The Savant Speaks

Why?

aaronBsmith — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 14:50:52 GMT

I usually stick with a movie to the bitter end, but I just couldn't with this one. What was Richard Kelly thinking? But even more important that that, what were his financiers thinking? This movie could have been a marvel and a wonder to behold, but instead, it fails to be that. At least, that's how I feel about it after watching the first hour.

synopsis error

aaronBsmith — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 15:30:04 GMT

I am pretty confident the synopsis on this page for The Poughkeepsie Tapes is the wrong one.

still

aaronBsmith — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 11:39:03 GMT

I still have images from this film burned into my brain. Who can forget the phallus with the spiked rotating head, or the girlfriend who is killed by it during an erotic tryst. So much blood, rendered in black and white. The stop motion animation in the film stays with me to.

When the movie was over, I said to my friends, "I think this must be what it's like to be Japanese."

exhilarating and blinding

aaronBsmith — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 04:41:35 GMT

I didn't realize till after watching this film and I was digging around on imdb that this film was directed by the same man who made, Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter ...And Spring. I had a sense that there was something connected between the two films - the imagery of houses floating on water, the sights and sounds of a lake throughout the seasons. I was in a state of denseness that did not allow me to see clearly that this was a work from the same artist.

As confounding as it was to me, in terms of its symbolism and allegory, I was spellbound by this film. It's so beautiful and so carnal. It's almost as though this film is attempting to capture the moment of ecstasy during sex where you don't know if you can stand how good it feels, to the point where it is excruciating in a way that is exhilarating and blinding. There are moments in this film like that. You want to hide you eyes, yet you can't look away. It's all so beautiful.

quality french cinema

aaronBsmith — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 20:29:36 GMT

This film did an excellent job of getting you to empathize with the protangonist, so much so that you are willing to watch him ride the same ferry boat over and over again when he detours to china.

Sad, so sad

aaronBsmith — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 03:06:19 GMT

This movie broke my heart. Why did I wait so long to see it?

It communicted it's message with so much stylistic constraint. I love it when a movie does that. I love it that movies can do that.

Complete

aaronBsmith — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 03:02:16 GMT

I have this sense as well, that something was lacking from this film at least in comparison to Iñárritu's previous little opuses. Maybe there is nothing lacking. Maybe these movie is so true to its attempt to convey the disconnect between cultures, language, and lack of language that it cannot be completely understood until we can empathize to some degree with the different cultural and linguistic contexts the characters are in.

Maybe until we've herded sheep in Morocco (or wherever they were) or experienced deafness or been an illegal alien we can't really begin to understand Babel.

But is that what Iñárritu intended? Part of me thinks he wanted to portray characters that we all could relate to in some way, despite their and our differences. I don't think he pulled this off though.

So maybe I am just making excuses for Iñárritu because I don't want to admit that he may have faltered in some way on Babel. Maybe too much money and big stars was not a good thing.

Maybe.

Then a couple a' guys who were up to no good, started makin' trouble in ma' neighborhood

aaronBsmith — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 02:50:31 GMT

I miss the 80's.

I don't miss the fresh prince.

Will Smith made me cry in the end. damn him. But something was missing from this film to make it truly amazing. But what?

D. Anderson Gave This To Me

aaronBsmith — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 02:45:00 GMT

Ok, yeah, I have actually seen this DVD. Here's the story:

I teach at this little film school in the city I live in, Grand Rapids, Michigan. (It's where Paul Schrader is from, the guy who wrote Taxi Driver and the Last Temptation of Christ adaptation). At this film school, there is this other teacher, D. Anderson. D., was at Fry's Electronics in LA this week and he spotted, The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made. He bought it and brought it home with him.

So Today, (wed, April 18) he is telling me about these awesome film history books he found at this book store, and how much these books will help with me with the classes I teach, but he can't remember the names of the books (he is getting kinda old), so that bums me out and I don't really hide very well that I am frustrated that he can't remember and then I feel bad for being dick. Then, he hands me this DVD. He says, "I think we can learn from this too." I am intrigued, so I rip it open and start watching.

And it's actually pretty interesting. It moves along quickly with fairly snappy and appropriately cheesy commentary on each of the 50 films. Between film segments, there is this purposefully cheesy animation of theatre filled with a booing crowd who throw hotdogs, popcorn, soda and other sundries at the screen in protest of the horror just surveyed. I would list the films out for you, but why ruin it, eh?

But here's the funny thing, in the end, I really want to see some of these movies. So, I may have to being searching for them on Spout.com. Maybe, just maybe I will start a group around the films listed on this DVD. In the meantime, other Spouters should get their hands on the DVD and watch it.

What is the point?

aaronBsmith — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 02:29:53 GMT

This movie was a feast for my eyes, but not my mind. The real drama seemed to lay back home with the battle to convince the Senate to bring more forces against the Persians. They seemed to ignore this fact in favor of eye popping action sequences and crazy CG sillyness. Pretty pictures do not a great film make.

I wonder if they could have told the story of the battle of Thermopylae with a little handycam like the ones they used to shoot, The Celebration? Good writing, great acting, and well drawn characters make for better cinema, don't they? But then, I suppose this was not the point of this latest version of the Battle of Thermopylae. But if that wasn't the point, then what was?