What DVD / Video did you watch last night? (pt3)
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belboid
Exasperated, not angry.
the most fascinating bit was watching the underwater swimming scenes, they really have to work quite hard to maintain those silly poses!
Reno
The In Kraut
It was nicely shot but yes, synchronised swimming is a weird sport.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
Saw that on the big screen last year. Outstanding. Ought to be shown to those transphobic folk who only seem to be concerned about trans women.
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T & P
|-o-| (-o-) |-o-|
I was probably 10-12 when I first watched that (don’t blame my parents, they didn’t know and the TV watershed was kind of non-existent in Spain back in the day) and it truly petrified me. When I first read the book I was an adult and even though horror does rarely bother me whether in film or print, this book was one of the few that came back to prey on my mind on a few nights.
Interestingly I’m sure I remember reading an interview with King about his works and writing in general, and he said that whereas he was pleased with Salem’s Lot overall, it showed his then lack of experience as a writer, and he would have written some passages differently if he was writing the book today, as he sees them as almost a little cringeworthy. Which to this day I am at a loss what he might have been talking about. I rate it as one of his very best works.
I fully agree about a remake- a well written and produced series has sooo much potential.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
this still shits me up:
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
(the music is incredible too)
belboid
Exasperated, not angry.
Michael Moore Presents: Planet of the Humans
It's quite interesting to watch an MM (well, not really an MM, but it is by one of his co-producers and is very much MM 'style') where you disagree with so much of the thesis put forward. The blatant cut-offs and cherry picked interviews to make someone look more of an arsehole than they are, dubious statistics, blah blah.
The first two are fair enough, he's making a propaganda film not a BBC report, but that last one really lets the side down. Decent points being made about astroturfing and needing to change the way we live, not merely the energy form we use to do so, will be lost because of the rubbish data on wind and solar, and the lack of understanding of how new technologies develop.
Half good, half complete crap.
It's quite interesting to watch an MM (well, not really an MM, but it is by one of his co-producers and is very much MM 'style') where you disagree with so much of the thesis put forward. The blatant cut-offs and cherry picked interviews to make someone look more of an arsehole than they are, dubious statistics, blah blah.
The first two are fair enough, he's making a propaganda film not a BBC report, but that last one really lets the side down. Decent points being made about astroturfing and needing to change the way we live, not merely the energy form we use to do so, will be lost because of the rubbish data on wind and solar, and the lack of understanding of how new technologies develop.
Half good, half complete crap.
The39thStep
Urban critical thinker
Good Boys , not without a fair dollop of sentimental slush and an an overdose of pre teen male feelings but nevertheless a quite enjoyable comedy with bits that you laugh out loud to.. Plots promising but doesn't develop as well as it could do tbh. Seen worse seen better. Five out of ten .
Reno
The In Kraut
Ms. 45, the 1981 exploitation classic which I've never gotten round to because I've never liked a single Abel Ferrara film. This is ok, it's somewhat amateurish in execution but for the most dodgy of sub-genres, the rape-revenge film, it's remarkably non-exploitative and more political than most. The women in the film constantly push back against sexism and exploitation.
The best part of the film is seeing Manhattan in all its grimy late 70s/early 80s glory. Cult actress Zoe Tamerlis, killing her way through the city, is stunningly beautiful, fully embodying the hard edged glamour of the period. I like that she just snaps and eventually kills any man in her sight. The film doesn't enoble her vigilantism but suggests that it is the result of an understandable mental breakdown, making Ms. 45 the exploitation heir to Repulsion.
I'm not sure Ferrara's idea to shoot the climactic massacre in slow motion works. He's no Brian De Palma, whose Carrie may have been the inspiration for the idea. The eccentric and nosey neighbour of the anti-heroine is amusing, the actress (photographer Editta Sherman) is so incapable of delivering a single line of dialogue convincingly, she is reminiscent of Edith Massey from the early John Waters films. At least her doggy
Two posters for the film, the first one appealing to an exploitation crowd, the second one for later releases once it became a cult hit in art house cinemas.
The best part of the film is seeing Manhattan in all its grimy late 70s/early 80s glory. Cult actress Zoe Tamerlis, killing her way through the city, is stunningly beautiful, fully embodying the hard edged glamour of the period. I like that she just snaps and eventually kills any man in her sight. The film doesn't enoble her vigilantism but suggests that it is the result of an understandable mental breakdown, making Ms. 45 the exploitation heir to Repulsion.
I'm not sure Ferrara's idea to shoot the climactic massacre in slow motion works. He's no Brian De Palma, whose Carrie may have been the inspiration for the idea. The eccentric and nosey neighbour of the anti-heroine is amusing, the actress (photographer Editta Sherman) is so incapable of delivering a single line of dialogue convincingly, she is reminiscent of Edith Massey from the early John Waters films. At least her doggy
gets a happy ending.
Two posters for the film, the first one appealing to an exploitation crowd, the second one for later releases once it became a cult hit in art house cinemas.
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redsquirrel
This Machine Kills Progressives
Hmm sounds interesting might check it out.
There's a whole of those female revenge films that while very flawed (both politically and as films) nevertheless have something. Micheal Winner's Dirty Weekend is one example, really crp on a number of levels but still with some interest.
There's a whole of those female revenge films that while very flawed (both politically and as films) nevertheless have something. Micheal Winner's Dirty Weekend is one example, really crp on a number of levels but still with some interest.
belboid
Exasperated, not angry.
and there was me thinking you’d taken your name from the hero of Driller Killer!
I think this is one of the few times Ferrara has really captured the seediness of poverty and the city and the violence of all exploitation - not just sexual, but economic as well, and presented it so viscerally. There’s a great bit in Carol Clovers book about a cinema audience with many of the men whooping alongg in sympathy with one of the rapists, who suddenly shut up, slump back in their seats and keep watching. Our identification with Thana is complete and it’s portrayal of rape far more feminist than thst in, say, Straw Dogs.
It has been a while since I’ve seen it.
Reno
The In Kraut
I'm not going anywhere near Michael Winner anymore because I find him to be such a godawful filmmaker. The most contentious of the rape revenge films and the one which kicked off the cycle was I Spit on Your Grave from 1978. The problem with it and similar films was that it showed a lengthy, exploitative rape sequence with the justification that women gets her revenge in the end and that this somehow qualifies as a feminist message. In Ms. 45 at least it never feels like the lead actress gets exploited, unusually for the genre, there is no nudity.
Reno
The In Kraut
My name comes from a Magnetic Fields song. I first posted here because I had a particular question. Had I known I'm still here 15 years later, I would have put more effort into it.
belboid
Exasperated, not angry.
Great song! Haven’t played that album in ages, I think I’ll rectify that now.
My name comes from a Magnetic Fields song. I first posted here because I had a particular question. Had I known I'm still here 15 years later, I would have put more effort into it.
The Octagon
Stop...Hammertime
Dredd (2012 one)
Decent action film, borrows heavily from The Raid but the pace is frenetic, the city feels lived in and the main characters do enough (wasn't as much of a fan of Urban in the role as others may have been though, felt fairly phoned in).
Probably wouldn't come back to it but decent entertainment for 90 odd minutes.
Decent action film, borrows heavily from The Raid but the pace is frenetic, the city feels lived in and the main characters do enough (wasn't as much of a fan of Urban in the role as others may have been though, felt fairly phoned in).
Probably wouldn't come back to it but decent entertainment for 90 odd minutes.
Reno
The In Kraut
The claim that Dredd borrowed from The Raid always gets made but both were shot at around the same time and released only months apart. I'm not sure how much scope for a traditional performance there is under the circumstances, by nature Dredd has to be inexpressive and most of his face is hidden.
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The Octagon
Stop...Hammertime
Fair point, didn't realise how early Dredd starting shooting, maybe more of a Deep Impact / Armageddon feeling then.
I like Karl Urban, he's a talented actor, but I think you could have stuck any number of randoms in the main role and it wouldn't make a difference to the film at all.
Reno
The In Kraut
Sylvester Stallone played the role in the earlier and poorly received Judge Dredd movie and proved that you can get it wrong by being a movie star and by insisting that the helmet has to come off. I think the praise Urban got from fans of the comic was for staying true to the character, in what is a fairly thankless role.
DotCommunist
So many particulars. So many questions.
I preferred Urban's to Stallone's Dredd, yes the removal of the helmet but also the story was a mess. Stallones best sci fi film was Demolition Man.
Wasn't the newer Dredd filmed for 3d? I saw it in normal mode.
Wasn't the newer Dredd filmed for 3d? I saw it in normal mode.
Reno
The In Kraut
I've got the 3D blu-ray. It looks great. The saturated, slow motion sequences when characters are under the influence look even more trippy.
trabuquera
Modesty Bag
I think the 2012 Dredd is pretty brilliant tbh (regardless of how derivative it may be of The Raid) and think in hindsight it might have been a bigger influence on Blade Runner 2046 than anyone talked about much... perhaps.
Reno
The In Kraut
It's not !
I agree that it's pretty brilliant though.
The original Blade Runner was an influence on almost every film taking place in a futuristic city which came after, including Dredd. That's probably why Dredd looks a little like the Blade Runner sequel.
A film which is more likely to have been influenced by Dredd is last year's Upgrade, both are throwbacks to R-rated, 80s style sci-fi action films along the lines of The Terminator and Robocop.
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rubbershoes
not the only raver in the village
A Field in England
Somehow I'd never seen it before. Wonderfully dark and unsettling.
In rewatchability, I'd put it midway between the quirky brutality of Sightseers and the absolute horror of Kill List.
Somehow I'd never seen it before. Wonderfully dark and unsettling.
In rewatchability, I'd put it midway between the quirky brutality of Sightseers and the absolute horror of Kill List.
Reno
The In Kraut
The Assistant, independent film about a new PA to the boss at a Weinstein-style company, who slowly becomes aware what she's complicit in. Subtle and low key drama, admirable for how it avoids sensationalism. Maybe a little too understated for its own good but at under 90 minutes the film doesn't outstay its welcome. It stars Julia Garner, the break-out star from Ozark, without doing the accent. She is very good, the entire film is entirely focused on how she reacts to situations.
Before that I tried to watch a French art house horror film called Knife + Heart, starring Vanessa Paradis. A wannabe-stylish giallo homage about a serial killer who murders their way through the cast and crew of a gay porn studio in the late 70s. This should have been in my wheelhouse, but I found it unbearable and gave up after an hour.
Before that I tried to watch a French art house horror film called Knife + Heart, starring Vanessa Paradis. A wannabe-stylish giallo homage about a serial killer who murders their way through the cast and crew of a gay porn studio in the late 70s. This should have been in my wheelhouse, but I found it unbearable and gave up after an hour.
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This was one I was looking forward to seeing at the pictures but that's not looking likely for a while....How did you watch it?
Reno
The In Kraut
I torrented it.
redsquirrel
This Machine Kills Progressives
Yes I was disappointed in that, have you seen the directors previous film You and the Night?
Reno
The In Kraut
I haven't seen it and I doubt that I ever will. Not a single thing worked for me about Knife+Heart. It didn't work as a queer film (I hated every character), as a period piece (nothing about it looked like 1979), as erotica (its so coy about the porn aspects) as a giallo pastiche (no suspense, no tension, no real style) or even just as eye candy.
Can you tell I didn't like it ?
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