28 Film Discussion Threads Later

[Qrazy]

No, but I know there are women out there who really enjoy getting "facials", or giving oral.

So even if the woman enjoys it and is genuinely turned on by it, the man should refuse because it's demeaning?

But in answer to your question it obviously depends but yes someone can enjoy something that is demeaning but that doesn't mean it's good for them, or good for the dynamic (relationship, fling, whatever) or that it should continue (obviously there are gradations, cum in the eye isn't that bad).

That is to say I could care less if a woman absolutely loves to have people shit on her chest or punch her in the face. I'm just not going to do it (largely yes it would be for my own piece of mind but I think not indulging certain fantasies... depends what they are... is probably for the best).

[D_Davis]

Nothing pornographic about that.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v191/filthysize/tdk-wallpaper.jpg

:|

Buttman versus The Poker

[megladon8]

But in answer to your question it obviously depends but yes someone can enjoy something that is demeaning but that doesn't mean it's good for them, or good for the dynamic (relationship, fling, whatever) or that it should continue (obviously there are gradations, cum in the eye isn't that bad).

That is to say I could care less if a woman absolutely loves to have people shit on her chest or punch her in the face. I'm just not going to do it (largely yes it would be for my own piece of mind but I think not indulging certain fantasies... depends what they are... is probably for the best).


I think there's a huge difference between a woman enjoying having a facial, and a woman wanting you you shit on her.

[Qrazy]

I think there's a huge difference between a woman enjoying having a facial, and a woman wanting you you shit on her.

I noted that.

[Ezee E]

Oh meg, you so qrazy.

[Watashi]

Check the sig...four, count 'em, FOUR scores over 70. Look at me, I'm Roger Ebert. :)

Uh... I think you completely missed what I said.


You're Henry Fool score is broken, by the way. You should get it looked at.

Nah. It was actually lower. Hartley's dialogue is sublime in his first two features, but it does not belong in a 2 1/2 hour film. The last half hour of the film feels like an hour and it seems Hartley is afraid to end the damn thing so keeps adding and adding and I lost interest way before Hartley intended to. Plus, it's a bit too silly in its mean-spiritedness (the whole shit joke with the marriage proposal made me question if this was meant to be funny). I can see why people like Nick and Rowland lap this shit up. If anything, it was too pseudo-cynical for my tastes.

[Qrazy]

Uh... I think you completely missed what I said.



Nah. It was actually lower. Hartley's dialogue is sublime in his first two features, but it does not belong in a 2 1/2 hour film. The last half hour of the film feels like an hour and it seems Hartley is afraid to end the damn thing so keeps adding and adding and I lost interest way before Hartley intended to. Plus, it's a bit too silly in its mean-spiritedness (the whole shit joke with the marriage proposal made me question if this was meant to be funny). I can see why people like Nick and Rowland lap this shit up. If anything, it was too pseudo-cynical for my tastes.

Pseudo-cynical... that's a new one.

[Watashi]

So apparently Woody's new film Vicky Cristina Barcelona opened with a 3.7 million weekend in just under 700 theaters.

It's Woody Allen's second highest opening ever.

[number8]

Cumshot to the face is demeaning? :sad:

[Qrazy]

Cumshot to the face is demeaning? :sad:

It's alright as long as you let her squirt in your face.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Cumshot to the face is demeaning? :sad:

Well, if it's not her flavor.

[Winston*]

Pseudo-cynical... that's a new one.

Pseudo is the prefix that can turn any adjective into a pejorative. Try it.

[Qrazy]

Pseudo is the prefix that can turn any adjective into a pejorative. Try it.

Pseudo-pejorative... amazing!

[megladon8]

Cumshot to the face is demeaning? :sad:


I think in the end it all depends on intent.

If you're doing it with the "suck it, bitch" attitude, then yeah.

But if it's consentual, and she's enjoying it, then no, it's not demeaning.

[number8]

It's alright as long as you let her squirt in your face.

Well that's my preference.






(We need someone to mention a movie ASAP here)

[Qrazy]

The Band's Visit - Joins the ranks of one of those 'indie' films (even made on the other side of the world) that tries to be touching but ends up just feeling forced. Everything about it felt incredibly belabored to me.
Once Upon a Time in China 3 - Fun but not nearly as good as the first two, neither of which I thought very highly of in the first place.

[MadMan]

Somedays the FDT thread group just gets tired about talking about movies and decides to have a long, fullfilling discussion about sex :lol:

[Spinal]

Somedays the FDT thread group just gets tired about talking about movies and decides to have a long, fullfilling discussion about sex :lol:

It started out as a discussion of a movie. :sad:

[Duncan]

"I'm thinking of turning to lesbianism."

- Every girl who reads the last two pages

edit: except BirdsAteMyFace who says "Damn, am I ever glad I'm into women," or something to that effect.

[Philosophe_rouge]

"I'm thinking of turning to lesbianism."

- Every girl who reads the last two pages

edit: except BirdsAteMyFace who says "Damn, am I ever glad I'm into women," or something to that effect.
Not a bad idea.

[Winston*]

To be fair, Philosophe_rouge and BirdsAteMyFace are the only girls who will read the last two pages.

[D_Davis]

To be fair, Philosophe_rouge and BirdsAteMyFace are the only girls who will read the last two pages.

You read them.

[number8]

You read them.

:lol::lol::lol:

[D_Davis]

:lol::lol::lol:

Classic Burn!

[origami_mustache]

The Conversations is a really great book on sound editing and editing. It's with Michael Ondaatje interviewing Walter Murch (The Godfather, The Conversation, The English Patient). I think origami would especially like it because he's a sound guy.

sounds great I'll check it out...Murch's work in Apocalypse Now is what got me into sound design.


I didn't realize that it was a sorta-kinda sequel to What Time is it There? until the woman mentions watches in the middle of the film. I think it's probably OK as a stand-alone film, but watching the other first might have helped me process the themes a little better.

There is also a short that fits between these 2 films called The Skywalk is Gone. It is on youtube, but no English subs.

[balmakboor]

sounds great I'll check it out...Murch's work in Apocalypse Now is what got me into sound design.

I'll second the recommendation of The Conversations. Terrific book that I've read several times.

[BIOspasm]

*walks in thread*

*Reads last few pages*

.......................

[Spinal]

I guess it seems weird if you haven't seen the film, but I think that those are the very issues that The Wayward Cloud is asking us to confront. So, whatever.

[Sycophant]

Finally saw Takeshis'. Top 3 Kitano, easily. (Hana-bi and Kikujiro probably being my other two.) The ending sequence(s), beginning on the beach with the soccer ball, was sublime, and crazy, and mind-blowing, and... I don't even know what happened but I loved every second.Those may be my top three also. Positively wonderful film(s).

[Bosco B Thug]

I guess it seems weird if you haven't seen the film, but I think that those are the very issues that The Wayward Cloud is asking us to confront. So, whatever.
We should totally assign The Wayward Cloud as appointed banner film for forum discussion some upcoming forum semester. Get some more of this kind of directed conversation going through the community, around tea and cakes too.

[BirdsAteMyFace]

"I'm thinking of turning to lesbianism."

- Every girl who reads the last two pages

edit: except BirdsAteMyFace who says "Damn, am I ever glad I'm into women," or something to that effect.http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/9529/16189647le5.png

Oh, am I ever!

[Grouchy]

Not watching too many movies lately. I've spent the last three days completely drunk. It's 8:09 am in here and I'm about to ring my girlfriend's door with no previous warning.

Saw 20 minutes of Meet the Spartans and forced my friends to turn it off. It was just not funny. Instead, we saw Torrente (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torrente:_El_brazo_tonto_de_la _ley) and a Sandro (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandro_de_Am%C3%A9rica) movie.

[balmakboor]

Definitely my favorite banner so far. I gotta see Wayward Cloud right away.

Netflix and I are back in sync finally. They're sending me Funky Forest and Dark City: Director's Cut today. I'm very excited about seeing both.

I caught Tropic Thunder yesterday and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I was laughing my head off at times.

[Ezee E]

Definitely my favorite banner so far. I gotta see Wayward Cloud right away.

Netflix and I are back in sync finally. They're sending me Funky Forest and Dark City: Director's Cut today. I'm very excited about seeing both.

I caught Tropic Thunder yesterday and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I was laughing my head off at times.
Yep. Netflix got me a few over the weekend. A Woman Under The Influence and CJ7.

[Ezee E]

My dad one-upped me for Telluride. He's going to be covering it for some website as a critic.

Meanwhile, I get to work at one of the theater venues I was hoping for. YES!

One more week until my return to cinematic heaven.

[baby doll]

Wall-E was cute and then some, The Dark Knight wasn't terrible, and Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay was uneven but still worth checking out.

[Hugh_Grant]

To be fair, Philosophe_rouge and BirdsAteMyFace are the only girls who will read the last two pages.
*waves*

But I'm distracted by what Watashi had to say about Henry Fool.

[megladon8]

*waves*

But I'm distracted by what Watashi had to say about Henry Fool.


You're female?

I guess I never thought of this, since you have a male username and an AV of a boy from "South Park".

[Hugh_Grant]

You're female?

I guess I never thought of this, since you have a male username and an AV of a boy from "South Park".
Yep. Married to dissent. I picked the username as a joke over at RT and it stuck.

[megladon8]

Yep. Married to dissent. I picked the username as a joke over at RT and it stuck.


No idea who dissent is, but cool!

[Sven]

No idea who dissent is, but cool!

DSNT. Guy who does the DVD threads.

[D_Davis]

No idea who dissent is, but cool!

He posts the weekly DVD release thread, and did the shoegazer thread with me.

[NickGlass]

Nah. It was actually lower. Hartley's dialogue is sublime in his first two features, but it does not belong in a 2 1/2 hour film. [...] I can see why people like Nick and Rowland lap this shit up. If anything, it was too pseudo-cynical for my tastes.

Was the film pseudo-cynical or was the titular character? I think there's a big difference there.

[Qrazy]

Thumbsucker and Identity, are either of these worth seeing? Someone recommended them to me. Prior to that conversation my impression was no, they aren't... but I thought I'd check with you all first before writing them off completely.

[megladon8]

DSNT. Guy who does the DVD threads.


Ah OK. I know DSNT.

*sorry, DSNT*

*slaps forehead*

[megladon8]

Thumbsucker and Identity, are either of these worth seeing? Someone recommended them to me. Prior to that conversation my impression was no, they aren't... but I thought I'd check with you all first before writing them off completely.


Haven't seen Thumbsucker, but I thought Identity was pretty lame.

[Duncan]

Thumbsucker and Identity, are either of these worth seeing? Someone recommended them to me. Prior to that conversation my impression was no, they aren't... but I thought I'd check with you all first before writing them off completely.

Thumbsucker isn't bad. It slips into cloying indie-ness at times, but for the most part it's genuine and bits of it are emotionally effective.

[Sycophant]

Identity I hated. Thumbsucker is uneven, but there are some parts that really work. Specifically, it has my favorite Keanu Reeves performance ever. He pretty much steals the show.

[D_Davis]

I like Identity a lot. Even beyond it's less than original twist, I think it is a well made thriller that actually thrills. It's executed well, has good atmosphere, a smart script, and some very cool moments.

[megladon8]

A smart script? Really?

I thought the script was pretty bad. The dialogue was horrible in its run-of-the-mill feeling, and yeah, unoriginal and pretty dumb twist.

[Duncan]

Identity I hated. Thumbsucker is uneven, but there are some parts that really work. Specifically, it has my favorite Keanu Reeves performance ever. He pretty much steals the show.

Agree about Reeves. You might even call the performance charismatic, in a dopey sort of way.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Identity sucked. Hard.

[Ezee E]

Identity sucked. Hard.
Word.

Flirting With Disaster > anything else on your recent films.

For shame.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Word.

Flirting With Disaster > anything else on your recent films.

For shame.

I thought it felt very dated. The comedy was quite bland, which was disappointing. That said, Richard Jenkins and Josh Brolin stole the show. They alone made it worth watching.

[Qrazy]

Word.

Flirting With Disaster > anything else on your recent films.

For shame.

Yeah I just watched and quite enjoyed it as well. It's nothing amazing but it brings the lolz.

[origami_mustache]

I don't know what the hell is on my television right now, but it appears to be a soap opera homage to noir. hahaha

http://www.nbc.com/Days_of_our_Lives/images/photos/scet/2100/jpi_episode10892_22620.jpg
http://www.nbc.com/Days_of_our_Lives/images/photos/scet/2100/jpi_episode10892_27040.jpg
http://www.nbc.com/Days_of_our_Lives/images/photos/scet/2100/jpi_episode10892_27046.jpg

[megladon8]

I'd like to know why the musician Common is suddenly getting all this roles in high-profile film franchises.

He's a terrible actor.

[Pop Trash]

Thumbsucker and Identity, are either of these worth seeing? Someone recommended them to me. Prior to that conversation my impression was no, they aren't... but I thought I'd check with you all first before writing them off completely.
I quite liked Thumbsucker, but if you are an outright hater of movies like Juno or Garden State, you might not like it. I thought all three were good but not great. Identity starts off as a good, if derivative, 10 Little Indians meets slasher movie but then it has quite possibly the most retarded twist I've ever seen. It reminds me of something Donald Kaufman would write in Adaptation.

[Melville]

I love the new banner. And after seeing What Time is it There? recently, I still think that The Wayward Cloud is Tsai's best film. A little bit of energy between all the stasis goes a long way.

[Yxklyx]

So is this short film good or manipulative? What do you think?

Historia de un letrero (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyGEEamz7ZM)

Personally I found it somewhat touching but I've no desire to see it again. It won online Cannes short film for 2008.

[Sycophant]

So is this short film good or manipulative? What do you think?
Haven't watched it yet (still at work), but wanted to be the first to say:

Are those two things mutually exclusive?

[Dead & Messed Up]

Identity sucked. Hard.

I'd say it's four-fifths of an awesome movie. Great ensemble cast, stellar atmosphere, and a wonderful first act that efficiently sets everyone up.

Then that final fifth kicks in.

[Qrazy]

Haven't watched it yet (still at work), but wanted to be the first to say:

Are those two things mutually exclusive?

Yes.

Because he's using the definition of the term that suggests a negative element.

[Yxklyx]

Haven't watched it yet (still at work), but wanted to be the first to say:

Are those two things mutually exclusive?

I think it's rather easy for a director to make a film that has an emotional effect on the audience. All he needs is a good idea. A film in which that is exactly what the director sets out to do, I'd call Manipulative.

I'd say it's all a matter of degree when it comes to manipulation. A director will either make a film that is 100% personal (meaning for himself with no regard to any possible audience - perhaps it could even be called selfish), 100% non-personal (meaning everything he puts on the screen is intended solely for the audience - he has no personal interest in the material), or somewhere in between. The 100% non-personal film I think could be called Manipulative.

[balmakboor]

I think it's rather easy for a director to make a film that has an emotional effect on the audience. All he needs is a good idea. A film in which that is exactly what the director sets out to do, I'd call Manipulative.

I'd say it's all a matter of degree when it comes to manipulation. A director will either make a film that is 100% personal (meaning for himself with no regard to any possible audience - perhaps it could even be called selfish), 100% non-personal (meaning everything he puts on the screen is intended solely for the audience - he has no personal interest in the material), or somewhere in between. The 100% non-personal film I think could be called Manipulative.

I don't think what you describe has anything to do with manipulation. One could aim 100% of their effort at an audience and not manipulate even a single member. Manipulation involves achieving an intended effect on the audience. To make them all jump in unison during a horror film or laugh at the same moment in a comedy. If one wants to talk percentages, the quality of manipulation could be measured by what percent of the audience jumps or laughs. If manipulation is the director's goal, a horror film that scares 100% of the audience is masterfully executed compared to one that scares 1%.

And no, manipulation isn't as simple as a good idea. It takes great skill and craft to take an audience on a shared emotional journey.

[Bosco B Thug]

So is this short film good or manipulative? What do you think?

Historia de un letrero (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyGEEamz7ZM)

Personally I found it somewhat touching but I've no desire to see it again. It won online Cannes short film for 2008. Ummm. Yeah, no, not good... competent, average, nothing beyond that. Definitely manipulative, in some (negative) sense, just due to the fact it applies some meager craft to tell a simple, sentimental story simply and sentimentally.

[Qrazy]

Excellent, another semantics argument where we all talk across purposes for 10 pages.

[Spinal]

I liked it.

[monolith94]

I couldn't find an Encounters @ the End of the World thread, so I'll go ahead & post my thoughts here:

Who is Herzog speaking to? Is he addressing the new audience he found in the mass hit Grizzly Man; is he making them a new documentary so that they can experience a different sort of wildness? Or is he talking to, in Encounters at the End of the World, to the Herzog initiate, the more select group of cinema-goers who have been following his progress since his earlier wanderings through the Saharan desert?

I began to suspect the latter condition was the case the very moment I saw the shot of an enormous airplane descending through the sky, so reminiscent of Herzog's "Fata Morgana" was it. One could call it a visual clue, a key to understanding Herzog's ambitions in this film. My suspicions were confirmed when Herzog's bus driver turned out to be a speaker of Mayan (much of the narration of Fata Morgana comes from the Popol Vuh, a Mayan holy text). One could attribute things such as this to pure chance, or perhaps to the attracting, almost magnetic quality that Antarctica seems to have towards odd and eccentric characters. But Herzog seems to have a magic all of his own, as much as "new age magic" is mocked in the film.

In Fata Morgana, Herzog placed his faith in the world, and was rewarded with images that startle one's mind's-eye; that faith in the majesty of the world has continued in Encounters at the End of the World, but Herzog's own position has seemed to change: he is less a silent eye, and now more a chief prophet of cinema, or perhaps a revelator. This would account for his at times banal rehashing of modern environmental themes, which he at least somewhat successfully gives a new sense of relevance by presenting them with powerful images of desolation and nature's brute power.

I suspect, however, that the global warming trumpet Herzog sounds he plays more for the tone than the melody; rather than pressuring his audience to take up arms, he almost seems to delight in man's impermanence, as though this gives the marvel of man's achievements, including his thoughts and observations, a particularly sweet flavor (which it might). Even more than that, though, I think he enjoys playing the part of revelator, a new John creating a text that merrily predicts the end of times that he and his peers couldn't possibly live to see.

This part seems especially apt as he delivers to us various revelations: a penguin playing the part of the holy fool wandering off into inhospitable and deadly realms of the Antarctic, an underground cathedral of light and colors, or a broiling, bubbling volcano. The underwater cathedral (as it is called) that he shows us especially fits, as it synthesizes the twin aspects of divinity: divine grace, or beauty, and divine power. For as beautiful as the underwater images are, with their illimitable shades of blue, they equally represent the unfathomable divine power. This twin sense of divine beauty and power is supported by the music of the scene, which combines rhapsodic, incredibly elegant choral harmonies (representing divine beauty) with a powerful soloists voice, challenging to the ears (representing, of course, that more harsh element of divine power). Revelations, revelations at every turn: with childlike enthusiasm for exploration, Herzog sneaks into a building through its left-open entrance to discover a hydroponics laboratory run by a linguistic (in a continent with no native languages, he cheerfully points out).

In ways like this, Encounters at the End of the World becomes more a religious document than it is a film, more a contemporary I Ching than any conventional cinema. And this fact makes it difficult to evaluate, as any rating would seem somehow blasphemous. In this spirit let me simply recommend this film to any with a curious mind, whether they are curious about the powerful nature that rests in the smallest latitudes, or are curious about how the world can sometimes seem more purposeful and magical than ought to be logically possible.

[Sven]

Quite an interesting review, mono. Seeing it in terms of Fata Morgana and its music is quite rewarding. Have you seen The Wild Blue Yonder? Its underwater footage makes Encounters' seem like a middling afterthought.

Looking at your sig, I think it's time for a visit from Ms. Nora Ephron.

[monolith94]

Huh? My Blue Heaven was kind of fun.

I saw this in theaters, btw, which definitely helped. Can't wait for WBY.

[origami_mustache]

Encounters At The End Of The World is also the best place to see a picture of a monkey riding a goat into the sunset. (wish I could find this picture online)

[transmogrifier]

A smart script? Really?

I thought the script was pretty bad. The dialogue was horrible in its run-of-the-mill feeling, and yeah, unoriginal and pretty dumb twist.


Identity > The Dark Knight

[monolith94]

Encounters At The End Of The World is also the best place to see a picture of a monkey riding a goat into the sunset. (wish I could find this picture online)
Oh yeah, that was awesome! Definitely had me laughing, that and a few other scenes in this film. Herzog has a very good sense of comedy.

[Rowland]

Encounters struck me as minor Herzog, but it certainly had its moments.

[origami_mustache]

Encounters struck me as minor Herzog, but it certainly had its moments.

Agreed...it touched upon a lot of interesting subjects, but was without focus...more or less Herzog just pontificating about whatever came to his mind at the time.

[Rowland]

Agreed...it touched upon a lot of interesting subjects, but was without focus...more or less Herzog just pontificating about whatever came to his mind at the time.I'd say he wrestles a theme out of his material, that being the interpretation of the film's title as being encounters before man's stay on Earth ends. Still, the material does often feel stretched out and shapeless, which renders it less compelling or satisfying as a whole than his best work.

[Watashi]

So apparently Ridley Scott has dropped out of Blood Meridian and Todd Field is taking over.

Good move.

[megladon8]

Identity > The Dark Knight


That's just...incorrect.

Sorry.

[Winston*]

So apparently Ridley Scott has dropped out of Blood Meridian and Todd Field is taking over.

Good move.
Little Children was a seriously awful movie. Man, did I hate Little Children.

Blood Meridian film seems like a pretty bad idea to me, in any case.

[origami_mustache]

Little Children was a seriously awful movie. Man, did I hate Little Children.


yep it was terrible.

[Watashi]

Little Children was a seriously awful movie. Man, did I hate Little Children.

Blood Meridian film seems like a pretty bad idea to me, in any case.
He also made In the Bedroom which awesomeness negates Little Children's crappiness.

[Derek]

Little Children was a seriously awful movie. Man, did I hate Little Children.

I think this post contains the maximum amount of truth allowable on MatchCut.

[megladon8]

I almost picked up Little Children for $5 the other day.

Despite everyone here hating it, I'm kind of curious. Mainly because I've never seen Jackie Earle Haley in anything before, and my anticipation of Watchmen has me curious.

[Winston*]

He also made In the Bedroom which awesomeness negates Little Children's crappiness.

Great first two acts, not so great third is the Winston* verdict on In the Bedroom.

[Watashi]

Great first two acts, not so great third is the Winston* verdict on In the Bedroom.
Well, like on a lot of things, the Winston* verdict is wrong.

[Winston*]

Well, like on a lot of things, the Winston* verdict is wrong.
The Winston* verdict is infallible.

[Spinal]

Little Children is better than any film Ridley Scott has ever made.

[megladon8]

Little Children is better than any film Ridley Scott has ever made.


I haven't even seen it, and Alien and Blade Runner disagree.

In fact, they told me they're gonna seduce Little Children with candy and kittens, lure it into a big white van, and bring it back to their place for serious molestation.

See what I did there?

[Spinal]

I haven't even seen it, and Alien and Blade Runner disagree.

Alien is the only one that even makes me think twice. Blade Runner? No, not even close.

[megladon8]

Alien is the only one that even makes me think twice. Blade Runner? No, not even close.


Well, that's just like, your opinion, man.

I really like Gladiator, too.

[Spinal]

Todd Field graduated from my high school.

But I liked his movies before I found that out.

[Sycophant]

See what I did there?Made a bizarre and kind of off-putting child molestation joke?

[Spinal]

The Thing was great, of course. Can't really say anything about it that you folks don't already know. Glad to have finally caught up with that one. I saw a side of Brimley I didn't know existed. Cracked me up. Blood testing scene is the clear highlight for me. Kind of let down by the ending. Just didn't seem to leave on a high note. Probably the weakest aspect of the film for me.

[megladon8]

By "didn't leave on a high note", do you mean that you wanted a "happier" ending, or more of a slam-bang ending?

Because I thought the quiet final shot was pretty eerie.

[megladon8]

Made a bizarre and kind of off-putting child molestation joke?


I thought it was funny at the time.

Guess I failed.

Sorry to anyone I offended.

[balmakboor]

I'll never understand the hate for Little Children.

[origami_mustache]

Little Children is better than any film Ridley Scott has ever made.

that's not saying much, but it's not true anyways.

[balmakboor]

that's not saying much, but it's not true anyways.

I thought Little Children was terrific and I totally dislike Ridley Scott and I still don't agree with that statement. Alien, Bladerunner, and Thelma & Louise are all much better.

[Ezee E]

Little Children is great, and even better than In The Bedroom.

That news is great.

Now I must finish the book.

[balmakboor]

That news is great.

Now I must finish the book.

What are you talking about here?

Also, elaborate on this if you feel like it:

The Counterfeiters - 5

I considered it a strong candidate for our next film society series. I haven't seen it yet though.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Hmm. I seem to be the only one who found Little Children to be merely mediocre. It didn't evoke a strong reaction from me either way. Now I feel like I'm missing out.

[Ezee E]

What are you talking about here?

Also, elaborate on this if you feel like it:

The Counterfeiters - 5

I considered it a strong candidate for our next film society series. I haven't seen it yet though.
Blood Meridian by Todd Field.

[balmakboor]

Blood Meridian by Todd Field.

Oh, I didn't know that. The guy's got very good taste in books. He'll probably go three for three for me.

[monolith94]

I'd say he wrestles a theme out of his material, that being the interpretation of the film's title as being encounters before man's stay on Earth ends. Still, the material does often feel stretched out and shapeless, which renders it less compelling or satisfying as a whole than his best work.
Oh, I'd say that it has a definite shape and form, that shape being the form of a classical religious revelation.

[Rowland]

Oh, I'd say that it has a definite shape and form, that shape being the form of a classical religious revelation.Perhaps, but I don't know what that is, and it doesn't change the tedium I sometimes felt during the less interesting tangents.

[Spinal]

By "didn't leave on a high note", do you mean that you wanted a "happier" ending, or more of a slam-bang ending?

Because I thought the quiet final shot was pretty eerie.

I don't think a happier ending was really called for. Best case scenario, several people were still going to end up dead. I suppose I was disappointed because up until then, every encounter with the Thing has been more and more intense. The last one is just over too quickly.

Chucking a single stick of dynamite at it doesn't seem large enough, although the accompanying line is pretty funny.

[Rowland]

I don't think a happier ending was really called for. Best case scenario, several people were still going to end up dead. I suppose I was disappointed because up until then, every encounter with the Thing has been more and more intense. The last one is just over too quickly.

Chucking a single stick of dynamite at it doesn't seem large enough, although the accompanying line is pretty funny.Yeah, I thought the last encounter in the storage area was disappointingly OTT and anticlimactic, but the closing scene manages to be both pleasingly low-key and apocalyptic in its implications, as we are left with the unanswerable question over whether a certain survivor is human or not.

[Spinal]

Yeah, I thought the last encounter in the storage area was disappointingly OTT and anticlimactic, but the closing scene manages to be both pleasingly low-key and apocalyptic in its implications, as we are left with the unanswerable question over whether a certain survivor is human or not.

The problem is that we haven't really been invested in that character up until that point of the film. We don't know much about him. So rather than ending with tension and mystery, it feels more like an incomplete task for the protagonist.

[Rowland]

The problem is that we haven't really been invested in that character up until that point of the film. We don't know much about him. So rather than ending with tension and mystery, it feels more like an incomplete task for the protagonist.We don't get a solid grasp on most of the characters, only their sense of community in a generally broad sense, which I agree does strip away some of the paranoid tension Carpenter shoots for. The ending however is all Russel's, as we are resigned to slump down amidst the scorched Earth and hope this person sitting across from him isn't what we're afraid he is, and worst of all, we have no way of knowing. Perhaps one could argue that the movie's primary theme is some sort of social alienation. After all, Russell's character was a loner amidst the bunch of them.

[Bosco B Thug]

I don't think a happier ending was really called for. Best case scenario, several people were still going to end up dead. I suppose I was disappointed because up until then, every encounter with the Thing has been more and more intense. The last one is just over too quickly.

Chucking a single stick of dynamite at it doesn't seem large enough, although the accompanying line is pretty funny. The Thing's climactic sequence is definitely a weak spot of the film. My interest begins to waver as soon as the "final plan" starts underway.

Speaking of weak final acts, watched Altman's Popeye again. Still love it, but damn does it take a steep dive once the film goes out to sea. Musical numbers and action sequences completely in Altman brand neutral wide shot = kinda a drag.

[Sven]

Speaking of weak final acts, watched Altman's Popeye again. Still love it, but damn does it take a steep dive once the film goes out to sea. Musical numbers and action sequences completely in Altman brand neutral wide shot = kinda a drag.

Did you not like Pappy's musical number as they're on the chase? Easily my favorite construction in the film, which I'm very glad you like.

[Spinal]

The ending however is all Russel's, as we are resigned to slump down amidst the scorched Earth and hope this person sitting across from him isn't what we're afraid he is, and worst of all, we have no way of knowing. Perhaps one could argue that the movie's primary theme is some sort of social alienation. After all, Russell's character was a loner amidst the bunch of them.

The question of Russell's character's survival is not important, I don't think. He is resigned to death, as he states more than once throughout the film. It's the survival of the human race that is at question. The most compelling idea that the film brings up is that, given the enormity of the universe, isn't it simply a matter of time before an organism arrives that would be able to overwhelm us? I see where Carpenter is heading with his attempt to express the futility of the fight. However, I think that using the Childs character in the end is more distracting than helpful. His identity isn't really what matters in the long run. It brings the focus back to the small scale, when it should be expanding for us by the end.

Something akin to the original ending for The Descent might have been more satisfying.

[Bosco B Thug]

Did you not like Pappy's musical number as they're on the chase? Easily my favorite construction in the film, which I'm very glad you like.
Oh, that's a good number. Definitely "favorite construction in the film" material since it's so inventive and he pulls it off very confidently. It just seems he insists on filming the entire rest of the film that way.

I think "breakneck action" is just completely contrary to the Altman's directing style. I could live with it, though.

[MadMan]

Hmm. I seem to be the only one who found Little Children to be merely mediocre. It didn't evoke a strong reaction from me either way. Now I feel like I'm missing out.Having just seen Wages of Fear, I think your current banner is fantastic. Great flick too, one that I've been putting off writing a review for. Because I'm lazy.


The Thing was great, of course. Can't really say anything about it that you folks don't already know. Glad to have finally caught up with that one. I saw a side of Brimley I didn't know existed. Cracked me up. Blood testing scene is the clear highlight for me. Kind of let down by the ending. Just didn't seem to leave on a high note. Probably the weakest aspect of the film for me.If you ever get a chance, watch the film with the commentary on. It features only Russell and Carpenter, and its really awesome. What they actually say about Brimley is pretty good, and at times quite funny. However the ending for the film is perfect in its depressing, apocalyptic and finite nature. I'm glad Carpenter had the guts to go with it.

Honestly I can't say I agree with those who don't like the final act of the movie. I think its works extremely well, and is great stuff. Plus my theory is that neither Childs nor Russell is the creature. I think that they managed to destroy it in the blast, and that both know they are screwed. So they're just sitting there, drinking and talking. Carpenter had Childs disappear for part of the final act simply to make us wonder if he was the Thing. For purely suspense purposes. That's just my take though.

[Spinal]

If you ever get a chance, watch the film with the commentary on. It features only Russell and Carpenter, and its really awesome.

I watched it on Netflix instant viewing, so I don't even have the DVD. Maybe I'll watch the commentary another time.

[MadMan]

I watched it on Netflix instant viewing, so I don't even have the DVD. Maybe I'll watch the commentary another time.Oh. The Collector's Edition DVD is the one I own, and its fairly decent/nice when it comes to the extras.

[Spinal]

Gotta hand it to Brimley. He was convincing as a non-diabetic character. Didn't think he had it in him.

[megladon8]

Why is Batman Begins on RT's list of "top 20 CGI classics", when Christopher Nolan was so outspokenly opposed to using CGI in the Batman movies?

I know there was some in there, for stuff that was impossible to do realistically, but there wasn't anything revolutionary.

[Raiders]

The question of Russell's character's survival is not important, I don't think. He is resigned to death, as he states more than once throughout the film. It's the survival of the human race that is at question. The most compelling idea that the film brings up is that, given the enormity of the universe, isn't it simply a matter of time before an organism arrives that would be able to overwhelm us? I see where Carpenter is heading with his attempt to express the futility of the fight. However, I think that using the Childs character in the end is more distracting than helpful. His identity isn't really what matters in the long run. It brings the focus back to the small scale, when it should be expanding for us by the end.

Something akin to the original ending for The Descent might have been more satisfying.

I never felt the film really should have "expanded" upon this universe in any way. I think looking beyond this little self-contained world entire (which seems its own bit of societal microcosm) would be a mistake in scope. If anything, the ending seems a bit of Darwinism as the two Alpha males, so to speak, the two strongest personalities, are the two that have persevered. The film so brilliantly makes the characters somewhat weak as individuals so therefore almost any time we see one, we never know. The whole film is about the "unknown," how the most dangerous thing is that which we can't understand, and which at its worst in indistinguishable from ourselves. And so the film leaves us with a final unknown: the fate of these two characters, and by extension, humanity.

[dreamdead]

Fosse's Cabaret is a solid look at the narcissism that plagued Germany before the rise of Nazism. Because of that, I was drawn more to the shifts in German culture than to the narrative arc of Sally/Brian, even if they offer the same study in microcosm. Fosse's use of disruptive match cuts, subverting our expectations of a kiss and leading into the cabaret owner getting stomped on was the most striking, but Joel Grey is also memorably used to disrupt the simplicity of the story (even if he also acts as a id-driven sign-marker of the narrative events) in that his twisted face often becomes the most striking feature. Solid filmmaking throughout, though not the revelation that All that Jazz was...

Assayas' Clean, meanwhile, is further testimony to the prowess of Assayas' remarkable skill at finding pitch-perfect unions of visual and narrative-driven links. The shots of the cityscape deliver more than orientation, as they frequently are imbued with the same layers of character that haunt the narrative. The frequent ambient score is typically solid, and Maggie Cheung displays a profundity in her performance while still never exceeding the (sometimes limited) intellect of her character. My sole critique is largely in the finale, as the shift to SanFran feels a bit too hopeful, all things considered... I really want to revisit Irma Vep again after this to see if my appreciation for that one jumps up...

[Sven]

I think "breakneck action" is just completely contrary to the Altman's directing style. I could live with it, though.

Yes. Have you seen his Gingerbread Man? The climax that takes place in a hurricane is embarrassingly incoherent, though I hear that the studios put that one together, not him.

[MadMan]

Gotta hand it to Brimley. He was convincing as a non-diabetic character. Didn't think he had it in him."I'LL KEEEELLLL YOOOOOOUUUUU!!!" :lol:

[Spinal]

"I'LL KEEEELLLL YOOOOOOUUUUU!!!" :lol:

I was also impressed that he was able to play a character without a mustache. I had him pegged as a mustached diabetic type. Shows what I know.

[Spinal]

I never felt the film really should have "expanded" upon this universe in any way. I think looking beyond this little self-contained world entire (which seems its own bit of societal microcosm) would be a mistake in scope. If anything, the ending seems a bit of Darwinism as the two Alpha males, so to speak, the two strongest personalities, are the two that have persevered. The film so brilliantly makes the characters somewhat weak as individuals so therefore almost any time we see one, we never know. The whole film is about the "unknown," how the most dangerous thing is that which we can't understand, and which at its worst in indistinguishable from ourselves. And so the film leaves us with a final unknown: the fate of these two characters, and by extension, humanity.

I'm not asking Carpenter to use another location or explain every last detail. I just think that the film is missing that one scene which really gives you a grasp of the implications of the crisis beyond the camp and beyond Antarctica. There's no one shot where you really feel that the threat is out of control and potentially devastating to mankind. I welcome an ending with mystery, but I think the mystery the film leaves us with is fairly trivial. As far as Childs being one of the strongest personalities, I'm not sure how we could possibly know this based on the film. We don't really get to know him at all. If it were a matter of personalities, I'd think Brimley's character would be a better candidate.

Again, I point to the ending of The Descent as a great example. We do not leave the film's main environment. We do not get final closure. And yet, we are presented with a single shot that expands upon all that we have been through and leaves us on an unsettling note of extreme intensity. By comparison, I think Carpenter's film just eventually gives up.

[MadMan]

I was also impressed that he was able to play a character without a mustache. I had him pegged as a mustached diabetic type. Shows what I know.Clearly your steotypical perceptions were immediately shattered by this film. Therefore, its obvious that you should bump your rating of the movie up to ****. That is the only solution at the present time.

[Raiders]

I'm not asking Carpenter to use another location or explain every last detail. I just think that the film is missing that one scene which really gives you a grasp of the implications of the crisis beyond the camp and beyond Antarctica. There's no one shot where you really feel that the threat is out of control and potentially devastating to mankind. I welcome an ending with mystery, but I think the mystery the film leaves us with is fairly trivial. As far as Childs being one of the strongest personalities, I'm not sure how we could possibly know this based on the film. We don't really get to know him at all. If it were a matter of personalities, I'd think Brimley's character would be a better candidate.

Again, I point to the ending of The Descent as a great example. We do not leave the film's main environment. We do not get final closure. And yet, we are presented with a single shot that expands upon all that we have been through and leaves us on an unsettling note of extreme intensity. By comparison, I think Carpenter's film just eventually gives up.

I didn't care much for the ending of The Descent.

:twisted:

[Ezee E]

I didn't care much for the ending of The Descent.

:twisted:
Which ending? You may be highly correct or wrong as usual.

[Raiders]

Which ending? You may be highly correct or wrong as usual.

Both.

[Ezee E]

Both.
Strong work.

[Raiders]

Strong work.

Indeed. I actually must say I did "like" the ending of the UK version (the one you love as well I assume), but it felt like too little too late I guess.

[Pop Trash]

Thoughts on Tropic Thunder and Transsiberian, Raiders? In particular Tropic Thunder vs. Pineapple Express?

[Bosco B Thug]

Yes. Have you seen his Gingerbread Man? The climax that takes place in a hurricane is embarrassingly incoherent, though I hear that the studios put that one together, not him. No, I haven't. But I do have some brash preconceived notions of it - puffy 90s Altman, tackling sweaty, marshy Georgia atmosphere, apparently now with tropical lulz thrown in towards the end. And I know Fammke Jansen is in it...

That's it. Not a recommendation, I assume?

[origami_mustache]

I recently got Final Cut and Avid...never used Final Cut before so I decided to practice by doing a dramatic action recut of The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. Unfortunately it wasn't a completely original choice as I found a couple other versions, but mine is still a lot different and it was fun and a good introduction to the software.
here it is (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baCeswoQm0A)

[Ezee E]

I recently got Final Cut and Avid...never used Final Cut before so I decided to practice by doing a dramatic action recut of The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. Unfortunately it wasn't a completely original choice as I found a couple other versions, but mine is still a lot different and it was fun and a good introduction to the software.
here it is (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baCeswoQm0A)
Good luck with the program. It takes a bit to get used to, but ultimately, I find it the best one.

As far as your work, I don't know if Wes Anderson works very well with those music choices. It was a nice attempt though.

[origami_mustache]

As far as your work, I don't know if Wes Anderson works very well with those music choices. It was a nice attempt though.

haha that was the point...thanks

[Watashi]

I recently got Final Cut and Avid...never used Final Cut before so I decided to practice by doing a dramatic action recut of The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. Unfortunately it wasn't a completely original choice as I found a couple other versions, but mine is still a lot different and it was fun and a good introduction to the software.
here it is (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baCeswoQm0A)
Heh, still looks like a comedy to me. And the Fountain score only added to the unintentional lolz.

[Watashi]

If I ever had the programs to do a fake trailer, I would recut Signs without the alien invasion and make it as a violent family drama ala In the Bedroom.

[Winston*]

If I ever had the programs to do a fake trailer, I would recut Signs without the alien invasion and make it as a violent family drama ala In the Bedroom.
I would probably recut an unlikely movie so it looked like a well respected homosexual love story between the two male leads.

[origami_mustache]

Heh, still looks like a comedy to me. And the Fountain score only added to the unintentional lolz.

my intent was for it to be funny.

[Qrazy]

The problem is that we haven't really been invested in that character up until that point of the film. We don't know much about him. So rather than ending with tension and mystery, it feels more like an incomplete task for the protagonist.

I disagree, the character had plenty of screentime prior.

[Winston*]

Not sure the dramatic Life Aquatic trailer joke really works, since you're using stuff that's dramatic in the actual movie. I think you should try doing it with more of a straight comedy, let's say...Caddyshack.

[DrewG]

If I ever had the programs to do a fake trailer, I would recut Signs without the alien invasion and make it as a violent family drama ala In the Bedroom.

Actually would be easy to do...and cool.

By the way I read your thoughts on Tropic Thunder and I was expecting to like it considering I've noticed some our ratings coincide when I see yours.

I thought it was alright...I liked the whole criticism of Hollywood (the "full retard" thing is actually...true, he mentions Sean Penn but I guess RADDDIOOOO! works too) but for Ben Stiller directed comedies I think it's behind The Cable Guy and football fields behind Zoolander.

[origami_mustache]

Not sure the dramatic Life Aquatic trailer joke really works, since you're using stuff that's dramatic in the actual movie. I think you should try doing it with more of a straight comedy, let's say...Caddyshack.

There are already too many Caddyshack recuts (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=caddyshac k+recut&search_type=&aq=f)...maybe next I will recut Kids as a romantic comedy...dammit that's been done too haha.

[Watashi]

I wrote thoughts on Tropic Thunder?

[Spinal]

I disagree, the character had plenty of screentime prior.

Yes, he has screentime. But we don't learn much about him.

[Winston*]

There are already too many Caddyshack recuts (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=caddyshac k+recut&search_type=&aq=f)...maybe next I will recut Kids as a romantic comedy...dammit that's been done too haha.

The internet has too much time on it's hands.

[DrewG]

I wrote thoughts on Tropic Thunder?

Perhaps it was on RT? I can't remember. Have you never written about it? If so, this kid is severely confused.

[Dead & Messed Up]

The Last Winter is a superior horror film from Larry Fessenden, a filmmaker who's quickly become one of my favorite horror film directors. Like Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Val Lewton, he's adept at exploring the bonds between external horror atmosphere and inner psychological turmoil, and this film gives him a chance to flex his style muscles, resulting in lovely compositions, an eerie score, and some truly haunting sequences (especially one where a man walks out, naked, into the snows of the Arctic).

Some choice quotes from his website:

"Larry Fessenden is one of the most original voices to emerge in the
horror field and THE LAST WINTER is his most accomplished work to date.
He brings the Gothic trappings of the old classics to shocking new life." - Guillermo Del Toro

"Elegantly restrained horror ... metaphorically resonant ... feverishly real, terrifying. Larry Fessenden is among the most thoughtful Americans
working on the lower-budget end of this oft-abused and mindlessly corrupted genre." - Manohla Dargis

Preach on!

[DavidSeven]

I recently got Final Cut and Avid...never used Final Cut before so I decided to practice by doing a dramatic action recut of The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. Unfortunately it wasn't a completely original choice as I found a couple other versions, but mine is still a lot different and it was fun and a good introduction to the software.
here it is (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baCeswoQm0A)

I like it. Nice first effort. I've enjoyed using Final Cut in the past. Amazing application, I think.

[Qrazy]

Yes, he has screentime. But we don't learn much about him.

Yeah but we still get a sense of the character via his behaviour. Out of all the characters in the film he was one of the top four that I felt I spent some time with and got a reasonable sense about.

[balmakboor]

Woohoo! I'm now a professional movie critic. (I guess it counts as being a pro when the newspaper pays for my movie tickets. That's about 2 cents for word.)

[Raiders]

Woohoo! I'm now a professional movie critic. (I guess it counts as being a pro when the newspaper pays for my movie tickets. That's about 2 cents for word.)

A 500-word minimum, or maximum?

[MadMan]

Woohoo! I'm now a professional movie critic. (I guess it counts as being a pro when the newspaper pays for my movie tickets. That's about 2 cents for word.)Dude, that's awesome. A hearty congrats!

[D_Davis]

Woohoo! I'm now a professional movie critic. (I guess it counts as being a pro when the newspaper pays for my movie tickets. That's about 2 cents for word.)

Nice.

:)

Congrats, man.

[balmakboor]

A 500-word minimum, or maximum?

500-600. I'd proposed 600-700. Oh well.

[Ezee E]

There are already too many Caddyshack recuts (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=caddyshac k+recut&search_type=&aq=f)...maybe next I will recut Kids as a romantic comedy...dammit that's been done too haha.
There Will Be Blood as a slapstick comedy?

[Ezee E]

I swore there was a thread on CJ7.

I didn't like Shaolin Soccer, and thought Kung Fu Hustle was just alright, but CJ7 is pretty damn good. For a family movie, it's pretty fantastic actually as it manages to be enjoyable for anyone at any age. I wished it ventured more into the other characters like the narration at the end, but all I can say is that CJ7 would be the biggest Christmas toy if they put that here in America.

[Sven]

I swore there was a thread on CJ7.

I didn't like Shaolin Soccer, and thought Kung Fu Hustle was just alright, but CJ7 is pretty damn good. For a family movie, it's pretty fantastic actually as it manages to be enjoyable for anyone at any age. I wished it ventured more into the other characters like the narration at the end, but all I can say is that CJ7 would be the biggest Christmas toy if they put that here in America.

My very brief thoughts are near the top, strewn over a couple of posts.

http://match-cut.org/showthread.php?p=45010&highlight=Chow#post45010

[Ezee E]

It is anything but. It's silly, surely, but it's Chow's most accomplished storytelling, as well as his most purely emotional. It's optimistic and genuine (the pain in this movie, whether it be disciplinary spankings or a horrifying accident, is practically tactile). It also has probably has the most expressive use of CGI I've ever seen.
This, followed by Iosos' next post about the movie nails the reason I liked it so much. CJ7 could be considered a new Mogwai, but the movie works best as a father/son relationship, something that I think most family movies fail on because it never seems real. Here, each person has their faults, makes mistakes, but you can tell that they still have respect for each other in the end.

Chow, for the first time I've seen it, combines special effects with an emotional scene that you don't see coming. He could have just kept it at the school level with meaningless bully fights. Instead, he makes it matter.

[Bosco B Thug]

So Hostel Part II isn't as consistently refreshing and visually witty as I remember it being. And any subtle emotional grace notes I tried to play up after initial viewing proved only weakly evoked by the film upon this re-watch. But the film's witty enough to accommodate its contented jejune-ness, while (most importantly) Roth's filmmaking is still fluent enough and textured enough to keep me a supporter of the film. Roth has a patient touch (something to be appreciated in American horror nowadays) and a firm handle of rhythm, the effective reaction shot, emotional beats, dramatic continuity, offbeat detail, the occasional striking mise en scene that isn't loaded with jockish bombast... and he does a lot with expressive sound design, which is refreshing craftsmanship, even if it's ultimately overconfident stylishness. And the acting's good.

[Scar]

Weekend starts tonight. Don't know whether to watch movies or video game tomorrow.

Saturday we're going to the State Fair, so I'll probably need stretchy pants. :lol:

[origami_mustache]

Weekend:
Cabiria
People Who Die Mysteriously in Their Sleep
Boccaccio '70

[Yxklyx]

Weekend:

One Hour With You
I Was Born. But...
Pennies from Heaven

[Winston*]

Weekend

Into the Wild Clean Deep Water

[Ezee E]

Weekend:
Dark City -- Director's Cut
State and Main
Revolver

[Grouchy]

I recently got Final Cut and Avid...never used Final Cut before so I decided to practice by doing a dramatic action recut of The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. Unfortunately it wasn't a completely original choice as I found a couple other versions, but mine is still a lot different and it was fun and a good introduction to the software.
here it is (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baCeswoQm0A)
Final Cut is easy to get used to it if you've used Premiere before. What I can't understand for the life of me is Avid fucking Liquid. I don't know how that works and, seeing the many problems I had doing simple cuts with it, I don't want to know.

I'd give you my take on the trailer but I don't have sound at work - I'll watch it at home.

And now for something completely different - absolutely none in here planning to see Clone Wars on the theater? I'm having some trouble convincing friends to see it. But I want to catch it. It's the first "new" Star Wars story since the Cartoon Network series.

[balmakboor]

This, followed by Iosos' next post about the movie nails the reason I liked it so much. CJ7 could be considered a new Mogwai, but the movie works best as a father/son relationship, something that I think most family movies fail on because it never seems real. Here, each person has their faults, makes mistakes, but you can tell that they still have respect for each other in the end.

Chow, for the first time I've seen it, combines special effects with an emotional scene that you don't see coming. He could have just kept it at the school level with meaningless bully fights. Instead, he makes it matter.

This should arrive tomorrow. I'm doubly looking forward to it now.

[balmakboor]

I'm at a loss for words. I just watched Funky Forest last night for the first time and I'm not quite sure what to make of it yet. It plays out like 2 1/2 hours of channel surfing, hopping almost randomly from one sketch to the next like some sort of Japanese Monty Python. Exactly what unites these various segments escaped me on first viewing and it all really seemed like a filmmaker simply indulging in his interests without any concern for narrative. This could've been tedious, but I was never bored. I was always enjoying myself, ridiculously so at times. During the second half when it drifts into some strange territory with creatures that would've been at home in Cronenberg's Naked Lunch, my daughter walked in and commented, "Dad, you watch some weird movies." And that scene where music is recorded in a forest is almost the antithesis of narrative and yet it was totally absorbing. And that young woman who tugs on a guy's phallic appendage, has something plugged into her belly button, and watches a guy pull a little person out of a giant anus (yeh, this stuff is unhinged) was perhaps the most beautiful young woman I've ever seen.

Yep, I'll be watching this again.

[D_Davis]

And that scene where music is recorded in a forest is almost the antithesis of narrative and yet it was totally absorbing.

One of my favorite moments in all of cinema.

FF is one fantastic film, a pure celebration of life, art, love, music, and humanity.

[balmakboor]

Netflix just suggested something called National Lampoon Presents: The Beach Party at the Threshold of Hell. Interesting title. Never heard of it. It doesn't really sound like something National Lampoon would present though.

[Russ]

I'm at a loss for words. I just watched Funky Forest last night...
Finally bit the bullet and ordered this as a blind buy today -- been meaning to for a very long time.

I expect to be dazzled. :cool:

[origami_mustache]

FF is one fantastic film, a pure celebration of life, art, love, music, and humanity.

Yeah, the more I think back on it, the more I like it.

[Spinal]

Weekend:

Brand Upon the Brain
Choking Hazard

[Ezee E]

Reading Iosos' great moments made me rewatch Bringing Out The Dead. One, it was Ving Rhames that wrecks the ambulance, but anyways, when focusing on the medical emergency side of the film, it's fantastic, and much different then anything Scorsese has done before. There aren't really any of the trademark dolly shots. The editing is there.

It's just too bad that the Arquette story had to be involved.

[MadMan]

Weekend:

*Infernal Affairs
*Taxi Driver

[Raiders]

Weekend:

Vicky Christina Barcelona
Elegy
Benny's Video
Scandal (1950)

[Kurosawa Fan]

Weekend:

Design for Living
Fantasy Football draft

[Dead & Messed Up]

Weekend:
Hiking.

[Spinal]

Weekend:
Hiking.

Show-off.

[Ezee E]

Weekend:
Hiking.
People go outside?

[Sven]

Reading Iosos' great moments made me rewatch Bringing Out The Dead. One, it was Ving Rhames that wrecks the ambulance, but anyways, when focusing on the medical emergency side of the film, it's fantastic, and much different then anything Scorsese has done before. There aren't really any of the trademark dolly shots. The editing is there.

No, I'm talking about the shot where Cage walks past Sizemore and he's beating at the ambulance with a bat or a pipe or something and swearing at it, not the wreck itself.

[MadMan]

Weekend:

Design for Living
Fantasy Football draftThat draft is pretty late man. I've already set up two teams at the start of August. But I guess it all depends on what league your in.

[Philosophe_rouge]

Today, I ate pizza and watched movies... good day?

First was My Fair Lady (1964), I've been meaning to see this for a while, if only for Hepburn and eh, it's mostly okay. It's an unadventurous, mostly charming but overly long musical. There isn't much I can really fault, but there is nothing that stands out as exceptional either. At nearly 3 hours, unexceptional wears itself thin fairly quickly, I probably won't be watching this again.

Next up, my favourite of the day, An American in Paris (1951) ranks among the best Hollywood musicals. The last act especially reminds me of The Red Shoes (1948), and upon reading trivia it seems that Kelly used that film to secure funding and support for this, so clearly the influence is intentional. Like the best musicals, An American in Paris relies on musical numbers to reveal or express the moods and changes of the characters' state. The score, by the Gershwin brothers, is never uninteresting and not a single number feels superfluous or falls flat. The story itself is simple, but there is no need for anything complex considering the very nature of the venture. The final ballet is one of the most beautiful I've seen committed to screen, a richly choreographed fantasy sequence rivalled only by it's influence (The Red Shoes).

All that Jazz (1979) is a film I've been meaning to see for ages, and while it doesn't quite meet my lofty expectations it is still a brilliant character study, as well as an invaluable insight into the mind of an artist. The filmmaking is still fresh, and innovatative, and it's as if the pattern of the editing takes on a dance-like quality of it's own. The performances are always excited, often sensual and brimming with life. Roy Scheider is incredible in the lead role, ranking among the best performances I've ever seen. I think I might have to revisit this one sometime, because I still feel something is missing, I'm just not sure what that is.

Finally, rewatched one of my old favourites Ginger Snaps (2000). I don't like it nearly as much as I did when I was an angry teenager, but the film is still very effective as far as "coming of age" and horror go. It's fresh and exciting, the characters and high school setting is mostly unconventional for popular media, but somehow more apt than more popular teen films. The acting all around is great, and the script well written. The film falters in the final act a little, because the creature design is not particularly mobile, though I've seen much worse as far as werewolves go.

[Yxklyx]

People go outside?

Don't you have a hallway?

[Derek]

That draft is pretty late man. I've already set up two teams at the start of August. But I guess it all depends on what league your in.

Seriously. Mine's this Sunday and I'm a little worried about getting my guys into playing shape and giving them enough time to learn my fantasy playbook. As fantasy coach, I've scheduled a fantasy training/boot camp for my fantasy players. We have a lot to cram in during the next week, but as my team, players and position as coach are fantasies, I'm confident we can handle it.

Hopefully the point that it's, you know, a fantasy league and thus doesn't matter how early you get your team together got through there. ;)

[Yxklyx]

Has anyone seen the DVD release of Brand Upon the Brain? I saw the live performance but wasn't too excited about the narration - even if it was by Crispin Glover. It feels like Maddin's trying to make this film more accessible. I thought that most of the narration in the live show was superfluous.

[Spinal]

Don't underestimate the value of fantasy chemistry.

[Spinal]

Has anyone seen the DVD release of Brand Upon the Brain?

I have it at home and will watch it within the next couple of days.

[Winston*]

I saw the regular cinema version of Brand Upon the Brain. Don't remember if it had any narration, actually the only lasting impression I have from that movie is that it was a little bit boring.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Show-off.

I have The Bridge on the River Kwai, too.

[Ezee E]

No, I'm talking about the shot where Cage walks past Sizemore and he's beating at the ambulance with a bat or a pipe or something and swearing at it, not the wreck itself.

Ah, at the end.

Why do you find that more significant then the rest of the movie?

[Pop Trash]

Encounters at the End of the World was good, even if I never felt too excited or moved watching it. It felt like Herzog being Herzog. It also felt a little disjointed, like there wasn't a clear throughline. It was like "here's a random eccentric working in Antarctica, here's another random eccentric, here's some crazy penguins, here's a crazy volcano." I think I liked Grizzly Man more because it was such a focused character study. Still, Herzog remains a brilliant observer. I laughed quite a bit too. And it had some beautiful underwater shots, even if Herzog didn't shoot it himself.

7/10 overall.

[MadMan]

Seriously. Mine's this Sunday and I'm a little worried about getting my guys into playing shape and giving them enough time to learn my fantasy playbook. As fantasy coach, I've scheduled a fantasy training/boot camp for my fantasy players. We have a lot to cram in during the next week, but as my team, players and position as coach are fantasies, I'm confident we can handle it.

Hopefully the point that it's, you know, a fantasy league and thus doesn't matter how early you get your team together got through there. ;)Hah, touche. But seriously man actually drafting earlier has its advantages. You can deal with any of your drafted players getting injured early on by getting key backups or replacements, and actually it helps you to follow pre-season to see who's worthy of picking up over wires. I take my fantasy football very seriously :P

[chrisnu]

Weekend:

Love Streams
Husbands
either Pineapple Express or Tropic Thunder

I needed a little levity in there. :)

[MadMan]

Goddamnit it all to hell. The copy of Infernal Affairs that I rented started freezing up in certain spots. The viewing has been aborted, and I'm super pissed at Family Video. I don't think I'll be renting from there for quite a while. Wankers. Bloody freakin' wankers.

[Watashi]

Would it be blasphemous to say that Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is a masterpiece and the best Mad Max film?

[Spinal]

Would it be blasphemous to say that Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is a masterpiece and the best Mad Max film?

It's pretty sweet.

[Sven]

Would it be blasphemous to say that Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is a masterpiece and the best Mad Max film?

Soooo much rep.

[Sven]

Why do you find that more significant then the rest of the movie?

I never suggested that it's more significant. I think it's a great, elevated moment that has resonated with me more potently than the rest of it. To me, that moment encapsulates the film.

[Ezee E]

I never suggested that it's more significant. I think it's a great, elevated moment that has resonated with me more potently than the rest of it. To me, that moment encapsulates the film.
Sounds about right. My friend said as Cage walks out of the hospital, with the ambulance being beaten, "Everyone's insane."

I noticed this for the first time while watching this, but I find it interesting that a good amount of the movie is actually during the daytime as we see in the skyline, but the streets are as dark as night. A personal hell, and great to see.

[Morris Schæffer]

Would it be blasphemous to say that Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is a masterpiece and the best Mad Max film?

But why? It's not better action-wise than the second one and really doesn't bring anything new to the table other than more desolate and apocalyptic imagery. Been a good long while since I've seen it though.

[Kurosawa Fan]

That draft is pretty late man. I've already set up two teams at the start of August. But I guess it all depends on what league your in.

The later the better.

[Raiders]

Would it be blasphemous to say that Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is a masterpiece and the best Mad Max film?

To me? Yes. To your brethren blasphemers? Probably not.

[Ezee E]

I'm with Raiders on this one. Saying Thunderdome is better than the first two is like saying Batman & Robin is better then the Burtons...

Of course, 8 says that.

[D_Davis]

Weekend:

Postal
In the name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale

[Spinal]

Weekend:

Postal
In the name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale

Lose a bet? That sounds like torture to me.

[D_Davis]

Lose a bet? That sounds like torture to me.

It's gonna be a blast. We'll probably throw on House of the Dead and have a Boll triple-bill.

[Morris Schæffer]

It's gonna be a blast. We'll probably throw on House of the Dead and have a Boll triple-bill.

I told my friends that we should have a Chuck Norris marathon with Delta Force, Invasion USA and Missing in Action.

Also, beer.

[D_Davis]

I told my friends that we should have a Chuck Norris marathon with Delta Force, Invasion USA and Missing in Action.

Also, beer.

That sounds like fun, too.

[Spinal]

I told my friends that we should have a Chuck Norris marathon with Delta Force, Invasion USA and Missing in Action.

Also, beer.

The only words that sounds appealing to me here are 'friends' and 'beer'.

[D_Davis]

The only words that sounds appealing to me here are 'friends' and 'beer'.

We're going to eat cheese and drink expensive wine while we watch Postal and Dungeon Siege. And we're going to watch them listening to the French-language track, with English subtitles.

[Ezee E]

We're going to eat cheese and drink expensive wine while we watch Postal and Dungeon Siege. And we're going to watch them listening to the French-language track, with English subtitles.
D is sophisticated.

[Raiders]

We're going to eat cheese and drink expensive wine while we watch Postal and Dungeon Siege. And we're going to watch them listening to the French-language track, with English subtitles.

Do you have any Grey Poupon?

[D_Davis]

Do you have any Grey Poupon?

Why yes, I do. And some craquers.

[Watashi]

But why? It's not better action-wise than the second one and really doesn't bring anything new to the table other than more desolate and apocalyptic imagery. Been a good long while since I've seen it though.

I think it's on the same level action-wise of The Road Warrior. The thunderdome fight is the best action sequence in the whole trilogy for its creativity and grueling introduction by Mr. Dealgood. Sure Miller follows the same formula from the first two but it's a formula that works and here we are given a deeper understanding of this broken-down mythology and clearer insight into Max's psychosis. This is Miller's Lawrence of Arabia. Everything is grander, the stakes are larger, and the visuals are engrossing.

[Duncan]

This is Miller's Lawrence of Arabia... Now you're venturing into the territory of blasphemers.

[Spinal]

Everything is grander, the stakes are larger, and the visuals are engrossing.

What about the dialogue? So many great lines.

[Watashi]

What about the dialogue? So many great lines.

Well, yeah. I thought that was obvious.

[transmogrifier]

Domino - miscast lead, and focusing on one particular screw-up is a mistake (would have worked much better as a series of vignettes), but harmless enough. Better than Man on Fire, mainly because it doesn't seem to hate humanity as much.


Thank You For Smoking - funny, but totally weightless. The director is too concerned about sliding from gag to gag that nothing sticks - which is unfortunate, as it could have been a monumental satires of the collide between big business, politics and individual liberty. Eckhart has his perfect role.

The Good Thief - nicely rumpled, playful, melancholy air, with a gorgeous lead actress - who seems to have disappeared from movies - undone slightly by the too-neat ending.

[Grouchy]

Thunderdome is a great movie, true, it's larger than life, epic and filled with dialogue that sounds like it came from the Bard's deranged twin borther.

But Road Warrior is definitively even better.

[Beau]

My eleven year old self is telling me that Thunderdome sucks. But what does my eleven-year old self know?

[balmakboor]

My eleven year old self is telling me that Thunderdome sucks. But what does my eleven-year old self know?

I find that the more I learn to trust my inner eleven-year-old, the more fun I have with movies.

I loved Thunderdome though.

[transmogrifier]

The Stunt Man - I hate Steve Railsback

[balmakboor]

The Stunt Man - I hate Steve Railsback

I never understood the Stunt Man. Why would a filmmaker make a making-of film that includes the filming of an elaborate action sequence and depict it as being filmed in a single take? It's like it is intentionally showing us as far from the truth as possible how a film is made. Or is the film about a director who is so God-like in his mind that he can stage an action sequence all at once and get away with it? (Sort of like how Alfonso Cuaron must've felt while filming Children of Men?) Hmmm, maybe I just answered my own question.

[Watashi]

Thoughts on To Live and Die in L.A.?

I'd say it's better than The French Connection.

[megladon8]

Thoughts on To Live and Die in L.A.?

I'd say it's better than The French Connection.


I'd agree.

More interesting characters, more intriguing story, better car chase.

'Tis a better movie.

But other films by Friedkin (like The Hunted and The Exorcist) are better than both.

[Raiders]

Thoughts on To Live and Die in L.A.?

I'd say it's better than The French Connection.

As would I. My favorite Friedkin film, in fact. The Wang Chung score/soundtrack is so awesome.

[Watashi]

As would I. My favorite Friedkin film, in fact. The Wang Chung score/soundtrack is so awesome.

Well, those are the only two Friedkin films I have seen.

The Wang Chung score is a bit silly, but I bet seeing it for the first time in that era, it would be awesome. Man, the 80's produced some bizarre-ass scores.

[Boner M]

Opening Night - Such explicit self-reflexivity isn't exactly Cassavetes' bag, since a discussion of his own methods ("Let’s take this play. Let’s dump it upside down and see if we can’t find something human in it") are essentially what comes organically when he simply puts people in front of the camera and empathises, without deliberately having them act as pawns. Still... incredibly potent stuff, as well as being less a mere glorification of Cassavetes' own art than I initially found it.

Sleeping Dogs Lie - In which a script that admirably wrings a modicum of truth from an impossible premise and an outstanding lead performance is defeated by sitcom-ish glibness, smug indie quirk, and an I-know-it's-supposed-to-be-ugly-but-like-c'mon visual style.

The Day I Became a Woman - Films that are this doggedly allegorical and replete with symbolism aren't usually my thing, but there's no denying how much this film succeeds on a purely sensual level. Every image is quietly devastating.

Tropic Thunder - Slapdash, but yeah, pretty damn funny. Baghead is better and smarter though. Stupid critics.

No Fear, No Die - A nice companion piece to Beau travail, in which Denis immerses herself in an underground subculture (cockfighting), populated by men alienated by the codes they live by. Not as assured as her later films, with dialogue stepping in occasionally to explicate what the images have already implied, but still atmospheric as hell. Haunting ending too, as per usual.

Persepolis - Charming and poignant. I dunno. What everyone else said.

[Philosophe_rouge]

Les Biches (1968), is a great little psychological thriller about bisexuals, insanity and an architect. "Why", feels especially fresh and tragic as a character, as her naivity is taken advantage of by the two older characters. Though, not always intentional, they use her as if she was little more than a toy, and her own understanding of love and relationships is so undeveloped that it essentially drives her mad.

[Ezee E]

Watching State & Main, and it makes me wonder, why hasn't Mamet written a film noir type of film?

Some have come close, but he should go all-out, 50's style.

In the end, State and Main is a pretty boring movie after the one-hour mark. I just don't think Mamet knows how to make a story flow on screen very well, as all his directed films seem to have similar problems.

[Yxklyx]

Sleeping Dogs Lie - In which a script that admirably wrings a modicum of truth from an impossible premise and an outstanding lead performance is defeated by sitcom-ish glibness, smug indie quirk, and an I-know-it's-supposed-to-be-ugly-but-like-c'mon visual style.

I loved this one! I'm sorry you didn't. One of the most honest films I've seen in a long time.

[transmogrifier]

Laputa: Castle in the Sky

One word: awesome.

[soitgoes...]

Back from my one week sabbatical. I've only watched one movie this week. 88 Minutes. Yeah... Gotta love when others choose movies for you to watch.

[Boner M]

I loved this one! I'm sorry you didn't. One of the most honest films I've seen in a long time.
It definitely had potential, I just thought the execution was lacking. That jaunty accordion score, the awkward 'meet the family' scenes, the cloying voiceover... all of it just made me overlook any honesty or insight in the script.

Melinda Page Hamilton was terrific, though. Hope she gets more roles.

[Scar]

The later the better.

Yep. Few years back I drafted Vick (1st round) during the preseason, and then he broke his leg. So I drafted Pennington in the 3rd or 4th. He nuked his wrist.

I still somehow managed to win a few games that season.

[Morris Schæffer]

I think it's on the same level action-wise of The Road Warrior. The thunderdome fight is the best action sequence in the whole trilogy for its creativity and grueling introduction by Mr. Dealgood. Sure Miller follows the same formula from the first two but it's a formula that works and here we are given a deeper understanding of this broken-down mythology and clearer insight into Max's psychosis. This is Miller's Lawrence of Arabia. Everything is grander, the stakes are larger, and the visuals are engrossing.

I'll have to give it another look somewhere down the line dude.

[Izzy Black]

Les Biches (1968), is a great little psychological thriller about bisexuals, insanity and an architect. "Why", feels especially fresh and tragic as a character, as her naivity is taken advantage of by the two older characters. Though, not always intentional, they use her as if she was little more than a toy, and her own understanding of love and relationships is so undeveloped that it essentially drives her mad.

*glances at your La Ceremonie rating*

It seems someone is on a Chabrol surge!

[Izzy Black]

Watching State & Main, and it makes me wonder, why hasn't Mamet written a film noir type of film?

Some have come close, but he should go all-out, 50's style.

In the end, State and Main is a pretty boring movie after the one-hour mark. I just don't think Mamet knows how to make a story flow on screen very well, as all his directed films seem to have similar problems.

I would say story flows well in Redbelt and Glengarry Glen Ross. State of Main is a just a bad film.

[Boner M]

*glances at your La Ceremonie rating*

It seems someone is on a Chabrol surge!
Chabrol rocks. I've been sifting through the UK Arrow Films boxset over the last few months, which has most of the films from the late 60's/early 70's that featured his then-wife Stephane Audran. Les Biches is actually my least favorite of that period, but it's still quite good. Le Ceremonie was the first of his that I saw, and my reaction was the same as Rouge's. Formally impeccable and so, so tightly wound. My only minor complaint about his films is their same-y-ness, but even then the minor variations are enough to keep them all vital. Probably my favorite of the new wave figureheads.

Any favorites of his?

[Sycophant]

Laputa: Castle in the Sky

One word: awesome.
Might still be my favorite Miyazaki. Awesome, indeed.

[Kurosawa Fan]

The subject matter in Design for Living was certainly risque and serves as another example of the damage the Code did for Hollywood, however the film itself is merely good, not great. This is mostly due to Gary Cooper, who couldn't have been more stiff and out of his element. The script was a bit messy in sections, but still quite strong, with some very funny moments, but Cooper couldn't deliver on the material. Fredric March and Miriam Hopkins were wonderful though, and helped carry Cooper's dead weight. I actually like Cooper, too. I was really impressed with the sequences without dialog. The scene on Hopkins' wedding night, when she kicks over the flower pot, only to go out later and clean it up, only to have her "husband" come out the next morning and kick it over again was fantastic. So much expressed there without a single word uttered. Overall, a solid film, but flawed and dragged down by Cooper's inept performance.

[Spinal]

Loved, loved, loved Brand Upon the Brain! Humorous, sexy and visually captivating, but also an effective exploration of human memory and how our brains can turn critical moments of our life into giddy fantasies or painful nightmares. One of Maddin's best feature-length films.

[Philosophe_rouge]

*glances at your La Ceremonie rating*

It seems someone is on a Chabrol surge!
I am :D I also have Une affair de femmes and Rien ne va plus lying around just waiting to be watched.

[Philosophe_rouge]

The subject matter in Design for Living was certainly risque and serves as another example of the damage the Code did for Hollywood, however the film itself is merely good, not great. This is mostly due to Gary Cooper, who couldn't have been more stiff and out of his element. The script was a bit messy in sections, but still quite strong, with some very funny moments, but Cooper couldn't deliver on the material. Fredric March and Miriam Hopkins were wonderful though, and helped carry Cooper's dead weight. I actually like Cooper, too. I was really impressed with the sequences without dialog. The scene on Hopkins' wedding night, when she kicks over the flower pot, only to go out later and clean it up, only to have her "husband" come out the next morning and kick it over again was fantastic. So much expressed there without a single word uttered. Overall, a solid film, but flawed and dragged down by Cooper's inept performance.
I enjoy the film slightly more than you do, if ratings are a judge, but I agree wholeheartedly with your critisisms of the film. Cooper cannot begin to hold up against Hopkins and March, coming accross as flat and uninteresting. I wish they had found a more capable actor to take his place, because the film could have been leagues better with some talent there. The script itself has some dull parts, and the pacing is a little off, but it's still a joyous and fun little film that always makes me smile.

[transmogrifier]

Might still be my favorite Miyazaki. Awesome, indeed.

For me, Miyasaki's big three are:

Spirited Away
Laputa: Castle in the Sky
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind

Porco Rosso and Totoro are good, solid films. Mononoke is too overwrought at times, but interesting, and Howl's is as close to a dud as he has made. Still need to see Kiki's Delivery Service.

PS Apparently, Ponyo on the Cliff is more in the vein of Kiki and Totoro.

[Ezee E]

I would say story flows well in Redbelt and Glengarry Glen Ross. State of Main is a just a bad film.
He didn't direct Glengarry, and that is indeed a good movie, so my point still stands.

Redbelt I will find about this week. I'm looking forward to it.

Dark City: Director's Cut is a strong improvement over the original, which I also liked. I haven't seen it in eight years, but there seemed to be a lot more mystery to it this time. For first-time watchers, the end would be much more of a twist as well when the Shell Beach wall is seen. This is the highlight of Proyas' career.

[D_Davis]

Dark City: Director's Cut is a strong improvement over the original, which I also liked. I haven't seen it in eight years, but there seemed to be a lot more mystery to it this time. For first-time watchers, the end would be much more of a twist as well when the Shell Beach wall is seen. This is the highlight of Proyas' career.

Good to hear. I, too, really like the film but I have been apprehensive about the DC.

[megladon8]

The Dark City DC is totally a Blu-Ray purchase for me.