What Movie Have You Seen Today?

General General Movie Discussion
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It’s the same situation as described by Kirk in Star Trek - Generations:
“I must have made this jump fifty times, and every time it scared the hell out of me. But not this time. Because… it’s not real.”

Main reason why most of these comic and super hero movies don’t have very much appeal to me. Anything can happen, anyone may die, and then someone comes along with a magic MacGuffin and switches everything back to normal or to whatever. And it doesn’t exactly help to throw in more and more super heroes with the weirdest abilities, which at the end of the day are almost exclusively used for carnage and destruction.

Most of those make Bond movies look like serious documentaries.
:stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:

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1111

Yes! Thank you!

What I always loved about Bond is that the fight scenes did not go on and on and on. One could always see that it was business that had to be taken care of as quickly as possible. And even Craig was bloodied and shaking afterwards.

This is what the first Die Hard understood before the sequels forgot it and turned a human being into a video game character.

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And this right here is pretty much the MO of entire MCU. A lot of people, especially those trying to replicate its success, think that setting up the Avengers was all about world building, cameos, references and connections. But at the end of the day the set-up for the Avengers was a simple as trying to get audiences on board with each of the core characters, everything else was secondary. It’s no coincidence that the films that leaned hardest on the connections (Iron Man 2, Age of Ultron) wound up being the weakest of the series. Black Widow also succeeded on this area as Florence Pugh’s Yelena has gotten an extremely positive reaction and is now perfectly placed to become the new Black Widow is other teams ups and maybe even Black Widow 2.

Aside from the fact it felt like it should have been a Phase 3 movie I thought Black Widow was extremely enjoyable as an action blockbuster spy thriller. It does everything you’d expect and MCU Black Widow to do an does it well.

Summary

Weirdly, the real highlight for me was the post-credits scene. It gave a much better sense of closure to Natasha than Endgame did as well as providing an interesting hook for Yelena’s return in Hawkeye. And is it just me or is Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s Valentina trying to be the new Nick Fury?

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1113

Quantum of Solace

I have been making it a mission to watch every Bond film prior to the October release of No Time to Die. I admit this is only the third time that I have watched QoS since it was released in 2008 and to put it mildly, did not like it very much the first time. Initially, I was not a fan of the frantic, fast-cutting pace of the film because I felt it was detrimental to the storyline. For example, I was looking forward to a more juicy exchange between Bond, M and Mr. White in the interrogation scene when all of a sudden the film breaks into an action chase scene between Bond and Mr. Mitchell. I had that same issue when Bond dispatches Mr. Slate in the Haiti scenes.

However by my third viewing I can appreciate the film more now. The running time of 105 minutes is actually a benefit. A majority of Bond films (Casino Royale included) seem to go on forever; The sheer unpredictability of the film was more intriguing this time around, even though its arbitrary way of telling the story didn’t satisfy Greene’s final revelation at the end. There are too many locations and dispatched characters we never see again or want to see more of (e.g. Mr. White, Quantum execs). I could care less of Greene’s coup of stealing water in Bolivia, and it still leaves me cold in the end. It reminds me of the time when I watched The International with Clive Owen and its preposterous, corrupt banker plotline. To each its own, but I could care less of global financial banking politics and likewise oil and water in QoS.

I still give the film high marks for not repeating the formulaic beats of previous Bond films and aesthetic-wise the film’s cinematography is gorgeous, and much improved over its predecessor (which is saying a lot). QoS, is very difficult for me to place in my Bond film rankings because it’s not a rewatchable type of Bond film. Because of its grimness it is not a fun film to watch, but weirdly enough because its editing it holds my attention better when compared to vastly superior Bond films (e.g. The Spy Who Loved Me, Goldfinger). I have it ranked between #13-17, along with equally troublesome placed films like Licence to Kill and The Living Daylights.

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1114

The water plot actually was foreshadowing what is happening now with big conglomerates pretending to own the water rights in many countries. Which should concern us all.

But I agree, it is not dealt with enough to make the apparently intended impact.

I would be interested in your ranking of all the films.

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Okay. I will post it on the rankings topic.

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The water plot of QUANTUM OF SOLACE is so unsatisfactory because it really goes nowhere (nor is it Bond’s objective, that would be getting to the guy who recruited Vesper). Water rights and profits thereof are an unspectacular everyday topic usually ignored by most of us.

Its conflict potential is well known (Israel, Turkey so on) and by no means new. Some of the best westerns, like THE BIG COUNTRY, revolve around access to water and are based on real life events. The only thing more disappointing than the water reveal is the claim nobody thought of it before, not the CIA, not Medrano or Bond. Since about the late 1970s, if you studied political science or economics, theories about potential wars for water access are a staple of the trade.

For a Bond villain’s plot there ought to be some extra element of bizarre or ingenious evil included in the scheme. Like taking over the water supply and then gradually wiping out part of the population with additives, or industrial scale experimenting on the consumers. Something that’s at once threatening and possible to illustrate in frames so we learn not just who’s the baddie but also how wicked this guy is.

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1117

A bit like the invisible car in DAD which spends as much time broken and visible, as it does invisible.

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Unknown (2011)

I do like Liam Neeson in a good action thriller.

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Cocktail (1988)
My girlfriend was shocked I’d never seen it before. One of us enjoyed it.

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1120

The Hole in the Ground (2019)

OK Irish Netflix horror, about a single mother who, after temporarily losing her son near a sinkhole by her house, begins to think that he has been swapped with an impostor.

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BELLE DE JOUR–Luis Bunuel–Criterion Blu-ray (also on HBO Max)

J. Hoberman once wrote that Bunuel was often a person’s first auteur, especially for teenage cinephiles. While Bunuel was not my first, he certainly was a member of my original auteur cohort formed during my teen years. I remember the thrill of seeing THAT OBSCURE OBJECT OF DESIRE on Closing Night of my first New York Film Festival when I was 17 years old, and a few years later discovering his Mexican films at the Public Theater. But as with many first loves, his work became more a fond memory than a constant presence in my life. So I was curious as to how his work would look to me now. I was hankering for an old-time arthouse movie, and at 50% off, the Blu-ray beckoned.

I re-discovered what I first learned 40 years ago–Bunuel is sui generis. His movies look and sound like no one else’s. On this viewing, I realized how much the move is not only Severine’s, but the great compassion with which Bunuel views her. Catherine Deneuve, remote as ever, holds secrets that Bunel does not make her reveal. The blurring of reality and dream seduced as never before. Bunuel provides reams of information about how society functions–BELLE DE JOUR is a Surrealist documentary–but never becomes obvious or declamatory.

During a time when I have grown tired of the over-produced, look-at-me-Mom cinematography which masquerades as beauty nowadays, the bracing rigor of Bunel was revivifying. Deneuve once said that during their second and final film together, TRISTANA, she complimented Bunel on the beauty of a shot he was setting up. He immediately changed it.

Bunuel’s camera shows what is necessary, and while it is often beautiful, it is only on screen the amount of time needed for it to register with his audience. No invitation or even opportunity to luxuriate or wallow. Bunuel knows exactly long to hold a shot, and what should be in the frame to get his point across–no more and no less. This is not to say that Bunuel is a minimalist. He isn’t–his movies are incredibly rich. Rather, he is a frugal Surrealist–showing enough to overwhelm without overwhelming. Nobody did it better–or even tried. Bunuel is Bunuel.

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1122

Midnight Sky (2020)

OK science fiction with George Clooney starring and directing. Long periods of nothing punctuated by good moments. I enjoyed it and I recommend it. Not sure it stands up to repeat viewings but we’ll see.

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SHUTTER ISLAND (2010) 4K Blu-ray

One of my favorite film categories is “I Was Wrong About That One” The movement from certainty that a film is a bomb to begrudging respect to admiration is wonderful–especially when someone else is undergoing it.

But on occasion it does befall even the most seasoned moviegoer, and yes dear reader, in this post I am speaking of moi. I detested SHUTTER ISLAND when I first watched it. It seemed obvious and shallow as it strived for Meaning and Significance. Having won the Academy Award at long last, Scorsese had come a cropper.

Then I saw the film again, and the obviousness was less obvious–two narratives were happening at once, and Scorsese was arranging his shots so that they worked for both of them at the same time.

Then I saw it again (at the Scorsese retrospective at MOMI), and it was really good.

SHUTTER ISLAND has now risen to the point that it will be the Scorsese film I write about in my book about Buddhism and the cinema.

What? Not KUNDUN? (My husband asked the same question.)

No, not KUNDUN. A wonderful movie that I enjoy, but Scorsese provides us with a very Catholic take on His Holiness–more savior than liberator.

But SHUTTER ISLAND–during the making of which Scorsese read Dante and Milton–works as a parable for both Catholicism and Buddhism. Teddy Daniels is in the long line of Scorsese sacrificial/sacrificed heroes–he suffers a downfall, pays for his sins, and finds redemption (a template on which Scorsese has played many variations).

Yet, just as the mise en scene embraces two narratives in each frame, the narrative supports two parables–one Catholic and one Buddhist. Just as scenes are reality narrative and fantasy narrative at the same time, so the two parables are superimposed upon one another–Daniels searching/staggering though both a fallen world and samsara in search of salvation/enlightenment. Scorsese even provides a happy ending (at least by his standards) for both narratives/parables. Remarkable.

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1124

Saw “The Suicide Squad” enjoyed it, as it was like a Gonzo version of Guardians" the music choices were quite inspired and Idris Elba was absolutely superb. It really cemented my idea that he could/ should do at least one Bond movie if at all possible.

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The Green Knight. I wanted to like this, and it does have some impressively trippy imagery. It’s also pointlessly slow and much too impressed with itself. The besetting sin with many Arthurian films is that they don’t trust the legend. They want to add flashy improvements, so the film wilts from a surfeit of Hollywood clichés or arthouse ones (as in this case).

As someone relatively familiar with Sir Gawain and the Green Night I also took issue with several of the movie’s adaptation choices. I won’t go into actual spoilers, but many elements of what made the original compelling and meaningful have been lost, abbreviated, or mangled. Those unfamiliar with the source material might enjoy this more, but I found it a muddle.

I still hold the unshaken opinion that the only first-rate Arthurian films are Excalibur, Bresson’s Lancelot of the Lake, and Rohmer’s Perceval.

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Run (2020)

Absorbing psychological thriller about a smart, likeable 17 year old in a wheelchair who begins to think her doting mother isn’t so nice after all. Excellent performance by Kiera Allen (who in real life is a wheelchair user).

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The Bresson is one of my favorite films. I think it is his greatest work.

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The Suicide Squad

I enjoyed this a lot more than anticipated. Full of personality and poignancy, this is directed by a man who has mastered his chosen genre. A bonus to see the NTTD trailer beforehand.

8/10

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1129

I still see Quantum of Solace as underrated, despite its faults. I lay most of the blame for the film’s flaws at the feet of Marc Forster. He was clearly out of his depth, directing a Bond film. The overuse of shaky cam and the fast-pace cutting make it difficult to follow the action (and nauseating at that). The film is the shortest in the official canon and yet feels incredibly long. The film is basically begging for an additional 15-20 minutes of run time (conversely, Spectre has the opposite problem of being incredibly bloated and could have benefitted from cutting 15-20 minutes). Overall, I think QoS is underappreciated and the problem lies with the director, same as Spectre as Mendes was great with Skyfall, but terrible with Spectre.

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