My thoughts on recently-viewed films
Submitted by buddy on Mon, 07/11/2005 - 09:57
Tags:
- Brokeback Mountain
- I've held off writing about this one, though I saw it a few weekends ago. A friend told me it was going to be a sob-fest, which it didn't turn out to be for me. However, I find this film sneaking up on me - I'll be sitting at my desk and suddenly feel all melancholic for Ennis and Jack.
- There's not much I can say about this film that hasn't already been covered. The actors are all in fine form (better than fine in several cases), and each character is handled with subtlety and insight. Ang Lee has balanced a great atmosphere, stunning scenery, a beautiful love story, a complicated story of pain and unintentional hurt, and a social ill. And through all this, he's managed to make a film that I not only respect for its technical brilliance, but has affected me so much personally, that I don't really enjoy talking about it to people. So I'll leave it at that - suffice to say this will easily top my list of great movies this year (last year in North America, but only released over here fairly recently).
- Old Boy
- I had expected another action film, a la Infernal Affairs or some such. What I got was a thoughtful, beautifully told tale that poses moral questions. Granted it has a few outstanding fight sequences (Dae-siu's first fight after getting out is a sight to behold), and many scenes that are quite disturbing, including the widely-known scene involving the consumption of a live octopus (no special effects required). However, the effect of the harrowing emotional impact of so many disturbing scenes is to wear the viewer down so that the filmmakers can slip in with a moral quandary. At the beginning of the film, the moral question, if posed, would have a clear-cut answer. However, by the time you're confronted with the question, you've been taken on such a journey, that nothing seems quite so black-and-white by the end.
- All this muddled discussion probably doesn't make much sense to anyone who doesn't know the plot. Rather than give anything away, I'll simply outline the premise of the film, and hope that will be enough to entice you to subject yourself to this film. Dae-siu is a man, drunk, bad father, hanging out in jail at the beginning of the film. He promptly disappears, and is locked in a small apartment for 15 years, for reasons that no one will disclose to him. 15 years later he gets out, vowing vengeance and searching for the truth. Go. See it.
- A Dirty Shame
- What ever possessed us to rent this on the same night as Old Boy is beyond me. I'm not sure I could have purposely chosen a more bizarre combination of films. A John Waters film, this one deals with a neighbourhood whose residents manage to get accidental concussions which make them obsessed with sex. Everyone has their own fetish, which lasts as long as they don't get another accidental concussion, which toggles them back to normality. This film is a series of set-pieces which, in the right company, in the right frame of mind, could possibly be quite funny. Unfortunately, I saw it with quite a prudish woman and some friends, and her presence put a damper on our enjoyment of this film. See it if you want to see Selma Blair with size JJ's, and Johnny Knoxville looking (in my humble opinion), like sex on a stick. Or leave it alone, but don't say I didn't warn you. Everything I've said about the plot pretty much sums it up - there's very little else on offer here.
- Sweet Home Alabama
- What is up with romantic comedies these days? What with romcom king John Cusack ending up with flighty stupid women when they're SUPPOSED to be getting married to someone perfectly decent (Serendipity), or falling in love with someone just because she looks good in a bathing suit (America's Sweethearts), I'm in danger of losing faith in the genre. Thank god for Adam Sandler (who'd have thunk it?)
- This film seemed to be going along okay. The story was decent, the acting decent, and a few laughs sprinkled throughout. About halfway through, though, my boyfriend turned to me and said "I like the Southern guy, I like the New York guy, but I just don't like her". I have to agree, heartily. She treats everyone astonishingly badly, gets forgiven at the slightest pathetic apology, lies, manipulates, and does both men the horrible disservice of never really making up her mind. There's a scene at the end where Honestly, I was so disgusted with her at that point that I was wishing she'd just get hit by lightning and spare both wonderful men the pain of having her in their lives.Spoiler: Highlight to viewshe decides not to sign her own divorce papers. The man she's supposed to marry (still standing in the aisle at this point), steps aside graciously after arranging a spectacular proposal, bending over backwards to defend her to his mother, having his own wedding in a town he's never visited and doesn't know anyone, and forgiving her for all her previous lies. The filmmakers at least had the sense to have the guests look mildly stricken that she waited until the wedding day to dump the poor guy. But then she PUNCHES HIS MOTHER, and we're expected to cheer!
- The key to any romantic comedy lies in actually wanting the couple to be together in the end. For that, this film failed abysmally, and I'm a little angry that I bothered wasting 2 hours of my hungover Sunday watching this pap, when I could have watched something fluffy that made me feel good. I knew I should have just rented Harold and Kumar again.
- A History of Violence
- This film seems to have many of my friends divided. Half of them say they hated it, and some of us loved it. A few scenes were really (REALLY) uncomfortably intimate, such as the one between Tom and his wife early on in the film. Later, One thing that really appealed to me was Cronenburg's treatment of the issue of violence in Tom's son. The argument between father and son was intense and interesting, yet Cronenburg chooses not to dwell on it, where another director might have belaboured the point.Spoiler: Highlight to viewthis scene is mirrored in the intimacy with which his brother greets him and touches him.
- One friend told me she found long stretches of the film boring, and the Viggo Mortensen unbelievable in his role. Personally, I found it extremely engaging, and feeling slightly fatigued emotionally by the end. So much is unsaid, and as an audience member, I struggled to think what could be said between the characters to make things better, and the effort frustrated me. It's a film with difficult relationships and difficult issues, and Cronenburg respects his audience enough not to spoon-feed them too much with any answers.
- Igby Goes Down
- The back of the box on this one made it sound like a quirky, fun film about an interesting guy, kind of like Pecker , which I really enjoyed. I suppose that's not entirely inaccurate, but it hardly prepared me for dark humour, tragic characters, and heartbreaking moments. Amanda Peet has does a convincing job of playing a desperate upscale artist junkie. There is one beautiful moment in which she walks into a restaurant, with a tentative and fragile smile on her face, only to have the look fade to crestfallen when she sees Jeff Goldblum's blatant disgust. No words exchanged; everything is expressed through the face. Everyone in this film is perfectly serviceable, but Igby lacks the charisma of Edward Furlong, and the upper-class accents seem a little bit forced. Still, it was a decent way to pass 2 hours on a Sunday, especially considering we bought the film for only a pound.
- The Descent - note: there are no spoilers here. My comments about people becoming unhinged are general, and don't have much bearing on plot
- I was expecting another standard horror flick, and would have been pleased enough if it was. My boyfriend and I are major horror fans and will watch everything from Chopping Mall to Dawn of the Dead . What I wasn't expecting when walking into this film was to be so scared I was labouring to breathe, and (for the first time in my life) was scared enough to have to try to crawl into my boyfriend's lap for comfort. If you are at all claustrophobic, please don't see this film. I never considered myself particularly claustrophobic, but I found myself feeling profoundly uncomfortable at several points during this film. So much so I actually checked my pulse to make sure it was still in a healthy range.
- Never before have I seen a film populated almost exclusively by women be so utterly brutal and intense. It is extremely gory, but even that is outweighed by the harshness of each woman's struggle to live. Far from the resourceful female teen in 80's slasher flicks, who uses her wits to get by, these women use sheer brute strength, smarts, wills of steel, and eventually a completely detached manic brutality to survive. Afterwards I found myself trying to decide at exactly which point each woman became unhinged, but it happens gradually enough that you hardly notice. Certainly they hold off longer than I would. These are human beings at the absolute limit, and it is riveting viewing.
- Glengarry Glen Ross
- I had heard Alec Baldwin's speech at the beginning, seen the parody in Gil the Salesman on the Simpsons, and heard people rave about David Mamet. Now I've finally got around to renting it, and I'm unimpressed. Where was this wonderful, tight dialogue? All I heard was the occasional interesting banter (The Machine backing up Ricky Roma was pretty fun to watch), and mostly annoying salesman posturing. Some people may find that interesting; I was just annoyed. It was fun to watch Pacino woo his potential client in the restaurant, because Pacino can seduce like there's no tomorrow (see The Devil's Advocate or Looking for Richard ). Apart from that, I found nothing redeeming about this film. By the end I didn't really care if any of them did lose their jobs - perhaps it would force them into a more fulfilling career. Whatever, just move on and do it, and don't make another film about it.
- Seabiscuit
- Your basic standard "little engine that could" story. But oh boy, is it done well. Seldom in recent memory have I seen anything so tremendously uplifting or inspiring. "You don't throw away a life because it's a little banged up." Indeed.
- Shaun of the Dead
- This is British comedy at its finest. Subtle, deadpan, and biting social commentary, all rolled up into the cute little package that is Simon Pegg. Billed as a "Rom-Zom-Com" or some such, it's an odd combination of genres. Many funny horrors end up just being funny, but this one manages to be funny, genuinely scary at parts, and quite touching at others. Here's something to consider: what does it say about our society when the city becomes overrun with zombies and it takes days to notice?
Nice start! Sorry you didn't like Glengarry Glen Ross, which I loved, but believe me, I never turn away Mamet-bashing. :-)
The Descent isn't on Netflix's radar yet, but I'm definitely going to be watching out for it, thanks!
Yeah, I've seen a few Mamet films now, and he leaves me a bit cold. I find them watchable for the most part, but I fail to see what's so all-fired spectacular about him. He seems to be a favourite with pretension university students (not knocking university students, just pretensious ones). I enjoyed that one with all the twists that starred Steve Martin, but that was mostly because I love Steve Martin.
The Descent is brand new in the cinema over here in the UK, and as it's a British film, I don't know if it will get a wide release in the US. It may take a little while before becoming available over there. It almost certainly will eventually, though - it's by the director of Dog Soldiers , which I remember coming out in Canada a few years back. Definitely keep your eyes open for it; I think some really good horror is coming out of the UK in recent years. Which reminds me, I think I can consider Shaun of the Dead a recently viewed film. Perhaps I should add it to my list.
The director of Dog Soldiers? then its a must see.
And I think this film is superior to Dog Soldiers . Your mileage may vary, though.
I have nothing to say. Just popping in to mention that I've really been enjoying your reviews on this list!
Thanks, Jim. I've been hating the structure of these reviews, and have been finding it awkward to frame my thoughts in a coherent manner (too long out of university and not enough practise, I suppose). They're just my first reactions to these films, and I'm glad you're enjoying them.
Old Boy I loved - once you see the ending, it's hard not to sit back in awe of what a great story it was. More than a bit disturbing too. The lead was fantastic, I hope I can see more of him!
If you liked Shaun of the Dead, you should go see their next movie, Hot Fuzz - it lampoons action movies instead, and this time they had a bigger budget, soooo lots of explosions. Even funnier, too!
Thanks, I saw that one as soon as it came out. I love Simon Pegg, and you can see around Listology how many times I've recommended people try to track down his short-lived comedy Spaced . Hot Fuzz was really good, though I didn't like it as much as SOTD. That's probably because of the zombie factor. However, I loved how creepy that perfect little town was, since I can totally see that in every little English town I've been to. Beautiful, but mildly creepy.