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RE: Beyond bad even when bad is good - 19/1/2012 8:59:46 PM

clownfoot

Posts: 7736
Joined: 26/9/2005
From: The ickle town of Fuck, Austria

quote:

ORIGINAL: Timon

Carano has the moves, but she doesn't have the charisma and unfortunately everything suffered as a result.

You mean she's not the new Cynthia Rothrock?

Dang!

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Post #: 31

Haywire - 19/1/2012 9:37:42 PM

HERMES_67

Posts: 91
Joined: 1/10/2005

From the off I found this film a tad wierd; the only way i am able to best describe what I mean is to say the Tempo was way off base. The lead actor Gina Carano was very good, Douglas was a cameo at best. I was disappointed once the film finished which is never a good sign......

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Post #: 32

RE: Beyond bad even when bad is good - 20/1/2012 11:39:10 AM

Bobby TwoTimes

Posts: 52
Joined: 18/3/2008

What planet are you living on??!

'I suggest you watch Taken before attempting to direct an actioner again'

Taken was a terrible film. The fact that they're now considering a sequel where his daughter is somehow a double-hard b*stard is ridiculous! Taken was good for a couple of good action scenes and Liam Neeson's transformation into a 40yr old Bourne - but the editing, story, acting, etc was awful.

And for the record, despite the online spunking-over that 'Drive' received, there are a large amount of people out there that thought it was sh*t! A film about an ex-Nascar racer who works as a Hollywood stuntman and earns money on the side being a getaway driver......with ONE car chase in it? (the opening scene was hardly a 'chase') A couple of bad guys with about 5 mins screentime between them? A lead actress who was in virtually every scene during the first half of the film but disappeared in the second?

The trailer badly screwed that film over - marketing it as a high-octane thriller - when in reality it was a boring arty movie focusing on Gosling's broody face!

But that's just my opinion - doesn't mean i'm a c*nt for it - just thought it was shit that's all.

< Message edited by clownfoot -- 20/1/2012 1:20:44 PM >

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Post #: 33

RE: Beyond bad even when bad is good - 20/1/2012 1:21:42 PM

clownfoot

Posts: 7736
Joined: 26/9/2005
From: The ickle town of Fuck, Austria

That last comment really wasn't on Bobby. Now play nice.

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Post #: 34

RE: Disappointment - 21/1/2012 12:05:10 AM

Whistler

Posts: 2270
Joined: 22/11/2006

I was really disappointed. The awesome supporting cast is about the only good thing I have to say for it (Fassbender and Banderas in particular), but Carano was pretty poor in the lead role, and I just got the feeling that the whole film was just a bit full of itself, like it thought it was much cooler than it was. The direction seemed to draw far too much attention to itself - but not in a good way - which is strange considering it was Soderbergh behind the camera, who's usually pretty reliable. I don't know, maybe I'm being overly harsh because I was tired and I'd just seen a far superior film in War Horse only an hour before, but this just wasn't my cup of tea.

< Message edited by Whistler -- 7/6/2012 4:24:09 PM >

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Post #: 35

McGregor's Accent - 21/1/2012 11:41:26 AM

fiercehairdo

Posts: 90
Joined: 6/10/2005

OK, I haven't seen this yet - just clips/trailers but.... maybe I'm being harsh but I'm never convinced by Ewan McGregor's American accent. It sounds so dodgy to me. Am I the only one? They keep casting him as an american and it completely punctures the illusion. It's a shame 'cause he's a likeable actor but I find it so distracting. His cockney accent is a bit iffy too....

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Post #: 36

RE: McGregor's Accent - 21/1/2012 12:49:09 PM

Cool Breeze

Posts: 1617
Joined: 9/11/2011
From: The Internet

Another example of Empire giving a shite film a great review because of director snobbery.They obviously respect Stephen Soderbergh so much that htye couldnt bear to give it a less than stellar review.If this had Luc bessons name attached they would not have been so lenient.

The film is basically Bourne with tits.Avoid.

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Post #: 37

RE: Haywire - 21/1/2012 2:20:38 PM

MonsterCat

Posts: 6208
Joined: 24/3/2011
From: St. Albans, Hertfordshire

quote:

ORIGINAL: Cool Breeze

Another example of Empire giving a shite film a great review because of director snobbery.They obviously respect Stephen Soderbergh so much that htye couldnt bear to give it a less than stellar review.

Really? Even though they rated The Good German and Ocean's 12 2/5 and The Informant 3/5? But hey don't let research and cold hard facts get in the way of you spouting your specious crap.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Cool Breeze

Bourne with tits.

They should hire you to write taglines for posters.

< Message edited by MonsterCat -- 21/1/2012 2:21:22 PM >

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Post #: 38

It's one long friends joke - 21/1/2012 5:56:05 PM

Trumpetnut

Posts: 3
Joined: 21/1/2012

Chandler, watching bay watch, exclaimed once "keep them running, always running." I think soderburgh was influenced by this line, because she runs in the streets, she runs in alleys, she runs up stairs and even runs on the beach, not quite a la baywatch, but you get the idea. A convoluted and indecipherable plot mixed with bemused performances by bemused star actors wondering how they were roped into this, only added to a complete lack of feeling or tension, or suspense. It had an inextricably long sequence of her walking down a street with the dopiest looking secret agent following her in the most conspicuous way possible, which made me think the director wasn't thinking. In comparison Columbiana was a tour de force. So this twaddle tossed and turned its way through ninety minutes or so until she beat up Antonio banderas' girlfriend then dropped in behind him from a balcony. And the film finished...abruptly. A very bemusing experience. It was awful. It had to be if the best bit was a scene of driving a subaru in reverse only to crash into a tree after a deer jumped in the car.

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Post #: 39

3 stars: i.e., fun if you like that kind of thing - 21/1/2012 7:23:27 PM

MMoscow

Posts: 5
Joined: 29/7/2011

Not in the same league as Hannah and takes itself too seriously to be as much fun as the one where Angelina Jolie shoots bullets round in circles. But it wasn't bad and I did like the idea of a female lead in an action movie who was a calm, confident professional. The best example of a woman beating up massive male star in a movie remains Miriam Margoyles fighting Arnold Schwartznegger.

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Post #: 40

It's not that good. - 21/1/2012 7:52:30 PM

tysmuse

Posts: 255
Joined: 24/9/2007

Jaunty score, lots of stars, and Soderbergh throws in plenty of fun angles, but it's never really that exciting. The plot is so by-the-numbers that the only way to make it at all interesting is to chop it up and mix it up. Still, nice throw downs.

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Post #: 41

Fantastic - 21/1/2012 8:26:19 PM

adambatman82

Posts: 11156
Joined: 15/12/2005
From: Sheffield

I'm baffled by the negativity in this thread; I thought it was fantastic. A clever plot mixed with beautifully shot action sequences made for a solid all-round experience. Complaints about the complicated plot say more about the viewer than the filmmaker, especially given that the whole thing was explained for a second time in one of the films closing sequences. It was really nice to see a post-Bourne action flick that wasn't all fast-cuts and shaky-cam too.

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Post #: 42

Haywire Review - 21/1/2012 10:26:23 PM

the film man

Posts: 598
Joined: 13/10/2010

Haywire is a fast and spare thriller, with cleanly staged set pieces that immerse you in the action.

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Post #: 43

Poor (Wo)mans Bourne - 22/1/2012 12:54:08 AM

J_BUltimatum

Posts: 108
Joined: 20/1/2007
From: Edinburgh

A ridiculously average film which tries to aspire to the same accolade as Bourne and Bond but falls majorly short. The film itself is attempts to show itself as a new type of action flick but in the end it is just a mash together of previous action films with a woman in the lead instead of Matt Damon. If a poor mans Bourne is what your after by all means go see it. But if you want an original, half good movie I highly recomend steerin clear!

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Post #: 44

RE: Poor (Wo)mans Bourne - 22/1/2012 10:58:33 AM

Rgirvan44

Posts: 18876
Joined: 10/3/2006
From: Punishment Park

I really enjoyed it - the fights were excellent, the plot threadbare but filled with great character actors and it moved quickly.

Also liked that our hero looked like a proper woman, and not just a girl posing with a gun - a problem which I have with a lot of recent actioners.

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Post #: 45

RE: Poor (Wo)mans Bourne - 22/1/2012 11:21:30 AM

adambatman82

Posts: 11156
Joined: 15/12/2005
From: Sheffield

quote:

ORIGINAL: J_BUltimatum

A ridiculously average film which tries to aspire to the same accolade as Bourne and Bond but falls majorly short. The film itself is attempts to show itself as a new type of action flick but in the end it is just a mash together of previous action films with a woman in the lead instead of Matt Damon. If a poor mans Bourne is what your after by all means go see it. But if you want an original, half good movie I highly recomend steerin clear!

It is nothing like the Bourne films. Isn't that why everyone else is complaining?!

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Post #: 46

RE: Poor (Wo)mans Bourne - 22/1/2012 11:49:10 AM

Rgirvan44

Posts: 18876
Joined: 10/3/2006
From: Punishment Park

Yeah, this isn't a Borune film - Soderburgh has basically take an action template and inserted it into his world - all that contract discussion at the start? Wouldn't get that in an action film.

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Post #: 47

RE: McGregor's Accent - 22/1/2012 12:20:22 PM

horribleives

Posts: 4178
Joined: 12/6/2009
From: The North

quote:

ORIGINAL: Cool Breeze

Another example of Empire giving a shite film a great review because of director snobbery.They obviously respect Stephen Soderbergh so much that htye couldnt bear to give it a less than stellar review.If this had Luc bessons name attached they would not have been so lenient.

The film is basically Bourne with tits.Avoid.

So what you mean is 'I don't like something therefore anyone who does like it must be pretending'?
Okay.

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Post #: 48

RE: McGregor's Accent - 22/1/2012 12:21:29 PM

horribleives

Posts: 4178
Joined: 12/6/2009
From: The North

quote:

ORIGINAL: Cool Breeze

Another example of Empire giving a shite film a great review because of director snobbery.They obviously respect Stephen Soderbergh so much that htye couldnt bear to give it a less than stellar review.If this had Luc bessons name attached they would not have been so lenient.

The film is basically Bourne with tits.Avoid.

So what you're saying is 'I don't like something therefore anyone who does like it must be pretending'?
Okay.

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Post #: 49

RE: McGregor's Accent - 22/1/2012 1:37:15 PM

Qwerty Norris

Posts: 3142
Joined: 26/10/2005
From: Edinburgh

There are definitely things to like in this, but overall I'd say that Soderbergh's realist take on the action thriller delivers mixed results - even if it's nice to see a film of this genre not resign itself to seizure-enduing cuts every second.

When it works, it tends to be when he resorts to the stripped down nature of no music & hand to hand combat situations (specifically one particular encounter in a hotel room), whilst the script itself is refreshingly free of obvious contrivance. When it doesn't however, it's usually because the aesthetic results in a lack of required suspense in certain scenes (the arrival of supposed FBI agents in a forest for example), a flashy montage to condense a specific scenario (Barcelona) & a hugely inappropriate score (David Holmes' efforts work for the likes of Oceans 11 but it completely confuses the tone in this).

Gina Carano certainly has the physical presence but not so much of a dramatic one - leading to a number of the more quieter scenes feeling pretty flat. That said; there is potential in her to be a female no-nonsense action hero & that's certainly a good thing.

A solid if ultimately flawed cinematic experiment.

3/5

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Post #: 50

RE: McGregor's Accent - 22/1/2012 1:39:31 PM

adambatman82

Posts: 11156
Joined: 15/12/2005
From: Sheffield

quote:

ORIGINAL: horribleives

quote:

ORIGINAL: Cool Breeze

Another example of Empire giving a shite film a great review because of director snobbery.They obviously respect Stephen Soderbergh so much that htye couldnt bear to give it a less than stellar review.If this had Luc bessons name attached they would not have been so lenient.

The film is basically Bourne with tits.Avoid.

So what you're saying is 'I don't like something therefore anyone who does like it must be pretending'?
Okay.

You're debating something with the person who coined the term "Bourne with tits". I really wouldn't bother.

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Post #: 51

RE: Beyond bad even when bad is good - 22/1/2012 4:28:36 PM

Spaldron

Posts: 10487
Joined: 6/10/2006
From: Chair

quote:

ORIGINAL: Bobby TwoTimes

And for the record, despite the online spunking-over that 'Drive' received, there are a large amount of people out there that thought it was sh*t! A film about an ex-Nascar racer who works as a Hollywood stuntman and earns money on the side being a getaway driver......with ONE car chase in it? (the opening scene was hardly a 'chase') A couple of bad guys with about 5 mins screentime between them? A lead actress who was in virtually every scene during the first half of the film but disappeared in the second?

What a massive pile of.....oh I'm not even going to bother with this crap.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Cool Breeze
Another example of Empire giving a shite film a great review because of director snobbery.They obviously respect Stephen Soderbergh so much that htye couldnt bear to give it a less than stellar review.If this had Luc bessons name attached they would not have been so lenient.

Another douche rant .

I'm unsure whether to see this now or wait for the dvd considering the mixed comments here. Plenty more important films to get round to watching first.

< Message edited by elab49 -- 22/1/2012 7:01:36 PM >

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Post #: 52

RE: Beyond bad even when bad is good - 22/1/2012 4:40:44 PM

Whistler

Posts: 2270
Joined: 22/11/2006

quote:

ORIGINAL: Spaldron

I'm unsure whether to see this now or wait for the dvd considering the mixed comments here. Plenty more important films to get round to watching first.

Probably just wait for the DVD. Of course, as you say, it does have mixed reviews so it might be worth going to see, but I didn't personally enjoy it and I'd recommend spending the money on one of the more important films, in or out of cinemas

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Post #: 53

RE: Beyond bad even when bad is good - 22/1/2012 5:21:17 PM

adambatman82

Posts: 11156
Joined: 15/12/2005
From: Sheffield

quote:

ORIGINAL: Spaldron

I'm unsure whether to see this now or wait for the dvd considering the mixed comments here. Plenty more important films to get round to watching first.

I'd recommend it as highly as anything else thats been released so far this year. I certainly wouldn't let the confused bemoaning in this thread put you off; the general consensus elsewhere is by and large positive (82% Rotten Tomatoes).

< Message edited by adambatman82 -- 22/1/2012 6:30:51 PM >

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Post #: 54

RE: Beyond bad even when bad is good - 22/1/2012 7:44:58 PM

Qwerty Norris

Posts: 3142
Joined: 26/10/2005
From: Edinburgh

quote:

ORIGINAL: Spaldron

I'm unsure whether to see this now or wait for the dvd considering the mixed comments here. Plenty more important films to get round to watching first.

If you've got an unlimited card or lots of money it's worth checking out.

If not? Yeah, wait for the DVD.

_____________________________

Qwerty's Top 10 of 2013 (so far)

1. Zero Dark Thirty
2. No
3. In The Fog
4. Good Vibrations
5. McCullin
6. Beyond the Hills
7. The Place Beyond the Pines
8. Wreck-it Ralph
9. Shell
10. In The House

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Post #: 55

They are all going to hell - 22/1/2012 8:54:43 PM

dj8680

Posts: 2
Joined: 28/6/2007

This is one of the most god-awful pieces of cinematic excrement I have ever had the misfortune of sitting through... and I have, for my sins, seen Twilight AND Sex & the City 2. There is no plot, it isn't complicated at all (as some other, clearly mentally deficient fool on here has suggested), the acting is similar to a special school nativity play, McGregor's accent is terrible, Fassbender is as useless as Justin Bieber's genitals, Puss In Boots is just silly and Steven Soderbergh needs to be publicly flogged. Do NOT go to see this, unless of course you are a masochist with a desperate need to hate cinema. Is Gina Carano the new Angie? No, no she is not. This wasn't even good in a 'this is so bad its good' sense like Hobo with a shotgun or Transporter. It's just muck

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Post #: 56

Boring - 22/1/2012 11:19:46 PM

stu1980

Posts: 21
Joined: 14/4/2006

Big let down. The fights scenes were amazing but thats about it.
It sounded like the music was from dubbed in from a different film just not representing what was on screen at all.
Almost as bad as Drive.

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Post #: 57

RE: Poor (Wo)mans Bourne - 23/1/2012 9:37:13 AM

Timon

Posts: 14541
Joined: 30/9/2005
From: Bristol

quote:

ORIGINAL: Rgirvan44

Yeah, this isn't a Borune film - Soderburgh has basically take an action template and inserted it into his world - all that contract discussion at the start? Wouldn't get that in an action film.

But that's the thing... that was the most interesting part.

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Post #: 58

Harsh people...............Very harsh! - 23/1/2012 9:37:50 AM

guysalisbury

Posts: 166
Joined: 3/11/2005

Having read all of your reviews I was expecting to see the worst film ever. I think you have all been a tad harsh. Inevitably when you go and see a film and your expectations are low you end up liking it a bit more than you usually would, but apart from the worst soundtrack in film history and Ewan McGregor being fucking terrible as usual, I thought this was ok. It just felt a bit different / fresh. Bit annoyed that the trailer gave away the plot between her and Fassbender but im gonna give this a weak 3.

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Post #: 59

A fairly watchable curiosity - 23/1/2012 10:59:42 AM

Old_Pyrate

Posts: 74
Joined: 1/5/2006

I'm not sure Soderbergh's quirky shooting style really worked for this genre. Not enough of the well choreographed scraps for my liking and it took a bit too long for the action to get going. Still, enjoyed the Dublin section, especially when the police get on her tail and the Barcelona foot chase was fun too.

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Post #: 60