In HEARTS OF DARKNESS, Coppola talked about how a little fat girl will one day make a movie in her back yard that will be extremely popular and/or touch everyone, and the professionalism of cinema will break down and be an art for the masses. We’re in the midst of this right now, thanks to professional tools becoming available to consumers and the era of YouTube giving everyone a voice and an audience. American indie cinema as we once knew it is dead, the days when modest 5-10 million dollar movies are made and sold for a high price tag are gone. Independent movies are now being made much cheaper, from $500,000-$1.5 million, while big budget movies are getting fatter. There was a famous author/film theorist (I forget his name) who said that cinema wouldn’t be an art form until it was something that could get into the hands of the people. While I think that cinema was already an art form, I think it becomes more relevant of an art form in this regard, and that age is upon us. I don’t know if it’s a “movement” per se, but it opens doors.
I wouldn’t consider 3D a film movement, it’s a gimmick to pour seasoning on sub-par products, and this includes AVATAR. It’s a fun gimmick, but that’s all it is, unfortunately it’s popularity is a result of Hollywood trying to kill the writer, kill storytelling, and turn movies into theme park rides. People argue against this by saying it’s great for popcorn movies. I never saw RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK or DIE HARD and said “Boy, I wish that was in 3D, it would’ve been so much better.” A gimmick doesn’t constitute a movement.
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
I agree with you about prosumer filmmakers getting too caught up in their gear. If you look around online you see a lot of people experimenting and dicking around with their cameras and their editing and SFX software, but they never do anything of substance. Instead of writing a script, a lot of them just “wing-it” like they’re fucking Wong Kar Wai or something, and their movies lack focus as a result, given they get around to doing a feature.
Not all filmmakers are this way of course, but look around your local film scene or on the internet and you’ll see what I mean.
It’s farewell to a giant of the genre. It’s so sad that he died so young. Perfect Blue is a masterpiece, and though I find Paprika to be a flawed film, it’s so visually stunning that none of the flaws matter.
One of the worst third installments ever was RETURN OF THE JEDI. It took the potential that was presented with THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK and flushed it down the toilet in favor of selling toys. I loved RETURN OF THE JEDI when I was a kid, but now it’s just painful to watch, it doesn’t hold up at all. PIRATES 3 was shit too, the most tedious theatrical experience of my life.
As far as good ones go…DAY OF THE DEAD is probably my favorite Romero zombie movie, PHANTASM III was a lot of fun (although I like PHANTASM II Salem), I love ROCKY III…I can’t think of many that haven’t already been said though.
I love how I come to a topic regarding Scorsese on Kazan and I find people screaming obscenities regarding commies and fascists. Good, wholesome film discussion, carry on kidlets!
Musicians, like actors, are performers, and a good performer can adapt to acting. Timberlake is an incredibly talented singer, I interviewed Craig Brewer for my college newspaper when BLACK SNAKE MOAN was about to come out, and he went off on people who blindly naysay Timberlake just because he’s a popular pretty face from N-Sync and The Mickey Mouse Club who is cool to hate, and his performance in BLACK SNAKE MOAN proved that he’s more than capable as an actor, and his work with The Lonely Island has proved that he can do comedy very well (I also happened to think he was a lot on fun in SOUTHLAND TALES, but I’m one of the only people that likes that movie). I think his decision to leave his music career behind in favor of focusing on acting is a mistake since he is such a talented musical performer, but becoming more skilled in other areas isn’t a bad thing.
@Pierre: I agree, it’s an old pre-Brando school of Hollywood performance, Zac Efron is another actor that has those traits. Neither of them are anywhere near as charismatic as Cagney or many other old Hollywood stars, but they’re certainly multi-talented which is more than you can say of a lot of working actors today.
JIRIN: “Political correctness is essentially voluntary ignorance, and I bet Brunsting’s actual views on race are far more racist than Godard’s stated ones.”
I’m standing up and applauding.
I’m not a fan of anything Godard has done since the seventies, but this is one of the most idiotic pieces I’ve ever read that attempts to be critical of him. I’ve always been wary of The Criterion Cast simply because of their bullshit name.
My least favorite Criterion titles I’ve seen would be: Tout va bien (I admit this is purely taste, I just find Godard to be painfully dull in general with a few exceptions) The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
The Darjeeling Limited Spartacus Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Drive, He Said (Though the BBS set would be incomplete without it)
Really I enjoy the fact that Armageddon and The Rock are on Criterion, if only because it gets people all riled up.
I like Anderson’s first three films quite a bit, I think RUSHMORE and ROYAL TENENBAUMS are excellent, although you can see the beginning of his visual style threatening to overwhelm the characters in the latter. LIFE AQUATIC and DARJEELING are both messes of movies, especially LIFE AQUATIC. I thought FANTASTIC MR FOX was pretty good, but it’s not on Criterion, but I’d bet money it will be someday.
Yes, I’ll agree with you that Hotel Chevalier is the worst, slightly embarrassing for Natalie Portman. I really like Bottle Rocket, but mainly because I love the characters so much, not necessarily the actual story. The fact that it was mostly shot in the neighborhood I grew up in doesn’t hurt either :)
Sorry, I just found Drive, He Said to be a bit of a mess. Jack Nicholson isn’t a very good director, Two Jakes was also all over the place. But as part of the BBS set, it totally belongs, otherwise it would be a glaring hole in the set! I like that Armageddon and Robinson Crusoe on Mars are on Criterion, they give voice to more areas of cinema and make the collection seem less elitist. Diversity in a prestige brand like Criterion is a good thing.
“How come I’m the only one who thinks Benjamin Button is a drivel? I’m not even a Criterion fan and it’s quite glaring!”
Dimitris, as I said before, I’m with you on Benjamin Button, it’s overpraised tosh.
Fair enough! I certainly defend my share of ambitious failures and it was an ambitious film. I love the interviews with Jack Nicholson on the Blu-ray, it’s fun to see him get excited talking about it.
@Rossi: I doubt we’ll see an infiltration of Oscar tosh because of those movies, if Oscar tosh has ever snuck into the collection I gotta point to our friend Benjamin Button!
To name a few:
Speed Racer
Reign of Fire
Howard the Duck (I know, it’s bad)
Zardoz
Predators
Michael Bay movies, with a few exceptions
Psycho ‘98
Rob Zombie’s Halloween 2
Not a terrible list, but J.J. Abrams? Really? The man’s directed two movies, both of which were fine, but are you honestly going to put him in the same gallery as David Lynch, Mike Leigh, and Terence Malick
I also don’t think Clint Eastwood is all that as a director, and Guillermo Del Toro is still on his way, not a “great” filmmaker, same goes for Darren Aronofsky. A lot of these picks seems to be a “what’s hot” list, especially with the presence of Abrams and Aronofsky.
Ignored working directors that deserve a spot here (or that would fit into the EW mold so to speak): Werner Herzog, Wong Kar-wai, Ang Lee, Park Chan-wook, Spike Jonze, Michael Mann, and David Cronenberg.
I know lists are stupid, but c’mon, bitching about them is fun!
@Carlos: Indeed, after doing commercial movies like JACK and THE RAINMAKER, Coppola is re-establishing himself outside the system, he’s sort of come full circle, no?
I watched Samurai Cop last night with Robert Z’Dar, and it was a transformative experience. If you love shit movies, see it. I go more in depth here:
http://moviemancave.com/2011/06/29/one-mans-trash-samurai-cop/
Thanks. I know it’s available on R1 DVD, not sure about other regions though. There’s a ton of scenes uploaded onto YouTube, but I included links to a bunch of them.
WHAT WILL BE THE NEXT GREAT FILM MOVEMENT? about 2 years ago
In HEARTS OF DARKNESS, Coppola talked about how a little fat girl will one day make a movie in her back yard that will be extremely popular and/or touch everyone, and the professionalism of cinema will break down and be an art for the masses. We’re in the midst of this right now, thanks to professional tools becoming available to consumers and the era of YouTube giving everyone a voice and an audience. American indie cinema as we once knew it is dead, the days when modest 5-10 million dollar movies are made and sold for a high price tag are gone. Independent movies are now being made much cheaper, from $500,000-$1.5 million, while big budget movies are getting fatter. There was a famous author/film theorist (I forget his name) who said that cinema wouldn’t be an art form until it was something that could get into the hands of the people. While I think that cinema was already an art form, I think it becomes more relevant of an art form in this regard, and that age is upon us. I don’t know if it’s a “movement” per se, but it opens doors.
I wouldn’t consider 3D a film movement, it’s a gimmick to pour seasoning on sub-par products, and this includes AVATAR. It’s a fun gimmick, but that’s all it is, unfortunately it’s popularity is a result of Hollywood trying to kill the writer, kill storytelling, and turn movies into theme park rides. People argue against this by saying it’s great for popcorn movies. I never saw RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK or DIE HARD and said “Boy, I wish that was in 3D, it would’ve been so much better.” A gimmick doesn’t constitute a movement.
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WHAT WILL BE THE NEXT GREAT FILM MOVEMENT? about 2 years ago
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
Go to Comment
WHAT WILL BE THE NEXT GREAT FILM MOVEMENT? about 2 years ago
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
Go to Comment
WHAT WILL BE THE NEXT GREAT FILM MOVEMENT? about 2 years ago
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
Go to Comment
WHAT WILL BE THE NEXT GREAT FILM MOVEMENT? about 2 years ago
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
Go to Comment
WHAT WILL BE THE NEXT GREAT FILM MOVEMENT? about 2 years ago
Aaron: It’s not indie cinema that’s dead, it’s the business behind it as we knew it. The business model that was set up in the nineties with the explosion of Sundance, Miramax, Soderbergh, Ted Hope, etc. is gone, and its changing. Indie cinema isn’t dead, but it won’t be the animal we knew it as.
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WHAT WILL BE THE NEXT GREAT FILM MOVEMENT? about 2 years ago
I agree with you about prosumer filmmakers getting too caught up in their gear. If you look around online you see a lot of people experimenting and dicking around with their cameras and their editing and SFX software, but they never do anything of substance. Instead of writing a script, a lot of them just “wing-it” like they’re fucking Wong Kar Wai or something, and their movies lack focus as a result, given they get around to doing a feature.
Not all filmmakers are this way of course, but look around your local film scene or on the internet and you’ll see what I mean.
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R.I.P. Satoshi Kon almost 2 years ago
It’s farewell to a giant of the genre. It’s so sad that he died so young. Perfect Blue is a masterpiece, and though I find Paprika to be a flawed film, it’s so visually stunning that none of the flaws matter.
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You Mean Third Installments Are Actually Good? almost 2 years ago
One of the worst third installments ever was RETURN OF THE JEDI. It took the potential that was presented with THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK and flushed it down the toilet in favor of selling toys. I loved RETURN OF THE JEDI when I was a kid, but now it’s just painful to watch, it doesn’t hold up at all. PIRATES 3 was shit too, the most tedious theatrical experience of my life.
As far as good ones go…DAY OF THE DEAD is probably my favorite Romero zombie movie, PHANTASM III was a lot of fun (although I like PHANTASM II Salem), I love ROCKY III…I can’t think of many that haven’t already been said though.
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Your favorite director cameos over 1 year ago
Scorsese in Taxi Driver
(“You ever seen what this gun can do to a woman’s p***y?”)
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Scorsese on Kazan over 1 year ago
I love how I come to a topic regarding Scorsese on Kazan and I find people screaming obscenities regarding commies and fascists. Good, wholesome film discussion, carry on kidlets!
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Can Justin Timberlake ___? over 1 year ago
Musicians, like actors, are performers, and a good performer can adapt to acting. Timberlake is an incredibly talented singer, I interviewed Craig Brewer for my college newspaper when BLACK SNAKE MOAN was about to come out, and he went off on people who blindly naysay Timberlake just because he’s a popular pretty face from N-Sync and The Mickey Mouse Club who is cool to hate, and his performance in BLACK SNAKE MOAN proved that he’s more than capable as an actor, and his work with The Lonely Island has proved that he can do comedy very well (I also happened to think he was a lot on fun in SOUTHLAND TALES, but I’m one of the only people that likes that movie). I think his decision to leave his music career behind in favor of focusing on acting is a mistake since he is such a talented musical performer, but becoming more skilled in other areas isn’t a bad thing.
Go to Comment
Can Justin Timberlake ___? over 1 year ago
@Pierre: I agree, it’s an old pre-Brando school of Hollywood performance, Zac Efron is another actor that has those traits. Neither of them are anywhere near as charismatic as Cagney or many other old Hollywood stars, but they’re certainly multi-talented which is more than you can say of a lot of working actors today.
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Can Justin Timberlake ___? over 1 year ago
Amen.
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Jean Luc Who Cares? over 1 year ago
JIRIN: “Political correctness is essentially voluntary ignorance, and I bet Brunsting’s actual views on race are far more racist than Godard’s stated ones.”
I’m standing up and applauding.
I’m not a fan of anything Godard has done since the seventies, but this is one of the most idiotic pieces I’ve ever read that attempts to be critical of him. I’ve always been wary of The Criterion Cast simply because of their bullshit name.
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Is the film "They All Laughed" a good example of 80s' filmmaking? over 1 year ago
If you add the word “mainstream” to the topic, then it makes more sense. But it’s a topic hardly worth exploring.
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lame criterion films over 1 year ago
My least favorite Criterion titles I’ve seen would be:
Tout va bien (I admit this is purely taste, I just find Godard to be painfully dull in general with a few exceptions)
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
The Darjeeling Limited
Spartacus
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Drive, He Said (Though the BBS set would be incomplete without it)
Really I enjoy the fact that Armageddon and The Rock are on Criterion, if only because it gets people all riled up.
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lame criterion films over 1 year ago
I like Anderson’s first three films quite a bit, I think RUSHMORE and ROYAL TENENBAUMS are excellent, although you can see the beginning of his visual style threatening to overwhelm the characters in the latter. LIFE AQUATIC and DARJEELING are both messes of movies, especially LIFE AQUATIC. I thought FANTASTIC MR FOX was pretty good, but it’s not on Criterion, but I’d bet money it will be someday.
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lame criterion films over 1 year ago
Yes, I’ll agree with you that Hotel Chevalier is the worst, slightly embarrassing for Natalie Portman. I really like Bottle Rocket, but mainly because I love the characters so much, not necessarily the actual story. The fact that it was mostly shot in the neighborhood I grew up in doesn’t hurt either :)
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lame criterion films over 1 year ago
“WHITE DOG?!?!? DRIVE, HE SAID?!?!? what?!?!?”
Sorry, I just found Drive, He Said to be a bit of a mess. Jack Nicholson isn’t a very good director, Two Jakes was also all over the place. But as part of the BBS set, it totally belongs, otherwise it would be a glaring hole in the set! I like that Armageddon and Robinson Crusoe on Mars are on Criterion, they give voice to more areas of cinema and make the collection seem less elitist. Diversity in a prestige brand like Criterion is a good thing.
“How come I’m the only one who thinks Benjamin Button is a drivel? I’m not even a Criterion fan and it’s quite glaring!”
Dimitris, as I said before, I’m with you on Benjamin Button, it’s overpraised tosh.
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lame criterion films over 1 year ago
@Jaspar: “You say a mess, I say ambitious”
Fair enough! I certainly defend my share of ambitious failures and it was an ambitious film. I love the interviews with Jack Nicholson on the Blu-ray, it’s fun to see him get excited talking about it.
@Rossi: I doubt we’ll see an infiltration of Oscar tosh because of those movies, if Oscar tosh has ever snuck into the collection I gotta point to our friend Benjamin Button!
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Paul Schrader over 1 year ago
I love Paul Schrader, I have a copy of Adam Resurrected sitting on my shelf but I haven’t checked it out yet.
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Movies you love, but everyone else hates. over 1 year ago
To name a few:
Speed Racer
Reign of Fire
Howard the Duck (I know, it’s bad)
Zardoz
Predators
Michael Bay movies, with a few exceptions
Psycho ‘98
Rob Zombie’s Halloween 2
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EW's Top 25 Working Directors over 1 year ago
Check it out here
Not a terrible list, but J.J. Abrams? Really? The man’s directed two movies, both of which were fine, but are you honestly going to put him in the same gallery as David Lynch, Mike Leigh, and Terence Malick
I also don’t think Clint Eastwood is all that as a director, and Guillermo Del Toro is still on his way, not a “great” filmmaker, same goes for Darren Aronofsky. A lot of these picks seems to be a “what’s hot” list, especially with the presence of Abrams and Aronofsky.
Ignored working directors that deserve a spot here (or that would fit into the EW mold so to speak): Werner Herzog, Wong Kar-wai, Ang Lee, Park Chan-wook, Spike Jonze, Michael Mann, and David Cronenberg.
I know lists are stupid, but c’mon, bitching about them is fun!
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EW's Top 25 Working Directors over 1 year ago
RABBLE RABBLE!
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EW's Top 25 Working Directors over 1 year ago
@Dimitris: I actually think TETRO was pretty great, FF’s still got things to say.
@Pierre: You forgot Tim Story! The genius of BARBERSHOP and TAXI set the world of cinema aflame! AFLAME!!!
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EW's Top 25 Working Directors over 1 year ago
@Carlos: Indeed, after doing commercial movies like JACK and THE RAINMAKER, Coppola is re-establishing himself outside the system, he’s sort of come full circle, no?
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Samurai Cop: Bad Movie Masterpiece 11 months ago
I watched Samurai Cop last night with Robert Z’Dar, and it was a transformative experience. If you love shit movies, see it. I go more in depth here:
http://moviemancave.com/2011/06/29/one-mans-trash-samurai-cop/
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Samurai Cop: Bad Movie Masterpiece 11 months ago
Thanks. I know it’s available on R1 DVD, not sure about other regions though. There’s a ton of scenes uploaded onto YouTube, but I included links to a bunch of them.
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