Miscellaneous Movie Musings - Page 62

flippyshark · 07-19-2006, 06:23 PM

Alex, did (does) the Fitzcarraldo DVD include the amazing documentary Burden Of Dreams? That's a great example of the "making of" story being just as compelling, at least, as the finished film. Sure, Herzog could have used models, but he HAD to drag a boat over that mountain. It also includes footage of Robards performance before he left the production. Great stuff, right up there with Hearts of Darkness.

innerSpaceman · 07-19-2006, 08:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flippyshark

did ... the Fitzcarraldo DVD include the amazing documentary Burden Of Dreams? That's a great example of the "making of" story being just as compelling, at least, as the finished film.

Ooooh, another in this category is the DVD of The Blair Witch Project. It's the commentary track that's just as, if not more, compelling as the feature. In fact, on the rare ocassions I watch this disc, I always choose the commentary over the movie.

The filmaking process was far more interesting, and almost scarier than the story that was filmed. They got three amateur actors, told them the general outline of the story, and then filmed them (and had them film each other) while they completely improvised.

The actors were left alone in the woods for days. Each morning, different actors would receive different notes about the direction their characters were to take in the story. They also awoke to all the scary crap the film's characters awoke to, experienced the same frightning stuff in the night, and one day had one actor simply disappear with no explanation. The actors eventually became completely sh!tscared, and their freaked out performances were not really "performances" in the usual sense at all.

It's one of the most interesting filmmaking stories ever told, and one of the rare times a DVD extra is arguably better than the feature film.

Alex · 07-19-2006, 09:46 PM

No, the only real extra was a commentary by Werner Herzog but it put the disc back in the envelope without listening to that.

Alex · 07-20-2006, 11:05 AM

Wednesday is solo movie night for me so I went and saw Nacho Libre (has to be something I haven't already seen and that Lani has no interest in).

It was horrible.

Gemini Cricket · 07-20-2006, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex Stroup

Wednesday is solo movie night for me so I went and saw Nacho Libre (has to be something I haven't already seen and that Lani has no interest in).

It was horrible.

Were ya expecting it not to be?

Not Afraid · 07-19-2006, 06:26 PM

I forgot about Burden of Dreams! That was great.

scaeagles · 07-19-2006, 07:40 PM

Back to Lady in the Water....it opens tomorrow and it is getting just slammed on. 10% on Rotten Tomatoes (only two good out of 21 thus far).

Do I see it and have Shyamalan ruined for me forever, or do I skip it and hope his next is better? Hate to enjoy his first three so much only to have him consistently throw out junk.

CoasterMatt · 07-20-2006, 11:49 AM

I've got The Black Hole on in the other room right now - I love the Overture before the widescreen presentation.

Matterhorn Fan · 07-20-2006, 02:07 PM

I don't know why this thought came to me, but can anyone tell me what the dealio was with March of the Penguins?

I loved it, of course. It was beautiful, had wonderful script/narration, and there were penguins--how could it go wrong?

But at the same time, I've seen that documentary before. It's been done. So why all the hype with this one, I wonder?

Alex · 07-20-2006, 02:37 PM

I don't know. I was a little underwhelmed with it myself, but simple lifecycle documentaries have been done so many times that they are hard to make interesting.

I think there were three factors here that made it successful in English:

1) It was beautifully shot. That was definitely a step up from your normal Animal Planet/PBS life cycle doc.

2) It did expose a quirk of nature with which most peole were unfamiliar and it just seems so odd. Simultaneously it seems an argument against natural selection and intelligent design. In other words, it reminds people that the world is sometimes stupidly wacky.

3) When it was redone for the U.S. market they completely changed the narration to be straight narration. In the original French version the narrators were the voices of the penguins (yes, apparently the penguins talked). I haven't seen both version but know people who have; apparently the original is kind of lame because of that.

07-19-2006, 06:23 PM	#1
flippyshark Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Orlando, FL Posts: 2,852	Alex, did (does) the Fitzcarraldo DVD include the amazing documentary Burden Of Dreams? That's a great example of the "making of" story being just as compelling, at least, as the finished film. Sure, Herzog could have used models, but he HAD to drag a boat over that mountain. It also includes footage of Robards performance before he left the production. Great stuff, right up there with Hearts of Darkness.
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07-19-2006, 09:46 PM	#3
Alex . Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 13,354	No, the only real extra was a commentary by Werner Herzog but it put the disc back in the envelope without listening to that.
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07-20-2006, 11:05 AM	#4
Alex . Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 13,354	Wednesday is solo movie night for me so I went and saw Nacho Libre (has to be something I haven't already seen and that Lani has no interest in). It was horrible.
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07-19-2006, 06:26 PM	#6
Not Afraid HI! Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 17,108	I forgot about Burden of Dreams! That was great.
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07-19-2006, 07:40 PM	#7
scaeagles I LIKE! Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 7,819	Back to Lady in the Water....it opens tomorrow and it is getting just slammed on. 10% on Rotten Tomatoes (only two good out of 21 thus far). Do I see it and have Shyamalan ruined for me forever, or do I skip it and hope his next is better? Hate to enjoy his first three so much only to have him consistently throw out junk.
	Submit to Quotes

07-20-2006, 11:49 AM	#8
CoasterMatt BRAAAAAAAINS! Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: One Step Beyond... Posts: 8,802	I've got The Black Hole on in the other room right now - I love the Overture before the widescreen presentation. __________________ Do you like my photography? Visit photosbymatt.tumblr.com to purchase prints!
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07-20-2006, 02:07 PM	#9
Matterhorn Fan Double Agent Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Back East Posts: 2,071	I don't know why this thought came to me, but can anyone tell me what the dealio was with March of the Penguins? I loved it, of course. It was beautiful, had wonderful script/narration, and there were penguins--how could it go wrong? But at the same time, I've seen that documentary before. It's been done. So why all the hype with this one, I wonder?
	Submit to Quotes

07-20-2006, 02:37 PM	#10
Alex . Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 13,354	I don't know. I was a little underwhelmed with it myself, but simple lifecycle documentaries have been done so many times that they are hard to make interesting. I think there were three factors here that made it successful in English: 1) It was beautifully shot. That was definitely a step up from your normal Animal Planet/PBS life cycle doc. 2) It did expose a quirk of nature with which most peole were unfamiliar and it just seems so odd. Simultaneously it seems an argument against natural selection and intelligent design. In other words, it reminds people that the world is sometimes stupidly wacky. 3) When it was redone for the U.S. market they completely changed the narration to be straight narration. In the original French version the narrators were the voices of the penguins (yes, apparently the penguins talked). I haven't seen both version but know people who have; apparently the original is kind of lame because of that.
	Submit to Quotes