by Sam Juliano
After a week of soul-searching that originally had me concluding that various domestic responsibilities and a marathon writing project would prevent me from proceeding on with the long planned science fiction countdown (the sixth year in a row such a demanding project was being posed) I have decided to move forward with it. I will be sending a group e mail out later this week to the expected participants. On that correspondence I will ask that anyone not wanting to be part of this venture for whatever legitimate reason should e mail me separately so I can remove that person’s name from the master e mail. I am projecting that all final ballots should be submitted on that chain by the first week of June. The middle of the month should see the countdown begin, with a modest Top 50 in place.
The Tribeca Film Festival is now two and a half weeks away, and Lucille and I will again be attending many of the films being offered there in the annual event. As always, I’ll be reporting back here at Wonders in the Dark. The past week has been an unconscionable one on the world stage, and the American political process has gone beyond embarrassment.
In addition to watching a 1950 Japanese masterpiece online (Till We Meet Again) Lucille and I attended four new releases during a hectic Easter week:
My Golden Days ***** (Friday night) IFC Film Center
Eye in the Sky **** (Saturday) Montclair
Hello, My Name is Doris **** (Sunday) Montclair
Batman vs. Superman * (Saturday) Secaucus
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You liked Batman vs. Superman that much Sam? lol.
One star was a gift Frank! 🙂
Hope you enjoy Tribeca, Sam, and that everyone is enjoying the Easter break.
I saw the new Disney offering, Zootopia, or Zootropolis as it is called in the UK for some reason, this weekend. I thought it was great fun (and was very surprised to see the main rabbit was called Judy!) I will give Batman v Superman a miss though.
Thanks so much Judy. First off I must get beyond my latest battle with kidney stones, and will have the blast procedure done on Wednesday morning. Our Easter break is from Monday April 11 to Friday April 15. I also thought ZOOTROPOLIS was a lot of fun, and gave it 4/5. I did notice the rabbit’s name was Judy. Smart movie missing the latter. Ha! Have a great weekend my friend!
Ouch, sorry to hear you have kidney stones again. Hope all goes well on Wednesday.
Thanks so much Judy! Luckily and unexpectedly I passed the problem stone in my urine. Still, though I have one inside my kidney that will have to be blasted at some future date to avert the same problem I just went through.
Sam – I’m shocked by the low rating for Batman vs. Superman! NOT! I happily plan to avoid this obvious dreck.
We saw Eye in the Sky last night and enjoyed it a great deal – tense and topical.
http://theschleicherspin.com/2016/03/28/i-spy-in-the-sky-an-eye-on-the-moral-ambiguity-of-modern-warfare/
Oh we also watched at home Straight Outta Compton – which we enjoyed a great deal as well. I can see how it easily could’ve (should’ve?) received more than just a screenplay Oscar nod – it was superior to say, The Martian, in my mind (a film that was technically great but a real snooze fest).
And one last note – we also watched Kurzel’s Macbeth and found it to be an absolute travesty against the Bard and my favorite play! It was barely watchable.
http://theschleicherspin.com/2016/03/26/justin-kurzels-macbeth-is-everything-that-is-wrong-with-modern-shakespeare-adaptations/
David, we are NOT in agreement on this film at all. Not watchable is your take–mine is brilliant and cinematically engrossing. MACBETH is also my favorite Bard play, and to be sure I also like several other versions. I will check out your take on it my friend.
Yes, the new superhero movie is dreck indeed David! Happy to hear you like EYE IN THE SKY. I will check out your review. many thanks my friend.
Sam –
“The past week has been an unconscionable one on the world stage, and the American political process has gone beyond embarrassment.”
I couldn’t agree with you more.
Laurie, it has been a dire sequence of events for sure. Hope you are enjoying a great weekend my friend!
Sam, glad you liked “My Name is Doris.” We are going to catch it today. Was suppose to catch it last week but we got hit by a car running a red light smashing into us while we were on the way to the theater. Dorothy is a little sore in her ribs, I’m ok. Our car on the other hand is in the collision shop for the next three weeks. My film viewing was all re-watching works I have not seen in years.
Eyewitness (***)
The Rat Race (***)
The Gunfighter (****1/2)
Have a great week!
John, sorry to hear about the crash – hope Dorothy feels better soon. Glad you weren’t hurt.
John–I am shocked to hear this news!!! I am so so sorry and my best wishes go out to Dorothy!! As long as you both are OK the car is not important at all. Please give her my best my friend.
Hey Sam,
Writing to you from Mexico this week as work is has brought me here. I was able to be with the family for Easter, but had to leave that night. Was very hard to leave and the girls were very disappointed. However, the bright spot is that spring break is next week and we’ll be heading to Florida! We’re all so looking forward to that.
My Golden Days looks tremendous and I’ll surely seek that one out as soon as it’s available. As far as the Sci-Fi project, I do strongly encourage to sticking to the Top 50 only. I think over the last few countdowns we have had such a lengthy countdown it’s hard to keep everyone together for that long and getting everyone committed to reviewing so many. I think 50 will be a good set though and looking forward to participating.
Hope you are well my friend! Sending best wishes to you and your family.
Ah Jon, you are down in Trump country again eh? lol. I trust you’ve had a good stay there. I know you have traveled there many times work related. Yes there can be no doubt you will love MY GOLDEN DAYS, it is a film right up your alley.
As to the science-fiction project I will confess to you my friend, that it barely got off the ground. I serious considered cancelling it due to personal commitments and responsibilities, and what seemed to me to be some wavering interest from the group. Five people have already told me they won’t be writing for it, so you can be rest assured that a TOP 50 is the very MOST we will do with it. I know I won’t be able to write nearly as much as I usually do.
Thanks as always my friend!
Hello Sam and everyone!
I hope you had a wonderful Easter and you had a good time with your family. Wow, that’s a low rating for Batman, but I completely understand. Excited for the sci-fi countdown! Also, thanks, publicly, for donating to my fundraiser, you are a true friend.
The movies I saw last week:
– Beat the Devil (1953, John Huston) **** Witty, fast-paced and fast-talked, like a noir that takes place in the day and where everyone instead of hiding their intentions, just laid them out in the open at the first instance or opportunity: people offer businesses in the middle of a funeral, people accuse others of crimes that they’ve denied before, they assume knowledge of things that they should know, only to later those words be put against them and made them confined. The idea here, apparently, is that everyone is a bit of a crook, everyone just has a bad side to them, and everyone can change their opinion and their ways in one swift move, and everything’s more fun because of that.
– Red Lips (1961, Jesus Franco) **** Franco in his second feature continues pairing women to make them do things that men just aren’t up to do on their own. After his debut, this is certainly another ‘genre’ picture, this time closer to the noir and in a similar style as the films of Orson Welles from the 40’s-50’s-60’s. Sure, most of what is here is kinda derivative, but a film in 1960, made in 1959, that features two women so certain of their sensuality, as well as empowered through their incredible deductive and spy-like abilities, it’s sorta impressive and subversive. It sounds, looks and works like a comic book and it’s much better because of that, because it allows the appearance of funny and ridiculous characters.
– Mulholland Dr. (2001, David Lynch) ***** Not that this hadn’t clicked with me before, but now I completely understand where it’s coming from and what it all means and how the two “segments” work. Maybe it’s a bit basic in terms of how much the elements of our daily life, the traumas and the relationships can turn the paths of our dreams in one way or another.
For some reason the ending made me realize that the film from Lynch’s filmography that most likely links to this one directly isn’t INLAND EMPIRE, but this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnYJ6gjZOCc
– Symphonie Diagonale (1924, Viking Eggeling) ***1/2 Imagine what he could’ve done in the future.
That’s all, have a great week everyone!
We did indeed have a very fine Easter, thank you my friend. I wish you well with the fundraiser. The countdown has at least moved a step forward, and I am hoping for moderate success. The Superman/Batman film was a bummer, but my three boys did think otherwise. Ha! BEAT THE DEVIL and especially MULLHOLLAND DRIVE are great films (Splendid analysis from you on the former especially!) and though I am no big fan of Franco, I know I haven’t seen a number of his films. Nice that you got to see SYMPHONIE DIAGONALE. Have a great week my friend.
Happy to hear the science fiction countdown will be staging soon. I’m already working on my ballot.
Good show Ricky! Thank you!
Caucuses and sunshine have just taken up a huge part of my week and once again I am behind on reading….almost no movie watching or TV either, though I did watch Rachel Maddow interview Clinton and then Sanders. I am just full of the smell of the blooming flowers in our yard and the 73’F days. I am up to walking 2.5 miles a day – very time consuming. I think I would like to see Eye in the Sky. Hope you are feeling better. Politics is disgusting right now and so inhumane – it is appalling. Just read on FB your Governor resigned. That a good thing?
Patricia, what governor resigned? We could not be so lucky here in New Jersey? Christie, sad to say, isn’t going anywhere. The only governor I know that is on the verge of resigning is the one from Alabama, Robert Bentley. Glad to hear that springtime is unveiling itself in your neck of the woods, and that you are immersing yourself into it. Yes the political scene is a bummer. At least I am thrilled that Bernie Sanders is on quite the winning streak and am hoping it continues. I hope you get to see EYE IN THE SKY. Have a great week my friend!
Sam, I am sorry I am just now commenting here. I am so eager to see the new Desplechin film and jealous that you have already had the opportunity. Hopefully I will get to do something about it very soon.
I know you are probably right in the middle of Tribeca. Very much looking forward to your report!
Thanks as always for your stellar friendship and loyalty my friend. You will get your chance at the Despletchin film for sure, and I anticipate quite a glowing report! Yes we are now entrenched at Tribeca and a report is imminent. The best always to you my friend!