tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post1695818550564268033..comments2023-07-23T09:45:33.199-05:00Comments on the last lullaby (and) peril: 1963: Contempt (Jean-Luc Godard)Jeffrey Goodmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-69017168656845902772010-03-12T23:30:33.268-06:002010-03-12T23:30:33.268-06:00Samuel, thanks so much for the great words of enco...Samuel, thanks so much for the great words of encouragement. That's really nice of you to say. <br /><br />I've never seen INSECT WOMAN, THE FIRE WITHIN, or JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS but will add them all to the list.<br /><br />Thanks so much, Samuel. You made my day with those comments.Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-38021075872768845002010-03-12T20:23:48.244-06:002010-03-12T20:23:48.244-06:00Jeffrey, in a year when a lot of the big guns were...Jeffrey, in a year when a lot of the big guns were firing full blast you make a very strong case for Contempt. Right now I lean towards 81/2 if only because I've seen it most recently of the major films, but to me it's almost a photo finish, with the Fellini, the Godard, the Kurosawa and the Visconti all hitting the wire together, followed pretty closely by Insect Woman, Louis Malle's The Fire Within and a sentimental favorite of mine, Jason and the Argonauts. But whatever I think, this is your strongest essay yet and I congratulate you.Samuel Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00934870299522899944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-26023788189336576992010-03-12T17:56:11.935-06:002010-03-12T17:56:11.935-06:00Dave, I completely understand your feelings for CO...Dave, I completely understand your feelings for CONTEMPT. It seems we all have certain movies that just don't connect for whatever reason. <br /><br />EL VERDUGO sounds fantastic. I might just have to follow suit and grab it off YouTube. <br /><br />Thanks, Dave. Always fantastic to hear from you!Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-52415974009084005072010-03-12T15:36:22.703-06:002010-03-12T15:36:22.703-06:00Contempt has always left me cold... I've just ...Contempt has always left me cold... I've just never been able to find much pleasure in it. I'm perfectly aware that this likely says more about me than the film, as many people I respect rate it among the best ever made, but it's never been a favorite.<br /><br />I have to go with another little-seen film, one that I knew nothing about before seeing it in Allan's 60s countdown at Wonders in the Dark - Luis Garcia Berlanga's EL VERDUGO. It's a hilarious dark comedy. The only way I was able to watch it was actually through YouTube, which sadly shows how hard it is to come by. But even in that horrible quality it was great to see.<br /><br />Visconti's THE LEOPARD comes very close.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07134196370913749544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-81140567832486298992010-03-12T14:15:13.609-06:002010-03-12T14:15:13.609-06:00Drew, thanks so much for the wonderful comments! ...Drew, thanks so much for the wonderful comments! I couldn't agree more about the achievement of Delerue's score. As most know, Scorsese would re-use it in CASINO. The music has always reminded me a little of Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings. I have to imagine Barber's piece was an influence on Delerue. <br /><br />Glad to hear you like this one as much as I do. And great to hear from you. Thanks, Drew!Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-16629835337732021772010-03-12T13:11:15.812-06:002010-03-12T13:11:15.812-06:00Tony, I actually do. But I don't think it'...Tony, I actually do. But I don't think it's as warm or accessible as the other two films. But I also just don't admire it. The music, locations, and of course Bardot are so sensuous that they actually end up making me really care. <br /><br />Thanks, Tony. Always a treat to have you here!Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-64116248496634046102010-03-12T13:11:15.813-06:002010-03-12T13:11:15.813-06:00Excellent choice indeed. Though I am still working...Excellent choice indeed. Though I am still working my way through Godard's stuff at the moment, <i>Contempt</i> for me his his most beautiful masterpiece, and I have a hard time not agreeing with you on any of your five declarative points. Having just watched it again recently, Delerue's sweeping and haunting score particularly stands out to me as one of the greatest in all of cinema.<br /><br />There are of course many fantastic films on your runner-up list, of which I probably hold the most affection for Welles' <i>The Trial</i>. <i>The Silence</i> is the only film from that Bergman trilogy I've not yet seen, something I obviously need to rectify.Drew McIntoshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07054307044280470117noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-75675346047925753172010-03-12T13:07:35.222-06:002010-03-12T13:07:35.222-06:00Ed, I completely agree with all that you say above...Ed, I completely agree with all that you say above about CONTEMPT. I also really love its structure, which like BREATHLESS, has one of these extraordinarily long interior scenes of two people talking. <br /><br />I haven't seen MOTHLIGHT, TOWERS OPEN FIRE, nor THE CARDINAL. I'll add all of them to the list though.<br /><br />Thanks, Ed. Always fun having your unique perspective here!Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-63934800711731291982010-03-12T13:05:41.228-06:002010-03-12T13:05:41.228-06:00You like it more than THE LEOPARD and HUD (my numb...You like it more than THE LEOPARD and HUD (my numbers 1 and 2 this year)? Never seen it, but I'm glad I have this one on the DVR.Tony Dayoubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04632329277519635858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-68220320392836233752010-03-12T12:08:27.318-06:002010-03-12T12:08:27.318-06:00Great choice, of course. Godard goes Hollywood and...Great choice, of course. Godard goes Hollywood and comes away with a masterpiece, both totally atypical and totally in line with his aesthetic and thematic concerns of that period in his career. Even his concessions to commercialism — like the nude shots of Bardot — wind up enriching and complicating the film. It's telling that he made the scene where Bardot is lying naked in bed into a consideration of how "love" has been abstracted from an interpersonal emotion into a summation of disconnected body parts, an idea he'd continue to pursue in films like <i>A Married Woman</i> and <i>2 or 3 Things I Know About Her</i>. Her husband can't just say he loves her; he loves each of her parts individually.<br /><br />Anyway, my own personal #1 from this year would have to be <i>The Silence</i>, Bergman's finest, strangest, most sensual film. I also love:<br /><br /><i>Mothlight</i> (one of Brakhage's true classics)<br /><i>Towers Open Fire</i> (a great Balch/Burroughs cut-up film)<br /><i>8 1/2</i> (of course!)<br /><i>The Cardinal</i> (underrated Preminger epic)<br /><i>The House Is Black</i> (thanks to Sam for introducing me to this harrowing, poetic documentary)<br /><br />I should really revisit <i>The Birds</i> since I saw it quite early in my exploration of Hitchcock and didn't really know what to make of it at the time. I think I'd enjoy it much more now, in the context of his other work.Ed Howardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18014222247676090467noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-86414433554958242702010-03-12T07:54:38.754-06:002010-03-12T07:54:38.754-06:00Thanks so much, John! I love HUD, too. And must ...Thanks so much, John! I love HUD, too. And must admit, I find Patricia Neal to be one of the most alluring women ever to grace the screen. I also agree with Newman's performance here. <br /><br />Of the others you mention, the only other one I've seen is THE BIRDS. I've struggled with it in the past but will definitely need to revisit it at some point. <br /><br />Thanks, John. Always great to have you here!Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-9335454765686075902010-03-12T07:44:08.296-06:002010-03-12T07:44:08.296-06:00Jeffrey, an amazing work and excellent choice. I a...Jeffrey, an amazing work and excellent choice. I am going with a film that is more of a personal choice, though films like Contempt and 8 1/2 are unquestionably better, and that is “Hud” which I thought was revolutionary for its time in American film for presenting such a bastard as a hero or more correctly an anti-hero. Newman’s performance here is one of my favorites. Films like The Leopard, The Trial, and High and Low have eluded me, as has Kazan’s America, America, a film I most want to see.<br /><br />Runner ups<br /><br />The Servant<br />Charade<br />8 ½<br />The Birds<br />Contempt<br />The Haunting<br />The Lord of the FliesJohnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01808503055317962289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-22898746736217974472010-03-12T07:25:12.262-06:002010-03-12T07:25:12.262-06:00Sam, thanks for the great comments! So you know, ...Sam, thanks for the great comments! So you know, I put THE HOUSE IS BLACK in my 1962 post. I've heard wonderful things about it and am excited to see it. <br /><br />So happy to hear that you and I share fandom for this Godard. Of the others you mention, the only other one I've seen is HIGH AND LOW. I like it but just a little less than the other ones I highlight in my post. <br /><br />Thanks, Sam. Invaluable as always to have your perspective!Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-72751862814534164412010-03-12T07:03:05.020-06:002010-03-12T07:03:05.020-06:00My #1 Film of 1963:
The House is Black (Farrokhza...My #1 Film of 1963:<br /><br />The House is Black (Farrokhzad; Iran)<br /><br /><br />Runners-Up:<br /><br />Le Mephris (Godard; France)<br />8 1/2 (Fellini; Italy)<br />The Silence (Bergman; Sweden)<br />When the Cat Comes (Jasny; Czechoslovakia)<br />El Verdugo (Berlaga; Spain)<br />Vidas Secas (dos Santos; Brazil)<br />The Servant (Losey; UK)<br />The Leopard (Visconti; Italy)<br />Lord of the Flies (Brook; UK)<br />High and Low (Kurosawa; Japan)<br />The Insect Woman (Imamura; Japan)<br />I Fidanzati (Olmi; Italy)<br />The Haunting (Wise)<br />Billy Liar (Schlesinger; UK)<br />The Big City (S. Ray; India)<br />This Sporting Life (Anderson; UK)<br />The Whip and the Body (Bava; Italy)<br />An Actor's Revenge (Ichikawa; Japan)<br /><br />My #1 choice was only seen within the last eight months, and it's 22 minutes in length. But it's one of the most devastating works of cinema I've ever seen, and needs to be seen by the most discering cineastes. But had this film not moved under my radar, your own top choice here, the Godard Masterpiece, would be my top film as well. It's one of cinema's most spectacular achievements, as is Fellini's 8 1/2 and several others!<br /><br />Jeffrey, I love these passionate declarative points here:<br /><br />1. One of the five most beautiful scores in the history of film.<br />2. One of the five most beautiful women, also in the history of film.<br />3. One of the five most beautiful color films ever made.<br />4. Some of the most beautiful footage of water ever put on film.<br />5. And one of the most beautifully perfect endings of any film I've ever seen.Sam Julianonoreply@blogger.com