Topic: Movie thread.

@CaleBoi25 yea for sure

@CaleBoi25 @NintendoByNature So I did watch Enchanto last night, and that one I did enjoy. It was a bit of a slow start for me but after I'd say the first 30 minutes I enjoyed it.

@Pastellioli Yeah I ran into a similar problem with the Transformers movies they have them all over the place. The first two are on one service then the 3 4 and 5 are on another and then the last few are on a different one then the other two. I can't understand why they do that crap it's so annoying and makes me not want to sub to any streaming service. It was so much better in the way when all you needed was Netflix.

@Tasuki Same too. I remember when it was just Netflix and there wasn't a million obscure streaming services you needed to sub to just to watch a film series. I was so devastated when I saw that Yokai Watch and its film were on more than one streaming service, cuz I remember when both the show and the anime film were on Netflix all in one place, and it seemed like after they removed it they split up Yokai Watch on more than one streaming service. It makes me sad cuz Yokai Watch is near and dear to my heart and I don't want to sub to a random service just to watch one thing only The rise and creation of multiple other streaming services after Disney+ was released is just such an issue with how film and show series are on too many services instead of being all in one place. You could want to watch a popular film trilogy on the streaming service you have and they could have all the films but the first one, and then you discover you need to sub to yet another service just to watch the first film.

@Pastellioli Yep, you're almost better off just buying the damn movies or shows either physically or digitally so that way you can watch them in the proper order or at least know you can watch all of them. I ran into another problem too is that they will have like say the fourth movie of a series but no service will have the other ones at all.

@NeonMullet I don't watch much in the way of shows at all mainly cause I don't have time to invest on anything longer then 5 epidsodes.

Joker: Folie à Deux continues where we left off at the end of 2019's excellent psychological thriller Joker. Joaquin Phoenix reprises his role as the titular character, this time supported by Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn. Todd Phillips and Scott Silver return as well as the director and co-writer respectively.

I've seen a lot of mixed responses to this film. Some like it, but others don't and some even go as far as claiming it's a betrayal to the first movie and Joker as a whole. Movies are subjective, and everyone's entitled to their own opinion, but those who say Joaquin's Joker - or rather his real persona, Arthur Fleck - in this sequel is different from his first portrayal, had a completely different interpretation about the character than I did. From my point of view, this was a perfectly logical continuation of the character.

Arthur is a deeply broken man, struggling most of his life with mental health issues, all examined in the first movie. It's because of the failing of the system, the failing of the government, the failing of those who were supposed to care for him, that he ultimately snapped. Now in prison, Arthur's lawyer tries to build a case around him that he has a double personality disorder and thus should not be held responsible for what happened several years ago. But is that what truly happened? Or is the system failing him once again?

This might be an unpopular opinion, but I LOVED this movie. Joaquin Phoenix's performance is once again out of this world and worthy of a second Academy Award nomination. Lady Gaga holds her own as Harley Quinn but sometimes fades into the background because of Phoenix's mighty screen presence. The directing is stellar as well and I loved the script and pacing of Folie à Deux.

A lot of the criticisms this movie's getting are directed towards the musical numbers. They are plenty, but are able to convey Fleck's thoughts and fantasies in a beautiful, sometimes disturbing way. They're the perfect segue into Arthur's desires and his deepest fears. In that aspect, I can't think of a better way to portray someone's psyche and quite frankly, I thought it was a genius creative decision to film it this way.

So yes, I love this movie. I'm not sure why so many people think this is a completely different character from the first or why they call it a betrayal to the fans. From my point of view, this movie is the best continuation of Arthur's story I could have hoped for. Maybe my background of mental illness has something to do with it, I'm not sure, but this movie rang completely true and honest to me.

My sincerest gratitude to everyone involved in making this movie and the first Joker for not sensationalizing mental health issues and showing the world what it really entails. I hope it opens some closed up minds and gets people talking.

Thank you! ❤️

Started my annual October horror movie marathon, each night this month I watch a different horror flick.

Last night was Ghost Story (1981). As the title suggests it was your classic ghost story with a great atmosphere, and more than a few good scares along the way. There was one death scene that was pretty freaky, but also unintentionally hilarious. If you watch the movie you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

Watched the entire Back to the Future trilogy over the weekend (4K UHD Blu-Ray) - These were probably my favorite movies as a kid growing up, so it's absolutely impossible for me to give them an objective look. In fact the second is probably my favorite because of the Super 80's... err, 2015, even though it probably has the biggest plot holes given how time travel works in universe. Never had these on physical media until now (even to this day it seems like they pop up somewhere on cable every other month, so I've never felt the need), but I picked up the 4Ks on Prime Day earlier this year and it was a great way to revisit them. Had lots of fun extras too, like two episodes from a 90's cartoon that I didn't know existed (unfortunately those weren't remastered), and a few shorts they came out with in 2015 in celebration of "Future Day".

Riding Bean (Blu-Ray) - Anime homage to American crime/cop action flicks of the 70's-90's (think stuff like Dirty Harry or Lethal Weapon). Bean Bandit, the "Road Buster", is the best courier/getaway driver in Chicago, and when he's framed for kidnapping he hits the streets to take out the gang who set him up, but he'll have to do so while avoiding Chicago's finest. The dub is absolutely terrible (but kinda charming in a way), and it's so over the top it's pretty fun (Bean is a beast of a man who can rip off car doors with his bare hands and tank gunfire thanks to a bulletproof leather jacket & headband), and at a pretty brisk 45 minutes it sticks to the (ultraviolent) action.

Saw Joker 2.

'Crap' with a capital 'c' doesn't do it justice.

What a fall from the first film. A second one did not need to be made.

Recently bought "The Point 1971" & Alienoid. The latter I've haven't seen & the former I saw in middle school. Bsically:
The Point (DVD)
Alienoid (Blu-Ray)

I look forward to getting them in the mail & watchin them on my 2011 Toshiba Blu-ray player.

@Tendo64
I'm sorry you didn't like it better. Any aspect in particular that bothered you?

@DanijoEX-the-Pierrot
Never heard about any of those. 🧐

@stephajnan I've only heard of Alienoid only about 2 months ago. Funny enough, it was the 2nd Alienoid movie that I've heard first. Saw it on "Blu-ray (dot) com". I'm a sucker for lesser known or obscure films. I dunno why...but I do.

As for The Point...i'd say watch it on Youtube.

@DanijoEX-the-Pierrot
Alright, thanks for the reply. Might give them a shot.

@Tendo64 Just back from it.

LOVED the first one.

Hated this one.

I was so looking forward to it. Aside from the first being so memorable, because of Lady Gaga. I adore her in a Star is Born, and thought we were getting some songs that would be of that quality. I can barely remember any of them already. Not blaming her for my dislike though, she is still a good watch....but this film was just...a very boring court room drama to me. The fantasy segments were pretty dull too.

Maybe I need to see it again....but I am really not sure that I could.

This captures most of my feelings about it. The thing I'd expand on... is the 'boring' element. For the first time (that I've seen anywhere), the Joker character itself was boring. Never did I think Joker and boring would be used in the same sentence, but here we are.

The other thing I'd mention is the film just felt so disjointed. Without spoilers, as the courtroom scene finishes it feels like the film and story is about to take us on a thrill and a twist ... but it's a dull and anti-climatic ending - they seriously took two-and-a-bit hours to give us that ending?

I couldn't watch it again. The musical scenes, at first, are OK, but they become tedious and overdone.

Like you, I was pumped for this movie. I even watched the original again right before going to the theatre. Maybe that was a mistake, because what you're left with is the immediate contrast of a great film and awful one.

Struggling to remember when else I've been so disappointed and let down by a movie as I was with this.

@Tendo64
Thank you for your insights.

Like I pointed out in my review of the movie (which you can find above), I'm afraid I'm in the minority in liking it. I liked it a lot, actually. But I realize it's a very unconventional movie, especially one based on a comic book character. So I get why it's being this poorly received. It still saddens me though that not more people like it. But that's the subjectivity of movies of course.

@Tasuki Did you manage to catch Ghostbusters Afterlife yet? I thought it was you that mentioned you hadn't seen it yet. If you have cable tv, I noticed it's airing in the upcoming days on FX and FreeformHD.

@WoomyNNYes Yeah that was me and I saw that Freeform was playing it but it was already half way through. I have Sling so I will set it on the DVR to record next time. Thanks for the heads up. 😃

Joker 2 has a 33% from critics on RottenTomatoes.
And it just got a "D" CinemaScore from opening night audiences. (That puts it in the bottom 2% of all wide-release movies. Even last week's box office bomb "Megalopolis" did better).

Critics hate it.
Audiences hate it.

(CinemaScore is the industry standard of exit polling. It does scientific multi-city polls of real people who bought real tickets, while they're sitting in real seats, in real theatres. Their online database goes back to 1986).

Finally watched Elemental with my wife and we loved it. It is really, really cute movie

Dune 2021 (4K UHD Blu-Ray) - My second time watching this (my first was last year around this time on Netflix). Don't think I loved it as much as I did the first time around, but it's still a solid watch and provides a lot of world building for what's to come in the sequel.

Risky Business (4K UHD Blu-Ray) - Despite it's fame I've never actually watched this before, and it wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was expecting a goofier teen debauchery comedy like Weird Science based solely on the infamous dance scene (which is the only thing I knew about the film beforehand), but it ended up having a bit more of a dry satiric wit. Not a bad thing though, I'll just have to watch it again in the future with the right mindset (which is something I'll definitely do, as my dad spent like 60-70% of the film's runtime listening to social media videos really loudly on his phone, so I couldn't focus well).