The Criterion Collection

[EricJ]

Originally Posted by Mansinthe

is naked lunch the same kind of crazy movie like videodrome is?

Technically yes, it's one of the last Videodrome-y Cronenberg movies about icky paranoid hallucinations that might not be--
But it's not really DC's crazy, it's somebody else's crazy, so Peter Weller has to recite long autobiographical William Burroughs speeches, and try to work them into the abstract-fakeout Cronenberg context of the story.
(And Burroughs didn't know about Scanners, Brood-children or the New Flesh when he wrote it, so the two disparate styles don't always mix well.)

And then...there's that little issue of what Burroughs spent his time writing about.

[GxyExpress999]

Looks like there's no thread for World Cinema Project so I'm going to post some pics here.

[Show spoiler]

[octagon]

Originally Posted by jayembee

Not The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes?!?!

I would put a BD release on the 'give it another chance if I see it cheap enough somewhere' but I wouldn't go too far out of my way for his later stuff.

I don't know what it is but I've never really warmed up to any of his color films. I've started The Seven Year Itch several times since picking up the BD and it just hasn't grabbed me yet.

[Edward J Grug III]

Originally Posted by octagon

I don't know what it is but I've never really warmed up to any of his color films. I've started The Seven Year Itch several times since picking up the BD and it just hasn't grabbed me yet.

The Seven Year Itch is very off-putting to begin with, but I promise you will be won over by the end.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by Edward J Grug III

The Seven Year Itch is very off-putting to begin with, but I promise you will be won over by the end.

That's one of the things I love about owning titles I'm not entirely wild about. One of these days I'll be in the mood and it will be sitting there waiting for me.

I can't even remember how times I thought 'eh, nope, still not doing it for me, not tonight anyway' while taking The Third Man or M out of the VCR

[EricJ]

Originally Posted by Edward J Grug III

The Seven Year Itch is very off-putting to begin with, but I promise you will be won over by the end.

Seven Year Itch, The Fortune Cookie and One, Two, Three embody the Billy Wilder spirit that if your humor might potentially border on the "inappropriate", GO FOR IT, and raise your un-PC flag high.
The right people will get the jokes, and you'll only embarrass yourself if you hold back.

(And as much as Marilyn didn't like the role--probably seeing how much it contributed to her bad breakup with Joe DiMaggio--it's one of her "nicest" accessible roles for non-fans.
Especially considering that she isn't even the main character, Tom Ewell is, and we stay in his scrambled head for most of the movie.
CtToI, that darn dress scene doesn't even make much sense in the movie. )

[octagon]

Speaking of 'nope, still not doing it for me', I watched City Lights last night and I think I can fairly safely say now that I don't particularly like Chaplin.

I've seen The Great Dictator, The Gold Rush, Monsieur Verdoux, Modern Times and now City Lights and they don't really do a whole lot for me. I can certainly appreciate them and they connect with me from time to time (I would have to say I laughed out loud more during City Lights than any other) but I also frequently found my mind wandering.

And Chaplin himself was incredible. Forget writer, director, comedian, innovator...his athletic ability alone was freaking phenomenal. All the Big Three were ridiculously talented in that area but he had a certain graceful quality that made his super-human feats look effortless. That said, something about him just leaves me kind of cold.

Whattayagonnado

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by octagon

Speaking of 'nope, still not doing it for me', I watched City Lights last night and I think I can fairly safely say now that I don't particularly like Chaplin.

I've seen The Great Dictator, The Gold Rush, Monsieur Verdoux, Modern Times and now City Lights and they don't really do a whole lot for me. I can certainly appreciate them and they connect with me from time to time (I would have to say I laughed out loud more during City Lights than any other) but I also frequently found my mind wandering.

And Chaplin himself was incredible. Forget writer, director, comedian, innovator...his athletic ability alone was freaking phenomenal. All the Big Three were ridiculously talented in that area but he had a certain graceful quality that made his super-human feats look effortless. That said, something about him just leaves me kind of cold.

I love Chaplin's underdog persona in his films. There's just something endearingly magnetic about watching him in action.

I'll put Harold Lloyd's Safety Last! on the same level, but I like the two actors for different reasons.

I have not seen the Keaton movies yet, but I've got the big box set, The Buster Keaton Collection, in my stack after finding it for insanely cheap last month. I'll probably be plowing through those films in January.

[Judex]

Originally Posted by GxyExpress999

Looks like there's no thread for World Cinema Project so I'm going to post some pics here.

[Show spoiler]

[Show spoiler]

How many pages is that book? it looks depressingly thin to be covering six films.

[ccfixx]

Originally Posted by Judex

How many pages is that book? it looks depressingly thin to be covering six films.

It's around 60+ pages, which includes the transfer credits and film credits.

[TJS_Blu]

Originally Posted by Judex

How many pages is that book? it looks depressingly thin to be covering six films.

64 pages

[Abdrewes]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I have not seen the Keaton movies yet, but I've got the big box set, The Buster Keaton Collection, in my stack after finding it for insanely cheap last month. I'll probably be plowing through those films in January.

Now those I would love Owl reviews for!!! Especially the short, "One Week." There's so much going on in that film.

[The Great Owl]

Originally Posted by Abdrewes

Now those I would love Owl reviews for!!! Especially the short, "One Week." There's so much going on in that film.

I'm thinking that I might have to write a broad-stroke review for the whole box set after the fact, since those are short films, and I'll be going through them quickly. If an individual title really kicks my tail, though, I'll write a couple of words. I'm really looking forward to seeing The General at long last.

I'm taking a break from the fatalist film noirs in my stack today. I just finished watching (and reviewing) Mary Poppins, and I'm about to watch It's a Wonderful Life. My childhood infatuation with Donna Reed never went away, so this is going to be fun.

I'll be cashing in my Saving Mr. Banks ticket certificate from the Mary Poppins Blu-ray tomorrow, probably for a pre-noon matinee before the masses show up.

[smoss469]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I'm really looking forward to seeing The General at long last.

That's the first and only Keaton film I've seen and I thought it was great. Some of the stuff he did in that was just so ahead of it's time.

[hustlermane]

As much as I think Kill Bill (and most Tarantino) is garbage, at the very least the second was a lot better than the first, and there's some decent character stuff at the end of the second one. If he has to continue making movies, I hope he follows that path. But I loathed his subsequent films, Death Proof and Basterds. Django was actually ok. But the only Tarantino I could ever see myself revisiting would be Jackie Brown.

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I love Chaplin's underdog persona in his films. There's just something endearingly magnetic about watching him in action.

I'll put Harold Lloyd's Safety Last! on the same level, but I like the two actors for different reasons.

I watched Safety Last! a couple days ago (not on Criterion) and I couldn't really find myself very immersed in the film. To me Harold Lloyd has the least interesting face and persona, and I found it very hard to be particularly interested in his character even when he is doing the climactic stunt.

[Clare2904]

Heads up for those of you in Canada - https://store.cineplex.com/store/fea...=boxing%20week

Very good deal right now (until Dec 27) as you not only save 50% off along with free shipping but also get a free movie ticket worth $12-$15.

I am very tempted to pull the trigger on Paths of Glory for less than $22 with a free movie

[Scottie]

I just finished I Married A Witch. While it's a silly film, it's incredibly fun. Veronica Lake is absolutely gorgeous.

Criterion's release is stellar, even with hardly any extras.

[Infernal King]

Originally Posted by hustlermane

As much as I think Kill Bill (and most Tarantino) is garbage, at the very least the second was a lot better than the first, and there's some decent character stuff at the end of the second one. If he has to continue making movies, I hope he follows that path. But I loathed his subsequent films, Death Proof and Basterds. Django was actually ok. But the only Tarantino I could ever see myself revisiting would be Jackie Brown.

Huh. My 3 favorites are (chronologically) Jackie Brown, Kill Bill and Django Unchained.

[mrjohnnyb]

Originally Posted by The Great Owl

I love Chaplin's underdog persona in his films. There's just something endearingly magnetic about watching him in action.

I'll put Harold Lloyd's Safety Last! on the same level, but I like the two actors for different reasons.

I have not seen the Keaton movies yet, but I've got the big box set, The Buster Keaton Collection, in my stack after finding it for insanely cheap last month. I'll probably be plowing through those films in January.

It is an incredible set. The General was my favorite of his until I saw Sherlock Jr. for the first time. Happy watching!