Ain't Them Bodies Saints

[matt35mm]

Yeah you have to click on the movie page itself; they don't really do a great job of promoting it, but they don't need to because they will sell out anyway.

http://violetcrowncinema.com/movie.php?slug=aint-them-bodies-saints

Tickets JUST went on sale, but not for Friday/Saturday for some reason. Perhaps a glitch, but I expect those will go on sale very soon.

[RegularKarate]

Yeah you have to click on the movie page itself; they don't really do a great job of promoting it, but they don't need to because they will sell out anyway.

http://violetcrowncinema.com/movie.php?slug=aint-them-bodies-saints

Tickets JUST went on sale, but not for Friday/Saturday for some reason. Perhaps a glitch, but I expect those will go on sale very soon.

Sweet, thanks! Hoping for a Lowery appearance for an afternoon show.

[matt35mm]

Okay. All tickets on sale now. 8pm is a safe bet for the Q&A, right David??? (If I should have gone for 5:50pm instead, I'll see if I can get them switched.)

[Ghostboy]

I will be at everything from afternoon onwards on Saturday - starting at 3:40...

[RegularKarate]

Hot Damn! 5:50 it is!

[Ravi]

Dammit, I keep being unable to go to the screenings where you're doing Q&A. Had to go out of town when you did one in Dallas, and I'm working this Saturday.

[jenkins]

the event challenge was noticed by people here? pretty sure lowery himself initiated it. saints, drinking buddies, short term 12, and you're next -- see them all this weekend, photo the tickets, receive prizes. good game

i can't play. my timetables are different, and i won't be seeing you're next. nothing against you're next. i don't see movies that do that. could be a great movie

is someone here playing? good game

[matt35mm]

Interesting that anyone would say that this movie has a slow pace, as I was impressed by how quickly it moved. I suppose they must mean once everything is set up (which happens with tremendous economy), its interests settle on the quieter moments before the action picks up again in the last 3rd. But everything that's done is done as quickly as possible; the editing is tight.

I'm personally very curious about the trims that happened between Sundance and its final form. Maybe I'll ask David about this in person.

I find myself thinking about the editing more than anything, because I had already expected the wonderful cinematography, performances, and writing. Not that I didn't expect good editing, but the pace of it is really quite something. Also, I'm editing right now and it's good for me to see movies that are this tight.

I'll probably be the only one to compare these movies, but the first 15 minutes of this is not so very different from FAST FIVE, another movie that impressed me with its economy. Within the first 2 minutes of that movie, you see that Dom is being sent to prison, and then he gets rescued by the crew. You see the prison bus get flipped, and that's all. As soon as you get what happened, it moves to the next thing--not a second wasted. In a lot of ways, ATBS is closer in spirit to FAST FIVE than T. Malick. There's also a lot of driving in cars, getaways, a pregnant lady being shot at, law evasion in general, and a cop (Dwayne Johnson) who gets involved as an obstacle to the main guys but he's not a villain. It's really basically the same movie.

I liked it very much. I wish I could see it on film, or at least in high quality digital projection (the Violet Crown's projection quality is, alas, not great, just as you might expect from the most expensive place to see a movie in Austin). I'm really looking forward to seeing it again, and talking about it in more depth here once more people have seen't it.

Also, the music is really good. Immediately one of my favorite scores of the past long while.

[polkablues]

the event challenge was noticed by people here? pretty sure lowery himself initiated it. saints, drinking buddies, short term 12, and you're next -- see them all this weekend, photo the tickets, receive prizes. good game

i can't play. my timetables are different, and i won't be seeing you're next. nothing against you're next. i don't see movies that do that. could be a great movie

is someone here playing? good game

In case anyone needs to know what you're talking about: http://www.davidpatricklowery.com/weblog/2013/08/the_weekend_of.html

I just saw You're Next earlier today (which I was going to do anyway), but then looked and realized that Drinking Buddies and Short Term 12 won't be showing near me for another two weeks. And ATBS is only currently showing at a theater I usually avoid going to. Hopefully there will still be swag left two weeks from now, because I want that swag.  I want that swag bad.

In a lot of ways, ATBS is closer in spirit to FAST FIVE than T. Malick... It's really basically the same movie.

If IFC isn't already prepping a poster featuring this quote across the top, they're wasting everybody's time.

[matt35mm]

I just woke up from a dream that I was watching this movie. There was an extreme moment of violence that jolted me awake. Good job.

I will dispel any hope for extreme violence right now, but I still hope that it lives up to your dream in some regards!

I remember my dream: Ruth was trapped in the bathroom with gunmen outside. She shoots through the wall and a literal wave of blood splashes into the bathroom and fills the bathtub and covers the floor. More gunmen are about to enter and Ruth has to choose whether to face them or to dunk herself in the bathtub full of blood to hide from them. She chooses the latter, and that's when I woke up.

I like to imagine that that's a dream that Ruth would have, if she would ever let herself dream.

[Ghostboy]

That was ALMOST a scene directly out of the first draft! Minus the bathtub being full of blood.

[Cloudy]

Saw this tonight. It was as old-fashioned as it gets, and I ate it up--it was delicious. The cinematography...I'm not sure how I can word it without just pasting in  stills...it immersed me in the world completely, and the light...the attention to detail was so deep that another viewing is so necessary. The grain. The focus pulling. Camera movements (which ranged, and were NOT malick-y, I personally prefer this style. Felt more real). The sounds...and music were placed perfectly, never taking away a moment. Moments where there would usually be a score didn't, and left it quiet and true...I can really just go on. I have images in my head that I need to see again.

The rhythm of the editing was JUST as inspiring to be honest. The way these images flowed felt effortless and completely lucid. It felt like a haze from start to finish. But not an overt haze, more like an subconscious stream of an old yarn. I'm fucking pleased here.

The acting, and CASTING was fucking ridiculous. Some of my favorite actors from TV popping in all over, and perfectly casted, and acting their minds out. People were giving their all here, they really were just letting it out. One of my favorite Casey Affleck performances. All of this is a testament to the characters.

My only problem with it was that it REALLY lived up to the old-fashioned story and didn't go much further in the writing. I felt like there were moments where it could have capitalized on some more dynamism between the characters, conflicts, themes and the story, but I was honestly satisfied as is. At this particular moment, a film like this, going back to the roots of the pure goods is just necessary. Thinking about it more, I really would rather it not try to do anything "new" or inventive(story-wise), because this film feels so engrained in the roots and seeds of this story that trying anything else would ruin the purity of it. If that makes sense.

Anyways, that's all. We gotta do an exclusive XIXAX interview if that's possible on both fronts...

[Cloudy]

This film definitely resonated even more the next day. Looking forward to the next viewing.

Here's the September American Cinematographer issue with the ATBS article:

http://www.scribd.com/mobile/doc/162791327#fullscreen

[RegularKarate]

I have more goodness to pile on here. Loved the movie.

I went with five other friends and all of them came away feeling completely differently about the movie (no one disliked it, some wanted more, some really liked it, I loved it) and I think that alone is a sign of a good movie. A movie that doesn't just sit there and leave your brain immediately after... something we can talk about and have different thoughts and feelings about.

It's been covered, but cinematography and acting are amazing. This David Lowery guy is the real deal.

[matt35mm]

Shane Carruth has talked about the concept of the "Album Movie," and I feel like this movie really works in that way, further crystalizing what David has talked about in wanting ATBS to feel like a folk song.

The idea is that it's like an album that you can put on over and over again, and once you've become really familiar with it, that's when watching or listening to it achieves its fullest effect. It's effective as a movie the first time around, but then parts of it stick in your mind (the wonderful score is a big part of this) and you want to watch it again to feel that feeling. The difference upon later viewings is that you're no longer being led by the movie; now you're truly indulging in it. You know it by heart and your goosebumps know the beat and the tune, so they can sing along.

Anyway, I've watched it twice now, and it's very re-watchable. I'll be watching and indulging in it many more times in the years to come.