Literary Exploration discussion

Somewhere to talk about the movies you love, or the movies you hate. Any particular film or topic that builds a lot of discussion we may spin off into it's own topic.

Unfortunately I've not had a lot of time this year for movies. Too caught up in reading, TV shows and photography to squeeze them in.

The latest movie I've managed to watch was the final Harry Potter film. There is a film series which I believe has done justice to the source books. Yes there were a few differences that the book purists have jumped up and down about but I don't believe those differences removed anything vital and helped keep the movies rolling along smoothly without running to 10 hours each.

Yep, HP films were good. We mostly rent from Netflix. Just saw "Rango" - really liked it. Clever, funny and the animation was astonishing. I'd also recommend "Mary and Max" - claymation about an unusual friendship between a misfit Australian girl and a middle-aged New York atheist.

I wasn't a big fan of Rango. Something about it just didn't sit right.

I'm currently doing the netflix thing and watch a lot of films during the summer mostly. Since I enjoy the classic lit, I often watch the movie version that goes with the book. Love classics as well, and am a big fan of Turner Classic Movies.

Well, I have The Lincoln Lawyer in front of me from Netflix. I read the book a few months ago, so I am looking forward to watching it...even though I know how it will turn out.

Anyone see this yet?

Lincoln Lawyer is in my queue, so let me know what you think. It's gotten good reviews.
I have trouble processing Matthew McConaughey as anything but a stoner. Maybe this will film will change my mind.
Isn't it a shame how some great actors get stuck playing certain roles - like two of my favorites, Willem Dafoe and Christopher Walken are always the villains.

Willem Defoe is great in Boondock Saints and he's not a villain in that.

You're right! He was one hell of a sexy woman in that!

Franky wrote: "I'm currently doing the netflix thing and watch a lot of films during the summer mostly. Since I enjoy the classic lit, I often watch the movie version that goes with the book. Love classics as wel..."

I also use Netflix and noticed "1984" on the streaming queue. I love when I can read a book and then watch the movie to make comparisons. September's read will be interesting I am sure.

Thanks Kevin. I didn't know that was free right now. I'll add it to my queue, but I definitely want to read the book first!

Melki wrote: "Lincoln Lawyer is in my queue, so let me know what you think. It's gotten good reviews.
I have trouble processing Matthew McConaughey as anything but a stoner. Maybe this will film will change..."

It's weird, but the movie was exactly what I was envisioning when I was reading the book (I knew who was in it). The movie turned out pretty good. McConaughey plays a sort of slick, cocky, but good guy lawyer, sort of an antihero or sorts, but he did a pretty good job. Anyways, I thought it was pretty good, and matched up quite well with the book.

Franky wrote: "Melki wrote: "Lincoln Lawyer is in my queue, so let me know what you think. It's gotten good reviews.
I have trouble processing Matthew McConaughey as anything but a stoner. Maybe this will fil..."
I just watched "Insidious' (for the lovers of a horror genre), I was hoping to get something unbelievably great at the end and, as usual in the majority of the recent years' horror movies, it completely disappointed me.
I am re-watching an old series called "Cold Feet" and really enjoying it.

Booksy, I was going to rent Insidious, but then I read some reviews online and got a bit put off and decided that it wasn't for me. While scrolling the reviews, I kept seeing the phrase "horror cliches" repeated often. Is it a fairly typical horror movie then?

My recommended movie of the moment is Winter's Bone. It came out about 12-18 months ago and was considered for a few Oscars- not sure if it won them though. It's about a young girl trying to find her missing father to ensure he'll turn up for his court hearing- she's got no love lost for him, but the family home was posted for bail and she's desperate not to lose her home. The thing that sets the movie apart is the fact that it's set in a backwoods redneck hillbilly community that has it's own strange and sinister ways of meteing out justice and resents the protagonist's efforts to uncover the truth.

I'd recommend it for anyone who likes eerie thrillers, psychological character studies, or the southern gothic genre. Watch it. Do it.

I agree, Victoria. "Winter's Bone" was very good - unfortunately passed over for all Oscars. It was based on a book of the same name by Daniel Woodrell, which seems to have garnered decent reviews. I will never forget the line - "Me and my sisters put a hurtin' on her."

From Netflix, I recently enjoyed "Leaves of Grass" with Edward Norton playing twin brothers - an ivy league professor and his ne'er-do-well, pot-growing brother. Mostly humorous, with some violence. AND - an oddball from 2008 called "Dean Spanley" where an Edwardian gentleman becomes convinced that a clergyman is actually a reincarnated dog. It was very charming and extremely sentimental - so stay away, if you hate that sort of thing.

I've more or less loved the HP films, some more than others. And they were generally faithful to the books.

I loved the last one-thanks to my daughter, I've already seen it twice.

Good thing I did like it.

I also watched "April Showers"-I admit to being drawn to films/books about school massacres. Maybe as a mother of high schoolers or as a teacher...or maybe for some other reason (I read We Need to Talk About Kevin 5 or 6 times-& it was never an easy read for me, emotionally). The only thing I can imagine that would be worse than losing your child that way would be discovering your child was the perpetrator. Anyway, I found the film very interesting, only one part 2/3 through dragged a bit but for the most part very absorbing. For me at least.

Victoria wrote: "My recommended movie of the moment is Winter's Bone. It came out about 12-18 months ago and was considered for a few Oscars- not sure if it won them though. It's about a young girl trying to find h..."

Jennifer Lawrence was outstanding--it's a film that's well worth watching. In the same vein is Frozen River, a terrific film starring Melissa Leo (best supporting actress, the Fighter--another great film, but not for everyone).

Just watched 'The adjustment Bureau'.I like Matt Damon and i liked this movie.Also an old classic which my niece was asked to watch in her Film Studies class- Hitchcock's Psycho.Classic.

Sonali wrote: "Just watched 'The adjustment Bureau'.I like Matt Damon and i liked this movie.Also an old classic which my niece was asked to watch in her Film Studies class- Hitchcock's Psycho.Classic."

Sonali, My brother is a big Hitchcock fan and has one of his collection. We watch Psycho at least once every summer. Great movie. One of the best.

My brother and I went to go see the remake, the one with Vince Vaughn.So, we're waiting in line to get tickets, and he finally gets up to the window and says "Psycho at 3 o'clock" to the cashier. The cashier looks over to his side, then whispers discreetly "Thanks for the warning."

It took him awhile to get the joke :)

Sonali wrote: "Just watched 'The adjustment Bureau'.I like Matt Damon and i liked this movie.Also an old classic which my niece was asked to watch in her Film Studies class- Hitchcock's Psycho.Classic."

Have you read Adjustment Team? The novella the movie was based on? Like all movies based on a Philip K. Dick book, it was very loosly based on the original story.

I had no idea there were so many movies based on his novels - Thank you Google! I could only think of "Blade Runner" and "Minority Report". Hoping to get "Adjustment Bureau" this weekend.

I recently saw Hitchcock's "Lifeboat" for the first time. That was very, very good.

Franky - finally saw "Lincoln Lawyer" - it was good!
McConaughey was fine. Almost erased my memories of him as the mustachioed stoner from "Dazed and Confused", but not quite. The bad news is that my youngest son now wants to be a lawyer. Hmmm...I'd almost rather he be a mustachioed stoner...

Melki wrote: "Franky - finally saw "Lincoln Lawyer" - it was good!
McConaughey was fine. Almost erased my memories of him as the mustachioed stoner from "Dazed and Confused", but not quite. The bad news is th..."

Haha, exactly.

It's amazing how once we see an actor/actress in a film we typecast them into certain roles. I can't see Anthony Hopkins without thinking him Hannibal Lecter. And, Micheal Cera pretty much plays a typical romantic loser, geeky dude trying to get the girl in every film.

Melki wrote: "Franky - finally saw "Lincoln Lawyer" - it was good!
McConaughey was fine. Almost erased my memories of him as the mustachioed stoner from "Dazed and Confused", but not quite. The bad news is th..."

HAAA!

I just finished The Help, and I would like to see the movie soon. I just saw Final Destination 5 with a friend. In my opinion, it was ok. Lots of blood and gore, but in a cheesy way. My favorite movie of all time is 9 to 5. Most people I know think I'm weird since I'm 18, and that's my favorite movie, but... I guess I like it because it has such strong women in it, and they manage to take over a man's world.

Melki wrote: "I had no idea there were so many movies based on his novels - Thank you Google! I could only think of "Blade Runner" and "Minority Report". Hoping to get "Adjustment Bureau" this weekend.

I re..."

All of Hitchcock's movies are fantastic! I'm a big fan of "North by Northwest" and "Vertigo".

I guess my favorite Hitchcock is "Shadow of a Doubt" - but then I've always loved Joseph Cotten.

Knowledge Lost wrote: "Sonali wrote: "Just watched 'The adjustment Bureau'.I like Matt Damon and i liked this movie.Also an old classic which my niece was asked to watch in her Film Studies class- Hitchcock's Psycho.Clas..."
Really? I had no idea. Is it good, then I'll try to get hold of it.

Debbie wrote: "Melki wrote: "I had no idea there were so many movies based on his novels - Thank you Google! I could only think of "Blade Runner" and "Minority Report". Hoping to get "Adjustment Bureau" this we..."
Me too and exactly those two :-)

Another eternal favourite is Rainman.I never grow tired of watching it.

I enjoyed it, but not his best work. It was interesting

I'm watching The Blade Runner on netflix. I wish they had the director's cut on instant viewing. Amazing, I haven't watched this film since high school.

I also loved watching In Bruges, The black humour of the characters and the medieval beauty of the city juxtaposed is very enjoyable.

Oh - I love "In Bruges"! I always thought of Colin Farrell as just a pretty boy, but he really acts his heart out in that one.

On the weekend, I watched "Lincoln Lawyer" (good story twist, great acting).
And also watched a very weird movie called "The Perfect Host" - a really strange one, can't say I liked it much but it kept me interested and guessing until the end. I can't say I didn't like it either. One of those strange movies that will keep popping up in your memory for some time after you watched it.
Started watching "The Ward" (a new Carpenter's horror movie) but didn't finish... the beginning was quite good.

We watched(its a holiday here for us today-end of Ramzan)Bergman's The virgin spring. Can't get it out of my head though the overt christian ending was difficult to swallow.

Hadn't watched 2001: A Space Odyssey since film class awhile back and watched it on netflix. It blew me away. Amazing.

I know some people say it's boring, no words or dialogue, etc, but wow, I loved it! Guess I should have paid attention in film class. I have such an appreciation for this movie now. It has such an artistic quality to it that I found so different than so many other films.

Oh good - I'm glad someone else was annoyed by the end of "Virgin Spring". "Yes, let's PRAISE God for taking away our daughter...in fact - we'll build a church in the very spot where she was murdered!"

Otherwise, a very interesting film. Based on a 13th century Swedish folk ballad, the story is still compelling enough today to be made and remade into the gorefest "Last House on the Left".

Saw "The Duelists" over the weekend. From 1977, it concerns two officers in Napoleon's army who can't stop challenging each other to a series of duels. Both Harvey Keitel and Keith Carradine seem miscast, but the cinematography was outstanding. Every shot looked like a painting - beautiful to watch.

I watched some great movies on the planes home. Hanna was just amazing. Everything about it from the direction and the cinematography to the soundtrack just propelled you through the story wanting to know more. Loved every single second of it and I'd be happy to watch it all again. It's on it's last days at the cinema and I'm even thinking of seeing it again.
The other was Midnight in Paris, a woody Allen movie. Perhaps I loved it so much because I had just left Paris but I thought it was delightful.
Another one was The Beaver with mel Gibson and Jodie foster. A fantastic portrayal of a man suffering depression and how it affects his family. Very sad and touching and even confronting at times.
Then I ruined my streak of great movies by watching something borrowed. I promised myself I'd never watch it but ginnefer Goodwin is so cute, I gave in and regretted it 15 minutes in but continued to watch it anyway

I watched the latest Pirates of the Caribbean movie the other night. Why do they insist on destroying how good pirates can be? And the similarities between it and On Stranger Tides is pretty much limited to Blackbeard and the Fountain of Youth.

Kim, were you disappointed in all of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, or just the latest one? Just wondering.

They seem to be taking them and making them so formulaic that it drives me bonkers to sit through them, although I did like the first one.

I just found and started watching Double Indemnity on Netflix. Pretty cool so far.

Franky wrote: "Kim, were you disappointed in all of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, or just the latest one? Just wondering."

They have been getting worse and worse as the series progresses.

Kim wrote: "Franky wrote: "Kim, were you disappointed in all of the Pirates of the Caribbean films, or just the latest one? Just wondering."

They have been getting worse and worse as the series progresses."

Yes, exactly. It's like, okay, been there, done that.

Disney is probably trying to market it in a cheesy way to keep the young crowd as the target audience for the films. So, a lot of action, and one liners, and little substance. What's next, Pirates of the Caribbean action figures at McDonalds? (Or maybe they have already thought of that).

No Happy Meal toys yet, but I did see "Pirates of the Caribbean" LEGO sets over the weekend.

And I'm rather fond of my Davy Jones Pez dispenser.

Transformers everywhere (thanks to my son)

We watched "Winter's Bone" last weekend and it was outstanding. It was definately dark, but I found the insularity of the community interesting and Jennifer Lawrence's performance riveting. I have not read the book, but I highly recommend the movie.

Just saw "Dead End" on netflix, an old Humphrey Bogart film, one that deals with the separation of the rich and poor. It was interesting, a little bit of a social commentary about New York late 1930s and the struggles of the time. Bogart is one of my favorite classic film actors (loved his role in The Treasure of the Sierra Madre...one of my favorite films).

If anyone else remembers the movie "The Assassination Beaureau" staring Oliver Reed. It was based on an unfinished Novel by Jack London and, even by todays standards, a pretty fun movie. Now you can find it free on the web if you like.

Thanks guys! I added them both to my queue. I would actually be willing to leave my home and venture out into the world to see "Moneyball" and "The Ides of March", but alas, my local theater chooses to show only films aimed at teens, like the current remake of a movie that wasn't really good the first time around, ahem..."Footloose", anyone?

Kyle wrote: "I'm a fan of Robert DeNiro, so I loved the films Raging Bull, The Untouchables, Hide and Seek, This Boy's Life, Cape Fear and many more.

I'm also into horror. Loved Halloween, Friday the 13th, Pro..."

Kyle, I thought DeNiro did a great job in the remake of Cape Fear and, even though I usually hate mobster kind of films, I did like The Untouchables.

The original Halloween is definitely a classic, one to turn off the lights and watch again when it is nearing Halloween. Sure, it is a slasher with some cheese, but the film has psychological suspense definitely lacking in many modern horror films. For one, the film does so many great point of view moments, where we subtly feel Michael creeping into the scene, lurking in the background. It's too bad they had to add like twenty sequels after this one (okay, maybe less).

Just wondering, did you happen to see either of the remakes of Friday the 13th or Halloween?