BEST MOVIES OF 2010 -- so far

[Michuk]

INCEPTION will be the Best Film of the Year.
(just FYI) lol

I just watched "Inception" last night and I've got mixed feelings about it. It is a cleverly constructed, well acted and properly executed piece of cinema. It has its unique climax built by a very powerful score (by Hans Zimmer) and a surprising mix of visual effects and cinematography (Wally Pfister). The weak part of the movie is the story. Don't get me wrong - it's quite an interesting, half-original idea and it shines compared to most modern blockbusters. But it still disappoints. The whole idea seems simply so unreal and the problems so out of touch that I found it very hard to get engaged.

Here is my "first impression" Inception review.

[Chris Knipp]

I'd agree, and am impressed by your photos of the London crowd; not so many to see it here in the East Bay. Haven't seen lines like that since BEING JOHN MALKOVITCH. But tht cinemas has folded.

I only would add that the STORY is a pretty major element. Some of the initial palnning about the dream-invading projects and their purpose seems a little vague.

I'd sum up:

A good cast and clean, elegant look make this story of dream-manipulation the class blockbuster of the summer. Narrowly Hollywood, though, the concept that dreams consist of nothing but action movie sequences.

I have written a review of INCEPTION and you'll find it here.

[oscar jubis]

By the way, the best movie of 2010 is Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS.

Unlike the digitalized BREATHLESS currently in theaters, this METROPOLIS should be considered a new release. It is 25 minutes longer than any version released previously in the US. That's a significant improvement. The 2008 discovery of this footage in an attic in Buenos Aires is the event of the decade as far as film historians are concerned. This is one of Fritz Lang's undeniable masterpieces, about class conflict in the 21st century, and now we can delight in something damn close to the original 1927 German release.

[Chris Knipp]

Yes, the best movie is always an old one.

I'll see this if I get a chance.

Meanwhile have just seen

INCEPTION
SOUTH OF THE BORDER
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
THE LOTTERY

Doubtful any of these would wind up being Best Movies candidates.

Have been watching Kurosawa's STRAY DOG. Beautiful abstract sequences better than anything in Chris Doye's cinematography for Wong Kar-wai.

[Johann]

Stray Dog on DVD or in a theatre? Thanks for the comment on Doyle/Wong. Something to think about..

I just picked up the latest issue of Film Comment (Inception cover) and it's excellent, as it's always been.
That magazine is the Standard if you ask me. There's an article (first part of two) about the internet critics vs. the old school print critics and it was interesting to read. I saw myself in the criticism aimed at the online writers. But I defend the use of strong language when I have no one to impress and it suits my point. Plus I'm not paid. If I was a paid critic like these "legit" writers, I'd be cranking out the most astute, erudite and passionate reviews this side of Sight & Sound. But since writers are a dime a dozen, I don't really make an effort to censor myself, just for the fact that sometimes salty language is needed and no word can compare to "fuck". It's the perfect curse word.


Just FYI, in the interview with Christopher Nolan he mentions that a lot of the dream stuff in INCEPTION he just made up, that he doesn't delve too deeply into psychoanalysis at all. His passion for the craft of filmmaking comes through like a freight train in that interview.
AND!
he is producing the next Superman film, The Man of Steel! Warners has found their Superhero Messiah!
Rumours are that the story will be modern, how Superman would fit in with today's world, with the Daily Planet newspaper under threat from the internet. Can you imagine Clark Kent looking for a job at Microsoft because he was downsized?
I also picked up the latest issue of Empire ~INCEPTION cover also~ and there are some hints about the next and final Batman film. Nolan says "one film at a time!" and that the next Bat-film will complete the trilogy, complete the arc he has for the characters. He has denied the villain will be Mr. Freeze or the Penguin. My guess is it will be Catwoman or the Riddler.

[Chris Knipp]

STRAY DOG in a Criterion DVD rented from Netflix. It's particularly the sequence in which the hero is disguised as a deadbeat and walks on the wild side, with montage segments, in which the images are fantastic and gorgeous à la Doyle.

I'm glad you like Film Comment (which Peter used to do the layouts of) because it's the official journal of the Film Society of Lincoln Center, which in turn is responsible for my best film experiences of the year. Film Comment's articles aren't usually online and I don't get it, but the essay you mention, by Paul Brunick, "THE LIVING AND THE DEAD: Online versus Old School: time to debunk the myth (Part I)" is available on the FSLC website here. As print jorunalism opportunities diminish, more online possibilities emerge. The situation in movie writing isn't any different from what's happening in politics and other fields. People get heard who may not have credentials -- or proper editing. But there are many new voices. I like the writing of Walter Chaw for Film Freak Central. He sometimes uses "fuck." His reviews are very smart, but often angrier than anything in a newspaper, apart from the swear words. He gave THE DARK KNIGHT 4 out of 4; but INCEPTION he gave 2 our of 4. He's an example of one of the more interesting online critics. Apart from the liveliness of the online film criticism scene that this nice young college boy, Paul Brunick, talks about, the Web allows us unprecedented quick access to most of the film criticism about new movies, and if you acknowledge that reviewers or critics actually make smart observations about the films they review, that makes us all smarter. As well as in touch with each other. But i don't think we need to sell ourselves on what we ourselves are doing.

It's no surprise to me that Nolan relies on his own invention rather than pschycholgical studies for his "dreams" in INCEPTION, but as I've said, the trouble with his "dreams" in the film is they're just action movie sequences, unlike the dreams in other films you can think of. However, INCEPTION is undeniably a beautiful and elegant-looking blockbuster. But remember what Chaw says: it's a Rubik's cube, not a profound study.

I'm afraid I can't get too excited about the upcoming Batman films, though of course I'll have to watch them, especially if Nolan makes them. I'm burdened by the unchangeable fact that my interest in comic books and their stories and characters had waned by the time I reached the age of twelve.

[Johann]

Thanks for the links. It's true that I should link to more stuff that I mention. Chalk it up to laziness...ha ha

Print critics should be able to make the jump to online writing with ease, shouldn't they?
I mean, if you're such a great critic/writer, then I would think adapting your passion to a new medium wouldn't be that hard.
Roger Ebert excels at it, as do many others. Jonathan Rosenbaum is VERY active, with film festivals, facebook, etc.. Love that man.
I've exchanged messages and e-mails with him often. It's great. Facebook has it's downsides, but man, I've chatted with Guy Maddin, E.E. Merhige and Ted Falconi (all friends on there!) and that was not even conceivable ten years ago. I'm amazed at the internet and how it's literally transformed the human race. Bill Gates, you've created the Juggernaut of Juggernauts...

I should also mention that Christopher Nolan said that Heath Ledger was the definitive Joker and that giving the role to another actor just seems wrong. His filmmaking is so streamlined and exciting to me that even if INCEPTION isn't as good as his other films I know I'll still give it up for it.
The trailers tell me that I can suspend belief for whatever images fly by my eyes on it. I love how he crosscuts and it builds and builds..
That's what exciting cinema needs to be: quick, with cuts that mean something, close-ups are rationed (like Kubrick. When Kubrick did a close-up...did it ever mean something) and the music/sound is just AWESOME.
Sound & Vision is what it's all about with Mr. Nolan. He's a true gift to the medium of motion pictures.