I’d appreciate it if you did. Gracias, le Santino.
…I really want to watch this damned thing.
“Grill with sweet dragon tats” – 8/10
Second viewing on blu-ray, film really clicked for me. I got past all the “crime solving” procedural stuff and the characters and settings really came to the foreground. Really well casted, Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara are both excellent, and as in all the supporting cast, it really seems like Fincher has stepped up his casting game.
Speaking of The Game, this film really seems to me like a modern culmination of Fincher’s art-form, it’s a little bit Se7en, a little bit Zodiac, a little bit The Game and a little Social Network all rolled into one.
My one complaint about the film is the little “post-mordern” segment involving Daniel Craig’s legal adversary at the end. I understand this is a classic or important part of the book or whatever, but for the film it just doesn’t seem necessary. Minor complaint though because the VERY ending is so sublime that all is forgiven, Fincher really knocked it out of the park. Excellent photography and music / sound design almost goes without saying.
Werckmeister Harmonies
I can’t rate this film because I didn’t finish it. I couldnt stand it, the thing was maddening and I drifted in and out of sleep every 5 to 10 minutes. I bailed when two kids where jumping around shouting “I’ll be hard on you” a bazillion times…
Who likes this film, and why?
I also watched The Man From London, which I got nothing out of except eye-candy (I’m big on bleak b&w photography)
Tarr= mubi style
paceless with alleged purpose
THIS IS MUBI STYLE?!
Im not sure Im gonna watch Satantango after Harmonies… Should I?
@Axel-
I agree about the tacked-on ending. There are a lot of problems I have with the source material and this sub-plot with Craig’s character seems out of place.
@ Lover -
Yeah, Tarr is certainly one aspect of “mubi-style”. Although I don’t get the sense that Elena suffers from this specific issue.
Mubi-style is multifaceted and wide ranging. It’s hard to define but easy to spot.
I was disappointed with Fincher’s Dragon Tattoo – not that I had any attachment whatsoever to the source material. Never read the books, don’t care to. The story is just… uninteresting and kind of run-of-the-mill. Sure, like any Fincher film, it was very well-crafted technically… but if Fincher doesn’t have a good script, story, then his films can only be so good. I’d give it 6/10 because it was enjoyable, well-acted, the score from Reznor/Ross was great and for the atmosphere. But other than that, it didn’t do much for me.
Sorry to intrude, but Im not a David Fincher fan. I think his movies are enjoyable and, like Takaa said, well-crafted technically, but the guy just can’t get any emotion out of me. I will give him credit for Zodiac, which I thought was brilliant, but I think the brilliance behind Social Network was the acting and script.
>>Im not sure Im gonna watch Satantango after Harmonies… Should I?<<
I happen to love both films, but Werckmeister Harmonies very much defines Tarr’s syle and, if that doesn’t appeal to you, it’s likely that Satantango will go even worse with its epic legnth. CCC (Contemporary Contemplative Cinema) is certainly not for everyone, but they have much to offer if you’re willing to make the stylistic leap. They’re basically mood pieces where themes and emotions are discovered through observing environment and behavior rather than plot or dialogue.
Fincher won me over long ago with Se7en which is still my favorite of his filmography. Along with Fight Club, Zodiac and The Social Network (all 5/5 films to me) – I’m a fan. I just wish he’d choose his material more carefully/consistently.
Dupe.
@le Brad S
“They’re basically mood pieces where themes and emotions are discovered through observing environment and behavior rather than plot or dialogue.”
That’s why I love Meek’s Cutoff, or any other Reichardt film. They don’t give you much of the character’s past’s to work on, yet I find them still incredibly compelling.
You make a great point, and thanks for answering my question, I think i’ll stand back from Satantango now.
I agree with everyone that Fincher is pretty “dependent” slash enhanced by his source material, and the source material of Dragon Tattoo certainly leaves some to be desired to put it nicely…
But for all that, he’s just so good technically, and if you combine technical excellence with excellent casting, that is usually enough to “get there” for me.
Elena – 3.5 stars
It’s definitely got a bit of Mubi-style but it’s not drowning in it. It’s a simple story but it’s so expertly crafted that the pleasure really comes in the slow simmer. Looking back on it, it’s amazing how tense I was during certain parts of the film. Just the expectation of something awful makes for some gripping drama.
It’s not the best film ever made but it’s certainly worth two hours of your time.
Hide & Seek – 2/10
An insulting film. It packs in every cliche in the book and then wastes impressive acting. I felt as if the filmmakers were under the impression they were making a movie for aliens and could steal from a ton of other films because the aliens have never seen a horror movie before. Unfortunately a lot of people in my stupid Psych class hadn’t seen a horror movie before so they thought it was brilliant. God damnit De Niro.
Forget Paris – 7/10
A bit all of the over the place, but very funny and adorable. This is what solid romantic comedies should be. It’s nothing extraordinary, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith – 6.5/10
Still distinctly Hitchcock, and yet not as good as one would hope. It has its great moments, but overall it just felt lacking.
^someone needs to get out of the house!
Hey! I saw Moonrise Kingdom last weekend.
lol
If you saw these in class, I suppose you get a pass. But man, hurry up and graduate and get away from that school if they’re making you watch Hide and Seek!
Hahaha only the first one was in class. The second was with a friend and the third was while putting together a stupid school project.
My Psych teacher has the worst taste in movies ever. It drives me insane. There are such better movies to convey whatever it is he’s trying to convey. Now we’re watching fucking Identity. Granted next to Hide & Seek it looks like Psycho, but it still is not a movie I ever thought I’d be seeing again… and it’s not a particularly pleasant surprise.
But I graduate in two weeks!
hey, I like Identity. haha
ahhh, it seems like it was only yesterday that you were that quiet little kid in the wheelchair going to see David Fincher at the Egyptian.
It’s hilarious how many people already who I’m going to school with the next year have recognized me from The Auteurs/Mubi. All of the young film nerds of a few years ago are now heading off to film school. Too funny.
The War Room — 8/10
Rampart (2011)
Oren Moverman’s LAPD with a fine Woody Harrelson
8.5/10
Link
Pink Floyd The Wall (1982) – 5/5.
Kingdom of Heaven
C+
This movie doesn’t feel unique, exciting, or wondrous. It feels forced and soulless. Not much freedom of filmmaking or the extravagance of adventure shines here, I don’t think it’s worth 2 and a half hours of anyone’s time. That and it’s a real bore at times. But I can’t deny how good it looks at moments, and I always love Thewlis.
Jackie Brown (Dir. Quentin Tarantino, 1997)
Hadn’t seen JB in a long time. I actually shed a tear for some of the tenderness between Grier and Forrester.
^My fave Tarantino film to date.
Santino
@ Lover – I’m going to see Elena tonight. I think I have an idea for what Jirin means when he says “mubi-style” but I’ll wait until I see the film and report back. lol