Gershwin fan Posted October 15 Deprisa, Deprisa (1981) Carlos Saura, Spain - 3/10-Drugged up Spanish teens mess around Madrid and plan robberies to get by on. Things go bad during a botched robbery attempt. This is like a proto-City of God film except more boring and less graphic. Supposedly it used real criminals and drug users from lower class Spain. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LawrenceA Posted October 15 The New Land, Jan Troell, Sweden (1972) - 7/10 I think everyone else said that they've already seen this, but I finally caught up to this follow-up to The Emigrants, with Max Von Sydow and Liv Ullmann as Swedish settlers in Minnesota circa the mid-19th century. It was good, but very long (203 minutes, although for some reason IMDb lists it with a 102 minute runtime). Ullman, Von Sydow, and Troell regular Eddie Axberg are all very good. Some of the cinematic techniques haven't aged well, and the massacre scene is fairly over-the-top, but I enjoyed the film overall. 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bogie56 Posted October 15 1 hour ago, LawrenceA said: The New Land, Jan Troell, Sweden (1972) - 7/10 I think everyone else said that they've already seen this, but I finally caught up to this follow-up to The Emigrants, with Max Von Sydow and Liv Ullmann as Swedish settlers in Minnesota circa the mid-19th century. It was good, but very long (203 minutes, although for some reason IMDb lists it with a 102 minute runtime). Ullman, Von Sydow, and Troell regular Eddie Axberg are all very good. Some of the cinematic techniques haven't aged well, and the massacre scene is fairly over-the-top, but I enjoyed the film overall. And Eddie Axberg had the distinction of being the location sound recordist for these two films as well. I'm not sure I could name another actor who does that sort of double duty outside of student or very low budget films. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LawrenceA Posted October 15 Look Who's Back, David Wnendt, Germany (2015) - 6/10 Muddled, obvious satire based on a best-selling novel, with Adolf Hitler (Oliver Masucci) miraculously transported through time from 1945 Germany to 2014 Germany. He quickly acclimates to the massive changes that have taken place in the world, and soon finds himself a major TV celebrity, playing on anti-immigrant sentiments among the populace. The film starts out as a clumsy Borat-style goof, with Masucci in his Hitler guise interacting with real Germans who provide many cringe-worthy comments. However, the obvious editing used, and Masucci's apparent lack of improv skills, undercut much of this. It also switches over to scripted bits with obvious professionals playing "real people" quite frequently, casting even the genuine guerrilla-style interviews in a dubious light. The second half is a slog, with Hitler becoming an unlikely TV star (shades of Howard Beale in Network), and tedious scenes of the various network staff and their uninspired romances and machinations. The satire here is stale, as well (calling out ubiquitous reality TV programming as vacuous garbage isn't exactly daring commentary). The film also relies on a lot of German cultural in-jokes, with real TV celebs playing themselves having awkward interactions with Hitler, much of which falls flat for anyone unaware of who these people are. There's also a lot of then-current political skewering, but beyond Angela Merkel, I was unaware of who these people were, so for me it didn't work. And of course I wasn't crazy about the scene where Hitler kicks and then shoots a small dog. However, that bit was mitigated by it being poorly-done CGI. The filmmaking itself isn't interesting, with flat, digital-video cinematography which often (purposely?) looks amateurish. The score is mainly sourced classical snippets, with some oddities thrown in ("The Gonk", most famously used in the mall in the original Dawn of the Dead, is heard at one point"). All that being said, I still laughed a little at some bits. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 15 I really like the part where the studio head's rant over his show ending is done in a style of the famous Der Untergang, Hitler rantscene. Yeah, the dog shooting scene was a bit much but it was mainly to set up his downfall in the press and being accused of an animal abuser. The irony of ofcourse is that it's the real Hitler and the only thing they accuse him of wrongdoing is hurting an animal. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 15 Also the bits on reality TV and mass media I really connected to Donald Trump and Boris Johnson and AFD and the way those groups try to use those forms of media to their advantage. Especially the part where Hitler rants about "foolish" forms of entertainment being used to distract the people. That's how I saw it. I think the movie has a very good message about politics and media in our current age. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LawrenceA Posted October 16 55 minutes ago, Gershwin fan said: Also the bits on reality TV and mass media I really connected to Donald Trump and Boris Johnson and AFD and the way those groups try to use those forms of media to their advantage. Especially the part where Hitler rants about "foolish" forms of entertainment being used to distract the people. That's how I saw it. I think the movie has a very good message about politics and media in our current age. I think my problems with the film came from heightened expectations. The film (and book's) chief point was the ease at which a Hitler-type could come to power in the current German political climate, with heightened nationalism and the immigration crises. In that respect, one couldn't be more on-the-nose than to depict such a leader as literally Hitler himself. The funny thing is, like in many satires of this sort, there is a portion of the audience who actually agrees with Hitler, and for whom the point is lost, twisted or ignored. It's gutsy that the movie was even made. I wonder how big a release it was in Germany? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arsan404 Posted October 16 13 hours ago, Gershwin fan said: Deprisa, Deprisa (1981) Carlos Saura, Spain - 3/10-Drugged up Spanish teens mess around Madrid and plan robberies to get by on. Things go bad during a botched robbery attempt. This is like a proto-City of God film except more boring and less graphic. Supposedly it used real criminals and drug users from lower class Spain. I like how Saura shows the lives and violence of the delinquents in a more personal way in a rather detached style to make a point about life in the slums and Spanish society in general. One of the leads, José Antonio Valdelomar died in a prison hospital of a heroin overdose. Jesús Arias Aranzueque also had a long police record even after the movie was released and died of an overdose, too. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 16 2 hours ago, LawrenceA said: It's gutsy that the movie was even made. I wonder how big a release it was in Germany? It was fairly successful earning 3.3 million roughly and was one of 8 German movies nominated for the "Foreign Language" submission from Germany but it did not win (I think Toni Erdmann was submitted that year?) I would have probably voted for it if I was on that committee though. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 16 Singapore (1960) Shakti Samanta, India & Malaysia - 6.5/ 10 - Ramesh disappears after inheriting a rubber farm with a hidden treasure on it and his friend Shyam must find him. Shyam has the help of his woman and Lou Costello-type comedic sidekick "Cha-Choo." It is soon found out that Ramesh has been kidnapped by a Fu Manchu style Chinese gang and they must get him back. This one is silly fun and of course like many of these films has the characters wearing thin disguises that the enemy gang is miraculously fooled by. The musical numbers are usually catchy but one problem is that there are too many of them. The plot is also a bit convoluted and the film could have been shorter. Overall, this is fun and a good way to spend two hours. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bogie56 Posted October 16 9. Inside (2007) Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury, France Thanks for the tip to watch this one. Was that you, Lawrence? A really well done thriller about a pregnant woman who must fend off a very intent home invader. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LawrenceA Posted October 16 5 hours ago, Bogie56 said: 9. Inside (2007) Alexandre Bustillo, Julien Maury, France Thanks for the tip to watch this one. Was that you, Lawrence? A really well done thriller about a pregnant woman who must fend off a very intent home invader. Yeah, that was my recommendation. One of my favorites of the 00's. I recall renting the DVD and not expecting anything, as I hadn't heard of it, and it was released here under the "Dimension Extreme" label, which tended to be trashy low-rent stuff. Instead, I was blown away by it, and was stunned when I realized that the intruder was Beatrice Dalle from Betty Blue. It was remade in 2016 with Rachel Nichols and Laura Harring in the leads, but I haven't watched it. Much like the American remake of Martyrs (2008/2015), I'm not sure if I want to see it. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
David Leip Posted October 16 Three very different favourites: 1. Cinema Paradiso 1988 2. Seducing Dr. Lewis 2003 3. Bride Flight 2008 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 17 Westerplatte Resists (1967) Stanislaw Rózewicz, Poland - 6/10- Historical reenactment of the first battle of WWII where the Germans staged a false flag with the intention of invading Poland. The battle lasted 5 days before resulting in surrender. This one is okay but the characterization is a bit flat. Like many of the Eastern Bloc movies, the focus is more on the collective group than on the individuals so the characters all sort of mesh into one and none stands out. Maybe worth a watch if you come across it but I wouldn't actively seek it out. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 17 Kriss. the Sword of Death (1932), Armand Denis, Andre Roosevelt, France/ USA/ Bali- 5/10- This one is more well known under the title it was released under in France and the US ("Goona Goona"). Based on a native folk tale and with an all Balinese cast, it is about a lower class woman and a high class prince who marry. After he goes out on his wedding night on business, she is drugged by his evil nemesis with the Goona Goona drug from a shaman. He leaves his "kriss" ceremonial sword there and is soon found out. A simple romance film that includes interesting footage of the Balinese customs of that era, including a ceremonial dance with dragon costumes. This one was edited to hell and back because of the nudity so some of the plot is disjointed and shots are out of focus. This was also originally shot in two-strip technicolor but the version I saw was in B&W. I imagine the technicolor must have looked gorgeous. 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bogie56 Posted October 17 2008 2. Fallen Angels (2008) Morten Tyldum, Norway Another well-made Scandanavian murder mystery. It’s star, Trond Espen Seim won the Amanda Award for Best Actor. 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 18 The Woman in the Moon (1929) Fritz Lang, Germany- 7/10 -Most of you already saw this one so I won't write up a long review. Yeah, I thought it was a really good sci-fi film that came on the heels of Metropolis' success. The effects are good for 1929 though the science isn't exactly right (atmosphere on only one side of the moon ). 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 18 Sarajevo (2014) Kurt Mündl, Andreas Prochaska, Austria - 7/10 - In 1914, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand is assassinated by Gavrilo Princip and a Jewish detective is charged with finding all the co-conspirators ("the Black Hand") and bringing them to justice in court. He does this despite anti-semitism coming from the very people who employed him. Things are even more complicated when he falls in love with a Serbian woman whose exiled from the country for patriotic beliefs. I like historical movies and found this one enjoyable though it also sort of implies that the assassination of Ferdinand was an inside job that was allowed as pretext for an invasion of the country to set up a lucrative train business through the area. A decent movie and recommended for those interested in the beginning of WWI. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bogie56 Posted October 18 Right Now, Wrong Then (2015) Sang-soo Hong, South Korea I thought this winner of the Locarno Film Festival was dreadful in every sense. The first hour is incredibly boring and stupid and then, wait for it … it all starts again and every scene is repeated with slightly different dialogue and an outcome that has changed a tiny bit. You may want to punch the main protagonist in the face by the end of it all. 1 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 19 Girls und Panzer der Film (2015) Tsutomu Mizushima, Japan (dubbed) - 6/10- In the streets of an emptied town, two schools of tankfighters battle it out. The winning team is still closed down despite promises otherwise, leaving them sad but they are allowed one last chance to do another tank battle to win their school back. My favorite team is the St Gloriana School which uses WWII era Churchill tanks and obviously represents the British. The soundtrack to this is largely traditional military marches such as British Grenadiers, Glory, Glory Hallelujah and Katyusha that work as leitmotifs for the tanks on screen. The film is a bit long at two hours and the plot is bare. I did find one episodic moment funny when they visit a museum dedicated to "Punchy the Bear" -a fictional toy that is constantly beaten up by other toys and covered in bandages. What I truly disliked is the heavy use of CGI instead of traditional animation which I prefer. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bogie56 Posted October 19 My top FF films of 2016 of the 23 that I have seen are …. 1. The Salesman (2016) Asghar Farhadi, Iran 2. The Handmaiden (2016) Chan-wook Park, South Korea 3. Elle (2016) Paul Verhoeven, France 4. Train to Busan (2016) Sang-ho Yeon, South Korea 5. Julieta (2016) Pedro Almodovar, Spain 6. Tramontane (2016) Vatche Boulghourjian, Lebanon 7. Strangled (2016) Arpad Sopsits, Hungary 8. The Unknown Girl (2016) Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, Belgium 9. Les Innocentes (2016) Anne Fontaine, France 10. Toni Erdmann (2016) Maren Ade, Germany Hotel Salvation (2016) Shubhashish Bhutiani, India Kalinka (2016) Vincent Garenq, France Your Name (2016) Makoto Shinkai, Japan The Lovers and the Despot (2016) Ross Adam, Robert Cannan, UK [only about 20% is in English tops] Raman Raghav 2.0 (2016) Anurag Kashyan, India I’m a Killer (2016) Maciej Piepzyca, Poland Under the Shadow (2016) Babak Anvari, Iran Devil’s Bride (2016) Saara Cantell, Finland My Life as a Courgette (2016) Claude Barras, France and I’ve also seen … It’s Only the End of the World (2016) Xavier Dolan, Canada Aquarius (2016) Kleber Mendoca Filho, Brazil I, Olga Hepnarova (2016) Petr Kazda, Tomas Weinreb, Czech Republic Aloys (2016) Tobias Nolle, Switzerland 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CoraSmith Posted October 19 The Handmaiden, Chan-wook Park, South Korea Sami Blood, Amanda Kernell, Sweden The Commune, Thomas Vinterberg, Denmark Elle, Paul Verhoeven, France The Unknown Girl, Dardenne & Dardenne, Belgium The Salesman, Ashgar Farhadi, Iran Your Name, Makoto Shinkai, Japan The Innocents, Anne Fontaine, France Chocolat, Roschdy Zem, France The Red Turtle, Michaël Dudok de Wit, France The Fury, André van Duren, Netherlands The Olive Tree, Icíar Bollaín, Spain Perfect Strangers, Paolo Genovese, Italy Toni Erdmann, Maren Ade, Germany Heartstone, Gudmundur Arnar, Iceland 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gershwin fan Posted October 19 1. The Handmaiden, Chan-wook Park, South Korea 2. Train to Busan, Sang-ho Yeon, South Korea 3. Les Innocentes, Anne Fontaine, France 4. 1898, Our Last Men in the Philipinnes, Salvador Calvo, Spain 5. Julieta, Pedro Almodovar, Spain 6. Neruda, Pablo Larraín, Chile 7. Your Name, Makoto Shinkai, Japan 8. The Lovers and the Despot, Ross Adam, Robert Cannan, UK 9. Shin Godzilla, Hideaki Anno & Shinji Higuchi, Japan 10. The King's Choice, Erik Poppe, Norway 11. Elle, Paul Verhoeven, France 12. Toni Erdmann, Maren Ade, Germany 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LawrenceA Posted October 19 2016 Train to Busan, Sang-ho Yeon, South Korea The Salesman, Asghar Farhadi, Iran Personal Shopper, Olivier Assayas, France The Handmaiden, Chan-wook Park, South Korea The Wailing, Hong-jin Na, South Korea Raw, Julia Ducournau, France Operation Mekong, Dante Lam, China Elle, Paul Verhoeven, France I've also seen: Shin Godzilla, Hideaki Anno & Shinji Higuchi, Japan Under the Shadow, Babak Anvari, Iran Shelley, Ali Abbasi, Denmark/Sweden Headshot, Kimo Stambeol & Timo Tjahjanto, Indonesia Toni Erdmann, Maren Ade, Germany Bad Black, I.G.G. Nabwana, Uganda 1001 Movies You Must See The Handmaiden, Chan-wook Park, South Korea Toni Erdmann, Maren Ade, Germany Under the Shadow, Babak Anvari, Iran 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
skimpole Posted October 19 1. The Salesman Asghar Farhadi, Iran 2. The Handmaiden Park Chan-wook, South Korea 3. Personal Shopper Oliver Assayas, France 4. Nocturama Bertrand Bonello, France 5. Slack Bay Bruno Dumont, France 6. The Unknown Girl Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne, Belgium 7. The Wailing Na Hong-jin, South Korea 8. Things to Come Mia Hansen-Love, France 9. Your Name Makoto Shinkai, Japan 10. After the Storm Hirokazu Koreeda, Japan 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
