Damn, I only have time to watch movies on weekends part 19: we're gonna need a bigger boat...
Submitted by AJDaGreat on Thu, 09/24/2009 - 18:15
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- 1. Night on Earth (1991)
- Five taxicabs. Five cities. Five stories. Two comedic. One dramatic. Two that toe the line. Focus on conversations. Focus on characterizations. Focus on the ghostly isolation of the night. No rules. Los Angeles is thought-provoking enough, if a little hard to believe that this girl has been able to keep up her job as a cab driver for so long. New York mainly features Giancarlo Esposito being manic, which is hit-or-miss but produces some funny and endearing moments. Paris features two outcasts who have become rude and standoffish because of what they have endured as outsiders... and rather than bonding over this, they are rude and standoffish to each other. Rome is Roberto Benigni being silly, which has its moments but gradually becomes groanworthy. Helsinki is the straight drama, and it's somewhat affecting although not as affecting as it should be. In fact, most of this movie is not really as good as it ought to be. It's ultimately uneven and less than the sum of its parts, but it is still actually a rather good film.
- 2. The Informant! (2009)
- This movie is somewhat disconcerting. It casts a host of comic actors and creates a highly comic protagonist character, then puts them all in situations where they are allowed to be disturbing, sad, and strange, but rarely funny. It shows us early on that it is bubbling with Soderbergh's stylistic experiments in an attempt to make an incredibly mundane situation into wacky fun, and yet this style mainly just serves to highlight how bland and uninvolving the first half of the film is. True, it is perhaps necessary to drag us through some of this expositional set-up, and the second half does much more interesting and redeems the movie quite a bit. Still, while many of the elements are good, especially Matt Damon's pitch-perfect performance as he plays against type as a dumpy idiot, it never quite gels into a fully satisfying film. Although it is pretty good.
- Let's play some quick catch-up...
- 3. Homicide: Life on the Streets (1994-1995)
- Though this season finds Homicide venturing into more conventionally-structured cop drama than in the past (The Last of the Watermen being the worst offender), this is still a brilliant show, filled with moments of ambiguity, moments of closure, intense drama, witty character development, and strong production values.
- 4. Looney Tunes: Golden Collection, Volume 4 (1936-1966)
- The cartoon obscurity level increases with each new set, here getting into some Tashlin oldies and some non-classic Bugs Bunny cartoons. I must confess to loving the shorts that pair Wile E. Coyote with the sly rabbit, so I was very happy to see two of those here. Rewatching the Speedy Gonzales cartoons proved that the much-maligned mouse's worst sin is being formulaic; even if you are appalled by the portrayal of Mexican mice as sombrero-wearing, fun-loving rascals in need of a hasty hero, this cannot be called racism because it's based on nationality, akin to the portrayal of those beret-wearing baguette-eaters in the Pepe le Pew cartoons. As for the extras, I feel like I'm hearing the same WB stories over and over in the documentary subjects, but the Private Snafu cartoons are bizarre treasures, especially the "Goldbrick" parody of Gilbert and Sullivan's "Tit Willow."
- 5. Midnight (1939)
- Not enough screwball to really be a screwball comedy, but this is a very fun romantic comedy that gets increasingly funny over the course of its running time, and a marvelous showcase for some terrific performers.
- 6. Paris, Texas (1984) (watched again)
- This brooding, meticulous film earns every device it uses to wring emotion out of the viewer, both through its majestic visuals and the sullen depth of its performances. Easily one of the best films of the eighties.
- 7. The Office: Series 1 (UK) (2001)
- A much crueler, more awkward Office than the US version, and one that features a barrage of UK pop culture references that totally left me in the dark. Of course, it's still watchable, and Ricky Gervais is always good for a laugh. Tim, on the other hand, is a miserably depressing character who lacks the charm of Jim Halpert.
- 8. In the Mood for Love (2000) (watched again)
- I don't think I got this film when I saw it for the first time (about seven years ago), and what with the buzz calling this one of the best of the decade and among the all-time greats, I figured I owed this another chance. I got more out of it but still felt like it did not blow me away, visually or emotionally. A pretty great film by a visionary director, but I prefer Chungking Express and 2046.
- 9. Johnny Guitar (1954)
- Nicholas Ray has a thing for this histrionic melodrama filled with truly bizarre subtexts. It doesn't work as well here as it does in Rebel Without a Cause, but there's something strangely entrancing about his films, over-the-top as they may be.
- 10. Good Will Hunting (1997)
- Matt Damon and Ben Affleck really made a splash with this well-written if totally Oscar-baiting drama. If these boys feel a little out of their element in the overly simplistic psychoanalysis scenes, the romance scenes are really well done, and the performances reflect a certain authenticity. It's manipulative, sure, but it manipulates with sincerity and heart.
- 11. The Last Emperor (1987)
- A pretentious Italian director makes a film about Chinese history set in China with an almost entirely Chinese cast, films it with all English dialogue to make the whole thing feel a bit disingenuous, and releases it during America's Cold War against communism. Of course, why wouldn't it sweep the Oscars? On the other hand, it is a truly epic film with some breathtaking cinematography, so really who knows?
- 12. Undeclared: The Complete Series (2001-2002)
- Maybe Judd Apatow works best when he can be R-rated, without hindered by the censorship limitations of network television, or maybe he (and/or his favorite actors) was still finding his groove early on, but I don't feel like this TV project has the consistency and quality of his film works. It's a perfectly watchable show, but it's not nearly as funny as it should be, and since it lacks the dramatic grounding of Freaks and Geeks, humor is really all it has to go on. At times it brilliantly subverts cliche plot devices (such as the Eric/Steven fight that just shows how pathetically inept most men are at actually duking it out); at other times it seems eager to wallow in college film conventions (such as the Samm Levine prank war). Its funniest moments come from its guest stars, especially Geddy Bednob and ESPECIALLY Jason Segel: the phone conversations with Eric were usually hysterical.
- 13. Fury (1936)
- This starts inconspicuously enough, but because it is a film directed and co-written by Fritz Lang, I sensed it might descend into madness, and I was right. The early character development is perfectly mirrored by the twisted turns that this film takes, and Lang handles it brilliantly. This is a darker side of Spencer Tracy than we usually get to see, and the film is all the better for it. Not really as acclaimed as M or Metropolis, but still a gripping masterpiece.
- 14. Jezebel (1938)
- Bette Davis is easily the best part of this melodrama, whose values were dated when it came out and are even more dated today. The redemptive ending seems out of place, and a black-and-white film should really know better than to hinge so much of its impact on a character wearing a shockingly red dress. Of course, any film that features Bette Davis and Henry Fonda can't be too horrible.
- 15. A Serious Man (2009)
- It is odd that this bizarre, darkly comic updating of the story of Job has been called the Coen brothers' most sincere work, but to be fair, they've set the bar pretty low. It is, at least, set in the time and place where they grew up, and it is easily one of the Jewiest movies I've ever seen, not just in the frequent references to the Hebrew language and Jewish spirituality, but also in its basic tone. So much of Judaism is based in interpretations of the Bible, offering no clear-cut answers and often serving up heaping plates of ambiguity, and that is what is so frustrating for our protagonist here. He is looking for a concrete set of morals, and just as he begins to realize that our world is not governed as such, even that is called into question. The Coens always dabble in this sort of frustrating ambiguity, so this film sort of feels like their statement of purpose, and as such, it's a fascinating film.
- 16. In the Realm of the Senses (1976)
- This is some fucked-up, repugnant shit. It's not for the faint of heart, but I'm generally hard to faze, and I actually found the sexually grotesque visuals pretty interesting in this disturbing depiction of a couple with an, er, unique relationships.
- 17. Zombieland (2009)
- Woody Harrelson is a force of nature in this thrilling zomedy, but he's really just one in an excellent cast. There is much to enjoy here; I particularly loved the "rules" motif and the secret cameo and found the film to be surprisingly heartfelt at times. On the other hand, the ending is very disappointing; the developments kind of undermine the entire course that the story has taken up to that point, and the climactic scenes fail to take advantage of all the opportunities that the setting presents. Still, this is a highly entertaining film.
- 18. An Education (2009)
- This actually made an interesting double feature with Zombieland because both films are essentially about finding fulfillment in unconventional ways. Although I guess that's what most movies are about. In any case, An Education is a perfectly fine, moderately believable film with some excellent performances and few flaws, and I guess that's all it takes to become one of ten Best Picture Oscar contenders these days. It doesn't really strive for brilliance, but there are a handful of memorable lines; no masterful scenes, but no bad ones either. There's not really anything wrong with it, and the fact that that passes for greatness kinda makes me sad. I recommend it, of course, because it is a good film. And the acting is pretty terrific.
- 19. The Wire: Season 4 (2006)
- It's difficult to review this show because watching it, I feel like I'm in the middle of a 60-hour-long movie. Maybe I'll come up with a review once I finish the whole series.
- 20. The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009)
- This has been mostly panned by critics who in my opinion were looking for a biting satire of the military and global politics, when the film really just wants to be a quirky farce. At least two of the jokes here seem like direct quotes from Far Side cartoons, and there's a surprisingly high reliance on slapstick, so that's the type of humor you're getting here. I think it was a good film, although it is a little dull.
- 21. Shoot the Piano Player (1960) (watched again)
- Having absolutely no memory of this film, I decided to watch it again. I can actually see why I hadn't remembered it, because it packs a highly intricate plot into a span of just 80 minutes, and the whole thing is handled with the subtle touches of a man who wants his film to leapfrog from genre to genre while seeming to transcend every one. It is by turns funny, tragic, hard-boiled, romantic, stylish, and bleak. If we're talking French New Wave, I think Breathless accomplished more with less, but Shoot the Piano Player is still a fantastic film.
- 22. Mildred Pierce (1945)
- Speaking of genre-blending, this film dabbles in both melodrama and film-noir and also seems to borrow a couple of screwball comedy characters (Eve Arden is a riot), crafting a sometimes-overlooked but truly excellent classic film. Michael Curtiz is rarely hailed as one of the great Hollywood directors, but he certainly did take on some ambitious projects and tended to direct them with pitch-perfect style. I think the framing narrative device doesn't make much sense, but that's my only complaint with this great movie.
- 23. Intacto (2001)
- A challenging, intelligent film based around an inventive concept in which luck is this supernatural force that can be transferred from one person to another. The movie is pretty cerebral and I feel like it kind of keeps the viewer at a distance, undermining its emotional impact, but it's still a very clever film.
- 24. Paranormal Activity (2007)
- Scary movies, like comedies, can often be more convincing with better audience reactions. A comedy will always generate more laughs in a crowded theater than by watching a DVD at home, and I think horror films work the same way: seeing other people react in terror makes everyone more terrified. Paranormal Activity knew this and wisely built itself into a sensation through its packed midnight screenings. Its trailer even relied more on the reactions of audience members than on the film itself: look, these people are scared shitless! So will you be! This is the scariest movie EVER! Once it became a self-generating hype machine, people barely even noticed the minimalism and utter lack of moviemaking tricks here: barely any effects, hardly any effort at making this look like a Hollywood movie, and not even any music! What sort of horror film doesn't have music to punctuate the tension? I mean, you basically have a tornado of hype covering up the fact that this movie is, for most of its running time, about a couple waiting to go to bed so a camera can pick up footage of... the door moving slightly. I can't tell if that's brilliant or moronic.
- 25. Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire (2009)
- This may seem like the epitome of black melodrama, a pastiche of every crappy thing that can happen to African-Americans in the eighties, but Precious has an ace up its sleeve: it's fucking great. Yeah, the trailer made it look bleak and overdramatic, but any film buff could tell you that a film that wins both the Sundance Jury Price AND Audience Award is worth a look. The writing is very skilled, and to say the acting is awards-caliber is a vast understatement. Lee Daniels directs with a "throw everything at the wall and see what sticks" philosophy, alternating between scenes of stark misery; scenes of misery directed in stylish ways; moments of levity; moments of lush fantasy; and moments of hope. Although this mentality leads to an artistic misstep here or there, Daniels's direction works far better than it should. It may have the worst title of 2009, but it is easily one of the better films of the year, at least so far.
- 26. The Fifth Element (1997)
- Stunning visuals and big, dumb fun, but starts to grow tiresome at the end.
- 27. Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
- Hayao Miyazaki rarely disappoints, and Howl's Moving Castle is no exception, dazzling with a wide array of charming characters and colorful images. My favorite of his is still Princess Mononoke, though.
- 28. Girl Shy (1924)
- It can't really touch Harold Lloyd's masterpiece Safety Last, but aside from that, this is one of his better films. The biggest laughs come from his book fantasies towards the beginning, but the film is amusing throughout, even in the climax which runs on a bit long for my taste.
- 29. Capitalism: A Love Story (2009)
- I feel like Michael Moore's films of this decade have alternated between exploring issues on an intellectual level and on an emotional level. Bowling for Columbine and Sicko opened my eyes to many interesting things I was unaware of, whereas Fahrenheit 9/11 and this film talked about stuff that everyone in the country was aware of, but work best when they put a human face on the tragedy. Capitalism's human stories really tug at the heartstrings, but it's also frustratingly noninformational, which is irritating because I think there are still a lot of things that people don't understand about the housing crisis and the way that the banks have ripped off America. Moore basically pulls a George W. Bush in the ways that he tries to seem dumber in order to relate to the common people. Instead of explaining derivatives to us in layman's terms, for example, he just goes, "Golly, derivatives shore are HARD! Hyuk!" His stunts are also wearing really, really thin for me. "Gee, GM doesn't wanna let me and my cameras in their building? Bank of America doesn't wanna let me in just so I can make a citizen's arrest? Hank Pauslon's office hangs up on me? Goshums, I'm just a simple man from Flint, Michigan! Why oh why wouldn't these moneymen in their fancy suits wanna tawk to me?" The problems with this film are exemplified by the section in which he goes on the warpath against companies who take out life insurance policies against their employees. Sure, it seems demeaning and regressive for companies to refer to that as "dead peasant insurance" but it makes logical sense and is perfectly legal. The fact that he harps on this point shows that the film is basically a call to arms in which he cares more about making the audiences angry than about making decent arguments about what happened or what can realistically be done about it (for the most part, anyway; I liked the sections about unconventionally-run companies). Moore should know the power of actual information for inciting the masses, and while he has made an affecting movie, he hasn't made a smart one.
- 30. Dead Man Walking (1995)
- Review coming soon.
- 31. Juno (2007) (watched again)
- Review coming soon.
- 32. Synecdoche, New York (2008) (watched again)
- Review coming soon.
- 33. The Thief of Bagdad (1940)
- Review coming soon.
- 34. Battlestar Galactica: Season 3 (2006-2007)
- Review coming soon.
- 35. Changeling (2008)
- Review coming soon.
Comments are always welcome, always have been, and always will be.