I've been trying out one of the UK netflix equivalents, so have seen some dope films recently. Here's the skinny on a handful:
I Heart Hukabees - Thought this was pretty sweet and not at all what I was expecting - much more original. It had a real case of the Eternal-Sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind's, probably because the same dude did the score, which gave them both that kind of hazy-neurotico-whimsy feeling. I couldn't help but think of Tom Cruise, whenever I saw Schwartzman though - looked kinda like the cruiser in Magnolia with the lank hair and all. It's also the first film that I've been able to tolerate the twinkly-eyed-charms of Jude Law in - a good choice to play a smarm bag.
Garden State - not sure about this one - had it's moments, but left me with the feeling that I'd just seen something about as genuinely substantial as an hour and a half long episode of Dawson's Creek.
Napoleon Dynamite - Loved this, it's just a handful of vaguely amusing skits really, but had enough charm to make it work real well. Definitely a case of the whole adding up to more that the sum of the parts and all that.
Ali - Liked this, but get 'When we were Kings' instead if you've seen neither.
Capturing the Friedmans - Cracking good documentary, really fucked up and well edited to give it a real narrative feel. Crazy shit seeing a family fall apart like that.
Carandiru - Good film about a prison in Sao Paulo and all of the characters doing time. I would recommend this to anyone that liked City of God and City of Men, although it's not really the same thing. In fact the only real similarity is that it's Brazilian, but don't nitpick - just watch it OK!
You can Count on Me - Quite good, had well realised, non-simplistic characters that I felt like a gave a shit about what happened to them. Worth a watch on a Sunday afternoon type of joint.
10 Rillington Place - Dark, 70's, British serial killer film. Great central performances from Hurt and Attenborough, shot and lit superbly to give a real sense of sinister everyday menace.
As a fan of both L'avventura and Tarkovsky's body of work, I can't see how you'd recommend one and criticize the other. The only Tarkovsky I can see as 'boring' is Solaris, which is still pretty dope...
Are you serious?! If you can see how "Solaris" might be boring to people, you should be able to see how films like "Stalker", "The Sacrifice", and especially "Andrei Rublev" would be perceived as boring as well. Similar length. Similar demand on viewer to find meaning.
Good timing, eh? You kinda misunderstood me. The original point was L'avventura vs. Tarkovsky in terms of one being boring and the other one not. I can't see that. L'Avventura requires just as much patience from the viewer as most Tarkovsky pictures. That said, Solaris is the only Tarkovsky I personally found somewhat boring.
Out of new films, I just saw Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and War of the Worlds and disliked both.
As a fan of both L'avventura and Tarkovsky's body of work, I can't see how you'd recommend one and criticize the other. The only Tarkovsky I can see as 'boring' is Solaris, which is still pretty dope...
Are you serious?! If you can see how "Solaris" might be boring to people, you should be able to see how films like "Stalker", "The Sacrifice", and especially "Andrei Rublev" would be perceived as boring as well. Similar length. Similar demand on viewer to find meaning.
Tarkovsky's oeuvre is pretty much unassailable - from the childhood reflections of 'The Mirror' to the apocalyptic 'The Sacrifice' featurin' Ingmar Bergman stalwart Erland Josephson - even Tarkovsky's student film is somethin' to behold and 'Solaris''s meditations on lost love, identity, memory, etc. are at least prime fodder for contemplative reflection... As for Antonioni, he moved away from the then in vogue Italian neo-realist school to examine situations of dislocation and alienation, explorin' this theme time and time again - one that stands out is 'Red Desert' ('64) starrin' Monica Vitti and Richard Harris...
Kassovitz's 'La haine' may be the highlight of his directorial career (NOT career since bein' a poster boy for Lancome cosmetics has to rank up there)...
Most current 'mainstream' (read: Hollywood) films favor heavily the 'action' facet of the Ignatian paradigm of 'action + contemplation'... Me, I'd rather sit down w/ Taiwan's Hou Hsieu Hsien (both his period and contemporary titles such as 'Millenium Mambo')...
I like this one too. Also on the Peter Weir creepiness tip, I strongly recommend "The Plumber", although it might still be vhs-only. Definately deserves a dvd release if it hasn't happened yet.
what have any of you seen lately that is really good...
Comments
I Heart Hukabees - Thought this was pretty sweet and not at all what I was expecting - much more original. It had a real case of the Eternal-Sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind's, probably because the same dude did the score, which gave them both that kind of hazy-neurotico-whimsy feeling. I couldn't help but think of Tom Cruise, whenever I saw Schwartzman though - looked kinda like the cruiser in Magnolia with the lank hair and all. It's also the first film that I've been able to tolerate the twinkly-eyed-charms of Jude Law in - a good choice to play a smarm bag.
Garden State - not sure about this one - had it's moments, but left me with the feeling that I'd just seen something about as genuinely substantial as an hour and a half long episode of Dawson's Creek.
Napoleon Dynamite - Loved this, it's just a handful of vaguely amusing skits really, but had enough charm to make it work real well. Definitely a case of the whole adding up to more that the sum of the parts and all that.
Ali - Liked this, but get 'When we were Kings' instead if you've seen neither.
Capturing the Friedmans - Cracking good documentary, really fucked up and well edited to give it a real narrative feel. Crazy shit seeing a family fall apart like that.
Carandiru - Good film about a prison in Sao Paulo and all of the characters doing time. I would recommend this to anyone that liked City of God and City of Men, although it's not really the same thing. In fact the only real similarity is that it's Brazilian, but don't nitpick - just watch it OK!
You can Count on Me - Quite good, had well realised, non-simplistic characters that I felt like a gave a shit about what happened to them. Worth a watch on a Sunday afternoon type of joint.
10 Rillington Place - Dark, 70's, British serial killer film. Great central performances from Hurt and Attenborough, shot and lit superbly to give a real sense of sinister everyday menace.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113247/
DO NOT SLEEP.
Are you serious?! If you can see how "Solaris" might be boring to people, you should be able to see how films like "Stalker", "The Sacrifice", and especially "Andrei Rublev" would be perceived as boring as well. Similar length. Similar demand on viewer to find meaning.
Out of new films, I just saw Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and War of the Worlds and disliked both.
Tarkovsky's oeuvre is pretty much unassailable - from the childhood reflections of 'The Mirror' to the apocalyptic 'The Sacrifice' featurin' Ingmar Bergman stalwart Erland Josephson - even Tarkovsky's student film is somethin' to behold and 'Solaris''s meditations on lost love, identity, memory, etc. are at least prime fodder for contemplative reflection... As for Antonioni, he moved away from the then in vogue Italian neo-realist school to examine situations of dislocation and alienation, explorin' this theme time and time again - one that stands out is 'Red Desert' ('64) starrin' Monica Vitti and Richard Harris...
Kassovitz's 'La haine' may be the highlight of his directorial career (NOT career since bein' a poster boy for Lancome cosmetics has to rank up there)...
Most current 'mainstream' (read: Hollywood) films favor heavily the 'action' facet of the Ignatian paradigm of 'action + contemplation'... Me, I'd rather sit down w/ Taiwan's Hou Hsieu Hsien (both his period and contemporary titles such as 'Millenium Mambo')...
I like this one too. Also on the Peter Weir creepiness tip, I strongly recommend "The Plumber", although it might still be vhs-only. Definately deserves a dvd release if it hasn't happened yet.
my best of the last two weeks: