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Post by Jeremy on Nov 14, 2021 21:35:32 GMT -8
I know that J.C. saw StBY and was pretty sure Guttersnipe did as well; I'm just thinking some of the other readers of this forum (all six of them) deserve to be unspoiled in case they ever decide to plunk down eight bucks for a streaming service to watch this film about the dangers of capitalism.
Anyway, I think J.C.'s point gets to the larger strength/weakness about the film, which is that there are a lot of individual parts that are interesting, but they never congeal into a satisfying whole. There are a lot of individual scenes that linger with me some three years after watching the film (the phone conversations in the opening act are a particular favorite); it's just not a movie that ever amasses to the sum of its parts.
(Also, I found the Dear White People TV show to be a rather navel-gazing exercise in millennial culture - think Search Party without the self-awareness - and can't say I recommend it, especially since the actress who took Tessa Thompson's nominal film role hadn't nearly her level of onscreen charisma.)
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Post by ThirdMan on Nov 14, 2021 22:25:53 GMT -8
I quite enjoyed the Dear White People film, and high school/college comedies and dramadies are one of my guilty pleasures, so I may give the Neflix show (which is very manageable at only four seasons, three of which got really good reviews) a shot anyways.
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Post by Jeremy on Nov 15, 2021 16:10:57 GMT -8
You might like it. Just be aware that the premise which ignites the show (blackface parties are a common occurrence on college campuses) is based on faulty research on the part of series creator Justin Simien, whose primary source was a click-baity Complex article that effectively equated white people wearing blackface with those wearing sombreros. I know this because I wrote a school report about it back in 2017, which was praised by my professor. I will avoid boring you with further details.
In terms of films I've seen lately - I watched The Kid Detective today, and liked it a lot. Tonally it's a high school noir in the vein of Brick or Veronica Mars, with a bleak story made palatable by an undercurrent of dark humor throughout. Adam Brody (whose career has been on rough terrain since The OC ended) is great as the adult Encyclopedia Brown who can't shake the failures of his childhood investigations, and the script is heartfelt and builds un unpredictable directions. I'd probably have a spot on my "Best of 2021" list for the movie, except Wiki tells me it was first given wide release in 2020. Oh well.
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Quiara
Grade School
Posts: 775
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Post by Quiara on Nov 20, 2021 15:18:42 GMT -8
I can't imagine that this would interest anyone but Bosquiara but...
Mack the Knife (1989)
A week or two ago, I was discussing adaptations with a friend and both of us were flabbergasted that in an era of almost unrivaled economic equality, we weren't seeing nearly enough revivals of Threepenny Opera or The Beggar's Opera.
Late to the party here, but in the theatrical world there are a couple big logistical reasons why Brecht isn't so hot these days.
1) Brecht's oeuvre isn't public-domain yet. (I think Threepenny Opera enters the public domain in 2024? Don't quote me on that.)
2) Big-budget productions of Brecht are kind of oxymoronic, what with the v-effekt and all.
3) Updating Brecht to befit modern liberal sensitivities re: race and gender can be contentious (see: Mother Courage at the CSC) 4) A lot of Brecht's stuff is laser-focused on Nazism, which means that most attempts to apply Brecht's work to the modern day end up running afoul of Godwin's law. This is why, despite being pretty firmly B-tier among his works, there were a lot of productions of The Preventable Rise of Arturo Ui in 2017 and 2018. Gee, I wonder who this fascist demagogue is supposed to be a stand-in for???
I don't think this is actually a bad thing, per se: I regard most ""modern"" stagings of Shakespeare and Ibsen as pretty naked money-saving measures. Put Julius Caesar in a women's prison with an all-black cast and you get to play-act like you're touching on issues of race and gender without needing to involve any people of color or women in the creative process! So Brecht's oeuvre being obscure doesn't quite bother me. What I wonder is, can the Brechtian model of art-as-consciousness-raiser-to-action really coexist with the inherently passive content stream of TikTok et al? I'll stop before we get into full Old Woman Yells At (The) Cloud territory here.
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Post by Jay on Nov 20, 2021 16:26:30 GMT -8
THE SUMMONING SPELL WORKED. Late to the party here, but in the theatrical world there are a couple big logistical reasons why Brecht isn't so hot these days.
1) Brecht's oeuvre isn't public-domain yet. (I think Threepenny Opera enters the public domain in 2024? Don't quote me on that.)
2) Big-budget productions of Brecht are kind of oxymoronic, what with the v-effekt and all.
3) Updating Brecht to befit modern liberal sensitivities re: race and gender can be contentious (see: Mother Courage at the CSC) 4) A lot of Brecht's stuff is laser-focused on Nazism, which means that most attempts to apply Brecht's work to the modern day end up running afoul of Godwin's law. This is why, despite being pretty firmly B-tier among his works, there were a lot of productions of The Preventable Rise of Arturo Ui in 2017 and 2018. Gee, I wonder who this fascist demagogue is supposed to be a stand-in for???
I don't think this is actually a bad thing, per se: I regard most ""modern"" stagings of Shakespeare and Ibsen as pretty naked money-saving measures. Put Julius Caesar in a women's prison with an all-black cast and you get to play-act like you're touching on issues of race and gender without needing to involve any people of color or women in the creative process! So Brecht's oeuvre being obscure doesn't quite bother me. What I wonder is, can the Brechtian model of art-as-consciousness-raiser-to-action really coexist with the inherently passive content stream of TikTok et al? I'll stop before we get into full Old Woman Yells At (The) Cloud territory here.
It's kind of amusing that we're still talking about the public domain as it applies to the works of a Marxist, but the perspective is certainly appreciated. I felt like the 1989 version I saw was pretty high budget, but I could also see that risk with liberal sensitivities as there was a bit of that going on already in the Pimp's Ballad, to say nothing of the fact that sex work is still murky territory for a lot of liberals. I would also note that I did see a version of Julius Caesar as Shakespeare in the Parking Lot back in 2010 and it's probably one of the worst adaptations I've ever seen, in spite of the cast diversity, because no one really had a sense of the play's ironies, so it ended up being just silly.
Speaking of SILLY
The Warriors (1977)
Among the cultural overlaps between Gen X and early millennials, you'll find a certain fascination with sensationalized and stylized gang / lower-class fare. Largely, I refer to The Outsiders and Rumble Fish, but you could pull it back to The Warriors or even Saturday Night Fever, itself a fabrication and fictional hodgepodge of a study of disco culture. As an academic type, it interests me as a number of my peers are working with 19th-20th century novels right now and trying to chart out ways in which many depictions of poverty were written from the outside by those who hadn't experienced it, though not all categorize so neatly (Dickens starts one, ends another). The Warriors intrigues for its vision of what some people imagined gang culture and the lower classes to be, but to me, it rings no more truly of life than Escape from New York or something transparently sci-fi dystopian (indeed, for years I just assumed that The Warriors wasn't supposed to take place in our shared reality). Is it fun? At moments. The subway montage that opens the film manages to be compelling (I found myself nostalgic for locales like the 96th street station and Morningside Park, neither of which I've been to in over ten years). The gang uniforms, from the troupe of Marcels Marceaux, to the weird almost kabuki theatre Baseball Furies, to the vested main characters, to the freaking Punks in their skates and overalls but nothing resembling nascent punk culture, were all fun to watch. The dialogue, with a handful of racial slurs, hadn't aged as well, but has some quirks of lingo. And you've got the Chief, Lynne Thigpen as the radio DJ! But I would regard this as one of those cultural movies that will continue its fade from public view, unless of course they strike gold with the myriad not-quite-Double-Dragon video game adaptations, in which case it might come back on franchise interest. If I'd seen it at a particular time in my life, I might've liked it more, but it doesn't resonate as well now.
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Post by Jeremy on Nov 26, 2021 12:29:26 GMT -8
I watched some new and newish movies this week. Here they are, in descending order of quality:
Pig - A small but remarkable film that sets audiences up for John Wick meets Babe and then unexpectedly morphs into Clint Eastwood's Ratatouille. It's a stark and affecting portrait of food and gourmet cooking, how it impacts those who prepare the meals and those who partake in them. It's handsomely directed by newcomer Michael Sarnoski and perfectly anchored by Nicholas Cage, giving his best performance in at least a decade. Running a tight 90 minutes yet never wasting a one, it's a great example of how minimalist film can achieve maximalist results.
Ghostbusters Afterlife - Yeah, after the 50th "Member X from the original movie???" reference it gets kind of old, but this is easily the best Ghostbusters sequel - a well-paced, well-rounded story that lets a new generation do some bustin' while paying sincere homage to the story which spawned it (appropriate, as the director is Ivan Reitman's son Jason). Spiffy visual effects and a talented young cast make the film an enjoyable romp - plus, the female lead is significantly more interesting than any of the women in the 2016 film. (Might be a lesson there...)
Passing - Well-directed (by Rebecca Hall) B&W film, with two great lead performers in Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga. Unfortunately, the script isn't up to par with the talent on and behind the camera. Some interesting themes about race and color in early 20th-century America, but not explored to any great depth, as though the filmmakers are a bit too finicky about the subject matter. A spectacular final shot, though.
Red Notice - Proof that effort is overrated. Netflix's $200 million moviestarapalooza puts all its emphasis on celebrity - Dwayne Johnson does his Rock thing, Ryan Reynolds pulls his Deadpool shtick, and Gal Gadot strikes a lot of pretty poses - but it all feels completely artificial, with no concern for story or the sheer lack of chemistry between the main stars. The boring script is packed with lazy pop-culture references and actor-related contrivances (of course The Rock winds up in the jungle), and the entire enterprise reeks of smugness. This is on track to becoming Netflix's most-watched movie ever, so that's a cheery little data point for the future of cinema.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 2, 2021 21:17:34 GMT -8
Last Night in Soho is arguably Edgar Wright's weakest film, but still in many ways a winner - it looks great (albeit not as stylized as his other work) and has two great lead performances in Thomasin McKenzie and Anya Taylor-Joy. It's at its weakest when it aims for straight horror, or when it tries to set up some of its obvious red herrings. But there's a lot of good atmosphere-building, plus - as is Wright's hallmark - lots of memorable music cues.
The polarizing response to this film (particularly regarding its apparent #MeToo commentary) is quite interesting on its own. I found the film's messaging to be a bit muddled (as often happens when a director chiefly associated with male-dominated films tries his hand at a female-driven story), but it's certainly distinct. And contrary to popular belief, the third act sticks the landing. Feels like people are being too harsh in that regard.
King Richard is a joy, a well-crafted balance of sports story, family drama, and true-life biopic. While the ads marketed this as a Venus and Serena Williams origin story, much of the emphasis is on their dad (played by Will Smith, who is basically guaranteed an Oscar nomination for the role) and his hand in shaping their early careers. The story inspires winning performances all around, and features some exciting scenes on the tennis court - this is a sport that translates to screen better than a lot of others, due both to the one-on-one setup and sheer physicality of the game. I was periodically reminded of The Blind Side in the film's focus on a strong parental figure behind the scenes of an inspiring field career, but King Richard is a superior film to that one in near every respect. Though it does indulge in its fair share of sports-dialogue clichés, particularly near the end.
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Post by ThirdMan on Dec 13, 2021 15:52:26 GMT -8
Went to see West Side Story with me mum the other night. My dad never takes her to movies, and the friend she generally goes with won't get vaccinated (and thus, can't get in), so I offered to take her instead, because she really wanted to see it. Thought it was a strong production, and probably better than (what I've seen of) the original in virtually every regard. The camera (with many extended takes) glides around, but never fails to capture the strong dance choreography. It's shot in a way to evoke not just the era in which it's set, but also the film-print style of the time, and isn't edited to resemble a music-video, like so many other modern musicals/dance-based films. The performances are solid across-the-board: I realize many find Elgort (who obviously is experiencing online backlash for other reasons) rather bland as the male lead, but these types of movies generally have more spice in the supporting roles regardless. At any rate, I typically find the up-tempo Sondheim numbers to be far more memorable than his ballads, which rely more on strong vocals than catchy melodies. There are some pretty jarring tonal shifts in the movie -- going directly from a bloody knife-fight to I Feel Pretty being a notable example -- but that's, I imagine, down to the original source-material, and fairly typical of big melodramatic musicals. Nonetheless, I quite enjoyed the overall film, and it's too bad that it's not performing better at the box-office, because it's probably Spielberg's best film in many years. I figured, after coming out of it, that it would be a lock for the most Oscar nominations this year, but its weak commercial reception (as well as the allegations against its male lead) may doom it to more modest recognition. But whatever, the original film won Best Picture many years ago, so let's not get too greedy (heh).
I also watched Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog over a week ago, and thought it started really slow, but got more engrossing as it progressed, when it became more clear that it was a deconstruction of toxic masculinity in the genre. To me, the performances -- from Cumberbatch, but particularly Dunst -- feel a little too on-the-nose at times, but more nuance emerges at the halfway point, particular as it pertains to the relationship between Cumberbatch and Smit-McPhee's characters. I could see this being a second-consecutive win for a woman in the Best Director field, but think the film might be too slow and dark to clean up much beyond that. Regardless, the acting is generally solid, the cinematography is strong, and it certainly has some degree of cultural relevance as it pertains to gender roles in the movies.
Pig, starring Nicholas Cage, is a solid character-piece, and all the better for not descending into full-on bloody violence for its duration. Though it is pretty contrived that he's able to maneuver around for the majority of the film with a bloody, scarred face that people barely react to. I seriously doubt he'd have even been let into that fancy restaurant in the state he was in.
I also couldn't resist checking out Two on Netflix, which is a short (an hour-and-ten-minutes), intense film about two strangers who wake up naked in bed next to one another, and soon realize they're surgically-attached at the abdomen. No, it's not nearly as gratuitous as that Human Centipede nonsense, and the connective-tissue between them is only shown in fleeting moments (your imagination does the rest). It's half art film, and half B-movie, but fairly interesting in beat-to-beat moments, before settling on a fairly heavy-handed reveal and resolution. And yes, they have to find a way to go to the washroom at one point (heh). I don't know that I'd call the film "good", but it certainly holds your attention, even without overindulging on overt titillation. It seems a lot of viewers online seem to hate it, which means it probably did its job on some levels.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 14, 2021 19:56:06 GMT -8
I'm glad more people are watching Pig (which is now streaming on Hulu in the US). It's truly one of the unsung highlights of 2021, and I'm surprised by how little press it's been getting in the end-of-year reflections. I think the story lets Cage get away with having that awful scarred face because his character is so recognizable to the townspeople; i.e. they know who he is, even if it takes a minute for his face to register. That's how he seems to have such an easy way getting around the town (which of course ties in with the rest of the story).
I unfortunately did not care much for The Power of the Dog, which moved far too glacially for its own good in the first half, squandering potential character introspection for too many (admittedly good-looking) shots of mountainous vistas. And while the film did improve in the second hour, so much of it just felt artificial - even the scenes between Cumberbatch and Smit-McPhee, despite being the highlight of the film, felt unremarkable in its messaging about toxic masculinity. There was potential for great storytelling here, but it just all rang too hollow for me.
I was hoping to see West Side Story this week (I'm a great fan of the original film), but scheduling may force me to push it off till next week, maybe as a double-feature with No Way Home. (Although that would be two 150-minute movies in one week... Tough stuff.)
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Post by ThirdMan on Dec 14, 2021 20:44:07 GMT -8
As with the gangster genre of films, I can't seem to recall you responding much to any Westerns. Have I forgotten some? I think you may have enjoyed Meek's Cutoff, which, if true, is borderline-shocking to me, because that film is slooooooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwww and exceptionally uneventful.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 14, 2021 21:02:26 GMT -8
I've never seen Meek's Cutoff. From what I know of Kelly Reichardt, her films tend to be very slow (although I did eventually come around to First Cow after being bored by the first 30 minutes).
And I've actually enjoyed a lot of Westerns - Unforgiven, True Grit (both versions), Ballad of Buster Scruggs, 3:10 to Yuma, A Fistful of Dollars, The Quick and the Dead, plus everything Deadwood. There are still a lot of acclaimed Westerns I haven't yet seen, but plan on getting to eventually.
Honestly, I'm not sure I'd even classify The Power of the Dog as a Western, at least in the traditional sense - it doesn't grapple with the usual themes (vigilantism, lawlessness) that typify the Western genre. It's more of a leisurely character/family drama that happens to take place in a Western setting, kind of like The Rider. (Side note, I quite liked The Rider.)
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Post by ThirdMan on Dec 14, 2021 22:00:01 GMT -8
Ah, OK, it was First Cow. Yeah, that one moves along a bit more than Meek's Cutoff.
As for classifying The Power Of The Dog, I saw cowboy hats, so it's a Western to me. Heh.
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Post by ThirdMan on Dec 20, 2021 1:11:41 GMT -8
I don''t really understand why Warner Bros. would dare release that Matrix sequel so soon after the release of Spider-Man: NWH. I know a lot of movies generally get released around Christmas, but given that Resurrections is also gonna be streaming on HBO Max in the States, I kind of think it's gonna get killed by the Marvel film in theaters next weekend. And its regular weekend number will probably look especially bad given that it's opening on a Wednesday.
Regardless, an even more baffling decision was Disney opening its 20th Century Fox-produced Nightmare Alley on the SAME DAY as Spider-Man. I mean, I realize they're making money hand over fist with No Way Home, but surely they'd like to get a better return on their NA investment than, what, $3 million dollars on opening weekend? Clearly this film should've either been released in November, or, barring that, in limited theaters on Christmas Day, and expanding wide a week or two into January. I mean, perhaps the adult-themed film was never gonna do big numbers, with many older folks hesitant to go to theaters with rising Covid cases (see: West Side Story last week), but at least give it a fighting chance to break even. I know Disney mostly bought 20 Century Fox so it could swoop up more comic-book properties, but they make some bizarre business decisions sometimes.
Adult-themed films with moderately high budgets already seem to be a dying breed in multiplexes, and Disney might be speeding up their disappearance altogether with tactics like this.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 20, 2021 11:22:41 GMT -8
When in doubt, blame Covid. Spider-Man and Matrix were initially supposed to open in summer 2021, and they were both postponed to the end of the year, as late as possible while still leaving the 2022 schedule open for newer projects. Frankly, I'm somewhat surprised that Matrix is keeping a 2021 release at all, since that keeps it as part of the HBO Max deal (which expires at year-end), but... maybe that was part of the plan? Juice up the HBO Max subscriptions further as part of an attempt to keep the streaming wars going?
Honestly, I think we'll be seeing more of these theatrical-to-streaming changes occurring even as pandemic fears fade. Universal recently announced that for 2022, their movies will get a 45-day exclusive theatrical window before streaming on Peacock (presumably the paid subscription tier). I'm not sure when - if ever - we're going back to the days when the average film gets 3-4 months of a theater-exclusive run.
As for Nightmare Alley, the (somewhat cynical) explanation is that Disney really doesn't care about Fox's arthouse division films; they had to drop the "Fox" from Searchlight Pictures, but I'm impressed that they're keeping it going at all.
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Post by Jeremy on Dec 30, 2021 7:05:35 GMT -8
Final update on current/recent movies I've seen this year:
Old - Another M. Night Shyamalan film where no one talks like an actual human and the plot features several moments that aim for scary and accidentally wind up being funny. There are some gross-out body-horror moments in this film, and it's boosted by a talented cast, but the actors are limited by stilted dialogue and some off-kilter tonal beats. (On the plus side, there is a character named Mid-Sized Sedan.) The twist at the end is not particularly shocking - and indeed, there are clues dropped throughout the film - but it does put an interesting period on an otherwise underwhelming story.
Boss Baby: Family Business - I really miss the days when animated movies were willing to pause and take a breath and let kids appreciate silence and atmosphere. That may explain why I was so annoyed by the Boss Baby sequel. Not to say the original was a masterpiece, but this film takes things down a few more notches with unfunny jokes and a general unwillingness to shut up. There's a Shawshank Redemption homage at one point for the parents (and you know it's a Shawshank reference because they actually name-drop the movie), but most of the jokes are aimed squarely at kids. The only thing I consistently enjoyed was Jeff Goldblum as the villain, but that's helped by the fact that Hollywood has yet to find a way to make Jeff Goldblum unfunny.
American Underdog - My family wanted to see this, which is basically the only reason I watched. It's... okay? Thoroughly predictable in its telling of Kurt Warner's path from smalltown blue-collar worker to football MVP, but the story is told well and doesn't hammer home its themes too heavily (it's certainly more subdued than other Erwin Brothers films). There's a scene at the end involving a supermarket employee that may be one of the cheesiest things I've ever seen in a theater.
The Green Knight - I'm sure there will be plenty of people mesmerized by this film and willing to dissect and analyze all its different story beats and turns and unusual themes. But as well-crafted and good-looking as this movie is, I just found it so incredibly boring. Did not care about a single character, did not connect with the lead's emotional journey (due to the story's alarming lack of emotion), and spent much of the runtime waiting for something interesting to happen. I'm glad that a lot of people connected with this one (it's certainly preferable to connecting with The Boss Baby: Family Business), but I could not get over the idea that this was just a pretentious arthouse flick. Certainly better-looking than most pretentious arthouse flicks, but nevertheless.
I have some thoughts on a few other movies (Matrix Resurrections, Being the Ricardos, Don't Look Up), but they are more detailed and I will probably save them for a more longform format.
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