tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64606827580281541232024-03-13T19:25:16.884-07:00Apocaflicks: My Cinematic Journey To ArmageddonAbby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.comBlogger96125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-85340008431528863902012-12-16T19:37:00.001-08:002012-12-16T19:37:07.261-08:00Romantic Comedies - A Debriefing. The American Film Institutes order: #10 - <i>Sleepless in Seattle</i>, #9 - <i>Harold and Maude</i>, #8 - <i>Moonstruck</i>, #7 - <i>Adam's Rib</i>, #6 - <i>When Harry Met Sally</i>, #5 -<i> The Philadelphia Story</i>, #4 - <i>Roman Holiday</i>, #3 - <i>It Happened One Night</i>, #2 - <i>Annie Hall</i>, #1 - <i>City Lights</i><br />
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My order:<br />
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#10 - <i>Adam's Rib</i> - Too misogynist, not funny enough<br />
#9 - <i>Sleepless in Seattle </i>- This is not a romance. They don't know each other.<br />
#8 -<i> Roman Holiday</i> - Oh get over yourself. You only knew her for two days, and she was drugged for one of them. Move on.<br />
#7 - <i>The Philadelphia Story</i> - Great cast, but the plot is odd.<br />
#6 - <i>Harold and Maude</i> - Love the dark, odd Harold scenes, and Bud Cort's weirdly proportioned legs, but Maude is a little too hippie for me.<br />
#5 - <i>Moonstruck </i>- The women in this movie are great and self-assured, and I love the romantic Italian atmosphere of it. Nicholas Cage remains a crazy person. <br />
#4 - <i>It Happened One Night </i>- I love when this movie gets all Seinfeldian about piggyback rides and stuff, and I love the dad, surprisingly, but it's missing something. I don't know. Maybe it just needs better sound editing.<br />
#3 - <i>Annie Hall </i>- Woody Allen's terrific, and I love how abstract this movie can get, but it is, admittedly, something you can only watch every once in a while. Little slow. <br />
#2 - <i>City Lights</i> - This is everything a romance should be, and Charlie Chaplin I swear is the sweetest man I've ever seen, but some of the comic routines like the boxing scene go on a little long for me.<br />
#1 - <i>When Harry Met Sally</i> - This movie is perfect. Nothing is wrong with it.<br />
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Up next: Gangster movies. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-10234897245856665182012-12-16T19:21:00.001-08:002012-12-16T19:21:28.906-08:00Romantic Comedy #1 - City Lights (1931)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VGSbieDI5ng/UM6Pr5JZrLI/AAAAAAAACBU/0NStJumaJKU/s1600/citylights.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VGSbieDI5ng/UM6Pr5JZrLI/AAAAAAAACBU/0NStJumaJKU/s320/citylights.jpg" width="233" /></a><i>City Lights</i> is a Charlie Chaplin movie, and honestly the most adorable thing I've ever seen. It stars Charlie Chaplin's Tramp, obviously,although I can't figure out if he's supposed to be homeless or just poor. The Tramp falls in love with a blind flower girl, who thinks that he's rich because she heard a car door close when he came up to her. He gets her money to have surgery on her eyes, even though he knows that she'll know he's not rich if she sees him, and then goes to jail for stealing for her. It has an ambiguous, bittersweet ending, because Charlie Chaplin was a troubled man.<br />
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It's so cute. This is what people are trying to do when they make romantic comedies, this is the emotion they're trying to create. The Tramp never considers not getting her the surgery to maintain his illusion - He knows that he'll lose her after that, and he's resigned to it. He doesn't want to deceive her, he just loves her. The scene when she realizes who he is sweet and heartbreaking. This is what Charlie Chaplin was really good at - Even though he's well-known for hollow slapstick, he was one of the first film comedians to bring this kind of emotion into his comedies. Granted, he was one of the first film comedians period, but still. My point stands.<br />
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Cool thing about Charlie Chaplin - He did everything in his movies - Directed, acted, scored, wrote. And he was crazy. He was supposed to have done one of the scenes 472 time.<br />
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I was also very distracted though the whole movie by how spot-on Robert Downey Jr. was in <i>Chaplin</i>. I'm very impressed. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-9931301375648622572012-12-16T11:34:00.000-08:002012-12-16T11:34:02.249-08:00Romantic Comady #2 - Annie Hall (1975)<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pJTWR2Y7Yoo/UM4iGvCaI8I/AAAAAAAACBA/Ytv1lClX4Jk/s1600/Annie-Hall-Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pJTWR2Y7Yoo/UM4iGvCaI8I/AAAAAAAACBA/Ytv1lClX4Jk/s320/Annie-Hall-Poster.jpg" width="214" /></a>I'm a big Woody Allen fan, when it's all said and done. I think he's terribly funny - not even just his jokes, really - he himself is very funny to me. I'm also a big fan of how he made this movie. It is, admittedly, a bit slow - that's the 70's for you - but it's got a lot of things going for it. I like the jazz, and I love the simple little titles. The nonlinear storyline is always a classic, of course. I really like my movies to be a little abstract, so I'm a huge, huge fan of the fourth wall-breaking. It's so great, and it just fits in to the movie perfectly, I absolutely love it. I always appreciate a good Truman Capote cameo. I've seen <i>Annie Hall</i> three times now, so by this time I've looked up most of the jokes, and it really is very funny. <br />
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I relate to Woody Allen a lot. Not the daughter-marriage part, obviously, and I don't like jazz quite as much as he does, but beyond that his movies speak to me. I've only seen three so far, but I've watched a lot of his stand-up, because I'm cool like that. I consider myself a fairly nervous person, and I like watching other nervous people be funny. It's why I like <i>Finding Nemo</i>. <br />
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I recently saw Diane Keaton on <i>The Colbert Report,</i> and I had not realized until then how much she <i>is </i>Annie in real life. I mean - she is a strange lady. She's weird. <br />
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Woody Allen originally wanted to call this movie <i>Anhedonia</i>, which is the inability to enjoy one's self, and because I knew that bit of trivia, I got that question right on a psychology test. True story. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-58237506009677138902012-12-16T11:14:00.000-08:002012-12-16T11:14:14.483-08:00Romantic Comedy #3 - It Happened One Night (1934)<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mzZLEEPjLZc/UM4ddL98A2I/AAAAAAAACAw/ZFYrKKuyHh4/s1600/Poster+-+It+Happened+One+Night_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mzZLEEPjLZc/UM4ddL98A2I/AAAAAAAACAw/ZFYrKKuyHh4/s320/Poster+-+It+Happened+One+Night_03.jpg" width="320" /></a>I like<i> It Happened One Night</i>. It's got a lot more energy than <i>Roman Holiday</i>, an a much less baffling plot than <i>The Philadelphia Story</i>. It from a time period that you don't see a lot of live-action movies from, and so has a very cartoon-y feel. Claudette Colbert's hair looks Betty Boop-y and everything. <br />
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It's interesting to me that this movie has a very similar plot to Roman Holiday - a reporter hangs out with a run-away aristocrat, plans to sell her story, and then falls in love with her. Peter and Ellie are much more charismatic than I-forgot-their-names, though, and the movie doesn't take itself so seriously.<i> It Happened One Night</i> knows that it's sort of a silly movie, probably because it's just a cheap blockbuster, and that makes it much more charming. It allows itself to digress into discussions on donuts and hitchhiking without pretending they mean anymore than amiability between the leads. This movie doesn't treat every little scene as if it were weighted with the romance of the century, and that I think is what makes it so good. I'm of the opinion that a really good romance needs some degree of naturality, to make it both believable and something you can root for. A quality romance is one where the people seem to be actually happy when they're around each other. <br />
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I'm surprised by how much younger Clark Gable looks in this movie - it's only five years before <i>Gone With the Wind</i>. It only just struck me that he <i>should </i>be kind of smarmy looking, what with his mustache and his self-righteous chracter roles, but somehow he isn't. That's some charisma for you. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-70071372691926574662012-12-12T20:32:00.002-08:002012-12-12T20:32:34.891-08:00Romantic Comedy #4 - Roman Holiday (1953)<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qMnt6THsQEg/UMlaQyxtdFI/AAAAAAAACAg/aXmSty_7294/s1600/MV5BMTg1ODgzODA1Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNTI0MzU3Mg@@._V1._SY317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qMnt6THsQEg/UMlaQyxtdFI/AAAAAAAACAg/aXmSty_7294/s1600/MV5BMTg1ODgzODA1Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNTI0MzU3Mg@@._V1._SY317_.jpg" /></a>I'm going to cut to the chase here - I don't like Roman Holiday. At first I thought that maybe it wasn't good, that there was something wrong with it. But no. I just find it unpleasant.<br />
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It's..soppy. Drippy, you know. It takes itself too seriously with all its regal sophistication and its stoicism. Do you know those women who watch old movies and say"Oh, that was the good old days. When people had class, and wore long skirts and didn't swear. Just good old sterile romanticism. They don't make them devoid of feeling or energy like that anymore." I might be paraphrasing a bit there, but you get the picture. This is those women's favorite movie.<br />
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I hate it. The more I think about it the more it disgusts me, with it's breezy Italian setting, and it's danced-around romance, and Audrey Hepburn with her pixie cut and her noble dedication to the morale of her people. Gregory Peck just stands around being mildly amused and stony-faces.<br />
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Look at this guy here! Look at that Hipster! He's like a time traveler! What am I even supposed to do with this movie? <br />
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This movie makes me feel nothing. The characters feel nothing. Nothing but the knowledge that their stoicism makes them better than everyone else. I have no use for this movie or its romantic vespa ride. <br />
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I do like the poster though. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-39042868756473776162012-12-12T20:15:00.002-08:002012-12-12T20:15:30.065-08:00Romantic Comedy #5 - The Philadelphia Story (1941)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nw2bP0JVl-0/UMlWRqsWsRI/AAAAAAAACAI/Wz4qVEuNe2I/s1600/Poster-Philadelphia-Story-The_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="244" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nw2bP0JVl-0/UMlWRqsWsRI/AAAAAAAACAI/Wz4qVEuNe2I/s320/Poster-Philadelphia-Story-The_02.jpg" width="320" /></a>The more Katharine Hepburn movies I see, the more I realize that I adore her, but can't stand the way her persona was treated in plots. Hepburn - this wonderful, saucy, sophisticated lady who isn't going to take any of your crap - is commonly portrayed as being too controlling and not emotional enough. The plots of her movies very often reveals her contemporaries fear of the "new woman," and emerging (however slowly) gender equality. Katharine Hepburn movies, to me, highlight the very real sexism of the past, and the kind of response that stronger woman got at the time. Hepburn characters are always sexy and desirable, but always relentlessly criticized. I can't comprehend this.<br />
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Who in their right mind wouldn't want to be this woman? And yet it was the type she played.<br />
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Which brings me to <i>The Philadelphia Story</i>, a remarriage comedy starring Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, and some guy who looks like Clark Gable but, disappointingly, isn't. I like the characters in it, I really do. I think they're interesting. Cary Grant's character is especially intriguing to me. For the whole movie he's painted as this hot-headed, irresponsible jerk, but what we see is a recovering alcoholic who is resigned to the turmoil around him, although he is somewhat bitter. It suggests some off-screen development that none of the other characters are recognizing or acknowledging.After we're told how crazy and aggressive he is, he spends the whole movie playing the only sane man. It's much more complex than I'm accustom to seeing in a 40's screwball comedy. I like the way he interacts with the other characters, too - his seen with a drunken Jimmy Stewart is one of the funniest things I've seen in a while.<br />
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What I don't get about<i> The Philadelphia Story</i> is this: <i>Why doesn't she marry Jimmy Stewart? </i>I mean, I do get it, really. The thing with Macaulay was fun and all, but the first marriage had real passion and emotion, and now that Dexter's cleaned up his act, all that's stopping them is Tracy's inability to accept human weakness like addiction and physical abuse, because apparently those are in the same category of reasonability. Tracy just needs to open up and get in touch with her emotions like a normal human woman. One contemporary discussion on this movie said that an actress playing Tracy "won't relate" to her problem of stoicism, but that the men will. Awesome.<br />
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Of course, I think this is a silly thing for the movie to be trying to tell us. Dexter and Tracy are obviously both decent people who bring out the worst in each other. They should not get remarried. I do get the divorce comedy, but I don't like it - I think it's a silly and unrealistic reaction to the changing social statuses of the day. She should have married Jimmy Stewart. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-17581184393071276732012-12-10T20:13:00.001-08:002012-12-10T20:13:44.606-08:00Romantic Comedy #6 - When Harry Met Sally (1989)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6CLT857Tk-c/UMay7gPQx6I/AAAAAAAAB_Y/tXgjMGNG_64/s1600/WhenHarryMetSallyPoster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6CLT857Tk-c/UMay7gPQx6I/AAAAAAAAB_Y/tXgjMGNG_64/s1600/WhenHarryMetSallyPoster.jpg" /></a><i>When Harry Met Sally</i> is perfect, and I will fight anyone who tries to argue otherwise. I love this movie. You could approach me at pretty much any time and I will be willing to watch <i>When Harry Met Sally</i> with you. That is a true story.<br />
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<i>When Harry Met Sally</i> is concerned with a specific question - Can men and women be friends? The answer it arrives at: No. They cannot. That, admittedly, is a little bit odd to me - It says very strange things about the nature of relationships - but I'm willing to overlook that oddity in the face of such overwhelming quality.<br />
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<i>When Harry Met Sally</i> has dialogue that sounds like things that real people might say. Harry and Sally's romance is based on actual interaction and qualities of each other that they enjoy, not some intangible feeling of magic. It's funny. It develops it's characters through their conversations and interactions with each other, but not through heavy-handed metaphors like the romance movie motif of <i>Sleepless in Seattle</i>. Billy Crystal is wonderful and charismatic, and Meg Ryan is relatable and real and oh it's just all so wonderful. There's just nothing <i>wrong </i>with this movie. I enjoy watching it, I don't feel like I have to sit through it. The characters feel like real people with believable flaws - Harry's cynical and thinks he's smarter than he is, Sally's structure allows her to push away her feelings. It's a story, and believable, and it's everything a romantic comedy should be. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-16794561010139655272012-11-06T12:03:00.003-08:002012-11-06T12:03:48.965-08:00Romantic Comedy #7 - Adam's Rib (1949)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lmRs1RbU8Tw/UJlstUwutQI/AAAAAAAAB_I/eiD18b1RJSg/s1600/Adamsrib.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lmRs1RbU8Tw/UJlstUwutQI/AAAAAAAAB_I/eiD18b1RJSg/s1600/Adamsrib.jpg" height="320" width="210" /></a><i>Adam's Rib</i> is frustrating to me. It's a Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn movie, so it should be fun. It should be charming. It should be funny. It is not. It's about women's rights and gender roles in marriages - They're a married couple of lawyers who take opposite sides of the same case - and it's not fun to watch. This movie is exhausting - I'm still not sure who they want us to agree with. Spencer Tracy is right about the law, but Katherine Hepburn is just doing her job as a lawyer. Of <i>course </i>she's going to try to win. I have a concerning suspicion that I disagree with the conclusions that this movie makes, which is never a good time. <br />
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It's not even funny, either. I don't remember any specific jokes from it at all. It was just this boring gray movie about an argument that I didn't want to see a movie about. This movie has not aged well for me: The issue is whether or not women should be treated equally under the law - they actually debate this - and whether the "Unwritten Rule," about being able to kill your spouse's lover, is just. These are not compelling issues for me here in 2012. The answers are yes and no. There, I solved it. I did not need to devote 90 minutes to that. <i>And</i>, on top of all this, the poster is the November page of my calender right now. Thanks calender, mock me why don't you?<br />
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Cool fact about it, though: The woman who wrote the script played Maude in<i> Harold and Maude</i>. So there's that I guess. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-19896221465639291792012-11-06T11:16:00.001-08:002012-11-06T11:16:23.928-08:00Romantic Comedy #8 - Moonstruck (1987)<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OIC8XZQRUnI/UJlh_SlUP8I/AAAAAAAAB-4/-FF9cz6PmjY/s1600/moonstruck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OIC8XZQRUnI/UJlh_SlUP8I/AAAAAAAAB-4/-FF9cz6PmjY/s1600/moonstruck.jpg" /></a><i>Moonstruck </i>is, so far, the surprise hit of the genre. I really didn't think I was going to like it for whatever reason, and I was all prepared for a disappointment, but in the end it was really enjoyable.<br />
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If there's one thing that'll ruin a romance for me, it's soppiness, and things like <i>Sleepless and Seattle</i> are soppy. <i>Moonstruck </i>isn't soppy. It still discusses love and magic, there's a big moon motif and a man who roams the streets of New York with five dogs, and it has a soundtrack of classic Italian music. It should feel silly and schmaltzy, but it <i>doesn't</i>. It feels very unembellished and real, and sweet.<br />
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The best thing about this movie to me is probably the women in it. They're played by Cher and Olympia Dukakis, and they're so matter-of-fact and practical, but they also care about romance. It's just wonderful, I loved it so much. Nicholas Cage is there too, and he's...crazy, mostly, but that works out just fine. <br />
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This is just my kind of romantic comedy. It's still romantic, but in a very practical way. It's been my favorite movie in the genre so far. <br />
Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-40695331912254197322012-11-05T12:56:00.002-08:002012-11-05T12:56:40.094-08:00Romantic Comedy #9 - Harold and Maude (1971)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W6drua_kLCs/UJgn_DIEaNI/AAAAAAAAB-o/Fm83FTPcasE/s1600/harold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W6drua_kLCs/UJgn_DIEaNI/AAAAAAAAB-o/Fm83FTPcasE/s1600/harold.jpg" /></a>If there's one thing I can say for the 70's, it's this: Their dramas are as boring as paint, but they do churn out some pretty good dry comedies. And if there's one thing that I'm pretty sure I like, it's a dry comedy.<br />
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Pretty sure is, of course, the key phrase here. I'm just not totally certain about how I feel about this movie. There are lots of things that I love about it, and a lot of things I could do without. It comes down to this - I love the Harold parts, and am a little shaky about the Maude parts.<br />
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Harold is great. It's quirky and dark and stylized. Bud Cort is built like a Tim Burton character - I'm obsessed with how long his legs are. I love his mother's reaction and all of his dates. All of the sections with Harold are great dry comedy, and I really like them because I love the mood and the visuals and the cars.<br />
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The Maude parts are just too late sixties to me. They're all spiritual and flowery and against the man. There's just one to many montages of them driving through fields for me. It's boring and sugary in a hippie way. I do not like Maude.<br />
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Ultimately, though, I like this movie. The romance is interesting, and I like the dark quirkiness of it. It's just that to me it's a little too hippie-esque. I don't need to see anyone rage against the man. That's silly. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-46412351957340347102012-10-05T18:13:00.000-07:002012-10-05T18:13:13.709-07:00Romantic Comedy #10 - Sleepless in Seattle (1993)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3yMRcbNO0sY/UG-Fnw0egTI/AAAAAAAAB-U/_aYzGZ8hK_M/s1600/sleep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3yMRcbNO0sY/UG-Fnw0egTI/AAAAAAAAB-U/_aYzGZ8hK_M/s1600/sleep.jpg" /></a><i>Sleepless in Seattle</i> is a strange movie to me. Maybe it's just that I don't get it? It's just not a romance - They don't even meet until the end! (Spoilers) I appreciate that it's an unconventional romance, and that's nice, but it just seems really shallow to me with out them ever meeting. It's not really a romance you can actually root for - there's no way I can ship Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks in this movie because I don't know how they interact.<br />
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There are other things that do work about this movie for me - I like Meg Ryan <i>and </i>Tom Hanks. I like the discussion about the nature of romantic comedies, and it's nice that they put Cary Grant in the movie. I did like the climax at the Empire State building. I didn't like the kid at all.<br />
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I actually thought Walter was not that bad a romantic option - It's not his fault he has allergies and a mild manner. I'm told this is a generational thing. The whole movie is actually sort of oddly dated. The discussions about the differences between men and women was pretty unrelatable to me - what they expected of men isn't at all what I would expect today.<br />
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So much of this movie is about "magic" and "sparks" and it's just doesn't have a theme that I enjoy or find interesting to explore. It seems very...silly. Also, Meg Ryan is totally a stalker in this movie. That's not love. That's obsession.<br />
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Sleepless and Seattle is the only movie in this genre that I was sort of worried about, and it turned out to be not that spectacular after all. Terrible? No, but "it's not <i>terrible</i>" isn't really a compliment. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-60296535397829751572012-09-08T16:19:00.000-07:002012-09-08T16:19:30.648-07:00Genre #8 - Romantic ComediesI have to admit that at this point I'm a little disappointed with the American Film Institute. I was not very impressed with the Western genre. There were some really awful movies tucked away in there, and that really upsets me, especially since there are so many notable Westerns they didn't include. In fact, if you had asked me to name a Western before this, I don't think I would have said a single one of these. I would have said <i>True Grit</i>. <i>The Good the Bad and the Ugly</i>.<i> How the West was Won</i>. <i>Once Upon a Time in the West</i>. <i>A Fist Full of Dollars</i>. I certainly never would have said<i> McCabe and Mrs. Miller</i>, and really still wouldn't. I was very disappointed that I didn't get to watch a single Spaghetti Western, especially after having seen Clint Eastwood's performance in <i>Unforgiven</i>. It's an important genre that they seemed to have entirely skipped. Shame.<br />
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I have higher hopes for the Romantic Comedies though - It seems like a good mix and I get to watch a Charlie Chaplin movie. I always did like a good Romantic Comedy, so this should be a good time. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-78336468931937535632012-09-06T14:39:00.000-07:002012-09-06T14:39:02.353-07:00Genre #7 - Westerns (A Debriefing)The American film Institute's list goes like this: #10 - <i>Cat Ballou</i>, #9 - <i>Stagecoach</i>, #8 -<i> McCabe and Mrs. Miller</i>, #7 - <i>Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid</i>, #6 - <i>The Wild Bunch</i>, #5 - <i>Red River</i>, #4 -<i>Unforgiven</i>, #3 - <i>Shane</i>, #2 - <i>High Noon</i>, #1 - <i>The Searchers</i>. <br />
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Here's my list:<br />
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#10 - <i>McCabe and Mrs. Miller </i>(1969) - My goodness was this movie painful. I literally fast forwarded through parts and didn't miss a thing because they were just shots of people walking to places. There was nothing that made an extended action interesting or engaging. This is one of the least entertaining movies I've ever seen. <br />
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#9 - <i>The Wild Bunch</i> (1969) - This is just a hair better than<i> McCabe and Mrs. Miller</i>. I barely remember it, it was a chore to get through and <i>also </i>about the darkness within. Note: They're made in the same year.<br />
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#8 - <i>Shane </i>(1953) - <i>Shane </i>wasn't filmed well and the acting wasn't any good and just dragged on and on. I really didn't notice anything in it that made it stand out as good to me. The only great thing that came out of it is an imitation of the whiny kid in it. "<i>Shane</i>..."<br />
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#7 - <i>High Noon</i> (1952) - I like the Cold War allegory and the fact that this movie is in real time, but the climax totally ruins it for me. There's all this build up and then a sudden, practically unopposed shooting. I was extremely unsatisfied with the end. It should be noted that I very well could be totally missing teh point and that the anticlimax was totally intentional.<br />
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#6 - <i>Red River</i> (1948) - I like the tragic figure that John Wayne plays here and I like the story and the shots of cattle, but I can't stand the shoehorned-in romance, even though I get that Matt is breaking the cycle of moral decay by not making the same mistakes his father did. <br />
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#5 - <i>Cat Ballou</i> (1965) - Technically <i>Red River </i>is probably a better movie than <i>Cat Ballou,</i> but <i>Cat </i>is just so fantastic. I think this movie is funny and charming and very 60's. I like Jane Fonda in it, since I missed that period where she was awful, and Lee Marvin is amazing. The best part of this movie is the great chorus - They're what pushes it over the edge into memorable. And I can't get their song out of my head.<br />
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#4 - <i>Stagecoach </i>(1939) - I really like a character piece, and this is a great one. Everyone's wonderfully developed or at least entertaining. John Wayne is charming and I like that this movie states that redemption is possible, instead of futile. I like this surprisingly current-sounding speech from the banker: <br />
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"I don't know what the government is coming to. Instead of protecting businessmen, it pokes its nose into business...I have a slogan that should be blazoned on every newspaper in this
country: America for the Americans! The government must not interfere
with business! Reduce taxes! Our national debt is something shocking.
Over one billion dollars a year! What this country needs is a
businessman for president"<br />
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This was written in <i>1939</i>. Some things never change, huh?<br />
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#3 - <i>Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid</i> (1969) - This was a wonderful, wonderful movie. Robert Redford and Paul Newman are charming and it's funny and I liked watching every minute of it. The guy who plays Lurch is in this movie - As in, from <i>The Addams Family</i>. You can't beat that. I really like the tone of this movie and I liked the jokes and the storyline, even though it does get "Raindrops are Falling on My Head" stuck in my head.<br />
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#2 - <i>The Searchers </i>(1956) - I really like the secondary characters in this movie, and there are a lot of very strong comedic parts, believe it or not. I also liked John Wayne in it, the cinematography, and the scenery. I thought the Indians and the Mexicans in it were silly though, and it had a little too much melodrama in it acting-wise for it to be really believable at all.<br />
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#1 - <i>Unforgiven </i>(1992) - This movie is<i> all kinds</i> of awesome. The acting's great, every single one of the characters is compelling and entertaining, the story's all amazing, and Morgan Freeman is in it. And that's <i>awesome</i>. This movie makes me want to watch ever single Spaghetti Western ever. If someone asked me if I wanted to watch Unforgiven right now I would absolutely say yes, and that is a sign of a good movie. <br />
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<br />Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-49839364687421050742012-09-05T13:24:00.002-07:002012-09-05T13:24:47.093-07:00Western #1 - The Searcher (1956)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IY-YwK0eaCc/UEe09g_vqTI/AAAAAAAAB98/YgPQeZdVVSk/s1600/189500.1020.A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IY-YwK0eaCc/UEe09g_vqTI/AAAAAAAAB98/YgPQeZdVVSk/s320/189500.1020.A.jpg" width="222" /></a><i>The Searchers</i> is another John Wayne movie, I had it from a very good source that it was awful. It turns out that after all those years it's not, really. It's a fun, engaging movie. It's apparently often considered one of the best movies ever made though, and I don't see <i>that</i>. It's about racism, the darkness within (this seems to be a very common Western motif) and Monument Valley, and while I do think it's a strong movie, I don't find anything about it stunning of anything.<br />
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There are a couple of things that bother me about this movie: First, even though it's about how racism is bad, it has <i>the </i>most ridiculous portrayals of Mexicans and Native Americans in the entire list. It's <i>not even the oldest</i>. All of the Mexicans wear sombreros all the time, and the main Native American is played by a German guy. It's awful.<br />
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Second, the tone of this movie is very confusing to me. It really suffers from mood whiplash in a bad way to me. There's so much silly content in this movie that makes the serious stuff seem kind of strange. Honestly I think most of the silliness is stronger than the seriousness. Maybe it's because I didn't connect with John Wayne enough, but silly characters like Laurie and Charlie were some of the best parts of the movie. This actually isn't bad, because silliness has just as much merit as anything else, but it isn't what other people remember about the movie, which is strange to me.<br />
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And lastly, Scar is a really stupid name for your villain. When I hear Scar I think this:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lgouVZ6VtLs/UEeyS8c1YrI/AAAAAAAAB9o/gRvZ3jhUBWg/s1600/Scar%281%29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lgouVZ6VtLs/UEeyS8c1YrI/AAAAAAAAB9o/gRvZ3jhUBWg/s200/Scar%281%29.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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I know it's not <i>The Searchers'</i> fault they named a lion that, but my point is that Scar is a very cartoony villain name. <br />
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I do really like this movie though. John Wayne is great, there are a lot of characters I really like - Laurie, Martin, Laurie's dad, Charlie, the list goes on. The characters are really an extremely strong point in this movie. I like the plot with Debbie and her assimilation, and I like the shot of the desert through the door. It's interesting to me that three movies in this genre, <i>The Searchers</i>, <i>Unforgiven </i>and <i>Shane</i>, make the point that violent, dark men can't be a part of regular society with everyone else, even if they try to reform. Actually, <i>Butch Cassidy</i> sort of has that too. Notably, Red River has the opposite message, for reform. Interesting. <br />
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My favorite part of this movie is the clip they play in The Great Movie Ride in Disney World - "No you don't Ethan! ETHAN, NO YOU DON'T!" It's great. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-50329336906796296332012-09-02T07:42:00.004-07:002012-09-02T07:42:38.429-07:00Western #2 - High Noon (1952)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ckGudHUwog/UENwUoJSZXI/AAAAAAAAB9Q/pBJueegu7EA/s1600/l_100270_0044706_8553bce1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ckGudHUwog/UENwUoJSZXI/AAAAAAAAB9Q/pBJueegu7EA/s320/l_100270_0044706_8553bce1.jpg" width="171" /></a>I was extremely disappointed with <i>High Noon</i>. You see, it's at twelve o'clock the train rolls in, and today outlaw Frank Miller is on it, and he's got a beef with Marshal Will Kane. I thought this was the movie with the big standoff at either end of the street with the music that goes "AEEEIIIIEEEAAA WOWWOWWOW." But it isn't that's <i>The Good the Bad and the Ugly</i>, as it turns out. In this movie Will sneaks up behind Frank and shots him. See that thing on the poster? That never happens. Think about that - the whole movie, through all that buildup, I was expecting a real standoff, and I get <i>that</i>. It was extremely disappointing.<br />
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There are several good things about this movie. It's in real time, which is cool. Scarlett O'Hara's dad is in it, also cool. It's about the Cold War (crazy, right? Have you noticed that almost every single serious movie made from the 40's to the 70's is about the Cold War?). Specifically, it's about how everyone just abandoned the people who were being examined by the House of Un-American Activities Commitee. Which is also cool.<br />
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But what gets to me is how anticlimactic the ends is. There's this huge amount of suspense and buildup and then not even a real showdown? No real confrontation? Nothing exciting? It's very, very disappointing. It ruined the whole movie for me. Makes the whole thing seem kind of pointless. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-36512357625646913332012-08-30T07:38:00.002-07:002012-08-30T07:38:49.528-07:00Western #3 - Shane (1953)<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-61UAgnE2keI/UD965Kb7FHI/AAAAAAAAB88/9N2S-j-K2u0/s1600/SHANE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-61UAgnE2keI/UD965Kb7FHI/AAAAAAAAB88/9N2S-j-K2u0/s320/SHANE.jpg" width="243" /></a><i>Shane </i>is a strange movie to me. It's not very well acted - just about everyone sounds like they're reding lines in an attempt to memorize them, rather than express human emotion. It definitely wasn't well-filmed, the camera was just pointed at the action and the technicolor did it no favors. And yet, there is apparently an actual complex story hidden under all this mediocre execution. People love this movie. People study this story - This story has Sparknotes, people. Clearly someone sees some quality in it.<br />
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<i>Shane </i>is about the commitment and devotion of the average American farmer, of the Homesteaders, and the violence that surrounds them and infects them. Shane represents the dark violence of the West and is cursed to drift forever because of his bloody past. He can't repent or settle down, because the guns have to leave the valley if anyone is going top live. It is very difficult to find that meaning in the film. The overall lack of quality in the execution of this movie is hard to get over. It is not well done. You may cite a difference in the style of the filming at the time, but I present to you such evidence as even<i> Gentlemen Prefer Blondes</i>, made in the same year. This silly Marylin Monroe vehicle provides much better cinematography and miles better acting. Actual art went into that movie. <i>Shane </i>has no excuse.<br />
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This is one of those movies that makes me think, "The book must be great." The stories a fine one, but the film does not do it justice for me. And why did nobody notice that the kid was cross-eyed during casting? Really.Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-86480564740691627342012-08-30T07:37:00.002-07:002012-08-30T07:37:47.246-07:00Western #4 - Unforgiven (1992)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Q9SJ2MCrZk/UD96rZfgxAI/AAAAAAAAB80/5qE6df0xoFw/s1600/rus20.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Q9SJ2MCrZk/UD96rZfgxAI/AAAAAAAAB80/5qE6df0xoFw/s320/rus20.jpg" width="217" /></a><i>Unforgiven </i>is another Western deconstruction, staring Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman. It's about how the bloodshed caused by gunslingers, and by extension all bloodshed and violence, can't be made up for or forgotten. Will Munny is a retired hired gun, but when he goes in for one last job he proves that he is, in fact, unforgiven for his previous life. See? Makes sense. Interestingly, <i>Shane </i>has the same themes, but <i>Shane</i> is terrible and <i>Unforgiven </i>is not. <i>Unforgiven </i>is great. Morgan Freeman's in it and everything - There's not much more you can ask for.<br />
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<i>Unforgiven </i>really is probably the best movie I've seen so far in the Westerns. It knew what it was trying to say and it said it, all the characters were nuanced and watchable, the was <i>some </i>humor, which I like, and the cinematography was great and it wasn't boring. This movie is nearly three hours long but it didn't seem like it at all. It just zipped by.<br />
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I liked when the writer would introduce himself and people would say, "What, of letters and such?" That's great, I'll say that all the time. <br />
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The funny thing about this movie is that nobody's wrong - Or rather, everybody's wrong. We're not really on anybody's side is the point. You sort of root for everyone, even they're opposing each other. Part of the point of the movie that nobody's justified and that violence and justice are complicated things with two sides, and that Westerns and the culture that embraces Westerns forget that.<br />
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Also, the poster is really, really cool. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-35180533052437899732012-08-30T07:19:00.003-07:002012-08-30T07:20:50.288-07:00Western #7 - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Xp4kFe0geTk/UD92ujgloqI/AAAAAAAAB8g/rfrcMjhUTOc/s1600/144168.1020.A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Xp4kFe0geTk/UD92ujgloqI/AAAAAAAAB8g/rfrcMjhUTOc/s320/144168.1020.A.jpg" width="214" /></a>This movie was not what I was expecting. It's written William Goldman, the same guy who wrote <i>The Princess Bride</i>, and that's really the best thing I have to compare it to. They both sort of have a similar tone, although<i> Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid</i> leans more toward the serious, especially toward the end. Paul Newman and Robert Redford are famous bandits and their just so charsmatic and humorous that everyone likes them anyway. They reach the end of the line, however, when a railroad owner hires a posse to kill them. They flee to Bolivia and continue to rob banks there.<br />
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I really liked this. I thought it was funny, it was pleasant to watch, it wasn't mind-numbingly boring. (Yay!) It was actually hilarious, really. It lost me a little bit in the second half, which contained a few too many silent montages for my taste, but overall it was one of the best movies in the genre. I know that Robert Redford likes it - He named a film festival after his character in it. I am assured that I now need to see <i>The Sting</i>. <br />
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Interestingly, this movie is where "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" comes from. You know, the song. If you're wondering how that song fits into a Western: It doesn't. It's a very strange scene. There's a bike. This is also the movie with the shot of two guys jumping off a cliff in it. You would recognize it, trust me.<br />
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Not very many of the Westerns on the list are just straight Westerns. Many a deconstructions, and two, including this one, are comedies. That says something about Westerns, doesn't it? Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-90164135073550374342012-08-27T10:43:00.001-07:002012-08-30T07:19:57.828-07:00Western #5 - Red River (1948)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M5Hr23tb4o8/UDu5rf-PDiI/AAAAAAAAB8Q/ZB4vSoqFg_s/s1600/143780.1020.A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-M5Hr23tb4o8/UDu5rf-PDiI/AAAAAAAAB8Q/ZB4vSoqFg_s/s320/143780.1020.A.jpg" width="212" /></a>Red River is a John Wayne movie about a cattle drive and it wasn't terrible, actually. I kind of liked it. John Wayne plays this tragic hero-type character and Montgomery Clift is his adopted son, and there's some themes about loyalty and making the same mistakes generation after generation and that sort of thing. It is a western and a half it is. Lot's of choir in the background and completely unnecessary narration. It's not actually narration, though - they've written it down, and just filmed the text. I did not care for it. It was the only thing that struck me as, you know, stupid, so I thought the film stood up well. <br />
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So far I'm liking John Wayne. He was charming in Stagecoach, and here he played a very complex, largely unsympathetic character. I'm impressed.<br />
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Most of the cast of the movie was good, actually. There were characters I could tell apart and liked and there were cowboys who flirted with each other (This is apparently a common motif). It was great.<br />
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There was also a cattle stampede, and since the movie was made in 48,m I suspect they filmed it by provoking an actual heard of cattle to actually stampede. For <i>art</i>. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-37298129008662770102012-08-27T10:22:00.000-07:002012-08-30T07:19:50.652-07:00Western #6 - The Wild Bunch (1969)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r2zevBGzsK0/UDusrDfq8_I/AAAAAAAAB8A/Jl32ElrMjUI/s1600/144170.1020.A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r2zevBGzsK0/UDusrDfq8_I/AAAAAAAAB8A/Jl32ElrMjUI/s320/144170.1020.A.jpg" width="209" /></a></div>
I know a lot of this genre has included complaining about 70's film making techniques, but there seems to have been a neo-western movement then, so it is inevitable. If someone tells you that they really like films from the 70's, do not be friends with them, because they are boring. <i>The Wild Bunch</i> is technically from the 60's, but all the hallmarks from the next decade are already showing up. It was long, and quiet, and contained a lot of untranslated Spanish (Surprisingly common in Westerns.)<br />
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I don't remember much about <i>The Wild Bunch</i>, and I only watched it a few days ago, so that's not good. I know it was about a gang of outlaws and how inherently corrupt the world is. The ending actually wasn't that bad - The Wild Bunch all got together to fight the evil of the world in one last daring rescue mission. Of course it's futile and they die, but it was sort of rousing. <br />
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William Holden was in it, which was funny because I only know him as the other guy from <i>Sabrina</i>. So there's that. <br />
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I also have never seen an exciting train robbery. Not once. Not in <i>Firefly</i>, not in <i>Cat Ballou</i>, not in <i>The Wild Bunch</i>. It always goes too smoothly. Very frustrating. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-38760810109663666712012-08-21T13:01:00.001-07:002012-08-21T13:01:57.478-07:00Western #8 - McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971)<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iHLrpYyKK_M/UDPpLF3FzJI/AAAAAAAAB7w/OqESSA9cPCo/s1600/220px-Mccabe_and_mrs_miller.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iHLrpYyKK_M/UDPpLF3FzJI/AAAAAAAAB7w/OqESSA9cPCo/s1600/220px-Mccabe_and_mrs_miller.jpg" /></a>I could live a thousand years and still not understand the 70's fascination with filming everything in real time. It baffles me. What do we gain by watching that man walk from is car through the street and into the building. Nothing. We gain nothing. We don't learn anything about him or his quest or his character. It doesn't help the movie at all, ever. Not even in <i>2001: A Space Odyssey</i>. I will stand by that opinion. That movie is too long. <br />
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But it's all over the seventies. All over it, I say. Who started this? Was it Andy Warhol? It was, wasn't it? Why were people okay with this? Why are they still okay with it? People all over the Internet talk about these movies and they say "Oh, he's such an unusual and exciting character," and "Oh, it subverts typical Western tropes," and here I am and I can sort of remember that happening in the movie, but I didn't connect with it emotionally at all. I don't see how people do at all.<br />
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I say that the seventies aren't exactly a golden age of cinema. If someone wants you to watch s movie made in the seventies and it isn't <i>Star Wars</i>, say no. You won't regret it, honestly.<br />
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The point is, <i>McCabe and Mrs. Miller</i> is about a crook and a madam who start a brothel and then...Die? I don't know. It sounds exciting, or at least interesting, but it's not. It's a long, slow, boring look at northern California, and this same 70's folk song plays through literally through the whole movie. It's awful. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-23383843811900442382012-08-21T08:35:00.003-07:002012-08-21T11:16:40.859-07:00Western #9 - Stagecoach (1939)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fOPJERtc5Y4/UDPQZYVg9lI/AAAAAAAAB7g/nufzrv-W5jY/s1600/Poster+-+Stagecoach+%281939%29_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fOPJERtc5Y4/UDPQZYVg9lI/AAAAAAAAB7g/nufzrv-W5jY/s320/Poster+-+Stagecoach+%281939%29_01.jpg" width="213" /></a><i>Stagecoach</i>, as it turns out, is exactly the type of movie I like. It's a very character driven, ensemble cast-style film, and that's my favorite type of story. I'm not big on the plot driven stories, hence my dislike of hard science fiction and mysteries, and I usually enjoy dialogue driven stuff, like a sixties comedy or an Aaron Sorkin work, but the character stuff is my favorite, which is why I like detective stories and <i>The Avengers</i>.<br />
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The plot of <i>Stagecoach </i>really just doesn't matter - It's about a group of people, traveling by stagecoach, moving through a dangerous part of the West. They have to move through Indian territory (It seems silly to refer to them as Native Americans if they're just going to be portrayed like <i>that</i>) and will probably die. The cast consists of the stagecoach driver, a Marshal for protection, an alcoholic doctor, a corrupt Republican banker, a Confederate Army veteran, a pregnant officer's wife, a "Soiled Dove," a whisky salesman, and an outlaw - That's John Wayne.<br />
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It's great. The whole story is about how the other characters relate to each other and what they learn and all the characters are great and interesting. I was actually sad when I thought one of them was dead and everything. This is John Wayne's first major movie role ever, and the first time I've seen him in everything, and I was impressed. I thought he was charming. <br />
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I really liked this movie, which is no surprise because it's the sort of movie I would normally like. I would absolutely watch it again if given the chance. Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-64777966860906332962012-08-09T11:05:00.002-07:002012-08-09T11:05:55.233-07:00Western #10 - Cat Ballou (1965)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0rQBkUCvrFE/UCP79gU6uWI/AAAAAAAAB7Q/eLWSYFApEAs/s1600/poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0rQBkUCvrFE/UCP79gU6uWI/AAAAAAAAB7Q/eLWSYFApEAs/s320/poster.jpg" width="208" /></a>I have never heard of <i>Cat Ballou</i> before, and I frankly think that's a terrible crime. It isn't actually a straight western - it's a parody. It's sort of like <i>Blazing Saddles</i> a little bit, except not really. It's got Jane Fonda and Lee Martin in it and it's awesome. I really can't believe that this isn't a cult classic. I feel like people everywhere should have been telling me to watch <i>Cat Ballou</i> from the very beginning. I'm mystified by this movie's relative obscurity. <br />
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Jane Fonda plays an outlaw, since her father got killed because he wouldn't give up his land and Lee Martin is a drunken washed-up gunslinger. They also have a gang including a farm hand, a sex maniac, and an uncle. And the best horse actor in history. It all comes together very well for me. Largely, it's very funny.<br />
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Probably the most memorable part of this movie is the Greek Chorus, played by Nat "King" Cole and Stubby Kay. They stand around and play banjos and sing directly into the camera about what's going on. It's awesome. I admittedly first saw this referenced on an episode of <i>Hannah Montana</i>, and had no idea what it was supposed to be at the time, but now it's obvious. They really make the movie for me, actually. Something about their presence makes the movie rise up from its 60's-style slapstick and be remembered. <br />
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<br />Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-49036260050390135062012-07-19T20:05:00.002-07:002012-07-19T20:05:42.015-07:00Genre #7 - WesternsI don't think I've ever seen a single Western in my life - I'm kind of looking forward to it. There should be horses, and smoking, and hats and guns. There better be, darn it. I'll be extremely disappointed, obviously.Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6460682758028154123.post-42957070414289938152012-07-19T20:02:00.002-07:002012-07-19T20:02:11.004-07:00Genre #6 - Courtroom Dramas - A DebriefingHere's the order The American Film Institute puts the movies in: #10 - <i>Judgements at Nuremberg</i>, #9 - <i>A Cry in the Dark</i>, #8 - <i>In Cold Blood</i>, #7 - <i>Anatomy of a Murder</i>, #6 - <i>Witness for the Prosecution</i>, #5 - <i>A Few Good Men</i>, #4 - <i>The Verdict</i>, #3 - <i>Kramer Vs Kramer</i>, #2 - <i>12 Angry Men</i>, and #1 - <i>To Kill a Mockingbird. </i><br />
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Here's My Order:<br />
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#10 -<i> The Verdict </i>(1982) - I can't think of anything good about this movie. It was boring, the way it was filmed was alienating, I don't remember it at all. Surprisingly, not from the 70's. <br />
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#9 - <i>A Cry in the Dark</i> (1988) - All the flaws of <i>The Verdict</i>, but at least it has the delivery of "A dingo ate my baby."<br />
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#8 - <i>Judgement at Nuremberg </i>(1961) - It didn't really stick with me very much, and it lags in bits, but it did raise a lot of valid ethical questions, and that makes for a good movie. <br />
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#7 - <i>Witness for the Prosecution</i> (1958) - I was very entertained by this movie. I liked the lack of romance, the old British protagonist the very Christie plot, the humorous banter. It was a fun movie to watch. <br />
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#6 - <i>Anatomy of a Murder</i> (1959) - I really like Jimmy Stewart,l I love the Michigan setting, and the story is great. You're legitimately not certain what's true or not. My favorite part of this movie is the soundtrack - It's the first mainstream movie not about jazz to have an all-jazz score. I wonder if it's because it's set in Michigan?<br />
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#5 - <i>In Cold Blood</i> (1967) - I've read the book and I love Truman Capote's prose style, and I really like the very 60's aesthetic of the movie - It's like murderous, poverty-stricken <i>Mad Men</i>. This is a great character study of the murderers, and it was actually filmed in the house were the murders toke place in reality, which seems in poor taste to me, but whatever.<br />
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#4 - <i>A Few Good Men</i> (1992) - Great cast, really really great script, and probably my favorite film on the list, if not necessarily the best. I would watch this movie over and over again. <br />
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#3 -<i> Kramer Vs Kramer </i>(1979) - Despite being made in the 70's, this is stiff competition for <i>A Few Good Men</i> as my favorite, probably mostly because of Dustin Hoffman. I really like the message and the actual film itself, even though Meryl Streep is super creepy in it.<br />
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#2 -<i> 12 Angry Men</i> (1957) - I like how stylized this movie is, and it's got all these great characters (Twelve, actually) that you remember for a long time, and the guy who plays Piglet is in it (He's also a poker buddy of the Odd Couple, fun fact), and it's against prejudice, which is great because I'm against prejudice. <br />
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#1 - <i>To Kill a Mockingbird</i> (1963) - It's just an American classic, you know? Atticus Finch is who we all look up to, or should look up to, and it's still also about growing up and childhood, and prejudice and empathy. It packs a lot in there, but it doesn't feel forced. The kids in it are great, and it has Gregory Peck. Which is great.Abby Zhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01244490344266954418noreply@blogger.com0