I say both, to your question about THE SHINING.

You said things that I pretty much agreed with, followed by DVC and others, on regards to THE SHINING, so I simply decided to not rehash the same criticisms or points of agreement.

Instead, I just added an idea that I don't see many SHINING reviews actually concentrate on, me thinks.

Besides Capo, don't you hate it when you're reading several reviews in a row of the same movie, when people write the same points/criticism over and over, more repetitive than a XEROX machine could ever dream to be?

At least thats why I didn't write more on THE SHINING. If anything, that reason is why I had a damn migraine trying to write that review for REAR WINDOW (1954). I mean, what can you add to the mix a film that's not only had the great critics written articles about, but friggin BOOKS, all featured this one movie? I'm still not happy with that review, though people say its good, so maybe I'm just beating myself up too badly for cheap masochistic fun.

I had interpreted it as an attack. My mistake.

And as far as the induction/deduction process, I personally assume every film will be a 2 star film, an average film. If it doesn't meet my expectations, it goes down. If it exceeds them, it goes up. And usually, my only expectation going into a film is that I will enjoy it.

Jackass ** 1/2
(Nth Viewing)

Gearing up for the sequel sometime this weekend, hopefully

Why hasn't the subject been changed?

Umm, because I was joking

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

It was a long time since I've watched a brilliant comedy. Some great witty and geeky humor.

My last "Netflix Night":

Black Circle Boys (1997) Good

Kids in America (2005) Okay

Mafia Doctor (2003) Meh.

Sorry for the long reviews. :p

Sometimes I feel I harass the film by typing some lame words about it. Most of the time I have emotions about a film, but can't translate them into words.
Especially in English.

I think there was a good discussion on the last page.
An exchange of opinions without a single word of name-calling or whatever. Very rare on these boards.
Plus, it was pretty much in-depth and argumented.
Mes félicitations, les gars!

Infernal Affairs ***
(Second Viewing)

Gearing up for The Departed on Friday

Man, I wish people would realize that save for the basic premise, THE DEPARTED is really not a remake of INFERNAL AFFAIRS, but instead more of a different take with the material.

So please folks, grade THE DEPARTED on its own, and not behind IA's shadow....

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) ***
(Nth Viewing)

Gearing up for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning on Monday. R. Lee Ermey and Jessica Biel were most enjoyable from this movie

The Departed *** 1/2
(First Viewing)

I'm sorry ronnie but this is a remake. They took the "basic premise" of the movie, shots from Infernal Affairs, bits and pieces of the movie, etc. If it's not a remake of Infernal Affairs than what is it? Notwithstanding, the movie was great! Nicholson should be up for an Academy Award (although it's hard to say if he'll win it or not). This movie had A LOT of humor in it (which is really one of the only differences I saw between it and Infernal Affairs). Great use of music by Marty as always and Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio put together some great performances.

The Proposition - (John Hillcoat;2005;Australia/UK)
An outlaw is given the proposition of killing his older brother to save his younger brother from the noose.
One of those films that comes by, combining a gritty and poetic quality all the same. The outback adds a very breathtaking and atmospheric quality to the film as well as the soundtrack which consists of traditional sounding strings and some more avant-garde use of sound editing. Guy Pearce and Ray Winstone were both great, especially Pearce in keeping a powerful presence in his scenes.

The Departed
(2006/Scorsese)
Excellent comeback film. While Scorsese's work since Casino has had some good moments here and there, he hasn't had a 3 star film in over a decade. Cast was great, especially Alec Baldwin and Nicholson. Story was convoluted but interesting, and while it dragged a little in the middle, the ending made up for it. Scorsese opts for a pretty simple lighting style, except for one notable exception where Nicholson is cast in a devilish red glow in one scene. And some of the trademark Scorsese camera work was back. Overall, great film.

Jeez. When was the last time you wrote a proview?

The Departed (2006) ****/****
Absolutely great movie and great effort by Martin Scorsese. Although it lagged in some parts (barely) and there were a few annoying continuity errors (no big deal, though) the finale more than made up for any flaws whatsoever. The acting was superb from everyone and everyone did better than expected, especially Mark Whalberg who stole every scene he was in. Possibly Marty's best film since Goodfellas or at least Casino.

Coffy **
(First Viewing)

Zatoichi, Episode 1: The Tale of Zatoichi ***
(First Viewing)

Spoilers Alert - Do not read further if you haven't seen the movie and don't want it spoiled.

BTW, Wong is his last name. That is assuming you were using Kar-wai as his last name like you would Scorsese or Hitchcock.

The waltz he used alluded to the "dance"/"romance"/"interaction" between the two characters. In addition to the theme music, Yumeji's Theme , which was orignally composed for Suzuki's Yumeji, the soundtrack is great. Included are the Spanish language Nat King Cole songs used in the film, the Beijing opera music, and Bryan Ferry's version of the standard, In The Mood For Love .

The reason why he framed shots behind screens, through windows, behind walls, etc., was to make the audience feel like a neighbor eavesdropping. On a related note, Wong's decision to never show the spouses' faces or have them offscreen is remarkable and extremely effective. As for the mirror motif, it visually expresses the "double" concept: Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chan's shared situation; Mr. and Mrs. Chow compared to Mrs. Chow and Mr. Chan; Mr. and Mrs. Chan compared to Mr. Chan and Mrs. Chow; Mr. Chow compared to Mr. Chan; Mrs. Chan compared to Mrs. Chow, etc. BTW, the short story that inspired Wong is title "Tete Beche" (inverted postage stamps).

Adding to that romanticized and dreamlike memories concept is Wong's use of literary intertitles. It lends this story a timelessness. A sense that it did indeed happen; thus, contained within time at the same time.

That is a fair criticism if indeed this film was only about the potential love affair and the infidelity. But, the bigger purpose of the film is 60's Hong Kong as remembered from Wong's childhood and 60's Asia. Its Hong Kong title translates to Flower Like Years, indicating an era that has past. More specifically, Wong recalls cramped living conditions, neighbors gossiping, etc., all extremely imporant narratively and thematically. We see the social constraints on the main characters. Love is used to explore the bigger concerns of memory, time, and nostalgia.

The literary intertitles, from a novel not a poem, reiterates Wong's themes. Themes which have dominated Wong's body of work so far.

Wong addressed the Singapore and Cambodia sections. Specifically in regards to Cambodia, they already made the decision to have the character at the Angkor Wat ruins in Cambodia. So, they had to find a narrative justification for the character being there. He was a journalist, so a major news event around that time was the French president's visit to Cambodia.

Secondly, Wong felt he needed to jolt the audience with news/documentary footage to distance themselves from the two characters for the purpose of contemplation and putting their situation into a much wider social context.

Lastly, the sexual tension and loss is not weakened or lost in the Cambodia section (the finale). In fact, it is strengthened. Dont' we see Mr. Chow bear his soul and secret into the hole in the temple wall? Considerable time has passed since his time spent with Mrs. Chan. We see how much and how long the loss has affected him; so much so, that he had to unburden himself. In my opinion, it strengthens what we saw earlier.

You're right. They never did get together. The first image is a deleted scene. The second picture is a production still and/or deleted scene used for publicity (posters and press kits).

Interesting to re-read my words form a while ago, and also your in depth analysis was appreciated. I'm very interested in seeing 2046, and probably revisiting a non-skipping copy of this at some point.

Great first post. Welcome to the boards.

Thanks for the welcome. Much appreciated.

It's not clear how much your copy skipped, but for me, skips really kill the experience. Did it skip much in the temple scene? Because the tracking camera was elegant as it was throughout the movie.

I'd urge you to revisit the movie viewing it in the context of an era passed, memory, time, and the past's effect on the present and future. The temple ruins can stand in for a person's memories (stories, faces, places - weathered by time, yet still there).

As for 2046, it's the type of film that fits and works within a certain approach. Like how a Tarkovsky film viewed within Hollywood narrative expectations will disappoint and frustrate. In the Mood For Love is a rather linear albeit episodic narrative. 2046 is a visual/narrative representation of a person's memory - extremely non-linear and episodic. There is play b/w past, present, future and at first glance it may appear messy and confusing; but it aptly mirrors how the mind works (jumping from memory/thought to memory/thought irregardless of order or logic). Think Last Year at Marienbad meets 2001 . So in short, it's art cinema with the hallmark qualities of subjectivity and ambiguity. Many make the mistake of expecting In the Mood For Love Part 2 in terms of narrative, plot, and style.

24framespersecond...

I like you.

I suggest you join these boards: http://filmcinemamovie.proboards76.com/index.cgi

Homo.

Some great Chinese movies (non-martial arts) that might be of interest:

mainland China:
World (Jia Zhang-ke)
Platform (Jia Zhang-ke)
Unknown Pleasures (Jia Zhang-ke)
Raise the Red Lantern (Zhang Yimou)
Story of Qiu Ju (Zhang Yimou)
Red Sorghum (Zhang Yimou)
Yellow Earth (Chen Kaige)
Farewell My Concubine (Chen Kaige)
Blue Kite (Tian Zhuangzhuang)

Taiwan:
Yi Yi (Edward Yang)
Flowers of Shanghai (Hou Hsiao-hsien)
Millenium Mambo (Hou Hsiao-hsien)
Goodbye South Goodbye (Hou Hsiao-hsien)
Good Men Good Women (Hou Hsiao-hsien)
Time To Live Time To Die (Hou Hsiao-hsien)
Wedding Banquet (Ang Lee)

Hong Kong:
In the Mood For Love (Wong Kar-wai)
Chungking Express (Wong Kar-wai)
Happy Together (Wong Kar-wai)
Fallen Angels (Wong Kar-wai)
Days of Being Wild (Wong Kar-wai)
2046 (Wong Kar-wai)
Actress (Stanley Kwan)
Rouge (Stanley Kwan)

Two of my very favorite films. I'll probably be getting to 2046 earlier than I had planned.

Homo. [/b][/quote]YOU!

Is this your first Tarkovsky? I'm not sure what you meant by "among the bunch" - among Tarkovsky's work or films "like" Mirror? If so, it's sort of a bad place to start to get into Tarkovsky because it is such a dense and yet opaque work. Yet I admire that you maintain an interest to explore more. Like you already noted, Mirror is constructed out of different formats (narrative forms) and shifts time and color.

He wasn't interested in constructing a logical and cohesive narrative (he does have that ability albeit episodically in Ivan's Childhood and Andrei Rublev ). Instead like much of his body of work, he invites contemplation to compare and contrast events/images to derive meaning. In fact his Nostalghia is basically an anti-narrative. His Sacrifice is rather linear and classical in construction, but it resists narrative logic at the same time.

I wholeheartedly recommend his Stalker - the quintessential cinematic experience; something that expands one's notion of the boundaries of cinema making it boundless. I think it's his best work and along with Ivan's Childhood it's his most forward-driven plot.

Two of my very favorite films. I'll probably be getting to 2046 earlier than I had planned. [/b][/quote]Well, how do you like that? Perfect!

One more thing to note in terms of invoking 2001, it's about both works' primacy of the image, use of the scope format, the visual/musical poem aesthetic, but not the science-fiction element.

There was quite a bit of complaint among Wong fans that it was a terrible attempt at science-fiction, which it was not intended to be.

Happy viewing. I'm eager to read your reactions.

Ah. Anyone who watched Stalker is a-o.k. in my book. Someone who likes it?...even better!

Appreciate the invite. Is that your boards?

Thanks 24fps and welcome to the boards. I am planning to get netflix in January next year, hopefully I will find some of these movies on it. BTW, your first post was great