Rate The Last Movie You Saw

[stanton]

Ballroom Blitz is from Sweet

[T.H.]

Yeah. Awesome tune.

Speaking of Slade though, as fun as Quiet Riot's cover is, '78 Cheap Trick would have killed that live.

[dave jenkins]

Jaws (1975) - 10/10. Of course, the direction is great, the photography and editing superb, the spare use of music inspired. The acting is wonderful, especially the performance by Robert Shaw. But this time, viewing it on the big screen, what really struck me was the writing. Both plotting and dialog are amazingly good. There is not a wasted scene in the picture, and the story is paced perfectly. This is one of those films (like Casablanca) that should be used to teach screenwriting.

I saw this in its new 3-D format and that was probably a mistake. The effects sometimes work (static shots, not too many characters), but often do not (crowd scenes, lots of movement). The successes are overwhelmed by the failures. The film has also been re-released in IMAX, and I have the feeling that's the format I should have chosen.

[cigar joe]

Col cuore in gola, aka Deadly Sweet (1967) Psychedelic Swinging Sixties Noir. Directed by Tinto Brass. Avant garde film director know for Tempo Libero and Tempo Lavorativo (1964) and Sexploitation films Salon Kitty (1976), and under protest, the infamous Penthouse produced Caligula (1979)).  Based loosely on  Il sepolcro di carta (lit. The Paper Tomb) a novel by Sergio Donati. Donati BTW contributed or wrote the screenplays for some of the all time great Spaghetti Westerns For A Few Dollars More, The Big Gundown, Duck You Sucker, and Once Upon A Time In The West. The Cinematography was by Silvano Ippoliti and the Music was by Armando Trovajoli (Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)).

The film stars Jean-Louis Trintignant (Il Sorpasso (1962), The Sleeping Car Murder (1965), The Great Silence (1968), So Sweet... So Perverse (1968), Z (1969), The Conformist (1970), Flic Story (1975). as Bernardo, Ewa Aulin (Candy (1968)) as Jane, Vira Silenti as Martha Jane's Stepmother, Roberto Bisacco (La Cage aux Folles II) as David Mother's new boy toy, Charles Kohler as Jerome Jane's fraternal brother, David Prowse (A Clockwork Orange (1971), Star Wars (1977) as a gangster (uncredited).

This film has a nice unexpected twist and some of the things that before seem to be confusing make sense after you find out  just how much Bernardo is being manipulated and by whom.

Jean-Louis Trintignant is perfect in his role. He's thirty seven but looks young like he just turned thirty, while elfin Ewa Aulin was actually only seventeen. How Noir of her. But Ewa's character is not only seventeen but a desirable girl-woman who has been going around the block a lot since puberty, all because her mother died when she was seven.

Silvano Ippoliti's cinematography both in the color and Black & White sequences is excellent. In Col cuore in gola, there are an abundance of intriguing shots and camera angles that Tinto Brass edits into quick flowing cuts that they creatively captured not only the essence of Film Noir, but brings it along and combines it seamlessly with the actual energy and zeitgeist of the 1960s. It wasn't trying to duplicate the old Classic Noir as much as reimagining it in the then present 1967. And it works. The visual style that combines Op Art, Pop Art, Peter Max, comic, and head comix characters is just amazing and the films score just enhances the whole. Col cuore in gola joins the pantheon of great 1960s Noir 9/10.

[dave jenkins]

How did you see this?

[cigar joe]

How did you see this?

It's on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEjK77t2SFM

[cigar joe]

Big City Blues (1997) - Bizarre Miami Black Comedy Noir. The cast includes Burt Reynolds as Connor, William Forsythe as Hudson, Giancarlo Esposito as Georgie, Arye Gross as Babs, Georgina Cates as Angela, Balthazar Getty as Walter.

Clive Fleury mildly spoofs and pays homage Tarantino riffing off his works, there are sequences that will remind you of both Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs. He also references foreign films and Sergio Leone Westerns. There is a nice sequence with Reynolds and Forsyth discussing Leone Westerns. There are probably other culture refs in it that may be more recognizable to generation Gen X and Gen Y's. 7/10

It's got a call girl and two transgender women is the cast.  There are some chuckle inducing moments in it. On Youtube also.

[Novecento]

The Parallax View (1974) - 7/10. The story is totally bananas. The idea that emerges--that there is a conspiracy so vast that, not only can it never be entirely exposed, it can never be entirely understood--is so goofy that it's amazing this film was ever made. I'd like to see a sequel where the middle managers and higher ups in Parallax admit that even they don't know what is going on. Keeping the action all on Beatty was an effective way to promote a sense of paranoia, however. He never knows more than we know, so we're all in this together. Anyway, the film's style perfectly lends itself to such cryptic storytelling, with lots of long shots and close-ups and nothing in between, with anamorphic frames that are alternately spare and cluttered, and of course with that great Gordon Willis dark lighting. The almost casual way in which characters get bumped off is also refreshing. People are praising the new Criterion blu and no doubt it is a huge improvement over what's been available but I found some problems with it (for example, at the beginning, characters in low light often have orange skin tones). Some of the extras with the people who collaborated on the film made me appreciate the filmmaking more, although maybe this material is already well known.

I had never seen this until last night. I really enjoyed it, but one scene drove me nuts. I was glad to hear Gordon Willis say the same thing in the interview with him on the Criterion disc. Why on earth was that stupid bar fight even in a picture like this one? No wonder Willis was loathe to shoot it. Suddenly this cryptic weirdness became a run-of-the mill action film that jolted me right out of the mood.

[dave jenkins]

I just came across this: https://instapundit.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/1968-nixon-law-and-order.mp4?_=1

Obviously the mind-conditioning film Beatty and we see in TPV is riffing on this.

[noodles_leone]

I had never seen this until last night. I really enjoyed it, but one scene drove me nuts. I was glad to hear Gordon Willis say the same thing in the interview with him on the Criterion disc. Why on earth was that stupid bar fight even in a picture like this one? No wonder Willis was loathe to shoot it. Suddenly this cryptic weirdness became a run-of-the mill action film that jolted me right out of the mood.

Wasn't that bar fight toward the begining? I seem to remeber it was, and the idea is that the movie slowly transitions from "almost a regular action flick where the individual is almighty" to some kafkaesque dysptopia where individuals no matter who they are get crushed by the system. That doesn't mean there isn't a tone issue, especially since the movie starts with highly stylized, semi cryptic scenes that make the big action sequence feel kinda outa place anyway. But to me that's still the chore idea behind the curtains.

[noodles_leone]

Everything, everywhere, all at once - 7.5/10
There is no denying it should be called "Too much, all over the place, all the time", but boy, this is really, really fun. It's Matrix done as a 2 hours and 30 minutes long episode of Rick and Morty. It's into the spiderverse on steroid and bathing in bad taste. It's pastiching Pixar, Kill Bill and In the Mood for Love but in such a sincere way it becomes a good Pixar, Kill Bill and In the Mood for Love movie. SO of course it's too long, too fast, too much all of the time. But that's the idea. That's how it often reaches greatness. I'm waiting for the unavoidable second vewing to see if my rating stays the same or raises to 8.5/10: the movie goes so fast that the audience is often left lagging behind and trying to catch up. I have no doubt a second viewing will clean up the vewing experience. THe only moment the audience can catch their breath is when the camera finally sit still while we watch a dialogue between to rocks unfold in subtitles.

Also if you arent the right crowd for this movie, you'll endure pain and disgust for 2h30, so just in case, watch the filmmakers' old music video for Turn Down for What:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMUDVMiITOU
If you like it you're gonna like the movie, if you don't, don't inflict you that experience. If you take the red pill, see it in Imax (I unfortunately couldn't do that myself) and don't sit too close from the screen.

[Novecento]

Wasn't that bar fight toward the begining? I seem to remeber it was, and the idea is that the movie slowly transitions from "almost a regular action flick where the individual is almighty" to some kafkaesque dysptopia where individuals no matter who they are get crushed by the system. That doesn't mean there isn't a tone issue, especially since the movie starts with highly stylized, semi cryptic scenes that make the big action sequence feel kinda outa place anyway. But to me that's still the chore idea behind the curtains.

Yes it was, so it?s more jarring in retrospect when you think back about the movie you just watched. But, as you say, there is a certain tone from the outset. This scene just doesn?t fit.

[dave jenkins]

Also if you arent the right crowd for this movie, you'll endure pain and disgust for 2h30, so just in case, watch the filmmakers' old music video for Turn Down for What:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMUDVMiITOU

Very, very frightening.

[noodles_leone]

Drink was right on time.

When I'd told him about the screening, he'd gone into an I-know-Lincoln-Center-but-I'll-ask-someone-when-I-get-there routine.

"It's the Walter Reade," I'd said. "Where we saw Once Upon a Time in America, many moons ago."

That had seemed to stir his memory. It brought things back for me too: Treat Williams and Jimmy Woods and William Forsythe in the audience. De Niro had been there too, but he hadn't stayed beyond the intro. Those other stalwarts, though, sat and watched the whole thing.

Good times. That was also when I'd first realized Drink had ADD, getting up every five minutes to go to the toilet or visit the concession stand or who knows what all else.

He wanted popcorn today too. There were three containers of popcorn on display behind the counter, a large, and two smalls. Drink asked if the popcorn were fresh.

"Our popcorn is always fresh," the guy minding the stand said.

"When was it made?"

The guy thought. "About an hour ago. That's what we have. We won't be making any more."

We were at an 8:45 showing, the last of the day. I guess they know their clientele. Those Lincoln Center f***s don't eat a lot of mid-to-late-night popcorn, it seems.

But Drink was determined to have some and he wanted me to have some too so he ordered two containers. At first he wanted the two small containers, but then decided he'd take one of the smalls, and I should get the large. Some kind of private joke he hadn't let me in on.

We got our snacks and a couple of drinks, leaving one small container of popcorn behind.

Drink suddenly flashed on an idea. "Hey, DJ, we could buy that last popcorn and scalp it."

I thought that was pretty funny. We went up to the woman scanning tickets and got our tickets scanned.

I asked, "Is the manager around?"

"I'm the manager. What can I do for you?"

Outside I'd seen a poster advertising the next retrospective that would play after the current series was done. The series we were attending was called Rende-Vous with French Cinema, or some such nonsense. The coming one was about Kinuyo Tanaka, a Japanese actress who had gone on in late career, in the 50s and 60s, to direct six films. The retrospective would feature those six films.

Anyway, the poster was a thing of beauty, and I wanted it, so I inquired.

"We don't usually give away our posters," the woman said. "But you can leave your name and contact info, and if no one else speaks up for it, after the series finishes . . . well, we might call you." Yeah, a long shot, sure. One worth taking, though.

We went in and found we had, pretty much, our choice of seats. Drink took a while to decide just where the perfect location was. He always likes to sit towards the back.

We caught up. He showed me a photo of his current squeeze, "Miss Baltimore." He asked if I thought there'd be a lot of trailers to watch or if the feature would start right on time. Trailers at the Walter Reade? Not likely.

The reason he wanted to know, he told me, was that he liked to time his pre-feature bathroom visit as close as possible to the actual start time of the feature. You know, take care of business and then relax for two hours. Hey, and I thought *I* was the old man here!

Drink got back just as the house lights were dimming.

"So, what are we watching, anyway?"

"It's a French film."

"Is it an old French film or a new French film?"

"2021. Noodles recommends it. He says it's the future of cinema."

Drink can be very chatty during a film. The movie, Undercover, started and immediately there was a title stating the locale, which was Marbella, Costa del Sol.

"Where's Marbella?" Drink asked.

"I think it's in Spain."

"You need to learn how to whisper."

"F*** you."

A few seconds went by and Drink noticed something. "It's in 4:3!"

"It certainly is."

The opening sequence ended, there was a dissolve to black, then a scene in a disco, then a cut to a guy on a motorbike, then a cut to the motorbike guy, a journalist, now walking into the office where he worked.

Drink said, "What was that B.S. with the motorbike? Just cut to the guy coming into his office!"

I dunno, I kind of like street scenes. And street scenes with rapid movement are killer. Happily, at that point Drink quieted down and watched the movie.

About an hour in, though, he took out his phone and checked the time. "DJ, how long did you say this movie is?"

I held up two fingers.

Drink tried getting a connection on his phone but found that the theater was shielded. Those Lincoln Center f***s!

Later during the libel trial scene Drink got excited. "DJ, no cuts!"

Great, another long-take-looney. It's just a technique like any other.

"Uh oh, a cut there!"

He was right, but the cut was admirably done. Always cut on movement and/or into movement. Noodles had taught me that. Undercover's director, Thierry de Peretti, is no slouch.

We got to the credits. The walk-out music was The Blue Nile's "Over the Hillside." Yeah, I remember 1989 too.

"What the hell was that?" Drink wanted to know.

"Noodles says it's the future of cinema."

Walking together back to the subway station at Columbus Circle I said, "Noodles says he might be coming to New York in September. We're all gonna meet up at McSorley's. I think the idea is that you'll be buying the drinks, Drink."

"Yeah," Drink said, thinking. "We'll go to McSorley's. And when we see Noodles, we'll pants that little French f***!"

I got on the platform for the "1" train, heading downtown.  Drink walked most of the platform with me and then headed downstairs. I think he said he was taking the "2" train.

Film: 4/10. Watching It With Drink: 10/10.

So the interview we did with Thierry De Peretti is available here in comie language: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7iXfDBw9Qw
I guess YouTube can try to generate english subtitles but I have no idea what could came out of it.

About another point from your review: I confirm I'll be in NYC not in september but in october, and available for a meetup during the week of the 17th of october.

[cigar joe]

" I confirm I'll be in NYC not in september but in october, and available for a meetup during the week of the 17th of october."

Cool, it will be good to see you again.