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HoldenMartinson

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Posts posted by HoldenMartinson

  3. Posted

    Showgirls has got a subtle bump in reputation in recent years. Itd make for a great episode

    Showgirls versus Heaven's Gate. Give it a few years, but that could make for an interesting episode.

  4. Posted

    As I mentioned at the top of the indulgence picks thread, Kieślowski is among my favorite filmmakers. Devin has mentioned The Decalogue on a couple of occasions, but you could do almost any of his films. I'd go with the Three Colors trilogy, but I'd also submit The Double Life of Veronique, No End, and Blind Chance. Again, both Short Film expansions on the adultery and murder episodes of The Decalogue are up for discussion. Maybe a three-way versus of the trilogy? The only problem is that this would devolve into Red versus Blue. But yeah. His films are legitimately watchable, textually dense, and brutally human works of filmmaking.

    • Like 1

  7. Posted

     

     

     

    TWBB's opening act is genius, and I think that dread you feel would be present whether the soundtrack were or not. The setting of a stage, introducing us to Daniel Plainview as the primordial man, almost an ape man, the narrative tensions in this act are so immediate, so simplistic, the very opposite of the abstractions of business that follow, Daniel and his crew might be the hunter gatherers of our ancestors ... the dread comes not only from seeing humanity at its most basic, flesh and bone - the emphasis on the physical in the opening is unignorable - but also the displacement the viewer feels at being dropped into a movie so immediately, at having such visceral conflict at the start of what seemed to be a rise and fall of the industry film, at seeing this bizarre sun blasted desert, something almost extra-terrestrial about it ... it parallels 2001's Dawn of Man, and its a parallel that is bookened by Daniel's bowling pin beatdown at the end of the film resembling the ape's discovery of the bone as a weapon .. not sure i made a coherent point there...

    Plainview says he's finished, but it looks like your analysis is just getting started.

    • Like 1

  9. Posted

    While I personally find The Master more compelling than either, both are certainly Canon worthy. I'd probably throw my hat in for There Will Be Blood given how heavily I think Boogie Nights apes off of Altman's Nashville.

    Well, Boogie Nights is so clearly living in its 70s setting that even a lot of the camera techniques are being used like they would in a film from that period. So, for it to emulate Nashville seems justified.

  10. Posted

    Perhaps this is too much of an indulgence, but the movie I've probably seen more than any other is 2007's Hot Rod. It's something i'm always in the mood to watch and will probably always find funny, but i don't think it belongs within an mile of the canon.

    I would argue that Hot Rod is canon. It's one of the great homage pictures of the last ten years, this is The Lonely Island's greatest achievement, and this is one of the defining cult films of this newer generation. This is a picture that knows what it's lampooning, and does it with a lot of observation, and with a lot of adoration for these films. I also believe in the argument that quotability is a legitimate factor for canonization, and when half of the script is that recitable, that's the mark of a really memorable picture. Any movie that can take its villain, and make them almost sympathetic through the repetition of "BABE!!!" is worth remembering. Hot Rod is incredible. I mean, you're right. It probably wouldn't make it, but I think it'd be a fun addition into the canon.

    • Like 2

  11. Posted

    The Shining vs Britney Spears' Crossroads. Both films scare the hell out of me and are boarderline surreal experiences.

    I love the theme of The Shining: "I'm Not a Family Man, Not Yet an Axe Murderer."

  12. Posted

    I'm Boogie Nights right now, but both are among my hundred favorite films of all time. I love these films, and I am so sad this is what's happening. We should have been more careful about what we wished for.

  13. Posted

    This is a great picture, and this is a clear YAS, KWEEN.

     

    This was a really frustrating episode. This could have been a lot of fun, but then it devolves into "The Fly didn't get in, so this shouldn't get in." Next week, either There Will Be Blood or Boogie Nights will be denied entry into the canon, and both of those films are far better than either The Fly or Re-Animator. Again, The Road Warrior and The Empire Strikes Back--legitimately important films--do not exist in the canon, but Working Girl and Two-Lane Blacktop are in the canon. It's a futile argument to say that, just because one movie didn't get in, the other shouldn't either.

     

    Also, Evil Dead II and Re-Animator don't even feel like the same films. Also, Re-Animator comes before either that or The Fly. Boring argument, maybe, but worth discussing, because film doesn't exist in a vacuum, which is why you can only really have a big canon.

    • Like 2

  14. Posted

    I think that, as per the description provided by Devin, indulgence picks are just pictures that aren't immediately obvious. Or just films that you think are brilliant, and maybe have been sort of forgotten. Something like that.

  15. Posted

    Todd Solondz is so interesting. I'd definitely give it up for Happiness, and I'd be up for Welcome to the Dollhouse. That said, some of his films are really terrible--Dark Horse and Storytelling are not great.

  16. Posted

     

    "The film that was name-dropped in American Beauty". I think we've just found the definite tagline for Re-Animator. Good job, guys!

    Those were the two things Devin liked about American Beauty: Conrad L. Hall's cinematography is great, and Re-Animator gets a shout-out.

    • Like 1

  17. Posted

    I intensely disliked Viral, but VHS 2 is a legitimately great anthology horror film- I'm not sure it's Canon in any way- but it's worth checking out if you're a horror nut- really inventive ideas in there!

    The first two have some truly inventive segments--my personal favorite being "Ride in the Park"--but Viral is pretty horrific at times, and it's only out of love for those first couple entries that I even want to like this one. But yeah. It's mostly awful.

  18. Posted

    [REC 2] is a really interesting follow-up, because of how it re-contextualizes the first film to the extent of changing it from a zombie film to a possession story, which I think is one of the best moves a horror sequel could make. That said, the story is pretty weak, and you could almost cut out the subplot with the kids, which doesn't make a ton of sense anyway.

     

    I really like the V/H/S series. The second film is much better than the first, but I think that Viral has a really cool wrap-around segment that almost works, and the parallel universe segment is pretty good--though the other two are quite terrible. It's sort of how lots of Pink Floyd fans enjoy The Division Bell, even though it's a really weak effort in their discography.

    • Like 1

  19. Posted

    I'm gonna say yes. Kiki's excels at one of my favorite aspects of a lot of Miyazaki's films, that they tend to have a lot of quiet moments that let the audience breathe and enjoy the film's world and ambiance. Spirited Away has some similar elements to this one and is a complete masterpiece, but I don't think that negates the charm and joy this film brings to the table.

     

    Larger discussions surrounding anime would probably bring out better results in another thread, but I'll throw in some thoughts here: I grew up when anime was EXPLODING everywhere, when Cartoon Network and other kids channels would play anything remotely popular they could get their hands on, and people were just beginning to realize they could upload any series possible online. So most of the conventions/stylistic choices of anime don't bother me a ton because I was introduced to it at such a young age and was surrounded by it. You shouldn't let a pack of creepy dweebs who jack off to their wife body pillows dictate that an entire industry is worthless-American comedies shouldn't suddenly be tossed into the nearest landfill because Adam Sandler hasn't been stopped yet. Animation is an art form all on its own (I mean, we had an episode about Waltz With Bashir on here, which incidentally I find way more politically messy than anything Miyazaki's done), so each film should be taken on its own merit.

    You know, you mentioning Cartoon Network makes me realize that we probably have shows like Steven Universe because of Miyazaki. In which case, Kiki is 100% canon.

    • Like 1

  22. Posted

    I've already said my piece on the matter in the homework thread. We could do a lot better, not just with Miyazaki, but in terms of filmmakers of anime. Whatever the case may be, I appreciated Film Crit Hulk's arguments, but I kinda feel the same as Devin. This is a film that should speak to me, but it leaves me a little emotionally empty. I still vote yes, but so softly. We need anime, and Miyazaki is as good of a representative as any., and Kiki's is a fine film as well.

    • Like 2

  23. Posted

    These are the ones in my actual pantheon of favorite movies which I've watched more than once, the ones that are never going anywhere.

    -Spotlight

     

    -The Tale of Princess Kaguya (Takahata's best)

    -The Wind Rises (Miyazaki's best)

    I know Spotlight was pretty significant, winning Best Picture and everything, but it still feels like kind of an undervalued film. It's really terrific. It's the same argument I would apply to Marathon Man: Spotlight is not breaking any new ground, but it inhabits the space carved out by other great films about journalism quite beautifully. It's just a damn well-made picture, which is worth as much discussion. We can talk about influential films all day long, but it's way more interesting to talk about the beneficiaries of great pieces of cinema, that use their influences in interesting ways. This is why we talk about someone like Tarantino, and others that just celebrate film with a rabid passion. I think Spotlight is quieter in that regard, obviously, but is still worth mentioning.

     

    As for those other two films, in another world, that would make for a versus episode on par with Thing vs. The Fly. Do you vote for the elegant, fatalistic folktale, or do you vote for the achingly honest portrayal of passion and accomplishment? It's just so hard to choose.

  24. Posted

    Here's the important question:

    Dubs or Subs?

    I just saw Phil Hartman is in the Dubs version, so I think that's enough to sway me-

    Or is that considered blasphemy in the Anime world?

    You know, subs is the way to go. But I think dubs get a bad rap. Disney ones are reliable, even if they don't surpass the performances of the original voice cast.

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