The 1970's: A Decade Under The Influence

"Persona" (feature)
Dir: Ingmar Bergman
Premier:
Viewed: 3/30/09
Review: I thought "Persona" was a great learning tool. Using practical editing techniques to get across concepts of insanity was really interesting. The burning film effect was unexpected, each time it was played. Some might be put off by the liberal use of film-handling techniques, and find it difficult to take the film seriously. I managed to suspend those feelings in favor of enjoying the performances. Also it’s not always a good idea to build tension for a full feature’s length, but in experimental times. These concepts must be explored to make mainstream films more dynamic in their shot choices.

The scene at the end, where the mute woman is being told a story from woman is being told a story from her past is repeated almost 3 times. I thought it would reveal a "multiple-personality", kind of plot-twist, but when it didn't, I became completely confused as to what was going on. The acting was really amazing. Liv Ullman was a very strong actor and seemed to be working for two.

"A Decade Under The Influence" (documentary)
Dir: Ted Demme & Richard LaGravenese
Premier: 2003
Viewed: 3/30/09
Review: At a certain point between the 60’s and today, films became a LOT more dynamic in their style and subject matters. Even the most formulaic of modern films show evidence of several movements in cinema. One of those revolutions was French New Wave. Another was 1970’s American cinema. In IFC’s documentary, these years are explored in relative depth. There’s a point in the film where all the film makers cite their favorite film makers. The point of interest is that even influences have influences. Names like Ozu, Kurasawa and De Sica some up several times. Films like Easy Rider are brought up as examples of alternative film styles from the big studio norms.

There was a very long list of filmmakers interviewed in this documentary. Dennis Hopper and Jon Voight are names my generation knows mainly from their acting resume. It was interesting to see that they had also directed some serious hard-hitters of film history.


Family Guy: "Not All Dogs go to Heaven" (tv series)
Dir: Greg Colon
Premier: 3/29/09
Viewed: 3/30/09

"As little as possible."

"Monsters vs. Aliens" (feature)
Dir: Rob Letterman & Conrad Vernon
Premier: 2009
Viewed: 3/27/09


"Chinatown" (feature)
Dir: Roman Polanski
Premier: 1974
Viewed: 3/29/09
Review: I’ve read that these stories are known as “neo-noir”. “Chinatown” had this weird water works conspiracy that was hard to follow. I could tell that the conspiracy was getting bigger and bigger as the film went along, but I wouldn’t be able to tell you the east from west of it. There were undertones of corruption and deviancy throughout. I most definitely didn’t need the ending, where someone gets a FREAKIN’ HOLE blown through their head. This was during one of the off-chances that I was eating while watching that.

This is the movie, along with “The Shining”, that takes Jack Nicholson to the big leagues. As the documentary stated, He wasn’t great to look at, but he had a certain performance that filled a void. I think the first time I actually saw him was as The Joker. This was one of those movies that got him the role.

I noticed the use of ambiguous space, used as a tool to isolate Nicholson and Dunaway in the crowded restaurant scenes. Making the background blurry is a great way to isolate two characters for an intimate scene in a loud and crowded room.

War of the Worlds

"Breathless" (feature)
Dir: Jean-Luc Goddard
Premier: 1961
Viewed: 3/23 & 3/26/09
Review: “Breathless” was hard to follow because I couldn’t really identify with any of the characters. I thought the dark haired girl in the beginning at the film, whom he stole money from was exponentially better looking than the girl who occupied the remainder of the film. Funny enough, this nearly took me out of the film. What also interfered with my experience was the sudden bursts of English in an otherwise French-language film. I can’t say why this worked for “The Celebration” and not for this film, for me. Maybe it was the strong sense of character that film established early on.

The acting seemed almost forced, but maybe it was the language. This film puts a lot of thought on old-fashioned French flirting. This was starting to make me ill when I had to listen to some of the character’s lines. The cinematic layout of this film definitely gets the point across as to the new wave of film techniques, we have French new-wave to thank for a lot of new film conventions moviegoers are used to today. The jump cuts were refreshing, as I assume they were meant to be. The only thing is when the two leads were in bed together, and the jump cuts started helping the film drag on.

Ben 10 Alien Force: "War of the Worlds" (tv series)
Dir: Dan Riba
Premier: 3/27/09
Viewed: 3/27/09



30 Rock: "Apollo, Apollo" (tv series)
Dir: Millicent Shelton
Premier: 3/26/09
Viewed: 3/28/09
Comment: I was pleasantly surprised by this show in that it proves just how far the upper crust of TV animation has gone. This show and Amy Poehler's "The Mighty B!" essentially share the same sense of humor (give or take a difference in target demo and subject matter)!

Phantom of the Cinematheque

"Henri Langlois: The Phantom of the Cinematheque" (documentary clip)
Dir: Jaques Richard
Premier: 2005
Viewed: 3/23/09


"The Adventure" (feature clip)
Dir: Michaelangelo Antonioni
Premier: 1962
Viewed: 3/23/09


"Cleo From 5-7" (feature clip)
Dir: Agnes Varta
Premier: 1961
Viewed: 3/23/09

Foresight

Wolverine and the X-men: "Foresight, pt. 1-3"
Dir: Steve Gordon (1), Nick Filippi (2), Boyd Kirkland (3)
Writer: Greg Johnson
Premier: 3/10-12/09
Viewed: 3/17/09
Comment: Probably the most complex and layered childrens show plotline since "Avatar: The Last Airbender". This is the final story arc in the 26 episode season. While still dazzling the young viewers (primary demo), it blatantly appeals to the secondary 18-34 demographic. Overall it's everything I'd ever need in an X-Men series.

The Doomsday Clock

"Watchmen" (feature)
Dir: Zach Snyder
Premier: 3/6/09
Viewed: 3/15/09



Batman: The Brave and the Bold: "Mystery in Space!" (tv series)
Dir: Brandon Vietti
Premier: 3/13/09
Viewed: 3/16/09

Experimentalism Buffet

"Punch and Judy" (short film)
Dir: Jan Svankmajer
Premier: 1966
Viewed: 3/9/09


"Daisies" (feature)
Dir: Vera Chitilova
Premier: 1966
Viewed: 3/9/09
Review: I enjoyed Punch and Judy. It was pretty hard to follow, but the fact that I once owned a guinea pig made the guest animal a point of interest. The plot made just a little more sense after the discussion. “Daisies” was exactly what it was advertised to be: a FEATURE LENGTH experimental film! It was one that, to my chagrin, utilized pretty much every sound effect that could possibly rub me the wrong way. From creaking to smacking food, the film was an ear-sore. I also didn’t appreciate the utter desecration of a full spread of perfectly good food. Along with the burning of young female characters, that gets under my skin! And the voices on these two! That said, I thought certain scenes in “Daisies” were infectiously enjoyable. And I could tell by certain recurring scenes that the film was trying to say something.

There was a comedian who I feel had a point. He suggested that over the years, society tends to be more forgiving of a more attractive woman’s ranting, whether or not they are actually “on point”. Conversely, It’ll have few reservations about telling the less attractive counterpart to “shut it!”, ESPECIALLY when they’re right. Not to say that their message wasn’t valid, but I wonder how long one would have sat through all…that, had the two leads not been easy to look at.

Deep Cover For Batman!

"Wonder Woman" (feature)
Dir: Lauren Mongomery
Written: Michael Jelenic, Gail Simone (current W.W. comic writer)
Voices: Keri Russel, Alfred Molina, Rosario Dawson, Nathan Fillon, Virginia Madsen
Premier: 3/3/09
Viewed: 2/27/09 (wondercon preview)
Comment: The director/ story artist's first shot directing a feature-length film. It had more shades of "300-with-homicidal-supermodels" than the old live-action series. The infamous Bruce Timm helped out, I'm sure. It got a great reaction from the audience.



"The Graduate" (feature)
Dir: Mike Nichols
Premier: 1/15/1968
Viewed: 3/1/09
Review: The graduate was hilarious. I really connected with the lead character. I was able to relate to the idea of being “worried about my future”. I can relate to how those thought can turn you into an awkward and angry person at times. I can’t help but think of Mrs. Robinson. Her story is pretty clear, but the mindset she had to be in to come onto someone who is practically her nephew leaves a lot to the imagination. The director did a great job in putting the lead character in the worst, most awkward situations in the name of comedy. I joked with my parents that the only thing keeping me from Dustin Hoffman’s trouble was a car.

I really liked the matter-of-fact opening sequence, played with Simon & Garfunkel’s “Sounds of Silence”. The film started just as awkwardly as it would play, and eventually end. That song played during “Watchmen”, and I was glad I got the reference. Part of me wishes my life got that interesting, yet part of me doesn’t need the grief.

"Diabolique" (feature)
Dir: Henri-Georges Clouzot
Premier: 11/21/1955
Viewed: 3/2/09
Review: I’d be lying if I said this film didn’t get under my skin. I never was an openly eager fan of thriller’s. I thought the use of plot twists was masterful, even if the ending seemed a bit abrupt. The writers did a great job of drawing tons of false hypotheses out of the viewer. From sabotage, to ghost phenomena, to even further foul play, the viewer didn’t quite know what to think until the very end. Perhaps the reason the ending seemed too quick and tacked on was so the viewer wouldn’t take it seriously, and wonder if the lead actually did die.

The acting was a straight-forward job. The actress who played Nicole Horner had a somewhat tall order to fulfill. Then again, so did the other actress if many of the viewer’s theories are true. The final scenes were very well staged. I dug the concept of seeing the Michel’s figure through her clothing to make her seem more vulnerable. It’s that kind of thinking that made the ending that much more terrifying.

"Psycho" (feature clip)
Dir: Alfred Hitchcock
Premier: 1960
Viewed: 3/2/09


"Lawrence of Arabia" (feature clip)
Dir: David Lean
Premier: 1963
Viewed: 3/2/09


"The Manchurian Candidate" (feature clip)
Dir: John Frankenheimer
Premier: 10/24/1962
Viewed: 3/02/09



"Dr. Strangelove" (feature clip)
Dir: Stanley Kubrick
Premier: 1/29/1964
Viewed: 3/2/09


"Goldfinger" (feature clip)
Dir: Guy Hamilton
Music: John Barry
Premier: 1/9/1965
Viewed: 3/2/09


"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (feature clip)
Dir: Mike Nichols
Premier: 6/22/1966
Viewed: 3/2/09


"Rosemary's Baby" (feature clip)
Dir: Roman Polansky
Premier: 6/12/1968
Viewed: 3/2/09


"Night of the Living Dead" (feature clip)
Dir: George A. Romero
Premier: 10/1/1968
Viewed: 3/2/09


Batman: The Brave and the Bold: "Deep Cover For Batman!"
Dir: Michael Chang
Premered: 2/28/09
Viewed: 3/2/09
Comment: That was probably the best guest star they've had in this show so far. Unexpected, even for me.