What was the last movie you've seen?

[noiseredux]

I second Neon Demon is rad.

[Jagosaurus]

This is a popcorn action flick. It kept me entertained and has MI5 Rouge Nation now on my "to watch" list.

Is the Rouge nation the one where everyone has to wear a thick layer of makeup?

Hmmm, are we talking about the masks?

It's the one with "the syndicate." Hopefully they're more exciting than their generic name

[prfsnl_gmr]

I started Only God Forgives, but gave up on it a little ways in, hard to articulate what I didn't like about it. I was watching it alone and just kinda wanted to just do something else instead ...

I've had my eye on Neon Demon looks great.

I've been super-impressed by every Refn film I've seen. Bronson is an absolute masterpiece - perhaps his best...but Drive and Only God Forgives are both excellent films that bring together intensity with surrealist/existentialism/avant-garde tendencies (it isn't surprising that he dedicated both to Alejandro Jodorowsky). If you haven't checked out his documentary on Jodorowsky's Dune, that is a very different but no less excellent film project.

Has anyone seen The Pusher trilogy, or Fear X, or Valhalla Rising? I am interested in checking these out sometime soon too. The latter one on that list has at least a title that is inspired by some of Kenneth Anger's films, which especially piques my curiosity.

Valhalla Rising is pretty bad. I don’t recommend it. I see what he was going for with it, but it just doesn’t compare to his other work. (It does have kind of a Dark Souls vibe to it, though; so, other people on the forum might like it.)

[noiseredux]

Finally saw Blade Runner 2049 over the weekend and fucking wow. Probably my movie of 2017 which I had thought was Wonder Woman until now.

[marurun]

Is the Rouge nation the one where everyone has to wear a thick layer of makeup?

Hmmm, are we talking about the masks?

It's the one with "the syndicate." Hopefully they're more exciting than their generic name

I was... I was mocking that he typoed and used the word Rouge instead of Rogue. It was a bad joke.

*sigh*

Rouge and Rogue are not the same word, people!

[nullPointer]

Finally saw Blade Runner 2049 over the weekend and fucking wow. Probably my movie of 2017 which I had thought was Wonder Woman until now.

We're getting ready to watch this at casa de null as well! I'm excited for a sequel long in the making and my wife's excited for ... Ryan Gosling (whom she described as 'lickable' ... yes you read that right ). But! Before we can watch that, it was required that we turn back the clock and watch its predecessor first.

Blade Runner (1982)

My wife had never seen the original Blade Runner. And due to the fact that we've been together so long, this also means that I haven't seen the original Blade Runner in years. After providing some essential insight and background into the film and why it's considered to be so influential, we started it up. Okay that's not quite true. I provided my essential commentary during the opening credits of the movie while my wife rolled her eyes. She told me that if I was going to talk during the entire film I had to read the opening crawl in the voice of James Earl Jones. Done!

Revoke my nerd card if you wish, but I'm honestly not sure which version of the film we watched (theatrical, director's cut, or final cut), but hot damn this is a beautiful movie. It's amazing to watch it all these years later and see just how amazingly well it still holds up. Stylistically, it truly is a feast for the senses. This film was incredibly forward thinking and ahead of it's time. And yet ... I'm not sure it's the type of film that could be made today. It's pacing is set to simmer (with explosive bursts of action) rather than a modern thrill-a-minute roller coaster ride. There are occasionally long ponderous shots that linger meditatively on the subject. Definitely not a gripe(!), merely an observation. I'll certainly be interested to see whether Blade Runner 2049 maintains the same sort of 'smoke filled noir pacing' as its predecessor, or whether it tailors itself to more modern tastes. I'm hoping for some combination of the above, though that may be asking too much.

The performances in Blade Runner are quite good on average (somehow Edward James Olmos' performance rings a bit stilted to me, even though he plays his normal 'stoic tough guy' routine ... possibly that's just me though). Harrison Ford naturally turns in one of his most iconic performances (it seems a shame that this is his only(?) noir-ish role - he's quite good at it), but it's Rutger Hauer who really steals the show for me. Hauer always excels at weird, vaguely inhuman characters (here played as almost insectoid?), but in Blade Runner he just knocks it out of the park. Dude is whole other level in the film.

Having said all of that, here's where I need to address the sacred cow ... and perhaps tweak it on the nose. Just slightly. The stylistic elements in Blade Runner are so incredible, so well executed, that they almost overshadow all other elements in the film. There's almost a self aware sense of this in the movie; a navel gazing preoccupation with just how remarkable everything contained in its world actually is (among other things, refer to the long ponderous shots I mentioned earlier). In this sense it's a film that skirts the line of putting style over substance. But! When the stylistic elements are this damned good, it's practically impossible to fault the film for it. And thankfully the substance here is still quite good, it would just be incredibly difficult for it to match the world building on display. <Pats sacred cow on the nose. "There see? We can still be friends right?">

At any rate, I'm sure that entire volumes have been written regarding the virtues of Blade Runner, and undoubtedly by folks much smarter than I. Bottom line; Blade Runner still kicks ass. If you haven't watched it, do so. Soon. Now pardon me while I go fire up my copy of Snatcher.

[nullPointer]

Rouge and Rogue are not the same word, people!

Easy, now. Don't go kicking dirt on my 'Moulin Rogue One' fan fiction. Prior to her involvement with the rebellion, Jyn Erso had to work at some 'questionable' cabaret/cantinas in order to make ends meet. Don't you judge. It was hard for her.

[noiseredux]

I think I get what you mean, null. It is style above substance, it just so happens that in this instance the substance is plentiful as well.

Ugh, I love the original Blade Runner so much. I'm just happy to read some more thoughts on it. It's one of those movies that I do find myself reading lots about over the years.

I loved the sequel, and it's put me in the mood to re-watch the original (even though like you, I had my wife watch it just six or so months ago).

[Forlorn Drifter]

I've seen Valhalla Rising, and I honestly wasn't impressed much. It was very slow, which would be fine generally, but I feel like I personally missed something in it. More like there's a cultural hint or ideology that would have brought it all together for me.

[marurun]

I... have watched the first 45 minutes of Rogue One. Almost a week ago. Still working on making time for the rest of the movie. Why is watching stuff on TV so damn hard?