Last Movie You Watched and Rate It | Spring 2021 Edition

[Mario Lemieux fan 66]

Raya and the Last Dragon: 7.8/10 great animation

 

[ProstheticConscience]

Hotel Artemis

with Jodie Foster, Dave Bautista (who is everywhere these days), Zach Quinto, and not enough Jeff Goldblum.

Near future shithole dystopia LA. 2028 in the movie, 2228 in tech level. Jodie Foster is The Nurse; elderly, alcoholic, agoraphobic manager of Hotel Artemis. It's a private members-only clinic for criminals on the run in LA; five suites, first come, first served. A massive, tattoo-covered Dave Bautista is The Orderly, who deals with unsatisfied customers. A bank robbery gone awry brings a couple of local black gangsta types, the older brother banters with a French femme fatale in another suite, and an asshole American arms dealer is the designated butt monkey. But a crisis looms as rioting intensifies, a female cop pulls on The Nurse's heartstrings, and LA mob/gang leader Jeff Goldblum shows up needing repairs. Drama ensues.

Not nearly as bad as reviews would have you think, imho. I mean, sure. It's amazingly hard to suspend disbelief when the gangster god of LA is a Jewish white guy...but what the hell. It's light sci-fi dystopia that doesn't require you to think too much. There's a lot worse out there.

On Netflix.

"I'm...huh. Uhhm...I'm...uh...here for my...uh...five minutes of screen time...! And first billing...!"

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

I often think of you while watching disturbing films.

Lovely!

I had to smile at this one.

Because you do too!

 

[kihei]

Lovely!



Because you do too!

I think you have me beat by a healthy margin. Some questions: Have you ever seen A Serbian Film and, if so , what did you think? (I haven't seen it). What are your top three disturbing films? And while we are at it, what are your top three erotic films? For context: my definition of eroticism--I only know it when I see it but it's dimly lit rather than brightly lit.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

I think you have me beat by a healthy margin. Some questions: Have you ever seen A Serbian Film and, if so , what did you think? (I haven't seen it). What are your top three disturbing films? And while we are at it, what are your top three erotic films? For context: my definition of eroticism--I only know it when I see it but it's dimly lit rather than brightly lit.

That's two very good questions that I never really thought about. I've seen A Serbian Film. I think its reputation is way overblown, and certainly not one of the most disturbing films I've seen since I'd like to see it again at some point. There's quite a few films I never want to see again. I never really mention these films normally, because I don't think they deserve any publicity - especially numero uno, the director being an insufferable prick who thought he was the second coming of Murnau (he used to roam through every film collectors' groups, praising his own films)... But here it goes:

(and people, let's make it clear: you don't want to watch these films)

1. ReGOREgitated Sacrifice (it's the middle part of a trilogy, first chapter could have been of this list too, even though it's really tame compared to this one - never seen the third one)
2. Africa Addio
3. Men Behind the Sun

Well, now that I've posted it, I'm kind of curious to have a look at #2 and 3 (it's been a long time). I've seen most "unwatchable films", these are special.

As for Erotic films, I have no idea. I like a lot of films that have erotic qualities, but I never thought of distinguishing them from one another on that level. I'd really need to think about it.

But now I'm really curious to know what would be your answers to these two questions (and the answers of everybody else really - especially @KallioWeHardlyKnewYe since we share a lot of the same taste). This should have been two new threads!

 

[Pink Mist]

The Black Stallion (1979) directed by Carroll Ballard

A boy (Kelly Reno) gets shipwrecked on a desert island with a black Arabian horse. Over time he gains its trust, and upon getting rescued he trains it to become a racing horse. For the first half of the film, I was going to give this film top marks. The first half is mostly silent with very few words of dialogue, as we watch primarily through gorgeous visuals as the boy gains trust and bonds with the horse. I’m not sure how well it plays to children watching it, especially compared to children’s movies today which are so fast-paced, but its slow and mostly silent pace worked exceptionally well for me. However, once the second leg of the movie kicks in, it very abruptly becomes an extremely conventional sports movie which has been done hundreds of times and has one of the most egregious uses of the “magical negro” tropes I’ve ever seen. It's too bad, because the first half of the film is so glorious and poetic before turning becoming so unoriginal and predictable.

 

[kihei]

I thought Irreversible was genuinely disturbing, but in a way that I eventually felt was socially responsible, an examination both of the violation that is rape and how ugly it indeed is and also an excoriation of the destructiveness of male rage. Resnais' Night and Fog about the Allies entering into the Nazi Death Camps was also genuinely and defensibly disturbing. My third pick would be Pasolini's Salo, or the 100 Days of Sodom, which I hated, with HMs going to Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and Antichrist, both of which I nonetheless thought were excellent movies.

I think one of the great failings of cinema is that movies have never come close to realizing their potential for eroticism. What art is better suited? And yet I have to think some to come up with three examples. I find Wong Kar-wai's movies incredibly sensual in a pleasingly lazy sort of way; he movies have a casual, unforced eroticism that I find very attractive, yet I don't know if any particular film stands out more than another, maybe Days of Being Wild. But I am going to sideline him, just because...I can. So top three

1) Henry & June (Kaufman)--Anais Nin's sexual coming-of-age movie
2) The Lover (Annaud)--adolescent girl's first affair with dangerus man
3) In the Realm of the Senses (Oshima)--illicit but powerful affair

HM: The Hunger; Last Tango in Paris; the love making scenes in Don't Look Now, mainly because we care so much about the couple by then and have a premonition of their fate. Y Tu Mama Tambien (more sexy than erotic).

Sidenote: When I was much younger, I would have added Malicious, a Laura Antonelli movie, an actress who actually had a talent for eroticism (and not much else). I found a copy of the movie in Little Italy about five years ago, really delighted to rediscover this movie from my youth. It was awful; the sexism was just overwhelming. Spoiled the fun entirely. Likely conclusion: I was probably even more of a jerk in my youth than I thought I was.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

I thought Irreversible was genuinely disturbing, but in a way that I eventually felt was socially responsible, an examination both of the violation that is rape and how ugly it indeed is and also an excoriation of the destructiveness of male rage. Resnais' Night and Fog about the Allies entering into the Nazi Death Camps was also genuinely and defensibly disturbing. My third pick would be Pasolini's Salo, or the 100 Days of Sodom, which I hated, with HMs going to Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and Antichrist, both of which I nonetheless thought were excellent movies.

I think one of the great failings of cinema is that movies have never come close to realizing their potential for eroticism. What art is better suited? And yet I have to think some to come up with three examples. I find Wong Kar-wai's movies incredibly sensual in a pleasingly lazy sort of way; he movies have a casual, unforced eroticism that I find very attractive, yet I don't know if any particular film stands out more than another, maybe Days of Being Wild. But I am going to sideline him, just because...I can. So top three

1) Henry & June (Kaufman)--Anais Nin's sexual coming-of-age movie
2) The Lover (Annaud)--adolescent girl's first affair with dangerus man
3) In the Realm of the Senses (Oshima)--illicit but powerful affair

HM: The Hunger; Last Tango in Paris; the love making scenes in Don't Look Now, mainly because we care so much about the couple by then and have a premonition of their fate. Y Tu Mama Tambien (more sexy than erotic).

Sidenote: When I was much younger, I would have added Malicious, a Laura Antonelli movie, an actress who actually had a talent for eroticism (and not much else). I found a copy of the movie in Little Italy about five years ago, really delighted to rediscover this movie from my youth. It was awful; the sexism was just overwhelming. Spoiled the fun entirely. Likely conclusion: I was probably even more of a jerk in my youth than I thought I was.

I've seen all of these films except for Malicious (which I now want to see!) - I like all of the titles from your disturbing list, so not disturbing enough! I thought of Irréversible, which is kind of a terrible experience for viewers of both sexes (for different reasons), but it's so brilliant that it gets a pass. Night and Fog is indeed disturbing, but it is so poignant and clearly done with an empathetic intent that I think it's a necessary film - something you really can't say about Africa Addio.

Apart from Wong Kar-Wai, I can't say I care much for your erotic choices! In the Mood for Love is a film that came to mind for obvious reasons, but I'm afraid that I'm more of a down-to-heart kind of guy and that I'd need to look for best-of-eroticism in the filmographies of people like Bigas Luna, Radley Metzger, or even Robbe-Grillet. Really need to think about this.

 

[Mr Jiggyfly]

Yup. He's the one, I think, that snorted wasabi, too. No shortage of highlights for that guy.

Steve-O has some... issues.

He just celebrated 13 years of sobriety I believe, but he was pretty messed up when he did those films - which I’m sure isn’t exactly news that would blow you out of your chair.

Apparently they are making Jackass 4 - I’ll probably still find it funny even though I’m older now, my tastes in film have changed, and I’m uh, now a responsible adult with kids.

 

[Spring in Fialta]

I thought Irreversible was genuinely disturbing, but in a way that I eventually felt was socially responsible, an examination both of the violation that is rape and how ugly it indeed is and also an excoriation of the destructiveness of male rage. Resnais' Night and Fog about the Allies entering into the Nazi Death Camps was also genuinely and defensibly disturbing. My third pick would be Pasolini's Salo, or the 100 Days of Sodom, which I hated, with HMs going to Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and Antichrist, both of which I nonetheless thought were excellent movies.

I think one of the great failings of cinema is that movies have never come close to realizing their potential for eroticism. What art is better suited? And yet I have to think some to come up with three examples. I find Wong Kar-wai's movies incredibly sensual in a pleasingly lazy sort of way; he movies have a casual, unforced eroticism that I find very attractive, yet I don't know if any particular film stands out more than another, maybe Days of Being Wild. But I am going to sideline him, just because...I can. So top three

1) Henry & June (Kaufman)--Anais Nin's sexual coming-of-age movie
2) The Lover (Annaud)--adolescent girl's first affair with dangerus man
3) In the Realm of the Senses (Oshima)--illicit but powerful affair

HM: The Hunger; Last Tango in Paris; the love making scenes in Don't Look Now, mainly because we care so much about the couple by then and have a premonition of their fate. Y Tu Mama Tambien (more sexy than erotic).

Sidenote: When I was much younger, I would have added Malicious, a Laura Antonelli movie, an actress who actually had a talent for eroticism (and not much else). I found a copy of the movie in Little Italy about five years ago, really delighted to rediscover this movie from my youth. It was awful; the sexism was just overwhelming. Spoiled the fun entirely. Likely conclusion: I was probably even more of a jerk in my youth than I thought I was.

You liked Henry and June? Boy did I find it bad, overacted and badly casted.

 

[Spring in Fialta]

Oh and Takeshi Kitano is a giant and solidly one of my favorite filmmakers ever. I'll have reviews up for Boiling Point and The Blue Room soon (Amalric).

 

[KallioWeHardlyKnewYe]

Ok, so disturbing movies.

A Serbian Film would be right up there. It’s doubly offensive in that it’s one of those movies that waves its offensiveness around as a moral and political flag, but it really felt false to me. It’s so over the top I think it’s meant to play as parody but it didn’t work like that for me. Feels like there is too much glee by the filmmakers in the escalating shocks. I’m by no means a prude, but there isn’t a lot of room for error when messing around with stuff like this. You better nail it. This didn’t.

Salo would be the pervvy yin to A Serbian Film’s yang. Being deadly serious doesn’t make extreme material any more resonate, at least for me. Passolini’s message is a worthy and important one. But it’s also not an original or revolutionary one. Does he need this story and these extremes to convey it? I’d argue no. Like A Serbian Film the extremes, not the message, eventual becomes the thing. What good a filmmaker’s message — genuine in Passolini’s case, though I’m skeptical in A Serbian FIlm’s — when the shock overpowers it?

Eating shit may be a metaphor. But eating shit also is eating shit.

Martyrs is another film that comes to mind. Maybe the most torturous of the torture porn craze, but this one tries to justify its existence with a faux-intellectual twist that would have gotten a D in a 101-level philosophy or theology.

As counter-intuitive as what I’m about to write may seem though I am not a fan of the Human Centipede movies (seen 1 and 2 but not 3), I almost respect it more than some of these other more reputable efforts because it at least has the good sense to know what it is. It doesn’t mask its titillations behind a grander purpose.

Eating shit is definitely not a metaphor here. It’s definitely eating shit.

On the positive, I would echo Kihei in saying Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and Irreversible are both prime examples of disturbing, effective and well-made movies. They make their points rather powerfully without their extreme moments overshadowing the message. Irreversible in particular packs a legit emotional punch if you can make it all the way through it. I’d throw Eraserhead in here too. Not really one I like, but it is very unsettling and effective. Oh hell, how about a vote for Tetsuo: The Iron Man too and the collective works of Takashi Miike too.

On to eroticism ... this is an awful personal question, gentlemen.

In the Realm of the Senses straddles both of these categories I suppose. It is undeniably erotic. I actually defend it as a great love story ... certainly a great lust story. You (at least I) really feel for this couple. Their longing, their passion. I find it incredibly moving. The end, again at least to me, isn’t a shocking bit of violence, but rather a logical conclusion to an overpowering affair.

Another movie that, for some, could be tossed into the disturbing category rather than the erotic, is Cronenberg’s Crash. An extreme premise. But again, characters with magnetic, even destructive, attraction to each other.

Though I have some issues with the movie overall, particularly its third act, the first two thirds of Unfaithful are right up there for me on this topic. Diane Lane is incredible. Sexy, but in a very grounded and human way. It’s almost uncomfortable.

I am a fan of Secretary as well. Its tone borders on fairy tale and it is surprisingly sweet given the one sentence logline to it, but similar to In the Realm of the Senses (and to a lesser extent Unfaithful) there’s an overpowering connection between the leads here that really translates beyond the screen.

I guess James Spader is the Tom Hanks of high-brow pervy eroticism.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

Ok, so disturbing movies.

A Serbian Film would be right up there. It’s doubly offensive in that it’s one of those movies that waves its offensiveness around as a moral and political flag, but it really felt false to me. It’s so over the top I think it’s meant to play as parody but it didn’t work like that for me. Feels like there is too much glee by the filmmakers in the escalating shocks. I’m by no means a prude, but there isn’t a lot of room for error when messing around with stuff like this. You better nail it. This didn’t.

Salo would be the pervvy yin to A Serbian Film’s yang. Being deadly serious doesn’t make extreme material any more resonate, at least for me. Passolini’s message is a worthy and important one. But it’s also not an original or revolutionary one. Does he need this story and these extremes to convey it? I’d argue no. Like A Serbian Film the extremes, not the message, eventual becomes the thing. What good a filmmaker’s message — genuine in Passolini’s case, though I’m skeptical in A Serbian FIlm’s — when the shock overpowers it?

Eating shit may be a metaphor. But eating shit also is eating shit.

Martyrs is another film that comes to mind. Maybe the most torturous of the torture porn craze, but this one tries to justify its existence with a faux-intellectual twist that would have gotten a D in a 101-level philosophy or theology.

As counter-intuitive as what I’m about to write may seem though I am not a fan of the Human Centipede movies (seen 1 and 2 but not 3), I almost respect it more than some of these other more reputable efforts because it at least has the good sense to know what it is. It doesn’t mask its titillations behind a grander purpose.

Eating shit is definitely not a metaphor here. It’s definitely eating shit.

On the positive, I would echo Kihei in saying Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and Irreversible are both prime examples of disturbing, effective and well-made movies. They make their points rather powerfully without their extreme moments overshadowing the message. Irreversible in particular packs a legit emotional punch if you can make it all the way through it. I’d throw Eraserhead in here too. Not really one I like, but it is very unsettling and effective. Oh hell, how about a vote for Tetsuo: The Iron Man too and the collective works of Takashi Miike too.

On to eroticism ... this is an awful personal question, gentlemen.

In the Realm of the Senses straddles both of these categories I suppose. It is undeniably erotic. I actually defend it as a great love story ... certainly a great lust story. You (at least I) really feel for this couple. Their longing, their passion. I find it incredibly moving. The end, again at least to me, isn’t a shocking bit of violence, but rather a logical conclusion to an overpowering affair.

Another movie that, for some, could be tossed into the disturbing category rather than the erotic, is Cronenberg’s Crash. An extreme premise. But again, characters with magnetic, even destructive, attraction to each other.

Though I have some issues with the movie overall, particularly its third act, the first two thirds of Unfaithful are right up there for me on this topic. Diane Lane is incredible. Sexy, but in a very grounded and human way. It’s almost uncomfortable.

I am a fan of Secretary as well. Its tone borders on fairy tale and it is surprisingly sweet given the one sentence logline to it, but similar to In the Realm of the Senses (and to a lesser extent Unfaithful) there’s an overpowering connection between the leads here that really translates beyond the screen.

I guess James Spader is the Tom Hanks of high-brow pervy eroticism.

I hated Martyrs, didn't think it was effective in being disturbing, but it really tried hard. Same with the Nekromantik films, or even worse, Schramm, or Subconscious Cruelty. Just stuff that tries too hard and fall flat.

(And if you don't think eating shit is much of a metaphor, again, stay away from Lucifer Valentine)

I liked your other disturbing selections. Even the first Human Centipede (2 is trash, and 3 is a self-referential amateurish comedy). Can't say I'm into your selections for erotism though (I love Crash and In the Realm of the Senses, 10/10 films for me, but not really for their eroticism). Didn't like Secretary very much, and I don't remember having seen Unfaithful, not sure.

 

[Pink Mist]

My one big fault is that I'm pretty squeamish and don't handle blood and gore well, so I haven't seen too many disturbing films (at least in terms of gore etc), but Salò is definitely top of my list from what I've seen. Honestly surprised I made it through that film.

Would never have watched it if it hadn't been brought up again and again as such an essential film for any cinephile. I think it's a rite of passage for any cinephile to be pressured to watch this one eventually and for two hours reflect regretfully on what brought you to that decision and if you ever watch to watch movies again

 

[OzzyFan]

The Father (2020)
3.25 out of 4stars

The best way I can put this is that the movie is a near first hand view of what it's like to experience dementia. Nothing is over the top or feels dramaticized and every conceivable detail seems to be handled purposefully. And Hopkins is excellent (and now 83years old, bravo). That said, it's not a pleasant experience, but nor is it meant to be. Being thrown into this fire creates true confusion, irritation, and lapses for the viewer (and some painful memories for some that have seen loved ones go through this). This is one of those film's that I praise and admire for what is accomplished, but truly never wish to see again for multiple reasons.

Colossal
2.60 out of 4stars

Firstly, I found this movies trailers and premise to be incredibly misleading. I thought I was walking into a comedy drama with adequate amounts of kaiju/monster action. What I got was a sporadically funny drama on alcoholism and toxic relationships with minimal purpose and use for it's monster action premise. It's effective with what it wants to do for the most part, but I feel it would have been a lot more effective if they took out the monster element and actually turned this into a full on deeper darker comedy drama. The kaiju element felt like a distraction to me, and as stated, added little relevancy to the true story at heart. Hathaway gave a good performance and Sudeikis brought to the table something more than his usual over the top nice funny guy schtick.

Lupin III : The First (2019)
2.50 out of 4stars

Fun, predictable, unspectacular anime adventure starring the beloved Lupin III and crew. Albeit the weakest of the bunch of Lupin III movies I've seen.

 

[nameless1]

Oh and Takeshi Kitano is a giant and solidly one of my favorite filmmakers ever. I'll have reviews up for Boiling Point and The Blue Room soon (Amalric).

That is good to hear. Though I can see why people dislike him too, and he is rather rough as a director, he is nonetheless one of my favourite directors. He is also one of the first directors whose works I watched when I began to really enjoy films, so that may also be a reason for my soft spot for him.

Unfortunately, his height is extremely short, because after the 90s, it just seems like he lost it. Elements of his style is still there, but I am never as impressed.

 

[nameless1]

Ok, so disturbing movies.

A Serbian Film would be right up there. It’s doubly offensive in that it’s one of those movies that waves its offensiveness around as a moral and political flag, but it really felt false to me. It’s so over the top I think it’s meant to play as parody but it didn’t work like that for me. Feels like there is too much glee by the filmmakers in the escalating shocks. I’m by no means a prude, but there isn’t a lot of room for error when messing around with stuff like this. You better nail it. This didn’t.

Salo would be the pervvy yin to A Serbian Film’s yang. Being deadly serious doesn’t make extreme material any more resonate, at least for me. Passolini’s message is a worthy and important one. But it’s also not an original or revolutionary one. Does he need this story and these extremes to convey it? I’d argue no. Like A Serbian Film the extremes, not the message, eventual becomes the thing. What good a filmmaker’s message — genuine in Passolini’s case, though I’m skeptical in A Serbian FIlm’s — when the shock overpowers it?

Eating shit may be a metaphor. But eating shit also is eating shit.

Martyrs is another film that comes to mind. Maybe the most torturous of the torture porn craze, but this one tries to justify its existence with a faux-intellectual twist that would have gotten a D in a 101-level philosophy or theology.

As counter-intuitive as what I’m about to write may seem though I am not a fan of the Human Centipede movies (seen 1 and 2 but not 3), I almost respect it more than some of these other more reputable efforts because it at least has the good sense to know what it is. It doesn’t mask its titillations behind a grander purpose.

Eating shit is definitely not a metaphor here. It’s definitely eating shit.

On the positive, I would echo Kihei in saying Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and Irreversible are both prime examples of disturbing, effective and well-made movies. They make their points rather powerfully without their extreme moments overshadowing the message. Irreversible in particular packs a legit emotional punch if you can make it all the way through it. I’d throw Eraserhead in here too. Not really one I like, but it is very unsettling and effective. Oh hell, how about a vote for Tetsuo: The Iron Man too and the collective works of Takashi Miike too.

On to eroticism ... this is an awful personal question, gentlemen.

In the Realm of the Senses straddles both of these categories I suppose. It is undeniably erotic. I actually defend it as a great love story ... certainly a great lust story. You (at least I) really feel for this couple. Their longing, their passion. I find it incredibly moving. The end, again at least to me, isn’t a shocking bit of violence, but rather a logical conclusion to an overpowering affair.

Another movie that, for some, could be tossed into the disturbing category rather than the erotic, is Cronenberg’s Crash. An extreme premise. But again, characters with magnetic, even destructive, attraction to each other.

Though I have some issues with the movie overall, particularly its third act, the first two thirds of Unfaithful are right up there for me on this topic. Diane Lane is incredible. Sexy, but in a very grounded and human way. It’s almost uncomfortable.

I am a fan of Secretary as well. Its tone borders on fairy tale and it is surprisingly sweet given the one sentence logline to it, but similar to In the Realm of the Senses (and to a lesser extent Unfaithful) there’s an overpowering connection between the leads here that really translates beyond the screen.

I guess James Spader is the Tom Hanks of high-brow pervy eroticism.

Secretary is what 50 Shades of Grey should be. That is all I will say.


I am surprised by your love for Unfaithful, but I saw it before my 18th birthday, so I probably just do not understand. I do agree with your reasoning too, from what I can remember.

 

[nameless1]

You liked Henry and June? Boy did I find it bad, overacted and badly casted.

I never finished it, but I share your sentiment from what I remember. Perhaps I will get to it one of these days, just to confirm.

 

[Spring in Fialta]

That is good to hear. Though I can see why people dislike him too, and he is rather rough as a director, he is nonetheless one of my favourite directors. He is also one of the first directors whose work I watched when I began to really enjoy films, so that may also be a reason for my soft spot for him.

Unfortunately, his height is extremely short, because after the 90s, it just seems like he lost it. Elements of his style is still there, but I am never as impressed.

Yeah, I haven't seen his stuff post 1990's. Next, I'm going to watch his 1995 film. While there's a few of big time world directors that I still haven't watched (Tarr, Kiarostami), from the ones I am familiar with that were around active in the 90s, I think Kitano might be my favorite.

 

[Spring in Fialta]

I never finished it, but I share your sentiment from what I remember. Perhaps I will get to it one of these days, just to confirm.

The only thing that I remember liking from it is the scene where Uma Thurman's character is reading Miller's work and finds that she's not portrayed with sympathy. His response: 'I'm not a portrait painter.'

That's a great line, especially how casually Ward delivers it.

 

[nameless1]

I like Irreversible too. Though I am rather disturbed by that infamous graphic scene, it is not just gratuitous violence for mere shock value. Strange as it sounds, it is actually necessary, in order to highlight and explain the other characters' actions.

 

[Spring in Fialta]

I don't if it says anything about me, but I was always more disturbed by the nightclub fight than by the underpass scene. Both are hard to get through but the former...holy hell. Still, I have no reservations about calling Irreversible a masterpiece and I Stand Alone an even better film. Gaspar Noe does have one hell of a weird career arc.

 

[nameless1]

Yeah, I haven't seen his stuff post 1990. Next, I'm going to watch his 1995 film. While there's a few of big time world directors that I still haven't watched (Tarr, Kiarostami), from the ones I am familiar with that were around active in the 90s, I think Kitano might be my favorite.

His style just represents the 90s. When I watch his movies now, there is the added bonus of nostalgia too.

I would suggest some of his softer works too, especially Kikujiro. Outside of Hana-bi, that is probably my favourite work of his. For a man with a very hard reputation, he can be very sentimental too, and I am rather touched by it. Joe Hisaishi's score also does not hurt.

 

[nameless1]

I don't if it says anything about me, but I was always more disturbed by the nightclub fight than by the underpass scene. Both are hard to get through but the former...holy hell. Still, I have no reservations about calling Irreversible a masterpiece and I Stand Alone an even better film. Gaspar Noe does have one hell of a weird career arc.

In the nightclub scene, the lighting is too dark, and the camera moves too much, for me to feel more for it. I get what you mean though.

I also agree with you on Noe. That is what happens with creative people sometimes. Not every work is a winner, as they seek to push boundaries.

I will not go that far to call Irreversible a masterpiece, but it is definitely a film, and not just a movie. It is in the 7.5 to 8.5 range, but I will probably give it an 8 as of this moment.

 

[Osprey]

What did I start? To be clear, I didn't mean that Psycho Goreman is disturbing like these other films that are being mentioned. It's very gory, but for the sake of fun and laughs, not shock value.

I'm not easily disturbed by films, but one got me recently and it was from 1932, of all years. It was the horror classic Freaks, about a traveling "freak" show. The thing is that it cast people with actual deformities and conditions, including a person without arms or legs, another with no arms and several others with oddly shaped heads (as well as a number of dwarf actors, which was more novel in 1932 than today). A big reason why I'm not easily disturbed by movies is that I know that they're fake. Here, I knew that a lot of it wasn't and that these actors were likely plucked from real carnivals and freak shows. It just felt uncommonly real and I couldn't shake the feeling that they were being exploited. That said, the film consistently portrays them in a positive and sympathetic light, so it may be argued that good intentions and showing them as people rather than "freaks" makes up for the exploitive element. I eventually saw it that way and appreciated the film for that, but it still wasn't the easiest to watch. What also disturbed me is that it reminded me of my discomfort with deformity, which I'm not proud of. Those reasons and needing time to think about the film are why I ended up not reviewing it, but it's been many months and the rest of you are sharing your own admissions, so there's mine. It's a really old movie, but they say that truth is stranger than fiction and, for me, reality is more disturbing than make believe. I can even watch buckets of fake blood, but just a little of the real thing makes me squeamish. Go figure.