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Author Topic: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller  (Read 20459 times)

MartinTeller

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #50 on: June 16, 2018, 08:38:28 AM »
b]Linda, Linda, Linda[/b] (2005 - Nobuhiro Yamashita)

A reflection on the drifting with some idea of a direction, but not really sure. The 4 leads in this film are high school students that do not seem to study, they drift quietly between places. However their drifting has a direction, playing in the school festival.

On paper this would seem to be a boring movie, but it is not, these characters draw you into their world and you are pulled along with the slow moving current.

The soaking wet ending is lovely. This was not the style of film I was expecting (I was expecting a more raucous film), but I am very pleased to have experienced it.

Rating: 75 / 100

P.S. Sorry it has taken me so long to write this review up.

Very little of my high school experience centered around study, so I can relate!

Glad you enjoyed it. It's really the characters that make the film so lovable to me. They don't have big personalities but they're very authentic and endearing.

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #51 on: July 03, 2018, 02:02:22 AM »


An Actor's Revenge  (Ichikawa Kon, 1963)

I've let a few days pass since watching this, thinking a good review would crystallize in my head, but that hasn't really happened. A screenshot-based review would be more appropriate, really, but even that would fail to capture the film at its best, which is when the light shifts theatrically within the shots. I really loved the use of shadows and darkness here. Even though only a small part of the film is set on stage, the kabuki visuals permeate the entire film. It's like street theater, with the moon as the spotlight, always just managing to catch the action in its silvery glow. I like this description from Martin's original review: "Ichikawa demonstrates a masterful use of empty space, particularly black space. He exploits the widescreen scope in dazzling and unusual ways." (See here for his rewatch review.) I didn't have the same experience with the music, however; the jazzy elements felt all wrong to me. As for the story, I really wish it had been pure noir — or, at least, purely dark and gothic, like Hangover Square, for example. The light comedy of the thieves felt very 16th century to me, like they'd stepped out of Orlando Furioso. That's not what I wanted from this film. Plus, as a thief, Hasegawa looked distractingly like Tony Curtis (as if his dual role wasn't distracting enough already). I imagine Kinugasa's 1935 film of this story (also starring Hasegawa) is so different as to make any comparison pointless, but I'm still sort of curious to check it out.

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MartinTeller

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #52 on: July 03, 2018, 07:41:25 AM »
I never checked out the original myself.

When I joined this forum, I believe this movie was my #1... on a list that was hastily cobbled together from my ratings on Criticker, where I'd impulsively given Revenge a score of 100. Later I dropped the film down to the more accurate ranking of #21. Last month I rewatched the film on Criterion's new Blu-Ray and gave it a 94. Which is still a great score, but would probably not be enough to keep it in the top 100 at all (if I ever bothered to redo my list again).

All this talk about numbers is just to say that I don't love the film the way I used to, though I don't share your complaints. I still love the music, and the comedy works for me (to an extent, anyway... I certainly wouldn't call it laugh-out-loud funny, but I enjoy the lighter tones). I find the stylistic mashup to be one of the movie's strengths. But for all the style, it doesn't really connect with me on a gut level. Burmese Harp notwithstanding, emotional resonance isn't really Ichikawa's bag, and that's a quality that's important to me.

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #53 on: July 20, 2018, 02:54:42 PM »
But for all the style, it doesn't really connect with me on a gut level. Burmese Harp notwithstanding, emotional resonance isn't really Ichikawa's bag, and that's a quality that's important to me.

Enjo was my introduction to Ichikawa, and that lack of emotional resonance scared me off him for a while. I really should catch up on more of his filmography, though.

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MartinTeller

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #54 on: July 01, 2020, 09:22:16 AM »
Oh jeez, I forgot! It's my month! PeacefulAnarchy could not be reached so oldkid graciously let me slip in.

My top 250
Letterboxd
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« Last Edit: July 01, 2020, 09:27:11 AM by MartinTeller »

Bondo

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #55 on: July 01, 2020, 11:23:42 AM »
On first glance the three that I am contemplating are The Big Combo, Cairo Station, and The Conformist.

MartinTeller

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #56 on: July 01, 2020, 11:32:12 AM »
Interesting picks. I didn't think you were a noir fan at all. I could see Cairo Station going over well with you.

Bondo

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #57 on: July 01, 2020, 12:46:29 PM »
I am not generally a noir person, no. There aren't necessarily a lot of films I haven't seen on your list that jump out as being naturally in my wheelhouse. I think there were 6 films from your top 100 that I hadn't seen AND were on streaming services so these were the most interesting from that sub-set. Unfortunately I cancelled Criterion Channel or I would have probably gone for That Obscure Object of Desire as I've had some success with Buenel.

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #58 on: July 01, 2020, 12:48:06 PM »
I recently added Dillinger Is Dead to my Watchlist not knowing it would show up here. However, I have low expectations for that one so I'm also considering Cruel Gun Story and Female on the Beach.

MartinTeller

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Re: Top 100 Club: MartinTeller
« Reply #59 on: July 01, 2020, 01:23:03 PM »
I recently added Dillinger Is Dead to my Watchlist not knowing it would show up here. However, I have low expectations for that one so I'm also considering Cruel Gun Story and Female on the Beach.

Would certainly be interested to hear your takes on those noirs. DID is one that I've seen only once, and it was quite a while ago, so I'm not sure I'll have a lot to say about it. Definitely one I need to put on the rewatch pile.