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CD Smiles rated Super Mario Bros.

Super Mario Bros. 4/10

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added Father of the Bride to wanted list

Father of the Bride

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 11th Directed by: Rocky Morton, Annabel Jankel People have an obsession with being the one to find a hidden gem, or maybe it's less cynical than that and people just want to see the good in things. With this movie, unlike the delusional people who will try to convince you the Star Wars prequels are good, I've only seen praise for the set design and world building of this film. People are totally right to praise those things, along with the actually incredible effects, truly, impressively inventive. The cast is one of the most strangely perfect things. I'm on record as an irrational John Leguizamo hater, but he nails his role, Bob Hoskins is warm and funny and really carries the movie and Dennis Hopper is so specifically insane it's indescribable. Most people hate this movie because of it's bad representation of the source material. It's funny because I want to say there's no other way this movie could have turned out being made in the time that it was, but the creature designs are so bizarre that you can't even say that. At the same time, I don't know how people would expect you to adapt things like Goomba and Koopas into a real-life setting, y'know, without CGI. I'm glad this was made (if it indeed, had to be made) in the days of practical effects, I feel like a live-action Super Mario film made nowadays would be even worse. Despite everything I'm saying this is not a good movie. It's bizarrely paced, has no real memorable action moments, just about everything that happens just left me confused. It's not even a matter of the writers not knowing anything about Mario, it's just like the script was written by aliens. This movie is so wacked out, it is only interesting as a strange curiosity but I still don't really think it's worth watching just for that. Downloaded.

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added 2 items to their collection

have watched

3/10

5/10

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 9th Directed by: Richard Fleischer This is what I expected of the first movie, this one settles right into the 80's feel, it's got some of that kind of warmth of kid's movies of the time. I can imagine myself eating popcorn under a blanket watching this on VHS in the basement. Under that lens, it's kinda cute but technically this is not a good movie. It's astoundingly boring, I swear like 80% of what makes it into the final edit is just nothing. Like, shots of extras walking or establishing shots of buildings, I don't know, just... nothing. The first movie was like that too, but it had moments that kind of justified the slow pace and build up, all this movie gives you is bad comedy and stunts and effects that wouldn't make it into fuckin' Beetleborgs. I don't know what happened here, this movie is absolutely all over the place, I can't even think of another movie that just doesn't have an identity like this one. It is simultaneously uninspired and too inspired by other movies of the time. (The entire ending is just the epilogue of Star Wars) This movie is the shitty sequel to a good (or in this case, decent) movie that kids don't realize is shitty until they grow up and watch them again. This movie is Shanghai Knights. Downloaded.

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 9th Directed by: John Milius This is very interesting for being in this strange middle period of Hollywood movies. I had an idea of what this movie would be like in my head and I was completely wrong. Two years before The Terminator, I don't know if Schwartzenegger's star potential was really realized yet, as much as he was just an extremely muscle-y dude who was willing to be naked for the entire movie. If this movie's tone were a speedometer with 1970's on the left and 1980's on the right, it would be ticking over to the left mostly, but the fact that it's not on one side or the other is what makes it interesting. It's a pretty no-nonsense movie tonally, definitely don't come here looking for a wacky over-the-top 80's romp, however, Conan also happens to be probably the best example I've seen for weird Arnie noises. The story is a little bit goofy, even though Conan is established to be hardened from childhood, raised to be a killer, he turns into a dope as soon as he's set loose on his adventure, he adds people to his party like if there was a Mel Brooks movie satirizing western tabletop RPGs. Overall, there is some fun to be had, it's a bit boring but there are some memorable moments, I could see this being good entertainment for an older kid, but doesn't do anything to rise above "just okay". Downloaded.

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added 2 items to their collection

have watched

5/10

8/10

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 8th Directed by: Mike Hodges Pretty astounding to see worlds realized like this, I had Barbarella on my mind at times looking at the set designs and costumes, but it would be way too high of praise to compare this to Barbarella in any other regard. Max Von Sydow is great and underwhelming at the same time, I feel like he doesn't put that much into it, considering they were trying to achieve hammy shlock, but also I feel he wasn't given many opportunities to do so. Flash Gordon himself is a tree stump, it's sometimes played to comedic effect, my favorite moment aside from the whip duel is a scene where Flash is getting his ass kicked by a bunch of goons, until he's thrown a ball shaped object and starts running through everyone like a linebacker. Surprising amount of downtime in this though, I just finished the movie and I feel like I forgot half of it already. Blu-Ray.

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 7th Directed by: Russell Mulcahy Occasionally I find a movie that I feel like I missed out on watching as a kid, I feel like I should have nostalgia for taking the VHS tape of this from it's spot on the shelf right next to Ninja Turtles and watching it. It's not a regretful feeling but one of wonder. I had the wrong idea about this movie entirely, I thought it was all boring training montages set in the Scottish highlands, but that's like, ten minutes of the movie. Anything you could consider kind of passé is completely overshadowed by how absolutely ridiculous this film is. All of the characters are Scottish, the actors trying their darndest to achieve the accent except Sean Connery, who is Spanish. Christopher Lambert goes back and forth from failing miserably to forgetting to try, I was expecting him to be hilarious but I didn't think he'd achieve that so unintentionally. The villain eats up every scene he's in, it's almost worth watching this movie just for that guy, you can't predict him in any way, he's incredible. But I do appreciate how creative the premise is, how there's all this lore that we spend absolutely zero time on explaining. I'm not kidding, I love that. Highlander is a really high production, beautiful looking movie that constantly has jaw dropping moments for fans of 80's shlock. Downloaded.

4 years, 1 month ago

CD Smiles added 3 items to My Favorite Movies list

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles rated The Producers

The Producers 5/10

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles posted 3 images

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 6th Directed by: Mel Brooks It's genuinely funny to me that this was written as a movie with no intent to turn it into a stage play, because this is such the thing that stage nerds would go wild for, and of course, did. What's not funny to me is most of this movie, strangely. It's not that it's filled with failed comedy, there definitely is some of that, but it's more that I feel like nothing was even approached from a comedic angle. There's nothing funny about the buildup to the play, there's nothing funny about the beginning of the movie, there's like one joke and the rest of the movie is just... dialogue? But I will say that one joke, fucking lands. Downloaded.

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles posted 16 images [View All]

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added Queer Japan to wanted list

Queer Japan

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 4th Directed by: Lewis Milestone At the exact half way point is when the plot of the movie actually begins and after that point the rest of the movie flies by. At least the buildup wasn't tremendously boring, even when nothing is happening, you can vibe with it. The movie is very classy and cool, with almost no high stakes tension like a modern heist movie would have, which is odd, but contributes to the low tempo, slick feel. It wasn't a painful experience despite me not caring about anything happening save for 30 minutes or so. There are apparently 11 characters? I count three, and then the rest are just indistinct white people. There's no attempt to tell you what all of their jobs are in the heist. I had no idea what was happening most of the time, especially the ending, I don't know what happened or what it meant but it felt cool for some reason. There is little reason to watch this movie, honestly. While there aren't many cons, there are almost no pros. Downloaded.

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 3rd Directed by: Stanley Kramer I kind of hate super wide aspect ratios but this actually looked incredible. Thought I should get that out of the way before I talk about the actual reason to watch this, it's one of the most fun movies ever. When it's not specifically out to make you laugh, which is almost never, it's still intensely entertaining. I watched the extended cut which I've learned over the years is always, always a bad idea, but of course as soon as there's an extended cut the original disappears. There were a lot of things in that that took me out of the experience, lost scenes that were just audio played over stills, but the scene wasn't something that was vital to the plot or even particularly funny or interesting, the people behind these things need to realize cuts were made for a reason. Anyway, the last 20 - 30 minutes of this film had my jaw on the floor, exasperated at how impossibly well written it is, I don't think there is a funnier, more satisfying climax/conclusion to a comedy. It can't be possible. Comedy masterpiece. Downloaded.

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles posted 22 images [View All]

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles rated Around the World in 80 Days (1956)

Around the World in 80 Days (1956) 2/10

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 3rd Directed by: John Farrow, Michael Anderson This is one of those giant, bloated production 1950's movies that manage to make Technicolor, or in this case, Eastman Color look ugly. You could skip to any moment of this movie and something not interesting would be happening. This is the sort of thing I'm assuming by the general scores has fallen in favor with audiences over the years, it's the sort of thing that could really only be interesting to people when this came out. Before you could just Google or YouTube any place on this Earth, this film would be intriguing to those curious, surely. But to no one's surprise, every place they visit is just; Spain? Bullfighters. America? Cowboys and Indians. India? ... Ritual... sacrifice? Yes, everything is boiled down to it's most stereotypical, the score fucking sucks, if I have to hear "God Save the Queen" one more time I'll pull my brain out through my ears, and nothing is particularly clever or funny until the VERY LAST line which I smirked at. It's a painful, boring slog, the worst of this era of Hollywood. It stinks. Downloaded.

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles posted 19 images [View All]

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 2nd Directed by: Shinji Aoyama I don't really know what to think here, I had no idea what to expect and starting the movie with the most bombastic or exciting thing that happens in the entirety of the film may have given me the wrong idea. It's beautiful throughout, however, and maybe this is my fault, we have so few characters to keep track of and yet I didn't really get a sense of knowing most of them. Maybe that's intentional. It's a touchy subject, it's approached with tact and is given a lot of time to assimilate. It's an undeniably beautiful film I just feel like I got left behind by it somehow. Downloaded.

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Albums Heard in 2021 list

February 2nd Year: 1969 Genre: Blues Rock White Eyes

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles posted a image

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 2 items to their collection

7/10

6/10

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Games I Beat (2020 - 2023) list

February 2nd, 2021

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles added 1 item to Movies Watched in 2021 list

February 1st Directed by: Shunji Iwai Oh boy. Lily Chou-Chou is like an odyssey, it feels much larger than it's runtime. I was reminded of Love Exposure in it's sense of scope and youthful energy, but the tone couldn't much more different. This film's plot hinges on the original music being good, and it absolutely delivers, ethereal and enigmatic, it fits like a puzzle piece with Iwai's camera. I said this film felt large, what I meant is this is one of those that attempts to challenge everything while presenting with a somewhat simple story in the forefront, the sort of thing I feel like I've only experienced with Japanese media. It's incredibly emotional, not many things get me like this but this'll grab you deep and squeeze, and not only in a sad way. I felt like crying at times, sometimes just from the sheer beauty this film is capable of. Downloaded.

4 years, 2 months ago

CD Smiles posted 21 images [View All]