I hate Garden State. I could do without the three newest Star Wars. I do not like Spielberg’s Planet of the Apes. I don’t hate Tideland, but it makes me a little uncomfortable when I watch it.
I am most definitely NOT a fan of Tarantino. His movies are pretentious, second-rate knockoffs.
I need to see more recent Godard, but as it stands now my favourites would be Masculin Féminin and Pierrot Le Fou. Maybe it’s that doomed film noir feeling in them. I love that
Lalo Schifrin’s score for Bullitt is amazing. Les Gants Blancs Du Diable by Karl-Heinz Schäfer is really good also. Woody Allen always has great soundtracks though they are never original…except for Bananas I think. I really like what I’ve heard of the music from Army of Shadows…but I don’t have the album yet. I think I need to import it from France.
I meant Burton. I was looking at the Spielberg thread as well. Now that you bring up War of the Worlds, it’s not on my hate list, but it is on my dislike and avoid list.
Too bad I can’t post the entire This Is Spinal Tap screen play. Or the screen Play for Withnail and I. Every line in those films is waiting to be quoted later on.
Sonja: Judgment of any system, or a priori relationship or phenomenon exists in an irrational, or metaphysical, or at least epistemological contradiction to an abstract empirical concept such as being, or to be, or to occur in the thing itself, or of the thing itself.
Boris: Yes, I’ve said that many times. (Love and Death)
There were some really cool releases when Criterion was doing laserdiscs. It would be fun to see some of those on dvd though I doubt they would ever get the rights to them. Films like Dr. No, Singin In The Rain, Akira (especially since the newest release by Pioneer was pretty bad), Annie Hall…these aren’t obscure films, but I’d like to see the extras Criterion could scrape together for them.
I only have the Late Ozu set (which I am very pleased with) but I plan to purchase the First Films Of Samuel Fuller and The Delirious Fictions Of William Klein sets soon. I’ve already seen Who Are You, Polly Maggoo and really enjoyed it. I haven’t seen any of the three films in the Fuller set yet though so I am really looking forward to it.
Sex and all related nudity and eroticism in film is an interesting subject. I suppose I am not really against it since I did enjoy films like Fellini Satyricon, but that film didn’t really glorify it at all. In fact, if anything the excess and decadence of those pictured in Satyricon put you off a little.
Many of the movies that I consider favourites have no sex in them though I realise. The few that do such has Fellini and maybe some Woody Allen…aren’t really all that sexual. I really love Melville and he was against all that anyway. I don’t know if there is a single Melville movie with sex in it, and I enjoy it (the lack of sex) because it lets you explore so many other emotions.
I have played in punk bands, post-punk bands, pop punk bands, psychobilly bands, indie pop bands, psychedelic pop bands and now I make my own music…finally. I love not having a band. I can experiment with just waves of sound all I want. I can go any direction I like. In my recent experiments I’ve come up with a sort of cross between Can and Serge Gainsbourg. We’ll see how it all turns out.
Best two concerts I have ever been to were Massive Attack and Air. I can only dream of being that good one day.
I would also like to point out that I love the way a punchy Rickenbacker bass sounds. Run that through an early 1970’s Music Man guitar amp and you can get some great sounds.
Mao: Vengeance Is Mine, there’s a good one. The film ended and I just sat there for a while taking it all in, just remembering everything that I had just seen in the last two or so hours. Light-hearted indeed.
I can’t think of an ending that has scarred me or anything but I can come up with a few that had a lasting impact. Nights Of Cabiria was great. Sad, but uplifting at the same time. Le Notti Bianche’s ending really resonated with me. The ending of Hoop Dreams stayed with me.
Someone previously mentioned the end of Rouge (three colours). I love how that just ties everything together.
I have not yet been converted to blu-ray yet. It’s an argument I tend to have with myself, can something be too clear? Too high def? It gets to a point where, sure, it’s crystal clear, but it’s so clear it’s not even life like anymore. Maybe I’m just old fashioned.
Not sure if I like the idea of having all six Star Wars on one or even two discs though. I like my movies so be somewhat…I can’t think of the word. I dunno. I have a dvd with four Bob Hope movies on it. I wish they had put each movie on a separate disc.
Tonight was Back To The Future pt II, but I’ve seen and rated that millions of times. Last night I watched Blast Of Silence.
I enjoyed it. I love the way it feels. Allen Baron just didn’t have money to spread around and the picture shows it, but in a good way. A sort of DIY way. I would give it a high B+, not quite an A, but almost.
In response to the directors you asked about:
Kurosawa – I started with Yojimbo myself. I still think that’s a good way to start. Yojimbo, then Seven Samurai, then…Throne Of Blood or Rashomon maybe. There are also some great earlier Kurosawa pictures such as Stray Dog and High And Low, so if you tire of Samurai cinema you can check those out.
For Fellini (one of my favourites) – I would say…The White Sheik or Maybe Nights Of Cabiria. Fellini can be an acquired taste sometimes. You have to start small before you can really loose yourself in Roma or some of his later films.
Truffaut – Someone mentioned Shoot The Piano Player. I can’t think of a better film to start with.
There has also been talk of Ozu and Mizoguchi here. If you are really into Japanese cinema do not hesitate to check them out, especially Ozu. You can go on from there to Shohei Imamura and Seijun Suzuki. Kwaidan is another really great japanese film to check out. Man, Japan, so much good cinema comes out of there.
I have just recently joined. I’ve been getting the Criterion newsletter for a while now and when they mentioned The Auteurs I joined immediately. I am enjoying myself already. Finally, a site that’s not filled with jerks!
Living near Seattle, I have access to some good movies that come through (plus I have access to Scarecrow Video, the largest video store on the west coast!). Now I have people to talk about them with…finally.
It was my first Kieslowski as well. Beautiful movie. So beautiful that I don’t really pay much attention to the story…but I don’t think the story is anything to write home about anyway. But, beautiful beautiful picture
I love love Planet of the Apes. All five of the old films actually. I love how the story comes full circle. You’ll be thinking about it for days. But, I think I have to go with Star Wars…only the original three.
Maybe I just appreciate it more now after reading a lot of Joseph Campbell’s work. Actually, everyone that votes against Star Wars should do some mythological research and you will find that Star Wars isn’t just a sci fi story. It’s an epic saga, the type of which man has been telling for as long as he has been telling stories. You can find parallels to Beowulf, Gilgamesh, the Odyssey…everyone should read The Hero With 1000 Faces by Joseph Campbell.
Also, sure Lucas just ripped The Hidden Fortress off for the first film. At least he has good taste.
Orson Welles is okay. I actually love him as an actor. He is one of the things that I really like about The Third Man, and a great plus to Start The Revolution Without Me…but this thread isn’t the place for that movie. So, as an actor I love him, but his films I find a little dull.
I will admit that there is some fantastic technical stuff in Kane. Great camera work, great editing and so on. One thing to remember though is that I am an Ozu fan. I love still cameras. I love slow editing. I am more for the picture itself than the editing or how the picture fits into a certain sequence.
There has been talk of Welles leaving people cold. While he doesn’t leave me cold (when he directs I mean) he doesn’t leave me with anything really. I don’t have a negative opinion of Welles after watching his work, I just haven’t ever received that emotional punch from his films. To bring up Ozu again, his films give me that emotion. Everyone has different films and different styles of film making that speaks to them more than others do.
Also, I admit that I still have a lot of Welles yet to see. My opinion of him may change for the better yet.
I don’t think that Criterion should get into…television shows. I mean shows with multiple seasons and hundreds of episodes and all that. They have already done some Bergman television stuff and Berlin Alexanderplatz was a tv special. The tv special is about as far as they should go.
Plus, if they released tv shows they would have to change the text on the back of every movie. They say the distribute important classic and contemporary films. A television special could be considered a film but not a tv show I think. Imagine: “important classic and contemporary films and television shows.” It just doesn’t sound right.
I don’t specifically follow any of them. If I am looking for info on a certain film I will search for and read whatever and whoever comes up…well, not everyone that comes up, but you get the idea.
Although The Stranger is a pretty satyrical newsmag, I have found their reviews to be pretty good usually.
Agreeing with everyone else here, I too was impressed with Children Of Men, especially that road ambush.
Marko mentioned Ozu, something I always must do. His lack of camera movement is one of my favourite things.
There is a scene in The Hidden Fortress which is great too. We see the two peasants cowering but we don’t see from what. Then we see a bloodied samurai stumble into the frame. I love that shot. Kurosawa always had really great camera work.
the hate corner over 3 years ago
I hate Garden State. I could do without the three newest Star Wars. I do not like Spielberg’s Planet of the Apes. I don’t hate Tideland, but it makes me a little uncomfortable when I watch it.
I am most definitely NOT a fan of Tarantino. His movies are pretentious, second-rate knockoffs.
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the hate corner over 3 years ago
let me add The Big Lebowski to my list
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Your Favorite Godard Film? over 3 years ago
I need to see more recent Godard, but as it stands now my favourites would be Masculin Féminin and Pierrot Le Fou. Maybe it’s that doomed film noir feeling in them. I love that
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Favorite score? over 3 years ago
Lalo Schifrin’s score for Bullitt is amazing. Les Gants Blancs Du Diable by Karl-Heinz Schäfer is really good also. Woody Allen always has great soundtracks though they are never original…except for Bananas I think. I really like what I’ve heard of the music from Army of Shadows…but I don’t have the album yet. I think I need to import it from France.
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the hate corner over 3 years ago
I meant Burton. I was looking at the Spielberg thread as well. Now that you bring up War of the Worlds, it’s not on my hate list, but it is on my dislike and avoid list.
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Spielbergo el supremo? over 3 years ago
He is a bit overrated. I do have some nostalgia for Hook though, and the Indiana movies are great.
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Spielbergo el supremo? over 3 years ago
He is a bit overrated. I do have some nostalgia for Hook though, and the Indiana movies are great.
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Film quotes you love over 3 years ago
Too bad I can’t post the entire This Is Spinal Tap screen play. Or the screen Play for Withnail and I. Every line in those films is waiting to be quoted later on.
Sonja: Judgment of any system, or a priori relationship or phenomenon exists in an irrational, or metaphysical, or at least epistemological contradiction to an abstract empirical concept such as being, or to be, or to occur in the thing itself, or of the thing itself.
Boris: Yes, I’ve said that many times. (Love and Death)
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Movies That Should Be In the Criterion Collection over 3 years ago
There were some really cool releases when Criterion was doing laserdiscs. It would be fun to see some of those on dvd though I doubt they would ever get the rights to them. Films like Dr. No, Singin In The Rain, Akira (especially since the newest release by Pioneer was pretty bad), Annie Hall…these aren’t obscure films, but I’d like to see the extras Criterion could scrape together for them.
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What was the first Criterion movie you watched? over 3 years ago
Laserdisc: Dr. No. Dvd: Band Of Outsiders
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Eclipse over 3 years ago
I only have the Late Ozu set (which I am very pleased with) but I plan to purchase the First Films Of Samuel Fuller and The Delirious Fictions Of William Klein sets soon. I’ve already seen Who Are You, Polly Maggoo and really enjoyed it. I haven’t seen any of the three films in the Fuller set yet though so I am really looking forward to it.
But man, all five films in the Ozu set…so good
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Sex in the movies: Disturbing? over 3 years ago
Sex and all related nudity and eroticism in film is an interesting subject. I suppose I am not really against it since I did enjoy films like Fellini Satyricon, but that film didn’t really glorify it at all. In fact, if anything the excess and decadence of those pictured in Satyricon put you off a little.
Many of the movies that I consider favourites have no sex in them though I realise. The few that do such has Fellini and maybe some Woody Allen…aren’t really all that sexual. I really love Melville and he was against all that anyway. I don’t know if there is a single Melville movie with sex in it, and I enjoy it (the lack of sex) because it lets you explore so many other emotions.
Go to Comment
thread where we talk about music over 3 years ago
I have played in punk bands, post-punk bands, pop punk bands, psychobilly bands, indie pop bands, psychedelic pop bands and now I make my own music…finally. I love not having a band. I can experiment with just waves of sound all I want. I can go any direction I like. In my recent experiments I’ve come up with a sort of cross between Can and Serge Gainsbourg. We’ll see how it all turns out.
Best two concerts I have ever been to were Massive Attack and Air. I can only dream of being that good one day.
I would also like to point out that I love the way a punchy Rickenbacker bass sounds. Run that through an early 1970’s Music Man guitar amp and you can get some great sounds.
Go to Comment
Most Traumatic or Dramatic Film Endings over 3 years ago
Mao: Vengeance Is Mine, there’s a good one. The film ended and I just sat there for a while taking it all in, just remembering everything that I had just seen in the last two or so hours. Light-hearted indeed.
I can’t think of an ending that has scarred me or anything but I can come up with a few that had a lasting impact. Nights Of Cabiria was great. Sad, but uplifting at the same time. Le Notti Bianche’s ending really resonated with me. The ending of Hoop Dreams stayed with me.
Someone previously mentioned the end of Rouge (three colours). I love how that just ties everything together.
Go to Comment
ANYONE ELSE STARTING TO ABANDON DVD FOR BLU-RAY? over 3 years ago
I have not yet been converted to blu-ray yet. It’s an argument I tend to have with myself, can something be too clear? Too high def? It gets to a point where, sure, it’s crystal clear, but it’s so clear it’s not even life like anymore. Maybe I’m just old fashioned.
Not sure if I like the idea of having all six Star Wars on one or even two discs though. I like my movies so be somewhat…I can’t think of the word. I dunno. I have a dvd with four Bob Hope movies on it. I wish they had put each movie on a separate disc.
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thread where we talk about music over 3 years ago
Amen to Gainsbourg Charlotte. I’m even into the production and mixing of his records. I think they sound great.
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FANTASY ARTHOUSE DOUBLE FEATURE over 3 years ago
A night featuring Branded To Kill + Le Samouraï, or maybe Classe Tous Risques. That would definitely strike my fancy now.
Or, Omega Man + Soylent Green…just because I like Heston
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Rate The Last Film You Watched over 3 years ago
Tonight was Back To The Future pt II, but I’ve seen and rated that millions of times. Last night I watched Blast Of Silence.
I enjoyed it. I love the way it feels. Allen Baron just didn’t have money to spread around and the picture shows it, but in a good way. A sort of DIY way. I would give it a high B+, not quite an A, but almost.
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12-year old asking... over 3 years ago
In response to the directors you asked about:
Kurosawa – I started with Yojimbo myself. I still think that’s a good way to start. Yojimbo, then Seven Samurai, then…Throne Of Blood or Rashomon maybe. There are also some great earlier Kurosawa pictures such as Stray Dog and High And Low, so if you tire of Samurai cinema you can check those out.
For Fellini (one of my favourites) – I would say…The White Sheik or Maybe Nights Of Cabiria. Fellini can be an acquired taste sometimes. You have to start small before you can really loose yourself in Roma or some of his later films.
Truffaut – Someone mentioned Shoot The Piano Player. I can’t think of a better film to start with.
There has also been talk of Ozu and Mizoguchi here. If you are really into Japanese cinema do not hesitate to check them out, especially Ozu. You can go on from there to Shohei Imamura and Seijun Suzuki. Kwaidan is another really great japanese film to check out. Man, Japan, so much good cinema comes out of there.
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12-year old asking... over 3 years ago
Let me add to my thoughts on Fellini – Boccaccio ’70. Four shorter films. Monicelli, Fellini, Visconti, and de Sica. All four films are great
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New to The Auteurs? You Belong Here over 3 years ago
I have just recently joined. I’ve been getting the Criterion newsletter for a while now and when they mentioned The Auteurs I joined immediately. I am enjoying myself already. Finally, a site that’s not filled with jerks!
Living near Seattle, I have access to some good movies that come through (plus I have access to Scarecrow Video, the largest video store on the west coast!). Now I have people to talk about them with…finally.
Go to Comment
La Double Vie de Véronique over 3 years ago
It was my first Kieslowski as well. Beautiful movie. So beautiful that I don’t really pay much attention to the story…but I don’t think the story is anything to write home about anyway. But, beautiful beautiful picture
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Planet of the Apes or Star Wars? over 3 years ago
I love love Planet of the Apes. All five of the old films actually. I love how the story comes full circle. You’ll be thinking about it for days. But, I think I have to go with Star Wars…only the original three.
Maybe I just appreciate it more now after reading a lot of Joseph Campbell’s work. Actually, everyone that votes against Star Wars should do some mythological research and you will find that Star Wars isn’t just a sci fi story. It’s an epic saga, the type of which man has been telling for as long as he has been telling stories. You can find parallels to Beowulf, Gilgamesh, the Odyssey…everyone should read The Hero With 1000 Faces by Joseph Campbell.
Also, sure Lucas just ripped The Hidden Fortress off for the first film. At least he has good taste.
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Controversial opinion: Orson Welles is not very good over 3 years ago
Orson Welles is okay. I actually love him as an actor. He is one of the things that I really like about The Third Man, and a great plus to Start The Revolution Without Me…but this thread isn’t the place for that movie. So, as an actor I love him, but his films I find a little dull.
I will admit that there is some fantastic technical stuff in Kane. Great camera work, great editing and so on. One thing to remember though is that I am an Ozu fan. I love still cameras. I love slow editing. I am more for the picture itself than the editing or how the picture fits into a certain sequence.
There has been talk of Welles leaving people cold. While he doesn’t leave me cold (when he directs I mean) he doesn’t leave me with anything really. I don’t have a negative opinion of Welles after watching his work, I just haven’t ever received that emotional punch from his films. To bring up Ozu again, his films give me that emotion. Everyone has different films and different styles of film making that speaks to them more than others do.
Also, I admit that I still have a lot of Welles yet to see. My opinion of him may change for the better yet.
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SHOULD THE CRITERION COLLECTION INCLUDE TELEVISION SHOWS? over 3 years ago
I don’t think that Criterion should get into…television shows. I mean shows with multiple seasons and hundreds of episodes and all that. They have already done some Bergman television stuff and Berlin Alexanderplatz was a tv special. The tv special is about as far as they should go.
Plus, if they released tv shows they would have to change the text on the back of every movie. They say the distribute important classic and contemporary films. A television special could be considered a film but not a tv show I think. Imagine: “important classic and contemporary films and television shows.” It just doesn’t sound right.
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Which Film Critics Do You Read? over 3 years ago
I don’t specifically follow any of them. If I am looking for info on a certain film I will search for and read whatever and whoever comes up…well, not everyone that comes up, but you get the idea.
Although The Stranger is a pretty satyrical newsmag, I have found their reviews to be pretty good usually.
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Andy Warhol over 3 years ago
I don’t like Warhol much, but people around him and influenced by him created some good stuff. The Velvet Underground and Paul Morrissey for example
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Film quotes you love over 3 years ago
“Was it heavy? Did it achieve total heaviosity?” – Alvy Singer (Woody Allen, Annie Hall)
- I use that one in everyday life quite a bit.
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Action Films over 3 years ago
Action? (I am watching Terminator as I type this). Give me Hard Boiled, The Killer, First Blood…so many good memories.
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Best camerawork in a movie...handheld or otherwise. Or best use of the camera to convey the scene's intention. over 3 years ago
Agreeing with everyone else here, I too was impressed with Children Of Men, especially that road ambush.
Marko mentioned Ozu, something I always must do. His lack of camera movement is one of my favourite things.
There is a scene in The Hidden Fortress which is great too. We see the two peasants cowering but we don’t see from what. Then we see a bloodied samurai stumble into the frame. I love that shot. Kurosawa always had really great camera work.
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