robocop 3 (1993)

at this time of year i like to binge on rubbish films for some reason. or guilty pleasures as it were.

robocop is an unfairly maligned classic in some circles. the original 1987 film is genuinely great, with a deeper level of satire than most remember/give it credit for. thats not to say that the sequels benefit from the same level of quality in layering.

robocop 3 conceptually actually works really well, its just a shame about the execution. the story itself, concerning a corporation buying a city, draws semi-clever comparisons to many a politic strand, be it capitalism, globalisation or the holocaust, its just a shame that the b-movie production values and lesser performances let the film down.

i look forward to darren aronofsky's take on the subject matter.

the hopeandbullshitlist (at 16/12/2008)

1. sunrise (f.w murnau)
2. bottle rocket (wes anderson)
3. the outlaw josey wales (clint eastwood)
4.red desert (michelangelo antonioni)
5. unforgiven (clint eastwood)
6. f for fake (orson welles)
7. the brothers bloom (rian johnson)
8. changeling (clint eastwood)
9. the dark knight (christopher nolan)
10. wall-e (andrew stanton)
11. blow up (michelangelo antonioni)
12. europa (lars von trier)
13. hellboy - the golden army (guillermo del toro)
14. days of heaven (terence malick)
15. blindness (fernando meirelles)
16. killer's kiss (stanley kubrick)
17. dirty harry (don siegal)
18. mad detective (johnnie to & wai ka fa)
19. the idiot (akira kurosawa)
20. in bruges (martin mcdonough)
21. play misty for me (clint eastwood)
22. bigger than life (nicholas ray)
23. bronco billy (clint eastwood)
24. the terminator (james cameron)
25. hancock (peter berg)
26. the day the earth stood still (robert wise)
27. iron man (jon favreau)
28. the gauntlet (clint eastwood)
29. breezy (clint eastwood)
30. before the devil knows youre dead (sidney lumet)
31. magnum force (ted post)
32. casino royale (martin campbell)
33. body of lies (ridley scott)
34. indiana jones and the kingdom of the crystal skull (steven spielberg)
35. the puffy chair (duplass brothers)
36. i am legend (francis lawrence)
37. space cowboys (clint eastwood)
38. quantum of solace (marc forster)
39. wanted (timur bekmambetov)
40. the magnificent ambersons (orson welles)
41. speed (jan de bont)
42. coogans bluff (don siegal)
43. the enforcer (james fargo)
44. joe kidd (john sturges)
45. dear wendy (thomas vinterberg)
46. goldeneye (martin campbell)
47. night watch (timur bekmambetov)
48. zack and miri make a porno (kevin smith)
49. goldfinger (guy hamilton)
50. you only live twice (lewis gilbert)
51. mad max - beyond thunderdome (george miller & george ogilvie)
52. die another day (lee tamahori)
53. W. (oliver stone)

hellboy - the golden army (2008)

the surprise hit of the summer in my view, hellboy- the golden army took a second viewing in this weekend. the film was seen originally just a few weeks after the dark knight, an altogether darker affair, and was just the thing needed in comparison. the wit of the film is perhaps the most appealing feature of the film, and that includes the stunning visuals. the scene involving a rendition of a barry manilow song features more heart than most blockbusters could ever hope for, and was rightly voted the top musical scene in a film by saturdays guardian newspaper.

on to the visuals of the film; guillermo del toro is known for a particular brand of fairy tale-infused fantasy-inspired worlds and creatures, and with hellboy he seems most at home. the troll market for instance, is the sort of puppet laden environment not seen since the early eighties, when such craftwork was overtaken by computer generated imagery. its a sight to behold and shows why del toro has since been appointed the post of overseeing the hobbit.

ron perlman shines in the title role, with great support from all.

while blockbusters are not my usual sort of thing, the combination of the dark knight, wall-e and this means that 2008 has been a great year for the more commercial fare that doesnt usually appeal.

speed (1994)

having never seen this apparent seminal mid nineties action film before, i decided to pick it up on a (cheap) whim on friday afternoon. obviously it was hardly bergman, but as far is blockbuster experiences go it was at the very least an interesting few hours. the high concept plot hasnt aged particularly badly and it was nice to see a non-eastern-stereotyical terrorist as the antagonist for a change in these post 9/11 days.

the terminator (1984)

in light of the recent hype over next years terminator : salvation i decided to take in a light night re-viewing of the first terminator film. as a boy it was the OTT special effects of terminator 2 that excited me the most, overshadowing the fairly basic premise of the first film, but as iv gotten older the first one is the only one that i can bear (lets not mention the third one). i love the gritty nature of the flashbacks, the lower budget revealing a more basic setting that doesnt seem exagerated and is actually semi-believable. as far as eighties action films go, this is one of the stronger ones, and one that actually still has legs today, almost 25 years on from its original release.

the dark knight (2008)

the average person's film of the year, the dark knight proved to be a genuine treat, despite what the online naysayers may claim. it was with an air of apprehensiveness that i approached it a second time, hoping that i wasnt just taken in by the hype upon release. im happy to reveal that not only did it hold up on a second viewing, but i actually enjoyed it more this time, removed of the hype and expectation.

comparisons to the wire must be made. the dark knight feels like a big screen outing of david simon's epic masterpiece in places, and im surprised more hasnt been made of this. sure the situation may be severely exagerated when put next to the wire, but the concept of a city on the edge, of a society out of control with hope being an unobtainable dream draws many parallels, as does the intricate nature of how the plot is held together.

for me it is gary oldman that is the key performer in the film, and the one who's performance i enjoyed the most. his is the most relatable arc throughout the film, and the one that is easiest to literally relate to. christian bale is great as batman, further cementing his place as the definitive person for the role. aaron eckhart as district attorney really struck me upon initial viewing, but upon this screening didnt have the same impact. thats not to say that hes not good in the role, hes great, it just didnt strike me in the same way. maggi gylenhaal, morgan freeman and michael caine provide ample support, although caine is seemingly the biggest casualty of such a huge ensemble, as his role seemed to have shrunk when compared to the size of his performance in 'batman begins'.

the concept of heath ledger as the joker, initially a bitching-point for most geeks with internet connection, is possibly the most successful aspect of the dark knight, at least for the masses. removed of the hype and expectation i was able to appreciate the role and performance much more, noticing his subtle nuances and the ticks and mannerisms that really make the character. while genuinely terrifying a character, he is also brilliantly comical too, highlighted in the hospital scene, where the joker vacates the future crime scene dressed as a nurse. while not a fan of the "ledger deserves an oscar" campaign i fully appreciate the performance and am pleased to see it, alongside his role in brokeback mountain, as a fitting legacy for the actor.

red desert (1964)

following my previous foray into the world of michelangelo antonioni with the wonderful blow-up, i decided to follow it up with the newly released (on dvd) 'red desert', which incidently was antonioni's first colour film. i havent yet seen any of his black and white work, a situation hopefully soon rectified, so cant really comment on the difference between the colour and the black and white films, but i would like to point out just how beautiful the film looks. his use of colour has many connotations, with the use of red being symbolic of our protaganists state of mind amongst other things. the bold backgrounds, especially the earlier scenes set within the compound of industry gives the feeling of an otherworldy nature, which leads to my next point -

the film is almost like a science fiction piece. the environment and use of sound reminiscent of the worlds later created in films such as stanley kubrick's "a clockwork orange" and andre tarkovsky's "stalker''. ''red desert'' has a very unique electronic score, that adds to the mechanical and otherworldy feel of the picture, and the use of industrial change as a metaphor is similiar to those of those seen in later science fiction work.

i enjoyed red desert wholeheartedly, and look forward to my next antonioni, the passenger (1975).

the puffy chair (2005)

my first experience with mumblecore, watched late at night on film4. it was a fun little film, alas the feeling of a group of people trying too hard was a little too prevailent.

i am legend (2007)

will smith's post-apocalyptic tale of the last man on earth occupies a deserved place on this viewers list of guilty pleasures. i watched it with the alternate ending, which is very different to that of the original and more than anything suggests that the filmmakers didnt really know which direction they wanted to take the film in, as is the nature of the difference between the two different endings. nevertheless the concept of the being the last man on earth will never get old.

the hopeandbullshitlist (at 08/12/2008)

sunrise remains at the top, but there are three new entries in the top ten. theres some pretty high profile viewings this week, so im expecting lots of movement in the list, with potentially a new number 1 within the next few days.....


1. sunrise (f.w murnau)
2. bottle rocket (wes anderson)
3. the outlaw josey wales (clint eastwood)
4. unforgiven (clint eastwood)
5. f for fake (orson welles)
6. the brothers bloom (rian johnson)
7. changeling (clint eastwood)
8. wall-e (andrew stanton)
9. blow up (michelangelo antonioni)
10. europa (lars von trier)
11. days of heaven (terence malick)
12. blindness (fernando meirelles)
13. killer's kiss (stanley kubrick)
14. dirty harry (don siegal)
15. mad detective (johnnie to & wai ka fa)
16. the idiot (akira kurosawa)
17. in bruges (martin mcdonough)
18. play misty for me (clint eastwood)
19. bigger than life (nicholas ray)
20. bronco billy (clint eastwood)
21. hancock (peter berg)
22. the day the earth stood still (robert wise)
23. iron man (jon favreau)
24. the gauntlet (clint eastwood)
25. breezy (clint eastwood)
26. before the devil knows youre dead (sidney lumet)
27. magnum force (ted post)
28. casino royale (martin campbell)
29. body of lies (ridley scott)
30. indiana jones and the kingdom of the crystal skull (steven spielberg)
31. space cowboys (clint eastwood)
32. quantum of solace (marc forster)
33. wanted (timur bekmambetov)
34. the magnificent ambersons (orson welles)
35. coogans bluff (don siegal)
36. the enforcer (james fargo)
37. joe kidd (john sturges)
38. dear wendy (thomas vinterberg)
39. goldeneye (martin campbell)
40. night watch (timur bekmambetov)
41. zack and miri make a porno (kevin smith)
42. goldfinger (guy hamilton)
43. you only live twice (lewis gilbert)
44. mad max - beyond thunderdome (george miller & george ogilvie)
45. die another day (lee tamahori)
46. W. (oliver stone)

the day the earth stood still (1951)

as robert wise's seminal science fiction allegory see's a largely unneccessary remake hit cinemas this week, so with that in mind i decided to take in a timely re-viewing of the original.

the most immediately apparent aspect of ''the day the earth stood still'' is just how subtle and philosophical the film is, especially in this day and age of spectacle and blockbusting. as the basis for a remake i can actually almost understand why fox decided to bother. not that the original concept lends itself to the notion of an apocalyptic thriller but im trying to cut them some slack!

hancock (2008)

a film very much made up of two halves, hancock was one of the more enjoyable films of the summer for this viewer. seeing it again on dvd, in a brand new 15-rated extended cut no less, benefitted the narrative flow of the film greatly. while the story originally suffered from a mid-story twist that seperated the story way too much, and for which the film was greatly attacked critically, the extra few minutes allowed with the extended cut actually help the film greatly. gone is the feeling of a mid-length change of pace, and in comes a feeling of a more natural flow.

europa (1991)

having never had a great deal of luck with lars von trier i approached europa with some trepidition. granted, my previous endeveours within his work all circled around that of the dogme period, and this looked very different. europa centres around the story of a young american man who heads to germany after the second world war in order to work with his uncle as a ''sleeping car conductor''.

the look of the film is what appeals most. using lots of back projection von trier creates a world that is reminescent of the type of film one would expect from the period of the films setting, but is almost cutting edge in its satirical note. as a fan of canadian avant-garde filmmaker guy maddin i noted many similiarities between europa and his work, be it in the use of film type and the style of the dialogue. it is said in the liner notes for criterion's new release that europa inhabits a setting that is an "oddly futuristic past", a description that i would wholeheartedly agree with.

one final note; max von sydow's iconic narration is outstanding. its a key ingredient with regards to clarifying the intended state of mind necessary with regards to viewing the film in the best way possible.

dear wendy (2005)

a screening inspired by a bargain discovery in hmv the day after viewing europa.

in terms of the dogme movement, i much prefered thomas vinterberg's ''festen'' (1998) over any of the work of lars von trier, so the combination of perhaps the two most famous dutch filmmakers of the 1990's on ''dear wendy'' sounded like a great idea on paper, and while its an interesting enough film the prevailing message seemed lost and confused by the end of the picture.

basically a comment on gun control and teenage sensibilities (especially in the united states) the film tells the story of a group of misfits living in a small mining town. through the confidence gained from carrying guns the group's confused politics (a gun carrying pacifist) eventually spiral out of control leadig to a confused border-tragic climax.

while not a poor picture per-se, i found ''dear wendy'' to be overwhelming and, yes, the word of the day; confused.

before the devil knows youre dead (2007)

reminiscent of spike lee's "the inside man'', sidney lumet's final film revolves around the tale of two brothers and a heist gone awry. philip seymour hoffman, ethan hawke and albert finney all give solid performances, with the off kilter strucure lending hugely to the slight plot. "before the devil knows youre dead" makes a good companion piece to lumet's earlier "dog day afternoon".