Every time I see a film, I have the impulse to come here and write about it. Chalk it up to my days as a music writer; I naturally respond to everything in writing. But too many other projects have kept me from that writing (and oh, I am not going to be another one of those I'm-not-blogging-often-enough sort of people), until all these thoughts are bottled up.
Once: a great film, and not great in a macroscopic acting or cinema variety but in the way that film helps you to enter the real lives of people. We saw it a month before the Oscars, having never really heard of it before, and Derek wrote a long poem and song afterward. Having lived with Czechs, and also identifying strongly with the Irish way of lament and laughter all rolled up into one song, we just got it. It's not about music, the way of music IS the content. And people want to see something real now--authentic, emotionally real, tender, hopeful. Authenticity still speaks volumes.
We've been in this habit lately of renting a bunch of films by the same director, just to get a view of the whole of their work/subjects/style.
The Coen Brothers: We started with the Coens--we got as far as O Brother, Where Art Thou and The Big Lebowski, and I'm about to rent The Hudsucker Proxy. I've seen all these before, along with Miller's Crossing, Raising Arizona, The Ladykillers, Fargo and Intolerable Cruelty when they all came out. I'll save a whole essay for them, but I have to say, I still think that O Brother, Where Art Thou is their best (and I'll say why later). My history with their films is that I either walk out or stop the film near the end. It seems like there is always a turning point where the films lose their soul or focus.
Wes Anderson: In one week we watched Rushmore, The Life Aquatic with Team Zissou, and Darjeeling Limited (just as it came out). I've seen The Royal Tennenbaums and Bottle Rocket before. I'm still loving The Darjeeling Limited.
Fellini: We started one film, the famous one. I didn't like the way he viewed women.
Wim Wenders: I really love his films and his way of looking at the world. Most recent one we saw was a documentary, Notes on Cities and Fashion, which is specifically about Japanese designer Yohji Yamamoto, but generally about the way film and fashion dance with each other. Also watched Paris, Texas and Don't Come Knocking. There are so many more, I'm not sure where to start.
Latest attempt at a new movie:
Dan in Real Life: cute film but seriously missing character development. Felt like it came out of New England therapy culture. I hoped it would be more than it was, since I love Juliet Binoche.
