Recently Seen, Part 2 (Mar 2017)

clayton-12

Member: Rank 4
For dramatic effect it's not a great film, but pretty interesting if your goal is to see something you've never seen before
On one of the old IMDb boards, I saw The Little Girl of Hanoi being reviewed by a bunch of folk who viewed it (generally unfavourably) from the point-of-view of it being a naked propaganda piece. While the criticisms they were levelling at it weren't invalid, I actually found it to be a really fascinating historical document. My recollection was that it was essentially post-war propaganda - although ostensibly set during Operation Linebacker II, the film wasn't so concerned with directly the people's anger at the imperialist aggressors, but instead had it's sights set firmly on building a sense of community that would rebuild a nation.
 

Zelena

Member: Rank 2
a naked propaganda piece.
Well, that's the thing about perspective, isn't it? It's hard to say what's propaganda and what isn't (in this war... especially). It sure looks like that if you're American (or Ozzie). But the things portrayed and said were not exaggerated or unrealistic; the portrayal of soldiers was not nuanced with moral ambiguity, sure, but also this was only showing the Hanoi front of that war, which makes it a lot more black and white than anything going on in the south. I'm sure people on the other side would say John Wayne's Green Berets was propaganda. We'd deny it. They would say, look, the US government provided all the helicopters and stuff for the Green Berets, and refused to for Apocalypse Now...conclude what you like. My feeling is that it's easier to denouce our own side, than to acknowledge, yes, the other side's denunciation of us is correct.
I actually found it to be a really fascinating historical document.
Me too. TLGoH was definitely very top-down and government produced feeling. It's not like they had an underground cinema scene in Vietnam in '74. It felt like it was made for consumption in the West, to generate sympathy. Where else are you going to see actual footage of B-52s getting shot down, in a Vietnam movie? It can't help but shift your point of view about our poor POWs being held in the Hanoi Hilton. Nobody has clean hands in war.

I was embarrassed by it. Yeah plenty of good moments, but John Goodman ruined it. All the yelling. I was feeling the discomfort of my co-watcher.
Ouch, I can see that. Definitely kind of stupid, kind of immature, and extremely American. Not on my shortlist for date-night movies. With Hudsucker, I definitely R-edOFL the first time I watched it, but somehow the second or third time Tim Robbins just annoyed me. I was howling at that JJL line "sa-badda-jim-whidda-da-dadda-who!"

I could probably get through an entire day at the office just quoting this movie.
Yeah, and if a frog had wings, he woulnd't bump his ass a-jumpin'

Yeah I thought the Khachaturian really reinforced the 1940s-50s thing so well. The Beethoven in TMWWT, not so much.
 
Last edited:

clayton-12

Member: Rank 4
It's hard to say what's propaganda and what isn't
I think I might take more benign view of propaganda that people generally do. I tend to subscribe to a definition that goes something like “spreading information or ideas with the intent to influence or change generally held opinions” – something that’s not inherently good or bad of itself, but just a natural part of how we organise ourselves in a society. Of course The Green Berets was overt propaganda, but what was the message of Apocalypse Now? “Kids, don’t seek fame and fortune on the boulevards of Hollywood, ‘cause you’re gonna end up frying your brains like Hopper and Brando” maybe?

I went back and checked the opening credits for TLGoH, and was a bit surprised to see it being credited as 1974. I had assumed that it would have been made post fall of Saigon – it struck me as having the post-war reconstruction effort in mind, with the sacrifices of the adults having been made, and the children safe and sound and looking towards a brighter tomorrow as the architects and engineers of the future.

What's up with the subs swimming around. lol
CGI?
 

Zelena

Member: Rank 2
with the sacrifices of the adults having been made, and the children safe and sound and looking towards a brighter tomorrow as the architects and engineers of the future.
Yes and I kept thinking when I was watching it, they did it, the made that future, but it took until 'now,' the past 10 years or so. Now Vietnam is finally a booming Tiger economy and is doing well. But they didn't get a Marshall Plan, they had to do it on their own and it took 40 years.

As far as the propaganda -- what could they [any North Vietnamese source in 1974] say that wouldn't sound like propaganda to American ears? That's what makes this film challenging and interesting. The American stance on the war has always been; we can say we're wrong [to each other], but they can't say we're wrong. I'm talking about every conflict. This is a universal human thing. I can't share your definition of propaganda. Opinions, like they say, are like rear-ends -- everyone's got one. And everyone wants to influence everyone else's. It's propaganda if it comes from a state, or some other political organ, which it basically does in the case of this film. But what can a state "say" that is not propaganda?

Let's hear your take, Señor Sitenoise.
What's up with the subs swimming around. lol
An attempt to outwit the copyright police. But not as clever as my cat-video ruse.
 

sitenoise

Member: Rank 5
I got busy and haven't watched it yet. Plan to over the weekend. In terms of Propaganda, I think I agree with both of your conflicting views (if I followed along correctly). An Ivory Soap commercial is Propaganda for Ivory Soap. Everything Donald Trump says is Propaganda. K-dramas are Propaganda. Japanese indoor women's Volleyball is not Propaganda. When a nation state picks and chooses the bits and pieces of a story to tell it's Propaganda. I think when it's used derogatorily the insinuation is that bits and pieces of the story have been left out. My position is that it is impossible to not do that. Only a point of fatigue forces us to stop talking.
 

sitenoise

Member: Rank 5
Bummer. I find being stuck with RED really unattractive. Along with the increasingly anorexic fonts that trendy designers adore so much. How close to illegibility can they get? What a stupid game. We're here, so I'll just break out my bookmarklets to blow away the bullshit and change the font to verdana. Have to find something to hide the 12 point rating system for posts. Is it really important that someone be able to express every little thing they feel with a chicken shit icon? Facebook ruined the web forever. I used to roam around this forum and post a lot. Now it's gonna be "get in, get out". I love you guys! heartzz.gif
 

divemaster13

Member: Rank 4
I've never been on FaceBook and have never "liked" a post or ad or news story or whatever else, before I did it a few times here b/c it seemed like a thing. But I agree having 12 icons to weigh in with an opinion is ridiculous. We are not toddlers. You'd think we could "use our words."
 

sitenoise

Member: Rank 5
FYI - I guess I'm not watching the Japanese V.League All Star Game tonight BECAUSE THERE IS NO STREAM. rage.gif

For the past few months China and South Korea ... I could get full HD streams of all the volleyball matches, through the Finals and All Star Game.

For the past few months I suffered through pixelated crap from Japan streaming through a Betting site, complete with big odds display throughout. The All Star game is tonight and it looks like there is no stream. I'm upset. I'm upset with Japan.
 

sitenoise

Member: Rank 5
Let's hear your take, Señor Sitenoise.
The best part of this so far is the girl's dad and his Korean-like over moisturized face. Very unSoldiery looking!. And the girl plays violin. Excellent. I'm loving it.
You and clayton offered advanced film critique I think might be above my pay grade. Is the question: Is this propaganda meant for internal or external consumption? Halfway through I'd say internal. "Little baby grow up and take care of Nixon!"
 

ebossert

Member: Rank 3
Highly Recommended

Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons (2013) (Chinese Fantasy Action/Comedy) (repeat viewing) – Two hunters (one mediocre and the other proficient) cross paths while fighting human-demon hybrids. This starts off with a very lengthy, creative, insane sea monster attack. Soon after, there’s a completely outrageous fight with a vicious pig demon. This film has such infectious energy, and the humor is actually funny. Shu Qi is not exactly an elite actress, but she’s fantastic in this role. This also has one of the best portrayals of the Monkey King that I’ve ever seen in a Chinese film. The CGI isn’t always convincing, but the positives far outweight the negatives. Director Stephen Chow gives us a crowd-pleasing genre-bender that expertly blends light and dark tones together. It has been reported that this “family” movie made little kids cry out of fear!

The Quiet Family (1998) (Korean Comedy) (repeat viewing) – Ji-woon Kim directs this film about a family who opens a lodge, only to be met with a series of unfortunate events that lead to the deaths of their guests, the family’s response to which is to secretly bury them in the nearby forest to avoid a shutdown of their business. This is a simplistic kind of humor, but it definitely works. Seeing Kang-ho Song and Choi-min Sik together in this comedy is definitely a treat. Ho-kyeong Ko is also really good, but she left the film industry at a young age. Takashi Miike remade this into “Happiness of the Katakuris.”

Recommended

Big Bang Love, Juvenile A (2006) (Japanese Drama/Thriller) (repeat viewing) – Ryuhei Matsuda and Masanobu Ando star in this dramatic thriller surrounding the investigation of a murder within a prison. Many of the set designs and special effects create a science fiction environment, while the score is predominantly atmospheric. Much of the style and structure are different from a typical crime film. For instance, question-and-answer sessions consist of written inquiry followed by verbal monologue by the interviewee. Character development is strong and the use of ambiguity is restricted to visual symbolism while the investigation itself is neatly wrapped up. Takashi Miike has offered a refreshing movie with some novelty.

Harakiri: Death of a Samurai (aka Ichimei) (2011) (Japanese Drama) (repeat viewing) – Takashi Miike directs this tale of revenge, honor and disgrace, centering on a poverty-stricken samurai who discovers the fate of his ronin son-in-law, setting in motion a tense showdown of vengeance against the house of a feudal lord. This is a remake of the 1962 original, so this is very similar in story but more grimy and visceral in style. It is very effective at showing that many of these people had lived in poverty. Consequently, this does get pretty dark in tone. Deliberately-paced but everything is developed nicely and the acting is top notch. Ebizo Ichikawa is fantastic in the lead role. Hikari Mitsushima and Eita are all great in this as well.

The Inerasable (2015) (Japanese Horror) – I (Yuko Takeuchi) is a mystery novel writer who receives a letter from Kubo (Ai Hashimoto), a reader of her novel and a university student. Her letter states that she hears odd sounds from a room in her apartment. I becomes interested by the letter and they begin to investigate, learning of people that lived in the apartment and their experiences of suicide and murder. Lots of narration here, but this movie does a good job of setting up the horror (there are some neat little foreshadowing events too). The scare tactics are legitimately creepy and nicely directed. They have some similarities to “Pulse”, and that is a good thing. Viewed without subtitles, but I’m gonna buy a subtitled DVD soon and rewatch it.

Cyber City Oedo 808 (1990) (Japanese Anime Action/Thriller) (repeat viewing) – This anime is an OVA (3 episodes, 40 minutes each) and is about three convicts who are allowed to reduce their prison sentences if they perform dangerous cop work (liking taking out cyborgs, vampires, and such). The writing isn’t especially strong, but I watched the English dub which is hilarious in its rampant vulgarity. We’re talking an endless supply of gut-wrenchingly riotous dialogue with some of the surliest anime characters you’ll ever see (they even curse at the robots!). The action is fairly cool and the animation is good. The second episode (involving the human vs. cyborg battle in the tower) is my personal favorite of the three.

The Wild Bunch (1969) (American Western Action/Drama) – Director Sam Peckinpah’s western epic tells the story of a bunch of aging outlaws whose botched plans to pull off one last job forces them to collude with a crooked Mexican general – leading to ugly bloodshed. This has a few big shootouts to enjoy, with a big bodycount. The direction and editing are generally good, but there are too many close-up shots and quick edits that made the geography and positioning of characters difficult to follow during some of the shootouts. The characters are all slimy and the film hits you over the head with it, but it’s still good stuff.

Not Recommended

Cold War 2 (2016) (Chinese Thriller/Drama/Action) – Picking up some time after the events in the first movie, our protagonist is now the Commissioner of Police after the successful rescue operation. However, things turn bad when his wife and daughter are kidnapped. This has a recognizable cast of Aaron Kwok, Chow Yun Fat, and Eddie Peng. Unfortunately, there is a lot of dry dialogue to sit thru, which really kills the pacing. The story simply isn’t interesting enough. There’s one good action scene near the mid-point (a shootout in a traffic tunnel) and a decent one near the end, but that’s not enough.

Moonlight (2016) (American Drama) – Growing up in drug-soaked Miami, a young man struggles to make his way thru adolescence while also grappling with being gay. This story is broken into three sections, each dealing with a different stage in the protagonist’s life. Unfortunately, each stage is less interesting than the last. Stage 1 – the “kid” years – starts off fairly well, mostly because Mahershala Ali helps to carry things (too bad he only has about 10 minutes of screentime). Things already begin to run out of gas during the second act. All of the characters, including the protagonist, are shallow, stereotypical caricatures with no depth whatsoever. Everyone in this movie could be completely described in one short sentence. With that said, there is some pretty good interaction between them, which is driven primarily by the acting and the theme of bullying, but the script is wafer thin. There’s simply not enough content or character development to carry a 110 minute film. It gets outright boring during act 3 and ends on a whimper.

Manchester by the Sea (2016) (American Drama) – A depressed uncle is asked to take care of his teenage nephew after the boy's father dies. This is a 137-minute movie about nothing. This is simply a compilation of awkward, repetitive moments between characters. The end. Environments are drab and the dialogue is underwhelming. Good luck sitting through this.
 

Daniel Larusso

Member: Rank 3
Manchester by the Sea (2016) (American Drama) – A depressed uncle is asked to take care of his teenage nephew after the boy's father dies. This is a 137-minute movie about nothing. This is simply a compilation of awkward, repetitive moments between characters. The end. Environments are drab and the dialogue is underwhelming. Good luck sitting through this.
True. I couldn't finish it.
 

Daniel Larusso

Member: Rank 3

The Tree of Life (2011) - 2nd viewing
This film had such mind-blowing images and some of the prettiest I've ever seen in film. Just like previous Malick films that I watched recently, this one also improved a lot in a 2nd viewing.
The New World experience is still unmatached though as I liked its concept a lot more and some of the scenes within the famiy in The Tree of Life got a bit tedious sometimes.
8/10


The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)
Pretty good comedy with a very original idea that created a lot of funny situations.
8/10


Rogue One (2016)
Good fun. This is a spin-off but it actually feels more like an episode than episodes I and II. I liked the story and the new characters, especially the one that is played by Mads Mikkelsen. But I also cared a lot about Jyn, Cassien and K-2SO. This film has a good pacing and characters don't waste their time with useless dialogue. I also think it had the right amount of action (just a few sequences until that long sequence in the ending). The film also looks really good especially in the planet with the beach.
7/10
 

sitenoise

Member: Rank 5
Shu Qi is not exactly an elite actress, but she’s fantastic in this role
I think Shu Qi is Top Tier, and I have almost watched this film because of her. It's gotten good reviews that seem gooder than the kind of good Mermaid got. Given your doubling down on it, I might give it a shot.

Have been tempted by Manchester for some reason but with two down votes here will probably give up.
 

plsletitrain

Member: Rank 5
Live By Night (2016)
Oh my god, somebody stop Ben Affleck. 1/10. Zero redeeming qualities. This film sucks brain cells out of your head.
LOL. I thought I'm the only one. I watched his other recent film, The Accountant and he could actually pass up as successor-to-Ryan-Gosling. I loved Gone Girl but thought he was mediocre. I posted it on FG and got a "wat u sayin?!" responses. Gah.

And I'll watch The Little Girl At Hanoi next, thanks its on youtube!
 

sitenoise

Member: Rank 5
Speaking of Volleyball. Comrade Z may like/comment this. I mansplained the quality of streams re: China, Korea, Japan. And that Japan was the only one we didn't get a live stream of their All Star game. I watched the HD streams of the Chinese and Korean All Star Games, and they were goofy/cute with carnival atmosphere. They mixed the boys and girls for some plays; the girls did some dance numbers and shook their booties to snippets of pop tunes after most plays. They seemed to be live-DJ'd. They did photo ops and goofy interviews. Nobody tried very hard and no one took it seriously. They were typical of All Star games we frumph off as silly fan service.

I found a stream of the last half of the Japanese Women's All Star game in crud quality with betting odds. It was a serious game, girls diving for balls and spiking hard. The only difference between this All Star game and a regular competition game is that the girls laughed when they made a point instead of being filled with joy. That seems to be their only party technique: laughing. There were no boys around, no music. No distractions. This was also the last game for Japanese Volleyball Institution Saori Kimura. She played for Japan in the last four Olympic cycles. She's 29 and still cute, do the math. The little non-ceremony for her following the game was embarrassingly uncomfortable in an attempt at quiet poignancy. The Japanese don't know how to party.

Saori.jpg
 
Last edited:
Top