A movie that begins with a couple not having sex, and ends with another couple not having sex, so what's in between? People who learn to talk to each other by talking to themselves, that's what. And a brief bit of sex, which is cut short when they start talking about it and realize they misunderstand each other.
Good to see Island Video getting some cameo love, but really...was it just too obvious to casually mention the greatest video store in the world?
Showing posts with label RIP Hollywood Video. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RIP Hollywood Video. Show all posts
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Downfall
You've seen the parodies ... or ... have you? If not, time to do some catching up. One of my favorites is when Hitler finds out his so-called "friends" aren't going to Burning Man after all.
But have you seen ... the movie? There are about 150 other minutes of film you could catch up on.
I saw the DVD on the rack as I scoped out the one-last-dying-breath Hollywood Video, and yes, I found it hard to watch the fateful scene of hubris personified without cracking up and thinking of poor Hitler being banned from XBox Live.
You probably read about it in the papers already, so I'm not spoiling anything (and hopefully prepping you and the kids) by pointing out that nearly everyone in the Third Reich's inner circle ends up being shot, killed and murdered onscreen ... except for Hitler. He is given respectful privacy when he reaches the end. Kinda ironic, wouldn't you say?
But have you seen ... the movie? There are about 150 other minutes of film you could catch up on.
I saw the DVD on the rack as I scoped out the one-last-dying-breath Hollywood Video, and yes, I found it hard to watch the fateful scene of hubris personified without cracking up and thinking of poor Hitler being banned from XBox Live.
You probably read about it in the papers already, so I'm not spoiling anything (and hopefully prepping you and the kids) by pointing out that nearly everyone in the Third Reich's inner circle ends up being shot, killed and murdered onscreen ... except for Hitler. He is given respectful privacy when he reaches the end. Kinda ironic, wouldn't you say?
Friday, April 23, 2010
Pepe Le Moko
The Casbah as seen from the French point of view, in which the natives are to be scorned. For an opposing POV, there's The Battle of Algiers. But that's a different sort of art film.
Jean Gabin once again is the heroic bad guy whom you immediately relate to no matter what his past. He had this pattern down in the 1930s and '40s, and Bogey owes him one. He was a bad guy not because he wanted to be one, but because he had to be one. And we loved him for that.
Jean Gabin once again is the heroic bad guy whom you immediately relate to no matter what his past. He had this pattern down in the 1930s and '40s, and Bogey owes him one. He was a bad guy not because he wanted to be one, but because he had to be one. And we loved him for that.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
UHF
Harrison came back to town and pulled this one off the shelf. I had found it on the racks at the gasping-for-breath Hollywood Video. He thought it was simply another collection of 'Weird Al' Yankovic's music videos. Kids today!
No, really, there's a storyline. 'Weird Al' somehow is put in charge of a TV station, and of course puts a janitor (Seinfeld's 'Kramer') in charge of a kids show. Luke from "General Hospital" is simply beguiling in his Thomas Dolby-from-outer-space supporting role. Parodies of Indiana Jones, MTV, "Treasure Of The Sierra Madre," and "Network" are joined at birth by cameos from Dr. Demento, Emo Philips, Billy Barty... good fun.
The double-sided disc had a terminal case of skipping and scratches on the "widescreen" side, so we had to finish watching it in Pan'n'Scan. Just like on UHF stations back in the day.
Hey, I caught a continuity error: When Weird Al Rambo jumps into the helicopter (um, where'd that helicopter come from again?), he adjusts the rear-view mirror. But when the outside shot shows the chopper taking off .. there's no rear-view mirror!!! WTF?!
In other words, if you have enjoyed both "Airplane!" and "The Simpsons" for their non-stop kaleidoscopic pop culture riffs, you'll like this. And if you have seen, or even heard of, "Kentucky Fried Movie" or "Drive-In," you'll love it....
No, really, there's a storyline. 'Weird Al' somehow is put in charge of a TV station, and of course puts a janitor (Seinfeld's 'Kramer') in charge of a kids show. Luke from "General Hospital" is simply beguiling in his Thomas Dolby-from-outer-space supporting role. Parodies of Indiana Jones, MTV, "Treasure Of The Sierra Madre," and "Network" are joined at birth by cameos from Dr. Demento, Emo Philips, Billy Barty... good fun.
The double-sided disc had a terminal case of skipping and scratches on the "widescreen" side, so we had to finish watching it in Pan'n'Scan. Just like on UHF stations back in the day.
Hey, I caught a continuity error: When Weird Al Rambo jumps into the helicopter (um, where'd that helicopter come from again?), he adjusts the rear-view mirror. But when the outside shot shows the chopper taking off .. there's no rear-view mirror!!! WTF?!
In other words, if you have enjoyed both "Airplane!" and "The Simpsons" for their non-stop kaleidoscopic pop culture riffs, you'll like this. And if you have seen, or even heard of, "Kentucky Fried Movie" or "Drive-In," you'll love it....
Thursday, March 25, 2010
High Fidelity
"What came first, the music or the misery? People worry about kids playing with guns, or watching violent videos, that some sort of culture of violence will take them over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands, literally thousands of songs about heartbreak, rejection, pain, misery and loss. Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because I listened to pop music?"
A must-see for obsessive collectors and list-makers. Directed by Stephen Frears.
All I know is, it was on the rack during Hollywood Video's death watch. I took it home and watched it, not even knowing that it was almost exactly the tenth anniversary of its original release.
Let's see what the Scarecrow Movie Guide has to say:
"This film is most appropriate for boys who are obsessed with something (records, movies, comics, ex-girlfriends) and spend most of their time drinking and masturbating."
Heh.
Uh.
Hmmmm.....
A must-see for obsessive collectors and list-makers. Directed by Stephen Frears.
All I know is, it was on the rack during Hollywood Video's death watch. I took it home and watched it, not even knowing that it was almost exactly the tenth anniversary of its original release.
Let's see what the Scarecrow Movie Guide has to say:
"This film is most appropriate for boys who are obsessed with something (records, movies, comics, ex-girlfriends) and spend most of their time drinking and masturbating."
Heh.
Uh.
Hmmmm.....
Monday, March 22, 2010
The Naked Kiss
This disc needs an upgrade!
Samuel Fuller, who began his career by depicting the useless horror of war in "The Steel Helmet" and ended it by depicting the useless horror of war in "The Big Red One," here depicts the useless horror of daily life as seen by a former prostitute. Gotta love a film that starts with a woman beating the crap out of a man, then he pulls off her wig revealing her bald head, then she rifles through his wallet, taking only the $75 she is owed and leaving him with the rest. All the while, a wild jazz score is playing like these two are the second stage at a nightclub.
In non-anamorphic, no-extras, you'll-watch-this-movie-and-like-it style, a disc as bare-bones as Criterion has ever made.
Wait a sec ... there's a trailer ... woo-hoo!
Samuel Fuller, who began his career by depicting the useless horror of war in "The Steel Helmet" and ended it by depicting the useless horror of war in "The Big Red One," here depicts the useless horror of daily life as seen by a former prostitute. Gotta love a film that starts with a woman beating the crap out of a man, then he pulls off her wig revealing her bald head, then she rifles through his wallet, taking only the $75 she is owed and leaving him with the rest. All the while, a wild jazz score is playing like these two are the second stage at a nightclub.
In non-anamorphic, no-extras, you'll-watch-this-movie-and-like-it style, a disc as bare-bones as Criterion has ever made.
Wait a sec ... there's a trailer ... woo-hoo!
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Rififi
If you love caper flicks, this is where it's at. I had run my course through the "Italian Neo-realism" genre and didn't know where to go next, until a bunch of French gangster movies starting coming my way. So long and thanks for all the cheap discs, Hollywood Video. You'll live on forever, as long as no one tells the Web 2.0 geniuses otherwise.
The centerpiece of this film, and the reason why you love caper flicks, is the half-hour, dialogue-free jewel heist. No music soundtrack either (a point of contention during the production). Just some perfectly timed sound effects which, when stripped of words and music, tell their own story better than words or music could have.
The centerpiece of this film, and the reason why you love caper flicks, is the half-hour, dialogue-free jewel heist. No music soundtrack either (a point of contention during the production). Just some perfectly timed sound effects which, when stripped of words and music, tell their own story better than words or music could have.
Monday, March 15, 2010
The Children Are Watching Us
A classic of Italian neo-realism, the genre which dealt with real life after wartime, this one from the perspective of a child who learns that adults are not who they seem to be. Just as we always suspected.
Did I watch this film because it was restored as best as could be? Possibly, but... no. Because I nabbed it for only a few bucks at Hollywood Video's Death Watch sale? Good idea, but... meh.
Because it's from Italy? Directed by Vittorio de Sica? No.
No, I watched it because it was 10:15 PM, and I had to wake up at 7 the next morning for work. It's a classic, but also it is brief. 84 minutes brief, not 110 or 129 or 142 minutes like SOME of those films... [rolls eyeballs, goes to sleep]
Did I watch this film because it was restored as best as could be? Possibly, but... no. Because I nabbed it for only a few bucks at Hollywood Video's Death Watch sale? Good idea, but... meh.
Because it's from Italy? Directed by Vittorio de Sica? No.
No, I watched it because it was 10:15 PM, and I had to wake up at 7 the next morning for work. It's a classic, but also it is brief. 84 minutes brief, not 110 or 129 or 142 minutes like SOME of those films... [rolls eyeballs, goes to sleep]
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Bright Star
A film I very much wanted to see last year from the moment it was released, but it wasn't able to get to a theater near me, and I wasn't able to get to a theater further away. Fortunately or not, Hollywood Video is sucking the gas pipe, so I was able to pick up a "new" copy of this disc (hmmm, without insert or original case...) for a pittance plus sales tax.
The penniless poet John Keats falls for the girl next door: the upperclass (compared to him anyway) Fanny Brawne. Whereupon her family casts a stern glance, possibly even arching an eyebrow. Then he falls gravely ill, as foreshadowed by the death of his brother. You've probably seen enough films to know where this is headed. Except, when you see the gender roles reversed, you'll think about it differently.
I didn't want to see it for a surprise ending or anything. I just wanted to see it because Jane Campion knows a thing or two about making movies worth watching. And if there was bonus footage of Rome, so much the better. Turns out, not so much footage of Rome except for one minute at the very end. Fitting indeed.
And yea, that's Kerry Fox, heroine from many Campion films ago, appearing here as Fanny Brawne's mum, and eventually coming around to her daughter's side. Good for you, mum.
The penniless poet John Keats falls for the girl next door: the upperclass (compared to him anyway) Fanny Brawne. Whereupon her family casts a stern glance, possibly even arching an eyebrow. Then he falls gravely ill, as foreshadowed by the death of his brother. You've probably seen enough films to know where this is headed. Except, when you see the gender roles reversed, you'll think about it differently.
I didn't want to see it for a surprise ending or anything. I just wanted to see it because Jane Campion knows a thing or two about making movies worth watching. And if there was bonus footage of Rome, so much the better. Turns out, not so much footage of Rome except for one minute at the very end. Fitting indeed.
And yea, that's Kerry Fox, heroine from many Campion films ago, appearing here as Fanny Brawne's mum, and eventually coming around to her daughter's side. Good for you, mum.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Variety Lights
Long out of print, I found this Criterion disc at Hollywood Video's Death Watch liquidation for about seven bucks. No extras, no commentary, no insert, no original case, no dignity. Just the disc, please. Oooh, with Hollywood Video stickers all over it?! Thank you sir!
Federico Fellini's directoral debut, with co-direction from Alberto Lattuada. After Fellini established his career and hit the inevitable roadblocks, he made a film about a director who doesn't know how to make his next film, which he called "8 1/2." Because that's how many films he had made up to that point: "Variety Lights" is the one-half of "8 1/2."
A band of lowbrow stagemongers make their way across the map, with some guy in charge who might know what he's doing ... or, maybe not. He is pretty good at picking out talent, even if he doesn't have the ability to hang on to it.
Federico Fellini's directoral debut, with co-direction from Alberto Lattuada. After Fellini established his career and hit the inevitable roadblocks, he made a film about a director who doesn't know how to make his next film, which he called "8 1/2." Because that's how many films he had made up to that point: "Variety Lights" is the one-half of "8 1/2."
A band of lowbrow stagemongers make their way across the map, with some guy in charge who might know what he's doing ... or, maybe not. He is pretty good at picking out talent, even if he doesn't have the ability to hang on to it.
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