NOW CLOSED ; List some movies you've watched recently. Theatre, rental, TV... and give a */10

[CZroe]

How do they work in normal lighting conditions? I've thought about a projector, but there are no basements in Texas and even at night with the curtains closed I can read a newspaper in my living room with the lights out.

So, Tim Burton was right about the Alamo?!

Huh.

 

[Kaido]

I know such things exist. I just would never buy them. First, I don't listen to music. Second, I don't think I have particularly good hearing anyway, so the additional quality would be lost on me. Third, I think I'm hard on headphones so I'd be nervous about busting audiophile headphones.

Personal opinion: audio is only as good as the microphone it was recorded on, which means you have crap, decent, and high-quality equipment, after which there's a point of diminishing returns. When I moved about a decade ago, there as a hi-fi shop nearby that I stopped into with my wife, and we got a chance to listen to their $100k+ speakers with $12k amps. My wife leaned over to me and said "these sound just like those $150 speakers you built from a kit" lol.

Second, everyone has different-quality ears. I do believe there are some people who, like food palettes, are just more sensitive, and enjoy those nuances more. Same with picture quality...for me, I definitely care about PQ way more than SQ! I still run into people who have a flat-screen TV & are running it off a composite cable from their DVD player & are totally happy with it. Or people who don't even notice the Soap Opera effect at all. Which leads into the next one...

Third, everyone has a different care-o-meter. I had a set of Sennheiser HD-650's with a nice Headamp amp at one point, and honestly I didn't like it very much...I suddenly heard why people complained about MP3 quality, with all of the static & hisses & pops. I went back to my HD-200's (which I still use to this day!) & have been quite happy with them! I can watch Netflix & listen to MP3's & Spotify & not care about the quality at all, because it's all masked by decent but not super-high-end equipment! So my level of care is pretty much "does it sound decent?" Especially with modern technology for things like surround-sound & Atmos systems, where you can use a MiniDSP or built-in microphone system to level the room & whatnot to make things sound better...I mean, I've been in some pretty dope theaters & home theaters, and meh. I mean, they're great, but for me, a spending $10k on a home theater that you could build for $2k with 99% the same quality just isn't for me.

I like the idea of fancy audio, but for me, I'm pretty content with decent-quality stuff. I do have an Atmos system at home, but it was mostly because I wanted to build a subwoofer & try making a Micro Atmos setup for fun (and on a budget). And it's pretty good! But I'd be just as happy with 5.1 tbh, or even 3.1 (those satellites are over-rated, lol).

 

[Kaido]

Which season? Edit: I see before the page break, season 1.

You do kind of have to accept MacFarlane's humor. If you can get past that, there are some great episodes in there.

See, his humor is a perfect fit for me. I like the Orville more than I ever liked any of the Star Trek series, because it feels more like "real people".

Also that one with the practical jokes & the legs was hilarious lol.

 

[SMOGZINN]

Garbage. I mean, a projector is just a fancy flashlight, so your black levels are only going to be as good as whatever the ambient light level is. They do sell special ALR (ambient-light-rejecting) screens, but the good ones aren't cheap, and even the really expensive ones (like $5,000) are just "OK" in the daylight and/or with lights on. The workaround is to get blackout curtains. So the tradeoff is you have to sit in the dark, but you get a monster picture!

Yeah, I have blackout curtains, but I also have 2 skylights in my living room.
I'm currently watching a 55 Panasonic Plasma. It has been the best TV I've ever owned, but it is starting to show it's age and the black levels are turning to grey.

If you're willing to invest a little bit, you can get a basic Atmos receiver for $500 these day. All you need is some compact speakers & a subwoofer really, and maybe some transducers (bass shakers) to make it a little more fun. So for around maybe $2k, you can have a 135" 1080p LED (or 4K bulb) projector screen with Atmos surround-sound right in your house!

Currently using a Sony receiver hooked up to 3.1 setup, that actually sounds really good, one of the rather nice for the price monoprice subs and twin Pioneer SP-FS52 Andrew Jones full range standing speakers with matching center. Next year my goal is to upgrade to a full 7.1(or 2?) or Atmos.

I use one of these $10 microwave popcorn bowls, works amazing!

I use one of these: https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-L10CF3-Covered-Skillet-Pre-Seasoned/dp/B00063RWXO
Well one similar to that. Mine was actually passed down from my grandmother and is some other brand. I've been cooking popcorn (and nearly everything else) in it for nearly 20 years.
I keep a mason jar of kernels on my kitchen counter, and just buy a cup or two from the bulk bins of my local Winco ever few weeks.
Takes a bit longer, but I don't really mind. I have one of those fancy 'air poppers' that were popular a few years ago taking up space in my pantry but I prefer my cast iron, probably primarily because it is always sitting on my cooktop.

I'm a big movie fan, but I'm not willing to go to a theater right now haha.

I hear you. Before all this I went to the movies at least once a week, and often 2-3 times with Moviepass and then when it became garbage the Alamo Movie Club. A beer and a movie a day for $20? What more could I want.
Luckily, I have my plasma TV and a collection of about 400 DVD and Blu-rays (all now ripped to my HTPC - thanks to help of the expert advice of some of the members here), of which I've made heavy use of this last year.

 

[Kaido]

I use one of these: https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-L10CF3-Covered-Skillet-Pre-Seasoned/dp/B00063RWXO
Well one similar to that. Mine was actually passed down from my grandmother and is some other brand. I've been cooking popcorn (and nearly everything else) in it for nearly 20 years.
I keep a mason jar of kernels on my kitchen counter, and just buy a cup or two from the bulk bins of my local Winco ever few weeks.
Takes a bit longer, but I don't really mind. I have one of those fancy 'air poppers' that were popular a few years ago taking up space in my pantry but I prefer my cast iron, probably primarily because it is always sitting on my cooktop.

Tell me more about your cast-iron popcorn procedure!

 

[Kaido]

I binge watched the first 4 seasons pretty quickly but then all the characters' schticks started getting too tiresome. I stopped watching early in season 5. It was a goofy feel good comedy from the get go, nothing too edgy about it, but likeable enough. I especially liked the son's character, and the mother had the next best moments. But getting through 4 seasons pretty quickly is a small feat, so there's that. Definitely worth a go.

Definitely finish it up! The ending was really well-done.

I felt this scene in my soul:

 

[Mayne]

Greenland. starring Gerard Butler...basically an end of the earth movie...but the hectic scenes during the movie will make you exhausted...worth watching

 

[SMOGZINN]

Tell me more about your cast-iron popcorn procedure!

It is really easy. Put a little oil in the pan, may be a tablespoon or so (just enough to cover the bottom, but it should not actually pool), and put it on medium-high heat. Put some popcorn kernels in, like 3-5 kernels (these are your test kernels). As soon as two of those pop, add the rest and put a the lid on. Once it starts to pop a lot give it a good shake, and keep shaking occasionally (this lets the kernels settle to the bottom). Once the popping slows or stops, turn the heat off and give it a really good shake. You will probably get another burst of popping. The take off the lid, add some butter and salt to your liking, and put the lid back on and give it a good shake. Cast iron holds heat really well and will be plenty hot to melt all the butter and coat evenly.

Oh, if you happen to have some ghee use about twice the amount of that instead of the oil at the start and it will be amazing. Unfortunately I don't regularly keep ghee in my kitchen, so I only occasionally get to do that.

edit: Oh, and the best thing is that to clean the pan all I do is wipe it out with a paper towel and put it back on the counter top. Salt and oil is what you clean cast iron with.

 

[DigDog]

You do kind of have to accept MacFarlane's humor.

...
you know what kind of stuff i watch, right?

Look; if you realistically look at the whole of Family Guy, you can see that the early episodes were a bunch of inventive, quirky, off the wall stuff. Plenty of unnamed writers, plenty of previously-unused jokes, some of it works, some of it you force it, some of it fails. A new, undiscovered country.

The later episodes, you can tell the entire plotline from the getgo. Every joke is carefully, boringly set up. It's one solid undivided line that screams of a power-director and just like the new Star Wars film, it's shit.

OR MAYBE sometimes they have some decent jokes, but it's the "better" episodes that fail the hardest, because they are predictable. They are boring. They are Seth McFarlane.
He goes for what he knows works. ... and in the end, the results is a bunch of jokes that worked - 10 years ago.

It's not terrible, but those 2 episodes (S1 E2 and E3) were not good. And right now i'm thinking that the first episode is just a preamble so that SmF can go back to recycling the same jokes over and over, for cash. He did good on the first episode, because he had to wing it. He had to present these new characters, create a mood .. something he's not done in years.

SmF will not be the only author ruined by success - it happens to everyone, and i mean ...

where's that .jpg from Leon ... damn it, i can't find it.

ok you know which one i mean.

The man had some talent, if he lets himself go he is still very funny, but right now he's about as funny as a german dentist. Long gone, are the days of the vomit scene.



(everyone who knows the truth knows that the cleveland show was the best)

 

[DigDog]

Garbage.

absolutely true.

also, awesome garbage.

grab a $100 screen and .. you know what, **** the screen, paint a wall flat white. Grab a $80 projector from amazon and spend the rest on a popcorn machine, call the boys and play a Clint Eastwood marathon.

Projectors are made for the ambience, not for the video quality.

 

[Mai72]

The classic BloodSport is on YT for free. 9/10 is what I give BloodSport.

CHECK IT OUT!

 

[Muse]

I'm about 37% into Madagascar. At the start I thought, "oh no, this is gonna suck," but I stuck with it and it's worth the patience. It's actually fast moving, pretty hip, lots of subtle humor that some people won't get. The actors (vocal, the visuals are all animation) are pretty fantastic. May finish it tonight. So far, at least a 7/10, probably an 8+. Being Dreamworks, I figured it a good bet, was relieved to see it wasn't Disney.

 

[Ken g6]

you know what kind of stuff i watch, right?

No, I didn't. Now I do.

Try watching Season 2 Episode 1, "Ja'loja". I hated it, as I think I posted in this thread. Lots of people loved it. You're probably one of those people.

 

[DigDog]

I'm about 37% into Madagascar. At the start I thought, "oh no, this is gonna suck," but I stuck with it and it's worth the patience. It's actually fast moving, pretty hip, lots of subtle humor that some people won't get. The actors (vocal, the visuals are all animation) are pretty fantastic. May finish it tonight. So far, at least a 7/10, probably an 8+. Being Dreamworks, I figured it a good bet, was relieved to see it wasn't Disney.

next in the queue, Penguins. Of Madagascar.

 

[Muse]

next in the queue, Penguins. Of Madagascar.

Please demystify. Is that a different movie?

 

[DigDog]

Please demystify. Is that a different movie?

Penguins Of Madagascar - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penguins_of_Madagascar

Lovely little buddy comedy about a group of sentient penguins who think they are a military crew. They wander around the world while carrying out brave actions in their completely imaginary mission, until they stumble upon a group of heroes and a villain so terrible, they will need to become true heroes themselves. Will they rise up to the occasion?

Starts off mediocre but if you stick with it it's a solid film with some nice characters and a great character arc of the "new" penguin whose mission in life is to become "a valuable member of this team". Very family friendly but decent entertainment for the grownups as well. Tons of Mission Impossible spoofing.

my vote: a well earned 7/10

 

[DigDog]

Season 2 Episode 1, "Ja'loja".

better, but not great. I confess that the most entertainment i received from this episode is from ogling Halston Sage, the little girl who plays the security officer. Even with prosthetics and black hair, she's still got it. mmmm those lips.

The story of "the great piss" isn't even what takes the most time, it's half split between the bad-apple kid subplot, which i really dont care for, although the actress that plays the mother/doctor, she's good. And the new-hot-chick subplot, mostly because the helmsman guy, he's just not a good character OR actor.

.. you see, i could totally use some proper, old skool Trek. Where half the problems are resolved with sex and the other half with fists. I wouldn't care if the ships are made of cardboard.

But i just dont care for these plots, and i never have, which is why i pretty much hated ST:TNG and its weird, inappropriate moralisms.

i don't know why i'm disappointed, i should have seen this coming from a mile away. I was hoping for McF to make a over-the-top replica of ST:TOS with even more doublefist punching and even more miniskirts, but instead i got a live action copy of late-seasons American Dad.

i'm gonna try a few more because i don't have much else to watch that i don't hate, so, fingers crossed.

 

[Muse]

Penguins Of Madagascar - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penguins_of_Madagascar

Lovely little buddy comedy about a group of sentient penguins who think they are a military crew. They wander around the world while carrying out brave actions in their completely imaginary mission, until they stumble upon a group of heroes and a villain so terrible, they will need to become true heroes themselves. Will they rise up to the occasion?

Starts off mediocre but if you stick with it it's a solid film with some nice characters and a great character arc of the "new" penguin whose mission in life is to become "a valuable member of this team". Very family friendly but decent entertainment for the grownups as well. Tons of Mission Impossible spoofing.

my vote: a well earned 7/10

Another Dreamworks production, I'll check it out (literally, if my library has it!).

 

[DigDog]

The Orville S2E2 - the "gay Worf cheats on his bf because of a VR porn addiction" episode.

The Orville S2E3 - the "we must exclude a coworker because of a work-related injury" episode.

Both episode have a tiny fragment of "main plot" if it can be called so, and spend the near entirety of the runtime on the sideplot, slowly and tediously setting up every scene with the subtlety of a rhino on meth.

i dont think ill be watching much more of this, it's exactly what is did *not* want from a Trek clone.

 

[DigDog]

having just said that, i then watched 4 more episodes of The Orville. Because i couldn't, for the life of me, find something that sucks less.

So i had the clever idea to watch the two season finales and the two before that, S1E11 + E12 and S2E12 + E13.

They were .. decent. Good almost. It was more Trek (meeting a two-dimentional life form, finding a planet that phases out of space and time) and less "how's my relationship" bullshit.


After which i watched something that was actually good: A Futile And Stupid Gesture - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5566790/ ("be done on somebody's part")

Because how could i not.
Watching Animal House was what made me want to go to college. (imagine the disappointment when college didn't turn out to be like in the film)
AF&SG tells the story of one of two creators of National Lampoon magazine, Douglas Kennedy; "who?", you ask? Exactly. And the film acknowledges that, nobody knows who he was, but he was nonetheless a part of almost everyone's life. He contributed to so much work, from behind the scenes.

The film is told in a very 4th wall style, with another actor playing a imaginary older version of Doug talking directly to the audience. A very, very unreliable narrator, as Doug killed himself and never made it to old age. Lots of interesting film tricks, and a very, very solid pace that will keep interested the most ADHD of the crowd. Nothing terribly vulgar in the jokes (it was another world back then), but not something that the kids would go for anyway. You, instead, yes YOU should watch this film. If you are between 30 and 60, you lived through this, and you will want to know the story the film has to tell.

My vote: 7.5/10 - a toned down Wolf of Wall Street that however is more personally relevant to its audience.

the guy in the green shirt (screen right) is Kennedy

 

[MtnMan]

The Sinner: Cora 7.5/10 (Season 1) Netflix, 8 part series of a bizarre murder, and the real story that led up to it.
The Sinner: Julian 7.5/10 (Season 2) Netflix, 8 part series...."

 

[ultimatebob]

There is a new Chinese food show called Flavorful Origins on Netflix that's kind of cool. The best way I could think of describing it is "Chinese Chef's Table". The English translations seem to be a bit off, but it's quirky and fun to watch.

The episodes are kind of short, so you're not making a big time investment to try it out. I'd give it an 7.5 out of 10.

 

[MetalMat]

Drunk Parents - 1/10

This is one of the worst movies I have ever seen, at least one with such a big named caste. It's a complete pile of junk! It's a movie consisting of a couple dozen individual unfunny uninteresting scenes that are either loosely related to the overall shit plot or just not needed. This movie was so bad that I will probably avoid any future movies involving the main actors here (sort of like how I have avoided everything related to Happy Madison for the past 10 years).

 

[MetalMat]

Runaway Jury - 7/10

I rather enjoyed this movie though the overall plot is a bit far fetched. The movie takes place place in New Orleans and boy oh boy do they let you know, they try to shove every single known landmark in your face throughout the movie. Hackman is, as usual, awesome. Is there anymore perfect bad guy in movies than Hackman? Cusack is.... Cusack, nothing special but I like him sort of like him how I like Nick Cage. I have to ding the ending because you really have to suspend disbelief to get through it.

 

[sdifox]

Animaniacs 2020 3/10 They are still doing the same type of jokes from 20 years ago. Old and tired now.