Sep 3, 2015

I'm glad Denis finally got decent enough at filmmaking to play with the big boys.

 

Sep 6, 2015

I saw Gertrud, the 5th film i see by Dreyer and i must say this one takes the last spot. Beautiful photgraphy with powerful moments but the way the characters behave are not believable to me and i would lie if i say i didn't feel bored at times not only because the film is very slow but because some parts are just flat or tasteless. 7/10

Also saw Pitch Perfect II. 5.5/10

 

Sep 6, 2015

Masterpiece alert: Charles Burnett's Killer of Sheep

Looks and feels like an Italian neorealist film from the 1940s but instead of post-WWII Italy, the setting here is 1970s Watts, with an outer appearance that almost looks like it too may have been emerging from postwar rubble. The film is not plot driven in the least, but rather plays as a series of "slice-of-life", observational vignettes that effectively blur the line between reality and fiction. While the overall tone is somber and melancholic, the film manages moments throughout of tremendous warmth and humanity. Highly recommended.

 

Sep 6, 2015

Prisoners is a masterpiece

In other news: VIFF press screenings starting Wednesday!

 

Sep 8, 2015

Bought NYFF tickets today for The Lobster, Cemetery of Splendour, Mountains May Depart and Right Now, Wrong Then. If I get time, I may try to fit in another movie or two.

http://www.filmlinc.org/nyff2015/sections/main-slate/

 

Sep 10, 2015

Fritz Lang's M is one of the best movies I've ever seen. Hands down. Just the technical stuff alone dropped my jaw (1931???), but the moral play at the end after a brilliant and suspenseful procedural was magic. God d--- I love movies.

 

Sep 10, 2015

Fritz Lang's M

 

Sep 10, 2015

@Woody - Jurassic Park

 

Sep 10, 2015

My VIFF15 watchlist, will be updating as I screen films, and will be posting reviews/ratings once published
http://letterboxd.com/kamahmed/list/viff-2015/

Mabel Cheung's A Tale of Three Cities is dope af, near masterpiece.

 

Sep 11, 2015

I will check those out asap

 

Sep 11, 2015

I nominate The Wages of Fear (1953) for the most needlessly bad ending of all time. M Night pales in comparison to this fuckery. I was luke warm on it at first, but about 45 minutes in the plot gets moving and there's a heavy tension to everything. You really feel that existential dread in the pit of your stomach. If they had cut to black 3-4 minutes earlier, I would have been having a real introspective moment instead of laughing uncontrollably.

Spoiler

"He collapses in front of the burning rig, finally at rest. Not even phased by the h--- before him. The real h--- is all behind him. Cut to black." - The writer
"Put the lotion in the basket" - The deranged person who did the rewrite

Here's the inner monologue of the main character:
Hey, I just survived a harrowing journey where I was faced with sure death. Even a couple of my friends died. "I don't feel safe unless I'm driving." Haha, funny jokes. That shower really stripped me of the emotional baggage and case of PTSD I just got. I better drive like a comical f---ing lunatic. Big dumb grin on my face. I hope that "savage" that I don't give a s--- about greets me before I leave her in this purgatory to die. I mean, she probably heard the other guys died so she might be sad... Or shrug it the f--- off and start salsa dancing. LOL, who knows. Switching lanes like Mike f---ing Jones around sharp corners on a steep mountainside is fun rofl. Cue gratuitous hundred foot fall. I'm dead lol. Pan to my stupid f---ing face like a seatbelt safety ad. "Fin"

Roger Ebert - 4/4
RottenTomatoes - %100 (40 votes)

I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

Charlie Kaufman recommended me this film. That b------.

 

Sep 11, 2015

Haven't seen Wages myself, but Friedkin's Sorcerer is a great adaption of the original story.

 

Sep 11, 2015

I need a palette cleanser before I watch something that reminds me of that ending. Added to my watchlist.

 

Sep 11, 2015

Never heard of it, but I'll keep it on the radar!

I only remember Wages of Fear being awesome, but my memory of the ending is admittedly a bit hazy.

 

Sep 11, 2015

From what I can tell, I'm the only person to ever feel this way about it lol. The reason why is beyond me.

 

Sep 11, 2015

rip d-ck Moore -- if you don't know who that is, i f---ing pity you

 

Sep 11, 2015

M Night got a hit on his hands

 

Sep 11, 2015

He's back, snitches! Did you see it?

I saw Breathe tonight by Melanie Laurent with a Q&A from her afterwards. Though not entirely successful, it's certainly a confident and assured sophomore feature. Laurent clearly has a thorough emotional understanding of her young characters and an acute sensitivity to just how quickly relationship dynamics can change among them. The film is at its best in the first half when depicting the characters' burgeoning friendship and its subsequent shift off its axis. Unfortunately, the film loses steam along the way and its appealing naturalistic quality gives way to moments that are less convincing and less organic. This is most glaring in its "shock" ending, which Laurent isn't quite able to pull off. Still, she's definitely talented and I'd be interested in seeing her future work (She also seemed pretty cool in the Q&A).

 

Sep 12, 2015

Yeah. I liked it quite a bit. It takes a fresh approach to the found footage genre by placing the main character in the role of an aspiring filmmaker making a documentary about meeting her grandparents for the first time. This allows for an actual visual style to take form as opposed to the typical sloppy shaky cam one would expect from such a movie. It seamlessly walks the line between horror, comedy and drama and never lets up on the entertainment factor. The scare scenes could at one moment have the audience laughing hysterically and the next be left completely horrified. One of the most purely enjoyable movies of the year for me with a really strong ending.

 

Sep 12, 2015

Well s---...actually sounds good, I'll put it on the list!