| This Month |
The AFC President is a self-centered asshole. |
| Current Movie |
For the week of March 4th:
Black Snake Moan
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| Upcoming Films |
For March:
Mar.4:Black Snake Moan
Mar.11:8 Femmes
Mar.18:The Commitments
Mar.25:Kundun
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| Thursday, March 01, 2007 |
| March Calendar |
First of all, kudos to Matt for winning the Oscar pool with a whopping 15 points!
Second of all, thanks to Tim for keeping the blog alive with his excellent suggestions and posts...
March. The most common suggestion for this month's theme has been 'Irish Cinema.' While this would be a good tie in with the St. Patrick holiday, and while I'd love an excuse to watch The Commitments, I'm going to veto the idea on the grounds that...well, on the grounds that I'm making this post and simply don't feel like watching a bunch of Irish movies in a row. Also, my birthday is this month, and as long as we're in the mood for celebrating special occasions why not focus on me me me? Therefore, this month we're going to watch four movies that aren't connected at all save for the fact that I personally really want to watch every single one of them. Yes, I am this narcissistic.
Now, here're the films:
Mar. 4 - Mar. 10
BLACK SNAKE MOAN
Our first club movie that's still in the theaters! This opens tomorrow in Athens if anyone is interested in going this weekend. I was very fond of certain elements in Craig Brewer's Hustle and Flow. Couple that fact with the insane plot of Black Snake Moan and you're looking at what is sure to be an...interesting ride. I've been looking forward to this one for a long long time.
Mar. 11 - Mar. 17
8 Femmes
Typically I'm not a fan of musicals, but I am a sucker for detective fiction and beautiful women, and I've loved each of the three films I've seen by Francois Ozon. 8 Femmes really surprised me with its humor and charm - a very different film from the dark and challenging Swimming Pool. This little gem seems to me like the perfect note on which to end the winter season: "One morning the industrialist Marcel is found stabbed in his room. Eight women are his potential murderers: His wife Gaby, his daughters Suzon and Catherine, his mother-in-law Mamy, his sister-in-law Augustine, his sister Pierette, the cook Chanel and the maid Louise. The house is isolated in a snowstorm, the phone is dead and one of them has to be the culprit. Mutual suspicions reveal the various secrets in their lives." [source] I hope you guys enjoy it as much as I did.
Mar. 18 - Mar. 24
THE COMMITMENTS
See, we do listen. Actually I've never seen this movie, but you guys tell me it's great and I trust your collective judgement. Drink up and viddy this apparent favorite in honor of St. Patrick's day 2007.
Mar. 25 - Mar. 31
KUNDUN
Cheers to Martin Scorsese for finally taking home a much deserved Oscar, right? I've seen most of his films, but have intentionally avoided seeing them all. That way I have some back catalogue to explore whenever I'm in the mood. This is one I'm ready to finally watch. Scorsese is obviously one of the best in the business, and seeing one of his movies for the first time is always an exciting experience for me. Kundun is the story of the 14th Dalai Lama, featuring only non-professional actors. Apparently Scorsese was banned from stepping foot inside Tibet because of this film.
That's it. Hopefully no one minds my completely hijacking the club to give myself an extended birthday gift. If you do, I suspect you might be something of a wanker. |
posted by Jeff @ 3/01/2007 08:11:00 PM  |
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| Monday, February 26, 2007 |
| Broken bottles under childrens' feet, bodies strewn across a dead-end street |
 Bloody Sunday (2002)
For my part, sorry for taking so long to get this updated with a post for 'Bloody Sunday'. I've been swamped lately and didn't get around to watching this until 2 in the morning after the Oscars. So onto the film.
First of all, I want to give props to Paul Greengrass. This guy has carved out quite a niche for himself with these "docudramas" and from everything I have seen, he is the undisputed master of this style of filmmaking. And what a set of balls to go in tackling some of our collective worse days as human beings. I can't applaud him enough for 'United 93' and the job he did with that picture. It was nice to finally see the similar project he did 4 years ago that prepared him to depict that most touchy of subjects.
This movie, like 'United 93', simply portrays a fateful day and the multitude of events that took place beforehand to lead to the bloody conclusion. The day happens to be Jan. 30 1972 when peaceful protesters and marchers in Northern Ireland were mercilessly gunned down by English troops, an event which heralded the rise of the IRA and widespread violence throughout that region. The narrative jumps around from place to place, checking in with the different players of the day. There is a lot quick cuts here; at times you might only catch a glimpse of a pysched-up paratrooper or 30 seconds tense conversation between march organizers. One of the reasons this movie and its successor work so well is that there are few actors playing the roles and no big names. If you can say the movie centers on any characters they would be Ivan Cooper, the member of Parliament who was head of the Civil Rights Organization and the commanding military officer who authorized the use of force against the demonstrators. They are played by James Nesbitt and Tim Pigott-Smith (who seems to play an evil shite in every movie I've seen him in) respectively. Many of the actors are actually just real people and even relatives of the original victims. In fact, the boy who plays Gerry is the nephew of the actual first person shot and killed on that day. All of this lends to the realism of the picture, rather than asking you to believe that Daniel Pearl's wife is Angelina Jolie.
A huge feature of this movie that makes the premise work is that it is filmed almost entirely with handheld cameras and using no artificial light. A lot of people argue that this is Greengrass' worst trait as a filmmaker; I remember plenty of critics jumping on him about it in 'The Bourne Supremacy'. And while the camera bouncing around all the time might not work for a typical picture it does incredible justice here. You are sucked into believing that some documentary filmmaker was actually there, capturing all the bloody imagery at that moment.
 This film, much like 'United 93', is incredible heartbreaking because you know how it is going to end even at the beginning. The drama is in how the events unfold and "How did this actually come to happen?" I can liken it to the show on National Geographic Channel where they explain how specific disasters and industrial accidents happen by taking you through the event minute by minute, piece by piece. As the movie starts at a dual press conference for both sides, the initial tension is already there but it continually intensifies and intensifies until it all bursts. As one person commented on a messageboard for the movie, it all snowballs and gets out of control so fast that it is hard to really pinpoint the exact moment when it reached the point of no return. Ten minutes into the massacre you find yourself thinking, "how did this happen? They were just marching, how did it get to this point?"
Coming away from this picture I found myself wondering about a lot of things and it got me interested in researching the actual events more. Because of that alone this movie works. I'm amazed and sickened by the fact that the paratroopers simply mowed down innocent civilians without any real provocation. It was scary to see them pumping each other up and later bragging about how they had shot helpless men crawling away from the shooting. I'm ashamed to think that in a supposedly forward-thinking and "good" society like Great Britain, murderers can be disguised as heroes, blame can be whisked away, and that justice has still not been done for the families of those victims of that terrible day.
Some quick things:
- The reason this film didn't qualify for the Oscars is that the day it opened in London theaters it was broadcast on the BBC as well. I suppose it was a big event for Great Britain.
- Two of the most striking images for me: the priest waving his white handkerchief in desperation, hoping that the Brits wouldn't shoot him and the people helping a mortally wounded man off the street ....and the Brits coming round the courtyard to catch a fleeing mob in the park and mindlessly shooting them in the back as they run away, unarmed.
- I had really hoped the one soldier with a conscience would give in and tell the truth about his "buddies" shot innocent people in cold blood and then bragged about it. I mean one of the troopers stopped to reload so he could fire some more!
- Ivan Cooper's press conference at the end of the movie, talking about how the IRA had won its biggest victory that day and how he could no longer preach nonviolence to the young kids after what had happened was especially poignant and heartbreaking. Props to James Nesbitt; I've only seen him in comical roles before this but he turned in one hell of a performance.
- Stick thru to the end of the U2 performance during the credits; it really helped tie everything together. This film had to be as agonizing and painful to watch for Irishmen as 'United 93' was to watch for me.
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| posted by The Dunce Cap Marvel @ 2/26/2007 04:04:00 PM |
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| Monday, February 12, 2007 |
| Love's a Bitch, and then you die. |
Amores Perros
Directed by: Alejandro González Iñárritu
Written by: Guillermo Arriaga
Starring: Gael García Bernal, Emilio Echevarría, Goya Toledo, Álvaro Guerrero, Vanessa Bauche, Jorge Salinas, Marco Pérez, etc.
Man, what an intense flick. Let me jump right in! Sorry of this makes no sense...
Octavio is so naive! (He is also sweet, captivating and sexy as hell-- but naive all the same). He tries to be valiant and witty (and, to an extent, he succeeds) only to negate any braininess we perceive when he shows us what a sucker he is for Susana. He is blinded, blinded! "Anything for the girl," you know? And then he gets totally f*cked. Here's a lesson to all boys, men, and Boyz II Men who are reading: don't ever give a woman everything you've got. Especially NOT if she just got knocked up by your brother (AGAIN).
I love it at the funeral... Octavio is all scarred up and gimpy... he's just lost his good friend in a car accident that was, essentially, his fault. As far as he knows, his dog is dead. His brother just been shot... and he's still askin' Susana to come away with him. He gets an E for effort, doesn't he?
Susana, on the other hand, is a weak, dumb, bitch. She lets Ramiro f*ck her up constantly. She doesn't deserve Octavio or his affection and certainly not his attention (or his money! Damn, what a loss... although we ALL saw it coming). I suppose we're all guilty of giving our affection to those who don't deserve it. OR, we're guilty of accepting attention from those who we know deserve better than us... anywho. That's a totally different story.
::Jump::
One scene that I LOVE: When Daniel is sitting at his desk at the office, smoking a cigarette down to the stub, nervous and wrecked because of the heaviness that is happening at home with Valeria... he calls his ex-wife. She answers,
"¿Bueno?" No answer. "¿Bueno?" No answer. Without a doubt, she knows it's him. "¿Daniel? ¿Corazón?" Daniel hangs up. For a moment, he needed her, he wanted her back because she's familiar and safe. Let this, again, be a message to all you menz out there: Don't leave your homely wife in the dust for some beauty queen... she'll get her leg amputated and then where will you be? (Joke. Serioiusly.)
Did anyone else notice the ringing phone thing in that story? It drove the ex-wife crazy, then it drives Valeria crazy... I don't know, maybe its just me.
::Jump::
What a crazy mess it is when the old guy gets the two brothers together, unties them, and leaves the GUN!? I wish we would have found out what happened there.
...Or, maybe we did and I just don't remember-- albeit, I watched this movie a couple of times. The first time wasn't enough! There is so much to see in this movie. Each shot is so intricately manipulated. One scene that comes to mind is when the old man is "cleaning up" by shaving and cutting his hair... every movement is fascinating. I didn't want to take my eyes off of him using the hair-encrusted soap, battling a dull razor to shave... using that nasty sink... cutting his hair unevenly... I think he looks better with the beard.
I love how the old man saves up his money to give to a woman that he loves (his daughter) and how we have already seen Octavio do this in the first story.
This is a movie that I would actually go and buy. And, when I say that I want to buy a movie, that's a pretty big deal in my little world. I own, like, 4 movies, and 3 of them I found in the dumpster at my apartment complex. They were perfectly good DVDs! Not my fault that people are throwing away decent DVDs... just don't ask what I was doing looting the dumpster to get my grubby hands on the Director's Cut of Nurse Betty.
I desperately want to see Babel and 21 grams now. I have fallen in love with Iñárritu. Ugh, I love it.
I gotta go home. It's late. What do you guys think?! |
| posted by K @ 2/12/2007 06:22:00 PM |
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| Saturday, February 10, 2007 |
| An Oscar in Time Saves Nine |
Well, HELLO Athens Film Club!
Since we're supposedly "movie fans," Oscar night should be something of a ritual, right? And, because we're all "crazy film people," shouldn't we be eccentric and have a huge celebration?
Well then, it only makes sense to have a Fabulous Oscar Party®
What: Fabulous Oscar Party®
Where:At the home of an AFC Member
When: Sunday, February 25th 4:00 pm
This is a black tie (or not) event (read: I'm going to look like a jack- ass when no one else decides to dress up). Feel free to wear whatever you'd like. If the spirit catches you, by all means, dress to your nines! Or to your eights, or to whatever number you'd like to dress to.
Since the Oscars are on Sunday, remember to buy your libations the day before (blasted blue laws!). Couches and snacks are provided. Bring your friends! Bring your dog! We'll be drankin' and stankin' until Oscar comes home.
Questions? e-mail us: AthensFilmClub@gmail.com |
| posted by K @ 2/10/2007 09:58:00 AM |
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| Wednesday, February 07, 2007 |
| The Russians are no longer coming...they're sticking to repressing civil freedoms in the Motherland |
 THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING THE RUSSIANS ARE COMING (1966)
Starring: Carl Reiner, Eva Marie Saint, Alan Arkin, Brian Keith, Jonathan Winters
Cinematography: Joseph F. Biroc
Writing credits: William Rose
Director: Norman Jewison
This picture has me at a loss. I simply don't know what to think about it. It was fairly entertaining, it didn't bog down, I like all of the actors involved, and I really want to like the movie. But after watching it, I just really don't. Or more like I'm indifferent. The movie takes place in the middle of the Cold War on an island off of Massachusetts (actually filmed north of San Francisco). Almost immediately a dumbass Soviet sub captain runs his boat aground trying to get a better look at America. A landing party led by Alan Arkin hopes to find a boat to tow their vessel back to sea before anyone notices them, but they run afoul of a vacationing family, from whom they steal a car. Before you know it the entire island is in mass panic with the police trying to maintain order and find the Russian sailors with mixed results. This movie is enjoyable and had some funny parts and lines, mostly thanks to Reiner, Arkin, and Jonathan Winters. But it never really registered any out-loud belly laughs from me. I was more amused than amazed. I probably got the most enjoyment out of watching Alan Arkin and his comrades talk back and forth in their pidgin-Russian gibberish (if it's really Russian then I'm gonna look like an idiot). I just think the problem is the movie feels dated and there is too much of a generation gap for me to really appreciate it. I'm sure in the midst of the Cold War, with fear and tensions running high, this was some really on-the-edge stuff. And from all the message boards I looked at, it seemed like Boomers absolutely love this movie. However, I just can't relate; I'm not in the right decade to really dig the humor. And it's interesting to see the film make the point that both sides are acting like idiots and should stop hating each other for imaginary reasons when they should really be getting along and working together (even though this point is a little heavy-handed at times). I don't know what do you guys think? A few quick points: - the movie was nominated for 4 Oscars (Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Editing) even though it won none. - could they have picked a brattier kid to play Carl Reiner's son? And as someone who is only really familiar with Reiner from the Ocean's 11 movies, it was staggering to see him this young. - what was up with the drunk chasing the horse in the field? I probably could have done without that whole sub-plot. - I thought the airplane mechanic guy looked familiar and when I looked him up --tada!-- he is the Ghost of Christmas Past cabbie from "Scrooged"! - I love that for an island community of 200 souls, they have a gun store. And from the looks of it they do good business; what the fuck do these people need with all these guns! |
| posted by The Dunce Cap Marvel @ 2/07/2007 07:48:00 PM |
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| Monday, January 29, 2007 |
| In like a Lion, out like a Little Bitch |
The Lion in Winter (1968)
Starring: Peter O'Toole,Katharine Hepburn, Anthony Hopkins, John Castle, Nigel Terry, Timothy Dalton, Jane Merrow
Cinematography: Douglas Slocombe
Writing credits: James Goldman
Director: Anthony Harvey
To all of you filmies who really wanted to be with us last night for the viewing of the film but couldn't attend (yes, all 7 of you): we were with you in spirit. After a solid bout with some veggie quesadillas, 4 of us settled in to watch The Lion in Winter with full bellies and a little glimmer in our collective eye...
...unfortunately, our cozy movie retreat on Franklin street turned sour when it came to our attention that my DVD remote needs a new battery- we couldn't scroll to the "Play Movie" prompt. We, instead, sat around scratching each other and playing The Lion in Winter's theatrical trailor on repeat.
Alas, thanks to one Luke-in-shining-armor, a tiny laptop magically appeared and we were able to pop that sucka' right in, bypassing my devious DVD player.
So, the movie:
It was like watching a play unfold... only, I had a really good seat (as the screenplay for this movie was adapted directly from the play by James Goldman, the original playwright, this makes sense, doesn't it?). You just don't see this type of acting anymore. You don't see films that are so dialogue driven (well, you do, but they are usually no good). Movies nowadays rely on extra-dramatis personae contrivances for intrigue and attention-grabbing. This movie, however, was refreshing and fun and, as Luke so prophetically said last night, "It moves."
Man, Katharine Hepburn is evil, isn't she?
I mentioned this last night while we were watching the film: Every character (maybe except for Alais) wants every OTHER character to believe that they don't care for one another. Wait, does that make sense? Ok, so even though the Queen seems like a heartless, conniving c*nt, she's really just bitter to have lost the attention of her King. Similarly, the three princes are all seemingly competing for the crown... but something tells me that they really just want to be the son who receives the most attention from their daddy. Hell, even King Henry shows his softer side once he realizes that his boys have betrayed him... "I've lost my boys! I've lost my boys!" So what do you do when the boys you have don't love you anymore? You just get yourself a hot little wifey and make some new sons! About Alais...
Alais is pure and real and gentle... and she doesn't cover her feelings with a feaux leathery skin. She juxtaposes the rest of the cast, in that when she is hurt, she just comes out and says it, instead of running next door to hide behind curtains and to make alliances with others' enemies. In a castle full of people covering up for the fact that they have hearts, Alais wears it on her sleeve.
What does everyone think of Peter O'Toole? He scared me a little when he was angry!
What about Anthony Hopkins!? I think he got better looking as he aged....
Timothy Dalton looks a little like a contemporary homosexual heartthrob in this movie.
We all determined that there is quite a bit to examine here... I could go on for days. What a great flick! Good suggstion, Tim. We might just keep you around ;) |
| posted by K @ 1/29/2007 12:54:00 PM |
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| Thursday, January 25, 2007 |
| Oscar comes a-knockin' |
 Hello all, Tim here. It’s Oscar season and the Athens Film Club is adding to the festivities with an Academy-themed selection of flicks. This all started when I suggested to KT that we watch a Peter O’Toole movie, since I wanted an excuse to watch one. She countered my offer by suggesting that I pick the club movies for February. Of course, I was elated to do so and I promptly celebrated this great honor by doing one-armed pushups in the middle of the office.
Which takes us to this month’s movies. Rather than going the old hat route of choosing films that were past Oscar winners, I decided to do something different and highlight cinema talents who are nominated for this year’s awards. Specifically, I wanted to look at two actors in the twilight of their careers (Peter O’Toole and Alan Arkin) and a pair of directors who are just beginning to hit their stride (Alejandro González Iñárritu and Paul Greengrass).
And the nominees are…
The Lion in Winter (1968)
 Long before this year’s Venus, Peter O’Toole was ripping it up opposite Kate Hepburn in The Lion in Winter. In the movie he plays King Henry II of England, a role he was nominated for twice in two separate films (this one and Becket). The story centers around Henry as he struggles to decide which of his three sons will inherit the throne after he is gone. To make matters worse, the Queen has her own ideas on who it should be. This is family dysfunction at its best, Jerry Springer set in medieval England. O'Toole and Hepburn show why they are considered the best of their generation, and if nothing else, it's a delight to see them going at it on-screen. The movie also features Timothy Dalton in his first film role and an unbelievably young Anthony Hopkins sporting one hell of an Oedipal complex. And here's a little piece of cinema trivia for you: Hepburn and Barbara Streisand tied to share the Best Actress Oscar in 1969. Streisand won for Funny Girl, which co-starred Omar Sharif, Peter O'Toole's best friend and Lawrence of Arabia co-star.
Peter O'Toole: "The only exercise I take is walking behind the coffins of friends who took exercise." The Russians Are Coming the Russians Are Coming (1966)  I LOVE Alan Arkin. I was so happy to see him get nominated this year for Little Miss Sunshine. I haven't seen the movie yet (damn you Netflix for long waits!) but he is supposedly great in it, and I love that he invented his own backstory for Grandpa "as a second-rate saxophone player who deserted his family by performing in strip joints where he picked up a drug habit and a fondness for the ladies -- until the life caught up with him." I love his wry humor and it is no surprise that he is one of the founding members of Second City. I had originally planned to go with Catch-22 for this selection since Arkin gives a great turn as Yossarian, but I figured we could try The Russians Are Coming The Russians Are Coming instead since it is his first film and he was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance. And I just love the tagline. The movie co-stars Carl Reiner and Eva Marie Saint and is about a Russian submarine that accidentally runs aground off the coast of New England. Hilarity ensues.
Alan Arkin: "It's not enough for me to just be a personality and go up there and say lines nicely. I want to tell a story with a character." Amores Perros (2000)  I know three things about Alejandro González Iñárritu: he's Mexican, he makes movies with interconnecting storylines a la Traffic, and that I have no fucking clue how to pronounce his name. I have yet to see any of his films so I'm very eager to start off by watching his first feature, Amores Perros. It involves dogfighting, a homeless man, and a tragic accident -- something which seems to form the central theme in each of his films, including this year's Babel. This movie also comes highly recommended to me by KT, so if you don't like it speak to her. Alejandro González Iñárritu: "Directing non-actors is difficult. Directing actors in a foreign language is even more difficult. Directing non-actors in a language that you yourself don't understand is the craziest thing you can possibly think of. But I would do it again in a minute." Bloody Sunday (2002)  Though he probably won't win the Oscar for Best Director, I can't imagine that many filmmakers had a tougher challenge than Paul Greengrass. How does one make a film about 9/11 merely five years after the date that is meaningful, thoughtful, and lacks any of the jingoistic stereotypes or "ra-ra feel-good" patriotism that one would expect out of such a film? United 93 was painful to watch, but I felt that it succeeded in its goal and was damn remarkable filmmaking. Much better than the commercial, sentimental schlock Oliver Stone put out. From what I have read, Bloody Sunday is very similar to United 93 in that it dramatizes tragic events but depicts them in an objective, unbiased manner that makes the viewer feel as if he were watching a documentary rather than a feature. The movie is of course about Bloody Sunday, when protesters in Northern Ireland were fired upon by British soldiers in the year 1972. Paul Greengrass: “There is a great debate going on on where we are going in the post-9/11 world. This is part of the process of filmmakers saying, 'We would like to join that conversation'.” |
| posted by The Dunce Cap Marvel @ 1/25/2007 07:58:00 PM |
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| Quote Of The Week |
"If you're not going to be chained to a community, if you're not going to be tethered to a community, a place, a family, or perhaps even a church, then the best we can hope for is to be tethered and chained to each other.."
--Craig Brewer |
| About Us |
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Founded in Athens, GA in late 2006, we are a group of movie lovers who participate in a weekly, online discussion regarding the merits, qualities, themes, histories, implications, connotations, denotations, and general appeal (or lack thereof) of a variety of selected films.
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