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Mudcat
Those examples are only remotely comparable from my perspective. While there may be characters who could loosely be said to have a self-pitying manchild nature - I find those movies to have a much wider focus. I wasn't talking about discomfort to mean danger. All movies have conflict and therefore discomfort. I was being fairly specific.

However it is not surprising to me that you enjoy manchild cliches and hissyfits etc. based on your longterm interest in SBR forum. Personally I would have to be paid by the minute to look at that forum but lots of people do like that stuff. Different tastes.
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Apparently you are not up to date with my status at SBR forum. Haven't posted there in months. Not like that has anything to do with a movie discussion, but Sideways is a great movie, a top 10 movie for me. But, not all tastes are the same, as you said. Life would be pretty boring if they were.

What did you rate Magnolia?
 
Yeah, I like that movie too. A lot.

But, it had a lot of characters with self-pitying manchild tendencies.

A lot of awkward moments in there as well. However, maybe you just found Sideways a whole different beast since the elements that those things apply to in Sideways are not nearly as broad as they are in something like Magnolia. Because there's a certain selfishness to the movie Sideways and perhaps Magnolia was a bit more...spiritual in nature? Or at least had those undertones?
 
Cougar Bait
Yeah, I like that movie too. A lot.

But, it had a lot of characters with self-pitying manchild tendencies.

A lot of awkward moments in there as well. However, maybe you just found Sideways a whole different beast since the elements that those things apply to in Sideways are not nearly as broad as they are in something like Magnolia. Because there's a certain selfishness to the movie Sideways and perhaps Magnolia was a bit more...spiritual in nature? Or at least had those undertones?
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I agree there are some similarities between the two movies on that level. Fortunately I found they both had surprises/insights/humour that elevated them. They did not simply dwell in cliche. My ratings of the two, although based on wider criteria, didn't end up much different. 7 and 8.

It seems like you might be looking for clarification of the annoying/uncomfortable factor I was referring to that turns me off in a movie (or TV character or forum or individual in real life etc.) Without getting into an essay, the best example I can think of would be Jake Lamotta in Raging Bull. Never managed to surprise me or teach me anything or go anywhere. He was stupid and pathetic and embarrassing when I met him, and that's how he stayed. A dime-a-dozen, tantrum-throwing manchild. And that character study really was the whole movie. That's the kind of guy I don't want to spend 2 hours with. Thus my rating of 4-point-something (and even that would be lower without a couple of good performances.)

But as we both know, MANY people love that movie. Different strokes.
 
I like Raging Bull. Not nearly as fascinated with it as some. We've had this discussion before I think.

Anyway, I couldn't imagine giving it a 4 point something, but he is a grotesque protagonist, I must agree there.

While we are on this topic...

Have you ever seen the Woodsman?
 
I saw The Woodsman some time back. Probably around the time it first came to video which would be ~2005. I don't have a rating for it at imdb so I guess I saw it before I was doing that.

My general memory is of thinking it was pretty good. Gutsy career choice by Kevin Bacon. It had a message which I thought was interesting - something to think about - although no doubt many people just wouldn't want to hear it. Kevin Bacon was a whole different brand of distasteful character for me. I don't recall finding him unwatchable at all, just distasteful.

However my memory is not really strong on the details.


What did you think of it?
 
Argo - Meh. Fuck you.

Yes, the actual people trying to get out of Iran were essentially innocent. But the anger at the U.S. over helping to topple a democratically elected government to put in place a ruthless dictator is probably warranted. I don't know how I'm supposed to be grateful for the CIA pulling these people out when they were the root cause of the situation in the first place. The movie essentially makes the revolution seem barbaric when the people of Iran had been subjected to brutal conditions as a result of America's involvement there. Doesn't help when you already know the ending either. Whatever. 3 F0cks.
 
Interesting, when I first liked Sideways I kind of figured nobody would even notice it. Certainly didn't expect it to be remembered 10 years later.

Focker I like your reviewing style.


Girls just saw 2 episodes of this hbo series(?). Pretty well done, creative. I cancelled hbo so I doubt I'll see any more of it. Does anybody watch this? Impressions?
 
I watched the first season of Girls. I found it okay but not more than that. My feeling is that they tried to make the characters real - meaning flawed - which is fine by me in principle - but they focused a little too hard on the annoying aspects.

I was also bothered by the one girl who exhibited a fairly strong consistent (somewhat annoying) personality through the whole season - and suddenly she just changed radically. I guess the writers had somewhere they wanted to go but they didn't have the skill and elegance to do it within the framework they had set up so BOOM, a character's personality just changes out of the blue. Didn't like it.

The fact it has sex has undoubtedly bought it more time than it would get just on the merits of the production. I tend to have interest in sex.

I'll start watching the new season which I think is coming up pretty soon (early Jan.?) but I'm teetering on the bail line.
 
Muddy that girl was always pretty random. But yeah, they seem to be setting up this marriage just to contrast the oddball urban-bohemian lifestyle with that of the NYC finance doucheball.

It did seem pretty off even by the odd Brit nanny's standards.
 
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