Topic: Movie thread.

I think I'll briefly discuss the new movies I've seen this year. These are in no particular order.

Movies I Liked

War for the Planet of the Apes (The Ten Commandments if it was framed as a sci-fi war movie. Grueling, intense, and maybe a bit overlong, but this is still easily the best film in the superb Planet of the Apes prequel trilogy. The set design is masterful but, as always, the star of the show is the nuanced, brilliantly emotional performance of Andy Serkis' Caesar.)

Wonder Woman (Despite the uninspired final act and a seemingly tacked-on romantic subplot, this film, thanks in great part to the superb casting of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, does justice to one of the more unfairly neglected DC superheroes. It's also nice to see a good DC movie after Man of Steel, Suicide Squad, and Batman vs Superman all turned out to be incredibly flawed.)

Kong: Skull Island (An inspired, ridiculous, pulpy bit of cinema. Jackson's performance as the obsessed Preston Packard is the highlight of the film.)

It Comes at Night (This film wants to immerse the audience in a nightmarish vision of a post-apocalyptic America, and it fully succeeds. One of the most sickeningly tense yet masterfully constructed bits of horror cinema that I have ever seen.

Get Out (Some pretty biting racial satire in this engaging sci-fi horror film, even if I wasn't nearly as infatuated as so many professional critics seemed to be.)

Split (Was not looking forward to this, as trailers made it seem like a ridiculous bit of scare-mongering about people suffering from DID: I'm still... uncertain how I feel about the films treatment of its subject matter, but I can't deny that it's a total return to form for Shyamalan after 2015's surprisingly decent film The Visit. Suspenseful and I absolutely loved the twist at the end.)

Spider-Man: Homecoming (Charming, almost deconstructive take on the iconic teen superhero. Unlike other recent Marvel films, Homecoming does a wonderful job narrowing down the scope of the conflict and providing an almost personal superhero film. I thought it was a delight.)

The LEGO Batman Movie (While it's not as sharply written as The Lego Movie, I still loved this absurd film that is all about the self-centered Lego Batman. The way it frames Batman and the Joker's rivalry as a homoerotic relationship is funny, but it's hammered home one too many times.)

Mixed

Life (Good, not great sci-fi horror film. If you've seen Alien, then you've seen a much better version of this. Not a bad time at all, but it adds nothing to the genre.)

Despicable Me 3 (Not a great movie, but it gets credit for downplaying the minions and trying to have an actual story, even if it is one about a "long lost brother")

A Cure for Wellness (A gorgeous, weird gothic horror film that I wanted to love: unfortunately, under all of its pretensions at artistry, it has a fairly pedestrian core whose reveal doesn't justify the monumental build-up. On that note, the film is about an hour too long and loses focus too many times. I don't regret seeing it, but I do think it's a shame that such a lovingly produced film is so uninspired.)

The Boss Baby (It's stupid, but that shouldn't surprise anyone. It's kind of cute if you can roll with the neverending silliness of the material.)

Alien: Covenant (Goes way downhill after the first hour or so. The set design is great, though, and that first hour really is enjoyable.)

Before I Fall (Another young adult mash-up: this time, it's chic lit meets Groundhog Day. It's all horribly predictable, to be honest. Not necessarily a bad film, but not worth paying much to see, either.)

The Circle (Another "I wanted to like this" film. It's somewhat timely. The film's ultimate failings are that it never takes a firm moral stance on continued technological evolution, the main character is horribly written (and horribly acted by Emma Watson; please stop giving roles to this woman), and it falls apart at the climax.)

Didn't Like

Monster Trucks (A miserable experience from beginning to end.)

The Space Between Us (I appreciate the creators trying to liven up the teen romance formula with hard sci-fi elements, but it just didn't work for me. Maybe it'll work for the intended demographic, but it's certainly nothing that rises above the trappings of its own genre.)

The Girl with All the Gifts (The Last of Us, but with worse writing and a truly ridiculous finale.)

Beauty and the Beast (The biggest disappointment of the year. Emma Watson is ghoulish as Belle. The songs, plot, writing, etc. are all underwhelming. Takes one of my all-time favorite cinematic stories and makes it boring and obvious.)

@Octane I only mentioned that The Dark Knight Rises didn’t compare favourably to the first two. I actually like Batman Begins the most, even though it’s hard to deny the allure of Heath Ledger’s performance as The Joker in The Dark Knight.

For me, the two Tim Burton directed Batman films are still my favourite, given its gothic comic book style that he does so well. Batman Returns is also one of my favourite films to watch at Christmas time too, seeing as it is snowing throughout the film.

Pirates of the Caribbean was okay. Javier Bardem as Captain Salazar was the highlight, whereas Johnny Depp seems to be ‘drunk acting’ all the way through compared to the clownish but subtle acting of his character in the original film. I too have no qualms if it is indeed the last time we see Captain Sparrow.

@Ralizah Apart from Alien: Convenant and The Girl With All the Gifts, your pretty hefty list of films is exactly how I would place the films (that I have seen)! You don’t half go to the cinema on a frequent basis, hey? And to think that I thought that seeing 15 films in six and a half months was quite a lot...

As for The Girl With All the Gifts, it followed the book really, really well, and since most book to movie adaptations end up changing the source material altogether, I was pleased to see that it kept true to the novel. The way the ending unfolds in the book is definitely better than the surprisingly abrupt nature of the conclusion of the film, sadly.

p.s. The book actually came out long before The Last of Us by the way, thus it is its own story.

@Peek-a-boo My family and I like to have a theater outing almost every Sunday. We bring our own snacks (shh!) and go during the middle of the day when ticket prices are reduced, so it doesn't end up being too expensive.

What movies are you looking forward to? I'm looking forward to seeing Wish Upon (although my expectations are pretty low), Dunkirk (not really a fan of war films, but Nolan is a good director, and early impressions have been pretty rapturous), A Ghost Story (probably on DVD, because I haven't seen it listed at any of the cinemas near us, which is a shame), Atomic Blond, American Assassin, My Little Pony: The Movie, Star Wars: The Last Jedi (although after the mediocre The Force Awakens, my expectations are pretty low for this one as well), Murder on the Orient Express, and Blade Runner 2049.

None of the theaters near me were showing Kimi no Na wa when it first released domestically, which I'm VERY disappointed about, but whatever. Guess I'll be seeing Shinkai's "masterpiece" on bluray.

RE: The Girl With All the Gifts... are you sure? Because wikipedia lists the release date of TLOU as June 14, 2013 and the release date of TGWAtG (book version) as June 2014. I couldn't believe how similar the stories were. Good to hear the book version has a better climax although, even then, it's still not very good. I'm amazed how much critical acclaim it has received.

Nah, everybody does it!

I always take a bottle of water with me due to the air conditioning making my mouth dry, but I did get stopped one time at a cinema in London. I said that there was no way I was paying £3 ($6) for a bottle of water!

I believe that the majority of the films I wanted to see this year has already been shown at the cinema. I had a look at some of the upcoming films between now and Christmas, and I am likely to see the following:

Thor: Ragnarok (this is my most anticipated comic book film of the year!)
Star Wars: The Last Jedi
The Red Turtle
The LEGO Ninjago Movie
Kingsman: The Golden Circle
The Handmaiden
Goodbye Christopher Robin
A Ghost Story
Flatliners (by the guy who wrote, produced and directed ‘Source Code’)
Dunkirk (seeing this on Friday)
Detroit
The Dark Tower (I have read the books, and am curious to see what the film is like)
Coco (Pixar’s first original film since Wall-E and Brave)
Blade Runner 2049

My number one most wanted film this year, however, is Wonder.

The novel is just absolutely superb, and the pupils I read this story to in our classroom were as gripped to the story as I was, and it takes a very rare - and special - book to do something like this.

As for The Girl With All the Gifts, you could be right! I’ll have a look at my book when I arrive home later.

@Peek-a-boo I see theaters overcharge for something basic like bottles of water throughout the world! Yeah, those prices are a rip. We bring cups of ice and bottles of water from home.

RE: Baby Driver, do you think it's a movie that needs to be seen in theaters to get the full effect, or could it also be appreciated on DVD? Some movies only really work for me in the cinema, like Pacific Rim. Not a great film, but good lord was it glorious on a huge screen!

Patriots Day (DVD) - Drama focusing on the events surrounding the Boston Marathon Terrorist Bombing. Ended up being a very good watch. It was quite emotional in places, with some super tense moments, and the interviews with the actual survivors (and other involved persons) at the end of the film was a neat touch.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (Netflix) - This was quite good. A bit more gritty than your typical Star Wars film (though not to the point where it feels out of place), which gave it a unique feel, and it had some of the most spectacular war setpieces I've ever seen in a film. The cameos of characters from the original films were a pretty cool touch as well.

@Ralizah I’ve travelled around a fair bit, and a small bottle of water is ridiculously overpriced in places like London, Melbourne and the bling-bling city of Dubai. I refuse to pay for bottled water when I visit my local cinema; my tap water is perfectly fine!

As for Baby Driver, visually, you can happily watch it on DVD/Blu-ray.

Audio wise? The soundtrack and all those subtle audio cues are not going to be the same at home. Personally speaking, given that three different folks in the past few pages have nothing but overwhelmingly positive things to say about the film, you should try and see it at the cinema if you get the opportunity to do so.

p.s. My hardback copy of The Girl With All the Gifts has January 2014 as the publication date so, I guess I was in the wrong. Felt like I had read the book many moons ago though...

@Ralizah
You forgot one of the best movies of the year! Power Rangers! It's easily the best I've seen this year. A great reboot, awesome story, special effects, and of course it's the Rangers!

@GameOtaku I didn't see Power Rangers, so I could hardly include it in my list.

Anyway, you're a massive fanboy, so it would have to be a complete trainwreck for you not to love it.

@Peek-a-boo Thanks for the recommendation. I'll see if I can watch it before it leaves the theaters.

Talking about Baby Driver (no spoilers), but I absolutely loved that scene early on that was all shot in one take. It was like 2 or 3 minutes long, that was awesome! It lasted the entire song from what I can remember.

@Peek-a-boo oh sure, I liked the film too. Meant more that obviously their interference meant he walked away which was a shame.

That was the first time I'd watched it again since the cinema so it wasn't too bad but generally I'm like yourself and will wait to rewatch something. Do still want to check out Fury Road in that style.

Bearing in mind that I can take or leave the films that Christopher Nolan has done so far, and that I am not part of this reclusive bubble that a lot of folks seem to be in when it comes to talking about his films however, I can quite happily say that Dunkirk may well be the best film I have seen this year.

For a film that doesn’t show any violence, it still manages to capture the horror of war frightfully well. All of the action is very close-up to the soldiers, each of which shows a genuine sense of fear amongst them when everything starts to go wrong.

The music is subtle but powerful. The audio sounds extremely crisp and authentic. The action is relentless, and the film zips by at a breathless pace. It felt like it was an experience as opposed to the mere act of watching something unfold on the big screen.

Any negatives? There is a lack of emotional attachment to the soldiers, seeing as you’re not getting to know them outside of a very select few. One or two scenes felt ‘empty’ in the middle of all the chaos, thus unnecessarily slowing the pace down.

On a whole, I would give an easy 9/10

It’s definitely a film you want to see at the cinema though! It just won’t be the same at home.

@Peek-a-boo Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I'm looking forward to experiencing this in the cinema. Not a huge war movie fan, but Nolan rarely disappoints.

The new Thor: Ragnarok trailer that was shown during the Marvel panel at the San Diego Comic-Con is now available for all to see, and it looks AMAZING! I love the fantastic song that was used in Hotline Miami too.

Not a fan of the new Justice League trailer though.

Trying too hard to be like Marvel in terms of tone and dialogue, and Cyborg looks terrible to me and has virtually no charisma whatsoever. I still like Ben Affleck as Batman, and Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman continues to be great, especially considering WW is the best film out of the DC stables.

I believe there’s a trailer doing the rounds for The Avengers: Infinity War however, the quality of said footage is awful. Just patiently wait until it has been officially uploaded onto YouTube later today.

@Peek-a-boo Dunkirk was a solid 8/10 for me. I was wondering if we got any plot twists, since this is his first historical film, and I was right, we didn't. However it did try to do a Memento with all the scenes taking place in a different order. I'll need to watch it again to fully understand the chronology, but it wasn't anything too complicated.

Saw a trailer for the Dark Tower, I'm intrigued. Guess those trailers are good for something, aren't they?

I also remembered that I've seen Life and The Fate of the Furious this year, but the fact that I completely forgot about them says enough.

Expelled From Paradise (Netflix) - Anime sci-fi/mecha film set in a future where most of humanity lives in a utopian virtual world, but after a hacker from the outside seemingly threatens their existence, an agent is sent out into the real world to find the culprit.

I'm not going to go into detail like I did in the Anime thread, but if you already like sci-fi or mecha anime, definitely check this out.

Also, I saw the trailer for Ready Player One, and it looks totally awesome (extra so because of the DeLorean from Back to the Future).

@Octane I could only laugh at those who thought Dunkirk was going to have some kind of twist that Nolan likes to plant into his films, given that Dunkirk is based on a true story!

Yeah, the film had three time frames:

1. The Mole (one week)
2. The Sea (one day)
3. The Air (one hour)

My number one favourite thing about the film is not seeing/showing the Germans. I think it was a deliberate design choice to emphasize the terror of an unseen enemy. Even when you finally see them at the very end, they are out of focus and in the background.

Also, the entire scene when Tom Hardy was frantically pushing and pulling the lever to open the wheel bays whilst attempting to land his gliding plane on the beach, along with the upswell in music and a fading sun illuminating the screen, was just absolutely terrific.

Another noticeable thing to mention is that apart from George (the chap on the boat), nobody had any names, which Nolan did on purpose. In wars, we don’t remember names.

The reason why I rate it so highly is because my Grandad, who passed away twenty one years ago, was rescued from Dunkirk. He never told us much about it, but we do know that he returned to war after surviving Dunkirk, and ended up not far from Goslar. He was still in Germany when the war came to an end.

He would have been 112 years old if he was still with us today! I miss him.

I watched two movies in a roll in a week.

War of the Planet of the Apes was good, but for me i feel like it dragged on for longer than it should and i don't think it is really as good as the other 3.

Spiderman Homecoming is a good time, but not as good as Spiderman 2, but very few comic book movies are.

@DiscoDriver44 That scene in the car was the best scene I have seen in the cinema all year! (I think I have been vague enough!)

Been Reading some reviews of the Emoji Movie. Reading them is just making me feel a bit angry at how disgusting the movie is when it comes to pure pandering and product placements.