Paisan (1946)

The second film in Roberto Rossellini's War Trilogy (the other two being Rome, Open City and Germany Year Zero), Paisan concerns itself with communication and understanding during wartime. Broken up into six different stories, Rossellini documents the interactions between the native Italians and the American soldiers during WWII. The term "documents" is apt, as each story is preceded by documentary footage from the war. In fact, much of the film feels like a documentary. The movie was filmed on location, in the war-torn cities of Italy, and used amateur actors, some picked right off the streets. This documentary-like visual style would come to define both Rossellini as well as the film movement he helped create, Italian neo-realism. This real-life quality to the film serves to make the stories more raw.

Recasting Superhero Movies

In case you missed it, the good people over at Pajiba recently posted an article where they recast the future superhero movies with vintage hollywood actors. Their picks are pretty spot on, I especially liked Orson Welles as Lex Luthor. I thought I'd expand on the idea an recast two more of the superhero movies, this time with vintage international actors. Take a look.

Europa (1991)

Europa is the third and final film in Lars von Trier’s Europa trilogy. Following 1984’s The Element of Crime and 1987’s Epidemic, the Danish director continued to explore the themes of manipulation and the moral decay in modern Europe. But while his previous two films were very much “art-house” pictures, Europa takes a more mainstream approach (albeit in an unconventional way).

Random Thoughts: Almost Famous (2000)

-          I have to admit, I was surprised by how much I liked this movie. I knew I would most likely enjoy it, given the great cast and awesome soundtrack, but I was afraid it would be to one noted and perhaps rely too heavily on 1970’s nostalgia. Lucky for me, and for all of us I suppose, the film exceeded my expectations.

-          While Will (Patrick Fugit) is the main character, I found myself much more fascinated by Billy Crudup’s character Russell and his struggle with fame, friendship, and self-realization.

-          As much as I loathe saying it, I actually liked Kate Hudson in this movie. No, it doesn’t make-up for the terrible string of movies that followed, but it’s nice to think that deep down, every actor is capable of a good performance.

We're still wating...



-          The movie reminded me of Dazed and Confused, not just because of they both take place in the 70’s, but because they both feature young stars before, or just as, they hit it big. There’s the obvious- the aforementioned Ms. Hudson as well as Zooey Deshanel; to the not so obvious- Anna Paquin, Jimmy Falon, and Jay Baruchel as the number one Led Zeppelin fan; to the obscure- Fairuza Balk (the girl from Waterboy), Michael Angarano (the kid from Sky High), and even a small shot of a young Nick Swardson (he of various terrible Adam Sandler movies fame) as an insane David Bowie fan.

You mean you don't remember Sky High?

-          It’s a shame Cameron Crowe hasn’t made a better movie since this one. After starting off with pretty good run of movies, starting with Say Anything… and ending with Almost Famous, Crowe’s directed the underwhelming Vanilla Sky followed by the ridiculous Elizabethtown. Here’s hoping his next film, We Bought a Zoo, is a return to form for him.

My Thoughts on Movie Lists

Everybody loves lists, and in particular, I love movie lists. I love them even though I understand the ridiculousness of the lists themselves. What makes a particular movie “better” than another? Does it have to due with a movie’s story, its cinematography, or its cultural relevance? Perhaps it is a combination of factors that go into determining whether one movie is superior to another. Ultimately, though, it all comes down to opinion. Maybe we can all agree that Taxi Driver is a better movie than Jonah Hex, but how would you rank it against a movie like Hitchcock’s Notorious? Both are great movies, and arguments can be made to rank either one ahead of the other, but there is no absolute method to weigh each of their values.

Sorry Josh

Roger Ebert put it best, saying that “all lists of “greatest” movies are propaganda.” To me, though, there is nothing wrong with that, as long as you know that going into them. For me, movie lists are great place to discover movies I either haven’t heard of, or perhaps didn’t give much thought to. I’ll admit that The Night of the Hunter, L’Atalante, and The Scarlet Empress were all movies I first discovered on top movie lists.

So what am I trying to say here? Well, I’m trying to justify the fact that this site will be home to many of these movie lists in the future. But I also want to make a larger point on movie lists, and opinion-based lists in general. That is that these types of things shouldn’t be taken too seriously, that they are all based on opinion, and that it’s OK to disagree with them. Hey, Sandra Bullock won the Oscar for best actress last year, that doesn’t mean I’ll never watch the Oscars again.



Eh, maybe it does...

Allow Myself to Introduce, Myself

What is your favorite movie? This is a question asked many times during conversations. For most people this is not a hard question. You'll hear the usual suspects including "The Wizard of Oz", "Star Wars", "The Godfather", "Casablanca", and "Gone With the Wind".

Blow-Up (1966)

For most casual movie-goers, Michelangelo Antonioni’s films can be difficult to get through. They appear slow, overly drawn-out, and at times they seem to ignore plot for long stretches of time. Blow-Up, Antonioni’s first English speaking film, is probably one of the director’s most accessible films. That isn’t to say that the film is any less challenging, but the bright, mod-British palate the film is in gives it an energy that previous Antonioni films lacked.