Miles Messervy 007
Posts: 6870
Joined: 11/2/2009
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Features:
11. Otona no miru ehon - Umarete wa mita keredo [I Was Born, But...] (1932, Ozu)
My first Ozu, and while everyone discouraged me from having this as a starting point, I'm glad I still went with it. The copy I watched wasn't in exceptional quality, didn't have any score (the first film apart from maybe some Lumiere shorts I watched this way, I think), and grammatically incorrect subtitles, but I still really liked it. It seems unconnected, arguably the exposition is 2/3s of the film, but it doesn't matter. The actors are naturals, including the kids, who make this a comedy despite me having laughed perhaps once. It delicately pokes at significant questions (hierarchy and family) and is really charming. An 8, and I definitely want to see more of his work now.
PS. I just realised that the kids who were in this (or their characters or both) could have been killed in WWII, which adds poignancy to one of the film's moments. Irrelevant, but still...
18. Avatar (2009, Cameron) C
SPOILERS, NOT THAT YOU COULDN'T PREDICT THE WHOLE PLOT WITHIN MINUTES OF STARTING THE FILM
My first cinema visit of the year was a quite obvious choice, as even the people who love Avatar beyond anything single out its groundbreaking technologies and point out how cinematic it is. And yes, they're right. The visuals are amazing, even though it is in a sort of videogame-y way, and the 3D certainly adds tons to the experience. This is pretty much the only reason I enjoyed the film. The battles are ridiculous(ly enjoyable, but still), the plot is as predictable as they come (it was soooooooooooooo, I repeat, soooooooooooooooooo obvious that "ZHAKE" and Nara-something were going to fall in love; and really, did anyone doubt for a second the Na'vi would win?), and the script ranges from hilariously macho-istic (the colonel is a lot of fun but not necessarily in a good way) to downright awful (I SEE YOU!!!!). A 7 in this case only reflects the experience as PA would no doubt point out. I do feel guilty for rating this higher than Dark Knight (a low 7 vs a high 5 (lolz)) but I just shouldn't have seen the latter again after cinemas, and I can only imagine how much more this would apply here.
Cameron-O-Meter (new feature, we'll see whether that will go anywhere):
1. Aliens (DC)
2. The Terminator
3. Avatar
Shorts:
6. The Music Box (1932, Parrott) {28 mins}
My 4th L&H short, and the first one that isn't a silent. At first I was a bit put off by the way they talked, but then I got used to it. In this one, they struggle to deliver a piano to a man as his birthday present. Hilarity ensues. I'm not gonna list the individual gags, you've gotta see this one for yourself (here, for example)  9
< Message edited by Miles Messervy 007 -- 25/1/2010 4:16:59 PM >
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quote:
jamesbondguy:
Miles is clearly the finest film theorist of his generation
quote:
Deviation:
if it isn't ham, I'll eat a living pig.
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RE: Top 100 Films I've Watched This Year: 2010 - 
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