Dimension Common sense hits the front office at Marvel’s adventure in moviemaking. Until now, they’ve just made bad films. Bad. The basic problem, I believe, is that the rest of the world is out exploiting the third dimension and Marvel insists on making flat movies. Even Spidermen, where the character lives and fights in space… Continue reading Iron Man 2 (2010)
Tag: p2010
Comments first posted in 2010
How Art Made the World (2005-)
The Skull in the Livingroom Here is a strange idea for a documentary. Make a movie about why movies work, why we cling to them and how they invent our humanity. Tell a story about storytelling. It is put together by a man who himself is a good storyteller; he is presumably a good teacher.… Continue reading How Art Made the World (2005-)
Hereafter (2010)
Chabrolet At a certain point in some filmmakers’ careers, the films cease being discrete works of art and start becoming chapters in an engaging life. Eastwood is not the most weighty artist out there. He has made a couple worthwhile films and much chaff but has developed a growing reputation for cleanliness and efficiency, both… Continue reading Hereafter (2010)
Fast, Cheap and Out of Control (1997)
Architecture Machine My small survey of documentary types has brought me to this, and what a celebration! This is complex, meaningful cinema that just happens to be a documentary. It is intelligent, complex, deliberate and deeply thought provoking. I think it communicates something that isn’t quite right, but the thing is communicated in the most… Continue reading Fast, Cheap and Out of Control (1997)
I Am Love (2009)
Outsides That Penetrate This is an amazing construction, turned to profound and lasting effect. Rarely do sophisticated technique and human insight coincide, and I think we have producer/actress Tilda Swinton to thank. Quite apart from everything else, the woman learned Italian for this, with a Russian accent! It could be the highest mastery of the… Continue reading I Am Love (2009)
An Education (2009)
Wonderful Soul, Unwonderful World The story happens all the time, I suppose. A young woman is bright, much brighter than her peers. She deeply understands the forces and passions in novels, real literature. That means that she is not only smart, that she understands life, but she knows that passions exist, waiting for her. The… Continue reading An Education (2009)
Doctor Who The Unicorn and the Wasp (2008)
Minority Report A reader suggested that I watch this. So I engaged with a few episodes, enough to find the most appealing ones to me. The supposed attraction is the extended magical journey, sort of a cross between “Doctor Strange,” the best Marvel comic character and “Hitchhiker’s guide,” with a plucky, admiring redheaded sidekick. I… Continue reading Doctor Who The Unicorn and the Wasp (2008)
Bad Timing: A Sensual Obsession (1980)
Doubts that Bind Love is internal. It is sustained by questions of doubt, tension, expectation. The solidity of the hand is strengthened by the slipperiness underfoot. So suppose you wanted to make a film about the fields that animate your anchor relationships. You couldn’t do what everyone else does: deal with the tokens: the looks,… Continue reading Bad Timing: A Sensual Obsession (1980)
Keeping Up With the Steins (2006)
Unsacred Feather Suppose you are a fairly powerful man in TeeVee, and have some standing in the movie world. Suppose also that you have been a poor father to a son that is fairly incompetent at life. He wants to become a filmmaker, and you have big ideas for him that work against his abilities.… Continue reading Keeping Up With the Steins (2006)
Harry Knuckles and the Pearl Necklace (2004)
Two spheres Why are Canada and Australia so invested in exploring the periphery? My own theory is based on the existence of a few talented teachers in key places. For whatever reason, this is something you are unlikely to find elsewhere. First, note that every production value that normally paves the way to connection is… Continue reading Harry Knuckles and the Pearl Necklace (2004)