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Red Sparrow

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March 05, 2018, 05:46 AM
Todd Huffman
Red Sparrow
Anyone else seen it? I watched it over the weekend and wasn't impressed. I'm always up for a good spy thriller, and thought going in that it sounded Tom Clancy-esque, but it wasn't that great.




Here's to the sunny slopes of long ago.
March 05, 2018, 06:30 AM
2BobTanner
That’s Jennifer’s third “soft opening” in as many attempts. She’s become “box office poison”; no wonder she’s taking a year off to help reclaim American democracy.


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LGBFJB

"Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on, or by imbeciles who really mean it." — Mark Twain

“Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.” — H. L. Mencken
March 05, 2018, 06:38 AM
CD228
I kind of liked it. It reminded me a little bit of the book The Charm School by Nelson Demille. I also liked Jeremy Iron's role and comments. However, I'd watch Atomic Blonde over Red Sparrow.
March 05, 2018, 06:49 AM
Todd Huffman
quote:
Originally posted by CD228:
I kind of liked it. It reminded me a little bit of the book The Charm School by Nelson Demille. I also liked Jeremy Iron's role and comments. However, I'd watch Atomic Blonde over Red Sparrow.

I just finished Charm School last week, and I saw some of that. Also some Cardinal of the Kremlin as well. I'll check out Atomic Blonde, thanks!




Here's to the sunny slopes of long ago.
March 05, 2018, 09:29 AM
Rinehart
It's an older movie, but Point of No Return (1993) with Bridget Fonda, Gabriel Byrne, Miguel Ferrer and Anne Bancroft (who was really great in this film) is a good view if you haven't seen it.

Harvey Keitel plays an interesting part as a "cleaner" similar to his Mister Wolf role.

A young woman, Maggie Hayward (Bridget Fonda), is sentenced to death after murdering a policeman during a botched robbery. While awaiting trial she is approached by a government agent, Bob (Gabriel Byrne), who wants her to join a top secret assassination team. She doesn't cooperate and is executed...or so it seems. She awakes to find herself an unwilling recruit for the government organization. She still plays hard to get but eventually comes around. With her training done, now she has to put it into practice - killing people, all while, on the surface, trying to live a perfectly normal life.
March 05, 2018, 09:54 AM
Balzé Halzé
quote:
Originally posted by Todd Huffman:
quote:
Originally posted by CD228:
I kind of liked it. It reminded me a little bit of the book The Charm School by Nelson Demille. I also liked Jeremy Iron's role and comments. However, I'd watch Atomic Blonde over Red Sparrow.

I just finished Charm School last week, and I saw some of that. Also some Cardinal of the Kremlin as well. I'll check out Atomic Blonde, thanks!


Atomic Blonde was an awesome spy movie. I thought so anyway.


~Alan

Acta Non Verba
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God, Family, Guns, Country

Men will fight and die to protect women... because women protect everything else. ~Andrew Klavan

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March 05, 2018, 11:46 AM
feersum dreadnaught
quote:
Originally posted by Rinehart:
It's an older movie, but Point of No Return (1993) with Bridget Fonda, Gabriel Byrne, Miguel Ferrer and Anne Bancroft (who was really great in this film) is a good view if you haven't seen it.

Harvey Keitel plays an interesting part as a "cleaner" similar to his Mister Wolf role.

A young woman, Maggie Hayward (Bridget Fonda), is sentenced to death after murdering a policeman during a botched robbery. While awaiting trial she is approached by a government agent, Bob (Gabriel Byrne), who wants her to join a top secret assassination team. She doesn't cooperate and is executed...or so it seems. She awakes to find herself an unwilling recruit for the government organization. She still plays hard to get but eventually comes around. With her training done, now she has to put it into practice - killing people, all while, on the surface, trying to live a perfectly normal life.


or catch "La Femme Nikita", the Luc Besson directed original of which "Point of No Return" was a re-make...



NRA Life Member - "Fear God and Dreadnaught"
March 05, 2018, 12:37 PM
Skull Leader
quote:
That’s Jennifer’s third “soft opening”


Passengers wasn't that bad. Though could have been better if they had written the story from her character's point of view; YouTuber Nerdwriter1 does a video about this. You should really check it out.
March 05, 2018, 01:07 PM
Veeper
quote:
Originally posted by Skull Leader:
quote:
That’s Jennifer’s third “soft opening”


Passengers wasn't that bad. Though could have been better if they had written the story from her character's point of view; YouTuber Nerdwriter1 does a video about this. You should really check it out.


I really enjoyed Passengers. It felt smart and not ham-fisted. The technology was nifty, the bartender was fantastic, and the Lawrence Fishburn arc was pretty well done. I can see why the snowflakes hated it, which is unfortunate.




“The urge to save humanity is almost always only a false-face for the urge to rule it.”—H.L. Mencken
March 05, 2018, 01:39 PM
Prefontaine
quote:
Originally posted by CD228:
I kind of liked it. It reminded me a little bit of the book The Charm School by Nelson Demille. I also liked Jeremy Iron's role and comments. However, I'd watch Atomic Blonde over Red Sparrow.


Then that means some of us should wait for Blu-Ray. Atomic Blonde was a great watch on disc at home and a film needs to be damned good to pay for theater nowadays due to the smartphone use.



What am I doing? I'm talking to an empty telephone
March 05, 2018, 01:54 PM
snipes
quote:
Originally posted by feersum dreadnaught:
quote:
Originally posted by Rinehart:
It's an older movie, but Point of No Return (1993) with Bridget Fonda, Gabriel Byrne, Miguel Ferrer and Anne Bancroft (who was really great in this film) is a good view if you haven't seen it.

Harvey Keitel plays an interesting part as a "cleaner" similar to his Mister Wolf role.

A young woman, Maggie Hayward (Bridget Fonda), is sentenced to death after murdering a policeman during a botched robbery. While awaiting trial she is approached by a government agent, Bob (Gabriel Byrne), who wants her to join a top secret assassination team. She doesn't cooperate and is executed...or so it seems. She awakes to find herself an unwilling recruit for the government organization. She still plays hard to get but eventually comes around. With her training done, now she has to put it into practice - killing people, all while, on the surface, trying to live a perfectly normal life.


or catch "La Femme Nikita", the Luc Besson directed original of which "Point of No Return" was a re-make...


A big YES on both accounts. I will have to say my wife bought me La Femme Nikita on DVD for Christmas (have owned PONR for many years) and it's lost some of its charm for me over the years. Point of no return is a much better movie IMO. Certainly not as raw, but more enjoyable. Now don't even get me started on the La Femme Nikita TV show from back in the day...whoo wee. Hot chicks, kicking arse and guns...



March 05, 2018, 03:45 PM
Aeteocles
Red Sparrow is getting worked over by Movie Pass.

Movie Pass has a ton of subscribers. When I'm in line to buy tickets around here, every 3rd person is using a Movie Pass.

Movie Pass's business model right now is to build a huge subscriber base, and then force the theaters to share a percentage of their ticket sales and concession revenue with Movie Pass. In exchange, Movie Pass will direct traffic to your specific Theater.

Movie Pass has numbers that show that once people have paid for the Movie Pass, they'll drive right past a non-participating theater to go to a participating theater. So, as part of their negotiations with theaters, Movie Pass has strategically blocked certain theaters on certain days to show the theater how much harm they can do to the theater's box office revenue. It's pretty much exactly like the mob forcing stores in a particular neighborhood to pay protection money.

Now, Movie Pass is doing the same thing with the studios. If you want people to come watch your movie, you have to pay Movie Pass to promote your movie within their app. Over the weekend Movie Pass blacked-out showings of Red Sparrow, but promoted Death Wish heavily. I hadn't even heard of the Bruce Willis movie, but that's what I ended up watching because Red Sparrow wasn't available. It appears that Movie Pass is trying to strengthen their negotiation position by using their subscriber base as a bargaining chip.
March 05, 2018, 03:48 PM
SigSAC
I've read the book. When I heard that the movie was being made, Jennifer was NOT my idea of the female lead. I'm not sure who should have had the part, but she wasn't the one I'd envision for it.

In the book, (and I'm not giving anything away with this) the main character was a trained ballet dancer who was moved into the spy service after her foot was injured by a jealous competitor in her dance troupe.

I'd recommend reading the book - the second of the trilogy came out last year, and the third was released last month in hardback - I'd expect the paperback for it to be out around the end or the year.
March 05, 2018, 05:36 PM
rusbro
quote:
Originally posted by 2BobTanner:
That’s Jennifer’s third “soft opening” in as many attempts. She’s become “box office poison”


I'd say it's a little too soon to be making that (poison) claim. I bet most movies have underwhelming openings these days.
March 05, 2018, 06:03 PM
Skull Leader
Oh, and to add, after seeing the trailer and that horrendous fake russian accent I just can't see myself watching this movie at all.
March 06, 2018, 12:46 AM
Aeteocles
I watched it tonight.

I actually liked it quite a bit, more than Atomic Blonde for sure.

It's not an action packed Jason Bourne or Mission Impossible movie, but a more suspenseful spy thriller.
March 06, 2018, 01:50 AM
CD228
quote:
Originally posted by Todd Huffman:
quote:
Originally posted by CD228:
I kind of liked it. It reminded me a little bit of the book The Charm School by Nelson Demille. I also liked Jeremy Iron's role and comments. However, I'd watch Atomic Blonde over Red Sparrow.

I just finished Charm School last week, and I saw some of that. Also some Cardinal of the Kremlin as well. I'll check out Atomic Blonde, thanks!

Atomic Blonde also brings a heaping helping of 1980s nostalgia with it (music, fashion). there is thread around here somewhere on it.
March 06, 2018, 11:07 AM
Echtermetzger
not feeling the JLaw

just kind of tired of her at the moment. OVER exposure.


A well balanced breakfast being necessary to the start of a healthy day, the right of the people to keep and eat food shall not be infringed.
March 07, 2018, 10:30 PM
Dusty78
I liked it. Solid B from me.


_______________________________________________
Use thumb-size bullets to create fist-size holes.
March 19, 2018, 12:14 AM
bubbatime
I almost skipped this movie based on some reviews.

Saw it tonight. REALLY glad that I didn't miss it.

I thought it was fresh, suspenseful, and well acted. Probably one of the best movies of the year in my opinion. Really, really liked it. Solid A from me.


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