A Conversation for 24 Lies A Second

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Post 1

Swiv (decrepit postgrad)

what did you think of the ending???

I thought it was rather feeble meself... if they'd ended with the bathroom door swinging shut on Connor then they didn't have had the epically pointless Jude Law character at all...


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Post 2

Awix

Yeah, we discussed this too. The guy behind us in the queue to leave the cinema was loudly telling his mate 'it was like the ending of Get Carter', but I thought it was more like the end of The Shootist.

We were both sort of right. I think the film is partly trying to be about the redemption of one of the main characters, and for the film to have ended with Connor in the bathroom... well, I think the character in question is so steeped in blood and compromised, that the film-makers couldn't really have let him survive.

It was also about the way the younger character in that scene has a choice to make about the kind of person he wants to be, which wouldn't have been there otherwise. So on the whole I thought the ending worked.

(I quite liked the Jude Law character myself!)


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Post 3

Swiv (decrepit postgrad)

I found him kind of extraneous to the father-son Theme which the film seemed to be focusing on, Connor's murder of Mrs Sullivan (the criminally underused Jennifer Jason Leigh incidentally!) and Peter was the catalyst for what was going on there I think.

But then I think that that theme was a bit underdone anyway - they might have done better focusing on either Michael Jr and his dad, or on John and Connor Rooney and Michael sr - both meant they had to skimp the depth.

but I would have liked the chance to be left with Michael Jr able to swing either way - I don't really want to be told these things.


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Post 4

Awix

Not sure how the swinging-both-ways (oh dear) thing could've been achieved... either he shoots someone or he doesn't, there's not much middle ground there. Besides, if the film is gunning for Oscars as seriously as I propose, the neat & tidy ending with a firm moral choice is the way to go, as the Academy likes closure.

Suspect the John-Connor (once again, oh dear) thread was there so the film could claim to be about fathers and sons generally, rather than just solely about the two Mikes.

I know what you mean about the film lacking depth - I got the impression it wanted to be about things, but it ended up just being things.

Maguire wasn't to do with the theme, as you say, but he did give the plot a bit of momentum and shape and added quite a bit of tension, too.


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Post 5

Swiv (decrepit postgrad)

see - I think Jude Law's character would have fitted much better if they'd done the film according to the storyline which I think would've worked: focusing on the trio of adults post-murder of the inconspicuous Sullivans, and the child just watches, rather than the Mikes bonding... And that way the kiddy could have decided for himself that he didn't want to be like his dad - we could even have had the requisite: "don't do it daddy, revenge isn't worth it" kind of speech, and maybe oscar-necessary closure...

anyhow - I'll still prefer it to win oscars over Minority Report - roll on Two Towers...


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Post 6

Awix

Most of the Oscar bait hasn't appeared over here yet, has it? Hmm. Most of the Oscar-worthy films I've seen this year were eligible for last year's Awards anyway.

Well, except for maybe best adapted screenplay for the first half of the Spider-Man script...


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Post 7

Swiv (decrepit postgrad)

smiley - smiley well, they did nominate Shrek last year!

but if The Two Towers is as good as I hope/expect then it had sodding well better get it

have there been films eligible for the animated award beyond Lilo and Stitch?

incidentally WHY are you defenestrating the welsh???


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Post 8

Awix

I suspect the reason part of the reason FOTR didn't win a major Oscar last year is because, if the other films match the same standard, they could conceivably end up giving Best Director and Best Movie to the same guy three years running. So I suspect ROTK will win big, but TTT (ugh - from hereon it shall be known as 3T) won't, even if it deserves to (as FOTR arguably did).

Animated award... can't think of any. They may not award it this year, I think there have to be at least three nominees before they give it out. (Rumour has it it was only created as the 'We can't give Shrek the Best Picture Oscar so let's invent a new one for it to win' Oscar.

Just one Welsh person in particular, Swiv, a waste of space who I work with (who we've just learned has effectively been stealing from the company for as long as anyone can remember). We'd like to defenestrate him, but fear we may be stuck with him.


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Post 9

Swiv (decrepit postgrad)

o-k

I preferred Monsters Inc to Shrek meself, but there we go...

And I would have been happy to see anything but A Beautiful Mind win last time, even though I didn't really expect it for FOTR - I expect them to save it all up for ROTK, though they shouldn't if they're all the best film of the year.

please don't call it 3T - they were such a terrible teeny band


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Post 10

Catwoman

*vaguely remembers 3T*

Shrek was better than Monsters Inc.


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Post 11

Swiv (decrepit postgrad)

*rolls up sleeves and prepares to take on all comers*


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Post 12

Catwoman

*looks worried*

Well, it is.


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Post 13

Swiv (decrepit postgrad)

smiley - smiley

nah, 'tisn't

but still... personal preference and all that...


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Post 14

Awix

There was a boy band called 3t?

Well I'll be.

Okay then, but TTT just looks ugly and we can't be typing the name out in full all the time. T3 looks like the abbrev. for Terminator 3 so I propose T2T as the shortform title.

(They showed a *really* long ad for it before Red Dragon today, gosh-wow the Balrog fight looks special! And the warg riders! And the Ents! and the... (repeat to fade))


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Post 15

Catwoman

*wants to see red dragon*
*and loves trailers*

The last thing I saw had really crap trailers, was very disappointing.


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Post 16

Awix

At the moment any set of trailers not featuring T2T is a bit disappointing... but having said that, before Road we got the long trailer for the new Bond film, which was interesting... looks like the most fantastical and garish film in the series for a very long time.

Red Dragon is [deleted by Shazz so as not to spoil next weeks' column]


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Post 17

Catwoman

Scums who won't tell me about it.
Must go see.
Will go see on Weds just to annoy you.


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Post 18

Awix

Anything that raises the level of your input is more than fine with me, CW... smiley - winkeye


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Post 19

Swiv (decrepit postgrad)

want to see Red Dragon
our cinema seems to be having a trailer-free period. Road to Perdition therefore wasn't lighted by TTT (stuborn) being attached.

wah


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Post 20

Catwoman

*goes 'huh?' at awix*

Red Dragon! With trailers for Harry Potter and LotR!
*crosses fingers*


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