Make contentious statement pop culture style

[Guest evenflowDDT]

STATEMENT: Movies that deal with the occult are always the same: Satan is bad, God is good, blah blah blah, and then God's chosen warriors win. We need a change!

Rebuttal: Although this is certainly the case for most well-known films, let's not forget Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist, two notable (and well-known) exceptions to the rule (I can't say more because I don't want to put out any spoilers).  We do need a change though... horror is boring again.  Bring on the schlock!

 

Statement: David Finch is overrated.  Se7en is a good film, but his other films just don't work.

[Guest Ravenbomb]

Rebuttal: I agree that Se7en is good, but Fight Club was good, too. The Game was alright, but not one I'd watch more than once or twice.

 

Statement: Taxi Driver is, by far, the greatest feature length movie that man has ever made

[Guest Choken One]

Rebuttal: Sorry, other movies out did Taxi Driver. (Which is #16 on my all time list).

 

 

Statement: Robert De Niro is the greatest actor of all times.

[Guest razazteca]

Robert De Niro is the greatest actor of all time

 

Rebuttal:  Well as for gangster movies nothing beat Al Pacino in Godfather and Scarface.

 

Statement:  Jean Reno is the best actor to come out of Europe.  As seen in these movies:  The Professional, La Femme Nikkita, Ronin

[Guest]

Statement:  Jean Reno is the best actor to come out of Europe.  As seen in these movies:  The Professional, La Femme Nikkita, Ronin

Rebuttal

 

I agree, he has an intensity and warmth about him that few other actors do. See The Crimson Rivers for more proof of his talent.

 

Statement

 

David Lynch is an overrated, pretentious, art house director who makes a lot of things up as he goes along in a desperate attempt to get himself over as "independent". Even he can't explain some of his films. He has made some good films, but only a few.

[Guest J*ingus]

Rebuttal: I'd agree that he's pretentious, art house-ish, and apparently makes up things as he goes along.  And he's annoyingly inconsistent, churning out works of genius alongside piles of shit.  But I think his camerawork, editing, and unique style of directing actors can often provide moments of great cinema.  

 

Statement: The Matrix (the writers of which should've paid royalties to the estate of Philip K. Dick for ripping off his themes so blatantly) is incredibly lucky that it never suffered a huge mainstream backlash for some of the violence in the film.  Think about it: neo-anarchist computer geeks who all dress in black trenchcoats, kill dozens of cops with gunfire, set off bombs, crash an aircraft into a building...

[Guest Anorak]

Rebuttal: That's a pretty interesting point, i've never thought about the film in those terms. I think the reason it avoided such controversy was because everyone was too caught up in the special effects and futuristic look/themes of the film to possibly pick up on it's representations of violence. When a film like The Matrix dresses up it's violence in stylish aesthetic presentation we seem less likely to question the often dubious morality on display. Stripped of it's fashionable sci-fi/cyber-punk setting and expensive effects the film's violence would probably have been cause for much debate and controversy.

 

Statement: Woody Allen is one of the most overated American directors of any era, a shallow and one dimensional artist whose films are strangley held up as masterpieces by numerous misguided critics. 'Manhatten' and 'Annie Hall' are totally undeserving of their classic status.

[Guest CoreyLazarus416]

raza, I was correcting your comment about the Spawn soundtrack, actually. You confused 2 songs, so I listed those 2 songs...

 

As for The Exorcist, that's one of the films I was implying when I made the "God is good, blah blah blah" statement. Who won? The priests (TECHNICALLY).

 

REBUTTAL: Disagreed. There was no need for any backlash. All of the violence in the movie was to liberate the human race from its slave-drivers. One COULD argue that it had the message of all of us being controlled by governments, religions, and the media, but I doubt that's what the Wachowski (sp.?) brothers intended.

 

STATEMENT: Troma, however stupid they may seem, actually produce the most intelligent comedies ever made.

[Guest godthedog]

rebuttal: um...no.  it's okay to like troma, but no way in hell have they made the most intelligent comedies ever.  stanley kubrick, the coens, & even monty python have made more intelligent comedies.

 

statement: if it weren't for orson welles then independent, auteur-centered cinema as we know it today would not exist.

 

for the record, i agree with the statements on 'the matrix' and woody allen.  the dangerous films are the ones that make violence look fun, & woody allen is a comedian at heart trying to be artsy and cerebral.

[Guest Ripper]

"Statement: Robert De Niro is the greatest actor of all times."

 

rebuttal:  I'll have to go with Denzel Washington is the greatest actor.  

 

 

statement: Hollywood is trying to hard to be family friendly and good R rated movies are too few and far between.

[Guest Choken One]

Rebuttal: Check out The Rookie. Great family flick with appeal to teens.

 

 

Statement: DVD's has allowed for more creative freedom for directors. Since they can add deleted and alt. scenes there.

[Guest Ripper]

Rebuttal: I think that DVD has made directors start filming a bunch of crap just so they can have alternates on a DVD... In other words, movies are being tailer made for DVD content now, and thats just not how it should be done.  I do apprecitate the ability to see everything in widescreen but I wish they would start trying to make better movies and stop making ok movies with extra shit sothey can have a 2 disc stocked full of extra features disk.  

 

statement: I'm starting to think that I am the only one that finds Matt Damon to be a kick ass actor....Am I???

[Guest J*ingus]

Rebuttal: I think Damon is a very good actor, probably the best example of which is Talented Mr. Ripley.  He's very versatile, his guest shot on Will & Grace blew away Brad Pitt's appearance on Friends the same night.  

 

Statement: John Woo is rightly regarded as one of the best action directors in the world, but his skills in writing and directing actors are way, WAY below average.

[Guest CoreyLazarus416]

REBUTTAL: What gave you that impression? Face/Off? Hard Target? In short: AGREED.

 

STATEMENT: The best films are the ones that make you see something new everytime you watch it. Ex. Ghostbusters, The Crow, etc.

[Guest razazteca]

What gave you that impression? Face/Off? Hard Target? In short: AGREED.

what about Mission Impossible 2?

 

The best films are the ones that make you see something new everytime you watch it. Ex. Ghostbusters, The Crow, etc.

 

Rebuttal:  I prefer the movies that come in trilogies, such as Quentin Tarantino movies, trying to piece the time line is so entertaining, or the Kevin Smith movies looking for the Star Wars jokes.

 

Statement: Going from tv to Hollywood films maybe good for the ego boost but can kill a career.  Example David Curuso from NYPD Blue

[Guest evenflowDDT]

Statement: Going from tv to Hollywood films maybe good for the ego boost but can kill a career.  Example David Curuso from NYPD Blue

Rebuttal: I don't think going from TV to Hollywood is what kills a career, but the fact that acting on TV and acting in movies is still pretty different.  While it's not impossible for an actor on TV to be taken seriously in Hollywood (though I honestly can't think of any examples off the top of my head), it is very difficult to get good roles or pull off a good performance initially, which can lead to the "career killer" label.

 

Statement: Horror is a franchise-based genre, and the mere purpose of many films, good or bad, is simply to generate sequels.  No other genre has that... "unique" factor.

[Guest razazteca]

Horror is a franchise-based genre, and the mere purpose of many films, good or bad, is simply to generate sequels.  No other genre has that... "unique" factor

 

Sci-Fi and super hero movies tend to have follow the same logic.  Several of these movies have open endings: Star Wars, Planet of the Apes, X-Men

 

Statement:  Going from movies to tv has been more successful than the other way around.

[Guest El Satanico]

Statement:  Going from movies to tv has been more successful than the other way around.

Rebuttal:

 

This is true for the most part. However oddly enough Soap Operas produce most of the "succesful" tv to movie actors. I personally enjoy soap operas but it's odd that good tv to movie actors can come from that bunch of over acting drama queens that populate soap operas.

 

 

Statement:

 

Entertainment news shows(like Acces Hollywood and Extra) are the most annoying and mind numbing thirty minutes you can spend in front of a tv. It's even worse when you're watching to hear or see something about a movie you like or want to see.

[Guest J*ingus]

Rebuttal: the vast majority of movie stars had experience on TV shows before they got famous; that's not as often the case with TV stars, just for the simple reason that there is more work to be had on TV than in movies.  

 

Statement: Gladiator was an incredibly overrated, historically inaccurate Spartacus ripoff which had no place even being nominated for Best Picture, much less winning.

[Guest El Satanico]

Statement: Gladiator was an incredibly overrated, historically inaccurate Spartacus ripoff which had no place even being nominated for Best Picture, much less winning.

Rebuttal:

 

I agree with you. I liked and enjoyed the movie, but it wasn't THAT good and didn't really deserve a Best Picture nomination at all and like you said it without a doubt didn't deserve to win. I'm still pissed that Reqiuem of a Dream got snubbed for a best picture nomination while Steven Sodenberg got TWO movies nominated(only one of them was good).

 

 

Statement:

 

In keeping with this topic. Julia Roberts is one of the most overrated actresses in the history of Hollywood. And the only reason she got a Oscar for that mediocre Erin Brokovich is because she's "america's sweetheart" and it was the first movie that she's done that could've been considered Oscar caliber.

[Guest Big McLargeHuge]

Rebuttal: Can't really disagree here.

 

Statement: Conan O'Brien has the single funniest late night show on TV right now. While I enjoy Letterman alot, Conan has this certain charm about him that makes you feel kinda sympathetic.

 

Ya notice this thread is turning into "[insert popular movie/actor/actress/show] is overrated and deserves no success whatsoever"?

[Guest El Satanico]

Yeah i notice that. I only did it(twice) because i couldn't think of anything better.

[Guest godthedog]

rebuttal: this was true 5 years ago, but conan is nothing without andy.  the skits are boring now, & conan's ad libs aren't funny.  kilborn is the king of late night at the moment.  he's taken over letterman's "wacky random" brand of humor (which dave can't even do properly now) and made it his own.  things like "craig talks about a bar fight he got into while wearing a victorian wig" and "yambo" are priceless.

 

statement: 'ed wood' was the best movie tim burton ever made.

[Guest Mik at Cornell]

Rebuttal: I don't think going from TV to Hollywood is what kills a career, but the fact that acting on TV and acting in movies is still pretty different.  While it's not impossible for an actor on TV to be taken seriously in Hollywood (though I honestly can't think of any examples off the top of my head), it is very difficult to get good roles or pull off a good performance initially, which can lead to the "career killer" label.

 

Not to break from the statement/rebuttal thing but George Clooney should be an example that jumps right out at anyone. Not like he's a super megastar but he's doing alright for himself.

[Guest Big McLargeHuge]

I'd just like to state God the Dog is OUT OF HIS MIND if he thinks that Kilborn is the "king of late night". Sure Conan has lost a step without Andy, but Andy (really in retrospect) didn't contribute that much to the show. His show is still the funniest.

 

CK is just not funny.

[Guest godthedog]

hey, the fact that i'm out of my mind has absolutely NOTHING to do with the fact that i think craig kilborn is funny.

[Guest evenflowDDT]

statement: 'ed wood' was the best movie tim burton ever made.

Rebuttal: Tim Burton's masterpiece will always be Edward Scissorhands.  This isn't to take away anything from Ed Wood, but it's the truth...

 

Statement: Baz Luhrmann's films are text-book examples of "style over substance", lacking any soul but darn purty to look at.

[Guest El Satanico]

Rebuttal kinda:

 

Romeo and Juliet had very little substance but had alot of style to it. However i believe that Moulin Rouge while being mainly about the style actually did have a soul to it. I haven't seen his other movie(s) so i can't comment on them.

 

And yes if you were wondering that does mean that i'm admitting to liking Moulin Rouge.

 

 

Statement:

 

Roger Corman is the greatest b-movie director/producer.

 

I needed to also point out that i like Roger Corman movies to balance out me admitting to liking Moulin Rouge.

[Guest CoreyLazarus416]

REBUTTAL: Corman is in the top 3, unarguably. Lloyd Kaufman and John Waters are also in the top 3.

 

STATEMENT: If a comic-to-movie adaption is EXACTLY like the comic, then the movie will be horrible or extremely boring.

[Guest J*ingus]

Rebuttal: We'll never know, because one has never been made that was EXACTLY like the comic.  

 

Statement: "Reality TV", made of shows as diverse as Jerry Springer and Survivor, is easily the worst TV fad of the 90's/00's.