ARTHUR AND THE INVISIBLES; QUADROPHENIA; WHO ARE YOU  POLLY MAGGOO?; SID & NANCY;THE TRANSFORMERS; SICKO; LIQUID SKY; YOU KILL ME; HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX; HAIRSPRAY; HELLBOY ANIMATED: BLOOD AND IRON; THE MAKIOKA SISTERS; KWAIDAN; ANIMANIA; THE SIMPSONS MOVIE; THRONE OF BLOOD; PIERROT LE FOU; HELLBOY ANIMATED: SWORD OF STORMS; THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM; SUNSHINE; TRAINSPOTTING; STRAY DOG; HOW TO GET AHEAD IN ADVERTISING; FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF; TOKYO STORY; DRIVING LESSONS; THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG; SUPERBAD; SANJURO; YOJIMBO; RAN; BREATHLESS; ALPHAVILLE; UNE FEMME EST UNE FEMME; THE HIDDEN FORTRESS; THE IDIOT; THE BAD SLEEP WELL; CONTEMPT; LADY CHATTERLEY; THE LOWER DEPTHS; SCANDAL; TOUT VA BIEN; YOUNG PEOPLE FUCKING; GLORY TO THE FILMMAKER; NOCTURNA; LES CHANSONS D'AMOURS; THE SUN ALSO RISES; HAPPINESS; WEIRDSVILLE; LA FILLE COUPÉE EN DEUX; DAI-NIPPONJIN; ACROSS THE UNIVERSE

ARTHUR AND THE INVISIBLES

Monday, July 2nd, 2007

I saw Arthur & The Invisibles with kids, and they loved it, but *shudder* - i thought it was awful. Typical is the characters afraid to speak the villain's name, but for no apparent reason. And why did the kid have an English accent (they passed it off with having stayed in boarding school in England a year, but the family was poor)?

"Now here's the book where you're grandfather cobbled together the plot." "But Gran, why didn't he take the rubies and put them in a safety deposit box, or convert themt o cash?" "Shut up you little English twat."

QUADROPHENIA

Monday, July 2nd, 2007

Then i saw Quadrophenia. I'm reasonably familiar with the basics, mod vs rockers, Brighton. The lead characters actually seemed pretty punk rock - i don't know if that's really how they were, or if it was a reflection of when the movie was made. Searching for the next high and for meaning are a little hard to reconcile. At least Stink found his true calling.

"Look, I don't wanna be the same as everybody else. I mean, you gotta be somebody, ain't ya, or you might as well jump in the sea and drown. That's why I'm a Mod, see? I'm only the same as some other people, while you're a rocker, which means you're the same as some other people." "Shut up you little English twat."

WHO ARE YOU POLLY MAGGOO?

Tuesday, July 6th, 2007

Tuesday night i saw a movie i rented on DVD that's never been released on DVD - no wonder they're called Suspect Video: Who Are You Polly Maggoo?, a hilarious spoof of fashion, European royalty and TV producers from 1966 France. I loved the Diana Vreeland-like editor, eveyrone waiting on baited breath to hear her prounouncemnets, the fasion designer feigning indifference

"Quel schmuck!"

"Splendid!"

"Everything is fashion. Love, ideas, even war. Even Politics!"

SID & NANCY

Friday, July 6th, 2007

"Never trust a junkie."

In the evening, i wanted to see my last DVD, so i phoned them up to see if they wanted too as well. On the way over i was thinking how it'd be RAS's birthday in early July, then it occurred to me it already was early July - goddamn, his birthday was the next day. And i'd already made plans for the heart of the day. Anyway, the movie we saw was Sid and Nancy. I liked it, though not as much as Quadrophenia. For one thing, it felt like part of the story was missing - it did cover the period of their relationship, but i thought it could've set up Sid a little better, and i figured it might as well have finished his story. It was also a bit like watching a car wreck in slow motion. I didn't think Gary Oldman looked a lot like Sid - Oldman doesn't have the scrawny face.

"If I asked you to kill me, would you?"
"I don't know. How would I do it? I couldn't live without ya."

When i was in university, i went out to dinner and dancing with four friends. We got plenty plastered at dinner. Then we went to a night club (one of us was tumbling from back to front seat in the cab). One (female) had on the other's (male) Sid & Nancy tee shirt. The third (female) asked if she could wear it, so the two exchanged shirts on the dance floor. But the third didn't remember (or care) that she had no bra on underneath, and had difficulty getting her shirt off. Security eventually came up to me and said that we should keep our clothes on.

It's rare that the actress is less attractive than the person she's portraying. Tell me Courtney Love doesn't look the part?

THE TRANSFORMERS

Friday, July 6th, 2007

Less than meets the eye...

I saw Transformers. I was never into the originals at all, and have no emotional investment in how they're 'supposed' to be, though i did enjoy Beast Wars a bit. I was encouraged that Metacritic gave it a decent rating, as i find it's usually a pretty reliable barometer. It was pretty damn awful.

It doesn't know if it's supposed to be a movie for kids (robot toy trucks and cars) or adults (intense violence and sexual humour), a serious scifi drama or lame sitcom (autobots hiding from parents - why?). Bay know how to keep stuff moving, but not how to show the audience what is happening - during the battles i couldn't tell who was who or what was hitting what (cut too close, shaky cameras). The dialogue made us wince (actually, it wasn't bad until the robots showed up). The robots were badly designed, too busy, they seemed to have no actual structure.

Pee-pee jokes?

It made Fantastic Four and Live Free Or Die Hard look good. The only good thing i'll say about it is that i enjoyed watching more than those movies, because it was so awful i enjoyed making fun of it after with my friends. It really was a car wreck (ha ha) - so terrible you HAVE to look at it.

"We're here, we're queer!"

Robots In Disguise!

"Michael Bay (ARMAGEDDON) and Steven Spielberg (WAR OF THE WORLDS) change the history of motion pictures with their stunning and revolutionary visualization!" - WTF?

SICKO

Monday, July 9th, 2007

I finally saw Sicko. Sometimes Canadians may seem a little smug when talking about our health care system compared to the American one in general terms, but once it gets down to specifics, i think most of us have two responses. The first is, "Thank god we live here!" because the suffering is truly awful. The second is anger - we get angry for the average citizen, and wonder why Americans themselves don't get angrier. Is our system perfect? Of course not - we're humans, no system is perfect. But is there any way in which the Canadian system could look to the American? None (we should be looking more towards Europe). Sure, if you're fabulously wealthy, you can afford the best of everything, but for the vast majority of citizens, there's no comparison.

Michael Moore was better than he was in his last movie, although his style isn't quite as thorough with evidence as i'd like (which leaves him open to charges of being biased, when in fact his points are correct). He also did a brief tour into the pharmaceutical industry, which really needs a whole movie on its own. Was his attempted trip to Guantanamo Bay just a stunt? Maybe, although i have a sneaking suspicion the goal was actually to make it to Cuba (which might have been more difficult if he made it his purpose from the beginning. I think the emotional heart of the movie was the 9-11 rescue worker choking back angry tears, feeling insulted her medicines were so much cheaper in Cuba than home.

"You're not slipping through the cracks. Someone made that crack and is sweeping you toward it."

LIQUID SKY

Monday, July 9th, 2007

I saw Liquid Sky on DVD. I'd seen it in the theatre years ago, and i remember it blowing my mind, but i'd forgotten a lot about it. It was even weirder than i remember. I don't remember the acting being so bad and dialogue so stilted, and i have to believe a lot of it was intentional. It's the bizarre lovechild of Ziggy Stardust, the special effects from Space 1999, performance art, 1960s revolutionary political attitude, punk culture and Kraftwerk. And drugs, lots of it. One actor plays both the lead male and female roles. What's it about? Tiny aliens in search of opiate highs latch on to this group of performers/druggies, but then get addicted to orgasmic highs. Oh, and there's a German scientists and horny mom. Everything about it, the people, the colours, are lurid, grotesque and fascinating.

"I kill with my cunt."                                                                     Margaret's arch-enemy Adrian.

Bad ass drug dealing girlfriend, and the alien(s)?

YOU KILL ME

Tuesday, July 11th, 2007

"At least you're not gay..."

The movie i was seeing was You Kill Me, starring Ben Kingsley as a killer who's screwed up badly, and needs to be sent out of town and to AA, just as one gang starts moving in on his family's territory. We end up sympathizing with a killer, and hoping he'll get better, and succeed in his new relationship. Despite the high concept, this isn't a broad spoof, but a subtle comedy, real enough to keep it straight and dramatic. Buffalo looks a lot like Winnipeg.

“My name is Frank, and i'm an alcoholic.”

“If I wanted to back a losing team, I’d buy the Sabres.”

HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX

Wednesday, July 11th, 2007

Harry Potter and the Order of Fries

The movie i was seeing was of course Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I read the last bunch of books all in one go, so the details of what belongs to each are blurred. I thought the story was clearer than the last, but not as much fun. Part of that is just the way the story is, but also there's so much plot that needs to be covered that there isn't a lot of time. I think some scenes could've been trimmed a bit (flying, training - the benefit of montages), because the movie lacked a couple of things. One is a little more romance with Cho, the other, a little more sense of dread. The book has all the time it needs to make Umbridge's increasing control increasingly menacing, and we also see the Order of the Phoenix at work. Anyway, still pretty good.

"What are nargles?" "Oh, baby, i'll show you nargles..."

"It is the view of the Ministry that a theoretical knowledge will be sufficient to get you through your examinations, which after all, is what school is all about." Ha ha, we have no exams in my program.

Saturday, July 14th, 2007

Harry Potter And The Order Of Chicken Wings

I saw the 3D IMAX version with Chris and Jackie. As it turned out, people who didn't order online didn't get a ticket, because they were sold out. The theatre was packed for every show, though that's only 4 shows a day (plus, IMAX theatres in the burbs).

I enjoyed it a little more this time. It holds together well, although they had to cut out so much (Hagrid with the giants, Weasley twins products, the hostility between Percy and the rest of the Weasleys (though he's plainly visible with the minister), and so on. I was surprised the 3D bit was actually one entire scene, the climactic battle. When i saw Meet The Robinsons, they kept jumping in and out. Oh, and they had the nerve to ask for the glasses back! Should've brought my other glasses with me.

EDIT: Man, i knew two of our grads had worked on the movie, but i was looking at that screenshot, and i see a third's name up there. Sheesh!

HAIRSPRAY

Friday, July 20th, 2007

I saw Hairspray, the movie based on the musical based on the movie. It was a lot of fun, a lot better than i thought it would be. Except for John Travolta (one note gag: "John Travolta in drag! Ha!"), who was pretty awful. Not sure what the point of a man in drag is (other than Divine played the original mom), but Travolta was just plain bad. Was he trying to do a woman's voice? Yes, he sounded a lot like Dr. Evil (maybe the only voice he can?), so a word like 'snow' starts sounding like 'snew'. Nikky Blonsky was great, Walken was great, James Marsden, everyone else was good too.

Amanda Bynes' character has an oral fixation. Ahem.

HELLBOY ANIMATED: BLOOD AND IRON

Saturday, July 21st, 2007

Thursday was working on digital stuff, listening to music, and such. In the evening, i watched Hellboy Animated: Blood and Iron. It was very much like the movie (i assume it's a prequel?), but maybe a little too nuanced for animation? It's hard when we can't see facial expressions. They had no idea how 'Hecate' is supposed to be pronounced.

"Lady, I was going to cut you some slack because you're a major mythological figure - but that? That's crazy talk. Now leave me alone!"

THE MAKIOKA SISTERS

Saturday, July 21st, 2007

The movie i saw was Kon Ichickawa's The Makioka Sisters (Sasame-yuki), a beautiful-looking movie, set in 1938, a look back at end of an era in Japanese culture, as two married sisters worried about their two unmarried ones, their parents having died. It follows the seasons, which are often the backdrop to the family drama and humour.

KWAIDAN

Monday, July 23rd, 2007

The movie i saw was Masaki Kobayashi's Kwaidan, from 1964. "Kwaidan" (or "kaidan") literally means ghost story, and it's mostly based on actual folk tales. It's very stylized, the music a cross between traditional Japanese movie, and the creepier stuff from Planet of the Apes.

Black Hair: A poor samurai who divorces his true love to marry for money, but finds the marriage disastrous - he eventually returns to his old wife. The least interesting of the stories.

The Woman in the Snow: A woodcutter meets an icy demon who spares his life. A decade later he tells the secret to his wife. A classic folk tale theme, common to a lot of British tales (although the spirit is usually a mermaid of fairy of some sort). Obviously (intentionally obvious) done on a lot, the skies are painted, sometimes with demonic eyes.

Hoichi the Earless: Starts off with a very stylized presentation of the true battle of Dan-No-Ura between the Genji and Heike clans, and the legends about the losers, and then switches to the legend of the blind musician who encounters their ghosts. The battles scenes were great. I knew i'd seen the head priest before - he was in Seven Samurai, and Life Of Oharu.

In a Cup of Tea: A metafictional version of a legend about a samurai drinking water from a teacup, who sees a face in the cup - it's framed by a writer discussing unfinished tales.

ANIMANIA

Thursday, July 26th, 2007

Last Thursday i went with a former student to the Japan Foundation's screening of Animania:

"This amusing documentary reveals the fascinating world of Japanese anime and teens' obsession with it. From wearing costumes of their favourite characters, to living out their fantasy world at conventions, parents are baffled when their teens dress as cartoon characters and their kids think parents 'don't understand them' "

It was okay, an affectionate look at anime fans, especially cosplayers. It could've used more explanation of terms (not for me though), and the audio was a little muffled. Jackie thought it focussed too much on the obsessive people (but she was acquainted with a lot of people in the movie). I'm not sure i saw the distinctions. Here's the Animania website, as it's not on IMDB (yet)... and here's the youtube trailer.

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE

Monday, July 30th, 2007

Today, i saw The Simpsons Movie. It was okay, better than a typical episode (or 4). But it couldn't compare to, say, the top 4 episodes of all time. There was a time when Marge was angry at Homer for dancing with a stripper, forgetting a present, and so on. Now she's angry because Homer caused Springfield to be blown up. Just weird.

Spider-Pig, Spider-Pig.
Does whatever a Spider-Pig does.
Can he swing,
from a web?
No he can't,
cause he's a pig.
Look out!
He is the Spider-Pig!

THRONE OF BLOOD

Tuesday, July 31st, 2007

Makku-Bessu

I watched Throne of Blood (Kumonosu-jou, literally "spider web castle, which is a better title), which is Akira Kurosawa's reworking of MacBeth. It was pretty awesome. A slight issue: the last bit of the prophecy doesn't really fit.

The strangely asexual ghost.

"You, who would soon rule the world, allow a ghost to frighten you."

"Owie! Owie! Owie!"

My DVD player sucks.

PIERROT LE FOU

Friday, August 3rd, 2007

"Crazy Pete" - what a terrible translation...

The movie i saw was Jean Luc Godard's Pierrot Le Fou. It starts off like a typical French love story (man disillusioned wife, his pretty young ex comes back into his life), and at various points, becomes a farce, satire, caper, buddy flick, road movie, occasionally a musical. There's a party shot in monotone colours, where people talk about products as if they're in a commercial. At one point, a lead character speaks to the camera, and the other asks whom he's talking to (and he tells her 'the audience'). A man sits down and says, "You slept with my wife", gets up and says, "Nice to see you." A man tries to commit suicide, and changes his mind at the last second (too late?). Anyway, it's not a straightforward story, but it's lots of fun. By the way, "Pierrot" is a French version of a commedia dell'arte fool, and Marianne is the symbol of France (as John Bull is England and Uncle Same is the USA). The movie's dominant colour scheme is blue, white and red (a la tricouleur).

"My hair has kept its shape all day thanks to Aquanet"

"I'm glad I don't like spinach, because if I did then I would eat it, and I can't stand the stuff."

"Tender ... and cruel, real ... and surreal, terrifying ... and funny, nocturnal ... and diurnal, usual ... and unusual..."

Godard: "...it is not really a film, it's an attempt at cinema. Life is the subject, with CinemaScope and color as its attributes...In short, life filling the screen as a tap fills bathtub that is simultaneously emptying at the same rate."

HELLBOY ANIMATED: SWORD OF STORMS

Wednesday, August 1st, 2007

Sometime this week i also saw Hellboy Animated: Sword of Storms, which is actually the first one (i saw them in the wrong order). Pretty good.

Hellboy: You're not a normal fox.
Fox: And you are not a normal man.
Hellboy: Really? What gave me away? Any idea why I'm here?
Fox: Do I look like a philosopher?
Hellboy: Nice.
Fox: You carry the sword of storms, and it has tasted the blood of demons. That is all you need to know. For now.
Hellboy: Sure, 'cause that's just so much to absorb all at once.

Friday, August 3rd, 2007

Bourne to run...

Today i saw The Bourne Ultimatum, which was pretty good, all adrenalin (i wonder if it's good for the heart?). I was a little annoyed a couple brought their 7 year old girl and 5 year old boy to see it. Not because the kids were a problem, just because it's not the kind of thing i think kids that age should be seeing.

Jason Bourne: Where are you now?
Noah Vosen: I'm sitting in my office.
Jason Bourne: I doubt that.
Noah Vosen: Why would you doubt that?
Jason Bourne: If you were in your office right now we'd be having this conversation face-to-face.

SUNSHINE

Saturday, August 4th, 2007

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine....

I went to see Sunshine, which was not really that good. It's one of those sci-fi movies that tries to be cerebral and profound, lots of hushed talk with the volume turned up. It tries to make its characters 'characters' (the guy who likes to bake himself in sunlight, the... biologist? farmer? who loves her plants?), but they don't seem like real people. It's grounded in 'reality', until the silly plot twist. But what annoyed me the most was the spaceship was built to be doomed. Don't they build any redundancies into these things? How about the gardens divided into compartments? How about a computer that you could service without going into freezing water? Howabout about a crew where you don't need any one person, because hat would happn if he croaked on this two year mission?

"HelllllllLLLOOOOOOOHHHHhhhhhhh!

TRAINSPOTTING

Sunday, August 5th, 2007

In the movie, they didn't really explain the use of the word "Trainspotting"

I watched Trainspotting, which somehow i'd managed not to see (i was poor when it came out). Anyway, it was great. I could tell the baby thing was coming, though the scene that made me wince the most was the washroom scene (health department should close that place down). I didn't know at the time, but Danny Boyle, who directed this, also directed Sunshine.

"Heroin makes you constipated. The heroin from my last hit was fading, and the suppositories had yet to melt. Unnnhhhh.... I'm no longer constipated."

Whoops.

"That was one of his major weaknesses. He never told lies, he never took drugs, and he never cheated on anyone." I know the feeling...

STRAY DOG

Monday, August 6th, 2007

I watched another Kurosawa film, Stray Dog, essentially a contemporary (1949) police procedural, the first non-samurai Kurosawa movie i've seen. Was it good? Do you have to ask?

"A stray dog becomes a rabid dog."

HOW TO GET AHEAD IN ADVERTISING

"i'm an expert on tits..."

I watched another DVD... can you believe? The movie i saw was How to Get Ahead in Advertising, which i'd seen years ago, but wanted to see again. I love Richard E Grant. This isn't as good as Withnail And I, but his performance is amazing. It's about a British advertising executive who starts freaking out when he can't think up a campaign for acne cream, develops a boil, which grows a face and starts talking to him. Truly bizarre.

"The police also found a bag containing 15 ounces of cannibus resin. The bag may also have contained a small quantity of heroin."
"Or a porkpie. The bag may also have contained a porkpie."
"I hardly see what a porkpie's got to do with it."
"Then how about a turnip? The bag may also have contained a large turnip."
"The bag was full of drugs. It says so!"
"It's the oldest trick in the book."
"Book? What book?"
"The distortion of truth by association book. You all believe heroin was in the bag because cannibus resin was in the bag, but the chances of it actually being there are certain 100 to 1."
"A lot more likely than what you say."
"About as likely as the tits smeared with peanut butter."
"The tits were spread with peanut butter! It says so! Who's a man you are to think you know more about it than the press?"
"I'm an expert on tits. Tits and peanut butter. I'm also an expert drug pusher. I've been pushing drugs for 20 years, and I can tell you a pusher always protects his pitch. We want to sell them cigarettes, and we don't like competition, see? So we associate a relatively innocuous drug with one that is more deadly, and the rags go along with it because they adore the dough from the ads!"

FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF

Thursday, August 9th, 2007

"Bueller?... Bueller?..."

I saw Ferris Bueller's Day Off, which i'd also seen years ago, but wanted to see again. It's pretty funny. There's something the character of Ferris Bueller that bugs me, the way he treats Cameron. I like the ongoing joke of everyone being worried about Ferris's health, even people who shouldn't know him. I also like that they skip school not to go out and get wasted, or go to a strip show, but instead go to museums and galleries, fancy restaurants, a baseball game, look at their city from way up - the thinking teen's idea of a good time: expand your mind and get some perspective.

"I asked for a car, I got a computer." Ha, ha, sucker! Enjoy your DOS prompt.

Someone should digitally edit Sloane's godawful 80s fashions.

Boy in Police Station: "There's someone you should talk to."
Jeannie: "If you say Ferris Bueller, you lose a testicle."
Boy in Police Station: "Oh, you know him?"

Ferris: "I'm so disappointed in Cameron! Twenty bucks says he's in his car right now debating on whether or not to go out."
Cameron [in his car]: He'll keep calling me. He'll keep calling me until I come over. He'll make me feel guilty. This is - Alright I'll go, I'll go, I'll go, I'll go, alright I'll go. Shit!

TOKYO STORY

Friday, August 10th, 2007

Friday i saw Tokyo Story (Toukyou Monogatari), by Ozu (1953). The plot is pretty simple - an elderly couple (whose youngest daughter is still at home) leave their home town to visit their children in the big city, who don't have a lot of time for them, except for the widow of the son who died in the war. Unfortunately, one of them is not long for the world. Everything is very understated, very Japanese, no melodrama, everyone maintains their formal politeness, while the movie is both sad and funny.

DRIVING LESSONS

Tuesday, August 14th, 2007

I saw Driving Lessons. It was okay, funny moments, wacky older lady, odd boy who needs a friend.

"Maybe they need each other?"

Do her, Ron! Hermione's not coming across! Do her!

THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG

Thursday, August 16th, 2007

Isn't an umbrella shop a poor business plan?

The movie i saw was Les Parapluies de Cherbourg, the 1964 musical romance, which i've been waiting to see for a while now, having seen it's 'kind of' prequel, Lola. I wasn't disappointed. As a musical, it's quite odd, with no strong songs, but every line is sung. The colours are brilliant, almost as beautful as Deneuve herself. It's a very funny movie, and yet the ending is not what we expect. Perhaps two people did marry the love of their lives, but for others, there's "what might have been". Although musicals lend themselves easily to lightweight fun, there are some serious issues being dealt with.

Madame Emery: "Pregnant by Guy? This is horrible! How is it possible?"
Geneviève Emery: "Well, just like with everybody."

SUPERBAD

Friday, August 17th, 2007

I am McLovin.

The movie we saw was Superbad. It's seriously (!) one of the funniest movies i've ever seen. It's semi-autobiographical, written by Seth Rogen and his buddy Evan when they were themselves teens, and Seth Rogen shows up as one of a hilaious duo of cops. What's more, outside of the cops, it's not even that far-fetched, mixing desperation with incredible blindneess, and feels at its heart, pretty true for a lot of teens, and unlike most teen comedies, it actually does have a heart. It's one of those movies that would never win an Oscar, but probably should. Will there be a funnier comedy this year? Probably not.

"You scratch our backs, we'll scratch yours."
"Well, funny thing about my back, is it's located on my cock."

"Gangstaz! What's up, guys?"

SANJURO

Friday, August 17th, 2007

Friday night, i saw a DVD i'd borrowed from a freind, one of Kurosawa's, called Sanjuro. Another samurai movie. It was pretty good. It's actually a sequel of sorts to Yojimbo, rewritten to fit, starring Mifune as the rough-looking samurai ready to help strangers, for some food and sake. He does this weird thing like his shoulder has been hurt.

"Stupid friends are dangerous."
"You're too sharp. That's your trouble. You're like a drawn sword. Sharp, naked without a sheath. You cut well. But good swords are kept in their sheaths."

YOJIMBO

Saturday, August 18th, 2007

Last night i watched Yojimbo, since it seemed stupid to watch Sanjuro without having seen its 'prequel'. It was interesting to see, because the character was a little more reckless in this movie (too clever for his own good), and a little more bloodthirsty.

"You're all tough, then?"
"What? Kill me if you can!"
"It'll hurt."

RAN

Sunday, August 19th, 2007

I didn't start the movie until 11 pm. You know, 12:30 or 1 wouldn't be so bad. Then i discovered how long Ran is. 160 minutes! Argh! So tired. Anyway, the movie was very good - Kurosawa thought it was his best. Most epic, perhaps, but there's something about brevity i like (it's why i like cartooning, which is about boiling shapes down to its most essentials). Anyway, it's a semi-adaptation of King Lear (actually, pretty close in its essentials, if you don't mind a gender switch), with a dollop of MacBeth and Lady Vengeance.

"Heeeere, piggy, piggy, piggy..."

"Oh, my aching head... too much sake..."

"Man is born crying. When he has cried enough, he dies."

BREATHLESS

Monday, August 20th, 2007

"What is your greatest ambition in life?" "To become immortal... and then die."

Monday night i watched Breathless (À bout de souffle, which is more like 'out of breath' or 'last breath'), the original by Jean-Luc Godard (in fact, his first real film). There's something about 60s French films that get me. The protagonist is a doofus though, like a little boy pretending to be Humphrey Bogart, and getting himself deeper into trouble, while trying to pretend he's not. Some reviewers have called both characters 'amoral', although i think it hardly applies to Patricia (naive, more like it). At first, she doesn't realize what's going on, and then i think she's in shock for a while (in shock and in love, not a good combination). Her feelings are mixed, but she makes her decision.

"What is your greatest ambition in life?"" To become immortal... and then die."

I'm in love with Jean Seberg.

Don't you want to smack him in the head?

"Informers inform, burglars burgle, murderers murder, lovers love."

Minouche ("kittenish").

ALPHAVILLE

Wednesday, August 22nd, 2007

Free will and conscience.

I watched Alphaville (Alphaville, une étrange aventure de Lemmy Caution), Godard's strange science fiction gum shoe detective story. Theoretically set on another planet, it looks a lot like Paris's 1960s buildings. Alpha 60 talks about invading other galaxies, but apparently you can get there in a car (obviously, the whole film is a metaphor, and whether your talking miles or lightyears, it doesn't matter). What can you say about a place that run by computer, which is trying to eliminate love and grief, yet the main employment of women seems to be as different classes of 'seductresses', and Lemmy's readiness to kill seems to provoke little reaction. It's classic Godard, full of incongruities, creative, witty, but without a conventional storyline.

"Once we know the number one, we believe that we know the number two, because one plus one equals two. We forget that first we must know the meaning of plus."

"What is your secret? Tell me, Mr. Caution."
"Something which never changes, day or night. The past represents its future. It advances in a straight line, yet it ends by coming full circle."

"Fuck you with your logic."

UNE FEMME EST UNE FEMME

Thursday, August 23rd, 2007

A woman is a woman? Quel surprise...

I watched Une femme est une femme (A Woman Is a Woman), Godard's strange spoof/homage to the musical, which might've been a little more effective if there was singing. It does feel like a musical, and it's story is pretty slight (even by musical standards): a part-time 'stripper' wants to have a baby with her husband(?), while she is being pursued by his best friend. Still, it's kinda fun - the movie constantly winks at us - and that's quite literal, with the actors look right at the camera. One character runs into Jeanne Moreau and asks her, "How is Jules and Jim coming along?" (being made by Francois Truffaut at the same time). It's views on women are pretty French, and 1960s...

Alfred: Answer yes, and I owe you 100 francs. Answer no, and you owe me 100, okay?
Bar Owner: Okay...
Alfred: Here's the question: Can you loan me 100 francs?

Angela: Would you rather have fish or meat for dinner?
Émile: Fish.
Angela: What would you have preferred if you were having meat?
Émile: I dunno. Veal.
Angela: And if you were to have beef rather than veal, would you prefer a steak or a roast?
Émile: A steak.
Angela: And had you answered roast, would you prefer it rare or well-done?
Émile: Rare.
Angela: Well, honey, you're out of luck. My roast beef's a little overdone.

THE HIDDEN FORTRESS

Friday, August 25th, 2007

I watched Kakushi-toride no san-akunin (The Hidden Fortress), about a pair of greedy and foolish peasants who get caught up in the pursuit of a princess and her gold, and her samurai protector. Although i enjoyed the movie, i was annoyed by the peasant characters, who were truly stupid, and i didn't really see their pan for rape as being comical. Apparently, these two were the inspiration for R2D2 and C3PO (the drama seen from the point of view of comic relief). Somehow it doesn't surprise me.

"Hide a stone among stones and a man among men."

THE IDIOT

Monday, August 27th, 2007

I watched Hakuchi (The Idiot), Kurosawa's take on Dostoyevsky's novel (not that i've read it). It's been cut down from over 4 hours to under 3. That being said, except for some introductory explanations, i found it pretty straight forward to follow. Although, it actually felt like some scenes dragged on, and maybe it would've benefitted from scenes being trimmed, rather than whole chunks removed. I enjoyed it, but some things were just odd - it's one thing for Kameda to behave naively, and be a bit strange from his mental problems, but he was zombie-like at points. Kurosawa substitutes freezing cold and snow for his more usual rain and heat.

"Brains!"

"I bid 600,000 quatloos for the newcomer! "

THE BAD SLEEP WELL

Tuesday, August 28th, 2007

Whether tis nobler to suffer the slings and defenestrations...

Tonight i watched Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru (The Bad Sleep Well), which is said to be Kurosawa's version of Hamlet, although the resemblance is pretty slim. It's more of a corporate thriller. The actor who was The Idiot in that movie is the evil boss in this one. Odd, because in the other he was engaged to a quite young woman, but here looks ancient. Toshiro Mifune plays the Hamlet on a tear of vengeance, rather than crazed love rival. I enjoyed this quite a bit, although there was very little humour in it, even compared to The Idiot.

"A man with a full stomach doesn't bother with snacks."

"Ohhhhhh, fuck! "

CONTEMPT

Wednesday, August 29th, 2007

Some time last week i watched Le Mépris (Contempt), by Godard, ostensibly a story of the breakdown of a marriage between a writer and his wife, with the creation of an adaptation of The Odyssey as the background, with Jack Palance as a crass American movie producer, and Fritz Lang as himself, European filmmaker. He draws parallels between their relationship, The Odyssey and Hollywood style movie making. As his first big budget movie, it apparently was his comment on those kinds of movies. The name kind of says it. I wasn't all that impressed with Bardot.

"I like gods. I like them very much. I know exactly how they feel - exactly."

Sometimes Godard's women annoy me - they're all pouting and caprice, all feelings, no brain.

"There's nothing like the movies. Usually when you see women, they're dressed. But put them in a movie, and you see their backsides."

LADY CHATTERLEY

Sunday, September 2nd, 2007

Yesterday i saw Lady Chatterley (Lady Chatterley et l'homme des bois - "man of the woods"?), and adaptation of an earlier version of the novel. It's a French version, and for some reason i expected that the action was taking place in France (i was wrong). It's a bladder-busting 168 minutes (the TV version is 52 minutes longer - what the hell do they put in?) It's not a fast movie, very pastoral, long walks through wilderness and such - it reminded me of the classical novel Daphnis and Chloe, which was actually very similar in plot (if less intellectual). I found it stressful to watch, as i kept thinking the lovers would be discovered. I liked it, although i wouldn't call it deep or powerful.

It would've been funny if Connie turned around and the new gameskeeper turned out to be a super-hunky guy, with a glint off his teeth, and then Connie grins and winks to the camera.

There was a scene in which we see Connie has the presence of mind after a bonking to give herself a wipe before she pulls on her bloomers.

"Woo hoo! Beer! Hee hee hee hee!"

THE LOWER DEPTHS

Sunday, September 2nd, 2007

toreilaa torashi

In the evening i saw Kurosawa's Donzoko (The Lower Depths), an ensemble movie set entirely in a dingy flophouse in Edo-era Japan. If the residents were Americans, we might call them trailer trash. It was very interesting to watch, even though (or because) they were so histrionic, except for perhaps the mysterious traveller. A different director would make a very grim movie, but despite their circumstances, Kurosawa's trailer trash are more human, maintaining their sense of humour and pride. My only complaint is that the plot didn't really end satisfactorily for me, it felt incomplete, although still worthy.

Hovel, sweet hovel.

Soon to appear on Jerry Springer. "People never do anything but repeat themselves."

"If work made life easy, I’d do it."

SCANDAL

Monday, September 3rd, 2007

Sukyandaru

On Monday i watched Shubun (Scandal), by Kurosawa. Two celebrities are photographed together, and it's made to look by the paparazzi that they in a relationship (a similar event happened to Kurosawa himself). The victims decide to sue, and the story ends up being more about their lawyer, a small timer eaten alive by the corporate sharks, and he ends up selling himself to them, to help with his daughter who has tuberculosis. It's pretty melodramatic, and reminded me a lot of It's A Wonderful Life - the Christmas theme and Auld Lang Syne kinda help.

"Do you guys know how irritating it is to have running commentary by a bunch of yokels while you paint? Seriously..."

"Um, do we still have to pay your fee?"

"Money makes ze vorld go around..."

"Ohhhhh... you know this isn't going to end well..."

TOUT VA BIEN

Tuesday, September 5th, 2007

comme ci comme ça

Last night i watched Tout va bien ("All Goes Well"), by Godard.

The bulk of the story relates to attitudes spinning out of the May 1968 riots in Paris. It centres on an American reporter (Jane Fonda) and her filmmaker husband (Yvs Montand), who get caught up in a wildcat takeover of a factory. What's interesting is that the manager and union steward are articulate in their points of view and arguments, while the strikers, whom Godard seems to sympathize with the most, aren't, mostly arguing from emotion and ending their points with "It's difficult to explain." I suspect there's some sense of failure in actual revolution, and that real change comes from within, not political stunts.

The whole is framed by a meta-fictional take on movie-making, almost power-point-like, on what a movie needs commercially (love story, two bankable stars, money, etc). It's odd that the exercise doesn't make the director cynical about the story.

The factory as a cutaway.

The art of making commercials...

A consumerist society - get your radical politics in aisle 3.

YOUNG PEOPLE FUCKING

Thursday, September 6th, 2007

Young People... Doing Certain Things....

Thursday night was opening day for the Toronto International Film Festival, and i was there! Not at a gala event, mind you, but still.

Okay, maybe i should've got my ticket sooner. Actually, that wasn't the problem. The problem was that all the volunteers didn't know where to point me. I had bought my ticket online that morning, so i'm supposed to be able to pick it at the venue. By the way, that's a trick i use to get the seats i want. See, when i first had access to the box office, i bought the tickets i could. But some weren't available, possibly to high demand, or what not. But they always reserve a block for sale the morning of each showing. So, while i couldn't order tickets for the movie i wanted when i ordered the rest, i was able to get a morning release.

So, okay, i finally found their hidden box office, and had to get in line. This is the Varsity Cinemas, by the way. The line up went from the floor the cinema was on, down the steps, and into the street - i was almost standing on Bloor Street, which is half a block from the door. I should've peed at the restaurant. By the time we got in, i just grabbed a seat, even though i needed that pee, and i wanted a drink. Maybe it's a good thing i didn't get a drink, lol.

Anyway, the movie i saw was a Canadian feature called Young People Fucking. It was a world debut. It's about 5 couples, all hetero (how un-Canadian), all pretty white (how un-Canadian). However, it was pretty damn funny, even though for a sex comedy, there's not much skin, the talk is more explicit than the action. Which i guess is the point, as it's really more about how people relate than technique. There's the young couple (horny wife, spastic hubby), the exes (she seems to have survived the break-up better than him), the best friends (looking for uncomplicated sex?), the first daters (swinging guy hyping his English accent, she a bubbly naive?), and the boyfriend-girlfriend (him a dick) inviting his roomie (expressionless!) into the mix. It's done in stages, so we see group in sequence (foreplay, intercourse, interlude, orgasm, afterglow, etc).

I think the most subtle and mature one was with the exes. The funniest was with the young couple (above - what a spazz), and the threesome: "I'm not trying to be a dick here, but..." What a dick.

Before the feature was a a short, called I've Never Had Sex. which really should've been titled I Haven't Had Sex..., because it's not about virginity, it's a talking head thing, real people answering questions like "I've never had sex... in an airplane?" "I have had sex in an airplane" or "I've never had sex with more than one person?" and so on . It was pretty good. You can watch it here: Official site or a probably illegal copy, though my tax dollars did help pay for it.

GLORY TO THE FILMMAKER;

Friday, September 7th, 2007

I took the train in early on Friday morning to see a movie at the Ryerson Theatre at 9 am. I got frustrated, because i hadn't had a proper breakfast (and nothing was open in the immediate area of the theatre), and i couldn't find the box office. Eventually, i found a volunteer who sent me to the right place. Second time i've been crabby starting a movie. I needn't have worried about the line up though, there was plenty of space. It wasn't a regular cinema, so there were no refreshments available (or allowed).

The movie i saw was Kitano ('Beat') Takeshi's Glory To The Filmmaker, or Kantoku Banzai!. Takeshi plays a hapless version of himself in which he's a struggling director cycling through a number of different genres in search of a commercial hit (including a spoof of classic Japanese director Ozu's films: "Who wants to see a boring film that spends thirty minutes just showing its characters drinking liquor and tea?".

It feels very much like a variety comedy show, with Takeshi always as the straight man. About two thirds the way through it sticks to one (manic) storyline, which slows it down somewhat, but it's still pretty funny. Quite often, Takeshi is replaced with a papier mache version of himself (including through a medical exam). Sometimes they make an effort to make the special effects look real, sometimes it's played fake to look funny (i.e. the papier mache doll spins through the air, and we can see the hands spinning it around). The part which made me laugh the hardest was during the martial arts scene (somewhat like his own role as Zatoichi), when bunches of ninja ran at him at super-speed through a forest - it was a live action version of the anime convention (hard to describe a sight gag).

It started with what was supposedly a taped message to the TIFF audience, but it was the papier mache doll being interviewed, so we only got subtitles. And the interviewer never faced the audience (obviously so), so we couldn't tell if what he was saying was being translated correctly, or if he was saying it. Even if the translation was correct, he could use the same bit, and just substitute the dialogue and subtitles for wherever it was being shown.

NOCTURNA

Sunday, September 9th, 2007

The movie i saw was Nocturna. It's an animated movie, Spanish, although at least the version i saw had English dialogue. It's about a boy at an orphanage who's fraid of the dark, and gets caught up with the creatures of the night, the man who shepherds the cats that sing us to sleep, the women who tie our hair in knots, the creatures who go bump in the night, and so on. It's an allegory about facing your fears, but mostly it's just fun. I quite liked it. I liked the style, similar to Triplets of Belleville, but more fanciful and child-like. It's 2D, but obviously digital (can't mistake that perspective). More interesting and inventive than pretty much any American studio outside of Pixar.

LES CHANSONS D'AMOURS

Sunday, September 9th, 2007

The movie i saw in the afternoon was Les Chansons d'Amour (Love Songs), a French musical, that starts off with a threesome, and kills off one of the principals a third the way through. Sweet fun, even in its sadness, and so French. I loved it.

THE SUN ALSO RISES

Tuesday, September 11th, 2007

"What is velvet?"

Tuesday night i went to another Festival film. This time it was at the Winter Garden Theatre (which is above another one, so it's a LONG way up. I've never been there for anything - it looks really neat. It's old fashioned looking inside, almost baroque. The walls are painted, there are plants all around, and the ceiling is like the underside of a tree, with leaves and branches hanging (where i was sitting, perhaps 12 feet up), and small colourful lanterns. There was railing in some places, making it feel like a big courtyard restaurant.

The movie i saw was The Sun Also Rises (also Tai yang zhao chang sheng qi). Set in Communist China in the 1950s and 70s (though it's not a political film), it jumps from rural life in the green forests in southern China, where a single mom with a teenage son goes kooky after being bonked on the head, to a city in eastern China, where a teacher gets accused of being too touchy feely in crowds with some women (and yet he's vigorously pursued as well - one of his pursuers being Joan Chen), jumps back to the south, where the teacher's friend is sent for re-education after the events in the east, and then up north to the desert and back in time, to see what set these events in motion.

It's a gorgeous film to look at, and loads of fun, despite a couple of serious turns.

"Shoes for sale! Shoes for sale!"

"Mom for sale! Mom for sale!"

"Oh... down a little further... oh, yeah, that's the spot!"

"What is velvet?"

HAPPINESS

Friday, September 15th, 2007

The first movie i saw was Happiness (also Haeng-bok), a Korean movie. A pathetic playboy checks himself into a rural sanatorium to quit drinking and recover from cirrhosis of the liver. There he meets a shy long-term resident with lung disease, and they begin a romance. But he finds himself missing his old life. It's a love story that's both sweet and heart-breaking.

Self-loathing and self-denial. Is love enough?

Friday, September 15th, 2007

Strangers in the evening.

In the city to see a couple of Festival films, it was warm and sunny when i went into the Varsity, and cold and rainy when i left. Luckily (or, rather, wisely), i'd brought my umbrella and Scooter Girl hoodie. It was dusk and the streets were wet, yet there was still some pink sun in the west, making the buildings glow. I wish i'd brought my camera.

i was walking down Yonge Street, about half way down (Wellesley area) to the Ryerson Theatre, when i passed three young women who were ducking in and out of the various stores to avoid getting wet, and looking for a shop. Suddenly one of them jumped to get under my umbrella with me, and even grabbed and held on to my arm. I was so surprised i didn't even say anything (neither did she) but just kept walking with her on my arm. Her friends looked around for her and gasped when they saw she'd taken a stranger's arm (i believe i had a big stupid grin). I suppose it was barely 30 seconds before they found their shop, and i was alone again. I really wish i'd brought my camera.

WEIRDSVILLE

Friday, September 15th, 2007

"What Are We Doing?"

The second movie in my 24 hour marathon was Weirdsville, a Canadian movie about a couple of drug-addled losers who agree to sell some drugs and do a robbery to pay off a debt and keep their thumbs. But their callgirl friend ODs on the heroin their supposed to sell, and as they try to bury her, they find an old preppie high school friend murdering someone in a satanic ritual. Then the fun starts. Think hallucinogenic visions and midgets in medieval cosplay. Should be a cult hit, if anyone gets to see it. Smart dialogue. Some reviews are really positive, some less so - guess it's a taste thing.

"Are we in hell?" "No, we're at the drive in."

The audience was pretty hyped up, even before the movie. When the person introducing the movie discussed "anti-piracy measures" (as they always do), people in the audience started yelling "Arrr! Arrr!" And they repeated it with the filmed version, and in each of the shows i saw on Saturday.

LA FILLE COUPÉE EN DEUX

Saturday, September 15th, 2007

Of course, you don't HAVE to pick either.

The first movie i saw was La Fille Coupée En Deux ("The girl cut in two"), a French movie, about a young woman pursued by two men, one a witty, happily married older author whom she loves but who can't commit to her, the other a single wealthy young obsessive-possessive twat who loves her (to be honest, i thought he was flamboyantly gay when her first appeared). Oh, and there's the creepy boss who seems to be looking for rewards for promotion. There's a definite class war going on, with Gabrielle Deneige ("pure as driven snow") and her mom more common than the perverse moneyed people (both men have their sexual issues that become criminal ones). The twat's mother is unbelievably cold (in one of the funniest shots, a lawyer shudders at her presence). The movie starts off rather fun, but gets increasingly darker.

The movie is loosely based on the story of Evelyn Nesbit, who bizarrely turns out to be the visual model for Anne Of Green Gables.

What's French for 'lucky old bastard'?

Raging, or emo?

DAI-NIPPONJIN

Saturday, September 15th, 2007

For the second movie of the day, fourth in my 24 hour marathon, and ninth and final film for me of the Festival i saw Dai-Nipponjin ("Big Japanese person"), a Japanese mockumentary about the 6th man in a line of monster fighters who grow to gigantic proportions through charging themselves at a power plant. He gets bad press, no respect and poor ratings, and is forced to sell ads on his body. We also meet his grandfather, the 4th, who is senile and in a retirement home, but occasionally gets out and gets big himself. It's pretty funny and ridiculous, although i'm not sure the director (Hitoshi Matsumoto, a comedian on the level of Beat Takashi) knew how to end it (it could have used a bit of trimming), so he switches gears, and changes from the documentary style to more of a TV action show, and brings on an American super family (reminding me a bit of The Incredibles, but looking like Power Rangers). Bizarre.

In his giant heroic form.

Just before he grows into his giant heroic form. Those are his shorts behind him (before the procedure, he stands in the shorts with a leg on either size, his face in the crotch).

Three of the villains. The one on the left has a giant comb-over which it keeps flipping back into place. The one on the right, Smelly Baddy, has the 'sassy streetwise Asian chick' attitude (with a deep masculine voice).

ACROSS THE UNIVERSE

Friday, September 21st, 2007

The movie i saw was Across The Universe, the musical based on Beatles songs. You'd have to pretty cynical not to enjoy it - it's a lot of fun. Ultimately, the story is pretty conventional, being essentially a love story (boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl again), the set-up for an ensemble notwithstanding. In particular, they set up a girl with lesbian leanings, and barely deal with it, and this was set in the late 60s, so it was a pretty dramatic thing. It's a beautiful looking movie, and i admit Evan Rachel Wood does a hormonal thing to me. Jim Sturgess looks like Paul McCartney and Liam Gallagher's love child, sounds like a Gallagher when he speaks, and for some reason i expected him to act like a Gallagher, but this was a decade before punk, so it turns out he's an artist. And his voice sounds like Ewan McGregor's when singing.

"I Wanna Hold Your Hand" - yes, love songs are sad when it's unrequited.

"Learn French or die."

The politics are surprisingly relevant today. One of the characters declares now that we're getting the Vietnam War on TV, the war will soon be over. The US government learned its lesson, and now the images from Iraq are carefully controlled - when was the last time you saw the bodies in the street or devastated homes on TV?

What was the shot against Canada? It's given as an option to avoid the draft, but Max calls it a frozen wasteland. Someone says Montreal is cool, but Max doesn't want to have to learn French. Aside from the fact that you can get along in Montreal very well knowing only English, you'd think someone from Ohio would know a little more about Toronto and our weather.

As much as i like Eddie Izzard, this whole act was a distraction.

Mmmm-hmmmm.

'Liberty' as a weapon, awesome.