Damn, I only have time to watch movies on weekends part 10: in Soviet Russia, movies watch you!
Submitted by AJDaGreat on Tue, 10/04/2005 - 07:37
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- 1. I ♥ Huckabees (2004) - When you walk into a Hollywood scriptwriting class, the first rule they teach you is to focus on the action. Yes, your movie should have some sort of moral or message, and if you want your film to deal with a philosophical quandary, then go for it, but that should come secondary to the action of the film. For this film, David O. Russell said "Screw that!" and made a film about Jason Schwartzman hiring "existential detectives" to help him discover the meaning of a coincidence in his life. The detectives (Lily Tomlin and Dustin Hoffman) represent a positive outlook on life, teaching him that everything is meaningful and connected, but soon Schwartzman and Marky Mark begin to flirt with nihilism (tempted by Isabelle Huppert, who probably gives the best performance in the film). I can see why some people ♥ "I ♥ Huckabees" - its plot is highly unconventional, and that makes for a truly inventive film. I must confess, though, that I didn't ♥ it. I am now convinced there's a reason they teach you Rule #1, and it's not just because that's the well-established formula. No, this film turned out pretty muddled and confused, and to be honest, not all that interesting. Oh, and the coincidence? Hardly dealt with at all by the philosopher detectives. This isn't a good movie, but like I said, it is a very inventive one, and I applaud David O. Russell for that. If only the film had the tight plotting of Three Kings instead of jumping all over the place haphazardly, this could've been a great film.
- 2. Bonnie and Clyde (1967) (watched again) - I watched this again for Film 102, and I don't really have much different to say than when I first watched it. Still an awesome masterpiece.
- 3. A Matter of Life and Death (1946) - According to theyshootpictures.com, this Powell/Pressburger collaboration is not quite as acclaimed as Black Narcissus, The Red Shoes, or Life and Death of Colonel Blimp. However, on the IMDB, this is the highest rated of all their collaborations and also the most voted-on. I think that says something about the state of critical acclaim, because A Matter of Life and Death is just as masterfully constructed than Black Narcissus or the Red Shoes, if not more so. It's just more accessible, and some critics see that as a downside - how can a film that is this easy to like be as good as a film like Black Narcissus?
- I think you probably see where this is going - I think it is better. It's very creative, enjoyable, easy to love, and visually enthralling, and it has a lot of heart too. In my mind, the film's merits create great - nay, brilliant - art. As a side note, I think more films should take place in the afterlife. It's a good idea because the filmmaker's conception of the afterlife can be whatever he/she wants it to be, so there is that freedom to create whatever environment best suits the story.
- 4. 2046 (2004) - I am not going to discuss a critical analysis of this movie, because lbangs has already done that far better than I ever could. In any case, all the analyses in the world probably wouldn't matter if I didn't get involved in the film, so I am glad to say that I did. I loved this movie. I had heard previously that it was muddled and empty, and I must admit I did not really see how those adjectives could apply to this film. Believe me, I have trouble following the events in plenty of foreign films, but I got this one for the most part. As for empty, I guess that's more of a subjective trait, but I found the images really evocative of emotion, truth, and beauty. I think in a few decades Wong Kar-wai will be acclaimed as the brilliant director that he is, and if I were to put money on which film will be accepted as his masterpiece, this would be it. It has the feel of a true classic.
- 5. Serenity (2005) - Before I start this review, I want to discuss Firefly status. I knew I was going to be watching this film with a large group of friends on a Friday, and on Thursday my friend Matt showed some people the 90-minute pilot episode of Firefly to get us prepared. I thought it was pretty good. Don't get me wrong, I liked it, but I've heard this called the greatest television show ever to grace the airwaves, and if that's what you think, I will politely disagree. We had a wide range of Firefly knowledge going into Serenity, from Firefly virgins to diehard fans. The Firefly fans all loved the movie. The virgins were inconsistent - some called it garbage, others thought it great. I thought Serenity was okay. Not great, but decent. It seemed like the more prone you are to liking Firefly, the more prone you are to liking Serenity, but that of course is to be expected.
- Basically Serenity is just like a two-hour version of the TV show. Recently I complained that it seemed ridiculous to criticize Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story for being a 90-minute version of the TV-show. I stand by this complaint for the Family Guy movie since it was a direct-to-video release, but I think the flaws in Firefly that can pass on television don't really work for the big screen. The style just seems too derivative, and it began to make me wonder what made Firefly so different from any other scifi show, anyway. Most of the jokes are pretty corny, one of the death scenes feels really rushed and tacked-on (you'll know which one I mean), and some elements seem lifted out of other movies - there's one set that comes straight from I, Robot, for example, and the ending is real close to Seven Samurai. But ya know what? When you're talking about popcorn flicks like this one, the only way to rate it is based on personal enjoyment, and all these criticisms probably wouldn't mean a thing if I had really gotten into the movie. As it is, I'd rate my enjoyment level as mediocre - I had a moderately fun time. It's not the most original scifi film you'll see, but you might enjoy it more than I did.
- 6. Koyaanisqatsi (1983) - Not nearly as innovative as The Man With the Movie Camera, but this film has some very interesting visual poetry. It's pretty awesome to see the breathtaking natural landscapes contrasted with the fast-paced urban landscapes, and of course the Philip Glass score works perfectly with the film. The environmentalism is rather heavy-handed at times, however, such as when we see 20 minutes of pristine nature and then 5 minutes of pristine nature being blown up. Some may be turned off by the film's style, but hey, it's only 87 minutes long, and I think it is well worth watching.
- 7. Dark Days (2000) - Poor people are a perfect subject for a morally complex film, because most of us feel a sort of combination sympathy and repulsion towards them. That is why almost every rational person thinks we should help the poor to some extent, but if we see someone on the street begging for money, the vast majority of people are reluctant to give him/her money. The people in this film are not heroes or villains. The poor are just people like you and me, and oftentimes we forget this fact. They have faults, regrets, fears, hopes, and ambitions, and they have a certain organization to their lives - just like us. Anyone who has trouble sympathizing with movie people unless they are flawless heroes, perfection embodied, can go rent The Great Race; otherwise, check out Dark Days. It's a masterpiece.
- 8. Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1967) - Jack Handey once said, "I hope life isn't a big joke, because I don't get it." I feel the same way about this "comedy." Count me out of this cult film's cult.
- 9. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) - This is probably my favorite Harry Potter book so far, and the change of director certainly created a marked improvement from the first two films. This film is far more thrilling, and the acting seems better under the influence of a better director (although that could also represent the child actors maturing). The filmmakers this time around had a tougher task at hand than previously, however: Azkaban (435 pages) is longer than Chamber of Secrets (341 pages) and Sorceror's Stone (309 pages), yet the Azkaban movie (141m) is shorter than Secrets (161m) and Stone (152m). The condensing was of course necessary, and given the difficulty of that task, they did a good job, but parts of the film still feel rushed or underdeveloped. This especially hurts the Remus Lupin character, one of my favorite characters from the books; his relationship with Harry starts out of the blue in the movie, and it is never really explained (a spoiler about the book, but if you've seen the movie, you should know this, so read it) . I think the filmmakers were relying on the assumption that we had already read the Harry Potter book. Nonetheless, I have read the book, and so I enjoyed the film quite a bit. It's not the perfect Harry Potter screen adaptation, but we are getting closer.Spoiler: Highlight to viewthat he, Sirius, Peter Pettigrew, and James Potter are the names on the Marauder's Map
- P.S. MAJOR SPOILER: Spoiler: Highlight to viewWhen Scabbers turns into Peter Pettigrew, a naked rat turns into a fully-clothed Pettigrew. But when Pettigrew turns back into Scabbers later on, Pettigrew's clothes fall to the ground, and Scabbers dives out of the garments. So which is it? Are the clothes part of the rat, or are they not?
- 10. Out of the Past (1947) (watched again) - I forgot pretty much everything about this movie pretty soon after I watched it the first time, so I figured I had to watch it again, as it is often ranked among the best film-noirs. It is a great movie, but not, in my opinion, up there with the true classics like Sunset Boulevard, The Maltese Falcon, Double Indemnity, etc. In general, I think film noir works best with a fairly simple plot, and Out of the Past is all over the place. It does too much. It's as if they were trying to cram every single film-noir archetype into this one film, and then some. There are too many love interests, too many double-crosses, too long of a flashback, and it's all crammed into 87 minutes. There are many good qualities this movie has, though, and two of their names are Robert Mitchum and Kirk Douglas. Jane Greer also makes a very effective femme fatale, and Jacques Tourneur handles the noir atmosphere quite well. Their talents would have been better used on a less convoluted story, but the movie is still quite great, so I'm not complaining... much.
- 11. Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - First off, let me say I'm very glad that, unlike all those Oscar-nominated biopic filmmakers, George Clooney has realized you don't have to tell someone's entire life story to make a biopic. You can just tell one isolated, compelling story, keep things well under two hours, and that will be plenty for a great movie. Second, let me say if David Strathairn doesn't get an Oscar nomination for this dead-on performance, the Academy's heads are even farther up their asses than I thought. Third, let me say that cigarette smoke looks so freakin' cool in black and white. Finally, I will say that as much as I liked this movie, I still felt like something was lacking. Perhaps a sense of conflict? Yeah, it was controversial for Murrow to take on Joe McCarthy, but you always get the sense that Murrow is championing the majority opinion. Where's the drama? But nevermind that, as this is still an excellent movie that is definitely worth your time.
- 12. The Searchers (1956) (watched again) - A legendary, larger-than-life Western that shows us the dark side of legendary, larger-than-life Westerns. Murder, rape, kidnapping, racism, and the hatred that lurks deep within men's souls, all in this John Ford / John Wayne collaboration. Here Wayne plays a dark, disturbing, subversive version of the Western antihero. This could've been done very poorly, but it works here because all of his sins and extraordinary behavior are grounded in something very real and very human. His racism may be shocking, but it is not baseless. This is a great Western, but it is not without faults. It's a movie that deals with such serious issues, but it also pokes fun at way too many characters with silly accents, and that really cheapens the drama, making it less effective and powerful than it could have been. In addition, This is often called one of the top 10 films of all-time, but I think critics who say that are so impressed with the psychological component of the film that they ignore its flaws.Spoiler: Highlight to viewDebbie's pivotal decision to return to her family is never really explained, which makes no sense given that the first time they find her, she says the Comanches are her people now.
- 13. Coupling: Season 1 (2000) - One of the most popular British TV shows of all time, I've heard this called the British answer to Friends. Watching the DVD set has definitely cemented the similarities and differences in my mind. Yes, both shows are about three women and three men who sleep with each other and talk about sex a lot, and Friends got here first, but one advantage Coupling has is that it wisely keeps the focus on comedy. The dramatic elements of Friends were often too prevalent, I think, and part of the reason is that it was a big draw for NBC, so they wanted a little suspense in the dramatic storyline to keep viewers' eyes peeled. Since British TV is publically funded, Coupling didn't have the same constraints. It is just hilarious dialogue and hilarious sitcommy plotlines. Yeah, sitcom humor has developed a bad name over the years, but when it is done this well, the coincidences and misunderstandings are too delicious to dislike. The episode "The Girl With Two Breats" is a real tour de force.
- No quote this time, I got a lot of catching up to do.
- 14. Casablanca (1942) (watched again) - IIRC, I once called The Wizard of Oz the most iconic movie of all-time. I stand by that, but Casablanca might be #2. I mean, just look at the AFI's "100 Years" series: they just can't stop talking about Casablanca. It's #2 on their top 100 movies list, #37 on their 100 most thrilling movies list, and #1 on their 100 greatest love stories list. Additionally, Rick Blaine is their 4th greatest movie hero, As Time Goes by is their 2nd best movie song, and their 100 movie quotes list has six quotes from the movie:
- 5. Here's looking at you, kid.
- 20. Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
- 28. Play it, Sam. Play "As Time Goes By."
- 32. Round up the usual suspects.
- 43. We'll always have Paris.
- 67. Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine.
- Is the movie really that good, that thrilling, that romantic? Is Rick Blaine that heroic, is the song that great, are the quotes that memorable? Maybe, but even if the movie sucked, that wouldn't matter. The elements of the movie are just too ingrained in American minds. We're just lucky that Casablanca is also one of the greatest movies of all-time.
- 15. The Phantom of the Opera (1925) - I must confess that I have only moderate success with silent horror films. Of the ones I have seen, I think they are all quite great, but something usually prevents me from really getting involved in them. I'm sure it's more my fault than the films'. In any case, walking into this film, I wondered if I would have any more luck. I am both pleased and disappointed to report that this is not as innovative or as important as Nosferatu or The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, but I do think it is more accessible. It's a pulpy, grotesque, exciting, fun movie, and it's easy to get involved in the compelling story, but it's not regarded as the classic on the same level as those other two films, and I think rightfully so. It would, however, make a great introduction to non-comedic silent films.
- 16. Capote (2005) - Something occurred to me while watching this movie: 99% of all biopic storylines suck. In terms of actual story quality, most biopics are on par with American Pie. The only difference is that American Pie's story is a clothesline for comedic setpieces, whereas a biopic's story is just a clothesline for scenes that pack some sort of emotional punch. Biopics that actually have some sort of story focus are out there, but they're definitely the exception to the rule. That's why most biopics are also too long.
- Anyway, Capote is like most biopics. It's nothing new, but in terms of packing those emotional punches, Capote tends to be right on target. Another asset it has is that Philip Seymour Hoffman is simply amazing. He brings character actor sensibilities to his leading role and really disappears into Truman Capote, capturing Capote's raunchy, jocular nature as well as performing the dramatic parts beautifully. The movie is worth seeing for Hoffman alone; he nails the part. On the flip side, the movie does not really develop Capote's relationship with Perry enough early on. We hear Capote talking about how much he has in common with Perry, but we don't really see them connecting enough - and that, I think, might be part of the appeal of making a biopic. A person's life provides filmmakers with so much material that if there's something they don't feel like showing us, no problem - they can instead just focus on slow, lingering shots of Capote lying down, typing, or just standing around.
- Anyway, I actually really liked this movie. I'm not sure if that came across in these rants. Even with all these typical biopic problems, I usually tend to find enough to like in these movies, but rarely enough to truly love them.
- 17. Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical (2005) - A spoof of corny old-timey teen movies, corny old-timey gangster movies, and all sorts of musicals, this is one of those movies that tries to be funny by intentionally being awful (with moderate success). It would be very dark if it wasn't injected with a manically bright ironic side. The movie is hard to describe and really must be seen to be believed. It is just that weird. It's enjoyable in many places, but I can't bring myself to rank this higher than the middle tier.
- 18. South Park: The Complete 3rd Season (1999-2000) - Another season of South Park takes me through its highs and lows. Unfortunately, I think the quality is lower here than in the 4th or 5th seasons, but I sympathize with Matt and Trey's constraints. They were spending a lot of time on the South Park movie early on, and later on the woman who voiced all their female characters committed suicide, so they had to try to build episodes that worked around that fact. On a positive note, we have the hilarious Rainforest Schmainforest, Jakovasaurs, Tweek vs. Craig, and Korn's Groovy Pirate Ghost Mystery (a wonderful parody of Scooby-Doo, and one of my all-time favorite South Park episodes). But then we have Succubus, which except for a few glorious minutes with Chef's parents, is pretty boring; the meteor shower trilogy, which was a great concept, but none of the episodes are particularly strong; Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics, which features good music but few laughs except for in Mr. Garrison's song; and Are You There, God? It's Me, Jesus which has a lot of set-up with the payoff being a trite religious message. The rest of the episodes are pretty good to some extent, but aside from the Korn episode, there aren't many real standouts from this season. There aren't many incredibly awful episodes either, so in the end I would call this an average season of South Park.
- 19. The Apple (1998) - This is an extremely low-budget Iranian film about a father who keeps his daughters locked up because he thinks it will help protect them. It's sort of a reenactment of a true story, with the actual people playing themselves, though I'm sure they embellished a bit to create some of the fascinating visual imagery. In spite of many positive attributes, at a slim 86 minutes, this doesn't really feel like a fully-fledged film (I don't mean to imply that every 86-minute film is underdeveloped, but with its slow pace, this one is). Still, there's a lot of great stuff here.
- 20. Coupling: Series 3 (2002) - After a second season that was very good but didn't quite live up to the first, I return to Coupling to find it in top form. (Note: I didn't review series 2 here because I didn't watch Jane and the Truth Snake. Perhaps more accurately, my friend who was loaning me the DVDs wouldn't let me watch it because he said it wasn't funny at all.) Sex dialogue that's actually cleverly written, farce that's as fun as it comes, and one of the best season finales I've ever seen of any show. No time for quotes, I'm on a roll.
- 21. Pulp Fiction (1994) (watched for the third time) - I actually watched this because I had to write a paper about it. I'm not going to review it.
- 22. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) - I had some complaints about the compression of Prisoner of Azkaban, but when you consider that this compresses a 750-page book into a 2:30 movie, I think this film does a fantastic job with cuts. It was very wise to cut the Dursleys and SPEW out of the film, methinks. I'll always find something to bitch about in the Harry Potter movies, though, and this particular film contains too many corny moments and "WTF?" moments. Three in particular that stick out in my mind: 1. Harry steps into a tent that looks small from the outside but big on the inside and sighs, "I love magic"; 2. The entrances of the students from the other two wizardry schools look very hokey; 3. The crowd chatter when we learn Harry's name is in the goblet of fire sounds like it comes from a much dumber film. Other questions the film raises are: Can Snape still speak, or is he victim of a Muting Curse? Besides the one on Unforgivable Curses, don't these kids go to class anymore? And this one, which should never enter my mind during a truly magnificent fantasy film: I think such a film should dazzle me enough that these logical questions don't enter my head. I certainly didn't think that while reading the book.Spoiler: Highlight to viewWhy didn't Crouch just place the Portkey on Harry's broom or book or anywhere instead of dragging Harry through to the end of the tournament?
- These are all of course minor quibbles with what is really a highly enjoyable movie. I only quibble because I expect amazing films to come from such great source material, and they always barely miss my expectations.
- 23. A Midwinter's Tale (1995) - I've been putting off writing this review because I don't have anything particularly interesting to report. I watched it with some friends because my friend Tom said it was his favorite movie. Afterwards, it seemed like it was some other people's least favorite movie. I enjoyed it, but not so much that it made a lasting impression on me. The humor was dry and somewhat like Waiting for Guffman (which Tom also loves, and which I also enjoy but don't love), and the ending dramatic developments are pretty formulaic and sitcom-esque. It might help if you know Hamlet. I read the play a few years ago, but I mean really REALLY know Hamlet. Like how Kenneth Branagh (who directed this movie) knows Hamlet.
- 24. An American in Paris (1951) - Whenever Alan and I hang out, we start by talking about movies at length and always end up watching at least one movie. This time, we got on the subject of musicals. He explained to me that he didn't like new musicals in the same vein as Moulin Rouge because the flashy, jumpy editing may be exciting, but that's not what a musical should look like. Alan mentioned how much he loved Singin' in the Rain, and we talked about how methodically the camera follows Gene Kelly's movements during the song "Singin' in the Rain." So when we were going to watch a movie later on, I of course suggested An American in Paris.
- Afterwards, Alan and I had a similar reaction - that was really good, but no Singin' in the Rain. Our standards were probably set too high, because in my opinion, no musical is as great as Singin' in the Rain. The legendary 17-minute dance sequence in American in Paris was a spectacle that I thought really dragged, to be honest with ya. So the last 20 minutes or so are a bit unsatisfying, but before that the movie is really awesome. Plenty of great songs, with "I Got Rhythm" being especially cute. I must face the fact, though, that while Gene Kelly is a fabulous entertainer, he only made one masterpiece.
- 25. Munich (2005) - With its shaky-camera realism and focus on political terrorism, Spielberg seems to want to make Munich his Battle of Algiers or Z. I actually think I like Munich better than either of those movies because rather than making all its characters underdeveloped in order to remain neutral, it gives us a number of well-developed, interesting characters. The focus is on the Israelis. Does that create some political bias? Sure, but the film is much less about politics and much more about the morality of revenge killing. Is ridding the world of people who make life a living hell a just cause? (more on this in the next review)
- Spielberg's direction here is much more subtle than in Schindler's List. The Academy might not like it as much, but I think it just as shocking and effective. The acting is great; I haven't heard much buzz about a Best Actor award for Eric Bana, but I am now convinced he has the acting chops to back up his pretty boy status. I am bumping this down a tier, though, because the three killings with the bombs were repetitive and actually reminded me of the traps that the Scooby-Doo gang used to set, where the trap would inevitably go wrong but then the mystery-solvers would improvise and the monster would end up trapped anyway. I think if an intense study of violence reminds me of Scooby-Doo, that's a bad sign.
- 26. Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) - The funniest thing about seeing this movie within 24 hours of seeing Munich is that they actually do share a similar theme. The only difference is, here the question is: Is ridding the world of giant rabbits who make life a living hell a just cause? Is the question dealt with as effectively in Wallace and Gromit? Certainly not, but I did enjoy this film more, and it's just what I needed after the intense emotional knockout of Munich.
- Of course, that's probably the only thing the two films share, as this film is animated, whimsical, and hilarious. It also contains another key message that eating cheese is much more important than eating vegetables. I'm glad our kids are learning this stuff early. Anyway, I was sure I would love this film, and I was right, so I'm glad I made the trek out to the three-dollar theater. It was so worth it.
- 27. Walk the Line (2005) - This may be a Johnny Cash biopic, but I assure you, this is Reese Witherspoon's movie. She is a joy to watch in June Carter's light moments and dark moments, and she somehow makes the character both down-to-earth homey and mysteriously alluring. She deserves the Best Actress Oscar she will surely receive. She and Joaquin Phoenix have such great chemistry that Phoenix's best scenes are the ones Witherspoon is in. I must confess I was not as impressed with Phoenix as I had hoped. I'm sure Johnny Cash went through his share of hardships, but he seemed like such a fun, rowdy, personable guy. This comes across when the movie is quoting the live album At Folsom Prison word-for-word, but biopic conventions demand the main character be angsty and introspective at least 50% of the time, so Phoenix's Johnny Cash is pretty boring. As I mentioned in Capote, however, I am sick of biopics, so this criticism may just be that sentiment talking. In fact, I think I blame director James Mangold more than Phoenix himself. Still, David Strathairn and Philip Seymour Hoffman are more deserving of the Best Actor in a Biopic award, in my opinion. The music is great, of course; Phoenix can't quite imitate Cash's booming bass voice, but hey, few can, and Phoenix and Witherspoon both sound great. I am still sick of the biopic formula, but like Capote, I liked the emotional punches and the other elements in the movie enough to recommend it. It was a close call though.
- 28. Brokeback Mountain (2005) - The Academy will call this the Best Picture of the year. I'm not certain I'd go that far, but it is pretty damn close. Let's look at the facts.
- Why the Academy will like it - I once wrote an e-mail to Roger Ebert's Movie Answer Man column where I asked why Hollywood, which is such a liberal-dominated industry, had its films evaluated by a body as conservative as the Academy. My question didn't make it to the column, but Ebert replied, "The Academy is politically liberal but artistically conservative." Like Million Dollar Baby, Brokeback Mountain is controversial but not too controversial. It will create a stir among religious groups denouncing its acceptance of homosexuality, which will make the Academy feel like it's taking a political stand by choosing it. At the same time, the film is not so bold that it will make the Academy feel uncomfortable. Why I like it - Brokeback Mountain did not shock me, but I am glad to see homosexual characters portrayed so sympathetically and thoughtfully, something Hollywood so rarely does.
- Why the Academy will like it - For Best Picture, the Academy votes with their hearts, and this film contains scenes of touching, powerful emotion. Ledger, Gyllenhaal, and Williams are all performances Oscar will love. Why I like it - For a similar reason. This low-key film could have been boring, but I was fascinated for its entire running time. I credit many people for that fact, but mainly the actors.
- Why the Academy may not like it - It doesn't contain any really Oscar-fawning dramatic moments, key scenes that stick out in your head as iconic. Instead, it just feels realistic and natural, and Ang Lee's subtle direction complements the story well. I actually doubt Lee will win a Best Director award; he has worked well with the actors and the scenery is gorgeous, but the Academy seems to prefer flashier, more in-your-face direction. Why I like it - I, on the other hand, like realism and subtle direction.
- This is a film to catch. To be fair, it doesn't say anything shockingly original about its subject matter. It is just an excellent, beautiful story about its characters, and it amounts to one of the best films of 2005.
- GIRLY MOVIE MARATHON!
- 29. The English Patient (1996) - People are still pissed off that this film beat Fargo for Best Picture, even though it happened nine years ago. Myself, I liked Secrets and Lies better than either of those films. The English Patient has many interesting scenes, but the disjoint nature of the film IMHO prevents these scenes from building to something larger. For me, the scenes worked on their own but not as a whole. On the other hand, Ralph Fiennes was really phenomenal, and Anthony Minghella's David-Lean-esque visuals are just gorgeous. So I still liked this movie much more than I was expecting (Seinfeld steered me wrong).
- 30. Pride and Prejudice (2005) - I was interested in this film mainly due to great reviews and Keira Knightley. I've never read this book, seen any adaptations of this book, read any other Jane Austen books, nor seen any other adaptations of Jane Austen books. I really did not expect to love Pride and Prejudice this much, and since I'm saying this for the second time in this girly movie marathon, maybe I've really gotten in touch with my feminine side recently.
- Anyway, with my Jane Austen cherry popped just yesterday, I can't tell how much of this version is unique to this film. But much of the scenery is really breathtaking, as is Keira Knightley, and the dance scene where the camera carefully follows Lizzie as she converses with Mr. Darcy is just brilliant. The dialogue sparkles - I would say I'd expect that from a Jane Austen adaptation, but how would I know? - and the actors are very well cast. Donald Sutherland may not get a Best Supporting Actor nomination, but he damn well deserves one. It would take a great cast and director to teach this old dog Jane Austen, but this adaptation managed to do it.
- 31. Love Actually (2003) - This, on the other hand, is a movie that I liked less than I was expecting. This movie has probably the most amazing ensemble cast of all-time (Bill Nighy, Colin Firth, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Hugh Grant, Laura Linney, Billy Bob Thornton, and many more), but c'mon guys, less is more. It all adds up to a film that isn't very satisfying.
- Nonetheless, this is a good movie, I think. About half of the plotlines are very solid, and they are the more developed ones, so they add up to more than half of the movie's running time. I liked Liam Neeson's plot, Keira Knightley's plot, Hugh Grant's plot, Colin Firth's plot, and Bill Nighy's plot. Other plots, however, are based on half-baked ideas that never go anywhere. Martin Freeman and Joanna Page play porn stand-ins. The joke is that they're very shy, cute people. That's about it. It's a good idea, and it might have worked better if we had seen Freeman working up the courage to ask her out, more struggle, more conflict. Instead, we just get a cute resolution and that's it. Then there's Kris Marshall. He wants to go to America because he thinks the girls there will be hotter and sluttier than the girls in England. His friend tries to convince him not to in too many scenes, but he goes anyway. There Kris Marshall finds that in the first bar he goes into, American girls are hot and slutty. The end. The joke is that they're all played by famous models! Hardy har har. Not that I recognized any of them, which meant I could feel the camera lingering on these hot girls, telling me this is a punchline, but I was just scratching my head, thinking, "Well, she kinda looks familiar, but I still don't get it..." Laura Linney's plot is also just meh.
- Then we have Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson. Don't let the big names fool you - this plot is probably the worst of them all. I guess they wanted one downer story in this feel-good Christmas movie, but nothing happens in this well-acted but undeveloped and unbearably boring plotline. We do, however, get a really lame scene with Rowan Atkinson. This plot should have really been excised from the film.
- Five plotlines could have come together to make a really great film. Instead, we have four more that are really quite unnecessary. But if you only saw Andrew Lincoln's cue card scene, Hugh Grant's sheer determination to find Martine McCutcheon, Liam Neeson's great rapport with his kid, Bill Nighy's wonderful performance, or anything Colin Firth does, you'd think this was a really sweet movie.
- 32. Once Upon a Time in America (1984) - Now the longest movie I have ever seen, and yet, I could have probably sat through this movie for another four hours. It's one of those films where everything just comes together perfectly for a breathtaking epic that takes us through tragedy, comedy, drama, mystery, and action. The gorgeous visuals I am used to from Sergio Leone worked marvelously here, creating a distinctly American feel. I'm not sure how an Italian created what may be the best epic film about America ever, but he has done it. And I'm sorry to write such a shitty review for such a brilliant film, but I'm tired.
- 33. Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Complete Fourth Season (2004) - This season of Curb Your Enthusiasm is the best I've seen yet. It contains the two most brilliant plot developments in the history of the show - specifically, Larry picking up a prostitute so he can drive in the carpool lane, and the plot twist in the final episode. The dialogue is still uneven for me, though. Just like the other seasons, there tend to be one or two exchanges per episode that really crack me up, but the rest of the time I can tell the actors think the dialogue is funny, but I just don't laugh. I still smile throughout though, and much as I complain about not finding it as funny as some others, I find Larry David's exploits quite enjoyable. Ordinarily I'd tell you now if I'm going to watch the next season of the show; however, I've already seen every episode of the 5th season (I just haven't reviewed it because I watched it on TV instead of DVD). Not so hot, in my opinion. I really disliked the idea behind the 5th season finale. Hopefully they'll bounce back for the 6th.
- 34. Imitation of Life (1959) - I've thought a lot about whether I'm being fair to this film in my analysis of it. Is it fair to disagree with a film made in 1959 based on 2006-era values? One way or another, I think this film treats the half-white, half-black Sarah Jane pretty unfairly. At one point, Sarah Jane admits to Lora (the white mother) that in Lora's house, she has always been treated with the same dignity and respect that one would show a white girl. But... that's just not true. When Sarah Jane tells Susie (the white girl) that she's dating a boy, Susie's first question is, "Is he colored?" Sarah Jane gets offended, and Susie justifies it by saying, "It just popped out." I feel like this is the movie's way of absolving Susie of guilt. But ask yourself why it just popped out, and it's obvious that Sarah Jane is certainly the victim of more subconscious racist stereotyping. On the other hand, though, I feel like this is a more modern interpretation of the film, and if you graded on the curve in 1959, Lora and Susie would be classified as "not racist at all."
- Then again, I take issue with the film's idea that it's wrong for Sarah Jane to disguise her race. Hell, if she wants to avoid the social stigmas associated with African-Americans in 1959, and she can pass for white, why shouldn't she? The only real sin she commits, in my opinion, is being a bitch to her mother. And for such a heavy film that purports to deal with racism in a socially relevant way, it seems kinda inadequate when I interpret the moral to be "Don't be a bitch to your mother."
- Other than that, the film (1) is incredibly boring in the long stretch when Lora is making her slow rise to fame; (2) paints Annie (the black mother) a bit too angelic for my taste, although this I can forgive, since this is a melodrama; and (3) does wring out some serious emotional impact towards the end. And really, if (3) is there, isn't that all a melodrama needs to do? The answer is, no.
- 35. The Long Good Friday (1980) - I saw this film two weeks ago and actually had a quiz on it (among other things) today. One of the questions asked me to recount the convoluted plot that Bob Hoskins eventually discovers. I can guarantee you that I got that question wrong.
- What I will remember about this film, though, is Hoskins's magnificent, charismatic performance; the way the character represents the sleazy part of society and yet speaks thoughtfully with great pride for his home country of England; the tense, ambiguous ending; a directing style that was not particularly stylized but did have the occasional amazing camerawork, such as one character's torture obviously mimicking Jesus, and what is possibly the best POV shot ever put on film. 0dysseus mentions it below; it basically shows the POV of a man being suspended upside-down from a meathook and being wheeled along a track. Damn was that awesome.
- 36. The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover (1989) - This is a film about a big, loud, boorish, prejudiced, short-tempered jackass named Albert who accounts for about 90% of the film's dialogue. His wife Georgina hates him for obvious reasons and cheats on him with a quiet man who likes books. In the first scene, we see Albert and his cronies strip another man naked and then smear dog feces on him. It's that kind of movie.
- I watched this film for my Contemporary British Cinema class and thought it was fantastic. My classmates didn't seem to like it as much, but their reasons why disappointed me. One guy said he disliked the film because it made him feel uncomfortable; a few people said it seemed like porn; one girl said she fast-forwarded through the sex scenes. But I guess I should have seen it coming from such a ridiculously audacious film and from its "kiss of death" NC-17 rating. I was also disappointed when one person said the character of Albert seemed like a shallow cartoon character, and my teacher seemed to agree. I argued that while Albert is obviously an extremely over-the-top character, there are at least three moments when you can clearly see Albert's insecurities on display, and that's pretty consistent with other egotistical people I know - they mostly keep up their confident image, but every now and then you get a glimpse of weakness.
- Some of my classmates tried to justify why they liked the film by saying yeah some parts were gross, but look at the cinematography, the use of color and sound, the art direction! I loved all of those things, but I loved the scenes that made other people uncomfortable too. God, where else can you see these kinds of things put on celluloid?
- 37. Match Point (2005) - Who would've thought that one of the most effective thrillers I've seen in years would be directed by Woody Allen? With Crash and Capote getting so much unexpected Oscar buzz, Match Point has been largely swept under the carpet, and that is a crime, because it is one of the most impressive films of the year. I haven't enjoyed a Woody Allen film this much since Hannah and Her Sisters. It's not as socially relevant as Brokeback Mountain or Crash, but it does everything so well that it actually manages to make its theme of luck seem fresh and interesting, which is quite a task. The great performances and script create complex characters that make this love triangle conflict actually interesting; this plot device has clearly been done many times before, but with dumber, more obvious results. Woody's direction is great, of course, and so this just about leaves me with nothing to complain about and much to love. A dark but wonderful film.
- 38. Dirty Pretty Things (2002) - And now for my third straight superlative review of an underrated film. This is getting a little embarrassing, but what can I say? I loved this movie. But judging by Jim's review, I guess I am lucky that I knew virtually nothing about this film before I saw it, and didn't notice the quotes on the DVD box calling it a thriller until after I watched said DVD. This is not a thriller. Many of the turns of the "mystery" are too predictable to thrill, but that's not a flaw because the focus is not on surprising us. The focus is on portraying the marginalized immigrants in London, and at this the film scores big-time. The "mystery" plot and much of the dialogue is very clever, to be sure, but the film's best asset is our emotional investment in these characters, and they're the sort of characters you hardly ever see in films. No one wants to direct films about poor illegal immigrants. Luckily Stephen Frears has, and while I still love Talk to Her best, he has made the 2nd-best film of 2002.
- 39. Chariots of Fire (1981) - I'm not sure if I'm really being fair to this film. I was very tired and nodded off frequently while watching it. However, I couldn't have missed THAT much, and what I saw I didn't enjoy. If you took tired sports movie clichés, overused slow-motion shots, awful music, and bland direction and put them in a blender, you'd get Chariots of Fire. All the rough edges are smoothed off to create an idealized version of 1920s Britain that has hardly anything interesting about it. To be fair, (1) as a general rule, I hate sports movies; (2) Ian Holm was great as always; and (3) the filmmaking is competent. But overall I did not like this film.
- 40. The Simpsons: The Complete Seventh Season (1995-1996) - Ask any true Simpsons nerd and they will tell you that when Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein took over as executive producers, the wackiness of David Mirkin's 5th and 6th seasons was toned down in favor of story and a strong emotional core. In truth, I think the tone of the episodes runs the gamut. There are hilariously silly epsiodes like Treehouse of Horror VI, King-Size Homer, Two Bad Neighbors, 22 Short Films About Springfield, and Raging Abe Simpson and His Grumbling Grandson in "The Curse of the Flying Hellfish." But watch episodes like Home Sweet Home-Diddly-Dum-Doodily, Bart Sells His Soul, Mother Simpson, Marge Be Not Proud, or Summer of 4'2" and you'll see that emotional core we're talking about with no sacrifice in joke quality. There are a few misfires here, I think, and that sometimes occurs when the focus on story/drama is too strong, resulting in a few fairly boring episodes. Lisa the Iconoclast has an excellent story but is somewhat lacking in humor; Bart the Fink is just fairly boring; Homerpalooza is chock-full of dated Generation X references; A Fish Called Selma has some good jokes but missteps with a weird plot element regarding Troy McClure's fetish for having sex with fish. Nonetheless, this is still a classic season of my favorite show, and these are fairly minor complaints.
- Here we go:
- Superintendent Chalmers: (reacting to a fire in Principal Skinner's kitchen) Good Lord, what is happening in there?
- Skinner: (pause) Aurora Borealis?
- Chalmers: Aurora Borealis? At this time of year? At this time of day? In this part of the country? Localized entirely within your kitchen?
- Skinner: (pause) Yes.
- Chalmers: May I see it?
- Skinner: No.
- 41. A Room With a View (1985) - I feel bad for films like this one, because as well-made as it is, it just can't win me over due to the inherent limitations of its genre. I'm probably going to give the film a modestly positive review, but for what it is trying to do, it is excellent. I just wasn't meant to watch costume dramas, and that's the issue here, plain and simple. There were a few parts that amused me, a few parts that titillated me, and a good number of parts that bored me. Perhaps if I thought about it, I could figure out exactly what I dislike about most costume dramas and put it into words, and then whenever I watched costume dramas again, I could always make the same criticisms over and over, but I'm afraid I'm too lazy for that. So sorry guys, you're just going to get a lameass review.
- 42. Yellow Submarine (1968) (watched again) - Rewatching this, the beginning and ending didn't hold up as well, but damn, what a journey in the middle! In fact, the middle chunk of this movie is so entertaining that I would still call this a masterpiece in spite of the weaker bookends. It's so weird and original, so different from every other animated film. Turn the volume way up so you catch every mumbled one-liner.
- 43. Trainspotting (1996) (watched again) - I rewatched this for my film class and still enjoyed it immensely. I still liked my original review of the film though, so I'd like to expand on that here. I mentioned this film as a realistic portrayal that shows a complex relationship with heroin, and compared that with the (probably) less realistic, more moralizing Requiem for a Dream. Both films are excellent, and I'm not going to pick which angle I like better. But my question is, to what extent can we generalize this trade-off? Does a film have to sacrifice realism in order to be a moral film? Tom Clancy once said, "The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense." That is, a movie that knows it is fiction has a message, a point of view, themes to convey. Some movies try to be as realistic as possible, in which case their message often is that unlike fiction, reality has complexities and shades of gray. But in portraying something realistically, must it sacrifice the ability to have a message? Certainly few real-life stories have clear-cut messages to them. Is this why all biopics take serious liberties with the facts? What does everyone else think?
- 44. Notting Hill (1999) (watched again) - I watched this for my Contemporary British Cinema class. It was a bit of a stretch to find things to talk about in such a class. However, this remains a very good. enjoyable piece of popcorn entertainment, and unlike Room With a View, it is a chick flick that I think is fairly accessible to those with Y chromosomes. Just look at the gender disparities in the IMDB ratings. For Notting Hill, males rate it a 6.9 while females rate it a 7.1. A difference of only 0.2. For Room With a View, females rate it an 8.2 while males rate it a 7.3, a difference of 0.9. (Note: I have heard that Dirty Dancing is the film with the highest such disparity. Indeed, with a 5.6 for males and a 7.5 for females, its 1.9 difference is hard to beat.)
- 45. Transamerica (2005) - This movie is fascinating in how quietly and modestly it handles all the really fucked-up things going on in it. I am mainly talking about the son Toby, a male prostitute with aspirations of being a porno star, and other things going on I shan't describe. Not to mention how the people in Bree's life treat her, which is pretty uniformly horrible. But just like Bree's character, the film deals with all the problems tactfully and gracefully, never once feeling like it is melodramatically wallowing in a stew of misery and depravity. Its drama strikes all the right chords, it's quite charming, and it has one of those messy resolutions that works so well in character dramas. Reese Witherspoon was still wonderful in Walk the Line, but I am now convinced she didn't deserve the Oscar. Felicity Huffman was just outstanding.
- 46. Caché (2005) - My friend Alan said this was the creepiest film he had ever seen. It certainly starts off that way. For a while, the film is so frightening because we have absolutely no idea what is going on. A film that has established rules can often be creepy within the limitations of its rules, but for a while Caché is so thrilling because there are no rules. I think that once Daniel Auteuil gets to the apartment and we begin to see what this all might be about (or, if not, what the movie chooses to focus on), there's a sense of unsettling tension that is lost, and while the film is still good, it's much more bland. Michael Haneke's (rather obnoxious) explanation for this fact? Oh, he was never trying to make a thriller. He was just using the genre and structure of a thriller to address larger issues about blame, guilt, and conscience. Still, it is a solid, dramatic film, although if it had maintained the atmosphere it establishes right away, it could have been simply stunning.Spoiler: Highlight to viewThat explains the end, too, where we never find out who was sending the tapes and the movie just sort of fades away. Quoth the Haneke: "If you come out wanting to know who sent the tapes, you didn't understand the film." Yeah. Thanks, douchebag. If you're using the structure of a thriller, you can address larger issues without giving us an anticlimactic ending. Just because the film isn't about who really sent the tapes, doesn't mean you can't tell us. I think Roger Ebert, who can still be quite eloquent when he writes about a film he's passionate about, put it much better: "We are left feeling as the characters feel, uneasy, violated, spied upon, surrounded by faceless observers. The non-explanation supplied by the enigmatic last scene opens a new area of speculation which also lacks any solution or closure." One way or another, I don't think the film has anything terribly original to say about conscience, and since Haneke has put all his money on that component of the film while letting the compelling plot just fizzle out, I am going to recommend that next time he hedge his bets.
- 47. Seinfeld: Season 5 (1993-1994) - Another wonderful season of Seinfeld, this time we see an unemployed George moving in with his parents, Kramer developing his coffee table book, Jerry getting the ultimate comedian's revenge, and Elaine pretending to be deaf so she doesn't have to talk to a limo driver. This season gave us the low talker, the close talker, "he took it out," and of course, shrinkage. Unlike the first four seasons, watching these DVDs actually caused me to catch a few episodes I've never seen - specifically, The Bris (not bad, though I hated Kramer's "pig man" subplot), The Non-Fat Yogurt (notable for its multiple uses of a bleeped F-bomb and for guest star Rudolph Giuliani, airing just days after Giuliani was elected mayor), and the hilarious two-parter The Raincoats. Season 5 also contains what might be the funniest moment in the history of the show: the ending monologue of The Marine Biologist, which I wouldn't dream of spoiling. Lots of hilarity in the great episodes here, though I must admit I have always hated The Hamptons. Some consider it a classic, probably due to the shrinkage stuff, but it might be my all-time least favorite episode of the show. I think this episode is really quite juvenile, has a Kramer subplot that goes nowhere, has a really boring Elaine subplot, and Spoiler: Highlight to viewhas an ending plot point that makes no sense: when George goes to apologize Rachel, he walks in on her naked. This is about three seconds after he has tricked her into eating lobster. Yes, this is what Jews who keep kosher do. When you eat something non-kosher, you must take your clothes off and leave your door unlocked in order to appease God. Once you do that, all is forgiven.
- You didn't ask for it, but here it is anyway:
- Mr. Lippman: I was just reading your final edit. Um, there seems to be an inordinate number of exclamation points.
- Elaine: Well, I felt the writing lacked a certain emotion and intensity.
- Lippman: Oh. "It was a damp and chilly afternoon, so I decided to put on my sweatshirt!"
- Elaine: Right, well...
- Lippman: You put an exclamation point after "sweatshirt?"
- Elaine: That's correct, I-I felt the character doesn't like to be ch-chilly...
- Lippman: I see.
- 48. Human Nature (2001) - Hmm, a Charlie Kaufman-scripted movie that isn't very well-known. I should have figured there was a reason for that, that if the script was actually as brilliant as his other work, it would be just as acclaimed and popular as his other work. Not so, I'm afraid. Weirdness can be hit-or-miss, I suppose, and perhaps Human Nature is too... self-consciously weird? It doesn't have the effortlessly bizarre feel of Being John Malkovich. It seems too much like it's taking every opportunity to be strange, and in trying too hard, it weakens the absurdity. As a result, the movie's not nearly as funny as it could be. This would not be such a problem, except it is the closest thing to a straight-up comedy Kaufman has ever written (with plenty of slapstick sequences that fall flat), and hence it also has less humanity and less drama than Kaufman's other films. I mean, think of the ending shot of Being John Malkovich or of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. In Human Nature, the ending shot is... hitchhiking mice. Yes, that's right. Hitchhiking mice. All in all, the film is mildly entertaining, but certainly not up to Charlie Kaufman's normal standards.
- 49. Burning an Illusion (1981) - An apt choice for my Contemporary British Cinema class, this film is certainly important in film history. Made by a black director and featuring an almost entirely black cast, this film is seen by historians as a pioneering work of black cinema. My professor claimed it was the first British film to feature a black female protagonist. Despite its historical importance, however, you can see it has only 10 votes on the IMDB - all but forgotten by the mainstream. This may be an example of the prevailing ideology overlooking this work about marginalized black characters of Caribbean descent, or it might be because the film isn't great, to be honest with you. The characters are interesting at the beginning and end of the film, but in the middle the film becomes really very one-note, consisting of the same scene (Del doing something irresponsible and Pat getting mad) over and over again. Nonetheless, the film deserves better than its current state of obscurity.
- 50. Princess Mononoke (1997) - Spirited Away was a wonderful, imaginative, gorgeous, cute film. Mononoke retains the whimsy and wonder, and at the same time, it's pretty badass. The film is an all-out war between humans, animals, and spirits, with a rich mythological world that is, to be fair, rooted in traditional Japanese mythology - but Miyazaki goes above and beyond and truly creates a complex, inventive world of his own. Believe you me, mythological epic fantasy is not my favorite genre by a long-shot, and yet I found the drama gripping, the adventure exciting, and the animation breathtaking. Disney even did a great job with the dubbing.
- 51/52. Brazil (1985) (watched again) / The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988) - Along with Time Bandits (which I hated), these films are often considered by Terry Gilliam's fans to be part of a larger "Dream Trilogy." I'm not entirely sure if Gilliam intended them that way, or if the label was entirely a creation by his fans. I'm going to be writing a paper on at least these two films and possibly Time Bandits as well, so I thought I'd watch Baron Munchausen for the first time and Brazil for the third time. I think Baron Munchausen suffers from many of the same problems as Time Bandits, though I liked Baron much more. Both films try to go everywhere and do everything within two hours, and the result is muddled, unfocused, and messy. Terry Gilliam has spend millions on really awesome sets and costumes, but he should probably shell out 500 bucks for a basic screenwriting class about goals, action, and storytelling. Sure, filmmakers break those rules all the time, but in this case, it gets a little annoying to just watch the characters get thrown aimlessly all over the universe.
- Brazil, on the other hand, features protagonist Jonathan Pryce so intensely obsessed on his goal of meeting Kim Greist and getting her to love him. It's that kind of impassioned drive that provides a realistic core for the film, I think, and prevents Brazil from spinning completely out of control even when the visuals are at their most bizarre. There's a reason why I wanted to watch this for a third time: I think it is a really brilliant movie.
- Both Time Bandits and Baron Munchausen involve plenty of copping-out in terms of what exactly is within the realm of possibility, but in Baron, that seemed to be the point. That may be why I liked Baron better, or it might be just because Baron provided better scenery for the actors to chew on, or maybe I'm just fickle. Nonetheless, neither movie can really live up to Brazil, methinks.
- 53. Forbidden Planet (1956) - A bunch of non-characters land on a planet with pretty sweet art direcetion and recite bland, insipid dialogue for 98 minutes. It feels like at least half of that running time is spent on having the Exposition Fairy (played by Walter Pidgeon) blab on endlessly about the planet and the cool stuff he invented. There is an awkward, undeveloped love story plot element that the movie spends about three minutes on. At some point, the crew is attacked, and then they get to stand around looking bored, while holding guns that shoot animated lines which I guess are supposed to be space-blasts. Although they seem to be holding off their attacker okay, three non-characters feel the need to get closer to the attacker, and whaddaya know, they get killed. When we find out what's going on, it starts off mildly interesting, but even that is expositioned to death as well. I have no idea why this is considered classic scifi. This is supposedly based on The Tempest, but I don't really see it. Things actually happen in The Tempest.
- Pros: Cool sets. Cool robot. The scenes with the cook are pretty funny, perhaps because the cook is the only person with a character trait (he likes to drink).
- 54. 8 1/2 (1963) - Whenever I have to write about films like this, I always tend to be brief and simple. Given that (1) 8 1/2 is one of the most written-about films of all-time, (2) 8 1/2 is a very complex film, (3) I have limited space to write, (4) I've only seen it once, and (5) I saw it over a month ago but am so lame that I'm only getting to it now, there's really no way I can come up with any new fully-fledged insights at this point, and rather than saying obvious things or using the common wisdom about the film, I'll just tell you that I loved it. Fascinating story and visuals, and unlike La Dolce Vita, it very rarely bored me. That's all I got.
- 55. My Beautiful Laundrette (1985) - When Brokeback Mountain came out, I heard a lot of people saying they weren't going to see it due to the gay romance element. Some of those people may have been anti-gay rights, but some said something to the extent of, I believe homosexuals should be allowed to do what they want, I just don't want to watch it happen. I wonder if something similar happened when this film came out. I thought Brokeback Mountain was tamer than those aforementioned people would have expected, but compared to My Beautiful Laundrette, Brokeback seems like a Disney movie.
- In terms of characterizations, though, Brokeback Mountain is generally more solid, if only for one confrontational scene between Omar and Johnny, which feels very, very out of character for Omar when you consider the behavior that comes both before and afterwards. This one scene wouldn't matter so much, except the movie is very dependent on its characters because it focuses so little on plot. There are a few other clumsy moments in the film, though overall this is a really quite fascinating glimpse into mid-80s British life.
- 56. High Hopes (1988) - Another slice of British life in the 80s, this one features more sharply drawn, exaggerated characterizations that lead to bitter social satire. If watching unpleasant, self-centered people behaving like ridiculously obnoxious snobs would just make you feel uncomfortable, then you'll definitely want to avoid this movie, but I believe in the importance of laughing at even the worst of human nature, so I thought the film was pretty funny. Rougher around the edges than the wonderful Secrets and Lies, but still a fine film.
- 57. I'm British But (1990) - A mildly interesting documentary about people of Indian heritage living in Britain. Yay.
Author Comments:
Into the double digits!
Comments = very welcome.
Jim - is there any way I can get this list to appear alphabetically after "Damn" part 9 on my content, rather than between part 1 and part 2? Thanks.
Only way would be to rename the others 01, 02, 03, etc.
Hey, I watched Dark Days not too long ago... Coincidence? So glad you liked it! It took me completely off-guard. An amazing documentary.
No coincidence at all, I watched it solely based on your review. Amazing indeed - thanks for the recommendation!
:-) Cool. I love it when Listology works as intended.
I continue to enjoy your reviews immensely. I wish I could twist more people's arms to write about the films they watch; I love reading reactions!
I relate to your feelings concerning The Searchers, and while I have been renting Firefly and enjoying it, I think we line up concerning both it and Serenity quite nicely.
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
Yeah, I think I might enjoy Firefly more if I watched some more of it, but I don't really have time to get addicted to another TV show right now.
And as for the Searchers, I didn't remember the film all that well from my first viewing, so I found the silly humor very jarring when juxtaposed with such emotional trauma. Next time I raise pigs, by golly!
I agree; the poor mixture of humor and drama is a weakness most critics simply ignore when anointing the film.
What I've seen of Firefly ranks it as a fine show, but it certainly isn't anything you should feel the need to seek out and to create a jones for. 24 or Veronica Mars, it ain't.
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
Couldn't agree more re: The Searchers.
You haven't abandoned this list, have you?
Gah! No. Unfortunately my schedule has just reverted back the time when I really did only have time to watch movies on weekends, and even then it was certainly not every weekend. There are three entries I should remember to get to, but I probably won't be able to review them until after December 9th (my last day of classes).
Whew! Just checking.
Fun Goblet of Fire review! I do love those rare instances when I get out to the theater so I'm on the same page as you and other Listologists.
Good quibbles, too. The spoilerized one in particular is great; I can't believe it didn't occur to me. I didn't mind the "I love magic" line though, and I give Radcliffe credit for pulling it off. He wouldn't have had it in him until recently.
I do worry about all the stuff that's ending up on the cutting room floor. I'm surprised they haven't Kill Billified these, with a Goblet of Fire, Vol. 1 now, and then Vol. 2 over the summer. They'd make a killing, and maybe we'd get to see more of why our bad guys are truly bad (really, we get nothing from Snape or the Malfoys in this one, the wonderful Jason Isaacs in particular is under-used).
Or, if Peter Jackson were directing we could all buy the extended edition in a year.
My theory is that if you're really involved in a fantasy/adventure film, thoughts like my spoilerized one shouldn't occur to you, which may indicate that you liked the film more that I did. Do you think that is valid?
Radcliffe has definitely become a much better actor in the 3rd and 4th films. I have been impressed, but IMHO he couldn't sell that lame line.
I wouldn't be surprised if Order of Phoenix ends up in two volumes - it is, after all, the longest Harry Potter book. In that case, I suppose my least favorite book might have to draw a double admission price out of me. (sigh)
Yeah, I think it sounds like I enjoyed the movie a bit more than you. It's probably close though; so far no Harry Potter movie has cracked my top tier, although Prisoner of Azkaban comes close, and might get there on a rewatch.
Hmm. I'm not sure whether I liked Azkaban or Goblet better. Individual moments of Goblet bothered me, sure, but I think it was better-paced than Azkaban.
Ah, I loved the new reviews, and I found some of your observations on Munich very like my own, especially concerning the subtle touch of SS and Bana's acting.
As Mr. James would say, "Eye of the tiger!"
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
Bana definitely surprised me - after Troy, my impression of him was a decent actor who was largely coasting on his looks. I've been enjoying your recent reviews too, and I might have even... (sigh) talked myself into seeing King Kong, with your help. It'll be a struggle - man, why don't long movies have intermissions anymore?
"The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder." (A. Hitchcock)
Yeesh, tell me about it.
While long films do not disturb me (I am tall and have a large bladder, so perhaps that is the key), I am all for bringing back intermissions. I believe it is the theater owners who loathe the idea. Cuts into the number of times they can show a flick and thus their profits (of which they have little nowadays, thanks to DVDs and so many people who avoid the movie-going experience I adore).
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
Well they wouldn't have to be that long. Just five minutes for audiences to go to the bathroom or grab a quick popcorn or drink. I'm sure if it sold more concessions, theater owners would love to have them back.
I think your last sentence is absolutely true. I wonder if studies show that intermissions do up the concession tills.
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
I just have to let you know some random thoughts about your reviews. Well, it's still time to run away
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OK, now it's too late.
The Searchers: Since I found out that this movie was the main inspiration for Scorsese's Taxi Driver, I always wanted to rewatch it, but I haven't come round yet. The parallels in characters (between Ethan Edwards and Travis Bickle, between Debbie and Iris, between Scar and Sport) and in the story itself seem clear. And then Travis' mohawk. Well I like this parallelism (which is certainly even much more complex). What do you think? Oh and BTW, which film is your favourite Ford-movie? Mine would be The Man who Shot Liberty Valance, even though I also love Stagecoach.
Casablanca: This classic is not just "ingrained in American minds", but also in the European ones, as even the most convinced anti-Americans (in European film business and press) still honour this one. And Citizen Kane. And The Godfather.
Many thanks for sharing your views on Munich. After having now read your and lbangs' rather positive reactions to it, I think I can take the risk and see this Spielberg in the theatre, my first one since many years.
So, keep up these reviews. I enjoy them very much.
Yes, The Searchers and Taxi Driver parallelism is very interesting, and it's a great case of two directors taking similar fundamental plot elements and going in completely different directions with them. The result is two very similar and very different films.
My John Ford knowledge is very limited - I have yet to see two of his all-time classics (The Quiet Man and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance). The Ford films I have seen are The Searchers, The Grapes of Wrath, My Darling Clementine, Stagecoach, Mister Roberts, and Young Mr. Lincoln. My favorite of those is My Darling Clementine, which IMHO actually outshines Stagecoach and The Searchers. I will have to catch Liberty Valance, though, to see if it could challenge Clementine as my favorite Ford movie.
Thanks for the kind words, and I hope you like Munich!
Hey, AJ - thought you might like to have a gander at this t-shirt, which is currently on sale.
Ha! That's awesome! Unfortunately, now it is sold out.
Eagerly awaiting your thoughts on Imitation of Life. What brought you to watch it?
I'm actually kinda conflicted as to how I feel about that movie. I'll have to think on it a bit more.
What brought me to watch it? Many factors came together to make this decision: (1) it's #237 on theyshootpictures.com's most acclaimed movies list; (2) it's by Douglas Sirk, a famed director I'm not as familiar with as I'd like to be; (3) it was showing on TCM a little while back, probably while I was at college; (4) I love using the DVR in my new house, which I've only been consistently utilizing for the past few months; (5) I checked the taped programs over my winter break, and eventually decided on Imitation of Life.
I thought Capote did a nice job blurring the lines between Truman's honest connections with other human beings and his moments of manipulation. It's nearly impossible to tell the showman from the human being.
Brokeback is indeed a subtler movie than most are giving it credit for.
any pre-review thoughts on OUATIAmerica? In other words how much did you love it?
A hell of a lot.
The backlog gets daunting after awhile, doesn't it? That happened to me often enough that now I just always try to write my review as soon as possible, and definitely before I watch another movie.
when the prostitute threatens to 'expose her breasts', great... the look on larry's face, priceless.
I wasn't thrilled with the 5th season either... I mean I still liked it a lot, but it just didn't live up to the rest of the series... although the small segment where Larry finds out he's allegedly from a down-home christian family is pretty brilliant... and the episode with rob cordry as the sex offender wasn't bad either.
oh btw, it's tough to explain OUATIAmerica... It's just that kind of brilliant movie.
Yeah, the Christian Larry is a funny part of the last episode, it's when he dies, goes to Heaven, and then gets sent back that I really started groaning.
I'm glad you think that about Once Upon a Time in America too, because rest assured, I really did love it.
Congrats on digging your way out from under the backlog, and I'm very happy to hear Match Point scored, as I'm really looking forward to that one. I'm also glad you liked Dirty Pretty Things more than I did. I should give it another try one of these days.
Thanks, Jim! I hope you like Match Point! Was there something about the dramatic elements of DPT that didn't work for you, or was it really just a matter of expectation versus reality?
I'm pretty sure most of the problem was false expectations. Aren't expectations the devil?
Right with you on Forbidden Planet. That flick blows.
Yeah, tell me about it. I'm glad you agree.
The robot's pretty sweet, though.