movies movies movies movies

i'm not sure i really 'get' stage adaptations of movies :/

The Departed - enjoyable popcorn flick, but where's Scorsese's thumbprint? felt like it could've been directed by anybody, and at brief times by a clueless anybody (OH LOOK A RAT I SEE WHAT U DID DERE). what keeps things moving is the ruthless plot that's 90% lifted from the original Hong Kong film. it does a bangup job capturing Boston, though. if you live there chances are you know several people just like Wahlberg's character.

Memories of Murder - continued proof of Korean deftness at playing to the cheap seats but still defying expectations. a cruel black comedy about serial killing, police interrogation tactics, and desperate karaoke. jessie how was Teh Host?

I saw To Live & Die In LA twice when it came out, so I'm largely responsible for its total box office haul of $28.

sexy beast is terrific.

The original had me more wrapped up in the characters' fate, got me thinking about the questions of identity that the setup naturally begs - and you'd think this would be primo territory for Scorsese to explore, but he never slowed down to let those themes percolate. And the Damon-Farmiga-Dicaprio love triangle was total DOA dud.

It sounds like I didn't like it - I did, it zipped along, it was fun - but The Aviator was a ballsier movie. Christ, I'm starting to sound like Morbs.

God knows it was better than The Aviator tho. But my favorite of his is The King of Comedy, w/o all that 'kinetic' razzledazzle.

the aviator is unbearably shitty.

OK MORBS THATS IT! THAT... IS... IT!

Infernal Affairs had a palpable sense of loss and sorrow that carried it beyond its b-movie plot machinations. The Departed could've easily been in a diff league than expertly executed cat-and-mouse games, but all it has going for it is plot+motion+scenery chewing. Again, these aren't bad things, but finding soulfullness in criminality and exploring indentity crises are two of Scorsese's big themes, so I sense a missed opportunity here.

I wanted more JOKES and less Matt Damon.

I HAS KNOCK-KNOCKS U WILL LIEK

the aviator is unbearably shitty.

It wasn't great, but it was interesting. I thought it was a riff on Raging Bull - a successful yet unlikable character and his decline. I can't stand DiCaprio but I didn't mind him in it, so that right there is an achievement.

about predator ships!

i had to turn the aviator off once it got past one of the big party scenes in teh first hour. dicaprio was also reminding me of a then-recent ex. ugh.

a stupid part of me wants to see music and lyrics

Any info on rehab I'll have already gleaned from TMZ/Defamer/etc..

I'M CHARLES FOSTER KANE

First US retro of Abbas Kiarostami coming to MoMA in March:

http://moma.org/exhibitions/film_media/2007/Abbas_Kiarostami.html

Good point - Citizen Hughes?

but I like -- sounds like a buttholle surfers album title

too great!

http://asyliu.blogs.friendster.com/tales_of_a_sadistic_troub/2005/10/movie_review_th.html

i was gonna make a joke about fucking watermelons in a country where they eat cod sperm, but that would be lame.

the audio aspect of that movie sounds v. intriguing

is that yr blog?

The last scene of TWC will fuck your head for awhile.

I saw Whitehead's The Fall as threatened last night at Anthol and managed not to sleep for more than 10 secs here & there.

hypothesis confirmed: "what's really cool is that it's a different type of post-apocalyptic movie than what's been coming out anymore"

should i see precious or is it gonna be totally oprah

i don't know what that is but if it's anything like The Lake House starring Sandra Bullock which i saw the other day then i say YES

it is about an obese black teenager who learns to love herself or something like that

i want to do something with myself but there are no good (imo) movies on and it looks depressing so i might like it i dunno