2nd Chance Hall of Fame

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Also answers to Jabba
I nominated The Man from Earth because it is an unusual film and that's why I love it so much. It certainly has its flaws, but it's one definitely worth checking out.


PS. My first choice was Incendies but it was picked the HoF that's running now so it wouldn't make sense to go with that even if it was eligible..



PS. My first choice was Incendies but it was picked the HoF that's running now so it wouldn't make sense to go with that even if it was eligible..
I haven't seen you around very much (since I don't really leave this subforum), but I see you have excellent taste.



Also answers to Jabba
Good choices everyone!
The Man From Earth - Jabs
Originally nominated by GBGoodies in 6th HOF
I've seen this, in fact I was the one who suggested this film to GBG. I liked it! But not sure how I'll feel on a second watch.

Not sure how much of it you remember, but I have found that with multiple viewings you discover a bit more depth in the interactions knowing how the film concludes.



Not sure how much of it you remember, but I have found that with multiple viewings you discover a bit more depth in the interactions knowing how the film concludes.
I hope so I wrote a review on it here at MoFo. Below is an excerpt from that review. Spoiler free and mainly about the background of the writers.

The Man From Earth was written by the famous sci fi & Star Trek screen writer, Jerome Bixby. This is his last work. The film was made after his passing by his son Emerson Bixby who promised his father to be true to the story. Jerome Bixby also wrote the original Star Trek episode: Requiem for Methuselah, which has similarities to this film.

The Man From Earth is a small budget, indie film, shot on only one location, a remote cabin in the mountains. This is a dialogue rich, existential film about how people would treat a friend who claims that he's immortal. A thought provoking study of human strengths and fears.
@rauldc14 that's not my official review, so don't link it. I'm going to rewatch the movie and post my thoughts later.



Also answers to Jabba
I have a full review on this on another site but I would rather not sway anyone just yet. I will post it here once everyone has watched it.





Ed Wood (1994)
Directed By: Tim Burton
Starring: Johnny Depp, Martin Landau, Sarah Jessica Parker

Although it is biographic in nature, no knowledge about the real Ed Wood or his films is necessary to enjoy Burton's Ed Wood. It is not a documentary, and instead presents a romanticised version of events that is intentionally idealized in order to support its themes and to celebrate the spirit of filmmaking. It is an incredibly optimistic film with a typical Hollywood ending, which normally would have me rolling my eyes, but I found the story to be so compelling that it was impossible not to get swept along for the ride.

From the very start, the cinematography is amazing. I think that this is easily Burton's finest film, since you can see touches of his style, but it enhances the story without overwhelming the picture like it unfortunately does with some of his later works. Those opening credits which incorporate elements from some of Wood's feature films are incredibly well executed, and the music that plays really helps set the atmosphere. It's a great homage. The lighting throughout the film is excellent, as are the recreations of key scenes from Wood's films.

The casting in Ed Wood is practically perfect. Every performance, even the smaller ones are entertaining. Martin Landau was phenomenal as Bela Lugosi, and while I have no idea what Ed Wood really sounded like, Depp's interpretation is a great match for the tone and quirkiness of the film. I've become very bored of his habit for playing odd characters, but I still find him charming in this role. This is only my second time seeing this film, and I'm surprised it's taken this long to watch it again, because I really enjoyed it the first time, and appreciated it even more this time around.



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Thursday Next's Avatar
I never could get the hang of Thursdays.
I've seen all of the nominated films. There's a mix of films I loved, hated and was fairly indifferent to, so it'll be interesting to see if I feel the same second time around

I picked Farewell My Concubine because it's great, obviously, but also because I think it's underseen and being from the first hall of fame I thought a lot of people might not have seen it or might have forgotten it.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
The Man From Earth

Nominated by Jabs
Originally nominated by GbGoodies in 6th HOF
Don't know if anybody said this already, but I think the photo from Man from Earth is wrong!

I think that picture is from The Man from Earth: Holocene (2017), which is a sequel to The Man from Earth (2007).



The thing isolated becomes incomprehensible
The Man From Earth

Nominated by Jabs
Originally nominated by GbGoodies in 6th HOF
Don't know if anybody said this already, but I think the photo from Man from Earth is wrong!

I think that picture is from The Man from Earth: Holocene (2017), which is a sequel to The Man from Earth (2007).
Uuuuh, I didn't know there was a sequel!!! Is it good?



I watched Letter from an Unknown Woman earlier, but I'm not sure if I'll get anything written tonight. It's been a long day and I'm quite tired. I have some notes written down but I can't seem to form anything into sentences. Is 8:00 too early to go to bed on a Friday night? Asking for a friend.



I watched Letter from an Unknown Woman earlier, but I'm not sure if I'll get anything written tonight. It's been a long day and I'm quite tired. I have some notes written down but I can't seem to form anything into sentences. Is 8:00 too early to go to bed on a Friday night? Asking for a friend.
I used to try to stay up but now I just give in whenever I'm tired.







After Hours is Martin Scorsese's attempt at a sex comedy, if you though well that sounds weird it pretty much is. The basic premise of the film is a New York office drone decides to go out and hook up with a girl he met at a cafe. On his way to meet up with her his twenty dollar bill flies out of the window of a cab leaving him broke and stranded in New York.


Over the course of the evening he runs into a variety of weird situations with the strange people who live outside his yuppie world. For a film like this you have a series of episodes and naturally with that you end comparing them to each other. And the only issue I really had with the film is that at one point it becomes a bit too wacky. I think the film works at it's best when Hackett is dealing with sexual issues with women but when he branches out into the other aspects of nightlife society the film kinda ratchet's down. Cheech and Chong show up and they just feel incredibly out of place.






The Man From Earth is the story of a man who invites seven people from his college for a farewell party. The man is leaving everyone he's known for the last ten years and wondering to some new place. He reveals himself to be a caveman who is immortal and that he must leave.


The Man from Earth feels like an episode Amazing Stories padded out to a feature length film role. The problem with a film like this is that it has both too many characters and also too few. Having seven people in a room question this one person from 10 million years ago felt very faked and staged whereas a group of three or four would have been slightly more believable. The other problem is that by having seven extra people you'd want to have sub plots and focus on how his story would affect those people, by doing this you get more into the human condition. Sadly this film just feels like a college lecture or worst a strange little propaganda film for some sort of religion.



I really wouldn't mind seeing this film get remade with a different director and setting because while the story feels important the execution was somewhat lacking for my taste.



Also answers to Jabba
I will be starting today with Le Trou. Premise sounds both great and familiar. I am sure it's been mentioned at some point in the thread, but what is the time limit on this? Because since I completed the challenge for 2018 I need some motivation to watch more films so I joined two HoF and a Film Club.



I am sure it's been mentioned at some point in the thread, but what is the time limit on this?
We get one week per nomination. It would have been 9 weeks from when Raul posted the reveal, however Siddon's nomination has yet to announced, so we should get around 10 weeks to complete the HoF.





Letter from an Unknown Woman
(1948)
Directed By: Max Ophüls
Starring: Joan Fontaine, Louis Jourdan, Art Smith

Letter from an Unknown Woman is a bittersweet story about unrequited love, that deals with obsession and consequences. Despite the fact that the central figures are a stalker and a playboy, the characters are strangely endearing and their ill-fated romance is actually quite compelling. Many scenes take place at night, giving the film an almost noir tone at times, where the gloomy atmosphere is never noticed by the characters on screen, since they are too wrapped up in their own fantasies to see the reality of the situation at hand.

The cinematography is amazing. The structure has an incredible symmetry to it, with many shots being mirrored later in the film. The framing is the same for these scenes, but the context or perception has changed dramatically. The camera moves elegantly as it glides across rooms, and the sets and costumes are beautifully crafted. Lighting was handled extremely well, enhancing the mood of scenes without drawing too much attention to itself.

From certain angles early in the film, Fontaine did look a little old to be playing a teenager, though for the most part she looked passable, and before the reserved Lisa matures in the final act, her shyness did give her an incredibly youthful aura that helps sell her character. Louis Jourdan was very charming in his role as Stefan, and the two had great chemistry together. Supposedly the film diverges from its source material, particularly in Stefan's character arc, but from what I've read, I think I'd vastly prefer the cinematic version. The circumstances in the film seem more inherently tragic, and the ending was entirely appropriate. I thoroughly enjoyed the film, and I'm glad it was nominated.

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