Whatcha Been Watching?

This is the place where you can conflab about all the other stuff besides videogames
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BrianEdwards
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by BrianEdwards »

KSubzero1000 wrote: December 28th, 2018, 12:35 am I watched House of Saddam, a BBC/HBO co-production mini-series about the rise and fall of the former Iraqi dictator.

It bears most of the flaws of the made-for-TV format: The production values are rather low, it's sometimes noticeable that the actors only had a limited number of takes to perfect their scenes, and the writing suffers from the same low-rent-Godfather syndrome that the vast majority of western scripts involving violent patriarchal structures have had for the past 40+ years. But I found it rather interesting for the most part, if only because it tries to show a (mostly) local perspective on his reign and family dynamics. Not outstanding in any way, but definitely worth watching if you're interested in pseudo-documentary fiction.

I’ve been thinking about watching this. After hearing your thoughts I’m gonna jump in.
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KSubzero1000
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by KSubzero1000 »

BrianEdwards wrote: December 29th, 2018, 12:04 am I’ve been thinking about watching this. After hearing your thoughts I’m gonna jump in.
Cool! It's only four episodes long, so it shouldn't be a daunting time investment, at least. :)

The only other flaw I would like to point out is that the end is rather abrupt and doesn't exactly convey the geopolitical nuances of the 2003 invasion of Iraq very accurately. It's arguably not the focus of the story, but there are some fairly noticeable narrative holes.
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DomsBeard
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by DomsBeard »

I watched Black Mirror Bandersnatch last night and although I did like it I thought it was ok rather than good. I would recommend watching seperate to partners to discuss afterwards to see how your story went. I thought it was quite disjointed in places and was not clear when you had reached an ending as the ''exit to credits'' is in a corner but the ''go back to last junction point'' was more prominent.

I have only seen one episode of Black Mirror before so I don't know if I you were a fan you would enjoy it more
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Simonsloth
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Simonsloth »

DomsBeard wrote: December 29th, 2018, 9:08 am
I have only seen one episode of Black Mirror before so I don't know if I you were a fan you would enjoy it more
If you get the chance I would absolutely recommend 15,000,000 credits, the entire history of you and san junipero as my favourites.
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DomsBeard
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by DomsBeard »

Simonsloth wrote: December 29th, 2018, 12:06 pm
DomsBeard wrote: December 29th, 2018, 9:08 am
I have only seen one episode of Black Mirror before so I don't know if I you were a fan you would enjoy it more
If you get the chance I would absolutely recommend 15,000,000 credits, the entire history of you and san junipero as my favourites.
The only one I have seen is the PM
Spoiler: show
shagging
Pig :D
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Simonsloth
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Simonsloth »

That’s the worst one but still pretty good. Funnily enough some of his predictions are starting to come true:)
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ratsoalbion
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by ratsoalbion »

Completely disagree that The National Anthem is anywhere near the worst one myself.
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Simonsloth
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Simonsloth »

ratsoalbion wrote: December 29th, 2018, 7:30 pm Completely disagree that The National Anthem is anywhere near the worst one myself.
Sorry, what I meant to say is that it’s my least favourite rather than it being the worst objectively:)

Don’t get me wrong I can see why some people would like it but it’s not my cup of tea and unfortunately I knew the entire plot before seeing it so my opinion is skewed to an extent.

My love of the series stems from the wild plot twist and turns so having it spoiled definitely took away a huge part of the impact.

I suppose it also massively depends on what you are coming to the series for as there’s something for everyone.
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Simonsloth
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Simonsloth »

Interestingly i did a bit of internet trawling to see if I’m in the minority and came across a Black Mirror episode ranking article on most media outlets. The variation in where the episodes sit on the lists is massive. Reading through has reminded me of all the other amazing episodes I didn’t mention before. By and large they are pretty fantastic.
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ratsoalbion
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by ratsoalbion »

I still have five to catch up with, six including Bandersnatch!
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Suits
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Suits »

The first series of Black Mirror is the one that got me the most. Perhaps the shock value effect.

The PM one has ruined Pigs for my wife and the “Rewind Repeat” relationship one was dark - proper dark.

Extremely well produced, uncomfortable, thought provoking stuff.
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Simonsloth
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Simonsloth »

So we watched Bandersnatch last night and I agree with Dom that it was good but not great.

It seemed to flow really well initially with the decisions being incredibly slick and well integrated. However
Spoiler: show
towards the end we seemed to get stuck in a loop and this is the point where it fell apart a bit for me. Eventually once we exhausted our options it chose for us and we hit the actual credits. Another spoiler below of the final ending we got

Ending spoiler
Spoiler: show
Working from home he starts to feel like he is being controlled and we eventually tell him through his computer that he is being controlled through the PAC project. He then kills his Dad who comes in concerned (I chose the other option every time and then they chose for us when we had exhausted all other options.) the game gets released unfinished and Stefan gets sent to prison where he sees the game reviewed on TV and get 2.5/5 to which he responds by curling up on the bed
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Alex79 »

We started Black Mirror last night, after having it on my list for years. Really liked the first two episodes, although the concept of satire is somewhat lost on my girlfriend and she took the second episode, 15 Million Credits, totally at face value and didn't really like it.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Joshihatsumitsu »

I have been watching a little Netflix series by the name of High Score Girl, based on the manga of the same name.

If you're the sort of gamer, like myself, who remembers the impact of Street Fighter 2: The World Warrior when it first arrived in arcades, and subsequent articles by many a gaming magazines (I regret getting rid of a Street Fighter 2 poster from one particular publication), then I think you'll get a little kick out of this show.

I watch a lot of anime, and the real hook of this show is the real video-game footage, where you'll notice a little copyright by Square Enix in the credits. I'm more partial to a show like Himouto!, but that's just how this gangster roles. ;) I would rate it above average, and it's entertaining enough. Very few shows capture the excitement and draw of the arcades, and I greatly appreciate the love the show gives to the PC Engine... because it's an awesome little machine!
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Simonsloth
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Simonsloth »

Very interesting article regarding Bandersnatch!

https://tiredoldhack.com/2019/01/02/ban ... r-episode/
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by duskvstweak »

So, I just saw Aquaman. I really liked it, even if it was a bit goofy at times. It should definitely be seen on the biggest screen you can find. And the soundtrack is one of my favorites of 2018.
Actually, the music and the special effects made me feel like I was watching a SNES game come to life.
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Alex79
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Alex79 »

I've watched this trailer about six times now. It looks awesome!

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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by Joshihatsumitsu »

Alex79uk wrote: January 5th, 2019, 12:50 pm I've watched this trailer about six times now. It looks awesome!

I kinda regret watching the trailer, because usually once I make my mind up to watch a film, I read/watch nothing else about it. I try to dispel any expectations as much as possible and go it fresh, with no knowledge of whats about to unfold.

But yeah, I'm really looking forward to this film! Time to go back into media-blackout until it's released....
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by KSubzero1000 »

I watched The Insult, a french-lebanese political courtroom drama about a confrontation between a Lebanese Christian and a Palestinian refugee in Beirut. Excellent script full of humanity and nuance that doesn't follow the usual Hollywood moral binary. Three-dimensional characters with believable flaws and understandable motivations. Potent insight into Middle Eastern cultural nuances that have nothing to do with the same tired religious talking points that so much of the Western conversation revolves around. A story set in a specific time and place that nevertheless tackles universal themes like conflict escalation and guilt by association.

It's a film worth watching for anyone interested in human nature.
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Re: Whatcha Been Watching?

Post by DomsBeard »

Three episodes in and I am enjoying Titans.

Great casting of Dick Grayson.
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