The cinema thread

[Faust]

Unfortunately, I think Leo's best days lay in his youth, with films like What's Eating Gilbert Grape and The Basketball Diaries. I think his last good film is Catch Me If You Can. I just don't see him in action movies, he is not that type of an actor. Blood Diamond came close to him being good in that type of a film.

[Fade to Black]

^^^

Agreed. Leo's acted himself into a tunnel.

[sam_tem]

the maid

i didn't read anything about this movie before seeing it and many times throughout the movie i was expecting a tragic turn of events (thanks hollywood) that never materialized. i think that's this films strength, it's well-edited and creates a full/tense environment all within someone's humble abode (takes place in a large house, but the tight shots keep the open expanse out of eye sight). placing the maid in a very awkward situation amongst the family and giving her a severe case of headaches helps add depth/plot twists to the story. unfortunately i got distracted and missed some of the ending which looks like it was very important in tying up the story so i'll have to rewatch the end.

an ugly movie perhaps (dull shots, dull colors, etc.), but a good script and great acting by the maid are the important parts that bring it together. i wouldn't rate this too highly though.

[MoFiya]

Dogtooth

highly recommended

Just watched this... thanks

[YoungM]

The "ambiguous" ending and nerdlike precision of 4 levels of dreaming/set happening at once will ensure a healthy following of geeks mistaking this movie-engineering crap for intellectual depth.
.

While admittedly, the concept was hardly fleshed out, the concept itself is fairly "intellectually deep."

[Faust]

Watched The Dhamma Brothers today. Very interesting and moving documentary about prisoners on death raw doing Vipassana practice. Highly recommended.

[ronin]

Watched A serious man last night. I had low expectations for that film so I was pleasantly surprised. I didn't see it at all as another "suburbs is hell" movie like several people said, weirdly this theme didn't strike me the slightest. I saw it as a multi-level metaphora, with many biblical references I couldn't understand, but beyond the religious theme (the Job story reenactment (sort of), the (de)mystification - weirdly I felt both at the same time) I also saw a dissection of the mind. Every character, every situation seems to be a mere archetype, an allegory for some of them; everyone symbolizes something static that is pushed upon the character, and has no existence outside of their interaction. I felt like every switch in point of views showed just another side of the main character. I also liked the theme surrounding the rite of passage, the Bar Mitzvah scene especially, showing an already traced life, codified, with every archetype and character already in place, waiting. Some powerful (in the context of the movie) key sentences shed light on the construction of the movie, simple and linear but with several layers. I liked the photography and the humour fit just right. Really, even though it won't be an all time favourite I'll probably watch it again sometime, I enjoyed it a lot.

Other than that, I watched Ministry of fear and appreciated the visual construction with the omnipresent symbolism, the movie was a bit of a self analysis, several elements expanded the reflexion out of the movie to a metaphora of the power of cinema; the autoderision kept a distance between the character and the spectator, allowing the latter to conduct his own analysis of the recurring themes. Better that the simple, enjoyable noir entertainment I was looking for.

[sam_tem]

fallen angels

ah, the 90's. one of those movies that perfectly encapsulates the time period which just so happens to be the trend right now anyhow. this movie is just such a fun ride and packs in all kinds of ideas and just throws them at you. i like movies that don't give a damn about the audience and let it ride. it's probably still more coherent than most hollywood action movies.

hopefully i can watch happy together tonight.

[Nostromo]

Fallen Angels is a totally amazing movie. IMO it's strange that Chungking Express gets so much attention instead of Fallen Angels. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Chungking Express, but I think Fallen Angels is just better. It's about tragic love, loneliness and loss and yet, Wong manages to present it in such a light and bittersweet way. Definitely amongst my favorites of the 90s.

I also just finished watching Amadeus and it was ... sublime.

[Faust]

Saw Hunger yesterday. Wasn't impressed. I want to read the novel though, I hear good things about it.

[christianef]

Unfortunately, I think Leo's best days lay in his youth, with films like What's Eating Gilbert Grape and The Basketball Diaries. I think his last good film is Catch Me If You Can. I just don't see him in action movies, he is not that type of an actor. Blood Diamond came close to him being good in that type of a film.

yes, should watch total eclipse where a young leo plays rimbaud. didnt get very good reviews but one of my favorite films.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wtkFVqekl0

[Nostromo]

Saw Hunger yesterday. Wasn't impressed. I want to read the novel though, I hear good things about it.

Which Hunger do you mean? The one based on the Knut Hamsun novel or the movie with Catherine Deneuve and Bowie?

[Fade to Black]

Wasn't a fan of Chungking Express and Fallen Angels was even more pretentious. WKW has 2 masterpieces to his belt, no more no less - Days of Being Wild and Happy Together

[Faust]

Wasn't a fan of Chungking Express and Fallen Angels was even more pretentious.

Agreed. I don't know if they were pretentious. Just not that good. I like drifter stories, but for some reason only in books, not really in movies. Maybe they don't lend themselves well to film format. I don't know.

[Faust]

Which Hunger do you mean? The one based on the Knut Hamsun novel or the movie with Catherine Deneuve and Bowie?

The former (I do mention the book in my original post).