28 Film Discussion Threads Later

[Grouchy]

Forgot to mention I've seen Rudo y Cursi. Far from groundbreaking, but it's a pretty good sports movie.

[Winston*]

Saw The Damned United. Good movie, largely because of an excellent Michael Sheen performance. Got the feeling watching it though, that I would've been better off reading the David Peace novel though, I bet it has some good manly overwriting in it. Ending coda with real life footage of the people was a serious mis-step IMO, ends up giving the movie much more of a TV movie vibe.

[D_Davis]

Sven I thought you should know I was reading about Ravenous the other day somewhere and decided I wanted to rent the movie. I know you champion the film.

It's an incredible film.

[Spun Lepton]

Sven I thought you should know I was reading about Ravenous the other day somewhere and decided I wanted to rent the movie. I know you champion the film.

It's a gem. Love the soundtrack.

[Winston*]

Pretty good lineup for film festival next month I think.

25 Carat
A Film Unfinished
A Prophet
A Screaming Man
A Somewhat Gentle Man
A Town Called Panic
After the Waterfall
Agora
Ajami
Alamar
Amer
American: The Bill Hicks Story
Animal Kingdom
Animation For Kids 2010
Animation Now 2010
Around a Small Mountain
Asylum Pieces
Autour de Minuit
Babies
Beeswax
Bill Cunningham New York
Birdemic: Shock and Terror
Candyman
Carlos - Part One
Carlos - Part Three
Carlos - Part Two
Cell 211
Certified Copy
Citizen Architect: Samuel Mockabee and the Spirit of the Rural Studio
Collapse
Cooking History
Countryside 35x45
Cyrus
Draquila - Italy Trembles
Dream Home
Exit through the Gift Shop
Extraordinary Stories
Farewell
Father of My Children
Four Lions
From Poverty Bay to Broadway
Gainsbourg
GasLand
Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould
Gordon Crook
Hahaha
His & Hers
Homegrown: Dramatic Digital Shorts
Homegrown: Quirky Stories
Homegrown: Works on Film
Honey
How I Ended This Summer
HOWL
I Am Love
I Killed My Mother
I Love You Phillip Morris
I Travel Because I Have To, I Come Back Because I Love You
I Wanna Be Boss
I Wish I Knew
I’m Glad My Mother Is Alive
In the Attic: Who Has a Birthday Today?
Inside Job
Jean-Michel Basquiat: Radiant Child
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Kawasaki’s Rose
La Danse: The Paris Opera Ballet
Last Paradise
Learning from Light: The Vision of I.M. Pei
Lebanon
Like You Know It All
Lourdes
Love in a Puff
Love, Lust & Lies
Mammuth
Marwencol
Melody for a Street Organ
Michael Smither: Artist in Residence
My Dog Tulip
Ne change rien
Nostalgia For the Light
NY Export: Opus Jazz
Oceans
Oil City Confidential
Once Upon a Time in the West
Pianomania
Please Give
Poetry
Police, Adjective
Predicament
Presumed Guilty
Puzzle
Quarters
Revolucion
Russian Lessons
Salam Rugby
Sam Hunt: Purple Balloon
Scheherazade, Tell Me a Story
Secrets of the Tribe
Senso
Space Tourists
Splice
Strange Birds in Paradise: A West Papuan Story
Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields
Summer Wars
Sweetgrass
Teenage Paparazzo
The Arbor
The Concert
The Double Hour
The Free China Junk
The Ghost Writer
The Hopes & Dreams of Gazza Snell
The Housemaid
The Human Centipede
The Illusionist
The Invention of Dr Nakamats
The Killer Inside Me
The Loved Ones
The Marvellous Corricks
The Misfortunates
The Most Dangerous Man in America
The Night of Counting the Years
The Oath
The Peddler
The Portuguese Nun
The Rainbow Warriors of Waiheke Island
The Red Shoes
The Room
The Runaways
The Strange Case of Angelica
The Time That Remains
The Tree
The Two Escobars
The Wind Journeys
The Woman with the 5 Elephants
There Once Was an Island: Te Henua e Nnoho
To Die Like a Man
Trash Humpers
Triangle
Trimpin: The Sound of Invention
TrinityRoots, Music Is Choice
Turtle: The Incredible Journey
Two in the Wave
Under the Southern Cross
Undertow
Wah Do Dem
Waste Land
When You’re Strange
White Material
Winter’s Bone
Women without Men
Wound


Going to prioritise Once Upon a Time in the West, The Illusionist, Four Lions and Winter's Bone.

[Skitch]

Put me down for a big hell yes to Ravenous. Remember seeing it in theater, shocked at how good it was, and how badly it bombed. Ripped from the theaters after a week :). Pleasantly surprised how well its held up on repeat viewings.

[Dead & Messed Up]

I'm amazed I've never seen Things to Come before, not just because it's based on a work by H. G. Wells (and was supervised by him during production), but because it's so goddamned inventive. This film equals the wonders of Melies and Lang's Metropolis, even if it lacks the former's zip and the latter's fabulist underpinnings. Nearly every scene is supplemented with miniatures, forced perspective, rear projection, or elaborate set decoration, as the film barrels through an eerily prophetic second World War (only a year off), a post-apoc ruin where a feudal lord faces a tech-savvy adversary, and ultimately a Randian society where Greco-Roman intelligentsia face an uprising from the common folk. They whine and protest of all this potentially damaging "pro-gress," and that up-front dialogue flows through the whole story. Nearly every character is an ideologue whose blunt declarations sometimes aim straight through the camera.

Despite the didactic speeches, Things to Come remains stunning. Cut down by its producers, just as Metropolis was, the ninety minute American cut remains invigorating. Its vision of the post-apoc Everytown predicts the patchwork aesthetic of the Mad Max pictures, as the costumes and settings mix furs of old with biplanes and talk of "petrol." One especially cool scene has horses tugging along an old car, an appropriate makeshift chariot. The future sequence begins with a too-long montage of machines digging an underground city, but the integration of practical effects and live action is as seamless as any large-budget modern film I've seen.

Proof that Wells should've depended more on his images to tell the story's "ideas": two call-and-response shots, where we see where a child's championing of militarism leads.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v179/deadandmessedup/ThingstoCome1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v179/deadandmessedup/ThingstoCome2.jpg

Overall, this film is essential for fans of sci-fi and special effects, and even casual viewers may be impressed by its forward thinking and boldness of vision.

A-

[Qrazy]

I'm sure I'm late to the party but... it's kind of absurd Tsotsi beat Paradise Now for foreign language film at the Academy Awards.

[Mysterious Dude]

I think Joyeux Noël would be the one I'd support, since The Death of Mr. Lazarescu wasn't nominated.

Thank God H. G. Wells was wrong about World War II lasting until the 1960's.

[Qrazy]

I think Joyeux Noël would be the one I'd support.

Haven't seen that one yet.

[MadMan]

Me too. The Godfather films notwithstanding, Coppola gets a lifetime pass for The Conversation.And Apocalypse Now.

I tried to watch all of Tati's Hulot movies, but I only made it through Mr. Hulot's Holiday. Perhaps French humor just doesn't translate well to me, or I was quite tired, as the rest of the movies were shown late at night. Both probably apply.

[Llopin]

So I'm doing this paper for college about japanese family values on film. Given this subject, which movies spring to your mind? The starting point is Kore-eda's Still Walking and the objective is to revisit the whole cinematic tradition on family. Obvious choices are the films of Naruse, Ozu and Kawase; Morita's The Family Game, Itami's The Funeral and (recently) Kurosawa's Tokyo Sonata. Possibly even Visitor Q.

Any recs would be much welcome.

[balmakboor]

So I'm doing this paper for college about japanese family values on film. Given this subject, which movies spring to your mind? The starting point is Kore-eda's Still Walking and the objective is to revisit the whole cinematic tradition on family. Obvious choices are the films of Naruse, Ozu and Kawase; Morita's The Family Game, Itami's The Funeral and (recently) Kurosawa's Tokyo Sonata. Possibly even Visitor Q.

Any recs would be much welcome.

Some Miyazakis like Totoro and Spirited Away and Ponyo would work well.

[Llopin]

Some Miyazakis like Totoro and Spirited Away and Ponyo would work well.

Hmm, perhaps, but I don't believe they focus enough on the family unit (as a key point). As far as Ghibli goes, maybe Whisper of the Heart is the one that deals the most with the subject - specially the whole "preteen ambitions" subgenre.

[Skitch]

Duncan Jones got a degree from College of Wooster?! That's ten minutes from me. Cool.

[Melville]

So I'm doing this paper for college about japanese family values on film. Given this subject, which movies spring to your mind? The starting point is Kore-eda's Still Walking and the objective is to revisit the whole cinematic tradition on family. Obvious choices are the films of Naruse, Ozu and Kawase; Morita's The Family Game, Itami's The Funeral and (recently) Kurosawa's Tokyo Sonata. Possibly even Visitor Q.

Any recs would be much welcome.
Vengeance is Mine. Disintegration of the family unit and family values in post-nuclear Japan, as realized in the story of a comical psychopath and his family. Love that movie.

[MacGuffin]

Vengeance is Mine. Disintegration of the family unit and family values in post-nuclear Japan, as realized in the story of a comical psychopath and his family. Love that movie.

I will second this.

[Llopin]

Thanks! I had not considered that one, and I pretty much enjoyed it when I saw it years ago. Concerning Imamura, I think Black Rain is also a contender, particularly its second half.

[soitgoes...]

So I'm doing this paper for college about japanese family values on film. Given this subject, which movies spring to your mind? The starting point is Kore-eda's Still Walking and the objective is to revisit the whole cinematic tradition on family. Obvious choices are the films of Naruse, Ozu and Kawase; Morita's The Family Game, Itami's The Funeral and (recently) Kurosawa's Tokyo Sonata. Possibly even Visitor Q.

Any recs would be much welcome.
Not including those directors or films mentioned:

Ballad of Narayama (Kinoshita or Imamura)
The Naked Island (Shindô)
Seisaku's Wife (Masumura)
Shonen (Oshima)
Muddy River (Oguri)
Makioka Sisters (Ichikawa)
Tree Without Leaves (Shindô)
Noriko's Dinner Table (Sono)
Be Sure to Share (Sono)

[balmakboor]

I just rewatched Blue Velvet for the first time in over 10 years and I'd completely forgot just how amazing it is. I especially love all the scenes between Jeffrey and Sandy. They're so delightfully nuanced and natural. I don't think Lynch gets nearly enough credit for being a great director of actors.

[Boner M]

This hiatus is over. Stupid idea in the first place.

Ratings for fest films (-reviewed in my last 2 blog entries):

-Wasted on the Young (Lucas, 2010) *
Cyrus (Duplass, 2010) ***
Four Lions (Morris, 2010) **
White Material (Denis, 2009) ***
Police, Adjective (Porombuiu, 2009) **½
Winter’s Bone (Granik, 2010) ***½
-Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Weerasethakul, 2010) ***½
If I Want to Whistle, I Whistle (Serbin, 2010) ***
City of Life and Death (Lu, 2009) ***
(s) A Letter to Uncle Boonmee (Weerasethakul, 2010) ***
Two in the Wave (Laurent, 2009) **
The Loved Ones (Byrne, 2009) ***
La Danse (Wiseman, 2009) **½
-Life During Wartime (Solondz, 2009) **½
-Hadewijch (Dumont, 2009) ***
-Heartbeats (Dolan, 2010) ***

[BuffaloWilder]

Man, Annaud's The Lover is kind of - softcore porny, isn't it?

I mean, it's good softcore porn, but still.

[Sven]

I just rewatched Blue Velvet for the first time in over 10 years and I'd completely forgot just how amazing it is. I especially love all the scenes between Jeffrey and Sandy. They're so delightfully nuanced and natural. I don't think Lynch gets nearly enough credit for being a great director of actors.

Those scenes, among others, make BV one of my least favorite Lynch's. S. H. R. U. G. [/.02]

[Mysterious Dude]

I caught a little bit of Dune on TV the other day, and it was kind of funny to hear Kyle MacLachlan say, "If we walk without rhythm, it won't attract the worm."

[Winston*]

Watched The Hit. Very good movie. Stephen Frears had a really solid run there in the eighties (and 1990): this, My Beautiful Laundrette, Prick Up Your Ears, Dangerous Liasons, The Grifters (Haven't seen Sammy and Rosie Get Laid). Strong work.


Four Lions (Morris, 2010) **
Oh no, I'm looking forward to this movie.

[Llopin]

Not including those directors or films mentioned:

Ballad of Narayama (Kinoshita or Imamura)
The Naked Island (Shindô)
Seisaku's Wife (Masumura)
Shonen (Oshima)
Muddy River (Oguri)
Makioka Sisters (Ichikawa)
Tree Without Leaves (Shindô)
Noriko's Dinner Table (Sono)
Be Sure to Share (Sono)

Thanks! I hadn't thought of Oshima's, Shindô's or Ichikawa's.

The Sonos I haven't seen. I'll seek them out.

[Boner M]

Oh no, I'm looking forward to this movie.
You'll probably like it if you're a Chris Morris fan. I enjoyed it more than my rating suggests, since it's basically pretty funny throughout, but satirically one-note, narratively shapeless and visually crap (In the Loop shares the same deficiencies but is about a billion times funnier so it easily makes up for it). Doesn't have much business being a movie; in fact, an ongoing series about a group of suicide bombers would probably be more absurd and funnier.

[dreamdead]

It pains me to admit that The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen does indeed suck. Beyond weak effects and mediocre characterization, it stumbles in its attempt to shoehorn in an American to a fundamentally British universe (largely to appeal to American consumers who would certainly feel alienated if they don't see their literary tradition highlighted); and worse, in the disjointed passing off of historical legacy from England to America in the finale (where we learn that the 20th century is America's, not England). Ick. Though I am not fickle about narrative fidelity, this kind of translation is disheartening, neglecting Moore and O'Neill's gender revisionist politics (so that Mina becomes the group leader) and transgressing against the whole point of the generational politics...

[Raiders]

Not sure I came away from In the Loop with any real overriding ideas or opinions regarding politics or warmongering, but I think that may be mostly the idea. None of the characters are particularly well-sketched and I think the film would benefit slightly from a more human center (the central aides on both sides seem to try and fill those shoes but fail to really grab our attention), not to mention it is no more visually interesting than an Apatow production, but it scores where it counts: the laughs. I think the sudden cut to the poor English suburbanite standing next to a large wall crushing his mother's house is among the funniest moments in recent years. I didn't take quite as much as many to Peter Capaldi's potty-mouthed spin-doctor, but his belligerent conviction is certainly a frightening sight to behold.

[number8]

It pains me to admit that The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen does indeed suck. Beyond weak effects and mediocre characterization, it stumbles in its attempt to shoehorn in an American to a fundamentally British universe (largely to appeal to American consumers who would certainly feel alienated if they don't see their literary tradition highlighted); and worse, in the disjointed passing off of historical legacy from England to America in the finale (where we learn that the 20th century is America's, not England). Ick. Though I am not fickle about narrative fidelity, this kind of translation is disheartening, neglecting Moore and O'Neill's gender revisionist politics (so that Mina becomes the group leader) and transgressing against the whole point of the generational politics...

That's the part that's most insulting to me, reducing Mina from a strong leader (which was one of the comic's biggest point, the fact that she's a traumatized woman hunkering against turn-of-the-century British patriarch) to a sexpot vampire. What asshole came up with that change, and does he still have a penis that I can staple?

[Boner M]

Eden Lake.... WORST. LOOK-INTO-THE-CAMERA FINAL SHOT. EVER. :rolleyes: x100000000000

Otherwise it's a very tense little flick, but the self-importance just kills the 'sploitation kicks.

[B-side]

I dug Eden Lake. Good indictment of the "eye for an eye" mentality.

[Winston*]

I didn't have a problem with the lack of visual panache in In The Loop. Serves the film tonally and thematically, what more do you want?

[Grouchy]

I didn't have a problem with the lack of visual panache in In The Loop. Serves the film tonally and thematically, what more do you want?
Agreed. It's not a movie about visuals.

Also agree with the praise for Jeffrey / Sandy scenes in Blue Velvet.

[Raiders]

I didn't have a problem with the lack of visual panache in In The Loop. Serves the film tonally and thematically, what more do you want?

I didn't have a problem so much as there was nothing to add any different layer to the film. It all rests on the screenplay and actors, which is fine as they are mostly top-notch.

[Rowland]

My Eden Lake thoughts from a year ago:

As these things go, it's well made, with deliberate camerawork, moody scoring by the ever-dependable David Julyan, harrowing performances, and a willingness to upend expectations by venturing into more brutal territories than you anticipate. This is all soured however by some really ugly politics, exploitating contemporary fears of the hoodlum culture gripping the UK in a manner that feigns sociological insight into the cyclical nature of ignorance, poverty, peer pressure, and violence as they pertain to the issue at hand, when it's really only playing this all for a blatantly patronizing "man that's fucked up" response, with more than a hint of reactionary class baiting. This may not have seemed as much the case if any of the characters' actions were faintly plausible, but instead every contrivance in the narrative is increasingly ludicrous in its convenience to writer/director Watkins' transparent shock tactics. By the final twist ending, I was on the one hand moderately impressed with the sheer hopelessness with which he infuses the final minutes, but what he appeared to be suggesting by it all coupled with the sheer ridiculousness of its coincidental logic was too much for me to take seriously, rendering the visceral impact severely muted. Watkins clearly evidences talent here, he just needs someone else to refine his material, and develop a more coherent sense of human empathy.

[BuffaloWilder]

Hey, you know who has really shitty taste in movies?

Tom Scharpling. And, I like WFMU, but damn dude.

[Boner M]

This is all soured however by some really ugly politics, exploitating contemporary fears of the hoodlum culture gripping the UK in a manner that feigns sociological insight into the cyclical nature of ignorance, poverty, peer pressure, and violence as they pertain to the issue at hand, when it's really only playing this all for a blatantly patronizing "man that's fucked up" response, with more than a hint of reactionary class baiting. This may not have seemed as much the case if any of the characters' actions were faintly plausible, but instead every contrivance in the narrative is increasingly ludicrous in its convenience to writer/director Watkins' transparent shock tactics.
Spot-on comments, especially this part. I 'spose shifting the blame to the deadbeat parents in the the final scenes does temper the anti-youth reactionary tone of the precedings, but it only emphasises the classism.

[BuffaloWilder]

You know what's been bugging me? The filmmakers of these two latter Bond films talking about how placing the characters in this new, contemporary society of unease ads a new dimension of moral ambiguity to the character and his world -

- I mean, what? That sense of moral ambiguity's always been at the heart of the Bond character, right beside the whole fantasy-aspect. Especially in Fleming's novels, but even in Sean Connery's films it's present implicitly. I like both of the newer movies, but c'mon guys.

[BuffaloWilder]

It pains me to admit that The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen does indeed suck. Beyond weak effects and mediocre characterization, it stumbles in its attempt to shoehorn in an American to a fundamentally British universe (largely to appeal to American consumers who would certainly feel alienated if they don't see their literary tradition highlighted); and worse, in the disjointed passing off of historical legacy from England to America in the finale (where we learn that the 20th century is America's, not England). Ick. Though I am not fickle about narrative fidelity, this kind of translation is disheartening, neglecting Moore and O'Neill's gender revisionist politics (so that Mina becomes the group leader) and transgressing against the whole point of the generational politics...

There was so much steampunky, pulpy, two-fisted goodness in the comic series - it's practically tailor-made for an imaginative filmmaker, and unlike most of Moore's works, it lends itself pretty well to cinematic translation.

If the director isn't Stephen Norrington. Then you get old, sweaty Sean Connery and that's just unpleasant to watch for everyone.

[Grouchy]

I saw South of the Border, Stone's documentary on Chávez and new left wing governments in South America. In strictly cinematical terms, I was a bit jarred by the camerawork - it felt needlessly weird and rambling for what's essentially a series of interviews. But in terms of content, the doc is priceless. I loved how it opened by showing us a string of US news reports filled with bigotry, chauvinism and outright lies regarding, mainly, Venezuela and Bolivia, culminating with the bunch of idiots who don't know the difference between coke and coca leaves. Infuriating stuff. The interviews are very short and to the point, but there are a couple of pearls here and there. I specially liked the interview with Lula because he said something truly challenging - three things he expected from Obama:

Stop the Cuban embargo.
Stop occupation of Middle East and pull troops away.
Invite Chávez to the United States.

[Grouchy]

I also rewatched Rope. Good movie, a little stiff. I didn't remember the homosexual subtext being so overt. You could even argue that Rupert (the teacher character) is also implied as gay, but if Hitch had really wanted to get that through, he should've picked some other actor instead of James Stewart.

[dreamdead]

I also rewatched Rope. Good movie, a little stiff. I didn't remember the homosexual subtext being so overt. You could even argue that Rupert (the teacher character) is also implied as gay, but if Hitch had really wanted to get that through, he should've picked some other actor instead of James Stewart.

He apparently wanted Cary Grant, who some NY critic recently suggested was gay, to play Rupert to make the whole thing even more overt. I didn't know that Grant was gay, though, so that was surprising to me... that, and Stewart is a better actor than Grant, even if neither could nor wanted to highlight that subtext.

[Skitch]

Cronenberg's eXistenZ...still awesome.

[Derek]

Cary Grant, who some NY critic recently suggested was gay

Are you joking or did you not know that he lived with Randolph Scott? Not exactly a recent discovery. :)


Cronenberg's eXistenZ...still awesome.

Yup, sure is.

[B-side]

Count me among those that did not know Grant was gay.

[Raiders]

Grant was technically bisexual, though some would say such a thing doesn't exist...

[Derek]

Hmm, I thought the Grant/Scott relationship was pretty well-known by know given all the pics out there:

http://drx.typepad.com/psychotherapyblog/images/2007/09/03/cary_grant_and_randolph_scott_ 2.jpg

http://img83.imageshack.us/img83/2301/carygrantrandolphscottvia1930s .png

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_YGN3Oh5V2YU/ScJv84lJkiI/AAAAAAAAAac/4ZaS75WY6Ho/s400/GrantandScott.jpg

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_1lc3z65u6EE/R5UuIcvIelI/AAAAAAAAE64/sHxwUrS6A2A/s200/grant_scott3.jpg

[Spinal]

Count me among those who didn't know Jimmy Stewart was a better actor than Cary Grant.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Jimmy Stewart may be my favorite actor ever, although he didn't have the same charisma that Grant had.

[Winston*]

Jimmy Stewart may be my favorite actor ever, although he didn't have the same charisma that Grant had.

Yeah, he had a different better charisma.

[Raiders]

Count me among those who didn't know Jimmy Stewart was a better actor than Cary Grant.

Sorry you had to find out this way.

[Boner M]

The old video store I used to frequent had a makeshift replacement cover for Rope with the plot synopsis "two gay men commit murder" or something to that effect.

[Boner M]

Weekend:

Worldly Desires (Weerasethakul)
I Am Love
Toy Story 3
Phone Booth
Seventh Heaven (Borzage)

[baby doll]

Weekend:

Colossal Youth (Pedro Costa, 2006)
In Vanda's Room (Pedro Costa, 2000)
The Last Emperor (Bernardo Bertolucci, 1987)
Snow Angels (David Gordon Green, 2006)

[Boner M]

That Costa Criterion set is comin' my way soon. Can't wait.

[MadMan]

I'm not sure if Grant is better than Stewart and vice versa, nor do I really care anyways as both are great actors in their own ways. Grant being gay seemingly doesn't surprise me for some reason, though.

Weekend:

*Whatever the hell I have time for despite working plus some lame wedding I have to go on Saturday.

[soitgoes...]

Weekend:

The Exterminating Angel
Tristana
Au hasard Balthasar
The Cook the Thief His Wife and Her Lover

[MacGuffin]

Weekend:

Cyrus
Don't Look Now
Ravenous
Winter's Bone
Youth in Revolt

[B-side]

Weekend:

Copious amounts of sleep and self-loathing, accompanied possibly by a film at some point.

[Ezee E]

Weekend:


Snow Angels (David Gordon Green, 2006)

Curious what you'll think of this one. Devastating. May be his best to me.

[Winston*]

Yeah, I thought Snow Angels was great also.

Weekend
A Christmas Tale
M. Hulot's Holiday
The Iceman Cometh

[BuffaloWilder]

Weekend:

Copious amounts of sleep and self-loathing, accompanied possibly by a film at some point.

This.

[Derek]

I wasn't big on Snow Angels but it does have Nicky Katt telling Sam Rockwell "I'll suck you right up my tailpipe, bro" plus the hawtness of Olivia Thirlby so it has plenty going for it.

[Cherish]

So I'm doing this paper for college about japanese family values on film. Given this subject, which movies spring to your mind? The starting point is Kore-eda's Still Walking and the objective is to revisit the whole cinematic tradition on family. Obvious choices are the films of Naruse, Ozu and Kawase; Morita's The Family Game, Itami's The Funeral and (recently) Kurosawa's Tokyo Sonata. Possibly even Visitor Q.

Any recs would be much welcome.

Hope I'm not too late, but The Taste of Tea and Twilight Samurai would be great for this.

[Rowland]

So From Paris with Love was released theatrically back in early February, and yet it outclasses every wannabe action blockbuster I've seen so far this summer; and it's a product of the consistently undervalued Besson B-movie factory to boot. C'mon Hollywood, time to step it up a notch.

[Sven]

So From Paris with Love was released theatrically back in early February, and yet it outclasses every wannabe action blockbuster I've seen so far this summer; and it's a product of the consistently undervalued Besson B-movie factory to boot. C'mon Hollywood, time to step it up a notch.

Far out. I'm excited to check this one out now. I just needed one more voice saying it was good.

[Skitch]

Far out. I'm excited to check this one out now. I just needed one more voice saying it was good.

After a second viewing of Taken, I found FPWL actually the better of the two. I quite enjoyed it.

[Russ]

Weekend

Remember My Name (Alan Rudolph, 1978)
THE WIRE Season 2
Gamecock baseball


http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/5141/gococks.jpg

[Watashi]

THE WIRE Season 2


Me too!

I finally watched White Dog. While it has some cheesy B-movie moments and some hammy acting, I was engaged into it the entire time. Very clever that Fuller fellow is. Spike Lee could take a few pointers.

[Ezee E]

Spike Lee could take a few pointers.

?

[Watashi]

?
Have you seen White Dog?

[Ezee E]

Have you seen White Dog?
Nope.

[Raiders]

I have seen it, and of course love it, though I don't really know what Spike Lee is going to take away from it for his own movies.

[baby doll]

So Snow Angels was a disappointment. Basically, I felt like I was watching a Canadian film--and not simply because part of the movie was obviously shot in Nova Scotia (which is slightly distracting for me, since I think the story is supposed to be set in New England). As a rule I'm in favor of unlikeable characters, but there's a difference between unlikeable and so pathetic that they fail to generate any sympathy or even interest.

[MacGuffin]

So Youth in Revolt is basically Michael Cera attempting to pull off both the coolest and most pathetic people of all time in this film with dual roles, and frankly he occasionally comes close to what could in the very least be the starting point to achieving either one of these tasks, but does little else. That said, what a very strange performance that was from him. Steve Buscemi and Zach Galifinakis are also fun to watch onscreen, but the most alarming cameo - and certainly the highlight of the film - is its ultimate bizzaro-factor: Fred Willard, who plays a friend of the family that all of a sudden starts living with the family, who are all then fed mushrooms by Michael Cera's love interest's brother. All in all, an interesting film definitely in terms of content (I wish these interesting modern comedies all took this same approach to what I find is often described as "quirky" humor or intrigue) and pacing where every strange comedic moment has a way of slowing fading into another--some more successful than others.

[Derek]

Another thing I liked about Youth In Revolt, aside from the performances, was that it grounded its quirkiness in a reality with true consequences. Cera's more extreme actions can only be laughed off for so long before they catch up with him. Overall, it had a bit of a Hal Hartley vibe with its star-crossed lovers, ornate dialogue and off-kilter pacing, so while it's certainly hit-or-miss, it's one of the year's nicer surprises.

[MacGuffin]

Another thing I liked about Youth In Revolt, aside from the performances, was that it grounded its quirkiness in a reality with true consequences. Cera's more extreme actions can only be laughed off for so long before they catch up with him. Overall, it had a bit of a Hal Hartley vibe with its star-crossed lovers, ornate dialogue and off-kilter pacing, so while it's certainly hit-or-miss, it's one of the year's nicer surprises.

Nicer surprises? I don't know, man. I also really liked Hot Tub Time Machine. :cool:

[Derek]

Nicer surprises? I don't know, man. I also really liked Hot Tub Time Machine. :cool:

Surprise in that I didn't expect it to be good and it was.

[Rowland]

Yeah, I was pleasantly surprised by Youth in Revolt as well; there were a number of elements that irritated me about it, but it really was funnier and more sophisticated than I anticipated, however affected it sometimes plays. It only missed my three-star rating by a hair.

[dreamdead]

:frustrated:

Might someone who has an HD/BluRay copy of Watchmen be willing to snag a few screen captures for me? I've got an essay that will be published on Alan Moore and film adaptation, and the images I grabbed came out too grainy for the publisher to use. If someone could basically replicate the image but remove the graininess, I'd be in their favor for mucho rep... please send me a PM with an email address, and I'll get you the low-res images that I'd need high-res duplicates of.

[Skitch]

:frustrated:

Might someone who has an HD/BluRay copy of Watchmen be willing to snag a few screen captures for me? I've got an essay that will be published on Alan Moore and film adaptation, and the images I grabbed came out too grainy for the publisher to use. If someone could basically replicate the image but remove the graininess, I'd be in their favor for mucho rep... please send me a PM with an email address, and I'll get you the low-res images that I'd need high-res duplicates of.

I would love to help you, but I don't have access to a computer with a bluray player.

:(

[Grouchy]

Bresson's L'Argent was kind of a difficult movie for me. What's worth praising about Bresson is how rigurous he is as a filmmaker and how far he takes his own rules. But damn, do those rules make his films look strange. Almost no discernable acting, every moment of physical action being broken down into artificial close-up shots, etc. I could not take a lot of it and often it just made me laugh when I should've been involved with the story. I had the same reaction to Lancelot of the Lake, but definitively not so with Pickpocket and Au Hazard Balthazar, two of my favorites.

[B-side]

Bresson's L'Argent was kind of a difficult movie for me. What's worth praising about Bresson is how rigurous he is as a filmmaker and how far he takes his own rules. But damn, do those rules make his films look strange. Almost no discernable acting, every moment of physical action being broken down into artificial close-up shots, etc. I could not take a lot of it and often it just made me laugh when I should've been involved with the story. I had the same reaction to Lancelot of the Lake, but definitively not so with Pickpocket and Au Hazard Balthazar, two of my favorites.

I had a similar reaction to Lancelot of the Lake. As a whole, I think it's my least favorite of his, but individual scenes/moments are among, if not, my favorite stuff he's done. I like Bresson, but for the life of me I can't jump in with those that love him. I just fail to see the profundity so many do. Like you said, I appreciate that he does his own thing and is so rigorous about it, but it doesn't always make for a particularly engaging experience.

[Bosco B Thug]

One's first viewing of Showgirls is probably always a very personal experience... so I won't make the usual attempt to go on and academize about it. But put me into the "That's a fine work of cinema" camp. It falls face-first into its sensationalism [gleefully but] too heavily in the last quarter, and the film plays out unabashedly as a film to experience instead of one to pick apart and analyze (and I'm more for the latter - not saying, of course, that Verhoeven's directing isn't full of grace and technique), but anyway, nope, the Razzie's can go fly a kite. It's an over-the-top, but sensitive and nuanced movie. I've gathered I'm not alone on this, although there hasn't been to much discussion about this movie here.

[Milky Joe]

Yeah. "Man, e'erybody got AIDs 'n shit..." is probably the most sensitive and nuanced line of dialogue in film history.

[Bosco B Thug]

Yeah. "Man, e'erybody got AIDs 'n shit..." is probably the most sensitive and nuanced line of dialogue in film history.
For instance! Nomi's inner character, even at its most vacillating, is always expertly navigated, never simplistic, and often fascinating. A likable character, too, and I thought this was going to be one of those "Everyone's a prick" movies. A fabulous creation by Eszterhas, Verhoeven, and Berkley.

But seriously, now, my favorite part was "It must be weird not having anyone cum on ya" - then close-up on Berkley's face, ridden with pensiveness. Or Berkley and Gina Gershon going straight into a hump session when she's supposed to just be teaching her a turn.

[MacGuffin]

I think I need to rent the Blu-ray. I remember it being good, but not as good as Basic Instinct, which approaches its content in a similar fashion but lacks the headstart that Showgirls has.

[Bosco B Thug]

I think I need to rent the Blu-ray. I remember it being good, but not as good as Basic Instinct, which approaches its content in a similar fashion but lacks the headstart that Showgirls has.
Oh yeah, before someone gets on my case, I have decided it's about time I check out next one of Verhoeven's Dutch films. Though I haven't seen Basic Instinct yet.

[MacGuffin]

Oh yeah, before someone gets on my case, I have decided it's about time I check out next one of Verhoeven's Dutch films. Though I haven't seen Basic Instinct yet.

I only saw Spetters and I think I liked it, but obviously I wasn't overwhelmed because I don't particularly remember. But yeah, see Basic Instinct if you liked Showgirls as I think most will agree that it's a bit more interesting of a movie because of such logic:

Situation A: APPROACH TO SLEAZE | WITH SLEAZE
Situation B: APPROACH TO SOMETHING ENTIRELY DIFFERENT AND UNIQUE | WITH SLEAZE

There's simply more to take in with Basic Instinct, any biases I have aside (I like both movies as I said, but prefer Basic Instinct).

[Raiders]

I think a tear came to my eye, Bosco. Another correct individual on Match Cut. Hooray!

[Bosco B Thug]

I only saw Spetters and I think I liked it, but obviously I wasn't overwhelmed because I don't particularly remember. But yeah, see Basic Instinct if you liked Showgirls as I think most will agree that it's a bit more interesting of a movie because of such logic:

Situation A: APPROACH TO SLEAZE | WITH SLEAZE
Situation B: APPROACH TO SOMETHING ENTIRELY DIFFERENT AND UNIQUE | WITH SLEAZE

There's simply more to take in with Basic Instinct, any biases I have aside (I like both movies as I said, but prefer Basic Instinct).
Interesting. Although Basic Instinct sounds like pretty sleazy material on its own right.

Haha, I thought Basic Instinct was a sci-fi movie until I looked it up right now. I had thought it was Total Recall. Then I wondered, "Who directed Total Recall?" Then I looked it up. Haven't seen that one either.


I think a tear came to my eye, Bosco. Another correct individual on Match Cut. Hooray! :) Woot. I really don't see what's so embarrassing about the movie. Berkley's rather good. I had expected camp on the level of The Simpsons's (pretty funny) little rendering of it.

[baby doll]

I don't think Showgirls is quite in the same league as The 4th Man, Total Recall, Basic Instinct, and Black Book, but it's hard not to like a movie with dialogue like, "It must be weird not having people cum on you."

[MacGuffin]

Total Recall may be my second favorite Verhoeven movie after Black Book (which you and everyone else need to see immediately if you haven't already - severely underrated). With Basic Instinct, think of it as a very sexually-oriented policer. For me, it's more that Sharon Stone is a total sleazeball. I mean she's the one who signed on for the sequel. Don't confuse her sleaziness for as "talent", that's all. That's the mistake those few critics that praised the sequel made the mistake of making. It's the same mistake particular critics make when praising some method actors. Some people think Jack Nicholson became a parody of himself, although I don't think so.

[Pop Trash]

I don't think Showgirls is quite in the same league as The 4th Man, Total Recall, Basic Instinct, and Black Book, but it's hard not to like a movie with dialogue like, "It must be weird not having people cum on you."

It's a better bad movie than lots of good movies. Or at least more memorable.

[MacGuffin]

I don't think there's such thing as a good bad movie. That's an oxymoron; it doesn't make any sense.

[B-side]

I don't think there's such thing as a good bad movie. That's an oxymoron; it doesn't make any sense.

I've never understood it completely either. If you enjoy it, how is it bad?

[Pop Trash]

I don't think there's such thing as a good bad movie. That's an oxymoron; it doesn't make any sense.

And that right there is why I would never hang out with you.

[MacGuffin]

I think anything in any movie can intelligently be justified or criticized without falling to such a lazy summary as calling the movie a "GREAT BAD MOVIE" rather than actually describing what makes those bad moments so aesthetically appealing. Then, understanding that maybe just maybe those bad moments were actually good. That's what I've always done just because it seemed like common sense.

[baby doll]

It's a better bad movie than lots of good movies. Or at least more memorable.I just think it's a good movie, period. Not Verhoeven's best, but a worth entry into his oeuvre.

[MacGuffin]

I just think it's a good movie, period. Not Verhoeven's best, but a worth entry into his oeuvre.

Exactly. There are movies that can successfully approach sleazy material or sleazily approach material gracefully like Showgirls and there are others that are just excruciating. (Sorry, but I turned off The Room at like the third painfully long sex scene with the easy-to-license 90s R&B music in the background. It's not interesting people, it's just bullshit!)

[balmakboor]

The 4th Man is quite good, as much as I remember it. My favorites are Robocop and Starship Troopers though. I really should try to see Showgirls soon.

[B-side]

The Kingdom (Trier 94) ***½

Thoughts? Are you generally a Trier fan?

[balmakboor]

Gotta say I liked In the Realm of the Senses, but absolutely LOVED Empire of Passion. I'll continue with the various Eclipse titles next.

[Qrazy]

Oh yeah, before someone gets on my case, I have decided it's about time I check out next one of Verhoeven's Dutch films. Though I haven't seen Basic Instinct yet.

Turkish Delight and Soldier of Orange are far and away his best films.

[B-side]

Turkish Delight and Soldier of Orange are far and away his best films.

I have that.

[soitgoes...]

Thoughts? Are you generally a Trier fan?
Trier is weird with me. Two of his films (Dancer in the Dark and Breaking the Waves) fall in my top 100. Most of the other stuff I've seen I can appreciate, but I can't generate the enthusiasm as those two. The Kingdom is just great build up followed by a great final hour. The ending is more funny than scary. The tour with the Health Minister was hilarious. Järegård is the highlight of the film for me. His rooftop rants were great.

[B-side]

Trier is weird with me. Two of his films (Dancer in the Dark and Breaking the Waves) fall in my top 100. Most of the other stuff I've seen I can appreciate, but I can't generate the enthusiasm as those two. The Kingdom is just great build up followed by a great final hour. The ending is more funny than scary. The tour with the Health Minister was hilarious. Järegård is the highlight of the film for me. His rooftop rants were great.

Not sure why I haven't seen this yet.

[Grouchy]

All this Verhoeven talk reminds me that I blind bought Showgirls about a week ago.

I don't know what sort of person that makes me. It was really cheap, though.

[Winston*]

Match Cut Assignment 1.1

In the film A Christmas Tale, what's up with that turntabling scene? (5000 Words)

This is worth 30% of your course.

[Boner M]

Match Cut Assignment 1.1

In the film A Christmas Tale, what's up with that turntabling scene? (5000 Words)

This is worth 30% of your course.
Melvin Poupaud is a real-life hip hop DJ, and therefore Depleschin found his skills worth showcasing. Furthermore, indeed, so to speak.

(4980 wd bibliography to come)

[Qrazy]

Mary and Max was quite crappy.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Bought Akira and Gattaca. Eager to re-watch both of them.

[megladon8]

Bought Akira and Gattaca. Eager to re-watch both of them.


Sweet buys, dude! I've been wanting to see these again myself. I haven't seen Gattaca since junior high.

[Winston*]

Mary and Max was quite crappy.

I loved it.

[Qrazy]

I loved it.

You love poop jokes.

[balmakboor]

Gotta say I liked In the Realm of the Senses, but absolutely LOVED Empire of Passion. I'll continue with the various Eclipse titles next.

Btw, friggin Netflix doesn't yet carry the Eclipse titles. Oh, well. I'll get to 'em when I can. I know the boxset isn't in the budget right now.

[Spinal]

I wouldn't say Showgirls doesn't have it's pleasures, but you really have to forgive some horrendous acting and writing to get to the point where you can call it a good movie.

[Pop Trash]

Thank you Spinal for your sane opinion.

[MacGuffin]

I wouldn't say Showgirls doesn't have it's pleasures, but you really have to forgive some horrendous acting and writing to get to the point where you can call it a good movie.

I always just considered the acting congruent to the material in terms of general style. As I mentioned earlier, the movie relishes on its own tackiness, which is why I'm convinced that the overacting (or at least some of it) is intentional.

[Skitch]

I always just considered the acting congruent to the material in terms of general style. As I mentioned earlier, the movie relishes on its own tackiness, which is why I'm convinced that the overacting (or at least some of it) is intentional.
So some bad writing coupled with some bad acting equals a good end product? That kind of thinking could land you a job as a producer for SyFy.

[number8]

The spectacular direction transcends the flaws of both.

[Yxklyx]

The spectacular direction transcends the flaws of both.

I agree here. I liked Showgirls. It was good - not "so bad it's good".

[MacGuffin]

So some bad writing coupled with some bad acting equals a good end product? That kind of thinking could land you a job as a producer for SyFy.

Not necessarily, but I think it works with this film in particular. Keep in mind that for SyFy channel movies, the directors probably aren't aspiring to say anything noteworthy with their movies; whereas, I think Showgirls has a lot to say about modern culture and its seedier side.

[Rowland]

Guys, I watched some of Dinocroc vs. Supergator on SyFy the other night, and trust me, there's no comparison.

[Ezee E]

Slate's Ten Greatest Films That Were Never Released (http://www.slate.com/id/2257867/pagenum/all/).

Good list. More for humor than anything. I just love how Orson Welles was ready to cast himself as Christ. His Western story of Christ sounded much better.

And a John Boorman-directed LOTR with the Beatles? #1 box office movie of all time right there.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Guys, I watched some of Dinocroc vs. Supergator on SyFy the other night, and trust me, there's no comparison.

Dammit, I forgot to set my Tivo!

[megladon8]

Abominable is a SyFy movie that's actually pretty great.

[Sven]

In the Loop was funny and good. I'm a bit baffled at its popularity as it wasn't THAT funny and good.

Face/Off is still pretty retarded, hardly the underappreciated action mastercraft people have been trying to convince me it is. But there are a few moments of neat action abstraction (there's this neat insert of ricochet sparks that is fuzzed out of focus to the point where it looks like a shower of little orange squares--it's only about a quarter of a second long, but definitely the most impressive shot of the film) and fun performances (Travolta is especially good at aping Cage's style, or maybe the compliment should be that Cage has great expression, an imitator's dream). I also maintain that John Woo's action is popular because of its elaborateness, rather than cohesiveness. I would love to read a point-by-point analysis defending his style, because at this point I'm convinced that a convincing one would be impossible. People magically appear everywhere. Corners unfold into areas they could not be. Time and space is all out of whack: he is unable to sensibly control the mixed rhythms of his editing and his moments of slow-motion.

Still, I liked it more than I did when I saw it as a teenager.

[number8]

I also maintain that John Woo's action is popular because of its elaborateness, rather than cohesiveness.

I can tell you right now that that's why I love them. Most action directors come up with a set piece and try to fill it with noteworthy moments. John Woo comes up with stylish moments and then constructs an elaborate set piece that would give him the excuse to shoot those moments. They're messy and disjointed because of it, but also thoroughly wall-to-wall awesome for the same reason.

[number8]

Best example of this is the warehouse ambush set piece in Hard Boiled. What did he want to show that would make the sequence memorable? Well, there's Chow Yun Fat's badass shotgun loading, there's the suicide swing, the motorcycle exploding in the air, the guy rammed in the crotch by a bike into a truck, the shootout around a single car, the grenade juggling... None of these moments are particularly connected or coherent in any way, but toss them all together in a chaotic setting, fill the betweens with random deaths and suspenseful camera work, and you've got a hell of an action scene.

[Sven]

and you've got a hell of an action scene.

I guess we have practically polar opposite definitions of what defines 'a hell' of an action scene. But it is nice to hear that you agree with that assessment and still admire it. So many others have used Woo as an example of coherent action in dialogues I have had in the the past...

It's frustrating, though, because there are moments, and maybe it's these punctuated moments you mention, where things are very clear. There's this bit where Cage takes off an FBI dude's mask, recognizes the guy, knocks him out, and pretends to shoot him just as one of the baddies comes by. That ten second sequence is incredible! Everything is so tight, every frame utilized to maximum efficiency, this little story is perfectly told. But then there's that stupid double-sided mirror prop thing, where the sometimes impressive science-fiction of the film comes to this amazing visual height, but then the moment is botched through editing that doesn't punctuate the concept and then stupid slow motion bullets again.

[Wryan]

"Somewheeeeeeeeere ooooooover the raaaaaaainboooooooowwww..."

/irking Sven[?]

[megladon8]

I thought the warehouse scene in Hard Boiled was exemplary. But I didn't think anything felt out of place. It was totally over the top for sure, but I thought one of the great traits of that sequence was that it made sense spatially.

Maybe I'm remembering it wrong.

What kills John Woo's films for me is the horrid sentimentalism and melodrama. I know, I know, it's a cultural thing, it's not poor filmmaking, blah blah. I just don't like it. I often find it unintentionally hilarious.

[megladon8]

Has anyone else thought that a Pixar Super Mario movie could/would be awesome?

Wats?

[MadMan]

Has anyone else thought that a Pixar Super Mario movie could/would be awesome?

Wats?It would be the greatest video game adaption of all time.

All I've seen from Verhoeven is most of Robocop (needs to be revisited, but the acid guy getting splattered is still disgusting and funny), Total Recall (one of Arnuld's best movies, and possibly his best role as well), and Basic Instinct (which I'll defend as not only being a well charged sexual thriller, but also being expertly stylish and containing slasher/horror movie elements). Up next from him will be Black Book and his Dutch movies.

[Sven]

I also liked the scene where Cage relates one of Travolta's characters intimate memories with Joan Allen's character. An interesting twist on screen identification, having an actor playing a character playing a character relating the other character's memory. A credible sci-fi moment.

[number8]

So you guys remember that I interviewed John Woo last year, right? We actually talked about Face/Off for a little bit, which I didn't put in the article I wrote.

Specifically, we were talking about his process of creating action scenes, and we ended up talking about that shootout at Nick Cassavettes' house. He said he had a completely different set piece in mind, with fully choreographed gunfights all around the house, but it wasn't really working. But then he was looking at all the fake blood and stuntmen pretending to die and suddenly felt really sad about all the deaths and violence in the world (yes, I thought this was kinda funny too), so he came up with the concept of following the kid listening to "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" right then and there.

I think it contributes how he sees action scenes. It's what I forgot to mention earlier; how he strings together the punctuated moments is that, he finds a single dramatic point and uses it to justify any craziness that he wants to throw on screen. In the Hard Boiled warehouse shootout, all the chaos revolves around Tony Leung trying not to let Chow Yun Fat fuck up his cover, and then the violence branches from there.

[Skitch]

My favorite moment of Face/Off is the mirror scene, where Cage and Travolta take aim at double sided mirror, both aiming at their true enemy. Brilliant.

[Sven]

My favorite moment of Face/Off is the mirror scene, where Cage and Travolta take aim at double sided mirror, both aiming at their true enemy. Brilliant.

Coulda been brilliant, but instead ends up pretty pedestrian. The film features moments playing up the identity-switch that are much more brilliant.

[Skitch]

Coulda been brilliant, but instead ends up pretty pedestrian. The film features moments playing up the identity-switch that are much more brilliant.

I think I like the scene so much because I can't fathom a situation where you could use such a scene again.

[Sven]

I think I like the scene so much because I can't fathom a situation where you could use such a scene again.

I think I dislike it because it's a pretty silly prop. Where do you find a thin double-sided body-sized mirror that is apparently immune to explosions?

I agree that the idea is solid, though. I just wish it wasn't handled with such clunk.

[Skitch]

I think I dislike it because it's a pretty silly prop. Where do you find a thin double-sided body-sized mirror that is apparently immune to explosions?

I agree that the idea is solid, though. I just wish it wasn't handled with such clunk.

:lol:

Yeah I hear yah. But the whole premise of the movie is unabashedly rediculous. I mean, they didn't even attempt to disguise it with a clever title.

[Sven]

I mean, they didn't even attempt to disguise it with a clever title.

I want to take his face... off.
You mean you want to take his face... off?
Yeah. His face. ... Off.

[Derek]

I want to take his face... off.
You mean you want to take his face... off?
Yeah. His face. ... Off.

And it's also a face off, like they're going up against one another in a face off.

[balmakboor]

Woody Allen recently listed his favorites of his own films:

The Purple Rose of Cairo
Match Point
Bullets Over Broadway
Zelig
Husbands and Wives
Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Interesting. The more I think about it, the more I think I should give VCB another chance. I really liked everything else on this list.

My favorites list would be more like this though:

Bananas
Annie Hall
The Purple Rose of Cairo
Zelig
Broadway Danny Rose
Everyone Says I Love You

I like many of his more serious dramatic films, but I guess I just favor some of his lighter works -- although most on my list certainly have their bittersweet moments.

[balmakboor]

I've always enjoyed the way Robert Zemeckis titles his films. So many are fun plays on words.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit sounds like a question that provides its own answer -- Who.

What Lies Beneath is the same -- What.

I'm still waiting for a non-question titles beginning with "where" and "why" from him.

Death Becomes Her is of course a play on words with two possible readings based on the different definitions of "becomes."

Cast Away is a movie about a castaway who is cast away.

Even Back to the Future can be read as both returning to the future and turning ones back on the future.

[balmakboor]

Last Excellent Film Seen For The Very First Time:
El Norte (1983, Gregory Nava)


I've really been meaning to catch up with this ever since watching Siskel and Ebert gush about it back in 1983.

Yeah, I'm slow.

[Dead & Messed Up]

I think that Akira is better on a second viewing, probably because it's more explicable. But even without that, I was able to sit back and enjoy the imagination on display, from the old children to Amoeba Tetsuo and everything in between. Love how Kaneda loves Tetsuo too much to not warn him of incoming laser shots...from Kaneda.

[Qrazy]

Woody Allen recently listed his favorites of his own films:

The Purple Rose of Cairo
Match Point
Bullets Over Broadway
Zelig
Husbands and Wives
Vicky Cristina Barcelona


Woody Allen clearly has shit taste.

[balmakboor]

Woody Allen clearly has shit taste.

While you put it a bit harsher than most, that's been most people's reaction to his list. I give it a lot of credit for including Zelig though.

[Ezee E]

I've really been meaning to catch up with this ever since watching Siskel and Ebert gush about it back in 1983.

Yeah, I'm slow.

So you're the older version of MadMan

[Qrazy]

While you put it a bit harsher than most, that's been most people's reaction to his list. I give it a lot of credit for including Zelig though.

Yeah I do like Zelig as well. And I'm guessing I'll like Husbands and Wives but it's probably his only big film which I haven't seen yet.

[Derek]

I give it a lot of credit for including Zelig though.

And Bullets Over Broadway. Really Match Point's the only one I'd completely object to.

[Derek]

Yeah I do like Zelig as well. And I'm guessing I'll like Husbands and Wives but it's probably his only big film which I haven't seen yet.

It's okay.

[Qrazy]

And Bullets Over Broadway. Really Match Point's the only one I'd completely object to.

I found Bullets over Broadway to be a passable diversion but lower middle tier Allen imo.

[Spinal]

Zelig
Husbands and Wives
Vicky Cristina Barcelona


Yes, yes and yes.

[transmogrifier]

It's okay.

No, it's his best film.

[Sven]

Yes, yes and yes.

Not one for Bullets Over Broadway? I watched it again recently and found it quite excellent.

[soitgoes...]

I've really been meaning to catch up with this ever since watching Siskel and Ebert gush about it back in 1983.

Yeah, I'm slow.
You should continue to put it off.

[Sycophant]

Has anyone else thought that a Pixar Super Mario movie could/would be awesome?

Wats?

There is pretty much nothing in Super Mario that is cinematic enough to think that a film adaptation could really be something worth a damn. Especially narratively or verbally comedically, which tend to be Pixar's strong suits. Good jumping mechanics don't a great film make.

[Derek]

Good jumping mechanics don't a great film make.

Beg to differ (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-9Cj_9CQMg).

But other than that, I'm with you.

[Watashi]

I don't think Pixar could top the original movie anyways.

Now, a Pixar helmed King's Quest game would be fucking rad.

[BuffaloWilder]

There is pretty much nothing in Super Mario that is cinematic enough to think that a film adaptation could really be something worth a damn. Especially narratively or verbally comedically, which tend to be Pixar's strong suits. Good jumping mechanics don't a great film make.

Surreal, bouncily light-hearted environments - two urban salt-of-the-earth main characters going up against a mythological fire-breathing dragon and his army of talking mushrooms? Play that contrast up. Yeah, there's certainly some stuff you could do with it, I think.

I've always thought a much more cinematically apt candidate would be Sonic the hedgehog - especially after watching the animated segments of Sonic CD, earlier. Of course, my ideas for a film for that character are probably a fair bit different than most, I'm sure. Do it almost completely silent, for one thing.

[Rowland]

Where's my Rise of the Robots adaptation? That shit rocked the CD-i hardcore.

[baby doll]

Woody Allen recently listed his favorites of his own films:

The Purple Rose of Cairo
Match Point
Bullets Over Broadway
Zelig
Husbands and Wives
Vicky Cristina BarcelonaI'd heard before that he considers The Purple Rose of Cairo his best work, and while I've only seen it once, I persist in my thinking that it possibly would've been had he not cribbed the ending from Nights of Cabiria in order to make the point, essentially, that life stinks and the function of the movies is to distract us from how awful everything is. This is probably going to get me in trouble, but you only have to compare this film to any of Jacques Demy's 1960s masterpieces--Lola, Les Parapluies de Cherboug, Les Demoiselles de Rochefort--which find enchantment in everyday, working class provincial settings in order to see how limited Allen's view of both life and art is.

I suppose I'll have to give Zelig another shot one of these days, but at the time (that is to say, a couple years ago when I watched it on VHS) I found it mildly amusing at best. It's a cute premise, but it doesn't go anywhere.

As for Vicky Christina Barcelona, it's not bad, but the characters are all flat, bordering on caricatures, and it's view of Spain is strictly that of a tourist. I'm probably being unreasonable again with the latter charge, since Allen's view of art, as we've seen, is strictly escapist, so of course all the characters are rich and beautiful, and accordingly gravitate towards upscale settings. I mean, who's going to pay to see a movie about regular-looking, working-class Spanish people living in ugly suburbs and having bad sex?

My own favorites: Of his early movies, I like Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex... But Were Afraid to Ask. It's a bit uneven, but I think the brevity and variety of the sketches works in his favor, as opposed to having to stretch out a single idea for ninety minutes (as in Love and Death), and the Gene Wilder segment is hilarious. Speaking of shorts, I also love "Oedipus Wrecks" from New York Stories. Obviously you have to mention Annie Hall, though I find it's not a film I can watch over and over and over. And this to me speaks to one of Allen's limitations: He's a great dramatist, and I love him as a comic actor, but despite his intelligence as a metteur en scène, he's essentially a conventional filmmaker, so I find very few of his movies stand up to repeat viewings. I loved Broadway Danny Rose the first time I saw it, but slightly less so the second and third. However, and I can't really explain it, but I've seen Manhattan countless times, and it always works for me. Likewise, Stardust Memories, although I didn't like it the first time I saw it, seems only to get better and better with repeat viewings. One thing I particularly like about the movie is that, where in Fellini's 8 1/2, there's always a clear demarcation between fantasy and reality, in this film, Allen has objective reality and subjective fantasy on screen sometimes in the same shot, and it's not always clear where one ends and the other begins. I like Interiors better than a lot of real Bergman. I like Hannah and Her Sisters a lot ("How would I know why there are Nazis? I don't know how to work the toaster"). Bullets Over Broadway is a great, multi-layered work, on one level a very funny backstage drama that, at the same time, gets into these philosophical issues about art and morality while never falling into the ponderousness that I feel really mars Crimes and Misdemeanors. Match Point is one of his strongest as storytelling, and aside from Scarlet Johannson (who I just don't get), the acting is terrific. And I like Whatever Works, which deals with the same theme as Vicky Christina Barcelona, and treats it no less broadly, but here at least, Allen allows the characters the possibility of change. Also, no Scarlet Johannson, which is a plus in any movie.

[baby doll]

Vicky Cristina Barcelona deserves a re-watch, but I recall being quite smitten with it when I first saw it a couple of summers ago, and I've always been somewhat surprised at how few people seem to like it.Really? I think it's one of his most overrated movies (surpassed, in this regard, only by Crimes and Misdemeanors, although I have to concede that the latter is still a better movie, if only because it has Allen, Farrow, and Alda in it).

[Boner M]

It occured to me early in Mizoguchi's The Loyal 47 Ronin that there was no way I was gonna keep up with this shit (at least in terms of following the multitude of plot and characters), and surprisingly that wasn't to the detriment of my engagement with the film. After a while I just tuned out and appreciated how formally amazing it is (after Her Mother's Profession and Street of Shame I was misled to think that the Gooch doesn't film interiors with that same wonderful eerie-floaty quality, but holy moley did this film prove me wrong). The narcotic pacing coupled with the didactic dialogue combines to create a film that really is a meditation on (a ridiculously hoary chestnut but absolutely appropriate in this case) loyalty and honour.

Even better is that the Madman DVD has an Adrian Martin commentary in which he provides a great deal of context for the film, and beautifully expands on the self-reflexive aspects of the film that had vaguely come to my mind during my first viewing - it's a film about formality and adherence to codes, just like Mizoguchi's own filmmaking style. Really worth a listen for anyone interested in the film or Mizoguchi, providing you can stomach listening to 4 hours of the thickest Melbournian accent ever.

[Yxklyx]

It occured to me early in Mizoguchi's The Loyal 47 Ronin ...

How and where did you see this?

[Boner M]

How and where did you see this?
R4 DVD.

[Sven]

There is pretty much nothing in Super Mario that is cinematic enough to think that a film adaptation could really be something worth a damn. Especially narratively or verbally comedically, which tend to be Pixar's strong suits. Good jumping mechanics don't a great film make.

Someone has clearly not seen the Bob Hoskins/John Leguizamo masterwork.

[D_Davis]

Blue Velvet has always been one of my least favorite Lynch films. I watched it again yesterday, and I didn't care for it at all. I actually found myself really bored with it, although the performances are generally good.

[D_Davis]

Someone has clearly not seen the Bob Hoskins/John Leguizamo masterwork.

I think the Mario movie is actually a very interesting and highly flawed film, and it is easily the most adventurous and brave movie based on a video game. They actually took some chances with it, and I like that.

[Russ]

Blue Velvet has always been one of my least favorite Lynch films. I watched it again yesterday, and I didn't care for it at all. I actually found myself really bored with it, although the performances are generally good.
A number of people have tried to convey the difference to me between the 35mm theatrical experience ("overwhelming...transcendant") and the small screen DVD experience ("disappointing...unwatchable").

Did you ever see this in the theater?

[D_Davis]

A number of people have tried to convey the difference to me between the 35mm theatrical experience ("overwhelming...transcendant") and the small screen DVD experience ("disappointing...unwatchable").

Did you ever see this in the theater?

I did not. The first Lynch film I saw in the theater was Fire Walk With Me. I can't imagine Blue Velvet playing better in the theater; it's kind of a dull film to look at, especially when compared to Lynch's other, better films. I greatly prefer FWWM, a film that is more visually inventive and creative, and touches upon similar films. It also has a better soundtrack.

[balmakboor]

I saw Blue Velvet in the theater opening night. I've seen it twice in the theater since then.

Funny, I just tweeted yesterday that it's Lynch's best flim imo.

[D_Davis]

I saw Blue Velvet in the theater opening night. I've seen it twice in the theater since then.

Funny, I just tweeted yesterday that it's Lynch's best flim imo.

Your recent posts/tweets are what made me want to rewatch it.

I also dislike the film on an entirely superficial level:

I hate that it popularized PBR. I don't understand the celebration of shitty beer; if you're going to drink beer, drink something good. It's like if a movie made McDonald's a go-to place for ironic eating. I know it's a silly thing to dislike a movie for, but, well...

[Pop Trash]

Your recent posts/tweets are what made me want to rewatch it.

I also dislike the film on an entirely superficial level:

I hate that it popularized PBR. I don't understand the celebration of shitty beer; if you're going to drink beer, drink something good. It's like if a movie made McDonald's a go-to place for ironic eating. I know it's a silly thing to dislike a movie for, but, well...

This is a funny comment since I always thought that hipsters love for PBR originated from Blue Velvet as well, but at this point I think most hipsters just get that from other hipsters and I'm guessing many have not seen this.

I don't think it's Lynch's fault since in the context of the movie, who drinks what type of beer is meant to signify what kind of person they are; like Jeffrey drinks Heineken, which in the 80s was rather elitest and high class, the type of thing intellectual college kids would drink, like Stella today; Sandy's dad drinks Budweiser which puts him as a middle-of-the-road, mainstream kind of guy; and Frank drinks PBR which I think Lynch meant as an old fashioned, blue collar brand that had fallen out of favor at that point, a bit like smoking Lucky Strikes or using Brylcream in your hair. This paints Frank as a more underground, off-the-beaten tracks kind of guy.

[Dead & Messed Up]

I think the Mario movie is actually a very interesting and highly flawed film, and it is easily the most adventurous and brave movie based on a video game. They actually took some chances with it, and I like that.

If you mean "bravery" as in "completely reworking the central premise and still failing to make it coherent," then I guess I can see it. They couldn't fall back on an easy template like Mortal Kombat (Enter the Dragon) or Tomb Raider (Indiana Jones), so they had to take all the disparate game elements and combine them into something resembling a narrative. But I thought the execution was half-baked and ugly and incomprehensible.

[D_Davis]

This is a funny comment since I always thought that hipsters love for PBR originated from Blue Velvet as well, but at this point I think most hipsters just get that from other hipsters and I'm guessing many have not seen this.


Just for the record, I don't dislike hipsters. I'm kind of a hipster as well. Maybe like 58% hipster, 42% nerd.

I do dislike drinking bad beer, though. I mean, if someone does need to drink bad beer, at least make it Natural Ice because it has a lot of alcohol so you don't need to drink much to get drunk.

[balmakboor]

I thought that comment was pretty strange. I don't think there're tons of people running around now drinking Pabst Blue Ribbon because they saw it in Blue Velvet.

[number8]

Well, me.

[D_Davis]

I thought that comment was pretty strange. I don't think there're tons of people running around now drinking Pabst Blue Ribbon because they saw it in Blue Velvet.

I have heard the phrase, "Heineken? Fuck that shit! Pabst Blue Ribbon!" hundreds, if not thousands of times from friends and random people in bars drinking PBR.

Like I said, I know it's a superficial nitpick, but bad beer bugs the hell out of me.

[Scar]

I have heard the phrase, "Heineken? Fuck that shit! Pabst Blue Ribbon!" hundreds, if not thousands of times from friends and random people in bars drinking PBR.

Like I said, I know it's a superficial nitpick, but bad beer bugs the hell out of me.

I know a few people, myself included, who have uttered that phrase.

However, we have been drinking PBR long before we ever saw Blue Velvet.

[Derek]

What I'm learning from this last page is that there are people out there who prefer Super Mario Bros. to Blue Velvet.

This place is gonna give me ulcers.

[Spinal]

What I'm learning from this last page is that there are people out there who prefer Super Mario Bros. to Blue Velvet.

This place is gonna give me ulcers.

I know how you feel. I expressed the minority opinion the other day that Showgirls is in fact not a very good movie.

[D_Davis]

What I'm learning from this last page is that there are people out there who prefer Super Mario Bros. to Blue Velvet.

This place is gonna give me ulcers.

it's true. I bet Sven's got my back.

[Derek]

it's true. I bet Sven's got my back.

I'd bet money that he does. Though I already knew both of you are nuts. ;)

[Spinal]

Blue Velvet is the polar opposite of a boring movie, tense and suspenseful nearly from start to finish. I don't know what you're on about, Davis.

[D_Davis]

Blue Velvet is the polar opposite of a boring movie, tense and suspenseful nearly from start to finish. I don't know what you're on about, Davis.

To be fair, I simply said I found myself bored with it. A bit different than saying it's a boring movie. It just doesn't excite me like most other Lynch films do. It feels empty to me, while FWWM feels full of life and energy. I think that film tackles a similar theme in a better, more interesting, and more artistically pleasing way.

[baby doll]

Yes. As I said, it deserves a re-watch but I certainly liked it a great deal after my first viewing. While the particulars are getting hazier with time, I remember finding it quite involving and affecting. I thought Allen established a rapturous, energetic sense of (naive) blooming romance and a similarly naive bohemian liberty/frivolity — all of which was tempered by a piercing dose of pathos and tragedy. With regards to the latter point, I'm thinking fondly of the dispiriting ending (which, if I recall correctly, would problematize the argument that this film is but pure, uncritical escapism), and I also recall a rather moving scene with a distraught Patricia Clarkson.

I also liked the characterization of Cristina and I really admired Rebecca Hall's performance.I don't think a downbeat ending and escapism are mutually exclusive, at least if one defines escapism as a refusal to acknowledge social realities.

[Qrazy]

What I'm learning from this last page is that there are people out there who prefer Super Mario Bros. to Blue Velvet.

This place is gonna give me ulcers.

I was going to post something similar but then I decided to let you do it instead. Thanks.

[transmogrifier]

I know how you feel. I expressed the minority opinion the other day that Showgirls is in fact not a very good movie.

Oh, it's not. At all. It's pretty atrocious, actually. But cults are cults, and they can find "talent" in anything.

As a culture, we (and by we, I mean hardcore movie fans, rather than the regular casual film goer) are way too impressed by a combination of irony, B-movie celebrity trainspotting, and blatant incongruity..

As an example, I couldn't understand all the people who were excited by seeing the dude from Dexter lip synch some song during the trailer of Gamer - there is nothing inherently impressive in that, as a stand alone idea, in any way, except as a combination of the three things I mention above. It may have worked in the context of the film, and that's fine, and I hope it did. But too many movie fans watch movies as if they were trainspotting isolated moments (Elizabeth Berkley acts like a washing machine in a pool with that guy from Blue Velvet!) rather than watching the actual film itself as a whole.

That's just my impression. It started bugging me around the time Bruce Campbell was exhalted for his broad, unfunny cameo in Spiderman 3, simply because it was Bruce Campbell, and somehow that made it alright. It didn't and it doesn't and Showgirls sucks.

[B-side]

It didn't and it doesn't and Showgirls sucks.

Haha.

[D_Davis]

Oh, it's not. At all. It's pretty atrocious, actually. But cults are cults, and they can find "talent" in anything.

As a culture, we (and by we, I mean hardcore movie fans, rather than the regular casual film goer) are way too impressed by a combination of irony, B-movie celebrity trainspotting, and blatant incongruity..

As an example, I couldn't understand all the people who were excited by seeing the dude from Dexter lip synch some song during the trailer of Gamer - there is nothing inherently impressive in that, as a stand alone idea, in any way, except as a combination of the three things I mention above. It may have worked in the context of the film, and that's fine, and I hope it did. But too many movie fans watch movies as if they were trainspotting isolated moments (Elizabeth Berkley acts like a washing machine in a pool with that guy from Blue Velvet!) rather than watching the actual film itself as a whole.

That's just my impression. It started bugging me around the time Bruce Campbell was exhalted for his broad, unfunny cameo in Spiderman 3, simply because it was Bruce Campbell, and somehow that made it alright. It didn't and it doesn't and Showgirls sucks.

You forgot the:

/smug

tag.

[Derek]

You forgot the:

/smug

tag.

Why? I agree with a lot of what he said.

[baby doll]

Sure, but I never said they were mutually exclusive in each and every case. Yet, in this case, the downbeat ending felt like an appropriate, honest, and perhaps responsible, counterpoint to the impetuousness of the main characters. It may be correct that there is less hope here than in Whatever Works, but I guess I can accept that in a larger picture sense... that is, Vicky Cristina Barcelona is one of the darker gradations contained within Allen's multi-film survey on love, infidelity and those fickle, restless desires.

However, your point must be that Vicky Cristina Barcelona's downbeat ending does not rectify the mistakes that it has apparently made... that is, it does not redeem the fact that the film has (allegedly) failed to "acknowledge social realities". Not having watched the film in a while, and since you're being vague about the social realities that you insist upon, I'm not prepared to engage in this argument.

However, what I can say, is that in this case, and based on my memories of the film, I'm having trouble boiling Allen's intentions down to pure escapism. This is because, as I said before, I believe he tempers what could have otherwise been a deceptively delightful, indeed escapist, sojourn... that is, a fun romantic fantasy sans any concern with the reality of those contingencies and emotions that would frustrate/complicate such fantasies if they were pursued in reality.As I see it, the film is disengaged and apolitical. So even though it's a tragedy that both women do the exact opposite of what would make them happy, as a representation of Spain, what the film shows us looks like one of those Dos Equis ads with the Most Interesting Man in the World. Does that clear up what I'm trying to get at?

[baby doll]

I assumed that you would say something along these lines.

Does the film uncritically encourage this representation, though? Does it refuse to undermine or skewer its validity? In other words, is it a representation of Spain or is it more about people futilely (or disastrously) attempting to live up to/embody/channel a romantic idea of Spain? By the way, to preemptively avoid any imminent truculence, I should emphasize that these questions are not provocations, but genuine questions.Given that Johannson's character is seen at one point reading a Henry Miller novel, it may be that her character is trying to live up to a preconceived romantic idea of Spain; however, the film also suggests that the Rebecca Hall would actually be happier in a three-way relationship, if only she could cast off her conventional notions of monogamy. Furthermore, the private moments between Bardem and his father (a romantic poet who frankly discusses sex with his son, he is the Dos Equis guy)--and I think the Bardem-Cruz relationship as well--are clearly meant to represent "the real Spain." Incidentally, if it really skewered the validity of this representation, I doubt Penelope Cruz would've won an Oscar.

[transmogrifier]

You forgot the:

/smug

tag.

I don't think I was being smug at all, to tell the truth. I even said "It's just my impression", which I think is pretty reasonable.

I assume you disagree with me, but didn't have the time to explain why?

[balmakboor]

I have heard the phrase, "Heineken? Fuck that shit! Pabst Blue Ribbon!" hundreds, if not thousands of times from friends and random people in bars drinking PBR.

Like I said, I know it's a superficial nitpick, but bad beer bugs the hell out of me.

I never go to bars so I've missed this charming bit of pop cultural experience. I do wonder though how many of those people are saying it because they saw it in Blue Velvet and how many are saying it because they heard someone else say it. You know, sort of being like Hopper by proxy.

I mean people say, "We don't need no stinkin' badges" all the time and like none of them have seen The Treasure of the Sierra Madre.

[D_Davis]

Why? I agree with a lot of what he said.

So do I - I was just messing around.

I, too, don't like the cameo worship, and I've been a leader of the anti-Cult of Campbell for many, many years.



I assume you disagree with me, but didn't have the time to explain why?

See above.

[Derek]

So do I - I was just messing around.

I, too, don't like the cameo worship, and I've been a leader of the anti-Cult of Campbell for many, many years.

Gotcha, I thought I remembering you going off about Campbell in the past. Makes sense now.

[Qrazy]

Whatever, an engaging cameo, particularly in a comedy is perfectly justifiable and enjoyable. I fully enjoyed Campbell in his Spiderman cameos and I'm not part of the cult of Campbell either. For instance, The Muppet Movie's success largely rides on the coattails of it's cameos.

However I would agree that cameos or even just name casting in small roles can be problematic. I quite like The Thin Red Line but I find much of Malick's casting in the film needlessly distracting.

[MadMan]

Campbell will always be awesome to me, and I liked his cameos in the Spiderman movies. Especially the one in Spiderman 2.

Also, the Super Mario Brothers movie is mostly crap, although it has its moments. Better than Blue Velvet? Hell no. I also recall Blue Velvet having pretty great visuals, and I agree that its suspenseful, not to mention a fascinating look at sex. Plus Dennis Hopper once again showcasing his fantastic acting ability, not to mention that classic monologue about not being a good neighbor. I would like to see more from Lynch, but I haven't gotten around to his other movies just yet-and I really haven't found the time for movie viewing this year, either.

[Philosophe_rouge]

The cameo in The Girl Can't Help It! is divine... still the best ever

[eternity]

Eclipse uses the Twilight love story only for context's sake and guts the canon out of it, making Bella, Edward, and Jacob tolerable characters who do things for a reason. Instead of being the epitome of shallow garbage like the books and previous films were (Twilight is genuine shit; New Moon is a decent camp parody). Now it's run of the mill, average fodder for what is a legitimately cool vampire/werewolf action flick. I recommend it as a standalone film, even though it still has some of the unintentional awfulness that Twilight is justly known for. This is a flick from the director of Hard Candy and 30 Days of Night, after all.

[Winston*]

Watched M. Hulot's Holiday. First Tati I've watched. Thought it was kind of charming but not especially hilarious, except for the scene with the canoe which was hilarious.

[baby doll]

Thanks for refreshing my memory a bit.

Hm, do we always need to hold a film up to that responsibility, though? I mean, should Allen automatically feel a pang of compunction if he does not deliver "the real Spain"? For example, if this film took place in America, with similarly idiosyncratic and eccentric characters/caricatures/stereotypes, should we be up in arms about how Allen has knowingly perpetuated a ridiculous conception of "the real America"? Is an artist allowed to create a character that isn't designed to stand as a diluted proxy for the diversity that obviously constitutes his or her respective nation?

Also, I'll throw this out there... is it possible that, like Cristina, Bardem and his father are pursuing/embodying a glamorous and romantic stereotype? That they are self-important "victims" of a similarly disastrous brand of narcissism and star-gazing?I don't think there's anything necessarily wrong with Allen projecting his fantasies onto Spain, as long as we acknowledge that it's a fantasy (and therefore, by definition, escapism). And having long ago reached the conclusion that it is escapism, I'm going to say that any second-level reading of the film (for instance that Bardem and his father are locked into living out a romantic stereotype for the sake of American tourists) seems to me a bit of a stretch.


Ah. I'm admittedly going to make some assumptions here so feel free to correct away if I'm wrong. You believe she played a laughable stereotype and thus, her winning an Oscar unequivocally confirms that the public readily believes in the validity and across-the-board, real-world applicability of that stereotype?Yes.

[Skitch]

Vicky Christina Barcelona wasn't worthy of this much in-depth conversation.

[D_Davis]

Enthralled by Triad Election. Following an introduction about the origins of Hong Kong gangs, the film introduces us to Jimmy, a member of a HK gang , who has been a successful with pirate DVDs and wants to become a "legitimate businessman". He gets trapped in a dangled web. I enjoyed the plot, but even more so, the cinematography and music.

To's films often have amazing music, and the music in the Triad films is some of the best.

[Dukefrukem]

Does anyone find it odd that this is 4th of July weekend and there are zero blockbusters being released?

[Ezee E]

Does anyone find it odd that this is 4th of July weekend and there are zero blockbusters being released?
You mean Twilight and The Last Airbender aren't blockbuster releases?

[Dukefrukem]

hahahahah no.

edit: Okay, Twilight will make a killing sure, but no way is it a blockbuster. I suspect TLA to bomb totally.

[number8]

I'm not sure why Twilight wouldn't be a blockbuster. Big budget, lines around the block, crazy midnight showing, special three-movie marathons in several theaters on opening day. Those are the symptoms of a massive blockbuster.

[Watashi]

Just because it doesn't star Will Smith, doesn't mean it's not a blockbuster.

[Dukefrukem]

I'm not sure why Twilight wouldn't be a blockbuster. Big budget, lines around the block, crazy midnight showing, special three-movie marathons in several theaters on opening day. Those are the symptoms of a massive blockbuster.

It's not a blockbuster because I don't want to see it. Blockbusters usually appeal to a wide audience, have lots of action, special effects and explosions.... Not some preteen niche fantasy story. Sure big budgets are part of it but these movies are hardly what we've seen in the past; Anyway, you get the point I'm trying to make.



Just because it doesn't star Will Smith, doesn't mean it's not a blockbuster.

Bwhahahaha pretty much. No Will Smith means no July 4th blockbuster.

[baby doll]

It's not a blockbuster because I don't want to see it.So if I don't want to see Inception, does that mean it's not a blockbuster either, even if it's playing in IMAX?


Blockbusters usually appeal to a wide audience, have lots of action, special effects and explosions.... Not some preteen niche fantasy story. Sure big budgets are part of it but these movies are hardly what we've seen in the pastIsn't Titanic just as much of a "preteen niche" movie as Twilight?

[Dukefrukem]

So if I don't want to see Inception, does that mean it's not a blockbuster either, even if it's playing in IMAX?

Isn't Titanic just as much of a "preteen niche" movie as Twilight?

Inception isn't a blockbuster.

Titanic is a tricky one, but it is a blockbuster. It's got the right formula and no i wouldn't consider it a preteen niche. A lot of people wanted to see the ship sink.

I suppose by definition both Twilight and Airbender are blockbusters, they're just weak ones and appeal to a certain fanbase. A fanbase that I'm not involved in.

There wasn't a fanbase for Titanic before it's release.

[number8]

Disregarding that that's not what I count as a blockbuster*, from what I've read, Eclipse does have tons of action and special effects. Apparently David Slade just took the thing given to him and decided to just make a vampire/werewolf war movie, half-assing the story and romance.


*Blockbuster = any movie that's big, popular and successful.

[Ezee E]

I say anything that's counted on to make $200 million is a blockbuster. Twilight, Iron Man 2, Sex and the City 2, A-Team, Robin Hood, Toy Story 3, and Inception are all blockbusters.

Some just turn out to not be one.

[baby doll]

Inception isn't a blockbuster.Maybe it's all relative. From where I stand, a movie that cost millions and millions of dollars, has huge stars, and is playing on IMAX screens in wide release qualifies as a blockbuster. So even if (at least, according to the hype) it's marginally more demanding than your average commercial feature, that doesn't exactly make it Pedro Costa.


I suppose by definition both Twilight and Airbender are blockbusters, they're just weak ones and appeal to a certain fanbase. A fanbase that I'm not involved in.Yeah, Twilight is a movie for women and girls.

[Ivan Drago]

Speaking of blockbusters, I found it sad that the only other blockbuster besides Iron Man 2 that got a big midnight showing this summer was the 3rd Twilight movie, and now there's nothing until Harry Potter. Saving the biggest and craziest one for the end of the year, I guess.

[Wryan]

Vicky Christina Barcelona wasn't worthy of this much in-depth conversation.

Match-cut: [BLANK] isn't worthy of this much in-depth conversation.

[Sven]

You guys don't know what taste looks like:

The Muppet Movie >
M. Hulot's Holiday >
Super Mario Brothers >
Twilight >
Showgirls >
Blue Velvet

[Dukefrukem]

Maybe it's all relative. From where I stand, a movie that cost millions and millions of dollars, has huge stars, and is playing on IMAX screens in wide release qualifies as a blockbuster. So even if (at least, according to the hype) it's marginally more demanding than your average commercial feature, that doesn't exactly make it Pedro Costa.

Yeah, Twilight is a movie for women and girls.

Don't you think hype has a lot to do with a "blockbuster" title? Or maybe there's a difference between an anticipated blockbuster and a blockbuster as a result of ticket sales.

[Skitch]

Ugh. I missed this comment the first time around but Wryan's quotation brought it to my attention nonetheless.

Sigh, fine, I'll rephrase for the sake of conversation. VCB was more dull and more pointless than Showgirls, in my opinion.

[number8]

Don't you think hype has a lot to do with a "blockbuster" title? Or maybe there's a difference between an anticipated blockbuster and a blockbuster as a result of ticket sales.

But there's no such thing as a blockbuster that hasn't come out yet. It's kind of a fallacy, since blockbuster refers to hugely successful movies. You know, lines around the block = blockbuster. You can expect certain movies to be blockbusters, and the safe bets are usually the big dumb action movies, but it's not limited to it.

[Derek]

You guys don't know what taste looks like:

The Muppet Movie >
M. Hulot's Holiday >
Super Mario Brothers >
Twilight >
Showgirls >
Blue Velvet

We know what awful taste looks like. That's for sure.

[Grouchy]

Jonathan Demme's Something Wild is nothing extraordinary, but it has a great opening and sparkling chemistry between the two deals (Jeff Daniels and Melanie Griffith) - without that it wouldn't have worked at all. A pre-Goodfellas Ray Liotta fills the traditional role of the convicted ex-husband who's the bad guy of the piece. The closing credits with a waitress singing the Rolling Stones are the definition of cool. Definitively a one-time thrill, but worth watching at the very least because Demme's style is all over it.

[MacGuffin]

Jonathan Demme's Something Wild is nothing extraordinary, but it has a great opening and sparkling chemistry between the two deals (Jeff Daniels and Melanie Griffith) - without that it wouldn't have worked at all. A pre-Goodfellas Ray Liotta fills the traditional role of the convicted ex-husband who's the bad guy of the piece. The closing credits with a waitress singing the Rolling Stones are the definition of cool. Definitively a one-time thrill, but worth watching at the very least because Demme's style is all over it.

Did you know Criterion's putting this one out? I haven't seen it myself, but want to.

[Grouchy]

Did you know Criterion's putting this one out? I haven't seen it myself, but want to.
Eh... It'll make the movie a lot more seen, but I can't see this one screaming for a Criterion issue.

[MacGuffin]

Eh... It'll make the movie a lot more seen, but I can't see this one screaming for a Criterion issue.

I was rather surprised to learn about it.

[Ezee E]

Jonathan Demme's Something Wild is nothing extraordinary, but it has a great opening and sparkling chemistry between the two deals (Jeff Daniels and Melanie Griffith) - without that it wouldn't have worked at all. A pre-Goodfellas Ray Liotta fills the traditional role of the convicted ex-husband who's the bad guy of the piece. The closing credits with a waitress singing the Rolling Stones are the definition of cool. Definitively a one-time thrill, but worth watching at the very least because Demme's style is all over it.
Liotta may have a traditional piece here, but I think he makes it work unbelievably well. Understandable why this role kickstarted his career.

[Sycophant]

Wait, Sven. I thought you liked Showgirls. Does that say... you like Twilight more?

I saw Eclipse last night. It's better than New Moon, that's for damn sure. But it's still bad. Basically, Walter Chaw nailed it: http://filmfreakcentral.net/screenreviews/twilighteclipse.htm

[Sven]

Wait, Sven. I thought you liked Showgirls. Does that say... you like Twilight more?

Yes. I will rate them, for clarity.


The Muppet Movie (****) >
M. Hulot's Holiday (****) >
Super Mario Brothers (***1/2) >
Twilight (***) >
Showgirls (***) >
Blue Velvet (**)

I imagine most peoples versions of this list will be nearly identical to mine, save with the last item being the first. I think Derek's assessment was made in haste, thus I will forgive him for it.

[Dead & Messed Up]

What, may I ask, informs your high opinion of Super Mario Brothers? I really want to understand, but my perspective is that it's an ugly slog of a film that makes no sense and offers little mirth. The only way I can imagine it working is as some sort of baroque nightmare-scape, meritorious in its inescapable uniqueness.

[Bosco B Thug]

Yes. I will rate them, for clarity. Aw, only 3 stars for Showgirls! That extra 1/2 star would do so much! :)

I hate to pile on even more praise on McCarey's MWfT, but yeah <--- blubbering fool. I exaggerate, but it's a full, complete hour-and-a-half of lump-in-the-throat.

[Sven]

Aw, only 3 stars for Showgirls! That extra 1/2 star would do so much! :)

It's too long. That's my biggest problem with it.

As for Mario Bros, well... I guess I just like bumbling lackies a bit much. Richard Edson and Fisher Stevens!

[Ezee E]

I won't even bother reading someone that will defend Super Mario Bros. It's just that stupid.

[Sven]

I won't even bother reading someone that will defend Super Mario Bros. It's just that stupid.

:sad:

[Watashi]

I've never seen The Muppet Movie.

[Watashi]

On the Sven-SMB issue... I think Derek is on to something.

[Dead & Messed Up]

It's too long. That's my biggest problem with it.

As for Mario Bros, well... I guess I just like bumbling lackies a bit much. Richard Edson and Fisher Stevens!

I'm watching it on Youtube right now. I really want to understand...and I will say the fifteen minutes I've watched so far aren't awful. Then again, they haven't journeyed to the dimension of dinos and fungi and seven-foot-tall Goombas yet.

[MacGuffin]

I find it funny how I always seem to flock back to this forum, even though most of the posters have great hatred toward me. It's great.

[Ezee E]

:sad:

Sorry Sven. It's true. I've watched that movie. Its one of the worst I've ever seen. In such a way that I usually forget it even exists. I'm astounded it got such a good cast together.

[Sven]

I was hoping that we, as a community, were past being confused when somebody likes/doesn't like a well-loved/oft-criticized film.

I will mount a comprehensive defense of Super Mario Bros. only if it is the case that I feel I can do it without fear of mockery.

[Sven]

I find it funny how I always seem to flock back to this forum, even though most of the posters have great hatred toward me. It's great.

Weird thing to say since I don't recall any hostility toward you specifically since your emergence. Unless you really are baby doll.

[MacGuffin]

Weird thing to say since I don't recall any hostility toward you specifically since your emergence. Unless you really are baby doll.

Nope, haha. Just taking note. It's nice that there's no hostility, since I do consider myself a bit of a prick sometimes when it comes to movies. I guess I just really like the sense of community here.

[Ezee E]

I was hoping that we, as a community, were past being confused when somebody likes/doesn't like a well-loved/oft-criticized film.

I will mount a comprehensive defense of Super Mario Bros. only if it is the case that I feel I can do it without fear of mockery.
I'm not confused. Nor will I mock. Luckily, I like you enough Sven that I will accept your opinion, and move on, and hope for some ukulele.

[BuffaloWilder]

Super Mario Bros., could of been a decent film if they'd gone with the original screenplay - and stopped changing pretty important things right on the day of the shoot. It was a pretty haphazard production, which resulted in a messy movie. Still occasionally enjoyable, though.