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drewfurd2
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2 ou 3 choses que je sais d'elle (1967)
2 or 3 Things Godard Knows About Cinema
"I had a dream last night, you know. I was walking all alone at the edge of a cliff. The path was only wide enough for one person. Suddenly I saw two twins walking toward me. I wondered how they would get past. Suddenly one of the twins went towards the other and they became one person. And then I realized that these two people were North and South Vietnam being united." -- Christophe, Juliette's young son
In the opening moments of the film, Godard introduces us--with his famous whispering narration--to Marina Vlady, the actress who will play our protagonist "in a few frames," to paraphrase. He repeats what he says, only a few frames later, this time introducing her as Juliette. This is what cinema is. A movie that isn't completely self-conscious, is little more than a book on film. In addition to Godard's ramblings on such topics as Vietnam, Paris life, and philosophy, Juliette often thinks outloud, speaking directly to the audience, while looking at the camera. We even get the privilege to experience her thoughts first-hand a few times.
"Her," is not Juliette nor Paris, as some theories state, but the cinema. In fact, we learn very little about Juliette or about Paris, as they are both lost behind ridiculous questions with no answers and the result of these questions. Commercialism is a mask for some people, and many scenes suggest lifestyle is becoming more important than life. The final shot of the film shows many household products--such as Tide--scattered in a field. Godard is say we must live together with each other and these objects--as they are all together in the field--which, as he states, sadly live on longer than we do. The more primitive we are, the happier we become, but we are to conditioned to use them, so we must make a compromise on both sides.
But what are the two or three things Godard knows about cinema? Everything there is to know about this young artform. Future filmmakers must take a work of art like this and figure out everything else, because right now we only know two or three things about it.
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The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring * out of ****
If you want to see an epic, see "Lawrence Of Arabia" or "Gone With The Wind". If you want to see a science fiction-fantasy see "Star Wars", "2001: A Space Odyssey", or even "Metropolis". Just try to avoid this film.
I have heard that the reason I didn't like it is because I saw the theatrical version, clocking in at a mere 178 minutes. According to fans, the extended version is much better. If I can't stand Elijah Wood's whining for 3 hours, what makes you think I wanna listen to him cry any longer?! Horrible performances (excluding Sir Ian), no character development, no story at all, bad action, and mediocre direction don't make a masterpiece! They make this trash!
I don't recommend this to anyone. In fact, stay far away from this. Watch good movies. Watch: Psycho, Diabolique, Casablanca, Rashomon, Breathless, The 400 Blows, Annie Hall, etc.
Duck Soup (1933)
HILARIOUS
To all fans of the Marx Brothers, I'd like you all to sign the petition to get their films re-released on Special Edition DVDs. All fans of the hilarious brothers, please sign it. And all non-fans please sign it too. The address is: http://www.petitiononline.com/marxbros/petition.html
Thanks.
MASH (1970)
M*A*S*H ** out of ****
Robert Altman's 1970 overrated "classic", M*A*S*H, is sometimes recognized as one of the funniest films of all time. In fact, the AFI ranked it as one of the top ten funniest films of all time. It is very chaotic and insane, but, in this reviewer's opinion, unfunny. I'll admit I laughed at several parts in this film, but not enough to make it a comedy classic. The movie is most famous for being spun off into the TV-Series of the same name, and the recognition from the show has brought the film both over and underpraises by either giving praise from the show to the film or comparing the two. I have not ever seen an episode of the show so my opinion of the show is yet to be discovered, but my opinion of the movie is that it's not funny enough to be a comedy, not dramatic enough to be a drama, and isn't about the war enough to make it a war film. The meaning to the football ending still has not been solved by me. Not a bad movie but not a good one either. Mediocre at best. In my opinion the worst film on the AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies List.
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
The Maltese Falcon **** out of ****
Humphrey Bogart is the epitome of cool, and this film is arguably where he is his coolest. Bogart's breakthrough role (just a year before he was immortalized as Rick in "Casablanca") as Private Detective Sam Spade is only one of the reasons to watch this classic though. It features an amazing cast including Sydney Greenstreet and Peter Lorre (who would join him in "Casablanca"). The story has not only great mystery and shock for the audience, but tells a touching story of greed, that would later be the subject of another classic Bogie and John Huston film, "The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre". The film is very witty and although not a comedy, is funnier than most comedies made today. This is one of the greatest films of all time.
Dumbo (1941)
Dumbo **** out of ****
Walt Disney's favorite film of his is also my favorite film of his. It's a touching poignant tale of an outcast, who ends up a hero to the audience even though neither he nor his mother utter a word in the entire film. The silence just adds to the beauty and makes it even easier for us to relate to it. Deep down the movie is a tale about the love between a mother and her child. The film is not only touching, it is also hilarious and has great songs, especially "Baby Mine". The dancing elephant dance is groundbreaking.
Gone with the Wind (1939)
Gone With The Wind (1939) **** out of ****
Arguably the best film of all time, and my personal favorite, Gone With The Wind, tells the story of a girl who always tries to get what she can't have, with the civil war going on. The acting, directing, and writing is damn near perfect. Even though the movie goes on for nearly four hours, it never does seem to drag. The title has multiple meanings and is equally as brilliant as the film. I recommend this to all.
Fight Club (1999)
Fight Club (1999) * out of ****
Fight Club could have been a great film with the amazing plot idea, but it falls very short of what it could have been. What redeems this movie from complete BOMB-dom is the acting and the seldom black comedy. The movie has poor to O.K. directing. The movie is way over-long and has one of the worst endings ever filmed in history. The violence is supposed to shock but that also falls short. All in all I would stay away from this movie.