Every time I watch The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, I can't help but find myself completely captivated by the murder mystery which unfolds, despite knowing every twist and turn along the way. It's a film which has fluidity in its editing, smart framing, and a tense plot which refuses to let up. The film's haunting score compliments the atmosphere perfectly. There is a thick film of weird clinging to The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, and I love it. I can't believe this was Argento's first attempt at directing a feature length, he honestly could not have knocked the ball further out of the park.

He obviously made his name later with horror stuff like Suspiria but I'm starting to think his earlier Giallo films, up to probably Deep Red, represent his best work.

^^ LA confidential is fucking awesome and i wish you had talked a little bit about that.

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i finished watching the extras for the buñuel movie above and they were extra-interesting, expounding on the obsession with heresy and parallels with the times when the movie came out (soon after may 68) and all the ideological debates. in a way, this movie was a response (not a direct one, more of a reaction) to godard's "la chinoise". reportedly buñuel didn't like it and thought he could do better with a film about heresy.

i found the main character to be both relatable and annoying

I've not seen that Bunuel film but given what you say about it I was wondering if you're a big Pasolini fan. I can see you really getting into stuff like Oedipus Rex, Medea and The Gospel According to Saint Matthew - assuming you aren't already.

i admire pasolini but i'm not crazy about him. he's tremendously intelligent but also super fucking slow and puts me to sleep. whereas this buñuel movie was really funny.

i walked out of the gospel, i remember, when i was in college, in a cine club screening, as it reminded me of those endless religious movies they used to play on good friday. ew!

medea i vaguely recall look pretty great but again super slow. i liked the lars von trier version more, even though it was shot on blurry video. haven't seen oediups but i hope some day.

saló i had to watch over the course of 4 days and with much reading around it. it was tremendous, sure, at the intellectual level, but it was hard to watch-- i'm not saying this in a bad way though, but it was difficult.

the milky way is a picaresque though, very non-serious, as it tells the story of 2 bums on a pilgrimage -- it's pretty lively, and it's super hilarious! not just for the heresies but for many other reasons. check it out, i swear it's lots of fun. this reminds me i haven't seen pasolini's decameron, which should be funny if he went by the material, but i don't know.

ha ha ha

lars von trier didn't put me to sleep though! i can't remember pasolini's medea except for some terracotta buildings. von trier may be less intellectually smart but he's visually smarter.

speaking of him i just watched nymphomaniac vol. 1 but i'll save my commentary for another day.

obviously you didn't grow up in a catholic country going to catholic school!

you know how many religious movies i had to watch growing up?

i didn't make it past the nativity scene

for a parallel--ask porkmarras how he likes polenta. you'll get an earful.

gloria grahame is fantastic, need to watch more with her

I can't get my wife to watch LA Confidential because she hates Kim Basinger

L.A. Confidential is completely awesome. Unfortunately, I don't really have much specific to say about it. I own it via this triple feature blu-ray, which I initially purchased for The Player. Body Heat is also an excellent movie. I love 90's neo-noir (?).



One thing I can say about L.A. Confidential is that it seemed to do everything which the more recent film, Gangster Squad, did wrong - correctly. Despite having both Ryan Gosling, and Emma Stone (two of my favorite talents in Hollywood right now) in leading roles, Gangster Squad was too corny for its own good. A majority of that flaw could, and should, be attributed to Sean Penn's gawdy over-acting. That guy's a fucking ham and a half.



He practically nose-dived the film, single-handedly. How else could I not enjoy a film with a Gosling/Stone sex scene? Nonetheless Gangster Squad choked on its own cheesiness which kept it from achieving a more believable scenario. Films such as L.A. Confidential or the Untouchables managed so successfully to break the ice occasionally with some tasteful wit, but Gangster Squad fell off the tightrope hard, and Johnny Dangerously; Gangster Squad is not.



So yeah, Cheers to L.A. Confidential! However, what I did watch today was Paul Blart: Mall Cop.



This film has been on my to-see list since it hit theaters. I'm a fan of Kevin James' stand-up and can't seem to turn off a King of Queens re-run for the life of me. This film, while far from a laugh riot, or even clever, still contains a fair share of good belly laughs. I enjoy physical comedy, and Paul Blart has a few entertaining gags of that caliber up its sleeve (and plenty of fat jokes to boot). While more enjoyable than its potty-mouthed, Seth Rogen-starring contemporary, Observe and Report, Paul Blart: Mall Cop reeks of being a Happy Madison production, and never seems to rise too far out of the realm of stupidity. Unfortunate for Kevin James, who I think has a lot more comedic talent than any of his films have allowed him to showcase.

someone please please please recommend me something sad (preferably w/ first world problems and young girls)

I assume you have seen Ghost World pony?

yes, i have!

A jimmy saville biography?

the last days of disco

Saw this as part of MIFF - er, as in the Melbourne International Film Festival..



It's a story about one year in Hendrix's life just before he really took off.
André 3000 as Jimi Hendrix works quite well. T'was good...