Last Watched

[Roscoe]

THE TAKING OF POWER BY LOUIS XIV -- 5/10 -- a series of handsomely lit and costumed historical tableaux vivants where characters spout wikipedia-level Historical Exposition that occasionally flickers into life when a professional actor is involved, which alas doesn't happen often enough. Jean-Marie Patte as Louis XIV is pure Keanu-level inept here, blatantly reading cue cards and not registering in any way as anything like a human being, which might be Rossellini's point but never for a single moment feels like the point.

[uncanny valley]

du côté d'orouët - jacques rozier

cheered me up a lil bit, that first half especially.

[kanafani]

du côté d'orouët - jacques rozier

Ooh I watched it on new year's eve. Such pure delight.

[nrh]

du côté d'orouët - jacques rozier

Ooh I watched it on new year's eve. Such pure delight.

got lucky enough to see it on a print at fiaf (without knowing anything about the film or rozier besides seema's enthusiasm for turtle island) and was totally blown away.

one of the great films about vacations not just because of the humor and camaraderie but also the discomfort and melancholy, especially of the last section.

[kanafani]

du côté d'orouët - jacques rozier

Ooh I watched it on new year's eve. Such pure delight.

one of the great films about vacations not just because of the humor and camaraderie but also the discomfort and melancholy, especially of the last section.

100%, up there with A Summer's Tale. I watched Adieu Philippine a few years ago, another movie revolving around a summer vacation, that one in Corsica (i think the goofy guy in orouët talks about a vacation he had in Corsica at some point. That was good, but orouët was an another level.

[uncanny valley]

du côté d'orouët - jacques rozier

Ooh I watched it on new year's eve. Such pure delight.

got lucky enough to see it on a print at fiaf (without knowing anything about the film or rozier besides seema's enthusiasm for turtle island) and was totally blown away.

one of the great films about vacations not just because of the humor and camaraderie but also the discomfort and melancholy, especially of the last section.

would love to see a print someday! dunno why but i wasn’t expecting much visually and it kinda knocked me for a loop...those colors! it had been on my watchlist for years and i just got around to it. can’t wait to see more from rozier, i’ve heard intriguing things about maine océan and will probably hop there next.

[ofrene]

Maine-Ocean Express is great, too. Before I know about Rozier, accidentally watched Du côté d’Orouët and found a little boring(that was 7 years ago..). But now I like Rozier a lot so gonna revisit someday this year(maybe summer? Rozier's movie is suited for summer, I think..)

[Senor Arkadin]

I had an aversion to Rohmer's historical films, a bit out of fear that they'd lose some of their magic by losing the contemporary Paris locales. But last night I gave The Marquise of O a shot, and was scared at first to see my worst fears confirmed in the stagey gun fights and depictions of honorable colonels surrendering. But, that quickly gave way and I found myself sucked into his world the same way I always am.

There is something bizarre about the silent film quality of the film with the constant intertitles and fading to black after every short little scene... but it works, and it proves to be one of Rohmer's most provocative films. The ending leaves a bit of the biting unease of Varda's Le Bonheur, but with a significantly higher degree of ambiguity. Rohmerian satire is always hard to peg... which is one of the most engaging aspects. Really pleased with this one.



Also, I spent a large portion of the film staring in awe of the colored plaster on the walls of the house.

[greennui]

I heartily endorse this Du côté d'Orouët love-in. Delightful film, kinda like a breezy Rohmer film directed by Rivette. Kinda.

[liquidnature]

Yes, great to see so much love for Du côté d'Orouët. First heard of Adieu Philippine from Rosenbaum's list and loved it, subsequently watched Du côté d'Orouët and it lit my world. That was about 7 years ago now. Most of my favorites were watched then. Can't wait to revisit.

[DT.]

(maybe summer? Rozier's movie is suited for summer, I think..)

Yep, I saw it on a stinking hot summer day and it hit the spot.

kinda like a breezy Rohmer film directed by Rivette. Kinda.

Definitely!

[rischka]

Mission impossible: fallout!

I haven't seen one of these since possibly the first one? Watched on a plane sitting next to a 10 yr old central American boy clutching a stuffed animal. He seemed to enjoy it and I have to admit I was also entertained although it was much too long. And 'edited for content' so it was even longer.. If I missed a tom cruise sex scene I am not disappointed. I hope that small boy is being reunited with family. I gave him some of my peanut butter crackers

[Silga]

City for Conquest (Anatole Litvak, 1940) 8/10

My second Litvak (first was the great Sorry Wrong Number years ago). A very competent directing turn from Litvak as he leads this sentimental tale with grace and confidence. James Cagney is magnificent in his role as a truck driver turned boxer and Ann Sheridan shines as a dancer dreaming of the big stage. Wonderful actor Arthur Kennedy was a great choice for a musician brother of Cagney's 'Danny Kenny'. While the supporting cast includes turns by Anthony Quinn and Elia Kazan. Also, I loved the inclusion of Lee Patrick's roommate character which served both as a comic relief and as a tragic reflection of the fate of Sheridan's 'Peggy Nash'.

In addition, James Wong Howe paints a beautiful color palette of black & white New York with skill and with love.

But its Max Steiner's music that, in my eyes, takes the cake in this film. His symphony for New York - anthem for the big city and its citizens.

Watching the film, I felt like Damien Chazelle might have seen it as well, as parts of it feel very reminiscent of La La Land.

[rischka]

Needed something soothing and Ottawa's Japanese village did it for me. Rice cultivation, charcoal burning and followers in a remote mountain valley

[rischka]

OGAWA'S LOL

Also 'followers' = 'silkworms'

*sigh*

[Joks Trois]

Dogman: disappointing. An obvious stop gap film for Garrone that displays little of the skill honed on his last 3 films and takes no risks. Like Gomorra, it shows how characters are trapped in corrosive cycles of poverty and violence, except this time it narrows its focus on a simple dog groomer played well by newcomer Fonte.There is some ambiguity to this tale of victimhood and vengeance, but it never really gets out of second gear, and the violent confrontations are curiously devoid of impact. 6/10. Maybe less. I hope Pinocchio is a lot better this!

The Last Hurrah: old world politics. Great performance by Tracey. Underrated Ford. A genuine surprise. 7.5/10

Meek's Cutoff: more Anglophone art school blandness with a 'message'. Can't believe the praise this received. It's almost surreal. Even the formal elements are nothing special. Just compare it to something like Jauja. Williams is her unusual dull self. Dull but oh so painfully sincere. Overrated director, boring film. 4.5

[rischka]

In the middle of Joe May's epic Indian tomb, a spectacular case of orientalist exoticism with Conrad Veidt as a vengeful maharajah. Wish I could do screenshots

[pabs]

Mary Queen of Scots (Rourke, 2018).

Loved it. The intrigue, the savagery, the rivalry, dark castles and windswept hills. And Saoirse Ronan is my queen. 7/10

[mesnalty]

Yesterday I did a double feature of hour-long films made up of clips from other films, with most of the dialogue removed.

Leandro Listorti's The Endless Film: Clips from 20 or so unfinished Argentine films, arranged into a sort of cryptic pseudo-narrative. Listorti does a good job of making the excerpts feel uncanny through editing and visual and auditory manipulations. Not much of a throughline, but an engaging experience. Fellow Extraordinary Stories fans will be interested to know that one of the films used is an early Mariano Llinas work. There's also a pre-Martel adaptation of Zama.

Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson's The Green Fog: Recreates Vertigo with clips of movies and TV shows set in and around San Francisco. If The Endless Film is underdetermined, then this is overdetermined, but I still enjoyed it greatly, and it's a lot of fun to play spot-the-source. Sometimes the clips chosen are a bit too literal, but oftentimes there's a welcome humor to the choices. One of my favorites is the scene where Madeline is rescued from the bay, which Maddin recreates using a clip of deep sea divers in suits.

[rischka]

As I was moving ahead etc etc why didn't anyone tell me this has so many cats!

[liquidnature]

Smallfoot (2018)

Went into this knowing nothing nor expecting anything. Actually delightful. Splendid coloring and animation, carefully toeing the line between low and high fantasy. Formulaic and musical without being schmaltzy. Not popular apparently with the masses, which perhaps (sadly) reassures my approval.

[Curtis, baby]

Rallying some 1940 movies today

In the Fields of Dreams - 2.5/4
Nobuko - Botchan is like my least favourite of the six Sosekis I've read but I liked it more than this adaptation - 2/4

Next up, Confucius, Burian the Liar, and Beating Heart. Touring the world today!

[Roscoe]

VELVET BUZZSAW -- 6/10. Some good fun from the performances, as Jake Gyllenhaal seems to really relish his opportunity to get all Waldo Lydecker all over everybody, but a fatal lack of imagination in the script means this occasionally tasty horror thriller comedy never quite takes off the way it really ought to.

[Roscoe]

Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson's The Green Fog: Recreates Vertigo with clips of movies and TV shows set in and around San Francisco. If The Endless Film is underdetermined, then this is overdetermined, but I still enjoyed it greatly, and it's a lot of fun to play spot-the-source. Sometimes the clips chosen are a bit too literal, but oftentimes there's a welcome humor to the choices. One of my favorites is the scene where Madeline is rescued from the bay, which Maddin recreates using a clip of deep sea divers in suits.

Where'd you see THE GREEN FOG -- I too enjoyed it a lot, and a home video release doesn't seem to be happening...

[mesnalty]

I got The Green Fog during a certain recent freeleech

[liquidnature]

Watched Coves and Caves (1920, Claude Friese-Greene), a short ditty from the director of The Open Road (1926) - have not yet seen that one - but this one is an excellent little film featuring coves, caves, and dogs getting adorned with flowers. It's not 1899 or 1923, but it's well worth the 12 minutes of run time. Check it out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIzsRVN281I

[nrh]

vikingo jose celestino campusano (2009)

tennessee's partner in the run down biker subculture of argentine barrios. everything that initially seems artless is elegant.

[Zulawski]

Permanent Objections (Krolikiewicz, 1975)

I had almost forgotten how much I enjoy Krolikiewicz' camerawork. Quite furious indeed.

[roujin]

vikingo jose celestino campusano (2009)

tennessee's partner in the run down biker subculture of argentine barrios.

Bozon has repped this dude before!

[nrh]

Bozon has repped this dude before!

only knew of him because piñeiro programmed fango (no subs on kg, unfortunately) for his argentine film series a few years back. seems like a fascinating guy...