I Need a Quick Review

I haven't seen any Laurel and Hardy and I'd like to know what people think are the best.

Also, anyone seen Quintet (Altman)?

Quintet is one of Altman's very worst movies. All of his stuff is sort of an acquired taste, but when he misses he really misses. Quintet is just so dull and the ideas so muddled, it's really only for seeing if you are trying to watch absolutely his entire filmography. Quintet, O.C. & Stiggs, Beyond Therapy, Dr. T & the Women, A Perfect Couple - those are the bottom-of-the-barrel Altmans.

You won't find many more hardcore Altman fans than me, but I can't honestly recommend it.

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Thanks. I've seen a fair amount of Altman's films (though none of the ones you just mentioned), and do hope to see them all eventually, that won't be the next one tho (assuming I can even find it at any of the local videostores).

How about Buffalo Bill and the Indians?

Here are the one's I've seen in approximate order of how much I liked 'em.
The Long Goodbye, Thieves Like Us, 3 Women, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Vincent & Theo, Brewster McCloud, Short Cuts, Popeye, MASH, Nashville, The Player, Gosford Park, and Ready to Wear.

There are probably some weird ones, but any glaring omissions from that list?

Bitter Harvest made for TV, I think It was? ANyway have never seen it, but have a copy on VCR from my Dad's old tapes, worth a watch?

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I like Buffalo Bill & the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson. It's not one of Bob's masterpieces, but it has lots of great stuff in it. You should definitely see Cookie's Fortune, which is one of his most just plain enjoyable movies. I'm a huge fan of California Split, especially the chemistry between Elliott Gould and George Segal. You definitely have to see Images, which is amazing. Secret Honor is rather brilliant, but how much you enjoy it will be effected by how much you know about Richard Nixon. Still worth seeing no matter what, as it is Philip Baker Hall's tour de force. "Tanner '88" is going to seem a bit dated if you weren't really aware of that election cycle, but it still holds up very well and is still relevant. I like That Cold Day in the Park a lot as well, though good luck finding a copy.


Those should keep you busy for a while. I'd see just about everything else before Quintet and the other dogs I mentioned in the previous post.

Shallow Grave (Danny Boyle - 1994)?

Good good. Sharp, well acted, plot skips along nicely. Macarbre but laced with some perky black humour.

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"But Juliet, you're a doctor; you kill people every day."

I absolutely love Shallow Grave. I think it's one of the very few thrillers in the past thirty years that actually earns the label "Hitchcockian". Kerry Fox, Ewan McGregor and Christopher Eccleston are all great. It's dark and twisted and lots of fun. Still my favorite from Danny Boyle.

How's The Girl From Monday? Looking for opinions from Holden Pike and linespalsy in particular. I'd like some opinions on Hal Hartley in general (what to see, what to avoid, etc).

I liked Girl From Monday, I would recommend that and every other Hal Hartley film I've seen, though my favorites are No Such Thing, Henry Fool, and an arbitrary selection from his pre-Henry filmography (Simple Men, Trust, The Unbelievable Truth).

But yeah, anyway, I've become a major adherent to his work since seeing Amateur last year and would strongly recommend him to anyone looking for some unique contemporary cinema. A lot of people, who are otherwise quite receptive proponents of "indie" flicks seem to be turned off by Hartley, which I don't fully understand. His films are at least as accessible as Jarmusch's (the only director I can think to compare with), and generally a whole lot more intelligent.

So yeah, see The Girl From Monday, and also see No Such Thing and Henry Fool, at the very least.

No Such Thing and 'Girl' are pretty singular, even for Hartley. They're both very minimal, spare films where the actors have to simultaneously embody abstract elements as well as human characters (for example in 'Thing': constructed characters which create the world-through-mass media, which in turn creates the characters they play). Of the two, I'd say 'Thing' is more successful and has a bigger budget, but everyone else seems to hate it, so what do I know?

Henry Fool is a bit less ambitious than either of the above, but for my money it's Hartley's most enjoyable, the one I keep going back to, and in agregate the best acted of his pictures. And I really love the minimalist soundtracks Hartley composes for his pictures too.

[edit]whoops, guess I didn't really touch specifically on Girl From Monday there. My recomendation is to check out those other two first (unless you have more convenient access to 'Girl') and see how you like 'em.

Also, I'm not sure if you're aware, but I don't think The Girl From Monday is out on dvd yet. Do you know something I don't? (if you do, please tell, I'm interested in buying it).

[etid] Here's a general rank for everything I've seen:

No Such Thing, Henry Fool, Trust, Amateur, Unbelievable Truth, Girl From Monday, Simple Men, Surviving Desire, various short films.

Here is some information about the Girl From Monday dvd, which apparently comes out on January 10th. Only 12.95 so I went ahead and ordered it. I will order No Such Thing and Henry Fool after the holidays are over.

Thanks for the help.

Larry David's Sour Grapes (1998)

Any good?

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Eh, it's OK. It has a few good laughs in it and I love some of the lines it crosses, but overall nothing special. It's nothing at all compared to the brilliance of "Curb Your Enthusiasm".

Blueberry ~2004 I have not seen this yet, but I remember the story which I loved. Is the movie any good?

Okay, I've been on a major David Mamet kick for a while now. I've seen:

Spartan: B+
The Spanish Prisoner: A
Glengarry Glen Ross: A-
Ronin: B-
Hoffa: B
The Untouchables: B+
The Verdict: A-
The Postman Always Rings Twice: A
House of Games: B
State & Main: B+
Heist: A-

So are there any others worth checking out?

Should I watch Fatal Attraction or The Thomas Crown Affair (remake)

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Fatal Attraction is my hsb's most hated movie, I think it is because something similar happened to him, the woman held him at gun point at the hospital he was working at.

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Neither. If those are your only choices, read a book instead.

The Winslow Boy.

Mamet's adaptation of The Winslow Boy is very good and very entertaining, Wag the Dog is definitely a must-see, and The Edge (1997) which he scripted is a darn good flick that for some reason got a bad rap when it was released. Things Change is a fun one too. I really like the made-for-TV "The Water Engine", but good luck finding a copy. And Homicide has lots of good stuff to recommend in it.