Review the last movie you viewed (NO LISTS) V

[VintagePunk]

Originally Posted by impy13 Oh, hi guys. Persepolis was really good.

Can't wait to see this. I'll probably have to catch it on dvd.

Eta -Oh, it was released a few weeks ago.

[monkeyskin]

Revisited a couple that didn't click with me on first viewing but were overwhelmingly well-received by many others:

The Lives of Others
The first time round I was reasonably gripped by the subtle tension building up throughout the film but didn't warm to any of the characters which made it hard to care about their fates. This time I did care. Maybe being able to separate the hype from the actual film and enjoy it on it's own merits helped, as I wasn't constantly thinking, "OK it's good, but when's it going to get really special?" The performances are uniformly great, with Ulrich Muhe as the lead particularly outstanding. The way he slowly finds himself drawn into the world of this couple and questioning his morales and beliefs is expertly conveyed and never once stoops to a big "NOMINATE ME!" clip show ready exhibition.

It's also worth noting that this is the debut film from the writer/director. It certainly doesn't show, with an assured pace steadily building up without flagging or rushing. He's one to watch in the future.

2046
Watched this in a double feature with In the Mood for Love (which I still find sublime) and again took more away this time than I did previously. Wong Kar-Wai and Tony Leung delve deeper into the latter's character from ITMFL and use it as a springboard to observe love, loss and trying to recapture the past versus leaving it behind.

Starting with the bad, I still don't like the futuristic / novel sections of the film. They just don't gel with the rest of the film for me and cause me to check the time on the player when they don't end as fast as I'd like. Which is a shame as they serve a crucial purpose to the narrative and themes of the film. I guess I wish that Wong had found another way of getting his thoughts and meaning across, but it may have resulted in some serious changes to the finished product for better or worse.

But onto the good. Despite losing the exquisite Maggie Cheung (save for one earlier scene) we instead have a selection of actresses that includes Faye Wong, Gong Li and the scene stealing Zhang Ziyi. While having Mr Chow move from girl to girl loses of the dreamlike intimacy of ITNFL, it instead broadens the scope of the film and allows the film to explore more themes than might have been possible. The ghost of Mrs Chan lingers over the film for those who have already seen the previous film in the loose trilogy and I was completely drawn in this time to watch Leung go through various stages in his recovery afterwards. It's also interesting to compare both of these films to My Blueberry Nights. I hope Wong continues to make films according to his schedule and not have to shorten it to accomodate those of his performers; the etheral quality of many of his films that usually seems so effortless felt forced and rushed in MBN and what was presented seemed less insightful than before.

[lazarus]

Nice write-ups. I prefer 2046 mainly because it's more ambitious and expansive, and the sense of regret is much more palatable and is something painful to be able to relate to. ITMFL is near-perfect, but I don't think there's as much going on there. The "sequel" feels like a well one can go back to over and over again and come up with new insights or observations.

And totally agreed on The Lives of Others, though I loved it the first time. Such a shame Ulrich Muhe is no longer with us, but he sure went out on the highest note imaginable.

[impy13]

I just watched Annie Hall for the first time and really loved it. I've got Manhattan in the queue, but what are some other good Woody Allen films?

[LemonMacPhisto]

Originally Posted by impy13 I just watched Annie Hall for the first time and really loved it. I've got Manhattan in the queue, but what are some other good Woody Allen films?

The Purple Rose of Cairo, Love and Death, and Sleeper are all great. Deconstructing Harry, Crimes and Misdemeanors, and Hannah and Her Sisters are more dramatic, but great just the same.

Laz, Monkeyskin, and NSW are better at answering this though.

[joyfulgirl]

Originally Posted by lazarus Another great film. I think Nick Nolte was really robbed of an Oscar that year (Roberto FUCKING Benigni?!), though it was nice that Coburn won. How's Banks as a writer? I haven't had a chance to read any of his work.

Russell Banks is a great writer. His last book was apparently a bit of a clunker (I haven't read it) but Cloudsplitter, Continental Drift and Rule of the Bone are all really good, as is Sweet Hereafter.

[joyfulgirl]

The Visitor. 8/10 I loved it. Really funny, touching, sad. Highly recommend it.

Wanted. 6/10 I had low expectations, just wanted a diversion on a cloudy Sunday afternoon and there was absolutely nothing else playing in town that I wanted to see, that I hadn't already seen. It served its purpose. I usually sneak a latte into the movies because the A/C is so cold but this time I had popcorn. It's a popcorn kind of movie.

[VintagePunk]

Persepolis It was almost as good as I imagined it would be, and I watched it with pretty high expectations. The mood and tone of the film switched pretty seamlessly between sadness, joyfulness, horror, humour, rebelliousness, and the like. I also found the style of the animation esthetically appealing. My one small complaint is that after reading the first graphic novel, the movie didn't seem to show the normality of the family's life before the revolution to as great an extent as the book did, and how drastic the changes were for them post-revolution. Then again, it was over a year ago that I read it, so maybe I'm misremembering. 8/10

[corianderstem]

I guess I should mention it here and not just in the other thread:

The Dark Knight

Loved, loved, loved it. Can't stop thinking about it. Will see it again, on an IMAX screen.

[RavenBlue]

Mamma Mia 7/10

I didn't know what to expect going into this one. I've never been a huge fan of Abba but I've always had a thing for Pierce Brosnan, so I gave it a go and.. I thought it was quite enjoyable really. A fun viewing.

Wanted 7/10

Your average action movie. Don't really know what to say about this one. It was entertaining, nothing groundbreaking, but entertaining nonetheless.

Btw

Drive-in movie theatres rock

[LemonMelon]

No Country For Old Men

*SPOILERS*

I'm going to get this out of the way quickly; No Country is not your average crime thriller. Not by any stretch. This is the kind of film that seems to fuck with your head purely for the enjoyment of doing so. Your patience for red herrings and sick plot twists will decide your capacity to appreciate the ending, and the film in general.

No Country is fairly linear; man finds money, group of guys want money, and hire a guy off to track the man down. That's pretty much it for two hours. Only in the last 45 minutes does the film begin to reflect on what has just occurred. Those last 45 minutes are frustrating, puzzling, and disenchanting. But damn it, that's the direction they should have taken, and they did. I didn't love the ending, but I understand why it's there, and felt the Coens handled it as well as they possibly could have. Furthermore, the direction in general is absolutely brilliant. Cinematography, camera angles, they all enhance the film rather than weaken it.

The pacing is a worthy point of note; it's relaxed, which makes those 2 hours feel satisfying, and causes the moments that are truly intense to feel appropriately affecting in contrast. That thin plot feels so much more epic when the performances strengthen the characters, and they play up the intensity created by the dynamic camera angles and, of course, the gunplay. Which there is plenty of, I might add; this is not a film for those sensitive to blood and violence.

Overall, it's the definition of cracking, but part of me really wishes the good guys could have won.

8.5/10

[VintagePunk]

Originally Posted by LemonMelon No Country For Old Men *SPOILERS* I'm going to get this out of the way quickly; No Country is not your average crime thriller. Not by any stretch. This is the kind of film that seems to fuck with your head purely for the enjoyment of doing so. Your patience for red herrings and sick plot twists will decide your capacity to appreciate the ending, and the film in general. No Country is fairly linear; man finds money, group of guys want money, and hire a guy off to track the man down. That's pretty much it for two hours. Only in the last 45 minutes does the film begin to reflect on what has just occurred. Those last 45 minutes are frustrating, puzzling, and disenchanting. But damn it, that's the direction they should have taken, and they did. I didn't love the ending, but I understand why it's there, and felt the Coens handled it as well as they possibly could have. Furthermore, the direction in general is absolutely brilliant. Cinematography, camera angles, they all enhance the film rather than weaken it. The pacing is a worthy point of note; it's relaxed, which makes those 2 hours feel satisfying, and causes the moments that are truly intense to feel appropriately affecting in contrast. That thin plot feels so much more epic when the performances strengthen the characters, and they play up the intensity created by the dynamic camera angles and, of course, the gunplay. Which there is plenty of, I might add; this is not a film for those sensitive to blood and violence. Overall, it's the definition of cracking, but part of me really wishes the good guys could have won. 8.5/10

Weird, I watched this last night after Persepolis, but didn't comment on it here because, largely, I'm still not sure what I thought of it with regard to plot and characterization. I do agree with pretty much all of your well-articulated points, though, particularly about the pacing, cinematography and overall direction.

[LemonMelon]

Originally Posted by VintagePunk Weird, I watched this last night after Persepolis, but didn't comment on it here because, largely, I'm still not sure what I thought of it with regard to plot and characterization. I do agree with pretty much all of your well-articulated points, though, particularly about the pacing, cinematography and overall direction.

Nice coincidence! I haven't heard much about Persepolis, beyond the consensus that it's fantastic.

Anyway, this is definitely a morality tale...but it's drenched in so much blood that some may miss that entirely. Sheriff Bell frames the film very well, I think. Without him, this film would simply be violence of the more pornographic persuasion; killing without purpose. But there is a purpose. The film subtly discusses the concept of fate, the control (or lack thereof) you have over your daily life, and the changing of the times (which was well-articulated by the title). The best part is much of this is saved for end, right when the film stops making sense for several minutes; the action isn't weighed down, but the emotional trough is made more bearable. Well played.

[VintagePunk]

Originally Posted by LemonMelon Nice coincidence! I haven't heard much about Persepolis, beyond the consensus that it's fantastic. Sheriff Bell frames the film very well, I think.

I thought I was the last person on this site to see this. Sadly, I'm just now catching up with last years Oscar winning and nominated films.

Tommy Lee Jones was fantastic, wasn't he? He brought some humanity and decency to all of the craziness. The conversation he had with his uncle near the end was particularly good and revealing. Unfortunately, the copy I was watching (coughtorrentedcough ) had this really distracting buzz in the audio which was oddly more pronounced for some characters than others, and I missed a some of of TLJ's dialogue because of it. I need to go rent a legal copy and watch it again.

[Saracene]

Originally Posted by LemonMelon Sheriff Bell frames the film very well, I think. Without him, this film would simply be violence of the more pornographic persuasion; killing without purpose.

That was one thing that didn't work for me in that film - I never got a feeling that Sheriff's character framed the film or had any real weight. I definitely got that when I read the book later on; I found his side of the story easily the most poignant and involving and loved all those mini-chapters with Sheriff's internal monologues. But I didn't think that it was carried across in the film and I frankly found the last few scenes very tedious to watch.