I knew full well that Paul Atreides was gonna ride that fucking worm, but the lead up was loaded with tension nonetheless. It's a testament to Villeneuve's ability to craft feet-on-the-ground tactility against a massive sci-fi canvas. He funnels down the grandeur into tangible feelings by using visual sparseness and monochrome to narrow the focus, create potent tableaus, and enhance the mythic thrust. The imagery is so fucking gorgeous and commanding that it's almost exhausting. Standing O for ever single…
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Bullet in the Head 1990
I'm not a John Woo aficionado, but this feels like his crown jewel in terms of brawn, melodrama, balletic camera work, everything that characterizes his style. It gnaws at me knowing that there was a 3-hour cut because Bullet in the Head could absolutely benefit from the added weight. Epic as it is, there's clearly an even greater tapestry here. The way Woo folds in real events of violence and social tumult is fucking awesome, and the dynamics between Ben,…
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The Train 1964
The phrase "you could never make this movie today" does not even begin to encapsulate the enormity of The Train. You could never make this movie in 1964.
Burt Lancaster walks across the train yard from the switch tower to his houseboat. The movie does not demand a flawlessly orchestrated background of shifting artillery vessels, marching soldiers, construction crews, smoke, and sparks. Anyone in their right mind would say, "Hey, can we not? Let's just have him entering the houseboat."…
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Tender Mercies 1983
Tender Mercies feels like an 8 hour movie reduced to its most poetic moments. There are worlds and events and lives surrounding it, but we're living on the fringe of it all. That's not to say there aren't pivotal dramatic events, but there's something about the expanse of sky, whistling wind, and passing cars that gives everything an ethereal feel. It's practically dreamlike. It reminds me of No Country for Old Men in many ways. Not just the land of…