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Post by Michael on Sept 21, 2006 18:21:33 GMT
Hiroshima Mon AmourBlending documentary, social presentation, and romance, this film is an exploration of memory and identity. An almost scientific study of a love relationship and so much more. It's fairly complex, but simple to watch, and also very beautiful. I'll be viewing this sometime soon. Highly placed on my Netflix queue. I've been so looking forward to seeing some more Resnais after my first viewing of Last Year at Marienbad, which blew me away. Definitely see that if you can. I'd love to further explore Resnais's work. Last Year at Marienband looks very interesting. I think you'd love Hiroshima Mon Amour, especially the first half hour or so. Verry innovative camerawork.
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Post by Michael on Sept 24, 2006 2:33:01 GMT
FacesWhat an amazing study of human interaction! This is just as good as, if not better than A Woman Under the Influence. This film really reaches the core of human relationships. It's so phenomenal, watching it is excruciating. Cassavetes takes us deep inside the lives of a bored, shallow upper-middle-class couple, and as his skilled actors improvise remarkably realistic scenes, down to the smallest mannerism of their characters, Cassavetes forces us to watch every knife-twisting second. It's difficult: Rather than watching an unpleasant situation, then getting pulled away by an editor's cut, we have to sit through all 20 or 25 minutes of a scene that makes us squirm, whether it's a middle-aged man making an ass of himself to impress a young prostitute or his wife feigning laughter to make a young man think she's having fun with him. Absolutely phenomenal film. I can't wait to see more from Cassavetes.
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Sept 24, 2006 7:53:15 GMT
Old School (2003/Phillips)One of my favorite comedies. Writer/Director Todd Phillips' original idea was to make a comedic version of Fight Club, and it's so interesting as a big fan of both films to notice the many parallels. Barry Lyndon (1975/Kubrick)A tragically beautiful film, trademark Kubrick, but with its own unique power. Perhaps the most humanistic of his films, producing the most raw emotion in both its characters and its viewers. Kubrick's attempts to construct several shots in the film like actual period piece paintings was noticeable and succesful throughout, and the famed candlelit scenes worked well. I've now seen every Kubrick film post-1963, but I have yet to see any of his early work. Something I'll be doing sometime soon, hopefully.
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Post by Michael on Sept 24, 2006 14:49:51 GMT
Barry Lyndon (1975/Kubrick)A tragically beautiful film, trademark Kubrick, but with its own unique power. Perhaps the most humanistic of his films, producing the most raw emotion in both its characters and its viewers. Kubrick's attempts to construct several shots in the film like actual period piece paintings was noticeable and succesful throughout, and the famed candlelit scenes worked well. I've now seen every Kubrick film post-1963, but I have yet to see any of his early work. Something I'll be doing sometime soon, hopefully. Glad you liked it! Very underrated and overlooked Kubrick masterpiece. It might be his best, but I'll have to re-watch it along with Eyes Wide Shut to say for sure though...
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Sept 24, 2006 21:06:08 GMT
Rock and Roll High School (1979/Arkush)A fun little teen exploitation film with the Ramones as the driving force. Enjoyable throughout, although the multiple musical numbers got a little bit redundant for a non-Ramones fan. Clint Howard was as hideous and as hilarious as ever.
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Post by Vercetti on Sept 24, 2006 22:17:30 GMT
I need to see it. The Ramones are great.
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Sept 24, 2006 22:21:06 GMT
That Joey is one ugly bastard. Did he have some sort of disease or something or was he just weird looking?
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Post by Michael on Sept 24, 2006 23:00:15 GMT
Pierrot le FouEpisodic and at times frustratingly spontaneous and unpredictable film, fueled by great performances, beautiful use of color, and creative editing techniques. This is a more accessible and light-hearted film by Godard (except for the end of course), but it is an ultimately rewarding experience that I feel will get better upon rewatches.
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Sept 25, 2006 5:43:52 GMT
Breathless (1960/Godard)My first Godard. Loved the music, loved the characters, loved the fact that I couldn't sit through the film without breaking for a cigarette, loved the jump cuts especially. I hate to beat a dead horse, but the freehand did bother me at times. It took me a while to get into it, and I admittedly was a bit perplexed by the ending, but overall a very strong first impression of one of the masters. I'll be seeing more of his work very shortly.
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Sept 26, 2006 3:09:03 GMT
As somebody who has strong reservations for handheld work, aren't you also a fan of Traffic?
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Sept 26, 2006 3:42:41 GMT
Yes, a huge fan.
For some reason, I just feel it works there, and not nearly as much so elsewhere. It's kind of the subject matter, kind of, but mostly something I can't put into words really. I liked that Soderbergh was definitely using it as an artistic choice, whereas I feel it's much less effective when it's done out of financial neccesity.
I haven't watched Traffic in a long time. I'll examine this further once the matierial is fresher in my mind.
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Sept 26, 2006 12:13:00 GMT
The Dreamers Bernardo Bertolucci 2003 France/Italy/UK 1st time; DVD During the 1968 riots in Paris, an American meets and stays with two twins, a brother and sister, with whom he falls in love. Sexy film which has many fine moments, such as the tour of the Louvre to beat the record set by Godard's ménage à trois in Bande à part (1964), the early riots featuring Léaud and Kalfon, and the initial sex scene between Pitt and Green. Bertolucci intercuts footage from the old movies he's making reference to, and it's all very clever, evidently a film about Film for film lovers, made by a film lover.Pulp Fiction Quentin Tarantino 1994 US Nth time; DVD Three stories interweave: two hitmen's troubles in collecting a gangster's case, a boxer who won't go down after being paid to do so, and a hitman's problematic date with his boss's wife. Responsible, so far, for an endless list of imitations, though this clever, verbose and thoroughly self-indulgent piece remains incomparable. It is a confident mix of written wit and complimentary visuals; first viewings offer laughs and pleasure in the script, but it's Tarantino's camera, perhaps overlooked at first, which cranks up the aesthetic.
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Sept 26, 2006 17:15:40 GMT
I am seriously considering getting rid of stars altogether.
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Post by Michael on Sept 26, 2006 17:43:32 GMT
Something I've noticed about your proviews is that you rarely talk about what you liked or disliked about the film; you only talk about the film itself. Your proviews for your 4 star films sound the same as the proviews for your 0 star films. Come on, let's put some emotion into these things! ;D
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Post by Michael on Sept 27, 2006 0:24:07 GMT
Vivre sa Vie: Film en Douze TableauxAstonishing! The best I've seen from Godard so far, and by far. The "12-scene" narrative structure is very effective, as it manages to skip parts of Nana's life, but doesn't take anything away from the total picture, and also allows an unlimited amount of interactivity for the viewer. The camerawork is wonderful, often zooming in on Nana's face for minutes at a time, which wouldn't have worked as well without Anna Karina's marvelous acting. Amazing film, everybody should see it.
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Sept 28, 2006 22:22:39 GMT
edit
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Sept 29, 2006 1:34:24 GMT
Last Year at Marienbad (1961/Resnais)Thank god there's an alternative to Netflix, because some classic films aren't on DVD yet. My college library has a great selection of all types of film media, and I was happy to see they had this. I kind of wandered in not intending to actually sit and watch the whole thing, but hell, it's that good. Equally blown away by my 2nd viewing. Eager to see how other Resnais films compare. Blue Velvet (1986/Lynch)Only my 3rd Lynch, which is surprising how much I enjoyed Mulholland Dr. when I first saw it maybe 6 months ago. Trademark Lynch oddity here all throughout, whether it be the outright disturbing psychosexual scenes or the fraudlent happy-go-lucky nostalgic scenes with that constant weird undertone. I'm just now realizing the genius of Dennis Hopper, as I've barely seen any of his films. The rest of the cast was decent. Not quite sure why this is considered Lynch's best, I mean it was decent and obviously quite unique, but I personally enjoyed Mulholland Dr. more. Could it perhaps have something to do with its release in the middle of a decade that was notoriously poor for American cinema? Looking forward to getting to more Lynch either way.
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Omar
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Post by Omar on Sept 29, 2006 4:40:54 GMT
Mean Streets(1973/Martin Scorsese) [Second Viewing] A young hood tries to keep his faith in Italian-American underworld.Scorsese's most personal film, and probably his most gritty as well. It's less detailed than some of his later masterpieces, but at the same time more free flowing and dynamic. De Niro's first turn at what would eventually become his trademark as the pathetic psychopath is brilliant to watch, as is the whole film.
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Sept 29, 2006 5:45:19 GMT
Mean Streets(1973/Martin Scorsese) [Second Viewing] A young hood tries to keep his faith in Italian-American underworld.Scorsese's most personal film, and probably his most gritty as well. It's less detailed than some of his later masterpieces, but at the same time more free flowing and dynamic. De Niro's first turn at what would eventually become his trademark as the pathetic psychopath is brilliant to watch, as is the whole film. I always felt as though DeNiro was playing against his usual persona in this film. Where else do you see him as the pathetic psychopath? Maybe Raging Bull? I can see psychopath being a fitting description for a lot of his characters, but I wouldn't say pathetic.
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