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Jedit posted:It pretty much is one, though, if you stop and think. Compare to Prince of Darkness if you don't believe it; it's practically a horror remake of AoP13, just as Ghosts of Mars is the sci-fi version. However, AoP13 was specifically an homage to Howard Hawks's Rio Bravo. One of the reasons I decided to do Howard Hawks is because of how much John Carpenter loves him  Speaking of, I am behind due to some factors out of my control but I'll be getting started tonight or tomorrow evening.
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Apr 24, 2012 02:13
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 Lookit dat fucken haircut Director currently working on: David Lynch Progress 1/10 Next up: The Elephant Man Just Watched: Eraserhead This film is literally a nightmare. That's exactly what it is. It doesn't have any real semblance of a coherent plot, it doesn't have any sense of an internal logic, its imagery ranges from disturbing to terrifying, and some of the circumstances and images within can only come from the mind of someone that can access that deep recess of the mind that contains an unquantifiable sense of dread and fear, where your waking fears become twisted and grotesque. It's an incredibly striking film in so many ways. The lighting, cinematography, sound design and practical effects alone are technically impressive, and that's even before you start to consider the execution on an artistic level. I've no doubt that this film will stick with me, and I may try to force it on other people, even if it's just to witness the sheer struggle at trying to comprehend what they're watching. I get this film, comprehension isn't important. It's a moving abstract painting, how it makes you feel is the most important aspect of Eraserhead when it all boils down to it. I get a sense that's how it was made as well, a film that exists entirely upon the director's need to create an image that perfectly encapsulates the way he feels, and any meaning or striking imagery that comes from it, as Lynch would say, is a 'happy accident'.
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Apr 24, 2012 02:22
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I think Eraserhead has a ton of coherence and internal logic, but that may be because I've seen it a dozen times or so. It's just that it joins Meshes Of The Afternoon as a kind of ur-text on how to depict dream logic. What separates Lynch is the clarity of this vision, a dream is something vivid and textured so god drat scary you can almost touch it. How loud did you listen to Eraserhead?
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Apr 24, 2012 02:41
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HUNDU THE BEAST GOD posted:I think Eraserhead has a ton of coherence and internal logic, but that may be because I've seen it a dozen times or so. It's just that it joins Meshes Of The Afternoon as a kind of ur-text on how to depict dream logic. What separates Lynch is the clarity of this vision, a dream is something vivid and textured so god drat scary you can almost touch it. How loud did you listen to Eraserhead? Maybe I struggled to explain what I meant a bit, but perhaps 'waking logic' is more appropriate, since dream logic applies to the film pretty much perfectly. There is a sense of coherence, to a minor extent, but I just think it's irrelevant when it comes to what the film tries to achieve. I watched the film on blu ray in a pitch black room with $300 headphones turned up loud enough for the loud scenes to hurt my ears. I love watching movies like this.
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Apr 24, 2012 02:51
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Yeah, that's pretty much as good as it gets.
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Apr 24, 2012 02:53
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Eraserhead definitely has an internal logic and a relatively cohesive plot. I think a lot of people inaccurately group it in with more surreal works like Un Chien Andalou or Begotten that really have paper thin cohesion, if any at all. The brilliance of Eraserhead is that it tells a fairly straight forward story in the most nightmarish way possible.
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Apr 24, 2012 04:18
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caiman posted:Eraserhead definitely has an internal logic and a relatively cohesive plot. I think a lot of people inaccurately group it in with more surreal works like Un Chien Andalou or Begotten that really have paper thin cohesion, if any at all. The brilliance of Eraserhead is that it tells a fairly straight forward story in the most nightmarish way possible. I don't know if I'd call it cohesive, it's simple enough that the numerous bridges between plot points don't exactly shatter the foundations of the plot. It is incredibly surreal, the entire reason the film feels so nightmarish is because of the way it can take you out of reality and put you in a place where you feel uncomfortable and know that nothing there is normal. edit: Although I think I should probably watch it again somewhere down the line, I may have misjudged some stuff on the face of it. I'll wait until I'm not visiting my sister and helping look after her kid, that put me in a weird headspace. cat doter fucked around with this message at 05:00 on Apr 24, 2012 |
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Apr 24, 2012 04:42
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Eraserhead is also loving hilarious.
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Apr 24, 2012 16:34
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FitFortDanga posted:Eraserhead is also loving hilarious. Agreed. If you don't find the dinner scene with the little chickens funny, you're taking the movie too seriously.
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Apr 24, 2012 16:36
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Director currently working on: The Coen Brothers Progress: 8/15 Just watched: I think Miller's Crossing is an interesting film in that it really makes you root for a protagonist that doesn't really deserve sympathy. Tom is a scary guy, but then again so are most of the characters, even the ones who don't kill anybody. John Turturro's performance as Bernie is really effective at turning a more or less harmless, charming and disarming minor conman into a genuinely menacing figure, but of course he can't compare in either menace or skillful double crossing to Gabriel Byrne's Tom. Next up: I'm rewatching Barton Fink
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Apr 24, 2012 21:11
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Director currently working on: Woody Allen Progress: 19/41 Just watched: Whatever Works - I didn't know what to expect from this one, since it came out only a few years ago and I hadn't really heard anything about it, but I liked it a lot. Larry David is really good at playing a miserable jerk that you can't help liking anyway, and this is a pretty funny movie. There are a couple of bits that fall flat (the parts where he breaks the fourth wall), but overall I thought it was great. It probably helps that I work with a guy who is pretty much a real life version of Boris. Next up: Radio Days
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Apr 25, 2012 03:24
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 Director currently working on: Edgar G. Ulmer Progress 24/48 Next up: The Light Ahead or Hannibal I wanted to only update for shorts when I do features too, but I watched four very similar shorts from the man, so I figure that adds up to a feature. From 1937 to 1940, Edgar Ulmer supplemented his feature work with a series of shorts for the National Tuberculosis Association & U.S. Health. These shorts sought to raise awareness of the dangers of the disease among particularly susceptible (poor) social/racial groups. Tonight I watched Cloud in the Sky, a Spanish language (there's also an English version, but I consider the Spanish version the true one) film targeted at Mexican-American immigrants, Another to Conquer, targeted at the Navajo which presents a uniquely symbiotic take on pioneer/indian relations, Let My People Live, a spiritual aimed at black America, starring the great Rex Ingram, and They Do Come Back, a film aimed at sex crazed teenagers which is not listed on his IMDb page. Yet another example of how hard his career is to track. On their own, these are pretty but forgettable ephemeral films, but taken in the Ulmer canon they're drat interesting. Cloud in the Sky's dusty panoramas and Another to Conquer's low-key transformation of the west bith evoke the sensibilities of Ulmer's essential The Naked Dawn, a decade and a half later. Let My People Live bears superficial cultural ties to Moon Over Harlem, but something about Ingram's sad academic reminds me of the doctors in Ulmer's two sci-fi films. In fact, the whole series is essentially retold in Beyond the Time Barrier, a science fiction film about a culture wiped out by a plague. The iconography and themes, down the focus on dwindling and endangered cultural groups, are identical. People often wonder how Ulmer could've created such polished and memorable images with such limited resources - perhaps these films, almost uniformly forgotten about in texts on the man, are some kind of key to understanding his methods? For instance, there's a moment in Let My People Live in which a packed funeral is represented in the cheapest yet most efficient way possible - by the sight of a few people standing outside the door, unable to fit inside. This necessary aeseticism, this focus on small communities being overwhelmed, this series of study after study of downtrodden poor characters seemed to follow him wherever he went. penismightier fucked around with this message at 18:05 on Apr 25, 2012 |
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Apr 25, 2012 06:49
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This will be fun! I'm going to choose Spike Lee, I've never seen any of his films but I've been interested by a few so now seems like a good opportunity to start. I'm only going to do his full-length films, excluding documentaries or anything like that, so I count 17 films (if I don't finish by the time his next one comes out I'll add that on). Director currently working on: Spike Lee Progress: 0/17 Next up: Malcolm X
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Apr 25, 2012 16:12
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With Spike Lee, you really shouldn't exclude his excellent documentaries.
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Apr 25, 2012 16:30
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Director currently working on: Martin Scorsese Progress 26/35 [ Just watched: My Voyage to Italy is the documentary sequel to A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies, and as the name points out this one pertains to Italian cinema, especially the Neo-Realism years and the key artists surrounding that artistic movement. It's just as long as it's predecessor, three hours, though while the goal of both documentaries is to get you watching various types of cinema, this one goes a bit too far and at points a lot more didactic. Instead of just peaking your interest with a couple of scenes or moments from various films, Scorsese just spoils them all and analyses entire films, from start to end. In most cases there is a feeling that you already saw all these films, before you actually got around to watch them on your own. Which seems somewhat counter productive, to the goal that Scorsese sets out to accomplish in the beginning. On the other hand, it's three hours of Martin Scorsese talking passionately about cinema, and it's hard not to get swept away with his enthusiasm and appreciation for all these films, and the people that made them. It's a great piece despite some of my grievances, and I would totally watch more of these three hour long documentaries about world cinema, with Martin Scorsese as a guide. Next Up: American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince
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Apr 25, 2012 17:16
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Electronico6 posted:Next Up: American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince Man, you're in for a treat.
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Apr 25, 2012 17:29
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Director currently working on: Terrence Malick Progress: 0/5 Next up: Badlands I've seen 'The Thin Red Line' but I really don't want to comment on it since it's been so long. Going to pick up Badlands tonight.
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Apr 25, 2012 20:21
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HUNDU THE BEAST GOD posted:With Spike Lee, you really shouldn't exclude his excellent documentaries. I know his documentaries are supposed to be excellent but for this thread I'd like to keep my count to just his non-documentary work, I find 17 to be a big number of films to watch anyway. I've heard a ton of good things about his documentary work, especially When The Levees Broke so I'll get around to watching them, even if they aren't part of my count  Director currently working on: Spike Lee Progress: 1/17 Just Watched: Malcolm X - I was really impressed by this. Denzel Washington is obviously the centerpiece of the work and his brilliant performance keeps the film going. I especially enjoyed his ability to portray the younger Malcolm and his natural evolution over the course of the film to the popular image of Malcolm X that stayed after his death. Aside from Washington's excellent performance I also found the cinematography interesting. Lee uses a lot of different shots and keeps the movie interesting on a level past the performances. I especially liked the shots near the beginning of the film of Malcolm's father's death and Malcolm's memories of his early life - they captured that feel of not being able to see everything clearly, of only remembering small, inconsequential details that remain in the mind. The lighting was also very good - I especially liked the opening act of the film for the use of warm colors and lighting which gave the film (up until a certain point) a near sepia tone, separating Malcolm's distant past from his present. I find my biggest complaint with this picture is that it's too short for my taste. I wanted to see more of Malcolm and Betty's early relationship develop on screen but I understand that with the life of such an interesting person there's no amount of time to showcase everything and at three hours it's a very long film anyway. I think what I'll need to do now is just to read the Autobiography and learn more! Next up: Clockers - I'm almost finished a rewatch of The Wire and seeing as this is written by Richard Price I think it would be in my interest to give it a go.
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Apr 25, 2012 21:29
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GoSpeedGo! posted:Director currently working on: Michael Haneke Last watched: The Seventh Continent I thought I knew what Haneke was capable of, but The Seventh Continent still managed to shock me by turning itself into an utter nightmare which left me staring at the screen with my mouth open. We follow a family of three (mother, father and a little daughter) living in Austria at the end of 1980s. Right from the beginning you know this film is something different - Haneke often doesn't allow us to see the protagonists' faces and instead shows us their hands interacting with their surroundings (paying for their shopping, turning off the radio). While this seems as a cold and distant method of filmmaking, it actually leads to stronger immersion of the viewer as we are carefully drawn into the film as another protagonist, as a complice. Usually, when watching a classically narrated film, our emotions come from empathizing with the characters. Here, we involuntarily become a part of the family, which is why the second half of the film is so intense and shocking. In short, this is a disturbing study of a repetitive and depersonalized life in a consumerist society which is even more impressive considering that it was made more than 20 years ago in a small country in Central Europe. Now, comparing The Seventh Continent, Haneke's debut, with his latest films like The White Ribbon or Hidden, it seems clear how his style has changed. There seems to be a shift from this radical expression which challenges established modes of filmic storytelling to careful ïncorporation of these distinct elements into what is now considered the prevailing art cinema filmmaking. In other words, Haneke's journey as a director is completely opposite to someone like Malick who, on the other hand, goes from "telling a straightforward story in a bit different, unique way" (Badlands) to "strongly impressionistic filmmaking completely liberated from a cause-and-effect linear narrative" (The Tree of Life). Progress: 5/11 Next Up: Benny's Video GoSpeedGo! fucked around with this message at 21:41 on Apr 25, 2012 |
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Apr 25, 2012 21:37
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Director currently working on: The Coen Brothers Progress: 8/15 Just watched: It's been a while since the last time I saw Barton Fink and I think I'd forgotten just how great John Turturro and John Goodman were in this movie. Turturro's neurotic intellectual obsessed with but aloof from the common man would be an interesting character even if he wasn't slowly going insane as the world falls apart around him. Goodman's performance calls to mind his role in O Brother, Where Art Thou? in that his charm and his affable personality hide something much deeper and darker than you'd ever guess. Goodman also provides Barton with a convenient sounding board to elaborate on his theater of the working man. Which is an interesting point of characterization, Fink purports to care deeply about the working man and the "poetry of the streets," yet when confronted by an actual working man, a many who in his own words "could tell you some stories," Barton ignores, interrupts and condescends to him. In addition to the characters I think the imagery of the film is worth a mention. The hotel calls to mind the Overlook Hotel in The Shining, further adding to Barton's sense of isolation from the world and contrasts sharply with the idealized Hollywood paradise home of Lipnick. Even the wallpaper, faded and dripping with mucus like wallpaper paste seems to be mirroring Barton's deteriorating mental state. Next up: I'm rewatching The Hudsucker Proxy. stereobreadsticks fucked around with this message at 22:52 on Apr 25, 2012 |
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Apr 25, 2012 22:50
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Director currently working on: Joe Dante Progress: 8/19 Just watched: The Howling (1981)  The Howling, based on the novel, follows Karen White (Dee Wallace) as yet another intrepid female reporter, like Maggie McKeown, taking risks to follow a dangerous story. The story, Karen's encounter with the serial killer Eddie Quist (first of many Joe Dante appearances by Robert Picardo), hammers home the first connections between werewolves and sex in this movie, as she has to watch a porn shop video of a rape while attacked by Eddie, who turns into a werewolf.  Having trouble getting over this attack, and experiencing amnesia as a result, Karen is then advised by her counselor (Patrick Macnee) to go to "The Colony," a remote island with plenty of Wicker Man parallels. While there, her husband deals with his own seduction of the nymphomaniac Marsha, after he is bitten and starts to become a werewolf. Meanwhile, Karen enlists the help of some of her friends as she attempts to solve the mystery of the island, and why there's so much drat howling everywhere.  The rest of the film follows her attempts to shake the amnesia and the guilt that she feels after the attack, feeling sexual insecurity with her husband and a constant fear of those around her, much like many rape victims feel. The threat of becoming a werewolf is likened to sexual awakening, and the husband finds his sexual satisfaction by turning into one, while Karen hides from it because of the hostile way in which it was offered to her. Scratches on Bill's back could be either coital or lupine, and the arguments they have about what he's been up to are transparently layered in meaning.  Fun Note: This is Dennis Dugan, future director of all of Adam Sandler's awful post-millenial movies including Jack & Jill, as the obnoxious boyfriend of secondary female lead Terri. Even the last scene, where Karen outs herself as a werewolf during her last newscast, feels like both an homage to and a reversal of the famous "mad as hell" scene in Network. Here, Karen breaks her cool reporter detachment and shows her true self in front of God and the world, while kids and bored couples look on in jaded incredulity and casual curiosity. Right as she is shot to death, they cut hilariously to a dog food commercial espousing the "meaty chunks" of its subject. Even when the truth is shown to us, we don't care because it is on TV - we move right along with our lives. Even the guy in the bar who insists that what just happened was real says so dispassionately, as if to say "eh, whatever, werewolves."  The last shot of the movie is of a hamburger sizzling on the grill, as a symbol of the world figuratively grinding up Karen into mincemeat. We watch the burger cook tantalizingly all throughout the credits, our simultaneous attraction to and disgust of the burger "lycan"ing us (get it?) to the werewolves.  There are a lot of parallels between this and Piranha upon further inspection, including the camp scenes at the Colony, the intrepid reporter getting into trouble for trying to break the glass ceiling, and so forth. John Sayles also gave him this screenplay, and Pino Donaggio provided the score once more. The notion of an island of werewolves is pretty fun, since it breaks the mold of most werewolf movies being the struggle of a single werewolf or against one; instead, being a werewolf (a sexually active being) is normal, and Karen is victimized for not wanting that contact.  The filmmaking is typical of Joe Dante's style, but he's much more self-assured here than in Piranha, attempting a slightly more contemplative and Gothic style to fit the movie's slower pace and more direct allegories. Shots are wider to encompass the beautiful sights of the island, and the pace is much slower to let the mood seep through. And boy, does he like to use fog. Joe Dante probably chooses scripts based on just how many times he can use fog machines, and I couldn't be happier about that. The practical effects for the werewolf transformations are astounding, especially when we see Eddie Quist finally slowly turn into the beast.  That's not to say that Dante's signature brand of humor isn't there, either. Cans of Wolf Chili are strategically placed in cabins, a copy of "Howl" adorns Dennis Dugan's desk, cops and old people are appropriately tongue-in-cheek and buffoonish, and Kevin McCarthy comes back to provide us with some much-needed jerkery as Karen's producer. We also get ironic cartoons on the TV as violence happens, just like with Piranha!  Dick Miller Sighting: in The Howling, we spot Dick as a jaded bookstore owner who schools our heroes on the science behind how to kill werewolves. I'd love to see him and the owner of the Neverending Story set up a bookshop. Next up: Gremlins (re-watching) Hewlett fucked around with this message at 03:22 on Apr 26, 2012 |
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Apr 26, 2012 02:05
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I'm going to do this the right way. Director currently working on: Steven Spielberg Progress: There's a lot of stuff made by this guy, but I simply can't find any work released before 1971 so I won't even consider those -- http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000229/ So my full list will be (I only crossed out those who I can really remember watching, not something I saw 10 years ago in a cinema); Duel (1971) - Something Evil (1972) - The Sugarland Express (1974) - Jaws (1975) - Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) - 1941 (1979) - 3/27 Movies I wasn't able to find, but might be out there: Firelight (1971) - Savage (1973) Just watched: - Next up: I'll start from the beginning, so Duel.
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Apr 26, 2012 03:28
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Director currently working on: Howard Hawks Progress: 4/42 Just watched: I Was a Male War Bride This film is a Cary Grant vehicle meant to show off his trademark acerbic wit but he doesn't click with Ann Sheridan so it feels like you're watching a trainwreck marriage in progress and is quite uncomfortable. On its face I Was A Male War Bride is a screwball influenced comedy but I read it as more of a cautionary tale about committing to a relationship with a person you don't really like just to get in bed with them. Next up: Only Angels Have Wings 1927 Paid to Love | 1928 A Girl in Every Port | 1927 The Cradle Snatchers | 1926 Fig Leaves | 1926 The Road to Glory | 1928 Fazil | 1928 The Air Circus | 1929 Trent's Last Case | 1930 The Dawn Patrol | 1932 La foule hurle | 1932 Scarface | 1932 The Crowd Roars | 1932 Tiger Shark | 1933 Today We Live | 1934 Twentieth Century | 1935 Barbary Coast | 1936 Ceiling Zero | 1936 Come and Get It | 1936 The Road to Glory |
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Apr 26, 2012 06:01
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Director currently working on: Spike Lee Progress: 2/17 She's Gotta Have It (1986) | School Daze (1988) | Do The Right Thing (1989) | Mo' Better Blues (1990) | Jungle Fever (1991) | Just Watched: Clockers - I enjoyed this film but I had several issues with it. The plot concerns a NYPD homicide investigation and the lives it affects as our crooked cops Harvey Keitel & John Turturro attempt to find the killer. Keitel plays a detective who remains unconvinced when someone comes forward to confess to the crime and his investigation leads to a chain of events which leave the lives of the characters changed forever. It was the plot which kept me interested throughout the film as so many other aspects seem limited. The plot synopsis largely ignores the true protagonist, a street level dealer named Strike (Mekhi Phifer) but it often feels like placing the role of protagonist on Phifer was an afterthought. His character isn't well drawn compared to Keitel's cop and at points it seems Keitel's character goes through a more traditional character arc than Strike does. I didn't enjoy Phifer's performance as much as the performances of the supporting characters either, particularly John Turturro, who makes use of his limited screen time to paint a perfect image of a scumbag police officer. The symbolism on screen often feels heavy handed; a lot of things that I feel the audience could connect the dots on are instead spelled out directly. The use of music is often overbearing, despite the original score being very good at setting mood. The cinematography is again a highlight of the film - much of the work was shot outdoors and the colours are bright, saturated and vibrant. This affects scenes shot indoors, with bright near-natural light encroaching on the character's space, as if for Strike the pressure to be outside slinging dope is inescapable. At this point I feel that Spike Lee does the best he can with what he's given - elevating stories through his use of cinematography, lighting, and some very nice, unique shots. Sometimes this works and sometimes it feels like I'm left watching a good film rather than a great one. His title sequences are also very good and set the mood perfectly. This is probably not the best judgment to make after 2 films but I'll see if my opinion changes after I watch more. Next up: School Daze - I think some early Spike will let me reconsider my thoughts on his strengths and weaknesses. Hoisin Crispy Owl fucked around with this message at 23:35 on Apr 26, 2012 |
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Apr 26, 2012 13:17
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Hewlett posted:Director currently working on: Joe Dante
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Apr 26, 2012 15:28
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Hewlett posted:Director currently working on: Joe Dante This is hilarious. I never would have known!
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Apr 26, 2012 16:43
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The French Connection dir: William Friedkin What the hell am I going to say about The French Connection that Hollywood (and every cop show since) hasn't already said for me by aping it a million times? It's far from original, but like Saving Private Ryan, it changed the grammar of how a certain type of film is made - you don't get Serpico, Friends of Eddie Coyle or Taking of Pelham One, Two, Three without The French Connection, and part of it I feel is an exploration of techniques Friedkin developed in his earlier films with a healthy slug of serendipity. It's unfair to bust on the movie for this, but every single location shot in this film is amazing. You really couldn't ask for a better set than Lindsay/Beame/Koch-era New York, as Rome '78 proves conclusively. The pacing from Boys in the Band to this has leapt for obvious reasons, an original screenplay versus a stage adaptation, but it's just way more cinematic - many more words and images juxtaposed, much more information conveyed through visual storytelling, the milieu of characters, and so on. The "documentary" feel doesn't just refer to the use of handhelds, prevalent in Friedkin's work to date, but just the sense that the shots genuinely feel stolen, rather than choreographed or mocked up. Aiding this is a brassy, edgy score that pipes up when it's crucial, rather than blaring for 100 minutes, creating another narrative dimension rather than obnoxiously imposing an emotional state on the viewer. However, you can definitely see Friedkin's willingness to throw himself into the versimilitude of a project that his films can frankly come off as workmanlike, it almost seems like a curse of success that the visual structure of French Connection is so impeccable that it almost seems characterless, like a generic blueprint for future, similar movies. His masterclass on action feels like it doesn't have a fingerprint, which is odd. Not to put too fine a point on it, though, this movie is fully sick. Next: The Exorcist, what the gently caress
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Apr 26, 2012 17:37
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fenix down posted:I love your write-ups, but that lycan joke is unforgiveable!! Note to self: More puns in my writeups. All the puns.
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Apr 26, 2012 17:48
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Hewlett posted:Director currently working on: Joe Dante Surely I'm not the only one who finds the final transformation scene in the newsroom hilarious, right? That's supposed to be funny. It's the funniest part of the movie.
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Apr 26, 2012 21:30
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Jack Does Jihad posted:Surely I'm not the only one who finds the final transformation scene in the newsroom hilarious, right? That's supposed to be funny. It's the funniest part of the movie. Oh, I most certainly do; she turns into Fozzie Bear.
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Apr 26, 2012 21:34
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Director currently working on: Woody Allen Progress: 20/41 Just watched: Radio Days - A sentimental and very funny look back at the golden age of radio. I'm not sure how much is fictionalized and how much is based in fact, but the narrator (Allen) tells anecdotes about his family and also about radio personalities in the 1940's. The cast is huge and great - Mia Farrow, Dianne Wiest, Julie Kavner, Jeff Daniels, and a ton of other Allen regulars. A very very young Seth Green plays the kid, Joe. Larry David even has a bit part as an angry communist neighbor. I liked this one a lot. More of a "light" comedy than some of his other films, but very enjoyable. Next up: Manhattan Murder Mystery
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Apr 26, 2012 23:34
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I'm going through these at quite a fast rate, university exams really bring out the procrastinator in me. I'm glad I set myself this challenge though, I'm actually able to sit down, watch a movie and give some analysis, which is coming to me much easier than I thought it would. Director currently working on: Spike Lee Progress: 3/17 She's Gotta Have It (1986) | Just Watched: School Daze - an early effort from Lee set at a historically Black college, taking the traditional form of a college comedy - a group of rebels versus a jock fraternity - and turning it on its head through the use of musical numbers and political overtones. I noticed immediately the film doesn't feature as much stylish direction and instead feels very much like a stage play, although the direction isn't without its moments. If this is due to restraint on the part of the director or Lee's progression as a filmmaker is something I'll have to consider when comparing this to his other films. The film feels more like a discussion of politics within black communities set against a larger genre of filmmaking rather than a college comedy with some subtext; its very direct about the themes and this can get a little heavy handed. However, the comedic moments are funny and the dramatic elements are good too - until the second act, which is disastrous. The plot stalls with scenes which go nowhere and add nothing to the story. The climax of the film is impressive but it doesn't feel earned and it's quite abrupt. At the climax, the message of the film is literally declared to the audience, which could be considered an overtly 'preachy' move but it feels more like a reminder to the filmmaker, who after delivering a solid first half of political issues and some light comedy forgot entirely what the film was about and had to remind himself. It doesn't reflect well on Lee as a solo writer at all, although his acting performance here I thought was very good. He might not have a grasp of all the material but he certainly had a grasp on his character. I only wish the film could live up to the great opening act. Next up: Inside Man - I've heard good things and Lee didn't touch the script so I have high hopes!
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Apr 26, 2012 23:53
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Director currently working on: Martin Scorsese Progress 27/35 [ Just watched: "Man, you're in for a treat.", and how! American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince is a fantastic little gem. In many ways it's a sort of sequel to a previous Scorsese documentary Italianamerica, in which it's just an hour of people talking about stuff that happened in their lives. This one focus on someone of Martin Scorsese own generation, his friend Steven Prince, who plays a little role in Taxi Driver. Prince is a very strange and fascinating individual, his really THAT guy in which all sort of crazy and impossible stuff happen in his life, and has a never ending stream of amazing tales to tell. One of his tales of exploit ended up as a scene in Pulp Fiction, but unlike John Travolta in that film, Steven Prince actually stabbed an OD'd woman in the heart with an adrenaline shot. You also get two manchildren(70's proto-goon territory here) wrestling around in a living room, which might just be the silliest thing I ever seen in a Martin Scorsese picture. Next Up: Public Speaking
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Apr 27, 2012 00:02
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Director: Steven Spielberg Progress: 4/27 Just watched: Duel The movie starts with a bumper view of a car leaving the city, driving on the highway and finally onto a lone desert road. During this intro you'll hear the driver switch to different radio stations. After a while, while the radio is switched to some boring talk-show (I guess the only station the driver could pick up) we finally get to see the driver. He seems to be quite a handsome man, dressed to impress. He gets stuck behind a truck and wants to pass it. As soon as he does, the truck passes him again. Can you guess where the title of the movie came from? He overtakes the truck and pulls over at a gas station. Eager to see the truck driver's face, but unable to see it, the driver just gives up. He gets his car filled and calls the homefront. His wife doesn't seem to be to happy to hear from him. Poor driver. He's reminded of an important meeting though. Thanks wife! Driver gets on the road again, and once again the truck overtakes. So far so good. However, the truck doesn't seem to be in any hurry now that he's in front and changes direction whenever the driver does. When he does let the driver pass, it nearly results in a crash with an upcoming car. Can you guess where the title of the movie came from now? Driver is angry, because now he'll never get to this meeting and has to deal with his wife. The confrontation between the driver and the truck keeps going for the length of the movie, but it's not as boring as it sounds. At some points I really fell bad for the driver, and wished it was just over. Why did the truck driver torment this poor driver so much? Rating: 7/10 Next: Something Evil Grawl fucked around with this message at 01:54 on Apr 27, 2012 |
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Apr 27, 2012 01:51
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[quote="penismightier"] Director currently working on: Edgar G. Ulmer Progress 25/48 Next up: The Light Ahead I was dreading Hannibal. I hate sword and sandals movies, especially the wandering early '60s Italian variety. But hey! this wasn't bad! About halfway through I realized this was the first color Ulmer film I've seen. With the exception of the lusive Journey Beneath the Desert, it's the only film he ever made in color. This is a shame! The colors are great here, washed out primaries abound. At once vivid and faded. Victor Mature plays Hannibal, which I would've guessed beyond his range, but he has a cruel intelligence and sense of adventure here which enliven him. The rest of the cast, though, brings nothing to the table. Ulmer's definitely working on a larger budget than usual here and he milks every penny. Huge crowds, animal attacks, and vast (and surprisingly violent!) set pieces abound. It's a whole new side of the man - the opening scene is a trek through the mountains (very Aguirre) in which men fall to their doom at a rate of about one every thirty seconds. A sword fight cuts a man's thumb off in lurid detail. A guy catches an arrow between the eyes. I've never seen this kind of violence from the man, but it's been simmering since the famous shadow flailing in The Black Cat. This is Ulmer unleashed. It's just too bad the script is godawful. Kind of a damper on things.
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Apr 27, 2012 05:44
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Director currently working on: Spike Lee Progress: 4/17 She's Gotta Have It (1986) | Just Watched: Inside Man - as close to a mainstream Spike Lee Joint as I think we'll ever get. A very well constructed and entertaining heist movie, although I don't have much to say about the plot - a big part of the movie are the twists and turns and I'm unsure if it would hold up to a rewatch; I was just enjoying the ride. Excellent performances all round, although of special note is Denzel Washington, playing a character who couldn't be further from Malcolm X. It's surprising how much Lee gets out of Washington - he has great range as an acotr and it's clear the two work well as a creative pairing. Also of note is the cinematography; when Lee is trying he really delivers on that front. The film is shot and edited to fit the scene very well - not a single shot is wasted when depicting the expertly carried out and methodical heist, allowing for the camerawork to become more frantic and panicked when the situation on screen calls for it. I especially liked Lee's use of the dolly shot - he uses it a lot in his work but as the cinematography is fairly restrained in this movie when he uses it it really aids the mood of the scene and doesn't feel like one of many little tricks he uses. Compared to Malcolm X where the film is so long and big the camerawork keeps the film interesting for viewers, the tension and suspense of Inside Man lead to less flashy cinematography being used to much greater effect. Although I was looking forward to seeing a film where Lee didn't have a hand in writing the film, there is a lot of racial politics in the film and I thought it was handled very well - it doesn't interfere with the main story while still making some good points about a post-9/11 New York City. It angers me that people can point to a film like this and argue that Spike Lee is a racist, or that his 'racial predjudice' gets in the way of making a good film. Lee knows what he wants to say about race in America and for the most part he makes important points and if a film can't both entertain and raise issues, what hope does it have of being any good? With that said however, there is a scene in which a young child is seen playing a violent video game about 'Gangsta' life. It feels really awkward because it doesn't seem to have much of a place in the rest of the film and it's also almost exactly like a similar scene in Clockers, although in that film it actually makes sense thematically. Oh well, can't win 'em all. Next up: Bamboozled - this one interests me for the political commentary and I read it got a fairly poor recption and it was also fairly controversial. If he handled the race issue as well as he has in his other works I don't think I have to lower my expectations too much.
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Apr 27, 2012 16:53
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The Exorcist (The Director's Cut) dir: William Friedkin Part II of one of the biggest cinematic one-two punches ever, with the same straightforward aesthetic philosophy that lends credibility to a story that gets weird in a hurry, which again has been aped reasonably well by films like the Invasion of the Body Snatchers remake, which has a much more wicked sense of humor, and The Sentinel, which maintains its reputation as an pulpy parade of old, current and future Hollywood stars. A few things stand out to me on my nth rewatch: the first is that there are very few flights of fancy in this film, outside of a creepy, overexposed dream sequence that Karras has about his mother, and the sequence in the beginning in Iraq, there's very little that appears to be from the point of view of the characters. I believe this matter-of-fact-ness led to the extreme popularity of this film, that and the uniquely Catholic terror of the travails of the tribulations of the McNeils. I also forgot how central Father Karras is to the film, especially since he and Chris McNeil meet at a crossroads of self discovery - one having a crisis of faith and the other a crisis of rationality. The way that bow gets drawn over the course of the film lends an incredibly ominous feeling to the third act, which ought to be the takeaway from the narrative structure. Again, a textbook lesson in how you invest in characters that come into play during a climax. Another really unsettling thing is the sound design, where the visuals are like Friedkin's earlier films - mundane, yet vivid - the sound of the film is a cacophony of human and non-human voices intruding on the soundtrack, from off-screen and from Regan's mouth. Across the board, you have a lot of really good performances, but Ellen Burstyn has to be singled out for a phenomenal, high-strung performance that stands out among every Friedkin film I've rewatched to date. Burstyn has the same quality that makes me love me some Grace Zibriskie. I also love the spider-walk scene and it seems weird in retrospect that adding it in the director's cut was controversial. So much horror going forward owes this movie bigtime. Next on the countdown to Cruising: Sorcerer
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Apr 27, 2012 17:04
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Oh man, reading this thread is making me want to read Spike, Mike, Slackers and Dykes as the next book in my 52 week challenge. I think that I just might and then read the other two that I had in mind next.
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Apr 27, 2012 18:19
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HUNDU THE BEAST GOD posted:A few things stand out to me on my nth rewatch: the first is that there are very few flights of fancy in this film, outside of a creepy, overexposed dream sequence that Karras has about his mother, and the sequence in the beginning in Iraq, there's very little that appears to be from the point of view of the characters. I believe this matter-of-fact-ness led to the extreme popularity of this film, that and the uniquely Catholic terror of the travails of the tribulations of the McNeils. For sure. Couple that objective POV with the grimy camerawork in the first half of the film (things get operatic as it goes on), all those grainy, sweaty shots of Karras boxing and all that and Friedkin gave us something that feels unsettlingly real.
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Apr 27, 2012 18:23
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There's a lot of off-kilter stuff in it, and I don't just mean the subliminal faces - consider the scene where the detective asks Karras out to a movie. It's meant to be a friendly offer, but there's something not quite right about it.
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Apr 27, 2012 18:29
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