Topic: Movie thread.

the Fast & the Furious: Tokyo Drift - Watched this on Netflix last week to finish up the three they had at the time (since then, they've lost the rights to 2 Fast 2 Furious, so they now only have 1 & 3). They completely shook up the cast for this one, but it was still enjoyable for what it is.

Neon Genesis Evangelion: End of Evangelion - Rewatched the series recently, so I finished the whole thing up with this movie, which acts as an alternate ending. Watching it so soon after the series, I finally think I understand the whole thing a bit better, but there's still a lot to be confused about I understand the general gist that it was up to Shinji to decide the ultimate fate of humanity, and I think he chose for humanity to retain their individual physical forms, but I'm not sure if all of humanity was revived, or only Asuka & himself. Also, I'm not exactly sure what the conflict between Gendo & Seele was about. They both wanted humanity to be returned to a non-physical existence as a single consciousness, so I'm not sure what all the bloodshed was about. Also, it has by far the wierdest scenes I've seen in an anime, and that's quite the feat O_O

@RR529 I'm pretty certain the answer to the first question is obvious when you realize that Shinji is an anti-social tool, for lack of a better (read: stronger) word...I'm also pretty sure Seal was trying to stop Gendo from using that whosawhatsit in the basement and becoming Gen Almighty or whatever, but yeah, entire essays have been written trying to decipher Evangelion's obtuse plot...

Regarding your questions, at the end of the film, Shinji is told that all humans who are "able to imagine themselves within their own heart" will be able to return if they want. This implies two things. First, a choice is being made. They don't have to come back. Second, it relates to the person's existential relation to the universe around them. If they possess a sense of selfhood, of who they are as people, they will be able to regain their old forms. Presumably Shinji and Asuka aren't the only people in the world with a sense of selfhood who are willing to confront the pain of an individual existence, so it seems highly unlikely that they're the only ones left on the Earth at the end. As to Gendo and SEELE fighting, while they share the broad goal of bringing about instrumentality, they have very different intentions regarding who will trigger it and how it will happen. Gendo merely wants to be reunited with his wife, while the people in SEELE want to use the process to become God-like entities. Gendo planned on using Rei as a tool to bring his plans to fruition, while SEELE initially wanted to use Kaworu. The suggestion, then, is that instrumentality brings about very different results based on who triggers it. In this light, it should be obvious why SEELE struck NERV so violently: it wanted to decisively stop Gendo from triggering the third impact on his own. He succeeds in getting Rei to it before SEELE, but what he doesn't count on is the Rei clone telling him that she's not his doll and rejecting him from merging with her (to make it even worse for him, the scene where Eva Unit 01 kills Gendo is probably meant to signify that Yui is unhappy with Gendo due to the way he treated Shinji and kills him before he is able to experience instrumentality, which is really the ultimate slap in the face).

EoE is one of my all-time favorite films. It's so surreal, nightmarish, and provocative: it's anime as almost pure art, which uses extreme imagery as a weapon to cleave the viewer's "AT Field" (in this sense, the barrier they erect around themselves to keep the product of another's consciousness from impacting them too directly) and speak to them on a very personal level. Anno, like Miyazaki, became a bit contemptuous of otaku culture as he went on in his career, and he presumably wanted to make something that spoke to the viewer directly instead of something that the viewer could immerse him or herself in to the point where he or she ignored reality.

@Ralizah, that... actually makes a lot of sense, thanks.

@lilith, oh, you can discuss anything anime related in the Anime & Manga thread, I just personally choose to go more in depth with fims (including anime films) in the Movie thread.

For example, I watch most non-anime movies on Netflix, but almost always discuss them here, and save the Netflix thread for series. Just a personal quirk.

@lilith Yes, the way shots are framed, the interconnection between image and sound, the interplay of light and shadow... even though it has been five or six years since I last rewatched the original series or movies (once you watch something enough times, it kind of implants itself within your mind), I still remember being struck by how scenes were arranged in the series. The series is often incredibly cinematic in this respect. Especially the first episode: notice the wordless way Anno establishes the post-apocalyptic setting of Evangelion in the opening shots. At its best, Evangelion's direction and sense of artistry rivals a master director like Mamoru Oshii (refer to this fantastic article if you're curious about the specifics of Oshii's style).

I'll just end this post with a screenshot from the bluray release of NGE that never came overseas due to the licensing costs associated with the series:

@lilith LOL! I saw GitS: Innocence in a theater when it first released overseas. I'll confess I've refused to rewatch it since.

GitS is a classic, of course, but for me, Angel's Egg and Patlabor 2 are Oshii's masterworks.

Furuhashi directed the Rurouni Kenshin OVA series, right? In particular, Tsuioku-hen? Those rank among the best pieces of animation I've ever seen, in terms of the scene framing and the narrative.

I'll also mention Satoshi Kon and his two masterworks, Millennium Actress and Perfect Blue. The latter, in particular, is incredible. It says something when a major Western director buys the rights to the film so he can pay homage to one of the most iconic scenes in the movie.

With regard to EoE... it could have been a compromise. Fans expected it to be. The fact that Anno created this terrifying film as a middle-finger to his most obsessed fans is nothing short of remarkable.

Also, I'm surely not the only person excited about this, right?

@lilith It's the first Gojira film since the original to really function as a satire, according to reviews from people who have seen it's Japanese release. If '50s Gojira was all about nuclear weapons and their civilization-crumbling effects, then this film is about the horrible earthquake and tsunami that ravaged much of Tohoku in 2011 and, more importantly, the Japanese government's inability to adequately respond to these enormous disasters.

Regarding Kon, I was surprised by how many people seemed to like his film Paprika. I thought it was lazy. Very style over substance, which isn't necessarily a bad thing (I mean, Kill Bill: Volume 1 is one of my all-time favorite action films, and that pretty much typifies the philosophy of 'style over substance'), but I thought it was a bad showing for such a clearly masterful director.

Since we're in a movies thread and I have your attention, I'll just urge this: if you only ever watch one more live action Japanese film in your life, make it Kiyoshi Kurosawa's horror film "Pulse." I watched it for the first time a few months ago and it blew my mind. Ostensibly, it's an apocalyptic ghost story, but it's actually much more: a raw, existentialistic meditation on humanity's primal fear of loneliness and need for social interconnection. The cinematography is masterfully atmospheric as well. I'm afraid it has ruined horror cinema for me. I'll watch a horror movie and think to myself: "Why am I watching this when I could be rewatching Pulse?"

Just, uh... make sure you don't mix it up with the terrible American reboot. Because it's mediocre, and has no respect for the thematic complexity of the original film.

I would recommend Suicide Club as well, but that film is... well... disturbing and hideously violent. I really liked it: there was good social satire in there about the disconnect in modern Japanese cities, and some awesome Shinto/Buddhist themes and symbolism, but it's definitely not for everybody.

@Ralizah, is that video of Shin Godzilla? (I'm on my 3DS, so I can't see what it is).

If so, I can't wait to see it! I actually did mention the trailer here a couple months ago (I saw it after watching the Kong: Skull Island trailer), so I mentioned them both together.

@RR529 Yeah, it is. I was really excited when I saw who was directing it. Previews of the movie have been pretty good: the special effects are limited but fantastic where present, according to the people I've talked to, and it's a very socially relevant film.

Godzilla is having a pretty good run lately, with a somewhat decent American film and now another supposedly very decent Japanese film.

@lilith
Thanks! I'd love to hear your thoughts on the film. It's a bit of a slow burn, but it has been years since I was so impressed with a horror film.

When you say Solaris, do you mean the original Tarkovsky film or the one with George Clooney in it?

The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009): A stop motion movie about a fox who steals chickens for a living. He then stops doing it for his wife and son's sake and becomes a journalist. But this doesn't last forever, as he can't resist returning doing what he always did...

Great humor and gags. There is something about it I can quite describe but it is a very unique movie.

@lilith Good instincts. Even if a reboot is more approachable, it, more often than not, lacks the passion, complexity, and creativity that went into the original film.

With regard to Solaris, the original novel is a slow and meditative (I hate that word, but it works here) read to begin with. Add to that the peculiarities of a notoriously difficult director like Tarkovsky and, well...

I'll admit there are some movies I can admire the craft of, even when I didn't enjoy them.

With that said, I haven't watched the original Solaris since I was like 10 or 11. Maybe I'll make a point of watching that sometime this week. If I could spend three tedious hours watching Inland Empire (don't get me wrong, I absolutely love David Lynch, but my god that guy seems to love the smell of his own farts lately), I can make time to rewatch Solaris.

Goldfinger (Starz Encore) - This channel has been showing a lot of Bond flicks lately (60's to 80's ones), and I finally had the chance to sit down and watch one. It's a 60's entry, and while dated at times (even culturally dated, as there was one scene that made me feel a bit uneasy), it was still a decent watch. I especially liked the car chase scene with all of it's gizmos, and the action packed climax.

Sweet Bean (Netflix) - A Japanese film (actually a joint Japan-France-Germany production) about the manager of a Dorayaki shop who hires a nice elderly lady to help out around the shop, and even though her touch helps the shop's bottom line, she holds a secret that could drive away customers. It's a slow burn, so it's definitely not for everyone, but it's also quite emotional, and am glad I gave it a watch.

I downloaded the Amazon Video app to my tablet (they sure make you jump through some hoops, though).

I don't have Prime, so nothing for free, but they have a much larger selection of Japanese films than Netflix (including pretty much everything I've seen on Netflix and then some), so I'll just rent or buy what I want instead of waiting to see if Netflix gets any new Japanese films (they've actually been doing much better in terms of Japanese TV, but their JPN film catalogue is shrinking).

@vanzan, I don't really get all the hubub.

I mean, I would understand if they were portraying the Nazis as good, but they're not. Furthermore, that actually seems like something the Nazis may have done, if they had conquered Britain (which the article said may be a plot point of the film, which isn't exactly a new concept).

I guess maybe they could have used CGI to create the Nazi imagery (so it wouldn't have appeared on the premises IRL), but I dunno...

Disney's Zootopia (Netflix) - Being one more for their fairy tale inspired films I wasn't quite sure I'd like it, but I have to say it was quite excellent. It had a number of likeable characters, more than a few laughs, some surprisingly good action scenes, and above all it was simply gorgeous. The world they created was wildly diverse, with environments that were full of every little detail you could think of, and was the most vibrantly colored world I've seen in a film possibly ever.

Saving Private Ryan (Netflix) - I've never fully saw this before, but decided it was time since I had the time for it tonight. It too was an absolutely fantastic film. The plentiful battle scenes were both awe inspiring in their intensity, as well as being absolutely painfully brutal (I've never seen a war film that truly made me realize how terrifying being in such a situation would be until now). It's probably my favorite war film now, though not something I could see myself going back to all that often.

No, the whole idea that the Nazis got their hands on some sort of advanced technology or secretly survived the war has been a standard trope in media for years.

Yes, it's not a unique plot line for sure, but they're not shamelessly copying Captain America in particular.

Sin City (2005). Revenge themed Neo Noir movie starring Bruce Willis. It's all back and white for the extra ａｅｓｔｈｅｔｉｃ (and to match the original comic book style).

Top Gun (Netflix) - Decided to check this out since it's an iconic 80's film I'd never seen before. It follows a hot shot pilot (Tom Cruise) as he tries to complete his training at the Navy's prestigious "Top Gun" academy. The premise itself isn't nothing special, but all the flight scenes are really cool, and it has a kick-butt 80's soundtrack. I enjoyed my time with it, at least.

the Finest Hours (Netflix) - True story of the greatest small boat Coast Guard rescue mission in history. In 1952, a massive oil tanker is split in half by a massive winter storm, and the crew's only hope is small Coast Guard crew from a small town near by, who only have one boat to spare. It has some of the most awe inspiring scenes I've ever seen, and it was quite the tense ride. Hope it gets some Oscar nods.

@Vinny, yeah, Sin City was a great film (I watched it, and mentioned it here, earlier this year). Have you seen the prequel? I watched it back in July, and I think it may still be on Netflix (it's not quite as good as the first, but still well worth a watch).

@RR529 I heard about it but I didn't know it was a prequel. I'll check out later, thanks.

dr strange trailer made me laugh- end of trailer guy gives him a note dr strange says is this my mantra the guy reply`s no its the password for the wifi we`re not savages .