I don't know at this point if the film is a dark comedy or a drama that has occasional moments of dry and sarcastic levity. I had watched the film before and had found a bunch of moments to be funny in a biting social critique sort of way but it also seems that a lot of the film is played straight, especially the increasingly uncomfortable situations related to JD's character and there is an irony about the destination of his character and his ideas that is intriguing. Mostly, I love how Winona Ryder plays one of the seemingly only empathetic people in this film who is way in over her head from all sides and really resents it and deep down would wish for a better world and better people in it. On the surface, the film might talk about suicide and high school and all those things but underneath it all seems to be a sharp condemnation of a superficial, empty and very cruel society in general.
Imo Vertigo demands a return viewing which is oddly fitting
It's in a very small group of truly hypnotic films with 2001, Persona and Kwaidan for me
I can see Vertigo being one of those movies where your perception of it changes after you've lived a little and went through some life stuff before returning to it.
There are aspects of the movie that were a gut punch based on my own personal experiences for sure.
I think it only functions if you give yourself over to Scotty's derangement and that can be a major leap.
Touch of Evil(1958) - Amazeballs. The opening had me swooning. Several characters are just a little too much for me with their cartoonishness, and having Heston play a Mexican character is... questionable thanks to some really cringe brownface, which makes it clear people in 1958 probably didn’t get that not all Mexicans are brown by default (not sure if some get that today even). Difficult to judge a 60 year old film by today’s standarts, especially when a portrayal like this doesn’t seem like the worst thing that could’ve been done, but it kinda sticks out. Anywhoo, a great film.
Surprisingly I’ve been watching a crap load of films lately. Gonna try to keep that up, even if I rarely update in this thread lol.
Well, back in the day Welles and Olivier played as Othello in their own adaptations. There was a theater spirit to it, in that anyone should have been able to do any character.£
Well, back in the day Welles and Olivier played as Othello in their own adaptations. There was a theater spirit to it, in that anyone should have been able to do any character.£
Regardless of Welles and Heston’s intentions, I just think this didn’t age well, that’s all. Besides, I think my initial point still stands. Mexico is a super diverse country, if they wanted Heston to portray a Mexican character, brown paint was really just not necessary, as white Mexicans of European descent obviously exist. And now, in 2019, watching the film I felt a bit of a dissonance, as as a character he’s great, yet appearance-wise you can’t help but notice it.
Btw, I never equated this to minstrel show anyway.
As for letterboxd, I think I may have made an account when I wanted to use the list format I’ve seen here numerous times, but I never used it haha. Maybe I should reconsider..
