tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7610074516299275060.post8508747396495659635..comments2024-01-21T11:18:54.087-05:00Comments on Lost in the Movies: Movies I watched in 2012Joel Bockohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11238338958380683893noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7610074516299275060.post-22832159864240304772012-11-22T03:23:20.967-05:002012-11-22T03:23:20.967-05:00JPK: Wow, somehow I forgot this back in October (e...JPK: Wow, somehow I forgot this back in October (even though I was approving comments then!).<br /><br />Seeing Abrams that way is kind of interesting, as an avatar of the reboot era although perhaps the fact that I'm wary of reboots only makes him seem more suspicious in my eyes haha...<br /><br />Actually, I watched most seasons of Lost with some regularity but even as the twists and turns kept reeling me in I grew frustrated with the extent to which the series relied on trite expressive shorthand to convey some flimsy impression of the characters' inner lives. Each character had a "look": Sawyer's mouth-slightly-open peeved narrowed-eyes, Kate's pursed-lip upward-eye look, Jack's deer-in-headlights-but-I'm-running-into-this-car-anyway confusion. After a while, this method of characterization became so rote it was tiresome, and I saw some of the same thing in Super 8, like by borrowing certain Spielberg tropes, he was getting all the baggage that came with it.<br /><br />That said, I did enjoy the first half of the film quite a bit. I could cheerfully sympathize with the energy of the kids "just wanting to make a movie" and the respectful classicism of Abrams' initial approach (obviously a nod to Spielberg's movie-movie desire to make each shot interesting and inventive, something most action auteurs have no interest in now) was a refreshing tonic. So maybe this capsule was too harsh - but in the end I was disappointed by the glibness of the way the film cluelessly combined the two Spielbergs - although if it's dramatically uninvolving, it's certainly analytically interesting.Joel Bockohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11238338958380683893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7610074516299275060.post-53240353796175126292012-10-13T00:02:37.492-04:002012-10-13T00:02:37.492-04:00Hey Joel, you reminded me today about Super 8 and ...Hey Joel, you reminded me today about Super 8 and that got me thinking. I agree it makes a very hard turn from horror into tearjerker, and not elegantly, though I thought both were managed pretty well once in. I liked it because of the things it did so well: the vivid train wreck, the kids' zombie movie, decent effects, good pacing, and reasonably believable family interpersonal dynamics propelling the story. I take it more as Abrams project than Spielberg homage, which I admit might be a fine distinction. But Abrams is interesting to me because he still appears to be evolving. The various impressions he does -- of Gene Roddenberry in Star Trek, of Rod Serling in Lost, of Spielberg here -- seem extraordinarily vitalizing to me of so many things otherwise mostly worn out by now. Anyway, interesting bunch of movies here!Jeff Pikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17148737647138431543noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7610074516299275060.post-1521934584307869552012-09-29T19:57:40.590-04:002012-09-29T19:57:40.590-04:00Really glad you could drop by, as I knew several o...Really glad you could drop by, as I knew several of these films were your favorites. Particularly Ling Day Closes which I saw you list as a top 10 on Jason's site. Still haven't watched Story of Film yet? Fish's gonna kill you haha. Can't wait to hear your thoughts when you do though.Joel Bockohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11238338958380683893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7610074516299275060.post-57369816643526762052012-09-29T15:29:22.339-04:002012-09-29T15:29:22.339-04:00"Fantastic round-of of dense capsules with se..."Fantastic round-of of dense capsules with several supreme masterpieces in the mix."<br /><br />Terrence Davies' THE LONG DAY CLOSES is one of my favorite films of all time. If I am asked to comprise an all-time 'Desert Island' Top 10, this film would proudly stand with the lot. I love more than I can say here in a brief response--it's emotionally cathartic, poetic and lyrical and it's sublime and meditative. It's a film to gush at, as I did months ago during the unveiling of a stunning new print at the Film Forum! I now believe Von Trier's MELANCHOLIA is also a masterpiece, and it was on my Top 10 list for last year. The first 15 minutes provide for a viewer epiphany. SHOAH is one of the greatest films of it's kind' the German MAEDCHEN is a classic film, and one of the earliest lesbian-themed films; I saw ME AND MY GAL at the Pre-Code Festival and liked it quite a bit; WIND IN THE WILLOWS as you have noted with many remarkable posts is magnificent as is Grahame's incomparable children's novel; I am no fan of SAVAGES, which to me is overkill and slick in the worst sense; I will soon take on THE STORY OF FILM and can't wait; TANGED is nicely done with some striking set pieces (the lamps really striking) and a nice score.Sam Julianonoreply@blogger.com