Sin City

[stray]

Just got me back from watching it, so I'll just offer a few thoughts....

I give it almost all the praise I could possibly give to a film.

Granted, I came into it already expecting a lot, but the thing is: It delivered on my expectations. When does that ever happen?! This was Sin City FULLY realized in film form.

Perhaps there was one weak part (and it wasn't even that weak): Which would be the second segment of the Hartigan (Bruce Willis) and Nancy (Jessica Alba) story. It may have been that I was getting a little tired by this time, but I thought the pacing was kind of slow.

Besides that, I can't really say anything negative about it. Even the bit actors were good!

It was also great to see Rourke (Marv) in action again. I'm a huge fan, and it's a fucking shame that Rodriguez is the only guy giving him parts these days. There have been many actors over the years that critics would hail to be the "next Brando" or whatnot, but Rourke is one of the only guy's who's been the real deal. 2 minutes of Mickey Rourke equals a lifetime of performances from a lot of other actors out there --- and the great thing about Sin City is that you get more than 2 minutes of him. It's about damn time.

A close second best would be Jacky Boy (Del Toro) and Dwight (Owen). But hell, my eyes would have been glued to the screen if the whole film was about Marv (well, my eyes would have been glued if it all about the girls of Old Town too).

Anyways, go see it. It's worth watching in a theater.

[Johny Cee]

Fuck!  I mean.... Fuck!

Yah,  go see this thing.  Unreal.

Bizarre at times, but in a good way.

[stray]

On a sidenote (for you Tarantino haters): He only directed *a scene* within the Jacky Boy segment (it's a driving scene with Jacky Boy and Dwight).

And y'know, I wouldn't have known that if I didn't just look it up. The scene in question was great (due to Del Toro), but Tarantino didn't make it better, nor did he make it worse. It was one of those types of scenes where the actors take over and the director is a non issue. Quentin was only there so Rodriguez could let him make use of digital filmmaking techniques.

[Strazos]

Fan-Fucking-Tastic, that's all I can say.

Now, I am by no means a film buff. Hell, the last few movies I've seen are Mean Girls and Ghost in the Shell: Innocence. I saw Hero also, and I still want my money back for it.

Go fucking see this shit. This may be the closest we'll ever get to "Max Payne: The Movie".

If not for the great film techniques, art direction, actors, story, or even the girls of Old Town....then at least see it because it has a gyrating Jessica Alba. Mmmm....Jessica Alba. Here's to hoping that she'll make a few cameos in my dreams.

PS: After the film, I heard some kids saying that Frank Miller should be shot....pfft, kids.

[stray]

PS: After the film, I heard some kids saying that Frank Miller should be shot....pfft, kids.

I wasn't going to mention this, but some little fucking turds sitting above me were talking throughout the movie. About 30 mins in, I couldn't take it anymore, told them to "SHUT THE FUCK UP", yanked a box of (what I think) were Junior Mints out of one of their hands and hurled it down the stairs. No response was given.

Watching Marv will make you do crazy things.

Perhaps this would be the only valid reason not to see this in the theater. I put up with that shit in Constantine, but didn't have the patience today. Plus, I was alone this time. I didn't have to worry about scaring off my date.

[schild]

Plus, I was alone this time. I didn't have to worry about scaring off my date.

That makes all the difference in the world. I've done some shit that would get me in trouble in theaters because I was alone and someone was bugging the shit out of me.

I do not tolerate your average citizen. Particularly when he's 8 years old and kicking the back of your chair. Hell, doesn't matter if he's 18. The fucker dies!

[MrHat]

Sin City was superb.  Absolutely entertaining to someone who never read the graphic novels.  My girlfriend didn't like it, but that's only because of the green man.

[Riggswolfe]

I haven't read the books but this movie made me wish to do it. Also, IGN has an article with rodriquez where he says that on the DvD version you'll have the theatrical release, plus a second disc with each story as its own segment, complete with scenes put back in. (He mentioned Marv going to see his mother or something. Again, I haven't read the books.)

I'll be getting this on DvD. Damn amazing movie. I walked out so excited and so fanboyish feeling and didn't care. Marv stole the show in my opinion BTW.

[Samwise]

Just saw the movie.  Wow.  That's all I can really say, because if I were to praise specific aspects of this movie, I'd have to go on for pages, lest I slight any of the myriad things that made it awesome.

[Johny Cee]

I'd firmly recommend going to see this with a large crowd.  The crowd reaction is great,  since the movie is so brutul (and sometimes funny).

I've been a big fan of Robert Rodriguez for a while,  so it's nice to see him hit one out of the park.  (More a fan of the potential he had,  than the actual results.) 

Anyone have an idea how much Sin City cost to put out?  Rodriguez is the king of keeping costs down,  between his relentlessly pushing the staff and the fact he loves to do just about every movie job himself.

He also likes to include some real interesting stuff on his dvds.  The documentary on "From Dusk till Dawn" about the shooting schedule and union problems is pretty interesting.  As is his walkthrough and behind the scenes of his personal studio in "Once Upon a Time in Mexico".  Not to mention he takes 7 minutes to show you how to cook Agent Sands favorite dish....

[bhodikhan]

Is is any wonder that this movie kicks-ass? I knew after Rodriguez did the Kill Bill 2 soundtrack for free for Tarantino that the their first movie together was going to be amazing. Robert Rodriguez has shown Hollywood that creativity actually saves money and Rodriguez has time and time again created some great stuff on a shoestring budget.  He still makes movies where he's usually the primary cameraman. I think he's listed as doing all the steadicam work as well (and the soundtrack, editing, special effects...)

Personally, as an independent filmaker (mostly documentaries) I stand in awe of Robert Rodriguez as his talents cover damm near every aspect of moviemaking.

You name it. He's good at it.


Is this real?

[schild]

Is this real?

Apparently. But Tarantino still sucks the biggest balls in the animal kingdom. I'm going to see this tonight. Hopefully the theater will be packed.

[Margalis]

I saw a special on E! last night about Sin City and man, Frank Miller looks like hell. Jesus, I remember seeing him in "Comic Book Confidential" what must have been 15 years ago or so. I remembered him as a youngish guy with long hair, now he looks like one of those Bushman brothers from the WWF tag team. (The guys who would stomp around and wave their arms, both australian.)

[Riggswolfe]

Alot can happen in 15 years. Then he was in his mid-20s probably. Now he's in his 40s. (At least).

[bhodikhan]

I read an article in the WSJ about the movie and found out that Robert Rodriguez was told by the Directors Guild that he could not split the credit for having two directors.

He took the proper way out. Solution? Tossed his membership in the silly Directors Guild!

Kind of like George Lucas getting hell for not having a credit roll at the beginning of Star Wars.

Too many stupid people making decisions IMHO.

[Margalis]

Yeah, they mentioned that in the E! special. (It was actually a decent special, not that I watch E! a lot...) Since Miller is a first-time director they thought that was in bad form for whatever reason.

I also just read that it cost $40 million to make.

[stray]

Is this real?

Apparently. But Tarantino still sucks the biggest balls in the animal kingdom.

Well, you probably know by now that I'll disagree with you about that, but....I think this is better than anything Quentin has done. That might not mean much considering that you already dislike him to begin with -- But if a Quentin fan like me can say that, then that should give you a rough idea on where I think Sin City stands.

[schild]

Apparently. But Tarantino still sucks the biggest balls in the animal kingdom.

Well, you probably know by now that I'll disagree with you about that, but....I think this is better than anything Quentin has done.

All the stuff Quintin stole his shit from is better also. I'm thinking maybe if you saw the early John Woo/Chow Yun Fat stuff you're admiration of Tarantino would go out the window. Where it belongs. And that's only one group that he stole from to make himself successful. It also helps that Woo hasn't done shit worth mentioning in America, so people tend to forget The Killer, Hard-Boiled and the Better Tomorrow series.

[Riggswolfe]

The Killer, Hard-Boiled and the Better Tomorrow series.

*looks at his DvDs* Not all of us have forgotten them.

[Murgos]

I've seen all those movies schild and I agree that they are great but they are also totally worthy of emulation.  This little tirade of yours is silly, you're doing that thing about for something to be good it had to be created from whole cloth and it's just not true.

So what that Tarantino uses ideas from multiple sources in his movies?  The fusion of two things is a new thing.

[Gong]

Sin City slays my fucking face off. Go see it.

[Margalis]

Tarantino is not great but he is hardly the anti-christ of directors. Anyone who seriously thinks that Tarantino is a terrible director needs to watch more movies.

[schild]

Tarantino is not great but he is hardly the anti-christ of directors. Anyone who seriously thinks that Tarantino is a terrible director needs to watch more movies.

He's technically proficient at mimicing. He's a highly unoriginal piece of shit. He'd be better off as a script writer, but only dialogue. Nothing else. His bit in the Four Rooms is proof of that.

So what that Tarantino uses ideas from multiple sources in his movies?  The fusion of two things is a new thing.

He doesn't fuse 2 things. He puts them into his movies in subsequent scenes, he's a con artist and a thief.

[Riggswolfe]

He's technically proficient at mimicing. He's a highly unoriginal piece of shit. He'd be better off as a script writer, but only dialogue. Nothing else. His bit in the Four Rooms is proof of that.



He doesn't fuse 2 things. He puts them into his movies in subsequent scenes, he's a con artist and a thief.

Good god Schild. Can you show us where Tarantino touched you to form this unreasoning bile towards him? He's not an artiste but his movies are fun and have their own "feel". I didn't watch Kill Bill but I don't see how you can say Reservoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction are shit.

[Margalis]

Tarantino's dialog is his *worst* area. It's cool at first; then you realize that every character in every movie speaks the same way and they all have basically interchangeable personalities.

[murdoc]

I knew after Rodriguez did the Kill Bill 2 soundtrack for free for Tarantino that the their first movie together was going to be amazing.

Sin City isn't their first collaboration by a longshot.

http://imdb.com/title/tt0116367/

And I think Four Rooms even preceeded that movie.

[schild]

Good god Schild. Can you show us where Tarantino touched you to form this unreasoning bile towards him? He's not an artiste but his movies are fun and have their own "feel". I didn't watch Kill Bill but I don't see how you can say Reservoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction are shit.

See, I think the dialog was one of the only things that saved Resevoir Dogs. That entire movie was shot for shot Hard Boiled + The Killer. But then, Tim Roth can save any ship from sinking.

Pulp Fiction isn't my bag. I can see why people like it, I happen to despise Travolta.

Tarantino does a number of things that piss me off immensely. One is buying the rights to foreign movies and putting a big nasty "Tarantino Presents" on them. Sontine and Zatoichi are two examples that come to mind. Both are Takeshi Kitano movies - arguably one of the best writer/directors working in Japan today. Disney does this same shit with Studio Ghibli, and it angers me to no end.

Oh and he sucks donkey balls. Seriously. There's video of it.

[stray]

Apparently. But Tarantino still sucks the biggest balls in the animal kingdom.

Well, you probably know by now that I'll disagree with you about that, but....I think this is better than anything Quentin has done.

All the stuff Quintin stole his shit from is better also. I'm thinking maybe if you saw the early John Woo/Chow Yun Fat stuff you're admiration of Tarantino would go out the window. Where it belongs. And that's only one group that he stole from to make himself successful. It also helps that Woo hasn't done shit worth mentioning in America, so people tend to forget The Killer, Hard-Boiled and the Better Tomorrow series.

Whoa there....You're not the only person in the world who isn't a dumbass. Maybe where you're at, ignorance abounds, but when I say I'm a fan of Tarantino, it doesn't mean my knowledge of film begins and ends with him. I'm not one of "those" fans. I knew plenty about films before I even heard of him. My parents taught me well.

Hell, I can still remember the first film my Dad dragged me to when I was 5 years old -- And it wasn't Rambo, ET or the Empire Strikes Back. It was the cheesy Richard Gere version of Breathless! And if I could have read subtitles, he probably would have dragged me to the Godard version.

As far as Woo goes, of course I've seen his old films. I know enough about him, and with the exception of Hard-Boiled, those movies just aren't very fun to me. The action scenes are great, but everything in between wears thin.

Anyways, I'm not here to argue about Quentin (or whatever). My only point was that I happen to like him, and I still think Sin City tops anything he's done. If you already hate him, well....Then you'll probably like this film even more because of it.  

[schild]

Just to give you an idea of how something so shallow as labeling a dvd could ruin it. Just take a look for yourself:



Seriously. He's just that much of an asshole. Kitano was making movies before Tarantino was wet behind the ears and he still has the gall to slap his name across some of the best of asian cinema. Fucking leech.

[murdoc]

And because he slaps his name on that stuff it actually gets RELEASED here.

Miramax wanted to hack up Hero until Tarantino said that he'd be willing to have the "Quentin Tarantino Presents" stuck in front of it.

But please, by all means, continue with your hatred of everything Tarantino.

[murdoc]

Edit: Whoopsie, I apparently can't tell the difference between quote and edit.

[schild]

And because he slaps his name on that stuff it actually gets RELEASED here.

Yea, I know. I mean noone else is willing to release good asian cinema.

Miramax wanted to hack up Hero until Tarantino said that he'd be willing to have the "Quentin Tarantino Presents" stuck in front of it.

Interesting example. Particularly since Buena Vista brought it over, pimped it as a Tarantino attachment and it wasn't released as a Rolling Thunder picture.

But please, by all means, continue with your hatred of everything Tarantino.

Yes, it's certainly irrational to dislike con artists.

[SurfD]

Hate to point this out, but Mirimax STILL hacked up Hero, even with the QT brand on it.

[Margalis]

How many US theaters did Alive play in again?

[murdoc]

Miramax wanted to hack up Hero until Tarantino said that he'd be willing to have the "Quentin Tarantino Presents" stuck in front of it.

Interesting example. Particularly since Buena Vista brought it over, pimped it as a Tarantino attachment and it wasn't released as a Rolling Thunder picture.

huh?

http://www.fangoria.com/news_article.php?id=2129
http://www.chud.com/news/mar04/mar15qt.php3

http://www.miramax.com/hero/

Maybe I'm missing the obvious here...

The general public doesn't know a lick about asian cinema. They might possibly recognize Kitano from Most Extreme Elimination Challenge, but maybe, just maybe, they might grab a "Tarantino Presents" DVD and have their eyes opened to something new.


edit: Sorry I'll quit editting this...