Precious

So here is a quick story. My friend Kathryn and I really like to do Sundance (with the exception of last year). It seems that every year we seem to be making fun of a movie solely based on the title or subject matter. There is just one movie that is so riddled with MOST depressing underdog plot line, wild title, etc. Without fail this film will go on to get standing ovations, accolades, awards, and what have you. Now mind you we start joking about these films early on, that is to say around day one of the festival we are already saying we just can't see it but that it will sweep through the festival like a tornado leaving other films in its debris. 

A few examples of our mockery:

Real Women Have Curves

Hustle & Flow

Quinceanera

Well last year it was Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire. Oh boy, we thought the title was kind of a joke and the subject matter horrifying. Well, in case you lived in a cave in February it was up for a billion Oscars including Best Picture. Well, I watched it and yes, it is so sad and horrifying. It is also really well made and so well acted. Prepare yourselves though! I mean there are some things said and situations conjured that will knock your socks off. But wow, I really liked it.  Mariah Carey is shockingly good.... yes that is a sentence you just read. Also, I feel like Paula Patton who plays Precious' teacher Ms. Rain was so overlooked when all the hubbub started. She should have been nominated. I also really like both of these posters. P.S. I have yet to see the other three films on the mocked list. Should I?

Coco Before Chanel

All in all, this film is really good. Just remember... it is just as the title explains. So, if you are a bit of a fashion victim like myself then you will be frustrated that we aren't just jumping in to all the good stuff right away. A biography of the the life of Coco Chanel and the circumstances that led her to be the most influential female fashion designer in history. Was that statement to bold? No. Audrey Tautou is just so beautiful and her acting is really great. I had just watched Amelie, again, and it was good to be reminded just how different she is in this film. The costumes are fantastic. If you are a Chanel fan, it is fascinating to see where all of her influences came from i.e. Nuns, Fisherman, Menswear, BLACK! Just be aware... the fashion aspect doesn't really show up until the end. I also posted this particular poster because it was never in the U.S. because of the cigarette... kind of funny. I mean the woman SMOKED! 

Leave Her To Heaven

Whew! This is a wild one. Again, Gene Tierney is gorgeous. Even though she is full-tilt-boogie CRAZY in this film. The swimming scene on the lake will never leave my mind. HORRIFYING! The clothes and colors in this film are beautiful. I kept wondering what the audience must have been thinking when this first came out in 1946. I would think this type of character would have been so shocking. Possessive, obsessive, domestic, psychological terror..... yes, please! I do wish that the court scene at the end could have been a bit shorter yet the scenario you are dealing with is great. Also, Vincent Price is the prosecutor which helps. "You're not making very much progress Danny."

Inception

Ready, okay. If you are like me, you really appreciate a big budget "summer blockbuster" that is smart, original, free of film stereotypes, and looks amazing. I appreciate this because you are going to end up talking about this move with everyone on planet earth but with this movie you don't mind talking about because it is really good. I left this movie being so impressed with the art of telling a story through film. This plot is layered with like 4 more layers on that last layer. I was so impressed with Christopher Nolan's gift to keep the audience (for the most part) clear on what was happening. Visual candy in every shot! Also, the clothing is fantastic. I am really glad someone sent me an interview with the costume designer because I was having a "children's apparel" issue if you know what I am talking about and it answered some of my questions. Ellen Paige... you were fine but could have been played by a lot of other actresses. Maren voted Rachel McAdams and I fully concur. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I am so glad you are getting your moment in the sun. Ken Watanabe, you are so cool that it totally evens out the fact that I really struggle with your accent sometimes (and I am not that bad with accents.) Marion Cotillard, you are brilliant and I liked seeing you cuh-razy.

Eclipse

I thought that I should throw a few movies up here that actually came out in 2010. I of course saw this shortly after release. I've finally just accepted that the casting of these movies is pretty much wrong and it isn't going to be rectified until a strange made for tv remake happens in like 30 years. So I walked into this just ready to enjoy it... which I did for the most part. The fighting was good and I like anytime the Volturi show up. Having read the books, I was dreading the "tent scene" because I thought it was just ridiculous in the books. I guess it had been long enough because I didn't really hate the tent scene. I hate what a confused trampy wreck Bella becomes right after the "tent scene." I really don't have much more to say except that I finally finished the last book. I am sort of confused because SO many people hated it and I feel like I finally got some payoff in the end. Plus that birth is wild and BLOODY and I really hope they put it in the movie in all its horror. That's all... oh... Dear Bella, you are le worst. Love, Dirk.

David & Lisa

I adore this movie! A friend suggested I watch it a few years ago and it was right up my alley. Recently screened it with a few folks who were new to this gem. This touching and melodramatic tale of two teens in an institution is so gripping. The cinematography is fantastic and the two main actors are STUNNING. The style is great. David in his perfectly tailored suits and Lisa has a collection of jumpers to beat the band. For some reason, I always want to listen to the band Broadcast for days after I watch this. I connect the two for some reason. Like the imagery is what they mast have seen when writing some of their music. This movie, upon first exposure sent me on an intense spiral to find old black & white films about psychological and mental problems. I came on to a few treats but please share if you know of any. The stranger, the better. "Tell me David, who do you see? who do you see?" "I see a girl. A pearl. A pearl of a girl."

Marnie

Here is a list of reasons why I LOVED this film: horses, leather gloves, hair dye, theft, screaming, strong psychotic reactions to the color red, criminal females, sean connery's bottom lip, stacks of money, cool accessories, violence involving fireplace tools, forced marriage, wallpaper, strange chemistry, and hair. Lots and lots of hair. I ate this up with a spoon! Check out this montage by Alien Roc (whoever you are)... thank you for reminding me just how freaking cool this film is.

Stage Fright

I watched Maren's copy of Stage Fright and loved it. I am a Hitchcock fan to be sure but he has so many movies I will prob never see them all but have watched two winners as of late. I realized I had never seen Marlene Dietrich in anything before. It was fascinating to me to know about a recognizable icon and finally see them in something. Jane Wyman is the perfect actress for her role with fast costume changes, various accents, etc. She is immediately likeable. I couldn't get the image of Marlene Dietrich smoking through her black veil out of my mind for days. For some reason the mixture of the two strikes a chord with me. I also wish my mother was around so i could use some of these "phyllis" lines on her. Watch the video if you want to see the smoking veil!