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Ace_Spade's Replies
I sorta consider them to be one movie. Vol.1 does have the edge with the build-up and payoff of the Crazy 88 v. Bride fight, but one of the things that I really, really love about Vol.2 is when Beatrix shows up and meets B.B. Then this kinda weird family drama plays out while, underneath it all, we know how it has to end, no matter how much Beatrix wishes it could end another way. That strain and stress is wonderful dramatic power and keeps Vol.2 up there.
Vol.1 brings all the octane.
Vol.2 gets surprisingly touching and poignant.
There's an interview somewhere where Tarantino talks about writing about how Beatrix, after grabbing the Pussy Wagon, heads off into the desert where she's buried a stash of cash and weapons under a rock. He didn't include the scene in the film, but I would assume that the Bride has a few stockpiles of resources and wouldn't really need it. She could also get money at any moment (being a world-class assassin and all) and so that's not really something that's thin on the ground.
Probably Chinatown. There's almost nothing to feel good about there and the idea that the villain will get away with it is so very much like real life. Brutal.
Some of my runners-up:
Requiem for a Dream is relentless.
Silence - which I find really amazing, but I'm not sure "haunting" is quite right here...
The Godfather builds a lot of very sinister ramifications into the last moments.
I absolutely agree. It's a brilliant film.
I don't think your evaluation is accurate.
First, I don't think Miss Kubelik is a gold-digger. I think she got infatuated with Sheldrake because he looks impressive at a glance and because he sold her a pack of goods. She tried to keep away from him, her emotions kept her in the vicious cycle. But given her circumstances, she obviously wasn't in it for the gifts.
Baxter might not be able to get a reference from Sheldrake, but then again, he just might. In the Chinese restaurant, Sheldrake seems amused, "He threw that big, fat job right in my face!" and might give him a reference because that would have been the accepted thing to do.
Either way, though, Baxter rose so high, so fast in that company that his CV would look darn impressive.
Even without the reference or the resume, I'm sure Baxter could get work somewhere. Maybe not New York, but somewhere.
As for the relationship, it's obvious that those two kids are crazy about each other, falling in love, and are prepared to go through hard times together (after the ordeal in the apartment).
Baxter and Kubelik will get married, get work someplace else, and while they might not ever get the "prestige" of being a Sheldrake, they'll both be mensches living happy.
The movie is about these two letting go of their bad habits to become better people. Kubelik breaks free of her whirlpool romance with Sheldrake sucking her down all the time and Baxter stops trying to claw his way up the corporate ladder at the expense of his soul. While escaping their meaningless goals held at the beginning of the picture, they happen to meet each other, give each other the motivation and pushing needed to break free, and that bonds them together.
The ending is very bright, particularly because the happiness of the two leads isn't dependent on materialism or sour "romance" anymore.
Well, the general consensus seems to be that the final bits of the film are Travis' imagination, dying and conjuring up a fantasy ending where he's a beloved hero. So logical inconsistencies in this bit are a result of that. If you want to consider the ending to be literally true, it could be that they just don't want to go to NYC and the bus fare is a flimsy excuse.
Arrested or shot by Secret Service? I don't think he would have walked away from that one. He might have managed to kill or wound one or two other people, but I think it would have been the last of Bickle.
If you mean larger ramifications, it would have been the same thing that happens in the wake of any assassination or attempted assassination: news cycles, grieving, people taking advantage of the power vacuum, sentiment and cynicism.
This would have likely shaken up Betsy, psychologically-speaking, quite a bit.
Requiem for a Dream - more effective than a twelve-step program or any PSA they can show you in school.
Nobody's actually said Touch of Evil, right?
Hard to pick just one...
Lord of War - this was the first one to spring to mind. The bullet's "journey" is powerful stuff.
Touch of Evil - popped in second for obvious reasons.
Rear Window - sets up every theme, every inch of the main character's foolish tenacity, and all the backstory you need in one panning sweep of a room.
Star Wars - John Williams and text crawl for an unforgettable opening kick.
Annie Hall - simple, direct, personal, beautiful.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail - these guys can't make it through an opening credit sequence without diving into the absurd.
Monty Python's The Meaning of Life - a fake movie about accountancy pirates.
And, does the opening credits (The Times They Are A-Changin') from Watchmen count? It's not really the "intro" (that's technically the fight in the Comedian's apartment), but it feels intro-like. If it counts, yeah, throw that one on there, too.
Best: Terra for versatility (equipment, Morph, magic, batt.pwr), Sabin for Blitzes, Edgar for Tools.
Upper-mid: Locke steals things and I dig his boomerangs (back row, full damage), Shadow's Throw can be rippingly powerful, Stragos has some neat moves, and Gogo's Mimicry makes him very modular. I will admit, though, I knocked Gogo down a peg for being a bit dull as a character.
Lower-mid: Cyan's Sword Technique is *so* powerful and *so* slow, Mog and Gau both have cool powers, but they lack control, Relm's abilities don't work when it matters - kinda random. Setzer gets to be here because of his sweet, sweet gambler vibe and for his interesting weaponry, even though his slots are rubbish.
Worst: Umaro. If you want to leave an enemy alive longer than the others, Umaro is *guaranteed* to kill it first. I found him kinda useful in the Colosseum, however, since his limited move list makes him less likely to use random, foolish moves. His strength also gives him a good edge.
With number 7, I guess my point/ the reason this strays from "unexplained" to "plothole" is the fact that these doors are integrated into future structures and if humanity couldn't use them, I don't know how they would work them into circuitry, mechanisms, etc., and why they would store things (even valuable things) behind doors they can't open. Perhaps "plothole" is the wrong word (since it's not really got to do with the plot), but "world-hole", maybe?
Regarding the trial (number 8): I know it's not *meant* to be dissected, but I kinda have fun over-analysing things...
The thing about the heirloom (number 9), though, is that, even if the king didn't think anything of it, there would have been a whole system of bureaucracy dealing with that stuff. The government, the administration, whoever, wouldn't let this happen. I can imagine a load of reasons how Yakra might have pulled this scheme off, but that's sort of doing the writing for the writer.
Number 10: Good point. I buy that it would be inaccessible and impenetrable to humans and mystics.
Number 11: That explanation would make sense if Melchior had met Chrono at some palace gala, but he didn't. He saw a *very* distinctive-looking guy use the most recognisable weapon in the game (to Melchior, anyway) to deeply wound a world-devouring monster on the day that - to Melchior - the world basically ended.
Number 12: Similar to number 9: I accept that Zeal might have been putting a few different kinds of pressure on Schala to convince her to proceed with the Ocean Palace, but Schala's character is one of self-sacrifice and goodness, and for the game to not show me any of the screws being turned is to ask me to do some of the writer's work.
I seem to recall reading somewhere that it erased parking tickets from records. I can't remember if that was officially confirmed, though.
I don't think SJWs make it through Seinfeld. They just get to "not that there's anything wrong with that" and then their little heads pop.
Well, if you're looking for why other people love the show, here's my reason: I don't consider this a sitcom; to me, it's a satire. Seinfeld is very, very, very insightful into human foibles and social quirks. The idiosyncrasies, annoying habits, odd social customs, and general weirdness of people is skewered beautifully by the show.
When you see four whiny, narcissistic, annoying, self-centred people in NYC, I see cultural criticism in the highest order.
There are a tonne of other reasons: the one-liners are sharp, there's a poetry to the language that is very appealing, and the general sensibility of the show, etc., etc., but at its core, Seinfeld is a show which lampoons the human race, and I find that appealing comedically and intellectually.
I know it's not for everybody, but that's why I like it. It manages to be insightful and it gives me a laugh at the missteps of humankind when normally those follies just elicit depressed cynicism.
1. Batman
2. Batman Returns
3. Mask of the Phantasm
4. The Dark Knight
5. Batman Begins
6. Batman: The Movie
7. The Dark Knight Rises
8. Batman Forever
9. Batman and Robin
I haven't seen BvS or Justice League. I haven't included The Dark Knight Returns, Gotham Knights, Year One, (etc.) because of their DTV status.
Also has one of the best with Through a Glass Darkly.
A rare point in the movie I didn't like; Hennessy's exact plan seemed a bit murky and unclear the more it was revealed.
I disagree. Quan's actions forced Hennessey's hand in a lot of circumstances and put a tonne of additional pressure on him. He was beset from all sides, and adding Quan into the mix really helped with his character arc.
That's not what I meant by "reused old stuff". I was thinking, for instance, of the Quicksilver X-Mansion rescue scene which was (basically) a re-tread of his action scene in Days of Future Past. They weren't being creative, just recycling old material. Time traveling and seeing the past and such is not really what I meant.
Apocalypse could still have disintegrated Scott's visor or melted the ground and suffocated everyone. He is shown to be godlike when the movie wants to impress me, but much less capable of destruction when it needs to protect heroes from death.
My impression is that its not all narcissistic pride, but that Lucas is just very nervous about what Star Wars should be. I agree that the buck stops with Lucas, though. He should have sidelined his own ego - born from misgivings or control freak behaviour or whatever - and put the project first.
You hit the nail on the head, too. The original films had a balance (of the Force...?) where the auteur visionary was at the head, guiding everybody, but he was tempered with the right craftspeople around him. The prequels unbalanced on the side of the visionary, giving him too much control and too much on his plate. The sequels are now showing what happens when there is no vision, no navigator, no great artist at the heart and at the helm.