the ben wheatley/amy jump thread

Field in England is the only one I really remember AND the score is one of my favorites of the last ?? years

my complaint re: High Rise is that it's a direct translation of the novel and the things that work in prose, from the perspective of a very level Ballard-style narrator work well because there's a disconnect between the narrative voice and the lascivious and violent things that occur in many of his stories. not advocating that the events on screen should be completely over-the-top and x-rated, but I felt like there were only a few framing moments that were truly nasty. the point is that the audience should be wondering why the narrator isn't recoiling in horror and the perspective seemed a little blunted

I'll grant that there is a generally detached, inscrutable interiority to Ballard's style in general, and that doesn't seem like a natural fit for a medium like film. nonetheless, I thought Wheatley and Jump did a good job of casting a suitably blank cipher in the lead and generally portraying the gradual disintegration and degradation of the residents as a kind of comically horrible, slow, death-of-a-society.

I mean, I liked it quite a bit! I just thought the approach could be a little different

at the very least it was way better than Cronenberg's "Crash"

strong disagree

I think Crash got all the parts right that High Rise got wrong, and vice versa, if that makes any sense

Crash is excellent. It got the dead-eyed Ballardian tone right

Yeah, Crash is a much better translation of the Ballardian aesthetic, imho - High Rise way too flamboyant and narrowly political (Ballard nothing if not a Shepperton troll who I can easily imagine being 'pro' Brexit for the lols and chaos).

you guys are crazy

well here is more crazy - based on five mins of High Rise I caught on TV I'm gonna go for Empire of the Sum as a better adaptation of Ballard too.

five minutes

Meanwhile, you all hated High Rise but let's be real here: it's the original Brexit movie isn't it

― imago, Tuesday, 8 January 2019 Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

lol how is a film about the goings on in a high-rise building anything to do w/Brexit? Just relax you like it no need to map out a bunch of nothing to it.

I've watched a lot of film the nose is pretty good at this point.

Empire of the Sun is a great adaptation of Ballard except for the score, which totally ruins the film.

High Rise >> EotS >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Crash

and I am a huge Cronenberg fan but ugh I felt embarrassed for the actors in Crash, the whole thing was painful to watch

Are you sure you watched the right Crash?

Yeah I don't get that AT ALL.

(Also the BFI book on it by Iain Sinclair is really good, probably one of the best things he's ever done)

guess what I don't like Dead Ringers either

here are all of Cronenberg's bad films btw:
M. Butterfly
Crash
Dead Ringers
Spider
Cosmopolis

Maps to the Stars and Dangerous Method are worse than most of those (haven't seen M Butterfly)

never saw maps to the stars

Dangerous Method was v funny imo

no wait that's not true I did see Maps to the Stars, and while yes it was bad it had one redeeming shot/sequence so I gave it a pass

Οὖτις is a fast company stan

(said shot being Julianne Moore repeatedly smashing the viewer/camera in the face with an Oscar statue)

xp

xpost
v much agree w/ xyzzzz that the Sinclair book on Crash is excellent and one of the best things he's done, though he's (unsurprisingly) much more interested in Ballard than Cronenberg.

I watched a collection of Cronenberg's pre-Shivers/They Came From Within films not that long ago - they're not very good either.

I liked Madame Butterfly (think its underrated) and A Dangerous Method as well.

guys

wheatley/jump are directing/writing

TOMB

RAIDER

2

Here's your first look at Armie Hammer, Lily James, and Kristin Scott Thomas in REBECCA, from director Ben Wheatley.

On Netflix globally 21 October. pic.twitter.com/jZ5vderalT

— NetflixFilm (@NetflixFilm) August 7, 2020

fuxake. 0 interest in this

what about my revelation before the (amy) jump

I can't think of a much worse idea than overrated horrible hack UK amateurs fucking with Hitchcock! Nolan will be at it next.

they're fucking with du maurier, just as hitchcock did

also in the same breath as N*lan = you're barely skirting a FP :P

It's fucking with DeMaurier tbf, not like Hitchcock has a claim on the book.

xpost

I'll believe that when I see it, which I will do my upmost not to. But knowing how formulaic and mediocre Wheatley is it won't be a fresh interpretation.

I don't think I've really liked anything Wheatley's done post-Kill List tbh

there have been lots of variable Highsmith interpretations, but I'd argue that Hitchcock sort of owned that one?

Horrible Brit directors of this era are such parochial mediocrities, of course he's fucking with Hitchcock!

not saying Rebecca was a Highsmith novel like it probably sounds like there!

like with Highsmith there are some variable adaptations of the same novel ranging from good to excellent. Just not not expecting anything better than shit from this talentless nothing!

im just like why is it that when directors "arrive" it has to be with middleclass period guff, always
whats wrong with the furrow that wheatley was ploughing with the lower class, the despised, the mud/blood-encrusted

I violently despise the few things I've seen since Kill List (which was enjoyable trash) imo.

I would be more interested if Joanna Hogg was doing Rebecca, with a focus on middleclass period guff!

^ YES

not too high on Hogg either but she'd be a significant upgrade yes

This website is free.

Hogg wouldn't be right for this. Mumblecore DDM? We need full roiling madness

Maybe Hogg should nab Tomb Raider 2 off them as well

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