Comments on Nick's Flick Picks: The Blog: Bring It On: Fall and Holiday Season '09

Oh, that last comment was me! Blogger is a rather...

2009-12-08T12:49:54.700-06:00

Oh, that last comment was me! Blogger is a rather pesky site at times and wouldn't let me put any names in unless I had an account at the time. Just a casual lurker who found you through a link a while back from The Film Experience, and I've been gawking at your actress section, and thought you'd have a mouthful to say about Bullock.

No fair: I'm not giving up the goodies on Bullock ...

2009-12-07T21:18:36.681-06:00

No fair: I'm not giving up the goodies on Bullock unless you at least let me know who you are! :)

Sandra Bullock? I'm dying to know how you thought...

2009-12-07T16:09:02.364-06:00

Sandra Bullock? I'm dying to know how you thought of her in The Blind Side.

Tokyo Sonata is freaking extraordinary. It's flawe...

2009-09-24T16:08:03.922-05:00

Tokyo Sonata is freaking extraordinary. It's flawed, but it's really good. Check it out. It's really touching.

It does seem like a larger amount of films are bei...

2009-09-23T03:26:30.030-05:00

It does seem like a larger amount of films are being released internationally earlier than the US. Stuff like The Young Victoria, Coco Avant Chanel and Baader-Meinhof Complex have all done reasonably well at the box office (Chanel has especially been a huge arty success, making the equivalent of nearly $30mil in US terms). But, of course, international distributors aren't bound by awards season and realise people like to go to the movies throughout the year.

Having said that, stuff like Precious and The Hurt Locker and plenty of others are scheduled for Feb/March to capitalise on any Oscar love. The latter thankfully avoiding the direct-to-DVD fate that its distributor had assigned it.

oh no. you're first movie, your birthday no less, ...

2009-09-22T11:20:14.939-05:00

oh no. you're first movie, your birthday no less, was "tediously facetious"

better luck next time, literally.

I love this! My own (Inter)National Board of Revi...

2009-09-22T08:38:38.847-05:00

I love this! My own (Inter)National Board of Review! With the fall I'm anticipating at work, I'm afraid I'm already going to be seeing many fewer movies than normal: even Baader-, Fame-, and Burning Plain-level attractions will really have to struggle to fit my schedule. So I'm all the more grateful to have things pruned on my behalf.

Finally saw a trailer for Pirate Radio/The Boat that Rocked, which sure substantiated every sad, exasperating thing that's been said already about that film in these comments. Unfortunately, despite some chipper moments, I didn't find a whole lot more to love in my fall kick-off movie, The Informant!

Hear, hear. Did not get the fuss about Tokyo Sonat...

2009-09-22T03:37:50.899-05:00

Hear, hear. Did not get the fuss about Tokyo Sonata at all. I think it's lousy.

As I intimate in my short review, Tokyo Sonata was...

2009-09-22T01:26:27.031-05:00

As I intimate in my short review, Tokyo Sonata was a frustratingly proficient movie, as plodding for urban-malaise drama fans as Moon was for true scifi fans. Would it discourage you more if I point out that the closest screenwriting parallels I could come up with for its characters and narrative were Little Miss Sunshine and a Paul Haggis film respectively?

@Tim: You do "exacting but generous" better than a...

2009-09-21T09:58:44.415-05:00

@Tim: You do "exacting but generous" better than anyone.

@Glenn: Thanks for the tip-off. Whether or not I end up agreeing, I totally agree that certain types of movies earn stronger reviews than they deserve based on the kinds of specious reasons you capture so well here. For example, I liked Kore-eda's Nobody Knows, but I certainly thought it had major problems with over-length despite its obvious goal of capturing the inertia and hermeticism in which those kids were trapped... which gets back to my reluctance about Still Walking, even though it sounds like I goofed there. (Though Lord knows I'm also a champion of lots of slow, quiet movies that other folks find plum frustrating, so I know a good deal of these arguments come down to the eye of the beholder.)

I didn't like Treeless Mountain much either. Felt ...

2009-09-21T09:38:21.801-05:00

I didn't like Treeless Mountain much either. Felt like one of "those" movies. I could all but see the director nodding their head and saying words like "ambiguity" and lines like "you have to make your own interpretation" as a mask to cover the fact that they just have nothing to say. Just because you have nice photography-like cinematography and minimal dialogue, doesn't mean you automatically more meaningful or whatever.

The Precious dilemma: how much slipshod direction/...

2009-09-20T08:12:10.762-05:00

The Precious dilemma: how much slipshod direction/editing can you forgive when magic is striking on set, right down the cast list, and you believe every word? The answer, at least in my case, is a lot.

The Woody is a health hazard, and the creepiest thing he´s ever made. It´s like Anything Else, but three times worse. There´s a comedy gay twist followed by a suicide attempt, which amazingly wasn´t mine. A new low.

@Bill C.: Sam directs! I had no idea. Between th...

2009-09-19T09:48:54.758-05:00

@Bill C.: Sam directs! I had no idea. Between this tasty tidbit and the fact that we are completely simpatico (and apparently close to alone) on the point of Lorna's Silence being more interesting than some of the Dardenne films it keeps being unfavorably compared to... I'm going to let the Julia thing slide.

@Tim: Under zero circumstances are you to sit on your reaction to Precious, even if it's off board. But, as if I needed further validation for my fairly easy decision to skip Whatever Works, your "F" is extra proof in my mind that I did the right thing.

Hey, hope the 10th anniversary was a night to reme...

2009-09-19T07:31:11.821-05:00

Hey, hope the 10th anniversary was a night to remember. Champagne toasts from Spain. I´m being rained on in San Sebastián, and off to see Precious in a minute, though four people have separately warned me about the leaden hand of Lee D, so I´m suddenly approaching with renewed caution.

Not only will I fight you all to the death for Juliette Lewis, I´ll throw my hat into the Anna Kendrick ring too. Haven´t seen Up in the Air yet, but I´ve been hoping for a breakthrough since her "Ladies Who Lunch" showstopper in Camp. Rocket Science and Twilight sure didn´t provide it. Fingers very crossed, and especially pleased she gets Bill C´s seal of approval...

@Nick: The September conflict is, indeed, one of t...

2009-09-18T20:14:11.284-05:00

@Nick: The September conflict is, indeed, one of the many irksome things about TIFF. Didn't mean to rub it in or anything!

Sadly, have not seen STILL WALKING or IMPORT/EXPORT yet. I'm actually so shamefully behind I haven't even caught up with JULIA.

Something I did see, which has had surprisingly little fanfare, is the directorial debut of Samantha Morton (THE UNLOVED), which plays a little like ersatz Lynne Ramsay. Guess she's as impatient for a new movie from her as the rest of us.

@Bill C.: I'd be happy to chime in about Up in the...

2009-09-18T19:45:08.223-05:00

@Bill C.: I'd be happy to chime in about Up in the Air if I were anywhere near it, or TIFF. That schedule, for all its glories, is about as inopportunely scheduled as possible if you're working on an academic timetable. Disappointed to hear that Single Man underwhelmed you so much. Another wait-and-seer, though even more in this case since the Weinsteins have already promised one of those one-week qualifying runs that everyone loves so much.

Just out of curiosity, re: Ivan's comment, do you have thoughts about Still Walking or Import/Export, Bill? Now that I've officially missed them?

Dying to hear your take on UP IN THE AIR, Nick, wh...

2009-09-18T19:03:03.419-05:00

Dying to hear your take on UP IN THE AIR, Nick, which I saw this week at the TIFF. Vera's in fine form, but I think the real star might be Anna Kendrick.

Also, thanks to the elephantine touch of Tom Ford, A SINGLE MAN is virtually an Ed Wood movie. Firth and the love story at the heart of it are really quite affecting, but...oy.

Agreed with Guy re Disgrace.

2009-09-17T01:34:11.197-05:00

Agreed with Guy re Disgrace.

@Ivan (so exciting that you commented!): I know, I...

2009-09-17T00:51:26.539-05:00

@Ivan (so exciting that you commented!): I know, I know, to all of the above. What's to be done with me? You know this is the week where the whole campus is shrieking back to life, so it's been impossible to get to the movies, and I don't think I can talk my partner into a 10th anniversary date to either of these tomorrow night... I'm pretty broken up about missing I/E, and I'm glad to take your word about Still Walking. The first festival reports I read last year were kind of blandly approving but couldn't drum up any real enthusiasm; I think I've been stuck in that place despite hearing a lot of better stuff since. (And there are some movies that reap irreproachable Tomatoes and Metacritic scores, and I still wind up wondering why...) DVD, for sure, though I hate having to admit that I'm settling for that.

Strange how a 90 Metacritic and 100% Rotten Tomato...

2009-09-17T00:34:50.834-05:00

Strange how a 90 Metacritic and 100% Rotten Tomatoes could make Still Walking sound tepid. This movie is nearly perfect. It's not nearly as slow and contemplative as you might think. It has distinctively Japanese elements, but it's more similar to Summer Hours than Ozu.

Unfortunately, Thursday is the last day for it and Import/Export. Both are must-sees.

@Dr. S: Hey, sure! I'm not trying to spend $10 on...

2009-09-16T22:12:42.935-05:00

@Dr. S: Hey, sure! I'm not trying to spend $10 on mediocrity, if that's what's in store.

@Glenn: See, I think Time of the Wolf is exceptional, so it's hard for me to know where to gauge myself in relation to other Haneke fans. And rest assured that American arthouse crowds are as crack-addicted to minor French diversions as Australian ones are.

@Nathaniel: I actually don't know what happens in Disgrace, which is exciting. As for Juliette: surely you remember when I started channeling her in Nashville? I think I have some claim here, but I'm all about sharing.

@JK: I love that you're so in the middle of all the action! Thanks for these updates. Glad to hear a thumbs up about Vincere.

@Guy: I actually have no problem believing in the prospect of Malkovich's best, since I think his performances almost always come with problems attached. Allowing that BJM is still inn a class by itself, he's due for a career-capper, and I don't think he's got another one. It'd be great if this were it.

"i feel like i've seen variations of that story ev...

2009-09-16T14:51:46.763-05:00

"i feel like i've seen variations of that story every year"

I assure you that you haven't, Nat. Not sure if you've read the novel or not, but the whole disgraced-academic story is a mere set-up for a very daring study of post-apartheid racial power plays. It really doesn't go where you think it does.

And Malkovich REALLY is something.

I think Sony is distributing A Prophet before the ...

2009-09-16T13:30:16.747-05:00

I think Sony is distributing A Prophet before the end of the year. Vincere is getting streamed by IFC to the cable boxes under Rainbow Communication. Giovanna Mezzogiorno was fabulous in it. My sympathies are with her the whole time, but the character is a total nut job, and you can see how she'd be a threat to Il Dulce.

i am not looking forward to Disgrace at all (i fee...

2009-09-16T11:44:55.362-05:00

i am not looking forward to Disgrace at all (i feel like i've seen variations of that story every year) and I'm confused by people saying it's Malkovich's best. I mean that would REALLY have to be something, wouldn't it?

i love that Vera is "bonus point" singular. ha ha

i love Juliette Lewis more than any of you. BACK THE FUCK AWAY! She's mine!

As I wrote in my review, if you think you'll like ...

2009-09-16T02:45:36.820-05:00

As I wrote in my review, if you think you'll like The Young Victoria then you will. There is absolutely nothing surprising about that movie at all (well, except that Emily Blunt is what I'd wager as actually bad). Same goes for Coco Avant Chanel. Not exactly pulseless, but it's not exciting at all. Baader Meinhoff Complex trips up trying to throw so much in (historically) and yet feeling like they skimped on a personality, if that makes sense. Some great moments though (particularly the opening scene, which is a stunner).

Agreed on Disgrace. It's a great movie, but Malkovich is probably the best he's ever been and Haines is indeed superb.

The Boys are Back looks wet, which is sad because I don't like to outright negative towards and Aussie film before I see it, but... yikes.

I'm right in the middle with The White Ribbon. Not as good as Hidden or The Piano Teacher, on par with Code Unknown, better than Funny Games and Time of the Wolf.

Paris came and went when it was released here last year, which is surprising since these sort of French films are like crack cocaine to Australian arthouse cinemas.