MentalMaden

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  1. MentalMaden

    Sucker Punch

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lothic View Post
    Does Brazil look as "pretty" as Sucker Punch? *sigh*

    About the only thing that Sucker Punch did better than Brazil was to get made like 25 years later.
    If Sucker Punch didn't have cutting-edge CGI it would be a TOTAL loss.



    Yes we can quibble on whether the term "homage" is more appropriate than "rip-off" in this case. But frankly I almost wish Snyder did "rip-off" Brazil a little more directly. His movie would have -greatly- benefited from it.
    I'm far from a Sucker Punch apologist (see review). I just think its fair to critcize the movie for it's short comings (there are plenty), but not fair to call the man a 'thief'. And yes, Sucker Punch could learn a ton from Brazil.

    Edited for tone.
  2. MentalMaden

    Sucker Punch

    To be fair, I think it's pretty hard to call something a rip off when the director admits to another movie being a direct influence on his work. It's influence...homage....not rip off. And the movies are far too different to say anything was ripped off. Not to mention that there are many other movies that deal with fantasy worlds created by the main character as a use of escape. It's not that unique a concept.
  3. MentalMaden

    Sucker Punch

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by BrandX View Post
    You do realize anything that deals with psychiatry in this film, does so from a 1950's perspective, right?

    Also, the main character wasn't schizophrenic, she was very much depressed (mother died, step father abusing and then her sister dies) and really didn't belong in a mental institute to begin with.

    Sooo, if that's your worry. No need to be worry.
    [Spoiler heavy!!!!]

    Yeah Remus, you've missed some information. After their mothers death the two sisters were given everything in her will. This enraged the stepfather who went on an abusive rampage that ended in him killing her sister and her shooting him in the arm. She was framed by her stepfather for her sister's death and institutionalized against her will (and while under sedation) so the stepfather could inherit their fortune. In no way shape or form is the lobotomy glamorized or even implied as an acceptable treatment. It's very much shown to be a barbaric procedure and that even in the time frame of the movie, not performed by very many practioners anyway. In fact it is her ultimate sacrifice to save another....its shown as a very sad thing.

    [Edit] AND it was performed because of a forged signature and against the will of the attending psychiatrist and only because the orderly that forged the papers was paid by the stepfather to have it done to cover up what he'd done to her sister.
  4. MentalMaden

    Sucker Punch

    Saw Sucker Punch yesterday and wanted to take a day to "percolate" before I posted my thoughts. Bottom line/short version: didn't love it; didn't hate it. All style, little substance. For my more detailed thoughts consider anything below spoiler territory.


    ***Spoilers below!!!***












    I really wanted to love this movie from the first time they put out teasers for this last year. To Snyder's credit, the man has an eye for art direction and visuals. I had another commitment early in the weekend so I couldn't see it opening day but was also away from any interweb type stuff so I was also lucky enough not to see any early reviews and therefore went into it completely unencumbered by other peoples perceptions or rotten tomatoes numbers. (Which I do have a tendency to "peak" at sometimes)

    [Full disclosure]
    I will point out that I did like Watchmen as a book and as a movie adaptation, so sorry to those people who disagree. I will say though that I do understand Ironik's point about another layer of context missing from the Snyder movie, but for me, it didn't ruin the experience. I will also disclose that I'm more of the talky/independent type movie fan and not someone that prefers or even really likes action movies solely for the sake of action. (My one weakness/guilty pleasure though is the super hero movie) While its a concept thrown around here when talking about action movies, I don't subscribe to the "turn off your brain" mentality of movie going. Now I don't begrudge anyone for liking movies that way, it's just not my thing. All I ask is give me SOME attempt at some forethought to plot and dialogue before you start choreographing fight scenes and 'splosions. In other words: I hate Michael Bay.

    And I think that is the first reason Sucker Punch misses the mark: source material. Snyder's earlier work simply had much better source material. This time we got something from Snyder's mind. And we pretty much got, what we could expect. Very, very visually stunning, but pretty darned shallow as well. The man can storyboard the hell out of a movie, but I'm not so sure he can tell a story. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't a terrible story by any stretch, it's still superior to a Transformers or Fast and Furious type movie. But a movie that dips into so many underutilized genres deserves to pay better homage to them than what we got. I will give him credit for tying in many of the things said kind of in the background of scenes at the beginning of the movie to its conclusion; that did require a little thoughtfullness. I think he could have cleaned up a few of the story elements and made a much much better movie. It could be an editing issue, but I just think it's not Snyders forte and Steve Shibuya's screenwriting didn't help.

    Acting: The acting was pretty unbalanced. Emily Browning did a fine job, no real criticisms there. I found Carla Gugino's Polish accent off putting and to be perfectly honest, I think it stifled her performance. The woman does have range, but I felt the accent reigned her performance in to one note. I didn't care for the actor that played Blue, Oscar Isaac. While he did give off a good "weasel vibe" I didn't find him intimidating enough for the role. Jena Malone (Rocket) was the real weak link in the cast and unfortunately she was required to do the widest range. While she was fine as the bubbly Rocket, when asked for drama it vered way into melodrama and didn't fit the movie and quite honestly was just bad. I think the performance that really worked was Abbie Cornish (Sweet Pea) and that was important as we find out in the end, it was really her story all along. She had great screen presence and I think we'll be seeing a lot more of her. Everyone else was set dressing or underutilized. I think a lot of the issues with acting probably lie more with casting and directing than the actual performers though.

    Visuals: This is one pretty awesome looking film. Definitely Snyder's strength and I think he really deserves points for mixing up the genres and really nailing them in the fantasy/fantasy sequences. Unlike some others in this thread, I really wanted them to be a tad bit longer and a bit more of the substance of the movie. I mean come on: steampunk/clockwork nazi zombies! Who doesn't want more of that??? The dragon sequence was fantastic, and I'd swear it looked like a few orcs from LOTRs made cameos. The bomb on a train sequence felt too short to me, but kudos for the look of the robots, especially the mirror faces and that perspective used in a lot of the action. It was a neat touch. I will criticize some of the CGI work though, especially some of the early stuff with the giant samurai. Where other parts of the movie had flawless CGI, some of the movement seemed 'undone', in that sequence. It reminded me of the bathroom scene in the Wolverine movie where the claws looked like they just forgot to finish the FX for the scene.

    [Edit]- I almost forgot one of my biggest complaints. Yes, Zack, it's time to put the slow motion away. I've defended you in the past for it, but you've milked it for all it is worth. Enough already. Find a new trick.

    Music: The soundtrack was great and utilized wonderfully. Another of Snyder's strengths and where he is his strongest with regards to storytelling. The man can make one hell of a music video. Honestly I'd love to see him do a dialogue free (or limited dialogue) fantasy movie with just great music to tell the story; along the lines of Fantasia or The Wall. He marries music and visuals so beautifully, I think he could do something really special.

    The Rest: While I 'got' why the Dances were never seen, I really don't think it's as profound (good or bad) as some people are letting on. It was merely a storytelling device and one that felt a bit clunky, in my opinion. But one that worked, ok. The creepy factor: yeah there was a little bit of that. They did make it clear that they were of age, but you also can't deny that there was a fetishistic angle to the costuming, and that's ok. There's even a reference to it in the first scene when she enters the "brothel". It's a movie about fantasy and there are a lot of fantasy/fetish iconic looks portrayed and I think it makes sense in that world. Snyder has never really shied away from darker material but I think he played a bit more to the masses with the tone of this movie. Personally, I would have liked it to be a little more brutal on the girls, to show why they want to leave so bad other than "I really want to get out of here" "Me too!" And again, I really don't think Oscar Isaac worked in that particular part of his role. He was fine as the weasel-ly orderly but didn't work as the scary pimp. A better actor could have made both roles work. The lack of sex is fine as that portion of the movie is from Baby Dolls perspective and her creation and we are told they are "holding her" for the High Roller, and it's implied she's "innocent" so to speak.

    Conclusion: not great, not terrible. Three stars, C+/B-, one thumb up/one down, however else you want to describe middle of the road. There is a very good movie in there, I just wish the story telling wasn't so weak. Much like Tron: Legacy (sorry to those of you who loved Tron) it looked beautiful, sounded beautiful but ultimately missed the mark due to plot. I went to Tron with some friends and after it was over I looked to one of them and simply said, "How did they 'F' that up???" I felt pretty much the same way after Sucker Punch. It had so many elements right, but ultimately the story/plot made it less of an experience than it could/should have been.

    Bottom line: Eye candy but brain porridge.
  5. If you'd like donations I'd be happy to throw in some inf for your cause.
  6. MentalMaden

    Storm and what?

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by GPBunny View Post
    Illusion/storm controller

    that is all
    True very true. Probably one of the gnarliest controller combos. BUT I'm not so sure it fits the OPs requirement of x8 in the thirties (it will do it, but I'm not sure at a good speed). 40s sure, but the lack of quick aoe containment and damage on an illusion controller makes it more of a single target expert in the lower and mid levels. Fully matured, its a beast of all beasts though. Well worth the wait.
  7. Yeah, Invuln scrappers have been around for a very long time and war mace (and ax) brutes have been in for a while now as well.
  8. MentalMaden

    Catch-22

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blood_Beret View Post
    You need more Villains.
    I don't disagree, I enjoy the villain ATs a lot as well, but actually it's less my preference for heroes as it is my preference for controllers that skews the data towards heroside ATs. But for what it's worth, my current project, the Ele/Rad troller started in Praetoria and is leveling up redside.
  9. MentalMaden

    Catch-22

    Last night, my Kinetic/Ninjitsu Praetorian Hero Stalker, Kinetikette, hit 50 while fighting Praetorian Clockwork and Neuron. This makes the new total 22 fifties. The totals per AT:

    Controllers- 8
    Defenders- 4
    Scrappers- 2
    Blasters- 1
    Tanks- 1
    Brutes- 2
    Corruptors- 1
    Dominators- 1
    Stalkers- 1
    VEATs- 1

    All that is left to have one of each AT are Masterminds (I have one at 46 now) and Khelds (can't get one past lvl 6). Current project- Ele/Rad controller.

    Thanks to everyone who helped this toon on the road to 50.
  10. 21 level 50s. I've respecc'd many, but not all of them. Sorry it doesn't fit into your optimal timeframe, OP. And yes I will run an Apex with them if I want to and the team will do just fine. Why? because I'm sorry OP, the game ain't that hard and neither is the new content. Oh, yeah, and I like to think of myself as a pretty good player...that always helps. Those three powers without extra slotting doesn't amount to a whole lot on many builds. My namesake, for example, has your precious leadership and medicine already and deciding on what three powers I'm going to add and what other powers will suffer slotting can be daunting, esecially on a character that plays perfectly fine as-is.

    So unless you have a criticism of the way someone is performing and not just how they look on paper, maybe stop with micromanaging other people's make-believe playtime happy hour.

    /rant over
  11. New drinking game.

    Everyone takes a drink whenever Lothic mentions "32 years" in a WW thread!

    Sorry, couldn't resist.
  12. Quote:
    Originally Posted by BrandX View Post
    I thought that was if it was 36-24-36
    Let's ask an expert! (Look around 2:50)

  13. Big thanks to:

    1. Mental
    2. Ulli- Wendigo Madness
    3. Siluria
    4. BBT
    5. MoM
    6. Mr. Draconis
    7. Mrs. Draconis
    8. Ms. JayB (ITF) Chloroplast (Apex)

    for a great ITF and another successful Master of Apex run afterward. Be on the lookout for the next ACTF.

    ***Note next week will be an off week.***
  14. MentalMaden

    Happy Friday!

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Arnabas View Post
    It's Friday!
    Partyin' partyin'
    Fun, fun, fun, fun
    Everyone's looking forward to the weekend!
    Yesterday was Thursday,
    Today is Friday.
    Tomorrow is Saturday
    And Sunday comes afterwards.
  15. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Vayek View Post
    Honestly, i dont see how the incarnet system wont break the DR system if every (or most) slots are capable of increasing multiple stats. So by the time you have all 10, youve got about 30+ powers that are augmented by these incarnets. each increasing by 15% up to things like 33%. while 1/3 of the boosts are ignored by DR.

    If each slot by teir4 boosts 4+ powers by whatever numbers, then you multiply that x10. whats the end result to the fully built end game characters? Or is everyones rebuttles here based solely off the single slot they have seen? Is there no one else who see the potential problem here?

    1.) You have one system thats based entirely to set a cap limit to characters in a way that once they reach the limit, they start to actually deminish instead of just stopping.

    2.) Then you introduce a brand new system thats designed to augment and boost player/character abilities in multiple ways for each one.

    please explain to me how the incarnet system and DR dont conflict with each other at some point. Because im man enough to say that i just flat out dont understand, and am just speaking my mind openly so i can be corrected.

    So you tell me how you dont get a clash from one system that limits, and adding one system that boosts.... i feel like im trying to paint an obvious painting here.
    You mean ED not DR don't you? Otherwise, I'm confused.
  16. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Electrosys View Post
    I would tag along, but that would interfere with Coonie and Hale's wedding...so I can't. sorry.
    The wedding doesn't start until 2 pm CST correct? We'll be done, I'd think, by 1 pm or just a little after.
  17. Quote:
    Originally Posted by captainfoamerang View Post
    all i care about is seeing mama weasley yell, "not my daughter, you *****!" :d
    qft
  18. Quote:
    Originally Posted by Lothic View Post
    As I already said I knew this movie was just the first of a two parter so I did cut it some slack for that. When the last movie comes out I'm actually hoping I'll be able to watch them both back-to-back on the theory that as a combined experience it'll all "make sense".

    But at this point if what you're telling me is that the TDH1 movie was actually an "improvement" over the book then I can almost guarantee I'll never get around to reading it. I still contend that as a movie-based experience it was one of the worst Potter movies for me. *shrugs*
    I'm not trying to convince you one way or the other Lothic and I'm not trying to explain to you it's a two parter (the title's kind of give that away). Just stating my opinion and observations to people reading the thread. And the book as a whole is a pretty good read, that particular section of the book does tend to meander and is a bit of a challenge but overall, it's a satisfying conclusion to the series.
  19. We have a loyal and steady player base willing to pay money every month. How are we going to make more money through costume packs and no monthly subscriptions? Why does the game need 'reinvigorating'?

    And fyi, read the i20 features.
  20. Once you unlock a patron, you always have access to the pool.
  21. The first half of the last book is a challenging read and the fact they actually made a movie out of it is more impressive than you'd think. I actually think it is one of the better Potter movies, in part because they actually improved on the source material. So many of the other movies you kept feeling like "gee, I wish they would have included this part or that part of the book". Plus TDH1 (and the beginning of the book) is all set up for what looks to be a very action packed finale.