Slow-moving (which probably goes hand-in-hand with the source material, a novel that took me two months to read, just for lack of interest), but still rather good. Goulding is an interesting director, he really holds his shots, and he creates the material out of the basic frameworks of the novel. Paul Henreid’s Philip Carey becomes […]
Entries from January 2006
Of Human Bondage (1946, Edmund Goulding)
January 9th, 2006 No Comments
Recommend on MahaloThe Tales of Hoffmann (1951, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger)
January 8th, 2006 No Comments
In honor of Dennis Arundell’s translation of The Tales of Hoffman’s lyrics (into English), how visually flawless, how totally heartless.
Hoffmann is not an adaptation of the opera, rather a filmic performance. Depending on your opinion, this approach is either the benefit or failure of the film. The performances–hopefully–were meant to be judged on their singing […]
Match Point (2005, Woody Allen)
January 7th, 2006 No Comments
Woody gave an interview in “Entertainment Weekly” of all places and talked about how he’s gone through so many critical ups and downs, he’s not phased by Match Point’s good press. It’s certainly his most commercial film in recent memory… probably since Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex … But Were Afraid to […]
Go (2001, Yukisada Isao)
January 6th, 2006 No Comments
Go opens with an unbelievable shot. Pimples. It opens with the bad skin of the protagonist’s forehead. Once my initial reaction–ick–was over, I started watchingGo wrap itself into a drug-free, fighting-heavy Trainspotting homage. Then it started reminding me of True Romance, if only because the theme sort of sounds like it (the one from Badlands). […]
The Rainmaker (1997, Francis Ford Coppola)
January 4th, 2006 No Comments
The Rainmaker’s got some beautiful stuff in it. My history with it is somewhat sorted… I discovered it on DVD, then abandoned it–and have now rediscovered it. I can’t remember what my last problem with it was–probably the same as my current one–but I was selling DVDs and needed cash.
It’s not perfect and has some […]
The Golden Coach (1953, Jean Renoir)
January 4th, 2006 No Comments
I hate the wad-shooting reviews, because they usually mean someone great is falling or has fallen into mediocrity or worse. Here’s another one.
I’ve never seen late period (1950s-) Renoir film before, or even one of his Hollywood films, but I’ve heard bad things. The Golden Coach is certainly a bad thing. It’s got a bad […]
