The Coen BROS!

I flat out love Coen brothers movies. They've got violence in all the right places and their characters are very three dimensional and stick with you. For example the characters from Fargo, although a little exaggerated at times, very much reflect the style of that region and i promise you after watching Fargo you'll go home repeating "Norm made me eggs!". This is a technique used allot in Coen brothers films. They enjoy taking one type of region or culture and exaggerating it and making it their own. One key scene i'd like to take a look at is from Raising Arizona when HI is fighting Leonard Smalls. In this scene you can really see how HI and Leonard reflect each other. They even end up having the same tattoo. This scene is like many scenes and many Coen films because many of their "good" characters reflect their "bad" characters. This reveal of the protagonist and antagonist being closer than you'd think shows how the difference between good and evil is so thin. 

Altman Films

I do not really care so much for Altman's movies nor his style of directing. I did however enjoy The Long Goodbye which leads me to believe that i may actually enjoy some of his earlier work. But the newer movies tended to stray away from the usual film outline. Which is cool and innovative but the typical film outline is the way it is for a reason. It's what hooks us and keeps us involved in the story line. Too bad the last few movies we watched strayed so far that they didn't even really have a plot at all. For example a key scene from Nashville would be when Haven Hamilton is at the party mixing it up with all those stars and talking with some buddies. He doesn't even say anything really that sets up any story or moves a plot along. This scene adds nothing to the film and could be cut completely without me even noticing. That among many scenes from this movie made me feel this way. Maybe i need to give Nashville another look through. A theme that Altman really enjoys exploring would have to be social norms in different societies. In Nashville they kept most of the story on music and the grand ol opry and kind of portrayed people from Nashville as only interested in the music business. He made the people from Hollywood in The Player as only interested in films and the movie biz. Also both movies made the people from those areas seem dumb and worthless almost. In conclusion i feel that Altman has good intentions and is quite a skilled director. But that's just not my cup of tea.

2001 A Space Odyssey

No surprise here as Kubrick makes another movie with an odd twist on an age old story, evolution. The movie opens on a tribe back in primitive times finding the first "tool" from then it launches into the future on a spaceship orbiting around in space. This space ship is sent out to research a buried monolithic TMA-1. Aboard the ship are five scientists and a supercomputer named HAL. Along the way HAL creates a communications failure in an attempt to murder the five scientists. Bowman is the only one who survives, manages to break back into the ship and destroys the super computer.

After the super computer is destroyed, the story really starts to get interesting. Bowman finds the purpose of his mission and all about the monoliths. He then traverses time and space to complete his mission. After maneuvering tunnels of sound and light he then finds himself in a large white room where he begins aging rapidly. He then transforms into some baby/fetus creature rapped in a large glowing orb that begins orbiting earth. 

From the sound of my review alone you should know this is a Kubrick movie. What other director can make a movie as messed up as this? I mean this thing was freaky deaky! This isn't to say that this was a bad movie, i was just a little confused at times and a little weirded out at times. No huge shocker here. But Kubrick's use of diegetic and non diegetic sound in this movie is poetry. I mean who wouldn't love a sci-fi movie with a Johann Strauss soundtrack? Not to mention the unmistakable and one of the most famous opening scenes ever. I will say tho that this film definitely drags on at times and some of the tracking shots could be maybe two minutes instead of a whole five. I think back to the black market scene in stray dog. I think all Kubrick's movies have this quality tho and that's what makes him, him. Some of the shots in this movie are phenomenal. For it's time the space land scapes look very realistic and the spaceships actually look like they're floating in the vacuums of space. Kubrick definitely has his own touch and flair that he adds to any piece which truly makes him an auteur in his own league.

Citizen Kane

One scene from Citizen Kane that really stuck out was the scene where Kane and Suzanne are in their "tent", which appears to me to be the size of a normal house, having an argument. This is not the first time they've had an argument and you can really tell the friction between them. While everyone is outside enjoying the night air, the fire and the catered food they are shut in in their tent arguing. Which is exactly the problem with these two. Like Suzanne said "I don't know many people" and Kane replies "I know too many people. I guess we're both lonely". All day and night they're cooped up in Xanadu, not making much contact with anyone in the outside world. All the while they're driving themselves crazy. Suzanne just sits inside all day doing jigsaw puzzles and Kane collects statues.
The scene in the "tent" shows the true relationship between Suzanne and Kane. The cinematography reveales and amplifies the body language between the two. Suzanne is shot from a high angle making her seem weak and powerless while Kane is shot from a low angle making him seem looming and powerful. All the while the scene is shot from low key lighting making everything seem intense. There is a powerstruggle between Kane and Suzanne, Suzanne is always fighting to be free and Kane is constantly shooting her down with one liners and powerful posture. All these elements add up to a perfect view of their relationship in one little scene.

For more on this scene and more about Citizen Kane visit http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033467/

Movies/Film

Movies or "moving pictures" as they were called in the old days, have always been a source of entertainment for people of all creeds, colors and ages. Movies are definitely the great unifier. Ask someone about their favorite movie and they could talk for hours. Not to mention the movie business is a multi-billion dollar industry. People from all over the world will come and drop a ridiculous amount of money to watch a movie they really love. And add on to the box office merchandise and DVD sales. Personally i love movies because they can let me leave one world and enter a new magical/mysterious one filled with anything the directors heart desired. I think that's why most people love movies. It's a great way to blow off some steam and forget about the troubles of the real world. As Dane Cook once said, "Who hates movies? Who doesn't love cinematic adventures?!". I would have to agree with this young gentleman. Everyone loves movies and everyone loves art of film!