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'The Interview' Released for Streaming

MICHAELSD

MICHAELSD

macrumors 603
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Jul 13, 2008
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Figured this was worthy of a new thread on the topic.

Officially released on YouTube Movies & the Xbox movie store. Win for America.

Wasn't expecting a $5.99 rental price for a major studio theater-day release. Nice move Sony.

What bewilders me is why this is on the Xbox movie store but not the PlayStation Network. Hmm, Sony's still not totally recovered or doesn't have enough faith in their security? :rolleyes:

Curiously none of the cable companies are carrying it On Demand nor is iTunes. A million homes will probably be watching this on Christmas, but it could have easily been millions. Still, Sony prevails by bringing this to a wider audience even if their domestic gross may not be as high at the $5.99 rental price.
 
**** you Kim Jong-un. I'm going to do some bong hits and watch The Interview. 'Murica, **** yeah!
 
The whole thing was an advertisement hoax anyway.

How to make a fortune with a medicore movie, 1-0-1.
 
Meister said:
The whole thing was an advertisement hoax anyway.

How to make a fortune with a medicore movie, 1-0-1.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't call $5.99 rentals a fortune. They could've easily charged $15 for a rental of a same-day major movie. They would've made more with a wide release.

Gotta stop distracting myself on Xmas though :).
 
Watched it right at 1pm on YouTube. I had nothing else to do until going to my relatives' at 4 for dinner anyways. I guess we'll see in a few days if people try and hack Google and leak my CC info.

As a movie, the first half to two-thirds were better than my low expectations. Some really great stuff. First half is a 4-5 star movie. The ending was obviously ridiculous and way over the top, but that's a Rogen/Franco movie for you. Second half was probably a 2-3 star movie.

Under normal circumstances, I would've waited until this was a $5 matinee to go view it, if watch it at all. So they got an extra buck out of me 1-2 weeks earlier if it had a regular launch (well, that buck is probably going to YouTube).
 
The first half relishes in its mere stupidity, equating to a Rogen/Franco chemistry that can be downright hilarious under the right circumstances. Especially with all the backstory this is a great film for Christmas with the family, at least in a family that likes likes to laugh at absurdity. Not as good as the pair's prior efforts together and the $40 million budget seems inflated but I've enjoyed the first hour and ~ ten minutes I've seen before passing out.

What I do enjoy is watching the film before it even was released in theaters for a $5.99 rental. Frankly I would rent movies a lot more often if companies adopted this model. Usually I'll see only a few movies in theaters per year, but I subscribe to all the cable movie channels and Netflix so by the time they leave the theater I'll forget about them until they make the paid subscription rounds. (Even though Xbox's video store does have some noticeable compression and other outlets were offering a 48-hour rental.)

Frankly even with the 4K theaters picture quality is still superior on my Pioneer Kuro :).
 
MICHAELSD said:
Especially with all the backstory this is a great film for Christmas with the family, at least in a family that likes likes to laugh at absurdity.
Click to expand...

A great film for Christmas with the family? Are you serious dung beetle?
 
Gutwrench said:
A great film for Christmas with the family? Are you serious dung beetle?
Click to expand...

Maybe I should clarify: I am sure everyone in the family is at least familiar with the controversy surrounding the film, making it a great discussion piece. Obviously not a film for younger audiences but otherwise it's a solid comedy made ten times more interesting by the media to watch.
 
Meister said:
The whole thing was an advertisement hoax anyway.

How to make a fortune with a medicore movie, 1-0-1.
Click to expand...

If I were an SNL writer, I'd do a skit where Seth Rogen and James Franco secretly visit Kim Jong-un and give him his share of the money for agreeing to help hype a movie that probably would have bombed at the box office. :)
 
Just watched it on YouTube pretty bad movie I probably wouldn't have wasted my time watching it if not for Sony being hacked
 
Kudos on this one to both Google and Microsoft. Which is hard for me to say. And major fail in my opinion for Apple. Gutless.
We spent a ton of time trying to stream that da** movie. First with the Youtube app on Apple TV. Finally figured out that you could not buy/rent it through Apple TV. Then tried installing and using Google play app on iPad... and streaming the movie to Apple TV. For some reason, audio streamed but no video. Then nothing but error messages. Tried playing on MBA, and streaming... forced me to install new Flash version. Hate flash. Streaming was choppy, forcing a downgrade of picture quality. I assume it was the streaming to Apple TV that was at fault, since it was playing ok on the MBA.
Totally overall bad experience, thanks to Apple being gutless.

p.s. trying to cook popcorn in the microwave while streaming to Apple TV jacked the whole thing up. Completely chopped up the movie. Had to pause till done. Kinda funny.
 
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gavroche said:
Kudos on this one to both Google and Microsoft. Which is hard for me to say. And major fail in my opinion for Apple. Gutless.
We spent a ton of time trying to stream that damn movie. First with the Youtube app on Apple TV. Finally figured out that you could not buy/rent it through Apple TV. Then tried installing and using Google play app on iPad... and streaming the movie to Apple TV. For some reason, audio streamed but no video. Then nothing but error messages. Tried playing on MBA, and streaming... forced me to install new Flash version. Hate flash. Streaming was choppy, forcing a downgrade of picture quality. I assume it was the streaming to Apple TV that was at fault, since it was playing ok on the MBA.
Totally overall bad experience, thanks to Apple being gutless.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Apple should be ashamed of themselves.
 
Couldn't even finish The Interview during my 24-hour rental period due to the Xbox Live outage. It would be pretty lame if Microsoft doesn't refund/extend rental periods since their service is down while viewers try to watch it. I wanted to give the Xbox video store a chance over YouTube/Sony's site but am disappointed by the experience. Although I frown upon other methods of obtaining movies they seem to be more trouble-free than actually paying even though I do pay for movie channels/Netflix. Not that Comcast's On Demand app is trouble-free on TiVo because it's a pain in the ***.
 
yg17 said:
I watched it with my family. Granted, we're all over 21, but I'm not sure why the word family should automatically assume kids.
Click to expand...

Maybe for the same reason you felt compelled to include the "Granted, we're all over 21..."?

My son, who's 26 said he wouldn't watch it because he felt the plot was offensive. I think he should lighten up a bit but he has his own mind, ethics, and opinions.
 
I'm watching the movie right now and it's pretty funny, but nothing out of the ordinary. Franco and Rogen are great actors, but movie is more run-of-the-mill comedy than anything new.

Gutwrench said:
Maybe for the same reason you felt compelled to include the "Granted, we're all over 21..."?

My son, who's 26 said he wouldn't watch it because he felt the plot was offensive. I think he should lighten up a bit but he has his own mind, ethics, and opinions.
Click to expand...

26 years old and finds the plot offensive? That's interesting. You don't seem like the been living under a rock with your family type. However, to each their own. His decision his right, anyone and everyone must respect that.

What were your thoughts on the flick?
 
Gutwrench said:
Maybe for the same reason you felt compelled to include the "Granted, we're all over 21..."?

My son, who's 26 said he wouldn't watch it because he felt the plot was offensive. I think he should lighten up a bit but he has his own mind, ethics, and opinions.
Click to expand...

Although the premise could be seen as offensive, the only part out of the first half I've seen that I'd deem genuinely offendable is the North Korea "Death to America" song that opens the film, portraying masses of North Koreans hating America.
 
xMacFeinx said:
I'm watching the movie right now and it's pretty funny, but nothing out of the ordinary. Franco and Rogen are great actors, but movie is more run-of-the-mill comedy than anything new.



26 years old and finds the plot offensive? That's interesting. You don't seem like the been living under a rock with your family type. However, to each their own. His decision his right, anyone and everyone must respect that.

What were your thoughts on the flick?
Click to expand...

I thought it was a good waste of time. I laughed in several spots. I would not have watched the show had it not been for the publicity. I don't watch many shows but I have watched much worse.

My daughter (step daughter), 18 in March, would not watch it either...nor would we have watched it together if she was interested. She's a self proclaimed "green socialist" and "social justice crusader". She's very smart, much smarter than me. It's obvious she doesn't have any of my genes. (She's Chinese. I tell her she has her mother's good looks, her father's brains, and my eyes. She replies saying, "sigh.")
 
MICHAELSD said:
Although the premise could be seen as offensive, the only part out of the first half I've seen that I'd deem genuinely offendable is the North Korea "Death to America" song that opens the film, portraying masses of North Koreans hating America.
Click to expand...

I find the plot to assassinate a current leader a bit distasteful but apparently not as much as my son and daughter so I watched it anyway. I remember wondering if the song's subtitles were accurate and it raised my eyes a bit that a movie would have a young girl sing the lyrics. The scene where the three boys were playing guitar and being splattered with blood also raised my eyebrows. I suppose there are dozens and dozens of shows putting kids in worse scenes. I imagine the producer or director must film such scenes in a way that somewhat protects the kids. I guess until I walk a mile in the shoes of the parents, I won't know what I'd do. I expect I'd lean toward not allowing them to participate.
 
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