Watch, Watched, Watching: The Final Cut

[Veltigar]

11 hours ago, williamjm said:

It's a film I don't get tired of despite having rewatched it several times. As well as the humour it has an excellent soundtrack and the fight between Martin and the kickboxer in the school is a great scene.

It was indeed. Although I had to snicker constantly, since the kickboxer's character was called La Pubelle (pronounced as la poubelle). It's juvenile of me, but I found that hilarious 

[Astromech]

I just finished Peaky Blinders season 3, which was entertaining as always and started Daredevil. I'm enjoying Daredevil more than I thought it would. The choreography is great.

[Veltigar]

I watched Tarkovksy's Andrei Rublev today. I got a tip from someone online that Mosfilm has this great youtube channel where you can legally watch a lot of his work (Part 1 & Part 2). The version they have runs for 186 minutes (you can watch longer versions elsewhere, but this cut was endorsed by Tarkovsky himself) and boy, this is definitely mandatory viewing.

Although I have to offer up a few caveats. First of all, this film is definitely not for the faint of hearted. A lot of the horror is understated, but it's definitely noticeable. And there are some scenes involving animals (one in particular, there are stairs involved and a spear) which wouldn't be made today. Furthermore, the subtitles aren't great on the youtube version, but they do the trick so they are at least serviceable. Finally, I think it's important to know what kind of film this is.

Eventhough it"s from 1966, it hasn't become conventional. For instance, it took me a while to identify the eponomous main character. Another good example is that the film is divided in clear chapters and I think it's fair to say that they are more linked by a common theme than a straightforward plot. Tarkovsky certainly didn't take the easy road while he crafted this masterpiece. I mean, this is a movie about the most famous iconographer in world history and we never see anyone paint. It shouldn't work, but by God it does. 

In Andrei Rublev, Tarkovsky doesn't shy away from the big questions. He uses this (mostly fictional) biography of Rublev as a sort of vessel through which he examins the artist's role in society. He radically places Rublev in his medieval Russian context (which must be said, is probably one of the most convincing portraits of medieval life I have ever seen) and shows how the world he lived in gave shape to his work. Along the way Tarkovsky tangles with the questions like 'Can art make the world a better place?', 'How should the artist behave himself vis-a-vis the powers that be?' and 'Can art afford it to be exalted?' 

The beauty of the film is that it raises these question twice. Once inside the story of Andrei Rublev and once in our real world, where the fact that this film got made is a small miracle. It went against the established Soviet doctrine of social-realistic art, the influence of Christianity on Russian society was emphasized and  it was critical of authority. There is one searing quote, a description of the Pharisees, which you can't read without seeing a mental image of Tarkovsky flipping of Soviet authorities: 

Spoiler

The Pharisees were masters of deceit, educated. They had studied to gain power, to take advantage of the people's ignorance. We must remind people more often that they are people. Russians, of the same blood, of the same land.

Aside from the ideas, this film just looks absolutely scrumptious. The acting is great, the cinematography stunning and the directing brilliant. There are several scenes which I really can't stop thinking about. There is this great account of the Passion story, but with a geographic twist that perfectly complements the story and makes it fully Russian. My favourite chapter though, that was definitely the last one (not counting the epilogue). The story of that lonely young boy creating such a thing of beauty, the shere risk of it all (I can't properly explain it without spoiling, so check it out definitely) and Rublev's connection to the boy, it all works to ratchet up the tension to a level that is hard to bear. 

So yeah, everyone, give it a go. Also remember that it gets better and better, so even if the beginning doesn't immediately grip you, certainly don't give up  

[Veltigar]

After having such a good experience with Andrei Rublev, I decided to watch another film which can be found in its entirety on youtube, namely Fritz Lang's M from 1931 and it did not disappoint. I would have to rewatch it again, but I feel like M could definitely break into my personal all-time favourite list.

Technically speaking, it's got all the hallmarks of a great film. It's Fritz Lang's first talkie and he immediately shows such a great understanding of how to use that technique. You always read how those early talkies usually devolved in a bunch of people yapping at each other constantly, because everyone wanted to attract viewers with this new gimmick (kind of like generic CGI or 3-D effects nowadays), but the master shows himself in his restraint. Lang is not afraid to use silence, which ratchets up the tension and makes it all the more effective when people do talk.

This film is also one of the earliest (perhaps the earliest?) to employ a leitmotif, a technique borrowed from opera of all places! And the leitmotif for the 'M' character is hard to forget, definitely one of the greatest ever (I'd rank it up there with the imperial march). In the Hall of the Mountain King by Edvard Grier is a tune we all know, but after seeing this, it will never sound the same again to me. I read online that Grier intended the tune as a sort of ironic parody, but M brings out the menace in that song. Really creepy.

Even better than the technical prowess behind it, is the emotional heart of the film. It's something I often miss with great filmmakers, who often offer up a spate of great ideas and imagery, but for some reason end up delivering a cold, rather analytical piece of work (e.g. Kubrick is usually my go-to guy if I have to cite an example. The main reason why I love his Paths of Glory so much is because it has Kubrick's brilliance while simultaneously packing a major emotional punch). 

In M however, Fritz Lang doesn't waste any time. He goes directly for the throat. The emotional impact is immediate (although it continues to grow throughout the film). The subject matter is very difficult, because I don't think many of us really want to see a film about a child murderer, but the way Lang handles this is so good. We see a child disappear in the beginning and he uses a few quick cross-cuts to show the child's dinner waiting for it at home, her balloon floating away and her treasured ball rolling along without her and it's just devastating really. 

The story is also very cleverly written. I particularly liked how in the beginning, Lang shows how the hysteria surrounding these murders affects the whole town. From the cops (overworked and overstretched), to the criminals (tired out by police raids they decide to hunt for the murderer himself) and to the normal townspeople. I think this is what Christopher Nolan tried to copy at various points in the Dark Knight (for example when he made all the people go after that one guy who wanted to rat out Batman or that boat at the very end), although Lang does it much, much better. The film can also be almost unbearably tense (the hunt sequences) and threatening (the murderers shadow in the beginning). 

The acting was phenomenal. Peter Lorre is positively reptilian as the child murderer, but the strangest thing happens. This guy has committed a series of heinous crimes and yet you walk away from the film not hating him. You actually more or less feel sorry for the guy. Lang definitely understood how to make the public empathise even with the lowest ghouls. I'll also give a shout-out to Gustaf Gründgens as the boss of the criminals. His role was comparatively minor, but he just oozes cool. He would have made a perfect Bond (if casting agents ever manage to master time travel, they should totally go cast him).

I also loved the messages the film contained. You definitely get the impression Lang did not like what Germany had become (and you can't blame him, aside from the oft-documented rise of the Nazi's, you just have to look at M's wikipedia page to see the sickening amount of serial killers that seemed to have plagued Germany in the 1920s. Watch out though, that's one particular wiki-wormhole that isn't for the faint of hearted). M is a clear rejection of mob rule. I also tend to think that Lang, who has the criminals outperform the police in their zealous manhunt, meant for the criminals to be a stand-in for the rising Nazi party. Finally, the film is a clear rejection of death penalty, calls up parents to take better care of their children (I feel a bit ambivalent about that final statement, I wonder if he's victimblaming or whether he's also calling to the parents of the murderers to watch out for their children. I suspect the latter) and of pity for the criminally insane (without, you know, letting them of the hook of course). 

 

[Veltigar]

Man, it feels like I'm turning this thread into my personal echo chamber, but here I go again. Today I watched two films, first A Knight's Tale with Heath Ledger (it feels like it's Heath Ledger month on  TV over here) and then I watched De rouille et d'os starring Matthias Schoenaerts and Marrion Cottilard. 

My perception of A Knight's Tale hasn't changed a bit over the years. I still think it's a very enjoyable movie. Historically inaccurate, terribly unsubtle and a tad awkward at times, but I do feel that the film's overall mix works more than it fails. Mainly because of those truly excillerating jousting scenes (WILLIAM!!!!) and a splendid cast. Primus inter pares is of course Heath Ledger, I have said it before in my review of Ned Kelly, but that man just oozes film star charm. I think he never really got his due as an actor because of it really, it's only after The Dark Knight that everyone started raving about his acting chops (perhaps Brokeback Mountain already paved the way but still). I can only keep on lamenting his loss, because he would have kept on giving us great performance after great performance.

His presence also seems to bring the best out of other cast members, which is great, because the likes of Mark Addy, Alan Tuddyck and Paul Bettany are already lovely actors on their own, but the cast just works. I also have to give a shout-out to James Purefoy and Rufus Sewell, who were delightful as the Black Prince and Count Adhemar. I'll never understand why those two never really got their due. They are both such great actors and they have gotten nowhere near the amount of work they rightly should have gotten based on talent alone. Especially Sewell has been dealt a crap hand. Even in some absolutely dreadful movies, he brings a spark. If he's given a role that is just barely decent he can wring a great performance out of it, why did the stars never really allign for him?

In comparison to A Knight's Tale, De rouille et d'os fell woefully short. I have always felt guilty that I didn't see this when it was in theatres, being the very early Matthias Schoenaerts afficionado that I am, but I shouldn't have. It's not a terrible movie by any stretch of the imagination, the performances are way to good for that and there is some nice imagery in it at times, but generally speaking this was a major disappointment. Audiard has made one of my absolute favourite films (Un Prophète), but pretty much everything that made that film great was not present here. At least it was better than Dheepan, which I personally found even flatter than De rouille et d'os. 

The plot is so run-of-the-mill and the story is so lazily executed, in the end I felt a lot of the movie was just misery porn. It lacked the audacity of Un Prophète, nor did it pack that film's superior emotional heft or all those great scenes of magical-realism. It was just an avalanche of bad luck and even worse life decisions, but done in such an unrealistic manner. The music was also absolute shit, a lot of the music simply didn't mesh well with the story and setting. I gave it a 7/10 because I was feeling very generous and because Schoenaerts and Cotillard were really good. Still, this is not  a movie I would recommend. If you have to watch a (slightly) melodramatic French weepy, watch Ozon's Le temps qui reste. That's a quality film. 

 

[First of My Name]

Agree with the earlier posts, Starred Up is excellent.

I finished Neon Genesis Evangelion, and the accompanying movie End of Evangelion, and boy I could talk about them for hours. They're both great, and brilliant at moments, but the extremely abstract endings to both make me unsure what to think of the overall narrative. It was certainly a unique experience, but I can see why fans are so divided over this.

I also just finished a Brazilian movie called The Way He Looks, and would definitely recommend it. It's about a blind teenager who falls in love with another boy, and the story is extremely well told.

 

[3CityApache]

Watched the last few episodes of Shameless and I can't help the feeling, that their season finales are gradually becoming more and more sad, not even bittersweet anymore. In this season only Ian might say things worked out fine (but that would definitely change after Mickey goes out of prison), virtually every other Gallagher (apart from Carl, perhaps) has a really rough time.

[Veltigar]

On 5-6-2016 at 10:26 AM, Ramsay Blow said:

@Veltigar have you seen '71 yet? I've been meaning to watch it for some time. Dude is obviously a stud, he showed his skills in Eden Lake when he was a terror and an unknown.

RB, I suggest you move '71 to the top of your watchlist, because I just watched it and it was a lot better than I expected. Not quite in the same league as Starred Up, but it's excellent at what it tries to do. O'Connell is fine, though not really remarkable (it isn't the sort of role an actor can make a big splash with), the rest of the cast is excellent though (Sean Harris is great per the usual, but my favourite bit part was this young boy, who I can only describe as the Anti-Tommen). 

Above all it's really tense. There is a great chase scene pretty close to the beginning which is really thrilling. I also think the film does a pretty good job at evoking the Troubles. There is just something hanging in the air which showcases the unpleasantness of it all. I also think it's a pretty fair portrayal of the nastiness of all sides involved in this unfortunate era of history. It's a disgrace that stuf like this took place in Europe 45 years ago.  So yeah, I would definitely recommend it  

[Boris the Blade]

Just got around to watching Black Sails, man have I been missing out. Season 1 wasn't anything great, but it wasn't exactly shitty either. It definitely picked up with the last few episodes of the season. Season 2 was great, the season finale was amazing. That whole action sequence reminded me of 3:10 to Yuma. Also, come to think of it, Ned Low reminded me a bit of Charlie Prince as well, at least with his viciousness. On episode 5 of season 3 now. Really enjoying it.

[WarGalley]

Nice. I remember wanting to see '71 in theaters but didn't get a chance at the time. It's currently streaming on Amazon Prime so it looks like I'll get a chance this weekend.

[Ramsay B.]

Veltigar, good to hear. I'll watch it next week.

I saw Rust and Bone a few years ago, basically because it has Cotillard and Schoenaerts in it, and it was cold and depressing as hell but I thought it was decent from what I remember. It kinda does feel like one of those movies I'll never watch again, though.

[Astromech]

I tried watching season 10 of Trailer Park Boys but barely made it through the first episode. This show has taken a nosedive after season 7.They never should've brought it back.  8 was watchable but really off. 9 was bad and I've given up on 10. It's not the same without Mike Clattenburg. Netflix is simply milking it now.

About halfway through season 1 of Engrenages. I was initially comparing it too much to The Wire. It took a good three episodes, but I'm thoroughly enjoying it now. It has its eye roll, n' importe quoi moments, but I'm actually really enjoying those moments. Not sure if it's intended to be humorous, but I'll take those moments as added bonuses.

[Destiel's Child]

Just watched the first season of The Brink with Tim Robbins and Jack Black.

It was entertaining but a bit uneven.  I like my sattire a little sharper.  It was a very american version of the Mitchell and Webb mini Ambassadors, which I enjoyed much more.

[Veltigar]

I decided to watch Sansho The Bailiff tonight. It's been on my watchlist for ages, mainly because Ebert gave it a place on his 'great movie' list. He's usually very reliable, but boy, when Ebert gets it wrong, he gets it spectacularly wrong (and this might even be worse than some of the other clunckers he's given the highest praise). This film was horseshit, plain and simple. I get that the soppy message of the movie is probably like crack to some people, but I haven't cringed this much during a movie since watching the trailer for 'Me Before You.'

The acting in it is just awful. I don't know whether it's quite as bad as Rashomon on that front, but it definitely gets awfully close. I seriously don't understand what the fuck these guys are going for. Seven Samurai was able to do a great job on the actingfront, so why don't other Japanese films of that period remember that they need acting worthy of a feature film and not acting worthy of some sort of weird kabuki theatre for three-year-olds with ADHD (and a serious addiction to GHB, crack, crystal meth or most likely all of the aformentioned drugs).

The plot is purile. Literally every single character in it is retarded. If this where a horrorfilm about crazy flesheating cannibals, the main characters would constantly split up, throw away every useful weapon they can find (after wounding themselves first) and grease themselves with butter. That's the level of intelligence we're talking about here. And for a director who supposedly is such a great feminist, female characters in this movie were sidelined victims throughout and pretty much reduced to being hangers-on of the central male character.  

The "movie" is also boring. Every reviewer keeps gushing about how beautiful it looks, but I really did not think any of it all was that remarkable. There's a pretty picture from time to time, but usually the movie is just obsessed with slapping you over the head with it's facile message you really can't pay attention to the scenery. Stupidity of character and illogical plotting can really destroy the pleasure you can derive from watching decent visuals.  

So basically, long story short, perhaps this was once a remarkable piece of work. I wasn't there in the fifties to render judgement on that account. However, the movie has aged considerably worse than Donatella Versace. So now it's pretty much a raging garbage fire. Don't see it, forget that I even wrote this review. Watch Fritz Lang's M or '71 or even an episode from one of the newer seasons of the Simpsons instead, but just don't waste your time on this. Damn it, I knew I should have picked Chinatown or Unforgiven, but no I had to watch the snooty Japanese candidate for the night  

On 9-6-2016 at 10:12 PM, Ramsay Blow said:

I saw Rust and Bone a few years ago, basically because it has Cotillard and Schoenaerts in it, and it was cold and depressing as hell but I thought it was decent from what I remember. It kinda does feel like one of those movies I'll never watch again, though.

Yeah, I think decent is already pretty generous. The performances were really the only thing that saved it from being an absolute trainwreck. The thing is, I had high hopes for this. Barely decent or even decent is just not what you would expect from an Audiard/Schoenaerts/Cottilard team-up. They have all done such great stuff, you'd expect some magic, but it's just a depressive pile of 'meh'. 

On 9-6-2016 at 10:12 PM, Ramsay Blow said:

Veltigar, good to hear. I'll watch it next week.

On 9-6-2016 at 9:58 PM, WarGalley said:

Nice. I remember wanting to see '71 in theaters but didn't get a chance at the time. It's currently streaming on Amazon Prime so it looks like I'll get a chance this weekend.

 Nice  I think another thing I forgot to mention in my review is how much I enjoyed the pacing. I have the sneaky suspicion that films tend to become longer and longer year after year, which usually means that a lot of unnecessary detours are taken. At 99 minutes, '71 is pretty short and yet exactly the length it should be. So, kudos to the director  

[Veltigar]

15 hours ago, Veltigar said:

So basically, long story short, perhaps this was once a remarkable piece of work. I wasn't there in the fifties to render judgement on that account. However, the movie has aged considerably worse than Donatella Versace. So now it's pretty much a raging garbage fire. Don't see it, forget that I even wrote this review. Watch Fritz Lang's M or '71 or even an episode from one of the newer seasons of the Simpsons instead, but just don't waste your time on this.

Boy, when it comes to karma, I'm having a bad week. I wrote this yesterday and today I watched a horrendously bad episode of one of the newer seasons. It's been said before, but I'll just have to repeat that the Simpsons should be put out of their misery really. I don't know what I hated more about this episode's future setting, the fact that it turned Lisa into a necrophile or the fact that yet again the writers have her marry Milehouse in the future. A complete character assassination. I wonder if these new writers have an axe to grind with intellectually superior women, because an awful lot of the new Simpsons' crimes are directed towards Lisa. The "writers" must have some serious issues.

[Veltigar]

I saw a trailer for a new movie called Buddymoon the other day. They kept making fun of 'Rudy.' I have heard so many Rudy jokes over the years, but I had never seen that movie before. And since I was sick of not getting the popcultural references, I decided to watch it tonight.

A decision I do not regret. That movie is pretty hilarious. Samwise Gangee playing American Football is something that can't not be amusing. Overall, I'd say it's a pretty mediocre piece of work. Nothing really new or interesting happens (except maybe the score, which is nice), but like its main character, this film has heart. That's why I still enjoyed it and I'm glad that I can now finally understand all the Rudy jokes  

[Mark Antony]

Watched In Cold Blood and thought it was really well done all around. Had a young Scott Wilson who gave an impressive performance. 

[Howdyphillip]

 I started a second viewing of Six Feet Under this week. I almost have a season under the belt now, but I wanted to specifically talk about the pilot. Alan Ball did a perfect job in setting this entire run up. In a single episode, the seven main characters of this show were completely fleshed out. As I have always placed far more importance on character development rather than plot machinations, I hold this episode of television to be an example of how to do things right. When you find yourself loving these people after 60 min of introduction, you have hit on a winner. 

[Isis]

I will always watch A Knight's Tale when I happen across it on TV. Great ensemble cast, a genuinely well done feelgood movie. 

Because it was mentioned in this thread (in relation to Coherence) we gave Paradox a go. What a bloody awful waste of time it is! Really cringe-inducingly bad acting, worse scripting; just so awful. Really, do not bother with this film. And it's nothing like as good as Coherence either. 

 

[SkynJay]

I have finished a five month binge on Justified.  A couple episodes a week.  I loved it, one of the best series I have watched top to bottom.  The first season had a great debut then floundered for a while but one they started focusing on the Crowder clan it all came together so nicely. And for season six to bring in a perfect cast and end so damn well; bravo.  Mary Steenburgan and Sam Elliott were amazing, and Duffy calling 911 was perhaps the best scene in the whole series.

Knowing it would be hard to beat this I have finally done what everyone in the world says I should have done years ago, started The Wire.  Eight episodes in and yes, I think everyone was right.  Ill ride this one for the next few months.