Danny isn’t here, Mrs. Torrance.
Like most of Kubrick’s films, The Shining is a masterpiece. The film is classic Kubrick – wide symetrical shots, vivid colors, contorted faces of our main characters – and I could watch it over and over again.
It is not very true to the original story but it is terrifying nonetheless. It is the story of Jack Torrence, a failed writer who takes a job as the winter caretaker at the Overlook Hotel in order to focus on his writing. The book portrays a likable buy who is driven mad by the demons haunt the empty halls at the hotel. The movie, on the other hand, tells a story of a different man. Movie Jack is very unlikable from the beginning and appears to be at least half way to insane from the beginning. Jack Nicholson’s portrayal of this unlikable guy – that’s a stretch, huh? – is brilliant.
Shelley Duvall is wildly believable in her role. She does her best to be a sweet supportive wife to this nutcase though he frequently hurls insults and profanity at her. Meanwhile, their son Danny rides his big wheel around the hotel, chats with his imaginary friend Tony, and sees visions of death and destruction. Now that I think about it, the whole family is nuts before they head off on this “adventure.”
Danny’s big wheel rides provide some of the best shots in the film. Kubrick’s use of sound, parallel lines, and movement in these scenes is stunning. They also are a classic example of a technique he uses all the time – long shots from the character’s point of view. Another classic example of this is the chase scene near the end of the film.
The only shots that rival the riding scenes are those of Danny’s and Jack’s visions (if that is what they are). The two creepy little girls, the room filling with blood, and the ball room scenes are tremendous. And, of course, like every other Kubrick film we have a shot in the bathroom – and this one is about as freaky as they come.
I’m sure you’ve seen it – see it again.
P.S. This last viewing was with my son who had not yet seen it. I did not realize at the time that the HD version had been extended. I wish we’d seen the original first. I didn’t see anything wrong with the new scenes (and I’ve seen them before but didn’t realize the difference in versions until this time) but I’d like Billy to have seen the original first.
I’ll get paid for killing, and this town is full of people who deserve to die.
March 23, 2010 marked the 100th anniversary of Akira Kurosawa – a brilliant filmmaker.
Let me say it simply, Kurosawa was my Master.
Martin Scorsese
Fortunately the ladies of the household were headed out on a shopping trip, so Billy and I treated ourselves to a double feature of Yojimbo and Sanjuro. Both of these films were new to us. Billy had not seen them only because he was waiting for a time to see them both together. Well, now we had our chance – on the birthday of a giant.
The films were brilliant, and I’m sure others can review them better than I. In addition to a brilliant film, I was intrigued by it’s place in movie history. The film is clearly inspired by American westerns yet it also had an influence on many films which would follow it. This is one of the earliest films to highlight the kind of main character we’ve grown accustomed to in American films – an amoral antihero who is driven mostly by his own concerns. Our “hero” is the kind of man we shouldn’t really care about at all. He is the kind of man who really does not deserve our respect or admiration, yet somehow we are on his side.
If you’ve not seen either of these films, do yourself a favor and check them out. As is my normal practice, I’ve linked to a Blu-ray on Amazon. I happened to notice in this case that the reviews of this version were not very good. I don’t think there is a better version available but if I learn of one, I’ll update the links.
This Is It
This was actually a much better movie than I expected. It turns out it was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. I enjoyed seeing Michael working in an environment in which he was very comfortable. He seemed like a genuine artist and an exceedingly decent human being.
Every Family Has A Secret
Last weekend we went for a showing of this film which included free lunch, free Coppola wine, and a Q&A with the director himself via Skype.
The film was fantastic and the Q&A was worth the entire afternoon.
Touch Not the Unclean Thing
I was trying to think of a movies I’ve seen that are related to the topic of peace. I thought of some of the obvious examples, like Ghandi, but the one I remember having a big impact on my thinking was Witness. It was released almost 25 years ago so those of you that haven’t seen it may not be planning on it, but I’m not going to spoil the ending for you because you should definitely watch it.
I saw this in college in a theater full of violence loving students and I’m afraid they mostly missed the point. With Harrison Ford as the lead, I’m assuming that most Americans missed the point too. Pay attention to the real message.
How Do Ya Like Them Apples?
Good Will Hunting is a story about men and their ambitions, dreams, and emotions. I first saw the film in late January 1998 and was mesmerized by the story. I don’t know that I’ve seen another film that so eloquently touches on these issues. The film tells this wonderful story in a way that is emotionally honest yet still masculine. It’s like a “chick-flick” for men. I can’t describe it any other way.
I cannot say enough about the story itself. Matt Damon wrote an early draft of the screenplay for a university assignment and decided to finish it in 1997 along with longtime friend and roommate Ben Affleck, in order to take charge of their faltering movie careers. I’d seen Damon and Affleck in other films but I didn’t think they were anything special. I couldn’t believe that these two kids could write a story with insight far beyond their years. I left the theater certain they had nailed an academy award for the screenplay. The decision to finish the screenplay proved to be a genius move. The film indeed earned them Oscars and catapulted both of them to stardom.
In addition to a great story, the film features at least six solid acting performance. In my opinion, great acting can turn an average story into a excellent movie (see A Few Good Men
). The difference here is that the acting takes what might have been an average movie with an excellent story and transforms it into a classic film. Robin Williams and Ben Affleck deliver the best performances in my opinion. Damon, who is present for almost all of the important scenes in the movie, handles fast paced dialog and emotionally charged scenes like a veteran. Skarsgård and Casey Affleck turn in a performances that are much better than average and one could argue that Minnie Driver saved the movie with her performance.
To top it all off, the film contains some brilliant dialogue. In one memorable scene, Damon delivers his lines with perfect timing as Will takes on an arrogant Harvard student in an intellectual standoff that reminds me of a superhero standing up to an adolescent nemesis. In another, Damon does the same while turning down a very lucrative job offer. In yet another, Damon and Robin Williams work together and pull off one of the film’s best scenes and a turning point in the story. There are many scenes just as brilliantly done – several more with Damon and Williams, but others featuring all five of the major characters.
Many have given credit for the success of the film to fantastic direction by Gus Van Sant. I’m not an expert on such things but I’m guessing he deserves much credit for the solid performances from virtually the entire cast and perhaps some massaging of what some have said was actually only an average screenplay. I haven’t read the screenplay but if Van Sant accomplished what some have given him sole credit for then this was a work of genius on his part. I’ve seen only four of his films and I loved them all. I’m not sure that makes him a great director but I wouldn’t hesitate to see another of his films.
Finally, I should point out a couple of things. First, the title of my post comes from one of my favorite lines from the movie. I won’t share my favorite line which comes much later in the story because it is much more powerful in context. It drives home what is, for me, the point of the film. There are many lessons to learn from the film and at least seven of the men portrayed, but the ending, while not a major twist, left me satisfied in a way that I didn’t anticipate.
Second, this film explores the life of a young man from South Boston and some of his buddies. As a result, it features some very crude humor and whole lot of very foul language. I could have lived without the crude humor and I prefer less foul language but I can live with it when it seems in context. If you can’t handle the language you may want to skip this movie but I assure you that you will be missing something very special.
Great Site: Flickchart.com
If you consider yourself a movie fan you must check out Flickchart.com, a new site that ranks movies based on head to head match-ups.
Flickchart presents you with two movie posters and you decide which movie you like most and click on the poster. If you haven’t seen one or both of the movies there are buttons to click for that too. Flickchart continues to present these match-ups for as long as you want to keep ranking. As you rank the movies Flickchart builds your list of top movies. The more you rank the better your list gets and the more your votes begin to count toward the global list.
It can be a wildly addictive yet frustrating experience. It was all fun and games for me until Groundhog Day hit my number one spot. Groundhog Day is a no-brainer for my top fifty and perhaps even my top twenty – but number one? I don’t think so. It sat there for a long time as I patiently ranked movies. Even more frustrating was the occupation of that spot by a movie I didn’t even enjoy very much – Saving Private Ryan. I understand it was an excellent film and that’s why it sat there for a while. Clearly I voted for it instead of the movies against which it was matched, but I can name a couple dozen films I’d rank higher if I were putting together a list myself.
I guess that is what makes the process so compelling. You rank movies one against another and try not to let the list itself influence your judgement. You need to trust the system. Does it work? I have no idea but we won’t know unless we try it, right? Try it without letting your pre-determined ideas of what should be top on the list cloud your judgement. It can be harder to do than you think.
The most frustrating part of the Flickchart experience, by a long shot, is dealing with some of the match-ups. I know these things are subjective but I’ll share some of the most frustrating match-ups I remember seeing. Please note that this is NOT a critique the ranking system at all. I’ve not had a chance to really look at the data and see how things work. I’m sure the system has flaws but that is not what this is about. What follows is just a fun look at my addiction.
The Godfather v. Thelma & Louise
In my opinion The Godfather is one of the best films of all time. Unfortunately, it is matched up against a movie which I loved but have not yet had a chance to rank. Without a doubt I click The Godfather but my problem is that after almost 1200 rankings I have a list of more than 500 movies. When I click on The Godfather, what happens to Thelma & Louise? Does it drop all the way to the bottom of my list? In this case it went right to the middle of the list. I haven’t paid enough attention to notice if new movies always drop to the middle. In any case new movies that come into the rotation late have to fight harder to get to the top. A reverse of the Groundhog Day problem really.
Being There v. Planet of the Apes (2001)
Being There is another one of my all-time favorites (and I haven’t rated it yet) but I’ve never seen this version of Apes. No big deal, right? Just ask for the next movie. Well, I know what invariably happens in these cases. I am going to get one of those match-ups which people fret about all the time – two great movies with no clear favorite. Sure enough it happens again. Now I get Man on the Moon. In the end I decided on Being There because this match-up is not quite as hard as some I’ve seen but I’ve also not yet ranked Man on the Moon so it will drop down to a spot from which it must fight its way up the list.
Spy Kids 3 v. Superman 3
Really? I have to choose between these two? Okay, I’m making this one up but I’ve seen match-ups almost as bad which escape my memory. As I write this, another Flickchart user posts this on Twitter:
I hate choosing between 2 awful movies on @flickchart more than 2 great ones. Today: Underworld vs Exorcist: The Beginning.
@brandonRohwer
Who wants to vote for a horrible movie? and what movie on my list will drop below the “winner?” Worse yet, will the losing movie drop in at the middle and outrank half my list? I certainly hope not.
The Godfather v. Dumb and Dumber
You know what I think of The Godfather. I have not seen Dumb and Dumber which makes this similar to Being There v. Apes but this is worse. There is absolutely zero chance that I would vote for Dumb and Dumber over The Godfather – zero. So what’s the big deal? Just ask for another movie right? The problem is that I can avoid the problem I mentioned in the Apes match-up – I could pretend I’ve seen the movie and be done with it without risking another Man on the Moon situation. The problem with this approach is twofold. One, I will continue to see Dumb and Dumber in my rankings which will put me in this situation again and again. Two, it’s cheating.
It is not all frustration though. The best way to avoid these frustrations is to rank more movies and hope the system works. Once in a while I will try to refine my list a bit by choosing to rank certain genres, years, or from among my top movies. Like I’ve already said, I have no idea if it works but I am having a whole lot of fun trying. Clicking on movie after movie has proven to be far more fun than I could have possibly imagined. If you don’t believe me check it out today. Flickchart is planning for launch on 09-09-09 but is in private beta right now. Visit Flickchart.com today and submit you email for an invite. While you are waiting you can watch the trailer, check out my profile, and enjoy some of the fun by following along on Twitter and FriendFeed.
Movie Review: Watchmen
On Thursday, I reviewed the special edition graphic novel which I loved.
The movie, on the other hand, was a real disappointment.
I couldn’t wait to see the movie. I’d actually only read the book to prepare for the film. After reading the book, I was curious to see how the screenplay would handle some of the more difficult parts of the book. One of the books characters lives outside of time as we know it and I thought that alone would be a problem. I was very disappointed to learn that the screenplay “handled” these things by simply using narration.
That was just one of the disappointing features. You’ve heard the rest from others probably. The movie is very self-indulgent. It has much more nudity than necessary (the book had plenty to make the points), and the ending was re-written. Even the special effects did not justify the price of admission to the big screen in my opinion.
If you’re a fan of the movie, you may want to pick up the Blu-ray or DVD. If you haven’t seen the movie, don’t bother with the theater. Spend your $10 on a better film.
Gran Torino
In a strange twist of circumstances, I ended up seeing this film twice. After the second viewing I am even more disappointed that Clint Eastwood was not nominated for acting (directing too probably). The academy nominated the same films for directing and best picture which I think is a lazy call to begin with, but that is not something I want to rant about now.
I fully expect the actor who wins the Oscar to mention this performance – it was brilliant. When Walt (Clint Eastwood’s character) said “I could blow your head off, and sleep like a baby,” I had no doubt about it. Make no mistake, Walt is as tough a character as Eastwood has every portrayed – perhaps the toughest – but there is more to Walt than tough and I believed that too.
I was worried at the beginning of the film. The exposition of Eastwood’s character came off as a bit forced to me at first. Once I made my way past that (and one apparent moment of out-of-character behavior), I enjoyed this movie very much. I even cried a little the second time through. I do cry more easily at movies than most men, but not usually the second time I’ve seen one. I still consider myself as masculine as any man. I’m actually a pretty tough guy, though not nearly as tough as Walt – I’m sure of that.
FeedFlix: Getting My Money’s Worth at Netflix
I’ve said this before – I love Netflix.
I first discovered Netflix via it’s affiliate program in 2000. I’d been using the Internet for years but I was just starting my online profit-making ventures. The thought of shelling out $24.99 per month to get movies in the mail was much too expensive for me compared to the system I’d used since 1982 but I loved the idea and apparently lots of others did too because the affiliate program was very profitable. Netflix actually helped me survive through several months when not much other income was coming in.
I finally subscribed myself when the price fell to $5.99 a month and my family loved the experience. We liked it so much we decided to set my son up with his own BlockBuster Online account so he could have his own queue and we were could drop movies off at the store and pick up a movie on a whim – something that was not possible on Netflix (until they released instant watching – don’t get me started on that, I love it!).
There was something dreadfully wrong with BB compared to Netflix, though. It came with that feeling that I was being exploited by a giant corporation that cared little about my experience. They insisted on tacking on $0.08 per month for the DE rental tax, they always insisted on identification though I’d frequented that location for four years, they changed the terms of the coupon program, the price went up etc. Meanwhile, Netflix sends me an email announcing a reduction in the rate to $4.99! So, we ditched BB and jacked up our membership at Netflix to 5 movies at a time.
Then we found out about the sub-queues and I read something about Netflix users blowing through 80+ movies per month and my son and I realized the potential for seeing some great movies. We thought we were getting our money’s worth but we knew we could do better. Like most users we’d hold on to a movie for longer than we should. So, we set up my son for two per month and my wife, daughter and I for one each.
A couple of weeks ago I discovered FeedFlix, a site that would let me check on my account to see if I was truly getting a good value. On my first check, it only gauged my queue and my cost per movie was $2.55. I asked about support for sub-queues and learned that they expected to have that in place soon. I did not hear back from them but my last check worked as I wanted. It recognized me as a five-per-month and my price per movie is now $1.98.
What I’d like to see now is the ability to check each queue separately. Now that I think about it I realize that may be what the FeedFlix team meant when they told me they were working on support for sub-queues. If so, we should expect it soon. If not, this is my official request to have that done. I’d like to see how my son does on his. I am going to guess less than $1 per. My wife and daughter will be much higher. Obviously, it’s just my overly curious geekiness – the important thing is the total cost for all five.
If you’d like to know if you are getting your money’s worth check it out. You can also find recommendations and learn some other interesting things about your use like the amount of time you hold DVDs on average.
Have fun!
Invincible
In trying to stay with this week’s Super Bowl theme I was going to post a review of Invincible earlier today. Then I was distracted by Google’s wild and wacky behavior.
So, now I am ready.
Invincible is the real-life story of Vince Papale, an out-of-work substitute teacher who is very much down on his luck, and his unlikely chance at a spot on the roster of the Philadelphia Eagles. We received the Blu-ray as a gift when we bought our TV and I looked forward to watching it because I remember the events depicted in the film. I was an Eagles fan for a couple of years at just this time (and am still a Dick Vermeil fan because of that).
Good writing and a great cast made this movie better than most sports movies. The story was as predictable as any of these stories are (even those not real-life), but I never found myself disappointed. I was especially pleased that it told another story – that of a man I still revere, a hero to the city I detest so much. 
Rhetoric & Rhythm
I’d have to say I agree that something is amiss here. I enjoy the non-mass-appeal movies myself, but there was a time when there were more mainstream movies represented. I think this started about the time of American Beauty. Since then movies have not only been of the more independent variety, many of them have dealt with topics that certainly don’t have mainstream appeal.
I tend to like movies like that but I think it is odd things have changed so much.
I haven’t eaten since later this afternoon
I love the idea of time travel and am fascinated by the paradoxes it may or may not cause. Primer is a movie that addresses these paradoxes head-on. It’s a must see movie for anyone who likes time travel. Hang on, it’s a wild ride.
Since the ladies are away for a few days, Billy and I decided to have some good sci-fi stuff around to watch. He already had Primer on hand and four eps of
The X Files
After watching it on Saturday, we found The 10-Step Method to Watch Primer and Really Understand It.
1. Watch the movie: if you get really confused – great, that’s part of it.
I’ll say we were confused! That’s what sent us looking online for explanations. Now we knew what to do next.
2. Watch the movie again: still confused? Good. You did step 2 so you can better understand step 3.
3. Look at this timeline chart: http://neuwanstein.fw.hu/primer_timeline.html
Read over it twice.
The comments point out four other timelines and we reviewed three of those (fourth no longer available) too. Billy prefers a more narrative understanding of the movie and preferred this one. I like the dates and times so I preferred this one, which is low on speculation and very succinct. The third is an interesting take loaded with speculation – fine with me.
Can’t move on to step four until we get a DVD copy again. We checked a local store and didn’t find it so I’ve ordered my copy. Amazon’s DFC is just a few miles from here so it’s actually posssilbe I will get it tomorrow (even though it’s Sunday), but we can wait a few days if we must.
I’m sure I will have more to say about this one another time.
Go, watch it! There is a “ten step” program for you if you need it.
Call Things by Their Right Name
Into the Wild is an intriguing look into the mostly unknown life of Christopher McCandless and Alexander Supertramp, the adventurer he becomes.
I am normally very suspicious of “true story” movies and this was no exception. There seems to be some controversy over the details in the film (and the book) because of the lack of material to support the story being told. Most of the controversy revolves around the later events in the film.
Controversy and “truthiness” aside, this was a wonderful film. Sean Penn takes a book that doesn’t seem to be the right kind of material for a film and masterfully pulls it off. I think I’m a lot like Christopher and Penn found a way to make me question his choices, while still pulling for him as my hero. For those of you who don’t necessarily understand dreamers, I think you will pull for Christopher too.
Music is all around us
All we have to do is listen.
August Rush is a modern fairy tale which I almost missed. I added it to my Netflix queue after hearing about it and quickly forgot about it. Later, I moved all the Blu-Ray movies to the top of my queue paying little attention paid to the movies. When this movie arrived I’d forgotten why I put in on my queue in the first place and the description didin’t do it justice – so I almost sent it back.
Wow, am I glad we decided to watch it as a family. What a wonderful story!
Music has always played an important role in my life and this film reminded me of that as well as the mystery of life’s connections. If you don’t understand how music has an impact on life, don’t see this movie. Everyone else – you should see this movie as soon as you can.
Fun but Not Funny
We watchedTwo Weeks Notice withSandra Bullockand Hugh Grantlast night. When I watch a romantic comedy (I admit — I usually enjoy them), I don’t really expect much comedy. The point is the love story, right? Of course there are exceptions to this rule, but in most cases my wife and I watch these movies together because we enjoy the predictable storylines and the ‘Awwwww’ moments sprinkled throughout.If you like your romantic comedies to be genuinely funny, this movie is not for you. If you are interested in a feel-good love story (predictability aside), you should see this film. Sandra Bullock’s character is the same combination of cute and neurotic that her fans have grown to love, and Hugh Grant provides the little bit of comedy you will discover in this movie.
America Loves a Longshot
We’ve just finished watchingSeabiscuit.Exceptional acting, breathtaking scenery and an inspirational story. How could one go wrong. To be honest, I was very leary of even trying this movie. Normally, these cliche ‘underdog wins’ movies don’t sit well with me. I’m also not a big fan of sports movies. As a huge sports fan I feel like most movies don’t do justice to the ‘real thing.’ Many reviewers promised that since the film was based on a true story it would not seem as sappy or predictable. Of course, I am always suspicious of the based on a true story tag anyway. In the end the movie did not disappoint. The first hour seemed a little slow, and frankly I was not sure I would make it through. I’m glad I did. Not really sure if too much could have been removed. Part of the appeal at the end is the kinship you feel with the characters due to your history together. Some would say it was worth it, but it seems unfortunate to me that somtimes we have to justify the beginning of a movie by saying the ending is better. ? Truth is, though — this is one of those movies! If you get bored, just joke about it like we did and keep watching.
-
Subscribe
-
What I'm Reading
-
What I'm Watching
-
About This Site
This website is simply a place for me to express my opinions. I post my thoughts on faith, family, freedom, and fun. -
About Me
Subscribe via RSS