Posts by rustyscout34

Interesting topic, unfortunately:

Koroshiya 1 (2001) - that scene where Kakihara tortures that poor guy, stabbing him, pouring stuff on him... a solid ten out of ten. (Maybe check out Imprint by the same director; there's a scene involving needles under fingernails that stands out.) 👍

Guinea Pig : Flowers of Flesh and Blood (1985) - the whole movie is basically just a torture scene. Only for people with really strong stomachs, I guess. 👎

August Underground's Mordum (2003) - just massive creeps raping and butchering corpses. Honestly, the most disgusting piece of trash I've ever watched. If you aren't into that, you're better off skipping it entirely. 👎

Cannibal Holocaust (1980) - besides the turtle being killed, there's that scene with the guts. It's a revolting film, but it’s actually more than just sadism and torture porn. It kind of makes you wonder if modern civilization is any more humane than life in the wild. 👍

Sodom (1975) - the entire film is filled with the torture of children. Everything from sexual assault to brutal violence. It tries to have an artistic note, maybe, but it's probably better not to watch it. 👎

Hei tai yang 731 (1988) / Philosophy of a Knife (2008) - they deal with historical events. Brutal, violent, and pretty heavy. 👎

Martyrs (2008) - even though some clueless people call it torture porn, it's actually much more than that. Sure, there's torture, but any horror fan really should see it. 👍

A few others worth mentioning:
Irreversible LOL (2002)
Day of the Woman (1978)
The Last House on the Left (2009)
Nekromantik (1987)
...

- Bruce Lee was actually tougher than Chuck Norris
- Mel Gibson just eats raw onions for breakfast
- Tom Hanks talks to tennis balls
- Tom Cruise is basically the last samurai
- Water is an alien killer
- Will Smith kills domestic pets—like dogs
- Steven Senegal survived two different sieges
- The Titanic definitely sank

placidjackal36 said:I guess that actually makes sense.
I guess I just want to know what the deal is with those calls to that kid who clears his throat after every single sentence, and all that shouting in the theater. Someone please explain. 🙂

Hmm, that throat thing feels a little off. Since one of the main themes here is how disconnected people have become, maybe that broken, disjointed way of speaking is tied to that. I guess it might have something to do with Buddhism—the whole idea of reincarnation and purifying the soul. Or maybe the throat cleansing doesn't actually mean anything beyond just creating a sense of dread. At the theater. It’s actually more about the dialogue than what's happening on screen. The visual stuff isn't even the main point; the real weight is in that conversation between Mitsuko (whose boyfriend ended his own life) and the director. Here's how that dialogue goes:

Boy: What was the point of showing up?
Girl: All children : are you related to yourself?
Boy: Or was the point actually to cut that tie altogether?
Girl: All children : are you related to yourself?
Mitsuko: I am I. And I'm connected to myself.
(kids clapping)
Boy: All children : are you related to yourself?
Look, just between us,
Victim and assailant... maybe there isn't much difference between them. I guess it just depends on how you look at things.
...you and your boyfriend.
All children : are you related to yourself?
All children : are you related to yourself All children : are you related to yourself
All children : are you related to yourself?
Once the rain evaporates, clouds start to form. I guess.
Once the rain evaporates, the clouds start to pull back together.
When clouds get heavy enough, it rains. Simple as that.

Notice how Mitsuko doesn't actually end up killing herself at the end? Instead, that song kicks in—the one mentioned above—which is basically an invitation to keep living. I guess the movie is actually celebrating life, even if it does so in a pretty bizarre way.

Just another quote:

Sono's work isn't exactly a walk in the park if you're hunting for simple explanations for why the epidemic in the movie is happening. I guess you could look at society as a whole and recognize the cultural impact of the internet age—all that bubblegum pop, smartphones, and constant digital noise that messes with how we relate to ourselves and everyone else. Life just moves too fast because of all this tech, and maybe we just fail to actually "connect" with the people we care about, or even with ourselves. To me, the film feels like a complex piece of filmmaking that tackles philosophical themes deeply rooted in Japan... and honestly, probably here in America too. I think the suicides are just a way to end that sense of total disconnection. It's definitely a gut punch.

p.s.
I thought you'd be more interested in those aggressive types, mostly because they usually have something to do with... I don't know, maybe it's just Shintoism....

placidjackal36 said:If they were actually aiming for horror, then that subway station scene was a total failure. You can throw all the circus music and gallons of blood at the screen you want, but it isn't scary unless the acting conveys actual suffering—which just didn't happen here. They managed to trigger a "WTF" or a "LOL" instead of an "EEK."
If they wanted true horror or a bone-chilling suicide scene—like that Jiàn Guǐ moment where the kid jumps from the skyscraper—they should have stripped all the blood away entirely.
The music is the only thing saving it; without it, the whole scene would be pure trash.

It felt more like they were going for some kind of black comedy, honestly.

I think the movie barely qualifies as a classic horror, and I doubt the director ever intended to leave anyone chilled to the bone. Like you said, blood alone doesn't make something a horror movie. It feels more like a mix of art-house horror and a thriller, with a heavy leaning toward the art side. Anyone who digs David Lynch or that "WTF" vibe will probably enjoy this, especially since it asks real questions and calls for change, unlike other films in the genre. My only gripe is that the director offers no solutions, just calls for change. That song I quoted earlier pretty much sums up wh4t 1z a11 ab0ut. Also, it wasn't trying to be a black comedy; it was satire, which are two very different things.

p.s.
Have you seen Bator? (Highly recommend)

Great thread you started. I watched this movie recently, so I might as well just quote myself here:

I guess we need to redefine things. Maybe there isn't much point, but whatever. Let's just start over. The user says:
Suicide Squad (2001) - after an excellent... Cirque du Soleil director Sion Sono I had to go back and watch another one of his major works. It was a film. Suicide Squad (eng. Suicide SquadI walked away with a pretty heavy impression. That opening scene where 54 students jump in front of a train together? It immediately signaled that this wasn't going to be your typical movie. The plot follows detectives trying to untangle the mess behind that mass suicide... but honestly, the whole thing is incredibly confusing for an average American viewer who doesn't know anything about the culture in Japan. I guess it’s also wide open to interpretation, which probably explains why the IMDb rating is so trash—people just didn't get it. The director was clearly aiming for a sharp social critique of modern life there—things like alienation, isolation, and how people feel disconnected from themselves. He also seems to be taking a jab at how shallow, brain-numbing pop culture is messing with the younger generations. If you've seen it, you'll probably notice what I mean. The first song. The Dessert groups are just full of mindless, disconnected nonsense and that one... Finally. The movie is packed with meaning, context, and this sense of optimism for change. It’s clearly driven by kids, which makes sense given how much Japanese culture prioritizes the younger generation. There's a huge focus on that stage of life, unlike in America where everything seems to revolve around a bunch of old fossils, lol. Even the depictions of youth suicide don't feel as heavy when you look at them through a Buddhist or reincarnation lens—though I guess that might rub some Christian audiences in the States the wrong way. You also notice the constant use of yellow; in Japan, that symbolizes courage (back in the day, warriors would wear a yellow chrysanthemum as a vow of bravery during wars in the 1350s...). There's probably a hundred more things to say about this film, which just goes to show how massive this director's talent actually is. Sion SonoThe style feels a bit off to me. Cirque du Soleil But honestly, he’s just better in every other way. Overall, I'd say it's a pass. 8,5/10A solid recommendation for anyone who loves Japan, no matter where you happen to be...Back in 2003, suicide rates in Japan hit 34,427 people. I guess.Goodnight, everyone...

The trailer just dropped. It’s alright, I guess. Maybe it looks better than the actual movie will, but who knows? It's hard to tell from a few snippets. I'll probably watch it again later.

placidjackal36, you actually hit the nail on the head in your first post. You captured the whole core of the film, specifically how you put it... I guess people don't talk enough about how isolating modern American society has become. It’s getting harder to actually connect with anyone. There’s this growing sense of alienation everywhere, just a massive disconnect between people that's starting to tear at the social fabric. Maybe it's the way we live now, or maybe it's just how things are heading, but the loneliness is real. It feels like everyone is just drifting in their own separate bubbles, totally detached from the community around them. It's a mess, honestly.The movie is heavy on metaphors. To really get what's going on, you probably need to understand Japanese culture, how their society works, and their specific views on spirituality and stuff. Even if you do, I guess there’s still plenty of room for different interpretations. Sion Sono is a massive artist, so it’s honestly not that surprising he hasn't quite clicked with Western audiences yet.

We had no idea how things were actually going to play out.
We don't actually know much, I guess.
Every day, we’re just hitting the keys...
...that run a million commands at once.

If you could just be direct for once.
Not much, I guess. Just thinking about things. Maybe just staring at the wall for a bit. Nothing specific comes to mind right now.
...and just lay it all out there. Tell me how you actually feel about it.
I guess I could step in and help out a bit. Maybe.

It’s pretty terrifying, honestly. But I guess it's a blast, too.
To really open up and actually feel that brand of life...
...for every single one of us.

Light Yourself with Life.
Light Yourself with Life.
Maybe just light yourself with life.
It only takes a tiny bit.
That takes some serious guts, I guess.

Spin back around and try taking
the whole thing over from square one.
Even if you feel like you're drifting
out of sync sometimes...
...or worry some dark curse
has taken total control of your life.

If there's any chance you actually feel
the same way about me...
...then come fill this empty space in my heart.
Maybe together we can find some light in the dark.

It's scary, I guess. But we could be happy.
Do you seriously want to just say goodbye...
...and leave me hanging like this?

Light Yourself with Life.
Light yourself with love.
Light yourself with memories.
As we move forward, we'll probably forget the
pain. We'll find life again.

Light Yourself with Life.
Light yourself with love.
Light yourself with memories.
All it takes is maybe just a little bit of
heart and courage from you.

David Price5 said:I honestly think the movie is confusing because it's just bad.

What if you watched it again? 🤷 😉

Vanilla Sky was halfway through when I just lost it. WTF!!! I turned it off... maybe I'll give it another shot once we actually have flying cars on the road...

Haha, this is an interesting topic. Here’s what I've gathered so far:

If you’re being hunted by some monster or a serial killer and you happen to be stuck in a horror movie, your car isn't going to save you. Even if you actually have the keys in your hand... I guess it'll probably be too late to start the engine anyway.

If you're being hunted by some monster or a serial killer and find yourself stuck in one of those horror movies where a group of friends is trekking through a dark cave or a creepy forest, it’s probably smart to stay at the front. I guess the person at the back is always the one who gets screwed over.

If you guys are in... I guess you could call it a slasher. Your chances of making it out alive aren't exactly great. I guess if you just kill off everyone else in the group, maybe they might improve.

If you happen to be a woman—and a hot one at that—and some serial killer is hunting you down, just know you’re definitely going to trip over absolutely nothing a few times before you die.

If you're actually, like, super hot, a serial killer is probably gonna kill you first.

If you’re a parent and your kid tells you they just watched a monster murder the neighbor, you probably won't believe them. Not until it's already too late.

If you happen to be an ethnic minority or Black in a horror movie... I guess you'll probably survive.

If some monster or killer is lying there half-dead and you’ve got a gun in your hand... I guess you probably won't pull the trigger until it's already too late. Maybe.

The bad guy always survives. It’s a trope, I guess. If they were going to make a sequel, maybe they could actually lean into that instead of just resetting the board.

Asian spirits usually have that long, flowing black hair. I guess.

A lot of movies that ditch background noise and music are basically just straight-up B-movies. I guess they try to act deep, but maybe it's just lazy filmmaking.

If a door or window is left wide open for no reason, you probably won't even suspect anything until it's already too late.

If you're some kind of kung fu master and someone goes ahead and kills you... I guess that just means you weren't as good as you thought you were. Maybe. Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like I'm losing my grip on this whole situation. It feels like things are slipping through my fingers. I don't know. Maybe I'm just overthinking it. Either steal an elephant or whatever—just know one thing for sure: you'll get your revenge in the end.

Hollywood actors. Never. They aren't flying in second class.

Stealing a car is... I don't know. It's just wrong. Maybe it's more complicated than people want to admit, but at the end of the day, it's still a crime. Easy enough. All you really need is... Just connect those two wires down there.

If a brawl breaks out in an American pub, everyone’s getting involved. I mean, absolutely everyone. Even the guys who were just sharing a round a second ago.

If you're the lead actor and you're dropping some heavy dialogue to your co-star, you better make sure that eye contact doesn't drag on for more than five seconds. Otherwise, you're probably going to cause a pileup or run over some innocent bystanders. I guess.

If you end up behind bars, there's a pretty good chance the person you're quoting from the Bible will actually know the next verse.

If you're standing right next to a wet dog, you might as well get ready to hop in the shower.

When you're ordering a steak, this is what actually matters. rare I mean, if they actually said it... Medium rare. I guess that's how some people like it. Maybe. That auntie would have tripped right in front of the camera.

If you’re young and wear a bow tie, you’ll end up clashing with some unbearable conservative. If you’re old and wear one, you’ll probably just run into some weak-willed liberal. I guess.

If you're holding a glass or anything else fragile when you get bad news, it's probably going to drop. I guess it's just one of those things. It'll happen 100%.

It’s just impossible to pull off a convincing death scene.

I guess if you’re important enough, there probably isn't a bullet out there that could actually take you down. Maybe.

Massive, overcrowded cities like... New York City Whenever you show up somewhere for the first time, they always seem to have a reserved parking spot waiting just for you. I guess it’s just how some places work.

If you're a white cop, I guess your partner has to be either a dog or a Black guy.

It always seems to be raining or overcast when there’s a funeral. I guess that's just how it goes.

There’s always a way to make a bad situation even worse. You lose your job, you walk through the door, and then your wife tells you she's pregnant.

It doesn't really matter how hard you mash the keys. You’ll eventually get the interface and the data you’re looking for. I guess it’s probably better to type faster just to make the whole thing feel more impactful.

After you survive an explosion, you’ll only ever be dirty on your cheeks—never on your nose. I guess.

Sexual assault in men's prisons happens more often than nuclear fission. I guess. Maybe.

Sometimes, arrows actually pack more punch than helicopters. I guess. Maybe.

It’s just more profitable to be sorry, I guess.

Coughing up blood is basically a sign that you're 200% dead.

If you’ve got something vital to tell someone, don't do it over the phone. I guess if you try, there's a pretty high chance you won't make it much longer.

Killing an animal is a bigger crime than any atrocity committed against a human being. I guess. Maybe.

Anyone can pick up an instrument and play. It’s not that deep. Mozart. As long as you can't see his hands and his head at the same time.

Ebert's first rule of symbolism— If you actually have to ask what something symbolizes, then it doesn't symbolize anything. Period.

- most of the time, a bomb blast just sends you flying while you're still in one piece, rather than actually shredding you to bits

- all Asians know martial arts, all Latinos can dance salsa, all Russ are KGB agents or mobsters, and all people from the North America are just ugly, dumb, unrefined thugs and smugglers...

- if the world ends, aliens will probably just rescue some kids and two rabbits and take them back to their home planet

- it's always foggy in Seattle

- running in high heels isn't exactly a disadvantage

- maybe the stupider you are, the better your chances of surviving a monster or a serial killer

- little kids are usually smarter than adults

- if you have something important to say, you'll find a way to say it—even if you've taken 34 bullets

- zombies move sooo fast

- I guess you have a better chance of surviving a duel if your weapon is worse

- schools are packed with super smart, talented, but difficult kids

- if you fall from a skyscraper, there's a good chance you'll land on a car

- handling bombs is stupidly easy—even a baby could do it

- if you're running from a hail of bullets, you'll always manage to find cover

While you're waiting for the movie to show up, you might want to check out this really well-designed and informative site:

the official site
+
Marc Webb interview Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Joseph Gordon-Levitt interview
Zooey Deschanel interview

some hi-res photos:


p.s.
In less than three days since I started this thread, the movie climbed from 154th to 129th on the IMDb Top 250 list. 👍

But I guess Ed Wood was just so bad that he actually became good (Plan 9 from Outer Space is a solid 10/10), or at least enough that his Burton biopic managed to snag two Oscars, lol. I doubt Jack will ever hit that level of cult status or popularity, even if his work is way more amateurish than Wood's.

Michael Ortiz68 said:I haven't liked Jack Sedlar's previous films for one simple reason: they're garbage. It has absolutely nothing to do with patriotism or anything of the sort. That doesn't mean this upcoming film will be more to my taste. You seem to be asking if this is a discussion about a movie, yet you've smothered it in political rambling. I don't believe anyone here is actually debating the crimes of Hitler or Stalin; there is a dedicated "Politics" subforum for those debates, so I suggest you take it there.

I second everything said here! 👍
If you ask me, the movie should have been titled Adolf Hitler with a Facelift and Penis Enlargement by Jack Sedlar. This will probably just be another one of Jack's cinematic trips into the messy, failed parts of history. Maybe the movie won't be the absolute worst thing ever made, but its stench will definitely knock people unconscious and cause acute brain hemorrhages. Personally, I see Jack as an American version of Shyamalan, except Shyamalan actually has an "unexpected twist," whereas Jack's films just poke at "national pride." In any case, both are extremists of bad filmmaking. Look, Jack, if you're reading this, maybe just quit directing and go pick up a shovel or a hoe instead... best regards.

Amanda Lopez50 said:...'obsession' with Quentin Tarantino, the American enfant terrible who somehow managed to film the now cult classic Pusher back in the mid-90s—a movie that basically became a precursor to 'dogma before dogma' (95)—which launched the then-young Mads Mikkelsen into the spotlight, and even paved the way for our own Zlatko Burić to build a successful career abroad.
...
But, is a film like that still worth watching today?
I guess so. Because Tarantino knows his stuff, he isn't an amateur, and his cinematic 'growth,' hopefully, is just a lead-in to things bigger, greater, better... Valhalla? Maybe. Something after? I surely hope so.

Lars von Trier offered him a chance to direct Dear Wendy (2005), but he turned it down.

wow, props on this great post! 👍
You actually convinced me to put Charles Bronson on my must see list. Pusher too, though I don't really get the comparison to the Dogma 95 concept (watched The Celebration yesterday, pretty intense film 🙏)?

p.s.
glorification of violence from zo 😂

(500) Days of SummerWatermark, 2009.
Duration95 minutes.
Format: 2,35:1
Sound.SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS
DirectorMarc Webb
The script.Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber
GenreComedy | Drama Romance
Acting.: Joseph Gordon-LevittZooey Deschanel, Geoffrey Arend, Chloë Grace Moretz, Matthew Gray Gubler, Clark Gregg, Patricia Belcher, Rachel Boston, Minka Kelly, Ian Reed Kesler, Darryl Alan Reed, Valente Rodriguez

PlotlineTom Hansen is this melancholy guy who makes his living writing messages on postcards and greeting cards—that’s actually his job—and he spends his time dreaming about finding that one perfect partner. Then Summer Finn walks into his office, and he’s instantly hooked... I mean, pretty much any guy who meets her would be. But right from the jump, Summer makes it clear she isn't looking for anything serious; she just wants casual, no-strings-attached fun. They start seeing each other, and for Tom, Summer is clearly "the one," the perfect match. His friend tries to warn him, though, saying he's just going to end up heartbroken. The movie 500 Days of Summer actually starts at the end of the romance, then moves through various stages of Tom and Summer's relationship using flashbacks.

IMDb link
trailer
HD trailer.

I guess some lucky people might have had the chance to catch the premiere. 500 Days of Summer It popped up at one of those many festivals. It’s hitting US theaters this September. Just a little while longer, yay! Starring... Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Mysterious Skin, Brick, The Lookoutwhich sent me into pure euphoria after that incredible performance at... Mysterious Skin He’s basically the main reason I’m even looking forward to this movie. Plus, she’s this charming young woman with a really unique voice. Zooey Deschanel (Yes ManAside from being excellent. soundtrack Based on the reviews so far, this movie—which features a soundtrack spanning pop and rock from the 80s to today—actually manages to pull off an unconventional love story. Most critics seem to be comparing it to 500 Days of Summer. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless MindI guess I have a feeling this might end up being one of the biggest hits of the year, especially considering how high the ratings are looking. I guess Rotten Tomatoes is just what it is. It’s fine, I suppose, if you need that quick hit of consensus before deciding whether to bother with a movie or not. It doesn't really change much for me, though. Maybe some people find it helpful, but I don't see the big deal. (currently has 89%I don't know what you're trying to get at here. Maybe there's more to say, but honestly, I guess it's just incomplete. on IMDb (currently has 8,7/10 And it’s sitting at number 154. Top 250.). Roger Ebert He gave the movie a full four stars! I guess we'll just have to wait and see if he was actually right about that... 👍

Anthony Smith3 said:This title was basically made for gamers, specifically those obsessed with online FPS titles. We're looking at a new flick from the directors of "Crank," Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, who are leaning hard into that online multiplayer vibe. Based on the trailer and their previous work on "Crank"—which was easily one of the wildest and most fun action movies out in recent years—expect this to be a total adrenaline rush from start to finish. It feels like a mashup of "The Running Man" and "The Matrix." Gerard Butler takes the lead, supported by a massive cast including Alison Lohman, Michael C. Hall, John Leguizamo, Keith David, Terry Crews, Ludacris, Zoe Bell, Kyra Sedgwick, Amber Valletta, and Milo Ventimiglia. The movie hits theaters in early September...



IMDB

TRAILER - Italian

PLOT

In the not too distant future, Cable, a death row inmate, has unwittingly become a pop culture hero. Every week, millions worldwide tune in online to watch him and hundreds of other convicts battle in Slayers, an ultra-violent multi-player online game invented by technological genius Ken Castle. To the wealthy young gamer who controls his every move, Kable is just a sim (simulation) character. To the resistance group that opposes Castle’s games as high-tech slavery, he is a critical element in their battle to take down the inventor. Caught in the crosshairs of two opposing forces and under the command of a teenager, Kable must use his extraordinary fighting skills to escape the game, Castle and overthrow the system.

IMAGES

Judging by the trailer and that shaky over-the-shoulder camera work, I’d say this isn't an fps at all, but rather a tps. So, I don't think the inspiration is Halo, Doom, CoD, or Half-Life; it feels more like Resident Evil 4/5 or Gears of War 1/2... since it's from the creators of Crank, I guess I'm expecting at least some decent action and fun.

Living in Canada is nice, I guess, assuming you aren't just watching movies all day... I get what you mean about language. I suppose when you use a language more often, you start connecting with the words differently. Maybe that’s just how it works for everyone. For me, anyway. jerk Sounds less offensive than... piece of trashlol. also, it’s pretty important to me that the movie is...Storytelling is a medium. I guess that’s how some people see it. Maybe. It’s just a way to pass things along. Not much more than that, really.Nah, I don't really need that. I can enjoy a movie even if the plot is hidden—or even just plain nonsensical—by leaning into low-brow interpretations and how subjective the whole experience feels. I guess I just doubt that... David Lynch Even though he's incredible, I guess he's easily the greatest director ever (besides... Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, Akira Kurosawa, Woody Allen, Stanley Kubrick, Jean-Luc Godard, Ingmar Bergman, François Truffaut...I guess, in my opinion... David Lynch The problem, and honestly maybe the genius part, is that his visual context is just all over the place. Sometimes it’s way too wide for my taste, and other times it feels completely off. I guess that's just how it is.EraserheadI guess there’s some kind of analysis happening here. Maybe. I don't really see much to go on. Nicholas Gessler That's pretty interesting. Thanks for the link. Bye.

John Taylor19 said:Auuuu, where the hell did this all go wrong.......😕

What kind of post is this? 😕
If you don't actually have a comment or an opinion on conditioning, why bother trolling like this? It's just useless. (Not a question, so don't even try to answer me here!) 🤷

Gerald Barrett25 said:Wait until you hear what I call Indian movies... 🤣

We all need to stand together against this kind of exclusion and prejudice—and maybe even oppression if we have to, 🤣. It just holds everything back. It’s a massive roadblock to progress and any kind of productive movement, including filmmaking itself. If we didn't have directors and artists like Park Chan-wook, Wong Kar-wai, Yoji Yamada, Ang Lee , Chen Kaige, Takashi Miike, Kim Ki-duk, Sion Sono (not to mention the old guard!),.. the world would be missing out on top-tier cinema. We cinephiles would lose the kind of enjoyment that the rotting West and America just can't provide. So, I guess my joke is: Cinephiles of the world (or at least this forum), unite! 👍

Quote: Legion

Gerald Barrett25 said:Look, maybe after being away from the States for twelve years, I’ve lost my edge when it comes to expressing myself in English... but I'm looking back at what I wrote, and I still don't get it. I have no idea how someone could totally misinterpret what I was actually saying.

Alright, let's just break this whole thing down to nothing...

Thanks for trying to explain things, I guess. Not like you're Tadijanovic or anything, so there's no way for me to actually know what you mean when you throw out metaphors like the tip of the iceberg or that whole made-up "Hollywood sucks" movie gestalt thing. I guess there’s this whole idea about the Anglo-Saxon movie gestalt. Maybe it exists, maybe it doesn't. It feels like a certain way stories are put together over here in the States. I don't know. It's just an observation, I suppose. If you search Google, you won't find these specific phrases anywhere else on the web besides this forum. I guess you could express the same idea using simpler language, but that actually takes more effort. It’s much easier to just throw out some wordplay and let people here try to decipher what the poet meant or figure out if they were using a word in its broad or narrow sense. I suppose I can agree that language isn't the cause of conditioning, but rather a necessary consequence of it. On the other hand, I don't really buy your explanation of conditioning through the lens of gestalt. If that were true, it would mean every single Anglo-American movie fits into that gestalt—because for something to be conditioning, it has to be something general, not something specific or isolated. Objectively speaking, I think there are way more exceptions to your theory than there are rules. Your attempt to explain conditioning through gestalt doesn't really hold up; the whole idea of a singular Anglo-American cinematic gestalt falls apart. Maybe it applies to maybe 2 or 3% of movies, but trying to lump all of American cinema into one single gestalt is a pretty bold claim. 👍

P.S.
Where did you forget the American language? If I may ask.

Gerald Barrett25 said:Interesting topic... I guess language is just the tip of the iceberg when you look at what might be called an Anglo-Saxon cinematic gestalt. Maybe this gestalt involves some fundamental stuff, like how Hollywood stories always seem to focus on that Protestant-style individualism. It feels like there's this constant "journey" paradigm in almost every movie—whether it’s a hyperbolic internal journey where a character undergoes a massive change, or just a literal road movie. At its core, everything revolves around this hero-type idea that connects with the audience on a personal level, making the act of watching the film feel like a journey itself.

Heh, I always just assumed movies from the UK were categorized by genre, director, release year, or where they came from. Turns out—they're all just lumped together. paradigm Travel and religious individualism. First off, I'm just wondering why on earth people even use that phrase. Maybe some people find it interesting, but I guess there isn't much to say about Anglo-Saxon films. It’s just one of those niche things.By definition, we’re talking about Old English. You almost never hear it used in movies set in English-speaking regions—honestly, it's incredibly rare. I mean, we're discussing literature here, but when it comes to film, it's barely there at all.

Old EnglishOld English, which some people also call Anglo-Saxon, is an... Maybe it’s worth looking at the early stages of how the English language actually formed. It didn't just pop up overnight. You have to go back to Old English—the stuff spoken across parts of what we now call England and southeastern Scotland between the mid-5th and mid-12th centuries. It's pretty much the foundation for everything we're using today. I guess people forget how much that specific era shaped our modern way of speaking. that was spoken spoken and written in parts of what are now England and southeastern Scotland Between the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century.

So, you're going to use that "inappropriate" Anglo-Saxon term to label movies from English-speaking regions, even though by definition it's something else entirely. Plus, you basically lumped all those Anglo films under the concept of gestalt—that German word for form or shape—and treated that form like some kind of universal paradigm. Honestly, to generalize the entire history of Hollywood like that, you have to be pretty brave. I won't even get into the other insults and adjectives I could use. It’s just a lot. It's a long way off. It’s hard to talk about objective truth here. I guess my take is that we've always been culturally aligned with Western traditions, so it makes sense that our taste in movies followed suit. On the flip side, there's the undeniable fact that throughout the 20th century, Hollywood basically functioned as the global standard for filmmaking. It wasn't just an option; it was the industry itself.

Gerald Barrett25 said:It's a far cry from those shallow, Euro-trash existentialist musings or that over-the-top, theatrical Asian melodrama that people over here always lap up just because it feels exotic.

Why call it trash? Labeling Asian cinema as nothing more than theatrical overacting can only come from someone who hasn't actually watched an Asian film, or maybe just someone harboring a massive amount of prejudice against them. Who knows, maybe you think Bruce Lee is the only paradigm for Asian filmmaking? Honestly, I don't like the elitism, especially when it's this superficial. Best regards, and don't take this the wrong way. 👍

Review of Metastasis:
'The movie established itself as a distinct psychological study of a group of urban outcasts shaped by the scars of local reality. It stands out due to its flawless sense of framing and scene composition, which allows for a convincing blend of documentary and scripted elements.' 🙂

To me, it was just an okay movie. I guess if anyone actually noticed that "flawless" sense of framing and scene organization, they're better at watching movies than I am. Here’s the interview with Schmidt here.

northerncrane4 said:Whatever. I watched that Kazakh film "Tulpan" this afternoon. It was actually pretty good. Highly recommended, if you can even find it anywhere.

Tried, but unfortunately, still nothing... The DVD for Tulpan is coming out September 22, 2009. Whether they're alive or dead... Roger gave him 4 stars. 👍