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| billyweeds |
 Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 12:37 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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Marc wrote: there two great scenes involving musicians discovering their chops for the first time in the recording studio:
WALK THE LINE and HUSTLE & FLOW.
In Hustle & Flow it was one of several great scenes (another being the one I mentioned above, another between Howard and Ludacris, a third between Anthony Andrews and Elise Neal as Key and Yevette, etc.) In Walk the Line it's the one and only truly outstanding scene in the movie. (I assume you're referring to the scene between Phoenix and Dallas Roberts as Sam Phillips, right?) |
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| Marc |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 12:39 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
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Like Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson did all her own singing.
There is a terrifically romantic scene in HUSTLE&FLOW when DJay recognizes
that he is in love that is set to a track by r&b great Willie Hutch. A perfect marriage of image and sound. |
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| Marc |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 12:41 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
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| yes, there are many great scenes in HUSTLE&FLOW. I was comparing two great scenes in two movies that take place in a recording studio. |
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| Marc |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 12:42 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
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| and Ludacris is turning into a fine actor. Of course, there's alot of acting in rap. |
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| shannon |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:08 am |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 1628
Location: NC
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Ludacris is turning into a suprisingly good actor. In both [i]Crash and Hustle & Flow[/i] it's shown that, unlike most rapper-turned-actors, his ego doesn't prevent him from choosing unflattering roles.
There are so many great scenes in Hustle & Flow. How about DJ Qualls' "from 'Backdoor Man' to 'Back that Ass Up'" speech? It illustrates beautifully what makes hip-hop such a vital artform. In fact, I loved everything about DJ Qualls' character, how he wasn't intimidated by the big, scary black man when he first met him, how he proved his worth through his music and not by acting all "wut up, dawg?"-down like so many token white boys in black cinema do.
I don't get Gromit's "urban Hollywood story" criticism. I grew up around Southern black culture and the whole thing seemed authentic to me. I appreciated the way it flipped the whole pimp/gangsta mystique upside down. The life isn't glamourous, no matter how 50 Cent tells it. And despite its gritty subject matter, I appreciated the universality of what it had to say. Anthony Anderson's character, despite living the so-called perfect life (perfect wife, perfect home, good job, money), suffered the same affliction as Howard's pimp: both near-middle-aged men look back on the hopes and dreams of their youth and contrast them with their current lives and just aren't satisfied. And they do something about it. And succeed. It's fucking inspirational, but not in the dishonest fashion of, say, a Rocky movie, despite following the same plot pattern. Hustle & Flow, to me, is a perfect film. |
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| yambu |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:10 am |
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Joined: 23 May 2004
Posts: 6441
Location: SF Bay Area
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| The Constant Gardener will get a Blanche nom from me for best screenplay. Someone knew exactly how to bring the elliptical LeCarre to the big screen. It's fair to compare it with the Syriana script, which, with all its complexity and bright moments, does not rival this for artful storey telling. |
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| Marc |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:16 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
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shannon,
I figured you liked DJ Qualls' character. Did you see any of yourself in him?
I turned off THE CONSTANT GARDENER as soon Fiennes hit the sack with Weitz. Seeing Fiennes in a sex scene was literally unbearable for me. |
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| shannon |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:20 am |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 1628
Location: NC
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I watched The Constant Gardner again last week on dvd after being thoroughly disappointed with it at the theater. I really want to like it, but I just can't. I like what it has to say, but it just didn't involve me at all. Weisz and Fiennes are both fine in their roles (though neither are award-worthy, IMO) and I really loved the guy (tried to look his name up on the imdb, but I can't recall his character's name) who played Weisz's cousin who gives the speech at the end. But the movie as a whole does nothing for me.
Quote: Someone knew exactly how to bring the elliptical LeCarre to the big screen.
Did you see the featurette on the dvd where le Carré talks about the book-to-screen process. He says something like, "You can read my book and probably not find a single line from this film inside of it, but this is still one of the best screen adaptations I can recall." Obviously he agrees with you. |
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| shannon |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:22 am |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 1628
Location: NC
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Quote:
I figured you liked DJ Qualls' character. Did you see any of yourself in him?
Maybe a little. But I'd like to think I'm more attractive. DJ Qualls is an ugly mofo. |
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| Marc |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:24 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
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| shannon, I didn't mean physically. |
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| Marc |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:25 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
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| but, speaking of people resembling each other. ehle looks a lot like HUSTLE&FLOW director Craig Brewer. |
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| shannon |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:27 am |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 1628
Location: NC
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I know. Jeez.
Hustle & Flow's director, Craig Brewer, is white. Judging from the interviews with him included on the dvd, I'd say Qualls' character is more than a little autobiographical. |
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| Marc |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:28 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
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| Marc |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:28 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
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| yambu |
| Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2006 1:35 am |
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Joined: 23 May 2004
Posts: 6441
Location: SF Bay Area
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Marc wrote: ....I turned off THE CONSTANT GARDENER as soon Fiennes hit the sack with Weitz. Seeing Fiennes in a sex scene was literally unbearable for me. |
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