Screening Log, 2009

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2009 Screening Log

What are these ratings?
2008 Log
(s) = short film
* = Recorded on DVR

12/28

Liverpool (Lisandro Alonso, 2009)

DVD, 1st Alonso film

The subtlety of Alonso's compositions and the enigmatic presentation of his protagonist keep Liverpool interesting for about an hour. Within that time, Alonso uses the claustrophobic and worndown state of Farrel's surroundings as a reflection of his inner state. The metaphorical transition from the cramped room on the boat to the expansive, snowy terrain is not an atypical device, but fortunately Alonso does not let his character or the audience off easy. Farrel's return to the family he abandoned years ago has an unspoken tragedy about it, using extended, mostly wordless sequences leaving the anti-reunion of sorts open-ended and free of the catharsis or melodrama the setup begs for. Unfortunately, Alonso's shifting focus to Farrel's daughter in the final twenty minutes adds little to the film aside from the admittedly impressive final shot and I was left with the feeling that Alonso headed this direction for little reason aside from its unpredictability.

12/27

Antichrist (Lars von Trier, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 9th Trier film

12/25

A Single Man (Tom Ford, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 1st Ford film

12/19

Avatar (James Cameron, 2009)

DVD, 5th Cameron film

This was actually pretty damn good. The painstakingly detailed world is not only effectively immersive as mere eye candy, but the combination of its shimmering beauty (most reminiscent of Miyazaki) and the tragic weight that gives to the impending damage done to it makes up for much of what is lacking in the story. It's uneven - there are times when its mechanics are extremely transparent and cliched, yet many others where their visual rendering helps transcend that - but surprisingly involving. My biggest complaint, aside from the frequently terrible score, is the more blatant exoticizing that some critics have complained about. It was particularly the group chants/kumbayas and their simplistic representation of more primitive (rather than primal) yet pure cultures that struck me as a tad condescending and misguided. Still, it's kind of fun reading it as an allegorical revenge fantasy where the Native Americans get to come out on top. It's not without it's weaknesses, but the fact that Cameron was able to use so many familiar elements from other films and still craft something unique and exciting is enough to make it one of the better recent sci-fi/action films.

12/18

An Education (Lone Scherfig, 2009)

DVD, 1st Scherfig film

12/17

American Gigolo (Paul Schrader, 1979)

1/2
DVD, 4th Schrader film

12/16

Blue Collar (Paul Schrader, 1978)

DVD, 3rd Schrader film

Rough around the edges, but that almost adds to its charm. It's a rare pro-worker film that shows the factory bosses and the unions as two sides of the same coin with the workers irrevocably left ass-out in the wind. It was particularly effective in shifting to a much darker tone in the second half as the three men find themselves lost amidst institutional corruption and in way over their heads.

12/14

Trick 'r Treat (Michael Dougherty, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Dougherty film

12/13

The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans (Werner Herzog, 2009)

DVD, 20th Herzog film

12/12

Jerichow (Christian Petzold, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Petzold film

Food Inc. (Robert Kenner, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Kenner film

12/11

Up In the Air (Jason Reitman, 2009)

DVD, 3rd Reitman film

12/10

Auto Focus (Paul Schrader, 2002)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Schrader film

12/7

In the Loop (Armondo Ianucci, 2009)

DVD, 1st Ianucci film

Treeless Mountain (So Yong Kim, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Kim film

12/6

FILM IST. a Girl and a Gun (Gustav Deutsch, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Deutsch film

12/5

Goodbye Solo (Ramin Bahrani, 2009)

DVD, 2nd Bahrani film

The Girlfriend Experience (Steven Soderbergh, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 13th Soderbergh film

12/3

Fantastic Mr. Fox (Wes Anderson, 2009)

DVD, 6th Anderson film

12/2

Sherlock Holmes (Guy Ritchie, 2009)

DVD, 3rd Ritchie film

11/30

Barfly (Barbet Schroeder, 1987)

DVD, 1st Schroeder film

11/29

Thirst (Chan-wook Park, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 3rd Park film

11/28

Heaven's Gate (Michael Cimino, 1980)

DVD, 2nd Cimino film

11/27

The Road (John Hillcoat, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 2nd Hillcoat film

11/26

Ninja Assassin (James McTeigue, 2009) No Stars
Theater, 2nd McTeigue film

11/25

Black Dynamite (Scott Sanders, 2009)

DVD, 1st Sanders film

11/24

Grosse Point Blank (George Armitage, 1997)

DVD, 2nd viewing

11/23

Invictus (Clint Eastwood, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 12th Eastwood film

11/20

Adoration (Atom Egoyan, 2009)

DVD, 5th Egoyan film

11/18

Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (John McNaughton, 1986)

DVD, 2nd McNaughton film

11/17

King Rat (Bryan Forbes, 1965)

DVD, 2nd Forbes film

11/16

Capitalism: A Love Story (Michael Moore, 2009)

DVD, 5th Moore film

11/15

The Searchers (John Ford, 1956)

DVD, 2nd viewing

11/14

Frontier of Dawn (Philippe Garrel, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Garrel film

11/13

Keane (Lodge Kerrigan, 2004)

1/2
DVD, 1st Kerrigan film

11/11

Your Friends & Neighbors (Neil LaBute, 1998)

DVD, 3rd LaBute film

11/10

Melinda & Melinda (Woody Allen, )

1/2
DVD, 23rd Allen film

10/21 - 11/9

Precious (Lee Daniels, 2009)

Theater, 1st Daniels film

The Men Who Stare at Goats (Grant Heslov, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 1st Heslov film

The Terminal (Steven Spielberg, 2004)

DVD, 17th Spielberg film

The Limits of Control (Jim Jarmusch, 2009)

DVD, 8th Jarmusch film

The Tin Star (Anthony Mann, 1957)

DVD, 10th Mann film

Paranormal Activity (Oren Peli, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 1st Peli film

The Verdict (Sidney Lumet, 1982)

DVD, 6th Lumet film

Night & Day (Hong Sang-soo, 2009)

DVD, 7th Hong film

You Can Count on Me (Kenneth Lonergan, 2000)

DVD, 2nd viewing

Taking Woodstock (Ang Lee, 2009)

DVD, 5th Lee film

10/20

The Damned United (Tom Hooper, 2009)

DVD, 1st Hooper film

10/18

Where the Wild Things Are (Spike Jonze, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 4th Jonze film

10/17

The Yes Men (Dan Ollman, Sarah Price & Chris Smith, 2003)

DVD, 1st Ollman/Price/Smith film

The Yes Men Fix the World (Andy Bichlbaum & Mike Bonanno, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Bichlbaum/Bonanno film

10/16

The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard (Neil Brennan, 2009) No Stars
DVD, 1st Brennan film

9-15-10/15

A Serious Man (Joel & Ethan Coen, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 12th Coen film

The Last Winter (Larry Fessenden, 2006)

1/2
DVD, 1st Fessenden film

Zombieland (Ruben Fleischer, 2009)

Theater, 1st Fleischer film

The Informant! (Steven Soderbergh, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 12th Soderbergh film

Before Sunset (Richard Linklater, 2004)

DVD, 2nd viewing

Before Sunrise (Richard Linklater, 1995)

DVD, 3rd viewing

King Kong (Peter Jackson, 2005) 1/2
DVD, 7th Jackson film

9/14

The Cove (Louie Psihoyos, 2009)

DVD, 1st Psihoyos film

9/12

Pee Wee's Big Adventure (Tim Burton, 1985)

Theater, 4th or 5th viewing

9/11

Mother (Albert Brooks, 1996)

DVD, 5th Brooks film

9 (Shane Acker, 2009)

Theater, 1st Acker film

9/9

Changeling (Clint Eastwood, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 11th Eastwood film

9/8

The Shootist (Don Siegel, 1976)

1/2
DVD, 4th Siegel film

9/7

Harakiri (Masaki Kobayashi, 1962)

1/2
DVD, 3rd Kobayashi film

9/6

One From the Heart (Francis Ford Coppola, 1982)

DVD, 10th Coppola film

9/5

Extract (Mike Judge, 2009)

DVD, 4th Judge film

9/4

Family Viewing (Atom Egoyan, 1987)

DVD, 5th Egoyan film

9/3

Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas (Terry Gilliam, 1998)

1/2
DVD, 2nd viewing

9/1

The Wackness (Jonathan Levine, 2007)

DVD, 1st Levine film

Ordinary People (Robert Redford, 1980)

DVD, 2nd Redford film

8/31

Excalibur (John Boorman, 1981)

1/2
DVD, 7th Boorman film

8/28

Casualties of War (Brian De Palma, 1989)

DVD, 17th De Palma film

8/27

The Last Picture Show (Peter Bogdanovich, 1971)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Bogdanovich film

8/26

Kansas City Confidential (Phil Karlson, 1952)

DVD, 1st Karlson film

8/25

Signs (M. Knight Shyamalan, 2002)

DVD, 6th Shyamalan film

Duplicity (Tony Gilroy, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Gilroy film

8/24

Unbreakable M. Knight Shyamalan, 2000)

DVD, 2nd viewing

8/23

The Outlaw Josie Wales (Clint Eastwood, 1976)

DVD, 10th Eastwood film

The Last Days of Disco (Whit Stillman, 1998)

DVD, 2nd Stillman film

8/21

Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino, 2009)

Theater, 2nd viewing

8/20

The Taking of Pelham 123 (Tony Scott, 2009)

DVD, 8th Scott film

DOA (Rudolph Maté, 1950)

DVD, 1st Maté film

8/19

(500) Days of Summer (Marc Webb, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Webb film

8/18

Crossroads (Walter, Hill, 1986)

1/2
DVD, 6th Hill film

Ponyo (Hayao Miyazaki, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 11th Miyazaki film

8/17

Hard Times (Walter Hill, 1975)

DVD, 5th Hill film

8/16

Southern Comfort (Walter Hill, 1981)

DVD, 4th Hill film

8/14

Bad Company (Robert Benton, 1972)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Benton film

District 9 (Neil Blomkamp, 2009)

Theater, 1st Blomkamp film

8/12

Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino, 2009)

Theater, 7th Tarantino film

8/10

Colorado Territory (Raoul Walsh, 1949)

DVD, 2nd Walsh film

8/9

The Others (Alejandro Amenabar, 2001)

DVD, 1st Amenabar film

8/8

Choose Me (Alan Rudolph, 1983)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Rudolph film

8/7

Hot Rod (Akiva Schaffer, 2007) No Stars
DVD, 1st Schaffer film

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (Stephen Sommers, 2009) No Stars
DVD, 2nd Sommers film

8/6

48 Hrs. (Walter Hill, 1983)

DVD, 3rd Hill film

8/5

The Warriors (Walter Hill, 1979)

DVD, 2nd Hill film

8/4

Kin Dza Dza (Georgi Daneliya, 1986)

DVD, 1st Daneliya film

8/3

Max Payne (John Moore, 2008)

DVD, 1st Moore film

8/1

Baby Doll (Elia Kazan, 1956)

DVD, Kazan film

Savagely funny and increasingly vicious, Baby Doll is the rare film that not only lives up to, but surpasses its notoriety. From the steamy reparté between Baby Doll and Silva to the frank, although somewhat metaphorical, depiction of Archie Lee's sexual frustration which manifests itself in violent, destructive ways. The film really takes off once Silva makes his first advance on Baby Doll and Kazan's playful mise-en-scene and crisp editing make for an endlessly entertaining cat-and-mouse game with remarkable psychological intricacies that tackle the bruised male ego as adeptly as the naive female virgin's. It masterfully intertwines comedy, drama, sex and revenge into a wonderfully sensual and thoughtful film.

A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Cinema (Martin Scorsese & Michael Henry Wilson, 1995)

1/2
DVD, 20th Scorsese/1st Wilson film

7/31

Enter the Dragon (Robert Clouse, 1973)

DVD, 2nd Clouse film

Doubt (John Patrick Shanley, 2008)

DVD, 1st Shanley film

Funny People (Judd Apatow, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 3rd Apatow film

Sandler is good, real good, but performances have never been a problem for Apatow, so the looseness which his actors exude is certainly the films one great charm. There's a good deal of funny improv and most of the stand-up bits were amusing, but as a film, it's all over the place - a sprawling comedy with little sense of rhythm or pacing (146 minutes...really Judd?) so a number of scenes drag on, leaving characters sitting on the sideline so Apatow can mine every bit of drama out of a relatively simple premise. It's not the length itself that bothers me, but that a good tightening up of the script or even a few scenes could've done wonders so the excessive length seems to be a result of either laziness or egotism. Like Knocked Up, the wheels slowly start to fall off this one once it hits the halfway point.

7/30

Whatever Works (Woody Allen, 2009)

DVD, 22nd Allen film

7/20

Mikey & Nicky (Elaine May, 1976)

DVD, 1st May film

7/17

The International (Tom Twyker, 2009)

DVD, 1st Twyker film

Moon (Duncan Jones, 2009)

Theater, 1st Jones film

7/16

The Soloist (Joe Wright, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 3rd Wright film

7/14

I Love You, Man (John Hamburg, 2009)

DVD, 1st Hamburg film

7/13

Star Trek (JJ Abrams, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Abrams film

7/10

Brüno (Larry Charles, 2009)

Theater, 3rd Charles film

7/8

Lorna's Silence (Luc & Jean-Pierre Dardenne, 2009)

Theater, 5th Dardenne Bros. film

7/5

Right at Your Door (Chris Gorak, 2006)

DVD, 1st Gorak film

Hancock (Peter Berg, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Berg film

7/4

Two Lovers (James Gray, 2009)

DVD, 3rd Gray film

The promise of James Gray, present only in brief flashes of the other two films of his I've seen, finally comes to fruition here. He creates a palpable sense of time and place and there's not a second of this film that doesn't feel distinctively like New York. The muted color palate, understated performances, gently elegiac tone and the tenderness of Gray's camera all coalesce into a surprisingly dense complex portrait of one man's grief and suffering without dragging the audience down into his despair. It runs the full gamut of emotions, but builds the characters first so that his interactions with his parents are comical, not comic relief, his juggling of the two women an externalization of his inner struggle, not merely a plot device. It's beautiful and poetic, almost effortlessly so.

7/3

The Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 4th Bigelow film

7/1

Public Enemies (Michael Mann, 2009)

Theater, 9th Mann film

6/29

The Ascent (Larisa Shepitko, 1977)

DVD, 1st Shepitko film

6/28

The Day the Earth Stood Still (Robert Wise, 1951)

DVD, 4th Wise film

6/25

Transformers II: Revenge of the Fallen (Michael Bay, 2009) No Stars
Theater, 5th Bay film

6/21

Up (Pete Docter & Bob Peterson, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 1st Docter/Peterson film

6/20

Brighton Rock (John Boulting, 1947)

DVD, 1st Boulting film

6/18-6/19

Avant-Garde Shorts (from Avant-Garde 2: Experimental Cinema from 1928-1954 DVD):

(s) Geography of the Body (Willard Maas, 1943)

The quasi-poetic voice-over is distracting, but this nonetheless remains an interesting experiment in the close-up and its ability to use the fragmentation the human form into fascinating abstract variations that call into question things we’ve long taken for granted. Doesn’t amount to much, but worth a look.

(s) The Mechanics of Love (Willard Maas & Ben Moore, 1955)

1/2
An attempt to recreate the mystery and passion of lovemaking through associative juxtapositions and pacing.

(s) Visual Variations on Noguchi (Marie Menken, 1945) 1/2
You know how most people, even those who’ve never seen an entire avant-garde film have certain preconceptions of them being disorienting, weird for the sake of being weird and, well, the “p” word. Don’t let those people know this film exists.

(s) House of Cards (Joseph Vogel, 1947)

Holy shit, it’s the first half of Lost Highway 50 years earlier. Inspired by film noir’s play of shadow and light and wounded male psyches, Vogel examines the suppression memory and tragedy and its inevitably violent resurfaces through a use of doubling and the seamless integration of flashbacks into the protagonists current struggle to accept the murder he has committed. Rough-around-the-edges for sure, but Vogel tackles some interesting themes pretty thoroughly for such a short film.

(s) The Potted Psalm (Sidney Peterson & James Broughton, 1946)

1/2
(s) The Cage (Sidney Peterson, 1947)

Eyeball makes its way loose from head, rolling around town. Film stresses the limitations of visions and the ability of cinema to expand and reshape. To what end? Not more films like this, please.

(s) Christmas, U.S.A. (Gregory Markopoulos, 1949) 13 min.

(s) Adventures of Jimmy (James Broughton, 1950)

(s) Interim (Stan Brakhage, 1952)

1/2
Pretty interesting expression of the anxiety of teenage romance, the shared trepidation of the couple similar, but conveyed through vastly different body language. The film exists for one moment in particular, but what is special is the post-sex at communication and the same fumbling and awkwardness that led to the initial encounter inevitably drives the two apart afterwards.

(s) The Way to Shadow Garden (Stan Brakhage, 1954)

(s) The Extraordinary Child (Stan Brakhage, 1954)

(s) Rebus-Film No. 1 (Paul Leni, 1925)

(s) The Fall of the House of Usher (James Sibley Watson/Melville Webber, 1928)

(s) Pacific 231 (Jean Mitry, 1949)

(s) Late Autumn (Dimitri Kirsanoff, 1950)

6/13

Away We Go (Sam Mendes, 2009)

1/2
Theater, 3rd Mendes film

6/12

Summer Hours (Olivier Assayas, 2009)

DVD, 6th Assayas film

6/11

The Hangover (Todd Phillips, 2009)

Theater, 3rd Phillips film

6/9

The Face of Another (Hiroshi Teshigahara, 1966)

DVD, 2nd Teshigahara film

6/8

The Brothers Bloom (Rian Johnson, 2009)

Theater, 2nd Johnson film

6/7

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (Chia-Liang Liu, 1978)

DVD, 1st Liu film

6/4

Mr. Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (Nagisa Oshima, 1983)

DVD, 11th Oshima film

5/30

Drag Me to Hell (Sam Raimi, 2009)

Theater, 8th Raimi film

5/27

Hud (Martin Ritt, 1963)

1/2
DVD, 1st Ritt film

5/25

W. (Oliver Stone, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 10th Stone film

5/24

Terminator: Salvation (McG, 2009)

Theater, 2nd McG film

5/23

Wolf Creek (Greg McLean, 2005)

DVD, 1st McLean film

5/22

Tetsuo: The Iron Man (Shinya Tsukamoto, 1989) 1/2
DVD, 1st Tsukamoto film

5/21

Lake Tahoe (Fernando Eimbcke, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Eimbcke film

5/17

Role Models (David Wain, 2008)

DVD, 3rd Wain film

5/16

Come Drink With Me (King Hu, 1966)

DVD, 2nd Hu film

5/12

Empire of Passion (Nagisa Oshima, 1978)

DVD, 10th Oshima film

5/9

Martyrs (Pascal Laugier, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Laugier film

Wants to have it's cake and eat it too. Had the second half been the entire film, its most interesting elements could have been further developed, but as it stands, Laugier bites off more than he can chew and every aspect is left undercooked. An interesting experiment at times, yet for lengthy stretches, this simply follows rote genre mechanics to build to its surprising but unearned conclusion. Could have been revelatory and genuinely transcendent, which certainly seems to be the intent, had it more effectively built up to that ending.<><><><>

5/7

In the Realm of the Senses (Nagisa Oshima, 1976)

1/2
DVD, 9th Oshima film

5/2

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Gavin Hood, 2009) 1/2
Theater, 1st Wood film

5/1

I Can't Sleep (Claire Denis, 1995)

DVD, 5th Denis

4/30

The Search (Fred Zinnemann, 1948)

DVD, 3rd Zinnemann film

4/28

(s) Véronique and Her Dunce (Eric Rohmer, 1958)

DVD, 9th Rohmer film

Chloe in the Afternoon (Eric Rohmer, 1972)

DVD, 10th Rohmer film

4/26

The Ceremony (Nagisa Oshima, 1971)

DVD, 2nd viewing

4/24

The Ceremony (Nagisa Oshima, 1971)

DVD, 8th Oshima film

4/23

The Man Who Put His Will on Film (Nagisa Oshima, 1970)

DVD, 7th Oshima film

4/20

Boy (Nagisa Oshima, 1969)

DVD, 6th Oshima film

4/19

Adventureland (Greg Mottola, 2009)

Theater, 2nd Mottola film

Observe & Report (Jody Hill, 2009) 1/2
Theater, 1st Hill film

4/18

Crank: High Voltage (Neveldine/Taylor, 2009)

Theater, 2nd Neveldine/Taylor film

From the opening credits and the first shot, this sequel amps up the original's ridiculousness and over-the-top style, taking the video game aesthetic of the first and expanding it to infuse every inch of this world. The amorality, juvenile humor, racism and sexism come off as less offensive in its appealing to the lowest common denominator and more a reflection of the post-GTA aftershocks being transferred into the domain of the action film. There are still several sequences that lack the humor Neveldine and Taylor clearly find in them - particularly the once again awkward and offensive public sex scene with goofy Asian bystanders - but this film's expanded sense of absurdity prevents them from feeling as mean-spirited and unnecessary as in the film. Sure, this is a kitchen-sink (with all household appliances tossed in blender and microwaved) approach to filmmaking that has no overarching visual strategy aside from providing every shot with the maximum visceral impact possible, but there is something charming about the effort here and looking a video game morality through the lens of a live-action film could prove somewhat insightful, considering some of its more bothersome elements are much easier to take in the context of playing a game.

4/15

Tyson (James Toback, 2009)

Theater, 2nd Toback film

4/14

Death By Hanging (Nagisa Oshima, 1968)

DVD, 5th Oshima film

4/13

Diary of a Shinjuku Thief (Nagisa Oshima, 1968)

DVD, 4th Oshima film

4/11

Phantom of the Paradise (Brian DePalma, 1974)

DVD, 16th DePalma film

4/10

Elegy (Isabel Coixet, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Coixet film

4/9

Julia (Erick Zonca, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Zonca film

4/8

Violence at High Noon (Nagisa Oshima, 1966)

DVD, 3rd Oshima film

4/6

Night and Fog in Japan (Nagisa Oshima, 1960)

DVD, 2nd Oshima film

4/4

Midnight (Mitchell Leisen, 1939)

1/2
DVD, 1st Leisen film

3/29

Watchmen (Zack Snyder, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 3rd Snyder film

3/28

Nothing Sacred (William Wellman, 1937)

1/2
DVD, 3rd Wellman film

3/27

JCVD ( El Mechri, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 1st El Mechri film

3/26

Fingers (James Toback, 1978)

1/2
DVD, 1st Toback film

Toback's dark, sparse character study has a nervous engergy about it that intensifies seemingly small events to the point that they threaten to swallow the protagonist whole. Jimmy, yet another offbeat, enigmatic creation of Harvey Keitel, is eternally trapped by his surroundings, be it his father's grasp keeping him in the not-so-legal family business or his failed attempts to bring others into his idealized world as he tries to succeed as a concert pianist. The conflict of a supposed rugged brute with a sensitive/artistic side eludes cliche by externalizing the conflict to every part of Jimmy's life, where an unbridgeable gap exists between people. Keitel's ferocity and Toback's taut directorial control combine in a film that lands one punch after another, without telegraphing a single one. Especially of interest to fans of early, gritty Scorsese.

3/24

The Miracle at St. Anna (Spike Lee, 2008)

DVD, 14th Lee film

3/21

Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist (Peter Sollett, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Sollett film

3/18

Local Hero (Bill Forsyth, 1983)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Forsyth film

3/14

The Thirteenth Warrior (John McTiernan, 1999)

DVD, 4th McTiernan film

3/13

Deja Vu (Tony Scott, 2006)

1/2
DVD, 6th Scott film

3/11

Fat City (John Huston, 1972)

DVD, 8th Huston film

3/10

Wittgenstein (Derek Jarman, 1993)

DVD, 2nd Jarman film

3/8

Matewan (John Sayles, 1987)

1/2
DVD, 4th Sayles film

3/6

The Sting (George Roy Hill, 1973)

DVD, 3rd Hill film

Lakeview Terrace (Neil Labute, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 3rd Labute film

3/4

Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome (George Miller, 1985)

1/2
DVD, 5th Miller film

2/27

The Butcher (Claude Chabrol, 1969)

DVD, 2nd Chabrol film

I can tell from this film that Chabrol will demand a few more films for me to find his wavelength. I found much of this enjoyable or at least oddly intriguing, though its abstractions left too little to hold onto for a few extended stretches. More remeniscent of Bunuel than any other French New Wave director, his purposeful distancing techniques and the subdued acting styles took me by surprise, yet there is an odd warmth given to the remarkably strange relationship between Helene and Paul. Though his style has some Bunuelian touches, he seems more keen on empathy than irony or mockery. Enough to like to leave me wanting more of Chabrol, who at this point must remain a work in progress for me.

The Devil & Daniel Webster (William Dieterle, 1941)

DVD, 1st Dieterle film

This updated Faustian tale brings with it a bitter sense of humor and pervasive evilness that seems a bit surprising for 1941. Not that there aren't a number of other films far darker than this one (though many of these would be noirs as opposed to outright dramas), Jabez's cruelty and blatant affair with Simone Simon verges on emotional abuse towards his wife to a degree rarely hinted at in most other films. Walter Huston is deliriously entertaining as the cackling Mephisto-via-leprechaun (not entirely sure what was going on with his garb), whose appearances are intelligently limited as he serves his function nearly as well when his presence is inferred, physically invisible yet evident in the various ways Jabez changes from wholesome to greedy and arrogant. An age old tale reinvigorated by a creative resetting and cinematography that can be as forebodding in the possible abyss that lies in waiting as it is beautiful in its loving portrayal of pastoral beauty and communal bonding.

2/26

Little Odessa (James Gray, 1994)

1/2
Sundance Channel*, 2nd Gray film

The set-up is simple - older brother stays on the outskirts of his home town after commiting a murder only to find himself drawn back in because of an assigned hit. Reconnections with family and old flame ensue, yet none of this accounts for Gray's ability to form slightly offbeat characterizations and a strong sense of community and place and how these individuals struggle to carve out of their own comfort zones. Tim Roth begins and ends as an enigma, feelings of guilt and regret never tipping him towards a true desire for a clean slate. This resignation never veers towards fatalism and makes room for some rather potent encounters with his brother (Edward Furlong bringing about as much as Edward Furlong can be expected to bring) and hypocritical, yet borderline orthodox father. It is very much a film of the moment, yet it allows scenes to linger in silence while still cutting out most of the fat that could've led this towards a verbose, overly emotional "family DRAMA". It never quite coelesces into all it promises to be, but it's damn strong for a debut. I wasn't completely sold on We Own the Night, but this has be questioning my initial ambivalence and heightens my expections for the rest of Gray's output.

Blindness (Fernando Meirelles, 2008) No Stars
DVD, 3rd Meirelles film

A mostly laughable attempt at social commentary, or I don't know, maybe satire was what the filmmakers were going for, but it fails as both. It's pretty clearly a concept that could only work on the page, because the visualization of the blind internment camp, internal strife and rebellion can be taken about as seriously as a game of dodgeball where everyone is blind-folded. It strives so hard for profundity, for finding something bold and challenging to say about the thin line between order and total chaos when a widespread virus interrupts the possibility of normal social discourse/interaction, yet we're left with the conclusion that self-interest and survivalism, perhaps even fascist factions, would surface and demand counteraction in order to recreate a sense of overall equilibrium. Well yeah, Fernando, if nearly everyone goes blind in a matter of weeks, I'm fairly certain that the fan and the fecal matter would create a mess as well. It's bad enough seeing one actor feign blindness, but here you a large majority of the cast doing for most of the film, but that's only part of the embarrassment. It's hard to get a handle on what Meirelles' actual intent was, since aside from the painfully contrived and mostly insubstantial Bernal sub-plot, there's little attempt at a coherent statement. Julianne Moore embracing and reassuring the woman she has just caught screwing her husband is the perfect moment to point to re: its shoving glimpses of kindness and stick-to-itiveness, to quote Seymour Skinner, that Meirelles is so deadset on conveying is still alive and well in those dark, oh-so-difficult times.

2/25

Stars in My Crown (Jacques Tourneur, 1950)

TCM*, 5th Tourneur film

2/24

Tears of the Black Tiger (Wisit Sasanatieng, 2000) No Stars
DVD, 1st Sasanatieng film

2/22

City Girl (F.W. Murnau, 1930)

1/2
DVD, 6th Murnau film

2/21

Coraline (Henry Selick, 2009)

Theater (3-D), 2nd viewing

The 3-D is mostly incredible here, so the slight drop in score has nothing to do with format. It's a great time and Selick & Co. create such an immersive world that I found it easy to overlook its blatant flaws the first time through. The unraveling of the "Other Mother" world is a wonder to behold, yet there is nary a hint as to what caused the utopian veneer to crumble before Coraline was far more content to stay there nor why said unraveling occured almost instantaneously. Sure, it keeps the film moving, but it's this sort of narrative short-cutting that weakens the experience in the long run, making it successful far more on a visceral level than a storytelling one. The film's first hour so carefully sets up Coraline's loneliness and frustration with her parents that a little more care in setting up her final showdown, which itself seemed rushed, could have done wonders for the film. Still great and I'm glad I caught it in 3-D before it left theaters, but a tad less impressive than I first gave it credit for.

2/20

State & Main (David Mamet, 2000)

DVD, 5th Mamet film

Man's Castle (Frank Borzage, 1933)

1/2
DVD, 3rd Borzage film

Mannequin (Frank Borzage, 1937)

DVD, 4th Borzage film

Pretty much the opposite portrait of martyrdom as Man's Castle and all the better because of it. Where Loretta Young's Trina was a most extreme example of turn-the-other-cheek/ stand-by-your-man/charity-over-autonomyis that defines Christian sacrifice, Crawford's Jessie is a far more fully drawn character, as if she were actually living on the same planet as the rest of us rather than a thinly conceived platitudinal ideal. Her family, caricatured as they are, is a nice counterbalance creating a meaningful struggle, not only to escape the same fate as her mother but her eventual succubus of a husband who attempts to turn her self-empowerment against her. Rather than being defined and restricted by the personality and desires of her husband a la Man's Castle, Jessie sticks to her principles, becoming what could, at least by 1937 standards, be seen as an ultra-modern feminist. Spencer Tracy is himself granted a more rewarding role, giving a fully-rounded portrayal of a wealthy man with mostly good intentions without stepping in many of the steaming pile cliches such a part would immediately lead you to expect. Overall, it may not have any truly stand-out moments, but Borzage is clearly more than an ordinary craftsman and mines empathy not pity from a situation begging for the latter.

2/17

Coraline (Henry Selick, 2009)

1/2
Theater (2-D), 2nd Selick film

2/15

My Friend Ivan Lapshin (Alexei German, 1984)

1/2
DVD, 1st German film

Trans-Europ-Express (Alain Robbe-Grillet, 1966)

DVD, 1st Robbe-Grillet film

2/14

Cruel Story of Youth (Nagisa Oshima, 1960)

1/2
DVD, 1st Oshima film

2/13

The House of Mirth (Terence Davies, 2000)

DVD, 4th Davies film

2/12

City of Ember (Gil Kenan, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Kenan film

An admirable message delivered without pandering to the audience, but the film itself is dramatically flat and piecemeal. There's no momentum and the grandeur and excitement it attempts to generate through the soundtrack and elaborate shots too often felt like overselling the moment rather than coming about organically through the narrative. Oddly enough the actual city of Ember is left far too underexplained. Yes, it's falling apart, a gentle reminder that manmade things will eventually crumble, but there's almost no backstory or look into what life is like there aside from the daily tasks we're constantly taken on. Robbins character is wasted and the little sister Polly may be the single most useless character in any film released last year (unless it was a parody of cute little kid brother/sister characters in family adventure films...had I liked the film more, I probably would give it credit for this). It often seemed like it was about to open up into something more interesting, but was held down by having to stick too closely to the two leads, who never really do anything particularly interesting until the last 30-40 minutes. And all that fuss leads up to a...giant log flume? Seriously, this is what these genius builders came up with as a way for their leaders to get out safely?

2/10

Step Brothers (Adam McKay, 2008)

DVD, 3rd McKay film

2/8

The Room (Tommy Wiseau, 2003) No Stars (Bad Movie Masterpiece)
DVD, 1st Wiseau film

This is a misfire that makes Troll 2 look like a lot of effort went into it. It's a combination of the unintentional humor of the ridiculous dialogue/situations and sheer incompetence of every part of the filmmaking that makes this worth checking out. And this is not some crappy indie film put together for $20,000 - the budget cleared $6 million and none of it is evident on the screen. Per dollar, this may be the biggest travesty in the history of cinema. And why the hell was everyone so eager to toss a ball? My favorite bit in memory was when the four guys met up, played catch while in tuxedos and then moved onto the next scene without explaining why they were dressed up. At the time, one could assume that this was the day of the wedding (and I'm sure it was meant to be), but that happened several weeks later according to the film. Continuity errors for the win!

2/7

Alice in the Cities (Wim Wenders, 1974)

DVD, 7th Wenders film

Nathalie Granger (Marguerite Duras, 1972)

DVD, 1st Duras film

Duras' enigmatic form transforms the domestic space not simply into a prison, though those motifs are evident throughout the film, but a maze of sorts where Mrs. Granger and her female companion wander aimlessly about, catching snippets of a news story, listen to Gerard Depardieu's washing machine salesman struggle to express himself and catch reflections of themselves in mirrors and the pond. Its art-film cliche on paper, but Duras graces the film with an offbeat sense of humor, an expansive sense of time and actually attempts to make something tangible from her characters ennui. The home is a ghost town here and the emptiness of meaningless existence has never been so terrifying. No struggles to find themselves - they're lost forever and Duras captures this mindset in a most unique way.

2/6

The Band Wagon (Vincente Minnelli, 1953)

DVD, 9th Minnelli film

Only my second Fred Astaire film, after the remarkable Top Hat, but this film almost single-handedly justifies his reputation as a great dancer who wasn't the most gracious partner or sharer of the spotlight. I could forgive the absurdity of the grand gesture at the end, the cast of the show (and hence, movie) literally gathering together to applaud him for merely gracing them with his presence, if the rest of the film wasn't such a broad, mostly misfired satire of art vs. entertainment. The last half hour of the film is disorienting, a clean break from what came before as the three central characters perform a series of mediocre musical sketches before the supposed show-stopper gangster finale. Now that is great on its own and Cyd Charisse lights the screen on fire, but there's not even an attempt to ground it in anything and its left feeling like a short film shoehorned into a different feature.

2/5

The Exterminating Angel (Luis Bunuel, 1962)

DVD, 2nd viewing

2/2

Ivansxtc. (Bernard Rose, 2000)

DVD, 3rd Rose film

2/1

The Golden Coach (Jean Renoir, 1954)

DVD, 13th Renoir film

1/30

The Secret of the Grain (Abdel Kechiche, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 1st Kechiche film

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (Patrick Tatopoulos, 2009) No Stars
Theater, 1st Tatopoulos film

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans is the kind of film I can see being praised for its narrative efficiency as there's nary a minute of filler anywhere to be found. Yet this lack of deviation from a simplistic action-response-action formula forces the film to play out in a painfully amateurish fashion. Scene after scene land flat with a resounding thud as it tries to convince us of its own epicness without providing more than a thinly conceived backstory, an underdeveloped, predictable cross-species love story and its even more shallow oppressor/slave duality that allows the filmmakers to bring out one cliche after another. Oh yeah, and Michael Sheen (couldn't imagine more awkward miscasting) plays the badass protagonist who naturally befriends an obscenely large black man with a frighteningly deep voice and a heart of gold. Unfortunately, he was unable to cure Sheen's urinary disease.

1/25

Mister Lonely (Harmony Korine, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 2nd Korine film

1/24

Valkyrie (Bryan Singer, 2008)

Theater, 5th Singer film

1/23

The Duchess of Langeaise (Jacques Rivette, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 4th Rivette film

1/22

Burn After Reading (Joel & Ethan Coen, 2008)

DVD, 2nd viewing

In the City of Sylvia (Jose Luis Guerin, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 2nd viewing

1/20

Of Time and the City (Terence Davies, 2009)

DVD, 3rd Davies film

1/19

Frozen River (Courtney Hunt, 2008) No Stars
DVD, 1st Hunt film

1/18

The Witnesses (Andre Techine, 2008)

DVD, 1st Techine film

1/17

Che: Part 1, The Argentine (Steven Soderbergh, 2008)

Theater, 11th Soderbergh film

1/15

Cherry Blossoms (Doris Dorrie, 2009)

1/2
DVD, 1st Dorrie film

1/14

Up the Yangtze (Yung Chang, 2008)

DVD, 1st Chang film

1/13

Hellboy II: The Golden Army (Guillermo Del Toro, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 4th Del Toro film

1/12

Tell No One (Guillaume Canet, 2008)

DVD, 1st Canet film

Gomorrah (Matteo Garrone, 2008)

DVD, 1st Garrone film

1/9

Before I Forget (Jacques Nolot, 2008)

DVD, 1st Nolot film

Introspective but inert, personal but full of self-pity, Nolot's drama about an elderly gay man coping with the passing of his lover, his deteriorating body and his general detachment from society outside of gigolos and a few select friends is as dry as burnt toast and mistakes its various distressing conversations for enlightment of his central character. As it's both visually and narratively flat, there's really not much of interest here outside of a peek into the lives of bourgeouis, homosexual Parisians.

Kung Fu Panda (Mark Osborne & John Stevenson, 2008)

DVD, 1st Osborne/Stevenson film

Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (Kurt Kuenne, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 1st Kuenne film

1/8

Boarding Gate (Olivier Assayas, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 5th Assayas film

Elusive and enigmatic, Assayas stripped-down espionage tale too often feels like a futile exercise in style than a piece reflecting Argento's inability to escape her past and start over. As usual, Assayas sets a distinct mood, deftly handling the jarring tonal shift halfway through, but aside from that, the films minimalist approach allows only small glimpses of something deeper that it never flushed out. Its greatest feat is using the multinational cast and setting in a way that makes the characters seem small and lost. There is always the sense that as much as any of them think they are in control, there are invariably other more powerful forces at work.

1/7

Gran Torino (Clint Eastwood, 2008)

1/2
Theater, 9th Eastwood film

1/6

The Pervert's Guide to Cinema (Sophie Fiennes, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 1st Fiennes film

1/4

Wendy & Lucy (Kelly Reichardt, 2008)

1/2
DVD-screener, 2nd Reichardt film

1/3

Waltz with Bashir (Ari Folman, 2008)

Theater, 1st Folman film

1/1

Jellyfish (Shira Geffen & Etgar Keret, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 1st Geffen/Keret film

Close to Home (Dalia Hager & Vidi Bilu, 2007)

DVD, 1st Hager/Bilu film

The Wrestler (Darren Aronofsky, 2008)

1/2
DVD, 4th Aronofsky film

Previous Screening Logs: 2008, 2007, December 2006, November 2006, October 2006, September 2006, August 2006, July 2006, June 2006, May 2006, April 2006, March 2006, February 2006, January 2006