Films Recently Watched

[awepittance]

interesting, what other film adaptations have been attempted of his books besides Crash? I like the concepts of his books but have never been able to actually read one from start to finish, i feel the same way about Ballard as I do about PKD. Great ideas but not a fan of the writing style.

[Guest zaphod]

oh i think ballard is far and away a better prose stylist than pkd. i'm with you on pkd, as i've demonstrated in the now reading thread over the years, but ballard was a pretty great writer. his short stories are very strong, very surreal.

other than empire of the sun i can't think of any film adaptations.

[awepittance]

i love his short stories, it's just his actual novels/full books I haven't been able to get into. Empire of the Sun is autobiographical right? So i guess Crash is the only fiction of his that's been adapted to film. I have no idea how accurate that was to the book but its easily one of my favorite Cronenberg films.

[Atop]

indeed excited about that zaphod, I am thinking Wheatley is going to get better as his filmography grows.

 

 

As far as PKD, I think you should try out The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, Robbie, if you have not. Pretty brilliant stuff there.

 

Ideas versus writing style, I see how it can influence opinions of an author but I guess I am forgiving when the ideas are creative and original.

 

Haven't read any Ballard though. What should I start with zaphod?

[YO303]

^can't edit (why?)

 

 

zzzzzzzzz

 

didn't even finish it

 

I saw this one too a while back since someone had recommended Ti West (why?) - it sucked. You didn't miss much.

But apparently, this style of zzzzzzz-pacing is called "Slow Burn" but it actually is quite the opposite of zzzzzzzz IF DONE WELL (see: Entrance)

I like the concept of building up tension all the way through and not have much happening until the very end.

Although it does heighten expectations quite a bit and the pay-off needs to deliver big time, unlike The Innkeepers which was just unfocused and lame all the way through.

 

Does anyone have a recommendation for a good Slow Burn type film...?

 

I was very excited about the inkeepers because of his movie before this one (The House of the Devil, one of my favorites movies of all time) but it was a disappointment, i was very bored and i think i felt asleep a couple of times.

 

Terpe, you should watch House of the Devil

Edited February 6, 2014 by Deer

[cichlisuite]

Persona by Ingmar Bergman. - 10/10

 

A classic. IMO, still as relevant as the day it was released. Compared to a modern "think-movie" like "Her", "Persona" doesn't feel slow or boring at all. Which is completely unusual for a movie this old. The psychological tension is constantly there and keeps the movie going. Which says a lot about the acting, the cinematography and the writing. Truly incredible.

The classic indeed. But comparing Bergman to any modern movie is not going to work imho

[Guest zaphod]

indeed excited about that zaphod, I am thinking Wheatley is going to get better as his filmography grows.

 

 

As far as PKD, I think you should try out The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, Robbie, if you have not. Pretty brilliant stuff there.

 

Ideas versus writing style, I see how it can influence opinions of an author but I guess I am forgiving when the ideas are creative and original.

 

Haven't read any Ballard though. What should I start with zaphod?

 

vermilion sands is probably the place to start. or just buy the big collected stories that got issued stateside a few years back. his novels are definitely a mixed bag, but i think crash is a work of art.

 

i recently read palmer eldritch. i want to love it. i really do. the ideas are surreal and crazy and amazing but he takes so long to get anywhere. ubik was similar. the first sixty pages are horrible. i don't mind outdated modes of thinking about feminism, jive talk (a scanner darkly is full of this) or whatever else you can throw at pkd politically. i can't really excuse his method. as far as i can tell, he would sit down and just pound out a book in a trance. sometimes it turned into something good, sometimes the whole thing was terrible. i admire his ability to put out so much work, but so much of it is garbage. there are very few examples of "good writing" in his novels. man in high castle is probably his best written work, although parts of martian time slip are very well written. maybe that's what's disappointing to me about him; there's one or two classic novels in there but he never took the time to fully realize his talent and the strength of his ideas.

pynchon is a much better writer of paranoid fiction, although i think pkd is a better idea man. combine them and you'd have a monster of a writer.

Edited February 6, 2014 by zaphod

[data]

nebraska

 

i liked it, just didn't understand why it had to be in black and white. unless it was because of economic reasons. i watched the turin horse the other day. that's a movie i couldn't even imagine being in color, but this?

[data]

http://starwarsmakingof.imgur.com/

 

1138 photos from the making of star wars.

[Terpentintollwut]

 

Terpe, you should watch House of the Devil

 

 

Will do!

[hoggy]

Persona by Ingmar Bergman. - 10/10

 

A classic. IMO, still as relevant as the day it was released. Compared to a modern "think-movie" like "Her", "Persona" doesn't feel slow or boring at all. Which is completely unusual for a movie this old. The psychological tension is constantly there and keeps the movie going. Which says a lot about the acting, the cinematography and the writing. Truly incredible.

Absolutely!! So much truth, meaning and depth. Wonderfully insightful and compelling film

[Atop]

 

indeed excited about that zaphod, I am thinking Wheatley is going to get better as his filmography grows.

 

 

As far as PKD, I think you should try out The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, Robbie, if you have not. Pretty brilliant stuff there.

 

Ideas versus writing style, I see how it can influence opinions of an author but I guess I am forgiving when the ideas are creative and original.

 

Haven't read any Ballard though. What should I start with zaphod?

 

vermilion sands is probably the place to start. or just buy the big collected stories that got issued stateside a few years back. his novels are definitely a mixed bag, but i think crash is a work of art.

 

i recently read palmer eldritch. i want to love it. i really do. the ideas are surreal and crazy and amazing but he takes so long to get anywhere. ubik was similar. the first sixty pages are horrible. i don't mind outdated modes of thinking about feminism, jive talk (a scanner darkly is full of this) or whatever else you can throw at pkd politically. i can't really excuse his method. as far as i can tell, he would sit down and just pound out a book in a trance. sometimes it turned into something good, sometimes the whole thing was terrible. i admire his ability to put out so much work, but so much of it is garbage. there are very few examples of "good writing" in his novels. man in high castle is probably his best written work, although parts of martian time slip are very well written. maybe that's what's disappointing to me about him; there's one or two classic novels in there but he never took the time to fully realize his talent and the strength of his ideas.

pynchon is a much better writer of paranoid fiction, although i think pkd is a better idea man. combine them and you'd have a monster of a writer.

 

 

yeah that would be interesting....and I agree about PKD pounding them out, I think I might be done with him for the time being, still have not read UBIK or Man in the High Castle.

 

Will check out the mentioned Ballard.

 

 

I watched part of the documentary on Salinger, named the same, and I could not get past how much of a prick I think he was. He was an intelligence officer who fought on the beach at Normandy, by choice, came from a wealthy back ground and did not want to speak to his fans, unless they were already famous. I do not care.

 

I want to see a doc on Pynchon. Probably would be more interesting since he is more prolific, talented and more reclusive.

Edited February 6, 2014 by Atop

[hoggy]

atop - I really enjoyed the Cocaine Nights audiobook, have been gradually reading a book of short stories, I really like them, there's something quite fascinating and strange about his stories and the way he describes everything

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

 

Europa Report

hey this was alright. The woman talking to the camera from earth I didnt like so much, but everything else was solid.

 

Yeah, I didn't like her part either. Thought it was rather poorly acted.

Strangely, she's an amazing actress otherwise. Her performance on In Treatment is class:

 

 

she plays the stuck up lawyer girlfriend of mark darcy in Bridget Jones' Diary.

[Terpentintollwut]

^ is that a good or a bad thing?

 

 

 

 

Terpe, you should watch House of the Devil

 

 

Will do!

 

 

Saw it last night. The 80s style was fun to watch. Nice-ish build-up, even though the acting wasn't all that great. The actual payoff I found it rather silly and unimaginative though. It's nice to see there's still new directors out there who obviously prefer creepy over gore, but Ti West's films always come along as driving themselves into dead-ends, and also a little soulless. He could dare more and not have a traditional horror film cliché in the end but something unexpected and messed up. I like how he takes enough time to set the mood though. The house was genuinely creepy - before the big reveal that is.

[data]

house of the devil is one of my favourite movies in recent years, but yeah, the ending sucks pretty bad.

 

sort of reminds me of beyond the black rainbow. decent flick, awesome stylistically, fucking shit ending.

Edited February 8, 2014 by data

[sunshine recorder]

a field in england-made me wanna do mushrooms-8/10

[Npoess]

'The Wolf of Wall Street' was one of the most fun movie experiences I've had in years.

[funkaholic]

wolf on wall street was impressively dull, very well made but boring, zero point in it being made

[Atop]

http://www.afieldinengland.com/masterclass/

[sunshine recorder]

http://www.afieldinengland.com/masterclass/

wow,thanx 4 this, love it,that tent scene gets me every time

[Npoess]

wolf on wall street was impressively dull, very well made but boring, zero point in it being made

 

Care to elaborate?

 

I feel the people that didn't like this movie, are the people who thinks it lacks a morale or a point.

 

But does everything has to have a morale or point? I don't think so, it was actually nice to see a movie that didn't shove some idealistic shit into your face for once. The humor couldn't be much more offensive and immoral, and that was just to make the ride as ridiculous and crazy as possible. Haven't seen anything like it before, that alone makes this movie incredible to me.

 

Don't get me wrong, I didn't sympathize with the protagonist at all. That Jordan Belfort dude must be the biggest asshole ever if just 2% of this movie is true. But again, it was just nice to see something different.

Edited February 9, 2014 by Ceerial

[Guest Jimmy McMessageboard]

Barton Fink

First time. Liked it. Requires more thought, maybe even a rewatch. It is almost the most coeny of their films.

 

Shame

My first Steve McQueen film (waiting for 12yrsslave on VOD..soon maybe?) and I thought it was really good. Seeing Fassbender pee was on my bucketlist.

I thought it could have gotten a little worse for him, he wasn't at the bottom really or at least I felt it could have gone darker. It was another film with unlikable protaganists (wolf wall street/ Llewellyn davis) that I still enjoyed despite not liking them.

Would anyone recommend Hunger? think I might watch that today.

 

 

A Field In England

Wish I had seen this in cinema now. It looked pretty good on my tv but I imagine in cinema in was more immersive. It was kinda what I expected from the trailer.

Julian Barrett was barely in it though so that was disappointing. The fast editing trip scene worked sometimes and not so much sometimes

League of gentlemen guy was great. the slow coming out of the tent scene was great. I may catch it again when it comes to town but I'm not taking my wife, as I already know she would hate the "story", which was a little frustrating but I was expecting.

[jules]

Dallas buyers club - meh/10

 

American hustle - hell yea/10

 

wasn't expecting that to be as entertaining as it was.

[awepittance]

Barton Fink is a masterpiece. I got a chance to see it in a theatre that plays old movies that also serves Eye of the hawk on tap and it was fucking awesome. I've never gotten that comfortably drunk at a theatre, and made all the better by being able to do it while watching one of my favorite movies. It's weird watching movies while drunk,or maybe i'm just an 'emo drunk' either way it was a lot of fun. The movie took on a whole new dimension