Saturday, April 8, 2017

Weekend Open Thread

What's up.

Every day things continue to be the worst, so at least we have this thread every weekend to talk about whatever movies we want.

Don't forget to enter to win a copy of Split on Blu-ray courtesy of Universal Home Entertainment, Blumhouse and our friend and contributor Jerry Smith.

51 comments:

  1. I rewatched about half of Five Came Back (pretty much immediately after watching it the first time) because after seeing it I knew it was something my dad would really enjoy watching so I watched a bit of it with him.

    It also put me in the mood to watch some Capra so I put on It Happened One Night which I actually hadn't seen before but I thought it was great.

    Also going to celebrate my birthday a week early tomorrow since I'm going to be swamped with a bunch of stuff next weekend. Having a few friends over to watch some movies and have dinner. Given that there's going to be a lot of socializing though I've had to come up with things that don't require full attention to be entertaining. Right now I'm going with Help!, Highlander, and Trainspotting, but I've also changed my mind about a dozen times in the last week. Other potential candidates were Some Like it Hot, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, Better Off Dead, Young Guns, Mad Max 2, Sing Street, Amadeus, or Truck Turner.

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    1. Many happy returns of the day.

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    2. I'm about half-way through the book Five Came Back. The problem is that I've been half-way through it for over a month now. I think they're adding chapters to it as I read it.

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    3. In your copy of the book WWII now lasts until 1948.

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  2. SPOILERS for Split. I just watched this film for the first time. Awesome. Problematic*, but awesome. Query: The zoo worker who rescues (not really, she saves herself, but you know what I mean) Casey in the last reel. That's Bruce Willis's face imposed onto this actor's mug or he's wearing a fat suit or something as he walks into the alley smoking a cigarette, right? We are meant to think it's him? I don't really like Willis, but I let out a little murinic "eep" when he appeared, and then retracted it (if only we could really retract our eeps) when it wasn't him. And then he does appear at the very end. Crap on a cracker, I never thought I'd be looking forward to an M. Night Shamamalamalan sequel.

    *When there's three of you and your captor is talking like a nine-year-old and walking on his knees, jump on him and take that heel you would later employ to cut a hole through some drywall and drive it into the back of his skull. And come on, you've seen Scream, ladies. When this person is making you a sammitch and you introduce his back to the business end of the chair you've been sitting on, don't just make a run for it. Finish him off, and make your way out leisurely.

    Barbate chin up, Patrick. Things are not the worst. There's always more down. Our species is doomed, but that doesn't mean we have to get depressed about it. I for one wouldn't want to witness the heat death of the universe.

    Always look on the bright side of life, Mister B.

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    1. Did we see the same movie? From what I remember he sees her child abuse scars and just sort of gives up. Because she is "pure" or some other bullshit. I hated that part.

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    2. We might be speaking at cross purposes, Nathan. I'm talking about the guy with the beard who's coming to work down the alley smoking a cigarette and happens across Casey. Watch the scene again when it becomes available on a format you can pause; it really looks like a bearded, overweight Bruce Willis. I'm sure it wasn't just my mind playing pareidolia games with me because I had somehow heard that Willis was in this movie. I dunno, maybe it was, or the actor just looked like him in the dim light. The makers of Looper missed a trick by not employing him for that movie if that's the case.

      Still in SPOILERS for Split. Yeah, you're right, she doesn't really save her own butt; the 'Beast' just decides to let her go when he spots the evidence of her self-harm (I don't think we're meant to believe her uncle inflicted these wounds; he doesn't come across as the sadistic type of abuser), and it's a cop-out because Shyamalan presumably wants a sequel pitting McAvoy and Willis's David Dunn 'Homo superior' characters against each other, probably with a Hannibal Lecter-type role for Samuel L. Jackson as the incarcerated Elijah Price.

      At least Shyamalan only gave himself a cameo in this one and didn't make himself the saviour of humanity like he did in Lady in the Water.

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  3. Saw The Exorcist in 35mm on Monday. It was a really beat up copy, but the movie is still one of my favorite horror movies.

    Yesterday I watched Southbound, which I liked a lot. I kinda liked that the stories leave a lot of stuff unsaid and you can fill in the gaps yourself, but I get that many see it as a negative thing.

    And tonight I'm seeing Dark Angel (aka I Come in Peace) and Gamera: Super Monster in 35mm. Most likely bad quality film copies as The Exorcist was, but with these kinds of movies, that's as it should be.

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    1. Gamera: Super Monster was one of the craziest and most fun movies I've seen in a long time!

      Gamera was basically a Godzilla clone from the 60's and early 70's, a monster who attacked humans in the first movie, but became their protector in the sequels. Super Monster (1980) is the eighth movie in the series, and it's basically a "best of", because about two-thirds of the movie is all the monster fight scenes from the previous movies edited together. The rest is new plot stuff about a spaceship that's reanimating the baddies and spacewomen trying to protect the Earth.

      Maybe Heath should do a series of articles on all the Gamera movies? There's only 12 of them...

      Oh yeah, Dark Angel was great too, but that one I'd seen before.

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    2. It's super gratifying to see another person find Super Monster as compelling as I do. I think it really may be the best giant monster movie of them all, and I feel pretty well qualified in that area. Getting to see those two particular movies in 35mm sounds incredibly amazing!

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    3. I'm no kaiju expert, but Super Monster was a hoot. It also inspired me to order all eight Showa era (era) Gamera movies (found them on the cheap). All set for Junesploitation Monsters! day.

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  4. No one told me Johnny Quid, Shea Whigham and Richard Jenkins were in Kong: SI!! I really liked it! Giant Monster Movie Fest done right by America, for once. Awful script but could care less. So much fun. Great sound design, creatures looked great and even it's a making some kind of statement, I'm oblivious and I like it that way cause I don't care about symbolism for this type of movie. Sometimes I just want my Die Hards to be Die Hards, my Slashers to be Slashers and my Monster Movies to be Monster Movies.

    Watched The Void. There's some good things going on. The practical effects are fantastic and the atmosphere is pretty good but ultimately I wasn't that into it. There's nothing wrong with it, it just didn't do much for me. That being said I want to see it again and I still think everyone should watch it to support indie Horror.

    Also, finally got around to seeing Todd Solondz' Dark Horse. I liked it enough though not his strongest outing. The third act kind of pulled me out of the film, but if your into Solondz, definitely check it out. I would say it's his least dark film (I've seen most of them) though still as cynical and depressing as ever.

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    1. Totally agree about Kong: Skull Island. I wanted to see Kong kick butt and boy did he. It's holding up really well at the box office for a monster movie. Some really good word of mouth for Kong.

      I agree about The Void as well. Cool practical effects but I found myself checking out.

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  5. I've began listening to this podcast on and off in 2014 with the Winter Soldier show. For the next two years, I would listen on-and-off, usually just when the film itself interested me. But during the summer of last year, something clicked and I began to listen to all episodes, going through the back catalog as quickly as I could. Since then, I've been listening and relistening religiously.

    There's just something about this podcast, and the people on it, that feels so honest. Even when I listen to them tear apart films I love, I never feel like they're telling me I'm wrong for loving them. They've also helped articulate my mixed feelings on so many movies, and really changed how I watch and think about them.

    And after I began to come to this website, I realized that this community is just as amazing as the podcast itself. You all are so passionate about movies and have introduced me to so many interesting films I would otherwise never heard of. I've lurked for a while, but never felt comfortable diving in. I wrote a few seven word reviews. I watched Monster Squad in February. But for the most part, I feel one step removed from this wonder community; this really is the most kind and supporting community I've ever seen online.

    I'm a senior in high school and am graduating in about a month. I just finished my final film for my Digital Production classes and really just want to share it with you all. You've done so much for me this past year that I wanted to give something back. It's about eight minutes and nothing special, but I just wanted to share it with people who love movies so much and that I love so much.

    https://youtu.be/l-2lSuJNlUA

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    1. Nothing special?! Don't sell yourself short man, anytime heart goes into art it's something special. I dug it, man, really well done! Congrats on this and thanks so much for sharing!

      You are dead on about this community as well, so many talented and genuinely good people on here. I'm not a podcast guy, but F-This Movie is the only podcast I really listen to regularly if not only because of the realness of the people involved.

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    2. Well done Will! I was into it! I really liked the shot where the camera tracks into the car after the initial incident. Very nicely done.

      I agree with Chaybee on all counts, keep pouring the same amount of passion into your art and people will respond to it. I hope to see you posting more!

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    3. I thought it was great! Keep doing what you're doing. I would love to see more!

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    4. Great job, man - like Chayse said, I was totally into it - congratulations!

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  6. "Every day things continue to be the worst"

    ... But enough about Iron Fist!

    *rimshot*

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  7. I was watching Commando last night and came to the realization that David Patrick Kelly is to action movies what Elisha Cook is to film noir. Both usually meet their doom as a result of phony macho posturing.

    I watched Dirty Mary Crazy Larry for the first time this morning and appreciated the stunts (especially the helicopter chasing the car) and Vic Morrow. I also loved the *spoilers* nihilistic 70s ending. I've been on a big exploitation kick after watching Grindhouse for the first time recently. Death Proof definitely has a similar vibe to DMCL.

    Up next: some friends and I are going to marathon the Fast & Furious franchise. I'm excited to watch 2 Fast 2 Furious for the first time as weird as that sounds.

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    1. It's not weird at all. As PB noted in his retrospective a few years ago, 2F2F is the closest of the first four entries in tone to the Fast Five-present phase of the franchise we all know and love today. (I actually think Fast & Furious gets a bad rap, as it sets the stage both narratively and emotionally for the glorious silliness to come; without that grounding, I'm not sure Fast Five would have worked nearly as well as it did.) But, while not as important to the overall narrative, 2F2F definitely did the go-for-broke crazytown vibe first, and is the most fun of the pre-Rock films.

      In fact, I'll double down and call 2F2F better and more fun than Furious 6, with its boring-ass amnesia plot, drab London locations, and lame runway finale. My ranking is:

      1. Tie: Fast Five/Furious 7
      3. 2F2F
      4. Tie: TF&TF/F&F
      6. F6

      (Haven't seen, don't care: Tokyo Drift)

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    2. Weird was the wrong choice of word but it just seems like along with F&F, 2F2F is the ignored stepchild of the series and the bits I've seen of it on TV have always piqued my interest because of the crazy 2003 aesthetic and the Paul Walker/Tyrese banter. Regardless, I havent seen any of these movies since F7 in theaters so I'm eager to see what sticks out to me this time around.

      For the record (subject to change):
      1. Fast Five
      2. The Fast and the Furious
      3. Furious 7
      4. Tokyo Drift
      5. F&F

      Haven't seen F6 or 2F2F

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    3. F6 is awesome. 2F2F is also awesome.

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    4. Order for me: Fast 5, Fast 6, Fast 7, the rest are blah, blah...

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    5. I'll go
      The OG
      F5 and F6 (tie)
      2F2F
      F7
      Drift
      F&F

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    6. Oddly enough, I like Tokyo Drift for completely different reasons than all the other ones.

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    7. Maybe I should finally check out at least one of these Furious movies everyone's talking about.

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    8. It's just a bunch of boys driving fast motorcars, I think, Mikko. I haven't bothered with them. These posters probably overdosed on Scalextric or something similar when they were in their formative years.

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  8. I caught up on Kung-Fu Panda 3, which I found delightful. I'm a sucker for this franchise and hey, it also filled a spot on my #52filmsbywomen for the year.

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    1. The opening credit scene of Kung Fu Panda 3 was one of the best use of 3D I've ever seen.
      You're not a "sucker" for loving the franchise. They've all been very funny and well made.

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  9. Continuing my Vin Diesel kick, I saw The Last Witch Hunter which was just ok. I liked the trees/branches CGI, but it was ALL branches/trees CGI. Meh. Babylon A.D. was much better, although it felt like the first act of a trilogy. I was happy to live in that dystopian world for a while.



    I rewatched Nacho Libre. It's whole shtick is pretty offensive, but that can always be overlooked in the name of humour. The problem is that there are many long stretches where it isn't funny. The movie does have some great moments though. Dumb humour....(I mean dumb in a good way). Little Miss Sunshine came out the same year, and I'd watch Nacho Libre a hundred times before watching LMS again.

    I rewatched The Fugative. This movie is awesome, enough said. I took the kids to see Monster Trucks, and I was only wishing the monster would start slaying people left and right. He didn't. I then fell asleep for the whole 2nd half where all the action was (not from boredom, just really tired from working all night, the night before).

    I rewatched Hard Boiled, but unfortunately fell asleep to the sound of rapid gunfire during the last act. So tired (me, not the movie which is anything but). Also watched the first half of Blood Rage, but fell asleep.

    Damn, the next week will be finishing a lot of half movies.

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  10. https://youtu.be/qZomMV4BVVU

    I don't consider myself a conspiracy type guy but this video makes a lot of sense to me except for the annoying music, the events of 911 don't seem to add up, please don't be upset by my post, I would just like to know the truth even though the closer I get the more terrified I become

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    1. It's conspiracy theory garbage, Dennis. I don't need to watch your video to know that every point it brings up has been refuted many times.

      Watch this documentary by Irish comedian Andrew Maxwell to put your mind to rest. Quality isn't great, I'm afraid, but you may be able to find a better version.

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    2. I've only watched half, but it's a pretty good doc, Nonnymouse. I generally avoid 9/11 documentaries because 9/10 times they are made by nutjobs.

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    3. I'm not sure which documentary you're referring to, Paul. One is garbage (no, I haven't seen it; I wouldn't waste ninety-one minutes of my time doing so. Call me closed-minded if you wish), t'other isn't. I'll assume you mean the second, because we've talked before on this forum and you're a smart fellow.

      Here is a little anecdote. FYI, William James was the brother of Henry James, who wrote a number of stories on which films have been based, just so we're not entirely off-topic on this movie forum. It's ages since I watched The Innocents, a wonderful British — take note, JB (Christ, I can be obnoxious) — adaptation of Henry James's The Turn of the Screw.

      After a lecture on cosmology and the structure of the solar system, William James was accosted by a little old lady.

      "Your theory that the sun is the centre of the solar system, and the earth is a ball which rotates around it has a very convincing ring to it, Mr. James, but it's wrong. I've got a better theory," said the little old lady.

      "And what is that, madam?" Inquired James politely.

      "That we live on a crust of earth which is on the back of a giant turtle,"

      Not wishing to demolish this absurd little theory by bringing to bear the masses of scientific evidence he had at his command, James decided to gently dissuade his opponent by making her see some of the inadequacies of her position.

      "If your theory is correct, madam," he asked, "what does this turtle stand on?"

      "You're a very clever man, Mr. James, and that's a very good question," replied the little old lady, "but I have an answer to it. And it is this: The first turtle stands on the back of a second, far larger, turtle, who stands directly under him."

      "But what does this second turtle stand on?" persisted James patiently.

      To this the little old lady crowed triumphantly. "It's no use, Mr. James – it's turtles all the way down."

      — J. R. Ross, Constraints on Variables in Syntax 1967


      As it is with science-deniers, so it is with conspiracy theorists. No matter how much incontrovertible evidence (a pleonasm, this; all evidence is incontrovertible) they are presented with, there's always another turtle for these people.

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    4. I was referring to the doc that you suggested, not the "conspiracy theory garbage" one, which I obviously didn't watch. I had a co-worker who, over the course of a year, went completely nuts over conspiracies. We used to talk about beer and fishing, and a year later he would just go on about the Gov. being reptiles and all manner of horseshit.

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    5. That's what I thought, but i wasn't sure. Sometimes you get to know someone and you think they're clever, then all of a sudden this person asks you what your star sign is and you think "Oh, you're an idiot. Okay. B'bye." I'm new to this website, so you'll have to forgive me.

      The stuff about inner-Earth reptilia is true, though. Don't joke about that shit, man, or I'll bring the Illuminati down on your hominid ass. You owe your coworker an apology.

      Fuck it, I'm in a bad mood. Babylonian Brotherhood, we've got one! Contact the F This Movie website to get his IP address.

      Not even David Icke can help you now, Paul.

      Accept your fate. You will soon be at peace.

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  11. I'm going to see Your Name today, now the highest grossing anime movie of all time worldwide. I'm so excited!

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    1. It's fantastic! A really impressive piece of art.

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    2. It really was. It was simultaneously visually gorgeous, emotionally powerful, and surprisingly funny. I enjoyed it a lot!!

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  12. Watched The Finest Hours (Chris Pine Coast Guard rescue flick) on Netflix streaming and loved it. A lot of critics complained about "fake-looking" CG, but what would they have preferred, a realistic depiction of near-total darkness the whole time? It's a rainy storm at night! True, the cold could have been emphasized more, but that's a small point to me; I'm glad such a big-hearted and non-cynical movie such as this can still get made, and am bummed that it bombed.

    NB. Despite a total lack of violence, this got a PG-13 rating, the same as Expendables 3 (*headdesk*), when Disney's own Tomorrowland, which featured a high school girl smashing in an android's head with a goddamn baseball bat onscreen, got a PG. So, what the hell gave it that "-13"? That one utterance of "Jesus Christ"?! Dear MPAA ratings board: Go fuck yourselves.

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    1. Several alterations need to be made to this submission to the 'F the Movies' comments forum before it is suitable for viewing by the general public. I have taken the liberty of making these changes myself.

      Watched The Finest Hours (Chris Pine Coast Guard rescue flick) on Netflix _________ and loved it. A lot of critics complained about "____________" CG, but what would they have preferred, a _________ depiction of near-total darkness the whole time? It's a rainy storm at night! True, the cold could have been emphasized more, but that's ____________ to me; I'm glad such a big-hearted and non-cynical movie such as this can still get made, and am ______ that it bombed.

      NB. Despite a total lack of violence, this got a PG-13 rating, the same as Expendables 3 (*________*), when Disney's own Tomorrowland, which featured a high school girl smashing in an android's head with a goshdarned baseball bat onscreen, got a PG. So, what the heck gave it that "-13"? That one utterance of "Jiminy Jillikers"?! Dear MPAA ratings board: Carry on the excellent work.


      'Streaming' invokes the image of urination. Not acceptable.

      'Fake-looking'' may remind the viewer of this post of the existence of breast implants. Breasts are evidence of women's sexuality. Not acceptable.

      'Realistic' sounds like 'rear list, tick'. This suggests a list of gluteus maximi which is being shown approval by being accorded a 'tick' mark. Not acceptable.

      'A small point' could lead the viewer to conjure up an image of female nipples which have become engorged due to sexual arousal (see alteration no. 2). It could also be interpreted as a slight against the new incumbent of the office of president. Not acceptable.

      'Bummed' is a British euphemism for anal intercourse. Not acceptable.

      While 'headdesk' is an expression with which this censor is not familiar, it almost certainly alludes to the act of fellatio. Not acceptable.

      The references to our Lord and Saviour and the vulgarity directed toward the hardworking people of the Motion Picture Association of America have been edited and altered by this member of that... May, June, July... august organisation, who deems this comment to now be acceptable for viewing by the general public.

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    2. I really enjoyed it too. I remember Adam was lukewarm in his review.

      My biggest disappointment was when they were coming back with all the people in the little boat, I was hoping they would die horrifically on the shoals they had to cross. Sure enough, they didn't, and it was a fairy tale ending. Then again, it was based on a true story, so they couldn't change that part!

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    3. Well, I don't need to see that film now, Mr. Calvert.

      I've been meaning to watch Psycho for the first time. Would you care to ruin the ending of this movie as well?

      The little girl in Sleepaway Camp has a willy, and the murderer in Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap is the policeman. Oh, and Keyser Söze? Kevin Motherfuckin' Spacey. There, see how you like it.

      Hmph

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    4. The movie has been out for nearly a year now. Besides, it's not a big "twist" that they survive. They don't make rescue-drama's about the ones that didn't survive. It even says "Based on the incredible true story" right on the BluRay cover. The version where they horrifically die isn't typically called incredible.

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  13. In addition to Michael Kors handbags, it seems robots love The Man with the Golden Gun.

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  14. well, among other things i watched police academy 1-2-3-4-5.

    i'm gonna skip 6 and 7. i don't think they're necessary

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  15. Haha, 4-7 are all 0% on Rotten Potatoes.

    I've seen at least one of them, but not since the 80's

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    1. in the case of old movies, mostly unpopular ones, rotten tomatoes is not reliable (well, to me it's never reliable). it's better to look at the imdb score.

      if scores matter to you obviously

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    2. Rotten Tomatoes isn't reliable at all. Especially for certain genres (ie. comedy) where a low score is almost preferable.
      Case in point, Dude Where's My Car is 18% where Little Miss Sunshine is 91%. One of these movies is funny, while the other is not...
      Scores don't really matter to me, for that reason. I just use it to see which movies are coming out on VOD or Bluray/dvd

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