Richard Roud’s book “A Passion for Films” on Henri Langlois and the Cinémathèque Française is a must read for any cinephile!
also James Monaco’s “The New Wave” is must have classic, a good overview of the French New Wave written in the mid 70s
and of course Tom Milne’s English translation of “Godard on Godard” is a great collection of Godard’s critical writings/thoughts about cinema up to the late 60s
Vigo’s “L’Atalante” for sure … followed up by Jiri Menzel’s “Closely Watched Trains” and Rohmer’s “La Collectionneuse”
(Thumbs down? WTF! This is subjective … How can you say these are not three of the most “perfectly” crafted personal visions captured with limited budgets … I bite my thumb at you!)
From the few films I’ve seen I think it really lacks the innovations and insights that the French New Wave had and the intensity and psychology that the Dogma 95 movement produced. I think “Mutual Appreciation” is a stand out for me … but it does not reach the heights of a masterpiece like Jean Eustache’s “Mother and the Whore” or any of Eric Rohmer’s films which are dealing with similar themes but in more engaging and enlightening ways.
I think “mumblecore” (certainly not one of the greatest movement names in history) seems representative of the new generation of young American filmmakers and the milieu many of them inhabit so it has definite relevance … for now anyway …
Here are some other outstanding and iconic performances in no particular order:
Gena Rowlands in “Opening Night” (1977)
Ben Gazzara in “The Killing of a Chinese Bookie” (1976)
Delpy/Hawke in “Before Sunset” (2004)
Audrey Hepburn in “Roman Holiday” (1953)
Mia Farrow in “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968)
Gregory Peck in “To Kill a Mockingbird” (1962)
Jean-Pierre Leaud in “The Mother and the Whore” (1973)
Ralph Fiennes in “The English Patient” (1996)
Juliet Binoche in “Three Colors: Blue” (1993)
Irene Jacob in “The Double Life of Veronique” (1991)
Vivien Leigh in “A Streetcar Named Desire” (1951)
Bibi Andersson/Liv Ullmann in “Persona” (1966)
Anna Karina in “Vivre sa Vie” (1962)
Orson Welles in “Citizen Kane” (1941)
Monica Vitti in “L’Eclisse” (1962)
Jeanne Moreau in “La Notte” (1961)
Jean-Louis Trintignant/Anouk Aimée in “A Man and a Woman” (1966)
Jack Nicholson in “Five Easy Pieces” (1970)
Bogart/ Bacall in “To Have and Have Not” (1944)
James Stewart in “Harvey” (1950)
Carey Grant in “Arsenic and Old Lace” (1944)
Jeremy Irons in “Damage” (1992
’Beat’Takeshi Kitano in “Kikijiro” (1999)
Robert Redford in “Three Days of the Condor” (1975)
Donald Sutherland/Julie Christie in “Don’t Look Now” (1973)
Isabelle Huppert in “The Piano Teacher” (2001)
Sissy Spacek in “Badlands” (1973)
Juliet Lewis in “Cape Fear” (1991)
Victoire Thivisol in “Ponette” (1996)
Jane Fonda in “Klute” (1971)
Meg Ryan in “In the Cut” (2003)
Joseph Cotten in “Shadow of a Doubt” (1943)
Yeah, Visconti’s “Le Notti Bianche” is a great adaptation of Dostoyevsky’s “White Nights” and looks and sounds fantastic – I found it interesting because I had seen Bresson’s version first “Four Nights of a Dreamer” (1971), so it was great seeing how they both adapted it to their own filmmaking styles.
The Eric Rohmer “Six Moral Tales” box set is absolutely stunning and highly recommended!
Dave, you had quite a few I was thinking of also – particularly Falconetti and Louise Brooks (Henri Langlois declared: “There is no Garbo. There is no Dietrich. There is only Louise Brooks” and also “Those that have seen her can never forget her.”)
and of course the mesmerizing Delphine Seyrig in Akerman’s “Jeanne Dielman” – she is also stunning in Resnais’s “Muriel”.
Interestingly I tend to remember strong female performances more than male!
William Hurt/Geena Davis in “The Accidental Tourist” (1988)
Romain Duris in “Gadjo Dilo” (1997)
Montgomery Clift/Elizabeth Taylor/Katharine Hepburn in “Suddenly Last Summer” (1959)
Daniel Auteuil/Emmanuelle Béart in “A Heart in Winter” (1992)
Javier Bardem in “The Dancer Upstairs” (2002)
Clive Owen in “Croupier” (1998)
Saffron Burrows in “Miss Julie” (1999)
Ana Torrent in “The Spirit of the Beehive” (1973)
Brad Renfro in “Bully” (2001)
Sandrine Bonnaire in “Vagabond” (1985)
Bruno Ganz in “In the White City” (1983)
It might be interesting to see what everyones thoughts are on films that star singers or musicians … who have made the most successful crossovers from music to cinema?
Tom Waits in “Down By Law”
Art Garfunkel in “Carnal Knowledge”
Vanessa Paradis in “The Girl on the Bridge”
Richard Gere in “Days of Heaven” (1978)
Alain Delon in “Rocco and His Brothers” (1960)
Jason Patric/Jennifer Jason Leigh in “Rush” (1991)
Dennis Hopper in “Blue Velvet” (1986)
“Open” endings can make a profound statement about the human condition and about the absurdity of existence, they can leave an audience contemplating for days, months, even years about their significance … What are some of the great “existential” endings in cinema history?
I’ll kick it off with a few of my favorites:
- Antonioni: “L’Eclisse” (1962), “Blow-up” (1966), “Zabriskie Point” (1970), “The Passenger” (1975),
- Rafelson: “Five Easy Pieces” (1970)
- Hellman: “Two-Lane Blacktop” (1971)
- Ming-liang Tsai: “Wayward Cloud” (2005)
- Resnais: “Last Year at Marienbad” (1961)
- Bergman: “The Silence” (1963), “Persona” (1966)
- Bunuel: “Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie” (1972)
Yeah Lars certainly likes to traumatize his female actors! I love that he was actually contemplating using a Bjork mask to replace her when she ran away!
Definitely Frank Booth! You get to suck back the Pabst Blue Ribbon and inhale nitrous oxide! Not to mention play “Mommy” and “Daddy” with Isabella Rossellini!
Charles Boyer as Gregory Anton in “Gaslight” is a pretty sick villain. He gets to slowly drive Ingrid Bergman insane!
Dustin Hoffman in “Straw Dogs” (1971)
Rock Hudson in “Seconds” (1966)
Steve McQueen/Dustin Hoffman in “Papillon” (1973)
Ali MacGraw in “Love Story” (1970)
Ryan O’neal/Tatum O’Neal in “Paper Moon” (1973)
Haha! I was trying to block out my painful childhood!
Truffaut followed up with 4 other films about Antoine Doinel so not really open ended … but if you take the film as a stand alone, then most definitely it is one of the most unforgettable endings in cinema history!
- Haneke: “Caché” (2005)
- Bunuel: “The Phantom of Liberty” (1974)
- Truffaut: “Fahrenheit 451” (1966)
- Rafelson: “The King of Marvin Gardens” (1972)
Only Hartley and Linklater’s characters are well versed and can articulate their ideas and emotions or lack there of (ie. they don’t mumble they verbally masturbate).
Yes Truffaut was a very wise man … and of course before him the critic/filmmaker Alexandre Astruc wrote his famous essay/manifesto about the ‘camera-stylo’ which fed into Truffaut’s own ideas about filmmaking.
“The filmmaker/author writes with his camera as a writer writes with his pen.” (Astruc)
With the advent of new technology (16mm cameras, nagras, faster film stocks etc) Astruc proclaimed filmmakers would be able to tell more personal stories outside of the controlling/ruling studio system, something he never really achieved himself but the New Wave critic/filmmakers would bring to fruition, beginning most famously with Truffaut’s “400 Blows”. (Most if not all of the New Wave films were in fact shot on 35mm however)
Interestingly Astruc concluded that:
“This has nothing to do with a school, or even a movement. Perhaps it could simply be called a tendency: a new awareness, a desire to transform the cinema and hasten the advent of an exciting future.”
I love the commentary John Lurie made on the Criterion “Down By Law” over the top of an interview he did at Cannes when he was promoting the film, it is very entertaining to hear him talking/analysing himself, the way he was acting and what he’s wearing! He’s a one of a kind!
I think Chris Isaak is really interesting and ‘unconventional’ as an actor, which is great because it’s unexpected, he’s particularly good in Bertolucci’s “Little Buddha” and his and David Bowie’s cameos in “Fire Come Walk With Me” are also memorable.
Yves Montand for sure … particularly in “Wages of Fear”, “Grand Prix” and “Tout Va Bien”
Patricia Kaas was good in Lelouch’s “And Now Ladies and Gentleman”
Yeah they need to be films that leave you restless and edgy! Films that make you stay up all night arguing about them, or reaching for your heavily underlined copy of Sartre’s “Being and Nothingness” haha!
Yes, definitely Nicolas Cage in “Leaving Las Vegas” I was thinking of that one too and Tony Leung, he’s also brilliant in “Cyclo”, “Happy Together”, “2046” and “Lust, Caution”
That’s a pretty fair assessment Dave and some relevant comments from Gina … of course “movements” are not generally created by the filmmakers themselves, they are often coined by critics to help them categorise and define a set of films that they feel share specific traits, eg neo-realism, direct cinema, new wave etc (Dogma 95 being the main exception and for obvious reasons). The coined “movement” name then catches on in the media and becomes the buzz word which as you point out then becomes a helpful marketing ploy for the filmmakers themselves (or not … “It’s not a f*#king mumblecore movie okay!”)
I’d personally say “M-core” benefits from being called a movement (as scientology benefits from being called a “religion”, haha!), the name may not be so appealing but it is representative of like-minded individuals who seem to have banded together to fight for the right to mumble (sorry couldn’t resist) … to have their say and make the kinds of films that they (and there like-minded friends) want to see, not what is foisted on them by Hollywood and the so called “Independents” (there are always “counter” movements to the “mainstream”, unfortunately they eventually get subsumed by them). The commonality or production methods, milieu, and themes as outlined above by Dave – mainly about post-grad ennui and the struggle between art/career (something the filmmakers themselves are dealing with I’m sure) resonate with a young audience, particularly students, artists, musicians and filmmakers who are in a similar situation – this is why Linklater’s “Slacker” was the success it was with a young audience, because it struck a cord that no one had played until then.
The thing is that these “M-core” filmmakers are active … a lot of film(makers) talk and never do … well they go out and make films for themselves at very low cost with like-minded friends and colleagues, have some fun, maybe the film gets seen (SXSW seems to be a “M-core” friendly festival) … maybe it doesn’t (there’s always the internet), the main thing is that the ability to keep making films (with no financial risk) will hopefully allow them to mature and learn from the process. Most “Indie” filmmakers spend many many years “in between” projects and many never eventuate anyway, so they get jaded, frustrated and out of practice. DIY DV-features is a good way to stay fresh – keep pumping them out while the juices are flowing and maybe, just maybe a masterpiece will show up – it worked for Godard, Fassbinder and Woody Allen!
So “M-core” films are a little unpolished and rough around the edges … so was Cassavetes “Shadows”, Scorsese’s “Who’s That Knocking at My Door” and Jarmusch’s “Permanent Vacation” and look what happened to them. One significant difference was than in the later cases they were shooting on film, which glosses over or grains over the subject matter (particularly with black and white films) and can make even poor films viewable – the same can’t be said for video. With DV everything is almost “hyper” real, reality is naked and exposed for all to see, from the (non)actors to the locations and sound/dialogue is usually a major issue also as it is directly recorded.
I think the sign of a great director is one that can shoot on DV and make the audience either completely forget what format they are watching or completely embrace it (Korine’s “Julien Donkey-Boy”, Godard’s “Elogé de l’amour” and Wenders “Land of Plenty” are great examples of what can be achieved on DV). For a lot of viewers who have been raised on the magical “celluloid reality” it is often a big ask to take away the gloss and grain and the much drooled over depth of field. I think you actually need more skill and knowledge about cinematography to shoot on DV than film, precisely because you don’t have the transformative powers of film. This is where some “M-core” filmmakers need to do their homework. But as I said they have the benefit of making mistakes and not being exiled for it. At the end of the day it still comes down to competent and insightful “storytelling” in whatever form it may take.
For sure, but “Lost Highway” has a particularly memorable ending and created an “endless” amount of debate, most notably with Roger Ebert who was on the point of self-destructing like Alpha60 in “Alphaville”.
Max von Sydow’s Frederick is one of my all time favourite Allen scripted characters. From Hannah and Her Sisters
FREDERICK:
“It’s been ages since I sat in front of the TV… just changing channels to find something. You see the whole culture … Nazis, deodorant salesman, wrestlers…beauty contests, the talk show … Can you imagine the level of a mind that watches wrestling? Hmm? But the worst are the fundamentalist preachers…third- rate con men, telling the poor suckers that watch them that they speak for Jesus … and to please send in money. Money, money, money! If Jesus came back, and saw what’s going on in his name, he’d never stop throwing up.”
Books on Film almost 4 years ago
Richard Roud’s book “A Passion for Films” on Henri Langlois and the Cinémathèque Française is a must read for any cinephile!
also James Monaco’s “The New Wave” is must have classic, a good overview of the French New Wave written in the mid 70s
and of course Tom Milne’s English translation of “Godard on Godard” is a great collection of Godard’s critical writings/thoughts about cinema up to the late 60s
Go to Comment
When I say "A Perfect Film", What One Film Pops Into Your Head First? almost 4 years ago
Vigo’s “L’Atalante” for sure … followed up by Jiri Menzel’s “Closely Watched Trains” and Rohmer’s “La Collectionneuse”
(Thumbs down? WTF! This is subjective … How can you say these are not three of the most “perfectly” crafted personal visions captured with limited budgets … I bite my thumb at you!)
Go to Comment
Mumblecore almost 4 years ago
From the few films I’ve seen I think it really lacks the innovations and insights that the French New Wave had and the intensity and psychology that the Dogma 95 movement produced. I think “Mutual Appreciation” is a stand out for me … but it does not reach the heights of a masterpiece like Jean Eustache’s “Mother and the Whore” or any of Eric Rohmer’s films which are dealing with similar themes but in more engaging and enlightening ways.
I think “mumblecore” (certainly not one of the greatest movement names in history) seems representative of the new generation of young American filmmakers and the milieu many of them inhabit so it has definite relevance … for now anyway …
Go to Comment
Your favorite Woody Allen's film? almost 4 years ago
1.Hannah and Her Sisters
2.Manhattan
3.Husbands and Wives
4.Annie Hall
5.Crimes and Misdemeanors
6.Stardust Memories
7.Shadows and Fog
8.Melinda and Melinda
9.Deconstructing Harry
10.Mighty Aphrodite
Go to Comment
My Top 25 Performances of All Time almost 4 years ago
Here are some other outstanding and iconic performances in no particular order:
Gena Rowlands in “Opening Night” (1977)
Ben Gazzara in “The Killing of a Chinese Bookie” (1976)
Delpy/Hawke in “Before Sunset” (2004)
Audrey Hepburn in “Roman Holiday” (1953)
Mia Farrow in “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968)
Gregory Peck in “To Kill a Mockingbird” (1962)
Jean-Pierre Leaud in “The Mother and the Whore” (1973)
Ralph Fiennes in “The English Patient” (1996)
Juliet Binoche in “Three Colors: Blue” (1993)
Irene Jacob in “The Double Life of Veronique” (1991)
Vivien Leigh in “A Streetcar Named Desire” (1951)
Bibi Andersson/Liv Ullmann in “Persona” (1966)
Anna Karina in “Vivre sa Vie” (1962)
Orson Welles in “Citizen Kane” (1941)
Monica Vitti in “L’Eclisse” (1962)
Jeanne Moreau in “La Notte” (1961)
Jean-Louis Trintignant/Anouk Aimée in “A Man and a Woman” (1966)
Jack Nicholson in “Five Easy Pieces” (1970)
Bogart/ Bacall in “To Have and Have Not” (1944)
James Stewart in “Harvey” (1950)
Carey Grant in “Arsenic and Old Lace” (1944)
Jeremy Irons in “Damage” (1992
’Beat’Takeshi Kitano in “Kikijiro” (1999)
Robert Redford in “Three Days of the Condor” (1975)
Donald Sutherland/Julie Christie in “Don’t Look Now” (1973)
Isabelle Huppert in “The Piano Teacher” (2001)
Sissy Spacek in “Badlands” (1973)
Juliet Lewis in “Cape Fear” (1991)
Victoire Thivisol in “Ponette” (1996)
Jane Fonda in “Klute” (1971)
Meg Ryan in “In the Cut” (2003)
Joseph Cotten in “Shadow of a Doubt” (1943)
Go to Comment
Your favorite Al Pacino's films? almost 4 years ago
Serpico
Author, Author
Dog Day Afternoon
Heat
Donnie Brasco
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TOP BERGMAN almost 4 years ago
1.Persona
2.Smiles of a Summer Night
3.Through a Glass Darkly
4.Passion of Anna
5.From the Life of the Marionettes
Go to Comment
Criterion junkies here? almost 4 years ago
Yeah, Visconti’s “Le Notti Bianche” is a great adaptation of Dostoyevsky’s “White Nights” and looks and sounds fantastic – I found it interesting because I had seen Bresson’s version first “Four Nights of a Dreamer” (1971), so it was great seeing how they both adapted it to their own filmmaking styles.
The Eric Rohmer “Six Moral Tales” box set is absolutely stunning and highly recommended!
Go to Comment
My Top 25 Performances of All Time almost 4 years ago
Merci!
Dave, you had quite a few I was thinking of also – particularly Falconetti and Louise Brooks (Henri Langlois declared: “There is no Garbo. There is no Dietrich. There is only Louise Brooks” and also “Those that have seen her can never forget her.”)
and of course the mesmerizing Delphine Seyrig in Akerman’s “Jeanne Dielman” – she is also stunning in Resnais’s “Muriel”.
Interestingly I tend to remember strong female performances more than male!
Go to Comment
My Top 25 Performances of All Time almost 4 years ago
I’m compelled to add some more that came to mind:
William Hurt/Geena Davis in “The Accidental Tourist” (1988)
Romain Duris in “Gadjo Dilo” (1997)
Montgomery Clift/Elizabeth Taylor/Katharine Hepburn in “Suddenly Last Summer” (1959)
Daniel Auteuil/Emmanuelle Béart in “A Heart in Winter” (1992)
Javier Bardem in “The Dancer Upstairs” (2002)
Clive Owen in “Croupier” (1998)
Saffron Burrows in “Miss Julie” (1999)
Ana Torrent in “The Spirit of the Beehive” (1973)
Brad Renfro in “Bully” (2001)
Sandrine Bonnaire in “Vagabond” (1985)
Bruno Ganz in “In the White City” (1983)
Go to Comment
Best Musicians Turned "Actors" almost 4 years ago
It might be interesting to see what everyones thoughts are on films that star singers or musicians … who have made the most successful crossovers from music to cinema?
Tom Waits in “Down By Law”
Art Garfunkel in “Carnal Knowledge”
Vanessa Paradis in “The Girl on the Bridge”
Go to Comment
Best Musicians Turned "Actors" almost 4 years ago
Nice! Nicolas Roeg has got some great performances from singers: Jagger, Bowie and Garfunkel!
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My Top 25 Performances of All Time almost 4 years ago
Some good calls Tom. I totally forgot about Schneider’s awsome performance in “All That Jazz”, definitely one of his best.
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My Top 25 Performances of All Time almost 4 years ago
Richard Gere in “Days of Heaven” (1978)
Alain Delon in “Rocco and His Brothers” (1960)
Jason Patric/Jennifer Jason Leigh in “Rush” (1991)
Dennis Hopper in “Blue Velvet” (1986)
Go to Comment
Most Memorable "Open" Endings in Cinema almost 4 years ago
“Open” endings can make a profound statement about the human condition and about the absurdity of existence, they can leave an audience contemplating for days, months, even years about their significance … What are some of the great “existential” endings in cinema history?
I’ll kick it off with a few of my favorites:
- Antonioni: “L’Eclisse” (1962), “Blow-up” (1966), “Zabriskie Point” (1970), “The Passenger” (1975),
- Rafelson: “Five Easy Pieces” (1970)
- Hellman: “Two-Lane Blacktop” (1971)
- Ming-liang Tsai: “Wayward Cloud” (2005)
- Resnais: “Last Year at Marienbad” (1961)
- Bergman: “The Silence” (1963), “Persona” (1966)
- Bunuel: “Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie” (1972)
Go to Comment
VILLAINS. almost 4 years ago
Yeah Lars certainly likes to traumatize his female actors! I love that he was actually contemplating using a Bjork mask to replace her when she ran away!
Definitely Frank Booth! You get to suck back the Pabst Blue Ribbon and inhale nitrous oxide! Not to mention play “Mommy” and “Daddy” with Isabella Rossellini!
Charles Boyer as Gregory Anton in “Gaslight” is a pretty sick villain. He gets to slowly drive Ingrid Bergman insane!
Go to Comment
My Top 25 Performances of All Time almost 4 years ago
Dustin Hoffman in “Straw Dogs” (1971)
Rock Hudson in “Seconds” (1966)
Steve McQueen/Dustin Hoffman in “Papillon” (1973)
Ali MacGraw in “Love Story” (1970)
Ryan O’neal/Tatum O’Neal in “Paper Moon” (1973)
Go to Comment
Most Memorable "Open" Endings in Cinema almost 4 years ago
Haha! I was trying to block out my painful childhood!
Truffaut followed up with 4 other films about Antoine Doinel so not really open ended … but if you take the film as a stand alone, then most definitely it is one of the most unforgettable endings in cinema history!
- Haneke: “Caché” (2005)
- Bunuel: “The Phantom of Liberty” (1974)
- Truffaut: “Fahrenheit 451” (1966)
- Rafelson: “The King of Marvin Gardens” (1972)
Go to Comment
Mumblecore almost 4 years ago
Only Hartley and Linklater’s characters are well versed and can articulate their ideas and emotions or lack there of (ie. they don’t mumble they verbally masturbate).
Go to Comment
Mumblecore almost 4 years ago
Yes Truffaut was a very wise man … and of course before him the critic/filmmaker Alexandre Astruc wrote his famous essay/manifesto about the ‘camera-stylo’ which fed into Truffaut’s own ideas about filmmaking.
“The filmmaker/author writes with his camera as a writer writes with his pen.” (Astruc)
With the advent of new technology (16mm cameras, nagras, faster film stocks etc) Astruc proclaimed filmmakers would be able to tell more personal stories outside of the controlling/ruling studio system, something he never really achieved himself but the New Wave critic/filmmakers would bring to fruition, beginning most famously with Truffaut’s “400 Blows”. (Most if not all of the New Wave films were in fact shot on 35mm however)
Interestingly Astruc concluded that:
“This has nothing to do with a school, or even a movement. Perhaps it could simply be called a tendency: a new awareness, a desire to transform the cinema and hasten the advent of an exciting future.”
Go to Comment
Best Musicians Turned "Actors" almost 4 years ago
I love the commentary John Lurie made on the Criterion “Down By Law” over the top of an interview he did at Cannes when he was promoting the film, it is very entertaining to hear him talking/analysing himself, the way he was acting and what he’s wearing! He’s a one of a kind!
I think Chris Isaak is really interesting and ‘unconventional’ as an actor, which is great because it’s unexpected, he’s particularly good in Bertolucci’s “Little Buddha” and his and David Bowie’s cameos in “Fire Come Walk With Me” are also memorable.
Yves Montand for sure … particularly in “Wages of Fear”, “Grand Prix” and “Tout Va Bien”
Patricia Kaas was good in Lelouch’s “And Now Ladies and Gentleman”
Go to Comment
Most Memorable "Open" Endings in Cinema almost 4 years ago
Yeah they need to be films that leave you restless and edgy! Films that make you stay up all night arguing about them, or reaching for your heavily underlined copy of Sartre’s “Being and Nothingness” haha!
Go to Comment
My Top 25 Performances of All Time almost 4 years ago
Yes, definitely Nicolas Cage in “Leaving Las Vegas” I was thinking of that one too and Tony Leung, he’s also brilliant in “Cyclo”, “Happy Together”, “2046” and “Lust, Caution”
Go to Comment
Most Memorable "Open" Endings in Cinema almost 4 years ago
- Lynch: “Lost Highway” (1997)
Go to Comment
Mumblecore almost 4 years ago
That’s a pretty fair assessment Dave and some relevant comments from Gina … of course “movements” are not generally created by the filmmakers themselves, they are often coined by critics to help them categorise and define a set of films that they feel share specific traits, eg neo-realism, direct cinema, new wave etc (Dogma 95 being the main exception and for obvious reasons). The coined “movement” name then catches on in the media and becomes the buzz word which as you point out then becomes a helpful marketing ploy for the filmmakers themselves (or not … “It’s not a f*#king mumblecore movie okay!”)
I’d personally say “M-core” benefits from being called a movement (as scientology benefits from being called a “religion”, haha!), the name may not be so appealing but it is representative of like-minded individuals who seem to have banded together to fight for the right to mumble (sorry couldn’t resist) … to have their say and make the kinds of films that they (and there like-minded friends) want to see, not what is foisted on them by Hollywood and the so called “Independents” (there are always “counter” movements to the “mainstream”, unfortunately they eventually get subsumed by them). The commonality or production methods, milieu, and themes as outlined above by Dave – mainly about post-grad ennui and the struggle between art/career (something the filmmakers themselves are dealing with I’m sure) resonate with a young audience, particularly students, artists, musicians and filmmakers who are in a similar situation – this is why Linklater’s “Slacker” was the success it was with a young audience, because it struck a cord that no one had played until then.
The thing is that these “M-core” filmmakers are active … a lot of film(makers) talk and never do … well they go out and make films for themselves at very low cost with like-minded friends and colleagues, have some fun, maybe the film gets seen (SXSW seems to be a “M-core” friendly festival) … maybe it doesn’t (there’s always the internet), the main thing is that the ability to keep making films (with no financial risk) will hopefully allow them to mature and learn from the process. Most “Indie” filmmakers spend many many years “in between” projects and many never eventuate anyway, so they get jaded, frustrated and out of practice. DIY DV-features is a good way to stay fresh – keep pumping them out while the juices are flowing and maybe, just maybe a masterpiece will show up – it worked for Godard, Fassbinder and Woody Allen!
So “M-core” films are a little unpolished and rough around the edges … so was Cassavetes “Shadows”, Scorsese’s “Who’s That Knocking at My Door” and Jarmusch’s “Permanent Vacation” and look what happened to them. One significant difference was than in the later cases they were shooting on film, which glosses over or grains over the subject matter (particularly with black and white films) and can make even poor films viewable – the same can’t be said for video. With DV everything is almost “hyper” real, reality is naked and exposed for all to see, from the (non)actors to the locations and sound/dialogue is usually a major issue also as it is directly recorded.
I think the sign of a great director is one that can shoot on DV and make the audience either completely forget what format they are watching or completely embrace it (Korine’s “Julien Donkey-Boy”, Godard’s “Elogé de l’amour” and Wenders “Land of Plenty” are great examples of what can be achieved on DV). For a lot of viewers who have been raised on the magical “celluloid reality” it is often a big ask to take away the gloss and grain and the much drooled over depth of field. I think you actually need more skill and knowledge about cinematography to shoot on DV than film, precisely because you don’t have the transformative powers of film. This is where some “M-core” filmmakers need to do their homework. But as I said they have the benefit of making mistakes and not being exiled for it. At the end of the day it still comes down to competent and insightful “storytelling” in whatever form it may take.
Go to Comment
Most Memorable "Open" Endings in Cinema almost 4 years ago
For sure, but “Lost Highway” has a particularly memorable ending and created an “endless” amount of debate, most notably with Roger Ebert who was on the point of self-destructing like Alpha60 in “Alphaville”.
Go to Comment
Film quotes you love almost 4 years ago
WALTER: “Is this yours, Larry? Is this your home work Larry?” …
WALTER: “YOU SEE WHAT HAPPENS, LARRY! … THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU F*#K A STRANGER IN THE ASS!”
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Film quotes you love almost 4 years ago
Someone has to do it: Classic Woody Allen lines about masturbation:
From: Hannah and Her Sisters:
MICKEY
Yeah, well, I would be the father … You would just have to masturbate into a little cup.
NORMAN
I can handle that.
…
HANNAH
Could you have ruined yourself somehow?
MICKEY
How could I ruin myself? What do you mean, ruin myself?
HANNAH
I don’t know. Excessive masturbation?
MICKEY
Hey, you gonna start knocking my hobbies? Jesus!
…
From Annie Hall:
ANNIE
“Existential Motifs in Russian Literature”! You’re really close.
ALVY
What’s the difference? It’s all mental masturbation.
ANNIE
Oh, well, now we’re finally getting to a subject you know something about!
ALVY
Hey, don’t knock masturbation! It’s sex with someone I love.
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Film quotes you love almost 4 years ago
Max von Sydow’s Frederick is one of my all time favourite Allen scripted characters. From Hannah and Her Sisters
FREDERICK:
“It’s been ages since I sat in front of the TV… just changing channels to find something. You see the whole culture … Nazis, deodorant salesman, wrestlers…beauty contests, the talk show … Can you imagine the level of a mind that watches wrestling? Hmm? But the worst are the fundamentalist preachers…third- rate con men, telling the poor suckers that watch them that they speak for Jesus … and to please send in money. Money, money, money! If Jesus came back, and saw what’s going on in his name, he’d never stop throwing up.”
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Film quotes you love almost 4 years ago
FREDERICK:
“I’m going through a period of my life where I just can’t be around people … I didn’t want to wind up abusing anyone.”
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