Sorry for the delay folks. We had a problem with a batch of bandwidth gremlins, as Kurt like to call them. But fear not, the show is as strong as ever and continues on with a more positive wave length than I can remember for a long time. Since we’re in such high spirits, it’s only natural we talk about dentistry and weather patterns to start the show. But then it’s to reviews for Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Mike Cahill’s Another Earth. Beware, both of these discussions are ** VERY HEAVY ON SPOILERS!! **. If you’re worried about the spoiler thing, just fast forward ahead as we have lots to dive into with this week’s Watch List; from afro-hair to life saving taxi drivers to Donald Sutherland in a toga, it’s quite the diverse show. And because it’s Andrew’s birthday… he is always correct for the duration of this recording.
As always, please join the conversation by leaving your own thoughts in the comment section below and again, thanks for listening!
|
|
http://rowthree.com/audio/cinecast_11/episode_224.mp3
Full show notes are under the seats…
IN-HOUSE BUSINESS:
– Kurt on The Director’s Club Podcast (Michael Winterbottom)
– New Chat Function on RowThree
– Hello Nick Robertson
MAIN REVIEWS:
– Rise of the Planet of the Apes
OTHER REVIEW:
– Another Earth
THE WATCH LIST:
Andrew
– World’s Greatest Dad
– Good Hair
– My Life
– The Eagle
– Me and You and Everyone We Know
Kurt
– Goodbye Solo
DVD PICKS:
Kurt
– Dead Man [Blu-ray]
– Dream Home
Andrew
– Dazed and Confused [Blu-ray] (but wait for the Criterion!)
– Fox and the Hound [Blu-ray]
OTHER DVDs NOW AVAILABLE:
Jandy’s DVD Triage
INSTANT WATCH NEW RELEASES/EXPIRING SOON:
Kurt
– Red Road (expiring Aug 18)
– Lady Vengeance (expiring Aug 25)
Andrew
– 13 Assassins (new)
– Hobo with a Shotgun (new)
OTHER STUFF MENTIONED:
NEXT WEEK:
The Guard
The Devil’s Double
The Future
PRIVATE COMMENTS or QUESTIONS?
Leave your thoughts in the comment section below, or email us:
feedback@rowthree.com (general)
andrew.james@rowthree.com
kurt@rowthree.com
Just want to comment on Me and You and Everyone We Know. I enjoyed it very much, but I haven’t seen it since the theater. I remember it having a hefty dose of indie quirk, but I don’t remember it being offensive–though I suspect it may be a little tough to sit through on a re-watch. The kid actors were all very solid, and I recall people in the theater dying laughing (myself included) during some of the risque internet chatting scenes. Also, it was the first movie where I took notice of the awesome John Hawkes, as you mentioned Andrew.
World’s Greatest Dad was awesome. The redheaded actor that played Robin Williams’ son is Juni from the Spy Kids movies!
Another Bobcat gem I recommend is Windy City Heat. A docu-comedy in the same line as Borat, except the main subject/character of the film IS the unknowing victim.
Kurt will be happy with the new chat control. I can delete his snarky comments if necessary.
I hadn’t heard of “Windy City Heat” before Schizopolis. Thanks for the tip I’ll definitely check it out!
Kurt, did you really just say that if you take the dino scene out of King Kong its a great movie?
I __LOVE__ Peter Jackson’s KING KONG. But yes, the only scene that doesn’t work in that film is the Dino Chase, which is really poorly composited and goes on faaaaar to long.
I might also take out the bug attack scene as well, but I agree. As I’ve watched KK a couple of more times it’s a really great movie. Even the actiony stuff which usually bores me is fantastic – visually and viscerally.
Amen, Drew. Can a $200M blockbuster be underrated?
I don’t think its a bad movie, to me its just boring.
Just an FYI and heads up for who may be interested, Ramin Bahrani’s Man Push Cart, Chop Shop, and Goodbye Solo are all available on NetFlix streaming in America (but, alas, not Canada).
Haven’t listened let but just wanted to chime in that I am solidly in the Goon camp over Apes… Aside from Tree of Life, this was the best thing I saw all summer… Which kind of boggles my mind because I was in no way expecting to love it as much as I did. It is not treading new territory, I feel the same way about Apes as Avatar or Star Trek, I think it just does what it intends to do and excells at it, and makes something that just hits that sweet spot savoring the emotional elements but without fully indulging, knowing when to crank up the summer explosive vibe when need be. I know there is a lot of King Kong love around here, but I think Apes is soooo much better.
I particularly like how gray the area is with regards to both Ceasar and Franco… Neither bad nor good, just caught up in something bigger then both of them.
Anyone read the book?
We were overdue on agreeing on something.
I really dig the ‘old hollywood’ vibe in Jackson’s KING KONG, only updated with mo-cap, special effects and a different era of acting/editing. The final fusion between what Kong as a monster and Kong as a mercifully misunderstood beastie (If you look at the 30s/70s Kongs, this transition was already going on, but it really hits the sweet spot in the Jackson version. I doesn’t hurt that Naomi Watts gives the best performance of the three women in Kong over the ages…
Admittedly a lot of this stuff, that leads to my enjoyment of the film is rather outside the film, meta-based on what has come before. But those are often the ground rules when evaluating any remakes/reboots/etc.
Also, the bug-pit sequence is a moment of true unabated horror that is the product of a wet dream of what this sequence (lost in time, seen by almost nobody) would have looked like if it were in the original. Hats off to Jackson for that one, it’s actual movie magic, which brings me to KONG, who is so well realized in the film, considering his scale (I believe that the Rise of the Apes only has better ape performances because a) the scales match the humans, and b) Caesar is supposed to be getting as smart as people, where Kong is never supposed to be much beyond an occasionally curious, occasionally empathic animal.
Much like how much I enjoyed the ‘screwball’ aspects of David O. Russell’s The Fighter, to see Kong as done in a hybrid style of classic and modern just brought a lot of joy to my heart. The new being influences, paying tribute to what came before it without sacrificing it’s own take. That’s how a remake is done. In particular, how to redo the ‘ooga-booga’ Skull Island natives without looking quaint and overly racist? I dug the fereal ‘otherness’ that Jackson brought to the table. Magnificient.
We were talking about how Captain America had difficulty feeling like those early 80s blockbusters many of us love, well, Jackson has no issues making a huge-budget, CGI/Model integrated spectacle with a MoCap performance anchoring the film feel like one of those. For that, it was a real treat.
Just putting it out there, for those who wondered where I was coming from on KONG.
And for the record I like King Kong well enough, just emotionally I think Apes works so much better
I think Kong has more on its plate than Apes. But I agree that (outside of the usual blockbuster cliches) that Apes does what it does in a way that is surprisingly good. And it has ‘low expectations’ (before release anyway) on its side. Now the second wave of people may go into the film with a different set of expectations and think, Huh?
The T. Rex battle scene in King Kong is atrocious. Maybe King Kong can defeat one T. Rex, but three of them at the same time. Plus King Kong being preoccupied with the safety of Naomi Watt. Fuck off !
These films were always designed to be ROMANTIC. Albeit the first one was the romance of exploration/showmanship, and slowly it has evolved into the Kong/damsel platonic romance. I like Kong and Watts’ frolic on ice in Central Park. It’s awesome.
I am part of the second wave and it lived up to the hype… Started up the original and couldn’t finish it… If ever there was a need for a reboot it was this franchise
Finally listening: man you guys bash the shit out of Apes with nitpicks, then say you love it.
Like I said earlier, in defense of Franco’s character, to me it is not a flat character by virtue of the circumstances of the story, he ends up, in my eyes anyway, not a hero, not a particularly good person, there is an ambiguity not usually seen in blockbusters. You can call that sloppy screenwriting maybe, but I liked that tension… I liked that he was a guy who wanted to do right by his people but didn’t…*spoiler* to the point that the final scene with Caesar, I found myself understanding his decision to walk away from him. Likewise, Caesar is mostly good but caught up in a bad situation that makes him revolt. There are moments where he looks like he has gone to the darkside, and I liked that the film goes there… say what you will about the cartoony representations of scientists and corporations, that is just a backdrop to these conflicted relationships in the forefront. It is not Blue Valentine or anything but for this kind of movie, it was mighty impressive.
It’s a fun film to talk about, because a) it mostly works and b) it is nitpickable as heck. Best of both worlds! ha!
I reviewed Goodbye Solo at TIFF long long ago, here is my review
http://www.rowthree.com/2008/09/07/tiff-08-review-goodbye-solo/
A director I have been meaning to catch-up with as well.