Movie review thread...
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[quote name='Toddy']Watched The Vinters Luck last night. It's based on the (kiwi) Elizabeth Knox novel of the same name and is directed by Nikki Caro. It was a pile of utter shit. Nikki really missed the point of the book and it is hard to believe that is was the same director that did whale rider and North Country. <br />
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Read the book and never see the movie.[/quote]<br />
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In case anyone is interested. <br />
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[url="http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/3076674/Vintners-Luck-film-a-betrayal"]http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/30 ... a-betrayal[/url]<br />
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[quote] The author Elizabeth Knox lay in bed and cried for days after watching Niki Caro's film adaptation of her acclaimed book The Vintner's Luck.<br />
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Knox, who got to see the film only days before its first public showing, says she was shocked and upset by how much it departed from her story.<br />
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"She took out what the book was actually about, and I was deeply surprised and deeply puzzled by it, because I don't know why she did it."<br />
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The film did have virtues, including its visual beauty and the actors' performances, Knox said.<br />
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"But I kept expecting the story that I'd written to happen."<br />
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The movie opened in New Zealand last week. It has received a critical drubbing both here and overseas, but Knox has kept her reaction quiet until now because she wanted viewers to decide for themselves.<br />
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The book centres on a 19th-century gay romance between an angel, Xas, and a French peasant winemaker, Sobran Jodeau.<br />
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But the film reduced that relationship to little more than the angel giving advice about wine, Knox said.<br />
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"The film doesn't do the gay romance. It has a vague gay flirtation that amounts to nothing and it has quite a lot of heterosexual sex in it."<br />
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Immediately after seeing it, Knox wrote an email to Caro praising much of the movie but also calling it a "betrayal" for its treatment of the relationship. She received a response that was polite, but a "great big cop-out", she said.<br />
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Since then, she and her husband, the publisher Fergus Barrowman, had sent more emails to the film's producers, including one while "I was lying in bed crying for several days", Knox said.<br />
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The disappointment had come during a difficult year, when her mother had also been ill, so it was hard to separate the stress from that and the film.<br />
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She had little to do with making the movie, she said. "I believe in letting people get on with their jobs. And I also trusted [Niki] and had respect for her as an artist."<br />
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Knox said she would have been happy if Caro had ignored the tale and created a great new film, but that wasn't the case. "She's taken her own chance on her own story – and it hasn't worked."<br />
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When contacted by The Dominion Post yesterday, Caro immediately hung up and subsequently did not return phone messages.<br />
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REVIEWS OF THE FILM<br />
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Not even Caro's earthy, sensuous film-making can overcome the tale's glib supernatural conceit, overstated moral lessons and overall dramatic torpor. Justin Chang, Variety<br />
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An overblown work of amazing silliness. Peter Brunnete, The Hollywood Reporter<br />
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Readers of the book will be wondering why Caro has left out, well, pretty much everything ... What is left over is not only nonsensical, it is bloody tedious. Graeme Tuckett, The Dominion Post<br />
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Niki Caro's film of The Vintner's Luck will divide audiences. Some will despise it with a passionate fire, and some will merely find it rather dull and pointless. David Larsen, Listener<br />
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Falls midway between absurd and engrossing, misjudged and intelligent. Mike Goodridge, Screen Daily<br />
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The film's lyrical beauty and intelligence makes it something quite unexpected. Paul Fischer, Dark Horizons[/quote] -
Watched Funny People last night. Stars Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen and directed by Judd Apatow. It's not really an out and out comedy which will probably put some people off but I really enjoyed it. I'm a great fan of Apatow, Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared are great TV and I enjoy most of his produced and/or directed etc films. A solid 7.5 out of 10, losing marks for too quick an ending.
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Yes Bruno made me ask the question: Is Sacha Baron Cohen the 21st Century version of Frank Spencer? I found it more cringe inducing than laugh worthy.
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A Serious Man - the lastest from Coen Brothers. Should have read the review in the foyer first that said "difficult to enjoy, but thats the point".<br />
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Well made, sets the period well but slower than Tialata in the 80th minute. Not one sympathetic character in the whole movie. I guess maybe the eopnymous hero but too frustrating to have any time for him. Grow some balls man. 4/10 -
[quote name='dogmeat']A Serious Man - the lastest from Coen Brothers. Should have read the review in the foyer first that said "difficult to enjoy, but thats the point".<br />
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Well made, sets the period well but slower than Tialata in the 80th minute. Not one sympathetic character in the whole movie. I guess maybe the eopnymous hero but too frustrating to have any time for him. Grow some balls man. 4/10[/quote]<br />
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I admit to being a Coen Bros tragic so I'll probably still give this a watch. But I have not heard anything but "Yawn" to describe this movie. I hadn't followed the story much but a mate told me it was like a lighter attempt at Mad Men? -
[quote name='Scorz']Do not under any circumstances watch "2012". I was cheering for the giant tidal wave to sink all the arks. F@ck me, what garbage.[/quote]<br />
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haha, sounds much like all the comments on it when I was looking at Pirate Bay...<br />
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same sh!t different movie and name...but at least somone in America gets to save the day! -
Saw Zombieland - a marvellous piece of work, doesn't engross itself in the what you already know is going to be wildy ridicolous and incredibly far-fetched "how we all became zombies in the first place" and instead just tells a man's story from a quite unique angle...<br />
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So good I'm even considering going to the movies to watch it as I saw this one on a DVD download eusa_whistle -
"Lesbian Vampire killers" ( yes that is the real title )....<br />
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Basically a "Sean of the Dead" rip off. Pommy dude has his heart broken and finds himself battling supernatural forces with tubby comic relieft buddy. Some genuine funny bits, lots of T & A. You're not gonna get oscar winning performances in a movie with that name are you ? <br />
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worth a look though. -
[quote name='Hooroo']Watched 7 pounds last night. While predictable and drawn out at the end, I can't get enough of Will Smith. I think he is a tremendous actor[/quote]<br />
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I was really angry after seeing that film. I think Will Smith's performance was note perfect, and he showed his range as usual.<br />
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But that was such a manipulative, Oscar bait of a movie, and it was a bit bloody relentless.<br />
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And while I've having a bit of a rant, I finally saw Terminator Salvation. What. A. Pile. Of. Shit. <br />
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I actually think T3 was a better film.<br />
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Felt like I was watching a big budget, bad version of mad Max 2, as opposed to a Terminator film. And it's quite an achievement to make Terminators not very scary - all they do is knock you far enough away that you can run away. At least in T2 if you got close to one you were deadski.<br />
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I could write pages of what was wrong with that film. -
[quote name='MN5']"Lesbian Vampire killers" ( yes that is the real title )....<br />
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Basically a "Sean of the Dead" rip off. Pommy dude has his heart broken and finds himself battling supernatural forces with tubby comic relieft buddy. Some genuine funny bits, lots of T & A. You're not gonna get oscar winning performances in a movie with that name are you ? <br />
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worth a look though.[/quote]<br />
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thats those two dicks of 'gavin n stacy' innit? their trying really hard to be a newer hipper version of Peg and Frost. one my mates based in the uk was going on about these two and how they think its hilarious to make fun of mentally disabled people, very clever xzxsarcastic . Im not mother bloody teresa but theres a bloody line..... -
Watched a recent remake of Friday the 13th (produced by Michael Bay) and it was suprisingly good for yet another horror sequel/remake, it's technically very good for a horror flick especially the score by Steve Jablonsky (Transformers), plenty of action and some chilling moments. Don't expect much or take it too seriously and you'll enjoy it.
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[quote name='JP']Saw Zombieland - a marvellous piece of work, doesn't engross itself in the what you already know is going to be wildy ridicolous and incredibly far-fetched "how we all became zombies in the first place" and instead just tells a man's story from a quite unique angle...<br />
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So good I'm even considering going to the movies to watch it as I saw this one on a DVD download eusa_whistle[/quote]<br />
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I watched this last night, and I thought it was great too! <br />
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[spoiler:4m12yl7q]Rule #1 Cardio...thats why all the fat people get eaten first[/spoiler:4m12yl7q] -
[quote name='taniwharugby'][quote name='JP']Saw Zombieland - a marvellous piece of work, doesn't engross itself in the what you already know is going to be wildy ridicolous and incredibly far-fetched "how we all became zombies in the first place" and instead just tells a man's story from a quite unique angle...<br />
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So good I'm even considering going to the movies to watch it as I saw this one on a DVD download eusa_whistle[/quote]<br />
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I watched this last night, and I thought it was great too! <br />
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[spoiler:2kowoaqa]Rule #1 Cardio...thats why all the fat people get eaten first[/spoiler:2kowoaqa][/quote]<br />
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TR you have young kids how the hell do you get to go to the movies ?!?!?!<br />
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but yeah I seriously want to see this. Zombie movies are among my favourite genre. -
[quote name='MN5'][quote name='taniwharugby'][quote name='JP']Saw Zombieland - a marvellous piece of work, doesn't engross itself in the what you already know is going to be wildy ridicolous and incredibly far-fetched "how we all became zombies in the first place" and instead just tells a man's story from a quite unique angle...<br />
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So good I'm even considering going to the movies to watch it as I saw this one on a DVD download eusa_whistle[/quote]<br />
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I watched this last night, and I thought it was great too! <br />
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[spoiler:1oq0qlhs]Rule #1 Cardio...thats why all the fat people get eaten first[/spoiler:1oq0qlhs][/quote]<br />
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TR you have young kids how the hell do you get to go to the movies ?!?!?!<br />
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but yeah I seriously want to see this. Zombie movies are among my favourite genre.[/quote]<br />
i was looking foward to zombieland but found it rather dull in the end. the cameo by bill murray was great but im really over Woody H. -
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I saw This Is It when it first came out. Pretty much agree with everything you said Hooroo. If you can just sit back and take his music for what it is then I think it's pretty good.<br />
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I made the mistake of going to New Moon today. I'm beginning to wonder why. xzxscratch_one-s_head It was just bad on every single level. -
[quote name='Hooroo']Took the misses to This Is It (The Michael Jackson thing)<br />
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Pretty cool. Even at 50 he still had it. Amazing how much of an influence he had on how the show was to run.<br />
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Nice just to sit back and listen to his music[/quote]<br />
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He was a terrific performer, i saw him when he came down here in the mid 90's? -
for some bizaare reason I decided to watch Hostel 2, one of those movies you kow will be sh!t, but always watch to the end to find out what happens...<br />
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was one scene in particular I could have done without seeing too!! <br />
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[spoiler:1xalxwm8]where the chick cuts off the dudes tackle and feeds to a dog![/spoiler:1xalxwm8]