In honor of Valentine's Week, I'm going to be posting about Things I Love. Alex is welcome to do the same. You could argue that is what we do on the blog all the time anyway, and you would be right. But let's get down to business.
I love documentaries, because I am a nerd and a voyeur. Nothing in the world is more interesting to me than how other people live their lives, and since other people will not let me in their homes to observe them, I'm forced to rely on documentaries. One of the best and strangest I've seen in awhile is I Think We're Alone Now.
I first learned about this fine film on Fourfour, which is (obviously) the best website. Rich does the best job of explaining the movie's allure, so I'm not really going to try to explain it too much here. Just know that it's about two people, Jeff and Kelly, who are obsessed with 80's pop sensation (and 2011 Syfy movie sensation) Tiffany. Even though her name is said repeatedly and her image is almost constantly on screen, this movie is not about Tiffany. Rich says it best:
This movie serves as an alternative to that shunning: it is the chance for these people to say their piece, to tell their stories without being interrupted by absence. Besides (and this, I think, is something that always stands): people are funny, period. Through nature, nurture and both working together, everyone's got their shit that makes them behave the way they do, and that behavior is, more times than not, amusing. You can enjoy it with a sense of endearment, not malice.
This movie was funny and heartbreaking. Even though there's the initial "Isn't this wacky?" angle, you'll really end up feeling Kelly and Jeff's loneliness and pain. And, really, is being obsessed with Tiffany really all that different from being obsessed with anything else?
Showing posts with label Movie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Movie. Show all posts
Monday, February 7, 2011
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Dance Movies v. Movies With Dancing
A long time ago, during some summer when I was home from college, Alex and I started one of those massive projects we enjoy so much. We planned to watch all the dance movies from the 80s, and we wrote up this all-encompassing rating system to definitively figure out what was the BEST 80s dance movies. We wrote it in this spiral bound notebook that has, I think, been lost to time, but I do remember two categories: Butt Shots and Visible Nipples Through Clothes. After we watched and rated Fame, we kind of lost interest in scoring things, but our project lives on. We still watch dance movies every chance we get. When we watched Road House over his spring break, Alex mentioned that he couldn't believe he'd never watched Dirty Dancing, since it involved Patrick Swayze AND dancing. But is Dirty Dancing really a Dance Movie...or is it just a movie about dancing? And what's the difference? Really, there's no better way for me to explain this than by comparing a classic movie with its "sequel."
Saturday Night Fever seems to be remembered as nothing but dancing and tight pants. It's such a relic of an era that its impossible to separate the movie from disco. But, really, that movie doesn't need dancing, at all. Dancing is Tony Manero's escape from a life that is somehow both mundane and violent. The movie deals with family pressure, class, religion, sexy pizza eating, rape, suicide, and that's just a quick summary. I found the movie to be incredibly dark and depressing. Tony Manero doesn't necessarily find "success" in the end, as it is traditionally defined in a Dance Movie; that is to say, he doesn't find happiness through winning a dance competition or score a Broadway role or showing his parents Who He Is on the Inside. And then there's THIS exchange:
Tony: "Are you a nice girl or are you a cunt?"
Annette: "Can't I be both?"
Tony: "No. It's a decision a girl's gotta make early in life, if she's gonna be a nice girl or a cunt."
Here's the trailer, which reminded me that Fran Drescher is in the movie! Love her. I think this trailer pretty accurately portrays the movie's tone:
In contrast, SNF's "sequel" was Staying Alive, which could only say in the opening credits that it was inspired by characters from the original. That's a pretty good way of putting it. There isn't really a plot to this movie, just scenes and dialogue that enable more dancing. Staying Alive is about how Tony wants to be a successful dancer and then he is. The end. Finola Hughes is this sexy dance star that Tony thinks he wants, but then it turns out she is a huge bitch. Luckily for Tony (and the viewer), he is ultimately the superior dancer, as we see in this final dance scene. This is, honestly, one of my favorite scenes in all of cinema and I can't even count the number of times I've seen it. Sometimes at work this song gets stuck in my head and then I have to do AR with a chorus of "Fire fire fire!" in my head.
So, in summary, Staying Alive is a Dance Movie. Saturday Night Fever is a movie with dancing. The easiest way to tell is that Dance Movies almost always have a choreographed group dance. Also, montages.
Saturday Night Fever seems to be remembered as nothing but dancing and tight pants. It's such a relic of an era that its impossible to separate the movie from disco. But, really, that movie doesn't need dancing, at all. Dancing is Tony Manero's escape from a life that is somehow both mundane and violent. The movie deals with family pressure, class, religion, sexy pizza eating, rape, suicide, and that's just a quick summary. I found the movie to be incredibly dark and depressing. Tony Manero doesn't necessarily find "success" in the end, as it is traditionally defined in a Dance Movie; that is to say, he doesn't find happiness through winning a dance competition or score a Broadway role or showing his parents Who He Is on the Inside. And then there's THIS exchange:
Tony: "Are you a nice girl or are you a cunt?"
Annette: "Can't I be both?"
Tony: "No. It's a decision a girl's gotta make early in life, if she's gonna be a nice girl or a cunt."
Here's the trailer, which reminded me that Fran Drescher is in the movie! Love her. I think this trailer pretty accurately portrays the movie's tone:
In contrast, SNF's "sequel" was Staying Alive, which could only say in the opening credits that it was inspired by characters from the original. That's a pretty good way of putting it. There isn't really a plot to this movie, just scenes and dialogue that enable more dancing. Staying Alive is about how Tony wants to be a successful dancer and then he is. The end. Finola Hughes is this sexy dance star that Tony thinks he wants, but then it turns out she is a huge bitch. Luckily for Tony (and the viewer), he is ultimately the superior dancer, as we see in this final dance scene. This is, honestly, one of my favorite scenes in all of cinema and I can't even count the number of times I've seen it. Sometimes at work this song gets stuck in my head and then I have to do AR with a chorus of "Fire fire fire!" in my head.
So, in summary, Staying Alive is a Dance Movie. Saturday Night Fever is a movie with dancing. The easiest way to tell is that Dance Movies almost always have a choreographed group dance. Also, montages.
Friday, January 22, 2010
So excited!
You guys, watch this trailer.
This looks so good! First, and most obviously, John C. Reilly. Say what you will about him. As long as what you say is that he's great. The guy has such great presence, and I always side with someone who is consistently described as "pug faced". Second, Jonah Hill. All I've got to say is, "Damn, Jonah Hill. Your acting's lookin' fine." Third, Marisa Tomei, who seems to have the same reverse aging disease that plagues Heather Graham. Fourth, and most importantly, Duplass Bros! Sure, they have their naysayers. People talk about their shaky camera blah blah blah. Put that in your butts dummies. Both The Puffy Chair and Baghead were really good, and this movie actually looks to be well lit. Let's see what happens!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Movie Review
Hey guys. Remember when Humpday first came out, and people talked about it for a little while? Then everyone kind of forgot about it. I enjoyed it! Let's not forget about it. Mark Duplass was a delight (as always) and Joshua Leonard was great playing the part of friend with a beard. Nerdtalk for a second, it was filmed with a Panasonic HVX200. That baby costs under $5,000! Look how nice it looks!
The main reason for this post though, is to bring up a similarity that I haven't heard anyone discuss. Am I the only one that felt like Humpday was similar to Kelly Reichardt's Old Joy? I don't think so.
Both films about two old friends. Somewhat similar endings. Female directors. I'm jus' sayin'. If you haven't yet, you should watch Humpday, and Old Joy. Both films are very good.
Arthur
This past weekend, Little Alex surprised all of us by coming home for a night. Of course we had to do something special at Winfrey Family HQ, and that something special was watching the movie Arthur starring a young (but not that young) Dudley Moore and Liza Minnelli.
Dudley Moore is like, good choice guys.
This movie was Mama Winfrey's pick. The most important thing to know about Mama Winfrey is that she doesn't like movies. She rarely sits through one without falling asleep, and I think she only ventures out to the theatre about once a year. Yet she recommended Arthur very enthusiastically, so I felt compelled to check it out. Her review after seeing it a second time was, "Not as funny as I remembered," but we still enjoyed it. The most curious thing about Arthur is not that Dudley Moore is supposed to be a young, handsome playboy (even though that is very curious!), or that Liza Minnelli is dressed like a gay cowboy version of Ernie the Sesame Street character when Arthur meets her (even though that is also very curious!). No, the most curious thing is the way the movie treats Arthur's alcoholism. Because that's what it is. The dude has a serious drinking problem, yet everyone is just like, "Whatevs, that's Arthur for you!" Aside from one elderly uncle who tells him to stop drinking, no one seems to care. There are several emotionally climactic scenes in the movie that take place when Arthur is completely hammered. At no point does Liza Minnelli say, "I actually shouldn't date you, on account of your crippling alcoholism. Also, you slept with a prostitute at the beginning of the movie, a fact that everyone seems to have forgotten about."
And then there was the theme song. You might expect a lot coming from Burt Bacharach and Christopher Cross, two men who are ideally suited to the medium of 80s movie theme songs. But this is what you get:
While most movie theme songs are content to allude to the themes and mood of the movie, this song actually describes the plot. I mean, it's called "Arthur's Theme." Some actual lyrics: "Livin' his life one day at a time/Showin' himself a pretty good time." Really, Burt Bacharach? You just rhymed time with time!
I had what I thought was a great, original idea while watching Arthur: there should be a remake, and Russell Brand should play Arthur! Then while doing research, I found this article. Apparently I'm not such a casting genius after all. I just remembered an article I read a year ago.
Dudley Moore is like, good choice guys.
This movie was Mama Winfrey's pick. The most important thing to know about Mama Winfrey is that she doesn't like movies. She rarely sits through one without falling asleep, and I think she only ventures out to the theatre about once a year. Yet she recommended Arthur very enthusiastically, so I felt compelled to check it out. Her review after seeing it a second time was, "Not as funny as I remembered," but we still enjoyed it. The most curious thing about Arthur is not that Dudley Moore is supposed to be a young, handsome playboy (even though that is very curious!), or that Liza Minnelli is dressed like a gay cowboy version of Ernie the Sesame Street character when Arthur meets her (even though that is also very curious!). No, the most curious thing is the way the movie treats Arthur's alcoholism. Because that's what it is. The dude has a serious drinking problem, yet everyone is just like, "Whatevs, that's Arthur for you!" Aside from one elderly uncle who tells him to stop drinking, no one seems to care. There are several emotionally climactic scenes in the movie that take place when Arthur is completely hammered. At no point does Liza Minnelli say, "I actually shouldn't date you, on account of your crippling alcoholism. Also, you slept with a prostitute at the beginning of the movie, a fact that everyone seems to have forgotten about."
And then there was the theme song. You might expect a lot coming from Burt Bacharach and Christopher Cross, two men who are ideally suited to the medium of 80s movie theme songs. But this is what you get:
While most movie theme songs are content to allude to the themes and mood of the movie, this song actually describes the plot. I mean, it's called "Arthur's Theme." Some actual lyrics: "Livin' his life one day at a time/Showin' himself a pretty good time." Really, Burt Bacharach? You just rhymed time with time!
I had what I thought was a great, original idea while watching Arthur: there should be a remake, and Russell Brand should play Arthur! Then while doing research, I found this article. Apparently I'm not such a casting genius after all. I just remembered an article I read a year ago.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
While You Were Sleeping
About a month ago, Lexie and I watched Lost Highway. Maybe someday I'll attempt to write about it, but NOT TODAY. The point is, I learned something about myself when I watched Lost Highway. For 23 years, I hadn't given Bill Pullman a second thought. Then, at some point during the movie, I realized that he was my dream guy. I'm not sure why. I think it was the jazz sax.
Anyway, as soon as Alex's Matrix pulled out of the Winfrey family drive, I set about rearranging my Netflix queue. The first pick? While You Were Sleeping, starring Mr. Bill Pullman and a young Sandra Bullock.
I can't lie to you: I really enjoyed this movie! It has a plot like every good romantic comedy...implausible at best, completely ludicrous at worst. It goes like this: Sandra Bullock is lonely. The film takes the familiar creative writing workshop adage "Show, Don't Tell" to heart and shows us about 15 different ways Sandra Bullock is a cliche of a lonely person. She works on holidays! She lives alone! Both of her parents are dead! She has a cat! She talks to her cat! It doesn't take a genius (or a romantic comedy scholar like me) to figure out that Sandy's life needs a little shaking up. Luckily for her, her secret crush Peter Gallagher shows up to ride the train one day (did I mention she works at a token booth? Well, she does) and gets pushed onto the tracks by some hoodlums who then run away and are never heard from again. Sandra Bullock immediately springs into action and jumps onto the track. All the while, a train is speeding towards them while deceptively lighthearted music plays and Sandra Bullock says things like, "Please wake up! There's a train coming toward us! It's going very fast!" Like, duh, Sandra Bullock, and also move. Finally she rolls both herself and Peter Gallagher to safety, and that's where her trouble actually begins. Naturally, Peter Gallagher is in a coma, and naturally, a mix-up causes his entire family to believe that Sandra Bullock is his fiancee. Naturally, she is unable to tell them otherwise, because the 1st rule of Romantic Comedy Club is Never Say the Truth! Not even when it would actually be really simple.
Then Peter Gallagher's brother Bill Pullman bursts onto the scene, lookin' like a million bucks in his reversible denim/Carhartt jacket and his all flannel, all the time shirt collection.
She's holding a cat because she's lonely. He's wearing that jacket because it's a damn fine look for him.
I want to be all like, "Ugh, those clothes, right guys? Bill Pullman's jeans were unflattering and that jacket is silly!" But honestly, if I saw Bill Pullman walking around town looking like that (like maybe at the public library is where I would see that look), I would do a double take! He knows what looks good on him, and as far as I'm concerned, if Bill Pullman's got it, Bill Pullman should flaunt it.
While I did love this movie, there were a lot of flaws. Like the idea that Sandra Bullock would ever in any way find Peter Gallagher attractive.
No offense meant to Peter Gallagher, but let's get real.
Would I like this movie if Bill Pullman was not in it? No. But he is, so let's not even think about it. He brings a certain je ne sais quoi to the role...except actually, I DO sais quoi. He growls about half of his words. "I do(growl)n't think you're Pe(growl)ter's type." More actors should growl.
It looks like the movie is on Youtube (in English AND Spanish. Lucky you!). If you've just got a few minutes to spare, maybe try one of the many musical montages that weirdos have created. I do have to say, although she certainly was living in a lonely world, Sandra Bullock was no small town girl.
Anyway, as soon as Alex's Matrix pulled out of the Winfrey family drive, I set about rearranging my Netflix queue. The first pick? While You Were Sleeping, starring Mr. Bill Pullman and a young Sandra Bullock.
I can't lie to you: I really enjoyed this movie! It has a plot like every good romantic comedy...implausible at best, completely ludicrous at worst. It goes like this: Sandra Bullock is lonely. The film takes the familiar creative writing workshop adage "Show, Don't Tell" to heart and shows us about 15 different ways Sandra Bullock is a cliche of a lonely person. She works on holidays! She lives alone! Both of her parents are dead! She has a cat! She talks to her cat! It doesn't take a genius (or a romantic comedy scholar like me) to figure out that Sandy's life needs a little shaking up. Luckily for her, her secret crush Peter Gallagher shows up to ride the train one day (did I mention she works at a token booth? Well, she does) and gets pushed onto the tracks by some hoodlums who then run away and are never heard from again. Sandra Bullock immediately springs into action and jumps onto the track. All the while, a train is speeding towards them while deceptively lighthearted music plays and Sandra Bullock says things like, "Please wake up! There's a train coming toward us! It's going very fast!" Like, duh, Sandra Bullock, and also move. Finally she rolls both herself and Peter Gallagher to safety, and that's where her trouble actually begins. Naturally, Peter Gallagher is in a coma, and naturally, a mix-up causes his entire family to believe that Sandra Bullock is his fiancee. Naturally, she is unable to tell them otherwise, because the 1st rule of Romantic Comedy Club is Never Say the Truth! Not even when it would actually be really simple.
Then Peter Gallagher's brother Bill Pullman bursts onto the scene, lookin' like a million bucks in his reversible denim/Carhartt jacket and his all flannel, all the time shirt collection.
She's holding a cat because she's lonely. He's wearing that jacket because it's a damn fine look for him.
I want to be all like, "Ugh, those clothes, right guys? Bill Pullman's jeans were unflattering and that jacket is silly!" But honestly, if I saw Bill Pullman walking around town looking like that (like maybe at the public library is where I would see that look), I would do a double take! He knows what looks good on him, and as far as I'm concerned, if Bill Pullman's got it, Bill Pullman should flaunt it.
While I did love this movie, there were a lot of flaws. Like the idea that Sandra Bullock would ever in any way find Peter Gallagher attractive.
No offense meant to Peter Gallagher, but let's get real.
Would I like this movie if Bill Pullman was not in it? No. But he is, so let's not even think about it. He brings a certain je ne sais quoi to the role...except actually, I DO sais quoi. He growls about half of his words. "I do(growl)n't think you're Pe(growl)ter's type." More actors should growl.
It looks like the movie is on Youtube (in English AND Spanish. Lucky you!). If you've just got a few minutes to spare, maybe try one of the many musical montages that weirdos have created. I do have to say, although she certainly was living in a lonely world, Sandra Bullock was no small town girl.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
More of the Same
We changed the mission of the blog, I guess. Now we just post great songs from 80s movies.
My feelings about this song are summed up succinctly by Youtube user DULABHAILE: "God God! I had forgotten this innocent time in my life." Sure! God God, indeed!
My feelings about this song are summed up succinctly by Youtube user DULABHAILE: "God God! I had forgotten this innocent time in my life." Sure! God God, indeed!
Saturday, October 24, 2009
American Movie
American Movie is a really amazing documentary, and you can watch it online for free! Check it out if you haven't seen it before.
Monday, October 5, 2009
House of the Devil
We love horror movies here at The Talented Winfrey Family. You probably know that, and you probably do too. Who doesn't? Kerry and I have sat through some real stinkers (I'm looking at you Let's Scare Jessica To Death) but we've also found some awesome movies (that's right Pieces). Anyway, the reason I'm saying this is because often times, when we're watching these movies, Kerry will ask, "Why don't they make movies like this anymore?" because she's someone's grandparent. Now there's House of the Devil, which looks like a great homage to these movies without being annoying and campy.
Seriously, this movie looks great, and I've heard a ton of good reviews. You can rent it right now on Amazon iF yOu DaRe!!!
Also, who's excited about Trick 'r Treat?
Monday, August 10, 2009
Movie Night with H.
It's probably pretty obvious that Alex and I like movies a lot. It makes sense. We grew up watching a lot of them with Papa Winfrey, whose passion for movies (that have happy endings) knows no bounds. But H. didn't have the same type of movie-filled young adulthood. In fact, he hasn't seen most of the movies that I love. So, in a moment of weakness that he surely regrets, he told me I could show him some movies.
I will be the first to admit that I'm hardly a film expert. My film education is limited to two classes, one in high school (where we watched Psycho no fewer than three times, which is fine and all, but it wasn't really such a subtle movie to begin with) and one in college (where I enjoyed all the movies but got really bored writing papers and hearing other people's opinions, which is yet another reason I was such a bad student). I know next to nothing about a lot of classics, but a whole lot about certain weird genres. I've never seen Citizen Kane, but I have seen the climactic dance scene of Staying Alive about five times. Regardless! H. has asked for help, and help I will provide.
My first choice was influenced heavily by the events of the past week: Pretty in Pink. It fits into my favorite movie category, which is, "Movies you can sincerely enjoy, but also laugh at." I just love this movie, and I knew that H. would, too. It has drama, lip-syncing to Otis Redding, James Spader lookin' hot, a dress-making montage set to a soundtrack of New Order, and one perfectly placed F-bomb, which can be found below in one of my favorite scene. Here, Andie confronts Blane about ditching her while James Spader lurks in the stairwell:
H. called me a "filthy, fucking liar!" a lot after watching that. We also noted his many similarities to Duckie. All in all, I think our first movie night was a success. H's review was, "She should have ended up with Duckie." Agreed.
I will be the first to admit that I'm hardly a film expert. My film education is limited to two classes, one in high school (where we watched Psycho no fewer than three times, which is fine and all, but it wasn't really such a subtle movie to begin with) and one in college (where I enjoyed all the movies but got really bored writing papers and hearing other people's opinions, which is yet another reason I was such a bad student). I know next to nothing about a lot of classics, but a whole lot about certain weird genres. I've never seen Citizen Kane, but I have seen the climactic dance scene of Staying Alive about five times. Regardless! H. has asked for help, and help I will provide.
My first choice was influenced heavily by the events of the past week: Pretty in Pink. It fits into my favorite movie category, which is, "Movies you can sincerely enjoy, but also laugh at." I just love this movie, and I knew that H. would, too. It has drama, lip-syncing to Otis Redding, James Spader lookin' hot, a dress-making montage set to a soundtrack of New Order, and one perfectly placed F-bomb, which can be found below in one of my favorite scene. Here, Andie confronts Blane about ditching her while James Spader lurks in the stairwell:
H. called me a "filthy, fucking liar!" a lot after watching that. We also noted his many similarities to Duckie. All in all, I think our first movie night was a success. H's review was, "She should have ended up with Duckie." Agreed.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
I'll be the first to admit it.
Well spank my ass and call me borderline retarded! Who knew that this Wes Anderson commercial from years and years ago was based on Francois Truffaut's Day For Night? Oh, what's that? Everyone knew? Yeah, everyone knew that.
Here's the trailer for the movie that I just watched.
Roger Ebert says it "is not only the best movie ever made about the movies but is also a great entertainment." Don't quit your day job Roger Ebert.
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