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Recommend Me A Film

C

cassandra78

Gone But Not Forgotten
(ACCOUNT RETIRED)
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Messages
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I'm really stuck for good films to watch, can anyone help please? I've been trawling through the films section here, but can't cope anymore as its like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Obviously its all a matter of personal taste so I'll let you know what I like/dislike.

Scary films are my fave, but I get impatient with gore, the other day I watched Hellraiser 1 and Saw1, switched off halfway through, gory films bore me.
Off the top of my head, films I like include White Noise, The Ring, Omen, Sixth Sense etc.
A film that makes me crap myself and stretch the brain a bit, with little or no sex scenes would be perfect.
I also very much like action and drama, but I don't want to end up crying, I hate romance and girly films.

So, if anyone could suggest anything and give me a rough guide on content, I would be most grateful.
 
Got the Alien Quadrilogy the other day from Woolies and watched the whole thing from start to finish, tacking AVP on at the end.

Man, that was so cool I think I'll do it again this weekend.

I never get tired of them.
 
OK some quite thoughts:

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Spooky horror:

The Eye - spooky HK film
www.forteantimes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=11978

Skeleton Key - I've not see this one yet but it sounds interesting:
www.forteantimes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=21662

A Chinese Ghost Story - I bought the second film the other day as I love the first film. It is also completely bananas - a young man falls in love with a ghost and a monk tries to save him and there is a tree demon and a trip to Hell too.

See also:
www.forteantimes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=22944

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Action:

Ong Bak - paper thin story but impressive fights throughout.
 
Alien? A bit dull and didn't enjoy the fx (sorry, there is no pleasing some people!) Iv'e seen Skeleton Key and found it rather boring, nice twist at the end tho. Enjoyed Ong Bak but like you said, pants plot. I think Shaolin Soccer is the funniest film I have EVER seen.

Thank you for the links! Will check out The Haunting too.
You could also check out the film reviews on the front page
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Haha, that'll learn me to skip straight to forum all the time :oops:
Thank you!

EDIT: I watched The Ring last night, decided to keep my phone switched on because it never rings anyway. BIG mistake. Phone rang halfway through and caller just hung up, so... if i don't post after next wed, you are all invited to my funeral where there will be free drinks for all forteans.
I will haunt every single one of you ;)
 
cassandra78 said:
Alien? A bit dull and didn't enjoy the fx (sorry, there is no pleasing some people!) Iv'e seen Skeleton Key and found it rather boring, nice twist at the end tho. Enjoyed Ong Bak but like you said, pants plot. I think Shaolin Soccer is the funniest film I have EVER seen.
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The Kung Fu Hustle might be the one for you.

Also:

Spooky Encounters
Mr Vampire

and watch these back to back as a double:

Kung Fu Zombie
Kung Fu From Beyond the Grave

cassandra78 said:
EDIT: I watched The Ring last night, decided to keep my phone switched on because it never rings anyway. BIG mistake. Phone rang halfway through and caller just hung up, so... if i don't post after next wed, you are all invited to my funeral where there will be free drinks for all forteans.
I will haunt every single one of you ;)
Click to expand...

Ahhhhh thats not fair :(
 
One of my recent favourites is The Machinist. Quite odd, fairly creepy, keeps you guessing about what's going on and doesn't outstay its welcome. I have to say, though, that the only really scary thing about it is how much weight Christian Bale lost to play the lead!
 
I don't know if the competition is over for good films, but I'd recommend:

Any film by VAL LEWTON, which are amazing.
Val Lewton's name is synonymous with the subtlest, most mysterious brand of horror filmmaking in Hollywood's golden age, and the nine horror classics he produced at RKO between 1942 and 1946 constitute the most remarkable cycle of creativity in B-movie history.
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I also quite like a film called THE AMAZING MR. X:
On the beach one night, Christine Faber, two years a widow, thinks she hears her late husband Paul calling out of the surf...then meets a tall dark man, Alexis, who seems to know all about such things. After more ghostly manifestations, Christine and younger sister Janet become enmeshed in the eerie artifices of Alexis; but he in turn finds himself manipulated into deeper deviltry than he had in mind...
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And one other plug for a great old tv film - THE NIGHT STALKER:
Wisecracking reporter Carl Kolchak, investigating a string of gruesome murders in Las Vegas in which the victims are drained of blood, concludes that a vampire is on the loose. Since the mayor, the police chief and his own editor think he's off his rocker, it's up to Kolchak to stop the bloodsucker himself.
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I'll see if I can't come up with some more contemporary titles, but off to work I go!
 
Mighty_Emperor said:
cassandra78 said:
Alien? A bit dull and didn't enjoy the fx (sorry, there is no pleasing some people!) Iv'e seen Skeleton Key and found it rather boring, nice twist at the end tho. Enjoyed Ong Bak but like you said, pants plot. I think Shaolin Soccer is the funniest film I have EVER seen.
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The Kung Fu Hustle might be the one for you.
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Seconded. You'll love it, go buy it. Now.
Personally I very slightly prefer Shaolin Soccer to Kung-Fu Hustle, but friends I've leant them too said they enjoyed KFH more.

I still wet myself thinking about that scene in Shaolin Soccer where they're singing in the club.

If you like action, you should check out:
The Transporter (and it's sequel - somehow even sillier but very fun)
The Bourne Identity and Bourne Supremacy
Ronin
Collateral
Equilibrium
Dobermann - psychotic French actioner
Taxi and Taxi 2 - I think you'd really enjoy these. Mentalist French action/comedy with great racing scenes. Don't bother with the US remake...
Oldboy - pretty gruesome in parts, but an excellent thriller
Run Lola Run

And for horror - have you ever seen The Hitcher? It's not too gory and very creepy. One of my favourite horror films ever.

Some other random stuff:
Amelie - it's not horror or action, but it's very funny and about the most perfect movie ever made.
Christie Malry's Own Double Entry - quirky British thriller, pretty bizarre

And I know it's not a movie, but if you haven't seen the new Battlestar Galactica series yet, you should check it out.
 
Scary films are my fave, but I get impatient with gore, the other day I watched Hellraiser 1 and Saw1, switched off halfway through, gory films bore me.
Off the top of my head, films I like include White Noise, The Ring, Omen, Sixth Sense etc.
A film that makes me crap myself and stretch the brain a bit, with little or no sex scenes would be perfect.
I also very much like action and drama, but I don't want to end up crying, I hate romance and girly films.
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Okay, it's gory - but have you tried John Carpenter's version of The Thing? Atmosphere, atmosphere, atmosphere throughout - and as butch as a docker on steroids.
 
Oooh great, this will keep me going for a while, thank you so much. I've got Kung Fu Hustle- Its not as funny as Shaolin Soccer in my opinion. Hokum6- do your recommendations contain sex scenes?
I've seen Oldboy and Unleashed which is fairly interesting while I think of it. Anyone seen Revolver? Snatch and Lock Stock are 2 of my alltime faves.
I'm really looking for so-scary-I-can't-sleep though.
 
If they've got sex in them, it's not so explicit that I remember it. :)
Taxi is probably the most graphic. Some underwear, boobies and a scene at the very end of the film. It's a very light-hearted movie though, so none of it is taken seriously - it's a running joke throughout that the two of them never quite get to consumate the relationship because the guy keeps being interrupted.
 
Have you tried What Lies Beneath? Amusing yet jumpy at the same time. I second the original Haunting. A film I would love to see again is The Beast with Five Fingers starring Peter Lorre. Its the only film I've ever seen that made me scream out loud. I haven't looked very hard mind you!
 
cassandra78 said:
I'm really looking for so-scary-I-can't-sleep though.
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Tricky - I haven't seen many of those recently esp. if you are exlcuding things with too much gore. If you were prepared to be flexible on this then I'd second barfing pumpkin on The Thing - I love that film!!

You might also want to check out Cube (and it is worth watching the sequels).

You might also want to give Uzumaki a whirl - very very creepy. A must see for Forteans.

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I also love Ghost Dog.

If you liked Lock Stock then you might want to check out Shark Skin Man and Peach Hip Girl - its a weird Japanese gangster romp.

Also Dust Devil is really impressive - lots of menace and the Namib looks stunning:
www.forteantimes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19572
 
Aaah, I completely forgot Halloween! I love that, got the box set :spinning

Thank you thank you thank you!!

*Runs to Blockbuster, clutching scribbled list of 24 possible films* Lets see how many (If any) I find. Who recommends these dvd rental sites where you pay a set amount every month?
 
cassandra78 said:
*Runs to Blockbuster, clutching scribbled list of 24 possible films* Lets see how many (If any) I find. Who recommends these dvd rental sites where you pay a set amount every month?
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They beat the hell out of Blockbuster. They're cheaper (assuming you get lots of movies out), have an enormous range (basically just about every film released on DVD in the UK) and more convenient.
I'd recommend trying Lovefilm or Screen Select. Don't bother with Blockbuster's own service.

I also love Ghost Dog.
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Oh yeah, good one. That's a really underrated movie.
 
The Shining is the scariest movie I’ve ever seen. Just so creepy and wrong.

The original Dawn of the Dead I think is pretty good too.

The Rock is one of my all-time action movies. Great Connery / Cage interplay and a top cameo by Michael Beihn.

From your criteria, I would have initially suggested Sleepy Hollow. Scary, engaging, and funny but it won’t keep you up all night fretting…

You mention “Sixth Sense” in your favourites. The Director, Manoj Shyamalan also did Signs, Unbreakable, The Village (and screenplay credit for “Stuart Little”!). Have you checked those out?

Ditto for Lord of the Rings. Peter Jackson’s best scare story is called The Frighteners. Despite what others think on the board, I reckon this is a well-put together movie. And let’s face it probably Michael J Fox last motion picture. But here’s hoping not judging by this performance.

Anyway, there’s my tuppence.
 
More generally Fortean things than scary these, but worth seeing none the less:

Magnolia

Three Colours - Red
 
The Butterfly Effect?

Don't let Ashton Kutcher put you off, I thought it was actually a decent sci-fi chiller.
 
Yes, I'd go for the Butterfly Effect too - superb film. :yeay:
 
Another thumbs-up for "Butterfly Effect", but a loud raspberry for "Signs". Did I miss something, or was that one a bit rubbish?
 
Butterfly Effect was a bit meh really. Kind of like an elongated Twightlight Zone or 2000AD Futrue Shock.

Signs had some nice bits, some genuine scares. But on the whole, when you take time to look back at it, it makes very little sense and really is a bit pants.
 
I think it's trying really hard to be Donnie Darko-smart, and it does make very little sense, but there's enough dumb entertainment there to make it worth watching at least once. I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to see it again though.
 
I thought Signs had an enjoyably creepy buildup (and a few, scattered, equally enjoyable creepy moments) but yeah, it did turn to rubbish in spite of itself (me, I don't understand people who want to live in farmhouses in the middle of nowhere!).
 
I thought so too, there were a couple of really good scares (like that alien on the TV).

(me, I don't understand people who want to live in farmhouses in the middle of nowhere!).
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Sounds like heaven... :)
 
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