What Movies Have You Watched Recently?

[fyodor]

This evening I saw Rashomon (1950)



Despite the stylized Japanese acting that is so different than what I'm used to, this was a far easier film to view than Veronique. Interesting that there is some similarity in their themes. Veronique with the two versions of the same person (one who dies for her dreams, and one who turns her back on her's but lives) and Rashomon with 4 versions of the same events but still with one person dying.

Hard not to like the film work in Rashomon. All that movement in the forest in black and white. Just the shot of the woodcutter when he is running in the forest and the camera goes from one side to the other as he passes made it worthwhile to watch.

Having started that Lost in Translation (not the movie) thread, something interesting came up in that regard. If you look at that thread you will find a link from Rothko to a CBC radio program on the problems with translation. At one point they are interviewing Larissa Volokhonsky and Richard Pevear. Larissa answers a question about having issues with the author or publisher and relates how one editor kept coming back and giving them a difficult time in regards to some of the English that could be taken out of context in a sexual manner. Anyhow late in Rashomon where the woodcutter is relating what he saw, the bandit is pleading with the girl, "I already had you, but I already want you more. It's very hard." I don't think I was supposed to laugh at that part - but I did.

Anyhow I really enjoyed Rashomon. Probably most of you have already seen it, but if not, give it a go. Makes you think about what's real and what's not. Can you believe things even if you see them?

[Blarg]

I should give Rashomon another chance, but for now it sits among my least liked Kurosawa films, though it's one of the ones that really made his reputation.

[SoloAJ]

Quick mentions:

Watched Stranger than Fiction today. I felt it was surprisingly entertaining as I generally find Farrell too over the top annoying. Maggie G was a fox. The entire movie I was thinking about how I'd like to meet her, even if it was just a character and not her, heh. I felt the ending was a bit lame and it seemed they just couldn't live up to the hype the rest of the movie drums up. I gave it a 7.

Movies I'll be seeing once they get here from Netflix: Children of Men, Unleashed, and...I forget, maybe Blood Diamond?

[Enrique]

Fyodor- did you watch Altman's introduction to Rashomon? (meant to be watched after the movie, I don't know why they call them introduction when they ruin the whole story).
It makes some very interesting points about the movie.

I liked Rashomon a lot, but I like other Kurosawa movies much more. For example, High and Low which I saw recently I loved.

[Enrique]

Saw a pair yesterday:
"Daisies" a 1966 Czech film. It is very random and very weird. It uses strange colors all over the place, jumps from one scene to the next, uses strange avant-garde stuff which reminded me of Stan Brakhage. The movie still works even with all its weirdness and randomness. It does give the idea of be happy and enjoy life.

I went to see "Spike and Mike's Sick & Twisted Festival of Animation". It had 19 short animated films. Most of them were very funny and some of them were excellent. It was well worth my time.

[fyodor]

Enrique: Yes I watched it later. Loved that story about Kurosawa being the first to point his camera at the sun and the day after viewing it, Altman goes out and does the same.

Also Altman talking about how much more accessible to western audiences Throne of Blood (1957) is, since it is based on something we are all much more familiar with - Macbeth - I gave that a go today.



Look upon the ruins of the castle of delusion.

It seems sacrilegious to attempt to reduce such a great film to a few words, but like Macbeth this is about fate. Treachery, remorse and damnation make the story, but the story is the predestiny of life. I don't necessarlily agreee with that outlook, but it makes for great literature.

Like Rashomon and Seven Samurai, the acting is over-the-top compared to most Hollywood fare. Every time a Japanese actor speaks, it seems he is simultaneously taking a dump in his drawers. I'm used to it by now though.

I hope however I never get used to Kurosawa's beautiful visuals. I could just watch video of men on horses riding through forests and fog forever the way he does it.

And Altman was right. For a Japanese film, this is a very easy one to watch. I liked it a lot.

[Blarg]

[ QUOTE ]
Like Rashomon and Seven Samurai, the acting is over-the-top compared to most Hollywood fare. Every time a Japanese actor speaks, it seems he is simultaneously taking a dump in his drawers.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is one of the funnier things I've read in a while. Thank you.

[Marwan]

The Pursuit of Happyness.

Will Smith is a good actor and carried the film, he was basically in every scene. It's a little bit of a snooze though, the context of the film was basically the same thing happening all the way through in slightly different scenarios.. call clients, run around, sleep at homeless shelters, move around, rinse, repeat. Also, the wife thing developed way too quickly.. Thandie Newton was out of the movie pretty quick, which is fine.. but she just left without much of a fight.. It basically went

Wife: I'm leaving
Husband: okay, but I'm keeping the kid
Wife: okay sure

I thought she'd give a little bit more of a fight. Also, the end happened so fast an was very anti-climactic for all that struggle he had to endure.. We know what's going to happen but I thought that the end was poorly executed.. I would have liked to see a little bit post-job.. The fruits of his labor. All in all it was okay, still worth a watch.

6/10.

Leon (The Professional) - This was my first watch and it was pretty cool.. Stylistic, but with substance. I kept thinking Tim Roth could have been perfect for this role if he was taller. Not the usual Hollywood perfect ending either, which was refreshing. I'm not a huge fan of action type movies, but this one kept me interested and is recommended.

7.4/10.

[katyseagull]

[ QUOTE ]
The Pursuit of Happyness.

It's a little bit of a snooze though, the context of the film was basically the same thing happening all the way through in slightly different scenarios.. call clients, run around, sleep at homeless shelters, move around, rinse, repeat. Also, the wife thing developed way too quickly.. Thandie Newton was out of the movie pretty quick, which is fine.. but she just left without much of a fight

[/ QUOTE ]


Yeah I pretty much agree with this. I didn't like it very much. I thought it was a whole lot of running around and dropping the kid at day care.

[fyodor]

Just watched Crime and Punishment (1983) (Rikos ja rangaistus)



Aki Kaurismaki's directorial debut. Based loosley on Dostoevsky's novel but moves the action to Helsinki circa 1980.

Rahikainen, a former law student kills a businessman who had 3 years previous been acquited of killing Rahikainen's fiance while driving drunk. Rahikainen is discoverd still sitting by the corpse when Eeva, a caterer walks in. Eeva basically plays both Sonja and Raskolnikov's sister Dunya from the novel. She refuses to turn him in and hopes he will do that for himself.

A great score helps this movie nicely. Opening scene at the slaughterhouse where Rahikainen works is a great introduction with a haunting arangement of Schubert's 'Serenade' including lyrics in English. Actually starts with him killing a louse with an axe and then moves to slicing up a pig. Later there is a sweet version of the Door's 'Love Her Madly' along with some Billy Holiday.

Eeva's boss is the Svidrigaylov character from the novel and although he is played not even close to how I would imagine (maybe it's some Luzhin mixed in), it was nice to see the scene where he confronts Dunya (Eeva) in the locked room and she pulls the gun on him. Pretty true to the original there. Lots of other stuff straight out of the novel that works very well.

I wasn't expecting much from this movie and was therefore pleasantly surprised.