Ryan McNeil
What a week it’s been. Four screenings in five nights…what is this TIFF? Adding to the TIFF-y feeling in the air is the fact that I’m soaking up these films surrounded by groups of three’s, four’s, five’s. Hell, I think we maxed out with TINTIN when we gathered as a group of twelve.
The good news is that much of what I’ve been watching this week is pulling activities away from the end of the year, when I’ll be running every which way anyhow. In addition to all the screener goodness, I also found a bit of time to get some DVD’s a-spinning. For the most part they were chosen with a purpose, but I was able to dip into the fun and mirth that is The Ballad of Hiccup and Toothless this week!
Here’s The Week at Hand…
Screenings
THE ARTIST – It fills me with guilt that I’ve seen this film twice and most of y’all haven’t seen this once yet.
THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN – And to think – I was worried about how this film would play out!
TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY – This film is intricate. Some badass casting is in store for y’all, along with a rather convoluted plot.
THE DESCENDANTS – Only took me three weeks to finally catch up with it. Surprised I didn’t have to pay late fees.
Blu-Rays/DVD’s I’ve Watched Before
CLUELESS – Re-watched for discussion purposes. Come back Tuesday to see the fruits of that labour.
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON – Any other year and this film wins Best Animated Feature.
AMERICAN GANGSTER – Am I the only person who likes this flick?
ELECTION – Dropped in the DVD at two. TBS broadcast it the same night at nine.
SINGLES – The upcoming Cameron Crowe film has me boning up on his back catalogue
Boxscore for The Year
224 First-Timers, 163 Re-Watched
387 Movies in Total
How’s about you – seen anything good?
Other than a couple of new releases last Sunday in The Skin I Live In and . I also saw Capote and Nowhere Boy. Right now, I’m watching Circumstance on my laptop which I will have a review present for tomorrow.
I think CAPOTE might actually be considered underrated despite all its critical acclaim and award nominations. Come to think of it, I think I’m about due for a rewatch.
Kind of a slow movie watching week for me…
First Time:
-Lawrence of Arabia (took two sittings, but quite good)
-Conan the Barbarian (the remake… not so good)
Rewatch:
-Charlie Bartlett (love this movie)
-Ink (not perfect, but a pretty dang good unknown indie flick)
Lawrence is what the intermission was invented for! If you ever get the chance to see it on the big screen, jump on it.
Let’s see:
-Tropic Thunder
-Chaplin
-Due Date
-The Soloist
-Martha Marcy May Marlene
-Beginners
-The Trip
-Drive
-Contagion
-Another Earth
My average of 10. Also have Charlie Bartlett (glad to know you love it, Nick!) sitting on my desk, with several in my iTunes rental queue (Friends with Benefits, Attack the Block, Our Idiot Brother, Sleeping Beauty), so another possible one tonight.
I am deeply curious as to what you’ll think of SLEEPING BEAUTY (3:1 you won’t like it). Give it a look and quell these curious minds!
Sorry, it’ll be in a couple of weeks. I have a strict schedule I’m sticking to in order to reach my 2011 watching goals. I’d say expect it the week before Christmas.
I do! I saw it in theater and enjoyed the hell out of it. Then I got it on DVD and get the urge to watch it every so often. I think it’s hard to hate with a very charismatic Anton Yelchin and the rather good-lookin’ Kat Dennings at the lead. Of course, RDJ is really good, too.
Yaay Tintin! I want to watch it again, and everything else in your screenings list.
Firsts- Bullets Over Broadway– So much brilliance! After watching this, I want Woody to like direct a mini-episode of Boardwalk Empire.
Attack the Block– It was well-made, but seriously such movies are not meant for me. I’m too jumpy.
Breaking Dawn– Imprinting freaks me out. Still, plain awful.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid– I need to watch other Westerns before giving a final word, but I don’t think I like the genre much. Having said that, I loved the chemistry between Newman and Redford.
The Red Shoes– Absolutely beautiful.
The Italian Job, 1969– I felt the middle dragged on too much on account of stupid gags, but that whole car chase at the end makes the film. That was amazing.
The Ides of March– I realised that if Ryan Gosling wasn’t there, I would not have been half as interested. It’s a good film and all, but the whole subject matter is something I am completely disinterested in. Gosling was great though.
That’s a great week worth of films! As for westerns, they aren’t exactly for everyone due to their slower pace…but oddly enough BUTCH & SUNDANCE is one of the snappier ones. If you want to test out whether you’re a western watcher or not, see of A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS does anything for you.
A slower week for me…
West Side Story: I know it’s a classic, but I don’t love the story it’s based on, so…
To Kill a Mockingbird: A classic for multiple reasons
Lola Rennt: I love this film
Captain Blood: The most old-Hollywood of old Hollywood adventures
Time After Time: Upcoming podcast film
The Queen: Anything with multiple corgis can’t be all bad
Re. WEST SIDE STORY: Blasphemy!!
Jokes aside, those are some good titles for the week. It’s been *far* too long since I watched LOLA, but I’ll always credit it as being one of the films that helped me get into foreign cinema.
I would love to see any film that you have seen at the screenings. I hope to catch Tintin before they stop showing it. TTSS will be released next week. And I so want to see The Artist! But the release date is set for January (it can change to any direction though).
I can’t believe how much fun I had watching TINTIN, so definitely see it before it leaves. I’m also hoping to watch TTSS once more so I can soak up a few more details.
PS – I just finished editing your appearance on the podcast yesterday. It’ll be going up in the morning.
I’m doing a research paper on the West Coast independent music scene, but I really just want to pop in a DVD of SINGLES instead of give a legit presentation on it. That might be the sleep deprivation talking though. And I’m completely jealous that you’ve seen TINKER TAILOR already.
What I’ve Seen
Film Class: Cold Weather, the Future
For Fun: In the Weeds, TiMER
Your podcasting co-host wasn’t so fussed about me seeing TINKER TAILOR already either. She was hoping I’d pony up my ticket. And I’m totally in favour of you popping on INGLES for that presentation.
I think Sasha and I have been going over the same frustrations/excitements over the past two months or so. Love for Whit stillman and Noah Baumbach films, then sorrow at not seeing the British Cast of the Century for TINKER.
I’m considering using the clip when they’re shouting at each other after the club because: why not?
so we had a silimar week Ryan… we both watched Descendants + Election (I made it my Alexander Payne dbl feature last night).
I’m at 237 new films for the year (101 of those are 2011 films)
PS. Yes you are the only one who likes American Gangster. I already saw Scarface, and it’s better than that “African-American” remake of that.
When I have a bit of spare time again, I’m going to have to track down copy of CITIZEN RUTH and complete my Alexander Payne tour of duty. While I’m not about to begin championing AMERICAN GANGTER as a hidden gem, I wouldn’t say it’s a SCARFACE rip-off…it’s less about the personal rise and fall than it is about two men on opposite sides of the American Dream.
First time:
SHAME: Wafer-thin theme almost immediately tossed aside to make room for self-infatuated, hollow artistic touches.
MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE: A much better, more complex theme almost immediately tossed aside to make room for self-infatuated, hollow artistic touches.
TINER TAILOR SOLIDER SPY: The most unexpectedly beautiful and emotionally painful film of the year. Alfredson doesn’t revolutionize the genre but he does quite subtly undermine practically every aspect of it.
Rewatches:
BLUE: Probably my favorite music-centric film.
THE DOUBLE LIFE OF VERONIQUE: My favorite Kieslowski. His most explicitly political post-Polish film, yet also his most abstract and hypnotic. The best of all the Three Colors rolled into one mastepriece.
Sounds like something of an up-and-don week! Pity you weren’t into MMMM – I’m noticing how divisive that film is and can’t figure out what it is that gets people on to the pro or con side they choose.
The films you saw in theaters this week just thoroughly depress me.
I saw….
My Week With Marilyn
This Film Is Not Yet Rated
Far and Away
Page One: A Year Inside the New York Times
The Good Guy
Before Sunset
They’ll all hit theatres eventually. It’s at the point where I’m going to get to the end of the month and have nothing left to see. Hope you enjoyed BEFORE SUNSET- for me that’s damned near a perfect film.
The Muppets
Hugo
American Gangster
No ‘Scarface’ isn’t better than “that African-American remake”. Stone wouldn’t know subtlety if it bit him in his ass.
And Paprika. I forgot Paprika.
I *really* need to get going on the anime syllabus…
So jealous that you got to see Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. I love the cast, but something tells me that I won’t understand it, haha. Still, I’ll go and see it. Anyway, I’ve had a slow week (with the ball and everything)…
First-timers:
Green Lantern
Jonah Hex
Hunger (bloody amazing…I didn’t think that I’d love this film so much)
Beginners
The Hangover: Part II
The Green Mile
Rewatches:
Zombieland
Peacock
Singin in the Rain
I understood it, and I think you will too…you just gotta make sure you’re paying attention – no daydreaming allowed!