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Lorene Scafaria recommended The Master (2012) in Movies (curated)

The Master (2012)

2012 | Drama

7.5

(4 Ratings)

Movie Favorite

"The Master is masterful. It is such a beautiful portrait of a relationship between two people in very different places in their lives. The power dynamics between them and the love between them, that is kind of indescribable. The bond that forms [between] them is different than you’d have with your spouse or your children or your parents, a true bond that is that kind of friendship that can bail you out of trouble and also get you into trouble. And I think it’s Philip Seymour Hoffman’s finest performance, I think it’s Joaquin Phoenix’s finest performance and, of course, I think PTA [Paul Thomas Anderson] is one of our greatest directors, if not the greatest director. I just love every aspect of the storytelling. I am always interested in a leader, whether it’s a religious leader or a cult leader, someone who finds a following and a flock, someone who, you can look at them one way and they’re a fraud, a charlatan, and look at them another way and they are close to God. I find that really intriguing. I find that kind of attention from a person like that is very interesting and intoxicating and it was certainly something I was thinking about when working on Hustlers. [I] was thinking of Ramona and Destiny’s dynamic in that way… when one person is holding the wheel and one person is in control, you know, and the other person may not be able to fall in line in all the same ways. What happens when that person turns away from their leader and no longer feels aligned with them?"

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Kirk Bage (1775 KP) rated High and Low (1963) in Movies

Jan 28, 2021

High and Low (1963)

1963 | Drama, Mystery, Thriller

8.5

(2 Ratings)

Movie Rating

This movie is often touted as one of the finest non-American crime thrillers out there. It appears on many top 10 lists from renowned directors, and stands untouchable in the pantheon of post WWII Japanese cinema dealing with 20th century issues rather than samurai or traditional religious concepts. Kurasawa is known for masterpieces in both genres, and in this sphere is very much the Hitchcock of the East. The story sees self made entrepreneur Kingo Gondo, played by the ubiquitous Toshirô Mifune, being blackmailed by a kidnapper who believes he has his son, but has taken his chauffeur’s son by mistake. Cue huge moral intrigue and dilemma, leading to a chase and an unexpectedly symbolical climax and resolution.

It plays like two films for the price of one, the first a claustrophobic mood piece with a staged feel, reminding me of Hitchcock’s Rope, and the second a frantic chase movie where the forensic evidence is picked apart in intricate detail, like a less graphic Seven. The print on BFI is not great, so it actually feels older than it is. It is also pretty long at 143 minutes, and feels like it takes an age to get going. Therefore, although some moments and key images have stayed with me, I can’t honestly say I felt gripped or tense in any way. The stakes didn’t feel as high as I would have hoped for, and tonally it is a little uneven. In conclusion, it has much to offer and details in isolation are very impressive, but for me it was something of a let down.

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Bill Nighy recommended Mississippi Burning (1988) in Movies (curated)

Mississippi Burning (1988)

1988 | Drama, History, Mystery

8.7

(9 Ratings)

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"""t’s a movie where I have to stay there, just to get to the bit where Gene Hackman creeps up behind the bigot in the barbers and takes the cut-throat from the barber’s hand and continues the shave. The story is such a big and important story. I was asked recently, along with dozens of other people, to pick one film, by the BFI, to mark the 75th birthday of the British Film Institute. Which film would you leave for succeeding generations? There are many great art films but I chose Mississippi Burning because I figured that I would try to be responsible. I thought I could either be hip or responsible, and actually stick to the brief, and by succeeding generations, I assumed they meant the youth, young people, and I thought: “What’s the biggest issue in the world?” Apart from the way that drugs fuck everybody up, racism is the biggest thing. The newspaper is basically the story of what racism does, whether it’s religious prejudices, or tribal prejudices, or colour prejudice or whatever the fuck it is, but I think it’s the single most destructive element in our world and Mississippi Burning is a beautiful story of great courage. It shows individual and collective courage in that area, about people who took it on in a landmark situation and started to make great change possible. It’s got one of the great cinema performances of all time, not that I’m given to superlatives, despite it being the second time I’ve said that, which is Gene Hackman. I could watch Gene Hackman all day long; he’s one of the people I most admire"

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