The GD Movie Archive

[All Systems Go]

If Someone could rename this correctly. Thank you.

I don't know this will work, but it's worth a try.

I find IMDB very useful for finding good films, but usually they are the really famous ones. Therefore a lot of good films slip under my radar and after finding a really good film with a quote (yes, on IMDB) I thought we should have a thread for films which may be lesser-known to some. OK, now that's out of the way it's plagiarism time!


The basic idea is that you name decent films to share with the community, where they will be added into this post for all the community to see.

* It's all in alphabeticalish order by movie name.
* Here is an example of the format you should use:

(you can see a multitude of examples below)

###########################

This is its genre

This is the movie - Now here the movie which is possibly linked to a review - (Now here are some comments on it that are no longer than ~EIGHT lines)

###########################


So...

Originally Posted by Androme2

The Punisher

It's a story about a man who's son gets killed in a FBI staged setup, setup by a man called Otto who is actually FBI cop Frank Castle. John Travolta seeks revenge and kill's Otto's whole family and slays them all. They thought they had killed Frank Castle, but he survives seeking revenge until no-one is left alive.

It's an awesome action packed movie.

Originally Posted by All Systems Go

Biography/Comedy/Drama
American Splendour
It's a film based on a comic book. But the hero in the comic is not a superhero he is a lonely, bitter man. It's pretty much based on a true story and it's funny and rather touching. It's a good cast with a good performance by Judah Friedlander whose performance is very close to the real-life person he is playing. It uses the comic-book format, but not too much and is a film worth seeing.

Originally Posted by Hebdomad

Factual/Drama

Battle of Algiers - 1966 - (Gillo Pontecorvo) - 9/10

This factual Oscar-winning black-and-white Italian film depicts Algiera's battle against French colonialism - the methods that both sides employed with lots of moving iconic imagery depicting such a struggle. I would strongly recommend it to anyone who is interested in politics/military/history. Interestingly, the US military were said to have shown this to show how the French "won tactically but lost strategically". Wikipedia and IMDB.

Originally Posted by jerome

drama

Half Nelson - Ryan Fleck/Anna Boden - 8.9/10

the premise of this isn't very impressive and may seem rather forgettable. but this really is one of the best films i've seen in an incredibly long time and it's hard to say why without gaying this up. of all the films i'm going to be posting about today, i have the strongest recommendation for this. this film is about a white guy teaching a bunch of little girls at an inner-city school, and about him befriending one of these girls when she discovers he has a drug addiction. it contains one of my favourite scenes in a film all-time as well as discusses real lyf issuez in the slightest of styles but still forces itself through. i've made this sound gay. but srsly just watch it

---

comedy/drama

"Lonesome Jim" - directed by Steve Buscemi - 8.4~/10

based on camus' myth of sisyphus and a general reflection of absurdism in movie format. and it still manages to be.. concise? or at least clear cut in a way. second top class movie in a row i'm probably putting people off by not talking about it well at all, but this is an all round good film and who knew that guy from fargo had mastered the subtlety of direction so well (he's actually made some other good films too, though none as good as this)

---

drama

Gummo - directed by Harmony Korine - 7.9/10

experimental arthouse film with non-linear plots and presented in a series of seemingly unrelated vignettes. if that didn't put you off and you want to some a genuinely innovative take on what moviemaking should be about according to korine, please watch this. it's not even just for film studies guyz or grlz either, it's a an excellent film that forgoes pretty much every rule film making has grown to require for a 'good' film.

---

Drama

Good Bye Lenin - directed by Wolfgang Becker - 9.4/10

Plot: "The film is set in the East Berlin of 1989 . Alexander Kerner's mother, Christiane Kerner, an ardent supporter of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, suffers a heart attack when she sees Alex being arrested in an anti-government demonstration and falls into a coma shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall. After eight months she awakes, but is severely weakened both physically and mentally, and doctors say that any shock may cause another, possibly fatal, attack. Alex realises that her discovery of recent events would be too much for her to bear, and so sets out to maintain the illusion that things are as normal in the German Democratic Republic. To this end, he and his family revert the flat to its previous drab decor, dress in their old clothes, and feed the bed-ridden Christiane new, Western produce from old labeled jars. For a time the deception works, but gradually becomes increasingly complicated and elaborate. Despite everything, Christiane occasionally witnesses strange occurrences, such as a gigantic Coca-Cola advertisement banner unfurling on a building outside the apartment. Alexander and a friend with film-making ambitions edit old tapes of news broadcasts and create their own fake special reports to explain them away."

i don't really feel as if i should talk more about this film except to say that it's one of my all time favourites. the plot should give some sign to what sort of film it will be, and it is powerfully tender.

---

Documentary / Biography

Grizzly Man - directed by Werner Herzog - 8.7/10

another typical piece of herzogs focusing on an eccentric lead. it's an examination of the life of amateur grizzly bear expert timothy treadwell who had travelled to katmai in the alaskan peninsulas for 13 consecutive summers. he was killed, along with his girlfriend, amie huguenard. this film is an exploration of this man's compassion and ability to find solace in these endangered animals.

herzog is probably my favourite director ever, he consistently makes unobtrusive but yet incredibly personal films and this is no different.

Originally Posted by Nodrog

All About Lily Chou Chou (Shunji Iwai)
Probably the most beautiful film I've encountered -pretty much every scene could be a photograph, and the soundtrack blends in perfectly. I actually posted a thread a few years ago about how much I loved this; I've watched it again since then and my views havent changed much. The plot is still difficult to follow, but it doesnt matter because the themes and messages come through in the individual scenes regardless, and the cinematography and directing are breathtaking.

---

Funny Games (Michael Haneke)
I think the hardest issues to talk about in a sincere manner are the ones which 'everybody already knows' - the trite items of conventional wisdom that gets hammered into peoples heads since childhood, yet which are never really thought about or appreciated. Discussing the media portrayal of violence belongs in this category - its a cliche topic that has been done to death, and all the debate has changed little. Natural Born Killers is an example of the sort of traps a film discussing this issue can fall into, being extremely hackeneyed in most places and eventually just becoming the same sort of spectacle of violence which it tries to criticise.

I expected to hate Funny Games because it sounded gimmicky and trite. It isnt - its a wonderful example of how to rescue an important question from cliche and ask it in a fresh manner. This is achieved via extremely clever filmmaking - there's a constant barrage of tricks which are used to create a continual sense of detachment and emotional distance, which allows the underlying message to come through clearly without falling into the NBK trap of becoming identical to the objects under discussion.

The thing which most impressed me is the sense of mental space which it creates. Unlike many films which throw information at the viewer rapidly, leaving little time to actually reflect on whats happening in the way you can with a book, Funny Games uses many ingenous techniques which force thought to take place, while also providing enough time for it to occur. In particular, there is a 10+ minute scene 2/3's of the way through which I'd rate as one of the most effective I've ever watched. Brilliant stuff, and not gimmicky at all.

[Deffeh]

you see it isnt the worst idea in the world but without a score out of 100 it lacks quantifiability. also thats the most middle of the road review ive ever seen

[jerome]

some good flix;

drama

Half Nelson - Ryan Fleck/Anna Boden - 8.9/10

the premise of this isn't very impressive and may seem rather forgettable. but this really is one of the best films i've seen in an incredibly long time and it's hard to say why without gaying this up. of all the films i'm going to be posting about today, i have the strongest recommendation for this. this film is about a white guy teaching a bunch of little girls at an inner-city school, and about him befriending one of these girls when she discovers he has a drug addiction. it contains one of my favourite scenes in a film all-time as well as discusses real lyf issuez in the slightest of styles but still forces itself through. i've made this sound gay. but srsly just watch it


---


comedy/drama

"Lonesome Jim" - directed by Steve Buscemi - 8.4~/10

based on camus' myth of sisyphus and a general reflection of absurdism in movie format. and it still manages to be.. concise? or at least clear cut in a way. second top class movie in a row i'm probably putting people off by not talking about it well at all, but this is an all round good film and who knew that guy from fargo had mastered the subtlety of direction so well (he's actually made some other good films too, though none as good as this)


---


drama

Gummo - directed by Harmony Korine - 7.9/10

experimental arthouse film with non-linear plots and presented in a series of seemingly unrelated vignettes. if that didn't put you off and you want to some a genuinely innovative take on what moviemaking should be about according to korine, please watch this. it's not even just for film studies guyz or grlz either, it's a an excellent film that forgoes pretty much every rule film making has grown to require for a 'good' film.

[Nodrog]

good films dont have genres


All About Lily Chou Chou (Shunji Iwai)
Probably the most beautiful film I've encountered -pretty much every scene could be a photograph, and the soundtrack blends in perfectly. I actually posted a thread a few years ago about how much I loved this; I've watched it again since then and my views havent changed much. The plot is still difficult to follow, but it doesnt matter because the themes and messages come through in the individual scenes regardless, and the cinematography and directing are breathtaking.



Funny Games (Michael Haneke)
I think the hardest issues to talk about in a sincere manner are the ones which 'everybody already knows' - the trite items of conventional wisdom that gets hammered into peoples heads since childhood, yet which are never really thought about or appreciated. Discussing the media portrayal of violence belongs in this category - its a cliche topic that has been done to death, and all the debate has changed little. Natural Born Killers is an example of the sort of traps a film discussing this issue can fall into, being extremely hackeneyed in most places and eventually just becoming the same sort of spectacle of violence which it tries to criticise.

I expected to hate Funny Games because it sounded gimmicky and trite. It isnt - its a wonderful example of how to rescue an important question from cliche and ask it in a fresh manner. This is achieved via extremely clever filmmaking - there's a constant barrage of tricks which are used to create a continual sense of detachment and emotional distance, which allows the underlying message to come through clearly without falling into the NBK trap of becoming identical to the objects under discussion.

The thing which most impressed me is the sense of mental space which it creates. Unlike many films which throw information at the viewer rapidly, leaving little time to actually reflect on whats happening in the way you can with a book, Funny Games uses many ingenous techniques which force thought to take place, while also providing enough time for it to occur. In particular, there is a 10+ minute scene 2/3's of the way through which I'd rate as one of the most effective I've ever watched. Brilliant stuff, and not gimmicky at all.

[Androme]

The Punisher

It's a story about a man who's son gets killed in a FBI staged setup, setup by a man called Otto who is actually FBI cop Frank Castle. John Travolta seeks revenge and kill's Otto's whole family and slays them all. They thought they had killed Frank Castle, but he survives seeking revenge until no-one is left alive.

It's an awesome action packed movie.

[jerome]

Originally Posted by Nodrog

good films dont have genres

i don't think you quite understand what a genre is if you think that

[Nodrog]

Originally Posted by jerome

i don't think you quite understand what a genre is if you think that

'Genre' is largely a term from mass-marketing which groups products together based on their most inessential details. Genre fiction is generally looked down upon for producing generic tripe, and genre films should be given the same treatment.

[Phang]

Originally Posted by Nodrog

'Genre' is largely a term from mass-marketing which groups products together based on their most inessential details. Genre fiction is generally looked down upon for producing generic tripe, and genre films should be given the same treatment.

Genre fiction is different to 'fiction that belongs to a genre' and I can't work out if you're trolling

[Nodrog]

Originally Posted by Phang

Genre fiction is different to 'fiction that belongs to a genre'

Not in any important way. Its nonsense to talk about the 'genre' that Kafka or Joyce were writing in, and there is nothing worthwhile to be gained from making these sort of classifications. Its advertising terminology, nothing more. What do you think you learn from being told that a film is a 'thriller' or a 'drama'? Think how many completely different types of films get thrown under these labels.

edit: Note that the examples of genres given on that wikipedia page are pretty much identical to the film genres you will see in most film-stores

[Phang]

Originally Posted by Nodrog

Not in any important way. Its nonsense to talk about the 'genre' that Kafka or Joyce were writing in, and there is nothing worthwhile to be gained from making these sort of classifications. Its advertising terminology, nothing more.


edit: what do you think you learn from being told that a film is a 'thriller' or a 'drama'? Think how many completely different types of films get thrown under these silly labels.

it tells me what sort of film I should see if I'm in town with friends of an afternoon and am in a particular mood. And if you're going to insist every worthwhile piece of fiction reads like Kafka or Joyce then I've got my answer and I'll leave you to your fun.

[Nodrog]

Originally Posted by Phang

it tells me what sort of film I should see if I'm in town with friends of an afternoon and am in a particular mood. And if you're going to insist every worthwhile piece of fiction reads like Kafka or Joyce then I've got my answer and I'll leave you to your fun.

I'm going to say that theres a difference between art and entertainment, and that films/books with clearly defined genres generally belong to the latter category.

[Phang]

did you remove the 3CB entry just so you could keep hold of this argument?

[Nodrog]

Originally Posted by Phang

did you remove the 3CB entry just so you could keep hold of this argument?

No I wrote it last night while extremely tired and it was hilariously rambling and pretentious.

[Hebdomad]

Factual/Drama

Battle of Algiers - 1966 - (Gillo Pontecorvo) - 9/10

This factual Oscar-winning black-and-white Italian film depicts Algiera's battle against French colonialism - the methods that both sides employed with lots of moving iconic imagery depicting such a struggle. I would strongly recommend it to anyone who is interested in politics/military/history. Interestingly, the US military were said to have shown this to show how the French "won tactically but lost strategically". Wikipedia and IMDB.



And Nodrod, we're not classifying all the films merely to destroy all you hold dear, but to aide our search for the kind of films we're in the mood for, especially if this list gets as big as the music archive... Just put a rough genre down even though a little piece of you may die in the process. Think about it as a community sacrifice. We'll morn for that piece on IRC.

[Phang]

Originally Posted by Nodrog

No I wrote it last night while extremely tired and it was hilariously rambling and pretentious.

yes, it was, but i liked the thing about the sugar cube.

[jerome]

Drama

Good Bye Lenin - directed by Wolfgang Becker - 9.4/10

Plot: "The film is set in the East Berlin of 1989 . Alexander Kerner's mother, Christiane Kerner, an ardent supporter of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany, suffers a heart attack when she sees Alex being arrested in an anti-government demonstration and falls into a coma shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall. After eight months she awakes, but is severely weakened both physically and mentally, and doctors say that any shock may cause another, possibly fatal, attack. Alex realises that her discovery of recent events would be too much for her to bear, and so sets out to maintain the illusion that things are as normal in the German Democratic Republic. To this end, he and his family revert the flat to its previous drab decor, dress in their old clothes, and feed the bed-ridden Christiane new, Western produce from old labeled jars. For a time the deception works, but gradually becomes increasingly complicated and elaborate. Despite everything, Christiane occasionally witnesses strange occurrences, such as a gigantic Coca-Cola advertisement banner unfurling on a building outside the apartment. Alexander and a friend with film-making ambitions edit old tapes of news broadcasts and create their own fake special reports to explain them away."

i don't really feel as if i should talk more about this film except to say that it's one of my all time favourites. the plot should give some sign to what sort of film it will be, and it is powerfully tender.


---


Documentary / Biography

Grizzly Man - directed by Werner Herzog - 8.7/10

another typical piece of herzogs focusing on an eccentric lead. it's an examination of the life of amateur grizzly bear expert timothy treadwell who had travelled to katmai in the alaskan peninsulas for 13 consecutive summers. he was killed, along with his girlfriend, amie huguenard. this film is an exploration of this man's compassion and ability to find solace in these endangered animals.

herzog is probably my favourite director ever, he consistently makes unobtrusive but yet incredibly personal films and this is no different.

[midge5]

Originally Posted by Phang

yes, it was, but i liked the thing about the sugar cube.

That bit of the review alone made me want to see the film

[Hebdomad]

On second thoughts, we could abandon genre and just sort films by user. I guess ASG is going to merge our suggestions into the first post?

[All Systems Go]

You'd think so, wouldn't you?

[jerome]

he definitely made the right choice with not showing the video. there's no possible scenario or a situation, where a video of a man who dedicated a large part of his life to grizzly bear ended up getting eaten by one isn't inherently hilarious. herzog pretty much conquers the impossible by task by somehow making the film vacant of any of that seriously huge comedy premise.

also, you do realise the girlfriend got killed too? or am i horrifically missing the point


edit: i've been laughing for the past 3 minutes at the thought of watching the video

[Nodrog]

I've been dragged to the cinema a lot recently so heres some short reviews of a few films I've seen over the last few weeks, complete with semi-ironic marks out of 10!


No Country For Old Men (Coen Brothers)

This belongs in the 'generic action film trying to lift itself above the crowd by bolting on some philosophical themes' box with Children of Men/Bladerunner/etc. A PSYCHOTIC assassin CHASES the protagonist around the country, SHOOTING him with GUNS to try and recover his MONEY, and sometimes he rolls dice before killing people which is a pretty insightful commentary on free will imo. Nothing at all worth watching happens in this film, nor is there any real thematic content or attempt at a message; its just 90 minutes of bog-standard chase-film followd by a nihilistic ending and a long speech to tie things together. It's every bit as shallow as the Big Lebowski only without the jokes and one-liners, and its much less fun than other straightforward action films with less pretensions to art so I guess that makes it the worst of both worlds.

3/10



The Piano Teacher (Michael Haneke)

I loved Haneke's Funny Games so much that I was scared to watch anything else by him because I knew it wouldnt live up to my expectations. This is a very different kind of film; its a character study of a sexually/emotionally repressed middle class music teacher who tries to fall in love with one of her students. Haneke's directing is wonderful and its amazing how he manages to communicate so much without really showing anything - I love the sense of total detachment that he's able to create in scenes which should be emotionally charged, and it allows him to treat fairly conventionalised topics in a thought-provoking manner which doesnt fall into emotionalism or cliche. However the underlying plot in this film is pretty dull and its not very clear what its meant to mean, or how any of the leading character's traits generalise beyond her into wider themes (I originally thought it was meant to be some critique of middle class lifestyle and the dichotomy between the spiritual experiences which people claim to get from art and their mundane lifestyles, but its far too specific for that. The lead actor says she thought the film was primarilly about the difference between love and seduction but this is pretty weak. Its just a character study of a fairly non-interesting person really).

I suppose this is the best that can be done when it comes to the film adaption of a shitty novel, but I think its still ultimately a film about a shitty novel.

6/10



Sweeney Todd (Tim Burton)

A musical where none of the leading characters can sing is an interesting concept. Its not really hard to see why it happened though; a big budget musical is risky for a major studio, so having a lot of recognisable stars was presumably considered vital for marketing purposes, regardless of how ill-suited they were for parts which involved singing. But there's a sense in which it works; professional-quality singers would have seemed a bit out of place in the impressively dark and gloomy atmosphere which Burton creates, and it probably does fit in better with the general aesthetic.

I didnt want to like ST because its based around several of the main things which are wrong with modern Hollywood - overreliance on big name actors, gratuitious use of cleavage/sex to sell films, plots which consist of trite love stories and reenforce stupid ideas about romance, lack of real meaning/content, and so on. But I really enjoyed it despite that - I went to see it with a girl who's obsessed with musicals and she kept telling me afterwards that it wasnt as good as the film adaptions of West Side Story/Hairspray etc which I totally disagree with; musicals like those tend to be ultra camp and semi-ironic, focusing around trite feel-good themes (racism iz bad) that are impossible to take seriously. Sweeney Todd manages to be a proper film which just happens to contain singing, and that makes it better than any other musical I've watched (admittedly, not many).

6.5/10



The Ketchup Effect (Teresa Fabik)

Highschool teen movie :o

Except its not really; its about the effects of bullying in general, and the atmosphere of conformity it creates for everyone involved, not just those being bullied. This is one of the few films about high school i've seen that has been made by someone who actually understands/remembers what highschool is like - theres none of the idealised/cliche/sentimental portrayals that you get in Hollywood high-school films, and it captures the feelings of confusion and awkwardness well without appealing to the standard stereotypes of this genre (at least until the last 15 minutes or so, where sentimentality starts to take over).

6.5/10



I Am Legend (?)

One of the most boring films I've ever watched, jesus christ this is awful.

2/10



The Bow (Kim Ki-Duk)

Kim Ki-Duk is my latest obsession and I like most of what I've seen by him. This film is beautiful; its about a girl who was kidnapped as a baby and raised on a boat by an old man who wants to marry her when she turns 17. Aside from the paedo-issue, theres a lot of interesting things going on in this film regarding the growing role of intrusive technology, and the pros and cons of a secluded upbringing which escapes the mediocrity of modern city life, and so on. The cinematography is wonderful and the film has such a strongly sensuous quality which makes it almost dreamlike. The lead actress is also one of the most beautiful girls ever, which is pretty cool I guess (shes 22 though).

7/10

[You Are Gay]

Originally Posted by Nodrog

I Am Legend (?)

One of the most boring films I've ever watched, jesus christ this is awful.

2/10

The ending! Jesus Christ the ending!!! Arggghhh!!!!!

[Boogster]

36 Quai des Orfèvres (2004)

An intelligently paced, taut, well acted thriller.

Predictably, Parisian Gendarmerie exposed as vicious old men with no scruples and unaccountably beautiful wives. It's French (and in subtitles) so there are gratuituous boobies on show, and moreover Gerard Depardieu is excellent in a carefully understated role as the seething cop with chequered past.

8/10

[All Systems Go]

Originally Posted by You Are Gay

The ending! Jesus Christ the ending!!! Arggghhh!!!!!

A film that had so many potentialities to become interesting or meaningfull and it willfully drove past them all in favour of a buddy story between one man and his dog.

[All Systems Go]

Also, I went to see it with no idea what it was. As soon as it was revealed that the genetically modified measles to cure cancer but then the cancer started turning people into killer zombies, I turned to my friend and said 'I don't want to watch this movie.'

I was right, I really didn't want to watch that movie.

[You Are Gay]

[Spoiler Alert In Next Post]

[You Are Gay]

The problem i have with the film is this:

In the book the main character is trying to find a cure to the vampirism. However, he also goes around exterminating the vampires. In the film the only reason Smith's character killed was as a by product of trying to save humanity. In the film the vampires remain mere animals. In the book the vampires have set up a society and are actually "just real people". As such it's the main character who is the monster (because he goes round killing all these people). This is where the book gets it's title from "I am Legend". In the book the main character becomes the horror story, the legend, that little vampires will be told by their parents to frighten them into obedience. In the film Smith becomes a legend because he finds a cure.

As such what once was a dark story which flipped the horror genre on its head just becomes another bullshit feel good movie with action in it.

As such it sucked.

[Mzyxptlk]

Sounds like an interesting book, I'll put it on my list.

[jerome]

The Man From Earth


A science fiction film that relies purely on dialogue as opposed to props and sets. An analytical film about humanity's ability to believe. Worth watching, definitely. Admittedly, a bit pretentious at times but still it's pretty good.

7.4/10

[All Systems Go]

Genre: Pap

In Her Shoes

Heartwarming story about god knows what. A directionless brat finds a career ripping off old people and a high flying, ever so slightly overweight accountant finds happiness as a dog walker (I kid you not). Oh, and they're sisters.

It's predictable, with no redeeming features, except for Ms. Diaz going around with very little for quite a long time. Although, these tend to be filled with many old men in the background.

As you might expect, there's far too many shots of peoples feet, every time wearing adifferent pair of shoes.

If you find yourself watching this, commit suicide. If you find yourself in the same room as this film on DVD, kill the person who owns it an then commit suicide.

There is absolutly no reason for a film like this to exist.

1/10

[All Systems Go]

Quasi-Biopic

I'm Not There

A film about Bob Dylan. Instead of using a standard narrative however, there were six different people playing Bob Dylan (including Kate Blanchett and some little black kid). Each one represented a different phase of his career and some take the name of fmaous historical figures (such as Rimbaud and Billy The Kid) and in many ways were six different stories with no actual connection.

It meshes fact and fiction and each 'Dylan' is filmed in a different manner, some in colour and some in black and white.

I was particularly impressed with the performances by Cate Blanchett and Marcus Carl Franklin.

I would recommend this film but would suggest you do some background reading about Dylan to fully appreciate what is going on in this film.

Overall,

7.5/10

[All Systems Go]

Das Experiment

Based on the Stanford prison experiment, this German film is about an experiment where volunteers participate in an experiment. Some are labelled prisoners and some as guards. They are told they cannot do anything, except use violence. Things quickly get out of hand.

A great debut film from the dirctor of The Downfall.

8/10