08. Seen in November 2003
Submitted by geek on Sun, 11/02/2003 - 04:30
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- Talk to Her (2002) - I'm not sure what it was about this - I felt like there should be more at the end and I wasn't blown away by the acting - but it really worked for me. And the silent film in the movie... I don't even know what to say. That must have been some set, though.
- Bowling for Columbine (2002) - I feel really uneducated when I try to comment on this. I haven't seen many documentaries and, although I agree with Moore's politics I don't agree with his methods. I'm not really sure that this works as a documentary, either. It's so one-sided that it seems to me it would only effect people who already agree with Moore. I can't imagine anyone who doesn't agree with Moore being persuaded by this movie. I can only assume that his intentions were to persuade, but maybe I'm wrong. As someone who already agreed with him I definitely enjoyed the movie and found it very interesting. Still, Moore's obnoxiousness is bothersome.
- Punch-Drunk Love (2002) - I was avoiding this movie because, even though I had heard he wasn't 'being' Adam Sandler, I cannot stand Adam Sandler. Well, everyone was right. Sandler wasn't anything like his usual characters and, frankly, I was damn impressed. It wasn't just him though. The whole movie was good.
- A Mighty Wind (2003) - I think, for me at least, that how much I like a comedy is largely influenced by the people I see it with. Best in Show I first watched with my dad and sister and it was hilarious. This, on the other hand, I watched with some kids in my dorm who were put off by the style of the movie and the soundtrack. It wasn't nearly as funny to me as Best in Show but I think if I rewatched it with a more receptive audience I would like it much more.
- Best in Show (2000) - I've read some criticisms of Christopher Guest movies here, and I can recognize that what was said is true. But honestly, I think that these "Chris Farley / David Spade films for the NPR set" are pretty damn funny. Sure, the jokes are cliché, but so what? If they make me laugh, I'm ok with that.
- Drumline (2002) - The story isn't original, but it was fun. Actually, watching it with people from all different backgrounds (or, rather, all different white upper middle class backgrounds) was rather interesting. The scene at the party where the girls start stepping, especially. I was shocked some people had never seen anything like that before when my high school has 2 step teams and our dance team definitely had some routines involving stepping.
- South Park: Bigger, Longer, & Uncut (1999) - Honestly, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. I was never a fan of the TV show, but this actually had a few laughs in it.
- Gattaca (1997) - Teachers love showing this movie, especially when it has nothing to do with what we're studying. We're reading anthropology books, so obviously it makes sense to watch Gattaca now! At least it's a pretty decent movie. A little too long, but overall it's ok. I would rather not be forced to watch it again, though (I've seen it probably once a year in school for the past 3 or 4 years).
- Sixteen Candles (1984) - I don't really think there's too much I can say about this. It's a good teen movie, but if it's more than that, I don't get it. Sometimes you need a mindless movie to watch and sigh over with the other girls in your dorm, ya know?
- Bridget Jones's Diary (2001) - It was better than I remembered it being. Not great, but amusing, and even funny at times. Also, Renee Zellweger is so much more enjoyable (and attractive) in this than in Chicago .
- The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) - I've only seen this once before, at the University of Maryland. It definitely makes a huge difference where you see it. That school is much larger and less conservative than Case, and the audience was much more fun. Here, though, I actually knew people in it, which made it entertaining. This was just so much less energetic than the last time I saw it (except for the de-virginization exercises; it's surprisingly fun seeing your friends being forced to make asses of themselves...). As for the movie, I'm not anywhere near as into it as some people are, but I still think it's fun to see it.
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You've been doing quite a bit of rewatching! I liked Gattaca quite a bit, so it's interesting for me to read that it's a movie that gets academic play (although watching it yearly sounds like a bit much). I continue to enjoy this list (and those of its ilk). I find I think about movies differently when I know I'm going to be writing something--even just short blurb--about them. Anyway, just wanted to mentioned I keep liking this list (and its predecessors). Hope you're enjoying writing it!
Thanks, Jim. I actually don't normally rewatch movies, but it's a lot harder to get to a video store or a theater without a car (and while trying to save money for books next semester...). Most of the movies I've been watching are ones that someone in the dorm owns, so I don't have a large selection to choose from. Hopefully I'll have a lot of time to catch up on movies I want to see over winter break.
Well, there's always Netflix. Of course, that doesn't help in the money-saving department.
Oh no, bring back the comments! :-) While I've only seen one of your three commentless entries, I'm curious to hear your thoughts on all of them.
Sorry, Jim, they were coming! I just added the movies before I left for vacation, planning to add the comments when I got back.
:-) Nice to see 'em up there now! I'm looking forward to Bowling for Columbine and talk to her, and I'm right there with you on your Punch-Drunk Love comments (although I've been known to enjoy the occasional run-of-the-mill Sandler movie as well).
I agree with you that right-wingers will probably not be persuaded by "Bowling for Columbine." But I think his movie could persuade left-wingers of many things. For example, I consider myself pretty liberal, but before I saw the movie, I didn't know that the gun problem in America was so rampant as compared to other countries. He's convinced me that it's a major problem. He's also persuaded me that a major cause of the violence is the fear created by the American media. As for Moore's intentions, persuasion was certainly a big one, but he was also certainly trying to entertain. And I think he succeeds with flying colors.
Glad you liked "Talk to Her" and "Punch-Drunk Love" too.
Interesting. I guess the thing for me was that even though I agreed with Moore about the issues before I saw the movie, something about it made me doubt him. As liberal as I am (for anyone who doesn't know me, I am very liberal), I was skeptical of the points he made throughout the movie. I'm sure he was making good points and I don't really believe anything he said was false, but I still feel as though somethings may have been taken out of context or manipulated so he could make whatever point he wanted. Maybe it's just me being paranoid. Although I didn't get what you did from it, I was certainly entertained and I'm thinking I may need to watch it again and try to get more out of it.