Tuesday, October 02, 2012

PROFESSOR ARTHUR CHIPPING’S MADDENINGLY DETAILED, PURPOSEFULLY VAGUE, FITFULLY OUT-OF-FOCUS BACK TO SCHOOL MOVIE QUIZ



Well, that familiar autumn chill is in the air-- except here in Los Angeles, of course, where the only chill you’re likely to get during the current hellish heat wave is from leaving the A/C on all night or from your body’s convulsive internal overcompensation due to excess heat exposure. And here at SLIFR University, where the curriculum has been if not exactly dense, then certainly diverse and controversial in 2012 so far, that chill means that school is back in session, which means it’s time for yet another movie quiz. This semester we've called upon the services of one of the university's most beloved instructors to guide us through the process of learning about our own unique responses to the vagaries and amusements of film culture. He is none other than the esteemed doctor of social sciences Professor Arthur Chipping, affectionately known to the student body and staff, of course, as Mr. Chips. It was a bit of a challenge to get Mr. Chips to assent to heading up this term's quiz, as he has a tendency toward recessive behavior in social situations and was none too confident in his ability to marshal a discussion of film, which he still rather quaintly refers to as "that confounded new toy of technology of which the likes of low comedians such as Mack Sennett and Roscoe Arbuckle seems so enamored." But this shape-shifting teacher, who morphs between alternate physical appearances seemingly at will (the picture seen above, taken in 1969, is of his second incarnation, or as he likes to say, "the husk I prefer these days"), has, despite his own reservations, managed quite a charming and challenging questionnaire for this go-round, and it is our pleasure to present it to you today.

Unlike the last two quizzes, there is no overriding theme, just a series of posers intended to stimulate your thinking and sate your appetite for entertainment. But the learned professor would like to emphasize, by way of the customary preamble to all SLIFR quizzes, that in posting your answers you be as elaborate and loquacious in your responses as possible, all the better for the reader who is ready to indulge in them. But most importantly, please copy and paste the questions into the comments column and provide your answers underneath those questions so that referencing the post above will not be required to remind the reader of what query it is that is being answered.

With those formalities out of the way, it is now time to sharpen your number twos, put all materials unrelated to study underneath your desks, and prepare to undergo your journey through Professor Arthur Chipping's Maddeningly Detailed, Purposefully Vague, Fitfully Out-Of-Focus Back to School Movie Quiz. Ready? Begin!

*******************************************************

            1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

2          2)  Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

            3)    The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

            4)      The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

            5)      Favorite movie about work

            6)      The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

            7)      Favorite “road” movie

            8)      Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

            9)      Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

           10)   Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

           11)   Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

           12)   Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

           13)   Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

          14)   Favorite  film of 1931

          15)   Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

          16)   Favorite film  of 1951

          17)   Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    
          18)   Favorite film of 1971
   
          19)   Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie
    
          20)   Favorite film of 1991

          21)   Second favorite John Sturges movie

          22)   Favorite celebrity biopic

          23)  Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

          24)   Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

          25)   Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols
  
          26)   One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

          27)   Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

          28)   Favorite pre-Code talkie

          29)   Oldest  film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

          30)   Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)
  
          31)   Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

          32)   Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

          33)   Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

          34)   What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

          35)   Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

          36)   You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

          37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

****************************************************

76 comments:

  1. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    The lifespan of the movie. That the digital movie is also subject to deterioration that might be faster than film.

    2 2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Eugene Pallette, Somlek Sakdikul (a very funny Thai character actor), Marlene Dietrich.

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    The Scarlet Empress

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theatrically: Rebel (Raghava Lawrence - 2012). Blu-ray: Bedevilled (Jang Chul-soo - 2010). DVD: Bitter Tea of General Yen (Frank Capra - 1933). Streaming: Carlton-Browne of the F.O. (Roy Boulting - 1959)

    5) Favorite movie about work
    Hudsucker Proxy

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    Let's just say I was less impressed by Steve Reeves as Hercules.

    7) Favorite “road” movie
    Alice in the Cities (Wim Wenders - 1974)

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    I didn't watch his "performance". I don't think it will hurt his legacy in the long run.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    I was obsessed with seeing It's Trad, Dad since reading about it back in 1964. Sony finally got it on DVD.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    I have a giallo "action figure" from the DVD company NoShame (RIP).

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Some things are better left unmentioned.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Tony Jaa in Ong Bak.

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    Effie Briest.

    14) Favorite film of 1931
    Platinum Blone (Frank Capra)

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie
    A King and Four Queens

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    Pandora and the Flying Dutchman (Albert Lewin)

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    Chunking Express

    18) Favorite film of 1971
    A Touch of Zen by King Hu, changed my life.

    ReplyDelete

  2. 19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    Quai des Orfèvres

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    All the Mornings of the World (Alain Corneau)

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie
    Gunfight at the OK Corral

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic
    Impromptu (James Lapine - 1991)

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production
    John Paul Jones. John Farrow's health was probably failing him, but story of Jones deserves better than this lifeless bio-pic.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    I'm not sure I have the patience to watch it again. Saw the theatrical release.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Maggie Chueng and Brigitte Lin flirting in Dragon Inn.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    "Rosebud".

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    Greater access to international films on DVD and streaming, rather than hoping the movie shows up at the art theater.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Morocco (Josef von Sternberg - 1930)

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    Fantomas (Louis Feuillade - 1913)

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    1900 (Bernardo Bertolucci - 1976)

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    Mostly purchases of Asian Region 3 DVDs.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Voice artist Paul Frees - The Beatniks

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Gerhard Richter Painting

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra as brothers in Flaming Star.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    The Girl Can't Help it plus The Dreamers.

    Citizen Kane plus Velvet Goldmine

    Some Came Running plus Contempt.

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Why would I want to watch the Oscars? I just don't care anymore.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)
    Robert Donat

    ReplyDelete
  3. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?
    Preservation and restoration. Because I am a film archivist-in-training, this question is MY LIFE. I deal with it on a daily basis. Whether it is within film programming, conferences, academics or theoretic discussion, it’s my world.

    FACT: We do not have a digital standard for film archiving. Formats change every 18 months or so and the materials that they are made out of are just as changeable as the machines that they are played on. Seemingly reliable things like LTOs are not backwards compatible anymore than your Betamax could be played on your VCR (well, they are backwards compatible, but only a few generations, but how useful for media storage is THAT??).

    FACT: We are a media culture and we have amazing technology. I have seen some of the most gorgeous 4K restorations in my life. Fritz Lang’s Metropolis could never have been done with the extra footage that they found WITHOUT digital technology

    FACT: If the digital and analogue communities do not work together, we will lose a huge chunk of our media culture.

    We are not children (well, ok, some of us are, but I’m not naming names!). I am terrified that we will lose our cinema due to film-ers hating on the digital and digital-ers hating on the film. The people who are qualified to handle film are the folks who KNOW about and play with film. We need their skills to build the digital world. The digital folks need to work with them and we need to be a big hippie family that has a passion and drive to make sure that the loss of film that occurred when we lost almost all of our silent cinema before the 1950’s never ever ever happens again.

    *gets off soapbox*

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies
    Katharine Hepburn
    Judy Holliday
    Jeff Bridges

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    Party Girl (Daisy von Scherler Mayer, 1995)

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming
    I plead the 5th on that one. It was *that* bad. Before that, I watched Point Blank (John Boorman, 1967) a few times.

    5) Favorite movie about work
    Adam’s Rib (George Cukor, 1949) and Nine to Five (Colin Higgins, 1980)

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes
    Not sure. I have so much fun just watching movies that I generally love the experience and the memories and sometimes that just outweighs any bad stuff. I’m sure there’s something, can’t think of anything at the moment.

    7) Favorite “road” movie
    NOT FAIR. What country? What ERA? Grrrrrrrrrr
    Rubin & Ed (Trent Harris, 1995)
    Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (Michael Cimino, 1974)
    It Happened One Night (Frank Capra, 1934)
    Roadside Prophets (Abbe Wool, 1992)

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?
    His discussion afterwards made things a bit better, but I tend to separate people’s work from their personal lives for the most part. I try to, anyway. Argh.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession
    Noir and Pre-code

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation
    No idea. Stalag 17 OG poster? Kiss Me Deadly OG poster?

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?
    Many many times. Because I was ridiculously tired.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie
    Anything by Jim Brown or Woody Strode. YEAH!!!

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie
    *mumble mumble* yeah. I fail this question. Haven’t seen any yet.

    14) Favorite film of 1931
    Frankenstein (James Whale) or M (Fritz Lang)

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie
    They Drive By Night

    16) Favorite film of 1951
    Ace in the Hole

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    Happy Together

    ReplyDelete
  4. 18) Favorite film of 1971
    Klute or Johnny Got His Gun

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie
    ☹ Only seen Diabolique

    20) Favorite film of 1991
    Backdraft (Ron Howard) or The Fisher King (Terry Gilliam)

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie
    Haven’t seen that many. I just love Bad Day at Black Rock
    22) Favorite celebrity biopic
    A Face in the Crowd or Network have to be about somebody, right???

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production
    I’m bad at this kind of question

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?
    Got to see a few minutes of the restoration recently. Looks nice. I don’t know. Probably yes? I’ve never seen it before. I will probably like it.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols
    They may not be your sex symbols but they are my favorite couples: Katharine Hepburn & Spencer Tracy. James Spader & William Shatner (from Boston Legal…ok, it’s TV, but they were in movies! I’m cheating, but I like the coupling!!). Judy Holliday and William Holden.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)
    Don’t have ONE favorite movie but one *of* my favorite movies…sandworm

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.
    Avatar. For the worse. We’ll never be able to go back now.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie
    Female with Ruth Chatterton or Jewel Robbery with William Powell & Kay Francis

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)
    I have a collection of Edison’s films and a gay silent German film (that the UCLA Film & TV Archive has just recently restored!!) from 1919.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)
    Gone With the Wind, maybe?

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?
    I now have Blu-ray, I now watch a great deal more bonus materials, I don’t buy as many films as I used to.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name
    ?

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)
    I really haven’t seen any docs this year, but I heard that the one about ACT-UP was supposed to be amazing.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?
    I always hear those and promptly forget until someone reminds me. I have to hear a story three times I think or read it before I remember. I am also in the middle of 80,000 things at the moment so if I did remember anything…my brain would’ve melted it. I think I liked some of the stories about who was supposed to be cast in Tod Browning’s Freaks or who they WANTED to cast in Freaks but that those actresses, quite literally, freaked out and wouldn’t do it. Which is ok, really. That film is perfect the way it is.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies
    Um, I do. At the New Beverly Cinema! It’s called Something Old, Something New and it’s through the Association of Moving Image Archivist Student Chapter at UCLA, and funds go to help student film archivists like me get to film conferences and other educational activities! This month I get to interview Sam Fuller’s daughter and see Underworld, U.S.A. and Johnnie To’s Election on the big screen. I’M STOKED.


    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?
    EASY. Kevin Brownlow, Robert Ryan, Danny Kaye.
    I’m not sure how that would work out, but I think it would be better than involving Lee Marvin or Mitchum in the mix.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)
    I have never seen any Mr. Chips. Honest truth.

    ReplyDelete
  5. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?
    The ability to see classic films on the format on which they were made.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies
    Miriam Hopkins, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Bruce Willis

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical
    I've always thought Trouble in Paradise would be a delight.

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming
    Theatrically...Looper! On various home video formats, just finished Top Gun (doing a Tony Scott retrospective, gotta brush up)

    5) Favorite movie about work
    Favorite depiction of office life is Joe Versus the Volcano, but as far as a movie that's actually in an office the whole time, they don't come much better than Glengarry Glen Ross

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes
    Space Jam

    7) Favorite “road” movie
    Wild Strawberries

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?
    Neither to the first question, no to the second.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession
    At this point, probably Lost in Translation. I've never adored it any less than I did on my way out of the theater on September 20th, 2003 (some dates you just remember).

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation
    Not sure I understand the question...

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?
    I've nodded off plenty of times, but the only time I was full-on OUT is when I saw Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End for the first time. I was working a summer job, waking up at 4:30am, so a three-hour movie that started at 8:30pm was not the best idea. I'm not sure when I dozed off, but when I woke up, a gigantic Naomie Harris was smashing the ship. That's one kooky movie.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie
    Speaking of Space Jam...

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie
    Only seen two of them (I know, I'm working on it), so I GUESS Ali: Fear Eats the Soul? World on a Wire kind of drops off at the second half, but that first second is astounding.

    14) Favorite film of 1931
    The Smiling Lieutenant

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie
    The Strawberry Blonde

    16) Favorite film of 1951
    Early Summer

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    My Blueberry Nights, and I don't care who knows it.

    18) Favorite film of 1971
    McCabe and Mrs. Miller, but damn, what a year.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie
    The Wages of Fear

    ReplyDelete
  6. 20) Favorite film of 1991
    Barton Fink...or The Double Life of Veronique

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie
    Ashamed to say I'm not qualified to answer. I will say I do not care for Bad Day at Black Rock

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic
    Guess it depends on your definition, but either The Aviator or Che

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production
    The Dark Knight Rises

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?
    I'll find out when Criterion puts it out this November, but as I love me some indulgence, I suspect a big yes.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols
    Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)
    Hmmmm...elliptical.

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.
    The release of Spider-Man in 2002. The concept of building major releases around pre-existing childhood properties can almost entirely be traced back to that.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie
    Trouble in Paradise, naturally.

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)
    Les Vampires

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)
    Satantango

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?
    I buy far fewer newer titles in favor of older ones.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name
    I mean, there's Francis Ford Coppola on Jack, and then there's everything else, right?

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)
    The extent to which it counts might be debatable, but I'll stand by Sans Soleil

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?
    Well, he did actually start in on it, but had to leave, but Mick Jagger in Fitzcarraldo would have to be it. His entire part was written out, to boot. Otherwise, Nic Cage in The Wrestler, because I absolutely cannot imagine Nic Cage from ANY era, but especially this one, working well in that film.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies
    That's the big one, right? Here goes...one old, one new each night.
    Trouble in Paradise/Lost in Translation
    Last Year at Marienbad/Synecdoche, New York
    The Young Girls of Rochefort/Speed Racer

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?
    Ernst Lubitsch, Robert Altman, Bette Davis

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)
    Don't know why the warning, but luckily, I guess, I'm not qualified to answer.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Peter, you're first out of the gate! Thanks for some great answers. I'd be very curious to hear what you thought of BEDEVILLED. I saw it a couple years ago at AFI Fest and was pretty put off by it. And thanks for the reminder about IMPROMPTU. That really is a good movie and one that had fallen almost completely off my radar.

    ReplyDelete
  8. 1)What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    Well, I like grain...

    2)Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    David Bennent in The Tin Drum, Bud Cort in Harold and Maude, Lillian Gish in anything.

    3)The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    Horror Express.

    4)The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Rachel Getting Married (and I should have included Anne Hathaway as one of my faces above)

    5)Favorite movie about work

    Only Angels Have Wings

    6)The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    Don't have adult eyes yet, just bleary child ones.

    7)Favorite “road” movie
    Paper Moon should count, right?

    8)Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    Changes, in that it was so shambolic, no, not relevant.

    9)Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Ray Harryhausen's monsters, King Kong and Frankenstein were the first, and they're still on my mind.

    10)Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    Try not to get attached to things, but I like my little plastic Toshiro Mifune.

    11)Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    I have enough trouble sleeping in bed.

    12)Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Andre the Giant in The Princess Bride, if we can call him an athlete.

    13)Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    Martha

    14)Favorite film of 1931
    Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie
    Sailor's Luck

    (Pt.2 to follow...)

    ReplyDelete
  9. 16)Favorite film of 1951
    The Man in the White Suit

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    Happy Together

    18) Favorite film of 1971
    The Devils

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie
    Quai des Orfevres

    20) Favorite film of 1991
    Naked Lunch

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie
    Bad Day at Black Rock

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic
    Zelig

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production
    Most Kurt Vonnegutt adaptations.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?
    Yes.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols
    Monty Clift and Liz Taylor? Or Joe Dalessandro and Jane Birkin?

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)
    Clownangst. Movie is He Who Gets Slapped.

    27)Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.
    Gloria Stuart chucking the diamond overboard seems like a low point: did it valorize the empty, meaningless gesture in a new and damaging way? Probably not.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie
    Too many! But Five Star Final is awful good.

    29)Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)
    Workers Leaving a Factory.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)
    Berlin Alexanderplatz, probably. Still to watch it!

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?
    I have some Blu-Rays now, I have learned how to download, but I still have a lot of VHS.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name
    I dunno, this new Great Gatsby seems pretty deranged.

    33)Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)
    Blood of the Animals

    34)What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?
    Was just told that Orson Welles wanted to do The Dresser with Michael Caine. Would've been good.

    35)Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies
    Lester's The Three Musketeers & The Four Musketeers
    Dersu Uzala and Cosmic Zoom
    Sherlock Jnr and Playtime

    36)You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?
    Orson Welles, Orson Welles, Orson Welles.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)
    Donat, but I haven't seen either one.

    ReplyDelete
  10. 21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    Bad Day at Black Rock gets the silver from me.

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    I'm blown away by Lawrence of Arabia, get a kick out of Ed Wood, and wish I could vote for Boogie Nights - but the one I come back to the most, the one that never gets tiresome for me, the one that makes me have to forgive Kevin Costner's Bahstin accent, is Thirteen Days.

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    "Let's have the Star Trek crew meet God!" "Yeah! And let's have Shatner direct it!" "Yeah!"

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    Yes. The DVD era has given discerning viewers the opportunity to see the movie as its creator intended, and the ability to do so over two or more nights. When given such an opportunity, the truth will out more often than not. For more, watch the relevant passages in the documentary Z Channel.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    It's surprisingly rare when a male s.s. and a female s.s. are both at their physical peaks when they're costarring; this may account for the ongoing popularity of Mr. & Mrs. Smith. But I think I've got a good one: George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez in Out of Sight.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    Mordecai.

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    I'll give you one word - tentpole.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Encore appearance for Monkey Business.

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    The Coconauts.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Godfather II, at 200 minutes. Interestingly, Godfather III is 162 minutes, but feels longer than Godfather II.

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    Used to be I only bought movies I'd watched and enjoyed. Now I'm much more likely to buy movies I've never seen, simply because they're available for very cheap. It's a treat to pick up the reconstructed Big Red One for three bucks.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Directed by Kim Kardashian. (Well, somebody had a camera and a vision...)

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    I haven't seen a good documentary in far too long.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    One that became a book title: "If the Other Guy Isn't Jack Nicholson, I've Got the Part," which Burt Reynolds said about his auditions for both One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Terms of Endearment.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    Ah, the inevitable double bill question! Let's see... Raising Arizona / Repo Man, for their '80s off-kilter vibe, their humor and endless quotability, and their flashes of unexpected grace. Diner / Dazed & Confused, for their nostalgia, their camaraderie, and their recognition that nothing special was the most special of all. And Vanishing Point / The Driver, for the existential traveler in me. Dammit, why only three nights??

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    The alive ones. (rimshot) But seriously: Patton Oswalt, Rosario Dawson, and my brother. That could well be the greatest night of my life.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    Erik Estrada. (You were expecting maybe Robert Pine?)

    ReplyDelete
  11. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    This may sound strange, but I fear the loss of outtakes. Why preserve someone's screen test if you're running out of room on your hard drive? There are great discoveries to be made in the tossed out rushes; my heart quickens at the very mention of "lost footage," and when I see gag reels, or auditions, or deleted scenes, I can't help wondering whether I'd get to see them if they were movies made today. Wouldn't you hate losing the chance to see Marlon Brando auditioning for Rebel Without a Cause? I know I would. (It's on YouTube - but that's another topic for another day.)

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Robert Redford, Bruce Campbell, Greta Garbo.

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Imagine the hushed chorus murmuring, "Your memory's going to go a-way / Your memory's going to go a / Your memory's going to go / Your memory's going to / Your memory's going / Your memories / Your memory / Yourrrrrrr... / *you.*"

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theatrically, Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean at the Maine International Film Festival. On DVD, The American President, with my folks. Streaming, MST3K's version of The Dead Talk Back.

    5) Favorite movie about work

    Repo Man. It's all there, the tedium as well as the excitement, and it's what everyone comes to identify themselves by.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    The Love Bug. I was cringing at all the humor that would have been politically incorrect if it wasn't so casual about it. ("Wipe egg foo young off face!")

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    This is one of those that depends on my mood at the moment I'm asked. One day it could be Stagecoach; the next, 2001. Today I'm going to say Vanishing Point.

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    No and no. Eastwood's filmmaking is not improv, or vice versa. He hung his picture on the wall of immortals a long time ago; if people think him shrunken to the degree that he can't reach that picture anymore, well, at least it's still up there.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Bugs Bunny.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    I don't understand the question. Do you mean collectable junk, or an item in a B-movie that has meaning outside the movie? I have to skip this one...

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Not once.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Jim Brown in The Dirty Dozen. That's him dropping those grenades, because he was the only one fast enough to get away from the force of the explosion. That's an athlete at work, that is.

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    I've only seen one, and I can't remember what it was. Does that say worlds about me or what?

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    Marx Brothers, Monkey Business. Didn't even have to look it up.

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    Raoul Walsh did The Horn Blows at Midnight?!?

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    Strangers on a Train.

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    Pass.

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    Harold and Maude.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    Another pass; foreign films are *so* not my strong suit...

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    Silence of the Lambs, Fisher King, Barton Fink, Thelma & Louise, Slacker - they all hold not-insignificant power over me. But I'm going with Flirting, for personal reasons.

    ReplyDelete
  12. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  13. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?
    Texture.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies
    Maggie Cheung, Robert Mitchum, Myrny Loy

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical
    Antichrist -- as an opera


    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming
    The Master

    5) Favorite movie about work
    Hatari!

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes
    Chinatown

    7) Favorite “road” movie
    Something Wild

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?
    No effect.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession
    Brigitte Bardot

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation
    Newspaper ads. As a kid I pored over ads of movies I was too scared to see. They still obsess me.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why? Yes. Best was Marguerite Duras' "India Song" which is so boring it's sublime. I mean that as a compliment. That movie put me under hypnosis. I've never left a movie more refreshed.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie
    Patrice Donnelly, Personal Best

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie
    You assume there's a first.

    14) Favorite film of 1931
    M

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie
    High Sierra

    16) Favorite film of 1951
    Miracle in MIlan

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    2046

    18) Favorite film of 1971
    McCabe and Mrs. Miller.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie
    Mystery of Clouzot

    20) Favorite film of 1991
    Dead Again

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie
    Bad Day at Black Rock

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production
    Scandal, which botched the Profumo Affair.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?
    No in thunder.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols
    Depp and Jolie, The Tourist. (bite me, haters)

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)
    Snow

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.
    Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, which New Line opened without benefit of critics' screenings, showing that even the most acclaimed directors could have their movies treated like crap by the marketing department. That was a change.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie
    Night Nurse

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)
    Bertha Vanation

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)
    Carlos or 1900

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?
    Maybe more selective but that hasn't seemed to make for less movies coming into the house.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name
    Terrence Malick

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year) - - -

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?
    Annette Bening as Catwoman

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies
    Double Jeopardy and Gaslight
    Matador and Duel in the Sun
    Vanishing Point and The Brown Bunny

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they? Brigitte Bardot as she appeared in Viva Maria! and two other people who are unable to get to my place because of an East Coast blackout which cuts TV reception and leaves me and BB by candlelight to enjoy the meal I've prepared and the champagne I've chilled.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...) Peter O'Toole

    ReplyDelete
  14. Forwarded this to my friend Jamie Lewis; his responses follow...

    1. What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate? : Fewer stunts.

    2. Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies : Lorre, Buscemi, Cusack (Joan)

    3. The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical : Shoah

    4. The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming : Errol Morris' "Tabloid"

    5. Favorite movie about work: Raiders of the Lost Ark

    6. The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes : Revenge of the Pink Panther

    7. Favorite “road” movie : Mad Max

    8. Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker? : Changes. It's all relevant. I survived Pink Cadillac. I can get through this.

    9. Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession : Where Eagles Dare

    10. Favorite artifact of movie exploitation : The Mazda CX-5/Lorax headfuckathon.
    11. Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why? : The Expendables. 20 minutes in. Self-defense.
    12. Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie : Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - Airplane!

    13. Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie : Pass

    14. Favorite film of 1931 : Emil and the Detectives

    15. Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie : High Sierra

    16. Favorite film of 1951 : Lullaby of Broadway

    17. Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie : Pass. The missus says it's Happy Together.

    18. Favorite film of 1971 : Up Pompeii

    19. Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie : Pass

    20. Favorite film of 1991 : Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey

    21. Second favorite John Sturges movie : The Great Escape

    22. Favorite celebrity biopic : Wilde

    23. Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production : 2001

    24. Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no? : Yes

    25. Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols : The Great Muppet Caper

    26. One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself) : Scopolamine

    27. Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years. : Torrenting

    28. Favorite pre-Code talkie : Gold Diggers of Broadway

    29. Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus) : This Island Earth (1955)

    30. Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr) : Lord of the Rings

    31. Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how? : Gave up collecting. It's Sisyphean.

    32. Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name : The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, "directed by" David Fincher

    33. Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year) : Bully

    34. What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote? : Schwarzenegger being begged to play Stanley Goodspeed in The Rock

    35. Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies : Life of Brian and Holy Grail; Lethal Weapon and The Last Boy Scout; South Park: The Movie and Fantasia

    36. You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they? : Thomas Jefferson; Muhammed; Empress Wu Zetian

    37. Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...) : Erik Estrada

    ReplyDelete
  15. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    I don’t really have any particular issue with it. I haven’t developed any kind of genuine aversion to digital reproduction, and see quite a few problems with film in terms of image decay, etc.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Humphrey Bogart, Veronica Lake, Edward Everett Horton.

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Kidding. Pulp Fiction. Also kidding. For realsies: Annie Hall.

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theatrically, Tight Spot, a so-so 50s thriller with Ginger Rogers and Edward G. Robinson (planning to see Lawrence of Arabia in a theater later this week). On Blu Ray, The Raid: Redemption. On TV, the silent version of The Sea Hawk.

    5) Favorite movie about work

    His Girl Friday.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    The Love Bug. Not a bit of genuine humor in it, Buddy Hackett notwithstanding.

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Mad Max movies don’t count, do they? A Nous La Liberte, if that’s a road movie. Favorite Hope/Crosby Road picture: Road to Zanzibar.

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    All it did was remind me of a line from one of his movies: “We’ve all got it coming.” No relevance to his movie career whatsoever. I think the Dirty Harry movies were the high point of Eastwood as a political villain to the left, and when that blew over he ceased to be perceived as a political personality. Charlton Heston was far more significant as a right wing movie celebrity. John Wayne was in a whole other universe on that score.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Never a point in life that I can remember when I didn’t love Looney Tunes.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    I don’t know if it’s an artifact, but I vividly remember the Horror Horn, though not the movie it was in, or any scene it announced.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    The Thin Red Line, when it came out. Sleep apnea might have been an issue, but really, that sucker is boring.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Jim Bouton in The Long Goodbye. Over the long haul, Slapsie Maxie Rosenbloom.

    ReplyDelete
  16. 13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    Haven’t seen a one of them.

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    City Lights, which Wikipedia says was also the #4 grossing picture of that year, believe it or not. Hell of a year, though.

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    Gentleman Jim, after The Roaring Twenties.

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    The Lavender Hill Mob, no question. The Man in the White Suit also came out that year. Year of Marlon Brando to you, year of Alec Guinness to me.

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    The first one I see.

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    A Clockwork Orange, a tough choice over McCabe and Mrs. Miller and Carnal Knowledge. Two great lost satires from that year: A New Leaf (recently Blu-Rayed) and Little Murders. I think this was the first year I went to the movies on my own a lot, though I was too young to see most of those movies.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    Le Corbeau, after Wages of Fear.

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    Barton Fink. Not a great year, as the ones above were.

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    Nothing of his I particularly care for but The Magnificent Seven, which I’m not that enthusiastic about.

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    Yankee Doodle Dandy.

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Great idea for a movie, with the perfect old Alan Quartermain in Sean Connery, totally fucked up by idiots.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    Never seen it. Love the original score though, I have the album.

    ReplyDelete
  17. 25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Veronica Lake and Joel McCrea. I don’t know if McCrea was a sex symbol per se, but I bet he was when he did that scene with his shirt off.


    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    I don’t have one particular favorite movie at this point in my life. The one word that would instantly evoke of a favorite movie is the obvious one, “Rosebud.” I would bet no other movie has ever been so thoroughly identified with one word, dollar book Freud or not.

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    The release and success of Toy Story, which was the beginning of the end of two-dimensional feature animation in the U.S. Aladdin in 1992 and The Lion King in 1994 were the high water mark of the Disney animated feature renaissance, and from the release of Toy Story in 1995 the 2D feature has been on a sled to the graveyard. Generally I figure by 1992 the current era of movies was underway, nor are we out of it.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Technically, King Kong. Of the movies you mean when you say “pre-Code talkie,” Trouble in Paradise.

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    A DVR collection of Max Linder shorts.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    1900.

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    I have grown too old to have things change in any significant way in a 10 year period. The big question in movie collecting is, do I replace this DVD with a Blu Ray? The main question these days is to stream or not to stream, and for me the answer is still not.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    The idea that Jerry Lewis directed movies still seems kind of goofy to me.

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Sleepwalk With Me, which is more like a documentary than anything else.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Can’t decide between the following two: Humphrey Bogart and Clark Gable in The Man Who Would Be King, or Peter Sellers and Marilyn Monroe in the Ray Walston/Kim Novak roles in Kiss Me, Stupid. Think of what might have been if Guys and Dolls had Sinatra as Sky Masterson, Bob Hope as Nathan Detroit and Stanley Donen directing.

    ReplyDelete
  18. 35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    If I had a revival theater it would be called The Hidden Fortress, and it would have a huge neon sign flashing on and off in red and green kitsch-oriental letters, HIDDEN/FORTRESS, HIDDEN/FORTRESS HIDDEN/FORTRESS. One day when I had nothing better to do I started programming some double bills for this imaginary theater. Some of the better ones were Thief of Baghdad (1940) with Time Bandits; Dr. Strangelove with The Manchurian Candidate; Goyokin with Kung Fu Hustle; The Fortune Cooke with Jerry McGuire; Green for Danger with The Lady Vanishes; Dumbo with The Triplets of Belleville; Chinatown with Miller’s Crossing; Brazil with A Clockwork Orange; The Devil and Daniel Webster with Bedazzled. There would be a series called The Beginning and the End, which would pair movies from the dawn of an actor’s career and the end: The Petrified Forest with Beat the Devil; Young Mr. Lincoln with My Name is Nobody; The Private Life of Henry VIII with Witness for the Prosecution. I imagined weekend marathons such as the Caught Dead in Los Angeles marathon (In a Lonely Place, Double Indemnity, Point Blank, The Long Goodbye, Repo Man, Pulp Fiction) or the Thief Procedural marathon (Rififi; League of Gentlemen; The Killing; The Asphalt Jungle; The Lavender Hill Mob; A Fish Called Wanda; Reservoir Dogs; The Castle of Cagliostro). Along with the Toshiro Mifune marathon every anniversary. Alas, the Hidden Fortress exists only on the screen of my television set.

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Orson Welles, Groucho Marx and Pauline Kael. Not that they’d all get along, necessarily.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    Peter O’Toole, though when I tried to watch it once I didn’t get past the theme song.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Should have watched out for a couple of typos. Anyways, my review of Bedevilled will be posted on Thursday. As I have periodically been getting review screeners in Blu-ray format only, I'm glad I got a new player when I did. It also is set up for online streaming from Netflix.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Katherine WilsonOctober 03, 2012 7:24 AM

    1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    Pixel-pushers calling themselves FILMmakers, lol!

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Marlene Dietrich, Humphrey Bogart, Slim Pickens

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    The Godfather Part II

    5) Favorite movie about work

    The Players

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    The Secret Garden

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Two Lane Blacktop

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon?

    Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    No. Just remember Ronald Reagan was head of Screen Actor’s Guild.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Rough Magic

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    The Sponge-Bob-Thingy of a Japanese Horror film: "The H-Man" circa 1959.
    (It was my Rosebud)

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    I learned not to, from the song: "Wake Up Little Susie"

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Jim Brown in “100 Rifles” with Raquel Welch

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    American Soldier

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    Grand Hotel

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    Esther and the King

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    African Queen

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    woops!

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    Klute

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    But I don’t have any favorites

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    Raise the Red lantern

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    Last Train from Gun Hill

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    Lady Sings the Blues

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    Dixie Lanes

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    I plead the 5th.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor, “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie.

    Abracadabra

    (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    Advent of Video Games

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Don Juan with John Barrymore

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    American Cowboy, Edwin S Porter

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Das Boot, but it should be 1900

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    More old classics, less modern films

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Angelina Jolie

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Animal House of Blues

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Kim Novak as Mrs. Dean Wormer in “Animal House”.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies:

    Aguirre the Wrath of God and Enigma of Kaspar Houzer
    Seven Samauri and Dodes’ka-den
    Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and Scarface

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Sergio Leone, Howard Hawks and Ida Lupino

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    Peter O’Toole, that monkey.

    ReplyDelete
  21. For Robert Fiore: The Horror Horn, along with the Fear Flasher, was part of the 1966 movie, Chamber of Horrors.

    (Sorry, no way of contacting you directly.)

    ReplyDelete
  22. In the spirit of the quiz, I've tried to go with first impulses rather than ponder long and hard.

    1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    Respect for the integrity of the original film. Digital is as inevitable as sound was in 1929, so I've stopped shouting to heavens like a martyr. The issue is quality control. I saw a superb 2K digital screening of "Wings" that had such a film-like texture that most of the audience didn't even realize they were watching digital. That is the requirement: can digital preserve the qualities of the original film (texture, grain, color, etc) in a screening? Given that, it is absolutely essential that there are still theaters and organizations that show films on film and preserve the experience of showing films in the format in which they were originally produced and exhibited.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Buster Keaton, Bette Davis, Gene Tierney

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    The Big Lebowski

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theaters: "East Meets West" (Hong Kong) from Jeff Lau, on actual 35mm at Vancouver International Film Festival. Home video: The Blu-ray of "Bride of Frankenstein."

    5) Favorite movie about work

    A tough one. Every time I come up with a title, it's specific to a "type" of work (in invariably it's a Howard Hawks movie: "Welcome professional!"). I mean, can you top "Rio Bravo" for a film about people working together? Or "Hatari!"?

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    I can't think of one, actually, because I didn't see a lot of movies as a child and didn't really have many favorites until high school.

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    "Kings of the Road"

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    No, it doesn't change my perspective as an artist and is not relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    "Blade Runner," my first and still most obsessive movie love.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    The Madonna pap smear in "Slackers." Or do you mean a physical artifact in my collection? If so, my original French 1p "Playtime" poster.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Constantly at film festivals. The last time was a few days ago at VIFF. Because I'm cramming in four or five films a day on less than optimal sleep. I don't fall asleep in movies because I'm bored, I fall asleep because I'm pushing myself to see a film when I should really be taking a nap or something.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Lance Armstrong in "Dodgeball"

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    "World on a Wire"

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    "Tabu"

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    "High Sierra"

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    Howard Hawks' "Monkey Business"

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    "Chungking Express"

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    "Two Lane Blacktop"

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    "Le Corbeau"

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    "La Belle Noiseuse," though I first saw it in 1992.

    ReplyDelete
  23. 21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    "The Great Escape"

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    "Ed Wood"

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    "Revolutionary Road" by Sam Mendes?

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    I'm really in the "don't really care" camp. I've seen his cut and there is some beautiful stuff in it, but I'm not committed to Cimino as an artist or this film as his masterpiece.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes"

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    Professional

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    "Reservoir Dogs," which returned a kind of narrative ingenuity and movie love to genre filmmaking and resulted in a long line of bad copycats even as it signaled the birth of a genuinely gifted filmmaker.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    I'm going to go with "Trouble in Paradise," but I could almost as easily go with "Scarface" or "Shanghai Express" or one of William Wellman's dynamite pre-code pieces.

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    "John Ott's Sneeze" (1894)

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Does "Heimat" or "Berlin Alexanderplatz" count. If not, in terms of strict theatrical films, I guess it's "The Human Condition."

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    I'm as obsessive as ever, but my tastes have changed a little: more interest in silent and classic film, less interest in cult and genre films.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Can't think of one off the top of my head

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Documentary is my weakest area and without searching my journal, I can't recall what I've seen this year.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Mick Jagger in "Fitzcarraldo," though that may not count because he actually shot some scenes before the film was shut down and restarted with a new cast. I do like the story of someone trying to get "The Hobbit" made with The Beatles in the cast (Ringo as Bilbo Baggins!), but I can't imagine the film being any good (unless maybe Richard Lester directed it).

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    "Steamboat Bill Jr." and "The Docks of New York"
    "The Big Heat" and "Touch of Evil"
    "Kings of the Road" and "The Muppet Movie"

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Orson Welles, Martin Scorsese, David Niven

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    Peter O'Toole

    ReplyDelete
  24. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    I'm not film-schooled this way. I DO know that Scorsese and Nolan are a couple of big-name holdouts for film. And by the way, "The Dark Knight Rises" is exquisitely beautiful in IMAX...

    2) three great faces from the movies:
    Joan Blondell, Jean Harlow. Al Pacino circa Godfather and Dog Day Afternoon.

    3) The Pleasure Seekers would make a great musical.

    4. The Dark Knight Rises for the third time in IMAX. Beautiful beyond belief.

    5. Dog Day Afternoon is my favourite movie about work. Saw it when it was first out while in university. I've grown up with Pacino.

    6. Doctor Doolittle. The Rex Harrison version. TURKEY.

    7. Thelma and Louise for fav road picture. Don't laugh.

    8. Clint Eastwood's chair lecture didn't bother me. But him having a show on the Fox network would.

    9. Gentleman Prefer Blondes and Doris Day/Rock Hudson are my longest movie related obsessions.

    10. Susan Strasberg's pink suit in "The Trip". Is that an artifact?

    11. Armageddon is great for taking naps.

    12. Johnny Weissmuller, Tarzan and his Mate. Great athlete.

    13. Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Not gonna touch that one.

    14. Public Enemy fav film of 1931.

    15. Raoul Walsh 2nd favourite: High Sierra.

    16. The Browning Version fav film 1951

    17. In the Mood for love by default

    18. Last Picture Show fav of 1971. I saw it when first released while in high school. Thought it had a contemporary storyline.

    19. Clouzot....dont know...

    20. Fav film 1991 - The aforementioned "Thelma and Louise" just because it's different. Cape Fear and JFK.

    21. Sturges 2nd fav: What else but The Magnificent Seven?

    22. Biopic: The Jolson Story, because it's a good movie but the story is fake.

    23. I'd Rather Be Rich (1964) - undone by the death of the studio system and Universal's cost-cutting. Andy Williams and Robert Goulet never got to explore their careers on film.

    24. Heaven's Gate - saw it when it was first released. Never want to see it again.

    25. Fave pairing sex symbols: Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe.

    26. I'll cite a word from a favourite movie. "Swell"

    27. The CGI in Ridley Scott's Gladiator heralded a new era of fake. I do go on about Christopher Nolan, but Gladiator and everything in its wake looks crappy when compared to Nolan's genuine crowd scenes.

    28. Midnight Mary for pre-code

    29. Oldest in collection:Thief of Bagdad (1924)

    30. Longest film owned. Some are in storage.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Yikes, I missed some when I cut and pasted...

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how? I buy strictly classic films in packages, like pre-code, westerns and noir. I may purchase a contemporary film but I have to love it very much. I know what 2012 release I'll be lining up to buy.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name.

    Jerry Lewis. Some people should just not direct.

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)
    The Story of Anvil

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Al Pacino as Han Solo in Star Wars

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    Lover Come Back/Come September

    He Walked by Night/Raw Deal

    The Taking of Pelham 123/Across 110th Street

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they? Cool guys like Victor Mature, Richard Widmark, Richard Conte, Sterling Hayden. Guys who never won oscars but admirably toiled in the Hollywood trenches..

    ReplyDelete
  26. Disclaimer: I chose most of my answers before peeking at everyone else's; thus, any similarities must result from great minds thinking alike, not from plagiarism.

    1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate? Pure aesthetics. Are we talking about shooting or projecting? Because directors can shoot on whatever they darn well please, as long as it looks good. For projection, talk to me when DCP looks as good as a shimmering 35mm print.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies. Falconetti from The Passion of Joan of Arc, Gene Kelly’s smile in anything, Jean-Paul Belmondo’s cool gaze.

    3)The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical - Pretty out there, but hear me out on this one: Straw Dogs as a rock musical. It would have to be made in the 70s though.

    4)The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming Theatrically: Looper DVD: The Black Book (1949) Blu-ray: Bernie Streaming: Ali: Fear Eats the Soul

    5)Favorite movie about work - Gotta love How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying

    6)The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes - I pretty much only watched Disney movies as a kid, and those never go out of style

    7)Favorite “road” movie - Two for the Road

    8)Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker? Nope, and it shouldn’t be. The art or work someone produces should be judged completely separately from the lives they lead. If Martin Scorsese went on a killing spree tomorrow, would it change the fact that Raging Bull is a masterpiece? As Toscanini once said of Strauss, “To Strauss the composer I take off my hat; to Strauss the man I put it back on again.”

    9)Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession - Do I still know all the words to most Disney songs? YES.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation - My boyfriend bought me a vintage cigarette ad with Rita Hayworth that plugged her latest movie – does that count?

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why? Absolutely – the movie itself doesn’t matter if I’m just plain tuckered out. I remember I was definitely drifting in and out of W.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in Airplane!

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie - Having only seen two (I know, I know), it’s Ali: Fear Eats the Soul by default

    14) Favorite film of 1931 - The Smiling Lieutenant

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie - The Roaring Twenties

    16) Favorite film of 1951 - Ace in the Hole

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie - Happy Together

    18) Favorite film of 1971 - Bananas, with a childhood shoutout to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie - The Murderer Lives at Number 21

    20) Favorite film of 1991 - Barton Fink truthfully, but to add some variety let me toss in Europa too

    ReplyDelete
  27. 21) Second favorite John Sturges movie - I guess I’ve only seen one! That’s no good.

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic - Ed Wood

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no? Can’t say

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols - Paul Newman and Robert Redford - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself) Ugh...I can't. I will say that if I hear the word "fetch" in any context I will automatically respond with "Stop trying to make 'fetch' happen!"

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years - Batman Begins and The Dark Knight kickstarting the apparent need to make absolutely everything "gritty"

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie - Gold Diggers of 1933

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)- Don’t really buy DVDs myself, but if you count ones acquired through domestic partnership, Les Vampires

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr), See above - Satantango.

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how? Didn’t buy anything then, don’t buy anything now…

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name - Paul Henreid (aka Victor Laszlo) directed a couple of bad-girl exploitation movies in 1958, evocatively titled Live Fast, Die Young and Girls on the Loose

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)- Project Nim

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote? Tom Cruise being considered for the title role in Edward Scissorhands. With most “coulda been” casting, I can at least roughly conceptualize the other person in the role – here, I got nothing. For more, there’s actually a whole website devoted to this: http://www.notstarring.com/

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies
    The Umbrellas of Cherbourg /All About My Mother
    Hellzapoppin' / Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
    Pickup on South Street / Rumble Fish

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they? Clearly this is not an original idea, but Orson Welles. I can't vouch for why other people chose him, but I watched a few episodes of this travel show he did in the 50s where he basically wanders around foreign villages and chats up the strangers, and/or partakes in local customs. Everything and everyone he interacts with becomes fascinating. Add Martin Scorsese and Billy Wilder and I'm all set for a wonderful evening.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...) - Having seen none of the films, it defaults to the jovial fellow on Pringles can ;)

    ReplyDelete
  28. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    I’m struggling with how to correctly phrase this, but will digital ever capture the
    beauty, the depth, the profundity, the “magic” of a celluloid image? Would Gone With
    the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Citizen Kane or Barry Lyndon retain the same beauty and
    power they hold if shot on digital rather than film?

    2 Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    1) Edwige Fenech; 2) Steve Buschemi; 3) Michael Berryman

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    Wild at Heart. Lynch has at least one musical number in nearly all his films anyway.

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theatrical: Hope Springs (cute) DVD/Blu-ray: Jaws (still a classic; great restoration
    job); Streaming: Apartment 143 (an OK found footage scarefest).

    5) Favorite movie about work

    If I can’t use Mad Men, then Office Space.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    I thought The Concord, Airport 79 was a badass action flick when I first saw it as a kid.
    Nowadays I realize it is Mystery Science Theatre 3000 level bad.

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    It Happened One Night (also still one of the best romantic comedies ever).

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    It does not and should not. John Wayne’s conservatism should not dilute the fact that
    he is one of the all-time great screen presences. Elia Kazan’s actions regarding HUAC
    should not dilute that his direction led to some of the greatest and most important
    performances in film history. Even Emil Jannings (who did something far, far worse than
    speak at the RNC, as he starred in Nazi propaganda films) should still be given credit for his
    brilliant performances (The Last Laugh in particular). Eastwood the man is fair game for
    choosing to speak at the RNC, but it should not alter judgment of his work.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Eraserhead. In 1987, I was introduced to it in the perfect setting: as a midnight movie in a
    small theatre near downtown Philadelphia. I have been a cult follower of this film and all of
    Lynch’s subsequent work ever since.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    Actually, artifacts. I treasure the signed copy of the Fog I received from Tom Atkins, as
    well as the signed copy of IT from director Tommy Lee Wallace.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Mom and dad once took me to a revival of The Sound of Music at a drive in rather late
    at night. Sorry, but I missed a lot of the second half. At I woke up to see the escape
    scene, where the nuns outwitted the Nazis by pulling the battery cable.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Kareem Abdul-Jabar telling off the kid in Airplane!

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    Have not seen a Fassbinder movie yet. Sorry!

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    M. Lang and Lorre’s masterpiece holds up remarkably well.

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    Sorry, I haven’t seen enough of his work to answer.

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    Strangers on a Train. Perhaps Hitchcock’s most underappreciated work.

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    See answer to Q15.

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    The French Connection. This underappreciated masterpiece from Friedkin is the cornerstone
    for every gritty, on location crime drama (both on film and TV) that followed. It also has one
    of the all time great chase scenes.

    Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is a rather close 2nd.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    The Wages of Fear (a distant 2nd behind Diabolique, though).

    ReplyDelete
  29. 20) Favorite film of 1991

    Not a great year. It’s between Silence of the Lambs and Night on Earth. I’ll go with
    Jarmusch’s Night on Earth because of less gruesome subject matter, the quirky yet
    moving concept and the New York and Helsinki segments.

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    The Magnificent Seven

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    Raging Bull. That such a lousy person could make such a compelling subject is a tribute to
    Scorcese and Schrader et al.

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    Venom is perhaps the most fearsome and most intriguing of Spiderman’s villains.
    However, the character was both woefully underused AND misused in Raimi’s final
    installment in the Spiderman series.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    No. Pretentious, preachy and dull. You can sense it is trying way too hard to be a GREAT
    film.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Tough question. I’m one of the few I guess who found Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman
    actually pretty steamy in Eyes Wide Shut.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    Jupiter

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    The frightening and iconic image of Heather Donahue’s frightened eyes in The Blair Witch
    Project. Though a few versions the “found footage” concept had existed before TBWP, its
    phenomenal success basically created an entirely new film genre.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Steamboat Willie, I guess.

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    M (1931)

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Probably INLAND EMPIRE, Lynch’s 3+ hour effort to melt your brain.

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    Definitely! I was still buying some VHS tapes then. Now, I hardly buy blu-rays
    anymore. I use either Netflix Instant or download from VUDU primarily.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Otto Peminger’s Skiddoo (the credits are sung, not just listed).

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    I re-watched Errol Morris’s The Thin Blue Line earlier this year. Not only do I think it’s the
    greatest documentary ever made, but it literally freed an innocent man.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    That Clint Eastwood was the 6th choice for Dirty Harry, behind John Wayne, Frank
    Sinatra, Paul Newman, Walter Matthau (!) and Bill Cosby (!!!)

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    Giallo night: Dario Argento’s masterpiece Deep Red followed by Sergio Martino’s
    underrated The Strange Vice of Ms. Wardh.

    The danger and tragedy of loneliness night: Coppolla’s The Conversation paired with
    Scorcese’s Taxi Driver.

    Beyond space and time night: Russell’s Altered States paired with Kubrick’s 2001.

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    1) David Lynch because if the show drags, the man can talk about quinoa and make it
    interesting (literally; see the extras in INLAND EMPIRE).
    2) Pauline Kael. Might be super bitchy with her comments, but also spot on and insightful as
    well.
    3) Groucho Marx because he’d be hysterical (and likely NC-17 rated with comments, given
    the freedom to do so).

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    Bryan Cranston as Walter White (once Mr. Chips, now Scarface).

    ReplyDelete
  30. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    Filmmakers who think that one or the other is always better. Both are fantastic tools. I could go on and on about this, but it really comes down to that: they're all tools. They each have pluses and minuses. Second biggest issue: the fact that film seems to be on its death bed for manufacturing… that's a problem. Third biggest problem: lousy projectionists.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Marlene Dietrich, Lon Chaney and Cary Grant.

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    EXORCIST II: THE HERETIC. And I'd really like to direct that. Also: THE LADYKILLERS.

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    4. Theatrically: LOOPER. Blu-Ray: JOHN CARTER. Streaming: SIDE BY SIDE.

    5) Favorite movie about work

    5. 8 1/2… close second and third: BLOW OUT, and THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    I love HE BLACK HOLE too much to admit it doesn't hold up.

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Honestly? Probably THE MUPPET MOVIE, because I genuinely love that film.

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    I think it speaks to a certain laziness and entitlement I didn't expect of him, honestly. And not his backing of Romney per se, but his comments and attitude.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    THE SHINING.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    I really love my LOST HIGHWAY and TAKING OF PELHAM 1-2-3 (the original) posters.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    11. No, but I remember trying to in SISTER ACT.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    My mind is blanking. Maybe Fred Williamson in MASH? It's all I can think of right now, besides Bruce Jenner in CAN'T STOP THE MUSIC. And we can't give it to him.

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    You know, I'm ashamed to say I don't think I've seen two of his films.

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    1931: Probably MONKEY BUSINESS?

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    Well nothing beats THIEF OF BAGHDAD… what would be second? It's been a while, but maybe WHITE HEAT?

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    1951: STRANGERS ON A TRAIN.

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    I haven't seen enough of his work.

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    A CLOCKWORK ORANGE.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    My love for DIABOLIQUE can't be abated, but I haven't yet seen WAGES OF FEAR.

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    Cronenberg's NAKED LUNCH.

    ReplyDelete
  31. 21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    Second favorite would probably be THE SATAN BUG. MAGNIFICENT SEVEN was great too.

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    LAWRENCE OF ARABIA.

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    SLIVER. HEAVEN'S GATE.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    Yes, but mostly as a lesson in what not to do.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Favorite ever? Jeez, I don't know. Clooney/Lopez actually were great in OUT OF SIGHT and Ford/McGillis in WITNESS, but classically you could do Hepburn/Grant in PHILADELPHIA STORY, Bogart/Bergman in CASABLANCA, Grant/Saint in NORTH BY NORTHWEST, Davis/Henreid in NOW VOYAGER, Niven/Hunter in A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH… I could go on.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    Aqaba.

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    The last 20? Probably THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT, technically.

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    At this point most likely an old clamshell VHS of LOOKER.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    I'd have to do a thorough audit, but probably DAS BOOT?

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    More streaming, and if I want to own, I opt for Blu-Ray…

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Stanley Donen, SATURN 3. Or John Huston, ANNIE. Or if you want to go the other direction, David Cronenberg, FAST COMPANY. But probably Nancy Walker, CAN'T STOP THE MUSIC takes the cake.

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Two festival hits called JOBRIATH A.D., and VITO, which was on HBO. I haven't yet seen HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE but I hear it's fantastic.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Marilyn Monroe was almost cast in BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S. Runner up: Redford, Warren Beatty, Paul Newman and half of Hollywood as SUPERMAN.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    Night one: THE BAD AND THE BEATIFUL and LOST HIGHWAY. Night two: LOOKER and EXISTENZ. Night three: STALAG 17 and INGLORIOUS BASTERDS.


    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Stanley Kubrick, Stanley Kramer and Alfred Hitchcock.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    Ummm… I'll say O'Toole. Because I haven't seen the rest of them.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Spontaneous ejaculations:


    1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    Subliminal / unconscious effects of watching digital without projection and same flickering.


    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Marty Feldman, Audrey Hepburn, Ernest Borgnine

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    A Clockwork Orange

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

    Don’t watch DVD/BluRay/Streaming for movies. If I can’t see it in a cinema, I’m unlikely to see it.

    Thank Gahd for AFI Silver. . . .

    5) Favorite movie about work

    The Apartment.


    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    Beyond the Valley of the Dolls
    [at thirteen, it made an impression!]

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Kelly’s Heroes

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance
    relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    No [not consciously]; no.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Don Rickles.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    Soundtrack to Superfly.


    Oh; I went with blaxploitation



    Um, autographed Dana Delaney promo photo from Exit to Eden.


    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Finding Nemo.

    Borat.

    Would have fallen asleep for Brimstone and Treacle, but I walked out.

    Quite a few others; escorting friends or children to stuff I didn’t care for.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Kevin Costner in Bull Durham.

    [have you seen his swing?]

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    I have seen one segment of Berlin Alexanderplatz. That’s it. So I don’t have a second.


    14) Favorite film of 1931

    Monkey Business.


    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    They Died with Their Boots On

    ReplyDelete
  33. PART II


    16) Favorite film of 1951

    A Streetcar Named Desire

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    You’ve lost me.

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    Kotch

    I also dig Harold and Maude and McCabe and Mrs. Miller

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    You’ve lost me.

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    Talent for the Game

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    The Magnificent Seven

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic


    Searching for Sugar Man
    [stretching the definitions of “biopic” and “celebrity”]


    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)


    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    Surprisingly, yes.

    I’m easily influenced by popular myths

    . . . but not always

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Stretch Me
    [Seka and John Holmes].

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    Loot?!?!?

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    Batman
    – Jack Nicholson would never be reined in again. . . .


    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie


    Duck Soup.
    If you mean “‘pre-Code’ pre-Code,” then Red Dust. “Say-gon” indeed. . . .

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    Nosferatu

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)


    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    I figured out I could stop buying DVDs that I never watch, and BluRays that I never watch, in favour of streaming – which I never watch.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name


    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Searching for Sugar Man


    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Annette Haven in Body Double

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    without thought

    Dracula A.D. 1972
    The Dirty Dozen

    Kelly's Heroes
    Duck Soup

    Life of Brian
    National Lampoon's Animal House


    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Groucho Marx, John Lennon, and my old man.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)


    Reduced Fat

    ReplyDelete
  34. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    I have no issues. I'm no purist. I'll watch a film anywhere, in any format.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Garbo. Keaton. Demarest.

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical.

    The Big Lebowski.

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theater: Premium Rush. Streaming: In The City of Sylvia.

    5) Favorite movie about work

    Office Space.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes.

    Mary Poppins does drag a bit in the middle...

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Vanishing Point

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    In retrospect, Blondie might have taken Tuco's advice: "If you have to shoot, shoot. Don’t talk.”

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    The films of Warren Beatty.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    I did fall asleep and missed the end of The Tree of Life. There was something about a bridge and then, well...

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Alex Karras in Against All Odds.

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    I'd need a first.

    ReplyDelete
  35. 14) Favorite film of 1931

    The Smiling Lieutenant

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    Pursued.

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    I'm tempted to yell Stelllllla! But I'm going to pick The Tall Target.


    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    Chungking Express.

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    How do you choose between Two-Lane Blacktop, Dirty Harry, Vanishing Point, Shaft, A New Leaf, Pretty Maids All In A Row, Klute and McCabe and Mrs. Miller? You don't!

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    Sorcerer.

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    It sure ain't Hudson Hawk, D! Let's go arty: Until The End Of The World, where the end is scored to a U2 soundtrack.

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    McQ.

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    I'm fond of the old-fashioned, fictional ones, like The Glenn Miller Story.

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    The Magnificent Ambersons?

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    YES!

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Anything with Clark Gable and Joan Crawford. Though Cary Grant and Grace Kelly ain't bad, either. Or Sean Connery and Ursula Andress.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    Dimple.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Hmm.. on advice of council I invoke my rights as guaranteed by the 5th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

    Partly because I find this quiz to be elitist and discriminatory against people like me who go to the movies for the pretty pictures and Milk Duds.

    Sigh.

    ReplyDelete
  37. 27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    Uh...

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    I know Stanwyck's in it.


    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    1920. One Week. Buster.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Probably Reds.

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    Yes, I collect less. Mostly stream or rent.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Directed by Madonna.

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    The Union, Cameron Crowe's underrated film about the making of Elton John and Leon Russell's duet album.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    1 Hallelujah, I'm A Bum and The Band Wagon
    2. Five-Star Final and All The President's Men
    3. Nightmare Alley and Carny

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Dennis Cozzalio, Farran Nehme and Sheila O'Malley.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...) Robert Donat.

    ReplyDelete
  38. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    That smeary look that digital has.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, Jean Gabin.

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    Last House on the Left.

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Beasts of the Southern Wild at the theatre. Watched The Postman on Youtube last night (don’t hate me). Last rental disc: A Single Man.

    5) Favorite movie about work

    Busting, with Elliott Gould and Robert Blake.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    Hercules Unchained.

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Rafferty and the Golddust Twins.

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    Not at all.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Westerns.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    Any poster of someone pointing a pistol at the viewer.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Camelot. First release. Boring.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Jim Brown, in The Split.

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    All of them except for Berlin Alexanderplatz.

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    The Public Enemy.

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    High Sierra.

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    A Place in the Sun.

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    As Tears Go By.

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    A Fistful of Dynamite.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    Les Diaboliques.

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    A tie between Point Break and Van Gogh.

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    I’ll Cry Tomorrow.

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    Saving Private Ryan.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    No.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    A Place in the Sun: Monty and Liz.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    Django.

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    CGI.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Scarface.

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    Pandora’s Box.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Berlin Alexanderplatz.

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    Digital downloads.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Gangster Story, directed by Walter Matthau.

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Mickey Rourke turning down Pulp Fiction because he was training for a boxing match.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    The Public Enemy/Scarface. Rio Bravo/El Dorado. Django/Compañeros.

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Orson Welles, Tallulah Bankhead, Akira Kurosawa.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    Sorry, Peter.

    ReplyDelete
  39. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?
    The arrogance of some filmmakers

    2 2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies
    Peter Lorre, Lon Chaney, Rondo Hatton

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical
    The Taking of Pelham One Two Three

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming
    Prometheus/The Avengers

    5) Favorite movie about work
    Office Space

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes
    Bad Ronald

    7) Favorite “road” movie
    The Road

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?
    Neither/No

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession
    The Great Escape

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation
    Pam Grier

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?
    Yes/During A Dolphin Tale for 30 seconds, just too tired

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie
    Ray Allen in He Got Game

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie
    Don't have a first favorite, sorry

    14) Favorite film of 1931
    Monkey Business

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie
    They Drive By Night

    16) Favorite film of 1951
    Strangers on a Train

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    Chungking Express

    18) Favorite film of 1971
    The Omega Man

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie
    Les Diaboliques

    20) Favorite film of 1991
    Once Upon a Time in China

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie
    The Magnificent Seven

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic
    Raging Bull

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production
    Batman and Robin

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?
    Yes (why not?)

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols
    Out of Sight/ Clooney & Lopez

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)
    Cooler.

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.
    The T-2000.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie
    Waterloo Bridge

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)
    Freaks

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)
    The Great Escape

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?
    Yes/I buy more

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name
    Let's Get Harry by Alan Smithee


    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)
    Sam Peckinpah: Man of Iron

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?
    Ronald Reagan was almost cast in Casablance

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies
    The Great Escape/The Magnificent Seven
    The Taking of Pelham One Two Three/Busting
    Alien/Jaws

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?
    Don Mattingly, Dana Delaney, My Dad

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)
    Erik Estrada

    ReplyDelete
  40. 1) The possible loss of film as a preservation medium.

    2) Shemp Howard, Ava Gardner, Ned Sparks.

    3) THE FRONT PAGE/HIS GIRL FRIDAY.

    4) Theatrically: LAWLESS. Others: N/A.

    5) Work as in an office? If not, does TOUCH OF EVIL count?

    6) TOPKAPI. Fell flatter than a souffle.

    7) Why ROAD TO MOROCCO, of course. Otherwise, EMPEROR OF THE NORTH POLE.

    8) Eastwood: No. No.

    9) IT'S A MAD MAD MAD MAD WORLD.

    10) Not sure this actually qualifies, but a pair of 3-D glasses autographed by Andre DeToth.

    11) I have sleep apnea, so I nod off quite a bit.

    12) Reggie Jackson in THE NAKED GUN.

    13) Fassbinder--I loathe them all.

    14) Ooh, tough to pick. I'll be contrary and say SAFE IN HELL.

    15) THE ROARING TWENTIES.

    16) THE THING. (Oddly, both this and #14 could be answered by "M.")

    17) Wong Kar-wai--see Fassbinder.

    18) SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL GUNFIGHTER. So sue me.

    19) THE WAGES OF FEAR.

    20) THE COMMITMENTS.

    21) Another toughie. To be contrary again, I'll go with THE HALLELUJAH TRAIL. (#1 is THE SATAN BUG.)

    22) Would ED WOOD count?

    23) NOTTINGHAM, which was twisted into the dreadful Scott/Crowe ROBIN HOOD.

    24) Heaven’s Gate--No.

    25) Walter Matthau and George Burns in THE SUNSHINE BOYS.

    26) One word--MAD.

    27) The last significant upheaval was 1986, when TOP GUN proved that you could make a fortune with utter garbage. Quality control flew out the window, never to return.

    28) O-o-oh, so many. Okay, BLESSED EVENT.

    29) Oldest as in date of production or length of time in my collection? Specificity!

    30) Excluding serials, probably the laserdisc of NAPOLEON.

    31) Less 16mm, more DVD.

    32) John Huston, ANNIE.

    33) SOUTH SEAS ADVENTURE in Cinerama.

    34) John Wayne turned down a role in BLAZING SADDLES, but said he'd be first in line to see it.

    35) Pass. I'd go crazy trying to decide.

    36) Billy Wilder, Oscar Levant, Groucho.

    37) Um, Ronald Colman?

    ReplyDelete
  41. Always look forward to these, Dennis. As usual, I've posted my answers here. Many thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  42. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate? I love the way film looks. I’ve seen some gorgeous digital images. If they can preserve it and they can project it, I’m good with it.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies: Steve Buscemi, Michel Simon, Michèle Morgan.

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical: Human Centipede? Actually I thought “Midnight in Paris” would have been more to my taste with the addition of swell songs.

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming. Theatrically: “The Avengers.” DVD: “Roberta.” Streaming: “The Thin Red Line.”

    5) Favorite movie about work: His Girl Friday.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes: “Atlantis: the Lost Continent.”

    7) Favorite “road” movie: Does the episode of “Route 66” where they meet Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney Jr., and Peter Lorre count? If not, let’s say “Five Easy Pieces.” I wish I could say “Lolita” but both versions largely ignore that aspect of the novel in favor of more mundane matters.

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?: Neither and nope. I’d be amazed if anybody who takes this quiz cares.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession: The elusive left side-boob of Susan Sarandon.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation: The poster for “Pretty Maids All in a Row” at my friend Chuck’s house.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?: I worked as an usher at the long lamented Park Theater in Caldwell NJ for two years (until it burned down on Bastille Day, 1974), and there was an incredibly comfortable chair at the rear of the auditorium. I still have no idea how “W. R.: Mysteries of the Organism” ends, or even where the parenthesis in the title was.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie: Rosie Grier in “The Thing with Two Heads.”

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie: I’ll say “Tenderness of the Wolves” since he’s IN it. Although it’s really number one, since I think all the other ones are number two, if you get my drift.

    14) Favorite film of 1931: Le Million, or Monkey Business.

    ReplyDelete
  43. 15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie: Colorado Territory

    16) Favorite film of 1951: The Thing from Another World.

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie: Aw, jeepers. I haven’t seen any, but “In the Mood for Love” is on my Netflix queue.

    18) Favorite film of 1971: The Last Picture Show.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie: Le Corbeau

    20) Favorite film of 1991: Silence of the Lambs, I fear.

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie: The Magnificent Seven. Although I wish Ernest Borgnine had been in it.

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic: Did they do one on Klaus Kinski? If they did, THAT.

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production: Super 8. Although I guess it’s more of a good script idea that was let down by the script.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?: Haven’t had the pleasure / agony. The excellent ‘Final Cut’ documentary about it (seen on YouTube) makes me think I’d give it a grudging ‘yes.’

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols: Jean Harlow & Clark Gable in “Red Dust.” But Clooney and Lopez in “Out of Sight” is also right up there.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself) “Cuckoo-clock.”

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years: I can’t think of anything that won’t read like “Get off my lawn, you kids!” so I’ll pass.

    ReplyDelete
  44. 28) Favorite pre-Code talkie: I need some help with the title here. Joan Blondell is a waitress, and she leans across the counter and tells some guy, “As far as you’re concerned, I’m strictly A.P.O.—Ain’t Puttin’ Out.”

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus): Zero for Conduct, maybe.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr): Seven Samurai?

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?: I lost whatever it was that compelled me to own the movies I love around 10 years ago. Long before that I noticed that I never watched my copy of “Bringing Up Baby” but always made an effort to catch it on TV. Friends burn stuff from The Internet Archive for me from time to time, but managing my Netflix queue is as close as I come now to having a collection that any serious collector would recognize as a one. [Speaking of which, you and that other cat convinced me to put “American Horror Story” on the queue with your ongoing back-and-forth, and now I have to be careful about continuing to read it!]

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name: Beware of the Blob, directed by Larry Hagman.

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year): “In the Realm of the Unreal: The Mystery of Henry Darger.”

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?: George Raft turning down every iconic Bogart role for around 5 straight years has always resonated with me.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies: Here goes: Hallelujah I’m a Bum / Nothing Sacred; A Woman Is a Woman / Last Days of Disco; The General / O Brother Where Art Thou.

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?: Tura Satana, Thelonius Monk, and Robby the Robot.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...): Erik Estrada?

    ReplyDelete
  45. 36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?
    Paulette Goddard, Rosalind Russell, Ava Gardner

    ReplyDelete
  46. Jeff Gee - re #28; that's Other Men's Women (1931), also starring James Cagney & Mary Astor.

    ReplyDelete
  47. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Matthew David WilderOctober 05, 2012 12:39 PM

    1.) The bottom line: my movie education came from film prints. And very imperfectly reproduced and broadcast movies--the phrase "remastered" would be a laugh here. These motion picture prints had one essential quality: skin. Soft skin, puckered, scarred, ribbed, old and faded, near dead and pink. But it was a body. A film had a body. With no body...that's a whole other universe.

    2.) Setsuo Hara, Beat Takeshi, Lisabeth Scott.

    3.) Trouble in Paradise?

    4.) The Paperboy

    5.) Working Girls (Lizzie Borden)

    6.) Pygmalion with Leslie Howard

    7.) Detour

    8.) It diminishes him greatly.

    9.) DePalma-philia

    10.) I have a bunch of very very Kinko's-esque original Z-minus-budget "lobby cards" for Killing of a Chinese Bookie.

    11.) Constantly. It is one of the few times I let go and relax. I have seen tons of movies in a drifting-in-and-out state of consciousness.

    12.) Joe Namath in C.C. & Company?

    13.) I Only Want You to Love Me.

    14.) The Public Enemy

    15.) Gentleman Jim

    16.) A Place in the Sun.

    17.) Happy Together (maybe My Blueberry Nights?)

    18.) McCabe & Mrs. Miller

    19.) The Raven

    20.) Barton Fink

    21.) Bad Day at Black Rock

    22.) Inferno: A Linda Lovelace Story

    23.) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

    24.) No, no, a thousand times no.

    25.) Charade

    26.) Sociables

    27.)Whichever movie first put Act 3 in an urban downtown where characters throw cars and tanks at each other.

    28.) Three on a Match.

    29.) Musketeers of Pig Alley.

    30.) Out:1?

    31.) Much greater focus on US 1930-60.

    32.) Electra Glide in Blue.

    33.) Crazy Horse

    34.) Warren Beatty in Hardcore?


    35.) SHE KILLS IN ECSTASY + VIOLATED VIRGINS. DEATH LAYS AN EGG + WIND FROM THE EAST. THE BOWERY + GENTLEMAN JIM.

    36.) Edie Sedgwick, Soledad Miranda, and MYRA-era Raquel Welch. Then let's forget about the Oscars.

    37.) I'm gonna be perverse and say Anthony Hopkins in MEET JOE BLACK. A Mr. Chippy performance

    ReplyDelete
  49. @ Patrick: Thank you! And I saw it less than a year ago! Yeesh.

    ReplyDelete
  50. Also, I'd like to rescind my Oscar Party invitations to Tura Satana and Thelonious Monk (no offense, seating is at a premium), and go with Joan Blondell and Thelma Ritter. Still inviting Robby the Robot, who could synthesize bourbon.

    ReplyDelete
  51. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    The disappearance of film as an available choice for filmmakers and the lack of places for film-on-film to be projected on a screen. That may be two issues, but I feel they're connected.


    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Lee Marvin. Anna Magnani. Hanna Schygulla.


    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    An American Werewolf in London

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theatrically - The Master
    DVD - The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes
    Streaming - Taxi Zum Klo

    5) Favorite movie about work

    (tie) Office Space and Il Posto


    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    Trog, but it's worth seeing for plenty of other reasons


    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Two-Lane Blacktop


    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    I wish he hadn't done it, but it doesn't change my feelings about his work.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    I saw Pee-Wee's Big Adventure as a child, and I've watched it every year since then with the same enthusiasm and pleasure.


    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    My Fargo snowglobe showing the murder by the side of the highway.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Even though Bresson is one of my favorite filmmakers, I fell asleep during an early morning screening of L'Argent for a film history class at the university's art film theater due to an ill-advised night of drinking the night before. I'm still kicking myself for it.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    "Rowdy" Roddy Piper in They Live


    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    Fox and His Friends


    14) Favorite film of 1931

    La Chienne (Renoir)


    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    The Strawberry Blonde


    16) Favorite film of 1951

    Bellissima (Visconti)


    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    In the Mood for Love

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    Minnie and Moskowitz (Cassavetes)

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    Quai des Orfevres

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    My Own Private Idaho (Van Sant)

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    The Magnificent Seven


    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover (Cohen)


    ReplyDelete
  52. 23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    William Friedkin's Rampage could have been much more interesting if the bizarre shifts in tone hadn't been handled so flatly.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    Yes, though I'm not in a hurry to revisit it.


    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    A little cheat here. I'm turning three words into one because the character says it as if it's one word: "Almost-not-crazy."


    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    Terminator 2 was not the first film to use CGI and far from the first sequel, but almost everything at the multiplex for the last several years owes its existence to that film's success.


    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Scarface (Hawks)


    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    The Kid (Chaplin)


    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Berlin Alexanderplatz (Fassbinder), if it's not cheating to put a mini-series here. If it is, than Altman's Short Cuts is the longest in my personal collection.

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    Between the four great local video stores that have somehow managed to keep making a profit in Austin, Texas, where I live, and streaming content, I buy far fewer movies than I used to. I tend to collect music and books on a much more regular basis.


    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    I still think John Huston was a bizarre choice for Annie.


    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Last Days Here (Argott, Fenton)

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    I read somewhere that Cary Grant requested the part of The Uncle in The Innocents but was turned down by Jack Clayton in favor of Michael Redgrave. As much as I love Cary Grant, I think Clayton made the right choice, if that anecdote is factual.


    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    Dawn of the Dead (Romero)/Rio Bravo (Hawks)

    Mikey & Nickey (May)/Celine and Julie Go Boating (Rivette)

    Beware of a Holy Whore (Fassbinder)/Mulholland Drive (Lynch)


    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    John Waters, Werner Herzog, and Elvira, Mistress of the Dark


    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    I have to admit I haven't seen a single Mr. Chips adaptation.

    ReplyDelete
  53. 5) Favorite movie about work

    First one that came to mind was Glengarry Glen Ross.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    The Graduate maybe. Loved, loved, loved it as a preteen/teenager. Not so sure that I still do. The second half really is kind of lame except for the awesome songs.

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    No. And no.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?
    Yes. Broken Embraces in New York a couple of years ago. I was really tired.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie


    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    Probably Fallen Angels.

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic
    Citizen Kane

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols
    Shields and Atkins

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name
    People are always surprised when I tell them that De Palma directed the first Mission Impossible. Incidentally, it's also his best film.

    ReplyDelete
  54. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    Small town theaters that will have to close because they can’t afford the conversion.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Jimmy Durante
    Walter Matthau
    Thelma Ritter

    I think I have a thing about noses. And Thelma Ritter.

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    Down with Love

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theater: Brave. Enjoyable, but it just seemed all over the place, tossing in princess story conventions so they could be turned upside down, but it never felt like anything was really right side up.
    DVD: One for the Money. Not profound, but I thought it was pretty fun. Did they change the ending? I really didn’t remember that.
    Streaming: For the Bible Tells Me So. Pretty good, although I wish they had addressed issues a little more and the specific individuals in the piece a little less.

    5) Favorite movie about work

    Casino Royale -- just another day in the life …

    Oh, OK. I don’t know that it’s about work, but it plays an important part in Mon Oncle.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World. Feels too forced now, and with a surprisingly off sense of timing, considering the great comedians in there.

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Technically, more of a “river” movie -- The African Queen

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    Still haven’t seen it, and would prefer not to, from what I’ve heard. I don’t think it would affect my impression of his films, but I don’t know if I’d view him quite the same way.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Musicals. Love ‘em. Bring on Les Mis!

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    I’m surprised how upset I am that I cannot find my Star Wars novelization – not that I’m planning on reading it again.

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Not since I was a kid. My folks took me to a drive in double feature of Tora! Tora! Tora! and The French Connection when I was about 7. I think subtitles were too much for my young brain.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    I’m afraid I must concur with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in Airplane!

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    Well, I’ve never seen one. But just to make sure I have something to contribute on all these questions I can’t answer, I’ll suggest some questions for a future quiz (that I could answer!). How about “Last film you went to at the theater but walked out before the end?” (assuming anyone would do such a thing!)

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    City Lights

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    Well, #1 would be Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N., but … say, as a corollary to that previous question, “Most recent DVD/Bluray you didn’t bother watching to the end?”

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    No Bedtime for Bonzo yet? No, not from me either – mine is The African Queen.

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    “Favorite musical performance by an actor/actress not really a singer”

    ReplyDelete
  55. 18) Favorite film of 1971

    One of my favorites, and possibly my dad’s favorite of all time, so I’ll go with A New Leaf.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    “Favorite American remake of a foreign film”

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    A whole lot of comedies I love that year. I guess What About Bob? wins by a baby step.

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    After The Great Escape would come The Magnificent Seven.

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    Till the Clouds Roll By -- if you’ve got to have a celebrity biopic, there might as well be music!

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    The Stupids. If someone had realized the potential of the material, this could be a classic comedy. Instead, it’s (mostly) sitcom stars doing double takes.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    I don’t know anything about it, so I suppose that’s a “yes” for now.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Cary Grant and Grace Kelly in To Catch a Thief.

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    Well, the obvious word is the title, and after that it gets a little more obscure, so good luck!

    Twinkie

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    Maybe The Rock. As far as I can tell, it started a trend of nonstop intensity over believability and suspense, and emoting rather than acting. And just plain LOUD. It makes my ears hurt.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Trouble in Paradise

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    The General (1926)

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Well, if LOTR doesn’t count, then probably the TV miniseries of The Company (286 min).

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    I buy fewer movies because they’re “good” – I often end up not watching them, or watching them on TV when they happen to come on. Instead, I buy a few comfort films that I enjoy watching over and over.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    “Favorite film feline not named ‘Baby’ “

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Pianomania. I was quite impressed that the subtle differences in sound could be captured, even on my archaic TV.

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    I don’t know many, but Tom Selleck potentially as Indiana Jones does make me laugh.

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    The Gospel According to St. Matthew and Jesus of Montreal

    Flying Down to Rio and Silk Stockings

    Diva and Drive

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Bob Hope (got to be some fun stories there)
    David Niven (for the occasional bon mots)
    Thelma Ritter (because she’s Thelma Ritter)

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    “Favorite movie President of the United States”

    ReplyDelete
  56. Ever timely, I know.

    1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate? Can’t trust the image anymore. See that sunset, that set, that explosion, that makeup, the way that actor just moved his arm? None of it was real; none of it. That’s not directing a film. That’s some cross between graphic designer and traffic cop.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies. Lorre, Sibirskaïa, Malkovich

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical: “Tokyo Story”

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming: “Equinox Flower”

    5) Favorite movie about work: “Human Resources”

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes. “The Graduate”

    7) Favorite “road” movie: “Kings of the Road”

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker? No impact on any count. He hasn’t been a player in my universe since “In the Line of Fire”.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession: Davey Crockett

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation. Ummm…What, now?

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why? L’Avventura, ca. ’72. Bored shitless.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie: Curtis Cokes in “Fat City” (Sixto Rodriguez was good in it, too.)

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie: “Why Does Herr R. Run Amok?”

    14) Favorite film of 1931: “M”

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie: “The Roaring Twenties”

    16) Favorite film of 1951: “Bellissima”

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie: You would ask that.

    18) Favorite film of 1971: “McCabe & Mrs. Miller”

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie: “Diabolique”

    ReplyDelete
  57. 20) Favorite film of 1991: “Hearts of Darkness”. If documentaries don’t count, then “Flirting”.

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie: “Mystery Street”

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic: I’m blanking on this one. “Coal Miner’s Daughter”?

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production:

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no? The answer, definitively, is “no”. As Bill Clinton once put it, “This has to STOP. NOW.”

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols: John Wayne & Maureen O’Hara in “Rio Grande”

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. Geranium.

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years. It was no one thing but Pulp Fiction took things in a direction that swallowed up a lot of creative energy I would’ve been interested in seeing spent elsewhere. I’m so sick of violence in movies—and of it being seen as the cutting edge—that it’s not even funny.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie: This is brutal. “The Public Enemy” maybe.

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection: Probably “The Great Train Robbery” for a complete narrative. I’m sure I’ve got “film” that predates it, though.

    30) Longest film in your personal collection: “Shoah”, though it’s hardly a favorite. “Heimat” if we count TV.

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how? I hang onto some things I don’t like. Not sure why.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name: Can’t think of one now.

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year): Jim Benning’s “Landscape Suicide”

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote? George Raft turning down the leads in The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, and High Sierra

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies: Voyage to Italy/Contempt, The Searchers/Kings of the Road, Fish Tank/A Prophet

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they? Altman, Mark Rappaport, Oscar Levant

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. Bar-B-Q.

    ReplyDelete
  58. mike schlesingerOctober 11, 2012 4:34 PM

    A couple of corrections to my earlier post: 1900 is actually the longest film in my collection (a recent acquisition that slipped my mind). And my mind was further out to sea when I typed Ronald Colman instead of Robert Donat. (Got my Garson leading men mixed up.)

    ReplyDelete
  59. As always, these quizzes are fantastic. My answers are here:

    http://kaedrin.com/weblog/archive/002447.html

    ReplyDelete
  60. Dennis has inspired me to try my hand at the first PfB movie quiz, even though PfB isn't a viable entity yet, in honor of 12 Hours of Terror coming up next Saturday. But first, I have to provide answers to his...

    1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    Why is there even a debate? Each has its strengths, and if you choose to work in one medium, play to those. (Even the most vicious critics of "filming" in digital who saw 28 Days Later... on the big screen have to admit that scene where our little troupe are driving by with the field of flowers in the foreground? That POPS, baby. I've never seen colors that vibrant on celluloid.)

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Chaney's visage when his mask is stripped away in The Phantom of the Opera
    Jack Nicholson with that damn handkerchief plastered to his nose in Chinatown
    The look of utter defeat Frederic Forrest wears in at least half of Hammett

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    Gummo

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Been so long since I've been the movies I'm not sure, but I think A Torinoi Lo
    Baby Shower

    5) Favorite movie about work

    Fight Club

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    This list is a mile long. A Nightmare on Elm St. springs to mind most readily.

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Duel

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    (a) not really, since I've kind of assumed he was an arch-conservative ever since the Dirty Harry days
    (b) of course not. Do Lars von Trier's recent shenannigans make The Kingdom less worth watching?

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    Linda Blair. I've had a crush on her since I was six.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    If it really exists, it would be a tape of the call Charlie Sheen made to the FBI in re Guinea Pig 2 in 1990, but I don't think its existence has ever been verified. (And if it does exist, I NEED IT)

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    No--I'm way too much of a control freak, and will leave if I feel myself getting that drowsy

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Kurt... Kurt... oh, what the hell was that guy's name from Gymkata?

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    Tenderness of the Wolves (he produced, that counts, right?)

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    M

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    I'm ashamed to admit I've only seen one (but at least the "one" is They Drive by Night)

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    Ace in the Hole

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    Someday I'll get round to watching one.

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    4 Mosci del Velluto Grigio

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    Have only seen one (but again, at least it's The Wages of Fear)

    ReplyDelete
  61. Hey, is anybody going to publish a key for the answers to 26, "One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie"? I'm stumped on more than half of them.

    ReplyDelete
  62. Dennis, I think this is the first time you've put your answers up before I've had a chance to.

    Anyway, my answers are here.

    ReplyDelete
  63. Ha! I know! I'm kinda shocked at myself myself! Thanks for the link, Tony!

    ReplyDelete
  64. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    I think that is the pretense pf those who film in digital to pass it as if it was filmed in film, as done with Public Enemies, where the digital filmmaking actually hurt the film more than help it. And then something like "Inland Empire" comes that actually plays with the format, that is a good digital film.

    2)Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Boris Karloff, Rita Hayworth, Peter Lorre

    3)The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    The Cabin in the Woods

    4)The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theatrically: Miguel, San Miguel at FICV
    DVD: The Beyond
    Streaming: Werewolf in London

    5)Favorite movie about work

    The Shining... All work and no play...

    6)The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    "Jumanji" was so fucking stupid.

    7)Favorite “road” movie

    Little Miss Sunshine

    8)Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    As his legacy as a filmmaker no, but as a human being, sure it affects him and makes him despicable. That won't make me hate his films.

    9)Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    I don't know, everything is pretty recent on my side. And I'm obsessed with film as a general thing.

    10)Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    Gore, duh.

    11)Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    No, never.

    14)Favorite film of 1931

    "M"

    16)Favorite film of 1951

    "Bakushu"

    17)Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    "In the Mood for Love"

    18)Favorite film of 1971

    "A Clockwork Orange"

    20)Favorite film of 1991

    "Europa"

    22)Favorite celebrity biopic

    Fuck celebrity biopics.

    23)Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    There's the film that Hitchcock always wanted to make about ghosts, can't remember the name.

    25)Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise?

    26)One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    "Cellar"

    27)Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    The mainstreaming of digital filmmaking, making it accesible for everyone.

    28)Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Does "Frankenstein" count?

    29)Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    My collection is no good, but I do have "Murder!" by Hitchcock.

    30)Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    "Il gattopardo"

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    It's too young, not even 10 years old.

    32)Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    It still baffles me when I see something "directed by Ice Cube"

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    No doubt that is "Indie Game: the Movie"

    34)What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    The whole Carrie Fisher casting stuff.

    35)Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    "Donnie Darko" and "Magnolia"
    "The Shining" and "The Evil Dead"
    "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and "Dr Strangelove"

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Three of my best friends that can actually watch it and comment on it.

    ReplyDelete
  65. Richard T. JamesonOctober 15, 2012 3:39 PM

    1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    Can digital keep it voluptuous?

    2 2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Danny Trejo, Marlene Dietrich, Bruce Campbell

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical

    The Island of Lost Souls

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Sinister / Broadway (Fejos)

    5) Favorite movie about work

    The Shop Around the Corner

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    Flying Tigers

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Kings of the Road

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?

    No and No

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    John Ford

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    Homey don't play dat

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    Too many times, though fortunately I have stopped doing so at film festivals. It can be a useful self-defense tactic at a terrible movie.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Max Baer in The Prizefighter and the Lady

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    The Marriage of Maria Braun

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    M

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    Gentleman Jim

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    The Thing from Another World

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    N/A

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    McCabe and Mrs. Miller

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    Le Corbeau

    20) Favorite film of 1991

    The Double Life of Véronique

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    Gunfight at OK Corral

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    Yankee Doodle Dandy

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    Wind across the Everglades

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    Da

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Mae West and W.C. Fields

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    swamplight

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    "lightning" on the horizon in All the Pretty Horses making me realize the vast potential for fraudulence posed by CGI

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    Me and My Gal

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    Voyage à la lune

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    Heimat

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    Having acquired HDTV, no more recording at economy speeds

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Chuck Barris, The Gong Show

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Is The Last Time I Saw Macao a documentary?

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    Everybody is aware of this, but: the slate of bland Warners contract players once considered for the top roles in Casablanca (or was that something Richard Corliss made up?)

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    The Black Book & The Scarlet Empress (I did that)

    Out of the Past & Gueule d'amour

    The Woman in the Window & After Hours

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Would depend on the eligibility year

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    potato

    ReplyDelete
  66. My posts are here in a kinda old school sorta way:

    http://bloody-terror.blogspot.ca/2012/10/slifr-movie-quiz.html

    ReplyDelete
  67. Dave S.'s "kinda old-school way" of submitting his questions wins the All-Time Creative Answer Format honors! (I like your handwriting too, man.)

    ReplyDelete
  68. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?
    The arrogance of some filmmakers

    2 2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies
    Peter Lorre, Lon Chaney, Rondo Hatton

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical
    The Taking of Pelham One Two Three

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming
    Prometheus/The Avengers

    5) Favorite movie about work
    Office Space

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes
    Bad Ronald

    7) Favorite “road” movie
    The Road

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker?
    Neither/No

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession
    The Great Escape

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation
    Pam Grier

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?
    Yes/During A Dolphin Tale for 30 seconds, just too tired

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie
    Ray Allen in He Got Game

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie
    Don't have a first favorite, sorry

    14) Favorite film of 1931
    Monkey Business

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie
    They Drive By Night

    16) Favorite film of 1951
    Strangers on a Train

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie
    Chungking Express

    18) Favorite film of 1971
    The Omega Man

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie
    Les Diaboliques

    20) Favorite film of 1991
    Once Upon a Time in China

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie
    The Magnificent Seven

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic
    Raging Bull

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production
    Batman and Robin

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?
    Yes (why not?)

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols
    Out of Sight/ Clooney & Lopez

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)
    Cooler.

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.
    The T-2000.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie
    Waterloo Bridge

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)
    Freaks

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)
    The Great Escape

    31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?
    Yes/I buy more

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name
    Let's Get Harry by Alan Smithee


    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)
    Sam Peckinpah: Man of Iron

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?
    Ronald Reagan was almost cast in Casablance

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies
    The Great Escape/The Magnificent Seven
    The Taking of Pelham One Two Three/Busting
    Alien/Jaws

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?
    Don Mattingly, Dana Delaney, My Dad

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)
    Erik Estrada

    ReplyDelete
  69. OK, no one has compiled these yet, so I went and did it. Answered the ones I could, with a few wild stabs in the dark as well.

    Peter Nellhaus, Robert Fiore
    Rosebud -- Citizen Kane

    Sinaphile
    Sandworm -- Dune? (Although part of me wonders if it’s Beetlejuice)

    Scott Nye
    Elliptical -- ?

    Patrick
    Mordecai -- Raising Arizona

    Charles Taylor
    Snow – yike. I’ll guess White Christmas

    Jamie Lewis
    Scopolamine -- The Guns of Navarone

    Katherine Wilson
    Abracadabra – Seems like that ought to be easy enough. No clue.

    Sean Ax
    Professional -- ?

    Trish
    Swell -- Easter Parade?

    Julie
    Fetch – She also provided a quote, which I looked up, i.e. I cheated. So I’ll not spoil it for others.

    Robert Daniel
    Jupiter -- 2001?

    Zod Microbe
    Aqaba -- Lawrence of Arabia

    Mister muleboy
    Loot?!?!? -- ?

    Larry A.
    Dimple -- ?

    Dan Leo
    Django -- The Triplets of Belleville?

    Turafish
    Cooler -- The Great Escape

    Mike Schlesinger
    Mad -- It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World?

    Leopard13
    Rick’s -- Casablanca

    Jeff Gee
    Cuckoo-clock -- The Third Man

    Matthew David Wilder
    Sociables -- The Music Man?

    Dr. Mystery
    Almost-not-crazy -- ?

    Weigard
    Twinkie – no hints from me yet!

    Tom Block
    Geranium -- ?

    Mark
    Booooyyyyyyyyyy! -- North by Northwest?

    Tony Dayoub
    Assassination -- ?

    Jaime Grijalba
    Cellar -- ?

    Richard T. Jameson
    Swamplight -- ?

    Dave S
    Thorwald -- Rear Window

    Dennis Cozzalio
    Haven -- Serenity?

    Ivan
    Monolith -- 2001

    Brian Doan
    Shocked! -- ?

    ReplyDelete
  70. Correct on "Coockoo-clock." I'm guessing Brian Doan's "Shocked!" = Casablanca. "Twinkie" has me stumped, unless it's "Milk" or "Zombieland."

    ReplyDelete
  71. 1) What is the biggest issue for you in the digital vs. film debate?

    As others, including our host, have pointed out and discussed at length, it would have to be the availability of 35mm prints for art houses, independent cinemas and especially repertory screenings. The squeeze the industry is putting on smaller theatres to convert or die will inevitably result in a lot of smaller cinemas going under, which can only result in more screens devoted to the blockbuster of the week and less screens for more eclectic film programming. This is especially true with repertory cinemas, which will have fewer choices for the forseeable future. Here in New England, I dread seeing the great programming of theaters like the Brattle and the Coolidge affected by the digital conversion, although it appears so far that they’ve been able to use creative means – the Brattle recently borrowed John Landis’ personal print of Schlock – to keep their calendar as diverse as ever.

    2) Without more than one minute’s consideration, name three great faces from the movies

    Jack Elam, Sissy Spacek, Jim Broadbent

    3) The movie you think could be interesting if remade as a movie musical When I was in high school, some friends and I ran our own theatre company (Rushmore wasn’t far from our reality). Once we were having a meeting about what play we should stage next, and a trenchcoat-wearing occult aficionado in the group piped up with “Let’s do Blade as a play!” We laughed at the time, but as the suggestion has stuck with me all these years, I have to admit that it would at least be interesting. Sadly, we never had the audacity to try it, although I remain proud of our production of Barton Fink.

    4) The last movie you saw theatrically/on DVD, Blu-ray, streaming

    Theatrically: Lincoln. A great movie and, as a Spielberg film, surprising in many ways. And so many outstanding beards!

    On Blu-ray: 3 Women, as puzzling and hypnotic as ever.

    5) Favorite movie about work

    The Shining and The Conversation are two great movies about characters who spend too much time on the job. But for a movie set in a traditional workplace, I’d go with Secretary.

    6) The movie you loved as a child that did not hold up when seen through adult eyes

    I saw Hook on the big screen when I was seven years old, and I was completely enchanted; it was the first movie I asked to see a second time, and if you’d asked me back then, I would have told you it was as good as E.T. and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. When I saw it again as an adult, I realized how overproduced and flat much of it is. I still can’t help having some affection for it, though, and Dustin Hoffman and Bob Hoskins are still terrific. And John Williams’ score is one of his best; it deserves a better movie.

    7) Favorite “road” movie

    Badlands

    8) Does Clint Eastwood’s appearance at the Republican National Convention change or confirm your perspective on him as a filmmaker/movie icon? Is that appearance relevant to his legacy as a filmmaker? Clint’s movies have always reflected his politics, but even movies with overtly conservative elements like Million Dollar Baby and Gran Torino are strong enough films that they make a case for virtues like self-reliance (and his obvious contempt for people on welfare) without ever feeling didactic or one-sided. He should probably sit out the next RNC, but he’s a great director, and I don’t want to only watch movies that confirm the correctness of my own politics. I still like Bat Out of Hell, too.

    9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    I can’t wait to see Room 237, as daffy as some of the theories it presents about The Shining might be. I first saw the film over 20 years ago, and I think about it almost every day. I’ve read volumes about it, and I’m still capable of being sucked into a 5,000-word essay or 60-minute YouTube video analyzing the film at a moment’s notice.

    ReplyDelete
  72. 9) Longest-lasting movie or movie-related obsession

    I can’t wait to see Room 237, as daffy as some of the theories it presents about The Shining might be. I first saw the film over 20 years ago, and I think about it almost every day. I’ve read volumes about it, and I’m still capable of being sucked into a 5,000-word essay or 60-minute YouTube video analyzing the film at a moment’s notice.

    10) Favorite artifact of movie exploitation

    A Turkish one-sheet of Dario Argento’s Inferno, signed by the director. It was Argento who told me it was a Turkish poster, explaining, “In Turkey, they add snake. This not enough. They need snake. Yes, Turkey.”

    11) Have you ever fallen asleep in a movie theater? If so, when and why?

    I nodded off during the last 20 minutes of the remake of A Nightmare on Elm Street. I can’t think of a more damning review of that turd.

    12) Favorite performance by an athlete in a movie

    Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Terminator

    13) Second favorite Rainer Werner Fassbinder movie

    This quiz has reminded me of a serious blind spot of mine - I've only seen two Fassbinder movies! The lesser of the two is Querelle.

    14) Favorite film of 1931

    City Lights

    15) Second favorite Raoul Walsh movie

    High Sierra

    16) Favorite film of 1951

    The Day the Earth Stood Still

    17) Second favorite Wong Kar-wai movie

    Chungking Express

    18) Favorite film of 1971

    I put A Clockwork Orange at the top of my '71 list earlier this year. I re-watched it a few months ago, and it's still amazing, but I have to admit that a few scenes dragged in a way that they never had before. It could be that my perspective on it has changed a bit for the worse over the years, or (hopefully) I'm just too familiar with it and waiting a few years before another rewatch will make it fresh again. But for now, I'll go with Harold and Maude.

    19) Second favorite Henri-Georges Clouzot movie

    The Wages of Fear

    ReplyDelete
  73. 20) Favorite film of 1991

    My Own Private Idaho

    21) Second favorite John Sturges movie

    Bad Day At Black Rock

    22) Favorite celebrity biopic

    It's weird to think of Raging Bull as a "celebrity biopic," but it is a biopic and LaMotta was famous, so there it is.

    23) Name a good script idea which was let down either by the director or circumstances of production

    The first one that comes to mind is Red Dragon. It's the best of Thomas Harris' books featuring Hannibal Lecter, and we already had proof, with Manhunter, that it could make for a pretty great movie. But Brett Ratner's bland direction wastes both the script and one of the best casts ever assembled, and the awkward attempts to create more screen time for Anthony Hopkins results in scenes getting shoehorned into the movie that make little or no narrative sense. It's watchable, but I can't help being disappointed by what a huge missed opportunity it is.

    24) Heaven’s Gate-- yes or no?

    It's beautifully shot, but I found it dramatically inert. However, it's been ten years since I saw it, and I've found myself thinking about it here and there over the past few years. The Criterion Blu-ray is tempting, and I'm sure it would at least look fantastic on our TV, but I'm hesitant to spend thirty bucks to find out that it's no better than I remember, or perhaps even worse.

    25) Favorite pairing of movie sex symbols

    Julie Christie and Warren Beatty in McCabe and Mrs. Miller. Something about covering them in all that dirt and grit and stripping them of any glamor - Christie as a Cockney whore (using her real accent) and Beatty as a dopey grifter who, nevertheless, has got poetry in him - makes them sexier and more real than any of their star vehicles (Shampoo, where Beatty also plays a schmoe, is almost as sexy).

    26) One word that you could say which would instantly evoke images and memories of your favorite movie. (Naming the movie is optional—might be more fun to see if we can guess what it is from the word itself)

    REDRUM

    27) Name one moment which to you demarcates a significant change, for better or worse, on the landscape of the movies over the last 20 years.

    When Yoda went from puppet to CGI character in Attack of the Clones. It was the moment when practical effects officially became retro, the idea that a character that had been beloved for over twenty years was now a flaw that had to be improved. It was a solution that nobody was asking for.

    28) Favorite pre-Code talkie

    The Public Enemy

    29) Oldest film in your personal collection (Thanks, Peter Nellhaus)

    Nosferatu

    30) Longest film in your personal collection. (Thanks, Brian Darr)

    1900

    ReplyDelete
  74. 31) Have your movie collection habits changed in the past 10 years? If so, how?

    A few years ago, when my ex-wife and I separated, my movie collection was halved. As I've been gradually rebuilding my collection, I realized that my attempt to get as many classics and serious movies as possible had resulted in what a woman I dated rightly called a sad bastard collection; most of the comedies I had were nabbed by my ex, and my copies of movies like 21 Grams and A Very Long Engagement have been collecting dust for years. So I decided that I didn't have to replace every last Very Important Movie, and if I want to buy Predator 2 on Blu-ray for $7.50 then, by God, I'm going to buy Predator 2 on Blu-ray for $7.50.

    32) Wackiest, most unlikely “directed by” credit you can name

    Ghost Dad, directed by Sidney Poitier.

    33) Best documentary you’ve seen in 2012 (made in 2012 or any other year)

    Cave of Forgotten Dreams

    34) What’s your favorite “(this star) was almost cast in (this movie)” anecdote?

    It'd have to be Nick Nolte as Han Solo, because it inspired this:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MmLo91A7HI

    35) Program three nights of double bills at a revival theater that might best illuminate your love of the movies

    Vertigo and Mulholland Drive, Orpheus and Wings of Desire, All That Jazz and Synecdoche, New York

    36) You have been granted permission to invite any three people, alive or dead, to your house to watch the Oscars. Who are they?

    Paul Lynde, Ivan the Terrible and LexG.

    37) Favorite Mr. Chips. (Careful...)

    Erik Estrada!

    ReplyDelete
  75. Can I still submit my answers? I want to change my "Incomplete" to an "F".
    http://coolbev.blogspot.com/2012/12/chips-ahoy.html

    ReplyDelete