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  • #16
    Watched The Irishman.
    Is it long at 3.30 hours? Didn't seem so, but we watched in the comfort of our loungeroom with a couple of small breaks.

    I found it a little overhyped, and not as good as Goodfellas.

    Still, most enjoyable.

    The acting -- now that is worth it. I'd say Al Pacino delivered the masterclass in acting.
    This should've been called Hoffa because I think he really stole the show with the part of the disappeared union president.

    Joe Pesci delightfully underplayed his role...none of the ranting psycho which characterises what he usually does in films such as Casino.

    Now for The Irishman, Robert de Niro's portrayal of Charles Brandt.

    Yes, he was excellent. Couldn't fault him. But I was not convinced that Brandt, as portrayed by de Niro, could've instantly impressed people to rise through the underworld ranks.

    De Niro's Brandt simply has no charisma. Unlike Pacino's Hoffa who overflows with charm.

    Unconvincing to see a ballroom full of gangster heavies and political heavyweights turning up to bestow an honour on Brandt...such an ordinary, ordinary hitman/ stooge.

    The costly computerised de-aging? Skin tones were off. The bodies of the 3 protaginists seemed too heavy.

    And rather than somone in his 30s, de Niro looked way older, in his 50s despite the process.

    Martin Scorsese has made many memorable films. Goodfellas. Gangs of New York. The Wolf of Wall Street. Casino. Raging Bull. Taxi Driver.

    I'm not sure...not quite sure...whether The Irishman will be remembered at least by me, as being up there in that catagory.

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    • #17
      Originally posted by robusto View Post

      Martin Scorsese has made many memorable films. Goodfellas. Gangs of New York. The Wolf of Wall Street. Casino. Raging Bull. Taxi Driver.

      I'm not sure...not quite sure...whether The Irishman will be remembered at least by me, as being up there in that catagory.
      Certainly not by us.

      Watched it a few nights back, pretty average fare.

      The way we judge movies is, could you watch it again some time in the future, because of performances or perhaps to pick up points you may have missed, this one didn't make the cut, just another over hyped Netflix offering.

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      • #18
        Further to the film The Irishman...
        I mentioned in this thread that the computer-generated de-ageing didn't really work for me.
        Even though it blew out the budget to the extent Netflix stepped in to finance the film.

        Here's a story about a guy on Youtube who did his own version and compares it to the Netflix one.

        https://www.businessinsider.com.au/d...ng-tech-2020-1

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        • #19
          Originally posted by robusto View Post
          Further to the film The Irishman...
          I mentioned in this thread that the computer-generated de-ageing didn't really work for me.
          Even though it blew out the budget to the extent Netflix stepped in to finance the film.
          Pretty grim when they have to de-age worn out old actors to play the part of younger people, where is the new generation that's supposed to be stepping up to the plate.

          Very little honesty in what you see or hear any more, even recorded music is messed with to the point that musicians will never be able to do the same in a live performance.

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          • #20
            Originally posted by Yelta View Post
            even recorded music is messed with to the point that musicians will never be able to do the same in a live performance.
            Been like that for long time to be honest - since the mid to late 60s when a lot of experimentation started to occur...

            Mal.

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            • #21
              Yelta, I love to see good acting, most preferably without the mountains of CGI, fast editing and superheros which has become the norm.

              Films like Glengarry Glenross (pacino, Spacey, Alec Baldwin, Jack Lemon) with intelligent scripts by writers who know dialogue (David Mamet).

              Like Margin Call.

              I guess you'd have to ask yourself whether a CGI de-aged Pacino or De Niro is better value than a natural age Chris Hemsworth, Aston Kutcher, Daniel Radcliffe etc.

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              • #22
                Yes, agree with Robusto on pretty well all those parameters.
                I blundered into it on Saturday night without realising how long it was. I pulled the pin at 12.45 with still a quarter hour to go.
                The interest in it for me was the very candid statement-of-fact delivery about the connection between Hoffa, the Teamsters Union, the Mob and Joseph Kennedy and John F's election and the following falling-out when the Cuban counter-revolution failed (Bay of Pigs) and Robert Kennedy as Attorney General embarked on an anti-mob campaign that resulted in the assassination of both the Kennedy boys.
                Pretty well everyone in the movie was a scumbag and got what they deserved. I'm not a big fan of gangster movies as I don't like to see scumbags 'humanised'.
                I thought it was a pretty average movie.

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                • #23
                  Originally posted by Rocky View Post
                  I thought it was a pretty average movie.
                  So did I.

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                  • #24
                    Originally posted by Dimal View Post
                    Been like that for long time to be honest - since the mid to late 60s when a lot of experimentation started to occur...

                    Mal.
                    Perhaps so, regardless, I much prefer artists that are able to give similar performances live to what is presented on record, nowadays most cant.

                    "live music is one take whereas recorded music has no limit of takes. When producing and creating music in a studio, the atmosphere of accuracy/perfection is thick and angst filled. As a guitar player, you’ve played your songs countless times. You’ve played a hundred plus shows. Drop into the studio though, and things suddenly change. Producers expect you to play everything perfect, and will cut up a thousand of your takes to turn them into one perfect performance that in my opinion lacks what makes music good: SOUL."

                    The above quote from this site. https://www.guitar-muse.com/the-diff...-the-dose-2428
                    Last edited by Yelta; 16 January 2020, 02:21 PM.

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                    • #25
                      Yelta, I don't know if like me you are a Sinatra fan, but in one of the biographies there is a fascinating account of the recording of I've Got You Under My Skin with the Nelson Riddle arrangement. Soooo many takes. The trombonist left puffed by them after doing his famous solo over and over.
                      Last edited by robusto; 17 January 2020, 12:12 AM. Reason: auto corrector was too zealous

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                      • #26
                        Wasn't that unusual for Cranky Franky?
                        I know he was commended quite a lot for just turning up at the studio, sitting down and nailing his recordings in just one take, then casually leaving immediately afterwards...

                        Mal.

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                        • #27
                          Mal, yes, in films he was one-take (less time on the set=more time to drink) but in the recording studio it was different.
                          Although he couldn't read music, he had perfect pitch and demanded the musicians hit the notes perfectly.

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                          • #28
                            Ah Ok...

                            Makes sense...

                            Mal.

                            Comment


                            • #29
                              Originally posted by robusto View Post
                              Yelta, I don't know if like me you are a Sinatra fan, but in one of the biographies there is a fascinating account of the recording of I've Got You Under My Skin with the Nelson Riddle arrangement. Soooo many takes. The trombonist left puffed by them after doing his famous solo over and over.
                              Yep, very much in the Sinatra camp Robusto, was unaware he was reputed to have perfect pitch, though not in the least bit surprised, certainly one of the greats.

                              Speaking of perfect pitch, Mel Torme was the only singer I was aware of being reputed to have it, a name we don't hear much of nowadays.

                              Perhaps an opening for a couple of posts in the music thread.

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