Last Movie Watched

You lose a bet or something, JD? mhihi:

Nope. Just wanted to give benefit of a doubt to a decent cast/director and the ghost of a property I used to appreciate. It was on cable(repeatedly) so I figgered i'd catch it...in case I missed something.
 
The Bourne Legacy -- Liked it quite a bit. On par with, and very similar to, the previous Bourne movies. I really enjoy the balance of action and government inner-workings. Same complaints about fight sequences being shot too tightly, making it difficult to tell what exactly was happening, but it's a relatively minor gripe in what was otherwise good fun. Oh, and also you can tell the stunt man isn't Jeremy Renner during a lot of the motorcycle chase stuff.

Total Recall -- Thoroughly bland. Just... didn't like it at all. Eye candy was even disappointing. If it wasn't for Kate Beckinsale, I think Len Wiseman would be doing something other than directing to make a living.
 
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Dread is a really interesting horror film about two students working on a project that examines fear and dread. It's not your typical Clive Barker story, as there aren't any monsters or demons. There are some really disturbing scenes and the ending is pretty ****ed up, seems like most people like the way the story ends better than the movie. I know Orphy and JD both like Barker so maybe they could shed some light on this.
 
The Bourne Legacy -- Liked it quite a bit. On par with, and very similar to, the previous Bourne movies. I really enjoy the balance of action and government inner-workings. Same complaints about fight sequences being shot too tightly, making it difficult to tell what exactly was happening, but it's a relatively minor gripe in what was otherwise good fun. Oh, and also you can tell the stunt man isn't Jeremy Renner during a lot of the motorcycle chase stuff.

Total Recall -- Thoroughly bland. Just... didn't like it at all. Eye candy was even disappointing. If it wasn't for Kate Beckinsale, I think Len Wiseman would be doing something other than directing to make a living.

I haven't seen Total Recall yet but I had similar thoughts regarding Wiseman before. No offense to him but all he's really ever shown in the past is taking opportunities to try to showcase Beckinsale's appearance in various lackluster and bland plots.
 
Does anyone have a Hulu Plus streaming membership? They're trawling with a free trial, and $8 monthly afterwards--about the same as netflix which we use lots. I was going to ask how they compare if anyone's had both, but on their site it shows that Hulu has 725 Criterion titles??? THAT is a number nothing short of ridiculous and may alone be worth the $. Still any feedback is appreciated.
 
Does anyone have a Hulu Plus streaming membership? They're trawling with a free trial, and $8 monthly afterwards--about the same as netflix which we use lots. I was going to ask how they compare if anyone's had both, but on their site it shows that Hulu has 725 Criterion titles??? THAT is a number nothing short of ridiculous and may alone be worth the $. Still any feedback is appreciated.

I use both Hulu and Netflix (as well as Amazon Prime). The Criterion titles are certainly on of Hulu's highlights. Hulu also offers some television shows starting the day after they have been first aired as well as television content that Netflix does not necessarily have (the British show Misfits, for example). Hulu also has commercial interruptions for the new TV content, though the commercial breaks are shorter than OTA length.

Each has gaps in content. FWIW, I end up watching Netflix more frequently, but I've found some real gems on Hulu. It's definitely worth at least the free trial to see if you'd like to switch or even use both services.

It's worth noting that some of the Criterion titles available on Hulu are not available on Blu-Ray or DVD, too. If you enjoy those, you may also like some of Hulu's other eclectic programming.

Both services' interfaces could be improved, IMO.
 
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Does anyone have a Hulu Plus streaming membership? They're trawling with a free trial, and $8 monthly afterwards--about the same as netflix which we use lots. I was going to ask how they compare if anyone's had both, but on their site it shows that Hulu has 725 Criterion titles??? THAT is a number nothing short of ridiculous and may alone be worth the $. Still any feedback is appreciated.

I don't use it (because I don't have time to watch enough to justify spending the money), but I regularly masturbate to Criterion's streaming section on Hulu Plus.
 
Ugh! Thanks for the visuals, Adgy! :O

Haha!

Hey Diehard, congrats, you've seen the one film based on a Barker story that I haven't! ;)

I SHOULD watch it though!

Yeah, Dread is somewhat atypical Barker short story, more realistic, and I did think that it would make a good movie when I read it. The ending in the story, scratch that, the whole story is really good and gets under your skin. Maybe you should read it! ;)
 
I use both Hulu and Netflix (as well as Amazon Prime). The Criterion titles are certainly on of Hulu's highlights. Hulu also offers some television shows starting the day after they have been first aired as well as television content that Netflix does not necessarily have (the British show Misfits, for example). Hulu also has commercial interruptions for the new TV content, though the commercial breaks are shorter than OTA length.

Each has gaps in content. FWIW, I end up watching Netflix more frequently, but I've found some real gems on Hulu. It's definitely worth at least the free trial to see if you'd like to switch or even use both services.

It's worth noting that some of the Criterion titles available on Hulu are not available on Blu-Ray or DVD, too. If you enjoy those, you may also like some of Hulu's other eclectic programming.

Both services' interfaces could be improved, IMO.

Exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks LTI. Commercial breaks..... interesting. This is something I don't miss with netflix. Was also curious about the interface. Yeah, clearly I'll have to do the trial and see how it looks and acts.


I don't use it (because I don't have time to watch enough to justify spending the money), but I regularly masturbate to Criterion's streaming section on Hulu Plus.

Funny you mention this: In The Realm Of The Senses shows up on page 1 (of 145!) of Hulu's Criterion list sorted by popularity, likely due to it's high degree of wankworthiness. I'd joke about your ummm enthusiasm, but 725 Criterion titles is drawing ME wood and I'm not nearly the film buff you are. That's just effing mind-blowing.
 
How many titles does Criterion even have? And does this include streaming special features on those editions?
 
How many titles does Criterion even have? And does this include streaming special features on those editions?

According to the Criterion Web site, 458 titles are available on Hulu Plus (incidentally 629 on DVD, 190 on Blu-ray and 97 on iTunes).

AFAIK, none of the special features are available via Hulu Plus.
 
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The Final is a solid flick about a group of bullied outcasts who take matters into their own hands and take revenge. Pays homage to a few horror movies, including Audition, Deliverance, and Wolf Creek.

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The Killing Room was entertaining enough. Pretty similar to The Exam, but not as good. Basically a group of candidates are lured by a job offer with an espionage agency but end up being experimented upon. Peter Stormare is awesome, as usual.
 
How many titles does Criterion even have? And does this include streaming special features on those editions?

According to the Criterion Web site, 458 titles are available on Hulu Plus (incidentally 629 on DVD, 190 on Blu-ray and 97 on iTunes).

AFAIK, none of the special features are available via Hulu Plus.

Yeah, I was just reading an article about all the rare, unreleased old Japanese flicks available on Hulu Plus through Criterion and I'm... well, you know. I fervently hope Criterion has plans to release all of them properly eventually.
 
OK, well, I can't thank Hulu Plus enough for junk emailing me. I set up the free look and spent hours last night browsing and previewing, giddy and awed nearly to tears at not only the seemingly endless selection but how beautiful they all look and sound. I'd always felt confident that I'd seen a respectable number of Foreign and Criterion releases over the years, but was deeply humbled and excited to realize that I'd barely scratched the surface. Good lord.... they're just ALL there. To have this preposterously deep collection on demand is almost an embarrassment of riches and of immeasurable value to someone into that stuff. Since I've given up buying music and movies forever in favor of streaming (I've grown to live without special features), 8 bucks a month--the cost of one used Blu-ray or a decent sandwich--is laughable and I regret not doing it much, much sooner. As usual I'm the last one to the party but better late than never.

Other than Criterion, the additional content is impressive and will surely get used. I even found a massive archive of WineLibrary TV which was my favorite wine tasting show and was discontinued recently. I really miss it and there were many I didn't see, so this was a HUGE bonus. Like LTI said they do appear to lack in certain areas (mainstream movies, and music documentaries specifically) where netflix is strong, so a combination of both for 16 bucks a month pretty much covers all the bases. May even drop netflix.... we'll see.

Lastly, the commercials are mercifully short--just one spot per break--and while annoying isn't a deal breaker.
 
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What did I just watch? So weird in only a way the Japanese can manage. It's not really a movie as much as a bunch of bizaare images using techniques that were experimental/cutting edge back in the '60's but are now considered old tricks. It's charming in it's own way...but at 80 something minutes its a bit long. And it has a completely left turn ending. It goes from being a fun/weird/kinda messed up movie to being this strange meditation on the afterlife with a character that seemed important when she was introduced in the first 10 minutes...but since she never appears again it's kind of off.
The one thing I learned from this movie is that Sam Raimi is not the crazy innovator I thought he was. In fact, I know he saw this as a youngster and applied all that he learned to Evil Dead.
 
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What did I just watch? So weird in only a way the Japanese can manage. It's not really a movie as much as a bunch of bizaare images using techniques that were experimental/cutting edge back in the '60's but are now considered old tricks. It's charming in it's own way...but at 80 something minutes its a bit long. And it has a completely left turn ending. It goes from being a fun/weird/kinda messed up movie to being this strange meditation on the afterlife with a character that seemed important when she was introduced in the first 10 minutes...but since she never appears again it's kind of off.
The one thing I learned from this movie is that Sam Raimi is not the crazy innovator I thought he was. In fact, I know he saw this as a youngster and applied all that he learned to Evil Dead.

my review if this movie is simply...


heh!
 
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The Intouchables
The Intouchables (2011) - IMDb

A drama about a rich quadriplegic man who is seemingly a bit fed up with life and hires a man from the projects as his personal caretaker. The movie is sweet and touching but also funny and based on a true story. Not exactly breaking new ground or anything but it's done well and is effective in its delivery. I recommend it.
 
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What did I just watch? So weird in only a way the Japanese can manage. It's not really a movie as much as a bunch of bizaare images using techniques that were experimental/cutting edge back in the '60's but are now considered old tricks. It's charming in it's own way...but at 80 something minutes its a bit long. And it has a completely left turn ending. It goes from being a fun/weird/kinda messed up movie to being this strange meditation on the afterlife with a character that seemed important when she was introduced in the first 10 minutes...but since she never appears again it's kind of off.
The one thing I learned from this movie is that Sam Raimi is not the crazy innovator I thought he was. In fact, I know he saw this as a youngster and applied all that he learned to Evil Dead.

Dang, my memory is getting pretty terrible. I can't remember the exact circumstances of how I saw this, but I do remember I caught this one at New Beverly Cinema. I'm pretty sure I immediately went home and pre-ordered it. I really love this wacky movie.
 
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