What are you watching?

[Frag Maniac]

Just watched Gran Turismo, which IMO is very good. It's funny, I went into it thinking it was just going to be yet another movie for young gamers, with a fictional story, amped up one liners, and a few good effects. Far from it, little did I know it's a true story, and from an interview I just watched with Jaan Mardenborough, whom the main character is based on, it's very accurate story wise.

Now visually, the tracks used for filming are not always accurate (obviously for budget reasons), nor is the order of events, but they do not embellish at all. The fact is, if you research Jaan's success at world class car racing, he's had a LOT more of it then the movie shows. That's largely because they really only show the first 4 years of his career.

While like the movie shows, he DID have a horrific backward flip crash at Nuerburgring, and finish 3rd in LMP2 class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, they did not happen in the order shown. However probably the biggest fiction in the movie, no doubt for dramatic effect, is he never set a lap record at the 2013 Le Mans race. He DID however set a new record the next year at a Hockenheimring race.

He also went on to win MANY races in a junior open wheel class, which were cars he had a hard time getting used to. This is something the movie doesn't show.

 

[Ikawaru]

Pretty old but pretty gold. John Woo's Hong Kong action films are quite remarkable because they take very simple concepts like action and story yet make them highly entertaining. There are no underlying emotional or profound connotations in these films, it's just pure straightforwardness done right. Pretty much the diametric opposite of what I want in a survival horror/RE game/film. Context. It matters. A lot.

 

[Jade Kennedy]

Last movie I watched was that new Pope's Exorcist movie, I gotta say, it was better than I thought it would be.

 

[Frag Maniac]

Last movie I watched was that new Pope's Exorcist movie, I gotta say, it was better than I thought it would be.

That was my reaction too. I was even impressed with Crow's fairly convincing Italian accent. Clearly the story itself though was better than I anticipated.

I also finally watched The Flash, and I have to agree with everything KManX89 said about it, including Keaton's role as Batman being it's only saving grace.

Tonight I'll be watching Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One. I'm expecting it to be a bit flawed in some ways, maybe even longer than it should be. It just felt like they were spending too much time hyping up the dangerous stunts pre release, but the much less than expected box office results also tend to indicate it might be a bit shallow.

 

[Frag Maniac]

Well, after watching Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One, I was quite surprised that I liked the story more than I thought I would. It ties in well with today's dangers of AI, on a much broader scope. There were times though that the movie seemed to drag on, and the action scenes seemed a bit less dramatic than expected. I attest the latter to my having spoiled a lot of the stunts via that aforementioned hype via some YouTube videos I watched.

One movie I'd forgotten to mention that I watched not long ago was Flag Day. This is a true story about a con man named John Vogel, whom even stooped to conning his wife and daughter. The daughter, played by Dylan Penn, is the main character, and her first acting role. She is the main reason I enjoyed this film, an incredible talent onscreen. Her father Sean Penn, also does an admirable job of playing John Vogel, as does Katheryn Winnick at playing his wife.

 

[KManX89]

I just watched the FNaF movie on Peacock with low expectations given the day-and-date release (their last 2 films that released day-and-date have been... not very good, I think you know what I'm talking about) and review embargo lifting hours before release and well, it didn't disappoint. The movie is kinda dull. So much time focused on Mike sleeping (who would've thought THAT would help him piece the "big mystery" together? The writers of this movie!) and just being an all-around boring character. And the Abby and animatronics stuff was convoluted and filled with plot holes, and don't get me started on the aunt's whole motivation for going after Mike, who could've easily been cut out of the movie because she added nothing.

The cop lady, Vanessa (Elizabeth Lail) was hot, though. Dayum.

 

[Frag Maniac]

Just watched Extraction 2 last night. I was putting off watching this as I couldn't even recollect anything from the first one, which is often a sign it's forgettable. This one was FAR better though. I mean holy crap, the action and especially close quarters combat scenes were VERY well choregraphed. Whoever trained them no doubt had high level military combat experience. The story was also well written and emotional, and very well acted. I'm just so glad it's still possible to see gems like this after all the pandemic and strike problems.

 

[bSTAR_182]

Got into watching The X-Files not too long ago after catching the 1998 movie on a cruise back in August. Being a sci-fi fanatic, this was a series that's been on my radar to start watching and we finally got around to it. Currently onto season 3 and it's been a fun 90s cheese fest.

Also watching the latest season of Fargo and what an awesome season so far! This might have to be my favorite. Jon Hamm is a ham and that last episode gave me chills with the long, slow anger anger-fueled walk to a cello version of the song Toxic. Good stuff. It's nice seeing Joe Keery and Juno Temple in yet another solid series too.


Edit:
ALSOOO went and watched The Boy and the Heron in theaters. Such a beautiful movie.

 

[KevinStriker]

Got into watching The X-Files not too long ago after catching the 1998 movie on a cruise back in August. Being a sci-fi fanatic, this was a series that's been on my radar to start watching and we finally got around to it. Currently onto season 3 and it's been a fun 90s cheese fest.

I actually just grabbed the series on DVD for a fiver (gotta love thrift stores). I'm excited to start because I've been in the same boat, it's been on my radar for years but I never got around to it.

 

[bSTAR_182]

That's a pretty sweet find! Thrifting is the best.

 

[KevinStriker]

Come to think of it, my only exposure to X-Files was the point-and-click FMV game on Windows/PS1 years back.
It was hardly for newcomers since that genre of game was on a steep decline, and Mulder and Scully were cameos.

 

[Turo602]

Same. I remember catching some of the X-Files in my youth though my recollection of it is very vague. It was probably on before other stuff I wanted to watch like The Simpsons or Smackdown so I would catch some of it from time to time. I feel like it's something I would have enjoyed a lot during and after my high school years. Definitely something I'd like to binge sometime. That and Twin Peaks. I think they're both on Hulu too.

 

[bSTAR_182]

Wow, what a unique game! The dialogue…

And same here, I would always catch random bits of it on TV as a kid. After catching the movie on the cruise (which for some reason they play some old shows and flicks on The Royal Caribbean), I was delighted to see Hulu had the whole series available.


Almost forgot I watched Leave the World Behind recently too and that was an awesome movie. It was a very tense movie and the whole concept is freaky, IMO.

 

[SaddlerFan]

Can only highly recommend The X Files, especially the first seven seasons or so. It was THE show of my teenage years. The remastered BluRays also look fantastic (what can I say I'm old school I like for things to be on disc). I should binge watch it again at some point, too, but at the moment I'm busy with re-watching The Walking Dead (and trying to determine just when the show jumped the shark, lol).

 

[bSTAR_182]

Just finished up True Detective Season 4. Absolutely loved this season. They stuck the landing even with only having 6 episodes this season instead of the usual 8.
Season 1 is still the best but this season is a solid 2nd place.

 

[SaddlerFan]

I'm re-watching Remington Steele (it's been a few years since my last re-watch), and I'm glad to say that I love the show just as much as I used to.

 

[bSTAR_182]

John Wick

Top tier action movie.

 

[Frag Maniac]

Just watched Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. The HDR is done very well, and the details of Atlantis and the battles are quite a bit more complex than the last one. There are some corny moments, but overall it's a pretty good flick.

 

[Jonipoon]

I watched Dune Part Two a couple of weeks ago and it was a delight to say the least. While I enjoyed the first film, it didn't ignite any larger form of obsession with the Dune universe, but this one definitely made me an instant fan. So much that I gave in and bought the actual novel (hardcover edition).

Although it's still too early to say if it deserves to be called a sci-fi masterpiece or not, I'm willing to bet it will stand the test of time. Holy sh*t this was an awesome movie.

 

[Frag Maniac]

I watched Dune Part Two a couple of weeks ago and it was a delight to say the least. While I enjoyed the first film, it didn't ignite any larger form of obsession with the Dune universe, but this one definitely made me an instant fan. So much that I gave in and bought the actual novel (hardcover edition).

Although it's still too early to say if it deserves to be called a sci-fi masterpiece or not, I'm willing to bet it will stand the test of time. Holy sh*t this was an awesome movie.

I've been anxiously awaiting a chance to see this film, but I'll probably wait until I can stream it at a good price in 4K with HDR. The original film didn't do as good a job as I would have liked on the shouts the Fremen used in battles. Did they do a fair bit better at that in this one? I'm thinking something like the Dragonborn of Skyrim, only with better effects on both audio and video.

One of the things I'm anticipating most about this film is the fight between Paul and Feyd. Feyd is written and acted SO much better than the silly stuff they did with Sting in the original film.