The Gold Rush | The ALASKAthon

The Gold Rush is the last new-to-me film in the ALASKAthon, which means that my gap year is coming closer. This, I hope, is a good enough excuse for this review being somewhat rushed. There really aren't enough hours in the day, especially when in some of them, you get to see your friends for the last time in a year.

It might interest you that my aversion towards silent films has lessened quite a bit during the last year. From vehemently stating that "I hate silent films" to finding them okay to actually finding myself enjoy them once in a while, I have undergone what some call "a snobformation". Jokes aside, Chaplin delivers another heart-felt and fun comedy on a serious enough topic in this film. He once more shows off his physical skills and talent for physical comedy, while the story - of course - isn't complicated at all. The sets are amazing and the pieces that were actually filmed in real snow are rather impressive too. Sadly, Chaplin outshines most of the other actors, and the girl in particular doesn't get a very important or rememberable role. His "cabin friend" makes for a funny side character though, and he and Chaplin play off each other very well.

I'm happy I watched The Gold Rush, since it makes for an interesting change in the many recent films I watched for this blogathon. It seems that Alaska was never very popular among filmmakers but Chaplin saw its charm already in the dawn of the days of filmmaking. Again, I'm sorry if this review seems rambly and short. There was no other way.

SPECIAL ALASKATHON MOVIE BREAKDOWN

How capturing/ engaging/ interesting is the film? (out of 5 northern lights)

How gorgeous does the film - or the Alaska in it - look? (out of 5x Timothy Treadwell's hair)

How much does the film itself make you want to go to Alaska? (out of 5 sledges)

THE GOLD RUSH

1925 • USA • English

director Charles Chaplin

author Charles Chaplin

★ Charles Chaplin, Mack Swain, Tom Murray

Mystery, Alaska | The ALASKAthon

-Note!- My blind spot entry for this month will be posted on Letterboxd.com, as was last months (12 Angry Men). I want to get used to and make you get used to my blind spot entries and possible (mini) reviews appearing on that platform. Just wanted to make sure you know.

Even though it should be the cinephile's highest aim to be able to approach each genre and subgenre without prejudice, we all have our own little preferences when it comes to the films we watch. Last year, I started keeping a diary on what decades I watch most films from and what suffer most of my ignorant teenage - of course I found my viewing habits concentrated on the last 5 or so centuries. With the 2000s and 2010s taking a lead that is much too strong in my eyes. But it's not only that (sub-contious) skirting of old films that dictates my film viewing habits - much more prominently and, I have to admit, self-consciously, I omit war and sports films.

30 Days of Night | The ALASKAthon

When the success of the Twilight franchise precipitated a swarm of mediocre, over-eroticized vampire novels and cinematic adaptations of these, the vampire trend was officially a thing. Before that, vampire films had been mainly limited to the horror genre for a long period - as far as my limited knowledge of film history goes. 30 Days of Night was released one year before the first Twilight movie and hence its vampires are ugly brutes that want nothing but to kill and feed. Which is a nice exception from the mass these days...

Set in Barrow, the northernmost town in the US, the film takes place during the 30 days of darkness that the inhabitants of the town experience every year. While the sun never sets, the vampires are free to roam Barrow day and night and leave behind them a trail of destruction. The gorgeous Police officer Eben Oleson (Josh Hartnett) is the first to find out what's going on and along with a few other people he manages to survive the attacks for a long time.

Insomnia | The ALASKAthon

I've decided to finish the left-up work and continue the ALASKAthon as a final installment on this blog. Maybe it's because I cut my toe and am thus excluded from most fun summer activities or maybe it's because I just don't want to leave my blog as a half-baked mess. Better to end things neatly if you really have to end them. 

Wendy and Lucy | The ALASKAthon

- Chris from Movies and Songs 365 also reviewed Wendy and Lucy -

In the ideal case, an independent movie is more than just a movie produced by a small studio or on a small budget. It's a movie that aspires to walk off the beaten path, to swim away from the mainstream as we like to say. To achieve this, independent films can tell stories that big studios find too risqué to produce, explore themes that won't please a large percentage of the shrinking amount of moviegoers. Or it can use uncommon ways to bring its message across, play with the technical side of filmmaking or choose the long way instead of the easy one. 

In the last weeks, I have been lucky to experience many of the aforementioned techniques or paths an indie film can choose. I had the chance to see Linklater's brilliant interpretation of a coming of age film, Boyhood, to luxuriate in Ayoade's twisted stylistic rhythm in The Double and to experience the orgasmic fusion of low-budget South Korean filmmaking and Captain America gone dirty in Snowpiercer - among others. This week's film choice for the ALASKAthon is another indie movie that takes a different perspective on a certain story than a big studio would have abandoned - a very unusual perspective, indeed. 

Grizzly Man | The ALASKAthon

The concept of craziness is a crazy one. Though it may seem like there's far between the people who see themselves as normal and someone with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, depression or anorexia, there is something seemingly 'crazy' about everyone. Think about it: haven't you called most of your friends crazy at least once (probably more often)? What's more, haven't you called yourself crazy at least a dozen times? Having quirks is part of having a personality, being a grown-up person. Though even babies and animals are often describes as 'acting crazy' or 'having a crazy fit' or simply being 'a little crazy'. Where is the line between an actual mental illness - insanity - and the common craziness of humanity, of life?

Timothy Treadwell, the curious protagonist of Werner Herzog's 2005 documentary Grizzly Man was probably more than 'a little crazy', but at the very least, this describes him pretty well. The self-proclaimed protector of the grizzly bears spent more time in the company of those animals than any other human has ever done. For 13 summers, he set up his tent in remote areas of Alaskan national parks and studied grizzlies, of which 5 years were recorded on camera, adding up to 100 hours worth of material. Treadwell's remains were found at the end of summer 2003 along with those of his girlfriend Amy Huguenard - they had been killed and torn apart by a gigantic male bear. 

The ALASKAthon

„I'm going to Alaska“ - I remember the moment I first heard that line a few years ago very clearly. I also remember the longing it inspired in me and that has since caught me every time anyone mentioned Alaska, whatever the connection. It's not that I'm brave (or stupid? - it's a fine line) enough to burn all my money and leave civilisation, nor do I have the guts or the money to go on some sort of literal walkabout for a whole year. I'm simply going to Alaska as an au pair, to take care of kids, become a member of my new Alaskan family and spend the money I earn on trips around Alaska or maybe even farther, skiing and visits to the IMAX theater. But even though I'm not really going full on 'into the wild', I think that it will be almost as adventurous - or perhaps even more so - than doing work and travel in Australia like everyone else. It might be a stupid prejudice, but I always connect Alaska with a certain sense of freedom that you can't find anywhere else in the world. It seems like one of the 'rawest' places in the world and I know that this is a hazy explanation but I always say this about things that I love the most in the world. Like my favorite film Dil Se.., which I think is one of the rawest films out there. It means as much as unpolished, uneven, rough - which I hope isn't just a romanticized view of nature. Although who knows, it might be, after all I often find myself romanticizing things like danger and melancholia. 

However my year in Alaska will turn out to be - and only the future can tell - I am most definitely excited to go. I know that some people think being an au pair is boring and conservative, but I am determined to prove them wrong and have the most adventurous, enlightening, philosophically satisfying gap year of them all. Due to the big change that moving up north and actually working instead of lazying through high school classes, this blog will probably be on a light hiatus between August 2014 and 2015 (with exceptions like the Blind Spot series). I won't be completely gone and will write an official post on the future of Reviews and Confessions before I leave, but my internet activity is sure to drop for a year. That and my intense excitement to finally go to Alaska, is the reason why I'm hosting a blogathon for the following months, that is June and July. 

During the ALASKAthon, I will watch seven new-to-me movies set in (and, for the most part, filmed in) Alaska, and then re-watch Into the Wild as a cherry on top. You will find posts about these eight films each Sunday and if I have time, I will pop in some other Alaska-related posts about music, art and what-not. Be free to send me any existing posts on Alaska-related movies or other themes or write something completely new. I will include posts in my reviews each Sunday, so if you review or write about a film I'm also writing about, I will include your post in my own post about that film. You can see the schedule I have set up below. Send me your links on twitter (@mettekowalski), via email (limereviews@googlemail.com) or in the comment section. Please link to this post in any new post you write for the blogathon and include one of the banners. If you could include a banner in your sidebar, that would be awesome as well!

Schedule

08. June: Grizzly Man (2005)

15. June: Wendy and Lucy (2008)

22. June: Insomnia (2002)

29. June: 30 Days of Night (2007)

06. July: Mystery, Alaska (1999)

13. July: Alone in the Wilderness (2004)

20. July: The Gold Rush (1925)

27. July: Into the Wild (2007)

Banners

Have fun, Cheechakos!

Favorite Movie Titles Blogathon

The brilliant Brittani Burnham from Rambling Film sets out on her first quest in blogathon land with the Favorite Movie Titles Blogathon. If you would like to join, click on the link above to read the instructions. The theme is as easy as the title suggests. As I have chosen some foreign language titles, I will explain those in English. Off we go!

8 1/2

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

Biutiful

Short Break | No Time

A long time before the days of Requiem For a Dream and Black Swan, Darren Aronofsky was "just" one of the most promising graduates from the directing program at the American Film Institute. Apparently, the most important short from his days of studying, Supermarket Sweep, became an actual National Student Academy Award finalist! However, neither this nor his other two AFI shorts Fortune Cookie and Protozoa, are available to common peasants like me. With no time on my hands and a strong desire to participate in French Toast Sunday's amazing director months, I tracked down the last of Aronofsky's short films. It is named, ironically No Time.

If your impression of Aronofsky so far has been that of a highly intelligent director who makes slightly depressing movies - including what is probably the most depressing movie of all time - you will think again once you've seen the precious 1994 short No Time. Where to start? It's pure mayhem from the beginning and then 22 minutes onward until the end. Consisting of several short episodic sequences that bear close resemblance to those sketch shows that seem to have disappeared from [Danish] television, this film is as different from the other two Aronofsky films I've seen, as the black swan is from the white swan. If anyone could've told that this was an Aronofsky film without knowing, I will quit being a semi-critic and watch 1000 more movies before I start writing about them again. 

The protagonists of the short are four friends that may or may not be living together, and whose entertainment options have narrowed down - however, we only find out what has happened in the middle of the short. Anyway, the try to bide their time by playing charade and also going on individual adventures such as playing basketball and fishing. If this sounds pretty basic; yes, it is, but Aronofsky manages to fill every sequence with enormous amounts of slapstick and situational humour that is pushed to an almost grotesque level in the end. This kind of humour is certainly dangerous and not universal at all, even for me, it can go either way. But within minutes, I found myself laughing louder than what is probably appropriate when your sister is trying to fall asleep next-door. No Time worked just as well for me as Requiem for a Dream and Black Swan have, although on a completely unexpected, ridiculous level. I can't wait to finally watch his other three - well, actually four now - movies soon. If you would like to see No Time for yourself, scroll down and hit |>.

All month long, FTS will be highlighting the work of Darren Aronofsky and also posting other related articles and links from around the web. Post your links and find banners here, send an email to lindsay@frenchtoastsunday.com for help and use the hashtag #DarrenAPRILofsky for tweets. 

Big League Blogathon | Field of Dreams

What makes a life truly worth living? Few people living a privileged first world life - and I'm not talking about the top 10.000 - are satisfied by simply existing. Most of us, if not all of us, want to be remembered in some way, go down in history you may say. We want to be someone, to fulfill some sort of purpose in our life, a reason for a different future than one lacking a past that included us. 

Field of Dreams is a movie about this strange human struggle for validation and how people often have very different views on what makes a life worth living. In the middle of the attention, there's hippie-turned-farmer Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) who has built up an idyllic existence with his born-and-bred country girl wife Annie (Amy Madigan) and their daughter Karin. One day he hears a voice telling him to build a baseball field in his back yard, which he does - and as if things couldn't become stranger, the ghosts of old baseball players start appearing on the field. Confused, Ray goes on a quest to find his all-time favorite author Terrence Mann (James Earl Jones) to help him understand the messages he's receiving and the purpose of his Field of Dreams. Terrence Mann was an activist writer back in the 60s and 70s and so certainly lived a life worth living in many ways, however he retreated from the public when he felt people weren't listening to him anymore.

Captain America Blogathon | A Journey Through the Decades Lost

Dear Captain America/ Mr. Rogers,

I heard you've just been unfreezed which is great news and bad news at the same time. It's just a guess, but something bad must've happened or you wouldn't have been melted? Anyway, I'm not as familiar with your story as many other people, not having seen the recent picture based on your achievements in the War nor having read any of the comic books centered around you. However, I'm a big fan of moving pictures - we call them movies or flicks these days - and I have taken the freedom to arrange for you a list of those you may have missed during your... well, absence. There is a movie from each decade since you were frozen and I have tried to choose one that reflected its time very well. I hope this will be a help for you to get used to your surroundings and catch up on the years you've missed.

Spin-off Blogathon | Agent Mariah Hill and Jor-El

It took some time to figure this out, but my final choice for the spin-off blogathon hosted by Sati is a tie between two comic-book-to-movie characters. Funnily, it's a very fair tie in many ways, representing both genders, both comic book giants (DC and Marvel) as well as two different general opinions on each movie. My choices are Agent Mariah Hill, played by the fabulous Cobie Smulders in The Avengers and Jor-El/ Superman's real dad, played by Russell Crowe in Man of Steel. You can guess which of the above characteristics belongs to which character.

Blind Spot Fixed: American History X

I can't discuss American History X - which, just to give you an impression, should land somewhere up in my Top 10 films of all time - without discussing my initial expectations for it. Along with Once Upon a Time in the West, this was the movie from blind spot list that I expected least from, mainly because I knew the least about it. The title had always made me think of some slightly preachy yet solid, typical 'universally good movie' about Malcolm X and black oppression. At least I was slightly right about that last one, but surprisingly there is no trace of Malcolm X in this movie at all. Lincoln may have been mentioned, which brings me to my first point: Movie buffs have been talking a lot about racism in the last two years with Lincoln and 12 Years a Slave being released and overall cherished. These were two movies that left me very cold and didn't trigger much of the aspired emotional reaction in me, which has convinced quite a few people I talk to about movies that I am a racist (jokingly... I hope). For example, one of these people was very surprised when I told him that I had actually fairly enjoyed this year's Fruitvale Station, me being a racist and all. I can't wait to tell him what I think of American History X (hint: it begins with M and ends with ASTERPIECE)*.

Blind Spot Fixed: Apocalypse Now

Choosing 12 films out of the hundreds of 'must-sees', 'masterpieces' and 'classics' that waited like blank sheets of paper for me to put my stamp of opinion on was a difficult task in itself. The fortunate person I am, the first film I chose proved even more difficulties. The main one: there exist two versions of it, the shorter one being 'only' 153 minutes long. Still, the 200+ minutes 'Redux' (what does that word even mean) cut might be much better than the original one, think of Blade Runner. Luckily, my helpful blogathon host Ryan McNeil immediately responded with the wise recommendation of the shorter cut - apart from the expected 'You're in for a treat', which he knew because everyone except me has seen these films already. In I went then, used to the 90-110 minute features I have stuffed myself with this whole past month. And you know, I've come to realize that watching movies is quite similar to doing sports - you've got to alternate. Now I do ballet, so 'Don't just do the allegro and ignore the adagio' would be my personal interpretation of the lesson that the Apocalypse Now experience taught me. I guess it translates to 'Don't forget to build up your muscles when training for a marathon'. 

Apocalypse Now is not just a long film - it's  a long war film. Happy times. War films need to be long, seems to be the general consensus. I don't think so, actually, I think war films can work perfectly fine with a running time below 2h. But indeed, Apocalypse Now is a movie that needs room to unfold itself in order to build up its eerie and disturbing atmosphere. Surprisingly, the plot isn't that important - nor are its holes. Basically, it's about great actors delivering great performances in an impossible environment, framed in the most fascinating way you can imagine (Oscar nod: deserved). If you really *have* to have a synopsis though; half-crazy Captain Willard (Michael Charlie Martin Sheen) is sent on a secret mission to exterminate Colonel Kurtz's (Marlon Brando) insane reign over a group of insane people near the Cambodian-Vietnamese border. The film currently ranks #1 at the website moviemistakes.com and deservedly so. You can't expect anything else from a cut-down from more than 200h worth of filmed material, filmed in 16 months though. Famous production history? I didn't know S about this film's production history. However, it was one of the most interesting things I read since researching Blade Runner.

Making the Case for Spring Breakers

Spring Breakers is my favourite film of 2013. I would rob a diner wearing a pink ski mask if I had to, just to watch it again. Or to get my hands on a copy of it. 

Let's begin where it all began with a teaser trailer than in itself is award-worthy. Most teaser trailers are. But there was someone about this one that intrigued me more than most of what I watch on a day-to-day base. Opinions on the movie have been very split. Festival-goers thought it was fine, teenage boys were disappointed by its seriousness, film enthusiasts didn't know what to make of it and the average moviegoer didn't even see it. It became known as "the movie with the two Disney princesses going wild". But it is just so much more than that. It's a film that bends genres, combines them anew and creates something that I've never seen on a screen before. It doesn't work neither as a satire, a full-on drama, a comedy, a music video or a wet-dream, but it's the mixture of all these elements that elevate it to another level of film-making. I won't go so far as saying that Harmony Korine knew what he was doing. Maybe he was. More likely, he wasn't completely. He didn't create an art house film, I think, but neither does his movie appeal to a large group of people. Cult movie might be the right term - or rather: future cult movie. 

Spring Breakers is an experience. Remember all the people mocking Gravity for being too long and having too little actual story? I for one think that both of these movies have some of the best screenplays of the year. And just as furious as I am about the people not 'getting' Gravity, I am about the people not even trying to get Spring Breakers. Of course, one may dislike or not love the movie once they've tried to work out what it was trying to say. Even if you don't arrive at a result, I wouldn't argue with you. But to completely disregard some of the things I love most about this movie, is a sin to me. Its content and ideas go from depicting the hedonic excesses of spring break to exploring friendship between young women to a re-interpretation of the American Dream. Confused? I wouldn't say I'm not. I don't completely 'get' Spring Breakers? But I like it that way. A movie doesn't need to write its intention out. A hint can be enough. And if the hint is as poetically executed as in Spring Breakers, a hint can be equal to perfection. 

Thank you for considering Spring Breakers, Ladies and Gentlemen, here are the categories I'd like to see it nominated in:

Best original screenplay - The dialogue is kept to a minimum and very powerful and the whole story evolved very organically. Also, the whole Britney Spears montage is enough reason for me to make this movie win. In case Gravity doesn't.

Best sound mixing - The voice-over fits beautifully into the rest of the movie and I think the technicians managed to make spring break feel real sound-wise without keeping the attention away from what was important to the story. 

Best make-up and hairstyling - Because pink hair. And seriously, the person that deformed James Franco that way must've really done an effort.

Best film editing - Some found the scenes of the actual spring break to be a tad too long and music-video-esque but I found that they worked very well. I loved the slow pace that was somehow underlined by some very fast-cut scenes. How is that even possible?

Best costume design - Duh.

Best cinematography - Everything looked either absolutely delicious or absolutely disgusting in a delicious way. My favourite thing about the cinematography is probably the lighting though. We don't see enough neon in movies these days. 

Best ensemble - Each of the three ladies was giving her very best and all of their performances felt very natural and honest. Rachel Korine was my least favourite, but even she depicted her character in an interesting, layered way. Selena Gomez was very sweet and her fear came across wonderfully, while Ashley Benson and Vanessa Hudgens blew me away in two very raunchy and sexy performances. And then there's James Franco.

Best supporting actor - Again, I want to say duh. He's completely different from his usual self, not only look-wise, but also in the way he walks, talks, acts and whatever people do. The pistol scene alone should gain him a nomination.

I also would like Spring Breakers to create and to win these fictional categories: Best Poster, Best Use of Pop Music, Best Arrest, Best Nail Polish and Best Asses.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS

(MOVIES I THOUGHT ABOUT CHOOSING for various reasons)

This is the End • The Conjuring • The Bling Ring • How I Live Now • Michael Kohlhaas

I'm a Blind Young Lady

The one and only Ryan McNeil is hosting his famous Blind Spot blogathon again next year, and this time, I'm all in. I'm going to watch 12 movies that I've never seen before, but feel very inclined to do. They may have won Best Picture, they may have been major Box-Office successes or they may simply be quite acclaimed. So here are my 12 movies and the months I'm going to (hopefully) watch them in:

January

Apocalypse Now

February

Memento

March

American History X

April

Léon (The Professional)

May

Rear Window

June

12 Angry Men

July 

Once Upon a Time in the West

August

Se7en

September

City of God

October

Goodfellas

November

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

December

It's a Wonderful Life

I can't wait to start!

Breaking Hate and Breaking Love

With these two last emotions, the Breaking Emotions Blogathon comes to an end - and sadly so. Mettel saved the best for the ending and we're going to go full on with the simple feels of Hate and Love. It would've been easy to just write a post on Love, but I decided to look for the devil in me and find those scenes that I despise as well. And then the very best also comes last for me with three scenes I love from three movies I love. Thank you for hosting this epic blogathon, Mettel!

Breaking Smiles and Breaking Thrills

We're mid-way through the Breaking Emotions Blogathon and I can already announce that this is my favorite blogathon of the year so far. Dropping out of the 5 Obstructions sort of disqualified that one from the first spot. This week, participants are asked to show off their dimples (I wish I had really cute ones, but sadly their rather unincisive) while sitting on the edges of their chairs/ sofas/ bathtubs/ beds/ wherever else you like to watch a movie. *

* As always, my choices are in no particular order. 

Smiles

American Psycho • Business Cards

Yes, everyone, I finally caught up with American Psycho just yesterday. And it is brilliant. It's a great slasher film, a great psychological drama and a great satire all at the same time. The awkwardness of it all kept me from laughing but I basically smiled my way through this movie. I knew about the business card scene before but had never seen it - it marked the peak of my smiling curve. Well, apart from the scene where a blood-smeared, naked Christian Bale runs around with a chainsaw.

Aiyyaa • Dreamum Wakeupum

This movie is so brave and colourful, I couldn't help but love it. The only thing I disliked were a certain female side character and, to some extend, the ending. Otherwise, the creativity that went into this is amazing. Showing a woman obsessing about someone in an Indian movie is quite unusual, showing attraction towards dark skin perhaps even more and having a character dream about these absolutely wonderful, cheesy phantasies was the cherry on top. 

Shopaholic • The Google Scene

By now, everyone who visits my blog from now and then probably knows about my undying love for this movie. Rebecca Bloomwood always manages to make me smile. And come on, we've all been in that situation, haven't we?

Thrills

The Deep (2012)

Not to be confused with a certain 70s flick, The Deep is an Icelandic movie from last year that is bound to keep you on the edge of your seat (with one exception - I'm looking at you, Nik). Even the trailer is full of suspense and had both me and my family go "We have to see this". It's the sort of film that'll make you shut up and not complain about a fly for at least a month. Since it's a rather unknown movie there are no specific scenes out there on the internet but that's fine since, actually, the whole movie is one big thrill.

The Hunger Games • Countdown

The Hunger Games has a rather sick premise for a movie (or a book for that matter); you're disgusted by the society it portrays and the way they watch people fight each other and die as entertainment. Like the Romans who watched Gladiators fight each other. However, you're watching these people fight each other and die, and you root for them, you're thrilled - you're entertained.

Talaash • Aamir and Kareena

There's so much to be thrilled about in this movie. Be it the style, the quality of the story, the fact that Aamir and Kareena have great chemistry - anything. What thrilled me most about it are two things: its intelligence and its self-awareness. The scene I chose is not necessarily the best but it's one I keep getting back to. I love the poetry in the dialogue and the unbelievable perfection of Kareena Kapoor portraying a prostitute. No offense; she's one of my favorite actresses. I'm just saying she's perfect in that role. (Sorry for the lack of subtitles).

Learn more about the blogathon by clicking on the banner below.

Previous posts

Fear and Awkward • Tears and Surprise

Across the Universe Podcast, Eps 14: Noirvember

Find out about the stuff that dreams are made of, our new favorite perfume and the diminishment of cinema in this latest episode of the Across the Universe Podcast. Instead of growing mustaches, we decided to take part in the celebration of Noirvember, a tradition that was started by Marya Gates. Please note that there was no lack of enthusiasm or traces of sleepiness from any of the parties involved - we were just trying to imitate Humphrey Bogarts cool way of speaking.

Brought to you by my fellow Chicks With Accents; Sofia and Nik and my own humble self.

Content:

0:19 - Chick-chatter

2:57 - Trailer

3:19 - Interesting Movie of the Fortnight

22:05 - The Chicks discuss The Maltese Falcon (1941)

35:53 - The Chicks discuss Sweet Smell of Success (1957) 

48:07 - The Chicks discuss Sunset Blvd. (1950)

1:16:28 - Plugs and Goodbyes

Soundtrack:

Artie Shaw - Nightmare

The Velvet Underground - Femme Fatale

Jim Sturgess - Across The Universe

Please give us your feedback on our facebook page, write us an email at acrossthenuniversepodcast@gmail.com or follow us and write a review on iTunes or Podomatic.

Breaking Tears and Breaking Surprise

The Breaking Emotions Blogathon continues with the sound of both tears and jaws dropping to the ground. This week, participants are requested to search out two (sadly) rather seldom cinematic feelings, the first being tears (as in super-sad-Leonardo-di-Caprio-how-am-I-supposed-to-live-tears-feeling*), the second being surprise (as in oh-my-gosh-who-thought-of-this-I-am-utterly-speechless-feeling*). **

* These are my own interpretations of the feelings and do not necessarily express the views of mettelray.

** My choices are in no particular order

In real life, a simple mistake or tiny argument with someone is (sometimes) enough for my eyes to turn damp - an irritating abnormality which makes life unnecessarily complicated. However, I rarely cry in a movie theater, and even more seldom in front of a tv/ laptop screen. Which is irritating too, because I'll sometimes seem like a coldhearted freak. Anyways, when I do start crying, it's not easy to stop.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower • the last 20 minutes

Literally, I started crying the moment Charlie tells Sam how they're both alike and how he thinks she's beautiful each of the two times I saw this movie. Even now, rewatching just that scene, I'm a nanometer away from tears. I also never really stop crying at the end of this one. Every time I think it's getting better, something very sad (Charlie's breakdown) or very philosophical (the ending) happens.

Broken Circle Breakdown • almost the entire movie

This movie is just one big, sad hole. I have never been as big a mess in public as when I watched this Belgian tragedy in theaters. I don't even remember when I started crying but again, after I had started, I never really stopped. This song is very much at the end of the movie and it's sort of a culmination of a lot of sad feelings. So if you need something that fits the weather before christmas movie season starts, do check out Broken Circle Breakdown. 'Cause it'll break you down, guaranteed.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button • the ending

What really got under my skin when I watched this movie as a moody teenager that hadn't seen many great films yet and didn't like showing her feelings to other people, isn't in this video; it's the old Daisy holding the baby Benjamin. I don't know what exactly about this scene touched my so much but it only got worse when I saw what you can see in the above video. I didn't only leave my tears in the theatre, but I got something in exchange although until this day, nobody knows what it was. Something among the lines of joie de vivre but with a dash of melancholy. 

Fight Club

Somehow, I managed to maintain a life completely unaware of Fight Club. Even as a blogger, it took a long time until it was in my movie title vocabulary, meaning that I had heard about it and knew who was starring in it. Otherwise, I didn't have a clue. And honestly, I'm very proud and very happy about the fact that I experienced Fight Club without knowing a thing about it's plot and twist. And neither should YOU, person who hasn't seen this, so don't you dare watching that clip.

Atonement

This one would fit just as well into the tears category but to me, it's the surprising factor that makes it all the more worthwhile and is part of what makes it stand out from other dramatic love stories. That whole backstory, the development of the various storylines and then that tragic ending make Atonement one of my favorite films of all time. And don't tell me you saw that revelation coming when you first saw this one.

Magnolia

This is probably the most WTF kind of surprise of the three movies I've chosen. People had told me that something weird was going to happen but this? I didn't expect this by any means. 

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