Film The Redcafe Movie review thread

Last night I watched Requiem for a Dream followed by Hellboy II.

I can see what Spoons meant about Requiem but I have to admit I liked it. Very original, which I liked. Very direct, a bit OTT at times but you could forgive that, I thought. "Addition of thickos": yes, but portrayed the loneliness and desperation of addiction well, i thought - though what being addicted to heroin or speed is actually like I can only guess at.

Hellboy II was OK as well. Not as good, I didnt think. Requiem was a hard act to follow, I regretted putting it on after half an hour - I was looking for something a little less silly, as it turned out. But I did enjoy it - better than I, which I also liked. Good choreography.
 
I meant 'addiction for thickos'.

It's the type of film you like when you're under 24. It's looks great, very hip. But anyone who's been addicted to drugs(or anything for that matter) will know it's very shallow.
 
Simon Adebesi said:
I can see what Spoons meant about Requiem but I have to admit I liked it. Very original, which I liked. Very direct, a bit OTT at times but you could forgive that, I thought. "Addition of thickos": yes, but portrayed the loneliness and desperation of addiction well, i thought - though what being addicted to heroin or speed is actually like I can only guess at.
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I thought it was pretty good but it felt a bit too gimmicky to me. Whereas with PI the camera tricks actually enhance the film.
 
Maybe. But isnt addiction quite a shallow thing? An urgent need that subordinates everything else?

I have never been addicted to anything - nothing comparable to that anyway - so I cant comment with any authority on this.

What film would you say gives a more accurate portrayal of addiction?

Have you ever seen Dogs In Space? An Aussie film with Michael Hutchence in it. That is one of my favourite films - if not about addiction, then at least with addiction as a prominent theme.
 
dumbo said:
I thought it was pretty good but it felt a bit too gimmicky to me. Whereas with PI the camera tricks actually enhance the film.
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Memento is a bit gimmicky though. I never hold gimmicks against a film if they work. Which in this instance I thought it did (just to clarify I am not putting this film anywhere near Memento.) Like I said, it was kind of obvious and very direct, but an enjoyable film.

I liked it for its originality, pure and simple. So yes, for the gimmick.

I must say though I dont like the style of film like Gossford Park / Magnolia / that one about Kennedy where there are ten or more storylines interwoven to varying extents. Invariably they have fantastic casts but I find I never end up really caring about any one strand of it.

Just as an example of a gimmick I dont like.
 
Simon Adebesi said:
Memento is a bit gimmicky though. I never hold gimmicks against a film if they work. Which in this instance I thought it did (just to clarify I am not putting this film anywhere near Memento.) Like I said, it was kind of obvious and very direct, but an enjoyable film.
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True. Citizen Kane is full of gimmicks. It's whether they work with the film or not. I wasn't so sure in the case of Requiem for a Dream. I saw it sometime ago though, maybe i'll give it another go. Some people I know claim it to be a masterpiece.

Edit: And Trainspotting is hard to top in terms of the portrayal of drug addiction. It also had some nice gimmicks.;)
 
Yeah, me too. I couldnt understand at first how a film I had actually seen could be so good, yet me not remember anything about it. But that is easily explained by the fact a friend brought it over one weekend when him and his missus were staying, and we watched it while drinking a lot, so I may have just been too pissed to take it in.

A lot of people i know rate it very highly. I would say it was a very entertaining film to watch, but ultimately nothing mind-blowing. It wouldnt come anywhere near my top 100 for example. I dont expect it would get in my top 200, if I was masochistic enough to sit down and do an extended list.
 
Simon Adebesi said:
Maybe. But isnt addiction quite a shallow thing? An urgent need that subordinates everything else?

I have never been addicted to anything - nothing comparable to that anyway - so I cant comment with any authority on this.

What film would you say gives a more accurate portrayal of addiction?

Have you ever seen Dogs In Space? An Aussie film with Michael Hutchence in it. That is one of my favourite films - if not about addiction, then at least with addiction as a prominent theme.
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There's nothing in there about the self loathing and guilt following drugs use (or anything one could be addicted to) which is a part of addiction. And this may come as shock to Aronofsky but a lot of people enjoy taking drugs and go on to lead normal lives, the film is very one dimensional in that respect, as well. I've always said it's a movie that would loved by people who have never taken drugs. Aronofsky clearly doesn't have a clue about the subject matter. In fact I'd say he doesn't know much about making good films, full stop.

Not seen Dogs in Space.
 
Spoonov said:
There's nothing in there about the self loathing and guilt following drugs use(or anything one could be addicted to) which is a part of addiction. And this may come as shock to Aronofsky but a lot of people enjoy taking drugs and go on to lead normal lives, the film is very one dimensional in that respect, as well. I've always said it's a movie that would loved by people who have never taken drugs. Aronofsky clearly doesn't have a clue about the subject matter. In fact I'd say he doesn't know much about making good films, full stop.

Not seen Dogs in Space.
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Good post. More or less exactly what I thought when I saw it a couple of years ago.
 
Fair enough.

Dogs in Space is not necessarily a film you need to urgently see. Just an afterthought really. I am very fond of it, but that is a legacy of seeing it when i was 15 or so. When I saw it 10 years later I thought it was only just above average.

Yeah, true, it didnt go into that aspect of drug taking (the only aspect I know - taking them, being perfectly happy about it and then going to work on Monday morning without any problems.) Although when you are doing a film about drugs, that doesnt mean you are obliged to cover every conceivable angle. It isnt like an article in a newspaper where the goal is to give as balanced an account as possible: for every waster there must be a happy, 21 year old clubber waving around a glo-stick like some kind of cnut.

I dont know why I am sticking up for this film - I take your point and understand it. Shit depiction of addiction. Move along please, nothing to see here.
 
dumbo said:
True and he managed to get the best out of Naked Lunch and even give it a narrative.

Film seems to struggle with the complexities and depth of the best books. And they end up feeling shallow. Apocalypse Now being the major exception, which brilliantly captured the tone of Heart of Darkness and it's as good a companion piece as i've seen.
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Apocalypse Now which completely shrivels in the face of trying to take on Heart of Darkness (which to be fair is one of the greatest books in the language).
 
Spoonov said:
There's nothing in there about the self loathing and guilt following drugs use (or anything one could be addicted to) which is a part of addiction. And this may come as shock to Aronofsky but a lot of people enjoy taking drugs and go on to lead normal lives, the film is very one dimensional in that respect, as well. I've always said it's a movie that would loved by people who have never taken drugs. Aronofsky clearly doesn't have a clue about the subject matter. In fact I'd say he doesn't know much about making good films, full stop.

Not seen Dogs in Space.
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I see where you're coming from with your critique of the movie. It is drug addiction taken to the max. However, I will say the quality of the movie lies in the way it was shot and edited.
 
olesmyhero said:
I see where you're coming from with your critique of the movie. It is drug addiction taken to the max. However, I will say the quality of the movie lies in the way it was shot and edited.
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Yes, it's a great looking film. But as Simon said 'shit depiction of addiction', it's not really addiction taken to the max, as it doesn't even scratch the surface.
 
Tequila Sunrise, poor. Although one great cinematic scene with Russel and Gibson on a swingset in in Santa Monica during sunset all orange and black
 
When I was watching Requiem last night I was taken by how fit Jennifer Connelly is, and overcome with the desire to watch another film I rate very highly with her in it - Dark City - which I watched tonight.

Dark City is a funny one. I love that film. But somehow I get the impression even the people who made it probably dont think it is really that good a film. It just has something about it. The sheer comedy of the Strangers, the way they talk, the dead pan delivery on their surreal lines and their funny, random-noun names all appeal to me.

I actually overlooked this film when I did my top 100. This should definitely have been in it.
 
30 Days of Night. enjoyable modern vampire flick. Couple of genuinely sinister and grisly scenes. Borrowed a bit too much from 'From Dusk till Dawn' but difficult not to cover the same ground I guess.

8/10
 
Simon Adebesi said:
When I was watching Requiem last night I was taken by how fit Jennifer Connelly is, and overcome with the desire to watch another film I rate very highly with her in it - Dark City - which I watched tonight.

Dark City is a funny one. I love that film. But somehow I get the impression even the people who made it probably dont think it is really that good a film. It just has something about it. The sheer comedy of the Strangers, the way they talk, the dead pan delivery on their surreal lines and their funny, random-noun names all appeal to me.

I actually overlooked this film when I did my top 100. This should definitely have been in it.
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If I remember correctly, the director hates the version that was released. There was a director's cut recently released that I want to watch.
 
As much fun as I have with my visiting my missus mom, they do make me watch some horrible movies. Right now I'm being subjected to watching Failure to Launch. It's awful. Is it possible to give a movie a negative score?
 
Sunshine

Promising start, liked the touches of 2001: A space odyssey but near the end it just completely ruined itself. Just felt like a typical slasher movie by the end with that psycho character. The HUGE scientific inaccuracies annoyed me too.

How is Even Horizon btw? Was meaning to give that a watch.
 
RedKaos said:
Sunshine

Promising start, liked the touches of 2001: A space odyssey but near the end it just completely ruined itself. Just felt like a typical slasher movie by the end with that psycho character. The HUGE scientific inaccuracies annoyed me too.

How is Even Horizon btw? Was meaning to give that a watch.
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The end to Sunshine was crap. Had promise, then went downhill.
 
RedKaos said:
Sunshine

Promising start, liked the touches of 2001: A space odyssey but near the end it just completely ruined itself. Just felt like a typical slasher movie by the end with that psycho character. The HUGE scientific inaccuracies annoyed me too.

How is Even Horizon btw? Was meaning to give that a watch.
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Not great, but worth a watch
 
Event Horizon is utter bilge and bilge that makes zero sense at that.

Sunshine is much better even if that last third spoils it almost totally.
 
Wibble said:
Event Horizon is utter bilge and bilge that makes zero sense at that.

Sunshine is much better even if that last third spoils it almost totally.
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I didnt think it was that bad, mind you I havent seen it in over a decade
 
RedKaos said:
Sunshine

Promising start, liked the touches of 2001: A space odyssey but near the end it just completely ruined itself. Just felt like a typical slasher movie by the end with that psycho character. The HUGE scientific inaccuracies annoyed me too.
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It's on my 'to watch' list. Never really liked Sci-fi but I'll always have time for a Danny Bolye flick.
 
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