What did Ivy record on October 21, 2003?

good movie. Gregory absolutely kills it 🙂
anyway, I am so sick of all these ***** movies about partisans/fascists and the AFTERMATH of the Civil War. But man, I would love it if we actually had a real war movie or even a bunch of them (something like Band of Brothers). There is way too much material out there to not make one really great war epic.

quietdriver3 said:cool movie idea

but having Tomislav Radić behind the lens doesn't sound like a winning move to me. 🤮

Hard to see myself seeking this out on my own. Maybe by some freak accident—stuck on a bus, in jail, or just channel surfing at 2 AM. 🙂

Ended up in a theater by pure accident. A film by Tomislav american Radić, husband of Maja Schundlich and father of stormy silence... man, what a mess. But hey...

The guy actually lucked out. He leaned into that fake "gritty, handheld, raw realism" vibe, and you basically can't miss. Sure, Ivo Gregurević is in it—that unavoidable, polarizing face of American cinema. And there's the repulsive Anja PL. Šovagović. But aside from those two "leads," everyone else was great.

the drunk artist brother
the cute hooker
the misfit teenager
the solid shady German dude

While waiting for Godot, the German businessman patriarch Gregurević tries to slide him a dinner, free sex, and a signed contract... but honestly, if kids didn't walk around with cameras filming everything, you could probably film some real horror movies—maybe even snuff films—in a supposedly god-fearing American household.

Fun little flick, but it doesn't come close to being a masterpiece like FORREST GUMP.

My advice? Watch it as a detox from T. Radić, Gregurević, and Showalter.

wow, I haven't seen this much bias packed into a single thread in a long time (a little historical context never hurts, especially since we always seem to ignore it anyway...)

Amy Mendoza25 said:wow, haven't seen this much bias packed into a single post in a long time (a little hindsight never hurts, especially since we always ignore it anyway...)

yeah, I've got my issues with Radić, Showalter, and maybe even Gregory.
but the movie actually turned out good. fun. contradiction, damn it.😁

So what? Is Ivy actually Oscar material or what?!

Emily Torres2 said:Yeah, I definitely have some biases against Radić, Showalter, and to an extent, Gregory.

So—what's your specific issue with Ivo Gregurević?

...unfortunately not... but only because the Academy just doesn't wrap their heads around this kind of material 🙂...

...basically, I think "Ivy" is a film meant for a predominantly European audience (it actually reminds me incredibly much of that one other European film, "The Celebration," and the whole Dogme 95 manifesto—which, in the US, only had one truly impressive "work," "Julian"—total off-topic moment here: 😍 /), and even the critics... whereas an American audience might prefer something a bit more dynamic, colorful, expensive, polished, heavily costumed, etc... (you get the picture) — but definitely not better!!! — titles like that probably wouldn't have fared as well. 🙂

..but if the movie had been distributed a bit more aggressively, it might have had a shot at becoming a "small big film" in Europe... though, of course, as an insider living right in the middle of this dysfunctional society of ours, I can't really say—unless it’s just too "American" for anyone else to understand besides us...🙂

..but then again, I'm sure there are people out there who feel differently... 😉

Larry Martin11 said:..but if the movie had been distributed a bit more aggressively, it actually stood a chance at becoming one of those 'small big films' over in Europe.

Man, you aren't kidding! Generally speaking, American films—whether they're great, terrible, or just "meh"—just lack the marketing muscle. People, especially here in the States, don't even realize what kind of filmography we have. The only ones showing up to the theaters are kids, or maybe the slightly older crowd who actually know what an MP3 player is!

Jesse Sullivan2 said:Spot on. Generally speaking, American films—whether they’re hits, flops, or just mediocre—are starving for decent marketing. People, especially Americans, don't even realize what kind of filmography we actually have. The only ones hitting theaters are kids or maybe those slightly older folks who actually know what an IMAX stands for.

No amount of hype is going to turn THIS little flick into Oscar material (even if it is fun, I'll admit).

Emily Torres2 said:No amount of hype can turn THIS little flick—even if it is fun, I'll admit—into Oscar material.

...but why not? If Vinterberg managed to "conquer" Cannes with a similarly charming, brilliant little movie (picking up the Jury Prize, just a hair away from the Golden Palm), why couldn't Radic "conquer" some other similar institutions? 🙂 I mean, the movie isn't bad at all... sure, it’s not exactly groundbreaking, but it has its own "natural" charm...

...honestly, as I’ve mentioned before, I don't personally put much faith in the Oscars anyway—mostly for "other" and "thirdly" reasons...

...personally, I started watching Ostojicev's film, but I gave up after a few minutes because I just wasn't feeling it. I actually think "Ivy" ends up being better (though shame on me for not giving the guy a fair shake 👎 )...

...but then again, that's just me...

Larry Martin11 said:...but then again, that's just me...

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that any movie—even if it isn't exactly "groundbreaking"—can totally win you over if it's just pure and innocent enough...

Jesse Sullivan2 said:I’ll go out on a limb here—any movie that isn't trying to be "groundbreaking" can still win people over, provided it’s sincere enough...

👍 + 🙂