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51 Birch Street (2005)
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All reviews for 51 Birch Street
Top Ten Movies I've Seen This Y ...
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JimBell
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JimBell Blog
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"These are the top ten films I’ve seen at the mid-point of the year. I think it is a good idea to post a semi-annual list because instead of complaining about mundane theatre offerings the list confirms that there are enough excellent films out there to watch. In no particular order: Mother of Mine (2005; Finland/Sweden)—A young Finish boy is torn from his family by WWII and later in life comes to terms with both of hi "
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51 Birch Street
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JimBell
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"51 Birch Street (2005) is an excellent documentary about modern North American marriage and about how adult children relate to their parents, topics which should be of some interest to many of us. Initially, film-maker Doug Block documents how he has a special bond with his mother and almost no connection with his father. We see Mina Block bantering with her son, complaining of being photographed from below instead of from a more flattering angle. Mike Block, in contrast, is distant, withdrawn, unsmiling, and described by one of his daughters as apparently infallible. We see his hide-away in the basement loaded with tools of all kinds, nothing of interest to anyone else in the family including his son. My Gawd, aren’t we tired of these traditional males?! Still, the Blocks had a good and long-lasting marriage. But when Mina suddenly dies, Doug—and us—start to see the marriage anew. According to Doug’s interview on Spout.com, he knew he was shooting more tha ... "
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my 2007 movie lists
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wonga
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wonga's filmblog
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"i have a wonderful picture of all my movie ticket stubs from this year in a pile but i can’t get it transferred to my filmblog (yes, i save my ticket stubs and scrapbook them at the end of the year…i know, it’s sad really)! armed with discount movie coupons, i saw 118 movies this year at the theater and, as usual, it was really hard to narrow them down but here’s my list, for what it’s worth. some are from 2006 that i didn’t see until later. my 15 favorite movies at the theater in 2007the assassination of jesse james by the coward robert fordthe diving bell and the butterflythe lives of othersjunothe painted veilonceno country for old men< "
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51 Birch Street available on DVD
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paul
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paul on spout.com
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"One of my favorite movies of 2005 is now available on DVD. I became so enamored with 51 Birch Street after I saw it at SXSW 2005, that Spout hosted a grassroots screening to a packed?? theater near my house. 51 Birch Street is a little documentary made by Doug Block about his parents. He’s the kid in the family who makes movies, and–much like me–he’s volunteered to cover all family events. Then his mom dies and he keeps his camera with him as a way to make conversation with his old man. His camera winds up seeing more than he ever expected, capturing what looks like a tea cup filled to the brim with tornado. It’s a small story of your average American family having average problems that quake with cataclysmic force when the truth rises. It’s a pitch perfect telling of how–no matter where you are–family is a black hole always pulling you back to the core. Originally posted on:
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51 Birch Street available on DVD
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SpoutBlog
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SpoutBlog on spout.com
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"One of my favorite movies of 2005 is now available on DVD. I became so enamored with 51 Birch Street after I saw it at SXSW 2005, that Spout hosted a grassroots screening to a packed theater near my house. 51 Birch Street is a little documentary made by Doug Block about his parents. He’s the kid in the family who makes movies, and–much like me–he’s volunteered to cover all family events. Then his mom dies and he keeps his camera with him as a way to make conversation with his old man. His camera winds up seeing more than he ever expected, capturing what looks like a tea cup filled to the brim with tornado. It’s a small story of your average American family having average problems that quake with cataclysmic force when the truth rises. It’s a pitch perfect telling of how–no matter where you are–family is a black hole always pulling you back to the core.
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51 birch street
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wonga
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wonga's filmblog
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"finally - i'm going to get to see this! it's playing next week in Denver and Doug Block will be there for questions. i just bought tickets and am REALLY looking forward to it... "
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51 Birch Street
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MovieBabe
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MovieBabe Blog
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"By Tricia Olszewski According to the director of 51 Birch Street, Mike and Mina Block are “hardly people you’d think of making a documentary about.” He should know: Doug Block is their son. And he went ahead and made a film about them anyway. Block first videotaped his parents merely for posterity, but when his mother unexpectedly died in 2002—and his 83-year-old father then just as unexpectedly married his former secretary—he began piecing together a portrait of a marriage, Capturing the Friedmans–style. Dad’s remarriage, while shocking, isn’t the only thing that inspired Block to turn the story of their 54-year partnership into a movie, though—Block’s mother may have no longer been around to talk to her son about her life, but she left behind 35 years’ worth of journals, faithfully kept. 51 Birch Street is engrossing and uncomfortable, often offering stomach-twisting honesty about the true feelings behind the coup ... "
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51 birch street, continued
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wonga
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wonga's filmblog
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"loved it! it's amazing how such a personal story can be so universal. you can't help but think about your own parents (mine were this same era) as well as your own marriage. one interesting note: Mr. Block said his movie would premiere on Cinemax next month, i think he said 05/08, and the DVD should be coming out soon - with extras! "
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Doug Block shares his story so ...
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ktincu
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ktincu Blog
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"With 51 Birch Street, Doug Block has created a documentary around his journey to understand his parents as people, not just parents, and to understand their marriage in that light. In addition to many conversations with family members, the film includes insight drawn from years of his mother's journals, which were discovered after her death. (The journals include all kinds of information most adults would rather not know about their mothers). Overall, the film is touching, sometimes funny, often sad, but somehow not depressing. It seems to say, "This is life. This is what it means to be human. We all have variations on the same stories." I think the most moving part of the film, for me, is an interview Doug has with his mother's best friend of many years, Natasha. He asks her if she thinks his mother would have wanted him to read her journals. Natasha goes through a long process of thinking and making a string of "difficult thinking" expressions before she answers emphatically "Ye ... "
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LOL
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paul
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paul on spout.com
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"Also posted on SpoutBlogI finally got to see LOL last night (playing all week at the Pioneer Theater in New York). My personal fondness leans more toward Joe Swanberg's first film, Kissing on the Mouth, but they're two totally different films. However, both continue to explore what I consider to be the most exciting territory in filmmaking today. Kissing on the Mouth is like watching young twenty somethings play a chess game between physical intimacy and emotional intimacy. LOL is more like riffs on how intimacy interfaces with technology. Three different boy/girl couplings are explored. The males spend more and more time connecting through techie devices like cell phones and IM, while the women grow disenchanted with them. The ending of the film plays like a final flourish of a jazz improvisation. It's not a climax, but the players are done and ready to move on. Although it may feel haphazard at times, the film never presents itself as being anything more than meditations on a t ... "
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