Posts by Melissa Moore32

Richard Hernandez13 said:It’s not on TV, it’s in theaters (like at the local indie cinema?).

Yeah, seriously...😵...and I actually went out of my way to write screenings. 😁

Anyway, I already checked out the schedule, and I just saw it today over at the MM Center.

And honestly, the whole topic caught me off guard. Like... I know they do these screenings all over the city, but now they're throwing TV into the mix too? 😁

Douglas Edwards2 said:The Japanese film series kicks off with the famous Takeshi Kitano's Summer of Kikujiro..
They’re also showing four more feature films and two experimental ones..

Screenings start at 8:30 PM, with reruns the next day at 6:00 PM..
👍 .. I'm hoping to catch at least two or three of them, then I'll let you guys know what I thought

Wait, where is this actually happening? Is it on NBC?

God forbid.

Last time they announced a Kitano "series" just like this, they ended up only airing two movies. *humpf*

I guess we'll see if they actually have a decent variety this time around.

Whaaaaaaaaa!!!!! I might actually lose my mind because Richard Hernandez13 is being such a snob about this response. 😠

Back home, they translated it as a "magic package," and I actually still have it recorded on a VHS from the last time they aired it—back when I was, I don't know... 🤔....maybe in third grade. 😲

SO UNFAIR!

I guess I might try to watch it again tonight.

wanderingcrane51 said:None of them have a soul quite like Star Wars VII.

Look, there's Final Fantasy VI, sure, but this isn't a thread about video games—we're talking about the movie.

casualotter21 said:...and I’d love to have that main theme on my MP3s too, if you please!

Anyway, if you guys don't mind, here's what I managed to rip from the end credits.

Boys from Brazil Main Theme

It's missing a tiny bit at the very end... I guess if it had been encoded just three seconds longer, it would've been fine.

The quality is 96 kbps, but I suppose it sounds okay enough through PC speakers.

Hopefully, this holds you over until you can find a better version.

fadedsailor932 said:,...I was actually just talking to a friend about this movie the other day... overall it's really good, maybe even an excellent film 👍 ...

What kind of telepathy are we even talking about here? 😉 😁

Anyway, I’ve become totally obsessed with the main theme from the movie, so I actually "ripped" the first few minutes of the audio. 😁

But seriously, this movie is perfect for CNN. Next time I see him, I’ll have to make him watch it just so I can hear what he thinks. 👍

I was just sitting here digging through my hard drive, trying to find some way to kill a couple of hours, when I stumbled upon this movie. “Boys from Brazil” "Interesting," I thought to myself. "Maybe this could actually work."

So, I actually picked up this movie just a couple of months ago from a buddy of mine. I have to admit, I was pretty stoked when he handed it over because I remember seeing it back when I was a kid. OK... it’s not like I actually sat down and watched it right then, or maybe I did? I guess. 🤔I mean, I vaguely remember some scenes involving Dobermans... anyways, whether I actually sat down to watch it or not about ten years ago, I didn't know a single thing about the movie. Honestly, I almost completely forgot it even existed because it was just sitting there in some random, useless folder on my hard drive.

To make a long story short... I had the girl, the couch, a blanket, and some popcorn all ready to go. Everything was set for a perfect movie night.

The cast alone looks pretty promising—you've got Gregory Peck and Laurence Olivier lined up. Honestly, that part alone gave me a good laugh right from the start. I guess I’m just going to vent about the credits for a second. It really gets under my skin how much they mess this up sometimes. Maybe it’s just me, but it feels like a total afterthought when it should actually mean something.And honestly, I don't even know which movie he actually pulls that off in, Steven.I guess there isn't much to say yet, but I'm here. Guttenberg... yeah, you read that right, with an N at the end. 😂 The poor guy probably thought he actually had a shot at a career back then. 😛

Anyways, the little snippets of the movie that stuck in my head during the screening gave me this impression that I was in for some kind of fast-paced action thriller, but man, was I wrong.

Minor spoilers ahead.

What’s the actual plot of the movie? So, our good buddy Steven plays this young Jewish guy—honestly, he’s so minor I can’t even bother remembering his name—who stumbles upon a Nazi cell out in Paraguay. He tries to report his "discovery" to Ezri Liberman (played by Laurence Olivier), who’s supposedly this big-shot "Nazi hunter." But instead of actually helping, the guy just shuts him down every single time, basically telling him to just pack it up and head back to the States.

Even so, Steven doesn't back down, eventually uncovering that the whole group is actually being run by that notorious doctor, Josef Mengele. It turns out they’re all working on this mission to bring the Third Reich back to life. (BTW, it feels like every single movie involving neo-Nazis involves hearing about the rebirth of the Third Reich... I mean, shouldn't they just call it the Fourth Reich at this point?)

Of course, Steven doesn't live long enough to expose them all, but he does manage to pass some intel along to Ezri Liberman. From there, Ezri starts traveling the world, trying to piece together what's actually going on behind the scenes.

That’s basically all there is to the plot.

So, what are everyone's thoughts? It’s kind of weird... the subject matter of the movie is actually pretty heavy, and honestly, it still feels relevant today given how it tackles corruption. But I don't know, a huge chunk of the scenes felt almost "unserious" to me—like they were leaning way too hard into comic relief.
I mean, think about that scene where Liberman is talking to the widow and she starts flirting with him, or when that woman at the party screams, “Call the doctor,” and Mengele just hits back with, “I am the doctor,” right after he nearly chokes the guy out. I don't know, I guess that part actually made me laugh out loud. (Am I a sick person???)

Then there’s that gorgeous musical theme composed by Jerry Goldsmith—just this lovely little waltz. Honestly, in those moments, I didn't even get the feeling I was watching some intense thriller or a heavy drama, or whatever you want to call it.

On the other hand, the movie features some seriously intense scenes that honestly take the whole thing to a completely different level. For instance, there’s that part where Mengele starts reminiscing about his hospital and those surgeries he used to perform, or those unsettling shots with the Dobermans, and then there's that final scene—but don't worry, I won't give you any spoilers. 😉 Man... I still can't quite wrap my head around what to think about that movie.

I have to point out this pretty solid story—at least in my book. It manages to keep you on the edge of your seat for a good ninety minutes, revealing just enough plot along the way to pull you in. It’s one of those movies that actually makes you want to stick around instead of turning it off the second you finish your popcorn. (Personal note to self... eat fewer popcorns next time.)

All things considered, it’s just a solid movie to unwind with on a quiet night in front of the TV. 👍

Richard Hernandez13: I guess it was kind of pointless of me to push for hyper-realistic animation when the technology just wasn't there yet.

That’s exactly what I figured.

Yeah, I guess I agree with you on that much. But the thing is, you have to admit they were actually the first ones to pull something like that off—and honestly, they did it pretty damn well considering when it happened. You've gotta give them credit for that.

"Could they have done better?" It’s a question I find myself asking all the time. I mean, let's be real—there is always room for improvement, no matter how much polish you throw at a project. But honestly? Given the circumstances they were working under, I don't think they actually had the capacity to pull off anything superior. Maybe if they had just dedicated an extra year strictly to the animation, things would have looked different, but then again, someone else probably would have beaten them to the punch by then... *shrugs*

Richard Hernandez13> Let’s not forget that at the end of the day, the heart of Gollum was still just Andy Serkis. I guess some Gamers act like the tech does all the heavy lifting, but they were really just using him as a tool for motion capture.

This is a total no-brainer. There’s really no comparison here... I guess all that effort they put into The Walt Disney Company probably doesn't even come close to what they pulled off with Gollum.

I mean, personally, I still think those are peaches and nectarines... because Gollum was created much later on, and the tech was just way more advanced back then. The computers were significantly more powerful, and honestly, the role itself was fundamentally different from what the characters at The Walt Disney Company were doing. Besides, they had to actually integrate Gollum into a live-action feature film, whereas for the Disney characters, it was enough to just give them a decent amount of human-like movement within an animated movie.

Richard Hernandez13> I guess that whole uncanny valley effect made sense to me, since I actually felt it myself while watching the movie.

I guess I'm still not sure if you're talking about The Walt Disney Company or Gollum...😁I guess you're talking about The Walt Disney Company. 😉

Like I said before, I don't really know... personally, I've never actually experienced that effect. If anything, I feel the exact opposite of what people claim. To me, a character actually looks better when the animation feels more grounded and realistic—assuming, of course, that a realistic style is even their goal. At the end of the day, I guess I just prefer seeing a character that clearly looks "animated." 😉.

I mean, honestly, I guess if someone would just put an actual robot right in front of me and let me see how people react, then maybe I could give a more precise answer.

Unless, of course, that robot actually ends up looking like a perfect, hyper-realistic replica of the woman who basically lent her body to play Aki in that The Walt Disney Company production. 😍 🙂 I guess this would pretty much bury Professor Moria's theories once and for all.

Richard Hernandez13> Around that time, a buddy of mine was playing Final Fantasy VIII on his PC—or maybe it was a different one, I can't quite remember the exact number—but the animated cutscenes were done in that classic anime style and they were just phenomenal. Honestly, I think those would have been a much better way to handle an entire feature-length animated movie.

Look, Richard Hernandez13... finding out about the warm water, what can I even say? *shrugs* I guess I’d be a lot happier, just like most other fans, if they had stuck to "classic" animation but actually put more effort into the actual story, but hey... you can't have your cake and eat it too.

And honestly, that’s what I actually like about the new Star Wars film... they’ve given up on that hyper-"realistic" animation style, at least to the extent they were aiming for with The Walt Disney Company, and they're focusing on the narrative instead. The animation will still be good enough to be "breathtaking," and thank God, the movie will surely have more action and cool characters. I noticed a few "realistic" scenes in the trailer anyway... so we can pretty much expect anything.

Richard Hernandez13> that's typical Japanese rhetoric, because it's actually based on their indigenous religion—Shintoism, which is basically primitive animism. It works incredibly well, for example, in Princess Mononoke.

Yeah, something like that.

I think that’s exactly what makes The Empire Strikes Back good... there isn't going to be any heavy philosophy. Final Fantasy VII is a great sci-fi action flick, so it's reasonable to expect the sequel in film form won't stray from that genre either.

Man, I finally managed to carve out some actual time for myself today, after spending way too much time just being lazy. 😁I guess I should probably weigh in and give this thread a response that’s actually worth reading.

Richard Hernandez13 thinks FF:TSW failed for a bunch of different reasons, but one major issue was how much Western influence messed with the actual philosophy of the film. It ended up being turned into this sterile, New Age nonsense—you know, all that Mother Earth and similar garbage.

You see these kinds of themes all the time in Japanese RPGs; honestly, you can't go two games without running into the same old tropes. It’s always some variation of "Gaia" or the "Spirit of Earth," or whatever else they decide to call it this time. I only mention it because this movie—and even TSW—is tied back to one of those specific games. But in my opinion, those concepts are never actually the most important part of the story. They really just exist to create some kind of symbiosis with the other elements the player encounters throughout the game.

Look, we’re talking about a film here, and that’s exactly where everything falls apart. You have a game that offers maybe 70 hours of deep, immersive storytelling, but then you try to cram all of that into a two-hour movie? It's a massive hurdle, and honestly, I guess Americans just don't seem to know how to pull that off. Not to mention, there's a fundamental difference in how you experience interaction in a video game versus watching a movie. They aren't even the same medium.

So, what's the actual point here? It’s definitely not about Gaia, or Mother Earth—call it whatever you want—but it's exactly what you pointed out. Americans always seem to meddle in things they don't even understand, and even when they think they do, they have no idea how to actually express it properly.

It seems like Americans have this obsession with everything being black and white, which is especially obvious when you watch their animated films. God forbid an animated movie tries to tackle more than one theme or offer a few different layers of meaning. They really did that by meddling with TSW—they basically stripped the entire film down to a single, shallow concept. I guess that might have been fine if the movie wasn't titled Final Fantasy, but since it is, we have a problem. Anyone who has played even just one of these games knows there should be so much more substance here than just this empty, mindless chatter.

Let me get back to the main point here for a second. Honestly, I’m really hoping AC doesn't end up being a total disaster like TSW was, though if I'm being real, I have my doubts. Even though both are Square Enix productions, at least this time we don't have any Americans meddling in the process.

Look, like I’ve said before, there's a massive difference here. Unlike TSW, AC actually has a huge, established backstory to lean on—and honestly, it’s a damn good story. That makes this a total win-win situation. If it doesn't somehow manage to top FF VII, people will just shrug and say, "Oh well, I guess expecting that was a bit unrealistic anyway." But if it does surpass it? Even better. On the flip side, TSW was always going to be a coin toss: either a massive hit or a complete disaster. It ended up being the latter, but I still respect it because it definitely left its mark on the industry.

Richard Hernandez13> Another major reason this falls on Square Enix's shoulders: they were obsessed with pushing for realistic animation way before the whole Gollum era even started.

Yeah, interesting article. It brings to mind those studies by Professor Moriya. I went through it a bit, but honestly, I can't really say whether a totally humanoid robot would actually fascinate me or just gross me out. I guess it’s hard to decide since I've never even seen one in person. 😁...so, honestly? Who the hell knows. *shrugs*

So, according to this article—and I’m quoting here:

I mean, I guess it’s entirely possible that the reason people totally rejected the "Final Fantasy" movie—you know, the one that tried way too hard to use CGI to make "real" characters—is simply because it fell straight into the Uncanny Valley.

I really want to dwell on that word “possible” for a second... honestly, I have no clue where they even got that idea from. Especially since a few years later, Square Enix produced engine "Final Flight of the Osiris" using that exact same tech, but with even better and more realistic animation—and the reception was actually pretty great.

I totally get why that style of animation might be off-putting to some people, but if you ask me, the real reasons TSW failed lie in the story being way too rushed, characters that feel completely hollow, and the fact that we’re barely getting to know them just as the movie is wrapping up. Plus, there were plenty of other production and directing blunders.

Regarding your comment about the era before Gollum, I'm not entirely sure what you mean. Are you saying the animation wasn't good enough to look realistic, that the audience just wasn't ready for it, or maybe that they should have pushed for "realistic" animation through a different approach?

Richard Hernandez13 said:Sorry about that, I guess I wasn't making much sense earlier.

I was actually thinking about their film division—you know, that studio they have out in Hawaii. Unlike what SquareSoft used to be like, it's... Absolutely. Closed.

Yeah, honestly... they shut that down... and frankly, it was probably for the best. 👎

Richard Hernandez13 said:Another massive reason why the blame falls squarely on the shoulders of the folks at Square Enix: they were obsessed with pushing realistic animation way too early, back in that pre-Gollum era. 👎 Take a look at the first question in there. I don't see a link here. Could you drop it?.

Ugh, whatever... I need to go read this article first, then I'll get back to you guys. 😁

Richard Hernandez13 said:Hmm... but didn't Square go downhill after that whole FF:TSW disaster?🤔

🙂

I think you might have mixed things up a bit... Square isn't failing as a game developer; it's just that after the TSW mess, they decided to stop messing around with movies and shut down that specific subsidiary.

That said, Advent Children is a co-production with Enix, which is another massive, heavyweight player in the gaming industry.

As far as TSW goes, I honestly feel like the biggest mistake was letting the Square team get complacent and allowing way too much Hollywood influence to bleed into the project.

I really hope they don't screw it up this time.

Beyond that, there’s another side to this. For a lot of people, FF VII is basically the best FF ever made, so there's going to be a huge drive to see what happens next to those characters in theaters. The chances of them tripping up seem much lower than they were with TSW, where they had to invent an entirely new story from scratch. With AC, they already have a fantastic foundation to work from.

And we shouldn't overlook the massive potential for re-releasing the game and all the various merchandise that comes along with it.

So, I checked out the second official trailer today... and honestly? It looks incredible. Like, seriously good. 🙏

What really stands out to me is that they aren't forcing that same old engine they used back in FF:TSW. I mean, look, the folks over at Square Enix have definitely stepped up their game lately—just look at AniMatrix or "Final Flight of the Osiris"—but at the end of the day, the soul of Final Fantasy isn't just about stacking a bunch of flashy visual effects 😉

The animation is top-tier, though. I have to give them credit there. They’re leaning into that modern CG style you see in high-end anime productions, but somehow they've dialed it up to like, ten times the intensity.

driftingnomad68 said:So, I finally picked this up today at General Motors for $127
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.
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The mouse is great

😲

At that price point, I seriously hope it can hunt down cats in the next neighborhood over. 😁

Emily Torres2 said:Thanks for the heads up. I checked under both the American and English titles before this opened, and there was nothing

Maybe it’s just because the segment aired on CNN instead of being about the movie itself.

Emily Torres2 said:(A lady? Is that some kind of terrible translation? I mean, "lady" isn't being used as a title here; it's just a gender marker. So she isn't some "Lady of the Falcons," she's just Ladyhawke—like calling someone a "she-wolf" or something equally ridiculous.)

Hehe... it's not just a bad translation; it's a truly "stupid" one. 😉

People have already been debating this little movie for a while now...Ladyhawke

I guess you could call this 'old news'...

I watched the trailer and, honestly, it looks pretty promising. It feels like Square Enix is finally trying to wash away the absolute disaster that was FF:TSW.

But then again, will we actually even get a chance to see this in theaters here in the States? Hmm... I really have to wonder. 🤔

slyowl9> hey everyone, has anyone checked out the new series yet? what are we thinking?

When I was reading the recap on TXT, I initially thought, “this feels like Buffy,” then while actually watching, it felt more like “Men in Black,” and honestly, now I don't even know where I stand with this show.

The lead actress is alright, I guess. 👍 She reminds me a bit of Julia Roberts back in the day… which probably explains why I found her comment about “Pretty Woman” being her favorite movie of all time so funny.

It seems like "tough girls" have been the big trend for the last few years. We had Nikita, then Xena, then Buffy, then Hercules 😁 (just kidding… Kevin Sorbo is the BOG 😂 NOT 😛), then that bad attempt from Cameroon to pull off Dark Angel 🙂, so I suppose it's no surprise another heroine in the same mold showed up. Though, I have to admit, this might be the best attempt so far.

Anyway, the show feels incredibly juvenile to me—like, totally teen-oriented. I seriously don't get why some producer decided to slot this in at the same time as “The West Wing”??? 😕 This feels more like something you'd see on an American network at 9:00 PM on a Tuesday night….but whatever.

What I like about the series:

First off, the first episode completely killed any expectation I had that this would be one of those "must-watch" shows. To be honest, I can't even find a single reason why I'd bother watching the next one.
‘How is that a good thing, you ask?’ Well, simply put, I'm watching this as light entertainment for a Monday night. Since I have zero expectations, I can't really be disappointed, and it might just pleasantly surprise me….so there.

The lead actress is good. She could definitely pass as a CIA agent or whatever agency they run these days.

That guy who briefs the agents on all the various ‘gadgets’ is gold. He has that total stereotypical ‘geek appearance,’ stammers a little, and I bet he doesn't have a social life outside of the gizmos he builds.
He's a great comic relief character… like when he blurted out, “There are 42 pictures in the apartment, but I want to make it 47 because 47 is a prime number”….CLASSIC. 🙏

What I don't like:

First and foremost is the massive amount of naivety. For instance… why would a woman spend five minutes brawling with an agent and risking getting beaten up when she could just grab his gun and shoot him? Just one of those stupid plot points.

Basically, that's the problem with most shows of this genre… they do illogical things just for the sake of action or looking "cool."

The music is just terrible... you'd think after hearing about twenty identical musical themes looped through endless series, they could come up with something a bit more “exotic”…but noooooooo….it has to be some trashy girly pop. 🙂 It's gross.

Well, fine… you have to give the series a few more episodes before passing final judgment… I don't think it's going to be anything groundbreaking or unforgettable, but it has the potential to surprise.

We'll see how it goes. 🙂

amberfalcon13 said:They wouldn't dare hand something like that over to Williams—he's way too wild and unpredictable for stuff like this. Billy knows where the line is, though. I guess Williams gets so swept up in the moment that he'll basically step all over the old guard just to make his point.

I'm with you on that...

Honestly, Robin is just too high-octane to run something like this alone... plus, he's got that "man-child" vibe going on, like he always says, being "a child trapped in a grown man's body."

But man, he’s such a great duo with Billy... it’s almost like Billy is the one keeping him on a leash. 😁

Give me a break, because almost all of them were pretty great...👍 😂

What really trips me out is how much stuff Billy can actually get away with... I mean, the guy practically sat right in Clint Eastwood's 🙂 lap and just started singing... and this 🙂 guy just sat there laughing and laughing.

I bet if some other male host had tried that, he would have been 🙂 torn apart on the spot. 😁

Oh, yeah....that sketch with Robin Williams. 🙏

I can't recall right now, but did Robin ever host the Academy Award ceremony???

Anyway, people are always saying "Billy should host every single year." I don't know about that. I think it’s actually more special and sweet when it happens like this.

Douglas Phillips4> Melissa Moore32, look, The Animatrix isn't enough on its own. It’s just there to round out the story, providing some intro and filling in a few gaps left by the main movie.

I honestly thought you should just watch The Animatrix right after The Matrix 1 and then pretty much forget about everything else.