'Safe'
A place to talk about movies--old and new, good and bad, high art and high cheese. It's the place to place your kittens on the award winners, gossip about upcoming fims and discuss DVD releases and extras. Spoiler policy: White font all plot-related discussion until a movie's been in wide release two weeks, and keep the major HSQ in white font until two weeks after the video/DVD release.
John Frankenheimer is an awesome director. I love how he uses the camera, even in 1962 -- smash cuts and deep focus and that exceedingly cool picture-in-picture effect durign the Congressional hearing at the beginning.
Now I have to see Children of Men just for this legendary shot.
Will you report back whether the concept is as unbelieveably insulting as it sounds?
edit: Okay, John Frankenheimer isn't that awesome.
Cuaron is dangerously close to getting on my "they get to make whatever they want, forever, and I'll be there" list, along with Jackson and Miyazaki and Almodovar.
Ang Lee used to be on my list for that...I miss those days.
Will you report back whether the concept is as unbelieveably insulting as it sounds?
This is a take I was previously unaware of. What's insulting about the concept?
JZ, not to worry...if I really thought you'd do that, I'd devote my next visit to SF to teaching Matilda "eyefuck" or something. Of course then she might be a Tarentino, and everyone wins.
What's insulting about the concept?
There are gossip rumblings I've read about the last pregnant woman on earth being sub-Saharan African, and how (being both black and female) the movie treats her as pawn-material, an object, a belly with no brains, rather than a subject and a character in her own right. I've only seen the trailer, so I don't know whether to take that with a grain of salt, or to get mad in advance.
I don't remember that attitude from the book. But it's been a long time since I read it.
Bah, I can't copy-paste on this thing. Anyway, that shot? Isn't even the best one in the film. there's another earlier on that's even more impressive.
AFAICT, most of the racism/sexism charges being thrown at this film are coming from people who have not seen it. Kee (the pregnant woman) is dependent on others for her safety because she's young and alone and people are trying to kill her, but she absolutely has agency in determining who is allowed to help her and in what manner. The people in the film trying to use her as a pawn are the *bad guys*.
The best it to watch that Manchurian Candidate and then watch Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Makes for much surreal fun.
Especially when followed up with Pirates of Penzance.
Anyway, that shot? Isn't even the best one in the film. there's another earlier on that's even more impressive.
Need to see this movie now. The tale of the seven minute action shot, as told by Cuaron, is epic. I still haven't seen Y Tu Mama Tambien. I shall have to remedy that.