the LAST FILM YOU'VE SEEN thread

arsaib: Harsh? No, I like your approach on these ones.

By the way, what do you think about my numerical rating attempts--would it be better for me to go back to purely verbal indications of my opinion and skip the numbers, in your opinion?

Your reviews, at least the ones that I've had a chance to read, are of pretty good length so it hasn't been difficult for me to decipher your points or opinions. But I think you've mentioned in the past that some of your website readers wanted you to add a rating of some sort. If that's the case then it's a good idea.

Okay. Thanks. I'll continue to ponder the issue.

My "Best of 2005" so far among official theatrical releases from Jan - Jun.

1. The Holy Girl (La Niña Santa) - Lucrecia Martel / Argentina

2. Crash - Paul Haggis / U.S.

My Mother's Smile
(L'Ora di Religione: Il Sorriso di mia Madre)
- Marco Bellocchio / Italy

3-Iron (Bin-Jip) - Kim Ki-duk / S. Korea

3. À Tout de Suite - Benoît Jacquot / France

Caterina in the Big City (Caterina va in Città) - Paolo Virzì / Italy

Don't Move (Non Ti Muovere) - Sergio Castellitto / Italy

Head-On (Gegen die Wand) - Fatih Akin / Germany-Turkey

Howl's Moving Castle (Hauru no ugoku shiro) - Hayao Miyazaki / Japan

Machuca - Andrés Wood / Chile

My Summer of Love - Paul Pavlikovsky / U.K.

Schizo (Shiza) - Guka Omarova / Kazakhstan

Tropical Malady (Sud Pralad) - Apichatpong Weerasethakul / Thailand

Nice list. Some of these I haven't been able to see, but my only reservation of ones I have seen is probably Don't Move, which I thought was glossy but superficial, despite the wonderful opportunity for Castellito and Cruz to show off their acting chops. As I've said, I'm looking forward very much to seeing À tout de suite this week, and I look forward to seeing The Holy Girl, Sud Pralad, and 3-Iron. Loved Schizo. I saw L'ora di religione three years ago in Siena. Not as taken with it as you were, but I can see its interest. Another example of the accomplished Castellitto's acting abilities. Probably should see it again. If it comes here I will.

Castellitto is also great in Caterina in the Big City. It's a coming-of-age story mixed with a sharp satire on current Italian politics. Hopefully you'll get a chance to see it.

Manohla Dargis spoke enthusiastically about Audiard's The Beat That My Heart Skipped, the Fingers remake starring Romain Duris. I'm not sure if I'll be able to see it anytime soon but want to.

Dargis's is not the only positive review of the new Audiard film this week and I'd be very eager to see it and to rent a copy of Tobak's "notorious" Fingers (as Denby calls it) to prepare. Denby's tight-lipped in his praise ("tense, vivid, alert") -- you'd be hard-pressed to find a good phrase for an ad; but his detailed description is obviously very admiring.

Caterina in the City has been rather 'damned with faint praise' locally, but I'll keep in mind your corrective. Castellitto rarely disappoints. He's no Brando or Belmondo, but he's a consummate craftsman. The new Mastroianni for a new age?

I think Fingers deserves to be seen in any case. It's a great character study with Harvey Keitel in top form. I believe it was the first film Toback directed (and many say the best). You probably already know this but he's spoken much more highly of in Europe, especially in France -- still I was a little surprised after learning that Toback is actively promoting the remake.

I was going to write a little on Caterina but decided not to since most won't get a chance to see it in theaters. I'll wait for its DVD release.

I hope I can find Fingers.

In fact Caterina is still showing both in Berkeley and San Francisco.

I'm sure I'd be interested. If the comparison with Eric Rohmer (repeated constantly in reviews and festival notices, I see) is something of a distraction, Bonnell himself invited it.. I found a very nice little review by a certain André Lavoie on the French site mediafilm, which I didn't know about before but will be checking out from time to time I think.

I gather you yourself bought the UK DVD?

True, Bonnell has invited the comparison (he's quite honest in his interviews/press releases etc.) but it wasn't a distraction. It's possible that he created a distraction for himself by introducing Chaplin in, who he also pays homage to in a couple of sequences (much less successfully). I think you'll like it. The French site seems quite nice.

I haven't bought the DVD, at least not yet. I re-signed up with Nicheflix, just for a month though.

Trouble with that site is it's Canadian, and they seem to be flooded with crap films in their theaters.... but then maybe so is France, this time of year being bad all over?

Most Hollywood films come out the same day in N. America (if not the World) so the options are pretty much the same, even in "French Canada." However, in Quebec, distributors do put out a lot of French films on DVD, unsubtitled, of course.

I was quite sad going over some of the releases in France right now. Things aren't much better there. It's mostly re-releases or American genre films. I couldn't find a worthy French film till the end of September when Patrice Chéreau's Gabrielle is scheduled, starring Isabelle Huppert and Pascal Gregory.

Oh, man. How cool to see it in all it's widescreen DVD glory after having to settle for the hard to find, rare (and out-of print) VHS version!

Lee Marvin, Gene Hackman. Gangsters in the heartland. I love this movie. Highly underrated.

Steve Seitz--??

arsaib4--Yes, I see that Médiafilm lists many French DVD's coming out in Canada, and maybe more French films in theatrical distribution too, no? About the openings in France itself that news isn't good; last year at least I found interesting offerings in Paris in early September. Could there be more openings in Sept. not yet announced? I didn't know France was ever going to knuckle under to the American cultural behemoth the way Italy has done, but maybe it is going to happen. Bad news.