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Quote:

Originally Posted by demonrail666

Is that any good? A friend keeps trying to get me to watch it but I'm really put off by the poster.

Yeah. It's done in a very slick and stylistic way.

Does no one else think that Hitchcock is one of the most over-rated fucking directors is the history of over-fucking rated directors?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murmer99

I assume it would've been easier to appreciate Hitchcock during his time. I think he is one of the masters of cinema and deserves the respect he gets. He's one of the most impressive directors to use visual techniques to escalate the stories in his films. Visual irony and whatnot... simplistic techniques that weren't necessarily "flashy" compared to others. There's always something interesting about most of his shots to me... the classic shower scene for instance in Psycho. I've always felt there was a thematic quality to that scene... how it seems to show very little violence by using that cutting technique or whatever.. despite the fact that the main character is being stabbed to death and there's blood pouring in the shower. The majority of his violent scenes aren't merely there for the sake of it.. to entertain by showing someone dying and then moving along. He gives the audience the feeling that someone has just died, and even finds a way to add wit and dark humor to it. It has also been mentioned how the camera floats away from her corpse and moves gradually towards the money she stole. Perhaps not something everyone would notice initially, what it means...

The acting is always top notch in everything I've seen by him. Not enjoying his films is understandable, but I don't see how he is "overrated". The unsettling finish to "The Birds" is brilliant too. I guess to each his own, though...

I think what it is that pisses me off is that the story is moot. I always feel he's going "fuck the story, here's a new camera trick/overblown scene". Vertigo and North By Northwest for me was him at his absolute worst. Yes I realise I'm committing heresy by saying that, but they feel to me to be one big set piece after another with LOUD music to set tension another 10 more notches.

I guess it's fitting that the only two films of his I really enjoyed was Rope and Shadow Of A Doubt. Him at his most restrained (next to Lifeboat I suspect although I haven't seen that so can't say) and most enjoyable.

In my opinion anyway.

Oh and Tippie Hedren was so annoying in the Birds. She was NOT good in that film.

I can completely see what H8kurdt is saying, even though I'd still consider myself a Hitchcock fan. He's definitely one of the flashier directors and there's a lot of truth to claims that he always put style before substance and as such I've never found him to be the most emotionally involving of directors. If nothing else though he was technically superb.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not criticising Hitchcock but I do think his style of making films isn't necessarily for everyone. Although I prefer him to Kubrick I put them in a similar category. They're both very 'technical' directors.

Anyway, from the sublime to the ridiculous ...

Sex and the City

I'm not gonna criticise this movie, it is what it is, but did it really need to be roughly the same length as Stalker?!?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murmer99

What is it? the picture doesn't show up for me.

Sex and the City

I actually enjoyed it but did keep checking the 'time remaining' display and thinking, "are you serious?"

also just watched ...

Erin Brockovich

I've decided I like Julia Roberts far more than I thought.

Clash of the Titans

I give up on this movie. I've tried to watch it all the way through a load of times since I got it but I just can't seem to do it. I always either fall asleep about a third of the way in or I just switch it off about half way through, out of sheer boredom. I can't think of many movies that I find downright impossible to sit through but this is definitely one of them.

cataleya is fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine

Magnolia

Pretty Woman

Quote:

Originally Posted by demonrail666

Thanks for the Kusama recommendations.

Ilsa She Wolf is an interesting film. It feels like it should've been made in Italy, given the fascination a lot of Italian movies have with the whole SS/S&M thing, even in some of its artier films (Rome Open City, The Night Porter, etc). I used to think it was a cheap cash in on Boys From Brazil until realising it actually predates it by a few years. I've a book somewhere on the Nazi's apparent love/hate relationship with women. I can't remember the title but I'll dig it out. Do you remember the title of the book about Irma Grese? I feel a brand new fascination brewing.

The book I've read, ''The Beautiful Beast: The Life and Crimes of SS-Aufseherin Irma Grese'', generally gets positive reviews and personally I thought it's an interesting read in terms of getting to know how far ''regular'' people will go in order to inflict atrocious pain on fellow human beings and get some insight into their own attitude towards physical and mental suffering in general. That's pretty much the only interest I have in this sort of stuff, and it was sort of brought up by watching some of those ‘’New French Extremity’’ (I know, terrible term which doesn’t do some of these directors any justice) movies. Other than that, I have never really liked the nazi/fascist/totalitarian/wartime dominatrix/s&m look. I am all for floral and polka dot motifs and eternal peace and well-being for everyone.

Savage Streets (1984)
The Boy Who Cried Bitch (1991)
Happy Birthday To Me (1981)
Born Innocent (1974 - TV Movie)
House of Flying Daggers (2004)
Precious: Based on the Novel ''Push'' by Sapphire (2009)
Mondo Trasho (1969)

Quote:

Originally Posted by demonrail666

Pretty Woman

I always enjoy re-watching that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Genteel Death

I always enjoy re-watching that.

Yeah, there's something about it. My only problem is that Richard Gere plays such an irredeemable cunt in it that I just can't take his supposed change of heart seriously. The hotel manager is cool though, and I do like Julia Roberts pretty much unreservedly.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murmer99

Also re-watched Stagecoach a little while ago.

One of the best films ever. The ending is almost dreamlike, when Ringo approaches the murderers of his relatives in that shadowy darkness. I loved it so much more this time. Honestly, I'm becoming a big fan of John Wayne.

Yeah, it blows my mind. The scene 50 mins when Ringo follows Dallas outside and tells her about his ranch kills me every time. Every Ford film seems to have 'that' scene, where everything he's trying to say is captured in a single moment. Like the walk to the church in Clementine or Haillie's cactus rose speech in Valance and obviously the final scene in The Searchers. I dunno, Ford just blows me away.

Sex and the City 2

I quite like the first one but this really is just rubbish.

just watched BIG MONEY HUSTLAS
then picked BIG MONEY RUSTLAS to follow it up

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murmer99

How did you find out about Zachariah?

Stupid as it may sound, I'm quite a big Don Johnson fan, especially the stuff he did before Miami Vice. A Boy and His Dog, Zachariah, Harrad Experiment. He was very much part of the 60s San Francisco thing which got downplayed once Miami Vice was a hit and he started getting straighter roles but it's all a lot more interesting than anything he did afterwards. It's like he had two entirely seperate careers in the same industry.

Ocean's Eleven (remake)

Bloody excellent film.