SEVEN SAMURAI (1954)
IRREVERSIBLE (2002)
More on these later...
And really, honestly, I will cut off all my candidates for the top 10 movies of 2010 at midnight Dec. 31st. That means there might be some really good ones that I'll see this weekend that will just have to be powerful enough to stay in my memory a year from now. All the more incentive to see True Grit as soon as I leave work!
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Tueday penultimate of 2010
A special trip to see this one... well coordinated with other things in Chicago, but still.
BLACK SWAN (2010)
The latest from Darren Aronofsky is enough to get excited about... but that creepy and beautiful poster? I was waiting and waiting for this movie to come up to Rockford (Natalie Portman as a ballerina? C'mon, that's mainstream enough!) but I couldn't wait any longer. This movie delivers incredibly well, staying within the scope of an artistic struggle while layering just as much psychological, surreal, and dark elements as can be handled into a perfect suspensful mix. After leaving the theater, I realized that I could judge this film based on whether or not I'm interested in this type of story, and in a way that COULD bring it down a few pegs, just because ballet and the torments of artistic endeavors don't pack a real power to me. As the best films do over time, I started to contemplate Black Swan even more, and it's themes began to haunt me more. Because the symbology and just fanstasticalness of the ballet Swan Lake create a very dramatic and cinematic framework to demonstrate the main character's personal struggle, and it's executed perfectly. However, what lengths would you go to in order to achieve a perfect victory, at work, in a personal situation, or in a project that has meaning and power to other people? To completely succeed in her endeavor, Natalie Portman's character had to open up the whole spectrum of her repressed emotions and memories, and in her physical sacrifices she had to make moral sacrifices as well to do a perfect performance. When you see multimillionaires achieve greatness, yet remain unhappy and morally compromised through their personal actions, it makes you think at what point does the struggling to achieve something end and the morally questionable actions or philosophies to reach that accomplishment begin. Slowly but surely, Black Swan became personal to me.
More about this, for sure, in my top 10 wrap up of the year coming as soon after Dec. 31st as possible.
BLACK SWAN (2010)
The latest from Darren Aronofsky is enough to get excited about... but that creepy and beautiful poster? I was waiting and waiting for this movie to come up to Rockford (Natalie Portman as a ballerina? C'mon, that's mainstream enough!) but I couldn't wait any longer. This movie delivers incredibly well, staying within the scope of an artistic struggle while layering just as much psychological, surreal, and dark elements as can be handled into a perfect suspensful mix. After leaving the theater, I realized that I could judge this film based on whether or not I'm interested in this type of story, and in a way that COULD bring it down a few pegs, just because ballet and the torments of artistic endeavors don't pack a real power to me. As the best films do over time, I started to contemplate Black Swan even more, and it's themes began to haunt me more. Because the symbology and just fanstasticalness of the ballet Swan Lake create a very dramatic and cinematic framework to demonstrate the main character's personal struggle, and it's executed perfectly. However, what lengths would you go to in order to achieve a perfect victory, at work, in a personal situation, or in a project that has meaning and power to other people? To completely succeed in her endeavor, Natalie Portman's character had to open up the whole spectrum of her repressed emotions and memories, and in her physical sacrifices she had to make moral sacrifices as well to do a perfect performance. When you see multimillionaires achieve greatness, yet remain unhappy and morally compromised through their personal actions, it makes you think at what point does the struggling to achieve something end and the morally questionable actions or philosophies to reach that accomplishment begin. Slowly but surely, Black Swan became personal to me.
More about this, for sure, in my top 10 wrap up of the year coming as soon after Dec. 31st as possible.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
post number 100 Tuesday report
Ah, let's here it for commitment! I didn't finish those 'film snob' essays (someday) but keeping this up at a minimal level is a good thing.
With business as usual...
THE CONVERSATION (1974)
This movie was not on any special list that I keep of films to see. It was just a well-revered classic that also had to be watched in traditional disc form since it wasn't available instantly. Given Francis Ford Coppola's reputation as The Godfather maker, it was surprising to see such a restrained thriller that creates an environment that isn't full of lush set pieces. Rather the sound, the direction and the emotional distance the characters have to keep create an environment where sensory perception in enhanced in some ways but creates such deception in other, more important ways.
I also want to mention that totally awesome tingle moment that comes with revelatory, perfect moments in film (and books, TV, and other mediums). That physical reaction to something so mesmerizing, conclusive, or expressive, that would normally be contained in just the mental realms is such a mysterious sensation, and it seems to happen only in those rare moments where I truly didn't see such a twist coming. There was one of those twists in The Conversation, and it shook me to the core... it seemed to actually be toying with my brain and I how I hear and understand things. Definitely hard to describe as you can see, but that twist wouldn't have been so amazing if the film wasn't made so perfectly.
I think I need to give it 5 stars on Netflix instead of 4.
Jonah
With business as usual...
THE CONVERSATION (1974)
This movie was not on any special list that I keep of films to see. It was just a well-revered classic that also had to be watched in traditional disc form since it wasn't available instantly. Given Francis Ford Coppola's reputation as The Godfather maker, it was surprising to see such a restrained thriller that creates an environment that isn't full of lush set pieces. Rather the sound, the direction and the emotional distance the characters have to keep create an environment where sensory perception in enhanced in some ways but creates such deception in other, more important ways.
I also want to mention that totally awesome tingle moment that comes with revelatory, perfect moments in film (and books, TV, and other mediums). That physical reaction to something so mesmerizing, conclusive, or expressive, that would normally be contained in just the mental realms is such a mysterious sensation, and it seems to happen only in those rare moments where I truly didn't see such a twist coming. There was one of those twists in The Conversation, and it shook me to the core... it seemed to actually be toying with my brain and I how I hear and understand things. Definitely hard to describe as you can see, but that twist wouldn't have been so amazing if the film wasn't made so perfectly.
I think I need to give it 5 stars on Netflix instead of 4.
Jonah
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Tuesday Night
A deadline for Instant Netflix viewing was approaching for one 2009 WIFF selection... and that was the movie I saw this past week.
LION'S DEN (2008)
This film sets up an very compelling situation which is almost, in and of itself, fascinating enough to watch exist regardless of the whatever kind of narrative or plot exists. There's a special block of a women's prison for pregnant women, who are then allowed to raise their children in their cells until the kids turn 4 years old. These cells are decorated like children's rooms and the kids run around playing like there is nothing different from their play area as any other. The bonds between the inmates are explored and the main character goes through some struggles. Over time this movie drags with a lack of a narrative with gravitas, as the oddness of the situation subsides and the mother-offspring instincts are expressed a little too obviously. As an expression of something I've never seen on film before (and isn't that what makes up for even the weakest of film festival fare?) it succeeded.
I always want to watch more, especially on a cold weekend where I stayed away from day trips to Chicago, but that's it.
LION'S DEN (2008)
This film sets up an very compelling situation which is almost, in and of itself, fascinating enough to watch exist regardless of the whatever kind of narrative or plot exists. There's a special block of a women's prison for pregnant women, who are then allowed to raise their children in their cells until the kids turn 4 years old. These cells are decorated like children's rooms and the kids run around playing like there is nothing different from their play area as any other. The bonds between the inmates are explored and the main character goes through some struggles. Over time this movie drags with a lack of a narrative with gravitas, as the oddness of the situation subsides and the mother-offspring instincts are expressed a little too obviously. As an expression of something I've never seen on film before (and isn't that what makes up for even the weakest of film festival fare?) it succeeded.
I always want to watch more, especially on a cold weekend where I stayed away from day trips to Chicago, but that's it.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Irregularly Scheduled Tuesday report
Hey there:
With a vacation schedule, available movie watching chunks go by the wayside (as well as access to my nice TV, one of the few things I miss while on vacation).
So here's a Wednesday movie report...
A Turkish film whose deadline for availability on Netflix Instant fast approached, I watched this the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. And like Lake Tahoe it awards patience and the appreciation of a steady pace, although there are definitely more cinematic vistas that are highlighted in this movie, that seem to replace most dialogue in suggesting the tension between the three main characters. I still did find this compelling enough to recommend as a gateway into artsy foreign films.
Available via Comcast On Demand at my parent's house, this is one bleak film. It's pretty much an incredibly downward spiral from the botched heist that begins the movie, and I am a little tired of movies that inflict dire consequences on people for deciding to go morally astray through criminal activity. But this is fairly invigorating to watch because of the performances (although I'm sick of Philip Seymour Hoffman always mumbling) that include a non-irritating Ethan Hawke! Additionally the mixed up chronology is incredibly exciting, as scenes are repeated and revisited again to both offer deeper context and a reminder of the horrible situation this characters have put themselves in. This movie dares to double punch you in the gut with devastation, but in a tastefully directed way.
Watched this in fragments via Comcast OnDemand, as different things were going on around my parent's house. Very stylized movie at the peak of Spike Lee's powers (let's see, I've seen Do the Right Thing, Crooklyn, Summer of Sam, and this one), I know for sure this movie was inventive for its time, but between all the expressions of drug dealer amorality and ghetto life that I've seen since this movie was made (most recently the miniseries The Corner) I don't see much new here. Of course, the kind of free flowing directing improvisation and style mix-ups that I remember in the other Spike Lee movies make this stand out despite the subject matter, and the ending offers as ambiguous sense of hope as the best of them.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Tuesday, 3 weeks later
It's been a while... here we go... 5 new movies watched since last time.
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)
A Halloween weekend, option, available for free with Cable On-Demand. I was hoping that I would be truly frightened by this... scared in the type of way films let you imagine the horror rather than rub your face in blood and guts. But maybe the violence I've seen has been so sensationalized and common that the low-budget and drawn out scenes didn't do a whole lot for me, although I can respect the ambition. I think I read somewhere that there were some parallels between this movie and the late 1960s Vietnam-era anxiety that I missed. But it is a classic that I'm glad I saw.
DUE DATE (2010)
Well, I was in Chicago the weekend I saw this, and even my tasteful friends, in a City with great culture and many cinematic options, want to see crowd-pleasers like this. I was fine with me, even though nothing turns me away in general that a road movie plot... just because road movies have a pattern I have grown bored with. However, this was fairly entertaining, and I give a lot of credit to the acting of the two main characters. First of all, Robert Downer Jr. has made every mainstream movie I've seen better with the ticks and twitches of his performances, and he adds depth to a character that, played by anyone else, would be extremely one-note... because in addition to this being a road movie, it's also part of an overlapping genre of movies that are basically guy-runs-into-complete-lunatic-who-ruins-life-and-said-guy-gets-very-angry-before-realizing-that-lunatic-has-redeemable-qualities. Downey doesn't just scream at Zach Galafanakis the whole time, but sometimes tolerates him, abuses him, consoles him, etc. Anyway, I went along with my buddies to see this (and gave them a ride since I was the only one with a car) and it was all right.
THE WAY WE GET BY (2009)
A 2008 WIFF selection, this was available only through last Friday via Netflix Instant, so it went to the top of my list. Appropriately I was enjoying my day off on this Veteran's Day holiday, and this is just about the best non-partisan film tribute to veteran's imaginable. These elderly New Englanders, despite varied opinions on the wisdom of Bush's war decisions, get up at all hours to greet returning troops flying into the Bangor, Maine airport. So powerful, yet it was too bad that I felt the movie drag along. There was usually a pattern of hearing these people and the soldiers talk about the sacrifices of service, then some powerful backstories of these greeters and then it started back up again without much narrative driving the thing. Just my impression... this was a story worth telling regardless.
LAKE TAHOE (2008)
A 2009 WIFF selection available via Netflix Instant. I purchased an iPhone in August, and I'm questioning my true ability to focus my attention on 90-120 minute motion pictures when I am constantly tempted to play with my phone, and even look up the movie I'm watching on IMDB. Unfortunately, this film encouraged fidgeting with my gadget, the ADD-addled temptation being encouraged by a very minimalist film, even by independent cinema standards. Sadly, the one dramatic force that might have made this film more substantial was spoiled for me as a glanced at the IMDB summary too much, during one of the many early slow scenes. It was still pretty good, but maybe hypersensory film experiences aren't always shallow and bad.
THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGOISIE (1972)
A movie (selected because of it's status as a Criterion selection) that probably has satirical elements very much of its time, but still entertaining visually, especially if you know it's supposed to be a surreal film. I probably need to read a whole volume of film criticism to understand this, but I think the element I could pick up was that there were scenes that turned out to be dreams, and others that were supposed to be kind of absurd exaggerations of upper-class behavior, and one couldn't really tell the different until one of the characters "wakes up" from one scene. It's supposed to be a real film classic, but I really couldn't understand it.
Quite a handful of movies, huh?
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968)
A Halloween weekend, option, available for free with Cable On-Demand. I was hoping that I would be truly frightened by this... scared in the type of way films let you imagine the horror rather than rub your face in blood and guts. But maybe the violence I've seen has been so sensationalized and common that the low-budget and drawn out scenes didn't do a whole lot for me, although I can respect the ambition. I think I read somewhere that there were some parallels between this movie and the late 1960s Vietnam-era anxiety that I missed. But it is a classic that I'm glad I saw.
DUE DATE (2010)
Well, I was in Chicago the weekend I saw this, and even my tasteful friends, in a City with great culture and many cinematic options, want to see crowd-pleasers like this. I was fine with me, even though nothing turns me away in general that a road movie plot... just because road movies have a pattern I have grown bored with. However, this was fairly entertaining, and I give a lot of credit to the acting of the two main characters. First of all, Robert Downer Jr. has made every mainstream movie I've seen better with the ticks and twitches of his performances, and he adds depth to a character that, played by anyone else, would be extremely one-note... because in addition to this being a road movie, it's also part of an overlapping genre of movies that are basically guy-runs-into-complete-lunatic-who-ruins-life-and-said-guy-gets-very-angry-before-realizing-that-lunatic-has-redeemable-qualities. Downey doesn't just scream at Zach Galafanakis the whole time, but sometimes tolerates him, abuses him, consoles him, etc. Anyway, I went along with my buddies to see this (and gave them a ride since I was the only one with a car) and it was all right.
THE WAY WE GET BY (2009)
A 2008 WIFF selection, this was available only through last Friday via Netflix Instant, so it went to the top of my list. Appropriately I was enjoying my day off on this Veteran's Day holiday, and this is just about the best non-partisan film tribute to veteran's imaginable. These elderly New Englanders, despite varied opinions on the wisdom of Bush's war decisions, get up at all hours to greet returning troops flying into the Bangor, Maine airport. So powerful, yet it was too bad that I felt the movie drag along. There was usually a pattern of hearing these people and the soldiers talk about the sacrifices of service, then some powerful backstories of these greeters and then it started back up again without much narrative driving the thing. Just my impression... this was a story worth telling regardless.
LAKE TAHOE (2008)
A 2009 WIFF selection available via Netflix Instant. I purchased an iPhone in August, and I'm questioning my true ability to focus my attention on 90-120 minute motion pictures when I am constantly tempted to play with my phone, and even look up the movie I'm watching on IMDB. Unfortunately, this film encouraged fidgeting with my gadget, the ADD-addled temptation being encouraged by a very minimalist film, even by independent cinema standards. Sadly, the one dramatic force that might have made this film more substantial was spoiled for me as a glanced at the IMDB summary too much, during one of the many early slow scenes. It was still pretty good, but maybe hypersensory film experiences aren't always shallow and bad.
THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGOISIE (1972)
A movie (selected because of it's status as a Criterion selection) that probably has satirical elements very much of its time, but still entertaining visually, especially if you know it's supposed to be a surreal film. I probably need to read a whole volume of film criticism to understand this, but I think the element I could pick up was that there were scenes that turned out to be dreams, and others that were supposed to be kind of absurd exaggerations of upper-class behavior, and one couldn't really tell the different until one of the characters "wakes up" from one scene. It's supposed to be a real film classic, but I really couldn't understand it.
Quite a handful of movies, huh?
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
TUESDAY
LA VIE EN ROSE (2007)
So I provided the only follower of this blog with a list of 5 movies, selected randomly from my 266+ films available from Netflix Instant, and asked him to choose one for me to watch, but he must have thought that was stupid. No bother, I decided to go for the Oscar-winning performance of Marion Cotilard, even though bio-pics make me weary, especially with the running time of over 2 hours. Biopics, understandably, are focused on the life of a single person, and if you're not completely interested in that person (Frank Zappa biopic NOW please) it can be disengaging. From a single Youtube someone through on a blog somewhere of Edith Pfiaf performing, I was intrigued by finding out more to this person. Reviewing a wikipedia bio, it seems like her life was indeed so complex and fascinating that it couldn't all be filmed. Nonetheless, the story is non-linear and there's some very creative direction to represent fuzzy memories and fantasy and grief. Couldn't say those elements held my attention alone, but the performance was indeed incredible.
With spooky season coming up, I might dial up some horror movies.
So I provided the only follower of this blog with a list of 5 movies, selected randomly from my 266+ films available from Netflix Instant, and asked him to choose one for me to watch, but he must have thought that was stupid. No bother, I decided to go for the Oscar-winning performance of Marion Cotilard, even though bio-pics make me weary, especially with the running time of over 2 hours. Biopics, understandably, are focused on the life of a single person, and if you're not completely interested in that person (Frank Zappa biopic NOW please) it can be disengaging. From a single Youtube someone through on a blog somewhere of Edith Pfiaf performing, I was intrigued by finding out more to this person. Reviewing a wikipedia bio, it seems like her life was indeed so complex and fascinating that it couldn't all be filmed. Nonetheless, the story is non-linear and there's some very creative direction to represent fuzzy memories and fantasy and grief. Couldn't say those elements held my attention alone, but the performance was indeed incredible.
With spooky season coming up, I might dial up some horror movies.
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