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| billyweeds |
 Posted: Sat Nov 20, 2010 7:46 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| I love the Overlooked Films forum idea, and propose that we start it right now. |
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| Marc |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 1:57 am |
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Joined: 19 May 2004
Posts: 8424
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:01 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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Okay. Here are five overlooked films which are all brilliant in one way or another.
First we have Smile. This is the 1975 satirical comedy directed by Michael Ritchie about a California teenage beauty pageant. I'ts a multi-dramedy centered around a specific event, which makes it remarkably similar to Nashville, which came out the same year and eclipsed it. I prefer Smile. Not only is it laugh-out-loud-funny, it has real heart and emotion and catharsis and all the good stuff that Nashville has, and accomplishes it in far less running time and with no pretension, making it a more satisfying movie than the big N. Terrific performances by Barbara Feldon, Nicholas Pryor, Annette O'Toole, Joan Prather, Maria O'Brien (Edmond's daughter), Geoffrey Lewis (Juliette's father), and--particularly--an amazingly funny/sad Bruce Dern and an indelibly acerbic Michael Kidd are the icing on the cake. |
Last edited by billyweeds on Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:53 am; edited 1 time in total |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:08 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
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Location: New York City
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Next, a movie I just saw and fits right into the overlooked category, since it came out two years ago, disappeared without a trace, and which I only discovered by researching the career of Andrew Garfield, the young actor who is so wonderful in The Social Network.
Garfield has the leading role in Boy A, the second "overlooked" film on my list. He plays a 23-year-old just released from prison for a crime which is kept secret from the audience for a large part of the running time but which is announced in all the publicity as a come-on, because it's so intriguing. Since it therefore hardly counts as a spoiler, I will play along and tell you that the young man was jailed for committing a murder as a child. As played by Garfield, he is extremely sympathetic and likable as well as being tortured. It's a tour de force of emotion and charisma and brands Garfield as a great talent. The whole movie is up to his level, however. It's gut-wrenching, with several performances of particular skill and sensitive direction by John Crowley (whose Intermission is another overlooked film, though not quite at the level of Boy A). |
Last edited by billyweeds on Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:18 am; edited 2 times in total |
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| Earl |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:10 am |
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Joined: 09 Jun 2004
Posts: 2621
Location: Houston
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| I like the idea of that thread. When I first read it I thought it would be a forum in which I'd lurk but would not contribute to it. But then a second later I started thinking of titles. |
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"I have a suspicion that you are all mad," said Dr. Renard, smiling sociably; "but God forbid that madness should in any way interrupt friendship." |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:15 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| Night Moves, released (like Smile) in 1975, stars Gene Hackman in a neo-noir directed by the recently deceased Arthur Penn. It establishes a mood early on of desperation and angst which never leaves. The pace is languid and seductive, the color photography as well-suited to noir as any color photography ever has been, and the plot is suitably complex and twisted. Melanie Griffith plays a missing nymphet who Hackman is hired to track down. There are romantic involvements, plots within plots, and a Florida setting that's perfect. Jennifer Warren is ultra-sexy as the woman who Hackman hooks up with, and the supporting cast--including Edward Binns, Susan Clark, Janet Ward, and Harris Yulin--is aces. This is a great movie that slipped between the cracks. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:21 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| Lorne--If you want to establish a new forum for "Overlooked Films" these posts should be moved over there. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:32 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
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Location: New York City
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| Lili (1953) is not so much an "overlooked" film as a largely forgotten one. Leslie Caron's performance as a French teenager, newly orphaned and more-or-less homeless, who becomes involved with a disabled puppeteer and--memorably--his puppets, was nominated for the Oscar, so the movie was not in need of immediate appreciation. But in the intervening years the movie has lost a lot of its reputation and is probably thought of, if at all, as a syrupy MGM bauble. Not remotely so. This is a human drama whose tears are thoroughly earned, with a performance by Caron that was robbed of the Oscar by the charming but nowhere near as profound work of Audrey Hepburn in her heat-seeking career-maker Roman Holiday. Lili has honest sentiment, delightful music, laughs, heart, soul, and--always and above all--the stunning work of Caron, whose performance ranks in my all-time top five. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:45 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| And speaking of all-time favorite performances, another of mine is from the 1960 drama Tunes of Glory. When this film was first released, critics hopped on a John Mills bandwagon, apparently feeling it was time the second-billed star, a great actor who'd been unfairly overlooked himself, got his due. It was a weird happenstance that in their zeal to overcompensate the eminently worthy Mills, they all but dismissed Alec Guinness in what for me is his career peak, a performance that puts all his great comedy work and his Oscarwinning turn in River Kwai in the shade. Guinness plays Jock, the blowhard leader of a Scottish regiment, who undergoes a dark night of the soul. The movie can be accused of being somewhat theatrical, with a climax that would be just as effective on a stage and seems to have been directed for the proscenium arch more than the movie camera. But no matter. It's a great film with one of the greatest of all film performances. And I don't mean John Mills. |
Last edited by billyweeds on Sun Nov 21, 2010 9:14 am; edited 1 time in total |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 7:52 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| That's five. Someone else's move. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 9:09 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
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Location: Shanghai
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Smile is a film I've wanted to see.
I'm not much of a Nashville fan, but have heard good things about Smile (possibly just Billy, over the years).
I agree that Boy A is a pretty terrific film. It's pretty low-key and I think it's better to not know the key plot motivator and to guess what it might be as the film goes on. It feels true and is a touching depiction of a person's journey towards recovery. Nothing flashy, just real solid, full of integrity. I tossed it on with no expectations and just got caught up in it little by little.
A very good rec.
Not familiar with Lili.
I found Tunes of Glory a bit grating, but it had moments of glory. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 9:35 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
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Location: Shanghai
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The Crowd (King Vidor, 1928) – This wowed me. One of the best silent films I’ve seen. Very inventive camera work, from the golden age of silents. A great film for anyone who thinks silent cinema was boring. Would make an excellent contrast to the static early talkies when the sound room was as big as my kitchen and the camera was immobile. Just exceptionally vibrant and inventive, including great scenes of the rides at Coney Island.
The only problem is that it’s not out on legit dvd, which is one reason why it is overlooked & underseen. There is a decent “public domain” Bo Ying (Hong Kong) edition. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 9:37 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
Posts: 9005
Location: Shanghai
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The Shop on Main Street (1965) –
My favorite Czech film, which is high praise.
Also, the best Holocaust film I’ve seen. Its genius is to focus on just a few individuals, and let us watch how ineptly a regular working-class apolitical guy gets caught up in the Nazification of the country. Basically, evil can triumph when average folks do nothing and go along, but handled in a tragic-comedy manner, with
great performances. Realistic and affecting.
This is in the Criterion collection so should be widely available. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 9:40 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
Posts: 9005
Location: Shanghai
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Three Crowns of the Sailor (Raoul Ruiz, 1983)
This is a rather convoluted tale told by a sailor who has traveled aboard a cursed Ship of the Dead. The tales all weave around and interconnect at times, and the film, with its mix of fantasy and reality, form a Borgesian labyrinth. Probably not for everyone, but I found this to be invigorating.
An intriguing film which has made Ruiz’s films something of a grail for me, but somehow they don’t exist in China. Maybe if I follow the sound of the foghorn down to the water's edge, perhaps I might meet a man, in the fog, who can tell me, maybe ... |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Sun Nov 21, 2010 9:42 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
Posts: 9005
Location: Shanghai
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Brother’s Keeper (1992) –
Possibly my favorite documentary.
Just a few old brothers in upstate NY and the rural town they grew up in.
Oh, almost forgot, there's a murder trial too.
A fascinating look at poverty and how legal issues and social norms often apply poorly to those who are truly poor. Very well put together. A real wrenching, emotional ride. Not sure how well-known/unknown this is, but it’s one of those films I’d hope everyone has seen. |
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