[billw55]

kenberg, on 2015-January-30, 08:17, said:

I realize that Shakespeare did not treat Richard III objectively but still.

Nothing new under the sun. "Based on a true story" still means "not a true story". Particularly so if it is a "shocking" true story.

[kenberg]

I saw American Hustle on the tv. I was really glad that I didn't pay money to see it. But they were upfront about it, at teh beginning they had an announcement along the lines of "Some of these events actually happened". So I had not complaint on that score, I just found it boring.

I'll violate propriety here by speaking of a couple of films that were on tv and, as far as I know, were never in theaters. One is Regarding Susan Sontag, about, surprise, Susan Sontag. The other is The Basement Tapes, Part 2 or words to that extend. Some old Bob Dylan lyrics, never before set to any music, were bought to life over a filmed two week period. My reactions to the two were different. For the first, at the end, I was still wondering what it was that Susan Sontag actually did. But the story was fascinating anyway. For the Basement Tapes, my primary interest was in the musicians that were working on bringing these lyrics to life. Dylan, the author of the lyrics, was secondary. In particular, the evolution of Lost on the River was fascinating to watch, and I like to think the portrayal had some relationship to reality.

I apologize for the stretch of thread, but these two films seemed to me to be films that accidentally ended on tv. What, am I here?

[Phil]

Addenda:

Saw The Theory of Everything over the holiday. Charming at first but then drags on and becomes this boring biopic. The team should have followed the recipe for "A Beautiful Mind" which made Nash's psychosis watchable and they did a great job explaining his contributions to game theory. In "Theory" you have the young wunderkind explaining black holes to the learned audience of scholars. A lot of chin rubbing and prideful glances follow.

Also getting up to speed on Nolan movies and saw Prestige. Absolutely loved it. David Bowie as Tesla was a brilliant casting.

Occasionally some absolute drek gets produced. My cold libertarian heart was looking forward to Atlas Shrigged Part II. This might be the worst script ever written in the history of motion pictures. .

[kenberg]

Oops. As regards Atlas Shrugged, Part II, I see from the Wikipedia it opened in 2012. I think it never made it to here. Oh well. So the following does not apply but I will leave it anyway, in case by total lack of awareness provides some amusement!. I'll delete it all soon.


I had posted:

I had not realized Atlas Shrugged Part II had finally come out. My wife, not particularly political, read both Atlas Shrugged and The Founthead long ago. Whatever I might think abut Ayn Rand's philosophy I find her books unreadable. the old (1949) Gary Cooper film of The Founthead was fun in a campy sort of way.

Anyway, Becky and I saw Atlas Shrugged Part I. There was us, one other couple, and one guy. That was the entire audience. After the movie I stopped in the men's room, so did the other guy, and he came up to me and said "This is the movie that they didn't want you to see". They apparently needn't have worried.

But I will definitely go to see Part II. I have been warned, but still. A must see.

Added: Becky's response was:

"Oh" (pleased)
"I'm surprised".

She wants to see it, and from what you say i suspect we had better move fast. I'm playing bridge tomorrow so we might miss it.I see that it has a 5% rating from Rotten Tomatoes. But I don't take no one's advice.

[Winstonm]

Saw "Gone Girl" at the cheap movies. Was better than expected - certainly worth the $0.75 it cost to see it. And "Saving Mr. Banks" has made it to cable, now, and although older I find it quite an entertaining tale.

[mike777]

For my personal favorite movies of 2014 I think it would be (in some order):

LEGO movie, Snowpiercer, Citizenfour, Selma, and Chef
------------------

American Sniper#3( better than I expected)
Had theory of everything as #4
Interstellar#5
Lego#6
Chef#7
Gone Girl#9

Selma good but not tht great
Snowpiercer overrated/

----


Seeing Paddington Sunday

[mike777]

American Sniper

I think people many people have not seen this movie and miss the ending the very end.

At the end the Americans are killing many many many of the bad guys but still the bad guys come and win the battle.


At the last battle the Americans are running away in the middle of a confusing sand storm, they are running away.

Our hero, the Legend runs away dropping his rifle and helmet, he is being chased by many enemy in a blinding sand storm, he calls his wife to say he is ready to come home.

At home he is troubled and killed by a troubled vet.


this movie does not glorify war

[kenberg]

I may well see American Sniper. As mentioned, this would be without Becky's company and maybe without her encouragement, but I might.

I am not so concerned about whether it does or does not glorify war, i can handle my own views on that score. I am more interested in the following: Will I come away thinking I have a better grasp of the real person that this story is about? There is a guy at the Y that I sometimes talk with, or more accurately sometimes list to. You cannot be around him for five minutes without learning that he was a sniper in the Viet Nam years. I just want to get my exercises in so I don't listen too closely but honestly he seems like a nut. That's one case only. I do not at all think that you have to be a nut to be a sniper. War is a difficult business and, if we are going to fight wars, no doubt a well-trained sniper is a great asset. I couldn't do it. Not because of some thought out moral code, I simply couldn't. Could I have been trained to do it when I was 20? I don't know, and I am very glad that the possibility never came up.

My understanding is that the movie shies away from a number of his traits that he openly discussed in his own written version. If so, that's too bad. On a serious matter if you tell a story you should fill in the details and you should fill them in accurately.

Anyway, I may well go to see it. Becky is having the Yoga group over for dinner on Tuesday, I'm welcome, but maybe I should excuse myself and go to the movie. She would probably have to make up some story about where I was so as not to shock them. It's probably best if I am "at a math lecture". No one would ask for details.

[Mbodell]

kenberg, on 2015-February-01, 07:39, said:

My understanding is that the movie shies away from a number of his traits that he openly discussed in his own written version. If so, that's too bad. On a serious matter if you tell a story you should fill in the details and you should fill them in accurately.

It definitely downplays the amount of racism and vitriol he was associated with. It doesn't completely eliminate it, and the story presented is about more than just one individual. The lead character is also, in some ways, your guy at the Y.

[kenberg]

Oops, I m,eant this to be in the recent movie thread, I seem to have erred.

2012 is recent by my standards. Anyway I jut saw Wajda. It was shot in Saudi Arabia by a woman director. I am a sucker for movies about kids, but this is, imho, superb.

Some comments from the Wik:

Al-Mansour's screenplay was influenced by neorealist cinema like Vittorio de Sica's Bicycle Thieves, Jafar Panahi's Offside or Rosetta. The final scene recalls the final scene of François Truffaut's The 400 Blows.

I guess I am not the only one who liked it.

[barmar]

kenberg, on 2015-February-20, 16:50, said:

Oops, I m,eant this to be in the recent movie thread, I seem to have erred.

Moved it.

[kenberg]

barmar, on 2015-February-21, 20:57, said:

Moved it.

Thanks

[mgoetze]

[mike777]

again if American sniper is meant to be pro war or pro military or pro propaganda then it failed big time.


The hero dies a senseless non heroic death.

The hero comes across sad very sad for most of the movie.
the hero's family is sad for 99% of the movie.
The bad guys win most of the war battles.
they win the end where our hero runs away with everyone else.

[blackshoe]

mike777, on 2015-February-22, 08:30, said:

The bad guys win most of the war battles.
they win the end where our hero runs away with everyone else.

The technical term is "advance to the rear".

[ggwhiz]

Just watched Jersey Boys having seen the play a couple of years ago and enjoyed it.

Set me off on a quest to find FM from 1978, not as highly rated but (for me) with a killer soundtrack.

Anyone seen it or have other favorite soundtracks?

[Phil]

ggwhiz, on 2015-March-14, 10:09, said:

Just watched Jersey Boys having seen the play a couple of years ago and enjoyed it.

Set me off on a quest to find FM from 1978, not as highly rated but (for me) with a killer soundtrack.

Anyone seen it or have other favorite soundtracks?

I grew up in a small town in Northern Montana. There was a local college that had a radio station and one of the few albums it had was the FM soundtrack. The DJ would play this at least 2-3x a week, so he could leave his post for at least an hour lol.

[kenberg]

ggwhiz, on 2015-March-14, 10:09, said:

Just watched Jersey Boys having seen the play a couple of years ago and enjoyed it.

Set me off on a quest to find FM from 1978, not as highly rated but (for me) with a killer soundtrack.

Anyone seen it or have other favorite soundtracks?

The first soundtrack I ever bought was for The Wild One which, despite its 1953 release date, I believe saw in 1955. I generally think of this as the Brando movie that I really liked and no one else has ever heard of, but you got me looking up a review on the web where it is described as " a landmark film of 50s rebellion".

A further excerpt:

Quote

Because of the controversial nature of the film, public screenings were banned in England by the British Board of Film Censors for fourteen years (until 1968) after its release. Even in America, it was feared that the shocking, 'Communist' movie glamorized a anti-social subculture in revolt, would set a bad example, and cause impressionable viewers to copy-cat its plot and incite delinquency and riots. In fact, it took many years for pacifist motorcyclists to overcome stereotypes and fabrications promoted by the film.

My my. Anyway, I liked it and I really liked the score.

Moving back to the (more or less) present, I very much liked the music in Midnight in Paris.

As to FM radio, in the 60s. at least in the early 60s, much of FM was publicly financed with commercial radio still on AM. I first heard Bob Dylan on the University of Minnesota FM radio station.

[y66]

The soundtrack I've been enjoying for the last 2 days is O Brother, Where Art Thou?

[y66]

Just watched Charles Bradley: Soul of America streaming on Netflix. This guy's story and his music are so good.