The arthouse/cult/classic Movie Thread!

[protokol]

In this thread we will post and discuss really interesting and original films! They can be old or new, english or foreign, animated or live action, scary, gruesome or sentimental, but above all they should be interesting. eg. anyone posting anything by Michael Bay results in the banhammer.


I recently watched an excellent film directed by Alfred Hitchcock - "Rear Window"


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047396/

Although this film was released in 1954, it still holds its own today. The basic premise is that the main character, a photographer, is wheelchair-bound after an accident and can't leave the house. To quell his boredom he begins spying on his neighbours from the rear window of his house. What starts as a way to pass the time, becomes an obsession as he starts to believe that one of his neighbours may be a murderer.

There are some interesting themes going on in this film, it portrays the innate human attraction of voyeurism to the viewer, and as the story unfolds you really feel as though you are in the main character's shoes and trying to piece together a murder plot. The supporting characters that we see from the rear window are all interesting and funny in their own right, and represent (I believe) the whole spectrum of life from young to old, single to married, to divorced or alone. Highly recommended, this is my favourite Hitchcock film that I've seen so far.

Another film that I watched recently, for the 2nd time, was a French film called "La Haine" (Hate), directed by Mathieu Kassovitz and released in 1995.


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113247/

Filmed in black and white, it depicts a day in the life of a group of friends (one jewish, one black and one arab) living in a Paris ghetto, after a riot. The cinematography and editing in this film is incredible, and the whole feel of the film portrays the anger of the characters and is powerful stuff and exciting to watch. The acting is stunning, especially Vincent Cassel's part (who many may recognize from some Hollywood films). The film has moments of humour, an interesting plot and a great soundtrack with some raw french hip-hop, and the odd bit of electro and reggae. Especially pertinent in today's political climate, La Haine is a masterpiece and is a must see IMO.

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[protokol]

A more recent film that I just watched is "Yakuza Apocalypse", a 2015 Japanese film directed by the legendary Takashi Miike. You may remember him from such films as  "Audition", "Visitor Q" and "Ichi the Killer".



http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3675748/

I thoroughly enjoyed Miike's most recent film, although it is not his best IMO. A hilariously quirky, gory and surprising film, Yakuza Apocalypse tells the story of a Yakuza gangster who cannot get tattooed due to sensitive skin, becoming a vampire, and taking on a team of bizarre vampire hunters who are helped by a kung fu master in a frog suit, with an unexpected special move!

I loved the juxtaposition of the ridiculous and bizarre plot and characters, with the stone-cold serious (and pretty convincing) acting performances of the cast and solid screenplay, for me it really worked. If I'm honest, the film was a little long and did have sections that some might find tedious, especially if not familiar with Miike's work. However as a fan of this sort of off-the-wall Japanese comedy/horror, I was laughing for most of the film, and thought it was great. Although not without its flaws, and not as refined as some of his earlier works, "Yakuza Apocalypse" is highly recommended if you wanna get stoned and watch something random, or if you're just (like me) into this sort of thing.

[protokol]

"Five Broken Cameras" (2011) is a documentary film, depicting the Israeli/Palestinian conflict from a Palestinian villagers point of view.


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2125423/

A remarkable film IMO, "Five Broken Cameras" is shot by a Palestinian caught in the conflict between the Israeli army and the resistance of the Israeli occupation by the Palestinians. The "5 broken cameras" work incredibly well as an emotional narrative device in the film - as the film goes on, one by one the cameras are shot or damaged by Israeli gunfire, yet the cameraman carries on his struggle not just to survive and defend his land and family, but to film it as well.

Granted, even more than most documentary films this has a bias - everything is shot from the Palestinian side so we have no counter view to balance the viewpoint of the protagonists of the film. However, as a raw documentary this film is compelling and gripping, and really shows the struggle of the Palestinian people up close and personal. Powerful stuff, and one of the best documentary films I have ever seen.

[protokol]

"Battle Royale" directed by Kinji Fukasaku.

http://imdb.com/title/tt0266308



A class of high school kids are sent to a deserted island, given maps and various weapons, and forced to kill each other. If you haven't seen this film then you should, it sounds ridiculous (and it does have a fair bit of dark humor), but it's so crazy that it actually works well.

With Takeshi Kitano playing a teacher (you may remember him from the game show "Takeshi's Castle") and some great acting all round, this film has to be seen to be believed.

One of the best and most daring films ever to come out of Japan, Battle Royale is amazing. While it's not quite as polished as it could be, and isn't quite up there with the classics, it's still fucking awesome. Watch it.

[protokol]

"Under The Skin" (2013)





Directed by Jonathan Glazer and starring Scarlett Johansson, this film is pretty damn weird, but I absolutely loved it. The pacing is slow, and it's certainly not the sort of film you would expect Scarlett Johansson to be acting in. If you're expecting a Hollywood style spoon fed narrative, with multiple action sequences and breakneck editing to hold your attention, you probably won't enjoy it. But if you think of it more as a haunting art-piece with disturbing imagery and metaphors on the human psyche and society, you might be pleasantly surprised, if a little creeped out.

Basically, Johansson plays an alien being that assumes a human identity (possibly to research humans and their customs and society?), and while in Scotland, attempts to seduce unsuspecting men on the streets of Glasgow, which she then lures into a strange void (possibly another dimension) where they are engulfed in a black liquid where very bad things happen to them. Many of these scenes were unscripted, and filmed with hidden cameras, which gives them an unnerving degree of realism as the male victims are unaware of the cameras and act totally naturally. Johansson's performance is excellent in my opinion, she doesn't overplay the part and really gives a credible impression of an alien who is trying to learn the strange customs of this strange race of Earth-dwellers.

The score is excellent and very unnerving, it really adds to the atmosphere of the film. This film creeped me out a lot, but I would highly recommend it to anyone who is willing to give it a chance. I can understand why some critics found it boring, but the I found the sustained shots and slow pacing really intriguing and the symbolism made me question the base instincts of humans and society. Love it or hate it, this film is well worth watching, preferably at night with no-one else home. You also get to see Scarlett Johansson naked (but in the most unsexy way you can imagine, so don't get your hopes up!)

protokol rating - 9/10

[protokol]

"Baraka" (1992)

Youtube link 720p: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkaISwZoqpE



This is an incredible documentary film, with no narrative dialogue whatsoever. However, this forces the audience into finding narrative solely in the visual shots and audio, which makes for a very interesting exploration of themes such as the customs and rituals of humankind, man's influence on the natural environment, and the modernization of society and its benefits and drawbacks.

Rather than being a "standard" documentary (which would normally aim to tell a specific story), Baraka relies on beautiful footage in exotic locations, and how the life that inhabits those locations can affect the wider world, all through nothing more than unbelieveable camera shots and very clever editing.

I would recommend watching this masterpiece on the biggest screen you can find (in the highest resolution, I believe there is a 4K version available), with a powerful audio system - It is not what most people would imagine as a "movie", it's more of an audiovisual experience with an underlying message/narrative. But of course, the audience is welcome to make their own interpretations of the work, like all good art!



http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/images/reviews/275/full/1357358441_2.png

[juseb]

just finished watching 'Fight club'...guess the movie everyone knows but i never got a chance to watch it..well..actually wasn't interested in watching..read a book and i think books are way better than movies..watched it know because doing a review on it at here...and to my surprise the movie is great..way better than the book and such a thing happens almost never...Fincher did awesome job
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fight_Club#/media/File:Fight_Club_poster.jpg

[lordzc]

Old boy.

[UliJonHoth]

Bad Lieutenant (1992) - Directed by Abel Ferrara and starring Harvey Keitel.

[ElizabethBespalova]

I believe that "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors" by one of the most prominent Soviet filmmakers - Sergei Parajanov, is one of the best films in the history of cinematography. it is some sort of an abstract of Ukrainian Hutsul lifestyle, culture and traditions and simultaneously it happens to be one of the most affecting, touching, lyric and tragic filmed love stories. and believe me folks, it was regarded as a masterpiece back in 1964 and even nowadays it's considered to be among the featured chef-d'oeuvres of world cinematography.

[protokol]

just finished watching 'Fight club'...guess the movie everyone knows but i never got a chance to watch it..well..actually wasn't interested in watching..read a book and i think books are way better than movies..watched it know because doing a review on it at here...and to my surprise the movie is great..way better than the book and such a thing happens almost never...Fincher did awesome job

Yeah Fight Club is an excellent film, I was a little young (14/15) to understand some of the subtext the first time I watched it, but I still thought it was amazing. On later viewings I enjoyed it even more - the themes of anarchism representing a savage punch in the face to the blandness, repetition and pointless consumerism of modern society really struck a chord with me.

Also some amazing cinematography - the shot where all the objects in the protagonist's room appear as listings in a catalogue was ingenious. I also loved the tone of Edward Nortons narration throughout, and the interesting shots early in the film where the real Tyler Durden pops up in single frames before the two have "met".

And the final scene with the Pixies track, epic finale...

Haven't read the book, but it's on my list.

[protokol]

Old boy.

Great film, I assume you're talking about the original Korean film rather than the remake?

A really interesting plot, where the audience knows just as little as the protagonist throughout pretty much the whole film, making the plot twists even more brutal and effective. I loved the cinematography of the fight scene in the tunnel, with the tracking camera moving backwards and forwards. Also the scene where he eats a live octopus was weird but incredibly powerful.

[protokol]

Bad Lieutenant (1992) - Directed by Abel Ferrara and starring Harvey Keitel.

Haven't seen this, looks interesting, I shall certainly check it out.

[protokol]

I believe that "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors" by one of the most prominent Soviet filmmakers - Sergei Parajanov, is one of the best films in the history of cinematography. it is some sort of an abstract of Ukrainian Hutsul lifestyle, culture and traditions and simultaneously it happens to be one of the most affecting, touching, lyric and tragic filmed love stories. and believe me folks, it was regarded as a masterpiece back in 1964 and even nowadays it's considered to be among the featured chef-d'oeuvres of world cinematography.

This sounds well worth watching - I haven't seen many Soviet films, the only two I remember enjoying were "Battleship Potemkin" and "Stalker"

I will certainly be checking this one out, sounds fascinating. Thanks for the recommendation.