No Mod Required

I wrote some checks for this film way back in the summer of 2001. I finally was able to get a copy onto the Net

Some Credits:

Bike Boy: Troy Metcalf
Charley Marley: Tak Toyoshima
Directed by Richie Gibbs
Written and Produced by Lorie Steele
Executive Producer: Rob Larsen

(for the full credits, watch through to the end )

Casablanca

Back to back I’ve watched films that are basically unreviewable. Not that they’ve been bad- just the opposite, in fact. It’s just difficult to sit down and say “now, I’m going to review Casablanca and it’s going to matter.” I know nothing I write is going to nudge anyone into seeing this, one of the primary movies in American cinema. I mean, it might be fun, but it feels like it might be a little bit like screaming to drown out the sea.

Of course, the Boston Celtics are on in the background, trying their best to lose Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals, so maybe waxing poetic about Casablanca might be fun.

Ok. I’ll do it. Laundry list time.

• One of my favorite elements of Casablanca is the dialog. Not just the big lines either, there are dozens of little exchanges that I wish I’d written. The scenes between Rick (Humphrey Bogart) and Captain Renault (Claude Rains) are especially delicious. Both are obviously fine actors, they work well together and the dialog they’re riffing on is plainly awesome.

  Awesome I say.

• I know it doesn’t need to be said. I’ll say it anyway. Ingrid Bergman really was beautiful, wasn’t she?
• Sydney Greenstreet’s Signor Ferrari is somehow a very appealing character to me. I’d like to think there’s a parallel universe where I could be as well-fed and sleazy.
• Is there a better setting in all of cinema? The time and place are just unmatched.
• How cool is the scene where they sing La Marseillaise? Take that you nazis!

Well, the Celtics have managed to win the game, and both hands of my watch are pointing the same direction, so that’ll have to do. To sum up- Casablanca kicks ass. Yes.

Jules and Jim

François Truffaut’s classic Jules and Jim is one of the greatest expressions of cinema I’ve seen in the past couple of years.

That’s really all I have to say. I kept trying to write a proper, long-form review and just couldn’t get my head around the film in a formal way. So informal is the way to go.

I guess I should explain a little. One sentence and then a two sentence apology for the one sentence doesn’t cut it as a review. Of course, when I wrote about movies all the time I wasn’t against using a gimmick like that as a crutch to fill out a word count. These days, with only myself as an editor, I don’t worry so much about word counts. I also only have myself to blame when I’m lazy so…

I guess I’ll write a little bit more

There’s so much going on intellectually and cinematically Jules and Jim is like the greatest student film ever made. The story is a complex melange of love, philosphy, art and politics and the film-making is a bravura mix of every trick in the book- including freeze frames, wipes, spinning camera work and archival footage. This the intellectual monument every film student wants to create. It’s “art” in every sense of the word. Jules and Jim is a grand, creative achievement and one of the highlights of the French New Wave.

And that will have to do, For now at least. I reserve the right to come back and edit this post at any time if and when my brains solidify and a proper review pops out.

Until then?

Oh look. A trailer.

Cloverfield

A SPOILER FILLED REVIEW FOLLOWS.

I figured I’d make that warning since so much about this movie was secretive and I’m sure there are people, like me, who still only have a vague notion about this film (”hand held?” “A monster movie?”)

Anyway… Hell yeah. Not only did I enjoy this movie as a fine piece of popcorn cinema, and I did, one of my long-time (and recurring) wishes in the action/horror movie gamut was finally granted in this JJ Abrams produced monster flick.

EVERYONE DIES.

Sweet.

It’s true, all the douchey characters that populate the Manhattan of Cloverfield are dead when the final credits roll and I, for one, thought it was a stroke of genius.

Actually, thinking back, one character does manage to survive. Was it because she was the least douchey? I’d like to think so.

Beyond the body count, Cloverfield is a fun monster movie in the Toho vein. Sure, the techniques and look are a little edgier, “updated for the Youtube generation” or something, but the story mechanics and track of the action are straight out of Gojira.

That’s an easy path to my heart.

MUTO a wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.

300 : I have a few notes to get out of the way:

• I haven’t seen a movie (any movie) in nearly a month. That sucks. It’s the downside of being in demand, I guess. Good with the bad, or something like that…
• I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to see this movie. Seriously. I lerved the comic it was drawn from and the style of it looked pretty mesmerizing. Still it took me a year to actually sit down and watch this film. Someone shoot me.
• After a good pace to start the year, my movie watching pace has slowed considerably and I’m going to have to step it up a little bit to meet even my meager movie-a-week goal. I used to have weekend where I saw more movies than I’ve seen this year.

Sigh.

As for this movie in specific- hell yeah.

A pitch-perfect adaptation of Miller’s classic graphic novel, 300 is a violent maelstrom of testosterone. The look of this film evokes the lush feel of the comic pages produced by Miller and Lynn Varley and manages to heighten them with excellent cinematography, visual effects, solid editing and truly marvelous action direction choreography.

Telling the story of 300 Spartans holding a tiny pass against a horde of Persian invaders, 300 takes that simple set-up and manages to pad it out to nearly two hours of seat gripping, rah-rah excitement.

All that said, I’ll be the first to admit it’s not for everyone. It’s basically two hours of killing and screaming (stylishly executed), which isn’t everyone’s cup of tea (although it is mine.) Also, if you’re the type to analyze a film for sociological/political/sexual messages you poke around the edges it’s pretty easy to find something disagreeable within the borders of this particular universe.

Still, I can’t say I’ve had as good a time watching a movie in a long while, so for my money it’s a winner.

Yeah, I’m posting a commercial for free. I know.

Look, I’m doing it again

And again. this one is a real classic- Cantona’s Au Revoir at the end pleases me to no end.

Contempt Le Mépris

While not my favorite of Godard’s films, Contempt is still a film worth seeking out- especially in a newly restore print making the rounds. While any of Godard’s films from the period are worth the time on their own merits, Contempt is most noteworthy, at least to these eyes, for being a classic vehicle for Brigitte Bardot.

For starters, she’s lovingly filmed- which is a singularly enjoyable enhancement to any film - assuming your preference is for women. Thankfully, since I saw this with my girlfriend, her performance is truly memorable, which makes the whole male gaze thing more palatable for folks who are less interested in staring at Bardot for an hour and a half. For most of the film’s 100 minute running time, she’s a mistress of attitude, posture and expression, grinding her husband (for whom she feels the titular contempt) into paste. Possessing an incredible, hypnotic screen presence, Bardot owns the film completely and does so much in the details it’s basically impossible to take your eyes off of her. That includes the time she spends partnered up with scene swallower Jack Palance. If she can deflect that guy’s ability to distract and annoy you know she’s up to something.

Check it out if you get the chance.

The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters

This is a fun, fascinating documentary about the quest for the world Donkey Kong record. Well crafted, creative and thoroughly enjoying, King of Kong is a perfect example of why documentary format can so rewarding. It’s a well worn phrase, but it really is true that you can’t make stuff like this up. Simplifying the real life race for the record (and some associated milestones) down to a two man battle between good (Steve Wiebe, a math and science teacher from Washington) and evil (Billy Mitchell, douche) the film presents a compelling ninety minute view into the disparate lives of the two contenders and the world of competitive, classic gaming.

I’m actually clearing out a lot of links I’ve wanted to share and just haven’t. A lot of these aren’t big enough for a post of their own, so it’s link post day around here.

Classic Photographs Remade in Lego

Classics in Lego - a photoset on Flickr

Pretty straightforward link. My favorite is the recreation of Robert Capa’s Death of a Loyalist Soldier

Du rififi chez les hommes

Filmmaker Jules Dassin, 96, Dies

Have I mentioned how much I love Rififi? I love it to pieces. Dassin had an excellent career, with several excellent entries (Topkapi, Night and the City, The Naked City, Thieves’ Highway, etc.) spanning a career lasting nearly four decades. He was a real talent.

Libertines Musical?

Five Reasons a Libertines Musical Isn’t a Terrible Idea

I have nothing to say on the matter. I just wanted you all to know there was the possibility of a Libertines musical.

Now you know.

Neutral Milk Hotel

Have you seen Jeff Mangum?

Neutral Milk Hotel’s bandleader built a faith on the transcendent power of music. Then, when he needed it most, he gave up on it.

A pretty definitive look at the story of NMH front man Jeff Mangum.