The New Film Thread: Page 28 - The Arsenal discussion forum and community: One More in the Tolly

The New Film Thread

Asterix

My mate had his annual film day where he hires a cinema and shows a few films he likes. This year we could only stay for one due to other commitments, but it was great - a French / Belgian film called Close which won the Grand Prix at Cannes last year. It's a coming of age drama about two boys as they start high school. The performance by the leading young man was fantastic, and the show dealt with some heavy themes in an understated but powerful way.

The other films we missed also look great. Both are also French - Lost Illusions, based on a Balzac piece, and Kompromat, a thriller based on a true story about a French journalist framed for crimes he didn't commit by the Russian secret police.

RocktheCasbah

Watched Blood Simple last night for the first time in ages. Not really sure why the Coens bothered making another film after this one, though I'm obviously glad they did. An incredibly tight, atmospheric piece of filmmaking - to me the purest distillation of the standard Coen themes of stupidity, avarice and misunderstandings. Marvellous.

We finished watching that and Halloween was on, so ended up watching that too - seen it too many times now to be genuinely frightened by it, but the last half hour of the film is so brilliantly executed. What a film!

Coombs

RocktheCasbah maybe No Country... has something to say, but Blood Simple is the true Cohen exponent for me.

Daz

RocktheCasbah So I watched Blood Simple last night after reading your high praise but I cant say I really liked it other than a couple of scenes and the ending. For me, no way that's a better Coen film than No Country or even Lebowski

RocktheCasbah

Daz whaaaaaaaat?!

😁

Nah, fair enough. Personal taste is a strange thing and I guess Blood Simple is quite a strange film, but I stand by my initial statement that it is the purest distillation of everything that's great about the Coen brothers films. Obviously they learned a few tricks and got access to better actors over the years, they've also made films which are much easier to go back and watch - you've mentioned a couple of them. I almost look at No Country as kind of an update on Blood Simple, for what it's worth I love that one too.

Coombs

RocktheCasbah I almost look at No Country as kind of an update on Blood Simple

I see it the same way, it's pretty much exactly what I tell my students.

Burnwinter

O BROTHER is their best film. I mean, for adults.

Coombs

Burnwinter ew

Burnwinter

Coombs NO COUNTRY is a great thriller. It's just that species of ambiguous nearly-nihilism that yearns for reactionary moralism in a smashed mirror. Like Villeneuve's SICARIO only elevated. "This is a land of wolves," etcetera. That's why I say it's for kids.

O BROTHER is funny, self aware and tender. I haven't seen BLOOD SIMPLE in decades, should re-watch it.

I did love Joel Coen's take on MACBETH. Great version.

Coombs

Burnwinter It seems to me that a mature, self-aware tenderness only means something in the context of nihilism's broken mirrors, or some such. I never did catch Macbeth, though I always meant to. Should make time for it.

Burnwinter

Coombs self-aware tenderness only means something in the context of nihilism's broken mirrors

You might be right. I just don't love that Tarantino-ish quality of quotability in the set pieces, or the character of Chigurh. A good thing about the Coens is that there could always be something else there, so it's worth looking.

The MACBETH is an homage to Dreyer with lots of wonderful close-ups of Washington and McDormand. Very beautiful, also the sound. There is a funky, sinister role for the guy playing the character of Ross.

RocktheCasbah

I do believe Martin Scorsese may well have surpassed himself with Killers of the Flower Moon. Yes, it is incredibly long, but the length of running time lends the film a real power as the horror of the piece descends on you.

The cinematography is beautiful, of course the film has a great soundtrack (RIP Robbie Robertson) and the three central performances are excellent. Robert De Niro should win many awards for his turn here as King Bill Hale, he's essayed a character every but as memorable as Jake La Motta, Travis Bickle and - most relevant here - Goodfellas Jimmy Conway. There are more than a few nods to that film here, especially towards the end and this film is more than good enough to make them.

I left the cinema rather blown away by it, I've got goosebumps thinking about it now, it's up there with his very best (Taxi Driver & Raging Bull).

Burnwinter

Saw THE KILLER at the cinema this arvo. I really enjoyed it, it's a stylish anti-thriller threaded with various deliberate provocations to its superficial genre. The self-important, Fassbender protagonist seems to be meant to be an imperfect narrator as well. I'm not particularly a Fincher acolyte but I don't think the critics have understood it. Glad I saw it on the big screen though.

RocktheCasbah

Burnwinter interesting.. Jo's very keen to see this, despite being a big fan of Fincher I've been a little put off by the reviews. Maybe I should give it a go though.

RocktheCasbah

Above post written whilst listening to Nine Inch Nails Closer (Precursor) - taken, of course, from Seven's opening credits. 😀

Burnwinter

I'd recommend it if you enjoy old school, nihilistic crime and gangster films from the 60s and 70s. Thing is though, it's not quite trying to be one of them exactly. But it's calling back to them.

I don't think I'm spoiling anything by telling you the soundtrack is tongue in cheek … on the one hand, there's the protagonist's relentless, Smiths-only "Work Mixtape" playlist, but that's intercut with the Reznor and Atticus Ross score, which is a bleak collection of distorted noise and tones recreating the ambience of a highway tunnel in Hell, and quite often doubles as ominous sound design.

I think it's intriguing, still thinking about it. When I say anti-thriller I mean it's not intended to develop much tension or emotional investment, the mood is largely serene with a few stark exceptions. It is gently funny and has a number of thematic preoccupations. There is one really good and extremely violent action set piece in there.

RocktheCasbah

Burnwinter I'd recommend it if you enjoy old school, nihilistic crime and gangster films from the 60s and 70s. Thing is though, it's not quite trying to be one of them exactly. But it's calling back to them.

If we're talking French Connection sorta thing, then yes, very much indeed so. I'd read about the Smiths playlist, quite liked that detail. I'm not a massive Tenth Reznor fan, but do enjoy his soundtrack work, I thought Gone Girl was excellently done.

Daz

Burnwinter
Funny you should review this Burnsy; I watched it over the weekend too and kept thinking of you because of all the bloody Smith's songs 😉 I enjoyed it too and reckon you've described it well.

goon

Watched The Marvels. Shallow even for a Marvel movie but there are worse ways to kill a couple of hours. Whoever cast Kamala Khan needs to be fired though, I mean aside from the atrocious acting skills she mumbles half her lines.

QuincyAbeyie

@goon Finding it very hard to care about this new overarching storyline after Endgame. Although most of the movies have some kind of dimensional travel aspect to them, it's not really clear what the story or the point of it all is. Still haven't watched Ms. Marvel, Secret Invasion or even Quantumania. Add to that, Jonathan Majors, the next Thanos-level antagonist, will probably be recast because he's a piece of shit who beats up women.

goon

QuincyAbeyie

Same. They were going to have to do something really good to draw me back in, but it hasn’t materialised.

Loki S1 did get me intrigued, haven’t really seen much since though.

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