Hey Ryan, first, sucks to be called Brian all the time doesn’t it?
You can’t go wrong with starting at spine #1 and watching every Criterion Collection DVD in order. Or hustling up the money to buy the big Janus boxed set. But a few movies I remember watching at around age 12-17 that changed the way I looked at film—My Life As a Dog, A Zed and Two Noughts, Eraserhead, This Is Spinal Tap, Brazil. There’s so damn much to see. Happy viewing!
Hey Ryan, first, sucks to be called Brian all the time doesn’t it?
You can’t go wrong with starting at spine #1 and watching every Criterion Collection DVD in order. Or hustling up the money to buy the big Janus boxed set. But a few movies I remember watching at around age 12-17 that changed the way I looked at film—My Life As a Dog, A Zed and Two Noughts, Eraserhead, This Is Spinal Tap, Brazil. There’s so damn much to see. Happy viewing!
Hey Ryan, first, sucks to be called Brian all the time doesn’t it?
You can’t go wrong with starting at spine #1 and watching every Criterion Collection DVD in order. Or hustling up the money to buy the big Janus boxed set. But a few movies I remember watching at around age 12-17 that changed the way I looked at film—My Life As a Dog, A Zed and Two Noughts, Eraserhead, This Is Spinal Tap, Brazil. There’s so damn much to see. Happy viewing!
I’m developing a proposal for a college course on narrative structures in film. I’m interested in compiling a list of films that break out of the traditional 3-act structure and experiment with pacing, chronology, and just storytelling methodology in general. So of course there’s MEMENTO and SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK. And PULP FICTION. I’m hoping to create a list that spans all eras of film. Suggestions?
I’m a writer living in Seattle. I wrote a book called “The Littlest Hitler,” published in 2006 and have a novel called “Misconception” coming out in fall 2009.
I first became aware of Criterion’s magnificence when they released the 3-disc set of “Brazil,” still one of my all-time favorite films. A few years later I got a job at Amazon.com as an editor on the DVD tea Every day the mail cart came by and delivered boxes of DVDs on my desk, up to several hundred a week. We were all assigned to work with specific studios, and I got the Criterion account. This meant that I was responsible for coming up with ways to feature their releases on the site. And it meant that I got every Criterion disc I wanted. I was a kid in a candy store that sold heroin instead of candy. I also worked with Kino Video, Zeitgeist, Ryko, and other studios that sold obscure art house fare. While my colleagues snatched up the latest blockbusters, I feasted on Kino’s Edison box set, the works of Norman McClaren, silents, classics, and crazy animation. I considered myself lucky for the free DVDs, but I reached a point where management and I were not getting along, so I moved on.
Now, in addition to writing, I teach in Goddard College’s MFA program in Port Townsend, WA, am an editor at Expedia, and allow myself to watch a film if I’ve completed my writing for the day. Recently loved “Secret Honor” and “Synecdoche, New York.” I’m reading Roberto Bolanos’ “2666” and listening to an unhealthy amount of AC/DC. I’m stoked to meet more fellow film freaks here.
I agree with the Kevin Smith bashing. Chasing Amy is the only Criterion disc I will never own. It’s like the owner of the headshop downtown somehow got to make movies. Dogma, from its ooh-we’re-being-so-edgy disclaimer to its shit monster, truly is itself a piece of shit.
Did anyone else see that hellishly bad flight attendant comedy starring Mike Meyers and Gwyneth Paltrow? Somehow I ended up at a matinee of that one. Breathtaking how vapid it was. I have blocked the title from my memory.
With other movies, the hatred sort of grows on me. Like “The Dark Knight.” Heath Ledger was fun to watch, but the audience wasn’t trusted at all to accept a psychological take on a superhero. Instead we got Christian Bale in need of a cough drop and an over-abundance of plot.
This Is Spinal Tap is one of my favorite films, but I by no means consider Rob Reiner a canonical director. Anyone think of any other films that deserve to be canonized but their directors don’t?
I woke myself up with the sound of my own snoring during a screening of The Gods Must Be Crazy in college. Then did the same during a midnight showing of Brazil years later. It would have been the 10th time I saw the film, so no hard feelings, Terry Gilliam.
First, this is an incredibly cool site. Great start. Looks like Nathaneal Eagle touched on a few things I’ve been thinking about. Here’s my two cents.
1. A cataloging function similar to what goodreads, librarything, and shelfari do with books. I basically want a database for my 1000+ DVDs. This sounds indulgent, but those of us who collect lots of DVDs sometimes forget what it is we have. A cataloging system would allow me to browse my collection and sort by director, title, etc. I also want to browse other users’ lists.
2. Ability to search for other users who share my same taste in auteurs or favorite movies. Today I found myself wishing I could find other Jodorowsky fans. It would be cool to search for all users who are fans of this auteur.
3. Widgetize this mother. Allow me to drop code into my website displaying a list of my favorite auteurs and films.
4. An iPhone ap, similar to facebook’s.
5. The ability for users to be tagged geographically. In other words, say I have a question about Fellini that I want to ask Italian cinephiles. I’d be able to search on user location.
6. The ability to convert my catalog of films into a graphic timeline of when those films appeared. Also, a map feature showing where those films originated.
7. This is more a biz-dev type suggestion, and perhaps conflicts with the vision of the site as a place to watch films as well as talk about them, but some sort of interface with Netflix would be cool. The ability to add to your Netflix queue from theauteurs. This might work as part of an affiliate marketing strategy, with Netflix kicking revenue back to theauteurs for every title added to queues.
8. A film still library would be neat.
9. I’m not sure what the “Style” categories are really for. At the very least, these should be clickable, and should lead me to lists of films, auteurs, and users who share the same style preferences.
I love it that Charlie Kaufman refuses to explain the “meaning” of his work. I love that the burning house is just this enigmatic element in the film. I’m a firm believer that it’s more important for an artist to generate lots of questions than supply the answers. For what it’s worth, I took the burning house to function a number of ways. One, I imagined Kaufman thinking, “Wouldn’t it be cool to have a house that’s always burning, but never burns down?” Maybe this image has something to say about the quality of the Samantha Morton character, that she exists in a state of limbo with Caden, never quite becoming the life partner each of them imagines she could be. She’s this in-between character who functions between two states—fidelity and infidelity. She lives within a structure that both provides shelter and is at risk of killing her (and which does, after all, in the end, via smoke inhalation).
Gotta say Woody Allen was the first director I ever followed religiously. He fused intellectual vigor with humor in my mind, and his example inspires me to this day.
Other random films that miraculously appeared in video stores in Skagit County in the ’80s: Blue Velvet, Brazil, Ran, My Life as a Dog…
I found that “Napoleon Dynamite” completely changed my concept of what a comedy can be. Detractors say that Napoleon is a loser, and that the humor comes from ridicule, but I took away the exact opposite. Napoleon thinks everyone else is a loser, which somehow makes him a winner. It also made me think about how funny it is when good things happen to people who have no reason to expect good things to happen to them. Speaking of the Coens, a great example of this is the scene in “Oh Brother Where Art Thou” where Clooney et al perform their hit song to an audience that erupts in cheers, to their complete astonishment. That scene made me so happy I could hardly stand it.
I haven’t seen Rocky, Gone With the Wind, or An Inconvenient Truth. There are others, many others. I think maybe a more embarassing question is what directors haven’t you seen. I’ll offer up Ozu and Tarkovsky. Just haven’t gotten to them.
I’m afraid the Janus anniversary set has them all beat. Excluding that, I’d say the Cassavetes set, Berlin Alexanderplatz, any of the Wes Andersons with his brother’s artwork.
Does anyone know where I might get a copy of Frank Borzage’s MOONRISE? I’ve seen VHS copies on Amazon, but am interested in finding it on DVD, if possible.
I hope this is okay to do in this forum, but I wanted to announce my film blog on therumpus.net. It’s called THE EYEBALL and is a repository for my thoughts on film. You can find it here: http://therumpus.net/sections/ryan-boudinot-blogs/
Recent blog posts included thoughts on Gran Torino, The Thief of Baghdad, Guy Maddin, and Ray Harryhausen. I hope you enjoy it.
Therumpus.net is run by the writer Stephen Elliott, and is a new arts/culture site featuring blogs by Rick Moody, Jerry Stahl, myself, and others.
12-year old asking... over 3 years ago
Hey Ryan, first, sucks to be called Brian all the time doesn’t it?
You can’t go wrong with starting at spine #1 and watching every Criterion Collection DVD in order. Or hustling up the money to buy the big Janus boxed set. But a few movies I remember watching at around age 12-17 that changed the way I looked at film—My Life As a Dog, A Zed and Two Noughts, Eraserhead, This Is Spinal Tap, Brazil. There’s so damn much to see. Happy viewing!
Go to Comment
12-year old asking... over 3 years ago
Hey Ryan, first, sucks to be called Brian all the time doesn’t it?
You can’t go wrong with starting at spine #1 and watching every Criterion Collection DVD in order. Or hustling up the money to buy the big Janus boxed set. But a few movies I remember watching at around age 12-17 that changed the way I looked at film—My Life As a Dog, A Zed and Two Noughts, Eraserhead, This Is Spinal Tap, Brazil. There’s so damn much to see. Happy viewing!
Go to Comment
12-year old asking... over 3 years ago
Hey Ryan, first, sucks to be called Brian all the time doesn’t it?
You can’t go wrong with starting at spine #1 and watching every Criterion Collection DVD in order. Or hustling up the money to buy the big Janus boxed set. But a few movies I remember watching at around age 12-17 that changed the way I looked at film—My Life As a Dog, A Zed and Two Noughts, Eraserhead, This Is Spinal Tap, Brazil. There’s so damn much to see. Happy viewing!
Go to Comment
Inventive Narrative Structures over 3 years ago
I’m developing a proposal for a college course on narrative structures in film. I’m interested in compiling a list of films that break out of the traditional 3-act structure and experiment with pacing, chronology, and just storytelling methodology in general. So of course there’s MEMENTO and SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK. And PULP FICTION. I’m hoping to create a list that spans all eras of film. Suggestions?
Go to Comment
Inventive Narrative Structures over 3 years ago
thanks everyone. Definitely interested in non-commercial recs.
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New to The Auteurs? You Belong Here over 3 years ago
I’m a writer living in Seattle. I wrote a book called “The Littlest Hitler,” published in 2006 and have a novel called “Misconception” coming out in fall 2009.
I first became aware of Criterion’s magnificence when they released the 3-disc set of “Brazil,” still one of my all-time favorite films. A few years later I got a job at Amazon.com as an editor on the DVD tea Every day the mail cart came by and delivered boxes of DVDs on my desk, up to several hundred a week. We were all assigned to work with specific studios, and I got the Criterion account. This meant that I was responsible for coming up with ways to feature their releases on the site. And it meant that I got every Criterion disc I wanted. I was a kid in a candy store that sold heroin instead of candy. I also worked with Kino Video, Zeitgeist, Ryko, and other studios that sold obscure art house fare. While my colleagues snatched up the latest blockbusters, I feasted on Kino’s Edison box set, the works of Norman McClaren, silents, classics, and crazy animation. I considered myself lucky for the free DVDs, but I reached a point where management and I were not getting along, so I moved on.
Now, in addition to writing, I teach in Goddard College’s MFA program in Port Townsend, WA, am an editor at Expedia, and allow myself to watch a film if I’ve completed my writing for the day. Recently loved “Secret Honor” and “Synecdoche, New York.” I’m reading Roberto Bolanos’ “2666” and listening to an unhealthy amount of AC/DC. I’m stoked to meet more fellow film freaks here.
Go to Comment
the hate corner over 3 years ago
I agree with the Kevin Smith bashing. Chasing Amy is the only Criterion disc I will never own. It’s like the owner of the headshop downtown somehow got to make movies. Dogma, from its ooh-we’re-being-so-edgy disclaimer to its shit monster, truly is itself a piece of shit.
Did anyone else see that hellishly bad flight attendant comedy starring Mike Meyers and Gwyneth Paltrow? Somehow I ended up at a matinee of that one. Breathtaking how vapid it was. I have blocked the title from my memory.
With other movies, the hatred sort of grows on me. Like “The Dark Knight.” Heath Ledger was fun to watch, but the audience wasn’t trusted at all to accept a psychological take on a superhero. Instead we got Christian Bale in need of a cough drop and an over-abundance of plot.
Go to Comment
Movies That Should Be In the Criterion Collection over 3 years ago
Young Poisoner’s Handbook
Performance
Eraserhead
Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park
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Canonical Films by Non-canonical Directors over 3 years ago
This Is Spinal Tap is one of my favorite films, but I by no means consider Rob Reiner a canonical director. Anyone think of any other films that deserve to be canonized but their directors don’t?
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MOMENT OF TRUTH: HAVE YOU EVER GONE TO THE MOVIES AND FALLEN ASLEEP DURING THE FILM? over 3 years ago
I woke myself up with the sound of my own snoring during a screening of The Gods Must Be Crazy in college. Then did the same during a midnight showing of Brazil years later. It would have been the 10th time I saw the film, so no hard feelings, Terry Gilliam.
Go to Comment
Help make The Auteurs totally awesome over 3 years ago
First, this is an incredibly cool site. Great start. Looks like Nathaneal Eagle touched on a few things I’ve been thinking about. Here’s my two cents.
1. A cataloging function similar to what goodreads, librarything, and shelfari do with books. I basically want a database for my 1000+ DVDs. This sounds indulgent, but those of us who collect lots of DVDs sometimes forget what it is we have. A cataloging system would allow me to browse my collection and sort by director, title, etc. I also want to browse other users’ lists.
2. Ability to search for other users who share my same taste in auteurs or favorite movies. Today I found myself wishing I could find other Jodorowsky fans. It would be cool to search for all users who are fans of this auteur.
3. Widgetize this mother. Allow me to drop code into my website displaying a list of my favorite auteurs and films.
4. An iPhone ap, similar to facebook’s.
5. The ability for users to be tagged geographically. In other words, say I have a question about Fellini that I want to ask Italian cinephiles. I’d be able to search on user location.
6. The ability to convert my catalog of films into a graphic timeline of when those films appeared. Also, a map feature showing where those films originated.
7. This is more a biz-dev type suggestion, and perhaps conflicts with the vision of the site as a place to watch films as well as talk about them, but some sort of interface with Netflix would be cool. The ability to add to your Netflix queue from theauteurs. This might work as part of an affiliate marketing strategy, with Netflix kicking revenue back to theauteurs for every title added to queues.
8. A film still library would be neat.
9. I’m not sure what the “Style” categories are really for. At the very least, these should be clickable, and should lead me to lists of films, auteurs, and users who share the same style preferences.
Overall, though, a splendid start. Thanks again.
Go to Comment
Charlie Kaufman over 3 years ago
Hey Allison—
I love it that Charlie Kaufman refuses to explain the “meaning” of his work. I love that the burning house is just this enigmatic element in the film. I’m a firm believer that it’s more important for an artist to generate lots of questions than supply the answers. For what it’s worth, I took the burning house to function a number of ways. One, I imagined Kaufman thinking, “Wouldn’t it be cool to have a house that’s always burning, but never burns down?” Maybe this image has something to say about the quality of the Samantha Morton character, that she exists in a state of limbo with Caden, never quite becoming the life partner each of them imagines she could be. She’s this in-between character who functions between two states—fidelity and infidelity. She lives within a structure that both provides shelter and is at risk of killing her (and which does, after all, in the end, via smoke inhalation).
Go to Comment
Which Film Critics Do You Read? over 3 years ago
A.O. Scott, Dave Kehr, Anthony Lane. Also Lopate’s “American Movie Critics” is a great place for historical dips in film crit.
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Films that changed how you looked at cinema over 3 years ago
Gotta say Woody Allen was the first director I ever followed religiously. He fused intellectual vigor with humor in my mind, and his example inspires me to this day.
Other random films that miraculously appeared in video stores in Skagit County in the ’80s: Blue Velvet, Brazil, Ran, My Life as a Dog…
Go to Comment
favorite funniest movie over 3 years ago
I found that “Napoleon Dynamite” completely changed my concept of what a comedy can be. Detractors say that Napoleon is a loser, and that the humor comes from ridicule, but I took away the exact opposite. Napoleon thinks everyone else is a loser, which somehow makes him a winner. It also made me think about how funny it is when good things happen to people who have no reason to expect good things to happen to them. Speaking of the Coens, a great example of this is the scene in “Oh Brother Where Art Thou” where Clooney et al perform their hit song to an audience that erupts in cheers, to their complete astonishment. That scene made me so happy I could hardly stand it.
Go to Comment
Age / Level of education? (An informal poll) over 3 years ago
36, MFA in Creative Writing, BA from the Evergreen State College that I’m calling a degree in Creative Writing
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Silent Films over 3 years ago
Nosferatu, anything by Buster Keaton, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (original, German Expressionist version)…
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CONFESSIONS--FILMS YOU ARE ASHAMED TO SAY YOU HAVE NOT SEEN (YET) over 3 years ago
I haven’t seen Rocky, Gone With the Wind, or An Inconvenient Truth. There are others, many others. I think maybe a more embarassing question is what directors haven’t you seen. I’ll offer up Ozu and Tarkovsky. Just haven’t gotten to them.
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FANTASY ARTHOUSE DOUBLE FEATURE over 3 years ago
Flesh for Frankenstein / Young Frankenstein
The Man Who Fell to Earth / Holy Mountain
Band of Outsiders / Rivers’ Edge
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Best Criterion? over 3 years ago
I’m afraid the Janus anniversary set has them all beat. Excluding that, I’d say the Cassavetes set, Berlin Alexanderplatz, any of the Wes Andersons with his brother’s artwork.
Go to Comment
Inventive Narrative Structures over 3 years ago
Thanks, everyone. I’m enjoying the suggestions. Keep them coming. I really appreciate your insights.
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Where to find Frank Borzage's MOONRISE over 3 years ago
Does anyone know where I might get a copy of Frank Borzage’s MOONRISE? I’ve seen VHS copies on Amazon, but am interested in finding it on DVD, if possible.
Go to Comment
THE EYEBALL on therumpus.net over 3 years ago
I hope this is okay to do in this forum, but I wanted to announce my film blog on therumpus.net. It’s called THE EYEBALL and is a repository for my thoughts on film. You can find it here: http://therumpus.net/sections/ryan-boudinot-blogs/
Recent blog posts included thoughts on Gran Torino, The Thief of Baghdad, Guy Maddin, and Ray Harryhausen. I hope you enjoy it.
Therumpus.net is run by the writer Stephen Elliott, and is a new arts/culture site featuring blogs by Rick Moody, Jerry Stahl, myself, and others.
Happy film-watching!
Ryan
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