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deej
Dor-Lomin
May 20 2013, 12:19pm
Post #1 of 58
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What movies did you watch this weekend?
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Tell us about them here! 
"The Hobbits bowed low. 'Most gracious host', said Frodo, 'It was said to me by Elrond Half-Elven that I should find friendship upon the way, secret and unlooked for. Certainly I have found no such friendship as you have shown. To have found it turns evil to great good."
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DanielLB
Elvenhome
May 20 2013, 12:39pm
Post #2 of 58
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Series finale of Doctor Who (spoilers might accidently slip in to post ...)
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Well, I have to say, after a disappointing half-series, Doctor Who ended on one of the biggest highs ever. I don't usually give 10/10 for Doctor Who episodes ("The Waters of Mars" being the last and only time previously), but it was well deserved - past Doctors, a dead TARDIS, River, creepy Wispermen, and a secret Doctor! I can't wait for the 50th Anniversary episode. 
Though the series ended on a high, the 7 previous episodes were terrible in comparison. Since it wasn't until this episode we learnt who Clara really was, all those episodes were essentially filler, and didn't need to be shown at all. The only episodes remotely relevant were "The Rings of Akhaten" (only to learn about her parents and the leaf) and "Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS" (so Clara could remember climbing through it). And I think that sums up the entire 7th series - full of padding, stretching out Clara's "reveal".
And I watched a bit of Eurovision! Nice to see the UK didn't win. 
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BoromirOfWinterfell
Nargothrond
May 20 2013, 1:14pm
Post #3 of 58
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Several episodes of "Hannibal", the new series.
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And I must say, I'm impressed with the cast so far. Brilliant picks for Hannibal and Will. I love that they've taken a little bit of information from "Red Dragon" and have turned it into a completely fresh story. I've enjoyed it immensely, but wouldn't recommend it for the faint of heart or those sensitive to general psychological screwed-upishness.
All in all, it's filling the empty spaces after just having watched Firefly (again) and The Walking Dead.
I also watched a few episodes of Star Trek's original series. I never get tired of it.
"Eala Earendel engla beorhtast
ofer middangeard monnum sended."
"You think you world is safe? It is an illusion. A comforting lie told to protect you. Enjoy these final moments of peace, for I have returned to have my vengeance. So, shall we begin? " - John Harrison/Khan/Sherlock/Smaug (Star Trek: Into Darkness)
(This post was edited by BoromirOfWinterfell on May 20 2013, 1:16pm)
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Veridandir
Ossiriand
May 20 2013, 1:25pm
Post #4 of 58
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Howl’s Moving Castle, The Mist
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Howl’s Moving Castle 4.5/5
The mist - 2/5
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Elberbeth
Dor-Lomin
May 20 2013, 2:12pm
Post #5 of 58
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Star Trek Into Darkness;Jack Reacher
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Star Trek: Loved it! Took the g'son as he opted for this over Iron Man. Although Chris Pine's baby face looks almost impossibly young to my old eyes. And Cumberbatch was terrific.
Jack Reacher: I wanted to see this because I have read several of the books. I know a lot of fans were dismissive of Tom Cruise because Reacher was supposed to be 6'4 and over 200 lbs, but I thought Cruise did a good job in spite of that. The story stuck pretty closely to the book and Robert Duvall looked like he was having great fun.
"There are some things that it is better to begin than to refuse, even though the end may be dark."
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Lily Fairbairn
Gondolin
May 20 2013, 2:27pm
Post #6 of 58
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Haven't watched this yet--it's on our DVD
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Glad to hear it's a good episode, since we agree with you about the rest of the season being a big disappointment. Yawn.... 
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Kaede
Ossiriand
May 20 2013, 2:38pm
Post #7 of 58
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Well played, Star Trek, well played!
Balin/Kili: scholar/warrior, serious/playful, sharp mind/sharp aim, master/padawan, age/youth, light/dark, lives/....
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bborchar
Nargothrond
May 20 2013, 2:41pm
Post #8 of 58
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I went and saw it three times with different people. It is the kind of movie that stands up to repeat viewing to me. I loved it, and I can't wait to see it in IMAX for the last time in theaters, then I'll wait for the Blu-ray. I also rewatched Star Trek (2009). They are both good, but I really like ID better.
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Magpie
Elvenhome
May 20 2013, 3:22pm
Post #9 of 58
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The Impossible - Oz The Great and Powerful - Woman in White
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Both The Impossible and Oz were at the theater (second run).
I guess I wanted to see The Impossible mostly because of the accolades it had received. My interest in disaster films also stems, in part, from my fascination with weather and natural occurrences . But I don't think that played heavily into wanting to see this.
It was a moving film. There were a few moments when I didn't feel it rang quite true - when it seemed more movie world than real world.
At one point, I asked myself... as I often do.. what does this movie want me to take away? Sometimes a movie is pure entertainment but, although The Impossible exists in the genre of entertainment media, I didn't think the goal was to 'entertain' us.
In the end, I decided that it was a very gentle message that, even in the worst of times, we can reach out and help others... and it can matter. I liked that message and I liked the quiet way it was delivered. It wasn't didactic - a word I loved learning because it described something I heartily hated.
Oz was entertaining. :-) Maybe more so because I didn't have to justify spending $10 to see it (between my ticket and the Mister's... who now gets senior pricing, we spent $2.50 each). I know I've read at least the Wizard of Oz if not more books from the series than that. But I remember almost nothing from the books. Of course, I know the Garland movie like the back of my hand since it was played yearly when I was growing up and was destination tv.
I enjoyed parts very much. I liked the monkey, Finley and the China Girl. I liked the repeated spiral motif used in overall design. I liked the nods to the Garland movie - although it's hard to discern which were straight from the book and which were sly nods to the movie. I liked the twist on the motivations of Oz becoming the Wizard we 'come to know' in the story of Dorothy.
I wasn't completely on board with the cast. Mila was okay. Franco and Williams I was less enamored with. I couldn't help but think... what is that strand of hair hanging on Glinda's face that keeps appearing and disappearing? It's stupid when it's there and distracting for continuity when it's not. And her crown evoked something from the old Flash Gorden movies for me. Billie Burke as Glinda was perfection in my eyes. So beautiful and delicate. Williams is neither beautiful or delicate and her portrayal couldn't transcend her lack of superficial satisfaction for me. And her costume also just seemed drab and pedestrian.
Overall, we enjoyed it as an evening out. It just didn't rise to any superlative heights.
The Woman in White was the Tara Fitzgerald, Andrew Lincoln version that was recommended (or mentioned) here by someone... perhaps Patty. I often get a good vibe off a movie from conversation here and stick it in my Netflix queue. Rating? - okay. Didn't mind the time I spent watching it but didn't get overly excited about it. It was fun to see Andrew Lincoln after watching him in Walking Dead. I had totally not connected him with Love Actually until I read his imdb page. He doesn't do too shabby with an American accent.
A final note. After finishing up a number of TV series dvds that came out in the fall and winter... and while waiting for the new batch releasing next month (Fairly Legal, Burn Notice, Falling Skies), I've been watching those movies and shows lingering in my queue I might want to watch 'someday'.
I got two last week,
PSI Factor - a Dan Ackroyd paranormal series
The Librarian - not a weekly series - more like the 'Sharpe' version of a series - kind of schlocky, Indiana Jones/Warehouse 13 mashup (although I think it came before W13)
Both were dismal enough that I got up after going to bed to take them out of my Netflix queue so they wouldn't come first thing this morning when a disc got returned.
I think PSI Factor suffered from the fact that only season 3 is available so we encountered a 'previously on...' message first thing. It was one of those shows that, at least by season 3, is full of conspiracy and long arc story lines. I just wasn't invested enough to care. I was actually looking for a show I remembered the premise of but not the name and after spending 30-45 minutes doing various google searches, I tracked it down: Unexplained Mysteries. I had remembered an episode on Marfa Lights and wondered what it would be like to revisit the series. It's in my queue now, instead of PSI Factor.
And The Librarian is good, family-friendly fun. It would appeal to kids of many ages and hopefully not bore adults too much. But there just wasn't any polish to it. When a Netflix user rated the second one as worse than the first, I didn't think I could do it. That got replaced by The Warrior which I think was a recommendation from SirDennisC.
LOTR soundtrack website ~ magpie avatar gallery
TORn History Mathom-house ~ Torn Image Posting Guide
(This post was edited by Magpie on May 20 2013, 3:26pm)
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
May 20 2013, 4:51pm
Post #11 of 58
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CRIPES! I've got to go back!! :D It was fantastic! There were a couple of times, there, when I thought Urban's voice really was Bones! Cumberbatch was fantastic. EVERYONE WAS!
Did anyone watch the credits and see that the transporter guy's last name was Doohan? Could it be James' offspring? (James Doohan-Scotty)
Lots of twists and turns in this one. Laughed, Cried, and loved it! LOTS of references to hook onto!
There was a family of 5 in front of me at the theatre. Mom, Dad, and 3 little ones all dress in their Starfleet costumes :D
4th draft of TH:AUJ Geeky Observation List - May 1, 2013
"There is more in you of good than you know, child of the kindly West."
I'm SO HAPPY these new films take me back to that magical world!!
TIME Google Calendar
TORn's Geeky Observations Lists (updated soon)
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bborchar
Nargothrond
May 20 2013, 4:55pm
Post #12 of 58
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Glad to know that I wasn't the only one crying...
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...b/c I was sobbing pretty bad at the end XD
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malickfan
Mithlond
May 20 2013, 5:23pm
Post #13 of 58
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...If a bit self indulgently clever, I haven't really watched much of the last two series of D.W (A combination of terrible storylines, River Song and self indulgent attempts to show off by steven moffat left me pretty bored in series 5) but boy that was a great cliffhanger!, I'm still a Tennant fan at heart, but Matt Smith was terrific.
Star Trek Into Darkness was great and bodes well for Star Wars Episode 7, and I just got back from Fast and Furious Six-great fun if you are an action fan (with a great post credits scene for series fans) even with a somewhat clunky script in places, it also features perhaps the longest airport runway in Cinema History...
‘As they came to the gates Cirdan the Shipwright came forth to greet them. Very tall he was, and his beard was long, and we was grey and old, save that his eyes were keen as stars; and he looked at them and bowed, and said ‘All is now ready.’
Perhaps the most fascinating Individual in Middle Earth
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DanielLB
Elvenhome
May 20 2013, 7:06pm
Post #14 of 58
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Do let me know what you think of it
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It's very (in-show) self-indulgent, but I think it is very well done. There are some elements I don't like (Strax...), but it's just what I needed after the previous episodes.
(This post was edited by DanielLB on May 20 2013, 7:07pm)
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Lily Fairbairn
Gondolin
May 20 2013, 9:11pm
Post #15 of 58
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We'll watch it tonight---off our DVR, not DVD, never mind my subject line above. Note to self: Do not reply to messages while running out the door 
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batik
Dor-Lomin
May 20 2013, 9:38pm
Post #16 of 58
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a couple...Cloud Atlas and Star Trek
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... First,we rented Cloud Atlas via amazon. I didn't pay much attention to this one during its P.R.s days --however many weeks/months ago. I knew Hanks and Berry were in it and think I heard it was "complicated" or "confusing". The first hour (-ish)....boy! that was all over the place and I was mostly trying to get a handle on the who/when factors rather than the story. The last half (-ish)--I had a handle on things and was able to start connecting the dots. (I won't claim to have gotten the whole picture in one viewing though.) Applause to the film-makers and cast of Cloud Atlas. As complicated (and confusing) as it was--I am glad I saw this film. One of those worth thinking about...later.
Yesterday we saw Star Trek at the theater. Flashy and fun. Another applause worthy cast.  I had some Star Trek OS-viewer concerns about this "reboot" but after seeing 1 and now 2--those have been laid to rest. The actors seem to have gotten their own grip on those iconic characters and are doing more than quite well, imho.
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Patty
Elvenhome
May 20 2013, 11:02pm
Post #17 of 58
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Into Darkness, and the finale of Mr. Selfridge and Call the Midwife.
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actually, Selfridge did get better...I was actually tearing up at something that happened. But I dislike the personality of the main character, so I'll never count this among my favorites.
Call the Midwife is excellent on all points.
Into Darkness. Hum...I didn't love it like many did...I think it will be like The Avengers--I'll like it better when I can see it a time or two more.
Permanent address: Into the West
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sevilodorf
Dor-Lomin
May 21 2013, 12:27am
Post #18 of 58
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at second run theater...... shrug.... okay but to be honest I miss musicals... Also I kept getting flashbacks to the Syfy's TinMan and the evil witch telling the monkey tattoos to fly.
Do today's kids even see Garland and companion in The Wizard of Oz??? It was always a once a year viewing event at our house... like the Charlie Brown cartoons and Rudolph...
Fourth Age Adventures at the Inn of the Burping Troll http://burpingtroll.com
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Aunt Dora Baggins
Elvenhome
May 21 2013, 12:31am
Post #19 of 58
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I'm not that much a fan; we went to celebrate the birthday of our daughter, who is a fan. I enjoyed the humor, but the action sequences made me really sleepy. I have that reaction to over-the-top action. It just makes me want to close my eyes and doze off.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"For DORA BAGGINS in memory of a LONG correspondence, with love from Bilbo; on a large wastebasket. Dora was Drogo's sister, and the eldest surviving female relative of Bilbo and Frodo; she was ninety-nine, and had written reams of good advice for more than half a century."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"A Chance Meeting at Rivendell" and other stories
leleni at hotmail dot com
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swordwhale
Dor-Lomin
May 21 2013, 3:00am
Post #20 of 58
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Howl is Miyazaki... WHOOT!!!
The man is awesome. "nuff said.
I understand Stephen King is the King of horror. I don't really do horror. I spent the entire time watching the Mist DVD (recommended by a nice geeky boy I new) yelling at the TV, "DON'T YOU REALIZE THE ENTIRE FRONT OF THE STORE IS GLASS?!?!? and "TAKE A FRICKIN' AK47 WITH YOU ALREADY!!! and "WHY WOULD YOU GO IN THERE WITHOUT A LARGE HEAVY OBJECT AND A LIGHT AND EXTRA LIGHTS AND BATTERIES AND STUFF?!?!? and THAT WAS THE MOST ^%$#^%$@#$%#^%$!!! ENDING I HAVE EVER SEEN!!! I did think the creatures were cool. I wanted that darn door to really be a window, so I could keep studying them...
I did read a Stephen King book on writing (called: On Writing) which was pretty neat. He seems like a nice guy,. I don't think I can read his books. I wouldn't sleep for a year...
Go outside and play...
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swordwhale
Dor-Lomin
May 21 2013, 3:06am
Post #21 of 58
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... is how Kansas introduces itself. Or at least it was back in the 80s when my friends and I drove through this flat greybrown place.
There were moments in Oz that worked, and something that didn't. I liked Franco well enough in Spiderman, but somehow he didn't work as well here. And I really did NOT like the fashion plate witches.
Something about the entire thing seemed a little too Walmart, a little too shrink-wrapped, a little too bright and shiny and vapid.
The best directors (oh, like that PJ guy, and JJ Abrams, and Moftiss and) doing the best stuff have ginormous innner 12 year olds. That sense of wonder comes through in the story. Oz was entirely missing its inner 12 year old.
Go outside and play...
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swordwhale
Dor-Lomin
May 21 2013, 3:36am
Post #22 of 58
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ShertrekkedwhovengerMan Cumberbatched
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If I have learned nothing else from tumblr, it's that Fandom overlaps and interbreeds endlessly; there are the Wholockians, the Superwholockians, the Superwholockiavengertrekkies etc. All of them are borrowing Sherlock's Shock Blanket (seen in the first episode) and comforting each other over the impending hiatuses (hiatii???) of their respective series.
Oh the horrible waaaaaaaaaaait! to see the resolution of the various cliffhanger endings (falling angels, falling Sherlocks, um, don't know what happened to the Doctor).
Meanwhile, back at the theater, there was the Croods: brilliant animation from the folks who brought us How To Train your Dragon. I laughed, I cried, I had my sense of wonder rejuvenated by this stone age family that makes the Flintstones look, well, primitive.
Iron Man was fun. I was comics impaired as a kid, so I had to catch up as an adult and largely with movies. I loved the Avengers stuff (particularly Captain America and Thor) and found this Iron Man one of the best of the lot. It spins off of a comment by Cap in Avengers: what are you without the suit? Iron Man spends much of the film with dysfunctional suits, no suit, homemade suits, in competition with WarMachine's suit, struggling with out of control suits, and it's touching, hilarious, suspenseful, and has lots of terrific action and FX. But the main part of it hangs on Robert Downey Jr's snarky Stark.
From Stark to Star Trek:
I was crushing on Spock and Sulu in 6th, 7th and 8th grades... the original Sulu and Spock, in 1966. This was an iconic story for me as a kid, I loved the later series, and the films, and viewed the reboot with a very hairy eyeball until I saw it.
JJ Abrams, you are the Second Coming of Rodenberry. I don't know how Zachary Quinto does it, but he (who looks absolutely nothing like a Leonard Nimoy of any age) is the perfect Spock. Zoe Saldana is a worthy successor to Nichelle Nichols, and I was trying to figure out how they'd resurrected DeForest Kelley.
Then a friend told me, "you know who that is, right...?
WHATTHEBLEEP?!?! How is Eomer McCoy?!?!? (the universe implodes as two of my favorite fandoms collide with a vengence).
Needless to say, the cast is great. All of them, and I actually like (heresy, heresy) Chris Pine somewhat better than Shatner.
Then there's BBC: Best British Cheekbones (also applied to Dr. Who's Matt Smith). Nevermind that Benedict Cumberbatch looks like he might have walked off my drawing board, he's quite a bit more than a pretty face. In fact, his face is more interesting than pretty. But it's what's behind it that makes me think he'll be as awesome as Gandalf some day. He shapeshifts.
Consider (the incredibly awesome) Johnny Depp: beautiful, brilliant, chooses quirky interesting roles rather than pretty leading man roles. Looks radically different in every role (with the help of some great hair, costuming and makeup). Can certainly act.
Consider Benedict Cumberbatch. Beautiful, brillliant, chooses interesting roles. No radical changes in appearance from Atonement to Warhorse to Sherlock to Star Trek. Brush the hair back a little differently, put a different flowing coat on him (is it, really, different???), add scarf, shock blanket, random weaponry, large black horse, violin, violence, whatever. He looks the same.
Only he doesn't. He does something with his face and looks completely different. I think this is called real acting. And I want to see more.
The entire ensemble of Star Trek was just awesome, but BBC adds something to it that a lesser actor wouldn't.
I hope we see more of him (yes Virginia, there is a Sherlock Season 3)... and hey, JJ...
can you cast him in Star Wars too? Then he'll have hit pretty much every franchise I love...
Go outside and play...
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acheron
Mithlond
May 21 2013, 12:29pm
Post #23 of 58
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"National Security Agency."
"So you're the guys I hear breathing on the other end of my phone."
"No, that's the FBI."
"Oh, so you just overthrow foreign governments and set up friendly dictators."
"No, that's the CIA."
For instance, on the planet Earth, man had always assumed that he was more intelligent than dolphins because he had achieved so much -- the wheel, New York, wars, and so on -- while all the dolphins had ever done was muck about in the water having a good time. But conversely, the dolphins had always believed that they were far more intelligent than man, for precisely the same reasons. -- Douglas Adams
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Luinnár
Ossiriand
May 21 2013, 12:31pm
Post #24 of 58
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I didn't really watch anything on TV.
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I was too busy watching my sister dress as Tom Bombadil. 
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Lily Fairbairn
Gondolin
May 21 2013, 2:15pm
Post #25 of 58
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Dr Who (spoilers, to quote River Song)
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We caught up with "The Name of the Doctor" last night. Yes, it was self-indulgent, but in a good way---we really enjoyed catching all those glimpses of the earlier doctors (although I never noticed Paul McGann). The "conference call" was nicely done, as was the cemetery/tomb of the doctor. The ending with John Hurt, which seems to be setting up a doppelganger struggle in the next season, was suitably intriguing.
I suppose the episode answered a few questions, but it just set up others. So Clara's the girl who saves the doctor(s)? But where did she come from?
Back in the episode "Journey to the Center of the Tardis", Clara sees a book in the Tardis's library (I loved her "Now that's just showing off!") which, I think, had the word "War" on the cover, and exclaims, "So that's who the doctor is." Was this ever explained?
In this episode, we never could make out the word the doctor yells at Simeon when S is bullying him for his name, shouting "Doctor who? Doctor who?" Even though we ran the DVR back several times. It sounded like "hate".
And then River Song said she said the name, which of course we, the audience, never heard...
Anyway, I'm not as enthusiastic about the episode as you are, but I agree it was the best of the season.
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