Le Samourai

Definitely style over substance, but what style! Delon is perfect as Jef Costello and the rest of the cast also superb. Great sets and photography (mostly greys, blacks and browns with a dash of reds and greens here and there). The plot is pretty basic and the dialogues kept to a strict minimun. Very cool and cold.

Three Times

Hou Hsia Hsien tells 3 stories with Shu Qi and Chang Chen, set at three different times. In the 60's, they play pool. In 1911, they speak but can't be heard (only music and intertitles), and in 2005 Shu Qi is a singer, her boyfriend is a photographer/works in a kitchen, she also has a girlfriend, and they all communicate via mobile phones and email. Love and relationships have changed over time. It is slow and beautiful.

The 7th Victim

Another dark Val Lewton. A schoolgirl goes to New York to find her sister who has disappeared, to eventually find out that she is a member of a small cult of devil worshippers. Lots of repressed lesbianism a shadows, but some of the chartcters are quite ill-defined. Mark robson was not a great director, and the film would have been a real masterpiece if it had been directed by Tourneur or Wise.

Isle of the Dead

Another Val Lewton production, this time with Boris Karloff, on the Greek Island, with a small group of people threatened by plague. All about some kind of old Greek myth and belief and all about who is responsible for the plague. The end is quite good, but overall not great.

Z Channel, a magnificient obsession

From one of Cassavetes' daughters, a great documentary on the cult movie channel Z showing an ace selection of films in LA from 74 to the late 80s and the story of programmer Jerry Harvey who started there in 1980 and was the engine behind the cult success of Z Channel, but seemed to be a psycho, well he killed his second wife before killing himself. The Z Channel magazine looks fab too, and these guys were showing such a great selection of films, almost like me!

Sympathy for Mr Vengeance

From Chan Wook Park, probably even more gruesomely violent and nasty than Oldboy, especially the second half. I kind of fell asleep, so the whole didn't make much sense to me, and the whole thing was rather pointless.

Shopgirl

The best scene was obviously when Pete Sampras' wife (phwoar!) who plays a dollybird working at a beauty counter, raunchily seduces Jason Schwartzman, hilarious. Overall a fairly basic romcom, but quite old-fashioned in tone (no crass jokes) and professionally shot and directed, but with little surprises, standard Hollywood fare really.

Le retour du grand blond

Motr of the same, execpt that Bernard Blier is only (but present in spirit and photos), and the great Henri Guibet, with a few classic scenes in Rio. Jean Rochefort is very good, and Jean Bouise plays the dumb Defense Minister, nicknamed Big Goat, who regrets Agriculture. Quite funny.

Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire

It wasn't as funny as I remembered it. The actors are all great especially the many supporting ones, but it lacks rhythm and it's not that funny in fact. The best is still Mireille Darc with her very sexy black dress.

Takeshis'

So we have Takeshi Kitano the megastar in the Rolls, and an other one, blond, a bumming actor who wants to be like his idol Beat Takeshi, they even meet once or twice. Clowns, casting agents, yakuzas, chiefs, mates, crazy chick, cops all coming and goind, being shot down again and again, crazily and numerous time. The story doesn't make much sense, apart that it is about being an actor, being Kitano, rich and famous, or poor and struggling, and making a film. It's mosty form over content but it is truely amazing, especially from the tap-dancing scene, followed by DJ scratching and the scene at the beach with the red Porsche and massive shooting, all these scenes are truely masterpieces in a pure visual sense. Kitano rocks!

A Travers la Foret

Not on the same high level as 'Le doux amour des hommes' but remarkable nonetheless. Armelle's boyfriend dies in a motorbike accident and she believes he comes back at night to be with her. One of her sisters thinks she is loopy (and the actress is really annoying too), the other takes her to see a woman dealing with spirits, etc. The atmosphere is very influenced by J-Horror, in fact more so by Kyoshi Kurosawa, except there are more flowers, and the whole thing is quite sombre, but I love that.

La Mirador

A medium-length first film from Lidia Terki, which has the good taste to last only 45 minutes. The story of a girl with her older brother who is dealing and using heroin with a gothy looking girl. A good clubbing scene by the beach near Biarritz and the young girl scarily looks like my young cousin. It almost falls in a trendy way of shooting but the story is fairly unusual and the structure is good.

Land of the Dead

Twenty years later, the real zombies are back! But more in a John Carpenter way than a George A. Romero way, most of the action tales place at night, and lot of cars/leather stuff and heavy metal. A bit of a shame as they look better in the grey Pennsylvania daylight. Still in tunes with current themes, the world is dominated by security and the masters of the world live in a big expensive tower block with a mall at ground level. There are some truly great shots and it's fun, with good actors, but not as great as Dawn nor even Day.

The Wendell Baker Story

A movie with Seymour Cassel is always good, always. Especially when he is teamed up with Harry Dean Stanton, two olds folks in a retirememt home who want to get laid. Especially when Owen Wilson is the chief nurse, and a nasty guy too. Luke Wilson wrote and co-directed the film and plays the main character. It's a fairly typical rom-com, so not a masterpiece, but Seymour Cassel really saves it. The guy is so good and funny, even as he gets older. Must be cool to hang around with and have a drink with him.

Good Girl (Gentille)

A very strong contender for worst movie of the year, in fact probably of the decade! Emmanuelle Devos is not funny, probably also because of the poor direction and weak script. Absolutely, utterly rubbish! One of these should have only been made for TV films.

Les Amants Reguliers

Garrel goes back to 1968. Louis Garrel and a bunch of young good looking actors do not really look young people from 68, but it doesn't really matter. The fighting scenes on the barricades are also very stylised. Obviously it can't be compared with Bertolucci's dreamers, it is pure Garrel, in fact much more so than his last two features, going back to his 80's style. Still there is little dialogue, long close-up shots, lots of drug taking (mostly opium, and I felt quite stoned coming out after 3 hours), and it ends by a suicide (although there are more lighter moments than usual). Great photography from Lubchantski, and a great film.

The Ghost Ship

A good little film from Val Lewton. Richard Dix is very good as the sinister nutty Captain who keep babbling on about autority to his new 3rd in-command and anybody else who wants to listen. I don't like films set on boats, but this one is good and very intriging.

Loulou

Another cruel, violent and emotionally draining film from Pialat. Hupper dumps a hairy intellectual Guy Marchand to live with a low-life Depardieu. Nothing is really said during the long scene at lunch with Loulou's relative and friends, but in fact everything is, and it's no surprise that the film ends rather sadly for him. Draining but good.

The Leopard Man

A rare thing, a disappointing Jacques Tourneur film. Nothing wrong with the direction, the are some great scenes on the RKO lot, replicating New Mexico, just a so so screenplay and average acting.

Passe ton bac d'abord

There is a wicked disco/tribal track being played in a restaurant in Stella-Plage, awesome! The scary thing is that the film hasn't really dated apart from the clothes and dodgy taches on the guys. Life in Lens is probably quite similar in 2005 than it was in 1979, with mass unemployment and boredom the key characteristics of life there.

Cat People/The Curse of the Cat People

Kick-starting the Val Lewton boxset wih the classic Cat People. Jacques Tourneur at his best, very creative a with a low budget to create a great atmosphere, especially towards the end from the famous swimming pool scene onwards.
Curse is very different in tone and theme (more about children psychology and with their parents) and a very good sequel directed by Robert Wise. The scenes in the old house are amazing, and obviously a major influence on Jacques Rivette when he directed 'Celine and Julie go boating'. And there is little cat action.

The Miracle of Morgan's Creek

An ok, but far from great, comedy from Preston Sturges, the whole story is a bit daft and lead character (Eddie Bracken playing the idiot small town guy) really annoying. willaim Demaret and the rest of Sturges' stock company are great and there are some funny lines and screwball scenes.

Cinderfella

From Frank Tashlin, the reverse of Cinderella with Jerry Lewis as Fella, bullied by his stepmother and brothers, who goes to the ball, and seduces a princess. Count Basie and His Orchestra provide the wonderful music, the sets are great and the costumes by Edith Head. Classic comedy.

Crossfire

Another classic noir from RKO, Edward Dmytryk direct 3 Roberts (Young, Mitchum and Ryan) + the hot Gloria Grahame, in a story condemning anti-semitism. Good but not great, Robert Ryan is great as usual as the baddy.

Dillinger

A B-movie from Monogram, a gangster film about the famous bank robber, with Lawrence Tierney as the bad guy. Basic but good.

La Notte

Marcello and Jeanne go visit a dying at the hospital. Jeanne goes for a walk in a Milan suburb. Marcello and Jeanne are bored, go to a nightclub. Marcello and Jeanne go to a swanky party at a rich industrialist, most people are bored and laugh pretending they have fun. Nice pool though. Marcello meets Monica, the daughter of the rich guy, paly some game with her. Jeanne dances with some dude with a wicked Italian Coupe. It rains a lot, she goes for a ride in his car, refuses to kiss. Marcello chats a bit more with Monica, who thinks she can't love. Jeanne joins them. It is dawn. Marcello and Jeanne go for a walk in the big park. They don't love each other anymore. Beautiful and sad.

Cent mille dollars au soleil

Slow French action film with some amusing dialogue from Michel Audiard delivered bt Bebel, Lino and Blier, but not that great nor particularly thrilling. Very professionally shot in Scope on location in Morroco.

An angel at my table

Back to properly watching films after spending nearly a week trying to sort out the plasma screen and getting really annoyed with it.
Watching this film one who would not have been to NZ would think all the inhabitants there are pretty ugly and nuts! An above average bio pic about the famous, but slightly nut NZ writer Janet Frame, but really no more than that.

Bad Timing

A twisted love story in Vienna with, erm, Art Garfunkel, who is actually quite good, and Teresa Russel, who is really hot. Lots of good editing work, and Nic Roeg's directs it cleverly and subtly.

The Narrow Margin

A little gem from RKO directed by Richard Fleicher with a bunch of great but unknown, at least for me, B-Actors. Short and tight at 71 minutes, with 90% of the action taking place on a train between Chicago and LA, with a cop escorting a dame who has evidence against some mobster and a couple of baddies who want the dame. A great B film.

Birth

Pretty much underwhelmed by this. Glazer has talent, but ultimately creates a copycat film (see Shamalayan), and the whole thing is ridiculous, a dead man reincarnated in a 10 year old and Nicole Kidman (with a bad haircut) falls for him, yeah right.