What was the last film you watched? part 4

Get Out, some superb acting, there were parts where just a strained look made me feel very vulnerable. And yet comedic moments were really funny and I didn't really feel any mood whiplash when the film moved from awkward fish out of water comedy to brutal mental horror.

Also a pretty clever and cutting look at race in American society.

Ex Machina. I was slightly surprised to find it boring and annoying. The main character feels very empty and I laughed several times in places I don't think I was supposed to. I didn't like the cinematography. It has some interesting ideas but overall it's not a good film. I can't decide whether or not this film was better than another film the director made, Annihilation.

Hot take: Annihilation is a great movie to watch on acid, but other than that it's just an inferior imitation of Tarkovsky's Stalker (1979).

Same

I went to see BlacKkKlansman with some friends, I think we caught the last showing. Its pretty difficult to talk about, I guess its a really dark comedy the kind that has pure comedy bits and pure dark drama, which is joined together by a few scenes that mix the two.

I didn't laugh very much, but that was because I was usually still chewing over the really ugly racist violence in a scene or two before. My friends laughed a lot more. Its kinda flawed a bunch of the supporting characters seem to just do what the plot needs to move on regardless of consistency, especially the police chief. Its also weird how police racism is shown to be the fault of one bad copper and just general cluelessness from the rest of the force.

I think it would have been better if they ditched the police entirely really, the politics is very confused, though thankfully its examinations of racism and the politics of the south and Klan and groups like it is a lot more focussed and coherent. One of my mates went and looked up the real events and that may explain why the police parts were so mushy, I think on reflection it was the best they could do while still keeping it "based on a true story". Probably should of gone full fictional.

Oh and it doesn't shy away from the horrific racial violence in the states, there's one part where they discuss an historical racist murder in graphic detail and show photo's of the event that were taken at the time (and then later sold as postcards).

The ending was very effecting, really powerful stuff.

I think its worth watching and picking the bits out of the mess.

Sorry To Bother You opens in the UK December 7th. Highly recommended.

My recollection of this is that for a while I found it horribly irritating - the performer really lacking charisma and the audience laughing their asses of at stuff that wasn’t even funny, and all this seemed to come at me through a beige filter of liberalism. I only carried on watching it because my daughter recommended so strongly.
Anyways, I trudged on and somehow, I’m not really sure at which point, I found myself drawn in. By the end of it I was hanging on her lips, it really took my breath away. As Jeff said, I really was deeply moved by it, amazing.

Wow, I know literally nothing about Nanette, but these are some pretty powerful testimonials, makes me want to see it for myself.

An uplifting tale about an immigrant loser called 베놈. *bicep emoji*
https://pann-choa.blogspot.com/2018/08/theqoo-korea-vs-japan-movie-poste...

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/aug/20/boots-riley-spike-lee-black...

Thanks for the review! I wasn't sure about this movie but now I'll probably see it.

The last ones I've watched are:

Tampopo - Japanese 'food western' from 1985 about a woman, Tampopo, who wants to become a better Ramen chef and is helped by a gallant truckdriver. Dumb sexist premise but actually a very fun film.

David Lynch - The Art Life - Beautiful documentary about David Lynch as a visual artist, also his youth memories, but mostly you see him working, i.e. paint/draw/sculpt with mud or any other of material.

On one hand it's really annoying that the delay's so long, but on the other I suppose that's right at the start of the works Xmas do season, so maybe seeing it immediately before might be good for inspiring a few people to take a swing at their managing directors while pissed.

Saw sorry to bother you last night thought it was alright perhaps I was over-hyped but thought there would be more emphasis on union and the strike in the movie. Was lucky enough that an art house cinema was showing it and and someone who lives in northern europe I did not it would be screened where I live but it was rather funny movie and the audience laughed a lot during the movie but more in the first half

CLASH (the a is a graffiti style Anarchy A), a film about the Egyptian revolution filmed almost exclusively within the back of a police truck. The as the film goes on more and more protesters from different backgrounds and political groups are dumped in the back as the police and army move to drive the Muslim Brotherhood from the streets and in the process often attack pro army demonstrators.

The political divide is between the Muslim Brotherhood and the pro army side, with two AP journalists caught in the middle, but the social backgrounds and personal ideas of the dozen or so prisoners is very mixed.

Although the film concerns police repression on a mass scale the police and army are still human, some are abusive and insulting, some just doing what they're told and apathetically standing around until stones start flying, some are pretty sympathetic to the prisoners but the officers use of extreme discipline keeps them in line.

Also while there some riot police action and one scene in the middle that breaks the only showing the truck and what can be seen from the windows where police brutally beat a captured fighter, most the violence is a result of imprisonment itself. The prisoners are crammed in prison vans without water or toilets and left in the heat.

It was also interesting to see how the MB functions, it'll be very familiar to anyone with experience of the various vanguard parties, complete with segregation of full members and supporters.

It handles the confusion of street fighting very well too.

The MB took direct inspiration from Leninist parties; indeed they more or less copied their structure, hierarchy and party discipline.

Although not a movie I really liked the newest season of daredevil

SPIRIDONOVA - ARMED LOVE by Class War

I really enjoyed this. It's like nothing I have ever seen before. Although I am probably just not aware of other films like this. If there are others please let me know.

It took me a few seconds to get past any expectations of acting to appreciate this storytelling. In fact, the lack of any attempt at slick production, two fingers at professionalism, and the need to be inventive, to work with what you got, to nick what you need, was a big part of what made it compelling.

https://youtu.be/cv6Kn1ixAv0

I am surprised there is no reference to this film here (not that was found by search anyway). Do you think it is rubbish?

I've not seen it myself yet, but people may be interested to see Nae Pasaran when it comes out in November: https://naepasaran.com/upcoming-screenings/

"1974. In protest against Pinochet’s brutal military coup in Chile, Rolls-Royce factory workers in Scotland refuse to repair and return Chilean jet engines used on the day of the coup and leave them to rust in the yard, prey to the Scottish weather. After four years, the engines mysteriously disappear and the boycotters are told their action had been in vain.

40 years after their defiant stand, the workers, along with the Chileans involved, discover the incredible impact of one of the longest single act of international solidarity."

Hey thanks for sharing I probably wouldn't have heard of this film, its pretty well done.

I watched it, too. I'd never heard of Maria Spiridonova. She seems like she was really awesome. Her speech where she talks about the importance of love in revolution made my heart glow. And there were a few LOL's, like, "Don't worry, people, it's just a grenade in the balcony!"

It's super low budget and it shows, and the acting is what you'd expect from a bunch of people who clearly aren't actors, but I didn't mind. It was an entertaining way to learn about an admirable historical figure and comrade.

Edit: I googled quotes from the speech I like and can't find it. I hope they didn't make it up. But perhaps it's just not online.

Yeah I haven't been able to find much by or about Spiridonova online, the closest was a chapter in a book by Emma Goldman.
http://libcom.org/library/my-disillusionment-in-russia-emma-goldman-16

Since the rest of the rest of the speeches are real and the events are very accurate and there's generally not much online about the Left SRs at all I'm guessing they based the script off a rare book a member had.

This scan does cover some of the events of the film http://libcom.org/files/cmr_1252-6576_1997_num_38_1_2483.pdf

There also is this article by Alexander Rabinowitch:

https://sci.libgen.pw/item/detail/id/59e6b4d93a04465a6afedc3b

Thank you!

I also finally managed to see Peterloo, something my local cinema made almost impossible due to its restricted showings.

Anyway, it was honestly very good, I don't feel comfortable saying I enjoyed it, because the main emotions it made me feel were anger and sadness. It didn't pull its punches and it resisted making Hunt into a sort of messiah and showed his many personal flaws.

The hypocrisy and casual brutality of Regency England was clearly demonstrated, but didn't feel propagandistic or distorted. It also held my attention throughout.

Saw Sweet Country, an Australian Western that directly focuses on Australia's race relations and history of colonialism. Its incredibly authentically shot but its very grim and depressing. The plot also involves one of the most disturbing rape scenes I've seen. Its shot totally in the dark but the scenes pacing and sound is really unsettling.

It also uses an aboriginal language called Arrernte extensively. I recommend it but its pretty heavy in its pessimistic tones.

Beast. A++

Queen - v arrogant.

Aggretsuko
https://youtu.be/1n3xXuEyr40