I absolutely love this movie. It’s so lean. I turned this on this morning and caught it about halfway through. All the pool scenes are shot so great that it becomes fast-paced and incredibly entertaining. Paul Newman is fantastic, but so is the rest of the cast. I love seeing Jackie Gleason in a dramatic role too.
Quarantine Watch #165: Point Blank (1967)
I haven’t seen a lot of Lee Marvin films, but he is awesome in this. I’d love to see more if him, especially when he was younger. I didn’t expect this to be as trippy and as dreamlike as it ended up becoming. There were times I had trouble following what was happening and reminded me of films like INHERENT VICE or THE BIG SLEEP, but I expect that has to do with the complexity of the dream-like moments. Henry Berman’s editing is crazy good. The use of silence throughout the film is also so powerful. John Boorman is a stellar director and you can see some of the weirdness he’d bring to his future films like ZARDOZ ruminating in ideas found here. This also feels so inherently Hitchcockian, it feels like he should have made this film. I also love that Archie Bunker is in this film briefly. I had never seen Carroll O'Connor in any other role before except for IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT.
Quarantine Watch #164: The Odd Couple (1968)
I’ve always been aware of the Odd Couple as a concept. It’s just in the zeitgeist as a type of story — the neat-freak and the slob comedy. I didn’t realize how dramatic and serious some of the topics especially for the ‘60s in a G rated film: suicide, divorce, sleeping with multiple women, etc. I also get some homoerotic undertones played between Felix and Oscar. I didn’t expect that Walter Mathau would be this good in the film. While I liked his acting the best, Jack Lemmon is definitely where most of the comedy comes from. The rest of the comedy comes from the quick back and forth banter that Neil Simon really delivers on. The theme music is also infectious.
Quarantine Watch #163: Ninja III: The Domination (1984)
I mean, where to start. The opening Ninja killing Cops for no reason sequence. The can of V8. Why the girl falls for the cop? Nothing is explained or makes any sense — in all the best ways. The pacing isn’t great, but it’s sheer bonkerness will keep you on board. Don’t expect any answers, because there aren’t any. Things just happen to us here. Who is the actual bad guy in this movie -- which ninja is it or is it the police? Who is this scientist and what was he doing? There are some questions we’ll never know the answers to.
Quarantine Watch #162: Daddy Longlegs (2009)
I’ve been wanting to explore more of the Safdie Brothers work because GOOD TIME is one of my favorite movies and UNCUT GEMS is such a delight. Their features and shorts are getting pulled from Criterion at the end of the month, I really wanted to get down and watch them. You can see a lot of the techniques that they are exploring with here, which will ultimately make them stand out as directors. Overall, I thought the film was okay at best, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love them as creators.
Quarantine Watch #161: My Beautiful Laundrette (1985)
This is probably the youngest I’ve ever seen Daniel Day Lewis and he is a star. I had no idea this film existed until someone recommended it on the Criterion Closet videos. I feel like I saw Pakistani/British immigration issue before (like in BLINDED BY THE LIGHT), but this is older and takes it to such a fantastic level. The love story here fits so well with the socio-economic themes present and is just very tender. Gordon Warnecke was really good too. I’m surprised he didn’t work more after this. Stephen Frears is such a versatile director, I’m excited to dig deeper into his filmography.
Quarantine Watch #160: Dave Chappelle: 8:46 (2020)
Powerful.
Quarantine Watch #159: Slumber Party Massacre II (1987)
Everything about this movie is insane. Nothing makes sense. It is like what would happen if David Lynch directed HOUSE (1977) and added a guitar wielding serial killer. There are moments that seem dreamlike, but then it turns out to be reality. My roommate called the first one a movie you get drunk to. If that is the case this is one you get stoned to. It was funny, but not as fun as the first one.
Quarantine Watch #158: Da 5 Bloods (2020)
There’s so many references to other movies here, but the thing that holds the film together are the many compelling metaphors between the struggles of African Americans and the American invasion of Vietnam. Delroy Lindo does a really good job. Once they are actually in the woods the film really picks up, but overall I thought there was about 45 minutes that could have been removed. It ran too long for me. The direction and screenplay from Spike were great, but it just felt a bit muddled.
Quarantine Watch #157: The Slumber Party Massacre (1982)
Whoa this was a lot of fun! There were truly scary moments, but overall it was very funny. Looking at the history of it (it was written as a parody, but directed as a straight horror) it’s easy to see why. I bet all girls were having topless dance parties when they do sleepovers. I’m shocked we immediately see who the killer is, which makes you focus on the other stuff and not keeping the mystery of the character alive as in other slasher films.
Quarantine Watch #156: Scream, Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street (2019)
I have a strange history to A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 2: FREDDY’S REVENGE. My family had taken a trip to Mexico in October 2002. On Halloween night while my parents were getting ready for all of us to go out. I went for the TV to find something to watch. I loved the idea of finding a horror film because usually those had boobs in them and I was 12 years old. I ended up watching the second half of that film in Spanish. I had no clue what was going on, but I knew it was scary. Later I saw it on the wall of a gay bar in Berlin projected against a large wall in 2011. This doc was so interesting to watch and was honestly really funny. It’s such a crazy movie that I love knowing how this came together. Mark Patton’s story is so fascinating especially with him as a gay man playing this role. I also think all the queer film theory is so smart and well constructed. The ending is so powerful and the moment the cast and crew sit around the fire almost made me cry. This is a Hollywood I don’t understand because I didn’t live through it and at the same time I feel so bad for the LGBTQ+ community in the time of the 1980s.
Quarantine Watch #155: Shane (1953)
The first time I heard about this was in an episode of HEY ARNOLD! It took me a bit to get through it, as I ultimately think it runs a little long. The scene where Wilson goads Stonewall into drawing his pistol is so good. Jack Palance is so slick. This movie also has one of the best fistfights I’ve seen in a movie that wasn’t a boxing film. The character of Shane is really what holds up this film. He is so good and Alan Ladd plays him so wonderfully. I see so much of UNFORGIVEN in here, it’s almost as if Clint Eastwood wanted to make SHANE, but super violent. I found the Joey character so annoying and I’m shocked that actor got nominated for an Academy Award. The cinematography was pretty, at least during the day scenes however this film has some of the most day-for-night shooting I’ve ever seen committed to celluloid and it really pulled me out of it.
Quarantine Watch #154: Casablanca (1942)
I’ve been thinking about this movie a lot recently, and also the fact that I haven’t seen it in a really long that. The film is so memorable that it feels like I saw it last year but it’s probably been about 7 years since I last saw it. It’s still so damn good.
Quarantine Watch #153: Cars 2 (2011)
It was the last Pixar film that I had yet to see, so I figured now was as good a time as any to check it out. This honestly wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be. It seems so weird to take a racing series and insert a gentleman spy story in it. For some reason, it works though and plays like a ‘60s screwball spy/detective/mystery comedy. All of the John Turturo stuff was funny. Emily Mortimer and Michael Caine were great too. I enjoyed all of the side characters more the usual CARS gang, so that does feel a bit off in terms of the story.
Quarantine Watch #152: Dheepan (2015)
This film showcases the plight of refugees in away I couldn’t have fathomed. The entire film really reflects that even though you leave a terrible world only to wind up in a similar situation, albeit set in a more modern city. Same shit different’t place. The “family” dynamic here is so interesting and reminded me a bit of what Hirokazu Kore-eda would later explore in SHOPLIFTERS. Sivadhasan/Dheepan is a real compelling character — especially his past as a Tamil Tiger. The ending is truly the best part of the film. It’s so intense and expertly shot.
Quarantine Watch #151: Psycho (1960)
My roommate was watching this. Thought I was only going to watch the shower scene. Ended up watching the whole thing. This really is an expertly crafted movie. I enjoy The Birds and Rear Window more, but man is this is just a tight and lean film. it's also the only movie that has ever scared my dog (it's Bernard Hermann's score that did it).
Quarantine Watch #150: One Fine Day (1996)
This was really cute. George Clooney is super charming and this is probably the most I’ve liked Michelle Pfeiffer. Mae Whitman is also super adorable in this. I didn’t even recognize her at first. Holland Taylor was really funny even though she was only in 2 scenes. Overall it works, but feels not as strong as other films of the same ilk of the time like LIAR LIAR — a parent realizing they need to be less of a workaholic. I read that George Clooney’s character wasn’t in the original script, which I can’t even imagine.
Quarantine Watch #149: The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008)
I expected this to be insane in the way King Fu Hustle is so big, but it wasn't that bookers -- although it was a lot of fun. The overall style is spectacular. All three of the main actors are so fantastic and the action set pieces are so cool. The train sequence at the opening of the film is so well constructed, I almost wish they kept fighting until the train was destroyed. The ending was also really fitting.
Quarantine Watch #148: St. Elmo's Fire (1985)
This is an insane movie that is so rooted in the time it came out. Watching this for the first time with 2020 eyes, i can only see every character (except for Leslie and Wendy) as certifiable psychotic. If I had seen this in the 90s at a young age, I would have really felt for the Emilio Estevez character, but now he is just a crazy stalker that Andie McDowell partially indulges. I then would have really aligned with Andrew McCarthy, but even he gets crazy by the end. You can easily see how this film told people that certain predatory actions are acceptable, considering how everyone is still friends by the end even though Rob Lowe totally tries to rape Demi Moore. Demi’s character’s attempt of suicide is on a Sylvia Plath level, but I ultimately dug her story as an inability to cope with the relationship and death of her step-mother. Ally Sheedy is at her most cute and honestly is the best character in the film. I also feel like Michael Zegen modeled his MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL character entirely off of Judd Nelson in this, but again he is a jackass too.
Quarantine Watch #147: Sanjuro (1962)
During this quarantine I have really grown to adore Japanese cinema. In particular I loved YOJIMBO so I’ve been excited to watch the sequel. This wasn’t as good, but Mifune is still tops in this. His character’s scheming and thought process is so smart.
