Films you've seen recently and would unreservedly recommend:

[craner]

That's a point, whatever happened to Ronald McDonald?

 

[IdleRich]

Probably helping Operation Yewtree with their enquiries like most of the other former-celebrities who had his kind of, er, opportunities.

 

[baboon2004]

That's a point, whatever happened to Ronald McDonald?

For the answer, watch to the end of this:

 

[benjybars]

Premium Rush - thrilling high speed cycling scenes with Manhattan looking like a very sunlit, exciting version of itself. By no means perfect (there's a flash mob ) but recommended with no other reservations.

rah! really enjoyed premium rush, it was jokes. never expected it to see it mentioned in this thread tho..

 

[droid]

The crash scene in 'flight' is great. Watchable overall.

 

[Bangpuss]

The Queen of Versailles. Catch it on BBC iPlayer while you still can. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01qbz9m/Storyville_20122013_Queen_of_Versailles/

Never have I pointed at a screen and shouted "Yeah!" and "Take it!" and "Serves you right!" so much. The ultimate schadenfreude film, beautifully executed. There are moments so outrageous you think they must be staged/scripted, for Christopher Guest to appear, but I'm pretty sure these clowns are so up their own arses they're for real.

 

[baboon2004]

Was looking for that to stream the other night, didn't realise it'd been on bbc.

http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2012/12/the-20-best-documentaries-of-2012.html
This is a pretty interesting list of last year's best docus. Trying to find Brooklyn Castle to watch, but can't...

 

[rubberdingyrapids]

cinemania. docu about 4 cinephiles in new york and their obsession/compulsion for movies. i found it quite affecting. goes behind the trainspottery addiction into what really lies behind it.

 

[baboon2004]

Sounds interesting - do they discuss it in terms of anxiety/addiction?

http://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/the_yes_men_fix_the_world_2009/
This is fantastic. The Barbie/GI Joe thing kills me, and that's just in the intro.

 

[rubberdingyrapids]

you can see it here -
http://stagevu.com/video/ijttxlfobcsx

they discuss it a bit in terms of anxiety/addiction, but for most its just like an escape from facing up to the challenges of real life. its like they no longer even like the films that much but need to just keep watching. i.e. theyre pretty obsessive.

 

[baboon2004]

you can see it here -
http://stagevu.com/video/ijttxlfobcsx

they discuss it a bit in terms of anxiety/addiction, but for most its just like an escape from facing up to the challenges of real life. its like they no longer even like the films that much but need to just keep watching. i.e. theyre pretty obsessive.

aren't those quite similar diagnoses though? Real life induces so much anxiety that the people involved deal with it by finding obsessive solace in passively consuming films (while doing this, they don't need to make any decisions/deal with difficulties of real life), which becomes an addictive strategy after a while. As you say, as with all addictions, it becomes not about the thing itself (which fails to offer pleasure any longer), but about the flight from real life it offers.

 

[paolo]

The Queen of Versailles. Catch it on BBC iPlayer while you still can. http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01qbz9m/Storyville_20122013_Queen_of_Versailles/

Never have I pointed at a screen and shouted "Yeah!" and "Take it!" and "Serves you right!" so much. The ultimate schadenfreude film, beautifully executed. There are moments so outrageous you think they must be staged/scripted, for Christopher Guest to appear, but I'm pretty sure these clowns are so up their own arses they're for real.

I felt bad for them, and their children and pets

 

[rubberdingyrapids]

me too. i thought they were selfish w/r/t the pets, i felt they didnt know how to appreciate anything after seeing the garage with all the toys after the spending spree and i was a bit shocked at the living conditions of the maid considering how rich the family were, but i felt for them. the husband became depressed, cracks in their relationship started to show, you knew it wasnt going to end well. it wasnt like they were all born into money. they achieved the american dream and they lost it too.

 

[Bangpuss]

No way. If anyone deserves to go bust, it's a vampiric timeshare mogul who helped George W Bush cheat his way to victory in Florida. If bankruptcy only happened to one person a year, he'd have to be on my shortlist.

 

[mistersloane]

I watched the Savage Innocents the other day

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Savage_Innocents

It's directed by Nicholas Ray. It features Anthony Quinn playing an eskimo. Apparently Bob Dylan wrote "the Mighty Quinn" after seeing it.

All these facts don't add up to what a monumentally...wrong...film it is, and how enjoyable I found it. I haven't laughed so much since I saw Cannibal Holocaust. It would make a good double bill with it. It's kinda on a similar level of "oh....dear...."

 

[empty mirror]

I watched JP Melville's Un Flic ("Dirty Money" on Netflix here in the USA) and it was tres cool. Alain Delon, Catherine Deneuve, lots of great trenchcoats, hard to mess that up, I guess...

 

[craner]

Have you seen Army of Shadows?

 

[nochexxx]

Frederick Friedel's Axe

 

[stephenk]

hollywood chainsaw hookers

 

[baboon2004]

I watched Bigger Than Life last night, another Nicholas Ray film, featuring a comic tour de force from James Mason. One of the funniest and most subversive (I was going to add 'for its time', but tbh its points still hold, except the audience now is more aware of the critique he is making, in a post-modernly knowing way) films I've seen in an age.

Brief synopsis: James Mason is a school teacher working two jobs to keep his wife and son upwardly mobile in 1950s suburban America, who suddenly contracts a rare life-threatening illness, which can only be averted by taking new wonder-drug cortizone - unfortunately, it proves to be quite addictive, with tragic (and fucking hilarious) consequences...

I watched the Savage Innocents the other day

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Savage_Innocents

It's directed by Nicholas Ray. It features Anthony Quinn playing an eskimo. Apparently Bob Dylan wrote "the Mighty Quinn" after seeing it.

All these facts don't add up to what a monumentally...wrong...film it is, and how enjoyable I found it. I haven't laughed so much since I saw Cannibal Holocaust. It would make a good double bill with it. It's kinda on a similar level of "oh....dear...."