Movie Recommendations:
1. "Eastern Promises": Another David Cronenberg masterpiece. A natural thematic progression from his previous work, "A History of Violence". A study and a near-perfect film example of the Anti-hero genre...much in the way Eastwood's "High Plains Drifter" challenged you to identify and route for the terribly unsavory protagonist "Drifter" (who in the first 15 minutes of the movie kills 3 men and rapes a woman), Cronenberg dares you to care about Viggo Mortenson's Russian mobster character, a member of the Vory Zarkone. This movie pulls no punches and has some all-out bloody violence ala Godfather Part II. Viggo will win best actor for his portrayal.
2. "No Country for Old Men": Coen brothers master-work. Critics are calling it not only the best filmed picture of the year, but quite possibly the best film the last 3-4 years. I predict that this film will all-out sweep the Oscars. Javier Barden, the psychopathic hit-man (known for his role as the quadriplegic in "The Sea Inside", best foreign film 2005, saw it this weekend, fantastic movie, about Euthanasia if you're interested) is absolutely creepy. Every shot is perfect....every shot!
3. "There will be Blood": by Paul Thomas Anderson. This movie will be seen and appreciated for the next 50 years. Okay, scratch that about Viggo, is there ANYTHING Daniel Day Lewis has done that is NOT just absolutely earth-shatteringly awesome!?!?! He's winning best actor. One quote from the movie that I simply can't get out of my head: Daniel Lewis, in a dead-pan manner, after an oil exec attempts to bully him into selling his oil-rich land, "One day, when you are asleep in your bed, I will go into your home and slip your throat...silence"....HOLY SHIT!!
4. "Capote": Bennet Miller director. I know this is a year old but we just saw this film. The story behind one of the important novels written in the last century "In Cold Blood". WOW, every scene is soo finely crafted, soo utterly deliberate! Some movies attempt this and it comes off as somnolent. This movie, as with "Nobody Knows" and "Rashoman" by Akira Kurasawa completly sensitizes you to the tiniest detail.
5. "The Lives of Others" or "Leben der Anderen, Das": Directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. Best foreign film 2006, just brilliant. The supertechnician in Germany should see this film. A story about the STASI, the East German secret police, set in the mid 80's.
Note to THEDISCOURSER: Would you please, please, please FINALLY rent some of the following: "City of God" (Life altering), "300" (testosterone pumping), "Sin City" (visually mesmerizing), "Momento" (mind f-king), "Amores Perros" (a gigantic achievement), "Crash" (a little too proselytizing but entertaining none-the-less), "Babel" (epic), "Pan's Labyrinth" (touching), "Water" (my goodness, literally millions, yes MILLIONS rioted against the release of this film! It's that good), and "Princess Mononoke" (felt like a kid again), "Equalibrium" (Gun-Kata baby!),and my guilty pleasure, "The Shooter", stop laughing. I actually liked this film. It's mindless and requires very little investment on your part. You can watch it while working on your new IPhone.
Unfortunately, some of these films will require you to sit down and watch in silence and with no distractions lest you miss some subtle detail or lose some of the emotional impact of the moment. Nonetheless, I think you'd like any one of these films. I won't include any films that require a flowchart to follow...I know how much you hate those.
And if you have the time, please rent some Kurosawa. My personal favorites being: Rashoman, Yojimbo, Sanjoro, Seven Samurai, Ran, and Kagemushu. Once you watch one, you will be hooked. You'll want to watch everyone one of his films! And if you're your feeling L5R'ish, rent "Zatoichi" or ANYTHING from the "Lone Wolf and Cub" series, the story of the Shogunate's Imperial Exectutioner. This captures L5R to the frickin "T"...and no, this ain't "Legend of the Flying Guiottine". They are really quite good, especially Zatoichi.
2. "No Country for Old Men": Coen brothers master-work. Critics are calling it not only the best filmed picture of the year, but quite possibly the best film the last 3-4 years. I predict that this film will all-out sweep the Oscars. Javier Barden, the psychopathic hit-man (known for his role as the quadriplegic in "The Sea Inside", best foreign film 2005, saw it this weekend, fantastic movie, about Euthanasia if you're interested) is absolutely creepy. Every shot is perfect....every shot!
3. "There will be Blood": by Paul Thomas Anderson. This movie will be seen and appreciated for the next 50 years. Okay, scratch that about Viggo, is there ANYTHING Daniel Day Lewis has done that is NOT just absolutely earth-shatteringly awesome!?!?! He's winning best actor. One quote from the movie that I simply can't get out of my head: Daniel Lewis, in a dead-pan manner, after an oil exec attempts to bully him into selling his oil-rich land, "One day, when you are asleep in your bed, I will go into your home and slip your throat...silence"....HOLY SHIT!!
4. "Capote": Bennet Miller director. I know this is a year old but we just saw this film. The story behind one of the important novels written in the last century "In Cold Blood". WOW, every scene is soo finely crafted, soo utterly deliberate! Some movies attempt this and it comes off as somnolent. This movie, as with "Nobody Knows" and "Rashoman" by Akira Kurasawa completly sensitizes you to the tiniest detail.
5. "The Lives of Others" or "Leben der Anderen, Das": Directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. Best foreign film 2006, just brilliant. The supertechnician in Germany should see this film. A story about the STASI, the East German secret police, set in the mid 80's.
Note to THEDISCOURSER: Would you please, please, please FINALLY rent some of the following: "City of God" (Life altering), "300" (testosterone pumping), "Sin City" (visually mesmerizing), "Momento" (mind f-king), "Amores Perros" (a gigantic achievement), "Crash" (a little too proselytizing but entertaining none-the-less), "Babel" (epic), "Pan's Labyrinth" (touching), "Water" (my goodness, literally millions, yes MILLIONS rioted against the release of this film! It's that good), and "Princess Mononoke" (felt like a kid again), "Equalibrium" (Gun-Kata baby!),and my guilty pleasure, "The Shooter", stop laughing. I actually liked this film. It's mindless and requires very little investment on your part. You can watch it while working on your new IPhone.
Unfortunately, some of these films will require you to sit down and watch in silence and with no distractions lest you miss some subtle detail or lose some of the emotional impact of the moment. Nonetheless, I think you'd like any one of these films. I won't include any films that require a flowchart to follow...I know how much you hate those.
And if you have the time, please rent some Kurosawa. My personal favorites being: Rashoman, Yojimbo, Sanjoro, Seven Samurai, Ran, and Kagemushu. Once you watch one, you will be hooked. You'll want to watch everyone one of his films! And if you're your feeling L5R'ish, rent "Zatoichi" or ANYTHING from the "Lone Wolf and Cub" series, the story of the Shogunate's Imperial Exectutioner. This captures L5R to the frickin "T"...and no, this ain't "Legend of the Flying Guiottine". They are really quite good, especially Zatoichi.
posted by supergoober at
12:48 PM
2 Comments:
Discourser hasn't seen 300 or Sin City yet???? OMG...Dude....I mean if you liked Boondock Saints (I want to thank you for showing me parts of that it happens to be one of my faves). I agree SG....I love Equilibrium...Pan's was weird and Princess Monoke is great. You need to see his other films "Spirited Away" and "Howl's Moving Castle" both anime masterpieces really.
Oops, you're right. I was thinking of "Spirited Away" in fact. I liked that one better. Yep, Discouser has not seen "300" or "Sin City"...WHAT'S WRONG WITH HIM!!! I should have added "13th Warrior". I don't know about you, but I loved that film. It bombed in the box-office but I can't understand why? It ROCKED! I have to check out "Howl's Moving Castle" as well! Thanks for the recommendation!
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