potent as they were the moment Quint was bitten by Jaws, or the moment Schindler walked through the extermination pits, through burning hell itself, hankie in hand. Even - as potent as "Ouch..." And these films still grab like few others: his final extrapolation of the Munich hostage situation, the revelation of the events within the apartment during the first minutes of the kidnapping, remains, in my mind, the most powerful sequence of film violence of this current century. If you can think of another, let me know. The man knows what he believes, and he delivers on it. His fervor for films has never changed, just a few of his viewpoints. We still have with us one of the most exicting filmmakers in the history of film. And personally, I'm having trouble waiting any longer for "Lincoln"!
April 26, 2010, 9:55 p.m. CST
Minority Report
by pr0g2west
The more I think about that movie, the more brilliant it becomes. There is so much in it to think about; morally, scientifically, philosophically. Makes me want to read the book now...too bad all Phillip K. Dick books aren't handled by Spielberg. Specifically Paycheck, Impostor, and Next. The Beard really knows how to tell a story. He could make a movie out of the phone book and it would be interesting as hell.
April 26, 2010, 11:24 p.m. CST
Thank-you, Chauncey!!
by The Ringwraith
People are all too glib when dismissing Spielberg as once-great. Sure, there is a precocious, desperate-to-prove-himself quality to his early films that simply will not be repeated, but he maintains his mastery of the medium, his unique visual style, his thematic obsessions. Perhaps all that is missing is true ambition, since nothing is too hard for the man who can do anything he wants. But there's so much energy and enthusiasm on the screen, combined with the confidence of a true veteran, that you have to wonder where all the hate comes from. His films have almost always been flawed, but never less than fascinating and that's more than you can say for most directors. [P] If you wan to read a brilliant piece covering all of Spielberg's work up until Munich, read this http://archive.sensesofcinema.com/contents/directors/06/spielberg.html
April 29, 2010, 6:35 p.m. CST
Crazy Heart was some pointless fucking shit.
by ZodNotGod
"Crazy Heart" was beyond pointless! Blake, other than sobering up was a fucking nothing who did nothing. Such a terrible film and his performance was one of his dullest compared to the Duder and tons of others. Rotten.
April 29, 2010, 8:01 p.m. CST
by WONKABAR
Just watched it...great movie. Tough to watch cuz of that fuckhead in San Diego recently, won't go into it. But yeah, I dig these kinds of movies too. lol for some reason I thought of 'Made in Heaven.' Great music too. It also really looked like the 70's. I'm bummed I missed this in theaters, but I am teh poor.
May 2, 2010, 10:30 p.m. CST
Wild Bill Hickok has syphilis
by SnootyBoots
That's why Bronson wears the goggles. The clap has made his eyes sensitive to sun light. Listen carefully to the old man ticket taker in the early scene in the train.
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