[Duma]

Rescue Dawn - hmmmmmm.Think I'd have enjoyed it more if it wasn't Herzog - perhaps started with my mental bar set too high. Still good, but goes downhill from the point they leave the nutter, and the end rather grated. 6 or 7/10.

[Eddies]

I really enjoyed Rescue Dawn, watched it last night on Houdini's tip-off.
Lots of whispering in it! Felt well sorry for the little guard when the shit hits the fan!

Pretty amazing how much weight Christian Bale lost for his role (55 pounds) and even the director lost 30 pounds as a show of solidarity!
 
Nice one Houdini

[Houdini]

Check out Bale in The Machinist for more insight into his dieting philosophy.

[Paul B]

Check out Bale in The Machinist for more insight into his dieting philosophy.

http://www.myfittribe.com/files/images/Christian%20Bale%20in%20The%20Machinist.jpg

nasty

[SA Chris]

Check out Bale in The Machinist for more insight into his dieting philosophy.

What I was thinking. He must like doing that kind of stuff

[dontfollowme]

Saw a film called the Squid and the Whale the other night. Worth a watch if you're in the right mood.

[Plattsy]

Check out Bale in The Machinist for more insight into his dieting philosophy.

What I was thinking. He must like doing that kind of stuff

IIRC the director had to stop him going further. Bale figured he could lose MORE weight!!! 

[SA Chris]

Didn't de Niro lose a shed load, and then put on a shedload for Raging Bull?

[Falling Down]

Herzog had to shoot Rescue Dawn almost entirely in reverse order so all the actors could start skinny and underweight otherwise it would have been impossible to starve and shoot a film. Clever...

[SA Chris]

It is clever.

Nolan filmed Memento in reverse order to confuse the fuck out of you

[slackline]

It is clever.

Nolan filmed Memento in reverse order to confuse the fuck out of you

Don't think it was actually filmed in reverse (see notes here) but the film itself plays out backwards in time, repeating sections and going back further each time.

Very good film and its reminded me I've the three disc set with some hidden features to unlock (one of which is watching the film in reverse order, now thats going to be confusing!)

[Adam Lincoln]

Seen a load of average stuff lately. all watchable.

Rock  N Rolla - London gangster film by Guy Ritchie. Poor mans lock stock and even poorer mans snatch.
Body Of Lies - Terrorist middle east bombing and torture.
Passengers - Plane accident cover up. Or is it?

[SA Chris]

It is clever.

Nolan filmed Memento in reverse order to confuse the fuck out of you

Don't think it was actually filmed in reverse (see notes here) but the film itself plays out backwards in time, repeating sections and going back further each time.

No it isnt. Was just a lame attempt at a joke.

[slackline]

No it isnt. Was just a lame attempt at a joke.

  My sense of humor stayed in bed this morning.

[Jim]

Saw a film called the Squid and the Whale the other night. Worth a watch if you're in the right mood.

was recomended many pages back by uncle, an excellent film it is

[a dense loner]

it was that good, after sitting there for half hr in the same gite and not laughing once i went to bed.

superbad, on the other hand is genius

[Jim]

I think your on about either eagle vs shark or jay and silent bob strike back not squid and the whale.
From a man that won't watch city of god "cos its got subtitles"
Superbad is indeed the best film I've seen for ages.
Kung fu panda is pretty good as well

[a dense loner]

you're quite right kes it was eagle versus shit.
i only said the subtitles bit to outrage cowboyhat. i started watching it and got bored pretty quickly then turned it off. more to do with hyperbole really than anything else. if people didn't go on about it being the next fontainebleau i might of sat through it.

watched 'the wrestler' last night. pretty dark indeed. i liked it but if someone else said it was the worst film they'd ever seen i wouldn't be surprised

[SA Chris]

Watched Slumdog Millionaire last night. Cheesy, but a good film. Enjoyed it a lot more than I expected to.

[saintlade]

Second Slumdog Millionaire, good film to have started the year off with.

[Kingy]

Saw Che the other night and despite it being in subtitles a lot of the way through, it was an excellent portrayal of the Cuban Revolution in the late 50's. Not many laughs to be honest but if you're up for a bit of intense history dosage then I would recommend. The film is closely based on Che's own book of his experiences at the time. Long at over 2 hours - there is apparently a Part 2 in the pipeline for those interested.

[SA Chris]

Yup Pt 2 was advertised last night. Must see Pt 1 quickly then, I think Benicio del Toro is ace.

[moose]

Here we go, a bumper crop of sesquipedalian cinematic musings.  Christ, you can tell that I am jobless .  When I eventually become gainfully employed I am going to institute a four point system of "fucking great" / "great" / "shit" / "fucking shit".  Until then you'll have to suffer my delusions as hidden victims of the recession!

Slumdog Millionaire
God I hate magical realism.  One Hundred Years of Solitude remains the only book I've ever wanted to set on fire.  I either find life brutish and depressing, or I'm drunk; there are no magic carpets in Selby.

Hence, it was with low expectations that I went to see Slumdog Millionaire: "The Feel Good Film of the Year", "If You Liked Mamma Mia You'll Love This", "Based On a Hit Quiz Show"!  I am very glad to say that it exceeded my expectations.  That said, if it hadn't, I may have been forced to tear my own eyes out. 

Slumdog Milionaire IS a "feel good film" in that you are cheered by its outcome.  Mind you, the same could be said of Die Hard.  The quiz show is a framing device that provides the film with a happy destination.  However, the journey it links does have some hard times. Along the way there is ethnic violence, squalor, criminality, murder, torture and betrayal.  The film it most resembles in these themes is probably City of God.  Admittedly Danny Boyle's effort does not pretend to have that Brazillian epic's depth and tragic resonance.  Instead it uses comedy and fanciful coincidence to provide a frothiness to offset its overtly bitter notes... like a good capuccino (sorry).   

So, it's not Gomorrah or The Battle of Algiers; there is a wide streak of fantasy and filth has rarely looked so vibrant. I admit that these factors could be ruinous for the determinedly grumpy or those put off by its promotional campaign - one that seems frankly misleading to me (and one that the Director is uncomfortable with according to Mark Kermode).  But, if you can suspend your disbelief whilst remaining open to what substance it has, this is a very good film. 

The Wrestler
The Wrestler is about the tragedy of growing old for those who define themselves by a lifestyle that becomes increasingly cruel with age: in this case a has-been wrestler and his stripper girlfriend.  It is a theme familiar to anyone who has seen the likes of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The Shootist, The Incredibles, or Sunset Boulevard.  Anyone who has ever felt a twinge of sadness at seeing a childhood icon in in diminished circumstances.  Or just anyone those whose elbows now hurt when they fold up their bouldering mat!   
This film is essentially a verite version of Rocky. Will the raddled hero find love, make-up with his daughter, make a wrestling comeback and master the intricacies of a day-job at the deli counter?  This being a modern take on the genre possibly not.  But along the way there are tights, body-slams, and power-ballads. 

However, despite its formulaic aspects, it's a fairly convincing journey.  Something it owes to a well evoked mood, some nicely drawn minor characters and largely very good acting. The backstage cameraderie of the wrestlers is particularly affecting.  Big men bound by a need to entertain an audiences who demand ever escalating levels of pain. The end result may be fixed but the wounds are real. In summary, well worth seeing.

Incidentally, on a related note.  Why, when films are aiming for verisimilitude, do they always use shaky camera work and washed out colours?  My own perception of the world is generally clear, colourful and relatively steady.  Perhaps, by strange coincidence, all cameramen suffer from a disorder that renders the world through the sensorium of an ether addict on a pogo-stick.

Donkey Punch
Largely horrible people suffer horribly. On a boat.  File under films like Hostel.  But brinier.  Not great, but if you have the stomach for this kind of thing and just want a friday night diversion you could do worse than buy a shed load of beer and rent this.

4 Months,3 Weeks and Two Days
The funniest film about Rumanian abortions I've seen all year! 

Man on Wire
Documentary about Philippe Petit's quest to tight-rope walk between the twin towers of the World Trade Centre .  The engrossing tale of an obsession that was planned like a bank heist but performed by people like characters from a Truffaut film (skinny, beautiful, twitchy and sexual).  Well worth seeing even if documentaries aren't normally your thing [insert "taut" plotting pun here].     

Redacted
Stylised but heartfelt account of an attrocity committed by US forces in Iraq.  It's a complex montage of films from multiple sources: the squaddie's camera, the documentary crew, the Arab media, the youtube clip etc.  As you might expect from Brian de Palma it's all a bit relentless and possibly hamfisted; but, it is angry stuff and possibly worth a look if you want some provoking action.

[richdraws]

I really want to see the wrestler, it looks great. I worry about slum dog millionaire, I am convinced its going to be as poor as the book the kite runner, didn't bother with the film.

Fuck you Moose I love magical realism and I think pugilistic language is appropriate to discussions of narrative style - LET'S DO THIS!!!!

Seriously though... Pan's Labyrinth - Guillermo Del Torro, Salman Rushdie and Borges will knock the block off any kitchen sink mother fucker!

[SteveM]

The wrestler was indeed good - recommended. Though for the squeamish there was one sequence of hardcore wrestling in the middle of the film that should have stayed on the cutting room floor - it wasn't needed as the sight and sound of the Ram's wounds being treated afterwards more than drilled home the sacrifices he was making.

If I was giving them out, Mickey Rourke would get an oscar this year.