Film Fanatics - Chat Thread II

And that film is on this week or even today.

It's on now.

not every film may do it but I've noticed, the obligatory shaky cam effect used in chases or when running, the camera user leaving the camera static to look at something then getting abducted or attacked (usually in horror flicks), the camera recording skipping about to different footage

I think some FF films use clichés a bit too much, didn't really work with the barely scary Paranormal activity 3

Serious man crush on some of the actors in War Horse. I didn't realise Benedict Cumberpatch, Toby Kebbell and Tom Hiddlestone were in it.

Who has it seen it already?

Finally saw Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. If I start gushing about it I'm not going to stop. It's the first great spy thriller I've seen in years. So easy to make those films lurid and hyper-stylised like some sort of glorified airport novel, but Tomas Alfredson's made a classy, intelligent film that manages to be both subdued and exhilarating simultaneously.

Finally saw Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. If I start gushing about it I'm not going to stop. It's the first great spy thriller I've seen in years. So easy to make those films lurid and hyper-stylised like some sort of glorified airport novel, but Tomas Alfredson's made a classy, intelligent film that manages to be both subdued and exhilarating simultaneously.

Could not agree with you more. It was absolutely beautifully made, some of the shots were just incredible! I was gutted I only got to see it once at the cinema... I want to be a film-maker when I'm older, and this is the sort of work I aspire to Planning to watch Let The Right One In asap!

Has anyone seen We Need To Talk About Kevin? Incredible film, Lynne Ramsay and Tilda Swinton (and Lionel Shriver of course) are my new heroes.

Out of interest, what are other great spy films?

Well, I kind of regret that choice of words. The 'spy film' is a broad categorization, and I wouldn't want to lump Tinker Tailor in with Bond/Bourne/Mission Impossible et al. Not because these are bad or otherwise unworthy films (far from it), but it would be terribly inaccurate to do so; the emphasize is on action/ set pieces there, where Tinker Tailor is more concerned with the intrigue that usually serves as the backdrop to those films; with information, misinformation and subtle power plays.

In this sense I would compare it more to films like Coppola's The Conversation, which, though not really a spy film, still deals with the associated guilt and paranoia of a profession where you have to listen and report on people without their consent. The Manchurian Candidate would also be an example I suppose (although it is far more implausible than Tinker Tailor). You probably also want to look at Le Carre's other famous adapted work - 'The Spy Who Came In From The Cold - as well, although I haven't seen it and can't vouch for or against it. Finally, Hitchcock's North by Northwest also largely deals with misinformation and similar political/personal machinations, but has plenty of action as well; it probably represents the perfect synthesis of both sides of the genre.

watched reservoir dogs yesterday

I watched Contagion; I thought it was decent but unspectacular. The direction is really good in places (towards the beginning, mostly), mainly in conjunction with the cinematography, but the acting isn't really as effective as you'd expect from an ensemble cast. A large part of that problem is probably the underwritten characterization, though.



Thanks. I've heard of some of those films, but haven't watched them. I've wanted to watch The Conversation for ages now. Just to add to the list, The Lives of Others (or Das Leben der Anderen) also sounds like a similar film (and is another one I've been looking forward to watching; I've actually got this one, though ).



How did you like it?

Wow, I really enjoyed Contagion. I felt the characters kind of had to be sparse, really; they had to take archetypes like the unappreciated genius, the beleaguered boss-figure, the bureaucrat and the average joe dad figure and show how they'd react (realistically) in an unimaginable, chaotic, potentially apocalyptic scenario.

Yeah The Conversation should be your priority. For my money, it's Coppola's best, and by a fair margin (which isn't to say I don't love Godfather, GFII, Apocalypse Now, etc.). Haven't heard of The Lives of Others. May have to check that out.

How did you like it?

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