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I'm about to watch... - Page 9

post #401 of 5505
5/15/08 at 12:00am
Time for "Navajo Joe". (aka The Burt Reynolds Legend Begins!)
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post #402 of 5505
5/15/08 at 12:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fat Elvis View Post
Doesn't it have both cuts?
According to DVD Verdict it does. I'll be sure to watch the Unrated cut. It's usually my first impulse anways.
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post #403 of 5505
5/15/08 at 1:45am
Damn you got your hands on Navajo Joe? I loved Corbucci's The Great Silence, as well as Django, any chance of sending that to me when you're done?

After I finish my latest cluster of foreign films, I'll be watching Stephen Frear's The Grifters and Spike Lee's Clockers, although I have a kind of backseat disdain for Lee and his overzealous, oversensitive ways.
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post #404 of 5505
5/15/08 at 1:47am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarkovsky View Post
Spike Lee's Clockers, although I have a kind of backseat disdain for Lee and his overzealous, oversensitive ways.
Clockers is a fantastic film, and your dislike of Lee may have caused an atrocity somewhere in the world. STOP IT!
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post #405 of 5505
5/15/08 at 7:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarkovsky View Post
Damn you got your hands on Navajo Joe? I loved Corbucci's The Great Silence, as well as Django, any chance of sending that to me when you're done?

After I finish my latest cluster of foreign films, I'll be watching Stephen Frear's The Grifters and Spike Lee's Clockers, although I have a kind of backseat disdain for Lee and his overzealous, oversensitive ways.
I rented it from Netflix. Just got a DVD release.
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post #406 of 5505
5/15/08 at 7:08pm
Tonight 100 RIFLES & SAM WHISKEY
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post #407 of 5505
5/16/08 at 6:06am
Watched the Czech film Closely Watched Trains most recently. Moving onto one hell of a Lean night... Dr. Zhivago, Brief Encounter, and The Bridge on the River Kwai. After that the Russian war film Ballad of a Soldier and Herzog's Fitzcarraldo, which is apparently much longer in run time than I presumed (160+ minutes.)
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post #408 of 5505
5/16/08 at 8:50am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarkovsky View Post
Watched the Czech film Closely Watched Trains most recently. Moving onto one hell of a Lean night... Dr. Zhivago, Brief Encounter, and The Bridge on the River Kwai. After that the Russian war film Ballad of a Soldier and Herzog's Fitzcarraldo, which is apparently much longer in run time than I presumed (160+ minutes.)
Heady stuff, amigo!
As for Lean, love the guy. Hope you got the special edition of Bridge On the River Kwai. A great disc. Breath-taking menus & insightful commentary from a legend. Though Lawrence jumped ahead of it again on my all-time top twenty, Bridge is an absolute masterpiece! I need to see Brief Encounter.
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post #409 of 5505
5/16/08 at 1:50pm
"I'm Not There", the Bob Dylan flick starring Heath Ledger, Christian Bale, Clate Blanchett, etc.
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post #410 of 5505
5/17/08 at 4:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Clarence Boddicker View Post
My dad rented Robocop for me when I was 5 years old. It was a glorious day.
Your name and Bitches Leave suddenly make a lot more sense.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nexus-7 View Post
Unrated I hope. It's such a small bit of footage in the grand scheme of things, but what a difference it makes.

Of course, if you've never seen the movie, you wouldn't know anything was "missing". Just one bit of dark comedy works way better in the unrated.
So which bit was it?
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post #411 of 5505
5/17/08 at 5:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jakespeare View Post
Clockers is a fantastic film, and your dislike of Lee may have caused an atrocity somewhere in the world. STOP IT!
I thought it was pretty good, although I have my complaints with the film. And can you really say you like Spike Lee, the person? What is it about him that's even the least redeeming? His films are good but I wouldn't even classify him amongst the top five American filmmakers working today. Possibly not even top ten.

Quote:
Heady stuff, amigo!
As for Lean, love the guy. Hope you got the special edition of Bridge On the River Kwai. A great disc. Breath-taking menus & insightful commentary from a legend. Though Lawrence jumped ahead of it again on my all-time top twenty, Bridge is an absolute masterpiece! I need to see Brief Encounter.
I'm in college, so I do most of my renting from the Uni. library, and unfortunately they have a shitload of classics only on VHS, so that's how I got Dr. Zhivago and Bridge on the River Kwai on VHS, and apparently they lost Brief Encounter. Both of the VHS films were pretty good in quality, however.
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post #412 of 5505
5/17/08 at 5:16am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jakespeare View Post
Clockers is a fantastic film, and your dislike of Lee may have caused an atrocity somewhere in the world. STOP IT!
I thought it was pretty good, although I have my complaints with the film. And can you really say you like Spike Lee, the person? What is it about him that's even the least redeeming? His films are good but I wouldn't even classify him amongst the top five American filmmakers working today. Possibly not even top ten.

Quote:
Heady stuff, amigo!
As for Lean, love the guy. Hope you got the special edition of Bridge On the River Kwai. A great disc. Breath-taking menus & insightful commentary from a legend. Though Lawrence jumped ahead of it again on my all-time top twenty, Bridge is an absolute masterpiece! I need to see Brief Encounter.
I'm in college, so I do most of my renting from the Uni. library, and unfortunately they have a shitload of classics only on VHS, so that's how I got Dr. Zhivago and Bridge on the River Kwai on VHS, and apparently they lost Brief Encounter. Both of the VHS films were pretty good in quality, however.

African Queen is next.
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post #413 of 5505
5/17/08 at 10:27pm
I was just about to watch Deliverance. And yes, at the expense of my credibility (or maybe I have none) no I have never seen it. What do you guys (who's opinions I hold in high regard no sarcasm) have to say about that movie. I am pretty excited.
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post #414 of 5505
5/17/08 at 10:34pm
Watch it first....discuss later!!!!

Such a great film. A true 70's masterpiece. Burt is a fucking god. Unreal tension. I like to think of it as an existential/action-adventure/horror movie.
Enjoy!
(Poor Ned Beatty)
Trivia: originally cast choices-Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, & John Wayne!!!!
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post #415 of 5505
5/17/08 at 10:42pm
Today: Easy Rider & Midnight Cowboy!
Tonight (Hopefully) Taxi Driver And Rolling Thunder!
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post #416 of 5505
5/18/08 at 2:00am
Bout halfway thru Deliverance....Duelling Banjos was everything I hoped for. Love the conversation between the four after the first redneck gets killed. Everybody except for Burt thinking that they are still part of some fucking civilization. This really is as brutal as I heard and wished it was. Just some masterful filmmaking. Looking forward to the conclusion.
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post #417 of 5505
5/18/08 at 2:05am
Have fun!
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post #418 of 5505
5/18/08 at 4:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarkovsky View Post
I thought it was pretty good, although I have my complaints with the film. And can you really say you like Spike Lee, the person? What is it about him that's even the least redeeming? His films are good but I wouldn't even classify him amongst the top five American filmmakers working today. Possibly not even top ten.
Devin wrote recently in an article about David O. Russell something about just because an artist is a dick doesn't mean he is undeserving of respect. To me Spike Lee is not even a dick, but it applies.

I think as an artist Spike Lee is a master. He's not perfect: I was impressed with neither 25th Hour or Inside Man. But Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X and yes, even Clockers, more than make up for it. The man is constantly denied Oscars by an overtly PC, downright cowardly at times Academy (Driving Miss Daisy over Do the Right Thing? That seems right?), I would say he has a right to be combative, not just for that reason but for many others.

I put him right up there with Scorsese. I do put him in at the very least my top ten filmmakers, possibly my top five.
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post #419 of 5505
5/18/08 at 4:35pm
Well he is good, but the amount of controversy he generates towards himself and towards his film give the impression that anything he's made can be labeled high art, or at the very least, great film. And having seen everything you mentioned above, I can say that nothing he's made can be labeled as such, although I loved 25th hour.

Just watched American Crime, and Clue, which were both very good in their own way. Now on to Ed Wood.
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post #420 of 5505
5/18/08 at 10:15pm
Watched Easy Rider & Midnight Cowboy yesterday (couldn't handle Taxi Driver & Rolling Thunder) This was the first time I played Easy R. on my improved sound system. From the opening iconic chords of Born To Be Wild untill the tragic end, I was captivated like never before. (I had thrown around the overrated word in my circle--no more!

Midnight Cowboy is just about perfect. What a dazzling, smart film-won't find much subversive art this endearing! (On the doc., Hoffman praised the lack of traditional narrative, audiences were so much more sophisticated then (damn you, Lucas!) What chemistry & emotion between Hoffman & Voight. I still tear up at the end. And is Everybody's Talkin' like the best song from a movie ever?
Lyrics still haunt:
everybody's talkin at me,
don't hear a word they're sayin
nothing but the echoes in my mind

(Can't stress enough) If you haven't, see it.
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post #421 of 5505
5/18/08 at 10:36pm
Midnight Cowboy is probably the last great American movie from the 70s that I've yet to see. Need to get on that. Left for a bit, but I'm about halfway through Ed Wood, and I like it - yet like most of Burton's work, it's not nearly as good as I thought it'd be, and certainly undeserving of IMDB top #250 status. Opinion of course.
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post #422 of 5505
5/19/08 at 12:09am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fat Elvis View Post
On the doc., Hoffman praised the lack of traditional narrative, audiences were so much more sophisticated then (damn you, Lucas!)
Lucas used to be very experimental with narrative. Watch (or re-watch) THX-1138 and American Graffitti and check out how he's conveying information.
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post #423 of 5505
5/19/08 at 12:24am
I've mentioned this many, many times, but now that Scorsese has an Oscar, Spike is the American filmmaker most in need of one. I don't like to throw around the word "important," but he's an important voice in cinema with a few undeniable masterpieces under his belt and many, many other very good films. A couple of stinkers, sure, and ones that don't quite work. But he's one of the undeniable greats, and I will fight anyone who thinks otherwise.
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post #424 of 5505
5/19/08 at 12:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hammerhead View Post
Lucas used to be very experimental with narrative. Watch (or re-watch) THX-1138 and American Graffitti and check out how he's conveying information.
Yeah, I was just kidding with the Lucas cheapshot. Love AMERICAN GRAFFITTI! (Really need to check out THX again-been a while)
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post #425 of 5505
5/19/08 at 12:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by RathBandu View Post
I've mentioned this many, many times, but now that Scorsese has an Oscar, Spike is the American filmmaker most in need of one. I don't like to throw around the word "important," but he's an important voice in cinema with a few undeniable masterpieces under his belt and many, many other very good films. A couple of stinkers, sure, and ones that don't quite work. But he's one of the undeniable greats, and I will fight anyone who thinks otherwise.
While I share your sentiments, Rath-I think he was really overpraised for INSIDE MAN. It's like he was given kudos just for delivering a solid, mainstream film.
It wasn't THE DEPARTED.
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post #426 of 5505
5/19/08 at 1:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarkovsky View Post
I'm in college, so I do most of my renting from the Uni. library, and unfortunately they have a shitload of classics only on VHS, so that's how I got Dr. Zhivago and Bridge on the River Kwai on VHS, and apparently they lost Brief Encounter. Both of the VHS films were pretty good in quality, however.
I suggest hitting up the local public library. That's how I watched the three Leans you mentioned multiple times. I think they all know me by name now. They have around maybe 200 Criterion DVDs, as well. It's free and the rentals are for 3 weeks. Good stuff.

As for me, I'll be watching Die Hard for the very first time. Hope it holds up after all of the high praise it's been given and without any childhood nostalgia for it.
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post #427 of 5505
5/19/08 at 1:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fat Elvis View Post
While I share your sentiments, Rath-I think he was really overpraised for INSIDE MAN. It's like he was given kudos just for delivering a solid, mainstream film.
It wasn't THE DEPARTED.
Inside Man is great because it's mainstream, but it's still very much a Spike Lee movie. You want to talk about modern applications of the auteur theory if you believe in that kind of a thing -- you want to look at a filmmaker still finding ways to explore the same themes that have interested them through their entire career, themes of race and class and New York City, in a big studio picture -- that's a pretty damn good example of it. That and EASTERN PROMISES. And so it is in that regard, exactly like THE DEPARTED.

Also, it has this exchange:

Owen: "You should propose, settle down."
Denzel: "Thank you, bank robber."
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post #428 of 5505
5/19/08 at 2:12am
Inside Man needs a second viewing I think. The more people talk about it I'm convinced I was not paying close enough attention.

I respectfully disagree with anyone who says Do the Right Thing and Malcolm X are not great movies. Clockers I can see the problems, those first two are damn near perfect. Do the Right Thing might be possibly be my favorite film of the 1980's, but I'm not going to officially crown that title without a comprehensive list in front of me and viewings of the classics I undoubtedly missed.
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post #429 of 5505
5/19/08 at 2:20am
I only saw INSIDE MAN at the theatre. Remember remarking that the post-9/11 subtext was facinating. Full of typical acute Spike Lee observations. But unfortunately, the story was flat. That's my one problem with the auteur theory. Sometimes we give a pass, forgiving failure, because of messages & themes we appreciate.

(For example critics smarter than I, like Beaks, praise DePalma's BODY DOUBLE for everything going on under the surface. To me though it's a failure. The flow of the story is disjointed & winks at the audience unsuccessfully)
(I see the irony of taking this position after praising MIDNIGHT COWBOY. But Cowboy works. If you take chances, go off the beaten path, you better deliver)
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post #430 of 5505
5/19/08 at 4:04am
Nil By Mouth is sitting in the PS3, waiting for me to finish my laundry. I figured I'd get a little Winstone fix before Crystal Skull. Never seen it, hope it's great.

I liked Inside Man very much, I just felt it was a little light.
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post #431 of 5505
5/19/08 at 4:27am
Winstone is simply stunningly good in that film - it may be his best performance for my money. Kathy Burke deserves more accolades for her amazing performance as well.

Don't go expecting a fun day out at the moview tho - Ive seen it once back in '97 in the cinema and I still remember it vivedly - its burned on my consciosness.

Oldman really, REALLY needs to direct again
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post #432 of 5505
5/19/08 at 7:00am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nicholas View Post
I suggest hitting up the local public library. That's how I watched the three Leans you mentioned multiple times. I think they all know me by name now. They have around maybe 200 Criterion DVDs, as well. It's free and the rentals are for 3 weeks. Good stuff.

As for me, I'll be watching Die Hard for the very first time. Hope it holds up after all of the high praise it's been given and without any childhood nostalgia for it.
Man I wish I'd known that before the end of the year. I'm in Phoenix with a host family for the summer, so hopefully there's a library here that I can get my hands on. Out of curiosity where in proximity to the university is the public library? I don't have a car in the states, much less a license.
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post #433 of 5505
5/19/08 at 2:36pm
Tonight I'm going classic SNL. Going to roll through seasons one & two this week! (Season Three is my faveorite-amazon order here I come)
Also TAXI DRIVER & ROLLING THUNDER await on deck!
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post #434 of 5505
5/19/08 at 9:50pm
Yeah, Nil By Mouth totally wasn't fun. Very, very good, though. Winstone is a crazy motherfucker in it. It has this weird flow to it. With the way the camera will have two people in the shot and rack the focus between the two of them during a conversation. I'm thinking mainly the scene early in the movie where Winstone's buddy is telling one of his many stories. It gives you the feeling that you're in the room, just chilling, listening along with everyone else. And then someone's nose gets bitten. Nose biting happens. Good flick, not something I need to see again and Oldman very needs to direct again.
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post #435 of 5505
5/20/08 at 1:08am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarkovsky View Post
Man I wish I'd known that before the end of the year. I'm in Phoenix with a host family for the summer, so hopefully there's a library here that I can get my hands on. Out of curiosity where in proximity to the university is the public library? I don't have a car in the states, much less a license.
There are about 30 different branches but I think the Quincy Douglas branch is closest to campus: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=e...,0.043259&om=1
And so I don't derail this thread even more, Serpico is up next in the queue, followed by Network, then finally, I'll get around to seeing Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
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post #436 of 5505
5/20/08 at 1:13am
I'm watching Diary of the Dead tomorrow.

Repeat after me:
It can't suck as bad as everyone says.
It can't suck as bad as everyone says.
It can't suck as bad as everyone says.
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post #437 of 5505
5/20/08 at 1:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jakespeare View Post
I'm watching Diary of the Dead tomorrow.

Repeat after me:
It can't suck as bad as everyone says.
It can't suck as bad as everyone says.
It can't suck as bad as everyone says.
Lolz! I'm afraid it is. (We'll always have Night & Dawn)
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post #438 of 5505
5/20/08 at 6:23am
Insanely busy. Will finish Ed Wood in less than a half hour and start hopefully Empire of the Sun before fall asleep.
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post #439 of 5505
5/20/08 at 12:28pm
F For Fake
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post #440 of 5505
5/20/08 at 6:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fat Elvis View Post
Midnight Cowboy is just about perfect. What a dazzling, smart film-won't find much subversive art this endearing! (On the doc., Hoffman praised the lack of traditional narrative, audiences were so much more sophisticated then (damn you, Lucas!) What chemistry & emotion between Hoffman & Voight. I still tear up at the end. And is Everybody's Talkin' like the best song from a movie ever?

(Can't stress enough) If you haven't, see it.

Yes yes yes yes YES! Late to comment on this one, but this movie is without doubt one of my all-time favorites. Actually, early Hoffman has been really good to me with first-time viewings of Midnight Cowboy and The Graduate within the past 2 years (both of which I regret waiting so long to see, love them both to death)

It'll be a few more days, but The Last Temptation of Christ and Eyes Without a Face just shipped out in my general direction. So excited
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post #441 of 5505
5/20/08 at 6:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Trejo View Post
Yes yes yes yes YES! Late to comment on this one, but this movie is without doubt one of my all-time favorites. Actually, early Hoffman has been really good to me with first-time viewings of Midnight Cowboy and The Graduate within the past 2 years (both of which I regret waiting so long to see, love them both to death)

It'll be a few more days, but The Last Temptation of Christ and Eyes Without a Face just shipped out in my general direction. So excited
Thanks. Check out SCARECROW. Watched late last night. A nowhere near as good , but still pretty damn great existential-buddy-road picture with Pacino and Hackman. It's funny; centered by fantastic work from the big guy. The ending's a heart-breaking ,gut punch! A true underrated sleeper.
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post #442 of 5505
5/21/08 at 12:40am
So I forgot that Diary of the Dead apparently falls under the deal with Ballbuster under Dimension. Nobody in town has it. I should've remembered that, same thing happened with Teeth a week or two ago.

Watching Summer of Sam instead. Gotta say, I'm loving it.
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post #443 of 5505
5/21/08 at 4:54am
Watched Redbelt tonight, and I was pleasantly surprised by how the movie was. I guess I had forgotten that Mamet really doesn't write in the "expected" ways, and that's what make his films so unique, and sometimes even great. This one falls under the unique category, but it's definitely a film that justifies the time spent in watching it.

Nearly finished with Empire of the Sun, after that it's going to be In the Heat of The Night, Howard Hughes's Hell's Angels, and......Kids...not sure how I feel about watching it, but that's never stopped me before. Anyone have an opinion on either that or Hell's Angels?
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post #444 of 5505
5/21/08 at 8:23am
These early SNL episodes are working pretty well for me! (It probably helps I have like 3 books on the show's history; knowing the backstory for famous skits adds to a facinating watch) Chevy Chase & John Belushi were on fire from the get go. (Belushi especially, so great! The Joe Cocker impersonation so mean & hilarious at the same time!)Love the Albert Brooks short films! It's the damn muppets that kill momentum. (Jane Curtain doesn't get enough love; so solid, and important to show's balance.) <A fave early skit "Dangerous But Inept" with Squeaky Fromme>
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post #445 of 5505
5/21/08 at 2:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarkovsky View Post
Anyone have an opinion on either that or Hell's Angels?
Hell's Angels is the definition of 'mixed bag'. Some sequences are silent, some talkie; some tinted, some black-and-white; there's one bit in early Technicolor. Coming from any other filmmaker this could be considered an artistic choice but Hughes is clearly too obsessed with innovation to stick with any one system. If he's gone on longer, he probably would have added scenes in 70mm or 3-D.

The two major aviation sequences are remarkable, though so stylistically different they seem to be from separate films.

Jean Harlow makes an impression (with only three scenes), but her character is just a device to interfere with the bond between the male leads. The 'two-guys-and-a-girl' scenario is handled much better (and comes across much less overtly gay-- your mileage may vary) in William Wellman's Wings. The actual plot, and its resolution, has nothing to do with aviation at all.
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post #446 of 5505
5/22/08 at 5:26am
In the last 24 hours I've watched Summer of Sam, Elephant and Last Days (Im hoping to get threads started on these films as I'm anxious to discuss them with ye folk) and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull which I just want to stop talking about. Blech.
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post #447 of 5505
5/22/08 at 5:30am
Fat Girl.

Why the fuck can't the French end a goddamn movie correctly?
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post #448 of 5505
5/22/08 at 7:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jakespeare View Post
In the last 24 hours I've watched Summer of Sam, Elephant and Last Days (Im hoping to get threads started on these films as I'm anxious to discuss them with ye folk) and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull which I just want to stop talking about. Blech.
Sounds great!
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post #449 of 5505
5/23/08 at 4:01pm
The Seventh Seal

I'm excited.
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post #450 of 5505
5/24/08 at 2:07am
It's a damn fine picture, had the pleasure of seeing that one on big screen in Stockholm with Ingmar Bergman in the audience - this was a few years ago, when I didn't appreciate it as much. Still a great story.

Watching The Eiger Sanction followed by The Tracey Fragments and The Verdict.
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