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Posted by Orphic Okapi on 07.24.2008, 10:14 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by JRR
I have to disagree with you there. I saw the film half a year ago and I would have to rewatch it to refresh my memory. I don't know what the film did to you, but I remember feeling like I was inside his mind. Like his slow descent into misery was affecting me (which it was!).

Maybe this is just a personal thing, but I never felt the least bit affected emotionally by the Plainview character. He never really even seemed like a real person to me, but more of a symbolic figure. What he was supposed to symbolize, I have no idea.

quote:
It was a very unusual film. Both Punch Drunk Love and There will be Blood are not like any other films in terms of film making. Any films nowadays, no matter what genre they have, have a certain grammar of cinema. You feel in a rhythm, it's all similar in a way. These two movies aren't. It felt very very strange but ultimately refreshing to be drawn into this world where everything is upside down.

I didn't really pick up on this. I did think that the film seemed shorter than it actual was, which is a usually considered a good thing.

quote:
You never know what would happen. Even in other films where you dont know how the film would resolve itself you have a feel for where you are, that it will continue. I felt like TWBB could have ended at any moment, suddenly. And you must say, that final scene is incredible! I am drinking your milkshake.

I actually felt the opposite way; rather than feeling as though the story could end at any minute, I was wondering the whole time how on earth the filmmakers would ever be able to end it. I think the filmmakers were wondering the same thing. The final scene was certainly entertaining in its bizarre way, but what was the point? What was Plainview's motivation for killing the guy? It seemed an awful lot like the product of a screenplay in need of closure.

quote:
Now to the score. The score is incredible. Listen to it on CD and it will blow your mind. I'm not saying it's better than a good conventional score, it's just a really good one. The dissonance really fits to the jagged character of Plainview, the ethereal beauty of some of the songs is truly haunting. So, Im not saying its like the innovation, but it's just a brilliant, fitting score.

It's been a while since I've seen it, but I remember the music bothering me the most in the beginning, and then getting used to it as the film went along. In the beginning it seeme really distracting and out-of-place to me.

quote:
We should decided upon a day in a month or two (when I'm back home), where we both watch it and then submit ourselves to battles. However, I have heard that it get's better everytime you see it (it was better the second time), just because it such an orgy of sensations and things you dont understand, that it slowly unfolds itself every time you see it.

I'm up for it.

By the way, I also saw "The Dark Knight." I thought it was good, but it didn't live up to all the hype. Heath Ledger's Joker was absolutely extraordinary, but Batman himself was very flat and uninteresting--the film's main flaw, in my opinion. If Batman had been in at least three-quarters of the scenes instead of less than half of them--had the plot slowed down long enough to develop his character and his relationships with the people around him--the film might've been the masterpiece it's being hailed as. But without anyone to really identify with or feel for, I found that the film lacked emotional punch.

I was also appalled by the fact that it received a PG-13 rating. The "tryouts" scene near the beginning should've earned it an R rating alone, even if all the actual violence is implied; the implication is plenty horrific enough. It's ridiculous how lax the MPAA is on violence, when any sex or swearing immediately leads to an R rating.

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Posted by Loscil on 07.25.2008, 03:36 AM:

quote:
Originally posted by Orphic Okapi
But without anyone to really identify with or feel for, I found that the film lacked emotional punch.

What about Harvey Dent and Rachel? what about the ferries bit? I was emotionally touched a few times. i remember getting watery eyes in the cinema. And though I found that there was too little Christian Bale (obviously, theres no pre-batman story to tell), there was definitely a lot of batman. i didn't mind at all. Especially because heath ledger was so brilliant.

Posted by Miyrru on 07.25.2008, 12:13 PM:

Watched Reservoir Dogs last night. Kinda bleah.

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Posted by arren18 on 07.28.2008, 04:01 AM:

Last night I saw Unbreakable. I thought it was a really well-made film, and the style was great. The plot was interesting and Samuel L Jackson played his character well. Sometimes actions and moods seemed like they shouldn't be there, but otherwise it was good.

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Posted by Yay! Kiki on 07.28.2008, 04:08 AM:

My family has been watching a lot of movies without me lately. They're mean! All that I have watched with them are parts of movies . . . ah well, i saw part of Bicentennial Man with them yesterday, althgouh they started it before I woke up . . . (at 1:14, a late record. ) Yay!

Posted by Kazegami on 07.28.2008, 04:53 AM:

Well... two nights ago, I saw Memoirs Of A Geisha for the first time. Stunning film. The three Oscars it won - best costume design, best art direction, and best cinematography - were so deserved. The geisha were absolutely beautiful; gorgeous kimonos, and the makeup and everything looked so perfect. The acting was brilliant too, especially for Hatsumomo. The bitch.

The film has totally done the book justice IMO.

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Posted by Roarkiller on 07.28.2008, 09:13 AM:

Yeah, too bad it was hardly accurate.

Btw, did you know that "pleasure quarters" in the original sense in Japan was closer to a club than a red light district? The geisha danced, sang and entertain, but barely was there any hint of sleazy activities.

Saw Fearless. Sadly, as much hype as I've heard about it, it was bleah. Story was weak, character was weak, plot was weak. Not to mention the overdramatisation in so many parts.

Bah. Hero was so much better.

Posted by Kazegami on 07.28.2008, 10:44 AM:

quote:
Originally posted by Roarkiller
Btw, did you know that "pleasure quarters" in the original sense in Japan was closer to a club than a red light district? The geisha danced, sang and entertain, but barely was there any hint of sleazy activities.

It wasn't implied that the geisha did anything other than dancing, singing and entertaining. The rift between geisha and the girls like Satsu was made pretty clear. Wasn't it?

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Posted by Loscil on 07.28.2008, 11:31 AM:

The only one of the protagonists that is actually japanese is Ken Watanabe.

Posted by Roarkiller on 07.28.2008, 12:01 PM:

@Kazegami: Note the use of paragraphing. And the first three letters of that sentence

Posted by husky51 on 07.28.2008, 11:38 PM:

Saturday:

watched "Blazing Saddles" for about the eighth time.
Then 'Nausicaa' and 'Only Yesterday'...

Sunday:

Watched 'Princess Mononoke', 'Whisper of the Heart' (wept with joy at the good parts) and (aftyer spending some time at the public pool) 'My Neighbor Totoro'...

Nice Ghibli weekend...

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Posted by arren18 on 07.29.2008, 05:56 AM:

Dog Soldiers. Put simply, it's Assault On Precinct 13 with werewolves.

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Posted by Loscil on 07.30.2008, 06:06 AM:

Saw a lot of movies last week.
Since friday:

Good Night and Good Luck
well made, interesting, short. impressive.

Wanted
pretty crap. At elast the action was decent.

Collateral.
Once more. Really like it. Tom Cruise is awesome in that film.

Life Aquatic
Once more. Really like it, eventhough I had to see the german synchronisation.

The Fifth Element
Once more. Pretty crazy. Love the style.

I swear there were more. I see so many movies. Sometimes I can't remember everything.

Posted by Miyrru on 07.30.2008, 10:45 AM:

@ Lets be fair, Wanted wasnt crap. If you were looking for Oscar winning performances you are not being smart. As an action movie, it was pretty good. It blew stuff up and shot things. No brain needed.

I saw all of The Dark Knight last night. I will say that I think it was overrated. It was good yes, but far from the 'best movie of all time' that ive been hearing. Ledger was good though, probably going to win an Oscar with his good work plus the sympathy vote.

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Posted by Loscil on 07.30.2008, 12:10 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by Miyrru
@ Lets be fair, Wanted wasnt crap. If you were looking for Oscar winning performances you are not being smart. As an action movie, it was pretty good. It blew stuff up and shot things. No brain needed.

No brain needed is probably what the Khazak guy with the unpornouncable name thought when he contracted a writer. It reflects in the story.

It's really just a matter of opinion though. I thought the story was one of the biggest bouts of bullshit I've seen in A-list action films. Loom of Fate?
I mean.. WTF?
And though the action was good, the story was bad enough to make me enjoy the action less. When other dumbwits were hollering at the lovely brutality I couldnt even brink a smirk across my face.
It was still alright on average. That scene wheres he's running, gunning and catching guns is absolutely awesome. But the story...
And the action wasn't even as good as it was hyped up to be.
Sorry, but I came out dissappointed.
Wasnt looking for oscar performances, just for fun. But i didnt have more than 30 mins of it.
Which is not good.

I didn't know Batman was like over mega super pita giga hyped. I thought it just got a **** load of awesome reviews and everyone who went inside expected it to be awesome. Which it really was.
As a whole how-much-does-it-blow-you-away package, it's definitely in my top ten ever, maybe top 5. But I would never think or tell anyone it was the best film ever.

For people going in in the future. Expect a very good movie, maybe even a brilliant one. It is a masterpiece in modern action cinema. But don't expect a revelation or anything of that sort.

Posted by Miyrru on 07.30.2008, 12:21 PM:

@JRRR, well again, to each his own. I really wasnt looking for story. It was pretty cheesey, and maybe a bit over use of special effects, but it was bad. It was good simple fun to me. It was meant to entertain me with action scenes, and it succeeded, that was all I could ask for.

I still think that The Dark Knight is overrated. Other people's reviews mean little to me. I saw it and wasnt blown away, I thought it started a little slow and it tried to cram as much as possible in at the end. Good? Yes. Defining? To me, no.

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Posted by Orphic Okapi on 07.31.2008, 12:34 AM:

The more I think about "The Dark Knight," the more I think it's main problem was simple character development. The script just doesn't bother to slow down enough to develop satisfying, emotionally-involving relationships between its characters. I mean, the filmmakers had two and a half hours to work with; they could've spent less time on plot and more time developing the Bruce-Harvey-Whateverhernamewas love triangle.

See, that's how much the love triangle involved me. I can't even remember the girl's name.

Compare this to, say, Porco Rosso, which in an hour less develops a far more affecting and much more satisfying love triangle--and it doesn't even use much of its runtime to do so. This is due in part to the writing, but also the acting, and the direction. "The Dark Knight" had good actors and solid direction, but the script forgot that placing characters in horrible situations alone is not enough to make an audience truly care for them.

EDIT: I saw "Down By Law" today. It was very interesting, and very good, with some nice flashes of dark humor. I'm surprised it isn't some sort of cult classic--though maybe it is, and I just don't know about it. Fantastic cinematography, cool music, and a simple but well-executed plot that begins and ends precisely where it should. And yet, despite the simplicity, some of the scenes left me stunned with their brilliance.

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Posted by Loscil on 07.31.2008, 03:11 AM:

I film i forgot mentioning.
On saturday I saw:
Dainihonjin

Absolutely brilliant japanese parody on japanese monster b-movies.
havent had that much fun in ages.
And the movie is soooo strange. Like really really weird.

Posted by arren18 on 07.31.2008, 06:08 AM:

quote:
Originally posted by JRR
Collateral.
Once more. Really like it. Tom Cruise is awesome in that film.

Life Aquatic
Once more. Really like it, eventhough I had to see the german synchronisation.

Ah yes. Those are gooood films. Although the Life Aquatic really is weird.

And I saw I Am Legend (very very good, but the ending seemed awfully sudden) and Knocked Up (funny and not completely tasteless after all).

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Posted by Miyrru on 07.31.2008, 11:44 AM:

I agree with ya Orphic, character development was an issue, it needed to be better there.

Yesterday/Today I watched V for Vendetta, which was quite good, and then Kill Bill vol 1 which would have been better if it had the subtitles but what can you do about it.

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