Very good movie, so that’s a good start.
The commentator is laid-back, and provides some interesting commentary but also plenty of bland commentary, which can be a distraction from the movie.
I find that terrible movies (‘The Room’, ‘Birdemic: Shock And Terror’, ‘Manos: The Hands Of Fate’, etc…) tend to do better in first-time watchings, because you don’t miss anything in the large bits and pieces that you miss (darn copyright).
Grade: B-
Jen seems like a very decent, genuine person at heart, so it’s easy to buy her surprised/shocked/horrified reactions at the goings-on in this film.
The goings-on are pretty horrible and I’m reminded again that there’s so much potential for this to be great, but unfortunately every time I have hope Nic Cage (thankfully without bees) shows up on the screen.
Jen! rambles a bit too much at the end, but has some interesting tidbits.
Grade: D+
5/1/24: Re-watch before post. *shrug* I have different moods.
Jen’s commentary is much more a friendly-Canadian intrusion every time you feel the power and darkness of the film.
Don’t watch this…watch the film yourself, or with people that don’t talk a lot during movies.
Inspirational Quote: “Oh my God, he’s a monster…he’s a monster…”
Grade: D (lowered a notch to clarify how much better it is by itself, and full-length).
One of the worst movies ever. There are so many that I won’t hand out the title that easily, I’ll let you decide for yourself. But this is definitely one of the best worst ever.
I think watching a reaction video is perfect for ‘The Room’, because it shows only the worst of the worst, so you waste less time being awed by just THE worst of one of THE worst. Good job by Emily guiding the room-virgins through it; it’s DEFINITELY better watching it with someone else.
The intro and outro are the only subpar parts.
Grade: B+
I like Ashleigh’s reactions in general, she’s laid back and also interesting; seems natural.
Nothing really *special* here, but a solid entry.
Wish there was much more footage and commentary *shrug*
Inspirational Quote: “Was John Carpenter OK?”
Grade: D+
Calm, pleasant, intelligent reaction. Some good points, nothing really “bad”.
I’d say it’s worth it.
Inspirational Quote: “Every time I look at it it gets worse.”
Grade: C+
The movie is a horrific piece of trash that is ripe for mockery.
It’s a husband and wife duo doing the reaction.
The wife, Emily, is at times adorable and at times out of her mind upset; and right on point with her commentary and physical reactions. Some good lines, some repellant physical shielding (to no avail).
The movie pummels you into submission and just doesn’t let up.
Nice post-movie rant also.
Inspirational Quote: “Anyway, I hear a mountain lion…”
Grade: B
I like Jen overall: she’s affable and she doesn’t seem to be trying too hard.
Interesting and intelligent commentary at times, I think.
Very few painful moments from her, and she’s good at pointing out the numerous painful moments in the movie.
About the movie…yeah, it’s bad. Really, really bad. Goes from a really bad setup to an even worse EXPLOSION of SHOCK AND TERROR!!!
Just…cr@p after cr@p after cr@p. Really nothing to salvage this. I wouldn’t say it’s QUITE as bad as ‘The Room’, but it is pretty darn horrific.
Inspirational Quote: “Oh. Oh…oh, no…ohhhhhh noooooo…..”
Grade: B
Man: Boring /annoying
Woman: Loud, too much d@mn swearing, but the occasional cool line.
Not worth it, especially given all your available FTW choices.
Inspirational Quote: “Is that the Millennium Falcon?”
Grade: D-
Ummmmm…dull.
If you can only watch one ‘The Thing’ FTW, then this will have to do. But given other options, just skip it.
Grade: D-
Want an emotional watch-partner? Well, she certainly qualifies for that. If, on the other hand, you hate screams, avoid at all costs.
She’s also emotional in gentle, pro-dog ways, which is cool.
Her analysis is a lot more basic than it is deeply analytical, so take that into consideration as well.
Grade: C+
A fairly-dynamic duo that works well together at watching and interjecting watches ‘The Thing’ and doesn’t skimp.
Some good commentary on the intellectual aspects and different hypotheses.
I could do with a little less overall moviemaking commentary near the end.
And I wonder how much of the camaraderie is genuine. But assuming it is, this is worth your time for both “watching partners” and good critical analysis.
Inspirational Quote: “Let alien dogs lie.”
Grade: B
Love her nails.
But on to the reaction…
She tends to ramble, sometimes about the subject at hand and sometimes about irrelevant mush.
But since the whole point of these is watching (part of) movies “with someone else” that hasn’t seen them before, then their quirks could potentially just make them more interesting to watch along with.
However I think there isn’t enough charm and too much mediocre-level analysis (as well as too many superior versions of ‘The Thing’ reaction videos) for this to be worth your time. Maybe give it a quick peek and decide for yourself.
Grade: D
Really bland entry, and there are plenty of superior ones out there.
Don’t waste your time.
Grade: D-
I was about to set this aside for the day or even dismiss it entirely, when I found that the host had some wit and natural brassiness to her. Still wasn’t sure how good it’d be, but worth a chance. *shrug*
I think in some cases (like this one, for example) the camerawork in a movie is a bit chaotic and imperfect for intentional reasons of tension, chaos and such, mostly re: horror movies…so we’ll agree (her and I) to disagree about that.
Highlights:
White Girl Dance Party
Alternate Ending finally made clear
Complex mathematics
*Censored*
More complex mathematics
Lowlights:
Plenty of jokes/clips fall flat…not horrific, just dull.
The movie itself is shown backwards. That is, right to left.
It has enough interest points, IMPO, especially as a new entry in the ‘First Time Watching’ genre, to be given a chance. But it’s just too flawed to rate it any higher.
Grade: C
On the plus side, she seems intelligent and rather natural in her reaction. Like, not going overboard for viewers.
Quite frankly I find her a bit on the clinical side…I could go for a bit more emotion. But the only way to really know if this (and if her personality) is a good co-watch with you is to give it a shot.
She also speaks Norwegian, which is good if you want to know what the Norwegian man with a rifle is saying at the beginning.
Me, I find that her translation takes away from some of the mystery of the film. And that’s what it’s all about…who is who is it and when and where and how (and sometimes why)?
The movie being watched gives it its quality, but there are several other FTW examples of it that I prefer.
Inspirational Quote: “Checkmate…checkmate…”
Grade: C
A great way to watch ‘The Thing’ fifteen times in the same day and have each watch vary at least slightly.
Basically, “First Time Watching” videos are for when you’re lonely and want to watch a movie with someone but noone else is into it.
A very useful purpose, I think, at times. The trick is finding the co-watchers that you enjoy co-watching with. So to that purpose, there are a lot of possibilities.
I would recommend giving each a try, and finding out which you like and which you don’t, simple as that. I’ll be watching and reviewing a lot of said reaction videos, with a review of the first-timers typically as well as the subject. That’s a very important part of the enjoyment here.
SPOILER AND NOTE: For copyright purposes, they DO NOT watch the entire film in their videos. So it’s more for re-watching an edited version of a film you know you like (‘The Thing’, I’m lookin’ at you) with someone you know you’ll enjoy watch discovering and reacting to for the first time.
I’ve decided that I will not go back and re-review anything I’ve aleady reviewed. BPD and/or the like makes this an extremely difficult task, PLUS there are so many reviews, PLUS very few people seem to give a solitary fck.
So if my opinion has changed, oh well. This is a work I’ve built for myself out of nothing. It’ll always be here and always be that, even if it has major old mistakes.
– Puppy
At irregular intervals I will be going through old posts and reviewing, re-viewing, or even re-re-viewing (ha ha) them based on current opinion.
When I do so, I’ll make a post indicating what posts I’ve changed, if you have any interest.
– Puppy
This (and all of my posts that are in any way voicing an opinion or seem to be voicing an opinion, positive or negative (or neutral) are protected under the Fair Use of criticism. I make no money whatsoever on these posts. This is to be assumed to apply on all past, present, and future such posts.
‘Absolutely Fabulous’:
“Patsy used to date Keith Moon.”
“Well, sort of…woke up underneath him in a hotel bedroom once.”
Puppy:
Wow…that’s ummm…something, alright.
(Example of Fair Use)
Have a nice day.
– Puppy
Are you bored and lonely? Looking to watch a movie with someone but also by yourself?
This is a category on Youtube where you can do pretty much that.
The quality varies wildly of course, and you’ll have to go through a lot of different “fellow watchers” before you find a Fav.
It can be enjoyable. Just remember – it’s cool to “watch with someone” at times, and in this case you can stop any time you want, and not have to interact in any way. So it’s good for semi-loners and/or really shy and/or depressed and/or socially awkward people.
BUT…they’re not really your “friends”. So avoid unhealthy obsessions. And keep your money in your pockets.
Word that will sear itself into your brain before too long: “Content”.
– Puppy
“Nirvana…
MTV Unplugged in New York [DGC, 1994]
Not only did Kurt Cobain transcend alt-rock by rocking so hard, he transcended alt-rock by feeling so deep. On this accidental testament, intended merely to altify the MTV mindset by showcasing the Meat Puppets and covering the Vaselines, Cobain outsensitives Lou Barlow and Eddie Vedder in passing. His secret is sincerity, boring though that may be–he cares less than Barlow without boasting a bit about it, tries harder than Vedder without busting a gut about it. The vocal performance he evokes is John Lennon’s on Plastic Ono Band. And he did it in one take. A” – Robert Christgau
This is one of his best.
You know he means every word because he always does: there is no hint of camp follower in this or any of his other reviews. This is what he does…and he clearly takes it very seriously.
‘Part One’ was a throw-away; the tone displaying his opinion as much as the words.
This is NOT a throw-away.
He gives his opinion, as always, very distinctly. He’s an authentic, and even though I often disagree strongly with his opinions, it’s comforting to know that he HAS them, that they are FELT.
The tone displays his opinion as much as the words, because this (IMPO) is genuine. Authentic. He didn’t insert random words from a thesaurus to make it look smarter, he didn’t suck up to popular opinion; he displayed his “feeling” towards the music, as much he feels the music itself displays feeling.
This is as raw (in a verbose way) and genuine as Cobain was, and to me it is as fitting a tribute to the man as any I’ve ever seen.
Grade: A
Let’s start with the best of them…critics, that is.
http://www.robertchristgau.com/
“Abba
Arrival [Atlantic, 1977]
Since this is already the best-selling group in the universe, I finally have an answer when people ask me to name the Next Big Thing. What I wonder is how we can head them off at the airport. Plan A: Offer Bjorn and Benny the leads in Beatlemania (how could they resist the honor?) and replace them with John Phillips and Denny Doherty. Plan B: Appoint Bjorn head of the U.N. and Benny his pilot (or vice versa) and replace them with John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Plan C: Overexpose them in singing commercials. Plan D: Institute democratic socialism in their native land, so that their money lust will meet with the scorn of their fellow citizens. C” – Robert Christgau
This is what you call the “so unnecessary you can just randomly mock it” archetype.
Since everyone, by this point, already knew what ABBA sounded like, and since he saw no change in their music, and really no point in them continuing to churn out the same music – which he saw as bad, his “C” does not mean “Average” – he decides to simply indulge himself in mostly-silly musings, incorporating references you may (or may not) get and may (or may not) like. The point is, he does, and he does.
And really…think about it: would you rather read this, or an “in-depth” examination of the music, when that examination would be pretty much exactly the same as an examination of their PREVIOUS album, which would basically say, not in so many words: “This is annoyingly-catchy cr@p.”
I go with this. It’s not one of his best, but it’s an intro.
Grade: B-
The idea is this…
Scour reviews (of books, movies, music, etc) for the BEST and WORST written reviews.
Not reviewing what they’re reviewing…not reviewing what they THINK of what they’re reviewing…
Reviewing the quality of the REVIEW itself.
THINK OF IT!
-Puppy >.< Yip!
