It's Back: Exceelent Movies I've Seen Lately

[johnnya24]

with 75 reviews in, rotten tomatoes is at 99% fresh for Mad Max.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/mad_max_fury_road/

the one negative is from a dude in the UK though... so maybe you all are just snobs.

Tom Hardy's in it, so it's not like I'm not going to pay my 10 bucks either way. More than happy to be completely wrong on this one (though I believe Batman 3 had over 90% on RT, and that was possibly one of the worst movies I've ever seen ... and that also starred Tom Hardy ).

[heyelander]

and with 189 reviews in, the RT score has plummeted to 98% fresh.

[johnnya24]

and with 189 reviews in, the RT score has plummeted to 98% fresh.

Now you're just trying to build up my expectations ... don't think I don't know what you're up to.

[Lucky]

agreed.

even funnier was my wife didn't know who he is. as that scene was playing she leaned over to me and whispered: "is that hugh hefner?" had to refrain from bursting out laughing in the theater …

agree with FB that the movie was pretty meh. my kids really enjoyed it though.

This is hilarious.

[heyelander]

Now you're just trying to build up my expectations ... don't think I don't know what you're up to.

well, everyone says it's pretty much just a 2 hour car chase, so I wouldn't expect anything earth shattering.

[johnnya24]

well, everyone says it's pretty much just a 2 hour car chase, so I wouldn't expect anything earth shattering.

... and 9.0 on IMDB based on 22K votes ... which would put it joint 3rd on IMDB's top 250 with The Godfather 2 (The Dark Knight Rises is 60th apparently). So I guess I'm now really excited about seeing this? Wouldn't have imagined that after seeing the trailer.

[heyelander]

... and 9.0 on IMDB based on 22K votes ... which would put it joint 3rd on IMDB's top 250 with The Godfather 2 (The Dark Knight Rises is 60th apparently). So I guess I'm now really excited about seeing this? Wouldn't have imagined that after seeing the trailer.

down to 8.9 with 45k votes. tying it with Pulp fiction, Schindlers List, The Good The Bad and The Ugly, The Dark Night, 12 Angry Men and LOTR-RotK for 4th.

[johnnya24]

So Mad Max is basically Waterworld without the water. Some of the high octane action sequences were terrific no doubt. But remove the action and [IMO] it sucked as much as the trailer suggested it would. Heck, you could even remove the Max character and you'd have basically the same movie. That can't be good. Max was almost a sub character.

... but it was enjoyable enough as a mindless action feast.

[heyelander]

So Mad Max is basically Waterworld without the water. Some of the high octane action sequences were terrific no doubt. But remove the action and [IMO] it sucked as much as the trailer suggested it would. Heck, you could even remove the Max character and you'd have basically the same movie. That can't be good. Max was almost a sub character.

... but it was enjoyable enough as a mindless action feast.

that's about what I was thinking... wasn't putting much stock in the IMDB reviews. I forgot I have U2 tickets tomorrow night so probably next Tuesday (cheap night at the movies night).

[nullnor]

if you get the chance watch ex machina it's like taking the turing test.

[johnnya24]

Tomorrowland - I did not like this at all. SPOILERY? The premise is, the world is fucked, but let's hop, skip and jump into daydream land and hope that somehow and someway science (and the smiles and innocence of young people --> <--) can save us from the inevitable destruction. I half expected Mary Poppins to appear with a song.

So don't be disheartened or upset boys and girls. Put a big fucking smile on your face and expect that some mysterious unknown scientific breakthrough that noone can envisage (even in science fiction), will emerge to save the day.

The movie acknowledged the source of the problem (politicians, industry, banking and global finance), concluded quickly that this conglomerate of power is too vast and powerful to be swayed from its destructive path. It then decided that the alternative - inevitable destruction - isn't palatable. They made dystopia the "bad guy" (not the real source of the problem), and decided that hopeless optimism is the only thing that can save us.

So basically turning science into a form of religion ...replacing blind faith in God/Grace with blind faith in science.

Disney™

Edit: if you ignore the point of the movie, it's not bad by kids / young teen movie standards. Some of the fight scenes were entertaining enough, and Hugh Laurie actually used the word "bollocks" ... in a Disney movie!

[Gregg]

Tomorrowland - I did not like this at all. SPOILERY? The premise is, the world is fucked, but let's hop, skip and jump into daydream land and hope that somehow and someway science (and the smiles and innocence of young people --> <--) can save us from the inevitable destruction. I half expected Mary Poppins to appear with a song.

So don't be disheartened or upset boys and girls. Put a big fucking smile on your face and expect that some mysterious unknown scientific breakthrough that noone can envisage (even in science fiction), will emerge to save the day.

The movie acknowledged the source of the problem (politicians, industry, banking and global finance), concluded quickly that this conglomerate of power is too vast and powerful to be swayed from its destructive path. It then decided that the alternative - inevitable destruction - isn't palatable. They made dystopia the "bad guy" (not the real source of the problem), and decided that hopeless optimism is the only thing that can save us.

So basically turning science into a form of religion ...replacing blind faith in God/Grace with blind faith in science.

Disney™

Edit: if you ignore the point of the movie, it's not bad by kids / young teen movie standards. Some of the fight scenes were entertaining enough, and Hugh Laurie actually used the word "bollocks" ... in a Disney movie!

Eh, it was really kind of a throwback to the old Disney formula. I rather enjoyed it for what it was; A kids Disney movie. Really not that much different than 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea or Darby O' Gill and The Little People.

I thought both female leads did a great job in this movie.

It was no worse than Mad Max in my opinion. But maybe I was expecting more from MMax.

[Gregg]

down to 8.9 with 45k votes. tying it with Pulp fiction, Schindlers List, The Good The Bad and The Ugly, The Dark Night, 12 Angry Men and LOTR-RotK for 4th.

No way should Mad Max be mentioned in the same breath as these movies.

Knowing the stunts were done by stuntmen and women helped. There was nothing really wrong with the plot. The characters were not very well developed. Didn't particularly like or have investment in any of them. The part of Max was especially flat. Didn't like him, hate him, feel sorry for him.

I would also say this was the worst performance by Theron that I have seen. I almost laughed when she cried out in anguish. Didn't buy it for a second. Way too sappy. It almost seemed like she mailed it in for a paycheck.

This may be one of the few action movies that I will only have seen one time (by design).

[johnnya24]

Eh, it was really kind of a throwback to the old Disney formula. I rather enjoyed it for what it was; A kids Disney movie. Really not that much different than 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea or Darby O' Gill and The Little People.

I thought both female leads did a great job in this movie.

I didn't hate it as a movie. Sure it wasn't perfect, because it rarely can be with kid actors. I enjoyed the mixture of proper Sfx, throwback b-movie Sfx, and references to things like Jules Verne.

... but the message was miles off base IMO. Not even attempting to deal with the problems that face us today, and putting our faith in some unknown scientific discovery to solve the problems we are in the midst of creating / causing. That is a message I am deeply suspicious about. So we should just continue to f*** up the world and hope that something will happen in the future to fix things?

... and the core problem, according to the movie, is not the powers creating and causing the problems, but rather, the people who don't have blind faith that these problems will be overcome.

That is f***ed up IMO

[Gregg]

I didn't hate it as a movie. Sure it wasn't perfect, because it rarely can be with kid actors. I enjoyed the mixture of proper Sfx, throwback b-movie Sfx, and references to things like Jules Verne.

... but the message was miles off base IMO. Not even attempting to deal with the problems that face us today, and putting our faith in some unknown scientific discovery to solve the problems we are in the midst of creating / causing. That is a message I am deeply suspicious about. So we should just continue to f*** up the world and hope that something will happen in the future to fix things?

... and the core problem, according to the movie, is not the powers creating and causing the problems, but rather, the people who don't have blind faith that these problems will be overcome.

That is f***ed up IMO

So Mad Max is more real to you?

I kid.