Author Topic: Write about the last movie you watched (2006-2010)  (Read 5996944 times)

oldkid

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27640 on: February 19, 2010, 01:08:34 AM »

The Decalogue 1-3
I believe that  Krzysztof Kieślowski is truly one of the greatest writer/directors of all time.  

The Decalogue is fantastic - it has been about 10 years since I last saw it, but it is still a favourite of mine!

A Short Film About Killing and A Short Film About Love both expand on this series perfectly - adding a lot of detail to part 5 & 6.

I'm trying to figure out which I should watch first-- the rest of the Decalogue or the two "Short Films".  What do you think?
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sdedalus

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27641 on: February 19, 2010, 01:34:00 AM »
Bluebeard was one of the wife's favorites at the festival.  I liked it too, but the ending (with the two girls) didn't really work for me.

Yeah, didn't care for that ending either but chose to forget about it as soon as I was done with the movie :).

That's about where I ended up as well.

As for Rivette, Celine and Julie Go Boating is totally breezy.
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oldkid

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27642 on: February 19, 2010, 02:01:54 AM »
Reruns I watched this week:

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels-- Frank Oz's fun con film.  Michael Caine is brilliant as always.  A couple really memorial scenes.  3.5/5

Sita Sings The Blues-- I really love the animation.  I wish the second half didn't have as much repetition.  Because of this film I have fallen in love with Annette Hanshaw's music. 

Also, if anyone is interested, my longer essay on Food Inc. and poverty is here:
http://stevekimes.blogspot.com/2010/02/food-inc.html
"It's not art unless it has the potential to be a disaster." Bansky

jdc

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27643 on: February 19, 2010, 03:09:48 AM »
Interesting write up on your blog.  I remember the backlash the Maher got once from bring up the corn subsidies for one of the reasons American's are getting fatter but I thought his argument was quite valid. 

I traveled many places to see that the cost of food can very cheap (Thailand/Vietnam) to very expensive (Japan) though it will always be relative to your income level.  In general, the cost of a fast food meal here is expensive to the cost of most local food court meals which usually contain a lot of veggies.  But the practice of raising and producing the food is likely quite low everywhere. 
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Pratters

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27644 on: February 19, 2010, 03:49:30 AM »
I just want to say I am a newbie and am loving reading this forum. It rocks!

sdedalus

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27645 on: February 19, 2010, 05:59:30 AM »
Shutter Island - Good, not great.  I don't know how to talk about the plot without spoiling it.  Scorsese does some interesting things with the editing in the beginning, but either I quit paying attention, or his technique settled down as the film went on, because I don't remember much of interest after the first half hour or so.
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tjwells

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27646 on: February 19, 2010, 07:16:01 AM »
“In war, life is so simple. It’s only afterwards that complications arise.”



I’d like to preface this review by pointing out that this is only the second of von Trier’s films that I have seen, the other being his occasionally brilliant, often awful, always interesting Antichrist. However, if these two films are any indication of his overall style, I’ve already picked up several things about him; he knows how to frame a shot, he loves mixing in black humor in the oddest situations, and it seems like he can’t resist a shocking ending. So with that, I give you…Europa.

The story follows Leopold Kessler, an American who goes AWOL and comes to Germany in the months after World War II to become a sleeping car conductor on the Zentropa Rail Lines. Along the way he meets the family that owns the line, falls in love, and gets involved with The Werwolves.



There’s a lot to like about this film. Right off the bat, Max von Sydow’s haunting narration draws you in like a hypnotist. It was brilliant casting on von Trier’s part, although only the second best choice in the film (the first being Lemmy Caution himself Eddie Contsantine as Colonel Harris). I also really enjoyed all the themes he’s exploring here; pacifism, the necessity of evil, religion (or lack-there-of). One of the most interesting things was the irony of Kessler’s pacifism; precisely BECAUSE he was so neutral, everyone was able to manipulate and control him to do whatever they wanted, ultimately making him more evil than them.

Von Trier’s camera is always alive, as well. A large number of shots start right up against a window looking in, then pull back, as if to make the viewer almost a voyeur spying on these conversations. His restraint is very impressive; several scenes would probably work just as well if the camera moved along a bit faster, but he was clearly determined to keep the pacing the entire way through. Look out for a particularly gorgeous shot of an open-air midnight mass near the middle of the film; one of the most gorgeous sequences I’ve seen in awhile. Finally, the cast is uniformly good. Jean-Marc Barr, who plays the pacifist Kessler with just about the blankest slate you’ve ever seen, will seem like horrible casting until about the last ten minutes, when you realize why von Trier made the decision. Stick with it, it pays off.



Honestly, I really enjoyed this film. I only had one qualm with it, although it’s a pretty big one. Very early on in the film, we’re introduced to a device that von Trier ends up using a lot through the course of the film. And that is (as shown above) the choice to film the majority of the film in black and white, but intercutting some scenes with both and others in just straight color. On the surfance, I didn’t really have a problem with it. It’s interesting, and looks kind of cool. The problem I found, after awhile, was that there’s NO REASON FOR IT. Never once did I pick up on it symbolizing certain things in certain scenes. More likely than not, I’m just missing something, but it really bugged me.

After having sat through two entire Lars von Trier films, the biggest conclusion I’ve come to is that the man just isn’t as controversial as critics like to make him out to be. He makes interesting, if sometimes odd or experimental, films, that don’t contain half the controversy they’re said to. And knowing that things like Dancer in the Dark or Dogville weren’t quite as controversial really makes me wonder what all the fuss is about.

Read the rest of the reviews for this month’s project here.

Sam the Cinema Snob

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27647 on: February 19, 2010, 07:44:57 AM »
The Decalogue 1-3
I believe that  Krzysztof Kieślowski is truly one of the greatest writer/directors of all time.  
Glad to see you're getting into these. Make sure to check out the A Short Film About Killing and Love.

Love is actually one of my favorite Kieslowski films now.

jbissell

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27648 on: February 19, 2010, 08:42:10 AM »
24 City
Also, one of my favorite shots of last year is here-- where you see flowering trees, and the camera is lifted above them, where you find it was only a sign and behind the sign are bulldozers leveling a basketball court.

I tried really hard to capture that moment but only a video clip would do it justice.

jdc

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #27649 on: February 19, 2010, 09:02:10 AM »
Julie and Julia

If for no other reason, this movie is good as I finally know what to do with the two bottles of port wine I have.  Next weekend is Mushrooms with port wine and cream. 
"Beer. Now there's a temporary solution."  Homer S.
“The direct use of physical force is so poor a solution to the problem of limited resources that it is commonly employed only by small children and great nations” - David Friedman

 

love