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Posted (edited)

For me Oppenheimer is Nolan’s best and a film I didn’t think he was capable of making. I’ve seen it twice now with the first time being in IMAX and can’t stress enough how awesome the Trinity test was in that format. Those screens are much taller and the audio much louder and that sold out theater didn’t make a sound before the bang kicked in.  So great.

The third act is so essential and the true source of dread. The Los Alamos speech, RDJ ramping up the vanity etc etc. It works as a fun courtroom drama and also in a this is who we gave The Power to anxiety inducing sort of way. It just weaves so well into that final scene.

What struck me more so on the second watch was how often Nolan is using those visual/audio cues prior to actually showing the scene those cues are from. The foot stomping being the absolute best use of this technique. Loved the rain drops to open and then mimicking that in those final shots as the world catches fire. 

Nolan was at his best, but it would have been hard to go wrong with that cast. There are like 15 great performances in this thing. Murphy/RDJ/Damon all delivered (surely some awards buzz for those first 2), but the supporting roles around them were just on another level. One of the most stacked casts ever. Hey here is a Casey Affleck in what might be the best scene of the movie, oh look it’s Josh Hartnett reviving his career, wait a minute is Benny Safdie a better actor than he is a director, oh look it’s Gary Oldman like 30th down the bill.

Crazy that a 3 hour, R rated biopic is crushing so hard at the box office. Love to see it. 

Edited by Jrag
  • Like 3
Posted

4-1/2 hours on a plane. To kill time, I watched The Whale. Given all the hype, I had high hopes and it basically disappointed. Ended up mostly bored by an uninteresting story. I can see why people were impressed by Brendan Fraser but I wasn't blown away. 5/10.

Posted

Just jumping off the Von Erich movie discussion in the Upcoming thread, what are the best wrestling movies ever? I'm not counting documentaries or wrestling-adjacent things like My Breakfast with Blassie.

The Wrestler (08) is an obvious pick.

Night and the City might be the best movie overall, but I wouldn't really say its a wrestling movie. The wrestling is mostly just a MacGuffin to get the plot moving.

The Peanut Butter Falcon would be an underrated pick.

I don't think All the Marbles would be the best, but it probably has the best match in any wrestling movie I've seen. The final California Dolls match is legit great.

I have a soft spot for The Wrestler (74), its very fun but its honestly not that great of a movie. Same thing with I Like to Hurt People, very recommended and a fun watch, but not a very good movie.

I've never seen Requiem for a Heavyweight and surely there must be some great Japanese wrestling movies? or Santo/other luchadore films?

  • Like 1
Posted (edited)
5 hours ago, elizium said:

Just jumping off the Von Erich movie discussion in the Upcoming thread, what are the best wrestling movies ever? I'm not counting documentaries or wrestling-adjacent things like My Breakfast with Blassie.

The Wrestler (08) is an obvious pick.

Night and the City might be the best movie overall, but I wouldn't really say its a wrestling movie. The wrestling is mostly just a MacGuffin to get the plot moving.

The Peanut Butter Falcon would be an underrated pick.

I don't think All the Marbles would be the best, but it probably has the best match in any wrestling movie I've seen. The final California Dolls match is legit great.

I have a soft spot for The Wrestler (74), its very fun but its honestly not that great of a movie. Same thing with I Like to Hurt People, very recommended and a fun watch, but not a very good movie.

I've never seen Requiem for a Heavyweight and surely there must be some great Japanese wrestling movies? or Santo/other luchadore films?

Requiem for a Heavyweight is like Night in the City, where it uses wrestling as a plot point. 

All the Marbles is great but there's so much padding, more than a third of it is them driving around with Falk's character badly ADR'ed in saying "you girls need to work on the sunset flip".

Edited by Mister TV
  • Like 1
Posted
2 hours ago, odessasteps said:

Can we count Highlander? 

No

1 hour ago, odessasteps said:

The One and Only with Henry Winkler? 

I’ve never seen it, but I’m sure it’s terrible 

Posted
6 hours ago, elizium said:

 

I’ve never seen it, but I’m sure it’s terrible 

Late '70s Peak Fonz Popularity Winkler as a wrestler during the 50s.
Haven't seen it since the mid-80s. First thing I ever saw him do that wasn't Fonzie was a version of A Christmas Carol that aired during the late 70s. I didn't care for it, then again I was 8 or 9.

  • Like 1
Posted
22 hours ago, elizium said:

surely there must be some great Japanese wrestling movies? or Santo/other luchadore films?

Santo y Blue Demon Contra Los Monstruos is the fourth-greatest movie of all time.

  • Like 1
Posted (edited)

Micki & Maude with Dudley Moore is somewhat wrestling related and breaks the sacred "kayfabe". Andre, Big John Studd, Jay Strongbow, Gene LeBell, Hard Boiled Haggerty and Wildman Jack Armstrong who by law had to be in any wrestling related movie or tv show, are in it.

Edited by Mister TV
Posted

Took my daughter to see TMNT: Mutant Mayhem last night at the "old people" theater near our home. I say "old people" because ...

-- There are eight screens, with each screen fitting at least 125 people.

-- "Oppenheimer" was sold out for all screenings. There was a line of about 40-50 people sitting outside its screen for a 7:30p showing as we walked in. "Sound of Freedom" also had a "sold out" notice for a 7pm screening.

-- Total number of people in our theater for a 6:50pm showing of Ninja Turtles? A little over 10.

 

Nevertheless, it was decent popcorn fare. Didn't overstay its welcome (only 95 minutes) and there were enough action and jokes to keep the audience entertained. Thought the mix of action and humor was good -- wondered if it would push more in one direction than not, but I didn't notice that. Easter eggs were kept to a minimum (compared to, say, Super Mario Bros., which was pretty much "Easter Egg: The Movie.")

Spoiler

There was a fight scene where for, all of 2-3 seconds, Vanilla Ice's "Ninja Rap" plays on a car radio. That got a laugh from all the adults in the theater. Grownups also giggled at a scene where the turtles sneak out of their underground lair to watch "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" at an outdoor movie night at (presumably) Central Park. Very weird to see a live-action movie being shown in the middle of a cartoon. 

 

  • Like 4
Posted
On 8/2/2023 at 9:38 AM, elizium said:

 

Night and the City might be the best movie overall, but I wouldn't really say its a wrestling movie. The wrestling is mostly just a MacGuffin to get the plot moving.

The last sentence is pretty much true but I love that during the wrestling-centric part of the movie there is still the dynamic of "gritty REAL wrestling" vs. "SHOWBIZ wrestling" just proving once again that the arguments today of "modern wrestling vs. how it USED to be" are literally as old as the professional wrestling industry itself. 

Posted

Since I re-read I Heard You Paint Houses again I went ahead and watched The Irishman again (or, as it was titled in the actual movie... I Heard You Paint Houses). Stone sober this time, it definitely felt its length, but I admired how it was identical to the story, and moreover the humor of it. It kinda felt like a Marty Scorcese Appreciation Night (heh) with all these people from his prior films and nice, laughter-inducing cameos by the likes of Ray Romano, Charmaine from The Sopranos, and best of all Action Bronson as a foul-mouthed casket hustler. He even dipped his toe into the younger pool of actors and snagged guys from Boardwalk Empire and The Wire -- Dominick Lombardozzi wearing old man makeup as Fat Tony Salerno was jarring. Anna Paquin (a now 43 year old woman) playing a teenager is the same.

But of course the centerpiece is Pacino. De Niro is almost asleep most of the time (he seems most like the real Frank when being interviewed), Pesci for all his skill IS asleep several times, but Pacino is the crazy blasting cap he always is and honestly probably is underplaying Hoffa. I wouldn't put it there with Nicholson's Hoffa but it's pretty damn good. 

Anyway, overall a fun little greatest-hits piece if you can sit through it.

Posted

Took #1 Daughter to see TMNT: Mutant Mayhem and it was... ok?

I didn't hate it but wouldn't necessarily recommend it ya dig?

Best part is the soundtrack, which is all 90s hip hop/R&B. Hell, it features De La and ATCQ and that made me smile more than anything else in the movie

James

  • Like 1
Posted

Watched Maggie Moore(s) and damn is it good. Considering the cast I was expecting a comedy, but not so much.

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