Review the Movie You Viewed: 9 Seriously Blind Basterds Hurt Up in the Air

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Oh, I'm still going to watch it; I've always meant to see it. I'll just go in without expecting to really get it.
 
Just got back from Shutter Island. Fuck me in a flash-sideways parallel universe, this movie was awesome. Had me hooked from the jump, and really sold me when they first encounter Max von Sydow (fuck, he was great in a limited role) in the old Civil War study. And then really, really won me over with the first dream sequence, as he embraces his wife beneath the rain of ash (the second dream sequence was fantastic, as well). Continued to captivate me...the conversation with Jackie Earle Haley was excellently creepy. And then shit gets even more turned upside down after Ruffalo disappears. And the end payoff...damn. Beautiful and heartbreaking movie.
 
No spoken words said:
This fucking site, god damnit.

Laz's son knows about this, but, let me share my film mission with you all.

A few months ago, Laz posted a link to a site called icheckmovies, where there are all sorts of best of lists, and you check which you've seen, etc. There is one list in particular, called "They Shoot Pictures, Don't They" which has slightly over 1,000 films on it, in some sort of ranked order. Not sure how the rankings were determined, but, suffice to say, it's obviously a list containing many great films. I decided to, while still watching new releases (Watched Sugar and The Hurt Locker yesterday) work my backwards through said list, starting with #1 and just keep going until I get tired of it or whatnot. I'll skip the ones I've seen already, of course. So, just started this over the weekend and I've watched Vertigo (yeah, never saw it before, fuck off) 8 1/2, and The Rules of the Game. The Searchers is up next, followed by Seven Samurai.

Before that, I watched all but one of Leone's films (Holy fuck, Once Upon a Time in the West was outstanding) and I also completed the Miyazaki-thon, minus Ponyo. I'll watch the missing film from both directors soon.

In the theaters, the only thing I've seen in the past month would be Shutter Island.

So that's what's going on with me cinematically. Besides that, not much else going on. Oh, wait, my girlfriend and I broke up and she moved out of the apartment. So, besides all these movies and that, not much else going on. Wait, have a grad school interview tomorrow, even though I'm likely not gonna stay in the Bay Area when my lease expires. So that's that. Forgot, heading to Spring Training with some friends next week for a few days, followed by a trip to Vegas. Followed by a 3-week Syracuse-NYC-Philly-DC-Chicago-Denver trip to see friends and family, assuming I don't get a part-time gig between now and then.

That's really it.
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Epic plan, sir. I've been suggesting that same list to a couple of friends of mine who are planning similar journeys, hoping that it'd help. I'm really glad to hear that you have a lot going on for you right now.

Watching 8 1/2 almost purely from a filmmaking standpoint engrossed me a little more than I though. Knowing more about Fellini/Italian cinema would've helped, like you said, but I kind of like the unfamiliarity going into it. Added to the experience.
 
No spoken words said:
The Rules of the Game - The biggest surprise for me, in that I figured that, like 8 1/2 ended up being for me, I'd appreciate more than enjoy it. Instead, I was fully entertained, amused, surprised, etc by the film. Great dialogue, great upstairs/downstairs collisions (Definitely the Grandfather to Gosford Park, this film), very scathing look at French high society around WWII, and truly amazing scenes where the camera is moving around as if it were a freakingteadi-cam, characters are in the forefront, the background, on the sides, etc.....just a lot going on, so well choreographed. I can't say enough about it. Oh, and there was a Jewish character in it, so, come on. :up:
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Yeah, it's a funny thing about Rules. Most people think it's going to be this stuffy type of thing, and it's a very warm, funny, human story. The fact that it still holds up 70+ years later is probably why it's held that #2 film of all time spot for a while.

If you're interested in jumping ahead and checking out any more Renoir, The Grand Illusion is another masterpiece, and if you're interested in Indian culture, The River is a dazzling technicolor exploration of it.


No spoken words said:
Maybe I'll get around to ranking the Miyazaki films. I know that Spirited Away is my #1 with Nausicaa #2
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WIN.
 
I'm definitely interested in more Renoir (what a family), but, do not want to skip ahead, at least not yet.

Yeah, I mentioned that the film amused me, the humor was most definitely there. The humanity, too, for sure. As for the warmth, do you mean the film on the whole, or just certain scenes?

Yeah, fucking Spirited Away got in my head. I definitely want to own a copy of that. Nausicaa, I mean, in some respects it's a far cry from his later work, but, it has, for me, the best heroine of the bunch and showed a lot of imagination. From what I have gathered since watching them all, Nausicaa is not held in the same regard as some of his later work but whatever, I loved it. Looking forward to seeing Ponyo later this month.
 
No spoken words said:
I'm definitely interested in more Renoir (what a family), but, do not want to skip ahead, at least not yet.

Yeah, I mentioned that the film amused me, the humor was most definitely there. The humanity, too, for sure. As for the warmth, do you mean the film on the whole, or just certain scenes?

Yeah, fucking Spirited Away got in my head. I definitely want to own a copy of that. Nausicaa, I mean, in some respects it's a far cry from his later work, but, it has, for me, the best heroine of the bunch and showed a lot of imagination. From what I have gathered since watching them all, Nausicaa is not held in the same regard as some of his later work but whatever, I loved it. Looking forward to seeing Ponyo later this month.
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When I talked about warmth it really ties into the humanity, so I guess I was being redundant. What I meant is that it's not a cold and distant film; the people feel alive, and you're drawn to them. Something like 8 1/2 is definitely a more intellectual enterprise.

As for Miyazaki, Nausicaa IS held in high regard by a good number people I know who are fans of his work, and it's the favorite of many. I go back and forth between that and Spirited Away, though I think the latter is likely his crowning achievement, and in my opinion the greatest animated film ever made.

I have a very cool book about the Art of the film, and it's just breathtaking to see some of the drawings printed and interesting to see how the designs and concepts evolved.
 
I have to support the Grand Illusion recommendation - probably one of my top 3 movies ever. I love how Renoir is able to comment accurately on the shift of the European social order post-World War I while still telling such a human story. Just fantastic.

I need to see The River.
 
Miyazaki wise, Mononoke Hime is still my favorite. I was living in Japan when it was released, and it was a huge deal there at the time, so that probably skews my opinion drastically.
 
I have my problems with Spirited Away (admittedly negligible ones in the grand scheme), but they still keep it just outside of my top three. Of course it's hardly a slight considering Miyazaki is among my top five living filmmakers.

Aside from some of the essentials, I too need to explore some more Renoir though it seems.
 
Lancemc said:
I have my problems with Spirited Away (admittedly negligible ones in the grand scheme), but they still keep it just outside of my top three. Of course it's hardly a slight considering Miyazaki is among my top five living filmmakers.

Aside from some of the essentials, I too need to explore some more Renoir though it seems.
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Maybe you mentioned this before, but I'm curious what your problems with Spirited Away are. I've always felt I never fully understood the film because of references to Shinto and other Japanese cultural things I'm not aware of, but that would be a result of my ignorance, nothing done wrong by Miyazaki.

As for Renoir, I've gone much deeper into his work in the last couple years, and still have a lot of ground to cover. Unlike most people, I tend to delve into the later works of important directors rather than the earlier works, as I find them more fascinating. So I haven't seen any Renoir in the 30's (a decade which he may have been more dominant than any other filmmaker in the world) aside from the two we've mentioned above.

However, I can recommend his American features (a strange run which includes a film about a farming family during the Depression in The Southerner; a strange coastal noir called Woman On The Beach; his adaptation of Diary Of A Chambermaid, which is interesting to compare to Buñuel's later version; and This Land Is Mine), but most importantly I would direct you to the Stage & Spectacle "trilogy" (available as a Criterion set) which are bright-colored and all very funny. I'd rank French Cancan, the middle installment, among my few favorites of his.

If you haven't seen The River, I'd make it a priority. Some of the best color photography I've ever seen, even if some of the acting fails to match this level.
 
I don't want to give the impression I think there is anything inherently "wrong" with Spirited Away, because I really don't. It's an outstanding film from one of my favorite directors. But maybe I should have said there are things about it which merely contribute to it not resonating as strongly as my favorite films of his. So, flaws? Definitely not. "Problems" that complicate my emotional response to it? More or less. I've probably said before that I'm not particularly fond of Chihiro as a protagonist... or Yubaba as an antagonist for that matter. I think the journey Chihiro goes through is ultimately fulfilling, and the film is absolutely spectacular and gorgeous and wonderful and blah blah blah... but it also feels a bit too much like a carnival at times. Again, it's free-wheeling nature isn't really a flaw or anything, but I do find myself preferring some of his more pointed films.
 
I understand that. Though it should be noted that his whole reason for coming out of retirement was because his partner's daughter inspired him to create the Chihiro character, so while you may have issues with the execution, he wanted to do something about a selfish, bratty girl learning to take some responsibility and acknowledge the world around her, which is nice from a role model perspective.

And yes, it is like a carnival. But I think there's more of Miyazaki's imagination on display than any other film.

Did you see my post about that Future Boy Conan show? Very primitive but you can definitely see the seeds of future greatness.
 
Disturbia.

i liked Rear Window, and it was on tv. it was pretty intense, and i was enjoying it right up until the end. woeful ending. it just turned into a shitty slasher flick for about 5 minutes and then Detective Tritter got stabbed with a pair of hedgetrimmers. massive anti-climax.
 
Across the Universe.

So my bro and I were playing Sonic 3 (Super Sonic in level 2, hell yes) while having a few brewskis and we started talking about Paul McCartney solo albums from the 80s and I said LETS WATCH ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, and we decided this is the kinda thing you can only do on a whim, so we went for it.

Now, I'm trying to figure out how this movie was a good idea to anyone but a daydreaming 19 year old drama student. I mean, really now. Even the choreography was pretty shit. And it sure as hell didn't fell like it was set in the 60s. And none of it felt, well, Beatlesesque, unless you've learned everything you know about the Beatles from fucking Love and Beatles Rock Band. I could elaborate plenty here, but you know you've got a problem on your hands when Boner gets into his character more than anyone else in the film (and he still seems completely lost by it). Really, what did they tell the actors? None of them came off as playing a character appropriate to the time period, and all of them were shit singers.

Two or so years too late, maybe, but nonetheless, I thank everyone involved for the laughs.
 
Finally caught The Hurt Locker. I liked it, and will certainly be rooting for it over Avatar tonight at the big show. Some fantastic suspense sequences. And Renner was very good, but I cared just as much about the Sanborn character. And that actor doesn't seem to be getting any play. Too bad. Interesting that they have Lord Voldemort and Kate "Freckles" Austen in the film for a total of like 3 minutes of screen time. The fuck? And, my brother, I don't care if "war is a drug." You have a little kid and your girlfriend is Evangeline Lilly and you decide to go back to Iraq? Terrible decision, dude.
 
The Sad Punk said:
Across the Universe.

So my bro and I were playing Sonic 3 (Super Sonic in level 2, hell yes) while having a few brewskis and we started talking about Paul McCartney solo albums from the 80s and I said LETS WATCH ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, and we decided this is the kinda thing you can only do on a whim, so we went for it.

Now, I'm trying to figure out how this movie was a good idea to anyone but a daydreaming 19 year old drama student. I mean, really now. Even the choreography was pretty shit. And it sure as hell didn't fell like it was set in the 60s. And none of it felt, well, Beatlesesque, unless you've learned everything you know about the Beatles from fucking Love and Beatles Rock Band. I could elaborate plenty here, but you know you've got a problem on your hands when Boner gets into his character more than anyone else in the film (and he still seems completely lost by it). Really, what did they tell the actors? None of them came off as playing a character appropriate to the time period, and all of them were shit singers.

Two or so years too late, maybe, but nonetheless, I thank everyone involved for the laughs.
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I want to know who thought up Prudence and thought that was a necessary and compelling character.
 
They needed Prudence to be a homosexual just so "won't you come out to play" would be the most thinly veiled euphemism for coming out of the closet ever conceived.

GirlsAloudFan said:
your girlfriend is Evangeline Lilly .
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Spit and rub! Spit and rub!
 
LMP said:
I want to know who thought up Prudence and thought that was a necessary and compelling character.
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She only existed so she could come in through the bathroom window.

Or was that another random character who only existed so they could quote a song at her?
 
I liked Across the Universe more than I thought I would. I thought many of the visual ideas were inspired (like the Vietnam training and hospital scenes, or the strawberry painting thing), though not all of the songs/sequences worked.

As for none of the actors being able to sing, Evan Rachel Wood actually sounded good to my ears. Also, her and the lead guy (Jim Sturgess) did seem very engaged with this material and certainly brought conviction to their acting. Unfortunately the rest of the cast wasn't up to that level.
 
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