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Join the RSC Film Club, all you need to do to join is take part as often as you want.

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  1. LimeGreenLegend

    Gladiator [RSC Film Club 11]

    by LimeGreenLegend

    This month we are celebrating the work of Sir Ridley Scott, as suggested by @djw180 and @Spinnaker1981, with the winning film being another DJ nomination, Gladiator. Released in the year 2000 it stars Russel Crowe in an Oscar winning performance, with support from Joaquin Phoenix, Derek Jacobi, Richard Harris and the legendary Oliver Reed in his final role. Gladiator was a huge success on release, winning the Oscar for best picture, and a nomination for best director for Ridley Scott, one of three in his career (Thelma and Louise and Black Hawk Down being the other two). It is the last great Hollywood swords and sandals epic, telling a classic tale of betray…

    Con
    Last reply by Con,
  2. LimeGreenLegend

    The Duellists [Film Club Extra 04]

    by LimeGreenLegend

    We're getting a double dose of Ridley Scott action this month as, well, we've all seen Gladiator and there was a cry for a second, lesser known, slice of his filmography. That comes in the form of his debut feature film, 1977's The Duellists, nominated by myself, and seconded by @Sinister. Set in Napoleonic France, this film is based on a Joseph Conrad story, who is the author of Heart of Darkness, the inspiration for Apocalypse Now, among many other amazing books. It is the tale of two men obsessively fighting over their honour over the course of decades. It is an absolutely gorgeous looking film, with Scott taking inspiration from Stanley Kubrick's Barry …

    LimeGreenLegend
    Last reply by LimeGreenLegend,
  3. LimeGreenLegend

    The Killing of a Sacred Deer [Film Club Extra 03] 1 2

    by LimeGreenLegend

    I'm gonna be selfish here, and throw this film in as an extra for Halloween simply because I can't stop thinking about it since I saw it a few weeks ago and would really like to hear your guys' opinion on it. The Killing of a Sacred Deer is a psychological horror/thriller from Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster, The Favourite), a Greek filmmaker who has fast become one of my favourites. The film stars Colin Farrell and Nicole Kidman as Steven and Anna Murphy, a seemingly perfect couple. They are both medical professionals, they have two bright young children, and live in a luxurious home with all the trappings that entails. But Steven has a strange relationship wi…

    Con
    Last reply by Con,
  4. LimeGreenLegend

    Dune [RSC Film Club 08]

    by LimeGreenLegend

    This month's Film Club genre is sci-fi war films, nominated by @Squirrel, and that comes in the form of warring families of nobles battling for control of a desolate desert planet, and its valuable resources, in David Lynch's Dune, picked by @djw180. A critical and commercial failure on release, with Roger Ebert naming it the worst film of 1984, Dune has gone on to garner a cult following since then, with more recent reviews being generally more positive. Featuring an ensemble cast, including Sting, Patrick Stewart and Max von Sydow, and directed by master of the surreal, David Lynch (Eraserhead, The Elephant Man, Mullholland Drive) you know that the film will …

    Con
    Last reply by Con,
  5. LimeGreenLegend

    Mad Max: Fury Road [RSC Film Club 05]

    by LimeGreenLegend
    • 8 replies
    • 2.5k views

    This month the film club is hitting the road, with the theme being road movies. The winner, nominated by @Squirrel, is Mad Max: Fury Road. This is a sequel/reboot of the legendary Australian film series, the fourth entry, and the first in thirty years. It was written and directed by the creator of the original films, George Miller (Happy Feet, Happy Feet 2, Babe: Pig in the City) and stars Tom Hardy (Bronson, The Dark Knight Rises) as Max, replacing Mel Gibson in the role, and Charlize Theron (Monster, Prometheus) as Imperator Furiosa. The plot sees Max helping Furiosa in her attempt to free the enslaved wives of tyrannical ruler of the wastes, Immortan Joe, which…

    Spinnaker1981
    Last reply by Spinnaker1981,
  6. LimeGreenLegend

    The NeverEnding Story [RSC Film Club 07]

    by LimeGreenLegend

    This month we are stretching our imaginations to the limits as we explore the worlds of fantasy. The winning film is The NeverEnding Story, nominated by @Spinnaker1981, directed by Wolfgang Peterson (Air Force One, The Perfect Storm) in 1984. A film about the power of the imagination, the importance of self-indentity and the awesomeness of books, The NeverEnding Story can rightly sit up there with Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal in the pantheon of awesome 80s puppet fantasy movies. I haven't seen this since I was very young, and I can't remember much about it, but I do remember being traumatised by what happens to Artax the horse, and having the theme song…

    Con
    Last reply by Con,
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  7. LimeGreenLegend

    They Live [RSC Film Club 06]

    by LimeGreenLegend

    This month's film club is all about b-movies, and when you look towards the upper end of that genre you start seeing the name John Carpenter quite a lot. Director of classic genre films like Halloween, The Thing, Assault on Precinct 13, Escape from New York and The Fog, the film of his we'll be watching this month is the anti-consumerism manifesto that is 1988's They Live, nominated by @Pb76. In my opinion the best film ever made that stars a wrestler (sorry Dwane), They Live is based on a short story, Eight O'Clock in the Morning, by Ray Nelson, from 1963, and stars "Rowdy" Roddy Piper as John Nada, a drifter who survives by working day labour in downtown LA. …

    Con
    Last reply by Con,
  8. LimeGreenLegend

    Rush [Film Club Extra 02]

    by LimeGreenLegend

    Our second Film Club Extra choice is the film Rush, suggested by @Beez, @djw180 and @Fido_le_muet to commemorate the life of legendary Formula 1 driver, Niki Lauda, who recently passed away. Directed by Ron Howard (Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind), the film tells the story of the heated rivalry between Lauda, played by Daniel Bruhl (Inglourious Basterds, Captain America: Civil War) and James Hunt, Chris Hemsworth (Thor) in the early to mid 70s. This film was critically acclaimed for it's race sequences, which are shot to show the pure power and danger of the sport, especially in those days. The performances by Bruhl and Hemsworth were also well reviewed, both re…

    LimeGreenLegend
    Last reply by LimeGreenLegend,
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  9. LimeGreenLegend

    The Crimson Rivers [RSC Film Club 04]

    by LimeGreenLegend

    On the 22nd of March 1895, at the "Society for the Development of the National Industry" in Paris, 200 people witnessed the very first projected motion pictures in history. This makes France the most important country in film history. Thanks to pioneers like The Lumiere Brothers, Georges Melies, and The Pathe Brothers we are able to see things on the big screen that we could never possibly dream of. France didn't just invent cinema, they also gave us cinemas, and, with the publication of Cahiers du Cinema in 1951, gave us the birth of modern film theory and criticism. The writers at this magazine knew their stuff. Two of them went on to lead the French new wave…

    Con
    Last reply by Con,
  10. LimeGreenLegend

    Chicago [RSC Film Club 02] 1 2

    by LimeGreenLegend

    This month we're all singing and all dancing as we'll be watching Chicago, nominated by @Spinnaker1981 and @Danielle. The theme for March was musicals, and you'd be hard pressed to find a musical with a better pedigree than Chicago. Directed by Rob Marshall and based on the 1975 Broadway production, (which itself was based on a silent film from 1927, which was based on a 1926 play written by a journalist and based on real events) which was choreographed and directed by the legendary Bob Fosse, who basically invented jazz hands and was the man responsible for other classic musicals like Cabaret and the semi-autobiographical All That Jazz. Chicago became the fir…

    Con
    Last reply by Con,
  11. LimeGreenLegend

    Gravity [Film Club Extra]

    by LimeGreenLegend

    For those of you who wanted a second monthly slice of film club pie, here it is. @Con whittled down the nominations from this month to those he hasn't seen/finds most interesting and randomly selected a companion film to our main Film Club film, Aliens. That first selection is Alfonso Cuaron's Gravity. Starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, this is a story about isolation. Cuaron started off wanting to make a film about adversity and survival in hostile locations, and decided that space is the ultimate hostile location. The most startling thing about this film, for me, are the long tracking shots, unbroken sometimes for minutes, that really take …

    Fido_le_muet
    Last reply by Fido_le_muet,
  12. LimeGreenLegend

    Aliens [RSC Film Club 03] 1 2

    by LimeGreenLegend

    This month's genre is (after much debate) sci-fi thrillers set in space or on a different planet. I know. The winning film is Aliens, nominated by @Spinnaker1981, James Cameron's sequel to Ridley Scott's classic horror film, Alien, and considered to be one of the greatest sequels of all time alongside The Godfather Part II and T2: Judgement Day. Released in 1986, the film sees protagonist Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) returning to LV-426 with a group of space marines after contact is lost with the newly formed colony there. Cameron adopted the bigger is better philosophy for this film, giving us more aliens, more action and more gore than the first film, bu…

    LimeGreenLegend
    Last reply by LimeGreenLegend,
  13. LimeGreenLegend

    The French Connection [RSC Film Club 01] 1 2 3

    by LimeGreenLegend

    The first film for the RSC Film Club has been chosen, with The French Connection, picked by @Beez winning out over all of the other Best Picture winners. The theme for this month was Best Picture winners, with The French Connection winning in 1971, beating films like Fiddler on the Roof and A Clockwork Orange. It also picked up Oscars for best director (William Friedkin, who would later direct The Exorcist), best actor (Gene Hackman playing Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle), best adapted screenplay (Ernest Tidyman based on the book by Robin Moore), and best film editing. It received nominations for best supporting actor (Roy Scheider playing Buddy "Cloudy" Russo), best ci…

    Con
    Last reply by Con,

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    1. LimeGreenLegend
      195

      Rate the Last Film you Watched 2: Electric Boogaloo

      What I Watched This Week #154 (Dec 9-15) The Hound of the Baskervilles dir. Terence Fisher/1959/1h27m The winning Hammer trio of director Terence Fisher and actors Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, who had previous success with Dracula and The Mummy, team up once again for this adaptation of the most famous, and spookiest, Sherlock Holmes story, The Hound of the Baskervilles. Cushing plays Holmes with Lee as Sir Henry Baskerville, under threat from a family curse. Cushing makes for a wonderful Holmes, fitting into the role perfectly, and he has a capable Watson played by Andre Morell, but I did find Lee's role lacking in screen time, though he makes the most of what he gets. I think I would have much preferred to see him play Moriarty in a different story as The Hound of the Baskervilles isn't one of my favourites. What this film does well is atmosphere, particularly in the more supernatural scenes, with some wonderfully otherworldly lighting that feels like a precursor to the Italian giallo horror films of the 70s. 7/10 Memoir of a Snail dir. Adam Elliot/2024/1h34m This Australian stop-motion animation sees Grace (Sarah Snook) tell her sad life story, which starts with her mother dying whilst giving birth to her and her twin brother Gilbert (Kodi Smit-McPhee). When their father dies while they are still young they are sent to separate foster homes. From there Grace grows into a lonely, depressed woman whose only friend is an eccentric old lady called Pinky (Jacki Weaver). Like Elliot's previous feature from 2009, Mary and Max – the story of a pen pal friendship between a lonely, bullied, little Australian girl and a lonely, autistic middle-aged New York man - this is a brutally open and emotionally raw film that still finds beauty in the ugliness of life. This extends to the character design, as these characters all border on the grotesque looking but are still endearing and beautiful in their own way. Going further, this applies to Elliot's own life. After watching his much more autobiographical shorts (see next review) I can see how much of this film is based on experience, and the fact that he's been able to make such a profoundly moving film out of his pain (this also applies to Mary and Max) is deeply touching. As far as feature films go he's two for two in my books and I can't wait to see his next film, even if it takes another 15 years. 10/10 Lime's Film of the Week! Four shorts by Adam Elliot: Human Behavioural Case Studies. Series One. 1996/1m Uncle 1996/6m Cousin 1999/4m Brother 2000/8m These four shorts make up Elliot's filmography prior to the release of his first feature, Mary and Max, and offer up bite-sized samples of his signature style and deeply personal storytelling. That is, with one outlier – his very first film, Human Behavioural Case Studies. Series One. This is a simply animated film, drawn with pencil rather than his usual Claymation stop-motion, where we hear three stories about weird hobbies that some children have. While probably based on reality this lacks the emotional heft that really makes his films hit hard. But this is more than present in his other three shorts that make up a trilogy, Uncle, Cousin, and Brother. These are all autobiographical and relate Elliot's feelings and relationships with each of the named family members, his eccentric, hardware store owning uncle, his cousin with cerebral palsy, and his wild and free older brother. These films are all tinged with sadness and melancholy but there is always humour present, something to make life bearable. If you don't laugh you'll cry. Like I said in the previous review, it's incredible that Elliot has taken so much pain and sadness and transformed that into these works of art. Not as refined as his feature films, these are still very much worth watching and I'll give the whole collection a score of 8.5/10 Mandibles dir. Quentin Dupieux/2020/1h17m Quentin Dupieux is a very unique director who has previously made films about a killer tyre (Rubber), a possessed jacket that wants to be the only jacket in the world (Deerskin), and a man who takes a play, and its audience, hostage because he thinks it's bad (Yannick), so I wasn't that surprised to find that this film is about a couple of idiotic chancers, Manu and Jean-Gab (Gregoire Ludig, David Marsais), who find a giant fly in the boot of their car and see it as a way to make some money. Deadpan Kafkaesque absurdity is the name of the game here, with the two main characters just going with the flow, seeing where their moronic scheme will take them. It's like if Dumb and Dumber was a surreal, European arthouse film. The two leads do a good job of making what could be very unlikeable characters – they're not only stupid, they're also selfish, manipulative, and deceitful – quite charming, and their almost childlike friendship I found to be quite sweet, they even have a special best friends fist bump. I also found it hilarious that at the end, just when we think that they are going to learn a lesson and grow as people, their idiocy is rewarded and reinforced. The more films of his I watch, the more I like the weird world of Quentin Dupieux. 9/10 Women Talking dir. Sarah Polley/2022/1h35m A group of women in an isolated, deeply religious community meet to discuss what they are to do after several of their men are arrested for sexually assaulting them. They decide they have three options, stay and fight for equality in the community, stay and do nothing, or leave. This is a true ensemble piece with many characters, but led by the brilliant trio of Rooney Mara, Jessie Buckley, and Claire Foy each delivering amazing performances. Ben Whishaw is also excellent as August, a kind and gentle man who has recently been let back into the community after previously being excommunicated due to his mother. He is at the meeting to take minutes because of course none of the women were ever taught to read or write. This is a film that is made by the dialogue, with the Oscar winning screenplay really making each discussion totally enthralling as the women struggle to reconcile their faith with the massively traumatic experience they've all been through. 9/10 Seven Chances dir. Buster Keaton/1925/56m This silent comedy stars Buster Keaton as Jimmie Shannon who discovers he's been left seven million dollars in a distant relative's will. The only catch is that he has to be married by seven pm on the evening of his twenty seventh birthday, which happens to be today. This film builds up the comedy over the runtime, starting off with quite subtle slapstick and culminating with a ridiculously over the top chase where he is pursued through the city streets by hundreds of would-be brides. Buster gives a very typical performance of his here, his stony expression exuding a slight air of sadness. While this is very well crafted I do find it to be less imaginative than his best films like Sherlock Jr. or The General. The chase scene is fun but there are no real big set pieces that stand out. But this is still a funny and charming film and well worth watching. 7/10 Toy Story 2 dir. John Lasseter/1999/1h32m Pixar's third film started out as a direct to video project, but when they exceeded all expectations when it came to quality and story it was pushed to full release. Woody (Tom Hanks) is kidnapped by toy store owner Al (Wayne Knight) who's going to sell him to a museum in Tokyo because it turns out he's a rare collectable piece of merchandise from an old TV show. This is how we meet the rest of the Woody's Roundup gang, exuberant cowgirl Jessie (Joan Cusack) and Stinky Pete the Prospector (Kelsey Grammer). This is one of those rare sequels that is almost, if not as good as the original. Woody having to face the prospect of a life where Andy grows up and doesn't need him anymore is really well handled, with the song where Jessie recounts her own owner abandoning her being genuinely heart-breaking. This is also just as funny as the original, with most of that coming from Buzz (Tim Allen), leading a rescue party out looking for Woody. There's also a marked improvement in the animation from the first film here, especially with the human characters who are no longer nightmare inducing. The textures of the fabrics and plastics that make up the toys also look much more detailed. 9.5/10 Wasp dir. Andrea Arnold/2003/26m (no trailer for this) This Oscar winning short film from Andrea Arnold stars Natalie Press as Zoe, a single mother to four young children living in poverty on a council estate. She is asked out to the pub by an old flame Dave (Danny Dyer) but can't get a babysitter, so she makes her kids wait outside for her. This is an honest and non-judgemental look at what it's like for the poorest people in this country. Zoe, as a character is someone who you sympathise with, pity, are outraged by and can feel disgusted by how she treats her children. Her love for them is never called into question, it's a case of a desperate person not making the best decisions. Press gives an amazing performance that feels real and lived in. I'm also amazed that Dyer gave a good performance as I've hated him in everything else I've seen him in. Bleak and raw, there's still a spirit of hope here, small as it may be. 10/10
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      - LimeGreenLegend replied to LimeGreenLegend's topic in Arts and Entertainment
    2. omarcomin71
      116

      HELLDIVERS 2

      Galactic War update. Day 312-314
      - omarcomin71 replied to omarcomin71's topic in Shooter Games
    3. omarcomin71
      116

      HELLDIVERS 2

      Galactic War update. Day 311. Defending the surprise Illuminate attack.
      - omarcomin71 replied to omarcomin71's topic in Shooter Games
    4. djw180
      195

      Rate the Last Film you Watched 2: Electric Boogaloo

      Let The Sunshine In (2017) dir Claire Denis Juliette Binoche plays Parisian artist Isabelle, looking for her ideal man after a divorce. That makes it sound like a romantic comedy, but it isn't. There's no real romance and although not to be taken too seriously it's not exactly full of jokes either. Isabelle basically tries out various lovers who all fail to live up to expectation on some level; such as the wealthy married man who only calls when it suits him or the younger man who decides he just wants to be friends. Interwoven between these scenes we learn a bit more about who Isabelle is, what she does for a job, meet a few of her friends etc. Binoche is very good, as always, most of the rest of the cast are OK. I did start to get a little bored after about halfway through. There was very little chemistry between the actors, which I guess was deliberate since she was never finding the right man. But right at the end it did step up. The very final scene is great. Isabelle goes to see a psychic, played by Gerard Depadieu. There follows a dialogue as they discuss her various lovers, with him kind of reviewing them. It's almost like she was seeing a therapist, until he brought out a “magic” pendulum type of thing and started making predictions of which ones might turn out to be the right man for her. The film actually ends at this scene plays out with the credits beginning whilst their conversation continues. I'm not sure if the intention of this was to make you watch the credits or maybe it was saying “you can stop watching now, there's nothing important left to see”. But whatever, it was an original bit of film making for me. 6 / 10
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    5. omarcomin71
      116

      HELLDIVERS 2

      Galactic War update. Day 303-310
      - omarcomin71 replied to omarcomin71's topic in Shooter Games
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