What MOVIE(s) have you been....seeing? watching?

Watched Cool Runnings again last night. This movie just never gets old for me. Definitely my favorite sports movie and one of my favorite Disney movies.

Saw the Witch last night (or, I suppose, The VVitch). Definitely a unique entry in the horror genre. I fear this may suffer for an expectation that it's more "horror" than it actually is, when a lot of it is more drama and psychological in nature. That being said, there are some very disturbing and spine-tingling parts. But it works really well in a sense of this family coming unglued and each wondering if they are the cause. Reminds me of The Shining in terms of some of the style and shot choices, and the score is very similar to 2001, so a heavy Kubrick influence. I felt like the conclusion was telegraphed just a little too strongly... I saw that coming pretty early on. But it's not like it's a twist or big mystery or anything, so it still works well enough, and does play out in a way that is really creepy.

The Witch was intense. Very heavy immersion in the setting, with total commitment to costume, sets, and even dialogue. In fact, there were times when I had a bit of trouble with the dialogue because of archaic phrasing and also the nervous guy behind me who kept tapping his feet. (I shut him down eventually with a creepy stage whisper of "stop tapping your feet.") Anyway, like Grudunza said, there is a lot of psychological horror at work, and the bleak rural setting was like a main character in the movie. Everybody did a fine job with the acting, especially the kids. During the quietest parts of the movie, the audience went dead silent, waiting anxiously for whatever came next. Some people in the audience were audibly unhappy with the ending, but I thought that it was appropriate. I'm not sure if I could call The Witch one of my top ten horror movies of all time, but it's pretty damn good.

God damn it I want to see that movie.

I mean The Witch, not Cool Runnings.

I saw Deadpool. It was a ton of fun. I do think it may not age very well, since it had a lot of very time period specific references, but I did appreciate that it was very much made for adults of a certain age.

The Witch really is a damn fine horror movie. In hindsight, the cookie cutter trailers that we saw in front of it for cookie cutter horror movies really point out how different and confident The Witch is. It doesn't rely on jump scares but instead uses music, pacing, writing, and acting to get under your skin. I mean, this is a movie where you get creeped out by a rabbit. Not a gross, demonic rabbit, not a rabbit chewing through people's necks... just a rabbit. If a movie can do that then imagine what it's going to do with heavier stuff.

And The Witch does get to that heavier stuff. I wouldn't dare spoil anything even though it's not one of those horror movies that depends on a shocking twist. But several things that are normally off limits in feature films are very much in play here. The night I saw it there were a couple of scenes that made the audience uncomfortable enough that I heard defense mechanism tittering here and there.

I did find the language hard to understand at times, mainly when a character was quickly reciting a prayer. Normal conversation and so forth was fine although I admit it's probably just short of needing subtitles. Other than that, the main criticisms that I've heard about it are that it is unrelentingly grim (which is true--it's one of those movies) and that it is predictable. I disagree with the latter. While the overall arc of the story was pretty much in line with "a New England folktale," the movie still surprised me over and over again. So anyway, it gets my hearty recommendation provided that you are in the mood for a well made, disturbing, creepy, but not necessarily scary horror movie. Definitely not a popcorn flick.

That rabbit!! Shudder...

As far as the language, I do look forward to seeing it again on DVD with subtitles. But for the most part, the important plot elements and dramatic moments were understandable.

The director of The Witch is apparently making a Nosferatu remake. Normally I'd scoff at that being remade, but I think in his hands it might be great.

Deadpool was enjoyable. Not as funny as I was led to expect, but still pretty funny. Fortunately, it also had some great action and even a decent love story. As others have noted, Morena Baccarin hasn't aged a day since the Firefly tv show, and still looks amazing. Ryan Reynolds was basically born to play this character, though there were a couple of easter eggs regarding his other comic book movie roles, in Green Lantern and Blade: Trinity. This movie is also the best Colossus movie ever for you diehard X-fans, and a discarded Grant Morrison character (Negasonic Teenage Warhead) was brought back as a female version of Havok. Veteran B-movie actrress/stuntwoman Gina Carano plays a very credible badguy. Without makeup or costume, she really looks like somebody who could trade punches with Colossus.

Personal footnote: just after the movie, I went to the theater bathroom to take a piss, along with various other movie patrons. To my immediate right was the little boy's urinal, and this short, stocky middle-aged dude stepped up to take a piss. It sounded like he was using a garden hose at full velocity, and I was so keyed up from Deadpool that I couldn't help laughing. Out loud. It was that kind of funnier than it should be laughter that only bubbles up in the most inappropriate situations, like a funeral. I give the movie credit for being that funny.

The Witch has legs. Meaning, I'm still thinking about it a few days later, and have found different meanings to things. And it continues to disturb me.

By contrast, Deadpool was very fun and almost instantly forgotten.

Both have their place, I suppose, but compared to The Witch, Deadpool is like empty calories.