Crazy Heart wasn't great, I suppose, and its first half was better than its second, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. Mainly, I appreciated the performances from Bridges, Gyllenhaal, and Farrell. The movie felt comfortably lived in. I liked that.
Crazy Heart wasn't great, I suppose, and its first half was better than its second, but I enjoyed it quite a bit. Mainly, I appreciated the performances from Bridges, Gyllenhaal, and Farrell. The movie felt comfortably lived in. I liked that.
Yep, the film could have evoked a lot more about sexualized power as related to class regimes, but it's all anti-censorship this, why can't I write/reveal myself in public! that.Quoting Rowland (view post)
The Act of Killing (Oppenheimer 13) - A
Stranger by the Lake (Giraudie 12) - B
American Hustle (Russell 13) - C+
The Wolf of Wall Street (Scorsese 13) - C+
Passion (De Palma 12) - B
It's a shame, because the original play has a much different ending that perfectly captures this very idea, revealing that the Abbe has unwittingly been drawn into an elaborate, violent sexual game in which he is the aggressor. The movie dumbs down the original concept quite a bit.
Coming to America (Landis, 1988) **
The Beach Bum (Korine, 2019) *1/2
Us (Peele, 2019) ***1/2
Fugue (Smoczynska, 2018) ***1/2
Prisoners (Villeneuve, 2013) ***1/2
Shadow (Zhang, 2018) ***
Oslo, August 31st (J. Trier, 2011) ****
Climax (Noé, 2018) **1/2
Fighting With My Family (Merchant, 2019) **
Upstream Color (Carruth, 2013) ***
Man, Christmas in July is a tight 68 minutes of awesome. No one does American hysteria better than Sturges.
I had written longer, less concise Sonatine thoughts, but in a nutshell: It's great, if not as rewarding as his other movies. Don't get me wrong, it's enjoyable and skillfully made throughout its duration, but it doesn't really leave you with as much to think about as Hana-bi or Kikujiro.
I'd love to hear specifics. It's one of my favorites. I like Kikujiro more, but I think Sonatine edges out Hana-bi on the strength of its austerity.
Maybe Hana-bi feels more rewarding to me because the main character is more likable and as such I can relate to his emotional plight more. With Sonatine, it seems as though most of the rewards can be had while watching the movie, rather than reflecting on it. But it's still far from superficial. I had written that I felt like Kitano had a really good understanding of the human condition and how the human spirit works (although I think it's clearer in other works of his), as evident in the scene where Murakawa is explaining to the woman why exactly he's involved in the yakuza and what the yakuza stands for. Maybe his other works seem more profound to me because there is more going on. Regardless, it's a damn fine film, but it's far from ambitious.
Hmm.
Thoughts? I think a second viewing will eventually be beneficial as I still feel a bit cloudy regarding the russian roulette/[] scenes.
It was your overstatement that I was more concerned about. "Far from" is harsh, because of course the film has ambitions. The pull between beach fronts and office space provides for a stronger comment on man's inner life than Kitano has ever accomplished. Even though the disparate milieus are there in Boiling Point and A Scene at the Sea, this is the prototype for Fireworks, Kikujiro, and Brother, layering the polarity with other model reflections on the balance of tranquility and violence better (or at least with more focus) than the others. The divide here is clearer than it is in the others, which allows for broader application: the growth of personal violence is ironically mirrored in the film's move from the city, which gives the film's parallels of a developed landscape of violence and an idyll seaside a constant fluctuating quality. Kitano is depicting man in his natural state, which he argues is in perpetual conflict. I think this is a frequent perspective he takes and I think he applies it here with exceptional grace.
It's certainly less ornate than the other two you mention, with less soundtrack, so I can concede that it may be more difficult to get into.
Alright, I guess it's my turn to overstate here. I mean to say that the combating backdrops set up Kitano's thematic model more thoroughly than in any of his other movies. It feels primal.
Weekend:
Antonio GaudÃ* (Hiroshi Teshigahara, 1984)
Le Jour se lève (Marcel Carné, 1939)
Persécution (Patrice Chéreau, 2009)
The Pervert's Guide to Cinema (Sophie Fiennes, 2006)
Le Plaisir (Max Ophüls, 1952)
Just because...
The Fabelmans (Steven Spielberg, 2022) mild
Petite maman (Céline Sciamma, 2021) mild
The Banshees of Inisherin (Martin McDonagh, 2022) mild
The last book I read was...
The Complete Short Stories by Mark Twain
The (New) World
Yeah, that was poor word choice on my part, not only because it's not entirely true, but also because I feel like there is more to the movie than I can possibly give it credit for after seeing it just once. Anyway, I appreciate your thoughts and largely agree with you that the violence/tranquility theme is very well-represented in Sonatine. I wish I had more to say, but you've basically covered everything.
Good to know, not surprised this is the case.
Week/weekend: Village of the Damned (Carpenter), The White Ribbon, Tomb of Ligeia, Freddy's Dead maybe
The Act of Killing (Oppenheimer 13) - A
Stranger by the Lake (Giraudie 12) - B
American Hustle (Russell 13) - C+
The Wolf of Wall Street (Scorsese 13) - C+
Passion (De Palma 12) - B
Interested in any thoughts you have for this, Raiders, however brief.
Me too!
Having seen this something like seven times in the last 4 years or so, I can hardly think of a better way to spend 70 minutes.
Did you like it, MacGuffin (it feels weird to call you that, but calling you MG seems weirder)? I loved it, but the only discussion I remember ever having about it on Match Cut was me and baby doll basically arguing about whether or not a personal family drama like that is even ever worth watching/making.
Glad you're digging into Kitano's filmography, also. I'm pretty sure he's my favorite director.
Kitano's filmography has gotten pretty nebulous for me. I have a hard time picking between Kikujiro and Fireworks as my favorite of his (and thus basically my favorite film), though Fireworks has been winning out lately. A couple days a month I'm inclined to call Kids Return or Takeshis'. When I'm feeling rascally, Zatoichi comes to mind.
Love Sonatine, but I feel like it's been too long since I've seen it to say much more than "Yakuza beach party!" I found it anything but slight, though.
I actually haven't watched a single Kore-eda film, but he's been on my radar. I'm trying to figure out if I should start with Maborosi, which seems to be the critical darling, but has a horrendous DVD transfer, or Still Walking, which I can catch on Instant Streaming in high definition.
I already feel like Sonatine deserves another viewing (although at this point, I can't say I'd give it any more than ***1/2), but gotta keep with the film-watching cycle. I'll probably also give Fireworks another look here too. My next Kitano outing will likely be either A Scene at the Sea or Zatoichi, however each are waitlisted on Netflix. I want to buy that red Second Sight box set that's out in Europe as well as Takeshis' (which isn't out in America), but I don't have the cash right now.
As for Kitano himself, I'd put him next to Buster Keaton as far as onscreen prescene goes. He's a real treasure, and on top of being a consistently hilarious and charismatic actor, he's also a brilliant director.
Maybe I was in the wrong mood when I watched it, but Morobosi is maybe my least favorite of his films to date. My entry point was After Life and I think that's a good enough place to start. But then, Still Walking might well be, too. I certainly don't see a reason why not.
How about Distance? It's the favorite Kore-eda of someone on criterionforum.org whose thoughts I generally agree with.
My favorite film of 2008. The butterfly scene is about the saddest thing I've ever seen. Hyperbole! Really though, I lost it.
Did baby doll fall on the side that personal family dramas aren't worth watching/making? Isn't baby doll a fan of Ozu?
I've seen Still Walking, Distance and Maborosi, and the first is by far the best. Maborosi is loved by many around here though.
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