fmalover

Basically any movie directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.

Everywhere I look they’re praised by critics and movie fans alike as masterpieces, but I find them to be the very definition of boring. The only movie directed by him I did like was The Master and it had nothing to do with the acting, the characters or the plot, but purely because of the 70mm cinematography which is pure eye candy.

One thing I do respect about PTA is the fact that he’s one of the last directors who’s still committed to shooting on film.

Christopher Lloyd is a national treasure.

JadedSkywalker said:

I’m almost afraid to rewatch the Sixth Sense. Because i used to really like Signs. Rewatched it and found it was awful. I kind of used to buy into M. Night being a genius filmmaker. But now i’m not so sure.

Every director can have bad films. I’m not knocking him for After Earth and The Last Airbender.

But is there one movie he has done that proves he is this great auteur?

Unbreakable.

I thoroughly enjoyed the lightsaber duel between Obi-Wan and Anakin on Mustafar and still do to this day.

What’s wrong with loosening up and enjoying some spectacle? This is an adventure after all, not some psychological thriller.

Deleted.

OK, I will indulge in my darker thoughts.

I am against the death penalty/executions not because I find it cruel, inhumane or whatever. I am against because we’re all going to die anyway and therefore don’t consider death a punishment. Breaking their will through punishment, both mental and physical would IMO be a far more effective measure.

JackNapier said:

A rabbi I liked recently was revealed to be a rapist

Damn.

There’s no other type of criminal I despise more than rapists, and I am even far more willing to believe that a murderer can be reformed than a rapist ever will.

Honestly I don’t feel the least bit hyped about this show. Just plain indifferent.

I came to Eyepainter’s realization many years ago, which came with another one, which is that all I really want is a purely physical relationship, as I am far too selfish to commit to someone else on such a level.

I’m done with dating.

sigh

Is there there some sort of mandate that all live action SW movies and series must have a desaturated colour palette? I’m fed up with this lifeless look.

That Vanity Fair photo of Hux, Kylo Ren and Phasma is one of my favourites by Annie Leibowitz.

The last few posts touch upon something that has been bothering me about Disney’s SW in general, which is the good guys are so good at winning it makes me wonder how are the bad guys in charge.

Stardust1138 said:

Sad to report that Alan Ladd Jr. has passed away.

Thank you, Laddie! Without you there’s no Star Wars or countless other films such as Alien, Blade Runner, Chariots of Fire, and Police Academy.

“Laddie loved film and believed in filmmakers. He was one of the few executives who bet on the person rather than the project,” said Lucas. “Without Laddie there would be no Star Wars. He didn’t understand what Star Wars was about, but he believed in me and supported my vision. Quiet and thoughtful, he had an independent spirit that gave so many storytellers a chance. He stood up to the studios and went with his gut instinct. Laddie took a great personal and professional risk on Star Wars, and on me, and for that I will be forever grateful.”

The American movie industry desperately needs people like Alan Ladd Jr in charge. Executives who can strike the right balance between art and commerce and who are willing to back up and coming creative minds.

I’ve read that movie was an unmitigated financial disaster that plunged Coppola into a massive debt that took him several years to get out of.

Well, I’m afraid this project is dead in the water, since thxita failed to meet the deadline.

Say what you want about TLJ, but at least Rian Johnson tried to move the saga away from the same old tired tropes into a new direction, and everyone accused him of “ruining Star Wars”.

CloakedDragon97 said:

I prefer The Green Mile over The Shawshank Redemption.

I don’t get what’s so great about The Shawshank Redemption. It very much feels like a made for TV movie.

From that one screenshot, eggplant’s scan doesn’t appear to have as many scratches.

One thing that has been bothering me about Disney’s SW live action movies and series is that, with the exception of the ST, all of them have a very flat look made even worse by a desaturated colour timing. Seriously, what’s up with that? Why does everything have to look so dull? Rogue One, Solo, The Mandalorian and TBoBF. This is made even more evident by the concept art shown during the end credits of The Mandalorian and TBoBF, which has much richer colours.

While everyone else was complaining about the bike gang I actually welcomed the splash of vibrant colours they brought to the series.

Legendary filmmaker Ivan Reitman.

One thing that has bothered me ever since I was a little kid is the use of lions in European heraldry, and by extension their use as a national symbol in the case of England and the Netherlands.

Based on archeological evidence, Greece is the only European country that can use lion imagery as they once inhabited Greece up until ancient Greeks hunted them to extinction.

Stardust1138 said:

I don’t think fans really wanted another Luke, Leia, and Han trilogy per say. I know for me I just wanted something that respected them as characters and felt like a natural progression to where we last saw them. Instead it feels like a regression.

Luke - He ended Return of the Jedi as the last Jedi. In the Sequel Trilogy he ends his story arc no different from where he was during the end of the previous trilogy. The only difference is he’s now broken and depressed as he failed. I didn’t need Luke to be Superman but I do feel seeing him pass on what he knew to the next generation as foreshadowed by his talk with Yoda was an essential part of his character development that felt promised to be told. He could fail at first to convey a Fisher King like narrative but instead he fails and everything is given to Rey because the plot says so and not because she earned it. Luke could definitely fail at first after following the teachings of the Jedi that came before but it’s poorly written and conveyed.

Leia - She’s in the same position she was at the start of A New Hope. She’s leading the Rebel Alliance then and now she’s leading the Resistance. Her growth to becoming a senator and even Supreme Chancellor is squandered. She fails at being a mother.

Han - He’s back to smuggling and where he was at the end of The Empire Strikes Back. He doesn’t continue to grow and become a respected figure in the Republic as his arc in Return of the Jedi implied when he became a general in the Rebel Alliance. Instead he’s back to smuggling, failed as a father, and loss the Millennium Falcon for reasons. Everything he overcame is thrown out the window.

All of these issues stem from The Force Awakens decision to be a soft reboot. The characters are mostly delightful and fun but the problem is the story they’re going through has no sense of consequence or baring on what comes afterwards. Hardly anything in the film has an emotional payoff or point in viewing things retrospectively. It’s there just to look like Star Wars but it doesn’t actually feel like Star Wars as it serves no purpose in the grand scheme of things.

I was ready to explore a new generation of characters with the trio serving as mentors. I wanted to see the children of Han and Leia and if in the cards Luke. I knew though George wasn’t so keen on the Expanded Universe in part because he didn’t see Luke as having children. So Luke having a kid may not have been likely but he could have served as a surrogate type parent. Instead we’re following characters they’ve never met or don’t have a connection to them directly or indirectly. The Skywalker saga is about generations of the same family and suddenly not following them in favour of a “Nobody” then Palpatine just feels very anticlimactic.

You don’t need your heroes to become regressed failures to convey a good story to prop up a new generation.

This makes the white-hot outrage over Luke’s characterisation in TLJ even more laughable.

At the end of RotJ, Han and Leia are respected leaders and heroes to the New Republic. Fast forward to TFA and Han is back to being the scoundrel smuggler we were introduced to in the first movie, and Leia is back to being a Rebel leader, and thus we have two characters who made a 360° turn.

It’s strange how Abrams hasn’t received any backlash for this deliberate regression, but Rian Johnson gets all the blame for ruining Luke Skywalker.

Based on J.J. Abrams’ filmography, I would say such regression was all him, because frankly all the movies he directed are essentially fan films backed up by major studios.

Seriously, Abrams should stick to being a producer, which is where he really shines.

JadedSkywalker said:

We’re slowly losing everyone who worked on this film and still the original is buried, its sickening.

Not if you know where to look.

I only saw one episode of the British version, and not once did I even laugh, thinking to myself “What’s so funny about this?”

Never saw the American version.