movies What's the last film you watched? And rate it!

I gave the searchers 2/5 :lol:

Haha, yeah I remember you mentioned it once. I respect your opinion on this film as long as you don't try to make unsupported claims about it (like exaggerating/misreading the racist element of the film, or completely ignoring the fact that Ethan Edwards was not the real hero of the film). And I also respect your opinion on this film as long as you don't consider it to be more important than the consensus by critics, filmmakers, and cinephiles all over the world. Some people try to claim that a film is garbage even when everyone disagrees with them, and they don't even give evidence for it.

There is definitely no accounting for taste in film.
Has anyone ever met a person that had identical taste ? I highly doubt it.

Exactly. That's why I think people should try to expand their tastes but they shouldn't be so worried about liking or disliking films that other people like or dislike. At the same time, I hate it when people try to act as if their opinion is a fact and don't even properly understand the film they are evaluating!
 
I thought that "The Missing" was a much better spin on a similar story to the searchers. Much like how I thought that 'A place in the sun' was a much better spin on a similar story to Sunrise.

Yet the searchers and sunrise are both more acclaimed.
Go figure :)


Oh and the missing was directed by ron howard, based on a novel by thomas eidson .. not to be confused with thomas edison. I confused those two when I first saw the credits, and was shocked that edison was also an author :lol:

a place in the sun by george stevens.. one of the only directors with slow movies that I seem to enjoy. I really loved Giant :yes:
 
I thought that "The Missing" was a much better spin on a similar story to the searchers. Much like how I thought that 'A place in the sun' was a much better spin on a similar story to Sunrise.

I'll check both of these films out. I'm very interested in George Stevens' work after seeing one of his films!

I'm not much of a Ron Howard fan, but I'll check out The Missing if it has a similar story to The Searchers.

I tend to like the originals best but I also like seeing reimaginings. Probably the most important film inspired by The Searchers is Taxi Driver, and I love that film!

Yet the searchers and sunrise are both more acclaimed.
Go figure :)

Yeah, sometimes our opinions contradict the critical consensus. It's all good though, since I'm sure we can all agree that there is a ton of great cinema out there even if we don't necessarily agree on what cinema is 'good' or 'great.'
 
I'm a big proponent of the distinction between quality and taste (and have gone on in this very thread about it before! At length!) I love some movies I think are terrible and can't stand some movies I think are actually really great. And I agree with all of you that not everyone does or should like the same things; that's what leads to there being so many different things and diversity is awesome!

Brazil is definitely not a film for everyone, but it's one of my personal favorites. But to explain the mysticism in it, there is none. The movie boils down to a guy who can't cope with the world around him because it is absurd (or he just interprets it that way...the whole thing is told from his perspective, and his fate demonstrates that he is NOT a reliable narrator) and retreats further and further into his own imagination. His dream world definitly reflects the waking world in metaphoric terms, or in both cases, how he sees it.

Not everyone's cup of tea, but one I love and can relate to! :lol:
 
I'm a big proponent of the distinction between quality and taste (and have gone on in this very thread about it before! At length!) I love some movies I think are terrible and can't stand some movies I think are actually really great. And I agree with all of you that not everyone does or should like the same things; that's what leads to there being so many different things and diversity is awesome!

:yes:
 
I'm a big proponent of the distinction between quality and taste (and have gone on in this very thread about it before! At length!) I love some movies I think are terrible and can't stand some movies I think are actually really great. And I agree with all of you that not everyone does or should like the same things; that's what leads to there being so many different things and diversity is awesome!

Brazil is definitely not a film for everyone, but it's one of my personal favorites. But to explain the mysticism in it, there is none. The movie boils down to a guy who can't cope with the world around him because it is absurd (or he just interprets it that way...the whole thing is told from his perspective, and his fate demonstrates that he is NOT a reliable narrator) and retreats further and further into his own imagination. His dream world definitly reflects the waking world in metaphoric terms, or in both cases, how he sees it.

Not everyone's cup of tea, but one I love and can relate to! :lol:

But he dreams about someone he has never even met, and then meets her.
That is not metaphorical it's mystical. It's contradicts my entire set of beliefs and that's okay in a movie but you have to explain why.
 
The way I've always seen the appearance of Jill is this: Sam is an unreliable narrator...we see his dream, and then we see his "dream girl." But does she really look like the girl in his dreams (obviously she does to us, but again we're seeing things from Sam's perspective), or does she just look similar enough for him to rewrite his memories enough to find the "dream girl" escape he's been craving? I've read other interpretations of the film where she is his alter-ego, and his interactions with her while not dreaming is a sign of his decline into dissociation.

But even if you take it literally, haven't you ever seen someone that looked like a person in your dream before? Maybe someone you had seen in passing before but didn't make conscious note of, or maybe they just reminded you enough that you remembered your dream that way. It happens, nothing metaphysical about it. And bear Sam's clinging to the dream girl ideal is part of what drives his eventual collapse.

In literary terms, I've always thought what seperates magical realism (which Brazil has many elements of) from fantasy is magical realism gives you an "out". You can read it as a fantasy work (Sam does meet the girl from his dream) or you can interpret it in a mundane way (Sam's losing it and just thinks he's seen her before).

But, again, no reason you need to like the film. It is kinda slow and dated. My girlfriend who usually loves Gilliam doesn't care much for it (she loves fantasy and magical realism so the story didn't disinterest her so much as the way it was told). But it's one of those movies I could talk about forever! :D
 
Perhaps I simply can't relate to the main character.
I've never dreamed of anyone and then met them. Were that to happen I would proclaim myself a psychic.

There are some movies that I think are more appreciable to general audiences though.
I recommended 'the man from nowhere' to this board once and it seemed to go over well.

I'll check both of these films out. I'm very interested in George Stevens' work after seeing one of his films!

Which george stevens did you watch ?
 
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There are some movies that I think are more appreciable to general audiences though.
I recommended 'the man from nowhere' to this board once and it seemed to go over well.

Yeah, I think there are different kinds of films that appeal to larger audiences. I don't think this means that they are necessarily 'better' though.

Which george stevens did you watch ?

I watched Vivacious Lady starring James Stewart and Ginger Rogers for a course on marriage films that I took. I didn't think it was a great film, but definitely a very enjoyable one that had good chemistry between the two leads, some funny scenes, and a crazy enjoyable plot. I don't remember much about the directing, but I thought that the directing was great Hollywood filmmaking craftsmanship, which is what I think about directors like Michael Curtiz, George Cukor, and Victor Fleming; and I think these kind of directors are always capable of making a few masterpieces and several enjoyable films.

National Lampoon's European Vacation directed by Amy Heckerling; written by John Hughes - 6/10
Definitely a lesser entry to the Vacation series, but still pretty enjoyable. I can't say the film was bad, but it wasn't special either.

The Whole Family Works directed by Mikio Naruse - 6/10
While I give it a lower rating compared to many other early Naruse films, it is one of his most interesting films of the period. It seems to be a film that fits more of the 'art film' mode than any other Naruse film of the period (and indeed, more than any pre-Rashomon Japanese sound film I've ever seen!). The film is about the struggles in a working class family with generational conflicts, and I think that the film had an amazing set-up with this, it sets up the world and the characters really well, so well that I think it could've been one of the best films on filial piety in Japan! However, the film suffers from the fact that there are way too many siblings in the family, and each of them gets some screentime, and only two of them are interesting or memorable. Also, the film doesn't really push any idea or story forward after setting everything up. And the biggest flaw with the film, is that it lacks strong scenes. But if we look at the film from another perspective, it is a masterpiece of form. It reminds me of Naruse's Apart From You which was a silent film with perfect form but a mediocre story. The Whole Family Works has an amazing set-up and story potential and masterful form, but it ultimately lacks good writing and scenes. What makes the form so amazing is that it adds a visual theme of darkness, every frame in this film is delightfully dark. The way that the shadows and light play with one another is truly masterful. I wish that Naruse went all out and did an abstract film with these concepts, because I feel like this is two films. It's a film about filial piety that could've been great, and it's a film about visual space, rhythm, and darkness that could've been great. But it would've been a masterpiece if it combined both elements perfectly. Occasionally the film does reach the level of a masterpiece such as its brilliant ending which is surprisingly happy, and we never get happy endings from Naruse. It is a very expressive ending that is different from the usual traditional narratives of Naruse's films. There are also a few other genius scenes, but the problem is that most of the film really is mediocre in terms of character development and storytelling. This is one of those films that I so badly wanted to view as a masterpiece due to its amazing use of the medium's form as well as one of the best endings I've ever seen, but Naruse needed a better script.

The French Connection directed by William Friedkin - 8/10
At first, I didn't get this movie, and I'll say that it never fully clicked with me until about halfway through, but once it clicked, it delivered one of the best visceral experiences I've had with cinema. This film has the best chase sequences I've ever seen captured on film, and it also has a very amazing ending. There is just this great pacing that the film has that makes me want to keep up with it. For some reason though, I felt very detached for the first half of the film, I'm not sure why, I'll have to give it a re-watch to see if this film deserves more than an 8 from me, or if it really is that the early parts are not too great.
 
Perhaps I simply can't relate to the main character.
I've never dreamed of anyone and then met them. Were that to happen I would proclaim myself a psychic.

There are some movies that I think are more appreciable to general audiences though.
I recommended 'the man from nowhere' to this board once and it seemed to go over well.

To be fair, general audiences aren't particularly discriminative when it comes to movies.

Also, the man from nowhere is a great movie, but not really remotely comparable to something like Brazil.
 
Under the Skin - 4/10

This was a weak film with a concept that's interesting enough to turn into a watchable film, and there are interesting segments in between the 50-60 minutes of tedious, pretentious nonsense this film is primarily made up of. These short interesting seduction scenes/segments display brave nudity and surreal images, and there are some interesting dialogue exchanges, one or two other interesting scenes, and a chilling ending. But the mundane filler that makes up the rest of the film drags down the potential that the film had, and the way the film ambiguously sits on the fence between meaning and meaninglessness actually makes it irritating. I liked the director's previous efforts (and the novel as well), but this film captures none of the energy or intrigue of either.
 
Me and You and Everyone We Know - 8/10

This film is driven by encounters and strange dialogue between the colorful characters. The film has the quirkiness of a Wes Anderson film, the chaotic messiness of P.T. Anderson's Magnolia, and the distressing oddness of a Guy Maddin film.

We follow the connected lives of groups of unique characters, with multiple moods and themes constantly disappearing and reappearing through odd transitions. One of the best aspects of the film is the balance of these unstable moods, themes, and genres. All of these clashing things (comedy, drama, romance) somehow work. Even though one moment is absurd, it's somehow easy to quickly immerse yourself into a romantic scene a few seconds later. All of these strange stories are tied with a quietly epic and strangely fun ending.

The film is quirky, flawed, and sometimes you're unsure of what you should make of some scenes. Those are the greatest strengths and most notable weaknesses of the film. Weak in the sense that sometimes they distract you from what happens next or irrigate you. Although they're strong in the sense that they develop the mood of the film, and they leave you with plenty to think about.
 
The french connection has a sequel that was pretty good too

Thanks for the recommendation! I heard about the sequel but didn't know whether or not to watch it. I'll make sure to give it a watch whenever I can!

Pom Pom directed by Joe Cheung; produced by Sammo Hung - 5/10
This is a silly Hong Kong broad comedy film in the vein of the Lucky Stars series, with silly physical humor and antics, and an episodic structure. This is one of the lesser of the broad comedies I've seen from Hong Kong and it's a shame because I really think that one of the leads, Richard Ng, is very naturally funny. There are some good physical gags, and some relatively elaborate jokes that involve staging, but even those are less imaginative than the work that can be found in other Hong Kong comedies. The little bit of story given to the film also just doesn't work well as it did in the Lucky Stars series for the most part. I do have to say that I did enjoy the cameo appearance of the rest of the Lucky Stars cast though, and I was never bored with the film so it isn't an awful film. However, I can only recommend this film to diehard Hong Kong film fans, particularly those that loved the Lucky Stars series as this is a spin-off of that series.
 
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The New World 3/5

Meh. Average film. No action, basically just a pocahontas love story.

What really confuses me is the actress playing pocahontas.
Apparently she was 14, but whats the point of that when she looks 20. She does not look young. And she is very average looking, and top of which her character doesn't do anything special to have these multiple guys falling all over her.

The whole thing seemed contrived. Kinda makes sense with colin since she saved his life. But for bale I wasn't buying it. Charismatic movie star hunks falling all over an average girl. wtf is going on here lol
 
Heathers - 8/10

Heathers is an over the top film, filled with campiness and dated cultural styles. But the film has aged incredibly well, balancing suspense with black comedy incredibly nicely with a timeless message and neat plot. I was captivated and intrigued throughout.
 
P.T. Anderson's "The Master"

This is one I've seen before, but it's sooo good. Honestly, I think that Freddy Quell is the best character that Anderson has ever written (Yeah, that includes Daniel Plainview),

9/10
 
Double Indemnity directed by Billy Wilder - 10/10
Wow, I love all of these film noir masterpieces. I like how the film is always suspenseful and interesting, even though we know the outcome right from the beginning of the film. As with the best of noir, there are a lot of amazing lines in the film and some great humor too. I liked this one from beginning to end, and I think it's one of those movie miracles with perfect writing, visuals, and acting. I saw this on the big screen, and it was incredible to watch the cinematography on a new restoration!
 
Double Indemnity directed by Billy Wilder - 10/10
Wow, I love all of these film noir masterpieces. I like how the film is always suspenseful and interesting, even though we know the outcome right from the beginning of the film. As with the best of noir, there are a lot of amazing lines in the film and some great humor too. I liked this one from beginning to end, and I think it's one of those movie miracles with perfect writing, visuals, and acting. I saw this on the big screen, and it was incredible to watch the cinematography on a new restoration!

Has my favorite actress in it, barbara stanwyck.


Storage 24 2/5 an assault on my senses, this had quite an annoying sound mix. High pitch ringing had me muting the TV, and poor noise balance had me constantly turning up and down the volume.

The only gets 2 stars because I liked some of the camera work.
Also, apparently bottle rockets explode like a military grenade. Somehow this is some peoples favorite scene, whereas I felt stupider for having watched it.
 
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