What MOVIE(s) have you been....seeing? watching?

jason10mm wrote: Dune Part 2 I liked Dune p2 far more than Oppenheimer though both are a little hollow for me, TBH. Still, this film has got to be a lock for a half dozen or more of the production/set design type Oscars, and I'm sure it will get noms for 5-6 of the acting/directing ones as well.

I just saw Dune 2 today at 11:00 a.m. because the other IMAX showings were packed. You hit all the key points--it was visually impressive, fun to watch, and yet it felt so grim and sort of heartless. It is definitely worth seeing and it wasn't devoid of great moments, but "sort of hollow" is a great way to describe it. I was sort of amazed that such a weird, decidedly nerdy movie has become such a phenomenon. Now I've got to drop references to something even more obscure to maintain my self worth.

The Furiosa trailer looked like it was full of garish CGI. Not trying to poop on anyone's enthusiasm.

Some good points here: fanfare.metafilter.com/23685/Dune-Part-Two

(sure, I think most people would rank regular Zendaya and Florence Pugh in about the same tier of ridiculous good-lookingness, but if we imagine Zendaya looking like Zendaya would actually look after months fighting in the desert drinking her own urine, it's less obvious it's essentially a tie)

Did Irulan get pregnant from Sting in the book? I last read it ten years ago in Qatar

Couple of disappointing ones. The Man From Nowhere is a bog-standard revenge film of gangsters and organ thieves messing with the wrong pawn broker. Just nothing to make it stand out. Lots of silent glowering from our protagonist, villains that come across as more ridiculous than threatening, and a severe lack of exciting set pieces. Further held back by a bad sound mixing in the dub that essentially muted a lot of background noise.

Extraction 2 was the bigger disappointment. I had really enjoyed the first Chris Hemsworth-vehicle as a descendant of John Wick and The Raid: extended high-quality action scenes and a novel setting (Bangladesh). Extraction 2 is more of the same with ridiculous scenes that begin with a prison riot and continue through to a train chase or an invasion of a Viennese high rise, but that's all there is. It's just action and, though bravura, there is nothing to make me care about it. The villains aren't particularly menacing or hammy. Hemsworth is just empty. He's a decent actor and has range but has been told to not emote at all. The kids are supposed to be an emotional core, but the girl is a non-factor and the boy sucks. I'd say just catch the action scenes on YouTube, but that's most of the movie right there.

Caught a clip of upcoming boardgame documentary "The Hobby":



Looks like it centers on the World Series of Board Games, which is not my thing, although I'm curious to know what industry talking heads they interviewed.

Am I the only one who thinks the title is weird? I know that boardgamers like to refer to gaming as "the hobby", but doesn't every hobbyist culture do that?

I don't know who the target audience is for that. But its definitely not me.

...not to be confused with another documentary from this year with the exact same name, only this one is about trading cards / card collecting. The Hobby:



Also, I agree, that first guy in the first video is exactly the kind of person I wouldn't game with.

Ew. Being 'obsessed' with winning against 'strangers', he sounds like a fun guy.

As one data point, I have never actually heard someone use the term 'the hobby'. The only places where I have ever read it was board game websites. To me it has a lowkey vibe of in secret it's not a hobby at all.

I see it all the time on r/boardgames; usually in the COMC posts ("Collection after 1 year of being in the hobby!" "After three years in the hobby!") Their interpretation of "being in" seems to be demonstrating how much they've spent to be part of the "in crowd", of course, and is always accompanied by a request for suggestions about what to buy next.

Cranberries wrote: Did Irulan get pregnant from Sting in the book?

No, you are confusing characters/actors. That was Lady Margot Fenring, played by Léa Seydoux.

Nodens wrote: Ew. Being 'obsessed' with winning against 'strangers', he sounds like a fun guy.

Oh God, the shot of him staring wistfully out the window at a darkened Los Angeles: "I'm not interested in developing quantifiable skills, but it is DEEPLY important that I feel superior to the people around me."

Re: the term "the hobby". It makes perfect sense to me in miniature gaming circles; less so in boardgaming, where it's never clear whether people are referring to playing the games, collecting them, or both.

It’s even more broad with miniatures, where you can be a player, collector, painter, sculptor.

The World Series of Boardgaming is relatively new; it’s going into its third year. While I have absolutely zero interest in attending, I do find it interesting to watch from afar . What sort of behaviors will be initiated when the grand prize is $25,000? Small by Vegas standards obviously but unparalleled in the board game world not counting Magic . I watch the final live stream the first year - the game was DUNE IMPERIUM . The people at the table were surprisingly normal and chill considering the stakes . That said, sheer statistical probability dictates some sort of meltdown or noteworthy incident will happen at some point .

Virabhadra wrote: Oh God, the shot of him staring wistfully out the window at a darkened Los Angeles: .

That's Las Vegas.

And to each their own, but if someone spends their time in Vegas watching people play board games, they are doing it wrong.

I’m imagining a Dodgeball style parody movie.

"If you can block a wrench, you can block a worker!"

hotseatgames wrote: That's Las Vegas.

And to each their own, but if someone spends their time in Vegas watching people play board games, they are doing it wrong.

I dunno, give me a good buffet nearby and hostesses walking around handing out free drinks, I'd go there to play board games instead of blackjack

Just tell me "Lords of Vegas" is a mandatory inclusion for any board game con located on the strip???