The Cauldron

Krinsel wrote:

I have The Fountain on Dvd, SIA. It's dense and I'm still trying to make sense out of it every time I watch it...but I think if you watch it with the idea that "there is no time, just a continuous flow..." it might focus your perspective a bit

You know, I was staring at the water flowing out of the showerhead and then out of nowhere a thought occurred to me.

*rest of post moved to the "Discussion on The Fountain (movie spoilers)" thread* 

Duchess wrote:

I bought Atonement yesterday and watched it last night. Wow, what a movie, it has the same sort of feel to it as The English Patient, a very raw love story set against a backdrop of impossible odds, war and really bad twists of fate. The filming is quite beautiful (perfect lighting) and the performances were pretty good. Keira didn't deserve a Bafta for it, but it was her best acting role to date, it was refreshing change not to be rolling my eyes every time she came on screen.

Ooo...  I really want to watch that movie; but mostly because it has James McAvoy in it.  I just watched him in The Last King of Scotland and he was so charmingly captivating in that movie.  I've liked him since Children of Dune, but now he seems to be everywhere.  He sort of has that Russell Crowe thing going on; not exactly pretty, but you can't take your eyes off of him whenever he's onscreen.

James McAvoy is very easy on the eye and a decent actor too, a very watchable combination.

I saw Juno last weekend - an excellent film. You can see why Ellen Page won so many awards for her portrayal of a wise-cracking pregnant 16 year old. It's not a morality tale about the perils of teenage sex and its repercussions, but you are certainly shown it's not an easy choice to be pregnant and at school at 16. There were a few times I felt that Juno breezed through things a little too blithely; but then given her circumstances and immaturity perhaps it was exactly right. Either way it's an excellent, refreshing and wickedly funny movie.

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Hooray, the movie that I really wanted to see finally came out on DVD last week and I got a chance to watch it.  It was awesome; I was riveted from beginning to end.  I even loved the title of the movie; which coincidentally is exactly the same as the words I tell myself every morning when I first wake up.  LOL  *just joking*    

 

I especially loved the beginning part of the movie in which Will Smith is hunting for elk while driving his Mustang through the abandoned streets of Times Square.  However, the very end of the film was a bit too…  M. Night Shamaylan-ish for my liking.  LOL.  But I have to admit that when the final scene faded to black and Bob Marley’s Redemption Song started to play…  I got all emotional.  LOL.  IMO that song is just so powerful and I simply wasn’t prepared for it.

 

Oh, and I am officially changing my avatar name to Sam I am Legend.  LOL.  *just joking*

I rented I Am Legend last Thursday. It remains unwatched because a girl from school let the end slip thinking that when I said "I just rented I Am Legend", I had already watched it. Now, I just cannot even contemplate watching it, which is all the more unfortunate because I was so freakin' excited about it being on DVD.  I also rented Bee Movie (very cute!), Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium, and The Seekers: The Dark is Rising. Of these, only Bee Movie has actually been watched...

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Elwood: It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses.
Jake: Hit it. ~ The Blues Brothers (1980)

I watched The Brave One starring Jodie Foster while I was in Holland and I really enjoyed it. It's a revenge / vigilante movie but a very sophisticated one. Although not a fan of the genre or Ms Foster really - it was a great insight into an unusual heroine who, through no fault of her own (initially) gets put into a very dangerous fight or flight situation and chooses not to be a victim again... There's some excellent acting by her and Terrence Howard who plays the cop she comes to know. They have many great scenes together and there's a very nice tension between them, ( not the sexual kind,) plus an ending that sits with you long after you've seen the film.

The other film I finally got around to watching was The Last King of Scotland . Although in this case the protagonist played by James McAvoy was a lot less relatable than Ms Fosters'. He is a self serving and naive young doctor that goes to work in Uganda on a whim and ends up serving as Idi Amins personal physician. It's a very tense film and follows how the doctor becomes slowly aware of just how twisted Amin really is. The truly great performance here is Forest Whitaker's portrayal of Amin; he flips between unhinged, paranoid and indulgently affable with ease. A worthy film to watch if only to make you aware of what went on in Uganda in the 70's but even more so for Forest Whitaker's performance as the crazed Amin.

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Valecynos wrote:

I rented I Am Legend last Thursday. It remains unwatched because a girl from school let the end slip thinking that when I said "I just rented I Am Legend", I had already watched it. Now, I just cannot even contemplate watching it, which is all the more unfortunate because I was so freakin' excited about it being on DVD.

You should still watch it, because IMO the beginning of the movie is MUCH better than the ending.  I don’t think I can watch it again because there is a sad part in the middle of the movie that just ruined the whole experience for me (as far as replay value is concerned). 

 

And it also has a super scary part in the middle.  There is a scene which is so intensely scary that I tried to tough it out, but the suspense and tension just kept going on and on, so I had to wimp out and fast forward a little.  LOL.

Valecynos wrote:

I also rented Bee Movie (very cute!), Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium, and The Seekers: The Dark is Rising. Of these, only Bee Movie has actually been watched...

Ooo…  One of those has Natalie Portman in it.  LOL.

Duchess wrote:

Although not a fan of the genre or Ms Foster...

I love Jodie Foster (except in Anna and the King, lol); if she is in a movie I'm watching it (except Nell, lol).

Duchess wrote:

...and Terrence Howard who plays the cop she comes to know.

Man, IMO onscreen Terrence Howard is well, gorgeous.  LOL.  He is, and his voice is awesome too. (btw I like girls).  I don't know why he isn't a huge star like Denzel or something.     

Duchess wrote:

The other film I finally got around to watching was The Last King of Scotland . Although in this case the protagonist played by James McAvoy was a lot less relatable than Ms Fosters'. He is a self serving and naive young doctor that goes to work in Uganda on a whim and ends up serving as Idi Amins personal physician. It's a very tense film and follows how the doctor becomes slowly aware of just how twisted Amin really is.

I wonder if the young doctor was really naive or if he was willingly oblivious and just chose not to ask too many questions early on because he simply didn’t want to deal with the answers.  *shrugs*

IMO that is the problem with historical movies is that they don’t tell you were creative license was used, so you don't know if they slightly altered the characters from their real life counterparts.  

Duchess wrote:

The truly great performance here is Forest Whitaker's portrayal of Amin; he flips between unhinged, paranoid and indulgently affable with ease. A worthy film to watch if only to make you aware of what went on in Uganda in the 70's but even more so for Forest Whitaker's performance as the crazed Amin.

Yes, Forrest Whitiker is so good in this movie that he’s almost hypnotic; you can sort of understand how the doctor fell under his spell in the beginning.  Plus, he has that sleepy eye thing going on that makes him look even more frightening at times; it's of no wonder why he won the Academy Award for his performance.

Another very good and powerful movie very similar to this one is called Lord of War (starring Nicholas Cage).  That movie makes you think long after you've seen the film too.

I have to run, but I watched that movie last night Sam, and I can't wait to talk about it now!!

I'll be back...

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Elwood: It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses.
Jake: Hit it. ~ The Blues Brothers (1980)

I've had a crush on Jodie Foster since I was about 6 or 7. I think we're the same age give or take a few months. LOL

Doesn't I Am Legend end just like Omega Man and the other movies based on the book? Or did they change it? I haven't seen it yet.

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madhatter wrote:

:)  ANYWAY...What is your favorite version of Pride and Prejudice?  Mine is the 5-hour BBC version.  That is by far the best.  Only the book can satisfy you more.  It is pretty much the book, word-for-word.  I like it when film versions are true to the original stories.
And I love the Phantom of the Opera, too.  Although I never compared tPotO and P&P before.  In my opinion, Phantom has a sad ending, while P&P leaves you contented at the end.  Phantom of the Opera's music is amazing; that kind of music gets stuck in my head for months on end.  :)

To tell you the truth, my dad went out and bought be the 5-hour BBC version of Pride and Prejudice. I ripped apart the wrapping on Christmas morning and stared in blank shock at what laid in my hands. I than kindly asked my father to take this version back to the mall and get me the other version. And I agree with Sam I am, to be honest...

*Bracing myself next to Sam I am for the assault of tomatoes being flung through the air at us.*

Just the pretty music of P&P compared with the deep and majestic opera music of POTO with the romance striked me as similar. Once again, don't ask me where I get this odd feeling to compare these two movies, when both are like opposite sides of the same coin.

A movie I watched recently was The Simpsons Movie, and there is only one word to describe it: Funny.

Although they killed off Billie, Mike and Tre rather quickly when they brought up the environment which caused me to want to rip the disc out and fling it across the room and into the wall.

And has any one shall The Invisible? And if you did, what did you think of it? Did you like it? I read alot of review on it complaining that it was a very bad movie, but I rather liked it.

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"Fire-child, star-child, what is kel? Sword-bearers, song-weavers, that is kel."
-The Faded Sun trilogy by C.J.Cherryh.
My Avatar is my cat, Niun.
*Keeper of The Dictionary of All Symphony of Ages Knowledge & The Ven Polypheme Dictionary Guide.*

Blasphemy! You're lucky I don't have any tomatoes...

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"All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream."
~Edgar Allan Poe
"Darest thou now O Soul, Walk out with me toward the unknown region, Where neither ground is for feet Nor any path to follow."
~Walt Whitman
~Avatar made by Me, madhatter.

Last night, Hubby and I watched The Kite Runner , which was a very good and very moving film.  My mother-in-law read the book and recommended it to me, but I never got around to it - now I just have to read it.  It tells a story of friendship and love that goes "wrong", and how it can be found again. 

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"No, they're not real, but thanks for noticing"! WoW Dwarf Female /silly
Avatar by Krinsel

Mri Niun wrote:

To tell you the truth, my dad went out and bought be the 5-hour BBC version of Pride and Prejudice. I ripped apart the wrapping on Christmas morning and stared in blank shock at what laid in my hands. I than kindly asked my father to take this version back to the mall and get me the other version. And I agree with Sam I am, to be honest...

Philistine! *Goes off in search of soggy fruit*

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Grunthor wrote:

Doesn't I Am Legend end just like Omega Man and the other movies based on the book? Or did they change it? I haven't seen it yet.

I have no idea. I have never read the book (but I sure want to now!) and I have never seen Omega Man. In fact, I had never heard of either a book the movie was based on, nor a other movies based on said book, including Omega Man!

If you have not seen I Am Legend yet, you might really want to skip the rest of this post. Heavy spoilers ahead!!! Highlight to see the rest...


Did you mean the scene that the dog got killed in, SIA? Good God, I hate to watch scenes like that! I knew if the man died (that is what the girl gave away to me, but nothing else) then the dog must too, and that was one of the reasons I put off watching it.

My husband didn't care for it much, but I really thought it was well done. Will Smith's portrayal was excellent, in my opinion. I could completely feel his fear in and of the dark, feel his anguish at having to kill Sam (), and there was no denying his slow descent into madness that was surely inevitable, given his circumstances. I really felt for the guy. But what the girl that busted the ending for me didn't let onto was that the movie did leave you with a feeling of hope. I guess she wanted him to survive, but I think it ended just right.

I have a feeling that he couldn't have gone back to any semblance of normality with his entire family dead and gone. But he died knowing that he had succeeded in saving the human race, and he died having connected with other humans again. Plus, he had found his faith again. I thought it was a pretty good ending, to be honest. It left you sad, but still hopeful for the future. But I tell you, that scene with Sam had me torn slap up!

I have got to find the book now, because I bet it is 5000 times better.

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Elwood: It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses.
Jake: Hit it. ~ The Blues Brothers (1980)

Valecynos wrote:

I have no idea. I have never read the book (but I sure want to now!) and I have never seen Omega Man. In fact, I had never heard of either a book the movie was based on, nor a other movies based on said book, including Omega Man!

That's cause you're a young'un.

The Omega Man (1971) Charlton Heston

also The Last Man on Earth (1964) Vincent Price, which I haven't seen.

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson (Reprinted by Tor 2007)

Question: When you rent I Am Legend do you get both the original and the alternate endings like you do if you buy it? I just bought it and it's downloading to my TiVo right now.

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Will Smith is a good survivor XO

I advise you Black Book : a young Jewish woman tries to survive in Netherlands while the WW2.As a resistant she will spy Germans, but ...  Mystery !

 

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Grunthor wrote:

That's cause you're a young'un.

The Omega Man (1971) Charlton Heston

also The Last Man on Earth (1964) Vincent Price, which I haven't seen.

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson (Reprinted by Tor 2007)

Question: When you rent I Am Legend do you get both the original and the alternate endings like you do if you buy it? I just bought it and it's downloading to my TiVo right now.

So how was the book and The Omega Man? I assume you read the book, too.

I didn't get the extra features, so I assume it was on a second disk. I may just go out and buy this one, though. If you get the alternate endings, let me know what you thought of them.

Sushi, I have almost picked that one up several times at the video rental place. I think I will get it next time I rent DVD's. It really did sound excellent.

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Elwood: It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses.
Jake: Hit it. ~ The Blues Brothers (1980)

OT: I can send it to you Val.  I meant to with the last batch of books I sent to you, but the envelope I had was too small to add another book.

I'll get it out to you as soon as I can.  Just to let you know, it is more of a short story (around 150 pages), but it is contained in a collection of shorter stories by Richard Matheson.

The family and I saw Horton Hears a Who at the drive-in earlier this evening, and we all really enjoyed it.  Hooray for Dr. Seuss!!!

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"No, they're not real, but thanks for noticing"! WoW Dwarf Female /silly
Avatar by Krinsel

That would be great. I might even be able to read it on my (so-called) "break" from school.

I cannot wait to see Horton Hears a Who!

I watched Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium last night. It was a delightful tale and a very sweet movie with a good message; if you believe in yourself, you can make magic happen. The cast was great. Dustin Hoffman was his usual fantastic self as Mr. Magorium (no real surprise there, eh?), Natalie Portman was just adorable as Mahoney, and Jason Bateman did a great job as the Mutant (you have to see it to get the joke there), but the little boy who played Eric, Zach Mills, really was the brightest star to me. He was just so sweet as the hat collector, and the narrator of the story.

It was a fun family film worth watching!

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Avie pic by me.
Elwood: It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses.
Jake: Hit it. ~ The Blues Brothers (1980)

Grunthor wrote:

I've had a crush on Jodie Foster since I was about 6 or 7. I think we're the same age give or take a few months. LOL.

When I was 6 or 7 I think I had a crush on Mary Poppins.  LOL. 

Mri Niun wrote:

To tell you the truth, my dad went out and bought me the 5-hour BBC version of Pride and Prejudice. I ripped apart the wrapping on Christmas morning and stared in blank shock at what laid in my hands. I then kindly asked my father to take this version back to the mall and get me the other version. And I agree with Sam I am, to be honest...

*Bracing myself next to Sam I am for the assault of tomatoes being flung through the air at us.*

madhatter wrote:

Blasphemy! You're lucky I don't have any tomatoes...

Duchess wrote:

Philistine!  *Goes off in search of soggy fruit*

*SIA hides behind Mri Niun*  I was just wondering if you are all throwing fruits at Mri Niun for liking the Keria Knightly version better than the BBC one, or for just the agreeing with SIA part.  LOL.  *just joking*

I just watched Blades of Glory and would like to declare that it is by far THE FUNNIEST MOVIE EVER MADE.  LOL.  Chazz Michael Michaels is a revelation.  LOL.  *just joking*  I really can't stand Will Ferrel anymore, but man, he was so funny in this movie.  And I even loved the nonsensical ending.

I cannot remember what thread we were talking about Reign of Fire in, but I saw it. Okay, so it wasn't great, and it wasn't terribly believable, but I did like the acting alright. I realized that I prefer to see Matthew McConaughey playing more serious roles, as opposed to the "romantic comedy". I doubt I'll be rushing out to buy it anytime soon. I saw it once, and that is more than enough.

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Avie pic by me.
Elwood: It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses.
Jake: Hit it. ~ The Blues Brothers (1980)