by Sam Juliano
This morning’s installment of the Monday Morning Diary is the last before the Thanksgiving weekend, which traditionally is a time for family interaction, turkey dinners (some ravioli or lasagna too if you’re Italian-American) NFL football (of the Cowboys and Lions variety) and a late night trip to the multiplex. This year, The Road, based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy, would seem to be an excellent choice.
Action at Wonders was again most impressive, with a thread on the classic TV series Thriller, Allan’s countdown review of Fargo, and another on composer Bernard Hermmann, all attracting great traffic and hefty comment totals.
On Friday night I attended a wedding of a young female teaching colleague, but rallied to pack six movies on Saturday and Sunday, half of which were seen with the entire family and one on this past Monday for a total of seven:
The Sun (Sokurov) **** 1/2 Sunday 1:00 P.M. – Film Forum
Broken Embraces (Almodovar) **** Sunday 10:30 A.M. – Landmark Cinemas
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call (Herzog) **** 1/2 Saturday night – Chelsea Cinemas
Twilight: New Moon (Weitz) * Saturday afternoon – Edgewater Multiplex
The Blind Side (Hancock) ** Saturday afternoon – Edgewater Multiplex
Planet 51 (Blanco) * Sunday evening – Edgewater Multiplex
Pirate Radio (Curtis) *** 1/2 Monday evening – Edgewater Multiplex
Sokurov’s claustrophobic, meticulously observed study of Emperor Hirohito during the closing moments of World War II, The Sun humanizes the monarch, but neither passes judgement on him nor shows him as undeserving of his fate. The central performance of Issy Ogata is brilliant, and the film, which opened in 2005 at the New York Film Festival, just now received a USA theatrical release. The Russian helmer’s spare, brooding, almost surrealistic style shows some stunning prosaic segments of the devastation of war.
Almodovar’s Broken Embraces isn’t one of the great director’s best movies, but it’s nonetheless a passionate, tragic and satiric film that despite some narrative contrivances and convolutions, still manages some fascinating characters and some superlative individual scenes that recall the most mature Almodovar. Cruz again leaves a strong impression.
Werner Herzog’s Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call makes excellent use of the Katrina-ravaged environs of New Orleans, and some surrealistic touches involving iguanas is wed to a mesmerizing noirish tale that provides Nicholas cage to deliver his best performances in years as a drug-addicted corrupt cop. The film recalls Aguire the Wrath of God.
The new installment of the “Twilight Saga,” New Moon is tedious, vapid, and inane and those might be its better points. My daughter 13 year-old Melanie, however, has been waiting for this for a long time and she and the other kids were not at all disappointed. Lucille thinks I’m being too harsh, but I just haven’t the patience for this.
Sandra Bullock is as good as she’s ever been in The Blind Side, but that’s not really saying all that much. The film is formulaic and it plays shamelessly for the big emotional moments. The film does contain some intermittant humor too, but a day later it’s completely forgotten.
The derivitive Planet 51 is trite, inert and derivative, and after just a few minutes it’s clear it’s low-grade stuff.
Pirate Radio wasn’t always fun to watch, but it’s still hard to resist and the music of course is simply to die for.
I was hoping to see John Woo’s Red Cliff, but I couldn’t do any better than I did, so perhaps during the week.
As always there’s a treasure chest of riches aroung the blogosphere:
At “The Life and Times of Troy” our very good friend, Troy Olson (no Kevin, we have not forgotten about you!) has a superlative round-up of 90’s films he recently saw in preparation for casting a ballot:
Two of Wonders in the Dark’s most-revered friends, have posts up on classical Universal horror. John Greco has a superb piece on display at his place for The Raven:
Our great pal Tony d’Ambra has one of the best posts ever at films.noir.net, which astutely summarizes his latest noir viewings, and utilizes fantastic poster art:
That prince of a guy Dave Hicks, may be a bit blue as his bengals lost a heartbreaker in the waning stages against the lowly raiders, but the Cincinnatians are still on top and Dave may have had his greatest post ever in his 2005 annointment of Terrence Malick’s The New World at his marvelous GoodFellas blog:
Daniel Getahun has what appears to be a most engagingfestival review of a film called Etienne, which deals with dwarf hamsters:
David Schleicher has an awesome post up at “The Schleicher Spin” titleds “The Winter of Our Discontent,” where he talks astutely about upcoming year-end releases:
Judy at “Movie Classics” has a fantastic post on on movie pioneer William Wellman, where she talks about Wings and Public Enemy, and the director’s need to be better represented on DVD. It looks like an essential read for lovers of the classic film:
That renowned film scholar “Just Another Film Buff” has a brand new post, a review on a Thai film by renowned director Apichatpong Weerasethakul. i have seen a few of this talented filmmaker’s works, and tomorrow I plan to dive into JAFB’s superlative essay, as I hope others here will:
At Radiator Heaven, J.D. has a comprehensive review up on the DVD of Blue Chips:
Andrew Wyatt is covering the St. Louis Film Festival the past two weeks, and he has an excellent capsule of on the superb Claire Denis film 35 Shots of Rum at Gateway Cinephiles, and some other great stuff there as well:
At Dee Dee’s place, Darkness Into Light, Andrew Katsis is again on board to pen what appears to an outstanding essay on Oliver Stone’s JFK. I will be adding my two cents there soon, and others are urged to do the same:
At “Cinemascope” the always-exemplary Shubajhit has penned a superb capsule of Kieslowki’s A Short Film About Killing as his lead:
The always-enterprising Samuel Wilson has a Guy Madden vampire ‘avante garde’ essay up at “Mondo 70” which does look terrific:
Jon Lanthier has a very funny post up that I got a charge out of at “Aspiring Sellout” that shows the ever-enterprising and gifted critic yet another side:
Ed Howard’s latest essay is on Mishima’s Patriotism at “Only the Cinema” in preparation of the new Conversations post:
Qalandar still headlines at his place with “Apu-in-the-World” but it’s really a spectacular piece of writing:
At The Aspect Ratio, the home of the prolific Bob Clark and the talented “Ari” there’s an engaging classic Scorsese clip:
At “Living in Cinema” Craig Kennedy has an intriguing post up on Animated Shorts:
Our dear friend Pat at Doodad Kind of Town has a brand new post about turning 50 and on Von Trier’s Anti-Christ:
Dear Dorothy from Inside the Gold will surely be back with a vengaence soon as the year-end awards loom closer, but here’s her latest post:
Film Doctor has a priceless, and I mean priceless piece up on Twilight: New Moon up at his place:
At “When the Dead Walk the Earth” Jeff McMahon has a most intriguing review of a documentary posted:
Ha! Marilyn Ferdinand almost seems pained to review a sports film, but indeed she has at Ferdy-on-Films. I bet it’s a great piece too:
Kaleem Hasan’s “Satyamshot” is always worth a look-see, even when he’s not focusing in on films. it’s a great cultural blog:
and finally……
All list nuts should head over PRONTO to Tony Dayoub’s “Cinema Viewfinder” for his treatment of the year 2001 in film:
Thanks for the link Sam. Haven’t seen may of the movies in Alan’s countdown this week. But I’m planning to. Looking forward to Herzog’s film(s). Thanks for the heads up.
P.S: I’m no “film scholar”. Just a hobbyist!
JAFB, you could have fooled me! LOL! BAD LIEUTENANT in my view is one of Herzog’s best films in any form. I look forward to your response and possible review.
What are your guy(s) thought’s on Abel Ferrara’s film? I’ve always loved it, and found it a visceral, moving film… that so many LOATHE. I will say though that I like Abel Ferrara more then most do probably.
I’ve always thought the screenwriting device of the Mets series that he keeps doubling down on as the movie unfolds is quite fantastic.
Jamie:
I LOVED that Mets screenwriting device! And I liked the film too, though I must say I like this Herzog interpretation of that idea even more. But Keitel was quite a magnetic presence in that Ferrara film!
Sam – Thanks for the plug and the compliments! Without tooting my own horn, I have to say that my piece on The New World is probably among my own personal favorites that I have written. I had been wanting to get something down about that film, which is among the best I have ever seen.
I was ecstatic for the majority of my Sunday, as this morning I watched UP for the first time and was beaming at how great it was. I’m not that familiar with Pixar in general, having seen only a snippet of their overall body of work, so I basically went into Up as a completely neophyte. It exceeded expectations. I don’t know if I’ll close the countdown with 2008 or 2009 (I feel like I haven’t seen enough in the last year, having concentrated on the countdown, to make an informed pick), but if I do finish with this year I have a hard time believing I’ll see anything to top Up. Simply fantastic.
And then… the Bengals of old return later in the afternoon and give away a game that was almost impossible to lose in regulation. Fortunately the Steelers dropped a game to the Chiefs today, maintaining the Bengals lead in the division. But it’s still frustrating to know that if they had beaten the Raiders it would have almost locked up the AFC North.
Now, with that being said, I decided to go ahead and watch WALL-E afterward, riding high after my earlier experience with Up. Wall-E didn’t come close to connecting with me the same that Up did. As petty as it sounds, I still could have been steaming from the Bengals loss, which could have affected my judgment, but this is one that didn’t meet the expectations I built for it after reading sparkling reviews. It was good, don’t get me wrong, but for me Up was on another level. I will say though, I’m now determined to circle back and start working my way through the whole Pixar catalog.
In regards to Up, I forgot to add that I thought that the sequence at the beginning of the film of the guided tour through the married life of Carl and Ellie is on par with the finest silent film sequences I’ve ever seen. Without question, the high point of the movie for me.
Ha! I just made mention of this sequence Dave, in my previous response! Right on!
Dave
I also watched UP this weekend for the first time (it does BluRay and a projector proud). Being quite the WALL-E fan, I’m not sure UP would surpasses it in my book, but in my opinion it’s kind of like determining which is better, pie or cake. Both are great, it just matters what you are in the mood for. Anyways, I hope to get my thoughts up on it soon enough, so I won’t take up all the space here.
Although, looking at my notes, I saw that I wrote “The montage scene that begings the movie showing the life of Carl and Ellie is among the best of its type I’ve ever seen.” So, obviously, I agree with you there! To think I’d have an emotional connection to both characters in that short of a time is a tribute the efficiency and brilliance of that sequence.
One final thought — how many of Pixar’s movies to the readers here claim as out-and-out masterpieces? For me, UP and WALL-E are shoo-ins for that honor, with RATATOUILLE coming close. I’d have to rewatch the older ones (it’s been a few years), but TOY STORY, MONSTERS, INC., and FINDING NEMO seem like they’d have a shot, if not be just a notch below.
Troy my friend, it looks like you and I are COMPLETELY on the same page with the Pixars!!!!
There are three masterpieces of the lot:
WALL-E
Ratatouille
Up
I had WALL-E as my #1 of last year, so UP with probably be lower down on the top ten, but it’s still a staggering achievement. For some reason I like the TOY STORY films less than most people, and while THE INCREDIBLES was very amusing, it has dropped off a bit for me. Your pie and cake comparison is perfect for points of comparison, and I’m with you and Dave on the acrap book sequence, which is surely one of the best individual segments in any film released this year.
Dave: You are not tooting anything, your review at Good Fellas of THE NEW WORLD was clearly one of your best of the entire countdown. And your enthusiasm was frankly infectious, as I’ve had a hankering for several days to watch that film again.
As I conveyed in my review of UP here at Wonders, I found it exhilarating and the first 15 minutes with the scrap book extremely moving. I like WALL-E best of the Pixars, then RATATOUILLE and UP. Needless to say it’s headed for a ten-best berth on my own list. I’m absolutely thrilled with what you say here about WALL-E.
One loss won’t ruin the Bengals. They are headed for the playoffs!
Watched WWII on HISTORY CHANNEL (amazing documentary using newly restored newsreel footage watted up in HD), I have been rewatching films making Allan’s list trying to cull 25 worthy movies for my own submission. I did see, thanks to Sam, J.J. Abrams stunning recucitation of the STAR TREK franchise on DVD this past Tuesday. Operatic, poignant and brilliantly crafted, STAR TREK boldly went the route that few big-budgeted actioners never do. Here, Abrams takes us back to the beginning and visualizes the mythology. I must admit to being impressed with the historic side stories delving into the early lives of James T. Kirk and Mr. Spock. Thematically, I always felt that there was an underlying tale to Spock’s determination on the original show and here, with Zachary Quinto (scary in his almost twin like resemblance to a young Leonard Nimoy) Abrams delves into the tormented childhood of a boy pushed to perfection by sheer will to make up for his failures of not being whole. All in all, i found this film arresting.
Dennis: The WW2 documentary is the best of its kind, though Allan might rate the comparable WW1 as marginally better. But Olivier’s narration and it’s stunning use of newsreel is simply spectacular.
Yes, STAR TREK holds up to these eyes too!
You grew up with The World at War, but The Great War is a greater, more sombre achievement.
Of course the WWII series will always win more viewers in the US as WWI was only something they came in for the epilogue after the real calamities had taken place. It has little resonance Stateside beyond providing songs like Over There and America, I Love You.
DAVE-you are ABSOLUTELY correct in your assessment of Pixar’s UP. I defy anyone to find twenty minutes in any other film made this year that could top the first twenty of this animated master-work. I saw the film several months back and the imagery and story haven’t left me since. Its a beautiful film that blends real human emotion and regret with brilliant moments of fantasy. I’ll say now, and I’m firm in my belief, UP WILL be one of the TEN films nominated for BEST PICTURE at the up-coming Oscar’s ceremony. I’d bet on it.
Yes, the first 20 minutes of UP are great, but on the whole, I prefer RATATOUILLE and WALL-E of their recent output.
As for the best picture nomination, yup, you’d be right. It’s helped that some of the best films of 2009 seems to be small independent films, a very small proportion of which will even get spotted by the academy idiots’ radar.
This will actually mark the first time a Pixar film wins a Best Picture nod, and only the second animated feature, with BEAUTY AND THE BEAST as the other.
But the ten spots did clear the way for UP.
Sam, seriously it amazes me how many movies (both good and bad) you are able to see at the theaters in one weekend.
Thanks as always for the plug.
Here’s the quick bloody run-down from me from the past week of film viewing:
The Men Who Stare at Goats — **1/2 Funny in parts but pretty pointless, though how great it was to watch this on the lam after leaving work early one day.
The Room – Zero Stars — a cult classic totally unworthy of its cult status and not even watchable in that “oh my god this is so bad it’s funny” kinda way — yet I watched it and laughed.
Yella ***1/2 — I checked out this film from the German Pietzold after being quite taken by his recent Jerichow. It’s not as good as that film, but it didn’t disappoint.
Is Anybody There? *** Harmless but forgettable Michael Caine vehicle.
Rewatched (for a whole variety of reasons too long to delve into here) The Last of the Mohicans — ****1/2. This probably should’ve been in my top 25 for the 1990’s and not just in the honorable mentions (and Lone Star, as Allan and Dave Hicks have reminded me, should’ve been in my honorable mentions).
David: I should rightfully be scorned and ridiculed for how many movies I have been seeing recently in theatres. It is frankly ridiculous to do it, and although I have been a huge movie goer since the early 70’s as a teenager, I was never seeing 6 to 8 movie a week in that fashion. I’m trying to spruce up this thread every week and frankly it shows I have a serious mental problem. Many times, Lucille and the kids are there, which for me is always a special treat getting to hug them on both sides, but truthfully, seeing that many movies is counterproductive as the stress and pressure (and putting aside of many more important domestic matters) is unacceptable. I plan to pare down the quantity over the upcoming weeks and concentrate more on quality. And what I am doing with the tolls and multiple admission fees is very expensive too, as you can well imagine. When the whole family goes, it’s maybe $70 to $80 with refreshments.
As to the movies you saw, I liked GOATS even less, but we’re close in opinion. I see what you say there about the pointlessness. I don’t remember THE ROOM, and I know I haven’t seen YELLA, but I am with you on both the Michael Caine film and MOHICANS, the latter of which always holds up on repeat viewing.
Thanks very much for the traditionally great round-up!
Sam, I was implying that I was jealous you had the opportunity to see all those films 🙂
But, yes, I can see how it could “invade” and “take over” one’s life on the weekends. And, wow, the tolls and costs of going into NYC…anytime I go up there I cringe at the ticket prices.
Oh I understood that David. But I used your comments to expound on my recent bout with insanity. LOL!!!
What do you mean recent? You took leave of your sanity when Kennedy was still alive (OK, maybe Bobby not Jack) and you haven’t even bothered to look for it since. You got Lu on the case a few years back to no avail.
Count me in as another person that thinks The Last of the Mohicans is a great film. It made it into my Top 10 in my 90s list here. It’s my favorite from Michael Mann.
Dave, aren’t you also a big fan of Mann’s HEAT?
Dave – it really is a splendid film…my favorite from Mann as well. How Dante Spinotti did not get nominated for best cinematography that year is beyond my comprehension.
Sam – Yes, I am a fan of Heat as well, but I would put Last of the Mohicans above it. Heat being included on the annual countdown and Mohicans being left off is just one of those quirks where the latter had tougher competition — I couldn’t include it over Unforgiven.
I agree about Spinotti, David. The locations in North Carolina look amazing.
Hey Sam —
Thanks for not forgetting about me, hehe. I did manage to watch a few movies in between finishing projects for grad school and watching my Oregon Ducks eke out a win in the nail-biter of the year Saturday night.
I’ll have thoughts on these two films when I return to the blog in a couple of weeks so for now I’ll use your star system:
Funny People (Apatow) ***1/2
The Limits of Control (Jarmusch) *****
See ya in a few weeks!
Oh, and apparently the version of Red Cliff that is being released to American audiences is a horribly butchered two hour version (cut from five-and-a-half hours). Sounds like it’s more worth it to find the real version which is available on a region free DVD.
I am so glad that someone else thinks that The Limits of Control is a five star movie, because it is. I’ll definitely be looking forward to your thoughts on it.
Thanks for that validation Krauthammer. I see you are hosting your own blogathon today on the Mishima at your place. (click on Krauthammer’s name here to go to his site for the extraordinary discussion presently taking place with some of the net’s most brilliant film people taking part). I plan on making a late appearance after I address the comments at WitD.
Kevin: I am saddened to hear that RED CLIFF has been seriously abridged Kevin! Wow, I didn’t realize that. I came very close to seeing it yesterday, and now I don’t feel so bad. Wait for the DVD indeed!
I still haven’t seen LIMITS, as some of the reviews were bad, but after your praise here I see it’s a must to check out. I didn’t care for FUNNY PEOPLE, so your lukewarm response is most understandable.
Good Luck with the exams, and can’t wait to see you posting again!
Thanks for your unfailing loyalty Sam. You are a true mensch. Sorry I can’t reciprocate as I have gone off watching movies for a while – I have been on an Eric Ambler reading binge.
I have the following lined-up on my media center:
La Chienne (1931) – Dir Jean Renoir
L’Atalante (1934) – Dir Jean Vigo
Stakeout (Harikomi 1958) – Dir Yoshitaro Nomura (noir)
Rebecca (1940) – Hitchcock
Slightly Scarlet (1956) – Dir Allan Dwan (DP John Alton)
Accident (1967) – Dir Joseph Losey
Odd Man Out (1947) – Dir Carol Reed
Well Tony, I must say I am definitely most interested in hearing your reactions to REBECCA, L’ATALANTE, LA CHIENNE and ODD MAN OUT most of all. All four are MASTERPIECES and I believe there is something in each one that will dazzle you if I know your taste as well as I think I do.
The Renoir and the Vigo may head up your list, but ODD MAN OUT may be the one too!
Enjoy the reading!
Thanks Sam. L’Atalante and Rebecca will be re-visits after a long absence.
Wow! Six theatrical films in two days, I am in awe. The Almodovar, Herzog and Sokurov films will probably have to wait for a DVD release down here I doubt any will see a theatrical release. Glad to here they were good.
Saw “The Blind Side” and liked it a bit more than you, probably would give it *** if I rated it, though I do agree, “it plays shamelessly for the big emotional moments.”
On DVD I finished up the Bela Lugosi Collection with the superb “The Black Cat”, a brilliantly perverse film done with expressionistic style. Also saw “Always Leave Them Laughing”, an oddity starring Milton Berle, Virgina Mayo and Ruth Roman. For those unfamilar with the film, it is practically a fictional biographical film of Berle limself. The story revolves around an up and coming comedian who steals routines jokes and climbs his way to the top. While I was never a fan of Berle, the film itself is a good backstage story of show business. Additionally, I recorded on my DVR what I thought was a film called “The Hill.” It turned out to be a Westinghouse Studio One TV show from the 1950’s with Dick Foran and a very young pre-star Grace Kelly. Filmed in kinoscope as many of the early TV show were, it was not pretty to look but was interesting.
Finishing up John Baxter’s Woody Allen biography and listening on my drive to work to the recently released memoir/biography of George Carlin “Last Words”
co-written with Tony Hendra who finished up the project after George’s death.
and thanks for the plug!!!
John: Thanks very much as always for the compliment, but it’s clear I need to get a life and moderate my theatrical moviegoing to accomodate the films that are essential. Problem is I must consider the kids too, and when they want to see TWILIGHT and THE BLIND SIDE I must honor their wishes. As I stated above to David though, I plan to pull back in the upcoming weeks.
I look forward to your final recap of the WOODY ALLEM Mbook if you plan to have a piece up at Twenty-Four Frames. And wow, you even take advantage of the time going to work in the car with the audio books. You are amazing!
I haven’t seen the Berle film, so that’s another to put on the “on deck” list. Your reports on THE BELA LUGOSI COLLECTION at your place have been terrific, and I am completely in agreement on THE BLACK CAT as I believe Tony is too. “Perverse” and “expressionistic style” fit it perfectly, I quite agree. Those early TV show kinescopes bring back fond memories of the 39 episodes of the classic HONEYMOONERS, which were filmed that way too. Was THE HILL you were planning to record, the Lumet/Connery title? Very solid film!
Fair enough on THE BLIND SIDE. We both saw the blemishes.
Awesome round-up. You are one who makes use of time with the best of em!
My intention was not to record Lumet’s “The Hill”, a fine film by the way. I just happen to read the blurp that said something like ‘a young couple return to the husband’s home and he is accused of a murder.” Sounded like a low-budget noir that I was unfamilar with and took a chance on recording it. Did not even know Grace Kelly was in in until I started to watch.
I’m really excited for the Herzog film, and hearing the Aguirre comparison just makes it more exciting.
Thanks for the link as always, Sam, though the Mishima essay is in preparation for the new TOERIFC discussion, not one of my Conversations with Jason. The next Conversation, to be posted in early December most likely, is going to be about Lawrence of Arabia.
Anyway, I just finished reading Jonathan Lethem’s excellent novel The Fortress of Solitude, which deals with race and class in very interesting ways in the form of a kind of coming of age tale with very understated mystical elements. It’s inventive and beautifully written. Now I’m starting Bryan Talbot’s acclaimed comic Alice in Sunderland. I’m not sure I’m enamored of Talbot’s busy, overstuffed aesthetic, but it’s certainly original and formally dazzling: an ambitious, messy, all-over-the-place book that leaps through history and mythology in weaving various stories about a particular place.
I’ve also been playing lots of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Not sure that qualifies as culture, exactly, but what can you do? It’s fun, though mostly the multiplayer mode: the actual game story is awful.
Thanks very much Ed. It’s always great to have you here.
Wow, I never knew LAWRENCE was on the schedule. As that is Joel Bocko’s favorite film of all-time, I bet he’ll be there in force, as well he should. But so will I. Thanks for that clarification though.
Ed, after reading of your love for FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, I just did some research and read that it isn’t plot-driven and it’s somewhat comparable to Faulkner and especially LIGHT IN AUGUST, a book I have revered deeply over many years. But what you say about the mystical elements, inventiveness and beauty of the language is enough of a strong recommendation. Perhaps our friend Kevin knows this work. Copies are inexpensive on amazon, I see.
I don’t know SUNDERLAND but again my research just now has shown some astonishing praise. I’ve always loved Carroll of course.
Ed, I have always been a big game lover. Do you know RISK well? We used to have tournaments in this house with friends, as recently as like three years ago. Game got testy too when some players teamed up with others. A hot headed fellow Italian-American friend once asked another player to “step outside” when he was “ganged up” on. Heady stuff! Ha! Games are definitely connected to the intent of the MMD, and that game you are fond of is intriguing.
Thanks as always for the always-special recap.
there’s nowt wonderful about Sunderland, sunshine! For our American friends, Sunderland is a city close to Newcastle, setting of Our Friends in the North and Get Carter. They’re known as Mackems as opposed to Geordies.
What does Lucille say about you leaving the family every weekend to see all these movies? And what kind of an impact does it all have on your wallet if I might ask?
I read a lot about Nic Cage’s performance in that Herzog movie. The Katrina setting is interesting by itself. As far as Twilight goes, better you than me!
If the Giants would have lost yesterday’s game after leading by 14 in the fourth, their fans would have been in mutiny.
Lucille is an “enabler” Joe. A man couldn’t possibly ask for a more agreeble and liberal wife. In fact no other woman would put up with my OCD. That’s not to say I don’t do things with the family–we go everywhere, but the movie theatre is usually the first stop for us. Yes, it has been costly for sure.
Cage was terrific, no doubt.
Yes a Giant loss would have been ugly in more ways than one.
Happy Thanksgiving my dear friend!
I love the term enabler, it’s a euphemism for willing slave, money providers and “do as you’re f*ckin’ told / get down here this instant!” school of spouses.
She’s a saint.
Hey guys. Like that Turkey Day picture!
So will you, Lucille and the kids be staying home for Thanksgiving? I will be visiting a niece and her family for the first time in a number of years. I hope you all have arelaxing extended weekend, you need to take a break from everything.
Enjoy that visit Karen!
As per annual custom, Lucille, the kids and I will be visiting Lucille’s sister in Butler, N.J., which is a gorgeous rural community not far from Sussex County. Over 60 people always attend in that massive abode.
A break indeed! Thanks.
Oh by the way, I thought that Legal’s Seafood was average. I was disappointed with the way they made the shrimp, and the calamari rings were small. I guess it’s all luck of the draw with those places. I’ve heard others really had great experiences there. I’m talking about the one in the Garden State Plaza Mall in Paramus.
I like Legal’s, but there are much better seafood places. The one in Wildwood Crest is tops.
We ate at a Legal’s in Boston a few years back. Not top-rank but perhaps a bit more than “average.”
Boy you are tough on that Sandra Bullock flick. Saw it with the wife Saturday night and rather thought it entertaining. Actually that might have been the best movie Bullock ever made. I don’t say it’s a great movie, but it seemed to have pushed most of the right buttons.
Happy Thanksgiving to All.
Sandra Bullock may be a beautiful woman, but as an actress she has her limitations and seems to always play the same role in different settings.
This is absolutely true what you say here Peter!
Lucille liked it too Frank. And John Greco tolerated it. Critically it seemed to garner half-way decent reviews for the most part. I just couldn’t buy the formulaic story.
Thanks as always Frank.
Hi! Sam Juliano, Allan, and Wonders in the Dark readers,
Sam Juliano said,”but rallied to pack six movies on Saturday and Sunday, half of which were seen with the entire family and one on this past Monday for a total of seven…”
Wow, that is great to take in six films…Sam Juliano, you (and millions) of other movie goers, are luckier than me…because I’am unable to sit in a “darken” room with the light flickering. I usually, end up suffering with a major headache.(After several attempt of movie going…Therefore, I just gave up on going to the theatre.)
Ok…enough of that…
…Sam Juliano, thanks, for plugging writer Andrew Katsis’ review and the mention…as usual…
…Films That I Watched (for the first time) or Rewatched…This Week: ……As I recovered from what ever “symtoms” I was battling.
I decided to watch a couple of Neo-noir(s), a drama and something about a robot.
Sin City…
Pulp Fiction…
Kill me again…
Salton Sea…
L.A.Confidential…
Hollywoodland…(A really interesting film noir…)
Burton’s Batman I and II and finally,…
WALL-E…for the first time…even though I received it for Christmas last year! and girl with a pearl earring.
Two film noir that are still yet to watched and they are Hunted, and Suspense.
Literature: Books That I Added To The Bookshelf:
Books on the (book) shelf and they are:
1.authors Eric Beetner’s and J.B.Kohl’s “One Too Many Blows To The Head.”
2. .I ‘am still reading author D.H. Schleicher’s book entitled “The Thief Maker” and all I can say about author D.H.Schleicher’s book is that it’s still very…“intriguing.”
3. author Ken Bruen’s Lost Boulevard
4. author James Ellroy’s new book “Blood’s a Rover”
5. The Noir Thriller (Crime Files) by Lee Horsley
Theatre, No comment…
Music…No Comment
Food … Hmmm…a very light touch…as usual.
Sports… No Comment…
Politics…No Comment
I guess that about wrap up my week in review for this week.
DeeDee 😉 🙂
Cont…
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Dee Dee, for whatever reason you do not stand alone when it comes to staying away from the movie theatres, though everyone’s reason is different. Some point to the expense, others, the location, and still others like Allan, the lack of theatres in his home area. In your case, it’s also understandable, but your activity on the home front makes up for it in spades. Your line-up there is most impressive, and I know PULP FICTION, HOLLYWOODLAND, L.A. CONFIDENTIAL and SIN CITY quite well, with L.A. my favorite of that group. Actually, I do know THE SALTON SEA as well, which is decent.
Again, all excellent titles to add to the bookshelf there, with David’s book of course the one most of us are very happy about.
Again, a Week of Wonders, dee Dee.
Hey, DeeDee, I, too, liked Hollywood Land, which was an interesting noir throwback. The film has a good story, good acting, and very nice atmosphere. Hollywood Land is not a great film, but a very good and underrated film.
One of the rare good performances from Ben Affleck…and Adrien Brody was good as usual, too.
LMAO And I think that comment might take the cake for most typos by me! Incomplete sentences…incomplete thoughts…WOW! And I present myself as a professional writer. REALLY?
But HOLLYWOODLAND…yeah, it was good…I dug it, yeah.
SALTON SEA was interesting, too. Val Kilmer…actually sympathetic for once.
David: You have a long way to catch up to me with spelling errors and typos. I am the infamous King in that department!!!
I agree with you guys on ‘Hollywood Land’, the film is a nice low key noir, good acting and as David mentions has been underratted.
Hi! Sam Juliano, Allan, and Wonders in the Dark readers,
Sam, you beat me to the…“punch.”
All I can add is this…I hope that you, Allan, and all the Wonders in the Dark readers, (and your families, but of course!) that celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday…have a warm, peaceful, and reflective one…and most definitely,“remember” to keep those with the “greatest” need in your thoughts too!
Cont…
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This is a lovely post, Dee Dee.
This is really something! Your love of art, of comraderies, family and the holiday season have always added to that incomparable persona of yours, our very special friend.
Allan and Tony (being British and Australian) do not celebrate this holiday, but neither do Bobby J., Judy and Sartre among others.
But it’s one of our biggest holidays for so many reasons.
Thanks again!
I don’t celebrate it, Deedee, but that’s a good thing, if we ate Turkey in the UK here and on Crimbo Day, we’d be endangering the species.
Sam Juliano, Allan, and Wonders in the Dark readers,
VCI has announced a February 23rd 2010 release date for the British crime drama …No Orchids for Miss Blandish.
I’am quite sure that several film (noir) collectors all ready own this film.
Woody Haut, is still reporting on the Hollywood and Vine Film Festival. Believe me I don’t know how long this film festival is going to last.
But thanks, to Woody Haut, who don’t know me from “Eve” (In other words, he didn’t suggest that I watch the films on his blog.)
I also watched the 1947 film “Out of the Past” on his blog. (He is now featuring Night and the City on his blog.)
Hollywood and Vine Film Festival.
DeeDee 😉 🙂
________________________________________
Thanks so much for that fantastic news Dee Dee on NO ORCHIDS!!!!
As you may recall I saw this at that Brit Noir Festival at the Film Forum back in August, and wrote a review on the film. Allan finds this infamous British film as a guilty pleasure of sorts.
It is available for only three pounds on Region 2:
but Dee Dee’s announcement here gives Region 1 owners a chance.
And thanks Dee Dee for that link to Woody Haut’s blog!
Thanks as always, Sam. And yes, anybody who has ever owned a dwarf hamster should check out “Etienne!” – it’s a charming little indie comedy. Not really about hamsters, as it turns out, but still about young love and coming of age.
I am highly impressed by your schedule once again, Sam, and also glad to hear Pirate Radio isn’t as bad as most people have suggested. I really would like to check it out one of these days, if only for the music and because I like Curtis’ other films.
Theatrically I only saw Precious, which packed an emotional wallop but perturbed me in a few ways by its resolution, its depictions, and the popular reaction to it. I still need to process it a bit.
I’ll definitely be checking out your review Dan, as soon as I get to answering the responses on this thread. We certainly have enough pets in this house: 2 labs, one pug, one 14 year-old cat, 2 parrots, and 2 rabbits. I know, very very sick.
As I stated earlier on this thread Dan, I need to cut it with the break-neck speed moviegoing, which is virtually consumming every aspect of our weeks off. It’s getting to be that our whole week centers around “seeing movies” and everything else must be planned around that!!!! It really should be the other way around.
PIRATE RADIO is better than what many have said, yes I agree with you there. If you like Curtis’s other films, I think it’s highly probable you will fall for this and the infectious music.
And again, you are dead-on with your early impressions of PRECIOUS. I read a great review of the film by Jason Bellamy over at The Cooler, which I linked last week.
Thanks again for your supremely-appreciated participation.
Ah yes, I forgot you had even more pets than children, Sam! Well you can know that the hamster only plays a supporting role in Etienne!, but I imagine your kids may like it quite a bit.
And yes, Jason’s review I only got to now after seeing it, but he really nailed it.
Sam,
Thanks for the nice words and the link. Happy Thanksgiving! I’m looking forward to seeing The Road on Wednesday,
You and me both Film Dr.! Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family!
TROY-UP is an infectious film. I haven’t come across a person yet who has a negative word for it. In keeping with their strive for excellence, Pixar batted another homer over the fence. While most don’t think its on the level of WALL-E or RATATOUILLE, it nonetheless surpasses, in quality, 99% of the films released this year. However, as I am sure you’re sincere in your admiration, I think you gave the earlier Pixar films a slight bit of short shrift. FINDING NEMO is damn near as perfect as any film they’ve made so far; full of wonderment and heart. TOY STORY is extraordinary in many ways, not least in its depiction of a democratic beurocracy turned on its heels by a new rep with a different outlook on society. BUT, the one you miss, and ultimately their best, is the social-statement laden THE INCREDIBLES. That film holds an adult mirror on the big questions of aging and self-worth that a penetrating and real. Disquised as a comic book, it doesn’t mask the fact its statements stay with you long after its over. Wit
Dennis — I’m not as much of a fan of THE INCREDIBLES as the other films, but it’s still a very, very good movie. I guess I could say UP is also my top film of 2009 thus far, but I’ve seen next to nothing this year, so that claim counts for nothing…
It’s been a while since I’ve seen those other Pixar films, so I’d like to watch them again and see my reaction today. All of this talk makes me very curious to see how these Pixar films are all slotted in people’s Best of the 00’s list…
Troy, I know WALL-E, which was my Best Film of last year, will certainly make my Top 10 of the decade. And I’m sure RATATOUILLE and perhaps UP will place on a numerical list too. But again it’s great we all agree on these films! Do you have multiplexes near you Troy?
Ha, indeed we have multiplexes near us, but I have trouble justifying the cost of a movie nowadays when my home theater setup is immensely more enjoyable. Thus, I usually have to wait for everything to hit DVD.
Anyways, I think the only movie I saw in the theater was DRAG ME TO HELL and that was mostly to go do something with my brother!
Alas, you have an excellent point Troy. We also have agreat system, but when you are constantly seeing movies in theatres, you don’t get to use it as much as it should be. All I need is Allan to read this and he’ll start up again! LOL!!!!
But at the end of the day, with agreat system, you really don’t need to have money going in two directions. DRAG ME TO HELL was a horror film I liked a lot.
Dennis, there a few bloggers who are tired of all the Pixar hoopla for years, and they often make cases that the films are severely overrated. But like Troy, Dave and yourself I just don’t buy it. Yeah, CARS isn’t so great, and I am no big fan of MONSTERS INC., but most will hard-pressed to disparage the rest in persuasive terms.
Thanks Sam for the good words and the link.
Well, I watched just 2 movies this weekend – Lynne Ramsay’s debut feature Ratcatcher (hoping to post its review soon) and a Bengali movie called Hit List, directed by Sandip Ray (son of the legendary, and my favourite filmmaker, the late Satyajit Ray), the review of which I’ve just posted in my blog. The former I liked (Ratcatcher is a rarity in that despite it being an English movie that I had to watch with the subtitles on – the Scottish accent was damn difficult to understand) and am looking forward to watching her second movie Movern Callar which I’ve also got hold of; the latter I found just about okay – neither great nor disappointing, though a reason for that might have been that we’d went to the theatre with enormous expectations.
And speaking of Cincinnati Bengals – interestingly the client for our project is based in Cincinnati, and the state I live in (West Bengal, or shortened, Bengal, and home to the famous Royal Bengal Tigers) is the place on which the second half of the club’s name is based ;P
And speaking of football, American football isn’t very popular in my part of the world. So henceforth when I say that I love the game of football, please read that as what is known as soccer in the US 🙂
Ah yes Shubhajit, I know that differentiation well as my site colleague here, countdown writer extraordinaire Allan Fish, who resides in the UK, also calls soccer “football.” Allan also loves rugby and cricket, two other games that are popular in India I believe.
I do look forward to your upcoming review on Ramsey’s RATCATCHER, a film I did see and like fair enough, and own on Criterion DVD. I know of MOVERN CALLER, but I haven’t seen that one at this point. I agree that the Scottish accents in RATCATCHER necessitated the subtitles. Hey I even used them when I watched loach’s THE WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY and the classic KES. (I hope you have seen the latter here or plan to see it–it’s really a masterpiece.)
Like you I am a huge fan of S. Ray, and consider him one of teh greatest of all film directors. My absolute favorites:
Pather Panchali
Charulata
Days and Nights in the Forest
The Music Room
Devi
Ha! That’s a funny story there about the ‘Bengals.!’
Thanks for the great round-up!
By the way, when I said West Bengal (or Bengal), I didn’t mean Bangladesh. Its a state in India 😉
LOL Shubajhit! Indeed.
Sue and I would like to wish all of you a healthy and peaceful Thanksgiving Day. I know that this will be bittersweet for you Sam, but I commend you for all the diverting activity that has kept your mind in the right direction. A bottomless wallet though, is the down side.
I am also looking forward to ‘The Road.’ But maybe, ‘Up in the Air,’ the Jason reitman film even more. Did I hear that ‘The Lovely Bones’ won’t be coming out until January? There’s few that you reported on that I want to see, especially ‘Broken Embraces.’
Yes Peter, the expense to do what I do is prohibitive, and in this house we need to focus on what is far more important – the kids’s college. When my daughter Melanie gets to that point (and she starts high school next year) I won’t be able to pay her tuition with Masters of Cinema and Criterion DVDs. That’s just the way it goes!
You will definitely like BROKEN EMBRACES. Trust me on that.
Thanks again my good friend.
Finally got around to This is It. I liked it, but maybe not as much as you. The dancing was tops, but the interviews weren’t all that insightful. basically they told us what we already knew. Some of the classic numbers like Billie Jean were dazzling,
I like dit more John, but I see exactly where you are coming from. I also like a number of the big number segments too.
How are you buddy?
Happy Thanksgiving.
I agree with your past position on “Precious”. Great acting, but practically beyond believability.
Same to you and the family Bill.
PRECIOUS doesn’t up too well. Since I saw it it has almost escaped the memory so to speak. But it does have supporters.
Hi! Peter,
Thank-you, for the very nice compliment!
DeeDee 😉 🙂
Decent movie week for me:
-‘Inside’ (2007) was thinking about this one since Halloween, so I rewatched. To me, it’s a modern horror masterpiece.
-‘Belle de Jour’, one of my most glaring film buff area’s is the career of Luis Bunuel. I think I had only seen about 5 of his pictures… I really liked this one. I plan on watching it again this week. I also plan on seeing the rest of his canon over the coming month or two.
-‘Bob the Gambler’. A personal favorite that I put on one night to get sleepy and go to bed. I ended up staying up and watching it in it’s entirety.
-Continued my pursuit I detailed last week to watch Sam Fuller’s entire career (even ones I’ve seen already) after his new box set release. This week I rewatched ‘Pickup on South Street’ and watched ‘Merrill’s Marauders’ for the first time. Overall I liked MM ok.
-‘Husbands’ by John Cassavetes. A fantastic film IMO that has finally received a proper dvd release. Highly recommended.
At the theater I saw ‘An Education’ which I’d definitely recommend to anyone. I await ‘Broken Embraces’ and ‘The Road’. I saw Almodovar and Cruz on Charlie Rose this week and it got me quite interested in seeing it.
This holiday I am staying in Chicago and not traveling home, so I’ve got 4 films from netflix ready for the few days off. ‘Seventh Victim’ (from a recommendation from Tony), ‘The Limits of Control’ (very excited to see this as I am a large Jarmusch fan. I am ashamed to admit I missed at the theaters), ‘Damnation’ (Tarr film I have never seen… after Satanago pick last week I decided to see more of his films), ‘Days of Heaven’ (been about a year and a half since I’ve seen it so I want to revisit), and finally as I do every Thanksgiving I plan on watching ‘Home for the Holidays’ (the one with Holly Hunter) on Thanksgiving evening.
Books: I’ve been pretty much only reading Rainer Maria Rilke’s ‘The Sonnets to Orpheus’.
Television: Spent midweek evenings watching final World Cup qualifiers. Most of the results went the way I wanted.
Also working a bit more on my screenplay. Plan to be completely finished by Christmas still seems possible.
I like the way you say “decent” Jamie! You had a TREMENDOUS week, but then again you maintain that schedule regularly.
BELLE De JOUR is absolutely a masterwork, but you apparently have a number of other Bunuels coming up that will roughly equal it. LOS OLVIDADOS, EL, VIRIDIANA, SIMON OF THE DESERT, EXTERMINATING ANGEL and DISCREET CHARM will hopefully b eamong those you are planning, though you may have already seen a few to this point. (as you did say you saw five.)
BOB LE FLAMBEUR (I’ll get snobby here!) is a Melville gem, one of his best. I can well see why you were riveted. PICKUP is excellent of course and I agree with the mid-range appraisal of MELVILLE’S MARAUDERS. Yes, that Cassevettes is great, although FACES is my favorite from him. But still, it’s foolish to compare them.
As I stated earlier on this thread, the Almodovar is very good, even if falling short of his best work. It may be longish, but it’s rarely boring. I think you will see all its best qualities. And we can have a concurrent report on THE ROAD, which is upcoming.
I also recommend AN EDUCATION, Jamie, especially for the performances, but for me it falls below the Best Films of the Year sub-grouping. Tony’s right to recommend one of Lewton’s greatest RKO B unit films, a personal favorite. tarr’s two best films are SATANTANGO and WERCKMEISTER HARMONIES, but DAMNATION is definitely essential viewing. And the Malick! Ha! What can I say? Beautiful. I know you were reading the Rilke last time, so you must be nearing the end. I’d love to hear what you say in summation.
I have a close friend who got be hooked on the World Cup years back, so I’ll definitely be watching closely. I’m not sure where the USA stands at this point.
I can’t wait to see your finished screenplay!!!!
Superlative round-up as usual.
Thanks got the kind words Sam. I suppose a ‘decent’ week for me is quite the round up of films, but since I’ve been and ‘adult’ (meaning self-sustaining and living alone) I’ve taken it upon myself to try and watch one film every night. Now this doesn’t always happen, but with working from home and having various bouts with insomnia I usually come pretty close to that goal. I must also give credit to my coffee addiction though…
Of the Bunuel’s you mention I’ve seen VIRIDIANA, DISCREET CHARM, and now BELLE. Next up I think will be two that you do also mention: SIMON OF THE DESERT, and EXTERMINATING ANGEL. I really look forward to them all… I also look forward to returning to Allan’s reviews of them and commenting. So far I’ve loved what I’ve seen, he was a supreme master.
HUSBANDS is my favorite Cassavetes, followed probably by A WOMAN UNDER THE INFLUENCE, then probably FACES… but as you say they are all pretty fantastic. HUSBANDS just seems so underrated compared to his other films.
I have seen WERCKMEISTER HARMONIES, just once though and I was young(er), so I will probably see it again in this Tarr kick I’m in. I also have THE OUTSIDER slated on my list, I’ve never seen that.
I agree with you on AN EDUCATION, the power is really the central performance. Definitely not in the upper films from this year though.
The Rilke is different then I had read before (Before it was his LETTERS TO A YOUNG POET then his COMPLETE FRENCH POEMS), so now I’m on his SONNETS TO ORPHEUS. I wouldn’t know where to begin in offering a round up of his work. It is some of the most beautiful things I have ever read, how does one describe that? As Rilke himself says of this exact task: ‘Nothing touches a work of art so little as words of criticism: they always result in more or less fortunate understandings. Things aren’t all so tangible and sayable as people would usually have us believe; most experiences are unsayable, they happen in a space that no word has ever entered, and more unsayable than all other things are works of art, those mysterious existences, whose life endures beside our own small, transitory life.’ Perhaps I can at least offer a round up to expose the uninitiated to him, as he should be read by every single human being.
USA stands in the World Cup Final 32 teams. They won their group. The draw for Groups in December 4th I believe to see the teams they will play when the WC starts in June next summer in South Africa. I can’t wait.
I would be ecstatic if you would read my screenplay, but I would add I am extremely nervous for anyone to read it. I guess that’s natural though.
Congratulations on joining the Inside survivors club, Jamie. I wouldn’t go as far as to call it a horror masterpiece, but it’s something everyone should see, and the photography is a joy, like yesterday’s stale beer.
Oh and ‘Happy Thanksgiving/Holidays’ to the entire Wonders in the Dark crew and following!
The best to you and yours as well Jamie!
Ah, it’s great to have Thanksgiving upon us — good food, fun times with family, some time off work, and even a little shopping (your mileage may vary on that one…)
Beyond the movies, I got to go to two Blazer basketball games during the week, which I always love. I’m trying to catchup on the year in music, but that’s going to take me a while, so I’ll save it for another post.
TV viewing – my wife and I FINALLY had a chance to sit down and finish the season of MAD MEN, which had a perfect ending which should dovetail nicely into next season and some new storyline possibilities.
For my movie viewing of the week, I’ve just been chugging along on the 90’s movies, watching as many as I can. I hope to have some capsule reviews up on these soon on my site. This week I saw:
ROSETTA (commented on this at the link Sam so graciously posted above. Fantastic movie.) ****1/2
THE AGE OF INNOCENCE (found that the emotional pull of it paled in comparison to the similar styled REMAINS OF THE DAY, but overall, still an engrossing film with many bits of technical brilliance and fine acting) ****
RAISE THE RED LANTERN (Absolutely incredible. My top 10 continues to be in flux after watching so many great films this last month — movies that once were shoo-ins are being shoved out of the way by previously unseen masterpieces such as this.) *****
LONE STAR (“Forget the Alamo.” I last saw this over 10 years ago and found it as good now as it was then. A story about family, revisiting the past, and the sins of our fathers all disguised as a densely plotted cop movie) ****1/2
UP (I’m currently writing a review for this, but my wife and I watched this for the first time over the weekend and were both blown away — funny, poignant, touching, and beautiful to look at) *****
I still have close to 20 movies I want to watch for the 90’s countdown, so here’s hoping I get the time in the next two weeks…
Good luck, Troy.
As for everyone, have a great Thanksgiving. Ebernezer Fish here will munch on whatever scrags he can get as we don’t have half the holidays you guys have. HUMBUG!
Sam, I can definitely recommend Fortress of Solitude. I wouldn’t put Lethem in the same league as Faulkner, but I can understand the comparison. It’s definitely not a plot-driven book by any means, more of a study of a particular neighborhood and the people in it as it’s slowly gentrified and changes over the years. It’s a great, complex book with all sorts of stuff going on.
Allan, if you’re familiar with Sunderland and the Mackems and the local history, I’d imagine you’d get a lot out of Alice in Sunderland. I’m enjoying it well enough so far, but I can see that a foundation in this kind of stuff would make it much more accessible and would probably open up all sorts of additional layers. I do love this particular style that seems to be common in British writing, the multi-faceted exploration of a particular area and its history, myths, and stories: Alan Moore and Iain Sinclair have also done fabulous work in a similar vein.
Ed: You’ve done again, if it that wasn’t your intent. You’ve so impressed me with your enthusiasm and fecund appraisal, that I just bought a “Like New” paberback edition of the book on amazon for $2.99 plus $3.99 shipping. Now that’s an excellent price, I’m sure you’ll agree! The Xmas holidays will be a time to look at this! Thanks too for those specific literary clarifications!
You kiddin? I was there last Xmas holidays, you’ll be doing 4 movies a day all holidays time and blogging when not.
Wish I could get him to order videos so easily, Ed. It normally goes like I recommend something, he doesn’t get it, he hears of it from someone else – someone he respects – and then I tell him it’s been available, he denies I ever told him and proceeds to go buy it. LOL
Your recommendations over the past five years have resulted in my spending better than three thousand dollars, and over 200 items. I assure you no one in my personal life or on the net is remotely close to you.
It was light hearted, old boy. It just made me laugh the thought that you’d read anything over Xmas. That Bergman book I got has gathered dust for 12 months…LOL
I do look at the Bergman from time to time, as well as the equally extraordinary Mario Bava coffee-table volume written by Video watchdog’s Tim Lucas. Anyway Ed’s book only cost me 8 bucks with shipping.
I wouldn’t say I’m familiar with Sunderland, Ed, I#ve only been there a couple of times, but it sounds intriguing, were not films and the eternal reviewing taking up so much time. My life is one long WWW at the moment – watch, write, work. I’ll geta bit of time to myself at Xmas, but it’ll still be a time when I’d hope to watch around 50 films in the 16 days and do a pile of reviews.
Great to know you too are an admirer of Satyajit Ray. My absolute favourites from Ray’s filmography (in no particular order) are:
Days & Nights in the Forest
Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne (Adventures of Goopy & Bagha)
Nayak (The Hero)
Apur Sansar (The World of Apu) in particular & Apu Trilogy in general
Agantuk (The Stranger)
The Calcutta Trilogy – Seemabadhha (Company Limited), Pratidwandi (The Adversary) & Jana Aranya (The Middleman)
Kapurush (The Coward) – which is part of the double-bill ‘Kapurush O Mahapurush’
Joi Baba Felunath (The Elephant God)
Do watch some of these movies in case of course you haven’t already watched them.
I’d written an article on Satyajit Ray a few months back for a website called Culturazzi for which I write from time to time. It was published in 3 parts. I’m providing you the link to the 1st part –
http://culturazzi.org/review/people-celebrities-artists/satyajit-ray-part1
At the end of each part there’s the link to the next part. Do have a look at the article and let me know your opinion about it. You’ll find the link to the other articles & reviews I’d written for the website at my blog.
Unfortunately I haven’t watched the Ken Loach movies you’ve mentioned. I’ll certainly look out for them and try to cleanse myself off this ignominy 🙂
And please do convey my appreciation to Allan whose brilliant countdown reviews I’m really enjoying. And yes, as Allan has rightly told you, cricket is a craze in India with Sachin Tendulkar holding the position usually allotted to gods and saints. And (I’m sure this will piss Allan off given that he is a Brit) I’m of the opinion that Maradona was the greates footballer there ever was 😉
Shubhajit, this is a response for the ages! I am stunned. Well, thanks for that link, I just read your piece and it’s maybe your finest. My Ray order is a bit different, but of course you’ve seen every Ray film, while I have not. i do own the Region 2 BFI Ray sets, and I have just about every film of his now, after a lending hand from my dear Indian-American friend, Kaleem Hasan, who contributes here regularly. He is like you quite the scholar on Ray, Ghital, Mukargeee and all the others. The piece you wrote is informative, passionate and eloquent, and I do appreciate it. As of late I have really come to believe that THE MUSIC WORK is a staggering masterpiece to join several others.
One of our most celebrated contributors here at the site in another Indian-American named Qalandar. He just posted a few weeks backa piece on APU that I’m sure you will love and appreciate:
http://qalandari.blogspot.com/2009/11/apu-in-world-response.html
And I will convey your message and compliments to Allan, who I’m sure will see this post!
You know Sam means business when the words STAGGERING MASTERPIECE are trotted out.
As for my brilliant reviews, far too generous Shubhajit, but welcome all the same. As for Ray, always glad to see Nayak get some love. Not perfect, but shamefully neglected in the US.
As for Maradona, he wasn’t the greatest footballer who ever lived, Pele and George Best would be ahead of him. And yes, I’d personally like to take his hand of God and stick it in a blender.
Do you like Shatranj Ke Khilari (The Chess Players), Shubhajit? I saw it when it was actually shown on British TV a little while back, and loved all the scenes of the men playing chess and chatting while everything happened around them, as well as the more dramatic moments. I’ll keep your list of his best movies to hand in the hope that I get the chance to see some of them.
David said,”LMAO And I think that comment might take the cake for most typos by me! Incomplete sentences…incomplete thoughts…WOW! And I present myself as a professional writer. REALLY?”
D.H. Schleicher, I think that you are a professional writer…I’am reading your book entitled…The Thief Maker and the story is interesting and moving along at a steady pace. So, far I haven’t noticed any typos while reading your book …The Thief Maker whatsoever!
David, courage, courage, you must have…courage. 🙂
You know what I mean when I use the word…“courage” (I’am speaking, more mentally…)remain strong and steadfast and believe in your wonderful writing ability…
…because I do!
David said,”REALLY?… Yes, I do!
Unless of course you are just kidding around…then my response to your post is most inappropriate. 😳
Take care!
DeeDee 😉 🙂
Dee Dee, your vote of confidence in everyone (and everything) remains a beautiful thing here on these threads and everywhere else you leave your indellible mark. And of course David appreciates you as much as anyone.
Happy Thanksgiving to all those of you in the US – sorry to be late in chiming in on this thread but I’ve had no computing time at all! Thanks for the plug, Sam, much-appreciated as ever – all I’ve really watched this week is ‘Wings’ by William Wellman, which I’m now pretty well obsessed with, and a couple of documentaries about Wellman. I really want to see new release ‘Amelia’, as I’m now in the mood for as many aviation dramas as possible, but unfortunately my local multiplex only ran it for a week late in the evening and I couldn’t get there. I’ll have to wait for the DVD.
Judy, thanks so much for your classy Thanksgiving greeting to all the US readers at WitD.
I salute you for this Wellman binge, as I’ve always found that the best way to completely appreciate the work of an artist of this magnitude in to conduct a full survey and immersion into his or her complete output. (if available.) I can’t say I blame you for the adoration for WINGS, which is one of the glories of the American silent cinema. Again I do look forward for further posts, as your first one has really hit the mark. AMELIA received very mixed reviews, but I can well see why the subject matter would appeal at this particular time. Sorry it left so fast though. Best wishes to you.
SAM-NOT GONNA MAKE IT FOR DINNER-GONNA BE WORKING LATE-Dennis
Sorry to hear this news.
Sam, am moving house this week, so will post next week.
Bobby: Hope all goes well with the move and thank you. Look forward to hearing from you next week.
Pained to review a sports movie? I’ll have you know I was a rabid Chicago Bears fan in my younger days and some of my favorite films are sports-related (Rudy, Breaking Away, Wimbledon). Big Fan is a wonderful film, and I urge everyone to go see it, rent it, buy it, whatever you have to do to get your hands on it. The script is one of the best of the decade.
LOL Marilyn!!!!!!! To be truthful I’m also a big sports fan. The Yankees have always been a lifelong obsession, and I once held season tickets for the New York Islanders hockey franchise for eight years during their glory phase. I like the Jets in football. But that just goes to show you that I need to get to your review pronto.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours my good friend.
Sue and I have tentative plans to see “The Road” tonight at that AMC in Paramus. There are a few negative reviews, but the vast majority are favorable.