Last (x) movies you saw

aw, i liked jiro!

Some more I watched a while ago, all at the Renoir cinema:

The Turin Horse (Bela Tarr, 2011)
Tabu (Gomes, 2012)

And yesterday:

Barbara (Petzhold, 2012) - like his last Yella. This time it depicts a 1980s East German escapade. There needs to be more at work than this? I liked the scenes where lterature was involved: the Doctor (Nina Hoss) reading Twain to one of her patients, and her being told of a story (which I looked up) by Turgenev as she visits his house.

Today I relaxed to:

Sansho Dayu (Mizoguchi, 1954) - some of the photography was truly breathtaking, as were the emotions, use of music and folk. Taken me a while but I'm finally getting hold of Mizoguchi's greatness.

watch "a story of late chrysanthemums" and "the crucifed lovers" next. devastating.

Watched Tyrannosaur the other night... brrrr...

Romancing the Stone. Forgot how funny it is.

Or rather, didn't understand how funny it is when I saw it 15 times when I was 12.

^interesting thread to be made based on this idea

rrrreally wanna see tabu
& should just get around to watching gomes' last flick instead of anticipating

I wasn't that fussed with Tabu - can't even recall what was wrong with, much less what was right, probably why I forgot about it. At least Tarr's film was relentless but still...when you make something like Satantango. In some ways I'm glad its his last. Not a bad way to go.

watch "a story of late chrysanthemums" and "the crucifed lovers" next. devastating.

― bryan "radical" ferry (clouds), Tuesday, 16 October 2012 Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Just watched the former (a shagged out copy on youtube). I think what makes the devastation complete is the father's acceptance of the young girl and his reason for it: that she has been used by her son -- her sacrifice complete -- to make him into an artist: you rarely get that acknowledgment/discussion of a woman's role in a male artist's life.

I liked the suggestion (intended or not) that it might have been his four years' labour in "low-grade work" (performance troupe) that actually made him any good.

Incredible to think this was made in '39.

we're not on ILF but can we have this as its tagline: At least Tarr's film was relentless

About time my words were put to use..

The Intouchables
enjoyable french language film about a coloured ex-con being hired as the helper for a rich paraplegic. Funny, touching etc etc.
Really enjoyed it and it was the first foreign language film I'd gone to see in a while.

Not sure what to make of the film-makers changing the ethnicity of the helper. If it does make much difference or not. Or is swapping one ethnicity of minority poor for another an issue?
you get to see the real guys at the end.

watched rendition last night for some reason. zzzzzz....

well, it kept my attention, but it was so by the book plot-wise and i didn't care about anyone at all. i should have cared about someone. at least the guy getting tortured. they should have hired good actors to play all the parts. then maybe i would have cared. or they should have given more coffee to the actors they had. everyone looked like they were asleep. hope meryl streep got a nice beach house out of it or something.

weird too how the idea of rendition seems dated already. hahahahahaha!!!!! oh god we are all going to hell.

Had a good run recently.

Odd Man Out (Reed, 1947) A Only know Reed's work from The Third Man, Our Man in Havana and Oliver!. Really think I should check more of it out as I get the feeling that he's somewhat overlooked in the pantheon of British directors.
The Turin Horse (Tarr, 2011) B
Safe (Hartley, 1995) C+
The Pirates! In an Adventures with Scientists (Lord, 2012) A- Don't think I've laughed at a film this year as much as this one.
Bound (Wachowski Bothers, 1995) B+ Wasn't expecting much from this but was presently surprised. When they get rid of the bloat they are really quite effective.
The Living Daylights (Glen, 1987) B- I see this as a necessary repositioning of the Bond films after the silly Moore years but it's almost too austere and Dalton just talks through clenched teeth too much for my liking.
Misery (Reiner, 1990) B+
Night of the Hunter (Laughton, 1955) A- This would have been an A until the ending which seemed rushed, anticlimatic and overtly sentimental compared to what had gone before.
Flirting With Disaster (Russell, 1994) B-
The Incredible Hulk (Leterrier, 2008) B
Possession (Zulawski, 1981) B Needed more shouting. Watched this on a long train journey and the woman sitting next to me must have thought I was some sort of psycho for watching this.

Yes - not a bad run at the cinema:

Dredd (3D)
Looper
Liberal Arts - Has anyone else seen this? I really liked Elizabeth Olsen's performance
Ruby Sparks - Great performance from Zoe Kazan, who also wrote the screenplay and plays opposite her irl boyf...would have thought ilx would be all over this film like a rash.
On the Road - Appreciated it for the technical exercise of how you adapt the novel - and the scenery was a pleasant 2 hour holiday on a bleak London Sunday afternoon - but it isn't destined to be a classic film.

More Mizoguchi:

Five Women Around Utamaro (1946)
A Geisha (1953)
The Crucified Lovers (1954)

A post discussing them on the Japanese films -- any excuse to revive that thread.

watching xian bale terminator movie. it's dumb.

but everyone probably already knows that.

It may have been the diminished expectations, but I actually dug it.

well, there is no suspense for one thing. if they kill john connor's dad when he's a kid then they would have to recall all the terminator movies from all the stores in the world. or maybe the actual dvds would cease to exist...and all the old vhs tapes...

just didn't really care about any of it. was rooting for death of all humans.

Together - didn't like
Mirror (Tarkovsky)- some great scenes but i didn't really get it. need to rewatch.
Ghost World - liked at points but the ending was disappointing.
Wild at Heart - couldn't handle. switched off half way through
Days of Being Wild - loved. WKW's fast becoming my fave director.
Solaris (Tarkovsky) - great. driving scene was awes.

a nos amours (pialat, 83) 2.5/5
the comedy (rick alverson, 2012) 4/5
limelight (billy corbin, 2011) 3/5
will success spoil rock hunter? (tashlin, 57) 3/5
seven psychopaths (mcdonagh, 2012) 1.5/5
straw dogs (rod lurie, 2011) 1.5/5
the sitter (dgg, 2011) 3.5/5

Habemus Papam
Angel's Share
Damsel in Distress

The Dawn (cooper, 1938) first irish sound movie. pretty much no budget and amateur actors so its almost like one of those b&w harry enfield sketches. interesting though. about a brigade of IRA men in 20's and informers in their ranks

Paradise Now (Abu-Assan, 2005) takes a good movie (or a skillfully manipulative on) to make you empathise with two suicide bombers.

Midnight In Paris (Allen, 2011) i loved this. best Woody since Sweet and Lowdown

King of Comedy (Scorsese, 1983) gets better with each viewing

Marley (Macdonald, 2011) enjoyable, could have done with a bit more political background though

The Firm (Clarke, 1989) first time i watched this with a group of people. unbearably intense at points. alan clarke is the best.

Taken (Morel, 2008) First time seeing this. great action movie.

hausu
cabin in the woods
little shop of horrors
the host
carrie

wow, what a five-play

how is Hausu?

amazing

habemus papam

michel piccoli is so good in this movie.

...

spoilers:

what do you think of the ending? I'm not familiar with the director and from all the gentle comedy I was almost sure he would accept. it was so poignant and powerful it stopped my heart for a sec, for a man in his position to realize that he would not be able to really change anything at all in that ultra corrupt institution and act accordingly .. I mean, that honesty, such a hero!

forks, my bf is showing me horror movies i haven't seen, as i never watch them

how are you enjoying them in general? that's a great batch that you've watched so far!

your boy has good taste

Habemus Papam is indeed quite superb. Anything including slow mo dolly shots of cardinals playing volleyball is a winner in my book. The only scene that slighty disapointed me was the theater scene, it is moving and beautiful but the editing seemed a little off at times, as if they couldn't use 2-3 shots and the rythm felt weird. If heard all types of comments for the endings: some friends said it was depressing, other said it was relieving, other (like you and I) thought the courage was glorious, I've even heard 'funny' and 'cop out'.

carrie was amazing, so much more than a genre film — gotta see more depalma
cabin in the woods is genre-y but smarter than most, also v funny. i tend to like whedon in general even if his fanboys are annoying.
hausu blew my mind. i was in love within the first 5 minutes
little shop was hilarious
was not expecting to like the host at all but was supremely entertained. also found it oddly touching?

Tetsuo: The Iron Man (Shinya Tsukamoto, 1989) 3/5
Testsuo: Body Hammer (Shinya Tsukamoto, 1993) 1.5/5

Killer Joe (Friedkin, 2012) - All over the place, sexist, but occasionally trashy fun, most of which comes from watching McConaughey prowl. 3/5

Side by Side (Christopher Kenneally, 2012) - Documentary on the rise of digital filmmaking, with directors either in support (Soderbergh, Cameron, etc), or against (Nolan). The debate is rather one sided, but it's more about charting the development, and continuing evolution of digital cameras, film editing and the technical nuts and bolts side of movie making. 3/5

The Amazing Spider-Man (Marc Webb, 2012) - They've improved the cast, the costume and the swinging through the city stuff, but it's more ponderous and drearily over-serious than ever. 2/5

To Catch a Thief (Hitchcock, 1955) - Not exactly the most suspenseful of Hitchcock's thrillers, but it's breezy fun watching Grant top up his already deep tan and gad about the French Riviera with a stunning Grace Kelly. 3.5/5

Flight of the Navigator (Randal Kleiser, 1986) - Sensitive boy meets friendly alien, has adventures and learns about personal growth. An ET knock-off that's almost as good as ET itself. Except I much preferred Joey Cramer's warm performance in this to Henry Thomas in ET. 4/5

Woody Allen: a Documentary (Robert B. Weide, 2011) - Best Woody one-liner, on the Soon-Yi media storm: "It took the edge off my natural blandness". 3/5

Urgh! A Music War (1981) - Great snapshot of the post-punk scenes in the UK and US. Loads of great performances from a taut XTC, a wild Cramps, and the otherworldly Klaus Nomi, amongst others. Most memorable, though, must be Gary Numan singing "Down in the Park" as he wheels awkwardly about a dry-ice shrouded stage in a ridiculous 'futuristic' motorised chair, like a depressed Davros. 4/5

I Knew it Was You (Richard Shepard, 2009) - short but sweet examination of the impeccable, yet largely unsung, career of John Cazele. 3.5/5

gotta see more depalma

Understatement of all time.

i knew you'd say something :D

I'll say something else: I envy your boyfriend right now, introducing you to all sorts of horror classics.

I can't wait to introduce my best friend gay couple to Dressed to Kill in the next few weeks.

c0rey, Femme Fatale, and you're good

little shop was hilarious

the b&w Corman one is OK too

rebecca- marvellous
annie hall- i must re-evaluate my stance on allen, this is obviously terrific
looper- ticked the boxes i needed ticked, tyvm

On youtube:

Pretty Dyana (Boris Mitic, 2003) - Bunch of gypsies from Belgrade re-use old Dyana Citroens to collect recyclable junk around town, reflect on Tito and the Balkan conflict, all to a s/track that includes Husker Du (Diane) and Michael Jackson (Lady Diana) (or "one of us").

Culloden (Peter Watkins, 1964) - Brutal masterpiece: tight script and THAT voice. The year of (Brit)pop and Peter Watkins!!

Finally Got the News (Stewart Bird, Rene Lichtman and Peter Gessner, 1970) - more details http://icarusfilms.com/new2003/fin.html"">here. Great to watch back-to-back w/Watkins. The agitators maybe miles apart in experience and background but no one talks like this anymore in documentaries.

Also caught 30 mins (the full film is not on youtube) of Perfumed Nightmare (Kidlat Tahimik, 1977) - this is a low budget "third world cinema" masterwork. But I wouldn't box it like that, not agree w/Rosenbaum's write-up as something wild, untutored, imagnative and yet really DIY (i.e. creaky home movie you can't stay with). Kind of along the lines of Ajantrik (Ghatak, 1958) and Touki Bouki (Mambety, 1973) in its use of music as a halfway between sensory experience and comedy device. The main protagonist (plyed by Kidlat) has a love of 1st world tech (interested in rocket science) (as the main figure in Ajantrik is into his car and thinks of it as blood-and-flesh) with a desire to get away from the backwardness and yet a scepticism/rudeness toward it to. Unfortunately, that's all I have, for the moment.

Torrent: Bonus for Irene (Helke Sander, 1971). Sander is a bit of a forgotten figure, but along w/the likes of Akerman she developed a language to talk at feminism to moviegoers. The All-Round Reduced Personality is probably her best (not that I've seen it all but it'll be hard to beat, should be shown more alongside Jeanne Dielman), but this is a good short-film of a single mother who is, again, another agitator against the (usually male) oppressor who starts saying NO and demands.

Cinema:

5 Broken Cameras (Emad Burnat, Guy Davidi, 2011) - as frightening a piece of being in the middle of it as The Battle for Chile but at one point it distances itself away from (in his own eyes) opportunistic Palestinian politicians. The footage is incredible and totally worth your time, but the wider situation appears to be a non-discussion starter.

Perfumed Nightmare is playing at Anthology Film Archives in NYC this weekend, along with other Kidlat Tahimik movies.

gonna go see dinotasia tonight. pray for me

Wake In Fright (relentless)
The Wrong Man ( starts off great then putters out. Fonda terrific as always. That guy could really carry a film)
Autoluminescent ( Rowland S. Howard docu )

ooh I'm going to watch Wake In Fright this weekend, v excited