[Foster]

Originally Posted by Jim Di Griz

+1. Theres plenty of wooden actors in sci-fi films but Alien is certainly not one of them!

+1

I watched alien on saturday and it's still a really good film for how old it is.

[simonblue]

Originally Posted by brian s

Is that the Michael Caine film?

The Whistle Blower - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bri

No the new one with Rachel Weiss

The Whistleblower Blu-ray

[simonblue]

MI-4, better than the last 2,all in all not a bad night viewing,well worth a watch

p/q
s/q both demo stuff

[HugoFJH]

Ghost Protocol

hmmm have to say I didnt think it was really MI stuff, and some of the stunts I felt were repeats wrapped up to look different. As a film it was ok, but as MI it was disappointing. Climbing up the outside of the building was the only memorable scene imo (and I really missed Ving Rhmes (sp?) Simon Pegg had a few good lines, but just preferred the former)

Pq/aq Demo quality
Film - 6/10

[irascian]

Originally Posted by Jim Di Griz

Well I dont understand blind-buying boxsets youve never seen (I certainly wouldnt!) but hey ho!

I've never understood this attitude to be honest. Every movie you see is "blind". I paid £15 to "blind" see The Avengers last week and all I've got to show for it is a pair of nasty plastic glasses. Blu-rays are no different, but at least they have a value if you decide it was a waste of time and can sell it on.

Most of the best Blu-rays in my collections have been "blind buys", usually because of a high score on imdb or rotten tomatoes or because they've got an actor/actress/director I've rated in the past.

In London it's no more expensive than going to the movies (rental may be cheaper but working away from home LoveFilm etc are a nightmare and poor value for money)

[Movie BEXtra]

Crikey i wasnt wrong when i said my take on Alien would ruffle some feathers. I come on this site to express my own opinion of the films i watch, i am not saying i am right or wrong. I am just saying this is what i thought, conflicting or otherwise.

[bosque]

Originally Posted by Movie BEXtra

Crikey i wasnt wrong when i said my take on Alien would ruffle some feathers. I come on this site to express my own opinion of the films i watch, i am not saying i am right or wrong. I am just saying this is what i thought, conflicting or otherwise.

Obviously you have your opinion, no one is denying that, as far as I can see ; because it's a surprising one it would be interesting to hear which actors you don't feel are "wooden", in order to compare them with the actors in Alien.

[Movie BEXtra]

Originally Posted by bosque

Nothing wrong with disliking a movie, though you'd have to say a bit more about why you felt the acting was "wooden". That's a description I've never seen used about the cast, whether someone liked the movie or not. Which actors in other movies would you recommend for being non-wooden ?

If you read my post i said "don't get me wrong i enjoyed it" despite the fact that for me it didnt live up to the hype. As for the acting for me it just didnt have a natural flow.

Originally Posted by irascian

This is a common problem with films that have so much hype attached to them that you get to see "out of time". I had the same experience with the film on first viewing (similarly for "Blade Runner" and too many others to mention here).

However I suggest you revisit it in 5 years time. You might be pleasantly surprised, as I was, on a re-visit once you've got fixed in your mind that it's slow and a bit wooden and then revisit it expecting that.

I am going to carry on with the anthology and see where it takes me

Originally Posted by Jim Di Griz

Well I dont understand blind-buying boxsets youve never seen (I certainly wouldnt!) but hey ho!

I didnt watch Alien when it came out either. When I did see Alien and Aliens I always thought Aliens was slightly better even though Alien was very good. Wind on about another 10 years and I thought the opposite and still do now.

If you think Alien is slow you better not watch Blade Runner . But both these films are better than any sci-fi since they were released in my opinion and I cant see that changing (I hope Prometheus proves me wrong though!)

I have to agree with irascians comment quoted below. The 1st viewing of a film is blind, whether bought, rented or cinema and if you didnt enjoy it most can be viewed as a waste of money except if bought it you can trade in and recoup some of your money. I only paid £9 for the anthology on blu-ray so its not a concern to me and I'm a regular blind buyer.

Originally Posted by Jim Di Griz

+1. Theres plenty of wooden actors in sci-fi films but Alien is certainly not one of them!

Its all down to personal opinion

Originally Posted by irascian

I've never understood this attitude to be honest. Every movie you see is "blind". I paid £15 to "blind" see The Avengers last week and all I've got to show for it is a pair of nasty plastic glasses. Blu-rays are no different, but at least they have a value if you decide it was a waste of time and can sell it on.

Most of the best Blu-rays in my collections have been "blind buys", usually because of a high score on imdb or rotten tomatoes or because they've got an actor/actress/director I've rated in the past.

In London it's no more expensive than going to the movies (rental may be cheaper but working away from home LoveFilm etc are a nightmare and poor value for money)

+1

[Movie BEXtra]

Originally Posted by bosque

Obviously you have your opinion, no one is denying that, as far as I can see ; because it's a surprising one it would be interesting to hear which actors you don't feel are "wooden", in order to compare them with the actors in Alien.

Maybe i chose the wrong word in "wooden". But for me not one performance in Alien said WOW, it didnt seem to flow or be natural. As for a comparison off the top of my head i haven't got a list. But I'm sure I've got a few in my film collection Like i said i did enjoy it and the effects for its time and the transfer were excellent. I will continue with the anthology and see where it takes me

[lucasisking]

Originally Posted by Movie BEXtra

Crikey i wasnt wrong when i said my take on Alien would ruffle some feathers. I come on this site to express my own opinion of the films i watch, i am not saying i am right or wrong. I am just saying this is what i thought, conflicting or otherwise.

Who was that directed at? I didn't notice anyone react strongly to your critique of alien.

In fact i thought you got off lightly. The penalty for blasphemy is still death in certain parts of the world. ;-)

[tele1962]

Originally Posted by pRot3us

Tonight's film : Demons

I don't think I've seen this film since the 80s (perhaps very early 90s), but it's one I remember really liking at the time back in the days of Betamax, video nasties and my burgeoning love of zombie films. In fact I always mentally lumped this in with the zombie genre.

I don't remember a hell of a lot about this film detail wise, but I'm expecting a good old trashy low budget gorefest, no rose tinted spectacles here, but the fridge is stacked so I will be sliding on the beer goggles later on.

What did you think mate? I really enjoyed it but you could tell it wasn't Dario Directing it.

[simonblue]

Originally Posted by Movie BEXtra

Crikey i wasnt wrong when i said my take on Alien would ruffle some feathers. I come on this site to express my own opinion of the films i watch, i am not saying i am right or wrong. I am just saying this is what i thought, conflicting or otherwise.

Dont take it so hard,their will alway be a couple of films out their that get rave review,that you just dont like.

Mine Scarface

[bosque]

Originally Posted by Movie BEXtra

Maybe i chose the wrong word in "wooden". But for me not one performance in Alien said WOW, it didnt seem to flow or be natural. As for a comparison off the top of my head i haven't got a list. But I'm sure I've got a few in my film collection

Ian Holm is considered by many to be one of the finest actors working today and he was excellent in Alien, he was especially good considering it was a genre he wouldn't have been used to and could probably have got away with giving a run-of-the-mill performance.

[MrFurious]

Contraband today, not very interesting at all, the only performance i enjoyed in it was Giovanni Ribisi who i find always entertaining, looked gritty and well filmed but was pretty run of the mill and boring...6/10

[s_inman]

Watched The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo 2011 last night.

I thought it was brilliant, I've managed to avoid the storyline, reviews and obviously have never seen the Swedish version (which I plan on watching soon) so I basically went in blind.

I always judge a film by how long the time passes, TGWTDT is quite a long feature and the time flew by! Some great acting, cinematography was great with some amazing scope shots. The PQ was amazing as was the sound design which had some great use of LFE to build the tension.

I would give it a flat out 10/10 and would suggest watching it if you haven't already.

[Movie BEXtra]

Originally Posted by lucasisking

Who was that directed at? I didn't notice anyone react strongly to your critique of alien.

In fact i thought you got off lightly. The penalty for blasphemy is still death in certain parts of the world. ;-)

Was not directed at anyone, no offence was intended. I just knew not having a fully positive view of such a high regarded film, cult classic even would be kind of classed as sacrilege and stir opinions. I respect the film and what it achieved though, along with everyone else's opinions. Wouldn't be much fun if we all liked the same

Originally Posted by simonblue

Dont take it so hard,their will alway be a couple of films out their that get rave review,that you just dont like.

Mine Scarface

I have got that, not watched it yet

[Movie BEXtra]

Originally Posted by s_inman

Watched The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo 2011 last night.

I thought it was brilliant, I've managed to avoid the storyline, reviews and obviously have never seen the Swedish version (which I plan on watching soon) so I basically went in blind.

I always judge a film by how long the time passes, TGWTDT is quite a long feature and the time flew by! Some great acting, cinematography was great with some amazing scope shots. The PQ was amazing as was the sound design which had some great use of LFE to build the tension.

I would give it a flat out 10/10 and would suggest watching it if you haven't already.

+1 same here totally agree, i couldn't decide between 9 or 10 so went in the middle. Cant wait to watch the originals, although i have to say I'm not a fan of subtitles.

[s_inman]

Originally Posted by Movie BEXtra

+1 same here totally agree, i couldn't decide between 9 or 10 so went in the middle. Cant wait to watch the originals, although i have to say I'm not a fan of subtitles.

Neither am I and I think that's why I never bothered with them, I might have to watch on my own as the OH refuses to watch a film that requires reading she had no problem with the film though..

[Jim Di Griz]

Originally Posted by lucasisking

Who was that directed at? I didn't notice anyone react strongly to your critique of alien.

In fact i thought you got off lightly. The penalty for blasphemy is still death in certain parts of the world. ;-)

Yeah I thought that too!

I was trying to be nice and I think I was all in all!

[pRot3us]

Originally Posted by tele1962

What did you think mate? I really enjoyed it but you could tell it wasn't Dario Directing it.

It has certainly dated, with some cheesy acting (although watching the dubbed version probably had an effect on this) and it plays out fairly predictably, I could see modern audiences ripping it to pieces on a number of levels. Also films don't scare me these days, however I remember this one had something about it that used to get me, but I didn't even really get a sense of this.

Having said that I enjoyed revisiting it, I really liked the very 80s soundtrack and it was great to see a release like this look so good.

[Jim Di Griz]

Originally Posted by irascian

I've never understood this attitude to be honest. Every movie you see is "blind". I paid £15 to "blind" see The Avengers last week and all I've got to show for it is a pair of nasty plastic glasses. Blu-rays are no different, but at least they have a value if you decide it was a waste of time and can sell it on.

Most of the best Blu-rays in my collections have been "blind buys", usually because of a high score on imdb or rotten tomatoes or because they've got an actor/actress/director I've rated in the past.

In London it's no more expensive than going to the movies (rental may be cheaper but working away from home LoveFilm etc are a nightmare and poor value for money)

Good job Im not in London then!

I only buy blu's I like. Im not interested in buying something on the off chance and then selling it on for a loss more than likely. Blind-renting of course is fine and we all do that - then I decide whether to buy or not.

I did buy one blu-ray (of the 110? Ive got at the minute) blind - Inception. I was very sure I was going to like it so I took a chance...as it turned out it was no risk at all. Wont be doing this very often though!

[Jim Di Griz]

Originally Posted by pRot3us

It has certainly dated, with some cheesy acting (although watching the dubbed version probably had an effect on this) and it plays out fairly predictably, I could see modern audiences ripping it to pieces on a number of levels. Also films don't scare me these days, however I remember this one had something about it that used to get me, but I didn't even really get a sense of this.

Having said that I enjoyed revisiting it, I really liked the very 80s soundtrack and it was great to see a release like this look so good.

I totally got it from an 80s point of view - but if you compare it to another very very 80s horror favourite of mine...Day of the Dead...there is no comparison! And the 80s soundtrack of Demons is pretty bad. Demons 2 is even worse - in every way!

[lucasisking]

Originally Posted by Movie BEXtra

If you read my post i said "don't get me wrong i enjoyed it" despite the fact that for me it didnt live up to the hype. As for the acting for me it just didnt have a natural flow.

Its all down to personal opinion

Originally Posted by Movie BEXtra

Was not directed at anyone, no offence was intended. I just knew not having a fully positive view of such a high regarded film, cult classic even would be kind of classed as sacrilege and stir opinions. I respect the film and what it achieved though, along with everyone else's opinions. Wouldn't be much fun if we all liked the same
:

Mate, your don't have to keep on about things being your opinion in underlined sentences. Nobody disputes anyone's right to an opinion, and nobody cares that you don't like Alien. We were just interested in your reasoning thats all.

This is how forums work: you post your opinion, other people post theirs,and the result is a conversation . You dont get to just deposit an opinion and leave

Regarding Alien, what's important about it is it kick-started a genre: sci-fi horror, which would go on to inspire The Thing, Predator, Species, Dead Space and countless others (not to mention Aliens, obviously). It presented a credible view of space travel, and complex biology (the alien lifecycle) and gave us the first truly iconic action heroine. And its well acted, well paced, and suspensful.

That doesn't mean you have to like it

[tele1962]

Originally Posted by Jim Di Griz

I totally got it from an 80s point of view - but if you compare it to another very very 80s horror favourite of mine...Day of the Dead...there is no comparison! And the 80s soundtrack of Demons is pretty bad. Demons 2 is even worse - in every way!

Not seen Demon2 yet Nick, but it's a keeper for me just for novelty value.

You seen any other Dario films (although he didn't direct Demons 1 & 2)?

[pRot3us]

Originally Posted by Jim Di Griz

I totally got it from an 80s point of view - but if you compare it to another very very 80s horror favourite of mine...Day of the Dead...there is no comparison! And the 80s soundtrack of Demons is pretty bad. Demons 2 is even worse - in every way!

Of course this is nowhere on the level of Romero's film, it would be better compared with something like Return of The Living Dead but even that is much better. Both films feature a contemporary soundtrack and involve some fashions/youth culture of the time, which plant them firmly in the 80s. Day of The Dead I certainly wouldn't call very 80s at all, as although production values clearly date it to the time, the film isn't definitely set in the 80s and none of the aforementioned tropes of Demons or ROTLD are present.

[Todd Tomorrow]

I remember seeing Demons at the cinema when it came out and nothing could make me sit through it again.

Unlike a film actually directed by Dario Argento it doesn't even have the saving grace of style. Everything Lamberto Bava ever directed looks like some crummy 80s pop promo.

Return of the Living Dead had punks as characters and the (rather well chosen) songs by bands like the Cramps get listened to by the kids in the film. With Demons the hard rock just seems another ill fitting ingredient that never adds up to anything but an incoherent mess.

I recently watched ROTLD again on MGM HD and it was still surprisingly good fun.

[tele1962]

Watched the interview with Dario in the Demon's extras and he say's that he wouldnt work with Bava again.

[Jim Di Griz]

Originally Posted by pRot3us

Of course this is nowhere on the level of Romero's film, it would be better compared with something like Return of The Living Dead but even that is much better. Both films feature a contemporary soundtrack and involve some fashions/youth culture of the time, which plant them firmly in the 80s. Day of The Dead I certainly wouldn't call very 80s at all, as although production values clearly date it to the time, the film isn't definitely set in the 80s and none of the aforementioned tropes of Demons or ROTLD are present.

The very start of day of the dead screams 80s to me! The shots, the music, hell even the colour...not that thats a bad thing - I love day of the dead and it never fails to make me laugh like a lunatic! :-D I dont know if all the bits that make me laugh are supposed to make me laugh but its damn entertaining! (and also why I slightly prefer it to the also excellent dawn) :-)

[Jim Di Griz]

Originally Posted by tele1962

Not seen Demon2 yet Nick, but it's a keeper for me just for novelty value.

You seen any other Dario films (although he didn't direct Demons 1 & 2)?

Well ive tried Suspiria a couple of times and just dont get on with it. However, Deep Red is very good and a grower too (on my to buy list)

[simonblue]

Tonight was Hugo,which i must admit i enjoyed a lot,a bit long,but well worth a it

p/q very good 2D

s/q very good