At least "the high roller" and the last item is explained better. I wouldn't call it "redeemed" if you thought it was awful, but if you were on edge about it, it could take you to either side of the edge. I would consider the final step controversial to say the least, especially in today's mindset.
There was another dance number as well, just little plot holes filled in, but not on the magnitude of change that Dune had between theatrical and directors cuts.
I personally enjoyed it, for the same reasons as you, and the directors cut version makes it better, and I understand why they changed some things in the theatrical version. It was however a flop.
I question whether people saw it for the story, or for the experience (IMAX+3D+modern-day CG). Dances with Wolves did well enough I guess, especially for a Costner flick. Actually, that's probably one template that won't get old, and it's often the B-plot of many action movies.
But I still wonder if people were going to see Avatar for the story, or if they were going to see it for the then-novel visual experience. I would guess the latter, seeing as how people still go see 3D movies and/or in an IMAX theater, but none have done nearly as well as Avatar. It was a gimmick, but done at the right place and time, with the right marketing, and contained sufficient substance. Of course, you can argue that the gimmick is part of the selling point, part of the movie itself, and you'd be right. It's just hard to be successful with the same gimmick more than once, and it gets less important with every use.
I had considered the novelty of Avatar making it tons of cash, no denying it was a beautiful movie to watch. The gimmick was beautifully done, and I think it may help the sequels even if people hate 3D otherwise, but I really do think people are curious enough about what happened on the planet after the earth ships left and what will happen when return. I think Avatar can stand on its own for at least one more movie, probably the two they want to make.
Disney has learned that movies are long term investment, not just box office warriors. They build a brand and milk it.
Several recent flops were by Disney. They're struggling along with everyone else.
As for building a brand, Disney's genius lies not in milking their hits with more movies (which have mostly been by Pixar recently, and which they've been doing irrespective), but in their merchandising strategy for their hits. They release a kid's movie, then they immerse the kids in it by making a ton of toys and apparel based on the movie, and slapping it on new theme park rides. The merchandising market is huge and lasts forever (like Star Wars merchandise). However, the key ingredient for this is a hit movie, which as I've said they're struggling to make these days.
They're going to eventually kill all of the Pixar movies with sequels. Pixar hated sequels when they were still independent. They liked doing new things, telling new stories, creating new characters and places and playing with them. Now that Disney runs the show, Pixar's not doing this anymore. Not that they need to. The current crop of Pixar movies isn't going to run out of steam for at least another two decades (Brave 2, anybody?), by the time which Disney can either buy yet another company and their movie library to milk, or they can ride the Pixar name itself still for another decade or two. Hell, they've done this already, with both the Marvel and Lucasfilm acquisitions. Even if those are old companies, they have a ton of "IP" Disney can milk. And Marvel is producing more each day!
Buying up other companies and running their ideas into the ground is also a part of their genius. But actually making good movies and creating a strong fanbase is not them any longer.
I particularly had The Black Hole in mind. It didn't really do well by Disney standards, but they eventually made money on it. Tron to a lesser degree, Disney can make something obscure and old into something new or notable when they can pull it off.
You can milk a cult movie.
Boondock Saints 2 anyone (does anyone even know this movie actually exists)? Episode I-III? Matrix 2 and 3? And I don't see anyone clamoring for Kill Bill 3 either, (but only because we know Bill's dead). You can't really milk cult movies. They're one-shots, one-time deals. They're cult classics because they're unique, interesting, special, maybe not very good or not generally a
I figured the fact you never actually got to see her dance and the T&A never advanced beyond what was in the trailers played into it quite a bit as well....
I wasn't aware that was still playing. I may want to double-check my numbers, and I'm having a little difficulty with my Google-Fu, I keep coming up with longest run times, and longest at #1.
I love Tarantino movies - lots of people love Tarantino movies - lots of people really really hate Tarantino movies.
I liked Watchmen. I thought it was excellent even if it did depart from the book a bit and yes, maybe grew a little dull at times, but was deep enough to get into. Fully half the theater walked out during the first half hour I was in there.
Rocky Horror sucks. The people who like Rocky Horror will tell you it sucks. It's the longest in-box office run of any movie every. It was made before I was born and it still shows every weekend at a theater a half mile from my apartment.
The problem with Hollywood movies today is they use the freaking formulas.
Star Wars - though a formula setter - didn't follow movie formulas of 1977. Yes, say all you want about it being stolen source material, I fully believe you, but it's not how movies were made back then. I know plenty of people who hate Star Wars, not a lot since I chose not to associate with those sorts, but there are many, many people out there who consider themselves too good for such low-brow action flicks.
Avatar - biggest hit of all time. Yes all the block-buster formulas applied, but it also had formula breaking blends of primitive people, aliens, advanced species, spiritual and technical aspects. Even while complying with every blockbuster formula out there it twisted in subject matter only really addressed properly in Japanese Anime and threw in every movie category possible and made it work. On the flip side - Suckerpunch tried exactly the same thing and failed because they focused too heavily on making it look cool and forcing the fact they did so on you. Avatar did it seamlessly.
With the exception of maybe Avatar most of the movies I mentioned, that succeeded or even better yet, did okay but got a cult following had tons of haters. They will endure because of it.
IMHO cult status trumps block buster opening any day. Yes, fine, huge payday on a blockbuster up front, this is what studios want. Cult movies are more of a long term investment. They keep on giving. Disney has learned this, they're milking movies that flopped forty years ago today and making a profit. Disney has learned that movies are long term investment, not just box office warriors. They build a brand and milk it.
You can milk a cult movie. No one cares about a box office hit they forget about and nobody talks about a few years later.
I'm with you on this. I can't wait for color e-Ink for things like Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and good comics, but I refuse to compromise on an LCD though I will keep an eye on this. I want front-lit and then only natural looking stuff. A glassy surface just isn't going to do it. Even if they do come out with a color e-Ink reader in the US it better not compromise on monochrome if they want my business.
I guess that's a reasonable analogy. It's like prohibition - there wasn't exactly a single driving force behind pushing it, it was an attitude that spread and several charismatic people picked up the torch and pushed the hell out of it until the democracied it down the throats of everyone on-board or not.
BTW - I love that Who's your boogieman?! question. I'm trying to turn it into a catch phrase on another network I'm on.
Does it have to be that organized? A few judges (check), politicians (check), at multiple levels (check) with similar views that they think everyone else should share (check) and it happens "legally". You don't have to have one particular force driving tyranny, just a few people with similar goals in rule making positions. When those people all agree that it's in everyone's interest some rights be repealed (already been done effectively) and certain people removed from the flock (see above references) then by golly it's gonna happen and you don't have to put an already existing name on it!
Considering both of those documents are available from the U.S. Army website (or were, the FM doc had it's security fixed) you're an idiot for not being worried about it. The FM document is the real tell all. Are you perfectly okay with the DHS gaining power and increased fire power?
Define enslaved. If 100% of your labor is taken by "the master" not many will argue you're enslaved. What about 90%? 60%? 50%? 30%? At what point is it not slavery? What if it's 100%, but you're provided with "freedom", a car, an apartment, a plentiful food ration, Internet access, health care and cable? What if it's only 50%?
I don't know - there at the beginning of our discussion I gave you about an 80% credibility rating on calling me an idiot. Now I'm calling you an idiot and it's looking about 70/30 in my favor.
Your assumption that every little thing that happens does so independently with threat of escalation frightens me. Mostly because so many are like you.
Considering the massive amount of wiretapping and various info collection, the Boston door to door searches, the cover-ups of Fast & Furious, Benghazi, the face both the presidential candidates cheated in the primaries, Obama in 08, Romney in 12, then Obama again in the actual election, torture in Gitmo and the FBI giving summary executions on US soil, and that's the tip of the iceberg. I think those of use who wear tinfoil have been recently vindicated.
I've read lots and lots of books over time, and most of them have been paper format. I'm 35 and was a book worm for about the age of 8 until close to my 30's when I just got plowed over with responsibility. I'm picking up the habit again.
I prefer ebooks.
Unlike cheap paperbacks if I fail to hold the thing open right it doesn't snap shut and cause me to completely lose my place. I can buy all the ebooks I want, and when it comes time to move I don't have to give myself a hernia moving the collection. As I continue to collect ebooks I don't have to find more space on the book shelf for them, and I can keep them forever without just giving up my investment if I want to re-read it.
My house has been robbed (by a deputy sheriff no less) and flooded by the storm surge of Hurricane Ike. Yes I had books stolen when I was robbed and after the hurricane I literally used a shovel to move the pulpy volumes into the trash bags. Even if both of my competing supplier ebook readers get burned up as my home catches fire all of my ebooks will be back in my hands as soon as I buy new later model readers to replace my old ones.
I still do occasionally buy dead-tree books. Watchmen for obvious reasons, I have the Dark Tower series, both the hard back and Marvel versions for art reasons. I collected comics as a kid, but other than a few adult targeted ones like I just mentioned I'm not into that anymore, still I do look forward to color e-ink, even if it's only 16 color or something crappy like that for comic reasons.
Nevermind, Wiggins was the cop, not a Farker. When I shared the link on Facebook I copy pasted it - here's what I shared there:
Goldsberry wasn't arrested or shot despite pointing a gun at a cop, so Wiggins said, “She sure shouldn't be going to the press.”
She absolutely positively should have gone to the press, and the court system and brought the press along there. Not that the the press cares about real justice anymore, just steering sheep for their kickbacks.
These raids being discussed above are to get the populace to accept them as normal, and to eventually get immediate compliance and prostration on "routine" raids in the future. Then disarming people, or shooting them, "for their own good" so that "misunderstandings" don't happen in "routine" raids in the future. These early raids will weed out those who will resist, as they ramp up eventually they'll get everyone who would resist.
People think there are sheep and wolves. Truth is there are sheep, wolves, and sheep dogs. The job of the wolf is to get the sheep to fear the sheep dog - and it's working. The sheep dog is the biggest threat to the wolf, and the wolves are systematically weeding them out.
Slashdot Mirror
Hey - I own my comments coward.
Offtopic? Really? I can go for other negative mods, but really Offtopic is stretching it.
Missed it. Of course I've been first and marked redundant before, so - meh.
then immediately lost it back with fluoride in the water.
At least "the high roller" and the last item is explained better. I wouldn't call it "redeemed" if you thought it was awful, but if you were on edge about it, it could take you to either side of the edge. I would consider the final step controversial to say the least, especially in today's mindset.
There was another dance number as well, just little plot holes filled in, but not on the magnitude of change that Dune had between theatrical and directors cuts.
I personally enjoyed it, for the same reasons as you, and the directors cut version makes it better, and I understand why they changed some things in the theatrical version. It was however a flop.
Alright - who invited the hot headed 14 year old aspie?
Apologies in advance for the rant.
Avatar - biggest hit of all time.
I question whether people saw it for the story, or for the experience (IMAX+3D+modern-day CG). Dances with Wolves did well enough I guess, especially for a Costner flick. Actually, that's probably one template that won't get old, and it's often the B-plot of many action movies.
But I still wonder if people were going to see Avatar for the story, or if they were going to see it for the then-novel visual experience. I would guess the latter, seeing as how people still go see 3D movies and/or in an IMAX theater, but none have done nearly as well as Avatar. It was a gimmick, but done at the right place and time, with the right marketing, and contained sufficient substance. Of course, you can argue that the gimmick is part of the selling point, part of the movie itself, and you'd be right. It's just hard to be successful with the same gimmick more than once, and it gets less important with every use.
I had considered the novelty of Avatar making it tons of cash, no denying it was a beautiful movie to watch. The gimmick was beautifully done, and I think it may help the sequels even if people hate 3D otherwise, but I really do think people are curious enough about what happened on the planet after the earth ships left and what will happen when return. I think Avatar can stand on its own for at least one more movie, probably the two they want to make.
Disney has learned that movies are long term investment, not just box office warriors. They build a brand and milk it.
Several recent flops were by Disney. They're struggling along with everyone else.
As for building a brand, Disney's genius lies not in milking their hits with more movies (which have mostly been by Pixar recently, and which they've been doing irrespective), but in their merchandising strategy for their hits. They release a kid's movie, then they immerse the kids in it by making a ton of toys and apparel based on the movie, and slapping it on new theme park rides. The merchandising market is huge and lasts forever (like Star Wars merchandise). However, the key ingredient for this is a hit movie, which as I've said they're struggling to make these days.
They're going to eventually kill all of the Pixar movies with sequels. Pixar hated sequels when they were still independent. They liked doing new things, telling new stories, creating new characters and places and playing with them. Now that Disney runs the show, Pixar's not doing this anymore. Not that they need to. The current crop of Pixar movies isn't going to run out of steam for at least another two decades (Brave 2, anybody?), by the time which Disney can either buy yet another company and their movie library to milk, or they can ride the Pixar name itself still for another decade or two. Hell, they've done this already, with both the Marvel and Lucasfilm acquisitions. Even if those are old companies, they have a ton of "IP" Disney can milk. And Marvel is producing more each day!
Buying up other companies and running their ideas into the ground is also a part of their genius. But actually making good movies and creating a strong fanbase is not them any longer.
I particularly had The Black Hole in mind. It didn't really do well by Disney standards, but they eventually made money on it. Tron to a lesser degree, Disney can make something obscure and old into something new or notable when they can pull it off.
You can milk a cult movie.
Boondock Saints 2 anyone (does anyone even know this movie actually exists)? Episode I-III? Matrix 2 and 3? And I don't see anyone clamoring for Kill Bill 3 either, (but only because we know Bill's dead). You can't really milk cult movies. They're one-shots, one-time deals. They're cult classics because they're unique, interesting, special, maybe not very good or not generally a
I figured the fact you never actually got to see her dance and the T&A never advanced beyond what was in the trailers played into it quite a bit as well....
I wasn't aware that was still playing. I may want to double-check my numbers, and I'm having a little difficulty with my Google-Fu, I keep coming up with longest run times, and longest at #1.
The Rocky Horror Wikipedia entry seems to support my claim, but we all know Wikipedia is not an official keeper of anything, still I find it a good general source. Still in limited release nearly four decades after its premiere, it has the longest-running theatrical release in film history.
I love Tarantino movies - lots of people love Tarantino movies - lots of people really really hate Tarantino movies.
I liked Watchmen. I thought it was excellent even if it did depart from the book a bit and yes, maybe grew a little dull at times, but was deep enough to get into. Fully half the theater walked out during the first half hour I was in there.
Rocky Horror sucks. The people who like Rocky Horror will tell you it sucks. It's the longest in-box office run of any movie every. It was made before I was born and it still shows every weekend at a theater a half mile from my apartment.
The problem with Hollywood movies today is they use the freaking formulas.
Star Wars - though a formula setter - didn't follow movie formulas of 1977. Yes, say all you want about it being stolen source material, I fully believe you, but it's not how movies were made back then. I know plenty of people who hate Star Wars, not a lot since I chose not to associate with those sorts, but there are many, many people out there who consider themselves too good for such low-brow action flicks.
Avatar - biggest hit of all time. Yes all the block-buster formulas applied, but it also had formula breaking blends of primitive people, aliens, advanced species, spiritual and technical aspects. Even while complying with every blockbuster formula out there it twisted in subject matter only really addressed properly in Japanese Anime and threw in every movie category possible and made it work. On the flip side - Suckerpunch tried exactly the same thing and failed because they focused too heavily on making it look cool and forcing the fact they did so on you. Avatar did it seamlessly.
With the exception of maybe Avatar most of the movies I mentioned, that succeeded or even better yet, did okay but got a cult following had tons of haters. They will endure because of it.
IMHO cult status trumps block buster opening any day. Yes, fine, huge payday on a blockbuster up front, this is what studios want. Cult movies are more of a long term investment. They keep on giving. Disney has learned this, they're milking movies that flopped forty years ago today and making a profit. Disney has learned that movies are long term investment, not just box office warriors. They build a brand and milk it.
You can milk a cult movie. No one cares about a box office hit they forget about and nobody talks about a few years later.
I'm with you on this. I can't wait for color e-Ink for things like Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and good comics, but I refuse to compromise on an LCD though I will keep an eye on this. I want front-lit and then only natural looking stuff. A glassy surface just isn't going to do it. Even if they do come out with a color e-Ink reader in the US it better not compromise on monochrome if they want my business.
I guess that's a reasonable analogy. It's like prohibition - there wasn't exactly a single driving force behind pushing it, it was an attitude that spread and several charismatic people picked up the torch and pushed the hell out of it until the democracied it down the throats of everyone on-board or not.
BTW - I love that Who's your boogieman?! question. I'm trying to turn it into a catch phrase on another network I'm on.
Does it have to be that organized? A few judges (check), politicians (check), at multiple levels (check) with similar views that they think everyone else should share (check) and it happens "legally". You don't have to have one particular force driving tyranny, just a few people with similar goals in rule making positions. When those people all agree that it's in everyone's interest some rights be repealed (already been done effectively) and certain people removed from the flock (see above references) then by golly it's gonna happen and you don't have to put an already existing name on it!
(BTW 80/20 now)
Considering both of those documents are available from the U.S. Army website (or were, the FM doc had it's security fixed) you're an idiot for not being worried about it. The FM document is the real tell all. Are you perfectly okay with the DHS gaining power and increased fire power?
Define enslaved. If 100% of your labor is taken by "the master" not many will argue you're enslaved. What about 90%? 60%? 50%? 30%? At what point is it not slavery? What if it's 100%, but you're provided with "freedom", a car, an apartment, a plentiful food ration, Internet access, health care and cable? What if it's only 50%?
I don't know - there at the beginning of our discussion I gave you about an 80% credibility rating on calling me an idiot. Now I'm calling you an idiot and it's looking about 70/30 in my favor.
You want a more direct reply to what you've said? Fine, look up U.S. Army Regulation 210-35 and FM 3.39.40, these support my statement.
doh! Without threat of escalation
Your assumption that every little thing that happens does so independently with threat of escalation frightens me. Mostly because so many are like you.
Considering the massive amount of wiretapping and various info collection, the Boston door to door searches, the cover-ups of Fast & Furious, Benghazi, the face both the presidential candidates cheated in the primaries, Obama in 08, Romney in 12, then Obama again in the actual election, torture in Gitmo and the FBI giving summary executions on US soil, and that's the tip of the iceberg. I think those of use who wear tinfoil have been recently vindicated.
I've read lots and lots of books over time, and most of them have been paper format. I'm 35 and was a book worm for about the age of 8 until close to my 30's when I just got plowed over with responsibility. I'm picking up the habit again.
I prefer ebooks.
Unlike cheap paperbacks if I fail to hold the thing open right it doesn't snap shut and cause me to completely lose my place. I can buy all the ebooks I want, and when it comes time to move I don't have to give myself a hernia moving the collection. As I continue to collect ebooks I don't have to find more space on the book shelf for them, and I can keep them forever without just giving up my investment if I want to re-read it.
My house has been robbed (by a deputy sheriff no less) and flooded by the storm surge of Hurricane Ike. Yes I had books stolen when I was robbed and after the hurricane I literally used a shovel to move the pulpy volumes into the trash bags. Even if both of my competing supplier ebook readers get burned up as my home catches fire all of my ebooks will be back in my hands as soon as I buy new later model readers to replace my old ones.
I still do occasionally buy dead-tree books. Watchmen for obvious reasons, I have the Dark Tower series, both the hard back and Marvel versions for art reasons. I collected comics as a kid, but other than a few adult targeted ones like I just mentioned I'm not into that anymore, still I do look forward to color e-ink, even if it's only 16 color or something crappy like that for comic reasons.
Nevermind, Wiggins was the cop, not a Farker. When I shared the link on Facebook I copy pasted it - here's what I shared there:
Goldsberry wasn't arrested or shot despite pointing a gun at a cop, so Wiggins said, “She sure shouldn't be going to the press.”
She absolutely positively should have gone to the press, and the court system and brought the press along there. Not that the the press cares about real justice anymore, just steering sheep for their kickbacks.
I did find the link on Fark but I hadn't read the comments. HOLY FARK - it's over 500, I'll look for Wiggins.
What? You weren't terrified of the Mooninites?
These raids being discussed above are to get the populace to accept them as normal, and to eventually get immediate compliance and prostration on "routine" raids in the future. Then disarming people, or shooting them, "for their own good" so that "misunderstandings" don't happen in "routine" raids in the future. These early raids will weed out those who will resist, as they ramp up eventually they'll get everyone who would resist.
People think there are sheep and wolves. Truth is there are sheep, wolves, and sheep dogs. The job of the wolf is to get the sheep to fear the sheep dog - and it's working. The sheep dog is the biggest threat to the wolf, and the wolves are systematically weeding them out.
A near miss.
Nowhere near a miss.
My thoughts on that one.
95C - with IE stripped out.
Windows 95 didn't get usable until after 98 should have already been out with the C revision. Then it was better by far than the original 98.