Weekly Watches + Changing Some Things
Since it is Saturday, it is time for this week’s Weekly Watches post, which is where I detail the movies I watched this week that have nothing to do with the podcast. Also, you may notice (depending on when you’ve clicked on this link) there’s a new design to the website! Well, I decided to do something a little more original with the still images from the movies that I use to illustrate what each post or episode is about. So, just like the one for this post, a more minimalist or artistic rendering of the stills was intriguing to me. It’s still a work in progress, but for now, I am so excited about it.
Now with that housekeeping out of the way here is the recap of the non-podcast films I watched this week.
Last Tango in Paris (1972): This film is easily the most controversial of the list (however we will return to some controversy later) as at the time of its release it was considered far too sexually explicit. Now, however, it has remained controversial for this horrifying behind the scenes trivia that I will not rehash here. The movie is about a middle-aged American hotel owner in Paris and a young 19-year-old French woman who meet while both trying to rent the same apartment and end up having a brief anonymous affair. As far as the craft of Last Tango is concerned, the visuals are well done and it’s definitely well filmed. The narrative, however, is all over the place. Nothing that Marlon Brando’s character does makes sense, his lines are random and creepy, and only one or two of the sexual scenes carry the emotional weight that they should. There’s a version of this story in another universe that is truly moving, provocative, complex, and engaging. I’m bummed that this movie didn’t really fill that template. However, there are some nuggets of good there too. My personal favorite moments are when Marlon Brando’s Paul is talking while lost in thought. Those scenes worked really well for me (come to find out he just didn’t know his lines, and he was reading cue cards…ugh).
Withnail & I (1987): So I was watching that YouTube show Hot Ones and in the Paul Rudd episode he mentions this movie, so I decided to stream it (it’s on the Criterion Channel). I am so glad I did! The film follows two London based actors, circa the late 1960s, who go to the countryside for a holiday. It’s filled with all kinds of depressed, self-indulgent dreary but in the most British way possible, so it’s hilarious. Watching these two Londonites flounder in the countryside’s rainy weather and interacting with the cranky locals, was the best laugh I had all week. It really hits you deep in the most self-deprecating part of the self (but in a cathartic way). Though it isn’t full comedy, there’s also a lot of seriousness to it, it’s deeply funny and deeply relatable to anyone who may be considered a lost soul.
Blow Out (1981): This Brian De Palma flick was actually really good. It takes place in Philly just before a governor’s presidential campaign would begin. John Travolta plays a sound guy for bad horror movies and is out recording the wind when he hears a car crash and is able to only save a woman, not the politician she was riding with. Through his sound recording of the accident, he begins to uncover a deeper conspiracy. It’s engaging throughout, and though I prefer the similar movie The Conversation, I actually really loved most of this movie. The female character, Sally, is probably a little too naive and boring for my taste (and her profession) and that took me out of it a little. This was another one I streamed on The Criterion Channel.
Catfish (2010): Okay so I did not think that I had seen this, but after watching it I am like 90% sure this is a rewatch. It’s a “documentary” (more on that in a second) that follows the director’s brother who has started an online relationship. It started with an eight-year-old girl who asked to paint one of his photographs and kind of grows from there until he becomes involved with the little girl’s 19-year-old half-sister. At the time it came out though pretty much everyone was calling bullshit about its authenticity. Whether it was a full-blown hoax, or that the boys knew way earlier than the film lets on (my guess), doesn’t really matter to me though. I felt at the time, as I still do now, that this movie was exploitive and disingenuous, and honestly just watch the TV show if this is the kind of thing you find funny. If you want to see the movie you can stream it on HBO Now, though.
Landscape in the Mist (1988): Ladies and Gentlemen, I have a new addition to my Letterboxd favorites. This Greek film is the story of two children on a journey from Greece to Germany trying to find their father and run into so much along the way. Prolonged writing regarding the plot will just ruin so much of it and I think everyone should watch it. Instead of explaining the plot I am going to explain how to find it because that’s going to be difficult for some people reading this from the United States. When it comes to finding this, or any other Theo Angelopoulos film, your local library is your best friend. If you have access to a big municipal library it should be easier—we had a copy in the main Carnegie Library here in Pittsburgh. However, if you live in a rural or small town where the library may not contain foreign or niche films then you can see if they participate in the Interlibrary Loan system. It’s a good rule of thumb for a lot of the films that we’ll be watching, actually, since some of the upcoming ones are going to be tougher to find. Not to mention this tactic will save you money on the easy to find stuff too. Also investing in a region free DVD player if you can is always a good idea if you want to watch foreign stuff (I got mine for $30). Anyway, about the movie, it’s a beautiful work of art but there are a couple of “trigger warnings” I should mention. I wrote a review on Letterboxd about that so if you are curious about it, click here and you can read it.
That about sums up this week’s watches! Hopefully, you find at least one that interests you and you enjoy it, since that’s what I am here for! Come back tomorrow night/Monday morning for our next episode about Rick and Morty references featuring Event Horizon, Cape Fear (1991), and Mad Max: Fury Road.