Xander ,'First Date'
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This is all interesting, because I think story, as such, is the least important part of a film to me. I want it to be pretty, and I want it to have characters. Often, characters and story are entertwined, part and parcel of the same thing, but that's not always true.
This is why I adore Lost in Translation while many don't, because I love the characters. Nothing happens in the movie. But it's pretty, and there are characters I can get into. That's what I need.
A lot of people think Godfather 2 is actually the superior film...I've not actually seen three for myself figuring, if it sucks, that's a sad way to spend two + hours.(But I shouldn't skip any mafia movies and I fucking survived "Casino", no?) I think that the Godfather makes some significant points about family bonds, but I will admit to not finding them Significant with a capital s...I'm just saying I don't think it is without story.
A lot of people think Godfather 2 is actually the superior film.
Because it is! As Nutty notes, Godfather 1 is gorgeous pulp. Godfather 2 is as close to Shakespeare as American film gets.
I grew into Grease.
After I grew out of it, I mean. First time round it was the most marvellous film ever (I was 9, and there was mooning). Second time round it was childish and silly (I was 16, and there was mooning). By the re-release it was a movie with fun bits wrapped around dumb bits, and I've liked it about evenly since then.
I love GF2 deeply, but I'm not sure if it is because of my thing about, you know The Thing. Crime and criminality in general interest me more than the average, you know. But it has so much to say about America, and starting a new life, and... ETA: ita is me, in re Grease. I remember thinking I was very cool for getting the smutty bits, which is a pleasure I still enjoy, come to think of it.
This is why I adore Lost in Translation while many don't, because I love the characters. Nothing happens in the movie. But it's pretty, and there are characters I can get into. That's what I need.
I felt like there was a great movie struggling to get out. I loved the scene where they talked in bed. I loved "That was the worst lunch ever." There were a lot of nice moments, but they were few and far between. You make an interesting point about character and story not always intertwining, but I think it's hard to learn about characters unless they're in some semblance of a story. Even if it's just a narrator telling us about them, that counts as a story. It's storytelling.
Oh, and since I was just thinking about it yesterday, another movie that I didn't see the love for: Y Tu Mamá También. (Also, I hated 21 Grams .)
(grumbling) But I see your point about LiT. Not that I disliked it.
Because it is! As Nutty notes, Godfather 1 is gorgeous pulp. Godfather 2 is as close to Shakespeare as American film gets.
Heck, yeah. Although lots, and maybe all, of my favorite movies are pulpy genre flicks with miles of brains behind them. I mean, even Shakespeare's fairly pulpy in the context of his time.
And another heck yeah on those first five Godard movies. Wonderful stuff.
I haven't seen very many foreign films but "La Cage" and stuff.(Or I should say films not in English) I'm Godard-impaired. ETA: Corwood gets to blurb my book if it ever comes out, being as pulp with miles of brains is my artistic heart's desire.
Godfather 2 is as close to Shakespeare as American film gets.
Oh HELL yeah.
This is why I adore Lost in Translation while many don't, because I love the characters. Nothing happens in the movie. But it's pretty, and there are characters I can get into. That's what I need.
I felt like there was a great movie struggling to get out. I loved the scene where they talked in bed. I loved "That was the worst lunch ever." There were a lot of nice moments, but they were few and far between. You make an interesting point about character and story not always intertwining, but I think it's hard to learn about characters unless they're in some semblance of a story.
But the characters *were* the story. It was all internal. (Which is not a popular mode of storytelling, I'm aware.)