Reply to Topic
Haven't seen that but I was always interested. I like Don Cheadle a lot.
Also Joaquin Phoenix has a small role in it.
__________________
20th Hall of Fame
Also Joaquin Phoenix has a small role in it.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
The Squid and The Whale
This was only my third Baumbach film, but I have a real feeling that he will certainly develop into a favorite of mine. Maybe this can get him his second HOF victory although I doubt it due to the stiff competition. Plus, no director has yet to do that.
Anyways what I like most about this quirky film is the characters actually. The performances are all across the board really great. K really liked Eisenberg here as the kid who seems to be a bit more adult than his actual parents. This surprised me because I'm not usually a big fan of his. I thought Jeff Daniels was pretty cool and I really liked Laura Linney in this one. She always does a great job though. The story was pretty gripping to me actually. I never dealt with parents divorcing but it obviously is pretty hard on kids and this shows that effect. I heard that this was also a personal movie to Baumbach, as he must have dealt with something similar to this.
The only thing I really disliked was the Baldwin brother, whichever one he is. There's no way someone like Linneys character would go for a slimeball like that. I actually found good comedy in Daniels liking Lilli, despite how absurd the situation may have been. And I loved seeing the journey of Eisenbergs character. A good start in the 20th!
+
This was only my third Baumbach film, but I have a real feeling that he will certainly develop into a favorite of mine. Maybe this can get him his second HOF victory although I doubt it due to the stiff competition. Plus, no director has yet to do that.
Anyways what I like most about this quirky film is the characters actually. The performances are all across the board really great. K really liked Eisenberg here as the kid who seems to be a bit more adult than his actual parents. This surprised me because I'm not usually a big fan of his. I thought Jeff Daniels was pretty cool and I really liked Laura Linney in this one. She always does a great job though. The story was pretty gripping to me actually. I never dealt with parents divorcing but it obviously is pretty hard on kids and this shows that effect. I heard that this was also a personal movie to Baumbach, as he must have dealt with something similar to this.
The only thing I really disliked was the Baldwin brother, whichever one he is. There's no way someone like Linneys character would go for a slimeball like that. I actually found good comedy in Daniels liking Lilli, despite how absurd the situation may have been. And I loved seeing the journey of Eisenbergs character. A good start in the 20th!
+
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
It's rated PG-13 but has some of the most horrifying images I've ever seen. Truly haunting and emotionally devastating.
Also Joaquin Phoenix has a small role in it.
Also Joaquin Phoenix has a small role in it.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
For me Hotel Rwanda is the 'bigger' and better film, but less re-watchable as Blood Diamond so good choice indeed.
If you like Cheadle, Rwanda is most certainly a must see, one of Cheadles best performances @ Cricket.
If you like Cheadle, Rwanda is most certainly a must see, one of Cheadles best performances @ Cricket.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
Don't hate Crash, but don't love it either, I prefer Babel which also has the multi-narrative set up.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
just rewatched the squid and the whale so here are some rambling thoughts on it:
i first watched it in august of this year and subsequently decided to go through the entire baumbach filmography chronologically (i had only seen three others previously), but i loved it even more this time now that i have appropriate context for it. i think it's his most fascinating and poignant film. it feels like an intensely personal work, knowing that he was walt's age living in brooklyn in 1986 when his writer parents got divorced (interestingly he writes his analogue character as the more unsympathetic of the two kids). he visually establishes the central conflict in the very first scene, mom and frank on one side of the court against dad and walt on the other in a competitive game of tennis, and the interplay in this scene sets up all the character dynamics we'll see play out throughout the film. the whole movie is filled with witty little moments that serve as clever elucidations on the characters' personality, e.g. walt calling the metamorphisis "kafkaesque" or the dad pleading "it's no fun for me if you don't try" while playing ping pong with frank. every single line is revealing and there's not a wasted moment. i recall reading something that said something to the effect of "baumbach's central characters are typically defined by an acute awareness of their stage in life," which is certainly true of the father, but the children are perhaps one of the only exceptions to that rule. they're characterized by a certain naiveté about the true nature of life, and are thus ill-equipped to handle the world when their stabilizing family unit dissolves, although it had clearly not been particularly stable for quite some time. a film about the effect of divorce on children almost can't help but deal with very freudian themes and baumbach leans into it, not only in the way the children are forced to see their mother as a sexual being, but in the psychological hold the parents can't help but exert over the kids just by the nature of their relationship (this piece is worth reading). walt absorbs every opinion his father espouses and parrots them as his own, including his causally misogynistic views towards women, while frank seems to be left unable to process his emotions over his parents' split, and sometimes all you can do is jerk off in a library. the father is i think one of baumbach's most interesting characters, and this rewatch made me realize that this is jeff daniel's best performance. baumbach is the preeminent chronicler of the insecure masculinity of the intellectual, and in the end it's clear that bernard's intellectualism is just as superficial as any philistine, rendered even more meaningless when refracted through his son. he's a massive pr*ck with unbelievably high self-regard, but daniels occasionally allows a deep insecurity to slip out from under his veneer of pretension, his inflated self-regard coexisting on his face and in his voice with a contradictory fear of inadequacy. this insecurity seems to go unnoticed by walt until that remarkable shot reverse shot of their eyes meeting as they look for the cat under the car, and in that moment it becomes clear he'll never see his father the same way again. as walt's image of his father, the man on whom he's based his identity, is shattered, so is his own self-image, which leads to my favorite exchange in the movie:
-"i don't see myself this way."
-"well this is how it is."
walt is the only character who is given any sort of redemption arc, as he is finally able to achieve some sort of emotional maturity and hopefully start on a path of forming his own set of values, independent from his father.
also, there's a peculiar tension in every scene and i think that's largely because of baumbach's willingness to end his scenes abruptly out of a refusal to allow any moment to linger. the whole movie is just blow after blow, devastating remark followed by cut straight into awkward scene, no sense of catharasis in sight. it's basically if you peeled away all of the whimsy from a wes anderson film and were just left with his broken characters for 80 minutes. he's talked about how he wanted to shoot it almost like an action film, going from scene to scene with no establishing shots or extraneous diversions, except in place of physical combat we have arguably more-intense verbal sparring. the movie is almost entirely comprised of conversations, yet baumbach's dynamic style of staging and shooting dialogue gives every scene a strong sense of rhythm. it's not really until the final scene where we are allowed to take a breath and fully take in what we are seeing, and even that is but a fleeting moment before the credits take over. i'll admit that i didn't pick up on the metaphor of the titular squid and the whale the first time i watched it, even though it seems obvious in retrospect, but it functions beautifully on either level.
re: it not feeling like the 80s, i think it's an effective recreation of 1986 brooklyn (as far as i can tell. i wasn't alive). it's not trying to be stranger things nostalgia bait and it would be terrible if it was. baumbach is merely setting it in the social milieu in which he underwent this same experience and thus can most authentically portray it; the cultural and technological signifiers it gives us are more than enough, and the 16mm holds it all together.
i first watched it in august of this year and subsequently decided to go through the entire baumbach filmography chronologically (i had only seen three others previously), but i loved it even more this time now that i have appropriate context for it. i think it's his most fascinating and poignant film. it feels like an intensely personal work, knowing that he was walt's age living in brooklyn in 1986 when his writer parents got divorced (interestingly he writes his analogue character as the more unsympathetic of the two kids). he visually establishes the central conflict in the very first scene, mom and frank on one side of the court against dad and walt on the other in a competitive game of tennis, and the interplay in this scene sets up all the character dynamics we'll see play out throughout the film. the whole movie is filled with witty little moments that serve as clever elucidations on the characters' personality, e.g. walt calling the metamorphisis "kafkaesque" or the dad pleading "it's no fun for me if you don't try" while playing ping pong with frank. every single line is revealing and there's not a wasted moment. i recall reading something that said something to the effect of "baumbach's central characters are typically defined by an acute awareness of their stage in life," which is certainly true of the father, but the children are perhaps one of the only exceptions to that rule. they're characterized by a certain naiveté about the true nature of life, and are thus ill-equipped to handle the world when their stabilizing family unit dissolves, although it had clearly not been particularly stable for quite some time. a film about the effect of divorce on children almost can't help but deal with very freudian themes and baumbach leans into it, not only in the way the children are forced to see their mother as a sexual being, but in the psychological hold the parents can't help but exert over the kids just by the nature of their relationship (this piece is worth reading). walt absorbs every opinion his father espouses and parrots them as his own, including his causally misogynistic views towards women, while frank seems to be left unable to process his emotions over his parents' split, and sometimes all you can do is jerk off in a library. the father is i think one of baumbach's most interesting characters, and this rewatch made me realize that this is jeff daniel's best performance. baumbach is the preeminent chronicler of the insecure masculinity of the intellectual, and in the end it's clear that bernard's intellectualism is just as superficial as any philistine, rendered even more meaningless when refracted through his son. he's a massive pr*ck with unbelievably high self-regard, but daniels occasionally allows a deep insecurity to slip out from under his veneer of pretension, his inflated self-regard coexisting on his face and in his voice with a contradictory fear of inadequacy. this insecurity seems to go unnoticed by walt until that remarkable shot reverse shot of their eyes meeting as they look for the cat under the car, and in that moment it becomes clear he'll never see his father the same way again. as walt's image of his father, the man on whom he's based his identity, is shattered, so is his own self-image, which leads to my favorite exchange in the movie:
-"i don't see myself this way."
-"well this is how it is."
walt is the only character who is given any sort of redemption arc, as he is finally able to achieve some sort of emotional maturity and hopefully start on a path of forming his own set of values, independent from his father.
also, there's a peculiar tension in every scene and i think that's largely because of baumbach's willingness to end his scenes abruptly out of a refusal to allow any moment to linger. the whole movie is just blow after blow, devastating remark followed by cut straight into awkward scene, no sense of catharasis in sight. it's basically if you peeled away all of the whimsy from a wes anderson film and were just left with his broken characters for 80 minutes. he's talked about how he wanted to shoot it almost like an action film, going from scene to scene with no establishing shots or extraneous diversions, except in place of physical combat we have arguably more-intense verbal sparring. the movie is almost entirely comprised of conversations, yet baumbach's dynamic style of staging and shooting dialogue gives every scene a strong sense of rhythm. it's not really until the final scene where we are allowed to take a breath and fully take in what we are seeing, and even that is but a fleeting moment before the credits take over. i'll admit that i didn't pick up on the metaphor of the titular squid and the whale the first time i watched it, even though it seems obvious in retrospect, but it functions beautifully on either level.
re: it not feeling like the 80s, i think it's an effective recreation of 1986 brooklyn (as far as i can tell. i wasn't alive). it's not trying to be stranger things nostalgia bait and it would be terrible if it was. baumbach is merely setting it in the social milieu in which he underwent this same experience and thus can most authentically portray it; the cultural and technological signifiers it gives us are more than enough, and the 16mm holds it all together.
__________________
letterboxd
criticker
Most Biblical movies were long If I Recall.
seen A Clockwork Orange. In all honesty, the movie was weird and silly
criticker
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
Monsters, Inc
I watched this back for the animation countdown about 4 years ago. I remembered liking it but didn't remember anything about the movie besides a couple of characters. It didn't make my top 25 for that countdown. I've only watched about 5 animated movies since as obviously they're not my usual preference. I think it's probably a fantastic movie for it's targeted audience. For me, it's just a good watch. No complaints as the animation is amazing and the voice acting on point. It was a savvy move making the lead character furry. There's only like 10-15 animated movies I really loved so it is what it is. Great nomination as it brings variety to this HoF.
I watched this back for the animation countdown about 4 years ago. I remembered liking it but didn't remember anything about the movie besides a couple of characters. It didn't make my top 25 for that countdown. I've only watched about 5 animated movies since as obviously they're not my usual preference. I think it's probably a fantastic movie for it's targeted audience. For me, it's just a good watch. No complaints as the animation is amazing and the voice acting on point. It was a savvy move making the lead character furry. There's only like 10-15 animated movies I really loved so it is what it is. Great nomination as it brings variety to this HoF.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
Squid/Whale is on Netflix, so I'll be watching it this evening.
and with Frigtened's review/insight we'll see how I think of it.
and with Frigtened's review/insight we'll see how I think of it.
__________________
What I actually said to win MovieGal's heart:
- I might not be a real King of Kinkiness, but I make good pancakes
What I actually said to win MovieGal's heart:
- I might not be a real King of Kinkiness, but I make good pancakes
~Mr Minio
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
The Squid and the Whale
When I was in my late twenties to early thirties, I tried to see films of a more darker tone and nature. Sad endings, people dealing with painful experiences the wrong way. That sort of thing.
It may have been that it was something new, having been raised on happy endings and more lighter themes of comedy and less intellectual/more visceral films of action, war and car chases. Therefore I had an interest and curiosity to it all.
Or maybe that was just where my head and perhaps, my heart was at.
Who's to say.
But I may have appreciated this film more at that time of my life. Instead of finding myself getting angrier and angrier at the callous cruelty that masked the insecurity and awkwardness by lashing out with petty superiority.
Watching this as a man in his fifties who has lived, loved, lost, and, hopefully, ffound the courage and the wisdom to allow the good man within a place in the sun. To continue to live, to love, and even at times, to lose. . . the right way.
A man who's come back around to loving happy endings and has grown tired of drama and emotional games that cause hurt to make one feel better about themselves. Someone who walks out of a room when @ssholes spout their tirade of demeaning sh#t. Preferring to find another room filled with laughter or more wisdom infused conversation instead.
Oh, and it doesn't help that I hate Eisenberg. The characters he plays seem to echo all those aspects I have come to avoid so not have to engage with them, what so ever. Making my life and demeanor a much more happier one when I do.
Having said that, I do recognize the construction of this film. The Action style of constant barrage that was Baumbach's intention. Displaying the mimicking of a parent only to discover the flaws within that parent and thereby, one's self. The pain, anger and blame game that is the flimsy band-aid hiding the hurt, the loss and confusion when your home, your family, falls apart and your forced to pick a side and be d@mned for it.
The bravery of making nearly everyone guilty of poor decisions and actions so that all we see are the harshness, the insecurity and the emotional pain that everyone is going through.
All of which is done very, very well, because it pissed me off to witness it.
Which, maybe, deep down inside, there was a subconscious level of Baumbach who wished to express the stupid cruel side of us when we hurt and can't think or express it better. Never mind actually dealing with it and working through it.
Who's to say.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
Citizen, you mentioned a one week open door policy, so I might still try to come up with a nomination over the next few days. I had high hopes for a film I watched Saturday evening, but it wasn't as engaging as I was anticipating.
There are a couple more films I wanted to watch as potential nominations, but work has been an absolute nightmare lately, so I haven't really had the chance. My supervisor wants us to come in an hour earlier for the rest of the week as well (4am
), so hopefully I still have the mental energy by the time I get home haha.
There are a couple more films I wanted to watch as potential nominations, but work has been an absolute nightmare lately, so I haven't really had the chance. My supervisor wants us to come in an hour earlier for the rest of the week as well (4am
), so hopefully I still have the mental energy by the time I get home haha.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
Blood Diamond (2006)
Loved the actual scenes of Africa, the crowded streets, the small villages, the lush countryside and even the trash and urban decay. It all looked so real that I felt like I was watching a docu-drama. I'd give all those parts, the overall story and the performances by DiCaprio & Djimon Hounsou a 5/5. And yes it was graphic but that was grounded in truth, so belonged in the story and in fact the hand chopping made the film all the more poignantly powerful.
Blood Diamond did many things right but then came the overbearing music score that made me very aware that I was watching a movie and that the director wanted me to feel the drama of it all. That then broke the spell of being immersed in the story. Luckily the score was mainly during the fight sequences and not the entire movie.
Some of the action scenes went from brutal (which was good as it gave one the feeling of hopelessness and cruelty that existed), to...too many firebombs, making the film feel like a blockbuster action flick at times, which took away from the realistic feel.
The other thing that took away from the movie was Jennifer Connelly. She existed as the over used love interest. Even worse she looked just like a beautiful leading actress, instead of a realistic fictional character. And for that I blame the director. Like his film Glory, he overdoes the close up shots of Connelly and whenever she was in the film it felt like another run of a mill movie, when the rest of film was pretty special.
Blood Diamond did many things right but then came the overbearing music score that made me very aware that I was watching a movie and that the director wanted me to feel the drama of it all. That then broke the spell of being immersed in the story. Luckily the score was mainly during the fight sequences and not the entire movie.
Some of the action scenes went from brutal (which was good as it gave one the feeling of hopelessness and cruelty that existed), to...too many firebombs, making the film feel like a blockbuster action flick at times, which took away from the realistic feel.
The other thing that took away from the movie was Jennifer Connelly. She existed as the over used love interest. Even worse she looked just like a beautiful leading actress, instead of a realistic fictional character. And for that I blame the director. Like his film Glory, he overdoes the close up shots of Connelly and whenever she was in the film it felt like another run of a mill movie, when the rest of film was pretty special.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
Blood Diamond 2006 Directed by Edward Zwick (Re-watch)
WARNING: "Ending" spoilers below
Personally I would have rolled the credits after the conversation dying Archer has on the mountaintop, with the plane fading into the sunset as the final shot.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
It didn't bother me so it didn't occur to me, but yea Blood Diamond could have done without Connelly's character altogether.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
Rear Window (1954)
The basics: a wheelchair bound peeping tom witnesses nothing through his rear window but is convinced he witnessed something even though everything points to nothing. I absolutely love this movie. I like it so much I wish it had been nominated in the 19th HoF and won.
The story is fantastic and the way Hitchcock manipulates the audience is perfect (He's not the Master of Suspense for nothing). There's one scene in particular that always stands out and it's the very brief panning shot of Thorwalds apartment that ends with Jefferies asleep in his chair. That's 15 seconds of Hitchcock deking us out and it makes the movie in my opinion. What I really like is that there isn't any waste in this film. Every scene is important and builds on the previous scene until we get to a pretty nerve wracking finale. Also, I think the fading in and out of each scene is a nice touch. It feels like Hitchcock is giving us a second or two to process everything he's laid out in that scene before moving on.
I always like Jimmy Stewart and he does a fine work as photographer L.B. Jeffries. Grace Kelly does a nice job of portraying Lisa, a stunningly beautiful NY socialite who's a little more adventurous than we (and Jeffries) are led to believe and Thelma Ritter also nails it as Stella, L.B's insurance hired nurse who was educated in the school of life. Over the years I've heard complaints about the romance between Jefferies and Lisa not being believable and kind of ruining the whole whatever (there's no way she would go for him!) but I bought it. Then again, I'm old enough to remember when Paulina Porizkova married Ric Ocasek. It happens.
I love movies that are filmed in Technicolor and while it's not Wizard of Oz level eye candy it still looks good especially the finale, anytime Grace Kelly is onscreen or when Hitchcock moves in for a closeup (a lot of very blue eyes in this, folks.)
I haven't seen this in years and something that stood out a little watching now is just how funny some of the early scenes are. A lot of it is Stella being Stella but a lot of it is the casual remarks a peeping tom makes about his peepee's.
I've rated about 60 films a perfect 10. This is one of them.
X
Favorite Movies
X
User Lists
The Music Man
I was looking forward to this one, and I really really wanted to like it. But, unfortunately, it fell short for numerous reasons. First of all, I find Harold Hill as a character to be unlikable. He's clearly in it for the money, really doesn't give a hoot in hell about anyone, and then gets away with the darn thing and everyone loves him. The only character I really liked was Marian, and even she turned into a bloody fool by the end. The songs are actually great for the most part. I've always loved "76 Trombones" and "Goodnight My Someone" (although they are practically the same song at different tempos). WAY too many unnecessary dance numbers, however. The barbershop quartet was annoying and those stupid staged dances just threw off the motion of the plot. I did love the choreography and camera work of them. Acting was also pretty decent. Overall a mixed bag.
Quick side note, I LOVED that Ron Howard himself played the adorable Winthrop.
I was looking forward to this one, and I really really wanted to like it. But, unfortunately, it fell short for numerous reasons. First of all, I find Harold Hill as a character to be unlikable. He's clearly in it for the money, really doesn't give a hoot in hell about anyone, and then gets away with the darn thing and everyone loves him. The only character I really liked was Marian, and even she turned into a bloody fool by the end. The songs are actually great for the most part. I've always loved "76 Trombones" and "Goodnight My Someone" (although they are practically the same song at different tempos). WAY too many unnecessary dance numbers, however. The barbershop quartet was annoying and those stupid staged dances just threw off the motion of the plot. I did love the choreography and camera work of them. Acting was also pretty decent. Overall a mixed bag.
Quick side note, I LOVED that Ron Howard himself played the adorable Winthrop.
Last edited by ahwell; 11-28-19 at 02:18 PM.
X
User Lists
The Music Man (1962)
Surprisingly I don't have a lot to say here. Yeah, I know I'm usually long winded
but The Music Man isn't the kind of movie that needs deep in-depth analysis anyway...so maybe, just maybe, I'll keep this short
The one thing that really stands out in The Music Man are the songs and there are a lot of them! By my count there's 24 songs in the movie and that's a lot, even for a musical. Usually a movie that was made from a musical stage production had a large number of the stage songs cut, so that the story line and dialogue could be expanded for a movie audience. And that's what makes The Music Man unique is that it's literally done just as the stage production was. That's due to director/producer Morton DaCosta who also had been the director of the stage version. He made sure the film was true to the stage show. And that then makes The Music Man both special...and harder for movie audiences to get into. With 21 songs there's not much time for character development.
Luckily there's some great tunes here, my favorites were: Rock Island sung by the traveling salesmen on the train, Ya Got Trouble I've been singing this to my wife, substituting our cat's names for 'pool' and that rhymes with trouble!...Piano Lesson, Goodnight, My Someone, Being in Love all sung by the talented Shirley Jones, wow can she sing or what!
My favorite production numbers/songs would be: Marian The Librarian, done in the library, Pick a Little, Talk a Little sung by the townswomen and the local chickens! And of course I love the number where the town's youth parade down the street in full band costumes.
Gosh Shirley Jones is so perfect for this role as a sweet but stubborn librarian and oddly enough she's really good as a vengeful prostitute in Elmer Gantry. There's a couple other of her films that I really like, who knows maybe we'll see more of her.
Robert Preston is the man! What else can I say...he's the Music Man who in pulling a con job on the small Iowa town's folks ends up giving them more than they even hoped for.
I did have a lot to say after all, I'm guess I'm full of it just call me The Movie Man and that spells trouble!
but The Music Man isn't the kind of movie that needs deep in-depth analysis anyway...so maybe, just maybe, I'll keep this short The one thing that really stands out in The Music Man are the songs and there are a lot of them! By my count there's 24 songs in the movie and that's a lot, even for a musical. Usually a movie that was made from a musical stage production had a large number of the stage songs cut, so that the story line and dialogue could be expanded for a movie audience. And that's what makes The Music Man unique is that it's literally done just as the stage production was. That's due to director/producer Morton DaCosta who also had been the director of the stage version. He made sure the film was true to the stage show. And that then makes The Music Man both special...and harder for movie audiences to get into. With 21 songs there's not much time for character development.
Luckily there's some great tunes here, my favorites were: Rock Island sung by the traveling salesmen on the train, Ya Got Trouble I've been singing this to my wife, substituting our cat's names for 'pool' and that rhymes with trouble!...Piano Lesson, Goodnight, My Someone, Being in Love all sung by the talented Shirley Jones, wow can she sing or what!
My favorite production numbers/songs would be: Marian The Librarian, done in the library, Pick a Little, Talk a Little sung by the townswomen and the local chickens! And of course I love the number where the town's youth parade down the street in full band costumes.
Gosh Shirley Jones is so perfect for this role as a sweet but stubborn librarian and oddly enough she's really good as a vengeful prostitute in Elmer Gantry. There's a couple other of her films that I really like, who knows maybe we'll see more of her.
Robert Preston is the man! What else can I say...he's the Music Man who in pulling a con job on the small Iowa town's folks ends up giving them more than they even hoped for.
I did have a lot to say after all, I'm guess I'm full of it
just call me The Movie Man and that spells trouble!
X
Favorite Movies
X