Author Topic: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts  (Read 395744 times)

mañana

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1770 on: June 07, 2012, 11:52:47 AM »
Better?

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mañana

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1771 on: June 08, 2012, 09:04:25 AM »

The Shining - Stanley Kubrick, 1980

Nicholson, is a masterstroke of casting and the film really gets the most out of his rascal by way of derangement persona. Even in his job interview, long before things really get rolling, there’s a curious menacing vibe to him, in retrospect his rage seems inevitable. In an earlier round flieger declared The Shining a black comedy, and yes, this is an element that should be more closely associated with the film. With all due respect to the general eeriness, largely thanks to Jack’s unforgettable ham of a performance, this film is funnier than it is scary. Not a criticism, by the way.
 
It’s formally a haunted house story, but the meat of things is really a matter of lingering and ultimately engulfing forces - forces like the past, isolation, pressure to succeed, and failure. When confined in a prison of one’s own impotencies, the forces become too much to withstand and carnage is inevitable. The supernatural elements are merely splendid genre accoutrements that I don’t really care to fully unify in my mind. I’ve never had writer’s block (easy to avoid when you're not a writer), but I have experienced the dread and anxiety of writing a term paper, somehow the tennis ball toss perfectly captures the desperate craving for catharsis, even if it’s only for an instant. Best of all, The Shining scores fairly high on the bonkers scale (the bear suit? amazing!), which makes it awfully irresistible even when, or maybe especially when, I’m left scratching my head. I’m not exactly sure what to make of the final reveal, but it’s presented so well that I just don’t care. The internet is full of speculation regarding this and other Shining enigmas, most of which have the stench of crackpot.
 



Prince of the City - Sidney Lumet, 1981

New York in the 70s - that brief time after the tax base exodus rode Robert Moses’ parkways to the suburbs while the Bronx burned, but before the info economy’s revanchist project - a moment I will continue to romanticize despite knowing darn well I wouldn’t have lasted a day. The film goes to great lengths to contrast working class, ethnic, grimy NYC with Washington’s Ivy League WASP powerbase. Lumet’s portrayal is devoid of clear heroes or villains, only individuals and networks of people responding to their environment. I suspect David Simon likes this one.
 
To some degree Prince is a Serpico reboot, but this time around our protagonist isn’t so chaste.  Danny’s self-serving while still having the decency to wrestle with his choices. Why inform? It’s a pursuit for atonement, a practical means to protect himself from others doing the same, a manifestation of his anger at others who go unpunished, and his way of honoring good police. There is no single, heroic motivation; it’s a stew of confusion, fear, male bonding, and fragmented morality. Along the way Danny encounters conversations in restaurants and temporary offices, ambitious lawyers, guilt, and painfully divided allegiances. Ratting prompts a process of social and psychological isolation, the tragic consequences of coming clean. Despite its immense size, without your neighbourhood, New York can be crushingly lonely. 
 
Alternative write-up: Character actors talking.
 


Verdict:
Unless I came across it on TV or something, I probably would have never got to Prince of the City. I’m pleased it was assigned to me, it’s really solid for sure. This one goes to The Shining, after a second viewing, this funhouse seems better than ever.
« Last Edit: June 08, 2012, 09:11:23 AM by mañana »
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pixote

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1772 on: June 08, 2012, 10:51:55 AM »
Way to lock in Best of the Boards early today.

I wonder if I'd still hate The Shining. Someday I might have to find out.

I've always assumed Prince of the City was better than Serpico, but I've only seen the latter.

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mañana

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1773 on: June 08, 2012, 12:27:14 PM »
Way to lock in Best of the Boards early today.
Thanks. Let's get this party rolling again!

I wonder if I'd still hate The Shining. Someday I might have to find out.
I'd like to read that review.

I've always assumed Prince of the City was better than Serpico, but I've only seen the latter.
I haven't seen all of Serpico so can't say.
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mañana

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1774 on: June 08, 2012, 06:41:29 PM »
 :)
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oldkid

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1775 on: June 08, 2012, 06:43:41 PM »
Thanks for the reminder, 1SO.  I need to read this thread more regularly. 

Great reviews, M
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smirnoff

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1776 on: June 08, 2012, 11:27:31 PM »
Has there ever been a better depiction of cabin fever?

Sandy

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1777 on: June 08, 2012, 11:31:56 PM »

smirnoff

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1778 on: June 08, 2012, 11:48:50 PM »
One looks crazier than the next.

verbALs

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Re: 1980s US Bracket: Verdicts
« Reply #1779 on: June 09, 2012, 03:47:50 AM »
I used to encourage everyone I knew to make art; I don't do that so much anymore. - Banksy