Rate the Last Movie You Saw

[Dan Hocker]

I didn't miss the scroll as much as the lack of the opening John Williams fanfare. After that I didn't think about the score but when it got over my buddy mentioned he didn't like it.

https://www.yahoo.com/movies/5-reaso...161933559.html

I liked the score. Felt like it didn't over use John Williams's stuff. Made it stand out more when then let his themes slip in at appropriate moments. It's gonna have to be something we get used to though, because I thought I read somewhere that John Williams didn't plan on doing too many more.

[Tommy]

I didn't miss the scroll as much as the lack of the opening John Williams fanfare. After that I didn't think about the score but when it got over my buddy mentioned he didn't like it.

https://www.yahoo.com/movies/5-reaso...161933559.html

Ha! The person I went with mentioned he was bummed because the opening music wasn't there. I'm not a huge SW fan like some are but I liked Rogue One better than the Force Awakens.

[srboone]

Saw the 20th Anniversary theatrical release of Princess Mononoke, one of my favorite animes (I get misty-eyed every time the boars die). It was supposed to be the subtitled version of the film, but it turned out to be the English dubbed version (dialog by Neil Gaiman)--which I saw in the theater 20 years ago. Disappointing, but still a great time and an outstanding movie.

5/5

[Theli]

I'd love to see some subbed versions of the Ghibli movies, but they are not easy to come across. Great films though, generally speaking. Princess Mononoke was the one that really broke them into the Western mainstream, I think.

[Dan Hocker]

Saw the 20th Anniversary theatrical release of Princess Mononoke, one of my favorite animes (I get misty-eyed every time the boars die). It was supposed to be the subtitled version of the film, but it turned out to be the English dubbed version (dialog by Neil Gaiman)--which I saw in the theater 20 years ago. Disappointing, but still a great time and an outstanding movie.

5/5

On a Millard note, I just saw that Funnimation and Lionsgate are putting the original Ghost in the Shell movie back into theaters on February 7th. If you guys haven't seen it I'd suggest checking it out. Ghost in the Shell is one of my all time favorite anime / manga properties.

[Theli]

^Solid movie too! Gave it a re-watch for the first time since high school a few months ago.

My favourite is, and always will be, Akira. Can't be beat. Though Paprika does try damn hard to do it.

[Sock Monkey]

Blair Witch: The original The Blair Witch Project still stands as a divisive film among horror fans: Some people love it, others can't stand it. I'm in the former camp as I think that even with all its faults (spotty acting, nausea-inducing footage) it is still one of the best slow-burn horror films out there. The mythos it created is fascinating, the escalating sense of dread is palpable and that last shot sticks the landing so well. So when I heard that the new Adam Wingard/Simon Barrett movie The Woods was actually a Blair Witch sequel, I was intrigued. I really liked both You're Next and The Guest and the trailer for The Woods had me intrigued so I was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. Well...after seeing the film I walked away with mixed emotions.

The film follows James Donahue, brother of Heather from the first film, finding an uploaded video on YouTube that might show proof that his sister is still alive after all these years. With his trio of friends to join him, the group heads off to Burkittsville and the infamous woods with a bunch of new technological gadgets to hopefully find his missing sister. After staying a night in the woods, strange occurrences begin to happen and the group begins to realize that they might find more in the woods than just James's sister.

Taken on its own merits, separate from my feelings about what I liked about The Blair Witch Project, I'd have to say that I liked Blair Witch. Without giving any spoilers, the movie adds some creative twists to the mythos which in the moment is fun and Wingard’s a good director that sets his scares up and wrings the tension out of each moment (even if there are too many jump scares). Unfortunately, the movie does set-up some plot points that never get addressed, characterization is pretty much nil and at one point, the movie almost felt like it was shifting into the slasher subgenre, which keeps it being completely successful.

But looking at it as a direct sequel to the original, it just doesn’t hold up. The worst thing that horror can do is to drag the boogeyman out into the light of day. The original film was all atmosphere and creepy noises, making sure that everyone knew there was something out in the dark but never allowing the audience a respite by actually showing it. By comparison, Blair Witch wants to fill in all the blanks and in the process dispels the mystique that made the original so good.

In short, people who hated the first film because it was nothing more than people walking around the woods and hearing creepy noises at night will find a lot to enjoy, while purists will be disappointed by the film’s desire to over-explain.

Grade: C-

[Martin]

Nothing to do with Horror but I just watched 'Eight Days A Week - The Touring Years'.

Ron Howard gives a fantastic window into the Beatles during the years they toured (1963 to 1966). It includes rare photos, videos of performances, audio of news reports, remembrances from Paul and Ringo as well as comments from celebrities who were fans during that time.

5 Stars

[Sock Monkey]

Just finished watching the new Scream Factory Blu-ray of John Carpenter's The Thing and it is a beauty. Halloween gets a lot of love and accolades--and rightfully so--but The Thing is Carpenter's masterpiece. It's a sparse, bleak, expertly directed movie with special effects that are still amazing today. The one thing that stood out this time around is just how good the performances are. I've always liked Kurt Russell and Keith David, but everyone's performances are fantastic with a special nod to Wilford Brimley, who gives so many nuances to his performance as Blair.

A huge "Thank You!" to Scream Factory. The restoration they did is fantastic; the movie has literally never looked better and it is jammed packed with special features, including a fun interview with Carpenter by Mick Garris. If you're a fan of the film (how could you not be?), pick up this edition!

Grade: A+

[Brian861]

Just finished watching the new Scream Factory Blu-ray of John Carpenter's The Thing and it is a beauty. Halloween gets a lot of love and accolades--and rightfully so--but The Thing is Carpenter's masterpiece. It's a sparse, bleak, expertly directed movie with special effects that are still amazing today. The one thing that stood out this time around is just how good the performances are. I've always liked Kurt Russell and Keith David, but everyone's performances are fantastic with a special nod to Wilford Brimley, who gives so many nuances to his performance as Blair.

A huge "Thank You!" to Scream Factory. The restoration they did is fantastic; the movie has literally never looked better and it is jammed packed with special features, including a fun interview with Carpenter by Mick Garris. If you're a fan of the film (how could you not be?), pick up this edition!

Grade: A+

Thanks for the recommendation, Keith. Has always been one of my favorites.

[Theli]

Just finished watching the new Scream Factory Blu-ray of John Carpenter's The Thing and it is a beauty. Halloween gets a lot of love and accolades--and rightfully so--but The Thing is Carpenter's masterpiece. It's a sparse, bleak, expertly directed movie with special effects that are still amazing today. The one thing that stood out this time around is just how good the performances are. I've always liked Kurt Russell and Keith David, but everyone's performances are fantastic with a special nod to Wilford Brimley, who gives so many nuances to his performance as Blair.

A huge "Thank You!" to Scream Factory. The restoration they did is fantastic; the movie has literally never looked better and it is jammed packed with special features, including a fun interview with Carpenter by Mick Garris. If you're a fan of the film (how could you not be?), pick up this edition!

Grade: A+

Not only is The Thing my favourite Carpenter movie, it may well be in my top 10 movies of all time, surely in the top 10 horror movies.

[srboone]

Just finished watching the new Scream Factory Blu-ray of John Carpenter's The Thing and it is a beauty. Halloween gets a lot of love and accolades--and rightfully so--but The Thing is Carpenter's masterpiece. It's a sparse, bleak, expertly directed movie with special effects that are still amazing today. The one thing that stood out this time around is just how good the performances are. I've always liked Kurt Russell and Keith David, but everyone's performances are fantastic with a special nod to Wilford Brimley, who gives so many nuances to his performance as Blair.

A huge "Thank You!" to Scream Factory. The restoration they did is fantastic; the movie has literally never looked better and it is jammed packed with special features, including a fun interview with Carpenter by Mick Garris. If you're a fan of the film (how could you not be?), pick up this edition!

Grade: A+

Definitely going to pick that one up!

And now my pick for the most overrated movie of the year: La La Land

I love big screen musicals. But this one leaves a lot to be desired. Stone is terrific, Gosling gets a boost from the palpable chemistry he has with her, and there's some pretty tight choreography, but nothing really gels. The last 15 minutes are great, but the first 105 are blah. The 10-minute opening sequence is less than spectacular and only easily entertained people will walk out humming any of the show's tunes.

2/5

[Daninsky]

Just finished watching the new Scream Factory Blu-ray of John Carpenter's The Thing and it is a beauty. Halloween gets a lot of love and accolades--and rightfully so--but The Thing is Carpenter's masterpiece. It's a sparse, bleak, expertly directed movie with special effects that are still amazing today. The one thing that stood out this time around is just how good the performances are. I've always liked Kurt Russell and Keith David, but everyone's performances are fantastic with a special nod to Wilford Brimley, who gives so many nuances to his performance as Blair.

A huge "Thank You!" to Scream Factory. The restoration they did is fantastic; the movie has literally never looked better and it is jammed packed with special features, including a fun interview with Carpenter by Mick Garris. If you're a fan of the film (how could you not be?), pick up this edition!

Grade: A+

Completely agree with your assessment of The Thing. John Carpenter was a super hero, but I have to point out that he wouldn't have enjoyed near the success he did in those early years without the immeasurable talents of Dean Cundey. The Thing was (I believe) their last project together before Cundey went on to start being Zemeckis' go-to DP instead. And when you really sit down and dig into those earlier Carpenter films, you start to realize that the cinematography is at least half of what you love about them.
In any event, The Thing is my favorite, as well. It is just about an absolutely perfect genre picture.

And yes, Scream Factory does tremendous work. They toil mightily to do their part in keeping physical media a viable aspect of film-watching. I own all of their releases aside from a few horror-comedies (a sub-genre I tend to loathe) and have been incredibly pleased with the transfer quality and abundant extras on most of them.

[Sock Monkey]

Completely agree with your assessment of The Thing. John Carpenter was a super hero, but I have to point out that he wouldn't have enjoyed near the success he did in those early years without the immeasurable talents of Dean Cundey. The Thing was (I believe) their last project together before Cundey went on to start being Zemeckis' go-to DP instead. And when you really sit down and dig into those earlier Carpenter films, you start to realize that the cinematography is at least half of what you love about them.
In any event, The Thing is my favorite, as well. It is just about an absolutely perfect genre picture.

And yes, Scream Factory does tremendous work. They toil mightily to do their part in keeping physical media a viable aspect of film-watching. I own all of their releases aside from a few horror-comedies (a sub-genre I tend to loathe) and have been incredibly pleased with the transfer quality and abundant extras on most of them.

Dean Cundey is amazing and is absolutely an integral part of making those early Carpenter films as great as they are. Carpenter gave a great shout out to Cundey during his interview with Garris about how 50 percent of the special effects in The Thing working so well was due to Rob Bottin's work and the other 50 percent was due to how good Cundey was.

I need to pick up more Scream Factory blurays. Black Christmas and Rabid are up next, I think.

[Theli]

^ Good call. I'm thinking I need Carrie as well. I have quite a few of their earlier releases. Great company.