The Movies

[Dave Joksimovic]

I think the last thing we need right now is Disney's Marvel's Frankenstein 2.

Bruh... you're thinking small. I'm talking Godzilla Vs. Mechagodzilla and Destroy All Monsters level big...

[Alex Ptacek]

Rip, I'm looking to get into Star Trek. I've heard so many good things about the old show, but the newer films left a bad taste in my mouth. Where do I start?

[Mark Rippetoe]

Definitely start with The Wrath of Khan.

[LimieJosh]

Casablanca was interesting, and certainly an important film for several reasons. Ingrid Bergman is the most beautiful woman who ever lived, and it is a pleasure to watch her. But ultimately, I find I can no longer watch people smoke with this volume and intensity, and it's more than a minor distraction to me.

I feel similar, but it being in black and white changes the perspective for me. It's not that sensible, as if I watch a film from the 70s and see the same thing it is no less obviously from a different (and now distant) time than a film from the 40s and 50s, but I think the lack of colour makes it easier to reconcile that I'm watching a historical piece and so can accept the outdated things. For instance, I did a Bond Marathon a year or two ago and found myself feeling repeatedly uncomfortable at watching Connery beat a woman before forcing himself on her (and doesnt she just love it really), but if it was in black and white I would probably be able to accept it more as just a fact of its time.

I also felt similarly as you describe about Citizen Kane. I expected so much more the first time I saw it, but if you watch it for entertainment you cannot get past that it comes across as just so derivative to a modern day viewer. But that is precisely why it is so important. I accept that such a thing does not make it entertaining (I think the Karate Kid is more "entertaining" then a film like the Last Emperor), but I still think it is well worth watching foundational pieces like this and Kurosawa (Hidden Fortress and Roshomon especially) to see where so many of the modern influences came from. That experience can be very interesting, as long as you get why you're watching it.

[slhuckstead]

Definitely start with The Wrath of Khan.

Are there any from the TNG films? All I remember of those is that First Contact was probably the only one that was truly good.

[BigViffer]

Definitely start with The Wrath of Khan.

I realize this is the movie thread, however that movie makes a lot more sense if you watch the Original Series episode Space Seed. If Alex is completely new to the original cast, it would be a good idea to see the setup.

[Dave Joksimovic]

Watched The Pheonix Tapes '97 on Amazon Prime... don't bother. Kinda starts out alright, and actually for the first half or so is pretty decent for a "found footage" movie, but then it just gets super dumb in a hurry. You can almost pin-point the moment they ran out of their budget/ideas... the more intriguing conspiracy seems to be how this movie doesn't exist on IMDB if you try to find it... government cover-up?

[CKehoe]

The Classic Movie Marathon continues. Started with Citizen Kane. I hadn't seen it in 40 years, and while I understand its importance from the standpoint of directing and cinematography, with the script predating modern non-sequential narration, the retold story of William Randolph Hearst is just not that compelling. In contrast, To Kill a Mockingbird is one I hadn't ever seen, for some strange reason. It really deserves its place in any Top 10 list of films. In black and white from 1962, Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch and his little daughter Scout, and this amazing story will make you cry if you're not a soulless beast.

Casablanca is playing now. Doctor Zhivago is next.

Rip,

Pardon me if this has already been answered, but I'm not reading through 174 pages to find out and my search-fu isn't that goo.

I'm curious as to how you watch movies. You strike me as a person who wants to do things properly (e.g., coffee, alcoholic libations, lifting, etc.) Projection screen? Gargantuan flat panel? Old school big plasma for black blacks? Do you do Surround/DTS/blah blah blah for audio?

[Mark Rippetoe]

I have a 48" 4K monitor with a home theater sound system. And alcohol.

[jbmillard]

Has anyone ever seen "Seconds", a 1966 film by John Frankenheimer and starring Rock Hudson. I'm not a big Hudson fan, but I liked him in this.