I realize that I haven't babbled on and on about films lately the way that I used to, and it's simply because I've been deprived of my movie-going-passion.
I hunger for movies, and trips to the theater to see them, but the movie-making world just isn't obliging these days, and I find it very depressing. This is the biggest thing (and this might sound sad), but it is the biggest thing I miss about living in Brooklyn. (Almost) every DAY I could see a new movie if I wanted...sometimes twice a day! After a sad Summer of movies, it seems like we're ushering in a sad Autumn of movies (which scarcely seems possible, given that it is usually the flourishing "which-one-should-we-see-tonight" time). All that said, I actually spent two evenings at the cinema early this week, and it did my soul some considerable good.
Monday night we saw Elizabeth, The Golden Age, which I've been anxiously anticipating.
I liked the first Elizabeth, of course, but this one also had the Clive factor in its favor. Josiah and I both really liked it...I thought that the costumes were opulent and beautiful, Cate did her thing to great effect, and it was all entertaining and well and good. I didn't think "Oh, my god...I must own this" or anything that extreme, but I did think it was a nice little movie. When we were walking about of the theater, Josiah turned to me and said "I didn't want you to know this going into it, but this movie got horrible reviews". He wasn't kidding, Rotten Tomatoes gave it like a 25% fresh rating or something. But I just don't get the reviewer's problems with the movie, which seem to be all the things I liked about it...over-the-top costumes, interpersonal drama, not too heavy on the battle-scenes.
Herrumph.
Tuesday night, we caught the last screening of Pierrot Le Fou, a Godard movie I had wanted to see (but I think it's out of print until the Criterion comes out? Maybe?).
(Isn't this image the best? I had to look around forever online to find it...it's the poster they had at the local theater promoting the film)
Anyway, I always think it's so special when I get to see an older film (especially from such a director!) on a big screen. I mean, I get very warm and geeky and happy about it...I suppose just because it's so rare, as American doesn't have a great tradition of Revival houses.
I was so warm and cozy, wrapped up in my blanket of feeling lucky-to-be-there that it didn't bother me one bit that I didn't love this film. I liked it, the first half is really wonderful...but it lost me a little at the end (not the very end, which is pretty great). I guess the second half just felt a little too like Weekend somehow, which is a film that doesn't send me. I love Anna Karina, and believe I could watch her do an insurance informercial and be bewitched...but she shimmered a little less in this than she does in my favorites, Vivre sa Vie and Une femme est une femme. It was still a wisely spent 2 hours, and I still feel lucky to have seen it on a big screen (I wish so much I could seen either of the aforementioned two at a theater!).
Enough of the rambling!
I've missed it, though, so please forgive me the indulgence. ;)
xoxo
