Film nite 16: Bryan's choice "Two non-Bonds"

Film Nite 15: Lone Star / Dazed and Confused

For my third double-bill, I had to think long and hard about what I would subject my quarry to. All I knew was that I wanted a geographical theme. Initially, I was bent on a Scottish sortie, with a brace of the little-seen Orphans (Dir. Peter Mullan, 1998) and Whisky Galore! (Dir. Alexander Mackendrick, 1949). Accidental Hero and Gregory's Girl weren't far behind, Bill Forsyth lovers.

Then it struck me... "All right, all right, all riiiiiiight." It was time to resurrect the cinematic tookus of Texas by way of Matthew "two good films" McConaughey.

Lone Star (Dir. John Sayles, 1996)

Indie director John Sayle's most cinematic film to date is also one of his most successful. Ostensibly a whodunit with a central love story, Lone Star is an ensemble piece in which a small town sheriff, Sam Deeds (Chris Cooper), must solve the mystery of who murdered the loathsome Charlie Wade (Kris Kristofferson) many moons ago. The suspect: his late father and legendary former sheriff, Buddy Deeds (Matthew McConaughey).

Chris Cooper is absolutely incredible as Sam; understated, compassionate and riddled with dad issues. It's not often you get to see a character actor lead a film, and Cooper gives compelling evidence as to why he's so highly regarded by Hollywood bigwigs and outsiders. But the real star of the show is director John Sayles. With ace DP Haskell Wexler in tow, Sayles turns the town of Frontera, Texas, into a real, living and breathing community. It's so palpable that you feel like you're there with Sam investigating the murder.

Chris Cooper: Either watch Lone Star or spend a night in the cooler - it's your choice.

The dialogue is nuanced and often majestic, but sometimes the social commentary - preoccupied with shared history and the need to remember/forget, figuratively represented by US/Mexican relations within the community - feels forced and heavy-handed. However, it's striking how similar the beats of the dialogue are in HBO’s The Wire, which was definitely influenced by the socially-conscious films of John Sayles.

How more people haven't seen this film is a riddle that I'll never be able to solve. Watch it for the tremendous performances, the scintillating dialogue and an ending that packs a quietly devastating punch not without hope for a better future. Nice work, John.

Now watch the Lone Star trailer below:

Dazed and Confused (Dir. Richard Linklater, 1993)

There's not much to say about Dazed and Confused that I haven't said elsewhere (you can read my lovingly-written nostalgia piece here). Linklater's masterpiece is one of the best 'day in the life' films around, and it's definitely the greatest movie about being a teenager.

Set during the last day of term in 1976, Dazed and Confused follows the misadventures of freshman Mitch Kramer (Wiley Wiggins), senior Randy "Pink" Floyd and a whole host of geeks, cool kids and jocks from end of school to the early hours of the next morning.

From the brutal high school hazing to the ensuing debauchery of the beer bust, the film recreates the highs and lows of teenage life with unerring ease and poignancy without being mawkish or heavy-handed. Linklater knows that teenagers are naive, self-indulgent arseholes, but that that they can also be great fun, too. He also knows how to put together a cracking soundtrack, which is very much of mid-seventies era (read: slightly embarrassing).

Special mention must go to the man of the article, Matthew McConaughey. Wooderson is one of my favourite cinematic slackers, simultaneously cool and creepy as the older guy determined to keep on livin'...L...I...V...I...N. On the other hand, 'Special' mention goes to Wiley Wiggins who spend most of the time clinching the bridge of his nose as though he's just drank too much milkshake. Bloody kids.

Matthew McConaughey, Jason London and Wiley Wiggins: Passing down the baton of cool.

My university friends and I (mainly film studies students) used to put Dazed and Confused on before we went out and it regularly brightened up even the gloomiest of evenings trawling the bars of Sheffield in the winter. If you don't have any friends, I suggest you get a big bag of weed and light one up in honour of this genuine cult classic, my friend.

You can watch the Dazed and Confused trailer below:

Film Nite 14: Clips nite special! Graham's Shittle of Super Vids: 16 Clips You Must Watch

In an effort to unleash the full horror of my mindbox upon my fellow film-watching cohorts, I had to plumb the depths, but instead I got lazy and showed a bunch of clips they've all probably seen before. However, I did try my best to assemble the clips into a vague and wispy narrative.

For the benefit of anyone who wasn't round my house that Saturday, behold what you missed:

1. The Golden Harvest Ident (1972)

Everyone who cares knows that the best idents come from Hong Kong. But what's the king of idents, you ask? Simple, it's the classic Golden Harvest ident circa 1972:




2. The Opening of Dead or Alive (Dir. Takashi Miike, 1999)

Miike veterans are probably chuckling at the prospect of Miike virgins clicking that play button. For the uninitiated, I will try to condense the full magnitude of this clip into one sentence to save your poor little eyes, ears and tummy. Here goes... The opening to Dead or Alive crams several violent murders, beatings, male sodomy, massive cocaine abuse, shotguns, a noodle explosion, pole dancing and Riki Takeuchi looking cool all in six marvelous minutes of rapid-fire cuts and a stonkingly over-the-top Jap rock score. Possibly the greatest opening ever. Come to think of it, the ending isn't exactly quiet.

3. The Intro to The Trap: What Happened to Our Dream of Freedom (Dir. Adam Curtis, 2007)

A startlingly effective attack on our modern day, statistically-powered global democracy as envisioned by Cold War America, The Trap is Adam Curtis' masterwork. This short clip tells you what the series is all about in a much more eloquent fashion, with added John Carpenter synth music:




4. Eastbound and Down Season 1 Episode 2: Work Drugs (Dir. David Gordon Green, 2009)

Definitely one of the best clips from the first series of Eastbound and Down. Washed-up baseball player Kenny 'Fucking' Powers (Danny McBride) tries to win his childhood sweetheart's love at a kids' school disco, with ecstasy-fueled dance moves so crass that you'll almost forget his astonishing mullet (almost):




5. The Wire Season 1 Episode 4: "Fuck" Crime Scene Investigation (Dir. Clément Virgo, 2002)

While most people commend The Wire for it's groundbreaking narrative arcs, gobsmacking insights and it's peerlessly-researched storylines and characters, it first got to me through it's brilliantly black sense of humour. This is best exemplified by this crime scene investigation, with all dialogue between detectives McNulty and "Bunk" Moorland communicated through variations on the word "fuck":

6. Cop Hard Episode 9: Small Packages (Dir. Charles C. Custer, 2011)

Larry Hard is a cop with a raging hard-on for justice. If you try to 'make love' with this perverted moral crusader then you're in for a shock. Riffing on police procedural film and TV tropes, Cop Hard likes to take the joke that little bit too far and that's why I love it. Special kudos goes to Mark 'The Muscle' Winter for channeling the mania of Daniel Day Lewis in such a way that it'll never win him an Oscar. There will be blood in the following clip:



7. Sonatine: the Beach Sumo Scene (Dir. Takeshi Kitano, 1993)

While Sonatine might not be Kitano's most idiosyncratic or outre film, I think it's his most effective. What starts as a conventional gangster flick takes a turn for the transcendental when the narrative makes a Godard-like twist. Holed up in an Okinawan beach hut, a bunch of world-weary yakuza wile away the last few days of their lives playing childish games against a beautiful Pacific backdrop. Probably my favourite film.

P.s. the clip is missing English subs, but you'll get the point:

8. The Pervert's Guide to Cinema: Part 1: "I Want to Fuck Mitch" (Dir. Sophie Fiennes, 2006)

In between his mad-eyed stare and his wild gesticulations, Slavoj Zizek makes some baffling and brilliant observations about cinema and voyeurism. Taken from part 1 of The Pervert's Guide to Cinema, this insightful and humorous little ditty is a highlight, revealing Zizek's not insubstantial madness and penchant for the absurd:

9. The Parallax View: The Test Scene (Dir. Alan J. Pakula, 1974)

The greatest conspiracy thriller ever made, Pakula's masterpiece is a stark and cinematic piece of paranoia combining Cold War hysteria with Manchurian Candidate-style machinations. The underrated Warren Beatty sleuths his way through an increasingly tense series of set pieces as the invisible forces of the Parallax Corporation draw ever closer. This 'brainwashing' scene is the movie at its most subversive - how they mine such dread and emotion out of only a handful of clips and some cynically-produced music is staggering. Whether it really does turn Beatty's character into a card-carrying killer, or just a pawn in a high stakes game played out by a hidden layer of unaccountable conspirators, is up to you:

10. Ringu: The Cursed Video (Dir. Hideo Nakata, 1998)

The most chilling and effective of the late 90s J-horrors, Ringu always scares me with it's preference for atmosphere over narrative and character. It's genius is in implicating the viewer into the horror: I dare anyone to watch this video without worrying about the ensuing curse - prepare for that phone call:

11. Brass Eye Special: Paedophilia: Chris Morris Questions a Paedophile (Dir.Tristram Shapeero, 2001)

We owe a huge debt to Chris Morris for Brass Eye. Arch lampooner of the reactionary right-wing media and idiotic, fame-hungry celebrities, Morris' success means that he'll probably never quite reach the same heights of wrong ever again. Fortunately, we have moments like this to remind us of his cunningly subversive satire, which also happens to be bloody hilarious, too:

12. Sealab 2021: Season 1, Episode 3: Happy Cake (Dirs. Adam Reed & Matt Thompson, 2000)

Adult Swim have featured better TV shows than Sealab 2021, but no character comes close to Captain Murphy (voiced by the late Harry Goz). Murphy breathlessly chews and rambles his way through every episode with the pyschopathic glee of a disturbed man child. Words cannot capture his sheer idiocy and eccentricities. In place of a considered and thoughtful analysis of Captain Murphy's character, I hereby supply you with this episode instead:

13. Patlabor 2: The "Just War/Unjust Peace" Scene (Dir. Mamoru Oshii, 1993)

Good old anime. Sometimes I like nothing better than to switch my brain off and watch Fist of the North Star for the millionth time. But in between the exploding heads, I like to turn my noggin on max power and take in this exemplary political-thriller anime from Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell). Never mind comparing it to other anime, it's an amazing piece of cinema, exploring complex ideas without overcomplicating or dumbing down it's message. There may be a bit of giant robot action, but Oshii seems far more interested in the human conflict at the heart of this tale of an alternative future where Japan sits on the brink of war. Hats off to Kenji Kawaii for his lovely score:

14. A Touch of Zen: The Buddhist Scene (Dir. King Hu, 1971)

Comparisons to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon are a bit boring by now, so I'll cut straight to the chase and say that this martial arts epic deserves your attention for some well-crafted fight scenes and a series of genre-transcending moments, such as this clip depicting a band of Buddhist monks silently bounding into righteous action:

15. Lonewolf and Cub: Babycart at the River Styx: Ogami Itto Fights the Hidari Brothers (Dir. Kenji Misumi, 1972)

There's something mesmerising about Tomisaburo Wakayama's middle-aged, overweight samurai. But when you see the dilapidated ronin swing into battle, all concerns about his sword-wielding prowess disappear in a whirl of katanas and arterial spray. The Hidari Brothers, characters that inspired John Carpenter's "Three Storms" in Big Trouble in Little China, are pretty tough, but even they get diced up big time. Gloriously staged and soundtracked, this scene features outlandish levels of violence and possibly the most out there final words from a dying man (as you'll discover when I finally work out how to burn the subs):

16. Time Trumpet: Episode 1: Changes (Dir. Armando Iannucci, 2006)

Absent from the UK DVD version due to licencing issues, the denouement to episode one of Time Trumpet features a simultaneously sickening, stupefying and mirth-filled musical number, edited to the sounds of David Bowie's 'Changes'. A fitting way to end this series of clips, I hope you'll agree:

Film Nite 13: Clips nite special! Emma's clips

Gould meets McLaren (1993)
by Norman McLaren

The music is Bach's Fugue 14 in f# minor (from the Well-tempered Clavier Book 1 BWV 859) played by Glenn Gould. Gould had a habit of humming along as he played (much to the annoyance of his producers and sound recordists): you can hear him in this recording.

It's from the excellent 1993 film Thirty Two Short Films about Glenn Gould. This is one of the 32 films featured.



Hedghog in the Fog (1975)
This is Yurij Norstein's seminal animation which is either loaded with Soviet analogies and metaphors, or just a really beautiful, tender folk story - you choose.

I saw both this and the McLaren animation during insomniac nights after my A-levels, back in the days when you could still see really interesting stuff on TV if you were ready to forsake sleep and wade through a lot of bad smut and/or 'pages from Teletext'.



The Cat Concerto (1946)
Tom & Jerry at their finest. Please note that the sequences in which Tom is playing piano are musically accurate and correct -- I doff my cap to the animators for this.

I put it in as a counterweight for the McLaren animation, plus who doesn't love Tom & Jerry?

I first saw this on that Rolf Harris animation show for kids, when I was about 10, but which profiled some of the most skilful and well-crafted animations around the world. Lots of the stuff I saw on that show really stuck with me -- another notable T&J episode sees them figure-skating on the frozen floor of the kitchen.



Fishing with John (1991)

There's no YouTube for this one because the Criterion Collection people have been jumping on people posting it up there illegally.

This series is a marvel of scuzzy VHS tape. Each episode sees anarcho-jazzist John Lurie setting off on a fishing expedition with a famous person in tow. In this episode, Lurie takes Jim Jarmusch off the coast of NY state to catch some sharks.

Later episodes feature Tom Waits, Matt Dillon, Willem Dafoe and (a special double episode) Dennis Hopper. They are all brilliant and the (Lurie composed) soundtracks especially so.

I love Fishing with John for its combination of satire, humour, dreaminess and experimental/surreal techniques. Though I don't really care for angling.

Fishing with John on IMDB

And that, children, is what is going on inside my brain.

#12 Lizzy's second

A nightmare of bubblegum horror that will STERILISE you with FEAR! Are you ready for Film Nite #12 - TEENAGE FREAKOUT!?

HAUSU (AKA House)
1977


Nobuhiko Obayashi's experimental teeny-bopper fantasy horror/nightmarish psychotic episode.
















THE INCREDIBLY STRANGE CREATURES WHO STOPPED LIVING AND BECAME MIXED-UP ZOMBIES!!?
1964





Starring and directed by kitschmeister auteur Ray Dennis Steckler, this monster musical has it all. Thrills! Chills! Zombies! Gypsy hypnotism! Racist dances! Death!



(NB Due to technical constraints, the film will unfortunately not be shown in the original Hallucinogenic Hypnovision.)

#11 Kate's second

*The Bogey-man Cometh*

An evening in honour of the great Bogey-man, kicking off with 1946 noir classic, The Big Sleep. Private Investigator Philip Marlowe takes on a blackmail case set in a backdrop of a seedy, searingly hot, stormy and debauched L.A. populated by murderers, mobsters, debt-ridden party girls and callous good-time Charlies. Humph and Bacall's sizzling off-screen chemistry is clearly apparent on-screen. Bogey is electric, managing to exude a kind of shabby uber-cool sex appeal with style, charm and wit. Based on a Raymond Chandler novel, the film was directed by the great Howard Hawks with a screen play co-written by William Faulkner. With such delicious lines as 'Get up angel, you look like a pekinese' what's not to love?!


Then on to my personal fave Woody Allen film, Play it Again Sam from 1972, Woody's homage to the great man himself! Woody stars as Alan Felix, an unlucky-in-love film critic who, deserted by his wife, develops Bogey's Marlowe persona as an alter-ego to mentor him and improve his confidence with women, to great comic effect. Cue a great number of romantic disasters and misguided, cheesy chat-up lines like 'I love the rain. It washes memories off the sidewalk of life'.

A rare San Francisco set film for Woody (lots of lovely shots of trolleys and thrift stores) with a fabulous supporting cast; Diane Keaton has never been more adorable and Tony Roberts puts in a great comic performance as assured, dead-pan work-obsessed executive, Dick. This is also one of Woody's best performances as a scriptwriter and actor; he exudes a very natural charm. However, the film was directed by Herbert Ross (perhaps this enabled Woody to concentrate more on his own acting performance?). There are great slapstick moments and the film hangs together very well with a good linear narrative as opposed to a series of unrelated amusing comic sketches, which sometimes Woody is guilty of in other films. Perhaps this is in part due to the film having been based on a successful play by Woody.

#10 Emma's second

A *big* evening of *accidental anti-heroes* and *slightly baffling plots*:

First up, John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China (1986) is an action comedy that defies explanation, but very roughly: all-American 'hero' Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) loses his truck after driving it down an alleyway and getting side-tracked by the Lords of Death, deep in San Francisco's Chinatown. Wearing a wifebeater vest and tight blue jeans tucked into his boots, Burton just wants to pay his dues and get the Pork Chop Express back despite the best efforts of a shittle of Oriental bad guys waiting to beat his Occidental ass.

Next up, the 1998 Coen-helmed classic, The Big Lebowski. Do I need to tell you about the Big Lebowski? We've never seen it all together for some reason, despite quoting it at each other regularly/incessantly. The Dude Abides.

Were you born ready? Have you paid your dues?

#9 Jimmy's second

Alice (Jan Svankmajer 1988)

Unusual Czech live action/stop motion animated adaptation of Lewis Carroll's Alice In Wonderland. A real dusty attic retelling, with some impressive and bonkers re imaginings of familiar scenes and characters.

http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0095715/

Dellamorte Dellamore (Michele Soavi 1994)

This G. Gough approved low budget Italian movie is almost impossible to catorgorise. Although somewhat gory and having the trappings of a horror movie, its more of an absurd, deliberately baffling, black comedy. A surprisingly cool Rupert Everett in the starring role is an unexpected treat.

http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0109592/