Last Film You Watched? VI

All non-Nolan related film, tv, and streaming discussions.
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Scenes from a marriage from Ingmar Bergman.
Sadly I could only watch the theatrical version and not the longer version he made for TV.
It's a masterpiece.
It's a film that should be studied in every film school: the film is almost entirely two people talking, with very few change of locations, which of course is supposed to be a nightmare to shoot in an interesting way. And yet, there isn't a single boring shot. The camera movement, the blocking, it always is part of the story.
I'm in awe of what Bergman accomplished in the segments 3, 4 and 5. There's a 5-6 minutes long shot in the fourth segment, where every frame is perfectly blocked, with a very long moment where the camera is very close to Ullman, the kind of shot that is so hard to prepare and play, and that Bergman (and Nykvist) casually inserts in the middle of a long shot! He mixes the intimacy of cinema and the continuous movements of theatre like it's easy to do...
In addition of being a genius at directing, Bergman is also an incredible writer to study the deepest corners of our minds. He moves easily between different themes that he can treat each with the ambiguity they deserve.

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Recent watches list:
Some Kind of Wonderful (1987) :thumbup: :thumbdown:
You're Next (2013) :thumbup:
Eighth Grade (2018) :thumbup: :thumbdown:
Saint Maud (2019) :thumbdown:
Relic (2020) :thumbup: :thumbdown:
The Rental (2020) :thumbup:
Mortal Kombat (2021) :thumbdown:
The Mitchells vs the Machines (2021) :thumbup:
The Woman in the Window (2021) :thumbdown:
Those Who Wish Me Dead (2021) :thumbup:
Tom Clancy's Without Remorse (2021) :thumbup: :thumbdown:

rating scale: :thumbup: :thumbup: / :thumbup: / :thumbup: :thumbdown: / :thumbdown: / :thumbdown: :thumbdown:

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Joined: January 2012
Jabberwocky: Monty Python-esque medieval fun. Goes to show how little say you have in your own life.

Petit Vampire (2020): French animated feature adapting the comic of the same name. Tons of fun and creative visuals and voice acting, even if the climax of the film feels a little weird.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off: the universe bends itself backwards to make sure the protagonist has a fun day skipping school.

High Noon: a refreshing Western that is more about integrity and the (lack of) moral courage in the face of danger than about guys shooting at each other.

Frankenhooker: depraved guy tries to bring his dead girlfriend back to life with ridiculous results...at least it makes for an entertaining watch.

The Devil Wears Prada: workplace anxiety makes for good comedic material and Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt need to work together more often.

Bedknobs and Broomsticks: a charming little fantasy film set in WW2 England and the the climax is rather impressive from a technical standpoint.

Posts: 34
Joined: November 2020
I watched the cartoon "Soul" today. I liked it very much. Sufficiently deep plot, there is something to think about.

Posts: 1230
Joined: January 2019
Demoph wrote:
May 10th, 2021, 4:46 pm
Scenes from a marriage from Ingmar Bergman.
Sadly I could only watch the theatrical version and not the longer version he made for TV.
It's a masterpiece.
It's a film that should be studied in every film school: the film is almost entirely two people talking, with very few change of locations, which of course is supposed to be a nightmare to shoot in an interesting way. And yet, there isn't a single boring shot. The camera movement, the blocking, it always is part of the story.
I'm in awe of what Bergman accomplished in the segments 3, 4 and 5. There's a 5-6 minutes long shot in the fourth segment, where every frame is perfectly blocked, with a very long moment where the camera is very close to Ullman, the kind of shot that is so hard to prepare and play, and that Bergman (and Nykvist) casually inserts in the middle of a long shot! He mixes the intimacy of cinema and the continuous movements of theatre like it's easy to do...
In addition of being a genius at directing, Bergman is also an incredible writer to study the deepest corners of our minds. He moves easily between different themes that he can treat each with the ambiguity they deserve.
Since then I've continued watching Bergman's films, and even rewatched the few I'd already seen. I also spend hours watching interviews and analysis of his work. I feel the full excitement of discovering the filmography of an amazing directors whose style and thematic speak directly to me, and move me deeply.

And considering how many films he's made, I still have a lot of great films to discover, and I look forward to it, at a time when looking forward has mostly lost its meaning for me on many levels, because of the pandemic.

I've seen:
Seventh Seal 9/10
Brink of life 8.5/10 (even minor Bergman are great and have scenes that stay with you, even if you don't want to)
Wild Strawberries 10/10
Persona 10/10
Scenes from a married life 9.5/10
Cries and whispers 8.5/10 I need to rewatch it, it's such a difficult film to fully engage with, it has the most traumatizing shot, it is a very hard film to watch, despite being absolutely gorgeous, because of its violence.
Autumn Sonata 8/10
I've just watched Monika (9/10 ?) tonight. Such a great film, it has such a great influence on the French new wave, especially Breathless and Pierrot le fou, where I can see a few shot that quote Monika directly.
Now, on to Sacrifice, Winter light, The hour of the wolf... And eventually Fanny and Alexandre.

Posts: 1230
Joined: January 2019
Demoph wrote:
May 20th, 2021, 7:31 pm
Demoph wrote:
May 10th, 2021, 4:46 pm
Scenes from a marriage from Ingmar Bergman.
Sadly I could only watch the theatrical version and not the longer version he made for TV.
It's a masterpiece.
It's a film that should be studied in every film school: the film is almost entirely two people talking, with very few change of locations, which of course is supposed to be a nightmare to shoot in an interesting way. And yet, there isn't a single boring shot. The camera movement, the blocking, it always is part of the story.
I'm in awe of what Bergman accomplished in the segments 3, 4 and 5. There's a 5-6 minutes long shot in the fourth segment, where every frame is perfectly blocked, with a very long moment where the camera is very close to Ullman, the kind of shot that is so hard to prepare and play, and that Bergman (and Nykvist) casually inserts in the middle of a long shot! He mixes the intimacy of cinema and the continuous movements of theatre like it's easy to do...
In addition of being a genius at directing, Bergman is also an incredible writer to study the deepest corners of our minds. He moves easily between different themes that he can treat each with the ambiguity they deserve.
Since then I've continued watching Bergman's films, and even rewatched the few I'd already seen. I also spend hours watching interviews and analysis of his work. I feel the full excitement of discovering the filmography of an amazing directors whose style and thematic speak directly to me, and move me deeply.

And considering how many films he's made, I still have a lot of great films to discover, and I look forward to it, at a time when looking forward has mostly lost its meaning for me on many levels, because of the pandemic.

I've seen:
Seventh Seal 9/10
Brink of life 8.5/10 (even minor Bergman are great and have scenes that stay with you, even if you don't want to)
Wild Strawberries 10/10
Persona 10/10
Scenes from a married life 9.5/10
Cries and whispers 8.5/10 I need to rewatch it, it's such a difficult film to fully engage with, it has the most traumatizing shot, it is a very hard film to watch, despite being absolutely gorgeous, because of its violence.
Autumn Sonata 8/10
I've just watched Monika (9/10 ?) tonight. Such a great film, it has such a great influence on the French new wave, especially Breathless and Pierrot le fou, where I can see a few shot that quote Monika directly.
Now, on to Sacrifice, Winter light, The hour of the wolf... And eventually Fanny and Alexandre.
Moving on:
Hour of the wolf: 9/10, what a strange film! Bergman mixes visions, reality, nightmares, everything together. Surrealisme at its finest to dig deep into the soul of a traumatised artist, that his wife tries her best to understand, but is love enough to understand someone ?

Sadwust and Tinsel : 9/10 A beautiful film, like Monika, a film from Bergman's first period. It's a Bergman so of course you get the despair, you get the characters wondering about life, death... You get one of the most beautiful and heartbreaking intro scene, with the clown who sees his wife cheating on him with the soldiers. But you have the compassion of Bergman for the human condition, his hope that in spite of everything we may find some peace and contentment in what we have, despite the pain, despite the shame. An optimism that will soon disappear...

Smiles from a summer night: 7.5/10, the most joyful Bergman film so far, and I'd be shocked to see another one like that. It's all about love, and finding love. There are beautiful moments, some scenes are terribly funny, but strangely for a Begman film, there are weak characters/B stories, mainly concerning the son, who feels too excessive in his despair to ring true in a film so joyful. The violence of the dialog doesn't lead to the darkest corners of the human soul, and it lacks the elegant cruelty of Max Ophuls to reach great heights.

The magician : 8.5/10 A great film about cinema as illusion, but strangely for Bergman who loves cinema so much, a film that is as much a love letter to the power of cinema as a sad aknowledgement that everything is false in movies. The reinvention of his style in Persona and Hour of the wolf has possibly its roots here. There is a wonderful horror scene, perfectly lit, by the end of the film. If some B plots are quite weak (the plot around the servants and the love potion), there are also some great supporting characters like the grandmother. The main trio Von Sydow, Björnstrand and Thulin are at the top of their game, as always.

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Hot Fuzz.

Still a fun quotable movie.

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Joined: December 2019
Location: United States
Village of the Damned (1960)
Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
Rebels of the Neon God (1992)
Deepwater Horizon (2016)
The Quiet American (2002)
Nomadland (2020)
High Hopes (1988)
Culloden (1964)
Deep Impact (1998)

marshallmurphy wrote:
June 5th, 2021, 9:30 am
Deepwater Horizon (2016)
Deep Impact (1998)
which was deeper

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Joined: December 2019
Location: United States
Disney+'s solo2001 wrote:
June 5th, 2021, 11:32 pm
marshallmurphy wrote:
June 5th, 2021, 9:30 am
Deepwater Horizon (2016)
Deep Impact (1998)
which was deeper
Deep Impact, lol. Pretty hokey in a few spots, but I have to say the characters were very well written and their stories were genuinely compelling. I had a few tears toward the end. :facepalm:

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