Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

[res0nat0r]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

hummmm

[res0nat0r]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies



Don't get put off by Paul Walker in this, this is actually really good. Crazy noir/fairy tale type visuals and storytelling. Violent and lots of action, but this movie was a lot better than I anticipated, great stuff imo.

[Shpira]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

yeah thats a good film...although his acting is pretty poor

[Kamal]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

I made the mistake of watching this one and this truly felt like the most monumental waste of 2 hours of my life. Forest Whittaker as a self-made pigeon-loving Ninja battling a group of overweight, broke bunch of senior Italian wannabe mafias with the random appearance of a hot chick at the scene of a crime and a french speaking ice-cream delivery man for a best friend.

I mean fuck seriously what the fucking fuckity fuck was the writers frame of mind. 0/10

brilliant idea for a thread.

im actually gonna go watch ghost dog tonight. very thoughful film, imo it's overlooked.

[floridaorange]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

[Shpira]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

I made the mistake of watching this one and this truly felt like the most monumental waste of 2 hours of my life. Forest Whittaker as a self-made pigeon-loving Ninja battling a group of overweight, broke bunch of senior Italian wannabe mafias with the random appearance of a hot chick at the scene of a crime and a french speaking ice-cream delivery man for a best friend.

I mean fuck seriously what the fucking fuckity fuck was the writers frame of mind. 0/10

I have to say that that is exactly how I felt when i saw it...I was almost convince to have a watch again and see if I missed something because of the comments of some ppl and then my brother caught me downloading it and said "no way are we wasting HD space for that piece of shit" lol

[Kamal]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

I mean honestly, even if it was meant to be a satire, I can understand. They could've thrown in some humor at various stages to highlight its satirical nature. But it wasn't. The producers constantly tried to drum up the dark nature of the flick through all the angry rap music playing in the background and Whittaker's serious pot-bellied 1.5 eyed pissed of stare throughout.

The messenger pigeon was the creme-de-la-creme of stupidity.

[res0nat0r]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

I Whittaker's serious pot-bellied 1.5 eyed pissed of stare throughout.

[nick007]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

^Klassic Kamal

[mikenytola]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

Movies

City of God
Amelie
Ink
A Mighty Wind

Documentaries

Baraka
Chronos
Lost in La Mancha
Sharkwater

[trick12]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

I mean honestly, even if it was meant to be a satire, I can understand. They could've thrown in some humor at various stages to highlight its satirical nature. But it wasn't. The producers constantly tried to drum up the dark nature of the flick through all the angry rap music playing in the background and Whittaker's serious pot-bellied 1.5 eyed pissed of stare throughout.

The messenger pigeon was the creme-de-la-creme of stupidity.

that movie did make my balls itch, such a terrible movie it was....

i'm loving wonderland, and the imaginarium of dr parnassus

good doc to watch is dr.gonzo, pretty funny i think

[Highsteppa]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

The thing about Ghost Dog is that it's heavily referencing the old Samurai movies from Japan, with a strong influence being Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo and Sanjuro saga. It's very pulpy, very arty, but I really dug how Jim Jarmusch put together the Western Hip Hop influence and the Samurai film together.

Without Ghost Dog, there probably wouldn't have been a Kill Bill. They're not really all that far apart, except that Ghost Dog goes for a much more Zen philosophical approach, quoting the Hagakure between acts and framing it in a quieter, less flashy style, where Kill Bill goes for a much more Spaghetti Western, pop culture bonanza approach that Tarantino is known for.

[Kamal]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

dude if you could draw out the "heavy reference" to the old Samurai movies from this one, then you're one generous critic. Other than being a quiet/solitary dude (which Whittaker pretty much plays out in every movie he's been in), even after reading what you say, I cant draw a single parallel to the life of a Samurai.

Bottom line, all that matters to me when I watch a movie is the final product. That's why Kill Bill is what it is and what Ghost Dog turned out to be. I could have a mega-block buster planned out in my mind but if I don't know squat about movie making..... then there isn't anything left to make believe.

[Highsteppa]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

dude if you could draw out the "heavy reference" to the old Samurai movies from this one, then you're one generous critic. Other than being a quiet/solitary dude (which Whittaker pretty much plays out in every movie he's been in), even after reading what you say, I cant draw a single parallel to the life of a Samurai.

That's not really a fair thing to say about Whiitaker's career - it wasn't that long ago that he won the Oscar for Last King of Scotland. Plus his work on The Shield, Good Morning Vietnam and a host of other films shows that he can do a lot more than just play an introvert. The guy played Charlie "Bird" Parker with Clint Eastwood directing, and got nominated for an Oscar for that role as well.

As for the parallel to the life of the samurai, what about the quotes from The Hagakure that separated each act? While it may come across as fortune cookie wisdom, it's actually a pretty revered book that expanded on the Bushido code immensely. Sort of a Japanese version of Sun Tzu's The Art of War.

Bottom line, all that matters to me when I watch a movie is the final product. That's why Kill Bill is what it is and what Ghost Dog turned out to be. I could have a mega-block buster planned out in my mind but if I don't know squat about movie making..... then there isn't anything left to make believe.

I understand, and totally respect what you're saying. I've always said that regardless of what critics think, the bottom line is if you the viewer feel that you've gotten value out of the money and/or time you've spent with whatever it is you're watching. You didn't and hey, that's unfortunate.

I've always felt my job as a critic isn't so much to dictate taste (which a lot of readers have felt I'm doing, simply because I have the printed word in a publication behind me), but to help set the proper expectations, or help people understand how a movie can be appreciated more than just sitting down in front of their DVD player/TV/computer/whatever. Some people want and/or appreciate that, others don't feel the need for it. Some movies need the proper frame of mind or even a reference in order to really "get" everything the director/writer/producer is trying to convery (like Starship Troopers - most people see it as a near brain dead action/sci fi romp and completely miss the hugely subversive political undertones the film is actually stating), like how a dj set is planned out with track selection and how it's mixed - the songs might not have as much impact on their own, but are a sum greater than their individual parts when the dj puts it all together.

[Kamal]

Re: Highly Recommended (and overlooked) Movies

I understand what you're saying about what was intended by the makers of the movie but from an average movie goer's perspective, a movie shouldn't be a 120 minute session of video and sound, it should be a truly immersive experience. the average joe shouldn't be expected to research a movie before watching it. it is the responsibility of the producers/directors to ensure nothing is left "up in the air". even if presumptions or undertones need to be made, they must be presented throughout the movie so moviegoers know exactly what is on the the producers mind. take for example the role leonardo dicaprio played in blood diamond. he was an aggressive, conniving, rhodesian accent speaking angry soldier and it isn't until he reveals what happened to his parents that it totally fits together how and why he's doing what he's doing and why he's got his agenda.

yes there were quotes from the The Hagakure but most watching ghost dog wouldn't know the significance of it to being a samurai or even why the words from the text were introduced in the first place. we shouldn't be expected to pay to watch a the movie and then be expected to research it as well, just so that a bad movie can be well credited and we can level with the producers to appreciate how they intended to make it.

just like most old school djs don't relate to people mixing sets on computers with software, most people who have watched samurai movies/movies about warriors come to have a certain level of expectation from a warrior (especially in the case of a samurai). whittaker didn't fit the part on so many levels, he stole cars, used guns, wasn't physically fit for the role, I mean no part of him even related to being a samurai other than the scene where he's swinging the sword on the terrace. even then, you can easily make out he was struggling with the moves. heck they could've even spiffed up the plot by introducing worthy opponents but nearly all of his opponents were in their 60's? and what was the deal with trying to whack him? just cause he made the girl be a witness to his first job? so many things weren't immediate.

unfortunately, the "samurai" in this movie was just another delusional mercenary who believed he was a legendary japanese fighter but couldn't carry out the part, which is why the movie has turned out the way it has.