Heffie's DVD Shelf
Jun. 7th, 2005 03:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thehefnerThey've been saying to me, "Throw yourself into things you love to do, that's how you'll feel better." So damn my post-college poverty, Heffie went DVD shopping in the cheap sections of Best Buy and Blockbuster video. Behold the latest additions to my collection, and see them for yourselves! I wouldn't buy them if I didn't think they were all awesome and deserving in your attention! Because really, if people don't watch them, they just might as well not exist anymore.
NEAR DARK: A wonderful, understated anti-vampire movie. No fangs, no glitz, no glamor, no romanticizing, no "creatures of the night" bullshit, just harsh, gritty, parasitic scum fuckers who do what they do and don't lace it up Anne Rice style. The vamps include the kid who'll grow up to be Macbeth in SCOTLAND, PA, plus it's a reunion for three of ALIENS' Marines with Lance Henricksen, Jennifer Goldstein, and a psycho as fuck Bill Paxton. Any movie that reunited Bishop, Vasquez, and has Pvt. "Game over, man! Game over!" Hudson slash a bartender's throat with his boot spur, then drink from the wound, well, I think we're all agreed that's happy right there.
AMERICAN SPLENDOR: Seriously, how could I not own this film? Anyone not seen this yet? Go now. Seriously. There are so many reasons you should see this, far beyond my personal geekdoms. I don't know yet if it's a good thing or a bad thing how much I identify with Harvey Pekar and could see myself growing up to become him, but in his own curmudgeonly way, he seems happy. See this movie, I'm telling you. Don't make me list the reasons, 'cause I will.
HELLBOY: ... I can't really comment on it. From the moment I mention that title, either you get it or you don't (and I don't mean that in a snobby way, honestly). All I can say is I'm amazed this film actually got made, and boy am I glad it did. Say what you will about this and SIN CITY (both based on Dark Horse comic books) but I think it's a wonderful thing where we can see adaptations that are so faithful to their source material (with the original artists' working closely on set) that the end results are risky from a commercial standpoint but artistically (imo) very rewarding.
YEAR OF THE DRAGON: Not a kung-fu movie, let's make that clear. I first head about this from Quentin Tarantino, who called the ending shoot-out his top favorite movie scene of all time. The film itself, written by Oliver Stone, is a very by-the-numbers story of a cop on the edge versus a gang lord on the rise, but god DAMN if it's not entertaining as all hell along the way. Mickey Rourke is a cop who doesn't play by the rules, and his marriage is suffering because of his work, and he may go too far and come on we all know where this is going. Regardless, it's an awesome movie. Oh, and that final shootout between Rourke and his arch-nemesis John Lone (from THE LAST EMPEROR, THE SHADOW, and RUSH HOUR 2... this brilliant actor deserves far better roles than he's been getting, he rules so damn much)... oh yeah, Tarantino was right. It's worth the whole movie. Every second.
COP LAND: Speaking of by-the-numbers, here's a movie populated by stock characters with a premise that's totally predictable and an ending you see coming a mile away. And it's STILL A GREAT FUCKING MOVIE. That's a testament to a good film right there, I realize, because it's not about the destination, but the journey, and this film is all about the journey. Beautiful, understated, sad drama about doing the right thing, and what a great cast. Stallone is so wonderful in this, such a sad, sad man. Ray Liotta is the stereotypical "rouge cop on the edge," and plays it like no one but him could play it. And you gotta love Robert DeNiro sporting a fantastic 70's cop 'do and 'stache that looks right out of the Beastie Boys video "Sabotage." Plus, this film is worth noting because it was here that I fell in love with Jeanenne Garafalo, who plays Stallone's deputy. She should do more serious work.
DAVE: Speaking of sad and tender, how about that Ben Kingsley, eh? I mean, this movie was already a winner in the fact that it was an Ivan Reitman film that had man-god Kevin Klein (who, along with Kevin Spacey, is one of my very few acting role models and heroes) and Siggy Weaver (may she never age), but likewise-man-god Kingsley as the Vice President is a really touching, tender, and sad aspect of an otherwise fun movie. He (along with Klein, of course) gives the film the emotional heart and depth it needs that takes it from being a funny movie into an actual "good" movie.
PLANES, TRAINS, AND AUTOMOBILES: Speaking of such films, how the hell did this wacky comedy with Steve Martin and John Candy verge into tearjerker terriroty at the end? Oh wait, it's a John Hughes movie from the 80's, that explains that.
ROAD TO PERDITION: With A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE coming out soon, it seemed only fitting to bite the bullet, so to speak, and finally pick up this above-average graphic novel adapatation. I hesitated for awhile for a number of reasons, namely how Sam Mendes and Tom Hanks were very condescending and snobby toward the original comic and the art form in general, as well as the total Hollywood ending (who pulls the trigger at the end of the book is far more powerful and meaningful, I say). The film strives to be less "comic-booky" in taking an action story and turning into into a mob drama, which works, sure, but something is lost when Tom Hanks character is an excellent "Angel of Death" assassin in the comic who becomes simply a "good" hitman in the film.
Snobby reviewers dubbed the unstoppable killing machine Michael O'Sullivan of the comics a "superhero in a fedora" but that's missing the point; the original story was intended to be a prohibition-era John Woo story, an artful and thrilling action tale with an actual story and depth. So Mendes intentions to "legitimize" and "mature" the story for the movie offended me on an artistic level, but now that it didn't win any Oscars and is no longer hailed as anything ground-breaking in the genre, I can now finally appreciate this film on its own merits, of which it has many. I only hope we won't see similar snobbiness with A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE, which similarly seems to be toning down some of the pulpier aspects of the original story but is also reportedly one of the best films to come out of Cannes this year.
AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON: Fuck CGI. Fuck VAN HELSING and CURSED and AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN PARIS. Fuck virtually every post-SCREAM American horror movie that has the audacity to consider itself a real horror movie. This film is THE shit. A true horror movie that's actually scary, but is damn funny too (it's done by ANIMAL HOUSE's John Landis, for Griswold's sake!). A great human story, love story, ghost story, and friendship story, and the greatest werewolf transformation scene ever put to film that even now, 30 years later with the advent of CGI, has yet to be even paralleled. Made back in the glory days of film, the 70's, when the punches weren't pulled like they are today thanks to the two-headed beast of political correctness and "saving our children."
CLOSER: Speaking of that era, seeing a film like this today feels like a breath of fresh, smoke-filled 70's air. Love it or hate it, the subject matter and characters are more frank, harsh, dark, cynical, and realistic (in their own ways) than any other mainstream film in recent memory, save perhaps NARC. In the 70's, it would have been just another film. Today, it is capable of eliciting passionate, powerful responses of all sorts, from the exhilaration of my own to the deep disgust of some of my friends. Yes, it's an ugly film. Adultery, jealousy, envy, bitterness, vengeance, hurt, betrayal, and pain are all ugly things. Most of us know this first-hand by now. I will always love this movie, even if it's taken a whooole new aspect by the fact that both female characters in the film are both of my ex-girlfriends (or at least, who they think they are, how they'd like to be).
So. Who wants a movie night? Eh? Ehh?
NEAR DARK: A wonderful, understated anti-vampire movie. No fangs, no glitz, no glamor, no romanticizing, no "creatures of the night" bullshit, just harsh, gritty, parasitic scum fuckers who do what they do and don't lace it up Anne Rice style. The vamps include the kid who'll grow up to be Macbeth in SCOTLAND, PA, plus it's a reunion for three of ALIENS' Marines with Lance Henricksen, Jennifer Goldstein, and a psycho as fuck Bill Paxton. Any movie that reunited Bishop, Vasquez, and has Pvt. "Game over, man! Game over!" Hudson slash a bartender's throat with his boot spur, then drink from the wound, well, I think we're all agreed that's happy right there.
AMERICAN SPLENDOR: Seriously, how could I not own this film? Anyone not seen this yet? Go now. Seriously. There are so many reasons you should see this, far beyond my personal geekdoms. I don't know yet if it's a good thing or a bad thing how much I identify with Harvey Pekar and could see myself growing up to become him, but in his own curmudgeonly way, he seems happy. See this movie, I'm telling you. Don't make me list the reasons, 'cause I will.
HELLBOY: ... I can't really comment on it. From the moment I mention that title, either you get it or you don't (and I don't mean that in a snobby way, honestly). All I can say is I'm amazed this film actually got made, and boy am I glad it did. Say what you will about this and SIN CITY (both based on Dark Horse comic books) but I think it's a wonderful thing where we can see adaptations that are so faithful to their source material (with the original artists' working closely on set) that the end results are risky from a commercial standpoint but artistically (imo) very rewarding.
YEAR OF THE DRAGON: Not a kung-fu movie, let's make that clear. I first head about this from Quentin Tarantino, who called the ending shoot-out his top favorite movie scene of all time. The film itself, written by Oliver Stone, is a very by-the-numbers story of a cop on the edge versus a gang lord on the rise, but god DAMN if it's not entertaining as all hell along the way. Mickey Rourke is a cop who doesn't play by the rules, and his marriage is suffering because of his work, and he may go too far and come on we all know where this is going. Regardless, it's an awesome movie. Oh, and that final shootout between Rourke and his arch-nemesis John Lone (from THE LAST EMPEROR, THE SHADOW, and RUSH HOUR 2... this brilliant actor deserves far better roles than he's been getting, he rules so damn much)... oh yeah, Tarantino was right. It's worth the whole movie. Every second.
COP LAND: Speaking of by-the-numbers, here's a movie populated by stock characters with a premise that's totally predictable and an ending you see coming a mile away. And it's STILL A GREAT FUCKING MOVIE. That's a testament to a good film right there, I realize, because it's not about the destination, but the journey, and this film is all about the journey. Beautiful, understated, sad drama about doing the right thing, and what a great cast. Stallone is so wonderful in this, such a sad, sad man. Ray Liotta is the stereotypical "rouge cop on the edge," and plays it like no one but him could play it. And you gotta love Robert DeNiro sporting a fantastic 70's cop 'do and 'stache that looks right out of the Beastie Boys video "Sabotage." Plus, this film is worth noting because it was here that I fell in love with Jeanenne Garafalo, who plays Stallone's deputy. She should do more serious work.
DAVE: Speaking of sad and tender, how about that Ben Kingsley, eh? I mean, this movie was already a winner in the fact that it was an Ivan Reitman film that had man-god Kevin Klein (who, along with Kevin Spacey, is one of my very few acting role models and heroes) and Siggy Weaver (may she never age), but likewise-man-god Kingsley as the Vice President is a really touching, tender, and sad aspect of an otherwise fun movie. He (along with Klein, of course) gives the film the emotional heart and depth it needs that takes it from being a funny movie into an actual "good" movie.
PLANES, TRAINS, AND AUTOMOBILES: Speaking of such films, how the hell did this wacky comedy with Steve Martin and John Candy verge into tearjerker terriroty at the end? Oh wait, it's a John Hughes movie from the 80's, that explains that.
ROAD TO PERDITION: With A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE coming out soon, it seemed only fitting to bite the bullet, so to speak, and finally pick up this above-average graphic novel adapatation. I hesitated for awhile for a number of reasons, namely how Sam Mendes and Tom Hanks were very condescending and snobby toward the original comic and the art form in general, as well as the total Hollywood ending (who pulls the trigger at the end of the book is far more powerful and meaningful, I say). The film strives to be less "comic-booky" in taking an action story and turning into into a mob drama, which works, sure, but something is lost when Tom Hanks character is an excellent "Angel of Death" assassin in the comic who becomes simply a "good" hitman in the film.
Snobby reviewers dubbed the unstoppable killing machine Michael O'Sullivan of the comics a "superhero in a fedora" but that's missing the point; the original story was intended to be a prohibition-era John Woo story, an artful and thrilling action tale with an actual story and depth. So Mendes intentions to "legitimize" and "mature" the story for the movie offended me on an artistic level, but now that it didn't win any Oscars and is no longer hailed as anything ground-breaking in the genre, I can now finally appreciate this film on its own merits, of which it has many. I only hope we won't see similar snobbiness with A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE, which similarly seems to be toning down some of the pulpier aspects of the original story but is also reportedly one of the best films to come out of Cannes this year.
AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON: Fuck CGI. Fuck VAN HELSING and CURSED and AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN PARIS. Fuck virtually every post-SCREAM American horror movie that has the audacity to consider itself a real horror movie. This film is THE shit. A true horror movie that's actually scary, but is damn funny too (it's done by ANIMAL HOUSE's John Landis, for Griswold's sake!). A great human story, love story, ghost story, and friendship story, and the greatest werewolf transformation scene ever put to film that even now, 30 years later with the advent of CGI, has yet to be even paralleled. Made back in the glory days of film, the 70's, when the punches weren't pulled like they are today thanks to the two-headed beast of political correctness and "saving our children."
CLOSER: Speaking of that era, seeing a film like this today feels like a breath of fresh, smoke-filled 70's air. Love it or hate it, the subject matter and characters are more frank, harsh, dark, cynical, and realistic (in their own ways) than any other mainstream film in recent memory, save perhaps NARC. In the 70's, it would have been just another film. Today, it is capable of eliciting passionate, powerful responses of all sorts, from the exhilaration of my own to the deep disgust of some of my friends. Yes, it's an ugly film. Adultery, jealousy, envy, bitterness, vengeance, hurt, betrayal, and pain are all ugly things. Most of us know this first-hand by now. I will always love this movie, even if it's taken a whooole new aspect by the fact that both female characters in the film are both of my ex-girlfriends (or at least, who they think they are, how they'd like to be).
So. Who wants a movie night? Eh? Ehh?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-06-07 07:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-07 08:16 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2005-06-07 08:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-07 08:23 pm (UTC)I totally read that at first as "and spoon!"
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Date: 2005-06-07 08:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-07 08:26 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2005-06-07 11:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-08 12:22 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-08 12:48 am (UTC)& i am very open to suggestions.
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Date: 2005-06-08 03:28 am (UTC)And if you like Big Lebowski, I sincerely reccomend you see the Coen Bros. first movie, BLOOD SIMPLE. I think it's their greatest, better than Fargo, better than O Brother, better and Lebowski. See the director's cut DVD if you can and let me know what you think.
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Date: 2005-06-08 12:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-08 12:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-14 01:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-08 01:00 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-08 03:38 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-06-08 03:51 am (UTC)