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Sean Farrell (9 KP) rated Building Stories in Books

Mar 15, 2018

Building Stories

Chris Ware | 2013 | Fiction & Poetry

10.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

The unique presentation had me more than a little curious to get into this one, and I found it worked wonderfully for the material. Very well drawn, and with recurring themes and symbolism that are alternately beautiful and sad. This is decidedly not an uplifting work, with the harshness of life and the world around us seeming to be an even more universal theme throughout than the building around which the stories revolve. Luckily for me I suppose, the piece I randomly read last, while possibly being the saddest of all, also contained a really solid prospect of hope and one of the few truly uplifting portions found inside, thus making giving it the best ending I could have hoped for (for my tastes anyway). This is a truly incredible work of art that I cannot recommend highly enough.

As a side note, this could make a really interesting movie, especially in the hands of the right director. P.T. Anderson springs to mind for me. They could even allow you to watch segments in random order on the DVD, thus somewhat recreating the sensation of the "book". Could be interesting.

Kudos

Awix (3310 KP) rated Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles (2019) in Movies

Dec 13, 2019

Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles (2019)

2019 | Documentary, Musical

9.0

(2 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Somewhat digressive documentary comes to celebrate Fiddler on the Roof, not critique it, as the title probably makes clear. Various interviewees recount the creation of the show, while others reflect on its cultural impact and continuing and enormous popularity (apparently there has been at least one performance somewhere in the world every single day since it first opened in 1964).

The stories and insights are interesting enough to keep you from wishing you'd just watched a DVD of the movie instead, and they have hunted up some fascinating footage to illustrate the film, ranging from the Temptations doing a very funky version of 'If I Were A Rich Man' to Lin-Manuel Miranda's wedding video. The film addresses the central paradox about this show - that something so very specific in time, place and outlook has such universal appeal and emotional power - but doesn't really attempt to explain it. This is probably quite wise, as it is one of the mysteries of great art. Worth a look if you like the show, which everyone with a heart and a soul who's actually seen it surely does.

Kudos

Awix (3310 KP) rated Parasite (2019) in Movies

Feb 14, 2020

Parasite (2019)

2019 | Drama

8.6

(40 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Dazzling Korean jet-black comedy-thriller lives up to the hype. A clan of Seoul low-lives insert themselves with ruthless ingenuity into the comfortable lives of a wealthy family. Soon they are living much larger than they could ever have dreamt - what could possibly go wrong? (Well, plenty, of course.)

Obviously this is a film about issues of wealth and class and all the tensions and resentments that come with them, and as such it has a universal resonance regardless of whether or not it has those little words at the bottom of the screen. However, it is also an exhilarating piece of pure cinema, written and directed with great skill and creativity and well-played by the ensemble cast. At first you are drawn into rooting for the hangers-on despite their dubious enterprises, but slowly the story becomes more and more ambiguous and fraught. (Possibly the only Oscar and Palme D'Or winning film where body odour is a key plot point.) Gripping, symbolically powerful (the invisibility of the poor to their wealthier compatriots is another central theme), tremendously entertaining: pretty much everything you want from a movie.