General Movie Thread

[Martin]

Sam Fuller is kind of frustrating - obviously a super driven guy, almost to the point of crazy, a real character, he churned out his movies whether he had money to work with or had a shoe-string budget, and the New Wavers loved him to death. But: he's made far less masterpieces than the Criterion collection/generation will have you believe, in my opinion.

I agree that Shock Corridor and The Naked Kiss are so-so (Kiss is better than Corridor). I'm not that familiar with earliest stuff (cinephiles go nuts over The Steel Helmet, Park Row and I Shot Jesse James), but for me the Essential Fullers are: Pickup on South Street, House of Bamboo, The Big Red One, White Dog, Forty Guns. One noir, one post-war noir, one WWII action, one contemporary thriller, one Western. Nice spread.

[jbissell]

I always enjoy his cameo in Pierrot le Fou

[roubaix]

Thanks for the feedback guys, I'll have to give him another chance.

I had a cool reaction to Kiss Me Deadly as well ... again the writing was lazier than I'd like.  It begins like a great noir but quickly loses that guise.  If the main character isn't falling ass backwards into favorable situations, he's beating information out of any sap in his path.  Although, I guess the ridiculousness became entertaining after a point.

On a more positive note, I recommend The Innocents (obvious) and Mademoiselle (less obvious).  Both are engaging stories in stunning WIDEscreen B&W, which aides the exploration of darker themes.

[Paul DeLouisiana]

I watched Cropsey tonight and liked it. I found it genuinely frightening. The same feelings as Paradise Lost except I had no sympathy for Rand. I wonder what Spike would think about this. He' probably just roll his eyes and say something about how Staten Island should be bombed.

[masterofsparks]

Thanks for the feedback guys, I'll have to give him another chance.

I had a cool reaction to Kiss Me Deadly as well ... again the writing was lazier than I'd like.  It begins like a great noir but quickly loses that guise.  If the main character isn't falling ass backwards into favorable situations, he's beating information out of any sap in his path.  Although, I guess the ridiculousness became entertaining after a point.

The director has said that he was making fun of Mickey Spillane's writing in the movie, so maybe that's the ridiculousness you're detecting.

Speaking of ridiculous, I thought The Mechanic was kind of awesome.

[cavorting with nudists]

Yeah, if you come to Kiss Me Deadly expecting a classic noir, you'll wonder what the hell Aldrich was thinking. Along with Touch of Evil  (obviously a better film) it represents the point where noir conventions are well enough established that they can be turned inside out, pastiched and burlesqued.  It's more a Cold War fever dream than it is a hard-boiled detective tale.

[Hugman 3.0]

Down Terrace is on netflix streaming now so there's no excuse not to see this awesome little movie.  Let me know what you think.

[buffcoat]

I can't do this, I have to watch the first six episodes of Deadwood by tomorrow night.

[Joe Rogaine]

Down Terrace is on netflix streaming now so there's no excuse not to see this awesome little movie.  Let me know what you think.

Isn't that the one where Sam Jackson is a prejudice against interracial couples.

[Paul DeLouisiana]

Down Terrace is on netflix streaming now so there's no excuse not to see this awesome little movie.  Let me know what you think.

Isn't that the one where Sam Jackson is a prejudice against interracial couples.

You're thinking of Hate View Terrace.

[Joe Rogaine]

Anybody seen Joris Ivens  A Tale of the Wind? I just discovered it was on Youtube in sections. Ive watched out of print films on Youtube before and its a chore.


I really liked the opening and the score was great im just wondering if i should pull the trigger.


Une histoire de vent (1988) 1/8

[hardweek]

Knocked off a couple more Oscar contenders over the weekend:

Found Winter's Bone a little below my expectations, but I had pretty high hopes going in.

On the other hand, The Fighter completely exceeded expectations. Big thumbs up.

[Alex_from_the_woods]

I needed to get out of the house and spend some time alone so I went to the movies. I'm on line and on an impulse I surprised myself by buying a ticket to- get this- The Green Hornet. In 3D no less. Maybe I was feeling a little self-destructive. I gotta say, it didn't disappoint. That's only because my expectations were so low. What a piece of crap? What were they thinking? Seth Rogen, as the hero was about as unlikable as possible. It's hard to enjoy a story when the guy you're supposed to be rooting fro is a total douchebag. Also, Kato was basically superman and would be much better off without him. 

So I leave this reeking pile of a movie but don't feel like going home. Looky here! The fighter is playing in the next theater and I've only missed 10 minutes- so I slink in and sit down. What a great movie. Interesting story. Every character was interesting. The casting was great. The acting was great across the board. I could've sat there and immediately watched it again.

Michael Gondry- you've earned yourself a lifetime boycott by me. Was 3D referring to an extra dimension of deplorable? Mr. Rogen- I will not see anything you've made for a full 18 months. I'm going easy on you because I've liked a lot of your older stuff.

[Sarah]

I watched Avatar yesterday.  It was very blue.

[Martin]

Finally watched Inside Job today. Unfortunate title - not only is it bland but it makes me think of those 9-11 conspiracy videos. But besides that it didn't disappoint. Very good. Impeccably crafted. And obviously fairly depressing with a really bleak ending (SPOILER ALERT: it's 2011 and it's business as usual). The most interesting aspect of it, for me - lots of this stuff has already been covered elsewhere, albeit maybe not this engrossingly - was the focus on academia and the part it played on paving the way for all the deregulation bullshit. That was sort of new to me. Overall highly recommended.