Melville

Started by SoNowThen, April 14, 2003, 01:45:46 PM

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

You Never Got Me Down Ray

I haven't seen Le Samourai yet, but I want to real fucking bad. Is it even on dvd? I've never seen it around.

Bob is awesome, definitely insipring and ahead of its time. Le Cercle Rouge is excellent as well, I'm not sure which I like better, but probably Bob by a nose.

I have Un Flic, but have yet to watch it. When I do (I'll try to tomorrow) I will post whether it's worth it.

And I definitely agree dude, Criterion needs to get on top of more Melville films, especially Le Samourai. What the hell are they thinking???
My life has taken another turn again. The days move along with regularity, over and over. One day indistinguishable from the next. A long, continuous chain. Then suddenly, there is change.

SoNowThen

They don't own the rights to Le Samourai. New Yorker does. And even though they're a small indie company, and I wanna like them, they are lazy, slipshod fucks when it comes to putting out dvds, much less actually making a decent dvd.

Les Enfant Terrible might get a dvd release this year, but ugh, it's the only blah Melville, but that's because he had Cocteau looking over his shoulder, nitpicking him.

Please tell us how Un Flic is, because I've heard the dvd is bunk quality, and that the movie's flawed, but damn, it's Melville, and I wanna blind buy it...
Those who say that the totalitarian state of the Soviet Union was not "real" Marxism also cannot admit that one simple feature of Marxism makes totalitarianism necessary:  the rejection of civil society. Since civil society is the sphere of private activity, its abolition and replacement by political society means that nothing private remains. That is already the essence of totalitarianism; and the moralistic practice of the trendy Left, which regards everything as political and sometimes reveals its hostility to free speech, does nothing to contradict this implication.

When those who hated capital and consumption (and Jews) in the 20th century murdered some hundred million people, and the poster children for the struggle against international capitalism and America are now fanatical Islamic terrorists, this puts recent enthusiasts in an awkward position. Most of them are too dense and shameless to appreciate it, and far too many are taken in by the moralistic and paternalistic rhetoric of the Left.

You Never Got Me Down Ray

Quote from: SoNowThenThey don't own the rights to Le Samourai. New Yorker does. And even though they're a small indie company, and I wanna like them, they are lazy, slipshod fucks when it comes to putting out dvds, much less actually making a decent dvd.

Please tell us how Un Flic is, because I've heard the dvd is bunk quality, and that the movie's flawed, but damn, it's Melville, and I wanna blind buy it...

Yes, I know about the rights, it's just a shame. Hell, their dvds are so damn expensive, they should be able to get the rights, especially if New Yorker has never released it.

Anyways, I finished Un Flic and it was pretty good. As far as what I've seen you really can't go wrong with Melville. Sure, it's slightly flawed and not up to par with Cercle or Bob, but it was still good. The beginning is good, and while the middle is somewhat tedious at points (fuck, tedious isnt the right word, but yeah), it's definitely worth it in the end. It kinda builds you up to bring you down, then picks your ass up again. If you like Melville definitely check it out, just dont expect another JPM masterpiece. Still I give this a 7, which is pretty damn good. I definitely don't regret this purchase. As for the dvd quality, I watched it on my laptop and everything looks mediocre on it, so I can't say for sure, but I had no problem with it. Barebones though (trailer and bios only). Hope that helps a little.

Peace.

EDIT: Still I give this a 7
My life has taken another turn again. The days move along with regularity, over and over. One day indistinguishable from the next. A long, continuous chain. Then suddenly, there is change.

Gamblour.

I just watched Le samourai, I bought this and Bob after watching Bob in one of my classes. I agree with whoever said, you just enjoy watching his films so much. There's something incredible hypnotic and transfixing about them. Le samourai is almost completely silent but never ever boring, purely visual and so fucking cool. How is a nearly silent film shot almost entirely in gray monochromatic so beautiful and engaging?

Anyhow, there are two points about the story I can't figure out. Minor SPOILAGe: When he steals the first car, he looks over at a woman. Is she seen again, and why do we get to see her? Second, when the blonde guy holds the guy to him in the house, Jef gets the gun and gets the address of Olivier Rey. Who is this person, and are they mentioned again?

Anyhow, I loved loved the film. Except the end. Well, nevermind, (SPOILER) I just realized it was his own version of hari kari, seppuku, whatever it's called.
WWPTAD?

tpfkabi

i blind bought Le Samourai and Le Cercle Rouge with the recent Deep Discount DVD sale.

i liked Le Cercle Rouge better. LS is almost cartoon-y at times.

(my view of it may also be a bit skewed because my friend who knows nothing about foreign film came over at the end and laughed at it).
I am Torgo. I take care of the place while the Master is away.

I Don't Believe in Beatles

Ah, that reminds me.  In the most recent issue of FLM Magazine, I saw this:

ARMY OF SHADOWS

From acclaimed French director Jean-Pierre Melville (Bob Le Flambeur, Le Cercle Rouge, Le Samourai), comes an epic of the French Resistance during World War II.  Never before released in the U.S., Melville's 1969 feature is based on the novel by Joseph Kessel (Belle de Jour) and the director's own wartime experiences.  Tough guy Lino Ventura (Elevator to the Gallows, Classe Tous Risques) stars as a resistance leader who is betrayed and, after escaping the Gestapo, seeks revenge on his traitor.  Co-starring Simone Signoret and Jean-Pierre Cassel.  New 35mm restoration.



http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/shadow_army/ says that it will have a theatrical release date of April 28... but only in NYC. 
"A film is - or should be - more like music than like fiction. It should be a progression of moods and feelings. The theme, what's behind the emotion, the meaning, all that comes later." --Stanley Kubrick

grand theft sparrow

I just came back from seeing Army of Shadows at the Film Forum.  Outstanding.  It's the first Melville film I've seen and it's convinced me to seek out his entire filmography.  If you're in NYC this week, you've got to see this film.  Just bring a pillow to sit on... the Film Forum has the MOST UNCOMFORTABLE seats in just about any NYC theatre.

Spielberg HAD to have gotten his hands on a print of this film somewhere along the way because it's very hard to believe that it wasn't a direct influence on Munich.

JG


JG

Please, if you have the chance, see Army of Shadows.  Its my third Melville and with this and Le Samourai and Bob, he's becoming one of my favorite directors.     Every shot feels so perfectly planned and executed.  There's no fluff in a Melville film.  He doesn't require words to characterize, rather he focuses on visuals to create this sense of isolation and desperateness that exists in his characters.  Its a pretty nice print too.   

I can't wait for the DVD either.  So whats next?  Le Cercle Rouge?  I have to see all his films. 

Ghostboy

I've seen Army Of Shadows twice now. Its the best film of the summer by far.

gob

Melville's a freakin legend.
I'm dying to see Army of Shadows and I missed it when it was re-shown at the NFT here in London. ARGH!
The only dvd I could find of it was a foreign one without english subtitles.
Damnation!

edison

Just saw Le Samourai yesterday afternoon and I was amazed. Very awesome. Makes me so mad that I never had the chance to check out Army of Shadows. Just have to wait till may for the criterion disc. Today I just found out about this:



How is this early flick of his compared to his later work?

Gold Trumpet

Wow, I just saw Army of Shadows. An admirer of Melville before, this film was flat out great. It took every positive of his style and married it to a story and subject worthy of his skills. The words above me do not lie. This film is a masterpiece.

This isn't just the best film I've seen by Melville. It's the best film with an array of other films that share similar narrative, subject and style. This goes from films like The Third Man, Rififi, and Le Trou to filmmakers like Robert Bresson (for his work in A Man Escaped), Jules Dassin and others.

America created the noir film. The French later pushed the envelope with it and created new bounds in story and narrative. Melville, for me, was the last breath of style to be taken from the genre. I thought he was style only. Army of Shadows is a wonderful reminder he wasn't. It's tragic his career was overshadowed by a movement like the French New Wave and then this film was destroyed by the French Press (especially Cahiers Du Cinema) for supposed De Gaulle sympathies. It's devastating Melville had to die in his 50s. It's a fucking shame his most personal work had to hide in the closest during his life. It makes you want to campaign for people to see this film.

I don't know. This is netflix rental that turned into an immediate buy. I'll likely expound more after a few more viewings.

JG

GT, is that the first time you've ever used "wow" on xixax? 

Gold Trumpet

Quote from: JG on May 24, 2007, 12:49:05 AM
GT, is that the first time you've ever used "wow" on xixax? 

My vocabulary is limited so doubtful, but a rare treat in watching a film because I didn't expect it to be this good.