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

[No spoken words]

Films I've seen lately:

Current -

The Hurt Locker - I definitely liked it and there were some tense moments, but, I don't know, I am not bat-shit crazy for it like many others. Thought the end was kind of poignant/sad. I laughed when I saw that Kate was the wife. Surely they could have gotten a better actress, I thought, but her scenes were so limited that it really didn't do any damage. Loved the brief but good appearances from Morse and Fiennes.

Bright Star - One thing people on here likely do not know is that I'm a huge Keats fan. That's not to say that I'm a poetry expert or even a big fan, but there a handful of poets I became interested in over the years and he is at the top of the list. I own all of his works, actually. Anyway, I am not sure why I did not go see this in the theaters but, I'm glad I finally did see it. I really really loved it and was wholly absorbed. I thought the leads were wonderful and the tone just perfect. Some of the shots were achingly beautiful, or so I thought. Also, I love when you are watching a film, and you KNOW how it is going to end and that ending still impacts you. That happened here. Loved it.

From the TSP 1,000 -

The Searchers (#7 on the list) - The son of Laz and I had a brief chat about this one. He told me that, for its time, it was considered progressive in its attitude toward Native Americans. I, knowing nothing about the film before or while I watched, had to chuckle at how racist it seemed to me. Not that I was shocked, not at all, it was just an observation. Anyway, I cannot pretend to have loved this film. I liked parts of it. Thought Wayne's character was relatively complex for a limited actor. Thought the quest/obsession was of interest, too. Some of the performances, though, were borderline comic, and I don't mean the intentionally comic performances. For me, for a film to be considered one of the 10 best ever, you have to have better performances than that, but maybe I'm just not learned or expert enough to pass judgement on such things, I'll grant that. Anyway, definitely glad I saw it, and I enjoyed it, but that film would never be in my own personal to 50, let alone 10.

Up next - Seven Samurai (cannot wait), Singin' in the Rain, Black Dynamite and Zombieland....and I want to finally watch:

 

[purpleoscar]

Up next - Seven Samurai (cannot wait), Singin' in the Rain,

Lucky you, enjoy!

 

[lazarus]

From the TSP 1,000 -

The Searchers (#7 on the list) - The son of Laz and I had a brief chat about this one. He told me that, for its time, it was considered progressive in its attitude toward Native Americans. I, knowing nothing about the film before or while I watched, had to chuckle at how racist it seemed to me. Not that I was shocked, not at all, it was just an observation. Anyway, I cannot pretend to have loved this film. I liked parts of it. Thought Wayne's character was relatively complex for a limited actor. Thought the quest/obsession was of interest, too. Some of the performances, though, were borderline comic, and I don't mean the intentionally comic performances. For me, for a film to be considered one of the 10 best ever, you have to have better performances than that, but maybe I'm just not learned or expert enough to pass judgement on such things, I'll grant that. Anyway, definitely glad I saw it, and I enjoyed it, but that film would never be in my own personal to 50, let alone 10.

Fair comments, and I actually think the intentional comic moments (back at the homestead) are the arguable flaws in the film, as they're played a bit too broad. Jeffery Hunter is not a good actor by any stretch of the imagination, but he doesn't drag it down too much for me.

And I understand why a lot of the film seems racist, but it should be pointed out that Wayne's character is clearly himself a racist in this film, and is portrayed as wrong and outdated. The final shot is literally and figuratively closing the door on men of his kind who hold on too tightly to their way of thinking. I also think there's a difference between generational stereotypes (which are certainly present) and outright prejudice, and I don't think the latter was part of Ford's worldview.

While I wouldn't call it a masterpiece, Ford's film Cheyenne Autumn (one of his last) goes even further in showing the atrocities and neglect shown towards Native Americans, and a lot of it is powerful.

 

[RedRocksU2]

The Hurt Locker - I definitely liked it and there were some tense moments, but, I don't know, I am not bat-shit crazy for it like many others. Thought the end was kind of poignant/sad. I

Completely agree.

I saw District 9 last night and kinda felt the same way about that movie, I did not like it as much as everyone else. I guess that moving camera motion just gets to me.

 

[No spoken words]

And I understand why a lot of the film seems racist, but it should be pointed out that Wayne's character is clearly himself a racist in this film, and is portrayed as wrong and outdated. The final shot is literally and figuratively closing the door on men of his kind who hold on too tightly to their way of thinking. I also think there's a difference between generational stereotypes (which are certainly present) and outright prejudice, and I don't think the latter was part of Ford's worldview.

Yeah, I probably should have worded my comments in a slightly different manner. I didn't think this, at all, showed prejudice in the way of the filmmaker's attitude towards Native Americans. My saying that the film was "racist" could certainly have been interpreted as my thinking that Ford held racist views; my bad there.

And, trust me, I was not exempting the intentional comic moments from being viewed as a negative. Some of the people on the homestead struck me as being borderline retarded (and not just the ones you're supposed to think are). Also, the other thing that bothered me was (and this is petty and again I recognize that this film is held in very very high regard) all the yelling, screaming, moping and throwing things on the floor in disgust or kicking things in disgust. Just seemed so childish in the face of such scary and adult themes and issues. And, I am that glad Captain Pike did not drag the film down for you, but he sure did for me. It's hard for me to accept that such a key role in a highly lauded film was played so poorly (in my opinion).

I guess this was just really hit and miss for me....some parts, scenes, sequences, shots, performances, themes, etc, I really liked and some of it was borderline horrible.

Thanks, though, for your comments and insight into the film, I appreciate and am enjoying not only watching these classics but learning a bit about them after viewing them.

 

[LemonMelon]

So I continue my run of movie rentals highlighting the greats of yester(last?)year with a viewing of Slumdog Millionaire.

OK. There's a lot to digest in this film. A lot of culture, a lot of baggage, a lot of awards to justify. Ultimately, however, this is a film about love and individualism, and that saves me a lot of time. You know the drill: man looks back on his past, strikes up a relationship with a woman who would rather he forget about her, only to snap back into reality with 45 minutes to go and carry on the present to his future destiny. Life is like a box of memories, you never know which one will win you 20 million rupees.

Sadly, that obvious plot structure kept an otherwise effervescent film grounded for me. Slumdog really does have it all: likable characters, a novel setting, eye-catching direction and M.I.A. But what's it all worth when you're regurgitating such well-worn themes? Sometimes I wonder. Especially when the film itself is so lived-in and wholly entertaining.

Slumdog's greatest strength isn't its heart or optimism. It's something far more technical: good ol' fashioned pacing. Repeatedly, just as I was about to lose interest, something would drag me back in. An amusing anecdote, a frustrating plot twist (that, yes, ultimately leads us back to the same color-saturated promised land), or an observation I've only heard twice as opposed to thrice.

But none of that would really matter if the characters were assholes or lacked any relatable qualities, which isn't the case. They were likable, sure, but I'll do you one better: they were smartly written. The protagonist was a saint, the antagonists were broad and faceless -- as they should be in an "us against the world" picture such as this -- and the love interest was just vague enough in her intentions that you could hope the couple one day finds peace. All is right in this little corner of the film.

I dunno. I liked the film a lot. I think anyone heralding this as cinematic genius is fooling themselves, and anyone who goes out of their way to hate it is simply a tight-ass. It's pretty, it's fun, it has some level of depth. Mostly, it passes muster. I'm glad I watched it. It's just a damn shame that countless (perhaps less polished/technically proficient) films got here first. B+.

 

[cobl04]

Year One - Terrible.

i saw it today. i didn't think it was terrible, but it wasn't great. Jack Black playing the same character in every single thing he's in doesn't help.

 

[mad1]

Saw Hurt Locker


yep.

 

[u2popmofo]

Cop Land - I'd heard from people who hated this, and people who loved it, so I really didn't know what to expect. I ended up enjoying it quite a bit. Nothing groundbreaking, but it had a fairly original plot, and was plenty entertaining. Quite the cast.

 

[UberBeaver]

Isn't that from the 90s or so? Ray Liotta et al?

 

[u2popmofo]

Yeah, '97 or '98 I think. I was in Japan at the time, and have been meaning to watch it since, finally did. Ray Liota, DeNiro, Stallone, Harvey Kietel, Robert Patrick, Michael Rapaport, Janeane Garofalo, Method Man, etc, etc.

 

[LMP]

i saw it today. i didn't think it was terrible, but it wasn't great. Jack Black playing the same character in every single thing he's in doesn't help.

Michael Cera peeing on himself, Jack Black eating poop, and Oliver Platt wanting wax or honey or whatever on his excessively hairy chest = comedy?

It's a trainwreck, arguably one of the biggest wastes of collective talent I've ever seen on-screen.

 

[lazarus]

Yeah, '97 or '98 I think. I was in Japan at the time, and have been meaning to watch it since, finally did. Ray Liota, DeNiro, Stallone, Harvey Kietel, Robert Patrick, Michael Rapaport, Janeane Garofalo, Method Man, etc, etc.

Anabella Sciorra, too!

Stallone really was great in this thing. It was poised to be his serious acting comeback. I don't know if he was Oscar nom-worthy, but he did do surprisingly tender work.

De Niro's hair was hilarious. "I gave you a chance...and you BLEW IT!"

 

[No spoken words]

I liked Copland a lot.

ISP 1,000 -

#8 - The Seven Samurai

Now we are talking. I loved it. Sadly, my first ever Kurosawa film, but better late than never.

Toshiro Mifune was fantastic, or so I thought. Comical one moment, deeply passionate the next, even intimidating at times. His character absolutely fascinated me. Very athletic performance, too. I liked how he hid his insecurities over his caste with his theatrics and swagger.

We're spoiled by amazing battle scenes these days, with or without CGI help, but I still loved the battle scenes here. They felt very real and claustrophobic at times to me. I just like how waves of samurai or bandits or peasants would just sweep along and the camera would follow suit.

Also, I've long been fascinated by Japanese culture, be it modern or feudal or whatnot. I've been fortunate enough to visit twice, and I've more than once tried to pick Shouter or Scumbo's brains about living there. So that interest only served to make the film all the more interesting to me, especially the examination of class roles, etc.

Lastly, so much fun seeing a film that you know served as a kind of blueprint for many films for years to come. Seeing the team get put together, not sure if a film ever featured that process before but many have since.

Anyway, another scattered review from me but this was one classic that I felt truly deserved its status. Look forward to running to more Kurosawa along the way.

Up next from the ISP list is Singin' in the Rain, another film that I cannot believe I've yet to see.

From more current releases, I'm about to go watch The International.

 

[LMP]

I've been meaning to see The Seven Samurai for quite some time, now even moreso after loving the shit out of both Rashomon and Ikiru. Mifune's tremendous in the former and the latter features one of the more heartbreaking performances and single-shots I've seen in any movie (snow + swingset = teary-eyed).

 

[No spoken words]

Ikiru and Rashomon are both on the TSP 1,000 so I'll get to them sooner or later.

In fact, the latter is #18 so that's coming up soon. Ikiru is in the top 100 but further down.

 

[LMP]

Yeah, I figured they'd be close to the top.

Have fun with Toky-- zzzzzzzzzz Tokyo St-- zzzzzzzzzz, Tokyo Story. It's a doozy.

 

[No spoken words]

Yeah, I figured they'd be close to the top.

Have fun with Toky-- zzzzzzzzzz Tokyo St-- zzzzzzzzzz, Tokyo Story. It's a doozy.

That bad? I think it's right after Singin in the Rain.

ETA - Battleship Potemkin is between the 2.

 

[u2popmofo]

Old Kurosawa films are so humbling Japanese wise for me. The language is quite authentic for the period it's portraying, and it is so night and day different from how people speak now, that I end up reading the subtitles for essentially everything. It's been years since I've seen any of his films, I have a difficult time remember what I have and haven't seen. I should re-watch everything sometime soon to remember. I know I've seen, and really enjoyed Seven Samurai, but I seriously can't remember what happens in it vs. some of his other samurai films at this point.

Yojimbo is pretty awesome, as Fistfull of Dollars and Last Man Standing are essentially remakes in different period settings. A lot of the scenes in the later moves are nearly identical.

 

[No spoken words]

Yojimbo is on the list, too, but much lower down.

What I like about working through the list is that if I see a film or two that I love, I can always at some point dig through that director's work, independent of the list. For example, before this list I had no interest in Renoir's films...now, whatever films of his that are not on the TSP list I will seek out down the road. I also like balancing watching films from this list with a steady diet of more current films, it just keeps things balanced.

 

[LMP]

That bad? I think it's right after Singin in the Rain.

ETA - Battleship Potemkin is between the 2.

I had to watch it for class and fell asleep. Then when I tried to rewatch on Watch Instantly a few days later, I fell asleep at the same point. It's highly regarded, obviously, and one of the more honest takes of average family life that I've seen, but on that same token, I found it to be pretty disengaging. That's just me and my bastard ways though.

 

[u2popmofo]

ETA - Battleship Potemkin

I initially read this at Battleship Pokemon.

 

[No spoken words]

I had to watch it for class and fell asleep. Then when I tried to rewatch on Watch Instantly a few days later, I fell asleep at the same point. It's highly regarded, obviously, and one of the more honest takes of average family life that I've seen, but on that same token, I found it to be pretty disengaging. That's just me and my bastard ways though.

I think it's pretty clear that I have zero problem "admitting" if a classic just did not do it for me. What I think is more important than what others think of me, etc. The Searchers is a good example. I didn't dislike it, not at all, but there's no way that's one of the 10 best films ever, in my opinion. But, like I always say, and mean, what the fuck do I really know about film? Not a lot, I just like to watch them.

I went to the opera with a good friend in Chicago last winter, and fell asleep within 30 minutes. Was glad I gave it a try, but, I can't help how it made me feel.

 

[No spoken words]

I initially read this at Battleship Pokemon.

That's the sequel.

 

[cobl04]

Michael Cera peeing on himself, Jack Black eating poop, and Oliver Platt wanting wax or honey or whatever on his excessively hairy chest = comedy?

It's a trainwreck, arguably one of the biggest wastes of collective talent I've ever seen on-screen.

no those parts did not = comedy. they were fairly deplorable. but i laughed in parts. i watch Two and a Half Men on a weekly basis, so i don't detest dumb, predictable comedy as much as everyone else does.

mind you, the mates i watched it with rewound Cera pissing on himself about three times.

 

[deep]

no one saw Alice in Wonderland in 3 D DD?

It made 116 million - way out pacing Avatar's opening

I guess it is just a matter of time, before it overtakes it.

 

[No spoken words]

I literally have zero interest in that film, and I'm nowhere near the hater of Burton/Depp that Laz/Lance and more are.

 

[deep]

The only movie that I have a modicum of enthusiasm for is,
The Ghostwriter.

 

[No spoken words]

The only movie that I have a modicum of enthusiasm for is,
The Ghostwriter.

Me too. I read it and liked it, very breezy.

It's playing not too far from me, in SF, I might go tomorrow.

 

[u2popmofo]

I literally have zero interest in that film, and I'm nowhere near the hater of Burton/Depp that Laz/Lance and more are.

I love Burton, but also have no interest in this movie.