General Movie Thread

[dave from knoxville]

I look for more out of comedy than audacity.

[Mark in Helsinki]

I look for more out of comedy than audacity.

I must concur.

It's like they're providing the über-hipster demographic with comedy that is simultaneously inaccessibly dumb and highbrow.

That schtick got old real fast.

Watching those dudes I always get the feeling that perhaps I'm not smart enough or I'm too  L7 (thank you A. Breckman).

[Bryan]

comedy that is simultaneously inaccessibly dumb and highbrow.

I think this is a pretty good description of them, and it's more or less my sweet spot for comedy. I guess what they do is schtick, but I actually think it could just as easily be described as 'vision'. Obviously they're not for everyone, and that's by design. My response to (most of) T&EASGJ was totally visceral - open mouthed astonishment and spontaneous laughter.

More than any comedy that I can think of, they inspire the twin responses of either:

- "you just don't get it" (which I think is more or less true of any comedy that doesn't make you laugh)
- the insinuation that fans are pretending to like it to appear hipper than they really are (does this ever happen?)

[Steve of Bloomington]

I watched 'Rubber' a couple of days ago. I was hoping for absurdism and surrealism, and I got it, but it seemed they were trying too hard to be weird, which is the hazard with movies of this nature.

I started watching 'Star Wars Uncut'. There are enough clever submissions and interesting animation to make up for all the bits where somebody puts on a dark blanket to play Darth Vader.

[wood and iron]

I'm irrationally excited about the Bond 50 blu ray set coming out. It's expensive as hell at 200 bucks. But figure that's 22 films and it's a lower per movie price. Although there are a bunch of Bond movies that I don't care about. But this set is really calling to my childhood obsession with all things Bond. I remember my first forays into purchasing on eBay came about because there wasn't any of the original Ian Fleming books in print in the USA. I won a bunch of ratty old copies of the books with some seriously shitty covers but devoured them all the same, loving every minute.

Now, the movies are a bit creakier overall but I still find myself excited.

[roubaix]

I watched 'Rubber' a couple of days ago. I was hoping for absurdism and surrealism, and I got it, but it seemed they were trying too hard to be weird, which is the hazard with movies of this nature.

Cool, I just watched SteaK and I'm planning to see Rubber eventually.

I knew nothing about these films except the Ed Banger connection.  SteaK held my interest and exceeded my (low) expectations given the IMDb rating.  I got a few good laughs, but it's more strange alternate universe than traditional comedy.

[Omar]

The Innkeepers (Ti West) - Yes!

Kill List (Ben Wheatley) - No!

[wood and iron]

The Innkeepers (Ti West) - Yes!

Has Ti West changed his approach? I found the House of the Devil to be a really empty exercise in genre detail. Don't get me wrong: he recreated an 80's horror movie amazingly well. But apart from that, I didn't find that he added anything of substance.

[Omar]

The Innkeepers (Ti West) - Yes!

Has Ti West changed his approach?

No!

[dave from knoxville]

I watched 'Rubber' a couple of days ago. I was hoping for absurdism and surrealism, and I got it, but it seemed they were trying too hard to be weird, which is the hazard with movies of this nature.

I started watching 'Star Wars Uncut'. There are enough clever submissions and interesting animation to make up for all the bits where somebody puts on a dark blanket to play Darth Vader.

I got a kick out of Rubber, but it probably helps if you watch it with teenagers.

[wood and iron]

I think I might have asked this before but here goes again:

Do any of you read a magazine about movies that you enjoy? I'm looking for something in the middle of the spectrum; between Entertainment Weekly and Film Comment. Something that covers all film but also delves in a little deeper than sycophantic babble like EW. Also, the problem with Film Comment is that about 80% of the movies it talks about are foreign films that rarely get distribution in the US either in theaters or home video.

[crumbum]

Saw a preview of 'Chronicle' last night. The trailers looked pretty bad to me but I was surprised: it's very good. While I admit it's totally derivative, often cliche, and the 'found footage' trope is completely unnecessary and ultimately distracting, the emphasis is on character rather than spectacle and the action, when it comes, feels fresh and has some weight to it. Unless you're totally sick of superhero movies (understandable), check it out.

[Omar]

I think I might have asked this before but here goes again:

Do any of you read a magazine about movies that you enjoy? I'm looking for something in the middle of the spectrum; between Entertainment Weekly and Film Comment. Something that covers all film but also delves in a little deeper than sycophantic babble like EW. Also, the problem with Film Comment is that about 80% of the movies it talks about are foreign films that rarely get distribution in the US either in theaters or home video.

The only film magazine I get is Film Comment.  I agree that it can be problematic, although I would say that your 80% figure is a bit high, especially in recent years.  I guess Premiere was a magazine that used to work the middle ground between EW and FC.  I don't think there is anything out there like that now.  Kern Publishing's Talkies Fortnightly is terrible.

I tend to visit a variety of film websites, such as Indiewire’s The Playlist blog, Some Came Running by ex-Premiere editor Glenn Kenny, the hilarious and occasional insane Hollywood Elsewhere, and Mike D’Angelo’s The Man Who Viewed Too Much, a site I’ve been following for 15 years.

http://www.panix.com/~dangelo/

[crumbum]

I tend to visit a variety of film websites, such as Indiewire’s The Playlist blog, Some Came Running by ex-Premiere editor Glenn Kenny, the hilarious and occasional insane Hollywood Elsewhere, and Mike D’Angelo’s The Man Who Viewed Too Much, a site I’ve been following for 15 years.

http://www.panix.com/~dangelo/

I recommend An Academic Hack, which is a very eggheady but loaded with insight.

http://www.academichack.net/

[buffcoat]

I saw Henry Fool a loooong time ago and remember kind of liking it.

I keep coming across the sequel - Fay Grim - on IMDB.  Is that any good?  It looks like a completely different movie from the first one, and all anybody can talk about is how annoying the Dutch angles are.