28 Film Discussion Threads Later

[D_Davis]

What I want to know about the mogwai is this: if they can't eat after midnight, when can they start eating? It's always after midnight. This "rule" shows just how stupid and poorly thought-out the film is. This lame ambiguity could have been explained by simply stating, "They can't eat between midnight and six a.m., Eastern time," or whatnot.

[D_Davis]

http://i.imgur.com/ERtJV.jpg

[Spun Lepton]

As if any minimum-wage projectionists give a crap.

[Derek]

Holy Mother God, Fassbinder's long lost cyberpunk film, World on a Wire, is restored and coming to the US this summer.

URq7m3-SOtA

MOAR!!!

[Ezee E]

I like it.

[Dukefrukem]

Why is Stalker considered a sci-fi movie?

[soitgoes...]

Why is Stalker considered a sci-fi movie?
Because it isn't grounded in our reality.

[megladon8]

Picked up My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World in a 2-for-1 bin today.

[Mysterious Dude]

Bound for Glory is quite a dull film, but it looks fantastic. I was amazed at the sheer number of locations used. Compared to other period films from the 70's (The Godfather, Chinatown), Bound for Glory's world is enormous. Too bad the story is so uninteresting.

[MadMan]

What I want to know about the mogwai is this: if they can't eat after midnight, when can they start eating? It's always after midnight. This "rule" shows just how stupid and poorly thought-out the film is. This lame ambiguity could have been explained by simply stating, "They can't eat between midnight and six a.m., Eastern time," or whatnot.LOL nitpicking. I couldn't find a good decent mocking picture to post, and your lucky I don't have Photoshop :P

[dreamdead]

Such a weird realization to realize that Deliverance and Point Blank were directed by the same man, but the former does have a very precise and visceral eye toward verisimilitude. The on location shooting helps Deliverance so much, and much of the wide shot photography goes toward making this journey a credible experience. Though generally good throughout, the Vietnam parallels likely make this a much more impactful experience. Those themes of the displaced outsider who assumed an assured bravado about the rightness of his superiority and invasive presence make this especially interesting, as does the coda, which has so much power when read in a Vietnam lens. Good work, this.

[dmk]

If you believe Dante to be some kind of auteur, a Voltarian superman and not a hack, then you'll need to explain his name in the credits of the well-remembered, oft-quoted and deeply loved TV movie delights Runaway Daughters and The Warlord: Battle for the Galaxy, among others.

Good luck with that.
But why? His TV films (Runaway Daughters, Homecoming, The Screwfly Solution, The Second Civil War) are even more personal, coarse and sardonic than any of his feature films. They're fantastic.

Besides, they’re not “well-remembered, oft-quoted and deeply loved� because they’re relatively obscure. Also, “well-remembered, oft-quoted and deeply loved� films by the populace tend to suck.

[Stay Puft]

Holy Mother God, Fassbinder's long lost cyberpunk film, World on a Wire, is restored and coming to the US this summer.

I missed a theatrical exhibition of this last week. :sad:

[Irish]

Besides, they’re not “well-remembered, oft-quoted and deeply loved� because they’re relatively obscure.

I know. I was being sarcastic there, Big Brain.

[Sven]

Such a weird realization to realize that Deliverance and Point Blank were directed by the same man, but the former does have a very precise and visceral eye toward verisimilitude. The on location shooting helps Deliverance so much, and much of the wide shot photography goes toward making this journey a credible experience. Though generally good throughout, the Vietnam parallels likely make this a much more impactful experience. Those themes of the displaced outsider who assumed an assured bravado about the rightness of his superiority and invasive presence make this especially interesting, as does the coda, which has so much power when read in a Vietnam lens. Good work, this.

You REALLY need to see Leo the Last.

[dmk]

I know. I was being sarcastic there, Big Brain.
Naww, really? You’re clearly too subtle and perceptive.

[Sven]

Too bad the story is so uninteresting.

I mostly agree, though I liked it a little more than you and found that, much like Guthrie's music, it gets better with time and reflection.

[Sven]

What I want to know about the mogwai is this: if they can't eat after midnight, when can they start eating? It's always after midnight. This "rule" shows just how stupid and poorly thought-out the film is. This lame ambiguity could have been explained by simply stating, "They can't eat between midnight and six a.m., Eastern time," or whatnot.

They make fun of this in Gremlins 2.

[Spinal]

LOL nitpicking. I couldn't find a good decent mocking picture to post, and your lucky I don't have Photoshop :P

This is not nitpicking. It's an enormous problem with the fundamental guidelines that the film is based on.

[Winston*]

Rewatched Glengarry Glenross. Didn't remember Alec Baldwin's character being such a buffoon. I think it speaks a lot to what sad sacks these characters are that they don't laugh him out of the room when he brings out a pair of literal brass balls from his suitcase as a visual aid during his motivational speech.

[Dukefrukem]

Because it isn't grounded in our reality.

I suppose. The fantasy element of Stalker is entirely implied. I was expecting something extraordinarily to occur throughout the whole movie and nothing ever presents itself. It's heavily built around a slow-burn tension ladder, where the climax is barely a climax, but I loved it. The imagery and shot locations are unreal. Combine this with my knowledge of Stalker the video game, and I am even more impressed by the games- I think I read somewhere the game is loosely based off the novel/movie where they took that fantasy element and made it more obvious. Great stuff.

[Dukefrukem]

Netflix for Theaters: MoviePass Lets You Watch Unlimited Movies in Theaters

Casey Chan — How's this sound: A movie subscription that lets you watch unlimited movies in theaters for 50 bucks a month. It's like Netflix but for the real, real life. Would that be something you're interested in?

Called MoviePass, it's a service that'll let users use a smartphone app to handle all their movie bookings. For 50 bucks a month (additional $3 for each IMAX or 3D), users of MoviePass will get unlimited access to any movie playing in participating theaters. If you're not that psycho about watching movies, they also have a 'lite' package of 4 movies for 30 bucks. Either way, they're rolling out a private beta in San Francisco right now that includes 21 different theaters and hopes to expand to other US cities throughout the summer. The goal is to put MoviePass in 40% of the theaters across the US.

http://popcorn.moviepass.com/?

[StanleyK]

I watched Kung Fu Panda today. Meh. The story doesn't put any kind of interesting spin on the old 'believe in yourself' crap. Characters are bland, story is unmemorable. The action is kinda neat and the film's actually pretty funny when Jack Black isn't being annoying. Overall, it's mildly entertaining but completely rote and safe; I don't see what makes this so praise-worthy.

[Ezee E]

Count me in.

Although, I still haven't even seen ten movies this year.

Maybe not.

[MadMan]

This is not nitpicking. It's an enormous problem with the fundamental guidelines that the film is based on.Its a child hood nightmarish horror movie mocking Christmas with magical creatures that shouldn't even exist. I think that complaining about some arbartary guildlines means that you are just looking for another reason to dislike a movie beyond your already stated reasons. Bashing a movie because it sucks and stating why it sucks (bad acting, bad story, bad direction) is different than bitching about certain plot points.

[Winston*]

Yeah. You can complain about the story, but not the plot points. Leave the plot points out of it.

[D_Davis]

Its a child hood nightmarish horror movie mocking Christmas with magical creatures that shouldn't even exist. I think that complaining about some arbartary guildlines means that you are just looking for another reason to dislike a movie beyond your already stated reasons. Bashing a movie because it sucks and stating why it sucks (bad acting, bad story, bad direction) is different than bitching about certain plot points.

No - it's demanding that my genre fiction be well written and plotted. I have no problem suspending my disbelief, so long as the writers treat the material and their audiences with respect. If you're going to have a set of rules on which your mythology is based, then the rules should make sense. In this case, two of three do, and I can buy that.

[Derek]

Count me in.

Although, I still haven't even seen ten movies this year.

Maybe not.

Not sure if it'll come to Iowa anyway.

[Derek]

No - it's demanding that my genre fiction be well written and plotted. I have no problem suspending my disbelief, so long as the writers treat the material and their audiences with respect. If you're going to have a set of rules on which your mythology is based, then the rules should make sense. In this case, two of three do, and I can buy that.

Check ur brain at the door, D_Davis!

[Spinal]

If you're going to have a set of rules on which your mythology is based, then the rules should make sense. In this case, two of three do, and I can buy that.

Actually, the water rule doesn't make any sense either.

[Scar]

Actually, the water rule doesn't make any sense either.

I was gonna say...

I'd love to know how, scientifically, a drop of water can 'cause spontaneous generation.

[D_Davis]

Check ur brain at the door, D_Davis!

Buckle in for a roller coaster thrill ride!

[D_Davis]

I was gonna say...

I'd love to know how, scientifically, a drop of water can 'cause spontaneous generation.

I'm not saying it makes sense scientifically - this is a fantasy we're talking about. I don't need things to make sense in a rational, scientific manner; most genre fiction does not operate in this manner, which is why we must be able to suspend our disbelief. However, in the mythology of the Mogwai, the rule makes sense - don't get them wet. OK. I will keep them dry. As opposed to don't feed them after midnight, which makes no sense because we aren't given a time that we can start feeding them.

[Scar]

I'm not saying it makes sense scientifically - this is a fantasy we're talking about. I don't need things to make sense in a rational, scientific manner; most genre fiction does not operate in this manner, which is why we must be able to suspend our disbelief. However, in the mythology of the Mogwai, the rule makes sense - don't get them wet. OK. I will keep them dry. As opposed to don't feed them after midnight, which makes no sense because we aren't given a time that we can start feeding them.

Please tell me this isn't the only thing that's keeping you from enjoying the movie.

[D_Davis]

Please tell me this isn't the only thing that's keeping you from enjoying the movie.

There are a multitude of things.

[Chac Mool]

Two recent viewings on which I'm rather torn -- what does the commentariat think?

Matteo Garrone's "Gomorrah" paints a fascinating picture of how pervasive not just organized crime but the mentality of crime is in a specific quarter of Naples. Its five interconnected slices-of-life paint a harrowing picture of corruption and violence at all levels of society -- from the stunted outcasts scavenging for scraps and dreaming of riches to honest men trying (and failing) to do good. Combined with naturalistic acting and a self-effacing style, it's easy to think of the film as less of a narrative feature and more of a documentary. And it's the latter fact that bothers me... Garrone leans very far in the direction of naturalism. There are no dramatic hooks to grab the audience, there isn't nearly enough inflection in the filmmaking to create strong emotions; even the editing seems messy, scenes coming and going without dramatic build-up and release. I have nothing against naturalism, but there's a reason the language of narrative filmmaking is what it is: it works. "Gomorrah" goes for realism and that's what I admire about it, but maybe it goes a little too far. [7/10]

And speaking of documentaries: what about "Catfish"? I followed the advice found in most reviews (and on the back of the DVD cover) and avoided all details of the plot. Surprisingly, I can't say that I found any major shocks -- it's pretty obvious ten minutes in that things are going to go awry -- but I was surprised at the complexity of the person Nev et al. eventually encounter. I don't know if the ambiguous tone/feeling of the last 30 minutes is intentional (and the result of some pretty solid filmmaking) or if (as Mike d'Angelo suggests) the trio just didn't know what to do and stuck along for the ride, but suffice to say the film ends on a note as appropriate as it is unsatisfying: the real mystery isn't Facebook -- it's people. [7]

[Spinal]

There are a multitude of things.

It's just the most obvious example in a film riddled with poorly conceived ideas. Here's another ...

If the whole point of not letting the mogwai eat after midnight is that they turn into a rotten, nasty gremlin, then why are the new mogwai clearly villianous before their transformation?

[Bosco B Thug]

That "After midnight" rule. I used to find it unbearably annoying. Now I find it quite clever and hilarious. Surely it's a knowing gag, just like most of the film's inconsistencies. In any case, Gremlins is just alright.

[Spinal]

Surely it's a knowing gag, just like most of the film's inconsistencies.

You have got to be kidding me.

[Bosco B Thug]

You have got to be kidding me.
Why is there no way it could be knowing? It's clearly ridiculous enough.

[Irish]

Surely it's a knowing gag, just like most of the film's inconsistencies.

Joe Dante isn't that smart.

[Spinal]

Why is there no way it could be knowing? It's clearly ridiculous enough.

So no criticism of the film's inconsistencies is valid because I'm supposed to assume that the filmmakers knew they were there? That makes as little sense as the film itself.

The film still has the same flaws whether they knew the inconsistencies were there or not.

[Spinal]

Joe Dante isn't that smart.

So smart that he purposefully riddled his film with inconsistencies and plot holes? Yeah, that'd take a genius.

[Scar]

It's just the most obvious example in a film riddled with poorly conceived ideas. Here's another ...

If the whole point of not letting the mogwai eat after midnight is that they turn into a rotten, nasty gremlin, then why are the new mogwai clearly villianous before their transformation?

Gizmo is old and wise. The Newbies are young and crazy.

[Bosco B Thug]

Joe Dante isn't that smart. Well, I was of the idea everyone loved Joe Dante and found him a smart filmmaker (even people who don't love Joe Dante) before all this broke out.


So no criticism of the film's inconsistencies is valid because I'm supposed to assume that the filmmakers knew they were there? That makes as little sense as the film itself. No... that's not what I'm saying...

I'm just saying if they were intentional gags, I personally find them funny, which means they succeeded in their purpose (for me).

[Qrazy]

After midnight (in the lunar sense) until sunrise. Boom. Solved. You're welcome.

[Spinal]

At the end of the movie, the Chinese grandfather berates the family with this line: "You do with mogwai what your society... has done with all of nature's gifts. You do not understand."

Some gift, I say. A creature that multiplies instantly at the mere contact of water on a planet that is covered with it on over 70% of its surface. A creature that is intelligent but nonetheless requires monitoring during human's natural sleep cycle, lest it pick up a banana chip and transform into a demon that will completely fuck up your life and take your city down as well. Thanks a lot, Nature.

What useless moralizing. But, I'm sure the filmmakers probably knew this too and it's all a part of their genius satire.

[Spinal]

After midnight (in the lunar sense) until sunrise. Boom. Solved. You're welcome.

Would have been great if that were in the film. It's not.

[Qrazy]

I don't see how Gremlins makes any more or less sense than 99% of other monster movies.

[Qrazy]

Would have been great if that were in the film. It's not.

It's implied. Read between the lines. God.

:D

[Spinal]

It's implied. Read between the lines. God.

:D

Heh. :lol:

[Spinal]

After dragging this conversation on for days and days, I'm sure you'll all be happy to know that we got Gremlins 2 today from Netflix.

[Raiders]

What useless moralizing. But, I'm sure the filmmakers probably knew this too and it's all a part of their genius satire.

You're the first one to use the word "satire."

Chris Columbus is a fool. Yes, it's silly moralizing. That is not what myself and I would assume many others find memorable or enjoyable about the film.

But, I see the flies hovering over the horse; so I look forward to your trashing of the second film so the real argument can begin.

[Irish]

After dragging this conversation on for days and days, I'm sure you'll all be happy to know that we got Gremlins 2 today from Netflix.

In the meantime, can we rename this thread "The Spinal Loves Joe Dante Thread?"

[Bosco B Thug]

At the end of the movie, the Chinese grandfather berates the family with this line: "You do with mogwai what your society... has done with all of nature's gifts. You do not understand."

Some gift, I say. A creature that multiplies instantly at the mere contact of water on a planet that is covered with it on over 70% of its surface. A creature that is intelligent but nonetheless requires monitoring during human's natural sleep cycle, lest it pick up a banana chip and transform into a demon that will completely fuck up your life and town your city town as well. Thanks a lot, Nature.

What useless moralizing. But, I'm sure the filmmakers probably knew this too and it's all a part of their genius satire. Now I really am not meaning to inflame or get into it once again... but I read that quote by the Chinese grandfather, and it's hilarious! What you wrote is also hilarious (love the banana chip remark), but you have to admit your stand-up wouldn't exist without the knowing collaboration of fellow stand-up artist Gremlins. ;)

[transmogrifier]

If Spinal hates Gremlins 2, I'm gonna burn this place to the ground. Metaphorically speaking.

[Irish]

We need a MatchCut move night. Everybody in this thread needs to rewatch Gremlins 2 at the same time, along with Spinal's family. :lol:

[Spinal]

town your city town

That's an awesome typo, dumb ass.

[D_Davis]

After midnight (in the lunar sense) until sunrise. Boom. Solved. You're welcome.

What if it's fucking cloudy?

[Dead & Messed Up]

It's a good thing The Mike doesn't post here anymore. I think this Gremlins conversation would send him into cardiac arrest.

Was there a general revival of cinematic Oriental mysticism in the mid-eighties? Because there was this silliness in Gremlins, and there were flicks like The Golden Child and Big Trouble in Little China, and Temple of Doom had some bizarre undercurrents. "Indians are either impoverished and helpless...or heart-ripping maniacs!" I can justify that one to some degree thanks to the film's wholesale theft from the equally childish Gunga Din.

Unless anyone has further examples, I'll withdraw my theory.

[Dead & Messed Up]

What if it's fucking cloudy?

The sun still rose, didn't it?

God, it's times like these I think you shouldn't own a Mogwai, D.

[D_Davis]

Was there a general revival of cinematic Oriental mysticism in the mid-eighties? Because there was this silliness in Gremlins, and there were flicks like The Golden Child and Big Trouble in Little China, and Temple of Doom had some bizarre undercurrents. "Indians are either impoverished and helpless...or heart-ripping maniacs!" I can justify that one to some degree thanks to the film's wholesale theft from the equally childish Gunga Din.

Unless anyone has further examples, I'll withdraw my theory.

Most of these things were, in some ways, related to the old pulps, in which Orientalism and general racism towards "Orientals" was more than just a convention - it was practically the cornerstone of the entire movement.

[D_Davis]

The sun still rose, didn't it?

God, it's times like these I think you shouldn't own a Mogwai, D.

What if you took your Mogwai in a plane and flew around the world at a constant speed so that the sun would always be in view? Could the Mogwai then eat all the time?

[D_Davis]

What if you took your Mogwai TO THE FUCKING SUN?

BAM. Logic bomb.

[Spinal]

What if your Mogwai swallowed a raisin at 11:30 pm in the Pacific Time Zone and then travelled into the Mountain Time Zone where it was 12:30 am while the raisin was still in the digestive tract?

[Raiders]

This reminds me of when I suffered from late night reflux and my doctor told me to not eat after 8pm. I decided that logically thinking about it and realizing that once it was morning the next day I could eat was just silly, so I just haven't eaten since.

[D_Davis]

What if your Mogwai swallowed a raisin at 11:30 pm in the Pacific Time Zone and then travelled into the Mountain Time Zone where it was 12:30 am while the raisin was still in the digestive tract?

That movie would be better than Gremlins.

[Boner M]

What if your Mogwai swallowed a raisin at 11:30 pm in the Pacific Time Zone and then travelled into the Mountain Time Zone where it was 12:30 am while the raisin was still in the digestive tract?
You're gonna like Gremlins 2, fo sho.

[Dead & Messed Up]

What if you took your Mogwai TO THE FUCKING SUN?

BAM. Logic bomb.

You'd get almost all the way to the sun, then see the first sun ship that never made it, carrying the same logic bomb, and on board that first sun ship, for the past seven years, was a Gremlin WAITING TO KILL YOU BOTH BECAUSE THE SUN IS GOD, THAT'S WHY.

[D_Davis]

You'd get almost all the way to the sun, then see the first sun ship that never made it, carrying the same logic bomb, and on board that first sun ship, for the past seven years, was a Gremlin WAITING TO KILL YOU BOTH BECAUSE THE SUN IS GOD, THAT'S WHY.

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTwLA3q5Nhrc L8nnMyneqqap0SRkam8e8cI1_WBXDY 433a0mesOFA&t=1

[Ezee E]

Haha. Hearing Spinal complain about Gremlins is going to be even funnier after he watches the sequel.

[Derek]

Please continue setting Spinal's expectation for Gremlins 2 in the stratosphere, cuz I could use a little company when he's inevitably disappointed.

[Qrazy]

Pretty sure the entire structure of Gremlins is a dream within a dream of a dying child guys, so if you bear this in mind it makes a lot more sense... well not sense, but you know.

[Spinal]

What a delight to find that all of my criticisms and ridicule of the first Gremlins film are addressed in the sequel. What a delight to discover that Joe Dante realized that in order to give life to a promising premise, he had to break free from the chains of the story's creator. Surely some of these hilarious move in-gags came from Dante himself. The Ted Turner-esque character, the Leonard Maltin cameo, the colorization gag ... all seem like they fit Dante's sense of humor and film buff sensibilities.

But screenwriter Charles Haas has to receive enormous credit for constructing a world and situation in which these goofy little monsters can succeed, placing the plot within a misguided attempt at creating the perfect office building incorporating the most modern of technology. At last, the gremlins have a reason to be. At last, there is a target for their mayhem that actually fits. Columbus and Dante may very well have been attempting something similar with the first film. But sub-par writing left something lost in the translation and gave us an ugly little mess.

There should be no question as to the first film's major shortcomings, as all one has to do is look to the sequel to see how this sort of film should actually be made. Jokes that are actually funny! Action that is actually exciting! Social critique that actually hits! Gremlins 2 is possibly the greatest improvement over the original that I have ever seen from a sequel. What is strange is that as great as the film is on its own, it probably is even better because it arose out of a film that was subpar. It's the shedding of its own skin, the willingness to own up to its faults and then make amends by finally delivering the neatly orchestrated chaos that we've longed for ... that's what makes the film take flight.

So, in short, I find myself looking back to the original film. And while I am not able to get on board with it as any sort of success, I find myself able to forgive.

This house is clean.

[Spinal]

You're gonna like Gremlins 2, fo sho.

I almost nailed an actual line from the film! Give me credit. And then the guy gets munched. Awesome. I was like, "Thank you! Now we can move on."

[Boner M]

'Atta boy.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Excellent. One of the real pleasures of the film, for me, is how John Glover's character is hardly villainous. By film's end, he's quite heroic, and his performance ("I like warmth!") is so perfect a picture of blissful ignorance. The closest thing to a villain is Robert Picardo's assistant, and even he might get a happy ending.

[Spinal]

Excellent. One of the real pleasures of the film, for me, is how John Glover's character is hardly villainous. By film's end, he's quite heroic, and his performance ("I like warmth!") is so perfect a picture of blissful ignorance. The closest thing to a villain is Robert Picardo's assistant, and even he might get a happy ending.

Absolutely.

2nd biggest laugh of the film for me:

The prepared end of civilization video.

Biggest laugh:

They pushed him too far.

[Spinal]

Oh, and favorite subtle gag:

Jaded New Yorkers walking past as a man gets attacked by a gargoyle on the street.

[MadMan]

It's a good thing The Mike doesn't post here anymore. I think this Gremlins conversation would send him into cardiac arrest.

Was there a general revival of cinematic Oriental mysticism in the mid-eighties? Because there was this silliness in Gremlins, and there were flicks like The Golden Child and Big Trouble in Little China, and Temple of Doom had some bizarre undercurrents. "Indians are either impoverished and helpless...or heart-ripping maniacs!" I can justify that one to some degree thanks to the film's wholesale theft from the equally childish Gunga Din.

Unless anyone has further examples, I'll withdraw my theory.No, your spot on. And I love all of those movies. Even Temple of Doom. The Golden Child is actually one of my favorite comedies, and anyone who hates Big Trouble in Little China hates fun. Period. But I don't hate Asian people. One of my friends is Asian, damnit. Honestly. I will acknowledge that Temple of Doom and Gunga Din are racist, but one of my all time favorite westerns, The Searchers, is quite racist. Even now the really highly praised and fantastic western The Proposition is kind of racist. The Blind Side was mockingly called "My Pet Negro" by its detractors, who clearly used racism to imply that the movie itself was racist. Everything's racist. We're all racist. Shit.

The Mike needs to start posting here again. I'll send out some kind of Bat signal or something.


Not sure if it'll come to Iowa anyway.I don't even remember what my original post you quoted is about. Iowa has some nice people, and I live there, but dude you are better off just skipping it. Too much corn, religious fundies who hate gays (we still have gay marriage, for now), and only a handful of towns and the few cities that exist are worth visiting. Its less boring than say, Kansas, but I can't say its actually less boring than Nebraska because at least Nebraska has the Omaha Zoo, and I hear Lincoln is cool.


No - it's demanding that my genre fiction be well written and plotted. I have no problem suspending my disbelief, so long as the writers treat the material and their audiences with respect. If you're going to have a set of rules on which your mythology is based, then the rules should make sense. In this case, two of three do, and I can buy that.Eh, rules. Overrated :P

I love Gremlins 2, I just prefer the first Gremlins quite a bit more. I'm not sure if Gremlins cracks my Top 50 Horror Movies list anymore, but I kind of feel like leaving it on there. Gremlins 2 wouldn't make the list regardless because I really feel its a spoof/comedy. And yes John Glover is utterly hilarious in it-by the end he's turned into a happier, non-Jew hating version of Walt Disney.

Honestly I hope most of your are joking, Davis included. Because otherwise this thread became really fucking stupid really fucking fast :P

[Pop Trash]

Aren't we dodging the real question here: how does Explorers hold up?

[MadMan]

I haven't seen Explorers yet. I still need to revisit Innerspace.

[Spinal]

I just realized that all this time I was talking about Joe Dante that I was really picturing John Landis in my head. Oy vey.

[Spun Lepton]

Good god, I just watched the Wicker Man remake.

It does have one major thing in common with the original.

It's ungodly slow and boring.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Good god, I just watched the Wicker Man remake.

It does have one major thing in common with the original.

It's ungodly slow and boring.

YOU ARE FAIL

[MadMan]

I just realized that all this time I was talking about Joe Dante that I was really picturing John Landis in my head. Oy vey.
Landis is better just because he gave us Animal House, Blues Brothers, and An American Werewolf in London.

Thanks to an Internet chat, I saw The Wicker Man remake. Well at least the last half. Godfuckingawful to the max. Some parts were funny, but most of it was just terrible. What the hell was that? And of course "OH GOD! NOT THE BEES!!!! OHHHHH GODDDD!!!!!"

[Spun Lepton]

YOU ARE FAIL

:lol:

So, which do you like? The original or the remake?

'Cuz the original is EASILY superior, I'll give you that. The remake is a joke, though.

[Spun Lepton]

Thanks to an Internet chat, I saw The Wicker Man remake. Well at least the last half. Godfuckingawful to the max. Some parts were funny, but most of it was just terrible. What the hell was that? And of course "OH GOD! NOT THE BEES!!!! OHHHHH GODDDD!!!!!"

How'd it get burned?
How'd it get burned??!
How'd it get burned??!!!?!?!?
HOW'D IT GET BURNED HOW'D IT GET BURNED HOW'D IT GET BURNED?!?!?!?!

[B-side]

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0323808/

[MadMan]

How'd it get burned?
How'd it get burned??!
How'd it get burned??!!!?!?!?
HOW'D IT GET BURNED HOW'D IT GET BURNED HOW'D IT GET BURNED?!?!?!?!nmLQ_Qh8INg&feature

I couldn't find Nic Cage kicking the woman. Too bad.

[Dead & Messed Up]

:lol:

So, which do you like? The original or the remake?

'Cuz the original is EASILY superior, I'll give you that. The remake is a joke, though.

I haven't seen the remake yet, mostly because I've heard that, despite what the enjoyable Internet memes suggested, the film is damn dull. If I'd watch it, I'd watch it for the purported misogynism that Cage and Labute supposedly indulge throughout.

I found the original to be odd and disquieting, especially as it rolls into the third act. The film develops its air of solitude carefully, so that, even with the open spaces and aptitude of the hero, there's no sense of salvation. The air of doom feels genuine. I also dug how the film builds a clash of religious ideas, with the Pagan fertility rites placed against the hero's stalwart Christian faith. It's hard to dismiss the antagonists as "evil" or "insane," because their real sin isn't cruelty so much as it is total certainty.

[Bosco B Thug]

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0323808/ Has everyone seen the trailer to this?!? Cuz everyone has to:

QLASfmnCuHU

It looks a little rough, sure, but at least it looks all-out crazy and kinda sprawling, which is rare with horror.

[B-side]

That looks silly and wacky. In other words, I wanna see it.

[soitgoes...]

Please continue setting Spinal's expectation for Gremlins 2 in the stratosphere, cuz I could use a little company when he's inevitably disappointed.I will be your friend.

[Sven]

Aren't we dodging the real question here: how does Explorers hold up?

Didn't see it as a child, but I adored it as a twenty-four year old.

Spinal, I'm so happy.

[balmakboor]

Haven't posted a top 10 in years:

1. The Last Picture Show
2. Slacker
3. Heaven's Gate
4. Barry Lyndon
5. The Thin Blue Line
6. The Man Who Fell to Earth
7. Over the Edge
8. Blue Valentine
9. Drugstore Cowboy
10. Harold and Maude

Rather lacking in foreign stuff, I know, but it reflects where my mind has been lately.

[NickGlass]

I could shed a happy tear for what has transpired over the past two pages. Gremlins 2 is the bestest.

[Raiders]

Didn't see it as a child, but I adored it as a twenty-four year old.

Spinal, I'm so happy.

I saw it both in my youth and now as an adult and I am pretty sure I appreciate it even more now. The final act with the aliens is still both the film's best section and a little sluggish, but the whole thing is marvelously done. Hell with that Goonies crap, this is the 80s child fantasy worth watching.

[Spinal]

Someone on Facebook was talking about Super 8 and said that it is "Goonies-good ... seriously".

As if that was a difficult bar to attain.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Someone on Facebook was talking about Super 8 and said that it is "Goonies-good ... seriously".

As if that was a difficult bar to attain.

That seems to be a popular comparison. One that makes absolutely no sense to me. Two separate individuals I know called it "The Goonies for this generation." Is that being spouted by media outlets, or pushed by the studio or something? Seems odd, considering the two films have next to nothing in common, other than kids.

[StanleyK]

Ferran's Lady Chatterley is great. Now here's an example of a film that takes a rather bland premise (nobleman's wife cheats on him with working-class chap- yaaawwwnnn), and executes it with such artistry and humanity that it elevates to so much more. There's plenty to admire, but the most interesting for me is the connection drawn between Constance's sexual awakening and the Malickian, lovingly shot forest. In its use of nature as a metaphor for primal human desires, it's sort of like a friendlier Antichrist, but then the movie goes beyond that and creates between the two lovers a believable and mature romance. It actually ends with them having a grown-up discussion about their future! For that alone I have mad respect for it, and for everything else- the exquisite direction, the attention to detail, the genuine sensuality, Marina Hands' performance- I love it.

[Dukefrukem]

I watched Suspiria last night, since so many people mentioned it in the movie challenege thread. Boy was that a disaapointment. Probably the worst cut movie I've ever watched filled with over powering 70s music every time something scary is about to happen. Bad.

[Rowland]

http://www.planetsmilies.com/smilies/indifferent/indifferent0028.gif

[D_Davis]

I watched Suspiria last night, since so many people mentioned it in the movie challenege thread. Boy was that a disaapointment. Probably the worst cut movie I've ever watched filled with over powering 70s music every time something scary is about to happen. Bad.

The music is the best part.

[Dukefrukem]

The music is the best part.

I was so annoyed with it. Aside from the scene at the very beginning with the girl looking out the window, i didn't think the movie was all that terrifying either. As I mentioned, the cuts from scene to scene were horribly done. It felt like I was misisng pieces of the movie. Totally distracted me from the plot.

[Pop Trash]

The music is the best part.

Fuck yeah. GOBLIN RULEZ!

[Pop Trash]

Haven't posted a top 10 in years:
1. The Last Picture Show


Did you rewatch this as part of the BBS box set? I love Last Picture, but I'm not a huge fan of Bogdanovich in general which puts a bit of a damper on it. I feel the same way about The Graduate and Nichols I suppose.

[elixir]

I watched Suspiria last night, since so many people mentioned it in the movie challenege thread. Boy was that a disaapointment. Probably the worst cut movie I've ever watched filled with over powering 70s music every time something scary is about to happen. Bad.

Eh, I wasn't scared at all either, but the colors! Seriously, that art direction made it worth it. And the scored rocked--that's the way all overbearing, intrusive scores should be.

[Ezee E]

Mean Creek is The Goonies of the early 00's.

[MadMan]

Suspiria and Goblin are both awesome. However, for now I slightly prefer The Bird With The Crystal Plumage over it.

[balmakboor]

Did you rewatch this as part of the BBS box set? I love Last Picture, but I'm not a huge fan of Bogdanovich in general which puts a bit of a damper on it. I feel the same way about The Graduate and Nichols I suppose.

Yes. Great box set. Still great movie that seems so much better now that I've become familiar with small town life.

I'm not huge fan of Bogdanovich either. I do love Paper Moon and Mask though.

[megladon8]

I watched Suspiria last night, since so many people mentioned it in the movie challenege thread. Boy was that a disaapointment. Probably the worst cut movie I've ever watched filled with over powering 70s music every time something scary is about to happen. Bad.


Do you have much experience with the masters of Italian horror? Argento, Bava, Fulci, etc?

I found them a bit confusing at first, but you really need to approach them with a certain mindset.

They're very much "style-over-substance" movies for the most part. I don't think I've been effectively frightened by many (if any) of them, but I adore them because they're so totally off the wall as audio-visual experiences.

Suspiria took me a few viewings to really appreciate it, but now I adore it.

I suggest checking out Deep Red next.

[Dukefrukem]

Do you have much experience with the masters of Italian horror? Argento, Bava, Fulci, etc?

I found them a bit confusing at first, but you really need to approach them with a certain mindset.

They're very much "style-over-substance" movies for the most part. I don't think I've been effectively frightened by many (if any) of them, but I adore them because they're so totally off the wall as audio-visual experiences.

Suspiria took me a few viewings to really appreciate it, but now I adore it.

I suggest checking out Deep Red next.

Only Fulci, who I also do not like.

I have Deep Red, lost at my house somewhere from Netflix so Argento is on the chop block right now.

[megladon8]

Only Fulci, who I also do not like.

I have Deep Red, lost at my house somewhere from Netflix so Argento is on the chop block right now.


Yeah, I don't like Fulci too much either, but he has one or two movies that are mildly enjoyable, but he mostly made crap.

Argento (pre-1990s) and Bava are masterful though.

[MadMan]

For now, I actually like Bava more than Argento. I think its cool that both managed to craft really interesting and atmospheric horror movies without large budgets.

[Mr. Pink]

That seems to be a popular comparison. One that makes absolutely no sense to me. Two separate individuals I know called it "The Goonies for this generation." Is that being spouted by media outlets, or pushed by the studio or something? Seems odd, considering the two films have next to nothing in common, other than kids.

I'd say it's a fair comparison. Different genres, stories, etc., but still very similar in the way they play out. A bunch of charming, goofy kids uncover a plot that ultimately results in them saving their towns.

The Goonies crossed my mind several times while watching this, but I never thought it was similar to something like The Sandlot just because the story is about a bunch of kids. I tried to fight the comparison myself, but it's there.

Either way, Super 8 wasn't Goonies-good.

[Spun Lepton]

I was so annoyed with it. Aside from the scene at the very beginning with the girl looking out the window, i didn't think the movie was all that terrifying either. As I mentioned, the cuts from scene to scene were horribly done. It felt like I was misisng pieces of the movie. Totally distracted me from the plot.

The movie is supposed to seem that way. Argento was attempting to give it a dreamlike/nightmare feeling, where some things don't feel completely logical. I thought he nailed it.

And the music is terrific. My complaint is that it should be remastered for modern soundsystems, because it was originally mixed to blast and bounce off the back of the theater walls.

[Chac Mool]

Do you have much experience with the masters of Italian horror? Argento, Bava, Fulci, etc?

I found them a bit confusing at first, but you really need to approach them with a certain mindset.

They're very much "style-over-substance" movies for the most part. I don't think I've been effectively frightened by many (if any) of them, but I adore them because they're so totally off the wall as audio-visual experiences.

Suspiria took me a few viewings to really appreciate it, but now I adore it.

I suggest checking out Deep Red next.

They do definitely place style above all, but some have decent substance -- at least in terms of a gripping plot. I like Argento quite a bit, and definitely recommend "The Bird with the Crystal Plumage", "Deep Red", "Tenebre" and "Opera" in addition to "Suspiria". I was rather lukewarm to "Phenomena" despite the lovely Ms. Connelly.

I haven't seen too much of Fulci and Bava, but even their heyday seems a little more hit and miss.

If you can get your hands on them, I liked Pupi Avati's "The House with Laughing Windows" and have heard good things about "Zeder".

[Raiders]

I haven't seen too much of Fulci and Bava, but even their heyday seems a little more hit and miss.

Hm, I would say Bava's "heyday" (aka, the 1960s) was consistently terrific. There are one, maybe two, Argento's I prefer to all of Bava's stuff, but Bava was the more consistent of the two.

I do not get Fulci. At all.

[Chac Mool]

Hm, I would say Bava's "heyday" (aka, the 1960s) was consistently terrific. There are one, maybe two, Argento's I prefer to all of Bava's stuff, but Bava was the more consistent of the two.

Top three Bava, for my own benefit?

[Raiders]

Top three Bava, for my own benefit?

You should do a search of the Sangre... thread as I'm pretty sure all of us took turns ranking Bava's stuff at least once. For now...

Kill, Baby... Kill!
Blood and Black Lace
Either The Whip and the Body (I stand alone here--most seem to dislike it) or Black Sunday

[Irish]

Haven't posted a top 10 in years:

1. The Last Picture Show
2. Slacker
3. Heaven's Gate
4. Barry Lyndon
5. The Thin Blue Line
6. The Man Who Fell to Earth
7. Over the Edge
8. Blue Valentine
9. Drugstore Cowboy
10. Harold and Maude

Rather lacking in foreign stuff, I know, but it reflects where my mind has been lately.

Great list. Not a fan of some of the choices, but it's a helluva interesting mix. Particularly love the inclusion of stuff like Drugstore Cowboy, Slacker, and The Last Picture Show.

[soitgoes...]

You should do a search of the Sangre... thread as I'm pretty sure all of us took turns ranking Bava's stuff at least once. For now...Or here. (http://match-cut.org/showthread.php?t=1321&highlight=bava)

[Qrazy]

Top three Bava, for my own benefit?

Black Sunday is quality.

[Derek]

Black Sunday is not very good.

Kill Baby...Kill and Blood and Black Lace, on the other hand, are. Need to see more Bava...Black Sabbath is on Netflix Instant and I believe Rowland's a big fan, so I'd like to get to that soon.

[Philosophe_rouge]

Top 3 Bava

1. Kill Baby Kill
2. Black Sunday
3. The Girl Who Knew Too Much

I've seen 7 of his films, these are the only 3 I like at all, but I think they're all great.

[dreamdead]

Ophuls's Caught has such gorgeous flowing cinematography that it's a shame the film has such a shitty last act. The randomness of Leonora returning to maniacal Smith Ohlrig was odd, as was the immediate reversal of her affection when James Mason goes all charm on her. And what does she even see in Smith in the first place? It feels like a recrursive indictment of her desire for bourgeois life, rather than her having to extricate herself from a bad deal. But cheers for the weirdness of stillborn babies being worth cheerful, bouncing music at film's end.

But man, Barbara Bel Geddes is so gorgeous in this one. I wish it were less strange.

Anyone have defenses of M.A.S.H.'s rampant chauvinism and sexual infantilization of women, which feels so uniform that it feels like Altman's judgment, too...?

[Sven]

Anyone have defenses of M.A.S.H.'s rampant chauvinism and sexual infantilization of women, which feels so uniform that it feels like Altman's judgment, too...?

What's yours?

[Pop Trash]

I'm not huge fan of Bogdanovich either. I do love Paper Moon and Mask though.

Yeah, he made a series of films after Paper Moon (Daisy Miller, At Long Last Love, and Nickelodeon) that I'm vaguely curious about, mostly because I read "Easy Riders & Raging Bulls" and were talked about a bit, but they sound sooo boring.

[dreamdead]

What's yours?

Not sure yet. A friend analyzed the book and the film, and apparently most of these episodes are also there in the novel, but it looks like some ethnic and racist issues were reduced in the film. The women's caricature, from what I remember, is still regarded as tricky by feminists trying to defend the representation.

I'll accept Hot Lips's character as a source for satire and ridicule. I think my main issue is the switch from morose to beatific when the one nurse is lifted away after pleasuring the "possibly" gay Waldowski. The simplistic take on women offering sexual fulfillment to men without any psychological ramifications strikes me as off-putting, especially when the men treat her as nothing more than a whore who they don't even bother to pay. And the film doesn't seem nearly ironic enough to lament this fact for long, when Altman chooses the musical cue as she's being helicoptered away.

I found the last forty minutes pretty much pitch-perfect, though, when it moved away from some problematic gender territory and committed to a thorough battery of military politics and masculinity (everything in Japan and after = teh sex).

[Irish]

I enjoy movies that feature the following: Martin Lawrence liberally swearing, robots fighting on top of the pyramids, souped-up dune buggies jumping Grand Canyon-sized craters on the moon, Shia LaBeouf running, Shia LaBeouf shouting the word "no" hundreds of times, nighttime assaults on well-guarded buildings for the purpose of stealing heroin or chemical weapons, rocks hitting the earth, and Nicolas Cage hitting The Rock.

So I already know why I enjoy the movies of Michael Bay. But has there ever been a filmmaker whose work is so consistently popular while the man himself seems so loathed by the thinking public? His cinematic recipe of Peckinpah, Woo, and Spielberg has intoxicated audiences for more than 15 years. But what lies beneath his sci-fi epics, bad-boy buddy-cop movies, box office smashes, and spectacular failures that make us continually return to the theater to get punched in the face with varying degrees of awesome? What are the underlying themes that make his films resonate louder than any explosion contained in the movies themselves?

In Defense of Michael Bay (Yes, seriously.)

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/6706646/in-defense-michael-bay

Might be a literate fanboyism, but still really enjoying the way Grantland is turning out.

[B-side]

His cinematic recipe of Peckinpah

I laughed.

[MadMan]

The problem with Michael Bay is that most of his movies lack soul. Say what you will about certain action directors such as John Woo, but when you watch their movies you can see the heart that goes in to them. Bay creates movies that are all sound, no fury. You'd think that at some point he'd realize what James Cameron did pre-Avatar: even action movies can stand to use some halfway decent characters and a solid/good story.

Bava viewed:

1. Blood and Black Lace-90
2. Black Sunday-81
3. The Girl Who Knew Too Much-77
4. Kill Baby...Kill!-75
5. Planet of the Vampires-71

I imagine some of my ratings of his movies would go up a bit on rewatches. Planet of the Vampires is one of my favorite cult films, and clearly inspired Alien.

[Rowland]

Bava...

The Best: Black Sabbath; Kill Baby Kill; Blood and Black Lace; Twitch of the Death Nerve
Delightfully goofy fun: Danger: Diabolik
Underrated and/or overlooked: Five Dolls for an August Moon; Lisa and the Devil; Hatchet for the Honeymoon; The Girl Who Knew Too Much
Overrated but solid: Black Sunday
Overrated and lousy: Baron Blood
Need to see again: The Whip and the Body
Blind-spots I need to rectify: Rabid Dogs; Hercules in the Haunted World; Planet of the Vampires

[B-side]

Platinum Blonde was really enjoyable and marks my second Capra film, and the second one I've been rather impressed by. I'm noticing a trend of concerns over honesty and the power and influence of the press in his films, and I don't say this merely because he released a film in 1928 titled, The Power of the Press, which I'm now even more interested in checking out. Capra has visual acuity, and I'm excited to see it blossom beautifully in The Bitter Tea of General Yen, if the screencaps are any indication. Robert Williams is terrific in this; the perfect sort of caustic, stubborn but sufficiently witty protagonist that is always fun to watch. It's quite funny, too.

[B-side]

Robert Williams also looks remarkably similar to Jeremy Renner:

http://www.menshairstyles.net/d/60660-1/Jeremy+Renner+movie+pictures.P NG http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/7154/vlcsnap2011063006h47m24.png

[balmakboor]

Watched Robert Mulligan's The Man in the Moon and was amazed by how the director of To Kill a Mockingbird could make something this weak and predictable. Guess it's evidence that movies do indeed live or die by great writing. I enjoyed Reese Witherspoon. Jason London not so much. I guess Dazed and Confused really was a one shot deal for him.

[Raiders]

Guess it's evidence that movies do indeed live or die by great writing.

I think it is evidence that Robert Mulligan movies do, not movies in general.

[D_Davis]

In Defense of Michael Bay (Yes, seriously.)

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/6706646/in-defense-michael-bay

Might be a literate fanboyism, but still really enjoying the way Grantland is turning out.

I've been defending Bay for years. But even I, someone who thinks that he makes genuinely great films, cannot get behind the Transformer movies (or Pearl Harbor, outside of the fantastic action sequnce).

I will, however, defend Armageddon, The Rock, Bad Boys 2, and The Island to the death.

[Russ]

The problem with Michael Bay is that most of his movies lack soul.
They also lack subtlety. And subtitles.

[D_Davis]

Complaining that Bay's films lack subtlety is like complaining that Tarkovsky's films lack bombast.

Neither is lacking either because neither is concerned with the other.

[Ezee E]

I can't say that I go into Michael Bay movies hoping for soul.

[balmakboor]

I think it is evidence that Robert Mulligan movies do, not movies in general.

True. Some great directors start with little or no writing at all.

[Russ]

Complaining that Bay's films lack subtlety is like complaining that Tarkovsky's films lack bombast.
But just imagine if Tarkovsky had made a film where things blow up real good.



z-q29hbEP04

[D_Davis]

But just imagine if Tarkovsky had made a film where things blow up real good.

[/insert Derek's Seinfeld gif here]

Lord knows I'd appreciate that!

[StanleyK]

I rewatched Ghostbusters to see if this time I got what the big deal was. Nope. It's an amusing (if a bit too reliant on Bill Murray being an asshole), but featherweight film, which invokes potentially interesting religious and sexual imagery and then proceeds to do nothing with them. It plays out as a simple underdog story with a juvenile 'stick-it-to-the-Man' attitude and an underdeveloped love interest just so our asshole protagonist can get the girl at the end. The opening scene at the library is actually a pretty well-executed bit of suspense; the rest of the movie might have benefited from more such inspired direction and less ghost-blowjobs or silly strawmen.

[Raiders]

which invokes potentially interesting religious and sexual imagery and then proceeds to do nothing with them.

No offense, but I think you're doing it wrong.

[StanleyK]

No offense, but I think you're doing it wrong.

You mean the film has a wealth of hidden depth which escaped me?

[Raiders]

You mean the film has a wealth of hidden depth which escaped me?

Not at all; I think looking in that direction to begin with is a mistake. It's a film specifically designed to be a slapstick smorgasbord of the paranormal. Many of the film's cheekiest moments have Ackroyd or Ramis spouting some random paranormal event from history with hysterical or straight-faced (respectively) doom. It is a film that embraces any occult or myth. It's superficial by nature, but that isn't necessarily a negative. "Depth" to me is a misleading term; for instance, there are many depths to, or perhaps types of, humor displayed in the film. From Murray's sarcastic schtick to Ramis and Ackroyd's encyclopedic knowledge of terror to Moranis' possessed mayhem to the film's general irreverent sense of wonder (epitomized by the Stay Puft marshmallow man).

I think you are overselling the "assholishness" of Murray's character. He's crude and cocky, but he is hardly what I would call an asshole. I do also agree that Atherton's character and the scene in the mayor's office are fairly weak (and it is here where the film does dip a little into religion--but the Cardinal's stance is the same as the film's: no official position 'cuz we don't know what the hell is going on). But come on man, this is pretty inspired comedy here. Railing on against the "love interest" and lack of religious stance or sexualized ghosts is kind of missing the whole idea (not to mention Weaver's character is pretty good for this type considering it is a subplot of the film).

[Dead & Messed Up]

I rewatched Ghostbusters to see if this time I got what the big deal was. Nope. It's an amusing (if a bit too reliant on Bill Murray being an asshole), but featherweight film, which invokes potentially interesting religious and sexual imagery and then proceeds to do nothing with them. It plays out as a simple underdog story with a juvenile 'stick-it-to-the-Man' attitude and an underdeveloped love interest just so our asshole protagonist can get the girl at the end. The opening scene at the library is actually a pretty well-executed bit of suspense; the rest of the movie might have benefited from more such inspired direction and less ghost-blowjobs or silly strawmen.

This is why we can't have nice things.

[StanleyK]

Well, I didn't say it's not a funny film, or that it's a bad thing that Murray's character is an asshole (he's the best part of it, actually- it's just that the movie knows it, and uses him to the detriment of other factors). But if it's not going to do anything with the sexual/religious imagery, why even bring it up? Stuff like the Cardinal's visit, Ray and Winston's theological conversation, the ghost-BJ, the gatekeeper/keymaster thing, all feel blatantly allegorical to me, and yet they could've been excised and the movie wouldn't have been any worse off for it. I agree that 'depth' is a misleading term and it's not exactly lack of it that bothered me. I guess I just don't feel like Ghostbusters is anything special- it didn't particularly speak to me, and I don't feel the need to see it again.

[MadMan]

Hey people, I may said that Ghostbusters isn't my #1 comedy of the 80s, but at least I didn't give it a 6 :P


They also lack subtlety. And subtitles.
http://octoberdaniels.files.wordpress .com/2010/12/i-see-what-you-did-there-cat.jpg

Rowland I think you would like Planet of the Vampires. Quite a bit, maybe even more than me.

Wild At Heart was indeed crazy, and I loved the Wizard of Oz and Elvis references. I think at this point Nicholas Cage is one of my favorite actors-I just wish he'd stop going into debt so he's forced to make crappy movies I don't want to see. Laura Dern is absolutely gorgeous in this, but I've had a crush on her since Jurassic Park. Five movies in, and I haven't seen a bad one yet from David Lynch. His sense of pup style in this movie is remarkable.

[Spun Lepton]

Bava:

Black Sabbath (European Cut) 8/10
Black Sunday 8/10
Hatchet for the Honeymoon 7/10
Blood and Black Lace 7/10
Twitch of the Death Nerve (aka A Bay of Blood) 7/10
Shock 7/10
Rabid Dogs 7/10
Black Sabbath (American Cut) 6/10
Whip and the Body 6/10
Baron Blood 5/10

[Raiders]

Well, I didn't say it's not a funny film, or that it's a bad thing that Murray's character is an asshole (he's the best part of it, actually- it's just that the movie knows it, and uses him to the detriment of other factors). But if it's not going to do anything with the sexual/religious imagery, why even bring it up? Stuff like the Cardinal's visit, Ray and Winston's theological conversation, the ghost-BJ, the gatekeeper/keymaster thing, all feel blatantly allegorical to me, and yet they could've been excised and the movie wouldn't have been any worse off for it. I agree that 'depth' is a misleading term and it's not exactly lack of it that bothered me. I guess I just don't feel like Ghostbusters is anything special- it didn't particularly speak to me, and I don't feel the need to see it again.

Religion always crops up in cataclysmic or armageddon scenarios, but the film isn't attempting to say anything specifically deep about religion--in fact, it essentially nips the very idea in the bud: the resolution to Ray and Winston's conversation first states that every religion has an end-of-world scenario and second Ray cuts it short intentionally because it's too large a concept for them to grasp: religion can't define this (just like the cardinal) or provide any comfort (naturally), so let's get back to the paranormal. Turns out it's just some crazy lady named Gozer and a large marshmallow man. That wasn't so bad.

[soitgoes...]

Weekend possibilities:

Tree of Life (Malick)
Cold Fish (Sono)
Don't Go Breaking My Heart (To)
The Yellow Sea (Na)
Top of the Food Chain (Paizs)

[dreamdead]

Possibilities for the near future:

Four Weddings and a Funeral
The Quiet Man
Ha Ha Ha

[Rowland]

Black Sabbath (European Cut) 8/10
Black Sabbath (American Cut) 6/10I forget, what are the differences?

[D_Davis]

I forget, what are the differences?

About 2/10.

[Spun Lepton]

I forget, what are the differences?

Karloff's links are played tongue-in-cheek in the European cut. Played more seriously in the American cut.

The order of the stories is different. European cut is, "The Telephone," "The Wurdalak," then "A Drop of Water." American cut is (I think, it's been a while), "A Drop of Water," "The Telephone," then "The Wurdalak." Essentially putting the strongest story first.

Wikipedia says there are some edits to the stories themselves, but it's been so long since I saw the American cut, I don't recall.

[Rowland]

I have mid-year catch-up going on, so these are my weekend possibilities, depending on my mood and whatnot:

The Housemaid (2011)
The Arbor
Black Death
Certified Copy
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
Poetry
Dream Home
Hahaha
Stake Land
The Time That Remains
The Eagle
Unknown

[Rowland]

Karloff's links are played tongue-in-cheek in the European cut. Played more seriously in the American cut.

The order of the stories are different. European cut is, "The Telephone," "The Wurdalak," then "A Drop of Water." American cut is (I think, it's been a while), "A Drop of Water," "The Telephone," then "The Wurdalak." Essentially putting the strongest story first.

Wikipedia says there are some edits to the stories themselves, but it's been so long since I saw the American cut, I don't recall.Ahh yes. The European cut is definitely the one I refer to when I consider it a favorite Bava of mine. Looking back at our Bava Consensus thread from a few years back, which only about a dozen people contributed to, I'm surprised by how underrated it is.

I'm glad we agree on Baron Blood, and I would have agreed about The Whip and the Body years ago, but I'm convinced I need to give it another shot.

[B-side]

I have mid-year catch-up going on, so these are my weekend possibilities, depending on my mood and whatnot:

The Eagle

I've got this to check out, too. Slant liked it, so I decided to give it a chance. Plus, I kinda have a thing for movies set in this general period.

[StanleyK]

8 Mile was pretty good. True, it's a completely generic underdog story, shot and edited with little imagination. But I like Eminem, he's actually a pretty decent performer, and as a semi-autobiographical story, this doesn't feel at all like a vanity project, but an honest, heartfelt attempt to exorcise some demons and share his pain with the world- in a way, a continuation of his music. Also, the rapping was all-around pretty impressive.

[Rowland]

I've got this to check out, too. Slant liked it, so I decided to give it a chance. Plus, I kinda have a thing for movies set in this general period.Yeah, praise from Gonzalez, Uhlich, Hoberman, and Edelstein convinced me to give it a shot.

[dreamdead]

Man, Richard Curtis scripts run the gamut from enjoyable fluff to insufferable mugging and "zingers." Four Weddings and a Funeral is no exception, and the first half hour was painful as everyone struggled to define their characters' principal mannerism. After that point, it settles down a bit, but the best bit is the funeral segment, where regret and pathos actually come through, helped by John Hannah's work. And Kristin Scott Thomas is luminous, as per usual. But we know nothing about Hugh Grant's character (job, desires, etc.), so his Everyman just feels so blank.

[Yxklyx]

Weekend:

Harlan County, U.S.A.
He Walked by Night
XXY

[Stay Puft]

Weekend possibilities:

Polytechnique
Summer Hours (again, again, love this film )
Even the Rain (on Netflix, maybe...)
the smashy robot movie (lawd help me I'm part of the problem)

[Spinal]

A short history of notable figures that have been labeled 'asshole' by StanleyK:

Peter Venkman
Buster Keaton
Barry Lyndon
Bugs Bunny
Spinal (pending)

[Boner M]

:lol:

[Ezee E]

A short history of notable figures that have been labeled 'asshole' by StanleyK:

Peter Venkman
Buster Keaton
Barry Lyndon
Bugs Bunny
Spinal (pending)
Buster Keaton doesn't fit.

[Winston*]

Watching this latest Street Fighter movie. M. Bison just ripped a baby out of a pregnant woman with his bare hands.

[Winston*]

Haha, one of the non-Will.I.Am Black Eyed Peas is in this.

[Winston*]

"You see your father has been the milk of my buisness...but even milk has an expiration date" - Awesome one-liner.

[Spinal]

Haha, one of the non-Will.I.Am Black Eyed Peas is in this.

Taboo is one of our finest young actors.

[Henry Gale]

That movie is worth watching just for everything Chris Klein says and does in it. I don't understand how it's not a more notorious, meme-y thing, Ã* la Nic Cage in Wicker Man.

[Irish]

Watching this latest Street Fighter movie. M. Bison just ripped a baby out of a pregnant woman with his bare hands.

Endlessly depressing: We get to see Jean Claude Van Damme beat the hell out of a cancer ridden Raoul Julia.

[soitgoes...]

Endlessly depressing: We get to see Jean Claude Van Damme beat the hell out of a cancer ridden Raoul Julia.Wrong one. (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0891592/)

[Irish]

Wrong one. (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0891592/)

:lol: Doh!

[soitgoes...]

:lol: Doh!
It's okay. I don't think any of us should be up late discussing either Street Fighter movie.

[balmakboor]

The New World/ (Malick '05) ****
The Thin Red Line/ (Malick '98) ***½
Days of Heaven (Malick '78) ***½


Glad I'm not the only one who ranks them thusly.

God, I still have another week to wait to see Tree of Life.

[StanleyK]

Kill Bill: Vol. 1 is Tarantino's first full-length film that I can say I loved. His quirks and dialogue are no longer distracting, but essential elements in constructing this alternate universe, which exists entirely within the movies Tarantino loves. Perhaps most importantly, the filmmaking is his most accomplished yet. He manages a wealth of great compositions, striking visuals and a fluid rhythm in his editing that flourishes when set to music. There's almost not a single shot that feels functional or unnecessary. The showdown at the House of Blue Leaves is an extended, wordless half-hour of cinematic bliss, the pure thrill of watching a rage-fueled rampage through clear shots, awesome choreography and precise editing. The best action scene I've seen in a long time, doubly rewarding because it's Tarantino pulling it off, and I was honestly a bit skeptical after the first, a bit underwhelming fight with Vivica A. Fox. Truly inspiring stuff.

[soitgoes...]

Westworld. Great idea for a movie, and it had me completely enthralled for the first half. Then my mind started over-analyzing all the holes in the film. Yul Brynner is badass though. I'm surprised this one hasn't been picked for a remake (or maybe it has and I'm unaware?).

[Spinal]

I'm surprised this one hasn't been picked for a remake (or maybe it has and I'm unaware?).

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475784/

Of course. :)

[soitgoes...]

Yeah, I figured it would only be a matter of time. I do think a remake can improve on the original's idea though. I also think that a remake can be even worse. I'm gonna go with even worse.

[Ezee E]

Once Westworld left Westworld, it went to shit.

[MadMan]

I like Westwood quite a bit, but its merely solid. So a remake could be an improvement, but knowing Hollywood I doubt that will happen.

The Illusionist (2010) was interesting, in that the first half is all slow build, and then the second half is really emotionally powerful. I'm not sure I ever intend to watch this again, though, as it was quite depressing, but the animation was gorgeous and the characters were fleshed out. Great film, and now having seen this and How to Train Your Dragon all I have left for Oscar nominated animated movies from 2010 is Toy Story 3. I'm sure there are other animated movies from 2010, but I'm not sure if any of them interest me as much as those three.

[Spinal]

I'm sure there are other animated movies from 2010, but I'm not sure if any of them interest me as much as those three.

Tangled is a must see.

[soitgoes...]

Once Westworld left Westworld, it went to shit.

While I agree with this, I would extend it further, and say there was never a need to have either of the other two worlds. The asides with the husband and wife in the medievel world only served to break up the pacing, and to only show the Roman world through the monitors was just weird.

[MadMan]

Tangled is a must see.Really? The trailer made it appear to be some dumb movie aimed at really little kids. But I might give it a shot.

Thor was entertaining, and quite badass. Clearly aimed at a male audience, although they certainly threw in shots of Thor's gigantic muscles for the women who got dragged to this by their boyfriends (yes I'm half-joking about that-even women can enjoy violent super hero action movies). The cast for this was really quite good, actually, and the movie itself is a nice thrill ride that had some well made action sequences. Although I have to wonder how he's going to get back to earth, seeing as he destroyed the bridge. Guess we'll find that out in The Avengers movie.

[Rowland]

Rollerball (Jewison 75) **½Next up: the McTiernan remake?

[Kurosawa Fan]

Tangled was very good, Madman. Advertised very poorly.

[soitgoes...]

Next up: the McTiernan remake?Nooooooooooo. I already lived through that.

[transmogrifier]

Tangled is not as bad as the trailers made it look. And not as good as Match Cut makes out.

[Mara]

Really? The trailer made it appear to be some dumb movie aimed at really little kids. But I might give it a shot.

Tangled was marketed by drunk people.

It was lovely, thoughtful, funny and charming. I have rarely been so surprised (in a positive sense) by a film. I'd consider it a must-see.

[B-side]

I'm pretty sure nobody here cares, but I took the liberty of ranking the 16 Georgian films I've seen thus far, 15 of which I've seen this year, and all 16 within the past 8 months:

Blue Mountains, or Unbelievable Story (Shengelaya, 1983)
Big Green Valley (Kokochashvili, 1967)
The Plea (Abuladze, 1967)
The Step (Rekhviashvili, 1985)
The Legend of Suram Fortress (Parajanov/Abashidze, 1986)
The 19th Century Georgian Chronicle (Rekhviashvili, 1979)
Robinsonada or My English Grandfather (Dzhordzhadze, 1987)
Pirosmani (Shengelaya, 1969)
Cucaracha (Dolidze, 1982)
Magdana's Donkey (Abuladze/Chkheidze, 1955)
The Wishing Tree (Abuladze, 1976)
The Way Home (Rekhviashvili, 1981)
Lived Once a Song-Thrush (Iosseliani, 1970)
Umbrella (Kobakhidze, 1967)
Aprili (Iosseliani, 1961)
Falling Leaves (Iosseliani, 1966)

All are worth watching.

[Boner M]

Finally watched Profound Desires of the Gods. Really inspiring to know that there's such great, epic-scale like this out there that's yet to be completely unearthed - this has been virtually unseen since flopping on its release and killing Imamura's career for a decade. I didn't completely connect with it on a thematic level, but it's endlessly fascinating, admirably ambitious, visually beautiful, thoroughly weird, and the kind of film that I can imagine is waiting to find its way onto many all-time-faves lists. Especially stunning-looking on the UK Masters of Cinema Blu-Ray, so get on it if you're a region-free'er.

[Dead & Messed Up]

I watched The Town last night and thought it was pretty good, an above-average heist flick, but Jeremy Renner sipping on that pop suggested that there was a much more interesting film inside an above-average heist flick.

[Scar]

I watched The Town last night and thought it was pretty good, an above-average heist flick, but Jeremy Renner sipping on that pop suggested that there was a much more interesting film inside an above-average heist flick.

I love that moment.

[Ezee E]

Don't remember that moment.....

[Scar]

Don't remember that moment.....

Right before he suicided by cop.

[Ezee E]

PXEMkxRb2kE

[Scar]

Might want to throw it into spoilers.

[B-side]

The Sun Shines Bright is top tier Ford.

[Rowland]

Ahh, my girlfriend is working, whatever semblance of a family I have are sitting around watching the trail nonsense, and anybody else I may consider spending the 4th with are out with their own families and significant others, so I'm just hanging around. I think I'll celebrate the holiday with Profit Motive and the Whispering Wind.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Turned off Jawbreaker halfway through. Limp and irritating, even with Benz and Greer looking cute.

[MadMan]

Continuing to watch ESPN's 30 for 30 Documentary series, "Pony Excess" is a fascinating, tragic, and interesting tale of greed, stupidity, and a desire to win at all costs. It would make one hell of a dramatized movie, although perhaps this documentary bests serves as not only a cautionary tale but also as an exorcism of sorts.

Oh and I'm sure that some program will get almost as heavy sanctions thrown at them for messing up again. USC already suffered quite a bit, but for their fans sake they better hope the program isn't dumb enough to get a lighter version of the death penalty thrown at them.

[Spinal]

Watched Who Framed Roger Rabbit with my son last night.

Over 20 years later, I think the special effects are still incredible. All the toon/human interaction stuff is fun to watch and ponder how they did it.

Also, Hoskins really gives the film its center by playing his investigation straight. His balance of hard-boiled tough guy and physical comedian is quite extraordinary.

[Rowland]

Turned off Jawbreaker halfway through. Limp and irritating, even with Benz and Greer looking cute.Wow, Jawbreaker, I don't think I've thought about this one since I saw it on HBO a decade ago. What compelled you to watch it?

[Rowland]

Watched Who Framed Roger Rabbit with my son last night.

Over 20 years later, I think the special effects are still incredible. All the toon/human interaction stuff is fun to watch and ponder how they did it.

Also, Hoskins really gives the film its center by playing his investigation straight. His balance of hard-boiled tough guy and physical comedian is quite extraordinary.My fondest memory of this is Christopher Lloyd scaring the everliving shit out of me when I was a kid.

[Ezee E]

Watched Who Framed Roger Rabbit with my son last night.

Over 20 years later, I think the special effects are still incredible. All the toon/human interaction stuff is fun to watch and ponder how they did it.

Also, Hoskins really gives the film its center by playing his investigation straight. His balance of hard-boiled tough guy and physical comedian is quite extraordinary.
Yep. Everytime I watch, I'm still impressed and enjoy it immensely.

[Spinal]

My fondest memory of this is Christopher Lloyd scaring the everliving shit out of me when I was a kid.

"Shave and a haircut ..."

[Dead & Messed Up]

Watched Who Framed Roger Rabbit with my son last night.

Over 20 years later, I think the special effects are still incredible. All the toon/human interaction stuff is fun to watch and ponder how they did it.

Also, Hoskins really gives the film its center by playing his investigation straight. His balance of hard-boiled tough guy and physical comedian is quite extraordinary.


Yep. Everytime I watch, I'm still impressed and enjoy it immensely.

I loved it as a kid, and I love it even more now. That movie's overflowing with fun and invention.


Wow, Jawbreaker, I don't think I've thought about this one since I saw it on HBO a decade ago. What compelled you to watch it?

I think that Benz and Greer are talented, attractive actresses, and I saw that they were in a film together, so I said "Eh, sure" and added it to my queue without investigating further. Forty-five minutes gone, but, hell.

[Watashi]

origami, I want to punch you in the face.

[DavidSeven]

origami, I want to punch you in the face.

I'm guessing...


Hook (Steven Spielberg, 1991) - 1

Context is usually a good thing.

[Qrazy]

Yeah, Roger Rabbit is great. Toon town for the win.

[Sven]

Also, Hoskins really gives the film its center by playing his investigation straight. His balance of hard-boiled tough guy and physical comedian is quite extraordinary.

Precisely why I frequently call him the best. Such an incredible performance.

[B-side]

Yeah, Roger Rabbit is great.

It's OK.

[Spinal]

Precisely why I frequently call him the best. Such an incredible performance.

"Scotch on the rocks .......... and I mean ICE!"

[Mara]

Turned off Jawbreaker halfway through. Limp and irritating, even with Benz and Greer looking cute.

What an aggressively ugly, bitchy movie. I had forgotten it. I watched it with female friends in college because we were told it was a good "girl" movie. It's not.

[Scar]

After looking at Spinal's avatar, and post, I think it might be a Roger Rabbit and Speed Racer kinda day.

[D_Davis]

Watched The Girl Who Played With Fire last night - loved it. Much better than the first film, which I mildly enjoyed. Can't wait for my gf to finish the 3rd book so we can watch the movie.

The final 15 minutes of Fire were just fantastic, and Lizbeth gets dragged through hell and back. Also loved the inclusion of the boxing - that's a nice throw back to the hardboiled/noir stuff of yore.

[dreamdead]

Did a double-feature of Egoyan with Exotica and The Sweet Hereafter for Sarah over the weekend, who'd never seen either. Watching the two back to back exposes interesting similarities in theme and content, especially in the father/daughter relationship, and with how incest seems to, if it doesn't actually, play a role in how these people cope. This is just the second viewing of TSH for me, but I got in tune with it far more than I did with it on the first viewing. I love how open these films feel, and how much mystery remains in the young women shown throughout.

And Greenwood and Holm are just terrific in these.

[Rowland]

A wonderful video essay (http://blogs.indiewire.com/pressplay/archives/deep_focus_war_against_the_mac hines_terminator_2_judgment_da y/) on Terminator 2 that perceptively captures its conflicting impulses and position as a watershed transitional film for both Cameron and Hollywood. It's really kind of affecting to consider the film through such an auteurist prism.

[megladon8]

That was really interesting, Rowland. Thanks for posting that.

[StanleyK]

In a Lonely Place is a truly remarkable, refreshingly honest portrayal of sociopathy and a relationship gone bad. It's brutal, sincere, heartfelt and genuinely moving. I don't quite know how to elaborate it, but this viewing I was struck by how the style seemed to perfectly match the story. The highlight for me was the scene where Laurel is writhing in bed and earlier dialogue echoes in her head; usually this technique feels cheap, but there was something- probably the way she starts manically laughing to herself as she remembers how she wasn't laughing earlier- in here that made it quite potent. One of the best, reminds me I really should watch more stuff from the 50's.

[Irish]

A wonderful video essay (http://blogs.indiewire.com/pressplay/archives/deep_focus_war_against_the_mac hines_terminator_2_judgment_da y/) on Terminator 2 that perceptively captures its conflicting impulses and position as a watershed transitional film for both Cameron and Hollywood. It's really kind of affecting to consider the film through such an auteurist prism.

Ick. This guy sounds like he's trying to be a broadcaster and just fails miserably at it.

I'm all for talks on Cameron, but seriously the premise here is beyond stupid. Or at least, it's idiotically articulated:


This is the film’s true legacy, and Cameron himself—the director of such CGI-laden films as True Lies, Titanic and Avatar—is not only a practitioner of this type of filmmaking, but a vocal advocate as well. We must ask: Is James Cameron Cyberdyne, building the technology that will be used against humanity?

Cameron is a thinking man's Lucas, more or less. He was better when he teamed up with Gale Anne Hurd, who worked with him on Terminator, Aliens, the Abyss, and T2. It's always been interesting to me that after they split, the "strong female" character Cameron built a reputation on disappeared from his films, and they became much narratively weaker.

Edit: He's also ignoring the money angle. CGI wasn't restrained in the 1990s because of Cameron's artistic temperment. It was restrained because that shit cost a loooooooot of dough.

Stuff like Transformers is a natural outgrowth of Michael Bay and cheaper processing power.

[Ezee E]

Yeah, I didn't care for the essay either.

[Mysterious Dude]

I just found out Viggo Mortensen was born in Manhattan. For the last ten years, I was quite certain he was Australian. :|

[B-side]

I wouldn't call James Cameron a thinking man's anything. His movies are hardly intellectually stimulating.

[Winston*]

I wouldn't call James Cameron a thinking man's anything. His movies are hardly intellectually stimulating.

Obviously not for one as erudite as yourself, Brightside.

[B-side]

Obviously not for one as erudite as yourself, Brightside.

Destroying Nature is Bad, Man 101 with Professor James Cameron

[Ezee E]

Again, should one go into a James Cameron movie hoping for something intellectually stimulating?

[B-side]

Again, should one go into a James Cameron movie hoping for something intellectually stimulating?

Nope. Which is why it surprised me to read Irish referring to James Cameron as a "thinking man's George Lucas."

[baby doll]

Again, should one go into a James Cameron movie hoping for something intellectually stimulating?I'd settle for aesthetically stimulating. If nothing else, at least Avatar had interesting colours and textures.

[Irish]

I compare him to Lucas because they're both guys more interested in technology than anything else, and filmmaking just happens to be an outlet for that interest.

Compare his movies to the brainless distractions that's everything from Wrath of Khan to Phantom Menace to JJ Abrams' Star Trek to Transformers.

There's some themes and subtexts in Cameron's films that are wholly absent from most mainstream action/scifi pictures. This is one aspect of his movies I've always enjoyed. They might be too on the nose, or too simple minded, but at least they're there. They try to be about something bigger than the spectacle, and then they deliver big on the spectacle too.

Note that this is wholly different than being "intellectually stimulating," something I didn't say and I don't believe I implied.

[Ezee E]

Rewatching Demme's Manchurian Candidate. There's some fascinating stuff and some really silly stuff here. Demme goes overboard with his POV style, but damn, there's a lot of talent being put to good use here.

I think a worse director could've destroyed this movie. Still very good overall.

[B-side]

I compare him to Lucas because they're both guys more interested in technology than anything else, and filmmaking just happens to be an outlet for that interest.

Compare his movies to the brainless distractions that's everything from Wrath of Khan to Phantom Menace to JJ Abrams' Star Trek to Transformers.

There's some themes and subtexts in Cameron's films that are wholly absent from most mainstream action/scifi pictures. This is one aspect of his movies I've always enjoyed. They might be too on the nose, or too simple minded, but at least they're there. They try to be about something bigger than the spectacle, and then they deliver big on the spectacle too.

Note that this is wholly different than being "intellectually stimulating," something I didn't say and I don't believe I implied.

Fair enough, and I generally agree. I assumed you implied his work was intellectually stimulating when you said he was the thinking man's George Lucas.

[Stay Puft]

So is Independence Day the worst movie ever or what? I was visiting my folks over the holiday weekend and watched part of it with them one evening. I haven't seen it since it was in theatres and oh wow this is Roland Emmerich up and down, with its hilariously smug and self-satisfied liberal attitude (it's time to save the world, I said, as I recycled a pop can... no, annoying secretary of defense, YOU ARE FIRED) married to ridiculously conservative cultural values (marriage is a sacred institution... although Goldblum repairing damaged relationships isn't nearly as awesome as the reunion of the biological family in 2012... no, loving and supportive stepfather, YOU ARE FIRED).

The best is Pullman's speech, of course, recasting the fourth of July holiday as a global event. America, fuck yeah.

On second thought maybe this is the best movie ever.

[Dead & Messed Up]

The best is Pullman's speech, of course, recasting the fourth of July holiday as a global event. America, fuck yeah.

On second thought maybe this is the best movie ever.

You know it's a global event because we get forty seconds of cutaways to countries that aren't America.

[Chac Mool]

So is Independence Day the worst movie ever or what? I was visiting my folks over the holiday weekend and watched part of it with them one evening. I haven't seen it since it was in theatres and oh wow this is Roland Emmerich up and down, with its hilariously smug and self-satisfied liberal attitude (it's time to save the world, I said, as I recycled a pop can... no, annoying secretary of defense, YOU ARE FIRED) married to ridiculously conservative cultural values (marriage is a sacred institution... although Goldblum repairing damaged relationships isn't nearly as awesome as the reunion of the biological family in 2012... no, loving and supportive stepfather, YOU ARE FIRED).

The best is Pullman's speech, of course, recasting the fourth of July holiday as a global event. America, fuck yeah.

On second thought maybe this is the best movie ever.

Eh, I respectfully disagree.

You're right on all points -- and they are annoying -- but it's still an entertaining, big-spectacle movie. I like the actors (even Pullman), most of the set-pieces and the overall scale of the thing.

[Raiders]

You know it's a global event because we get forty seconds of cutaways to countries that aren't America.

Even better for me is when they finally do figure out how to defeat the aliens and they send out the messages, the one British guy is all like "about bloody time" as if they were all just waiting for America, the saviors, to come up with the solution.

[MadMan]

Rewatching Demme's Manchurian Candidate. There's some fascinating stuff and some really silly stuff here. Demme goes overboard with his POV style, but damn, there's a lot of talent being put to good use here.

I think a worse director could've destroyed this movie. Still very good overall.Yes, its really an overlooked, good remake. Plus Denzel turns in one of his usual great performances. However, the female lead was kind of vapid-and the twist surprise of her working for the government was really weak. Also the brainwashing scenes lacked the pure disturbing power that was present in the original film.

I love Independence Day. Its gloriously cheesy. "WELCOME TO EARTH!" *punches alien in the face*

[Raiders]

My heresy for the day:

Demme's Manchurian Candidate > Frankenheimer's Manchurian Candidate

More affecting, more lucid, just as ambitious and socially relevant and Washington and Schreiber are more intense and effective than Sinatra and Harvey.

[Ivan Drago]

I just found out that The Castle of Cagliostro is on Netflix Instant. As a fan of the old anime, I can't wait to finally see the movie!

[StanleyK]

If in La Ciénaga Martel evoked dirtiness, The Holy Girl is all about people being cramped closely together. I notice that this film has less emphasis on montage and more on composition, with the shots being lovingly crafted and choreographed, but also still juxtaposed to great effect. The story is a masterpiece of subtlety, getting less from its sparse dialogue than from characters' reactions, facial expressions and, yes, the cinematography. It's like a slightly more sprawling Dardenne brothers film. Love it.

[Yxklyx]

If in La Ciénaga Martel evoked dirtiness, The Holy Girl is all about people being cramped closely together. I notice that this film has less emphasis on montage and more on composition, with the shots being lovingly crafted and choreographed, but also still juxtaposed to great effect. The story is a masterpiece of subtlety, getting less from its sparse dialogue than from characters' reactions, facial expressions and, yes, the cinematography. It's like a slightly more sprawling Dardenne brothers film. Love it.

Yeah, this was one was very good. Reminded me more of Antonioni though. Still, while I appreciate her work she still hasn't wowed me. Her films are very distant from the viewer. I should probably give this one another viewing.

[Derek]

So is Independence Day the worst movie ever or what?

I haven't seen Godzilla, so I don't want to step on anyone's toes about what truly is Roland Emmerich's worst film, but The Patriot is way worse than Independence Day could dream of being. Remember when the black soldier was talking about how he was proud to fight against the red coats because America was all about giving equal rights to everyone and Mel Gibson was all like, "Yeah, preach it brother" and reality was like "Oh, sorry black guy, there was WAY more red tape than we anticipated, but thanks for your help anyway and at least your great grandchildren won't have to experience slavery first-hand and you'll even have your own water fountains and reserved sections on the bus for a while and man, come 225 years from now, there'll be a black president, although shitty, hack directors will make historical movies that make it seem like white people were uniformly against slavery in the 18th and 19th Century and pro-Civil Rights in the 50s and 60s and all this racism just kind of existed because a few bad eggs from each generation managed to keep it alive and white people were mostly kind-hearted and sorry to see all this prejudice deeply entrenched in our political system and society at large, but that's a pretty small price to pay for getting a black president some day, right?"

[Ezee E]

I haven't seen Godzilla, so I don't want to step on anyone's toes about what truly is Roland Emmerich's worst film, but The Patriot is way worse than Independence Day could dream of being. Remember when the black soldier was talking about how he was proud to fight against the red coats because America was all about giving equal rights to everyone and Mel Gibson was all like, "Yeah, preach it brother" and reality was like "Oh, sorry black guy, there was WAY more red tape than we anticipated, but thanks for your help anyway and at least your great grandchildren won't have to experience slavery first-hand and you'll even have your own water fountains and reserved sections on the bus for a while and man, come 225 years from now, there'll be a black president, although shitty, hack directors will make historical movies that make it seem like white people were uniformly against slavery in the 18th and 19th Century and pro-Civil Rights in the 50s and 60s and all this racism just kind of existed because a few bad eggs from each generation managed to keep it alive and white people were mostly kind-hearted and sorry to see all this prejudice deeply entrenched in our political system and society at large, but that's a pretty small price to pay for getting a black president some day, right?"
That's why I'm really looking forward to Tarantino's movie... I really don't think any movie has touched on slavery like it should've. At least, I can't think of any.

[Qrazy]

That's why I'm really looking forward to Tarantino's movie... I really don't think any movie has touched on slavery like it should've. At least, I can't think of any.

I really, really, really doubt Tarantino is going to make the definitive film about slavery.

[Irish]

I really, really, really doubt Tarantino is going to make the definitive film about slavery.
Most likely he's going to push buttons and use the word "nigger" as much as he possibly can, much like a little kid who first discovers that cursing vociferously gets an immediate and powerful reaction from people.