Fireworks(dir. Takeshi Kitano)
REVIEW PENDING...
*** out of ****
Showing posts with label 1998. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1998. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Oh 1998...
1998
1. Henry Fool(dir. Hal Hartley)
2. The Hole(dir. Tsai Ming-Liang)
3. Taste of Cherry(dir. Abbas Kiarostami)
4. Rushmore(dir. Wes Anderson)
5. The Flowers of Shanghai(dir. Hou Hsiao-Hsien)
6. The Big Lebowski(dir. The Coen Brothers)
7. Buffalo '66(dir. Vincent Gallo)
Need to see/rewatch: The Thin Red Line, Fallen Angels, There's Something About Mary, The Eel, Beloved, Out of Sight, A Simple Plan, Fireworks, Elizabeth, Velvet Goldmine, The Idiots, Mother and Son, The Apostle, Public Housing, and more...
1. Henry Fool(dir. Hal Hartley)
2. The Hole(dir. Tsai Ming-Liang)
3. Taste of Cherry(dir. Abbas Kiarostami)
4. Rushmore(dir. Wes Anderson)
5. The Flowers of Shanghai(dir. Hou Hsiao-Hsien)
6. The Big Lebowski(dir. The Coen Brothers)
7. Buffalo '66(dir. Vincent Gallo)
Need to see/rewatch: The Thin Red Line, Fallen Angels, There's Something About Mary, The Eel, Beloved, Out of Sight, A Simple Plan, Fireworks, Elizabeth, Velvet Goldmine, The Idiots, Mother and Son, The Apostle, Public Housing, and more...
Monday, November 26, 2007
Oh There's Something Really Sexy About Scrooge McDuck...
The Painted Veil(dir. John Curran)
The whole thing is pretty much disposable. It's sort of blandly affecting and it's already escaping my memory as I write this, but I still think it's recommendable. There's something inherently theatrical about actors doing fake British accents and period piece decor and this film has both. Toby Jones gives probably the most memorable performance because well, he's actually British and has the juiciest role as a good-hearted sleazeball. Naomi Watts looks ravishing as usual. She has a rather simplistic role, but she still gives a fine performance. The film doesn't contain much depth because everything is pretty much on the surface so it creates an instantly forgettable atmosphere, which makes the whole thing feel disposable. The story seems to scream for a sweeping epicness much like a David Lean film like Doctor Zhivago, but it simply doesn't have it. The director aimed for a more intimate and self-contained atmosphere, but since everything is rather simplistic, his attempt isn't entirely successful. Doctor Zhivago, a film that contained that epic scope, also felt intimate so it's possible to acclompish both. I slightly recommend.
**1/2 out of ****
The Last Days of Disco(dir. Whit Stillman)
It's strange to find a film being ameliorated with this fun, light-hearted, and borderline ridiculous ending, but yeah. The ending clearly has the sense of fun that some of the film's preceding moments would have greatly benefited from. These characters are his most unlikeable creations since none of them realize how vain they are. In his other films, it seemed like some of his characters were conscious of their flaws, but here, they all seem oblivious, which makes them more irritating to spend time with. The film is also not all that romantic outside of it's ending compared to his previous efforts. There's never really a moment in the film where the characters show that they're aren't completely narcissistic so it's hard to really embrace the film, but man, it's hard not to have a smile on your face with that ending. This film actually has some of his most amusing bits of dialogue especially one memorable conversation about Lady & The Tramp. It also contains the funniest moment out of all of his films, which is simply the sight of Chris Eigeman's priceless expression after Kate Beckinsale's character says that disco might have died because of the herpes epidemic, but this film is still, in my mind, his weakest effort. It's disappointing to find Carolyn Farina's presence only amounts to a brief silent cameo since I thought she was the most appealing part of Metropolitan. She really needs to do more movies because she has a terrific screen presence. If it wasn't for the ending, I wouldn't being recommending this film, but here I am, slightly recommending it. I slightly recommend.
**1/2 out of ****
P.S.
Interestingly enough, I saw a tiny bit of this when I was younger and it happened to be the scene where the woman is nude on the couch. I'm pretty sure it was my first exposure to nudity in a movie. I always wondered what the movie was called and it's strange to stumble upon it by simply going through my normal cinephillic viewing pattern, but yeah.
The whole thing is pretty much disposable. It's sort of blandly affecting and it's already escaping my memory as I write this, but I still think it's recommendable. There's something inherently theatrical about actors doing fake British accents and period piece decor and this film has both. Toby Jones gives probably the most memorable performance because well, he's actually British and has the juiciest role as a good-hearted sleazeball. Naomi Watts looks ravishing as usual. She has a rather simplistic role, but she still gives a fine performance. The film doesn't contain much depth because everything is pretty much on the surface so it creates an instantly forgettable atmosphere, which makes the whole thing feel disposable. The story seems to scream for a sweeping epicness much like a David Lean film like Doctor Zhivago, but it simply doesn't have it. The director aimed for a more intimate and self-contained atmosphere, but since everything is rather simplistic, his attempt isn't entirely successful. Doctor Zhivago, a film that contained that epic scope, also felt intimate so it's possible to acclompish both. I slightly recommend.
**1/2 out of ****
The Last Days of Disco(dir. Whit Stillman)
It's strange to find a film being ameliorated with this fun, light-hearted, and borderline ridiculous ending, but yeah. The ending clearly has the sense of fun that some of the film's preceding moments would have greatly benefited from. These characters are his most unlikeable creations since none of them realize how vain they are. In his other films, it seemed like some of his characters were conscious of their flaws, but here, they all seem oblivious, which makes them more irritating to spend time with. The film is also not all that romantic outside of it's ending compared to his previous efforts. There's never really a moment in the film where the characters show that they're aren't completely narcissistic so it's hard to really embrace the film, but man, it's hard not to have a smile on your face with that ending. This film actually has some of his most amusing bits of dialogue especially one memorable conversation about Lady & The Tramp. It also contains the funniest moment out of all of his films, which is simply the sight of Chris Eigeman's priceless expression after Kate Beckinsale's character says that disco might have died because of the herpes epidemic, but this film is still, in my mind, his weakest effort. It's disappointing to find Carolyn Farina's presence only amounts to a brief silent cameo since I thought she was the most appealing part of Metropolitan. She really needs to do more movies because she has a terrific screen presence. If it wasn't for the ending, I wouldn't being recommending this film, but here I am, slightly recommending it. I slightly recommend.
**1/2 out of ****
P.S.
Interestingly enough, I saw a tiny bit of this when I was younger and it happened to be the scene where the woman is nude on the couch. I'm pretty sure it was my first exposure to nudity in a movie. I always wondered what the movie was called and it's strange to stumble upon it by simply going through my normal cinephillic viewing pattern, but yeah.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Oh Christina...
Buffalo '66(dir. Vincent Gallo)
In the beginning, I didn't like Billy that much until the scene in the restaurant with the girl he supposedly dated. The dinner scene was pretty amusing, but I wouldn't say it was that great. I was actually enjoying it quite a bit and would have given this **** if it wasn't for what happens alittle bit before the end. He makes the audience believe the story goes in a certain direction and then reveals that it actually didn't go that way. It seemed like just a cheap trick. Some of his visual techniques like the spotlight effect on his father, the man Ben Gazzara, singing or Layla tapdancing and how the flashbacks started small and ended up getting big on the screen was alittle off-putting. The scene before the ending ruined it for me. If that was out of the picture, I would have enjoyed this alot better. It is still a good film though.
*** out of ****
In the beginning, I didn't like Billy that much until the scene in the restaurant with the girl he supposedly dated. The dinner scene was pretty amusing, but I wouldn't say it was that great. I was actually enjoying it quite a bit and would have given this **** if it wasn't for what happens alittle bit before the end. He makes the audience believe the story goes in a certain direction and then reveals that it actually didn't go that way. It seemed like just a cheap trick. Some of his visual techniques like the spotlight effect on his father, the man Ben Gazzara, singing or Layla tapdancing and how the flashbacks started small and ended up getting big on the screen was alittle off-putting. The scene before the ending ruined it for me. If that was out of the picture, I would have enjoyed this alot better. It is still a good film though.
*** out of ****
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