The Film Lovers Thread!

[kokobombon]

I just saw Brothers. I specially liked Maguire´s job, and -to my surprise- Gyllenhaall´s.

 

[ChrissyM]

Does anyone have any film suggestions?....for some reason lately i don't seem to have much of a list of Must See's... would love some recommendations

adorefaith i think we like a lot of the same movies... so i'll suggest some for you too
some you may have already seen of course...

in the mood for love - a wong kar wai film i believe.... i watched it for an asian cinema class in college and just fell in love with it... kind of quiet and powerful.. just a beautiful film i think
hero - another film i saw for my asian cinema class... it has those fantasy sword fighting elements but the film is just visually STUNNING, both of these asian films have become favorites of mine i think...

i really liked stranger than fiction for some reason.... don't know if you've seen that

dirty pretty things
the chorus/les choristes
everything is illuminated
doubt - from last year? meryl streep blew me away (as usual)

 

[Gincat]

in the mood for love - a wong kar wai film i believe.... i watched it for an asian cinema class in college and just fell in love with it... kind of quiet and powerful.. just a beautiful film i think
hero - another film i saw for my asian cinema class... it has those fantasy sword fighting elements but the film is just visually STUNNING, both of these asian films have become favorites of mine i think...

They are visually stunning, and it's no coincidence since Christopher Doyle was the cinematographer on both. Everything he shoots is just . I'm at the point now where I'll just watch a film just because he's the DP on it, even if I care nothing for the director or plot.

 

[adorefaith]

thanks Chrissy. i do think we have similar taste too. believe it or not i haven't seen a single film on your list! i have some catching up to do, looks like..

i just finished watching Husbands and Wives by woody allen.. very funny, very smart. there were a few lines that really had me in hysterics... i'd recommend this one, it's pretty classic woody allen..

 

[misslizzie]

my fav films are probably 1) Into the wild 2) Candy

buut.. maybe some of you can recommend some great unique films for me?

 

[STYLEOClDE]

Has anyone seen Tillsammans (Together)?
I absolutely loved this film. After the film was over I couldn't help but sing ABBA's SOS.

 

[Gincat]

For those of you who have Netflix, they just added a bunch of Wong Kar Wai's films to the instant viewer thing. Can't wait to watch Days of Being Wild and Happy Together, again.

 

[farou7a]

i finally just watched 'its complicated'

love meryl as usual..

 

[turnofflights]

Days of Heaven

 

[Gincat]

^Love that movie!

 

[auxt]

Here are some older "hidden gems" I recommend ... for best viewing experience, don't read too much about them first

Night of the Hunter (1955) [ RT 98% ] - Atmospheric, surreal, suspenseful, and overlooked. Now considered a classic, Charles Laughton's first and only film was mostly dismissed by audiences at the time.
Diabolique (1955) [ RT 96% ] - French crime thriller directed by the great Henri-Georges Clouzot. Remade in 1996 with Sharon Stone and Isabelle Adjani, but check out the original.
The Cranes are Flying (1957) [ RT 94% ] - WWII romance/drama is one of the greatest Soviet films. Amazing pre-steadicam handheld cinematography, winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes.
The Swimmer (1968) [ RT 100% ] - Surprising this movie came out of Hollywood in the 60s. Frank and Eleanor Perry collaborated on many fine movies, this is one of their best efforts. Based on a New Yorker short story, starring Burt Lancaster.

 

[turnofflights]

Diabolique (1955)[/URL] [ RT 96% ] - French crime thriller directed by the great Henri-Georges Clouzot. Remade in 1996 with Sharon Stone and Isabelle Adjani, but check out the original.

... wonderful choice!

 

[Scott]

i adore diabolique,auxt! excellent suggestion.

 

[auxt]

Yeah Clouzot is very good, I've liked everything I've seen by him (all 3 of them ).
This oil rig disaster has me thinking of Wages of Fear.

 

[Mistique]

adorefaith: have you seen Sideways? I think you might like it. Also I agree with ChrissyM about Stranger Than Fiction, it's not just another Will Ferrell comedy.

It seems I should watch some movies directed by Wong Kar Wai. The only one I've seen until now is My Blueberry Nights, I didn't dislike it but I wasn't crazy about it either.

 

[adorefaith]

oh, My Blueberry Nights was one of his? i disliked that movie...

Sideways...yes!, though i was distracted...i really need to re-watch that one properly.. thanks for the suggestion Mistique

 

[adorefaith]

we need to revive this thread!

i finally got around to watching in the mood for love tonight. to be completely honest this is one of only a handful of films from asian cinema that i have watched, and there is such a different rhythm that it takes me a while to be pulled in.. i found it very slow.. of course, by 'hollywood' standards, or even those of most western cinema.. it is so quiet, which is i think the word chrissy used. definitely takes some getting used to. i found it hard to really be pulled in to the characters.. to invest.. i think culturally there is so much difference and so much to try and understand, as well, that you don't necessarily pick up on intuitively like you might with a film based closer within your own cultural experience.

Anyhow.. the cinematography was indeed beautiful.. and the music was amazing too and by about three quarters of the way through i was much more attached to the whole thing.. i thought the ending scenes (from singapore on, i guess) were particularly superb.

i will try and watch another of his films and see how i feel..

on another note - i saw micmacs today by jean-pierre jeunet (same director as amelie and a very long engagement...both of which i liked).. can't say i liked this one as much.. i found the plot very, very weak. everyone gave great performances though, and visually it was as quirky and fascinating as always. the most interesting part was its commentary on arms and arms trade, really, but i don't think it was developed nearly enough. it could have been much more powerful imo. anyway, not really my style of film overall, but there you go!

 

[jml2]

The Scent of Green Papaya - it is one of those slow moving asian films but it is soo beautiful and hypnotic. Give it a chance!
Rosemary's Baby - horror, but fabulous. The best representation in cinema of how a dream feels that I've ever seen.
Naked - nihilistic and dark, but fabulous. It turns the ugly seedy side of London into poetry and has an unforgettable main character.

I could go on and on, there's so many great movies!

 

[jml2]

a few more

Babette's Feast - lovely!
A High Wind in Jamaica - I haven't seen it since I was a child but have never forgotten it

 

[ChrissyM]

i think part of the reason i loved in the mood for love was because i did actually watch it two or three times and wrote a paper about it for the Asian Cinema course I took in college, and we were also getting cultural/historical background information which i think probably helped to contextualize the film for me...
and if you think about sexuality in asian cinema it tends to traditionally be more repressed (which you can see in this film for sure, the sexual magnetism and attraction is definitely kept under wraps and is repressed)
i think it's something that improves every time you watch it...
plus, maggie cheung's clothes!!
how beautiful and sort of rigid were they?! she looks so elegant... and restrained
this movie (and hero which has a more traditional pace from what i can remember... not so slow) really made me fall in love with her...
i think she has the ability to be really magnetic on screen

i need to watch a very long engagement...
was that made before or after amelie? i know audrey tatou is in it, right?