The stakes are small. That's my guess; small stakes make the hero mortal and raise tension. It's why the Dark Knight was good (two ferries in danger) and the Dark Knight Rises was a complicated mess (whole city in danger).
The stakes are small. That's my guess; small stakes make the hero mortal and raise tension. It's why the Dark Knight was good (two ferries in danger) and the Dark Knight Rises was a complicated mess (whole city in danger).
That's way too reductive a reason for why one of those movies is good and the other is terrible.
The stakes are small. That's my guess; small stakes make the hero mortal and raise tension. It's why the Dark Knight was good (two ferries in danger) and the Dark Knight Rises was a complicated mess (whole city in danger).
That's way too reductive a reason for why one of those movies is good and the other is terrible.
Dredd did many, many things perfectly. That said the one flaw I noticed was how the Judges mowed through the bad guys like tissue paper (which a few exceptions). In the tv show, or sequel I'd like for that to be fixed.
I mean... Judges aren't space Marines. You can't really let them get shot a couple times each and have them continue to kick ass unimpeded.
Dredd did get pinned down a couple times, and shot.
I guess I didn't notice it being too outlandishly one-sided, considering... they're Judges.
+16
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AstaerethIn the belly of the beastRegistered Userregular
I watched the original Judge Dredd the other day for the first time. It's ridiculous and not very good, but also fairly entertaining. Makes me want to rewatch Dredd though.
I mean... Judges aren't space Marines. You can't really let them get shot a couple times each and have them continue to kick ass unimpeded.
Dredd did get pinned down a couple times, and shot.
I guess I didn't notice it being too outlandishly one-sided, considering... they're Judges.
They do need to have tension. Regular movie/tv cops do this, I don't see why they can't. It's not about being shot, it's about whether we feel like they're in danger. Which the movie did without firing any bullets.
The best tension was when they were on the run and had to hide, that was great. But too much was shoot and move on.
They're also protagonists so either they had to weaken the Judges or amp up how dangerous the thugs were. Far to often the thugs were too outmatched. This is something The Raid avoided successfully.
That's basically the start of the movie. It's showing us what their capabilities are when they are well equipped and rested. Then over the course of the movie their resources become fewer and fewer and we have to see them improvise and make more tactical decisions.
That scene isn't supposed to be tense. The tension comes later on.
Baby Driver was a finely tuned delivery system for awesome moments. Not as taken with Baby and Debora as with the rest of the cast, but I was dumbfounded by how perfectly polished and honed the direction and editing was.
Dark Raven XLaugh hard, run fast,be kindRegistered Userregular
Baby Driver also had some hot misdirection
with the boss, Griff and Bats so clearly set up as the antagonists, and then they're really not. While Buddy was set up as Baby's bro, and then ended up the main villain. Just a really nice subversion of this kinda crime movie formula
with the boss, Griff and Bats so clearly set up as the antagonists, and then they're really not. While Buddy was set up as Baby's bro, and then ended up the main villain. Just a really nice subversion of this kinda crime movie formula
True, but if it hadn't been for Bats' actions, the job would have gone off presumably a lot smoother.
with the boss, Griff and Bats so clearly set up as the antagonists, and then they're really not. While Buddy was set up as Baby's bro, and then ended up the main villain. Just a really nice subversion of this kinda crime movie formula
And Griff said if we don't seem him again he's dead, and then we never see him again, so I guess he died off-screen at some point. That gave me a chuckle when I remembered that line.
+3
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TexiKenDammit!That fish really got me!Registered Userregular
Saban's Power Rangers is a movie I am confused by. I don't regret renting it but at the same time I can't see who the target audience was. It tells it's story competently, much more thought is put into it than other big brand action hero movies Krispy Kreme. The camerawork is genuinely good and solid and there's some 360 work that shows a freedom I never expected from an attempt at a film franchise. The special effects are mostly very, very good that I can't believe this is a Lionsgate movie. The cast, outside of the yellow ranger, is solid and good even though the Red Ranger has weird hair that's already receding. Bryan Cranston does a great job as Zordon, and Bill Hader doesn't Jar Jar Alpha 5 so he's a nice mellow sidekick, enough to make up for Elizabeth Banks sort of realizing halfway through shooting she wants to be taken more seriously than the story needs (this is no Uma Thurman Poison Ivy). And what little action you have is good Krispy Kreme with a brief Pacific Rim type fight. Hell, it's even one of the few things in the media right now that actually uses the song Handclap real well when everyone else is trying to play that song to the point where they ruin Fitz & the Tantrums (you do that with someone shitty like The Ting Tings, ok? Oh wait you already did).
Yet at the same time it fumbles in some of the breakfast club hero development in the middle of the movie with trying to make adults jerks, making Billy the Ma-Ti of the group in an annoying manner that cuts into the likability of the character (Krispy Kreme), some of the character development is a bit too melodramatic for a kids movie but eye rolling for a teen movie, and it can't help but ruin some nice parts of the movie with unnecessary humor, at least for that moment in the film. The 90's Power Ranger movie wasn't good but it at least knew to deliver some action in the beginning, middle, and end, which this movie only does for the end (and a little training montage). It could have easily had an opening action scene, instead we just come across the aftermath of that fight Krispy Kreme. There's actually a few parts where a fight could have been put in without being shoehorned yet it never appears, and in a two hour movie you have to do that or no matter how well the story is you want to see the heroes fight something, anything, before the end.
I'm somewhat sad that the film likely won't get a sequel, yet at the same time I can understand why the film won't get a sequel. I'm in a very Krispy Kreme situation here where I like it but I can't really try and convince anyone to spend money to see it, even though it does deserve some support. My thumb is at a 45 degree angle.
Krispy Kreme
+12
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AstaerethIn the belly of the beastRegistered Userregular
Good review but
I was hoping by the end you would have smoothly transitioned into just reviewing Krispy Kreme.
Baby Driver review: It's good! Not as hyper-edited as Wright's other stuff, but the camera still felt really dynamic and everybody gave their A game. Kinda glad I was warned not to expect anothet Cornetto movie, I'd have been disappointed. On its own terms it's a good time.
4DX review: My chair tilted on hand brake turns or swooping camera shots, a breeze blew as we speed down a road, puffs of air poke my back and head as rear end collisions happen or people get shot. I disabled the water feature but I overheard another viewer saying they felt sprinkled during a rainy scene.
As ways to squeeze another £4 from your pocket, you probably get more out of it than 3D. Dunno if I'd do it again though.
0
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AtomikaLive fast and get fucked or whateverRegistered Userregular
Hot take, fresh out of the theater:
Baby Driver is just okay
I am fone poast, will elaborate tbd
+3
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BlackDragon480Bluster KerfuffleMaster of Windy ImportRegistered Userregular
IME comparing my taste and critical hang-ups to yours, "Just okay" coming from you means it's still better than 80% of the shit that gets churned out anymore.
No matter where you go...there you are. ~ Buckaroo Banzai
+2
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ElJeffeRoaming the streets, waving his mod gun around.Moderator, ClubPAMod Emeritus
Yeah, my Atomika-to-Jeffe translator parses that as "it's amazing, go watch it right now."
I submitted an entry to Lego Ideas, and if 10,000 people support me, it'll be turned into an actual Lego set!If you'd like to see and support my submission, follow this link.
+15
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AstaerethIn the belly of the beastRegistered Userregular
Close attention to the craft of fimmaking and storytelling. The small stakes of the story help, but only insomuch as it makes it easier to tell a story.
As such there are two primary plot lines in the movie and they play off each other and with each other in order to give the movie thematic structure.
Dredd who had isolated himself*, comes to realize the value in being able to trust people and how this has value over and above the raw aptitude of being a judge. He comes to this as his quest through the tower runs him out of the resources that make him powerful, reducing him only to his moral character and his allies.
and Anderson(The Rookie) who has the standard hero's journey. Notably here Anderson is our PoV character and this gives the film a reason to explain things to us, without simply stating them, and it does so in a way that doesn't talk down to the audience.
*He is the only Judge who has no team in the movie and i don't think its a coincidence that the opening introduction doesn't have him losing a partner
+10
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AtomikaLive fast and get fucked or whateverRegistered Userregular
edited July 2017
Okay an abbreviated review:
Baby Driver is an above-average action film that uses some very slick editing in conjunction with soundtrack cues to heighten what is really only a very by-the-numbers story: a standard "one last job" riff that you've seen some version of easily a hundred times before. Familiar beats are hit, albeit with Swiss precision and panache, but there's nothing here new or exciting the way that any of Wright's other four films have done, and much of what is here is cliche or narratively-convenient. This is hardly more than Walter Hill with a pop soundtrack and a thin layer of Wright's trademark momentum pushing it all along. It's not as clever as his previous works, nor is it as funny, but it still manages to generally be fun. Some major turns in the story seem to hinge on random happenstance, and no effort is made whatsoever to counter against any claim one might make against the director's spotty history with women in his movie; if anything, this film is his worst in this regard, as the only two female characters in this movie are an ex-stripper bad girl and the young blonde damsel in distress (whom our protagonist spends the entire back half protecting from the danger he puts her in).
There's some very good action sequences, but nothing I would call amazing or revelatory or even novel; they're just as I said, "very good." Kevin Spacey here is the most interesting character, speaking his dialogue like he's John McCrea without a backing track; Ansel Elgort (Gerry Dorsey?) and Lily James are . . there, too, I suppose.
All in all, not a bad afternoon at the movies, but up to now Wright has only managed to make impressions on me, either positively or negatively. This is the first time I've seen one of his films and had no inclination to spend much time digesting it at all. It's a good car chase movie, little more; if that's your thing, you'll probably like it enough I guess.
Atomika on
+6
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BlackDragon480Bluster KerfuffleMaster of Windy ImportRegistered Userregular
Close attention to the craft of fimmaking and storytelling. The small stakes of the story help, but only insomuch as it makes it easier to tell a story.
As such there are two primary plot lines in the movie and they play off each other and with each other in order to give the movie thematic structure.
Dredd who had isolated himself*, comes to realize the value in being able to trust people and how this has value over and above the raw aptitude of being a judge. He comes to this as his quest through the tower runs him out of the resources that make him powerful, reducing him only to his moral character and his allies.
and Anderson(The Rookie) who has the standard hero's journey. Notably here Anderson is our PoV character and this gives the film a reason to explain things to us, without simply stating them, and it does so in a way that doesn't talk down to the audience.
*He is the only Judge who has no team in the movie and i don't think its a coincidence that the opening introduction doesn't have him losing a partner
I really enjoyed how the world building in the movie was largely visual. The dialogue never really felt like that whole "Why are they even saying this when they should clearly know it?" thing that movies tend to do.
0
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AtomikaLive fast and get fucked or whateverRegistered Userregular
Posts
Or maybe how is it so good?
Because it really is good.
The stakes are small. That's my guess; small stakes make the hero mortal and raise tension. It's why the Dark Knight was good (two ferries in danger) and the Dark Knight Rises was a complicated mess (whole city in danger).
That's way too reductive a reason for why one of those movies is good and the other is terrible.
Dredd did many, many things perfectly. That said the one flaw I noticed was how the Judges mowed through the bad guys like tissue paper (which a few exceptions). In the tv show, or sequel I'd like for that to be fixed.
Dredd did get pinned down a couple times, and shot.
I guess I didn't notice it being too outlandishly one-sided, considering... they're Judges.
They do need to have tension. Regular movie/tv cops do this, I don't see why they can't. It's not about being shot, it's about whether we feel like they're in danger. Which the movie did without firing any bullets.
The best tension was when they were on the run and had to hide, that was great. But too much was shoot and move on.
They're also protagonists so either they had to weaken the Judges or amp up how dangerous the thugs were. Far to often the thugs were too outmatched. This is something The Raid avoided successfully.
For example
Well written, performed, everyone in character - except this is essentially an execution, not a tense scene.
That scene isn't supposed to be tense. The tension comes later on.
Like, he uses his flashbangs, breaching charges, gas grenades etc
Even later on he does the body switch with the dude in the phone booth
Like he's a really fucking deadly combatant but he also uses simple, reliable tactics to give himself the edge
When Mama intervenes you know shit is about to go down.
3:34
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Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
Most more Hollywood movies would've made her a wilting flower
Yet at the same time it fumbles in some of the breakfast club hero development in the middle of the movie with trying to make adults jerks, making Billy the Ma-Ti of the group in an annoying manner that cuts into the likability of the character (Krispy Kreme), some of the character development is a bit too melodramatic for a kids movie but eye rolling for a teen movie, and it can't help but ruin some nice parts of the movie with unnecessary humor, at least for that moment in the film. The 90's Power Ranger movie wasn't good but it at least knew to deliver some action in the beginning, middle, and end, which this movie only does for the end (and a little training montage). It could have easily had an opening action scene, instead we just come across the aftermath of that fight Krispy Kreme. There's actually a few parts where a fight could have been put in without being shoehorned yet it never appears, and in a two hour movie you have to do that or no matter how well the story is you want to see the heroes fight something, anything, before the end.
I'm somewhat sad that the film likely won't get a sequel, yet at the same time I can understand why the film won't get a sequel. I'm in a very Krispy Kreme situation here where I like it but I can't really try and convince anyone to spend money to see it, even though it does deserve some support. My thumb is at a 45 degree angle.
4DX review: My chair tilted on hand brake turns or swooping camera shots, a breeze blew as we speed down a road, puffs of air poke my back and head as rear end collisions happen or people get shot. I disabled the water feature but I overheard another viewer saying they felt sprinkled during a rainy scene.
As ways to squeeze another £4 from your pocket, you probably get more out of it than 3D. Dunno if I'd do it again though.
Baby Driver is just okay
I am fone poast, will elaborate tbd
IME comparing my taste and critical hang-ups to yours, "Just okay" coming from you means it's still better than 80% of the shit that gets churned out anymore.
~ Buckaroo Banzai
Huh, that's funny. My Atomika-to-Jeffe translator parsed that to "4.7 Vampire Dogs." Must be broken.
"46%"
Let's see if the new Power Rangers is a regular Krispy Kreme glazed, Baby Driver is apparently:
~ Buckaroo Banzai
So you didn't like it?
Because that looks horrific.
Unsure myself, I'm not seeing it till Monday night.
As for my Krispy Kreme parser, it's still in beta, version 0.2g right now, so results may not accurately reflect all tastes.
~ Buckaroo Banzai
Close attention to the craft of fimmaking and storytelling. The small stakes of the story help, but only insomuch as it makes it easier to tell a story.
As such there are two primary plot lines in the movie and they play off each other and with each other in order to give the movie thematic structure.
Dredd who had isolated himself*, comes to realize the value in being able to trust people and how this has value over and above the raw aptitude of being a judge. He comes to this as his quest through the tower runs him out of the resources that make him powerful, reducing him only to his moral character and his allies.
and Anderson(The Rookie) who has the standard hero's journey. Notably here Anderson is our PoV character and this gives the film a reason to explain things to us, without simply stating them, and it does so in a way that doesn't talk down to the audience.
*He is the only Judge who has no team in the movie and i don't think its a coincidence that the opening introduction doesn't have him losing a partner
Baby Driver is an above-average action film that uses some very slick editing in conjunction with soundtrack cues to heighten what is really only a very by-the-numbers story: a standard "one last job" riff that you've seen some version of easily a hundred times before. Familiar beats are hit, albeit with Swiss precision and panache, but there's nothing here new or exciting the way that any of Wright's other four films have done, and much of what is here is cliche or narratively-convenient. This is hardly more than Walter Hill with a pop soundtrack and a thin layer of Wright's trademark momentum pushing it all along. It's not as clever as his previous works, nor is it as funny, but it still manages to generally be fun. Some major turns in the story seem to hinge on random happenstance, and no effort is made whatsoever to counter against any claim one might make against the director's spotty history with women in his movie; if anything, this film is his worst in this regard, as the only two female characters in this movie are an ex-stripper bad girl and the young blonde damsel in distress (whom our protagonist spends the entire back half protecting from the danger he puts her in).
There's some very good action sequences, but nothing I would call amazing or revelatory or even novel; they're just as I said, "very good." Kevin Spacey here is the most interesting character, speaking his dialogue like he's John McCrea without a backing track; Ansel Elgort (Gerry Dorsey?) and Lily James are . . there, too, I suppose.
All in all, not a bad afternoon at the movies, but up to now Wright has only managed to make impressions on me, either positively or negatively. This is the first time I've seen one of his films and had no inclination to spend much time digesting it at all. It's a good car chase movie, little more; if that's your thing, you'll probably like it enough I guess.
~ Buckaroo Banzai
I really enjoyed how the world building in the movie was largely visual. The dialogue never really felt like that whole "Why are they even saying this when they should clearly know it?" thing that movies tend to do.
Wingelbert Humptyback