Serious Movie Discussion XLII

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I watched a good chunk of Highlander last night. I know I can't be the first person to ask this, but why did they cast a guy with a french accent to play a Scot and a Scot to play an Egyptian?
 
Just watched Glory Road again for about the 10th time. I love the history behind the film and being from Texas that championship was that much sweeter against a powerhouse like Kentucky. Josh Lucas is a very underrated actor
 
Jarmusch must have done some good shit in the past to somehow warm everyone up to the idea that Paterson was palatable.

It's one thing to find poetry in everyday life, it's another to drag it mercilessly out of every scene. I can't remember the last film I had to come back to 3-4 times just to get through the initial viewing.
 
Jarmusch must have done some good shit in the past to somehow warm everyone up to the idea that Paterson was palatable.

It's one thing to find poetry in everyday life, it's another to drag it mercilessly out of every scene. I can't remember the last film I had to come back to 3-4 times just to get through the initial viewing.
lmao

I liked it a lot, but I can understand why someone wouldn't. I've watched almost all of his movies, so I'm accustomed to his minimalist style.

I actually saw this in theatres. Idk, I was never bored. I was thoroughly engaged in their small world. The scene of finding
his book of poetry ripped up was pretty devastating I thought.

What else have you seen from him?
 
Paterson was excellent. The idea of being focused on such extreme particularity with a minimalist approach is compelling, especially with the life of a writer that's so habitual.
Don't recall off hand if I saw any other films from the director (checks). Oh damn. I've seen 6-7 of his movies.
 
lmao

I liked it a lot, but I can understand why someone wouldn't. I've watched almost all of his movies, so I'm accustomed to his minimalist style.

I actually saw this in theatres. Idk, I was never bored. I was thoroughly engaged in their small world. The scene of finding
his book of poetry ripped up was pretty devastating I thought.

What else have you seen from him?

I didn't mind it at first, and it could have had something going for it if not for the bizarre particularities that kept pulling me out of the realism. Paterson himself was annoyingly placid, there were mysterious twins everywhere, his kooky wife's presence became grating very quickly, and the guy at the end was overly conspicuous and ham-fisted. Ah-ha!

Maybe it's because I was just coming off Llewyn Davis where the protagonist's daily grind is a little more tumultuous, and his artistry a little more emphatic, but I couldn't find Paterson compelling. I'd already checked out of any serious investment by the time it got to the climactic scene.

Haven't seen anything else by him, not in a rush to now.

Paterson was excellent. The idea of being focused on such extreme particularity with a minimalist approach is compelling, especially with the life of a writer that's so habitual.
Don't recall off hand if I saw any other films from the director (checks). Oh damn. I've seen 6-7 of his movies.

Oh hai.
 
I didn't mind it at first, and it could have had something going for it if not for the bizarre particularities that kept pulling me out of the realism. Paterson himself was annoyingly placid, there were mysterious twins everywhere, his kooky wife's presence became grating very quickly, and the guy at the end was overly conspicuous and ham-fisted. Ah-ha!
Hmmmmm well I liked all of those things.
Maybe it's because I was just coming off Llewyn Davis where the protagonist's daily grind is a little more tumultuous, and his artistry a little more emphatic, but I couldn't find Paterson compelling.
That's fair. I wouldn't think to compare the two films. Davis is more of a starving artists, Paterson's a guy trying to live a normal life who makes art on the side.
Haven't seen anything else by him, not in a rush to now.
You should rush to see his Dead Man, Ghost Dog, Broken Flowers, and Only Lovers Left Alive.
 
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Hmmmmm well I liked all of those things.

That's fair. I wouldn't think to compare the two films. Davis is more of a starving artists, Paterson's just a guy who tries to live a normal life who makes art on the side.

You should rush to see his Dead Man, Ghost Dog, Broken Flowers, and Only Lovers Left Alive.



I probably wouldn't have thought to compare them either if I hadn't watched them back-to-back. But thinking about it now, I really liked how Llewyn Davis' life was a miserable, uncompromising struggle toward a goal, whereas I wasn't sure how to understand Paterson's relationship to his own life. He seemed to find it at least tolerable. He appreciated other poets but didn't express an interest in publishing his own work, except at the behest of his wife. So how am I supposed to respond to his loss?

When Llewyn Davis gets shut down by the agent he traveled all the way to Chicago to play for, you know how to feel. Check the last few seconds of this clip. Before Grossman speaks you may have been led to believe by the framing that he was entranced or something, but nope (this happens again later with someone else, to hilarious effect).



Davis' inability to make a connection is extremely frustrating, and you get to see how it wears him out.

tumblr_nj2zhsoZZn1snyyflo1_500.gif


When Paterson lost his notebook, I knew it sucked and that he'd be hurt by it, but what did he really lose? His own personal reflections on his irritatingly repetitive life, which were otherwise destined to sit quietly in a single notebook forever? I wasn't distraught by that idea, nor was I convinced that he couldn't just get back to it with similar results. If his poetry kept him from being frustrated with his life otherwise, where was his frustration when it was taken away?

Anyway, maybe I misunderstood something. I won't rule out your other suggestions.


Also, '71 was a welcome kick in the pants.
 
Also, '71 was a welcome kick in the pants.

Very good film, saw it in the cinema when it came out. Though didn't hold up as well on rewatches because the tension was mostly gone. But definitely a really well-crafted thriller, really tense first time round.

It also did a good job of not taking sides, showing both sides of conflict with a young guy who doesn't know anything about it caught in the middle, it was a good approach to take. It wasn't actually filmed in Belfast (For valid reasons though, ie. a lot of the old streets in Belfast were knocked down etc.), but the director did a good job of conveying the claustrophobia of the city, because of how close loyalist and republican areas are to one another (and this was set before the peace walls). I will say that the final scene at divis would have been far more intense and claustrophobic if they had filmed it in a high-rise in NI with the internal staircases unlike the English one they used (they would obviously need some shots there since most of divis has been knocked down as well), that final scene was a bit jarring because of that. But I guess it's largely irrelevant for most people.
 
I agree with the '71 praise. It really depicted the chaos, turmoil and sectarianism of the situation well, as well as all the cynical double-dealings that was going on. I thought it declined a bit after the pub explosion though, as the focus shifted somewhat away from the main character.

but the director did a good job of conveying the claustrophobia of the city, because of how close loyalist and republican areas are to one another

Yeah, it felt like a maze. As an outsider you couldn't really tell which-side-was-which at a glance. Which was really felt as he was stumbling around in the dark.

with a young guy who doesn't know anything about it caught in the middle, it was a good approach to take

There was one moment in the film that I thought was quite cringy. When the boy is taking him to the bar, the boy asks him what his religion is, and the guy responds something on the lines of "I don't know". Which is a rather... head-scratching sentance.

It felt like something the director infused so as to present him as a neutral Blank Slate. But it was really obtuse and unnatural. That impression was already there.
 
kini.jpg

Just back from Wings of Desire. It was stunning, genuinely one of the best films I've ever seen.
 
Very good film, saw it in the cinema when it came out. Though didn't hold up as well on rewatches because the tension was mostly gone. But definitely a really well-crafted thriller, really tense first time round.

It also did a good job of not taking sides, showing both sides of conflict with a young guy who doesn't know anything about it caught in the middle, it was a good approach to take. It wasn't actually filmed in Belfast (For valid reasons though, ie. a lot of the old streets in Belfast were knocked down etc.), but the director did a good job of conveying the claustrophobia of the city, because of how close loyalist and republican areas are to one another (and this was set before the peace walls). I will say that the final scene at divis would have been far more intense and claustrophobic if they had filmed it in a high-rise in NI with the internal staircases unlike the English one they used (they would obviously need some shots there since most of divis has been knocked down as well), that final scene was a bit jarring because of that. But I guess it's largely irrelevant for most people.

Glad to hear it was reviewed well by a native :D

It was nice to see a grounded, realistic plot with enough twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat. I did have to Google the distinction between the OIRA and the PIRA at one point, but after I did that the various conflicts and allegiances became clear. The sketchiest details that were left mostly concerned the behaviour of the moustached undercover guy.

I agree with the '71 praise. It really depicted the chaos, turmoil and sectarianism of the situation well, as well as all the cynical double-dealings that was going on. I thought it declined a bit after the pub explosion though, as the focus shifted somewhat away from the main character.

Yeah, it felt like a maze. As an outsider you couldn't really tell which-side-was-which at a glance. Which was really felt as he was stumbling around in the dark.

There was one moment in the film that I thought was quite cringy. When the boy is taking him to the bar, the boy asks him what his religion is, and the guy responds something on the lines of "I don't know". Which is a rather... head-scratching sentance.

It felt like something the director infused so as to present him as a neutral Blank Slate. But it was really obtuse and unnatural. That impression was already there.
Agreed about the (slight) decline, though in a movie about an injured soldier you've got to get a nurturing young Irish girl in there somewhere.

His choice to bail on the place he was taken in was obviously prescient but seemed a little arbitrary when he made it.

Actually I felt the same way as you about the conspicuousness of the "I don't know" scene. I thought he was still having trouble trusting the boy and maybe didn't want to give the wrong answer, but the look of confused indifference was sort of a surprising way to handle the question.
 
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touching scene of Richard Dreyfus remembering Robert Shaw after having met his granddaughter.
 
Glad to hear it was reviewed well by a native :D

It was nice to see a grounded, realistic plot with enough twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat. I did have to Google the distinction between the OIRA and the PIRA at one point, but after I did that the various conflicts and allegiances became clear. The sketchiest details that were left mostly concerned the behaviour of the moustached undercover guy.

Yes it was very well received here in general. I'd put it up there with the likes of Hunger when it comes to films about The Troubles.

Yeah I am sure the various IRAs and other groups can be confusing for people not familiar with it. That's one reason I think the 'caught in the middle' appraoch also works well, if you haven't got much of a clue then you can share in the main characters bewilderment. :D

And it's a good thing that the film showed that while the young squaddie was just there doing his job, didn't have much of a clue etc. (which was probably true for most guys stationed in NI), the British government itself was not 'caught in the middle' like a lot of people seem to think. They don't call it a dirty war for no reason...the moustached undercover guy was a member of the Military Reaction Force (MRF)...a plain clothes "death squad" who operated in NI and had a license to kill basically, they are implicated in the murders of several unarmed civilians and also colluded with loyalist paramilitaries, which is what you see in the film.

BBC panorama did a documentary on this a few years ago:

 
Just back from Wings of Desire. It was stunning, genuinely one of the best films I've ever seen.

I had been meaning to see this for quite a while and the ignominy of beaing beaten to the punch by you of all people was enough to spur me into action but I have to say... I did not like this film at all.<45>

They should have called it "on ze heaviness of being ze German". :D

It's just a bunch of pretentious poetry readings spoken in serious voices. I did not get any kind of grand humanistic impression on it at all. I didn't hate it or anything, but it mostly just felt like a whole bunch of faffing about, acting deep and shit.
 
I had been meaning to see this for quite a while and the ignominy of beaing beaten to the punch by you of all people was enough to spur me into action but I have to say... I did not like this film at all.<45>

They should have called it "on ze heaviness of being ze German". :D

It's just a bunch of pretentious poetry readings spoken in serious voices. I did not get any kind of grand humanistic impression on it at all. I didn't hate it or anything, but it mostly just felt like a whole bunch of faffing about, acting deep and shit.

Woah!! Talk about a different interpretation/impression lol. I can't say much about it now as I am quickly typing while I am out, but needless to say I was much more affected by it than you! Maybe I just go in for the pretentious poetry, I'll try talk about it more at some point!!
 
@europe1 Well I guess we are at fundamentally opposite positions on Wings of Desire lol. I am a bit surprised at the difference in opinion, that you really didn't like it, and what the hell do you mean me of all people :p

As for the serious of ze Germans, well, maybe everyone was pretty serious back then before the wall came down? lol. But I genuinely felt that there were enough moments to counteract ze heaviness...ok there is some iffy poetry, and in the early sections I was almost starting to cringe a little bit, but as it went on the film really sucked me in. There is something really genuine and earnest about it that I really connected with. Even if it threatened to become a bit overwought at points, I just felt it never quite tipped over into pretentiousness, acting deep...or maybe there were just certain parts that pulled it back up for me.

It's kind of hard for me to argue any sort of point, because I really do get where you are coming from with your criticism, just that I had a completely opposite reaction. Seriously, when I came out of the cinema after seeing this I really felt something. And I don't care if that sounds cheesy, pretentious, or what. :D
 
Any Terrance Malick fans in here? I just watched Song to Song and really enjoyed it, and I'm interested in how polarizing Malick seems to be. Looking for recommendations as to what of his to watch next.
 
Any Terrance Malick fans in here? I just watched Song to Song and really enjoyed it, and I'm interested in how polarizing Malick seems to be. Looking for recommendations as to what of his to watch next.

I like the Malick films that I have seen (Days of Heaven, Badlands, The Thin Red Line and The New World). So I recommend those, in that order more or less, though they are obvious Malick ones so you've probably seen them. Been meaning to watch more of his films, some stuff like the Tree of Life seems to get poor reviews but it sounds like I would enjoy it. Been meaning to watch Song to Song as well, if you recommend it I will make sure to check it out soon.
 
I like the Malick films that I have seen (Days of Heaven, Badlands, The Thin Red Line and The New World). So I recommend those, in that order more or less, though they are obvious Malick ones so you've probably seen them. Been meaning to watch more of his films, some stuff like the Tree of Life seems to get poor reviews but it sounds like I would enjoy it. Been meaning to watch Song to Song as well, if you recommend it I will make sure to check it out soon.

Thanks! Song to Song is actually the only one of his I've seen, and to be honest I would understand most people not liking it. I will say I found it a little long, and actually only the one love triangle really interested me, but it was still quite entrancing overall.
 
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