What Non-New Films Have You Seen? (2019 Edition)

[Shit Good Nose]

I notice its not Deakins behind the camera but rather the guy who did Rogue One, maybe after the same look as the desert scenes in that?

Deakins was, IIRC, asked, but was otherwise engaged on Sam Mendes' upcoming WW1 film.  Greig Fraser's got a pretty good rep, though, and he's certainly got a style of his own - some stunning work over the last few years, even if the films themselves haven't been all that (The Gambler and Mary Magdalene, for example).

[Blumf]

What's the time travel in Lost Highway?

Saxophone playing guy who turns into another guy ends up leaving himself that message that confused him in the first place.

Coo, that sounds interesting! I thought Dune was some daft, slightly weird space opera thing set on a desert planet. I didn't realise it was making a whole philosophical/metaphysical argument.

Yep, it is a daft, slightly weird space opera, but it also tackles various subjects like religion, environmentalism, and political power.

[Small Man Big Horse]

Caught up on Quentin Dupieux:

Nonfilm, his debut. Some similarities with Dennis Hopper's The Last Movie in a way. Vague and meandering (in a good way), surreal film shoot about a film shoot about a film shoot.

Wrong. Terrifically funny and sweet, perhaps his most mainstream-feeling film but it's lovely and I laughed loads.

Reality. Yet again proving Dupieux is a modern surrealist master. The way everything worms its way together by the end is fantastic.

I love me some Dupieux, Nonfilm is the only one of his I've yet to see (bar this year's Deerskin) and I really must rectify that asap.

[zomgmouse]

Watched a couple of Takashi Miike films:

Sukiyaki Western Django. Very zany and messy and loose fun that's a mashup of westerns and samurai films and essentially an homage to Yojimbo. All that aside it features Quentin Tarantino saying the words "I am an anime otaku at heart" which in itself gets a pass from me.

Zebraman. Really touching and absurd, about a loserish schoolteacher who takes on the persona of cancelled TV superhero Zebraman and gets mixed up in an alien invasion plot while gaining some self-esteem.

Also watched Nanami: Inferno of First Love. Incredible 1968 Japanese film, kind of a bit experimental but absolutely striking and poetic. Basically a coming-of-age story and it's quite beautiful and intimate and tragic.

Start with Edvard Munch when you do.  Best film about an artist ever made.

I've been trying to track this down actually! All I can find is the shorter version and I'd love to see the full cut. Either way, I've been trying to go in chronological order so there's a few to get through before that one.

I love me some Dupieux, Nonfilm is the only one of his I've yet to see (bar this year's Deerskin) and I really must rectify that asap.

It's not as stylistically set as his others, just as a word of warning. But it's still very surreal and funny.

[Small Man Big Horse]

It's not as stylistically set as his others, just as a word of warning. But it's still very surreal and funny.

I saw a bit of it on Vimeo and noticed that, but am still looking forward to watching the rest.

Fraktus (2012) - German mockumentary about a band who supposedly created techno who then split up, only to be reformed almost thirty years on by a dodgy bloke called Roger. Some of it's amusing but it relies on cringe a little too much and it's a shame we don't hear more of the band's songs as they really are funny - Ape Seeks Love being a real highlight. The ending's sweet and it's by no means bad, just not quite as good as it initially looked like it was going to be. 6.4/10

Brazil (1985) - Saw this by chance as a teenager when it was shown as part of Moviedrome and it blew me away, and this was the first time since then. And it blew me away again, it's just astonishingly good. 8.7/10

[zomgmouse]

As it's coming to the Melbourne International Film Festival I've been watching some films by directors whose films I'll be seeing in the festival (which includes Miike and Almodóvar above).

The Treasure. Romanian slow burn comedy with roots in social commentary where two man try to dig up some pre-war buried treasure.

Places in Cities. For fans of super slow cinema, a perfect example of teenage malaise put on screen.

Black Coal, Thin Ice. Slow Chinese murder mystery, shades of neo-noir. Enjoyed it but didn't love it.

My Joy. Debut feature by Sergei Loznitsa is a slow surreal yet realist nightmare, starts with a truck driver en route making an ordinary delivery but then it really takes some shifts. Absolutely loved this one.

Careful readers will note that all four descriptions have included the word "slow". I watched these four films in a single day. I am very much slowed out.

[greenman]

Finally got around to watching First Reformed, started very well I thought and generally good performance from Hawk but went off the rails at the end a bit with the attempts at Malick/Tarkovsky like eco visions not really coming off which made the characters motivation undercooked.

Dairy of an Eco Priest.

[phantom_power]

High Plains Drifter - Hmmm, problematic, to use the vernacular of the times. I know Clint is meant to be a bad man but the way the woman sort of seems to enjoy the end of the rape and then the Bar owners wife just falls into bed with him made me feel a bit uncomfortable. Certainly wouldn't get made today. Other than that a pretty good revenge drama that wears its debt to Leone large on its sleeve.

[Monsieur Verdoux]

High Plains Drifter is one of the most angry and misanthropic films ever made. The vision of the world it conjures up in microcosm is one of profound disgust. It certainly makes you wonder what was going on with Eastwood at the time

[Shit Good Nose]

Eastwood's best film as director in my opinion. 

The devil rides into town, punishes everyone, and then paints the town red.  An absolute masterpiece.


Also, please - PLEASE, for the millionth time - stop applying late 2010s wokeness to stuff made years ago. 

[Sebastian Cobb]

HPD and Play Misty for Me are part of a Mubi double-bill of Clinton directed films. Can't wait tbh.

[Monsieur Verdoux]

Eastwood's best film as director in my opinion. 

Have to agree, it's authentically tormented in a really, really interesting way. One of the few films of its type that truly understands evil, and doesn't have anything comforting to say about it.

[Monsieur Verdoux]

Although, on the charges of retrospective wokeness, the rape scene was quite controversial at the time, so it's not a new reaction or reading to find the sexual politics of it discomforting. It's supposed to be, and crying 'woke!' can absolutely act as a way of shutting down interesting discussion about deliberately provocative art. So relax.

[phantom_power]

Eastwood's best film as director in my opinion. 

The devil rides into town, punishes everyone, and then paints the town red.  An absolute masterpiece.


Also, please - PLEASE, for the millionth time - stop applying late 2010s wokeness to stuff made years ago. 

I don't think there is anything wrong with doing so as long as you acknowledge that it was a different time and doesn't necessarily diminish the film itself. Also, the sexual politics are pretty fucking murky regardless of "wokeness"

[SteveDave]

The Road

Not as grim as I thought it was going to be. But then I have spent time in Swansea.

[Blumf]

Baywatch (2017)
It's dumb, but it's not trying to be anything else. You can just sit back and enjoy the dumb jokes for what they are, and browse the web or whatever as the dumb story won't require much attention, naturally.

[Panbaams]

Sapphire (1959): 'The murder of a young woman in London exposes deep racial tensions and prejudices inherent in the area.'

If this film was made nowadays, but set in 1959, the more liberal-minded detective running the investigation would clearly be The Man From The Future, sent back in time to wag his finger at the racists he's surrounded by. I presume that there's at least one TV police show on at the moment that does this. But it was made in 1959, and won a BAFTA for Best British Film – deservedly.

Always fascinating (to me, at any rate) to see the England of my parents' childhood in colour. (Don't.)

[Artie Fufkin]

The Road

Not as grim as I thought it was going to be. But then I have spent time in Swansea.

LOLZ

[jobotic]

High Plains Drifter maybe wouldn't get made today, but it is shown regularly on your ITV2s today.

[phantom_power]

Yeah, it isn't unpalatable or anything as Clint is meant to be an utter shit stick. It isn't like Revenge of the Nerds or anything where it shows how far we have come in terms of equality and understanding consent by showing what was acceptable for a "hero" to do in them olden days

[zomgmouse]

Watched a couple of Dardennes:

The Unknown Girl. Pretty basic but enjoyable nonetheless.

The Promise. Probably my favourite of theirs now. Spectacularly paced and observed.

Dunno what it is but they do know how to nail an ending, leaving your guts sunken and with almost no certainty of what's coming for anyone.

[sevendaughters]

Watched a couple of Dardennes:

The Unknown Girl. Pretty basic but enjoyable nonetheless.

The Promise. Probably my favourite of theirs now. Spectacularly paced and observed.

Dunno what it is but they do know how to nail an ending, leaving your guts sunken and with almost no certainty of what's coming for anyone.

I watched all the Dardenne boxset (Promise/Rosetta/Son/Child/Sacrifice/KidBike) and then Unknown Girl was on iPlayer. I'd probably say The Promise is my 4th favourite after The Son, Rosetta, and KidBike in that order. I'd say The Son is in my 10 fav films of this century so far. But I did really like The Promise. Heartbreaking. Unknown Girl is a great idea in a way but turned into a regular gumshoe and the kid in it was absolute trash.

[zomgmouse]

I watched all the Dardenne boxset (Promise/Rosetta/Son/Child/Sacrifice/KidBike) and then Unknown Girl was on iPlayer. I'd probably say The Promise is my 4th favourite after The Son, Rosetta, and KidBike in that order. I'd say The Son is in my 10 fav films of this century so far. But I did really like The Promise. Heartbreaking. Unknown Girl is a great idea in a way but turned into a regular gumshoe and the kid in it was absolute trash.

Two Days, One Night is rather good as well, very simple but very well done. Hoping to see a few more of their films at some point, I'm going to their latest next week at the film festival.

[Sebastian Cobb]

Have you seen the Czech film Morgiana (1972) by Juraj Herz? Strickland cites it as a strong influence on Burgundy, and there is a nice little call-back to it in In Fabric as well. Now I think about it, there is a really lovely call-back to Burgundy in In Fabric as well!

Gave this a bash, thanks for the recommendation! What a wonderful adult fairytale.

[Small Man Big Horse]

Zebraman. Really touching and absurd, about a loserish schoolteacher who takes on the persona of cancelled TV superhero Zebraman and gets mixed up in an alien invasion plot while gaining some self-esteem.

I watched that back in June and really enjoyed it, and tonight I caught the sequel:

Zebraman 2: Attack On Zebra City - Takashi Miike's sequel to his down to earth, quite affecting superhero action comedy is a batshit crazy kind of film where suddenly it's 15 years later and boy, the future is weird and then some. Zebraman has amnesia, Zebra Queen is some strange pop singer with a murderous kink, twice a day it's legal for the zebra police to murder people for five minutes, oh, and the squidgy green alien things are still about too. It's a little overlong and not quite as fun as the first but it's still very enjoyable stuff, with an ending which has to be seen to be believed. 7.4/10

There was a 41 minute spin-off called "Vengeful Zebra Mini-Skirt Police" which I've obtained but am yet to see, but sadly there's no third film yet, but I hope Miike makes it one day given how the second ends.

[phantom_power]

Absolute Beginners - I was hoping this was going to be a hidden gem, wrongly maligned when it came out, or a camp classic that is fun to watch because of how bad it is but, sadly, it is just a bit dull. It looks great and I admire its ambition but the two leads are dull as dishwater, the plot is barely there and not very interesting when it is. Who would think a film with Bowie, Ray Davies and Lionel Blair in it would be so boring.

[Artie Fufkin]

The Dark Crystal - shit

[Cuellar]

The Killing Of A Sacred Deer - curious

[Old Gold Tooth]

The House That Dripped Blood in its lovely restored print on the recent release from Second Sight.

I'd somehow missed this in my 'orror-devouring misspent childhood. I'd heard it was far from the best of the Amicus anthologies so wasn't expecting much, but found it a really enjoyable watch with reliably great performances. I give it 5 bags of blood and a replica of Jon Pertwee's cloak.

[zomgmouse]

A Lonely Woman. Unrelentingly depressing almost to the point of absurdity. Life sucks especially if you're a poor single mother in Communist Poland. Can't decide if I liked this or not.