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Post by Jambowayoh on May 29, 2024 15:11:16 GMT
While You Were SleepingScrolling idly through one of the streaming services the other day, I decided I wanted to watch something unchallenging. I've been doing serial killer movies and procedurals with my son, as well as 70s classics and, well, sometimes you want a break. I really don't watch Romcoms as a rule: not because I'm not a sentimental prick - I am - but because they are pretty much the tropiest, most formulaic genre out there and I've hated most I've watched. I'd seen this at the cinema with a girlfriend in the 90s and remember thinking it was okay. Rewatching it, it's actually surprisingly funny, and its predictability is leavened by a few important things, as you might expect for a movie that uses a comatose single-testicled narcissist as its main MacGuffin. First is that the supporting cast is solid without exception, with particularly funny turns by Peter Boyle and Jack Warden - their rambling banter around the dinner table is genuinely very funny ("You need good beef; Argentina has great beef: beef and Nazis"). Related to this, the script has a sharpness and fizz to it that makes the saccharine shit much more palatable ("What should I do?" "Pull the plug" "You're sick" "I'm sick? You're cheating on a vegetable"). Above all there's great chemistry between the unlikely pairing Sandra Bullock and Bill Pullman. Sandra Bullock really could do nothing wrong at this point, could she? She's superb here for sure, and pulls off the impressive trick of convincing us she is a single unfulfilled loner. 7/10. It's interesting that a lot of romantic comedies of the 80s and early to mid 90s were all based around the idea of falling in love and getting together with someone through deception. |
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Post by FlexibleFeline on May 29, 2024 15:16:58 GMT
Yeah, there seemed to be a resurgence of some of the darker screwball comedy themes. I don't know why - maybe it was just time to recycle them, maybe there was a successful one earlier in the 80s that set / re-set the template and the studios instantly latched onto it.
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Post by Bill in the rain on May 29, 2024 15:17:44 GMT
I guess it adds a bit of drama / suspense to the whole thing. What will happen when the truth comes out?!
I'm not sure it's especially limited to the 80s/90s though. Doesn't it run all the way from Shakespeare to the modern day?
I guess it's a bit more interesting than "I asked them out and they said yes"
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Post by Jambowayoh on May 29, 2024 15:20:27 GMT
I don't think the earlier years of cinema had it to the extent where you have people literally copying what stalkers would do but it was classed as super romantic. I guess it's not always a good idea to judge things through the lens of today but some of the romantic lead behaviour could be classed as incredibly problematic.
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Post by FlexibleFeline on May 29, 2024 15:27:37 GMT
Sleepless in Seattle being a good example. God I fucking hate that movie.
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Post by FlexibleFeline on May 29, 2024 15:31:01 GMT
I guess it adds a bit of drama / suspense to the whole thing. What will happen when the truth comes out?! I'm not sure it's especially limited to the 80s/90s though. Doesn't it run all the way from Shakespeare to the modern day? I guess it's a bit more interesting than "I asked them out and they said yes" It does for sure, it would be way too bland otherwise. And Shakespeare isn't the only example but he's a good one - how in his comedies he would use an established formula / archetype (orientation - complication - resolution - renewal through a marriage celebration), but did it skilfully and humorously, with - in his best - some decent subversion of those elements. |
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Post by FlexibleFeline on May 29, 2024 15:36:46 GMT
Holy shit, Love Actually - that's a bit later but not only is it one of the worst movies of all time but it has the stalkiest, most fucked-up storyline that we are supposed to be on board with:  |
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sport✅
Junior Member
notice me senpai
I want to claim my tits
Posts: 2,313
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Post by sport✅ on May 29, 2024 15:41:08 GMT
This is how we found love back in the day. You kids with your grinders and bumbles will never understand.
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Post by Whizzo on May 29, 2024 18:25:03 GMT
I quite like Love Actually, a lot of it is frankly terrible but some parts are pretty decent, I saw it while taking a break from everything going on in Vegas to see it so Hugh Grant telling the US president to go fuck himself actually got a little cheer out of me in an American cinema. It was probably just as well that it was an afternoon performance so it was me, my best mate and about three other people scattered around a very empty Downtown cinema.
One of the really dodgy bits about the film though is that that object of Andrew Lincoln's stalking activities was an 18 year old Keira Knightley, yeah probably should have cast a bit older there Mr Curtis.
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Post by Jambowayoh on May 29, 2024 18:33:05 GMT
I mean Love Actually has so many fucking issues but yeah that whole Keira Knightley/Andrew Lincoln plot was a big wtf.
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cubby
Full Member
doesn't get subtext
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Post by cubby on May 29, 2024 19:14:37 GMT
One of the really dodgy bits about the film though is that that object of Andrew Lincoln's stalking activities was an 18 year old Keira Knightley, yeah probably should have cast a bit older there Mr Curtis. You think casting Patrick Stewart instead would have helped??? |
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Post by FlexibleFeline on May 29, 2024 20:07:04 GMT
Andrew Lincoln falls for Patrick Stewart. Does some video stalking. Shows up outside his improbably cute central London mews cottage. Does a Bob Dylan. Stewart's luminous eyes well up. He tells Lincoln that writing is the key.
And then Lincoln's clothes fall off. And you see everything.
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Post by simple on May 29, 2024 20:33:06 GMT
Doesn’t Boat That Rocked have a bit where Nick Frost arranges a rape for someone to do?
Admittedly, in retrospect, very in keeping with what DJs in the 60s and 70s were like but I’m pretty sure its supposed to be funny and/or romantic in the film
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Post by Reviewer on May 29, 2024 20:53:55 GMT
Furiosa 8/10
Fun, entertaining and looks great. The only thing I have against it is the issue with any prequel - waiting for certain things that must happen.
Not as insane and exciting as Fury Road, probably more interesting in terms of story though.
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Post by simple on May 29, 2024 23:04:59 GMT
Iron Claw
Really good. Everything about it is pretty much spot on and feels authentic. When I used to have a WWE Network subscription I watched every episode of WCCW they had uploaded at the time and these matches are just like what was broadcast for real. And as much fun as it is seeing Harley Race and the Freebirds portrayed so accurately or spotting cameos from real wrestlers like Chavo Jr and MJF the drama works so well on its own too.
It feels sad to say given he was real person who died tragically but I think they probably made the right choice in making the film work by not focusing Chris Von Erich and his suicide alongside everything that happened to his older brothers. Which feels doubly sad as the general narrative around Chris’s death is that being the youngest and smallest and trying to fill the boots of the others was partly what pushed him over the edge.
Back to the film though, I don’t think you could have done this better. And as a fan of the wild west days of territory wrestling its fantastic to see it on screen. I’ve said for years that taking a territory like this, Memphis, Stampede or Jim Crockett Promotions would make for a perfect prestige tv style HBO type drama series and I think this proves it.
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Blue_Mike
Full Member
Meet Hanako At Embers
Posts: 5,320
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Post by Blue_Mike on May 29, 2024 23:48:51 GMT
I'm 40 minutes into Lift (Netflix) and I feel like Vincent D'Onofrio is the only thing that's going to save this, because so far nobody else seems like they can.
EDIT:
Nope. Absolute bullshit.
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wunty
Full Member
Pastry Forward
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Post by wunty on May 30, 2024 8:16:59 GMT
Mindhorn
Yes. I liked that a lot. The jinga segment at the end was gloriously stupid. As was the whole film. Yet it was brilliant. Julian Barratt has this great way of playing something utterly straight yet preposterious at the same time. There's not a lot of comedians / actors that could carry that off so succesfully. Even when he looks utterly ridiculous, he plays it completely straight. Simon Farnaby was also brilliant as usual. I snorted a bit too loudly with laughter when he was describing the grafitti on his car. That's my level of humour right there, as it so happens.
The pair of them need to write more films.
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dmukgr
Junior Member
Posts: 1,506
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Post by dmukgr on May 30, 2024 8:37:17 GMT
Doesn’t Boat That Rocked have a bit where Nick Frost arranges a rape for someone to do? Admittedly, in retrospect, very in keeping with what DJs in the 60s and 70s were like but I’m pretty sure its supposed to be funny and/or romantic in the film Yup, I felt that was wrong at the time and I am severly devoid of any moral compass, so if it made me go WTF, you know we are in trouble. |
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Post by Jambowayoh on May 30, 2024 8:46:39 GMT
Doesn’t Boat That Rocked have a bit where Nick Frost arranges a rape for someone to do? Admittedly, in retrospect, very in keeping with what DJs in the 60s and 70s were like but I’m pretty sure its supposed to be funny and/or romantic in the film Whaaaa? |
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cubby
Full Member
doesn't get subtext
Posts: 6,336
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Post by cubby on May 30, 2024 9:37:18 GMT
Doing the old switcheroo is just harmless fun.
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Binky
Junior Member
Posts: 1,114
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Post by Binky on May 30, 2024 9:47:13 GMT
John Wick
Decided that the 13 year old (almost 14 but also almost 35 frankly) could watch the first one with me last night. It really is a great action film. It's pretty tight, although could lose a few minutes here and there; for instance, the false start and end that bookend the movie don't really serve any purpose, it does a good enough job telling us about his wife without the need for that stuff.
Anyway, there was more stabbing and slightly less gunplay than I remembered but I think that's the sequels making me think it was noisier than it is. (It still IS a very shooty film though, obviously.)
As much as I quite like the madness of the other films, this one definitely benefits from less of the lore.
8/10
edit: oh, and it looked absolutely stunning in 4k from the Apple store. Lovely stuff.
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Post by britesparc on May 30, 2024 9:56:26 GMT
And then Lincoln's clothes fall off. And you see everything. Daniel Day Lewis made some unconventional choices but I guess that's why he won the Oscar. |
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Post by simple on May 30, 2024 10:11:09 GMT
Doesn’t Boat That Rocked have a bit where Nick Frost arranges a rape for someone to do? Admittedly, in retrospect, very in keeping with what DJs in the 60s and 70s were like but I’m pretty sure its supposed to be funny and/or romantic in the film Whaaaa? Its been a long time but its along the lines of Frost seducing a girl because he’s funny and confident then blindfolding her and leaving. The nerdy shy boy who actually fancies her then takes his place and tries to (does?) have sex with her while she thinks its Nick Frost and is completely unaware of this boy being there or the plan to switch places. Y’know just funny, charming comedy rape japes. |
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Post by Jambowayoh on May 30, 2024 10:21:26 GMT
Wow, so basically Revenge of the Nerds.
Richard Curtis really likes his fucked up situations that he thinks are actually romantic, doesn't he?
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Post by FlexibleFeline on May 30, 2024 15:52:35 GMT
Even stuff that seems sort of odd but innocuous initially, like the Dans le Noir dine-in-the-dark restaurant in About Time, takes on a pervy sheen when viewed as part of the Curtis oeuvre (which for the uninitiated is French for "degenerate masterplan of rosbif").
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technoish
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Post by technoish on May 30, 2024 15:58:17 GMT
I guess also in About Time, General Hux uses his time travel to try as many ways as possible to try and seduce Barbie. She's basically just not that into him  |
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Post by FlexibleFeline on May 30, 2024 15:59:09 GMT
Ha, that too, of course.
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Post by simple on May 30, 2024 17:57:53 GMT
I guess also in About Time, General Hux uses his time travel to try as many ways as possible to try and seduce Barbie. She's basically just not that into him So… Groundhog Day? |
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Post by britesparc on May 30, 2024 19:10:43 GMT
He also stole that bloke's script for Yesterday, took all the credit, and rewrote it to be less interesting.
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Post by Jambowayoh on May 30, 2024 19:39:12 GMT
Richard Curtis: The incredibly mediocre thinking man who is actually a GOOD GUY and would be great for her if she just chose to like me and let herself be happy's director of choice.
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