JonnyGeetar
-
Posts
1,118 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Never
Posts posted by JonnyGeetar
-
-
much better.
-
um...
it's cheesing me off a tad that none of this press mentions the thing aka the thing from another planet from 1951.
it's better.
-
i still say it's a strong #4 on the list...but then again, i was born during the Carter administration.
one of the many things i actually find timeless about one, two, three is the fact that while the cold war may be a non-issue now, it is the way Wilder looks at life, politics, business and human nature (and weaknesses) in his typically charming, "continental", cheerfully amoral, and utterly pragmatic manner that i adore...check out Horst Bucholtz (sic, i'm sure) when he first tries on the bowler hat and says "not bad."
it is much like the best of Lubitsch and makes a delightful companion piece to Ninotchka
i've often thought a remake set in Mexico or South America would work, but what do I know?
Wilder's best films represent both the way the world really is and the way we wish it was all at once.
-
ohmigosh!
when is letter from an unknown woman coming on??! that is one i have wanted to see for years!
-
there are tragically few films made "nowadays" that are successful as "throwbacks"- and I mean that in the BEST sense of the word.
Chinatown, LA Confidential and Far From Heaven are three movies that pull of the rare feat of fitting in perfectly with the great classics of the past.
I understand anyone who didn't care for Heaven, but to me it was one of the best films of the aughts by a large margin.
Which makes that Gawdawful Bob Dylan trainwreck that Todd Haynes did a few years back all the more of a head scratcher to me.
Maybe he was sniffing brake cleaner or something...
-
> {quote:title=HollywoodGolightly wrote:}{quote}
> One Two Three is on next - this is one of my favorite Wilder films. So much fun, motion, and excellent political satire (for its time).
there exists no finite number of times that i will watch one, two, three all the way thru. the more i see it, the more I wonder if it is maybe Wilder's best...but then, no I think of ace in the hole, sunset blvd and indemnity and must put it at #4.
Even Wilder's 4rth best is better than a lot of other director's first birst.
and Cagney was ROBBED of an Oscar nod.
-
yes, i had meant to point out that was a solo Powell joint.
my biggest issue with Peeping Tom was how intensely stupid the female protagonist was, inviting the clearly disturbed German guy out on dates and such.
In comparison to Psycho or even Homocidal it just doesn't hold up.
-
"You are all weirdos."
Sam the American Eagle, The Great Muppet Caper .
-
Is anyone else sick the to the point of dry-heaves over The Americanization Of Emily, on right now for (I honestly think) the 23rd time in the last 6 months?
Oh, and the Powell-Lombard version of Godfrey is better by a mile and a half (at least.)
-
yes, if i had DVR this would all be completely moot. p'raps some day i can afford Tivo and then my library shall be complete.
i feel guilty for de-railing the thread, so here goes:
I love Powell/Pressberger, but what the hell is up with Peeping Tom ? Man, that is one majorly overrated film.
Discuss.
-
i'm going to make it a point to check out little sheba the foist chance I get. it's been too long since i've seen it to be fair. 'til then I'm witholding any further comment on Miss Booth.
and while i'm being a total buttinsky to your question, Red River, if I had to boil my (unsolicited) opinion on Mme. Rainer down to a simple phrase, it'd be:
"Mr. Mayer giveth and Mr. Mayer taketh away."
-
Oh, I have Netflix and adore it completely. I do from time to time peruse the local liberry, but they?re pretty under-stocked (as is often the case.)
No, being un filme geek extraordinare, there is a list of titles I?d just like to own a personal copy of to watch whenevs the mood strikes me. It?s not a long list, but there?s a fair share of titles?
Above all else though, I am cheap, and fast to call ?shenanigans? when I see anything overpriced?
And Criterion is really overpriced (in my opinion) for what you get, and prohibitively so in the case of many titles not available elsewhere.
-
i respect your view and you surely know more than i when it comes to this sort of thing...
i also worry a tad we're getting away from the topic, maybe a whole post titled: "Criterion: yay or nay?" is called for.
all that heaven allows was a bad choice to name as it does come with subtitles optional (i think) and some bonuses which i honestly found to be dull and superflous- not worth $32.99
i think it was the friends of eddie coyle that had nothing extra. nada. zip. just the movie and the trailer, no subtitles, no nothing. once again though, i am not completely sure, but i do recall being really underwhelmed. (not by the film itself though.)
i own the horse's mouth on dvd as it is one of my faves of all time. i had to ask for it for christmas 'specially one year. all i can say is that for $28 (used)- the extras on that disc ain't worth it by a long shot.
there are other films (the lady eve and all that heaven... come to mind) that i would gladly own were they available for a reasonable price...i did just look both up on amazon and there are some import versions of those available for $15.00, which i don't recall there being a year or two back- so maybe the argument is moot.
it's when a film is available in no form other than criterion that i have my beef.
but i admit there are many Criterion titles I have not checked out. Robinson Crusoe on Mars for example....
-
very good defense on your part. if you aren't a lawyer, Mamselle Golightly, may I say legal world has lost out on a real talent.
where did ye find these $13 titles?!
i'm having a hard time recalling specifics, but a lot of the Criterion titles I've netflixed have been really underwhelming in the DVD extras- which I care about a lot more than picture and sound as I have a 13 year old tv and no surround-sound.
also, on many of them there have been NO subtitles, which I always use, and on some there are compulsory subtitles, which is silly since for $30.00 a pop, you should be able to watch, lets say All that Heaven Allows in whatever way you see fit.
In the end, (to me) Criterion just makes some of the best movies un-affordable for people like me who would otherwise gladly own them.
-
> {quote:title=HollywoodGolightly wrote:}{quote}
> Speaking of The Red Shoes, the Criterion folks have given a strong hint that the restored version of the movie might be among their upcoming releases.
Great. That means it'll have all the extras (possibly fewer) than you'd get on a regular DVD, either mandatory (or no) subtitles and cost about $15 more...But I guess that fancypants cover art is worth something.
Not a Criterion fan here
-
i really want to see this Down to Earth thing now! Jennifer Jones, I find, is usually at her best when she was away from Svengali- oh, I mean Selznick.
It's funny, I was just thinking two things about The Red Shoes the other day:
The first is that I really wish Anton Walbrook had gotten nominated for a Oscar...that scene at the end where he tells the audience that the performance is off is excellent and such a different approach than many other actors would've taken.
The second thing, and this is something about the film that really irks me is this: it's a film entirely about the sacrifice one makes for the art of dance, the work it takes to be one of those rare individuals who defy physics and gravity with their bodies...and then in the climactic ballet THEY USE TRICK PHOTOGRAPHY AND EDITING TO HAVE THE DANCERS DO THINGS THAT ARE UTTERLY IMPOSSIBLE.
It **** me off, for lack of a better way of saying it.
-
"Yes, I did it, I killed Yvette...I hated her so much, it...fl..the flames, flames on the side of my face...heaving...heaving breathes..."
Madeline Kahn ad-libbing in Clue (1985)
-
oh my lord!
i had no idea about Omar Sharif! Thanks for filling me in. Bridge players of the world: beware!
-
I was born when she met me.
I lived a few weeks while she loved me.
I died when she left me.
Dixon Steele, In A Lonely Place.
-
Wondermoon, I think I love you.
Also a fairly Liberal guy here (albeit more Libertarian in nature) the issue with THE MANK is more his charisma-minus delivery and his "let me come down from the mountain top to introduce Beach Party while I roll my eyes at how lame this is" attitude.
You NAILED him Mr. (Mrs.?) Moon.
PS- really, seriously, someone give a thought to that Omar Shariff idea, or better yet, have Fan guest programmers in the weekend, or even have an un-plugged desk lamp introduce the movies, anything but ChinPubes the Magnificent
PSS- Chill out, Blue Velvet is a good movie.
-
it would be kind of neat to finally see what Letty Linton is all about...but there's those pesky legal issues.
-
Forgiveness,
I am unfamiliar with what this "Programmer Challenge" is all about. If someone wins- does that mean they really get to pick the schedule for a day?
-
A lot of people have shouted love to Bette Davis in The Little Foxes.
I love Bette, I like the film very much, and I think she deserved the nomination...But I do think it is p'raps lacking in dimension a tiny bit, as Bette was prone to do when she was playing veryvery good or veryvery bad.
Herbert Marshall gives the great unsung performance in that film. (as he often did)
-
> {quote:title=finance wrote:}{quote}
> Dred didn't say that Kerr's role was supporting. I did.
Forgiveness is begged.
JG
Billy Wilder and his films
in Films and Filmmakers
Posted
it's noon on 1/5/10...did i miss five graves to cairo ?
i also feel the need to throw this out:
Billy Wilder may be my fave of all time...
But I *LOATHE* Kiss Me Stupid