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TrixRabbi posted:
This was my first Godard and it's still among my favourites of his. I almost gave you the Tarkovsky, but it might be a good idea to take a break from him since you didn't respond all that favourably to Andrei Rublev. I prefer The Mirror, though...and it's much different in every conceivable way. I really didn't like Bringing Up Baby. It didn't make me laugh except for maybe a few slight chuckles here and there. Instead, I found it to be a shrill exercise of annoyance. It baffles me that this is praised as an all time great comedy. In some cases, maybe it's because of the passage of time from when it was released but there are plenty of movies from that era I find exceptionally funny. His Girl Friday, for instance, is excellent. That has sharp dialog, deadpan wit, and excellent pacing. Bringing Up Baby was irritating from the first frame. The chemistry between Grant and Hepburn is obvious, but the material is so aggravating. It's not my thing at all. I was afraid I wouldn't like it and my fears came true. I felt similarly when I first watched the Marx Brothers in Duck Soup, another movie that just didn't work for me. I'm the odd one out on this...but at least I got it over with. I liked the stuff with the dog, though. LIST O SHAME: 1920s - Pandora's Box (1928) - Know next to nothing about it except a former co-worker was fascinated by it. 1930s - Bride of Frankenstein (1935)- One of the first sequels better than the original? 1940s - Monsieur Verdoux (1947) - Later Chaplin, I've heard mixed things. 1950s - Pather Panchali (1955) - Filmspotting just started a Satyajit Ray marathon. Might as well get in on the action 1960s - Kuroneko (1968) - Japanese ghost stories are right up my alley. 1970s - Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) - Picked it up as part of last summer's B&N Criterion sale. Heard good to great things. 1980s - Cobra Verde (1987) - Time to watch more of my Herzog/Kinski box set I bought ages ago. 1990s - Topsy-Turvy (1999) - Saw a trailer for this when I was in high school. Thought it looked lame. I've since grown up a tad and have liked what I've seen from Mike Leigh (Happy Go-Lucky and Naked) 2000 and up - George Washington (2000) - The only film by David Gordon Green I have seen is Pineapple Express. Apparently his early films are nothing like that. Slight edit...I've since seen Prince Avalanche and liked it a ton. Bonus/Random - Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971) - Will my having not seen this as a child hurt my chances of loving it as an adult? SHAME BE GONE:Wild Strawberries, Sunset Blvd., The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, Our Man in Havana, Breathless, Phenomena, Withnail & I, 12 Angry Men, The Cranes Are Flying, Fitzcarraldo, Amadeus, Paths of Glory, Blow Out, Cronos, Hausu, City Lights, Easy Rider, The Lives of Others, Salo, In the Bedroom, The Killing of a Chinese Bookie, Cars, Brand Upon the Brain!, The Great Dictator, Double Indemnity, Point Blank, Cool Hand Luke, 127 Hours, Black Narcissus, Lawrence of Arabia, The Sting, A Woman is a Woman, Life of Brian, Last Picture Show, The Company of Wolves, Tree of Life, Life is Beautiful, Young Frankenstein, Cinema Paradiso, Some Like it Hot, Shotgun Stories, Singin' in the Rain, Precious, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, The Rules of the Game, Frost/Nixon, All About Eve, Bronson, The Searchers, Bicycle Thieves, American Graffiti, A Christmas Story, The Phantom Carriage, The Changeling, Repulsion, Kagemusha, Irreversible, The Virgin Spring, The Red Shoes, Deconstructing Harry, Metropolis, Che, The Island of Lost Souls, Revanche, Black Moon, Stalker, Manhattan Murder Mystery, Badlands, The Long Goodbye, Crimes and Misdemeanors, The Apartment, All About My Mother, Tokyo Story, Chungking Express, This is Spinal Tap, On the Waterfront, Grave of the Fireflies, Rebecca, The Sweet Hereafter, Peeping Tom, Drunken Angel, Duck Soup, Key Largo, Witness for the Prosecution, The Lady From Shanghai, Haxan: Witchcraft Through the Ages, Safety Last!, King Kong, Anatomy of a Murder, In a Lonely Place, Safe, Bad Day at Black Rock, The General, The Magnificent Ambersons, Five Easy Pieces, Porco Rosso, Mystery Train, Rififi, The King of Comedy, The Straight Story, The Kid, The Passion of Joan of Arc, Carlos, Onibaba, It Happened One Night, Sherlock Jr., Lone Star, Foreign Correspondent, The Last Detail, Young Mr. Lincoln, Rope, Mr. Hulot's Holiday, The Man Who Laughs, Husbands and Wives, Reds, Sweet Smell of Success, Shadow of a Doubt, The Purple Rose of Cairo, The African Queen, The Lower Depths, Frankenstein, Broadcast News, La Strada, The Last Laugh, Stagecoach, Alexander Nevsky, Don't Look Now, Fish Tank, Steamboat Bill, Jr., Days of Heaven, The Killer, Nosferatu, The Naked Kiss, The Friends of Eddie Coyle, Jules et Jim, Mon Oncle, Howl's Moving Castle, Y Tu Mama Tambien, A Night at the Opera, Berberian Sound Studio, The Natural, Kwaidan, The Color of Money, Fanny and Alexander, Repo Man, The Breakfast Club, The Passenger, The King of Marvin Gardens, The Goonies, Z, Ashes and Diamonds, L'Atalante, All Quiet on the Western Front, L'Age D'Or, The Earrings of Madame De..., La Notte, Europa, World on a Wire, Andrei Rublev, Dersu Uzala, Once Upon a Time in Anatolia, Brewster McCloud, Blast of Silence, Ordet, Bringing Up Baby (TOTAL: 165)
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Feb 5, 2015 15:10
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Ratedargh get on the Ray train with Pather Panchali I watched Ivan's Childhood, and yeah it's alright. Liked it better than my other Tarkosvky experience, solely on the virtue of there not being 10 minutes of people driving endlessly on an highway. I actually watched it back in October when it was assigned to me, and it has been collecting dust in the back of my mind for these last three months and I need to get it out of my system already. I just can't find it in me to muster that much enthusiasm over it or Tarkosvky work honestly. Back to normal scheduling next movie. SHAME Part III Director's Cut: To the Wonder Catching up on my 2013 backlog The Unknown Known Not sure if I can stomach this creep like I did Mcnamara in Fog of War Week End Godard Youth of the Beast Silly name but more Seijun Suzuki The Crime of Monsieur Lange Renoir Ninotchka Directed by Lubitsch, written by Wilder Withnail & I It came from England Paisan Keeping my voyage through Italy with Scorsese Gone Girl Now I have my 2014 backlog to cacth up, and I haven't even started on the 2013! Have watched so far 68 movies: Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Fallen Angels, The Shop Around the Corner, La Strada, Little Dieter Needs to Fly, Rescue Dawn, All About My Mother, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, The Long Goodbye, Vampyr, Mon Oncle, The Exterminating Angel, Jules et Jim, Sorcerer, The Darjeeling Limited, Close-up, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Host, Zelig, Koyaanisqatsi, Young Mr. Lincoln, The Last Picture Show, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, The Killer, Anatomy of a Murder, The Trouble with Harry, Don't Look Now, L'Atalante, Cache, The Leopard, Steamboat Bill, Jr., Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Dancer in the Dark, How Green Was My Valley, Vivre sa Vie, Harvey, The Earrings of Madame de..., The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, Tokyo Drifter, The Player, Intolerable Cruelty, The Insider, Late Spring, Munich, Juliet of the Spirits, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, La Chienne, Le Cercle Rouge, The Lady Eve, Primer, Roma città aperta, Black Narcissus, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, Simon of the Desert, A Foreign Affair, Branded to Kill, In Bruges, Black Swan, The White Diamond, The Sting, Romeo + Juliet, Bronson, The Magician, 2046, Witness for Prosecution, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, I Vitelloni, Sonatine, Ivan's Childhood
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Feb 5, 2015 18:04
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Electronico6 posted:Week End Godard One of my all time favorites. Enjoy. I finally watched Andrei Rublev and I am torn. Some of the sequences where absolutely beautiful and heart-wrenching, but as a whole 3 hour plus long film I had a really hard time staying with it. It is one of those "classic" films that i am glad I finally saw, don't plan to watch again, and will probably forget everything about it. I think some of the philosophical symbolism went over my head. I also happened to have seen Tarkovsky's Stalker recently as well, which I think I enjoyed slightly more. I would recommend Andrei Rublev for any film lovers. (8/10) I also saw Captain Phillips. Eh. It was fine, I guess. (6/10) From the IMDB Top 250: Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) From the Netflix Top 100: From the Janus Arthouse Essential Collection: Umberto D. (1952) In memoriam, From Roger Ebert's Top Films of All Time List: Tokyo Story (1953) Best Movies of All Time based on the Tomatometer (sigh) Score: Aruitemo Aruitemo (Still Walking) (2008) AFI 100 Years 100 Movies: Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939) List of films considered the best, Wikipedia: Cross of Iron (1977) The Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made, NY Times: The King of Marvin Gardens (1972) Best 100 Movies Ever Made, TIME Magazine: Nayakan (1987) The 500 Greatest Moves of All Time, Empire Online: Completed Assignments: Mad Max, The Conversation, Tombstone, Diabolique, The Last Picture Show, Fanny and Alexander, Dawn of the Dead, The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly, Bridge on the River Kwai, Robot & Frank, 12 Angry Men, Seven Samurai, City Lights, Spartacus, La Règle du Jeu, Gravity, Mud, Aguirre, Wrath of God, Andrei Rublev, Captain Phillips
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Feb 5, 2015 19:46
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York_M_Chan, I saw Mr. Smith Goes to Washington thanks to this thread and enjoyed it, I hope you will too. TrixRabbi suggested I see The Exorcist, also saw a few other films off the backlog. La Strada - Not on the backlog, but I was encouraged to see this after my negative opinion of 8 1/2. I'm going to spoil the ending since that is what I'd like to talk about the most. Once Il Matto dies and Gelsomina goes into shock, you really see Zampano change. He offers to take her home to her mother - and I think Zampano by this point realizes that he really would be alone if Gelsomina left, but her welfare is more important than anything to him then. He still has a hard time communicating this, he is after all the dog who wants to talk but can only bark as Il Matto put it. When we see him after the time skip, it's pretty clear he's already resigned himself to solitude - he appears to be camped by himself with the circus, avoids the company of a female, and only comes on stage to do the strongman act. After he finds out about her death, and he goes to the beach, he looks up - there's a surface reading that he is looking up at God, perhaps for a sign of judgment or something. But I like to think of the pebble - remember Il Matto picking one out of the dirt, saying they all have a purpose? Just like the pebble is small compared to Il Matto, so Zampano is to the universe - he's looking up as if he were a pebble, wondering what his purpose was since all he has caused is destruction. I somehow think that is worse than divinity pointing a finger at him - Zampano already knows he has done terrible things. He wants to know why he is that way, why he could only bark, and there is no answer. Just an amazing film. Anthony Quinn is spectacular, Masina excellent, and - Richard Basehart? I only knew of him through the references on MST3K, he was really good in this as Il Matto. I criticized 8 1/2 for not making me feel or care, this film was the polar opposite. Kundun - I enjoyed this a lot more than I expected. Scorsese always does interesting films, and I think he structured this biography of the 14th Dalai Lama's life from his "discovery" until his exile in India in a non-traditional way. It's a film that journeys a bit - the early sequences, for example, show how he was found by some monks, which is factual, but Scorsese makes you feel like you were in the room watching this happen. I keep thinking of the phrase "stream of consciousness" if that makes sense. It's beautifully shot - Roger Deakins only work with Scorsese, with amazing music by Philip Glass (and I think this is now my favorite score of his.) I'm not a Buddhist, not too familiar with the life of Tenzin Gyatso, so I'm sure some of the film was lost on me. But what I did see was very good. Really terrific movie, glad I watched it. The Exorcist - first I gotta get something out of the way BLACK ANGELS! There's a very brief part of composer George Crumb's masterpiece that plays in the very beginning of this movie over the Friedkin title card. I've heard it a ton, never realized it was used in a movie. Cool. Anyway - parts of the film were very good - I liked the opening in Iraq, well-done suspense since you really don't know what's going to happen. There were parts that I don't think aged very well, mostly because they've been appropriated not just in other horror movies but in general pop culture: the ouija board, playing-tape-backwards-to-get-secret-speech though that was already around with the whole Paul McCartney is Dead hysteria and I'm guessing well before that, etc. There are a few scenes that Sam Raimi was playing tribute to in his Evil Dead/Army of Darkness movies, the only other "horror" I've seen. I think that dilutes the impact somewhat. Overall still a good movie though, the exorcism sequence is excellent, terrific soundtrack too. Dog Day Afternoon - I have mixed feelings about the movie. Loved the opening which is just shots of NYC of the time. Pacino is generally good (his scene with Leon is terrific work) but at points ("ATTICA!!!!") he's doing the overacting thing that all but killed his reputation post-Godfather. Cazale is badly wasted. Chris Sarandon as Leon probably has the best overall performance in his short scenes. The bank robbers are counter-culture heroes in the movie, perhaps they were in real life, and the movie tries to set them up to look as sympathetic as possible to the crowd - Sonny threatening to kill the hostages over the phone, but getting to act like he's an unarmed good guy in the street without being called on it. So in the end - though it's a well-made film - it's also a product of its time, a post-Vietnam and post-Watergate movie that I don't think holds up today. Updated list: 1. Anatomy of a Murder - I've heard it's pretty good as far as courtroom movies go, and the trailer breaks the fourth wall in the most awesome way. 2. Assault on Precinct 13 - I've heard is very good from this thread, and always wanted to see it. 3. Spartacus - A Kubrick film I haven't seen, great cast, and who doesn't hate the Romans? 4. The Wicker Man (1973) - Sir Christopher Lee says this is his best movie. 5. Shane - Another supposed classic off the AFI 100 list 6. Death Proof - time to finish up Tarantino! Picker can optionally choose to just give me all of Grindhouse to watch, that's fine too. 7. A Shaw Brothers movie - Yes, my true shame, I have never seen a film made by the legendary Shaw Brothers studio of HK. I'm not familiar enough with all their movies to pick one, so you get to pick any of them, as long as it's available on Amazon Prime or Netflix or the King County Public Library (or even Scarecrow Video, I'll make the trek.) 8. NEW The Man with the Golden Arm - Sinatra is said to be incredible here. 9. NEW Amarcord - Alright you hooked me on Fellini, gotta get my fix. 10. NEW An American In Paris - Let's try another musical  Gershwin though.AFI meter: 67 IMDB 250 meter: 152 (Guardians of the Galaxy? In the Mood for Love at the bottom? And no Chungking Express? Really?) Movies watched: City Lights, Some Like It Hot, Annie Hall, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Dollars Trilogy, Bottle Rocket, Bonnie and Clyde, To Kill a Mockingbird, All About Eve, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The French Connection, To Catch a Thief, Infernal Affairs, The Aviator, The Best Years of Our Lives, Midnight Cowboy, The General, Once Upon a Time in the West, The Philadelphia Story, The Lion in Winter, The Duellists, Ben-Hur, Seven Samurai, Rocky, Kill Bill, 8 1/2, La Strada, Kundun, The Exorcist, Dog Day Afternoon monster on a stick fucked around with this message at 21:10 on Feb 7, 2015 |
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Feb 7, 2015 08:09
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monster on a stick Anatomy of Murder is pretty cool. Week End(1967) dir. Jean-Luc Godard With Mireille Darc and Jean Yanne  A supposedly idyllic weekend trip to the countryside turns into a never-ending nightmare of traffic jams, revolution, cannibalism and murder as French bourgeois society starts to collapse ... This was the last film Godard made in what is often described as his movie phase, around the making of this picture he became quite worried about the role of his films, and of cinema in general, in helping and shaping the world. Believing that his earlier films were sort of childish and pointless, he decided to become more responsible, so he spent the rest of his career making Marxist-Leninist movie essays, with the odd narrative film here and there. Which is something I guess. Week End doesn't finish with a simple The End title card, but with the declaration End of Cinema. The entire film is aptly apocalyptic, with the constant imagery of dead bodies, burning cars, and violence in every other scene, but also with Godard constantly breaking, ignoring, and experimenting with film techniques and language. Long cuts(two particular amazing ones too), jump cuts, bizarre editing, title cards everywhere, loud odd music drowning out the dialog, fourth wall breaks, ill-fitted voice overs, and more It's his experiments during the new wave all let loose in just one picture without any form of restraint. He throws everything in and nothing is sacred. It's wonderfully chaotic and anarchic, but also incredibly angry at everyone and everything, something that I really enjoyed about it. It not only shows rages at the bourgeois that are merciless mocked and destroyed through out the film, it saves plenty of frustration and disappointment at the empty revolutionaries and hippies, such a raw and cynic vision of the 60's. It's biggest weakness, I find, is that it can get too misanthrope, and it really lacks some of that ridicule charm of similar satiric pieces made by the likes of Bunuel, but I really liked it for how mad and unapologetic it gets. SHAME Part III Director's Cut: To the Wonder Catching up on my 2013 backlog The Unknown Known Not sure if I can stomach this creep like I did Mcnamara in Fog of War Youth of the Beast Silly name but more Seijun Suzuki The Crime of Monsieur Lange Renoir Ninotchka Directed by Lubitsch, written by Wilder Withnail & I It came from England Paisan Keeping my voyage through Italy with Scorsese Gone Girl Now I have my 2014 backlog to cacth up, and I haven't even started on the 2013! The Young Girls of Rochefort A musical (i think) Have watched so far 69 movies: Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Fallen Angels, The Shop Around the Corner, La Strada, Little Dieter Needs to Fly, Rescue Dawn, All About My Mother, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, The Long Goodbye, Vampyr, Mon Oncle, The Exterminating Angel, Jules et Jim, Sorcerer, The Darjeeling Limited, Close-up, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Host, Zelig, Koyaanisqatsi, Young Mr. Lincoln, The Last Picture Show, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, The Killer, Anatomy of a Murder, The Trouble with Harry, Don't Look Now, L'Atalante, Cache, The Leopard, Steamboat Bill, Jr., Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Dancer in the Dark, How Green Was My Valley, Vivre sa Vie, Harvey, The Earrings of Madame de..., The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, Tokyo Drifter, The Player, Intolerable Cruelty, The Insider, Late Spring, Munich, Juliet of the Spirits, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, La Chienne, Le Cercle Rouge, The Lady Eve, Primer, Roma città aperta, Black Narcissus, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, Simon of the Desert, A Foreign Affair, Branded to Kill, In Bruges, Black Swan, The White Diamond, The Sting, Romeo + Juliet, Bronson, The Magician, 2046, Witness for Prosecution, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, I Vitelloni, Sonatine, Ivan's Childhood, Week End
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Feb 7, 2015 17:42
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monster on a stick posted:...playing-tape-backwards-to-get-secret-speech though that was already around with the whole Paul McCartney is Dead hysteria and I'm guessing well before that, etc. My favorite example of that is found in the trial of Judas Priest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEKJSOrctcY Electronico6 posted:Ninotchka Directed by Lubitsch, written by Wilder Only one I've seen from your list. Trading Places - A lot of 1980s films make me feel nostalgic but this one didn't as much. One of the main takeaways was the oddity that dealing in hedge funds, stock exchanges, commodities, ETFs and everything else were all forms of gambling and it's all legal but at least in the US many forms of gambling are still frowned upon as being morally rephrensible. The opening featured a compare and contrast segment between the rich and the poor. I was a little concerned because the acting near the beginning was really affected on both ends but it soon got to a more normal tone. I haven't gone into the story really at all but there were a handful of funny moments. Procrastination (164 completed): #155 The Heart Desires AKA Dil Chahta Hai - Aamir Khan is popular on the IMDb top 250. There must be an echo in here. 10/1/14 #156 Land Tax AKA Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India - The Wrath of (Aamir) Khan continues on the IMDb top 250. 10/13/14 #164 Hachi: A Dog's Tale - A dog film that's been lurking around the IMDb 250. 12/13/14 #165 Black Cat, White Cat - A cat film that's been lurking around the IMDb 250. 12/13/14 #166 Diary of the Dead - I've watched this series in the oddest order over the years. I saw Dawn of the Dead (1978) first and then Land of the Dead (2005) then Night of the Living Dead (1968) and finally Day of the Dead (1985). 1/5/15 #169 The Double Life of Veronique - I should watch another Kieslowski film. 1/5/15 #170 The Bandit - Another newcomer to the IMDb top 250. 1/16/15 #172 I Remember AKA Amarcord - A selection from the TSPDT top 100. 1/24/15 #173 Under the Skin - This one seems divisive. 1/31/15 James Bond versus Godzilla: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture (4/36 completed) new 2013 Movie 43 - I heard this was bad. 2/7/15
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Feb 8, 2015 06:48
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Zogo posted:#173 Under the Skin - This one seems divisive. 1/31/15 I have one of the polar opinions of this, would love to hear your impression. Electionico6 gave me Anatomy of a Murder. Absolutely terrific film, I had high expectations for it and it didn't disappoint. Supposedly one of the few trial movies that trial lawyers actually say "yeah that's pretty much how it works" - but at the same time, it was based on a best-selling novel which was based on a real case, and the trailer (which I've posted earlier) says that the lawyer (actually a state Supreme Court Justice by this point) was involved; normally I'd call BS but this was Otto Preminger both producing and directing. The acting - OK, you've got Jimmy Stewart and George C. Scott, both great actors in general, and particularly good in this movie. The supporting case - Ben Gazzara, Lee Remick, Arthur O'Connell, etc. - I thought they put in some great performances as well, O'Connell especially. The soundtrack - well, it's Duke Ellington  so it's by definition great, how many films had a jazz soundtrack of this quality? Any? Especially in the '50s, and a film that isn't about jazz musicians or something.Last, even though this was made in the late '50s, the movie feels very modern. You've got topics like rape, whether "it was provoked", questioning a certain defense - some of this stuff was an issue not too long ago and sometimes still is now. The direction and overall production make the movie feel this way as well, probably due to Preminger. It's a longer film - 160 minutes - and doesn't feel like it at all. Anyway, I loved it, would recommend it to anyone, put it on your list if you haven't seen it. I also watched a bunch of other movies this weekend that weren't on the list but would have been eventually - Yankee Doodle Dandy, Pride of the Yankees, Fourteen Hours, 127 Hours, and After Hours. Updated list: 1. Assault on Precinct 13 - I've heard is very good from this thread, and always wanted to see it. 2. Spartacus - A Kubrick film I haven't seen, great cast, and who doesn't hate the Romans? 3. The Wicker Man (1973) - Sir Christopher Lee says this is his best movie. 4. Shane - Another supposed classic off the AFI 100 list 5. Death Proof - time to finish up Tarantino! Picker can optionally choose to just give me all of Grindhouse to watch, that's fine too. 6. A Shaw Brothers movie - Yes, my true shame, I have never seen a film made by the legendary Shaw Brothers studio of HK. I'm not familiar enough with all their movies to pick one, so you get to pick any of them, as long as it's available on Amazon Prime or Netflix or the King County Public Library (or even Scarecrow Video, I'll make the trek.) I'm letting you pick because I chose 8 1/2 as my first Fellini and look how that turned out 7. The Man with the Golden Arm - Sinatra is said to be incredible here. 8. Amarcord - Alright you hooked me on Fellini, gotta get my fix. 9. An American In Paris - Let's try another musical Gershwin though.10. NEW A Place in the Sun - off the AFI list and won a crapload of Oscars AFI meter: 68 IMDB 250 meter: 152 (Guardians of the Galaxy? [b]In the Mood for Love at the bottom? And no [b]Chungking Express? Really?) Movies watched: City Lights, Some Like It Hot, Annie Hall, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Dollars Trilogy, Bottle Rocket, Bonnie and Clyde, To Kill a Mockingbird, All About Eve, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The French Connection, To Catch a Thief, Infernal Affairs, The Aviator, The Best Years of Our Lives, Midnight Cowboy, The General, Once Upon a Time in the West, The Philadelphia Story, The Lion in Winter, The Duellists, Ben-Hur, Seven Samurai, Rocky, Kill Bill, 8 1/2, La Strada, Kundun, The Exorcist, Dog Day Afternoon, Anatomy of a Murder
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Feb 9, 2015 16:12
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monster on a stick I hope you like big busty women swinging their hips around cause you're getting plenty of it in Amarcord. Ninotchka(1939) dir. Ernst Lubitsch With Greta Garbo, Melvyn Douglas, Ina Claire  A stern Russian woman(Greta Garbo) sent to Paris on official business finds herself attracted to a man(Melvyn Douglas) who represents everything she is supposed to detest. That's a really dumb hat, no amount of Siberian misery can change that. Probably the most interesting thing to me about this film, is that the CIA unleashed it on Italian theatre chain during the Italian election of 1948, as it feared a win by the the Moscow influenced Italian Communist Party.(In the end the Christian right wing won comfortably) Which says a lot about what this picture eventually turns into, an anti-Soviet propaganda piece, 10 years before it became cool. A pioneer! I did find that the first half does have plenty of fun satire, especially involving the Marx brothers like Russian Diplomats, and Garbo's deadpan delivery as a high ranking soviet agent. The last mass trials showing were a success. There will be fewer but better Russians" that's a good line. As the foil to all this communist hijinks is a French aristocrat played by Douglas, but the character is just completely reprehensible, even after his soft turn he's still sort of detestable and not funny at all, making Garbo's turn from cold and robotic to warm and playful not feel earned at all. The rest of the film then just slowly starts to lose steam, fun, ands turns into straight dour propaganda. I also leave you all with this aberration about this film that I found, I'm putting nws tags because this is some real horror  http://i.imgur.com/6RWfwxY.jpg SHAME Part III Director's Cut: To the Wonder Catching up on my 2013 backlog The Unknown Known Not sure if I can stomach this creep like I did Mcnamara in Fog of War Youth of the Beast Silly name but more Seijun Suzuki The Crime of Monsieur Lange Renoir Withnail & I It came from England Paisan Keeping my voyage through Italy with Scorsese Gone Girl Now I have my 2014 backlog to cacth up, and I haven't even started on the 2013! The Young Girls of Rochefort A musical (i think) Have watched so far 70 movies: Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Fallen Angels, The Shop Around the Corner, La Strada, Little Dieter Needs to Fly, Rescue Dawn, All About My Mother, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, The Long Goodbye, Vampyr, Mon Oncle, The Exterminating Angel, Jules et Jim, Sorcerer, The Darjeeling Limited, Close-up, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Host, Zelig, Koyaanisqatsi, Young Mr. Lincoln, The Last Picture Show, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, The Killer, Anatomy of a Murder, The Trouble with Harry, Don't Look Now, L'Atalante, Cache, The Leopard, Steamboat Bill, Jr., Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Dancer in the Dark, How Green Was My Valley, Vivre sa Vie, Harvey, The Earrings of Madame de..., The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, Tokyo Drifter, The Player, Intolerable Cruelty, The Insider, Late Spring, Munich, Juliet of the Spirits, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, La Chienne, Le Cercle Rouge, The Lady Eve, Primer, Roma città aperta, Black Narcissus, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, Simon of the Desert, A Foreign Affair, Branded to Kill, In Bruges, Black Swan, The White Diamond, The Sting, Romeo + Juliet, Bronson, The Magician, 2046, Witness for Prosecution, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, I Vitelloni, Sonatine, Ivan's Childhood, Week End, Ninotchka
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Feb 9, 2015 16:49
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Electronico6 posted:I also leave you all with this aberration about this film that I found, I'm putting nws tags because this is some real horror I don't get it.
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Feb 9, 2015 17:22
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TrixRabbi posted:I don't get it. Ted Turner in the 80's colourized a bunch of classic movies for TV and they all look loving horrible. Ninotchka was one of them.
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Feb 9, 2015 17:27
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So - perhaps a philosophical question. There are some big movies I haven't seen. They're on the various top lists (maybe not top 10 but certainly top 100.) Specifically one that won a ton of Oscars 20 years ago and beat out Pulp Fiction for Best Picture  I'm not quite sure I have the desire to see it since it seems rather corny, but at the same time it's one of those "you haven't seen that movie? how could you not have seen that movie you terrible monster" movies.Do I put it on the list at some point, maybe after all of Werner Herzog's movies or something?
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Feb 9, 2015 18:23
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Gump is pretty far from essential but you probably won't regret watching it. (Cue people saying you'll regret watching it.)
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Feb 9, 2015 18:28
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monster on a stick posted:So - perhaps a philosophical question. The worst case is that you waste 2 hours on a movie you don't like. But no one is forcing you to watch Forrest Gump if you don't want to. I'd say it's worth it to occasionally watch something you don't think you'll like because either you don't like it and you gain a bit of perspective on what you think makes a bad movie and maybe a greater appreciation of what you do like or you do like it and it's a nice surprise and maybe it opens up a new genre to you that you'd previously overlooked.
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Feb 9, 2015 18:29
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monster on a stick posted:So - perhaps a philosophical question. Eh, I tend to eschew the notion of seeing a movie because people tell me "OHMAGOD YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THIS?!" Usually, if I haven't seen one of those movies, it's for good reason. Schindler's List would be a great example of this, as I was overexposed to the holocaust throughout my Jewish education to the point that it became very traumatic for me. Or, perhaps I just really don't like the director/actor. I'd say that unless you've not only heard YOU HAVEN'T SEEN X, but additionally, a follow up that intrigues you; as in "You haven't seen Forrest Gump? Are you kidding, I thought you loved historical fictional biopic... blah blah blah" screw that guy, and don't see that movie. Oh and also, Forrest Gump is way overrated. Go watch Herzog, man. gently caress it.
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Feb 9, 2015 18:32
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monster on a stick posted:So - perhaps a philosophical question. I've gotten to the point where I say gently caress it and watch whatever interests you. Those top lists are more guides, although I can imagine if people are really hounding you about loving Forrest Gump it might be worth it to just watch it and get them off your back. I'm working off those lists because they tend to contain great films I consistently put off watching, even though I know I'll usually love them. And sometimes they get you to watch something you would have ignored otherwise because the subject seemed boring or you don't like the actors or whatever. Don't force yourself to watch a ton of lovely movies if you don't want to just because they ran the best Oscar campaign twenty years ago. edit: Alfred P. Pseudonym's advice is pretty sound too. There's nothing better than loving a movie you thought you were going to hate. TrixRabbi fucked around with this message at 18:36 on Feb 9, 2015 |
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Feb 9, 2015 18:33
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TrixRabbi posted:I can imagine if people are really hounding you about loving Forrest Gump it might be worth it to just watch it and get them off your back. Nah, if someone asks you about Forrest Gump just hit em with the box o' chocolates quote. That usually satisfies them. If that doesn't work, just start talking about shrimp.
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Feb 9, 2015 18:36
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Alfred P. Pseudonym posted:The worst case is that you waste 2 hours on a movie you don't like. But no one is forcing you to watch Forrest Gump if you don't want to. I'd say it's worth it to occasionally watch something you don't think you'll like because either you don't like it and you gain a bit of perspective on what you think makes a bad movie and maybe a greater appreciation of what you do like or you do like it and it's a nice surprise and maybe it opens up a new genre to you that you'd previously overlooked. You know what - that's happened. I didn't think I'd like Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and enjoyed it. I didn't think I'd like All About Eve for some reason but went into it cold and it's a great movie (that ending shot is one of the best.) Heck, one of the movies I just saw not on the list yet - Yankee Doodle Dandy - I thought I'd turn off because musicals but it was really good and I genuinely enjoyed all the musical numbers and it's making me reconsider going back to watch Singing in the Rain. Maybe life is like a box of chocolates, you may enjoy that one with the cherry filling after all. Thanks, goons!
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Feb 9, 2015 20:08
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Chili posted:Eh, I tend to eschew the notion of seeing a movie because people tell me "OHMAGOD YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THIS?!" I dunno, if someone hasn't seen Star Wars, I don't really consider them a human being.
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Feb 9, 2015 22:57
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I still haven't really "seen" Star Wars but I did watch Empire Strikes Back a couple years ago. Also Forrest Gump sucks.
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Feb 9, 2015 23:13
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Electronico6, watch Gone Girl. Citizen Kane, much like The Godfather, is above all else just a really solid character piece, this time about a man whose life and happiness comes crumbling around him despite getting anything and everything he could possibly dream of. The film opens by giving the viewer a brief synopsis of almost everything there is to know about Kane's life on a purely factual level via newsreel, and from there on out has us relearn his story on a much more specific, personal level though the accounts of the people who knew him best, lettings us see both his virtues and perhaps more importantly, his faults. the film ends with the reporter ultimately being unable to decipher the meaning of Rosebud being his sled but declaring it unimportant in summarizing Kane`s life. He ultimately proves himself both right and wrong, Kane's legacy being too great and encompassing to be encompassed by a single word as he says, but that word also representing the happiest point in his life and his lost innocence, ultimately being the turning point that begins his transformation into the man he will become. The filmmaking techniques are also especially groundbreaking for their time, with particular note going towards the excellent use of the lighting and shadow, the use of perspective and and the makeup used the make Welles appear visibly older and more decrepit as the film progresses. My List: 1. Good Morning Vietnam - Continuing my Robin Williams film spree with one of the films that really put him on the map. 2. Back to the Future 2 - Thought I added this after watching the first film for the thread for some reason, but apparently I didn't, so I'm adding it now. 3. Full Metal Jacket - More Kubrick. I know some of iconic scenes of the first half at boot camp and basically nothing else. 4. Pink Floyd - The Wall - I like Pink Floyd and I like surreal imagery, so I can only imagine this should be right up my alley. 5. Princess Mononoke - More Miyazaki, and from what I understand one of his more mature films. One of my friends added this to her top favourite movies after watching it a while back, but I don't actually know a whole lot about it myself. 6. The Lord of the Rings - Even by the standards of this thread, there's pretty much no excuse for me to have not seen these already. Watched Fellowship with a few friends a couple of years ago but never followed up on the other two. Figured I'd get the whole trilogy out of the way given their collective importance and how intertwined they all are in regards to both story and production. 7. Zodiac - More Fincher, and one of his best from what I understand. 8. The Godfather Part II - Commonly see this regarded as possibly the best film sequel of all time, which is definitely a feat considering the pedigree of the original. 9. A Hard Day`s Night - I love The Beatles but have only seen Yellow Submarine as far as their films are concerned. This one in particular seems especially well regarded. 10. Requiem for a Dream - A fun-filled romp for the whole family! Deshamed (36): Monty Python's Life of Brian, My Neighbor Totoro, Alien, Back to the Future, Star Wars: A New Hope, Aliens, Hot Fuzz, Ghostbusters, The Fisher King, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, Good Will Hunting, Wayne's World, One Hour Photo, This is the End, Inglourious Basterds, Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, John Carpenter's The Thing, The Social Network, The Blair Witch Project, The Silence of the Lambs, Se7en, Fantasia, Kill Bill, The Iron Giant, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, The Avengers, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Zombieland, Grave of the Fireflies, Kiki's Delivery Service, The Shawshank Redemption, Fight Club, 21 Jump Street, The Godfather, Jackie Brown, Citizen Kane
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Feb 10, 2015 02:08
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Oh thank god, finally a list with titles I recognize. Trash Boat, light up a doobie, put up your black light posters and watch The Wall. Actually, it's probably best watched sober, because there's a lot going on in that movie, but boy is it a trip. So, Raging Bull wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was thinking this would be like The Wrestler but for boxing, and had no idea it was based on a real boxer. Instead, it's more about a guy who sucks at managing his emotions and personal life who just happens to be a boxer. The black and white works wonderfully for the film, and it's beautifully shot and just generally great all around. The boxing scenes are shockingly violent, and surprisingly one-sided, and it's obvious that Scorcese wanted to contrast the ease of Lamotta's victories in the ring with how much he struggles in his personal life, making his in-ring accomplishments meaningless. I had to laugh at how Joe Pesci is playing the same character he plays in every movie, and I had to roll my eyes at Scorcese's usual treatment of women, but these are minor gripes in an otherwise brilliant movie. I love how the movie is slow paced yet wastes zero time on exposition. Scorcese expects you to keep up with what's happening, and it's really appreciated. Oh, and De Niro is brilliant, but that goes without saying. Definitely worth seeing. Updated list 1 - American History X poo poo just seemed too raw for me as a teen. It seems like what you call a "feel bad" movie. I've always been interested in seeing it, but usually talk myself out of it. 2 - Mr. Smith goes to Washington I haven't been putting this one off for any good reason. It's always "Eh, I'll watch it later." I know I'd probably love it. 3 - Drive Everyone says this movie is the best, I haven't seen it. I might be stupid? 4 - The Warriors I seen the clips, the trailers, the references, footage from the game, but never the proper film. I love pretty much everything it influenced, so hopefully this holds up. 5 - Commando If I've seen this, I was way too young to form memories. I love 80s action shlock so much. 6 - American Graffiti All right George, let's get this over with. 7 - Scarface It's Scarface. 8 -Top Secret This is probably the only big comedy from Abrahams and Zucker I've never seen. 9 - Escape from New York The only Carpenter film I haven't seen, along with the sequel. 10 - UHF I got into Weird Al way too late in life and never got around to seeing what many consider his best work.
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Feb 10, 2015 02:42
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Lurdiak, who also has a list full of films I recognise, I'll go with Drive for you. It has developed a bit of a love it/hate it reputation, but just sit back and watch, hope you enjoy it. looking forward to seeing your thoughts on it. One film on your list I have to warn you about now that I have the chance - The Warriors, when you get given this, make absolutely certain you're watching the original version. There's a new "Director's Cut" that is loving abhorrent and utterly ruins the film, it starts with animated title cards and voiceover. If you start watching it and that's what you see at the start, turn it off! and hunt down the original. For your future reference, the opening shot of the film, after the old Paramount logo, (taken from my old dvd copy) is this: http://imgur.com/V1IxLwV _____________________________ monster on a stick gave me the highly acclaimed 13 Assassins. Directed by the highly prolific and often rather unusual Takashi Miike, I had long planned to watch his take on a standard samurai/jidaigeki film, hence it winding up on my shameful list, and thanks to monster on a stick for finally making me watch it. Runtime is something that often puts me off watching a film at home, I know it's a stupid thing but I don't watch films as much as I used to and am much more inclined to put something on if it's 90 minutes. The near 2 & 1/2 hour runtime of the extended edition of 13 Assassins did no feel long, it flew by. Not least because it's a great film but also because it doesn't waste time, there are numerous scenes of discussions about politics and plotting but nothing ever drags. The film is a bit of a departure for Miike in the genre but there are a few touches that point to him being the Director but most notably he makes an entertaining film. The story is about a group of Samurai coming together to assassinate a particular target. The film is quite brutal at time which is appropriate given the subject matter, it doesn't shy away from the horror of the acts of some of the characters involved. I was worried about the CGI as a few contemporary samurai films have used it for blood and for various grusome effects and Miike has done so himself in the past but the CGI is used very sparingly and the film mostly uses rather practical effects. The large battle scenes are done very well, without ever feeling confusing or getting boring. The 13 Assassins aren't all entirely fleshed out as you might expect but the majority of them are given enough character to be engaging and interesting. Miike's follow up film was another jidaigeki remake, this time of Harakiri, which is probably the best film that this thread gave me to watch. I wasn't particularly interested to see a remake of a film I considered to be a masterpiece, but 13 Assassins makes me intrigued to see how Takashi Miike would have done it... List of Shame (in order of time on list): 1 - A Prophet - Heard almost nothing but good things about this, and prison films are usually interesting. 2 - The Host - South Korean monster movie. teenage love triangle featuring a monster based on the novel by Stephenie Meyer? [this reference is now old and even crapper] 3 - Youth of the Beast - A Seijun Suzuki film that I know nothing about, which is possibly the best thing going in to a Seijun Suzuki film. 4 - Achilles and the Tortoise - final film of Kitano's 'surrealist autobiographical trilogy'...[Catching up with Kitano 2/4] 5 - What Richard Did - Only film by the brilliant Lenny Abrahamson that I haven't seen yet. [Irish Film Slot] 6 - It's a Wonderful Life - Added in time for Christmas, wasn't picked, maybe it'll still be here next year... 7 - Blackfish - Very interested in the subject matter, I need to start watching more documentaries too. [Documentary Slot] 8 - Stand by Me - I've heard the song but have not seen the film. Repeatedly told I should see this by people. 9 - Samurai Rebellion - Know nothing about this, but it's directed by Masaki Kobayashi, Director of Harakiri, which I loved. 10- Bicycle Thieves - new - I attempted to watch this years back but the DVD had terrible subtitles. A true cinematic milestone I need to unshame. Shame No More: [34] [top five] Psycho | The Third Man | The Long Goodbye | Harakiri | The Silence of the Lambs | Pi | Jaws | Panic Room | Black Swan | Star Trek II | The Brothers Bloom | Hugo | Badlands | Shame | LA Confidential | The Right Stuff | The Evil Dead | Hanna | The Master | The Untouchables | Glengarry Glen Ross | The Seventh Seal | The Apartment | The Player | Ronin | The Grand Budapest Hotel | Glory to the Filmmaker! | Frank | Dreams | Paths of Glory | Assault on Precinct 13 | Haywire | Escape From New York | 13 Assassins
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Feb 10, 2015 17:29
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Chewy Bitems posted:Lurdiak, who also has a list full of films I recognise, I'll go with Drive for you. It has developed a bit of a love it/hate it reputation, but just sit back and watch, hope you enjoy it. looking forward to seeing your thoughts on it. All right dude, thanks for the heads up! I'ma get on Drive now. Oh, and to add to my earlier Raging Bull discussion, I strongly recommend reading the imdb trivia page, as it has tons of amazing information. I'd watch a documentary about the making of, cuz that poo poo is bananas.
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Feb 11, 2015 00:51
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Chewy Bitems, looks like I get to pick for you again. A Prophet looks really interesting. Electronico6 gave me a Fellini movie after my positive experience with La Strada after my negative experience with 8 1/2. So... Amarcord. It's supposed to be Fellini's movie about his youth in Italy. I imagine there's a lot of stuff in the movie that would make a lot more sense if you grew up in Italy, especially at the time, or maybe have Italian grandparents or something who told you about what it was like. I'm neither Italian nor have Italian grandparents. I think that prevented me from enjoying the movie. I wasn't even sure what to feel at many points... the bit where the boy "seduces" the cigarette woman? I guess that was supposed to be funny? To be honest I was checking my watch 20 minutes in (and I'm sorry, the movie does start very slow, that bonfire sequence takes forever) and almost fell asleep a few times. I enjoyed parts of the movie though (like the giant talking Mussolini head but that was 5 seconds.) I'm not sure I'd use the word "boring", that's rather a strong word. But why not, I've never held back when I liked a movie, I shouldn't when I dislike it, so "boring" it is. Cinematography was nice though. That sequence with the kid in the (for lack of a better word) Little Red Riding Hood outfit, fog, leaves blowing, really nice. Was the "narrator" the inspiration for Bob Balaban's role in Moonlight Kingdom? Not the same (nobody was throwing snowballs at Balaban) but it reminded me of it with the framing. Now, I'm wondering after I've written this review, whether it's like 8 1/2 in that it's really a movie for people who like Fellini, and newcomers aren't going to get all the references. Which is kind of funny because an acquaintance of mine told me I should start with Amarcord and 8 1/2 and that I would not like La Strada [EDIT: I'm thinking that I enjoy Fellini's "regular" movies rather more. Has anyone seen Il Bidone? Looks interesting and for whatever reason, after watching La Strada and Fourteen Hours, I've started to like Richard Basehart.] I'm not sure how active I'll be as far as watching movies over the next week, it's cram time. 1. Assault on Precinct 13 - I've heard is very good from this thread, and always wanted to see it. 2. Spartacus - A Kubrick film I haven't seen, great cast, and who doesn't hate the Romans? 3. The Wicker Man (1973) - Sir Christopher Lee says this is his best movie. 4. Shane - Another supposed classic off the AFI 100 list 5. Death Proof - time to finish up Tarantino! Picker can optionally choose to just give me all of Grindhouse to watch, that's fine too. 6. A Shaw Brothers movie - Yes, my true shame, I have never seen a film made by the legendary Shaw Brothers studio of HK. I'm not familiar enough with all their movies to pick one, so you get to pick any of them, as long as it's available on Amazon Prime or Netflix or the King County Public Library (or even Scarecrow Video, I'll make the trek.) I'm letting you pick because I chose 8 1/2 as my first Fellini and look how that turned out 7. The Man with the Golden Arm - Sinatra is said to be incredible here. 8. An American In Paris - Let's try another musical Gershwin though.9. A Place in the Sun - off the AFI list and won a crapload of Oscars 10. NEW Casino - Yes, the Scorsese movie. I've seen a few clips but never the whole thing. AFI meter: 68 IMDB 250 meter: 152 Movies watched: City Lights, Some Like It Hot, Annie Hall, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Dollars Trilogy, Bottle Rocket, Bonnie and Clyde, To Kill a Mockingbird, All About Eve, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The French Connection, To Catch a Thief, Infernal Affairs, The Aviator, The Best Years of Our Lives, Midnight Cowboy, The General, Once Upon a Time in the West, The Philadelphia Story, The Lion in Winter, The Duellists, Ben-Hur, Seven Samurai, Rocky, Kill Bill, 8 1/2, La Strada, Kundun, The Exorcist, Dog Day Afternoon, Anatomy of a Murder, Amarcord monster on a stick fucked around with this message at 17:08 on Feb 11, 2015 |
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Feb 11, 2015 06:42
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monster on a stick posted:[EDIT: I'm thinking that I enjoy Fellini's "regular" movies rather more. Has anyone seen Il Bidone? Looks interesting and for whatever reason, after watching La Strada and Fourteen Hours, I've started to like Richard Basehart.] I did say last page to go with Nights of Cabiria after La Strada. Masina rules. Haven't watched Il Bidone yet.
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Feb 11, 2015 22:44
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monster on a stick posted:6. A Shaw Brothers movie - Yes, my true shame, I have never seen a film made by the legendary Shaw Brothers studio of HK. I'm not familiar enough with all their movies to pick one, so you get to pick any of them, as long as it's available on Amazon Prime or Netflix or the King County Public Library (or even Scarecrow Video, I'll make the trek.) I'm letting you pick because I chose 8 1/2 as my first Fellini and look how that turned out I'll say The Super Inframan AKA Infra-Man. I think it's on Prime or in your library system. Otherwise, if you have trouble finding it then I'd go with Assault on Precinct 13. Under the Skin - Although it had an unconventional presentation I was reminded of plenty of films that deal with skin, identity and aliens: Altered States Hellraiser Hellbound: Hellraiser II Species Starman And even this Daft Punk music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwRlt1XyOg0 Ostensibly this alien is a good Samaritan and a friendly chauffeur. But, in actuality, this thing is a malevolent prostitute harvesting skin off unsuspecting John's. And since this alien looks like Scarlett Johansson naturally most of the guys try to rape her/it and get sucked into some vortex like flies to fly paper. Throughout the film there are, for lack of a better term, a few motorcycle alien pimps that appear to keep tabs on these harvesters. It's kind of reminiscent of that Reptilian folklore : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reptilians I wouldn't mind watching a sequel featuring Sasquatches. Procrastination (165 completed): #155 The Heart Desires AKA Dil Chahta Hai - Aamir Khan is popular on the IMDb top 250. There must be an echo in here. 10/1/14 #156 Land Tax AKA Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India - The Wrath of (Aamir) Khan continues on the IMDb top 250. 10/13/14 #164 Hachi: A Dog's Tale - A dog film that's been lurking around the IMDb 250. 12/13/14 #165 Black Cat, White Cat - A cat film that's been lurking around the IMDb 250. 12/13/14 #166 Diary of the Dead - I've watched this series in the oddest order over the years. I saw Dawn of the Dead (1978) first and then Land of the Dead (2005) then Night of the Living Dead (1968) and finally Day of the Dead (1985). 1/5/15 #169 The Double Life of Veronique - I should watch another Kieslowski film. 1/5/15 #170 The Bandit - Another newcomer to the IMDb top 250. 1/16/15 #172 I Remember AKA Amarcord - A selection from the TSPDT top 100. 1/24/15 new #174 Jade - Basic Instinct 1.5? 2/13/15 James Bond versus Godzilla: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture (4/36 completed) 2013 Movie 43 - I heard this was bad. 2/7/15 Electronico6 posted:
I hope those come back in style because I'd like to laugh all day. Zogo fucked around with this message at 07:07 on Feb 13, 2015 |
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Feb 13, 2015 07:04
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Zogo, I haven't seen anything on your list so let's go with The Heart Desires since it's been there the longest. Band of Outsiders:  What's peculiar to me about Godard is that he's hit or miss for just about everybody. The thing that sets him apart is that nobody can quite agree on what are the hits and what are the misses. Band of Outsiders, for me, seems like it should be a hit. It's got a robbery at the center of it's story, charming editing tricks, a fun score, goofy characters, that adorable scene on the subway when Odile asks Arthur if he has a lot of girlfriends. But instead I feel incredibly indifferent for the most part. I think I enjoy a lot of the scenes more in hindsight, but the act of watching it left me mostly bored. I vastly prefer Truffaut's Shoot the Piano Player, which has a similar vibe and pulp plot, but with more consistency and heart. Godard's intellectualism throttles the heart of his films. I also watched Chelsea Girls, which I actually enjoyed for the most part, even if it could stand to be an hour shorter. It's the kind of movie that made me want to be in a theater in the 60s when you could still smoke inside. It's a series of vignettes, playing two at a time, completely improvised. I totally understand how most anybody would hate it, but it's late-60s arthouse vibe clicked for me and I was really into it for most of the run time. I think around the 2 hour 20 minute mark you start feeling it though, and there's the scene where the guy slowly starts taking off his pants that's just plain obnoxious and never ends. The length adds to the experience, but it could have shaved off some. My List: Black Jesus (1968) - But what about Black Santa?  (Added 12/17/2013)Damnation (1988) - I've never seen a Béla Tarr film. I know Werckmeister Harmonies is the favorite, but something about this one is calling me. (Added 12/21/2013) Fort Apache (1948) - The first in John Ford's Cavalry trilogy. (Added 1/2/2014) Playtime (1967) - Is this an alright jumping in point for Tati? (Added 3/11/2014) A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) - The only Elia Kazan movie I've seen is On the Waterfront, which I watched for this thread. And the only Tennessee Williams I've seen is Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. So I owe both of them a deeper look. (Added 8/4/2014) Napoleon (1927) - An old silent on Napoleon? How long could it possibly be? Oh... OH! Oh no. (Added 10/8/2014) TSPDT Top 1000 The Mirror (1975) - Another Tarkovsky. I don't know if I can handle one again so soon, although this is a much more manageable length. (Added 2/3/2015) TSPDT 21st Century In the Mood for Love (2000) - Apparently the greatest film of the 21st Century thus far. The only Wong Kar-Wai I've seen is Chungking Express, which I loved. So I don't know why I've dragged my feet with the rest of his filmography. (Added 2/5/2015) Academy Award for Best Picture The Hurt Locker (2009) - I think Zero Dark Thirty might be one of the greatest films of the 21st century thus far, so I feel like I'll enjoy Bigelow's other Iraq movie. (Added 2/15/2015) Jonathan Rosenbaum's Essential Films The Avenging Conscience (1914) - Griffith's last film before The Birth of a Nation. (Added 2/15/2015) Watched: Harold and Maude; The Third Man; Inland Empire; Godzilla; Big Trouble In Little China; Y Tu Mamá También; Marathon Man; Hunger; A Woman Is A Woman; Black Narcissus; A Hard Day's Night; Scarface; Le Doulos; On The Waterfront; Rocky; 3 Women; Airplane!; Duck Soup; Clash of the Titans; Singin' In The Rain; The Cow; Straw Dogs; Stop Making Sense; Bad Timing; Once Upon A Time In America; Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade; Robocop; Shane; WALL·E; The 36th Chamber Of Shaolin; The Man Who Fell To Earth; Mr. Smith Goes To Washington; Divorce Italian Style; Some Like It Hot; To Kill A Mockingbird; An American Werewolf In London; Buffalo '66; Lawrence Of Arabia; Manhattan; Cul-De-Sac; The Birth of a Nation; Braveheart; Sex, Lies, and Videotape; Malcolm X; Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai; The Passion of Joan of Arc; The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King; Le Samouraï; The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance; Marat/Sade; His Girl Friday; A Woman Under the Influence; Close Encounters of the Third Kind; Rio Bravo; Triumph of the Will; Titanic; Strike; The General; Jules et Jim; Tokyo Story; Once Upon A Time In Anatolia; L'Âge d'Or; Stroszek; Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky; Faust; Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom; Frankenstein; Rebel Without a Cause; Gone with the Wind; Barry Lyndon; The Grapes of Wrath; Midnight Cowboy; My Darling Clementine; Hoop Dreams; Close-Up; Begotten; The Goddess; The Apartment; Hell's Angels; All About Eve; Night and Fog; Grey Gardens; Zardoz; King Boxer - Five Fingers of Death; The Lady Eve; Akira; The Beaver Trilogy; Day of Wrath; Andrei Rublev; Showgirls; Chelsea Girls; Band of Outsiders (TOTAL: 92) TrixRabbi fucked around with this message at 17:56 on Feb 15, 2015 |
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Feb 15, 2015 16:50
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TrixRabbi, I'm tempted to give you Napoleon as your comment for it made me laugh, but instead watch In the Mood for Love, which I hope you enjoy as much as you loved Chungking Express. _____________________________ monster on a stick, who often picks my selections, gave me A Prophet (Un prophète). It was the film that has been longest on my Shameful list, having heard many great things about it when it was released several years back. Unfortunately, I can't say it was worth the wait. A rather standard prison film chronicling the incarceration of a young man and how he changes as a result of the prison system and his interactions with his fellow inmates. The film is fairly meandering and eventually develops into more of a crime film than a prison one but it doesn't do anything interesting. There are the ocassional moments when the film takes on dreamlike/imaginative sequences but these feel deliberate and add very little to the film, or to your understanding of the main character. Disappointing and unoriginal. My List of Shame: 1 - The Host - South Korean monster movie. teenage love triangle featuring a monster based on the novel by Stephenie Meyer? [this reference is now old and even crapper] 2 - Youth of the Beast - A Seijun Suzuki film that I know nothing about, which is possibly the best thing going in to a Seijun Suzuki film. 3 - Achilles and the Tortoise - final film of Kitano's 'surrealist autobiographical trilogy'...[Catching up with Kitano 2/4] 4 - What Richard Did - Only film by the brilliant Lenny Abrahamson that I haven't seen yet. [Irish Film Slot] 5 - It's a Wonderful Life - Added in time for Christmas, wasn't picked, maybe it'll still be here next year... 6 - Blackfish - Very interested in the subject matter, I need to start watching more documentaries too. [Documentary Slot] 7 - Stand by Me - I've heard the song but have not seen the film. Repeatedly told I should see this by people. 8 - Samurai Rebellion - Know nothing about this, but it's directed by Masaki Kobayashi, Director of Harakiri, which I loved. 9 - Bicycle Thieves - I attempted to watch this years back but the DVD had terrible subtitles. A true cinematic milestone I need to unshame. 10- The Raid - new - Highly acclaimed recent action film, been meaning to catch this since it's release. Shame No More: [35] [top five] Psycho | The Third Man | The Long Goodbye | Harakiri | The Silence of the Lambs | Pi | Jaws | Panic Room | Black Swan | Star Trek II | The Brothers Bloom | Hugo | Badlands | Shame | LA Confidential | The Right Stuff | The Evil Dead | Hanna | The Master | The Untouchables | Glengarry Glen Ross | The Seventh Seal | The Apartment | The Player | Ronin | The Grand Budapest Hotel | Glory to the Filmmaker! | Frank | Dreams | Paths of Glory | Assault on Precinct 13 | Haywire | Escape From New York | 13 Assassins | A Prophet
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Feb 16, 2015 01:46
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Go with Stand By Me, I'm a sucker for movies about friendship, and the telling of stories, so I was bound to enjoy it... but it is pretty drat good. Very watchable. The first 8 minutes of Notorious are among the strangest I’ve ever come across throughout my watching of motion pictures. So much so that I am actually pausing the film to get my thoughts down. Let’s start with the concept of Movie Stars. I don’t think I’d be out of order to suggest that Ingrid Begrman and Cary Grant were movie stars in a way that the actors today can only dream of. With the prominence of celebrity news, and the fortunate burgeoning enterprise of independent film, there are simply too many people who can claw their way into the limelight and hog a portion of it. There was the same amount of light available in 1946, but the accessibility of that light has become so great that you have millions of people taking their fifteen minutes of fame, and that fame comes from the few people at the top who used to guard it. When you examine the culture at the time, you realize just how much command Cary Grant, Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Lauren Bacall etc… had at the time. We see just how prominent Grant, and Begrman are in this film, in each of their first shots. Bergman is seen walking stiffly through a court hall, with people clamoring after her, wanting a word. The presentation is clear, this is not a character, this is Ingrid Bergman and aren’t you lucky you get to see another film with her starring in it! Cut to the party, immediately following and we note that of the 8 guests in attendance, one suspiciously is both commanding a lot of attention and also has his head turned away from the camera. We don’t know who this character is, in fact, neither do most of the folks at the party, he’s quickly described as a “party crasher” and that’s all of the characterization we get. But, of course, the audience knows exactly who this man is, it’s Cary Grant! Imagine if a relatively unknown actor were playing this part, would his handling have been this coy and purposeful? Of course not, the anticipation is built not on revealing the character, but rather, the actor. The back and forth to follow between Grant and Bergman begins abruptly, and their sexual tension develops instantly and abruptly. This is not real life, and everyone knows it’s not real life, but these are two sexy, beautiful people, and Hitchcock is making drat well sure that we know it. These two super people have to immediately fall for each other, they are SUPER PEOPLE! And then, the ultimate moment, which I’m guessing would have become a huge meme, occurs on the actor’s way out to the car. Bergman is dressed in attractive attire, but has a fair bit of skin exposed to the elements. Grant helpfully suggests that the Bergman, who is about to drive the two of them while she is intoxicated, may get too cold. What does he do? He ties a teeny tiny bandana… around her stomach. It’s funny to watch now, but it doesn’t feel as though it was meant to be funny. It’s certainly an important plot point that her character can be identified as having a bandana around her. And Hitchcock doesn’t seem to care that the audience will know better. Why? Because CARY GRANT AND INGRID BERGMAN are on the screen!!!! HOLY CRAP! I’m about to resume watching the film, and I do want to say, I’m not hating it, and I suspect I’ll actually enjoy it. But it’s so fascinating to note just how different movies are now. Notorious is about to turn 60 years old, and man, have things changed over that period of time. Now…. On with the show. 1 Hour and 30 minutes later… Show’s over! Not entirely sure what to make of this one. Hitchcock certainly knows how to direct films, but I’m not sure if romance is even close to his wheelhouse. This was, as I understand it, Hitchcock’s first real shot at tackling an “intimate” love affair. There’s not a whole lot of cultivating any sort of romance between these two. Again, these are movie stars, and I expect Hitchcock leans on that notion to imply their love. The plot points that move the film along are few and far between, and yet the film doesn’t ever really tire or bore. There is little to no tension, even at what seem to be the most tense-centric moments (wine cellar scene, ending bedroom scene), and Hitchcock certainly knows his tension. Maybe he didn’t truly come into his own until 1960 when he released Psycho, which for my money does tension about as good as a film can. By the time this film came out, Hitchcock already enough clout to do what he pleased. While he may have stepped out of his comfort zone in putting the burden of the film’s thrust on a romance that he probably didn’t fully know how to cultivate, the film definitely suffered from it. It wasn’t painful, it didn’t drag on, but Hitchcock is certainly capable of more. Also, I hate to say it, but I’m really starting to think that I don’t like Cary Grant all that much. He just seems like a poor man’s Humphrey Bogart. 7/10 1. First Blood - Yup, never seen any of them old Rambo flix. 2. The Purple Rose of Cairo - More Woodie! 3. *NEW* Little Shop of Horrors *NEW* - I only recently started getting into musicals. I've since been in some and have been enjoying others. This looks like fun! 4. Poolhouse Junkies - Looks like fun. 5. The Last Starfighter - I know nothing about this other than the bits that were referenced in Plinkett's Episode 1-3 reviews. It looks cool though! 6. Rebel Without A Cause - I know that Fry from Futurama is based off of Dean's character (or at least his look). I also know it's classic and even though I'm over 90 movies in the shame seems endless. 7. Sherlock Jr. - Keaton has yet to disappoint me. The General actually brought me to tears. More please. 8. Intolerable Cruelty - Continuing along with my quest to complete the Coens! I'm getting there! 9. Beasts Of The Southern Wild - All I know is that the kid is supposed to be great. 10. Ashes and Diamonds - There was some kind of list of famous director's favorite movies. A lot of directors I liked listed this and I had never heard of it. Let's go! 96 Total De-Shamed! Yojimbo 7.5/10, Aliens 6.5/10, Brazil 8/10, Cool Hand Luke 9.5/10, 28 Days Later 6/10, Predator 8.5/10, Blade Runner 7.5/10,Crimes and Misdemeanors 9/10, Vertigo 7/10, Being There 7.5/10, Psycho 10/10, Apocalypse Now 7.5/10, Citizen Kane 8.5/10, Dr. Strangelove 7/10, Close Encounters of the Third Kind 8.5/10, The Bicycle Thief 7/10, Raging Bull 8/10, Ikiru 10/10, Terminator 2: Judgement Day 7/10, The Night of the Hunter 8.5/10 How to Train Your Dragon 6.5/10, There Will Be Blood 8/10, Manhattan 7/10, Rashomon 8.5/10, Unforgiven 8.5/10 The Third Man 9.5/10, Requiem For A Dream 4/10, Charade 5.5/10, Sunset Blvd. 8/10 , Badlands 6.5/10, Dead Man 8.5/10, On The Waterfront 9/10, Mad Max 6/10, Singin' In The Rain 9.5/10, Sleeper 7.5/10, Enter The Dragon 6.5/10, The Hustler 8/10 , The Town 9/10, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas 5.5/10, Boogie Nights 7.5/10, Hanna 8.5/10, The Conversation 7.5/10, Serpico 8/10, Hoop Dreams 9/10, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind 8/10, Blood Simple 7.5/10, Roman Holiday 8.5/10, Miller's Crossing 8/10, M 7.5/10, Moonrise Kingdom 6.5/10, Rope 7/10, Tiny Furniture 1/10, On The Town 5.5/10, Gosford Park 5.5/10, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes, 8.5/10, City Lights 8.5/10, The Exorcist 6.5/10, California Split 7/10, Aguirre, The Wrath Of God 8/10, Following 8/10, The General 10/10, Barton Fink 8.5/10, Tombstone 8/10, The Hudsucker Proxy 9/10, Love Actually 6.5, La Dolce Vita 7/10, Chop Shop 9.5/10, Duck Soup 6/10, When Harry Met Sally 8/10, Tokyo Story 7/10, Kelly's Heroes 8/10, The Thing 8.5/10, Lost In Translation 9.5/10, Anchorman 6.5/10, Mulholland Dr. 8.5/10, Rebecca9/10, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans 7/10, Steamboat Bill Jr. 9/10, Double Indemnity 9/10, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum 6.5/10, The Man Who Wasn't There 8.10, Synecdoche, NY 10/10 , Leaving Las Vegas 9/10, The Hidden Fortress 8.5/10, Magnificent Seven 8/10, Dear Zachary -/10, The Fly 9/10, Time Bandits 6/10, Before Sunrise 6.5, The Buddy Holly Story 7/10, Pleasantville 7/10, The Rules of the Game 6/10, Senna 7.5/10, Kiki's Delivery Service 8/10, Gojira 9.5/10, The Blues Brothers 5/10, Notorious 7/10
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Feb 16, 2015 17:08
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Chili posted:The plot points that move the film along are few and far between, and yet the film doesn’t ever really tire or bore. There is little to no tension, even at what seem to be the most tense-centric moments (wine cellar scene, ending bedroom scene), and Hitchcock certainly knows his tension. Maybe he didn’t truly come into his own until 1960 when he released Psycho, which for my money does tension about as good as a film can. I'm not quite sure how to respond to this. Have you watched North by Northwest, Vertigo, Rear Window, The Man Who Knew Too Much, or Rope (if for no other reason than doing the movie in five continuous shots and making it look like there are no cuts at all)? I'd say, if anything, Hitchcock was on the decline after 1960 (the only real classic after Psycho was The Birds)? Though most of those movies have Movie Stars in them as the leading role, with the exception of Rope where the two main protagonists are a bit more obscure? VVVV - I think that's fair. Psycho is very good and saying that is your favorite Hitchcock movie is nothing to be ashamed of. monster on a stick fucked around with this message at 17:29 on Feb 16, 2015 |
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Feb 16, 2015 17:20
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^^^^ Sure, and I'm not ashamed of that whatsoever... as far as my half-cocked blowhard statements howevever... let's just say I've been apologizing for those for something like 15 years now. You didn't know how to respond, because I was being thick and non-sensical. I think it was because I see Psycho as the pinnacle of his film making. But yes, all of the films you cited I have in fact seen, and I will concede... they do tension well. I don't think Notorious did that well, and I think Pyscho did it the best, so I made a stupid statement... and here we are. Chili fucked around with this message at 17:35 on Feb 16, 2015 |
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Feb 16, 2015 17:24
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monster on a stick posted:Though most of those movies have Movie Stars in them as the leading role, with the exception of Rope where the two main protagonists are a bit more obscure? Granger and Dall played the main characters, but its Stewart show all the way, including top billing. Chili posted:I don’t like Cary Grant all that much. He just seems like a poor man’s Humphrey Bogart. Booo this man! boooooooooooo
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Feb 16, 2015 17:54
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cary grant is way cuter than bogie. bogie is just so angry and serious in every role ive seen him in. also im bad at watching the movie im supposed to watch im gonna loving watch the 7th seal when i wake up tomorrow
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Feb 16, 2015 18:02
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Slaapaav posted:cary grant is way cuter than bogie. bogie is just so angry and serious in every role ive seen him in. also im bad at watching the movie im supposed to watch im gonna loving watch the 7th seal when i wake up tomorrow Check out The African Queen. I wouldn't say it's his most convincing role, but the man certainly has range.
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Feb 16, 2015 18:45
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Bogie and Cary Grant are just so completely opposite. Grant showcased his range a lot, but he's also arguably more famous for his comedic roles like Bringing Up Baby and the like. Even when Grant was in serious dramas or thrillers his presence and persona were just as far away from Bogart's dry, melancholy delivery as you could get. I've always said George Clooney is our era's version of Cary Grant.
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Feb 16, 2015 19:17
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Yeah, literally everything about Bogie and Grant is pretty dissimilar.
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Feb 16, 2015 19:20
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TrixRabbi posted:Bogie and Cary Grant are just so completely opposite. Grant showcased his range a lot, but he's also arguably more famous for his comedic roles like Bringing Up Baby and the like. Even when Grant was in serious dramas or thrillers his presence and persona were just as far away from Bogart's dry, melancholy delivery as you could get. Yeah, it's probably an unfair comparison. I guess it was Grant's proximity to Bergman in Notorious that drew the comparison to Bogies' in Casablanca. I think nearly all of the times I've seen Grant, he's felt like exactly the same character. I should probably check out Bring Up Baby. Maybe that'll go on the list soon.
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Feb 16, 2015 19:20
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Chili posted:Yeah, it's probably an unfair comparison. I guess it was Grant's proximity to Bergman in Notorious that drew the comparison to Bogies' in Casablanca. I think nearly all of the times I've seen Grant, he's felt like exactly the same character. I should probably check out Bring Up Baby. Maybe that'll go on the list soon. Well a lot of those old Hollywood stars played the same or similar characters all the time. Is there a huge difference between Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe? Hell, there's not even a big difference between Sam Spade and Rick Blaine. What Cary Grant films have you seen?
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Feb 16, 2015 19:25
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TrixRabbi posted:Well a lot of those old Hollywood stars played the same or similar characters all the time. Is there a huge difference between Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe? Hell, there's not even a big difference between Sam Spade and Rick Blaine. I'll give you that a lot of Bogie's roles were similar. And again, I need to plead ignorance here because I haven't seen all that much of Grant's films. I've already admitted that I say a lot of stupid, half cocked things. Of Grant's films, I've seen: 1. North By Northwest 2. Notorious 3. Charade Oh boy... that's it :/ I thought I had seen more, and now I hesitate to admit an even further ignorance... I fear as though I've been lumping him and Jimmy Stewart into the same persona. I've seen 96 films, and the shame never ends.
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Feb 16, 2015 19:29
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Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart is actually a better argument for "pretty similar".
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Feb 16, 2015 19:34
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