What did you watch today? v 33.0

[The Professor]

Welcome to version 33, the Egg McMuffin of discussions. 

 

The first post in this thread will be # 14,394. 

 

The ghost of George Sanders reminds you to link your films, and that one should feel free to move on if bored. 

[Nerves]

Body and Soul (1925) (on Paul Robeson: Portraits of the Artist - Disc 2)

3/5 Stars

Oscar Micheaux was the first African-American to make a feature length film (The Homesteader in 1919, based on his own novel) and also one of the earliest independent filmmakers. Micheaux wanted to his films to enlighten and in this film he deals with the church - hypocrisy amongst the congregation and ministers who took advantage of them. Wycliffe Gordon's new score is great music but doesn't always match what's going on in the story.

Borderline (1930) (on Paul Robeson: Portraits of the Artist - Disc 2)

3/5 Stars

This seemed like an attempt to apply the concept of Cubism to film. Actions are seldom shown in a straightforward fashion but broken up into small pieces and reassembled. The shots of natural scenery used to express the inner state of the characters is very effective. The modern score by Courtney Pine is very good but doesn't quite fit the film.

[Mr. Bad]

The Thirteenth Floor 1999 Sci-fi about simulated reality based on a novel called Simulacron-3 (1964) by Daniel F. Galouye.  This movie got lost in the shuffle because of competition from The Matrix (1999) and eXistenz (1999). I have an interest in philosopher Nick Bostrom, who deals in the ramifications of sim reality, but I expect others would find this well done, if a little familiar. Available on WI.

[sevenstars]

I really liked it.  The AI issue it confronts (which the other films don't) is pretty fascinating.

[Mr. Bad]

I liked the idea of the people in the simulation confronting the idea and demanding the right to exist. Something we should all be doing since the odds are we live in a simulation too.

[Nerves]

Riding High (1950)

3/5 Stars

Didn't seem too promising at first but things started rolling for me with the introduction of Percy Kilbride (Pa Kettle), William Demarest, and a few other great character actors including a surprise cameo by a member of a famous comedy team (I don't want to spoil the surprise). Take out the wince-inducing musical interludes and this would be almost as good as some of Capra's better known films. Keep an eye out for a bit of eye candy involving Coleen Gray early on in the film. No nudity but the shot was obviously set up to showcase her love melons.

Coleen Gray

[eviltimes]

TOS, folks - we like to keep it clean and family friendly around here.

[don]

Where were we class...Oh right film.

The Testament of Dr. Mabuse

4 Stars

Mad Genius uses Hypnotisim and mind control to try to bring about Anarchy. Way ahead of it's time in special effects and storyline. Very well directed by Fritz Lang.

[Nerves]

Five stars from me. "Mad Genius uses Hypnotisim and mind control to try to bring about Anarchy." Sound like someone familiar in 1933's Germany from which the film was banned?

[Nerves]

Bad Luck (1960)

4/5 Stars

Great bits of physical comedy and clever trick cinematography that recall the silent film era make this dark satire of Polish history (1930 - 1950) all the more enjoyable. Bogumil Kobiela is loveable as a sort of Polish Woody Allen who always blames fortune for his troubles when in fact he is to blame. Though Kobiela's character is a comic exaggeration, I suspect that director Munk is commenting on the behavior of many who endured the oppressive regimes of the Nazi and Stalinists.

[Snorii]

Just finished Rampart and I really enjoyed it.   Pretty dark film and certainly not for everyone.  I thought Harrelson did a great job in the lead role and his acting really elevated the film.  This is not some reality defying thrill ride, but rather a much more realistic (to me anyway) downward spiral that has you feeling that you need a shower by the end.  I'm curious to see how others felt about it.

[David]

Qd--I wondered how this one was.  Generally I enjoy Harrelson.

[Ando]

I watch The Rose every few years or so. It resonates differently each time. Mostly, I guess, because I've been through another car crash of a relationship and Midler's travails as the fast burning Joplin searching for a safe landing gets more poignant. And there's always other stuff you just notice, like the number of booty shaking gays in the audience who showed up for Midler, but who probably never attended a Holding Company gig; and Midler's "I can't get laid. Nobody wants me." Huh? Joplin? Of course, those two sentences mean two entirely different things, which, I suppose, is part of what the movie attempts to put across.