2004 Film List

#121

Rating: 0

4/16/04 at 11:03pm

Matt Stone
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Joined: June 2000
Location: No, I did not co-create South Park
Post Count: 9,063

Updated with The Punisher (**/*****) and Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (*****/*****).

#122

Rating: 0

4/17/04 at 7:45pm

ZacharyTait
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Joined: August 2003
Post Count: 2,125

Updated my list with Hellboy (***/****)

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#123

Rating: 0

4/17/04 at 11:16pm

Seth Paxton
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Joined: November 1998
Post Count: 7,588

Kill Bill Vol. 2
9 of 10
Review in the official thread. Great film.

2007 film list 2005 film list 2004 film list 2003 film list 2002 film list

#124

Rating: 0

4/18/04 at 8:47am

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

Dawn of the Dead: Much as I want to see KB2 and Dogville, this is down to one late night showing at the local theaters so I had to take my last chance to see big screen zombie action. And unlike the TCM remake, I was not disappointed. From almost the very beginning the filmmakers captured the proper atmosphere and hit all the right notes. The widescreen city shots, as CGI looking as they were, allow us to see the world going to Hell in a way that Romero's budget wouldn't allow. This is the first time the fast-moving zombies really worked for me. We can clearly see that standing and fighting is not an option for humanity and how quickly the zombies could overwhelm us. Even more impressively, the film allows us to experience the human and psychological costs of what is transpiring in ways that the vast majority of modern horror films don't take the time to do.

I only wish it had taken a bit more time with this and allowing for a greater passage of time within the film. It is a bit too rushed. I know many liked the tightness of the remake, but I admire the way Romero allows time for the human drama to take precedence over the more overt horror/action elements. Still, I was very surprised with how good this turned out to be (groovy Tom Savini cameo too!), and will likely be adding it to my collection. I wouldn't mind seeing a Day of the Dead remake by this same group. A-

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

#125

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4/18/04 at 7:26pm

ChrisBEA
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Joined: July 2003
Location: Wappingers Falls, NY
Post Count: 1,654

Added Kill Bill Vol. 2.
Great film, need to see it again, need to see both edited together....
Who else would love a whole film about Pai Mei?

/

#126

Rating: 0

4/18/04 at 10:39pm

Matthew Chmiel
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Joined: April 2000
Post Count: 2,284

Added The Punisher (which was a highly entertaining action flick) and The Prince and Me (enjoyable, but highly cliched romantic comedy).

Blog / DVDs / MySpace / \'03 List / \'04 List / \'05 List

#127

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4/23/04 at 2:30am

Mark McLeod
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Joined: January 2000
Post Count: 452

Updated my list with some recent screenings and posted my review of 13 Going on 30

Mark McLeod
Staff Reviewer - CanadaMovies.net / MovieContests.com

#128

Rating: 0

4/23/04 at 6:41am

Edwin Pereyra
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Joined: October 1998
Post Count: 3,501

Siddiq Barmak's Osama (Afghanistan)

~Edwin

DVD Unwind: Paradise Now (Coming) • King Kong - - • Keane • The Squid And The Whale • A History Of Violence • Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire • The Best Of Youth (Italy) • Good Night And Good Luck • Howl\'s Moving Castle • Walk The Line - - • Zathura • North Country

#129

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4/23/04 at 7:39pm

Seth Paxton
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Joined: November 1998
Post Count: 7,588

The Ladykillers
6.5 of 10
Hanks is great and the Coens have written some strong dialog for him, as well as some other very funny interactions, but overall the film is rather unsteady and lacking in real momentum. It felt kinda flat to me, like a more stale version of the Burbs.

Of course it is the Coens and their stuff has a knack of growing on you. And there is enough quotable dialog to help affect that future reconsideration.

"I not quite sure I heard anything at'all."
"He brought his b**ch to the Waffle Hut."
etc

2007 film list 2005 film list 2004 film list 2003 film list 2002 film list

#130

Rating: 0

4/26/04 at 10:58am

Jason Seaver
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Joined: December 1969
Post Count: 9,306

Uuuuuuuuuupdates:

Kill Bill Volume 2 -

- Works very well as a different movie from the first
Good Bye Lenin! -

½ - A sweet, funny German comedy that does a fine job capturing a moment in history from ground-level
Touching The Void -

- Solid true-life adventure
The Ladykillers -

¾ - For all this movie's faults, it does let Tom Hanks cut loose
The Whole Ten Yards -

¾ - Not the disaster I feared, but not up to the first (which, come to think of it, was also not the disaster I'd feared)
Man On Fire -

½ - Just goes through the motions whenever Dakota Fanning isn't around
The Girl Next Door -

½ - OK comedy that doesn't know where it stands
Red Trousers: The Life of the Hong Kong Stuntmen -

- A good documentary subject failed by an inexperienced director

Jay's Movie Blog - A movie-viewing diary.
Transplanted Life: Sci-fi soap opera about a man placed in a new body, updated two or three times a week.
Trading Post Inn - Another gender-bending soap, with different collaborators writing different points of view.

"What? Since when was this an energy ball...

#131

Rating: 0

4/28/04 at 8:24am

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

Dogville - I'm still digesting Lars Von Trier's latest work. A masterpiece? I'm not sure yet. On an emotional level I was never as engaged or as moved as in his previous great films: Breaking The Waves and Dancer In The Dark. However, I think that is intended, Grace and the people of Dogville are symbolic, representing human nature rather than individual beings, much like Murnau's Sunrise.

Intellectually, I found the film devastating. A blood brother to Godard's Week-End it is an audacious strike at the boundaries of cinema and a virulent assault on the hypocracies at our heart, but leavened throughout by an often laugh-out-loud sense of black humor. It challenges, it provokes, it asks a lot of the viewer, and delivers even more. A

Next Up: If I don't see Kill Bill freakin' soon I'm going to explode! Anyone want to babysit?

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

#132

Rating: 0

5/3/04 at 12:15pm

Jason Seaver
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Joined: December 1969
Post Count: 9,306

Updated my list with a preview of Country In My Skull (

) and eight movies seen at the second Independant Film Festival of Boston:

Azumi -

¼ - Pretty darn cool manga adaptation from the director of Versus and Godzilla: Final Wars

Nightingale in a Music Box -

¾ - An overly clinical brainwashing "thriller"

Double Dare -

- Documentary about stuntwomen, featuring the doubles for Wonder Woman and Xena

Blind Horizon -

¼ - Direct-to-video type of amnesia movie with Val Kilmer and Neve Campbell

Word Wars -

¼ - Hilarious documentary on competitive Scrabble players

Moonlight -

½ - Thoroughly unpleasant "kids in trouble" movie from Europe

Luck -

¾ - Pleasant Canadian caper that, I imagine, plays at least a quarter-star better north of the border

Reviews are in the blog

Jay's Movie Blog - A movie-viewing diary.
Transplanted Life: Sci-fi soap opera about a man placed in a new body, updated two or three times a week.
Trading Post Inn - Another gender-bending soap, with different collaborators writing different points of view.

"What? Since when was this an energy ball...

#133

Rating: 0

5/3/04 at 2:20pm

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

Kill Bill Vol. 2 A slightly disappointing conclusion to Tarantino's impressive return to filmmaking. I missed the narrative tightness, stylization, animation, sound design and musical choices of volume 1. There are some highly entertaining scenes, but it made for a less than satisfying whole. Perhaps when it is all edited together I'll feel differently. Guess I prefer blaxploitation and Yakuza to Spaghetti Western. B+

The Return: A Russian enigma tells the story of 2 teenage boys and the father they've never known who mysteriously appears at their home to take them on a camping trip. The older brother is desperate for affection and eager to please, the younger brother is suspicious and just as desperate not to be hurt. The father we are unsure of. His motives are never clear and he comes from The Great Santini school of parenting. We follow the characters for a week and what we learn lingers in the mind long afterwards. One of the must see films of the year. A-

Wilbur Wants To Kill Himself: Lone Sherfig's follow up to Italian For Beginners, is a warmly emotional film about two brothers. One who would like to end his life, the other is looking for a way to start his. They both find solace in a lonely woman and her daughter. While the movie begins overly affected and off-puttingly odd, as it slowly reveals the layers of story and character, the film grows into a satisfying and melancholy experience. B

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

#134

Rating: 0

5/3/04 at 8:56pm

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

April continues the downward trend in my year's movie-watching with only 24 viewed + 1 commentary.

I saw one "A" film - Dogville, which only continues to grow in stature in my mind. I don't think I'll see a better film the rest of the year.

I rated 4 films "A-"

3 Women - Robert Altman (Could be upgraded to "A". Instantly became my favorite Altman film)
The Big Heat - Fritz Lang
Dawn Of The Dead (2004)
Martha - Rainer Werner Fassbinder

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

#135

Rating: 0

5/10/04 at 8:37pm

ZacharyTait
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Joined: August 2003
Post Count: 2,125

Updated my list with Van Helsing (***/****)

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#136

Rating: 0

5/12/04 at 6:08am

ZacharyTait
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Joined: August 2003
Post Count: 2,125

Updated my list with Kill Bill Vol. 2 (****/****)

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#137

Rating: 0

5/13/04 at 1:59am

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

Added Man On Fire: A better than expected revenge flick with a solid performance by Denzel. His heart-tugging relationship with Dakota Fanning and able support from Christopher Walken elevate an average-at-best script that Tony Scott doesn't quite manage to undermine with his showy, distracting editing and spoiler inducing casting choices. B

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

#138

Rating: 0

5/13/04 at 4:32am

Nick Sievers
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Joined: July 2000
Post Count: 3,481

Added: Troy, a disappointing film despite the presence of some fine actors. None of them shine because of the script which is uninspiring and contains a lot of stilted dialogue. The biggest downfall is that Horner has delivered one of the most uninvolving and instrusive scores in years, it is so over the top in places I quietly chuckled to myself. As a positive it did have some great production values and Bana manages to make something of a somewhat underdeveloped role. **/****

Top 10 Film Lists: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
Film Lists: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005

#139

Rating: 0

5/15/04 at 4:12pm

Scott Weinberg
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Joined: October 2000
Post Count: 7,482

Updated with some rather good:

Shrek 2 -

Napoleon Dynamite -

Troy -

Intermission -

And the worst thing I've seen in quite some time, and I'm not exaggerating:

New York Minute -

...plus I gotta go add The Triplets of Belleville to the '03 list. I thought it was quite excellent!

#140

Rating: 0

5/15/04 at 6:18pm

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

The Saddest Music In The World - Often very funny with some wonderfully imaginative moments, but like I find the other Guy Maddin features I've seen - wildly uneven. He has great ideas, I love his editing and montage, he's very good technically at layering sound, using music etc... but it's like he doesn't quite know how to fully flesh out a
story leading to a number of "check your watch moments" or scenes that carry on past where they should just so an actor can do a bit of odd business, make a weird face, etc.

But there's a lot to enjoy here too. Isabella
Rosselini gives a strong performance as does the main actor whose name escapes me. There's a well executed musical sequence in the middle of the film that was probably my favorite moment. Plus just the idea of a big crowd
of beer swilling Canadians cheering on the performers of sad music never stops being funny. --- Recommended B+

The Ladykillers - While this had its uneven moments too, it was a successful comedy for me because it made me laugh; a lot. very fun to see Hanks work with this kind of material and just be funny again. Marlon Wayans was notable as well. It may be continuing a disappointing downward trend it Coen quality, but like Intolerable Cruelty, still a cut above the pack. B+

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

#141

Rating: 0

5/16/04 at 9:09pm

Dana Fillhart
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Joined: February 1999
Post Count: 978

Finally got around to updating my list ... I've been EXTREMELY focused on other things and haven't had time for films in the past couple months (as can be seen in my pathetically small list of 7 thus far this year). Hopefully that'll change soon -- it'll probably pick up after I switch to another job (I'm the latest victim in the consulting industry's offshoring bid wars), sometime in June. I've also been throwing all my spare time into finishing a fantasy novel I started almost 20 years ago (back in high school ... wow, has it been that long? Seems like just yesterday!) -- my "muse" decided to kick into overdrive these past few weeks so I gave it full reign.

Thanks for not deleting my list, Jason!

DVDs (24 Feb 2006): Discs - 2579, Titles - 1688 (Avg. 17 Titles/Month) • Films I\'ve Seen: 2005 • 2004 • 2003 • 2002 • 2001

#142

Rating: 0

5/16/04 at 9:31pm

Nick Sievers
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Joined: July 2000
Post Count: 3,481

Gee, it has been a while since you updated your list, Dana. Jason hasn't been a mod for months.

Top 10 Film Lists: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
Film Lists: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005

#143

Rating: 0

5/20/04 at 11:08am

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

Shrek 2 - C+, review in Shrek 2 thread

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

#144

Rating: 0

5/20/04 at 2:49pm

ZacharyTait
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Joined: August 2003
Post Count: 2,125

Updated my list with Troy (***/****).

It's fun to watch, but it's no Gladiator.

I watched the Lord of the Rings films the other night and the difference between those three films and Troy is miles apart in terms of staging and executing the giant battle sequences.

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#145

Rating: 0

5/21/04 at 10:50am

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

Bon Voyage: A film of romance and intrigue during the fall of France. It provides enjoyable characters and a social critique that tells us the upper crust weren't going to let a little thing like the Nazi invasion keep them from playing "The Rules of the Game". An entertaining film, but I must say that my expectations were skewed by all the reviews that this is a comedy and a wonderful farce, etc. I think I laughed 4-5 times total. B

Spring Summer Fall Winter and....Spring Current world cinema darling Kim Ki-Duk's latest about a boy and his Buddhist teacher who live on a floating platform on a lake situated in a beautiful Korean valley. Told in 5 parts, we see the men age and the seasons change within the valley. Their idyllic life is disrupted when they begin to care for a sick girl who the young man falls for almost immediately.

Combining beautiful scenery with Buddhist morality lessons, the film offers moments of contemplation and relection, but as I often find with "chapter" films, some chapters are more interesting than others, leaving the film feeling uneven. B

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

#146

Rating: 0

5/21/04 at 10:51pm

Arman
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Joined: January 2003
Post Count: 1,625

.

#147

Rating: 0

5/22/04 at 2:17pm

Seth Paxton
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Joined: November 1998
Post Count: 7,588

Don't feel bad Brook, my 2004 list is still pretty thin, just like 2003 was at this time last year. Considering that I skipped filling it up on stuff like House of the Dead, I don't consider it a character flaw.

Plus the whole S&S thing, film class viewings (3-4 per week), 2003 rentals, and DVD purchases, I'm still going at a clip of about 300 viewings a year at least. They just aren't 2004 films for the most part.

We did get out to see:
Mean Girls
7.5 of 10
A very charming comedy with a nice touch of bite to it, in the vein of Heathers though not as artistic as that film, instead directed in a more straight-forward comedic way. But the great performance from Lohan establishes that she is the real deal as a star, at least for comedies (and I've yet to see Freaky Friday but I hear great things).

The writing is pretty enjoyable and the style of comedy is Fey and SNL news all the way. I especially enjoyed Tim Meadows understated style, which is his strongest area. Toward the end it gets a bit more clunky, but for the most part its just a notch below Heathers or Clueless.

2007 film list 2005 film list 2004 film list 2003 film list 2002 film list

#148

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5/22/04 at 10:37pm

Arman
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Joined: January 2003
Post Count: 1,625

.

#149

Rating: 0

5/22/04 at 11:31pm

Edwin Pereyra
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Joined: October 1998
Post Count: 3,501

Wolfgang Petersen's Troy

On Deck: Bon Voyage

~Edwin

DVD Unwind: Paradise Now (Coming) • King Kong - - • Keane • The Squid And The Whale • A History Of Violence • Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire • The Best Of Youth (Italy) • Good Night And Good Luck • Howl\'s Moving Castle • Walk The Line - - • Zathura • North Country

#150

Rating: 0

5/22/04 at 11:57pm

Brook K
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Joined: February 2000
Location: St. Louis, MO
Post Count: 9,036

Well, I'm ahead of you 14-8 Seth. I've had a big month, I hadn't seen much before May, but thanks to my business trip and the wife and kids going out of town for a few days, I've had chances to go to the theater and have seen 9 this month. I'm planning on going Sunday night too, and I have Miracle near the top of my Netflix queue but it's out of stock.

But after I go see Twentynine Palms tonight I'll be basically caught up. I don't really care about Troy, though I'll probably end up renting it and Supersize Me doesn't seem too appealing either so I'll wait on it too.

Rather irritating right now that two of our "art" theaters are showing nothing but mainstream movies. One is showing Troy and Shrek 2, another 8 screen theater is showing only Hollywood stuff, and the 4 screener where I saw Bon Voyage and Spring, Summer is showing Troy on one of its screens.

2002 Sight & Sound Challenge: 318 Last Watched: Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles

Last 7 Films Watched: Sugar - B+ / Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone - B / The Lower Depths - B / Downhill Racer - B+ / Whatever Works - B / The Legend of Jimmy the Greek - B

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