Author Topic: Phil vs FilmStruck  (Read 2964 times)

philip918

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Phil vs FilmStruck
« on: September 29, 2017, 12:33:54 PM »
Just subscribed to FilmStruck and going to make a real effort to fill in some of my biggest director gaps. I'm planning on starting with a limit of three films per director.

Bresson
A Man Escaped ****1/2
Pickpocket **1/2
Au Hasard Balthazar

Ray
Pather Panchali ****
Aparajito
Apur Sansar

Kieslowski
Three Colors: Blue *****
Three Colors: White ****1/2
Three Colors: Red *****

Yang
Taipei Story
A Brighter Summer Day
Yi Yi

Truffaut
The 400 Blows ***
Jules and Jim ****
Shoot the Piano Player

Vidor
The Big Parade
Bardelys the Magnificent
The Crowd

Ozu
Late Spring
Early Summer
Tokyo Story

Wenders
The American Friend
Paris, Texas
Wings of Desire

Loose Ends
Dragon Inn ***1/2
The Ninth Configuration
Fallen Angels
Carnival of Souls ****
Brief Encounter ***1/2
« Last Edit: November 20, 2017, 01:46:45 PM by philip918 »

Teproc

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #1 on: September 29, 2017, 03:13:41 PM »
Jules y Jim

Is that Francesco Truffaldes's remake ?  ;D

Filmstruck has quite the catalogue. Is it literally all of Criterion ?
Legend: All-Time Favorite | Great  |  Very Good  |  Good  |  Poor  |  Bad

Letterbox'd

philip918

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #2 on: September 29, 2017, 06:04:50 PM »
Ha! Fixed.

It isn't all of Criterion. Honestly, browsing their entire catalogue, it probably is only about a quarter. I'm sure Criterion still wants to drive people toward the discs they produce.

philip918

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #3 on: October 10, 2017, 12:20:19 PM »
Pather Panchali (1955) ****


What a lovely and heartbreaking film. Karuna Bannerjee gives an astounding performance. There's an incredible score by Ravi Shankar and fantastic images from Subrata Mitra.

One thing that struck me after watching, is the universality of story. If you gave a simple description of the plot it would read like a Jane Austen novel: A poor family trying to get by. A husband failing to provide. A resourceful wife at her breaking point. The strictures of caste. Thoughts of marriage for a beautiful daughter.

But it's all in the details as well. There are lovely grace notes like Durga fatefully dancing in the rain. The train scene is both moving and eye-opening. As Apu and Durga walk under the towering power lines it is made clear that parts of the country are rapidly developing while their poor little village, and especially their home, is stuck in the past.
« Last Edit: November 20, 2017, 10:47:50 AM by philip918 »

Corndog

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #4 on: October 10, 2017, 12:31:29 PM »
Great idea Phil! I haven't subscribed to FilmStruck yet because I know I wouldn't watch it enough to make it worth it. Doing something like this is the perfect way to get your money's worth, that's for sure!
"Time is the speed at which the past decays."

philip918

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #5 on: October 10, 2017, 12:40:06 PM »
Three Colors: Blue (1993) *****


One of the most powerful films I've ever seen. And Kieslowski makes it look so easy. I was gripped from the first frame to the last. Clues to the mystery are delivered with laser-guided efficiency and deliver maximum impact. The first being a reporter shouting, "Did you write your husband's music?", which opens up the story to surprising new angles.

Binochet gives an all-time great performance.
« Last Edit: November 20, 2017, 10:48:02 AM by philip918 »

philip918

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #6 on: October 10, 2017, 12:40:57 PM »
Great idea Phil! I haven't subscribed to FilmStruck yet because I know I wouldn't watch it enough to make it worth it. Doing something like this is the perfect way to get your money's worth, that's for sure!

Yeah, I needed something to focus on. Criterion was on Hulu for years and I don't think I watched a single film.

philip918

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #7 on: October 10, 2017, 12:55:07 PM »
Three Colors: White (1994) ****1/2


A surprisingly twisty and twisted revenge tale, which is slightly undercut by my mostly sympathizing with Julie Delpy's Dominque. I think Karol's impotence is related to the disorienting and emasculating experience of being an outsider. As soon as he's back in Poland we see him regain his confidence, to a fearful degree really, and his virility. There is great dark humor. Karol, hidden in a suitcase, being stolen by thugs and then beaten and left in a landfill only to declare: "I'm home." made me laugh out loud.

Zamachowski is really great and Janusz Gajos is particularly effecting as the haunted Mikolaj. He struck me as a world-weary angel, or perhaps a devil. Delpy is radiant and frightening in her acidic conviction.
« Last Edit: November 20, 2017, 10:48:13 AM by philip918 »

philip918

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #8 on: October 10, 2017, 01:35:19 PM »
Three Colors: Red (1994) *****


An incredible opening shot (copied by Fincher years later) that follows a phone call through the cables across the English Channel, and then an ending that sent chills up and down my spine. Just an amazing culmination of story and imagery. Irčne Jacob is simply captivating. Full of warmth, curiosity, and compassion.

Again, the power of story is on my mind. Specifically the power of perspective. The film ends with a terrible tragedy. Hundreds, possibly thousands, dead in a ferry disaster. But, when Valentine appears as one of the few survivors we feel complete elation. We feel that this story has a happy ending, even the beginning of a fated romance, despite so many unknown characters' stories coming to a tragic end. Storytelling, and cinema is especially, truly is an empathy machine.

Truly one of the great cinematic trilogies. All of them would be Top 100-worthy, so I'll probably cheat and group them together.
« Last Edit: November 20, 2017, 10:48:27 AM by philip918 »

philip918

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Re: Phil vs FilmStruck
« Reply #9 on: October 10, 2017, 03:13:09 PM »
Dragon Inn (1967) ***1/2


Long-anticipated and it mostly lives up to my expectations. King Hu is a titan. I have some issues with the pacing of A Touch of Zen, but the final 45 minutes is a transcendent cinematic experience. Come Drink With Me is pound-for-pound one of the most entertaining films I've ever seen. Dragon Inn is an amalgamation of both these experiences and a little less than either. It has a long, steady build to an epic showdown between our heroes and an extremely powerful villain, and there's a lot of action and fun character dynamics along the way.

Since, I seem to be fixating on the storytelling methods in the films I've been watching, what strikes me about the Wuxia genre is how it eschews the hero's journey. The often change perspectives halfway through the films or have a relatively minor character perform a heroic deed in the final moments. There's less focus on a singular hero, and more emphasis on the group.

« Last Edit: November 20, 2017, 10:48:39 AM by philip918 »

 

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