the LAST FILM YOU'VE SEEN thread

[Chris Knipp]

Thanks. Too bad not to see Tony Takitani theatrically since it's so visual, but one can't make it to everything. I might have missed this myself if a Japanese-American friend had not made this her first choice for us to see yesterday. The sureness and elegance of the style grabbed me immediately.

[arsaib4]

Jacques Doillon's Petits Frères (2001)

[Chris Knipp]

Benoît Jacquot: Seventh Heaven (1997) >Netflix DVD.

arsaib already has an interesting comment on this on the DVD Releases/Jacquot thread. I may add my own comment later. It fails to engage me like Jacquot's 1998 École de la chair/The School of Flesh. I have seen À toute de suite but I have not seen much of Jacquot so my knowledge of his filmmaking is limited. I can see a similar taste for jump cuts here.

Volker Schlöndorff: The Ninth Day (2004)/ Der Neunte Tag Theatrical screening in the Bay Area.

A austere, wonderfully cast WWII film about an unusual incident in the life of a Luxumberg priest who was released briefly from Dachau in 1942, apparently to pressure the bishop and possibly his fellow priests to endorse Nazism, based on Dachau surviver Jean Bernard's 1945 memoir, Pfarrerblock 25487. There's excellent reference material online about this film particularly through , Wikipedia, which will take you to a comparison of the film with the memoir by Prof. Harold Marcuse of UC Santa Barbara, several Dachau websites, and much more. Just having given a careful and loving look at Schlöndorff's 1984 Swann in Love/un amour de Swann I'm pretty amazed at the sheer versatility of the man.

[wpqx]

Irreversible (2002)

Well second time did some wonders for this film. Knowing what had happened, I didn't have to figure anything out, and I didn't really have to pay attention to the plot. So I focused on the shooting of the film, and I was pretty damn impressed. This film may be a gimmick movie, but I think it's a damn effective one. Due to it's subject matter it will never be loved by all, but I think the film is quite successful in its objectives. Helps to mention as always I'm a fan of long takes, which is one reason why I'm still kicking myself for having never seen a Bela Tarr film.

[Chris Knipp]

(wpqx)
Irreversible (2002)
Well second time did some wonders for this film. Knowing what had happened, I didn't have to figure anything out, and I didn't really have to pay attention to the plot. So I focused on the shooting of the film, and I was pretty damn impressed.

So much for the whole silly idea of "spoilers." If you know what happens you can appreciate a film better: I'm always trying to get that idea across but nobody listens.

[wpqx]

I'm not condoning giving away vital plot points, just saying a second viewing of a film like this can do wonders.

I just watched Happiness (1998), and well I'm not overly impressed. Kind of a mess of a movie, with some redeeming qualities, but ultimately a little too embarassing.

[wpqx]

The Circle (2000) - Jafar Panahi

One of the few films I've seen from Iran that focuses exclusively on women. Needless to say there is plenty of material for drama, as we find just how little rights these women have. I am unfamiliar with any of Panahi's other films, so I'm yet to make any comparissons. The film can be somewhat preachy (as many Iranian films are), I found it somewhat muddled however. Not quite as effective as the story could have been.

[arsaib4]

I'm still kicking myself for having never seen a Bela Tarr film.

Well, his first three are available now so try to see them if you get a chance. I've talked about his first two so far in this thread. Feel free to add there if you like.

[wpqx]

I know, but the release of those films coincided with my financial collapse. I'm more intrigued by his later, largely unavailable work. From what I've read of his style though, he seems very much my kind of filmmaker. Basically a modern incarnation of Miklos Jansco.

[wpqx]

Dolls (2004) - Takeshi Kitano

Interesting change of departure, that put me to sleep. Now the sleeping part isn't necessarily a bad thing, because I literally fell asleep for every Andrei Tarkovsky film I watched. Certainly plenty to enjoy about the film, but not really exciting cinema.

[wpqx]

Rebels of the Neon God (1992) - Tsai Ming-Liang

Well perhaps I paid more attention, or perhaps I finally understand Liang's style, but this film went over wonderfully well for me. The characters were more identifiable, and although I couldn't tell who was who for awhile (the main characters do look a lot alike), I figured it out and went from there. I believe the similarity of the characters looks was intentional, naturally as two were brothers, but I think there was a similarity amongst everyone. Lots of people going somewhere with no destination. As the film progressed a conscience built up, and truly a great film. I still have more Liang to watch, so my expectations are certainly high for the next viewing.

[Chris Knipp]

Erik von Looy: Memory of a Killer (2004)

In De Zaak Alzheimer, a Belgian hit man rebels when sent to kill a young girl and finds out she's at the bottom of a child prostitute ring which he decides to wipe out all the way up the chain of command -- just a few steps ahead of the police detectives. The only trouble is he's experiencing the onset of Alzheimer's. A brother is in a sanatorium with it. Despite this nod to an aging population (and hypertrophied genre) this is a conventional enough police procedural that includes such clichés as feuding branches of law enforcement and a bond between the chief investigator and the criminal, but it's well worked out with some neat little details and it moves fast. It would have been nice if there weren't all those banging drums to signal when the action is heating up and it would have been even nicer if the very able hit man would actually show more signs of oncoming senility. But the plot cheats us out of whatever dash of color that would bring by having him take medication to control the symptoms. Even with a bullet wound and a crooked shrink working for the top man in the ring trying to shoot him full of poison our hit man keeps the whole police force hopping till the end. Jan Decleir, who resembles the late William Bendix, is compelling as the hit man, Angelo Ledda, and Koen De Bouw is sexy as the chief detective, Vincke.


Fernando Meireilles: The Constant Gardener (2005).

Meireilles' chronicle of three decades of favela crime life in Rio, City of God/Cidade de Deus (2002), was a wonder of color and whirlwind action. Here he applies his bright brush to a post-cold war John Le Carré story about a mild and moral diplomat, Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) whose political firebrand wife Tessa (Rachel Weisz) gets assassinated in Kenya, leading him to go against the grain and offend his superiors by hunting down the medical cartel scandal that got her in harm's way. The contrast between the gentleness and focus of Fiennes's character and the turbulence and corruption all around him as he moves closer and closer to the same danger his wife faced is beautifully conveyed. The film is particularly notable for its endless fast succession of dazzling bright African images and its panoply of morally dubious secondary characters ably played by the likes of Bill Nighy, Danny Huston, Gerald McSorley, and Keith Pearson. But unfortunately Meirelles' hyperactive editing, which underscored the wild energy of the favela in Cidade de Deus, tends to overwhelm the story sometimes and isn't altogether appropriate to a writer whose métier was always conveying the gray world of self effacing bureaucrats. When it's all over all you may remember is Fiennes' sad face. He's fine, though, and so is Weisz and so are many of the others. It's not certain this was the ideal project for Meirelles, though he has produced a stylish mainstream film.

[arsaib4]

The Circle (2000) - Jafar Panahi

I couldn't agree more. What I did like here, however, is the tragectory of his shots, all referring to the circularity of the title, but otherwise it doesn't have anything new to offer. There isn't much common between The Circle and Panahi's other efforts (The White Balloon/The Mirror/Crimson Gold). The latter two are available on DVD and they're much more Kiarostamian. I think you'll like them.


Rebels of the Neon God (1992) - Tsai Ming-Liang

Glad to see that you stuck with Tsai. His films will definitely grow on you.

[wpqx]

Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1974)

Holy shit this is quite possibly the funniest movie ever. Every time I watch it there are new things to laugh at, and within the first five minutes I was literally crying. So much for saying no movie can make me cry. Sure these weren't tears of sorrow, but nevertheless I was hysterically laughing as my girlfriend looked at me in stunned disblelief. I regret to inform you that she wasn't too amused with the film. Of course only a super grinch would be unable to laugh at anything in the film, I mean is there much funnier than a white fluffy rabit decapitating a full grown man?

Girl, Interrupted (1999)

Well I like it, certainly not enough to see it for a THIRD time, but well it wasn't my choice. Try reasoning with someone who refuses to watch 8 1/2. Not a very strong acting film, but great characterization, and people can historically point to this film as the one that made Angelina Jolie a household name. Actually it was more her Oscar acceptance for this film that did that, but whatever. I don't recall anyone commenting on this one the last time I reported on it. I'm curious to know if anyone else saw it, and what they may think about it.

[Chris Knipp]

I saw it and I thought it was a lot of drama queens hamming it up. The Oscar showed that the Academy is fooled by actor-y excess. But Angelina may be a force for good. I bought the issue of W magazine with the 30-page art photo spread with her and her new boyfriend, and I wish them a happy life.

You can't go wrong with the Python crew.