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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 20, 2015 13:15:01 GMT -5
A Canterbury Tale (1944) D-Michael Powell/ Emeric Pressburger
An English girl looking for work, an American Sgt. and a British soldier find themselves in a small town in Kent. The girl that night becomes the serial victim of "The Glue Man"-someone dressed up in a soldiers uniform who pours a sticky substance on women's hair in the pitch darkness
Powell and Pressburgers ode to the idylic small town English upbringing they shared. The movie is directed with aplomb but moves at a snails pace. I find I either love or get bored stiff with this duo's films. I really enjoyed Thief Of Baghdad, The Red Shoes,Black Narcissus and Stairway to Heaven. I couldn't sit through Tales Of Hoffman. This one got me fidgety often. The actor who played the American (John Sweet) is one of the worst actors I've seen in many years. There is no denying though that Powell and Pressburger shoot magnificent looking scenes
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Post by Jesse on Sept 20, 2015 23:58:27 GMT -5
Alphaville (1965) Fascinating French film noir by Jean-Luc Godard set in a futuristic dystopia controlled by a supercomputer called Alpha 60. A pulp detective goes undercover as a reporter in a technocratic dictatorship where free thought, art, love and other emotions have been outlawed and the concept of the individual does not exist. Visually stunning, perfectly paced and scored with some excellent dialogue and interesting characters. Eddie Constantine is just damn cool as the protagonist Lemmy Caution. The voice used for Alpha 60 is absolutely creepy and it's very menacing how its presence is felt throughout Alphaville. The society itself is a pretty unnerving place particularly the mentality if it's citizens. People are forbidden to ask "why" and must instead say "because". There are dictionaries (referred to as Bibles) that are constantly being censored when certain words begin to evoke emotions in people as well as brainwashing and mass public executions of those who show emotion and "act illogically". The climax is tense and there's a bit of action even a car chase. I quite enjoyed the clever way the machine is beaten and found the ending to be pretty satisfying.
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Post by Hoosier X on Sept 21, 2015 12:14:25 GMT -5
Alphaville (1965) Fascinating French film noir by Jean-Luc Godard set in a futuristic dystopia controlled by a supercomputer called Alpha 60. A pulp detective goes undercover as a reporter in a technocratic dictatorship where free thought, art, love and other emotions have been outlawed and the concept of the individual does not exist. Visually stunning, perfectly paced and scored with some excellent dialogue and interesting characters. Eddie Constantine is just damn cool as the protagonist Lemmy Caution. The voice used for Alpha 60 is absolutely creepy and it's very menacing how its presence is felt throughout Alphaville. The society itself is a pretty unnerving place particularly the mentality if it's citizens. People are forbidden to ask "why" and must instead say "because". There are dictionaries (referred to as Bibles) that are constantly being censored when certain words begin to evoke emotions in people as well as brainwashing and mass public executions of those who show emotion and "act illogically". The climax is tense and there's a bit of action even a car chase. I quite enjoyed the clever way the machine is beaten and found the ending to be pretty satisfying. It's been a while since I saw this but I remember thinking it was pretty cool. Godard is one of my favorite French directors, right up there with Malle, Renoir and Ozon. I saw Pierrot le fou a few days ago and I'm not sure I got it but it was crazy and weird, a film with a very strange structure wrapped around the bare bones of a basic crime thriller about a guy who gets bored with his conventional life and runs off on a low-key crime spree with Anna Karina (who wouldn't?). I wasn't sure I liked it. It wasn't boring, that's for sure. But the ending swept away my doubts. It was totally nuts!
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Post by Hoosier X on Sept 21, 2015 12:24:06 GMT -5
We've had quite a few French films under discussion here lately, so I want to point out that TCM is showing a Robert Bresson marathon on Sept. 25, that's this coming Friday. So it might be fun if the Classic Movie Discussion participants were discussing the same movies right after we'd all seen them, when they're fresh in our minds.
I was planning on DVRing Pickpocket, Diary of a Country Priest and Au Hasard Balthazar and watching them over the following week or so. This is a great chance for me to see Bresson's most famous films. I just looked at his filmography and I've only seen one of his films - The Devil Probably. That's kind of embarrassing.
I read about Au Hasard Balthazar a few years ago and I've been wanting to see it for a while because it sounds so strange, tackling themes you don't see a lot. I'm really looking forward to it.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 21, 2015 13:21:11 GMT -5
We've had quite a few French films under discussion here lately, so I want to point out that TCM is showing a Robert Bresson marathon on Sept. 25, that's this coming Friday. So it might be fun if the Classic Movie Discussion participants were discussing the same movies right after we'd all seen them, when they're fresh in our minds. I was planning on DVRing Pickpocket, Diary of a Country Priest and Au Hasard Balthazar and watching them over the following week or so. This is a great chance for me to see Bresson's most famous films. I just looked at his filmography and I've only seen one of his films - The Devil Probably. That's kind of embarrassing. I read about Au Hasard Balthazar a few years ago and I've been wanting to see it for a while because it sounds so strange, tackling themes you don't see a lot. I'm really looking forward to it. It's been awhile but the one I've seen was Pickpocket which I recall enjoying
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 21, 2015 13:28:20 GMT -5
Captains Of The Clouds (1942) James Cagney, Dennis Morgan, Alan Hale, George Tobias, Reginald Gardner, Brenda Marshall
Cagney is a Canadian Bush pilot, stealing jobs away from other pilots including Dennis Morgan. Then Cagney steals Morgan's fiancée. What a guy!!!! The pilots get patriotic fever after the Dunkirk evacuation and join the air force
In beautiful Technicolor. Lots of plot in this film. The first half deals with civilian life and the second is wartime action. Cagney is always a bundle of energy and quick with his fists. He's 3 dimensional in the movie with a good and bad side. Lots of great Warner Bros supporting actors. An enjoyable winged adventure with lots to recommend it. Brenda Marshall as the slutty fiancée is an eyeful too
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 21, 2015 13:38:47 GMT -5
David Copperfield (1935) W.C. Fields, Freddie Bartholomew, Basil Rathbone, Edna May Oliver, Lionel Barrymore, Elsa Lancaster
The life and times of Charles Dickens' favorite character
An all-star cast back in the day. Directed by George Cukor. I rather enjoyed the first half of the film with Freddie Bartholomew playing David as a young boy. Rathbone is superb as the stern and cruel stepfather. And of course Fields is great. I recognize the older, pie-faced actress Edna May Oliver from a few Warner Bros cartoons in which she and other Hollywood stars were satirized. The later part of the film was just OK with Copperfield now grown up. But it did give me a chance to see the famous Uriah Heep as the embezzling financier. After being ratted out by Copperfield, Uriah Heep fronted a hard rock band in the early 1970s and had a hit with the song "Easy Listening"
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Post by Hoosier X on Sept 21, 2015 15:27:16 GMT -5
David Copperfield (1935) W.C. Fields, Freddie Bartholomew, Basil Rathbone, Edna May Oliver, Lionel Barrymore, Elsa LancasterThe life and times of Charles Dickens' favorite character An all-star cast back in the day. Directed by George Cukor. I rather enjoyed the first half of the film with Freddie Bartholomew "playing David as a young boy. Rathbone is superb as the stern and cruel stepfather. And of course Fields is great. I recognize the older, pie-faced actress Edna May Oliver from a few Warner Bros cartoons in which she and other Hollywood stars were satirized. The later part of the film was just OK with Copperfield now grown up. But it did give me a chance to see the famous Uriah Heep as the embezzling financier. After being ratted out by Copperfield, Uriah Heep fronted a hard rock band in the early 1970s and had a hit with the song "Easy Listening." This is a lot of fun. I read David Copperfield in the 1980s and it's one of my favorite novels. But I didn't see the movie until fairly recently - maybe two years ago - and I liked it quite a bit. I love Edna May Oliver! She's also in Alice in Wonderland and the 1940 Pride and Prejudice (with Laurence Olivier and Greer Garson and Maureen O'Sullivan and Edmund Gwenn! It's wonderful! (Even if it isn't quite Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice)) and she was also in a short series of movie mysteries about a school teacher who solves mysteries. My IMDB signature ( Janet! Donkeys!) is from Edna May Oliver in David Copperfield.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 22, 2015 10:48:35 GMT -5
Watched "I Shot Jesse James" on TCM this weekend. John Ireland is in it, quite good too!
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 22, 2015 13:22:12 GMT -5
Dead Man Walking (1995) Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon
A nun becomes the spiritual advisor for a man on death row and a short time away from execution
Based on a true story. Another great performance from both Penn and Sarandon. She won the Oscar, Penn deserved it as well instead of losing to Nicholas Cage in Leaving Las Vegas. The film successfully saddles both sides of the death penalty controversy. Tension builds unrelentingly until the climax. The movie does not take an easy way out nor has any false notes.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 22, 2015 13:29:02 GMT -5
Elf (2003) Will Ferrell, James Caan, Bob Newhart, Edward Asner, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenbergen
Adopted Elf, Ferrell, searches for his real father (Caan) in Manhattan
Time flies and this film is now old enough for classic consideration. The writing itself is not that funny but the performances by Ferrell and the veterans surrounding him make the movie. James Caan, an old favorite of mine, is an odd choice as the father. Enjoyable . And there is no such thing as The Central Park Rangers. Santa is more believable
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 23, 2015 14:31:57 GMT -5
Hamlet (1990) Mel Gibson, Glenn Close, Alan Bates, Paul Scofield, Ian Holm, Helena Bonham Carter
Shakespeare's Hamlet-you should know the story
Rather liked this to my surprise. Gibson gets more and more crazed as the movie proceeds (or am I describing Gibson personally?). Great supporting cast. Takes some liberties with the original source but nothing I can get upset about. But what was up with the scene of Hamlet and his mother when he confronted her about his father's death. That was some kissin' and a humpin'. That Mel- what a loony
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 23, 2015 14:44:14 GMT -5
Quadrophenia (1979) About 5 minutes of Sting
The London teen scene circa 1965. Young Jimmy is a rocker, has a dumbass job and parents who think he's crazed. His love of life is his motorbike, taking pills and hanging with the Mods.
The Who was my favorite Rock band about the time this album came out. Came close to wearing it out on the turntable. It took 6 years before the movie version was released (the 2nd Who album adaptation after Tommy). Can't say I enjoyed it as much as the audio version
Very, very British with hard to follow thick accents for an American. Also the whole Mods vs. Rockers subplot feels quite alien to me. The Who's music is showcased in small snippets , there's just as much other performers music from 1963-65 as the Who's. Not familiar with any of the thespians on display and Sting's film debut is very small with one line of dialogue. At least he wore his classic black trench coat and provided John Hellblazer's visual inspiration.
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Post by berkley on Sept 24, 2015 3:35:41 GMT -5
Quadrophenia (1979) About 5 minutes of Sting
The London teen scene circa 1965. Young Jimmy is a rocker, has a dumbass job and parents who think he's crazed. His love of life is his motorbike, taking pills and hanging with the Mods.
The Who was my favorite Rock band about the time this album came out. Came close to wearing it out on the turntable. It took 6 years before the movie version was released (the 2nd Who album adaptation after Tommy). Can't say I enjoyed it as much as the audio version
Very, very British with hard to follow thick accents for an American. Also the whole Mods vs. Rockers subplot feels quite alien to me. The Who's music is showcased in small snippets , there's just as much other performers music from 1963-65 as the Who's. Not familiar with any of the thespians on display and Sting's film debut is very small with one line of dialogue. At least he wore his classic black trench coat and provided John Hellblazer's visual inspiration. As a young lad I was into the album to the point of obsession but have yet to see the movie.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Sept 25, 2015 13:49:57 GMT -5
The Missing (2003) D-Ron Howard Tommy Lee Jones, Cate Blanchett
1885 New Mexico. A band of renegade Indians (and a few whites) are killing residents of isolated homesteads to abduct young females in order to sell them down in Mexico. Cate Blanchett has her daughter abducted and now relies on her estranged, long-lost father to track these kidnappers before they reach the border. Her father left many years in the past to take up the Indian way of life.
I love Westerns and this is a fine modern example of the genre. Beautifully directed and quite suspenseful. Good characterization and loads of action. Whole heartily recommended
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