This Netflix Has Not Been Rated

Amal directed by Richie Mehta (2007)

Last night was Amal, a pretty great movie about a taxi-wallah in Delhi? I'm not sure what city in India it was set, but which ever it was, it was gorgeous. It was made by a Canadian Richie? Mehta, and I figured he's related to Deepa, but no. I guess Mehta must be a common surname, or maybe it's just there's so many Indians it's more common. I know Koreans tend to have very few surnames relative to their big population maybe it's similar with Indians. Whatever for the names musing, because the movie was good.

It's got a spiritual feel to it, not adhering to any particular faith, but it does feel Hindu or Buddhist in its acceptance of the way things are. Don't sweat your station in life, because the rich ain't able to buy peace of mind. Kinda bullshit in a way, but very true at the same time.

It beat out Academy Award winner Slumdog Millionaire for best picture in the NY Indian Film Festival, so in a way you could say it's the best movie of 2007. I enjoyed it.

I joined Netflix - they're offering a Domino's pizza bonus gift card if you join up before the New Year, but I was already thinking of signing up. The pizza just pushed me over the edge.

My first pick was Breaking Bad, but no season 4, so I searched for a movie I ain't already seen. Slimmer pickings in that respect than I imagined. And since I'm connecting with a composite Wii, it looks kinda shit. I have to see if I can get a better resolution. Anyhow, I found summat I'd been wanting to see but never gotten to yet.

This Film Is Not Yet Rated, directed by Kirby Dick (2006)

It was okay, I mean I'm for sure interested in the subject of movie ratings/censorship, but I think a key area of the issues was totally ignored. They didn't bother to explain how the MPAA ratings impact the production and especially the distribution of a film. They were so busy showcasing the secretiveness of the organisation they didn't elaborate on the actual mechanics of the stranglehold the ratings have on the films. It's like the elephant in the room - everyone in the film industry implicitly understands the process so they don't need to explain? Perhaps it was fear. There was one point where the director of Boys Don't Cry is being asked whether she thinks her participation in the documentary will affect how her future products will be reviewed by the MPAA. You can see the wheels turning in her head as she says she hopes not.

It's a monstrous organisation and is ridiculously homophobic and sex panicky. It's such a self important and secretive dynastic cabal of a system, but it's real purpose isn't merely to monitor content, it shapes it through its terrible vetting system and I think its primary purpose is actually to deny validity for independent films which threaten the studios' domination of what goes for entertainment if Western culture. For the big studios, it all comes down to money, so film product must be kept within the most profitable ideologies. It seems like the religious folk are in control of deciding what the people should be watching, or at least they are defacto in control, and for sure they think it's their moral obligation to be the ones deciding what's moral for everyone else. It's a sad situation, and I'm glad that people like Louis C.K. and Kevin Smith are experimenting with distributing their product outside the current model.

Last was Tiny Furniture, directed by Lena Dunham (2010), a mumblecore set in NY. The main character is just home from college and moves back in with her about to graduate high school younger sister and their successful artist mom. I could identify with the main girl some, and it had good honest scenes, but it was pretty meandering slow and not much happened. I liked it okay.

Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol

directed by Brad Bird (2011)

150 million dollars to produce this high tech spyjinx, globetrotting thang. It's made $235 million so far and I feel bad that my ticket will contribute to its gross profit because that means I support more of these stupid action flicks being made.

 

How many inneresting stories could be made with that same amount of labour and money? I dunno. It was fun, but it was boring too. It's a great travelogue with spectacular stunts but who fucking buys the redonkulous superhero theatrics as anything approaching realism? I know it's a comic book story, and I guess I'm pretty much complaining about fast food cinema being fast food cinema. Still I can't help but be disappointed at the crap level of mindlessness and apolitical cynicism in these kinda flicks.

Vancouver subbed for Seattle and was the studio site of the green screen and indoor shoots I'm guessing. I recognised a couple spaces.

I wasn't planning on watching this one, I haven't even watched the previous 3, but the Oakridge Theatre is closing down and I wanted to see summat there one more time. It was this, Sherlock Holmes again or The Chipmunk Christmas flick. I'm glad there was something I didn't mind seeing though, because it was nice saying goodbye to the balcony seats.

au hasard Balthazar

directed by Robert Bresson (1966)


I watched Au Hasard Balthazar. The story of a donkey made me cry, well it didn't make me cry until I watched the interview that shows where it made the guy being interviewed cry and explaining why it makes him cry, then I was all yeah, tears, you can fall now. Joe put his hand on my knee and patted it like it was a dog and that made me aw tender guy but wtf, patting my knee? Give me a hug already, I guess it was just our positions watching the flick that made him do that.

 Anyhow, it's a good movie. I got pissed in the beginning because I thought it was about a donkey as a religious allegory of Jesus, but it starts off with these kids getting the baby donkey and it seemed like it was some gonna be some kinda wholesome family thing, and I'm all UGH about that some, especially since it's the holidays...but I knew it's a Criterion pick for a reason, so yeah, gave it a chance. 

It's a good flick.  Gonna keep my eye out for more Bresson's stuff.

The Darkest Hour of The Sitter in The Adventures of Tin Tin

3 movies tonight, and saved the best for last, so I'll lead with it here.

The Adventures of Tintin is probably my favourite 3D movie going experience of the year. Yeah, I'm gonna stand by that. Tintin is tops in my book. It was a fulfilling film, way better than Hugo at the 3D, but not because the technique was better, because Scorcese really dazzled at that. Tintin succeeded more because the story was so much better at non-stop adventure. It starts off with an amazing 3D title sequence done in old school animation, but really popping with the 3D, sorta like the titles of Casino Royale, then it movies on to the I dunno what to call it? Almost realistic human type animation? I think it's mocap stuff, but the people are all squat with massive hands, so the proportions aren't real, but everything looks kinda real. Video game real would be the closest analogy. It looks odd but good.

Anyhow, you don't have to be a fan of the original Hergé comics to enjoy this, though if you are you'll like picking up on the cover scenes and it's kinda awesome seeing cherished childhood icons brought to life. I never realised what a good egg Tintin was or that he was a teen, nor that Haddock was an alcoholic, though The Thompson Twins are as bumbling as I recall. If you like the Indiana Jones flicks, this comes really close to the spirit of those. I'm looking forward to the sequels and I'm sure there will be more. The main villain looks like Spielberg, so I figure the bad guy will look like Peter Jackson in the next.

The Darkest Hour was pretty okay 3D action. It maintained tension well for the most part. I was scared of the aliens and even though the deaths are telegraphed, I was surprised by one. Too much stupid girl needing to be rescued scenes, but the very cool Russian landscapes redeemed the story lacks. It's a fun movie, and I bet it'll be even more fun as a video game.

The Sitter, well I liked it better when it was Adventures in Babysitting. 

The only thing it really had going for it is Jonah Hill with his charismatic shtick. There were other funny performances but the movie is pretty fucking bad. I liked some parts of it, Sam Rockwell was good as the crazy drug dealer but the ethnic stereotypes were pretty wack, especially the way the adopted El Salvadoran kid was portrayed as a firebombing antisocial thug, but you know in spite of its flaws, I did enjoy it. It wasn't very long and it was often offensive, but it had a good heart.

Also, the trailer for The Hobbit looks amazing. I like that story better than Lord of the Rings, so I know I'll be anticipating that one. The 3D Star Wars? I think I'll pass.

BTW, I am so sick of movies about the 1%. SPOILERS!!!!

Jonah Hill's character easily scores $3 grand snatching envelopes at a super swanky bot mitzvah and then robs his dad's jewelry store? The Darkest Hour has Emile Hirsch and his jetting to Moscow to broker a deal for his 4squareish dating app, and Tintin has old Captain Haddock getting back his mansion and gearing up to recover his family legacy of a cargo hold of gold? Geez!! As Jonah Hill says to the kid in The Sitter, you ain't got problems, nope you've got money and I don't buy that mo' money, mo' problems bull, well it's prolly true, but hell I think most people wouldn't mind changing up their lack of money woes for mo' money woes.

A Very Harold and Kumar Christmas - 3D

directed by Todd Strauss-Schulson (2011)

It was amusing, especially considering I no longer fall within the target stoner demographic and I wasn't high. Stoners are pretty easy to entertain and I bet the 3D would have been that much more impressive for those that partook before hand. There's one section that's essentially a commercial for the technology. Step right up and getchur 3D TVs folks!

Aside from the running gag with the baby accidentally getting messed up on various drugs, it was chock full of decent fambly values. I liked Elias Koteas as the Russian gangster boss, but none of the other characters stood out much.  Oh yeah Patton Oswalt was funny, but he was barely in it.  I thought I'd like Danny Trejo's character more, but ehn, ethnic stereotypes kinda irk me. Actually, this flick is full of that kinda shtick, so I tried not to notice all the irksome bits. I couldn't help it though, because even though I was deliberately grading this flick on a curve for obnoxiousness, there were quite a few irksome bits related to sexuality that I didn't like. The bit with the guy wanting to get with the slutty virgin who couldn't get any was bleagh, also I didn't like Harold's replacement best friend who got stuck in the closet - was that some kind of joke about him being closeted? And I really disliked the continued use of the pathetic "star" cameo character - Neal Patrick Harris as Neal Patrick Harris and, you know what? He's not gay, that's just a ploy so he can manipulate his way into getting women to trust him so he can make super sleazy moves on them because he's just that fucking horny and unethical. These scenes making light of the dynamic of sexual assault were gross and off putting. Rape is not very funny, neither is lying about rape, but that was another scene and I don't want to go break down what all was messed up about that one. I guess I'll just end my criticism of this flick's sexual offences with this: sexuality issues can be amusing, but it's pretty easy to cross the line into offensive and insensitive.