RSVP Blog

Margie,
I posted a comment yesterday but wasn't uploaded for some reason.
I too am a non TV kid, but when we got it , SciFi my favourite, Astro Boy and lost in space.Saturday night horror was a favourite, my sister and I would stay up till late to see, charlie Chan, the Outer Limits and the best Peter Lorrie in Murders in the Rue Morgue. I would force her to come to the loo with me as I was the freaked out one.
Saw The Man Who New too Much on Tv Sat night, the original alfred Hitchcock, thought it was great but dozed off before it finished.
Butterfly Kiss stars Saskia Reeve and Amanda Plummer set in england modern times, Can't remember who directed and probably would love to give a critic at your scale, but am more than happy to hear yours.

Posted by: angela11 at September 30, 2008 11:53 AM

Angela11, I havent seen 'Butterfly Kiss' but will be soon
Rgds
M

Posted by: margie18 at September 30, 2008 12:49 AM

'The Maltese Falcon' was released in 1941, and includes Humphrey Bogart in one of his pivotal roles. The camera work - light filtering in through a window and under a door - helped make film noir the dominant style for 40's detective movies. Due to John Huston's (Dir.) rapid editing, you have dilaogue shooting back and forward so quickly, that you are not sure if you have understood what is being said. Danny Peary - Cult Movies - says that he is sure that one of the reasons that this film has such a strong cult following that you can't remember what is happening form viewing to viewing - so that it is always as new. Brigett O'Shaunnessy plays the leading lady - a jittery, sexy (belying her sensible, prim suits)confused , deceptive, dangerous Ruth Wonderly (Love the name). Bogart tells her: 'I'm glad you're not as innocent as you pretend to be.'
I love the 2 'crooks' Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre - Together they make villany endearing.
Sydney made his screen debut at 62, and his 'Gutman' character forms the basis for all his future roles. His Gutman is a brilliant conversationalist - 'I;m a man who likes talking to a man who likes to talk'., corrupt , powerful, sinister, ruthless and fat, although he is as quick as a cat when he needs to be. Peter Lorre is brilliant as the neurotic, fussy - 'Look what you did to my shirt', effeminate emotional Joel Cairo. One minute he is threatening someone, the next he is crying.
Bogart's Sam Spade is patient - He rolls his cigarettes - sadistic,' You'll take it sister and like it' when he slaps Bridget - witty 'You want me to learn how to stutter, he retorts to Cairo.
I could watch the MF over and over.
One of the aspects of the 50's movies I love is the grooming. Even in gangster films, everyone is suited up at 3.00am.I think Grego commented that Grace Kelly was completely covered up and yet looked so alluring.

Posted by: margie18 at September 29, 2008 3:02 PM

Posted by: angela11 at September 29, 2008 1:30 PM
Angela; Thanks for that. You have spurned me on to write more. I really appreciated your commments, esp. as I have been having a 'down' day - ( that Eastern Euro. temperament.)
Would love to hear you write something about BC.
Being a pre-TV 50's kid, I got started on films in the Saturday cinema, and have never really stopped since then.
Hope you relly enjoy BC and look forward to hearing your opinion on it.

Posted by: margie18 at September 29, 2008 2:20 PM

Marjie, I love reading what you write, I'm going to hire BC to see for myself.Tell me ,(or anyone else ) what are your thoughts on Butterfly Kiss?

Posted by: angela11 at September 29, 2008 1:30 PM

Dentelli�re, La - The Lace Maker

Truth be told this movie still lingers in memory. It upset me a lot at the time - In a different life time.

If I watched It now my view may be different - So I won't.

Somethings are better kept as a memory.

Posted by: stephen54 at September 29, 2008 1:55 AM

Foreign film oscar should go to OLDBOY... fantastic Korean film-noir! If you haven't seen it and like gritty, confronting noir... see this! One of my all time faves...
Admittedly, it did win Grand Jury Prize at Cannes, 2004, so it wasn't entirely unappreciated!

Posted by: seenycal at September 28, 2008 10:56 PM

WAL-E Utterly charming for young and old alike.

Posted by: soozinthezoo at September 27, 2008 10:38 AM

Two "must-see" films out there at the moment..."Caramel" and " The Visitor"

Posted by: peregrino02 at September 26, 2008 6:23 PM

Or my personal favorite;

Your mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries!

Posted by: moniquen at September 25, 2008 4:44 PM

My brother an his mates were besotted, or something, by it and to this day still take off parts of it..
Cheers Marcus

Posted by: laughsandtalks at September 21, 2008 9:20 PM
Ummmm doesn't everybody??
The Life of Brian.....ah a funny fillum Marcus, and yes l agree with Willow and Moniquen that The Holy Grail is worth a laugh or 3.....
"Bring out yer dead"!!!..............K

Posted by: auntykaz at September 24, 2008 6:20 PM

I like MP's Holy Grail better. And the best thing is that you can go almost anywhere in the world and say something stupid like "NI!" and everyone knows what you're talking about. I went on a date where we were in hysterics with half coconut shells....

Posted by: willow29 at September 23, 2008 2:44 PM

Bring me... a shrubbery!

That was the one with the killer bunny wasn't it? I heard once that they made 'killer bunny slippers' complete with fangs and fake blood.

I always wanted a pair of those.

Posted by: moniquen at September 24, 2008 4:36 PM

I like MP's Holy Grail better. And the best thing is that you can go almost anywhere in the world and say something stupid like "NI!" and everyone knows what you're talking about. I went on a date where we were in hysterics with half coconut shells....

Posted by: willow29 at September 23, 2008 2:44 PM

moniquen at September 21, 2008 8:22 PM
Hahahar. Very naughty.
I have seen that fillum, at least twice and very amusing and pithy.
My brother an his mates were besotted, or something, by it and to this day still take off parts of it..
Cheers Marcus

Posted by: laughsandtalks at September 21, 2008 9:20 PM

28 Weeks Later...not Oscar material but it scared the pants off me....NEVER watch a scary movie by yourself at night with the wind howling and the rain belting down....
It is the scariest thing l have ever seen......mind you l don't watch many horror films.....And for good reason l think...............K

Posted by: auntykaz at September 21, 2008 9:17 PM

Posted by: willow29 at September 19, 2008 6:58 AM
Marcus - the romans line was from Life of Brian. Have you not seen that film? Its a "must" - if only to share popular culture with your mates :)

Or just run around going 'He's not the messiah he's a very naughty boy!'

Posted by: moniquen at September 21, 2008 8:22 PM

What about movies you would have been happy to have paid full price to watch for just the first 20 minutes?

I.E. Saving Private Ryan - Gladiator.

Posted by: stephen54 at September 20, 2008 8:31 PM

Willow your right again - Cible �mouvante. I'm especially impressed at how you got the � (accent). I had to research how to do that for this reply.

decoratress - Well I have taste - It's not just to everyones - errr - taste.

Bateman of course should have been Batman which was a bit remiss/lazy of me not to have noticed before I posted.

Posted by: stephen54 at September 19, 2008 9:13 PM

Willow your right again - Cible Èmouvante. I'm especially impressed at how you got the È (accent). I had to look up how to do that.

decoratress - Well I have taste - It's not just to everyones - errr - taste.

I'm just sorry the thing was spoiled by not seeing the typo. Bateman should have been Batman which was a bit remiss/lazy of me.

Posted by: stephen54 at September 19, 2008 9:07 PM

I want to see happyexecutive perform better than two sentences....take a bow you big spunk..

Morning all...Marcus you always make me laugh you twisted and criminal minded, whole of thought spunkxx

Willow we are so similar that is scares me xx

Loveshugs you are just as divine and I really enjoyed your comments to Stephen.

Have to play in the sand pitt today so now onto other post...enjoy all and peace out.

Kazzi aka Amour aka Karleene ...yes this is my real name.....Karleene is 39 today and spreading her own love in her own way.
xxxx

Posted by: kazziwazziwoo at September 19, 2008 8:28 AM

Posted by: happyexecutive at September 18, 2008 2:27 PM
I watched the latest Batman movie the other day. If Heath Ledger doesn't receive an Oscar for his brilliant role as the joker then their is something wrong with the Academy.

I agree wholeheartedly. I was left breathless by his performance.

Posted by: loveshugs1974 at September 19, 2008 7:49 AM

You're up early this morning Marcus, are you coming to the sandpit?

Posted by: willow29 at September 19, 2008 7:48 AM

Artdeco at September 19, 2008 2:19 AM
Now now. Since when have you been the arbiter of good taste here? I thought I was.
Cheers Marquis

Posted by: laughsandtalks at September 19, 2008 7:12 AM

Marcus - the romans line was from Life of Brian. Have you not seen that film? Its a "must" - if only to share popular culture with your mates :)

Posted by: willow29 at September 19, 2008 6:58 AM

I'm not sure whether that Bateman (sic) joke was in the best taste, stephen54...

Posted by: decoratress at September 19, 2008 2:19 AM

stephen54 at September 17, 2008 9:56 PM
What did Romans ever do for us..?
Gave us a choice of of good first names for one... numerals for another..
Cheers Marcus

Posted by: laughsandtalks at September 19, 2008 12:00 AM

Cible émouvante = Wild target. Very black film.

Posted by: willow29 at September 18, 2008 10:58 PM

Cible émouvante - it has William Depardieu in it.

Posted by: willow29 at September 18, 2008 10:57 PM

A Marketing Guru goes into a executive meeting for the movie Bateman.

Good news and bad she says.

Production executive: Oh what's the bad news"?

Marketing Guru: "The Bateman movie is not doing as well as we hoped"!

Production executive: "Ya we know that. So what's the good news"?

Marketing Guru: "Heath Ledger just died"!

Posted by: stephen54 at September 18, 2008 10:45 PM

I watched the old relic Alien.....scared the pants off me AGAIN and had to have the night light on ...............scary stuff late at night......not recommended to watch on your own.....xx

Posted by: kazziwazziwoo at September 18, 2008 6:21 PM

I watched the latest Batman movie the other day. If Heath Ledger doesn't receive an Oscar for his brilliant role as the joker then their is something wrong with the Academy.

Posted by: happyexecutive at September 18, 2008 2:27 PM

I have another question if I may - There was a French movie about a Hit Man - He is aged about 55 or so. In one scene he visits his mum in her old age home. She has a parrot whose constant squawking is driving him nuts. As he leaves, the camera flashes back to a scene of a pile of feathers on the floor. It's somewhat reminiscent of the Charles Bronson movie "The Mechanic" in that he befriends a young couple only to find they all have "Contracts" on each other. Got to love the quirky French! Well maybe.

Posted by: stephen54 at September 17, 2008 10:33 PM

The Life Of Brain should have got an Oscar. I think a knowlege of the English Public School and Uni system helps with the Latin Class bit. And BTW: What did the Romans ever do for us?

Posted by: stephen54 at September 17, 2008 9:56 PM

I loved Kelly's Heroes. Always think about it when I hear "Burning Bridges".

Posted by: willow29 at September 17, 2008 9:11 PM

ERAL, Yes I agree 'I love the smell of napal in the morning' is a good quote (On 50 favourite Movie 1 -liners recently - with Bert Newton.)
However I also find it an extremely ironic quote - given the numbers who suffer during times of war. The quote exempifies the numbers of ppl who must love it (times of war) , or else they wouldn't presumably be working in a war zone.

Posted by: margie18 at September 17, 2008 8:58 PM

eatsrootsandleaves - You Tube has a redo of the Ride of the Valkyrie scene set to the theme of Kelly's Heroes, a movie staring Clint Eastwood. Seach You Tube for Apocalypse Now Burning Bridges. Cheers Stephen.

Posted by: stephen54 at September 17, 2008 8:46 PM

Willow your my girl - It looks like your right with the Beau Travail movie. I just need to get it now I have a name, then I will know for sure. I had that question on Yahoo for a month and the whole world didn't know the answer. Well the whole Yahoo world anyway.

Posted by: stephen54 at September 17, 2008 5:44 PM

Apocalypse Now

Coppola deserved "best director!"

"I love the smell of napalm in the morning"

and the "Ride of the Valkyrie" scene !

Posted by: eatsrootsandleaves at September 17, 2008 1:07 PM

Stephen - was it Beau Travail?

Posted by: willow29 at September 17, 2008 11:11 AM

Stephen54 - I can't help you with your question. Sounds an interesting film. Great to see some more blogs on this site.

Posted by: margie18 at September 17, 2008 10:02 AM

We'll Dr Strangelove is a favourite. A world where the professionals, the bomber crew, are doing there cool, calm best under pressure, and with not much thought of their own survival trying to carry out their orders, on a mission that will destroy the world, while the idiots and buffoons in government and the military are trying to save it. There is only one women in the whole move in a somewhat funny scene. Anyway a great movie and a true classic by Krubrick.

As for horror, well try "Them" an old black and white 1950s B grade move. Scared me silly years ago when I watched it with a friend on a cold and stormy night on Kangaroo Island when I was about 12yo. Neither my friend or I were game to go out to get the wood to rebuild the fire though neither of us would admit to this.

Humour, Flying High, though it helps if you have seen a few 1970s disaster movies.

Finally I have a question. A few years ago SBS showed a movie about, as I recall, a squad of French Foreign Legionnaires stationed in a desert outpost. They spend day in and day out going through repetitive training exercises. At the end of the movie one of the discharged Legionnaires does a John Travolta style disco dance. What is the movie?

Posted by: stephen54 at September 16, 2008 8:18 PM

' Is that a gun on your pocket , or are you just pleased to see me?' - Mae West - in 'Sextette' her last film - in 1978.

Posted by: margie18 at September 11, 2008 1:06 PM

Stoic: if you are still around would you please tell us a bit about the Ozploitation films of the 70's and name a few?

Posted by: margie18 at September 10, 2008 11:25 PM

Have just watched 'Fun With Dick and Jane' with Jim Carrey.I have to admit that Jim C. is extremely talented, and the film was slick and entertaining, but I still prefer the 70's version with George Segal and Jane Fonda. Call it nostalgia or what you wish, I really prefer the older stuff to the remakes. Peregrino - thanks for the info. re 'Radar'. What is it about please.?

Posted by: margie18 at September 10, 2008 11:17 PM

If shopping in Coles, fork out $10 for the brilliant, uplifting wee film "Millions" on DVD. One of the best under-the-radar films in years. Anyone else seen it and agree?

Posted by: peregrino02 at September 10, 2008 10:56 PM

Zaox: If you ckeck through these blogs you'll find that most of us agree that 'who wins the Oscars' is usually politically - motivated. What are your fav. movies?

Posted by: margie18 at September 10, 2008 8:53 PM

Well ill just say that Denzel Washington is a brilliant actor who has done many roles which deserve an oscar but the year he won one for Training Days over Russel Crowe in A Beautiful Mind was complete and utter bollocks, Crowe had that oscar in the bag that year, the only reason he lost it was due to politics. Still thats just my opinion

Posted by: zaox at September 10, 2008 6:51 PM

Just a further comment on 'The Deer Hunter.' - the evocative and haunting theme was 'Cavatina' a very simple melody played on 2 guitars (with poss. a vioin occasionally).
Music by Stanley Myers (as was the entire film score.)

Posted by: margie18 at September 9, 2008 5:47 PM

A truly beautiful film (1978) was 'The Deer Hunter' which was pivotal in furthering the careers of Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken and Meryl Streep. The story vacillates between the life of a group of Russian -Americans in a Pennsylvania steel town, and the horrors of the Vietnam war (made even more horrendous because of the depth of community to which the group belonged at home) . Even though the film appears to be visually seamless when portraying the USA story (with regard to plot continuity), it was shot in 7 different towns. It was the first USA mainstream film to focus on Vietnam, and won 7 Oscars.

Posted by: margie18 at September 8, 2008 9:15 PM

Stoic: if you want some really outrageous films, try John Waters 70's Movies: 'Pink Flamingos' - (I think someone's just sent me a bowel movement) and "Female Trouble."
Also Cheech and Chong's original movie of :"Up in Smoke" - not the sequels - is hard to beat for marihuana - based humour 'Don't come straight to this movie'. All a bit dated now, but quality viewing.
Rgds
Margie.

Posted by: margie18 at September 3, 2008 5:12 PM

Stoic: I'm prob. more into outrageous/ unusual/out-of-the- square films than specifically horror. I've already written a bit about the 'Night of the Living Dead.' but we could discuss that more if you like? I am also greatly enamoured with a 1932 supposedly horror film called 'Freaks' made when the word wasn't used as derogatory. That was made with real circus freaks.
I liked
American Psycho' because it also had humour in it. I liked 'Halloween ' (very atmospheric.) I liked 'Aliens' witth the very impressive Sigourney Weaver. Now I've broken my promise not to blog till the w'end. I think I'm addicted.

Posted by: margie18 at September 2, 2008 4:16 PM

Well colour me even more impressed with your analysis. Fantastic work.

I think it does prove me right in that this probably is the most in depth discussion of Basket Case :)

What horrors of cinema can we dig up next for your critical eye?

Posted by: stoic at September 1, 2008 10:01 PM

Stoic; The article on Basket Case was written by me. I didn't 'dig it up 'from anywhere. Of course I have replicated some quotes and ideas etc from 'Cult Movies 2 - But it's all my writing.

Posted by: margie18 at September 1, 2008 8:43 PM

Oh I agree Margie - there are some great Aussie films out there - but few of them coming in the last 10-20 years.

As I said previously, the Australian New Wave and Ozploitation days of the 70's and 80's gave us many great films - in part to the introduction of the R18+ rating. It gave some certainty to all involved that their film would be shown and so more film makers were willing to push boundaries and tell stories that might otherwise not have been told. I guess it allowed for more creativity.

I also think that back then, film makers made films because they wanted to tell a story. Today it seems many only want to be film makers to become celebrities.

Great article on Basket Case. Thank for digging that up, and I agree that it was treating Belial seriously and like a character instead of just treating him as a monster that helped the audience suspend the required amount of belief. And now that the author mentions it, the scenes with the aunt really do help that.

Have a good week and I'll look forward to your next update

PS - Last night I watched Dark Age. A neat little Killer Croc movie from 1987 starring John Jarrat, David Gulpilil, and Ray Meagher. Sure it was the tail end of the New Wave and it didn't quite reach the exploitation/nastiness of Razorback (and some of the effect shots were very dated) but I quite enjoyed it :)

Posted by: stoic at September 1, 2008 8:18 PM

First post: E.T should have won the 1982 Oscar for best picture and director. Gandhi-Shmandi, whatever.

Posted by: dantakesarisk at August 31, 2008 11:08 PM

Stoic: Due to work - will prob. not be able to blog again till next w'end. Have a good one,
Margie.
Joe Bob Briggs - Dallas Times Herald 1982. - "I know - a lot of you turkeys didn't expect me to show. But this is different . This is a premier night. This is one of the top 10 movies of the decade. This is sick and grotesque and hilarious. This will totally gross out Cherry Dilday if I can convince her to come. We're talking classic cinema here. We're talking No. 1 on the Joe Briggs list of the Best on the '82 Drive-In Movie Circuit.
We're talking "Basket Case."
The success of BC proved that fans were not only after gore/blood as in Halloween 3." They wanted something they could relate to and along came this smooth(when he's not ripping into ppl) mix of terror, violence and quirky humour.
It got a particularly glowing review in the Detroit Free Press - "It's like ET - as written and directed by a psychopath" wrote Diane Haithman.
The gist of BC is that Duane (Kevin Van Hententryck) sympathetic hic from upstate - arrives in NY with his brother (Belial) in the Basket to take revenge on the doctors who so cruelly cut his brother from his side (in an embryonic state). There were 2 full-bodied , as well as the teenage version - made out of foam and latex. Even when they look cheap/silly - they still somehow have charm. I particularly like the doctors names: Dr. Judith Cutter, and Dr. Needleman).
Duane and Belial set themselves up in Room 7 in the Hotel Broslin. Edgar Ievens (producer) said that sometimes they'd arrive on set with only 30 minutes of film left in the camera. Thus we have once again a case of lack of a budget producing originality and quality. Filming took place in lofts, friends' houses, and a Hotel in Manhattan which did not want to be named for fear of being reported to the Health Board.(I particulaly like the fascinating grainy hallway scenes.)
Scene after scene of this oddball story never loses momentum, with good direction and quirky humour (unusual for horror) . That I think is he pictures's appeal.
Added to our enjoyment is the fact that Edgar Henenlotter - Dir. - has assembled one of the strangest group of actors/characters ever to grace a horror film. Duane and Belial sem almost at home with the assortment of mad ppl and lowlifes who occupy the Hotel Broslin.
Susan Terri Smith who plays Sharon (receptionist at Dr. Neddleman's rooms) apparently had a tought time presenting as 'normal' with this collection of bozos. I particularly like her 60's bouffant hairdo. I also love the bit when she bails Duane up - asking him whether he has seen much of NY. Usually its the bloke cornering the girl. Of course no-one can match little Belial. There have been some strange boarding house/hotel occupiers in horror movie history: Claude Rains 'The Invisible Man' 1933, Michael Rennie's alien in the 'Day The Earth Stood Still.' - 1951, but nothing can match the very small twisted tenant in Room 7 Hotel Broslin. Writes Diane Haithman, Belial has a personality, besides his inclination to murder, he can be jealous, possesssive, witty, sulky and even grotesqely cute. I particularly like the bit when Sharon and Duane start to make love in Room 7, with Sharon seductively saying: 'Take me Duane' when Belial jumps out of his basket and everyone starts screaming - with Duane holding Sharon down as if in a catatonic state. - "Are you going to do this every time I get on top of a girl?"
Then in the film's most controversial scene, Belial rapes and possibly kills Sharon. Danny Peary - Cult Movies - 2. is not impressed with this scene: 'It could have been made more subtle - it would have ben helped by editing. It's a mean thing to do to a nice character.' Ievens says: 'We knew the scene was not meant to be enjoyable. We new it had elements that would make or limit the audience.' Apparently it didn't put ppl off, because repeat fans could be seen standing in line for the midnight circuit (some carrying wicker baskets.)
The filmmakers handle Belial interestingly. While they make fun of everone in the film, Belial is treated more caringly than the humans (because a great wrong has been done to him.)
I love the scene where Belial site on a kindly aunt's knee with Duane by his side in front of a crackling fire - listening to a story being read .Interesting that when Duane and Belial die, they lie in the same position (Belial by Duane's side ) as when they were born.
Footnote: If you want to hire this , hire the original BC, NOT the sequals - which were very forgettable.

Posted by: margie18 at August 31, 2008 4:00 PM

Stoic: I like your perspecttive on most things, but there are a lot of Aust. films which are great. Think Fred Schepisi, Rolf de Heer etc. They generally have a certain 'gritiness' to them (poss. a reflection of the Oz psyche.) Of course there are a lot of crap ones as well. But I try top watch them with an open mind.
Rolf in particular always seems to go for difficult/controversial subjects (i have met him BTW).

One of my favourites is 'Don's Party) from the play by David Williamson - a bit dated now, but very inciteful with regard to the Aust. ethos, and a true exponent of Aust. mores in the 70's.

A quite old one I enjoyed in the 50's was 'Jedda' - story of a white man falling in love with an aboriginal lady. (Now that's dating me.) Another 70's one which was great was 'The Plumber.'

Of course 'Priscilla Queen of the Desert' was stunning and contained every transvestite line/joke known to man. *See my 'costumes' line under ;trivia'.
Will catch up with you re BC. Rgds
M

Posted by: margie18 at August 31, 2008 9:48 AM

No worries Margie. I am glad to bring another soul into the seedy underbelly of exploitation cinema :)

There are many other Italian made atrocities to experience - but none of them quite up to Cannibal Holocaust's level.

First the easy question - stop motion animation is a special effects technique where models are manipulated and photographed one frame at a time - think the original King Kong, Clash of the Titans, Wallace and Gromit etc

In the days before digital effects, it was the only way to have full framed, full action shots of monsters.

I agree with you regarding most remakes. Occasionally a good one will come along that at least retains the spirit of the original (something we can both agree the "shot by shot" remake of Psycho which the director then decides to stick his own scenes in the middle of completely lacked) but most of them are utter crap.

I think what it comes to is simply quantity. Studios turn out hundreds of films are year and most of them are bound to be mediocre at best and with production costs ever increasing, they are going to go with more "sure things" but you will still get the odd gem that comes through.

And it is here I want to give credit to New Line Cinema - both for their willingness to give horror films releases and for taking the chance on Lord of the Rings and Peter Jackson especially.

I have been a fan of Jackson since I saw his splatter films Bad Taste and Braindead all those years ago. I thought The Frighteners was a great little film but even I went "Him?" when I heard he was going to direct LOTR. But a documentary on the Bad Taste dvd shot from around the time of Bad Taste truly showed just how across every aspect of movie making he was - from working on the effects and building cranes and devices to film at the angles he wanted film, to creating and baking the masks of the aliens, to the various techniques he would use to achieve certain perspectives and effects - he was across all of it and absolutely was the right man to oversee a project like LOTR.

Whether you like the stories or not, LOTR was the single biggest achievement in terms of the technical art of movie making and those at New Line had the foresight to see they had the right man and they backed him - backed him to get it right because it would be so easy for something so large to go wrong.

Yes we can rightfully complain about Hollywood for much of the stuff that gets churned out but no other industry would have delivered something like LOTR.

I actually disagree about Australian films. Most of them, I find are pure self-righteous rubbish, every bit as bad as the pap churned out by Hollywood. Today anyway. Many great films were made during the Australian New Wave and Ozploitation days of the 70's and 80's. And like Hollywood, we still get the odd gem come through.

And I am looking forward to your perspective on Basket Case. I doubt there is one correct way to see it and I wouldn't be surprised to find out that this blog was the most in depth discussion of the film that has taken place... well.... anywhere :)

Posted by: stoic at August 30, 2008 8:32 PM

Stoic: Am looking forward to commenting on 'Basket Case' as I believe that I see it from quite a different perspective from you!

Posted by: margie18 at August 30, 2008 5:49 PM

Stoic: Have checked out your 'Cannibal Holocaust" site and will be looking to purchase it - Thanks for that. Stoic: What does 'Stop gap motion 'mean?
Will give you my thoughts on the irreplaceable Basket....."What's in the Basket - Easter Eggs?..... Case" soon.
I'm going to have a whine about 'remakes'. Over the last few years Hollywood has become adept at remaking many great originals for someyears back - I guess many of the younger generation would think that these trumped up movies are first releases - Not So! Some examples:'Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory' 1971 - Roald Dahl - who wrote the book also did the screenplay for the film, starring the great Gene Wilder. 'The Stepford Wives' with Katherine Ross - 1970's - very faithful to Ira Levin's book - remade into a laughable version with Bette Midler and Nicolle Kidman - I would have thought those 2 great Females would have enough $ without stooping that low.
'The Producers' 1972 - Dir. By Mel Brooks and starring Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder.
'Oceans 11' was made in the early 60's starring the 'Rat Pack' - Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jnr. et al, and has recently been remade (I think with Brad Pitt) and spawned several sequals.
'The Invasion of the Body Snatchers' was a standout 1956 B& W Sci-Fi - Dir. by Don Siegel with music by Carmen Dragon - There was a remake in the 70's (colour) with Donald Sutherland turning into a plant! If ppl think that these so-called remakes have any merit whatsoever, then they have rocks in their heads.
Oh - Of course there is the terrible word -for -word colour version of 'Psycho' by Gus Van Sant -nauseous.
I remember a seasoned musician who had long been around the traps, saying that there hadn't been any good music made in the last 20 years!. I wonder if the same can be said of film? I have gained more insight form this blog lately than Margaret Pomeranz, (I think Aust. films are an exception to the latter comment - I'm talking about mainstream USA films.)
Are we turning into a nation of automatons with no originality other than to get onto a reality TV show? Of course in Hollywoodland - the only thing that matters is the unholy $. Where would we ever find movies of the calibre of yesteryear. The answer is never - in all probability - so thank God for alternative films.

Posted by: margie18 at August 30, 2008 5:37 PM

Ok - I enjoyed the original Basket Case.

A (very) low budget film but with a rather unique and twisted story to tell :)

And I think that is why it stands out and rises above its budget and shortcomings (some of the acting is atrocious - but possibly deliberately so as I heard somewhere that all the gore was cut and it was billed as a comedy at one point in time. I only ever knew it as a horror film and so approached it as one)

New York was a seedy city in decay at the time and with the grainy film, it lent itself well to giving the movie a strange feel - NY was pretty much considered a city of freaks at the time so I guess Belial was meant to be seen as not being too out of place :)

But as I said, the story was the stand out bit for me. It was handled seriously enough, with just the right amount of background exposition, told in such a manner as to get you to suspend just enough belief to accept it in the context of the film. For example, you don't see Belial for the first time until about halfway through the movie, after it had been established who he was and why he was in the basket.

Had the director just slammed him up on screen in the first few minutes of the film, I think most people would have just scoffed and gone "yeah right" and dismissed it.

So we have a director with a story to tell (as opposed to just having some creative ideas of how to kill the characters or some cool special effects shots in mind) and who has enough knowledge of how to go about telling the story the best way, managing to overcome any shortfalls in budget/assistance etc.

That being said, I thought the little bit of stop motion that was used in the film was pretty good considering how small the budget was :)

Posted by: stoic at August 30, 2008 4:58 PM

Cannibal Holocaust... oh boy....

An excellent review is http://au.movies.ign.com/articles/675/675692p1.html

and explains things excellently so let me just quote a bit of it, then you can go and read the rest. As the author says, this truly is The Most Controversial Film Ever Made. He goes on to say:

"For the cynics amongst you, who may be thinking this is another clever case of hyperbole trumping genuine content, allow me to ask you the following:

Have you ever seen a film where real animals were killed on camera by the actors of said film?

Have you ever seen a film where the events onscreen looked so real you were convinced at various points that you were watching a documentary?

Have you ever seen a film wherein the murders committed were so realistic you were sure they were real crimes and not special effects—that you'd somehow stumbled onto a genuine snuff film?

Have you ever seen a film where the director was brought to trial for allegedly "killing" his cast and creating obscene material—and lost in his first go 'round?

If you haven't, then you clearly haven't seen Cannibal Holocaust--because each of the above statements is a description of the film and its aftermath. In a world where seemingly ten films a day come out claiming to be "controversial" or "shocking", Cannibal Holocaust is the real deal—a film once seen that cannot be unseen. A film that truly is unforgettable."

Oh yes. I was able to get my hands on the special edition he talks about (released with very little fanfare here in Australia) and everything he talks about is spot on - as revealed in the documentary. The media manipulation (quite relevant today with manufactured crap like Big Brother being promoted as "reality") - both in the film itself and the director's marketing of it, the documentary "movie within a movie" format, and most of all, the whole "is this real or not?" feel - it all added up to something more and like the atmosphere and conditions of TCM, it cannot be recreated.

We know today the cast won't be killed. We know today that animals won't be killed. With the internet and up to the minute reporting and updates of movies, we know what is going to be happening and there will be no "manufactured" controversy or authenticity.

Like Chainsaw, much appreciation of the film, the subversion, and themes go completely unnoticed because of the extreme subject matter and images. Some are repulsed by some of the decisions made (and not unreasonably so) and others just by the graphic nature of the film.

But if you watch the film, watch the documentary, you see the director knew exactly what he was doing and played the media for all they were worth.

I haven't seen The Believer but have Basket Case (and it's sequels - I am a bit of a completionist when it comes to dodgy horror :) in my collection. My thoughts on it coming up later this arvo after lunch :)

Posted by: stoic at August 30, 2008 2:35 PM

Grego..........you have teminded me of films that make you cry...............

I am a crier,from very young age....The Little Drummer Boy made me so sad(when the lamb got runned over),and Jesus dying on the cross always made me promise I would be good from now on!!!

The movie that made me cry the most,ever........was "Remains of the Day"...Sobbed for a full half hour after watching it .......

Posted by: musicteacher at August 30, 2008 1:40 PM

Grego: thanks for your correction re the "Casablanca' quote. I knew I was misquoting with that one, but too lazy on a Friday night to check it out. I believe that your quote was the exact one.

Posted by: margie18 at August 30, 2008 1:11 PM

Stoic: The reason I took so long to reply was work commitments. I agree that some things just happen at exactly the right time and so it was with 'Chainsaw.' Interesting philosophy that the fact the actors hated each other contributed to their abilities.
More about 'Chainsaw' - The dinner scene went on for 20 hours in 110 degree heat with no aircon. (I think you mentioned this.)
Gunnar Hanson (Leatherface) said that by the end of it he didn't know whether he was acting or not - he was so out of it .Gives a whole new meaning to 'Who will survive, and what will be left of them?' How ironic that that statement should also apply to the actors!
I'd love to flesh? out more about 'Chainsaw' . As you stated, the pic's original releasing company had mysteriously disappeared, and millions of $ of tick receipts disappeared. (Officers were convicted of obscenity charges in the famous 'Deep Throat' case (1972.))
Hitchcock's 'Psycho' and and an obscure film called 'Deranged' were supposedly loosely based on Ed Gein's life.
More from Michael Goodwin: 'There have been nightmare films.... but even in these films the filmakers seem unable or unwilling to cross an acceptable perimeter of terror. This may have less to do with studio censorship than wirh inborn psychic defense mechanisms; when a real nightmare becomes unbearable, we wake up. ' Not so with 'Chainsaw. '
I think you should get your hands on 'The Believer' -Ryan Gosling, and 'Basket Case' (the original. ) Would love to know what you think of them. Please tell me more about 'Cannibal Holocaust.'

Posted by: margie18 at August 30, 2008 12:53 PM

Thanks Margie - I was beginning to think you had forgotten about it :)

And I didn't mean to take anything away from Tobe Hooper or his vision for the film - but the heat, the smell, the oppressive atmosphere - none of that was actually planned.

The two who played siblings didn't actually hate each other but kept in character (at least according to the documentary I saw on it) but as you say, many of the rest of the cast and crew couldn't stand Tobe and thought he had no idea what he was doing.

And in a way he did sell them down the river with financing the film. They were all offered a share of Tobe's interest in the film, but to finish the film and get extra financing, including with the Mob company, he had to sell more of his interest which in turn diminished their interest in the film.

And yet that whole atmosphere contributed to the performances, essentially making method actors out of all of them - and no matter how you might plan a film, that sort of thing just happens and even if they deliberate tried again today, I doubt they could recreate it. The essence of what made the film what it is cannot be recaptured - which would be evidenced by the horrible remake.

And I don't know if you are aware of Cannibal Holocaust, but suffice to say that is another film in which the essence of what it is, simply cannot be recreated, not least because of the legalities involved - of course that is not stopping Hollywood from remaking it...

And "Play it again Sam" is one of the most misquoted lines in history.

Nobody ever actually says it. Ingrid says "Play it, Sam. Play As Time Goes By" then later on Humphrey says "You played it for her so you can play it for me. If she can stand it, I can. Play it!"

Yes I am a big movie nerd :)

Posted by: stoic at August 30, 2008 2:55 AM

Posted by: margie18 at August 29, 2008 9:44 PM

Margie, the words "Play it again , Sam" are not actually said in Casablanca. The actual words are:

Ingrid Bergman to Sam "Play it once Sam for old times sake.... Play it Sam, Play, As Time Goes By"

Humphrey Bogart to Sam " You played it for her. You can play it for me. If she can stand it, I can. Play it."

A incredibly written movie and beautifully acted. My north european ex-wife had a more than passing resemblance to Ingrid Bergman and every time we went to dinner I used to toast with "Here's looking at you kid"

Ahh dear, better get and the DVD now and some grog and watch my favourite movie. Probably end up crying into the bottle like Rick.
rgds grego

Posted by: grego7 at August 29, 2008 11:34 PM

Some one-liners from 'Casablanca' 1942:
'We'll always have Paris'. Ingrid Bergman.
Here's looking at you kid.' Humphrey Bogart.
'Round up the usual suspects.' Claude Rains.
'Of all the gin joints - in all the places - in all the world - she's got to walk into mine.' Humphrey Bogart.
'I stick my neck out for no-one.' Humphey Bogart.
'Play it again Sam'. Ingrid Bergman.
'Go ahead and shoot - you'll be doing me a favour. ' Humphrey Bogart.

Posted by: margie18 at August 29, 2008 9:44 PM

Laughsandtalks: Interestingly Marcus there was a fairly forgettable film made with ElizabethTaylor in about 1968 - also called 'Ash Wednesday.'

Posted by: margie18 at August 29, 2008 9:12 PM

Stoic: Finally - time to reply. re 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre.' I agree with you about the style of filming being due to a chronic lack of funding - but there have ben films ad nauseam due to a 'chronic lack of funding' which come nowhere near the calibre of 'Chainsaw.'
Firstly the lack of a soundtrack/score gives emphasis to the quasi-documentary style of the film - the effect of which is to make it all the more disturbing. The latter also increases the effect of the dialogue, chainsaw sounds, - in summary everything is concentrated on the action , cinemotography etc all this maximising the fil'ms impact on us the viewers.
Inadvertently, this film reinforces the American paranoia for the off -the- main-highway south: as exemplified by such anti-redneck films as Easyrider (1969) (Peter Fonda /Dennis Hopper.)
Arguably - 'Chainsaw' represents the most anti-south film in cinema history.
Michael Goodwin writes: 'Chainsaw captures the syntax and structure of a night mare with astonishing fidelity. But since we are watching it with our eyes open - we can't wake up.'
Interestingly, Goodwin interviewed many of the cast members and technicians for 'Chainsaw' and came to the conclusion that it is filled with pain because the ppl in it were in agony.
No-one could sleep more than a few hours a night whlie working on it. Paul Partain and Marilyn Burns (who played feuding siblings) hated each other. Actor Edwin Neal hated director Hooper, art director Bob Burns claimed that Hooper made the film by lying and cheating and selling his friends down the river. Hooper claimed Burns was crazy and a blackmailer. Of the dinner table sequence Neal told Goodwin: 'The animals on the table were filled with formaldehyde, and were literally rotting under the lights. .... As soon as they yelled 'Cut' we'd run to the window and throw up. For 36 hours straight!'
Similar in a way which 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' does with the 'Rock ascension' sequence - 'Chainsaw accents how nature can engulf humanity/ - such as the opening shots of solar flames and sunspots. (which studies have shown have been linked to outbreaks of insanity.)
What a conundrum that such a brilliant work is unrecognized/ unappreciated due to the nature of the subject matter.

Posted by: margie18 at August 29, 2008 9:08 PM

Yes, many big stars have gotten their start in horror. Johnny Depp in A Nightmare on Elm Street and Kevin Bacon in Friday the 13th are probably the two most well known examples.

Jennifer Aniston had her first film role in Leprechaun, and James Cameron cut his director's teeth on the god-awful Piranha II: The Spawning - yeah I have it in my dvd collection :)

Posted by: stoic at August 27, 2008 5:05 PM

Stoic: In the 'Blob' , He was so young/new he was called Steven McQueen.

Posted by: margie18 at August 26, 2008 10:40 PM

The Entity - the original ghostly love story :)

Of all the classic Universal monsters, the Creature from the Black Lagoon was always my favourite - probably because I only ever saw bits and pieces of it as a child so my imagination had to fill in the rest of what happened and no doubt made him much bigger and scarier than he actually was :)

I was a seasoned horror veteran when I first saw the Exorcist (and after years of hearing how scary it is) so it never really freaked me out as I was expecting. I can see how it would if you truly believed in demonic possession and don't think I didn't like the film - I did, and I still consider that scene with Merrin getting out cab and looking up at the window in silhouette one of the most iconic shots in cinema.

Posted by: stoic at August 26, 2008 9:24 PM

Hello stoic!

I used to think the "Day of the Triffads" and the "Creature from the Black Lagoon" were really scary....

On horror films.........The Exorcist really freaked me out.......possibly when Linda Blair spoke in the younger priest's Mother's voice in Greek.....I understood it.

What i could never get was that he was Catholic and not Greek Orthodox........

Oh and a film i really loved was "The Entity".

I quite like Japanese and Korean horror: The Ring/s,The Eye etc.

Posted by: musicteacher at August 26, 2008 8:22 PM

musicteacher: Yes, with Steve McQueen in his debut film role.

I do enjoy my 50's sci-fi and horror, though I will say the 1988 remake is one of the better horror remakes as the improved special effects technology really helped flesh out the Blob - pardon the pun :)

Posted by: stoic at August 26, 2008 7:25 PM

Does anyone remember the original "The Blob?" It was often shown on "Creature Feature" night when i was very young.

Another great film I would like to recommend is "Brazil".

Who is from Sydney?........we are trying to organise a "meeting".(see Risky blog)

Cheers!!!

Posted by: musicteacher at August 26, 2008 7:00 PM

Looking forward to it, Margie (if you haven't already and it is caught up in moderation).

I am always happy to share to blood splattered love :)

Posted by: stoic at August 26, 2008 6:28 PM

Stoic: Seeing other ppl on this site with an appreciation of 'Horror' as I have , is like an oasis in the desert.

Soon I will write more about Chainsaw' in response to your speil. Not enough time at the mo' Thanks for what you wrote it was great.

Posted by: margie18 at August 25, 2008 10:58 PM

Posted by: willow29 at August 24, 2008 7:28 PM

Tell me you saw it..... certainly did deserve an Oscar imho..... incredible to see the courting rituals and bond that develops even if only for 9 months..... and the grief of some of those mothers is palpable, you could see their tiny little hearts break........ it really was an incredible little love story ................ ............. ......................... Also, just to chime in on the horror chat.... I remember seeing Something wicked this way comes as a kid, and thinking it was pretty freaky (SK's "It" broke the love of clowns for me also.......... to this day get wigged out by Ronald Mc......... though that could also be a memory of the food...LOL)......... it is amazing the films that are memorable that were made on a shoe string budget, or under extreme conditions, and what they were able to portray.... Leaving Las Vegas, Apocolypse Now among others (had another but got lost in thought with March of the Penguin)................. anywho....... off to start reading permutation city by Egan (heard good reviews)......

Posted by: spanky668 at August 25, 2008 9:50 PM

Well I have just found Who Goes There? available online so I shall print it out and have a read and shall see. Gotta love the Internet!

Books by their nature can (and have to) take their time in describing things and setting scenes much more than film can and so generally do give a better account of the story being told.

Of course I am really wondering how some of the more "nauseating" effects in The Thing can be adequately described in text :)

Posted by: stoic at August 25, 2008 7:58 PM

The book "The Thing" was much scarier. I remember reading it as a teenager in an old farmstead in Wilmington. Three of us girls were reading it together in a great big double bed and all we could hear was the creak of the windmill........

Posted by: willow29 at August 25, 2008 7:06 PM

margie18: Great to see someone with an appreciation of a horror classic :)

I think the style of film making had more to do with the chronic lack of funding so they had to film when and where they could - including forty degree Texas heat in a van with no air condition, no stunt men, little safety equipment etc.

And while the film was successful, the cast saw very little. They ran out of money during editing and still didn't have a distributor, so took it to various studios and companies and eventually found one willing to buy a % of the film and fund it to completion.

Unfortunately this company had Mafia connections and the deal signed was pretty dodgy. They eventually sued to get their money only to find the company was now mysteriously bankrupt. Eventually a deal was done but all involved still received a lot less than they were expecting given how well it was doing at the time.

As for other grossly underrated horror films, you can't go past John Carpenter's The Thing. You look at the classic dramatic conflicts:

Man vs Man? Check. Both not knowing who the Thing is and the tensions with each other generally.

Man vs Nature/the environment? Check. Isolation both because of the snow and ice, but also from each other not knowing who is still human and no way to escape.

Man vs Himself? To a lesser extent yes, but combine it with Man vs the Unknown - both the Thing itself and whether or not he can really know for sure he isn't the Thing.

Throw in a creepy score, and excellent model and make up effects that still look good and you have an excellent horror film.

It was disdained upon its initial release, but did start to find more appreciation since its release on dvd, but is still under appreciated.

And that scene where they are tied up on the couch being tested is still suspenseful as hell. Highly recommended :)

Posted by: stoic at August 25, 2008 6:55 PM

If you enjoy shorts, one to see is 'Ash Wednesday'. This has nothing to do with bushfires. It is an intense 15 minute aussie psychological drama based around 4 members of a family and a homecoming and resolution of an issue.
Far better imho than, say Lantana.
Bye the bye I first saw this on central Australia's Imparja TV network while enjoying a sojourn in Alice Springs with a lovely lady who I met here.
Cheers Marcus

Posted by: laughsandtalks at August 25, 2008 6:08 AM

Spanky I'm looking forward to that too.

I didnt watch the film but I just this minute finished "Looking for Alibrandi". It was delightful, highly recommended.
Another really good teens' book is Holes (Louis Sacher). Even the blokes will like that one.

Posted by: willow29 at August 24, 2008 7:28 PM

Posted by: margie18 at August 23, 2008 5:16 PM

I'll be back, will be in there...... knowing channel 9 ...... I reckon it wouldn't be to hard to come up with a short list.......... unfortunately they tend to go for the cliche, corny lines and leave out some of the classic, telling ones...... might have to play 50:1 Bingo, make a list of 10 or 15 and see how long it takes to get them.......

I am looking forward to March of the Penguins tomorrow night...... haven't seen it yet.

Posted by: spanky668 at August 24, 2008 6:56 PM

Not sure if this will translate into other states programs - but '50 to 01: Great Movie One-Liners ' will be playing in Adelaide on Tuesday 26th. on Ch. 9 Happy watching everyone - enjoy!

Posted by: margie18 at August 23, 2008 5:16 PM

The low budget shock horror classic 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' 1974 - Dir. and Produced by Tobe Hooper. was loosely based on the real - life story of Wisconsin serial killer Ed Gein. Horror fans were attracted to the slogan 'Who will survive - and what will be left of them?'
What I find fascinating about the film is that in spite of the extreme nature of the subject matter, the film has won award after award, at the Cannes, London and Avoriaz film festivals. Critic Rex Reed declared it one of the most frightenening films ever made, and the Museum of Modern Art purchased a print for its permanent collection. This may be due to the 'fresh ' filming appraoch taken by graduate students, who had not yet been programmed into the homogenised mainstream American film industry, evidenced by the film's originality, esp. with regard to cinematography, and sound effects. However, due to the nature of the subject matter, the film has never gained widespread respectability.
When Sally (Marilyn Burns) jumps out of a 1st floor window, she busts her knees and is crying in real pain(there were no stuntmen) as is Pam when she is hung on a meat hook and is actually being cut in two by a nylon stocking.
As Leatherface (Gunnar Hansen ) runs around with his motorised chainsaw (which mysteriously never runs out of gas) his mask blocks his peripheral vision, and he is forever cracking his head. The film was said to be full of pain - given and received (but not when it came ro receiving their cheques) due to it being one of the most successfully made independent films ever . It's a favourite of mine on several levels.

Posted by: margie18 at August 22, 2008 11:59 PM

Posted by: margie18 at August 21, 2008 7:30 PM

There was an Australian film out about five or ten years ago which had the same name I think, only it was totally dreadful !

Posted by: jenjen57 at August 21, 2008 8:18 PM

If anyone can get hold of a film (prob. 70's) called 'Head On' it is rivetting viewing. Features Sally Kellerman and John Huston.
It explores 'games' between m/f 's in realationships and in particular how they can go too far - with dire consequences. It prob. pinpoints how in game-like couplings the line between reality and fantasy can blur.

Posted by: margie18 at August 21, 2008 7:30 PM

Just been to see the uplifting and delightful "The Visitor". A must see...
Some coming up that may be worth seeing.."Persepolis" and "The Lemon Tree"

Posted by: peregrino02 at August 18, 2008 10:06 PM

margie, I can think of a couple of Oscar winners that merited their accolades.

Juno
Little Miss Sunshine
Crash

to name a few.

Crash was dark but the other two were full of light, love and Funnnn

:-)

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 18, 2008 8:59 PM

Peregino02
Thanks for your very interesting information (of which you're a mine of').
This is a bit of a red herring - re my 'trivia' entries a while back - The burning of Manderley (the house which features heavily in Hitchcock's 'Rebecca') was replicted from the burning of Atlanta in 'Gone with The Wind.'

Posted by: margie18 at August 18, 2008 8:23 PM

Margie,
Re; the list of films I detailed...
"Edge of Heaven" is a Turkish/German production
"The Band's Visit" is Israeli
"Hunger" is a British film about the hunger striker Bobby Sands
The Orphanage" is Spanish
"You The Living",..Swedish
"The Savages" and "Standard Operating Procedure" are American
Another of note I've seen recently is "Stop Loss", the best film by far dealing with the Us quagmire in Iraq..
Going to see "The Visitor" soon, by the same director of the brilliant wee film "The Station Agent"

Posted by: peregrino02 at August 18, 2008 2:40 PM

I'd liked to think an Oscar is awarded to its acceptant honestly and legitimately. And when you think about it, who isnt worthy of such an award?
But, it is never really up to the public to decide who receives it. The Academy does - hence it being an Acadmey Award.
So it's only our opinions and reviews of the film that make us decide who we 'think' should get it. The media is to blame really. Overadvertising, speculations and overexagerrations. Not to mention unfortunate circumstances (ie. Heath Ledger) that gets everybody talking. Its called word of mouth. :)

Posted by: smittenkitten247 at August 13, 2008 10:47 PM

Does an Oscar sway my view of a film = no

Does any one deserve recognition for the work they put in = yes

Does it happen every day = sadly no

When it does do you look and talk about it? yes

If you are narrow minded do we bring out the scissors and cut them down here in OZ= happens far too much.

Have a great day see the beauty in all and your all worth an oscar for your postings.
Peace out xxx

Posted by: amourmoi08 at August 13, 2008 9:56 AM

Margie, re Heath ledger getting an oscar.

There is only one person who received a posthumous oscar and that was Peter Finch for "Network". 1. he had a lifetime of brilliant work 2. He was brilliant in that part 3. His "I'm as mad as Hell" catchcry was perfect timing. There were a lot of people who were as mad as hell and weren't going to take it any more. So his Oscar was well deserved on many levels.

Heath was well cast in his Joker role, but is it Oscar worthy?? I guess, as MT says, first lets look at the nominees....... I have a sneaky suspicion that the "entertainment media" may push public opinion towards Heath, but how much that affects the members of the Academy, I don't know

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 12, 2008 10:40 PM

Peregrino02: Thanks for your contributions - Can you please mention which countries your list of films is from?

Posted by: margie18 at August 11, 2008 8:02 PM

On my question of Heath Ledger - RIP - receiving an Oscar, I am more interested in Hollywood politics and whether in fact his sad demise will influence the reception of such an award - than whether his acting is good or no. - It is a well-known fait accompli - that the rationale behind Oscar Awards- is usually politically-motivated, and that some ppl (particularly actors) become more famous - even cult like - after their death. Think Marilyn, Jimmie D, and Elvis.

Posted by: margie18 at August 11, 2008 6:01 PM

I saw Batman: The Dark Knight - worst big budget film I've seen in recent years. Heath (RIP) was miscast. There I said it. And Batman barely featured!?!

I use the Oscars as a guide on what not to see. If it's nominated, it's usually too earnest, dark, sad or gut-wrenching. I want to be entertained, not challenged. There are exceptions - Juno

I go by the previews and usually then by the sound track or else the turn of phrase, or to follow the career of an actor, director or writer.

Darjeeling Limited (Wes Anderson)
Garden State (Zack Br...?)
The Golden Compass (Philip Pullman)
Stardust (Neil Gaiman)
Kung Fu Panda (Jack Black)

Posted by: capriciousimp at August 11, 2008 12:57 PM

I went to see "Hunger" at the Forum last night. I'm sure there must have been some other RSVPites in the audience. What did you think of it?
Recently saw " You The Living", first 30 minutes is so funny but seemed to go downhill from there. Honourable mentions of late were "The Band's Visit","The Edge of Heaven", "The Orphanage", "The Savages" and "Standard Operating Procedure"...

Posted by: peregrino02 at August 10, 2008 10:50 PM

Hi all:

On Heath winning an Oscar..........there is no doubting he was a brilliant actor and I don't know who else will be nominated.....

I wouldn't be wanting to make the decision...because the truth is,there are other very good actors and it could be seen as a token jesture.

Heath not getting an Oscar,does not make him any less a fine actor,but if the choice comes down to him and another brilliant actor,I hope the other gets it.......

Personally,i don't care about awards........i care about what i perceive to be worth recommending.....and I think many of us feel the same way.

Posted by: musicteacher at August 10, 2008 8:05 PM

Qualitygal1: What a tragic death. What are your bets on Heath winning a a posthumous Oscar? .

Posted by: margie18 at August 10, 2008 1:52 PM

Marcus, Thanks for your kind comments,I had to look up 'pithy' .I have to say I also enjoy your writing. .

Posted by: margie18 at August 10, 2008 8:13 AM

I saw Dark Knight yesterday and to my shock and amazement, found it very entertaining. There were some wonderful performances, especially Heath Ledger's

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 9, 2008 11:49 PM

Musicteacher 'The Tin Drum' was told from the viewpoint of Oskar (and it did receive an Oscar) Metzerath. When he receives a tin drum for his 3rd birthday, he refuses to grow any bigger. Die Blechtrommel (TD) was made in 1979, and is a West German, Yugoslavian, French and Polish production. I think that those of us with a predilection towards 'unusual' films would love it. How could anyone resist:' After observing the rise of Nazism, he bangs his drum and exhibits a scream to break glass whenever he feels libidinously challenged.' - from '1001 Movies.......'
Marcus: I also enjoy your writing. BTW I had to look up 'pithy.'

Posted by: margie18 at August 9, 2008 8:04 PM

I loved Ladies in Lavender, mainly because the acting was so incredibly good. It was a little dark in parts but so subtly done.

Posted by: iaminperth at August 9, 2008 6:57 PM

margie18 at August 8, 2008 9:54 PM

GO MARGIE>
I enjoy your earthiness and pithy observations.
Marcus xx

Posted by: laughsandtalks at August 9, 2008 6:36 PM

Posted by: musicteacher at August 9, 2008 4:58 PM re timbre, My fingers are dyslexic (or were away that day.... I forget) but thank you for the info (winks and all)..... I'll be sure to pass it along. now if only my mind would work too ..... ; P (I thought it was a bit strange that i like lumber, trees and wood work in films????)

Posted by: spanky668 at August 9, 2008 6:13 PM

Hello all.........

Yes,I saw "freedom Writers"..........I enjoyed it thoroughly.even moreso as it was a true and inspiring story.

Spanky........i love a rambling man..I ramble to....often.(and it's timbre by the way,not timber....wink).

Margie.........It was over 10 tears ago that i saw "The Cook.."........I agree,it was stunningly beautiful........I am not offended by nudity......I think i felt nauseated by some of it.

BTW.as i know you have seen "The Tin Drum"....I could never figure out if it was a child or a well proportioned "dwarf" who played the lead...

Posted by: musicteacher at August 9, 2008 4:58 PM

Posted by: musicteacher at August 8, 2008 3:41 PM

Musicteacher, to clarify my ramblings earlier, I didn't mind the film (I certainly didn't get as much out of it as other people I know, but didn't mind it) I think Peter Greenaway is one of those diretors who enjoys the artistic exercise, and goes off a little tangentially...... but there are sometimes when it is nice to sit back and watch the way in which they tell a story (going back to my earlier comments to marcus, re the rythm of a film, the way in which they take us through their vision)..... the cook is not generally my cuppa, but I will watch just about anything to see how it is done, and even "bad" films usually have one classic moment/line/shot that makes it worth watching.......... did I say I was going to clarify my ramblings???? seems not... just another thought form the addled mind of Spanky.... cheers everyone, have a good weekend

Posted by: spanky668 at August 9, 2008 12:04 PM

I just gor back from Batman and found Heath amasing.

Certainly an oscar worthy performance, which will of course depend on who he is up against.

What a tradedgy loosing him....

Posted by: creativestuart at August 9, 2008 12:50 AM

A Little known gem of a movie is 'Ship of Fools' made in 1965 about a ship sailing form Mexico to Germany in 1933. - Stanley Kramer Production. a brilliant movie for clever concise dialogue and exposes of various characters on board.
Starring: Vivian Leigh,Simone Signoret,Jose Ferrer,Lee Marvin, a young George Segal. Once again we are given the impression by the commentator - Michael Dunn - think Greek tragedy again-that the ppl on board represent a microcosm of a larger world - on the verge of war,

Posted by: margie18 at August 8, 2008 10:24 PM

Spanky668: I guess we could say"How could Helen Mirren be vulgar in anything?' She is too classy/talented/tall poppyish to star in anything than a meritorious work. I wonder whether some ppl confuse vulgarity with the 'stretching of artistic boundaries' as in 'The Cook.....
It would be a pity if tight-arsed Anglo mores overrode the cosmopolitan acceptance of global film and the arts in general.
I enjoy your comments, because I perceive you have this 'acceptance.'

Posted by: margie18 at August 8, 2008 9:54 PM

Spanky668: I guess we could say"How could Helen Mirren be vulgar in anything?' She is too classy/talented/tall poppyish to star in anything than a meritorious work. I wonder whether some ppl confuse vulgarity with the 'stretching of artistic boundaries' as in 'The Cook.....
It would be a pity if tight-arsed Anglo mores overrode the cosmopolitan acceptance of global film and the arts in general.
I enjoy your comments, because I perceive you have this 'acceptance.'

Posted by: margie18 at August 8, 2008 9:52 PM

that is the beauty of film,....... one person walks out the next calls it a master piece........ the cook, ..... musicteacher.... NNNNOOOOOO how could YOU call any film vulgarity.....NNNOOOOOO.....NOOOOOOO.... Helen Mirren in the Buff (again....Caligula, and just about every film she has been in)..... it was what I would call an "arthouse" film...... but it wasn't that BAD....nudity wasn't all it had to offer.... I know it isn't film, but watch the first "10" minutes of West Wing (as I have had many friends do) and I guarantee you won't turn it off........ similar for films when you meet friends with same love of film, you can just "intuit" the "great" films from them...... others on the list to watch (revisit) are Mullholland Drive, Less than Zero, Unforgiven

Posted by: spanky668 at August 8, 2008 8:34 PM

The Castle....not oscar material, but a fabulousand entertaining look at our way of life and sense of humour.....my 2nd favourite movie is probably Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Cheers,
B.
Posted this 5 times and each time told registration is required...after I was welcomed as signed in.....am sooooo over this process.....

Posted by: bm1960 at August 8, 2008 8:02 PM

Has anyone seen the movie The Freedom Writers.Great movie with that talented actress Hilary Swank

Posted by: nicefellow44 at August 8, 2008 7:07 PM

Musicteacher: Yes it could be interpreted as vulgar, but really it wan't vulgarity for its own sake - It was part of a very scintillating and interesting and visually - stunning plot. I tend to overlook nudity etc if a film is as meritorious as 'The Cook........ (Now everyone will be hiring it. Any publicity.......) How can anyone class as vulgar the fact that a bloke was cooked , and Helen Mirren says to Michael Gambon - 'Now eat his cock - and you know where it's been. ?' Anyway Thanks MT for your interesting contributions to this site.

Posted by: margie18 at August 8, 2008 5:11 PM

Margie.........it was "The Cook,The Wife.......

from memory........I felt it went way overboard with vulgarity.........I felt really agitated.

If you like History and Venice.......try and Rent teh Series."Franscesco's Venice".....you WILL love it!!!!

Chao!

Posted by: musicteacher at August 8, 2008 3:41 PM

Saw martian Child last night. John Cusak.
Very passable

Posted by: stratostar at August 8, 2008 2:37 PM

Musicteacher;
Which film did you walk out from ?

Posted by: margie18 at August 8, 2008 1:53 PM

I watched "The Lives of Others" last night.
I recommend it to those who appreciate Foreign Films.

Margie.......I was trying to think of the name of that Greenaway film............I walked out of it 3/4 of the way through.

Just want to leave you today with a quote I heard in the film above..........

Stalin said once."If I continue to listen to the "Appassionata"(Beethoven) I will not be able to finish the Revolution!!!!

Says a hell of a lot of the POWER of Beethoven and music in general.
Have a great weekend!
R

Posted by: musicteacher at August 8, 2008 12:57 PM

Spanky..............nice to speak with someone who understands my language........

Posted by: musicteacher at August 8, 2008 12:52 PM

I saw No Country for Old Men and I think I need to watch it again because it lost me a little about 3/4 of the way through. I am not sure about the ending either as he was shot in the right arm I think and it should have been the left. Anyway, interesting and certainly well acted but a little heavy. On the flip side I saw The Funeral, which really has little story at all and laughed myself silly most of the way through. I like a film for a good laugh.

Posted by: iaminperth at August 7, 2008 10:24 PM

Posted by: laughsandtalks at August 7, 2008 9:10 PM I agree that there is predictability in many films...... but to look past the telling of the story, the rythm, timber and poetry of the film, the interpretations of the director, actors and cinematographers is to deny much of what the film is about....... IMHO....... and while there are darker films ...... that explore harsher realities (Bully, romance and some would say a cult classic crash (the james spader one) to name a few) that doesn't negate the artistic merit of more main stream films, even if predictable (again, my problem with "predictable" is the negative conotations associated with the word (at least in the film context)) I think that sometimes it is necessary to know what is going to happen, to fully appreciate the story that is being told, and the devices being used to tell it.......... DOA with Dennis Quaid, starts by showing you the ending (usually not a fan of this technique) .... good film by the way....... just thoughts......... it will also depend on what you are after in the film...... entertainment, enlightment or distraction...... all valid reasons for watching

Posted by: spanky668 at August 7, 2008 9:47 PM

I really enjoy the ensemble pieces like Gosford Park, infact most of Altmans movies are very good.

Then something you might dismiss as fluff from a promo is great (Devil Wears Prada), and the most popular (Sex in the city) holds no interest.

Posted by: creativestuart at August 7, 2008 9:18 PM

spanky668 at August 7, 2008 8:12 PM
You make my point about predictability for me, and without knowing the details beforehand the YBR ending was what I expected. It's another film I have seen highly rated by people with a pretty superficial idea of what constitutes an important art work as opposed to an 'entertainment'.
The films I mention are multi layered and much deeper examinations of the nature of religious and spiritual belief and the influence of culture and love and ultimately of redemption and the facing of certain but avoidable death because of conviction.
Cheers Marcus

Posted by: laughsandtalks at August 7, 2008 9:10 PM

As yet no-one has commented on Peter Greenaway's work. 'The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and her Lover' - 1990 is an outstanding piece of work starring Helen Mirren, Tim Roth and Michael Gambon. Don't watch it if you are looking for something mainstream. It can be interpreted on about 3 different levels. I love the way that Greenaway uses colour - the latter changing as the camera shifts from room to room. A young dishwasher sings in the background for part of the film, reminiscent of the commentators in Greek tragedy. But some ppl may not find it as heavy-going as I'm making it sound.
Greenaway's other works are always challenging :eg ' The Pillow Book'1996 - in English,Cantonese,Italian,Japanese,Mandarin. But 'The Cook....... has a very special quality about it. The use of colour also complements very stylish costumes and sets (which are worth watching on their own.). I love the way Michael Gambon talks on and on throughout the film (very clever lingo BTW).

Posted by: margie18 at August 7, 2008 8:45 PM

Posted by: laughsandtalks at August 7, 2008 7:46 PM

Marcus I have seen both the films you are praising and can't say they are stand outs for me...... admittedly it was a long time ago for both (I was at the premiere of Black Robe)...... but in the end not the best examples of great films............ you suggest that the unknown ending is all important.... I don't think it is necessarily about the story, but the way in which it is told (cinematography, acting, dialogue, locations, premise)........ that is what make films "great"......... did you ever think Dorothy was going to get stuck in Oz, buy a studio overlooking the yellow brick road (in the seedier part of town, shacked up with the tin man) or did you figure out how it would end pretty early on????

Posted by: spanky668 at August 7, 2008 8:12 PM

mensurea at August 7, 2008 5:37 PM

OK you have Hollywood style watching experiences if you think all movies have predictable schmaltzty ends.
Have a look at Bad Lieutenant which I mentioned earlier and a top Australia/Canadian joint egffort that Bruce Beresford oversaw The Black Robe.
Report back please too..;-)
Cheers Marcus

Posted by: laughsandtalks at August 7, 2008 7:46 PM

Everyone's entitled to an opinion, but I'm not sure The Shawshank Redemption deserves the below hammerings.. both criticisms mention it's predictable. To that I say, which movies aren't? Why bother watching Gandhi if you know the end? Or JFK? Or even Star Wars? [spoiler space: good triumphs over evil]. If the only good movies were unpredictable ones, M. Night Chameleon's 'twist' movies [The Sixth Sense, The Village et al] would be the best movies of all time. And they're not.

Posted by: mensrea at August 7, 2008 5:37 PM

"Memento" very clever and one of the best films I've ever seen!

Posted by: brilliantblue at August 7, 2008 5:06 PM

Cloverfield was an edge of your seat sort of movie....brilliantly done and the first movie in a long time that isn't predictable!

Posted by: brilliantblue at August 7, 2008 4:28 PM

Mensrea: I played for over a year. I had two main chars - Willow (warrior - majored in axes) and Circe (tamer). Taming takes ages to GM but its worth it. I made heaps of friends from those days (8 years ago) who are still friends today.

Posted by: willow29 at August 7, 2008 4:14 PM

American Beauty still has me questioning the reasons, then other times I agree whole heartedly with the decisions.

Posted by: creativestuart at August 7, 2008 4:01 PM

Shawshank Redemption mightn't be one of the worst films ever made but it sure ain't one of the best. It is patronising, predictable, tokenistic and the details of the escape are so implausible as to be ridiculous. FFS he spends 10 years digging himself out with a spoon? The film spans about 20 years yet none of the actors age, Morgan Freeman should be dead but continues to voice over narrative.
The cheesiest part of it though is the byline 'Hope can set you free" I mean come on a plea bargain might be a better option there.
Cheers Marcus

Posted by: laughsandtalks at August 7, 2008 3:34 PM

Hey.............i like Shawshank Redemption.

Don't waste your time on "Cloverfield".......tried watching it last night.

I have heard Wall-e is not to be missed,can't wait to see it.

Posted by: musicteacher at August 7, 2008 3:25 PM

Now come on... please!!! shanwshank was an okay movie but that's as far as it goes. Be honest; it was as predictable as a snowflake melting in the desert.

Posted by: perfectdesign at August 7, 2008 12:35 AM

Qualitygal1 - it would have been easy to miss (Focus) because it was done extremely subtly.

Posted by: margie18 at August 6, 2008 11:52 PM

Willow: Some RPG crazy friends urged me to do so and I foolishly did - however I only played my free month, cut some wood during that and then gave up. I prefer my games to have a fixed cost, a beginning, middle and end :)

Posted by: mensrea at August 6, 2008 11:43 PM

Posted by: willow29 at August 6, 2008 8:33 PM

Why's that....... it's not that supposed "codeword" thing re shawshank is it?????? It was such a great film..... ..............Mensrea 1, 6, 8 yeah, some of the others haven't seen (or not for long time)...........

Posted by: spanky668 at August 6, 2008 8:53 PM

MT, yes, I did see it (Quest for Fire) - many years ago, and I remember I really enjoyed it. My daughter was young at the time, and she loved it too...

Posted by: malsie at August 6, 2008 8:37 PM

Gawd, Im afraid of saying I like Shawshank Redemption now!
Mensrea, did you ever play UO?

Posted by: willow29 at August 6, 2008 8:33 PM

"Quest For Fire"anyone seen it?
One of those movies you don't forget......
Nite all.............it's Movie and Romance night.............God it's cold,
R

Posted by: musicteacher at August 6, 2008 8:02 PM

margie re Focus, thanks for that.... what an amazing thing for me to forget

:-)

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 6, 2008 7:30 PM

The Coen brothers won Oscars for Screenplay, and Frances McDormand (actress.) in 'Fargo.'
Hitchcock ws nominated for Oscars as Director of 'Rebecca' 1940, 'Spellbound' - 1945, 'Rear Window' - 1954, and 'Psycho' - 1960, although he never actually won. Methinks it a Hollywood conspiracy - mabe he wan't mediocre enough.
BTW - qualitygal1 - the punchline at the very end of 'Focus' was that William H. Macy + partner were actually Jewish.

Posted by: margie18 at August 6, 2008 4:34 PM

Thanks for the profile praise, folks, but until this thread becomes "Best Ninja Turtle, and Why?", we can safely keep my profile out of the picture...

In the meantime, 10 great movies that never featured `great` critical acclaim:

1. The Shawshank Redepemtion
2. The Howling
3. Citizen Kane
4. White Heat
5. Run Ronnie Run: The Ronnie Dobbs Story
6. Starship Troopers
7. They Live
8. Bladerunner
9. The Man Who Never Was
10. Bad Eggs

Please feel free to fight and spill blood regarding the same in my absence..

Posted by: mensrea at August 5, 2008 11:31 PM

decoratress go along with your comments about mensrea's profile.

very clever :-)

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 5, 2008 9:56 PM

I thought Fargo won some Oscars ??? or maybe it was Frances McDormand who won it for her performance. And "Oh Brother where art thou" - one of my faves - fabulous sound track starting from the chain gang at the beginning - the mallets on the rail track and the old men humming along to it. Talk about the origin of the blues. You can just feel it.

Fargo makes me think about William H Macey - what an under-rated actor he is. Two of his movies - "The Cooler" and "Focus" a film not very well known - in which he plays a man, living in Brooklyn, towards the end of WWII. He gets himself a new pair of glasses, and suddenly his neighbours decide he is Jewish and he and his wife are attacked an marginalised as a result. Fascinating study in preconceptions, honour, strength.

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 5, 2008 9:54 PM

Hi movie lovers........

I love Tombstone,and I am not really into Westerns..........Val Kilmer as Doc Halliday(?) was absolutely brilliant....I never get tired of watching this film.

I believe Alfred Hitchcock never received an Oscar.

Posted by: musicteacher at August 5, 2008 8:50 PM

mensrea...

just love your profile.. hahaha!!

Posted by: decoratress at August 5, 2008 6:05 PM

Posted by: mensrea at August 5, 2008 5:02 PM

Like the name.....Guilty Mind indeed..... I haven't seen to much of their other stuff, but have heard good things about The Big Lebowski.... and as I have said, Millers Crossing is a huge fave... some of the best cinematography I have seen...

Posted by: spanky668 at August 5, 2008 5:56 PM

If we're talking about Oscar-deserving films, I think the Coen Bros' collection were all up there. My personal favourite is Miller's Crossing [attention bookworms: loosely adapted from 2 Dashiell Hammett novels, 'Red Harvest' and 'The Glass Key'], but Fargo, Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski, O Brother Where Art Thou et al did the one thing that film has as a natural advantage over books and other mediums, tying in cinematography, script and score to one unified package.

The conspiracy theory side of me thinks the Coens have been denied Oscar [up till now] due to the light and quirky nature of some of their work and their aloofness/separation from the rest of Hollywood. Maybe?

Posted by: mensrea at August 5, 2008 5:02 PM

I am leaving music promotion for the moment to return to this fascinating site. (Got to get our priorities right!) Please let's hear more from everyone.
A comment I once read said the following: 'Robert De Niro, Bruce Dern and Marlon Brando are 3 actors who can appear to be smiling on the outside , - whilst inwardly crying. ' One has to agree there is enormous depth to their acting. We all know about Marlon (who was once decribed as a walking erection) but I am fascinated by the way that Robert De Niro can act. He even seems to change the shape of his face to accomodate a particular role.
I guess Bruce Dern is a bit lesser known. He was great in 'Coming Home' - 1978- with Jon Voight and Jane Fonda. Talking of music - this has a great 60's 'hippy' sound track eg: Bob Dylan etc. The story is a Viet. Theme - hence the title.

Posted by: margie18 at August 5, 2008 4:18 PM

Joyfuldelite: I checked out your profile and noticed you have specialised in visual arts - which explains your in-depth understanding of Kubrick. In 'Shining' even the perspective in the hall where the boy was riding the bike was done in peculiar/special angles. Thanks for your in-depth contributions, which are quite stunning and thought -provoking.
Apparently Kubrick was so obsessive that in Shining he had someone type - not photocopy - all Jack Nicholson's many many single -spaced pages that repeated the one line: 'All work and no play make Jack a dull boy".

Posted by: margie18 at August 4, 2008 11:38 PM

Back to Taxi Driver: Martin Scorsese had a cameo part in it - as well as being Director.

Posted by: margie18 at August 4, 2008 10:23 PM

Posted by: margie18 at August 4, 2008 9:39 PM and MusicTeacher 9:41PM

Well thank you both, I do like to dabble a little ......When I went to school in UK for about six months, they had a vastly better music program and we studied Four Seasons in quite a bit of detail (circle of fifths and all)..... still a favourite...the same teacher introduced us to Samuel Barbers adagio for strings.... probably my all time favourite classical piece ...... .........Musicteacher, I actually liked a couple of the string arrangements in Master and Commander (generally the ones they were supposed to be playing, baroque from memory - without the harpsichord...usually a bit hard to find a good harpsichordist at sea).......... also loved some of the music in Millers Crossing... one in particular when they are walking in the woods to kill Gabriel Byrnes character (can't think of his name off hand) ..... It really can make the scene that much more powerful (and memorable) can't it....

Posted by: spanky668 at August 4, 2008 10:13 PM

Joyfuldelite - Why don't you think of writing a book or at least a paper on Kubrick?

Posted by: margie18 at August 4, 2008 9:46 PM

Spanky.....i am impressed with your knowledge of "Classical" music.

I totally agree...,i'm just slightly obsessed with Herr Beethoven...his music is my specialty...
Imagine Space Odyssey without "Zarathustra"...
If you can get your ears on some Mahler..Symphony No.2 for example......well,it's long but i believe you will enjoy it.
Films have flopped due to poor scoring too........"Master and Commander" is a classic example.

Posted by: musicteacher at August 4, 2008 9:41 PM

Spanky668: I'm impressed with yourt knowledge of classical music and film and the linking of the 2. What a great site this is becoming.
I have a feeling that the 'classical' appears in a lot of modern war films.
Some of the more modern war films are so graphic that maybe the classical music is also a 'distancing' tool.
I have a feeling the 'Deer Hunter' may also have classical music - certainly it has 'Cavatina'.
Maybe not appropriate for the genres we have been discussing but 'Fantasia' which is also classed as 'cult' is pieces/cartoons entirely set to various classical music(about 60 years old now).

Posted by: margie18 at August 4, 2008 9:39 PM

Joyfuldelite thanks so much for all your info. However Kubrick didn't do Taxi Driver. It was Directed by Martin Scorsese.CinematographyMichael Chapman,

Posted by: margie18 at August 4, 2008 9:22 PM

sorry margie, I called you malsie...oops!

Posted by: joyfuldelite at August 4, 2008 8:45 PM

I agree malsie, Kubrick was a genius, and the slwoing down technique is real dramatic tension, and very sensual/sexy. That is real direction and Hitchcock in quality. I think he did similar things early on with Jack Nicholson in The Shining, the leer and the terror, and all those long shots down corridors, following the child on the bike, very scary....and in Taxi Driver he used light to create atmosphere in a claustrophobic manner that also left feelings of being very alone and alienated. he plays terror so carefully, measured, and uses sounds and timing to do this - much seen in the use of music in Clockwork Orange and in 2001, Space Odyssey.
He is an artist, who knows how to use pace and sound amazingly....and really shows how awful this new thing in movies is, where strongs and music plays non-stop and the dialogue loses soooo much power because of it.
Timing is the essence of drama...by slowing and repeating, the audience is entranced and drawn in...whilst scared and confused a little as well....it is used a lot in contemporary visual arts and is called the attraction-repulsion dialectic....love the way that movies can play with our emotions and psyche!

Posted by: joyfuldelite at August 4, 2008 8:45 PM

Joyfuldelite: I watched Kubrick's 'Eyes Wide Shut' and yes, You were spot on about the colours etc. One thing I noticed throughout the film was the slowing down of the dialogue. Players all speak quite deliberately/slowly - often repeating the line of the other player as a question or confirmation. I particularly noticed this of Nicole Kidman (when she was dancing with the Hungarian 'suitor'). This has the effect of bringing one to the edge of one's seat and concentrating on the action more.
I wondered why - I'm sure you and others have opinions - but mine is that Kubrick is trying to -as it were - make us part of the action - draw us into the film.
In parts it is surreal - but it doesn't seem so, because of this quite powerful device he uses. Of course if another Director did this we'd all be yawning in the 1st 10 minutes, but with Kubrick there is so much to absorb we are never bored.
Maybe others have ideas on why this device is used?

Posted by: margie18 at August 4, 2008 7:56 PM

Posted by: musicteacher at August 4, 2008 12:36 AM

I love it too,....... just have to have an ear for it..............

I was thinking about your comment about violence and classical music (Beethoven specifically) and while I understand where you're coming from on that, I think some classical lends itself to "violence" in film, a depth (and maybe history) that alot of Contemporary music doesn't have, and a contrast to the "upper" class, juxtaposed to the uncontrolled aggression..... radical notion yes....just my opinion..... Definitely...but, Morgan Freeman in the library scene in Seven, Bach Air in Orchestral Suite No 3 haunting in the background, adds an ominous feel suggesting the violence........Ride of the Valkyries in Apocalypse Now the helicopter scene, ....Samuel Barbers Adagio for strings in Platoon when they burn down the village........ Can't really see Pachelbel Canon in D being in this realm, but you get my drift.........again, just my addled mind , thoughts and opinion ....if I am not mistaken it was La Prima Vera (Vivaldi, spring) in Soylent Green ?? I think it was (going back about 25 years since I watched this) this was what people used to "die" to......

Posted by: spanky668 at August 4, 2008 7:46 PM

Just letting ppl know that 'Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon' is on this week Fri. 8th SBS (where else?) at 10.05 pm in Adelaide. Poss. on also interstate?

Posted by: margie18 at August 4, 2008 4:04 PM

One hard hitting film that had on Oscar worthy lead performance was cult classic Bad Lieutenant, released in 1992. Religious imagery and scenes of violence, drug use, sex, gambling and voyeurism combine in a powerful piece of filmmaking. Harvey Keitel's performance in the title role is a superb piece of acting, and gives an authority and seriousness to the film that help prevent it becoming either farcical or parodic. Raises some serious questions if you are Catholic or interested in the theological notions of salvation; in this case salvation by death. Not likely to be shown on Channel 9.
Directed by Abe Ferrara.

Posted by: laughsandtalks at August 4, 2008 3:51 AM

OOOps,getting the McDowells mixed up.....you know what I mean!

American History X.........I agree Kaz...i recommend it though........meaningful in it's own way,some valuable messages for teenage boys in particular.

Spanky....i love the song "Stuck in the middle of you"...hard to keep still when you listen to this song.

Posted by: musicteacher at August 4, 2008 12:36 AM

American History X. Confronting, violent, a sad indictment on neo nazis in the US, strangely rivetting...................K

Posted by: auntykaz at August 3, 2008 11:06 PM

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 3, 2008 8:37 PM

I am a bit the same with "Stuck in the middle with You", Steelers Wheel, after Reservoir Dogs.............

other films I liked, since it has gone a bit quiet, Apocolypse Now (also want to see Hearts of Darkness about the making of it).........there are apparently some interesting stories that went on behind the making, and while a few are generally known, there were quite a few others.....

others worth revisiting would include Ronin, of course Shawshank Redemption, Seven..... American History X wasn't bad, didn't mind Ed Norton in Fight Club either. wouldn't mind revisiting Falling Down, been a while since I saw it......

Posted by: spanky668 at August 3, 2008 9:28 PM

I can't listen to singing in the rain the same way since "Clockwork Orange"

I always hear "kick, kick" in the middle of it

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 3, 2008 8:37 PM

Hi Margie and fellow movie lovers.........

Roddy MacDowell...........no,it's just him.....i don't mind his brother.
I couldn't watch "Clockwork Orange" mainly as i did/do not like the association of violence with Beethoven's music.

"Cinema Paradiso"....how could I have forgotten that one?....what a beautiful film......

Posted by: musicteacher at August 3, 2008 8:35 PM

Thanks again to all who have contribted film names or recommendations. I will be making lists.
'Children of Paradise' - Les Enfants Du Paradis was made by Marcel Carne in 1945. The Vichy Government forbad any film to be made over 2700 metres in length. 'Children... ended up almost double that. Members of the French Resistance were able to hide from the Gestapo because they were the many 'extras' which the film employed. They had to move the filming around to garages, backyards, many different locales etc. The film opened to record attendances - and was held so dearly by the French because it was an affront to the Nazi invaders. The film is a moving tribute to those who have never been controlled by authority, lovers, rogues, ciminals, artists, the poor.
Shades of the French throng in Rick's Bar drowning out the Nazi drinking song' while singing the Marseillaise .in 'Casablanca.'

Posted by: margie18 at August 3, 2008 11:15 AM

Music Teacher: Maybe you can't watch Malcolm McDowell because of an association with 'Clockwork...'Also he has always tended to play objectionable agro-type characters since 'Clockwork.'

Posted by: margie18 at August 2, 2008 1:50 PM

Has anyone seen 'The Man in The Glass Booth" - a study in guilt, and 'Solomon and Gaynor' - an exploration of Jewish intermarriage. (Both have been on SBS.)

An absolutely riveting film is 'The Believer' - the true story of a Jewish neo-Nazi - Danny Balint. portrayed by Ryan Gosling - Winner 'Best Pic' Dramatic Competition - Subdance 2001. Also stars Theresa Russel, Billy Zane and Summer Phoenix.
Why Ryan Gosling hasn't won an Oscar yet is beyond me - maybe doesn't fit the Hollywood mould?

Posted by: margie18 at August 2, 2008 11:05 AM

Hi Margie........

Hanging Rock............I loved it...a film I can watch over and over

Guiltygal......I have seen The Painted Veil..the humidity,,,you could almost feel it.

I don't know what it is about Malcolm MacDowell,but i find it difficult to watch anything with him in it.

Delicatesson
The Barber's Wife

Itsjt54.I have been told by a few people that the Joyluck club is great.

The Weeping Camel........what a strange but wonderful movie

Posted by: musicteacher at August 1, 2008 11:23 PM

Joyfuldelite: Thanks for your very perceptive comments. I'm going to watch 'Eyes Wide Shut' again from the perspective of your comments. It's amazing what you don't see unless you are looking for it. The 'mad' ppl who colonised Oz might also explain 'Picnic At Hanging Rock'....... Those Pan Flutes.. Wow. They somehow made a very angry and uninviting landscape seen romantic. I think there was a sexual element to the girls climbing the rock, taking off clothes including underwear in 1900. Wide vaginal -like chasms of rocks through which the girls were not meant to go but nevertheless explored.

Posted by: margie18 at August 1, 2008 7:50 PM

Oh yes spanky "Almost Famous" is THE best road movie and the music is so great. To think that it is actually the boy's real life (Hollywoodised I'm sure, but nonetheless.......)

And Johnny Depp is just such a fabo actor - Gilbert Grape and Edward Scissorhands, he just has you believing him all the time.

NW Babette's Feast and Like water for Chocolate - amazing feasts of love and food, and both so beautifully photographed.

Has anyone seen The Painted Veil? it was out quite recently and starred Edward Norton and Naomi Watts. The photography, the acting --- it was so breathtaking to see Diana Rigg glory in all her wrinkles --- and of course a wonderful story by Somerset Maugham

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 1, 2008 7:18 PM

Oh yes spanky "Almost Famous" is THE best road movie and the music is so great. To think that it is actually the boy's real life (Hollywoodised I'm sure, but nonetheless.......)

And Johnny Depp is just such a fabo actor - Gilbert Grape and Edward Scissorhands, he just has you believing him all the time.

NW Babette's Feast and Like water for Chocolate - amazing feasts of love and food, and both so beautifully photographed.

Has anyone seen The Painted Veil? it was out quite recently and starred Edward Norton and Naomi Watts. The photography, the acting --- it was so breathtaking to see Diana Rigg glory in all her wrinkles --- and of course a wonderful story by Somerset Maugham

Posted by: qualitygal1 at August 1, 2008 7:17 PM

margie@4pm..I adore Kubrick for his visual details, the less than obvious story within the story....clever man that....in Eyes Wide Shut, his last movie, he had symbolism dripping from the screen....in the cafe where Tom Cruise went at night to get away from the guy following him, the neswpaper that had "Lucky to be alive" as the heading whilst Mozart's Requiem is playing in the past...the warning off scene in Pollock's snooker room, where the table is blood red... the prostitute's rooms, outside is the flyer on the wall advertising psychotherapy....in Nic and Tom's apartment, on the fridge is a child;s drawing of Little Red Riding Hood..the colour red is played magnificently in that movie, to add tension and danger, whilst the blues are predominant in the imaginary shots....and the book of the movie reads exactly as the script of the movie which shows how much Kubrick's visuals add...and the book if called Traumnovelle, trauma meaning dream in Grman, but also trauma (nightmare?).
A very, very clever submilinal director, that guy... pity about the sudden early death...mmm?

Posted by: joyfuldelite at August 1, 2008 5:12 PM

I watched Fredrico Fellini's La Dolce Vita last Saturday night - nearly three hours of strange bacchalian scenes...weird people in Italia during my childhood....and those hairstyles, and that make-up, and Elke Sommer's boobs.....weird. To think that was before the time of breast implants. How did a woman ever get such big, out-of-proportion anatomy?
Talking of Malcom McDowell as well (of Clockwork Orange fame) did anyone see a strange little black & white movie he made called "If"? It was set in a boys' public school in England and he was the head bully...it ended up with the boys machine-gunning down all the adults on parents' day....No wonder I am like I am, these Europeans that have so much influenced my gene pool and my early childhood socialisation are some pretty out-of-their-heads people...and they colonised Oz...hmmm...maybe that explains Mad Max a little, and even Sunday Too Far Away maybe, and also maybe even Priscilla...

Posted by: joyfuldelite at August 1, 2008 5:01 PM

grego, I agree with you, Clockwork Orange was hugely controversial at the time. I found it shocking then, but also fasincating. The whole behavioural therapy side of it intrigued me, as well as many other things. I watched it again a year or so ago again and it had definitely lost a lot of appeal for me over the years.

Three Colours Trilogy - loved White, indifferent to Red and found Blue really pretentious - a very good friend of mine loved Blue, though, and thinks I have no taste :)
I must say, I generally really enjoy French films, though.
Anyone see Samsara? That one made me go quiet for a few hours after watching, deep in reflection (which is no mean feat...the going quiet bit, that is)

Posted by: malsie at August 1, 2008 4:19 PM

Grego, Thanks for all your inform. It was actually Malcolm McDowell who played in a 'Clockwork Orange'. Yes the film was very contentious - but not any more it seems.
At the time it angered feminists for several reasons, - one being the decor in the Korova (milk) bar where milk splurted from the nipples of the sculptures of decorous ladies.
I find the lingo (Nadstat) - a combination of Russian and Cockney slang - fascinating. Danny Peary describes it as a powerful 'distancing' tool - it's as though we're struggling through a foreign language - in order to deflect from the gratutitous violence. Kubrick also wants us to relate to 'poor little Alex' and uses several tools for this.
I heard that McDowell desperately wanted to be bosom pals with Kubrick after the film - but Kubrick would have any of it. - Wasn't interested in any contact after the film.
What is discernible in all Kubrick's films is his predilection with photography.
Think of the 'Shining' and 2001' as well as Clockwork.... When watching his work now, I notice camera angles etc.

Posted by: margie18 at August 1, 2008 4:00 PM

some 'vintage' favourites..not all necessarily adapted from books..

Babette's Feast..

Like Water for Chocolat

Il Postino (The Postman)

The Buena Vista Social Club

Posted by: naturalwoman08 at August 1, 2008 2:55 PM

MT: Yes, Dangerous Liaisons was good.

Posted by: willow29 at August 1, 2008 2:50 PM

What does he look like natural woman.?..we'll help search for him.....

Posted by: thelynathdiary at July 31, 2008 6:23 PM

LOL Lynath..don't know..will let you know when you find him :( blink blink..

Posted by: naturalwoman08 at August 1, 2008 2:36 PM

Posted by: margie18 at August 1, 2008 12:34 PM

Margie, i saw the illustrated man back in my uni days. yes it was by Ray Bradbury. As I remember Rod steiger was covered in tattoos which became an alive story. Bradbury was one of the master sci-fi writers and very creative.

Another film I remember from that period was O Lucky Man starring a young Roddy McDowell I think. I had the album but it became a casualty of the divorce.

McDowell did A Clockwork Orange which was quite contentious in its day but looking at it today the violence is very muted. It is a landmark film.
rgds greg

Posted by: grego7 at August 1, 2008 2:01 PM

Here are a few more:

"What's Eating Gilbert Grape?"

Benny and Joon

Atonement

Snatch

Dangerous Liasons

I'm Not Scared(Italian...based on a true story)

The Italian(Russian)

Happy viewing!

Posted by: musicteacher at August 1, 2008 1:54 PM

Satin Rouge by Raja Amari. One for the girls. Starryeyes, you'll love this one.

Posted by: willow29 at August 1, 2008 1:35 PM

Has anyone seen a great alternative movie:'The Illustrated Man' with Rod Steigar and Claire Bloome. I can't remember the story-line though - except that it was way out there. I know that Rod ends up with tattoos on his entire body. (I think it's from a Ray Bradbury story - great SCI-FI writer.)

Posted by: margie18 at August 1, 2008 12:34 PM

Hi Musicteacher...I watched Joyluck Club last night and was incredibly moved. I read the book many years ago and it is a wonderful example of relationships between men and women, friends and especially mothers and daughters...moved me to tears.
I kept missing the Three Colours Trilogy a few years ago and forgot about therm till you mentioned them...might have to go to the video shop.

Posted by: istj54 at August 1, 2008 7:46 AM

Guiltygal1........I am with you on Le Choriste....love it.

Johnny Depp is also great in "Dead Man"(I think that's what it's called)........

and Citizen Cane is brilliant.....so so so ahead of it's time!

Posted by: musicteacher at July 31, 2008 11:23 PM

Wonder what everyone's opinion is of John Water's work: eg 'Pink Flamingoes1973 and 'Female Trouble' 1974?Like their outrageousness - but if you really want outrageous+ a good story line go for Cheech and Chong's 'Up In Smoke' 1978- (Don't Come Straight To This Movie).

Posted by: margie18 at July 31, 2008 11:21 PM

This blog is becoming the most informative and interesting on the site. Thanks to all. In addition - it will open our eyes to broader choices - by the sharing of all this information. Sort of a free Foxtel.
I have many favs - but 'All about Eve' 1950 would have to almost top the list. The dialogue was written in 14 days by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and had often been lauded as the greatest in cinema history. If anyone decides to view it, don't look for briliant direction or cinematography . It's the DIALOGUE which is so listenable.
Other pointers:
It's the only film which Bette Davis and Marilyn Monroe starred in together (the latter having a cameo role.)
Bett Davis was married to Gary Merrill in the film and real life.(He was reported as saying that he walked around with an erection for 3 days after meeting her- (Didn't get that off the Internet!)
Oscar nominations went to 4 female actresses in the film - which was also a record.
Another of my fav. lines from the film: 'What of the differences between the theatre and civilization?'

Posted by: margie18 at July 31, 2008 11:04 PM

Hi isjt54,

I just had Foxtel disconnected because I wasn't getting enough for my money..I highly recommend the Telstra Big Pond way...........

I also recommend the Three Colours Trilogy.Blue/White/Red in that order.....
same composer and director(Krystof Kyslowski) as The Double Life of Veronique.The director died suddenly a few years ago.........but trully brilliant.

A few posts ago,I recommended 2 films with Emir Kusturica(director) and Goran Bregovic(composer)......I cannot recommend these highly enough.........eatsrootsandleaves,I am sure you would love them.

Posted by: musicteacher at July 31, 2008 10:53 PM

Atomic Spitballs

Posted by: thelynathdiary at July 31, 2008 10:39 PM

if we are off oscar films, then Millers Crossing, has pretty good story, and music, and is some of the best cinematography I've seen (IMHO), Kubrik...Full Metal Jacket...Platoon was pretty good (staying in that genre).... Seven (big Morgan Freeman fan) ......... Run Lola Run .....was an interesting take on the "alternate endings" theme explored in sliding doors and others....... sci fi...look at Fifth Element (not everyones taste)....... road/band flicks... has to be Almost Famous (the music alone is worth it)...... offbeat comedy...Dogma (if you can take Alanis Morrisette as God????) ..... still haven't gotten round to the Three Colours trilogy... seem to recall good reviews though... Betty Blue.... any others that people could recommend would be good...... keep losing my list of films to see....

Posted by: spanky668 at July 31, 2008 9:54 PM

Johnny Depp's Don Juan de Marco - with Marlon Brando, fabulous movie. Cuckoos's Nest and To Kill a Mockingbird. Atticus Finch is still my all time heroe.

Day of the Triffids has been remade - yukkk

Oh and Bill Colins knows more than all of imdb and is usually more accurate :-0

Les Choriste - a wonderful movie set in a French Orphanage post war, I think.

Hitchock's 50's and 60's movies were it and a bit... I recently saw The Birds again and was scared out of my brain!!!!!!!!

Thaks musicteacher for reminding me of My Left Foot, what a stellar cast - and Daniel Day Lewis certainly deserved his Oscar for that one.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Hero, must see the Curse of the Golden Flower (thanks for reminding me about that one too MT).

margie I was stuck at home one night and all there was to watch was Run Lola Run - it had me on the edge of my seat - really clever and enjoyable. And yes, the shower scene in the original Psycho told you all you needed to know about what was going on. You certainly didn't need to see anything more graphic.

If anyone wants to see an oldish sci fi movie that I still think is wonderful, even though by today's standards it has really clunky sets, I highly recommend Logan's Run, especially as it features the wonderful Peter Ustinov.

Thanks for reading my post

Posted by: qualitygal1 at July 31, 2008 9:00 PM

Alien was so good because of the suspense. You were on the edge of your seat for most of the film, yet the creature didnt show until it was half over. Great atmosphere.

Posted by: willow29 at July 31, 2008 8:35 PM

As for Oscar nominated vs winner (best actress) - Requiem for a Dream was intense !

Films that throw me like that aren't everyone cup of tea though, like... Scorsese's Cape Fear, Seven, Fight Club...

I still remember seeing Ridley Scotts Alien as a kid and just being blown away !

I tend to follow a director's oeurve as a guide - makes for interesting thematic/stylistic progressions - like those in music or literature (albums/books with different band members/characters).

Posted by: eatsrootsandleaves at July 31, 2008 8:10 PM

What does he look like natural woman.?..we'll help search for him.....

Posted by: thelynathdiary at July 31, 2008 6:23 PM

I would have liked to have seen Heath Ledger personally recognised for his work in Brokeback Mountain.
I thought that both he and Jake Gyllenhaal portrayed their characters very well, especially Heath playing the tortured Ennis.
Haven't seen the new Batman, so dunno what he is like there, but l think that BM was one of those atmosphere movies, it was almost like being there................K

Posted by: auntykaz at July 31, 2008 6:00 PM

Musicteacher, it was the Unbearable Lightness of Being and is also a wonderful book. Foxtel World movies is fabulous for European movies. You just have to be awake enough for the sub-titles.
Margie, you find out lots online about movies.I'm forever googling stuff. Love it.
Grego, I think that Johnny Depp is only about 5ft8ins.

Posted by: istj54 at July 31, 2008 5:18 PM

ERAL, 'Night of The Living Dead' is also a fav. of mine. It's funny, I pick up my movies (DVD's) for $5 when others are paying so much more for all the new releases. I think the most terrifying part of the movie is the cemetary scene at the start. In 'Cult Movie's 'Danny Peary comments: "Romero's zombies aren't very frightening.In fact , they're kind of silly - wearing dumpy clothes and walking around as though they've just downed a fifth of bourbon. (You wouldn't have even wanted to associate with these people when they were alive.)"
Shades of 'The Stepford Wives' and 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers'?
The $64 question :who is real and who isn't? exemplified by the shooting of the negro (hero) at the end - mistaken for a zombie.
Moral: We must fight to retain our humanity every day.

Posted by: margie18 at July 31, 2008 4:47 PM

Has anyone seen.. Mon oncle d'Amerique..My American Uncle..??

Posted by: naturalwoman08 at July 31, 2008 3:27 PM

Posted by: margie18 at July 31, 2008 12:01 PM

LOL - thats a truly warped film - i remember seeing in as part of a double with Night of the Living Dead (romero) - wow brings back a very weird night for me ....

Posted by: eatsrootsandleaves at July 31, 2008 2:44 PM

Thanks Music Teacher. I have seen 'The Tin Drum' and found it absolutely riveting.
I have enjoyed allusions from various ppl about what the USA movie industry tends to do to some films. (of course a generalization ) I remember after my sister saw 'Basket Case' - made on a budget in run-down NY lofts and hotels, She made the comment '...If Stephen Spielberg had gotten hold of it.....".

Posted by: margie18 at July 31, 2008 2:32 PM

Don't forget "Life is Beautiful" (La Vita e Bella") directed by Roberto Benigni.

Posted by: willow29 at July 31, 2008 2:31 PM

starryeyez at July 30, 2008 9:11 PM

it is good starry..tried the other day to locate a doco/film new release..called Surf Wise..unfortunately..can't find release dates for oz..

it's about Dorian ?Doc? Paskowitz ..in the 60's threw in his career as a medical doc..and with his wife and 9 children (removed them from school never to return again)..followed his passion..surfing..to begin a new life in Israel..if anyone knows anything?? shalom..nw

Posted by: naturalwoman08 at July 31, 2008 2:21 PM

Margie: here is a list of some arthouse/foreign films(I love them,andbefore I had children would attend Sydney Film Festival and AFI annually.............;

*Time of the Gypsies
*Arizona Dreaming...............both directed by Emir Kusturica,Music by Goran Bregovic(Johnny Depp in the latter,Iggy pop worked with composer here too)
Czech Films.*"Kolya" and *"Autumn/Spring"

The Tin Drum(Ger)
Curse of the Yellow(or Gold) Flower(Chinese)
Steppanwolf (Ger)
4 minutes(GER)
Two Hands(Aust)
My Left Foot
Camille Claudell(Fr)
The Music Teacher(Fr)
The Incredible Lightness of Being

Posted by: musicteacher at July 31, 2008 1:54 PM

Not being one for the US blockbusters ( aimed at teenagers) i prefer the Cannes Awards to teh toscars for a referencepoint.

For the EU film buffs, I recommend you get a interesting little film called " A Pure Formality" (Una Pura formalità).

Posted by: eatsrootsandleaves at July 31, 2008 1:09 PM

Grego '1001 Movies' is definitely worth buying.
Some famous movie 1- Liners:
'Of all the gin joints, in all the places , in all the world - she's got to walk into mine'. - Rick (Humphrey B) in Casablanca.
'Nobody puts Baby in a corner' Johnny (Patrick Swayze) in Dirty Dancing.
'Fasten your seat belts - It's going to be a bumpy night.' Margot (Bette Davis) in all about Eve '1950.
Can anyone think of more?

Posted by: margie18 at July 31, 2008 12:41 PM

Posted by: margie18 at July 30, 2008 8:21 PM

Margie, I saw the book a 1001 movies last Saturday and alsmost bought it? Do you think itt is any good?

Willow is correct it was Bill Collins. I taped his presntation of Casablanca and have kept because of Bill's over the top gushing comments. He used to wear bright coloured suits, But he sure knew his movies.

Starryeyez, thank you will have a look at that web site.

Like most males I am intensely attracted to some female actors the already mentioned Ingrid bergaman but also Grace Kelly especially in Rear Window. Massive sex appeal with out removing a stitch of clothing. Michelle Pfeiffer, those beautiful cheek bones. Better stop now and have a cold shower.
rgds grego

Posted by: grego7 at July 31, 2008 12:14 PM

Spank668
Thanks for your inform. on some interesting foreign films. Please keep them coming.
Has anyone seen 'Eraserhead' - 1978 - Prod/Dir. David Lynch. Now there's a cult movie which defies description.

Posted by: margie18 at July 31, 2008 12:01 PM

Posted by: willow29 at July 30, 2008 2:51 PM

Often the best horror films are those that take the everyday and make them menacing. Taht is why, I think, The birds worked so well and also Day of the Triffids. the lattter in my view was a great book and equally great film.
rgds grego

Posted by: grego7 at July 31, 2008 12:00 PM

Willow 29,
Thanks it was Bill Collins - I thought he was and still is brilliant.

Posted by: margie18 at July 31, 2008 11:53 AM

Margie - are you thinking of Bill Collins?

Posted by: willow29 at July 31, 2008 8:35 AM

Not sure if this has been mentioned before, but THE HOLY GRAIL of all movie information, trivia, forums, stats, ratings..... for me is www.imdb.com
My advice to all enthusiasts, would be to keep this link in your favourites.

Posted by: starryeyez at July 30, 2008 9:11 PM

Grego7,
Regarding sites for movie buffs - I don't know of any.
I get my information from books - have 'Cult Movies '1 & 2 by Danny Peary and '1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die' - Ed.by Stephen Jay Schneider Plus various other books eg on Hitchcock.
I get a lot of my 'Trivia' from Newspapers, Docs. (mainly on ABC and SBS) but occasionally the other channels have them as well.
You would be surprised at how much information you can glean from Commentaries on DVD's of specific films.
I guess I have a voracious appetite for knowing about the scenes behind the scenes.
It came from being a pre-TV kid, and watching all those wonderful 50'S movies at the kids' Saturday matiness.
also sometimes went at night with my parents.
Margaret Pomeranz can also be quite good also.
Have you thought of googling eg 'Ingrid Bergman". I got the information about her from a commentary on 'Casablanca'. (DVD)
Prior to Margaret Pomeranz there was a great movie commentator called Bill (last name escapes me...) who had an encyclopaedic knowledge of films. I like ppl who can talk about them (films)and link them together.
I have never gone to the Internet for inform. about films, but maybe I should.

Posted by: margie18 at July 30, 2008 8:22 PM

Grego7,
Regarding sites for movie buffs - I don't know of any.
I get my information from books - have 'Cult Movies '1 & 2 by Danny Peary and '1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die' - Ed.by Stephen Jay Schneider Plus various other books eg on Hitchcock.
I get a lot of my 'Trivia' from Newspapers, Docs. (mainly on ABC and SBS) but occasionally the other channels have them as well.
You would be surprised at how much information you can glean from Commentaries on DVD's of specific films.
I guess I have a voracious appetite for knowing about the scenes behind the scenes.
It came from being a pre-TV kid, and watching all those wonderful 50'S movies at the kids' Saturday matiness.
also sometimes went at night with my parents.
Margaret Pomeranz can also be quite good also.
Have you thought of googling eg 'Ingrid Bergman". I got the information about her from a commentary on 'Casablanca'. (DVD)
Prior to Margaret Pomeranz there was a great movie commentator called Bill (last name escapes me...) who had an encyclopaedic knowledge of films. I like ppl who can talk about them (films)and link them together.
I have never gone to the Internet for inform. about films, but maybe I should.

Posted by: margie18 at July 30, 2008 8:21 PM

Posted by: margie18 at July 30, 2008 2:45 AM

Where to start....depends I guess on what kind you are looking for...

Crouching tiger hidden dragon, Double life of Veronique, Amelie...beautifully shot, nice stories......ones for everyone...Intacto was quite funny in an odd sort of way.

Sex and Lucia, a bit more sexually "open", but beautifully shot, and an interesting premise.

Some of Almodovar's are quite odd if you're into his kind of humour (quite dark).

There is a Norwegian film the telegraphist.....nothing really happens, but was quite watchable....

I would like to see Maria full of Grace.

Posted by: spanky668 at July 30, 2008 6:08 PM

I loved "The Birds" too - scared me stiff - and "The Day of the Triffids". I don't think either would be scary enough for the sophisticated teens of today.

Posted by: willow29 at July 30, 2008 2:51 PM

Posted by: margie18 at July 29, 2008 11:55 AM

Margie, is there a web site that gives the height of actresses. I googled and found some info but it stopped at about 5" 8".

I did not realise Ingrid Bergman was so tall. In real life she must have been stunning.

Agree with you on Hitchcock's work.
rgds greg

Posted by: grego7 at July 30, 2008 2:13 PM

firegal and spanky, yes, exactly, in the examples you were giving it seems to me that it's the subtlety that gets lost in the re-makes. The "less is more" idea, where your imagination fills in the gaps is far more potent than having everything graphically pointed out to you.
I can't say I could get into that Run Lola Run film. I know it has a bit of a cult following, but I found it so boring at the time I don't think I even saw it to the end. I can't even remember anything about it except for a woman running around everywhere all the time :)

Posted by: malsie at July 30, 2008 1:21 PM

Talking of foreign movies - a great one is 'Run Lola Run' (German) . It's the same story told in 3 different ways - extremely good (feat. Franke Potente.)
Back to our 'Remakes' discussion - one of the tackiest would have to be Gus Van Sant's remake of 'Psycho'. Exactly the same dialogue as the original but in colour. How could anyone hope to emulate the great Hitchcock, although many movies actually pay homage to him .
The shower scene in the original 'Psycho' has been said to be the best directed scene in cinema history.
Some more trivia: the entire musical score of Psycho is on the string section of the orchestra.
On a personal note, I think Hitchcock's work was at its greatest in the 60's - 70's eg 'The Birds', 'Marnie', Vertigo', 'Frenzy' although some of his 50's work was also great eg 'Strangers On a Train". I thought his very last works failed a bit.

Posted by: margie18 at July 30, 2008 12:41 PM

Would love to hear names etc of foreign/arthouse films recommended by members - often it's hard to pick out the 'worthwhile' ones!

Posted by: margie18 at July 30, 2008 2:45 AM

Posted by: firegal at July 29, 2008 9:40 PM I think the same is true of US remakes of foreign films. Les fugitifs, La Femme Nikita and the Ring (for e.g.) the Americans seem to think they have to make it bigger, and as you said, lose the nuances of the story.......I didn't actually see the film, but was told about this french film, where a learner driver is car jacked by bank robbers, and is seen being "chased" up the road by about 20 police cars (at all of 10 km/h) all bunny hopping along behind the learner driver......you don't get that sort of subtelty in many US films, there would be about 50 crashes in the US remake.

Posted by: spanky668 at July 29, 2008 10:56 PM

I believe a fine example of a remake sucking compared to the original is The Haunting.
I saw the original as a child and it frightened the hell out of me. In the original we see a distressed woman climb a staircase and then we see her feet suddenly appear so we figure out that she has hung herself. This was so much more terrifying than the remake that shows what happens explicitly rather than by suggestion.
Another example is that one character is a lesbian (relevant to the story because of repressed desires). In the original we finally draw the conclusion that the character is a lesbian. In the remake the character pretty much walks in and says "I'm a lesbian".
Even though both original and remake are pretty much B movies I think they provide a great illustration of the fact that directors having to work around censorship etc. come up with much more suggestive and affecting work than todays directors who can let it all hang out but lose any nuance in the process.

Posted by: firegal at July 29, 2008 9:40 PM

Discussing remakes worse than the originals-we could be here all year!
Well lets start with some sci-fi classics of the 60's- The Planet of the Apes and the Time Machine. The remakes of the early 00's had very nice CGI, but lost the "wtf" and shock factor of the originals. You can't beat the scene where Charlton Heston is berating humanity for destroying itself after seeing the molten statue of liberty. What did we get it replaced with in the remake- a stupid monkey statue instead of Abraham Lincoln. BUT, then the remake of the Thing with Kurt Russel in the 80's was much better than the original.
Oh yes Margie18, thanks for the kiss, yes I do have a warped sense of humour!

Posted by: mrlancelot at July 29, 2008 7:28 PM

Malsie - You 'hit the nail on the head' re the Stepford Wives.

Posted by: margie18 at July 29, 2008 1:28 PM

margie18 - without a doubt for me the original film version of Stepford Wives was far superior to the re-make. The original was chilling, disturbing and fascinating... the re-make was just a bit silly....

Posted by: malsie at July 29, 2008 12:27 PM

Trivia: Apparently Jerome Robbins was such a perfectionist choreographer that he made the dancers in 'West Side Story 'perform 'Cool' so often that when he was satisfied they burnt their shoes in front of his office.
In 'Casablanca' Ingrid Bergman had to be strategically photographed so as to appear shorter than Humphrey Bogart - she was 5'10" Humphrey was 5'6".
A Similar case was the 50's movie 'Boy On a Dolphin' wherein Sophia Loren had to stand in a trench for the love scenes with Alan Ladd.
In 'Two for The Road' 1967 - Albert Finney/Audrey Hephburn, Audrey had to be photographed at an angle because of her extremely slim stature. Reportedly, a wardrobe mistress once said to her: 'Why don't you put your Falsies on"? to which Audrey replied 'They're already on!'.
After 'Dirty Dancing' Jennifer Grey had a nose job, due to her hooked nose - apparently 'lost' her looks and hardly worked again. (Pity I thought the nose was attractive.) Jennifer was the gaughter of Joel Grey the famous MC in 'Cabaret'.
Judy Garland had to have her breasts bound in 'Wizard of Oz' to make her look 13. (She was 19 Years.) and apparently the Muchkins ran riot during the filming and caused havoc on the set.
The costumes from 'Priscilla Queen of the Desert 'won the highest 'costume award at the Oscars, even though the cast literally ran to the nearest Op Shops to purchase beads ,glue, feather boas etc minutes before filming, and everything was 'thrown 'together.
The term 'Bunny - Boiler' - referring to an romantically -obsessed woman was coined in the UK after 'Fatal Attraction'. It had never been heard of in USA.
Over to someone else!!

Posted by: margie18 at July 29, 2008 11:55 AM

I think that 'Did it deserve the Oscar' is a very generalised Blog Topic for this site and too hard for time -poor bloggers. ( I thought of researching my 'Movie Buff' books but once again too much work! )Suggestion: Let's get the ball rolling by throwing into the ring some specific films , and boucing back and forth comments on them.
I recently saw a movie about 'Houdini' with Catherine Zeta Jones and Guy Pierce. Having also seen the original version with Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis (50's), I can say that I thought the original was 100 times better than this new version.
Can anyone throw into the ring other movies which they consider better as 'oldies' than the remakes?
What about the old 50's Sci-Fi the 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers' with Kevin Mc Carthy? It was Directed by Don Siegel. Later remade with Donald Sutherland (70's) in which he turns into a plant) - the old 50's version was 100 x better.

Also'The Stepford Wives' was originally made with Katherine Ross in the 70's - a version I think was far truer to Ira Levin's book than the new version with Bette Midler and Nicolle Kidman. (+ more gripping/entertaining).
I could maybe think of some others but it's late and bedtime. I look forward to other bloggers' ideas.
Just a thought - Ppl who invested $10,000 in 'Mad Max' would have made $1000,000. I heard that it was a low budget film made by a doctor who wasn't a real 'movie' person.
A fantastic little gem (made on a budget) is 'Basket Case'. Loved it.
Has anyone seen the 1932 film 'Freaks' made with real circus freaks - BTW not considered a derogatory word then. Directed by Tod Browning. and banned for many years.

I also love 'Last Tango In Paris' arguably one of Brando's finest because as Norman Mailer put it - of the peephole it gives us on Brando.

Love to hear from other ppl.

Posted by: margie18 at July 29, 2008 1:23 AM

So when does the Annie Hall vs Star Wars debate of 1977 start? :-)

Posted by: mrlancelot at July 28, 2008 11:14 PM

Happens all the time.

My last date deserved an Oscar, what a performance, i wanted to marry her on the spot but she was too busy and i wondered why she bothered in the first place dating me.
We went to see the latest Batman flick.
It went for nearly 3 hours we were bored after 2 hours, the movie was mediocre and saved only by Heath Ledgers manic performance.

Would I give him an Oscar for this ..........maybe, maybe not.

The movie itself was definately over hyped and i remembered around this time a year or so ago seeing the Unforgiven in a near empty cinema and commenting this will win 4 or 5 Oscars.

i have always thought I am an excellent critic but a poor judge of character.

Posted by: yankeedoodle1 at July 28, 2008 7:49 PM

I guess how you view the merits or otherwise of movies depends on how discerning you are...I'm quite selective nowadays and I've often agreed with them, with some notable exceptions...when Gwyneth Paltrow won it instead of our luminous talented Cate for Elizabeth...
When people are at death's door and they get the sympathy vote....Jessica Tandy and John Wayne stand out...also
It's often a political decision, based on who has NOT offended the powers that be...so there you go...

Posted by: venus234 at July 28, 2008 7:19 PM

I did a bit of research for this one...looked up all the winners and I have to say that they all look like great movies...I've seen most of them, amazingly enough...so, I guess they actually "do" get it right.

Posted by: oohlala1 at July 28, 2008 6:46 PM