How do people here interpret the hobo in mulholland drive? My feeling is that it is what betty/Diane should have lived her life like in that she should have appreciated small things more and not have chased such a shallow, vain life as well as seeking revenge. It may also be what she becomes in the afterlife to pay for murdering her girlfriend. It has other meanings too imo, but those are two big ones for me
Film The Redcafe Movie review thread
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I thought the hobo was the main character. She shoots herself in the face but doesn't die and winds up with a fecked up, terrifying face.
I dont think i try to get too specific a meaning with Lynch films.
I dont think i try to get too specific a meaning with Lynch films.
I think it/she represents the different trajectories an aspiring actor may find themselves on. There’s the fantasy version presented as actual, where Naomi Watts gets an incredible audition opportunity and then delivers an Oscar-worthy reading, leading to fame and fortune. Then there’s the version where she works at a diner, dreams smashed. Then there’s the get mixed up with creeps one where she ends up a burned out addict /hobo. All these timelines exist simultaneously in the film. Or, they all exist as potentialities.
I think. Probably need to watch it again.
Yeah that makes sense. I thought it was just a progression told in a weird order. Audition > Fame (some) > amnesia > dead end job, drugs > suicide attempt > creepy hobo
But what makes so much of Lynch’s work great is that hypnotic quality where it teeters in the edge of dreamlike, so nothing is really ever cut and dried. Nothing too specific ever, as you point out.
Good posts 
It is as good as anymovie to discuss imo.
It is as good as anymovie to discuss imo.
The Battle of Algiers (1967)
Been meaning to watch this for years and never got round to it. It's rightly hailed as one of the best war films ever, with the director not afraid to show the brutality on both sides. The standout actor plays the French colonel, Mathieu, mainly because he's one of the few actual actors, the rest being local Algerians.
Definitely worth watching. 8.8/10
Been meaning to watch this for years and never got round to it. It's rightly hailed as one of the best war films ever, with the director not afraid to show the brutality on both sides. The standout actor plays the French colonel, Mathieu, mainly because he's one of the few actual actors, the rest being local Algerians.
Definitely worth watching. 8.8/10
The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil
South Korean crime thriller with a twist. After a serial killer randomly targets a crime boss (and fails), the cop leading the investigation teams up with the gang leader to hunt down the madman before he strikes again. Who gets to him first will decide his fate.
Good action, and the usual Korean cinema tropes involving huge gangs of criminals being beaten by one or two good guys, a cop who hates his superiors, lots of bowing to the waist from underlings, and a ludicrous amount of cigarette smoking.
8/10
South Korean crime thriller with a twist. After a serial killer randomly targets a crime boss (and fails), the cop leading the investigation teams up with the gang leader to hunt down the madman before he strikes again. Who gets to him first will decide his fate.
Good action, and the usual Korean cinema tropes involving huge gangs of criminals being beaten by one or two good guys, a cop who hates his superiors, lots of bowing to the waist from underlings, and a ludicrous amount of cigarette smoking.
8/10
It’s an incredible film. Surely in the 900s.
Cracking movie!
Badunk is on a roll! Keep it going!
A Bittersweet Life
Our protagonist, Lee Byung-hun (aka Front Man from Squid Game) is a high-flying gangland enforcer tasked by his underworld boss with the job of shadowing the young lady he's sweet on while he's away on business. Lee discovers that she's actually seeing someone her own age, but decides not to tell his mentor. However, he finds it out by himself, and takes it as an enormous snub, leaving our hero alone, and facing the usual hordes of Korean heavies in black suits, in a series of fights, shoot outs and near death experiences.
It's not much of a premise, but it's full of action and good entertainment nonetheless.
8/10
Our protagonist, Lee Byung-hun (aka Front Man from Squid Game) is a high-flying gangland enforcer tasked by his underworld boss with the job of shadowing the young lady he's sweet on while he's away on business. Lee discovers that she's actually seeing someone her own age, but decides not to tell his mentor. However, he finds it out by himself, and takes it as an enormous snub, leaving our hero alone, and facing the usual hordes of Korean heavies in black suits, in a series of fights, shoot outs and near death experiences.
It's not much of a premise, but it's full of action and good entertainment nonetheless.
8/10
Fall (2022)
Taking this thread back into pulp and away from arty, finally got around to seeing this. $3 million budget, most of that spent on VFX. Intended as straight to DVD but got a theatrical release and did well. A lot of interesting things about this film. The cast seems totally wrong at the start, but at the end you sort of believe it. It’s a very thin, just-go-with-it plot: a woman’s husband fell to his death while rock climbing, and on the year anniversary of this, her best friend cajoles her into climbing a decommissioned radio tower. They get trapped at the top. For two experienced climbers they really were unprepared and did some jaw-dropping stupid shit. But…
…it’s actually a horror story with a 2,000’ drop being the monster. A unique setting and tale of survival. They did a lot with very little (2 women on a metal platform the size of a dining table for 80% of the film). 107 minutes should have been 97. The tension escapes about 15 minutes before the end. Almost turned comical but they recovered. In terms of budget and resources, excellent work. Overall movie watching experience was a lot less and you can see why they retooled the swearing from feck to frick (they did VFX on their mouths so it looked like “frick” and rerecorded those words in post), to get the kids in who will not be bothered by logic and plausibility (any more than 2 “feck”s is an R rating, so no kids).
671/1000
Taking this thread back into pulp and away from arty, finally got around to seeing this. $3 million budget, most of that spent on VFX. Intended as straight to DVD but got a theatrical release and did well. A lot of interesting things about this film. The cast seems totally wrong at the start, but at the end you sort of believe it. It’s a very thin, just-go-with-it plot: a woman’s husband fell to his death while rock climbing, and on the year anniversary of this, her best friend cajoles her into climbing a decommissioned radio tower. They get trapped at the top. For two experienced climbers they really were unprepared and did some jaw-dropping stupid shit. But…
…it’s actually a horror story with a 2,000’ drop being the monster. A unique setting and tale of survival. They did a lot with very little (2 women on a metal platform the size of a dining table for 80% of the film). 107 minutes should have been 97. The tension escapes about 15 minutes before the end. Almost turned comical but they recovered. In terms of budget and resources, excellent work. Overall movie watching experience was a lot less and you can see why they retooled the swearing from feck to frick (they did VFX on their mouths so it looked like “frick” and rerecorded those words in post), to get the kids in who will not be bothered by logic and plausibility (any more than 2 “feck”s is an R rating, so no kids).
671/1000
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No Other Choice - my favourite Park Chan-Wook film since The Handmaiden. Great performances from the leads, stunning cinematography, a really enjoyable romp with some absolutely hilarious moments too. Loved the ending as well.
Watched it a year or so ago. That (bolded) was what I thought it’d struggle with but as you say, made a good job out of it to be fair.
Bit tight on the marking? Definitely worth at least 671/1,000.
Don't encourage him.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe
My kid is reading this at school so she picked to watch it today. Absolutely dog shit. Horrendous acting, awful effects and just a bore of a film 2/10
My kid is reading this at school so she picked to watch it today. Absolutely dog shit. Horrendous acting, awful effects and just a bore of a film 2/10
Those child actors are so ‘The Railway Children’, they are all horrific actors.
Watched the play at Lowry a few months back. Was falling asleep through it.
I have no idea what you’re referring to here…
I saw the first one, and I couldn’t decide if the story itself was poop, or if they just botched the film. Turns out it’s both!
I watched this when it came out with my son who was 7 at the time. I don't remember much other than it being a rather unchallenging but mildly fun kids film. TBH I can hardly remember it, like most kids films you end up half watching when parenting I guess. I do remember it being a bit long and the cgi being rather bad at times.
Isn't that more generally an east Asian cop movie trope? I'm pretty sure I've seen it in a couple of Hong Kong and Japanese movies also.
I watched The Royal Tenenbaums again. I didn't remember much actually, but anyway, it seems overhyped to me. Yes, the whimsy and quirkiness are developed very well, but there isn't much to actually care about. Gene Hackman and his character save the story, really, but not all the way to the point where it matters to me. Anderson did this better elsewhere. (Like in The Grand Budapest Hotel and Asteroid City. I haven't seen The French Dispatch or The Phoenician Scheme yet.) 3/5
I remember it being particularly downbeat. From Eli (Owen Wilson) trying to kill himself, to the tragic history of Margot (Paltrow) and Richie (Luke), it was dark, but then elements like Ben Stiller and his kids were like from a different movie. I bought the Criterion version and still haven’t rewatched it. Usually that mix of humor and tragedy gives an interesting tension (Darjeeling, Life Aquatic) but I really didn’t think this movie worked.
I’d skip The French Despatch, too. Asteroid City, I just… what the hell was that?
It's Richie that tried to kill himself. TRT is peak Wes Anderson for me, I thought the mix you mentioned worked beautifully. Don't mind his recent stuff but there's rarely anything to latch onto emotionally during his movies anymore.
Titanic (1997)
Hadn't seen this in decades but thoroughly enjoyed a rewatch. I remember bits from the making-of segments they showed back in '97. Thought it was remarkable then and the set pieces absolutely still hold up today. Incredible feat of filmmaking, turning one of the most well-known and harrowing disasters of all time into a romance epic for the ages. 5/5.
Hadn't seen this in decades but thoroughly enjoyed a rewatch. I remember bits from the making-of segments they showed back in '97. Thought it was remarkable then and the set pieces absolutely still hold up today. Incredible feat of filmmaking, turning one of the most well-known and harrowing disasters of all time into a romance epic for the ages. 5/5.
I actually like Asteroid City. No idea what it was either, or what I was supposed to get out of it, but somehow it kept me hooked. I also remember liking The Life Aquatic etc, which I have often seen rated as one of Anderson's worst movies - so maybe I should just not rewatch any of it and stick with my (vague) memories.
I'm not a fan but didn't mind The Darjeling Ltd and The Grand Budapest Hotel but utterly hated The Life Aquatic. Go figure.
Darjeeling was fine by me also.
I'm actually kinda curious about Aquatic, to see what I liked about it, and how wrong I was. But then I have time for 1 or 2 films per week right now, and one of those is usually light Saturday evening fare, so rewatching multiple Anderson films doesn't sound like the best use of my time.
I meant this scene:
I will finally rewatch this. Now that I'm older and jaded and cynical.
2nd bolded part, I 100% agree. There is no substance to the films anymore, it's just one whimsical, symmetrical, vignette after another with the actors trying to out-quirk each other.
Wes Anderson was my favorite living director for a long time**. I loved movies like Rushmore, Darjeeling, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Life Aquatic, Moonrise Kingdom, Grand Budapest. Just typing out the list reminds me of how amazing Anderson is.
**I think I just talked myself around. The short films he did (Henry Sugar, etc.) were also excellent. I haven't seen Phoenician Scheme. The only films of his I didn't feel stimulated (?) by were Royal Tenenbaums and French Dispatch. Maybe it's because Tenenbaums followed Rushmore, and Gene Hackman's character was such a shitbag, whereas in Rushmore Bill Murray was awesome.
I felt Rushmore was a smarter film, while Tenenbaums went all-in on trying to make the family like JD Salinger characters. The thing with Life Aquatic is that it's completely a young person's fantasy of what Jacques Cousteau's life would have been like, coupled with some Doc Savage/Buckaroo Bonsai super team adventures. The mixture of whimsy and pathos was brilliant. I think the backlash was because Rushmore (and Bottle Rocket, Tenenbaums) put only one foot over the line into wackiness, while Life Aquatic fully embraced this with animated Jaguar Sharks, a bunch of fictional creatures, and so on. Anderson also had a cheap shot in Life Aquatic with what happens to Owen Wilson, something that didn't need to be in there but was thrown in to bring some gravitas to the goofiness. I think critics were overly harsh. People who have gone back and rewatched it have come to appreciate how good it is.
Anyway, FTW, Wes Anderson rules!
See, I absolutely hated Rushmore when I saw it about 10 years ago (can't remember much other than how much I didn't like it; not sure we even finished it). Henry Sugar I also couldn't care about.
It's always the same with Anderson - any post about his films leads to a page of career perspectives.
I think the circle will be complete when Wes Anderson puts Brad Pitt (or Mark Ruffalo) in one of his movies. The human brain wasn't built for such juxtapositions.See, I absolutely hated Rushmore when I saw it about 10 years ago (can't remember much other than how much I didn't like it; not sure we even finished it). Henry Sugar I also couldn't care about.
It's always the same with Anderson - any post about his films leads to a page of career perspectives.
Just been announced that James Wan is directing a remake of this.
Is that a good thing or a bad thing?
For anyone interested one of the greatest sci fi films of time is getting a re release next month in UK cinemas(I’ve already booked my imax ticket)
War Machine
A survival story set in a flimsy sci-fi pretext.
The sci-fi element is just one cool looking robot and some fringe dialogue about an invasion. You could replace the robot with a alien or Godzilla and the story would work as well.
It's a survival film, where the director throws everything at the hero and he survived without any injuries (or with some mysterious rapidly healed injuries). Alan Ritchson delivers a limited but decent performance good enough to carry the film.
Robot is cool, action scenes (esp the rapids) are well choreographed, and that's pretty much the good stuff.
A Plot with no pretext, context or conclusion filled up lame dialogue and an obligatory diverse cast who just makes up numbers leaves a lot.to be desired.
Turn off your mind and be entertained.
6/10
A survival story set in a flimsy sci-fi pretext.
The sci-fi element is just one cool looking robot and some fringe dialogue about an invasion. You could replace the robot with a alien or Godzilla and the story would work as well.
It's a survival film, where the director throws everything at the hero and he survived without any injuries (or with some mysterious rapidly healed injuries). Alan Ritchson delivers a limited but decent performance good enough to carry the film.
Robot is cool, action scenes (esp the rapids) are well choreographed, and that's pretty much the good stuff.
A Plot with no pretext, context or conclusion filled up lame dialogue and an obligatory diverse cast who just makes up numbers leaves a lot.to be desired.
Turn off your mind and be entertained.
6/10
Good thing for sure. If anyone's gonna do it, might as well be him.
Yes please.