i kind of assumed it was the microwave attacks screwing with them. Or that the writer liked that it didn't really make sense and add up leaving doubt as to the cause
Film The Redcafe Movie review thread
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It didn't make much sense really.
Very good.
The Silence Of The Lambs
Turns out gender surgery was so bad in the 90’s that you have to still steal the skin of republicans. Tough times!
I went into this expecting a horror thriller but got a very silly film instead.
Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter is brilliant but less a dangerous serial killer and more a superhero villain with nice one liners. The escape scene is pure stupid joy. I also respect putting the cast of police academy into the film. Jodie Foster puts in a great performance.
It does have the common and awful 90’s anti LGBTQ shtick but for me in the end I was rooting for buffalo bill.
There are some tense moments and great close up shots(Along with the night vision scene). Plus the autumn setting is nice. Overall while it’s not in the league as Manhunter by Micheal Mann, it’s still a very fun watch.
8/10
Turns out gender surgery was so bad in the 90’s that you have to still steal the skin of republicans. Tough times!
I went into this expecting a horror thriller but got a very silly film instead.
Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter is brilliant but less a dangerous serial killer and more a superhero villain with nice one liners. The escape scene is pure stupid joy. I also respect putting the cast of police academy into the film. Jodie Foster puts in a great performance.
It does have the common and awful 90’s anti LGBTQ shtick but for me in the end I was rooting for buffalo bill.
There are some tense moments and great close up shots(Along with the night vision scene). Plus the autumn setting is nice. Overall while it’s not in the league as Manhunter by Micheal Mann, it’s still a very fun watch.
8/10
Fallen Angels
Why can't I be this cool? Damn you Kar-Wai Wong! You make me want to seek solitude, live in filth and chain-smoke!
This is me right now:
Why can't I be this cool? Damn you Kar-Wai Wong! You make me want to seek solitude, live in filth and chain-smoke!
This is me right now:
Leave The World Behind Good cast and I do like me a post-apocalyptic type film. However, after a good start this one doesn't really go anywhere sensible or satisfying. The ending just peters out a bit disappointingly. 6.5/10
Barbie
What an enormous piece of shit. Was expecting some kind of brilliantly witty, whacky, insightful social commentary; but it was just a bang average, cliched, cheesy, cringe fest. There were about three good scenes, the rest was just one long face palm. How the feck has this movie been rated so highly? It’s dreadful. There’s nothing clever in the message. Nothing new. It’s a kids movie pitched to adults. Was it supposed to be empowering?
It’s a two hour commercial for an outdated product. The marketing and PR team should get an Oscar. Somehow generated critical buzz, hype, and box office dollars, for the 2023 version of Elf. This wouldn’t look out of place in the Adam Sandler catalogue of cheesy, unfunny drivel. People say Ryan Gosling stole the show, it’s not so much that, it’s more that he’s the only good thing about it. And even then his good scenes were almost all shown in the trailers.
I was genuinely expecting something that was not my cup of tea, but something I could tell was good for the right audience. Instead I’m just befuddled that any grown adult would think this was a quality film.
3/10
What an enormous piece of shit. Was expecting some kind of brilliantly witty, whacky, insightful social commentary; but it was just a bang average, cliched, cheesy, cringe fest. There were about three good scenes, the rest was just one long face palm. How the feck has this movie been rated so highly? It’s dreadful. There’s nothing clever in the message. Nothing new. It’s a kids movie pitched to adults. Was it supposed to be empowering?
It’s a two hour commercial for an outdated product. The marketing and PR team should get an Oscar. Somehow generated critical buzz, hype, and box office dollars, for the 2023 version of Elf. This wouldn’t look out of place in the Adam Sandler catalogue of cheesy, unfunny drivel. People say Ryan Gosling stole the show, it’s not so much that, it’s more that he’s the only good thing about it. And even then his good scenes were almost all shown in the trailers.
I was genuinely expecting something that was not my cup of tea, but something I could tell was good for the right audience. Instead I’m just befuddled that any grown adult would think this was a quality film.
3/10
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Night Raiders
A mother joins an underground band of vigilantes to try to rescue her daughter from a state-run institution. Post-apocalyptic films are my jam and I really liked the concept and setting (considering the budget) but after a strong start, it kind of goes nowhere and fizzles out to an ending that left me in rage mode. It feels like the end of an episode rather than a movie 5/10
A mother joins an underground band of vigilantes to try to rescue her daughter from a state-run institution. Post-apocalyptic films are my jam and I really liked the concept and setting (considering the budget) but after a strong start, it kind of goes nowhere and fizzles out to an ending that left me in rage mode. It feels like the end of an episode rather than a movie 5/10
With all the recent chat about Nicolas Cage, I thought I'd get in the festive spirit and watch The Family Man. This is classic Nic Cage overacting, theatrical territory here, and it helps that it doesn't take itself too seriously:
I'd give it a solid 5.5/10
I'd give it a solid 5.5/10
Is this the one where J.K Rowling adopted a male name (Robert Galbraith), and pronouns, and identified as such, when she/he/they wrote it?
I thought it would be a bit of a miserable watch. Maybe like a dark thriller with lots of crying families so I mistakenly put off seeing it. Turns out it’s the opposite. Well ok….there is a crying family but its that of a republican senator.
You really hadn't seen this until now?
Also before watching it I was sure the cum throwing scene was from Scary Movie but nope it’s in the actual film!
Saltburn long and dumb.
It's a classic for me. One of the best thrillers of all time. But you do point out some funny small things about it. I don't think I ever thought about the political party of the senator - is it even mentioned?
And full of...rum
It was the first of its kind, a serial killer movie given a huge budget with A list stars, a B-movie with all the bells and whistles. It inspired so many imitators that it’s hard to remember how impressive it was when it came out. First mass exposure of Tony Hopkins too. Memes all over the place in it. I haven’t watched it in decades but then again most old movies lose their luster when brought out into the light.
I think they very briefly mentioned it’s the daughter of a Republican senator. It’s definitely a classic for most people and I can see why. I really enjoyed the funny things about it.
Also liked the feminist elements with the film showing how clearly gendered the FBI workforce is(There’s a great shot of Foster in an elevator).
Tbh I’m massively bias in favour of any Micheal Mann film as he’s one of my favourite directors.
Oh cheers I didn’t know about it as the first of its kind. I think it still holds up(Apart from the 90’s anti LGBT vibe)but it was far more of a big Hollywood blockbuster than I imagined.
Seriously? Don't think this has ever been mentioned!!
Before Napoleon started the cinema showed a trailer for Ferrari and I almost fanboyed out whenever Adam Driver said the word time.
Before Napoleon started the cinema showed a trailer for Ferrari and I almost fanboyed out whenever Adam Driver said the word time.
Can't wait!
On Silence of the Lambs, I also think it's held up pretty well with the usual 80s/90s caveats, it's a great film. Hopkins's performance is a lot of fun.
Just watched it as well and I have to say that despite my initial disappointment with the ending...I think it's actually pretty brilliant after sleeping on it. A lot of room for interpretation in both the actions and conversations people have - especially in the 2nd half of the movie. Yeah it's not like your typical disaster movie where Ben Affleck comes in riding a massive space drill and blowing up a meteor but in a way that makes this one feel more real and eerie.
7.5/10 for me.
So many bits make no sense though.
True but then again, in what disaster movie is that not the case? I do remember having a few moments where I got annoyed however. Biggest annoyance to me was mostly the inconsistenties. I.e. (white text for spoiler): Window cracks on the main house from the high pitched noise but when they go to Bacon's house none of his flimsy single pane windows have any cracks at all, etc.
Agree Hopkins is great. “I do wish we could chat longer, but I'm having an old friend for dinner.” is such a brilliant line.
I think one of his references was the wolf from Little Red Riding Hood. Real pantomime performance.
Silence of the Lambs wasn't directed by Mann.
Oh in my review I mention Silence of the Lambs isn’t in the same league as Micheal Mann - Manhunter. Which is probably a very bias view I have. That what I was talking about.
@Sweet Square add him to the WhatsApp group chatOh, right. My bad.
I'm also a Mann fan.
Next you'll be telling us it's not as good as Miami Vice...
I wonder if his performances is “scary” to modern viewers. At the time, he was mesmerizing, but I could see it being seen as over the top now just because it’s been memed and parodied to death. The erudite, charismatic serial killer was a new “twist” I think, but since then it kinda spawned a whole interest in serial killers qua serial killers, and not as villains but as protagonists. The retconning that went on for the Hannibal prequel and all that shit, as if Lecter was a superhero. Still, Hopkins was great. Demme also gave horror fans a wink with casting Charles Napier as one of the cops guarding Lecter. I think part of its appeal was that the villain was so compelling, like the filmmakers were daring audiences to like him, or daring the audience to pretend they didn’t.
Can't wait!
On Silence of the Lambs, I also think it's held up pretty well with the usual 80s/90s caveats, it's a great film. Hopkins's performance is a lot of fun.
Nothing is as good, in fairness.Next you'll be telling us it's not as good as Miami Vice...
Hopkins won an Oscar for his role I think right? What's crazier is he ends up having ~ 16 mins screen time and bagged the trophy!
I had all kind of dreams last night after watching it, so I would say it definitely left something on me. But as Wibble say, it had so many poor bits, and there is something about Netflix movies and TV shows that's just weird, and I can't describe it.
Wasn't it the Best actor oscar with the least screentime or something?
No problems. Also good to see another disciple of Mann!Oh, right. My bad.
I'm also a Mann fan.
VorZakone it isn’t a WhatsApp group chat but instead a Grindr message group where guys talk about cinematic importance of men doing their work.
A true great piece of art which teaches us the way to a beautiful woman heart is mullets, speedboats and Moby.Next you'll be telling us it's not as good as Miami Vice...
He needs to find this out for himself
Think you're right. Interesting article...
12 Actors Who Earned Oscar Nods for Less Than 20 Minutes of Screen Time | Mental Floss
I can: Netflix gives directors too much creative control. Sometimes they give final cut to get name directors to create a project for them (e.g., David Fincher, Scott Frank, David Ayer). This means they don't screen their movies for test audiences. Recruited audience previews can be a nerve-wracking experience, and most of the time just sitting in an audience with your film and listening to them during the film is enough to know if something is working or not. However, the little focus groups afterwards where a group of about a dozen people are taken aside and asked to give their opinions verbally, those can be instructive.
Netflix also doesn't have a group of seasoned producers on hand to reign in directors when they are getting too precious. That's why something like The Pale Blue Eye was about 20 minutes too long, with a final act that petered out. Directors leave everything in now, because not only do they think every frame is a Rembrandt, but also there is no tertiary home video market where the deleted scenes will be found. So films are bloated. On a studio picture, the studio head who greenlit that film is responsible for how well it does. So if it's a bomb, that studio head might get the sack, and all of the development deals s/he inked will also be dissolved. At Netflix, it does not seem to matter if a movie does well or not, so no one's job is at stake, which results in poor quality control.
Incidentally, Netflix just released viewership numbers for 99% of their content, which you can download as a spreadsheet: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2023-12-12/netflix-viewership-report -- the link is at the bottom of that article, I've tried to copy it [here] but don't know if it will work. You will be surprised at some of those numbers, at least I was.
Example: Manifest season 1 was screened for 151,400,000 hours. Manifest season 4 was screened for 262,200,000 hours and was canceled. A big "hit" like Stranger Things, season 4, was screened for 133,600,000 hours and is getting another season. Squid Game, was a phenomenon, screened for 87,200,000 hours. Very strange!
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That definitely explains a lot. I would also say their target audience and target publishing place (streaming platform instead of cinema) can be problematic too so they don't care too much in the end and focus on the quantity over quality.