Stefon stops by (for the last time?) to offer tourists some hot spot suggestions:
I was thinking that maybe this segment had jumped the shark. Maybe Hader's laughing at his own jokes more than the audience*. Perhaps. But then you get to a thing like "human R2-D2" and you realize that, like it or not, this is a brand of writing you won't find anywhere else.
* In his defense, certain jokes are hidden from him ahead of time so he ends up hearing them for the first time as he speaks. For better or worse, the whole thing is specifically designed to get him to crack.
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
IMDB 250 7.6 - Tokyo Story (1953)
Tokyo Story (1953)
A grandmother sits with her grandson and watches him play in the grass. "What are you going to be when you grow up? A doctor like your father? ... By the time you become a doctor, I wonder if I'll still be here."
In 1950's Japan, an elderly couple travel to Tokyo to visit their children and grandchildren. But their children lead busy lives and have little time to talk before the couple must be heading home.
These days, that wouldn't be enough to make a movie. "Tokyo Story" is Japanese, it's black and white, it's from the 50's. It's slow, it's quiet, it's reserved. The "dramatic" things that happen here are things like one of the young children becomes cranky or the dad gets called into work unexpectedly.
But if you can wrap your head around all of the above and see past it, there is beauty in its simplicity. It's extraordinary by being ordinary. The grandparents, the parents, the children, the siblings are all characters we know - we are these characters. And this movie allows us to sit with them and spend time with them and examine and observe.
The grandparents live far away so their time with their families is rare and brief. So what do they spend their time talking about? Train times, the weather, what they'll be eating. If any of these characters says ONCE out of every thousand opportunities, what they really feel, what they're honestly thinking or what any other person means to them, it's a major and dramatic surprise.
Are we any different?
7/10.
Total "Top 250" Movies Seen: 355.
A grandmother sits with her grandson and watches him play in the grass. "What are you going to be when you grow up? A doctor like your father? ... By the time you become a doctor, I wonder if I'll still be here."
In 1950's Japan, an elderly couple travel to Tokyo to visit their children and grandchildren. But their children lead busy lives and have little time to talk before the couple must be heading home.
These days, that wouldn't be enough to make a movie. "Tokyo Story" is Japanese, it's black and white, it's from the 50's. It's slow, it's quiet, it's reserved. The "dramatic" things that happen here are things like one of the young children becomes cranky or the dad gets called into work unexpectedly.
But if you can wrap your head around all of the above and see past it, there is beauty in its simplicity. It's extraordinary by being ordinary. The grandparents, the parents, the children, the siblings are all characters we know - we are these characters. And this movie allows us to sit with them and spend time with them and examine and observe.
The grandparents live far away so their time with their families is rare and brief. So what do they spend their time talking about? Train times, the weather, what they'll be eating. If any of these characters says ONCE out of every thousand opportunities, what they really feel, what they're honestly thinking or what any other person means to them, it's a major and dramatic surprise.
Are we any different?
7/10.
Total "Top 250" Movies Seen: 355.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
IMDB 250 7.5 - Ip Man (2008)
Ip Man (2008)
In 1930's China, the task of assigning computer internet addresses (IP addresses) was not trusted to a mere machine. Only a man - a master of counting at the highest level - could be charged with such an important task. This man is the Ip Man.
In the city of Fansho in the 1930's, Kung Fu schools are everywhere. But even with an abundance of martial artists, one man (Ip Man) stands above them all as the most unstoppable fighting machine. When the Japanese occupy during World War II, the Japanese general in charge of Fansho decides to settle the question of Chinese vs. Japanese martial arts. He sets up a(n underground?) fight club and, before long, forces Ip Man to participate.
Ip Man tells the story of a real man,Yip Man, who invented the martial art school of Wing Chung. And THAT sentence is the extent to which I trust "Ip Man" to be historically accurate. The rest portrays Yip Man as a saint, the Japanese as mustache twirling villains and implies that Yip Man was the rallying cry that allowed China to win World War II. I wondered if the U.S. had a hand in that war but the movie didn't say and I didn't have time to fact-check.
"Ip Man" is a Kung Fu movie through and through... with one twist. Remember the old Kung Fu movies from the 70's where all the dialogue is overdubbed? "Ip Man" does that... but it actually overdubs the Chinese dialog with Chinese. So even though there's fake-sounding speech, you still also have to read subtitles. Not that I mind subtitles, I just can't stand when all the dialogue is overdubbed - it's one of the surest ways of taking me out of the movie completely.
Speaking of languages, one of the central characters is a translator. This is because the Chinese and Japanese don't understand each other. That's a little troubling, then, in the scenes when the Chinese and Japanese characters - who needed his services just a few scenes before - speak directly to each other without him. Whoops!
The writing is weak, the directing is serviceable, the editing is average, the music is particularly cliched and, even if the acting is OK, the overdubbing makes sure that it appears weak. Where the movie excels is in the action sequences. The fighting is lightning-quick and meticulously choreographed at the highest level. In that sense, this movie follows in the vein of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (though the physics involved is a little more down to Earth). And it plays all the hits (one vs. one, one vs. 10, 50 vs. 10, etc.) and all of them is complex and extremely well done. And that, and only that, is why this movie is in the IMDB Top 250.
If you're a Kung Fu fan this movie is a must-see. I am not. The only time a fight is interesting, for me, is when I care about the outcome.
6/10.
Total "Top 250" Movies Seen: 354.
In 1930's China, the task of assigning computer internet addresses (IP addresses) was not trusted to a mere machine. Only a man - a master of counting at the highest level - could be charged with such an important task. This man is the Ip Man.
In the city of Fansho in the 1930's, Kung Fu schools are everywhere. But even with an abundance of martial artists, one man (Ip Man) stands above them all as the most unstoppable fighting machine. When the Japanese occupy during World War II, the Japanese general in charge of Fansho decides to settle the question of Chinese vs. Japanese martial arts. He sets up a(n underground?) fight club and, before long, forces Ip Man to participate.
Ip Man tells the story of a real man,Yip Man, who invented the martial art school of Wing Chung. And THAT sentence is the extent to which I trust "Ip Man" to be historically accurate. The rest portrays Yip Man as a saint, the Japanese as mustache twirling villains and implies that Yip Man was the rallying cry that allowed China to win World War II. I wondered if the U.S. had a hand in that war but the movie didn't say and I didn't have time to fact-check.
"Ip Man" is a Kung Fu movie through and through... with one twist. Remember the old Kung Fu movies from the 70's where all the dialogue is overdubbed? "Ip Man" does that... but it actually overdubs the Chinese dialog with Chinese. So even though there's fake-sounding speech, you still also have to read subtitles. Not that I mind subtitles, I just can't stand when all the dialogue is overdubbed - it's one of the surest ways of taking me out of the movie completely.
Speaking of languages, one of the central characters is a translator. This is because the Chinese and Japanese don't understand each other. That's a little troubling, then, in the scenes when the Chinese and Japanese characters - who needed his services just a few scenes before - speak directly to each other without him. Whoops!
The writing is weak, the directing is serviceable, the editing is average, the music is particularly cliched and, even if the acting is OK, the overdubbing makes sure that it appears weak. Where the movie excels is in the action sequences. The fighting is lightning-quick and meticulously choreographed at the highest level. In that sense, this movie follows in the vein of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (though the physics involved is a little more down to Earth). And it plays all the hits (one vs. one, one vs. 10, 50 vs. 10, etc.) and all of them is complex and extremely well done. And that, and only that, is why this movie is in the IMDB Top 250.
If you're a Kung Fu fan this movie is a must-see. I am not. The only time a fight is interesting, for me, is when I care about the outcome.
6/10.
Total "Top 250" Movies Seen: 354.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Sunday, May 20, 2012
IMDB 250 7.4 - A Separation (2011)
A Separation (2011)
A wife leaves her husband. The husband (Nader) hires someone to look after their child and his father (now suffering from Alzheimer's). When the woman is caught leaving the father unattended, a dispute erupts and she falls. As luck would have it, she was pregnant and says that the fall caused her to lose her unborn child. Now Nader is on trial for murder and she is accused of neglect.
This is the first Iranian movie to win an Oscar (Best Foreign Language Film) and could be the first Iranian movie I've ever seen (though I'm not sure). "A Separation" is thoroughly steeped in realism and gives an interesting insight into current-day life in Iran. Just about every character conflicts with just about every other character yet none of them are evil and there are no villains - only people. Everyone is trying to be good and live within the rules but the rules are inadequate to handle the full spectrum of human experience. There is no "villain". It's a fallen world in which truth is shades of gray and sometimes two wrongs make a right and sometimes two wrongs make three wrongs.
Like "The Bicycle Thief", this movie attempts to go big by going small - to comment on the general by focusing on the particular. It's subtle and stark without becoming dark and sullen. In the movie, as in everyday life, life is hard. People struggle and suffer and try to do their best to get by and do what's best for their families. And it's a difficult world. But I couldn't help but wonder (and many people will certainly disagree) whether it may be too real. If a movie looks just like real life, should one question why they're watching a movie and not just continuing to live real life? Can a movie be real enough to be ordinary?
This is a well made movie and a lot of people will love it but I can't.
6/10.
Total "Top 250" Movies Seen: 353.
A wife leaves her husband. The husband (Nader) hires someone to look after their child and his father (now suffering from Alzheimer's). When the woman is caught leaving the father unattended, a dispute erupts and she falls. As luck would have it, she was pregnant and says that the fall caused her to lose her unborn child. Now Nader is on trial for murder and she is accused of neglect.
This is the first Iranian movie to win an Oscar (Best Foreign Language Film) and could be the first Iranian movie I've ever seen (though I'm not sure). "A Separation" is thoroughly steeped in realism and gives an interesting insight into current-day life in Iran. Just about every character conflicts with just about every other character yet none of them are evil and there are no villains - only people. Everyone is trying to be good and live within the rules but the rules are inadequate to handle the full spectrum of human experience. There is no "villain". It's a fallen world in which truth is shades of gray and sometimes two wrongs make a right and sometimes two wrongs make three wrongs.
Like "The Bicycle Thief", this movie attempts to go big by going small - to comment on the general by focusing on the particular. It's subtle and stark without becoming dark and sullen. In the movie, as in everyday life, life is hard. People struggle and suffer and try to do their best to get by and do what's best for their families. And it's a difficult world. But I couldn't help but wonder (and many people will certainly disagree) whether it may be too real. If a movie looks just like real life, should one question why they're watching a movie and not just continuing to live real life? Can a movie be real enough to be ordinary?
This is a well made movie and a lot of people will love it but I can't.
6/10.
Total "Top 250" Movies Seen: 353.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Conan on Letterman
Conan O'Brien made his fourth ever guest-appearance on the "Late Show" last night. The conversation was uncomfortable, razor-sharp, electric and very funny. It helped heal a nation. It could change the world!
Anyways, there is no way to embed the interview so you can watch the video here and skip to 14:30.
The one thing I was looking for (other than Leno bashing)- the second thing I was looking for out of this interview was to see if Dave would "make nice" and smooth things over. Instead, I don't know if he may have made things worse. The time when Conan lost the "Tonight Show" is the "golden age of broadcasting" for instance.
I was hoping for more insight into the events of a few years ago but time is so limited it just didn't happen.
Is it me or in those moments when Dave says Conan did a great job on the "Tonight Show" and the audience applauds, is Conan a little touched? It could just be my imagination but I see a a tear in his eye.
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