Quite a weekend, this one! I'm sure I'm cheapening each film by seeing so many in a row so I should probably stick with, say, 4 a weekend tops if I can stand to... Netflix you temptress...
Trainspotting (1996)
I feel like such a nub... though there'd actually be trains in this one... a heroine reference cheekily masked. Like Scarface, Goodfellas, & Requiem for a Dream before it, this is one of those movies I wouldn't want to sit through again. Brilliant, maybe, even fun at times, but the utter depravity thrust upon the viewer can be appalling. The sub current story of the young man trying to grow up (the rest of the way?) is not really fulfilling especially thanks to a last second twist, but I suppose this was meant to be lighter fare than, say, RFAD's extreme shocking end point. The sophomoric stoner fun goes out the window when it comes to syringes. Some neat characters with cool Scottish accents though.
The House Bunny (2008)
I didn't watch the house bunny...
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Helvetica (2007)
Surprisingly (or not?) very interesting. The ubiquitous font that you've seen everywhere your entire life (yet its not included with Windows) has quite a story. Especially interesting for anyone who's been to school for graphic design or anything related. Beautiful photography and excellent music throughout.
Stand By Me (1986)
Everything an R-rated 80s movie about 12 year olds set in the 50s can and should be. Rob Reiner, fat lard he may be today (& was then?), got some good emotion out of those kids, and I'm a sucker for a good 20th century period piece. Features a young Kiefer Sutherland, blond coif in tow.
Revolver (2005)
The one where Guy Ritchie jumped the shark. Also the one where Jason Statham has crazy long hair! Not exactly up to snuff with his previous gangster outings(Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels; Snatch), this one gets weird and introspective on us, examining the ego or... something. It has some great action-heist bits that definitely deserve credit – I definitely envy Ritchie's ability to think of that stuff. The pacing is very spotty, though, lingering in awkward places for minutes at a time, talking to itself and jitterily splicing in flashbacks that make the exposition feel hamfisted (“Remember that part 20 mins ago? Yah, we're back to that again”), probably trying to make some sense of the bizarre plot yet failing. Comically, a selection of quacks and head shrinks chime in with their two cents worth over the credits. I love trippy stuff (Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas anyone?) but this got into laughable & boring territory. I am interested to see how the supposedly disappointing RocknRolla turned out.
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
I would never consider myself a fan of the western – I've attempted to watch Il Buono, il Brutto, il Cattivo several times, rarely making it much past those fantastic sand animation opening titles. There's been some brilliant films in that setting recently though – 3:10 to Yuma, No Country for Old Men, and There Will Be Blood for example, and now this one. Casey Affleck is a sight to see as the 19th century equivalent of a modern day fanboy, placing his hero in a pedestal he'll surely stumble off of. Brad Pitt does the then-aging outlaw justice, balancing the softening family man with the psychotic criminal within. There are many other characters but they all have a place in the story and are not hard to tell apart. The kill or be killed mentality of that time definitely applies today, if of course in varied context. The film never really feels long in the tooth, even when the aftermath of the titular climax is longer than you expect, the excellent narration keeps it fascinating. Insert superlative here.
Vertigo (1958)
How could Jimmy Stewart manage to be so unlikeable and annoying? He's the quintessential American lad! Yet so obsessive and creepy. All in beautiful scenic San Francisco! I realize its supposed to be a Hitchcock thriller, and I'm perhaps supposed to be made uneasy by this, but the conclusion reached by the end feels incomplete and not justified. The famous kooky effects that got named after this movie are sparse of course to maintain their weight & effectiveness, but did they have to be that sparse? Upon a check of the wiki, I do find this was a departure for Hitchcock, and did get very mixed responses at the time of release, yet is a favorite of some? Something about Kim Novak's ghostly light blond bun must just freak me out...
Whats with these hair related notes popping up? Suppose I am due for a trim...
Unrelated notes...
After owning the game twice over the course of at least 2 or 3 years total & playing off & on, I finally beat my favorite Final Fantasy, number IX, this morning. Perfect music, perfect characters, perfect skill system, never too hardcore or intensive or obtuse, great scripted battle sequences to get a character you haven't seen in awhile back up to speed, sprawling fantasy world, etc. I guess some people prefer the “realism” of VII and VIII but this, FFVI and Chrono Trigger will probably always be my favorite RPGs.
Weak Oscar season this year, plus a lame looking Super Bowl, but oh well at least we have MASSIVE archives of readily available stuff we couldn't possibly have experienced all of when it first came around ^^
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The bit about Rob Reiner made me giggle.
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