THE CONVERSATION

Started by cowboykurtis, April 06, 2003, 09:50:25 PM

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cowboykurtis

April 06, 2003, 09:50:25 PM
coppola's the conversation is by far one of my favorite films. i first saw it when i was in 6th grade and was blown away. the tone of the film is so haunting. the score is just brilliant. its so subtle and elegant --- it creeps up on you so wonderfully. i cant get enough of harry caul's world. many people think this is overrated. are severly disagree. are there any others out there that love this film as much as I do?
...your excuses are your own...

Gold Trumpet

#1
April 06, 2003, 09:58:28 PM
I've been really meaning to see this movie ever since I got into movies and heard the name Francis Ford Coppola when I saw my first movie by him, Apocalypse Now. I really do need to see it.

~rougerum

soixante

#2
April 06, 2003, 11:07:51 PM
The Conversation is great.  I've seen it many times, it holds up every viewing.  The DVD is great, wonderful commentary by Murch and Coppola.  This film was ahead of its time, as surveillance has now become a bigger fixture in modern life (especially after 9/11).  Hackman gives what is perhaps (after Scarecrow) his best performance, and that's saying quite a lot.  Cazale was great, too.  Allen Garfield kicks ass.  This is simply a wonderful, classic movie, the best film of 1974, a year with tons of great movies.

Speaking of John Cazale -- he appeared in 3 films (Godfather, Godfather 2, Deer Hunter) that won Best Picture Oscars.  His other 2 films (Dog Day Afternoon, Conversation) were nominated for Best Picture.  Not a bad batting average.  Sadly he died 25 years ago (March 1978).
Music is your best entertainment value.

Ghostboy

#3
April 06, 2003, 11:33:54 PM
I love this movie. The way it quietly but suddenly slips into surrealism (or did the toilet scene really happen? There's a good discussion) is so shocking the first time you see it.

I didn't think about it when I first watched it, but Roger Ebert brought up an interesting point in his Great Movies essay on it, which is that Caul is essentially really bad at his job -- he had one great coup that got him some reknown, but otherwise he's quite amateurish. That put the movie in a whole new perspective for me; it really turns it into something far deeper than a simple thriller.

MacGuffin

#4
April 06, 2003, 11:37:37 PM
One of the best final shots of a movie ever.
"Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art." - Andy Warhol


Skeleton FilmWorks

cowboykurtis

#5
April 06, 2003, 11:43:16 PM
Quote from: GhostboyI love this movie. The way it quietly but suddenly slips into surrealism (or did the toilet scene really happen? There's a good discussion) is so shocking the first time you see it.

I didn't think about it when I first watched it, but Roger Ebert brought up an interesting point in his Great Movies essay on it, which is that Caul is essentially really bad at his job -- he had one great coup that got him some reknown, but otherwise he's quite amateurish. That put the movie in a whole new perspective for me; it really turns it into something far deeper than a simple thriller.

what was ebert's reason for calling harry caul an amateur? im not sure i agree. another really interesting tidbit that is revealed in the commentary, is the meaning of harry's last name -- CAUL -- besides the obvious connection to the word CALL which links to the whole survelance motif. a CAUL is the term for the embreotic sac which covers infants at birth -- this directly links to the transparent rain coat that harry always wears, as well as the many shot where he is obstructed behind translucent surfaces -- its a really nice visual motif-- what a great film.
...your excuses are your own...

Ghostboy

#6
April 06, 2003, 11:53:42 PM
From www.suntimes.com/ebert/greatmovies/conversation.html

"His colleagues in the surveillance industry think Harry Caul is such a genius that we realize with a little shock how bad he is at his job. Here is a man who is paid to eavesdrop on a conversation in a public place. He succeeds, but then allows the tapes to be stolen. His triple-locked apartment is so insecure that the landlord is able to enter it and leave a birthday present. His mail is opened and read. He thinks his phone is unlisted, but both the landlord and a client have it. At a trade show, he allows his chief competitor to fool him with a mike hidden in a freebie ballpoint. His mistress tells him: "Once I saw you up by the staircase, hiding and watching for a whole hour."

bonanzataz

#7
April 07, 2003, 12:36:24 PM
Quote from: MacGuffinOne of the best final shots of a movie ever.

One of the coolest OPENING shots of a movie ever.
The corpses all hang headless and limp bodies with no surprises and the blood drains down like devil's rain we'll bathe tonight I want your skulls I need your skulls I want your skulls I need your skulls Demon I am and face I peel to see your skin turned inside out, 'cause gotta have you on my wall gotta have you on my wall, 'cause I want your skulls I need your skulls I want your skulls I need your skulls collect the heads of little girls and put 'em on my wall hack the heads off little girls and put 'em on my wall I want your skulls I need your skulls I want your skulls I need your skulls

Pedro

#8
April 07, 2003, 04:28:41 PM
Quote from: bonanzataz
Quote from: MacGuffinOne of the best final shots of a movie ever.

One of the coolest OPENING shots of a movie ever.

Defenitely.

SHAFTR

#9
May 27, 2003, 10:48:52 PM
Yes...a film that can open and end with the shots The Conversation does is very impressive.  I really liked how the conversation is slowly decoded during the first part of the film.  Gene Hackman blew me away in this film and although the film is at parts slow...it keeps the viewer interested in it with an excellent score and cast.
"Talking shit about a pretty sunset
Blanketing opinions that i'll probably regret soon"

godardian

#10
May 28, 2003, 01:08:31 PM
Regardless of my love for The Godfather and Apocalypse, I think this is my very favorite Coppolla film. It makes a nice early-seventies triple-bill with Pakula's 2 great surveillance-and-paranoia-themed films (I do count the excellent Klute as such, indirect though the theme may seem in it).
""Money doesn't come into it. It never has. I do what I do because it's all that I am." - Morrissey

"Lacan stressed more and more in his work the power and organizing principle of the symbolic, understood as the networks, social, cultural, and linguistic, into which a child is born. These precede the birth of a child, which is why Lacan can say that language is there from before the actual moment of birth. It is there in the social structures which are at play in the family and, of course, in the ideals, goals, and histories of the parents. This world of language can hardly be grasped by the newborn and yet it will act on the whole of the child's existence."

Stay informed on protecting your freedom of speech and civil rights.

Mesh

#11
May 28, 2003, 04:17:08 PM
Quote from: cowboykurtis
what was ebert's reason for calling harry caul an amateur? im not sure i agree. another really interesting tidbit that is revealed in the commentary, is the meaning of harry's last name -- CAUL -- besides the obvious connection to the word CALL which links to the whole survelance motif. a CAUL is the term for the embreotic sac which covers infants at birth -- this directly links to the transparent rain coat that harry always wears, as well as the many shot where he is obstructed behind translucent surfaces -- its a really nice visual motif-- what a great film.

Holden CAULfield.  His red hunting cap.

Gamblour.

#12
November 27, 2003, 11:42:18 PM
Been a while since this topic's been posted in, but I've been inspired by MacGuffin's av...

It's been a while since I've seen this, a few questions:

Ghostboy or anyone, what was the surreal bathroom scene you're referring to? Also, what was the opening shot? I remember the last one of course, left me really speechless, I don't think there's any other shot out there that instantly and easily reflects and relates what is going on is such a fucked up character.

I feel as if I've only seen parts of this movie repeated in other movies following it, like Enemy of the State (again with Hackman) and Sneakers. Did any movies along this thriller/spy type precede it? Godardian, what Pakula movies are you mentioning?

In everything I've seen about Harrison Ford, no one mentions this as his pre-Star Wars career, I think he's really great in his role. I think this film is proof that Coppola needs to make more goddamned movies. It's my favorite of all his films because it's so concentrated and focused on everything about this one character. You could argue the same for Apocalypse Now, but in the end I think that's more about Kurtz and Sheen's reaction to him than either one in particular.
WWPTAD?

Sanjuro

#13
November 28, 2003, 12:09:01 PM
yes truly a masterpiece.  not as great as apocalypse now in my opinion but definitely a masterpievce.  in a way, it reminds me of hitchcocks the birds.  i havent seen this in a while but because of this thread im gong to watch it again.
"When you see your own photo, do you say you're a fiction?"

NEON MERCURY

#14
November 28, 2003, 12:33:06 PM
...:yabbse-embarassed: ..never seen it....
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