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aceofspadeshq at gee mail.com CBD: cbd at cutjibnewsletter.com Buck: buck.throckmorton at protonmail.com joe mannix: mannix2024 at proton.me MisHum: petmorons at gee mail.com J.J. Sefton: sefton at cutjibnewsletter.com | Saturday Evening Movie Thread 03/02/2024 [TheJamesMadison]A Quick Note Well, I did it. I watched 'em all. It took about a year, but I have seen every Best Picture winner at the Oscars from Sunrise and Wings to Everything Everywhere All At Once. This is the fourth of my posts about the winners, and it's going to end up more of a review of the whole thing rather than a breakdown of what the last twenty years of winners means because the last twenty years of winners don't seem to mean much. I think the Best Picture winners had some kind of meaning to the Academy for decades. They were mostly dedicated to larger films that made a lot of money, rewarding producers who made big bets and won big. This was rather explicit for the first decade or so until Frank Capra felt like he needed his official recognition and pushed for his films like Lady for a Day and It Happened One Night to receive that recognition over the more traditionally celebrated fare like Cleopatra. Over the decades, it reflected the changes in the industry to one degree or another, near the front edge of popular taste as the institution and the people went back and forth changing their tastes and mores as the years rolled by, and then The Deer Hunter showed that you could game the system in a particular way to win. Harvey Weinstein became the poster child for producers buying the award through the late 90s (he was still winning Best Picture Oscars by the 2010s), and the idea that it was about great movies that had broad cultural appeal at the same time steadily died out. We're left with a hollowed-out shell of an institution that prioritizes being wooed by studios rather than discovering movies themselves. The irony is that it was a conscious choice on the part of the Academy's voting body to become more irrelevant. 2008 There is one year that changed everything, accelerating existing trends at a renewed pace after films like Titanic and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King took the top honor and were little more than bumps in the road, and it was 2008. That was the year that the comic book movie genre reached its critical peak with the release of Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight. It was critically acclaimed. It had a supporting performance from Heath Ledger as The Joker that was buoyed heavily by the actor's death. It made almost a billion dollars at the box office. It was, very honestly, the modern version of the kind of film that the Academy had been awarding since its inception. It was the crowd-pleasing, popular film that everyone loved and respected. And the Academy refused to nominate it for Best Picture (the award that year went to Danny Boyle's crowd-pleasing exploration of Indian fate, Slumdog Millionaire). It seems like a conscious decision on the part of the voting body (the largest of them is the actors who make up a plurality, so I think it's safe to blame them alone to a degree) to ignore popular taste. You see, The Dark Knight was a spectacle film, more of an accomplishment of a filmmaker than an actor or troupe of actors, and, since the 80s, the Academy had put particular focus on films that were more actor centric than filmmaker centric (think Ordinary People over Raging Bull). The pushing aside of The Dark Knight, largely relegated to technical categories and the pity award for Heath Ledger's posthumous performance, obviously concerned the Board of Governors who quickly set out a rule change: Best Picture nominations were no longer limited to 5. They could nominate as many as ten (most years have had nine nominees since, but they've gone to eight a couple of times and ten a couple of other times). An irony of this decision is that while the expansion of the awards has certainly opened up the nominations to popular movies like Black Panther or Top Gun: Maverick, it also cemented the idea that the Oscars aren't for them. No one seriously believes these movies have a chance when stuff like Women Talking is nominated at the same time. Heck, in 2009, The Hurt Locker became the lowest grossing film to win Best Picture, and it's been overtaken several times over since in that regard. Of course, the great thing about this change is that it's made manipulation of the vote through the campaign easier with more nominees. With five nominees, the theoretical minimum for a winner was 20% + 1 vote. With ten nominees, that theoretical minimum is now 10% + 1 vote. We could see that even at five nominees it was easy enough to manipulate through the example of Weinstein winning for Shakespeare in Love over Saving Private Ryan, but the increase in nominees has made it apparently easier. Just look at CODA, the independent film that Apple purchased and then aggressively pushed to win Best Picture two years ago. Precious few people actually saw it. Its box office take was $2 million. Apple bought the film and bought the Oscar because it was working heavily to bring eyes to its streaming service, buying prestige instead of earning it over time. I'm not sure it worked. It's the least rated (in terms of number of votes, not the average rating) Best Picture winner at the IMDB over the past 20 years and the second-least rated Best Picture winner at LetterboxD (the least is the 2011 winner The Artist). And the Academy was happy to go along with it, selling its prestige to a large corporation while giving up its ability to lead the public it thinks it's supposed to be showing the way. Influence So, I took some numbers on the last 23 years of Best Picture winners to try and get some sense for how wide the cultural impact they are. I'm not sure a full analysis could be done because the sample size is simply not very big and has so many other major variables that would be hard to filter out, but after comparing numbers from the IMDB, Metacritic, Rotten Tomatoes, and LetterboxD, I think that the Academy does still carry some influence. A Best Picture win does seem to lead to people discovering a film that they otherwise wouldn't (I mean...I would never have seen Nomadland if it weren't on the list because the film disinterested me so much). However, Nomadland is an interesting example. It won in 2020 when Hollywood did its part to shut down the economy in response to covid. It is a tiny indie where we watch Frances McDormand listen to people who live the nomad lifestyle for 2 hours. It's not the most interesting movie (I genuinely just didn't like it, though there are plenty of people who seem to have been over the moon for it), and you'd think it would have gotten some kind of serious boost from the Academy Awards it won. It's hard to gauge counterfactuals, but I think comparing it to something similar would be helpful. I chose Land, Robin Wright's directorial debut about a woman who goes into the Rocky Mountains to learn to live again, or something (I haven't seen it). It has 13,000 ratings on LetterboxD and 15,000 on the IMDB. Compared to Nomadland, that's roughly a tenth of what the Oscar winner has. And yet, how pervasive is the reach of Nomadland? 180,000 votes on IMDB isn't exactly a huge population, especially compared with the biggest movies of the past few years that have regularly gotten well over a million. That push seems to have serious limits now. Gone are the days when the culture will rush to catch up with something like The Deer Hunter or Marty. There will always be those who look at the selection from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and decide that they need to check out the latest selection. However, using Marty as a further example, its numbers are still paltry decades after both sites were established and even more decades after the film's release (LetterboxD: 21,000 votes and IMDB: 26,000 votes). So, do people care about the Oscars, or does an Oscar win just put a film in the "cultural conversation" for a hot minute? Marty winning decades ago seems to have done nothing for its profile, but Nomadland (especially in comparison to the similar film Land) seems to have gotten some small push in cultural acknowledgement. It seems paltry and weak, though. Demographics One thing that needs to be pointed out as to the changing times of the Academy is the increase in the voting population. After the #OscarsSoWhite campaign in 2016, the Academy has gone overboard in inviting in new voting members increasing the size of the body from under 7,000 to just under 10,000 in the previous seven years. Largely younger, these are the voters who formed the groundswell for last year's win for Everything Everywhere All At Once, a film that, reportedly, the older members of the Academy simply did not like very much. This is where the lower threshold for winners comes into play. In the past, the minimum was 20% of the voting body you had to convince. In more practical terms it was probably a minimum of a third. Now? It might just be a quarter of the voting body. That seems like a far cry from any sort of consensus. Throw in the fact that you suddenly have a quick infusion of younger, "more activist", voters, and you've got a body that is going through very quick changes. This makes the ability to manipulate the voting body towards a win that much easier. These younger voters, if they're anything like some of the new voters for the BFI Sight & Sound poll who have admitted to having virtually no real knowledge of film history, will be more open to being caught up in social media pushes and zeitgeists. We'll see if Oppenheimer wins in a little bit, but if it does, it feeds my feeling that the attitudes of Film Bro Twitter are going to determine the winners of the Oscars for the next few years. Everything Everywhere All At Once was the jewel of Film Bro Twitter for the months leading up to the ceremony last year, and Oppenheimer is following a similar path. And do you see how this kind of talk gets old fast? We don't talk about the actual movies. We end up talking about stuff around the movies. This is why I really cannot have any emotion over any Oscar winners or losers. It's not actually about the movies. It's about the people voting, what they want to do with it, who's the most influential. I just cannot bring myself to care about any of that. It makes me think that this whole exercise in watching all the winners was a mistake born from a false assumption. That false assumption being: the Academy is worth paying attention to. Getting it... So, in the final accounting, how should one who is not within the industry view the list of Best Picture Winners at the Oscars? Was it a list that was once in tune with truth and reality about the greatness of film that has fallen out with it? I say no. Having gone through all of them, I think I can say that the list is a strong survey of mostly American cinema from the late silent period to now. There have been great films honored from the beginning to the end. There have been terrible films honored from beginning to end (my least favorite remained the 1931 dreg of a release Cimarron through it all). There are middling films honored from beginning to end. However, on balance, it's a really good list. Even recently movies like The Artist, The King's Speech, Spotlight, and Parasite have entertained me. The fault is in the assumption that the Academy is some sort of authority on film. They're not. They're industry insiders who have their own set of tastes that collected together to create a fairly narrow band of potential winners from the inception of the award. Westerns, easily the most popular genre for decades, were all but ignored, the only Western winning the award was Cimarron in 1931 until Dances with Wolves in 1991. Were they getting it right when they were outright ignoring the best work John Ford was doing in The Searchers? The Academy Awards are an industry awards show. They are a celebration of the industry personnel at the highest levels. Those in the industry should care about it because it helps get jobs after being awarded, but outside of it? What other industries do you care about their awards? The American Society for Quality gives out awards annually. Should you care about that? The work in experimental design has much more direct application to your life than a bunch of celebrities gathering together to talk about how awesome they are while standing on the shoulders of the giants who came before them. It still amazes me how many people get emotionally involved in these things, flailing their arms because this movie beat that movie, about how the Academy "got it wrong". In what way does the Academy "getting it right" or "getting it wrong" affect those of us little people out in the world who just like to watch some movies? Does a Best Picture win suddenly make a movie better? Does a Best Picture loss suddenly make a movie worse? Does a snub invalidate one's own tastes? If you're looking to Hollywood for validation of your tastes, I think you may need a rethink about your priorities. I think horror fans have the best outlook about the Academy Awards after having their own tastes invalidated for so long: they simply don't care. That's healthy. Canon I think the desire for the Academy to make the "right" choice stems from some desire for there to be a canon of films: a list of essential films that everyone agrees is the right choice for what is the cultural bedrock of American cinema. Something someone can point to and say, "This is what you need to see to know movies." It's an understandable desire but misguided. It's this earnest need for categorization that humanity desires so much, but this yearly choice of what gets campaigned for best is a terrible model for that. If I had to point to a pre-existing list that did it better, I'd probably point to the American Film Institute's 100 Years...100 Movies list, especially the first one they put out in 1998 (like the BFI, they redid it a decade later in 2007, but they haven't done another since). It's not that I agree with the list on any real level or attribute any real meaning to the ranking. It's just that it's not limited by a requirement to have one per year (there are multiples from multiple years, and there are some years that have none), and it's not influenced directly by those who made them at nearly the level that the Academy is. The Oscars are an industry awards show for insiders. The AFI list is for people outside the industry. It's a better starting point. But that's all these things should be: starting points. If you are already well aware of cinema history, what value does something like the AFI list or the Oscar list do to you? You should already know most of what's present on those lists. For those who are looking to start out figuring out what this whole movie fad is? You could do worse than the Oscar list. Just realize that there's a whole lot more out there than what some assholes in Los Angeles decided to fete fifty years ago. Predictions Oh, lord I don't care. That being said, it's going to be Oppenheimer. It won the top awards at the Director's Guild, Screen Actor's Guild, and Producer's Guild ceremonies. There's no question. What I Would Have Voted For As with the previous three entries, here is the list of winners for the given period and which I would have voted for. I'm going to repeat what I said the last time: I'll explain a bit more since I got some pushback that I should have predicted for whenever you say that "this movie" should have won over "that movie," one inevitably gets the response that one is stupid because one doesn't love "that movie", even though I never expressed an opinion on "that movie". So, what I mean is that out of the five (or more) nominees each year, I would have voted for the movie in parentheses. That's it. It's not me saying that, if there's a disagreement between my own little, unimportant taste and the Academy's choice from 50 years ago, that I hate the choice the Academy made. In more than one instance, I genuinely love the film I wouldn't vote for, I just love the other film a bit more. Same goes if I agree with the Academy and some other very worthy film wouldn't have gotten my vote. And then there are a couple of years where I think the Academy was smoking some bad stuff. I should also note that I did my best to watch as many of the nominees I'd never seen before to make this list as robust as possible. In more than one instance, my mad dash to watch as much as I could did lead me to actually changing my mind about what I would have voted for. I also limited myself to what was nominated. 2005 - Crash (Capote) 2006 - The Departed (The Departed) 2007 - No Country for Old Men (There Will be Blood) 2008 - Slumdog Millionaire (Slumdog Millionaire) 2009 - The Hurt Locker (A Serious Man) 2010 - The King's Speech (The Social Network) 2011 - The Artist (This would be my hardest year of voting, wanting to vote for three of them, but I'd have to set aside Hugo and Moneyball in favor of Terrence Malick's masterpiece The Tree of Life) 2012 - Argo (Life of Pi) 2013 - 12 Years a Slave (12 Years a Slave) 2014 - Birdman (The Grand Budapest Hotel) 2015 - Spotlight (Mad Max: Fury Road) 2016 - Moonlight (Hacksaw Ridge) 2017 - The Shape of Water (Dunkirk) 2018 - Green Book (The Favourite) 2019 - Parasite (1917) 2020 - Nomadland (Minari) 2021 - CODA (Nightmare Alley) 2022 - Everything Everywhere All At Once (Triangle of Sadness) Next Time So, normally I just leave this to a small announcement at the very end of the post, but I have gotten myself into a small quagmire. I am hoping that you guys will lead me out. I watched the films of Italian filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini, but he...let's just say he wouldn't fit in well here if he hadn't been murdered in the 70s. I have written a post about him, but I'm willing to set it aside, post it at my own personal blog where a grand dozen people will see it, and post something else (which I have also already written). Take this as an invitation for an informal bit of feedback: which would you rather see? A post about Pier Paolo Pasolini, or a mystery post that would more naturally fit with the Horde's tastes? It's up to you! Movies of Today Opening in Theaters: Dune: Part Two Movies I Saw This Fortnight: Dune: Part Two (Rating 3/4) Full Review "Anyway, it's a spectacle. I think it gets the heart of Herbert's message right. It mixes things up to some degree and to not entirely successful effect." [Theater] The Artist (Rating 3.5/4) Full Review "Overall, though, a delight of a picture." [Personal Collection] 12 Years a Slave (Rating 4/4) Full Review "Still, the overall effect is incredible." [Personal Collection] Spotlight (Rating 4/4) Full Review "It all collects together into this incredibly compelling package, a look at professionals doing their job while uncovering a horror underneath society. It's great." [Library] The Shape of Water (Rating 1.5/4) Full Review "I actually do like the first act, but how everything ends up playing out and the thinness of the antagonist ends up weighing the film down so much that by the end I'm not swept up in the romantic gestures and resolutions by the end. I'm just tired of the machinations that never felt right." [Library] Green Book (Rating 2/4) Full Review "This is almost nothing. There's nothing particularly bad about it, but there's nothing particularly good about it either. It's milquetoast. It's lukewarm to be spit out. I've seen it twice now, and I mostly just find it kind of boring." [Library] Nomadland (Rating 1.5/4) Full Review "Nomadland is one of those prime examples of why the Academy is being left behind by the larger culture. It's a dull, ugly little film that has far less to say than it thinks and received all of the awards." [HULU] CODA (Rating 2.5/4) Full Review "It's more a triumph of the Oscar campaign than the cinematic form." [AppleTV+] Accattone (Rating 3.5/4) Full Review "The characters are full of life. The actors (all non-professional) feel real. The editing is crisp. The images are thoughtful. The ending has a sad tragedy to it all. This Pasolini fellow, I think he has some talent." [Personal Collection] Contact Email any suggestions or questions to thejamesmadison.aos at symbol gmail dot com. I've also archived all the old posts here, by request. I'll add new posts a week after they originally post at the HQ. My next post will be on 3/23, and the topic is up to you! Yes, you! (see above) Comments(Jump to bottom of comments)1
This post was already too long, but I wanted to include this anecdote:
It was early 2004, and I was 18 years old. I was watching the Oscars because The Return of the King was nominated. I had lived through watching the two earlier entries in the trilogy lose to A Beautiful Mind and then Chicago. This was the year that my favorite movie would get the recognition I felt like it deserved. I was ecstatic with joy when it did win. I was jumping up and down. As the adrenaline wore off, I was left empty. I wasn't at any of the after parties. I had done nothing to make the films. I was just some kid who liked the movie that got an award. The Academy validating my tastes ultimately meant nothing. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 07:53 PM (GBKbO) 2
Good evening everyone
Posted by: Skip at March 02, 2024 07:53 PM (fwDg9) 3
And preused through content too
Watched but didn't understand a word of a Nazi era movie Kampfgeschwader lutzow gander film A group of students get talked ot seems to join a Luftwaffen antiaircraft battery. I mostly like to see the surroundings, uniforms Posted by: Skip at March 02, 2024 07:56 PM (fwDg9) 4
hiya
Posted by: JT at March 02, 2024 07:57 PM (T4tVD) 5
I read all that content.
Posted by: Jamaica at March 02, 2024 07:58 PM (IG7T0) 6
5 I read all that content.
Posted by: Jamaica at March 02, 2024 07:58 PM (IG7T0) ====== I'm sorry. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 07:58 PM (GBKbO) 7
Ford vs. Ferrari won two Oscars and was nominated for Best Picture. The only movie I've care about in years.
Posted by: mrp at March 02, 2024 07:59 PM (rj6Yv) 8
I do plan to watch Dune Part Two, though. In a theater!
Posted by: mrp at March 02, 2024 08:00 PM (rj6Yv) 9
Oppenheimer was very good but a bit on the long side and for that reason we streamed it at home.
Posted by: gourmand du jour at March 02, 2024 08:00 PM (MeG8a) 10
My great uncle was involved with the 1937 winner, "The Life of Emile Zola."
Have you ever seen the Oscar-nominated short films? There are three categories: live action, animated, and documentary. Some of them can be quite good, though this year they are all dreary (with many political statements). Anyway, check out choices from previous years. One of my favorites is a Hungarian one called "Sing" from around 2017. Posted by: Isophorone at March 02, 2024 08:00 PM (42qwK) 11
Of what value are awards from such people as these?
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:02 PM (hbjSA) 12
HARLEY DAVIDSON AND THE MARLEBORO MAN SHOULD HAVE WON AN OSCAR FOR BEST PICTURE!!!
YOU BASTARDS!!! Evenin' (sips coffee) Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 08:02 PM (byWhc) 13
10 My great uncle was involved with the 1937 winner, "The Life of Emile Zola."
Have you ever seen the Oscar-nominated short films? There are three categories: live action, animated, and documentary. Some of them can be quite good, though this year they are all dreary (with many political statements). Anyway, check out choices from previous years. One of my favorites is a Hungarian one called "Sing" from around 2017. Posted by: Isophorone at March 02, 2024 08:00 PM (42qwK) ===== I'm not a big shorts guy. I'm not opposed to them, but I don't search them out. I should check out Sing, though. How was your great uncle involved with The Life of Emile Zola? Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:03 PM (GBKbO) 14
Slumdog Millionaire >> Dark Knight
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:03 PM (MNhXM) Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:04 PM (1Yy3c) 16
What's nominated this year? Anything good?
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (hbjSA) 17
Hiya James Monroe !
Posted by: JT at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (T4tVD) 18
Ford vs. Ferrari and Rush (2013) are a really good racing movies. Both get it.
Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (byWhc) Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (1Yy3c) 20
15 Evening.
Fuck the Oscars. Do the Pasolini post here. Because I said so. Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:04 PM (1Yy3c) ======= Evening. Agreed. That's 1. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (GBKbO) 21
Why can't you just do both posts?
Posted by: Tammy-al Thor at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (Vvh2V) 22
A movie-related question for the horde: I buy some movies online (RiffTrax) as digital files, and then burn them to DVD for watching. I do some editing beforehand (cutting out some redundant logos and such) and splice some shorts in front of the movie (like an old-timey feature!). I've been doing this for a while now, and still do it on a now-archaic Windows 7 machine, using Windows Movie Maker and Windows DVD Maker. Alas, that machine doesn't handle HD material very well, and neither of those programs were supported/updated for Windows 10/11.
So, does anyone have any recommendations for good programs to replace my old system? I've dallied a little with a basic Roxio burning program, but the DVD's looked terrible, and didn't function nearly as nice as the old ones. (The old DVD maker would automatically create chapter breaks on your disk, and if you included multiple video files, it would play each one-after-the-other, without interruption or additional input. I was a nearly-perfect system that they just don't support anymore...) Posted by: Castle Guy at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (Lhaco) 23
There are three Mad Max movies. NEVER SHALL THEIR BE A FOURTH.
Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (8sMut) 24
What's nominated this year? Anything good?
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (hbjSA) Oppenheimer and then a bunch of other shit. Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:06 PM (1Yy3c) 25
TJM. I want two signed copies of this book for door prizes. Will you accept cash,?
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:07 PM (SwYJN) 26
Let me clarify my stupid statement. I would like you to do both posts right here in the smart mil blog.
Posted by: Tammy-al Thor at March 02, 2024 08:07 PM (Vvh2V) 27
16 What's nominated this year? Anything good?
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:05 PM (hbjSA) ====== I've only seen Oppenheimer and Killers of the Flower Moon (I prefer the former). Out of what's left, I imagine that I'd end up probably preferring either The Zone of Interest, Anatomy of a Fall, or Poor Things over the rest. But that's really just a guess. The rest are things like Barbie, Maestro, and The Holdovers. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:07 PM (GBKbO) 28
Tammy -al Thor, how are ya, dear lady?
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:08 PM (SwYJN) 29
I saw Dune 2 last night. Awesome movie. Yes, I have nit picks, having read the book. My book brain was nit picking away all day today. But I have to say that Villeneuve did a good job with the book and that it is absolutely a challenge to put on screen. I’d argue that his interpretation, warts and all, is probably the best we are going to get for quite some time to come.
Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:08 PM (8sMut) 30
25 TJM. I want two signed copies of this book for door prizes. Will you accept cash,?
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:07 PM (SwYJN) ======= I can manage that, but I don't have any physical copies with me. I'd have to order them, sign them, and then mail them. It'll just take some time. If you're okay with that, I'll happily oblige. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:08 PM (GBKbO) 31
26 Let me clarify my stupid statement. I would like you to do both posts right here in the smart mil blog.
Posted by: Tammy-al Thor at March 02, 2024 08:07 PM (Vvh2V) ====== If I do the Pasolini post, I'll post the other in a month or two. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:09 PM (GBKbO) 32
So I just watched Ikiru this afternoon.
Bought it last year about this time and finally watched it. Very slow but very good. It's partly about a man rediscovering his will to live only after he finds out he's dying. It's also about how bureaucracy and collectivism crushes the individual and breaks his will. I liked it. Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:10 PM (1Yy3c) 33
I've only seen Oppenheimer and Killers of the Flower Moon (I prefer the former).
Out of what's left, I imagine that I'd end up probably preferring either The Zone of Interest, Anatomy of a Fall, or Poor Things over the rest. But that's really just a guess. The rest are things like Barbie, Maestro, and The Holdovers. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini I was looking forward to Killers of the Flower Moon, but I honestly thought it was not that great. I think I've cooled so much on DeNiro that it might have affected it. Who knows. Still, Osage County Oklahoma! Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:10 PM (hbjSA) 34
TJM, I can just buy them and send them to you for signing
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:10 PM (SwYJN) 35
#3 was on YouTube, a clip showed up on my suggestions and decided to look for the movie as lots of old movies are on it
Posted by: Skip at March 02, 2024 08:10 PM (fwDg9) 36
Thanks for the Movie Thread, TJM. Last night I watched Tokyo Drifter on the Criterion Channel. I am at least 700% cooler because I did. That movie is mind blowingly whacked-out cool!
Posted by: SuperMayorSuperRonNirenberg- Buff, Buffer, Buffest at March 02, 2024 08:11 PM (wDM1V) 37
33 I was looking forward to Killers of the Flower Moon, but I honestly thought it was not that great. I think I've cooled so much on DeNiro that it might have affected it. Who knows. Still, Osage County Oklahoma!
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:10 PM (hbjSA) ======= I thought it was good. My problem holding me back was that Leo's character was so stupid, like, literally dumb, that I didn't see a man in a moral quandary. I saw a man too stupid to understand the effects of his actions. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:11 PM (GBKbO) 38
Watching Dune I. So bleak.
Posted by: neverenoughcaffeine at March 02, 2024 08:11 PM (2NHgQ) 39
If the trailers I saw last night are any indication, last night may well be my first and last visit to a movie theater. Civil War looked stupid, and Furiosa is just something I am not interested in as a Mad Max purist. (There are THREE Mad Max movies.) The others? Don’t care.
Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:11 PM (8sMut) 40
Personal opinion alert.
Lot of really good movies bombed at the box office. (Dredd) Lot of movies I really didn’t like were box office hits. ( Avatar ) My point is I don’t think the box office is a necessary consideration one way or the other for those casting a vote. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:12 PM (MNhXM) 41
34 TJM, I can just buy them and send them to you for signing
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:10 PM (SwYJN) ========== That'd do as well! Email me, and we can figure out deets. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:12 PM (GBKbO) 42
I liked it.
Posted by: Robert I think I teared up the first time I watched Ikiru, but I can't bring myself to watch it again. But I like the austerity of post war Japan. I DID watch Yojimbo again, though. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:12 PM (hbjSA) 43
38 Watching Dune I. So bleak.
Posted by: neverenoughcaffeine So was the book. Great book, but bleak. Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 08:13 PM (byWhc) 44
I really liked "Mad Max: Fury Road" for the stunt work. Yeah, the plot was a little weak, but on the other hand, if the story had been epic, we would probably have complained about stopping the plot for yet another exploding car crash.
Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 08:13 PM (CFtGR) 45
38 Watching Dune I. So bleak.
Posted by: neverenoughcaffeine at March 02, 2024 08:11 PM (2NHgQ) Well, it is on a desert planet and is all about people lying, betraying, and backstabbing, so… Posted by: Neverenoughspice at March 02, 2024 08:13 PM (8sMut) 46
The Launch tonight of a new ISS crew, has been scrubbed.
Posted by: Ciampino - SpaceX scrubbed launch at March 02, 2024 08:14 PM (qfLjt) 47
40 My point is I don’t think the box office is a necessary consideration one way or the other for those casting a vote.
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:12 PM (MNhXM) ======= My point isn't that box office should decide whether one decides a movie is best of the year or not. It's that when the Oscars first started, it was obviously a major, overriding factor. Since the 80s, it's become a major, overriding factor in the other direction (with exceptions along the way). Since the vote isn't across all films released in the year, but only what the Academy deems "Oscar worthy", their collective decisions about what is considered worthy or not is obviously a valid topic of discussion when talking about the Oscars. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:15 PM (GBKbO) 48
Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:08 PM (8sMut)
Did you think Midnight Reviewer’s criticism of Chani’s attitude at the end was contrary to the book? Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:15 PM (MNhXM) 49
OT but I am now discovering that I'm not a fan of matcha tea.
Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:15 PM (1Yy3c) 50
45. Ha!
Posted by: neverenoughcaffeine at March 02, 2024 08:15 PM (2NHgQ) 51
#40: good points.
Buddy of mine is of the mind that “if something is popular it MUST be good!” Not necessarily, and to have that attitude you need to be led around by the crowd. That thinking never interested me. Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:15 PM (8sMut) 52
Power over spice is power over all.
Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:16 PM (8sMut) 53
I'll wait for Maud'dib to comment.
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:17 PM (SwYJN) 54
Buddy of mine is of the mind that “if something is popular it MUST be good!” Not necessarily, and to have that attitude you need to be led around by the crowd. That thinking never interested me.
Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 Does he like Taylor Swift? Kidding, but I thought like that until maybe my early twenties. I think it was Ordinary People that snapped me out of it. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:17 PM (hbjSA) 55
Ben Had! I am doing well, and hope you are, too! It's so good to "see" you.
Posted by: Tammy-al Thor at March 02, 2024 08:18 PM (Vvh2V) 56
Isn't there a story about Harlan Ellison and the movie "The Oscar"? Something along the line of he wrote the script, and the movie was so awful it almost wrecked his Hollywood career.
Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 08:18 PM (CFtGR) 57
I think Steely Dan summed this up in Show Biz Kids.
Posted by: fd at March 02, 2024 08:18 PM (vFG9F) 58
Not a theatrical release, but I watched the first two episode of Shogun. I was apprehensive, but it’s pretty good so far.
Posted by: Duke Lowell at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (u73oe) 59
Roku has a channel running Kurosawa's Dreams. But there are NO SUBTITLES.
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (hbjSA) 60
The rest are things like Barbie, Maestro, and The Holdovers.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:07 PM (GBKbO) Also Past Lives which is on Kanopy now. I saw it last week and liked it. Posted by: Mark1971 at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (xPl2J) 61
Tar and Kate Blanchett were robbed is all I'm going to say.
Posted by: Thomas Bender at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (XV/Pl) 62
60
Also Past Lives which is on Kanopy now. I saw it last week and liked it. Posted by: Mark1971 at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (xPl2J) ======= I've heard very good things. I'll see it eventually. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (GBKbO) 63
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:15 PM (GBKbO)
This was my opinion not a criticism of what you wrote. But correct me if I’m wrong , what you wrote seem to favor how the Academy selected the winners at the start. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:21 PM (MNhXM) 64
Not a theatrical release, but I watched the first two episode of Shogun. I was apprehensive, but it’s pretty good so far.
Posted by: Duke Lowell I'm catching up with that, but also following Masters of Air (Band of Brothers for the flyboys). They finally got the P-51's! Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:21 PM (hbjSA) 65
61 Tar and Kate Blanchett were robbed is all I'm going to say.
Posted by: Thomas Bender at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (XV/Pl) ======= Cate was more of a force than Michelle Yeoh, but oh well. She got the Ingmar Bergman cinema set from the Criterion closet as a consolation prize. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:21 PM (GBKbO) 66
I am going to spring for Shoah.
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:22 PM (SwYJN) 67
Did you think Midnight Reviewer’s criticism of Chani’s attitude at the end was contrary to the book?
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:15 PM (MNhXM) I never saw that review. I’ll need to check it out now that my embargo on any and all Dune 2 reviews ended last night. But…I understand why Chani had the attitude she did in the movie as opposed to the book. In the movie she was raising a red flag to Paul and the others whereas this didn’t happen in the book. So she was altered to serve a purpose in the movie. I didn’t care for the ending. But it wasn’t nearly enough for me to change my view of the movie. Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:22 PM (8sMut) 68
Roku has a channel running Kurosawa's Dreams. But there are NO SUBTITLES.
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (hbjSA) Have you tried activating the subtitles on the device? Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:23 PM (1Yy3c) 69
45 38 Watching Dune I. So bleak.
Posted by: neverenoughcaffeine at March 02, 2024 08:11 PM (2NHgQ) Well, it is on a desert planet and is all about people lying, betraying, and backstabbing, so… Posted by: Neverenoughspice at March 02, 2024 08:13 PM (8sMut) ---- I slogged through the book back in the 60s, and it was a slog. Until recently I very seldom did not finish a book. Lately I do drop a book since my remaining days are few ......! Anyway Dune was no my cup of SciFi tea. I have not seen Dune 1 and probably will never see Dune 2. Posted by: Ciampino - SpaceX scrubbed launch! at March 02, 2024 08:24 PM (qfLjt) 70
The whole family went to see Dune 2 this afternoon. I loved the movie, but just can't help noticing that the books 'mujahideen waging jihad; have been changed in the movie to 'fundamentalists waging holy war'.
Posted by: Candidus at March 02, 2024 08:24 PM (+B0EC) 71
Not a theatrical release, but I watched the first two episode of Shogun. I was apprehensive, but it’s pretty good so far.
Posted by: Duke Lowell at March 02, 2024 08:20 PM (u73oe) I'm tempted to buy the original series on bluray. Unless someone tells me the image quality isn't substantially better than the DVD, in which case I'd order that and save money. Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:24 PM (1Yy3c) 72
Have you tried activating the subtitles on the device?
Posted by: Robert It was a no go when I did. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:24 PM (hbjSA) 73
63 This was my opinion not a criticism of what you wrote. But correct me if I’m wrong , what you wrote seem to favor how the Academy selected the winners at the start.
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:21 PM (MNhXM) ======== I largely don't care about what the Academy does. What I note is that the Academy gained prominence because its taste aligned with popular taste. It kept that for literally decades. And then producers learned how to game the system in the late 70s and early 80s, the average Academy voter decided that Terms of Endearment was more worthy of their attention than something "low" like Ghostbusters, and they put themselves on a path towards irrelevance. All of this while they insist that they are the cultural leaders that they only ever were pretty much by accident. If the Academy wants to be cultural leaders, then they need to realize that the best they'll ever get is a facsimile where they follow the public and only occasionally get to bring something out of the woodwork the rest of the culture doesn't know about yet (like a Marty). Going all little movie no one's seen all the time just leads to irrelevance. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:25 PM (GBKbO) 74
Standing down from tonight's launch of Crew-8 due to elevated winds in Dragon's ascent corridor.
Now targeting Sunday, March 3 for liftoff SpaceX/NASA - Falcon 9/Crew Dragon SpaceX Crew-8 - LC39-A - KSC Coverage Begins: March 3rd at 6:40 p.m. ET Launch: March 3rd at 10:53 p.m. ET https://tinyurl.com/37f7zyvy This is a manned launch. Posted by: Ciampino - SpaceX new date at March 02, 2024 08:25 PM (qfLjt) 75
Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:22 PM (8sMut)
Though the altered Chani was one of his criticisms like you it wasn’t enough to change his positive review of the movie. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:27 PM (MNhXM) Posted by: Duncanthrax at March 02, 2024 08:28 PM (a3Q+t) 77
I wasn't at any of the after parties. I had done nothing to make the films. I was just some kid who liked the movie that got an award. The Academy validating my tastes ultimately meant nothing.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 07:53 PM (GBKbO) I wish confess to seeing if a movie won any awards for fun. I can’t remember now but I think Dune 1 won some Oscars in different minor categories. Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:28 PM (8sMut) 78
@65
>>She got the Ingmar Bergman cinema set from the Criterion closet as a consolation prize. I've got a thing for *Kate Blanchett, pretty much love her in everything she's been in, she's going to star in Borderlands, which is based on a video game, looks good and is probably the only way she can make any bank, traditional movies are dead. * Just can't bring myself to call her Cate. Posted by: Thomas Bender at March 02, 2024 08:29 PM (XV/Pl) 79
Well on the Roku mobile app at least there are subtitles. They default to off. I turned them on and it worked fine.
Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:29 PM (1Yy3c) 80
Love the movie thread but know I will be up at a ridiculous early time for no reason.
Have a great evening everyone Posted by: Skip at March 02, 2024 08:30 PM (fwDg9) 81
Well on the Roku mobile app at least there are subtitles. They default to off. I turned them on and it worked fine.
Posted by: Robert Well, I'll try again. Thanks. It was about to come on. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:30 PM (hbjSA) 82
I largely don't care about what the Academy does.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:25 PM (GBKbO) WTH did I just read then? Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:31 PM (MNhXM) 83
77 I wish confess to seeing if a movie won any awards for fun. I can’t remember now but I think Dune 1 won some Oscars in different minor categories.
Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:28 PM (8sMut) ======= I'm pretty sure it did. Probably special effects. It'll be interesting to see if Part 2 can ride its critical wave to a nomination in...10 months or so. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:31 PM (GBKbO) 84
The Oscars are a racket. Bah.
Posted by: Bulgaroctonus at March 02, 2024 08:31 PM (9yWhg) 85
WTH did I just read then?
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:31 PM (MNhXM) A coded message to Ukrainian forces massing in the east. The counteroffensive has begun. Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:32 PM (1Yy3c) 86
TJM,
Did you know the Kindle edition of your book has the Table of Contents in blazing orange font? Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 08:32 PM (CFtGR) 87
82 I largely don't care about what the Academy does.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:25 PM (GBKbO) WTH did I just read then? Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:31 PM (MNhXM) ========= It's an irony at the heart of the whole experiment. I did the list because it was an easy thing that could get me clicks, and the deeper I went into it, the less I cared. The movies were largely good, but the reason for their being grouped together just got increasingly pointless. Still, content is content! Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:32 PM (GBKbO) 88
86 TJM,
Did you know the Kindle edition of your book has the Table of Contents in blazing orange font? Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 08:32 PM (CFtGR) ======== That's weird. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:33 PM (GBKbO) 89
I never understood the concept of it being a big deal getting nominated but not winning. The runner up is seldom remembered.
Posted by: Ciampino - Hollyweird at March 02, 2024 08:33 PM (qfLjt) 90
89 I never understood the concept of it being a big deal getting nominated but not winning. The runner up is seldom remembered.
Posted by: Ciampino - Hollyweird at March 02, 2024 08:33 PM (qfLjt) ======= It usually means something in the industry. Winning is better, though. Brie Larson is always going to be able to get work because she won Best Actress a decade ago. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:34 PM (GBKbO) 91
I slogged through the book back in the 60s, and it was a slog. Until recently I very seldom did not finish a book. Lately I do drop a book since my remaining days are few ......! Anyway Dune was no my cup of SciFi tea. I have not seen Dune 1 and probably will never see Dune 2.
Posted by: Ciampino - SpaceX scrubbed launch! at March 02, 2024 08:24 PM (qfLjt) And that’s quite alright. I saw Fellowship of the Ring (the hyper-extended version) and could not get into it. While I appreciate the technical expertise in making the movie and that they did justice to the books, etc…in the end I am not a fan of fantasy so the LOTR trilogy in print or film is just not for me, and never will be. Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:35 PM (8sMut) 92
never understood the concept of it being a big deal getting nominated but not winning. The runner up is seldom remembered.
Posted by: Ciampino - Hollyweird at March 02, 2024 08:33 PM (qfLjt) It does help the box office and future rentals. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:35 PM (MNhXM) 93
I propose the following for a definitive Horde ranking of movies:
Which movies get quoted the most by Commentators? IOW, which line(s) of dialogue have iron in them for all Morons to see? Posted by: Duncanthrax at March 02, 2024 08:35 PM (a3Q+t) 94
There was a version of lynch's Dune I saw years ago where the director was Alan Smithee. I know that means a director uses that pseudonym when he doesn't want to be associated with a project he believes was annihilated by the studio suits. I'd never seen an Alan Smithee before.
Last time I remember seeing that Dune though, Lynch was the director. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:37 PM (hbjSA) 95
92 never understood the concept of it being a big deal getting nominated but not winning. The runner up is seldom remembered.
Posted by: Ciampino - Hollyweird at March 02, 2024 08:33 PM (qfLjt) It does help the box office and future rentals. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:35 PM (MNhXM) ======== I don't think that's true at levels necessary to justify the investment anymore. Gone are the days when Terms of Endearment could make another $70 million off of its win. By about American Beauty, it was fading into nothing, the Oscar effect. Now? I don't think anyone could make back the millions of dollars they invest. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:37 PM (GBKbO) 96
Brie Larson is always going to be able to get work because she won Best Actress a decade ago.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:34 PM Despite her RBF, and the fact that certain aspects of her acting are flat. Posted by: Duncanthrax at March 02, 2024 08:37 PM (a3Q+t) 97
If the movies get any worse this year, Will Smith will have to go outside and slap himself...
Posted by: richard mcenroe at March 02, 2024 08:38 PM (8fxF+) 98
94 There was a version of lynch's Dune I saw years ago where the director was Alan Smithee. I know that means a director uses that pseudonym when he doesn't want to be associated with a project he believes was annihilated by the studio suits. I'd never seen an Alan Smithee before.
Last time I remember seeing that Dune though, Lynch was the director. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:37 PM (hbjSA) ====== There's a TV cut that Dino de Laurentiis (the film's producer) put together. Lynch told him he wanted nothing to do with it, and Laurentiis pulled the name off, replacing it with Smithee. That TV cut is how I got to know that movie, though. The Sci-Fi Channel showed it when I was 15. I recorded it, and it became the go-to. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:38 PM (GBKbO) 99
propose the following for a definitive Horde ranking of movies:
Which movies get quoted the most by Commentators? IOW, which line(s) of dialogue have iron in them for all Morons to see? Posted by: Duncanthrax at March 02, 2024 08:35 PM (a3Q+t) Reminded me to recommend my at one time most quotable movie and underrated comedy , Hollywood Knights. ‘He plays It weeth his deek. ‘ Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:39 PM (MNhXM) 100
93 Boobage is the only true ranking of movies.
Posted by: Bulgaroctonus at March 02, 2024 08:39 PM (9yWhg) 101
There's a TV cut that Dino de Laurentiis (the film's producer) put together. Lynch told him he wanted nothing to do with it, and Laurentiis pulled the name off, replacing it
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini That must be the version I saw. I think they cut about 2 hours of the film. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:40 PM (hbjSA) 102
Ciampino, I'm right there with ya. Not wasting life on garbage.
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:40 PM (ZZHWN) 103
I think I’m one of the few that really enjoyed the original Dune.
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:40 PM (MNhXM) 104
101 That must be the version I saw. I think they cut about 2 hours of the film.
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:40 PM (hbjSA) ====== Lynch was contractually obligated to bring in a film no longer than 2 hours and 18 minutes long. Like most films, his earlier cuts were much longer. There was obviously a lot of trouble cutting it down to a manageable length. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:41 PM (GBKbO) 105
I vaguely recall Shogun mini-series way back in 1980. I was a bit young (not quite a teen) but I liked it. I wonder if it's aged well? Richard Chamberlain was in it, but he was almost in everything back then. The dude got lots of work for 2-3 decades. I'm going to check out this recent version. Looks pretty good.
Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 08:41 PM (byWhc) 106
I propose the following for a definitive Horde ranking of movies:
Which movies get quoted the most by Commentators? IOW, which line(s) of dialogue have iron in them for all Morons to see? Posted by: Duncanthrax Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 08:41 PM (CFtGR) 107
Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 08:41 PM (CFtGR) There is another movie where I appear to be a contrarian. Don’t find the appeal. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:44 PM (MNhXM) 108
Popped up in my viewing queue on YouTube yesterday was a woman reacting to the Charlton Heston Ben-Hur. First off she admits to seeing the 2016 version and only remembering two parts - the slave ship and the chariot race.
She watched until the Intermission and plans to to comment on the second part next week. But at the end of part 1 she was gushing over the acting, the sets, costumes. Basically everything. Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:45 PM (06f30) 109
108 She watched until the Intermission and plans to to comment on the second part next week. But at the end of part 1 she was gushing over the acting, the sets, costumes. Basically everything.
Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:45 PM (06f30) ======= William Wyler was good at the whole moviemaking thing. Interestingly enough, the young guns at Cahiers du Cinema had absolutely no love for him because his filmmaking wasn't distinctive enough like Hitchcock. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:46 PM (GBKbO) 110
Okay, so I'm trying to figure out what I should watch this evening.
I watched something thoughtful and intelligent and I'm thinking about bookending that with something retarded. Chronicles of Riddick sounds pretty good right now. Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:46 PM (1Yy3c) Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:47 PM (MNhXM) 112
"African Sparrow or English Sparrow?"
"It's only a flesh wound...'tis but a scratch." "...count not to four, and five is right out." Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 08:47 PM (CFtGR) 113
110 Chronicles of Riddick sounds pretty good right now.
Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:46 PM (1Yy3c) ======= I watch that movie WAY too much for how little I regard it. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:47 PM (GBKbO) 114
Chronicles of Riddick sounds pretty good right now.
Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:46 PM (1Yy3c) Level up and watch Riddick. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:48 PM (MNhXM) 115
If you see a version of the 1984 Dune with Alan Smithee in the credits, that is NOT the theatrical version.
The decaying Baroque opulence of Lynch's version is so wonderful. So is Francesca Annis as Lady Jessica. I don't think Sting had too far to reach to find Feyd. Kyle is okay as Paul. Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:48 PM (06f30) 116
91
I am not a fan of fantasy so the LOTR trilogy in print or film is just not for me, and never will be. Posted by: Catch Thirty-Thr33 at March 02, 2024 08:35 PM (8sMut) ---- That's me. I don't read fantasy and don't watch such movies usually. Other than Superman (I read the comics back when) I don't do superheroes and similar. LOTR and Harry Potter are right out. SciFi is Space travel, robots, rockets, super weapons, alien worlds, that sort of solid "science". I do like time travel with all the different go arounds the paradoxes. Posted by: Ciampino - Holloweird at March 02, 2024 08:48 PM (qfLjt) 117
Wyler's Ben Hur is in my top five of movies. It's almost perfect.
Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 08:48 PM (byWhc) 118
I watch that movie WAY too much for how little I regard it.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini That's me with Starship Troopers. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 08:49 PM (hbjSA) 119
I watch that movie WAY too much for how little I regard it.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:47 PM (GBKbO) I think that's approaching the definition of a guilty pleasure. Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:49 PM (1Yy3c) 120
117 Wyler's Ben Hur is in my top five of movies. It's almost perfect.
Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 08:48 PM (byWhc) ======== I think his best movie is The Heiress, which I just got in the Criterion flash sale this week! Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:49 PM (GBKbO) 121
". I do like time travel with all the different go arounds the paradoxes.
Posted by: Ciampino - Holloweird at March 02, 2024 08:48 PM (qfLjt) Just watched Looper again. I haven’t attempted to evaluate the paradoxes and just went with it. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:50 PM (MNhXM) 122
Jesus, the taste of that matcha tea just won't leave my mouth.
Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:50 PM (1Yy3c) 123
119 I watch that movie WAY too much for how little I regard it.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:47 PM (GBKbO) I think that's approaching the definition of a guilty pleasure. Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:49 PM (1Yy3c) ======== That and Stargate, probably the two closest. Maybe the new Conan, too. I mean, none of them are good. But damn...there's something watchable about them. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:50 PM (GBKbO) Posted by: Robert at March 02, 2024 08:51 PM (1Yy3c) 125
In a theater waiting for Dune 2 to start. Haven't been to a movie in several years.
Summer previews are amazing - woke is clearly out. Posted by: Tom Servo at March 02, 2024 08:52 PM (HjUvk) 126
If it's possible to wear out a DVD, I will need a second copy of Ben Hur
Posted by: Ben Had at March 02, 2024 08:52 PM (ZZHWN) 127
125 In a theater waiting for Dune 2 to start. Haven't been to a movie in several years.
Summer previews are amazing - woke is clearly out. Posted by: Tom Servo at March 02, 2024 08:52 PM (HjUvk) ========= I hate sand. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:52 PM (GBKbO) 128
I like all three Riddick movies though Chronicles ranked last.
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:52 PM (MNhXM) 129
The one area where her review falls down a bit is her reaction to Judah's mother and sister becoming lepers. Don't think it has ever entered her wheelhouse that during the time of the movie, to become a leper meant you really did sin and the disease was seen as a punishment.
Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:53 PM (06f30) 130
73
'something out of the woodwork the rest of the culture doesn't know about yet (like a Marty)' So, are you saying you think Marty was a good movie or one that the Academy screwed up on? Posted by: Dr. Claw at March 02, 2024 08:53 PM (roH4R) 131
100 93 Boobage is the only true ranking of movies.
Posted by: Bulgaroctonus at March 02, 2024 08:39 PM (9yWhg) The all-important Breast Count. Posted by: Joe Bob at March 02, 2024 08:53 PM (SYTee) 132
Pitch Black is an underrated gem of SciFi Horror.
I was watching a review (Critical Drinker, I think) of Event Horizon. I've seen it a few times but not lately. I recall liking it. I wonder if I still do. Might have to locate it on the interwebs and watch it again. Its been a couple of decades since I've watched it. Critical Drinker loved it. Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 08:54 PM (byWhc) 133
Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:53 PM (06f30)
She hasn’t seen them cured yet? That’s my favorite part. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:54 PM (MNhXM) 134
Does TJM have one of the fabled Dune 2 popcorn buckets?
Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:54 PM (06f30) 135
130 73
'something out of the woodwork the rest of the culture doesn't know about yet (like a Marty)' So, are you saying you think Marty was a good movie or one that the Academy screwed up on? Posted by: Dr. Claw at March 02, 2024 08:53 PM (roH4R) ======== I'm saying that around that time, most best picture winners were big movies that already had wide knowledge and appeal. Marty was much smaller (though it was a remake of a TV movie that probably had a lot of exposure). Marty is very good. It was just out of step with what the Academy was awarding around it in terms of scale of production and box office take. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:55 PM (GBKbO) 136
That is after the Intermission which means Part 2. She is all going on about that Esther should take them RIGHT NOW to go see that young rabbi and be cured.
Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:55 PM (06f30) 137
134 Does TJM have one of the fabled Dune 2 popcorn buckets?
Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:54 PM (06f30) ====== Heh. No. I don't buy concessions. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 08:55 PM (GBKbO) 138
I was watching a review (Critical Drinker, I think) of Event Horizon. I've seen it a few times but not lately. I recall liking it. I wonder if I still do. Might have to locate it on the interwebs and watch it again. Its been a couple of decades since I've watched it. Critical Drinker loved it.
Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 08:54 PM (byWhc) Pandorum >> Event Horizon Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:56 PM (MNhXM) 139
I saw the original 80s Dune when I was in college. The plot was totally incomprehensible to me. The only aspect of the movie that made an impression on me was Francesca Annie. Mmmmm…
Posted by: Bulgaroctonus at March 02, 2024 08:56 PM (9yWhg) 140
Pitch Black is very under-rated.
Posted by: davidt at March 02, 2024 08:58 PM (SYTee) Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 08:58 PM (06f30) 142
"African Sparrow or English Sparrow?" "It's only a flesh wound...'tis but a scratch." "...count not to four, and five is right out." And don't call me Shirley. Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. at March 02, 2024 09:00 PM (63Dwl) 143
Do you speak jive?
Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 09:01 PM (06f30) 144
And don't call me Shirley.
Posted by: Bertram Cabot, Jr. Listen: Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for system of government! Posted by: Dennis with lovely filth down here at March 02, 2024 09:02 PM (hbjSA) 145
I'm a bit confused. You say Fury Road was better than Spotlight which leads me to conclude that Spotlight is truly terrible. But then you give Spotlight a great rating. This leads me to conclude thatyou think Fury Road was super great, when it was abysmal.
I'm just going to assume you have a cat who likes to sleep on thekeyboard. Posted by: Eric2 at March 02, 2024 09:03 PM (q7Vou) Posted by: Anna Puma at March 02, 2024 09:04 PM (06f30) 147
Meh on Pier Paolo Pasolini. I've got a grudge against that guy. Well, actually I suppose I've got a grudge against the movie reviewer, who wrote a short review of Pasolini's "Arabian Nights" movie basically saying that it was a great movie with a wonderful eroticism, etc, etc. So, I went to the theater to see "Arabian Nights", and- It was hardcore gay porn. Yep, the reviewer left that little detail out. I left. But, it seems like that's Pasolini's dealio: inject(!) as much gay as he can into his movies. ex: Salo. But, if you watched his oeuvre, TJM, you might as well publish it here. Just give fair warning to your fellow morons what that dude is all about. Posted by: naturalfake at March 02, 2024 09:04 PM (nFnyb) 148
145 I'm a bit confused. You say Fury Road was better than Spotlight which leads me to conclude that Spotlight is truly terrible. But then you give Spotlight a great rating. This leads me to conclude thatyou think Fury Road was super great, when it was abysmal.
I'm just going to assume you have a cat who likes to sleep on thekeyboard. Posted by: Eric2 at March 02, 2024 09:03 PM (q7Vou) ======== How dare I like Mad Max Fury Road! Shame! Shame! Shame! Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:04 PM (GBKbO) 149
@132
>>Pitch Black is an underrated gem of SciFi Horror. Vin Diesel was on the cusp of becoming an actor, he did Pitch Black and, unfortunately, became a movie star instead. To borrow a phrase, he could of been someone, instead of the ham he turned out to be. Posted by: Thomas Bender at March 02, 2024 09:04 PM (XV/Pl) 150
As far as I'm concerned, "award-winning" in any field--movies, books, music--means "must to avoid."
Posted by: BeckoningChasm at March 02, 2024 09:06 PM (CHHv1) 151
147 But, if you watched his oeuvre, TJM, you might as well publish it here. Just give fair warning to your fellow morons what that dude is all about.
Posted by: naturalfake at March 02, 2024 09:04 PM (nFnyb) ======== The most pornographic of the Trilogy of Life is The Decameron, though it never actually gets to pornography, unless you consider shots of dicks to be porn. Erect and everything. Arabian Nights is far less than that, though there are still plenty of shots with dicks in them. It's just general nudity at a certain point. A lot of it, for sure. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:07 PM (GBKbO) 152
To borrow a phrase, he could of been someone, instead of the ham he turned out to be.
Posted by: Thomas Bender at March 02, 2024 09:04 PM (XV/Pl) My guilty pleasure Vin Diesel movie is Babylon AD. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:07 PM (MNhXM) 153
LINE...!? 🎬 Posted by: Don Black at March 02, 2024 09:08 PM (oCjPU) 154
My two cents...
We rented "Boys on the boat" tonight on Amazon Prime. We enjoyed it very much, I think the movie benefited from Harvey Weinsteins troubles that caused him to lose the rights and not make this movie six years ago with an all star cast. This movie with all unknowns had a very authentic feel to it and worked at every level. Not the best movie of the year, but close enough for me. And much better than Oppie. Which we hated. Posted by: On the North River at March 02, 2024 09:09 PM (/3goP) 155
Fury Road was a big time girl power movie to me that had Mad Max play a supporting role.
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:09 PM (MNhXM) 156
I thought The Road Warrior was the best Mad Max film, and in fact, one of the defining movies of all time. It certainly influenced me, and I've strived to emulate its visuals.
Fury Road was confusing and dumb and I got nothing from it. The Road Warrior you could watch cold and know where everyone was. Fury Road was like "hope you're current on the mythos! ACTION!" Yeah, not a popular opinion. Mine tend not to be. Posted by: BeckoningChasm at March 02, 2024 09:10 PM (CHHv1) 157
Fury Road was a big time girl power movie to me that had Mad Max play a supporting role.
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson I think I agree. On some distant Movie Thread, I called it "Furry Road". I'll show myself out. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 09:11 PM (hbjSA) 158
155 Fury Road was a big time girl power movie to me that had Mad Max play a supporting role.
Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:09 PM (MNhXM) ======= This is a take that I honestly don't get. Furiosa is a complete fuck up that constantly needs to get saved by Max. The women they go to had no idea how to save their home, moved to the desert, and then were just going to get on bikes and go into the arid badlands. The men had built a functioning society with greenery and everything. Max gives the women the plan to win. It's also very much in line with The Road Warrior where Max just kind of shows up to some people with issues, is largely a cypher, and saves them. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:12 PM (GBKbO) 159
I've been reading the Prizzi novels by Richard Condon about a mafia family, so-
I decided to watch the 1985 movie of "Prizzi's Honor", which is loaded with stars and the second to last movie by John Huston. It was nominated for a lot of Oscars but only got Best Supporting Actress for Angelica Huston. It's a lighthearted, fun movie about two hit folk, Jack Nicholson and Kathleen Turner, falling in love and the complications that ensue. The book is darker as you see what the mafia is really all about and how Charley and Irene make their living. PH was a popular movie in it's day. And a great example of the kind of movie that should be up for Oscars. Check it out. Posted by: naturalfake at March 02, 2024 09:13 PM (nFnyb) 160
Posted by: On the North River at March 02, 2024 09:09 PM (/3goP)
I liked Joel Edgerton in Red Sparrow. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:13 PM (MNhXM) 161
156 Fury Road was confusing and dumb and I got nothing from it. The Road Warrior you could watch cold and know where everyone was. Fury Road was like "hope you're current on the mythos! ACTION!"
Yeah, not a popular opinion. Mine tend not to be. Posted by: BeckoningChasm at March 02, 2024 09:10 PM (CHHv1) ======= I disagree. The confusing thing is trying to connect Fury Road to the other movies. Watching Fury Road cold, it's self-contained. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:13 PM (GBKbO) 162
True story. I was in a movie theater in Vienna in 1984, watching the first run of Lynch's dune, dubbed in German. There was an ominous voiceover, "Dune, Arrakis, the Desert Planet" which in German is something like "Wustenplanet". Whoever did the dubbing managed to slur his words so it sounded like "Wurstenplanet " , so it became "Dune, Arrakis, Planet of the Giant Sausages!" Then a sandworm went across the screen, and the audience roared with laughter.
Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 09:14 PM (CFtGR) Posted by: mrp at March 02, 2024 09:14 PM (rj6Yv) 164
We knew about the newest University plagiarism story but ROTFLMAO...
Aaron Sibarium @aaronsibarium Feb 29 NEW: The chief diversity officer of Columbia University's medical school, Alade McKen, plagiarized extensively in his doctoral dissertation, lifting huge chunks of material without attribution. Two pages in the dissertation come directly from Wikipedia. Posted by: andycanuck (2yu8s) at March 02, 2024 09:14 PM (2yu8s) 165
"Furiosa is a complete fuck up that constantly needs to get saved by Max. The women they go to had no idea how to save their home, moved to the desert, and then were just going to get on bikes and go into the arid badlands. The men had built a functioning society with greenery and everything. Max gives the women the plan to win."
Did he tell them to blow him first? Posted by: Ye Olde AoSHQ Memes at March 02, 2024 09:16 PM (SYTee) 166
Two pages in the dissertation come directly from Wikipedia.
Posted by: andycanuck (2yu8s) To be fair to all these DEI plagiarists, how many different ways can you say "Whitey BAD!" Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 09:16 PM (hbjSA) 167
Has Scorsese ever made a 2 hour movie
Posted by: Don Black at March 02, 2024 09:18 PM (oCjPU) 168
I watched part of a movie last week, Replicas? with Keanu Reeves? It was weird but kinda interesting what I saw of it. But then I'm the guy that knows The Outlaw Josey Wales is the best movie ever, way the hell better that Auntie Mame.
Posted by: Eromero at March 02, 2024 09:19 PM (NxC5+) 169
167 Has Scorsese ever made a 2 hour movie
Posted by: Don Black at March 02, 2024 09:18 PM (oCjPU) ======= There are a few. I think the most recent, though, is Bringing Out the Dead, about 25 years ago. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:19 PM (GBKbO) 170
"You promised you would fire me!"
Posted by: davidt at March 02, 2024 09:21 PM (SYTee) 171
Watching Being There right now for the first time. Smiled a few times; laughed a few times but not impressed despite Sellers' performance. I doubt the book is any better.
Posted by: andycanuck (2yu8s) at March 02, 2024 09:22 PM (2yu8s) 172
Goodfellas
Posted by: mrp at March 02, 2024 09:22 PM (rj6Yv) 173
107 Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 08:41 PM (CFtGR) There is another movie where I appear to be a contrarian. Don’t find the appeal. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 08:44 PM (MNhXM) Holy Grail is a great series of sketches....But I can see how it fails as a movie. I absolutely hate how it devolves toward the end. And the actual ending scene is just...a let down. Posted by: Castle Guy at March 02, 2024 09:23 PM (Lhaco) 174
This spoof of Warhammer might be the best introduction to Warhammer, on account that most other starting points are still jumping in the deep end.
https://youtu.be/lknNsZgzG1g?si=OmG7qU7UrYhXCzgV Posted by: BourbonChicken at March 02, 2024 09:24 PM (lhenN) 175
Holy Grail is a great series of sketches....But I can see how it fails as a movie. I absolutely hate how it devolves toward the end. And the actual ending scene is just...a let down.
Posted by: Castle Guy You just hate llamas is all. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 09:24 PM (hbjSA) 176
175 Holy Grail is a great series of sketches....But I can see how it fails as a movie. I absolutely hate how it devolves toward the end. And the actual ending scene is just...a let down.
Posted by: Castle Guy You just hate llamas is all. Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 09:24 PM (hbjSA) ======= Nah. A moose once bit his sister. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:25 PM (GBKbO) 177
Fury Road’s whole basis was women escaping from controlling men searching for an only women paradise. Furiosa was the hero who freed them.
She didn’t screw up anymore than any other anti hero story line . She saved Max as many times as he saved her. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:25 PM (MNhXM) 178
There are a few. I think the most recent, though, is Bringing Out the Dead, about 25 years ago.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:19 PM (GBKbO) Though "Bringing Out the Dead" was panned by the critics, I think it's one of Scorsese's best. I saw it for the first time a few months ago on MAX and really enjoyed it. BOtD is a much better dark comedy than his "After Hours". If you get a chance to see it...do! Posted by: naturalfake at March 02, 2024 09:25 PM (nFnyb) 179
> And the actual ending scene is just...a let down.
Posted by: Castle Guy Like Blazing Saddles they ran out of gags, but they still had film stock left so, have a pie fight Posted by: Don Black at March 02, 2024 09:25 PM (oCjPU) 180
I really hope Mel Gibson makes a Sequel to Apocalypto and why the Spanish were justified.
Posted by: Patrick from Ohio at March 02, 2024 09:26 PM (dKiJG) 181
177 Fury Road’s whole basis was women escaping from controlling men searching for an only women paradise. Furiosa was the hero who freed them.
She didn’t screw up anymore than any other anti hero story line . She saved Max as many times as he saved her. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:25 PM (MNhXM) ======= The women's only paradise had just fallen apart because of toxicity. This is obviously not some man-hating film because the symbols honestly just don't come together for that reading. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:26 PM (GBKbO) 182
You just hate llamas is all.
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly at March 02, 2024 09:24 PM (hbjSA) ======= Nah. A moose once bit his sister. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:25 PM Moose bites can be nasty. Posted by: Mirror Universe George Takei at March 02, 2024 09:27 PM (Wnv9h) 183
Damn it! Off, ghey trekkie sock!
Posted by: RedMindBlueState at March 02, 2024 09:28 PM (Wnv9h) Posted by: naturalfake at March 02, 2024 09:29 PM (nFnyb) 185
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:26 PM (GBKbO)
I’m assuming you didn’t see the entire Game of Throne series as a girl power effort either. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:30 PM (MNhXM) 186
184 "Apocalypto"s streaming on MAX now if you care to see it again.
Posted by: naturalfake at March 02, 2024 09:29 PM (nFnyb) ======== I have the newer Blu-ray from Samuel Goldwyn (as opposed to the original Disney release), which is slightly frustrating. The English subtitles aren't just normal subtitles. They're SDH, the kind that include descriptions of sounds. Frustrating while watching. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:31 PM (GBKbO) 187
185 Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:26 PM (GBKbO)
I’m assuming you didn’t see the entire Game of Throne series as a girl power effort either. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:30 PM (MNhXM) ======== Dani going mad and burning King's Landing was one of the most satisfying things, in no small part because all the feminists who named their daughters Khalessi were crushed. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:31 PM (GBKbO) 188
You just hate llamas is all.
Posted by: Blutarski, Gradually then Suddenly Well I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition! Posted by: Tonypete at March 02, 2024 09:32 PM (WXNFJ) 189
Post the Eye-talian one.
Never heard of him, and I might learn something. We are cranky bastards anyway. Saw Goodbye, Mr. Chips, and Anatomy of a Murder today on TCM. Both were good. Topping it off with Svengoolie's Revenge of the Invisible Man. Posted by: Deplorable Ian Galt at March 02, 2024 09:32 PM (ufFY8) 190
185 Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:26 PM (GBKbO)
I’m assuming you didn’t see the entire Game of Throne series as a girl power effort either. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson I read the series and they were so far between books that I last one I bought, I bought it twice. Never saw any of the tv shows. Posted by: Eromero at March 02, 2024 09:34 PM (NxC5+) 191
Request:
recommend a good movie 📽️ about the Battle of Stalingrad for me Enemy At The Gates not included- have it, seen it Posted by: Don Black at March 02, 2024 09:35 PM (oCjPU) 192
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:26 PM (GBKbO)
They still have Yara and Brienne as names. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:36 PM (MNhXM) 193
Thanks for Another interesting and educational post. I really enjoy learning about great, or at least unique , movies that I had never heard of before.
Ive definitely put myself into in an entertainment rut because I hate Hollywood so much. Posted by: LASue at March 02, 2024 09:37 PM (Ed8Zd) 194
192 Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:26 PM (GBKbO)
They still have Yara and Brienne as names. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:36 PM (MNhXM) ======= Bran the "storyteller" becoming king shows that, at its heart, Game of Thrones is George R.R. Martin self-insert fan-fiction. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:37 PM (GBKbO) 195
187 185 Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:26 PM (GBKbO)
I’m assuming you didn’t see the entire Game of Throne series as a girl power effort either. Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:30 PM (MNhXM) ======== Dani going mad and burning King's Landing was one of the most satisfying things, in no small part because all the feminists who named their daughters Khalessi were crushed. Posted by: TheJamesMadison Also, all those gURl PoWr SlAY qUeEnz were inbred in GoT. 'The Hills Have Eyes' family had a higher moral code. Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 09:38 PM (byWhc) 196
193 Thanks for Another interesting and educational post. I really enjoy learning about great, or at least unique , movies that I had never heard of before.
Ive definitely put myself into in an entertainment rut because I hate Hollywood so much. Posted by: LASue at March 02, 2024 09:37 PM (Ed8Zd) ======= So...you enjoyed the post about Hollywood...? Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:38 PM (GBKbO) 197
I have the newer Blu-ray from Samuel Goldwyn (as opposed to the original Disney release), which is slightly frustrating. The English subtitles aren't just normal subtitles. They're SDH, the kind that include descriptions of sounds.
Frustrating while watching. Posted by: TheJamesMadison I happen to like being told of "footsteps creaking" which the characters are reacting to, but I can't hear. Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 09:39 PM (CFtGR) 198
is this thing 👉🎙️ on?
Posted by: Don Black at March 02, 2024 09:42 PM (oCjPU) 199
ZOD.
Posted by: ZOD at March 02, 2024 09:43 PM (5HQE5) 200
199 ZOD.
Posted by: ZOD at March 02, 2024 09:43 PM (5HQE5) ======== Regular, and not imperial? Fascinating. Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:43 PM (GBKbO) 201
Speaking of girl power movies , I wish they would make the sequel to one of the ones that I liked.
Alitta: Battle Angel Posted by: Alizarin Crimson at March 02, 2024 09:44 PM (MNhXM) 202
Likes the part of the movie where the movie critics are rounded up and exterminated.
(Returns to book). Posted by: ZOD at March 02, 2024 09:44 PM (5HQE5) 203
I think of all the Best Picture movies I've watched over the years my favorite is "The Best Years of Our Lives". I can watch it over and over again. It never gets old.
Posted by: Tuna at March 02, 2024 09:44 PM (oaGWv) 204
So...you enjoyed the post about Hollywood...?
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:38 PM (GBKbO) Ha! I absolutely Yes Posted by: LASue at March 02, 2024 09:46 PM (Ed8Zd) 205
For me, it was American Beauty winning the Oscar (year?) that killed the whole award for me. What a stupid unwatchable shitshow of a movie, and I didn't even make it thru the entire film, almost tho. Father of the girlfriend I was dating at the time was a film distributor, put film packages together for theatres, so we'd get a box full of Oscar nominated films each year and throw a watch party. Recall friends that saw that stinker, all had the same reaction - WTF.
Posted by: Son of Dad at March 02, 2024 09:46 PM (8JB5s) 206
Most of the way through Totems on Amazon.
Not bad. Cold war (1965) space race-ish story about the French and Russians fucking around a little in East Germany, Algeria, and their home countries. The main characters are reluctant spies. Some minor bull-shitty back stories, but not super intrusive. Fun watching the brutalist architecture and crappy little cars. Plus, the Russian chick is cute. Posted by: Deplorable Ian Galt at March 02, 2024 09:46 PM (ufFY8) Posted by: RedMindBlueState at March 02, 2024 09:47 PM (Wnv9h) 208
Late, but for next time I vote Pasolini piece.
If it's terrible, we can at least bust chops for a long while. Posted by: From about that Time at March 02, 2024 09:47 PM (4780s) 209
Son of Dad,
I hated Titanic with a white hot passion of a thousand burning suns. Kate Winslet's rack couldn't save that movie, that's how bad it was. I mean, the sets were impressive but who did the writing? 13 year old girls? Garbage. Utter garbage. I'll never get those hours back. Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 09:50 PM (byWhc) 210
Speaking of girl power movies , I wish they would make the sequel to one of the ones that I liked.
Alitta: Battle Angel Posted by: Alizarin Crimson The Japanese do Girl Power without being woke. And the Hollywood version of Alita didn't ruin it. Hollywood used to do girl power right. "Alien," for example. Posted by: mikeski at March 02, 2024 09:50 PM (DgGvY) 211
ONT is NOOD.
Posted by: mikeski at March 02, 2024 09:51 PM (DgGvY) 212
Italian filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini
Sure, go ahead. What could go wrong? I mean, it's not like threads stay on topic around here. Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 09:52 PM (byWhc) 213
I'm with you on Fury Road TJM. I liked it as it's own movie. The practical stunts were awesome. And everything was just so over the top. It was like revisiting the coke fueled 80s of my teen years.
Posted by: GoofusMaximus at March 02, 2024 09:53 PM (Xqlct) 214
George R.R. Martin self-insert fan-fiction.
Posted by: TheJamesMadison, raging against the bourgeois with Pasolini at March 02, 2024 09:37 PM (GBKbO) Fatass is going to stroke out before finishing the books. Might as well get Brian Sanderson to poop them out. Along with Patrick Rothfuss' third book. Asshoes. Posted by: Deplorable Ian Galt at March 02, 2024 09:53 PM (ufFY8) 215
The audio description tracks (for the blind) are very thoughtfully put together for any movie I bothered to try it on. I was catching character moments or plot points that went by me, after I had watched the movie the normal way.
Posted by: BourbonChicken at March 02, 2024 09:54 PM (lhenN) 216
>>Fun watching the brutalist architecture and crappy little cars. Plus, the Russian chick is cute. Posted by: Deplorable Ian Galt at March 02, 2024 09:46 PM (ufFY
We need a two-hour feature film of an outspoken Hungarian in 1956 being tortured for his capitalist insurrection. Car batteries, contacts, cheap Turkish cigarettes, tears, screaming, defiance, urine, Philip Glass soundtrack, smirks. Executive Producer: ZOD IMPERIAL. Posted by: ZOD at March 02, 2024 09:54 PM (5HQE5) 217
I'm trying to watch "Half Bad" on Netflix. Civil war between clans of witches in modern Britain. 25 year old actors who are supposed to be sixteen, slow pacing, endless "training for battle" montages, and I bet eight episodes of watching is going to end with a cliffhanger.
Posted by: Idaho Spudboy at March 02, 2024 09:55 PM (CFtGR) 218
Pitch Black is very under-rated.
Posted by: davidt at March 02, 2024 08:58 PM (SYTee) It is a monster movie where the power goes out to the whole planet, and then they have to find glowing bass lures to survive. Hey, did you know Jason Statham was in Death Race in 2008? Posted by: Kindltot at March 02, 2024 09:56 PM (D7oie) 219
I gave up going to the movies around 2014, when I saw American Sniper. Since then I've seen only Richard Jewell in a theater. Your list is quite comparable to my experience, as I saw every film on the list until that year.
Perhaps the Academy could adopt ranked choice voting for Best Picture :-) Posted by: go get your fuckin shine box at March 02, 2024 09:57 PM (kvDvI) Posted by: TJM's phone at March 02, 2024 10:02 PM (GBKbO) 221
I hated Titanic with a white hot passion of a thousand burning suns. Kate Winslet's rack couldn't save that movie, that's how bad it was. I mean, the sets were impressive but who did the writing? 13 year old girls? Garbage. Utter garbage. I'll never get those hours back.
Posted by: Puddleglum at work at March 02, 2024 09:50 PM (byWhc) It seemed like such a natural: A rich woman picks up a homeless man and then watches him drown Posted by: Kindltot at March 02, 2024 10:07 PM (D7oie) 222
When I was a kid, I watched the Oscars religiously. I didn't always have a dog in the fight, but I enjoyed the show built around it. And I really liked Bob Hope. After Hope stopped doing the Oscars, it wasn't as much fun. I watched every time for a few more years, then only when a picture I really liked was nominated. I think the last one I watched was the year Return of the King swept the board.
TJM: I think you and I approach movies from completely different angles. You are a critic who has studied film and film history. I'm just an escapist. If I want to be depressed, I can read the news. If I want deep meaning, I can look at my bank statement. I get enough of that crap in my real life. I want something that turns the thinking part of my brain off, something with no meaning -- except accidentally. If something really hits into my wheelhouse, I'll go. I went to Golda because I am interested in her and Israeli history. But that's the only movie I've gone to the theater to see for I don't know how long. That and Conan the Barbarian simply to hear the score in Dolby at full volumn. I gave up reality when my obstetrician told me my last pregnancy was twins. Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin -- I stand with Israel and all Jews everywhere at March 02, 2024 10:18 PM (ET1Q8) 223
Huge News Out of Minnesota: Exploratory Drill Has Discovered What Is Likely the Biggest (helium ) Find in North America to Date via
Posted by: weft cut-loop at March 02, 2024 10:16 PM (IG4Id) WHOHOOOO! We all gonna be talkin' like Mickey Mouse!!! Posted by: Kindltot at March 02, 2024 10:21 PM (D7oie) 224
I gave up reality when my obstetrician told me my last pregnancy was twins.
Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin -- I stand with Israel and all Jews everywhere at March 02, 2024 10:18 PM (ET1Q That shit is funny! Right to the sidebar! Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at March 02, 2024 10:22 PM (gSZYf) 225
Can't imagine why.
Posted by: The ARC of History! at March 02, 2024 10:19 PM (YAtuc) all the former East Germans are getting old and he can't trust the turks to fight for Germany instead of for Turkey Posted by: Kindltot at March 02, 2024 10:23 PM (D7oie) 226
Wow, incredible blog format! How lengthy have you ever been blogging for?
you made blogging look easy. The total look of your website is magnificent, as well as the content! Posted by: fashion at March 02, 2024 10:32 PM (LNEHG) 227
Hollywood seems bereft of any and all inspiration. Thevonlybtjing that keeps some classics from getting refried is the lack of capable leading men. I can see "The Thin Msn" but you need a Dick Powell type. Johnny Depp might stretch for the role. Robert Downey would Have to try to look his age. No good fit. Same for " It happened One Night" ,George Clooney might be able to pull it off as the character lives with his role in "Oh Brother where art you"... And, there's still the hirdlevof the leading ladies. Who can play Nora? Today's actors lack skills for dialogue and timing.
Posted by: Augusto Perez at March 02, 2024 10:41 PM (ktx32) 228
Not sure it's worth a whole post, but since you mentioned the AFI list of films, I'd love to read your thoughts on the the United States National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. Thanks.
Posted by: Ed Snyder at March 03, 2024 03:48 AM (3ij+8) 229
Hey very nice blօg!
Posted by: legendre at March 03, 2024 08:08 PM (TtPfw) 230
Mystery Post.
Posted by: Patrick W at March 03, 2024 09:53 PM (BFG6K) Processing 0.03, elapsed 0.0516 seconds. |
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