What movie did you watch last night? (12 Viewers)

[7 - No tomorrow]

Poor kids steal music, middle class kids have iTunes accounts.

That's my theory, and I'm gonna guess it's pretty poorly documented and quite possibly untrue.

 

[Jim Daniels]

Well because the whole film presents a veneer of "This is all okay."
The whole thing is a depiction of American middle-class privilege. They have no money, yet in order for the film to resonate with people in the right way, the kid still has his own jeep that he can drive anywhere. Even though they have no money. Women are pretty much vilified throughout the whole film. The mother moves from disaster to disaster. Domestic violence is just something that happens. The first thing he does in college is go hiking, because it's all a big laugh.
The sequel to the film should be "Manhood" following the character as he flunks college, goes back to the fastfood job, and ends up as an alcoholic. Except that won't happen, because everything is okay, right?

What 'Boyhood' does is basically say 'this is how a white middle-class American grows up, and it's the right way to do things,' which is total bollocks.

Yeah, I see where you're coming from. It didn't bother me so much with this film though.

The normalisation thing (and how everything is ok) reminds me a bit of this scene from the Simpsons, where Grimes expresses disbelief at how easy Homer's life is and how he can afford everything etc compared to his life

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[pissypants]

What the......

 

[7 - No tomorrow]

What the......

I've never seen it.

Is it any use?

 

[pissypants]

I've never seen it.

Is it any use?

It takes patience, is definitely indulgent, and even Boorman himself apparently admitted it "got away" from him - but that said I'm glad I watched it though I couldn't exactly say I enjoyed it all. It's pretty unique in that it has Sean Connery just after he played Bond, but in a would-be art-house sci-fi. Myself and Lady Pants love a good 50% movie - good enough to engage, but undemanding enough that you can still drink booze, hold a conversation, and keep going. I'd give this a little less than 50% because of some of the more indulgent scenes / themes in the film. You'd be tempted to start bumping up the speed on VLC player to get to the end. That said there's enough about it that's unique enough to merit a watch. At very least it's a worthy curiosity.

 

[7 - No tomorrow]

It takes patience, is definitely indulgent, and even Boorman himself apparently admitted it "got away" from him - but that said I'm glad I watched it though I couldn't exactly say I enjoyed it all. It's pretty unique in that it has Sean Connery just after he played Bond, but in a would-be art-house sci-fi. Myself and Lady Pants love a good 50% movie - good enough to engage, but undemanding enough that you can still drink booze, hold a conversation, and keep going. I'd give this a little less than 50% because of some of the more indulgent scenes / themes in the film. You'd be tempted to start bumping up the speed on VLC player to get to the end. That said there's enough about it that's unique enough to merit a watch. At very least it's a worthy curiosity.

You have a VLC player on your TV?

 

[pissypants]

You have a VLC player on your TV?

Laptop + HDMI cable = VLC on TV!

 

[Anthem]

Noah had some amazing visuals and wasn't as bad as I was expecting it to be. Russell Crowe can be really crap (Winters Tale) but he was in great form in this movie.

I remember loving the Siskel and Ebert show years ago, I think it was on RTE or Ch4 for a couple of years in the early 90's. These guys were like chalk and cheese but knew their movies inside out. Their approval (two thumbs up) could either make or break a film. Martin Scoresese held Roger Eberts review of Mean Streets in such high regard that he used to carry it around in his wallet for years.

Sadly Gene Siskel died 11 years ago at the young age of 51 and in 2007 Roger Ebert learnt he had cancer of the jaw. This documentary follows the last year in his life. It is a moving but fitting tribute to a great character.

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[Cormcolash]

It's like when you realise santa isn't real. If you apply what you're feeling to most of the films you've ever seen you'll realise you've been force fed this image of normality since your childhood. To start you off I'll ruin E.T, The Goonies and Gremlins for you. You can go on from there if you want to.

I am well aware of this, that's how Hollywood operates after all. However, films that are supposed to represent some kind of 'larger' idea shouldn't operate that way, as it prevents them doing anything interesting with their idea, as is the case with Boyhood.
Truly individual filmmakers must be able to step outside that kind of culture, and make their own rules. Richard Linklater doesn't; instead he makes a film that is ostensibly about "what every guy goes through growing up!" but actually just promotes ideological filmmaking that Hollywood would love.

 

[washingcattle]

I am well aware of this, that's how Hollywood operates after all. However, films that are supposed to represent some kind of 'larger' idea shouldn't operate that way, as it prevents them doing anything interesting with their idea, as is the case with Boyhood.
Truly individual filmmakers must be able to step outside that kind of culture, and make their own rules. Richard Linklater doesn't; instead he makes a film that is ostensibly about "what every guy goes through growing up!" but actually just promotes ideological filmmaking that Hollywood would love.

I think the great irony there is that Hollywood probably doesn't even realise that this exists. And as such doesn't actually show films like this any more or less love. In fact the only film set against the back drop of the middle class normality to win an oscar in the past 30 years is American Beauty which is actually a pretty damning exploration of the normality of the middle class.

I know that the Oscars aren't a good indicator of... well ..anything really but it's almost telling that for the most part oscar winning films feature working or underclass settings, the effect being that in hollywood "working class" is exotic and worthy of attention.

Anyway I'm glad you're on board. You can join me next time someone releases a film about the "savagery and poverty of growing up on Dublin's north side" and we can rant on and on and on and on. Etc

 

[Cormcolash]

The Mount of Joy

 

[washingcattle]

The Cobra of Drumcondra.

 

[Cormcolash]

Hate/Hate

 

[Cornu Ammonis]

On the Northside, Looking In

 

[David Kronenbourg]

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Was really really looking forward to this and I was slightly disappointed. The human characters were so generic they might as well have worn t-shirts saying "brave everyman", "supportive wife" and "sensitive teen". The apes were all great though. Also, it took a while to get going but when it did it was pretty good. It does contain my favourite image of the year

Spoiler

Koba on horseback firing two machine guns simultaneously into a crowd of puny humans

I also have to say that my enjoyment of this was spoiled somewhat by a constant flickering on the screen which they failed to fix and which I'll discuss over in the cinemagoing thread.

 

[7 - No tomorrow]

It does contain my favourite image of the year

Spoiler

Koba on horseback firing two machine guns simultaneously into a crowd of puny humans

Opening scene and tank scene for me.

 

[Cormcolash]

Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes

APES … TOGETHER … PRETTY GOOD

Well, the apes were pretty good, anyway.

 

[Jim Daniels]

It is eminently re-watchable

Zodiac Directors Cut on BBC2 now. Sure why not!

 

[7 - No tomorrow]

Metropolis over at the Film Archive in Harvard.

150 minute version with original score. Fucking mental.

 

[washingcattle]

Metropolis over at the Film Archive in Harvard.

150 minute version with original score. Fucking mental.

How many films will be interesting in 87 years ?