Movies I Have Seen Lately

[The Baron]

Saw a Takashi Miike picture called The Great Yokai War. "Yokai" is a Japanese term for monsters from folklore, as opposed to the more familiar kaiju. It's a kids' picture, about a young boy from Tokyo sent out to live in the countryside with his older sister and his intermittently senile grandfather. When a vengeful spirit appears, the boy gets caught up in a war between warring groups of yokai and must find his courage to become the "Kirin Rider", the hero who will set everything to rights. It's not a bad picture - nothing deep, but an amusing story. Some of the yokai are really trippy, Japanese folklore can get pretty "out there", apparently.

[The Baron]

I have arbitrarily decreed it to be a Christmas movie, said degree backed by all of the authority I possess. (i.e., none)

Jeff of Earth-J said:

SHIN GODZILLA: That's not a Christmas movie (not by my definition). I guess if you watch it on Christmas, any movie if a Christmas movie. I've seen it before (in the theater), but I thought maybe I missed something. Anyway, if nothing else, I understood the ending better the second time though.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I guess it's a Christmas movie, then.

I can't fight an arbitrary decree backed by no authority (lest I be labeled a hypocrite). 

[Philip Portelli]

I saw several Tim Burton/Johnny Depp films:

• Charlie & the Chocolate Factory--never saw it before. Visually stunning but lacks the charm of the original. Hated the Willy Wonka backstory! The new "Mike Teevee" was a hoot, though! Plus roles for Helena Bonham Carter and Christopher Lee! 
• Corpse Bride--saw it years ago. Appreciate it a lot more now. Perhaps Depp's most innocent role. I agree with most people that Victor picked the wrong girl! IMHO, better than Nightmare Before Christmas. Of course, Carter voiced Emily, the Corpse Bride and made her very appealing and Lee voiced the hateful priest!
• Sleepy Hollow--can't recall ever seeing it. Practically nothing to do with Washington Irving's story. Christina Ricci is a Tim Burton fantasy girl brought to life! On the whole, I enjoyed it! The screwiest way to use Christopher Walken though! Dumbledore, Vernon Dursley and Alfred are part of the cast! Lee has a small role while Carter is absent since the only part for her was the stepmother and I doubt that she would have taken it at that time! It really was a tribute to Hammer Horror films!