The Noir Card Two things interesting about this for me. (I’ll let others talk about Heath.) One is how much more of a comic book it is than a film. I don’t mean that it is sillier or more fantastic, but that the values seem to be based on storyboards as panels. The implications are… Continue reading The Dark Knight (2008)
Tag: p2008
Comments first posted in 2008
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
Clockworks Fincher understands cinematic narrative construction and has the craft to match. I fell under his spell during “Fight Club”. The idea there was to play a game with inner narrative. It was, I think when Pitt first found his way into full collaboration with a director’s adventure with the shifting of watcher and writer.… Continue reading The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
Beauty #2 (1965)
Seduction Most of what Warhol does for me is of the “oh, I get it” variety of art, where a statement is supposed to trigger an insight and the insight is the art. Its an indirection of agency, and wears out its effect quickly. But sometimes it connects deeply, and this does. You might see… Continue reading Beauty #2 (1965)
Barbie as the Island Princess (2007)
Singable I came to this because I had a bad experience watching the Disney “Cinderella,” and wondered at what passed for acceptable these days. I chose what I thought would be the gene with the lowest standards. I picked wrong. I should have gone with preteen boy anime, because this is pretty darn good. The… Continue reading Barbie as the Island Princess (2007)
Australia (2008)
The Story There’s plenty of space for others to comment on how wrong the shape of this is, and whether Nichole is too wooden. Talk like that is boring to me. I enjoyed it in spite of it working hard against success. One reason is that I know cattle drive westerns well. Its not only… Continue reading Australia (2008)
Anemic Cinema (1926)
Un Revolutionary Just because something happened, doesn’t mean that it matters. Just because some artist farts controllably doesn’t mean we should enter it. This was unimportant when it was new, and only slightly less so now. I say slightly because film as a whole has lost a certain sense of adventure that this possesses. If… Continue reading Anemic Cinema (1926)
Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008)
Dibs on the Guide It is all about intent, isn’t it? If you have a film intended to reach some depth, the intent can be simply what the artists trust and if they are deep themselves AND good artists we get something valuable. I would never discount this, and many of my favorite film experiences… Continue reading Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008)
Jupiter’s Wife (1995)
Neptune’s Movie There is a story in this documentary, one about a very appealing woman. She’s so open we immediately give our heart before we realise how sick she is. She’s a mess, usually homeless, always hallucinating, fanatically fixated on her many dogs. That story is here and you may think it is what this… Continue reading Jupiter’s Wife (1995)
Klimt (2006)
Wittgenstein’s Gaudi Chapel While the world relaxed and enjoyed itself between wars. When art was a solitary and experimental endeavour. When Europeans rediscovered the power of nature in sex and in some cases the other way around. When lives really could be deep, and debauched and intelligent too, three men came out of Vienna: Freud… Continue reading Klimt (2006)
Maladolescenza (1977)
Tame Stuff I think I saw this when it was new. Hard to remember, because I don’t think it had much effect on me. If it did, it has far less now. The idea here is that we see creeping malevolence made crisp by showing it among preteens and setting it in a sort of… Continue reading Maladolescenza (1977)