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Sight and Sound (2002) Greatest Films Club - Page 13

post #361 of 3769
5/9/03 at 10:42am
ShawnFr, try and not focus on the title of the film as explaining what will be at the end. The film is titled Seven Samurai because it is about seven samurai... Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
who are hired to defend a village. The fact that they die defending the village is a great sacrifice for themselves, expecially since they are dieing for only a little bit of grain each day. They are sacrificing their lives for other people, and there are no greater heroes than the 4 samurai who die in this brilliant film.
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post #362 of 3769
5/9/03 at 4:49pm
Quote:
But where would the tension come from, if your idea were followed?
Even the final shot of the graves (one of the most famous and moving in cinematic history would not only make no sense, but would not even be present.

This is the only way that the young samurai can grow and that the Mifune character can get closure.

Think about how the movie would need to be restructured in order to accommodate your idea.


Okay, I think a few people are misunderstanding me. Personal disappointment is different than wishing anything else would have taken place. I love the movie just the way it is.
I think maybe you two are looking at the movie from a different perspective than I. I am assuming you've seen it more than once, right? This was my first viewing and, basing it on the title, I was hoping for a powerful 7 Samurai clan that would defeat anyone to come in their way. That was my idea going in. So did my preconceived notions throw off what I felt after I saw the movie? Heck yeah, they did. But it was just as good the way it was as compared to what I was hoping for. Now that I've rambled on and on, off I go to watch 8 1/2.
I'm betting I'll get skewered on that one, too

But in all seriousness, both remarks so far have been well made and I agree with both of you.
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post #363 of 3769
5/9/03 at 5:04pm
yes, when given the thought of having so much power on our side, we may hope that we will get through unscathed. (like playing out a season of football on my xbox). but really, when you think of story that would be so captivating for your audience, that plot line sounds like a complete bore, no real threat has been given, and no sense of danger would be present. it is true that there are some stories of such miracles happening(making it through unscathed from the an ultimate sacrafice), butfact is stranger than fiction. Thats why i think the only way a good story can be told without loss is one being told about a true story, otherwise we can't buy it.
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post #364 of 3769
5/9/03 at 5:15pm
just a though and dont take offense. maybe you shouldn't base what you are expecting from a movie on the title.
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post #365 of 3769
5/11/03 at 6:56pm
I saw La Regle du Jue (Rules of the Game) -

Simply marvelous
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post #366 of 3769
5/12/03 at 7:47am
Quote:
I think maybe you two are looking at the movie from a different perspective than I. I am assuming you've seen it more than once, right? This was my first viewing and, basing it on the title, I was hoping for a powerful 7 Samurai clan that would defeat anyone to come in their way.
Right you are Shawn, I’ve seen this film many times, the last time on the big screen (we are at the end of a Kurosawa/Mifune retrospective in Dallas) just a couple of weeks ago.

If you have not seen the American remake of this, The Magnificent Seven, you might want to give it a try. Just don’t be deceived by the title.
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post #367 of 3769
5/12/03 at 8:02am
Ikiru, which is the final film in the Kurosawa/Mifune retrospective currently showing in Dallas. What a treat to see this in a theatre.

Many (and I am one) consider this film Kurosawa’s finest. This film was made right after Rashomonp and is a deeply moving portrait into a single man’s realization of the futility of his life and Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
his determination to accomplish at least one small thing before he dies.


The journey that he takes in attempting to enjoy life and his attempt to recapture his youth through another, seem to me to be truer and more realistic each time I see this film.

But the scene where the actions taken by him are examined and dismissed and praised by his colleagues has always seemed to me to be completely on the mark. Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
The end of this scene where the minor city office workers pledge to learn from his life and act accordingly, we know is a hollow promise. Kurosawa leads us unremittingly to that knowledge, but, as always he ends with such an optimistic note, as we are finally shown the results on one man’s legacy. The final shot of the children playing in the park and being called in for dinner, as a matter of routine is as filled with humanity and as optimistic as any in cinema.
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post #368 of 3769
5/12/03 at 10:03am
Quote:
Now that I've rambled on and on, off I go to watch 8 1/2.
I'm betting I'll get skewered on that one, too

Well if you expect to see 9 samurais in action where one gets cut in half, then you definately will be let down here too.
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post #369 of 3769
5/12/03 at 11:27am
Life is so short
Fall in love, dear maiden
While your lips are still red
And before you are cold,
For there will be no tomorrow

I definitely think Ikiru is Kurosawa's finest film and it is one of my very favorites. There isn't another film I want more on DVD.

Check out Roger Ebert's review on his Great Movies list. One of his finest.
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post #370 of 3769
5/12/03 at 11:55am
Thanks Brook, I just checked it out—this from the last line of Ebert’s review: And the older I get, the less Watanabe seems like a pathetic old man, and the more he seems like every one of us.

Now here is something that I agree with very much. I first saw this film when I was far too young to empathize with Watanabe-san. But I was never too young to understand the workings of City Hall and the political dealings of the Deputy Mayor.
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post #371 of 3769
5/12/03 at 3:11pm
Watched 3 more over the last week or so.

(1) Sunset Boulevard
Awesome movie, best film about Hollywood's dark side I have ever seen. Crackling dialogue, moody interior shots, and outright creepy performances.

(2) Metropolis (Kino - restored) 1/2
I have to be honest, it was tough for me to get through this in one sitting. I think I was over-tired, and wasn't in the mood for it. I can see where the film is considered to be such a classic, and the countless times it was borrowed from, but it didn't really do anything for me personally.

(3) Aguirre: The Wrath of God 1/2
One of the most surreal films I have ever seen - Coppola definitely ripped this off for Apocalypse Now. Kinksi perfectly captures a man's descent into madness, it definitely puts you on the edge of your seat as he is totally unpredictable.

Brings my total up to 107 - More Fassbinder, Herzog, Lang, and maybe some Lubitsch coming up next!
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post #372 of 3769
5/12/03 at 8:06pm
Trois Couleurs: Rouge (Revisit)
Just as beautiful as I remember, plus having now wathced the other 2 makes the ending so more impactful.

Belle de Jour
Interesting look at woman's sexual journey of self discovery - Does that phrase make any sense? I have trouble getting back to english after a couple of hours of french . First Bunuel, more are sure to follow.

I need to go back and count, I haven't been keeping track...

--
Holadem
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post #373 of 3769
5/13/03 at 7:02am
Nosferatu, one of the landmark films of German expressionist cinema.

After watching this again, I wish I could remember which thread had the montage discussion. This is clearly one of the films that helped pioneer this technique.
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post #374 of 3769
5/14/03 at 1:01am
Alexander Nevsky

underwhelmed.
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post #375 of 3769
5/14/03 at 7:06am
Satyricon, one of Fellini's most enigmatic efforts. Very loosely based on a story by Petronius, the film sort of chronicles and comments on Rome and Romans during the time of Nero. This of course, to comment on current Italian society.

The film is filled with spectacular shots and images, but I find it less effective today than I did when it first appeared.
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post #376 of 3769
5/14/03 at 9:24am
I'm a great fan of Fellini, but Satyricon was a difficult watch. It's the only film of his I've seen that I didn't like at all. Enigmatic would be a nicer way of describing it. I'd choose inscrutable and frustrating; lacking the sense of wonder that's present in many of his films.

I'd replace it with The White Sheik or Juliet Of The Spirits.
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post #377 of 3769
5/14/03 at 1:56pm
Quote:
lacking the sense of wonder that's present in many of his films.

I think that is pretty much spot on Brook. What is disappointing for me about this film, is the lack of any real humanity that would balance the cynicism. For example I don’t really care that a couple of Romans kill themselves or that someone can’t get it up.

I do realize that Fellini (as I wrote) is making a statement about modern day Rome, but for me, it does not work that well.

I think that he tried to do the same thing with a later film, Casanova, and I think that it is a failed film for many of the same reasons. I hasten to add that I’ve not seen this since its first run, so I may be unfair. But then, I have no desire to see it again. At least Satyricon has some redeeming features.

BTW, I notice that The White Sheik is on Criterion’s list of future releases.
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post #378 of 3769
5/15/03 at 12:10am
Actually The White Sheik already came out in April but I'm trying to hold firm to a pledge not to order any more Criterions until I've watched all the ones I've got and I still have 6 more to go.

I'll be breaking it next month for Fear Eats The Soul, though. I'm powerless when it comes to Fassbinder.
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post #379 of 3769
5/15/03 at 4:02am
Adam, I think we have to keep in mind that Nevsky was probably one of the first pictures to feature a large battle sequence with pre-industrialized weaponary. Everything afterwards was influenced by it. Looking at it that way, it's more about giving historical perspective than "affirmative action points." And personally, I think the battle on ice is still quite impressive today.

I agree with you on Rules of The Game though, and it reminded me of Gosford Park, too. The class interaction in "Rules" is lot sharper than in Gosford Park.

Quote:
And the older I get, the less Watanabe seems like a pathetic old man, and the more he seems like every one of us.


That line in Ebert's review always bothered me. I could not imagine anyone young or old looking at Watanabe as pathetic. With Lew and Mr. Ebert, that's at least two people who had similar feelings when they were younger. So I ask, did most people who have seen this movie feel this way when they were young?
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post #380 of 3769
5/15/03 at 7:06am
Quote:
With Lew and Mr. Ebert, that's at least two people who had similar feelings when they were younger.

All I can say in defense of my view when I first saw this film, was that I was a teenager at the time. And had no perspective as to why Watanabe-san wanted to spend time with a young girl. Or why he did not stand up to his son and his wife.

Or why he allowed the Deputy Mayor to so easily take credit for his accomplishments (of course we find this out after the fact—but still the flashbacks show him as most deferential). At the time, I was not mature enough to understand that he was satisfied with just the accomplishment—I thought that he should have claimed the credit as well.
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post #381 of 3769
5/15/03 at 7:10am
Quote:
With Lew and Mr. Ebert, that's at least two people who had similar feelings when they were younger
I also thought that Mozart wrote ‘sissy’ music at the time (way too pretty and graceful).
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post #382 of 3769
5/15/03 at 2:09pm
Quote:
Actually The White Sheik already came out in April but I'm trying to hold firm to a pledge not to order any more Criterions until I've watched all the ones I've got and I still have 6 more to go.

I made the same pledge. Which is no doubt why I did not notice that they had actually released the Fellini.

Even though I took the pledge, I still bought the Truffaut box set (and a couple of others).

Guess I fell off the wagon. Maybe I need a 12 step program.
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post #383 of 3769
5/16/03 at 9:41am
Not buying more till you see the ones you have...that's a hoot.

Who here REALLY does this?

I remember one time I had my "to view" list under 10 for awhile.

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post #384 of 3769
5/16/03 at 10:19am
I'm close, I've got mine down to 16. But my pledge only covers Criterions, not all DVD's. I have restrained myself to only buying 8-9 dics this year, however I'm getting 10-12 over the next 6 weeks, so I'll probably lose ground again.
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post #385 of 3769
5/16/03 at 10:21am
Quote:
Not buying more till you see the ones you have...that's a hoot.
My pledge was made in order to secure my CFO’s approval to buy new speakers.
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post #386 of 3769
5/16/03 at 10:39am
I've watched a few more bringing my total to 83:

Shane - B
Bonnie and Clyde - A
Modern Times - A
Marnie - B+
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post #387 of 3769
5/16/03 at 12:11pm
Sunset Blvd was the last S&S movie i saw. i thought it was great. i loved those cameos, especially Buster Keaton's classic facial expressions. FYI, i am not a fan of Mulholland Dr. and after seeing this, why should i even have bothered with it? i like this take much better. A+ now seen 63
Quote:
Not buying more till you see the ones you have...that's a hoot.

i own at least 6 movies i have yet to watch, and i have more movies on the way, i doubt i'll catch up for a while.
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post #388 of 3769
5/16/03 at 11:38pm
I just watched The Apartment(B) and i liked it alot. What really bothered be though was Jack Lemmon's character; Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)
he was extremely idiotic and annoying. Also, the way he was set up for the whole film didn't really justify him getting the girl.

He seemed like a rat just working his way up the ladder by renting out his apartment. I guess the backstory about him letting the execs change there kind of forgives him, but the film needed to make that more clear.



I also watched Sunset Blvd.(A+) and thought it was great. I too loved the camio by Buster Keaton, who is now my favorite actor. Nothing really negative about this film... maybe about the narration, i think it would have been better overall if there was none; the narration in older films tends to get cheesy.

this raises me to 50
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post #389 of 3769
5/17/03 at 9:34pm
Well, I just got done watching Vertigo and I must say, I loved it. I rated it an A but I suspect that if I go through and watch it again, along with the extra stuff from the DVD, I would raise it to an A+. I think the thing that got me was the plot. I love Jimmy Stewart as an actor but the story and the anticipation of what would happen next, that is what makes this movie.
Now, if I can only watch it again without my wife distracting me every 5-10 minutes, asking what is going on...
This officially puts me at 4 watched but with the school year ending soon, I suspect I'll have time to watch a ton more.

BTW, I took out 8 1/2 and Ordet from the library(special requested them from another branch) and I was supposed to watch them both last weekend, as promised, but in-laws came in and took over my house... So now I have to special request them all over again! If this keeps up, I'll never finish the S&S challenge!
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post #390 of 3769
5/18/03 at 8:22am
Just to finish up on the Japanese propaganda films discussion, I was in the book store and looked at a book called A Hundred Years of Japanese Film by Donald Richie. He has a whole chapter on wartime propaganda films. At the very end he mentions briefly (unfortunately without naming any titles) that by the time the tide had turned against the Japanese, they did largely make films in which "all villians were now Western (mostly Japanese actors in sunglasses & moustaches)". The word 'mostly' throws me a bit, cause it's difficult to imagine white actors in a Japanese film circa early 1945, but the info about sunglasses & moustaches is very interesting.

Now back to your regularly scheduled program.
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