Nov 27, 2016

The Revenant (once again posting my reacting from film class its long af) 10/10:

Alejandro González Iñárritu’s The Revenant uses a series of carnage filled long takes to allow the audience to fill the absolute struggle filling up the screen. For example, the long take of the Native American’s attacking Hugh Glass’(Leonardo Dicaprio) camp. Innaritu starts the take with a group of men dragging back a dead body with blood streaking his backside to convey a sense of impending carnage. Moreover, he has the Native Americans running across the top of the frame to convey the power position they hold over the Americans. Inarritu moves the camera towards the Americans’ faces showing them in a state of fear. The camera is shooting from a low angle allowing a complete portrayal of how scared these Americans are of the Native Americans. In doing so, Inarritu gives an emotion for the audience to connect with resulting in the fear manifesting itself onto the viewer. In a sense, Inarritu allows the audience to prepare itself for the incoming bloodbath. However, Inarritu keeps the camera moving around the victims rather than the shooters keeping the element of surprise alive. Inarritu’s refusal of using a cut f---s with our preconceived notions of how editing in a film works. The audience’s struggle with a film breaking outside standard editing technique aligns itself with the Americans struggle to escape the bloodbath; we’re praying for a cut while there praying for the ability to survive.

Moreover, this long take sets up the final long take of the sequence starting with a close up of an unnamed man killing a Native American with the butt of his gun. In this shot, the promised bloodbath is fully realized through tracking multiple characters through the carnage. The man’s face is one of absolute anger mixed with a little satisfaction reflecting a common belief throughout the film of white people seeing the Native Americans as savages. A belief that doesn’t lie within the main character Glass reflecting his role as the holder of morality within the film. Inarritu follows this satisfaction with an arrow to the face projecting a little karma towards this misguided man. The camera then moves to track the man’s killer, a Native American, right up to his death. In doing so, Inarritu highlights the carnage of the battle being on both sides resulting in a sense of struggle for the audience in deciding who’s in the right? Inarritu through tracking the Native American on the horse allows the audience to develop a little understanding of his psyche; in the brief time, the camera tracks him we’re forced to make a connection with him. The audience sees the terror on his face when he falls to the ground allowing us to feel bad for the fact he's going to die. In the end, Inarritu forces the audience to realize there’s always two sides. Moreover, the physical struggle of people trying to avoid death throughout the take again aligns with the audience’s own struggle with Inarritu’s refusal to offer us a break from the carnage.

The struggle against death is most prevalent in the long take of Glass’ fight with a bear, my god what a terrifyingly spectacular scene. After a couple establishing shots conveying Glass being overpowered by nature’s vastness, Inarritu tracks Glass through the woods where encounters a couple bear cubs then circling the camera around the surroundings right back up Glass’ rifle towards a close of his face. Glass’ face is stricken with an expression of fear with a hint of “oh s---” resulting in the camera moving past Glass to reveal a full charging Grizzly bear. The bear viciously attacks Glass conveyed through the camera tracking his body while it flies in the air, gets torn apart, and finally positioned face first with his eyes looking at the camera. Glass’s facial expressions through the rest of the take are the embodiment of what it means to struggle. Every facial expression he has just makes you feel agony for him. Inarritu just knows how to connect the emotions of his characters with the audiences' emotions. The pain in Glass’ face is legitimately heartbreaking for the viewer. You feel his struggle in every pain ridden face his makes. Moreover, Inarritu makes the audience feel part of the scene through having the camera fog up when the bear breathes on it. In doing so, he makes the camera a part of the scene effectively making the viewer feel like he/she is a part of the scene. The low angle shots of the bear standing on top of Glass obviously conveys the bear’s power over him bringing back the idea of nature overpowering him. A power he mistakenly tries to take back with the action of trying to s---t the bear when it first leaves him alone resulting in more bear beat down. However, Glass eventually does k--- bear overcoming the struggle conveyed through Inarritu shooting the final part of the take from a high angle with both bear and Glass at an equal level. Therefore, Glass has overcome the power of bear foreshadowing his eventually overcoming of nature. Honestly, the whole take is mesmerizingly brilliant. By the way, it’s really hard to watch more than once.

Overall, The Revenant is a must watch film from every aspect: technically, narratively, acting. It has everything you could hope a movie could have. Obviously, this is a well-known fact given its Academy Awards performance but it’s a film that truly deserved those awards. Moreover, DiCaprio’s performance was outstanding with his ability to convey a number of emotions without speaking for well over 30 minutes of the film. As mentioned above, Inarritu direction is just mind-blowing. For example, his use of dreams and nature to juxtapose the absolute carnage of the rest of film to give the audience the ability to breath. The juxtaposition subtly allows you to understand the vast amount of beauty there is in the carnage filled world Inarritu portrays. I’m truly going to recommend this film to every person I’ve ever met. So please go watch it.

Alejandro González Iñárritu’s The Revenant uses a series of carnage filled long takes to allow the audience to fill the absolute struggle filling up the screen. For example, the long take of the Native American’s attacking Hugh Glass’(Leonardo Dicaprio) camp. Innaritu starts the take with a group of men dragging back a dead body with blood streaking his backside to convey a sense of impending carnage. Moreover, he has the Native Americans running across the top of the frame to convey the power position they hold over the Americans. Inarritu moves the camera towards the Americans’ faces showing them in a state of fear. The camera is shooting from a low angle allowing a complete portrayal of how scared these Americans are of the Native Americans. In doing so, Inarritu gives an emotion for the audience to connect with resulting in the fear manifesting itself onto the viewer. In a sense, Inarritu allows the audience to prepare itself for the incoming bloodbath. However, Inarritu keeps the camera moving around the victims rather than the shooters keeping the element of surprise alive. Inarritu’s refusal of using a cut f---s with our preconceived notions of how editing in a film works. The audience’s struggle with a film breaking outside standard editing technique aligns itself with the Americans struggle to escape the bloodbath; we’re praying for a cut while there praying for the ability to survive.

Moreover, this long take sets up the final long take of the sequence starting with a close up of an unnamed man killing a Native American with the butt of his gun. In this shot, the promised bloodbath is fully realized through tracking multiple characters through the carnage. The man’s face is one of absolute anger mixed with a little satisfaction reflecting a common belief throughout the film of white people seeing the Native Americans as savages. A belief that doesn’t lie within the main character Glass reflecting his role as the holder of morality within the film. Inarritu follows this satisfaction with an arrow to the face projecting a little karma towards this misguided man. The camera then moves to track the man’s killer, a Native American, right up to his death. In doing so, Inarritu highlights the carnage of the battle being on both sides resulting in a sense of struggle for the audience in deciding who’s in the right? Inarritu through tracking the Native American on the horse allows the audience to develop a little understanding of his psyche; in the brief time, the camera tracks him we’re forced to make a connection with him. The audience sees the terror on his face when he falls to the ground allowing us to feel bad for the fact he's going to die. In the end, Inarritu forces the audience to realize there’s always two sides. Moreover, the physical struggle of people trying to avoid death throughout the take again aligns with the audience’s own struggle with Inarritu’s refusal to offer us a break from the carnage.

The struggle against death is most prevalent in the long take of Glass’ fight with a bear, my god what a terrifyingly spectacular scene. After a couple establishing shots conveying Glass being overpowered by nature’s vastness, Inarritu tracks Glass through the woods where encounters a couple bear cubs then circling the camera around the surroundings right back up Glass’ rifle towards a close of his face. Glass’ face is stricken with an expression of fear with a hint of “oh s---” resulting in the camera moving past Glass to reveal a full charging Grizzly bear. The bear viciously attacks Glass conveyed through the camera tracking his body while it flies in the air, gets torn apart, and finally positioned face first with his eyes looking at the camera. Glass’s facial expressions through the rest of the take are the embodiment of what it means to struggle. Every facial expression he has just makes you feel agony for him. Inarritu just knows how to connect the emotions of his characters with the audiences' emotions. The pain in Glass’ face is legitimately heartbreaking for the viewer. You feel his struggle in every pain ridden face his makes. Moreover, Inarritu makes the audience feel part of the scene through having the camera fog up when the bear breathes on it. In doing so, he makes the camera a part of the scene effectively making the viewer feel like he/she is a part of the scene. The low angle shots of the bear standing on top of Glass obviously conveys the bear’s power over him bringing back the idea of nature overpowering him. A power he mistakenly tries to take back with the action of trying to s---t the bear when it first leaves him alone resulting in more bear beat down. However, Glass eventually does k--- bear overcoming the struggle conveyed through Inarritu shooting the final part of the take from a high angle with both bear and Glass at an equal level. Therefore, Glass has overcome the power of bear foreshadowing his eventually overcoming of nature. Honestly, the whole take is mesmerizingly brilliant. By the way, it’s really hard to watch more than once.

Overall, The Revenant is a must watch film from every aspect: technically, narratively, acting. It has everything you could hope a movie could have. Obviously, this is a well-known fact given its Academy Awards performance but it’s a film that truly deserved those awards. Moreover, DiCaprio’s performance was outstanding with his ability to convey a number of emotions without speaking for well over 30 minutes of the film. As mentioned above, Inarritu direction is just mind-blowing. For example, his use of dreams and nature to juxtapose the absolute carnage of the rest of film to give the audience the ability to breath. The juxtaposition subtly allows you to understand the vast amount of beauty there is in the carnage filled world Inarritu portrays. I’m truly going to recommend this film to every person I’ve ever met. So please go watch it.

 

Nov 17, 2016

Also for last movie watched- really beautiful, loved the third act and how circular and complete it felt, prolly a 9/10 for me and best movie this year although I'm very much looking forward to LaLa Land (of course a completely different tone and genre and not comparable to this film but here's hoping it's as moving in a different way)

 

Sep 13, 2016

• 
  In the City of Sylvia 2007
  ★★★★★ Watched 12 Sep, 2016
  
  A tender film of radiating beauty which draws a formal rhythm to evoke the feel of its principal character's dream state.
  
  91/100 - Amazing.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  The Academy of Muses 2015
  ★★★ Watched 11 Sep, 2016
  
  Pedantic dialogue with patterned scene to scene visual form gives way ultimately to recognition of own pretense.
  
  72/100 - Good.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Train of Shadows 1997
  ★★★★ Watched 11 Sep, 2016
  
  A fascinating rumination on cinema and time, from the silent era to forgotten memories to revival and transformation.
  
  83/100 - Great.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Decalogue VIII. 1990
  ★★★★ Rewatched 11 Sep, 2016
  
  Time passes but wounds never truly heal. Effects on the sub-liminal become behaviours of the conscience. Understanding serves therapeutic ends, tearing down walls built for security which instead suffocate.
  
  82/100 - Great.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Decalogue VII. 1990
  ★★★½ Rewatched 11 Sep, 2016
  
  Each episode presents something that appears right yet seems wrong and appears wrong yet seems right. There is little subtext to VII; it is the most obviously written. A mother's right, what might seem a priori, challenges the contextual right. Borne is the conception of the "greater good". How can there be an absolute?
  
  79/100 - Very Good.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Decalogue VI. 1990
  ★★★★★ Rewatched 10 Sep, 2016
  
  The most somber episode. With its understated visual design and hypnotic score--one of Preisner's best--the film abounds with sensuality and evokes most plainly the provoked vulnerability of unrequited desire. With sparse dialogue, Love expresses the most while saying the least. From joy to tragedy it captures the most profound of human experiences.
  
  96/100 - Masterful.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Decalogue V. 1990
  ★★★★★ Rewatched 10 Sep, 2016
  
  Two acts of murder, one legal and thus absolved of sin, one unforgivable. Kieslowski draws on the hypocritical function of social laws, relationships, and power. The state as an ideological construct transcends the individual's responsibility to preserve life, yet itself is a machine created by individuals. Barcis appears twice, once with disapprobation and twice with concern. The unyielding grief which tends a boy's death makes monsters out of men. Slowomir Idziak in one of his greatest roles as Kieslowski's DOP.
  
  96/100 - Masterful.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Decalogue IV. 1990
  ★★★★½ Rewatched 07 Sep, 2016
  
  Having written extensively on the Dekalog before, I will limit rating of this Cinematheque review to newly discovered details of each individual episode.
  
  For the first time, I will attempt to rate and rank the episodes individually, though I hold fast to the idea that the series is much greater than the sum of its parts and that under normal circumstances the Dekalog ought to be analysed a singular work.
  
  ---
  
  Polish legend Janusz Gajos (Three Colors: White, Interrogation) is… more
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Decalogue III. 1990
  ★★★½ Rewatched 07 Sep, 2016
  
  Having written extensively on the Dekalog before, I will limit rating of this Cinematheque review to newly discovered details of each individual episode.
  
  For the first time, I will attempt to rate and rank the episodes individually, though I hold fast to the idea that the series is much greater than the sum of its parts and that under normal circumstances the Dekalog ought to be analysed a singular work.
  
  ---
  
  
  Previously and currently my least favourite episode, Kieslowski presents… more
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Decalogue II. 1990
  ★★★★ Rewatched 07 Sep, 2016
  
  Having written extensively on the Dekalog before, I will limit rating of this Cinematheque review to newly discovered details of each individual episode.
  
  For the first time, I will attempt to rate and rank the episodes individually, though I hold fast to the idea that the series is much greater than the sum of its parts and that under normal circumstances the Dekalog ought to be analysed a singular work.
  
  ---
  
  Bearing her 'Sophie's choice', the episode finally draws on… more
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Decalogue I. 1989
  ★★★★★ Rewatched 07 Sep, 2016
  
  Having written extensively on the Dekalog before, I will limit rating of this Cinematheque review to newly discovered details of each individual episode.
  
  For the first time, I will attempt to rate and rank the episodes individually, though I hold fast to the idea that the series is much greater than the sum of its parts and that under normal circumstances the Dekalog ought to be analysed a singular work.
  
  ---
  
  
  The spontaneity found in the child actor of Dekalog… more
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Le bel indifférent 1957
  ★★★★ Watched 01 Sep, 2016
  
  A woman scorned, like a phantom in the shadows, presents the haunting darkness of love unrequited.
  
  80/100 - Great.
  
  1 like
  • 
    Raging Bull 1980
    ★★★★★ Rewatched 31 Aug, 2016
    
    35mm at Vancity Theatre.
    
    Engages with powerful cinematography, yet profound are the intricacies of score, dialogue, and symbolism. Masterful - 97/100
    
    No likes
    
    
  • 
    The Princess Bride 1987
    ★★★ Rewatched 19 Aug, 2016
    
    Dry humour, Wallace Shawn, and Andrei the Giant make iconic this rather unremarkable yet exceptionally charming 80s film.
    
    70/100 - Good.
    
    No likes
    
    
  • 
    Like Someone in Love 2012
    ★★★★★ Rewatched 18 Aug, 2016
    
    Projected at Van City Theatre.
    
    Former review still applies, though I picked up much more this time on how the film's visual form conveys its themes of disconnection in a big city. Certain shots of characters between windows (cars usually), off screen, and spatially displaced speak the internal story of each their feelings of isolation.
    
    An exceptionally subtle and fluidly conveyed narrative using real time and tense silence with masterful precision.
    
    93/100 - Amazing.
    
    2 likes
    
    
  • 
    Birth 2004
    ★★★★★ Watched 31 Jul, 2016 1
    
    a complex and delicately executed rumination on the connection between identity, love, and belief.
    
    92/100 - Amazing.
    
    1 like
    

 

Aug 7, 2016

marvel will also release dr strange and with Benedict Cumberbatch i cant see them failing

 

Aug 7, 2016

i liked batman vs superman more than this , like the actors did a good job but the script was so d--- predictable , i felt like this movie was made for the fkin trailer , the joker wasnt in it enough , leto did a good job not on jack or heath level but still great and he needed more time in this movie , i liked margot robbie in it tbh

 

Jul 6, 2016

I was sick as f--- today so i watched some movies.

The Grand Budapest Hotel - I've never seen this before, but the cinematography was absolutely fantastic, i was in awe throughout.

Chicken Run - d--- man, loved this movie as a kid, but the plotholes are out of control lmao

Locke - i seen this movie recently, i rewatched it to see if i still kept me enthralled, & it really did. Tom Hardy is brilliant.

 

Jun 24, 2016

Saw the shallows earlier today, I'm not real big on shark movies usually. I watch one probably like once a decade but this was good especially if you do like them. You gotta kinda look past the semi awkward way they have her talk to herself or the animals at times basically to keep the viewer informed on what she's thinking/doing when some of these times the viewer could have easily figured it out anyways..But that wasn't that big a deal.

Overall I liked it for what it was, good movie. 8/10.

 

Jun 15, 2016

De Palma retrospective coming here too... there are quite a few I haven't seen.

• 
  Blow-Up 1966
  ★★★★ Watched 14 Jun, 2016
  
  Inward zooms & cuts to long shot demonstrate futility in the protagonists search for truth within a supposed self-evident medium
  
  80/100 - Great.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  L’Avventura 1960
  ★★★★★ Rewatched 14 Jun, 2016
  
  Embodies the land and the physical as obstructions to human connectivity. background activity offers empty space between
  
  94/100 - Amazing.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Loups solitaires en mode passif 2014
  ★★★ Watched 13 Jun, 2016
  
  A unique and intimate exploration of desire, curiosity, and empowerment through sexual confidence.
  
  70/100 - Good.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Chimes at Midnight 1965
  ★★★½ Watched 12 Jun, 2016
  
  Cinematic elements undermined through overuse of literary form within ill suited contexts. Dubbing aside, experience of the film is hampered by at times awkward speech & abrupt quotation seemingly contrived to suit the film's ends. A creative endeavor rife with symbolism which fails to immerse beyond its technical achievements in lighting and panning.
  
  79/100 - Very Good
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Lemonade 2016
  ★★★½ Watched 10 Jun, 2016
  
  I don't care for Beyonce's music, but I cannot deny the conceptual gravitas and thus success of her malick-filtered pop culture opus.
  
  75/100 - Very Good.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  The Day Before the End 2016
  ★★½ Watched 07 Jun, 2016
  
  What begins as painfully awkward experimental filmmaking develops into brief but affecting pure-image cinema.
  
  65/100 - Decent.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Snow 2016
  ★★★★ Watched 06 Jun, 2016
  
  Meditative and fragmentary, like the memory or dream being relived. Snow as physical and metaphorical obstruction of experience and re-experience.
  
  80/100 - Great.
  

 

May 6, 2016

The Witch (2015) ★★★★✩


The innocence of children. The expectations of masculinity. The guilt of the sinner. There are many ways to run with this one, but female sexuality does seem to be at the core of it all. The crow picking at the breast. The female goat leaking blood from its udder as a cursed menstruation. An apple from paradise. A shrewd mother fears her daughter's burgeoning figure will corrupt her family.

Robert Eggers' faithfulness to the historical account makes these issues extend beyond a specific family in the woods, turning them into an organic commentary of the times. The period setting is meticulously constructed. Every frame is postcard worthy. The Witch is a creepily patient slow burn and has deservedly claimed its place as the current indie-horror darling.

http://boxd.it/9D2lJ

 

Apr 27, 2016

• 
  No No Sleep 2015
  ★★★★½ Watched 26 Apr, 2016
  
  High exposure and high contrast lighting serve Liang's presentation of the dualities of tradition/modernity, body/soul, awake/asleep or its allegorical equivalent: ignorant/enlightened. He presents the realized distinction of gross human body and subtle buddha body by drawing asymmetrically.
  
  85/100 - Excellent.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  The Seven Deadly Sins 1962
  ★★★★ Watched 26 Apr, 2016
  
  Since Demy's Luxure (Lust) is not on here independently, I will post this review here, and will update with a new review once I see the film in its entirety.
  
  
  Lust:
  Uniquely Demy. Displays all the formalist detail and whimsical fantasy come to characterize his ouevre.
  
  82/100 - Great.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Ars 1959
  ★★★★ Rewatched 26 Apr, 2016
  
  Exquisite camerawork in yet another exceptionally ascetic short by a young Demy, recalling most closely Bresson's Diary..
  
  83/100 - Great.
  
  Note: Upgrade from 3 to 4 stars.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Le sabotier du Val de Loire 1956
  ★★★★½ Rewatched 26 Apr, 2016
  
  Demy channels Bresson and Franju in his most minimalist films. Movements are rhythmic, almost musical.
  
  85/100 - Excellent
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Les horizons morts 1951
  ★★★½ Watched 26 Apr, 2016
  
  A tactile and somewhat hypnotic short on young unrequited love's desire to enter the void of death. Strong debut.
  
  77/100 - Very Good.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  A Song of Love 1950
  ★★★ Watched 25 Apr, 2016
  
  Or, how many h----erotic blo-jo- metaphors can we fit into a 50s French black&white short silent art film. Bold, but rather sexually crass and highly lurid. I watched it after Gaspar Noe's LOVE and found this to be the more pornographic. Compositions and dream like fantasy with the flowers (cue Todd Haynes' Poison) are exquisite, however.
  
  65/100 - Good.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Love 2015
  ★★★ Watched 24 Apr, 2016
  
  Blatant and ostentatious but Noe's point of sexualizing movie romance is an appreciable one. Well edited too.
  
  74/100 - Good.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Mommy 2014
  ★★★★★ Rewatched 22 Apr, 2016
  
  One of my favourite films...
  
  
  VIFF 2013 review:
  nextprojection.com/2014/10/01/viff-maps-stars-cathedrals-culture-mommy-human-capital-reviews/
  
  
  "A revelation in modern filmmaking, Mommy displays innovation, courage, and audacity. The fifth feature film by the Quebecois wunderkind Xavier Dolan is easily his best feature to date. At merely 25 years old, Dolan has created his first masterpiece."
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Magnolia 1999
  ★★★★ Watched 22 Apr, 2016
  
  With rapid editing, montage, multiple climaxes, inter-cutting, etc. there's much to pay attention to and so much more to easily gloss over. Nearly the entire film plays out like its in this perpetual climax where each character is about to explode in relentless emotional expression. Even the music is constantly reaching cathartic heights that mirror climactic shifts, and the quicker the cuts the more extreme the circumstance seems to become, even when the events are all rather innocuous. What such a technique does extremely well is get the audience into the mind set of each of these suffering characters, their frustrations and turmoil, so that we can feel the connection they have with one another not only by their potential proximity to each other/relationship etc. but by their sheer humanism, their will, their isolated stories of struggle.
  
  81/100 - Great.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  The Most Dangerous Game 1932
  ★★½ Watched 19 Apr, 2016
  
  Light and enjoyable, but the narrative and mise-en-scene are compromised by its overly theatrical nature.
  
  64/100 - Decent
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Ghosts Before Breakfast 1928
  ★★★★ Watched 19 Apr, 2016
  
  A preternatural dance of aesthetic form, highlighting the advent of cinematography & its potential to manipulate.
  
  80/100 - Great.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Battle Royale 2000
  ★★★★½ Watched 17 Apr, 2016
  
  Somewhat campy but its flaws are endearing. Visually immersive, aptly paced, & a great soundtrack. Strongly thematic, focused on the characters and their feelings of trust and young love.
  
  85/100 - Excellent.
  
  2 likes
  

Land of My Dreams 2012
★★★★ Watched 15 Apr, 2016

[REVIEW] 83/100 - LAND OF MY DREAMS (Gonzalez, 2012)

An inspired visual realization of the strange, hypnotic, seductive music serving as title/theme/soundtrack. Libidinous ennui. Never felt anything quite like it through cinema. Mesmerizing and transformative. Focused on two female (carnival-esque) stripper-performers, but more profoundly an observation of the male gaze, voyeurism, the absurdity of sexuality and desire.

 

Apr 18, 2016

I respect your opinion, but you're the worst lol. BOOO charlie...

 

Apr 6, 2016

Just watched
Now, i love Jim Jarmusch movies, i like this guys true to life, at times mundane moviemaking style. His films generally interest me, this one most f---ing certainly doesn't though. This movie, about a guy wandering through new york, philosophizing on life, meeting new people, is the most radically jarmuschy movie i've seen. It takes the simple, mundane, real life style to an absolute extreme, & i do not like the result. This film is SO slow-paced & in f---ing credibly unentertaining & unengaging. So brutally hard to sit through. One of the most boring films i've ever seen in my life.

4/10

 

Mar 13, 2016

• 
  Deadpool 2016
  ★★½ Watched 11 Mar, 2016
  
  That pesky, needy kid trying to impress the grown-ups through flippant/'cool' behaviour. you pity but appreciate the effort.
  
  61/100 - Decent.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  The Human Centipede (First Sequence) 2009
  ★ Watched 10 Mar, 2016
  
  A streamlined narrative takes the viewer on an accidentally self-parodying gimmick flick more awkward than alluring.
  
  38/100 - Awful.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Universe 1960
  ★★★★½ Watched 10 Mar, 2016
  
  An impressive and informed documentary short with a breathtaking visual style only minorly slighted by its didactic approach.
  
  85/100 - Excellent.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  The Last Laugh 1924
  ★★★★ Watched 08 Mar, 2016 2
  
  An early melodrama with questionable values and final segment but evocative subjective-expressionistic tendencies.
  
  80/100 - Great.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  The Walk 2015
  ★½ Watched 05 Mar, 2016
  
  The few bits of spectacle do not make up for this instagram filtered assault on cinematography.
  
  43/100 - Bad.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  Un Français 2015
  ★★★★ Watched 05 Mar, 2016
  
  Boasting narrative economy and a rich mise-en-scene, French Blood offers a provocative glimpse of restraint.
  
  82/100 - Great.
  
  No likes
  
  
• 
  The Butler 2013
  ★★★ Watched 03 Mar, 2016
  
  Superficially gleans over context-informing histories to produce a poorly developed but well performed portrait of a man, who is poignantly presented as the epitome of a dignified black American amid 20th century racial tensions.
  
  66/100 - Good.
  

 

Feb 27, 2016

bout to be Ex Machina, i remember seeing it in this local theater with my cousin last year and it was the s---, hope it's just as good the second time around

 

Feb 21, 2016

dead pool
was fire

 

Jan 13, 2016

Manderlay (2005) ★★★★☆


Manderlay falters in that it is a political experiment outright where as Dogville began as a more typical drama and slowly chipped away at its roots in traditionalism. It also suffers from being the middle picture which ends on a cliffhanger in a trilogy that never was. Bar those two shortcomings, it is certainly a poignant statement on race in America that only an outsider like Trier would have the nerve to present so bluntly. A quite abrasive affront to liberalism and an excellent retort to the many incarnations of the white-person-saves-the-day narrative.

http://boxd.it/896sl

Breaking the Waves (1996) ★★★★☆


Trier at his sweetest and funniest makes his habit of enlightenment through suffering, often for the audience as much as the characters, all the more devastating. The scenes in the church alone cement Emily Watson's performance as one of the best Trier has ever captured which is quite the compliment.

http://boxd.it/88hZN

Trial on the Road (1971) ★★★☆☆


My second tour through the apocalyptic mind of Aleksei German, Trial on the Road is a trek through Soviet snowscapes filled with gutsy criticism and dotted by visionary craft, however suffers from romance and propaganda overcoming narrative sensibility.

http://boxd.it/88p3n

The Pest (1997) ★☆☆☆☆


Aggressively bad. Highly recommended.

http://boxd.it/89egH

 

Jan 6, 2016

That Most Important Thing: Love (1975)


Zulawski is a mad man who throws genre conventions out the window. He'll lead you to a conclusion, let the score swell, and yank the floor right out from under you. It's about love, celebrity, money, God, morals. It's universal. At the same time, it's so personal that it's indecipherable madness. It's emotional chaos with an eye for playing with the audience. The pre-cursor to Lars von Trier. The 70s were great, weren't they? 9/10

http://boxd.it/83bSh


Westworld (1972)

Imagine if the last third of Jurassic Park was The Terminator. Now slash its budget and make it a really fun tv movie. There you have it and more than a decade before either. Officially casting my vote for what they remake next. 7/10

http://boxd.it/83fK7

 

Jan 4, 2016

 

Jan 3, 2016

Being John Malkovich - I felt like it was rushed at the beginning but when the plot began to develop and the more and more surrealistic images started to surface on the screen, I realised it's not an ordinary film with a few abstract scenes and the moral at the end of it. In fact, It was much more beyond that. Definitely one of the most creative movies I've seen in my life. Absolutely crazy.

9.5/10

I plan to watch Adaptation today. Spike Jonze is lowkey becoming one of my favourite directors.