Testy Area 51 - Page 939

I'll be curious with what you think of 13 Assassins. I love Samurai pictures so I'm biased. It's Miike, so it's a bit f'd up in the beginning, the middle is all set up, and when it all comes to a head it's kind of spooky. Beautifully filmed. I grabbed the blu on a trade in deal for $10 and watched it the same day ha ha.

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OK, here is the player with its crazy flip-top remote.  The text "HDVS" stands for "High-Definition Video System", the designator that Sony used for all its high-definition video equipment, consumer & professional, for years.  If you see, there are two LD logos, the normal square one & a round one for MUSE-system consumer HD LDs.  Also, at the bottom of the disc tray door, you may be able to make out, barely, the words "Hi-Vision LD/LD Player", hi-vision being the common Japanese contraction for "high-definition television".  (You'll have to click on the image for full size.)

 

Thanks for sharing Chris, that is a sweet machine! How many HD discs did they make?

I still have my Pioneer 704 LD machine. It was top of the line 20 years ago. It still plays, but it sure grinds a lot when i open the tray!

I wish i could find a Blu-ray machine as well built as your (or mine) LD player!

I have the 704, & the Mitsubishi clone with the blue front display (which I like better) as my main players.  This one I got mostly for the MUSE High Definition discs.  Unfortunately there were never many made - the LDDb counts 113, although it's not a complete list, & few of them interest me much.  I am trying to reverse-engineer the video encoding system, which is a real dilly.

I saw The Artist yesterday (with an audience of non-football fans, I assume). I thoroughly enjoyed it! Charming film with 2 wonderful lead performances. I'm rooting for DuJardin for the Best Actor win.

Steve hasn't been around in about a week.

 

Must be outside shoveling...

 

 

 

 

Steve is off in hubble land. He posted a nice one for Blade Runner.

 

Not too much for me to report in on. Here's a mini round up.

 

The Woman In Black - Nice old school gothic horror in the Hammer tradition. I really enjoyed it and thought the Harry Potter kid did a nice job not being Harry Potter. 3.5/5

 

The Fighter - Rewatched the oscar nom from last year since the blu was on sale for $10 and liked it more. It's still a cliched story despite being a true one, but everyone is pretty good (other then Conan O'Brien's sister that looks exactly like him but in drag which is really disturbing and distracting. 3/5

 

The Haunted Boy - A "documentary" on the true story of the Exorcist. Except it was actually a shitty excuse to dress like cowboys and hunt ghosts. I hate this type of thing and I hated this. 1/5

 

Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1 - The books have to be better then the movies since this one was as terrible as the others. The production is shockingly piss poor and none of the actors can carry the film. 2/5

 

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - I liked this one though it's been known to bore people to sleep. It's talky and British, but very good. 3.5/5

 

also watched the British series "Black Mirror". Highly recommended if you can track it down. Fantastic Sci-Fi  exploring social media. A word of warning though, the first episode is very bleak.4.5/5

 

 

 

 

 

As of this moment (before I push "Submit"):

 

Avengers left me flat. That Captain America redo on the uniform is terrible. Looks silly and campy. Batman should be good hopefully.

 

Not watched Warrior yet. It's a drama fighting picture so turned into a hard sell for movie nights. The guys will watch Twilight, but not Warrior. I don't know what to think. :P

 

I can't believe I've posted so much in here. Huh!

 

 

I need to post more. Since Parker and Zen never post, i think i can overtake them. I wont even try to pass Russ.

I bow to your superior posting skills!

I watched Cowboys and Aliens last night while my wife watched football.

Should have been great, but it wasnt. It was just OK.

A movie with Bond and Indiana Jones....just OK. Sad, isn't it.

Rick, a buddy of mine drug me to the theater to see Cowboys and Aliens and I was really disappointed with the film. They simply tried to cram too many elements from too many Westerns into the film and really muddied up the plot of the film.

I finally viewed a film this past weekend after innumerable hours playing Skyrim and watching football. My first film (home theater) in nearly 3 months was Drive. I know that Russell did not care for the film; but I really enjoyed the film's dreamlike quality, particularly as exemplified by the film's slow tracking shots, and posted more thoughts about it in the review thread.

- Walter.

I liked Drive Walter, I just couldn't tell if it was supposed to be so hillarious or not. I want to watch it again now that I know what to expect. :)

I know NOTHING about Drive. Except some ladies at work were talking about it. Guess i should head over to YouTube and watch a trailer.

Walter, i agree with you about Cowboys and Aliens. But i also wonder why is it an alien can have space ships, and yet also still be animal brutes! These aliens had no apparent language, and to me they acted more like "monsters" than aliens...if you know what i mean. The alien who had the scar across his eye seemed to be the only one who had any thought process.

I never think about using YouTube to watch trailers. I usually head to apple .com or the website of the movie. Lately though I just use my iPad because there is now a trailer app. Besides YouTube seems like a chore for me to find anything that isn't fan made junk.

Fuckin' trailers and the internet, such a pain in the ass! Trailers give way to much of the movies away now so I mostly avoid them since they tend to make movies I'm interested in look stupid. I'm looking at you Avengers...

Yea, YouTube does suck with all the fan trailers. Many times i do fire up the Apple TV to watch trailers. "Drive", must have just kept riding off.

Now, Act of Valor...wow...that looks bad ass!


I have high hopes for "Prometheus" too. Based on the trailer! I know, it could still suck, right Russ!

This being-in-a-movie business is tiring beyond belief.  I've half a mind, the next time someone asks me if I'd like to be in one, to knee him in the groin & make my escape while he's doubled over.

I dislike how many trailers on YouTube, especially official ones from the officially sanctioned studio, have the lackluster Apple logo embedded in them. So much for wanting to use DownloadHelper to grab the 1080p versions if this goes on.
Anyone else enjoy Doctor Who, Quantum Leap, James Bond, playing video games on computer and is overall a lazy sumbitch? How about making their own Blu-rays from high definition DVR broadcasts? No?
Why are every single DVD and Blu-ray I import from Japan is so expensive?

Ohh thats a cool pic Russ!

I watched the 1945 Best Picture The Lost Weekend the other night.  Just part of my "I'm going to stay in the hospital as long as I can because it is so much fun" plan. 

 

A very well-written film, the plot does tend to suffer a bit because of the mid-40s sensibilities on dealing with substance abuse.

 

I thought Ray Milland and Jane Wyman were both terrific in their roles.  And it was unique to see Howard da Silva with a full head of hair.

 

I suppose the strangest thing about the film was the over-use of the theremin in the soundtrack.  They were sure to use it during every dramatic (melodramatic?) moment in the film.  If you were just listening to the film...you'd swear that Ray Milland was being attacked by aliens from outer space.

Mike, I didn't know you are in the hospital!?

I know you have been sick, but that must be some hell- pneumonia to put you in the hospital.

Hope you get better fast! Next year you should take the pneumonia vaccine!

 

Just a horrible story, Rick.  Spent eight days in the hospital from Friday,  January 27 through Friday, February 4...all trying to determine what was causing the infection leading to my pneumonia.  They have just determined it is Actinomycosis--a fairly rare strain of bacteria...but treatable. 

 

Then, this past Friday, I had to head back to the ER as I really didn't feel well.  I was smart to do so as it turned out I had my second round of bilateral pulmonary embolisms!  Received a pretty scary treatment in the ER (TPA drugs which can promote bleeding) as they found a huge clot sitting in the pulmonary aorta between my heart and lung.  I then spent several days in the ICU and am typing this note from the respiratory/cardiac wing of the hospital (the free wireless internet really sucks!).  I'll now be on blood thinners for the rest of my life.  Back to giving myself shots of the Lovonox and now I will be a member of the lifetime Cumedin club.  Woohoo!

 

This start to 2012 has been extremely difficult for me.  I've been dealing with the pneumonia since after Christmas!  Talk about a really long haul...

 

I coulda used you and Parker in the ER to lend a hand! 
 

 

Oh wow, Mike, you have been through it! Glad you went back in to the ER!

Sorry you have to take the Coumadin. They do have other medications that thin your blood, like Pradaxa. But you can only take it for a-fib (right now anyway).

But hey, just get to feeling better. I will keep you, and your family, in my thoughts!

Thanks, Rick!  A lot!

 

I'm glad I knew I needed to go back to the ER, too.  That was a pretty tense time for everyone.