23rd MoFo Hall of Fame

It's free on YouTube! in fact, i just finished and will have a review up shortly.

__________________
Lists and Projects
Letterboxd

I would've had my review for The Reflecting Skin up already but it's too humid here to think. I have some sentence fragments written, but it's really hard to put them together in a way that makes sense.

If I end up posting something much shorter than usual, it's nothing against the film. Words are just being really difficult right now.

__________________

Whenever I watch these, I'm planning on JoJo Rabbit being the first I watch after Schindler's List.

When I heard comparisons between this and Tideland (a movie I hated), I was immediately wary. The warped childhood fantasy is really really hit or miss for me. That said, when it hits, it hits. Pan's Labyrinth and The Florida Project are two of my favorite movies. While The Reflecting Skin ends up on the lower end of the spectrum, I also by no means hated it, and actually enjoyed a lot.

The first positive takeaway I had was that this felt necessary. It didn't feel like the director threw in disturbing elements just to make them disturbing. They all in some way had to do with Seth's view of the world, and his maturing. That's a huge plus, because I hate offensive or disturbing content when it's irrelevant to the plot or themes.

A luscious, emotional score helps me connect with the characters much better. We are introduced to loads of interesting characters, most of them nasty, but all of them fleshed out well and believable. There are scenes where Seth goes into fantasy, but the film itself doesn't. It's still grounded in the reality of the situation and the characters.

On top of that, the visuals are breathtakingly beautiful. I love movies that are set out in the open... there are golden fields, houses miles apart, and beautiful horizons. The movie also has a sort of color tone to it that I really liked. Well done.

Thus, this is a film where I actually fault myself for not liking it more. I'm not one to try to pick out inherent "flaws" in a movie because that implies objectivity rather than one's subjective opinions (something I'm not a fan of). Flaws indicate that the movie is doing something wrong that every viewer should hate. No, The Reflecting Skin has a ton of good, and there is so much I can appreciate. But in the end, it's not the type of movie that I can say I enjoyed watching. At least I can check another twisted kid fantasy of the list!

+

DULY noted!
THANKS chyp!

__________________
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

I remember A conversation regarding it and wanting to see it and I haven't the foggiest WHO the person(s) involved lol

Attachments

 

High expectations, sadly, can cause a more colossal fall.

And I do get what you're saying about the ending. I think I'll be giving it a little more scrutiny this time around by giving that in mind and see how it goes for me.

Ahwell beat me to posting, and it looks like we showed up to the party wearing the same dress!

Maybe I'll look for a different screenshot to use haha.

Edit: Now that I've changed the image, this post probably doesn't make as much sense haha.

Looks like people are jumping right in! I count 14 write-ups so far and sign-ups aren’t even closed yet.
Sweet.

__________________

I would want to watch it on TV.. I do have a smart tv and an Amazon Fire Stick.. I guess I just need the Youtube app.

Strongly considering Schindler's List first. Seen it twice and love the film. Or do I pull a Miss Vicky and save it for the end?

However you want to play it. I usually save my own nomination for last as sort of a reward for getting through the rest. Schindler's List will probably be one of the last movies I watch for this because I'll need to dedicate more time to it than others and I own it on DVD so access is no issue for me.

I started The Reflecting Skin on my lunch break today. Will probably finish it tonight and post my review.

The Reflecting Skin (Philip Ridley, 1990)
Imdb

Date Watched: 08/10/2020
Cinema or Home: Home
Reason For Watching: The 23rd MoFo Hall of Fame, nominated by pahaK
Rewatch: No

I'd never heard of The Reflecting Skin before its title showed up in my Private Message inbox. A cursory search on the subject revealed that it might have something to do with vampires and that it starred Viggo Mortensen - and that's all I knew about it when I pressed play tonight.

Now that I've seen the film and know what it's actually about, I don't know how I feel about it. The film presents a series of horrific events that have been filtered and distorted by the perspective of a child. But instead of the innocent youth we expect, we are given as our guide a boy who is cruel, unlikable, and unsympathetic. He is this way as the film opens and he remains that way when the credits roll. The adults and other children that surround him are just as loathsome and as such it's hard to invest in their fates.

But that's not to say that this is in any way a bad movie. It is certainly not. The performances are universally strong and the characters are equal parts confusing and fascinating. I also loved the juxtaposition of the gorgeous cinematography and the bright and idyllic looking scenes against the grim, tragic, and horrifying tale.

As I sit here trying to write this, I'm unsure how to express my thoughts because I don't really know what they are. The film is repulsive and yet I was transfixed throughout. The fates of its characters are no doubt tragic and yet I can't muster any sadness for them. Some part of me wants to watch it again and yet I don't know that I ever would. I just... don't know.

I don't know what the hell to rate it either, so I guess I'll tentatively give it a 3 out of 5.

The Reflecting Skin (1990)

I have always found interesting how can the quality of Beauty exist in Art (something that I find an absolutely necessary trait to something be called art) while showing something that's ugly. Jan Svankmajer's short films, for instance, are a quite good representation of what I mean. This one, for instance:



In a way, this films does a tremendous job at showing this ugliness. I do not agree with most people who said every character here is bad. Or at least, I don't think any of them is inherently bad (serial killers not included). Yet they are turned bad by that space - a space that is portrayed as being a character of its own, the true villain of this story, and that contaminates everyone, from the children to the old couple that lived their entire life there. Even the young beautiful woman who once found love but that lost it a week after she arrived that place is only but a shadow of herself. So, when Cameron arrives, bringing a bit of light, it's only natural that that light is eventually destroyed by disease and the murder of his lover.

Technically, Philip Ridley does well in the way he conveys the right mood for the story. One can see how he's trying to create the most imersive atmosphere possible: the homogeneity of the landscapes, the dark colours of everyone's clothes that turn white when they are trying to escape the place or when they are still not fully contaminated by it, the insisting references to the smell of gasoline that overspreads the main character's house.

Of course, it gets more difficult to relate to the characters when they are not the ones responsible for the actions and that ultimately turns the film into a somewhat less enjoyable experience. But it's still a very interesting take on ugliness and the creation of atmosphere as a character. Good pick!

+

Jojo Rabbit (2019)

Not really sure what to write about this. I find the concept compealing, a nazi kid with Hitler as his imaginary friend is an incedibly interesting premise. And the comical take on the story could have worked for me, if the director (and Hitler himself) weren't Taika Waititi. I just don't find anything he does even amusing let alone funny.
So, with all those jokes falling flat, the rest was a cliched "hiding jewish girl" story with some nazis becoming good at the end.
The perfomances by Scarlett J. and Sam Rockwell however are great and carry the film and are responsible for the hint of comfort I found on this. But it's not a film that stays with me and I will probably never revisit it again.

Film: The Mummy: The night of counting the years
Year of release: 1969
Directed by: Chadi Abdel Salam
Run time: 1 hr 42 mins
Starring: Ahmed Marei, Ahmad Hegazi, Nadia Lutfi

I knew nothing of this film before watching it, before the nomination I had never even heard of it.
There is plenty that I liked about the film: Some of the shots were stunning, the use of colours and light and shade helped create an authenticity of environment. I liked the humanity of the story, I had a genuine belief in the opinions of the characters and the strength of feeling behind them.
I liked the clash of opinion that the film balanced on, the conflict within a culture and the perspective of various characters, There was a subtle tension underpinning the film throughout.

That said, I did initially find it confusing as what was going on. There wasn't a lot of dialogue aimed at helping the viewer understand who is who and what is happening in the shot. I worked it out in the end (I think ) but there was a bit of time guessing and even in some conversations I didn't know who was talking unless I could see their face.
Another issue for me was that I was watching it through a westernised lens - this led to me finding it hard to fully empathise with the strong views held by some of the characters and couldn't identify with their depth of feeling.

I am glad I watched it, but ultimately was left with a feeling of 'Is that it?'

I am happy to admit that I recognise that is far more to do with me than the film.

__________________
"I don't want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me" (Frank Costello)

Steve McQueen's Hunger, only 95 minutes, is a mammoth of a film. It is not only a stunning technical achievement, but a rare film where every scene has giant emotional significance. It's also the type of film where, if in the hands of a less able director, might have fallen apart. It balances long moments of no dialogue with huge unbroken stretches of monologue or conversation.

It actually took a while to get used to the opening style of Hunger. Here is a film that takes its time setting up characters. In fact, we don't get introduced to Fassbender's character until quite a bit into the film. Before that, we meet a prison officer, and other fellow inmates. It almost seems like a documentary... there are long, painful scenes of prisoners being tortured and beaten. The camera swings around, almost like there's too much going on and its trying to capture everything at once. It's insane, and it's harrowing.

Then, about 45 minutes in, the atmosphere changes. Instead of watching needless suffering, we realize one of the prisoners wants to do something about it. This is the 17 minute single take, where the camera just sits on a table; Sands and Moran meet to discuss the hunger strike Sands has planned. This conversation is the heart of the film, and the heart of what probably inspired the film. In it, we get to hear backstories of both characters, and backstories of the Irish Republican Party itself. In these 17 minutes, some of the only real dialogue in Hunger, is where the characters pour their souls out. Both Fassbender and Cunningham are breathtaking in their roles. It's stunning.

Afterwards, the film quiets down again and becomes a mournful, yet oddly triumphant, descent. The effects of the hunger strike are often painful to watch, yet never unnecessary. There's a biting reality to it all, and it's so different from what a typical Hollywood film might have done. There's no final celebration, no speech. It ends. It's done.

If I seem to be beating around the bush regarding my actual opinions, well, that's true. I'm not sure how I feel about Hunger, but it's certainly a movie like no other. A powerful experience, to say the least.

+