RNL
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Post by RNL on Dec 2, 2007 2:45:49 GMT
I had that opportunity at Halloween. Should've gone, really.
The death of Alex Kintner is one of the most perfectly staged scenes I've ever witnessed. I rewound it over and over the last time I watched the film.
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Post by svsg on Dec 2, 2007 5:28:01 GMT
In the mood for love *** My second Kar-wai Wong movie. This is easily among the most visually beautiful movies. His sense of colors and lighting is amazing. But the best thing about this movie has to be the music. Just mesmerizing. Though the story or theme is nothing new, the mood created is something to talk about. Thank to Kino for suggesting this one. Did I miss something thematically (you could put it within a spoiler quote)? I always listen with my laptop speakers, but today I (randomly) decided that I would use my headphones. It was a wise decision, as the music is really amazing.
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Dec 2, 2007 13:37:23 GMT
Note its period setting (60s Hong Kong). You mention the music, and I'm thinking of Umebayshi Shigeru's waltz in particular (really makes the slow-motion work, doesn't it?). But there's also some Nat King Cole songs in there ("Perhaps Perhaps Perhaps"), only they're Spanish versions; and it's played during a scene in which the two protagonists are eating in a restaurant... What are they eating? Chips with ketchup, and they're eating with forks. It's not the typical Oriental scene you'd expect. It's about globalisation and the growth of Americanisation as a backdrop for muddled love lives and sex affairs; and indeed the identity crises which stem from that - note the scene in which the two act out confronting their lovers, a performance within a performance. All of these take on much resonance considering the film's year of release (OMG Y2K meltdown!!!).
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Post by svsg on Dec 2, 2007 17:26:04 GMT
I like the "kisaas kisaas kisaas" song too and you are right about the slow motion. Otherwise, what would be so noteworthy about going out to buy noodles I liked those rehearsals and was expecting some really unexpected twist with that concept. But it took the dramatic route instead of a clever one. In a way, that is a good thing, as it looks more honest that way. Especially makes the ending scene in the temple very touching. Edit: I googled and found out that it is "Quizas Quizas Quizas"
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Post by svsg on Dec 2, 2007 18:07:12 GMT
The whole movie is on youttube, the first part is here (the rest can be found from the links there): www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWNp0lreETEBut I highly recommend watching it on DVD.
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Post by Michael on Dec 2, 2007 22:44:49 GMT
I've been waaaaay to busy this past year to watch movies on a regular basis. I'll try though. I'll try.
Number one on my list of films to see right now is Irreversible. Then I'll see In the Mood For Love.
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Post by Michael on Dec 2, 2007 22:59:23 GMT
ITMFL is only 98 minutes, though! Watch it in place of a Lions game or something. Never! Sounds great. Is the film as visually appealing as 2046?
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Post by Michael on Dec 2, 2007 23:21:14 GMT
Never! Sounds great. Is the film as visually appealing as 2046? Haha. Man, what went wrong for the Lions today (besides Williams' injury)? I honestly want to see them make the playoffs. We only ran the ball 7 times today. When we went on that 3-game winning streak, it was because we were running the ball effectively with Kevin Jones, and our offensive attack was a balanced one. Without a running game, all the pressure's on Jon Kitna, who is an awful decision-maker by the way, to make plays. And with one of the worst offensive lines in the league, it's no wonder Kitna's the most sacked QB in the league by miles. Our defense sucks, especially on the road. Our line's average at best, but our secondary is absolutely awful. Calvin Johnson isn't doing shit either. We should've drafted Adrian Peterson. Cowboys at home next week. No way I'm going to that game. We're going to get blown out. We might beat San Diego and Kansas City, which would give us an 8-8 record. Good enough to get in the playoffs? Just hope Philly, Washington, AND Arizona all go 7-9 or worse. Cool, thanks for the insight. I'll try to watch this as soon as I can.
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Dec 3, 2007 1:36:11 GMT
From my vantage point, I don't think the *main* thematic material of that scene and/or the whole movie is globalization and Americanization. Those kind of details are definitely throughout the movie, but I think b/c Wong is recreating the 60s and those were facts of the 60s. I don't think Wong's main concern were those things, though unlike Jia Zhang-ke's The World and Still Life. I've not seen that film you mention. I didn't say it was the main theme, though it's definitely a subtext (as you admit). Even so, I haven't looked past that point since I first saw it; they're eating that stuff for a reason, and there's Spanish versions of American songs on the soundtrack for a reason (for me, anyway), and to ignore that would be ignorant. Not saying you're ignoring it, though (you're not, as far as I'm concerned), just simply defending where I was coming from.
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RNL
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Post by RNL on Dec 3, 2007 2:08:25 GMT
Do you think Wong is being critical of that or lamenting it?
Is the melancholy the characters' relationship elicits in the viewer intended to be reflected onto the cultural milieu they inhabit?
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Dec 3, 2007 2:46:30 GMT
Whether Wong is recollecting or not, it's still a cultural backdrop to the film's plot (of tainted love): as much as he chose the music as a period setting, as much as he chose the food as authentic prop, he still chose to make a film about love in the sixties. That in itself (the setting) takes on some sort of significance, no?
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Dec 3, 2007 3:09:59 GMT
In a way, though, it is. I would argue, anyway. It's inherent; perhaps not a conscious elaboration upon the theme I'm talking about, but since neither of us personally know Wong, who's to say? I was careful enough to point out, please note, that all of what I said above was parenthetically supported (or invalidated) with "to me" or any alternative. It's just what I pick up from the film, personally speaking. For me, he could have easily chosen to make the film in the present day. Because he didn't, I find it significant (you don't disagree with this); and from that, I was looking at the sort of political and cultural conditionsand changes which were happening at that time, in that setting.
It's not necessarily a comment on it, but even so, it's a significant backdrop. And that, essentially, was what I was trying to point out to svsg in my initial post. If that intention's failed, inadequacy on my part, I suppose; you said as much.
(Hawaii in the contemporary sense, as I assume you're supposing, is very different to 1960s Hong Kong.)
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Post by svsg on Dec 3, 2007 7:25:00 GMT
Haha, my naive questions triggered some healthy discussion here
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Post by svsg on Dec 3, 2007 7:32:41 GMT
American Gangster ***I went to watch Bewoulf in 3d-imax, but it was sold out So I ended up watching this instead. Though the movie was long, I never felt it was dragging at any stage. A very well made movie in terms of pacing and acting by both the lead stars. i usually get annoyed by Russel Crowe, but for a change I liked him in this role. Denzel Washington plays his usual well-mannered, smooth talking role to perfection. All the comparisons to Godfather are baseless though. Maybe superficially valid, but not really at any thematic level.
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Dec 3, 2007 12:03:47 GMT
Haha, my naive questions triggered some healthy discussion here It's always a good thing! As for American Gangster: I agree. The promo posters read "Every bit as epic as The Godfather, which is shooting itself in the foot, really; I didn't see any sort of link at all. Comparisons to Heat would have been better and more worthwhile. Though still not favourable.
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Dec 3, 2007 12:42:28 GMT
Since American Gangster, I've seen Eastern Promises, A Lesson in Love, Port of Call, Wild Style, Din of Celestial Birds, Hotel Chevalier, The Darjeeling Limited and The Assassination of Jesse James...
If ya wanna know more, ya know the score.
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Post by svsg on Dec 3, 2007 18:57:24 GMT
As you folks can see I'm very passionate about this movie. Anyway, I'd like to answer this question, but I don't know what you thought the theme(s) were or your interpretation of the flick. Sorry, I never wrote what I interpreted. SPOILERBefore Chow leaves for Singapore, he says "you will never leave your husband". Somehow this struck me as very tragic. Knowing well that their respective spouses were cheating and they were in love, why couldn't Mrs Chan make a (bold) step forward? Conservative society in 60s? Not really. It is the same society where the other two partners were having an affair. It is just that sometimes, in spite of knowing that true love is possible from only one person, the other person (who also loves) will not take the right step forward. We tend to waste far too much time and energy on people that don't matter. This aspect of love, tragedy and ultimately the loss for Chow (Mrs Chan has a son, but Chow possibly never recovered - as further indicated by his visit to the temple) were the themes that "leaped" at me. I am not too good at finding complex cultural themes hidden underneath. END SPOILER
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Omar
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Post by Omar on Dec 3, 2007 19:07:10 GMT
Don't Look Back(1967/D.A. Pennebaker) [Second Viewing] Bob Dylan tours the United Kingdom in 1965, changing his public image in the process. The film where Dylan invents the 'rock star persona', complete with sunglasses, a music video, a smart ass attitude toward the press, an entourage, flipping out when things are thrown from his hotel window, etc. I'm convinced that this is not a straightforward documentary, but a loose narrative about a young artist who travels to another country, surrounded by fans who do not appreciate his new material, and subsequently recreates his image. Even at the end of the film, with Dylan in the limo, saying he felt something happened while he was there, and something did. Dylan's story becomes dynamic in that he starts out the film with one particular image, and ends it his own way. The flashback scene during a press conference of Dylan playing to a group of blacks in a Mississippi field is a powerful cut away. I'm Not There(2007/Todd Haynes) [Second Viewing] Several different stories based on aspects of Bob Dylan's career.Haynes has crafted a collage of Dylan, stemming from press conferences, famous images, his songs and their lyrics, media speculation about his private life, and Dylan's own spoken contradictions. The result is a series of dreams (the name of a Dylan song, no less), each told with their own style and tone, but each equally adding to the mysterious whole. Plus, Haynes has provided us with a wonderful soundtrack of Dylan's songs, half covers and half originals, and set them to some unforgettable sequences and images. The film truly captures the mystery of Dylan's own lyrics.
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Dec 3, 2007 21:50:04 GMT
It's important to note, or interesting to note, that in the director's cut they have sex, and in the theatrical cut they don't.
2046 is a good stand-alone film, but I think it's at its most gut-wrenching in the context of the two films together. Nostalgia and unrequited love (or unconsummated love) are themes I very much relate to. I recall a simple, single moment from Malick's The New World that floors me every single time, without fail:
"Did you find your Indies, John? You shall." "I may have sailed past them."
OUCH!
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Capo
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Post by Capo on Dec 3, 2007 22:33:35 GMT
Whooooops, my mistake. He shot a sex scene, but didn't include it in the film.
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