― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:36 (eighteen years ago) link
I think we were stoned, though.
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:37 (eighteen years ago) link
and Sarah Polley is! I think. Anyway I like that movie as well.
― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:37 (eighteen years ago) link
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:38 (eighteen years ago) link
YOU LIKE EXISTENZ
― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:38 (eighteen years ago) link
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:39 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:41 (eighteen years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:41 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:43 (eighteen years ago) link
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:44 (eighteen years ago) link
― milozauckerman (miloaukerman), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:45 (eighteen years ago) link
If it had been eaxctly the same actors, set pieces, shots, etc then YES!
The only exceptions to this rule for me are Woody Allen and David Lynch, but I think I have a limit on how much I can watch ANY cinemtaic idea or concern recycled over and over by the same person.
I'M not arguing this for Existenz though.
Jude Law vs. James Woods!
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:47 (eighteen years ago) link
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:49 (eighteen years ago) link
I've seen Fast Company. It's okay. Some interesting shots, but the plot is a joke.
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:50 (eighteen years ago) link
No, not at all. I was arguing the need for SOME diversity in a filmmaker's body of work. Non-specific.
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:52 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 21:55 (eighteen years ago) link
IN WHAT FUCKED UP WORLD DOES THE FORMER TRUMP THE LATTER?
― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 22:13 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 22:18 (eighteen years ago) link
― walter kranz (walterkranz), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 22:18 (eighteen years ago) link
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 22:23 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 22:28 (eighteen years ago) link
― kyle (akmonday), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 22:30 (eighteen years ago) link
yeah Calendar just kills me.
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 22:33 (eighteen years ago) link
― Tracer Hand (tracerhand), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 23:09 (eighteen years ago) link
― latebloomer (latebloomer), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 23:26 (eighteen years ago) link
hardly -- kyle (akmonda...), October 4th, 2005."
Kyle, name another mainstream film that has such unrepentantly gory, generally unstylized (a'la not "Sin City") violence. I'm genuinely curious - "Irreversible" had that vicious fire-extinguisher-to-the-face scene, but I can't think of anything else that had me that truly shocked.
Also, why was Viggo's ass so shiny in the stairs scene? It seemed almost buffed and waxed. I was prepared to notify the Gaffe Squad if I caught a glimpse of Cronenberg in the reflection somewhere.
― Stuck to a Seat in the New Beverly (Bent Over at the Arclight), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 23:37 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 23:45 (eighteen years ago) link
yeah the rest of the film was just a daisy-strewn waltz through the fucking park
― milton parker (Jon L), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 23:51 (eighteen years ago) link
I thought of one - the "American History X" curbing scene... that was tough to watch.
(x-post: Of course "Irreversible" is brutal non-stop - and it fits the criteria being discussed, in that it is definitely about brutal violence with real consequences - but it's definitely arthouse fare. "A History of Violence" is out in wide-release.)
― Stuck to a Seat in the New Beverly (Bent Over at the Arclight), Tuesday, 4 October 2005 23:56 (eighteen years ago) link
Something.. the construct was intensely weird, and I can't put my finger on exactly what was off about it. Right away it was this feeling about that family, "you're not from around here, are you.." I don't know, the pulp genre elements and sort of uncomfortable interaction were obvious but in a way, it make sense because.. if there's this underlying tension or unresolved problem, people still tend to act as if everything is A-OK. Especially in small town America.
Funny about Egoyan, I was fascinated by his early stuff esp. Speaking Parts (Family Viewing is good too) but thought Sweet Hereafter and Exotica were unfortunately v obvious and not as good!
eXistenZ is a treat. It's kind of about Jude Law being a bad actor.. And there is nothing cyberpunk about it at all, which adds some extra comedy - the video game world is just gritty and run down, and all the weird gadgets and things are organic, and they end up going where in this crazy futuristic video game world? A Chinese restaurant and a trout farm. Willem Dafoe as Gas = totally classic. I don't know, maybe there's this issue one could have with the film pointing at Big Philosophical Problems and taking those problems quite seriously, but doing so in a way that's very funny and requires extra splattery props and effects. I don't mind this at all.
― dar1a g (daria g), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 00:27 (eighteen years ago) link
otm!
― latebloomer (latebloomer), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 00:31 (eighteen years ago) link
These are the only two I've seen except for maybe some early short thing with some sort of video gimmick that I saw in school. So if I'm missing out on Egoyan's brilliance, so be it. I still say he can't touch Cronenberg.
― walter kranz (walterkranz), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 00:45 (eighteen years ago) link
Egoyan eats dinner with my friend sometimes because they are relatives. He got my friend to do a little graphic of some traditional armenian design thingy that was on a wall in the background of ararat somewhere.
― -rainbow bum- (-rainbow bum-), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 00:52 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 00:53 (eighteen years ago) link
― fratboy slim (latebloomer), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 00:54 (eighteen years ago) link
― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 00:56 (eighteen years ago) link
― dar1a g (daria g), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 01:01 (eighteen years ago) link
Alex, READ MY POSTS! I never said anything about Cronenberg not being diverse.
Anyway, I think Cronenberg and Egoyan and Lodge Kerrigan are all great. It's CANADA that's the problem!
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 02:07 (eighteen years ago) link
I read your post! I was just responding to a question which wasn't asked! The same way you did! ;)
― Alex in SF (Alex in SF), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 02:18 (eighteen years ago) link
― 400% Nice (nordicskilla), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 02:20 (eighteen years ago) link
i think what cronenberg always tries to acheieve is an unsettled mood. he's not aiming to be naturalistic and criticising scenes for being cliched (esp the cheerleader scene) implies that they were played straight when they were riddled with discomfort.
the sex and violence shots linger too long on purpose - very self-referentially saying 'here's something you don't normally see which i'm going to show you'.
rambling, but i just think cronenbeg's expert at unsettling an audience in a way few other directors can. return to the form of dead ringers, for me.
― barbarian cities (jaybob3005), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 08:22 (eighteen years ago) link
― aldo_cowpat (aldo_cowpat), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 09:29 (eighteen years ago) link
― N_RQ, Wednesday, 5 October 2005 09:36 (eighteen years ago) link
DING DING!!
― Alfred Soto (Alfred Soto), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 10:15 (eighteen years ago) link
― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 11:36 (eighteen years ago) link
Really though it's not as if anything in this film is even vaguely controversial. I mean every single man on the planet WISHES his secret, hidden problem that he tries to keep secret from his family was that he has an incredible knack for brutally sending evil gangsters to oblivion. "Baby, I have to tell you something about myself. It might be hard to understand and if you want to leave me after I tell you this I can't blame you. I spent my formative years as The Punisher." Oh yeah FACE THE MUSIC MOTHERFUCKER. YOU GANGSTER-MURDERING... JERKFACE, I can't BELIEVE you would just have this QUASI-SUPERNATURAL ABILITY to just y'know KILL BADGUYS with near impunity and not TELL YOUR FAMILY?!?!?
During the vaguely unnecessary staircase fuck, I actually thought for a minute "She smells the killer gene!" etc. etc. obv badguy slayers give off a pheromone which is irresistable to ladies who never wash their hair.
Actually I think a lot of things in this movie could be described as "vaguely unnecessary" but you could say that about Kung-Fu Hustle, too, and that's the best film I've seen this year.
― TOMBOT, Wednesday, 5 October 2005 11:46 (eighteen years ago) link
― Alba (Alba), Wednesday, 5 October 2005 12:13 (eighteen years ago) link