tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post576580413896745023..comments2024-03-12T12:38:23.542-04:00Comments on The Kind of Face You Hate: Capsule Reviews - January Doldrums Editionbill r.http://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-77417625557654273282010-01-26T17:46:02.858-05:002010-01-26T17:46:02.858-05:00That's fair, Bill. The ending did make a shift...That's fair, Bill. The ending did make a shift that was a little disappointing.Marilynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00513072379930200159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-54004944391781215332010-01-26T17:32:09.847-05:002010-01-26T17:32:09.847-05:00Plus, I should say, I thought the film went a litt...Plus, I should say, I thought the film went a little soft at the end. Not that I think the ending they seemed to be heading for would have been better -- I think that might have been too far in the other direction -- but by the end the whole thing felt more amusing than sad, or dark, and tonally I thought the film took a dip.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-85556089452464275782010-01-26T17:22:30.723-05:002010-01-26T17:22:30.723-05:00Yes, that could happen, and no, that didn't re...Yes, that could happen, and no, that didn't really bother. Everything in the movie COULD happen. No, my problem centered more on the Moichael Rappaport charactern the lawsuit, and that sort of thing, that I thought slightly junked up the character study aspect of the film.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-13791209797677036702010-01-26T17:16:43.008-05:002010-01-26T17:16:43.008-05:00I don't feel it was contrived, unless it's...I don't feel it was contrived, unless it's the part about him seeing Quantrell in Queens. Yes, that's the device that gets the crucial plot point in motion, but it could happen. I didn't think it was out of the question.<br /><br />And I realize you liked it, but I've seen so many comments that have called it amateurish and somewhat mediocre. I really don't understand them.Marilynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00513072379930200159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-43755941926096916872010-01-26T16:56:07.102-05:002010-01-26T16:56:07.102-05:00Thank you, Rick. I haven't seen SILENT RUNNIN...Thank you, Rick. I haven't seen SILENT RUNNING in ages (and, in fact, may not have ever seen the whole thing), but I also love Bruce Dern.<br /><br />Marilyn - My problem with BIG FAN wasn't that he didn't change -- I liked that, actually. I was bothered by a vague sense that the film was simply not as <i>good</i> as I'd hoped. And also that the story is a bit too contrived to be a realistic portrayal of this kind of sadsack. But overall, please remember, I did enjoy the film.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-54280466952912164522010-01-26T16:19:49.906-05:002010-01-26T16:19:49.906-05:00I seem to be the only person I know who loves Big ...I seem to be the only person I know who loves <i>Big Fan</i>. I thought the character study was intelligent and nuanced. We're begging for Paul to grow, but like his family, we're out of luck. It was daring to thwart the audience that way - and apparently, it hasn't paid off by the negative comments the film has received - yet it really is more true to life than all the grow-and-change films out there. I thought the script was exceptionally well written as well.Marilynhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00513072379930200159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-77585614128583466082010-01-26T16:17:07.411-05:002010-01-26T16:17:07.411-05:00Nice capsules, Bill. Gotta see "Moon." ...Nice capsules, Bill. Gotta see "Moon." Love Sam Rockwell.<br /><br />One of my favorite SFs is "Silent Running." It's kind of dated now, I think, but crazy Bruce Dern is great.Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06738868170943766090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-85499128514916104252010-01-26T09:17:33.364-05:002010-01-26T09:17:33.364-05:00JFK has aged atrociously. It went from being a mo...JFK has aged atrociously. It went from being a movie that I thought wasn't very good, with a point of view I loathed, to a movie I think is basically trash, top to bottom. It's visually spastic, to no good end. Stone doesn't know how to place the camera in the exact right spot, so he covers that by placing it everywhere at once.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-80782036737886030662010-01-26T09:00:59.953-05:002010-01-26T09:00:59.953-05:00Definitely would kick POINT BREAK over JFK. And I...Definitely would kick POINT BREAK over JFK. And I'd kick it over BARTON FINK too, Adam.<br /><br />BARTON is great, but a tad self-indulgent. Still, that is only a minor knock agains the film. The Coens are a favorite of mine, and BARTON is probably in my top 3 of theirs. That should tell you how much I like POINT BREAK.<br /><br />As for JFK, now there, Bill, is a propaganda flick executed atrociously. Interesting when it first came out because of some outlandish allegations made in the film, stellar casting before it became <i>de rigeur</i> for Stone, and some admittedly great editing and cinematography, the film is lesser than the sum of its parts and has aged poorly.Tony Dayoubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04632329277519635858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-12372262487642807552010-01-26T08:05:32.672-05:002010-01-26T08:05:32.672-05:00Hell, I'd pick POINT BREAK over JFK, and I hav...Hell, <i>I'd</i> pick POINT BREAK over JFK, and I haven't even seen it.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-58297159438463091642010-01-26T01:37:34.772-05:002010-01-26T01:37:34.772-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Adam Zanziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14524618281515322239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-61636136933862777802010-01-25T15:55:35.103-05:002010-01-25T15:55:35.103-05:00Tony - Somebody recently said that STRANGE DAYS is...Tony - Somebody recently said that STRANGE DAYS is pretty great until it goes off the rails at the end. That's almost what I think. I enjoyed it quite a bit, but the plot resolution struck me as absurd, and condescendingly ripped-from-the-headlines.<br /><br />NEAR DARK, meanwhile, struck me as a movie that was trying SO HARD to be the new big thing in vampire movies. It wanted to make them hip and cool, and its efforts were so transparent that I just resisted it at every turn. I didn't think the film was half as cool as it thought it was.<br /><br />Schloofy - Yes, HOUSE OF THE DEVIL is a huge leap forward (from THE ROOST, anyway; I haven't seen his other films, and in fact didn't know until earlier today that he even HAD other films), and maybe he's on the right track, but that leap forward started from a pretty horrible place, so we'll have to see.<br /><br />Fessenden has a brief scene in THE ROOST, too, by the way.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-29093865599451866602010-01-25T15:31:34.712-05:002010-01-25T15:31:34.712-05:00I agree that The Hurt Locker was great, and I also...I agree that The Hurt Locker was great, and I also thought Moon was very smart.<br /><br />Re: Ti West, I like House of the Devil a lot, so I checked out an earlier film of his, Trigger Man, which I found pretty deadly. It didn't even have Tom Noonan in it, though Larry Fessenden shows up briefly. <br /><br />It's about a trio of incompetent hunters from the city who end up prey to a human-hunting psychotic. They don't even realize they're being hunted until a good 40 minutes in. Which would be fine if there were anything interesting about them aside from the fact that they're being hunted. I think West is talented, and HotD is a huge leap forward, so we'll see...Schloofyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11090569926586749001noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-38852870207793512242010-01-25T15:18:36.551-05:002010-01-25T15:18:36.551-05:00Feel free to try K-19 out, Bill. But I wouldn'...Feel free to try K-19 out, Bill. But I wouldn't get your hopes up. It could have been as effective a thriller as Bigelow has always been capable of. In this case, I think the miscasting of Ford is what brings it down. Accents are not the man's specialty, and it contributed to a lack of confidence in his performance. I think it would have been far more honest to come up with a device like the one in HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER to render that issue moot.<br /><br />I'm curious regarding why you didn't like NEAR DARK or the admittedly flawed but still interesting STRANGE DAYS. I own every film of hers except her first, and am a big fan. My favorite is POINT BREAK which I actually cnsider the best film of its year of release. I think it's a wondeful example of "pure cinema" in much the same way THE HURT LOCKER comes close to being.Tony Dayoubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04632329277519635858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-84235673678424466632010-01-25T14:41:59.018-05:002010-01-25T14:41:59.018-05:00Adam - I don't see any problem with Siegel foc...Adam - I don't see any problem with Siegel focusing on these sorts of outsiders. Why shouldn't they get movies, too? Anyway, THE WRESTLER was more heartbreaking, and less funny, than BIG FAN. BIG FAN is a bit more contrived, though I did like it.<br /><br />MOON's homages are on the surface. Otherwise, it is its own film. Give it a shot.<br /><br />I don't think Bigelow has claimed she, herself, is apolitical, but the story of THE HURT LOCKER lends itself -- at least it should, in my opinion -- to a certain universality regarding war, that I think the apolitical approach is entirely appropriate.<br /><br />I didn't like either STRANGE DAYS or NEAR DARK, so Bigelow's name never carried much weight with me, until now. I keep hearing a lot of good things about K-19 lately, so I might have to actually give that one a try. I had no interest in it before, but...bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-46238502487893964892010-01-25T14:23:45.230-05:002010-01-25T14:23:45.230-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Adam Zanziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14524618281515322239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-13155279024595570822010-01-25T13:12:14.078-05:002010-01-25T13:12:14.078-05:00Tony - I thought MOON was pretty much just long en...Tony - I thought MOON was pretty much just long enough. If you start cutting too much, you'll lose the sense of isolation at the beginning, or what I feel is the very important, and well-handled, change of relationships that come in the movie's later sections. Although I did also see it on the small screen, so you could be right about that, for all I know.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-90780148535630538922010-01-25T13:10:43.734-05:002010-01-25T13:10:43.734-05:00I don't want to oversell THE HURT LOCKER, Greg...I don't want to oversell THE HURT LOCKER, Greg, but when I was renting it from Blockbuster, I took it off the wall and an old guy who was browsing nearby said, "Did you just pick up THE HURT LOCKER?" I said yes, and he said "That's an incredible movie. I've never seen a military movie like it. Whoever directed that deserves an Oscar!" I don't know if he was a veteran (if he was, he was too old to be an Iraq veteran), but I thought it said something about how deep an impact the film is having on some people.<br /><br />But really, beyond all that, it's just a great piece of suspense filmmaking. The sniper sequence I referred to is one of the best of its kind I've ever seen.bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-28274607539500480672010-01-25T12:57:11.358-05:002010-01-25T12:57:11.358-05:00I think MOON would play better on the small screen...I think MOON would play better on the small screen than theatrically. I liked it. But it felt like something that would have played better as a short, like a TWILIGHT ZONE or OUTER LIMITS episode.Tony Dayoubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04632329277519635858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-39502302271311656482010-01-25T12:54:31.932-05:002010-01-25T12:54:31.932-05:00Two movies I've been aching to see: The Hurt L...Two movies I've been aching to see: <b>The Hurt Locker</b> and <b>Moon</b>. I've got <b>Hurt Locker</b> already uploaded in HD but the kids are off school here today, tomorrow I have errands to run all day and Wednesday I have to take the car in to get the brakes worked on. So... aaaaarrrrggghhhh!!! I don't have a lot of time at night to watch movies so it may be three or more days before I can see either and you're blasted capsule reviews make me want to see them even more! Damn!Greghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05730146625671701859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-38106954617987735382010-01-25T12:50:51.554-05:002010-01-25T12:50:51.554-05:00Kevin, if you like Zombie, then I don't see wh...Kevin, if you like Zombie, then I don't see why you shouldn't check out these remakes. I can't stand Zombie, and I've still seen all his movies (minus that animated one) because I'll watch any horror movie, if given the opportunity. So I guess, as a curiosity, yes it's worth seeing. Sort of. Depending on your defintion of "worth".bill r.https://www.blogger.com/profile/17748572205731857892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2856547151523423474.post-23731178773043655522010-01-25T12:46:54.743-05:002010-01-25T12:46:54.743-05:00Great capsules, Bill. I especially echo your thou...Great capsules, Bill. I especially echo your thoughts on the eerie feeling of <i>Moon</i> and your reaction to <i>The Hurt Locker</i>. <br /><br />One question: Is <i>Halloween II</i> (I haven't Zombie's first attempt at it, either) even worth it as a curiosity? I liked Zombie's other horror films, and the trailer intrigued me when it was in theaters, but I just can't bring myself to sit down and watch these re-imaginings. But as a horror fiend I feel compelled to because I know Zombie has the chops to pull off a decent horror film. Anyway...just curious if it was worth adding to the queue or getting at Redbox for a buck.Kevin J. Olsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17275402809912728035noreply@blogger.com