Cinemexperience: part deux., Some more filums you saw. Options

[Starscream`s Gho...]

The Punisher - The one with Thomas Jane is better, but this almost as good.

Surely you mean 'almost as bad'?

[Serafina_Pekkala]

I caught the end of David Lean's Great Expectations on Film 4 last night.  It's such a good film, I really should get a copy of it . . .

I love this film. You should watch it all. I saw it when I was a little girl and had nightmares about prisoners in the marsh and rotting wedding cakes.

Although my version - Magwitch was played by Alexei Sayle.

[Shack]

10,000 BC

I liked it.

Despite their teeth being in too good a shape.

[dandan]

the duchess - a couple of hours ago my belly was on a woman...

a young georgiana spencer (keira knightley)is married off to the duke of devonshire (ralph fiennes), becoming the duchess of devonshire. georgiana, the duchess or 'g' (very hip-hop for the eighteenth century), soon finds her dreams and romantic notions of marriage crushed by the duke; as far as he's concerned, a successful marriage consists of his new wife bearing a male heir for him, and little else.

georgiana puts up with her lot, despite holding a torch for an up-and-coming politician, charles grey (dominic cooper), and soon finds herself the darling of the london set, wowing all with her sense of style and personable nature. still, regardless of her popularity, her husband is none too pleased with the fact that he now has two daughters, with georgiana, and it isn't long before he begins to roam...

well, after watching 'pride and prejudice', making a subsequent trip to chatsworth house and seeing a plethora of promotional material for 'the duchess', i decided to go and see this. i happily missed all the attempts to tie the narrative in with charles / diana / camilla bollocks, otherwise i may have been put off...

the first thing to say about this film, is that it is very pretty; there's a heap of nice cinematography, some amazing locations, lots of quite amazing costumes and some rather super wigs. all good. beyond this, the film, based on a novelisation of the duchess of devonshire's peculiar marriage, is a scandal filled, soap opera of a costume drama. there's comedy and melodrama aplenty and, even though it's not up to the standards of austen, it is an enjoyable watch. knightley and cooper both do quite good jobs of swanning round in the foreground, as does hayley atwell (as georgiana's friend, who soon becomes the object of the dukes attention), but it is ralph fiennes, simon mcburney and aidan mcardle who steal the show.

fiennes is, quite simply, super when it comes to portraying the duke as a loathsome swine and, indeed, he seems to revel in the role. meanwhile, mcburney and mcardle, as charles fox (the leader of the opposition) and sheriden (the playwright), provide titter-worthy banter and an extra layer to the film.

a fun, but lightweight, slice of costume drama...

[Zoe]

I wish someone would marry me off to Ralph Fiennes...

[Serafina_Pekkala]

I wish someone would marry me off to Ralph Fiennes...

Well - there could be worse older men to be farmed out to as a baby machine. As with the whole Forsyte Saga Lewis casting debacle , they should stop chosing handsome devils to play ravishing aristocratic 'monsters' from them days - who stride around the place in tight pants, shouting orders. It only encourages Zoe and I.

Zoe - you just need to corner Voldemorte on an aeroplane. You may not get a wedding out of it ... but a life-time of child support is on the cards. Plus, no ugly kid - it promises to be eccentric and arty! Celebrity Sex Win!

I though the Duchess looked well-pish because of the subliminal Lady Di pictures in the trailer. And the wigs. Plus, Keira Knightly can have 18 kids and still look like a pencil? Nah, I don't buy that. Still - Chatsworth is pretty. And this may be the candidate for my friend and I's "get drunk in a film" outing. We have one every 6 months or so. It's often fun - but I recommend an early showing so you can talk and not annoy people.

This post has been edited by Serafina_Pekkala: Sep 29 2008, 01:32 PM

[Zoe]

I will happily be a baby machine for a cruel, power mad, bounder, desperate for a male heir; preferably one with a big bushy moustache and played by Nathaniel Parker.

There's something wrong with me I think, I even found myself attracted to the Captain in Pan's Labyrinth while watching it last night.

[Crutch]

Surely you mean 'almost as bad'?

It's way underrated by most people. It's a great pile of fun in my book.

[dandan]

I though the Duchess looked well-pish because of the subliminal Lady Di pictures in the trailer.  And the wigs.  Plus, Keira Knightly can have 18 kids and still look like a pencil?  Nah, I don't buy that.  Still - Chatsworth is pretty.  And this may be the candidate for my friend and I's "get drunk in a film" outing.  We have one every 6 months or so.  It's often fun - but I recommend an early showing so you can talk and not annoy people.

luckily i missed all the diana bollocks. luckily it's only featured in the trailer and not in the film at all...

the wigs were fun and costumes were good though. chatsworth is pretty, but you don't really see any of it. not to worry, there are lots of other nice locations...

she does indeed have three children and remains rake-like. hmm...

as for your early evening, chatty film idea; that's pretty much what the 17:45 friday evening showing was like and the people chatting kinda suited it; especially when, after a particular scene, one girl uttered "tease!" a little loudly, causing some general tittering from the rest of the audience.

you should go...

[Serafina_Pekkala]

I will happily be a baby machine for a cruel, power mad, bounder, desperate for a male heir; preferably one with a big bushy moustache and played by Nathaniel Parker.

The bounder wants your fortune, my dear and in the end you push him of a tower in Switzerland. Jane Austen (played by Sue Perkins) is in it - at the ending, she reads the newspaper reports to her brother, Giles and tuts at the melodrama.

"Poor Miss Jeyes" she cries "And they never found his body ...".

Yes - Parker would make a sexy and ev0l Victorian husband in any period drama - why hasn't it happened yet? Andrew Davies where are you? Fassbender, Armitage or Denisoff would do me - arf arf.

as for your early evening, chatty film idea; that's pretty much what the 17:45 friday evening showing was like and the people chatting kinda suited it; especially when, after a particular scene, one girl uttered "tease!" a little loudly, causing some general tittering from the rest of the audience.

you should go...

It's extra fun if others join in. That's what happened at Basic Instinct 2 - some wee neds were providing an exceptional Chris-Morris-Tramps-Commentary.

"Why is she walking like that?"

"her shoes must be new"

Pity we don't all live closer.

This post has been edited by Serafina_Pekkala: Sep 29 2008, 02:45 PM

[Zoe]

[Rec] (2007)

Pretty funny.

[sleeping_pirate]

[Rec] (2007)

Pretty funny.

Scared the shit out of me, that ending.

The Thing (Carpenter, 1982)

[Zoe]

I wasn't sure what was going on at the end, but it was pretty funny.

[sleeping_pirate]

It made me hide behind a cushion, I was that scared.

[Crutch]

[Rec] (2007)

Pretty funny.

The movie that frightened me the most. Ever. Even more than the Japanese original The Grudge,