Sunday, June 9, 2019
Harlan County U.S.A. Is Still Great
I saw and reviewed that back in 2011; I viewed that a few hours ago on TCM for the purpose of seeing a tremendous documentary again and talking about it for the first time on Letterboxd.
Saturday, June 8, 2019
Overlord (No, Not That One)
Overlord (1975)
Runtime: 83 minutes
Directed by: Stuart Cooper
Starring: Brian Sterner, Davyd Harries, Nicholas Ball, Julie Neesam, Sam Sewell
From: Joswend
No, do not confuse this with the movie from last year. The Invasion of Normandy was known as Operation Overlord so the only thing those two films have in common is that it's a fictional account of D-Day. This played on Turner Classic Movies last night for the 75th anniversary of D-Day; before that they played The Longest Day, which I've reviewed here before and it is still great.
TLD and Overloard are drastically different accounts of the same event. While the former covers it on a wide scale and involving many different sides and people, this is devoted to a single sad-sack soldier known as Tom. In this movie with arty flourishes, Tom is followed from his enlistment in the British Army until June 6, 1944. Things start off fine for him but as things progress, a foreboding dread builds and builds. He manages to meet a girl while on duty but that doesn't help matters and really, that character seemed to be an excuse for Tom to write and narrate a letter to later on.
The most impressive aspect of Overlord is that about half the movie is archival footage from World War II, and as everything is in black and white, everything is integrated together pretty well. Having John Alcott be the cinematographer was a big asset... after all, he collaborated w/ Kubrick three times and in fact won an Oscar for Barry Lyndon. The journey Overlord takes is a surreal one but the message still comes through: some soldiers had an unpleasant and harsh experience in the military even before they made it to Normandy. A haunting experience, this was.
Runtime: 83 minutes
Directed by: Stuart Cooper
Starring: Brian Sterner, Davyd Harries, Nicholas Ball, Julie Neesam, Sam Sewell
From: Joswend
No, do not confuse this with the movie from last year. The Invasion of Normandy was known as Operation Overlord so the only thing those two films have in common is that it's a fictional account of D-Day. This played on Turner Classic Movies last night for the 75th anniversary of D-Day; before that they played The Longest Day, which I've reviewed here before and it is still great.
TLD and Overloard are drastically different accounts of the same event. While the former covers it on a wide scale and involving many different sides and people, this is devoted to a single sad-sack soldier known as Tom. In this movie with arty flourishes, Tom is followed from his enlistment in the British Army until June 6, 1944. Things start off fine for him but as things progress, a foreboding dread builds and builds. He manages to meet a girl while on duty but that doesn't help matters and really, that character seemed to be an excuse for Tom to write and narrate a letter to later on.
The most impressive aspect of Overlord is that about half the movie is archival footage from World War II, and as everything is in black and white, everything is integrated together pretty well. Having John Alcott be the cinematographer was a big asset... after all, he collaborated w/ Kubrick three times and in fact won an Oscar for Barry Lyndon. The journey Overlord takes is a surreal one but the message still comes through: some soldiers had an unpleasant and harsh experience in the military even before they made it to Normandy. A haunting experience, this was.
The Cars That Ate Paris
The Cars That Ate Paris (1974)
Runtime: 91 minutes
Directed by: Peter Weir
Starring: John Meillon, Terry Camilleri, Chris Haywood, Bruce Spence, Kevin Miles
From: Several Australian companies
Runtime: 91 minutes
Directed by: Peter Weir
Starring: John Meillon, Terry Camilleri, Chris Haywood, Bruce Spence, Kevin Miles
From: Several Australian companies
Today's the day for me to catch up here. I'll post another review in a few minutes-tonight will be the third and final one:
Gymkhanas were around long before Ken Block.
This is another one of those movies I've known of for years but had never seen... who can forget such a title? The only reason why I checked it out late last night on Turner Classic Movies was that I saw a review here on Letterboxd from a mutual who compared it to a motion picture I have on Blu & haven't watched yet but hope to sometime this month. I understood the movie is rather odd, and I wasn't misled there. What a strange little movie where even I am unsure how to describe it.. is it a sci-fi western, arthouse, horror, satire, or maybe a combination of all those things... I dunno.
A dude and his brother get in a car accident near the tiny town of Paris, Australia. Due to circumstances he is unable to leave and he gets to know the residents... eventually he figures out that the only way this town survives is by diverting traffic to their area then causing accidents. Parts gathered from the crashes are used for barter and that I can comprehend... people who survive those wrecks becoming lobotomized is something else entirely, yet that also occurs here. Yet even this hamlet has disenfranchised youth and they turn vehicles into murder machines that look to be straight out of Death Race 2000; I guess that's appropriate as Corman was asked if he wanted to release this in the United States. He thought this was far too odd so that didn't happen but he must have been inspired by the final act, which turns bloody as what was supposed to be a gymkhana instead became total mayhem... and had such things as a Volkswagen Beetle covered with huge spikes.
While I don't love this like some do, this definitely is unique; of course “unique” doesn't always mean “good” but here I can say this curio was at least fine. I imagine I'd get more out of this if I was an Aussie (whether now or back in the 70's)-as a dumb American, I can note how this must have been an inspiration for Mad Max. Furthermore, I did get laughs out of the black humor and various absurd situations, along with various social comments that were made about consumerism-that was the key message-and other things. Definitely, a town surviving when it's not on a big highway... in the United States various places withered away and usually died when the Interstates happened and those hamlets were not by an exit.
It was interesting seeing the first feature film of a heralded director like Peter Weir, and something this quirky was honestly expected considering his future work; he literally did go on to bigger and better things.
Thursday, June 6, 2019
Brightburn
Runtime: 90 minutes
Directed by: David
Yarovesky
Starring: Elizabeth Banks,
David Denman, Jackson A. Dunn, Matt Jones, Meredith Hagner
From: Screen Gems
I wish this had different trailers. It commits several sins but the
one I'll mention (without going into detail) is that they revealed too
much. Lest you think I am being unfair here, I have elsewhere complained
about how modern trailers in general aren't good because they are some
combination of misleading, spoiler-heavy, cliched, bad song choice, and
the awful moment of “slow atrocious covers of cool popular music of the
past”. For me it'd be preferable if I saw less of the advertising.
I
don't know if that was responsible for this not doing well at the box
office or that it has poor word of mouth, but I found that while this
did not fulfill all the promise of what is a great premise, I was still
entertained by this hard R-rated picture which features some quite gory
deaths and as I saw mentioned in an article posted just yesterday, this
seems analogous to the type of males that are Men's Rights Activists or
all the entitled idiots you see on Twitter or YouTube, as once alien
humanoid Brandon turns 12, that is when he suddenly has his superpowers
and becomes evil. There is an explanation as to why this happens,
although don't expect it to be elaborated upon and explained.
But the big problem for Brandon is that he becomes a D-bag who suddenly believes in the catchphrase Take the World. He's a maladjusted kid (or rather, being) who suddenly takes out those he feels are “inferior”, does not stay away from a girl who he has feelings for but the feelings aren't reciprocated as she becomes frightened of him, and cannot control his anger. It's not hard to imagine Brandon calling himself an incel, or joining the “Alt-Right.” I don't mean to start controversy here by bringing up some inflammatory topics, but James Gunn's brothers did note how it was an influence when they wrote this screenplay.
This is a horror movie which isn't particularly scary (as it has the standard scares... expect many moments where someone suddenly appears, before they suddenly disappear) and Brandon's parents-especially dear old mom-are incredibly naive at best and stupid at worst for thinking their alien child is “just going through puberty” when his behavior drastically changes and people they know-whether on the periphery or not-start dying... as dumb characters in this genre are a dime a dozen, I just rolled with it. As for the advertising I bemoaned earlier, at least it did not reveal the surprise cameo of a popular actor and I knew there'd be an eye scene I would have to look away from... which I did as the sound alone was enough for me. I did the same thing for the third John Wick once I realize this Fulci-esque moment would happen.
But the big problem for Brandon is that he becomes a D-bag who suddenly believes in the catchphrase Take the World. He's a maladjusted kid (or rather, being) who suddenly takes out those he feels are “inferior”, does not stay away from a girl who he has feelings for but the feelings aren't reciprocated as she becomes frightened of him, and cannot control his anger. It's not hard to imagine Brandon calling himself an incel, or joining the “Alt-Right.” I don't mean to start controversy here by bringing up some inflammatory topics, but James Gunn's brothers did note how it was an influence when they wrote this screenplay.
This is a horror movie which isn't particularly scary (as it has the standard scares... expect many moments where someone suddenly appears, before they suddenly disappear) and Brandon's parents-especially dear old mom-are incredibly naive at best and stupid at worst for thinking their alien child is “just going through puberty” when his behavior drastically changes and people they know-whether on the periphery or not-start dying... as dumb characters in this genre are a dime a dozen, I just rolled with it. As for the advertising I bemoaned earlier, at least it did not reveal the surprise cameo of a popular actor and I knew there'd be an eye scene I would have to look away from... which I did as the sound alone was enough for me. I did the same thing for the third John Wick once I realize this Fulci-esque moment would happen.
Tuesday, June 4, 2019
Rebel Without A Cause
Runtime: 111 minutes
Directed by: Nicholas Ray
Starring: James Dean,
Natalie Wood, Sal Mineo, Corey Allen, Jim Backus
From: Warner Bros.
It
is quite the feat to still be influential and iconic more than 60 years
later. James Dean, his character and his red jacket outfit seemingly
will forever be legendary, and it is also impressive to inspire everyone
from Damien Chazelle and Robert Zemeckis to... yeah, Tommy Wiseau.
While some elements are of course dated (not too many people walk around wearing leather jackets and constantly combing their hair, or engage in knife fights where only light pokes are around), the general idea can still be understood today: parents and teenagers don't always understand each other as their world is different from when mom & dad are their age... and it is exacerbated when the parents are not around, the dad is too domineering or pops is too meek, allowing mom and grandma to oppressively rule the roost. Even if you're middle-class and your family seems fine when it comes to wealth or material possessions, that doesn't mean everyone's life is rosy and grand.
It is not difficult to see why Jim Stark, “Plato” Crawford and Judy are troubled teenagers who end up associating with the wrong people, even if they wish to avoid troubles. Stark definitely wishes to do so as his family moved yet again due to his rebellious ways... but in 1955, being called “chicken” is a big F'ing deal as your honor and pride are being questioned. Come to think of it, the same applies in 1885 or 1985... anyway, melodrama occurs, especially in the final act.
The cast as a whole does a nice job but of course it is Dean who is the standout; teen and young adult actors tried to imitate this performance for many years after this. As many people have noted in these modern times, the relationship between James and Sal Mineo comes across as differently than it did back then, unless there was subtext added to it that of course could never have been addressed in the 1950's. I've heard rumors that Dean was either homosexual or bi, but in any case it is easy to imagine that Jim and Plato were more than just friends. I mean, all the praise that Plato gushes to Judy concerning "his best friend", who he had known for, what, a few days?
Rebel Without a Cause is more than just a movie with a star-making lead performance, a vehicle where its main stars all died too young due to tragic circumstances, or several unforgettable moments.
While some elements are of course dated (not too many people walk around wearing leather jackets and constantly combing their hair, or engage in knife fights where only light pokes are around), the general idea can still be understood today: parents and teenagers don't always understand each other as their world is different from when mom & dad are their age... and it is exacerbated when the parents are not around, the dad is too domineering or pops is too meek, allowing mom and grandma to oppressively rule the roost. Even if you're middle-class and your family seems fine when it comes to wealth or material possessions, that doesn't mean everyone's life is rosy and grand.
It is not difficult to see why Jim Stark, “Plato” Crawford and Judy are troubled teenagers who end up associating with the wrong people, even if they wish to avoid troubles. Stark definitely wishes to do so as his family moved yet again due to his rebellious ways... but in 1955, being called “chicken” is a big F'ing deal as your honor and pride are being questioned. Come to think of it, the same applies in 1885 or 1985... anyway, melodrama occurs, especially in the final act.
The cast as a whole does a nice job but of course it is Dean who is the standout; teen and young adult actors tried to imitate this performance for many years after this. As many people have noted in these modern times, the relationship between James and Sal Mineo comes across as differently than it did back then, unless there was subtext added to it that of course could never have been addressed in the 1950's. I've heard rumors that Dean was either homosexual or bi, but in any case it is easy to imagine that Jim and Plato were more than just friends. I mean, all the praise that Plato gushes to Judy concerning "his best friend", who he had known for, what, a few days?
Rebel Without a Cause is more than just a movie with a star-making lead performance, a vehicle where its main stars all died too young due to tragic circumstances, or several unforgettable moments.
Monday, June 3, 2019
Godzilla: King Of The Monsters
Godzilla, King of the Monsters (2019)
39% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 245 reviews)
Runtime: 131 minutes
Directed by: Michael Dougherty
Starring: A great cast that somehow got roped into an outrageous film
From: Warner Bros.
I saw this on Saturday afternoon and I still can't believe how wacky this was... although it's not like some of the Toho movies weren't strange in their own ways, as I explain below:
Maybe I am over-rationalizing, but...
Friday night I revisited the 2014 Godzilla, which I don't love as much as the first time but I still enjoyed. The human story was interesting, it was expertly put together, had a great score and when there's kaiju action, it was great. This film, I knew beforehand it'd be quite different, and opinions so far are even more polarizing than all the opinions surrounding '14. Once I saw this I was amazed that they got such a great cast for such a loony picture.
I admit I am being overly kind here and in another film I'd be mad at how stupid this is or all the moments that beggar belief, or the contradictory character moments, or how daffy it is overall. Here... honestly, in different ways there are some Toho films that have some zany plots, such as vs. Hedorah (appropriately, as the late Yoshimitsu Banno directed that, and was responsible for bringing this and '14 to the big screen) or many of the Heisei movies, like Biollante or vs. King Ghidorah. To be frank, the villains here-and I don't mean Ghidorah or Rodan-might as well be the Seatopians, the Xillians or some other humanoid race that is alien or otherwise not quite human. Some of the messages presented here are definitely straight outta the Showa or Heisei era, along with their master plan.
All that said, even though this is another example of why I avoid most modern summer blockbusters (and at times modern movies in general) and the focus on the Russell family-no relation-is not as strong as the Brody clan in '14 and “numbing” is another valid complaint... I'll still say that because it was as peculiar as some prior entries and the kaiju battles were rad-although the camera should have pulled back more often-I guess I'll say this was fine overall. The focus clearly was on “giving those complaining fanboys what they carped about what wasn't in the 2014 movie” above all else.
Like I said, this is a silly movie although not much more so than some of the Toho movies of the past, and this busy film is not lacking in action beats. Plus, the Bear McCreary score does contain a few familiar motifs. But can we have a show of hands for those that realized Zhang Ziyi played twin sisters? It took a YouTube review and IMDb to reveal this. Apparently that twin was only present in one scene to deliver one of the many moments of exposition. It is hard to notice as the movie hops around the globe so much and is overstuffed and a few moments could be described as Godzilla Ex Machina.
That YouTube review was more negative than this one so in a trend that has been going on for the past week or so, there's been a G Force that has left negative ratings and reviews towards those that did not love the movie. I imagine that won't be too much an issue here; I just hope next year's Godzilla vs. Kong is not quite so inane like this film was. At least I got entertainment out of this, although the kaiju involved was a big reason why.
39% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 245 reviews)
Runtime: 131 minutes
Directed by: Michael Dougherty
Starring: A great cast that somehow got roped into an outrageous film
From: Warner Bros.
I saw this on Saturday afternoon and I still can't believe how wacky this was... although it's not like some of the Toho movies weren't strange in their own ways, as I explain below:
Maybe I am over-rationalizing, but...
Friday night I revisited the 2014 Godzilla, which I don't love as much as the first time but I still enjoyed. The human story was interesting, it was expertly put together, had a great score and when there's kaiju action, it was great. This film, I knew beforehand it'd be quite different, and opinions so far are even more polarizing than all the opinions surrounding '14. Once I saw this I was amazed that they got such a great cast for such a loony picture.
I admit I am being overly kind here and in another film I'd be mad at how stupid this is or all the moments that beggar belief, or the contradictory character moments, or how daffy it is overall. Here... honestly, in different ways there are some Toho films that have some zany plots, such as vs. Hedorah (appropriately, as the late Yoshimitsu Banno directed that, and was responsible for bringing this and '14 to the big screen) or many of the Heisei movies, like Biollante or vs. King Ghidorah. To be frank, the villains here-and I don't mean Ghidorah or Rodan-might as well be the Seatopians, the Xillians or some other humanoid race that is alien or otherwise not quite human. Some of the messages presented here are definitely straight outta the Showa or Heisei era, along with their master plan.
All that said, even though this is another example of why I avoid most modern summer blockbusters (and at times modern movies in general) and the focus on the Russell family-no relation-is not as strong as the Brody clan in '14 and “numbing” is another valid complaint... I'll still say that because it was as peculiar as some prior entries and the kaiju battles were rad-although the camera should have pulled back more often-I guess I'll say this was fine overall. The focus clearly was on “giving those complaining fanboys what they carped about what wasn't in the 2014 movie” above all else.
Like I said, this is a silly movie although not much more so than some of the Toho movies of the past, and this busy film is not lacking in action beats. Plus, the Bear McCreary score does contain a few familiar motifs. But can we have a show of hands for those that realized Zhang Ziyi played twin sisters? It took a YouTube review and IMDb to reveal this. Apparently that twin was only present in one scene to deliver one of the many moments of exposition. It is hard to notice as the movie hops around the globe so much and is overstuffed and a few moments could be described as Godzilla Ex Machina.
That YouTube review was more negative than this one so in a trend that has been going on for the past week or so, there's been a G Force that has left negative ratings and reviews towards those that did not love the movie. I imagine that won't be too much an issue here; I just hope next year's Godzilla vs. Kong is not quite so inane like this film was. At least I got entertainment out of this, although the kaiju involved was a big reason why.
Saturday, June 1, 2019
I Revisited The 2014 Godzilla And...
While I do not love it as much as I first did during my 2014 theatrical viewing, it's still a movie I dig for what it did. It was patient and well-made. Tomorrow I'll review the new movie which... wow, that is different from 2014.
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