Star Wars, LOTR, Godfather, Pirates, Indiana Jones, Alien(s), Star Trek or Potter?

[jackass]

When something that vile is spewed by a newbie it kind of taints all his posts.

Really?? I hadnt noticed until you brought it up....

[shattered]

I can't vote - I think they're all icky.

But, then I don't spend much time sitting on my tush washing TV/Movies, either.

I think this thread took a complete shit in record time - sorry, Abbey...)

[Yurt]

sorry i just detest big hollywood crapfest series, and I never pass up the oppurtunity to lash out on them... specially these godfather freaks, the godfather is one of the worst movies I've ever seen, at least the rest are a lot of fun for kids and nostalgia... but the godfather just sucks.

Sucks? Care to explain? Was not my favorite, but definetly a movie that was for a generation. An epic. It was like a book. The way it told the story was amazing for a movie. Very few movies have been able to tell a story like that.

Yuuz gonna sleep with the fishes for this one...



Edit:

nevermind, seems the fun has begun without me

[chum43]

Sucks? Care to explain? Was not my favorite, but definetly a movie that was for a generation. An epic. It was like a book. The way it told the story was amazing for a movie. Very few movies have been able to tell a story like that.

Yuuz gonna sleep with the fishes for this one...

well it is a book by mario puzo, or a series of books that is, and I've read a good chunk of the first one that the series is based on and honestly I didn't even like that at all... besides being boring without being interesting(don't get me wrong I love a long slow movie as long as it has some way to keep my interest) it also seems very unrealistic, if you aren't going to go for realism you might as well go for eccentricity or excitement, not melodrama... thats my basic beef with the movies.

[OCA]

Ok...maybe we will have Jim tell you what to discuss in threads...



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Thanks!

Haha, ooops, i'm a badddddddd boyyyyyyyyyy *OCA shrugs*

[jackass]

Haha, ooops, i'm a badddddddd boyyyyyyyyyy *OCA shrugs*

Typical disrespectful attitude.

[OCA]

Typical disrespectful attitude.

Flattery will get you everywhere big boy!

[shattered]

Typical disrespectful attitude.

Isn't that brick wall you keep smashing your head into starting to hurt?

[Hobbit]

Let's see if I can re-rail this thread. I picked Star Wars, but I'm going to comment on all of said movies.

Star Wars - First off, I'm going to assume we're excluding the prequals, as it should be. The original Star Wars trilogy was one of the greatest epics ever told, and while it did have some definite 'kiddish' moments, I'd put it up on a pedestal with Lord of the Rings, Narnia, and even the epics of Homer (though not as high as some on that same pedestal). It told a great story, with great acting and never leaves the audience guessing the mood (thank you, John Williams). I still get chills when I hear Darth Vader tell Luke what really happened to his father.

Godfather - I must admit, I haven't seen any of these movies all the way through, or any of the third one, so my ability to comment is limited. What I did see, though, I liked.

Pirates of the Caribbean - A good epic, but not as great as it aimed for (one of those shoot for the moon and at least land among the stars moments). It tries too hard to be Star Wars at sea, and while it followed the formula of standalone first movie, dark middle movie, and epic closer, nobody has yet to pull off a proper ending for their equivalent of Empire or a sufficiently believable counterpart to Jedi.

Star Trek - Good sci-fi saga, with 4 good series and about 5 or so good movies. I still don't rank it top dog, but it's definitely enjoyable and has lasted a long time.

Indiana Jones - Probably my second choice. It reeks of 30s/40s pulp comic in the same way Star Wars reeks of Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers serials, but like Star Wars, it pulls it off, and while The Temple of Doom is probably my least favorite of the three, it still pulls it off, and the other two, by featuring actual, Biblical artifacts, bring quite an epic feel to it.

Alien - The first one was a good horror flick in a sci-fi setting. The second pretty much set the standard for how sci-fi space marines should act when dealing with nasty aliens (though I'm sure they were inspired by the Starship Troopers books). The third was still cool. The fourth one was kind of a flop. They should have left well enough alone.

Lord of the Rings - Greatest fantasy epic ever. I would have voted for it, but I'm assuming we're just talking about the movies, and while LotR is good, the movies themselves will never be my favorites because they are still overshadowed by the books, whereas movies like Star Wars, and Indiana Jones were designed to be movies (wasn't The Godfather also based on a book?).

Harry Potter - Very good. The books were very well written. However, the movies suffer the same thing that Lord of the Rings does.

Anyway, that's my opinion.

[Abbey Marie]

Bless you, Hobbit.

[chum43]

Bless you, Hobbitt.

i'm sorry for at least sparking the downfall of this thread... I tried to get back on topic at least a little...

anyway now that I sit here and think of it, saying that indiana jones and star wars(even if it is a little childish) are the best of the bunch probably reflects more on my hatred of cgi effects run wild... I have to believe that if the lord of the rings and pirates of the carribean were made back in the 70's or 80's they probably could have been pulled off as much better movies with the ingenuity equal of that of a lucas or spielberg at the helm... it isn't so much as they are bad ideas, they just get carried out in the wrong way, with all the fake cgi, trying to do too much visually, stock post 1995 "epic movie" film scores, and overacting... the stuff of kiddie magic is there, I just can't get into it because they were carried out so poorly.

[Gaffer]

Let's see if I can re-rail this thread. I picked Star Wars, but I'm going to comment on all of said movies.

Good post Hobbit

Star Wars - First off, I'm going to assume we're excluding the prequals, as it should be. The original Star Wars trilogy was one of the greatest epics ever told, and while it did have some definite 'kiddish' moments, I'd put it up on a pedestal with Lord of the Rings, Narnia, and even the epics of Homer (though not as high as some on that same pedestal). It told a great story, with great acting and never leaves the audience guessing the mood (thank you, John Williams). I still get chills when I hear Darth Vader tell Luke what really happened to his father.

I kinda think all the Star Wars ephisodes should be considered in this. And to me its was just to kidish, though the action is really good. I didn't like the ending tho of Jedi. It's like all is forgiven of Darth Vader after he dies. Even tho he has done unspeakable evil and murder, everything is hunky dorry now.

Godfather - I must admit, I haven't seen any of these movies all the way through, or any of the third one, so my ability to comment is limited. What I did see, though, I liked.

I have never been able to sit through any of these either. Gangster movies just don't get it for me.

Pirates of the Caribbean - A good epic, but not as great as it aimed for (one of those shoot for the moon and at least land among the stars moments). It tries too hard to be Star Wars at sea, and while it followed the formula of standalone first movie, dark middle movie, and epic closer, nobody has yet to pull off a proper ending for their equivalent of Empire or a sufficiently believable counterpart to Jedi.

Haven't seen the third one yet so can make a full judgement, but the second one didn't make a lot of sense to me. Especially the beginning where he's in that coffin. what was that place and how did he get there?

Star Trek - Good sci-fi saga, with 4 good series and about 5 or so good movies. I still don't rank it top dog, but it's definitely enjoyable and has lasted a long time.

Star Trek, the liberal utopia of the future

Indiana Jones - Probably my second choice. It reeks of 30s/40s pulp comic in the same way Star Wars reeks of Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers serials, but like Star Wars, it pulls it off, and while The Temple of Doom is probably my least favorite of the three, it still pulls it off, and the other two, by featuring actual, Biblical artifacts, bring quite an epic feel to it.

I liked all three Indiana Jones movies. It's definately a close second for my favorite series.

Alien - The first one was a good horror flick in a sci-fi setting. The second pretty much set the standard for how sci-fi space marines should act when dealing with nasty aliens (though I'm sure they were inspired by the Starship Troopers books). The third was still cool. The fourth one was kind of a flop. They should have left well enough alone.

The first Alien was good. The second was action packed. The third was weak. I didn't care for the 4th at all.

Lord of the Rings - Greatest fantasy epic ever. I would have voted for it, but I'm assuming we're just talking about the movies, and while LotR is good, the movies themselves will never be my favorites because they are still overshadowed by the books, whereas movies like Star Wars, and Indiana Jones were designed to be movies (wasn't The Godfather also based on a book?).

LOTR was by far my favorite. As a big fan of the books I was pleased they actually did a fairly good job of sticking to the story. The extended version is definately the only way to watch these movies as it fills in lots of little details that they cut out of the theater versions.

Harry Potter - Very good. The books were very well written. However, the movies suffer the same thing that Lord of the Rings does.

I like the movies. haven't read the books though my grandson has all of them that have been released so far. I may have to break down and read them. Books tend to give you more insight into what's going on in a movie.

Anyway, that's my opinion.

/

[chum43]

Books tend to give you more insight into what's going on in a movie.

not in the case of harry potter, i mean whatever gets kids reading can't be all bad, but these are bland, even for a kids book, poorly written, completeley uninteresting, I actually like the movies a lot more than the parts of the books I've read(I've tried to get into nearly all of them, I have younger siblings I often visit and they are always lieing around, well I never get past chapter 2)... and even the movies weren't so great, decent in a theatre with a crowd movies, but nothing I'd even consider watching a second time, as with most of the movies on this poll.

[Abbey Marie]

I will admit that my choosing of LOTR as my fave is somewhat biased. I am a huge fan of the books, and the movie was able to bring them to life better than I ever thought they could. The relationship between Sam and Frodo was actually even better in the movie; no small feat. The scene between Gandalf and the Balrog alone is worth the price of admission. The whole story is so rich, so original, that it just seems head and shoulders above the rest.

Overall, I thought Alien(s) was one of the best films of its genre, and I think it will go down as a true classic. The last one was weird for me, though.

Pirates - so much fun, and I loved them all, but the story telling isn't up to the level of some of the others, particularly LOTR.

Star Trek- a sentimental favorite, but the various versions were too inconsistent to be my pick.

Indiana Jones- fun, in the way The Mummy movies are fun, but not a winner for me.

Godfather - so different, it's hard to compare with the others. Classic movies, fine acting, but I never had the "I can't wait to see the next one" feeling that a fun series evokes. It's more of a stand-alone.

Star Wars - Groundbreaking, and the story line was so different and fascinating. But, these films always seemed kind of cartoonish to me. Sorry!

Harry Potter- Different, but just felt too "young" for me to fully enjoy. If I need a bathroom break, I know to wait until the interminable quiddich (sp) match to take it.

[dan]

I'm joining the anti-Godfather bandwagon. I fully admit that it's because I saw it after I had seen Goodfellas (my favorite movie of all time) and Casino (in my top 10). The Godfather basically tells the same story, only much, MUCH slower. I've never seen 2 or 3, but I've heard 3 was bad enough to almost ruin the trilogy altogether.

There's also the fact that so much of the original Godfather has become part of public consciousness now, like the same way that the music in Jaws can never be as scary now as it was in '75, because it's become almost a cliche now, even though it was very effective back in the day.

For me, the Godfather worked a lot better as a book (I actually took a class on gangster fiction & film). On the other hand, Goodfellas works way better as a film than as a book, there's just no way for the written to capture that visceral excitement that Scorcese's so great at.