DominicCobb

A storm trooper ran out of bullets?

Dr. No (1962) 8/10 - I watched this, of course, on October 5th, its 50th Anniversary. A very interesting film. As I'm sure many know, it's a different type of Bond movie. The Bondian elements are few and far between, and what's left feels unlike anything that came after. In fact, watching it again, it feels almost like a detective film. A really weird detective film. And I don't say weird as in comparison to the other 007 films. I mean it's very uneven tonally. Other qualms include the fact that Honey Rider shows up in the third act and does literally nothing, and a less than stellar editing of the music (great theme, but it's played at weird times for little purpose). Anyway, the film is great fun and really cool, when all is said and done. And it's also intriguing to watch and think what its legacy would be like if Bond never returned.

From Russia With Love (1963) 10/10 - My favorite Bond film for as long as I've seen a Bond film (this was my first - when I was, I think, 7). And, seriously, there's just so much to love here, including what I think is easily the greatest henchman of any Bond film - Robert Shaw as Grant. I think it's most certainly the best espionage film of all time, and the only Bond movie that is truly a spy movie. The plot is deliciously intricate, and SPECTRE is in top form here. All their scenes are absolute classics. Additionally you have some of the best sequences in any Bond film (the suspenseful and clever cold open, the fight aboard the Orient, the helicopter attack, and the brilliantly small yet enormously thrilling final showdown with Klebb, and of course all the other ones - I could list them but I feel I've said enough on that matter). And, of course, with any good Bond film, you get classic scenes with M, Moneypenny, and Q, who gives to Bond what is probably the most realistic gadget in the entire series - and also the most interesting. And you get one of the best and most beautiful Bond girls, Tatiana, and one of the most enjoyable Bond allies, Kareem Bay. And let us not forget Connery, who honestly gives his greatest Bond performance ever here. Okay, I think I've said enough. You get the idea. I freaking love this movie.

I have no problem with R2 having jets. I feel many dislike them simply because they were a PT addition. The thing is, why shouldn't R2 have jets? I get that if you use jets it's no longer a physical model, but, I mean, it's not like in a galaxy far, far, away they had those limitations. If the OT was made the same way with today's technology, don't think there wouldn't be some CGI. 

In the end, though, while I would like to keep that continuity with the PT, I have to agree that I don't really see how the jets would work into the sail barge. It would seem clunky I think, like J said.

adywan said:

I won't be using "Battle of the Heroes" in ANH:RHD. I was going to have a selectable audio track so you could chose to have the music during the battle, or not, but i forgot about the slightly different timing in the video to have this music  mix with the original, which is why i had to slow down the cloak dropping. I think it works better without the added music.

When i did ANH:R, i wasn't planning on doing the prequels, so this was more of an addition to help join the two trilogies. But now, as the HD Revisited saga is meant to be watched as a 6 film saga, i will be preserving the Vader/ Father secret and will no longer be using the music. And i just love the way people are saying that the secret can't be preserved and that it is a bad idea, yet they have NO idea what i have planned (and only the Revisited team know the re-jigged storyline). And i will not be working with JUST the footage that is available, so anything is possible.

Cool, cool, cool!

I doubt my mind will be changed on the secret preserving topic, but, like I said before, I'd like to see it work anyway. And, no, I have no idea what's planned, but my interest is piqued. Bring on PT:R! 

Bingowings said:

DominicCobb said:

Also, just going point something out: there's no point in preserving the secret if you're going to use Battle of the Heroes in ANH.

Team Adywan are removing the PT music from AR:SE last time I checked.

But the the "Here They Come" strike on the soundtrack of every current version of Return Of The Jedi would indicate a swarm of TIE fighters about to shoot up Jabba's sail barge going by your line of reasoning (I'd remove that too).

I mean, I get that you're making a joke, but it would be extremely obvious that Vader is Anakin if you were to use the same music in the Vader v. Kenobi and Anakin v. Kenobi duels. 

Also, glad to hear it is being removed from ANH. It always felt out of place to me, and was my only real criticism of SW:R.

^this

Also, just going point something out: there's no point in preserving the secret if you're going to use Battle of the Heroes in ANH.

Brimley said:

Yes, the prequels are a strange case.  Clearly someone must have mentioned to George that he was ruining two key reveals in ESB while scripting them. Obviously his objective was to deliver "money shots" (ie- Yoda kicking butt, Anakin strapping on the big black mask).  Done, case closed.

And I understand DominicCobb and Jaitea's points about how the PT exists to be played AFTER viewing the OT.  When I'm blessed to have children one day, I assume I'll show them the OT before the PT. 

However, that's a moot point in this discussion.  Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the basic conceit of this thread/project to alter the PT so that it better fits in with the cultural landmark that is the OT?  Preserving the sanctity of the original narrative above all?

My reason for wanting the PT to come afterwards is, no matter what you do, if you put the PT first, you're ruining the sanctity of the original narrative. If you watch 4 then 5, you get all the surprises. But if you watch 1-2-3-4-5, then, even if you have preserved the twist that Anakin is Vader, the twist is still ruined. Because then the twist is just "Anakin is still alive and he's this guy who's been in the past two movies" as opposed to (if you don't watch the PT first) "Vader is Luke's father which means that Luke's father turned to the dark side and Obi Wan was lying and his father isn't really dead and OH MY GOD!" 

You get what I mean?

Anyways the reason I make this argument is not because I don't believe there should ever be a version of the PT that preserves the secret. On the contrary I think it would be interesting to watch. But it could never be my definitive. And I really want Revisited to be my definitive. So I guess what I'm hoping for is that Ady will change his mind, or at least that we'll get two different versions of Episode III. 

I completely understand what you're saying, but I disagree.

See I always looked at the Star Wars series as being purposefully out of order. 1-3 comes first, but they give you 4-6 first, so you're surprised by something that normally wouldn't be a twist. Then, afterwards, you go back and see what they didn't show you, the first three episodes in which that twist is developed and explained. 

I always saw the prequels as "how Luke's father became Darth Vader." It was, to me, all about explaining the twist. So "preserving the secret" just doesn't seem right to me.

All I'm saying is if the the prequels are supposed to be seen first, they wouldn't have been made second.

I just think (and, yes, I haven't actually seen anything to back up my claim) that the whole point of the prequels and the surprise is ruined if you put Ep 1-3 first and have them preserve the secret.

Don't really want to go into why again, I feel like I've explained this enough.

^This

Serioudly, I've talked about this before. I don't think preserving the secret makes the films stronger at all. Quite the opposite.

zombie84 said:

DominicCob, I see you are discovering the art house history of foreign cinema. I went through the same marathon when I was about 17 or 18.

Yep, I'm 17. These aren't the first I've seen but now I'm really getting into them. There's a lot of good stuff out there. Until now it's mostly been some Kurosawa and Fellini amongst a few others. But I still got a lot more and I'm pretty excited about it.

Oh, it was saying "boy, boy, boy"? 

Well that's just stupid.

darth_ender said:

DominicCobb said:

Tobar said:

DominicCobb said:

I decided not to see The Bourne Legacy (even though that was the reason I re-watched the the films) because I didn't want the trilogy to be ruined.

See it, it ruins nothing. I can almost guarantee you'll dig it.

Cool, thanks for the recommendation. Though I'd like to point out that the other reason I didn't see it was I didn't have the time while it was still in theaters. But it'll be at the top of my Netflix queue when it comes out.

I'd hate for you to have to see a 7/10 flick.  Can't blame you for your hesitance ;)

Ha, ha, thanks for your understanding.

Tobar said:

DominicCobb said:

I decided not to see The Bourne Legacy (even though that was the reason I re-watched the the films) because I didn't want the trilogy to be ruined.

See it, it ruins nothing. I can almost guarantee you'll dig it.

Cool, thanks for the recommendation. Though I'd like to point out that the other reason I didn't see it was I didn't have the time while it was still in theaters. But it'll be at the top of my Netflix queue when it comes out.

So things have gotten in the way, and I haven't posted my last movies seen in well over a month now. So if you could just bear with my list, I'll try to keep things brief.

The Bourne Identity (2002) 8/10 - A superbly done action film, with some great character moments, too. 

The Bourne Supremacy (2004) 8.5/10 - A step up in every way from the first.

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) 9/10 - The culmination of everything that's good in the Bourne trilogy - it's all here in its best form. And it has such a great ending, that I decided not to see The Bourne Legacy (even though that was the reason I re-watched the the films) because I didn't want the trilogy to be ruined.

Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto (1954) 9/10 - A solid Mifune film. Complete, too, which is surprising as it's one of three.

Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple (1955) 8.5/10 - Not quite as good as the first. Not as big of a scope. 

Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island (1956) 8/10 - I was a little disappointed here, as a really expected a better conclusion. The final showdown was exceptional, but I expected more than that. I would say that these final two films are not really necessary.

Hard Eight (1996) 8.5/10 - The last PTA film I needed to see. A damn good picture, with a simple, but engrossing, little story.

Almost Famous (2000) 8.5/10 - Funny, dramatic, intriguing, entertaining, all that stuff. Also a little overrated. I liked it, though. 

Drunken Angel (1948) 9/10 - Early Kurosawa piece. Not my favorite, but still, as with all of his movies, extremely well told.

Harlan County, USA (1976) 9.5/10 - A really depressing documentary. Probably one of the best I've seen, though.

The Darjeerling Limited (2007) 8.5/10 - Underrated Wes Anderson flick. Hilarious, and, at times, almost moving.

The Expendables 2 (2012) 7/10 - The best type of ridiculous, cheesy action. Me and my friends were laughing throughout.

Cape Fear (1962) 9/10 - A great suspense film with an exceptional score by Bernard Herman.

Tokyo Story (1953) 10/10 - An extraordinary film with a great, half heartbreaking/half heartwarming story. Scratch that. Mostly heartwarming.

The Seventh Seal (1957) 10/10 - An absolutely incredible film. It's perfect. An instant favorite of mine. 

The Hidden Fortress (1958) 9.5/10 - A different type of Kurosawa film - an adventure, and probably one of the best films I've seen in the genre.

Romeo and Juliet (1968) 8/10 - A good, if rather straightforward adaptation. Still the only good R and J film, though.

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 10/10 - In IMAX. Yeah, it was incredible. Certainly solidifies its place as my third favorite film of all time.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) 8.5/10 - I think my opinion of this film improves each time I see it. This time, it felt like another classic. It's very different from the others, but I feel that if they made more Indy films than they had, the majority of them would have been like this - smaller. Still one of the greatest adventure films.

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) 9.5/10 - I love this movie so much. It's not as tight as Raiders, and it doesn't have the same grit, but boy is it great. There's just so much to enjoy.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) 7.5/10 - Yes, I'm one of the few people that like this movie. The color and CGI is annoying, but honestly a non-problem. The real issue is that the film feels unfocused - a side affect of all the themes and mythologies they're playing with (Cortez/City of Gold/crystal skulls/Soviets/McCarthyism/greasers/50s nostalgia/aliens/nuclear weapons/getting older/familial relationships). The climax is also too big (take not of the size of the other three), and the amount of sidekicks in the third act takes the spotlight off Indy in a bad way. When all is said and done, though, it's still an entirely enjoyable adventure film.

Wild Strawberries (1957) 9/10 - Not as good as The Seventh Seal, but still great, non-the-less. 

The Master (2012) 9.5/10 - A masterfully crafted film. Saw it last night. Absolutely stunning performances. It's detached though, which is causing people to dislike it. I don't mind. It's coldness was on purpose. In the end, though (and I don't mean once it was over, I literally mean the third act), I think it becomes too distant for it's own good. Still, highly recommended. My number two so far this year.

Yeah I always thought they should have used Mon Calamari instead of Gungans. And, I mean, people call SW a universe, but it's really just a galaxy. 

Yeah I watched Hidden Fortress recently and a Lucas interview about it. There are other similarities (a princess, etc.) but if I remember correctly Lucas said this was coincidental. He didn't talk about it, but the older hero has a duel midway through and I'm almost certain that was an inspiration (the way it's shot, the soldiers looking on, a prior relationship between the challengers).

Of course Kurosawa's influence was more than just plot points.

TV's Frink said:

muddyknees2000 said:

 

I want this shirt.

Me too, please.

Yeah, only as an alternative. I'm still not entirely sold on the quality of colorizations either.

Before I watch I must know what type of camera it was shot on.

Yeah, sorry, let me rephrase.

I was under the impression that whenever Vader was in the need, he would sneak a peek into his (hush-hush) annular cavity and let those things do what they do best to him: wax and rub every nook and cranny while making sure to finish his knobs too.

Better? 

Well it's not like Lucas will be writing the script by himself. I don't completely distrust Lucas' ability to create an engaging storyline, especially when other people are involved.

Kind of funny yeah. Wouldn't Indy 5 be awesome though?

(Reasoning: Indiana Jones)

But seriously, who doesn't want more of the world's greatest adventurer. I know some might say that they wouldn't want another KOTCS, I think Spielberg understands why some were rather displeased, and, well, he's at the helm, so no worries about Lucas screwing things up.

I thought his circular chamber polished him up.