Das Leben der Anderen (The Lives of Others)
9/10
Outstanding piece of art.
Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings
The Ghost Writer (Roman Polanski) - 7.5/10
2/3rds Polanski, 1/3rd Grisham depending on the breaks. It's a lot of fun. The formalism Polanski-for-hire brings to the table (let alone his perverse fun with performances) is invigorating, but the precise moment this movie reveals its hand with what is *really* at stake, it all feels kind of rote. This does not detract from just how smartly done the rest of the film is. If Polanski never makes another movie, this final shot alone warrants its canonic inclusion.
2/3rds Polanski, 1/3rd Grisham depending on the breaks. It's a lot of fun. The formalism Polanski-for-hire brings to the table (let alone his perverse fun with performances) is invigorating, but the precise moment this movie reveals its hand with what is *really* at stake, it all feels kind of rote. This does not detract from just how smartly done the rest of the film is. If Polanski never makes another movie, this final shot alone warrants its canonic inclusion.
"How's the despair?"
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Precious Doll
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Barcelona (2007) Ventura Pons 7/10
The Devil's Disciple (1959) Guy Hamilton 4/10
The Case Against Brooklyn (1958) Paul Wendkos 5/10
Mesrine: Killer Instinct (2008) & Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1 (2008) Jean-Francois Richet 5/10
The Story of Alexander Graham Bell (1939) Irving Cummings 4/10
Frontiers of the Dawn (2008) Philippe Garrel 6/10
The Prowler (1951) Joseph Losey 4/10
Heart of Fire (2008) Luigi Falorni 5/10
38 (1986) Wolfgang Gluck 5/10
A Single Man (2009) Tom Ford 9/10
The Blind Side (2009) John Lee Hancock 2/10
The Devil's Disciple (1959) Guy Hamilton 4/10
The Case Against Brooklyn (1958) Paul Wendkos 5/10
Mesrine: Killer Instinct (2008) & Mesrine: Public Enemy No. 1 (2008) Jean-Francois Richet 5/10
The Story of Alexander Graham Bell (1939) Irving Cummings 4/10
Frontiers of the Dawn (2008) Philippe Garrel 6/10
The Prowler (1951) Joseph Losey 4/10
Heart of Fire (2008) Luigi Falorni 5/10
38 (1986) Wolfgang Gluck 5/10
A Single Man (2009) Tom Ford 9/10
The Blind Side (2009) John Lee Hancock 2/10
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
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Big Magilla
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According to Peter Bogdanovich in his interview on the Criterion DVD of Make Way for Tomorrow, My Son John, like the earlier film, is about the dissolution of family. Communism is merely the plot device that gets us there.
I'm not sure the film would have been any better had Walker been an alcoholic or a drug addict instead of a Communist, but it certainly would have a different one.
I'm not sure the film would have been any better had Walker been an alcoholic or a drug addict instead of a Communist, but it certainly would have a different one.
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Mister Tee
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I took a break from Oscar-researching and finally watched My Son John over the weekend.
The film clearly reflects the hysteria of the era, but I don't think it can be summarily dismissed -- there's too much going on under the surface. It's as if McCarey and his writer Mahin were too talented to simply do the simplistic red scare movie they signed on for. The narrative certainly goes bonkers in the final half-hour, but prior to that it does some fairly interesting things.
Most intriguing, to me, is how the opening hour or so set up the family dynamic. The blowhard reactionary father, the more free-thinking son, the mother trying to keep peace -- these were all staples of the American theatre from Odets through Arthur Miller (and the film, with its longish dialogue scenes and interior settings, feels more like a play than a film). The thing is, in those films (and in the 60s/70s rebellious films that followed), audiences were expected to mostly empathize with the son, and I think many will here, too. Perhaps Bruno carryover was expecteded to render Walker's John Jefferson a villain from the start, but he's so witty and such an original thinker that I was with him most of the way -- certainly when compared to Jagger's father, who, as Damien said elsewhere, is not idealized, but a bullying, sanctimonious hard-drinker. When, in the "third act", Helen Hayes suddenly tells us we need to revere this man's way of thinking because of his great heart, it doesn't ring all the way true -- as if the writers were trying to convince themselves of something they didn't actually believe.
And, honestly, how many writers can write a sincere paean to authority and conformism? Because that's what McCarey ends up (unconvincingly) advocating. He has Helen Hayes specifically endorse all Walker's views on embracing the future and helping the downtrodden -- but, when push comes to shove, she (and McCarey) seem to think if fixing society's wrongs means standing up to the authority, of the patriarchy and the church, it's better to just abandon all hope. (And, as Damien points out, the film specifically spotlights the futility of expecting the church to do much about society's situation, given the image of the useless umbrella donated to the clothing drive) I'd love to have been around at the time to ask McCarey to explain how any societal goals are supposed to be met under those restrictions.
Walker's death mid-shoot has been widely documented, and I presume it led to those silent phone calls in the last reel. But I didn't realize until Osborne said it post-film that the entire climax was rewritten to accommodate his absence (coupled with his having voice-recorded the final speech). This is an example of a lucky accident: the image of the tape recorder played to the graduating audience is far more singular than Walker making the speech in person would have been.
You can see, in the film, the foundation of the far-right wing of the Republican party. The sneering comtempt for education and science, the reverence for religion and "gut feeling" -- it's all right out of Bill O'Reilly (or Stephen Colbert). One difference: at the time, McCarthyism cut across both parties in a lingering New Deal era, so there was at least lip service to caring about society's less-well-offs. Now, with the movement firmly associated with the GOP, that element has been cast aside -- what remains is the demonization and reliance on fear, the worst legacy of this era.
In all, I can't say I liked the film, but I don't think it gets even close to Reefer Madness self-parody status. It gets at nagging things, even if unintentionally, and is well worth looking at.
The film clearly reflects the hysteria of the era, but I don't think it can be summarily dismissed -- there's too much going on under the surface. It's as if McCarey and his writer Mahin were too talented to simply do the simplistic red scare movie they signed on for. The narrative certainly goes bonkers in the final half-hour, but prior to that it does some fairly interesting things.
Most intriguing, to me, is how the opening hour or so set up the family dynamic. The blowhard reactionary father, the more free-thinking son, the mother trying to keep peace -- these were all staples of the American theatre from Odets through Arthur Miller (and the film, with its longish dialogue scenes and interior settings, feels more like a play than a film). The thing is, in those films (and in the 60s/70s rebellious films that followed), audiences were expected to mostly empathize with the son, and I think many will here, too. Perhaps Bruno carryover was expecteded to render Walker's John Jefferson a villain from the start, but he's so witty and such an original thinker that I was with him most of the way -- certainly when compared to Jagger's father, who, as Damien said elsewhere, is not idealized, but a bullying, sanctimonious hard-drinker. When, in the "third act", Helen Hayes suddenly tells us we need to revere this man's way of thinking because of his great heart, it doesn't ring all the way true -- as if the writers were trying to convince themselves of something they didn't actually believe.
And, honestly, how many writers can write a sincere paean to authority and conformism? Because that's what McCarey ends up (unconvincingly) advocating. He has Helen Hayes specifically endorse all Walker's views on embracing the future and helping the downtrodden -- but, when push comes to shove, she (and McCarey) seem to think if fixing society's wrongs means standing up to the authority, of the patriarchy and the church, it's better to just abandon all hope. (And, as Damien points out, the film specifically spotlights the futility of expecting the church to do much about society's situation, given the image of the useless umbrella donated to the clothing drive) I'd love to have been around at the time to ask McCarey to explain how any societal goals are supposed to be met under those restrictions.
Walker's death mid-shoot has been widely documented, and I presume it led to those silent phone calls in the last reel. But I didn't realize until Osborne said it post-film that the entire climax was rewritten to accommodate his absence (coupled with his having voice-recorded the final speech). This is an example of a lucky accident: the image of the tape recorder played to the graduating audience is far more singular than Walker making the speech in person would have been.
You can see, in the film, the foundation of the far-right wing of the Republican party. The sneering comtempt for education and science, the reverence for religion and "gut feeling" -- it's all right out of Bill O'Reilly (or Stephen Colbert). One difference: at the time, McCarthyism cut across both parties in a lingering New Deal era, so there was at least lip service to caring about society's less-well-offs. Now, with the movement firmly associated with the GOP, that element has been cast aside -- what remains is the demonization and reliance on fear, the worst legacy of this era.
In all, I can't say I liked the film, but I don't think it gets even close to Reefer Madness self-parody status. It gets at nagging things, even if unintentionally, and is well worth looking at.
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anonymous1980
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Precious Doll
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Love Exposure (2009) Shion Sono 7/10
The Fish Child (2009) Lucia Puenzo 4/10
The Blood of Others (1984) Claude Chabrol 6/10
Katalin Varga (2009) Peter Strickland 5/10
The Rainbow Thief (1990) Alejandro Jodorowsky 6/10
Shutter Island (2010) Martin Scorsese 2/10
The Fabulous Baron von Munchausen (1961) Karel Zeman 4/10
Crazy Heart (2009) Scott Cooper 4/10
The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom (1968) Joe McGrath 4/10
The Fish Child (2009) Lucia Puenzo 4/10
The Blood of Others (1984) Claude Chabrol 6/10
Katalin Varga (2009) Peter Strickland 5/10
The Rainbow Thief (1990) Alejandro Jodorowsky 6/10
Shutter Island (2010) Martin Scorsese 2/10
The Fabulous Baron von Munchausen (1961) Karel Zeman 4/10
Crazy Heart (2009) Scott Cooper 4/10
The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom (1968) Joe McGrath 4/10
"I want cement covering every blade of grass in this nation! Don't we taxpayers have a voice anymore?" Peggy Gravel (Mink Stole) in John Waters' Desperate Living (1977)
Here's another thread where I haven't posted enough lately. Here's a bunch of films I've seen during the past month or so.
Miracle (Gavin O'Connor, 2004) 7.5/10
The Big Knife (Robert Aldrich, 1955) between 8.5 and 9/10
Twentieth Century (Howard Hawks, 1934) 4.5/10
Still Life (Jia Zhang Ke, 2006) between 8 and 8.5/10
Stop-Loss (Kimberley Peirce, 2008) 2/10
The Flame and the Lemon (Ole Christian Madsen, 2008) 8.5/10
Hunger (Steve McQueen, 2008) 7/10
Boarding Gate (Olivie Assayas, 2008) 6/10
It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (Stanley Kramer, 1963) between 5.5 and 6/10
--dated
Chop Shop (Ramin Bahrani, 2007) 7.5/10
In Cold Blood (Richard Brooks, 1967) 8/10
Oliver! (Carol Reed, 1968) 8.5/10
Sweet Sixteen (Ken Loach, 2002) 5.5/10
Our Man in Havana (Carol Reed, 1959) between 7.5 and 8/10
Miracle (Gavin O'Connor, 2004) 7.5/10
The Big Knife (Robert Aldrich, 1955) between 8.5 and 9/10
Twentieth Century (Howard Hawks, 1934) 4.5/10
Still Life (Jia Zhang Ke, 2006) between 8 and 8.5/10
Stop-Loss (Kimberley Peirce, 2008) 2/10
The Flame and the Lemon (Ole Christian Madsen, 2008) 8.5/10
Hunger (Steve McQueen, 2008) 7/10
Boarding Gate (Olivie Assayas, 2008) 6/10
It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (Stanley Kramer, 1963) between 5.5 and 6/10
--dated
Chop Shop (Ramin Bahrani, 2007) 7.5/10
In Cold Blood (Richard Brooks, 1967) 8/10
Oliver! (Carol Reed, 1968) 8.5/10
Sweet Sixteen (Ken Loach, 2002) 5.5/10
Our Man in Havana (Carol Reed, 1959) between 7.5 and 8/10