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| Ghulam |
 Posted: Thu Jan 29, 2015 2:41 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 4742
Location: Upstate NY
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billyweeds wrote: Ghulam wrote: .
In spite of all the controversy over American Sniper (see below), I think it is probably the best work of Clint Eastwood.
http://tinyurl.com/k4w7ew9
(Changed the url.)
I would agree it's one of Eastwood's better movies, but I'm one of those people who thinks Eastwood has been habitually overrated in the extreme. Gran Torino, True Crime, and Absolute Power are three of the worst films of the last decade or so, and even slightly better ones like J. Edgar and Mystic River do not hold up on second viewing. The only movies he's made that I thoroughly like are his first directorial effort Play Misty for Me (which is far better than its later clone Fatal Attraction), the Kevin Costner-driven A Perfect World, and the critically-trashed Hereafter. Oh, and American Sniper. Eastwood is one of the most overpraised living filmmakers.
I do not care much for Clint Eastwood either, but he can sometimes outdo himself, as in American Sniper and Million Dollar Baby.
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 5:48 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
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Location: New York City
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Ghulam wrote: billyweeds wrote: Ghulam wrote: .
In spite of all the controversy over American Sniper (see below), I think it is probably the best work of Clint Eastwood.
http://tinyurl.com/k4w7ew9
(Changed the url.)
I would agree it's one of Eastwood's better movies, but I'm one of those people who thinks Eastwood has been habitually overrated in the extreme. Gran Torino, True Crime, and Absolute Power are three of the worst films of the last decade or so, and even slightly better ones like J. Edgar and Mystic River do not hold up on second viewing. The only movies he's made that I thoroughly like are his first directorial effort Play Misty for Me (which is far better than its later clone Fatal Attraction), the Kevin Costner-driven A Perfect World, and the critically-trashed Hereafter. Oh, and American Sniper. Eastwood is one of the most overpraised living filmmakers.
I do not care much for Clint Eastwood either, but he can sometimes outdo himself, as in American Sniper and Million Dollar Baby.
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Million Dollar Baby was good, but the fact that it beat out the infinitely superior Sideways for the Oscar will forever gall me. |
Last edited by billyweeds on Fri Jan 30, 2015 6:14 am; edited 1 time in total |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 5:51 am |
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Location: New York City
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| gromit |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 6:48 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
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Location: Shanghai
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| Million Dollar Baby is when/why I stopped watching Clint Eastwood films. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 9:19 am |
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Location: New York City
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| Eastwood's two (!!??!) Oscarwinning films were both overshadowed by their competition, MDB by Sideways and Unforgiven by The Crying Game. |
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| Syd |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:27 am |
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Site Admin
Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 12893
Location: Norman, Oklahoma
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| I agree with you about The Crying Game, but I've never understood the fuss about Sideways. |
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I had a love and my love was true but I lost my love to the yabba dabba doo, --The Flintstone Lament |
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| Ghulam |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 12:30 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
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Location: Upstate NY
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I liked both Sideways and The Crying Game but I think they were beaten by worthy opponents. I do remember intensely disliking A Perfect World though I do not remember anything else about it. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 1:20 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
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Location: New York City
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Syd wrote: I agree with you about The Crying Game, but I've never understood the fuss about Sideways.
It's my third favorite film of the post-2000 era, topped only by Boyhood and A Separation. |
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| marantzo |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 5:38 pm |
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Joined: 30 Oct 2014
Posts: 278
Location: Winnipeg: It's a dry cold.
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Billy, I'm with you.Crying Game and Sideways are also two of my favourites.
Thinking about Sideways, I want to tell a funny story of mine. A good friend of mine came to Winnipeg one year and my wife and I had dinner at our place and Barry had bought two bottles of wine. Very expensive ones. One was a famous red wine and the other was a very special American red wine. The French one cost $165 and the American was $145. It was around 1996. We had dinner and finished the French Wine, but Barry said he wasn't going to uncork the American one, so I could have it. I had it for years and ended up with it in my new apartment in 2004. I kept it in my wine cabinet. In 2007 I found a new red wine in the liquor store I went to. It was cheap. $7.35. Put it in my wine cabinet and two nights later took it out for my supper. Had a steak. The first time I drank the wine, I was thrilled. At that price I decided that was the one I'd buy every time. The next night I drank another third of the wine while eating Spareribs. The next night after that I made some Hamburgers and chips and of course took out the bottle of wine and was happy to buy another one when I would finish that one. I took a bite of the Hamburger and saw the wine bottle label and it was the $!45 American wine!!! I broke out laughing. I never noticed it was the $145 wine that I'd been drinking. I almost fell off my chair and I though that I was the guy who took his most expensive wine to a hamburger joint in Sideways. |
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| Syd |
| Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 10:53 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
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| If Reason's to be believed, American Sniper's a hit in the Middle East (though not among everyone, obviously). Perhaps because the enemy in the movie also kills Iraqi civilians. The Kurds love it. |
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I had a love and my love was true but I lost my love to the yabba dabba doo, --The Flintstone Lament |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Sat Jan 31, 2015 12:38 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
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Location: Shanghai
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I read that it was popular in Iraq, but then the theater pulled it after a week. One employee said it was withdrawn because it depicts many Muslims getting killed.
Of course this was only playing in one upscale theater in a fortress-like part of Baghdad, so only well-off city folks were seeing it in a theater. Pirated dvd's and download channels exist, but harder to track down folks watching at home to get their opinions.
I assume the situation isn't much different in other ME countries. Egypt could be an exception. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Sat Jan 31, 2015 10:40 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
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Location: Shanghai
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Just picked up a handful of 2014 films.
So I can start a-catchin' up:
Whiplash
Birdman
Citizen Four
Lucy
Leviathan
I wanted to nab Foxcatcher, but they was all sold out.
I decided to wait on Interstellar, Selma and Imitation Game. For Interstellar, I want to wait and make sure I get a perfect digital copy. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sat Jan 31, 2015 6:32 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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gromit wrote: Just picked up a handful of 2014 films.
So I can start a-catchin' up:
Whiplash
Birdman
Citizen Four
Lucy
Leviathan
I wanted to nab Foxcatcher, but they was all sold out.
I decided to wait on Interstellar, Selma and Imitation Game. For Interstellar, I want to wait and make sure I get a perfect digital copy.
I would say that if you feel you just have to see Interstellar, the home screen is not the way to go. |
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| Syd |
| Posted: Sat Jan 31, 2015 7:15 pm |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 12893
Location: Norman, Oklahoma
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| There was a preview of Leviathan before Whiplash. It looks like a must-see. |
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I had a love and my love was true but I lost my love to the yabba dabba doo, --The Flintstone Lament |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Sun Feb 01, 2015 12:31 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
Posts: 9008
Location: Shanghai
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Yeah, home Tv isn't the best way to catch certain films, but otoh it's what I'm used to, as i see maybe one film a year in a theater.
Maybe I'll check if Interstellar is playing here.
I'd love to see it in IMAX.
And it might play at the SH Film Festival, but that isn't til June.
I've heard good things about Leviathan. But have no idea what it is about. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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