by Sam Juliano
Sweltering heat. Stern weather advisories. And a time to add a new culinary trick to those tiring of using the backyard grill: frying eggs on the sidewalk. Those residing in the NYC metropolitan area have seen temperatures soar over 90 in the A.M. hours and remain in the high 80’s at night. It’s time to take refuge indoors and to stay there, unless one has an unusually high tolerance for outdoor steam baths. It’s a good time to head out to the multiplexes if you’re lucky enough not to burn yourself when you enter your car. Luckily, the majority of our readers are not from the area -some indeed live in the southern hemisphere, where they are in the throws of winter – and may be getting this potentially dangerous situation in lesser degrees. At any rate it appears we are in for an uncompromising summer. Those in my own household will get a two week European reprieve, and hopefully others have vacations on their schedules.
Once again we would like to thank Dee Dee for her remarkable work on the sidebar and the exciting new updates on the recent activities of the Film Noir Foundation and fantastic new restorations in the work. The specific report on Woman on the Run signifies celebration time for noir fans.
The western polling continues towards the conclusion of it’s first stage: the submission of ballots. The ninth submission was made by Dennis Polifroni, who opted to extend the boundaries with his own Top 60 choices, some of which included some most interesting hybrids. The balloting will continue until 11:00 P.M. EST on Thursday, August 1st. Note: I stand corrected. There have been 13 ballots this far submitted.
With the heat and the general malaise on the theatrical movie front, Lucille and I only ventured out to see three films, two with some of the kids. We saw:
I’m So Excited ** 1/2 (Saturday night) Chelsea Cinemas
Despicable Me 2 *** 1/2 (Saturday morning) Secaucus
Rosemary’s Baby (1968) ***** (Thursday night) Film Forum
The rare Pedro Almodovar misfire? Well, maybe I’M SO EXCITED isn’t as dire as some critics have asserted in a divided consensus, but it’s one of his weaker and more disjointed films, that spends most of it’s time buffooning gay stereotypes, with a kinky undercurrent. Like all Almodovar movies there are some inspired gags, but all in all too few and far in-between. The most exciting aspect of Saturday night’s trip to the change-of-owners Chelsea multiplex (now Bow Tie Cinemas) wasn’t the movie nor the hum-drum meal at the slowly-declining “Dish” we have long frequented mainly because of the people who work there, but the two trailers of upcoming films by Martin Scorsese and Woody Allen.
DESPICABLE ME was in large measure a charming and imaginative animated feature and the sequel, DESPICABLE ME 2 retains much of that -especially a terrific use of popular songs- and the minions are as adorable as ever – but it lacks the emotional resonance and novelty of the first film. Still, with the state of movies as stagnant at this time as any other time of the year this is a worthy choice for those dashing off to take in multiplex air conditioning.
The Film Forum print of ROSEMARY’S BABY was a stunner, and I will soon be reviewing the film as part of a contribution to a blogothon William Castle run by Jo at THE LAST DRIVE-IN that is scheduled for July 29th to August 2nd.
Screen cap from Almodovar’s “I’m So Excited”
Most of the links have been updated:
Samuel Wilson has authored an excellent piece on a raity–the 1916 silent western “Hell’s Hinges” at Mondo 70: http://mondo70.blogspot.com/2013/07/hells-hinges-1916.html
Tony d’Ambra has penned a stupendous review on the 1944 Finnish noir “The Way You Wanted Me” at FilmsNoir.net: http://filmsnoir.net/film_noir/the-way-you-wanted-me-finland-1944-pretty-little-angel-eyes.html
Judy Geater has written a superlative review for the ‘Margaret Rutherford blogothon’ at Movie Classics on David Lean’s “Blithe Spirit”: http://movieclassics.wordpress.com/2013/06/28/margaret-rutherford-in-blithe-spirit-david-lean-1945/
Sachin Gandhi is leading at Scribbles and Ramblings with a fantastic discussion of the WitD western countdown, one that includes a brief talk about spaghetti westerns and his exceptional Top 60 ballot: http://likhna.blogspot.com/2013/06/essential-western-films.html
Jon Warner has penned yet another extraordinary reviews at Films Worth Watching on Richard Linklater’s “Before Midnight”: http://filmsworthwatching.blogspot.com/2013/07/before-midnight-2013-directed-by.html
Laurie Buchanan’s leading post at Speaking From The Heart is the thought-provoking “A Spiritual Practice at Play”: http://tuesdayswithlaurie.com/2013/07/02/the-spiritual-practice-of-play/
Weeping Sam at written two brilliant posts on the Battle of Gettysburg at The Listening Ear that every history buff owes to themselves to check out. Here is the latest one: http://listeningear.blogspot.com/2013/07/gettysburg-continued.html
Joel Bocko offers up a link to his already-published, sensational essay on Twin Peaks Lonely Souls at The Dancing Image: http://thedancingimage.blogspot.com/2008/11/twin-peaks-lonely-souls.html
John Greco has written a fabulous bool review on “The Best Film You’ve Never Seen” at Twenty Four Frames: http://twentyfourframes.wordpress.com/2013/07/05/book-review-the-best-film-youve-never-seen/
Shubhajit Lahiri has written an extraordinary capsule review of the 1955 Spanish gem “Death of a Cyclist” at Cinemascope: http://cliched-monologues.blogspot.com/2013/07/death-of-cyclist-1955.html
Roderick Heath has authored an extraordinary homage to special effects wizard extraordinaire Ray Harryhausen at Ferdy-on-Films: http://www.ferdyonfilms.com/2013/the-7th-voyage-of-sinbad-1958-the-golden-voyage-of-sinbad-1973/18929/
Dee Dee’s ‘Ning’ is currently featuring a lead post on the 1947 noir classic “Nightmare Alley”: http://filmnoire.ning.com/video/nightmare-alley-1947-parte-1
Murderous Ink at Vermillion and One Nights leads up with a fabulous new post on “Conversion to Talkies: Case for Foreign Films”: http://vermillionandonenights.blogspot.com/2013/07/conversion-to-talkies-case-for-foreign.html
David Schleicher has penned a classic take down of “World War Z” at The Schleicher Spin: http://theschleicherspin.com/2013/06/25/im-sick-of-these-zombies-in-world-war-z/
Jaimie Grijalba has written three excellent capsules on new releases at Overlook’s Corridor: http://overlookhotelfilm.wordpress.com/2013/07/07/three-films-of-2013-expected-edition/
At the ever-ravishing Creativepotager’s blog Terrill Welch manages to capture the “emotion of the Canadian landscape”: http://creativepotager.wordpress.com/2013/06/23/capturing-the-emotion-of-the-canadian-landscape-is-no-easy-task/
Jeffrey Goodman celebrates the Talking Heads’ “Remain in Light” is a terrific musical post at The Last Lullaby: http://cahierspositif.blogspot.com/2013/06/remain-in-light-talking-heads-1980.html
David Schleicher has penned an excellent essay on the new Superman movie at The Schleicher Spin: http://theschleicherspin.com/2013/06/15/tea-party-wish-fulfillment-messianic-fetishism-and-the-american-way-in-man-of-steel/
The best in Indian film, politics and culture is on display at Kaleem Hasan’s incomparable Satyamshot: http://satyamshot.wordpress.com/
Patricia Hamilton’s latest post at Patricia’s Wisdom is a fabulous review of the novel “The Fault in Our Stars” by John Green: http://patriciaswisdom.com/2013/07/the-fault-in-our-stars-a-novel-john-green/
Drew McIntosh presents a fascinating point of contact between two films at The Blue Vial: http://thebluevial.blogspot.com/2013/06/points-of-contact-61313_13.html
Felix Gonzalez Jr. has written a terrific capsule assessment of the underrated “Return to Oz” at Film Fantomes: http://filmfantomes.wordpress.com/
Dean Treadway has a fantastic display of 70 double-feature movie posters up at Filmicability: http://filmicability.blogspot.com/2013/05/i-love-double-feature-movie-posters.html
Michael Harford’s latest post at the revived Coffee Messiah blogsite is another poetic collaboration with Paul Hawkins: http://coffeemessiah.blogspot.com/2013/06/week-6-38.html
J.D. LaFrance at Radiator Heaven has penned a typically great and comprehensive review on Josh Wheadon’s “Serenity” at Radiator Heaven: http://rheaven.blogspot.com/2013/06/serenity.html
Hokahey has written a wonderful piece on the “The Lone Ranger” at Little Worlds: http://hokahey-littleworlds.blogspot.com/2013/07/wild-west-lone-ranger.html
Craig Kennedy has posted a terrific (and favorable) review of Berberian Sound Studio at Living in Cinema: http://livingincinema.com/2013/06/14/berberian-sound-studio-2013/
The exceptional writer Andrew Katsis has a terrific essay on “Casablanca””’ up at Dee Dee’s place Darkness Into Light: http://noirishcity.blogspot.com/2013/04/heres-looking-at-you-kidas-my-writer.html
One of the best writers out there, the incomparable Ed Howard is still working at an impressive pace at Only The Cinema, with his latest post on the silent classic “Golem”: http://seul-le-cinema.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-golem-1920.html
Monster Girl has posted a terrific piece combining minor horror classics “The Man They Could Not Hang” and “Before I Hang” at The Last Drive In: http://thelastdrivein.com/2013/06/23/monstergirls-150-days-of-classic-horror-9-before-i-hang-1940-the-man-they-could-not-hang-1939/
Jason Bellamy tackles Malick’s To the Wonder in typically spectacular form at The Cooler: http://coolercinema.blogspot.com/2013/04/penrose-stairs-to-wonder.html
Paddy Mullholland has penned an outstanding capsule review takedown of “A Field in England” at Screen on Screen: http://screenonscreen.blogspot.com/2013/07/review-field-in-england.html
Click on names for archives
Writers/Founders
After our recent spell of rains & related flooding, I am yearning for some warm weather. There was a bit of a minor thunderstorm this weekend but hoping that was
the last of it.
The minions are indeed adorable & were the best aspects of DESPICABLE ME 2. I am glad to hear they will get their own movie next year.
Sam, try to see the Indian film LOOTERA, it opened this past Friday. It is a period film that is inspired by the Bengali cinema of Ray & Rituparno Ghosh. It has a nice layered sound design & excellent visuals.
Thanks for the mention. Have a good week ahead. Try to stay cool & watch out for those eggs on the sidewalks 🙂
Sachin—-
Your wish would be granted and then some if you resided in these parts! Ha! But I do know and deeply sympathize with you on the horrible flooding and dire weather you have been socked with in past months. There seems to have been so much rain over the last year as well. The minions are hard to resist, though the traditional anti-animation people will dismiss it while rubbing their noses. Like the first film there was imagination to spare. Some ideas don’t work of course, but that’s a given. I didn’t realize the minions were getting their own movie though! Excellent. I will make every effort to see LOOTERA, which I am assuming is opening in the NYC area? I will immediately investigate it! I will aim in fact to see it over the coming weekend my friend! Aye, it’s even too hot to fry those eggs outdoors! Have a great week my friend, and I have my fingers cross on your weather situation up there!
Post-script!!! Just investigated the situation with LOOTERA and found it is playing in a combined Indian/commercial multiplex in Union City, N.J. just 20 minutes drive from my home!! It is playing in the afternoon and at 6:50 P.M. every night. By George I’ll be seeing it over the next three days for certain, though not yet sure which night.
Thanks a lot Sam for the mention.
My sympathies for the sweltering hear that you are having to endure, even though, temperature in the range of say, 90-94 deg. F (32-34 deg. C) is reasonably comfortable according to Indian standards during summer time. The place that I’m residing in now, viz. Pune, is comparatively far coller during summers vis-a-vis other major Indian cities in the plains. Its hovering between 26 deg. C (max) & 20-22 deg. C (min.), with light showers thrown in between, making the weather seem that much more comfortable for us all 🙂
Anyway, here’s what I managed to watch in the meantime:
– Hungarian filmmaker’s affecting dram based during the Nazi-occupied era, Confidence
– Oshima’s freewheeling, experimental & political exposition, The Man Who Left His Will on Film
– Bunuel’s trenchant satire on the bourgeois class, Diary of A Chambermain
– The elegiac Western by Sydney Pollack, Jeremiah Johnson
– An overly sentimental Bollywood adaptation (recent release) of the O’Henry short story “The Last Leaf” which I watched in the theatre on account of my friends, Lootera
Diary of a Chambermaid may be Bunuel’s most under appreciated masterpiece. The ending is also one of my favorites.
The Man Who Left his Will on Film is another favorite of mine. It was the Oshima film I revisited when I heard he had passed away.
Shubhajit—-
Thanks for that sobering perspective on the heat situation in India. You are used to it and wouldn’t find what we’ve been regaled with as anything too radical. Ha! Al least your current residence is reasonably comfortable. I just looked on a map, and see you are least fairly close to the sea, but perhaps not as close as it may seem:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pune
Hopefully you occasionally get a chance to travel to the coast. Thanks for the great information my friend! I still haven’t seen that particular Oshima, though I have seen just about all his others. Completely agree with your capsule assessment of CHAMBERMAID and with Anu’s follow-up assessment that it’s underrated. As far as CONFIDENCE I may not have seen it. I must say I do love JEREMIAH JOHNSON too. And as far as LOOTERA, I did mention to Sachin above that I would see it this week. Then I’ll compare notes. Have a great week my friend!
I haven’t heard too many good things about Almodovar’s kinkfest either. But I’m sure your kids must have enjoyed round two of the minions. The first one was a lot of fun.
Trying to stay clear of the heat, but to little avail.
Congratulations to the Brits for their Wimbleton win! It took over 70 years.
Peter, as I stated above, the reviews on the film have been lackluster, probably the worst for any of his films, though a sizable minority expressed satisfaction with it. Yes the minions are irresistible for the kids, and they enjoyed the second installment. Just stay indoors all you can!! Ha!
Yes, 77 years to be exact for the Brits. Big day especially for Scotland.
Have a great week my friend!
I’m very excited about the Western poll and look forward to the countdown. Though will it include “modern” westerns like Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia and Bo Country for Old Men, or only stick to the traditional period westerns?
I haven’t really been all that excited about the summer blockbusters this year, and the few I went to were underwhelming to say the least. So basically I’m staying away from the theaters this season. However I have had time to publish a new blog post on Godard’s incredibly underrated Ici et Ailleurs (I was really hoping Allan would do a review of it during that stretch of Godard reviews he posted last month but I gurss he decided not to) and revisit a few favorites at home.
Anu—-
I am rather delighted that you broached the subject of quasi and revisionist westerns, as I have been arguing for their inclusion right along. We have had some brawls on e mail chains, pitting those whop prefer a more constricted, precise and traditionalist interpretation of what a western against those (like myself, Jon Warner, Weeping Sam and Dennis) who would rather the genre include hybrids like THE LAST PICTURE SHOW, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, HUD, BLAZING SADDLES, THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE, OKLAHOMA! BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK, THE GRAPES OF WRATH and to great debate even something like Kurosawa’s SEVEN SAMURAI. Those opposing the widening of boundaries have argued for a strict definition of what a western is or should be, while I have steadfastly stood by the proposition that every voter pick their own choices within their own guidelines. But I am not asking for a definition, only a Top 60. Which reminds me, my friend. A Top 60 ballot from YOU would be deeply appreciated if you can do it. We have received (according to Maurizio) 13 ballots so far, and expect we’ll probably go over 20 at least. The deadline for SUBMISSION is August 1st. We will then tabulate, and assignment for writing will be distributed. (a good number of assignments have in fact been handed out should the proposed choices make the Top 60) I will forward you some of the ballots that have already been sent out to the e mail chain as per our regular routine during countdowns today (to your e mail address). If you decide you don’t want to vote there is no problem with that either, but I’ll sent you some of the ballots I’ve received so far from people like John Greco, Sachin, Dennis, Allan, Maurizio, Frank, Brandie, Jamie, myself and others. Remember, casting a ballot does not mean you need to write a single essay. That option is apart from voting.
Great to hear you have a Godard post up there and I’ll be soon checking it out myself. have a great week my friend!!!
I would love to be apart of the countdown and you can expect a ballot from me within the week. Thank you so much!
Oh wow, fantastic my friend!!! You have made my day!!!!
Sam, I have been saving all the submissions you’ve given the group during emails. I plan on attaching them at the bottom of each countdown piece like I did for the comedy list. I currently have 12 official ballots and not 9 (and this does not even include Dennis’ which would be 13 and has not been made public yet).
Maurizio, in what appears to have been a bizarre accidental omission you were left off the thread that announced Dennis’ ballot. It was actually sent out on Thursday. Thank goodness we broached it here or you would not have seen it for quite a while if the error went undetected. And it looks like I have seriously underestimated the number of ballots that have been submitted! But I am delighted that there are several more! I have just forwarded several of the e mails on Dennis’ thread and a follow-up one on the western writers polling. I am thrilled to hear you will be doing the ballot placements again!!!
So far we have you, me, Dennis, Jamie, Allan, Frank Gallo, Dean, Brandie, J.D., John Greco, Peter, Dave H, and Sachin.
Wow, that’s really great news!! I am back-tracking to send all the ballots I can find from my e mails to Anu right now.
Hello Sam and everyone!
Well, you had a nice week and I miss the summer, here we have such low temperatures that is sometimes frightening. I haven’t seen any of the films you saw this week, regretably so.
My week at the movies:
– A Field in England (2013, Ben Wheatley) ***1/2 After seeing ‘Sightseers’ I was looking forward to the next film of brittish director Ben Wheatley, and I knew that this new film of his would be playing in british television, and I couldn’t possibly imagine that it would be in this film that he would go all strange and artsy on our asses. Shot in a gorgeous black and white, this film strikes me as an experiment in dream imagery located historically in a metaphor-like inclusion so deep and intricated towards the characters that it portrays, that it manifests itself into something completely obscure and at the same time inaccesible, yet at the same time gorgeous and interesting to watch at all times, even when it gets a little too frustrating in regards of what actually happens and what consists of the world of fantasy, mainly because it doesn’t help to build an atmosphere when it’s so connected to an epoch.
– La chispa de la vida (2011, Álex de la Iglesia) ***1/2 An interesting movie in how De la Iglesia manages to tell a story that would be treated by any other director with much more dopey mopey stuff than he did here. Here he takes the whole situation with a lot of comedy, and the sets and situation is well built in regards to its premise, and all the characters are interesting, well acted and quirky, the movie works in general terms. But when the script and the movie advances, it takes many chances and stabs at many things but only decides and aims for the most obvious and least interesting ones, the fact that the whole plot about promoting the accident and his persona is killed in its way for a much more familiar and regular plot elements in regards of his personal relations to his own is kind of a deception. Same goes for the enthusiasm of the protagonist and his noble, even though economically minded, goals towards what he thinks of himself and how we see the spectacle of death. In the end, it’s interesting because of its good scenario that presents, but it lacked a tighter and riskier script.
– Las Cruces de Quillagua (The Crosses of Quillagua) (2012, Jorge Marzuca) **** An hour long documentary that can be seen online about the driest place in Chile, once a blooming place for agriculture and now one of the least populated and oldest places in the whole country, a denounce on the problems of the water that was poisoned by factories and mining companies that worked nearby, as well as an anthropological discourse on how the people are affected by the things they do and what the ambience does to them.
– Porco Rosso (1992, Hayao Miyazaki) ****1/2 How incredible is this and no one told me about this? Well, it is usually regarded among the best work of Miyazaki (that includes his entire filmography), but this usually gets a mute response. Maybe it is because the fantasy element becomes something so… unnecesary at the end, but I truly believe that this movie wouldn’t be the same without the pig transformation put inside, not because of how it creates character, but at the same time on how it makes you care and find lovable our protagonist. I loved the kind pirates that plague this film, and Fio may be one of the best Miyazaki creations in his entire life. I’m not a fan of planes, but when I saw this, I couldn’t avoid being fascinated by every detail and transformation, the wings and the twists and turns, a beautiful picture with an incredible ending.
– Sightseers (2012, Ben Wheatley) ****1/2 Maybe one of the funniest surprises I’ve had in a long time. I had no hope for this film whatsoever, but it starts with a mood that is easily bettered as the film progresses and we find out more and more about the intelligently constructed characters. It’s also an HD beauty, a feat of digital cinematography that maintains a look and a feel that is always calm with spurts of violence and experiments here and there regarding the power of the image within the frame, specially in tense situations. The visual gags and the dark humour elements easily deliver and put this one at the top of the most pleasant surprises that I’ve had in a long time at the movies, it comes from nowhere and then it goes nowhere, it’s a film so well directed that it should get awards. Can’t understand some of the hate on it, except for the fact that its a mean and nasty film in many ways… but I love it because of that!
– The Spirit of ’45 (2013, Ken Loach) **** This could’ve been called The Way and Back Again, a political story of the recent years of UK, starting with the end of WW2 and the consequences of it, going back a bit on the generation and the status of the London of the 20’s and 30’s, and then going forward since the beginning of the ruling of the Labor party until today and the resurgence of multiple reactionary movements all over the world. It is practically a story about how socialism made UK better and how the tirany of Thatcher made it worse for everyone, specially for those who needed it more. Biased as only a political movie can be: the better biase it can take is one that doesn’t offend anyone, and this movie doesn’t take stabs at anyone but to the objective faults and failings of a poltical and economical setting. If a movie comes out from the other political side and takes no stabs or offends or uses violence to tell its story, I’d be happy to see it, but the right wing always uses that, so we’re screwed and happy with this effort.
– Tiempos Malos (2013, Cristian Sánchez) ****1/2 Chilean film shown by the director, a teacher that I’m the aid of, and it was a complete surprise. After a weak start, the film quickly develops into something else, a party of the chilean language and the intricancies of the typical crime life that can be found in some places in Santiago. A story that blooms like a flower and becomes more and more complicated as time goes by. Funny and sad at times, a story that reminds you of Buñuel’s best moments, this one is something to marvel at.
That’s all, have a good week Sam!
Shot in a gorgeous black and white, this film strikes me as an experiment in dream imagery located historically in a metaphor-like inclusion so deep and intricated towards the characters that it portrays, that it manifests itself into something completely obscure and at the same time inaccessible…..
Yes I must say I do wish it was winter here too! Ha! Seems everyone always wishes the opposite season when they are suffering the punishing qualities of either! I pity the poor men who are presently as I type this (I hear the hammering!) on my rood replacing the one that is really only eight years old, but was poorly installed, and has caused some severe leakages inside. I haven’t seen either of Wheatly’s films, but have seen the trailer for A FIELD IN ENGLAND and was expecting a bit more than your still, fair enough assessment would have me believe. Obviously SIGHTSEERS, the Miyazaki and Ken Loach’s film MUST be seen as first available opportunities. Of the Cholean film, I’d say TIEMPOS MALOS is the most essential, especially in view of your comparison with Bunuel! Terrific, fascinating capsules my friend, and yet another week of amazing energy and focus!!! Thanks as always and have a great week!!!!
Hi Sam and everyone. I’ve just got back from a week’s holiday with my family at Ludlow in Shropshire where we spent a lot of time outside in the countryside – the weather was lovely. We visited two steam railways, much to Paul’s delight as he is a big fan, and also had a tour of a small local brewery, with a chance to sample the beers, as well as visiting castles and other landmark sites. I haven’t seen a single film, I must admit, but did a lot of reading, watched quite a lot of Wimbledon and was on the edge of my seat for Murray’s match! Hope the weather cools down a bit for you and that everyone has a good week.
Sounds like quite an appointment there Judy in Shropshire! I’m trying to envision these kind of locations, for upcoming reference. The steam railways and brewery are great choices to explore, and films must certainly take a back seat at various intervals. I’m not planning to see any films while in the U.K., unless I am “forced” to by Allan while in Kendal or unless the kids desire it at night. Can’t blame you one bit for focusing on Murray’s win, which was a celebratory event!! Yes we are hoping the heat gets compromised a bit! Have a great week my friend! Many thanks as always!
After a scorching few days we are back to 75″F and wow does it feel much better. The strawberries were hurriedly over sooner and now the raspberries and blueberries are coming on juicy and strong.
I enjoyed Dee Dee’s sidebar very much and I can see how your family would enjoy the cool of the movies to the heat in the car or at home. Your trip sounds great.
We are hoping this weather sticks through the weekend – it is the Seattle To Portland bicycle tour and my partner does all 204 miles in one day. He has slowed way down on the too hot days, but 70s will be perfect especially if the Marine Air (grey mornings) stick around until about noon. I am the designated driver to get him to Seattle about 4 am and then pick up in Portland about 8pm. Long day for everyone.
I have been reading so much fiction this summer, my movie viewing has turned to documentaries. We have lost much of our work to a terrible bill in the budget of our state set up by the ALEC institution and the KOCH Brothers $$ – I just had to watch the United States of ALEC the documentary by Bill Moyers several times as we work to override and remove this new attack against public education – no Head Start; no school construction on any level. (That means no repairs to existing structures – like re-roofing so children can not be in the buildings – Pretty scary stuff and the teacher’s unions are under attack right and left with no cost of living increases for years and years. Also watching what Oregon is doing as they have removed interest on college loans and cancelled all tuition for residents. Exciting and scary all at the same time
I also watched THE SHOCK DOCTRINE as it has been updated now from the book and than is amazing information sharing and then a lecture by a UW professor on What the tea party and ultra conservative truly believe – and the fear of foreign and the fear of change are the two biggies there – Most conservative actual know they can not avoid change they just want it in extremely slow motion….such as we have not gotten equal pay for equal work for women yet!…..The third big discovery was how Seattle is now the IT place for media and film, etc. and about camps for girls ages 9-21 who are learning about making their stories real and on film and then marketing and getting internships with big studios and the alternative folks. It was very extremely exciting. Where as my oldest had to go to Vancouver BC to learn annimmation coding and then to California where the competition for the boys is really dominant. Maybe she will get a job back here and be closer to home?
Your family adventure is on the horizon you must all be very thrilled at the prospect.
Thank you for the great shout out. THE FAULT IN OUR STARS is read worth reading
How can one think about movies when there are strawberries, raspberries and blueberries to address? 🙂
My fingers are red from the raspberries and I put nearly 20 quarts in the freezer – They are just my favorites. But after picking them in the early morning to avoid the heat – along with blueberries…it was wonderful to head downstairs and watch a documentary in the coolness. We ate berries instead of popcorn!
The best part of the summer!
Not to mention all the fabulous – delicious veggies…but raspberries do take the cake!
As luck would have it, my dessert this evening was pound cake with strawberries, blueberries and apricots cream and a little rum…..
We had a pound cake with berries for the 4th of July event. I was amazed that at the Farmer’s Market this past Sunday there were 8 varieties of organic apricots available and Rainier and Bing Cherries. My partner prefers those options to cake for his birthday. Guess we need to hone in on movies about fruit and maybe chocolate!
The possibilities are endless: Blueberry Nights, Like Water for Chocolate, The Strawberry Statement, Bananas, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes. . . .
Fired Green Tomatoes ….. Maybe another whole series for WiTD to explore!!!
I may have to watch Julie and Julia again in the heat of the afternoon!
Ha Pierre!!!…………Pineapple Express, and Coconuts too!!! Ha!
I am on this thread now and will response to Patricia, Pierre and others within minutes.
.The third big discovery was how Seattle is now the IT place for media and film, etc. and about camps for girls ages 9-21 who are learning about making their stories real and on film and then marketing and getting internships with big studios and the alternative folks.
That is indeed a great revelation Patricia, though I have long known Seattle has been gaining momentum on the cultural, and know a few associates that have movie there hoping to get into film making. The camp for girls is another promising development! Needless to say that bill is a disaster, and can completely understand the extent of the damage it has inflicted on the working community. I’d say 70 for the bicycle tour is perfect, and I do have my fingers crossed for you that you will be able to avoid the rain. I will further investigate THE SHOCK DOCTRINE after that glowing recommendation! Yep I know that would rightly please you beyond words to have your daughter back home, and I hope it happens! Thanks for the very kind words about the upcoming trip, Dee Dee’s sidebar work and the heads up on THE FAULT IN OUR STARS. Have a great week my friend!
I heard the second half of the interview with the actual girls in the camp I believe it is called REEL GIRLS…and 1700 students are currently enrolled in the program – either in class or in internships. The 2 10 year old girls interviewed already have a commercial that has been picked up for Microsoft.
We have dropped to 84′ today – much better.
I am so proud to know Terrill and her beautiful art – and to have one of her canvases – apple blossoms, my primary meditation focus.
Hope your classes are going well at summer school.
The 2 10 year old girls interviewed already have a commercial that has been picked up for Microsoft.
Wow, that’s remarkable Patricia!!! The parents really must be proud! Happy to hear the temperature is down out by you, and like you I applaud Terrill, who just gets better and better and better!
FRIED GREEN TOMATOES indeed!!! One of my favorite films of it’s decade.
Oh oh — it’s catchy: Fruitvale Station; A Clockwork Orange; Harry, Cherry and Raquel; American Pie . . . and I hope we don’t get into a heated debate about genre, but what about Beetlejuice, Breakfast Club or Garden State? 😉
Or Babette’s Feast, which is releasing on a Criterion blu-ray this month!
Or the Italian LA GRANDE BOUFFE, or BREAD AND CHOCOLATE!!!
Ha Pierre! It is endless indeed!
Sam, I’d been wanting to see Hell’s Hinges since I saw clips of its incredible climax on some 70s-vintage documentary — I recally Henry Fonda narrating. While the movie’s only 63 minutes long, it does take a while getting started, but the last 15 minutes or so are dynamite. Thanks to the western countdown for finally motivating me to give it a look. That goes for another winner, whether or not it makes my list: Raoul Walsh’s Along the Great Divide, on the same page as The Naked Spur in its portrayal of social breakdown during the delivery of criminals to justice, but inferior to the Mann in its comparative bum rush to a happy ending in the last few minutes. I have some time off this week so I intend to hit the books, so to speak, catching such significant unseen spaghettis as I can find on YouTube and giving a chance to Harald Reinl’s Winnetou movies. Meanwhile, just this morning I caught Ismail Rodriguez’s La Cucaracha. Its Villa-era setting puts it at the tail-end of the consensus time-frame of westerns, but while this particular film is mainly a Maria Felix melodrama — she does make a handsome warrior woman in her serape and bandoliers — its a reminder that there are many westerns made south of the U.S. border that few of us have seen.
I did have time to watch my Marketa Lazarova disc, but I may need to watch it again before I can do it justice in a review. Its visual dynamite, certainly, and in the age of Tarantino there may be more appreciation for its non-linear approach. The best thing about it is that Vlacil manages to transcend the affectations of his style and the source material to do some really powerful moviemaking. I’m not about the change my 1967 vote but Marketa is definitely a worthy contender.
Also noteworthy: William Keighley’s Torrid Zone, basically The Front Page meets Red Dust and nearly as entertaining as that sounds; Gordon Flemyng’s The Split, a Richard Stark adaptation with a mind-boggling cast — the heist gang is Jim Brown, E. Borgnine, W. Oates, D. Sutherland and Jack Klugman and the lead cop is Gene Hackman, plus James Whitmore as a random psycho. Fun stuff if no Point Blank. Finally, the immortal Sh! The Octupus, which doesn’t quite live up to the madness of the title — but what could???
Keep cool, everyone!
Samuel….you and I might be on the same track! I just watched Along the Great Divide and have similar feelings as you do. Hell’s Hinges is Hart’s best work that I’ve seen…..better than Tumbleweeds IMO.
Speaking of spaghettis…..what do you think of Cemetery Without Crosses? It’s one of my favorites…..melodramatic, slightly effeminate in fact, romantic, beautiful music and characterizations.
Jon, Cemetery w/o Crosses is probably making my list. I found it a uniquely melancholy spaghetti western, more haunted by regret than most of its kind. Robert Hossein hit it out of the park as star and director.
Never realized the screenwriter is Argento!!!!
Thanks for the additional insight on Cemetery Jamie…..Yeah I’m guessing it’s not going to make the final cut for the countdown, but it’s worthy that’s for sure.
The best thing about it is that Vlacil manages to transcend the affectations of his style and the source material to do some really powerful moviemaking
Samuel—
I made a prediction and you did not disappoint! Yes MARKETA LAZAROVA is indeed visually ravishing and by any barometer of measurement it’s one of the very best films of it’s year and even decade, a point that both Allan and I have voiced a number of times at this site. I agree that your final position on the film has hardly received closure, and you’ll revise and embellish on future viewings. It’s definitely not an easy film to frame in the early going, that’s for sure. ALONG THE GREAT DIVIDE certainly deserves high praise, though I also give the edge to Mann’s THE NAKED SPUR, one of my favorite of all westerns. I need to catch up with THE SPLIT and THE TORRID ZONE and the Rodriguez films sound most intriguing for sure, and yes I will certainly take a pass on SH! THE OCTOPUS! Ha! Have a great week my friend. You and Jon Warner (and Sachin, Shubhajit, Dave and others) are really making the western project fully worthwhile!!!
Sam I am thinking of you in that heat. A person gets I am sure to the point they really don’t want to each much let alone BBQ. I have been trying my darnedest to get over here these past few weeks. But one thing or another seems to have got in the way. Summer mostly. I am a bit excited because my paintings in the People’s Choice Award are holding a solid third place out of over 300 Canadian Landscape Paintings… and a new one was shipped off to a collector this morning. But on the movie front:
How about CHASING ICE (2012) directed by Jeff Orlowski – a great documentary following along with National Geographic photographer James Balog across the Arctic as he deploys time-lapse cameras designed for one purpose: to capture a multi-year record of the world’s changing glaciers. What he finds is more than a little chilling and it should cool you down. A must watch for all to begin to grasp the gravity of the state of our earth and of humanity.
The for a compassionate refresher THE SESSIONS directed by Ben Lewin. The description goes like this – A man in an iron lung who wishes to lose his virginity contacts a professional sex surrogate with the help of his therapist and priest. In my humble opinion this film is not truly about sex or disability but about compassion and human integrity. John Hawkes and Helen Hunt are excellent in their roles and the acting overall is well above average. David and I are thinking it is the best film we have watched so far this year.
So there you go. One film to break your heart with the ineptness of humanity and a second one to give you hope and lingering possibility. Have a great week Sam and also everyone at Wonders in the Dark. Stay cool with a warm heart.
Terrill—-
Fantastic!!! Congratulations are in order here my friend!!!! I completely understand what you are saying, believe me. The summer is always a difficult time to stay the course, and you have the added (rightly to be sure!) attention that must be paid for your paintings, which is the heart of your focus and profession. And as far as “getting over here” I’d be hard pressed to find even several who have extended more loyalty than you have since we met almost four years ago. Your comments are always extensive and thought-provoking, and even if you can here one-quarter of the time you do, I still feel we’d be blessed. I also know that you have faithfully maintained your incomparably beautiful blog with incredible dedication, especially in view of the fact that painting needs to be your central focus.
Yes I am completely with you on THE SESSIONS, an inspiring, deeply moving film I raved about last year on a past MMD!!! Both John Hawkes and Helen Hunt were superlative in this empathetic and unsentimental film that did garner well-deserved spectacular reviews. And I couldn’t agree with more on CHASING ICE, which is absorbing and awe-inspiring. One of the best documentaries of the past few years without a doubt!
Thanks again my friend! Continued success with the sales!!!
I saw an early trailer to the Almodovar film and it looked pretty cheesey. I didn’t care for his previous film either — the one with Antonio Banderas as the mad doctor.
In other news I’ve seen The Bling Ring, which I really liked (just looked at my Facebook page!) and finally caught up with the Coens’ The Man Who Wasn’t There, which captivated me but I can understand why it didn’t get an audience.
Pierre—
It was cheesy indeed, though my good friend Broadway Bob found a lot to laugh about based on his glorious interactive dealings with the film. Well I did kind of like THE SKIN I LIVED IN, but his best work remains TALK TO HER, ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER, BAD EDUCATION and WOMAN ON THE VERGE as far as I see it. Don’t get me wrong: I’M SO EXCITED had it’s moments and the kinkiness had me going for a while, but the film is seriously uneven, and suffers from lethargy in large measure. I plan on seeing THE BLING RING as soon as possible based on your sturdy recommendation! Thanks as always my friend. Have a great week!
Sam, my laptop is in the Mac hospital. I’m typing this on my iPhone. I just wanted you to know that I’ve been by and as always love your post!
Ah Laurie, I am so sorry your PC is in sickbay, and hope the repairs will be minimal. Thanks as always for stopping by at all costs my friend, and for the exceedingly kind words. Have a great week!
Sam,Rosemary’s Baby is a classic, one of my favorites that I have watched multiple times. Looking forward to your review. On my own movie front, only two films this week.
THE HEAT (***1/2) Decent for what it is. Bullock and McCarthy make for a good team.
UNTAMED YOUTH Hard to even rate this! On a trash, bad we movies we love level it hysterical funny. As a straight film it is Hollywood B films at its worst. Mamie Van Doren can’t act, sing or dance though she attempts all. They even ruined rock and roll legend Eddie Cochran by giving him one of the worst songs possible to sing. I am actually writing about this for a future posting at 24frames.
Have a great week!!!
John—
I have indeed known of your own strong regard for ROSEMARY’S BABY over the years, and it’s yet another instance where we are in complete agreement, We all had a great time watching again last week, and it opened up more welcome discussion. I am planning a full review of the film later this month for a William Castle blogothon. I haven’t seen UNTAMED YOUTH, but be rest assured your commentary here will do little to change that situation. I am also no big fan of THE HEAT, but can at least see it as a decent minor entertainment, which is pretty much the way you size it up. Have a great weekend my friend! Hope the weather is kind to you guys!
Sam!
Thanks for the kind mention my friend. Hugely busy week for me as I’ve been on the road since Sunday down in Arkansas. Wow it’s hot down here. 100F yesterday. Sheesh. Long hours for me this week but I return home tomorrow thank God. I do like Almodovar, but this latest film looks like a big miss for him. I like Rosemary’s Baby a lot. It’s an unnerving kind of film.
As for the westerns, I continue to overdose…..lots of films last week, Hondo, The Wild Bunch, Ride the High Country, Major Dundee, Angel and the Badman, Blood on the Moon etc. etc. I continue to feel that The Wild Bunch is not Peckinpah’s best work. I would take both Ride the High Country and Major Dundee ahead of it……heck even The Deadly Companions. Major Dundee has a sort of Apocalypse Now kind of vibe to it that I like.
Up this week is mostly reviewings…..Johnny Guitar, Once Upon a Time in the West, The Ox-Box Incident….some of the best ever made. Well hope you stay cool and have a great rest of your week!
Jon—
Heading south at this time of year is no comfortable task, that much seems certain! At the time I am responding to you I am assuming you are back home. You have the latest Almodovar figured just right. The kind and campiness just didn’t work this time, and the film was really just a series of vignettes which failed to hold together, and some rather stale gay jokes. A few inspired sketches though. Great to hear we are fully on the same page with ROSEMARY’S BABY, though I am hardly surprised. I also would take RIDE THE HIGH COUNTRY and MAJOR DUNDEE over THE WILD BUNCH among Peckinpah’s westerns, but I know we are both in the minority. Good point about the Apocalypse Now vibe in MAJOR DUNDEE! Yes your upcoming reviews does indeed include some of the all-time greats and your incredible work in seeking out westerns week after week during the duration of this countdown is an inspiration! Today was cooler than the past days because of some intermittent showers. Hope it’s more comfortable up bhy you. Have a great weekend my friend!
Sam,
Hot and humid. Monsoon weather is finally here. Thousands were already hospitalized for heatstroke. Temperature never drops below 25C (77F) during nights. Hmm, I hate it.
One of the biggest news in Japanese cinema scene these days is new Hayao Miyazaki movie KAZE TACHINU. It is scheduled to open on July 20. They made this 4 minute trailer (not found on web) for theaters. The story of Jiro Horikoshi, the designer of the Zero fighter plane, one of the most successful Japanese fighter during WWII, it chronicles the events and love story of the era. Hideaki Anno, the creator of Evangelion series, provides the voice of Horikoshi. Well, I saw the trailer several times, and it’s good. Here is the small segment I found on YouTube.
This week, I saw GINTAMA: THE MOVIE (2013), GAMERA (1965) and HERO OF TOKYO (1935). GINTAMA is the popular anime series, a sort of strange mixture of SF, Samurai and bawdy comedy. After Miyazaki’s 4-minute trailer I mentioned above, GINTAMA started with the dirtiest, funniest joke on that title. And the wonderful thing is, this joke becomes the central piece of mise-en-scene for the rest of the movie. It will never make overseas, but it is one of the prime examples, that narrative structures in some of the animes are so wild and incredibly complex. GAMERA is a sort of the artifact from the forgotten era. Its cheap production, awful scripts and inept acting make it a campy memorabilia. HERO OF TOKYO, directed by Hiroshi Shimazu, is a silent melodrama from Shochiku. A struggling mother story, well directed and acted. It was a part of Hiroshi Shimizu Retrospective at NFC, and the print was superb.
Anyway, I guess, NY is also under heatwave. So take care.
MI
I tried to embed the video for Miyazaki’s trailer with start/end marks, but it didn’t work.
The small segment of the trailer starts at 0:35 and ends at 0:57.
MI—-
That is rather a disturbing report on how the weather has adversely affected so many and with such dire consequences. Yes to have the temperature stay up in those digits at night is a real bummer. I am sorry to hear this and am hoping there is some improvement this week. I am certainly a very big fan of Miyazaki, am thrilled to hear that is new movie is releasing and thank you very kindly for posting the trailer, even if it can’t be viewed in it’s entirety. Needless to say I did like what I saw here, and will be seeing the film when it opens stateside! Oh I’d love to see HERO OF TOKYO and am delighted to hear you were able to see this rarity! The director is one of the greats from this period of course! The campy GAMERA is also up my alley, and much appreciate that intricate description of it’s essence. And GINTAMA sounds like it’s worth checking out as well. Thanks for the kind words my friend, and I hope we both find some cool place to hide this weekend! Thanks as always for the fabulous re-cap!
Sam, just wanted to provide a quick hello here. No movies for me this week. I have been in and out of town quite a bit this last month. But I look forward to making up for lost time very soon.
Hope you’re having a great week. Thanks, Sam for all you do!
Thanks again Jeffrey! I can never thank you enough for your incomparable long-running friendship! Your comments are cherished!