I can tell you all about the movies I bought on DVD tonight at Fry’s. They were on sale and I had some extra money so I went crazy: Cold Comfort Farm, The Cat’s Meow, and The Truth about Charlie. Before you all fall over backwards with shock about the last one, let me explain that the Truth about Charlie DVD also have Charade on it and the consensus from various review sites is that this is the best transfer of Charade available, even better than the Criterion DVD. Also, much cheaper than the Criterion DVD. I almost bought Junior Bonner but I want to find out about the DVD quality first because I am picky that way. For the sake of Steve McQueen, I assure you.
You don’t want to hear about any of this, do you. You want to hear about new movies, movies that are premiering this week. No one wants to know all the sordid details of my DVD collection (which is actually a lot smaller than you would think). No one wants to hear about the later films of Bogdanovich and Schlesinger. That’s fine.
This is all procrastination because I feel like I don’t have much of anything to say about this week’s movies. It must be some kind of summer movie slump. Or maybe it’s because I’ve had to work on Math Stuff in the office, and Math Stuff makes me cranky and edgy and less likely to show much interest in new movies. Also, I can feel a headache approaching. But I will try my best.
New movies in Austin this week:
Collateral—Michael Mann. Tom Cruise. Jamie Foxx. Hey, there’s Bruce McGill. Still. I need to go take some headache meds. Should I take the migraine meds or the sinus headache meds or the plain old painkillers? Decisions, decisions. Despite my instinctive apathy about this movie, the buzz is that it’s one of Tom Cruise’s better performances. Fine. I’m picking the migraine pill.
A Home at the End of the World—This is the movie from which they edited Colin Farrell’s full-frontal nude scene because it was too distracting. Personally I think the world would be a better place if we were less freaked out by full-frontal male nudity in films. If you really want to know more about this movie, I recommend Iain’s comprehensive review. Meanwhile, I want to know where the hell my migraine meds went. I can’t possibly have run out. Whew, there’s one in my purse.
I really ought to take the time to do my relaxation exercises that are supposed to stop migraines dead, but I’m so devoted to finishing this entry tonight that I cannot possibly take the time. The sacrifices I make …
I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead—Hey, any movie with a Warren Zevon-esque title should be good, shouldn’t it? This actually sounds weirdly interesting, a noir-ish movie directed by Mike Hodges, who wrote and directed Get Carter (the 1971 original, not the 2000 remake) and who directed Flash Gordon. Malcolm McDowall is the bad guy, which is always entertaining.
Okay, I am taking a brief break from writing this to refill my migraine drug prescription on the Web. Isn’t the Web a wonderful thing? I hope I don’t have any more migraines in the next week before the drugs get here, assuming this is even a migraine.
Little Black Book—I think I’d rather talk about migraines. It pains me to see that Holly Hunter and Kathy Bates are in such a terribly lame kind of movie. It pains me still more to realize that this is what the romantic comedy, such a fresh and wonderful thing in the 1930s, has become today. If I want to see a charming love story in a contemporary movie, I don’t look for a “romantic comedy” but rather an action or suspense (or caper) film with a romantic subplot. Maybe I should have seen if Fry’s had Out of Sight on sale. Or Trouble in Paradise.
In case you hadn’t figured it out, the whole subject of What Happened to the Romantic Comedy is a migraine trigger for me, right up there with blinky lights and televised Presidential press conferences.
Maria, Full of Grace—This movie has been playing in arthouse theaters around the country and drawing surprisingly large crowds. It appears to be a cut above the usual gritty-foreign-independent-depressing fare that seems to haunt the Dobie, and it’s gathering many favorable reviews. The movie is about a young pregnant woman who agrees to smuggle drugs from Colombia to New York City. I believe this might be worth seeing if I can find the time—hopefully it’ll run longer than a week at Dobie.
Twilight Samurai (Tasogare Seibei)—You have to be careful about movies with the word “Samurai” in the title. You never know if you’re going to get something wonderful like Seven Samurai or something like Six-String Samurai. Or how about The Last Samurai? I think the migraine drug is starting to kick in. This movie was nominated for a 2002 Academy Award … and it’s only now getting to Austin. Apparently it’s not one of the sword-filled samurai movies, but instead is about your everyday hardworking ordinary Joe Samurai. I hope none of those reality-show producers get any ideas.
Notable revivals in Austin:
Annie Hall/Manhattan—Wednesday 8/11 and Sunday 8/14 at the Paramount. I know that Woody Allen isn’t for everyone, not even the early funny ones, but if you like these movies they are worth seeing in a theater, particularly Manhattan.
The Exorcist—The original movie is playing at Alamo downtown at midnight on Saturday. If it weren’t at midnight, I’d be there. I haven’t seen this movie since high school and I am dying to see it again, and I’d much rather see it at Alamo than rent it. But I’m getting old and sad and lame about midnight movies, I fear.
Sergio Leone marathon—Still going strong at the Paramount this weekend. I haven’t been able to see any of them yet but I’m hoping to catch at least one.
At home, we still haven’t watched Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control yet and I’m hoping we get to it soon. I also rented Gregory’s Girl, which I haven’t seen before. I really ought to watch those films before opening the new DVDs.
It all depends on if I can get rid of this damned headache. I’m going now to take the best cure I know … a good night’s sleep.