Great film. Great director. Someone give Ramsay some funding now so she can get back to making great movies.
One of the better novels of the 1990s as in addition to being a superb film. (terrific soundtrack as well.) “A Child of the Raves”
I loved Ratcatcher and have been meaning to watch some more Ramsay, thanks for the heads, I assume that this would be a good next stop? yes?
I also loved it. Strong work all round. (Read great things about Ratcatcher too, hope to catch it sometime.) AND I love Samantha Morton in every film I’ve seen her in so far. There’s a million or so really worthwhile, exceptional films (at least so it seems sometimes) that aren’t listed here – though you’re right – the more modern ones tend to be well represented. Face it, they can’t include everything. But the threads and wall posts are very helpful in putting the fan-fan recommendations out there. [I started such a list for my wall, then took it down because I kept thinking of others to add. So when that list (now a document) is more complete, I’ll re-post.]
Morvern Callar is definitely one of my favorite films. Just one of those picked I up off the rental rack (or netflix or whatever) and I was consumed by it. Ratcatcher is also an excellent film. I think that one had Lynne Ramsay’s short films on it as well, which are worth seeing. I’ve been waiting for years now for her next film. She was mentioned for The Lovely Bones for a while but then left the film or something.
i loved morvern callar. i also liked ratcatcher, but didn’t think it was nearly as good as calla .i turned on 3 friends of mine to morvern callar several years ago and none of them liked it, but then again, i had questioned some of their movie tastes prior to this !
I Love Morvern Callar.
Valentina Sanchez, if you liked the Some Velvet Morning inclusion.. Definitely try to see Ratcatcher, her previous film.
Also GREAT!
And you’ll instantly love its “Something Stupid” inclusion.
All you have to do is try to imagine it BEFORE all the Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman heavy-rotation cover, before that overhyped revival, and i’m sure you’ll appreciate how great scene she made…
Loved Ratcatcher as well! So happy there are some Lynne Ramsay fans here yay!
Yay! ,Morvern Callar has to be one of my top 5 favorite filsm of all time. Amazing script, direction, photography, music, acting…. Lynne Ramsay is one of the most promising directors of this time. And yes, why is Morvern Callar not in here????
(Criterion should re-release it as part of their collection. It truly is a modern masterpiece.)
She’s working on an adaptation of Lionel Shriver’s novel We Need to Talk About Kevin I think.
Hokay. I guess I’ll be the voice of dissent in this here topic, nice to know a role. Lessee…
I don’t mind movies without plot. I do mind if they have nothing else going on with them either. The travelogue existed, the images were pretty, but neither I nor the person I was watching it with really found anything with which to care.
So what was this movie about, anyway? I mean, I understood the whole boyfriend dying left behind novel thing. But after that. Why did we follow her around for two hours?
(I’m actually really glad to be discussing it here as this is the only place I know where a larger group of people have seen it).
—PolarisDiB
I love this movie so much! I’ve only found a few other people who liked it, and everyone I’ve turned it onto hasn’t liked it… it’s a pity, really. I think Ratcatcher is probably more conventionally appealing, and probably a better introduction to Ramsey (even if I like Morvern Callar more…).
I love Lynne Ramsey more than words can say…Contemporary English-language filmmakers often get short shrift in these forums, I think; but Ratcatcher has great heart, is lyrical even in muck-and-mire, beautifully shot…
Movern Callar uses the great Samantha Morton as she’s used best; and she’s a remarkable actress.
I’m only effusing, now – the analytical capacity has stalled.
To PolarisDiB:
Here’s my take on the movie…and why I find it so compelling. (I agree that this form of discussion is great)
I think this movie utilizes the events that take place in the first scene as a catapult to a journey (however slow and unaware) of self-discovery and self-realization.
The movie is ‘about’ an enigmatic, mysterious, and morally dubious character. Part of the reason why I find it so compelling is that Morvern never really seems to have a motive behind her actions. One could even say that her decisions often seem “out of character”, although we don’t really know anything about this particular character—where she comes from, why is she there, what was her relationship with her boyfriend like, etc. We are never given a backstory, because in a way, her past doesn’t really matter anymore; a horrifying event has just occurred, and even though she may not explicitly show it, she’s devastated and terrified.
In the movie, we are experiencing everything from her standpoint—one that is going through such emotional turmoil that, like the moment right after you’ve been in a car wreck, things seem displaced and surreal.
I don’t know… I’m familiar with enigmatic, mysterious, and morally dubious characters—Vagabond comes to mind. But what does she learn or what do we come away with from her journey? I saw some great imagery, but sometimes even a slide-show of someone’s vacation has good photography behind it…. doesn’t make it interesting to the rest of the group. I found very little to bring me into that character or any of her actions, myself.
—PolarisDiB
Did the detail about Antonioni’s The Passenger being one of her favorite films make it into the film? I can’t remember.
Lynne Ramsay is by far my favorite director. She directs with confidence and is miles apart from most directors. Perfect mix of nostalgia and emotion with a simple, pleasantly meandering, story.
Did anyone else feel like this movie lost steam and focus in its second half with the trip to Spain?
I
I didn’t feel that. My issue with the film was related to its purpose. What are we to think of Morvern? She does some pretty despicable things and there’s not really anything redemptive or transformative in her journey.
HoL — I felt that way too, and that’s related to why the second half bothered me. After its brilliant and mysterious start, I was hoping the second half would offer more insight into her character but it just kind of dragged on in the same detached manner.
RWP III needs to get in here to argue for it.
My impression was that Ramsay just kind of blasted us with music and style as a substitute for dealing with the character that she’d created.
I’m wondering if her motives were explained more fully in the novel.
i think she may have been autistic
It’s possible, but I got the sense Ramsay was trying to say something about the culture to which Morvern belongs. If her detachment could be explained by autism the cultural backdrop, which Ramsay was definitely emphasizing, would be irrelevant.
there’s not really anything redemptive or transformative in her journey
redemptive might be another argument but transformative? the whole movie is her transformation after finding her boyfriend’s dead body
Wait, you guys.
I think this is one of Cecil’s picks for the DC competition. I don’t know if we should discuss as he’s going to start a thread on this film in three weeks. (But I’m already chomping at the bit, so it will be easy to convince me to start discussing this now.)
But how could somebody who wasn’t a sociopath do what she did and feel empowered by it without remorse? The only plausible explanation I can think of is her boyfriend was abusive, but there isn’t enough in the film to suggest this.
@Jazz – they can always merge the thread into one. I don’t think we need to hold off on discussing it, especially since the film is fresh in all of our memories now.
Valentina Sanchez
I really love this film does anyone else share the passion? I find it odd that it is not listed here, or is it?
Thoughts and/or opinions?
“Some velvet morning” great Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra tune.