28 Film Discussion Threads Later

[BuffaloWilder]

Not always.


In this case yes, however. So much so in fact that the director has made pointed criticisms of the advertising scheme used for the film multiple times. It's probably one of the best examples of Spinal's adage, in fact.

[Spinal]

Happy Feet 2 > the last two decades of film cinema.

:lol:

Maybe not, but I like your spirit.

[Winston*]

Cmon. you don't want to listen to Robin Williams for 2 straight hours?


I like Robin Williams, but unless its two hours of him doing awesome standup...the answer is "Hell no."

What an odd exchange.

[Morris Schæffer]

Ennio Morricone is coming to Belgium on the 22nd of December. And yes, I've got my tickets. :cool::pritch:

[dreamdead]

The Story of Temple Drake was a buzzkill of inertia. Despite having the potential to be a lurid pre-code adaptation of Faulkner's Sanctuary, the film expurgates so much of the scandalous material that there's nothing left. The most famous corncob in literature is nowhere to be seen, and the film's closest moment of being risque is a brief shot of Miriam Hopkins in stockings and nightwear. Otherwise, it's a mediocre courtroom drama with little in the way of stakes, and has one of the weakest ending lines ever.

[Dukefrukem]

Cool

BMgmxkZ0pWI

[Qrazy]

I'm kind of baffled Source Code has a 91% on RT. It was pretty weak.

[Dukefrukem]

I'm kind of baffled Source Code has a 91% on RT. It was pretty weak.

I thought it was suspenseful, but what I hate about it is the logic and continuity issues that pop up throughout the movie. So the guy could 'live' in "Being-John-Malkovich-style" through the other guy... where he essentially stole someone's identity. Well where does the other guy go? Unless it's just a Matrix styled alternate reality world (the source code) where everything is real except him and only thing that sends him back to the original world is dying. In the ending's case, since they shut off the tube at he end, if he did die in the source code, he would't come back to the real world since the tube was shut off. It's been a while since I saw this...

The premise is more confusing than Inception.

[Dukefrukem]

So good.

cTFQBHBeleE

[Qrazy]

I thought it was suspenseful, but what I hate about it is the logic and continuity issues that pop up throughout the movie. So the guy could 'live' in "Being-John-Malkovich-style" through the other guy... where he essentially stole someone's identity. Well where does the other guy go? Unless it's just a Matrix styled alternate reality world (the source code) where everything is real except him and only thing that sends him back to the original world is dying. In the ending's case, since they shut off the tube at he end, if he did die in the source code, he would't come back to the real world since the tube was shut off. It's been a while since I saw this...

The premise is more confusing than Inception.

More thoughts in the Source Code thread.

[Qrazy]

On another note Rise of the Planet of the Apes was pretty good, not great but pretty good. There were some minor issues throughout but the only part that really bothered me was at the end after Franco's character had witnessed the apes fight/murder a bunch of people and yet he's still like 'Yeah! You climb that tree! Wooooo tree climbing is the shit!'

[Spinal]

I'm kind of baffled Source Code has a 91% on RT. It was pretty weak.

Yep.

[B-side]

A ton of mosfilm releases can be viewed online for free. (http://www.cinema.mosfilm.ru/Films.aspx?sim=3) Andrei Rublev, I Am Cuba, Cranes are Flying, Ivan the Terrible, etc.

[Ivan Drago]

Don't know if this belongs here, but the arthouse/cult film theater I frequent will be showing a sing-along of R. Kelly's Trapped in the Closet in January.

It's like God's answering prayers I didn't know I had.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Never Let Me Go managed to capture most of the emotion of the book, and featured some exemplary work from Andrew Garfield and Kiera Knightley. The color scheme of ambers and golds was maybe a bit on the nose, but it worked, and Romanek managed to balance the heavier voice-over with occasional silent images. A tree by a fence. A lonely boat on a beach. A patient dying, and no one making any efforts to revive her. Good times.

Detour was pretty rad. Loved the performances by Tom Neal and Ann Savage, loved the simplicity, loved how it felt like it was made out of off-the-shelf noir archetypes...and still felt genuine. The sense of fatalism that rumbles throughout the film feels like an engine under the hood of what could've been a busted-down jalopy. Instead, the flick is a hot rod. I really want to watch it again and pay attention to Tom Neal. His character is much more conflicted than his monologues indicate.

[Philosophe_rouge]

Since I know it has it's hardcore supporters, I checked out Happy Feet 2 and my goodness, what a gem of a movie. Beautifully animated, creative and emotionally wrenching. Was one of the best movies I've seen in a while.

Also saw Rise of the Guardians, which is also very good. A great action-adventure film in a similar vein of How to Train your Dragon. I actually preffered this one, because the mythological world creation appealed to me a little more and I find Jack Frost to be a more compelling lead. The little elves are my new favourite thing.

[Boner M]

Really excellent interview with James Gray (http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/james-gray-on-marion-cotillard-joaquin-phoenix-and-the-central-crisis-of-american-cinema-20121212?page=2#blogPostHeader Panel), that all his fans here should read. I think he sums of the so-called 'crisis of American film', cinema vs. TV, et al really eloquently.

[Winston*]

Really excellent interview with James Gray (http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/james-gray-on-marion-cotillard-joaquin-phoenix-and-the-central-crisis-of-american-cinema-20121212?page=2#blogPostHeader Panel), that all his fans here should read. I think he sums of the so-called 'crisis of American film', cinema vs. TV, et al really eloquently.

I really should see Two Lovers.

[Pop Trash]

Really excellent interview with James Gray (http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/james-gray-on-marion-cotillard-joaquin-phoenix-and-the-central-crisis-of-american-cinema-20121212?page=2#blogPostHeader Panel), that all his fans here should read. I think he sums of the so-called 'crisis of American film', cinema vs. TV, et al really eloquently.

I like the guy, but I don't entirely buy into the "no middle movies" argument. I mean, things like The Master and Tree of Life needed just as much money (adjusted for inflation) to get made as Raging Bull.

[Qrazy]

How to Steal a Million - You know, out of all of the genres out there I think the romantic comedy has suffered the worst over the decades. This one might not be one of the best of all time but it's gentle, fun and engaging. I say bring back the age of romcoms where the romance felt genuine (hilarious O'toole in the closet line in the film) and the humor did not rely on crass sexual exploits.

[baby doll]

I really should see The Yards and We Own the Night.Fixed (unless you've already seen 'em).

[Boner M]

Little Odessa, too (his best behind TL)

[Grouchy]

I like the guy, but I don't entirely buy into the "no middle movies" argument. I mean, things like The Master and Tree of Life needed just as much money (adjusted for inflation) to get made as Raging Bull.
Those are two movies.

I think the guy's argument is very valid.

[Yxklyx]

Almodóvar's The Flower of My Secret was OK. I found it hilarious that the plot of a film that he directs 10 years later (Volver) is mentioned.

[dreamdead]

A rewatch of the Coen's Barton Fink raised its esteem in my eyes. I think it's a film that rewards knowing its narrative arc, so that the idiosyncrasies of the dialogue can be better understood. I love how mythic its overall story becomes--but is there a good reason for the "Heil Hitler" near the end...?

[Grouchy]

Almodóvar's The Flower of My Secret was OK. I found it hilarious that the plot of a film that he directs 10 years later (Volver) is mentioned.
I also thought that was pretty incredible back when I watched it.

[Qrazy]

I wasn't all that impressed by We Own the Night personally. Two Lovers was good though. I suppose I'll watch his other two.

[Winston*]

Fixed (unless you've already seen 'em).
Little Odessa, too (his best behind TL)

Seen all these already. Preferred We Own the Night to Little Odessa.

[Sven]

16 Blocks: interesting! Kinda loved it.

[Ezee E]

16 Blocks: interesting! Kinda loved it.
Was that the Bruce Willis/Mos Def movie? I remember nothing of it, but did like it.

[Sven]

Was that the Bruce Willis/Mos Def movie? I remember nothing of it, but did like it.

Yes. It was excellent. Great characters, nice arch feel, great pacing, believable trajectory, cathartic resolution...

[Grouchy]

Yes. It was excellent. Great characters, nice arch feel, great pacing, believable trajectory, cathartic resolution...
It's a remake of The Gauntlet, a minor Clint Eastwood flick that I love.

There's an avalanche of bullets in the end that I've never seen surpassed.

[Sven]

It's a remake of The Gauntlet, a minor Clint Eastwood flick that I love.

There's an avalanche of bullets in the end that I've never seen surpassed.

The climax of The Gauntlet is good, but I remember not really being into the rest of it.

[D_Davis]

An updated Top 10 films:

1. Once Upon a Time in the West - Sergio Leone
2. The Boxer from Shantung - Cheng Cheh
3. Mind Game - Masaaki Yuasa
4. The Blade - Tsui Hark
5. The Ninth Configuration - William Peter Blatty - new to top 10
6. Pulp Fiction - Quentin Tarantino
7. Mulholland Dr. - David Lynch
8. 36th Chamber of Shaolin - Lau Kar Leung
9. Nausica - Hayao Miyazaki
10. The Thing - John Carpenter - new to top 10

Removed from list:

Dead Alive - Peter Jackson
Old Boy- Chan Wook Park

Both dropping into top 100 somewhere.

[D_Davis]

I finally watched Hurt Locker last night. I really liked it, especially the ending.

[Robby P]

Did you just see The Thing recently? Seems like the kind of movie you would have seen a long time ago.

[D_Davis]

Did you just see The Thing recently? Seems like the kind of movie you would have seen a long time ago.


It was number 11 on my top 100. Moved up.

The Ninth Configuration is new on my top 100, and in the top 10.

[Qrazy]

It was number 11 on my top 100. Moved up.

The Ninth Configuration is new on my top 100, and in the top 10.

Can't be that new... four years or something?

[Stay Puft]

TIFF has invited their volunteers to a year-end screening of an upcoming Hollywood "blockbuster," featuring a "notable" and "enigmatic" actor (their specific keywords). They boast that we shall enjoy the film in advance of its commercial release. But what the hell could it possibly be, if not Jack Reacher? What else is coming out this year? And it's next Thursday, btw.

I mean, I guess I'll go. It's free! But it's not much of a secret when your options are pretty much, well... Jack Reacher.

[MadMan]

I decided to do a Top 10 by Decade for RT:

1. Once Upon A Time In America (1984)
2. The Third Man (1949)
3. Rear Window (1954)
4. Goodfellas (1990)
5. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
6. City Lights (1931)
7. Children of Men (2006)
8. Drive (2011)
9. Le Samourai (1967)
10. Sunrise (1927)

Which I actually like more than the list I did for this site.

[Mysterious Dude]

One film per decade, Madman style...

1. The 400 Blows (1959)
2. The Battle of Algiers (1966)
3. Metropolis (1927)
4. M (1931)
5. The Elephant Man (1980)
6. City of God (2002)
7. A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
8. Germany Year Zero (1948)
9. Broken Blossoms (1919)
10. Fargo (1996)

When I did it for my whole top 100, I had to add 6 movies from the 30's and bump out 8 movies from the 60's. An interesting exercise.

[Pop Trash]

One film per decade, Madman style...


Oohh I wanna play:

1. Taxi Driver ('76)
2. The Sweet Hereafter ('97)
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey ('68)
4. Citizen Kane ('41)
5. Modern Times ('36)
6. Blue Velvet ('86)
7. Sunrise ('27)
8. Adaptation. ('02)
9. Vertigo ('58)
10. The Tree of Life ('11)

[MadMan]

One film per decade, Madman style...

1. The 400 Blows (1959)
2. The Battle of Algiers (1966)
3. Metropolis (1927)
4. M (1931)
5. The Elephant Man (1980)
6. City of God (2002)
7. A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
8. Germany Year Zero (1948)
9. Broken Blossoms (1919)
10. Fargo (1996)

When I did it for my whole top 100, I had to add 6 movies from the 30's and bump out 8 movies from the 60's. An interesting exercise.I think I remember talking about such lists in RT OT chat one time. I've only seen #3, 4, 9 and 10 from your list unfortunately. I love Fargo.


1. Taxi Driver ('76)
2. The Sweet Hereafter ('97)
3. 2001: A Space Odyssey ('68)
4. Citizen Kane ('41)
5. Modern Times ('36)
6. Blue Velvet ('86)
7. Sunrise ('27)
8. Adaptation. ('02)
9. Vertigo ('58)
10. The Tree of Life ('11)Huh, Taxi Driver at #1. Cool. The only one I haven't seen off your list is 2. Adaption is great, and would probably be somewhere in the later part of my Top 50 or 60, maybe.

[Spinal]

1. Amadeus (1984)
2. Breaking the Waves (1996)
3. Walkabout (1971)
4. 2001: A Space Osyssey (1968)
5. Los Olvidados (1950)
6. Mulholland Dr. (2001)
7. Metropolis (1927)
8. The Bicycle Thief (1948)
9. M (1931)
10. Inception (2010)

[Melville]

Edvard Munch (Watkins, 1974)
2001: A Space Odyssey (Kubrick, 1968)
Ordet (Dreyer, 1955)
The Son (Dardennes, 2002)
Possession (Zulawski, 1981)
Ivan the Terrible Part II (Eisenstein, 1946)
Lost Highway (Lynch, 1997)
Emak-Bakia (Man Ray, 1926)
City Lights (Chaplin, 1931)
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)

What I learned from making this list: I've seen only 37 movies from the past 3 years. Also, Tarkovsky and Bergman dominate my actual top 10, but don't appear on this list at all.

[Qrazy]

Now I remember why I stopped watching new movies.

[elixir]

Now I remember why I stopped watching new movies.
Because you don't know which good ones to choose to watch? :)

[B-side]

I'll go ahead and start all the way back to 1900s, sans rank, just ascending order by decade:

1. The Red Spectre (Segundo de Chomón/Ferdinand Zecca | 1907 | France)
2. The Doll (Ernst Lubitsch | 1919 | Germany)
3. Emak-Bakia (Man Ray | 1927 | France)
4. Sisters of the Gion (Kenji Mizoguchi | 1936 | Japan)
5. Ivan the Terrible, Pt. I (Sergei Eisenstein | 1944 | USSR)
6. The Sun Shines Bright (John Ford | 1953 | USA)
7. The Departure (Jerzy Skolimowski | 1967 | Belgium)
8. Barry Lyndon (Stanley Kubrick | 1975 | UK/USA)
9. City of Pirates (Raoul Ruiz | 1983 | France/Portugal)
10. Time Regained (Raoul Ruiz | 1999 | France/Italy/Portugal)
11. The Girlfriend Experience (Steven Soderbergh | 2009 | USA)
12. A Separation (Asghar Farhadi | 2011 | Iran)

[Qrazy]

Because you don't know which good ones to choose to watch? :)

And what pray tell are those?

[elixir]

And what pray tell are those?
I mean, I could name a lot, but some on Netflix Instant are: The Kid With a Bike, The Deep Blue Sea, Goodbye First Love.

[elixir]

ok gonna do the decade thing but just whatever film first comes to mind

1. coeur fidele (epstein, 23)
2. wild boys of the road (wellman, 33)
3. the shop around the corner (lubitsch, 40)
4. a man escaped (bresson, 56)
5. l'enfance nue (pialat, 68)
6. the mother and the whore (eustache, 73)
7. love streams (cassavetes, 84)
8. haut, bas, fragile (rivette, 95)
9. un lac (grandrieux, 08)
10. margaret (lonergan, 11)

[elixir]

Yikes. No Asians! Let's pretend my mind went to Dust in the Wind first. Ah, there we go. No female directors either, oh no!

[elixir]

I almost didn't choose anything for the period 2000-12, but that seemed against the spirit of the thing.

I still don't think anything from this previous dozen years matches up well against anything from any other decade.
This attitude is so utterly asinine that I can't even comprehend it.

[elixir]

What am I supposed to say here? I really just don't get people who supposedly love film who hold this kind of attitude (and I encounter it a lot, not just you). There's still incredible films being made! (If you're going argue that it's not at the exact ratio it used to be, or isn't through the same sources [Hollywood], or something similar to that, then I don't care to play that kind of game.)

[baby doll]

I still don't think anything from this previous dozen years matches up well against anything from any other decade.A few of my personal favorites from the last dozen years, off the top of my head:

Les Amants réguliers (Philippe Garrel, 2005)
L'Anglaise et le duc (Éric Rohmer, 2001)
Bamako (Abderrahmane Sissako, 2006)
Before Sunset (Richard Linklater, 2004)
Black Book (Paul Verhoeven, 2006)
Code inconnu: Récit incomplet de divers voyages (Michael Haneke, 2000)
Copie conforme (Abbas Kiarostami, 2010)
Crimson Gold (Jafar Panahi, 2003)
Dans la ville de Sylvie (José Luis GuerÃ*n, 2007)
demonlover (Olivier Assayas, 2002)
Devils on the Doorstep (Jiang Wen, 2000)
Distant (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2002)
Dogville (Lars von Trier, 2003)
Éloge de l'amour (Jean-Luc Godard, 2001)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michel Gondry, 2004)
Femme Fatale (Brian De Palma, 2002)
Find Me Guilty (Sidney Lumet, 2006)
Le Gamin au vélo (Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, 2011)
The Ghost Writer (Roman Polanski, 2010)
Goodbye, Dragon Inn (Tsai Ming-liang, 2003)
Gosford Park (Robert Altman, 2001)
Happy-Go-Lucky (Mike Leigh, 2008)
The Heart of the World (Guy Maddin, 2000)
The Holy Girl (Lucrecia Martel, 2004)
Des Hommes et des dieux (Xavier Beauvois, 2010)
Hors Satan (Bruno Dumont, 2011)
Hunger (Steve McQueen, 2008)
I'm Not There. (Todd Haynes, 2007)
In the Mood for Love (Wong Kar-wai, 2000)
Innocence (Lucile Hadzihalilovic, 2004)
The Man Without a Past (Aki Kaurismäki, 2002)
Marie Antoinette (Sofia Coppola, 2008)
Moolaadé (Ousmane Sembène, 2004)
Mulholland Dr. (David Lynch, 2001)
Pas sur la bouche (Alain Resnais, 2003)
Ponyo on a Cliff by the Sea (Hayao Miyazaki, 2008)
The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson, 2001)
Silent Light (Carlos Reygadas, 2007)
Les Témoins (André Téchiné, 2007)
Three Times (Hou Hsiao-hsien, 2005)
Tony Manero (Pablo LarraÃ*n, 2008)
25th Hour (Spike Lee, 2002)
Un prophète (Jacques Audiard, 2009)
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2010)
Werckmeister Harmonies (Béla Tarr, 2000)
The World (Jia Zhang-ke, 2004)
Vincere (Marco Bellocchio, 2009)
Y tu mamá también (Alfonso Cuaron, 2001)
Yi Yi (Edward Yang, 2000)
You, the Living (Roy Andersson, 2007)

[elixir]

Nah, I'm fine with what I said. I do find it to be a stupid attitude to have. I was being a bit combative though, and perhaps should have added a smiley. I'm happy to have a conversation if you want to, but at the moment I just felt like expressing my intense disagreement with your viewpoint.

I could have done a list like babydoll, but I'm not sure that does much to spark discussion. :)

[Dukefrukem]

One film per decade, Madman style...

1. The 400 Blows (1959)
2. The Battle of Algiers (1966)
3. Metropolis (1927)
4. M (1931)
5. The Elephant Man (1980)
6. City of God (2002)
7. A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
8. Germany Year Zero (1948)
9. Broken Blossoms (1919)
10. Fargo (1996)

When I did it for my whole top 100, I had to add 6 movies from the 30's and bump out 8 movies from the 60's. An interesting exercise.

I left my sheet at home but.. off the top of my head;

1. Inception (2010)
2. Rear Window (1954)
3. The Thing (1982)
4. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
5. Rope (1948)
6. A Clockwork Orange (1974)
7. Pulp Fiction (1994)
8. The Invisible Man (193?)
9. Faust (192?)
10. Melancholia (2011)

[elixir]

There's some great stuff on that list. (Although I haven't seen everything you have).

It's still too early to tell, but pound for pound, movie for movie, the period 2000-2010 seems much weaker than the decades that preceded it.

Without tossing out a lot more context, I'd have trouble eyeing "Y Tu Mama Tambien" or "Before Sunset" on the same list as "La Dolce Vita" or "The Red Shoes."
There's just as many I would put on the same level or above those two. But this doesn't really do much to show how it's weaker or stronger (and I wonder what purpose there is in doing that, anyway).

[baby doll]

I could have done a list like babydoll, but I'm not sure that does much to spark discussion. :)The idea was to close the discussion, not spark one. Actually, I'm more interested in hearing why Brude considers Shakespeare in Love and Syriana the best films of the '90s and 2000s.

[baby doll]

8. The Invisible Man (193?)
9. Faust (192?)Three and six, I believe.

[Dukefrukem]

1. La Dolce Vita (1960/1)
2. The Rules of the Game (1939)
3. The Red Shoes (1948)
4. An Affair to Remember (1957)
5. Captain Blood (1935)
6. Serpico (1971)
7. The Road Warrior (1980/1)
8. Shakespeare in Love (1998)
9. The Cocoanuts (1929)
10. Syriana (2005)
11. The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

Hey, don't blame me. I wrote this and even I am put off by some of those choices.

This list is wow.

[baby doll]

There's some great stuff on that list. (Although I haven't seen everything you have).

It's still too early to tell, but pound for pound, movie for movie, the period 2000-2010 seems much weaker than the decades that preceded it.

Without tossing out a lot more context, I'd have trouble eyeing "Y Tu Mama Tambien" or "Before Sunset" on the same list as "La Dolce Vita" or "The Red Shoes."As we've discussed before, I find portions of La dolce vita unconvincing (the intellectual party being the most obvious example), but even putting aside my minor reservations about that particular film, I'm not sure what the point is comparing it with Cuarón and Linklater's films. I wouldn't say either one is "better" than La dolce vita (more successful on their own terms, perhaps), much less The Red Shoes, but that's a matter of personal preference. But even if I happen to like Powell and Pressburger's more than any of the fifty movies cited above, I don't see how that diminishes the quality of the latter.

[baby doll]

For the record:

1. Les Vampires (Louis Feuillade, 1915)
2. Foolish Wives (Erich von Stroheim, 1922)
3. La Règle du jeu (Jean Renoir, 1939)
4. Late Spring (Yasujiro Ozu, 1949)
5. Ordet (Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1955)
6. Lola (Jacques Demy, 1961)
7. The Marriage of Maria Braun (Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 1979)
8. Sans soleil (Chris Marker, 1983)
9. Trois couleurs: Rouge (Krzyzstof Kieślowski, 1994)
10. Yi Yi (Edward Yang, 2000)

(As a rule, I didn't vote for the work of anybody still living.)

[elixir]

Interesting rule. I guess it makes things easier! Edward Yang :(

[B-side]

Nostalgia for decades past when it comes to cinema tends to come from people with very little experience with the better cinema of recent years.

[baby doll]

Interesting rule. I guess it makes things easier!It certainly does.

[elixir]

Just because you haven't seen them doesn't mean these films don't exist. I truly believe the only reason one would have this viewpoint is because they haven't explored enough in some manner. I have to go now, but I can PM you some recs if you want.

[baby doll]

I largely agree. I also don't like measuring movies as if they were lunch meat at a deli counter -- but:

It seems to me that guys like Fellinin and Pressberger &tc were operating on an entirely different level than guys like Linklater or Gondry or Jonez or whomever.

Like if you put Picasso next to Pollock next Warhol, your eyes would drift to the right and you'd eventually shrug and take that fucking soup can off the wall, because no matter how wide its impact it just feels out of place in that context.

Or: I can admire Salinger's skill with prose but I'd never pretend he's got the heft, weight, depth, gravitas, whatever you want, of guys like Faulkner or Hemingway.

Some of these guys are good technicians, or craftsman, and others just seem otherworldly.

I guess I'm saying: I haven't seen anything in the last ten years that has that latter kind of quality.Obviously not all things are possible at all times: Martin Scorsese can't make movies like Michael Powell, and Michael Powell couldn't have made movies like Martin Scorsese. If they could, the work of each filmmaker would be less valuable. Films like The Red Shoes feel more precious today precisely because they belong to another era.

[Dukefrukem]

Speaking of Scorsese- it was just announced he is to make a documentary about Bill Clinton for HBO.

[Ezee E]

I guess that's entirely subjective, but movies like Children of Men, No Country for Old Men, and There Will Be Blood work for me on thatlevel.

[baby doll]

Well, not to split hairs but I'd but Scorsese's work, at least from 1980-1991, in the category of "otherworldly."

Same goes for Tarantino & Avery for Pulp Fiction or Zhang Yimou for Ju Dou and Raise the Red Lantern, or Spike Lee for Do the Right Thing.

But today, even guys who were working at that level before can't quite seem to get there today.

And few who have come after them come close.This all seems to me very subjective. I'm sure what you're saying is true for you, but it's not true for me. You have your list of otherworldly movies, Ezee E has his, and I have mine (the fifty movies I list earlier, for starters).

[MadMan]

I haven't seen any movies on baby doll's and B-Side's lists, heh. Means I still have viewing left to do. Brude's list surprised me, and I didn't expect to see Inception on Spinal's. I've seen the most off of Duke's list. Well that was certainly interesting.

These days I try to watch older movies only because I've seen so many new ones (and to me new is 2000s to now) and there are still plenty of hidden gems and "classics" that I haven't seen yet. Of course I'm still heavily behind on 2000s viewing, and to ignore any decade would be foolish. And it can change perspective: the more I see from the 1950s, the more I think it might be my favorite decade for film, although the 70s is still king imo.

[Spinal]

I didn't expect to see Inception on Spinal's.

It's hard to put a 3-year period up next to a 10-year period. I doubt it will be the same at the end of the decade, so ask me again in 2020.

[Grouchy]

If I was to choose a movie from this 3 year period that's coming off as so troubling that was Top 10 of All-Time material, I would go with The Skin I Live In.

[baby doll]

Again splitting hairs: But, no. There's subjective, and then there's another kind of place where a movie goes beyond a diversion, or entertainment, and becomes art. It becomes a museum piece by popular and critical consensus.

(I won't say "Masterpiece" because that's a silly, overused word and on the Internet it roughly translates to HAI GUYS BOONDOCKS SAINTS IS AWESIM WHAD DO U THINK).

This is why I said it is soon to tell, because it usually takes at least half a generation for something to really sink in and become recognized.

And not to start another long, sophormoric discussion, but man, I really dislike this idea that everything is subjective, everything is art, and every representation is equally valid. Because it's very clearly not.

Saying so allows baseless, uninformed opinion to trump education or experience, and in any other discipline such a position would be regarded as ridiculous.

PS: I'm not saying that reflects you, bd, or any recent poster-- really just spouting off here for the hell of it.I'm not a believer in immutable values and timeless classics; personally, I'm not the biggest fan of Ingmar Bergman or Akira Kurosawa, which puts me at odds with the popular and critical consensus. I think what's important is to be able to have an informed opinion, regardless of whether it's a popular or unpopular one.

[baby doll]

Agreed. But would you say you fail, or refuse, to recognize the quality of work by Kurosawa and Bergman, or that it simply doesn't appeal as a matter of taste?

Because those are two different things. I'm not a big fan of Welles or Kubrick, but at the same time I know & understand why they're regarded the way they are & don't have any particular qualms with it.The thing is, my opinions keep evolving. I liked Ikiru a lot when I first saw it, but seeing it again recently, I found it heavy-handed and dull. (That said, Seven Samurai has been one of my absolute favorites for more than ten years.) On the other hand, I hated Winter Light the first time I saw it, but after seeing it again a couple years ago, I think it might be Bergman's best. I still like Persona a lot, but watching it again a few weeks ago, it seemed that Elisabeth's sole function in the narrative was to reveal different aspects of Alma's character. Is there any reason for her to plant the letter except to provoke a reaction from the nurse? The films are the same but I keep changing.

[Ezee E]

1. Goodfellas
2. The Shining
3. Taxi Driver (omg, two Scorsese)
4. Wizard of Oz
5. Children of Men
6. Passion of Joan of Arc
7. The Virgin Spring
8. The Searchers
9. Pinocchio
10. Life of Pi

[Yxklyx]

1. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
2. Nights of Cabiria (1957)
3. Magnolia (1999)
4. Planet Terror (2007)
5. Blue Velvet (1986)
6. Walkabout (1971)
7. Metropolis (1927)
8. Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)
9. His Girl Friday (1940)
10. Margaret (2011)

[MadMan]

Hey, more lists. I could have put the idea into a separate thread, but eh placing it here is good enough.


It's hard to put a 3-year period up next to a 10-year period. I doubt it will be the same at the end of the decade, so ask me again in 2020.Ah, and yeah that was part of the problem in doing such an idea. Still the beauty of lists is that you can always edit them down the road.

PS: I'm suddenly reminded of the first days of this thread back on RT, when we would post film lists and that would inspire discussion. I still recall TheSlimmyMudhole. Righteous dude, but I always wondered if he was an alias.

[Spinal]

1. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
2. Nights of Cabiria (1957)
3. Magnolia (1999)
4. Planet Terror (2007)
5. Blue Velvet (1986)
6. Walkabout (1971)
7. Metropolis (1927)
8. Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)
9. His Girl Friday (1940)
10. Margaret (2011)

Just so we're clear, you like Planet Terror more than every single film produced in the 70s?

[Dead & Messed Up]

01. Rear Window (Alfred Hitchcock, 1954)
02. Dawn of the Dead (George Romero, 1978)
03. Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese, 1990)
04. The Empire Strikes Back (Irvin Kershner, 1980)
05. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (Frank Capra, 1939)
06. Fantasia (Samuel Armstrong et al, 1940)
07. 2001: A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, 1968)
08. Sunrise (F. W. Murnau, 1927)
09. Requiem for a Dream (Darren Aronofsky, 2000)
10. The Social Network (David Fincher, 2010)

[Robby P]

Ooh, this is a fun game.

1. 1970's Days of Heaven
2. 1940's Bicycle Thieves
3. 1950's Vertigo
4. 1920's The Passion of Joan of Arc
5. 1960's Breathless
6. 1990's Pulp Fiction
7. 1930's L'Atalante
8. 1980's Raiders of the Lost Ark
9. 2000's No Country for Old Men
10. 2010's Drive

[Yxklyx]

Just so we're clear, you like Planet Terror more than every single film produced in the 70s?

Yes indeed!

[Raiders]

1. The Conversation (Coppola) - 1970s
2. Au hasard Balthazar (Bresson) - 1960s
3. Safe (Haynes) - 1990s
4. In a Lonely Place (N. Ray) - 1950s
5. Sherlock, Jr. (Keaton) - 1920s
6. Sans soleil (Marker) - 1980s
7. The Kidnapping (Kirsanoff) - 1930s
8. Pulse (K. Kurosawa) - 2000s
9. Meshes of the Afternoon (Deren) - 1940s
10. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Alfredson) - 2010s

[Boner M]

I'm going with elixir's first-to-mind method (then in a loose order of preference)

1. Beau travail ('99)
2. Sunrise ('27)
3. Sansho the Bailiff ('54)
4. 2001: A Space Odyssey ('68)
5. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre ('74)
6. Love Streams ('84)
7. Outer Space ('00)
8. Fury ('36)
9. Leviathan (2012)
10. At Land ('4?)

[Kurosawa Fan]

1. The Passion of Joan of Arc - 1920s
2. Ran - 1980s
3. Casablanca - 1940s
4. Ikiru - 1950s
5. In the Mood for Love - 2000s
6. Le Samourai - 1960s
7. The Conversation - 1970s
8. City Lights - 1930s
9. The Big Lebowski - 1990s
10. Mother - 2010s

[Izzy Black]

2001: A Space Odyssey (Kubrick, 1968)
Sátántangó (Tarr, 1994)
Aguirre: The Wrath of God (Herzog, 1972)
Zui hao de shi guang (Hou, 2005)
The Red Shoes (Powell, 1948)
Intolerance (Griffith, 1916)
A Zed & Two Noughts (Greenaway, 1985)
La Strada (Fellini, 1954)
Der Müde Tod (Lang, 1921)
Le Crime de Monsieur Lange (Renoir, 1936)

I managed 0 Antonioni films. How is this possible?

[Ivan Drago]

1. Magnolia (1999)
2. The Tree of Life (2011)
3. Mulholland Drive (2001)
4. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
5. Contempt (1963)
6. Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
7. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)
8. Scarface (1983)
9. The Heiress (1949)
10. Duck Soup (1933)

[Raiders]

The Room (Wiseau, 2003)(5th) 9.5


Please stop watching this movie.

[ledfloyd]

completely off the top of my head, although the 80s and 90s are the only ones i hesitated on.


A Christmas Tale
The Third Man
Paris, Texas
L'Avventura
Chungking Express
Mysteries of Lisbon
Rio Bravo
City Lights
Duck Soup
Annie Hall

[Watashi]

1. Whisper of the Heart (1995)
2. Paris, Texas (1984)
3. Vertigo (1958)
4. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1927)
5. Dr. Strangelove (1964)
6. The Incredibles (2004)
7. Casablanca (1942)
8. Days of Heaven (1978)
9. The Tree of Life (2010)
10. Angels With Dirty Faces (1938)

[Ivan Drago]

Please stop watching this movie.

I'll have you know the last two times I watched it were in theaters, and the experience was awesome each time. And when it comes back, I'm going again.

[Mr. McGibblets]

Nasvhille (1975)
Park Row (1952)
Hot Fuzz (2007)
Sanjuro (1962)
A Night at the Opera (1935)
They All Laughed (1981)
Children of Paradise (1945)
Metropolitan (1990)
Sunrise (1927)
True Grit (2010)

[EyesWideOpen]

I'll have you know the last two times I watched it were in theaters, and the experience was awesome each time. And when it comes back, I'm going again.

Ignore him. It's an almost infinitely rewatchable film.

[Qrazy]

I mean, I could name a lot, but some on Netflix Instant are: The Kid With a Bike, The Deep Blue Sea, Goodbye First Love.

Okay, if I don't love all of these I"m holding you personally responsible.

[Derek]

Okay, if I don't love all of these I"m holding you personally responsible.

You won't love any of them, but they're sure as shit more interesting than The Hunger Games.

[Grouchy]

I've long archived Sydney Pollack in my mind as one of the most conventional, uninteresting "good" filmmakers... Then I watched They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and damn.

[MadMan]

I still love both Three Days of the Condor and Jeremiah Johnson. I haven't seen much from Pollack, though.

And yeah maybe I should have done a thread for the top 10s, after all. Still its great to see what people find great, and if I've actually seen anything off of their lists.

[Qrazy]

You won't love any of them, but they're sure as shit more interesting than The Hunger Games.

It seems like you've been on a bit of a bad viewing cycle yourself lately.

[Qrazy]

I've long archived Sydney Pollack in my mind as one of the most conventional, uninteresting "good" filmmakers... Then I watched They Shoot Horses, Don't They? and damn.

Yep, that one is tops.

[Derek]

It seems like you've been on a bit of a bad viewing cycle yourself lately.

Ugh yeah, tell me about it. Fortunately this rough patch is following AFI Fest where I saw a bunch of great stuff. Probably will give Children Who Chase Lost Voices From Deep Below a go soon since that seems as close to a slam dunk as anything to end the drought.

[Qrazy]

Ugh yeah, tell me about it. Fortunately this rough patch is following AFI Fest where I saw a bunch of great stuff. Probably will give Children Who Chase Lost Voices From Deep Below a go soon since that seems as close to a slam dunk as anything to end the drought.

Yeah, I think you'll dig it. Alternatively I'm sure there are some Aleksei German films you haven't seen yet. :lol:

[Watashi]

It seems like you've been on a bit of a bad viewing cycle yourself lately.
A lot of those movies are good.

[Watashi]

Also, D+ for Attack the Block? You should just crawl into a hole and die a slow and lonely death.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Also, D+ for Attack the Block? You should just crawl into a hole and die a slow and lonely death.

Hey now, hey, Q has a wrong opinion and that's fine. He'll figure it out someday and change his mind accordingly.

[Qrazy]

All of the characters in that film are paper thin and a complete waste of space. Also, what an absurd ending with him being cheered. I read that the writer/director wanted to make a film that was critical of street gang violence but he ends up completely glorifying it. I gave the creature effects work a few points but the content of the film gets an F.

[Qrazy]

A lot of those movies are good.

They were filmed in 2012 so I doubt it.

[elixir]

I hate this board. You guys don't deserve recent cinema!!! Blind fools, the lot of ya!

[elixir]

I miss movies...can't wait until finals are over.

[MadMan]

All of the characters in that film are paper thin and a complete waste of space. Also, what an absurd ending with him being cheered. I read that the writer/director wanted to make a film that was critical of street gang violence but he ends up completely glorifying it. I gave the creature effects work a few points but the content of the film gets an F.You do remember that they get arrested, right?

Anyways Qrazy has lived up to his username by hating far better movies than Attack The Block :P

[Qrazy]

You do remember that they get arrested, right?

Anyways Qrazy has lived up to his username by hating far better movies than Attack The Block :P

You do remember that he saves everyone with his violent ways and the film ends with them cheering his name, right?

[Watashi]

You do remember that he saves everyone with his violent ways and the film ends with them cheering his name, right?

You mean saving his friends by blowing up giant wolf motherfuckers? Those violent ways? That doesn't glorify street gang violence.

[Dead & Messed Up]

You mean saving his friends by blowing up giant wolf motherfuckers? Those violent ways? That doesn't glorify street gang violence.

Also, that happens after the key emotional beat in the film, when

he realizes that it was his casual violence, killing the female, that caused the entire mess and cost lives.

[MadMan]

Or the fact that in Attack The Block most of the gang bangers get killed. I didn't find the main characters to be evil, just dumb kids. The one gangsta guy who murdered people was actually the real antagonist, along with the aliens of course.

I'll have to rewatch the movie again to get a better grip on its political/social implications, however I think it had something interesting to say about the nature of violence. It was also a really entertaining sci-fi/action/horror movie. I'm still hoping there's a sequel.

[Qrazy]

Also, that happens after the key emotional beat in the film, when

he realizes that it was his casual violence, killing the female, that caused the entire mess and cost lives.

Such a meaningful realization certainly given that the solution is to be even more violent and kill even more things in order to solve his problem. Give me a break.

[Yxklyx]

Yep, that one is tops.

Yeah love that film! No punches are pulled whatsoever and I love Jane Fonda's performance.

[Grouchy]

Hate the movie all you want, but it doesn't glorify violence. Standing up for your neighbors isn't "street gang violence".

[Rowland]

I remember there being lots of indifference bordering on negativity for Attack the Block around these parts last year. It's still a favorite of mine.
Beyond the Black Rainbow (Cosmatos, 2012) ½:lol: I knew this one would inspire some hate.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Such a meaningful realization certainly given that the solution is to be even more violent and kill even more things in order to solve his problem. Give me a break.

http://payload.cargocollective.com/1/2/91484/1145519/Kitkat%20-%20Chores%20Cropped.jpg

sWxQb2vXOSg

[Grouchy]

What about the scene where they attack and rob a woman at knifepoint?

Anyway, one could make the argument that every movie of this kind 'glorifies violence' in some fashion. Who cares?

That's not why Attack the Block is bad -- or at least, uninteresting. It's bad because while it's a fine example of a certain kind of movie, it does absolutely nothing fresh with its premise after the opening. It's rote as hell.
That happens at the beginning of the movie, there's a character arc that goes from there to the end. Also, like D&MU says, part of the point of the film is that Moses eventually realizes that an act of casual violence on his part is what brought the full-scale invasion on the first place.

I feel Attack the Block is a great action/survival piece, very well written and performed, and in the tradition of great films like Assault on Precinct 13.

[Watashi]

Careful, Brude. Ghosts of Mars has some diehard fans on this forum.

[Qrazy]

That happens at the beginning of the movie, there's a character arc that goes from there to the end. Also, like D&MU says, part of the point of the film is that Moses eventually realizes that an act of casual violence on his part is what brought the full-scale invasion on the first place.

I feel Attack the Block is a great action/survival piece, very well written and performed, and in the tradition of great films like Assault on Precinct 13.

Yes but there are faux-realizations that are written into the script and then there's the reality of what the script is actually saying. Violence may have caused the problem but violence is what gets him out of the problem. Moses has learned nothing except that the establishment/police are still on his case justifying the violence and illegal acts which he commits. I was hoping that the end would be solved by interacting with the creatures in some way, solving the issue, rather than slaughtering them all.

[Watashi]

I was hoping that the end would be solved by interacting with the creatures in some way, solving the issue, rather than slaughtering them all.

Seriously? Can you name a single movie that does this?

[Qrazy]

Seriously? Can you name a single movie that does this?

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

gg.

[elixir]

gg?

Anyway, I don't think that would make it a better movie at all...and I don't even think Moses has to learn any lesson at all for it to be so.

[Watashi]

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

gg.
That's a children's movie.

[Qrazy]

gg?

Anyway, I don't think that would make it a better movie at all...and I don't even think Moses has to learn any lesson at all for it to be so.

gg = Good game. Because I won.

[Qrazy]

That's a children's movie.

You're a children's movie.

[elixir]

z0mg art appreciation isn't a game gosh man gosh i mean your sig is averaging out like shiiiit u lose anyway

[Qrazy]

z0mg art appreciation isn't a game gosh man gosh i mean your sig is averaging out like shiiiit u lose anyway

I won the argument when he said name a 'single movie'. Arguments are games.

[Watashi]

I think you just broke elixir.

[elixir]

I went to two holiday parties, like one night after the other, and both were playing Nightmare Before Christmas in the background, and now I feel as if I've seen it even though I've paid no attention at all, and I guess I'll never watch it for real now, oh well.

[Qrazy]

Nightmare Before Christmas is pretty good.

[elixir]

I won the argument when he said name a 'single movie'. Arguments are games.
Please. Animated movies don't count! Right, Wats?!

[Melville]

I didn't think it glorified gang violence, but the worship of the gang hero at the end was over the top. Though not as cheesy as the scene where the woman realizes the gang leader has a bad home life.

Amongst recent monster movies, The Host > Attack the Block > Slither.

[Watashi]

Please. Animated movies don't count! Right, Wats?!
Yeah, they're for kids and basement-dwelling manchildren.

*sobs*

[Qrazy]

I didn't think it glorified gang violence, but the worship of the gang hero at the end was over the top. Though not as cheesy as the scene where the woman realizes the gang leader has a bad home life.

Amongst recent monster movies, The Host > Attack the Block > Slither.

I guess I won't be watching Slither any time soon.

[Melville]

I guess I won't be watching Slither any time soon.
I thought it was obnoxious garbage. You might like it a bit more.

[Qrazy]

I thought it was obnoxious garbage. You might like it a bit more.

Look at my sig, what would possibly make you think I would like it more?

[Grouchy]

It's an insanely weak arc though, buried under half a dozen unlikeable characters and frenetic action scenes and some right-shit CGI. It's like saying that Indiana Jones has a character arc in Raiders. It's there, and he does, but who cares? It's completely secondary to everything else in the movie.
I disagree that Moses has a weak arc and I also disagree with the Raiders comparison. Indiana Jones doesn't have a character arc, he's an action hero throughout the entirety of the film. I don't see the point of comparison there. And, like, Wats says, your Carpenter comment is funny because that's precisely what Ghosts of Mars is.


Yes but there are faux-realizations that are written into the script and then there's the reality of what the script is actually saying. Violence may have caused the problem but violence is what gets him out of the problem. Moses has learned nothing except that the establishment/police are still on his case justifying the violence and illegal acts which he commits. I was hoping that the end would be solved by interacting with the creatures in some way, solving the issue, rather than slaughtering them all.
I think you're bringing an opinion into the film which I don't really see as being in there. Moses has learned things throughout the film, the most symbolic one being that actions have consequences. Just because the police arrest him anyway doesn't make the moral invalid - the police arrest him because when in doubt, they arrest poor people. It's an "always has been, always will be" scenario.

Also, I wouldn't say violence gets him out of the problem. Strategy and teamwork get them all out of the problem.

[Melville]

Look at my sig, what would possibly make you think I would like it more?
That's why I said 'a bit'. :P

[Qrazy]

I disagree that Moses has a weak arc and I also disagree with the Raiders comparison. Indiana Jones doesn't have a character arc, he's an action hero throughout the entirety of the film. I don't see the point of comparison there. And, like, Wats says, your Carpenter comment is funny because that's precisely what Ghosts of Mars is.


I think you're bringing an opinion into the film which I don't really see as being in there. Moses has learned things throughout the film, the most symbolic one being that actions have consequences. Just because the police arrest him anyway doesn't make the moral invalid - the police arrest him because when in doubt, they arrest poor people. It's an "always has been, always will be" scenario.

Also, I wouldn't say violence gets him out of the problem. Strategy and teamwork get them all out of the problem.

The crux of the film is... Sure these troubled kids may intimidate and rob you now, but when the alien invasion comes it's all good because their hard knock lifestyle will come in handy. They'll have your back, brah.

The moral isn't invalid because the police arrest him. The moral of 'maybe I should stop doing bad things and hurting things/people' is invalid because he solves his problem by blowing up an apartment.

The general integrity of the film is summed up in the line...

Pest: I'm shitting myself innit', but at the same time...
Moses: What?
Pest: This is sick.

---

The film, like many others, is to it's detriment primarily concerned with being 'cool' rather than saying anything at all about any of the subtext it's established.

---

Just to be clear my problem is also not with a monster movie being a monster movie or with characters in a film being cool (I love Johnnie To). My problem is with the conflict between the themes developed and their resolution. If the film had a different framing device and less loathsome leads then it could blow up apartment buildings to it's heart's content.

[Grouchy]

The crux of the film is... Sure these troubled kids may intimidate and rob you now, but when the alien invasion comes it's all good because their hard knock lifestyle will come in handy. They'll have your back, brah.

The moral isn't invalid because the police arrest him. The moral of 'maybe I should stop doing bad things and hurting things/people' is invalid because he solves his problem by blowing up an apartment.
Dude, they're ghetto teenagers fighting beastly aliens from outer space. The final act of the film can't be them solving the riddle of the Sphinx or something.

EDIT: I read your expanded post now. I guess the criticism of it being too much concerned with being cool is valid although I disagree in this particular case - but I've seen a lot of films which I disliked for that reason. Also, what's "loathsome" about the kids? I liked most of them just fine. They cracked me up often.

[Grouchy]

Wow, I really need to re-watch Raiders of the Lost Ark.

[Qrazy]

Dude, they're ghetto teenagers fighting beastly aliens from outer space. The final act of the film can't be them solving the riddle of the Sphinx or something.

EDIT: I read your expanded post now. I guess it's valid although I completely disagree with it. Also, what's "loathsome" about the kids? I liked most of them just fine. They cracked me up often.

The film should have gone one of two ways. Either existed as it does but with another ending where violence doesn't solve the problem, bringing the themes set up to their logical conclusion or...

Restructure the film so that they were genuinely fighting off an alien attack which they didn't bring upon themselves and they never robbed the woman to begin with. They could have seemed threatening to her but not actually robbed, thus displaying her own prejudices. Then when they fight off the attack the cheers at the end would be justified because they would have actually saved those people and they'd have a reason to be cheering. As it stands they have no reason to cheer because only Moses and those who had the pheromones on them, as a result of their own malicious actions, had any reason to fear the creatures.

[Dead & Messed Up]

But he does have an arc. It's in his treatment of Marion.

He goes from a guy who took advantage of her when she was young (and getting punched in the face when they reconnect), to choosing the Ark of the Convenant over her (and leaving her to face the Nazis alone), to falling asleep in her arms (or really, passing out), to giving up the prize and telling Dietrich and Belloq "All I want is the girl" at the movie's climax, to walking away from it all with her at the end of the film.

That is an arc.

Doesn't Belloq reveal that as a bluff?

He also has an arc in regards to how he views the actual Ark of the Covenant. Starting out dismissing it as superstition, hearing comments from Brody and Sallah, finding it and understanding its significance, and ultimately rejecting it as a prize by the end (dovetailing with, as you point out, his treatment of Marion).

[Raiders]

Doesn't Belloq reveal that as a bluff?

He also has an arc in regards to how he views the actual Ark of the Covenant. Starting out dismissing it as superstition, hearing comments from Brody and Sallah, finding it and understanding its significance, and ultimately rejecting it as a prize by the end (dovetailing with, as you point out, his treatment of Marion).

Well, he believes it exists, he just scoffs at its supposed power. I find that to be a remarkably strange moment too, considering that if you actually believe it exists then why even question its power (if its origin is a myth then why, and how, would it even exist?), not to mention he never really seems to doubt anything about it from that point on. It isn't really an arc, just kind of an inconsistent characterization.

If I had to guess, the intent is that he deep down does believe and acknowledge, he's just not going to admit to it.

[Winston*]

I watched Raiders of the Lost Ark at the cinema the other week. There's a bit where they get on a sea plane, and then there's a montage of shots of that sea plane over the line of travel being plotted on a map. Then Indiana Jones is suddenly in Tibet without the film establishing that he changed planes.

Don't think enough has been made of Indiana Jones' ability to catch a sea plane to the mountains.

[Qrazy]

Well, he believes it exists, he just scoffs at its supposed power. I find that to be a remarkably strange moment too, considering that if you actually believe it exists then why even question its power (if its origin is a myth then why, and how, would it even exist?), not to mention he never really seems to doubt anything about it from that point on. It isn't really an arc, just kind of an inconsistent characterization.

If I had to guess, the intent is that he deep down does believe and acknowledge, he's just not going to admit to it.

I believe Jesus as a human existed but not in the light the Bible paints him. I would assume his believe in the ark is the same.

[Raiders]

I believe Jesus as a human existed but not in the light the Bible paints him. I would assume his believe in the ark is the same.

Maybe, it just seems strange to believe that Moses actually brought the ten commandments down to the Israelites and they were put into the Ark, this after in the same story he had parted the Red sea, spoke to a burning bush, made water from a rock and so forth, and then not believe in the power attributed to the Ark.

[Qrazy]

The strange part about that is: How did he know to close his eyes when the Ark is opened? Especially since Belloq had no clue?

If he never believed in the "power of God" around the Ark, then why tell Marion to close her eyes? Why close his own eyes and look away?

Wasn't there a warning to that effect from somewhere/someone earlier in the film?

[Dead & Messed Up]

Well, he believes it exists, he just scoffs at its supposed power.

Sure, sure. Sorry if that was unclear.


I find that to be a remarkably strange moment too, considering that if you actually believe it exists then why even question its power (if its origin is a myth then why, and how, would it even exist?), not to mention he never really seems to doubt anything about it from that point on. It isn't really an arc, just kind of an inconsistent characterization.

I think there's a significant difference between believing in the historicity of something and believing in the mythic powers people claim it has. Indy says as much:


I don't believe in magic, a lot of superstitious hocus pocus. I'm going after a find of incredible historical significance, you're talking about the boogie man.

The Ark could've simply been a box the Jews constructed to represent their covenant and hold some of their cultural treasures.

[Boner M]

Wake in Fright (1971) *½
What the fuck is this.

[Mysterious Dude]

What the fuck is this.
I find drunk people to be severely uninteresting. I was constantly waiting for the actual movie to start. It finally started in the last half-hour when he actually tried to get to Sydney, but everything before then was a complete waste of time.

[Pop Trash]

I find drunk people to be severely uninteresting.

Ha. This is my problem with a lot of Cassavetes films too.

[Boner M]

Shitty page.

[Pop Trash]

Shitty page.

You're drunk aren't you?

[Boner M]

You're drunk aren't you?
I wish.

[Mysterious Dude]

Ha. This is my problem with a lot of Cassavetes films too.
Yeah, I was reminded of Husbands especially. I felt like the designated driver at a party.

[Qrazy]

Anyone see 'Another Earth'? Is it good?

[MadMan]

I didn't think it glorified gang violence, but the worship of the gang hero at the end was over the top. Though not as cheesy as the scene where the woman realizes the gang leader has a bad home life.

Amongst recent monster movies, The Host > Attack the Block > Slither.I'd go with Slither>Cloverfield>The Host>Attack The Block. All of them are pretty awesome, though.

I do love that you folks are putting way more thought into Raiders of the Lost Ark than the filmmakers did, especially since its kind of a dumb movie. Fun, well executed and superbly made, but dumb.

Wake In Fright's trailer sold me on that film. Too bad its not being reshown anywhere I live, and its not on Netflix Instant Viewing.

[Qrazy]

I'd go with Slither>Cloverfield>The Host>Attack The Block. All of them are pretty awesome, though.

I do love that you folks are putting way more thought into Raiders of the Lost Ark than the filmmakers did, especially since its kind of a dumb movie. Fun, well executed and superbly made, but dumb.

Wake In Fright's trailer sold me on that film. Too bad its not being reshown anywhere I live, and its not on Netflix Instant Viewing.

Do you really think Spielberg, given his entire output, didn't put thought into this film?

[MadMan]

Do you really think Spielberg, given his entire output, didn't put thought into this film?Some thought, sure, but overall I don't see Raiders of the Lost Ark as intelligent or thought based cinema. I love it because its pure escapism in all of its glory. We're not talking about, say, Jaws or Duel here. Not to mention Catch Me If You Can, Saving Private Ryan, etc...

[Derek]

Anyone see 'Another Earth'? Is it good?

No, it's terrible. It's a poorly made, rote indie drama with a barely realized, superficial sci-fi twist. Don't waste your time.

[Qrazy]

No, it's terrible. It's a poorly made, rote indie drama with a barely realized, superficial sci-fi twist. Don't waste your time.

Sheit. I guess the people liking it are the same ones who like Mr. Nobody.

[Derek]

Sheit. I guess the people liking it are the same ones who like Mr. Lonely.

And Another Earth doesn't even have the skydiving nuns for brief entertainment.

[Qrazy]

And Another Earth doesn't even have the skydiving nuns for brief entertainment.

I mixed up my Mr. films haha. I made the ineffectual sci fi picture.

[Ezee E]

Second viewing of Vertigo after about 10 years sure changes my opinion of the movie.

I've found that multiple viewings of many Hitchcock movies seem to always improve.

I still maintain that Stewart is an awful kisser onscreen though.

[baby doll]

Second viewing of Vertigo after about 10 years sure changes my opinion of the movie.

I've found that multiple viewings of many Hitchcock movies seem to always improve.

I still maintain that Stewart is an awful kisser onscreen though.You should check out Japanese porn. I don't know what the hell they think they're doing, but it's not kissing. It's more like the dude is trying to perform cunnilingus on the chick's mouth.

As for Vertigo, I've found that (like most Hitchcock movies), it holds up well enough on closer inspection, but given how important surprise is to the movie's impact, I couldn't say that it improved at all for me. The only Hitchcock movies that I liked more on second viewing were Rebecca, The Birds, and especially Marnie, but then I didn't like any of them very much on first viewing so they really had nowhere to go but up.

[Dukefrukem]

No, it's terrible. It's a poorly made, rote indie drama with a barely realized, superficial sci-fi twist. Don't waste your time.

It's not that bad. Mediocre, but not terrible.

[Dukefrukem]

Amongst recent monster movies, The Host > Attack the Block > Slither.

If we are really doing this, this ranking is correct. Cloverfield is tacked on behind Slither.

[Ezee E]

Annoying. The Hobbit, Monsters Inc, Rise of the Guardians, and Life of Pi are taking up way too many theaters. It already booted out Silver Linings Playbook, Anna Karenina and Killing Me Softly.

[MadMan]

Annoying. The Hobbit, Monsters Inc, Rise of the Guardians, and Life of Pi are taking up way too many theaters. It already booted out Silver Linings Playbook, Anna Karenina and Killing Me Softly.Yeah I checked both my theaters and they don't have Killing Me Softly anymore, either. I waited too long to see it, unfortunately. Guess I'll just make plans to go see The Hobbit during my time off next week.

PS: Wait my cheap theater has Argo still playing. Argo it is.

[Yxklyx]

My 5-Day Film Forecast
Bourne 4 - OK
Keyhole - Exhausting...

Are these predictions for movies you will soon see? :confused:

Keyhole was a minor trial but I thought it ended very well.

[Grouchy]

Ugh, you couldn't pay me to watch Keyhole again.

[Boner M]

Thieves Like Us: Thought this was OK-ish for the most part, starting strong with the early robbery scenes set against the muddy Missouri landscape, and then hitting a peak with Carradine's first spotting of Duvall, sitting round a table laughing with his cronies while nervously glancing at her every few seconds in the other room, all captured in a glorious master shot moodily lit with dim bare lightbulbs. Then it just sorta coasts on Altman's trademark murky atmospherics, remaining dramatically kinda flat (and Carradine/Duvall's pairing being a case of angular-feature overkill), until the outta-nowhere emotional gut-punch of its final scenes, and ending with one of the most effective slo-mo final shots I can think of; ambivalently capturing Duvall's re-integration into society as both an ascent to the heavens and zombie-fied march. Definitely the most caught-off-guard I've been by a film; might even rewatch soon to see what I might've missed. Still not as good as Ray's They Live by Night (both adapted from the same source).

[Boner M]

Imamura's A Man Vanishes is a doco-fiction hybrid that he made independently after his early-to-mid 60's Nikkatsu tenure, focusing on one missing persons case before spinning off in myriad directions, eventually revealing the case to be a loose pretext for Imamura's own anthropological & sociological preoccupations; familiar from his fictional films, but extrapolated in greater detail here. It's dizzying, convoluted, and held my attention for its 2+ sprawling hours as much as it confused me, which is a lot. It's practically a blueprint for all reflexive Iranian cinema after, although its fourth-wall-breaking ending is a little wonky compared to Mahkmalbaf, Kiarostami et al.

Still, good stuff. I watched the UK MoC DVD, but only just found out that the US's Icarus are releasing it along with 5 other feature/featurette-length Imamura docos - including the ones excerpted in Mark Cousins' The Story of Film - which I'll definitely be buying.

[Morris Schæffer]

Saw Ennio Morricone live last night. Obviously, a wonderful experience with many goosebump-inducing moments, even if I was letdown by the themes for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly and the Mission since I felt they sounded a bit off compared to the actual scores from the movies. When the show was over, the applause was eardrum-shattering and the 84-year old returned for an encore. Amazingly, the orchestra then played the trailer theme for Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. Awesome! :lol:

[Qrazy]

Thieves Like Us: Thought this was OK-ish for the most part, starting strong with the early robbery scenes set against the muddy Missouri landscape, and then hitting a peak with Carradine's first spotting of Duvall, sitting round a table laughing with his cronies while nervously glancing at her every few seconds in the other room, all captured in a glorious master shot moodily lit with dim bare lightbulbs. Then it just sorta coasts on Altman's trademark murky atmospherics, remaining dramatically kinda flat (and Carradine/Duvall's pairing being a case of angular-feature overkill), until the outta-nowhere emotional gut-punch of its final scenes, and ending with one of the most effective slo-mo final shots I can think of; ambivalently capturing Duvall's re-integration into society as both an ascent to the heavens and zombie-fied march. Definitely the most caught-off-guard I've been by a film; might even rewatch soon to see what I might've missed. Still not as good as Ray's They Live by Night (both adapted from the same source).

I don't like either of those films.

[Boner M]

I don't like either of those films.
Merry Christmas, Qrazy!

[kopello]

A couple of my weekend xmas viewings:

Die Hard: This was my second time viewing it since watching a tv version during high school, so it might as well be considered a true first time watch. The action here is fantastic, and I enjoyed the whole labyrinth-esque chase scenes. My main problem was with all the filler and sub-plots. Everything involving the cops/fbi/television crew/limo driver was booooring. It would've been a much more intense experience if the film didn't meander quite so often, and stuck to well choreographed set pieces with Willis chewing scenery.

Remember the Night: The rip was shit but it didn't prevent me from getting all warm and tingly on the inside (minus the racism). MacMurray and Stanwyck were the perfect accidentally-fall-in-love couple. Look forward to rewatching it during future Christmas seasons.

[Watashi]

I remember a long time ago, NickGlass came out and said he didn't like It's a Wonderful Life, which shocked a lot of people considering it's a "classic".

I was wondering if there is anyone who actively dislikes A Christmas Story? I don't think I've seen a naysayer ever (in real life or online). Since this is Match-Cut, there has to be someone out there who hates it (I'm looking at you Qrazy).

[Wryan]

I was wondering if there is anyone who actively dislikes A Christmas Story? I don't think I've seen a naysayer ever (in real life or online). Since this is Match-Cut, there has to be someone out there who hates it (I'm looking at you Qrazy).

I don't despise it, but I've never found it interesting, involving, or charming. The leg lamp and the ice tongue are the only highlights for me--and modest ones at that. I could leave the rest.

[Spinal]

It's fine. Don't really get the cult.

[Spinal]

I saw three trailers today with familiar pop songs that have been slowed down and recontextualized. This seems to be a growing cliche for trailers.

[Winston*]

I remember a long time ago, NickGlass came out and said he didn't like It's a Wonderful Life, which shocked a lot of people considering it's a "classic".

I was wondering if there is anyone who actively dislikes A Christmas Story? I don't think I've seen a naysayer ever (in real life or online). Since this is Match-Cut, there has to be someone out there who hates it (I'm looking at you Qrazy).

I've never seen it. Don't think it's held in much esteem outside the US.

[Stay Puft]

I saw three trailers today with familiar pop songs that have been slowed down and recontextualized. This seems to be a growing cliche for trailers.

What trailers?

I'm having a hard time thinking of examples of this off the top of my head.

[Qrazy]

I remember a long time ago, NickGlass came out and said he didn't like It's a Wonderful Life, which shocked a lot of people considering it's a "classic".

I was wondering if there is anyone who actively dislikes A Christmas Story? I don't think I've seen a naysayer ever (in real life or online). Since this is Match-Cut, there has to be someone out there who hates it (I'm looking at you Qrazy).

It's too earnest for me to actively dislike it. I don't think it's particularly formally interesting (;)) but it's fine.

[Spinal]

What trailers?

I'm having a hard time thinking of examples of this off the top of my head.

Zero Dark Thirty - "Nothing Else Matters"

The Great Gatsby - "Happy Together"

Safe Haven - "Go Your Own Way"

See also The Social Network - "Creep"

[Boner M]

I've never seen it. Don't think it's held in much esteem outside the US.
Ditto.

[baby doll]

I've never seen it either, but I don't know how much that has to do with me not being American.

[Dukefrukem]

Do people still want me to do the DVD releases this week even though I missed it due to Christmas?

[baby doll]

Do people still want me to do the DVD releases this week even though I missed it due to Christmas?Sure, if you want to.

[Dukefrukem]

Love to, just didn't know if people cared after the fact.

[Dukefrukem]

Love to, just didn't know if people cared after the fact.

Actually, Amazon doesn't have a Dec 25th release section.... is it possible nothing new was released this week?

[Ezee E]

Actually, Amazon doesn't have a Dec 25th release section.... is it possible nothing new was released this week?
Maybe on the 26th instead?

[Dukefrukem]

Maybe on the 26th instead?

Yeh Amazon combined both last week's and this week's releases. Most of them come out on the 27th.

[transmogrifier]

Ditto.

Me too. Never even heard of A Christmas Story till I started posting on here. Not really my wheelhouse, though.

[NickGlass]

A Christmas Story is pretty vignette-y, which is why it works for the season. It has real pacing problems, but some wonderfully absurd scenes; therefore, it is a quintessential "background film," where it's more enjoyable to pick and choose which parts to watch. Also, it earns a billion points for being a holiday film that isn't either too schmaltzy or too bitter.

Also, the director, Bob Clark, has an insanely eclectic filmography. Black Christmas or Porky's, anyone?

[Spaceman Spiff]

Completely off-topic, but what are everyone's favourite scenes in which somebody infiltrates a base/mansion/etc with plenty of armed bodyguards and either goes about stealthily (or rather obnoxiously) killing everybody?

[bac0n]

The first two that come to my mind are:

1) The opening sequence of X2: X-Men United, where Nightcrawler infiltrates the White House. The final segment of that scene was all kinds of awesome.

2) Pink Panther Strikes Again, where Clouseau infiltrates the castle disguised as a dentist, and manages to get both him and the arch villain high on laughing gas. Hilarity ensues.

[Rowland]

Completely off-topic, but what are everyone's favourite scenes in which somebody infiltrates a base/mansion/etc with plenty of armed bodyguards and either goes about stealthily (or rather obnoxiously) killing everybody?Commando is a great example of this.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Completely off-topic, but what are everyone's favourite scenes in which somebody infiltrates a base/mansion/etc with plenty of armed bodyguards and either goes about stealthily (or rather obnoxiously) killing everybody?

The Rambo parody in UHF.

8n1hKQULa9Y

[Boner M]

Completely off-topic, but what are everyone's favourite scenes in which somebody infiltrates a base/mansion/etc with plenty of armed bodyguards and either goes about stealthily (or rather obnoxiously) killing everybody?
Not many people like the film, but even the detractors have to admit the pisstake of such scenes in The Limits of Control is pretty hilarious.

[Pop Trash]

Not many people like the film, but even the detractors have to admit the pisstake of such scenes in The Limits of Control is pretty hilarious.

I should give this another chance. I found myself talking about it at a party when the conversation went from Spanish architecture to Jim Jarmusch films...I was like "wait, you guys have seen The Limits of Control right?"

[MadMan]

The Rambo parody in UHF.

8n1hKQULa9YYes!

But yeah Rowland's answer "Commando" is probably what mine would be, too.

[eternity]

qVw1_PadudE

[Watashi]

I've been trying to watch The Story of Film: An Odyssey on Netflix Instant, but the narrator is so grating and anti-American, it's very distracting.

[dreamdead]

I've been trying to watch The Story of Film: An Odyssey on Netflix Instant, but the narrator is so grating and anti-American, it's very distracting.

Hmm. I don't find him anti-American; he's merely anti-Hollywood to me. And that's perfectly fine (I'm only starting the third chapter) since most of those early Hollywood films are rigidly formulaic in content and style, and the exciting work is in the margins.

The stuff he exclaimed about silent Swedish and Japanese films whet my appetite in a way that coverage of Griffith couldn't. Plus he still points out the technical innovations of the "classic" American filmmakers in the first two...

Meanwhile, How to Survive a Plague is wrenching stuff. This is gonna be watched in multiple sections so that I don't become too melancholic.

[transmogrifier]

Hi, my name's transmogrifier, and I really didn't like Duck Soup.

[MadMan]

Hi, my name's transmogrifier, and I really didn't like Duck Soup. How sad. Poor Brude is going to be absolutely devastated :P

[Dukefrukem]

Completely off-topic, but what are everyone's favourite scenes in which somebody infiltrates a base/mansion/etc with plenty of armed bodyguards and either goes about stealthily (or rather obnoxiously) killing everybody?

Terminator Salvation.

Apparently there is only 1 terminator guarding the whole base?

[The Bad Guy]

Hello, everyone

I'm genuinely evil and browse multiple movie forums. Many of you are aware of my infamous reputation, while others have no idea who I am.

I enjoy Indian food and my favorite director is Akira Kurosawa. I watch a ton of modern films to compile a top 50 movies list each year, but my knowledge of cinema from past decades leaves a lot to be desired. I consider myself a dog person, but I also enjoy the company of cats.

[Dukefrukem]

Hello, everyone

I'm genuinely evil and browse multiple movie forums. Many of you are aware of my infamous reputation, while others have no idea who I am.

I enjoy Indian food and my favorite director is Akira Kurosawa. I watch a ton of modern films to compile a top 50 movies list each year, but my knowledge of cinema from past decades leaves a lot to be desired. I consider myself a dog person, but I also enjoy the company of cats.

Hi Brude!

JKOr am i?::P

[Raiders]

Hello, everyone

I'm genuinely evil and browse multiple movie forums. Many of you are aware of my infamous reputation, while others have no idea who I am.

I enjoy Indian food and my favorite director is Akira Kurosawa. I watch a ton of modern films to compile a top 50 movies list each year, but my knowledge of cinema from past decades leaves a lot to be desired. I consider myself a dog person, but I also enjoy the company of cats.

Do you enjoy sunsets and long walks on the beach, preferably set to Bryan Adams?

Oh, and welcome. Kurosawa and a love of list-making ensures you are in the right spot.

[MadMan]

Hey whoa its The Bad Guy posting here. Awesome! Plus he's not Brude because I actually like him as a poster :P

[Morris Schæffer]

Completely off-topic, but what are everyone's favourite scenes in which somebody infiltrates a base/mansion/etc with plenty of armed bodyguards and either goes about stealthily (or rather obnoxiously) killing everybody?

Does 1968 war classic Where Eagles Dare count? It's got stealth AND burton and Eastwood slaying thousands of nazis.

[The Bad Guy]

Do you enjoy sunsets and long walks on the beach, preferably set to Bryan Adams?

Oh, and welcome. Kurosawa and a love of list-making ensures you are in the right spot.

Thanks for the welcome.

I prefer hiking in the mountains. I also enjoy holding hands and watching the skyline.

PS: No fatties


Hey whoa its The Bad Guy posting here. Awesome! Plus he's not Brude because I actually like him as a poster :P

Hey MadMan, good to see you here. Hope your 2013 is going well so far.

[MadMan]

Its going alright.

http://www.magnetmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/something-wildWEB.jpg

Last night I revisited Something Wild, which was released on Criterion. I dig the fact that its a really good road trip movie, depicting two people coming together who couldn't be more different. Demme takes several classic road trip movie cliches and subverts them to a certain extent, and I love how the movie showcases Americana. In that regard I think it has some things in common with the superior Paris, Texas which was released two years prior. The main difference being that Something Wild is more of a fairy tale, where as Paris, Texas is an emotional drama into the mind of a man.

Also I have to say that the movie's soundtrack is fantastic. Without this movie, Ray Liotta never would have been in Goodfellas. The film's tonal shift struck me as really weird the first time I watched this movie late at night on Comedy Central (of all places) years ago, however on a second viewing the change from comedy to serious drama works. Yet I still think my rating of *** fits, even though I really dig this movie a lot. I've sadly only seen Stop Making Sense (amazing), Something Wild (good), Silence of The Lambs (great) and The Manchurian Candidate (near great/really good) from Demme, and I think I should view more. He's an interesting filmmaker, someone who's career has resulted in him covering multiple subjects.

[Ivan Drago]

Hi, my name's transmogrifier, and I really didn't like Duck Soup.

I've got a good mind to join a club and beat you over the head with it.

[bac0n]

Does 1968 war classic Where Eagles Dare count? It's got stealth AND burton and Eastwood slaying thousands of nazis.

OOH, great call. Fantastic film.

[Grouchy]

Hi, my name's transmogrifier, and I really didn't like Duck Soup.
It figures.

[transmogrifier]

It figures.

It's just not very funny.

At all.

[transmogrifier]

OOH, great call. Fantastic film.

Yep. Great film.

[Grouchy]

It's just not very funny.

At all.
That's probably what the surgeon said when you were born.

[transmogrifier]

That's probably what the surgeon said when you were born.

Are you done?

[Qrazy]

You're a brave man. Go and break through the lines. And remember, while you're out there risking your life and limb through shot and shell, we'll be in here thinking what a sucker you are.

[Ezee E]

Started the first episode of The Story of Film. It really needs a different narrator.

[EyesWideOpen]

I'm on the fourth episode and the narrator is one of my favorite things about it.

[Yxklyx]

So which studio is better? Dreamworks or Imageworks?

[Lucky]

"Why in pluperfect hell would you pee on a corpse?"' :lol:

Forgot how awesome Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is.

[bac0n]

2nd viewing of The Cabin in the Woods, and, man alive, it's even better. It's like The Big Lebowski of horror flicks. It just keeps on giving. The whole year round.

[Kurious Jorge v3.1]

I haven't posted in the film section in quite some time, but I have a few words to say:

Road to Nowhere sucks and is an embarrassment to cinema. Watch Abel Ferrara's Dangerous Game for all your meta perversions instead.

[Winston*]

Watched Temple of Doom for the first time last night. Never really boring, but pretty stupid, ugly and racist. I think I find this one more baffling than Crystal Skull. That one at least kind of makes sense as a failed attempt to replicate Raiders. This one, it seems like they looked at everything people liked about Raiders and decided to get rid of it, replacing it with child slavery and monkey brain eating.

I liked when the British colonialist comes in at the end to save the day. Come on, Spielberg.

[Rowland]

Road to Nowhere sucks and is an embarrassment to cinema.I liked the bookends, and the cinematography is often striking in that Canon 5D sorta way, but I agree that the rest of it is a lousy jumble of amateurish meta-gruel.

[Kurious Jorge v3.1]

I liked the bookends, and the cinematography is often striking in that Canon 5D sorta way, but I agree that the rest of it is a lousy jumble of amateurish meta-gruel.

Absolutely...the scenes where the director was in bed with the actress weeping to cinema classics like Lady Eve and Spirit of the Beehive were so ham-fisted. I can't help comparing it to the Ferrara film because I watched the latter for the first time the next night not expecting an almost identical twin to Road to Nowhere's themes. The scene in Dangerous Game where Keitel is watching Burden of Dreams = PURE CINEMA.

[B-side]

Piece I wrote on Ford's Steamboat Round the Bend (http://www.soundonsight.org/steamboat-round-the-bend/)

[Watashi]

I saw Tombstone for the first time on the big screen tonight. It's a mess, but a damn entertaining one. I understand why a lot of people think it's Val Kilmer's best role. An all around great cast.

[Dead & Messed Up]

The Passion of Joan of Arc just ripped out my heart and stamped on it with iron boots. What a pummeling, incredible experience. Seriously. I'm struggling to put it into words. It's cruel and delirious and maniac and immaculate and...

Look, I'm not saying it's one of the best movies I've seen, even though it is, even though I've only had ten minutes to decide so. I'm just saying that, right now, in this moment, all my other favorite movies seem like fucking amateur hour.

[Derek]

The Passion of Joan of Arc just ripped out my heart and stamped on it with iron boots. What a pummeling, incredible experience. Seriously. I'm struggling to put it into words. It's cruel and delirious and maniac and immaculate and...

Look, I'm not saying it's one of the best movies I've seen, even though it is, even though I've only had ten minutes to decide so. I'm just saying that, right now, in this moment, all my other favorite movies seem like fucking amateur hour.

That is the only correct response. :)

[Kurosawa Fan]

The Passion of Joan of Arc just ripped out my heart and stamped on it with iron boots. What a pummeling, incredible experience. Seriously. I'm struggling to put it into words. It's cruel and delirious and maniac and immaculate and...

Look, I'm not saying it's one of the best movies I've seen, even though it is, even though I've only had ten minutes to decide so. I'm just saying that, right now, in this moment, all my other favorite movies seem like fucking amateur hour.

You sir just described my experience perfectly, and having watched it several times since that first experience, I still consider it the best film I've ever seen.

[Boner M]

I admire Passion, but I don't have the same visceral response to it as most others. Honestly, I'm more moved by its quotation scene in Vivre sa vie, for whatever reason.

[baby doll]

I admire Passion, but I don't have the same visceral response to it as most others. Honestly, I'm more moved by its quotation scene in Vivre sa vie, for whatever reason.Burn him! Burn him at the stake!

[Qrazy]

I admire Passion, but I don't have the same visceral response to it as most others. Honestly, I'm more moved by its quotation scene in Vivre sa vie, for whatever reason.

I don't feel this way because I can't stand Vivre Sa Vie. But yeah while I think Passion is deserving of it's status I'm not as enamoured with Falconetti's performance as many and I do think there are a few shots (inserts) which keep it from being a flawless specimen of formalism. Still, it is quite excellent.

Also, probably my own personal bias but as an atheist I just can't be as enraptured by the central narrative as perhaps some others can (many other atheists who can as well I am sure). That being said, the strength of the film's emotional conviction and the importance it places on integrity, honesty and the value of a single life is very moving.

[Watashi]

I'm going to refer all my favorite films as "flawless specimen of formalism" from now on.

[B-side]

Qrazy is a flawless specimen of formalism.

[Qrazy]

I'm going to refer all my favorite films as "flawless specimen of formalism" from now on.

I encourage it.

[baby doll]

Your mom is a flawless specimen of formalism.

[B-side]

baby doll knows what's up.

[Dead & Messed Up]

I don't feel this way because I can't stand Vivre Sa Vie. But yeah while I think Passion is deserving of it's status I'm not as enamoured with Falconetti's performance as many and I do think there are a few shots (inserts) which keep it from being a flawless specimen of formalism. Still, it is quite excellent.

Also, probably my own personal bias but as an atheist I just can't be as enraptured by the central narrative as perhaps some others can (many other atheists who can as well I am sure). That being said, the strength of the film's emotional conviction and the importance it places on integrity, honesty and the value of a single life is very moving.

As a lapsed Catholic, my background definitely made a difference. I was noticing, with some pleasure, all the symbolism and references to Jesus and the gospels, often directly quoted in her words: "know not the day nor the hour," "be with you tonight in paradise." As an atheist, it took me a while to latch onto her conviction, same as you, but, as you point out, she is true to herself while her captors are duplicitous/mocking/smug, and that makes for a sympathetic foothold.

Honestly, movies like this, The Seventh Seal, The Last Temptation of Christ, and The Rapture affect me much more than scripture can. Probably because it helps to actually see people struggle with faith, often in a visceral way.