Film The Redcafe Movie review thread

Bill.s.preston said:
Cold Fish: Japanese film about a fish shop owner that gets drawn into a horrific set of circumstances by a seemingly friendly rival fish shop owner/serial killer. Apparently based on a true story!

It's a mostly enjoyable film, peppered with quite a bit of gore and misogynistic behaviour. The final act lets it down a bit, as it goes completely batshit mental. I enjoyed the absurdity of it all, but some might find it ruins the film for them. It's worth a watch; love it or hate it, it'll leave you with something to talk about. I'm still trying to process it all now, and I finished watching it about an hour ago!
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Yeah, bizarre enjoyable film from a weird mind. Maybe weirdest of all is that is was based on a true story, ha ha.
 
The Postman

At 3 hours it is an hour to long, but I did not get bored with it.
The story was decent enough, people trying to rebuild after a devastating war and one man thinking he is god.
The acting rubbish in parts and good in others, Costner was excellent I though.
The ending was disappointing, the fight between the man in charge and the Postman was poor.
Decent enough film.

6.5/10
 
Prisoners

Never watched any of Denis Villeneuve's movies before but I've heard good things about Incendies. It was a movie in the mould of Zodiac, Mystic River and Seven but falls short of their greatness. Halfway through it got utterly draggy with its convoluted plot that had too many twist and turns. Overrall, the acting was good, Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal alone were able give the film its emotional punch. 7/10
 
Mud - It was alright, but I thought it was similar to Take Shelter in the fact that it was a bit too meandering and that I don't understand all the gushing praise. The actor who played the kid was great though.
 
Zabriskie Point - A bit empty and when it touched on some subjects it felt heavy-handed and perhaps a bit dated. The ending sequence though was beautiful and mesmerizing as was the Pink Floyd heavy soundtrack.​

 
hungrywing said:
Not really an account of 'why he chose it', but a story goes that one afternoon Kubrick's secretary was going crazy listening to a periodic loud thumping coming from Kubrick's office: the director skimming through the first pages of books and then throwing them against the wall as he looked for his next project. At some point she realized that she hadn't heard a peep from him for about half an hour running; she went in to check on him and he was reading The Shining. He then asked her to call Stephen King at which point this happens.

For the life of me I can't remember where I read that story.
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Thanks for that. I guess it implies that he was randomly picking subject matter and hadn't settled on the idea of doing a horror story, just one that had interesting characters and plot.
 
Cop Land's cast is like a who's who of every actor from your favourite gangster movie and Sopranos TV show.
 
The Purge

WTF have I just watched, it is a shockingly bad film.
The idea that for a 12 hours period anybody can commit violent crime against anybody body is just daft.
The film had no real plot, no twist, well not one that you could not see coming a mile off.
The acting is beyond dreadful, even Ethan Hawke was bad.
I cant recommend anybody watch this film, it would be 90 mins of your life you could not get back, even on a very quite and boring night shift, this film was total rubbish.

2/10
 
Riddick (2013) - Not bad at all. Good OTT action, cheesy dialogues and a cinematic climax. Timepass. Worth a watch. Rating: 6.5/10.

R.I.P.D - If you can get by understanding Jeff Bridges hootin tootin accent, it is a good way to pass time. Nothing critical or exceptional and does not deviate from the formula. Run of the Mill. Worth a watch. Rating: 6/10
 
pauldyson1uk said:
The Postman

At 3 hours it is an hour to long, but I did not get bored with it.
The story was decent enough, people trying to rebuild after a devastating war and one man thinking he is god.
The acting rubbish in parts and good in others, Costner was excellent I though.
The ending was disappointing, the fight between the man in charge and the Postman was poor.
Decent enough film.

6.5/10
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I think you watched the American remake... I watched the original Thai version. Not sure if you'd like that having seen the remake as the twist is far more surprising in the original...

Psycho
Every scene is full of suspense and directed with aplomb. Such a brilliant film and a timeless classic. 9/10

The Poltergeist

The effects have aged pretty badly but the story and the film in general are just as enjoyable as ever. I hope the remake due for release next year brings this up to the modern age whilst retaining the charm and eerie atmosphere intact. 8/10

In Their Skin

This was pretty much like Funny Games so if you watched that then you will probably not enjoy this as much. It is very tense and also morbid but the film goes downhill a little in the final act. Still, the performances are good and the direction is spot on to create an uneasy atmosphere. Definitely worth a watch. 7/10
 
Dirty Schwein said:
Psycho
Every scene is full of suspense and directed with aplomb. Such a brilliant film and a timeless classic. 9/10

The Poltergeist

The effects have aged pretty badly but the story and the film in general are just as enjoyable as ever. I hope the remake due for release next year brings this up to the modern age whilst retaining the charm and eerie atmosphere intact. 8/10

In Their Skin

This was pretty much like Funny Games so if you watched that then you will probably not enjoy this as much. It is very tense and also morbid but the film goes downhill a little in the final act. Still, the performances are good and the direction is spot on to create an uneasy atmosphere. Definitely worth a watch. 7/10
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I agree about Psycho and Poltergeist both excellent, I watched Poltergeist not long ago and thought it has stood the test of time quite well, Psycho is just a classic that will still be watched in a hundred years time.
Not seen in Their Skin, I will soon though.
 
Oblivion - Decent film. Nothing exactly new or revolutionary, and parts of it just look like a computer game, but I enjoyed it enough. 7/10

There's also something very satisfying about watching Tom Cruise punch himself in the face.
 
Ain't Them Bodies Saints - Really enjoyed this. A southern outlaw drama/romance film with gorgeous, lush cinematography...so naturally the Terrence Malick vibes were everywhere, the good Malick though and not the bad one. Casey Affleck will always be Robert Ford for me and it didn't help that this film was quite similar in some ways and that he played a character named "Bob". One gripe would be that the characters could have been shelled out a bit more but overall it's a pretty good debut for a new director. Loved the score too. Oh and Rooney Mara.
 
R.N7 said:
Ain't Them Bodies Saints - Really enjoyed this. A southern outlaw drama/romance film with gorgeous, lush cinematography...so naturally the Terrence Malick vibes were everywhere, the good Malick though and not the bad one. Casey Affleck will always be Robert Ford for me and it didn't help that this film was quite similar in some ways and that he played a character named "Bob". One gripe would be that the characters could have been shelled out a bit more but overall it's a pretty good debut for a new director. Loved the score too. Oh and Rooney Mara.
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:drool:

I thought it was a very promising debut. The amount of scenes that took place during the "magic hour" bordered on comical, but other than that it was a good film.
 
Man of Tai Chi

Keanu Reeves' directorial debut doesn't end up being that good as I'm presuming he couldn't tell himself how terrible he is at acting. Still enjoyed it though, I'll watch anything kung fu related.

6/10
 
R.N7 said:
Ain't Them Bodies Saints - Really enjoyed this. A southern outlaw drama/romance film with gorgeous, lush cinematography...so naturally the Terrence Malick vibes were everywhere, the good Malick though and not the bad one. Casey Affleck will always be Robert Ford for me and it didn't help that this film was quite similar in some ways and that he played a character named "Bob". One gripe would be that the characters could have been shelled out a bit more but overall it's a pretty good debut for a new director. Loved the score too. Oh and Rooney Mara.
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I didn't enjoy the film at all, I've already forgotten most of it to be honest. I agree with the qualities you talk about (though honestly, mentioning Malick is more of an insult than anything else, the guy comes nowhere near and seems to be mimicking Malick's stuff more than anything else), the cinematography is superb, I'm not sure I can fault any of the acting, but I was so incredibly bored during the film and it lasts only 90 minutes! I can watch a 2hrs30 Malick film and time flies by, in this case it just didn't happen for me. I was looking forward to it, saw it in great conditions and again, it does look superb, but the pacing is just off. Worth a watch though, and for a first film by a director it's promising, for sure.
 
I didn't think it dragged at all, and it's a bit forgettable due to the writing and characters but I didn't really expect much of the film in the first place.
 
Happy-Go-Lucky - Sally Hawkins' character was almost like an inverse version of David Thewlis' character in Leigh's earlier film Naked...instead of a cynical, intellectual, unpleasant antihero that leaves everyone he meets in ruins, her character had the opposite effect with endless cheerful optimism. Really good film. Very well written.

The Green Ray - Watching Eric Rohmer films for some reason makes me want to go out and sit in a garden with an unbuttoned shirt, feeling the breeze in my face...which probably is the best condition to watch his films in too, at least the ones I've seen so far...this one however I couldn't relate to at all, which made it a bit of a drag...but a light, pleasant sitting in a garden, breeze, unbuttoned shirt drag....
 
13 Assassins (2011) - Excellent Japanese Samurai movie remake. I don't always enjoy these movies as they can just seem boring to me (sword fight after sword fight - yawn) but this had me entertained from start to finish. It also included one of the longest battle scenes I've ever seen which somehow remained gripping throughout and set up a nice finale. It's also impressive how a film can blend some seriously disturbing moments with humour and pure action so effectively.

8/10
 
West Beirut - Ziad Doueiri (1998)

Great film by this little known Lebanese director about the division of Beirut into West and East along Muslim/Christian sectors during the 70s. Mostly in Arabic with some French, it follows the hijinks of two school kids who are fascinated by the civil war in a kid-like way, and are also afficionados of filming it as well with old super 8 cameras. One of these kids, the older one, is just a brilliant, original character, and pretty much carries the movie. His parents are great characters as well that reflect the Lebanon of that time, being Arabic Muslim, but also heavily influenced by western French European culture. Excellent film, great history lesson.

8 1/2 cocks up
 
Ruby Sparks - Considering I had no expectations - and expected a very typical indie Rom-Com type thing - I was pleasently surprised by this, and ended up rather enjoying it. The set-up is fairly bog standard (Lonely Guy writes a ficitonal girl, girl comes to life) and cheesy, the film doesn't shy away from the sinister nature of it's set-up and having the main character do questionable things... both of which make it a far more interesting film then similar films within the genre.
 
Swingers - Was thoroughly enjoying this, had a great aesthetic, great setting, skinny Vince Vaughn doing the fast talking thing. And then it ended when I thought it had just been warming up. The whole film is like a long introduction to another, better film about wannabe actors in 90s LA.

It was written by Jon Favreau so I probably should've known.
 
Battle Ground (2013)
Three British soldiers find themselves stranded in No Man's Land after a failed charge on the German Trenches. Set in France 1916.

Given the subject it's not surprising it's gloomy and gory but I quite enjoyed it.

The Bell Witch Haunting (2013)
Based on true events. The Robertson County Sheriff's Department has released footage found on the bodies of the Sawyer family's cell phones and video cameras. What was first thought to be a murder-suicide is now believed to be the return of a centuries-old demon responsible for America's most famous paranormal event.

Bit Blair Witch but it was good with a few jumping-out-of-your-skin moments.

Orc Wars (2013)
A battle-weary ex-Special Forces Operative buys a ranch in remote American West to flee from the world, and encounters a strange series of trespassers, including a beautiful elf princes.....

Got 15 minutes into it...:lol: Crap! How the feck do shit like this ever get made?!

The Purge (2013)
In the future, a wealthy family is held hostage for harboring the target of a murderous syndicate during the Purge, a 12-hour period in which any and all crime is legalized.

More crap but I did make it all the way through. If you've got nothing else to do it's OK.

The Frozen Ground (2013)
An Alaska State Trooper partners with a young woman who escaped the clutches of serial killer Robert Hansen to bring the murderer to justice. Based on actual events.

I enjoyed this. Definitely the best of this bunch.
 
Pacific Rim

Yeah it's as cheesy as hell (intentionally so I think) but Del Toro is one of the few directors you can let loose with CGI and SFX and he always delivers. The monsters are incredible and the fight scenes between the Kaiju and the Jaegers are fantastic. Kids will love it and so will big kids too. Great popcorn entertainment. Also probably one of the loudest films I've ever seen even with the volume nearly on mute.
 
How To Make Money Selling Drugs

Does exactly what it says on the tin. Well, sort of. Starts of quite trite but then goes seriously political and dark about a third of the way in. If you're a complete anti drug gimp then you can do a lot worse than watch this if only to widen your horizons. It's a very good documentary although I could've done without Eminem telling me that he stayed up for 3 weeks straight on vicodin but thankfully he's only on screen for a couple of minutes. Also, wtf with all 'The Wire' spoilers man? Jesus.
 
CassiusClaymore said:
Pacific Rim

Yeah it's as cheesy as hell (intentionally so I think) but Del Toro is one of the few directors you can let loose with CGI and SFX and he always delivers. The monsters are incredible and the fight scenes between the Kaiju and the Jaegers are fantastic. Kids will love it and so will big kids too. Great popcorn entertainment. Also probably one of the loudest films I've ever seen even with the volume nearly on mute.
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Saw this one yesterday, was so shit that I wasn't sure if it was a parody or if it took itself seriously. Basically Godzilla meet transformers with a main protagonist that is looking like he's constipated throughout the whole film. Some great CGI but that's all that can be said about this, the acting was just horrendous and so was the story.
 
Can anyone recommend a good, new-ish comedy? My missus wants something to watch for tomorrow evening.
 
Vato1979 said:
Saw this one yesterday, was so shit that I wasn't sure if it was a parody or if it took itself seriously. Basically Godzilla meet transformers with a main protagonist that is looking like he's constipated throughout the whole film. Some great CGI but that's all that can be said about this, the acting was just horrendous and so was the story.
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I took that as intentional. It's basically an $180m Japanese monster movie. It doesn't require Daniel Day Lewis. They cast some cnut from EastEnders in it ffs.

Oh and look who's being a film snob now all of a sudden.... :p
 
Brophs said:
Can anyone recommend a good, new-ish comedy? My missus wants something to watch for tomorrow evening.
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I think Scrumpet said 'We're the Millers' was quite decent for such type of film. I'm still not touching it with a barge pole, mind you. Anything with Jenniston should be banned instantly.
 
CassiusClaymore said:
I took that as intentional. It's basically an $180m Japanese monster movie. It doesn't require Daniel Day Lewis. They cast some cnut from EastEnders in it ffs.

Oh and look who's being a film snob now all of a sudden.... :p
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:lol: It wasn't artistic enough for my liking.
 
Vato1979 said:
I think Scrumpet said 'We're the Millers' was quite decent for such type of film. I'm still not touching it with a barge pole, mind you. Anything with Jenniston should be banned instantly.
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I've looked up the synopsis. That's a no from me.
 
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