Comments on: Million Dollar Movie

By: seamus

seamus — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 01:57:45 +0000

[28] yeah that’s great news on the season 2 order! HBO is very good about making those decisions early.

By: The Hawk

The Hawk — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 21:45:53 +0000

I wonder if Terrence Winter feels like he has to compete with Mad Men, as two shows by former Sopranos writers. Oooh, also two period shows.

By: YankeeAbby

YankeeAbby — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 21:08:48 +0000

[19] Allegedly, a writer at EW says that the action picks up in subsequent episodes. Hopefully that’s true.

Seamus – also heard on the radio this morning that their was such a large viewing audience for the premiere, that HBO has already signed off on production of Season 2!

By: Matt Blankman

Matt Blankman — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 19:34:33 +0000

[26]
“He went to church on Sunday, he was a Boy Scout
For his friends he would turn his pockets inside out

He was a clean-cut kid
But they made a killer out of him
That’s what they did”
-Bob Dylan

By: The Hawk

The Hawk — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 19:18:04 +0000

[24] I disagree. The idea of a kid like that being, in his words, “a murderer” seems just right to me. I mean this is who is sent to war – young (relatively) innocents. The fact that he didn’t look hardened doesn’t ring false to me. Maybe it’s the people I’ve known, but it seemed fine to me.

By: seamus

seamus — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 18:42:56 +0000

[24] Michael Pitt seems to have gotten the most mixed reviews on the cast.

By: Alex Belth

Alex Belth — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 18:25:30 +0000

22) Me too. But the kid who was supposed to “have seen things and done things” in the war was laughably bad. With those baby blue eyes he looks like he couldn’t hurt a fly.

By: The Hawk

The Hawk — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 18:25:03 +0000

Second half of Boardwalk Empire I found more entertaining than the first. Anyway I don’t give too much weight to pilot episodes. As long as it wasn’t awful, which it wasn’t.

I thought Michael Pitt was like a slightly more believable Leonardo Dicaprio.

Sometimes I see Steve Buschemi around here. What a squirrelly little dude.

By: Matt Blankman

Matt Blankman — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 17:51:30 +0000

I liked Boardwalk Empire. As has been pointed out, pilots tend to be a little overcrowded with information, but it left me looking forward to the next episode. It really is a gorgeous production.

I especially liked Michael Stuhlbarg as Arnold Rothstein.

By: seamus

seamus — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 17:28:31 +0000

[20] interesting. I could see where the literalism hurts the story telling.

By: Alex Belth

Alex Belth — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 17:20:47 +0000

I thought this was an interesting comment, from the Times’ review:

“As is Mr. Scorsese’s wont, the attention to detail, like the cinematography, is lavish, exquisite and unswerving. It is also a little constricting. In the first few episodes, characters adhere so carefully to type they trip into caricature. Accuracy isn’t always the same as plausibility; imagined history can sometimes be more persuasive than fact. “

By: seamus

seamus — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 17:18:58 +0000

[17] It was a little slow moving for sure.

[18] Overall I thouht it was good. Like most HBO programs, the quality of the sets and cast was very good. Like a lot of pilots they had to set up a lot of the plot and the large cast of characters – which I think slowed it down. But I definitely think it’s worth a watch.

Allegedly, a writer at EW says that the action picks up in subsequent episodes. Hopefully that’s true.

By: williamnyy23

williamnyy23 — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 17:15:00 +0000

[13] I would have had no problem with Liotta winning the Oscar, but I have to admit I like the performances of a some of the supporting actors better.

[16] Haven’t seen it yet…what did you think?

By: Alex Belth

Alex Belth — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 17:11:59 +0000

16) I thought the first episode was dull. But got to give it some time.

By: seamus

seamus — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 16:58:27 +0000

I’m a bit surprised this conversation got this far with no mention of Boardwalk Empire, whatever folks may think of it.

By: Matt Blankman

Matt Blankman — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 16:53:11 +0000

[13] Oh, I am in no way saying Casino is as good as Goodfellas. And I totally agree with you about Liotta. It’s a killer performance and the whole movie hangs on it. Goodfellas absolutely blew me to the back wall of the theater from the opening moments. It was one of the truly great 1st run movie-going experiences of my life.

By: The Hawk

The Hawk — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 16:44:51 +0000

Whatever their differences, it’s hard not to compare – or at least contrast – Goodfellas and The Godfather. They are both very high-profile gangster movies, if nothing else.

By: Sliced Bread

Sliced Bread — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 16:28:10 +0000

[12] I agree DeNiro did a great job in Casino but I think Goodfellas is a far better movie. Goodfellas is a such a more compelling and organic story, and had better performances all around. Nobody responded to my Oscar nomination for Liotta, but I thought that was an outstanding performance. I’d say even in Scorsese’s hands, most actors would have fallen short of what Liotta accomplished. He made Hill a far more sympathetic character than he probably is, and I actually can’t think of an actor who would have been as exciting, believable, and able to draw you into his messed up world.

[11] yeah, Sharon Stone’s whole “look at me” shtick has always been annoying. But as far as casting goes, she nailed her character’s desperation. Probably didn’t have to dig too deep though.

By: Matt Blankman

Matt Blankman — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 15:55:27 +0000

[10] If you watch DeNiro in Casino, he’s doing a lot of Scorsese in his performance – the winces, the body language. I think he does a lot of interesting non-verbal acting in that picture. I also don’t mind the casting of Pesci, as I think Scorsese wanted the audience to automatically sense that camaraderie between the two leads, to accentuate their eventual estrangement.

By: williamnyy23

williamnyy23 — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 15:44:41 +0000

[8] [9] I didn’t like Casino at the time, and really don’t care for it now. Pesci and DeNiro seem to be playing the same roles, but without the strength of the Goodfellas production. Also, Las Vegas overwhelms the movie and I find Sharon Stone’s character to be annoying.