50 Year Factor
It’s being asked which of this year’s Best Picture nominees will be watched by film buffs 50 years hence. Just as I’ve watched (and will watch again) a 50 year-old Korean War film called Pork Chop Hill, I can’t imagine The Hurt Locker not being a fascinating timepiece for those looking to absorb what the Iraq War was for U.S. troops. And just as Ben-Hur is a necessary flick to own (especially when it finally comes out on Blu-ray) or at least see once, who can imagine Avatar not being a essential sit in 2060?
But the general rule of thumb about the truly enduring films not having been nominated or awarded by the Academy will also apply, I’m sure.
The 1959 Best Picture nominees were Ben-Hur, Anatomy of a Murder, Room at the Top, The Diary of Anne Frank and The Nun’s Story. Of these, only Ben-Hur and Anatomy are regarded as truly worth your time. Absolutely no one has looked at The Nun’s Story in decades — it’s been virtually forgotten. Anne Frank is out on Blu-ray now, and nobody much cares. Room at the Top is a highly respected kitchen-sink drama, but it hasn’t been decently mastered for DVD over the last ten years (and has not been Blu-rayed) so it seems to have fallen off the radar for now.
What 1959 films are truly respected and considered necessary viewing in today’s home-video realm? The short list would have to include (in this order) Alfred Hitchcock‘s North by Northwest, Billy Wilder‘s Some Like it Hot, Robert Bresson‘s Pickpocket, Howard Hawks‘ Rio Bravo (although I’m only a middling fan), Lewis Milestone‘s Pork Chop Hill, Francois Truffaut‘s The 400 Blows, William Wyler’s Ben-Hur, Jack Clayton‘s Room at the Top, (which Criterion really should remaster and re-issue), Ingmar Bergman‘s Wild Strawberries, John Ford‘s The Horse Soldiers, Otto Preminger‘s Anatomy of Murder, Yasujiro Ozu‘s Floating Weeds, Douglas Sirk‘s Imitation of Life (although I can’t stand Sirk’s soap-opera wallowings), Grigori Chukhrai‘s Ballad of a Soldier, Stanley Kramer‘s On The Beach and Ed Wood‘s Plan 9 from Outer Space (obviously for ignoble reasons).
1959 films that are respected but half-forgotten and sinking-into-obscurity include Henry King‘s Beloved Infidel, Richard Fleischer‘s Compulsion, Robert Stevenson‘s Darby O’Gill and the Little People, Guy Hamilton‘s The Devil’s Disciple, Mel Ferrer’s Green Mansions, Frank Capra‘s A Hole in the Head, Basil Dearden‘s The League of Gentlemen, Jack Arnold‘s The Mouse That Roared, Val Guest‘s Expresso Bongo, John Sturges‘ Never So Few, Robert Wise‘s Odds Against Tomorrow, Carol Reed‘s Our Man in Havana, Budd Boetticher‘s Ride Lonesome, John Cassevettes‘ Shadows, Joseph L. Mankiewicz‘s Suddenly, Last Summer, Michael Anderson‘s Shake Hands With The Devil and and J. Lee Thompson‘s Tiger Bay.
The rest are either gone from the public mind or considered too negligible or embarassing to discuss (i.e., Operation Petticoat, The Mating Game, Blue Denim, The FBI Story, The Hanging Tree, It Happened to Jane, Solomon and Sheba, Career, Pillow Talk, It Started With a Kiss, John Paul Jones, etc.).
Avatar? No. Unless there is little vegetation left on earth and some people are craving a little tree porn.
Avatar? No. Unless there is little vegetation left on earth and some people are craving a little tree porn.
Billy Wilder’s ‘Some Like It Hot’ is a genuine omission; ‘Sleeping Beauty’ is probably, technically, an oft-viewed one.
Billy Wilder’s ‘Some Like It Hot’ is a genuine omission; ‘Sleeping Beauty’ is probably, technically, an oft-viewed one.
Jeff – I hope that doesn’t come off as contrarian.
Jeff – I hope that doesn’t come off as contrarian.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lawrence-odonnell/and-the-winner-isiinglori_b_470960.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lawrence-odonnell/and-the-winner-isiinglori_b_470960.html
The short list is dead on, but I would like to suggest that Pillow Talk will continue to be watched by queer theory students endlessly deconstructing Rock Hudson’s performance.
The short list is dead on, but I would like to suggest that Pillow Talk will continue to be watched by queer theory students endlessly deconstructing Rock Hudson’s performance.
THE NUN’S STORY is excellent, as is COMPULSION; anyone who runs into them will be rewarded.
THE NUN’S STORY is excellent, as is COMPULSION; anyone who runs into them will be rewarded.
My guess is Inglourious Basterds. It will be used for film students endlessly on how to deconstruct WWII and other real events in the interest of storytelling.
My guess is Inglourious Basterds. It will be used for film students endlessly on how to deconstruct WWII and other real events in the interest of storytelling.
Technically, Sleeping Beauty has to be the most-watched 1959 release every year. Among adults, though, I would think North By Northwest is the one.
And the reason I don’t think Avatar will hold up is because the effects will no longer carry a “wow” with them. The silliness of the story will stand out even more than it does now.
Technically, Sleeping Beauty has to be the most-watched 1959 release every year. Among adults, though, I would think North By Northwest is the one.
And the reason I don’t think Avatar will hold up is because the effects will no longer carry a “wow” with them. The silliness of the story will stand out even more than it does now.
Depends on what survives the purge after the Chinese robots take control of earth in 2024.
Depends on what survives the purge after the Chinese robots take control of earth in 2024.
Here’s the biggest problem as I see it with this analysis. Our collective attention span is about the same as a gnat’s. That’s not a criticism, it’s simply an observation. The way we digest and consume media is changing too fast.
Nothing seems to last any more. In our effort to find the next big thing, we use and discard the last big thing almost immediately. Nothing’s going to stick in 50 years because nothing sticks now.
One day, Avatar will look as quaint as Destination Moon or Forbidden Planet look now. The difference is, that day will probably come a lot sooner than it did for either of those films.
Here’s the biggest problem as I see it with this analysis. Our collective attention span is about the same as a gnat’s. That’s not a criticism, it’s simply an observation. The way we digest and consume media is changing too fast.
Nothing seems to last any more. In our effort to find the next big thing, we use and discard the last big thing almost immediately. Nothing’s going to stick in 50 years because nothing sticks now.
One day, Avatar will look as quaint as Destination Moon or Forbidden Planet look now. The difference is, that day will probably come a lot sooner than it did for either of those films.
add THE CRIMSON KIMONO to the list, an important film in the Sam Fuller canon as well as an essential detective genre, buddy cop movie … oh and the theme song from A Summer Place
add THE CRIMSON KIMONO to the list, an important film in the Sam Fuller canon as well as an essential detective genre, buddy cop movie … oh and the theme song from A Summer Place
Hard to gauge the future interest in a war movie, as we’re still a decade before knowing the importance of the subject war. I am pretty positive, however, that someone in 50 years will search wikipedia from his iLenses, and ask “they nominated 10 movies in 09, and Public Enemies wasn’t one of them?” (I’m translating of course. This person will without question be speaking in Mandarin.)
Hard to gauge the future interest in a war movie, as we’re still a decade before knowing the importance of the subject war. I am pretty positive, however, that someone in 50 years will search wikipedia from his iLenses, and ask “they nominated 10 movies in 09, and Public Enemies wasn’t one of them?” (I’m translating of course. This person will without question be speaking in Mandarin.)
Jeff is 100% right with North by Northwest. That film, everytime I watch it, I just get reminded of things like Raiders of the Lost Ark and other films of adventure and thriller that just don’t age. I can rewatch it and still believe that it could have been done today (though a period piece sure due to the Cold War element to it).
Everything about it was awesome. That brilliant scene at the auction and the follow up in the police car is one of the scenes I always talk about whenever discussing film with folks. Highly memorable and yet not necessarily the scene everyone remembers when one speaks of that film either.
Where has all the Alfred Hitchcock and Bernard Hermann’s gone!
Jeff is 100% right with North by Northwest. That film, everytime I watch it, I just get reminded of things like Raiders of the Lost Ark and other films of adventure and thriller that just don’t age. I can rewatch it and still believe that it could have been done today (though a period piece sure due to the Cold War element to it).
Everything about it was awesome. That brilliant scene at the auction and the follow up in the police car is one of the scenes I always talk about whenever discussing film with folks. Highly memorable and yet not necessarily the scene everyone remembers when one speaks of that film either.
Where has all the Alfred Hitchcock and Bernard Hermann’s gone!
Go back one more year (1958) for one of the greatest movies to be unappreciated in its day: Vertigo.
Some things do last, and they get better with age.
Go back one more year (1958) for one of the greatest movies to be unappreciated in its day: Vertigo.
Some things do last, and they get better with age.
Rich S., I don’t know about that … Forbidden Planet is still one of the best intellectually interesting and great story telling of the golden age of science fiction … watching it is like picking up a Jack Williamson or Paol Anderson novel and nodding in approval again and again.
Rich S., I don’t know about that … Forbidden Planet is still one of the best intellectually interesting and great story telling of the golden age of science fiction … watching it is like picking up a Jack Williamson or Paol Anderson novel and nodding in approval again and again.
That moment where Grant sneaks into the other hospital room then gets stopped by the attractive patient and makes this bizarre Woody Woodpecker-esque laugh kills me.
I’d put Cassavetes’ ‘Shadows’ in the top list as well.
That moment where Grant sneaks into the other hospital room then gets stopped by the attractive patient and makes this bizarre Woody Woodpecker-esque laugh kills me.
I’d put Cassavetes’ ‘Shadows’ in the top list as well.
PrisonJake, oh that was a classic scene … absolutely great … a true wink to the film audience indeed.
On a side note, Jeff missing Some Like It Hot and Sleeping Beauty were forgivable since I didn’t even know they were that old too! 50 years! WOW!
PrisonJake, oh that was a classic scene … absolutely great … a true wink to the film audience indeed.
On a side note, Jeff missing Some Like It Hot and Sleeping Beauty were forgivable since I didn’t even know they were that old too! 50 years! WOW!
Forbidden Planet endures because it’s loosely based on Shakespeare. It’s a sci-fi interpretation of The Tempest. Some of its effects are still somewhat striking (the matte paintings are really cool, and the Creature from the Id is one of my favorite movie monsters ever, ever, ever)
I’m not sure if Avatar’s got all this in its wheelhouse. It does have that scene where the dude starts running in his Avatar for the first time. That was pretty cool and well-handled, I thought.
Forbidden Planet endures because it’s loosely based on Shakespeare. It’s a sci-fi interpretation of The Tempest. Some of its effects are still somewhat striking (the matte paintings are really cool, and the Creature from the Id is one of my favorite movie monsters ever, ever, ever)
I’m not sure if Avatar’s got all this in its wheelhouse. It does have that scene where the dude starts running in his Avatar for the first time. That was pretty cool and well-handled, I thought.
“Avatar? No. Unless there is little vegetation left on earth and some people are craving a little tree porn. ”
Yeah, was gonna say – it’ll be a cold day in hell when Avatar is Ben Hur. It’s more like Cleopatra.
“Avatar? No. Unless there is little vegetation left on earth and some people are craving a little tree porn. ”
Yeah, was gonna say – it’ll be a cold day in hell when Avatar is Ben Hur. It’s more like Cleopatra.
“Movie? Oh yeah, I remember hearing about them in history class.” — The year 2060
“Movie? Oh yeah, I remember hearing about them in history class.” — The year 2060
Hmmm, a very big backlash here for Avatar. Surprising.
Hmmm, a very big backlash here for Avatar. Surprising.
Visual Effects executed at the highest level, IMO, hardly ever lose their magic over time. King Kong, 2001, Toy Story, etc., all look dated in certain ways, but are immensely rewatchable without ever feeling removed from the story.
Visual Effects executed at the highest level, IMO, hardly ever lose their magic over time. King Kong, 2001, Toy Story, etc., all look dated in certain ways, but are immensely rewatchable without ever feeling removed from the story.
“One day, Avatar will look as quaint as Destination Moon or Forbidden Planet look now.”
Rich,
That is very, very unlikely, Those “visual relativism” arguments usually miss the fact that we are getting very close to a point that better resolution and/or graphics will not matter as our eyes don`t have the capacity for the better (we are there or maybe almost there with 2-D, I doubt that we will be able to distinguish better resolution than Bluray.
As for movies with special effects, Jurassic Park still looks great. That was done 17 years ago. Granted there will be further achievements in technology and especially in 3.-d technology but I can bet that 50 years later Avatar will look even better than Star Wars looks today (not bad at all with some digital additions).
To Jeff:
I can only see one topic (50 Year Factor). This happens quite often with your site. Please try to find a solution.
“One day, Avatar will look as quaint as Destination Moon or Forbidden Planet look now.”
Rich,
That is very, very unlikely, Those “visual relativism” arguments usually miss the fact that we are getting very close to a point that better resolution and/or graphics will not matter as our eyes don`t have the capacity for the better (we are there or maybe almost there with 2-D, I doubt that we will be able to distinguish better resolution than Bluray.
As for movies with special effects, Jurassic Park still looks great. That was done 17 years ago. Granted there will be further achievements in technology and especially in 3.-d technology but I can bet that 50 years later Avatar will look even better than Star Wars looks today (not bad at all with some digital additions).
To Jeff:
I can only see one topic (50 Year Factor). This happens quite often with your site. Please try to find a solution.
Howlingman with the win.
“I predict in 50 years this nation will be named The United States of The Hurt Locker, and Mount Rushmore will have Kathryn Bigelow’s face chiseled into it alongside Lincoln’s.”
- Jeffrey Wells
Howlingman with the win.
“I predict in 50 years this nation will be named The United States of The Hurt Locker, and Mount Rushmore will have Kathryn Bigelow’s face chiseled into it alongside Lincoln’s.”
- Jeffrey Wells
Hurt Locker will be better remembered if it DOESN’T win. It’ll gather a reputation as a solid “you haven’t seen it but you should” war movie like Hamburger Hill. As a winner of anything but director, it’s going to be premanently-branded as overpraised – “Out Of Africa” with bomb suits.
“Avatar’s” future is secure either way as a genre landmark, especially if Disney/Pixar’s “Princess of Mars” is great and the now all-but-greenlit Flash Gordon reboot happens and it begins to look like the start of a new “off-planet-adventure” cycle.
“Basterds” will be remembered as THE movie of 2009, and “Revenge of The Giant Face” will be in the movies-of-our-lives montage reels from now till kingdom come.
Hurt Locker will be better remembered if it DOESN’T win. It’ll gather a reputation as a solid “you haven’t seen it but you should” war movie like Hamburger Hill. As a winner of anything but director, it’s going to be premanently-branded as overpraised – “Out Of Africa” with bomb suits.
“Avatar’s” future is secure either way as a genre landmark, especially if Disney/Pixar’s “Princess of Mars” is great and the now all-but-greenlit Flash Gordon reboot happens and it begins to look like the start of a new “off-planet-adventure” cycle.
“Basterds” will be remembered as THE movie of 2009, and “Revenge of The Giant Face” will be in the movies-of-our-lives montage reels from now till kingdom come.
Psycho has to be at the top of 1960′s list, with The Apartment, Inherit the Wind, The Magnificent Seven and Spartacus following.
And of those five, only The Apartment was nominated (it won).
Psycho has to be at the top of 1960′s list, with The Apartment, Inherit the Wind, The Magnificent Seven and Spartacus following.
And of those five, only The Apartment was nominated (it won).
To be honest, all those Ray Harryhausen flicks still look great today! With the new Clash of the Titans coming out, I rewatched the old one and those effects, though stop motion, are still truly great and I enjoy them all (Sinbad, etc.) … all good stuff and remembered today whether for cinema reasons, special effects reason, or favorites of genre fans.
To be honest, all those Ray Harryhausen flicks still look great today! With the new Clash of the Titans coming out, I rewatched the old one and those effects, though stop motion, are still truly great and I enjoy them all (Sinbad, etc.) … all good stuff and remembered today whether for cinema reasons, special effects reason, or favorites of genre fans.
Suddenly Last Summer is “half-forgotten and sinking into obscurity”? Add Tennessee Williams and Gore Vidal’s names to Mankiewicz’s, as well as a cast that includes Elizabeth Taylor, Montgomery Clift, and a truly demented, iconic performance from Katherine Hepburn (this should have been one of her Oscar wins), and I think this is one that’s going to stick around. A really strange, depraved work.
Suddenly Last Summer is “half-forgotten and sinking into obscurity”? Add Tennessee Williams and Gore Vidal’s names to Mankiewicz’s, as well as a cast that includes Elizabeth Taylor, Montgomery Clift, and a truly demented, iconic performance from Katherine Hepburn (this should have been one of her Oscar wins), and I think this is one that’s going to stick around. A really strange, depraved work.
And while you may love Pork Chop Hill, Jeff, I never hear people mention it.
And while you may love Pork Chop Hill, Jeff, I never hear people mention it.
The backlash against Avatar is as predictable as night following day. Every time, and i mean EVERY DAMN TIME a film does huge business and/or wins a lot of awards, people turn against it like lemmings. I think that if Pulp Fiction had cleaned up at the 05 Oscars, Forrest Gump would have been a beloved movie, an example of how “they just don’t make blockbusters like this any more”.
See also the recent anti-Hurt Locker backlash starting to brew. Suddenly Inglorious Basterds is a much better movie, and we all know people didn’t rush to shout it’s praises a couple of months ago.
The backlash against Avatar is as predictable as night following day. Every time, and i mean EVERY DAMN TIME a film does huge business and/or wins a lot of awards, people turn against it like lemmings. I think that if Pulp Fiction had cleaned up at the 05 Oscars, Forrest Gump would have been a beloved movie, an example of how “they just don’t make blockbusters like this any more”.
See also the recent anti-Hurt Locker backlash starting to brew. Suddenly Inglorious Basterds is a much better movie, and we all know people didn’t rush to shout it’s praises a couple of months ago.
I liked Avatar, but ultimately its going to be like The Jazz Singer or The Robe — a film that people look back on in appreciation of a particular technical achievement (sound and Cinemascope, respectively), but that the intervening years have rendered nothing special. Although Avatar I think Avatar will always be a good bit more exciting than either of those films.
I liked Avatar, but ultimately its going to be like The Jazz Singer or The Robe — a film that people look back on in appreciation of a particular technical achievement (sound and Cinemascope, respectively), but that the intervening years have rendered nothing special. Although Avatar I think Avatar will always be a good bit more exciting than either of those films.
With the invention of Immersive Synaptic Personal Entertainment Devices in 2037, movies will no longer be viewed by anyone but film buffs and scholars. Kinda like old-time radio.
With the invention of Immersive Synaptic Personal Entertainment Devices in 2037, movies will no longer be viewed by anyone but film buffs and scholars. Kinda like old-time radio.
I only see 2 posts on the site as well.
I only see 2 posts on the site as well.
I didn’t mean to omit Some Like It Hot…fixed. Belongs at or near the top of any 1959 list.
I didn’t mean to omit Some Like It Hot…fixed. Belongs at or near the top of any 1959 list.
“Inherit The WInd”? Ugh. Stanley Kramer and his four ton hammer.
“Inherit The WInd”? Ugh. Stanley Kramer and his four ton hammer.
Jeff, you still should add Sleeping Beauty to the list in your header … that is a big boo-boo.
Jeff, you still should add Sleeping Beauty to the list in your header … that is a big boo-boo.
It’s not one of my favorite Cassavetes films, but there is no way in hell that SHADOWS is “sinking into obscurity”. It’s a thoroughly significant film that any fledgling independent filmmaker should investigate, and which many of them do.
It’s not one of my favorite Cassavetes films, but there is no way in hell that SHADOWS is “sinking into obscurity”. It’s a thoroughly significant film that any fledgling independent filmmaker should investigate, and which many of them do.
I’ve never regarded Sleeping Beauty as one of Disney’s best. It just didn’t pop through in my head.
I’ve never regarded Sleeping Beauty as one of Disney’s best. It just didn’t pop through in my head.
Jeff, fair enough …
Jeff, fair enough …
>With the invention of Immersive Synaptic Personal Entertainment Devices in 2037, movies will no longer be viewed by anyone but film buffs and scholars. Kinda like old-time radio.
I dunno. Theater is a 2500-year-old form of entertainment and, while not massively popular, remains viable today. The novel is anywhere from 300-500 years old depending on what you consider its starting point (or older, if you want to go with the Tale of Genji); yet people still read novels in vast quantities. TV didn’t make movies obsolete, and videogames didn’t make TV obsolete. (Side note: I don’t consider videogames a direct threat to movies/TV because they offer a different sort of experience — more direct immersion but less controlled storytelling. When a game is too linear, it’s less fun to play because user freedom is taken away — it’s a fundamentally different sort of experience.)
It’s possible that there will be some way to present movie-like stories in a high tech way that will supersede the current mode. 3D may eventually become the norm, and then what? A VR experience in which you are basically standing inside the scene and can choose your own vantage point? Might be interesting, but not sure people would be satisfied by an experience in which so many key creative choices (camera angle, image composition, etc.) are taken away from the artist and given to them.
Time will tell, I suppose. But I don’t think it’s immediately obvious that movies are going to go away any more than plays or novels have. They might become more rarefied/niche than they currently are, of course. But a hundred years on, the movies have proved pretty resilient. (Only 5 years from the Birth of a Nation centenary!)
>With the invention of Immersive Synaptic Personal Entertainment Devices in 2037, movies will no longer be viewed by anyone but film buffs and scholars. Kinda like old-time radio.
I dunno. Theater is a 2500-year-old form of entertainment and, while not massively popular, remains viable today. The novel is anywhere from 300-500 years old depending on what you consider its starting point (or older, if you want to go with the Tale of Genji); yet people still read novels in vast quantities. TV didn’t make movies obsolete, and videogames didn’t make TV obsolete. (Side note: I don’t consider videogames a direct threat to movies/TV because they offer a different sort of experience — more direct immersion but less controlled storytelling. When a game is too linear, it’s less fun to play because user freedom is taken away — it’s a fundamentally different sort of experience.)
It’s possible that there will be some way to present movie-like stories in a high tech way that will supersede the current mode. 3D may eventually become the norm, and then what? A VR experience in which you are basically standing inside the scene and can choose your own vantage point? Might be interesting, but not sure people would be satisfied by an experience in which so many key creative choices (camera angle, image composition, etc.) are taken away from the artist and given to them.
Time will tell, I suppose. But I don’t think it’s immediately obvious that movies are going to go away any more than plays or novels have. They might become more rarefied/niche than they currently are, of course. But a hundred years on, the movies have proved pretty resilient. (Only 5 years from the Birth of a Nation centenary!)
“‘Inherit The WInd’? Ugh. Stanley Kramer and his four ton hammer.”
I’m not arguing its merits or lack thereof, but it is very likely still one of 1960′s most-watched – especially factoring in how many lazy teachers pop the DVD in every year.
(I was once a lazy teacher myself, but preferred the three-hour epics that would take up the most time. “Why yes, The Sound of Music is an accurate representation of World War II!”)
“‘Inherit The WInd’? Ugh. Stanley Kramer and his four ton hammer.”
I’m not arguing its merits or lack thereof, but it is very likely still one of 1960′s most-watched – especially factoring in how many lazy teachers pop the DVD in every year.
(I was once a lazy teacher myself, but preferred the three-hour epics that would take up the most time. “Why yes, The Sound of Music is an accurate representation of World War II!”)
“Avatar” is never going to “date”, because movies that are all or mostly CGI are going to become easier and easier to “upgrade”.
Upconverting DVD players are able to take the data from a DVD and extrapolate it from a standard TV resolution to an HDTV one. Sometimes a DVD “restoration” can create an image whose quality is superior to one ever shown in theaters (like how the wires are clearly visible in one of the DVD versions of “War of the Worlds”). And several computer games have been improved by fans who modify the game with improved graphic textures and sometimes even new graphic routines.
All these methods can be used on a film like “Avatar”. As digital imaging techniques improve, as new digital effects methods show up, they can be put into use in making a new image from Avatar, out of the original source material. And considering the advances in both CGI effects and in computing power since “Jurassic Park”, who can even imagine how well the images from “Avatar” can be made to look (or how easy it will be to do!)
“Avatar” is never going to “date”, because movies that are all or mostly CGI are going to become easier and easier to “upgrade”.
Upconverting DVD players are able to take the data from a DVD and extrapolate it from a standard TV resolution to an HDTV one. Sometimes a DVD “restoration” can create an image whose quality is superior to one ever shown in theaters (like how the wires are clearly visible in one of the DVD versions of “War of the Worlds”). And several computer games have been improved by fans who modify the game with improved graphic textures and sometimes even new graphic routines.
All these methods can be used on a film like “Avatar”. As digital imaging techniques improve, as new digital effects methods show up, they can be put into use in making a new image from Avatar, out of the original source material. And considering the advances in both CGI effects and in computing power since “Jurassic Park”, who can even imagine how well the images from “Avatar” can be made to look (or how easy it will be to do!)
The T-Rex exiting the paddock is still the best visual effect I’ve ever seen. Hasn’t been topped.
The T-Rex exiting the paddock is still the best visual effect I’ve ever seen. Hasn’t been topped.
I have to put in a kind word for “The Mouse That Roared” with a fun Peter Sellers performance. Jack Arnold (“Creature from the Black Lagoon”, “It Came From Outer Space” and the sadly forgotten “No Name on the Bullet”) was the greatest of the “The Brady Bunch” directors.
I have to put in a kind word for “The Mouse That Roared” with a fun Peter Sellers performance. Jack Arnold (“Creature from the Black Lagoon”, “It Came From Outer Space” and the sadly forgotten “No Name on the Bullet”) was the greatest of the “The Brady Bunch” directors.
“Avatar” is never going to “date”, because movies that are all or mostly CGI are going to become easier and easier to “upgrade”.
You mean someday they will be able to upgrade plot, dialogue and Sam Worthington’s acting ability?
“Avatar” is never going to “date”, because movies that are all or mostly CGI are going to become easier and easier to “upgrade”.
You mean someday they will be able to upgrade plot, dialogue and Sam Worthington’s acting ability?
“I liked Avatar, but ultimately its going to be like The Jazz Singer or The Robe”
More like “Cinerama Holiday”, the mid-50s box office sensation.
General consensus is always changing, and not just in one direction. Fifty years ago people though The Chipmunks were an annoying momentary fad. Fifty years from now they may consider “North by Northwest” an overrated favorite of that ‘oughties generation of critics.
“I liked Avatar, but ultimately its going to be like The Jazz Singer or The Robe”
More like “Cinerama Holiday”, the mid-50s box office sensation.
General consensus is always changing, and not just in one direction. Fifty years ago people though The Chipmunks were an annoying momentary fad. Fifty years from now they may consider “North by Northwest” an overrated favorite of that ‘oughties generation of critics.
Memorable big movie spectacle really comes down to iconography. The Stardesroyer filling the screen in the opening of Star Wars, the T-Rex bursting from it’s paddock in Jurassic Park, Neo dodging bullets in The Matrix – all good examples of iconic imagery. Avatar has the same problem as the Star Wars prequels – it contains a lot of colorful visual noise, but no real iconography.
Memorable big movie spectacle really comes down to iconography. The Stardesroyer filling the screen in the opening of Star Wars, the T-Rex bursting from it’s paddock in Jurassic Park, Neo dodging bullets in The Matrix – all good examples of iconic imagery. Avatar has the same problem as the Star Wars prequels – it contains a lot of colorful visual noise, but no real iconography.
RAIDERS date? Pffftt – it was an instant classic and still is. Real stunts, solid story, great lines and one of the most iconic themes every composed – those don’t go out of style.
I would also vote for SLEEPING BEAUTY, but have to disqualify myself as it happens to be the first film I ever saw at a theater. Unlike most, I will not claim to remember this, but in the Groupie household my mother loves to recount how I literally hid under the seat every time the witch showed up. I might have pissed myself when the dragon later showed as well. This was for it’s first re-release in 1970. I was four.
RAIDERS date? Pffftt – it was an instant classic and still is. Real stunts, solid story, great lines and one of the most iconic themes every composed – those don’t go out of style.
I would also vote for SLEEPING BEAUTY, but have to disqualify myself as it happens to be the first film I ever saw at a theater. Unlike most, I will not claim to remember this, but in the Groupie household my mother loves to recount how I literally hid under the seat every time the witch showed up. I might have pissed myself when the dragon later showed as well. This was for it’s first re-release in 1970. I was four.
Tim Lee nails it – AVATAR has none of the things that classic great films have, including THE image. It also has no great theme, lines or characters.
As to those who claim that it’s success has bred this backlash, I’ve been on the AVATAR-Is-Not-Great bandwagon since the moment I finished seeing it. And if you care to check, I was also very keen on tracking its box office as it was pretty intriguing. So one does not negate or reinforce the other.
Tim Lee nails it – AVATAR has none of the things that classic great films have, including THE image. It also has no great theme, lines or characters.
As to those who claim that it’s success has bred this backlash, I’ve been on the AVATAR-Is-Not-Great bandwagon since the moment I finished seeing it. And if you care to check, I was also very keen on tracking its box office as it was pretty intriguing. So one does not negate or reinforce the other.
I think Avatar does lack that certain defining image (what comes closest — the giant Dragon? Tree of Souls?). I’m not sure that it lacks any themes, it’s just that most of the ones explored here aren’t particularly unique, even in Cameron’s filmography (the robotic vs. organic stuff is more streamlined in Terminator, the spiritual/nature vs. atheist/military thing seems more profoundly ambitious in The Abyss.
Truthfully, you know what bothered me most about Avatar? Lack of a really good, believable villain. I know a lot of you guys dig on Stephen Lang, and I’m not going to knock his performance here (he was fine at delivering what was asked of him — a cardboad cut-out of a futuristic, militant John Wayne).
But the movie could have used something like the Aliens, which represented a real immediate threat to the protagonists. Of course, this is probably where Cameron would argue that it’s actually the humans that represent this threat in Avatar.
I think Avatar does lack that certain defining image (what comes closest — the giant Dragon? Tree of Souls?). I’m not sure that it lacks any themes, it’s just that most of the ones explored here aren’t particularly unique, even in Cameron’s filmography (the robotic vs. organic stuff is more streamlined in Terminator, the spiritual/nature vs. atheist/military thing seems more profoundly ambitious in The Abyss.
Truthfully, you know what bothered me most about Avatar? Lack of a really good, believable villain. I know a lot of you guys dig on Stephen Lang, and I’m not going to knock his performance here (he was fine at delivering what was asked of him — a cardboad cut-out of a futuristic, militant John Wayne).
But the movie could have used something like the Aliens, which represented a real immediate threat to the protagonists. Of course, this is probably where Cameron would argue that it’s actually the humans that represent this threat in Avatar.
“Avatar has the same problem as the Star Wars prequels – it contains a lot of colorful visual noise, but no real iconography.”
Exactly – AND the perfect comparison.
“Avatar has the same problem as the Star Wars prequels – it contains a lot of colorful visual noise, but no real iconography.”
Exactly – AND the perfect comparison.
The secret about Avatar’s success isn’t that it’s new, but that it’s so familiar. Just like Star Wars.
One of the great forgotten Sci-Fi films is This Island earth. Good effects and good story.
I second whoever called out The Nun’s Story. A teriffic film that doesn’t feel dated in any way. That last image of Audrey Hepburn walking out is one of my all time favorite closing shots.
The secret about Avatar’s success isn’t that it’s new, but that it’s so familiar. Just like Star Wars.
One of the great forgotten Sci-Fi films is This Island earth. Good effects and good story.
I second whoever called out The Nun’s Story. A teriffic film that doesn’t feel dated in any way. That last image of Audrey Hepburn walking out is one of my all time favorite closing shots.
Pork Chop Hill ahead of 400 Blows and Wild Strawberries? Horse Soldiers, universally recognized as one of Ford’s worst, ahead of Anatomy of a Murder?
I’ve been reading Wells daily since the Mr. Hollywood days, and this is the most outrageous, ill-informed thing he’s ever said. I’ve read tons of film criticism and history, and no one ever mentions Pork Chop Hill.
And Wells is a “middling” fan of Rio Bravo? Hasn’t he said he hates it numerous times?
Don’t get me started on Our Man in Havana and Ride Lonesome.
Pork Chop Hill ahead of 400 Blows and Wild Strawberries? Horse Soldiers, universally recognized as one of Ford’s worst, ahead of Anatomy of a Murder?
I’ve been reading Wells daily since the Mr. Hollywood days, and this is the most outrageous, ill-informed thing he’s ever said. I’ve read tons of film criticism and history, and no one ever mentions Pork Chop Hill.
And Wells is a “middling” fan of Rio Bravo? Hasn’t he said he hates it numerous times?
Don’t get me started on Our Man in Havana and Ride Lonesome.
Anatomy of a Murder is a great film that holds us well. But if it had been made today, it would be up for Emmys rather than Oscars.
Anatomy of a Murder is a great film that holds us well. But if it had been made today, it would be up for Emmys rather than Oscars.
One more from 1959 that holds up very well – Jacques Becker’s TOUCHEZ PAS AU GRISBI, one of the better French gangster films.
And I think A NUN’S STORY is very good, though you have to remember this was all before Vatican II.
Finally, I would love to see Criterion do an edition of ROOM AT THE TOP. If nothing else, one of Simone Signoret’s best performances.
One more from 1959 that holds up very well – Jacques Becker’s TOUCHEZ PAS AU GRISBI, one of the better French gangster films.
And I think A NUN’S STORY is very good, though you have to remember this was all before Vatican II.
Finally, I would love to see Criterion do an edition of ROOM AT THE TOP. If nothing else, one of Simone Signoret’s best performances.
Magga, there is a backlash against Avatar because it sucks. There is often a backlash against movies that are hyped and praised while leaving just as many going “huh?”.
And the backlash against Hurt Locker is happening because it, too, is reaching the point where it is being hyped far beyond its depth, appeal, etc, some reasons for which have nothing to do with the movie itself but what reviewers like Jeff thinks it says about their ability to “get it” and appreciate something th Eloi have overlooked. Really enjoyable, nicely made film. Best picture? And so obvious a best picture choice that anyone who disagrees is simply a contrarian or an idiot?
Magga, there is a backlash against Avatar because it sucks. There is often a backlash against movies that are hyped and praised while leaving just as many going “huh?”.
And the backlash against Hurt Locker is happening because it, too, is reaching the point where it is being hyped far beyond its depth, appeal, etc, some reasons for which have nothing to do with the movie itself but what reviewers like Jeff thinks it says about their ability to “get it” and appreciate something th Eloi have overlooked. Really enjoyable, nicely made film. Best picture? And so obvious a best picture choice that anyone who disagrees is simply a contrarian or an idiot?
“Psycho has to be at the top of 1960′s list, with The Apartment, Inherit the Wind, The Magnificent Seven and Spartacus following.”
I’d throw ‘Tunes of Glory’ to the top of the list, but I fully recognize that that’s just personal taste. [Well, 'Psycho' or 'The Magnificent Seven' is top if it's "most watched today", but 'Tunes of Glory' is "most watched today by me".]
“Psycho has to be at the top of 1960′s list, with The Apartment, Inherit the Wind, The Magnificent Seven and Spartacus following.”
I’d throw ‘Tunes of Glory’ to the top of the list, but I fully recognize that that’s just personal taste. [Well, 'Psycho' or 'The Magnificent Seven' is top if it's "most watched today", but 'Tunes of Glory' is "most watched today by me".]
I’m a little late chiming in here, but I’m surprised no one took issue with your dismissal of The Diary of Anne Frank. It remains a widely and intensely studied film and has clearly withstood the 50-year test. Since its topic show no sign of abating as a representation of an aspect of the WWII experience, and since its director’s remains a certifiable member of the pantheon, the film will continue to hold this interest for another fifty years easily.
As for the films of 2010 that will endure, you’re probably looking in the wrong Oscar category. Up, Coraline, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and The Princess and the Frog will all still be around, along with Ponyo.
One other movie that is, only because of its context, is not going to go away is Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
I’m a little late chiming in here, but I’m surprised no one took issue with your dismissal of The Diary of Anne Frank. It remains a widely and intensely studied film and has clearly withstood the 50-year test. Since its topic show no sign of abating as a representation of an aspect of the WWII experience, and since its director’s remains a certifiable member of the pantheon, the film will continue to hold this interest for another fifty years easily.
As for the films of 2010 that will endure, you’re probably looking in the wrong Oscar category. Up, Coraline, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and The Princess and the Frog will all still be around, along with Ponyo.
One other movie that is, only because of its context, is not going to go away is Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
I was thinking about ‘Up’ more than the others (‘Fox’ will always be around, but not as oft-watched as many animated movies)…
but damn good call on ‘Harry Potter’, I knew there was one like that that I was forgetting.
I was thinking about ‘Up’ more than the others (‘Fox’ will always be around, but not as oft-watched as many animated movies)…
but damn good call on ‘Harry Potter’, I knew there was one like that that I was forgetting.
“I didn’t mean to omit Some Like It Hot…fixed. Belongs at or near the top of any 1959 list.”
I didn’t think you did; it leapt to mind immediately because the guy in the other thread that made the post that I’m guessing prompted this (the one after Josh’s — sorry to whoever it is, I’m just being lazy) also forgot ‘Some Like It Hot’, so it was already floating towards the top of my brain (saying, “Hey, it’s been a while, why not watch me?”).
“I didn’t mean to omit Some Like It Hot…fixed. Belongs at or near the top of any 1959 list.”
I didn’t think you did; it leapt to mind immediately because the guy in the other thread that made the post that I’m guessing prompted this (the one after Josh’s — sorry to whoever it is, I’m just being lazy) also forgot ‘Some Like It Hot’, so it was already floating towards the top of my brain (saying, “Hey, it’s been a while, why not watch me?”).
I think A Serious Man and Moon will stand the test of time.
But who knows.
I think A Serious Man and Moon will stand the test of time.
But who knows.
Doug, the 2001 TV movie of Anne Frank is a much better dramatization of Anne, an actual preteen girl playing her, and it’s much more detailed look at her life than the 1959 film, including life before the occupation, her blossoming puberty, and the rest of the story to her death. That said, admittedly even a TV movie made in 2001 has less production quality than a 1959 studio film.
Doug, the 2001 TV movie of Anne Frank is a much better dramatization of Anne, an actual preteen girl playing her, and it’s much more detailed look at her life than the 1959 film, including life before the occupation, her blossoming puberty, and the rest of the story to her death. That said, admittedly even a TV movie made in 2001 has less production quality than a 1959 studio film.
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“Avatar” is never going to “date”, because movies that are all or mostly CGI are going to become easier and easier to “upgrade”.
You mean someday they will be able to upgrade plot, dialogue and Sam Worthington’s acting ability?
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“Avatar” is never going to “date”, because movies that are all or mostly CGI are going to become easier and easier to “upgrade”.
You mean someday they will be able to upgrade plot, dialogue and Sam Worthington’s acting ability?
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I had a put up a couple of very droll comments but they were “accidentally” erased by Jeff. I’m sure that my saying that if the grain monks ever got together with the 1.85 fascists they could make Jeff feel sufficiently oppressed to write his own “Darkness At Noon.”
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