I do want to see Megalopolis, in a “let’s go see the train wreck” kind of way. Maybe when it streams.
I watched Apocalypse Now this past weekend. Not sure which cut it was (2 hours and 33 minutes). I appreciated the cinematography, enjoyed Martin Sheen and Lawrence Fishburne’s performances, thought that Dennis Hopper was more or less playing himself, and mostly was left with the impression that film makers and certain actors (cough Brando cough) were able to get away with a lot more wacky behavior than would be considered reasonable now. There’s a point where it began to seem more like an act of self indulgence on Coppola’s part (although I know Brando’s diva behavior contributed to how long it took to film) that took away from the overall movie.
That being said, we have a 4K that has all the cuts coming now, so we’ll give it another watch in the near future.
I thought it was the weakest of the three. Not bad, but nowhere near the sleazy fun of X, and lacking the bravura performance from Goth in Pearl. Again, not to say Goth is bad in this. Far from it. It’s a perfectly fine thriller/slasher. But it leaves the trilogy ending on a “Meh” sort of note, and I couldn’t help feeling I wanted something more from it. Will be curious to hear your opinion.
Honestly, that was mainly the reason I saw it. Part of me genuinely hoped this would be something like The Departed or The Irishman was for Scorcese, a flawed, but fitting capstone for a remarkable career. But mostly, I’d heard snippets of the reviews from professional and amateur critics alike, and was prepared for the worst. And, alas, that’s mostly what I got.
One could spend far longer than the movie’s runtime picking apart all the petty little quirks in the film. The slightly sleazy feeling of having a cast full of all-but-bare-breasts surrounding more important male actors who are most always older and not on the same level of conventional attractiveness. The Ayn Randian echoes of a master architect being unappreciated and even castigated for daring to try and implement his brilliant scheme, which everyone else is too simple or short sighted or venal to truly understand. And, again, that (to me) deeply odd characteristic of men, and it’s almost always men, who have pushed past their 40’s and now see themselves in their ‘legacy building’ years, of becoming invested in the courses of Empire, and casting themselves in their own minds as Hannibal or Ghengis Khan or Sun Tzu. All of it feels SO MUCH like that “Hello Fellow Kids!” moment from Arrested Development. Coppola’s trying desperately to be current, and his every effort only shows off how disconnected and out of touch he is.
one of my favourite films. looks like you watched the theatrical cut, which is the best. the Redux and Final cuts are well worth watching, but ultimately weaken the power of the film (there’s a reason those scenes were left out). i highly recommend the doc. Hearts of Darkness (1991). it gives insight into how making this film almost destroyed Coppola.
side note: not commenting on the politics of it, but i was amused to see a bumper sticker (i live in a beach town) that just said ‘trump don’t surf’.
If you’ve not seen it, you might want to give this a shot some time. Apropos diva behavior. Klaus Kinski was a hugely popular in Germany and Europe — his daughter is probably better known in the US. He was a good actor, but also bat shit cray. A megalomaniac.
And, of course, Werner Herzog, so what’s not to love?
I have yet to see this (My Best Fiend) but desperately want to. Kinksi is truly an arresting screen presence. I recently rewatched the Herzog version of Nosferatu. Kinski as the titular vampire is the best and most obvious casting decision ever. Better even than Dafoe in the brilliant Interview with a Vampire. In Kinski’s hands, the Count becomes a deeply tragic and lonely figure, while not at reducing the inherent horror in the character.
Watch this, then, to get the full scale of his insanity:
I don’t know if you ever watched Gegen die Wand / Head On, which is amazing and heartbreaking and at times really difficult to watch. Birol Ünel gives a brilliant performance as a suicidal alcoholic who may have found salvation. I guess he wasn’t as insane or as much of an eccentric ass as Kinski, but his intensity on screen was just as memorable as Kinski’s acting — which could be rather over the top.
Sadly, the character of Cahit didn’t seem to be too much of a stretch from his personal struggles. He died of alcoholism at the age of 59, and was often seen passed out in the streets of Kreuzberg in the years leading up to his premature demise.
I had the interesting experience of meeting him once, when he was (quite randomly) slinging cocktails from a construction trailer in the backyard of a now defunct art center. He struck me as highly manicky, if charming & very flirtatious and — like so many actors, looked much smaller & fragile in person than he came across on the screen.
ETA: I take that back. Put my book down… It is kind of interesting. Almost reminds me of And Then There Were None. Except $10K wasn’t involved with that movie.
I might borrow it from the library in the future. I’m still waiting for ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ to come out on DVD or Blue Ray at the library. It has been 10 months now. My two ‘holds’ didappeared and now the system does not show its existence in the partnership.
KK was mentally ill — he was diagnosed with schizophrenia/psychopathy in the 50s. I guess anyone who hired him to be in their movie had to just deal with it.
Just finished watching “Chef’s Table: Noodles”. Was pleasantly surprised to find that Nite Yun grew up in Stockton, and they briefly showed a Khmer restaurant we’ve tried to go to several times (they’ve been closed each time), and also showed her with her mom at the downtown Farmer’s Market, now known as the Golden Villa Farmer’s Market. Can’t argue much with her description of Stockton, though. Some parts of it can be very rough, but I think that’s true of many large cities these days. Too bad they didn’t show her at another Khmer food outlet, Angel Cruz Park. ACP is the poppiest of pop-ups nearly every day, where people bring out their grilling rigs and ice chests to prepare and sell food. I don’t think any of it is permitted, but the city seems to tolerate it.
We watched After The Flood on BritBox last night, and liked it. I’m surprised the reviews weren’t better. I liked it more than Lincoln Lawyer, comparing apples to oranges.
We also watched the latest season of Lincoln Lawyer this week.
I noticed the new season of Special Ops: Lioness is out this weekend, at least in Canada.
Watched the first episode of Lincoln Lawyer and also just finished reading/listening to the latest Michael Connelly book. I grew up in LA so love all the SoCal Los Angeles settings and stories. I’ve read that Bosch Legacy on Amazon will end this next season, but they’re starting up a Ballard series where hopefully Bosch will be featured.
Also finishing up Moonflower Murders and started second season of Carmen Curlers both on pbs. Nobody Wants This is mildly entertaining but some of its charm has worn off by episode 8. Loved Chef’s Table Noodles and that it featured Italian and Asian chefs doing their magic with pasta. The guy on Great British baking show will have his own show by next year! Knew that right away.
We thought Titus Welliver did just fine as we imagined Harry. As for Mickey, we met a lawyer who traveled between his two homes while working in the back of a Cadillac; his wife drove. ( The Cadillac Counsel has yet to appear in bookstores and libraries near you.)
I’m not usually one to describe peoples appearance)? 
