RIDLEY SCOTT

There's a local small town booster advertisement near where I get my haircut, one that has a photograph of our historic local movie theatre. And one of the films up on the marquee, along with Iron Man 2 a and a few other things, is Robin Hood. And every time I see it I have to remember that, oh yeah, Ridley Scott made a Robin Hood movie.

I liked The Martian fine--the rescue (hokey enough to make Errol Flynn blush) moved me, I enjoyed the obvious soundtrack (I don't think "Starman" was there as disco), the 150 minutes went by quickly. Ridley Scott's 78 now; thought Damon's final speech to his class might have been Scott's reflection on getting a film made.

Such an amazing feat that Ridley Scott was able to reshoot, in so little time, several torpid, sedentary scenes of people talking in large rooms.

— BANDZ STACKHAGE (@NickPinkerton) January 11, 2018

Watched the first episode of Raised By Wolves and Scott sure loves overt biblical allegory - especially after the death of his brother. Going to give it one more episode, but I'm not into this so far.

Yeah, there's about as much of a chance of me watching this as there is Westworld. I mean, I wish!

It's terrible. Some lovely visual things, but also much recycled from his earlier work. Plus the acting, even by good actors, is terrible, and the writing is pure balls. Also some really terrible costume and design choices.

The babies are creepy as hell.

Would've been much cooler if Tony was alive and had made this IMO.

Watched "The Martian" for the first time since whenever it came out. 1) Forgot how many people are in this! Jessica Chastain, Donald Glover, Kirstin Wiig, Sebastian Stan, Michael Pena, Chiwetel Ejiofor , etc. 2) This really could have been made by anyone today, any workmanlike straight to Netflix director, which is a credit to Ridley Scott, in a backhanded/roundabout way, because the direction is so smart and so chill and so straight forward for him. Like, his next movie was "Alien: Covenant," basically the bizarro version of this one. 3) Refreshing as always to see a movie about math and science and engineering and solving problems. Few and far between.

I thought that making all of the problem-solving on the surface into a montage was a big mistake. That was the thing people liked about the book. Not the disco jokes.

It's still, like, 90% problem-solving and 10% disco.

Kohl-eyed Eva Green is probably the most arresting visual in any of his films.

I can't quite believe how bad House of Gucci is. Did nobody watch what Jared Leto was doing? Doing nobody say "are we sure we want this"?

his entire career is like that

I guess I just don't get it. I don't understand him as a draw. And he's only barely the worst thing in this film.

a very divisive performance - I've seen a few people citing it as the best thing in the film!

Saw lady gaga on a chat show introducing a couple of clips, looked like a terrible TV movie.

Also saw The Martian on TV recently, such a nothing film, whole concept built on promise of stunning mise-en-scène, but everything felt completely flat and lifeless.

Has RS made an actual good movie since Blade Runner? I will not accept Thelma & Louise and Gladiator as answers.

T&L is way better than blade runner, a genuinely bad film that nerds like for some reason. this poll is antifeminist for ranking it over alien

Last Duel ruels

everything felt completely flat and lifeless.

So, true to the book, then.

IMHO, it's kind of telling that the version of Blade Runner without Ford's voiceover (which, as I understand it, he actively tried to make sound grating) is less engaging.

Last Duel ruels

― Vance Vance Devolution (sic), Friday, July 8, 2022 11:36 AM (one month ago) bookmarkflaglink

this is the perfect kind of movie to watch on a long flight with zero expectations going into it. at least 30 minutes too long but couldn't have cared less with affleck's wonderfully hammy count pierre

it's kind of amazing that the film manages to have a plot that hinges on a assault, tackles it very seriously, and still lets affleck be that ridiculous without detracting from the gravity of it

Rewatched The Duellists for the first time in decades. I'm wondering if it's my fave of his? His whole career and much of its aesthetic descendents are all kinda right there from the get-go.

Napoleon is not my kind of a movie, to put it mildly, and I went solely as a show of support to a rep theatre I like that's teetering on the brink. Battle scenes are like car chases for me: I zone out within the first 30 seconds, no matter now expert the choreography. Only a couple here, thankfully, but they're endless.

I probably liked it as much as I could have hoped for, or I at least managed to stay awake through almost all of it. There are a few funny/campy lines, the final shot is good, and there's some interest in terms of Trump. I was going to post on the Trump Movies thread I started, but I figured that would paradoxically be grasping at straws and so obvious as to be unnecessary. There's a speech by the Duke of Wellington in particular--the one about vermin--that's so on the mark that I thought "So that's why you wanted to make this."

I'm almost always impressed by Joaquin Phoenix, but I thought he was just okay here. It felt like he never really figured out what he wanted to do with the character.

Uhhhhhh ... Gladiator 2?

Not a fan of Napoleon or anything (you do not have to hand it to him) but seems a very bad Trump surrogate, seems almost insanely flattering to the latter.

There are obvious points of similarity; looked around last night, and it comes up a lot in reviews. Analogies are never perfect.

Not a fan of Napoleon or anything

are you Russian

Alfred I'll let u know memorials to the many horrors of the Napoleonic invasions litter my home country of Portugal!

I don't know that there are that many obvious points of similarity beyond "caused a lot of trouble" and "kind of an asshole" (which tbf is most world leaders). Napoleon effected actual structural change and picked fights with major powers that he followed through on.

lol I'm not defending him

lol no I get that and my reference was also tongue in cheek, just have to fit in Portugal Things whenever I get a chance

six-hour director's cut is to be about the enactment of the code napoléon in vastly precise legalistic detail, it will rule

The Napoleonic Code--hey, I know that from A Streetcar Named Desire.

This felt like Paul Verhoeven without the fun. Also kind of ugly?

six-hour director's cut is to be about the enactment of the code napoléon in vastly precise legalistic detail, it will rule

― mark s

Directed by Albert Serra, mostly in close-up.

The Napoleonic Code--hey, I know that from A Streetcar Named Desire

That was an Animaniacs joke I remember as a kid - Napoleon appears, actually drawn as if he was Marlon Brando from the '50s, and he says "down here we have the Napoleonic Code - it says you don't start the party without me." It's like one of those WB cartoon jokes that introduces everyone to classic movie references long before they actually watch those films.

has it been noted how he rhymes with diddly squat

and cumquat

My gal is red hot!!

Your gal ain't Ridley Scott!!

mostly clean, sasquatch

Hid me pot

^accurately called "feminist claptrap" by Armond White

― Dr Morbius, Friday, November 14, 2008

Dr. Wrong-O.

Re Thelma and Louise. The action set pieces get tedious in the last half hour, and some of Brad Pitt's line readings are ridic (that body helps), but Sarandon + Davis give such lived-in performances.

i had no idea he directed this! i'm on my first viewing and good lord this a visual feast! there's a shot maybe 5 minutes in where Thelma walks over and opens her closet which should be taught everywhere.

I’m one of the weirdos who likes THE MARTIAN, in our household it’s the comfort food movie we put on after e.g. the chaos of Christmas lunch. Must have seen it six times now.

(and for the record I was underwhelmed and bored by the novel)

It's nothing special but I can def see how it would work as comfort food, kinda movie you could have on tv on a Sunday afternoon back when it mattered what was on.

I regret to inform u gladiator 2 whips ass

correction: DENZEL whips ass. Gladiator 2 the film was decent enough.

i expected it to be the absolute depths of boiled garbage but it was p watchable (except for the baboons, honestly wtf was that whole thing ugh)

i propose that Maximus Jr fill the coliseum w water & sharks & then freeze it for roman gladiator icecapades while atop a rhinoceros

is this late-period ridley scott run of the last duel, house of gucci, napoleon, and gladiator II "camp"? is it intentionally camp?