Films

It's a snapshot of a week and a point in time in a certain scene. The point of the film is that the lead is sort of left behind. Everything else is moving on. I really don't want to give too much away but he's talking bollocks.

Even a couple of hours later I'm getting flashes of some of the best scenes. The novelty song scene is very special indeed.

Lot of good films for grown ups in the last year. Cinema is in a good place at the moment. I don't fret about who wins oscars and so on but two films nominated were simply not as impressive as this one to me, as much as I enjoyed them

Think it's up your street and you will like it a lot
 
Just in from seeing American Hustle. Flawed all over the gaff, but a good old yarn, and Amy Adam's blouses alone are worth the admission.

One thing is clear however. Despite some grade 1 acting talent on view, as soon as Jennifer Lawerence is in a shot she owns the screen. This lass is one for the ages.
 
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Yes. I still think its not the film some make it out to be but I loved the scenes of pure hate between the two women
 
I've loved Jennifer Lawrence ever since seeing Winters Bone. Not sure why anyone else was even considered for The Hunger Games. Didn't like Silver Linings Playbook, though [only saw it cause she was in it].
 
Winters bone was a good film

Saw wolf today and enjoyed it enough. Dealing room scenes the best but frankly there was far too much about the drugs and some draggy scenes arounds that subject. Also the interaction with the Feds fizzled a bit and wasnt the cat and mouse you sensed it could be. The financial side was a bit light too.

Scorcese still goes a little ott at times too.

It's enjoyable but sense it could have been more
 
Watched the Mark Gatiss programme about European Horror films last night, which made me realise I must rewatch Pan's Labyrinth and The Devils Backbone [also the Spirit of the Beehive which I bought years ago and never got round to watching]. Seeing the Coen Brothers film tonight. 12 Years a Slave next week; I'm reaching the conculsion that I'm not going to like that one, but hope I'm wrong.
 
They were fabulous programs - there was some truly horrifying films around in the past, these days it seems to be more who can shock the most rather than true horror....
 
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/...Wolf-of-Wall-Street-are-not-masterpieces.html

Really excellent article. I havent seen 12 years but suspect that observations are accurate

Certainly true about Wolf. The main character is flat and one dimensional and also barely explored. The comparisons with the brilliance of Shakespears multi faceted characters with all their dilemmas and confusions is spot on. Have writers learnt nothing in 400 years?


The more i think about wolf the more disappointed i was with it. Also de caprio is good at the grandstanding scenes but is very flat otherwise. It all felt a bit superficial

the great thing about lleyn davis and nebraska is that you are intrigued by the characters even if you dont relate to them. Another film that springs to mind is Milk. One of the best films of recent years without doubt with lots of light and shade around the lead character and frankly a pitch perfect brilliant performance from Penn
 
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That's fair comment, Gareth.
On reflection, I do now think my original comments were an over-reaction and exaggeration.
I think maybe that was my sub-conscious discomfort with the factual depiction of how slaves were treated by their white masters. I didn't mentally want to be confronted with that particular truth.
Actually, it is a realistic portrayal of everyday life that these slaves had to endure, and is done in a frank but non-voyeuristic way.
I was wrong originally.
 
Saw Llewyn Davis. Enjoyed it but I agree with Kermode up to a point [reinforced by the Coen Brothers themselves who said they introduced the cat because the film didn't really have a story]. Wish I'd paid more attention to the songs and the reason why certain songs were sung at certain times as that was pretty important. Perhaps it reminded my very slightly of Nebraska and just couldn't live up to that one [ I certainly liked it more than the Cate Blanchett film, Blue whateveritwas]. And I kept wondering how the cat was managing on a diet of milk and with no litter tray.
 
Not overwhelmed then? Wouldn't be for everyone I'm sure

But I see a clear story there myself although there are many loose ends which leave you wondering. Personally I like that
 
We did talk about it all the way home, but I needed a bit more help with it. It made more sense when I read about it when I got home eg the song he sang to his dad had been mentioned earlier and when the lady at the dinner party started singing his partners harmony it upset him because of him dying. And, at the end he sang a song that was from his partnership with Mikey [sp]. I'd like to watch it again [it's that sort of film]. In retrospect, it's the music that's the narrative [?].I've realised that, for once I should have looked more into the background of the film than I did; don't usually like to do that. I'm thinking more and more that I'm not going to like 12 Years a Slave, so much so that I want to see it this week and not next as planned; it's bothering me.
 
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Found it fascinating [there's a slightly similar film out now about Cambodia isn't there]. We've often had discussions about how any of us would behave in war like situations, the conclusion being that my ex would have been a Schindler type person who would risk his families lives to save others, the rest of us admitting that we'd probably do whatever we needed to do to survive [and I would have put my children before everything else].Will probably win; Blackfish should win but not a film that will go down well with Americans. Both films chilled me to the bone, Blackfish probably more so because of the way it drew you in.
 
I seem to remember saying that it was a film I'd quite like to watch again [at home with a cup of tea this time] and watch the 'making of' part of the dvd which is always fascinating. As for Blackfish, the last time I saw a documentary that chilled me so much was the Ken Burns 'Death of a Wagon Train'. I felt quite embarrassed to find myself watching that one again the following day [I'd video'd it] until I read a review describing it as 'hypnotic' [as are all Rik Burn/Ken Burns documentaries, but I hadn't seen one before].
 
The Skin I Live In is on BBC4 tonight at 9. Not good if you're squeamish [I left the S.O. at home and went to the cinema on my own to see it]. Worth watching [note to self; must get round to watching Volver]
 
moehat said:
The Skin I Live In is on BBC4 tonight at 9. Not good if you're squeamish [I left the S.O. at home and went to the cinema on my own to see it]. Worth watching [note to self; must get round to watching Volver]
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Squeamish and been at hospital for hours today

Enoughs enough
 
Saw 12 Years a Slave tonight. Found it very boring. The S.O. liked it more than I did. It seemed like lots of very artistc scenes with bits of a story in between. Thinking about films about slavery, I'm sure I found The Cider House Rules more moving [although must admt it was a long time ago I saw it]. Not about slaves at all [silly me, slavery had been abolished by then] but I know there was a story line about some black workers that was very upsetting.
 
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Gareth Flynn said:
Well that's just **** :( Obviously one of the best actors around, but he also had brilliant taste; if he was in something you almost always knew it was worth a go. Loved watching the guy.
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My feeling is that he was only really starting to emerge into what he was destined to become. I haven't seen his most well-known roles - Capote, Boogie Nights or The Big Lebowski but in The Talented Mr Ripley & Mission Impossible, he showed he had the big screen charisma that a great actor has.

A huge loss to the movie industry.
 
Has anyone seen The Master? It didn't appeal to me when it was on at the cinema, but I'll make a point of watching it now. I understand his work for the third Hunger Games film has been completed [must be a nightmare for film producers when they're making trilogies, and whatever a series of four films are called] but not sure if he should have been in the fourth film.
 
Oh; same director [?]. Didn't like There Will be Blood at all. Realising more and more that I seem to only like films by certain directors [although, my favourite, Guillermo del Torro seemed to lose his way when he bacame more box officey]. What is good is discovering a new director and than catching up on their back catalogue [bit like finding a new band then listening to all their old music and seeing them develop].
 
moehat said:
Has anyone seen The Master? It didn't appeal to me when it was on at the cinema, but I'll make a point of watching it now. I understand his work for the third Hunger Games film has been completed [must be a nightmare for film producers when they're making trilogies, and whatever a series of four films are called] but not sure if he should have been in the fourth film.
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I just bought that movie on ebay last week, haven't watched it yet but will check it out.

I read that he still had 1 week worth of filming to be done for Hunger Games, wonder if they will use CGI for those scenes or how they will fill in the gaps.

Excellent actor what a shame :(
 
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