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At home you can stop the tape and rewind, but leaving a theatre makes a public statement (though clothed in darkness). What movies have you left, and why?For myself, I remember two: Dr. Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia, both for the same reasons: They were overwrought and unreal, and the spoken dialog (all looped, of course) bore no resemblance to actual acting. Also I well recall, thirty years later, the tattered revolutionists marching down the street supposedly singing the Internationale, while on the soundtrack we heard a glorious chorus in stereo hitting every beat and note. Totally pnony.
clark
Follow Ups:
Can't believe u walked out on 'Lawrence...', then again we all have different tastes.
I actually found 'American Pie' hilarious, guess I recalled something there...
'Fifth element' is awesome!!!can't believe people have walked out on that one.
I even liked 'Titanic', refused to see it for a long time since I've never liked DiCaprio, but when I saw it I was amazed, it was great, shit even DiCaprio was great!
Shindler's List? Man, that 'Mr.Vinyl' must have sniffed too much record cleaning fluid, walking out on that one is pretty f...ed up!
Starship Troopers' is awesome! That dude has no sense of humor what so ever. That movie is totally sarcastic and funny as hell.I got me 'Apocalypse Now' this weekend....WOW!!!That is one hell of an awesome movie...Must have been totally mindbusting in '79...I saw it once when I was a teenager, thought it was boring! Now about 15years later I must say it's one of the best I've ever seen!!!
I think our present mood has a lot to do about how we like movies...oh well.
Curiously enough, I'm only one of many who walked out halfway through. The rest of the audienc was busy loudly taking bets on who would get it next, in a nasty sort of way. I'm surprised it got to be so popular, after the college-student reaction I saw.
JJ
after the second Hindi musical I contemplated making my escape by dashing out the emergency exit; however, I decided that another Scotch was a preferrable course to take and after another Scotch actually began to enjoy the musical that I was watching. Actually, I'm kinda of embarrassed to admit it, but the only movie that I actually walked out on (well, drove out on) was a lousy soft core porn take off of Animal House (the title escapes me). What is really embarrassing is that I actually wanted to stay and watch the flick, but my buddy Doug wasn't into it. Well, the first feature was Lady Chatterley's Lovers, and I guess when you've seen such a high quality film, it is hard to watch another of lesser quality. Anyway, Doug begged me to take us away from the drive-in theatre and I agreed. Sigh. I bet it was a great film, too.I'm a film junkie and will watch any film, no matter how good or bad.
Cheers,
Allan
I lasted about an hour and fifteen minutes. Unbearable.
:(
(NT)
How about this one: Movies you should have walked out on, but didn't.Here are my picks:
Supernova
Skyscraper
1. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
2. Silence of the Lambs
3. That movie about skydiving with Wesley Snipes =?
4. Rocky IV? (The Russian one)
5. School Daze
and McCabe and Mrs. Miller.
... when I was in university this was doing the rounds of the local midnight cinemas. It bacame a cult "ironic" film to see because of the stupidity of the story and the naiveity of the script - you know, get stoned and go to see the silly uncool film. I went to see it with a few mates but we left after about 15 minutes as it actually turned out the be the most BORING film I've ever seen.I also walked out about half way through Fellini's 8 1/2, but that was a long time ago and I've seen it subsequently and enjoyed it.
I must have been watching crap for the last 20 years. I don't get it. What constitutes a good film for you all? What is it that you're looking for: original ideas, things you've never seen before, filming techniques, more T&A, what? Saving Private Ryan, Shindler's List are bad movies?Let me tell you what I think is wrong with this picture...excuse the pun, but by being such die-hard fans of film you've gained much, but lost something very critical. It's called suspension of disbelief. Being hard-core fans, you know what this means, but do you practice it on a regular basis? Or do you only accept this feature when you are watching Star Wars for the 100th time?
Clerk's was one of the worst acted films I have ever seen, but it still kicked ass, the filming wasn't that great either. But there was content that still had strong appeal. How perfect does a film have to be to gain your approval?
I know these are just your opinions, but to walk out of a film is a strong statement. Except for Ghost Dad, that just sounds bad!
Please give me 5 examples of good movies. Prove that your not just film snobs. Or maybe this is what you want people to believe?
Teach me something new.
I had the flu and went to see titanic. Right when the bobbing part of the ship started sinking, I let a big fart into my sweats, which actually turned out to be shitting a pint of diarhhea into my pants. As the shit rolled down my leg, I rushed out the aisle, everyone was looking at me weird, like " why the hell are you leaving now?!" If they only knew! I was so embarassed. I had to go to the mens room and throw away my drawers.
As you ran out, did you yell "I'm king of the world"?
.
nt
Loved the book, despised the movie. I guess that's a common complaint. I wished I'd walked from Eyes Wide Shut.
Excuse me, pardon me, coming through, pardon....
n
....just my 2¢
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I walked out midway through L.A. Confidential, contrived tripe, and
it was a dollar movie! Two others I wished I'd walked out on were
Lost Highway (too confusing) and Eyes Wide Shut (no payoff). They
all sucked. - AH
.. was quite predictable, IMHO. They telegraphed everything. It was basicly a walk through which every actor phoned in.
....just my 2¢
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Wow! L.A. Confidential, Lost Highway, and Eyes Wide Shut are absolutely brilliant films! Granted, the latter two are extremely complex and might cause boredom to set in among some (most?) people. Perhaps it's best to stick with Bruckheimer and Cameron films.
...(I had forgotten!) put me to sleep! LA Confidential, I thought, was OK except that I had already read the Ellroy original (a friggin' noir masterpiece), always a mistake.clark
L.A. Confidential??? That movie kicked ass!
Don't understand walking out on LA Confidential however, I do with the other three.
something subliminally irritating hit me midway thru Confidential,
what was it? I think it may have had something to do with the
writing, or it may have been that I just got bored, lost my patience
and walked out, after all, I only paid a buck to see it. Admittedly,
this may have been an idiosyncratic response. Perhaps the word
"sucked" was a little strong; however, I get a little tired of some
of the hackneyed bullsh*t churned out by some of the HorrorWood
hack writers. I don't like cheap emotional manipulation, but upon
closer analysis, Confidential may be better than I think. Maybe
oneday I will view it in a more objective state-of-mind. - AH
Obviously needed a bigger dose of meds to appreciate the concluding sequence.Seriously, I'm too picky about movies I go see to ever have been at one so bad that I walked out.
I have bailed out of some movies that I have rented though -- "Reds" comes to mind.
Some movies have to be appreciated on their own terms. "Titanic" is one. Visually, a treat -- a movie that succeeds in spite of itself. It could have been so much better -- if some of the hackneyed elements of the plot were eliminated, some of the characters were less two dimensional, some of the dialog was less ridiculous and Leonardo Di Caprio had "missed the boat."
Lawrence of Arabia and Zhivago also fit into that category, too. Lawrence conforms to the film making traditions of another era -- of the spectacle. On second viewing, however, Zhivago seemed overwhelmingly silly -- not romantic.
Oh, well.
RBB --
"Q-tips (tm) work great!"
Tarkovski - those long shots of people on cliffs doing nothing..arrrggghhh!
Titanic - desperately wanted to but could not see properly and ended up trying to doze off but could not achieve that either with the high volume. Theatre was of Titanic proportions to accomodate the crowd so it would have been a long walk in the dark.But for me atleast, movie fit the bill as a walkout movie.
can't think of any other but have I watch all movies on video except "effect" movies and was interested in Titanic probably for the wrong reasons - history, depiction of icebergs, science (what was I thinking)....
Never walked out on a movie, but I've come very close to walking out on two, Fifth Element and Unbreakable.
5th Element (Tucker's character blew the movie)
Tommy (just closed my eyes & heard the music)
End of Days (haven't seen a movie blow as much since "Blade")
Inspector Gadget (fell asleep & haven't slept so well since "Mummy")
....just my 2¢
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Had to laugh when I saw this on your list. A train wreck of a movie. I watched it once with my girlfriend all the way through. She now detests even the original Who album and won't let me play it while she's in the house. I've tried in vain to get her to separate the music from the film.
*
In fact the “Fifth Element” is perfectly fine. It is one of those entertaining and stupid movies, sometimes with good taste but without any pretentiousness or self-importance. Contrary to them the very similar ludicrous, pompous and overbearing movies like “Joan of Arc” and “Dogma” made me to run out.Romy, The Cat
If you go to every movie searching for meaning sometimes you will be quite disapointed when you only find entertainment. The 5th is indeed quite entertaining so long as you dont take it too seriously. And how how could anyone watch Oldman's evil Zorg without chuckling to themselves as he happily goes right over the top in his depiction of complete evil? You're a monster ... "I know."And the bumbling priest's bumbling apprentice? Priceless...
Fortunately I missed Joan of Arc - it had "vehicle for directors wife" written all over it in the previews so I made a point of sorting my sock drawer that day...
joe
Yeah, you're right - I watched it a second time on TV, without the initial anger I felt the first time. For a french director, he does Holy Wood almost too well. The scripts turn out like European McDo's - where you have a bit of everything so that everyone's...er...satisfied!
Jeff, if approach the “Fifth Element” seriously and express anger during the watching then it is clear indication that you red wrong books during your childhood (I love you too). Try lessening the amount of digital devices in your signal path it could help against anger…Romy, The Cat
...'The Incredible Hulk' had a less than positive effect on my patience neurons as a child...and digital implants didn't help the situation either...;0)
n
Clark,
It's a good, though not great movie. Chris Tucker is hysterical, and the movie is solid escapist fantasy.- Michael
"They were overwrought and unreal, and the spoken dialog (all looped, of course) bore no resemblance to actual acting."I'm not that old, thank God, to have walked out on Dr.Zhivago, although given a chance I would.
Lawrence of Arabia I liked a lot. All the truth and lies aside, I think it was a VERY good film.
Have you read the "Seven Pillars of Wisdom"?
I don't think I ever walked out on a movie, but I often went to see silly movies just to laugh. When we were kids we used to go to see some Indian action flick, drink wine in the last row and laugh till the word "End".
Namaste.
1 Missing in action
2 MI-2
3 Pokemon I told my wife and kids that I had the runs.
mn
walked out on Lawerance of Arabia!!! Did you also walk out on Sunset Boulvard? Or Some Like it Hot!? Those too were production infants...or What about the films of Sergei Eizenshtien (rudimentary at best)....I mean, Lawerance of Arabia is a compelling story of a simple man that has had greatness thrust upon him AND rises to the challange!I don't mean to berate you opinion (I have read your post and think you are insightful) but I guess I was blown away..to not enjoy Lawerance of Ariba is one thing but to walk out on the Lean classic is another!!!
I myself walked out of American Pie and End of Days...Why? They were bad on every level (if not insulting) of filmaking.
...but as for David Lean, isn't it true that many people find his work precious and pretentious? And/or deliberately obscure? None of those descriptors appeals to me!I suppose Lawrence could be seen as "enjoyable" and certainly it did not embody the language and situations that make American Pie grotesque (I judge from previews). Nevertheless it was overblown and grandiose, and never captured the subtlety or subtext of its main character.
clark
the "overblown and grandiose" nature of the production created that element of "spectatorship" for which the viewer can hang is preconceived notions...IT IS the bigger than life characters that make it what is was...the grand scale is...well, Lean.I make the comparison ot Apocolypse Now....that film was wrought with surreal and fantasitc mis-en-sciene (sp?)...but it was that very element that brought the spectator closer to the Veit-Nam experiance. Coppola had to highten the senses towards craziness an obsurdity to draw us in to the crazyness and obsurdity of the war....much the same way Lean had to grandise "Lawerence"...we as spectators had to see him bigger that life in order to buy into the fantasy...if not we might as well watch Lethal Weapon XXII.....
Or, I guess, you and I need to agree to disagree...
Happy Holidays, jb
The last one I walked out on (and got a refund for) was "Bulworth". I did't have a problem with Beatty's politics or his wife (a pretty good cook), or even with Bulworth's first few raps. But I couldn't stand that he stayed in rap mode throughout and went to live in a real "hood" for the experience. I just didn't get it; the Los Angeles Critics thought this was one of the best films of the year. Sheer torture!I walked out on "Man Trouble", a Bob Rafelson ("Five Easy Pieces") romantic comedy (it was neither cute nor funny) starring Jack Nicholson as a dog trainer and Ellen Barkin as a classical musician requiring his services. Just awful!
n
Anything to add ?
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