tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post7959464336820613581..comments2022-03-24T16:11:50.124-04:00Comments on The Man From Porlock: Going in Circles (Somewhere, Dogtooth, and Meek's Cutoff)Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-12409509285580398722011-06-04T18:23:20.842-04:002011-06-04T18:23:20.842-04:00Thanks, Adam. I was with "Meek's Cutoff&q...Thanks, Adam. I was with "Meek's Cutoff" for about forty minutes; then, once Reichardt's schema became clear (with the Indian), the air went out of it for me. This is a key movie (along with "Tree of Life") at the heart of the "boring movies" debate currently raging (see Tom Shone, A.O. Scott, Manohla Dargis, Farran Nehme Smith, et al.). My stance is that slow, arty, open-ended movies <i>can</i> be good, but possessing those qualities doesn't automatically mean that they are. I don't think Reichardt has figured that out yet.<br /><br />As for Ali, I still fail to see any point to his piece beyond the thudding obviousness of it -- all of a piece with the calculated "outrageousness" of his persona on display at Ebertfest -- much less why so many writers who could have written (and <i>have</i> written) better things were slapping their knees in hysterics over his alleged daring. I'm sure he's a cool guy to hang out with, but some folks can't seem to tell the difference between a fun drinking buddy and a good writer with something to say.Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-29837038293579379252011-06-04T17:59:47.841-04:002011-06-04T17:59:47.841-04:00While we're in agreement about the strange ant...While we're in agreement about the strange anticlimax of <i>Meek's Cutoff</i>, I did think it was a very good film, and maybe even a "flawed great film" -- to borrow a phrase from Truffaut. The movie lacks a payoff, but it will probably age well. I was appalled by the way audiences treated it at Sundance; I would assume they, of all people, would be the ones to support it.<br /><br />Thing is, I can't think of too many other films that convey better that sense of being lost in the wilderness, and maybe that's what's important about <i>Meek's Cutoff</i>. The film's not terribly strong on narrative, but I could never bring myself to outright pan it. Reichardt's technique is far too intriguing, even if I'm not totally enamored with it. <br /><br />Haven't had the chance to check out her other films yet, but you're right about the dubious Bush allegories being developed over this new movie. Filmmaker Magazine actually asked Reichardt directly about the Bush theory, and she responded, "Yeah... I don't really want to go there."<br /><br />No love for Ali's <i>Pirates</i> smackdown? Sure, it wasn't pofessional film critiquing, but then again Ali even admitted that he walked out of the movie: he was only baiting fans in order to make a point. It says a lot about us when the summer release we're expected to look forward to the most is an expensive Disney <i>product</i> of Hollywood directed by Rob Marshall, who just so happens to be my own least favorite modern director (and not in a good way).Adam Zanziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14524618281515322239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-46523872861223242202011-06-03T18:30:15.656-04:002011-06-03T18:30:15.656-04:00I liked the first two Pirates films, but the third...I liked the first two Pirates films, but the third was long and dull. I am not looking forward to the fourth since my dear mother wants to see it. BahJMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03223879013564312871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-1102889743062777372011-05-31T23:20:53.993-04:002011-05-31T23:20:53.993-04:00Thanks for weighing in, Matt. You expressed my qua...Thanks for weighing in, Matt. You expressed my qualms better than I could. In a way, "Dogtooth" does feel like a weirdly out of time film. Yet, as you indicated, there's a certain quality to it that's very contemporary, and not in a good way. (I wish my memory could do justice to Tom Shone's hilarious piece on what it feels like to be indicted in an audience....)Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-35817192095261237532011-05-30T23:57:39.105-04:002011-05-30T23:57:39.105-04:00I basically agree with your assessment of Dogtooth...I basically agree with your assessment of Dogtooth. Besides the fact that my wife and I made the unfortunate blunder of making it our stay-at-home pick for Valentine's Day, it did seem like an incredibly cruel film. I didn't think it lacked for craft -- as you say, it seems to accomplish what it set out to do -- but my own bias tends to be against films that confront or (and I really hate this phrase) "indict the audience." The film to me seemed to be a savage indictment of patriarchal middle-class family power dynamics. If the film had been made in 1960, it might have been bold and provocative. In 2010, it just seems blunt and histrionic. (Male dominance = incest/rape!) I don't think anyone really believes that upper middle class suburbs are hives of scum and villainy, hidden behind closed doors. David Lynch could get away with that, but then, he had Dennis Hopper as a secret weapon.<br /><br />As awful as it is to sit through, it's difficult to take seriously, and that makes it hard to find the humor as funny as the film seems to think it is. I think it tries to be Bunuelesque and fails, because Bunuel couldn't help himself: he created characters. There was a measure of empathy, even if it was derisive. At least he understood human impulses. Dogtooth doesn't seem to have any humanity at all. It just seems like an empty provocation that tries to intimidate its audience into thinking that it's insightful and relevant, just because it's "willing to go there." Calling it the smuggest movie ever made, as Ivan did, seems apt, even if there are several other films that could vie for that title.Matt S.https://catecinem.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-38968663449314753942011-05-30T11:33:21.555-04:002011-05-30T11:33:21.555-04:00Craig, I'll keep enough of an open mind regard...Craig, I'll keep enough of an open mind regarding KR's flicks not to leave the room or change the channel if one is on TV--that's how I discovered Gus Van Sant's Last Days, a flick my friends are surprised to hear I like. Maybe it was *because* it was a random experience, with zero expectations or baggage. <br />Thanks!Ivanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16443946766217092846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-28209597989555486752011-05-30T11:13:54.024-04:002011-05-30T11:13:54.024-04:00Thanks, Ivan and Amir, for your responses. It'...Thanks, Ivan and Amir, for your responses. It's funny how "Dogtooth" can provoke such diametrically opposed responses. I think you have a good point, Amir, that the movie has been hyped as something it's not, and maybe that's colored my impression of it. Cruelty is always a tricky subject. Kubrick and the Coen brothers are always accused of being cruel to their characters, but really I can only think of a couple of instances of where I thought they lost control of the tone of a movie. I wouldn't say Lanthimos loses control; he accomplishes exactly what he sets out to do. The whole enterprise just seemed irredeemably ugly to me.<br /><br />And Ivan, don't let my opinion of Kelly Reichardt color yours. A lot of people like her movies. I'm just not one of them.Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-37210178396973923862011-05-29T19:08:15.489-04:002011-05-29T19:08:15.489-04:00Somewhere is the one I liked the least and I think...Somewhere is the one I liked the least and I think I agree with your point on Dorff. A film with such a sparse narrative needs another hook (like Murray) to carry it along and Somewhere just didn't have that. I disliked Meek's Cutoff as well, but I saw it under terrible conditions (last year at TIFF, with no sleep in like 40 hours and a missing contact lens) so I won't comment until I watch it again. <br />As for Dogtooth though, which was probably my favourite film last year give or take a couple of others, I disagree with you. I wouldn't compare it to Bunuel, but I also don't think it aims for the larger sociopolitical framework you mention. I think I took the film on a more personal level than you (and many others) did, but the cruelty didn't seem so empty to me. I can see your point but I didn't find the film so detached to think the narrative was hollow at all. For me, it seemed to be much more of a personal film than one that would want to make social or political commentary.<br />So many people took the film for more than it was, which validates your argument that the audience was trying harder than the film but I wouldn't blame Lanthimos.Amirhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06862108887275338771noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-57863278470549330142011-05-29T18:06:02.892-04:002011-05-29T18:06:02.892-04:00Whew! Thanks for warning about Kelly R. I did not ...Whew! Thanks for warning about Kelly R. I did not like Somewhere (wow, Sophia's diaries must be dull) and *hated* Dogtooth, probably the smuggest movie ever made.Ivanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16443946766217092846noreply@blogger.com