Movie Thread (All forms)

[the canadian dream]

I re-watched David Lynch's "A Straight Story" last night. So different for a David Lynch film.



What a great little movie though. Nothing beats an old simple crippling wise man driving a lawn mower on his own across a state to go see his ill brother to make emends. Something about the simplicity of the film that just draws me in every time I see it. A little Hokie at times with the the cliche oral stories which relate to family and death but when good acting is involved then I have no issues. And Richard Farnsworth is so loveable as the lead character. A man who's simple facial gestures sometimes says it all. Dialogue is great but sometimes those quiet moments in film are the most powerful of all.



I love movies when travel and unusual road trips are involved and when characters pop in then out of of the film never to be seen again. Much like when one travels on road trips etc. Great film this one...so sweet and so down to earth it's so unusual to see. Esp from David Lynch...although there is a lot of David Lynchesque moments where subtle symbolism is all over the place...or does David Lynch do "subtle" symbolism?

 

[BlackHawkPaul]

Saw The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

It was really good. Better than (gasp!) the original.



Hey, some one was bound to give justice to a remake.



It covered more than the original, and the story moved much better in the remake. I was pleasantly surprised.

8/10.

 

[phranchk]

Haven't seen the new one, but I hated the first one. Saw it shortly after I read the book. Seemed like they changed so much of the story that I couldn't even get past the first 30 minutes of the movie. I know movies always take liberties with books but this time it just seemed like too much.

I am eager to see the new version though.

 

[mikita's helmet]

Saw The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.

It was really good. Better than (gasp!) the original.



Hey, some one was bound to give justice to a remake.



It covered more than the original, and the story moved much better in the remake. I was pleasantly surprised.

8/10.

The original three Swedish films, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, ...Played With Fire, ...Kicked the Hornet's Nest, were actually part of a 9 1/2 hour, six episode TV series. Nearly two hours of plot & storyline were trimmed for the theatrical releases.



The complete 9 1/2 hour series has just been released on 3 blu-rays or DVDs in the US, plus an extra disc of extras (documentary on Stieg Larsson, cast interviews, etc.).



I enjoyed the extended releases. Haven't seen Fincher's film yet.

 

[IceHogsFan]

Saw Tattoo tonight. Without seeing the previous release nor reading the books, holy #$% how did it get only an R rating?



Too graphic with the rape, sex, mutilated bodies........ great story and acting but it was over the top in the categories I mentioned. The movie was good enough to sustain itself without having to resort to the shock value. Sometimes the best scenes are the ones you think you are witnessing when in actuality you are not.

 

[BlackHawkPaul]

Saw Tattoo tonight. Without seeing the previous release nor reading the books, holy #$% how did it get only an R rating?



Too graphic with the rape, sex, mutilated bodies........ great story and acting but it was over the top in the categories I mentioned. The movie was good enough to sustain itself without having to resort to the shock value. Sometimes the best scenes are the ones you think you are witnessing when in actuality you are not.

I disagree as far as being over the top.

I'm actually happy that the film pushed the limits of the R rating, sine the rating itself is subjective-- and at times, just plain silly.

Reasons why it stayed at R:

Big studio

Fincher

Length



Most of the time audiences are fine with gratuitous violence, but when it comes to sex, it seems that subject is always crossing boundaries.

The rape scene in some eyes could have ended with the camera dolly back from the door. One can argue that showing the scene is not one of offense, but to cast light on the horrible nature of crimes against women. I applaud Fincher's approach to his cinematic choices. They are bold, effective, and quite necessary.

 

[BlackHawkPaul]

I watched The Lives of Others, a fantastic film that chronicles the lives of artists that want (and do) to stand up against their oppressive Eastern German government. The acting is brilliant, and it deserved the oscar for best foreign film (2006).



9/10

 

[BlackHawkPaul]

The original three Swedish films, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, ...Played With Fire, ...Kicked the Hornet's Nest, were actually part of a 9 1/2 hour, six episode TV series. Nearly two hours of plot & storyline were trimmed for the theatrical releases.



The complete 9 1/2 hour series has just been released on 3 blu-rays or DVDs in the US, plus an extra disc of extras (documentary on Stieg Larsson, cast interviews, etc.).



I enjoyed the extended releases. Haven't seen Fincher's film yet.

I'll be checking this out.

 

[nana]

I disagree as far as being over the top.

I'm actually happy that the film pushed the limits of the R rating, sine the rating itself is subjective-- and at times, just plain silly.

Reasons why it stayed at R:

Big studio

Fincher

Length



Most of the time audiences are fine with gratuitous violence, but when it comes to sex, it seems that subject is always crossing boundaries.

The rape scene in some eyes could have ended with the camera dolly back from the door. One can argue that showing the scene is not one of offense, but to cast light on the horrible nature of crimes against women. I applaud Fincher's approach to his cinematic choices. They are bold, effective, and quite necessary.

I've seen the three Swedish films, and I'll see this one. That scene will be incredibly hard to watch, but with as casually as people joke about rape or throw the term around today, it sounds like many would be served well to have to watch it.

 

[IceHogsFan]

I've seen the three Swedish films, and I'll see this one. That scene will be incredibly hard to watch, but with as casually as people joke about rape or throw the term around today, it sounds like many would be served well to have to watch it.

I am constantly amazed at some of the remarks around here.

 

[Variable]

I really don't think people, here anyway, are making light of the actual literal action of rape or being raped. Think that's looking into it a bit too much. It's a word. I think everyone knows what it is and what it entails, it's all in the context. Chances are, a lot of people know someone that was raped/molested.

 

[BlackHawkPaul]

Lisabeth is forced into some gruesome acts through the social worker that is supposed to be her guardian. Her character overcomes this by herself-- which is very empowering. Her methods of overcoming this are quite unconventional, but a viewer that has experienced this horror in their life may look at that scene with hope. I cannot speak for victims of rape.



I am a huge fan of Game of Thrones. The series is loaded with rape, incest, etc. It's not why I read it or watch the HBO series. It's well written, and Martin is a very gripping author.



I don't pay the $8 to walk into a film with a rape scene just waiting to see it. As some one who makes films and has worked with actors it does interest me how certain actors respond on having to do such scenes. Rooney Mara was actually more scared filming the motorcycle scenes.

 

[BlackHawkPaul]

As far as the +/- (sounds too hockey-like), I'd rather see an intelligent argument against than a dislike. (post 1026-you and bookjones both "disliked" me) Just sayin'. It's not as I live my daily life due to my rep points here, but I would figure there would be a thorough response to my post.

Lastly, as a final retort on Girl With the Dragon Tattoo-- the subject is violence against women. I think that if a filmmaker can bring that to the forefront, then it sparks conversations like this one.



The books contain statistics such as: Thirteen percent of the women in Sweden have been subjected to aggravated sexual assault outside of a sexual relationship. This is not violence for violence's sake.

 

[nana]

Lastly, as a final retort on Girl With the Dragon Tattoo-- the subject is violence against women. I think that if a filmmaker can bring that to the forefront, then it sparks conversations like this one.



The books contain statistics such as: Thirteen percent of the women in Sweden have been subjected to aggravated sexual assault outside of a sexual relationship. This is not violence for violence's sake.

I think that's really the key... the scene(s) with the social worker are not exploitative filler but rather are central to the heart of the story and her resulting involvement in helping to catch a "killer of women". In fairness, I haven't seen the Fincher version yet, but that would be my assumption as to his intent with the scene.



Confession time, and then you can all disregard my opinion completely, but I have not read the books!

 

[BlackHawkPaul]

I think that's really the key... the scene(s) with the social worker are not exploitative filler but rather are central to the heart of the story and her resulting involvement in helping to catch a "killer of women". In fairness, I haven't seen the Fincher version yet, but that would be my assumption as to his intent with the scene.



Confession time, and then you can all disregard my opinion completely, but I have not read the books!

I would if this was the book thread. At least you're offering opinions-- and it's nice to hear them all, even if I disagree with them.

The subject matter is raw-- but I think it's best not to beat around the bush in this case.

 

[mikita's helmet]

As far as the +/- (sounds too hockey-like), I'd rather see an intelligent argument against than a dislike. (post 1026-you and bookjones both "disliked" me) Just sayin'. It's not as I live my daily life due to my rep points here, but I would figure there would be a thorough response to my post.

Lastly, as a final retort on Girl With the Dragon Tattoo-- the subject is violence against women. I think that if a filmmaker can bring that to the forefront, then it sparks conversations like this one.



The books contain statistics such as: Thirteen percent of the women in Sweden have been subjected to aggravated sexual assault outside of a sexual relationship. This is not violence for violence's sake.

The first book was titled Men Who Hate Women, but my understanding is that that title was considered too downbeat for English speaking audiences and would've had a negative effect on sales, so, voila, the Millenium trilogy becomes the Dragon Trilogy.





From wikipedia:



The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (original title in Swedish: Män som hatar kvinnor – "Men Who Hate Women") is an award-winning crime novel by Swedish author and journalist Stieg Larsson. It is the first book in the trilogy known as the "Millennium series"

 

[mikita's helmet]

Confession time, and then you can all disregard my opinion completely, but I have not read the books!

Nor I.



I own the first two books, just haven't had the time to read them yet. I've also come to the conclusion that I like to see a film based on the novel, before reading the novel, for the following reason. The film usually cuts out characters and subplots - to make it more manageable & due to time constraints - so that when you read novel there are new things to be discovered that weren't in the film. If you read the novel first, you're usually disappointed with the film, because it leaves out so much of the novel.

 

[MassHavoc]

I can't wait to see this movie. If nothing other then the discussion it has generated then he has done the books justice.

 

[Variable]

I would if this was the book thread. At least you're offering opinions-- and it's nice to hear them all, even if I disagree with them.

The subject matter is raw-- but I think it's best not to beat around the bush in this case.

Yeah I'm not sure what people want or expect. You can't really "dress up" rape in a movie that's about...rape and violence against women.

 

[BlackHawkPaul]

Watched an oldie, but goodie this morning.

Heathers.

They could never get away with making that film today.

6/10