walktheearth Blog

The sign of a great film

Under discussion:
Casablanca (1943)
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
The Princess Bride (1987)
Seven (1995)
Black Snake Moan (2007)

Under discussion:

Casablanca (1943)

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

The Princess Bride (1987)

Seven (1995)

Black Snake Moan (2007)

I had an epiphany tonight while watching a movie. The mark of a truly great film is that it get the viewer invested in it and motivates them. Examples of this are Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. After watching this you can’t help but want to be a better American. It makes you believe in something. When the theme of the film is dark like Se7en, the connection you make with Brad Pitts character at the films climax can not be understated. You have to put yourself in his shoes, and it forces you to ask yourself questions you normally wouldn’t. A few other examples are: the gut wrenching feeling you get every time Bogey watches the plane take off in Casablanca (the definition of bittersweet), white knuckling the arm chair when the bolder almost flattens Indy. I still get goose bumps when I hear, “Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” As a movie lover and a wanna be film maker, I have had this feeling many time watching independent movies and thinking, “I could make a movie like that”. David Lynch is a master of making incredibly complicated movies look easy. Wes Anderson is the same way. Tonight I had this same sensation watching the film Black Snake Moan. I will review this movie later, but by the time it was over I found myself thinking I should learn to play blues guitar. The movie is brilliantly shot, the story is formulaic in the “boy with problems meets girl with problems, and they somehow work it out and they both end as better people”. However writer / director Craig Brewer doesn’t follow convention. The story is raw, gritty, and exploitive. For a fair amount of the movie Ricci’s character is chained to Sam Jackson’s radiator. I will write it again. CHAINED TO THE RADIATOR! But that isn’t the focus of the film. It is not even a gimmick. The people in the movie find it unbelievable, but after an explanation and discussion with Ricci, they think that it might not be that bad of an idea. I highly recommend this movie for peole who love movies. The scene where Lazarus (Jackson) performs the Title song “Black Snake Moan” is one of the best scenes I have seen this year!

posted on Wednesday, June 27, 2007 3:15 AM by walktheearth

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