The Movies

[George Christiansen]

But they are so emotionally dry in general that I never found The Shining to be even remotely scary.

I think that it works in The Shining though because of the particular way Jack cracks.

[Strega]

I really do not understand why Stephen King is considered a horror writer.

Right.....

Carrie was a period piece.
Pet Sematary and Cujo are promotional pieces for PETA.
And Salem's Lot is?

What do you consider horror? It's clearly more than just slasher films.

[John Hanley]

2001's an excellent movie. First time I watched it, I was bombarded with devastating insights. I was slightly high, so that probably played a role.

Somehow 2001: A Space Odyssey always strikes as a technically accomplished, cold, analytical, calculating to the minutest detail and occasionally carrying a bit of intellectual pretense.

I think Kubrick just worked with a palette of emotions not often encountered in film.

I've always found 2001 deeply moving. In many of his films he conveys the emotions associated with existential & metaphysical awe & dread. He doesn't give pat authorial answers, catharsis or emotional salves. But when I watch his shit I think "this dude speaks my language". I just get it.

The ambiguity of 2001 has attracted lots of witless, pretentious commentary from blowhards, but I don't think the film itself is pretentious. I think it's fucking beautiful. And haunting.

[MeatPotato]

Roger fucking that!

R. Lee Ermy was a USMC Drill Instructor and he convinced Kubrick (sp?) to let him ad lib most of his lines.

Saw the movie when it was released and my wife insisted that I let go for her hand vice insisting holding hands all the way through. She said I was squeezing her hand all during the boot phase.

Not in Hue City but a friend of mine drove a flame tank there (not a grunt) and he was not impressed with that half.

Not a movie. But an excellent graphic novel written by a former Marine of my generation, is "The White Donkey" by Maximillian Uriarte.

I suspect the content of the book would resonate with Marines of any era.

[SeanThornton]

2001's an excellent movie. First time I watched it, I was bombarded with devastating insights. I was slightly high, so that probably played a role. For some reason, the scene with Heywood Floyd and the red chairs always stuck out to me. I was struck by how relaxed his body language was.

Funny, I thought 2001 was one of the worst "great movies" ever made. Came out when I was a kid, so never saw it in theaters. After that, you'd have to catch it on TV, since no VCRs yet. Tried watching it at least 4 times, always fell asleep. Once I finally saw it, I was pretty underwhelmed. Found the pacing to be way too slow, and just overall a boring movie. Never tried to watch it again, since then.

Felt the same way about Blade Runner. Never saw it til MANY years after it came out, and was surprised, given its cult status, at how bad I thought it was. After that, I came up with a theory, that any movie or TV show that's dependent on special effects and portrayals of "tech", can't be highly regarded if you don't see it for the first time until it's quite old. Probably why my kids roll their eyes at original Star Trek episodes

[Satch12879]

In contrast, I could not finish Solaris, and I've watched 2001 at least 30 times.

If you haven't already, read the book.

[Mark Rippetoe]

What do you consider horror?

Movies that are scary. None have been written by Stephen King.

Funny, I thought 2001 was one of the worst "great movies" ever made. Came out when I was a kid, so never saw it in theaters. After that, you'd have to catch it on TV, since no VCRs yet. Tried watching it at least 4 times, always fell asleep. Once I finally saw it, I was pretty underwhelmed. Found the pacing to be way too slow, and just overall a boring movie. Never tried to watch it again, since then.

Felt the same way about Blade Runner. Never saw it til MANY years after it came out, and was surprised, given its cult status, at how bad I thought it was. After that, I came up with a theory, that any movie or TV show that's dependent on special effects and portrayals of "tech", can't be highly regarded if you don't see it for the first time until it's quite old. Probably why my kids roll their eyes at original Star Trek episodes

Amazing. You didn't like Blade Runner because you thought it was dependent on special effects. Amazing.

The ambiguity of 2001 has attracted lots of witless, pretentious commentary from blowhards, but I don't think the film itself is pretentious. I think it's fucking beautiful. And haunting.

You either get it, or you don't.

[spacediver]

Movies that are scary. None have been written by Stephen King.

I found Jerusalem's Lot pretty scary (first story in Night Shift). The author's foreword in that book is pretty awesome too.

Funny, I thought 2001 was one of the worst "great movies" ever made. Came out when I was a kid, so never saw it in theaters. After that, you'd have to catch it on TV, since no VCRs yet. Tried watching it at least 4 times, always fell asleep. Once I finally saw it, I was pretty underwhelmed. Found the pacing to be way too slow, and just overall a boring movie. Never tried to watch it again, since then.

It's a movie that requires a commitment on the part of the viewer to sustained high levels of attention. Were you able to enjoy the first hour of Alien (1979)?

[Tim K]

Felt the same way about Blade Runner. Never saw it til MANY years after it came out, and was surprised, given its cult status, at how bad I thought it was. After that, I came up with a theory, that any movie or TV show that's dependent on special effects and portrayals of "tech", can't be highly regarded if you don't see it for the first time until it's quite old. Probably why my kids roll their eyes at original Star Trek episodes

I wasn't born until three years after Blade Runner was released... didn't see it until I was in my 20's... and yet it was obvious to me that it's a masterpiece. I also appreciated how it had clearly been a strong influence on some of what was already my favorite films and media before seeing it. The melding of a film noir aesthetic with a futuristic dystopia is a format that shows up in Dark City, The Matrix, and even my favorite computer game that I loved as a teenager, Deus Ex.

[VNV]

A simple documentary on Netflix: "Buck"

It's about Buck Brannaman, the man who inspired the Horse Whisperer. Look closely and I think you'll find a similarity in his mannerisms to Rip.