28 Film Discussion Threads Later

[EvilShoe]

I was already halfway through Seed of Chucky, when I suddenly realized I had already seen it before.

Of all the movies I could've seen twice...

[Li Lili]

I watched the 70s Japanese film, Stray Cats Rock, Delinquent Girl Boss... the first installment of a series dealing with a gang of girl bikers.

http://www.kurotokagi.com/images/stray_cats.jpg

the film was funny to watch...
good music too.

[Sycophant]

I watched the 70s Japanese film, Stray Cats Rock, Delinquent Girl Boss... the first installment of a series dealing with a gang of girl bikers.

the film was funny to watch...
good music too.I saw the Sex Hunter entry to this series several years back and was always curious about the rest. I don't remember Sex Hunter being particularly funny, though.

[Li Lili]

I haven't seen it yet. Perhaps I will.
Every now and then those films are fun to watch.
The quick/abrupt editing, the blue-paint colour overlaid made it a bit odd, adding to the stereotyped acting (especially the evil guys), it could make just a bad film, but the music is quite good, girls aren't chicken and they're mean and pretty, some of them stand out more.
But if I had to compare with other girl film exploitation series, I much prefer the Female Prisoner series.

[jesse]

Frank Langella's performance in the surprisingly poignant, effective Starting Out in the Evening is simply marvelous. Easily the most memorable I have seen all year. I really liked Starting Out in the Evening until that slap and then I lost an unbelievable amount of good will towards it. I've turned pretty "meh" towards it.

Still, besides for the impressive work by Langella and Ambrose, I think Lili Taylor and Adrian Taylor gives some of the best supporting work seen in a film this year.

[NickGlass]

iosos, you wanted thoughts on Romance and Cigarettes? Well, I'll sum it up like this, since Turturro didn't seem to care about coherency, cohesion or pace either:

-Oh, I get it--they're white trash but they're singing in deliberately inept sequences. That's sort of funny.
-Spontaneous singing! Aw shucks, aren't musicals absurd? Isn't it hilarious when you place the musical genre in a landscape detached from its usual setting, therefore inherently mock them while paying homage to the great classic musicals? Yeah, Woody Allen thought it was funny in Everyone Says I Love You.
-Hey, you know what, this is just like a low-class and awkwardly crude Everyone Says I Love You, but without Woody's witty one-liners.
-Turturro is too acerbic, though; he doesn't seem to understand the charm of musicals. Maybe that's why this one is so insufferable.
-But Kate Winslet--what a firecracker. I knew I liked her. Steve Buscemi, too. It's nice of them to give a favor to a friend so I can enjoy something in this train wreck.
-James Gandolfini wants to be circumsized at his age? A male questioning his masculinity in a musical? I hope they play that up. Oh no, they don't. Anyway, I betcha there's a song during his surgery and a high-pitched voice is queued when the doctor first uses the knife. Yup, there it is.
-Someone accused a man of sleeping around and impregnating women. A Busby Berkeley number with pregnant women!? Fun! I really can't see where this is going. Oh, nevermind--it's going nowhere.
-Oh god, are Mandy Moore and Susan Sarandon discussing the nature of love? Now I'm craving some of that flat irony.
-This is pretty tiresome. I'm bored. Christopher Walken's dance moves and Kate Winslet's flopping titties aren't even enough to keep me here.

::exits and walks into the next theatre to watch some of I'm Not There::

I didn't feel at all guilty for walking out, since I just hopped in the theatre after Atonement anyway, and I had to get a head-start on my plans last night.

[Rowland]

I made a blog a few weeks ago that I haven't used yet, but I think I've finally found the inspiration for how to inaugurate it. I'll write about two movies that are more interesting than the derision they have almost unanimously provoked would suggest, and argue that they are both more appealing than a similar movie that is comparatively overpraised, perhaps tying it all together in the end with a short thesis on how artistic failures can still be more curiously stimulating and less insulting than similar movies that appear more competent on the surface. Whether I actually write this or not remains to be seen, but I'm feeling it.

[MacGuffin]

I don't think I'll be able to write about I Don't Want to Sleep Alone because I don't know what the fuck it was. It was all too strange to me, and I don't know what Tsai was saying. As usual, his images are beautiful, and this may be the best shot film I've seen so far in 2007 (I have lots of catching up to do), but as a whole, for me, they didn't equal anything, unlike his other films. Still, it deserves a rewatch, and I'll try to get to that, if only so I can try to piece more of it together. Thoughts?

[NickGlass]

I don't think I'll be able to write about I Don't Want to Sleep Alone because I don't know what the fuck it was. It was all too strange to me, and I don't know what Tsai was saying. As usual, his images are beautiful, and this may be the best shot film I've seen so far in 2007 (I have lots of catching up to do), but as a whole, for me, they didn't equal anything, unlike his other films. Still, it deserves a rewatch, and I'll try to get to that, if only so I can try to piece more of it together. Thoughts?

But it's funny!

[Derek]

Why oh why must I stop and watch Jaws: The Revenge when its on cable. Good Lord, what an abomination.

Is that the one where Jaws follows the family on vacation? You'd think it'd be good for the unaware self-parody alone. :)

[MacGuffin]

But it's funny!

Yeah, in a subtle way. I was probably underrating it. I was pretty tired. I really want to watch The Hole again. I think I underrated that too. I need to watch The River again, and pay more attention this time. Maybe I'll Netflix that one to watch it again. I still need to see Yi Yi. I love Taiwanese cinema.

[Melville]

But it's funny!
That's what I'd say about Romance and Cigarettes.

[Rowland]

I have I Don't Want to Sleep Alone rented out from Netflix, so I'll watch it tonight and chime in.

[MacGuffin]

I have I Don't Want to Sleep Alone rented out from Netflix, so I'll watch it tonight and chime in.

How have your experiences with Tsai been thus far?

[Derek]

Lady Chatterley is remarkably efficient for a 2 1/2+ hour period piece, because Ferran avoids the typical impulse to set the story in a broader social context or pause for more than a few seconds to allow us to grasp the skepticism/disdain certain people in the town may feel towards Lady Chatterley. Instead, the focus remains on her sexual and emotional awakening as well as that of her lover. The various sex scenes, each of which is its own beast and shot in subtly varied styles, act somewhat like chapter breaks, charting their increasing comfortability with their own bodies and that of their lover. Ferran's use of nature is very much in line with D. H. Lawrences sensual modernism, yet unlike so many period pieces, he avoids simply allowing it to act as a stunning visual backdrop. While not as rigorous as Bresson, his editing patterns combined with segmented shots of bodies interspersed with the surrounding natural world allow simple movements and gestures to operate on a similar, purely spiritual level. The subdued performances, particularly that of Marina Hands, and rare use of music in favor of heightened natural sounds give the film the feel of a quiet storm, slowly building like the love between the two protagonists.

[Scar]

Is that the one where Jaws follows the family on vacation? You'd think it'd be good for the unaware self-parody alone. :)

Yep. Nothing quite like a Great White in tropical waters. :confused:

The ending is just soooo bad. There's like 5 different versions, too!

[Rowland]

Wasn't Michael Caine too busy filming the movie to accept an Oscar? That's pretty hilarious.

[Melville]

Wasn't Michael Caine too busy filming the movie to accept an Oscar? That's pretty hilarious.
Yeah, when asked about why he filmed that movie rather than accepting his Oscar, he replied that the cheque for doing Jaws was larger. Although I can't find that quote on the internet, so maybe I just made it up. But here's another good quote from him: "I have never seen the film, but by all accounts it was terrible. However, I have seen the house that it built, and it is terrific."

[Boner M]

Great thoughts on LC, Derek! I found the film uncommonly compelling without really being able to articulate why, but your comments touch upon the things I perhaps unconsciously liked.

PS: Pascale Ferran is a woman. ;)

[Rowland]

L'iceberg... yay or nay, anybody?

[Mal]

L'iceberg... yay or nay, anybody?

I wanna see this sooooo bad...

[number8]

Quentin Tarantino wants to rescue Lindsay Lohan's career:

http://www.abc2news.com/entertainment/story.aspx?content_id=aaf5ca2b-647c-4cc2-b41c-854f773a6a5a

[Kurosawa Fan]

Quentin Tarantino wants to rescue Lindsay Lohan's career:

http://www.abc2news.com/entertainment/story.aspx?content_id=aaf5ca2b-647c-4cc2-b41c-854f773a6a5a

Kurosawa Fan wants to eliminate Quentin Tarantino's career.

[Rowland]

Quentin Tarantino wants to rescue Lindsay Lohan's career:She wants to save it too, if I Know Who Killed Me is anything to go by.

I love how that article says that he's an "expert at revamping fallen stars' careers", citing Pam Grier and David Carradine as examples. Umm... he didn't revamp their careers. I wish he'd lose this stupid reputation.

[Watashi]

Wait... Lindsay Lohan had a career to begin with?

[number8]

Wait... Lindsay Lohan had a career to begin with?

Sure. It began and ended with The Parent Trap.

[Winston*]

Quentin Tarantino wants to get into Lindsay Lohan's pants.

[number8]

This is just about the funniest thing I read today:


[Wesley] Snipes maintains that when he first learned of the indictment, he and his attorneys immediately contacted the IRS and began negotiating his return to the States to turn himself in. But because his agreement with the IRS allowed him to delay his surrender in order to accommodate Gallowwalker's shooting schedule, it appeared as though he was stalling for time — that he was guilty. In December, Snipes chartered a private jet, flew from Namibia to Orlando, and turned himself in to the U.S. Marshals — ironically, the very same agency that he'd once observed and gotten to know while making 1998's U.S. Marshals, the sequel to The Fugitive.

[eternity]

Quentin Tarantino wants to get into Lindsay Lohan's pants.Quentin Tarantino wants to get on Lindsay Lohan's feet.

[Bosco B Thug]

She wants to save it too, if I Know Who Killed Me is anything to go by. But people already noticed how HOT Lindsey Lohan was when she flaunted her breasts on SNL.

Quentin Tarantino wants to get into Lindsay Lohan's pants. Cut Tarantino some slack. He respects women and he's not ashamed to admit it. He's admiring. He admires Lohan's pants because of the fact he wants to get into them. Big difference.

[Rowland]

But people already noticed how HOT Lindsey Lohan was when she flaunted her breasts on SNL.I was thinking more along the lines of the movie's subtext. It applies so blatantly to Lohan, I can hardly believe that she wasn't hired for that very reason.

[Philosophe_rouge]

Walkabout (1971) is a really fascinating and beautifully constructed film... although unfortunately my own appreciation for it is somehow lost because of the CRAPPY DVD. I hate to rant but is it so difficult not to scrape a DVD against a brick wall? I missed what I think was one of the more important scenes of the film because the DVD would not play, then for a large part the subtitles didn't work for the same reason, and I have a difficult time with their mumbling accents. Aside from that though, the film is very involving, and I especially like the characters and how/how much they communicate with one another, as it seems the girl has these enormous barriers she won't let down. While her brother quickly adapts and learns to speak and communicate with their aborigine friend, she doesn't even try. While she appreciates him, she is not interested in his life and existence beyond what it can do to serve her. Then again, I don't think she's selfish, but rather caught up in her own existence and society. It reminds me of a strange monologue by one of my teachers about vampires and how we all don't mind venturing out of our own culture, but only if we can easily slip right back in. Her brother doesn't have these same desires and is not quite integrated yet, so he's more willing to let himself loose. I'm really interested in the commentary, aside from the scene I missed I think some of it was lost on me.

I'm wondering if anyone of you have any Australian film recommendations (although this one is officially from the UK...), I've seen Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Proposition. Possibly others that elude me. I'm intested in seeing more of Peter Weir's work especially, but I don't know what is worth seeking out.

[Ezee E]

Sooo... What will Tarantino's next movie even be?

[Melville]

I just finished the first half of Children of Paradise. It's great so far. Who knew that pantomime could be so entertaining?

[Duncan]

I saw Ousmane Sembene's Emitai the other night. It begins with a dedication to "all African militants," and focuses on a real life event in a small Senegalese town during the French occupation in WWII. A couple of French officers and a platoon of black soldiers demand rice of the villagers to feed soldiers abroad. Naturally, the villagers are opposed to this. Sembene is critical of French imperialism, obviously, but also of tribal religion and patriarchal leadership. For example, as the women of the village are held captive by the French troops, the best solution the tribal elders can come up with is to toss a half dead goat into the hollow of a tree and let it bleed out. Good work guys. You've really accomplished something there. There's also a sort of Shakespearean scene where the Chief confronts his gods that reminded me a lot of the scenes with the witches in Macbeth. This is one of the thematically heavier scenes, but the budget makes it seem fairly amateurish. Or, perhaps, Sembene did not have enough ingenuity to work around his budget in this case. Surely he could have come up with something more provocative than having the gods appear across cuts to the time of garish sound effects. In any case, the film's got a lot of ideas in it. I'm interested in seeing one of Sembene's later films to see if he developed as a director. I know he started off as a writer, and this film strikes me as being very literary.

[Bosco B Thug]

I was thinking more along the lines of the movie's subtext. It applies so blatantly to Lohan, I can hardly believe that she wasn't hired for that very reason. Hmm. I had a feeling it was some bizarre subtext. But really, what's preferable - SNL or meta-textuality? SNL = classy!

[Mysterious Dude]

So I had Max Ophuls' Letter from an Unknown Woman at the top of my queue for several months, and they finally sent it to me a few days ago after a "long wait," or so I thought. When I opened it, it was a Chinese film from a couple years ago. I'm sure it was the Ophuls film that I had on my queue, but now, that film does not even exist on Netflix. I decided to watch it anyway -- it's 86 minutes; what harm can it do? It's not bad, but nothing major. I think I'll give up trying to watch the Ophuls film for the time being.

[Qrazy]

I'm wondering if anyone of you have any Australian film recommendations (although this one is officially from the UK...), I've seen Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Proposition. Possibly others that elude me. I'm intested in seeing more of Peter Weir's work especially, but I don't know what is worth seeking out.

Of his early work I'm particularly fond of Gallipoli. The Last Wave isn't a great film but has some very interesting stylistic devices. Rabbit Proof Fence is more recent and not Weir, but it's also exceptional.

I haven't seen The Year of Living Dangerously but I've heard it's good.

Really disliked Lantana.

[Melville]

Children of Paradise was pretty damn impressive: a great epic of life in the tradition of the 19th century novel (that's not a very good description, but hopefully it carries the right connotations). Besides the elegant dialogue, perfect pacing, and elating pantomime, I was particularly impressed by two things:

First, the mirror-like structure of the film was brilliant. The first part opens with a scene of Paris streets crowded with carnival-goers, and we are introduced to all the central characters as elements of this crowd. As the film progresses, these characters are singled out and extracted from the mass. Thus, what at first seems to present itself as a broad story of the life of 19th century Paris instead turns into a very personal drama about a small cast of characters; as one character says, "Paris is very small for those who love each other with such a grand passion." (In keeping with the tone of the film, this rather weighty remark is not emphasized—only upon reflection does it seem so important.) The second part then concludes with the opposite movement. Again the crowds return, greeting the arrival of the carnival, but now the central characters are cloistered away in hotel rooms and bathhouses, rather than being part of this general mass. Over the course of the final scene, two of the characters are drawn out into the crowd, and despite the best attempts of one of them to catch the other, the crowd overwhelms him, at one point literally swirling around him, and the last we see of him is his disappearance amidst a sea of faces. Thus, the personal drama that arose from the sea of life is washed over as by a wave (if you'll forgive the lame sea metaphor).

The second thing that really interested me was how the characters' views of life are reflected by their views of the stage. The two principal male characters are both stage performers. One, Baptiste, is obsessed with perfect love, with his fate, and generally with "the real". He treats life as deadly serious, and though he adopts a very mannered, exaggerated performance in life, he treats this role as a fixed idea. This attitude is reflected in his performance on the stage: the first part of the film ends with his production of a pantomime in which he places all his despair, in which his performance literalizes his desperate love for an idealized, unattainable woman. It is as if he cannot, or will not, escape his notion of his own life. The second of the two principals, Lemaitre, is always aware of the world as a stage, treating life as a play (in both senses of the word). Like Baptiste, he is always performing in life, but he is self-aware in his performance—he knows that he is putting on a show. And, again, this is reflected on the stage: the second part opens (again, the mirroring of the two parts' structures is great) with a hilariously anarchic scene in which Lemaitre performs in a play that he doesn't care for, and which he proceeds to reinvent and mock as he performs it. Just as in life, he treats the play as pure play, as something somewhat unreal and certainly unfixed. However, he still thinks of both life and stage in terms of roles that he can adopt. Another character is a writer. Unlike the performers, he does not treat life as a stage on which he acts: he treats it as a story which he must control (and which, in the end, he does, essentially rewriting the story that the other character's think themselves to be in).

Of course, all of this is greatly improved by not being overtly emphasized, instead lying (mostly) underneath the wonderful, floating camera-work and tragic romance. Wonderful film-making all around.

[Yxklyx]

I'm wondering if anyone of you have any Australian film recommendations (although this one is officially from the UK...), I've seen Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Proposition. Possibly others that elude me. I'm intested in seeing more of Peter Weir's work especially, but I don't know what is worth seeking out.

Walkabout is indeed a great movie.

Breaker Morant and Muriel's Wedding are two other Aussie movies that stick out. Aren't Mad Max and The Road Warrior Aussie productions?

[Yxklyx]

Sirk's Imitation of Life was terrific. It wove together its two narrative threads about a pair of mothers and daughters with amazing finesse, continually expanding its scope from a beginning as a seemingly minor melodrama to a truly epic ending, imbuing the relationship between the two families with ever more meaning about race, family, social roles, and performance. I'm amazed at how much ground it covered in its two hour running time, and at how smoothly it covered it. Great stuff.

This is a pretty good movie. It does include one scene that could be inserted into David Lynch's Twin Peaks seamlessly. It's the one where the black girl is in her bedroom listening and dancing to some jazz on her vinyl records. The way the camera pans, the acting, the music, the humor - all of this is just like something David Lynch would do many years later.

[Winston*]

At the very least, I've got to give Tideland credit for it's singularity. Bizarre movie, I kind of dug it.

[EvilShoe]

At the very least, I've got to give Tideland credit for it's singularity. Bizarre movie, I kind of dug it.
You also have to love Jeff Bridges for taking a role where
his character is a corpse for half the movie.

[DavidSeven]

Well, Zodiac was the most absorbing film I've seen in a good amount of time. Tremendous stuff.

[Scar]

Well, Zodiac was the most absorbing film I've seen in a good amount of time. Tremendous stuff.

That movie rocks. Its been a looooong time since I felt that uneasy during a film, especially during the park murders.

[Philosophe_rouge]

Of his early work I'm particularly fond of Gallipoli. The Last Wave isn't a great film but has some very interesting stylistic devices. Rabbit Proof Fence is more recent and not Weir, but it's also exceptional.

I haven't seen The Year of Living Dangerously but I've heard it's good.

Really disliked Lantana.
Thanks, Gallipoli sounds interesting and I've heard about Rabbit Proof Fence, although somewhat mixed. The cast is great though.


Walkabout is indeed a great movie.

Breaker Morant and Muriel's Wedding are two other Aussie movies that stick out. Aren't Mad Max and The Road Warrior Aussie productions?

I've seen Muriel's Wedding, I knew I was forgetting some. You're right about Mad Max and Road Warrior, both are Aussie productions.

[Melville]

This is a pretty good movie. It does include one scene that could be inserted into David Lynch's Twin Peaks seamlessly. It's the one where the black girl is in her bedroom listening and dancing to some jazz on her vinyl records. The way the camera pans, the acting, the music, the humor - all of this is just like something David Lynch would do many years later.
Yeah, you're right. I also thought the scene where the girl was attacked by her boyfriend would fit seamlessly into a Samuel Fuller movie. The whole thing had a surprising stylistic range.

[Li Lili]

Really disliked Lantana.
me too.

[Li Lili]

So I had Max Ophuls' Letter from an Unknown Woman at the top of my queue for several months, and they finally sent it to me a few days ago after a "long wait," or so I thought. When I opened it, it was a Chinese film from a couple years ago. I'm sure it was the Ophuls film that I had on my queue, but now, that film does not even exist on Netflix. I decided to watch it anyway -- it's 86 minutes; what harm can it do? It's not bad, but nothing major. I think I'll give up trying to watch the Ophuls film for the time being.
Yes, this Chinese film, Letter from an Unknown Woman, is by the actress and director Xu Jinglei. Very famous Chinese actor (also director), Jiang Wen, also plays in it. I liked the film.

[Li Lili]

I saw Ousmane Sembene's Emitai the other night. I went to see a retrspective of Ousmane Sembene's films a few years ago, also I was very delighted to hear him speaking about his films and his view on African cinema before he died this year.
My favourite and the one I highly recommend is The Camp at Thiaroye, very interesting, and like in all his films, the oral or utterance, the act of speak are very important (in fact in African culture in general).
Also Moolaadé is very interesting.

[Sycophant]

Le Samourai is, yes, awesome. It's impeccably crafted and oozes that ineffable, hypnotic sixties French cool. It's strange to see a film that has obviously had such an impact on cinema worldwide, having seen the works derivative before seeing the source (not that the film itself isn't descended from others, of course). Alain Delon adjusting his hat in the mirror is a beautiful sight.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Le Samourai is, yes, awesome. It's impeccably crafted and oozes that ineffable, hypnotic sixties French cool. It's strange to see a film that has obviously had such an impact on cinema worldwide, having seen the works derivative before seeing the source (not that the film itself isn't descended from others, of course). Alain Delon adjusting his hat in the mirror is a beautiful sight.


:pritch::pritch::pritch:

[Spinal]

Australian films (or films set in Australia) I like:

Muriel's Wedding
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
Dead Calm
Sirens
Finding Nemo
Sweetie
Flirting
Happy Feet
Holy Smoke
Mad Max
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome
Walkabout
Paradise Road
The Piano
Picnic at Hanging Rock
The Road Warrior
Shine
Cane Toads

[Yxklyx]

Australian films (or films set in Australia) I like:
The Piano


I thought The Piano was New Zealand. Are you bundling the two like Scotland and Ireland?:)

[Yxklyx]

Breaker Morant is very good and though it's set in South Africa it's an Australian production and the three main characters are Australian - plus the locations look a lot like Australia (checks IMDB), actually it was filmed in Australia.

[monolith94]

Le Samourai is, yes, awesome. It's impeccably crafted and oozes that ineffable, hypnotic sixties French cool. It's strange to see a film that has obviously had such an impact on cinema worldwide, having seen the works derivative before seeing the source (not that the film itself isn't descended from others, of course). Alain Delon adjusting his hat in the mirror is a beautiful sight.
You should check out This Gun For Hire - the old film noir that Le Samourai riffs on.

[Sycophant]

You should check out This Gun For Hire - the old film noir that Le Samourai riffs on.Noted and queued.

[Spinal]

I thought The Piano was New Zealand. Are you bundling the two like Scotland and Ireland?:)

No, I am aware that it is set in New Zealand. But it is an Australian/French co-production. I checked.

It swept the Australian Film Institute awards for 1993 (http://www.imdb.com/Sections/Awards/Australian_Film_Institute/1993).

[jesse]

Quentin Tarantino wants to rescue Lindsay Lohan's career:

http://www.abc2news.com/entertainment/story.aspx?content_id=aaf5ca2b-647c-4cc2-b41c-854f773a6a5a Hmmm... I wasn't quite convinced it was over yet. I think if she gets her shit together she'll be fine.

For the record, I think she has the potential to be one of this generation's finest actors. I just hope she doesn't squander it.

[Russ]

Re: Australian films yet to be seen by Spinal.

I'd second Breaker Morant. You should also try to catch other early entries by Beresford (Don's Party, recommended) and Fred Schepisi (The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, haven't seen, but have heard great things).

Also, haven't you seen Gallipoli?

[Boner M]

Praise and Bad Boy Bubby are my two favorite Australian films. Both criminally underseen.

[Li Lili]

ok, so I finally watched This is England and Dead man's shoes by Shane Meadows, and well, didn't do much to me.

[MadMan]

I saw Superbad last night. Pretty hilarious, although it dragged in some parts. The scene where Fogell shows them his fake idea was the funniest part of the movie for me.

[Ivan Drago]

I saw Superbad last night. Pretty hilarious, although it dragged in some parts. The scene where Fogell shows them his fake idea was the funniest part of the movie for me.

"One name? Who are you, Seal?"

[Rowland]

Has anyone seen Operation Homecoming? It's a lovely made-for-PBS documentary about the revealing and humanizing properties of the written word as artistic and cathartic expression, in the form of stories, poems, letters, et al. written by soldiers while deployed or upon returning from Iraq, which the director then visualizes in a variety of inspired and moving ways. I recommend checking it out.

[Sycophant]

The Meh-g ***
Remind me what this is?

[Boner M]

Remind me what this is?
The Fog... I think.

[baby doll]

Just posted my review of I'm Not There. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days and Margot at the Wedding are on the way.

[Qrazy]

ok, so I finally watched This is England and well, didn't do much to me.

Yeah, just watched it and was also underwhelmed. Certainly a hell of a lot better than Romper Stomper though.

[Boner M]

Danger! Diabolik is more proof that MST3K is made by and aimed at dull-minded fools with no sense of humor. Apart from being wonderfully tongue-in-cheek and deliciously campy, it's packed with indelible and poetically daffy images every minute; a woman's bare leg rising from a pile of cash, male/female showers, an obscured-lens shot of a doobie being passed down a line of hippies, and so much more. Loads and loads of fun.

[lwilson85]

I'm watching my first Todd Verlow film tonight: Once And Future Queen. I've heard mostly awful things about the film making people physically sick. Thoughts later.

[Mysterious Dude]

Danger! Diabolik is more proof that MST3K is made by and aimed at dull-minded fools with no sense of humor.:| Was that really necessary?

[Boner M]

:| Was that really necessary?
Yes. I'm sorry if I've made anyone cry.

[Sven]

Yes. I'm sorry if I've made anyone cry.

The only reason I cried is because of my precious boner's unusual lack of perception.

[Spinal]

Nothing is worse than a Boner that lacks sensitivity.

[Duncan]

penis

[Spinal]

penis

Are you insinuating something?

[Duncan]

Are you insinuating something?

Hey, I'm not pointing any fingers.

[Mysterious Dude]

Yes. I'm sorry if I've made anyone cry.
Tell me, are there any other movies that have been featured on MST3K that you like as much as Diabolik?

[Boner M]

The only reason I cried is because of my precious boner's unusual lack of perception.
Sorry, but you can't get people's attention anymore by tapping them on the back. You've gotta come in their face.

[Boner M]

Tell me, are there any other movies that have been featured on MST3K that you like as much as Diabolik?
I haven't seen any other movies featured on MST3K (sans MST3K commentary).

[Mysterious Dude]

I haven't seen any other movies featured on MST3K (sans MST3K commentary).So out of roughly 200 movies, you've found one that you like, and that is enough to dismiss the show's creators and fans as fools?

[Rowland]

Sometimes Boner has to be hard on you to get the force of his point across.

Seriously though, as someone who doesn't care for MST3K, I would never put down its fans so callously. Damn insensitive Boner.

[Sven]

Sorry, but you can't get people's attention anymore by tapping them on the back. You've gotta come in their face.

:lol:

Not quite what I meant, but I laughed, so we're all good.

[Boner M]

I was half-jesting with the MST3K statement, yeesh. I don't like the show, but I don't hate it that much.

[Mysterious Dude]

I guess I just don't find it very funny to be called names, or dismissed on account of my tastes.

[Rowland]

Hey Boner, if your copy of Danger: Diabolik has the commentary by Tim Lucas and the actor who played Diabolik, check it out. They make for a great listen.

[Melville]

Hey dreamdead: thoughts on Children of Paradise?

[jesse]

So last night flipping through the channels I stop on TCM and watch a few minutes of what I find out in retrospect is Pabst's Kameradschaft. I could tell it had something to do with German coal workers. Anyway, in the several minutes I'm watching it cuts away to this group shower scene with literally a hundred naked men, fully naked, some scrubbing each other down. And this goes on for a good five minutes.

I've never seen so much male ass outside of porn. And this coming from a film released in 1931. :eek:

[Spinal]

I guess I just don't find it very funny to be called names, or dismissed on account of my tastes.

How about pages and pages of lame boner puns?

[Boner M]

I'm beginning to feel that my username has disgraced this forum somehow; I think I'll change it to movieguy1985.

[Qrazy]

I'm beginning to feel that my username has disgraced this forum somehow; I think I'll change it to movieguy1985.

Yeah, I think I'm going to change mine to Assmaster5000, just because I can.

[BirdsAteMyFace]

Smiley Face. Well, that certainly was....a film....of some sort.

:|

[Derek]

Smiley Face. Well, that certainly was....a film....of some sort.

:|

Of the horribly, depressingly awful sort, IMO. :)

[Qrazy]

Fists in the Pockets was fairly underwhelming. There's nothing wrong with it, it's very competent... there just wasn't anything outstanding. Probably would have been somewhat shocking at the time of release, other than that. *shrug*

[Sycophant]

It took me a while to figure out how to react to The Good German. Was the film trying to trick me into believing it was made in '46? Made in '46 but magically outside the Hayes Code? And whatever way, what's up with those ugly-ass superimposed titles that look slapped on by iMovie?

It seems to get a little carried away in its showmanship, leaving development of characters and complete coherency of plot behind. Though when I noticed some obvious modern techniques, they threw me for a loop. There are also some abrupt shifts in perspective (I'm always wary of multiple narrators) that don't work as well as they could have.

Of the three leads, it's really Blanchett who nails the acting of the period. I'd forgotten she was in it and didn't actually figure out who she was until a fair way into the movie. She exists very well in the period and her physicality is superb. Clooney, who I've long thought of as a modern Cary Grant, proves that I should put more emphasis on modern. Maybe I'm just too familiar with him, but he stuck out, thought not as badly as Tobey Maguire, who just doesn't seem like he could have been an actor in old Hollywood.

It's a fascinating film, though, if something of a failure. There are some really strong sequences, amazing production design, some stuff that's likably and perfectly Soderbergh, and the supporting cast does a stellar job.

Did anyone else see this? Any thoughts? I'm still working out exactly how to react to it.

[Qrazy]

Do you ever wish you'd been bitten by something other than the film bug? Wouldn't it be nice to have encyclopedic knowledge of something that actually mattered and could be applied to real life? Damn it all to hell!

[Sycophant]

Do you ever wish you'd been bitten by something other than the film bug? Wouldn't it be nice to have encyclopedic knowledge of something that actually mattered and could be applied to real life? Damn it all to hell!

Film's probably the only thing I enjoy in life.

So yes and no.

[D_Davis]

Do you ever wish you'd been bitten by something other than the film bug? Wouldn't it be nice to have encyclopedic knowledge of something that actually mattered and could be applied to real life? Damn it all to hell!

I'm actually getting over my film bug. Besides my top 100 films and a couple of concert films, I've probably only watched 2 movies at home in the last few months. I simply cannot bring myself to watch a whole movie any more. I have zero desire. None, what-so-ever. I think in the last 6 months I've been to the theatre 3 times: King of Kong, This is England, and The Mist. My "to watch" pile of DVDs is HUGE, and many of them have been started but never finished.

I am probably forgetting some, but I guess this just goes to show how much I care about them.

Movies just aren't doing anything for me right now. I'd rather sit down for 2 hours with a good book, or work on my own writing now. I think I've finally gotten fed up with enjoying other people's art, and I've now realized it's time to start making my own again.

Maybe it is just a phase, but I have a feeling that this year was a turning point for me in regards to how much time I spend watching movies. I doubt I will ever go back to the 5+ films/week that I use to watch.

[Qrazy]

I'm actually getting over my film bug. Besides my top 100 films and a couple of concert films, I've probably only watched 2 movies at home in the last few months. I simply cannot bring myself to watch a whole movie any more. I have zero desire. None, what-so-ever. I think in the last 6 months I've been to the theatre 3 times: King of Kong, This is England, and The Mist. My "to watch" pile of DVDs is HUGE, and many of them have been started but never finished.

I am probably forgetting some, but I guess this just goes to show how much I care about them.

Movies just aren't doing anything for me right now. I'd rather sit down for 2 hours with a good book, or work on my own writing now. I think I've finally gotten fed up with enjoying other people's art, and I've now realized it's time to start making my own again.

Maybe it is just a phase, but I have a feeling that this year was a turning point for me in regards to how much time I spend watching movies. I doubt I will ever go back to the 5+ films/week that I use to watch.

Fucking bastard.

[D_Davis]

Fucking bastard.


:lol:

I'm sure I won't give up films entirely, but they have definitely been knocked down a few notches on the priority list. But things come and go, and who knows, they could come back.

[Rowland]

Matt Zoller Seitz (http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/12/07/movies/07revo.html) and Keith Uhlich (http://www.ugo.com/ugo/html/article/?id=18082&sectionId=2) both like Revolver. Now I'm even more interested.

[Ezee E]

I've gotten tired of watching certain types of movies, and sometimes I'm not in the mood for any Netflix for a good week or so, but then I get right back in it,

[Sycophant]

Sometimes I go three or four days without watching a movie. Then, I feel really bad about that and marathon two or three of them to atone. All in all, I try to get in five to eight movies a week, at least 75% of which I want to be new viewings.

But that's now. About a year ago, I was only watching two to four. I'll probably settle back down to that, but I've got a hell of a lot of catching up to do.

I'm tired of not knowing everything about film. :P

[Rowland]

Whenever exhaustion starts to set in for me, I think about all the movies I still want to see from this year, which then bleeds into how many movies from the '00s that I still need to catch up with, which then reminds me of how many fucking movies there are from the last century that I still want to watch. It also probably helps that I'm more optimistic than many people about the state of modern world cinema. This all sorta reinvigorates me.

[Ezee E]

I've also gone back to rewatching a lot of movies I've seen before. It's tough going into Netflix and trying to find a hidden gem or the smaller, usually worse movies from particular directors. The Kubrick releases on Blu-Ray were fascinating to see.

[Ezee E]

Whenever exhaustion starts to set in for me, I think about all the movies I still want to see from this year, which then bleeds into how many movies from the '00s that I still need to catch up with, which then reminds me of how many fucking movies there are from the last century that I still want to watch. It also probably helps that I'm more optimistic than many people about the state of modern world cinema. This all sorta reinvigorates me.
I'm loving modern movies more then anything because I can go into them with more of an open mind, and truely be surprised by something. A good amount of movies on my top ten list this year are movies I would never have predicted being there.

[Philosophe_rouge]

I go through dry-spells myself, and usually what brings me out is actually places like Match-cut and a particular discussion that really gets me fired up, or reminds me of an old favourite or something. It's still nice to have a break to read and do school work I guess.

[Raiders]

Matt Zoller Seitz (http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/12/07/movies/07revo.html) and Keith Uhlich (http://www.ugo.com/ugo/html/article/?id=18082&sectionId=2) both like Revolver. Now I'm even more interested.

Very interesting stuff, but I just find it hard to believe Ritchie has suddenly become this great metaphysical thinker. I mean, granted Besson is along for the ride and I would give him some benefit of the doubt (he at least tries for some level of spirituality in his films), but still, it seems a stretch just based on Ritchie's previous works. Kind of as though all batshit crazy, post-Running Scared actions films have to have something beyond brash entertainment on their minds.

I have no plans to pay theatre price to see it, but I'm sure I'll rent it.

[Qrazy]

Very interesting stuff, but I just find it hard to believe Ritchie has suddenly become this great metaphysical thinker. I mean, granted Besson is along for the ride and I would give him some benefit of the doubt (he at least tries for some level of spirituality in his films), but still, it seems a stretch just based on Ritchie's previous works. Kind of as though all batshit crazy, post-Running Scared actions films have to have something beyond brash entertainment on their minds.

I have no plans to pay theatre price to see it, but I'm sure I'll rent it.

It's likely one of those... this is so bad there must be some deeper meaning here... type of things ala Showgirls.

[Rowland]

Very interesting stuff, but I just find it hard to believe Ritchie has suddenly become this great metaphysical thinker. I mean, granted Besson is along for the ride and I would give him some benefit of the doubt (he at least tries for some level of spirituality in his films), but still, it seems a stretch just based on Ritchie's previous works. Kind of as though all batshit crazy, post-Running Scared actions films have to have something beyond brash entertainment on their minds.

I have no plans to pay theatre price to see it, but I'm sure I'll rent it.I don't think they are arguing that it is profoundly metaphysical, just that it is gleefully brash, surreal, and outré in how it explores its pop metaphysics, which sounds fine to me. One of those "not what it's about, but how it's about it"-type deals.

[Melville]

It's likely one of those... this is so bad there must be some deeper meaning here... type of things ala Showgirls.
Nah, Revolver really does shove its philosophical aspirations down the audience's collective throat. Its deeper meaning is plain to see. Unfortunately, its deeper meaning is pretty trite, and its presentation of that meaning is pretty much insufferable.

[Raiders]

It's likely one of those... this is so bad there must be some deeper meaning here... type of things ala Showgirls.

:|

[Qrazy]

:|

Showgirls fan?

[Qrazy]

Nah, Revolver really does shove its philosophical aspirations down the audience's collective throat. Its deeper meaning is plain to see. Unfortunately, its deeper meaning is pretty trite, and its presentation of that meaning is pretty much insufferable.

A swing and a miss pour moi.

[Sycophant]

Showgirls fan?Qrazy, you walk through a valley of Showgirls fans.

[Qrazy]

Qrazy, you walk through a valley of Showgirls fans.

Oh god, this really is hell!

*styx plays in the background*

[Li Lili]

:lol:

I'm sure I won't give up films entirely, but they have definitely been knocked down a few notches on the priority list. But things come and go, and who knows, they could come back.


I've gotten tired of watching certain types of movies, and sometimes I'm not in the mood for any Netflix for a good week or so, but then I get right back in it,

Me too. I used to be crazy like watching films, just Asian films, then, because I am more and more involved in film festivals and spreading/distributing films, I've been just watching mainly only those films, and I was too tired to watch anything else than just the average entertaining Asian films every now and then.
Now, I start watching US and European films, but they seem so foreign too me as I'm used to Asian standards, and so far they don't appeal me enough. But this gives me a change, and I, too, think it's a phase.
Also, now I watch a film just for watching it, not for writing or analyzing or even debating because I'm already doing this for the films I present, spread or "distribute".

[Sycophant]

Me too. I used to be crazy like watching films, just Asian films, then, because I am more and more involved in film festivals and spreading/distributing films, I've been just watching mainly only those films, and I was too tired to watch anything else than just the average entertaining Asian films every now and then.
Now, I start watching US and European films, but they seem so foreign too me as I'm used to Asian standards, and so far they don't appeal me enough. But this gives me a change, and I, too, think it's a phase.
Also, now I watch a film just for watching it, not for writing or analyzing or even debating because I'm already doing this for the films I present, spread or "distribute".

By the way, Li Lili... from whence do you hail, and what do you do?

[Li Lili]

By the way, Li Lili... from whence do you hail, and what do you do?
I live in Europe but my heart is in China.
To be brief, I'm in relation with some film festivals, because I know some Chinese filmmakers or producers, they "gave" me their films, I show some of their films here and there in Europe, I should be part of the film programmer team this year for a film festival.
Also, I'm part of the artistic team of video art and new media festival in Berlin.
:)

[Rowland]

Goddamn, I Don't Want to Sleep Alone is beautiful.

[Winston*]

Goddamn, I Don't Want to Sleep Alone is beautiful.
Hell yeah it is.

[Rowland]

I just wish it didn't feel so emptied-out... which I get is probably the point, but still. Ming-liang really loves his water symbolism. What I would give to have seen this in a theater.

[baby doll]

I just posted my reviews of 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, Margot at the Wedding and Juno. Now I'm going to get something to eat, and try to figure out what I want to see now (I'm leaning towards Gone Baby Gone at the Bloor St. cinema).

[Philosophe_rouge]

I just posted my reviews of 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, Margot at the Wedding and Juno. Now I'm going to get something to eat, and try to figure out what I want to see now (I'm leaning towards Gone Baby Gone at the Bloor St. cinema).
It seems you're enjoying your stay in Toronto so far :P

[Watashi]

Run Lola Run was like Groundhog's Day set to a techno beat.

It was okay, I guess. It adds up as a neat, caffeinated superhero movie.

[Watashi]

Today is Steven Spielberg's birthday.

[Watashi]

Slant just gave Sweeney Todd the big four stars. However, it's from some guy named Robert Keser who I am completely unfamiliar with.

[Mysterious Dude]

Slant now has a movie critic who likes movies? Weird.

[Rowland]

Slant now has a movie critic who likes movies? Weird.:rolleyes:

[number8]

Today is Steven Spielberg's birthday.

And Ray Liotta.

And Keith Richards.

And Stone Cold Steve Austin.

And Brad Pitt.






And mine.

[Watashi]

And mine.

Hmmmmm.

[Boner M]

What I would give to have seen this in a theater.
Definitely a film that would lose something on the small screen. Especially since I found out the Strand DVD is cropped, which has put me off buying it.

[Rowland]

Especially since I found out the Strand DVD is cropped, which has put me off buying it.Really? I didn't notice any compositions that appeared cropped.

[Qrazy]

And Ray Liotta.

And Keith Richards.

And Stone Cold Steve Austin.

And Brad Pitt.






And mine.

Are you trying to tell us you're really Stone Cold Steve Austin? Because if so... *whispers* I believe you.

[lwilson85]

Ok, so I saw Once And Future Queen by underground acclaimed auteur Todd Verow. This reminded me a lot of the Warhol factory era produced Trash directed by Paul Morrissey with a mixture of John Waters characters minus the humor. Anti-matter (no seriously, that's her name) is the front leader for a punk band called whos name is lost on me for the moment. Shot in a very cinema verite style this plays out like a documentary on the entire groups of drug addict/punk rockers who drink, do drugs and fuck anything they see or that will let them. This is not a pretty film but it's a realistic film of trashy people's lifestyles. Anti-matter is basically waiting to die. She doesn't know why she is still alive and is lonely and clings to people or anyone who will give her a place to stay. In one hilarious scene she spots this woman whom apparently was a former friend or hers or someone she just met on the street who gave her the time of day, and preceeds to shout her name carrying this lamp around. This continues until said woman promises to call Anti-matter, then takes the lamp and throw it on the ground and leaves. You have to see it I guess. Not even close to being as good as Trash, but worth a look for showing the seedier side of life.

[number8]

Are you trying to tell us you're really Stone Cold Steve Austin? Because if so... *whispers* I believe you.

Yes. That's the bottom line, isn't it?

[Melville]

So, was I the only person who didn't really care for Kings and Queen? The spastic editing really put me off. The constant jump-cuts seemed at odds with the material.

[megladon8]

I've still never seen Run, Lola, Run.

I was skeptical because so many of the people I've known throughout school loved it, and these are the same people who loved movies like Tomb Raider and Resident Evil.

[Rowland]

I've still never seen Run, Lola, Run.

I was skeptical because so many of the people I've known throughout school loved it, and these are the same people who loved movies like Tomb Raider and Resident Evil.Great movies can be loved by people with poor/undeveloped/indifferent taste as well. I know people who would include both Batman Begins and Fantastic Four as some of their favorite superhero movies. Does that say anything about BB? I don't think so.

[Rowland]

Devin Faraci on how Edgar Wright's film festival in LA has rekindled his love for the experience of cinema (http://www.chud.com/index.php?type=news&id=12962)

*sigh*

[Watashi]

I'm about halfway through Causalities of War and it's quickly becoming one of the worst films I've seen in a long, long time. I'm not sure if I'll even be able to finish it. And no, it's not because of the disturbing subject matter.

[megladon8]

I'm about halfway through Causalities of War and it's quickly becoming one of the worst films I've seen in a long, long time. I'm not sure if I'll even be able to finish it. And no, it's not because of the disturbing subject matter.


I didn't like it either.

Even though I understood the reasoning behind Michael J. Fox's casting, I still think it was a bad choice. He really didn't fit at all.

[Rowland]

I'm about halfway through Causalities of War and it's quickly becoming one of the worst films I've seen in a long, long time. I'm not sure if I'll even be able to finish it. And no, it's not because of the disturbing subject matter.Because of how De Palma directs the movie? He crafts it like a melodramatic suspense thriller, which I imagine turns a lot of people off.

[megladon8]

Great movies can be loved by people with poor/undeveloped/indifferent taste as well. I know people who would include both Batman Begins and Fantastic Four as some of their favorite superhero movies. Does that say anything about BB? I don't think so.


I realize this, but it was shown in the same course that showed Pay it Forward and Where the Heart Is in high school.

Couldn't help feeling a little skeptical when it's shown alongside those.

[Watashi]

Because of how De Palma directs the movie? He crafts it like a melodramatic suspense thriller, which I imagine turns a lot of people off.
The entire film feels artificial and lifeless. It's almost theatrical where the sets stand out and you never fully believe they're knee-deep in the jungle. There is no atmosphere whatsoever.

But the worst offender are the characters. Boy, is the script sloppy. It's like Brian DePalma took Back to the Future and set in Vietnam. Ridiculous, maybe? But it's basically Marty McFly fighting off Biff and his two goons (all actors are horrible at delivering their lines, but that is the script's fault). Not to mention John Leguizamo/George McFly character who bites into peer pressure despite promising not to earlier on. It's laughable when it tries to be shocking. The forced awkward racism feels like it should be on an soap opera.

[MacGuffin]

I'm about halfway through Causalities of War and it's quickly becoming one of the worst films I've seen in a long, long time. I'm not sure if I'll even be able to finish it. And no, it's not because of the disturbing subject matter.

What made you decide to pause the film and go online?

Hehe.

[Watashi]

What made you decide to pause the film and go online?

Hehe.
To bother you.

[MadMan]

Do you ever wish you'd been bitten by something other than the film bug? Wouldn't it be nice to have encyclopedic knowledge of something that actually mattered and could be applied to real life? Damn it all to hell!I know a great deal about history and politics. But yes I'd rather know more useful things than film, TV knowledge, and useless trivia that would only serve me well on game shows.


I'm watching my first Todd Verlow film tonight: Once And Future Queen. I've heard mostly awful things about the film making people physically sick. Thoughts later.wilson! Welcome to the site dude. Long time no see.

The Simpsons Movie is glorious. Despite a few gags falling flat I laughed so hard I was crying at times. So far its the best TV to movie adaption I have ever seen. My favorite part was "Spiderpig," which was just as funny in the film as it was in the previews.

[chrisnu]

So, was I the only person who didn't really care for Kings and Queen? The spastic editing really put me off. The constant jump-cuts seemed at odds with the material.
I didn't really care for it, and honestly don't remember a whole lot about it, other than Emmanuelle Devos being particularly good, and Mathieu Almalric being particularly obnoxious.

[Qrazy]

I know a great deal about history and politics. But yes I'd rather know more useful things than film, TV knowledge, and useless trivia that would only serve me well on game shows.


I know a great deal about being awesome, but that doesn't mean I couldn't have been being more awesome. Yeah, that's right, I went there.

[Sycophant]

I know a great deal about being awesome, but that doesn't mean I couldn't have been being more awesome. Yeah, that's right, I went there.
I know a great deal about being awesome, but I lack the skills of pratical application that would enable me to actually be awesome.

So, has anyone seen The Good German at all? I'd really like to get someone else's thoughts on it. I couldn't find any discussion to speak of at the old site, either.

[MadMan]

I know a great deal about being awesome, but that doesn't mean I couldn't have been being more awesome. Yeah, that's right, I went there.:lol: Touche Qrazy. Touche.

[dreamdead]

Hey dreamdead: thoughts on Children of Paradise?

Sorry for taking so long to get to this, but my thoughts largely mirror yours, although they're nowhere near as refined and complete. Given my predeliction with Midge and Vertigo, I found myself most interested in Baptiste and Nathalie's relationship, and how the latter became the forgotten woman throughout the entire film. That is, she gains what she wants, ostensibly at least, by marrying him but the lack of reciprocal love in their relationship is frighteningly real. Her trust in fate is thereby misguided and feels as though it also offers a meta-critique in trusting in fate and other otherworldly designs.

Frederick and Baptiste don't quite exist as diametric opposites, which I'd first presumed they would, but rather exist as mirrors of one another. And that's why it's interesting in the film that one gets Garance's physical love while the other gets her devotion. One wears his heart on his sleeve, even in the construction of his plays, whereas the other (Frederick) is always at play and seemingly uninterested in more than sexual pleasure.

There's no transition in thoughts here. Anyway. The discord at the film's ending thus interested me, as it ruptures any semblance of normality and instead strains what we might initially guess to be a happy ending. Garance only causes ruin for Baptiste, and if anything she displays a sin of pride in trying to see him again. Meanwhile, Baptiste and any devotion he has toward Nathalie is still basically in flux (few images were more devastating in the film than him fleeing her while he's onstage pantomining the final play), and this sense of noncommital-ness damns all the characters and subverts any possibility of hope or comfort in the future (except for maybe Frederick, who still seems blissfully unconcerned with life). Really solid film, and I now question why I sat on it for two months...

[MacGuffin]

Weekend:

Suspiria (Dario Argento, 1977) [rewatch]
Innocence (Lucile Hadzihalilovic, 2004)
Dont Look Back (D.A. Pennebaker, 1967)

[Melville]

I didn't really care for it, and honestly don't remember a whole lot about it, other than Emmanuelle Devos being particularly good, and Mathieu Almalric being particularly obnoxious.
I didn't mind Amalric, but his character and performance did seem a bit 'cute'—kind of one-dimensionally shticky.

[Melville]

Sorry for taking so long to get to this, but my thoughts largely mirror yours, although they're nowhere near as refined and complete.
Nice thoughts, especially regarding Nathalie. I hadn't really given her character much thought.

[Boner M]

I kinda flip-flop with my opinion on Kings & Queen. The performances are stellar, and it has many sublime moments, but I don't really buy that messing up a film with randomly shoehorned breakdancing and convenience store robbery scenes captures 'life's messiness' and whatnot; it just feels like reductive shorthand similar to the kind that Desplechin's desperately trying to escape from.

That said, I generally responded favourably enough to the film's passionate emotional bombast, that I'd be willing to give it another go as well as Desplechin's other work (My Sex Life... especially).

[Melville]

I kinda flip-flop with my opinion on Kings & Queen. The performances are stellar, and it has many sublime moments, but I don't really buy that messing up a film with randomly shoehorned breakdancing and convenience store robbery scenes captures 'life's messiness' and whatnot; it just feels like reductive shorthand similar to the kind that Desplechin's desperately trying to escape from.
Yeah, all the messiness it captured seemed to be of its own devising. It all seemed very contrived.

[Watashi]

I didn't like Kings and Queen either.

It seems that everyone is watching Children of Paradise recently. It's actually #1 on my Netflix queue.

[DSNT]

Surprising to find myself (mostly) in the minority on Kings & Queen. The diversions were all entertaining in their own right and contributed to the overall character development. Plus the acting was the film's strongest point, especially Amalric.

[dreamdead]

It seems that everyone is watching Children of Paradise recently. It's actually #1 on my Netflix queue.

I viewed it 'cause Boner had it in his top 50 list. Add to that the good fortune of us doing a top French-y films, and you might give others a reason to watch. I think you'll enjoy it, too; its grandeur is dandy.

[megladon8]

Going to see No Country For Old Men again tomorrow, with Jen.

Then we'll also try and see The Mist.

[Derek]

Devin Faraci on how Edgar Wright's film festival in LA has rekindled his love for the experience of cinema (http://www.chud.com/index.php?type=news&id=12962)

*sigh*

The Raising Arizona/Evil Dead II double feature was among the year's best experiences in the theater for me. The New Beverly's a wonderful relic and you gotta love it, sticky floors, half-broken seats and all. I didn't realize it but Wright said it's the only remaining theater in LA to have one-price double features (and $6 at that!).

[jesse]

Surprising to find myself (mostly) in the minority on Kings & Queen. The diversions were all entertaining in their own right and contributed to the overall character development. Plus the acting was the film's strongest point, especially Amalric. Well, I'm a big fan, and Nick is too, I know. I actually thought its wild swings of mood, tone and storyline was one of the most appealing and accomplished things about it.

Here's my review (http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/kingsandqueen.php) of it, for what it's worth. (Skip the first sections and just go to the "evidence" part, please.)

...

Gotta say I'm not fan Children of Paradise though.

[Grouchy]

Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! is a hard title to live up to. But the Russ Meyer classic lives up to it at least on its outrageous and overcomplicated dialogue, which sometimes makes it look like these tough go-go girls live in their own planet with a different language. Tura Satana is Varla and she's like "a velvet glove, cast in iron", riding along with token nice-hearted blonde and tough latina chicks. I actually decided to rent my first Meyer out of curiosity, sure, but also because of the girls, and although the movie is outrageous and even mean-spirited in its attack of the family institutions (sort of like Texas Chainsaw Massacre with girls instead of rednecks), it isn't all that sexy except for the two scenes where Tura Satana beats the shit out of someone. Instead, I was hooked for the music, the lousy editing, and the incredibly wrong dialogue. I know I'm not saying anything new here, but QT's screenwriting is hugely influenced by this movie, particularly the way in which Tura seems somewhat aware that she's in a movie, saying stuff like "our screenplay unfolds here, watch" or "here comes the second act".

[Duncan]

Lousy editing? The editing might be my favorite thing about Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!.

[DavidSeven]

So, was I the only person who didn't really care for Kings and Queen? The spastic editing really put me off. The constant jump-cuts seemed at odds with the material.

Nope. It's the meh-est of mehs, as they say.

[Grouchy]

Lousy editing? The editing might be my favorite thing about Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!.
I mean, I'm not denying the movie has an awesome fast pacing, but there are a lot of jump cuts. Even the music jump cuts sometimes, and it doesn't seem to be all that deliberate.

[Melville]

Well, I'm a big fan, and Nick is too, I know. I actually thought its wild swings of mood, tone and storyline was one of the most appealing and accomplished things about it.

Here's my review (http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/kingsandqueen.php) of it, for what it's worth. (Skip the first sections and just go to the "evidence" part, please.)

...

Gotta say I'm not fan Children of Paradise though.
Nice review. I generally liked the structure's oscillations between humor and drama, but I disagree with this: "The film seems all the more real because of Desplechin's intentional exaggeration—it pulsates with a sense of tender sympathy and understanding for the human condition." The exaggerations didn't seem to isolate anything meaningful. They were too self-aware, somehow. And any sympathy seemed masked by all the jump cuts and deliberate quirkiness.

Boo to disliking Children of Paradise.

[Briare]

So, has anyone seen The Good German at all? I'd really like to get someone else's thoughts on it. I couldn't find any discussion to speak of at the old site, either.

Very stylistic, almost too stylistic for its own good. Most of the oomph of the story is gone as it is left with little but a barebones detective story set in Berlin, but its very entertaining. As others have noticed, the cussing seems a bit out of place in a movie so obviously meant to resemble a wartime picture but I didn't really mind it. I actually really enjoyed the film. Just don't expect a lot of depth and you should be okay.

[Sycophant]

I finally watched the damn shark movie. It was really great and it was supreme entertainment and yada, yada, yada.

[Sycophant]

Very stylistic, almost too stylistic for its own good. Most of the oomph of the story is gone as it is left with little but a barebones detective story set in Berlin, but its very entertaining. As others have noticed, the cussing seems a bit out of place in a movie so obviously meant to resemble a wartime picture but I didn't really mind it. I actually really enjoyed the film. Just don't expect a lot of depth and you should be okay.Strangely--not to get too hung up on "moral" content--the swearing often felt out of place and forced, while I found the sex felt fairly natural.

[Boner M]

I Don't Want to Sleep Alone (Tsai Ming-liang, 2007) **½
Bah, what a gyp. :sad:

[Qrazy]

I finally watched the damn shark movie. It was really great and it was supreme entertainment and yada, yada, yada.

This one?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92yHyxeju1U

[Qrazy]

Off topic but... hilarious/sad/creepy/the entirety of the human condition.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/vine/showthread.php?t=599721&page=1&pp=30

[Spinal]

This one?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92yHyxeju1U

Or perhaps this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nzd0R_OeOc

[Melville]

Off topic but... hilarious/sad/creepy/the entirety of the human condition.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/vine/showthread.php?t=599721&page=1&pp=30
Wow. That's a lot of fetishes for just one man.

[Philosophe_rouge]

Still slowly making my way through the Lubitsch filmography, That Uncertain Feeling is easily one of his lesser works, but nonetheless amusing and breezes right by. It feels too much frankly like Bluebeard's Eighth Wife, another one of his not so great films. The cast here is slightly more likeable, or at least Douglas is an infinetely better actor than Cooper ever could be. Merle Oberon is absolutely stunning, images dont' do her justice... I'm always saddened though that she felt the need to cover her skin in heavy cosmetics because of her Indian heritage. Apparently while this film was being made, she had been suffering cosmetic poisoining for the second time and there are very little close-ups for this reason. She was so beautiful, and a more than serviceable actress I wish she would have had the self-confidance to overcome that stigma... perhaps though, it's a double edged sword and Hollywood wouldn't have accepted her. Meh, weird rant.

[Sycophant]

This one?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92yHyxeju1UHmmm... it was a lot like this one, but all scary and intense and dramatic and stuff.

Seriously, though... Williams's main Jaws theme is undeniably awesome. But some of his other scoring elements in this one struck me as misplaced. Particularly, he had a theme that seemed to evoke feelings of the thrill of the hunt and high seas adventure during the last half that didn't seem to work with the fear and isolation that the film otherwise had me feeling. :confused:

that's the one complaint I have. Otherwise it was goddamned masterful.

[/stops inciting the wrath of Barty & Wats, LLC]

[Grouchy]

Off topic but... hilarious/sad/creepy/the entirety of the human condition.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/vine/showthread.php?t=599721&page=1&pp=30
WOW. I wasn't around to know this Hazelrabbit fella, but that's just insane. It's like reading the killer's notebooks in Se7en.

[Watashi]

He got banned in my thread for posting child pornography. It was inevitable he got the axe.

[Grouchy]

He got banned in my thread for posting child pornography. It was inevitable he got the axe.
Sounds like the kind of guy to bring home for dinner with your mom.

[baby doll]

It seems you're enjoying your stay in Toronto so far :PThe sidewalks are pretty slushy, and I'm staying with my sister who lives way out in Mississauga, and she has this stupid dog who she can't control, but other than that, it's okay. My review of Gone Baby Gone is up and Before the Devil Knows You're Dead is on the way.

[baby doll]

So anybody know of any blog site host things that aren't all bitchy with technical glitches?

[Rowland]

Bah, what a gyp. :sad:He has done much better.

[Rowland]

He got banned in my thread for posting child pornography. It was inevitable he got the axe.There is no "The" in front of "Casualties of War", hater. :P

[Sven]

In recent news, Happy Feet is still great the fifth time around.

[Ezee E]

In recent news, Happy Feet is still great the fifth time around.
I can take one Robin Williams, but whenever there's three at one time, I can't take much of it.

[Sven]

I can take one Robin Williams, but whenever there's three at one time, I can't take much of it.

I'm pretty sure there's only two.

[Rowland]

Armond White Interview Part III (http://bigmediavandal.blogspot.com/2007/12/sweet-lime-and-sour-grapes-armond-white.html)

[Sven]

Armond White Interview Part III (http://bigmediavandal.blogspot.com/2007/12/sweet-lime-and-sour-grapes-armond-white.html)


In a way, I guess you could say that's why [Baumbach]'s friends with Wes Anderson, because they're both doing the same thing. Look how one does it, and look how the other does it. Which one edifies you?

Thus, Armond speaks for me.

[Rowland]

Thus, Armond speaks for me.If only I ever got the impression that Armond gave Baumbach any sort of chance. He didn't seem to understand The Squid and the Whale at all, too busy was he griping about its milieu and somehow reaching the conclusion that we were supposed to identify with the Daniels character. His anti-Baumbach bias is so blatant that it's impossible to take his views on the man seriously.

[origami_mustache]

Off topic but... hilarious/sad/creepy/the entirety of the human condition.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/vine/showthread.php?t=599721&page=1&pp=30

(shivers)

[Raiders]

AW: A fantasy. Look at somebody like Jonathan Demme. You need somebody who'll be steady, dependable, who understands what the world is, has respect for humanity. That's what you need, not Spike Lee showing off all the things he hates...

No, let that go. Let that go. You don't need that. Please understand. One of the greatest American movies of the past ten years is Beloved. Ain't no underhanded, sneaky thievery thing about that. It's a mainstream movie made by people with money who were brave enough to stand up for what they believe in and turn that into art (http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=974). The same stupid critics that didn't like The Landlord when it came out dismissed (http://www.salon.com/ent/movies/reviews/1998/10/16reviewa.html) Beloved when it came out. But you have a culture of criticism that simply doesn't want Black people to have any kind of power, any kind of spiritual understanding or artistic understanding of themselves. That's the example that I think is helpful for you to follow. No need to be a sneak thief. Stand up and say what you believe. Do it. Use the mainstream apparatus to create a work of art that's useful to everybody.

Hm. I like this.

[Sven]

If only I ever got the impression that Armond gave Baumbach any sort of chance. He didn't seem to understand The Squid and the Whale at all, too busy was he griping about its milieu and somehow reaching the conclusion that we were supposed to identify with the Daniels character. His anti-Baumbach bias is so blatant that it's impossible to take his views on the man seriously.

I'm willing to accept that he gave it a chance, but only in terms of what he knew about its maker, what he knew the film was about, and how the film looked. From what I know, he knew Baumbach's family from way back in the day. I'd say it'd be pretty difficult to divorce yourself from that kind of foreknowledge and impression about a class you've personally observed--a milieu that you have come to understand or reject as self-serving (or in White's situation, probably racist). I like Squid/Whale to an extent, but in the end, I prefer the AW ideal of art as edifier, which is something that Squid/Whale definitely was not.

[Sven]

Hm. I like this.

Again, my rep's all gone. One of the things I like about you most, Raiders, is your love of Demme. We'll always have that.

In similar news, I got Stop Making Sense from Karagarga. Burnt it to a disc last night. Popped it in the dvd player hooked up to the new 32" HDTV.

:eek: :eek: :eek:

[Raiders]

Again, my rep's all gone. One of the things I like about you most, Raiders, is your love of Demme. We'll always have that.

In similar news, I got Stop Making Sense from Karagarga. Burnt it to a disc last night. Popped it in the dvd player hooked up to the new 32" HDTV.

:eek: :eek: :eek:

Yeah, I really need to see this again. It's been a few years. As far as Demme docs go, I cannot recommend The Agronomist highly enough. Fantabulous film.

[number8]

SB: I ran into two guys who recently interviewed you at the New York Film Festival and they said they were shocked that you liked Darjeeling Limited 'cause they weren't expecting you to. But when I listened to the interview, you threw me for a loop by saying that Wes Anderson was good friends with this guy [Margot and the Wedding director] Noah Baumbach, that he's friends with an asshole. How could you say that? Do you know him? Do you personally know these guys to say that Baumbach is an asshole, Wes Anderson is a good guy, and it's a mystery to you why they're friends?

AW: Look at the movies. That's how I know. You're aware of what D.H. Lawrence said about writing...? Trust the tale, not the teller. So, Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach, they can tell you what they believe they're about. They can get on a podium and say, "This is what I believe in, this is what I feel, this is what I love, this is what I dislike..." Can't trust any of that. You've got to look at the movie. You look at Noah Baumbach's work, and you see he's an asshole. I would say it to his face. And, of course, he gets praised by other assholes, because they agree with his selfish, privileged, stuck-up shennanigans. I don't need to meet him to know that. better than meeting him, I've seen his movies.

Awesome.

Utterly awesome. I think this interview has changed my perspective on Armond a little bit.

[number8]

To clarify, Margot at the Wedding was one of the most unpleasant movies I had to sit through this year, possibly worse than Bratz, and I did walk out of it cursing Baumbach as an asshole.

[Raiders]

I got none of what Armond is saying about The Squid and the Whale, but I wouldn't doubt him finding me a privileged asshole. So be it.

[Rowland]

To clarify, Margot at the Wedding was one of the most unpleasant movies I had to sit through this year, possibly worse than Bratz, and I did walk out of it cursing Baumbach as an asshole.And yet you loved Hostel II? :crazy:

I can't wait to see Margot at the Wedding. All of the highly varied and impassioned responses intrigue me.

[Rowland]

I got none of what Armond is saying about The Squid and the Whale, but I wouldn't doubt him finding me a privileged asshole. So be it.He would consider all of our critical opinions absolutely worthless, so we're in the same boat. :pritch:

[number8]

And yet you loved Hostel II? :crazy:

Yes, it was subversively brilliant. What's the connection?

[baby doll]

I got none of what Armond is saying about The Squid and the Whale, but I wouldn't doubt him finding me a privileged asshole. So be it.But you do get what he's saying about Margot at the Wedding? Then again, I'm sorta white so I must not know who I am.

[Rowland]

Yes, it was subversively brilliant. What's the connection?Just that it's an unpleasant, ugly, stupid movie that I hated, just as I presume you felt about Margot. *shrug*

[Rowland]

But you do get what he's saying about Margot at the Wedding? Then again, I'm sorta white so I must not know who I am.He's the only movie critic who knows who he is. Hush.

[Watashi]

Armond White is the fillet of arrogant critics.

[Sven]

Armond White is the fillet of arrogant critics.

You are lucky I am out of rep.

[Yxklyx]

Did anyone notice that IMDB now shows Mamoulian as co-director of Laura. Anyway, I like it less now after the rewatch. I just don't see what all the buzz is about this so called classic.

[Raiders]

But you do get what he's saying about Margot at the Wedding? Then again, I'm sorta white so I must not know who I am.

I haven't seen it, so I couldn't comment on what he says about it.

[Watashi]

You are lucky I am out of rep.
:(

It's been two whole weeks since my last rep.

[transmogrifier]

It is part of my new mission statement to not get drawn into discussions about how inconsistent, maddening, logically flawed, biased, bitter, politically naive and all round arrogant Armond White is.

So I won't.

[Raiders]

It is part of my new mission statement to not get drawn into discussions about how inconsistent, maddening, logically flawed, biased, bitter, politically naive and all round arrogant Armond White is.

So I won't.

Heh. Two of your last three posts have centered around Brad Bird and Armond White. I think you ought to really try harder on these New Site Resolutions.

[transmogrifier]

Heh. Two of your last three posts have centered around Brad Bird and Armond White. I think you ought to really try harder on these New Site Resolutions.


Did Bird feature in one of my previous mission statements? I gotta keep a tighter reign on these things.

[Raiders]

Did Bird feature in one of my previous mission statements? I gotta keep a tighter reign on these things.

Well, there was Ratatouille I believe, so it is related...

... quick, go post about PJ Harvey!

[Melville]

Did anyone notice that IMDB now shows Mamoulian as co-director of Laura. Anyway, I like it less now after the rewatch. I just don't see what all the buzz is about this so called classic.
Agreed. Usually if I don't care for a "classic" film, I can at least understand what others see in it. Laura, however, seemed to have nothing going for it. Everything in it seemed slight to the point of non-existence. The detective's infatuation with Laura made me wonder if I somehow missed a reel where that was developed in any way.

[Boner M]

Can anyone recommend me some Kon Ichikawa? I'm going to buy either An Actor's Revenge, Fires on the Plain, or The Burmese Harp today, but I can't decide...

[Sven]

:(

It's been two whole weeks since my last rep.

What I was doing was giving you a vague threat about negative rep, actually, but maybe you wouldn't've minded anyway. Tough love is better than no love, right?

[soitgoes...]

I just got back from a week-long vacation to PA to see my folks, and the only thing I watched while there was Christmas with the Kranks and Madagascar. Gotta love family viewings.:|

[Spinal]

Armond is the only guy more over-discussed at Match Cut than Danny Huston.

[soitgoes...]

Can anyone recommend me some Kon Ichikawa? I'm going to buy either An Actor's Revenge, Fires on the Plain, or The Burmese Harp today, but I can't decide...
The Burmese Harp, but Fires on the Plain is pretty great too.

[Boner M]

The Burmese Harp, but Fires on the Plain is pretty great too.
Thanks, but I've been reading up on An Actor's Revenge, and I think I'm leaning more towards that. I'll try and check out all of them eventually.

[soitgoes...]

Thanks, but I've been reading up on An Actor's Revenge, and I think I'm leaning more towards that. I'll try and check out all of them eventually.
I haven't seen it yet, but I hear that its as great as the others. Still Burmese Harp is possibly the best of Japanese cinema, FWIW.

[Qrazy]

I third the Laura sentiments.

[Watashi]

All you Laura dissenters = :crazy:

Laura > Rebecca

[MadMan]

Armond is the only guy more over-discussed at Match Cut than Danny Huston.*Points to avatar. Grins*

[Melville]

Laura > Rebecca
That's just crazy talk.

[Melville]

The Cinematheque in Toronto is playing Bondarchuk's 7-hour adaptation of War and Peace next month. I'm thinking that's an opportunity I can't miss.

[Sven]

The Cinematheque in Toronto is playing Bondarchuk's 7-hour adaptation of War and Peace next month. I'm thinking that's an opportunity I can't miss.

Yeah, it was playing here, too, but I was like, 7 hours...

As per Laura, I agree with you guys that it's relatively unsatisfying contrasted to the hype, but I also agree with Wats that Laura > Rebecca.

[baby doll]

All this hating on Laura is pure blasphemy; Preminger is one of the few truly great filmmakers who ever lived. Anyway, I just posted my review of Before the Devil Knows You're Dead.

[Watashi]

All this hating on Laura is pure blasphemy; Preminger is one of the few truly great filmmakers who ever lived. Anyway, I just posted my review of Before the Devil Knows You're Dead.
How come you never post your reviews here?

[Qrazy]

All you Laura dissenters = :crazy:

Laura > Rebecca

Don't really care either way because I find they're both underwhelming.

[Qrazy]

All this hating on Laura is pure blasphemy; Preminger is one of the few truly great filmmakers who ever lived. Anyway, I just posted my review of Before the Devil Knows You're Dead.

Meh, the misogyny on display in Anatomy of a Murder tempered my enjoyment of the film.

[Raiders]

Meh, the misogyny on display in Anatomy of a Murder tempered my enjoyment of the film.

The what?

[Philosophe_rouge]

Did anyone notice that IMDB now shows Mamoulian as co-director of Laura. Anyway, I like it less now after the rewatch. I just don't see what all the buzz is about this so called classic.
None of Mamoulian's footage is in the final film, he was fired soon after he began shooting and his footage was scraped. Anyway, I love it, my second favourite noir and one of my all time favourite films.

[dreamdead]

Carney's Once is absolutely frickin' magnificent. While it can be viewed as relatively slight and draws on montage a little too much at the end, it is otherwise splendid entertainment. The first few songs are breathtaking, and the energy that the performers draw on is infectious on every level. Between the delicacy of the songs and the ease in which Carney invests his characters with life, it's just a marvelous ride. And the final shot of the film, with the Girl staring out, is just breathtaking. Ye gods, if I see something better than this this year it'll be a great year.

[Sven]

Honestly, I'm hard pressed to think of a more overrated "respected" filmmaker than Preminger. Anatomy of a Murder is fun, but that's pretty much it.

Maybe Louis Malle. But I haven't seen enough of his early films.

[transmogrifier]

Carney's Once is absolutely frickin' magnificent. While it can be viewed as relatively slight and draws on montage a little too much at the end, it is otherwise splendid entertainment. The first few songs are breathtaking, and the energy that the performers draw on is infectious on every level. Between the delicacy of the songs and the ease in which Carney invests his characters with life, it's just a marvelous ride. And the final shot of the film, with the Girl staring out, is just breathtaking. Ye gods, if I see something better than this this year it'll be a great year.

I usually like those types of shots, but I really think that in this case, that final shot is merely directorial showing off, and actually works against the rest of the film. The fact that the film ends on a cliched wide angled view of the neighborhood, and thus tries to stake some ground in a wider context, is a total cheat given what has come before it: a pretty hermetic analysis of two people meeting and flirting and not having the guts or the optimism to make a go of it. The last shot is a director not knowing how else to end it.

[Rowland]

I usually like those types of shots, but I really think that in this case, that final shot is merely directorial showing off, and actually works against the rest of the film. The fact that the film ends on a cliched wide angled view of the neighborhood, and thus tries to stake some ground in a wider context, is a total cheat given what has come before it: a pretty hermetic analysis of two people meeting and flirting and not having the guts or the optimism to make a go of it. The last shot is a director not knowing how else to end it.Hmm. I didn't interpret the last shot as trying to stake wider sociological ground, but rather an expression of wistful acceptance and finality. That said, I felt that the movie successfully integrated its social milieu into the margins of the core romance, in that it expressed how relationships (both ephemeral and enduring) and art act as preservers of the human spirit in such impoverished cultural/economic environments, all of which constitutes a microcosm of the human condition.

[Spinal]

a pretty hermetic analysis of two people meeting and flirting and not having the guts or the optimism to make a go of it.

This is not how I interpret the film at all.

The point is that they have the guts to appreciate what they have, yet understand that there are limits to what can happen between them in the long run. They fulfill each other as best they can and do not spoil the love they have for each other by 'making a go of it'. The time is not right and they are adult enough to understand it.
That's what makes the film so special.

[transmogrifier]

Hmm. I didn't interpret the last shot as trying to stake wider sociological ground, but rather an expression of wistful acceptance and finality. That said, I felt that the movie successfully integrated its social milieu into the margins of the core romance, in that it expressed how relationships (both ephemeral and enduring) and art act as preservers of the human spirit in such impoverished cultural/economic environments, all of which constitutes a microcosm of the human condition.


I liked the film, don't get me wrong, but I don't buy this. I'm not saying that the film doesn't intend what you say, but I didn't find much preservation of the human spirit going on at all in the film. They both seem rather spirited to begin with, for one, and in the end, they don't really do anything with the gift that the music gave them, i.e bringing them closer together to someone that they may just be suited for. It seems to me that they rather depressingly accepted their situation and didn't do anything to fight for it, which I would have thought art would have encouraged.

If anything, they seem to limit even further the choices that they allow for themselves in life, and the phony uplift at the end cuts against this.

[transmogrifier]

This is not how I interpret the film at all.

The point is that they have the guts to appreciate what they have, yet understand that there are limits to what can happen between them in the long run. They fulfill each other as best they can and do not spoil the love they have for each other by 'making a go of it'. The time is not right and they are adult enough to understand it.
That's what makes the film so special.

What makes the film special is the excellent music and the chemistry between the lead, in my opinion. The themes running through it, however, are on the bland side or even somewhat regressive.

[Spinal]

The themes running through it, however, are on the bland side or even somewhat regressive.

Well, sure they are if you misinterpret them. :)

[Derek]

Can anyone recommend me some Kon Ichikawa? I'm going to buy either An Actor's Revenge, Fires on the Plain, or The Burmese Harp today, but I can't decide...

You can't go wrong with Burmese Harp or Actor's Revenge, since both are among my favorites. I do slightly prefer Actor's Revenge for its astonishing cinematography, but they're such different films that I can't really choose between them.

[number8]

I heart Sweeney.

[Qrazy]

The what?

*double checks to make sure I didn't spell it wrong*

:)

The misogyny... objectification, disdain for women.

[Boner M]

w/e

Theatre:
No Country for Old Men
Atonement
Force of Evil

Home:
Raising Arizona (rpt... becoming a trend here)
An Actor's Revenge (cheers Bick!)
Secret Sunshine
Retribution

[Duncan]

I'm going to make a concerted effort to get up early enough tomorrow to see Youth Without Youth before catching a plane back to Canada for the holidays.

After that, maybe I'll see I am Legend, or The Golden Compass - that's the only kind of stuff that plays around me. Quick poll, of those two, which one is more worthwhile. Reactions here seem to be very mediocre on both counts.

edit: Either way, as of like 30 minutes ago I'm officially done with what has been by far the busiest, most stressful 3 1/2 months of my life. I could watch the worst film in the world right now, and still be happy.

[Watashi]

Weekend:

Atonement
Sweeney Todd
Juno
Charlie Wilson's War

Finally a good movie weekend this season. Hopefully all will deliver.