Potato I have

A quick list of movies to which I’ve had enough of a response to post, with a brief commentary and (when and where I saw it). Those with a longer response include a link to a blog or essay or maybe an amazon review. Just getting started here, this won’t fill very quickly.

I used to read a lot; now it seems the much shorter format of film has taken over.

BTW, two good critique compilation sites are metacritic (English) and allocine (French).

Le Chateau Ambulant (Howl’s Moving Castle, Hauru No Ugoku Shiro), Hayao Miyazaki, 2004: the fifth Miyazaki title I’ve seen; if anyone knows of anything as wonderful as his films, please do share. The things sticking with me right now include: the collapsing of age through the shifting presentation of Sophie (somehow cubist for me); the crumbling, petering-out of the castle going up the mountain; the hilariously diminished Witch of the Waste (Sorcière des Landes); the green sticky ooze of pouting; the interdependence of the cursed. Today I showed my five-year-old daughter a picture of this man who makes all these movies we love so much, and she spontaneously said “Thank you, Miyazaki!” He’s a huge part of our shared story world. (July 2005, Denfert)

Sin City, Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez, 2005: I went to see this on the strength of a French colleague’s saying that he was certain I’ve never seen a movie like this; he was right, and I wasn’t disappointed. It’s visually superb, and the script had me laughing in a way I haven’t since Pulp Fiction. (June 2005, Gaumont Alesia)

L’Intrus, Claire Denis, 2004: Though this didn’t engage me in the same visceral way as Beau Travail, it was ambiguous and poetic as too few films are, at least for my taste. The Russian woman as conscience, the headlong dogsledding sequence, the big bomb at the port — if this is a mediocre Denis film, I still prefer it to most of the plot-driven fare that comes out. (May 2005, Cinema in 5e)

Ladri di Biciclette, Vittorio De Sica, 1948: I never get tired of this one, simple and classic and just a perfect film. This time, the scene in the restaurant caught my attention: Antonio wants so badly for things to be fine for Bruno. (April 2005, TV)

Atanarjuat, Zacharias Kunuk, 2001: Making peace within the family, writ large. The film succeeds in taking us away to a culture very very far from our own. (April 2005, TV)

Les Glaneurs et La Glaneuse, Agnès Varda, 2000: starting with La Glaneuse, she who historically picked through the fields after harvest, Varda brings us several modern-day collectors of food, junk, etc. The judge reading pertinent legal text to us while standing in the field is just one example of what makes this a charming documentary. Lucky for us, Varda herself is very present. (April 2005, Le Cinéma des Cinéastes)

The Player, Robert Altman, 1992: can you hide so far you live happily ever after? Conflicting versions of reality and emotional authenticity. Several scenes got way under my skin. I found this a wrenching movie. (April 2005, DVD)

Mirage, Edward Dmytryk, 1965: pronounced psychological content, an anachronistic helpless routine on Shela’s part, idealism meets corruption during the cold war. This is a good “recover from your amnesia before they kill you” thriller, and I don’t remember enjoying watching Gregory Peck so much. (March 2005, TV)

Rois et Reine, Arnaud Desplechin, 2004: two lives that cross and recross and have very different trajectories. Nora’s Father is packing a heavy-duty surprise. I loved this movie. (Feb 2005, Cinema)