The Movies Thread [Archive] - Honda Fit Forums

manxman

01-14-2010, 06:16 PM

Post your favorites!

Some of mine,

All "Dirty Harry" Series, and anything starring or directed by Clint Eastwood, even back to all of the "Spaghetti Westerns". Those old Westerns brought about the production of my own Italian-made Remington Single Action Army Revolver, made by Uberti & Sons, chambered in .357 Magnum!

"Unforgiven"
"Dances With Wolves"
"The Usual Suspects"
"Reservoir Dogs
"The Road to Perdition"
"The Shawshank Redemption"
"The Time Machine" both versions
"I Am Legend"
"I Am Robot"
"The Green Mile"
"The Patriot"
"Werewolf of London"
"District 9"

These are just a few of the DVD's that I have bought, and watch periodically.

Add your own favorites----------

OMG, for a guy in his '60s, there are thouands!!!:eek:

claymore

01-14-2010, 10:52 PM

The shooter which is based on books by Stephen Hunter great series about Bobby Lee and his father.

Apocalypse Now is my overall favorite movie of all time. The original one not the new longer one. It was based on the Book Heart of darkness which was set in Africa and John Malcovich (spelling?) plays the crazy guy. It's a great movie also.

manxman

01-16-2010, 09:41 PM

Here's another one for you, John- "The Hurt Locker" about bomb units in Iraq deactivating IED's. Very highly rated, and I just ordered it from Amazon, along with Tarentino's "Inglorious Basterds".

claymore

01-16-2010, 10:06 PM

Heard that The hurt locker was pretty good. BUT alas we have to wait until it comes out here. Don't really like Tarentinos work he's a weirdo in my humble opinion.

claymore

01-16-2010, 10:09 PM

How could I forget "The bridge on the river Kwai" one of the all time greats and the only movie I caught on video tape. Break it out every once in awhile to watch it over. We have gone to that area many times and it's spooky I swear you can "feel" the presence of those guy still hanging around.

claymore

01-16-2010, 10:13 PM

And the John Wayne bunch of movies. Best of the bunch was "True grit" but the rest are pretty good also.

And speaking of Eastwood movies liked all the old westerns but Grand Torino is great. Working with the Hmong is the reason I ended up here and the movie is very true to fact.

BUT did not like the two Iwo Jima movies too left wing for my taste.

manxman

01-17-2010, 04:12 PM

Heard that The hurt locker was pretty good. BUT alas we have to wait until it comes out here. Don't really like Tarentinos work he's a weirdo in my humble opinion.
I completely agree- Tarentino is as weird as they come. I bought the DVD of "Inglorious Basterds" because I like to watch Brad Pitt playing gleeful psychotics, and find Tarentino movies interesting (not necessarily good)because he is one of a few directors with the mind of a ten-year-old who still finds funding in the millions of dollars to make strange movies. A Tarentino movie that I'll bet you would enjoy is "Reservoir Dogs". Rob Zombie is another one who gets paid to make weird stuff. The other reason to buy the "Basterds" DVD was to get free shipping from Amazon on the movie that I was actually shopping for.

Your dad and mine were WWII vets, and turning Tarentino loose in his usual ultra-violent blood bath style with: "We got ONE job- killin' Nazis!!" just sounds like fun. 25 years ago, movies just like this one starred people like Telly Savalas and Don Rickles (yes, Insult-King comic Don Rickles used to act in WWII themed movies as a soldier. Weird in its own right!).

manxman

01-23-2010, 06:28 PM

I spent the rainy afternoon watching "The Hurt Locker" Blu-Ray DVD. This is a GREAT movie if----- you like war movies that are ultra-realistic and put you right in the middle of nasty situations. This is about the EOD (Explosive Ordnance Division) specialists of the Army who deactivate the IED roadside bombs all over Iraq (while people are watching from a safe distance waiting to detonate the bombs with a cell phone, or snipers are waiting to shoot the EOD team. The movie is depressing, but it gives you even more reason to appreciate the service of our military forces. Produced and directed by a woman, who did a fantastic job. Will watch "Inglorious Basterds" tonight and will report.

claymore

01-24-2010, 02:00 AM

I remember Telly, Don Rickles,Donald Southerland and possibly Clint Eastwood in an Army WWII film where they were breaking into banks during lulls in the fighting Kelly's Hero's maybe?

Yep being in EOD is a bitch .... but I still have all my fingers and toes so I must have done things OK. Our saying is a simple but truism "total success or total failure". It's one job where if you mess things up you know "RIGHT NOW" when it goes boom in your face.

The last commendation I got in the Troopers (I had already retired by the time they presented it) was for our whole bomb squad. During one month we handled 62 calls with only 3 technicians on the job at the time. One of them was from the infamous Unibomber at Yale..... talk about busy I would just get back from a call put the bomb truck away after inspecting and restocking everything used on the last call drive home and just crawl into bed and it seemed like 1/2 hour later another dam call would come in.
one gets real tired quickly and HOT as hell walking around in an 80 lb bombsuit let me tell you.

I definitely have "the hurt locker" on my list. The name is interesting it really is used in the USMC as in "boy I'm in the hurt locker today" when you had pains from whatever or the boss would say "Boy when I get done with you you are really going to be in the hurt locker". Or how now people say "I'm going to knock you out" well in the USMC in my day it was "I'm going to put you in the hurt locker"

manxman

01-24-2010, 10:39 AM

That bomb suit played a key part in the story- think about wearing that thing every day in 120 degree sunshine on Baghdad streets. And then having to run when you failed at stopping a timer detonator and you only have a few seconds to get out of the blast radius. Also, you probably didn't have to face many (any?) suicide bombers wearing a vest of C4 and scrap metal.

I'm sure that you will like the technical background about this job that the movie gives you, and you will appreciate the horribly uncomfortable physical stresses of doing this work surrounded by desert conditions and rifle scopes zeroed between your shoulders.

But since the movie is framed by the "year of rotation" of one EOD squad, it is a little like the movie "Memphis Belle" (the famous, real, WWII B-17 bomber). Meaning, they had to cram in every conceivable horrible experience in an unrealistic, short, time span. These guys would die from stress and heat stroke after a week of the movie's non-stop action.

Anyway, this is a movie that will illustrate a lot of your own background.

Yo, John, what does an adrenaline junkie like you DO in semi-retirement? The main character in the movie couldn't handle mundane civilian life back home in the U.S. and went right back into the Army for more stress and excitement.

claymore

01-25-2010, 12:21 AM

"They" know that and that is the reason so many retired cops and military are recruited into "The dark side". How do you think I ended up here?

How's this for a rush my house on that side of the country is right down the road from this......... ah fun sit on the porch and listen to firefights and explosions........:p

Cambodian, Thai troops in shoot-out

* Published: 25/01/2010 at 12:00 AM
* Newspaper section: News

Thai border rangers have clashed with Cambodian troops near the Preah Vihear national park in Si Sa Ket's Kantharalak district.

Twelve rangers attached to the 23rd Ranger Forces Regiment were on patrol near Huay Khanun dam, east of the national park, when they were ambushed about 9.25am yesterday by Cambodian troops, a military source said.

A Cambodian soldier covers his anti-aircraft gun system at the Thai border. (AFP)
The Cambodians fired RPG rockets and sprayed the rangers with bullets. The rangers sought cover before returning fire. The gunfight lasted about 10 minutes but no one was hurt.

The source said Cambodian forces moved up over 1,000 troops along their side of the border, opposite Ban Samtae in Si Sa Ket, after the clash. Cambodia has denied starting the confrontation.

"There was a small clash," Cambodian deputy military commander Chea Dara said, claiming the Thai side were the first to open fire. "They entered our territory. It was Cambodian self-defence. We don't allow anyone to invade our territory." A military source said the clash came after the Cambodian soldiers barred a Thai patrol from entering a disputed border area. The Thais tried to negotiate with the Cambodians but the situation escalated into gunfire.

Tensions eased after the commanders of the two forces agreed to establish closer contacts.

The two sides also suspended their border patrols for the time being.

The border situation flared up two weeks ago when two Cambodian soldiers were captured for trespassing on Thai soil, according to the source.

The soldiers were later sent back but the commanders of their units faced disciplinary punishment. They blame the Thai soldiers for causing the latest round of border hostility.

Nat Sri-in, commander of the 63rd Infantry Battalion responsible for security operations at Ban Samtae and the Chong Ta Thao border pass near the Preah Vihear national park, said rangers also clashed with illegal loggers when they came across them while on patrol yesterday.

The loggers opened fire to scare off the approaching rangers and then ran off when the rangers returned fire, Lt Col Nat said.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/security/31677/cambodian-thai-troops-in-shoot-out

manxman

01-25-2010, 09:52 AM

Well John, apparently you have forgotten your military "interrogation resistance" training--
See how easy it was to pry some personal info. out of you?

BTW- another very interesting non-fiction book is "The Interrogator" (don't remember the author), about the German Army officer who was in charge of interrogating all Allied pilots in the German P.O.W camps in WWII. My father was his "guest" at "Stalag Luft 1" on the Baltic Sea for several days, and was not tortured, but was shocked at how much knowledge the interrogator already had about dad's personal life back home in Alhambra, CA, USA.

claymore

01-25-2010, 10:01 AM

Hey if somebody wants me I say like Big John McCarthy "lets get it on". It breaks up the monotony when somebody is trying their hardest to kill you every once in awhile. :rolleyes:

manxman

01-25-2010, 11:05 PM

Hey if somebody wants me I say like Big John McCarthy "lets get it on". It breaks up the monotony when somebody is trying their hardest to kill you every once in awhile. :rolleyes:
But that can't be real entertaining for your family----?

Sure it is my wife was a home defense volunteer (like our national guard) before I knew her... she was an RPG gunner and we have fun playing "Name that weapon" while watching TV :p

ekonetics

01-26-2010, 05:28 PM

I watched the movie last night after reading about it and enjoyed the film very much.

manxman

01-26-2010, 06:05 PM

But that can't be real entertaining for your family----?

Sure it is my wife was a home defense volunteer (like our national guard) before I knew her... she was an RPG gunner and we have fun playing "Name that weapon" while watching TV :p
Well, I kind of expected this Q&A to go into some unique direction, and you didn't disappoint me claymore. The Hollywood "action heroes" usually have families who suffer from the bad guys in the story. It's nice to know that the bad guys who try to pick on your wife would be the ones who would suffer.

manxman

01-26-2010, 06:07 PM

I watched the movie last night after reading about it and enjoyed the film very much.
Good! Just come here for free Fit advice and movie info. "Siskel & Ebert & claymore & manxman".

claymore

01-27-2010, 12:32 AM

I get to be the skinny one.............. :D

ekonetics

01-27-2010, 12:35 AM

I get to be the skinny one.............. :D

hahaha

What is another good movie that is about the military? Anything that came out within the past couple of years?

manxman

01-27-2010, 12:43 AM

I get to be the skinny one.............. :D
Woops! "The skinny one" would be Gene Siskel. He died of a brain tumor about 8 or 9 years ago. You may want to make another choice. Hint- don't say "Okay, the fat one then".

manxman

01-27-2010, 12:59 AM

hahaha

What is another good movie that is about the military? Anything that came out within the past couple of years?

These are a little older than "the past couple of years", and are "war movies", not military movies. There have been quite a few good movies about the "wars" in the Middle East under Bush, Clinton, and Bush, I just can't remember their titles. Oops- just thought of one- Three Kings about the first Iraq invasion.

Revolutionary War: Patriot Mel Gibson
Civil War: Cold Mountain Jude Law
WWII: Saving Private Ryan Edward Burns, Matt Damon, Tom Sizemore

GREAT older movies-

The Great Escape
Von Ryan's Express

Zulu (British military in 18th. century Africa)
The Man Who Would Be King (British military deserters in 18th. century India)

claymore

01-27-2010, 08:26 AM

How about an oldie "The fighting Seabees" or I know it's dated when you watch it now but for it's time "The Green Berets" was real good. Real oldie "The raid on Makin Island" based on the true story of WWII Marine Raiders who get nearly wiped out on a mission in the island campaign.

"The man who would be King" is a great classic. I have watched it several times and always enjoy the scenery because it's where I was when I was there. :p

claymore

01-27-2010, 08:43 AM

Remembered another "Flight of the intruder" about the incongruity of the ROE in Vietnam.

EXWRX

01-27-2010, 10:33 AM

manxman

01-27-2010, 02:21 PM

I just saw Inglorius Basterds over the weekend. I don't think it's one of the all time greats, but it was great fun. :D

Definitely less macho than most of the rest on this list, but The Princess Bride is a movie I can watch repeatedly and never get sick of.
Did "The Princess Bride" have Mandy Patinkin as the Hispanic swordsman, and that short, bug-eyed comic actor as the kidnapper? If so, I liked that one too though I don't watch many "fairy tale" type movies.

And my electronics luck is running true to form. The Blu Ray player that I got for free from Amazon when I bought my new TV will not play the Blu Ray disc "Inglorious Basterds". This is the first, and only, Blu Ray disc that has been a problem, and it does play on a friend's Sony player. It also lacks the ability to upgrade the firmware, which is why the new format "Basterds" disc won't play. If I had paid for the player, I could send it back for refund and buy a good one. So now I still have to buy a good one that can be upgraded as recording formats for discs change in the future.

For other members shopping for Blu Ray players, my free player from Amazon is "made" by Sylvania. Watch out for that brand, and make sure that the player you buy has upgrade ability for its firmware. I will replace mine with a Samsung BD-P3600 (Ethernet & WiFi ready).

EXWRX

01-27-2010, 02:35 PM

Did "The Princess Bride" have Mandy Patinkin as the Hispanic swordsman, and that short, bug-eyed comic actor as the kidnapper?

Yup, that's the one!
Cary Elwes as Wesley/The Dread Pirate Roberts.
Mandy Patinkin as Inigo Montoya
Robin Wright as Princess Buttercup
Andre the Giant as Fezzik
Wallace Shawn (the short bugy eyed comic actor) as Vizzini
Chris Sarandon as Prince Humperdinck
Christopher Guest as Count Rugen, the 6 fingered man
Billy Crystal as Miracle Max
Carol Kane as Miracle MAx's wife, Valerie
Peter Falk as the Grandfather/narrarator, reading the story
and Fred Savage as the grandson.

manxman

01-27-2010, 02:41 PM

Great! That's probably the ONLY fairy tale movie that I really liked, due to the great humorous writing, and the fantastic cast. Jeff, you appear to be a fanatic (origin of "fan") about this movie. Can you recite every word of dialog from memory? Don't laugh- in the '70s I had a girlfriend who could do that with all three of the first Star Wars movies. A true nut case fan. And quickly an ex-girlfriend (that's the one who insisted that we go to the Star Trek conventions).

EXWRX

01-27-2010, 03:35 PM

manxman

01-27-2010, 03:47 PM

I didn't remember all their names. I cheated and went to IMDB.com, but yes I can quote large portions of that movie, and a couple others (Monty Python, and Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy). I have my areas of being a true nut case. :o
I wish that the cast would get together for at least a "Monty Python Reunion Special". ....I still hum "I'm a Lumberjack and I'm OK---", and remember "The Ministry of Funny Walks" and "Dead Parrot" and "Motorcycle Grannies". Annnnnnd "The SPAM Song".

And having to cheat on the cast and character names keeps you only on the verge of being a fanatic.

manxman

01-27-2010, 03:56 PM

For claymore and ekonetics-

A couple more GREAT military/war/action movies-

The Sniper, and The Sniper 2 starring Tom Berringer

Enemy At The Gates with Jude Law and Ed Harris- based on fact story about a Russian sniper defending his team in WWII Stalingrad against his German sniper counterpart. Both characters were real people, and this is also a great book (that I read 2 years before the movie came out).

manxman

01-27-2010, 04:17 PM

New movie about to be released to theaters

Shutter Island with Leonardo DiCaprio

This was a very good, creepy book about an ex-cop/now a PI, investigating a patient's disappearance from an insane asylum on an island off the US East Coast with Gov't. mind control experiments as the backdrop, action taking place during a huge storm with lots of murder and mayhem.

manxman

01-27-2010, 05:27 PM

I didn't remember all their names. I cheated and went to IMDB.com, but yes I can quote large portions of that movie, and a couple others (Monty Python, and Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy). I have my areas of being a true nut case. :o
Speaking of "Monty Python", another must see recommendation occurred to me-

Warning- watch this film at your own risk. The owner and staff of this website are not responsible for injuries that may be incurred from uncontrollable, obsessive laughter.

From Amazon.com: "A tale of murder, lust, greed, revenge and seafood". "One of the best (and most underrated) comedies of all time". Stars John Cleese, Michael Palin, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Kevin Kline.

A Fish Called Wanda 1988

Not a sequel, but same cast, made in 1998- Fierce Creatures

EXWRX

01-27-2010, 06:06 PM

I've seen both of those. Fish Called Wanda is another favorite. Jamie Lee Curtis(yummmm) :D Fierce Creatures was good, but not nearly as good.

In cheesy, hilarious quasi horror films, I haven't found anything to compare to Army of Darkness. Lots of horrible lines that are hilarious on so many levels, and oh so quotable.

Napoleon Dynamite was a silly movie about nothing in particular, and has a lot of great quotes. This is one of those movies that people either love or hate. I'm in the first camp. When watching, you must be in a silly mood, otherwise you'll probably be one of the haters.

Shadows of the Vampire is a movie about the making of Nosferatu.(one of the first horror movies ever) The original blatantly ripped off Dracula, just changing the names, but the vampire was very creepy, and by far the best part of the movie.

manxman

01-27-2010, 06:11 PM

For the more warped of our members who like true horror movies, here is another recommendation for people who like stuff like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. The original of that one and the sequels were all Hollywood b.s.- it didn't happen. But the stories like those came from a real person and real events. Here's the movie, shot in documentary style. Stars Steve Railsback. Not bloody or gory, but even more scary because of its plain cinematic style.

Ed Gein. This one is scary because it's real.

manxman

01-27-2010, 06:26 PM

I liked "Army of Darkness", and its star is in the cast of the TV show (great!) "Burn Notice" about a spy in Miami who gets fired and has to freelance. The "Darkness" guy (Bruce Campbell) is his sidekick. Good show. "Fierce Creatures"- agreed, it isn't as good as "Wanda" but I would watch Cleese, Palin, CURTIS, and Kline in anything.

"Shadows of the Vampire" was GREAT- 1. because Willem DaFoe was the star, and 2. because the actor in "Nosferatu" that DaFoe played actually thought that he was a vampire. Never made another movie and died insane.

New horror movie about to hit the theaters that I will see is Benicio Del Torro in "Wolfman". I am a fan of the original '30s era "Wolfman of London" starring Henry Hull, and "The Wolfman" starring Lon Chaney. I just bought the Blu Ray re-release of the most recent version- "An American Werewolf in London" for my collection (it's my wife's favorite movie), and I also liked "The Howling" and its multiple sequels. I also liked Jack Nicholson in "Wolf".

Oh, and P.s.-

This should go in the books forum, but, too bad. Abraham (Bram) Stoker was the author of "Dracula", which was published before "Nosferatu" was made into a movie (in Germany). That book was loosely used as the story in the movie "Dracula" starring Bela Lugosi, made in the 1930's. There is a new book that we recently bought at Costco written by
Dacre Stoker, the great-grandnephew of Bram. Titled "Dracula The Un-Dead". Guess what? Van Helsing did not succeed in killing Count Dracula, and he is not only back, but get this, he not a monster, but is actually a good-guy. I have not read it yet, but my wife did and says that it is really good after about the second chapter.

Again, for true horror story (weird fiction) fans. You're welcome.

EXWRX

01-27-2010, 06:38 PM

manxman

01-27-2010, 06:56 PM

I first heard about Ed Gein from my mom, who grew up in Wisconsin. I never saw the movie. I might look for it.

I saw one of the chainsaw massacre movies. It was pretty funny, in a sick, disturbing way.
Most parents tell their kids after a nightmare about "monsters", that monsters don't exist. Great, until we see news broadcasts about Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, and dozens of other MONSTERS. The movie "Ed Gein" was done very well, low key, just the facts, and that makes it even more chilling than the carnival fun house blood & guts "Texas Chainsaw" and "The Hills Have Eyes 1-2-and 3", "Jason vs. Freddy" nonsense.

Again, for a chilling book about the first (documented) U.S. serial killer, with an amazing amount of historical fact about the first Ferris Wheel (the cars held 30 people, and each had a snack bar), the landscape architect of new York's Central Park, framed by the 1898 Chicago World's Fair (to compete with the 1893 Paris World's Fair), and written about America's first (documented) serial killer/mass murderer (a pharmacist who built a hotel near the World's Fair to lure victims- 30 to 50, to be raped, tortured, killed and dissolved in a vat of acid)-------

Read Devil In The White City

There are monsters. And have been for a loooonnng time. Sleep tight!

manxman

01-27-2010, 08:43 PM

I first heard about Ed Gein from my mom, who grew up in Wisconsin. I never saw the movie. I might look for it.

I saw one of the chainsaw massacre movies. It was pretty funny, in a sick, disturbing way.
I rented the DVD, but it has been about 5 years since then. You probably won't find it at your local video store now. The newspaper and TV info. on this story probably horrified everyone in Wisconsin for years-decades even.

As we all have seen from various forum posts, weird movies, and news broadcasts, the world is a VERY weird place.

manxman

01-27-2010, 09:01 PM

Oh, crap! These movies won't stop coming into my head! Another great, old, Sci-Fi movie for the younger members who may not have seen it-

The Thing From Another World made in the '50s starring Kenneth Tobey, and James Arness (TV series Gunsmoke) as "The Thing" with a very good modern remake The Thing, starring Kurt Russell and Wilford Brimley.

And, don't forget The Fly made in the '50s with Vincent Price, and the fantastic remake in the '90s starring Jeff Goldbloom (the Jurassic Park irritating scientist).

claymore

01-27-2010, 11:51 PM

Going back to the military ones how about Clint Eastwood in "Heartbreak Ridge". It was good because it showed some of what Marine Recon is about and there are very few movies that show them.

"The sniper" series is pretty good.

claymore

01-27-2010, 11:59 PM

I forget if we mentioned it or not but who can forget one of the classics "Cool Hand Luke" Watching it as I write this. Great movie must have watched it 10-15 times over the years.

manxman

01-28-2010, 09:36 AM

Wow! It has been decades since I watched that one the last time. That one is in the classic group ("What we have here, is a failure to communicate!"). RE: Heartbreak Ridge- was that story set in the British vs. Argentina invasion of the Falkland Islands? I watch any and every Clint Eastwood movie. BTW, I don't know if he still owns it, but we had lunch in his restaurant in Carmel, CA (The Hogsbreath Inn) about ten years ago. It was a great place to eat, but not cheap.

claymore

01-28-2010, 09:55 AM

Na it's about the invasion of Grenada. Clint does a great job of playing the gunny that has to whip a bunch of misbehaving recon Marines into shape.

Funny we have a Hogsbreath saloon here but I don't think Clint's features bikini clad dancers in his like ours does.:rolleyes:

manxman

01-29-2010, 01:55 PM

ekonetics-

I just thought of another amazingly good "movie" that is actually a series originally shown on HBO. It isn't recent, and it is a multiple DVD boxed set. Anyone who likes fact-based military/war movies who has not seen this entire series is missing out on one of the greatest of this genre.

Band of Brothers

10 episodes on 6 discs about the Airborne Infantry in WWII, from their basic training through all major combat action throughout Europe. These guys were the first Americans to reach Hitler's "Eagles Nest" castle/fortress in the Alps after Germany lost the war.

Writing, acting, cinematography are all absolutely fantastic.

ekonetics

01-29-2010, 02:42 PM

manxman

01-29-2010, 03:50 PM

I have heard of it but never watched any episodes, but I will check it out. Thank you for the recommendation.
Don't start watching it unless you have set aside quite a bit of time. You will get hooked on the first episode, and won't be able to stop watching. Some really great actors flesh out the accomplishments of real people- all of the soldiers in the series were real people, and the real people who are portrayed by the actors give interviews after the episodes. All of the stories are documented- none of what you see was made-up Hollywood b.s.

BTW, the red-haired actor (Damian Lewis) who plays Lt. Winters, is actually British with an accent you couldn't cut with a hatchet. It shows you how valuable Hollywood dialect coaches are to an actor's career.

P.s. This series has just been re-released in Blu Ray format and is available on Amazon.com. I intend to buy it even though I watched the series in its first run on TV. If you like good, fact based war movies, they don't get any better. This is not "John Wayne plays John Wayne wearing an Army helmet, throwing grenades after just being machine gunned and showing up in the next scene wearing a sling".

manxman

01-29-2010, 04:10 PM

BTW-
The actor James Arness (Marshall Dillon on "Gunsmoke") was a soldier in the battle of Anzio in WWII, where his right leg was shattered by German machine gun bullets. It wasn't set properly but healed, giving him a permanent limp. His first movie role was as the alien (Arness is 6'8") in the original The Thing movie (1951) with Kenneth Tobey. His younger brother is the actor Peter Graves (TV's "Mission Impossible" Mr. Phelps). John Wayne was first considered for the Marshall Dillon/Gunsmoke role on TV but didn't want it, and recommended his friend Arness for the role instead. The two actors met and became friends in the John Wayne movie "Big Jim McClain". Arness was too shy and retiring to fight for movie & TV work as an actor (results of PTSD from WWII), and owes virtually all of his acting success to the influence of his buddy John Wayne.

manxman

02-12-2010, 01:23 PM

Combo Books/Movies Recommendation---

A new movie hitting the theaters this weekend is Shutter Isalnd, starring Leonardo DiCaprio. This was a VERY good book by Dennis Lehane, and the film clips show signs that this movie will be good. Lehane also wrote Mystic River that got a lot of press 3 or 4 years ago, starring Sean Penn, Kevin Bacon, and Tim Robbins. If you did not see the movie, it is well worth renting- fantastic.

manxman

02-20-2010, 06:07 PM

I just remembered this one: The Pentagon Wars. Made by HBO about 10-12 years ago. This is the hilarious story about the development of the Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle (still in use today in Iraq and Afghanistan). Stars Carey Elwes, Kelsey Grammer, Dick Benjamin, and a bunch of other great comic actors.

This is the true story of one of the most major screw-ups in Military equipment development/manufacturing history. It makes you wonder how any piece of military weaponry EVER gets into the field in usable form.

If you can find it on DVD for rent, RENT IT. If you have enough interest to buy it, it will be inexpensive and you will be happy to have it.

This vehicle was actually made in San Jose, CA, at the FMC Corp. on Coleman Ave., and I was one of the consultants who was called in to solve some of the developmental problems. Everything in this movie is true, and hysterically funny. Until you realize that the lives of our military actually depend upon how well this POS performs. Hint: it doesn't.

While I was on site at the factory, they tested the ability of this vehicle to cross a body of water (a small lake in this case). It was supposed to be driven off a Naval ship into the surf at a landing site in a war zone, and be able to propel itself, loaded with troops, onto land. During the test while I was there, it turned out that the belly escape hatch was not waterproof as in the design, and two engineers drowned when water roared into the vehicle so fast that they could not escape out the top.

Seriously, if you can find this on any media (DVD or Tape), GRAB IT. This is a classic, and all true.:eek:

P.s. I just ordered this on DVD from Amazon for $9.99. If this genre is in your interest, buy this. You will love it.

EXWRX

02-23-2010, 06:02 PM

I saw Shutter Island last night. It was a fun, freaky, disturbing movie that messed with your mind and perceptions at every turn. :eek: :D

manxman

02-23-2010, 07:05 PM

Thanks for the review! I may not be able to see it in a theater because of my sick dog, but I will buy the DVD. I really like the author and the book that this was made from, and Di Caprio is a pretty good actor. For our readers, buy anything by Dennis Lehane!

manxman

03-01-2010, 08:13 PM

Here's another review- If you didn't see Avatar in a theater (I missed out too), you SHOULD have. I just watched a friend's bootleg DVD copy (bad quality) with my wife, and we LIKED it a lot! I'm on the Amazon list for early purchase (Pre-release orders) when the movie comes out on DVD, and I have purchased both kinds of 3-D glasses to be sure that I have the right kind when Avatar comes out.

claymore

03-01-2010, 10:49 PM

I will buy a bootleg copy of avatar. Apparently it goes against my principles and is a hit job on our military especially the Marines so I'm not going to give them my money.

manxman

03-01-2010, 11:46 PM

I will buy a bootleg copy of avatar. Apparently it goes against my principles and is a hit job on our military especially the Marines so I'm not going to give them my money.
I don't buy bootleg copies, and wouldn't even watch one if I didn't intend to buy the real thing. "Hit job on Marines"? No. Just generic greedy industry using military to plunder resources. Just like the Indian wars in the Old West. In fact, the natives in Avatar are stylized American Indians, with some Native American actors, like Wes Studi, playing the roles of 7 ft. tall blue skinned natives. This is not the first movie to harp on "the Military/Industrial complex is bad". Hell, President Eisenhower said it first. Marines just filled the roles of the expeditionary forces in the movie. I don't think that the writer/producer/director has anything personal against Marines. Somebody has to be the bad guy, and in this story, it's a Marine. Nobody left the theaters hating the USMC.

Did movie goers hate the Army Air Corps for machine-gunning King Kong? No.

claymore

03-30-2010, 10:59 AM

Watching "next" and it's pretty good. After some of his other Bombs this one is not bad. Except I can't stop looking at his WIG.

claymore

04-28-2010, 02:17 AM

I don't know if you guys get the same movies on HBO that we get but now there is a good movie called "Duma" about a kid in Africa that finds a live Cheetah cub and how they grow up together.

claymore

08-03-2010, 12:26 AM

Last night watched a great Comic Cop movie called "Beer for my horses". Looks like it may have been out for awhile but it is like Harold and Kumro type thing about a small town sheriffs dept.

There is a Country and western song "Whiskey for my men Beer for my Horses" that is in a good video but it won't attach here. But you can listen to the song here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drEGR-H92EU

Tobey and Willie Nelson are in the movie too.

claymore

08-06-2010, 09:43 AM

Wost friggen movie ever glad it only cost me $1.00 worst money ever spent. "The hurt locker" is a terrible terrible movie that does a giant disservice to the men of EOD. Rotten from the first sequence totally incorrect in technical operations. That is in no way how EOD operates. Even a layman should be able to figure out that all one had to do is use the robot to go grab the charge that was in the trailer instead of sending a man to do it.

Then the arsehole "Star" shows up and it unbelievably gets WORSE. After the first time he went with no robot he would be GONZO out of here on the psyco bench.

Yanking wires out of the ground by pulling on them and moving the artillery shells ??????????????????????

And why put out a car on fire ....let it burn and either the explosives will detonate from the heat or the explosives themselves will catch on fire and burn up. Totally unnecessary and totally unreal. Pulling and cutting unknown wires WTF explosive charges can and have been detonated by removing power.

Total Bullcrap movie with no redeeming value.

claymore

08-07-2010, 09:23 AM

Found a great combo of movies by accident. Went to the video store with my wife and since we like different kinds of movies we go to different sections. Looked around and found one that looked interesting to me and another from the thread above. My wife joined me at the payout and she had two and I didn't bother to look at what she got.

Got home and last night watched hers first it's was "clash of the titans" about a guy on a quest during the mythical times with the big gods of myth Zeus and Hades and a couple more and it was good. Kind of like lord of the rings type but back in the Mythical days.

Tonight we watched mine a modern day guy on a quest called "Percy Jackson & the lightning thief" watched it for a bit and was surprised to find IT'S THE SAME MOVIE as "clash of the titans" but set in modern times not back in the old days.

It's not really the same movie but it's the same story line a guy on a quest and has the very same gods and he has to do the right thing and ............... well I will let you watch them. The heroine even looks to be the same actress in both movies.

So if you like action movies about the myths of the Roman gods type of stuff GET THEM BOTH and watch clash of the titans the old times version then watch the modern times version Percy Jackson & the lightning thief.

I wonder if the movie guys did this on purpose or what but they are from differnt companies and different directors.

sooznd

08-07-2010, 03:27 PM

I saw the movie Inception------I think I will need to see it many more times before I can figure it out. More confusing than The Matrix.
Leonardo DiCaprio is excellent as usual.

claymore

08-07-2010, 11:21 PM

Yep been reading reviews and it's getting mixed ones. And a lot of people can't figure it out on their first watch either. At the end do you think he is still in a dream or what?

claymore

08-10-2010, 10:05 AM

Finally got around to watching "Terminator Salvation" I had forgot all about it and the brewha it caused when it first came out. It finally came here on HBO and it's OK not too bad but I enjoyed the other parts of the terminator series more.

I'm such a fan I even watched the Sara Conner chronicals and they weren't too bad.

sooznd

08-10-2010, 04:31 PM

I think he is still in a dream--makes way for a sequel..... ;)

claymore

08-11-2010, 12:47 AM

Speaking of sequels went to the rental place today and found that there are at least TWO movies in the terminator salvation series. I think the one I saw on HBO was "TS alien (something)" and it had a new type of terminator that was made from a human heart from an executed prisoner and the terminator thought it was human. The one I got today to watch later is "TS the machine series".

claymore

08-12-2010, 07:45 AM

What a joke the "second" terminator salvation movie I thought I found turns out to be a CARTOON like thing with computer generated people BOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.

claymore

08-15-2010, 08:08 AM

Started watching "Inglorious Bastards" and only made it an hour before having to turn it off. What a piece of crap left wing anti military claptrap. Brad Pitt was terrible in a terrible part:(

manxman

08-15-2010, 10:25 AM

Yeah, this was a pretty weird movie. It is a remake, and I never saw the original. Based on the clips in the special features of this new one, the old one looked to be much worse. I did watch the whole movie, and once I accepted the comic book off-the-wall nature of the story, I was able to sit through it.

Strange casting- Rod Taylor as Churchill? The German actor who played the slimy interrogator was excellent in his acting, and I was glad to see him at the Oscar awards.

Tarentino has always made strange movies, but his other ones were better even though they all were comic book movies. Reservoir Dogs was very good in its own strange way.

claymore

10-31-2010, 10:47 AM

Wow watching "The Exorcist the version you have never seen" and it is GOOD. Don't know how long this has been out and why we have never seen it but if you can find it on CD or somewhere it's worth looking for. Here is is on now on Cinemax.

manxman

10-31-2010, 12:52 PM

In another thread we were talking about zombie movies, and George Romero was writer/director/producer of a lot of the recent ones. I just watched (ended 10 minutes ago) another George Romero movie, not about zombies.

I ignored this one when it was in the theaters and then released on DVD, even though it starred one of my favorite actors- Timothy Olyphant (the Sheriff in "Deadwood" & the Marshall in "Justified").

If you get the chance, watch "The Crazies". I ignored this originally because the lame title put me off. I recorded it last night, and watched it today. A chemical contamination/disaster/Government quarantine/ cover up movie that was really realistic, well made, scary, and GOOD. This will show on STARZ several more times today and several days next week.

Fit2bMe

12-15-2010, 09:32 PM

What do you think of the 5th installment of the Fast and the Furious Franchise? Stars Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Tyrese Gibson, Sung Kang and Dwayne Johnson aka The Rock.

Loved the original, did not like the sequel. Loved Tokyo Drift. Did not like the 4th installment. I'm not sure about the upcoming fifth one though...

claymore

12-15-2010, 11:32 PM

First one was the best and only one I watched.

manxman

01-02-2011, 06:48 PM

First warning, this movie is subtitled because it is Danish. Second warning, it is very sad but also very exciting. Any true story from WWII is sad for most of the people in it, or at least for many of them.

The title is "Flame and Citron", and is the story of two assassins in the Danish Resistance fighting the Nazis. These two guys are regarded as heroes in Denmark today, and most modern people could not bear the life that they had to lead.

The story is VERY complex and very involving. The need to read subtitles does not detract from the value of the movie, but makes you concentrate even more than you would if the characters were speaking English (but then of course, if you are Danish, the subtitles will bug the hell out of you).

Anyway, it is a great story, and I'm glad that so far, I have not had to live the kind of life depicted in the movie. Life sucked in the U.S. while our military fought the Germans, Japanese, and Italians. But life was a hell of a lot worse for the people in Europe.

This movie was broadcast on the "Sundance Channel" yesterday, and you might be able to find it on your cable or satellite service over the next few days. It is good enough to justify the rental if you can find it in video stores or Video On Demand.

Fit2bMe

01-03-2011, 09:56 PM

Watched Tron Legacy. Great visuals especially with the 3D Cinema.

claymore

02-18-2011, 07:54 AM

Wow what a shock watching the classic mercenaries in Africa movie "dogs of war" was blown away to see a young Al Bundy (married with childrens Ed O'Neill) cast as a mercenary. Talk about strange casting before he was famous.

claymore

07-10-2011, 07:32 AM

Watching the first 20 minutes of SALT and we are into the Hollywood BS. First and foremost any intelligence officer that marries a foreign national is REQUIRED to resign no if ands or buts about it. Instant cause for dismissal. And that missile launcher she makes is total fiction. Worse is that NYC police would cuff a suspect with their hands in front of them and a cops car could jump a jersy barrier with out a "hidden" ramp.

manxman

08-12-2011, 06:03 PM

Strong recommendation for a historical, classic movie! I just watched the newest movie version of "Moby Dick" starring John Hurt as Cap. Ahap, and Ethan Hawke as Mr. Starbuck. Great cast, very realistic sets, very good acting. John Hurt played the craziness and obsessiveness of Captain Ahap better than the other two movie versions of this story. This version was on TV and I recorded it about a week ago. Don't remember the channel, but it was probably TNT.

I thought that the 1956 version starring Gregory Peck was the definitive version, but the TV version starring Patric Stewart, made in the late '90s wasn't bad. The newest one had John Hurt's Capt. Ahap drifting in and out of reality in a more convincing way. All of these movies make the life of a whaling ship sailor look like absolute hell. Endless boredom and manual labor in blazing sun and freezing cold, broken up by impending death every once-in-a-while.

What most people don't know is that Herman Melville wrote the book in the 18th. century based on real events. A giant, white sperm whale really did ram a whaling ship repeatedly until it broke in half and sank. Only a few of the crew survived to tell the tale in the Nantucket seaport area, and Melville turned the real story into one of the most famous novels of his day, and all time. "They call me Ishmael"--- well worth the read.