Author Topic: The Top 100 Club (Mar 2013 - Aug 2015)  (Read 441550 times)

oldkid

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3600 on: June 12, 2015, 01:05:08 AM »
The Player (1992)

In a movie where so many people are playing themselves, how do you know who the actors are? The Player in many ways folds layers of reality into themselves, from cameos to the actors to the films pitched within the film, showing little regard for the separation. But in perhaps criticizing how fake Hollywood is, even in its reality, the opposing force is to make things more realistic, even in the fiction of the screen. Thus the two seem inextricably trapped.

On one hand the film plays as a pulp entertainment, a noirish crime story, flooded with California sunshine and color, about the lengths people will go to succeed in the industry. On the other hand, it is a biting, comedic satire about artificiality and the way the system discards or reforms everything that comes in front of it. It is pretty roundly successful in all aspects.

Due to the availability options, I ended up blind-buying this, digitally, because there was a $2 difference between renting and buying ($1 difference for HD) so it seemed worth the risk on the chance I'd watch it again, especially with a good history with Altman. I reckon that rewatch will come, and maybe not far off, if only to focus on spotting all the cameos I missed this time.

B+

The Player is one of a group of films that displays Hollywood's hypocrisy, but it does it with such a sense of humor and playfulness, that it is almost the opposite of the skewering of, say, Maps to the Stars, although it draws the same conclusion.   Altman is hit or miss with me, in his ensemble films, but this, like Gosford Park, is a sure hit, with all the cameos and the light satire.  I loved the meta nature of the film, mocking itself as a Hollywood film, along with Hollywood in general.  It so often uses itself as an example of the hypocrisy, I could put it next to Planet Terror in its self-awareness.
"It's not art unless it has the potential to be a disaster." Bansky

oldkid

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3601 on: June 12, 2015, 01:09:57 AM »
Scenes from a Marriage: Scene 1: Innocence and Panic.
 There is just real human drama and it is captivating.

And this is the thing of this film, that although there are specifics, it could almost be any marriage, with the same tug-of-war between love and resentment that pretty much any marriage has.  It's about relationships in general, and if you strip the details away then it is you sitting on the couch, analyzing your relationships and wondering if it is really right.  I could be speaking some of the script, and it would be honest, and painful and heart-wrenching. 
"It's not art unless it has the potential to be a disaster." Bansky

MartinTeller

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3602 on: June 13, 2015, 08:00:51 PM »

The Future - Sophie (Miranda July, also writing and directing) teaches dance to children.  Jason (Hamish Linklater) works from home doing tech support.  The two live together, four years into a comfortable relationship.  They come across an injured cat, who they name Paw-Paw (voiced by July) and take to the vet  They want to adopt Paw-Paw, but he's been diagnosed with kidney failure.  He needs another month in the hospital, and after that will require diligent care.  Foreseeing a future shackled with responsibility while their dreams fade away, they quit their jobs and follow their impulses.  Jason signs up with an environmental organization, selling trees door-to-door.  Sophie attempts to make a new YouTube dance video every day, but fails, instead entering an affair.

July's first feature, Me and You and Everyone We Know, felt lightweight but was enjoyable both because of and despite its quirkiness (it also is the source of one of the more memorable cards in "Cards Against Humanity").  Six years later, she delivers a disappointing sophomore film.  These two main characters are in their mid-30's but act at least 10 years younger.  They're mired in the sort of Gen-X slackerism that most of us left behind long ago.  They talk to each other in an annoyingly affected manner that suggests they're somewhere on the autism spectrum.  July says she hasn't had a day job since she was 23... this script indicates that she's still stuck at that age.

Some of it comes off like unconvincing shorthand.  See how these people belong together because they have the same haircut.  Love them because they're so whimsical and sensitive.  But they're stunted in their growth.  They can't seem to handle anything.  I couldn't make myself care about them, except hoping they didn't procreate and make more people just like them.  Of course, that's highly unlikely, considering how daunted they are by the responsibility of caring for a sick cat.

Surprisingly, among the movie's many quirks, the narrating cat is one of the more palatable ones.  "Paw-Paw" provides the only truly affecting moments, and more than anything I hoped that he would be okay.  There's a magic realism turn late in the film, one that serves as both a reasonably effective metaphor for depression and as a sort of relationship crisis wish-fulfillment.  And there is at least one good laugh in the movie ("I think that's racist").  It's mostly just the two main characters who ruin everything.  The quiet panic in their eyes, their kooky banter, their lack of direction... none of it is endearing.  July's film succeeds in its bold strokes, but fails in crafting sympathetic people to work with.  Rating: Poor (56)


Man, I hate posting negative reviews in this thread.  Sorry oldkid, this one just didn't click with me :/
« Last Edit: June 13, 2015, 08:08:25 PM by MartinTeller »

oldkid

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3603 on: June 13, 2015, 08:31:19 PM »
Doesn't bother me at all.  We aren't all going to like the same thing.  Not every film I love is Tsai. :)

I got some of the same feelings from the story-- the frustration of the immaturity of the couple, especially.  I love the quirky ways and the strange ideas that they have to try to make a living.  You may think of them as slackers, but I know many people who are desperately trying to make things work in their lives, but ultimately fail because they don't have the inner strength to accomplish any of the tasks they set themselves.  Thus, these people are both real and sympathetic to me.   What I like about this film is that while the narration sees the difficulty in this kind of life, and laughs at them in a gentle, non-judgmental way.

Nevertheless, this is a tragedy. I think by the end of the film, the real story is Paw-Paw's, and if we see the whole narrative from the perspective of the vulnerable, helpless one, who is supposed to be "taken care of" by two children, we understand the film for what it is.  Paw Paw IS a child, and the final horror of the film is that as easygoing as this couple is, ultimately they cannot love.  The turn from quirky to tragic is both effective, and powerful.
"It's not art unless it has the potential to be a disaster." Bansky

Jeff Schroeck

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3604 on: June 13, 2015, 09:36:07 PM »
Certified Copy (Abbas Kiarostami, 2010)

Like the readymades and repurposed objects of Jasper Johns and Andy Warhol mentioned early on in the film, I think I like the idea of this exploration of various versions of relationships than I like the execution of it. That’s not to say I didn’t like the film, because there is a lot to like about it. I just thought that by the time we get to the end of it and things seem like they’re back to the way they were at the beginning, it might not have been worth all of that time to get there.

It’s a gorgeous film. The Tuscan cityscape looks great, and I loved the reflection motif throughout the film, with many shots of mirrors and a cool looking shot of the buildings reflecting off the windshield as Elle and James drive away from her shop. Some shots are even of a character looking straight into the camera like a mirror.

Juliette Binoche and William Shimmel are great at subtly shifting from one version of what their relationship is to another. My favorite is James’s response to Elle’s appreciation of the strong, protective man in the statue. He misinterprets this and becomes an impatient, demanding jerk in a restaurant. That same statue is the focus of my favorite scene in the film. They are arguing over the worth and meaning of it, and she asks an older couple their opinion. She asks the woman to repeat her opinion to James, but Elle is upset that the woman won’t repeat an exact copy of her opinion from only a minute prior, which turns out not to have been an original thought at all!

We get a lot of scenes of domestic bickering, though, and it starts to become tedious. They compare themselves to younger and older couples and can’t achieve the boundless passion of the former or the tender and loving comfort of the latter. They spend an awfully long amount of time on how James fell asleep while Elle was getting herself ready for an intimate evening, and then spend more time on it comparing that to falling asleep behind the wheel of a car. To me, this all works better as a “what if” than it does as a full piece of art.
« Last Edit: November 08, 2015, 01:28:15 PM by Jeff Schroeck »

Bondo

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3605 on: June 13, 2015, 10:04:08 PM »
Sling Blade (1996)

There is something captivating in the stillness of performance from Billy Bob Thornton here as Karl, seemingly an autistic savant, who is released from a mental hospital where he spent many years after killing his mother and her boyfriend. Given this past, and his odd manner, we could see him naturally as a threat, but we, like many of the characters, are reassured by his passivity. Similarly, his monotone delivery might betray a lack of emotion that would worry us, but instead it feels like a lot of control. To me one of the most memorable scenes shows Karl in the foreground, sitting on a sofa, completely still and silent, as a domestic conflict erupts behind him. It is a contrast with a certain type of monster we have constructed in our minds and the reality of the type of horror that actually predominates.

Karl also presents an interesting character as it relates to faith, reverent and yet pragmatic. He finds strength in the Bible, and moral clarity that he didn't have as a child, but is not willing to ignore it if his lived experience conflicts with the text. Ultimately this temperate approach to his faith very much matches the rest of his character. It all makes for a calming, philosophical venture.

B

MartinTeller

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3606 on: June 14, 2015, 12:29:10 AM »
Nevertheless, this is a tragedy. I think by the end of the film, the real story is Paw-Paw's, and if we see the whole narrative from the perspective of the vulnerable, helpless one, who is supposed to be "taken care of" by two children, we understand the film for what it is.  Paw Paw IS a child, and the final horror of the film is that as easygoing as this couple is, ultimately they cannot love.  The turn from quirky to tragic is both effective, and powerful.

I like this take on it, a lot.  Perhaps my mistake was overestimating how much July wanted the audience to identify/sympathize with the characters.

Dave the Necrobumper

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3607 on: June 14, 2015, 03:12:42 AM »
Billy Bob Thornton's performance as Karl is great, he just nails the character.

chardy999

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3608 on: June 15, 2015, 08:52:09 AM »
Certified Copy – Abbas Kiarostami




The nature of a relationship is an inexact science, its existence built on intangibles, driven by emotions and defined by perspective. To certify it, to confirm it formally as true or genuine, is lunacy.

Here we spend time with a man (William Shimell) and a woman (Juliette Binoche) who inhabit characters that share a bizarre and fascinating interaction. A mutation of roles takes place and we are off to the races. I’m not sure where we are going but sharing the drive through the gorgeous Tuscan countryside will do wonders to alleviate any concerns. Indeed, the winding roads are littered with beautiful cypress trees whose value, the man argues, is underappreciated. Is it because we don’t spend the time? A simple man is given merit and credence simply because he is observed by his wife. Simple, right?

You can twist these things however you want, and the film can play however you want. It’s bold and admirable, and ripe to be loved.

I liked it a lot.
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oldkid

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Re: The Top 100 Club
« Reply #3609 on: June 15, 2015, 12:47:11 PM »
Sling Blade (1996)

There is something captivating in the stillness of performance from Billy Bob Thornton here as Karl, seemingly an autistic savant, who is released from a mental hospital where he spent many years after killing his mother and her boyfriend. Given this past, and his odd manner, we could see him naturally as a threat, but we, like many of the characters, are reassured by his passivity. Similarly, his monotone delivery might betray a lack of emotion that would worry us, but instead it feels like a lot of control. To me one of the most memorable scenes shows Karl in the foreground, sitting on a sofa, completely still and silent, as a domestic conflict erupts behind him. It is a contrast with a certain type of monster we have constructed in our minds and the reality of the type of horror that actually predominates.

Karl also presents an interesting character as it relates to faith, reverent and yet pragmatic. He finds strength in the Bible, and moral clarity that he didn't have as a child, but is not willing to ignore it if his lived experience conflicts with the text. Ultimately this temperate approach to his faith very much matches the rest of his character. It all makes for a calming, philosophical venture.

B

Here we have a serial killer, whom we can fully sympathize with.  At times he feels a bit creepy, but we remember his limitations and feel pity for him in many instances, and that covers us.  How often does pity overwhelm our sense of justice?  Or do we care that injustice is done, or a better justice can be done, because of karma? 
"It's not art unless it has the potential to be a disaster." Bansky