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Just Steve wrote:Straying a bit from topic, i am going to get 'Is Anybody There?' with Michael Caine soon on DVD, and i wondered if anyone has seen it? (Mr Caine plays an old retired magician in a OAP Home and teaches a young kid to become a magician.)

Have a look at http://www.talkmagic.co.uk/ftopic35916.php for a few more thoughts.

Or watch it

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0 ... ody_There/

Watched this Inception flick tonight.

Loved it. Completely. Full marks Mr. Nolan.

WOW, what a fantastic movie. How Nolan keep strack of all these ideas in his head is remarkable.

Fantastic casting, and special mention from me to Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordo-Levitt and Ken Watanabe for their roles. I especially enjoyed Arthur's improvised "kick" sequence, but not as much as the corridor fight.

Outstanding, simply outstanding.

I don't remember where exactly it was but I remember, in an interview with Nolan he said this script has been in the working for 10 years.

Yeah im pretty sure he has, definitely shows in the quality of the plot haha.

I'm excited to see it today with the ladyfriend. I'm hoping she'll love it because she loves high-octane movies (Gladiator is her favorite) and thinking movies (like Pan's Labyrinth). I figured this is one movie that will not fail.

Plus, Leo has the same bday as me. Hence he's my favorite actor and I will see anything he's in, including the horrendous Critters 3.

Sorry guys but I wasn't very impressed. Yes it had some good effects and interesting ideas but I felt the plot was a bit weak really.

I was expecting a clever twist at the end which never came and found that the movie was just lots of people shooting at each other and no real substance to it.

Personally, for leading edge effects and better action & ideas I preferred the Matrix

Kevin Cann wrote:Sorry guys but I wasn't very impressed. Yes it had some good effects and interesting ideas but I felt the plot was a bit weak really.

I was expecting a clever twist at the end which never came and found that the movie was just lots of people shooting at each other and no real substance to it.

Personally, for leading edge effects and better action & ideas I preferred the Matrix

There was kind of a twist at the end though wasn't there? Really? Without giving much away to those that haven't seen it? You know the bit i mean. Would it remain spinning? Would it? It wasn't on a par with The Usual Suspects for a twist, but it suited me.

I never went to see it for it's effects. I'm a huge fan of the original series of The Twilight Zone where the effects are appalling, but I'm sucked in by the storyline and YES, even the twists at the end. And they were twisty. Some of em.

The Matrix never really had an original idea in it, story wise. Robert Nozick, a philosopher, came up with the idea of remaining in a tank and biologically age-ing, yet having your mind function elsewhere, blissfully unaware you are in the tank. And i doubt that Nozick even really came up with it first. Aaaaaaand let's not forget that whole Alice In Wonderland vibe with it all.

The Matrix broke certain boundaries with it's effects (the cameras going round people suspended in mid-air etc), but The Fifth Element broke certain boundaries with it's effects too, and that SUCKED.

I don't think Inception is a classic, but it was damn good and head and shoulders above the usual blockbuster fare.

Kevin, although you may not have seen/understood the overal idea behind it, Inception has one of the best plots of nearly all the recent blockbusters.

The film isnt about a huge twist, in fact, the 'twist', if you can even call it that, is merely a function of the narrative to provide more depth to the main plotline.

The effects are always great in Nolan's films, but you should never go to the cinema with intent on seeing his films because of them, as he always focuses on the narrative and how it pans out. However, his special effects are always incredible because they repute the common ways of Hollywood and wherever possible, are actually recreated. The no-gravity corridor fight scene was filmed in a revolving corridor set, in which the actors actually had to choreograph the action. Joseph Gordon-Levitt did that scene all himself with no stunt doubles, and apparently, even with harnesses, learning to simulate a fight in a revolving corridor is not easy.

The scene with the nightclub/bar where everything tilts like an earthquake, was filmed on a nightclub set that had actually been built upon hydraulics so that it could tilt.

The snow chase scenes were filmed on the side of a mountain, with real avalanches being set off by the crew to increase the sense of reality. They even built the cliffside fortress on a mountain and waited for snowfall and avalanches to cover it naturally with snow.

And the depth of finesse continues. Nolan's directing and writing style is a breath of fresh air for hollywood, and proves that there is still prolific talent out there. He defies all the stereotypes and conceptions that Hollywood attracts, and instead creates what I believe, and a hell of a lot of other people do to, to be consistent masterpieces.

As for The Matrix, 95% of the effects were CGI, and although it is impressive and enjoyable, it is not on the same level as films like Inception.

Grimshaw wrote:The Fifth Element broke certain boundaries with it's effects too, and that SUCKED.

ahhh...now I LOVED the Fifth Element. I thought it was hilarious and still do. When I saw it at the cinema I didn't know anything about it and expected a serious sci-fi so was caught off guard as the film progressed and I ended up laughing hysterically. Unusual for me as I normally hate comedy sci-fi. Nice eye candy too

The Fifth Element could have been tolerable if it wasn't for Chris Tucker's high pitched screeching throughout the last half hour. I've never wanted to slap someone so hard in my life. My fists were actually clenching and unclenching as he was yelling. How Luc Besson ever thought his role was a good idea is beyond me. Here's 90 million quid, go and make a sci-fi epic....oh and then ruin it all by putting in a complete idiot, cheers.

Grimshaw wrote:The Fifth Element could have been tolerable if it wasn't for Chris Tucker's high pitched screeching throughout the last half hour. I've never wanted to slap someone so hard in my life. My fists were actually clenching and unclenching as he was yelling. How Luc Besson ever thought his role was a good idea is beyond me. Here's 90 million quid, go and make a sci-fi epic....oh and then ruin it all by putting in a complete idiot, cheers.

BZZZ! BZZZZ!! I loved him in the movie! Heck I loved everything about that movie. Maybe I'm just biased, lol. That and Princess Bride. I will never say anything bad of those two movies =P.

As a side note, there was an Inception thread started on the magic cafe forums but 3-4 posts down it has now fully derailed into the pros and cons of The Prestige being an good/bad portrayal of magicians. Awesome.

Also, was the ending to Inception really that ambiguous? I watched closely and could have sworn it was about to stop spinning...

...or maybe that's what I'd like to believe, since I absolutely abhor movies that leave me to my own devices of logic =(.