Nilade
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Post by Nilade on May 23, 2022 1:15:38 GMT -5
Got to sit the next round out, the next 30 days are gonna be a bit busy.
If you need an extra person, I'll jump in. I just don't want to hold the game up if I'm late again.
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on May 25, 2022 11:13:54 GMT -5
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Dracula
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Post by Dracula on May 25, 2022 12:07:57 GMT -5
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PhantomKnight
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Post by PhantomKnight on May 25, 2022 12:25:27 GMT -5
Yeah, I've just gotten really busy recently. Sorry. I'll still get in my two overdue reviews, though.
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on May 25, 2022 14:41:08 GMT -5
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donny
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Post by donny on May 25, 2022 19:17:58 GMT -5
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PG Cooper
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Post by PG Cooper on May 25, 2022 21:20:27 GMT -5
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Dracula
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Post by Dracula on May 25, 2022 22:09:53 GMT -5
I think they have Married to the Mob at my library, will check on that tomorrow. If that doesn't work I'll probably just go with Heavy Metal since it's readily available on my DVR. Might try Lost Highway (which I have blind bought in my collection) if I'm feeling ambitious but after taking in Inland Empire recently I might need a bit of a break from wild Lynch stuff. |
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on May 26, 2022 12:00:50 GMT -5
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on May 26, 2022 12:01:33 GMT -5
Oh and I'll go with Bob le flambeur, it sounds pretty cool.
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PG Cooper
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Post by PG Cooper on May 26, 2022 12:10:36 GMT -5
Of those I have seen them all (The Proposition through you from Film Club). is the master of re-recommending movies. I watched Harakiri eight years ago for the Film Club on his recommendation, wrote a rave A+ review for it, and he's since recommended it to me at least two more times. I think they have Married to the Mob at my library, will check on that tomorrow. If that doesn't work I'll probably just go with Heavy Metal since it's readily available on my DVR. Might try Lost Highway (which I have blind bought in my collection) if I'm feeling ambitious but after taking in Inland Empire recently I might need a bit of a break from wild Lynch stuff. Lost Highway is similarly opaque but it does work with tried and true film noir tropes. Also the industrial Metal soundtrack is pretty rad. Speaking of Metal, I'd be very curious to see your reaction to Heavy Metal. It's definitely trash, but whether you find it "fun" or "embarrassing" will be key. Married to the Mob would probably be the most reliable pick. |
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on May 26, 2022 12:14:41 GMT -5
Of those I have seen them all (The Proposition through you from Film Club). is the master of re-recommending movies. I watched Harakiri eight years ago for the Film Club on his recommendation, wrote a rave A+ review for it, and he's since recommended it to me at least two more times. I wanted you to watch it again! Ya know, see if it holds up. |
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on Jun 1, 2022 19:54:01 GMT -5
Bob Le Flambeur
Having just watched the Jules Dassin crime caper Rififi for the first time I thought following up with another French heist movie might be a good way to spend the weekend. Bob Le Flambeaur is an earlier feature by Jean-Pierre Melville, a director whom I've come across in the past but frankly I jumped into some of his movies before I really knew much about who he was, his style and what he helped influence. I remember watching Army of Shadows and Le Cercle Rouge years and years ago and it's hard for me to remember much about them at all although I am a fan of Leon Morin, Priest. Now that I have a little more familiarity with French cinema I was more game to give Melville another spin.
Bob Le Flambeur or Bob The Gambler is about a gambler, a gambler named Bob. He's not a young man but lives the lifestyle of one, sleeping during the day then gambling and drinking through the night until the early morning. He mentors a young gambler Paolo who falls in love with an even younger woman down on her luck. Bob is also known to the police as he once did time for a robbery decades earlier but he maintains a friendly relationship with them after having saved the life of one of the lead detectives. He's a well known, well liked man who has long since left his criminal life behind him. Finding himself even more down on his luck than usual one day, Bob devises a scheme to rob a casino of 800 million francs which should put any money troubles he has to a permanent end. As with all foolproof plans though, some people don't keep their mouths shut and let information slip while laying between the bedsheets. Soon the police and rival gangsters are on Bob's tail and Bob has to maneuver so he can pull off his master heist.
This was an interesting movie because it felt like it was segmented into 'characters/story' rather than acts. This didn't seem quite as focused as other similar crime films, there's no mention of pulling off an actual robbery until roughly halfway into the film, but instead establishes the characters and puts an even larger focus on their drives and motivations before going into the story. It was as though the movie really wanted you to learn who these people are before letting you in on what they want to do which in hindsight might have been a neat way to craft it and make the film stand out. Truth be told I watched this movie on Saturday and am just now getting around to jotting my thoughts down four days later but it's one that is sitting better with me now that it's sunk in a bit. I was questioning whether the framing really agreed with me but I appreciate it now as it's hard to really forget any character that even had a minor role as you got to know them so well before any of them executed their plans. It's not the most intense, white knuckle or high stakes crime film but its execution and characters make it an enjoyable viewing. The fact that you care and are much more invested in Bob's hands at cards in the final casino game rather than the actual heist tells you that this movie is a little different, but in a good way.
B+ so says Doomsday
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Dracula
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Post by Dracula on Jun 5, 2022 18:07:40 GMT -5
Married to the Mob (1988)
It is a bit ironic that Jonathan Demme is primarily known for directing Silence of the Lambs because it’s not really all that representative of his signature style at all and it kind of pushed him down a path that was probably a dead end. Someone looking for something closer to his essence would be better off looking to movies like Something Wild, Stop Making Sense, Rachel Getting Married, or the movie at hand: Married to the Mob. “Mob comedies” are of course nothing new and we’ve seen stories like this play out since the days of things like Born Yesterday and this in some ways feels like an updated 80s version of something like that. The film tells a breezy little story about a mob widow who’s being monitored by the FBI and ends up in a relationship with an undercover agent. The film does a good job of making its mafia characters seem legitimately dangerous without breaking the comic tone even if I didn’t necessarily find this movie to be uproariously funny per se. I will say though that I was a little surprised that this was actually made after his film Something Wild instead of before because it does seem like a bit of a step back from that as it feels a bit less adventurous, almost like it was watered down a bit in order to be a bit less “weird” to a mass audience.
***1/2 out of Five
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PG Cooper
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Post by PG Cooper on Jun 5, 2022 21:24:33 GMT -5
Married to the Mob (1988)
It is a bit ironic that Jonathan Demme is primarily known for directing Silence of the Lambs because it’s not really all that representative of his signature style at all and it kind of pushed him down a path that was probably a dead end. Someone looking for something closer to his essence would be better off looking to movies like Something Wild, Stop Making Sense, Rachel Getting Married, or the movie at hand: Married to the Mob. “Mob comedies” are of course nothing new and we’ve seen stories like this play out since the days of things like Born Yesterday and this in some ways feels like an updated 80s version of something like that. The film tells a breezy little story about a mob widow who’s being monitored by the FBI and ends up in a relationship with an undercover agent. The film does a good job of making its mafia characters seem legitimately dangerous without breaking the comic tone even if I didn’t necessarily find this movie to be uproariously funny per se. I will say though that I was a little surprised that this was actually made after his film Something Wild instead of before because it does seem like a bit of a step back from that as it feels a bit less adventurous, almost like it was watered down a bit in order to be a bit less “weird” to a mass audience. ***1/2 out of Five Glad you mostly liked it. I do agree that it feels safer than Something Wild and isn't quite a gut-buster, but I still think it's really fun and entertaining. |
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PG Cooper
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Post by PG Cooper on Jun 7, 2022 16:08:29 GMT -5
Wings of Desire
Wings of Desire has been on my watchlist for ages now and finally having the push to watch it, yeah, the film is pretty stunning. What I find most compelling here is the film's perspective. Wim Wenders is somehow able to create the impression of an unknown being looking at humanity from the outside looking in while still probing the inner most thoughts of dozens of characters. The result is a very unique mood. I'm not really sure I can put it into words beyond something about how stepping outside of human life allows its profound beauty to be put into relief. Laying that out so starkly makes the movie sound trite, but when you experience it as a visual experience and mood piece it really resonates. Crucial to is the film's ethereal black-and-white cinematography to denote the realm of the angels, with sharp injunctions of colour allowing the human to breakthrough.
The dichotomy is rooted in Powell and Pressburger's A Matter of Life and Death, which also used black-and-white for heaven and bright Technicolor for the human world. Wings of Desire's colours aren't quite as lush as that classic Archers Technicolor, but it's still quite vibrant, at first feeling romantic and enchanting but becoming more mundane as it sets in more fully. To that point, if I have any issue in the movie, I do think that the final stretch which settles mostly in human terms is just inherently less compelling than the time spent with the Angels. It's a necessary turn for the story and aspects of it are rendered quite beautifully, but the delicate mood of the story's first half is where Wings of Desire most strongly thrives.
A
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on Jun 8, 2022 11:35:06 GMT -5
We're done with 3 out of 4 for this current round (no rush at all donny) but we're still missing a number from past rounds. I'll put it out that I'm aiming to get a new round up on Monday June 27th. Do you think we can all catch up in three weeks? If you want in for the upcoming round just say the word.
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PG Cooper
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Post by PG Cooper on Jun 8, 2022 11:50:43 GMT -5
We're done with 3 out of 4 for this current round (no rush at all donny) but we're still missing a number from past rounds. I'll put it out that I'm aiming to get a new round up on Monday June 27th. Do you think we can all catch up in three weeks? If you want in for the upcoming round just say the word. I'm in. |
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Dracula
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Post by Dracula on Jun 8, 2022 12:00:08 GMT -5
in
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IanTheCool
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Post by IanTheCool on Jun 8, 2022 18:21:03 GMT -5
I can be in
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donny
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Post by donny on Jun 8, 2022 20:30:43 GMT -5
Yes I will be in.
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PhantomKnight
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Post by PhantomKnight on Jun 18, 2022 16:12:50 GMT -5
Incredibly late review #1:
Christine (2016)
In an odd sort of coincidence, I'm getting around to writing this review after I watched the HBO Max miniseries The Staircase, about Michael Peterson, which I watched well after this movie. What was that have to do with anything? Well, they were both directed by the same guy -- Antonio Campos. And I remember while watching Christine, thinking that Campos certainly knows how to create an almost oppressively dreary atmosphere. The difference, though, is that such an atmosphere feels like it's implemented well and is effective in The Staircase. In Christine? Not so much.
Before watching this film, I looked a little bit into the story of Christine Chubbuck, and it's definitely a bizarre one. What seems to be clear, though, is that Chubbuck was just not emotionally well-adjusted, and what she did was shocking, yet sadly inevitable, in a way. But to make a narrative feature about her...requires more of a deft hand than I think Campos ultimately displays here. It just feels like there's no firm grasp on the stance Campos wants to make on the subject matter. Does he want to make an indictment of sensationalism in media? Paint a portrait of a woman struggling to have everything she wants and failing at it? Sure, the movie tells Christine's story, but it doesn't feel like it has a purpose beyond just building up to "the event." As a result, I came away pretty cold about the whole thing. It's tragic, undoubtedly, but as a film, the story lacks any kind of tension and you're just waiting around for the end. However, the acting is uniformly strong, from Rebecca Hall especially. She embodies the characteristics that Chubbuck seems to have had with almost haunting believability and almost singlehandedly keeps the film interesting enough to watch. And despite the plodding pace and one-note nature of a lot of the film, Antonio Campos DOES create some strong moments. But in the end, Christine is a movie that leaves me with just one question: for why?
**/****
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PG Cooper
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Post by PG Cooper on Jun 18, 2022 18:22:04 GMT -5
Not my favourite John Carpenter movie either.
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Doomsday
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Post by Doomsday on Jun 20, 2022 11:50:07 GMT -5
One week until I throw up the new round. Here's who I have so far, give a shout if anyone else wants in. PG Cooper Dracula IanTheCool donny thebtskink PhantomKnight do you guys want in? |
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PhantomKnight
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Post by PhantomKnight on Jun 20, 2022 12:30:30 GMT -5
Sure, throw me in.
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