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Tom Noblett's Posts

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Now that Salinger is dead, Which Director could pull off Catcher in the Rye? over 2 years ago

The internal style of the book and the clear fact a lot of people are going to be pissed off with a my-two-pennies-worth adaptation, means such a project is problematic. How about then, an “inspired by The Catcher in The Rye” type film? Holden fractured into multiple characters, different period settings, genre pastiche etc. The phenomena of the book is an interesting subject in itself.

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an acclaimed movie/director that you really don't like? over 2 years ago

Altman escapes me. Time and again.

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Best Film About Film? over 2 years ago

Vanity: Whatever Happened to Baby Jane
Obsession: 8 1/2
Love: Ed Wood
Craft: After Life
All of the above: Mulholland Dr.

Digressing slightly, Fitzcarraldo allows a certain ‘aboutness’; the sheer spectacle of the boat broke the fourth wall for me. Same could be said about many films I suppose.

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Directors' Cup Voting, Round 4, Match 1: Aki Kaurismäki (Ariel) vs Nikos Nikolaidis (Sweet Bunch) over 1 year ago

Hi everyone. This is my first time voting in the director’s cup. Only just discovered it, and let me say what a great idea it is. A truly lateral and surprising approach to ranking films!

I haven’t seen either of these directors’ work before, and both films are interesting. Ariel is funny (I’m definitely a fan of Scandinavian deadpan), it has a lithe little plot, and manages a couple of sly digs at the picaresque. Good acting as well, and it achieves the rare feat of great sight gags alongside snappy one-liners; it’s a comedy of dialogue and visuals. The full package.

The music in Sweet Bunch jars a little, and the plotting feels a tad loose for my taste. Some ok enough set-pieces, but insubstantial, and I wanted them to fit into a coherent whole: the cop/mystery guy didn’t loom enough, and the adult movie sequence could have been better etc. As soon as anything really interesting starts happening, there’s a cut and we’re thrust into some new ill-judged monotony. The characters felt throwaway in spite of having 2 and a half hours getting know them. I get the pastiche thing, but am not feeling it.

A no contest!

Aki Kaurismäki (Ariel) – 1 vs Nikos Nikolaidis (Sweet Bunch) – 0

Shall definitely be seeking out more Kaurismäki stuff.