The Ultimate Movie Thread of Ultimate Destiny

[UniversalWolf]

I saw The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Pretty good, but I was unprepared for the level of brutality. Why is there so much torture in movies these days? I find that very tiresome.

On a scale of 5 I'd probably give it 3.5.

 

[Alphadrop]

Well the book is meant to be pretty edgy, violent, gritty and violent.

 

[Sabirah]

Well now I am unsure weather to watch it. Is the brutality used in a way that will further the plot? or is it just torture entertainment?

 

[maximaz]

I saw the first one and it had some pretty brutal scenes (mostly rape). I'm wondering how much got carried over to the Fincher version.

 

[.Pixote.]

Has anyone watched Audition (1999)...I saw it in the cinema, it is the only film I've ever watched were I almost vomited. I actually felt nauseous towards the end.

So beautiful, so dangerous.

 

[Cimmerian Nights]

I saw Mulholland Drive for the first time a few days ago. Quite an fun experience, just as I expected from David Lynch.

It's not one of my favorites either, but it has a lot of those great David Lynch moments that blow your mind and send smoke shooting out of your ears like a WB cartoon. That one got the most critical praise IIRC.

I saw The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Pretty good, but I was unprepared for the level of brutality. Why is there so much torture in movies these days? I find that very tiresome.

Because it's easier. It's easier to elicit a nauseating, shocking emotional response by showing base, gory shit than it is to write something as compelling and act it out. It's that simple.
I tend to agree with you, I saw the original movie a few weeks ago and felt it was a bit much, I don't really get off on watching women get raped. I don't find that entertaining. And I'm not squeamish, I've seen GWAR live a couple times.

I think what's more disturbing is how mainstream it has become. I think the b-movies when we were kids were worse, but they were low-budget, campy, underground, fringe shit (e.g. Ilsa: She-wolf of the SS). Now these torture porn flicks are slicker and bigger-budget.

Has anyone watched Audition (1999)...I saw it in the cinema, it is the only film I've ever watched were I almost vomited. I actually felt nauseous towards the end.

I'm not a big Miike fan, but I think this is one of his better flicks, because he actually shows some restraint. The first half of that movie plays better than most romantic-comedies, all the while I was thinking "OK, when is he gonna drop the hammer?" And when he finally does it's a lot more effective.
He's probably the poster-child for the use of pornographic levels of violence as a cheap device.

 

[Brother None]

Has anyone watched Audition (1999)...I saw it in the cinema, it is the only film I've ever watched were I almost vomited. I actually felt nauseous towards the end.

It's an excellent film, well...for reasons Cimms noted. As a horror, it's pretty much all build-up, and while the payoff is pretty gory, it isn't needlessly so. I just love this kind of horror, patient, well-paced, and genuinely creepy. Miike is usually more miss than hit with me, but he can be outstanding.

The only factor I found annoying is the hand held camera technique, but since the premises is based on a TV show filming a late night program its understandable.

Speaking of, [REC] is another one of those well-paced, genuinely creepy horror films (never saw 2, for whatever reason), but the hand held camera technique is a huge problem.

It's not just that this cinema verite style is a lazy over-used gimmick, but the fact is that it keeps breaking suspension of disbelief, which is always stretched taut in horror films. Are we really supposed to believe real people would not come in to help but would rather just keep filming in these situations? It's idiotic.

 

[maximaz]

Anyone else really freaking excited over Ridley Scott's Alien prequel?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sftuxbvGwiU[/youtube]

 

[Atomkilla]

Can't say I'm freaking exciting, but yes, I'm looking forward to it...

However, I didn't think it was going to be an Alien prequel. Those were the initial plans, and Scott changed his mind on that later, as far as I'm aware. Guess I was wrong...

So if it's set in the Alien universe, I'm having a bit of a hard time placing in it somewhere in the timeline of the established franchise - with the shitty AvP taken into account. Says on Wiki it will be placed in 21st century, which is a bit of inconsistent even with the original Alien.

Maybe Ridley decided to ignore his previous work and just went from the basic concept...which is a bit weird...

I have to say I'm a tad bit confused.
Still looking forward to it, though.

 

[maximaz]

Yes, it was rumored to be a stand alone movie. I heard there would be no xenomorphs in this one but it will definitely be an Alien movie. The trailer only confirms it with the unmistakable alien growl, the letters appearing slowly (like they did in the original) and the Space Jockey.

From what I understand, this is a prequel that takes place long before the first movie and will finally (hopefully) explain who the SJ was and how the xenomorphs came to be. It will definitely ignore AvP and might even ignore all sequels, including Cameron's, as he took it in a direction Scott did not intend to.

 

[Atomkilla]

From what I understand, this is a prequel that takes place long before the first movie

30 years, to be precise.
This is a bit of a problem for me, as design and technology of humans seems to be inconsistent with that featured in Alien.
Okay, I could understand technology not being akin to original monochromatic computers, but these space suits are kinda weird compared to what Ripley wears in Alien.

and will finally (hopefully) explain who the SJ was and how the xenomorphs came to be.

That's the plan, yes.

It will definitely ignore AvP and might even ignore all sequels, including Cameron's, as he took it in a direction Scott did not intend to.

I'm glad it ignores AvP, but I'm not sure about the sequel.
Seeing that it ignores some parts of the original is what's more troubling to me.

 

[maximaz]

30 years, to be precise.
This is a bit of a problem for me, as design and technology of humans seems to be inconsistent with that featured in Alien.
Okay, I could understand technology not being akin to original monochromatic computers, but these space suits are kinda weird compared to what Ripley wears in Alien.

Well, in the original we had a clunky mining ship with a crew of 7. Here we have a high tech research ship. It makes sense that the technology is more advanced.

 

[.Pixote.]

This is a bit of a problem for me, as design and technology of humans seems to be inconsistent with that featured in Alien.
Okay, I could understand technology not being akin to original monochromatic computers, but these space suits are kinda weird compared to what Ripley wears in Alien.

I agree, to be consistent the look of the film should resemble the original film more closely. I think Ron Cobb designed the interiors and space ships in the first film, which were as cool as the actual alien IMO.

 

[Atomkilla]

Well, in the original we had a clunky mining ship with a crew of 7. Here we have a high tech research ship. It makes sense that the technology is more advanced.

It doesn't actually...
Were a difference of, say 5-10 years, it would be acceptable as experimental technology etc.
But 30 years?

I don't really see that happening.

I agree, to be consistent the look of the film should resemble the original film more closely. I think Ron Cobb designed the interiors and space ships in the first film, which were as cool as the actual alien IMO.

Indeed.
In general, quality design rarely ages badly. Alien may have went out of date, but still looks realistic enough and attractive at the same time to pass as a great sci-fi for years to come.
I'm not sure if I see that strain in Prometheus.

 

[maximaz]

It doesn't actually...
Were a difference of, say 5-10 years, it would be acceptable as experimental technology etc.
But 30 years?

Really? There are 30-year-old cars that are way more advanced than some cars today. A 70's Benz 560 SEL has freaking rear power seats, seat position memory, electric sky/moon roof, and something like 300 horse power, in addition to so much stuff that few modern cars get. Compare that to one of those not-so-old Russian or Chinese cars that they reviewed on Top Gear. The difference makes it seem like the older cars are a few decades ahead. They are all road cars, none of which is a high tech NASA project. If one was a modern mining truck and another was the ultimate government high tech vehicle that is meant to search for the beginning of human race in another world, I am sure the difference would be bigger.

Plus, do we know how long they were in hypersleep in the original?

 

[Atomkilla]

Really? There are 30-year-old cars that are way more advanced than some cars today. A 70's Benz 560 SEL has freaking rear power seats, seat position memory, electric sky/moon roof, and something like 300 horse power, in addition to so much stuff that few modern cars get. Compare that to one of those not-so-old Russian or Chinese cars that they reviewed on Top Gear. The difference makes it seem like the older cars are a few decades ahead. They are all road cars, none of which is a high tech NASA project. If one was a modern mining truck and another was the ultimate government high tech vehicle that is meant to search for the beginning of human race in another world, I am sure the difference would be bigger.

I'm not very knowledgeable about cars, but I'm not sure if I'd compare Benz with any Russian or Chinese car, regardless the age.

Still, that's not the point.

Whereas I agree that these guys in Prometheus should have superior technology, as it is a extraterrestrial research ship, what we've seen here may be a bit over-the-top.
Like I've said, some fancy technology here (even though it is a high tech ship), and 30 years later there are still monochromatic computers on mining ships. That's just inconsistent for me.

Granted, we don't see much in this trailer, and I have indeed over-speculated here, so I should give it a bit of benefit of the doubt.

Plus, do we know how long they were in hypersleep in the original?

Can't say exactly, but I don't think it was that long.
Exact figure was given in the Aliens, if I recall correctly. And yes, I know that the sequel may not have any value here.
Nonetheless, I doubt it was more than few months, maybe a year.

 

[.Pixote.]

I think fighter planes would make a better comparison. Most of the front line fighters in the US were conceived in the late 60s and built in the 1970s (F16 - F14 - F15, even the stealth planes). Sure it takes 10 to 15 years to actually build one from scratch, but once in use they have a very long life span 30+ years. Naturally the technology gets upgraded through its life, but generally the models look the same as they did in the 1970's, I can imagine spaceships wouldn't be too different.

I'm sure the makers of the new Alien movie will consider the aesthetics of the original movie.

 

[Crni Vuk]

30 years, to be precise.
This is a bit of a problem for me, as design and technology of humans seems to be inconsistent with that featured in Alien.
Okay, I could understand technology not being akin to original monochromatic computers, but these space suits are kinda weird compared to what Ripley wears in Alien.

Same issue like with the Star Wars sequels. Awesome technology (special effects) and action (just count the explosions in the trailer) dont make for a great prequel.

Though It will be interesting to see what Scott makes out of it.

 

[maximaz]

I'm not sure if I'd compare Benz with any Russian or Chinese car, regardless the age.

Why not? Two vehicles, one built over 30 years later and looks generations older, from the engine down to electronic controls vs manual levers.

Besides, wasn't even the last space shuttle used for decades? It's not unreasonable to assume that in the future, such enormous ships as Nostromo (sp?) that spend years in space at a time, would be used for much longer. By the time Prometheus takes place, it may already be a decades old ship that is a piece of junk for its time but has no need of real upgrades, like one of those New York garbage ferries.

In the movie, Nostromo is overall very used and dirty inside and out, the seats are all torn and the screens malfunctioned on several occasions. At the same time, there existed technology such as Ash, who possibly belonged to the organization from Prometheus. It would actually be really odd if this new research ship had more than very little of the same technology as an old busted mining ship

Can't say exactly, but I don't think it was that long.
Exact figure was given in the Aliens, if I recall correctly. And yes, I know that the sequel may not have any value here.
Nonetheless, I doubt it was more than few months, maybe a year.

Well, I do know that after they wake up, they had 10 more months to go so it was more than a few months but I have no idea how long it was in total. If this ship takes years to complete a mission, it's probably old as hell.

Anyways, I'm not the most knowledgeable of Alien fans or too big of a tech geek but it makes perfect sense to me. Where I do agree with this point is KOTOR that takes place thousands of years before SW and has pretty much the same technology. Then again, ships there are fucking planets.

 

[SuAside]

I'm guessing a leviathan like the Nostromo was well over a century old.
Look at how the US uses aircraft carriers. They have a service lifespan of way over 50 years. Every few decades they let 'em come in, rip out everything, refurbish it & let it go out again (this frequently takes 2-3 years).

I would expect such huge cargo ships to be used for a long long time. All they need to do is haul cargo and have the crew in hypersleep for most of the voyage anyway. It's a big investment to build something like this. Expect them to milk it for all it's worth.