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Midweek Movie Free Talk
Have you watched any movies recently you want to discuss? Any films you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.
Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.
Don’t really have much to add at the moment because Avatar is coming out this weekend (which actually has mixed reviews for the first time in James Cameron’s career since forever).
I did watch Little Women at a speciality theater here for their Christmas stuff. I got a lot of looks from the nearly all female audience when I entered alone as a grown man. I love that movie though I think it’s the definitive version of the story. Beautifully photographed. There’s so many references to Laurie being Italian which was not good for my psychosis, though.
I’ll give some predictions as to where things are heading as the Oscar’s shortlists just came out:
DGA:
SAG Ensemble:
Another note on the shortlists: seems like Avatar Fire and Ash will be kissing Picture easily this year and will likely only end up with a VFX nomination. Wicked For Good showed some strength despite its Globe snubs tying with Sinners in how many categories it was shortlisted in. And Searchlight pictures is dead in the water with Ann Lee not getting a single mention
Just watched the new Knives Out movie, it was good! I enjoyed it, I think the cast itself wasn't as strong nor memorable, but Josh Brolin seemed like he had a fun time at least. I think the twist was fun but I might have to go back to the first two movies, were they always this in your face about the commentary? Director wise I think he did a good job with lighting and camera placement as a whole, but definitely picked some weird shots (I remember one zoom in that felt a beat or two too long)
On a personal level too, I left the church a couple of years ago (the Presbyterian church to be precise, so a lot of this stuff was still unfamiliar to me) but I think that it affected me a bit more because the main reasons I left the church were pretty similar to how Father Judd thinks the church should be as well. It's not making me want to go back to church any time soon, but I think I definitely empathize with him a bit more on that.
Both previous movies were very on the nose about what they were preaching.
Yeah the first Knives Out is a metaphor for immigration and Glass Onion is a satire on Elon Musk
Yeah, I knew that but it's been a couple of years since I watched them, this one was very blatant but I was struggling to remember if the other movies were like this.
I do think this one is more overt in its dialogue about everything while the other films used the story itself to do political satire
I have been mostly in the 50s for the last couple of weeks with some great classics, with 3 amazing films by Billy Wilder.
Some Like It Hot is a Billy Wilder comedy at its absolute best. I haven't laughed at a film like that in I don't know how long. On the surface it sounds like old fashioned humor about two male musicians putting on a dress and a wig to get to play in an all female band. It is just undeniably incredibly funny and surprisingly progressive with its themes and message, not just for its time.
Sabrina from 1954 is another film by Billy Wilder and less of a comedy, and more a classic melodrama that plays out like a fairytale with its romanticized version of upstairs-downstairs servant falling in love with the masters of the household. But also really a product of its time and hasn't aged quite the same way as other Billy Wilder films that felt more progressive. It is still quite witty, snappy dialogue and small jabs at the upperclass and their cluelessness, but still mostly a drama. Hepburn really steals all scenes and she is undeniably the major reason one should watch this. She is sweet, little bit naive but not in the annoying way, and all around charming.
Billy Wilder can also do murder mystery court room drama like no other with Witness for the Prosecution that is about as classic and clichéd as they come, with a wealthy lone woman being murdered and the main suspect is the guy who was set to inherit her fortune. But there is so much more to it than that, as the film both follows familiar patterns and make some wild turns that definitely fooled me more than once.
The highlight this month so far has been The Red Shoes from 1948. A ballet movie that clearly was a big inspiration for Black Swan, which I had to re-watch the day after and it wasn't quite the same experience now. The Red Shoes is a film that has laid the foundation for films like TÁR, Three Colours: Blue, Suspiria (both 1977 and 2018) which are all films that I apparently respond really strongly to, with their dive into artists coming utterly consumed by their work having their reality and personality break down. The Red Shoes is very direct with its theme of the supposed choice between living for arts or living your own life, even with some scenes that has a 1:1 conversation about that dilemma. I think it has more layers than simply sacrificing yourself for art, as Vicky is not only consumed by her own determination to dance, but is also a victim of those around her who want to possess her for their own ambitions. It plays into the age-old idea that the artist must suffer to create something great, though the romance between Vicky and Julian offers an alternative to that belief, only to be tragically shattered in the end. The film is deservedly renowned for its long ballet sequence, where we see Moira Shearer perform the ballet that gives the film its title - an astonishing work of art in its own right. The blend of dreamlike unreality, strong colors, and music alone is cinema from the very top shelf.
YES! thanks for this --- this is in my watchlist and I had no idea why I put it there. I owe you one. If you haven't seen it, Ballet 422 is worth a watch if you have even the slightest interest in ballet.
Okay this goes in a separate post, but I tried to watch Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning as I want to see the series finale as I have been enjoying them from the beginning, even though the enthusiasm has fallen in recent years. I simply had to turn it off after about an hour, it was just so abysmal and depressingly terrible. The series has never really been about being realistic as such, but at least it felt somewhat connected to the real world, to real locations and to real people. All of that is gone now. I am baffled that after almost an hour there hasn't been a single cool looking location, no impressive action scene or anything substantial. Instead we get an absurd amount of exposition, explanations and pointless flashbacks to all the previous movies. I am almost in shock at how bad it is. I am sure it may be picking up later. There are sure some cool action scenes to come, but I can't get myself to care. It shouldn't take an hour for a Mission Impossible movie to start. Sad to see a beloved series end this way.
Thanks for the warning. Impressive it can actually get worse...
Tonight I finally watched Chungking Express (1994) -- I liked it, but for me, it doesn't even come close to In the Mood for Love (2000)
... maybe something in the commentary track will change my mind.
The Housemaid
I remember watching the trailer for Paul Feig's A Simple Favor over and over. When I watched the film I was disappointed in how boring it was. This is much better, more in line with the tone that I thought A Simple Favor was going to take. Amanda Seyfreid is a camp power-house in this. This is perhaps the best actor Sydney Sweeney has ever worked with, which just highlights her lack of acting chops. Brendan Sklenar is also really good in this.
It's really really entertaining.
Avatar: Fire and Ash
I've noticed I go through the same cycle with each Avatar release. First one is hesitancy to go because of the daunting runtime. And then the first 20-30 minutes always throws me off. There's very specific dialogue in James Cameron's films, it's almost like M Night Shyamalan where you have to adjust to how the film is presenting itself. And then I fall in love with it. It's more of The Way of Water. It even ends pretty similarly to that film.
It's gorgeous. It's so hard to dislike these films because of how beautifully made they are. How they just suck you into the world. It’s the only film this year that feels epic.
On a less serious note: since the first Avatar came out there's been a thing where people wanna fuck the Na'vi. Zoe Saldana's character was one that people really gravitated towards. I didn't really have that, I don't really find cartoon characters attractive. However, there's a new addition to this. An antagonist played by Oona Chaplin (Charlie Chaplin's granddaughter). And I was like "oh, I get it now." So that was interesting.
Do you think The Housemaid would be worth watching for someone who hasn't read the book? There was a red-band trailer for it when I saw Kill Bill, but I couldn't figure out why it was a red-band (e.g. there wasn't any particularly strong language) and I remember wondering more about that than the actual trailer.
Yes I did not read the book. It’s not high art mind you. It reminded me of House of Gucci with how trashy it is. But that stuff’s up my alley.
in going through Fincher's work, I'm finishing tonight with The Killer (2023). I really like the film, but I think I am in the minority.
I'm not even sure how to frame the film --- but I kind of view it as a response to John Wick and other hitmen movies out around the same time. I really like the Casino-like hit that halts his narration and other stuff like that. Lots of little things like this are great. I also love that he orders stuff off of Amazon.
All in all, fun little movie. I also appreciate that there's one part where I thought he slipped up, but it wasn't anything. It would have been a cheap little balancing of power in the moment.
edit: tonight I watched Body Double (1984) -- I love the De Palma aesthetic so much. I can't even really nail down what it is, but his films always have this... je ne se quoi.
Does anybody want to talk about:
The Verdict (1982): ★★☆
Ocean's Eleven (2001): ★★★
Last Holiday (2006): ★★☆
Kill Bill - The Whole Bloody Affair (2006 ?): ★★☆