tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post4448567590640158336..comments2023-07-23T09:45:33.199-05:00Comments on the last lullaby (and) peril: 1931: La chienne (Jean Renoir)Jeffrey Goodmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-58339586852116158122010-02-08T07:12:34.665-06:002010-02-08T07:12:34.665-06:00Dave, I totally hear you on M and CITY LIGHTS and ...Dave, I totally hear you on M and CITY LIGHTS and absolutely understand those picks. I think they're both incredible films. <br /><br />I'd be interested to hear how LA CHIENNE treats you when you have a chance to see it. As a fan of noir and of the Lang film, I think you might really like it. <br /><br />Thanks for all the great comments!Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-87388212024589094702010-02-07T18:28:35.082-06:002010-02-07T18:28:35.082-06:00I went with Fritz Lang's M as my #1 for 1931, ...I went with Fritz Lang's M as my #1 for 1931, and I'll stick with that one now. I still believe it to be Lang's best movie. City Lights is a close second for me though.<br /><br />I haven't seen this Renoir, but I'd be shocked if I liked it more than Lang's later Scarlet Street.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07134196370913749544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-54590469274434626132010-02-07T16:17:49.291-06:002010-02-07T16:17:49.291-06:00Sam, we're in total agreement here! I love CI...Sam, we're in total agreement here! I love CITY LIGHTS so much, it's probably in my top ten of all time. LA CHIENNE just has a special place for me, too. I will track down that Vertov and those two Clair films, as well as the Dieterle. They all sound fantastic. <br /><br />I feel really fortunate to have had some cinephile experiences in France. My time there was definitely very formative and memorable, and I can't wait to go back.<br /><br />We're on the same page with UNE PARTIE DE CAMPAGNE, too. Here's a post I did recently on my favorite Renoir films:<br /><br />http://cahierspositif.blogspot.com/2010/01/favorites-of-my-favorites-1.html<br /><br />Thanks again, Sam! So great to have your expertise here.Jeffrey Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06464544798603030406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-80703266568473479002010-02-07T16:04:00.888-06:002010-02-07T16:04:00.888-06:00Jeffrey, that was absolutely fantastic that you sa...Jeffrey, that was absolutely fantastic that you saw LA CHIENNE in Paris!!!<br /><br />That is the ULTIMATE experience. Wow!!!<br /><br />Another Renoir film I absolutely adore is one that comes later, UNE PARTIE DE CAMPAGNE. I hope you revere it too.Sam Julianonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2361395648458719073.post-56318578262693373972010-02-07T15:56:09.867-06:002010-02-07T15:56:09.867-06:00Very fine choice here Jeffrey, as Renoir is one of...Very fine choice here Jeffrey, as Renoir is one of the greatest of all-directors, and has at least five masterworks, including this sordid piece of realism that inspired the later but inferior SCARLET STREET. Yes I agree that the great Michel Simon is in vintage form here too. I was fortunate to own the Image laserdisc of this title, which is yet to enjoy a legitimate DVD release on Region 1. Chaplin's CITY LIGHTS (which you do subsequently note yourself) is one of the greatest films of all-time, and for me it's the best of 1930. The final scene of this shattering masterpiece, which the blind girl hands the Tramp and the flower and schieces recognition is perhaps, the most emotionally moving film in all of cinema. Lang's M, Vertov's ENTHUSIASM, two Clair films and William Dieterle's little-seen THE LAST FLIGHT are masterpieces of cinema.<br /><br />My Own #1 Film of 1930:<br /><br />City Lights (Chaplin)<br /><br />Runners-Ups:<br /><br />M (Lang)<br />Enthusiasm (Vertov)<br />The Last Flight (Dieterle)<br />A Nous la Liberte (Clair)<br />La Million (Clair)<br />La Chienne (Renoir)<br />Kammeradschaft (Pabst)<br />Madchen in Uniform (Sagan)<br />Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Mamoulian)<br />Frankenstein (Whale)Sam Julianonoreply@blogger.com