Unpopular Opinions

[proserpina65]

2 minutes ago, Wiendish Fitch said:

I mean, it's not the worst thing ever but it just seems pointless and inexplicable to me.

(Although you know if Ewan Mitchell were in it, I'd go to see it like 300 times.)

Edited June 26, 2023 by proserpina65

[Crs97]

3 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

Not necessarily an unpopular opinion but more an existential question: why is there a Barbie movie? WHY????

Because The Lego Movie was a huge hit.

[Raja]

18 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

Because The Lego Movie was a huge hit.

I was thinking of all the other toys that spawned franchises. 

[Anduin]

So Barbie and Oppenheimer come out on the same day. The publicity is in full effect. A lot of people are discussing which order to see them in. But I don't want to see either! Too much pink makes my eyes bleed, and I'm not into Christopher Nolan movies. The memes and such are fun, but do I actually really want to be in the zeitgeist or to plonk down my money? No thanks. If you want to see either or both, be my guest, just don't drag me along.

[Spartan Girl]

Aw, I think Barbie looks like fun!

Changing the subject: I love Harrison Ford, but I don’t want him in the MCU. Or more specifically, I don’t want him playing that motherfucker Ross, whom I hate with all my heart and I can’t stand the fact that the MCU writers didn’t give him the comeuppance he deserved!

Come on, Harrison, you meant years begging to be killed off from Star Wars, and now that you finally got what you wanted, you’re going to join another endless franchise, only this time playing the least -loved character?! 

[BlueSkies]

Spice World is a cute movie and better than A Hard Days Night.

 

Actually the Spice Girls are easily the best stuff entertainment wise to come out of Britain in the last 30 years.  Much better than all this royal stuff 

[proserpina65]

18 hours ago, Raja said:

I was thinking of all the other toys that spawned franchises. 

I find those pretty inexplicable as well.  Although I will admit to finding the first Lego movie to be unexpectedly charming and amusing.  Didn't pay to see that one, though.

[Irlandesa]

On 6/26/2023 at 12:24 PM, proserpina65 said:

I mean, it's not the worst thing ever but it just seems pointless and inexplicable to me.

But couldn't that be said about any movie before it's seen? 

I remember when Top Gun Maverick was announced.  There were countless opinions asking whether or not it was needed and who was asking for it.  It probably wasn't "needed" in the traditional sense, but it turned out to not only be well-received critically, there proved to be a sustained thirst for the movie since it didn't leave the top 5 from Memorial Day to Labor Day.  I feel like it has been a very long time since we saw anything even approaching that kind of performance at the box office. ( I'm not talking about the total box office but rather the continued steady box office with the tiniest of weekly drops.)

I don't know if I'm going to see Barbie but I have to admit that I'm intrigued by what Greta Gerwig will do with it.  At least it's in the hands of an interesting filmmaker as opposed to someone like Michael Bay

 

[AimingforYoko]

10 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

At least it's in the hands of an interesting filmmaker as opposed to someone like Michael Bay

Damn, now I kind of want to see Michael Bay's Barbie.

[Crs97]

 

1 hour ago, AimingforYoko said:

Damn, now I kind of want to see Michael Bay's Barbie.

Scenes of Sid in Toy Story come to mind!

[Bastet]

14 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I don't know if I'm going to see Barbie but I have to admit that I'm intrigued by what Greta Gerwig will do with it. 

Yeah, I don't know if she can pull off the satirizing and skewering (which is the only type of Barbie movie I'd see) while also celebrating, so making a movie for those who love Barbie and those who hate her is a tall order.  But there's lots of talk about how it pulls off being several films in one, so I'll probably give it a look one day once it's streaming on something I have free access to or on TV.  Most other directors, I wouldn't bother.

[proserpina65]

7 hours ago, AimingforYoko said:

Damn, now I kind of want to see Michael Bay's Barbie.

Now THAT I would watch., lol.

[Shannon L.]

I'll eventually get into the specific thread to explain in further detail, but for now, what I'm sure is going to be an unpopular opinion is that I wasn't overly impressed with MI: Dead Reckoning.  It was just too much and, by the end, I was getting bored with it.  Ghost Protocol remains my favorite.  

Edited July 12, 2023 by Shannon L.

[Spartan Girl]

8 hours ago, Shannon L. said:

I'll eventually get into the specific thread to explain in further detail, but for now, what I'm sure is going to be an unpopular opinion is that I wasn't overly impressed with MI: Dead Reckoning.  It was just too much and, by the end, I was getting bored with it.  Ghost Protocol remains my favorite.  

Good to hear. Never planned on watching it anyway because 1) I don’t like those movies and 2) I hate Hayley Atwell, but I had a feeling the hype is overblown just like with stupid Top Gun Maverick.

[Shannon L.]

3 minutes ago, Spartan Girl said:

Good to hear. Never planned on watching it anyway because 1) I don’t like those movies and 2) I hate Hayley Atwell, but I had a feeling the hype is overblown just like with stupid Top Gun Maverick.

I just posted my thoughts on the specific thread.  The story was more interesting than Maverick (which, lets be honest, wasn't hard to manage), but like Maverick, it was the technical parts that excelled.

[Fool to cry]

Unpopular Opinion: I enjoy Mission:Impossible 2, the one MI fans consider the worst of the series. It's ridiculously campy in a fun way and is so year 2000 it makes me actually nostalgic. I think the real reason it's disliked is it's so blatantly a Tom Cruise vanity project while the other movies have at least the pretense of him needing a team like the old show.

Edited July 13, 2023 by Fool to cry

[Fool to cry]

26 minutes ago, Fool to cry said:

Unpopular Opinion: I enjoy Mission:Impossible 2, the one MI fans consider the worst of the series. It's ridiculously campy in a fun way and is so year 2000 it makes me actually nostalgic. I think the real reason it's disliked is it's so blatantly a Tom Cruise solo vanity project when the other movies have at least the pretense of him working with and relying on a team like the old show.

 

Edited July 13, 2023 by Fool to cry

[RunningMarket]

On 7/13/2023 at 8:30 AM, Fool to cry said:

Unpopular Opinion: I enjoy Mission:Impossible 2, the one MI fans consider the worst of the series. It's ridiculously campy in a fun way and is so year 2000 it makes me actually nostalgic. I think the real reason it's disliked is it's so blatantly a Tom Cruise vanity project while the other movies have at least the pretense of him needing a team like the old show.

I am not ashamed to admit that MI:2 is my favourite of the series (and I've seen all of them multiple times) for the very reason of its camp. I'll put this in spoilers, just in case, but my favourite scene of any of the movies is:

Spoiler

(from MI:2) When Shawn kills who he thinks is Hunt, then realizes it's Stamp by his finger; cut to Hunt running out of the building, ripping off his mask.

They got more serious after MI:III and had more continuity amongst story lines, but II will always hold a special place in my heart.

I'm the complete opposite of @Shannon L. - Ghost Protocol is my least favourite. MMV, as they say.

Edited July 14, 2023 by RunningMarket

[Crashcourse]

I will be sooooo glad when all the Barbie and Oppenheimer hype dies down and goes away.  I have no interest or desire to see either of those movies. 

[proserpina65]

On 7/21/2023 at 6:47 PM, Crashcourse said:

I will be sooooo glad when all the Barbie and Oppenheimer hype dies down and goes away.  I have no interest or desire to see either of those movies. 

Me, too.  I'm not mad that both movies are doing well, but if I never hear the term "Barbenheimer" ever again, I will be so glad.

[DearEvette]

On 7/21/2023 at 6:47 PM, Crashcourse said:

I will be sooooo glad when all the Barbie and Oppenheimer hype dies down and goes away.  I have no interest or desire to see either of those movies.

All the think pieces.  So many think pieces....

[Blergh]

To each one's own. However, does anyone else remember when Barbie was considered by many to be  a counterproductive role model for girls via such things as the doll being totally out of proportion for a functional  human being and one time infamously playing a pre-recorded message for its young customers saying  'math is hard'?

I'm not saying  all movies I watch must have positive role models but I never had any interest in that doll and, speaking strictly for myself, seeing an overload of Pepto-Bismol pink annoys rather than inspires me so I have no problem completely skipping this movie and waiting for the hype to die down. 

[Fool to cry]

On 7/25/2023 at 12:39 PM, DearEvette said:

All the think pieces.  So many think pieces....

I like this:

Also this makes my Cheers loving self feel old. People now only know Rhea Pearlman(who plays Barbie's creator Ruth Handler) from Matilda?

 

 

 

[Blergh]

On 7/27/2023 at 8:21 PM, Fool to cry said:

I like this:

Also this makes my Cheers loving self feel old. People now only know Rhea Pearlman(who plays Barbie's creator Ruth Handler) from Matilda?

 

 

 

You think you feel old because you recognize Miss Perlman for her Cheers role while others ID her for her Matilda role?! Imagine how I felt when I saw the pic and at first thought it was a latter day photo of  Donna Douglas (1932-2015) reprising her iconic role of Elly May Clampett from The Beverly Hillbillies (1962-1971)!

Edited July 29, 2023 by Blergh

[Spartan Girl]

9 hours ago, Blergh said:

However, does anyone else remember when Barbie was considered by many to be  a counterproductive role model for girls via such things as the doll being totally out of proportion for a functional  human being and one time infamously playing a pre-recorded message for its young customers saying  'math is hard'?

 

In fairness, the movie does call that out—not the infamous talking but, but the fact that Barbie wasn’t/isn’t always a good role model.

HOWEVER the film also points out that “Barbie” is an idea that has evolved over the times, especially in terms of diversity. 

[ribboninthesky1]

On 7/13/2023 at 11:30 AM, Fool to cry said:

Unpopular Opinion: I enjoy Mission:Impossible 2, the one MI fans consider the worst of the series. It's ridiculously campy in a fun way and is so year 2000 it makes me actually nostalgic. I think the real reason it's disliked is it's so blatantly a Tom Cruise vanity project while the other movies have at least the pretense of him needing a team like the old show.

I didn't realize it was considered the worst, I enjoyed it as well. 

I thought MI:3 was the worst of the bunch (I haven't seen the latest). 

On 7/14/2023 at 4:51 PM, RunningMarket said:

They got more serious after MI:III and had more continuity amongst story lines, but II will always hold a special place in my heart.

That was a great scene! To me, it's most memorable because of the flamenco dance scene. 

[JustHereForFood]

I like most of Disney movies, love many of them, but I couldn't stand Winnie the Pooh, mostly because of the main character.

[Shannon L.]

I don't hate Winnie the Pooh, but I'm very "meh" on him.  My mom said that she tried to read me and my brother the books when we were little, but neither of us liked them.

Edited August 14, 2023 by Shannon L.

[Crs97]

I only remember actually reading the story about Tigger bouncing too high, but as an adult I find I love more of the characters and would love to visit Hundred Acre Wood.

[BlueSkies]

This is a theme from an early Tom Cruise movie All The Right Moves but I've seen the same theme play out a lot in the movies.

 

They make it seem like it's a tragedy of life to get stuck living in a small town setting 

[proserpina65]

On 8/17/2023 at 5:27 PM, BlueSkies said:

This is a theme from an early Tom Cruise movie All The Right Moves but I've seen the same theme play out a lot in the movies.

 

They make it seem like it's a tragedy of life to get stuck living in a small town setting 

Depends on the town, I think.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

On 8/17/2023 at 2:27 PM, BlueSkies said:

This is a theme from an early Tom Cruise movie All The Right Moves but I've seen the same theme play out a lot in the movies.

 

They make it seem like it's a tragedy of life to get stuck living in a small town setting 

 

On 8/21/2023 at 12:24 PM, proserpina65 said:

Depends on the town, I think.

And the era.

[proserpina65]

13 hours ago, Cobalt Stargazer said:

 

And the era.

That too.

[MadyGirl1987]

On 8/17/2023 at 2:27 PM, BlueSkies said:

They make it seem like it's a tragedy of life to get stuck living in a small town setting 

Unless you are some big city career person, especially a woman, who needs some small town, down home wisdom about slowing down and appreciating life, usually done if you're a woman by staring a romance with a rugged local man...

[andromeda331]

7 hours ago, MadyGirl1987 said:

Unless you are some big city career person, especially a woman, who needs some small town, down home wisdom about slowing down and appreciating life, usually done if you're a woman by staring a romance with a rugged local man...

I swear every time I see or watch that in a movie John Mellencamp's Small Town plays in my head. Great song, he sings all the great stuff about small towns but includes the line "there's little opportunity". Ah, yeah, that's why most people leave small towns. That's why my dad and his siblings left their small town. It was a great town but not a whole lot of jobs. Not that it matters in the movie she'll marry and have kids that'll be her "job" or somehow find a job or start a business that will be successful despite the small population.

[Ohiopirate02]

13 hours ago, andromeda331 said:

I swear every time I see or watch that in a movie John Mellencamp's Small Town plays in my head. Great song, he sings all the great stuff about small towns but includes the line "there's little opportunity". Ah, yeah, that's why most people leave small towns. That's why my dad and his siblings left their small town. It was a great town but not a whole lot of jobs. Not that it matters in the movie she'll marry and have kids that'll be her "job" or somehow find a job or start a business that will be successful despite the small population.

I also just hate how so many movies make it seem like the small town is inherently better than the big city.  I watched a bit of Sweet Home Alabama last night, and good lord does that movie unfairly demonize NYC while propping up the small town with a dash of Lost Cause Apologia.  Heaven forbid a young woman want to attempt to make something out of her life besides a home and children.  

[Wiendish Fitch]

7 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I also just hate how so many movies make it seem like the small town is inherently better than the big city.  I watched a bit of Sweet Home Alabama last night, and good lord does that movie unfairly demonize NYC while propping up the small town with a dash of Lost Cause Apologia.  Heaven forbid a young woman want to attempt to make something out of her life besides a home and children.  

Yes to all of that.

And don't get me started on It's a Wonderful Life.

If you like living in a small town, fine. If you don't like living in a small town... also fine. It's no reflection on you (unless you're a jerk about it). 

If you want to see a delectable subversion of the "woman is changed for the better by a quaint small town" trope, please check out The Last Seduction. 

[Ohiopirate02]

4 minutes ago, Wiendish Fitch said:

Yes to all of that.

And don't get me started on It's a Wonderful Life.

Honey, please go on, I can rustle up some drinks and snacks and listen to you all day on this topic.

[Browncoat]

I hate It's a Wonderful Life.

[Spartan Girl]

10 hours ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I also just hate how so many movies make it seem like the small town is inherently better than the big city.  I watched a bit of Sweet Home Alabama last night, and good lord does that movie unfairly demonize NYC while propping up the small town with a dash of Lost Cause Apologia.  Heaven forbid a young woman want to attempt to make something out of her life besides a home and children.  

Yeah, I have a hard time believing that a town that thought nothing of doing a Civil War reenactment and using phrases like “the South has risen again” would be so accepting of Bobby Ray being the token gay man. I know that not everyone in the South is a bigot, but COME ON.

Edited August 26, 2023 by Spartan Girl

[Browncoat]

18 minutes ago, Spartan Girl said:

Yeah, I have a hard time believing that a town that thought nothing of doing a Civil War reenactment and using phrases like “the South has risen again” would be so accepting of Bobby Ray being the token gay man. I know that not everyone is the South a bigot, but COME ON.

Eh, I suspect everyone knew anyway.  Secrets like that aren't truly secrets in a small town.  I grew up in a small Southern town (in the 70s and 80s!) with a handful or so of gay kids, and we "knew" even though we didn't know.  We didn't care.  As one of the other characters said, "Are you still the same Bobby Ray from yesterday?  Alright then."  On the other hand, if they hadn't grown up with Bobby Ray, it would be a whole different story altogether.  It's different when it's one of your own.

[kathyk24]

9 hours ago, Wiendish Fitch said:

Yes to all of that.

And don't get me started on It's a Wonderful Life.

If you like living in a small town, fine. If you don't like living in a small town... also fine. It's no reflection on you (unless you're a jerk about it). 

If you want to see a delectable subversion of the "woman is changed for the better by a quaint small town" trope, please check out The Last Seduction. 

I grew up in a small town and live in the city now. Small towns aren't filled with quirky people are actually boring. I had to move from my hometown in order to get the disabiliry services I needed. I also hate It's a Wonderful Life there was nothing wrong with the alternate life George Baily wanted to lead.

[Spartan Girl]

33 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Eh, I suspect everyone knew anyway.  Secrets like that aren't truly secrets in a small town.  I grew up in a small Southern town (in the 70s and 80s!) with a handful or so of gay kids, and we "knew" even though we didn't know.  We didn't care.  As one of the other characters said, "Are you still the same Bobby Ray from yesterday?  Alright then."  On the other hand, if they hadn't grown up with Bobby Ray, it would be a whole different story altogether.  It's different when it's one of your own.

True, but my point still stands. It was still a racist-looking town. It’s one thing to be nice to the closeted person you grew up with, it’s another to extend that kindness to LGTBTQ/POC that aren’t from your town. Stephen Sondheim was right: “nice” is different than “good.”

Edited August 26, 2023 by Spartan Girl

[DoctorAtomic]

Not all small towns are in the South either. There's small towns in the west that are completely different than tv small towns.

[scarynikki12]

Based on what I've seen Bobby Ray could avoid getting bashed if he kept his social life separate from the town. His neighbors may be willing to "accept him" as long as they didn't actually see the men he dated. There would also be a subset of neighbors/friends who would do the thing where they get to know his boyfriend and seem so accepting but, if Bobby Ray announced an engagement, would ask why getting married was necessary. Since he was shown sparking with Melanie's designer mentor I can pretend they dated long distance and then Bobby Ray moved to New York when the relationship became serious. Plenty of bigotry in New York but the size of the city would allow him to make friends who would genuinely accept him. 

That's what Team Small Town movies tend to downplay. If you're a big fish (due to money, sports, etc) a small town environment can be great but if you're even slightly different from the rest of the town you can have a tough time while a city is big enough to allow you to find your true people and community.

[Crs97]

1 hour ago, kathyk24 said:

I also hate It's a Wonderful Life there was nothing wrong with the alternate life George Baily wanted to lead.

Wait, was I supposed to hate the life he wanted?  I don’t like the movie, but I thought the point was that your life can still be wonderful even if it isn’t the life you planned.

[kathyk24]

4 minutes ago, Crs97 said:

Wait, was I supposed to hate the life he wanted?  I don’t like the movie, but I thought the point was that your life can still be wonderful even if it isn’t the life you planned.

The problem with George's alternate life was that everyone else would be miserable without him. He's responsible for his happiness not everyone else. Mr. Potter should have been punished for his actions.

[kathyk24]

1 hour ago, scarynikki12 said:

Based on what I've seen Bobby Ray could avoid getting bashed if he kept his social life separate from the town. His neighbors may be willing to "accept him" as long as they didn't actually see the men he dated. There would also be a subset of neighbors/friends who would do the thing where they get to know his boyfriend and seem so accepting but, if Bobby Ray announced an engagement, would ask why getting married was necessary. Since he was shown sparking with Melanie's designer mentor I can pretend they dated long distance and then Bobby Ray moved to New York when the relationship became serious. Plenty of bigotry in New York but the size of the city would allow him to make friends who would genuinely accept him. 

That's what Team Small Town movies tend to downplay. If you're a big fish (due to money, sports, etc) a small town environment can be great but if you're even slightly different from the rest of the town you can have a tough time while a city is big enough to allow you to find your true people and community.

I grew up in the same small town as my Mom. the trope Everyone went to School Together is truth in television. Small towns can also be unfriendly to new residents.

[kiddo82]

11 hours ago, scarynikki12 said:

Based on what I've seen Bobby Ray could avoid getting bashed if he kept his social life separate from the town. His neighbors may be willing to "accept him" as long as they didn't actually see the men he dated. There would also be a subset of neighbors/friends who would do the thing where they get to know his boyfriend and seem so accepting but, if Bobby Ray announced an engagement, would ask why getting married was necessary. Since he was shown sparking with Melanie's designer mentor I can pretend they dated long distance and then Bobby Ray moved to New York when the relationship became serious. Plenty of bigotry in New York but the size of the city would allow him to make friends who would genuinely accept him. 

That's what Team Small Town movies tend to downplay. If you're a big fish (due to money, sports, etc) a small town environment can be great but if you're even slightly different from the rest of the town you can have a tough time while a city is big enough to allow you to find your true people and community.

My view of a small town is always warped because where I grew up what we lack in land area you better believe we make up for in people.  Depending on your source on the internet, Huntsville is the largest city in Alabama strictly in terms of population yet has a density of under 1,000 per square mile.  In New Jersey, we call that density a "mall."  Or, more accurately, we call it a "mawll."  Also according to the internet, the most densely populated city in Alabama is Fairfield at 3180/square mile which would barely crack the top 200 in NJ.  So basically where I'm from if your neighbors suck, you just go 10 minutes in any direction and find new ones.  They might suck too but at least there are options.  Heck, 10 minutes in any direction and you've gone through 2 or 3 completely different towns.  I'm not saying it's better or worse but it takes effort for me to wrap my head around the notion of small towns as self contained entities where it takes a day trip just to eat at a different restaurant or something.  

Edited August 26, 2023 by kiddo82

[Ohiopirate02]

8 hours ago, kathyk24 said:

The problem with George's alternate life was that everyone else would be miserable without him. He's responsible for his happiness not everyone else. Mr. Potter should have been punished for his actions.

I still can't get over Mary in the alternate universe.  Original Recipe Mary is vivacious, kind, and has perfect vision.  Alternate Mary is a stereotypical bookish spinster.