Schoolio's Movie Corner

[C DUB YA]

(although I did quite like the opening credits, it worked there)

http://yuco.wiredrive.com/l/p/?presentation=2a19d67b5b339b5bf565629be15a6f69

[amyzzz]

Dontcha wish Watchmen had its own thread right about now, Gabe?

[real talk]

Attention, Courtney (and anyone else who's a fan of Kazuo Ishiguro's book Never Let Me Go):

Keira Knightley has been cast in the upcoming film version, written by Alex Garland (28 Days Later, Sunshine, and the novel on which The Beach was based) and directed by Mark Romanek (One Hour Photo and assorted music videos). I would love for this to be great, but Keira Knightley's presence does not fill me with optimism.

http://www.thehollywoodnews.com/artman2/publish/movie_news/Keira-Knightley-is-Never-going-to-Let-Me-Go-27020309.php

BOOK SPOILER





I am excited to see how they adapt this, one of the things I like most about this book is how slowly the horrible truth is revealed and when you realize what is going on it's bone chilling. This could make a really good movie. I don't mind Keira Knightley, she's getting better with age.

[Monklish]

which was one of the best sequences in the movie even though it was as long as the end credits of both Lord of the Rings and Walk combined.

Hilarious. Kudos, sir.

[schoolofruckus]

Dontcha wish Watchmen had its own thread right about now, Gabe?

It does have its own thread. But I'm fine with the discussion of the movie being based here. I wouldn't venture to the "First pictures of Rorschach!!!" thread just to tell everyone how flat the movie is.


Also, BY THE FUCKING WAY....were the rest of you as fucking irritated as I was by the way the mispronounced his name in the film? Literally, every goddamn time his name was said aloud (even by himself!), they called him "Roar Shack". This drove me goddamn fucking BONKERS. At least in the comic, it was specifically noted as sounding like "Raw shark".

[Young blood]

Looks great. Even though i'm not totally digging the new Kirk

s4XXydDEkG0

Looks like it will be better than Star Trek 2.

[atom heart]

That trailer doesn't really look like Star Trek at all. Not sure if that is good or bad.

[LooseAtTheZoo]

BOOK SPOILER





I am excited to see how they adapt this, one of the things I like most about this book is how slowly the horrible truth is revealed and when you realize what is going on it's bone chilling. This could make a really good movie. I don't mind Keira Knightley, she's getting better with age.

I'm reading never let me go in English class.

[Down Rodeo]

I'll be honest...I enjoyed Watchmen.

Everyone here has made excellent points (Gabe - your writing ability continues to amaze me, and NMH - I couldn't agree with you more on the handling of the ending with Ozymandias). My major complaint would be that the film felt less human to me than the novel, which is probably due to the enormous amount of material that had to be whittled down. The plot zips along quickly, but Snyder has dumbed down most of the social satire and moral dilemmas until the very end (by the way, I thought the new ending worked surprisingly well, but I won't go into detail), which diminishes a lot of the impact that the story has. Still though, the film works fine if you're familiar with the story, otherwise I would imagine it's hard to relate to most of the characters or understand why they're doing certain things. I agree that the music choices are pretty terrible, too (except for the title sequence and the Philip Glass music used during the Mars scene).

Overall, I think Snyder did an admirable job in adapting a supposedly un-adaptable work, but it's definitely far from a masterpiece. The film works as a nice companion to the novel, but has little to add in terms of originality or moral & ethical insights.

[PotVsKtl]

I'm reading never let me go in English class.

http://i44.tinypic.com/i3xe6q.gif

[Neutral Milk Hotel]

http://s5.tinypic.com/2s94q5k.jpg

[Monklish]

It does have its own thread. But I'm fine with the discussion of the movie being based here. I wouldn't venture to the "First pictures of Rorschach!!!" thread just to tell everyone how flat the movie is.


Also, BY THE FUCKING WAY....were the rest of you as fucking irritated as I was by the way the mispronounced his name in the film? Literally, every goddamn time his name was said aloud (even by himself!), they called him "Roar Shack". This drove me goddamn fucking BONKERS. At least in the comic, it was specifically noted as sounding like "Raw shark".

Did the comic do that? That's not how the actual guy's name is supposed to be pronounced, is it?

[schoolofruckus]

Did the comic do that? That's not how the actual guy's name is supposed to be pronounced, is it?

Yes. The part where the cops are called on him, the cop says "What? Raw what? Raw shark? What is..." and then his partner yanks him out of the room.

It's roar shock, not roar shack. And the mind fucking boggles that not a single person involved with the making of Watchmen knows this.

[Monklish]

rôr'shäk', -shäKH'

it's kinda a little inbetween. Germanic-Swiss bullshit.

[Blinken]

http://s5.tinypic.com/2s94q5k.jpg

That is brillant.

[schoolofruckus]

Not to turn this into Monkio's English Corner (which you should totally start, by the way), but is there really a grey zone between a short O and a short A?

[PotVsKtl]

YJQ5bLmYGm0

http://www.apple.com/trailers/focus_features/thelimitsofcontrol/

[thestripe]

BOOK SPOILER





I am excited to see how they adapt this, one of the things I like most about this book is how slowly the horrible truth is revealed and when you realize what is going on it's bone chilling. This could make a really good movie. I don't mind Keira Knightley, she's getting better with age.

What they did to The Beach was shit. Hopefully they'll do a better job here. Adapt not ruin.

[KungFuJoe]

YJQ5bLmYGm0

http://www.apple.com/trailers/focus_features/thelimitsofcontrol/

Fuck yeah! Jim Jarmusch & Christopher Doyle seems like a match made in heaven. I'm psyched for this one.

[rage patton]

BOOK/MOVIE SPOILIERS




So I saw Watchman last night at midnight. I enjoyed it. It certainly wasn't amazing, and was no where near as good as the grapic novel, but it was a good movie. I didn't even mind how they used Dr. Manhattan as the squids role. I knew that would be different, and it was better than I thought it was going to be. That said, I had a couple beefs with the movie. My biggest is with the way they portrayed Ozzymandius. In the book, he was glorified almost like a god. He was perfect, he was a golden boy in all senses of the word. Everyone loved Veidt. In this movie, he seemed like a snob, and even a little standoff-ish. Also, I did not like his costume. Black and dark purple? They almost made him out to be dark and sinister, so it wouldn't be that much of a shock to people (who hadn't read the book) when they found out Ozzymandius was "the bad guy." Almost, the revelation in the book, did not translate in the book. When I came to read the book, and everything became fully realized, a shiver went down my spine and all the hair raised on my neck. In the movie it was kind of like "Oh yeah. I get it. Makes sense. Kill millions, save billions. So Veidt is only kind of the bad guy. Got it." So yeah, I didn't like that at all. Also, like many have brought up, the music was laughable. Aside from Bob Dylan and Simon & Garfunkle, all the song choices were laughable. What was withh "99 Red Ballons"?

But yeah, I really did enjoy the movie. Also, who else thought the guy who played Roarschach was fantastic? The scene where he died, Roarschach really got me.

[LooseAtTheZoo]

http://i44.tinypic.com/i3xe6q.gif

Sarcasm?

[suprefan]

Yeah Jackie Earl Hayley?

[LooseAtTheZoo]

Yeah Jackie Earl Hayley?

He was so good in Little Children. So good.

[ivankay]

i just read Gabe's review and as much as i would love to come to the film maker's defense, i can't. i am totally biased in my love of the Watchmen and the anticipation of seeing it as a movie since the Terry Gilliam project went bust many a moon ago. i am biased because the film came through my place of employment for months and months to my glee that "we" were doing the Watchmen (i even lent my copy to the lead colorist on the film....i want it back). i want my Watchmen back in a lot of ways. i was absolutely drawn into the film and thought it could not be any more perfect, then from the jail break on it lost me. i bought into the mid Eighties Watchmen world up until that point. Then it got removed and turned into the "Now" zim poo pow and the source material almost became secondary to the "awesomeness" of the film. No doubt this is a technical MARVEL! Imax was made for movies like this. Cast was great and brought the characters to life. i am going to see it again, but it's going to be kinda like a hot girl you like to screw, but you know it ain't going no where. There was sooooo much perfect about this movie...ARGARAGGARRRHH.....my reaction when the credits rolled was "hurm" (bad choice on the Chemical Romance exclamation mark...IN YER FACE!!!...wrong). i love and hate this movie.

[corbo]

finally saw the watchmen!
overall it was enjoyable but....
was anyone else bothered by the fact that dr manhattans mars tour
didnt include the olympus mons and the valles marineris?
this really bugged me.

[wmgaretjax]

Watchmen was god awful. Gabe hit the nail on the head. At the end, I just wanted my fucking 3 hours back. It was just bad. The only tool in Snyder's kit is a sledgehammer...

[Monklish]

Not to turn this into Monkio's English Corner (which you should totally start, by the way), but is there really a grey zone between a short O and a short A?

I'm just saying it's not a shack sound, it's more like a sha-ock, smushed together.

[mountmccabe]

What they did to The Beach was shit. Hopefully they'll do a better job here. Adapt not ruin.

Alex Garland wrote the novel The Beach; he didn't have anything to do with the movie. The only "they" involved (that worked on the movie The Beach) is Andrew Macdonald as a Producer.

The screenplays he has written - 28 Days Later and Sunshine - have been imo excellent.

[BlueDevil50]

i actually liked the watchmen...i expected a little more action since it was a snyder film, but other than it being really long, it was worth the watch. good story, kept to the comic, and was visually entertaining.

[suprefan]

No Squid = not keeping to the comic fyi.





25 million estimated opening day for Watchmen.

[rage patton]

The first half kept to the comic very well. The second half felt rushed.

[thestripe]

Alex Garland wrote the novel The Beach; he didn't have anything to do with the movie. The only "they" involved (that worked on the movie The Beach) is Andrew Macdonald as a Producer.

The screenplays he has written - 28 Days Later and Sunshine - have been imo excellent.



Thanks, John. I misread it as a novel written by Alex, being made into a movie.

[BlueDevil50]

honestly, i like the movie ending better than the squid.

[thestripe]

Sounds like a rental.


I watched Che 1 & 2 the other day. Schoolio's review pretty much nailed it on the head. It's on comcast HD On Demand if anyone's interested.

[chairmenmeow47]

i'm behind the times, but i saw coraline in 3d over the weekend and loved it. it wasn't too long, it was just the right amount of darkness for a kid's movie and dakota fanning & teri hatcher didn't annoy me to pieces like normal. it was very pretty.

[ivankay]

i am hoping i get the chance to see it in 3D again before it is out of theaters.

[indietron]

I watched The Constant Gardener the other day. It wasn't the best, but it was still good. The first half was a little difficult to follow, but luckily the second half brought the pieces together. I know theres alot of crap in Africa ( :( ), but I really hope drug companies aren't pulling crap like that.

[MissingPerson]

Everybody should go see Anvil.

[KungFuJoe]

The Watchmen wasn't so bad. I enjoyed it on the Imax. There were definitely parts I hated, but overall it was a decent film. I don't mind the slow motion as much as other people. It seems ok for Wong Kar Wai to use it in his films, but not Zack Snyder? I'm not trying to defend the guy as a good film maker, but I'll take his style over Michael Bay's in yo face any day.

Also went to a matinee of Gomorra on Sunday. I liked it a lot, but felt it could have been a bit more cohesive. A very good film though. I enjoyed it's approach & thought some of the characters were fantastic.

[indietron]

Let the Right One In just came out on DVD, im gonna have to watch it

[samiksha]

yeah i just rented it last night. it made me feel sort of ill.

i also rented rachel getting married and cried so hard i blew a snot bubble.

[C DUB YA]

i'm behind the times, but i saw coraline in 3d over the weekend and loved it. it wasn't too long, it was just the right amount of darkness for a kid's movie and dakota fanning & teri hatcher didn't annoy me to pieces like normal. it was very pretty.

too dark for a kids movie.

[PotVsKtl]

too dark for a kids movie.

http://aram.free.fr/fantasy/images/d_skeksis.jpg

Go fuck yourself.

[Monklish]

Pot and his degree in Moving Picture Still Life Animation disagrees.

[Cherita Chen]

YES YES YES YES YES

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1810029193/video

WATCH IT!

I CANNOT WAIT

[indietron]

Uhm... no

[schoolofruckus]

Cherita, why are you so wound up over that? It looks like a good horror movie, and it's a solid trailer. But it's nothing to nut over, for fuck's sake.

[amyzzz]

HAHAHAHA, that was a funny trailer.

[bmack86]

Last night at work was depressing and joyous at once. i got there and realized that I wasn't going to be able to leave without spending a good chunk of change. I left with

Rachel Getting Married
Synechdoche, NY
Let the Right One In
T2

I am so bad at saving.

[BKsaysAction!]

YES YES YES YES YES

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1810029193/video

WATCH IT!

I CANNOT WAIT

Man working at a savings and loan must suck.

But thats cool sam raimi is going back to horror finally.

[schoolofruckus]

iv3rdawg tipped me off to something ridiculously awesome:

Silent Light is getting a theatrical day in Los Angeles!!!

It's actually two days at LACMA - Friday 4/24 and Saturday 4/25. Again, I can't state how badly this film needs to be seen in a cinema. Any person who considers his/herself a film connossieur needs to make a point to catch one of these screenings.


Silent Light (Stellet Licht)
Friday, April 24 | 7:30 pm
2007/color/136 min./Scope | Scr/dir: Carlos Reygadas

http://www.lacma.org/MungoBlobs/502/354/SILENTLITE.jpg

One of the most critically acclaimed films of the last year, Carlos Reygadas’s spellbinding third feature is set in rural Mexico where a small, agrarian Mennonite community who speak a medieval form of German (Plautdietsch), are suffering from a crisis of faith. An immersive, sensual, and ultimately haunting experience, Silent Light recalls the redemptive dramas of Carl Theodor Dreyer, though the film’s extraordinary widescreen images and hypnotic rhythms are unmistakably Reygadas’s own. “I was amazed by Silent Light—the setting, the language, the delicacy of the interactions between the people on screen, the drama of redemption. And most of all by Carlos Reygadas’s extraordinarily rich sense of cinema, evident in every frame. A surprising picture, and a very moving one as well.”—Martin Scorsese.

[indietron]

iv3rdawg tipped me off to something ridiculously awesome:

Silent Light is getting a theatrical day in Los Angeles!!!

It's actually two days at LACMA - Friday 4/24 and Saturday 4/25. Again, I can't state how badly this film needs to be seen in a cinema. Any person who considers his/herself a film connossieur needs to make a point to catch one of these screenings.

Do I need to be a connossieur to see it, or should i see it anyways because I like to watch movies?

[PotVsKtl]

http://my.spill.com/video/video/show?id=947994%3AVideo%3A440647

[schoolofruckus]

Do I need to be a connossieur to see it, or should i see it anyways because I like to watch movies?

That'll do, pig. That'll do.

[indietron]

Is that supposed to be some sort of slur?

[ivankay]

i can see how that can be seen as teary pride in your enthusiasm to expand your cinematic taste. When Farmer Hoggett says "That'll do..." to Babe in the end, it is with beaming love and pride over the pig's wonderful accomplishment. Maybe Gabe is feeling the same way.

hmmmm, deja vu (literally just had one).

[indietron]

Alright then, I will take it as a compliment :) thanks Mr. I

[Cherita Chen]

Cherita, why are you so wound up over that? It looks like a good horror movie, and it's a solid trailer. But it's nothing to nut over, for fuck's sake.

Sorry. I'm a big Raimi fan and this is just what we needed

Also, Watchmen was so fucking boring. And I love the comic

[BKsaysAction!]

Sorry. I'm a big Raimi fan and this is just what we needed

Also, Watchmen was so fucking boring. And I love the comic

Glad i'm not the only one that thought this and i watch some boring movies.

[Down Rodeo]

I saw Kieslowski's Double Life of Veronique last night, and as expected, it was another of his masterpieces. I am now really motivated to finally watch the Decalogue. If only this director were still alive...

[wmgaretjax]

Dekalog is his masterpiece... Without a doubt. Three Colors is great, and Double Life is incredible... But Dekalog is it.

[SoulDischarge]

I also watched The Double Life Of Veronique for the first time a couple of days ago and . . . it didn't really sink in. Movies like that usually take me 2 or 3 viewings to have a legitimate opinion about anyway. It was gorgeous though. The only other Kieslowski I've seen is Blue, which I liked a lot, and No End, which did nothing for me.

Also, more reason to get excited about the new Jarmusch:


The last time I noticed a celebrated indie filmmaker using a heavy dollop of doom metal to soundtrack a movie, it was Harmony Korine using Sleep and Eyehategod in Gummo. The music is easily the best thing about that sensationalistic trainwreck of a movie, with the cinematography a distant second.

Judging by this trailer, Jim Jarmusch's forthcoming The Limits of Control includes the following things: Ghost Dog's best friend as the lead, the ridiculously beautiful Paz de la Huerta never taking off her Weezer glasses, Tilda Swinton wandering around in a white wig and a cowboy hat, Gael Garcia Bernal with a gigantic scar on his face, Sadly Bemused Bill Murray, cinematography from the great Wong Kar-Wai collaborator Christopher Doyle, and "graphic nudity and some language." Based on all available evidence, it is going to rule. And the music might still be the best thing about it.

As the Playlist points out, in the quick flash of credits at the end of the trailer, we see something encouraging: "Music by Boris." And as sunn O))) mastermind Stephen O'Malley wrote on his website last week and the bands' publicist confirms, the soundtrack includes music from Boris by themselves, sunn O))) & Boris together, and Earth.

Jim Jarmusch has a history of using great music in his movies: eerily ringing minimal Neil Young guitar chords in Dead Man, sparsely chilly RZA beats in Ghost Dog. And he knows that titans of drone-metal go with mysterious outlaw movies like champagne and strawberries. He is a smart man.

The Limits of Control gets a limited release on May 22, and I can't wait.

And fuck that, Gummo is fucking great.

[Monklish]

Yeah, Gummo is great, but Children Of Men is underwhelming. Balls to you.

[schoolofruckus]

Both movies are fantastic.

The Limits of Control looks like a winner.

[SoulDischarge]

Yeah, Gummo is great, but Children Of Men is underwhelming. Balls to you.

I stopped taking your opinions about film seriously ages ago. I had just assumed you'd done likewise.

[Monklish]

Well you gotta understand, it's a little confusing. From time to time in chat you exhibit signs of what SHOULD be intelligence... then you go and make statements like that.

You see how it confounds me, don't you?

[SoulDischarge]

I understand your anguish.

[PotVsKtl]

Gummo is vastly superior to Children of Men.

[wmgaretjax]

It's undeniably true...

[Monklish]

And this, ladies and gentlemen, THIS is why no one should go to art school.

[PotVsKtl]

Some people are just born with better taste. Children of Men is a series of convenient encounters and sloppy writing. Gummo is not a series of convenient encounters and sloppy writing. Conclusion? Art school not necessary for accurate rating.

[Monklish]

There is no possible fucking way in hell that Harmony fucking Korine produced something that isn't a sloppy pointless piece of shit. Your argument is flawed.

[Monklish]

Prepare a dissertation for me though on how Gummo doesn't suck. Be sure to employ everything you learned in your Flipbook Picture classes.

[PotVsKtl]

You don't like movies like Gummo. I can't change that. I found it deeply affecting. That's just how my shit works. The Children of Men argument can be relived on pages 45-47 of this thread, a point in the past I was apparently much more willing to write at length.

[SoulDischarge]

Better than anything in Children Of Men:
MqiLuOybDQc

[Monklish]

Two things most guaranteed to eliminate my giving a flying fuck about the emotional content of a movie:

1. The Holocaust
2. Retards

[PotVsKtl]

Even when the retards are hookers? Shame on you sir.

[Monklish]

3. Hookers

[schoolofruckus]

Children of Men is a technical marvel, and one of the most exciting films I've ever seen. Gummo is a one of the most expressive and compassionate films I've ever seen. Both films are atmospheric perfection, creating absorbing worlds that no doubt extend well beyond what we see onscreen. I feel like anyone who dislikes either one is missing out.

[Monklish]

Basically, Jews, Tards, and Whores all get fucked.

[Monklish]

Children of Men is a technical marvel, and one of the most exciting films I've ever seen. Gummo is a one of the most expressive and compassionate films I've ever seen. Both films are atmospheric perfection, creating absorbing worlds that no doubt extend well beyond what we see onscreen. I feel like anyone who dislikes either one is missing out.

Just because it's miserable and sad and pathetic doesn't make it compassionate.

[PotVsKtl]

I will say for the record I don't think Gummo has much to do with overt emotional content. It's a pastiche. I learned that word in collage college.

[bobert]

Gummo? Really? I'm gonna let you all in on a little secret: no one liked that movie. Anyone who argues otherwise is a pretentious, self-decieving, lying piece of shit. That was Harmony Korine's one and only triumph with that film was that he was able to convince thousands blow-hards all over the world to go around championing that movie because they felt that was the kind disturbing, rub your face in the dung of the world type art flick that pretentious blowhards should like. But no one does.

[wmgaretjax]

Anyone who has Bertolucci, Herzog, and Van Sant clamoring for them is OK in my book.

[PotVsKtl]

Speaking of which did anybody see Mister Lonely? I had no idea it was out on DVD.

[wmgaretjax]

Speaking of which did anybody see Mister Lonely? I had no idea it was out on DVD.

It was good... it felt a little uneven, but still good. Especially the stuff with Herzog...

I didn't love it nearly as much as Gummo or Julien-Donkey Boy, but I did enjoy it.

[PotVsKtl]

Gummo? Really? I'm gonna let you all in on a little secret: no one liked that movie. Anyone who argues otherwise is a pretentious, self-decieving, lying piece of shit. That was Harmony Korine's one and only triumph with that film was that he was able to convince thousands blow-hards all over the world to go around championing that movie because they felt that was the kind disturbing, rub your face in the dung of the world type art flick that pretentious blowhards should like. But no one does.

I genuinely love Gummo every time I watch it, which has taken place numerous times. Your mother hates you.

[Monklish]

Isn't Julien Donkey-Boy about some kind of retard too?

[Monklish]

I genuinely love Gummo every time I watch it, which has taken place numerous times. Your mother hates you.

I don't believe you either, for the record. Like, I genuinely don't think there's a chance you actually enjoy this garbage you claim to.

I learned that in that graduate-level fingerpainting tutorial I took.

[wmgaretjax]

I've watched the film probably 5 or 6 times as well... By myself and with others who had similar and differing opinions.

Personally, I think it's easily one of the greatest American films made in the last 20 years...

[lickety_spit]

i don't know if it was intentional, but Gummo was more humorous than emotionally disturbing. i grew up in suburban michigan, so it was kind of like watching a home movie. if, in the scene where solomon and tummler are in jarrod's bedroom, the cut to the boyz II men picture on the wall doesn't evoke some laughter, well then i think you may just be a zombie.
it's true that the soundtrack was the best part, though.

[SoulDischarge]

It was good... it felt a little uneven, but still good. Especially the stuff with Herzog...

I didn't love it nearly as much as Gummo or Julien-Donkey Boy, but I did enjoy it.

I agree with this.


Regardless of any DEEPER MEANING, Gummo is damned entertaining to watch. I've seen it several times and never feel bored by it. The movie is packed with unique and memorable characters, situations, lines, performances, and images. Little weird moments that just transcend the usual movie-going experience and speak directly to your imagination. David Lynch has a lot of these too, like the "In Dreams" sequence in Blue Velvet. It's kind of a hard thing to explain, because it's kind of an ineffable quality that's easier to recognize than describe. And most movies are sorely lacking in these kinds of moments. I'd rather watch a disjointed mess with a lot of these elements than a well crafted film with no transcendent idiosyncrasies (see: Brick). Gummo just also happens to work on a higher analytic level also.

[schoolofruckus]

Speaking of which did anybody see Mister Lonely? I had no idea it was out on DVD.

I loved it. It was in my top 5 favorites of last year.

[bobert]

Anyone who has Bertolucci, Herzog, and Van Sant clamoring for them is OK in my book.

Precisely my point. If those three filmmakers and everyone else on Earth dismissed Gummo as a worthless piece of shit, you really expect us to believe you'd be the one guy out there with his dick in the wind claiming it's one of the greatest American films ever made? That's got to be the biggest cop out ever - rather than argue for your own opinions you just fall back on this notion that these autuers agree with you. If this is the kind of nonsense Korine was trying to propagate with Gummo then maybe the film is brilliant, just not for any of the reasons you think you're supposed to think it is.

[wmgaretjax]

I don't expect you to believe anything. I also don't pretend to have entirely original opinions, no one does. However, I saw this film by accident when I was in the 9th grade because I loved Kids and knew this film was somehow related to it. I loved it then, and I love it now. I couldn't have explained to you then why I found it so compelling, but I feel fairly equipped to do so now (and have done so in this thread before). Korine isn't pulling this shit out of his ass, the film's roots go back to masterpieces by the likes of Todd Browning and D.W. Griffith, and while the film is certainly haphazard... It's gravitas comes from a rich cinematic tradition and a director with a keen eye and a great sense of humor.

My point in citing those directors was simply to point out that while you and many people you spend your time with might despise the film, Korine actually has a wide body of people who respect him that includes some indisputable geniuses.

[schoolofruckus]

You don't like movies like Gummo. I can't change that. I found it deeply affecting. That's just how my shit works. The Children of Men argument can be relived on pages 45-47 of this thread, a point in the past I was apparently much more willing to write at length.

I read back over pages 45 through 47. It was a good discourse.

On a related note, I'm grateful to see that it's two years later, and none of the four ideas-for-remakes I was ripping on at that time - The Fountainhead, Killing of a Chinese Bookie, Old Boy, and Straw Dogs - have yet come to fruition.

[bobert]

My point in citing those directors was simply to point out that while you and many people you spend your time with might despise the film, Korine actually has a wide body of people who respect him that includes some indisputable geniuses.

I never said Harmony Korine wasn't talented. I've liked a lot of his work, and the very fact that I'm evening arguing about Gummo shows that even that movie touched a nerve in some regard. My broader point was that Gummo is a film that's typically championed by pretentious blowhards, and your response was to name drop Werner Herzog and all the other indisputable geniuses you keep intellectual company with.

[wmgaretjax]

I never said Harmony Korine wasn't talented. I've liked a lot of his work, and the very fact that I'm evening arguing about Gummo shows that even that movie touched a nerve in some regard. My broader point was that Gummo is a film that's typically championed by pretentious blowhards, and your response was to name drop Werner Herzog and all the other indisputable geniuses you keep intellectual company with.

Yes. My response to really poor generalizations about the lack of an audience for a particular film was to name drop. Moving on...

[Monklish]

I don't expect you to believe anything. I also don't pretend to have entirely original opinions, no one does. However, I saw this film by accident when I was in the 9th grade because I loved Kids and knew this film was somehow related to it. I loved it then, and I love it now. I couldn't have explained to you then why I found it so compelling, but I feel fairly equipped to do so now (and have done so in this thread before). Korine isn't pulling this shit out of his ass, the film's roots go back to masterpieces by the likes of Todd Browning and D.W. Griffith, and while the film is certainly haphazard... It's gravitas comes from a rich cinematic tradition and a director with a keen eye and a great sense of humor.

My point in citing those directors was simply to point out that while you and many people you spend your time with might despise the film, Korine actually has a wide body of people who respect him that includes some indisputable geniuses.

I don't believe you actually liked Kids either.

And the second you use the word "gravitas" seriously in a conversation is the second you admit you're completely full of shit.

[wmgaretjax]

I don't believe you actually liked Kids either.

And the second you use the word "gravitas" seriously in a conversation is the second you admit you're completely full of shit.

We all know that I don't give a shit about what you believe Randy... And substitute the word substance for gravitas if you are having troubles taking it seriously, I couldn't care less.

[roberto73]

I find Gummo's gravitas to be commendably postmodern in the discursive nature of its non-linear narrative.*


*Also, I have never seen Gummo.

[wmgaretjax]

I find Gummo's gravitas to be commendably postmodern in the discursive nature of its non-linear narrative.*


Someone gets it. Although it's discursitivity is up for debate.

[BKsaysAction!]

I have yet to see Gummo so i can't comment on that film but KIDS being that guys first script it seems he and Larry clark just film movies of kids doing stupid shit and people reflect back on them and go wow this film captures adolescence in both its purity and tragic nature. which is great the first film around but then you make a career out of it and it becomes kind of pathetic.

[wmgaretjax]

Harmony Korine's other films share little in common with Kids...

But yes, that is definitely true of Larry Clark (other than the brilliant documentary he did for Destricted).

[BKsaysAction!]

Harmony Korine's other films share little in common with Kids...

But yes, that is definitely true of Larry Clark (other than the brilliant documentary he did for Destricted).

I'll have to check them out.

[Drinkey McDrinkerstein]

I think Clark's "BULLY" is a pretty great movie

http://posters.motechnet.com/covers/tt0242193_largeCover.jpg

"ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE" is also worth checking out, and is very different from his other films

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d142/krazziekat/another_day_in_paradise.jpg

[BKsaysAction!]

I think Clark's "BULLY" is a pretty great movie

http://posters.motechnet.com/covers/tt0242193_largeCover.jpg

"ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE" is also worth checking out, and is very different from his other films

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d142/krazziekat/another_day_in_paradise.jpg

i watched part of another day in paradise and have been meaning to watch the rest as for the rest of Larry Clarks movies i'm just tired of the "kids doing fucked up things" genre. You watch one and you've seen them all. Even though this isn't a Larry Clark film Thirteen was the worst of that catagory, I couldn't handle 15 minutes of that movie.

[Monklish]

You're all either filthy, degenerate liars or you're deluding yourselves. You don't like any of those movies. C'mon, get real, gang.

[Hawkings]

I was disturbed by the nihilism of the teens in Kids, especially the rape on the passed out girl. That along with Trainspotting and Basketball Dairies all came out around the same time and seemed relevent to me then but it's been a long time. I'm not sure i needed to see more variations of the same film thou, 'Nothings Shocking', i get it. Can't we all just get along, and talk about how inappropriate and ham fisted the music in Watchmen was ?

[schoolofruckus]

Kids was the first - and best - film of that trio.

[Monklish]

WaitwaitwaitwaitwaitwaitWAIT




... did you just say that Kids is better than Trainspotting?

[ivankay]

i'm with Randy on that one. i'd put Kids above The Basketball Diaries in that trio.

[schoolofruckus]

WaitwaitwaitwaitwaitwaitWAIT




... did you just say that Kids is better than Trainspotting?

I don't know. Did I?

[BKsaysAction!]

SSSHHHH It's Me Casper. It's sad but the kids in KIDS were basicly people i knew and hung out with when we went skating and to some parties. The only differance from the movie is it wasn't aids that got spread around among some friends of mine it was Goneriah (disgusting right). So i never found KIDS shocking it was just a part of some stupid teen's lives.

I never thought Trainspotting was disturbing mostly because it had a lot of humor and has a happy ending or so we think i need to finish reading the sequal, Porno to find out whats going on.

Now Basketball Diaries and Requiem for a Dream on the other hand....

Everything in The Watchmen to me failed but thats an old converstation.

[Monklish]

And you wonder why I call your veracity into question. Preposterous.

[schoolofruckus]

There always has been and always will be volumes more skill, substance, and genuine audience appreciation in Harmony Korine's work than you give it credit for.

Everything else in this argument is in the eye of the beholder.

[Monklish]

Kids v. Trainspotting is not in the eye of the beholder. Even in today's Supreme Court Trainspotting would win 6-1 at least.


YOU'RE BEING RIDICULOUS. DO YOU THINK YOU'RE SCALIA OR SOMETHING?

[C DUB YA]

Trainspotting hands down.

Also - I watched Role Models this evening and found it pretty damn funny - but I love Paul Rudd, so there ya go.

[C DUB YA]

Can't we all just get along, and talk about how inappropriate and ham fisted the music in Watchmen was ?


Yeah the sex scene with Hallelujah was bad - but the opening titles with Dylan was great.

[wmgaretjax]

A terrible trailer for a movie that will be undeniably good: http://www.apple.com/trailers/sony/lornassilence/

[real talk]

You're all a bunch of frat boys.

[lickety_spit]

Trainspotting hands down.

Also - I watched Role Models this evening and found it pretty damn funny - but I love Paul Rudd, so there ya go.

we agree on two things. finally.

[SoulDischarge]

I watched Bully for the first time the other day and it was pretty fucking awful. Larry Clark films are always guilty pleasures for me. I love sensationalistic over the top bullshit, but I can't take it at all seriously. I also watched Havoc, which might as well be a Clark movie. Cholo semi-rape=massive LOLZ.

[Monklish]

You're all a bunch of frat boys.

Find me another frat boy who makes hilarious Supreme Court Justice references.

[bballarl]

I realize I know nothing about movies, but I enjoyed Kids when Dani made me watch it.

[Monklish]

Dani, I'm disgusted.

[Stefinitely Maybe]

Ken Park is my favourite Clark film.

And if you guys are into depressing movies about teen rape etc then you should check out the films of Lukas Moodysson; particularly Lilya 4 Ever.

[C DUB YA]

I do not like Clark films all that much - I thought Kids was ok - once.

[wmgaretjax]

And if you guys are into depressing movies about teen rape etc then you should check out the films of Lukas Moodysson; particularly Lilya 4 Ever.

What a strange way to phrase it.

But yes, Moodysson has done some great stuff. My favorite film by him is one that Randy would have a fit over... It's called Container.

[chairmenmeow47]

i didn't see kids until a year or two ago and i had to leave the room during the passed out rape girl scene. and the guy i was sitting next to on the couch while watching the movie kept trying to find ways to put his arm around me. it was hard to watch all around. comparing trainspotting & kids is like oreos & hydrox, there is no comparison.

[ivankay]

Hmmm, not really the movie i would think of putting on if i wanted to make out with a lady.

Now Irreversible, that's a make out movie (insert sarcasm here).

[Monklish]

Comparing Trainspotting to Kids is like comparing Oreos to rape.

[Young blood]

i didn't see kids until a year or two ago and i had to leave the room during the passed out rape girl scene. and the guy i was sitting next to on the couch while watching the movie kept trying to find ways to put his arm around me. it was hard to watch all around. comparing trainspotting & kids is like oreos & hydrox, there is no comparison.

Randy doesnt take no for a answer?/.

[Monklish]

Randy doesnt take no for a answer?/.

It's a good question. I can't give you a definitive answer because I don't recall anyone ever saying "no" to me. But my guess would be no, I don't.

[bug on your lip]

and goats can't talk

[Monklish]

Not if they know what's good for 'em.

[stinkbutt]

Now Irreversible, that's a make out movie

go 9 minute rape scene

that movie was awful though

[SoulDischarge]

Lilya 4 Ever was alright, but could have done without all the angel stuff and shitty Eurotrance from 1995. What is it with Eastern European films and shitty Eurotrance?

[Drinkey McDrinkerstein]

Ken Park is my favourite Clark film.

And if you guys are into depressing movies about teen rape etc then you should check out the films of Lukas Moodysson; particularly Lilya 4 Ever.

I have read some good things about ken park. Wiaitng for it to be available on netflix

lilya 4ever is really, really good. I'll have to check out his other films

[schoolofruckus]

I thought Ken Park sucked, personally. It was the point where Larry Clark's motives became entirely transparent.

Irreversible is one of the best films of this decade. One of the least watchable, perhaps....but one of the best.

[stinkbutt]

Irreversible is one of the best films of this decade. One of the least watchable, perhaps....but one of the best.

Why? I hear so many people say something like this but I don't understand. I thought that movie was just horrible in every way.

[bobert]

Irreversible is one of the best films of this decade. One of the least watchable, perhaps....but one of the best.

I'd have to agree with this. As an act of filmmaking, it was pretty astonishing. Gaspar Noe is definitely a master at his craft, even if his motives are frequently reprehensible.

[wmgaretjax]

I'd have to agree with this. As an act of filmmaking, it was pretty astonishing. Gaspar Noe is definitely a master at his craft, even if his motives are frequently reprehensible.

I agree... I'm really exctied for his latest film. Although I do hope that he backs off the steadicam just a little bit...

[schoolofruckus]

Why? I hear so many people say something like this but I don't understand. I thought that movie was just horrible in every way.

Because it's one of the most profound films I've ever seen. Despite the brutality, I think it's actually very humanist. It's about the nature of our actions, and by showing that none of it can be taken back, it says that everything we do has meaning. I find that kind of comforting.

[Down Rodeo]

I agree... I'm really exctied for his latest film. Although I do hope that he backs off the steadicam just a little bit...

I agree - the first 20 minutes or so of Irreversible were pretty nauseating.

[bug on your lip]

Because it's one of the most profound films I've ever seen. Despite the brutality, I think it's actually very humanist. It's about the nature of our actions, and by showing that none of it can be taken back, it says that everything we do has meaning. I find that kind of comforting.

by profound i think schoolio is talking about the Monica Bellucci buttseks

that profounded me big time

[schoolofruckus]

I agree... I'm really exctied for his latest film. Although I do hope that he backs off the steadicam just a little bit...

Backs off it? Or uses it in lieu of handheld?

[wmgaretjax]

I agree - the first 20 minutes or so of Irreversible were pretty nauseating.

And I was fine with it in Irreversible... but that plus the Destricted short he did pretty much tapped the way he uses steadicam.... I'd like to see some simpler stuff, akin to some of his other short films.

[BKsaysAction!]

http://www.uga.edu/union/images/movies/letTheRight.jpg
Just watched this and loved it. I highly recomend.

[TheGuvna]

I finally saw Fan Boys... it was what I expected.

Full of cameos, Bill Dee Williams, Carrie Fisher, Kevin Smith, Ray Park, etc.

A few Star Wars geeks were outside the local theater dressed up as stormtroopers and such.

[schoolofruckus]

I just watched Salo. I'm not going to mince words - it was one of the worst films I've ever seen. I understand that there was a considerable amount of bravery that went into making it - particularly on the part of the actors - and that it probably meant quite a bit that something so critical of its own government was able to achieve release. But in terms of the film itself, apart from Morricone's score, I couldn't find ANYthing interesting about it. By about the 40 minute mark, I was steeling myself for a long afternoon, and that's exactly what was in store. Again, I understand that in its time there was significant reason for this film to be made and seen, but in 2009, I just don't see it.

[roberto73]

I just watched Salo. I'm not going to mince words - it was one of the worst films I've ever seen. I understand that there was a considerable amount of bravery that went into making it - particularly on the part of the actors - and that it probably meant quite a bit that something so critical of its own government was able to achieve release. But in terms of the film itself, apart from Morricone's score, I couldn't find ANYthing interesting about it. By about the 40 minute mark, I was steeling myself for a long afternoon, and that's exactly what was in store. Again, I understand that in its time there was significant reason for this film to be made and seen, but in 2009, I just don't see it.

I was notified yesterday that this was next on my Netflix queue, so now I can look forward to starting my week in style.

[malcolmjamalawesome]

Comparing Trainspotting to Kids is like comparing Oreos to rape.

By "Oreos" do you mean ... you know ...

[BKsaysAction!]

http://www.papermag.com/blogs/tokyo_gore_police_mb10.jpg
I tried watching that over the weekend but just lost interest. It was straight up Gore Porn. Now some people may say "Well duh BK its called Tokyo Gore Police what did you expect? Rashomon?" Now being a fan of some of Takashi Miike's Films and a few other "out there" Japanese and asian directors I was told this was a pretty good movie. Now Miike, if you've seen his movies he's done some pretty borderline disturbing films, but at least they had an interesting story to go along with this. This movie, No, it was "lets let the special effects department direct the movie." They kind of had a Robocop esque satire going on but it was drowned out in lower intestines among other things. Now if you're a fan of Gore and just seeing people get fucked up the whole time with a very thin plot then this is all you. It may have been a factor that i was hung over at the time, but this movie sucked.

[Monklish]

Watched Watchmen. Holy cow was that shitty. Why did no one else in this thread seem to mention the relentless, bouncing blue genitalia, huh?

[BKsaysAction!]

Especially that part where he multiplies himself to fuck his girlfriend and work on that deatomiser and all three of him are in the shot. I know that part was in the comic but damn the art department was proud they made Dr. Manhattan into John Holmes and wanted everybody to see.

[sbessiso]

Watched Watchmen. Holy cow was that shitty. Why did no one else in this thread seem to mention the relentless, bouncing blue genitalia, huh?

I figured I would've gotten flamed, hardcore. Manhattan was one of the few things I feel they did right, he's also my favorite character. I just love how he loses the concept of being human, how he perceives time, all that.

But yes Randy, I'm proud to say that Watchmen was so unbelievably shitty, It's one thing to fuck up the book, fine whatever. But it wasn't even entertaining, I haven't been that bored in a theater since I saw The Da Vinci Code.

On another note, I just saw "Eagle Eye". I kinda liked it :nono

[PotVsKtl]

sG2NCsz1mFc

[bobert]

http://www.uga.edu/union/images/movies/letTheRight.jpg
Just watched this and loved it. I highly recomend.

Watched this tonight as well - best horror movie I've seen in years.

[wmgaretjax]

Watched this tonight as well - best horror movie I've seen in years.

Especially those awesome CG cats...

[Down Rodeo]

Satyricon had sex with my eyes and disturbed my soul this afternoon.

[C DUB YA]

watched this over the weekend. Still love it.

http://www.sharetera.com/upimg/allimg/080302/0917230.jpg

[schoolofruckus]

sG2NCsz1mFc

Sign me up. That looks like it could be awesome.

[garrett222]

Anyone know what word she whispered in his ear at the end of the movie Brick?

[bobert]

Especially those awesome CG cats...

Yeah, the cats were awesome, but nothing could top the little girl's undead vagina. That will haunt my dreams forever.

[wmgaretjax]

If only American horror films would get a clue...

[BKsaysAction!]

about undead vaginas? They might have because theres a remake in the works. Since you know, Americans can't read.

[wmgaretjax]

about undead vaginas? They might have because theres a remake in the works. Since you know, Americans can't read.

someone sprayed freon in your face as a child...

[PotVsKtl]

Yeah, the cats were awesome, but nothing could top the little girl's undead vagina. That will haunt my dreams forever.

You missed an important part of the story.

[BKsaysAction!]

someone sprayed freon in your face as a child...

What? it's true, we steal other countries good movies and remake them because as a country, and from personal experiance working at a video store, americans don't watch foreign films simply because they have to read subtitles. So the studios takes advantage of our ignorence and remake movies to market to america. They make a profit and fool people into thinking they're creative.

[wmgaretjax]

What? it's true, we steal other countries good movies and remake them because as a country, and from personal experiance working at a video store, americans don't watch foreign films simply because they have to read subtitles. So the studios takes advantage of our ignorence and remake movies to market to america. They make a profit and fool people into thinking they're creative.

Oh. I completely agree. There were just huge gaps in your first post that completely prevented me from following that point.

[Mr.Nipples]

4p6QgDY1CHo&hl=en&fs=1
prTqo1pnK8A&hl=en&fs=1
CzfRaQUHpXQ&hl=en&fs=1
ig0kLoPYi-4&hl=en&fs=1

[bobert]

You missed an important part of the story.

No, trust me I didn't miss anything. I even rewound the DVD and paused it for a better look. Nothing gets by me.

[PotVsKtl]

No, trust me I didn't miss anything. I even rewound the DVD and paused it for a better look. Nothing gets by me.

So you know it's not a girl? Because you said girl. And vagina.

[wmgaretjax]

Nothing gets by him pot, of course he meant boy and penis.

was more explained about the whole lack of genitalia (castrated penis?) in the book? did anyone read the book?

[Monklish]

HA. HA HA HA.

[bobert]

Nothing gets by him pot, of course he meant boy and penis.

I took her whole "I'm not a girl" proclamation and lack of genitalia (or genitals that had been sewn shut, as it appeared to me) to mean that she was truly androgynous - not human, and so not truly a girl. I take it that perhaps the book is more clear about what happened to "the girl" before she became a vampire?

[wmgaretjax]

i did a little googling. In the book it's a boy who was castrated in the 12th century before he became a vampire (hence it "healing" over smooth like a barbie).

[bobert]

i did a little googling. In the book it's a boy who was castrated in the 12th century before he became a vampire (hence it "healing" over smooth like a barbie).

All right. Glad we got that cleared up. I'm gonna go masturbate now. Good day.

[BKsaysAction!]

I thought so, I did a double take myself with that gash. Another thing i'm wondering is the old man in the begining that was helping Eli, you think he might have been at some point like Oskar?

[PotVsKtl]

Yes, that's the implication.

[wmgaretjax]

you think he might have been at some point like Oskar?

that was my impression.

[bmack86]

That's, for me, the biggest diversion between the message of the book and the movie. In the book, Eli meets Hakan (the old man) after he'd been disgraced as a pedophile. She took advantage of his love for little girls to convince him to kill. With Oskar, at least in the book, she seems to treat him like a friend. The movie suggests that Oskar is following in the same path. As a result, the mutilated penis doesn't necessarily have to be as such in the movie. In the movie at very least, I viewed Eli as an ancient creature, fairly divested from humanity. The book suggests that, as long as a vampire can keep drinking blood, then they won't lose touch with their human self.

I loved that film.

[schoolofruckus]

I guess I should see this sometime soon, shouldn't I? I generally have problems staying interested in vampire films - not for any reason, mind you; it's just a trend I've noticed - but this one sounds like something I need to make an effort for.

[bmack86]

I loved the cinematography of it. Lots of really spare, snowy shots that make you really feel like this sort of thing could happen in such a desolate, removed sort of place.

[chairmenmeow47]

my god was watchmen horrible. so much potential for an interesting story just pissed away in stylized slow-motion out of multiple blue dicks.

[mountmccabe]

This renewed talk of Twilight on this page is starting to intrigue me. I got a very different impression from the commercials/posters/Tessa.

[AlecEiffel]

This renewed talk of Twilight on this page is starting to intrigue me. I got a very different impression from the commercials/posters/Tessa.

If you see Twilight thinking you're going to see Let The Right One In you will be hilariously disappointed.

[bmack86]

It was really funny. I saw Let The Right One In in a theater right after Twilight came out, and the place was packed. i think we bought the last two tickets. Twilight definitely helped that movie out, so i can't completely hate on it.

[Drinkey McDrinkerstein]

i actually just saw Let The Right One In last night

I loved it, though the ambuiguity leaves a lot of questions

[iv3rdawG]

http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/5991/wtwta.jpg

[Hannahrain]

Apprehension. So much of it.

[schoolofruckus]

Excitement. In bigger volumes than your apprehension.

[bmack86]

O god. That poster is fantastic.

[amyzzz]

Isn't that a kids' movie?

[bmack86]

The poster suggests that it probably isn't.

[schoolofruckus]

Define kids' movie.

[amyzzz]

I'm just wondering why there's such excitement. I mean, I liked the book when I was 10, but I haven't thought about it much since.

On a scale of say...Finding Nemo -- Coraline -- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban -- and Pan's Labyrinth,
where would this movie fall? (inasmuch as how appropriate it would be for kids)

[Drinkey McDrinkerstein]

i don't think the question is appropriateness....I doubt there's blood and violence in it. I think it's a movie about childhood that isn't being dumbed down and could be enjoyed by everyone

[PassiveTheory]

http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/5991/wtwta.jpg

SRSLY? I didn't know this was being made into a movie. One of my favorite books when I was a kid.

[BKsaysAction!]

Yeah for those that didn't know its Spike Jonze's next movie and was originally supposed to be released last year but the studio thought it was too scary so they told spike to recut it.

Z46Yym346QA
Looks good

[schoolofruckus]

I'm just wondering why there's such excitement. I mean, I liked the book when I was 10, but I haven't thought about it much since.

On a scale of say...Finding Nemo -- Coraline -- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban -- and Pan's Labyrinth,
where would this movie fall? (inasmuch as how appropriate it would be for kids)

Well, my excitement is basically because A. I LOVED that book, B. I LOVE Spike Jonze, and C. because it just seems like one of those perfect marriages of director and material. I feel like he will make it something that will literally transcend genres and demographics and be loved by people of all ages and backgrounds (anyone with good taste, that is). The small bits of material we've seen so far - the YouTube clips of test footage, the small bits of info about voice casting, the poster that Evan showed above, and those skateboards I posted photos of a while ago with more likenesses of the wild things - have been promising,not mind-blowing; I like the naturalist tone in an absurdist world feel that I'm getting. I'm also inclined to believe the one on-set source who I have heard any word from (via Chris) that this could literally be "The Wizard of Oz" of this generation.

In summation, I expect this to do battle with Terrence Malick's dinosaurs-in-IMAX movie for best of the year honors.

The fact that a test audience full of kids was disturbed by it suggests that it probably won't be a film directed towards them, but I can't see it full-blown excluding them either, so let's put it below Pan's Labyrinth on your spectrum.

[indietron]

Ahhhhhhhh yeahhhhhhhhhh :)

[Sushov23]

I was really interested in a film adaptation of Where the wild things are, but once I found out Spike Jonze was involved(directing), it became meh.

[rage patton]

I cannot wait for this movie.

[indietron]

The fact that a test audience full of kids was disturbed by it suggests that it probably won't be a film directed towards them, but I can't see it full-blown excluding them either, so let's put it below Pan's Labyrinth on your spectrum.

Didn't they redo alot of it because it was "too disturbing?" And thats why its been taking so long to come out?

[BKsaysAction!]

Yeah they recut it meaning they went back and reedited the film.

[C DUB YA]

This has been the works for over 2 years now.

They didn't recut it to make it more kid friendly.

There have been many stories on why it got delayed and recut - most of those have been that it didn't look as good as promised or the flow wasn't right or that it was too long.

Either way that's hardly ever a good sign, but... I am really looking forward to it - even though the poster nicks the Men In Black type style.

[nbvwes]

i'm waiting for Voyage of the Dawn Treader...

[schoolofruckus]

I was really interested in a film adaptation of Where the wild things are, but once I found out Spike Jonze was involved(directing), it became meh.

That's because you're a dumbass.


Didn't they redo alot of it because it was "too disturbing?" And thats why its been taking so long to come out?

Depends on whose story you buy.


This has been the works for over 2 years now.

They didn't recut it to make it more kid friendly.

There have been many stories on why it got delayed and recut - most of those have been that it didn't look as good as promised or the flow wasn't right or that it was too long.


This is closer to what I've heard. The effects on the film are also really complicated; since it's a mixture of creature suits with CG faces, they had a ton of work creating the characters on the footage they had - which was basically shot as a bare-bones independent film in Australia.

I think this article/interview (http://www.aintitcool.com/node/39145) tells you all you need to know.

[Drinkey McDrinkerstein]

i was just about to post that same article! it's a fantastic interview

[HowToDisappear]

Wow. Great article!

[AlecEiffel]

i'm waiting for Voyage of the Dawn Treader...

Last I heard that's not being made. Disney has apparently dropped any future plans for Narnia.

[C DUB YA]

Disney has - but it has been picked up with 20th Century Fox handling everything now

[Monklish]

I was really interested in a film adaptation of Where the wild things are, but once I found out Spike Jonze was involved(directing), it became meh.

God you're a tasteless bag of fuck.

[amyzzz]

That last Narnia movie was awful. The first was pretty good.

[AlecEiffel]

I just saw that Rachel Getting Married, and I'm sure this has probably been discussed here, but I was pleasantly surprised by the random appearance of Robyn Hitchcock.

[C DUB YA]

That last Narnia movie was awful. The first was pretty good.

I didn't care for either of them.

[sbessiso]

I couldn't even make it past the first 20 minutes of the first Narnia movie. A bunch of my friends rented it and almost immediately we were all asleep on the couch, our heads on each others shoulders

[SoulDischarge]

God you're a tasteless bag of fuck.

Someone had to say it.

[schoolofruckus]

This kind of blows my mind. In the end, I don't care, but it feels a little bit like the Killers headlining Coachella:

http://www.slashfilm.com/wp/wp-content/images/buttoncriteron.jpg

[SoulDischarge]

Well, they did put out Armageddon.

[schoolofruckus]

Good point.



Armageddon, in my eyes, is superior to Benjamin Button. Its aim is significantly lower, but its execution more successful.

[wmgaretjax]

huh... i can understand it from a visual effects point. they have a number of movies that are mediocre but were landmarks for really specific technical or contextual reasons...

[schoolofruckus]

Like Salo, for example.



The main thing that bums me out about Ben Button getting the treatment is that it doesn't need it. Paramount wouldn't do as good a job on the DVD, but they would sink plenty of money into it and it would at least be decent quality. Why doesn't Criterion pick up Ballast for release? Or fucking Silent Light or The Man From London for that matter?? These films need help; Ballast was distributed off the director's back on nearly a one-theater-at-a-time basis, and the other two haven't played anything US outside of a museum. These are the films that need help around here; not a $150 million production that got 13 Oscar nominations.

[bmack86]

Well I won't feel so bad about buying it watch it for the first time now, since it'll just go with the rest of my criterions.

[Mr.Nipples]

This kind of blows my mind. In the end, I don't care, but it feels a little bit like the Killers headlining Coachella:

http://www.slashfilm.com/wp/wp-content/images/buttoncriteron.jpg

what the fuck!?

[bobert]

Armageddon, in my eyes, is superior to Benjamin Button. Its aim is significantly lower, but its execution more successful.

You're silly.

[schoolofruckus]

Am I? Armageddon is entirely successful at being a big, dumb, ADD-riddled action film with animal crackers on Liv Tyler's boobs. Benjamin Button fell short of being a meaningful exploration of death, time, and the significance of trajectories between the two.

If Michael Bay came out and said that Armageddon was supposed to be his homage to Bicycle Thieves, then I would change my stance.

[SoulDischarge]

Maybe Button doesn't need help, but possibly Criterion could use a high profile release. The market for $40 Bergman discs can't be too huge.

[wmgaretjax]

Yeah... That was my thought. A chance for Criterion to make money... Mostly I think there are a lot of films from the last 20 years that deserve the Crit treatment... I wish they would spend a little more time there, because as much as I love Powell and Pressburger, I don't need every B release they ever did on Criterion.

[schoolofruckus]

That's what I've been thinking this afternoon. Like with everything else these days - in this economy, it certainly wouldn't hurt for them to have a disc with a built-in audience outside of the usual Criterionphiles.

But that's not to say I'm dismissing the possibility that the Criterion team loved the fuck out of the movie itself. I'm sure they had to regard it pretty highly to include it, and I know a lot of people who really did love it. I really hope that this is more the case than them being in dire need of a hit. It would be really unfortunate if financial circumstances posed a serious threat to their status as one of the strongest, most influential film preservation groups left these days.

[schoolofruckus]

Yeah... That was my thought. A chance for Criterion to make money... Mostly I think there are a lot of films from the last 20 years that deserve the Crit treatment... I wish they would spend a little more time there, because as much as I love Powell and Pressburger, I don't need every B release they ever did on Criterion.

I've always wondered why none of Tarr's films have been included. Does Artificial Eye fiercely guard the rights?

[amyzzz]

I regret wiki-ing Criterion Collection because now I want some laserdiscs.

[Monklish]

I regret wiki-ing Criterion Collection because now I want some laserdiscs.

Would you like some Betamax to go with those?

[bobert]

Am I? Armageddon is entirely successful at being a big, dumb, ADD-riddled action film with animal crackers on Liv Tyler's boobs. Benjamin Button fell short of being a meaningful exploration of death, time, and the significance of trajectories between the two.

If Michael Bay came out and said that Armageddon was supposed to be his homage to Bicycle Thieves, then I would change my stance.

So by your logic, anything that strives to be something grand and fails, has less merit than say, Deuce Bigelow, a movie that strived to be a total piece of shit, and succeeded? Benjamin Button wasn't a great movie, but it definitely had its moments and was certainly worth watching. Armageddon was awful, even by dumb action movie standards, and I think you're giving Michael Bay a lot of credit in assuming he wasn't out to make a profound, realistic, thrilling portrait of the end of the world.

[schoolofruckus]

Somehow, I think the parody video below rapes Willy Wonka even less than Tim Burton did.

<object width="512" height="328" classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" id="ordie_player_06b666ae72"><param name="movie" value="http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf" /><param name="flashvars" value="key=06b666ae72" /><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed width="512" height="328" flashvars="key=06b666ae72" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" quality="high" src="http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf" name="ordie_player_06b666ae72" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object><div style="text-align:left;font-size:x-small;margin-top:0;width:512px;"><a href="http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/06b666ae72/gobstopper-trailer" title="from Gobstopper Movie and Eric Appel">Gobstopper Trailer</a> - watch more <a href="http://www.funnyordie.com/" title="on Funny or Die">funny videos</a></div>

[schoolofruckus]

So by your logic, anything that strives to be something grand and fails, has less merit than say, Deuce Bigelow, a movie that strived to be a total piece of shit, and succeeded? Benjamin Button wasn't a great movie, but it definitely had its moments and was certainly worth watching. Armageddon was awful, even by dumb action movie standards, and I think you're giving Michael Bay a lot of credit in assuming he wasn't out to make a profound, realistic, thrilling portrait of the end of the world.


Anything that disappoints me as badly as Benjamin Button did is going to be judged savagely. I don't make the rules.

If I had to pick one or the other to watch today, I would pick Armageddon. If I had the choice of taking one disc or the other to an island, I would probably take Ben Button, but I bet I would regret it about 30 minutes into my next viewing.

[thestripe]

Gabe your Ben Button hate has grown immensely since your first review. Come on now, Armageddon?

[bobert]

If I had to pick one or the other to watch today, I would pick Armageddon. If I had the choice of taking one disc or the other to an island, I would probably take Ben Button, but I bet I would regret it about 30 minutes into my next viewing.

Surprising. I'd think the Liv Tyler animal cracker scene would make prime fodder for your desert island jerk-off parties.

[SoulDischarge]

I don't really care about a few lackluster releases from Criterion so long as they continue to release good films that don't have even have region 1 discs yet, and they're pretty reliable in that regard. I still haven't even gotten around to watching the vast majority of the collection yet, so I could use the time to catch up anyway. Although it would be nice if they would stop re-releasing stuff they've already released with an extra disc tacked on.

[schoolofruckus]

Gabe your Ben Button hate has grown immensely since your first review. Come on now, Armageddon?

That's simply not true, The. It's more that I have always tried to hold my tongue on the failures of Button, because I think David Fincher is one of the best filmmakers in America. But I have never had anything nice to say about his latest:


Count me among those who are wildly disappointed by The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Considering who's involved, I don't want to beat up on it too badly - and I also would have to get into spoilers to describe many of my problems with it - but this definitely takes the cake for the saddest and most unfortunate shortfall of 2008.

The difference (one of the few) between this film and Forrest Gump, in my opinion, is that Forrest Gump succeeds with what it tries to be. Gump isn't deep, it isn't a masterpiece, and it absolutely wasn't the best film of 1994. As far as its offensiveness goes, I'll leave that to the people who cried foul over the "Full Retard" exchange in Tropic Thunder to decide. But Gump works - to the extent that you buy into it - as an entertaining, effects-driven summer tragicomedy. Remember, it came out in the summer of that year; if it hadn’t gone on to become The Film That Stole Pulp Fiction’s Oscar, it would be seen as an acceptable (if too schmaltzy by half), moderately endearing crowd pleaser. But Button had the potential to be a great film about the nature of life, love, death, or any combination thereof. Instead, I’m afraid we got a bloated fairy tale with a wildly-miscalculated contemporary framing device; a historical epic with an unthinkable (given the talent involved) amount of Hollywood phony factor (not to mention a laundry list of borrowed conventions that went out of style….well…about 14 years ago); a love story that, frankly, could have used a little more heart; and a tremendous showcase for visual effects so potent, they can even drown out acting talents once thought to be unsinkable (i.e., a Cate Blanchett performance that is 80% unwatchable).

I didn’t HATE Benjamin Button. I wouldn’t even say “don’t see it”. I would merely advise anyone who has yet to see it to drastically lower their expectations.





Surprising. I'd think the Liv Tyler animal cracker scene would make prime fodder for your desert island jerk-off parties.

I was under the assumption I was being banished to this island alone. Not much of a party to be had in that case.

[SoulDischarge]

Not too mention how hard it is to score poppers on a desert island.

[schoolofruckus]

I don't really care about a few lackluster releases from Criterion so long as they continue to release good films that don't have even have region 1 discs yet, and they're pretty reliable in that regard. I still haven't even gotten around to watching the vast majority of the collection yet, so I could use the time to catch up anyway. Although it would be nice if they would stop re-releasing stuff they've already released with an extra disc tacked on.

I agree 100%. I don't love everything they put out - again, last weekend I saw one of the worst films of my life with their stamp on it. And if they use their Ben Button profits to obtain the rights to The Red Desert, Husbands, or any of the 2008 films I listed, all the better.

[thestripe]

That's simply not true, The. It's more that I have always tried to hold my tongue on the failures of Button, because I think David Fincher is one of the best filmmakers in America. But I have never had anything nice to say about his latest:

I know, but the statement below is more accurate than droping the Armageddon bomb.



I didn’t HATE Benjamin Button. I wouldn’t even say “don’t see it”. I would merely advise anyone who has yet to see it to drastically lower their expectations.

[bobert]

I was under the assumption I was being banished to this island alone. Not much of a party to be had in that case.

Not with that kind of attitude.

[BKsaysAction!]

KRS90V8BQGo
That about sums up Michael Bay.

[indietron]

I finally saw Watchmen. Acting was bad. Story was great (never read the novel). Crappy music (bar bob dylan). Awkward sex scene. Loved the ending.

[sbessiso]

WTF??

http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090318/REVIEWS/903189991

[schoolofruckus]

He gave four stars to Watchmen too.

Ebert was one of Dark City's biggest fans, so I think he's probably more inclined to give Proyas a break than most people.