Author Topic: 1SO vs. All the Directors  (Read 85599 times)

smirnoff

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors
« Reply #310 on: March 02, 2018, 06:26:30 PM »
#97 Ron Howard Ranked List

The first director poll that I started.

I like Ron Howard and didn't believe people who called him a hack because he made a number of un-hacky directing choices. He was a crowd pleaser, like Rob Reiner, and that wasn't a bad thing. Lately his films have been less pleasing. Rush, Cinderella Man and Beautiful Man are the only ones from this decade I like, and The Grinch is one of the worst films ever made. Don't ask Ron Howard to be Tim Burton.

I could be cute and put the Marathon on hold until Solo comes out. I have to get to work, but I'll pull up something interesting.

I think of him as the non-visionary sort of director whose films really live or die on the quality of the story/script being strong. If it's a good story he won't screw it up, if it's kind of a nothing special story he won't do anything that somehow makes it a good film to watch anyway. I think of Clint Eastwood, Curtis Hanson and Peter Weir in the same way. Do you agree with that assessment?

I don't mean anything negative in the "non-visionary" lable... films are ruined by a director's baggage as often as they're improved. Your comments about The Hateful Eight being a good example.




1SO

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors
« Reply #311 on: March 03, 2018, 02:29:17 PM »
Two films I think about most when assessing Ron Howard being non-visionary.

A Beautiful Mind: If you haven't seen it, the first half requires very special handling. It's essentially a magic trick, and you can't fumble it or the entire project is a failure. Eventually the film becomes very standard biopic fare, but the way Howard crafts that opening shows he has more than a workmanlike ability.

EdTV: I watched this on DVD and it contained a lot of deleted scenes that hinted at a very different movie. It left me with a new insight about Howard because he could have included all of the other material, none of which were wisely cut but which point to a much different film. The script was more of a drama and the emotional scenes gave it a balance of laughter and heart that might've put it closer to Parenthood. (A great scene I still remember is Ed's father passes away and the family asks Ed to stay away at the funeral because they don't want all the cameras around. We watch Ed trapped by his own celebrity, shut out by his relatives, and it's heartfelt without being the least bit mawkish.) I don't know if it was wise to cut it all out, but it shows that he's not a filmmaker tied too closely to what is on the page.

I think Howard brings the style he feels the story needs. So while Ransom doesn't cover any new ground it shows Howard understands more than just comedy.


I haven't looked at my options for Howard yet, but I'm considering a deeper dive, including his debut Grand Theft Auto and perhaps re-watches of Ransom and The Paper. I might even watch Inferno after all.

smirnoff

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors
« Reply #312 on: March 04, 2018, 03:47:28 AM »
At this point I don't remember A Beautiful Mind, but I have seen it. EdTV would be a first time for me, but something about it always failed to grab me. Maybe it was the likeness to the Truman Show, or just that the whole premise has been kind of caught up with reality and it's annoying. :-\

1SO

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors - Leos Carax
« Reply #313 on: March 05, 2018, 09:14:08 AM »
#98 Leos Carax Ranked List

The last paragraph of my Mauvais sang review says it best.
This is the type of film that can be very appealing to a large cinematic group that I am not one of. There's a quote I love by Otie Wheeler on Letterboxd that goes "The kind of movie that, even on a third viewing, makes you ashamed of the last 100 movies you watched, the last 100 days you lived or rather didn't, your humdrum existence a pathetic placeholder for what should be called living." I'm more of a grindhouse guy, but I at least appreciated Carax's talent.

Selecting a film here is easy, since I haven't seen Boy Meets Girl. I would also rewatch Holy Motors, but we're getting close to the end of the decade and that's already high on my list for a 2nd look when I get to my Best of the Decade marathons.

1SO

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors - Fernando Arrabal
« Reply #314 on: March 05, 2018, 09:59:29 PM »
#99 Fernando Arrabal

This presents an interesting case. This thread was created by FarfetchFilm in April, 2010, who then disappeared in April, 2011. The thread contains 6 posts, 3 saying they've never heard of the director and 3 by FfF who "thought this guy was famous." When I did the Director Ratings Project, Arrabel was the only person to receive Zero votes. In 2014, I posted...
I can't even find one of his films, except on Fandor, which seems to have his entire output.
I will have to see if this has changed. Meanwhile, Arrabel's output remains small. He has 6 director credits, his last one being a TV Movie in 1993

DarkeningHumour

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors
« Reply #315 on: March 09, 2018, 05:51:25 AM »
#94 Lars Von Trier Ranked List

While he was never a favorite director, there was a time when I would watch anything he made because after watching dozens of regular films, it's good to find someone who can still provoke me. Breaking the Waves is one of my top Mess-terpieces, a film I saw in the theater and bought the day it was released on home video. One of the most emotional experiences I've had with a film.

Do you have a complete list of your Messterpieces?

#95 Joel and Ethan Coen Ranked List

Another poll without options for Haven't Seen/Don't Like, which is fitting because if that's where your vote would go you're probably on the wrong forum. Definitely among the best, even if I've low-ranked some of their titles. Some films - A Serious Man - took a re-watch for me to like it, which is why I'm planning to re-watch Miller's Crossing (for the 3rd time) for this project.

You should watch it a fourth time...
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1SO

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors
« Reply #316 on: March 09, 2018, 08:29:40 AM »
Do you have a complete list of your Messterpieces?
All my charts and lists, this is never something I tracked.


I'm planning to re-watch Miller's Crossing (for the 3rd time) for this project.

You should watch it a fourth time...
I've gotten the same result all 3 times, and most recently I didn't even have a new way to describe my intense, burning indifference. I'll be surprised if I return again to this film in my lifetime.

1SO

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1SO vs. All the Directors - Douglas Sirk
« Reply #317 on: March 09, 2018, 08:44:17 AM »
#100 Douglas Sirk Ranked List

Like most, my appreciation for Sirk starts with his genre-defining melodramas of the 1950s, but he has a more varied filmography, from his 5 Film-Noirs to his multiple films featuring George Sanders. I'm also curious why Sirk's famous melodramas don't extend to his two films starring Barbara Stanwyck, There's Always Tomorrow and All I Desire, while The Tarnished Angels is often listed as Sirk's surprise for those who wish to seek it out.

Magnificent Obsession has been on my Watchlist for years, with availability always a problem. I'm also planning to watch A Time to Love and a Time to Die, another 2nd tier Sirk that comes up a lot. Had this been Noirvember I would probably watch Thunder on the Hill, but since we're doing Westerns this month, I'm including Take Me to Town, starring Ann Sheridan.

DarkeningHumour

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors
« Reply #318 on: March 09, 2018, 09:07:57 AM »
You had me at George Sanders.
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jdc

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Re: 1SO vs. All the Directors
« Reply #319 on: March 09, 2018, 06:08:22 PM »



I'm planning to re-watch Miller's Crossing (for the 3rd time) for this project.

You should watch it a fourth time...
I've gotten the same result all 3 times, and most recently I didn't even have a new way to describe my intense, burning indifference. I'll be surprised if I return again to this film in my lifetime.

As much as I think you are wrong, I can't help love the description of "intense, burning indifference." I am going to borrow that from you sometime over this weekend
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