Last Watched

[pabs]

Can't wait to see it. It's taking forever to arrive here. If I've missed it and it turns out it's already been here at the cinemas, I'll cry.

[wobblyshoes]

Leave No Trace (2018): I saw someone online reference Kelly Reichardt, and I see the parallel in the way the movie lets its shots sit, catching some of the subtle expressions of the characters along the way. Like its one-to-two figure restrained framing, it works best on the level of the personal/psychological, at the expense of some of its broader social scope. And there does seem to be some efforts to contextualize a vet's trauma with the surrounding systems and their varying successes, like the two-part narrative split between the Social Workers and the alternate vet community. Ultimately, though, you've got a guy who is unchanging to any and all efforts from the outside, so it's hard to measure up any of those systems. It starts with the social consequences of war already in place, takes the ineffectiveness of some methods for granted, and maybe more realistically hones in on the pain of one tragic individual as it is now. You keep trying, but maybe there are some people beyond saving.

[Curtis, baby]

i watched WALKING THE STREETS OF MOSCOW... best watch i've had in years! years! like over 3 yrs. this is in my top 50 i think

now i'm going to watch UNDER THE BRIDGES, another film i've been anticipating for a long time. love these love triangles!

[rischka]

let us know what you think. it was angel's baby back in the day

[liquidnature]

watched the restoration of Lubitsch's Rosita that evelyn provided, which was actually my very first Lubitsch. The visual storytelling is impeccable and rivals that of any silent I've seen. Nearly every shot is immense and gorgeous. But the characters are obnoxious scoundrels. The wedding scene is quite lovely. Definitely worth the watch, really enjoyed it, but wouldn't place it among my favorites. Some here may like it much more. Really looking forward to exploring more Lubitsch.

[Joks Trois]

I haven't seen Beach Bum, but I wasn't that crazy about Spring Breaks. To me it was kind of kitsch, and I didn't understand the fuss people made about the look of the film. Yeah it was distinctive, but I didn't see any compositional brilliance in it at all. Just some nice colours.

GUMMO: To me Korine peaked early. His first two films are his best. He was still showing some influences at that point, like Herzog, but Gummo stands up as a genuinely unique entry in 90's 'alternative' cinema, and you can see how much it was shamelessly watered down and ripped off later in David Gordon Green's highly overrated debut: George Washington. He owes both Korine and Malick royalty cheques. Great casting, great faces. Linda Manz has such an unforgettable cameo. I wish she was in more films, and there is a tenderness to this film at times that completely balances out, even overshadows, some of its more exploitative moments. It's rough around the edges, but in an appealing way, and the scene of Soloman eating spaghetti and chocolate in a dirty bathtub is arguably Korine's career best image. 7/10

I should rewatch Julien Donkey Boy. Has been at least 18 years since I last saw it.

[Lencho of the Apes]

Luis Alcoriza (right) doing a thing in Reina De Reinas: La Virgen Maria (Miguel Contreras Torres, 1948). Tee-hee.

3 rei.JPG (51.08 KiB) Viewed 4483 times

[Joks Trois]

DUMBO (2019): don't believe the critics. It has narrative problems because it was written by a hack writer, but Burton really demonstrates why he is superior to probably every other commercial Hollywood director that is viewed as his competitor. Del Toro can't touch the near phantasmagoric imagery on display here in scenes of fog drenched silhouettes and almost spectral lighting. The elephant is adorable, and there is more emotion expressed here than commonly acknowledged. I really enjoyed it. It's very simple, but that's part of its charm, and he did a pretty job reimagining the infamous pink elephants on parade sequence, even if it doesn't really compare to the original. 6.5. maybe 7/10. Burton's best in a while.

[wobblyshoes]

Small Soldiers (1998): Gotta keep Spielberg in mind while watching this lol. Both more explicit in its politics and goofier in its action (especially the final showdown) than I remembered from my last viewing years ago; it's venomous and light on its feet. Reminds me of Verhoeven in that its satiric violence stings because there is a perverse care and joy in staging murderous scenes. Nail gun turrets, mobile flamethrowers, and burning tennis balls: the machinations are intricate and gruesome. It helps that it regurgitates other more serious treatments of war while proving to be at least as equally incisive as its counterparts.

[Roscoe]

watched the restoration of Lubitsch's Rosita that evelyn provided, which was actually my very first Lubitsch. The visual storytelling is impeccable and rivals that of any silent I've seen. Nearly every shot is immense and gorgeous. But the characters are obnoxious scoundrels. The wedding scene is quite lovely. Definitely worth the watch, really enjoyed it, but wouldn't place it among my favorites. Some here may like it much more. Really looking forward to exploring more Lubitsch.

ROSITA is okay, but I definitely got the feeling that Lubitsch washed his hands of his star and decided to concentrate on the King And Queen, who get all the tasty Lubitsch touches lavished upon them. Pickford had gone to a good deal of trouble to import Lubitsch from German for the film, having to fight a good deal of anti-German bias, hoping Lubitsch would add some sophistication to her screen image, and then she just plain chickened out, apparently fighting Lubitsch tooth and nail. And that block of wood Antonio Moreno doesn't help matters.

I can heartily recommend THE DOLL and THE OYSTER PRINCESS for further Travels in Silent Lubitschland.

[Roscoe]

DUMBO (2019): don't believe the critics. It has narrative problems because it was written by a hack writer, but Burton really demonstrates why he is superior to probably every other commercial Hollywood director that is viewed as his competitor. Del Toro can't touch the near phantasmagoric imagery on display here in scenes of fog drenched silhouettes and almost spectral lighting. The elephant is adorable, and there is more emotion expressed here than commonly acknowledged. I really enjoyed it. It's very simple, but that's part of its charm, and he did a pretty job reimagining the infamous pink elephants on parade sequence, even if it doesn't really compare to the original. 6.5. maybe 7/10. Burton's best in a while.

Yeah, I dug pretty well on it too. Far from the disaster it was painted as being. Some issues, especially with those kids who Burton can't bring to life (the little boy just vanishes before your eyes). But on a good-sized screen it managed some real moments of loveliness, and that Pink Elephant Parade had me as happy as I've been for a while, and the whole Dark Coney Island section lifted it above a lot of the work of Burton's imitators. That bottom-feeding hack Del Toro isn't worthy to wipe Burton's boots.

[Joks Trois]

^^The critical response to me seemed like a game of stacks on. Burton hasn't been in favour for a long time, and it's mostly his fault, but this is a good one from him and I feel it was prejudged.

I loved the Coney Island thing too and its retro-futuristic production design. Some of the camera moves reminded me of his early work like Batman Returns in those sequences. The boy was useless, but I liked the girl. They should have just focused on her and made her an only child etc. When she embraced Dumbo at the end, I must admit that it got to me

[eleanor]

Shanghai Express (Josef von Sternberg, 1932)
Been going through the Dietrich/von Sternberg box set from Criterion - this one is my favorite so far. Dietrich's performance is wonderful and I'm honestly somewhat overwhelmed.

[liquidnature]

rewatched Zodiac (2007) after many years. In my opinion, one of the truly great films of its genre - or any genre. Exacting, subtle, elusive, perfectly paced, masterfully directed. The relatively low ratings this gets blow my mind.

[Curtis, baby]

Best Fincher imo

[Silga]

When I think of the films that influenced my love of cinema, I get back to the days of my early teenage years (that being the early 2000s) and I've got many titles that come to mind when I have to look back at what got me into film (I know there's another thread on SCFZ for that), but besides the list of films like 12 Angry Men, Network, The Bridge on the River Kwai, etc., I always look back at the time of seeing Zodiac in cinema in 2007 as it was one of those singular moments that shaped my interest in finding out more about the filmmaking process and how masterpieces like that gets made.

I think Fincher peaked with Zodiac and it is unthinkable, now that I look back and see, that at the time of its release, it went by without even getting a single nomination from the major awards.

James Vanderbilt wrote a brilliant screenplay and I remember that it was one of the most involving film-going experiences as I was pretty much clueless about the actual events and didn't know the story and what is actually known in this yet unsolved case.

I still hold the performances of Jake Gyllenhaal and Robert Downey Jr. in this film as the best of their careers. Also - EVERY SCENE with John Carroll Lynch. He was so menacing.

Besides all that, I still need to acknowledge the brilliant cinematography by the late Harris Savides. He saw the light in the darkness like a very few could.

[greennui]

Shanghai Express (Josef von Sternberg, 1932)
Been going through the Dietrich/von Sternberg box set from Criterion - this one is my favorite so far. Dietrich's performance is wonderful and I'm honestly somewhat overwhelmed.

That box set looks so tasty. SE is probably my fav of their collaborations.

[Curtis, baby]

let us know what you think. it was angel's baby back in the day

it was great. what a double-bill. i prefered MOSCOW but BRIDGES also had a great love triangle

moscow though...as you might've seen i voted for it for our annual poll

[Joks Trois]

rewatched Zodiac (2007) after many years. In my opinion, one of the truly great films of its genre - or any genre. Exacting, subtle, elusive, perfectly paced, masterfully directed. The relatively low ratings this gets blow my mind.

Because it's just craft. Fincher has no genuine epistemological concerns. He is a profoundly shallow man.

Pretty good film though.

quote=greennui post_id=8045 time=1560917174 user_id=62]

Shanghai Express (Josef von Sternberg, 1932)
Been going through the Dietrich/von Sternberg box set from Criterion - this one is my favorite so far. Dietrich's performance is wonderful and I'm honestly somewhat overwhelmed.

That box set looks so tasty. SE is probably my fav of their collaborations.
[/quote]

The upcoming Indicator boxset looks better.

[liquidnature]

rewatched Zodiac (2007) after many years. In my opinion, one of the truly great films of its genre - or any genre. Exacting, subtle, elusive, perfectly paced, masterfully directed. The relatively low ratings this gets blow my mind.

Because it's just craft. Fincher has no genuine epistemological concerns. He is a profoundly shallow man.

Pretty good film though.

Can't speak too much for Fincher's other films, but with Zodiac I feel the craft embodies the story - its cold, unsympathetic lens almost narrates from the eyes of its unmasked sociopath; everything laid out bare, yet nothing at all, at least not to its protagonists. I would agree that the film doesn't mine for any deep philosophical truths, but maybe that's the point.

[Roscoe]

Fincher's all style, and frankly rather monotonous style at that. ZODIAC and THE SOCIAL NETWORK raised my hopes that he might finally be making films I'd want to see, but the unspeakable BENJAMIN BUTTON and that GONE GIRL thing dashed them pretty completely. I rather liked the episode or two of MINDHUNTER that I watched, though.

[Silga]

Agree about the Gone Girl. It was a horrible experience and Fincher’s worst film.

[rischka]

sirkian sexy a summer place

[Roscoe]

TABOO 8/10-- Oshima's film, his last, apparently directed from a wheelchair after he'd suffered a stroke, about sexual tension at an all-male samurai militia group. No mere "gay samurai" film, not a plea for tolerance or a sad-eyed weepy batch of self-pity, it's a fascinating picture. I'll cop to some confusion about some of the characters, the subtitling is inconsistent. But a quick search online got me some handy info on the film (searching for the film's original title GOHATTO helped a good deal). And this is my first exposure to Takeshi Beat Kitano -- is he some kind of god?

[wba]

Creed II was entertaining. I've seen the first one, and I think this one operates on pretty much the same level of craftsmanship. The two movies were directed by two different people, but you could have fooled me. Good brutal fight scenes if you're into that. The best performances here really belong not to Michael B. Jordan, but to Stallone and Dolph Lundgren, who are allowed to act for once. Interestingly I found myself totally rooting for the young Russian guy.

never seen the first one, but I thought the second one was pretty shitty. Terrible directing. I also rooted for the Russian guy, his scenes (with Dolph) were BY FAR the best, imo. Stallone was terrible in this (and he's usually such a great actor), and Dolph shamefully underused and wasted. It was nice to see Brigitte Nielsen in a cameo, though.

[kanafani]

Creed II was entertaining. I've seen the first one, and I think this one operates on pretty much the same level of craftsmanship. The two movies were directed by two different people, but you could have fooled me. Good brutal fight scenes if you're into that. The best performances here really belong not to Michael B. Jordan, but to Stallone and Dolph Lundgren, who are allowed to act for once. Interestingly I found myself totally rooting for the young Russian guy.

never seen the first one, but I thought the second one was pretty shitty. Terrible directing. I also rooted for the Russian guy, his scenes (with Dolph) were BY FAR the best, imo. Stallone was terrible in this (and he's usually such a great actor), and Dolph shamefully underused and wasted. It was nice to see Brigitte Nielsen in a cameo, though.

It's a serviceable movie. I'm usually willing to meet semi-trash halfway. Stallone was fine I thought. Seemed like someone who's had too many concussions. Made me want to give him a hug.

[wba]

Cardiff's directorial career didn't quite live up to his work in cinematography did it.

The Girl on a Motorcycle is one of the worst films I've seen this year, though I spent most of the duration screenshoting Marianne Faithfull looking cute so I guess it wasn't a totally wasted watch.

Haven't seen many Cardiff's, but the 2 i Did were both masterpieces (it probably helped that I saw them on the big screen from excellent 35mm prints). As a cinematographer, he's out of this world, so that's difficult to live up to, of course. Last thing of his I watched at the cinema was the marvelously shot Rambo: First Blood Part II. The Girl on the Motorcycle is actually one of my favorite films, and the cinematography outstanding.

[wba]

Mary Poppins Returns: Actually watched this last weekend, but I'm posting a review about it because it was surprisingly enjoyable. It obviously doesn't top the original, but it pays affectionate and loving tribute to it. Blunt is fine as Poppins, and the blend of animation and live action is damn impressive. The songs are good, if not especially memorable, and Dick Van Dyke has a heart warming cameo. It's a very retro film that tries to recapture the old Disney magic with new technology. Obviously it isn't entirely successful, but it comes closer than most of their recent live action attempts, possibly because it doesn't stray too far from the original template aside from a blockbuster style set piece in the final act that seems a tad incongruous; but even that is probably closer in spirit to films like Hugo than to your typical contemporary blockbuster.

Having said all that, it can't escape the feeling of being in the shadow of the original. It's like a classic band reuniting decades later without any of the original members. They look and sound good, but something is inevitably missing, no matter how pleasurable the experience is.

I'd probably give it a 6.5/10.

aborted this after an hour cause it was so terrible. The original isn't a masterpiece, but it at least has capable directing, great songs, and great actors. Blunt was horrible, more like a monster (she could easily play the witch in a wizard of Oz remake!) and the songs were terrible.

[wba]

i watched WALKING THE STREETS OF MOSCOW... best watch i've had in years! years! like over 3 yrs. this is in my top 50 i think

just missed my own t50. But it would probably make my t100. I also still remember the first time I saw it, and what incredibly delightful mood it put me in. I just love scenes in films were the protagonists enjoy walking the streets and stuff (not "In the City of Sylvia" stuff but "The Aviator's Wife" stuff). This surely must be one of the best walking through a city films out there.

As for Kren, I recommend "Ana – Aktion Brus" (1964), my favorite of his, which consists of one frame shots only. I totally fell in love with this when filmmaker Wilhelm Hein showed it (along with other 16mm films from his friend Kurt) as a bonus after the screening of his 13 hour Magnum Opus "You Killed the Undergroundfilm Or The Real Meaning of Kunst bleibt ...bleibt..." some years ago.

[wba]

And this is my first exposure to Takeshi Beat Kitano -- is he some kind of god?

What, you've never seen Kitano act in a movie before!?!?!

To answer your question: yes, he is, and he even became more god-like after his failed suicide attempt got his face all scarred and partially paralyzed.
One of the best actors of all time (and an outstanding director as well).
I've only seen some 15 of his screen appearances, but from those I especially adored his acting in Violent Cop (1989) and Boiling Point (1990).

I think it also helps that he is/was an outrageously famous comedian and talkmaster in Japan, so he's got all that comedians are the better actors shit a la Charlie Chaplin and Jerry Lewis going on.

PS: you can witness his transformation into (screen) god in the last scene of Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence as he starts to smile (a thing he unfortunately cannot perform anymore post-1994)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6f3M_ulxDtQ