I had never heard of this Fellini before. It's very good. And the Ship Sails On Directed by Federico Fellini • 1984 • Italy In Fellini’s quirky, imaginative fable, a motley crew of European aristocrats (and a lovesick rhinoceros!) board a luxurious ocean liner on the eve of World War I to scatter the ashes of a beloved diva. Fabricated entirely in Rome’s famed Cinecittà studios, AND THE SHIP SAILS ON (E LA NAVE VA) reaches spectacular new visual heights with its stylized re-creation of a decadent bygone era.
Well, I'm assuming this is part of their honoring of Black History Month but there are currently 19 films featuring the pioneering African American actor, Sidney Poitier. Good American Masters episode on Poitier - My favorite role is his turn as Walter Younger in Raisin In The Sun. Blackboard Jungle and No Way Out are favorites, too.
Oh, yea! I've heard of this Super Bowl. But there is so much I need to watch at Criterion, and so little time.
Criterion put together a selection of Best Foreign Film Oscar winners, so I'm going to try to catch the handful that have eluded me. Last night I watched "The Great Beauty", the 2013 winner. I don't know if I should say "If you liked Fellini, you'll like this" or "If you liked Fellini, you'll find this film highly derivative."
I was looking at thay list last night. I keep meaning to finish The Great Beauty (the initial discotheque scene put me off a bit) so while it's streaming I'll resume sometime this weekend. The Tin Drum is a must watch for everyone, imo. Can be enjoyed on several levels; I remember being transfixed by the world of little Oskar as a kid and appreciating the craftwork and thematic/political allusions when I got older.
Watching: The Juniper Tree Directed by Nietzchka Keene • 1990 • Iceland Starring Björk, Bryndis Petra Bragadóttir, Valdimar Örn Flygenring The late, unsung visionary Nietzchka Keene made her stark, stunning feature debut with this medieval-set fable of witchcraft and persecution. Loosely based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale of the same name, The Juniper Tree stars an incandescent Björk in her first film performance as a young woman who, after her mother is burned at the stake for practicing witchcraft, flees with her sister (Bryndis Petra Bragadóttir) through the harsh Icelandic wilderness—a journey shot through with both terror and mystic revelation. Spectacularly shot on location in poetic black and white and punctuated by indelible waking dream sequences (courtesy of legendary experimental filmmaker Pat O’Neill), this lost-and-found masterwork is a singular feminist fantasia of uncanny, elemental power. Restored by the Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research and The Film Foundation, with funding provided by the George Lucas Family Foundation.
I think I saw "The Tin Drum" when it came out (I was in high school) but at this point I don't really have a clear memory one way or the other. So it is on my watchlist. "Babette's Feast" is on the docket for tonight.
State of Siege (1972) "An urban guerrilla group, outraged at the counterinsurgency and torture training clandestinely organized by the CIA in their country, abducts a U.S. official (Yves Montand) to bargain for the release of political prisoners; soon the kidnapping becomes a media sensation, leading to violence." Picked a copy of the DVD off the shelf but will check out the extras on the channel. Nice streamer on YouTube as well:
The great Godard! A Married Woman Directed by Jean-Luc Godard • 1964 • France Starring Bernard Noël, Macha Méril, Philippe Leroy Legendary French New Wave auteur Jean-Luc Godard reverses the standard love triangle and challenges the influence of consumer culture in one of his most provocative dissections of modern life. Charlotte (Macha Méril) aimlessly drifts between morning affairs with the artistic Robert (Bernard Noël) and mundane evenings with her paternalistic husband, Pierre (Philippe Leroy). Unsure of whether she loves either man, Charlotte discovers she is pregnant and must come to terms with her emotional infidelities.
Thanks for the suggestion. I gave it a try but gave up. What I watched I found to be closer to your latter description. I like that I can try out everything at Criterion and not feel like I have to watch all the way through because I paid a rental fee. OTOH, I hope I don't miss out on something that I should have had more patience with.
I enjoyed "Babette's Feast" more ... a completely different style of movie ... both about existential crises. Having now seen "The Tin Drum", I'm certain I didn't see it back when I was in high school. Oddly (I think), I was reminded multiple times of "Tommy".
I watched what was billed as the pre release version of “Red River”...which was The Last Picture Show. Joanne Dru (sister of Peter Marshall of “Hollywood Squares”) was a real beauty. John Wayne, Montgomery Clift, Walter Brennan, Howard Hawks directing... YES!!!
Watched the con man double feature of The Grifters and House Of Games. The Grifters is highly recommended. House Of Games is good too but The Grifters is the best of this double feature.
Watched The Bad and The Beautiful for the first time this weekend. Wow! What a great movie. Kirk was amazing, RIP!
I watched this last week. You are correct. It is great, and really smart. I didn't recognize Lana Turner. The Bad and the Beautiful Directed by Vincente Minnelli • 1952 • United States Starring Lana Turner, Kirk Douglas, Walter Pidgeon Appearances are everything in Hollywood. Kirk Douglas gives a magnetic, Oscar-nominated performance as conniving producer Jonathan Shields, who turns talent, charisma and ruthlessness into film success, stomping on careers and creating enemies along the way. Vincente Minnelli directs this winner of five Academy Awards that’s more than a compelling insider’s look at Tinseltown: it’s a juicy opportunity for buffs to guess which real-life stars and moguls inspired the roles played by Douglas, Lana Turner, Walter Pidgeon, Dick Powell, Gloria Grahame, and more.
35 Shots Of Rum as I have seen it a couple of times previously on Fandor, but I wanted to watch it again because it leaves the CC at the end of the month.
Watching: Vagabond Directed by Agnès Varda • 1985 • France Sandrine Bonnaire won the Best Actress César for her portrayal of the defiant young drifter Mona, found frozen to death in a ditch at the beginning of Vagabond. Agnès Varda pieces together Mona's story through flashbacks told by those who encountered her (played by a largely nonprofessional cast), producing a splintered portrait of an enigmatic woman. With its sparse, poetic imagery, Vagabond (Sans toit ni loi) is a stunner, and won Varda the top prize at the Venice Film Festival.
