the tropes are raining from the sky in this movie, but if you can accept that, the performances are actually enjoyable. Omar Sy is magnetic, and he pairs well with Francois Cluzet. their chemistry drives the film.
however -- you can see the plot points coming from a mile away, there's a lot of dependence on lazy (borderline offensive) stereotypes, and the paralyzed, rich white guy gets more out of the relationship than his poor black caretaker.
again, it doesn't hold up to a critical eye, and I understand if you can't get past that. I let myself go with the clichés though, and strictly as a buddy comedy it's not bad. I hope to see Sy in more roles down the line.
~~~~ When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries. ~~~~ You cannot hate people for their own good.
tinker tailor soldier spy - not that good good deeds - not that bad scott and bailey - i'm in
~~~~ When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries. ~~~~ You cannot hate people for their own good.
6. "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" In response to Reply # 0
I love Freddy Mercury, this had to be what Tim was going for or vice versa. I was impressed actually. Late night movies have to be sincere in their ambition, and artistically flawed in execution.
8. "Have you seen the Bottle Rocket short?" In response to Reply # 7 Tue Jun-05-12 03:42 PM by The Analyst
They made it on B&W 16mm paid for by their parents and friends. It's only like 13 minutes or something. As you probably know, they somehow connived their way into having some suits watch it at Sundance and it lead to financing for a feature.
It's one of the extras included in the criterion release of BR.
As for the film itself, I agree that Owen was great, and the you could see the seeds of what would be Wes' future style. I also enjoyed Caan in his small role.
the black and white with jazz gives it a bit different feel. there was another video on there with Anderson describing how awful the first screening of Bottle Rocket went. basically everyone leaving during the middle of it, and him moving up into the projection booth because he was so mortified.
10. "RE: Rope (1948) and Compulsion(1959) spoilers" In response to Reply # 0
Both films are based on the infamous murderers Leopold and Loeb.
Compulsion is the better film. The murderers are very erudite, snooty and cunning. They reminded me of Patrick Bateman. You will not like these guys at all. There is a lot of tension between them. It is obvious the guys were on the down low but they could not talk about that stuff back then. The guys (who lack an identity like Bateman) imagine they can become supermen via commiting a murder and not getting caught or showing any remorse. The neurosis of the super rich, lol. Orson Welles plays the lawyer who defends them during the trial. This trial does not go in circles. You got some fabulous acting along with an anti-death penalty message. This is one of th GOAT films. Grade A+
Rope,imo, is just not one of Hitchcock's better films. It is far from terrible. The characterization of the guys is good and the same tension exists. There is some great dialogue too. However, Rope is only 82 minutes long and the last 20 minutes are very weak. You only got half of a story here. Grade B-
12. "RE: Rope (1948) and Compulsion(1959) spoilers" In response to Reply # 10
>Rope,imo, is just not one of Hitchcock's better films. It >is far from terrible. The characterization of the guys is >good and the same tension exists. There is some great dialogue >too. However, Rope is only 82 minutes long and the last 20 >minutes are very weak. You only got half of a story here. >Grade B-
I pretty much agree with you on Rope. Hitchcock's gimmick of trying to make the whole movie appear to be one long continuous take is just that: a gimmick. It doesn't add anything as far as I can tell, and in fact, it actually detracts from his ability to use all of the techniques at his disposal. Not sure why he thought this would create more tension by doing it this way. It's no coincidence that he considered this a failed experiment, albeit and interesting one. I sort of disagree about the end though - if I remember it correctly, the end was the most tense part, with the maid cleaning off the chest and almost opening it.
11. "RE: What have you watched lately? June edition" In response to Reply # 0 Fri Jun-08-12 01:13 AM by denny
Beauty Day:
Documentary about an eccentric stoner who made a cable access show in the late 80's/early 90's. A predecessor to the Jackass guys. Enjoyed it.
Winnebago Man:
Doc about an underground vcr tape passed around the 'found footage' scene during the 80's. The tape shows a series of outtakes from a Winnebago promotional video in which the talent has an anger problem. Very enjoyable.
Shut up you angry little man:
Doc about a couple of punk rockers who moved into an apartment building beside two raging alchoholics in the 80's. They decided to record the noisy neighbors and distributed cassette tapes through the 'found footage' scene. I ended up hating the two punk rockers. Not very good.
Blue Collar:
1979 film starring Richard Pryor and Harvey Keital that flew under my radar. Some good laughs and an attempt at drama for Pryor. Really enjoyed some of the editing techniques. Wierd movie though.
14. "RE:Jennifer Lawrence, Liz Taylor, Julia Roberts,Joan Fontaine" In response to Reply # 0
Leading Ladies
Suspicion(1941) Joan Fontaine won an Oscar for her performance in this Hitchcoak classic. The movie has everything you expect to see in a Hitchcock film. You have wonderful acting, great shots and a story full of mystery and intrigue. However i am suspicious of the ending, lol. It is obvious the studio changed it,lol. Grade B
Whose Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) Gee i hated this film. It is a miserable movie about a miserable couple. Liz may have gotten an Oscar for her performance but i can't give this shit a pass. Grade F
Winter's Bone(2010) This is an excellent film. Jennifer faces way more danger fighting against her crazy redneck kinfolk here than she does battling her peers in them Hunger Games This is one of the best thrillers i have seen in a while. Grade A+
Notting Hill(1999) and America's Sweethearts(2001) I know many folks here loathe Julia. I will admit if you have seen one of her films you have seen them all, lol. Her films are pretty much Cinderella stories and are really nothing to be offended about. She sure had a good run with them movies. But like all hollywood money men/women it came to an end. There is now a crack in Julia's glass slipper.
Notting Hill, smh, i just don't get it. Why would a guy fall head over heals for such a bitch ass woman? The movie is great to look at, lol, i loved the scenery but that's about it. Overall this movie is just kinda corny Grade C-
America's Sweethearts, i did like this. It is not perfect but it did have potential. Billy Crystal had some funny lines,lol. IMO they should have not cast Roberts or Cusack at all. They should have made this more of a satire instead of a romantic comedy and they could have had a real winner. Brade C+
pointless love interest aside, Alex Russell was the best character to me. or at least most balanced. Michael B. Jordan was solid too, but him and Dane DeHaan (who is bad at moroseness) were written with a heavy hand on the stereotypes.
didn't mind the found footage but it would've been better intermixed with standard shooting. they could have easily broken out the camera only when using their powers, and dropped the verbal qualifications.
the third act went off the rails but that's easier to deal with at 83 minutes long. and I did like that it avoided the more standard, "lesson learned" ending.
Huge crush on mr Belafonte Huge Started off strong Man he aged well
Ended a bit meh eh Glad he's still alive though
~~~~ When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries. ~~~~ You cannot hate people for their own good.
18. "RE: Body of Lies(2008) and Safe House(2012)" In response to Reply # 0
They should be renamed Body of Flies and Stale House,lol.
BOL is as rotten as 3 day old roadkill. A bad messy script that is blatant war on terror propaganda. I really thought Crowe was bad in this. Was dude rehearsing his lines or was he chopping down on some Big Macs in between takes. I think Leo thought he was doing a sequel to Blood Diamond,lol. Grade F
There is a scene in SH where Tobin(Denzel) meets up with an old friend. His friend tells him he looks good. Tobin replies, "I do look good". Denzel does still look good,lol. He is 57 but looks 47. He does not look tired and weary. I wish could say the same for his latest film. Safe House is not a terrible film but youv'e seen it before. SH really plays it too safe not much suspense or plot twist, imo. Overall it is kinda boring. Grade D
for the last decade, I would say I loved this movie. I'm not so sure now.
being PTA, you know the cinematography is going to be sex on film -- that two-minute steadicam shot comes in the most unlikeliest part of the movie, seemingly done just because he can. and the acting is sooo good. the entire ensemble (minus Julianne Moore) kills it, Cruise and PSH especially.
yet for all the sincerity in the performances, there are other parts that feel annoyingly indulgent. the metafiction ("this is that scene in the movie" / "I'm silently judging you"). the themes, which end on clichés. and the cinematography, which is distractingly elaborate at times.
I realize it's one big melodrama -- which doesn't bother me during the outsized emotional moments, frog rain or musical number -- but I don't believe the film is as spectacular as I once thought.
21. "Chimes at Midnight (a.k.a. Falstaff) - Welles, 1966" In response to Reply # 0 Mon Jun-18-12 02:31 PM by The Analyst
The film that Ebert calls "an Orson Welles masterpiece that remains all but unseen." It basically combines elements of five Shakespeare plays and centers on the character of Falstaff (whom Welles plays). Vincent Canby said it "may be the greatest Shakespearean film ever made, bar none."
The famous 10-minute battle scene is an absolutely masterpiece of a scene. He never had more than 100 extras at any one time, yet it looked like there were entire armies of knights riding into battle. Mel Gibson reportedly studied this scene inside and out when preparing to film the battle scenes in Braveheart. I was extremely surprised at how visceral and modern-looking it was, especially when considering they were working within extreme budgetary constraints.
I watched a Brazilian import DVD, which is reportedly the best print on disk - although the aspect ratio was slightly off which really pissed me off. At least the transfer itself was fairly crisp and the dubbed vocals were properly synched. (Apparently certain prints had badly out-of-synch audio.)
damn i wish i saw this one at theater. A perfect blend of science fiction, fantasy, drama, action and it had quite a bit of humor as well. Liked it better than all the others in the Avenger series. Grade A
23. "Blade Runner (1982)" In response to Reply # 0 Tue Jun-19-12 02:06 PM by will_5198
Encore showed marathons of all three versions a couple weeks ago, celebrating the 30th anniversary. I'd never seen the theatrical version, and now I can see why Harrison Ford abhorred those voice-overs -- they're senseless, and bludgeon the film's character.
the third and "final" edition of the movie gets more and more brilliant, however. the human condition theme is quite basic in general, but delivered with such nuance that it becomes ingenious. "is this an empathy test?" + Rutger Hauer's final monologue + the warning from Gaff*...I could go on.
this was already one of my favorites, but it's moving rapidly up the list. maybe even top ten at this point.
*I wonder if all the Blade Runners are replicants. never read Dick's novel (it's on my list of favorite movies I don't want to fuck up by reading the book, joining No Country For Old Men and Fight Club), but that makes sense to me. either the "true" Blade Runners are humans like Gaff, who oversee their replicant sub-detectives, or Gaff was another replicant brought to watch over Deckard because he was a rogue.
ETA: now that I think about it, I'd wager the Blade Runners are human and use unknowing replicants as assistance. Gaff knew Deckard was a replicant, so you would have to assume Gaff himself is not -- otherwise, his ability to hunt down his "own kind" might be compromised (a la Deckard).
24. "RE: Journey to the center of the Earth (1959)" In response to Reply # 0
An old favorite, i never get tired of it. Grade B+
Geez it is hard to imagine that Hollywood was once able to make good films for a few million dollars. JTTCOTE was made for 3 million and was a box office success. 2012 has been a terrible year for movies. A lot of big budget flicks are tanking left and right. I guess folks are saying your 150million dollar budget and CGI just don't impress me much. I don't blame'em. A journey to the local Regal Cinemas is very risky business for some folks. Money spent on tickets, refreshment for oneself, date and/or family can be costly. All that money spent could have bought a tank of gas,lol.
I will probably watch about 7 films at the theater this year. I don't even know if i will rent much of this crap coming out in 2012. Am i really missing anything if i skip battleship, John Carter, Snow White and the Huntsman, Rock of Ages, The Lorax. Prometheus idk shit looks lukewarm.
Anyone here ever been spelunking,lol, I may need to find a nnew hobby. Bliss
Frank Longo Member since Nov 18th 2003 66200 posts
Tue Jun-19-12 11:43 PM
25. "As Good As It Gets (Brooks, 1997)" In response to Reply # 0
Was surprised that this didn't feel more dated. When I saw In & Out about a month ago, the gay stuff felt VERY hamfisted and uncomfortably uncomfortable with the subject. As Good As It Gets, minus maybe four or five intolerant one-liners from Jack, gives Greg Kinnear a very three-dimensional character, and gives his relationships with everyone real depth. I'm stunned that Jack and Helen won the Oscar but not him-- his performance may be the best in the film.
Was also surprised by how great Helen Hunt, who disappeared shortly after this film, was. I almost cracked jokes on Twitter when she appeared on screen about how she makes me think "nineties," but her performance is really quite moving. Again, more memorable than Jack's work. Really, the stuff with Jack is the *least* compelling stuff in the film.
Some awkward direction stuff (a slo-mo effect at one point during the road trip especially strange), but definitely among Brooks' best, and thankfully not nearly as dated as I thought it'd be.
26. "Man on a Ledge (2012)" In response to Reply # 0
pretty ridiculous movie. the best thing about it was the creative ways they were going about to highlight Genesis Rodriguez's body. she's fucking wonderful
27. "Jeff, Who Lives at Home (2012)" In response to Reply # 0
I loved the Duplass brothers' last film, and am a fan of all the principal actors here, but this one just...meandered. I'm not sure whether the idea of fate was self-parody for story's sake, or a statement on the power of choice; either way I didn't care too much. there were glimpses of a better movie, but overall it felt underdeveloped.
and man, Jason Segel had really ballooned when they filmed this. straight Craig Robinson style.
28. "Dororo(2007) & Shooting Fish (1997)" In response to Reply # 0
Dororo - great B movie - B Reminded me of watching Godzilla and clash f the titans when I was yout
Shooting Fish - cute little romp C ~~~~ When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries. ~~~~ You cannot hate people for their own good.
29. "Marley (2012), John Carter (2012), Bookers Place (2012)" In response to Reply # 0
Marley - so many more aspects that could still be covered and in more depth Fascinating man fascinating life not enough on his music I shed tears, B+
John Carter - no better or worse than avatar, C
Bookers Place - Well done doc delving into the effects of documentary work on the people portrayed, A
~~~~ When you are born, you cry, and the world rejoices. Live so that when you die, you rejoice, and the world cries. ~~~~ You cannot hate people for their own good.
