NOW CLOSED ; List some movies you've watched recently. Theatre, rental, TV... and give a */10

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DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
13,428
2,074
126
i'm watching The Big Short on youtube; someone uploaded practically the whole film in 21 sections. Thing is, i've *just* watched the whole 21 sections and now im back again. I'm so addicted to this film.
The only other films i can think of that do this are Whiplash and Charlie Wilson's War.
 

DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
13,428
2,074
126
actually, you' tryin to be smart, but DDD is a pretty darn mediocre film.

If we gotta talk Golden Age Of Porn, Deep Throat is the real masterpiece; not only does it have an actual plot, and character arcs, but it has a themed soundtrack with lyrics !!

(8.5/10 - would recommend)
 

shortylickens

No Lifer
Jul 15, 2003
82,854
17,365
136
I have pirated a ton of vintage porn and Debbie doing dallas is fine smut. If you turn the sound off.
Every music track is just horrible.

Deep Throat has great music.

But my favorites are anything with Ginger Lynn Allen on film.
Unfortunately most of her career was on magnetic video and it looks like dog crap.
 

DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
13,428
2,074
126
hopefully we will nto get the banhammer for talking porn, but there is an easy-to-find complete filmography of Brigitte Lahaie, a french actress also from the golden age, and her films were (although they vary in quality) done in full-on cinematography style; plots, non-porn dialogue, non-nude actors, external shots, gorgeous sets, etc. (AND porn)
I thoroughly recommend them, if nothing else, for the fact that she is absolutely gorgeous. My top pick would be Je Suis A Prendre.
@Mods: it's not porn if it's artistic porn.
 

JEDI

Lifer
Sep 25, 2001
30,160
3,300
126
I have pirated a ton of vintage porn and Debbie doing dallas is fine smut. If you turn the sound off.
Every music track is just horrible.

Deep Throat has great music.

But my favorites are anything with Ginger Lynn Allen on film.
Unfortunately most of her career was on magnetic video and it looks like dog crap.
why do all the vintage films (1970s) have voice overs? :(
cant find one that doesnt
 

JEDI

Lifer
Sep 25, 2001
30,160
3,300
126
Before Sunrise (1995) starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy: 9/10

2 people meeting on the Eurotrain then go for a romantic time in Vienna for a day before they go their separate ways in the morning.

it's part of a trilogy:
Before Sunset (2004), Before Midnight (2013)

Filmed and set at nine-year intervals, each film takes place over the course of a few hours.
Each character ages 9 years each time like it was in real time.
so in the last of the trilogy, it's 18yrs since they first met in their movie world. :eek:
(I haven't watched parts 2 and 3 yet)
Before Sunset (2004) 8/10
(sequel to Before Sunrise, and 2nd part to the trilogy)

Filmed 9 years after the 1st movie.
the setting for this movie also takes place 9years later like it was real time.

didnt like the initial scene where the star is at a book signing in Paris for his book.
it was awkward.

this was supposed to be the last stop of the tour but his answers to questions from the audience were awkward as if he never heard them before.

but those questions seemed normal, like other people probably would have asked in one or more of his previous book signings.
it was just weird.

the rest of the movie is in the same format as the 1st.
he bumps into the girl from the 1st movie. they walk all over the place and talk.
the twist is that he's in a time crunch because he has to catch a plane back to the USA in an hr or so.

they seem to hit it off just like it was the next day and not 9 years later but...
2nd twist: he's married with a 4yr old son.
 
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A Casual Fitz

Diamond Member
May 16, 2005
4,654
1,018
136
Edit: Here's Roger Ebert's review, which is utterly amazingly great and is ample proof of my contention that Ebert was quite simply (at least at times) a brilliant film reviewer.

Ebert was most certainly a genius. It's fun to stumble upon a mediocre movie and find out he gave it 3/4 stars and have him take you through his thought process on why he disagrees with everyone. Even if I don't agree with him I enjoy his words.
 

DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
13,428
2,074
126
i tried briefly (for a minute or so) to watch a tv show called Restaurant Impossible.

I assure you that i am not exagerating, this show has an average of one cut every second. Every one second that the clock ticks, the camera changes subject.

I am incredulous that such things are still allowed to exist and the editor should be punched in the face.
 

snoopy7548

Diamond Member
Jan 1, 2005
8,042
5,035
146
i tried briefly (for a minute or so) to watch a tv show called Restaurant Impossible.

I assure you that i am not exagerating, this show has an average of one cut every second. Every one second that the clock ticks, the camera changes subject.

I am incredulous that such things are still allowed to exist and the editor should be punched in the face.

I used to watch Worst Cooks in America, until one day I realized it was nothing but stupid sound effects and constant camera cuts.

I remember watching cooking shows like Two Fat Ladies when I was a kid, but now they are all just reality TV garbage.
 

DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
13,428
2,074
126
We know this... but still don't know why.
Ebert is a snob. Worse, he is *only* a snob.
The problem with this is that he always judges a film by the same meter, which leads to two common circumstances of him misjudging a film:
1. a film "in the classical tradition" falls short of being a masterpiece, but he rates high for effort. IRL the film is fucking boring.
2. a film does not follow the classical tradition, he shoots it down. IRL the film is amazing.
a quick google shows there are several pages dedicated to just how awful Ebert is: https://www.listchallenges.com/50-bad-moives-that-roger-ebert-like
for example, you get under case 1, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull; it's a film in the tradition of Indiana Jones, Indiana Jones was good, so let's say this film is great.
Again under case 1, he loved The Happening, and he loved in the very nerdy way of the pretentious prick that he is, citing "Shyamalan's use of the landscape". The guy cannot see teh forest for the trees.
But then under case 2, he hates films like Predator, The Usual Suspects, Fear And Loathing ... let me stop at he gave Clockwork Orange two stars.

More than Ebert himself, i condemn the people who put him on the show. Keep in mind that he was on since the 80s, and people believed whatever came out of the TV. And Ebert is no better a movie reviewer (because i *know* the "it's all subjective" gonna come out at some point) than any schmuck from film school, and if anything, he's worse than that.
So, if you are a movie reviewer (who allegedly knows his stuff), you should be able to distinguish between art films for an art audience, and comedy for the comedy audience. If you are so blind that every film has to go through the same sized meat grinder, you should not be on TV hosting a film review show.

AND he was an asshole. Siskel was slightly more down to earth but Ebert always talked over him with that condescending attitude.
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
37,358
8,010
136
Ebert is a snob. Worse, he is *only* a snob.
Silly boy.

To me, Ebert is more about the reviews he wrote (e.g. in Cinemania) than the TV show. I watched that some, but it was different from Ebert the film reviewer. He was there discussing a film with his foil. They agreed, disagreed, agreed to disagree, or didn't, whatever. But I didn't watch that much.

Do I think Ebert always wrote great reviews? No. He wrote some great reviews. Many reviewers AFAICT never wrote a great review in their life.

I hold to the view that there's not a person who ever lived who has written nothing but great film reviews if they've written over 30 of them. It's an impossible task. I have disagreed with many of Ebert's reviews, felt that he didn't get it, period. However, I think I have read more great reviews from him of movies than from anyone else.

Pauline Kael, also in Cinemania, was pretty good, but the reviews from her there were relatively pithy. Maltin's moreso. They say for more from Kael go to her book, but I never have.
 
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DownTheSky

Senior member
Apr 7, 2013
787
156
106
Ikiru and Ghost World. They are both great movies, can't really find a fault on them. I'll rate them based on how much I liked them. 9/10 and 8/10.
 

DigDog

Lifer
Jun 3, 2011
13,428
2,074
126
Im being specific to the TV show, which is why Ebert has a wikipedia page; if he was on online-only critic, he would have been forgotten.
I'm not looking for profound insight from a tv review - i want a summary of what the film's like so that i know if i should spend eight bucks of my dad's money to go see it.

Also .. think about that for a minute. Is it not weird when someone has fairly normal views on any-one-subject, except that they have a ridiculous view on one particular item - idk, a doctor who does not believe in evolution. So, yeah, i do consider that his fails are more important than his successes. It doesn't take a genius to say that La Dolce Vita is a good film, but it takes a complete moron to say that The Godfather II sucks.

FYI, do you know who Dick Steel is? He's not a porn actor.

Just some guy who bashes out review after review on IMDb. And, they are all solid reviews. Not GREAT reviews, but solid reviews, and when they fall outside of the IMDb score, the explanation in the review is clear and concise. Here: https://www.imdb.com/user/ur0317399/reviews

See, it's not hard to find someone better than Ebert as a film critic. More than that, it's not hard to find someone who is better than Ebert at being a film critic, AND who can produce reviews which are useful to the target audience of the film in question. Not everyone wants to watch Out Of Africa on the weekend, y'know.
 

Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
37,358
8,010
136
Im being specific to the TV show, which is why Ebert has a wikipedia page; if he was on online-only critic, he would have been forgotten.
I'm not looking for profound insight from a tv review - i want a summary of what the film's like so that i know if i should spend eight bucks of my dad's money to go see it.

Also .. think about that for a minute. Is it not weird when someone has fairly normal views on any-one-subject, except that they have a ridiculous view on one particular item - idk, a doctor who does not believe in evolution. So, yeah, i do consider that his fails are more important than his successes. It doesn't take a genius to say that La Dolce Vita is a good film, but it takes a complete moron to say that The Godfather II sucks.

FYI, do you know who Dick Steel is? He's not a porn actor.

Just some guy who bashes out review after review on IMDb. And, they are all solid reviews. Not GREAT reviews, but solid reviews, and when they fall outside of the IMDb score, the explanation in the review is clear and concise. Here: https://www.imdb.com/user/ur0317399/reviews

See, it's not hard to find someone better than Ebert as a film critic. More than that, it's not hard to find someone who is better than Ebert at being a film critic, AND who can produce reviews which are useful to the target audience of the film in question. Not everyone wants to watch Out Of Africa on the weekend, y'know.
Ebert did chime in (in Cinemania, although I figure it probably appeared 1st in the Chicago Sun Times) on how to try to minimize your risk of seeing a movie you regret seeing. This is very worth reading, FYI:

How to Watch a Movie
Article from Roger Ebert's Video Companion

April 26, 1994—Twenty-five things you should know about going to the movies:
1. How to Prepare for a Movie
Life is short. Try to avoid, whenever possible, wasting two hours of it on a movie you will not enjoy. Do not trust the ads for two reasons: (1) Until after the opening weekend, most of the critics' quotes are from publicity-hungry lightweights who dictate them straight to the publicists. (2) Serious movies are often marketed with ad campaigns that make them sound like a jolly fun time for all. (MR. JONES, the Richard Gere film about a manic-depressive, had ads that made him look like basically just a very happy guy.) Read the reviews.
2. How to Read a Review
A good critic should provide enough of an idea of a film so that you can decide if you'd like it, whether or not he does. (I once got a call from a reader who asked what I thought about Ingmar Bergman's CRIES AND WHISPERS. I said I thought it was the best film of the year. "Oh, thanks," the reader said. "That doesn't sound like anything we'd like to see.")
3. How to Choose Reviewers
Since you will probably not be attending nine out of ten movies, find someone whose reviews are worth reading for themselves. Go for the writing style, the insights, the asides. Never look for an "objective" critic. All criticism is subjective. I got a letter once from a reader asking me to keep my opinions out of my reviews. I wrote back asking him to keep his opinions out of his letters.
4. If You Have Already Read the Book
Fine. Just remember that the director's only responsibility is to make a good movie, not to be faithful to the book. (Screen adaptations of movies are not marriages, and being "unfaithful to the novel" is not adultery.)
5. If You Have Not Read the Book
You will probably not find time to read it now, before the movie closes, so go ahead and see the movie. As a critic, I enjoy it when I haven't read the book, because my job is to evaluate the movie, not how well it was "adapted." If you enjoy the movie and are thinking of reading the book, remember this curious but often accurate Hollywood law: Many bad books make great movies, but most great books make bad movies.
6. If You Loved the Movie
Find out who directed it, and rent some of the director's other films. The indicator of quality in a film is more likely to be the director than the star or the source.
7. If You Don't Like Subtitles
Resign yourself to missing some of the year's most interesting films. The foreign film market is so precarious in North America that only the very best foreign films get released. That helps explain why "the critics always seem to like foreign films."
8. If You Read the Box Office Charts
Stop. Movies are not a sport, and the "weekend's top grossing film" has not won anything except a lot of money. Since your taste is probably better than most people's, the movies you would like are probably further down on the list, or not there at all.
9. If You Eat During Movies
Reflect that a large popcorn contains as much fat and cholesterol as eight McDonald's Quarter Pounders. A small popcorn contains all of your daily allotment of saturated fats. Air-popped popcorn is best. Popcorn made with unsaturated corn or peanut oils is next best. Most theater popcorn is made with supersaturated hydrogenated coconut oil. Many chocolate-based candies are also loaded with fat. If you must snack, your best bet is probably nonfat sugar-based confections like lemon drops, Hot Tomales, Good 'n Plenty, etc.
10. If You Talk During the Movies
Remember that everyone in the theater paid for their tickets, just like you did, and they are hoping to hear the movie, not you. Talking during a film is one of the best ways to communicate to others your own status as an ignorant boor.
If people are talking behind you, try asking them to be quiet. If that doesn't work, complain to an usher and then take a seat elsewhere in the theater.
11. What to Watch For
Shots are filmed until the director is satisfied that his vision has been accurately recorded. Few things get on the screen by accident. Every movement of the frame and in the frame has a purpose. See a film a second or third time, and ask yourself why each shot looks the way it does. Why a closeup here, a two-shot there? The answer is usually not arcane or specialized, but based on common sense. For example, a scene at a party might start out with a shot of all the guests, then cut to a closer shot of two guests deep in conversation, then cut to a closeup of a third person who notices that they are talking.
12. What Makes a Great Score?
It's a Hollywood truism that there are only two kinds of great musical scores: those you really notice, and those you don't notice at all. Anything in between is just baton-pumping. Examples of great scores you notice: Nino Rota's work for Fellini, especially AMARCORD; Bernard Hermann's scores for Welles's CITIZEN KANE, Hitchcock's PSYCHO, and Scorsese's TAXI DRIVER. Example of a great score you don't notice: Howard Shore's work for THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS.
13. Hey! You Can See the Boom Mike!
It's probably the projectionist's fault. He has framed the film incorrectly. Movies contain extra image area at the top, bottom, and sides that are not intended to be seen; the projectionist frames the image to the correct ratio.
14. Reading the Credits
This can be rewarding, although in recent years the credits have been growing longer. They used to last thirty seconds. Now they can crawl along for five or ten minutes (A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT credited a "trout wrangler"). In the case of an AIRPLANE!-style spoof, always stay through the credits for more gags.
15. Wait for the Video?
Movies fall into four categories:
A: Movies worth seeing in a theater
B: Movies where you can wait for the video
C: Movies where maybe you'll check them out on the tube sooner or later
D: Movies not worth seeing.
The best rule is, never go to a D movies, and never go to a B or C movie if there is an A movie available. It is often said that you "must" see big-scale epics like SCHINDLER'S LIST or STAR WARS pictures in a theater, while "smaller" films like FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL can be seen on video. My theory is, the better the film whatever its scale, the more it is worth seeing for the first time in a theater. Part of the fun of FOUR WEDDINGS comes from sharing the laughter in an audience.
16. When to Go
Most theaters have bargain-price early shows. All theaters are sparsely populated on Mondays and Tuesdays. Most hit movies have long lines on weekends. Plan accordingly.
17. Where to Sit
I sit twice as far back as the screen is wide, on the side of the theater that's farthest away from the entrance most people will use. I also like to sit on the aisle across from the center section, because then I get a straight shot at the screen with no one in front of me.
18. I Like to Sit in the Front Row!
Fine. Leaves more room for the rest of us.
19. Looking for Symbolism
People sometimes ask me what a certain image in a movie "symbolized." The answer is: "For you? Nothing, or you wouldn't be asking the question." A symbol is an image that creates a resonance in your mind. What does it symbolize? Depends on you and your mind. A dollar sign might symbolize wealth to me, greed to you, security to her, a price tag to him. The key thing to remember is, you can never be wrong about a symbol as long as you know what it meant to you.
20. Digital or Dolby?
A toss-up. But if a movie was shot with a high-tech sound track, attend it in a theater capable of doing it justice. The audio should sound terrific, and then you should forget it, as you get wrapped up in the story. If you are still consciously noticing the sound after ten minutes, that's a bad sign. It means a sound nerd has fallen in love with the system and wants you to notice it. Most dialogue comes from a center audio channel, located behind the screen; surround sound is for atmosphere, sound effects, music, and occasional dialogue. If the wind in the trees is drowning out the dialogue, complain.
21. After the movies
All good movies inspire conversations, rehashes, arguments. Most of what I've learned about the movies has come in discussions afterward with the people I saw them with. SCHINDLER'S LIST, for example, has inspired many long discussions. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS was so rich in detail that I was able to write an article about more than twenty-five "secrets" of the film—all based on discussions. Movies like THE PIANO, which move some viewers and frustrate others, have people already arguing on their way out of the theater.
22. Complaining
Tell the manager what the problem is. While he is responding, lean slightly toward his name-tag and squint a little, so he will reflect that you might cite his name in a letter to the management. Most theater personnel are as helpful as possible, I've found.
23. What Do the Ratings Mean?
Exactly what they say. In particular, R-rated films are usually not at all appropriate for preteens. In my opinion, each teenager is a different case, and some may be ready for R-rated movies before others. For additional guidance, there are church-related newsletters, Parents magazine, and Consumer Reports.
24. What If There's No Rating?
It may mean the movie would have received the NC-17, and the distributor released it without a rating, because many theaters are prohibited from showing NC-17 films. More often, it means the film is a documentary or foreign film being released on a limited budget, and the distributors didn't want to pay for a rating. The ads and reviews will supply you with appropriate context.
25. What Makes a Great Movie?
It is said that the human brain divides its functions. The right brain is devoted to sensory impressions, emotions, colors, music. The left brain deals with abstract thought, logic, philosophy, analysis. My definition of a great movie: While you're watching it, it engages your right brain. When it's over, it engages your left brain.
 

CZroe

Lifer
Jun 24, 2001
24,195
856
126
Im being specific to the TV show, which is why Ebert has a wikipedia page; if he was on online-only critic, he would have been forgotten.
"Online critic?" Almost all of his reviews online are from his print/newspaper columns. That's why you can find reviews on his site going back decades before he died.
 
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Muse

Lifer
Jul 11, 2001
37,358
8,010
136
"Online critic?" Almost all of his reviews online are from his print/newspaper columns. That's why you can find reviews on his site going back decades before he died.
Yup, Chicago Sun Times. And Ebert's THE major reviewer in Microsoft's Cinemania series, which I still consult for movies 1997 are previous.
 

Doom Monger

Member
Jun 15, 2020
25
18
41
Ebert did chime in (in Cinemania, although I figure it probably appeared 1st in the Chicago Sun Times) on how to try to minimize your risk of seeing a movie you regret seeing. This is very worth reading, FYI:

How to Watch a Movie
Article from Roger Ebert's Video Companion

April 26, 1994—Twenty-five things you should know about going to the movies:
1. How to Prepare for a Movie
Life is short. Try to avoid, whenever possible, wasting two hours of it on a movie you will not enjoy. Do not trust the ads for two reasons: (1) Until after the opening weekend, most of the critics' quotes are from publicity-hungry lightweights who dictate them straight to the publicists. (2) Serious movies are often marketed with ad campaigns that make them sound like a jolly fun time for all. (MR. JONES, the Richard Gere film about a manic-depressive, had ads that made him look like basically just a very happy guy.) Read the reviews.
2. How to Read a Review
A good critic should provide enough of an idea of a film so that you can decide if you'd like it, whether or not he does. (I once got a call from a reader who asked what I thought about Ingmar Bergman's CRIES AND WHISPERS. I said I thought it was the best film of the year. "Oh, thanks," the reader said. "That doesn't sound like anything we'd like to see.")
3. How to Choose Reviewers
Since you will probably not be attending nine out of ten movies, find someone whose reviews are worth reading for themselves. Go for the writing style, the insights, the asides. Never look for an "objective" critic. All criticism is subjective. I got a letter once from a reader asking me to keep my opinions out of my reviews. I wrote back asking him to keep his opinions out of his letters.
4. If You Have Already Read the Book
Fine. Just remember that the director's only responsibility is to make a good movie, not to be faithful to the book. (Screen adaptations of movies are not marriages, and being "unfaithful to the novel" is not adultery.)
5. If You Have Not Read the Book
You will probably not find time to read it now, before the movie closes, so go ahead and see the movie. As a critic, I enjoy it when I haven't read the book, because my job is to evaluate the movie, not how well it was "adapted." If you enjoy the movie and are thinking of reading the book, remember this curious but often accurate Hollywood law: Many bad books make great movies, but most great books make bad movies.
6. If You Loved the Movie
Find out who directed it, and rent some of the director's other films. The indicator of quality in a film is more likely to be the director than the star or the source.
7. If You Don't Like Subtitles
Resign yourself to missing some of the year's most interesting films. The foreign film market is so precarious in North America that only the very best foreign films get released. That helps explain why "the critics always seem to like foreign films."
8. If You Read the Box Office Charts
Stop. Movies are not a sport, and the "weekend's top grossing film" has not won anything except a lot of money. Since your taste is probably better than most people's, the movies you would like are probably further down on the list, or not there at all.
9. If You Eat During Movies
Reflect that a large popcorn contains as much fat and cholesterol as eight McDonald's Quarter Pounders. A small popcorn contains all of your daily allotment of saturated fats. Air-popped popcorn is best. Popcorn made with unsaturated corn or peanut oils is next best. Most theater popcorn is made with supersaturated hydrogenated coconut oil. Many chocolate-based candies are also loaded with fat. If you must snack, your best bet is probably nonfat sugar-based confections like lemon drops, Hot Tomales, Good 'n Plenty, etc.
10. If You Talk During the Movies
Remember that everyone in the theater paid for their tickets, just like you did, and they are hoping to hear the movie, not you. Talking during a film is one of the best ways to communicate to others your own status as an ignorant boor.
If people are talking behind you, try asking them to be quiet. If that doesn't work, complain to an usher and then take a seat elsewhere in the theater.
11. What to Watch For
Shots are filmed until the director is satisfied that his vision has been accurately recorded. Few things get on the screen by accident. Every movement of the frame and in the frame has a purpose. See a film a second or third time, and ask yourself why each shot looks the way it does. Why a closeup here, a two-shot there? The answer is usually not arcane or specialized, but based on common sense. For example, a scene at a party might start out with a shot of all the guests, then cut to a closer shot of two guests deep in conversation, then cut to a closeup of a third person who notices that they are talking.
12. What Makes a Great Score?
It's a Hollywood truism that there are only two kinds of great musical scores: those you really notice, and those you don't notice at all. Anything in between is just baton-pumping. Examples of great scores you notice: Nino Rota's work for Fellini, especially AMARCORD; Bernard Hermann's scores for Welles's CITIZEN KANE, Hitchcock's PSYCHO, and Scorsese's TAXI DRIVER. Example of a great score you don't notice: Howard Shore's work for THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS.
13. Hey! You Can See the Boom Mike!
It's probably the projectionist's fault. He has framed the film incorrectly. Movies contain extra image area at the top, bottom, and sides that are not intended to be seen; the projectionist frames the image to the correct ratio.
14. Reading the Credits
This can be rewarding, although in recent years the credits have been growing longer. They used to last thirty seconds. Now they can crawl along for five or ten minutes (A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT credited a "trout wrangler"). In the case of an AIRPLANE!-style spoof, always stay through the credits for more gags.
15. Wait for the Video?
Movies fall into four categories:
A: Movies worth seeing in a theater
B: Movies where you can wait for the video
C: Movies where maybe you'll check them out on the tube sooner or later
D: Movies not worth seeing.
The best rule is, never go to a D movies, and never go to a B or C movie if there is an A movie available. It is often said that you "must" see big-scale epics like SCHINDLER'S LIST or STAR WARS pictures in a theater, while "smaller" films like FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL can be seen on video. My theory is, the better the film whatever its scale, the more it is worth seeing for the first time in a theater. Part of the fun of FOUR WEDDINGS comes from sharing the laughter in an audience.
16. When to Go
Most theaters have bargain-price early shows. All theaters are sparsely populated on Mondays and Tuesdays. Most hit movies have long lines on weekends. Plan accordingly.
17. Where to Sit
I sit twice as far back as the screen is wide, on the side of the theater that's farthest away from the entrance most people will use. I also like to sit on the aisle across from the center section, because then I get a straight shot at the screen with no one in front of me.
18. I Like to Sit in the Front Row!
Fine. Leaves more room for the rest of us.
19. Looking for Symbolism
People sometimes ask me what a certain image in a movie "symbolized." The answer is: "For you? Nothing, or you wouldn't be asking the question." A symbol is an image that creates a resonance in your mind. What does it symbolize? Depends on you and your mind. A dollar sign might symbolize wealth to me, greed to you, security to her, a price tag to him. The key thing to remember is, you can never be wrong about a symbol as long as you know what it meant to you.
20. Digital or Dolby?
A toss-up. But if a movie was shot with a high-tech sound track, attend it in a theater capable of doing it justice. The audio should sound terrific, and then you should forget it, as you get wrapped up in the story. If you are still consciously noticing the sound after ten minutes, that's a bad sign. It means a sound nerd has fallen in love with the system and wants you to notice it. Most dialogue comes from a center audio channel, located behind the screen; surround sound is for atmosphere, sound effects, music, and occasional dialogue. If the wind in the trees is drowning out the dialogue, complain.
21. After the movies
All good movies inspire conversations, rehashes, arguments. Most of what I've learned about the movies has come in discussions afterward with the people I saw them with. SCHINDLER'S LIST, for example, has inspired many long discussions. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS was so rich in detail that I was able to write an article about more than twenty-five "secrets" of the film—all based on discussions. Movies like THE PIANO, which move some viewers and frustrate others, have people already arguing on their way out of the theater.
22. Complaining
Tell the manager what the problem is. While he is responding, lean slightly toward his name-tag and squint a little, so he will reflect that you might cite his name in a letter to the management. Most theater personnel are as helpful as possible, I've found.
23. What Do the Ratings Mean?
Exactly what they say. In particular, R-rated films are usually not at all appropriate for preteens. In my opinion, each teenager is a different case, and some may be ready for R-rated movies before others. For additional guidance, there are church-related newsletters, Parents magazine, and Consumer Reports.
24. What If There's No Rating?
It may mean the movie would have received the NC-17, and the distributor released it without a rating, because many theaters are prohibited from showing NC-17 films. More often, it means the film is a documentary or foreign film being released on a limited budget, and the distributors didn't want to pay for a rating. The ads and reviews will supply you with appropriate context.
25. What Makes a Great Movie?
It is said that the human brain divides its functions. The right brain is devoted to sensory impressions, emotions, colors, music. The left brain deals with abstract thought, logic, philosophy, analysis. My definition of a great movie: While you're watching it, it engages your right brain. When it's over, it engages your left brain.

Anyone reading that pretentious douchebaggery should take some advice from Dead Poets Society.



Ebert was far too in love with the sound of his own voice and was a failed screenwriter who created one of the worst screenplays ever to waste paper. If he understood the concept of good movies he should have been able to write one. I find it endlessly amusing that before they became a team Gene Siskel gave Beyond the Valley of the Dolls zero stars and said it "unfolds with all of the humor and excitement of a padded bra ... Boredom aplenty is provided by a screenplay which for some reason has been turned over to a screenwriting neophyte."
 
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sportage

Lifer
Feb 1, 2008
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A SPECIAL DAY (1977)

I was never much on foreign film or subtitles, and by the way if they can dub Spanish or French audio tracks into America film why can’t they dub English audio track into foreign film instead of subtitles? Just a thought.
Anyway, I recorded a foreign film off TMC that the synopsis sounded interesting called A SPECIAL DAY. Highly recommended. And the cast, Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni.

Set in Rome in 1938, its narrative follows a woman and her neighbor who stay home the day Adolf Hitler visits Benito Mussolini.
Much better than it sounds. Sophia Loren as a bored housewife and her interaction with an unmarried neighbor across the way. Setting in an Impoverished apartment building much like the setting in Hitchcock’s REAR WINDOW. She develops a crush and he explains to her that he is a homosexual. The subplot, the city and the apartment dwellers electrified over Hitler’s visit with Mussolini. Radio coverage often blasting in the background during the film. Powerful effect, since obviously neither of the two are fans of Adolf Hitler.

This film was an incredible drama, and my first experience with Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni together. I knew who they were but seldom watch their movies. And a very artistic film it was with how they filmed it.The scene when Sophia Loren was laying on top of Marcello Mastroianni both fully clothed, Sophia hoping for lust and Marcello hoping for it to stop. The camera closeup on Sophia’s face and especially from that angle was amazing photography. And now I understand Sophia Loren’s cinematic talents. That one shot was so telling and so haunting.
The film was subtle but the subtitle dialogue was kept simple and never obstructive.
This will go down as one of my favorite films, and certainly a favorite subtitle film.
Try it out.


 
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