Post by: snowcat on June 13, 2010, 08:03:16 PM
I doubt ill be happy with any of these either :p but I just love that fresh thread smell!
Wes Anderson Films
The Darjeeling Limited (http://www.dvdcollectorsonline.com/index.php/topic,6411.msg114550.html#msg114550)
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (http://www.dvdcollectorsonline.com/index.php/topic,6411.msg114671.html#msg114671)
Rushmore (http://www.dvdcollectorsonline.com/index.php/topic,6411.msg114694.html#msg114694)
The Royal Tenenbaums (http://www.dvdcollectorsonline.com/index.php/topic,6411.msg115051.html#msg115051)
Bottle Rocket (http://www.dvdcollectorsonline.com/index.php/topic,6411.msg115390.html#msg115390)
Post by: snowcat on June 13, 2010, 08:10:44 PM
Running Time: 89 Minutes
Director: Wes Anderson
Stars: Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman
Trailer:
Review
Wes Anderson is known for his stories of dysfunctional families and dead pan humour from Bottle Rocket to the Royal Tenenbaums there is a certain uniqueness about his style that is just as prominent in The Darjeeling Limited.
After years of no contact stemming from their father’s death, Francis invites brothers Peter and Jack on a spiritual train journey of India. Wanting the brothers to go back to “how they used to be” Francis plans out an entire journey aided by his assistant Brendan, Francis creates an excessively detailed daily plan much to the annoyance of his brothers. but after the train gets “lost” its up to the brothers to make their own spiritual path and become brothers once again.
Anderson is known for his front facing camera angles they give his characters a sense of apprehension and intensity that combined with his dead pan style only compliment the frequent collaborators of his films. Owen Wilson shines as oldest brother Francis, Wilson always seems comfortable playing a character in one of Wes Anderson's film which helps the viewer become immersed in the story. The Darjeeling Limited also features regular Anderson film contributor Jason Schwartzman who made his acting debut in the film Rushmore, Schwartzman’s plays the sensitive younger brother Jack effortlessly and Adrian Brody's performance of Peter the self proclaimed “fathers favourite” is superb. Showing that as usual Anderson knows how to cast a film.
Films often portray the idea of a Spiritual Journey as something enlightening, and this film is no exception although it does not go to plan the enlightenment and life defining moments that are often linked with these journeys are still present, and help propel the story forwards. The film is well structured slowly feeding you information about the brothers past and only flashing back once to explain the parts which are not discussed by the trio, we discover that Francis has been in a life threatening accident (which is obvious from the outset, due to his bandages and bruises) That Peter is a soon to be father who is afraid of his relationship predicting it will end in divorce, and that Jack who after writing a story that reflects his life (to which he denies the similarities frequently) is still obsessively pinning over his ex girlfriend.
The Darjeeling Limited is preceded by a 13 minute short film called “Hotel Chevalier” in this short we discover more about Jack relationship with his ex girlfriend (Natalie Portman) who remains nameless in the film. The film features a strong soundtrack of music form the “Cinema of India” featuring many composers such as the Bengali composer Satyajit Ray. Other contributing artists include the Kinks and Peter Sardtedt’s hit “Where do you go to my Lovely?” which also features prominently in the preceding short film.
Upon first watch I did not enjoy this film, it wasn't until the next day when I couldn't stop thinking about that I realised I had in fact enjoyed it, this is a problem I seem to have with all of Wes Anderson's films, I dislike them until I have time to think about their true meaning, something that goes deeper then the humour and wide-angle lenses. The Darjeeling Limited is not an easy film to enjoy nor is it a simple film. It's a film as with many other films that needs a re-watch for a viewer to appreciate the rich colours, beautiful landscape and charming credit roll. To the fans of Wes Anderson, watch this film you won't be disappointed.
Post by: venomsinner on June 13, 2010, 10:47:24 PM
:tease:
...You told me to come read your review like I was gonna like it :redcard:
Post by: snowcat on June 13, 2010, 10:51:00 PM
Post by: Najemikon on June 14, 2010, 12:44:09 AM
Post by: Dragonfire on June 14, 2010, 12:50:04 AM
Post by: snowcat on June 14, 2010, 09:06:46 AM
Marie, I think like his other films its just hard to watch, I think its his style
Post by: Dragonfire on June 14, 2010, 09:33:41 AM
Post by: snowcat on June 14, 2010, 09:35:59 AM
Post by: Dragonfire on June 14, 2010, 09:46:00 AM
Post by: snowcat on June 14, 2010, 08:08:10 PM
Running Time: 119 minutes
Director: Wes Anderson
Stars: Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett, Anjelica Huston, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum
Trailer:
Review
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is your typical Wes Anderson movie, it features dysfunctional families, dead pan humour the “Rostrum Camera technique” and Owen Wilson. It also features Bill Murray paying homage to one of the greatest underwater explorers of the 20th century “Jacques Cousteau”
Steve Zissou is a fallen from grace Oceanographer and film maker, his last film resulted in his best friend Esteban du Plantier being eaten by the mysterious “Jaguar Shark” (An animal Zissou named with the first two words that came to his head) Zissou’s next project will be to document the destruction of the Jaguar Shark to get revenge for his friend. After watching his last film public perception is down and investors are running low, Zissou has become a joke amongst his contemporaries. Cue ‘possible’ son Ned who after his mother's death inherits over $200,000. Zissou hires Ned as part of “Team Zissou” and the documentation of this journey begins.
As I mentioned previously the film features the “Rostrum Camera Technique” this technique is used frequently on many animals in the film including the “Crayon Pony Fish” a colourful type of seahorse.
(http://www.awn.com/files/imagepicker/1/life01_LifeAquatic-seahorse.jpg)
The rostrum technique uses a special type of mounted camera to create 2D animation cells, it captures one frame at a time, as time consuming as this once was, this kind of technique can be recreated via a computer controlled camera which can take varying shots of each frame.
The film switches between the what is “really” happening and what is being “filmed” for the documentary that will help Zissou destroy the Jaguar shark, to break up scenes the film uses title cards that set the film out like a documentary, for example “Day 14” will appear on screen to create a sense of time lapsing.
Besides the crestfallen Steve Zissou, played by Bill Murry we have the other members of Team Zissou, There is Klaus Daimler (Willem Dafoe) who sees Zissou as a father figure, Klaus is second in command and jealous of the attention Ned, (Owen Wilson) Zissous “Possible” son is getting. Ned who becomes a producer a short way into the film after using his inheritance to help Zissou’s next project. There are also a few minor crew members who play small rolls in the film such as safety expert Pelé dos Santos and camera man Vikram Ray. Other cast members who are on the boat include reporter Jane Winslett-Richardson (Cate Blanchett) who is pregnant with her married bosses child and Eleanor Zissou (Anjelica Houston) Steve Zissou’s wife and ex girlfriend of his ultimate rival Alistair Hennessey. (Jeff Golblum) The cast are superb and all play their roles excellently, the sometimes over acted scenes the actors create for the in film project are often amusing but it's the “real” situations that are the funniest.
The film has a very soft soundtrack which features a variety of instrumental and vocal pieces created by Mark Mothersbaugh, who until this point had created the soundtrack to every previous Wes Anderson film. The soundtrack also features a variety of David Bowie songs, in the film Zissou team member Pelé dos Santos (Seu Jorge) Safety expert and musician, plays David Bowie songs whilst singing in Portuguese, many of the songs sung by Seu Jorge are only available on the second Soundtrack CD of the film “The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions”
I've mentioned before that when I watch a Wes Anderson movie I don't think I enjoy it until after I have had time to think about it, It took me a while but I eventually came to the conclusion that I did enjoy this film from its slow start all the way up until the tear jerking final scene. As usual the offbeat, deadpan humour Anderson writes is perfectly placed and Bill Murry plays Steve Zissou flawlessly
Post by: venomsinner on June 14, 2010, 09:34:48 PM
Whats next? Rushmore, Bottle Rocket.... The Royal Tenenbaums? :p
Post by: snowcat on June 14, 2010, 11:07:59 PM
Running time: 93 minutes
Director: Wes Anderson
Stars: Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Olivia Williams
Trailer:
Review
Jason Schwartzman makes his acting debut in Rushmore, a film that launched Wes Andersons career and re-launched Bill Murray as a independent cinema actor. As usual Rushmore is typical of Wes Andersons films featuring many slow motion shots similar to the final scene of The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.
Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) is an eccentric 15 year old and student of the prestigious Rushmore school, he is a scholarship student and the school is his life, unfortunately for Max he is known amongst the faculty for being a poor academic student, even though he is a highly credited extracurricular student. It is at school that Max meets Herman Blume (Bill Murray) a multimillionaire who is unsatisfied with his life and his children. Max also meets new teacher Rosemary Cross who arrives at the academy after the death of her husband who was an ex Rushmore student. After an attempt to create a ground breaking Aquarium to impress Ms Cross, Max is Expelled and forced to take matters into his own hands.
Rushmore has a kind of heightened reality about it, almost like a Roald Dahl book to which it is often compared to, as it features situations which would not be viable in real life, such as Max extravagant plays as well as his friendship and subsequent conflicts with Herman. It has been said that it was Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson's (Who co-wrote the film) intentions to create this kind of atmosphere, the story being based of their own experiences as teenagers in prep schools.
Rushmore frequently uses slow motion shots to capture important moments for example when Max leaves the lift after visiting Herman’s hotel room. Similarly to his other films Wes Anderson uses alot of close up shots with actors looking directly into the camera for emphasis and to heighten emotional moments.
Rushmore’s soundtrack was composed by Mark Mothersbaugh who has composed a couple of soundtracks for Anderson, in the linear notes for the CD Soundtrack it states that Anderson wanted the soundtrack to be made up of songs by “The Kinks” although that concept changed in the years between conception and creation until just one song by “The Kinks” remained. The soundtrack evolved to feature a host of British 60’s hits, Anderson had envisioned Max to be a British exchange student, although this changed the film does feature a Scottish student who is seen as a bully.
This film single handily changed my opinion of Jason Schwartzman, Before I had seen this I thought of him as a mediocre actor that was often lumped with some comedy stars to pick up on the jokes and look innocent, his performance in The Darjeeling Limited was one of the reasons for this. The only other films I really remember him being in are his guest appearance as George Harrisson in Walk Hard and his performance in Funny People which although I have seen the movie twice and he plays a main part I do not remember him standing out. Rushmore has shocked me, not only am I impressed with Jason Schwartzman I think I am going to have to go back and re-think him in The Darjeeling Limited.
I have given Rushmore a positive review because it’s an ok film with solid performances but if I’m honest, I doubt ill watch it again if I do I will undoubtedly fast forward through the parts that bored me and watch the parts I enjoyed. Maybe I need a couple of days to rethink this film, but like Bottle Rocket I just didn’t enjoy it as much as Andersons other films.
Post by: Najemikon on June 14, 2010, 11:26:50 PM
I say so because I really didn't like it on first viewing, but couldn't forget it and now really like it as one of Anderson's absolute best. It's the... 'persistence' of style throughout his films that finally wins you over, I think. The finale of the Vietnam play is just superb.
The only films of Anderson's I liked on first viewing were Darjeeling and The Royal Tenenbaums. The latter was a favourite cinema experience of mine. The place was packed, I was sat between two friends and honestly, I found it hilarious. Even funnier was that I and only one other guy down to the far left laughed at all! My mates were dumbstruck. :laugh:
Only Gene Hackman's answer to "but who stabbed you?" got a proper laugh from everyone. :whistle:
Post by: snowcat on June 14, 2010, 11:43:07 PM
The Royal Tenenbaum's was the firs Wes Anderson film I saw, I loved it straight off, no thinking it over needed I will be reviewing it soon as well as re-writting my Bottle Rocket review :laugh:
The Royal Tenebaums features one of my all time favourite scenes in a film ever
(click to show/hide)
Post by: snowcat on June 16, 2010, 11:27:36 PM
Running Time: 109 Minutes
Director: Wes Anderson
Stars: Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Stiller, Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Danny Glover, Bill Murray
Trailer:
Review
The Royal Tenenbaums features a cast of Wes Anderson regulars although it also sees a new technique in Wes Andersons film making style narration, which only helps but lift the dead pan spirit of the film
The Tenebaum siblings are an extremely gifted group of kids, they excel during their childhood becoming successful at early ages but as they get older they seem to lose track of themselves, their skills and each other. Royal Tenenbaum is the head of the family until his divorce with the children's mother Etheline. As the film switches to the present we see that Royal has been living in a hotel for the last few years, but his funds have ran dry and he is to be evicted, he sees his chance at getting back into the family home when Pagoda Royal's friend, informant and the families butler tells Royal of the families problems.
As usual with Wes Anderson's films The Royal Tenenbaums features many of his usual techniques such as front facing camera angles, strangely he does not use the Rostrum Camera technique in this film, I say strangely because the film features a lot of “Dalmatian mice” in previous films, mainly “The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou” The animals were created using this technique. My theory on the use of real mice is that it looks more realistic which fits the style better. the Royal Tenenbaums also has the Hyper realism factor of Rushmore the children could easily fit in to a Roald Dahl story. Another Anderson staple that made it into the film was Typography, the film features many title card-esque scenes and even has chapter breaks which are presented as a page of a book, the book describes the scene as it is about to be played out. Different fonts are also used to distinguish between the family and non-family members.
I mentioned previously that the film is narrated, the film is set out like a novel, possibly to represent the “Genius” of the Tenenbaum children. Another staple of Anderson's films is to feature a character underwater, increasing the number of characters underwater by each film, The Royal Tenenbaums is Anderson's third film and features three characters underwater at one point in the film, the film also emphasises the number three on a few occasions. Finally the film also features the typical slow motion ending that is a frequent occurrence in Anderson's films, with the exception of the Darjeeling Limited.
The Royal Tenenbaums is probably Wes Anderson's true dysfunctional family film, Royal leaves the family early on and maintains little contact, the children all experience great success as children and greater disappointment as adults, the clothes of the characters do not really change, there is a strong sense of 70’s style in the characters as Anderson wanted the characters to seem as though they were stuck in their “hay day” eras. The Tenenbaum children played by Ben Stiller (Chas Tenenbaum) , Gwyneth Paltrow (Margot Tenenbaum) and Luke Wilson (Richie Tenenbaum) are all incredibly strong characters who all stand out, as does childhood friend of Richie, Eli Cash (Owen Wilson) who has always wanted to be one of the Tenebaums. Of course, Billy Murray and Danny Glover get special mentions, although playing minor roles both of them contribute greatly to the comedy and mood of the film.
The Soundtrack as usual was composed by Mark Mothersbaugh and features a typical mixture of songs from the 60’s 70’s and 80’s. Some of the film's most memorable scenes are complimented by the strong soundtrack, those of you who have seen it will probably remember the scene in which the Elliot Smith song “Needle in the Hay” plays over the top, other memorable scenes include Richies bird Mordecai first flight in the film which is shown as the “Naa naa” part of Hey Jude kicks in. The soundtrack also features the Rolling Stones yet another typical Anderson Trademark.
The Royal Tenenbaums is my favourite Wes Anderson film, it was the first of his films I watched without having to think about whether or not I liked it afterwards, the subtle and dark humour work well and the cast compliment the story. It may have been the ensemble cast that did it for me, but I do like a film with a big cast. I watched this film twice in a row because I enjoyed it so much, I also found it to be laugh out loud funny, something I did not find in his other films.
Post by: Antares on June 16, 2010, 11:29:48 PM
Post by: snowcat on June 16, 2010, 11:45:54 PM
I think I was a little harsh with Rushmore, alot of people compare Rushmore and the Tenenbaums.... Personally the only comparison I see is the Hyper realism :hmmmm: maybe im missing something.
if you get a chance though watch Rushmore, Jason Schwartzman is great in it!
Post by: Najemikon on June 17, 2010, 12:23:56 AM
Wonderful film. You've tempted me to watch it again!
Post by: snowcat on June 17, 2010, 12:27:08 AM
Wonderful film. You've tempted me to watch it again!
Then my review has worked! :tease:
I agree that there are alot of similarities, but I think they are different films entirely ;p
One thing I love about Wes Andersons films are the subtle little links he has in all of his films, ive mentioned most of them now between the reviews but I always find it interesting to see them :p
Post by: snowcat on June 19, 2010, 12:26:59 PM
Running Time 92 mins
Director: Wes Anderson
Stars: Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, James Caan
Trailer:
Review
Based on a short shot in 1992, Bottle Rocket is Wes Anderson's directorial debut, despite featuring long time actor James Caan the film also features the acting debuts of both Owen and Luke Wilson. Although commercially Bottle Rocket was a failure it drew critical attention to Wes Anderson and helped launch his career.
As the film opens we see a very young Owen Wilson carrying out an elaborate rescue attempt to get Anthony (Luke Wilson) Out of a voluntary mental hospital. After the "rescue" Dignan (Owen Wilson) and Anthony take no time in breaking into a house, taking things from a list and leaving via the front door. Next we meet getaway driver Bob Mapplethorpe (Robert Musgrave) The three go out out buy guns then return to Bobs house to plan their next heist, it's here we also hear talk of the mysterious “Mr Henry”
The original black and white short of Bottle Rocket was made in 1994, It starred Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson and Robert Musgrave, it was received very well at the USA Film Festival in Dallas from there it went on to similar positive acclaim at the Sundance festival which is where Anderson met screen writer Kit Carson. From there it was decided on a feature length version which would hold the same story as the short.
You can watch the original short here (Contains Spoilers)
(click to show/hide)
There are a differences between the short and the film but the main story is the same with many of the same situations happening in both versions.
The short was originally supposed to contain well known actors but due to budget restraints the Wilson brothers had to act. Owen Wilson had no intention of acting in the film as he was a writer. The feature length version of the film was a flop holding the worst test screen scores of the time at Columbia Pictures, because of this Owen Wilson seriously considered giving up acting to join the marines, I think Wes Anderson's subsequent films have proven that it's a good job he didn't.
Visually the film is very indy looking as with many of Anderson's films, it features the typical close up shots but not so much of the dead pan humour he is known for. The first underwater shot of a character in a Wes Anderson film features in Bottle Rocket when Luke Wilson's character goes swimming at the Motel, this technique would go on to be in all of his subsequent films with an additional character underwater in each film. And as usual the film ends in slow motion.
The soundtrack was composed yet again by Mark Mothersbaugh and unlike the regular mix of 60’s pop features a very dominant mix of tracks by Mothersbaugh, As usual Anderson used songs by the Rolling stones in the film featuring 3 songs that were not put on the CD release of the soundtrack, the Rolling Stones generally don't permit their songs to be put on soundtrack Cd's
My main criticism of Bottle Rocket is that it feel like three films squashed together, upon watching the short I realise why, what I would call “section 1” of the film is covered in a 13 minute short, something that is dragged out to around 20 or so minutes in the feature length version. This is the only Wes Anderson film I did not enjoy, I've watched it twice now and I can still only find small things I like about it. I enjoy the humour and the characters but think the story is sometimes weak and patchy. This film is supposedly in Martin Scorsese's “Top 10 films of the 90’s” Maybe he sees something that I'm missing. Overall, one for the Wes Anderson fans only id say.
Post by: snowcat on June 19, 2010, 12:31:41 PM
Post by: Jimmy on June 19, 2010, 05:40:49 PM
Post by: venomsinner on June 20, 2010, 07:10:44 PM
You know, until I got this new hearing aid (deaf in my left ear) I did not realise Emma complained so much :P
Post by: snowcat on June 20, 2010, 08:09:56 PM
..Complaining again Emma?... I thought you liked Wes Anderson.
You know, until I got this new hearing aid (deaf in my left ear) I did not realise Emma complained so much :P
:redcard:
...I think you should turn your hearing aid down so you don't hear the obscenities im sending your way!
Post by: Achim on June 21, 2010, 06:14:16 AM
Now you sound like my parents. My mom is deaf on the left ear and lies on the left side of the bed. So, if she lies on her right side, facing my father, her right ear is covered by the pillow. My father will occasionally just flap his mouth and she will jump up asking "What did you say", upon which he'll just laugh.
Post by: snowcat on June 21, 2010, 09:10:57 AM
I used to say things to him all the time and he couldn't hear them :laugh: Now he hears everything :( lol
Post by: samuelrichardscott on June 21, 2010, 09:35:47 AM
Post by: snowcat on June 21, 2010, 09:49:11 AM
I made my mum watch the Royal Tenenbaums, when it started she didn't seem to be enjoying it so I explained to her that is is deliberately set out like a Roald Dahl book she seemed to change the way she watched it, she enjoyed in the end with her only comments being "I liked it..... but its different" I think she summed it up well.
Post by: snowcat on June 22, 2010, 10:02:33 PM
Now, I wished to review his films one after the other however for some reason I had to watch Jurassic Park today so the reviews will now be alternate
PT Anders
JP
PT
JP
etc ;p until I run out of films
(Disclaimer.... I checked my Punch Drunk Love DVD earlier and have found that it is scartched beyond being able to work, it was bought this way unfortunately, so I will be reviewing it last when I have had a chance to buy a new copy.)
Post by: snowcat on June 22, 2010, 10:04:29 PM
Running Time: 102 Minutes
Director: Paul Thomas Amnderson
Stars: Phillip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson.
Trailer:
Review
Hard Eight features the typical accidental love story that feature so predominantly in Paul Thomas Andersons films, although unlike his later films it does not feature a large ensemble cast.
As the film opens we see Sydney (Phillip Baker Hall) walk towards a diner, huddled outside sits a young man, John (John C. Reilly). Sydney offers to buy John a cup of coffee and a cigarette we see the two at a table inside the diner. Sydney questions John about how he got there, we discover John came from Las Vegas, although he broke even he still does not have enough money to bury his mother. Sydney tells John he will not win the $6000 he needs but tells John he will “Teach him what he did wrong”
Paul Thomas Anderson films are known for a few things, large ensemble casts, family relationships of which are predominately strained, interweaving storylines, characters who accidently find love (at work or in a strange situation) and the idea of “divine fate” or god choosing a characters path. Being Paul Thomas Andersons first film Hard Eight does not feature all of these themes like Magnolia and Boogie Nights do, It does however feature a selection of these themes which help to show his roots, firstly “Family relationships” is a strong theme which features in Hard Eight, throughout the film we see Sydney and Johns relationship develop into an “Father & son” like relationship this strengthens the story by adding a sense of intrigue as to why Sydney is doing this. We also see a couple of other themes in the film such as serendipitous love and idea of divine fate.
Paul Thomas Anderson is known for using certain actors in multiple productions, Hard Eight starts this, with John C. Reilly and Phillip Baker Hall appearing in the next two films of Andersons and Phillip Seymour Hoffman (Who plays a minor role in Hard Eight) going to take parts in three more of Andersons films. Phillip Baker Hall plays Sydney perfectly creating an air of mystery but undeniable lovableness about the character and John C. Reilly plays John just as well, playing Sydney’s naive childlike companion.
One of Paul Thomas Andersons staples is the use of tracking shots at the beginning of films, similarly to that of Boogie Nights Hard Eight also features a tracking shot at the beginning, bringing the spectator straight in to the action. Hard Eight was originally titled Sydney but was renamed when the studio believed people would think it was a film about Australia, the film was also supposed to be well over 2 hours long but producer Robert Jones refused this firing PT Anderson and his editor and making his own cut of the film.
The Soundtrack to Hard Eight is very small and featuring just four songs, two of which being Christmas songs, the film relies heavily on character development to create the atmosphere of the film and not so much on a soundtrack. This is referenced in the astonishingly small soundtrack.
From the outset Hard Eight was a film I instantly liked, I am a fan of PT Andersons films and whilst I can’t choose which is my favourite film by this director Hard Eight is in my top films. I like to think that PT Andersons had proven already (with this film) that his films would not be a disappointment to his fans something I fully believed until watching There Will Be Blood which I will discuss during that review. Overall I think Hard Eight is a great character study and a solid film one I would recommend, and one that deserves the attention Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch-Drunk Love and There Will Be Blood gets.
Post by: Dr. Hasslein on November 14, 2010, 09:45:06 AM
It's one of my all time favourite films. I remember when I first saw as a teenager. I had never seen or heard of Jason Schwartzman before, and as I'm sitting there watching him I'm thinking this guy is amazing. He kind of resembles Stanley Tucci. One part of the film I use to re-watch constantly was the little montage of Max's extra curricular activities; the song "Making Time' suits it's perfectly.
Post by: snowcat on November 14, 2010, 11:26:17 AM
Post by: Dr. Hasslein on November 14, 2010, 11:38:37 AM
Post by: snowcat on November 14, 2010, 11:44:29 AM
...but if you really like a film :p it makes sense... afterall .... I have films that I have more then one copy of for various reasons :p
...I actually bought Walk Hard: the Dewey Cox Story on Blu-ray for the bonus features... but that was mainly for the 10 minute extension to the film haha
Post by: Dr. Hasslein on November 14, 2010, 12:00:29 PM
Post by: Antares on November 14, 2010, 06:07:08 PM
Post by: snowcat on December 14, 2010, 02:58:18 PM
Running Time: 188 minutes
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Stars: Tome Cruise, Philip Baker-Hall, Philip Seymour-Hoffman, William H, Macy, Julianne Moore and John C. Rilley
Trailer:
Review
A large ensemble cast, flawed and desperate characters, set in San Fernando Valley? Its probably a PT Anderson film
Magnolia features a large ensemble cast and many intertwining stories. The story can be split into two main parts: the story of Frank TJ Mackey a successful self help guru, his estranged father Earl who is dying of cancer, Earls second wife linda who is much younger then her husband and Phil Parma Earls nurse. the next story is of Stanley a young genius who is currently starring on the show "What Do Kids Know?" the host of the show Jimmy Gator who is also dying of cancer but wants to make things right between himself and his daughter before he dies. Claudia Jimmys daughter and drug addict, Jim Kurring falls in love with her when he is called to her house after neighbours hear a disturbance, and finally Donnie Smith the "Quiz kid" a child genius who stared on "What Do Kids Know?" as a child. the characters spend the film trying to discover happiness and forgiveness.
PT Anderson is know for his typical themes in his films, much like other directors his films try to tackle similar problems. Some of the main themes in Magnolia include dysfunctional families, fathers who fail their children, the search for redemption and faith. Characters like Jimmy Gator (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and Earl (Jason Robards) both have disjointed relationships with their children in the film, There are six basic character types that represent the children of dysfunctional families. Both Jimmy Gator's daughter Claudia and Earls son Frank take on the roles of the "Lost Child" these relationship help propel the story line forward, by linking the smaller self contained stories into to larger story arcs. We also see characters of Jim Kurring, Donnie Smith, Phil Parma, Jimmy Gator, Earl and linda seeking redemption, all of these characters have done something wrong in their lives and have lost people because of this, all characters seek to fix these relationships which helps connect the characters emotionally indirectly as well as create a compelling story and helping create the coincidental ideals that link each character.
Magnolia has two officially released soundtracks, the Soundtrack which features Aimee Mann heavily, what is surprising is that for a relatively large soundtrack a lot of the songs are featured in the film with the cast even singing the song "Wise up". The soundtrack includes the song "Save me", for which Paul Thomas Anderson directed the video. The video features the characters of Magnolia with Aimee Mann singing in the background, the song was nominated for an Academy award but lost out to Phil Collins song "You'll be In My Heart" which was written for the Disney film Tarzan.
The film also has a Score which was composed by Jon Brion. The only song that features on both cds is the song "Magnolia" Jon Brion is a frequent contributer to Andersons films also working on Hard Eight and Boogie Nights and even having a cameo in Boogie Nights as a guitar player.
Magnolia haunts me, it is my all time favorite film. Its an experience, a learning curve and I doubt it could be any better if it was shorter in length, at 3 hours long Magnolia is an epic film, the editing and cinematography are flawless. Magnolia truly is a masterpiece.
Post by: Achim on December 15, 2010, 05:18:56 AM
I love this kind of films, where several stories are told which ultimately touch each other ever so slightly (or more). Short Cuts, 11:04 quickly come to mind (I can't remember seeing Nashville, one of the famous Altman ensemble pieces). Sometimes it's fine to have a large cast like that with the film mainly following the story of one of the characters (Boogie Nights, The Player).
Post by: snowcat on April 15, 2011, 02:19:20 PM
Running Time: 100 minutes
Director: David Slade
Stars: Patrick Wilson, Ellen Page
Trailer:
Hard Candy tells the story of 14-year-old Hayley (Ellen Page) and the older man named Jeff (Patrick Wilson) she meets in an internet chat room, after talking online the two agree to meet in a coffee shop, after this they agree to go back to Jeff's home and photography studio. At Jeff's home a confident Hayley tells jeff she will only drink a drink she poured herself and goes into the kitchen to make them both "screwdrivers" a cocktail mixed with orange Juice and Vodka. But Hayley's warning of "never drinking a drink you did not pour yourself" is about to get a lot more important.
Hard Candy has some amazing camera angles and shots, the cinematic look and almost constant blur of the background make the two main characters prominent in almost every shot. There are a lot of close up shots that help the raw emotion in some scenes come out these extreme close up draw the audience in and help the characters seem more believable in a situation which seem far from it, Although its said that the initial story idea came from producer David Higgins who had read stories from japan about school girls who took revenge on the men that had groomed them via the internet.
What is strange about the characters in the film is both Hayley and jeff are as guilty as each other, at the end of the film we are no closer to discovering who either character really is or what their real connection to any of the major plot points is. both actors give amazing performances as their individual characters something that those extreme close up benefit from greatly.
Interestingly throughout the entire film there is just 9 minutes of music, whats interesting about this is the backing track of the film is generally made up of ambient noise for example breathing sounds, whats more interesting is that the director (David Slade) was originally a music video director. There are just two songs in the film overall.
I really enjoyed Hard Candy, it had me on the edge of my seat, there is a lot of suspense in this relatively short film although i personally felt it could have been shorter, maybe this is because I hate waiting, there is a very long surgery scene" which I admit I thought was too long. For a film with just two characters I can't believe there is just that one point that seemed tedious. overall this film is a great psychological thriller, one id recommend and definitely a great first feature for Slade.
Post by: goodguy on April 15, 2011, 04:01:49 PM
Post by: Achim on April 15, 2011, 07:39:21 PM