JJ's 2021 Film Journal

First Time Viewings
1. Kagemusha (1980; Akira Kurosawa)
2. Phenomena (1985; Dario Argento)
3. Demons (1971; Toshio Matsumoto)
4. Dark Waters (1956; Youssef Chahine)
5. Clash (2016; Mohamed Diab)
6. Dancer in the Dark (2000; Lars von Trier)
7. Black Orpheus (1959; Marcel Camus)
8. Seduced and Abandoned (1964; Pietro Germi)
9. Crime and Punishment (1970; Lev Kulidzhanov)
10. The Decameron (1971; Pier Paolo Pasolini)
11. Downhill Racer (1969; Michael Ritchie)
12. I Will Buy You (1956; Masaki Kobayashi)
13. The Sacrifice (1986; Andrei Tarkovsky)
14. The Good Thief (1979; Pasquale Festa Campanile)
15. Youth (2015; Paolo Sorrentino)
16. La Dolce Vita (1960; Federico Fellini)
17. Obsession (1976; Brian De Palma)
18. Blind Woman’s Curse (1970; Teruo Ishii)
19. Uzumaki (2000; Higuchinsky)
20. Isle of Dogs (2018; Wes Anderson)
21. The Little Devil (1988; Roberto Benigni)
22. Shutter (2004; Banjong Pisanthanakun; Parkpoom Wongpoom)
23. We Can Be Heroes (2020; Robert Rodriguez)
24. Sophie’s Place (1986; Lawrence Jordan)

Rewatches
Amarcord (1973; Federico Fellini)
Divorce Italian Style (1961; Pietro Germi)

Shorts
Snowballs (2011; Harmony Korine)
Belly (2012; Julia Pott)

Getting a late start on this, but in attempt to be slightly more active on the board, I'll see if I can't keep this up for a little while. I'll try to say a few words about the films that inspire me to do so.

Phenomena (1985)
Some giallo elements are in this film directed by one of the godfathers of that genre, but this is giallo on Four Loko. There's a chimp who knows a thing or two about vengeance. There's a chick that controls bugs with her mind. Iron Maiden is on the soundtrack for some reason. There's maybe even Argento paying homage to Friday the 13th or maybe ripping a piece of it off. The more I'm saying about it, the less I think words can really do films like this justice. Nothing is for everyone, but this film is very much not for everyone. For those who it is for, you probably know who you are, and you probably should seek this one out.

We Can Be Heroes (2020)
Watched this with my three year old niece... about five times. She really enjoyed it, so who am I to hate on it. It is what it is. It's not the worst thing in the world, but it's not good. It's tolerable if you are watching with someone young enough to enjoy it and not be weird.


Clash (2016)
Set entirely in the back of a police truck after the ousting of an Egyptian president. People celebrating and protesting the event get locked in the truck, some deserving to be there, some not. It's a great film for somebody like me who enjoys films dealing with politics and the craziness surrounding them, but is totally burned out on seeing American films touching politics at all. It's almost entirely one-sided in America, and it's beyond stale at this point. I don't know sh*t about Egyptian politics however, so I don't have to be bothered with the details. I do get to see a story about two groups who would benefit from just being around one another and interacting more often and people bonding during a crisis. You should try to find this and check it out. You've probably never seen an Egyptian film before, so let this be your excuse to try one out.

Seduced and Abandoned
Even at four stars, I might be underrating this one a bit. If you've seen Germi's Divorce Italian Style, you know about what to expect. It's probably a little more absurd and nearly as funny. It's a comical takedown of the way Sicilian culture views honor and women, at least I assume that's what is happening. I don't actually know anything about Sicilian culture. I just know this is a funny, cynical film that doesn't shy away from absurd situations. All of the players in this picture give great performances.


The Decameron
Some background info about me: This is the second Pasolini film I've seen, the first being the black-and-white The Gospel According to St. Matthew. I've never read the novel this film is based on.

I don't know what to expect from future Pasolini viewings, as the two that I've seen don't have a great deal in common. The Decameron is a vibrant looking film with a great sense humor, at times rather cynical, but funny nonetheless. It's totally absurd, resorting to poop humor and sex humor, yet somehow never reaching sophomorically lowbrow humor. This film feels playful but in a spiteful way; Pasolini always judging religious institutions and the people who believe in them. At least in this film he's seemingly doing it with a sly smile and a dark heart.

I didn't like Phenomena at all but I usually agree with you.

I'm not too surprised by that. Phenomena seems like a love-it or hate-it type of film. There's a lot of elements about it that could turn people off to it.

By this point I don't remember it well, but I seem to remember the chick in the white shirt walking for what seemed like forever.

Lol. Yeah the chick in the white shirt did walk a lot. sometimes while she was asleep, sometimes when she was awake.

EDIT: How have I been here this long and still can't figure out how to use the spoiler function?

That's like how I watched the movie

I figured you probably watched it while sitting in a tub like this.

Kagemusha (1980; Akira Kurosawa)

If you've seen a screenshot from this film, it's very likely from the masterful dream sequence that takes up about 3% of the film. It's a bit misleading that those images are what the film is typically portrayed as. It's gorgeous and a great piece of filmmaking on its own, but the whole film is amazing. It's Kurosawa making an epic and doing it in Kurosawa style. The whole film has Kurosawa wonderfully playing with all the colors at his disposal.

That's the big one from Kurosawa I haven't seen yet. That'll change before I submit my foreign language ballot.