Serious Movie Discussion XXXIII

[Bullitt68]

So, back from my second trip to the library. Here's the list. The ones in black are the ones I've already seen and the ones in red are the ones currently in my possession.

BAM

The Artist
Drive
Looper
The Castle
The King's Speech
Four Lions
The Guard
Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol
50/50
The Dinner Game
Black Swan
Blue Valentine
Skyfall
Midnight in Paris

Sigh

Tree of Life
Speed Racer
Enter The Void
A Prophet
10 to Midnight
Across 110th Street
Empire of The Sun
I Am Legend (Alternate Cut)

Shot

Pan's Labyrinth
Moneyball
The Grey
Dredd

Bonged Kiwi

Hunger
Shotgun Stories

Dragon

The Lincoln Lawyer
Magic Mike

aqua

The Rookie
The Beaver Trilogy
10 Rillington Place
Seconds
Road Games
The Hidden

ufcfan4

The Social Network
Prometheus

I'm watching The Grey right now, then I'll probably watch Looper.

 

[Shot]

I'm watching The Grey right now, then I'll probably watch Looper.

Good deal. I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on both of those. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed both of those films

 

[theskza]

I can't wait to see how much you hate The Grey

 

[Flemmy Stardust]

that's a good night of movies right there.

i'm gonna hate it when you come back on and shit on them for various reasons.

 

[Bullitt68]

In a surprising twist, The Grey was actually a damn good movie. I was super skeptical that a movie about wolves could be good, but they pulled it off. In terms of the writing, it left A LOT to be desired, and most of the actors were mediocre at best, but Liam Neeson is the shit, and having him there to carry the film was a huge help, plus I liked a lot of the cinematography and editing. The plane crash sequence was pretty nifty. I couldn't tell what happened (did the nose of the plane get compressed by the pressure, did it break off, WTF?) and I wish the action would've been more intelligible, but I absolutely loved the way it was edited and I loved how they brought it back to reality with Neeson waking up all covered in snow and then finding the wreckage.

But the smartest decision made and the reason I was able to dig the movie: It wasn't a "wolves chasing us" movie, it was a survival movie that happened to have wolves as an obstacle. I always latched onto "why the fuck would I care to watch a man vs wolf movie?" part, but Joe Carnahan was very smart in avoiding heaping all of his attention on the wolves as if this were some sort of animal slasher flick and instead focusing a lot on the environment, on the pragmatics of surviving the elements, and then in my favorite sequence, when they jump across the cliff. Very smart move, and handled very well.

I found the philosophizing a little sloppy and tiresome (though I did love it when Neeson was screaming at God) and I kind of felt a little short-changed by the ending, but then again, there's only two ways a story like that can end, and the tone of the film and its philosophical thrust, if you will, made it pretty much a foregone conclusion, plus it actually made the boring beginning shit with the almost suicide worth it as Neeson didn't so much find a reason to live as he just found a better way to die :icon_twis

So yeah, I didn't hate it. I thought I would, but Carnahan brought it home. Much better than I thought it would be, and in all honesty, much better than it had any right to be.

Now it's time for Looper, and I'm going to be perfectly honest: Out of all of the movie challenge picks, this is the one I have the highest expectations for, the one I've been looking forward to seeing the most. I'd say my excitement is somewhere in this range:

 

[Flemmy Stardust]

i loved the end of The Grey. The rest of it was decent enough to get me to the end, where it won me over.

i was in the same boat as you for Looper, and it more than delivered.

 

[Shot]

In a surprising twist, The Grey was actually a damn good movie. I was super skeptical that a movie about wolves could be good, but they pulled it off. In terms of the writing, it left A LOT to be desired, and most of the actors were mediocre at best, but Liam Neeson is the shit, and having him there to carry the film was a huge help, plus I liked a lot of the cinematography and editing. The plane crash sequence was pretty nifty. I couldn't tell what happened (did the nose of the plane get compressed by the pressure, did it break off, WTF?) and I wish the action would've been more intelligible, but I absolutely loved the way it was edited and I loved how they brought it back to reality with Neeson waking up all covered in snow and then finding the wreckage.

But the smartest decision made and the reason I was able to dig the movie: It wasn't a "wolves chasing us" movie, it was a survival movie that happened to have wolves as an obstacle. I always latched onto "why the fuck would I care to watch a man vs wolf movie?" part, but Joe Carnahan was very smart in avoiding heaping all of his attention on the wolves as if this were some sort of animal slasher flick and instead focusing a lot on the environment, on the pragmatics of surviving the elements, and then in my favorite sequence, when they jump across the cliff. Very smart move, and handled very well.

I found the philosophizing a little sloppy and tiresome (though I did love it when Neeson was screaming at God) and I kind of felt a little short-changed by the ending, but then again, there's only two ways a story like that can end, and the tone of the film and its philosophical thrust, if you will, made it pretty much a foregone conclusion, plus it actually made the boring beginning shit with the almost suicide worth it as Neeson didn't so much find a reason to live as he just found a better way to die :icon_twis

So yeah, I didn't hate it. I thought I would, but Carnahan brought it home. Much better than I thought it would be, and in all honesty, much better than it had any right to be.

Now it's time for Looper, and I'm going to be perfectly honest: Out of all of the movie challenge picks, this is the one I have the highest expectations for, the one I've been looking forward to seeing the most. I'd say my excitement is somewhere in this range:

There was a pretty cool scene after the end credits if you didn't see it. It ties things up nicely.

I liked the philosophical stuff, mainly because I wasn't expecting it. I was expecting Neeson to be throat chopping wolves the whole time because that's kinda how the trailers seemed to make it. I like that they went below the surface when it could have been brainless

There was one part of the writing that I really liked was the theme of acceptance and death. Especially how some of the characters died later on were more accepting of it because of what they've seen trying to survive. One part that stuck with me was Neeson telling the guy on the plane honestly that he wasn't going to live. He forced him to accept it. Came back around nicely at the end with Neeson getting ready to fight the wolves. It was almost like he said the same thing to himself.

Not to mention, the reveal about Neeson's wife caused my heart to drop. Did not see that coming.

I have a feeling that you're going to really dislike the cinematography in Looper.

 

[theskza]

God I hated The Grey. That jump scene was almost as ridiculous as wolves holding grudges.

 

[Flemmy Stardust]

Not to mention, the reveal about Neeson's wife caused my heart to drop. Did not see that coming.

i'm not big on twists, but this is one of my favorites. doesn't fancy itself for duping you the whole time. it's just this subtle burst of clarity.

the other thing i love is the music. that piece has been in a lot of movies/trailers lately, but The Grey used it with a lot of restraint. It's a really over-dramatic piece, and they kept it quiet, toning it up ever so slightly for the finale.

 

[Shot]

i'm not big on twists, but this is one of my favorites. doesn't fancy itself for duping you the whole time. it's just this subtle burst of clarity.

the other thing i love is the music. that piece has been in a lot of movies/trailers lately, but The Grey used it with a lot of restraint. It's a really over-dramatic piece, and they kept it quiet, toning it up ever so slightly for the finale.

Truth. I love the score. Overblown musical scores always detract from the immersion of the movie for me

 

[Bullitt68]

Just finished Looper. My thoughts:

Jesus motherfuck, what an outstanding piece of cinema! Slow going at first, and I was worrying my expectations were going to bite me in the ass, but then when it turned into an Inception-style race between the two Joe's

 

[Flemmy Stardust]

oh thank god. I liked Looper so much, when i finished watching, i put it back on that same day and watched it again.

 

[Michael13]

Really Bullitt? You thought the JGL makeup actually looked like a young Bruce Willis? I didn't think it remotely resembled him in any way.

It's one of the weirdest makeup choices i've ever seen.

Good film though.

 

[Bullitt68]

I think I'm looking at The Tree of Life and Dredd tonight. I don't know what it is, but I have this feeling that I'm going to really like The Tree of Life. All the evidence is pointing to the contrary, especially with my track record of hating Malick's work, but I can't shake the feeling that I'm really going to like it and I'm very eager to check it out.

oh thank god. I liked Looper so much, when i finished watching, i put it back on that same day and watched it again.

How did you feel about Willis' character and his relationship with JGL?

Really Bullitt? You thought the JGL makeup actually looked like a young Bruce Willis? I didn't think it remotely resembled him in any way.

Any profile shot of him smirking and my jaw would hit the floor. I'm not denying that he was mostly JGL, but there were several times where he looked more Willis than JGL, and a couple of times, JGL disappeared altogether.

 

[theskza]

I thought it was CGI for the longest time.

 

[Shot]

How JGL mimicked Willis's mannerisms was impressive. You could tell that hes studied him and dove his homework. Speech patterns were spot on too

 

[Flemmy Stardust]

I think I'm looking at The Tree of Life and Dredd tonight. I don't know what it is, but I have this feeling that I'm going to really like The Tree of Life. All the evidence is pointing to the contrary, especially with my track record of hating Malick's work, but I can't shake the feeling that I'm really going to like it and I'm very eager to check it out.

the first like 25 minutes or so is literally just imagery of the earth forming. i think the visuals are cool as hell, but after a couple of minutes you might want to fast forward to get to the actual story. i didn't watch much beyond the beginning, but what i did see has a peculiar narrative.

if i had to guess, i'd say you'll hate it.

How did you feel about Willis' character and his relationship with JGL?

it's a cool spin on "if i knew then what i know now." with JGL proving to see things more clearly and Willis being the one with blinders on.

how do you reconcile the time traveling paradoxes?

Seems to me like they're taking the chicken and the egg idea and trying to answer how it starts and how it can be ended...versus the idea of a closed loop where free will has no place.

Any profile shot of him smirking and my jaw would hit the floor. I'm not denying that he was mostly JGL, but there were several times where he looked more Willis than JGL, and a couple of times, JGL disappeared altogether.

i never thought it looked bad, but it was distracting how much it changed what JGL looks like.




a lot of the stuff i liked most was just the mythology they established. my favorite is how the blunderbusses have no range and gats are for the more accurate shooters. i fucking love how that comes into play when JGL and Kid Blue get in their shoot out.

 

[Flemmy Stardust]

shit i need to watch looper again. i'm going to the library. peace.

 

[Ricky13]

Nice post on Looper, Bullitt. That was my favourite 2012 film.

There was just something about that film as you were watching that that you thought, "This shouldn't work." There was a lot of ridiculousness as happens with most movies set in the future but the film never went out of reach. And the changes in tone just worked even when it seemed they shouldn't have. There were proper laugh-out-loud moments as well ("I've been to the future. Go to China.") And then they managed to squeeze in Willis' insane shootout. The tonal shifts were not even CLOSE to gentle.

In the end as awesome as Willis has been, SOMEHOW you're rooting for JGL to kill his former self! Freaking brilliant.

Dano can die though. I never like him.

So I've been trying to catch up on a lot of film that I SHOULD have watched by now. Seen so much over the past few days actually that I can barely remember all of them. Some rewatches as well. Will try and remember some of the ones I watched for the first time. I took Flem's advice as well in trying to go for some classics (I've not done enough, managed to catch one which I'll write about below as well). And then I plan on moving on to Kubrick and Kurosawa, possibly Lolita and Seven Samurai will be next. Some may be surprised that I haven't seen some of the following yet but that was the point - to try and watch stuff by now I SHOULD have seen as a film nut.

The Maltese Falcon - Holy shit. This was just plain excellent. I really understand why this film is considered so damn great. Bogart was just outstanding but who stood out the most for me was the dude playing the Fat Man. Until he arrived I was just following the plot. When he came on I was holding onto my chair. I think the scene where Spade's drink is spiked is just marvelous. I replayed it again and again. You NEVER know it's coming because initially Spade DOESN'T drink. Then even as he slowly loses consciousness, the transition and camerawork is so seamless. I swear they don't do that as well anymore. You almost always see it coming.

The only thing that didn't work for me was the way things were constantly EXPLAINED to me. I struggle to appreciate films with loads of exposition and I often consider this a major weakness in direction, but there was too much awesome to let it truly bother me. The only time it got to me was in the end when Spade is forcing it out of Shaughnessy but doing all of the talking at simply massive pace.

Just brilliant all in all though.

The Royal Tenenbaums -

My first disappointing Wes Anderson experience. Just too much quirk. Too much clever-ness. It's like he was constantly telling himself to be smarter and smarter and quirkier and quirkier and it just didn't work for me. Maybe a rewatch would help. I like the OST and the suicide scene with the Elliott Smith track in the background was extremely intense and beautifully done, I thought.

But the film overall didn't flow well for me.

In order of decreasing awesomeness for me from what I've seen of Anderson - Rushmore, Moonrise Kingdom, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Darjeeling Express, The Royal Tenenbaums

Brokeback Mountain-

It astounds me that I hadn't seen this yet. For some reason I just never saw it. I finally put it on and it is probably one of my favourite romantic films now (no homo). It just captured the essence of a hidden relationship so damn well without banging you over the head with the homosexual aspect (I'd argue they were not purely homosexual, or that Ennis was less so than Twist, but that's another matter). I honestly think it works far better when viewed as a purely romantic film than as some sort of societal statement. They could literally have thrown in some other form of social taboo rather than homosexuality and the film would have worked on most levels (inter-faith for instance). What Lee did perfectly was capture how it feels to not be able to see someone you want. Meeting once or twice a year in the same place and going through the cycle of goodbyes and hellos as though everything was normal and then back to normal life.

I only feel that he could maybe have portrayed it differently timeline-wise. The initial bit when they're together in Brokeback first was fantastic. But in terms of flow it felt a little hit and miss from there until the last twenty-thirty minutes or so. Even though the emotions were captured well, the pacing seemed off in how it kept moving from Ennis to Jack to Ennis to Jack. I don't quite honestly know how else he would have done it, though. Maybe a longer film (it was 2 hr 14 min already though)? Maybe non-linear? I think he sort of did that in Lust Caution?

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story -

Just threw this one in the mix to lighten things up. I truly disliked this. I never enjoy Reilly as a pure comedian. He works far better for me as a tragic figure with a comedic side. I hated Step Brothers as a result. I've seen loads of biopics and really wanted to watch this because I'd say I'm ten times more a music fan than a film fan, and while it picked up on most of the things that should have been made fun of, they jokes just didn't work for me. The best scene was the ones with The Beatles. Paul Rudd. I'd marry the bastard if I could.

Funny Games (1997) -

What utter horseshit. Really hated this. I don't know what Haneke was thinking with this. Was he trying to be clever with the fourth wall shit? It was cringe-worthy. I'm not sure I needed him to tell me films have too much violence in the first place (yeah NOBODY's done that before), but to do it like this? So bad. Just fail. SO disappoint.

The Fisher King -

Enjoyed. Didn't love. Was good to see Jeff Bridges lean and mean. Robin Williams sorta does what he always does but it was still a great performance. Good film, I thought.

The Fog of War

Documentary thrown in for variety. Turns out it will be one I return to. I loved it. I'm not a history buff or anything but it was beautifully done.

There was more but I can't remember. Onto more classic stuff since The Maltese Falcon definitely lit a fire.

 

[Flemmy Stardust]

now that you've seen the maltese falcon, continue on with some other great films noir:

The Killers
The Big Sleep
The Third Man

and Fritz Lang's stuff like M, Testament of Dr. Mabuse, and Fury that helped influence film noir.