bentenn
Engorged Member
Posts: 2,272 Join Date: Jun 27, 2018
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Post by bentenn on May 19, 2019 16:03:13 GMT -5
I keep laughing about this since reading The Black Dahlia. In the afterword, James Ellroy drippinis a ton of crazy praise on Brian De Palma: He then goes on to praise all of the actors. I didn't recall the film being very well received, so I was looking at the wiki and found this: In conclusion, James Ellroy is an actual crazy person.
The Black Dahlia as it is, is not a good movie. But I like it, being a huge De Palma fan. Some day we'll get that 3 hour cut. Ellroy is right though about his points, on the whole, but not really applying to this movie.
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lil stormy
Throbbing Member
Posts: 4,815 Join Date: Jul 14, 2018
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Post by lil stormy on May 20, 2019 12:47:34 GMT -5
Watched 2 Larry Cohen cult classics last night.
Bone (1972) Cohen's first film. Yaphet Kotto as black man (Bone) who breaks into rich white home in Beverly Hills. Starts out as home invasion type flick then goes in other directions, with the wife who finds herself attracted to Bone, with the husband, a shady car dealer who provides crazy dream sequences, and with Bone, who manipulates the family. Unique film, and killer debut.
God Told Me To (1976) Tony Lo Bianco, great character actor from French Connection, Seven-Ups, Serpico etc., takes the lead here as a NYC detective tying to solve a bunch of related massacres in various NY locations. All the killers last words are "God told me to" before they die, sometimes by suicide. Great opening scene of sniper on water tower taking out random people on a crowded 5th Ave. Also has the classic scene with Andy Kaufman as a cop who starts shooting up a parade. One of my fave Cohen films.
Also watched a movie called Cop Hater from 1956, about the search for a cop killer in NYC during one extremely hot summer. Pretty slow moving film that focuses on some of the cops family lives, and their wives, one of which is deaf and mute (played by one of the prettiest females i've seen on screen), lots of tedious detective work that leads to lots of dead ends. Not for everyone, but i love stuff like this.
All 3 on Prime right now.
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jaredfromsubway
Pulsating Member
Posts: 6,828 Join Date: Jun 27, 2018
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Post by jaredfromsubway on May 20, 2019 13:25:03 GMT -5
I watched God Told Me To right after Cohen died, shit is mad bonkers.
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I Gave You Power
Pulsating Member
dolores umbrage
Posts: 9,232 Join Date: Jun 28, 2018
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Post by I Gave You Power on May 20, 2019 13:32:31 GMT -5
Blood and Black Lace is on prime right now.
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feelthedorkness
Turgid Member
Posts: 1,479 Join Date: Sep 11, 2018
Likes: 1,832
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Post by feelthedorkness on May 20, 2019 14:39:46 GMT -5
Blood and Black Lace is on prime right now. Oh fuck yeah. What a great flick.
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Post by thanksforthedress on May 20, 2019 14:51:41 GMT -5
Larry Cohen is a goat! Perfect Stangers is my fav of his.
Watched Sudden Fear this morning. Omg Joan Crawford just kills it every time. The scene of her in the closet with the light just touching her face is the thing of legends.
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Post by ππΌπππ½πββπππβ on May 20, 2019 15:00:43 GMT -5
Also watched a movie called Cop Hater from 1956, about the search for a cop killer in NYC during one extremely hot summer. Pretty slow moving film that focuses on some of the cops family lives, and their wives, one of which is deaf and mute (played by one of the prettiest females i've seen on screen), lots of tedious detective work that leads to lots of dead ends. Not for everyone, but i love stuff like this. I was just thinking about this yesterday. It's based on an Ed McBain book. I didn't know they made a movie of it (especially 60 years ago).
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Post by β Bob Loblaw β on May 20, 2019 17:01:54 GMT -5
The music during the credits is dark, man Mine for sure happened though because I actually walked out into the lobby when the ratio shifted to let them know something was amiss. The score is sick. My absolute favorite ominous low hum score of 2018, however, was Burning: Finally got around to watching this and despite the 2.5 hour runtime, I honestly just wanted to hit play again right after. The level of paranoia during the whole third act is palpable and genuinely earned. I kept guessing and then second guessing and even by the end Iβm still not 100% on where the truth lies. Iβm glad I avoided trailers/spoilers because I honestly didnβt know what to expect, and I ended up being pleasantly surprised. edit: and yeah, the score is super dope
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pbcookies
Pulsating Member
Redeemed 09 Poster
mouth of the north
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Post by pbcookies on May 20, 2019 17:11:09 GMT -5
The score is sick. My absolute favorite ominous low hum score of 2018, however, was Burning: Finally got around to watching this and despite the 2.5 hour runtime, I honestly just wanted to hit play again right after. The level of paranoia during the whole third act is palpable and genuinely earned. I kept guessing and then second guessing and even by the end Iβm still not 100% on where the truth lies. Iβm glad I avoided trailers/spoilers because I honestly didnβt know what to expect, and I ended up being pleasantly surprised. edit: and yeah, the score is super dope I think I've watched it four times! It's an actual masterpiece, and I wrote a very long review over a period of days while I thought about it. I'm still thinking about that film months later. Can post if you're interested.
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Post by β Bob Loblaw β on May 20, 2019 17:23:45 GMT -5
post it up !
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pbcookies
Pulsating Member
Redeemed 09 Poster
mouth of the north
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Post by pbcookies on May 20, 2019 17:30:41 GMT -5
incoming: Two young people meet by chance on a crowded street in Seoul. The woman, Hae-mi, knows the manβs name (Jong-su), and says they grew up in the same far-flung rural town. If he recognizes her, he doesnβt let on. They meet for a drink later. Hae-mi, it seems, was below Jong-suβs notice in childhood. The only time he spoke to her, before now, was to tell her she was ugly. The feeling is palpable that this still hurts her. Things are different now. She is beautiful (βI got plastic surgery; arenβt I pretty now?β she willingly offers) and he is plain, both in appearance and in manner. Hae-mi is lively and free-spirited, performing an elaborate pantomime of peeling and eating a tangerine. Sheβs taking a trip to Africa soon, would he mind coming by to feed her cat? He agrees, and stops by her apartment, a tiny room, facing north, where the sun only comes in once a day, with any luck. Hae-mi initiates sex, and before long sheβs gone.
Jong-su seems aimless. He tells people he meets that heβs working on a novel, a claim that seems dubious. His father is in jail awaiting trial for attacking a policeman in a drunken rage. Jong-su lives in his familyβs old farmhouse alone, sometimes receiving silent, disturbing phone calls in the dead of night. He drives around in his fatherβs battered pickup. He dutifully drops by Hae-miβs place to feed the cat. The cat is shy and wonβt come out when heβs around, which is not unusual. But he never so much as catches a glimpse of it, which is. There is an uncomfortable strangeness to Burning, a feeling not dissimilar to deja vu, or when a memory or thought seems on the tip of your tongue, only to slip back beyond reach. We can never be quite sure of anything, can never remember precisely what was said when it unexpectedly and suddenly becomes important.
Hae-mi comes back from her trip, and Jong-su drives to the airport to pick her up, beaming with anticipation. The weeks spent apart have sharpened his longing. Hae-mi walks out of the gate with a mysterious stranger, and Jong-suβs expression changes from eager to bewildered to crestfallen. The stranger is Ben, an enigmatic Korean socialite who Hae-mi met in Nairobi. They all go out to eat, an awkward trio. Ben is clearly a sociopath: when Hae-mi tearfully tells a story about a sunset she saw in Africa, his amused response is that he has never cried himself. He is glib and composed at all times. It is a remarkable performance by the American actor Steven Yeun. Yeun conveys much with a smirk or a yawn; as written Ben is perfectly polite and charming, but Yeun gives the audience infinitesimal glimpses of his disdain, bemusement, boredom, and contempt. Hae-mi seems unconscious of this inner void and amorality, but there are brief yet meaningful moments where it seems as if she is displaying a longing for Jong-su, wordlessly asking him to choose her, to allow her to choose him. Like so much in this film, however, this is up to interpretation.
Hae-mi and Ben seem to have some kind of sexual relationship, although this is never stated. It is plain to see that Jong-su has come to this conclusion, however, and the feelings of insecurity this triggers are just as plain. Ben is rich, sophisticated, and unconcerned. Jong-su is a farmerβs son, directionless, unsure of himself. In one of the most breathtaking cinematic scenes I can remember, Ben and Hae-mi stop by to visit Jong-su at his fatherβs house. They sit outside and watch the sun set, seemingly filmed in real time, as they smoke pot. Hae-mi dances slowly in the yard as the camera slowly pans around her in the dying twilight. She removes her top and sways and the light catches tears on her face, and the audience recalls her earlier description of another sunset, and recalls her wish to disappear without a trace. It is a transcendental moment that is lost on her two companions; Ben giggles as they carry her inside to sleep on the sofa, Jong-su is steaming with resentment at what he deems exhibitionism and at her seeming dismissal of him in favor of Ben. Jong-su seems oblivious to the fact that the qualities that attract him to Hae-miβher immodesty, flirtatiousness, and playful impishnessβare the same qualities that prompt his feelings of jealousy and disgust. I believe this duality to underlie much of misogyny, whether in this film or in life.
Misogyny is a key concept for understanding Burning. On first viewing, I was struck by how closely the character of Hae-mi adheres to the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope that has long been criticized in Western filmmaking. In a way, she exists to be acted upon by the male characters. This is a surprise for two reasons: first, director Lee Chang-dong is neither untalented nor a neophyte when it comes to developing female charactersβhis Poetry may be among the most nuanced and empathetic female-centric films in Asian cinema. Secondly, an absolutely surpassing performance by first-time actress (those who have seen the film will likely need a moment for that fact to sink in) Jeon Jong-seo that gives an incredibly intense depth to the character. She is something other than what she seems, and she may even be something other than that. It is an incredibly complex and difficult role. On second viewing, I felt the character was less problematic; it is Jong-suβs film, really, and Hae-mi is no more a device than the Ben character, all things considered. The misogyny belongs to Jong-su as well, and I came to the conclusion that the film itself is critical of his point of view in more ways than one.
This insistent focus on Jong-suβs perspective is smart, and terrifying: the viewer cannot know any more than he does, and that is as frustrating and unnerving as Jong-su finds it to be. Keen viewers will have a sense of an unreliable narrator here. In the case of Jong-su we may have an unreliable perspective; a lack of conclusive information coupled with personal bias and a smoldering rage. This uncertainty is compounded when strange things begin to happen: Hae-mi becomes unreachable and the reasons are unclear. There are many plausible interpretations as to what exactly happens in the film, all of them wildly contradictory. Yet because we are locked in so close with Jong-su we probably reach the same one as him, but with a disturbing sense that we may be getting it wrong. I was unexpectedly reminded of that most iconic cinematic deconstruction of misogyny, Raging Bull. Both films are about poisonous male insecurities, about self-loathing variously leading to masochistic inaction or mindless brutality. Jong-suβs lack of self-regard forces him into a dangerous, self-imposed position that also functions as social critique. In Korea, a conflation of wealth and worth has created a situation where the rich are often given a pass for bad behavior. Whatever Benβs true nature, it is plain that he engages in near-constant abuse of his social position, to which Jong-su and Hae-mi must meekly submit. Every scene is a delicate ballet of manner and propriety where one party is treating it as a cruel game. It is a perceptive caricature of what it sometimes feels like to simply exist in Korean society.
One feels a welling of emotion upon realizing one is watching a film that will remain embedded in the subconscious for a long time. Lee Chang-dong has created a contradiction: a film that feels unhurried and patient, but is in truth laden with meaning at every step. Not a single frame is wasted. Leeβs understated virtuosity is that every moment of his film makes the viewer reconsider some moment that preceded it, sowing uncertainty while suggesting conclusiveness at the same time. The ominous soundtrack is like an aural version of this disturbing discordance. The gorgeous cinematography dazzles and darkly portends. The simmering narrative is like waking in a seemingly quiet and still railcar, only to look out the window and suddenly realize youβve been rocketing along at ferocious speed the whole time. Burning is a haunting masterpiece: cold, beautiful, and unforgettable. I always have probs with paragraph breaks in a spoiler, this might take a couple tries
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pisswizard
Pulsating Member
Count Dublin
Think or thwim.
Posts: 14,164 Join Date: May 2, 2019
Likes: 31,347
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Post by pisswizard on May 20, 2019 20:49:33 GMT -5
I watched Frankenstein Island last night it was shiiiititttttttt.
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Post by β Bob Loblaw β on May 20, 2019 21:08:46 GMT -5
incoming: Two young people meet by chance on a crowded street in Seoul. The woman, Hae-mi, knows the manβs name (Jong-su), and says they grew up in the same far-flung rural town. If he recognizes her, he doesnβt let on. They meet for a drink later. Hae-mi, it seems, was below Jong-suβs notice in childhood. The only time he spoke to her, before now, was to tell her she was ugly. The feeling is palpable that this still hurts her. Things are different now. She is beautiful (βI got plastic surgery; arenβt I pretty now?β she willingly offers) and he is plain, both in appearance and in manner. Hae-mi is lively and free-spirited, performing an elaborate pantomime of peeling and eating a tangerine. Sheβs taking a trip to Africa soon, would he mind coming by to feed her cat? He agrees, and stops by her apartment, a tiny room, facing north, where the sun only comes in once a day, with any luck. Hae-mi initiates sex, and before long sheβs gone.
Jong-su seems aimless. He tells people he meets that heβs working on a novel, a claim that seems dubious. His father is in jail awaiting trial for attacking a policeman in a drunken rage. Jong-su lives in his familyβs old farmhouse alone, sometimes receiving silent, disturbing phone calls in the dead of night. He drives around in his fatherβs battered pickup. He dutifully drops by Hae-miβs place to feed the cat. The cat is shy and wonβt come out when heβs around, which is not unusual. But he never so much as catches a glimpse of it, which is. There is an uncomfortable strangeness to Burning, a feeling not dissimilar to deja vu, or when a memory or thought seems on the tip of your tongue, only to slip back beyond reach. We can never be quite sure of anything, can never remember precisely what was said when it unexpectedly and suddenly becomes important.
Hae-mi comes back from her trip, and Jong-su drives to the airport to pick her up, beaming with anticipation. The weeks spent apart have sharpened his longing. Hae-mi walks out of the gate with a mysterious stranger, and Jong-suβs expression changes from eager to bewildered to crestfallen. The stranger is Ben, an enigmatic Korean socialite who Hae-mi met in Nairobi. They all go out to eat, an awkward trio. Ben is clearly a sociopath: when Hae-mi tearfully tells a story about a sunset she saw in Africa, his amused response is that he has never cried himself. He is glib and composed at all times. It is a remarkable performance by the American actor Steven Yeun. Yeun conveys much with a smirk or a yawn; as written Ben is perfectly polite and charming, but Yeun gives the audience infinitesimal glimpses of his disdain, bemusement, boredom, and contempt. Hae-mi seems unconscious of this inner void and amorality, but there are brief yet meaningful moments where it seems as if she is displaying a longing for Jong-su, wordlessly asking him to choose her, to allow her to choose him. Like so much in this film, however, this is up to interpretation.
Hae-mi and Ben seem to have some kind of sexual relationship, although this is never stated. It is plain to see that Jong-su has come to this conclusion, however, and the feelings of insecurity this triggers are just as plain. Ben is rich, sophisticated, and unconcerned. Jong-su is a farmerβs son, directionless, unsure of himself. In one of the most breathtaking cinematic scenes I can remember, Ben and Hae-mi stop by to visit Jong-su at his fatherβs house. They sit outside and watch the sun set, seemingly filmed in real time, as they smoke pot. Hae-mi dances slowly in the yard as the camera slowly pans around her in the dying twilight. She removes her top and sways and the light catches tears on her face, and the audience recalls her earlier description of another sunset, and recalls her wish to disappear without a trace. It is a transcendental moment that is lost on her two companions; Ben giggles as they carry her inside to sleep on the sofa, Jong-su is steaming with resentment at what he deems exhibitionism and at her seeming dismissal of him in favor of Ben. Jong-su seems oblivious to the fact that the qualities that attract him to Hae-miβher immodesty, flirtatiousness, and playful impishnessβare the same qualities that prompt his feelings of jealousy and disgust. I believe this duality to underlie much of misogyny, whether in this film or in life.
Misogyny is a key concept for understanding Burning. On first viewing, I was struck by how closely the character of Hae-mi adheres to the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope that has long been criticized in Western filmmaking. In a way, she exists to be acted upon by the male characters. This is a surprise for two reasons: first, director Lee Chang-dong is neither untalented nor a neophyte when it comes to developing female charactersβhis Poetry may be among the most nuanced and empathetic female-centric films in Asian cinema. Secondly, an absolutely surpassing performance by first-time actress (those who have seen the film will likely need a moment for that fact to sink in) Jeon Jong-seo that gives an incredibly intense depth to the character. She is something other than what she seems, and she may even be something other than that. It is an incredibly complex and difficult role. On second viewing, I felt the character was less problematic; it is Jong-suβs film, really, and Hae-mi is no more a device than the Ben character, all things considered. The misogyny belongs to Jong-su as well, and I came to the conclusion that the film itself is critical of his point of view in more ways than one.
This insistent focus on Jong-suβs perspective is smart, and terrifying: the viewer cannot know any more than he does, and that is as frustrating and unnerving as Jong-su finds it to be. Keen viewers will have a sense of an unreliable narrator here. In the case of Jong-su we may have an unreliable perspective; a lack of conclusive information coupled with personal bias and a smoldering rage. This uncertainty is compounded when strange things begin to happen: Hae-mi becomes unreachable and the reasons are unclear. There are many plausible interpretations as to what exactly happens in the film, all of them wildly contradictory. Yet because we are locked in so close with Jong-su we probably reach the same one as him, but with a disturbing sense that we may be getting it wrong. I was unexpectedly reminded of that most iconic cinematic deconstruction of misogyny, Raging Bull. Both films are about poisonous male insecurities, about self-loathing variously leading to masochistic inaction or mindless brutality. Jong-suβs lack of self-regard forces him into a dangerous, self-imposed position that also functions as social critique. In Korea, a conflation of wealth and worth has created a situation where the rich are often given a pass for bad behavior. Whatever Benβs true nature, it is plain that he engages in near-constant abuse of his social position, to which Jong-su and Hae-mi must meekly submit. Every scene is a delicate ballet of manner and propriety where one party is treating it as a cruel game. It is a perceptive caricature of what it sometimes feels like to simply exist in Korean society.
One feels a welling of emotion upon realizing one is watching a film that will remain embedded in the subconscious for a long time. Lee Chang-dong has created a contradiction: a film that feels unhurried and patient, but is in truth laden with meaning at every step. Not a single frame is wasted. Leeβs understated virtuosity is that every moment of his film makes the viewer reconsider some moment that preceded it, sowing uncertainty while suggesting conclusiveness at the same time. The ominous soundtrack is like an aural version of this disturbing discordance. The gorgeous cinematography dazzles and darkly portends. The simmering narrative is like waking in a seemingly quiet and still railcar, only to look out the window and suddenly realize youβve been rocketing along at ferocious speed the whole time. Burning is a haunting masterpiece: cold, beautiful, and unforgettable. I always have probs with paragraph breaks in a spoiler, this might take a couple tries Dude, on fucking point. I like that you brought up the misogynistic and unreliable narrative aspects to it. I definitely need to rewatch to hone my whole overview.
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bentenn
Engorged Member
Posts: 2,272 Join Date: Jun 27, 2018
Likes: 1,393
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Post by bentenn on May 20, 2019 21:27:45 GMT -5
ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD premieres at Cannes tomorrow ... beware of spoilers , but canβt wait for first reactions
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pbcookies
Pulsating Member
Redeemed 09 Poster
mouth of the north
Posts: 9,604 Join Date: Jun 28, 2018
Likes: 31,243
BiL Premium Poster: π¨βπ»
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Post by pbcookies on May 20, 2019 21:48:47 GMT -5
incoming: Two young people meet by chance on a crowded street in Seoul. The woman, Hae-mi, knows the manβs name (Jong-su), and says they grew up in the same far-flung rural town. If he recognizes her, he doesnβt let on. They meet for a drink later. Hae-mi, it seems, was below Jong-suβs notice in childhood. The only time he spoke to her, before now, was to tell her she was ugly. The feeling is palpable that this still hurts her. Things are different now. She is beautiful (βI got plastic surgery; arenβt I pretty now?β she willingly offers) and he is plain, both in appearance and in manner. Hae-mi is lively and free-spirited, performing an elaborate pantomime of peeling and eating a tangerine. Sheβs taking a trip to Africa soon, would he mind coming by to feed her cat? He agrees, and stops by her apartment, a tiny room, facing north, where the sun only comes in once a day, with any luck. Hae-mi initiates sex, and before long sheβs gone.
Jong-su seems aimless. He tells people he meets that heβs working on a novel, a claim that seems dubious. His father is in jail awaiting trial for attacking a policeman in a drunken rage. Jong-su lives in his familyβs old farmhouse alone, sometimes receiving silent, disturbing phone calls in the dead of night. He drives around in his fatherβs battered pickup. He dutifully drops by Hae-miβs place to feed the cat. The cat is shy and wonβt come out when heβs around, which is not unusual. But he never so much as catches a glimpse of it, which is. There is an uncomfortable strangeness to Burning, a feeling not dissimilar to deja vu, or when a memory or thought seems on the tip of your tongue, only to slip back beyond reach. We can never be quite sure of anything, can never remember precisely what was said when it unexpectedly and suddenly becomes important.
Hae-mi comes back from her trip, and Jong-su drives to the airport to pick her up, beaming with anticipation. The weeks spent apart have sharpened his longing. Hae-mi walks out of the gate with a mysterious stranger, and Jong-suβs expression changes from eager to bewildered to crestfallen. The stranger is Ben, an enigmatic Korean socialite who Hae-mi met in Nairobi. They all go out to eat, an awkward trio. Ben is clearly a sociopath: when Hae-mi tearfully tells a story about a sunset she saw in Africa, his amused response is that he has never cried himself. He is glib and composed at all times. It is a remarkable performance by the American actor Steven Yeun. Yeun conveys much with a smirk or a yawn; as written Ben is perfectly polite and charming, but Yeun gives the audience infinitesimal glimpses of his disdain, bemusement, boredom, and contempt. Hae-mi seems unconscious of this inner void and amorality, but there are brief yet meaningful moments where it seems as if she is displaying a longing for Jong-su, wordlessly asking him to choose her, to allow her to choose him. Like so much in this film, however, this is up to interpretation.
Hae-mi and Ben seem to have some kind of sexual relationship, although this is never stated. It is plain to see that Jong-su has come to this conclusion, however, and the feelings of insecurity this triggers are just as plain. Ben is rich, sophisticated, and unconcerned. Jong-su is a farmerβs son, directionless, unsure of himself. In one of the most breathtaking cinematic scenes I can remember, Ben and Hae-mi stop by to visit Jong-su at his fatherβs house. They sit outside and watch the sun set, seemingly filmed in real time, as they smoke pot. Hae-mi dances slowly in the yard as the camera slowly pans around her in the dying twilight. She removes her top and sways and the light catches tears on her face, and the audience recalls her earlier description of another sunset, and recalls her wish to disappear without a trace. It is a transcendental moment that is lost on her two companions; Ben giggles as they carry her inside to sleep on the sofa, Jong-su is steaming with resentment at what he deems exhibitionism and at her seeming dismissal of him in favor of Ben. Jong-su seems oblivious to the fact that the qualities that attract him to Hae-miβher immodesty, flirtatiousness, and playful impishnessβare the same qualities that prompt his feelings of jealousy and disgust. I believe this duality to underlie much of misogyny, whether in this film or in life.
Misogyny is a key concept for understanding Burning. On first viewing, I was struck by how closely the character of Hae-mi adheres to the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope that has long been criticized in Western filmmaking. In a way, she exists to be acted upon by the male characters. This is a surprise for two reasons: first, director Lee Chang-dong is neither untalented nor a neophyte when it comes to developing female charactersβhis Poetry may be among the most nuanced and empathetic female-centric films in Asian cinema. Secondly, an absolutely surpassing performance by first-time actress (those who have seen the film will likely need a moment for that fact to sink in) Jeon Jong-seo that gives an incredibly intense depth to the character. She is something other than what she seems, and she may even be something other than that. It is an incredibly complex and difficult role. On second viewing, I felt the character was less problematic; it is Jong-suβs film, really, and Hae-mi is no more a device than the Ben character, all things considered. The misogyny belongs to Jong-su as well, and I came to the conclusion that the film itself is critical of his point of view in more ways than one.
This insistent focus on Jong-suβs perspective is smart, and terrifying: the viewer cannot know any more than he does, and that is as frustrating and unnerving as Jong-su finds it to be. Keen viewers will have a sense of an unreliable narrator here. In the case of Jong-su we may have an unreliable perspective; a lack of conclusive information coupled with personal bias and a smoldering rage. This uncertainty is compounded when strange things begin to happen: Hae-mi becomes unreachable and the reasons are unclear. There are many plausible interpretations as to what exactly happens in the film, all of them wildly contradictory. Yet because we are locked in so close with Jong-su we probably reach the same one as him, but with a disturbing sense that we may be getting it wrong. I was unexpectedly reminded of that most iconic cinematic deconstruction of misogyny, Raging Bull. Both films are about poisonous male insecurities, about self-loathing variously leading to masochistic inaction or mindless brutality. Jong-suβs lack of self-regard forces him into a dangerous, self-imposed position that also functions as social critique. In Korea, a conflation of wealth and worth has created a situation where the rich are often given a pass for bad behavior. Whatever Benβs true nature, it is plain that he engages in near-constant abuse of his social position, to which Jong-su and Hae-mi must meekly submit. Every scene is a delicate ballet of manner and propriety where one party is treating it as a cruel game. It is a perceptive caricature of what it sometimes feels like to simply exist in Korean society.
One feels a welling of emotion upon realizing one is watching a film that will remain embedded in the subconscious for a long time. Lee Chang-dong has created a contradiction: a film that feels unhurried and patient, but is in truth laden with meaning at every step. Not a single frame is wasted. Leeβs understated virtuosity is that every moment of his film makes the viewer reconsider some moment that preceded it, sowing uncertainty while suggesting conclusiveness at the same time. The ominous soundtrack is like an aural version of this disturbing discordance. The gorgeous cinematography dazzles and darkly portends. The simmering narrative is like waking in a seemingly quiet and still railcar, only to look out the window and suddenly realize youβve been rocketing along at ferocious speed the whole time. Burning is a haunting masterpiece: cold, beautiful, and unforgettable. I always have probs with paragraph breaks in a spoiler, this might take a couple tries Dude, on fucking point. I like that you brought up the misogynistic and unreliable narrative aspects to it. I definitely need to rewatch to hone my whole overview. Come back with your thoughts when you do! I can't think of a recent film that rewards a rewatch (and a re-rewatch, etc etc) more. One thing that struck me later was the sequence (in silence) where it shows a young Jong-su watching a greenhouse burn. Remember that when his mother left (when he was likely the age depicted) he burned her belongings. Burning in this film represents a kind of ritual destruction of identity/removal of personhood from a woman. He's beginning to conflate these situations in his head. From here I think the film becomes a really nuanced examination of the way the male characters experience intimacy (which is to say they can't or won't), and the attitudes society has towards women who want an identity other than sexual partner, wife, or mother (i.e. identities only defined by their roles relative to men).
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Post by β Bob Loblaw β on May 20, 2019 22:05:06 GMT -5
Dude, on fucking point. I like that you brought up the misogynistic and unreliable narrative aspects to it. I definitely need to rewatch to hone my whole overview. Come back with your thoughts when you do! I can't think of a recent film that rewards a rewatch (and a re-rewatch, etc etc) more. One thing that struck me later was the sequence (in silence) where it shows a young Jong-su watching a greenhouse burn. Remember that when his mother left (when he was likely the age depicted) he burned her belongings. Burning in this film represents a kind of ritual destruction of identity/removal of personhood from a woman. He's beginning to conflate these situations in his head. From here I think the film becomes a really nuanced examination of the way the male characters experience intimacy (which is to say they can't or won't), and the attitudes society has towards women who want an identity other than sexual partner, wife, or mother (i.e. identities only defined by their roles relative to men). That scene for sure stood out to me as important (along with the long take of Lee Jong-su watching Ben by the lake) but in a way I didnβt necessarily know why yet. This is a movie that becomes what it is depending on you, the viewer. The viewer's proclivities determine the experience, to a certain point anyway
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pbcookies
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Post by pbcookies on May 20, 2019 22:29:47 GMT -5
100% agree
It made a huge impression on me. It's a really heavy lift to make a film that functions entirely as a thriller, entirely as a human drama, and as a complete take-your-pick allegory about multiple subjects.
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pbcookies
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Post by pbcookies on May 20, 2019 22:51:11 GMT -5
btw the lake scene is the one major sequence in the film I was never able to make sense of
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theboobox
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Post by theboobox on May 21, 2019 11:55:50 GMT -5
waiting on the word from Cannes for this one
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ryanakafvckyou
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Post by ryanakafvckyou on May 21, 2019 12:14:33 GMT -5
That is more than likely going to be excellent.
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pisswizard
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Post by pisswizard on May 21, 2019 20:50:39 GMT -5
Has anyone seen the Longmont potion castle film yet? I read that it sux which is a shame. Most interviews Iβve heard or read with him are shit too. Really wanna know why he did that for thirty years. Expected the film to provide.
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ryanakafvckyou
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shut the fuck up jim
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Post by ryanakafvckyou on May 22, 2019 6:49:31 GMT -5
Yeah, the early reviews out of Cannes for the new Tarantino are really, really good. Lots of people are saying it is his best.
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jaredfromsubway
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Post by jaredfromsubway on May 22, 2019 8:10:36 GMT -5
Watched the Korean movie Save The Green Planet! for the first time. Bonkers, just flat out bonkers.
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jaredfromsubway
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Post by jaredfromsubway on May 22, 2019 8:12:58 GMT -5
Has anyone seen the Longmont potion castle film yet? I read that it sux which is a shame. Most interviews Iβve heard or read with him are shit too. Really wanna know why he did that for thirty years. Expected the film to provide. They are showing the doc out here next month. The screening is also featuring live performances from Drab Majesty and Crazy Town (LOL).
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pisswizard
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Post by pisswizard on May 22, 2019 8:59:06 GMT -5
Has anyone seen the Longmont potion castle film yet? I read that it sux which is a shame. Most interviews Iβve heard or read with him are shit too. Really wanna know why he did that for thirty years. Expected the film to provide. They are showing the doc in June out here next month. The screening is also featuring live performances from Drab Majesty and Crazy Town (LOL). Iβd actually like to meet the guy from crazy town. His life totally fucked up after the success of that one song. Heβs clearly a douche but I bet it would be interesting.
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jaredfromsubway
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Post by jaredfromsubway on May 22, 2019 10:43:03 GMT -5
I wen't to a show at The Observatory where Nothing played in the tiny room and Crazy Town had a $5 show in the big room. They ended up cancelling the Crazy Town show cause no one bought tickets. There was only one dude decked out in SRH clothing who showed up and security had to tell him it was cancelled.
I'm tempted to go just cause I like the idea of seeing Drab Majesty with Crazy Town, even though I've also read poor reviews on Letterboxd regarding that documentary.
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MMST3K
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Post by MMST3K on May 22, 2019 15:19:47 GMT -5
The actress from the new child's play movie keeps saying how iconic chucky is.Is that why you are making a remake and had the balls to change his fucking look.I mean if you are going for horror with astro boy eyes that turn red you done fucked up.
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Post by thanksforthedress on May 22, 2019 16:18:32 GMT -5
Saw detective Pikachu and was surprised how into it I was for the first half. Goes off the rails in a bad way tho. The Seinfeld reference got a hearty laugh by one dad in the back of the theatre with his 3 kids and that made me smile.
Saw Longshot and itβs obviously a political nightmare but itβs pretty funny. Love rogen and Theron. It is the same as all his movies tho loser dude fucks up a smart successful ladiesβ life for love. But this one is grown up because she wants to be president and heβs a JOURNALIST and not like uhhh starting a porno site with his friends
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jaredfromsubway
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Post by jaredfromsubway on May 22, 2019 16:24:06 GMT -5
Didn't care for Detective Pikachu that much, but I also thought it was better than I expected it to be.
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roofies
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Post by roofies on May 22, 2019 16:26:07 GMT -5
Saw detective Pikachu and was surprised how into it I was for the first half. Goes off the rails in a bad way tho. The Seinfeld reference got a hearty laugh by one dad in the back of the theatre with his 3 kids and that made me smile. Pokemon games got me through some hard times. So I wen't to see DP. It really wen't off the rails hard. The "surprise twist" was so stupid. I didnt expect much, but Jesus christ I was so bored and regretted my decision to see it.
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