hollowviper72 said:Paul Campbell3, look, action can definitely be moderate. It's like, you can head down to Florida for a beach trip, but you gotta keep an eye on the budget... spend enough to actually enjoy yourself, but not so much that you end up in federal prison. Or, you could just live on crackers and tap water for those two weeks... or, you could go to the coast, mortgage your house, blow through cash like a maniac, bathe in milk, and hire two eunuchs to fan you with gold-plated palm leaves. 😉
Anyway, have a good one! 👋
Gaudi, you’re an extremist😁—actually, a triple extremist😁
If I went to the beach thinking I'd balance having fun without ending up behind bars, I wouldn't even bother going.
If I went to the beach thinking I'd survive on nothing but crusty bread and water, I wouldn't go.
And if I went to the beach thinking I'd have to put my house up for mortgage first, forget it.
I did exactly what Pesica predicted:
went to the coast, lived "normally"😁, blew through everything I had (I was already starting in the red😁) and now the "rainy season" is getting shorter—it's just bread and water for me now 😉
Bottom line: nothing ever stays certain, and nothing is ever guaranteed.
Paul Phillips4 said:🙂 You're just a blender. If you want actual enlightenment, you need to use your entire brain. It's pretty simple, right? 😉
Aha. So, what we have here is you pushing this theory of "independent intellectual enlightenment for blenders," while Jack Harris3 insists nothing happens until you get hit by a 220V surge from an outlet. 😁
hollowviper72 said:Sure; but what’s the point of changing? Look, what I'm talking about is just one layer of the truth. I honestly think it's just like that Hobbit song says... "the road goes ever on..." 😉
Jack Harris3 said:Wisdom isn't some textbook crap; it’s what you actually pick up from living your life and watching how the world works. Every single "wise saying" I’ve ever read points back to that one truth. Even old-timers out in rural Nebraska who haven't left their farm in forty years—they drop these heavy nuggets of wisdom all the time. Where does it come from? They can barely write a coherent sentence, let alone claim to have any formal "knowledge."
Jose Reyes said:If you start "searching" like that, you've already invited Schizophrenia into your head. Splitting yourself up—tearing your own being apart into one illusion just to debunk another—is basically asking to be drained like a vampire's victim.
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Yeah. 🙏 I stopped having those internal monologues a while back.😁 It was exhausting: honestly, it felt like sitting through some endless, pointless seminar where they drone on from Monday to Friday but never actually get past the introduction.
hollowviper72 said:So Shrek 2 is basically just a carbon copy of Shrek 1 in terms of its message? Man. I really thought they’d come up with something fresh.
Yeah, look at the world today—everyone is obsessed with appearances and shallow impressions. People don't bother seeing anyone for who they actually are anymore. How long can a human face even survive under the weight of all those masks?
And what do you mean "who people are"? Does anyone actually know themselves, let alone anyone else? I honestly have no clue what you're trying to get at here. Besides, my take on Shrek is that his kiss was what actually woke up that part of the princess that matched his own true essence. If some perfect prince had kissed her, she would've just stayed that superficial beauty from the beginning.
$1.25 yeah... exactly... Look, a movie like this just doesn't belong in AMC Theatres. Let's be real—most people I know hit up the theater looking for an escape, some fun. They aren't looking to get bogged down by "heavy themes."😁
I noticed it during a screening of "21 Grams"—the theater was, well, half-empty or half-full, whatever you want to call it—but people were actually walking out right in the middle of the movie.
For me? The film is fantastic. It’s powerful, gut-wrenching, deep, and brutal.
And that's just how it is. It's not my place to judge anyone's taste, but like I said, 95% of people go to the movies for entertainment. That's reality.
If you want to see films that actually "stand out," you know where to go in the US—the local film archive.
It's honestly suicidal to put a film like this in AMC Theatres.
Or, if they're really going to try something like this, AMC Theatres should at least organize special screenings for international films.
But between the distributors and the way theaters operate, I don't think we'll be seeing a movie like this anytime soon...😁
People around here aren't just clueless, they're walking clichés. If a movie hasn't been hyped to death with a hundred different ads, if the trailers aren't flashy as hell, and if it isn't some big Hollywood blockbuster, nobody gives a damn. They won't even look twice. There’s a massive pile of brilliant cinema coming out of Germany that's basically pure genius—just look at "Run Lola Run." The real issue in cities like New York is that movies like that aren't "commercial." And when you go to AMC Theatres, you're going there for the commercial stuff. In places like NYC, those kinds of cinematic achievements used to be reserved for the local film archive, the national film institute, or maybe the student union. And those places were always packed with people who actually have taste, not just mindless consumers. Trying to shove a movie like that into an AMC Theatres is a complete disaster. First off, the crowd expecting more than just a list of famous names and predictable American glamour isn't even going to notice something slightly less superficial playing in that setting. Meanwhile, the rest of the crowd hitting AMC to see the latest American hits won't even blink at something like this (proof? I saw exactly 13 people at the screening😁😁).
Then again, if someone is actually looking, they'll find it.
But most people just want everything handed to them on a silver platter.
I’ve noticed everyone on this forum keeps calling Paris a "coward." Seriously, people? That guy took down Achilles!
Yeah, he did it from behind, and when he was unarmed (in the movie), it was even worse in the epic.
Man, that guy basically set fire to (and ruined) a king's wife!
He did it while he was there as a guest at the feast, and then he just wailed in the middle of the ocean once it was too late to turn back—knowing damn well the king wouldn't let his kid die (which would've happened anyway if he tried to take her back).
Guys, before he absolutely lost his nerve, that man actually went out to face that same king!
He only went because he knew the older guy would protect him (in the movie). In the epic, I don't think he even fought the king; but I'm not positive.
To everyone who actually braved going to see this, uh, "historical spectacle."
And honestly, what is there left to say? This thread has covered everything. All I can offer is my own take—I don't hit the theaters often, so when I do, I'm picky about what I watch.
Before Troy, I saw "The Last Samurai" and "Hidalgo." Walking out of the theater after those two, I felt... moved. I wasn't just checking out a movie; they stayed with me, triggering all sorts of thoughts on multiple levels. They actually left a mark.
With Troy, that feeling was totally missing. It felt more like watching "Independence Day." I couldn't get invested in the story at all, and at no point did it feel like they were even attempting to retell actual history.
I seriously can't decide what this thing even is: a historical epic, an adventure drama, an adaptation of an epic poem... I feel like if I pick one genre, I'll realize it's missing whatever makes it belong there.
It’s empty.
Not to mention how much they ignored the facts (for instance, Hector and Achilles didn't just duel one-on-one like that; Hector almost got wiped out when Achilles charged with his army, but he found his courage at the last second. And Achilles didn't get shot in the heel because of Briseis—it was about the others, and it wasn't about saving her, but rather entering the city to beg for her hand... there are plenty of mistakes like that).
Furthermore, I'd put myself in the camp of people who think Achilles is well-drawn, that Hector is even better, and that The Odyssey is given way too little importance when he's actually the "brains" behind the whole operation. Same goes for Paris; he's a good character because he really is a coward who had the nerve to steal someone else's wife but lacks the guts to actually draw a sword.😁 Plus, Helen didn't have such a miserable marriage as the movie whines about—quite the opposite, actually.
I could probably deal with all that if the movie had managed to pull at any emotional chord other than the one meant for indulging men in mini-skirts and dresses (by the way, Hector looks damn good in that Jean Paul Gaultier—like a skirt with a bare torso)🙂
Final verdict: everything in this movie is halfway there. It starts up and then just fizzles out before hitting its peak. 😢
Which leaves me wondering: does the writer (not Homer😁) even know what they were trying to say? 😕
PS. Off topic—responding to the comment about Hector being boring with his codes: personally, the only thing worth anything in this film is the fact that it's hard to find a man of his word in this world (or any other). It's easy to jump around and screw over your boss or your unit under the excuse that it's "exciting."🙄 Living by a code takes balls.
I heard later on that those so-called "historical facts" aren't even accurate to begin with😁😁 Honestly, it didn't change a thing about how much I loved the movie and its core message—just this individual's journey to find out who they really are.
If I wanted a lecture filled with strictly proven historical data, I’d just watch some documentary😁
To me, this was an adventure film: and I mean a real one, too.😉
So, a friend dragged me out for dinner and then had the nerve to suggest hitting the movies on Saturday night. I tried to explain, pretty nicely too, that nobody with half a brain tries to snag tickets for a show at 9:40 PM on a Saturday.😁 But then we roll up to the theater near Vatican City, check the screen, and wouldn't you know it—there are 245 open seats for "Hidalgo".😲
We end up grabbing tickets (on a Saturday night, of all times!), and I’m sitting there internally grumbling about what kind of garbage movie this is if absolutely nobody is watching it.😁 Turns out, my pessimism was totally misplaced. We walked out of that theater feeling great and actually loved it.
I think there were maybe 20 or 30 people in the whole damn theater...
I don't hit the theaters that much, and honestly, I basically just stumbled into this movie by accident, but I'm so glad I did.
It’s a beautifully told story—and I have to say, the fact that it's based on true events caught me off guard, which adds such a fascinating layer to everything. It’s about the bond between a man and his horse, the search for identity (is he Native American or white?), and the clash of two cultures across continents. Plus, it’s packed with tension, style, and actual humor.
At first glance, it seems like a "light" watch, but once you walk out of the theater, it sticks with you on a much deeper level.
Seeing Vig from LOTR on screen is such a breath of fresh air. Seriously, they couldn't have picked a better actor to play a long-distance rider.
It’s like a mix of "The Last Samurai," "One Thousand and One Nights," and "Indiana Jones."😁
All in all, both Hidalgo and his rider are real, flesh-and-blood heroes, flaws and all, just trying to find their place and identity in the world around them.
My only gripe is that there was zero hype for this movie here in the States, which pretty much explains why so few people showed up to talk about it on this thread. Such a damn shame.