Flipside Movie Emporium

[mfritschel]

The Human Stain (Benton 2003) - thoroughly entertaing, although the ending left much to be desired, I feel as if the movie could have accomplished so much more. It presented some interesting thoughts and did a fairly good job of mapping out the culture of the late 1990's, and yet never really did anything with it. The ending felt a little forced, almost as if the film makers decided they were approaching the 2 hour mark and needed a quick fix.

Exorcist: The Beginning (Harlin 2004) - not nearly the masterpiece the original was. This version seemed to reply much more on general nominal scare tatics designed primarily to make you jump out of your seat, instead of disturb you on a psychological level. Although the original at time could be criticized for the same at times, this one seemed to have much more the feal of Nightmare on Elm Street feel, than the type of horror that the first one brought out. I am still very interested to compare it to its companion movie, the back story of this movie is almost more entertaing and provacative then the actual movie itself. That being said I, I still find myself having a lot of fun jumping out of my seat during the movie.

Broken Wings (Bergman 2004) - a great moving family piece about loss, social status, and putting one's life back together. The acting was suberb and the movie itself was very well put together. The major bonuses of the movie being its indirect social commentary on the status of signal parent famlies, and their economic situtaions, and the way one could feel that the movie could relate to any culture or any period. Although it was an all to familiar story, it still seemed fresh and moving.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Lee 2003)

Collateral (Mann 2004) - When Mann is on, he is great. He has an uncanny capability to capture the dark side of Southern California, especially at night. This movie and Heat, both seemed so influenced by the culture of LA, and work so well within its perameters. But then again this could just be a yankee from Wisconsin not knowing any better.

Shattered Glass (Ray 2003) - I don't know what it is about the loser and liar, but these movies always seem to make the best stories.

Passion of Joan of Arc (Dreyer 1928) - easily of the greatest films of all time, so many memorable shots, but I would have to say my favorite is the ending sequence. The camera during that riot, and during the whole movie for that matter, was just so fantastic.

In the Mirror of Maya Deren (Kudalacek 2004) - although it seemed she lived a very interesting life, I just couldn not get into the movie, maybe its because I knew next to nothing about her work.

Jackie Brown (Tarantino 1997)

Crimson Gold (Panahi 2004) - Panahi is one of the most critical directors on society I have seen in awhile, I am amazed at how openly he attacks his society and yet the pictures really seem to relate to all states of life. The movie would have had the same effect and been just as plausible, maybe even more so, if it would have been based in the US. Yet how many US directors do we find that are as openly critical and have the ability to do so in a very artful manner, that manages to say so much about the human condition.[/i]

[Danny Baldwin]

[beltmann]

[Dr Giggles]

Carnival of souls (1962) Herk Harvey

A fairly creepy movie, it was an absolute pleasure watching Candace Hilligoss take most of the screen. Havent seen the "Wes craven presents" remake, dont think I want to. Anyone seen the remake?

P.S What kind of a name is Herk?

Dont Look Now (1973) Nicolas Roeg

Excellent thriller, that had me engrossed the entire time.

The location of Venice is so beautiful but yet, very isolated and very

mysterious. I'll never look at a red coat the same way.

The Shining (1997)(mini) Mick Garris

Got nothing on Kubrick.
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walking on air, up from the wheelchair,

I'll find the suicide, that I deserve.

[smarty]

Outfoxed: Rupert Murdock's War on Journalism (Greenwald, 2004)

I just finished watching "Outfoxed"and I thought it was amazing. While the way it was shot was extremely underwhelming, it did an excellent job of getting its points across in a very convincing manner. Has anyone else see it?
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everybody knows that you only live a day/ but its brilliant anyway

[The Third M?n]

Good Morning (1959, Ozu)

Good Morning was a splendid film. Ozu paints the film with nightmarishly bright colors, giving the film a light-hearted feel that never ceases to pervade its surface. His camera never moves -- not even once -- throughtout the whole running time, and even then the Technicolor cinematography, however passive, is incredible. Ozu shows us the lives of four families living in a tightly-knit community of blocks with admirable skill, focusing on two brothers who decide to take a vow of silence after their parents refuse to buy them a television. Good Morning (Ohayo) works as a comedy -- there are some moments with two brothers that are really funny, what with the flatulence jokes, etc --, and yet it can also be viewed in many other ways. While it's not profound or anything of the sort -- it doesn't set out to be -- Good Morning emphasizes the importance of communication between the people, satirizes subtly the people's over-dependence on materialism and works as an example of Japan's entry into the modern world. For a long time Ozu's films were unavailable in the occident because they were deemed "too Japanese", but, this being the first film of his that I've seen, I have to say that Good Morning is anything but that; it's a purely universal work. Good Morning serves as a fine introduction to Ozu's ouvre and is one of the best films I've seen in a long time. It's undeniably simple, but that doesn't mean it's simplistic.

[matt header]

I haven't seen We Don't Live Here Anymore, but at the theatre I work at, some lady left after thirty minutes and demanded her money back because "there was adultery in it." Hmmmm....

[the night watchman]

Fair enough.
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"If you're talking about censorship, and what things should be shown and what things shouldn't be shown, I've said that as an artist you have no social responsibility whatsoever."

-David Cronenberg

[Danny Baldwin]

[matt header]

As a quick side note, I feel like I should say I didn't hate Garden State; I had an exceptionally good week for movie-watching, and that just happened to be the least spectacular. I agree with almost everything you said, night watchman, but I don't think I felt nearly as close to the characters as you felt.
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"I don't like talking to people I know, but strangers I have no problem with." -- Larry David, "Curb Your Enthusiasm"

[beltmann]

9/6 ? 9/12/04

In preferential order:

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter? and Spring (Kim, South Korea 2003)

We Don?t Live Here Anymore (Curran, USA 2004)

Intimate Strangers (Leconte, France 2004)

Jim Brown: All American (Lee, USA 2002)

Kiss of Life (Young, UK 2003)

Jersey Girl (Smith, USA 2004)

The Prince & Me (Coolidge, USA 2004)

Against the Ropes (Dutton, USA 2004)

Kim?s eloquent and hypnotizing Spring? continues the recent renaissance in South Korean cinema, and I prefer it over even the recent work by Im Kwon-Taek. Although it?s a lofty movie about no less than the acquisition of wisdom over a lifetime, it is stripped of pretension, clutter, and sermonizing. Plus, I?d compare the rich cinematography to that of Tran Anh Hung, another Asian filmmaker infatuated with the gifts of color photography?both directors provide highs of pure, sensational cinema that commercial blockbusters can only fantasize about.

We Don?t Live Here Anymore captures the true rhythm of troubled, intimate relationships better than any movie I?ve seen since The Secret Lives of Dentists. As two couples circle around various layers of betrayal, the movie focuses not on adultery itself but on the subtle, bottomless character motivations that accompany indiscretion. It also boasts extraordinary performances from all four leads, and by now everyone must know that Mark Ruffalo is the closest thing to Montgomery Clift the screen has witnessed since, well, Monty himself.

Basking in the glories of speaking and hearing?and connecting listening to intimacy, fantasy, and arousal?Intimate Strangers is my favorite Leconte picture outside of The Widow of Saint-Pierre.

Since I feel he?s been on a steady decline ever since Chasing Amy, I went into Kevin Smith?s Jersey Girl with low expectations. While most of the emotional arc relies on the stalest of stale conventions?such as the father racing to appear unexpectedly at a school play, or the dilemma of having to choose between small town nobility and the ?corruption? of wealth?I must concede that I responded to Ben Affleck?s initiation into fatherhood. I must also concede that my response probably has less to do with aesthetics than with my own recent venture into parenting.

Eric
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"When I was in Barcelona they showed pornography on regular television. I'm assuming it's the same way in Mexico since they also speak Spanish." - IMDb user comment

[Danny Baldwin]

9/7 - 9/13

I'm starting to realize what they mean by "Advanced Placement" classes.

In preferential order:

Wicker Park (McGuigan, 2004)

Run Lola Run (Tykwer, 1999)

Resident Evil 2: Apocalypse (Witt, 2004)

I wasn't particularly wild about any of them. Wicker Park is quite clever and genre-defying, but it's so detached and cold in its approach, the lack of passion seems tedious. I was interested, yes, but, in the end, it didn't win me over. The same goes for Run Lola Run, which I'm in a very small opposition against. I understand that one action changes everything and have picked my favorite of the three outcomes of the story exhibited. I was also bored by everything about it and annoyed by the hyperactive style.

Resident Evil 2 was no surprise, but the few awesome scenes in the first movie, for some reason, made me want to see this one. There are some funny moments, and it occassionally captured my attention. But, excepting those, I can't say it's anything short of a train-wreck.

I've got some sure-to-be good movies (then again, I once had Lola in that group) rented. I finally used my free monthly rental from Blockbuster! Once! So, hopefully, I'll have some more time this week. I kind of doubt it, though. Some Oscar-contending documentaries are playing here tonight through Wednesday night, and I hope to catch one full-length one or a set of three shorts. That will be on a whim though. The film festival starts on the twenty-eigth, and that will bring in a rush of diverse pictures on my plate. In the meanwhile, though, I've got to develop the endurance for a triple-feature on the weekend; Saturday is my only, truly free day.
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Danny Baldwin

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[Michael Scrutchin]

The past week:

[the night watchman]

[beltmann]