General Movie Thread 2024

[Colly]

Sounds like trouble at mill. 

[Hobo]

I watched Apocalypse Now for the first time as part of the series of "Things We Watch To Entertain My Girlfriend's Father".

It's a beautiful looking film and a lot more satirical and funny in places than I expected, but you can really see the seams more than I'd expected. It veered close to annoying me the way Easy Rider annoys me for being indulgent and very of it's time but didn't quite get there.  I can't say it's a film I'd ever watch a second time.

Also nobody ever shows the clip of Marlon Brando looking hilarious in camo make-up when talking about this film. He looks like a member of Hulk Hogan's War Games team at Fall Brawl 95

 

[Colly]

 

[Hobo]

3 minutes ago, Colly said:

 

Spoiler

It's uncanny.

He also just kinda looks like Homer Simpson dressed up as The Incredible Hulk for Halloween

[Tigerstyle]

On the back of the comment in the Marvel Movie thread about things bombing. I just looked at pre covid vs post covid numbers.

In the five years prior to Covid there was a minimum of 4 billion dollar movies a year, with 2019 seeing 9 films breaching a billion dollars.

Since covid there has been a total of just 7. There's also been a large decrease in films in general breaching just 100mil at the cinema.

So, the cinema is dead, right?

[gunnar hendershow]

Cinema has had multiple times where it's "dead" and comes back each time. The most recent boom to theaters was on the backs of event films and hangout films. Plus spoiler culture impacted a ton of desire to see movies fast. It was lucky for the studios who saw reliable home video sales, which helped turn flops into sometimes having net profits, disappear at the end of the 2000s.

What I suspect does happen is the bloated, expensive blockbuster doesn't make it over to streaming. Nobody has been able to show that they can recoup the cost of a $250 million film without significant ticket sales. Profitability appears driven more by content volume than "event-level" content. Streaming has upset what is more or less a century-old business model, and is marketed at a deep discount. The money people used to spend on cable + movie tickets in a month would theoretically eventually be what they pay for streaming services. I doubt that happens and I also doubt that the major studios continue to put out these wildly expensive films if they can get away with spending much less for more volume

What happens with movie theaters is interesting. Sony is working to purchase Alamo Drafthouse, making another foray into more niche media as Alamo is much more for people who don't mind spending a bit more for the experience. Paramount Decree disappeared in the US in 2020 and in theory a major production company could buy up a struggling cineplex chain and convert it into a "physical" location for their content. Giving fans the chance to socialize and not be alienated at home for films.

What I don't think will go away, since it's always hung on, is the more boutique/independent distribution. There's always been a demand from people to escape the blockbuster and escape the mass-market movies. You have less guarantees, outside of a VOD rental, of certain movies ever finding their way to a streaming service. Plus, that general demographic is historically much more passionate about supporting tenuously profitable releases.

[Tigerstyle]

Boutique cinema and art houses will always hold out as they’re usually funded by their communities come what may. In the same way good independent venues of any art can survive if they have a good community.

I do find the idea of ‘filmhouses’ being interesting, that you can enjoy content from a particular studio and their partners but also To try and make it more of an ‘event’ going to the cinema is probably paramount to keep the larger establishments open.

The fact the cinema is now pretty much just a room to watch a film you can’t watch elsewhere yet is sad. Bad quality food and drink and an overpriced cream counter and pick and mix, my local Cineworld used to be a Virgin Cinema so it had a cafe bar in there, a lounge and a memorabilia store, it felt special going to the cinema

[gunnar hendershow]

18 minutes ago, Tigerstyle said:

I do find the idea of ‘filmhouses’ being interesting, that you can enjoy content from a particular studio and their partners but also To try and make it more of an ‘event’ going to the cinema is probably paramount to keep the larger establishments open.

My wife and I used to regularly do dinner + a movie dates. Was very much our thing pre-Covid. The theater we went to was in a good location near some decent restaurants. Most of the non-fast casual restaurants have closed which has kinda killed the vibe. This is just an anecdote, but I think something to be said for how movies worked as part of a day out and how they may no longer.

[Mx. Canadian Destroyer]

1 hour ago, gunnar hendershow said:

Cinema has had multiple times where it's "dead" and comes back each time. The most recent boom to theaters was on the backs of event films and hangout films. Plus spoiler culture impacted a ton of desire to see movies fast. It was lucky for the studios who saw reliable home video sales, which helped turn flops into sometimes having net profits, disappear at the end of the 2000s.

What I suspect does happen is the bloated, expensive blockbuster doesn't make it over to streaming. Nobody has been able to show that they can recoup the cost of a $250 million film without significant ticket sales. Profitability appears driven more by content volume than "event-level" content. Streaming has upset what is more or less a century-old business model, and is marketed at a deep discount. The money people used to spend on cable + movie tickets in a month would theoretically eventually be what they pay for streaming services. I doubt that happens and I also doubt that the major studios continue to put out these wildly expensive films if they can get away with spending much less for more volume

What happens with movie theaters is interesting. Sony is working to purchase Alamo Drafthouse, making another foray into more niche media as Alamo is much more for people who don't mind spending a bit more for the experience. Paramount Decree disappeared in the US in 2020 and in theory a major production company could buy up a struggling cineplex chain and convert it into a "physical" location for their content. Giving fans the chance to socialize and not be alienated at home for films.

What I don't think will go away, since it's always hung on, is the more boutique/independent distribution. There's always been a demand from people to escape the blockbuster and escape the mass-market movies. You have less guarantees, outside of a VOD rental, of certain movies ever finding their way to a streaming service. Plus, that general demographic is historically much more passionate about supporting tenuously profitable releases.

I don't think movie theatres will ever not be a thing but the biggest thing that has hurt it is the pricing and COVID moving to have VOD so quickly available.

But I think if that wasn't profitable, they wouldn't do it. Costner was banking on Horizon being successful on the VOD market.

[Your Mom]

I watch everything VOD now. I will probably make an exception for Deadpool and Wolverine but going to a movie theater just isn't worth it when I can watch it at home for the same price within a month or so

[Gabriel]

I haven't been to the cinema since Terrifier 2 came out. It's what dragged us out of our house for the first time since Covid to see a film. Thinking about it, it's partially our love for Art the Clown, but also it was just good to see our local cinema bringing in "lesser" films. Our personal tastes are positive towards a lot of the bigger budget films, but they don't typically have us salivating at the thought of seeing them. Would Godzilla x Kong have been a spectacle on a huge screen? For sure. But, it's essentially just drivel that cost a fuck ton of money to make and while we enjoyed it, it's not something that's going to be watched continuously. Whereas, we have made a habit of watching the Art the Clown movies every Halloween since the first Terrifier came out.

Interest level is a big thing, and I think a lot of studios over-value or over-estimate the actual interest level in their big blockbusters. Sure, they're fun or spectacular in big ways a lot of the time, but they don't resonate. They don't grip your soul and hold on.

We're likely going to see Deadpool and Wolverine, because I'm a giant fucking nerd and I'm so very hyped for this one, but I've also skipped over a lot of Marvel movies. That trend started pre-Covid, by the way. I really love them, but I'm totally cool with waiting and seeing them at home. I have a 70 inch TV. I dislike large crowds. Why put myself through that when I don't feel like it's needed?

It's probably going to cost me north of $50 for me and my partner to go see this though. That's another problem. I know people with two full-time incomes who think it costs too much because they're stretched too thin. I support two adults on one full-time income (and I don't make the cost of living where I live). So, if we wanna go see a movie, it better be fucking worth it, because I'm likely going without SOMETHING to make the money work.

I'm also on the hype train for Alien: Romulus, but I'll wait to see reactions from people I trust before I decide whether or not to venture to the cinema for it. Again, I adore that franchise (even the shitty entries), but cost is a huge consideration, as is my free time.

[TheWho87]

Just saw this pop up on Twitter, got a feeling we were robbed of this masterpiece.

 

[Adam]

Went to see Longlegs today. Not that good, and the third act especially was terrible.

Spoiler

The first half is quite suspenseful and interesting, but very much just seems like it's aping Silence of the Lambs. Then the narrative jumps over a shark and off a cliff, it becomes a supernatural scary doll movie with little set-up and ends in a ridiculous way leaving me thinking "what was the point of that?". I didn't even like Nic Cage's performance, which everyone seems to be praising regardless of whether they rate the movie or not.

 

[Mx. Canadian Destroyer]

On 23/07/2024 at 16:58, Adam said:

Went to see Longlegs today. Not that good, and the third act especially was terrible.

  Hide contents

The first half is quite suspenseful and interesting, but very much just seems like it's aping Silence of the Lambs. Then the narrative jumps over a shark and off a cliff, it becomes a supernatural scary doll movie with little set-up and ends in a ridiculous way leaving me thinking "what was the point of that?". I didn't even like Nic Cage's performance, which everyone seems to be praising regardless of whether they rate the movie or not.

 

Spoiler

So I liked it a lot, even if I would agree that the third act sort of falls apart. 

It's funny to think that most of the movie has this theme of "what if the people who do bad things are actually just kind of weird nobodies" rather than some super evil and smart serial killer. Like, Longlegs literally kills himself as soon as he's caught. I also do love the theme of "what lengths would you go to protect your family". That being said, the fact that it ends up being supernatural kind of undermines a lot of it. It's definitely in a string of things I've seen lately where I super enjoyed while watching it and the more I leave and things sort of start to fall apart.

 

[Your Mom]

Not sure if this is the right thread but I was wondering if anyone had a place where I can find out when/if big theatrical releases are coming to streaming. Like I was going to buy Furiosa but found out it's coming to Max in less than a month. Don't really want to pay extra to watch a movie if I can just wait a bit

[DFF]

On 30/07/2024 at 23:29, Your Mom said:

Not sure if this is the right thread but I was wondering if anyone had a place where I can find out when/if big theatrical releases are coming to streaming. Like I was going to buy Furiosa but found out it's coming to Max in less than a month. Don't really want to pay extra to watch a movie if I can just wait a bit

Not sure about exact release dates, but the website Just Watch is geared up to tell you how you can go about watching films/tv shows you want to see across loads of streaming platforms. I believe the site can be tweaked for different countries too. 

[Mx. Canadian Destroyer]

On 30/07/2024 at 18:29, Your Mom said:

Not sure if this is the right thread but I was wondering if anyone had a place where I can find out when/if big theatrical releases are coming to streaming. Like I was going to buy Furiosa but found out it's coming to Max in less than a month. Don't really want to pay extra to watch a movie if I can just wait a bit

Fandango doesn't actually work for me in Canada but I believe it should work for you. Should tell you what is in theatres but then when stuff is coming to VOD or streaming.

https://www.fandango.com/movies-in-theaters

[gunnar hendershow]

On 30/07/2024 at 12:33, Mx. Canadian Destroyer said:

  Hide contents

So I liked it a lot, even if I would agree that the third act sort of falls apart. 

It's funny to think that most of the movie has this theme of "what if the people who do bad things are actually just kind of weird nobodies" rather than some super evil and smart serial killer. Like, Longlegs literally kills himself as soon as he's caught. I also do love the theme of "what lengths would you go to protect your family". That being said, the fact that it ends up being supernatural kind of undermines a lot of it. It's definitely in a string of things I've seen lately where I super enjoyed while watching it and the more I leave and things sort of start to fall apart.

 

Spoiler

I thought the presence of the supernatural ramped it up. Mainly because it was set at the same time as the Satanic panic, when families were out in force decrying things like Dungeons & Dragons. So for the Satanism angle to actually be present but hidden behind "family values" and a local church really struck me.

I do think it's much more about the feeling of dread than its conclusion. The sense of feeling it produced is one of the best parts of modern independent horror, but it's certainly built up on vibes than narrative. I'm fine with that, but know that's not the case for everyone.

 

On 30/07/2024 at 18:29, Your Mom said:

Not sure if this is the right thread but I was wondering if anyone had a place where I can find out when/if big theatrical releases are coming to streaming. Like I was going to buy Furiosa but found out it's coming to Max in less than a month. Don't really want to pay extra to watch a movie if I can just wait a bit

They don't do the best job promoting when something will go from VOD to a streaming service. But 45 days is typically my benchmark for VOD, and oftentimes it's sooner.

[Hobo]

Over the weekend David Lynch announced he has quit smoking due to having emphysema.

From the bits of an interview with Sight and Sound that have come out: as a result, he's mostly homebound and IF he does direct again it would have to be remote.

[therockbox]

 

The absolute balls of this trailer. I mean it's going to be awful and bomb massively but still.