Miscellaneous Movie Musings

[€uroMeinke]

I'm sure the alien sex scenes will at least draw some attention...

[Not Afraid]

Full Frontal Bowie is always good.

Hey, we can have full-frontal night David and Ewan!

[€uroMeinke]

You know - I think a lot of that was cut from the version we saw in the theaters, as I had no recollection of full frontal Bowie

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Films added to the Library of Congress today. Click here. (http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Movies/12/27/classic.films.ap/index.html)Psssh, my library has had many of those for years now ;)

[innerSpaceman]

I don't remember any full frontal Bowie either, but I haven't seen that movie in decades.


I never cared for *batteries not included, but it was generally cute, I guess. I like Cocoon, but not the sequel. And Short Circuit was completely dumb, but oddly charming.


Forget the movies, though. Please INVITE full frontal Ewan to the party!

[Ponine]

Me neither - but how many of you have seen the Man who Fell to Earth?

I have seen that, *AND Batteries not included. :snap:

[Snowflake]

Me neither - but how many of you have seen the Man who Fell to Earth?

Raises hand, again.

[Moonliner]

Me neither - but how many of you have seen the Man who Fell to Earth?

Yo!

David Bowie, the best alien since Klatuu.

[Moonliner]

From the list, How about Bullitt? Have you seen it.

Ahh what a chase....

[Morrigoon]

I'm sorry... The Sex Life Of The - POLYP???

[Alex]

It is a comedy short starring the mostly forgotten but once very famous Robert Benchley. A bigtime columnist for The New Yorker in the 30s and one of the early luminaries at Harvard Lampoon.

I saw it years ago in college so I don't remember it well but don't recall finding it very funny.

[Moonliner]

OK, time to step up to the plate movie goers...

How many of these have you seen?

The Most Controversial Films of All Times. (http://www.filmsite.org/controversialfilms.html)

Note: The link has some very NSFW photos on it.

I'm betting on 80%+ for € and NA.... ;)

[Alex]

Since it is NSFW and I'm at W, if it is easy to do so could someone copy a list of titles if it is easy to do?

[Moonliner]

Since it is NSFW and I'm at W, if it is easy to do so could someone copy a list of titles if it is easy to do?

Sure. In alphabetical order they would be:

Aladdin (1992) # 25

Baby Doll (1956) # 10

Baise Moi (2000, Fr.) (translated "Screw or F--k Me")

Bandit Queen (1994, India)

Basic Instinct (1992) # 19

The Birth Of A Nation (1915) # 7

Blue Velvet (1986)

Bonnie And Clyde (1967) # 21

Boxing Helena (1993)

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Caligula (1980) # 24

Cannibal Holocaust (1985) # 20

Carnal Knowledge (1971)

Citizen Kane (1941)

A Clockwork Orange (1971, UK) # 2

The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989, UK)

Crash (1996)

The Crime of Father Amaro (2002, Mex.)

Cruising (1980)

The Da Vinci Code (2006) # 13

Deep Throat (1972) # 4

The Deer Hunter (1978) # 12

The Devils (1971, UK)

Dirty Harry (1971)

Do The Right Thing (1989) # 22

Dogma (1999)

Ecstasy (1933, Czech.) (aka Exstase)

The Evil Dead (1981)

The Exorcist (1973)

Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) # 3

Freaks (1932) # 17

Hail, Mary (1985, Fr.) (aka Je vous salue, Marie)

Heaven's Gate (1980)

Henry: Portrait of A Serial Killer (1986) (released in 1990)

I Am Curious (Yellow) (1967, Swe.) # 18

In the Realm of the Senses (1976, Jp.) (aka Ai No Corrida)

Irreversible (2002, Fr.)

I Spit On Your Grave (1978) (aka Day of the Woman)

JFK (1991) # 5

Kids (1995) # 23

Kinsey (2004)

The Kiss (1896) (aka The May Irwin Kiss, The Rice-Irwin Kiss and The Widow Jones)

The Last House on the Left (1972)

The Last Picture Show (1971)

Last Tango In Paris (1972, It./Fr.) # 9

The Last Temptation Of Christ (1988) # 6

Lolita (1962, UK)

Men Behind the Sun (1988) (aka Hei tai yang 731)

The Message (1976, 1977) (aka Mohammed, Messenger of God) # 11

Mondo Cane (1962, It.) (aka A Dog's World)

Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979, UK)

Natural Born Killers (1994) # 8

The Outlaw (1943)

The Passion Of The Christ (2004) # 1

Peeping Tom (1960, UK)

Pink Flamingos (1972)

Pretty Baby (1978)

A Real Young Girl (1975, Fr.) (aka Une Vraie Jeune Fille)

Requiem for a Dream (2000)

Romance (1999, Fr.) (aka Romance X)

Rosemary's Baby (1968)

Salo (1975, It.) (aka The 120 Days of Sodom)

September Dawn (2007)

Song of the South (1946)

South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)

Straw Dogs (1971)

Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (1971)

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

Titicut Follies (1967)

Triumph Of The Will (1935, Ger.) # 15

United 93 (2006) # 16

Viridiana (1961, Sp./Mex.)

The Warriors (1979) # 14

The Wild Bunch (1969)

Year of the Dragon (1985)

[Moonliner]

I come in at a paltry 23%

[Morrigoon]

I'm surprised to say I've seen 10 of them.

edit:

Strike that, turns out I've also seen Bandit Queen, so that makes 11

[Alex]

I've seen


Aladdin (1992) # 25
Baise Moi (2000, Fr.) (translated "Screw or F--k Me")
Basic Instinct (1992) # 19
The Birth Of A Nation (1915) # 7
Blue Velvet (1986)
Bonnie And Clyde (1967) # 21
Boxing Helena (1993)
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Carnal Knowledge (1971)
Citizen Kane (1941)
A Clockwork Orange (1971, UK) # 2
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989, UK)
Crash (1996)
The Da Vinci Code (2006) # 13
Deep Throat (1972) # 4
The Deer Hunter (1978) # 12
Dirty Harry (1971)
Do The Right Thing (1989) # 22
Dogma (1999)
The Exorcist (1973)
Heaven's Gate (1980)
Henry: Portrait of A Serial Killer (1986) (released in 1990)
JFK (1991) # 5
Kids (1995) # 23
Kinsey (2004)
The Last Picture Show (1971)
Last Tango In Paris (1972, It./Fr.) # 9
Lolita (1962, UK)
Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979, UK)
Natural Born Killers (1994) # 8
The Outlaw (1943)
The Passion Of The Christ (2004) # 1
Pink Flamingos (1972)
Pretty Baby (1978)
Requiem for a Dream (2000)
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Song of the South (1946)
South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
Triumph Of The Will (1935, Ger.) # 15
United 93 (2006) # 16
The Warriors (1979) # 14
The Wild Bunch (1969)
Year of the Dragon (1985)


So 45 from the entire list. 17 numbered ones. I The Passion of the Christ really the most controversial film of all time? I'll have to read the web site and see the justifications (if they have them) but there are some really odd choices on there.

[Strangler Lewis]

42.

[Alex]

Was Citizen Kane controversial with anybody other than Hearst (not that this wasn't more than enough controversy to financially tank the movie)?

[JWBear]

26 out of 75...

[JWBear]

Why was Aladdin controversial?

[Moonliner]

Why was Aladdin controversial?



This Walt Disney feature film animation engendered considerable controversy for its pro-Western portrayal of Aladdin and Jasmine (always unveiled), the fact that turbaned characters were bald, and all the villainous characters were Arab caricatures.

Another conflict arose, following protests from the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), regarding the lyrics in one of the verses of the opening song "Arabian Nights." The original lyric about the film's Arabian setting ("Where they cut off your ears if they don't like your face/It's barbaric, but, hey, it's home") was censored/dubbed out and changed to "Where it's flat and immense and the heat is intense/It's barbaric, but, hey, it's home" for subsequent video releases in 1993 and for the re-released soundtrack.

.

[Ghoulish Delight]

I had the original unedited soundtrack, but it got lost in college. :(

Oh, I've seen 19 of those films.

[JWBear]

.

I hadn't heard that before. Thanks. People are too effing sensitive!

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Plenty of nontraversy on that list

[Eliza Hodgkins 1812]

OK, time to step up to the plate movie goers...

How many of these have you seen?

The Most Controversial Films of All Times. (http://www.filmsite.org/controversialfilms.html)

Note: The link has some very NSFW photos on it.

I'm betting on 80%+ for € and NA.... ;)

I've seen 31. And want to see more! Very glad to see The Devils and Baby Doll. The latter is incredibly, incredibly hot.

[Chernabog]

I've seen 27 of those and looking forward to placing more of em on my netflix list :)

[€uroMeinke]

I've seen these:

Aladdin (1992) # 25
Basic Instinct (1992) # 19
The Birth Of A Nation (1915) # 7
Blue Velvet (1986)
Bonnie And Clyde (1967) # 21
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Carnal Knowledge (1971)
Citizen Kane (1941)
A Clockwork Orange (1971, UK) # 2
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989, UK)
Crash (1996)
The Deer Hunter (1978) # 12
Dirty Harry (1971)
Do The Right Thing (1989) # 22
Dogma (1999)
The Evil Dead (1981)
The Exorcist (1973)
Freaks (1932) # 17
In the Realm of the Senses (1976, Jp.) (aka Ai No Corrida)
Kinsey (2004)
The Last Picture Show (1971)
Last Tango In Paris (1972, It./Fr.) # 9
Lolita (1962, UK)
Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979, UK)
Natural Born Killers (1994) # 8
Pink Flamingos (1972)
Pretty Baby (1978)
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Song of the South (1946)
Triumph Of The Will (1935, Ger.) # 15

So that's 30 - these have been on my "want to see" list for quite awhile though:

Boxing Helena (1993)
Caligula (1980) # 24
Cruising (1980)
Deep Throat (1972) # 4
I Spit On Your Grave (1978) (aka Day of the Woman)
The Last Temptation Of Christ (1988) # 6

And thanks to some Swanker, I've got a copy of:
The Devils (1971, UK)

I'm surprised no Russ Meyers films made the list

[innerSpaceman]

I've seen these. Um, I don't think the people who made the list know what 'controversial" means.

Aladdin (1992) # 25
Basic Instinct (1992) # 19
The Birth Of A Nation (1915) # 7
Blue Velvet (1986)
Bonnie And Clyde (1967) # 21
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Caligula (1980) # 24
Carnal Knowledge (1971)
Citizen Kane (1941)
A Clockwork Orange (1971, UK) # 2
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989, UK)
Crash (1996)
The Da Vinci Code (2006) # 13
Deep Throat (1972) # 4
The Deer Hunter (1978) # 12
Dirty Harry (1971)
Do The Right Thing (1989) # 22
Dogma (1999)
The Evil Dead (1981)
The Exorcist (1973)
Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) # 3
Freaks (1932) # 17
Heaven's Gate (1980)
Henry: Portrait of A Serial Killer (1986) (released in 1990)
JFK (1991) # 5
Kids (1995) # 23
Kinsey (2004)
The Last House on the Left (1972)
The Last Picture Show (1971)
The Last Temptation Of Christ (1988) # 6
Lolita (1962, UK)
Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979, UK)
Natural Born Killers (1994) # 8
The Passion Of The Christ (2004) # 1
Pink Flamingos (1972)
Pretty Baby (1978)
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Song of the South (1946)
South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)
United 93 (2006) # 16
The Warriors (1979) # 14
The Wild Bunch (1969)


Also, they changed the voices of all the "Arabian" extras in Aladdin to speak with anglo accents when they released it with the emasculated lyrics.

[Strangler Lewis]

So far it looks like I'm the only one who dozed through "I Am Curious Yellow."

[Bornieo: Fully Loaded]

I'm at 29

Last Temptation was such a Nontraversy.

Salo - wholly crap! Everyone's gotta see that one! It's pretty insaine

[Not Afraid]

32 is the number I counted. I'm surprised Henry and June wasn't on the list. It was the first NC17-rated film. I also remember Billy Jack being a big controversy when I was a kid (but I don't know why).

[Moonliner]

I've seen these. Um, I don't think the people who made the list know what 'controversial" means.


Two things:

First I don't think you can deny that a film like Passion of the Christ caused a lot of controversy, whether you or I personally felt the controversy for that or any other movie on the list is immaterial.

Also it does make we wonder, what would you list as your top two or three selections for this list?

[innerSpaceman]

David Cronenberg is a fracking genius.




(Eastern Promises is awesome)




* * * * *

As for the list, and the films which I recall causing the most controversy (whether or not I considered then nontroversial) ... are The Last Temptation of Christ, Carnal Knowledge, and JFK.

[Not Afraid]

Well, it took 2 days but we finished watching The Man Who Fell to Earth. It had been probably 30 years since I last saw it. Last night, I just couldn't finish it. It was waaaay to late for a film paced as this one is. Interesting film, not necessarily a very good film, but worth seeing once (every 30 years or so).

Presently, Aleister is chasing the bouncing screen saver on the TV.

[Gemini Cricket]

Aladdin (1992) # 25

Basic Instinct (1992) # 19

The Birth Of A Nation (1915) # 7

Blue Velvet (1986)

Bonnie And Clyde (1967) # 21

Boxing Helena (1993)

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Caligula (1980) # 24

Carnal Knowledge (1971)

Citizen Kane (1941)

A Clockwork Orange (1971, UK) # 2

The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989, UK)

Crash (1996)

Cruising (1980)

The Da Vinci Code (2006) # 13

Deep Throat (1972) # 4

The Deer Hunter (1978) # 12

The Devils (1971, UK)

Dirty Harry (1971)

Do The Right Thing (1989) # 22

Dogma (1999)

The Evil Dead (1981)

The Exorcist (1973)

Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) # 3

Freaks (1932) # 17

Hail, Mary (1985, Fr.) (aka Je vous salue, Marie)

Heaven's Gate (1980)

Henry: Portrait of A Serial Killer (1986) (released in 1990)

JFK (1991) # 5

Kids (1995) # 23

Kinsey (2004)

The Last Picture Show (1971)

Last Tango In Paris (1972, It./Fr.) # 9

The Last Temptation Of Christ (1988) # 6

Lolita (1962, UK)

Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979, UK)

Natural Born Killers (1994) # 8

The Passion Of The Christ (2004) # 1

Pink Flamingos (1972)

Pretty Baby (1978)

Rosemary's Baby (1968)

September Dawn (2007)

Song of the South (1946)

South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)

Straw Dogs (1971)

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

United 93 (2006) # 16

The Warriors (1979) # 14

The Wild Bunch (1969)

[Strangler Lewis]

I believe "Last Temptation" was the only movie I've ever seen where I had to walk by protesters.

"Billy Jack" was controversial because it was anti-war, pro-Indian, and a badly acted bore. It also featured the worst marksmanship by paid soldiers in the history of cinema.

[Moonliner]

I believe "Last Temptation" was the only movie I've ever seen where I had to walk by protesters.

"Billy Jack" was controversial because it was anti-war, pro-Indian, and a badly acted bore. It also featured the worst marksmanship by paid soldiers in the history of cinema.


Sorry, but I think Imperial Storm Troopers take that award.

[Strangler Lewis]

The Storm Troopers did miss a lot. However, they were in combat. The guardsmen in "Billy Jack" were supposed to shoot unarmed peaceful protesters. I think they got just one.

[flippyshark]

Here in Central Florida, the furor over Last Temptation was so great, the only theater in town that would show it was an adult cinema. I caught it in a small theater in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and there were about three or four protesters outside, and security guards in the theater. I loved it then, and get a lot out of it now.

I own 23 titles on that list. Whee!

The most prominent title I haven't yet seen is Cannibal Holocaust. It sounds intriguing in many ways (not least, its pre-Blair Witch pseudo-documentary section) but I also know the film includes real, unsimulated animal slaughter, and I have a hard time getting behind that. (Yes, I'm a hypocrite - I gleefully eat bacon and other meaty treats.) The DVD provides an option for skipping those scenes, but part of me thinks I ought to see the film as it was intended. So, I haven't yet bothered.

I guess its a sign of the times, or my own jaded status, that when I finally saw Salo, I thought, heck that wasn't so bad.

[Moonliner]

I also know the film includes real, unsimulated animal slaughter, and I have a hard time getting behind that. (Yes, I'm a hypocrite - I gleefully eat bacon and other meaty treats.)

I don't see that as hypocritical in the least. Slaughtering an animal just for entertainment, wrong. Slaughtering them for a yummy breakfast treat, no problem.

[Snowflake]

51 for me

Aladdin (1992) # 25
Baby Doll (1956) # 10
Basic Instinct (1992) # 19
The Birth Of A Nation (1915) # 7
Blue Velvet (1986)
Bonnie And Clyde (1967) # 21
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Caligula (1980) # 24
Carnal Knowledge (1971)
Citizen Kane (1941)
A Clockwork Orange (1971, UK) # 2
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989, UK)
Crash (1996)
Cruising (1980)
The Da Vinci Code (2006) # 13
Deep Throat (1972) # 4
The Deer Hunter (1978) # 12
Dirty Harry (1971)
Do The Right Thing (1989) # 22
Ecstasy (1933, Czech.) (aka Exstase)
The Evil Dead (1981)
The Exorcist (1973)
Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) # 3
Freaks (1932) # 17
Heaven's Gate (1980)
I Am Curious (Yellow) (1967, Swe.) # 18
In the Realm of the Senses (1976, Jp.) (aka Ai No Corrida)
I Spit On Your Grave (1978) (aka Day of the Woman)
JFK (1991) # 5
Kinsey (2004)
The Kiss (1896) (aka The May Irwin Kiss, The Rice-Irwin Kiss and The Widow Jones)
The Last House on the Left (1972)
The Last Picture Show (1971)
Last Tango In Paris (1972, It./Fr.) # 9
The Last Temptation Of Christ (1988) # 6
Lolita (1962, UK)
Mondo Cane (1962, It.) (aka A Dog's World)
Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979, UK)
The Outlaw (1943)
The Passion Of The Christ (2004) # 1
Peeping Tom (1960, UK)
Pretty Baby (1978)
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Song of the South (1946)
Straw Dogs (1971)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
Triumph Of The Will (1935, Ger.) # 15
The Wild Bunch (1969)
Year of the Dragon (1985)

[€uroMeinke]

"Billy Jack" was controversial because it was anti-war, pro-Indian, and a badly acted bore. It also featured the worst marksmanship by paid soldiers in the history of cinema.

Heh - growing up the controversial scene talked about on the school yard was the bra-strap cutting scene.

[Alex]

I saw Juno yesterday. While I can see why a lot of people are raving about it, somehow it just didn't connect for me. There's nothing I can really point to (other than being a bit over-written and too self aware) but in the end I was just left somewhat flat.

One of those cases where I can see the quality but apparently it just isn't for me.

[Gemini Cricket]

Yes, it's another one of those 'Brad's late to the party again' things but, man, I just loved Superbad. On the advice of my little sister, I bought it. Not rented, bought. She said I would love it. And she was right, right, right.
And I was just thinking lately that there isn't enough slapstick comedy in movies nowdays.
I'm totally McLovin Superbad.
:)

[Ghoulish Delight]

Yes, it's another one of those 'Brad's late to the party again' things but, man, I just loved Superbad. On the advice of my little sister, I bought it. Not rented, bought. She said I would love it. And she was right, right, right.
And I was just thinking lately that there isn't enough slapstick comedy in movies nowdays.
I'm totally McLovin Superbad.
:)"Just imagine if girls weren't weirded out by our boners and stuff, and just like wanted to see them. That's the world I one day want to live in. "

[Gemini Cricket]

"Just imagine if girls weren't weirded out by our boners and stuff, and just like wanted to see them. That's the world I one day want to live in. "
lol! :D
Yes! Totally quotable from top to bottom. I laughed pretty danged hard. I haven't laughed this hard since Borat.
The casting of this film was just perfect. Michael Cera was freakin' awesome.

Knocked Up is next on my list now.

[Alex]

Just watched it again and am thoroughly refreshed in my opinion that Once is my favorite movie that I saw this year.

Really, just move it straight to the top of your Netflix queue or just go buy it.

[Gemini Cricket]

I have Once as well.
I was feeling depressed one day and bought that, Superbad, Knocked Up and Disturbia...

[mousepod]

I count 55 that I've seen on the "controversial" list. Perhaps we could have a screening or two soon...

[innerSpaceman]

The Orphanage is a great, creepy film. OMG, Belen Rueda is fantastic in it. Seriously, she gives one the best screen performances I've seen all year (um, meaning 2007).

I don't what it is about ghost stories being a vehicle for serious female roles. I happen to think The Others is the best thing Nicole Kidman's ever done. And The Orphanage would be worth seeing if only for Rueda's performance alone. But it's also quite the atmospheric movie. And kinda scary in places.

[Morrigoon]

I laughed pretty danged hard. I haven't laughed this hard since Borat.
Oh dear... this comparison doesn't sell me on the film AT ALL (I hated Borat, total snooze-fest all the way through).

In other news, my miscellaneous movie musing is that Johnny Depp is totally hot as Sweeny Todd. Yes, I have very strange taste in men :)

[innerSpaceman]

Warning: Loads of Spoilers in this Post ... I’m not tagging the entire post


Well, I have some more thoughts about Sweeney Todd, after having seen it again ... and then listening to the Broadway recording for the first time in decades.

Not surprisingly, perhaps, I like the movie less.

Quite surprisingly, though, I remain completely happy with Helena Bonham Carter's performance as Mrs. Lovett. Both her acting and her singing. Much as I love Angela Lansbury in the role, I think her singing style is - - much like Rex Harrison's - not quite real singing, but something uniquely her own. And so I rather enjoyed Carter's renditions of the songs in a more "normal" singing style. They are great songs, and I enjoy them both ways.

Johnny Depp, in the other hand ... well I like him less and less. As the film goes on, I think he becomes more and more ineffective. I think he handles the early songs and the early Todd pretty well ... but he's not up to the demands of "My Friends," for example, and his performance really goes downhill after Todd goes off the deep end on a serial murdering spree. I don't think completely catatonic is what's called for from that point on.

Burton's to blame as much as Depp for that. Most of Todd's songs from the second act are cut. And two of those are necessary to portray his dementia to the audience.

I don't think, we, as an audience, are really too upset that Todd slits throats indiscriminately or that Mrs. Lovett bakes people into pies. It's a black comedy, and these murderous rampages beget mostly amusement (though Burton was brilliant to add the gruesome, head-first body thuddings to the proceedings, as I don’t think the audience bats an eye at the buckets of spurting blood.).

No ... just as we really love Mrs. Lovett no matter what she does to strangers, but begin to have second thoughts about her once we learn she’s betrayed Todd .... in the show version, Todd only becomes despicable once we learn through song that he no longer even cares about being reunited with his daughter, Joanna, and is more enamored with grisly murder. Similarly, though - if we can read quickly enough - we learn he’s going to double-cross Anthony in the movie, the show has Todd sing about it, and it’s much more clear and chilling to the audience.

In other words, the characters can’t simply be murderers. We like that. They have to be nasty to each other to be unlikeable to us. I think Sweeney Todd should be somewhat unlikeable. And menacing. Which Deep is not. He may be angry, but he never seems menacing to me. Len Cariou comes off pretty menacing even on the cast recording ... I never even saw his actual performance, but it was reportedly quite effective.

Perhaps Burton didn’t want Deep’s Todd to be unlikeable, and so cut the songs where the audience might turn against him. I think that was a terrible mistake. It gives Depp really nothing to do in the second act ... and worse than dislike him, I think we simply lose interest in him.

Besides, the pathos at the end when Todd realizes he’s been lied to by Lovett and has murdered his beloved wife makes Sweeney very sympathetic in the end.

Lastly, and speaking of cutting songs ... I had forgotten how often "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd" is reprised throughout the show version. There are half a dozen times the tune is sung in one form or another. I understand the difficulties of adapting a "Greek chorus" to a film ... but for a piece which is essentially an operetta, leaving out the signature song which - though opening the show, closing the show, and constantly commenting on the action in the show - becomes the de-facto soul of the score .... well, leaving that out entirely is a calamity which renders the movie version something not quite a reasonable adaptation of this particular musical.

Too bad ... because Burton’s Sweeney Todd has much to recommend it.

And, fine, Tim Burton has a Q&A after tonight’s showing at The Dome, but it’s sold out. I have more than a few questions I’d like to ask him about what in the world he was thinking.

Bah.



.

[Alex]

Two duds in a row. Saw Walk Hard last Sunday. It was ok at best, swinging between being decent enough satire to being simply stupid Scary Movie style spoof. Admittedly it had better actors than the Scary Movie movies but still; I half expected Leslie Nielson to walk on screen at some point. I liked the music though.

And nobody warned me that Tim Meadows in the movie. That guy just sucks the funny out of a room. Some day, our deep space astronauts will stumble across a galaxy mysteriously lacking in funny. And then they'll find Tim Meadows in the middle of that galaxy where the black whole should be and all will be explained.

Tonight I saw Sweeney Todd with Lani. I've never seen a stage version of it and didn't really know anything about it. For the first time in years I was a hairs breadth away from leaning over and asking Lani if she wanted to leave. It was simply so horribly boring. Then it picked up a bit and I wanted to see if I had predicted the ending correctly (mostly yes).

Snoozefest. I don't remember the last time I was in a theater with an audience that was so restless. Constant fidgeting, coughing, scratching, watch checking, throat clearing. But maybe that was just me projecting onto everybody else (I had forgotten to put my watch back on before leaving home so I couldn't check my own watch).

Lani was equally bored and now she has points on me since I pretty much dragged her there.

[mousepod]

We just got back from seeing Juno. What a wonderful movie. I remember last year when everyone was raving about Little Miss Sunshine, and when we finally saw it it just didn't match up to our overcharged expectations. Not so with this one. A great script, wonderful soundtrack, and good acting all around. I think what struck Heather and I most is that none of the characters became caricatures - even when their behavior moved the plot into uncomfortable territory, we still liked them. I'll be rooting for this one at the Golden Globes and (hopefully) the Oscars.

[Strangler Lewis]

Well, maybe then, I'll see it in the theatres. The clips I've seen suggest that this is a movie that's too in love with its own quirkiness. Same problem that's keeping me from rushing to "The Savages."

Saw "Charlie Wilson's War" last night. Really good. I tend to think that a litttle of Aaron Sorkin's writing goes a long way, and this movie is another universe of quirky and damaged characters who are all really good at their job. Nonetheless, it mostly works. I would have gotten rid of the awards ceremony that framed the movie and ended it with Gust's speech on the balcony with the chilling sound effect. Alternatively, I would have added a scene, if justified by real events, of Julia Roberts's character not caring about the endgame.

[Moonliner]

Cloverfield.

[LSPoorEeyorick]

I did enjoy Ratatouille, but I have to say that it's no longer my pick for best animated film of 2007. Persepolis is.

Beautiful black-and-white traditional animation. Incredibly interesting, informative and (chiefly) moving story about a woman (Marijan, the director of the film and the author of the graphic novels upon which it is based) through youth in Tehran, her teenaged years during which she was sent to safety in Vienna, and her return as an adult to her parents and her home. It's fiesty, it's funny, and more than a little enlightening about the history of Iran and the experience of a single person's struggle to come to terms with a culture that attempts to stifle her very vibrant personality (and her interest in pop music. There's a hell of a montage set to Marijan herself singing "Eye of the Tiger" that will remain very close to my heart for a long time.) I really recommend this film about family, culture, identity, and the feeling of being a stranger, in a foreign land or in your own. I think it may actually be my favorite film of 2007 (of those which I've seen so far; at this point we're only missing a handful from the For Your Consideration-type ads.)

[Ghoulish Delight]

And nobody warned me that Tim Meadows in the movie. That guy just sucks the funny out of a room.
Aww, no Tim Meadows love? Not even for the "You don't want any part of this sh!t!" scenes (especially the first)? I like Tim, loved Ladies Man, went in expecting to despise it.

[Alex]

Nope, no love. The first drug scene was amusing but just barely and continuous repetition through the movie beat the humor out of it. The Ladies Man would probably make my Top 25 All Time Worst Movies I Actually Sat All the Way Through list.

When he does one of his appearances on Craig Ferguson's show that it my signal that it is time to turn off the TV and get some sleep.

I've never been a regular watcher of SNL so maybe he used up all his brilliance there. I do wonder what he does with all the funny he sucks out of rooms since he doesn't radiate it back out. Maybe he has it compressed down into bricks and is building a home.

[Gemini Cricket]

I just loved Knocked Up. What a great flick. I will watch anything Apatow and Rogen do from now on.

The dialog was terrific. People talk like this. I hate it when movies have dialog that doesn't sound realistic.

I must say this though, this movie was one big giant trick to get straight men to see a chick-flick. Just like Jerry Maguire. Make it look like you're in to see a bunch of straight guys bonding and *wham* you're in a chick-flick, straight boy.

:D

[BarTopDancer]

Cloverfield.

If this movie is about the damn smoke monster from LOST! I am going to be pissed! Unless it gives answers about said smoke monster. But then it'll open up a bunch of new questions.

[JWBear]

We watched a cool old movie last night. Romance on the High Seas (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040745/) with Doris Day in her first movie role! It also stars a very young Don DeFore. The plot is simple and enjoyable. The songs are just so-so. But the sets and costumes are absolutly STUNNING!

[Bornieo: Fully Loaded]

I saw I am Legend last night. It was ok. I didn't feel there was any substance to the whole thing other than special effects, which were good. I need to read the book to see what it's really about I think because there was something missing in the film.

5 bornieo's out of 10

[innerSpaceman]

^ something MAJOR missing, according to Chernabog at NYE (I haven't read the book myself)

[Alex]

Out of curiosity, since at this point it doesn't look like I'll be seeing it, what did he say was missing (I have read the book)?

[innerSpaceman]

Alex, as I understand it, in the book Neville becomes the titular "Legend" because he is the boogeyman of the new civilzation of albino, sun-allergic creatures that inherit the earth as the dominant species after the demise of 20th century homosapians. Supposedly, it's a neat twist that our hero is revealed to be the bad guy from the only perspective that counts once he's dead. Is that right?

In the film, he's not the last man alive. He gives a blood sample of his resistent plasma to a woman and boy he has hide in a crawl space from albino attackers, and then he is killed. There is no explanation why Neville himself could not hide in the crawl space, too ... and thus live to provide far more than a blood sample to science. But in the film, it's his blood sample that provides the cure, and thus He Is Legend.

Chernabog says "BAH"

[Alex]

Jesus Christ on a Crutch! They neutered the entire point of the book and the thing that makes it brilliant.

Now I'll definitely have to see it on DVD to judge if they replaced with something that still plays well (and only sounds stupid in comparison to the source). I've always said I don't see how a good faithful adaptation can be made since so much of the book is purely internal to the protagonist, but still, if you aren't going to keep that part, why adapt the book?

[innerSpaceman]

Since this is the third film adaptation to leave that out, that seemingly logical question seems nevertheless to be moot.

[Alex]

I haven't seen the other two but I understand that they so mucked with the story that they were only barely faithful to the book. I'd been lead to expect that other than broadly cosmetic changes this one was much more faithful.

Guess I was wrong.

[innerSpaceman]

It was a good movie till that final bit. Maybe when I rent it, I'll watch the first two-thirds, and then read the last third of the book.:p

[LSPoorEeyorick]

Wait...

He died in the movie?

Then it really broke from the screenplay we pitched on...

[Moonliner]

I just saw Legin tonight, I have to say the ending was rather abrupt. I wonder if we will one day see an extended DVD with an alternate, more faithful to the book, ending.

[LSPoorEeyorick]

Oh, my. iSm's already recommended it, but I heartily agree. The Orphanage was a wonderful, wonderfully creepy film. Both Tom and I were tied up in tension, almost the whole time. I thought that the narrative structure, the echoing elements throughout, the whole screenplay in general, was really top-notch. I'll have to see how it weathers with me, but some of the imagery is definitely still with me today. It definitely is toe-to-toe with, for instance, The Others, but for atmospheric quality and tension, I would even compare it with Rosemary's Baby.

I'd pre-emptively made a personal top ten list of films of 2007 yesterday morning, but I'm having to reconsider it after seeing that last night.

[Gemini Cricket]

Juno.
I have to agree with a couple of critics and say it's one of the best films of the year.
I completely enjoyed it.
Wonderful soundtrack.
Ellen Page should be nominated for a Best Actress Oscar.
If you haven't seen it, you bloody should!
:)

PS - There is a particular song from the film that is tattooed on my mind.

[flippyshark]

I admired The Orphanage quite a bit, particularly the lead performance. And it did have terrific atmosphere. However, the movie sadly contained one of the most odious of current horror movie cliches. I refer to
the bus or truck that rushes in suddenly from screen left, taking out an unsuspecting, to say nothing of unobservant, character. The effect is not unlike a train squashing Wile E. Coyote. This shock-shtick is overused, and for me, unintentionally slapstick funny. So, in The Orphanage, I don't object to the plot point of a character being run over, just the hackneyed way in which it was presented. On the other hand, the best shock moment in the movie followed just a minute later.

[Alex]

I'd be curious if you mentioned some of the others that have that. I'm not a big horror fan but I can't think of any off the top of my head (Meet Joe Black was the first thing that came to mind but obviously not horror).

[innerSpaceman]

And yet The Orphanage was just snubbed by the Academy, and is not in the final running for best foreign language film nominations. Um, neither is Persepolis. WTF??? Heads up their collective arses, I believe

[flippyshark]

Final Destination comes to mind as the first time I saw the gag. If I recall correctly, it's also in Bride of Chucky Other examples may come to me. (I know I've rolled my eyes at several instances, staged nearly identically, elsewhere.)

[Alex]

Neither if 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days from Romania. I haven't seen any of these three but this one is the one that seems to be causing the most shock.

Maybe the foreign language committee is going the way of the documentary one.

[Bornieo: Fully Loaded]

I saw JUNO last night and I really didn't want to like this film. On the good side you have really good acting all around - Jennifer Garner surpised me the most. The wity dialogue was a surprise but almost got to the point of unrealisticly annoying and I think that's why I think it wasn't a GREAT film. It was good and prob. in my top 10 for the year but it seemed that the story jumped from realizm to fantasy and you kind of have to use a "suspension of disbelief" just to get thru the film.

I think one of the reasons for going into the film not wanting to like it is that its fallen into the Nepolian Dynamite rut where its snappy dialogue, quirky characters and odd songs. In the end I think that just becomes the new chiche'.

I give it good marks for being funny and well acted. 8 bornieos out of 10.

:)

[Gemini Cricket]

The thing that bugs about that is that buses, cars are not quiet. You can hear them from a block away. A normal person could hear that and avoid getting hit. Meh.
Mean Girls is another example.

[Stan4dSteph]

It was used in an episode of LOST too.

[flippyshark]

Saw Cloverfield today. For some reason, I'm inclined to give it more props than it probably deserves, maybe because I really dig kaiju eiga as a genre. However, I hope this is the movie that buries the Blair Witch handycam style forever. Blair Witch Project made me feel queasy, and so did Cloverfield. I sat in the back of the theater for both, and still had to look away from the screen on occasion. What an unpleasant sensation. I guess I'm more sensitive than others in that regard.

Anyhow, I thought the movie had some clever ideas and impressive sequences. Characters were paper thin (by necessity) and the story was a foregone conclusion, but I was surprised when the audience began to boo at the closing credits. Wuh-oh!

[Ghoulish Delight]

I sat in the back of the theater for both, and still had to look away from the screen on occasion. What an unpleasant sensation. I guess I'm more sensitive than others in that regard.That seals it for me, I will never be able to watch this movie. When I saw Blair Witch I took Dramamine in anticipation, and that still wasn't enough. I barely made it through the movie without losing my lunch. Never again will I put myself through that.

[Gemini Cricket]

I lost my lunch watching Waking Life. Yak!!!

[Alex]

Just saw Cloverfield. The shakycam didn't bother me (but then it didn't in Blair Witch either).

It wasn't great but it was good. A few very suspenseful moments and for the most part it remains true to its conceit of being from the point of view of a small group of people involved in a terrible event but in no way centrally involved.

A lot of grumbling when the movie was over, though. If you really want a traditional narrative structure all the way to the end you're going to be disappointed and I suspect the second week for this one isn't going to be great.

Teaser for the next Star Trek before the next movie. Still not excited. Plus it looked like they were building the Enterprise on the planet surface in atmosphere which makes absolutely no sense.

[Alex]

Also watched Helvetica tonight as a test of Netflix's newly expanded on-demand download system.

It is a documentary about the font but not so much about the font as about designers who have strong feelings about the font. Some interesting stuff (as is bound to happen when you have people on screen who say things like "I was morally opposed to Helvetica" with a straight face) but pretty much nothing of any substance other than reinforcing that people who dedicate their life to a small niche feel that niche is interesting and important.

[flippyshark]

Wow! A documentary about fonts? That hurts my brain. Guess I should go ahead with my ambitious plan to make a trilogy of three-hour films about college-rule notebook paper versus legal pads.

[innerSpaceman]

I unexpectedly loved Cloverfield (http://www.loungeoftomorrow.com/LoT/showpost.php?p=186486&postcount=45) ... but posted more in detail about that it the, er, Cloverfield thread.


As for the Star Trek trailer ...I got the impresison it was not footage from the film, but simply a teaser for teaser purposes only (because, yeah, building the Enterprise on a planet's surface would be insanely stupid and would not "fly" - heheh - with Star Trek fans.) Um, the teaser got a tepid reaction from the mega-excited, J.J. Abrams-loving, fanboy audience at the Chinese. Not good.


But I appreciated that it didn't seem like "real" movie footage, though maybe I am wrong. Although the Cloverfield teaser really hooked me, it was real footage of one of the highlights of the movie ... which was then less exciting than it could have been when I finally saw it in the context of the film. Oh well. Still loved it.

[Alex]

Wow! A documentary about fonts? That hurts my brain. Guess I should go ahead with my ambitious plan to make a trilogy of three-hour films about college-rule notebook paper versus legal pads.

It did remind me of this much shorter and more energetic short film: Behind the Typeface: Cooper Black (http://www.veer.com/ideas/btt/).

It is in the style of VH-1s Behind the Music documentaries.

[JWBear]

We watched Baghdad Cafe again tonight. I forgot how good it is.

[Gemini Cricket]

We watched Baghdad Cafe again tonight. I forgot how good it is.
I love that film!
:)

[innerSpaceman]

I finally saw Juno yesterday. A shining example of why I should see films before the hype gets to high. I was mildly disappointed. Even though I was completely entertained, found it funny and charming, and really appreciated the way they handled her dilemma of flirting with Mark to the point of awakening him right of out of the marriage she needed to be sustained for her baby adoption.

Also, I did not find anything unusual or requiring of belief-suspension about her teenage lingo. Not in the least. And I liked all the performances. I just didn't think the movie was that big a deal.




Similarly, I don't think There Will Be Blood (which I also saw yesterday) particularly lives up to its hype. Still, it's a fantastic movie with a stunning peformance by Daniel Day Lewis. Perhaps not at the Citizen Kane level it's being hoisted to by critics, but a great American film about a meglomaniacal oil tycoon at the turn of the century.



Not that it's a competition or anything, but I would recommend seeing There Will Be Blood in theaters right now ... while Juno is, imo, a fine Netflix film at home.

[LSPoorEeyorick]

I found more that required suspension of disbelief in There Will Be Blood than in Juno. Particularly had problems with the last scene. Sure, Day Lewis had a great performance (as did the actor who played his son) but they were definitely flirting with the line of melodrama, a line I prefer to keep my distance from unless it's handled with a fair bit of comedy. Any attempt at comedy in TWBB fell flat for me. There were things to like about the film, sure, but on the whole it disappointed me. And fanboys are trying to bring "I drink your milkshake" into the realm of the mega-quotes (idrinkyourmilkshake.com) - while I would prefer to create a website called ithinkyourmilkshakeisoverrated.

[innerSpaceman]

Interestingly, perhaps, the milkshake straw analogy to oil field drainage was made, in reality, by New Mexico Republican Senator Albert Fall during Congressional hearings on the Teapot Dome scandal of the 1920's. Truth is often stranger than fiction .... and while this bit perhaps stands out in the film as over the top, it's actually a true quote dating from the period being portrayed.


I think the humor in There Will Be Blood worked wonderfully in the interplay between Plainfield and Sunday. The audience I saw it with thought so too.


To each his own ... or, for fun, should we have Juno Fan vs. Blood Fan WAR?!

[Alex]

We made it a day out in The City yesterday, ending with seeing There Will Be Blood way out at the Bridge Theater.

It wasn't the best conclusion to a great day we could have had but it certainly sparked conversation. Daniel Day-Lewis is fantastic. The movie was obviously made by an amazing filmmaker. The first hour was pretty great. The final 15 minutes pretty much forces you to consider it in relation to Citizen Kane, a sure sign of an extremely confident writer/director but in the end it isn't a comparison made well.

I was never bored but did eye my watch several times through the movie and when they moved to 1927 from 1911 I was definitely dreading another long segment. Fortunately it was only 15 minutes or so.

We had about 5 walkouts during our showing. I don't think anybody was disgusted by the movie (the usual cause of walkouts in my experience) but rather simply worn down, bored, and not sure how much more they were in for.

Glad I saw it, but my vote for No Country for Old Men as the best 2007 movie I've seen is safe. There Will Be Blood wouldn't make my top five.

[innerSpaceman]

Heheh, I compared it with No Country, too. I guess since they are the bigger "serious" movies of the season. I liked and admired them both.

The final act of No Country didn't sit too well with me ... and yet I consider it a fine film because I couldn't stop thinking about it for days.

I don't find myself ruminating too much on There'll Be Blood ... but I thoroughly enjoyed it's brief 3rd act that played off Citizen Kane so cannily (but yeah, if that's what prompted all the comparisons to the Welles classic, the filmmaker didn't do himself any favors with a choice that I happen to have enjoyed.)

[CoasterMatt]

I know this may sound ridiculous, but the Diving Bell and the Butterfly hit me in such an odd way, I nearly sobbed through sections of it.

It was like a visual representation of the odd dreamlike state I sometimes have after a particularly bad seizure, where I know I'm awake, but can't convey that to anybody.

As much as I love No Country, I'd take Diving Bell over it as my favorite film of 2007.

[LSPoorEeyorick]

I also quite like Diving Bell - but not as much as Persepolis. Unfortunately, neither is on the shortlist for best foreign language film because France's proposed entry - Persepolis - didn't make the cut. Not that I care particularly if they win (though Oscar prognostication is a big hobby of mine) but I'd love for them both to have extra publicity. The Orphanage, too.

[Alex]

Watched 3 documentaries this weekend:

Helvetica - I think I mentioned this already but can't remember if it was here or in LJ and I'm too lazy to look upthread. Vaguely interesting.

Breasts: A Documentary - An hour-long Cinemax doc from back in the late '90s. Some interesting insights. 22 women talking about all aspects of their boobs and their relationships with said protuberances. The part about breast implants was particularly interesting since it was made right near the silicone hysteria and accepts it as fact but the last ten years has not been kind to the broad claims being made back then without much scientific evidence.

Maxed Out - A documentary about the perils and insanity of easy credit and predatory lending. Filmed just a few months too soon so misses the beginning of the real estate meltdown. Nothing in the movie is necessarily wrong but it really glosses over the role of personal responsibility as if somehow massive credit card debt is a random disease that strikes without warning.

[Gemini Cricket]

There's a movie coming out called How She Move. I can't tell you how much that irks me. How She Moves, yes. How She Move... is lame.

[Gn2Dlnd]

There's a movie coming out called How She Move. I can't tell you how much that irk me. How She Moves, yes. How She Move... is lame.

Fixed it for ya.

[innerSpaceman]

Please tell me he did not just alter someone's quote for comic effect?!? :cool:

[Stan4dSteph]

I saw U23D in IMAX yesterday. It is amazing. Truly an awesome experience. The 3D is impressive without being gimmicky and the sound was phenomenal. Go see it.

[LSPoorEeyorick]

I heard a review on NPR and my first thought was - I wonder if Steph will see that today? : )

[Not Afraid]

I heard a review on NPR and my first thought was - I wonder if Steph will see that today? : )'

LOL! I heard the same review and CALLED Steph to see if she wanted to meet on a coast to see it. Little did I know, she was already in a theater in NYC.

[flippyshark]

U23D sounds like fun. I think it's playing somewhere out here. I know the Hannah Montana live 3D concert film is playing nearby, though, and I'm sure I'd enjoy that just as much. :rolleyes:

[Gemini Cricket]

Please spank me and tell me he did not just alter someone's quote for comic effect?!? :cool:
Yeah, people shouldn't do that.



:D

[Gemini Cricket]

At one point, I looked at the rottentomatoes rating for Rambo. It said -1%. That's what I was expecting it to be...
:D

[Snowflake]

At one point, I looked at the rottentomatoes rating for Rambo. It said -1%. That's what I was expecting it to be...
:D
That much? I'm surprised.

[Alex]

It looks like it is an unfulfilled hope but I did leave the door open for there to be some quality to Rambo. I was really surprised by how good Rocky Balboa was.

[Alex]

Just a head's up for anybody in the Bay Area. The Stanford Theater is working their way through Hitchcock's career with new double features (http://www.stanfordtheatre.org/stf/calendars/Hitchcock%202008.html)every weekend through the end of March.

If it turns out they're showing a 3-D print of Dial "M" for Murder I'll definitely be there that weekend.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Just saw Juno last night (small theater almost sold out, the nod got it some attention). I really enjoyed it, lots of fun. They figured out the only way to get me to watch a movie about teen/unwanted pregnancy, and that's have the mother in question react in a hilariously blase fashion about it. Everyone was great, the writing was wonderfully witty...though I have to agree with some of you above, it's a pretty unrealistic portrayal. Again, to me, that's what makes it enjoyable. A real 16 year old's reaction to getting pregnant is not a fun thing to watch.

There were some great, wonderfully quotable lines, some amazing writing, and that much, I loved.

I was not thrilled with the music. Quirky and fun at first, but every song had the same feel to it, no matter what scene was unrolling in front of it, which just seemed lazy. Also, she kept mentioning her favorite punk bands, and they never play any of it, just these upbeat silly songs that I'm not so sure she would like. It didn't jive at all. I did love Mark's character of aging 90's rocker, but again, one 20 second clip of Sonic Youth covering the Carpenters? Where was the music that played such a large part of the interplay between them??

That said - Best Picture? I don't think so. Not that I've seen any other heavyweights this year, but still, I can't solidly root for this one.

[innerSpaceman]

^ They played Astrid Gilberto, which is what young 16-year-olds who are into punk enjoy once they reach their parents age. (ahem, yours truly a case-in-point). It was a musical comment on parenting, yeah, uh-huh.

[Gn2Dlnd]

I've been seeing these Rambo posters around town, and I thought they were advertising an anniversary re-release or something. I had no idea it was a new movie. Oy.

[flippyshark]

Such odd franchise numbering - First Blood, then Rambo: First Blood Part Two, then Rambo 3, followed, naturally, by Rambo - it's perfectly logical.

[MmeLytyeer]

I'm always disapointed with the ending to "Kissing Jessica Stein", I've watched it a few times, hoping that I'll like the ending, I just can't seem to like it, she should end up with Helen
-----
Also, saw "Very Bad Things" under somewhat of a recommendation from Sub La Goon, wow what a piece of sh*t. The part with the prostitute dying and Cameron Diaz trying to get him to kill the dog are about the only funny parts. Other than that it seems to be just a bad dark comedy with Christian Slater playing a grown up version of his character from "Heathers" and the use of the word fuc abot a million times

[innerSpaceman]

Netflix Newsflash: Wow, I did not absolutely hate Pirates 3. It was (until the final battle) far less slapstick stupid silly than the middle one. It was far too long and drawn out and boring at too many times, but overall ... wow I was surprised I didn't hate it, and ultra surprised there was so much I liked about it.


2nd feature: Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Great songs. Stupid Movie. (I think I felt the same way about Once.)

[alphabassettgrrl]

I'm with you on Hedwig.

[CoasterMatt]

I'm watching Stop Making Sense today- one of my all time favorite concert films.

[innerSpaceman]

I'll go you one better ... it's my ALL-TIME-FAVORITE concert movie. Love It!

[wendybeth]

I agree, iSm- I loved that group, and that film is awesome!:snap:


(Another, more recent, good one is Green Day's 'Bullet in a Bible').

[Not Afraid]

The film is awsome, but the live show was SPECTACULAR!

[innerSpaceman]

Ugh, i hate you. It's the one concert i almost went to, and most regret missing. Bah.


(Actually, i love that you went. If i can't do something cool, it's nice consolation that people i love did it.)

[LSPoorEeyorick]

I have little interest in seeing Rambo, but I am TOTALLY in for seeing Son of Rambow (http://movies.aol.com/movie/son-of-rambow/28980/video/son-of-rambow-trailer-no-1/2058599), which seems to be in the vein of Be Kind, Rewind except British and with kids. And stunts. And Rambo.

[Gemini Cricket]

Fool's Gold = 9% on rottentomatoes.com.
How sad.
:)

[Alex]

Saw In Bruges the new Brendan Gleeson, Colin Farrell, and Ralph Fiennes gangster movie.

One of the reviews I read said something like "this is the movie that Guy Ritchie has been trying to make." Talk about screwing up my expectations. Accents and gangsters is about all it has in common with a Guy Ritchie movie.

Once I got out of the groove I was primed for and into the groove the movie actually wanted it is pretty good but I can't quite recommend going out of your way to see it theatrically. DVD will be fine. The last 30 minutes does an unusually fine job of tying up the various elements that preceded it and seemed like random foolishness at the time and yet still feels very organic.

It was also my first time at the Kabuki in San Francisco as a paying customer since they completed their conversion into a Sundance theater. I don't give a damn about upscale chocolates and Mexican Coke at the snack bar but the seats were nice, I do love me reserved seating, and we'll definitely have to try the balcony bar on a future visit.

[mistyisjafo]

Just saw 27 Dresses. I disliked it IMMENSELY. I didn't find it funny, cute or even remotely heart warming. I didn't care about any of the characters and as it slowly dragged its way to an obvious ending I was more angry and annoyed at the main character than engaged.

I admit, I'm a cynic of the worst caliber but I've like many a comedy romance movie. This one just made me want to roll my eyes and hope for a great spoof movie!

[Gemini Cricket]

Can I just say that I adore the film Gosford Park. I can watch it over and over.

But...

Can I also say that I completely loathe Ryan Phillipe? God! Every time I see him, I just want to punch him in the nose. Ugh. Good-looking, talentless piece of scrod. It's like Keanu in Much Ado about Nothing. Bleck.

[innerSpaceman]

Elizabeth: The Golden Age is not the train wreck the critics made it out to be.

It wasn't quite up to the standards of the first film, but I found it an admirable companion piece. For once, I found it appropriate to have a sequel made a decade later, because the characters can be noticeably older ... as appropriate to this particular story.


I liked the different lighting scheme (Golden Age indeed) and loved the costumes and thought Cate was great as Liz, and Clive Owen is hubba hubba as always.

I think we forget how schmaltzy and melodramatic the original was. This one's just a tad more cheesy.


Curious though. In the Cate Blanchette films, Elizabeth has two love affairs, and in the Helen Mirren miniseries, she has two different love affairs.

Were they all true?

[Gemini Cricket]

Curious though. In the Cate Blanchette films, Elizabeth has two love affairs, and in the Helen Mirren miniseries, she has two different love affairs.

Were they all true?
First was Robert Dudley. The Earl of Leicester. Her favorite. He was played by Jeremy Irons and Joseph Finnes. He apparently was a lover of Elizabeth's although everyone concerned considered her to be a virgin for the record. He died of cancer. Stomach, I think. She was destroyed after he died.

Second was another Robert, Robert Devereaux. The 2nd Earl of Essex. The treasonous rogue. His father was Walter Devereaux. He was the first Earl of Essex. Therefore, I think the father/son thang in the Mirren version is incorrect. He was beheaded by Elizabeth and apparently she became devastated by her own decision (as with a number of them) to have him killed. There are speculations that he slept with her as well. He was played by the yummy Hugh Dancy in the Mirren version.

Edit to add: Dudley was Essex's stepfather. That makes more sense...

As for Walter Raleigh, it's not for certain whether he was a lover of Elizabeth's but he was a favorite as well. There is skepticism on whether he banged her or not.

[Alex]

I never saw the first one but I just watched Elizabeth: The Golden Age this weekend and it was thoroughly atrocious in my opinion. Definitely not a good weekend of movie watching:

La Vie en Rose: Wonderful singing but the movie itself was dreadfully boring. Standard musical biopic arc of tough childhood, sudden stardom, descent into bad behavior. But the singing was amazing. They should have just cut the rest and released it as a soundtrack.

Oscar Nominated Animated Shorts: All were unimpressive, most felt like art school finals where the goal was not overall coherence but display of animation techniques.

Oscar Nominated Live Action Shorts: Not horrible but not amazing either. The best of the bunch wasn't really a short and the best short was amusing but nothing I'll remember in a year.

Rambo: Was convinced to finally see this because of some friends saying it was good butt kicking action. It wasn't. It was just gory gunfights. However, when I'm 60-something I want Stallone's forearms (the only muscles put on display) even if it means years of chemical inducement.

Untraceable: For a suspense thriller involving a lot of computers it wasn't horrible. They goofed badly in not taking into account the way the internet likely would have really reacted to such a scheme but if they had there wouldn't have been a movie.

Jumper: An interesting idea ruined horribly by two decisions: casting Hayden Christensen and the horrible hair on Samuel L. Jackson. The woodenness of Christensen almost makes me think his acting in the prequels wasn't Lucas's fault (except for the fact that everybody else in the prequels was horrible too). Played more like a high-end TV pilot/movie than a standalone big screen affair. The eye was definitely too much on the next movies that will surely come. After a very impressive go at the first Bourne movie, this is a second major face plant for director Doug Liman (the other being the truly reprehensible Mr. and Mrs. Smith).

[Not Afraid]

Essex was a definite lover and her companion for quite a whiel, but it's been ages since I went through my Elizabeth reading phase so I don't remember if Leicester was really a lover or not.

[innerSpaceman]

Um, Alex ... you do realize that the singing in La Vie en Rose was all Edith Piaf, and that the actress was lip-synching??


For a standard arc biopic, I loved it. Can't help it if Piaf's life followed a standard artist arc. Maybe there's a reason there's a standard artist arc.

[Alex]

Yes, that, perhaps with too much subtlety, was my point. The movie had nothing much to recommend it so just get a Piaf CD and listen to that.

Though all of the singing wasn't Edith Piaf, not everything existed in recorded form that could be used in the movie. One of the NPR shows had an interview with Jil Aigrot the French woman who four songs in the movie. She has a successful career in France doing Piaf tribute shows (here's some of it on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjHy-0-vqHE)).

And it certainly isn't her fault that it is a timeworn story. But that doesn't make it any more interesting to see it for the fourth or fifth time in a couple years.

[Gemini Cricket]

As far as Elizabeth I goes, I have favorite portrayals and not so favorite portrayals concerning her.

My favorite portrayal is by Glenda Jackson in BBC's Elizabeth R. It's a 70's telling of the story. It looks dated, but I find it to be the most accurate. Jackson's portrayal is not glamorous nor glossy, I liked it tremendously. As far as the Essex and Dudley, they were adequate.

I enjoyed Mirren's Elizabeth I. The story seems iffy in places, but it's okay. She is terrific, she plays the edge she had well. Jeremy Irons was great as Dudley. Dancy did a good job showing the impetuousness of Essex.

I also like Cate Blanchett's take on Elizabeth, but the movie is not great. (I have not seen the 2nd one.) I liked the way the relationship of E and Dudley was portrayed. The big dance number between the two was a bit much, I thought.

I absolutely disliked the Elizabeth in the 2005 Virgin Queen. I also hated the modern music that accompanied the story. It was a weird attempt to youthify the story and make it more hip. Ick.

I adore the relationship between Elizabeth and Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love. Because he did, in fact, write the plays for her. And I have a soft spot for Mirren but moreso for Judi Dench. It's a great display of what her latter years were like. She was quite a wreck, but still very much in charge.

There are many, many more but these are noteworthy. I avoided the 2nd part of Blanchett's Elizabeth because the reviews were horrid. I figured it could wait.

So, if you're looking for an excellent portrayal checkout the Glenda Jackson Elizabeth R. I'm not too fond of the Bette Davis portrayals of her.

[innerSpaceman]

Oooh, i want to see the Glenda Jackson version.


I love Judi Dench as Older Liz in Shakespear in Love. I also love the casting irony of that movie, made within a year of Elizabeth, I think. Both films share Elizabeth as a character, and Geoffrey Rush and Joseph Feines as actors.


I think Cate was better as younger Liz (and duly nominated for an Oscar and catapulted to stardom for that portrayal). But I don't find her turn as older Elizabeth as poor by any stretch. I also don't think the dance number in the orignal was over the top, and it has a wonderfully romantic echo in the recent sequel (the one moment where they use a tiny bit of footage from the earlier film).


Haha ... i also love that JWBear has switched his male hottie avatar to Clive Owen as Walter Raleigh from Elizabeth TGA. (but i'll really miss his last hottie, whom I found a blisteringly hot hottie.)

[Not Afraid]

What about Bette?

[Gemini Cricket]

I don't know, the dance scene seemed too revealing of a relationship that was in the closet. There would be no doubt in anyone's mind that they were intimate if they danced like that in front of everyone.

But I will agree that it's smolder-y. :)

Another thing I remembered:
The treachery and the fact that the people around her wanted her dead often was portrayed well in the GJ version. Her life and reign was not glamorous and fanciful, it was quite the opposite.

[Snowflake]

What about Bette?

Oh, now GC, Bette Davis AND Joan Collins? Hootfest of the highest order!

Bette in the Warner's Private Lives of Elizabeth & Essex is wonderful classic Hollywood and one would never expect it to be historically accurate. Errol Flynn is so incredibly handsome as the roguish Essex and Bette is very mannered as Elizabeth (with all the usual Bette ticks), that said, it's a fun watch. Gorgeous costuming, beautiful lighting, tech-NI-color, great Korngold score. It's never dull, it is what it is. Besides, imagine what it would have been like if Ginger Rogers had gotten the part, she lobbied hard for it and did a test (which does not exist, so I understand). That would have been painful in 1939 and a camp hootfest today.

I loved Mirren's Elizabeth. I will see Golden Age this week once it hits the mailbox.

[Snowflake]

Alex, I disagree with you about Cotilard merely lip synching. I thought she was riveting as Piaf. Make up helped a good deal - those last years Piaf looked like more than a train wreck and there were moments when I kept thinking that Cotilard was Piaf, the body language, etc. was dead on.

My complaint was that too much time was spent on her terrible childhood and early years, then it was a whirlwind of "instant" success and then the inevitable and speedy downfall. Thye cut far more out of Piaf's life than they used in the film. It was much a Cliff Notes version. But I thought Cotilard was a standout.

[innerSpaceman]

Yes she was. I instantly thought Oscar after seeing her performance, and I hope she wins on Sunday.


Ah, Elizabeth. Let's have a marathon and watch Bette, Glenda, Cate, Helen and Judi till our eyes pop out.


All that them took liberties with history. Oh, like we can ever really know what the true history was of 50 years ago, much less 500.

But in Elizabeth, her relationship with Dudley was hardly in the closet at all. It was out out out there. I don't think the dance was out of place in that context. Maybe historically incorrect (or maybe not), but certainly in keeping with the film ... where they carried on in public in 15 or 20 scenes.

I don't recall the Helen version as well. Was she secretive about Jeremy Irons? Ugh, who could be???

[Strangler Lewis]

What about Bette?

What about Jenny Runacre?

[Alex]

Alex, I disagree with you about Cotilard merely lip synching.

I didn't say she was merely lip-synching. Cotilard was fine, I was just bored with everything that didn't involve singing (all of which was lip synched, whether to Piaf or Aigrot).

Currently I've seen four of the five nominees for Best Actress (and if I have time I will see Julie Christie in Away from Her tonight) and I'd put her as the best among the other nominees, that's just not a terribly high bar this year. Laura Linney was fine but there was nothing special about The Savages; Ellen Page was good in Juno; maybe Blanchett was good in Queen Elizabeth and just tainted by the overall stink of the movie so I'm not seeing it.

[Snowflake]

Alex, I stand corrected, sorry bout that.

I'd love to see Cotilard win, I think she truly deserves it. It was, for what it was, a tour de force performance.

Julie Christie has my sentimental vote.

[Gemini Cricket]

I saw Bourne Ultimatum the other night. I highly recommend it.
It's a wonderful action film. One of the best I've seen in awhile.
The editing is so fierce, I can't believe how many cuts this film has.
And I can't believe the locations that they shot in. There's a huge scene in the middle of the busiest tube station in London and then there's a huge chase scene in Tangiers that is wonderful. There's one jump that the Bourne character takes that is tremendous.
I definitely want to watch all 3 back to back sometime.
Interesting that Matt Damon is now the golden boy and Ben Affleck is nowhere to be found. Interesting.


An interesting thing I found out is that casting can sometimes give away some of the plot. Or at least it can direct you in a way as a viewer.
I saw in the credits that Albert Finney was cast in the film. And seeing 3/4 of it and not seeing him yet, I figured out that he was going to explain the whole Bourne secret. Why else would he take the part if it wasn't a significant role? And his scene would have to be a major one if he had not a single piece of dialogue 3/4 of the way in. I think they should have hidden the fact that Finney was in it and surprised us with his appearance and his revelation.

That was also a big giveaway for me when I saw Appointment with Death. I thought to myself, why on earth would Lauren Bacall be in this film? She's a heavy hitter. She wouldn't do this film unless... Yes, it could have been John Gielgud but I just knew it was her. And it was.

[CoasterMatt]

It was music movies night tonight on HD Movies - Imagine: John Lennon, followed by Pink Floyd: The Wall

I'm comfortably numb :)

[Chernabog]

I watched "Sunshine" yesterday on Bluray and thought it was sort of meh. Like, it visually looked good, and the acting was good (Cillian Murphy still has beautiful eyes) but the last act of the movie went off in a bad bad direction after an amazingly cool and thought provoking setup.

That seems to be a running theme with Danny Boyle films. Two AMAZING first acts followed by a third one that makes you go... why WHY did you go there (see, for example, 28 Days Later and Trainspotting).

Though it was kinda cool to finally see something on profile 1.1 bluray (video-in-video) in the special features.

[Gemini Cricket]

So, I finally got around to sit down and watch the Russell Crowe 3:10 to Yuma. I like it so far, but I'm a little irked. I can't understand a word anyone is saying. It's quite aggravating. So, I turned on the subtitles just now.
Oy!

[Chernabog]

I usually watch movies with subtitles on, just so I don't miss dialog and then want to go back to see what people said.

[innerSpaceman]

Gemini Cricket, get the cow dung out of your ears. I had no problem understanding every word of that movie.

Fun movie, too. Christian Bale and Russell Crowe were great. Only Crowe I've been able to stomach (after eating) for years.


Last night I watched Oscar-nominee Ellen Page's (Juno) earlier film, Hard Candy.


Don't make the same mistake. :(

[Ponine]

Thats difficult little flick to get through. What made you decide to put that movie in the player?

[Gemini Cricket]

Lots of mumbling, struggling actors here and there tryin' to maintain some sort of accent... It ain't my ears, mister. (GC spits some tobacco juice into a nearby spittoon.) The tv's as loud as can be, I reckon.

:D

[Ponine]

I'm watching 3:10 tonight... I'll let you know what I think. ;)

[innerSpaceman]

Thats difficult little flick to get through. What made you decide to put that movie in the player?

Oh, all through Juno, my date kept wondering what she had seen Ellen Page in. Finally, an hour or so after the movie, she remembered Hard Candy. I asked if I should see it.

She said 'yes' - but advised me I would find it disturbing.

Ahem ...
I wish she would have spoilerized that warning with a more specific reference to vigilante castration. I would have demurred. No man should ever watch that film.

[innerSpaceman]

It ain't my ears, mister. (GC spits some tobacco juice into a nearby spittoon.) The tv's as loud as can be, I reckon.

I'm havin' a parcel o' troubles myself with that crazy western Lonesome Dove. Damn those hollywood cowboy types and their hifalutin' accent huntin'






(Cowboys ain't usually my thing anyway ... but how can I resist Robert Duval and Tommy Lee Jones hamming it up? Halfway thru and likin' it so far.)

[Gemini Cricket]

3:10 to Yuma is too distracting to watch. I want all of these cowboys to bed me and while I think of that, I can't concentrate on the story. Oh and have I mentioned that I'm going to marry Alan Tudyk?

Lonesome Dove is wonderful. :)

[cirquelover]

Oh, all through Juno, my date kept wondering what she had seen Ellen Page in. Finally, an hour or so after the movie, she remembered Hard Candy. I asked if I should see it.

She said 'yes' - but advised me I would find it disturbing.

Ahem ...
I wish she would have spoilerized that warning with a more specific reference to vigilante castration. I would have demurred. No man should ever watch that film.

I stumbled on that movie late one night on the movie channel. It was a movie I wished I hadn't watched. I couldn't even tell Gary about it, didn't want to freak him out or give him the heebie jeebies.

I didn't realize it was the same girl though, thanks!

[Gemini Cricket]

Well, I liked 3:10 to Yuma. It's a solid movie.
I guess it had to end the way it ended. Didn't want the boy to turn to the darkside, Ben's not all bad and he was just going to break out of Yuma anyway... Wife and family gets the money, they lose a one-legged dad.

[Sohrshah]

I really enjoyed 3:10 to Yuma. I've been watching Christian Bale since "Empire of the Sun", and Russel Crowe is... well, Russel Crowe. It was also fun to spot the guy who plays Wash on "Firefly" behind some really...interesting....facial hair.

Chernie - I also use the subtitles when I watch films at home, but then again, I really am kind of deaf.

[Gemini Cricket]

I found it interesting to spot Angel, too from the 3rd X-Men movie. I thought he was pretty grody looking.
:)

[Gemini Cricket]

I just finished Flags of Our Fathers.
I hadn't seen it before.
I have mixed feelings on it. I sorta liked it, I sorta didn't.
There were some strong performances in it, but the story as a whole seemed disjointed to me. I think it should have been told in a linear manner. Maybe it would have made more sense. But the jumping back and forth was confusing to me.
And, for the record, I didn't hate Ryan Phillipe in this one. He was alright and like iSm was saying to me earlier tonight, he was one of the few likable characters in this film.
The whole "who was in the picture and who wasn't" was also confusing to me. Too much info crammed in in a manner that seemed not well thought out.
I think Letters from Iwo Jima was a far superior film. It also feels like both were directed by two different people, which it wasn't.
Since both were shot close together and by the same director, it would have been nice to see a bit of overlapping between the two films. But there wasn't much except the suicides in the tunnels.
I give it a 2 and a half star rating. I'd give Iwo Jima 4 stars.

[CoasterMatt]

I usually watch movies with subtitles on, just so I don't miss dialog and then want to go back to see what people said.
Even porn? :)

[Bornieo: Fully Loaded]

Porn with French subtitles makes it more ligitimate. ;)

[innerSpaceman]

For the record (and not to be disagreeable with the esteemed Mr. Cricket or anything), I found Fags of Our Fathers completely comprehensible, and I LOVED the non-linear storytelling (as I tend to in all films that employ it to good effect, which I believe this one did).

It's inevitable, but a shame, that it must be compared with its "companion" piece, Letters From Iwo Jima ... but I found the Flags themes of propaganda and the nature of heroism, the oddities of created reality and the consequences of inner moral conflict far more compelling than the rather straightforward war drama of Letters.


They were both excellent films. Letters was an intense battle pic, infused with sadness and grief for a "side" we'd been taught to view as "enemy." Flags, on the other hand, played with time and space and reality in a surprisingly interesting way (imo). As I said when the pics first came out, Flags ultimately fell a bit short of far loftier cinematic goals than those of Letters ... but I give it higher marks for the braver effort.



And Ryan Phillipe comes off pretty well in it ... a rare achievement in itself. ;)

[scaeagles]

I found Fags of Our Fathers completely comprehensible

Why do I find this typo so amusing?

[innerSpaceman]

Sorry, not a typo ... just a bit of enjoyable code for my pal Gemini ... before I went on to ever so respectfully savage his opinion.

[Gemini Cricket]

Can I just say that Almost Famous is a terrific film. I just watched it again for the umpteenth time. It's infested with intriguing characters, it has great dialogue and cool music. Awesome.

[Sohrshah]

Has any seen the Spiderwick Chronicles yet? I'm thinking of taking myself on a date to see it tonight. Is it worth it?

[Alex]

I reviewed it here (http://www.mouseplanet.com/articles.php?art=sr080215as). It's not great but it isn't terrible. It just is at the low end of the spectrum compared to the recent glut of fantasy adaptations.

[Ponine]

Oh, all through Juno, my date kept wondering what she had seen Ellen Page in. Finally, an hour or so after the movie, she remembered Hard Candy. I asked if I should see it.


I do not reccomend that film to men. Just say'in.

However, I found that Kitty Pride was actually where I recognized her from. Who knows why.


Finished 3:10 to Yuma...
I didnt have a single issue understading them.
GC, maybe your tv needs to learn not to mumble. ;)

[Chernabog]

Has any seen the Spiderwick Chronicles yet? I'm thinking of taking myself on a date to see it tonight. Is it worth it?

Ebert enjoyed it. Taking yourself on a date? I hope you get some nookie afterwards! Or during! Hey, it worked for Pee Wee. ;)

[LSPoorEeyorick]

I do not reccomend that film to men. Just say'in.

However, I found that Kitty Pride was actually where I recognized her from. Who knows why.

I know why.






Geek!




All week long I've been trying to make time to go watch the leftover noms I've yet to see. I've been kind of wrapped up in a combination of work and re-hauling our living room for the new furniture and impending party. For instance, this morning, I got up super early to do more cleaning/organization. And in the process, chose to watch... No Reservations on pay-per-view. I'm a doof. I kind of enjoyed it.

[Strangler Lewis]

I reviewed it here (http://www.mouseplanet.com/articles.php?art=sr080215as). It's not great but it isn't terrible. It just is at the low end of the spectrum compared to the recent glut of fantasy adaptations.

I enjoyed it. My seven year old, who has read all the books, enjoyed it and tells me that much of the shtick in the movie is not in the books. My nearly five year old punted mid-film, albeit at an unexpected place.

Mr. Alex's review is wrong in that the movie does the entire five book series, not just the first book. There is, of course, a second series. I agree about the accents. I thought Freddie Highmore's first lines were decidedly English. Then mom was American. Then Freddie was American. Okay, we're in America. But it was fun.

[Ponine]

Geek!

Watch it girlie. :p

[Alex]

Sorry, the press materials said it just did the first book. Not the first time they'd be wrong though.

The aunt who'd lived in the house all her life also had a reasonably strong accent as well.

[innerSpaceman]

All week long I've been trying to make time to go watch the leftover noms I've yet to see.
Understandable, and guest appreciated, why you're having trouble with that.

:)

So ... in your honor, I saw Persepolis today!

[LSPoorEeyorick]

Ooh, aah! What did you think?

[innerSpaceman]

Loved it, 'natch.


I understand it was a graphic novel first ... otherwise I would have been mighty puzzled as to how that subject matter came to be an animated movie.


I enjoyed the Iranian political stuff from child's / women's perspective. The travails of her love-life were just too depressing after a while.


Loved the Grandma!

[Morrigoon]

Iranian political stuff from a child's/woman's perspective? I'm interested...

BTW: wtf is 'natch? you say it all the time, and it's cute, but I'm dying to understand the origins there. I assume it's not short for snatch, so what is it?

[Alex]

First syllable of naturally.

[Sohrshah]

Ebert enjoyed it. Taking yourself on a date? I hope you get some nookie afterwards! Or during! Hey, it worked for Pee Wee. ;)

Somehow, watching small children just doesn't do it for me, Chernabog. :evil:

[LSPoorEeyorick]

Iranian political stuff from a child's/woman's perspective? I'm interested...

It's competing with Ratatouille (and Surf's Up) for best animated film. I am actually rooting for Persepolis (and keep in mind that I really enjoyed Ratatouille, too.)

[innerSpaceman]

Not me. Still firmly in the Ratatouille camp. Much for the same reason I like Tango Argentine over The Tonto Woman.

i.e., Ratatouille is to me the better animated film ... whereas Persepolis, as far as I'm concerned, could have been just as good a live-actioner. And much as I feel that The Tonto Woman was only a short film because it was based on a short story, I feel that Persepolis was only animated because it was based on a graphic novel.

[Gemini Cricket]

I wished Ratatouille was nominated for Best Picture. I think it's that good.
:)

[Capt Jack]

I wished Ratatouille was nominated for Best Picture. I think it's that good.
:)

wow...really?

I feel like Im missing something then. I mean, it was ok, but just didnt really do it for me.

[innerSpaceman]

Cars fan, perhaps? That's the one I didn't get.

* * * * *

Well, I just finished by Oscar nominee sweep for 2007 with Away From Her and was impressed by Julie Christi's Best Actress-tapped perf. A bit of a tough film for me, considering what's happened and is happening with both my parents.


But ok ... so, with less than 48 hours to go and zero more time for me to catch any movies ... here's what I managed to miss...


Laua Linny for Best Actress in The Savages,

Hal Holbook for Best Supporting Actor in Into the Wild,

Cate Blanchette in I'm Not There, Amy Ryan in Gone Baby Gone and Ruby Dee in American Gangster, all for Best Supporting Actress

Surf's Up for Best Animated Film

American Gangster for Best Art Direction

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly for Best Cinematography

Julien Schnabel for Best Director of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

All the nominees for Best Documentary Feature, except Sicko

All the nominees for Best Documentary Short Subject

Into the Wild, and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly for Best Editing

OMG, all the nominees for Best Foreign Language Film

Norbit, for Best Make-Up

The Kite Runner for Best Musical Score

"Raise It Up" from August Rush as Best Song (i never so much as heard of that movie.)

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly for Best Adapted Screenplay

and

Lars and the Real Girl, and The Savages for Best Original Screenplay


Other than those, I've seen all the nominated talents and performances. Looking at that list ... I guess the one to catch, if there's some miracle of time, would be The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. But I've had my fill of sad movies, so I'm glad there's no time left.








.

[mousepod]

iSm, I was scanning your post, and I didn't read "managed to miss" - I thought I was reading your radical Oscar picks. Once I saw that you'd "picked" Surf's Up as your favorite animated film, I realized that I should go back and read your whole post more carefully.

[Gemini Cricket]

I just came back from Chernabog's. We watched Castle in the Sky. What a fantastic film. I think it ranks up at the top with Cagliostro as my two favorites. If you haven't seen it, it's magnificent. A lot of imagination and hard work went into this film. 4 stars.
:)

[Alex]

I also watched Away from Her last night and it is indeed a rough movie. Not because I have any personal experience but really because it is my worst nightmare about growing old. It is pretty important to my life plan that either I die first or we die quickly at the same time.

Julie Christie was great but I must admit to a psychological block because of internally shouting "how can she get rewarded when Gordon Pinset gets nothing, he did all the really heavy lifting." I know the nominations from a movie aren't fair but still, he could easily replace Johnny Depp in the best actor list.

So that's probably the last Oscar nom I'm going to see before the awards.

I've seen all the nominees in the following categories (my pick in parentheses):
Best Picture (No Country for Old Men)
Best Actress (Marion Cotillard, La Vie en Rose)
Best Supporting Actress (Tilda Swinton, Michael Clayton)
Best Original Screenplay (Brad Bird, Ratatouille)
Best Art Direction (American Gangster)
Best Costume Design (Across the Universe)
Best Sound (3:10 to Yuma, mostly because I want that to get an award of some sort)
Best Sound Editing (no opinion other than that no one should ever be able to say this sentence fragment: "Academy Award winning Transformers...")
Best Visual Effects (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, mostly by default)
Best Animated Short Film (none but if tortured into it "Peter and the Wolf")
Best Live Action Short Film ("Tanghi argentini")

My worst non trivial category is Best Supoprting Actor where I've only seen two of the performances (missed Assassination of Jesse James, Charlie Wilson's War, and Into the Wild) but I still feel pretty confident in my pick of Javier Bardem and Anton Cigurh in No Country for Old Men.

In the leading actor category I also missed Tommy Lee Jones in In the Valley of Elah. Interestingly, for three of the four performances I've mentioned missing I have alternative performances by that actor in 2007 that I unconsciously use in my decision making. Casey Affleck was very good in Gone Baby Gone. Philip Seymour Hoffman was better than Laura Linney in The Savages. Tommy Lee Jones was great in No Country for Old Men. But I'll still pick Daniel Day-Lewis for There Will Be Blood even if I wasn't blown away by the movie itself.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is the big impediment to making informed decisions since it it the sole missed nomination in Best Director (the Coens), and Best Adapted Screenplay (the Coens).

[innerSpaceman]

Yep, i almost feel that i can't make real pics if i haven't seen that movie.


My most uninformed category turns out to be Best Supporting Actress, where I've seen only two of the nominated performances.


Really, Alex ... Marion Cotillard for Best Actress ... after your tirade about her?




And, Gemini Cricket ... mmmmm, i LoVe Castle in the Sky. One of my absolute fave Ghibli's.

[Alex]

Go reread what I said. I never offered any tirade about Marion Cotillard. Never said a single bad word against her.

It isn't her fault she's very good in a very boring movie. Plus, it isn't exactly the best year ever in that category. I'm actually puzzled as to why anybody would consider the Blanchett and Linney performances award worthy. Ellen Page was fine but I think most of what is great comes from the writing. So that leaves it down to Cotillard and Christie in my view and I'd almost call Christie's role a supporting one rather than lead (plus the psychological block I have since Pinset's is the more deserving performance).

[LSPoorEeyorick]

Bookies are picking Christie, but I'd almost put money on Cotillard - I think that'll be the "upset" of the night. At least I hope it will - I'll be grouchy if a film I don't like wins best picture three years in a row.

[LSPoorEeyorick]

BTW, other than "Away From Her," which I'll be seeing either today or tomorrow, we've missed Surf's Up, Assassination of Jesse James, American Gangster, Valley of Elah, Eastern Promises, Golden Age - of the big eight (plus animated.) Of tech and misc. awards, we've missed the foreigns, the docs, Bourne and Kite Runner... everything else, we've seen. Still, this is probably the first year in awhile I haven't seen damn near everything. I should feel handicapped in the Best Actor category, but I'd be hugely surprised if that didn't go to Day Lewis.

[Alex]

Which Best Picture nom is it you didn't like that might win? For me the weakest was There Will Be Blood but I still respect what it was trying to be.

[innerSpaceman]

I wonder if Cate was nommed for Liz because her earlier portrayal of the same character was nommeed. Also if her nom in both Best and Supporting will cancel each other out.

[LSPoorEeyorick]

Which Best Picture nom is it you didn't like that might win? For me the weakest was There Will Be Blood but I still respect what it was trying to be.

Same one. Though I saw some of its merits, I generally thought it didn't hit the mark.

[Bornieo: Fully Loaded]

I saw Atonement - I thought it was ok. Acting was good but I didn't think it was the greatest movie. I was a bit surprised by Keira Knightly, she was way better in this than Pirates.

The film - eh...

[innerSpaceman]

Ok, no Diving Bell ... and I haven't seen the majority of Best Supporting Actress noms. Nonetheless ... Ladies and Gentlemen, the Zlick Picks:

:cool: Best Actor: George Clooney in Michael Clayton (Zlick's Acadamy prediction: Daniel Day Lewis)

:blush: Best Supporting Actor: Tom Wilkinson in Michael Clayton (the actual Oscar will go to Javier Bardem)

:rolleyes: Best Actress: Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose (with the Academy following suit)

:birdy: Best Supporting Actress: Tilda Swinton in Michael Clayton (with the Academy once again agreeing on me on la femme talent)

:tiki: Best Animated Film: Ratatouille (with an Oscar for sure)

:cool: Best Art Direction: Sweeney Todd (and the Academy once again agrees with Steve)

:blush: Best Cinematography: No Country for Old Men (and I believe the Oscar-winner will be The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford)

:decap: Best Costume Design: Elizabeth, the Golden Age (and I think the Academy will likewise be swayed by the spendlor of gaudy)

:snap: Best Director: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen for No Country For Old Men (and I feel the Academy will be breaking out the second Oscar when they concur)

:coffee: Best Documentary Feature: Sicko (and Michael Moore will once again wow with his acceptance speech)

Best Documentary Short - no selection (I haven't seen any of them)

:confused: Best Editing: No Country for Old Men (though I think the Academy will be swayed by the flashier work in The Bourne Ultimatum)

Best Foreign Language Film - no selection (I haven't seen any of them - but I will say that The Orphanage was robbed!)

:babette: Best Makeup: La Vie en Rose (with the Oscar going to Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End)

:na: Best Musical Score - Ratatouille (with the Oscar dancing to the beat of the same drummer)

:fej: Best Original Song - Happy Working Song from Enchanted (with the Oscar going to "That's How You Know," also from Enchanted)

:mad: Best Animated Short Film: A Zlick Oscar Upset: NONE (but the inevitable Oscar going to Even Pidgeons Go to Heaven)

:evil: Best Live Action Short Film: Tanghi Argentini (and the Academy must agree)

:cakes: Best Sound Editing: There Will Be Blood (with the Oscar going to No Country For Old Men)

:argghh: Best Sound Mixing: The Bourne Ultimatum (and the Academy agrees)

:iSm: Best Visual Effects: Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (and the Oscar indeed goes to Pirates 3)

;) Best Adapted Screenplay: There Will Be Blood (with the Academy choosing No Country For Old Men)

:p Best Original Screenplay: Michael Clayton (and the Academy concurs)

and finally:

:cheers: Best Picture of the Year: Michael Clayton (and the Oscar goes to: No County For Old Men)


Stay Tuned tomorrow night, to see how well I've been right!





.

[Strangler Lewis]

Watched Michael Clayton last night, which makes me four of five on the Best Picture nominees for the first time in years. Tom Wilkinson was great. Tilda Swinton was great. The script was kind of Networky, but okay. My biggest problem was with the Michael Clayton character. I didn't believe for a second that such a person exists. I thought the loan shark bit and the gambling addiction felt tacked on to give fake grit to an implausible character. The ending left us wondering what he was going to do now not in the good way that moral dilemmas often do, but in the bad way that we had no idea who or what this person was in the first place. That said, I thought George Clooney did well enough, and I cared about his character. Of course, I cared about the characters in The Golden Compass, and none of that made a lick of sense either.

[Alex]

I noticed the In the Valley of Elah was available through On Demand so I swallowed my pride and watched in pan and scan.

Paul Haggis took a pretty good murder mystery movie and tried to make it a bit too socially significant at the end but then Haggis is all about slapping you about the shoulders with message.

It is a good performance from Jones, though maybe a bit too similar to his role in No Country For Old Men. Really, I can easily envision both characters as the same person. And the events of this movie feeding into how he responded to the events in No Country.

Charlize Theron was good too, but sadly just a bit too pretty for the environment she was in so it was kind of distracting.

[Alex]

Once was my favorite movie last year (though I'll grant that No Country for Old Men was better) so I'm very happy they won in the only category they were given an opportunity.

[Alex]

Very international group of winners tonight. I wonder if this this the first time that not one of the acting awards went to an American?

[blueerica]

I thought it was as well, as remarked (well before he could have known it), by Stewart.

Again, one of the better Oscar ceremonies in my memory.

[Alex]

Very international group of winners tonight. I wonder if this this the first time that not one of the acting awards went to an American?

To answer my own question (and having done so the hard way), I only went back to 1950 but since then it has happened one other time. In 1965 Rex Harrison, Julie Andrews, and Peter Ustinov all won having been born in the UK (using birthplace s the standard, don't want to get into citizenships) while Lila Kedrova born in Russia was the fourth.

Twice in that time frame 3 out of the 4 were foreign-born. 1957 (Yul Brynner, Ingrid Berman, and Anthony Quinn) and then again in 1990 (Brenda Fricker, Jessica Tandy, and Daniel Day-Lewis).

[Not Afraid]

So, what was the most-winning film? If it was Bourne, I'm going to die.

[Not Afraid]

OK, now I'm answering my own question. No Country received 4 awards and Bourne received 3.

[Gemini Cricket]

I need to defend Bourne Ultimatum. It's a fine action film. The dialogue, the editing and the action scenes were exceptional. Loved it. Best of the three films.
:)

[CoasterMatt]

I'll never hear the end of this, because it's a Universal Studios movie...

[innerSpaceman]

Bourne was a fine technical film, and won those tech awards deservingly.


But best of the three? Um, no. As with almost all such trilogies and sequels, the first one is in a league of its own. The third was merely good.

[Ponine]

OK, now I'm answering my own question. No Country received 4 awards and Bourne received 3.

Bourne was a fine technical film, and won those tech awards deservingly.




As I went to respond to you NA, I saw ISM's post.
Think about WHAT Bourne won... in those categories, I dont doubt the merits of their win.
Yes, I felt that a few of the other films did a great job at the same thing, but its still a choice.

Guns, explosions, smashing... yeah... okay, you can have it, I understand.

[Alex]

Quite a few people have said that Bourne was worthy of a best picture nomination. I wouldn't go that far but it was one of the best studio pictures of the year.

[Ghoulish Delight]

So, we ended up watching far more pre-show red carpet stuff than I ever have before. Is it always so...awkward? I expected shallow and inane. But the number of awkward moments surprised me and made me uncomfortable.

[Alex]

I didn't watch any so I can't say if this year's was worse but that's my experience.

Caught five minutes of Regis & Kelly this morning and he mentioned that you can't really do anything of any value when you have 30-45 seconds for an interview. And most of the people doing them don't have nearly the skills he does.

[Not Afraid]

So, we ended up watching far more pre-show red carpet stuff than I ever have before. Is it always so...awkward? I expected shallow and inane. But the number of awkward moments surprised me and made me uncomfortable.

Consistently awkward (and terrible) was the woman sitting above the plastic with the laptop. We got emails from Dubai, Long Beach, CA, Sweden, Brazil and they all want to know when Johnny Depp is going to be here. (And, the not so subtle complaint about her vantage point got really old.)

[Alex]

Considering how broadly they cast the net for this years In Memorium I am really surprised by Brad Renfro not making the cut.

Also, I know Heath Ledger was most recent and unexpected but I think they really should have ended with one of the three great directors lost last year, with my vote going to Bergman.

[Not Afraid]

Also, I know Heath Ledger was most recent and unexpected but I think they really should have ended with one of the three great directors lost last year, with my vote going to Bergman.

Did anyone else see Ann Hathaway's interview at the Governor's Ball? She was asked about Heath and she looked sort of uncomfortable and said "it was a great loss". George pushed her some more and she added "he was a great talent" then repeated the same phrase. It seemed like she was holding on to some very strong opinions about his death.

[Strangler Lewis]

To answer my own question (and having done so the hard way), I only went back to 1950 but since then it has happened one other time. In 1965 Rex Harrison, Julie Andrews, and Peter Ustinov all won having been born in the UK (using birthplace s the standard, don't want to get into citizenships) while Lila Kedrova born in Russia was the fourth.

Twice in that time frame 3 out of the 4 were foreign-born. 1957 (Yul Brynner, Ingrid Berman, and Anthony Quinn) and then again in 1990 (Brenda Fricker, Jessica Tandy, and Daniel Day-Lewis).

This year, however, at least two of the winners (Day-Lewis and Swinton) were playing Americans, thank God. I don't recall if Anton Chigurh was American or not.

[Ponine]

Considering how broadly they cast the net for this years In Memorium I am really surprised by Brad Renfro not making the cut.

Also, I know Heath Ledger was most recent and unexpected but I think they really should have ended with one of the three great directors lost last year, with my vote going to Bergman.

Thank you for noticing, and reminding me. I knew someone was missing.

I think that with the talent we lost, they should have ended with someone else.
However, Ledger's was very recent, poignant, and the community is still reeling. Add to that, the lonely cowboy shot.. there was no other way they would have gone with that.

I had personally hoped they would end with Bergman or Plechette.

[Gemini Cricket]

I think it was spot on to end with Ledger. It affected a lot of people when he passed away so suddenly. His death was a huge story for quite awhile. I found it nice that they just showed shots of him in Brokeback. (But there were indeed other films he was in...)

[Ponine]

Those Brokeback shots were the most "relevant" to a In Memoriam tribute.
Can you image them ending with a Cassanova sweep where he looked happy? Oh the horror.

[Gemini Cricket]

Or Brother's Grimm, maybe?
:D

[innerSpaceman]

And the charming "mystery" guest at last night's Gay Super Bowl Party nearly did herself out of her FIRST DISNEYLAND VISIT by categorizing Heath's demise as Death By Stupidity.

:eek:



Not the right crowd for that remark ... according to the Gays at the Gay Super Bowl Party.

[Blade]

I drink your Milkshake!...I drink it up!!!!...

[innerSpaceman]

As was mentioned last night ... and I've posted somewhere's else on the LoT ... the now-infamous Milkshake line is taken from actual history ... Congressional hearings on the subject of Oil, oil, er, uh, milkshaking.

Truth is often stranger than fiction. So when something seems like it must have been made up, it's more'n likely it was too outrageous to have been made up.

[€uroMeinke]

Since it'll be months till I see the pic - someone want to explain the "milk shake" reference to me?

[innerSpaceman]

It's the climactic scene of one of the year's best pictures, maybe one of the best pictures ever.


Sure you want the ending spoiled?

[Sohrshah]

Yeah. I keep getting those lyrics stuck in my head. You know the ones I'm talking about.

[€uroMeinke]

well, I guess I already know it's a closing line so the significance will be revealed to me before that moment unless it's a grand surrealist nonsequetor, in which case I'll be waiting for that

[Gemini Cricket]

Hmm. I always heard that my milkshake brings all the boys to the yard and they're, like, it's better than yours...

[Chernabog]

Damn right!

[Strangler Lewis]

Saw Juno the other night in my hotel room, which completes my Best Picture dance card for this year. I liked it more than I expected I would. Well observed, touching, etc. Of the five, I'd say it did its job best with no obvious clanks, confusing narratives, bad performances or scenes that just didn't work. My one complaint was being hit over the head with quirky songs in every single scene. It started to feel a little lazy.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Finally checked Netflix streaming video out. Connected the laptop to the TV. Gotta say I'm impressed. Watched Reefer Madness, and then a bit of Fifth Element to see what the picture would be like. Can't complain. No issues with the streaming, and the picture was definitely not as good as even our standard DVD, but it was pretty damned good. I'd watch movies like that.

[Chernabog]

I wonder how I can stream netflix video via the ps3

(edit: it isnt implemented yet.. there's only rumors out there)

[Alex]

I used Netflix streaming to watch several of the late released Oscar nominees and it is certainly good enough.

Especially when it occurred to me that the picture quality on my 21-inch widescreen LCD monitor was much superior to the VHS tapes I watched on my 19" TV back in college and had no problem with.

[innerSpaceman]

* * * *
I wish I'd remembered that my friend Janet did f/x work for the Oscar Winner The Golden Compass - I would have been much more excited when it won.

It's the third film she's worked on that won the f/x Oscar ... but this is the first time she's actually had a chance to hold the Oscar. :D

* * * *

The Other Boleyn Girl was just a little too soapopery for my tastes. I suppose the nature of the story is pretty bodice-ripper-ish, but I think I was hoping for something a little more intrigue and a little less high school.

Eric Bana's Henry the Eigth is a love-sick moron. Natalie Portman, usually good in most things, should simply never play a queen again ... since I think this goes down with Amidala as one of her meh performances.

Scarlett Johanson fairs better as the title character and one of the few sympathetic characters. Another, the Boleyn boy, their brother George, is played by the yummy Jim Sturgess - who was Jude in Across the Universe. Kirsten Scott Thomas is the real standout as the sharpwitted Boleyn mom who's the voice of sanity in this most dysfunctional and tragic of families.

It could be the defacto first film in a trilogy with Elizabeth and its sequel The Golden Age. Like that latter film, it presents a world where the rulers of England seem to ruled by their hormones and love lives. Perhaps that's the way it was. They were human like the rest of us. But it seems to triviliaze important events, and so it comes off a tad artificial to me and more than a little silly.

Otherwise, a handsome production in a period of movie history I've become interested in of late. And I thought the costumes were fine, Shorshah.


* * * * *


More than anything, it made me feel like watching Jim Sturgess in Across the Universe, the first time I've screened that movie since first seeing it in theaters. Better even than I remembered. Knowing going in how thin the 60's pastiche/standard love story arc the story takes, i was better able to appreciate the film as a non-stop musical spectacle of great Beatles covers and one fantastic number after another.

:cheers:

If you haven't seen Across the Universe, get it on DVD. If you're thinking of seeing The Other Boleyn Girl, it's ok to wait for the DVD.



.

[Ponine]

If you haven't seen Across the Universe, get it on DVD. If you're thinking of seeing The Other Boleyn Girl, it's ok to wait for the DVD.


I have Across the Universe in my Netflix cue, so thats good. And I was dying to see the Other Boylen Girl in the theatre.
I wonder if anyone who has read it has seen it.

Having not seen the movie my first response is, "well yeah, that book is pretty much a soap opera"

[Gn2Dlnd]

I wonder how I can stream netflix video via the ps3

(edit: it isnt implemented yet.. there's only rumors out there)

Dude, remember when I put the wrong gas in your car? Don't stream crappyvision onto the 1080p, 50 inch, high performance machine in our living room. I don't want it to start leaking oil on the rug.

[Not Afraid]

I've actually watched 4 - yes 4 - movies in the past week.

Last night's feature was "The Lost Weekend" - a fantastic and scary film about an alcoholic writer on his "last" binge. 1 is too many and 100 not enough - so true.

The night before was "The Darjeling Limited" - Wes Anderson's fun and odd story of three brothers on a quest in India. I really liked it and, if your a Wes Anderson fan, rent it. Oh, and Adrian Brody is still yummy.


La Vie en Rose was another alcoholic romp with the talented and tragic Edith Piaf. I knew her music well, but really knew nothing about her life. It was interested from that perspective and I can see why the Best Actress Oscar was awarded to Marion Cottilard - she was spectacular.

No Country for Old Men was a previous night's viewing. Not my favorite Cohen Brothers films, but Javier Bardem was scarier than crap and it was beautifully filmed. It was odd seeing this film after a recent viewing of Perdita Durango (also starring Bardem). There were many, many similarities between the 2 films and I ended up combining all of the car crash scenes into one nightmarish crash.

I've got a pile of DVDs sitting on the coffee table and may have my own movie fest while I am single. (I've got some fantastic 60's and 70's British films at my fingertips.) It's either that or cleaning the house. ;)

[mousepod]

Last night, at the urging of one of my friends, I watched the Michael Haneke 1997 movie "Funny Games". The version coming out this month appears to be a shot-for-shot remake by the same director.

It was one of the most reprehensible films I have ever seen. It made me angry - and if I were to meet Haneke, I'd demand my stolen time back from him.

I have to put this turkey up on eBay...

[Chernabog]

Hey MP did you watch Ratatouille on Blu Ray yet?

[Cadaverous Pallor]

Mmmmmmm Adrian Brody in Darjeeling......

[Not Afraid]

Yes, let's just dump this move crap and talk about Adrian Brody. :)

[LSPoorEeyorick]

I understand he's prized among these parts, but I admit that I really don't find him attractive. Not even a little bit! Like Brad Pitt, I find him to be in the... rodent family?

[CoasterMatt]

Funny Games would be a great film to add to my "Torture By Television" collection :)

[innerSpaceman]

Darleeling is on its way to me via Netlix, but I fear not on express.

Adrian Brody.... sometimes i get it from him, sometimes not. But I always admire a person who can be very unusually attractive.


(It gives guys like me a bit of hope, heheh).




Oh, movies, hmmmm.


Princess Mononoke is da sh!t. End.

[cirquelover]

I understand he's prized among these parts, but I admit that I really don't find him attractive. Not even a little bit! Like Brad Pitt, I find him to be in the... rodent family?

I would have to agree with you completely on that sentiment, sorry to everyone else. I think I found Brad Pitt attractive only once but he had long hair and didn't look like himself;)

[Not Afraid]

I forgot to mention the other alcoholic movie we watched......

Pollack.

Great film about another brilliant, creative alkie who dies as result of his alcoholism.

That's quite an Alkie trio - Pollack, La Vie en Rose and The Lost Weekend.

You could make a lost weekend drinking game out of watching these films and drinking every time they do. Add Days of Wine and Roses, Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf, and Barfly for a true hangover.

[Not Afraid]

I would have to agree with you completely on that sentiment, sorry to everyone else. I think I found Brad Pitt attractive only once but he had long hair and didn't look like himself;)
He doesn't do much for me either. He's too "Ken".