OT: Epic movies of today

[tuscanyswe]

Originally Posted by jkbrwn

Dune Pt 1 was pretty epic.

agreed

[veloduffer]

I forgot to add some Daniel Day-Lewis films - an incredible actor in almost all his performances are epic

Last of the Mohicans
The Age of Innocence
Lincoln
Gangs of New York
My Left Foot
There Will Be Blood
Phantom Thread

[Louis]

Seeing the length of some of these lists, I have to ask:

How many "epic" movies can a given era have? Seems to me the number has to be limited, otherwise the term begins to lose it's meaning.

[weisan]

Not necessarily but I understand where you are coming from.

We are "spoiled" and privileged, the next drug needs to be more potent in order to get to the next high, more violent, more car crashes, more explosions, more death counts, more special effects, more this, more that... to someone who are not exposed or hasn't seen as many of these movies, their standards or expectations of what qualify as "epic" are lower.

What is epic to me?
Simple.
Contains ideas or scenes in the movie that are either/or: ground breaking, never been done before, leaves an imprint, changes the way we think, moves the needle, changes the current landscape, impacts the future.

I will add one more:
John Wick

The list is not exhaustive.

[oldpotatoe]

Contains ideas or scenes in the movie that are either/or: ground breaking, never been done before, leaves an imprint, changes the way we think, moves the needle, changes the current landscape, impacts the future.

I will add one more:
John Wick

John Wick? Pretty funny mentioning that one with the stated criteria. Maybe leaves an imprint, by the body count and how John seems invulnerable. Also great review of firearms. Reeves is actually quite good at that in ‘real life’, at a controlled range. He’s also quite the philanthropist.

https://youtu.be/Xii9_oWQ7HY

https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebri...eason-25840874
0
Watched all of them, liked them…good guy/bad guy movie. Epic violence.

What are the 7 original stories?
The seven plots are: Quest; Overcoming the Monster; Rags to Riches; Voyage and Return; Tragedy; Rebirth and Comedy."

[majorpat]

Maybe not “epic” due to its 90 minute length, but Greyhound is a superb film.

[weisan]

No, Greyhound is definitely "epic", so is Cast Away, The Green Mile, Finch, Polar Express, Sully, Toy Story.

[Matthew]

I thought Wedding Crashers was pretty epic! I'm a pretty simple guy. Just make me laugh. This is 40 is another. But as others have mentioned, Saving Private Ryan and Braveheart are epic too.

[yinzerniner]

Originally Posted by Louis

Seeing the length of some of these lists, I have to ask:

How many "epic" movies can a given era have? Seems to me the number has to be limited, otherwise the term begins to lose it's meaning.

It’s all relative without set definitions. What do you define as “epic?” Do they require huge star-studded main casts, expensive set and wardrobe design, large-scale on-location scenes? If so then the 50-60s with their “sword and sandal” affinity would be peak epic movie period, with a lot of duds along with some true masterpieces.
But if your definition of “epic” more has to do with storytelling scope and complexity then the late-60s and 70s would have more epic movies than any other time period in American film history. But a lot of those films had neither star-studded casts (at the time) nor elaborate sets and costumes. 2001 easily qualifies as epic but can you name a single actor? Rocky is certainly epic but is incredibly sparse from a budget standpoint.
And what is an “era?” 10 years, 20 years, 50? Is it bad to have “epic” movies in such high supply? The late 50s to 60s with the maturation of the studio system along with the emergence of “new Hollywood” cranked out more certifiable “epic” movies than ever - which of these would you want to disqualify?
-bridge on the river quai
-Laurence of Arabia
-dr zhivago
-Ben hur
-Ten Commandments
-Spartacus
-2001 a space oddyssey
-dirty dozen
-guns of navarone
-longest day
-exodus
-cleopatra
-sound of music
-west side story
-my fair lady
-dr no
-goldfinger
-Bonnie and Clyde
-easy rider
-butch cassidy and the Sundance kid
-the graduate
-guess who’s coming to dinner
-in the heat of the night

Each epic in their own way

IMO there’s no set definition of
”epic” but I defer to this great quote by Justice Stuart re: obscenity - I know it when I see it.

Originally Posted by weisan

Not necessarily but I understand where you are coming from.
We are "spoiled" and privileged, the next drug needs to be more potent in order to get to the next high, more violent, more car crashes, more explosions, more death counts, more special effects, more this, more that... to someone who are not exposed or hasn't seen as many of these movies, their standards or expectations of what qualify as "epic" are lower.

What is epic to me?
Simple.
Contains ideas or scenes in the movie that are either/or: ground breaking, never been done before, leaves an imprint, changes the way we think, moves the needle, changes the current landscape, impacts the future.

I will add one more:
John Wick

The list is not exhaustive.

Immediate gratification due to content delivery options certainly dulls the senses, but true filmmaking (I hate this cliched term, but can’t think of anything better) gravitas is still recognized and lauded.

John Wick is a fantastic example of excellence through execution. The plot sounds simple and derivative but the perfect combo of actor, performance and direction makes it work like a well-oiled machine.

[Elefantino]

A Christmas Story.