So does hyping and pre-ranking ruin our experiences and expectations? I try to ignore that hype of others, especially the hype of my friends because it hardly ever lives up to it. If I hype something up and it fails, it can only be my fault. Similarly when I get really bored, I pre-rank and pre-compare, thinking how it will rank amongst the existing works of a certain director and which films it will be closest to (for reference: Inherent Vice will be near PDL, Interstellar will be near Inception, Gone Girl will be somwhere near TGWTDT and Zodiac. And often there's nothing substantiate this except hype (but in the case of Inherent Vice, I end up mostly thinking of Punch Drunk Love, but more drugged out, chill and trippy). This is what happens when someone is left too long thinking about upcoming films. It's awful. Will probably bump the IV thread and ask for thoughts because barely anyone has any idea of what it will be like.

Ideally we should watch films in a total vacuum - no other crowd members, not knowing who the devil made it, who's in it, or even what the title is. That would be the purest way to digest a film, but it's almost impossible (and not much fun) to do.

In terms of hype, I always think in terms of director, since I consider them to be as close to the "author" as can be. A variety of things will always temper that expectation - the filmmaker's best, their worst, their most recent, and if applicable, whatever they've done that is similar in terms of tone or subject matter. Perhaps the latter is most important - for instance, I started watching Litvak's The Snake Pit last night, and there are really two Litvak films I've seen that I can recall - the well-acted (except Barbara O'Neill) but stodgy and overlong All This, and Heaven Too, and the gritty, highly effective war drama Decision Before Dawn. Since The Snake Pit is melodrama it's really All This... that's at the forefront of my mind, and colouring those expectations - that being said I'm enjoying The Snake Pit more because Litvak's approach is hugely different, more intimate and expedient. My enjoyment of the film is coloured by my experience with another film, so it's "tainted" so to speak. There's no way to avoid this, and I think it's a fool's errand to try and separate the experiences in the mind, but as long as you're aware of it I think you can be a fairly judicious and receptive audience member.

jibran wrote:And often there's nothing substantiate this except hype (but in the case of Inherent Vice, I end up mostly thinking of Punch Drunk Love, but more drugged out, chill and trippy).

But I wasn't a fan of Punch-Drunk Love

What happens if we mention Kevin Smith, Kevin Spacey, Kevin Costner, or Kevin Bacon in this thread?

11072014 wrote:

jibran wrote:And often there's nothing substantiate this except hype (but in the case of Inherent Vice, I end up mostly thinking of Punch Drunk Love, but more drugged out, chill and trippy).

But I wasn't a fan of Punch-Drunk Love

Ah well. As I said I have little substantiate what I'm saying (besides reading the book). I think the closest point of reference right now is Robert Altman's The Long Goodbye (in my head). It's totally awesome, you should watch it.

And in terms of PTA, it makes me think of PDL informed by him becoming the man that made The Master. People keep on mentioning Boogie Nights. I really hope it isn't like that to be honest.

Really, I don't know how much he'll make it his own. It starts off pretty cruisy and chill but there's an underlying cynicism and sinisterness throughout. We'll see. I mean what I'm saying is just pointless conjecture, I'll probably be wrong in most regards. I am just an excited fan.

Dodd wrote:What happens if we mention Kevin Smith, Kevin Spacey, Kevin Costner, or Kevin Bacon in this thread?

You're forgetting Kevin James and Kevin Kline.

Let's talk about Bennett Miller's Moneyball


It would be an injustice to call this a great "sports movie", this film is a masterpiece. Director Bennett Miller and screenwriters Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin set you up for every sports movie trope but then subvert your expectations. It is actually pretty remarkable this is a studio movie made by Sony. The film also works as a great critique of MLB politics and sports in general. Anchored by a career best performance by Brad Pitt, he delves into the psychology of Billy Bean and there is so much there to dive into. Beane is a man that lives in constant dissatisfaction despite his steely charisma trying to hide this dissatisfaction throughout the film. Did I mention our very own Wally Pfister's brilliant photography? Moneyball is a deeply cynical film which is so refreshing for the sports genre, Bennett Miller and Brad Pitt hit a grand slam.

Allstar wrote:Let's talk about Bennett Miller's Moneyball


It would be an injustice to call this a great "sports movie", this film is a masterpiece. Director Bennett Miller and screenwriters Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin set you up for every sports movie trope but then subvert your expectations. It is actually pretty remarkable this is a studio movie made by Sony. The film also works as a great critique of MLB politics and sports in general. Anchored by a career best performance by Brad Pitt, he delves into the psychology of Billy Bean and there is so much there to dive into. Beane is a man that lives it constant dissatisfaction despite his steely charisma trying to hide this dissatisfaction throughout the film. Did I mention our very own Wally Pfister's brilliant photography? Moneyball is a deeply cynical film which is so refreshing for the sports genre, Bennett Miller and Brad Pitt hit a grand slam.

nice. i watched like 30 mins of it on a plane but i should give it a fair shot

This scene from Samurai Cop is the best thing we've ever created as a species. Discuss the greatness of this scene.

chom wrote:This scene from Samurai Cop is the best thing we've ever created as a species. Discuss the greatness of this scene.