Ahh, run threads like a personal film blog, and if anybody else jumps in, all the better.
Yeah, basically. Give it a try!
I like this thread. it reminds me this. Thanks, Jazz.
No problem, M. (You haven’t been posting much, huh?)
Loved Rian Johnson’s film Brick and really liked The Brothers Bloom, so I anticipate his upcoming Looper positively.
+1 on Rian Johnson, I loved Brick, The Brothers Bloom not so much. I am also eagerly anticipating Martin McDonagh ’s next film. He is a very succesful playwriter and his first feature film, In Bruges, was brilliant. He also won an oscar for best short film for Six Shooter
Another film that needs more attention is the bulgarian flm-noir Zift (2008) which I absolutely loved.Here’s a clip (slightly out of sync)
I like Good Dick. Not that many people here seem to have experienced Good Dick so I would recommend checking out Good Dick if you haven’t. Good Dick is fairly understated and subtle, surprisingly gentle and tender, but also penetrating and expansive. Its length is just right too.
Zift is solid fun, Brick has even better crime-like moments and In Bruges was indeed magnificent but if I were to start promoting little-known filmmakers, not only most of them have already made an appearance at least once or twice in those MUBI film tournaments for the past 3 years now, most of them have and will create polarizing feelings as is always the case with lesser-known filmmakers…
…but I’m kind of glad there is a particular thread dealing with them, even if they will never counter-clash the established mass preferences.
@ Blue
Thanks for that list – found 3 at my library.
@ ARI – I really liked Good Dick. As strange as it those words sound in the same sentence. I’m anxious to see what Marianna Palka can do next.
@twodeadmagpies: Oh Sally, yes. Yes. I love “On the Old Roman Road.” That’s what “little-known-filmmakers-and-films” supposed to be.
“One of the most fascinating and stylish productions of French silent cinema. Perfect!” – The Times London
“Some of the most extraordinary scenes so far seen in cinema, scenes that will revolutionize film technique the world over.” – Cinea
“A film that surpasses all films!” – Le Soir
“Beautifully restored…An opulently mounted epic. A masterwork!” – Philip French, The Observer
Now what is this?
Years ago, before i’d ever imagined surfing the wonder that is the internet, i saw The Chess Player, French silent film (1927) by Raymond Bernard. It’s a great dashing romantic adventure set in Russian-ruled Poland in 1776 replete with sleigh ride, firework display, stirring batlle scenes and a Chess-playing automaton. Not seen it since, buit i really enjoyed it. Here’s the low down.
“With his homeland partitioned and ruled by Russia, Polish nobleman and patriot Boleslas Vorowski heads a secret liberation movement. When Vorowski is wounded in battle, his mentor, the inventor Baron Wolfgang von Kempelen, constructs the Turk, a marvelous chess-playing automaton. With the handsome Polish nobleman secreted inside, the Turk vanquishes the Russians – if only on the chessboard. When Catherine the Great summons the Turk to the Russian Imperial Court for a command match, the fate of Polish independence lies in the hands of the chess player.
Henri Dupuy-Mazuel’s novel was based on the story of the real Turk, an automaton that baffled the best minds of Europe and America – including Benjamin Franklin, Edgar Allan Poe and Napoleon. Shot on location in Poland, France and Switzerland, The Chess Player combines gorgeous decors and thousands of extras from the Polish cavalry into an electrifying feast for the eyes and mind. The film has been expertly restored by Photoplay Productions under the auspices of Kevin Brownlow, Patrick Stanbury and the late David Gill"
Yeah, that’s about it
I’ve only seen the one film from him (Bossy Burger) but it was one of the best—if not the best experience of the 90’s decade for me so far. So Paul McCarthy should be mentioned.
DownByLaw
Ahh, run threads like a personal film blog, and if anybody else jumps in, all the better. Not a bad idea.
Yeah, that remembering the specifics is a killer. I’m always debating between watching something I’ve never seen and watching any of the ever longer list of films I’d like to refresh in my memory. I probably saw Browning Version last four or five years ago, so I could not say too much about it without watching it again.