Nymphomaniac Vol. I (2013)

Not everyone can be Martin Scorsese. By this I mean that in the current filmmaking climate, it is extremely difficult for a director to find the proper budget to realize a project of any significant scope. Some auteurs like Brian De Palma and David Cronenberg have had to result to making small movies where the lack of budget is plainly visible in the so-so effects and underpopulated crowd scenes. They seem to understand that most people will not be seeing these films in a theater and have adjusted to a more television aesthetic. David Lynch and John Waters aren’t even able to drum up a budget at all. But thankfully there’s Lars Von Trier.

While everyone else is getting smaller and smaller, the man who made two films where the sets were merely outlines on the ground, has opted to get bigger and bigger. Beginning with Antichrist, Von Trier started incorporating what he has referred to as his, “monumental style” which consists of extremely precise, high definition, slow motion photography that runs contrary to the more handheld, run and gun style he’s come to be associated with. It’s a style that could not be further from the Dogme ’95 movement Lars began with Thomas Vinterberg back in the mid-90’s, and he continues with it in the absolutely gorgeous Melancholia. So where do you go from there?

Though he seems to have abandoned the, “monumental style” for Nymphomaniac, Lars has still opted to get even bigger by putting together a two-part, four-hour, widescreen epic, with all sorts of visual tricks, a huge cast and explicitly graphic sexuality. He even implemented the head-replacement technology that David Fincher pioneered in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and The Social Network to make it seem as though the movie stars onscreen are actually copulating with one another. So what if the majority of viewers will be watching this on flat screens, in the privacy of their own home? Lars doesn’t care. He’s put everything he has into this funny, sad, erotic and thought provoking magnum opus. He’s attempting to fill all of your (aesthetic and emotional) holes, and for the most part he’s successful. Can’t wait to see Vol.II!

If you live in Southern California and want to see this film in all its widescreen glory, get thee to The Frida Cinema where it will be running through April 10th...when Vol. II comes out!

Double-Bill: Cultural Theft

The Rape of Europa and The Art of the Steal

Friday Quote: Rise of the Guardians

"Big eyes, very big, because they are full of wonder. That is my center. It is what I was born with, eyes that have only seen the wonder in everything! Eyes that see lights in the trees and magic in the air. This wonder is what I put into the world, and what I protect in children. It is what makes me a guardian. It is my center, what is yours?"

Rise of the Guardians (2012)

Three Years A Blog

Three years and still going strong! Thank you all for continuing to read (or at least click on) our little musings and ramblings. Though wickedly small, it is really starting to feel like a community. From our cozy little lair in Orange, we have been able to reach out and make contact with people from places as far-flung as Basingstoke, Durban and Adelaide. Thank you for helping to make our monologue into a little bit more of a dialogue. It’s nice knowing that someone out there finds value in what you've been putting out into the internet ether.

So how do we mark this anniversary? With a list of course! But this list isn't like any of the other ones that we've done in the past. This list is a chronological inventory of the 425 films we've taken the time to write a dedicated post about on this blog. 425 films that we found enjoyable enough that one of us decided to spend part of his or her day at a keyboard attempting to explain to you why we liked it. Though it’s not at all an authoritative list of “Great Cinema”, we’re pretty sure most people will be able to find at least something enjoyable in each of the films listed. If you stumble across something you like, let us know! If you couldn't tell already, we love talking about movies.

These Cinematic Films

The Fall (2006)

Little Alexandria (Catinca Untaru) is recovering from a broken arm in a hospital where she befriends Roy (Lee Pace), a stuntman suffering from paralysis. He tells her an elaborate story about five men on a grand quest, and uses her trust to persuade her to find morphine for him.

When I first saw this film, it grabbed my attention from the very beginning: a silent film stunt played in slow motion, set to Beethoven's 7th symphony. It was so arresting. Visually, this film is stunning. STUNNING. From the landscapes to the costumes, I can't think of a film that took my breath away from the visuals alone more than this one. It's poetry for your eyes. Filming took place in 28 different countries over the course of four years, and it has the same surreal global quality as Baraka or Samsara, for example, with a touch more fantasy. It's absolutely gorgeous. 

The little girl who plays Alexandria gives this film such spirit and heart. This was her first credited role and she's so natural, and she has such good chemistry with Lee Pace. The entire film is a feat of movie-making magic in its purest form. It's sweet, it's sad, it's exquisitely told, and I can't recommend it enough.

Give this one a go if your life has been feeling, well, a bit too real lately.  It's definitely worth a watch.

Double-Bill: The Itch

Shame and Nymphomaniac

Throne of Blood (1957)

I think it would be interesting to see a sci-fi Macbeth. The inciting incident of the story already hinges on magic, so why not just replace that with science? When you really think about it, this is a time travel story, minus the time travel. It's about a character who is given insight as to what the future holds in store for him followed by his attempts to both embrace and counteract that future. That's why this story has stood the test of time. It's the eternal question of whether fate is malleable or written in stone. It's also Looper, Back to the Future and 12 Monkeys...among other things. If this story can work in feudal Japan and the current ganglands of Melbourne, why not try setting it in the not too distant future? Just gotta make sure you have a lead as badass as Toshirô Mifune. Good luck finding one.

Friday Quote: The Wizard of Oz

 "A heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others."

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Talk To Her (2002)

The second and greatest film in what I like to refer to as Pedro's "Trans-Gender Trilogy". With All About My Mother you begin with an incapacitated/dead male and continue with a story that is almost exclusively female. For Talk To Her, this is reversed and it is the females who are incapacitated for a male story. Finally, in Bad Education you are dealing exclusively with male characters. If you want to make it a quadrilogy you can always throw in The Skin I Live In as well.

So why is this the best film of the series? Well to begin with it's a beautiful and touching exploration of loneliness and grief. Then there's the fact that Pedro is able to make you feel sympathy for a character who has done a despicable thing. Let's also not forget the ingenious implementation of that silent film sequence. Oh and the music! And the acting! And the colors! The Academy choosing to honor this film with Best Original Screenplay almost makes up for Chicago winning best picture - almost. Oh and I didn't even mention the dance sequences! So much beauty in this film, even midst the darkness.

Double-Bill: Shakespeare-san

Throne of Blood and Ran

Network (1976)

I know that what the modern era is supposed to take from Network is how eerily prescient it was regarding our current media landscape, but on this most recent re-watch all I could think about was the 2008 financial crisis. At it's most basic Network is a film about shortsighted decisions. Every single character in this film is only concerned with the here and now, future be damned. What will bring our ratings up? What will make me happy right now? When you think about it in that way, this becomes a much more important film. It's no longer just about how awful and depraved television is becoming, it's about how awful and depraved we are becoming. What will win me this election? What will yield the largest profit? This kind of thinking is how we end up with things like the Tea Party and Global Climate Change. The media is not the sickness, the people who make it and consume it are. We are the sickness.

Friday Quote: Pi

"When I was a little kid my mother told me not to stare into the sun, so once when I was six, I did. At first the brightness was overwhelming, but I had seen that before. I kept looking, forcing myself not to blink, and then the brightness began to dissolve. My pupils shrunk to pinholes and everything came into focus and for a moment I understood."

Pi (1998)

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

I don't get how people can pigeonhole Wes Anderson as a one-trick pony. The distance between this film and Bottle Rocket is immense. Even the distance between this and The Royal Tenenbaums is huge. What I like most about his work is that it is a style that is constantly evolving. While the core remains the same, along the way he picks up new tricks (animation) and integrates them into his aesthetic while simultaneously tossing aside what is no longer working (Futura Bold). With Grand Budapest, everything is working: the acting is great, the sets are beautiful, the story is charming, the action is exciting, the comedy is funny and the tragedy is heartbreaking. It even serves as a comment on its own creation. I'm not overstating the matter when I say that this is honestly one of the most diverse experiences you can have in a cinema. Do yourself a favor and make a point of spending at least an evening in The Grand Budapest Hotel. You won't want to leave.

10 Movie Paintings I'd Love to Own

When you watch the same beloved movies over and over, you sometimes find yourself obsessing about details, coveting random objects, and wishing you could spend a day or two living on a movie set. I've been thinking lately about paintings from films that I'd like to own, and after seeing The Grand Budapest Hotel over the weekend, I thought I'd do a little post about it. So here's a list of some movie portraits I wouldn't mind seeing up on my walls.

Amadeus (1984), portrait of Leopold Mozart (played by Roy Dotrice)

This portrait is based on a painting of the real Leopold Mozart, redone to resemble the actor. The painting appears in a scene where Wolfgang Mozart is drunk, laughing, mocking the painting of his father, when who should show up at the door but a mysterious stranger wearing the same mask his father wore...! 

The Forbidden Zone (1982)

I once read an interview where Quentin Tarantino said that any filmmaker worth their salt should be slightly embarrassed to show their latest film to friends. This has nothing to do with quality. He was referring to how many personal details have ended up in the film (ie: foot fetishism). Jean-Luc Godard's films were so personal that the dialogue would be written the day of filming so as to more accurately reflect his feelings at precisely that moment in time. Now I know it might sound precarious, but I'd like to throw Richard Elfman into the conversation.

Say what you will about its aesthetics, but The Forbidden Zone is an absolutely towering achievement in terms of personal art. If you were to look inside Elfman's head this is EXACTLY what you would see. The old novelty songs, the B-movies, the poop jokes, the raging libido and even his Jewish upbringing and some rather unsettling racial depictions are part of the mix. For people who respond to honesty, you can't get much more honest than The Forbidden Zone. 32 years ago Richard Elfman let us into his own forbidden zone by laying himself bare on the screen (warts and all) and today we are still talking about it. He must have done something right.

International Women's Day: Women in Film

March is Women's History Month, and March 8th is International Women's Day. We thought we'd mark the occasion by celebrating women in film! Actresses get all the fame and fortune, but it's important as film lovers to recognize the contributions made by those behind the camera, whether it be as filmmakers, screenwriters, cinematographers, animators, editors, producers, composers, even film critics. They all contribute to this crazy and wonderful industry, and many of them are true groundbreakers and pioneers in this field. Here's a list of women (in no particular order) who deserve recognition...sorry if we forgot anyone!

Frances Marion, screenwriter/director (The Love Light)

Friday Quote: Rear Window (1954)

"Jeff, you know if someone came in here, they wouldn't believe what they'd see? You and me with long faces plunged into despair because we find out a man didn't kill his wife. We're two of the most frightening ghouls I've ever known."

Rear Window (1954)

Heartbeats (2010)

Since the beginning of cinema, older people have been telling young people’s stories. Sometimes it is someone only slightly older telling a story about their recent past (John August’s Go) but often the case is a much older man reflecting upon their youth (Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Dreamers). Now I’m not saying that this is a bad thing necessarily (in fact I adore and have written about both of those films) but what I am saying is that while time and distance can bring perspective, it can also diminish the honesty and intensity that was present when this was all new.

Thanks to the “digital revolution” literally anyone can make a film. Anyone who has an iPhone can tell their story and as a result feature filmmakers are getting younger and younger. It absolutely blows my mind that Xavier Dolan was only 20 when he made this film! And while it is by no means a perfect film, the promise on display is astounding. The images are both beautiful and assured and the insights into human nature feel preternaturally profound. Dolan is able to perfectly capture that precarious balance between the mundane and the epic that is early adulthood. The boring days and the endless nights. This isn't some nostalgic look back, this is reportage from the frontlines.

And oh the honest brutality of that ending! I’m excited to see where his career goes.

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988)

Don’t ever let someone give you grief for watching trashy films and television. There is no such thing as a guilty pleasure. If something gives you pleasure, then there is something worthwhile in it. And in the right hands anything can become high art - just look at the career of Quentin Tarantino! What is Django Unchained if not a Spaghetti Western transposed the American South during slavery? Simply sprinkle in some high-brow film references and suddenly exploitive “trash” becomes “art” worthy of Oscars! The same could be said of Pedro Almodóvar’s career.

At their heart, all of his films are essentially telenovelas. Take Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown for an example. All the ingredients of a soap are there: melodrama, infidelity, an estranged son, a lunatic mother, etc. The only thing that really distinguishes this film from something you’d come across in the middle of the night on cable, is that it is filtered through the stylistic sensibilities and obsessions of Almodóvar. His colors and camera movements alone make it into something more. Admittedly, there’s nothing overly profound going on below the surface in this particular film, but you can also clearly tell that he is well on his way towards the equally soapy masterpieces that are All About My Mother and Talk To Her. Like Jean-Luc Godard said: It's not where you take things from - it's where you take them to.

Oscars 2014

That just about sums it up!

The Academy Awards have come and gone, and I have to honestly say that it was one of the better ones in a long time! Just about every win felt well deserved, and we had a blast watching it at home! Let's reminisce, shall we?

Highlights:
*Ellen! She did a great job. With the epic group photo, the pizza order, and her adorably announcements of her outfit changes, she kept the mood light and the laughs rolling! Can we have her host every year? Pretty please?
*Bill Murray's impromptu Harold Ramis tribute during his turn as presenter. Truly lovely.
*Hooray for Frozen! Idina Menzel's performance of "Let It Go" was awesome, and I loved the rhyming acceptance speech.
*While my money was on "Let It Go" for the win, can we all agree that "The Moon Song" from Her is a wonderful song as well? I was humming it the rest of the night.
*Lupita and Meryl dancing with Pharrell!
*Hooray for the writing wins! I was especially happy for Spike Jonze.
*I was iffy about Pink singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", but she did a great job. And Bette! I haven't heard "Wind Beneath my Wings" in yeeeeeears!
*Lupita, Lupita, Lupita. She looked stunning, and her speech had us all tearing up. Your dreams are valid!
*Gravity and 12 Years A Slave were two of the best movies I saw this year, and I'm so happy about the way the awards ended up going. Gravity completely deserved all the technical awards, and 12 Years A Slave deserved the big win. We're going to be talking about these two films for a long long time.

The hilarious WTFs:
*"Adele Dazeem"?! You had ONE JOB, John Travolta! Oh well, at least it spawned a million hilarious memes and John Travolta Name Generators. And Adele Dazeem has her own Twitter now. Oh, the Internet!
*30 Seconds to Mars? Hahahaha dude you just won an Oscar. The silliness.
*Liza, you crazy!

Here are some photos from our little Oscar party! Thanks to all who spent the evening with us!

Double-Bill: Boy Crazy

The Women and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown