Three somewhat obscure movies, everyone should see

[pacman]

Speaking of obscure movies, has anyone heard of the new film by Shane Carruth, Upstream Color? It sounds very intriguing. Reviewers are writing weird shit like "I don't understand it but it was wonderful to watch".

 

Sounds right down my alley & I will pay it a visit next week. 

 

Oh good grief! What a pile of merde!

 

If anyone can make head or tale out of this ridiculous masturbatory nonsense, please let me know what was going on.

 

I have seen many 'art' films in my time but I have never seen something so nonsensical & meaningless as this was. I am sure it was making a metaphorical point but the writer had his head so far up his arse that any message was lost in the writer's delusional self indulgence. How does crap like this ever get funded?

[seven]

Only god forgives was crap, paccers.

[pacman]

Crap? It is certainly self indulgent with over-long takes of nothing with long lingering stares at nothing. And a disturbing subplot of incest with the mother from hell. All done with a strange score that accentuates the slow pace with its hypnotic heavy beat. I quite liked the score actually & I found some of the long takes to be artistic but I can understand how you arrived at your decision. 

 

Because my taste is so different to many others, I hesitate to recommend films, instead I praise the ones & I enjoy & criticise the ones I don't. So you don't like Django or Only God Forgives. At least you gave them a chance. 

 

Perhaps you might like Upstream Colour? On second thoughts, don't even think about it.

[rxpharm]

While I don't have 3, there is an interesting movie with a big twist in it, that should prove interesting to guys like us. This is a Spanish movie called The Skin I Live in.

 

If you can get it with English subtitles, or if you understand Spanish - try it - but don't read the synopsis! Once you've seen it, please comment.

 

I thought it was quite original!

[Tomcat]

i see David Bowies sons film " Moon". now that has got a twist that i didnt see coming

 

About a guy who works alone on a futuristic mining outpost on the far side of the moon .. eventually after three years he realizes why hes really there .

[pacman]

I wanted to see Moon but I never did. It received good reviews but the real buzz about it didn't come my way till some time after it finished at the cinema. 

 

For the best thing ever in space movies, see Gravity. Preferably in 3D. I saw it last week & want to see it again. And I can't say that about many movies I've seen in recent years.

 

Gravity has the most basic plot possible. There are only two actors, no villains, no sex scene, no bad language, no aliens, no contrived story of deceit & revenge, just a couple of astronauts who strike space debris & deal with it. That's an oversimplification but to watch it is the closest we'll ever have to being there. And that's its beauty. The majesty of space is enough to overcome any shortfalls, either real or imagined.

 

I am critical of some of the dialogue between Sandra Bullock & George Clooney, it gets rather banal & cheezy at times. But on reflection I can see how that gives an air of normality to their line of work. Rather than speaking in gushing tones about the wonders they see around them, they chat away like any work colleagues do. It seems weird but I forgive it completely when weighing up the overall effect.

 

People will be talking about Gravity a long time & I predict it will become one of the biggest box office successes ever. Plus it will win a swag of awards, mostly for special effects but I will stick my neck out & nominate it as the winner of the next Best Picture Oscar. And I don't say that lightly. This movie is as big a breakthrough as 2001: A Space Odyssey. 

 

And finally - Sandra Bullock. Is there another 49yo who looks as fit as her in the movies today? I think her performance in this is very good indeed but when she strips off her space suit, she looks amazing. No body double, just Sandra looking good enough to eat.

 

 

[Hefe]

Yes, Gravity is a must see.... preferably in 3D, which is usually the refuge of crap movies.

[randiuno]

Gravity -Must see...I saw it on IMAX 3D...Awesomeness.

My Peanut Gallery Comment - With Tom Cruise and all the scientologist shoving their philosophy down our throats, I wondered how long it would be before Hollywood's Buddhist Mafia would make a box office smash...George Clooney to Sandra Bullock..."You have to let go"...and spoiler Sandra Bullock "No matter what happens it will be one hell of a ride"...

The Dharma is strong in this one....

Peace and Cheers,

Randi

[pdogg]

Seeing three thumbs up from guys who know movies, I just checked out of it's playing in Thailand or Cambodia.

 

It seems there is a movie titled Gravity that's playing in Thailand but it's not the same movie you guys are talking about.

 

http://www.movieseer.com/th/movies/15784--Gravity_%28Schwerkraft%29

 

Don't go to the wrong movie guys!

[pacman]

I've never heard of that "Gravity" movie PD. Strange that one movie didn't trump the other in terms of who gets to keep the name. I thought there was some protocol about movie titles. It may mean that when Gravity arrives in Thailand it comes with a different name. It would get a bit confusing otherwise.

 

I would guess that would be the only reason why it hasn't been released yet. But come it will, there's no way it won't get a big release when it does arrive. Though I find it amusing to read negative critiques from younger movie goers complaining it doesn't move fast enough. Or that not enough happens. To be expected I suppose when they come from a generation raised on block buster entertainment where each movie tries to outdo the last. They must have been climbing the wall when earth didn't explode in the first 10 minutes. Poor sods.

 

I also felt slightly vindicated when a local reviewer here in Oz wrote in the paper that he considered Gravity was an almost certainty to win the Best Picture prize at the next Academy Awards. He felt much the same as I that there hasn't been anything so certain to win in living memory. There may be films that were perhaps better scripted, perhaps better acted, perhaps better directed, but a better picture? No, nothing comes close.

[Lefty]

I liked Django but would probably not take the time to watch it again.  A REALLY good movie to me is one you can watch multiple times and not get bored.

I agree. Such as Apocalypse Now, or The Wild Bunch. I've seen each about 50 times. Only seen Redux twice though. 

Others I've seen 20 or more times, include Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, The Outlaw Josey Wales, the first True Grit, and believe it or not, Flashdance. Jennifer Beals at 18 was the epitome of beauty. 

[Lefty]

I really like Two-Lane Blacktop. I consider Warren Oates the best character actor of all time, and will usually watch anything he is in. Two more good relatively obscure Oates movies, were Dillinger, and Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia. Two-Lane Blacktop was also notable for being the first and only acting roles ever played by Dennis Wilson and James Taylor.

Speaking of Oates and obscure movies, I had occasion recently to watch China 9, Liberty 37. An old western from 1978 that he starred in. Pretty good movie, if you like Oates or spaghetti westerns. Also starred a young and still gorgeous Jenny Agutter.   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_9,_Liberty_37

[Lefty]

Here is pretty bizarre and obscure movie I just found out about recently. Some of you older pervs maybe familiar with it.

Eugenie... the Story of Her Journey Into Perversion (1970)

 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064494/

I liked the lesbian scenes.:)

Here is a review: 

Jess Franco takes Marquis de Sade's Philosophy in the Boudoir and turns it into one of his best films. A young woman named Eugenie (Marie Liljedahl) is sent off to an island with Madame Saint Ange (Maria Rohm) and her perverted brother (Jack Taylor) and before long the two are sexually assaulting the girl as they act out various de Sade stories. EUGENIE is certainly one of the most bizarre films from this era and I don't think anyone other than Franco could have pulled the material off. I'm sure someone could have filmed a pretty version of this story but I think Franco perfectly nailed the situations because we're basically given one big nightmare for this girl with a psychedelic vision and a terrific score by Bruno Nicolai. What works so well with this film is the vision on its director because you really do feel as if you're watching some sort of strange and perverted trip. I really loved the red tinting that Franco used during certainly scenes and especially all through the finale. This really does add a surreal feel to everything you're watching. Add in the terrific score, which at times is rather playful (example: when Rohm helps Liljedahl with a bath) and at other times creepy and perverse. Another major plus is that Franco is given one of his best casts to work with. I thought Liljedahl was very good in her role. Yes, there are times where she can't fully capture the deprived situation of the character but other than this I thought the actress looked the part and was quite believable during the seduction scenes. Taylor isn't a master actor or anything but he manages to turn in a fine performance as does Paul Muller in his brief role and Herbert Fux in his cameo. It's also fun seeing someone like Christopher Lee in a film like this even though he wasn't aware of what type of film they were making around him. Rohm is the real stand out here as she's really one of the main vocal points in the film. She certainly has the look of the character but also manages to make you believe in everything she's doing. EUGENIE has some flaws throughout including some pacing issues and there are times where the soft or out of focus cinematography is just rather annoying. Still, this isn't a very easy story to tell but Franco brings it to life like only he can.

[Lefty]

Colin Farrell's reputation has been poisoned by the press with all the reports of his brattish behaviour. But he seems to have settled down & he's not a bad actor. He's not my favourite by any means but he's good in this & he was good in Seven Psychopaths. The world will always need someone to play the role of the hard-drinking, smart-mouthed, irascible Irishman. We have not seen the last of Colin.

 

I agree with Seven that Brendan Gleeson was terrific in In Bruges. He was the star in The Guard where he played the bumbling cop with delusions of grandeur. The Guard is a nice way to pass the time. Not cinematic genius but one of those lovely Irish movies that will have you smiling. It's not another Waking Ned Devine but it has the same feel about it. And if you have seen Ned, that is quite a compliment.

The director of The Guard was John Michael McDonagh, the brother of In Bruges director, Martin McDonagh.    

[Lefty]

 

 

 

The last movie to win when the director didn't receive a nomination was Driving Miss Daisy & the guy who missed out was the Australian director Bruce Beresford. 

 

 

Seeing the name of Beresford, reminded me of an obscure movie of his that I like VERY VERY much and it is probably in my seen it 50 times club, that being Breaker Morant. I really got into it when it came out. I have the soundtrack on a record album. I bought and read the book, The Breaker, by Kip Denton, and read everything I could find about Morant on the wwww. I thought Edward Woodward did a superb job in the lead role. Oscar worthy to me. That the movie did not follow the book better puzzled me though, because it would have made just as good a movie. In the book there were 4 defendants rather than 3, and the things they were found guilty of in the book they were acquitted of in the movie and vice versa. 

[JaiDee]

my seen it 50 times club

 

 You've seen some movies 50 times?

 

It would have to be an incredible, super-amazing, stupendous, unbelievably good movie for me to sit down for a movie even 5 times. Pulp Fiction comes to mind, maybe Inglorious Basterds, the first Godfather, The Outlaw Josey Wales, Shawshank..... Apocalypse Now I have surely watched 10 times, that's my all-time fave.....but 50? Holy cow,  you have a lot of free time on your hands, Lefty!.

[pacman]

It's none of my business how many times somebody wants to watch a movie. We are free to do as we please but 50 times! 

 

I can't imagine any film I could do that with. Twice yes, I have watched several movies twice, my record is 4 times & I was a teenager back then.

 

The last film I saw twice is Gravity which I wrote about on this thread. Strange no one had anything to say about it, PDogg asked about it but no one has offered an opinion on it. It was very informative seeing it a second time. The first time was in a very small intimate theatre, I thought I was missing out not seeing it on a giant screen even if it still was in 3D. The second time was in a Megaplex on a huge screen. A lot of the dramatic impact of the first time was lost in the vast open space of the second time. I was too aware of the size of the theatre & the space around me, the first time I felt as if I was in the shuttle. It was just me & the screen.

 

Lesson learnt.

[Lefty]

 You've seen some movies 50 times?

 

It would have to be an incredible, super-amazing, stupendous, unbelievably good movie for me to sit down for a movie even 5 times. Pulp Fiction comes to mind, maybe Inglorious Basterds, the first Godfather, The Outlaw Josey Wales, Shawshank..... Apocalypse Now I have surely watched 10 times, that's my all-time fave.....but 50? Holy cow,  you have a lot of free time on your hands, Lefty!.

Apocalypse Now was made in the late 70s. Not a huge feat to see it 2 times a year. The Wild Bunch was made in 1969. Even less of a huge feat. :)

[azza33]

It's none of my business how many times somebody wants to watch a movie. We are free to do as we please but 50 times! 

 

I can't imagine any film I could do that with. Twice yes, I have watched several movies twice, my record is 4 times & I was a teenager back then.

 

The last film I saw twice is Gravity which I wrote about on this thread. Strange no one had anything to say about it, PDogg asked about it but no one has offered an opinion on it. It was very informative seeing it a second time. The first time was in a very small intimate theatre, I thought I was missing out not seeing it on a giant screen even if it still was in 3D. The second time was in a Megaplex on a huge screen. A lot of the dramatic impact of the first time was lost in the vast open space of the second time. I was too aware of the size of the theatre & the space around me, the first time I felt as if I was in the shuttle. It was just me & the screen.

 

Lesson learnt.

I reckon ill give the Hangover 1& 2 the 50 nudge in coming years... Cant help bad taste :)

As for Gravity.... Boring!! Weak script, poor dialogue, apart from effects doesn't warrant any special mention.

A movie which i really enjoyed recently was Pain and Gain. Not saying it was a masterpiece, just a good few hours of mayhem.

[Tomcat]

i watched LA Confidential around 5 times as it took that many viewings to figure the plot out. ( a truly great film as well)

[JaiDee]

Oh, I agree that it's anyone's business how many times they want to watch a movie, and Lefty and I have already agreed to disagree on movie likes and dislikes for the most part, I was just surprised at that amount;  50 times is a lot!

 

I don't think I have even seen any Seinfeld reruns that often;  and I have seen each one multiple times. Many multiple times.

 

    Didn't ''get'' the Hangover movies, at all......saw the first one, didn't laugh even once, not even a little bit.  Watched the 2nd one just because it was based in Thailand; same thing, not even a chuckle and shut it off in the middle of that corny ending. You couldn't force me to watch the 3rd one. I guess we all have different senses of humor, and I have rarely, if ever, found any so-called "comedy" movies to be funny;  methinks they all try way too hard. That Will Ferrell guy? Most unfunny person I have ever seen, by a long shot.

 

Edit; I laughed a few times at "40-year old Virgin."

 

But again, I can watch Seinfeld and Three Stooges over and over until I am blue in the face and some people think that stuff sucks; I like shows like Get Smart and Hogan's Heroes too, some people would watch those and say "huh?"

 

      I call movies I watch multiple times "comfort movies".......as in, it's a friday night, it's snowy and cold outside, you lay on the couch with a pillow and a blanket, fire up a fat one and watch something you KNOW will be good, no surprises with a new movie which might suck.  For myself anyway it's usually a spy movie of some sort, or a war movie; I have seen each Bourne movie multiple times, even the newest one......seen "No Way Out" and "Three days of the Condor" many times as well, ditto for "Hunt for Red October"  and "Day of the Jackal." Westerns fall into the comfort zone also.....nothing better than a slow Clint Eastwood movie on a lazy saturday afternoon.

 

   As always, movies choices, same as beauty, rest in the eye of the beholder.

[Lefty]

i watched LA Confidential around 5 times as it took that many viewings to figure the plot out. ( a truly great film as well)

I had to watch Mulholland Drive a couple or 3 times to be sure what was real and what was a dream. 

[JaiDee]

Did you ever see Inception?

[pacman]

I reckon ill give the Hangover 1& 2 the 50 nudge in coming years... Cant help bad taste :)

As for Gravity.... Boring!! Weak script, poor dialogue, apart from effects doesn't warrant any special mention.

A movie which i really enjoyed recently was Pain and Gain. Not saying it was a masterpiece, just a good few hours of mayhem.

 

We've talked before about Hangover, I don't get the humour at all, you do. No one's wrong, no one's right...  viva la difference.

 

I don't know how you found Gravity boring, it's anything but IMO but again...   horses for courses. I did mention in a previous post that some of the chatter between the only two actors in the movie is at odds with the movie but it isn't for the script that anyone should go see it. It's the advance in the filming technique for something we are supposed to believe was shot in space. It really looks like it was shot in space. 

 

I consider Gravity to be of equal if not greater significance than the breakthrough made by 2001: A Space Odyssey. There are arguments going on other forums about which movie is the more impressive given the 40 year gap between their release. I thought 2001 was brilliant when I saw it but it is so clunky compared to Gravity. And I believe that people will be talking about Gravity in 40 years time in the same breath. 

 

I was watching a conversation on TV about the best films of 2013 & they raved on about this & that. They asked one guy who hadn't spoken for his opinion. He said the others were good but his standout film for the year had to be Gravity. My type of guy!

 

And at the risk of sticking my neck out, I will repeat my comment that I consider it to have a lock on this years Best Movie at the Oscars. Azza can have his revenge if I am wrong.        

 

One film that won't win the Oscar is Pain & Gain. Of that you can be sure.

[pacman]

I had to watch Mulholland Drive a couple or 3 times to be sure what was real and what was a dream. 

 

 

Did you ever see Inception?

 

I watched Mullholland Drive on TV, no idea what it was about. The action stuff was simple enough but the underlying twist, dunno, I knew something was going on but what? Not a clue. 

 

Inception I saw at the cinema, that was all about travelling back through dreams to change people's memory, or something like that. That wasn't so hard albeit it was very convoluted. I don't mind complicated plots as long as the denouement is clearly laid out & I don't leave the theatre only half sure what happened. 

 

Plus at the cinema I am focused, on TV I get distracted.