Xander ,'Dirty Girls'
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.
I thought Volver was a very entertaining film, but it wasn't anything close to Almodovar's best work. Kind of like The Departed, actually.
It's impossible for me to compare Pan's Labyrinth with Lives of Others. On most levels, they couldn't be more different, but at their root, they've actually got very similar themes. And they're both utterly brilliant.
Once again, Jessica and I are as one.
sits back and basks in cinematic comradeship
Jessica (and Robin): What do you think is Almodovar's best work?
Well, I LOVE even minor Pedro, so it's hard to judge. I think his best is maybe All About My Mother. Maybe. Ask me again in five minutes and I'll have a different answer.
I'm partial to his earliest films which had a strong anarchist/punk/marx brothers vibe. Labyrinth of Passion is so fun even if its a bit raw. Also his breakthrough movie, What Have I Done To Deserve This.
I also liked Bad Education and Women on the Verge.
Right now, Talk To Her. But it's a very tough call. (All About My Mother would be right up there too.)
Bad Education is kind of a mess, narratively speaking, but it gets special bonus points for Gael Garcia Bernal in drag.
I love Bad Education a lot.
And for the exact reason Jessica states.
I still haven't seen All About My Mother so I'll have to go with Talk to Her especially since I have a signed one-sheet here waiting to be framed.
I want to talk just a minute about the Best Supporting Actor Oscar, now that I've seen Little Miss Sunshine. I'm very glad for Alan Arkin, and his was certainly a deserving performance. My personal favorite in that race was Peter O'Toole, though I haven't seen his or any of the other nominees' performances either.
Still, I have to say that I think Steve Carrell was robbed for not even being nominated. Out of an entire cast of standout performances, his stood out for me.
I agree Steve Carrell's performance was the most nuanced. The son was great as well. A lot of times the studio pushes a certain actor for a certain award. I'm not sure if that was the case this time.