I usually look forward to this time of year because there’s such an array of outstanding movies to see - however, this year we have some other events going on that are taking up our time, so I may not get around to seeing as many movies as I usually do during winter.
I know I’m probably in the minority here, but we did see the last Hunger Games movie at Thanksgiving; when it was over, H and Ds asked me what I thought, and I said, “That’s the last one, right?” “Yes.” Me: “Good.” I just so do NOT enjoy science-fiction/fantasy type movies. Just cannot get into them. So imagine my dismay when H and Ds decided this year we were going to do a Star Wars marathon at home so we could go see the new Star Wars movie… UGH! But I’m playing the good sport and watched the first two movies at home… we will watch #3 tomorrow night and go see the new one Sunday night.
That all being said, I did get to pick the movie for tonight, and we saw Brooklyn. I absolutely LOVED it! Saw some other previews of movies I’d like to see, but just don’t know if I’ll get around to them all before they come out on DVD. When we saw Hunger Games, of course every preview we saw was for other action/science-fiction genre movies; but go see a movie you really like and you see previews of upcoming movies that are more your taste. Saw previews for a new movie that Maggie Smith is in, The Lady in the Van, that looks pretty good. Also, Carol. Yea, I know… some people would consider these all chick flicks.
There’s more than just the first three (meaning the ones released in '77, '80 and '83)? Shows you how much I pay attention to action/sci-fi movies! Really… it’s painful for me to watch. Just as I’m sure some of the movies I want to watch are painful to others!
This weekend, after all the relatives leave but before my daughter gets back from Christmas with her boyfriend’s family, I’m going to do a solo movie marathon for new releases – Carol and Brooklyn are definitely on the list and then maybe one more from Spotlight, Joy, The Big Short or 45 Years! Love the big crowds that are here for Christmas but itvis a bit of sensory overload!
I want to see Spotlight this weekend! Went to see Creed on XMAS Eve. DH and I didn’t think it was as great as the critics or the kids did. It was fine, could have just waited for the DVD. I read one critics review who wrote what I felt. Rocky was a movie about a mans struggle with himself, his loneliness, his life. Boxing was just the backdrop for the essence of the Rocky message. It was done beautifully. Creed, although not a bad movie at all, tries to do that but falls short. It’s mostly a boxing movie, with the other stuff as backdrop.
The best part was Stallone, as us just reminiscing about Rocky…and a nice ending.
Not only do I not like star wars, I don’t like hunger games and I only saw the first Harry Potter.
So far I want to see Joy. I heard the latest Rocky was supposed to be Oscar worthy. My usual genre is the indie films, I rarely go to the big cineplex, though now we have a new theater I may try it for Joy. I’ll be following this thread.
D1 (who lives in Boston) had already seen Spotlight, so it was out of contention. Ds also weren’t interested in Concussion (which H and I are), so hopefully we’ll see it after they leave next week.
@eyeamom - we have a new theater, with the reclining lounging seats you reserve ahead of time - it’s really nice, but only shows the mainstream movies - they were not even showing Brooklyn, so we had to go to another location that does occasionally show that kind of movie.
D1 and her BF went to see both The Room and Carol this week. The former is supposed to be very good, hard to watch, though. Haven’t gotten the review for the latter, as they returned after we went to bed.
I hope that by “first two” that you mean by theatrical release date (i.e. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope and Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back) and not the first 2 in the prequel trilogy, because then that is just 5 hours of your life that you will never get back.
Whatever, all the Star Wars movies blend together for me. I know I saw the first three but honestly I couldn’t even tell you the full names or plots of them. I tend not to like sci fi / alternate reality. I saw the Harry Potter movies just to accompany my kids but most likely fell asleep during them!
We tried to see The Big Short Christmas afternoon and it was sold out–who would have guessed that? Saw Creed instead and was very disappointed, especially considering all the positive reviews. I loved Rocky back in the day and I’m a big fan of Michael B. Jordan from his days on The Wire and Friday Night Lights, so I was primed to like Creed, but oh, what a pile of cliches and telegraphed plotlines. And it’s long and really drags. Stallone and Jordan did fine, but they had nothing much to work with. H said I flinched with every punch that landed in the boxing scenes (zillions of them landed --so unrealistic)–I think they put in some very over the top sound effects with the punches to ramp up the effect. There seem to be so many great movies around this season (Spotlight was my favorite so far)–I’d recommend skipping Creed.
We’ve had a big debate in my house about what Star Wars movies a novice should watch before seeing The Force Awakens. The general consensus is to see 4, 5 and 6, and pretend 1, 2 and 3 never happened. Apparently there are some subtle references in The Force Awakens to events/characters in 1, 2 and 3, but only a truly dedicated completist should feel it’s necessary to see them all. (I’m only a reporter here. I think I saw 1 and 2 and bailed on the rest, though I can’t even remember–Star Wars never intrigued me. I love good sci-fi, but always felt Star Wars was just a Western shoot-'em-up in disguise.)
Daughter and I just saw “Joy.” We both loved it! I especially love that it showed the creativity and ambition of a young girl that never got lost even though she lost herself along the way to becoming an adult. The grandma who never gave up was the true hero of the movie. The struggle of an invention from thought to patient to creation to manufacturing to marketing was shown well I thought. I love that it is being billed as “A Cinderella story where Cinderella didn’t need a Prince.”
@teriwtt - if its any comfort to you, because Star Wars is a Disney release, the previews for coming attractions are mostly for animated Disney features (I say mostly because it seemed to me like the first hour in the theater was all previews… they also had a few for action-type movies that I didn’t like at all). But I really enjoyed the trailer for Zootopia. (Star Wars, meh. I found it rather tedious. But it was fun to watch the reactions of my 5 year old companion, already seeing the film for the 2nd time).
Although I enjoy watching previews, extra long preview sessions annoy me, as do previews that seem to show the entire plot line.
We saw Concussion yesterday, which we all (including sports lovers and those who don’t care for sports much, like me) thought it was excellent all around. Will Smith did so well that I only recognized him as Will Smith once!
While I have always liked Star Wars and was excited to see this one, I’m not so into it that I could tell you all of the characters, planets/worlds, and plot lines besides the basic ones. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie for pure entertainment. It was fun to see the “old” characters and hear references to the other movies; people, including me, clapped and cheered at these references and appearances, and nostalgia ran high. I think they mixed that nostalgia with interesting new characters, and I liked the dialogue that is more reflective of the current time.
Tonight, we’re seeing The Big Short, which looks interesting. It wasn’t my pick, as I somehow missed even knowing about it until a couple days ago, but I’m glad we’re seeing it. The cast itself is intriguing.
